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COMMEMORAllVE 



BIOGRAPHICAl RECORD 



-OK- 



DUTCHESS COUNTY, 



NEW^ VORK, 



COTAlMNG 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OL PROMINENT AND REPRESENTATIVE 
CITIZENS, AND OF MANY Cf THE EARLY SETTLED FxVMILIES. 



-IJL .,USTR ATED- 



CHICAGO; 

J. H. BEERS & CO. 
1897. 



n 



l-^O"] 



I- ROM rHE PKKK. Of WllOH. IIUMI'IIKEVS & CO.. 
hoUKTH ST., LOatHslflRT. INIl. 



F'l^EF^.^OE. 



THE importance of placing in book form biographical history of representative citi- 
zens — both for its immediate worth and for its value to coming generations — is ad- 
mitted by all thinking people; and within the past decade there has been a grow- 
ing interest in this commendable means of perpetuating biography and family genealogy. 

That the public is entitled to the privileges afforded by a work of this nature needs 
no assertion at our hands; for one of our greatest Americans has said that the history of 
any country resolves itself into the biographies of its stout, earnest and representative citi- 
zens. This medium, then, serves more than a single purpose; while it perpetuates biogra- 
phy and family genealogy, it records history, much of which would be preserved in no 
other way. 

In presenting the Commemorative Biographical Record to its patrons, the pub- 
hshers have to acknowledge, with gratitude, the encouragement and support their enter- 
prise has received, and the willing assistance rendered in enabling them *to surmount the 
many unforeseen obstacles to be met with in the production of a work of this character. 
In nearly every instance the material composing the sketches was gathered from those im- 
mediately interested, and then submitted in type-written form for correction and revision. 
The volume, which is one of generous amplitude, is placed in the hands of the public with 
the belief that it will be found a valuable addition to the library, as well as an invaluable 
contribution to the historical literature of the State of New York. 

THE PUBLISHERS. 



i 

t 


• 

1 



JOSEPH F. BARNARD. 



BIOGRAPHICAL. 




ARNARD. HON. JOSEPH F. 
The family of this distin- 
guished citizen of Poughkeep- 
sie, Dutchess county, is of 
English origin. 

In very early times two 
brothers by the name of Bar- 
nard received a patent from 
the king of Great Britain of a considerable 
tract of land upon the island of Nantucket, 
and there they and their descendants made 
their home until about the year 1818. The 
father pf Joseph was born upon that island, as 
was his father and his father's father, and his 
father's grandfather also. 

This makes quite a long line of American 
citizenship. By birthright the Judge must be 
an American of Americans. The business of all 
upon this island from time immemorial was to 
"go down to the seas in ships," a life of trial, 
adventure and profit, in pursuit of the whale, 
principally, but sometimes chartered for com- 
mercial ventures the world over. At about the 
age of twenty years Frederic Barnard, the fa- 
ther of Joseph, came to the fore and took 
command of a ship sailing in all the seas where 
the whale was to be found. He seems to have 
been the last male representative of the name 
and fortunes of the Barnards at Nantucket. 
About this time he married a Miss Margaret 
Allen, a native of Millford Haven, on the bor- 
der of Wales and the kingdom of Great Britain. 
William and Thomas were born there. Re- 
maining there a few years, Frederic brought 
his family to Nantucket, and having accumu- 
lated a fair competence he migrated with his 
family of two children and wife to the east 
bank of the Hudson river about two miles north 
of the then village of Poughkeepsie, and settled 

upon arl estate of about 100 acres of farm and 
1 



wood lands. It is said that he was attracted 
to this location partly by the fact that there 
was a company here engaged in sending out a 
fleet of whalers to search the seas for whales, 
then valuable for oil and bone. But the father 
of Joseph engaged in no further business ven- 
tures. He lived quietly upon his lands, doing 
not much more farming than seafaring men 
are accustomed to do when upon the seas. 
Here were born to this father and mbfher eight 
additional children, si.x sons — Thom'as^, Henry, 
Joseph F. , John, Frederic, George — and two 
daughters — Margaret and Martha. Each of 
these lived to adult age except Heijry, who 
from some child's sickness died as a little one 
of some half dozen years. 

Capt. Frederic Bernard used his time and 
resources most faithfully and wisely for the 
profit of his numerous family, for every child, 
nine in number, both girls and boys, were as 
thoroughly educated as was possible in this 
country. William, Thomas, Robert and Fred- 
eric were each graduates from Union College, 
while John, Joseph F. and George G. were 
graduated from Yale. This shows remark- 
able fixedness of purpose in a parent, and 
shows also that there were no idle ones in 
that family. Capt. Barnard seems to have 
taken the bearings of life early and to have 
sailed the ship without variation from the true 
course. In that day the funds and opportuni- 
ties for education were far more difficult of 
attainment than now since the cities and State 
almost fill one with learning with but one 
price — the boy must be diligent. In 1836 
Frederic Barnard parted with the lands upon 
the Hyde Park road and purchased of Walter 
Cunningham the premises known as 47 Can- 
non street, where he died at the age of eighty 
years. The house is still owned within the 



2 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



family, and Margaret Barnard, and Martha B. 
Jones, widow of judge Samuel Jones, now re- 
side there during a portion of each year. All 
of the brothers of Joseph F. Barnard are now 
deceased. William, Thomas and Henry died 
at Poughkeepsie, and John at Santiago, in the 
Republic of Chili, where he acted most suc- 
cessfully and with uncommon skill in behalf of 
the government as a civil engineer. He was 
said to be one of the ablest in his profession. 
Frederic and Robert practiced law in Califor- 
nia and died there. George G. was a law3'er, 
recorder, and judge in New York City and died 
there. Every member of this large family 
who lived to manhood or womanhood, was 
known for quick abilities, thoughtful also, ahd 
won to themselves the firmest personal friend- 
ships and regard from others. 

On December 31, 1893, our subject laid off 
the robes as presiding justice of the supreme 
court, he having then reached the age of sev- 
enty years — the constitutional limit. On this 
occasion the story of his life as here given ap- 
peared in the Poughkeepsie Nezvs-Telegrap/i 
of about that date: 

"Joseph F. Barnard was prepared for col- 
lege at the Dutchess County Academy in the 
village of Poughkeepsie and finished the course 
at Yale, graduating in 1841. He returned to 
Poughkeepsie and resided at the Barnard house 
on Cannon street. He entered the law office 
of Stephen Cleveland, then that of Henry 
Swift, each most able lawyers of that day 
here. He was admitted to practice about the 
year 1845. He began his career as a lawyer 
at Poughkeepsie alone. He was tall, thin 
and pale, but athletic, given to rowing, swim- 
ming, and keeping out of doors a good share 
of the day, although he attended carefully to 
his little business. He was alert, independent, 
not at all given to oratory, but his work was 
done and the matter was either won or lost, 
and no one found fault with him or his effort. 
It seemed to be from the time of his first efforts 
that the work was thought to be well done if 
he did it. He used his time upon a wise plan, 
such as to be sure of having what he wanted 
of it for his business. He arose early, and 
the office work, drawing of papers, writing 
letters, and hunting law, was done at once. 
Much was added to his knowledge of law, and 
his clients' business was attended to, and then 
ho had more leisure time for recreation, and 
had done as much work as any man on the 
street. He had no influences of family, or 



corporation to help him. He got clients, 
poor ones with small business at first, 
but the people began to discover that there 
was something to get in his office; and the 
farmers and able people of the county who 
wanted a militant lawyer, and did not ex- 
pect to be fawned over in a law office, began 
to be seen there early in the morning. He 
had them, after a few years, sufficient for full 
employment; he was earnest in whatsoever he 
took hold of ; if he was not to be, he let go of 
it very quickly — the dawdling client's money 
had no place in his pockets, and this quick- 
brained, truthful lawyer had no use for any 
part or parcel of such case or man. He won 
the cases in court that work, ingenuity and 
law would win; fair charges were made, col- 
lected, and business closed. Next morning he 
was early at the office ready for a new invest- 
ment in himself. The clients came more and 
more plentifully until his time was used fully, 
and if there was a tough, hard job of litigation 
or a close legal question, and people wanted 
sure work, and answers to live and die by to 
questions of law, the hard-headed working and 
business men stated their cases to him, and 
sometimes the statements had to be shortened, 
too, for he was ready to answer, and it may be 
that he wanted the question or statement to 
be lively in its delivery also. At any rate he 
got a place as lawyer at the Poughkeepsie bar, 
wherein he had more real clients than any 
other lawyer here. No large corporations — 
but suits for all the people everywhere, suits 
about little things and big. People who want- 
ed right protected or a wrong stopped took 
him for lawyer quickly. The trials, as to all 
the various businesses of men, in which he put 
his fervid, his best, efforts, it was always one 
thing with him, the best he could do; they 
were all the time going on and covered our 
county completely, until he was the head of 
the profession here, and people commonly 
said if he said a thing it must be so. He was 
careful of money, but obliging with it in all 
proper situations, often helping the nafdy client 
with aid to tide him over troubles. He did 
not appear to think life was all on one side, 
and that side for himself. 

"In 1863 there was an opening for some 
Democratic lawyer in this judicial district to 
be elected as justice of the supreme court. 
Joseph F. Barnard was the choice of the pro- 
fession and people in Dutchess county. There 
was no question made as to that here, and, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



after some little struggle at Brooklyn, he was 
nominated and elected for eight years at a 
salary of $2,500 per year; after serving this 
term he was again elected, in 1871, for the 
term of fourteen years, at a salary of $8, 500 
per year: this term he served in full, and was 
again re-elected in 1885, for the term of four- 
teen years; for each of these two latter terms 
he was renominated by both political parties, 
and with the expiration of this year (1893) the 
eighth year of the present term, liis ofSical 
duties end as judge. 

" Judge Barnard began the discharge of his 
official duties with the same earnestness with 
which he had acted as advocate or counsel. 
He was the servant of the people and did their 
work only, and this was first with him, above 
all things, during these whole thirty years. 
He was early at his post — indeed, his life work 
thus far has been largely done by noon of each 
succeeding day, and it has been an exceedingly 
active lawyer who has been able to be at the 
court room before him with business for the 
judge, or order, or paper for him to sign. 
This has enabled him to dispose of the busi- 
ness, and to take upon himself to personally 
see to many things, in the administration of 
the law, that are usually disposed of otherwise. 
This has been largely to the benefit of the 
people in money, and in the saving of their 
time. There is a vast amount of work for the 
judiciary of the district of which Dutchess 
county is a part to do, it being a: district with 
as great a population as any in the State. But 
the appeal calendar under Judge Barnard was 
clear each term, the special and regular court 
terms for trials are made to move with vigor, 
lawyers, jurymen and all are kept busy with 
this system of going ahead with business. 
When the court house bell is ringing the 
judge is on the bench ready, with gavel in 
hand, to begin the duty of the day. This 
place, he considered, was as important as a 
railroad train, and why delay and use up the 
people's money in idle court hours when just a 
little pains on the part of each would bring all 
of them along in time 1 At any rate the sys- 
tem of this judge has kept our calendars clear 
of stale suits, and there is no long deferred 
litigation to worry and perplex litigants. 

" In the work of Judge Barnard as a trial 
judge a great benefit has been conferred. 
The case, and nothing else, was to be heard. 
The attorney who wandered, as manj' are 
prone to do, into illogical paths, was suddenly 



brought up with an admonitory word, and 
things moved on apace. There has been no 
known delay of this judge to administer the 
\vord, and the ways were made plain, kindly 
but firmly. How is it.' It is often asked, 
' Does the judge try cases all the time .'' It has 
come about in Dutchess county, that almost 
all the law cases are left to arbitrament by 
Judge Barnard without a jury, and thus, day 
by day, the weeks, months and years have been 
going away — the judge constantly trying cases, 
as it makes so much less trouble to the litigants 
and less expense in all ways. The practice in 
this respect has brought cases to a conclusion, 
and prompt justice is had. 

' ' What scenes of legal work have transpired 
in those plain rooms wherein our special terms 
are held! The judge has sat there as any 
other occupant of the room, near the table, 
surrounded by the counsel for the parties, 
with nothing in seat or station to indicate his 
rank in the assembly. At times the room is 
filled with the leading lights of the profession 
from New York and Brooklyn, and some great 
case is heard, involving millions of property 
rights, perhaps; the arguments are varied, op- 
posing and masterly; but almost invariably as 
soon as the argument is ended, if there is need 
of decision, it is rendered at once, orally — in a 
few plain words, directly to the point, and de- 
cisive of the subject matter. This quickness 
of decision has been of great value to both 
lawyers and their clients. ^ 

' ' Sometimes it has seemed that the case has 
been by him rolled up and handed over in a 
very small parcel, and just a little warm from 
the mental forging, but it has had the thing in it 
that has satisfied the people, for it was right 
and men could see it. It is a great thing for a 
man to have so satisfied the conscience of all 
the people through thirty years of living under 
their gaze, and administering their affairs. 
Of friends the judge has many, but some of 
those, with whom youth and manhood were 
passed, have gone from earth. Other lawyers 
were here to strive and work with him. Judge 
Charles Wheaton, Homer A. Nelson, John 
Thompson, Edward Crummey, Cyrus Swan, E. 
O. Eldridge, L. B. Sackett, and others; with 
them, as a lawyer, he had his struggles, but 
he was just as readj- to help them to win their 
cases when he was not engaged against them, 
as he had been to win his own. He has 
greatly enjoyed the society of his legal breth- 
ren, and jokes and pleasant talks were a daily 



COM.VE.VORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



repast; indeed, the writer has often, in the 
early days, found great pleasure in the talks 
of Judge Charles Wheaton, and those other gen- 
tlemen of the law. Sometimes the joke would 
be upon Judge Barnard — often this way when 
Judge Wheaton was to the fore — and the 
Judge has not failed since his accession to the 
bench to use and fully enjoy these kindly and 
and familiar social habits. But, in passing, a 
word must be in justice said, that many a hard 
knock-down has come to many of us when our 
cases did not upon e.xamination bear his acute 
inspection. What a legal fight there was 
about the building of the reservoir, about the 
walling in of the Fallkill and the Quicksilver 
Mining Company case; and cases without 
number could be mentioned, especially remark- 
able, from the public interest as to their de- 
cision, and by reason of the eminence of the 
counsel engaged — but why particularize when 
it has been every-da} business for him for 
thirty years full of work. 

"The father of Judge Barnard and his an- 
cestors for many generations were of the sect 
known as Quakers, bringing with them to Nan- 
tucket this religious faith and practice. The 
mother was of the Church of England, and 
Joseph and the other children were, through 
her influence, brought up in the American rep- 
resentative of her faith, the Episcopal Church. 
The Judge is a most faithful reader of the Bi- 
ble and a firm believer in the doctrines it sets 
forth, and it is often that he speaks with won- 
der of the wealth of wisdom in the book. 

'•Judge Barnard has become the owner of 
man> farms in the county of Dutchess, and 
also of a number in other counties. He has 
taken much care of these possessions, and has 
put the buildings and the farm appurtenances 
in first-class order; indeed, nearly all of them 
have new sets of buildings upon them, and, 
perhaps, in this opening for personal attention 
to the management of lands, crops and nice 
stock of farm animals, he may find a charming 
employment, in out-door life, in his days of 
leisure to come. It has been his constant 
pleasure to walk over the roads and fields, 
taking close note of all that there is in Nature 
— getting health, rest and amusement. .All 
the roads and ways upon each side of the river 
for miles around have been well and frequently 
traveled by him. He continues to practice, as 
a means of throwing off the burdens of in-door 
life. Judge Barnard has always been a Dem- 
ocrat, and a man in sympathy with the people. 



In 1861 he was married to Miss Emily B. Has- 
brouck, of Kingston, Ulster county. They 
have two children — Frederic Barnard, yet re- 
siding with his parents in their beautiful home 
in Poughkeepsie, and a daughter named Maud, 
who is now Mrs. James Leno.x Banks, of New 
York City; each of these, the son and son-in- 
law, are graduates of Yale College, and are 
each lawyers working in the profession for its 
emoluments and honors. A young lawyer bids 
us say, and we cannot refrain from so doing, 
since we think it a sure mark of greatness and 
broadness of thought in a man who has won 
high position by dint of merit, to remember 
how weak and timid Joseph F. Barnard once 
was as a lawyer; and so we must say that, to 
the young lawyer, diffident, strange in the 
place, poor, usually, and needing help just 
then with his case, no parent with his child 
could have been more considerate than Judge 
Barnard was with him. No attempt at praise 
in this article has been intended, and only the 
facts of this useful service to us all has been 
the purpose of this story to plainly and truth- 
fully give. " 



J 



fUDGE CHARLES WHEATON (deceased). 

,j The subject of this sketch, one of the most 
talented and distinguished members of the 
Dutchess County Bar, was born May 21, 1834, 
at Lithgow, in the' town of Washington, 
Dutchess county. 

He was connected bj' marriage and blood 
with many well-known residents of this region, 
the Bockee, the Carpenter, the Barculo, the 
Smith and the Thompson families, and his 
ancestors in the direct line were among the 
most prominent citizens of their day. His 
(Charles \\'heaton's) great-grandfather Whea- 
ton died during the Revolution, in the city of 
New York. His grandfather Augustus (born 
in 1774 in New Miiford, or. town of Washing- 
ton, Conn., and died in 185 i in New Miiford) 
was married, about 1796, to Hannah Givan, 
of the town of Washington, Conn. ; she was 
born in 1776, and died in 1825 in Pompey, 
N. Y. In about 1802 Augustus Wheaton 
came to the town of Northeast, Dutchess 
county, where he remained till 1810, managing 
one of Judge Isaac Smith's farms. In 18 10 
he moved to Pompey, N. Y. , with his family, 
where he bought a farm and lived till about 
1840. In 1S33 or 1834 he was appointed by 
the Governor as inspector of salt, which posi- 




(3 ^^^^--^^*-^^^^^^^^«--^-^^, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPBICAL BECORD. 



tion he held for about five j'ears. Later he 
removed to his former home, New Milford, 
Conn., where he married Miss BQstwick. He 
died in 1851. 

On December 15, 1804, Charles Wheaton's 
father. Homer, was born about three-quarters 
of a mile north of the Square. He commenced 
his school life at Pompey, where he entered 
the academy at eight years of age. His pre- 
cocity is evidenced by his being already engaged 
in translating Xenophon when nine years old. 
He entered Hamilton College in 18 19, being 
'graduated in 1822, and delivering the English 
oration. He studied law, was admitted to the 
bar, and began to practice in Syracuse. On 
June 23, 1830, he married Louisa Smith, 
daughter of Judge Isaac Smith, a well-known 
jurist and large land-owner of Dutchess count}', 
and as she preferred to live near her old home 
he gave up his profession and came to Lithgow, 
where his time was largel}' occupied in manag- 
ing the estates of his wife. He prepared for 
the ministry of the Episcopal Church, was 
ordained in 1841, and in 1842 was made 
assistant rector of Christ Church, Pough- 
keepsie, and in 1846 was chosen rector, serv- 
ing one year, when he resigned and returned 
to Lithgow. Here he acted as rector of St. 
Peter's Church, building Episcopal churches 
in Amenia Union and Beekman during his 
ministry. In 1854 he was urged by a number 
of the clergy for the bishopric then vacant by 
the death of Bishop Wainwright, but his relig- 
ious views were undergoing a change, and he 
discouraged the movement. In 1855 he be- 
came a Roman Catholic, and thereafter resided 
at his beautiful country home till within a few 
years of his death, which occurred in his nine- 
tieth year. He had become quite deaf, and 
was accidentally killed by the cars at Mill- 
brook, on November 12, 1894. 

As to the maternal ancestry of Charles 
Wheaton: His mother, Louisa Smith, was 
born March 29, 1805, and died May 21, 1863. 
Her father, Isaac Smith, was born at the 
Square, July 25, 1767, and died at Lithgow in 
1825. Early in the century he held the office 
of county judge, and served also as member of 
the Assembly of the State. For the earlier 
history of the Smith family we copy the follow- 
ing from an old record : ' ' William Smith came 
from Gloucestershire, in England, in or about 
the year 1635 or '636, unto Boston, where he 
was persecuted for his religious principles. He 
left Boston and came to Hempstead, on Long 



Island, in the year 1639, where about forty 
families that had left Boston on the same ac- 
count had settled about two years before, under 
the States of Holland. He was killed a few 
years after by the Indians. He left several 
sons: John, Abraham and Morris. Abraham 
had two sons — Isaac and Abraham; the young- 
est removed to Cape May, in New Jersey. 
Abraham died, aged eighty-six years. Isaac 
Smith, he settled on the side of Hempstead 
Plains. He was born about the year 1657 or 
'8, and died in the year 1746. He left two 
sons — Jacob and Micah. Jacob was born De- 
cember, 1690; Micah was born 1703. Jacob 
died in the year 1757. He left two sons — 
Thomas, born 9th of August, 1720; Jacob was 
one of the judges of the Court of Common 
Pleas when he died. Isaac Smith was born 
the 9th day of September, 1722, and moved 
from Hempstead, in Queens county, where his 
ancestors fiad resided nearly a century before, 
to the town of Amenia, in Dutchess county, 
the year 1769" — and from another section: 
"Isaac Smith was born September 9, 1722; 
Margaret Piatt was born August 16, 1728. 
They were married January 2, 1743 or '4. Of 
eleven children born to them, Isaac Smith was 
the tenth, born July 25, 1767," the grand- 
father of Charles Wheaton, subject of this 
sketch. 

Of the two sons of Homer Wheaton, the 
elder, Isaac Smith, died in November, 1872; 
Charles, the younger son, was a graduate of 
the College of St. James at Hagerstown, Md., 
and a tutor there for two years. He then 
studied law in the office of Thompson & 
Weeks, of Poughkeepsie, was admitted to the 
bar, and entering the office of Silas Wodell, 
then district attorney, he became assistant 
district attorney. In 1863 he was elected 
county judge, and on the resignation of Judge 
Homer A. Nelson, who had been elected to 
Congress, he was appointed to fill his un- 
e.xpired term in addition to that for which he 
had been chosen. He declined a renomina- 
tion, and never again held a public office, al- 
though as an ardent believer in the principles 
of the Democratic party he valiantly led a 
"forlorn hope" several times against the 
overwhelming Republican majority of his dis- 
trict. He seemed to care nothing for defeat; 
the cause was all that he considered; the 
principles which he held dear filled him with 
enthusiasm, in which the thought of self had 
no place. He was candidate for Congress in 



6 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



1866, for the U. S. Senate in 1873 (against 
Roscoe Conkling), and for State Senator in 
1877, bearing the party standard as gallantly 
as if success instead of defeat were assured. 
He was frequently a delegate to State Conven- 
tions, and on several occasions was chairman, 
his clearness of intellect and judicial fairness 
making him an ideal presiding oflicer. He 
held minor offices of public trust, fulfilling 
their duties with scrupulous care, serving on 
the board of education, and on the board of 
managers of the Hudson River State Hospital 
for many years. With his high intellectual 
endowments, and a manner which never failed 
to establish a spirit of good-fellowship, it has 
been a matter of surprise to many that he did 
not make use of opportunities for distinction 
in public life which arose from time to time. 
But he was genuinely indifferent to official 
honors for himself, and preferred rather 
to help his friends, when victory was 
probable, than to enter into competition 
with them. Again, his high sense of 
honor has stood in his way on more than 
one occasion, and the story is told that 
in 1879, during the preliminary campaign for 
the nomination of a governor, a friend asked 
his support for the State Treasurership. Judge 
Wheaton's promise was readily given, and 
when he was afterward notified by several 
delegations that he could be named for gover- 
nor if he so desired he informed them that he 
could not accept the nomination as his promise 
had been given to support a Dutchess county 
man for the Treasurership, and two could not 
be chosen from that county. Had he been 
nominated, he could certainly have been 
elected, as he would have reconciled all fac- 
tions. Public opinion is united in the belief 
that had he possessed greater ambition, and a 
less scrupulous sense of honor, he would have 
filled a larger place in the public eye. This is 
doubtless true, but one may well question 
whether he would have found in official place 
and power the satisfaction which private life 
afforded one of his temperament. A lover of 
books and travel, of home and all the refine- 
ments of cultured society, it is no wonder that 
he turned from the turmoil of political life 
with perfect contentment. He died Tuesday, 
May II, 1886, at the early age of fifty-two, 
after a brief illness. The funeral services were 
held in St. Paul's Church at eleven o'clock, 
Friday, ^fay 14, and the sad event was marked 
by sincere grief among all classes. The mem- 



bers of the Dutchess County Bar, who attend- 
ed the funeral in a body, passed the following 
resolutions of condolence and respect: 

Whereas, Tht- members of the bar of the County of 
Dutchess have learned, with threat sorrow, of the death 
of th^ Hon. Cliarles Wheaton, and have met in council to 
publicly express their appreciation of the man and their 
sympathy with his family: 

Rewired, That in the loss of our well-beloved associate 
and friend, ever upright, courteous and generous, pure of 
character, honest of purpose, filling every position with 
sagacity and courage, never faltering or hesitating in fol- 
lowing his convictions of duty, a profound lawyer and 
learned man, an impartial and clear-minded judge and a 
wise counsellor, always ready to aid the younger and less 
experienced of his associates, and a firm and steady 
friend, we desire to place on record an expression of our 
common loss, and to his family our condolence and our 
sympathy in their bereavement. 

On further motion it was resolved that, out 
of respect for the deceased brother, the mem- 
bers of the bar attend the funeral. 

Judge Wheaton was married in Pough- 
keepsie, October 26, 1859, to Miss Caroline 
Barculo, who survives him. They had five 
children: Barculo, born September 24, 1861, 
died at the age of thirteen; Louisa, born Au- 
gust 6, 1863, is a sister in the order of The 
S. H. C. J. at the convent at Sharon Hill, 
Penn., near Philadelphia; Isaac Smith, born 
December 13, 1864, resides at Lithgow, and 
is married to Helen Marguerite Fairchild, of 
New York; Frank died at the age of fourteen 
months; and Agnes, born January 19, 1870, is 
in the convent at Sharon Hill. A few years 
after his marriage Judge Wheaton built the 
brick mansion in North Hamilton street, which 
faces Mansion square near the intersection of 
Mansion street. There his children were born, 
and there he accumulated his library. He 
was rarely absent from home, and never for a 
long period of time. He made an extended 
trip through Europe in 1880 in company with 
his family, and returned with probably acuter 
and more appreciative knowledge of what he 
had seen than most travelers gain. Extensive 
reading had prepared his mind for the scenes 
and objects he was to visit; therefore, sight of 
them was had with a relish that was keen and 
intelligent. He loved to talk of his experi- 
ences; those that were vital with humor or 
exhibited striking phases of human nature were 
narrated by him with bright phrases and a 
verbal coloring that indicated his many-sided 
apprehension. His amusements were all of 
an intellectual character; outdoor diversions 
seemed to have but little attraction for him. 
In his younger manhood his physique was 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



almost perfect, his sound health imparting a 
ruddiness to his skin and a brightness to his 
eyes that set him forth one of the handsomest 
of men. These qualities, added to his native 
honhoiiiii\ made him especially attracti\e. His 
courtesy toward women, and good fellowship 
with men, assured him a lasting popularity. It 
can be said with literal truth that Charles 
Wheaton was one of Nature's noblemen. His 
intellect was a noble gift; his perceptions were 
of the keenest, his powers of expression supe- 
rior; he apparently lacked nothing of a thor- 
oughly-equipped mind. His knowledge of his- 
tory was wide and e.xact; perhaps few men in 
this State e.xceeded him in the wealth of mid- 
dle-age and modern history. Polite literature 
was a favorite study in his younger years, and 
as he approached the end of half a century of 
life his literary tastes and reading were una- 
bated. He was especially informed concern- 
ing the literature of the Elizabethan, the Queen 
Anne and the Georgian eras of English drama, 
oratory and belles lettres. The law seemed to 
possess more attractions for him in his early 
manhood than in his later years, and while 
such attractions receded from him, the allure- 
ments of modern and coetaneous literature 
exerted their spell upon his receptive mind. 

Hon. Seward Barculo, the father of Mrs. 
Charles Wheaton, was the son of Rev. George 
Barculo, who, at the time of his son's birth, 
September 22, 1808, was pastor of the two 
churches at Hopewell and New Hackensack, 
Dutchess county. Seward was a favorite of 
his uncle. Jacobus Swarthout, with whom he 
spent much of his time in boyhood, and who 
adopted him and provided for his education. 
As a boy he was remarkable for the active and 
mischievous turn of his mind, while he was at 
the same time truthful, generous, fearless, and 
firm. He began his academic course in De- 
cember, 1826, at the academy in Fishkill vil- 
lage, then under the charge of Rev. Cor- 
nelius D. Westbrook. He prepared for col- 
lege at Cornwall, Conn., and entered the 
freshman class at Yale in September, 1828, 
remaining until August, 1830, when owing to 
some difficulty with the Faculty he received 
an honorable discharge and went to Rutgers 
College, N. J. He was a year in advance of 
his class there, and after three months he re- 
turned home; the Faculty being displeased at 
this step, expelled him, and this ended his 
college course. He commenced the study of 
law with S. Cleveland, Esq., of Poughkeepsie, 



and was admitted to the bar in the spring of 
1834. He then began to practice under cir- 
cumstances which, though generally deemed 
favorable, are in reality a disadvantage to a 
young man anxious to commence the trial of 
causes at nisi prius. He entered into part- 
nership with Mr. Cleveland, whose many cli- 
ents were always desirous that he should per- 
sonally conduct their cases. The junior part- 
ner rapidly acquired confidence, and began to 
try his skill unaided by senior counsel, and as 
Mr. Cleveland was in New York much of the 
time, the young man gradually assumed the 
business of the office with credit to himself 
and satisfaction to his clients. He was ap- 
pointed judge of the county court in April, 
1845, by Gov. Wright, on the unanimous 
recommendation of the Dutchess County Bar, 
and in 1846 was appointed circuit judge by 
Gov. Wright. In 1847 he was elected one of 
the justices of the supreme court for the Sec- 
ond District, and drew the longest term, serv- 
ing six years and a half. 

Judge Barculo had no negative character- 
istics; none of the easy and facile utterance of 
non-committal expressions which mark the 
weak and mediocre man who aims at political 
"availability." He was an extensive reader, 
possessed of fine literary taste, and he took 
great interest in the public library of the city 
of Poughkeepsie. Horticulture was a favorite 
pursuit with him, and his varieties of straw- 
berries, peaches, pears and other fruits became 
quite celebrated in his section. To the cul- 
ture of the grape he paid especial attention, 
and the manufacture of wine, of which he left 
some fine varieties. Some valuable papers 
were written by him for the " Horticulturist," 
on the varieties and management of fruit. 

In 1846, 1850 and 1854, he visited Europe, 
as much for the sake of being on the ocean as 
to observe for himself the manners and cus- 
toms of foreign society, and the machinery of 
their social and political life. His fondness 
for the water amounted to a passion. He 
owned a sail boat, and would occasionally hoist 
sail and pass down the river to New York City, 
across the bay, and up the Shrewsbury river, 
where he would spend weeks in sailing and 
bathing. During his last trip to Europe his 
health failed perceptibly while he was in Lon- 
don and Paris, but he never complained. Al- 
ways kind and considerate to those about him, 
he would insist upon going with his young friends 
to places of interest, that their visit might not be 



8 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPUWAL RECORD. 



marred by his afflictions. Finding himself 
growing feebler, in June, 1854, he turned his 
face homeward, his one wish being to die in 
h-s own home, surrounded by those who were 
near and dear to him. But that home he 
never reached, for on June 20, 1854, he died 
in New York City. His unconscious dust re- 
posed for a while in its desolate halls, and 
then — 

Gently wi- laid him down to rest, 
With his own white- roses upon his breast. 

He was buried with the solemn ritual of the 
Episcopal Church, of which he was a member, 
on June 22, 1854, in the cemetery which, 
shortly before his departure for Europe, he 
was most active in procuring, as if in prophetic 
knowledge that he would soon occupy it. 
Eleven weeks later, September 4, 1854, in 
Poughkeepsie, his only son, Sidne}', was killed 
by an accidental fall, and their remains rest 
side by side. 

On May 12, 1834, Judge Barculo was mar- 
ried to Cornelia, daughter of John H. and 
Sarah (Somerindykei Talman, of New York 
City. His wife survives him with two daugh- 
ters — Caroline T., born March i, 1835, ^nd 
Marion, born June 5, 1S36: Cornelia F., born 
March 31, 1851, died August 6, 1881. 

It is one of the consolations of a good man 
that his memory shall not die; that the re- 
membrance of his services and virtues shall be 
preserved as an inheritance to his children, 
and as an incentive to others who may be 
treading the arduous path of public life. The 
sentiment, which seeks its gratification in the 
desire for honest fame while we live, may 
legitimately be extended to posthumous re- 
nown. It is a premonition and prophecy that 
we are not all mortal, but that something sur- 
vives and claims a consciousness of the char- 
acter it leaves behind. Judge Barculo well 
merited the epitaph inscribed upon his monu- 
ment: 

In Society, an Ornament; 
In the State, a Judge, fearless, dignified and incorruptible; 

in fiabit, simple and pure. 

He died young, but mature 

In usefulness and fame, 
Adorning Jurisprudence by the clearness of his decisions, 

And illustrating Religion by 

The Strength of his Faith. 



HOMER AUGUSTUS NEJ.SOX (de- 
_ ceased). The subject of this memoir, a 
native of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, born 
August 31, 1829, was at the time of his death 



characterized by one of the Poughkeepsie 
journals as " the first citizen of this city and 
county." This unusual tribute was deserved. 
The son of John M. Nelson, a Dutchess county 
farmer. Judge Nelson achieved a prominent 
place in State and National affairs, solely by 
virtue of his inherent abilities. He was edu- 
cated at the Dutchess County .Academy, and 
afterward studied law in the offices of Tallman 
& Dean, Varick & Eldridge, and Hon. Charles 
H. Ruggles, ail of Poughkeepsie, and at twenty- 
one years of age was admitted to the bar. 

He at once began to attract attention as a 
lawyer by his keen analysis of legal questions, 
while in politics he was speedily recognized as 
a leader of the local Democratic party. In 
1855, when but twenty-si.x years old, he was 
elected judge of Dutchess county, being the 
youngest man ever chosen to that office. He 
served upon this bench with distinction for two 
terms. In 1859 he was renominated unani- 
mously, and re-elected bj- a large majority, 
notwithstanding the fact that all the other 
candidates on the Democratic ticket were de- 
feated. 

At the breaking out of the war of the 
Rebellion he was made colonel of the 167th 
Regiment, N. Y. \'. I., and would have 
accompanied his command to the front but for 
the urgent pleading of his numerous friends, 
who prevailed on him to take his seat in Con- 
gress, where they considered his services would 
be of more value to the country at large. In 
the fall of 1862 he was elected to Congress, 
and in the following year entered upon his 
duties there, having, at the special solicitation 
of his bosom friend, Mr. Kelly, of Rhinebeck, 
resigned his commission in the army. It may 
be here mentioned that Col. Nelson's regiment 
was among those that suffered most in the 
great struggle, a large proportion of its officers 
and men having been numbered among the 
killed and wounded. In December, 1863, he 
proceeded to Washington, and on New Year's 
Day, 1864, he was present at a reception held 
at the White House, to which all the generals 
in the army were invited, the first and only 
occasion of the kind during the war. 

During his entire Congressional term Judge 
Nelson warmly advocated and supported all 
measures for the vigorous prosecution of the 
war, and the suppression of the Rebellion. The 
adoption of the Constitutional .Amendments for 
the Abolition of Sla\ery was doubtless due in a 
large measure to his efforts, for he was not 





;^,-^ 



UXJ-'f'^'^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



only one of the few Democrats to vote for 
them, but he also exerted his influence to in- 
duce others of his part}' to support them at a 
time when they could not have been secured 
without a partition of the Democratic vote in 
the House of Representatives. 

In 1867 he was elected a delegate to the 
Constitutional Convention of New York State, 
where he rendered conspicuous service, leading 
to his nomination and election the same year 
as Secretary of State. He was re-elected two 
years later by a majority which at that time 
was the largest ever given to a Democratic 
candidate in the State. His success in this po- 
sition was acknowledged even by party oppo- 
nents; but he generously declined a re-nomina- 
tion for a third term in favor of a friend, Died- 
rich Willers, who was his deputy. 

After his retirement in 1871 from the office 
of Secretary of State, Judge Nelson removed 
his law office to New York City, where he was 
engaged in litigations of the greatest impor- 
tance. He retained his residence at Pough- 
keepsie, however, and in 1881 was elected 
State Senator from Dutchess county, serving 
as chairman of the Judiciary Committee, in 
which capacity his services were invaluable in 
the revision of the penal code. His appoint- 
ment by the Governor, in 1890, as a member 
of the commission to prepare and propose to the 
Legislature amendments to the judiciary article 
of the Constitution, was a recognition of his 
distinguished services, and of his learning, 
ability, and experience as a lawyer. Alto- 
gether he was one of the most prominent, act- 
ive, and influential members, and during his 
career in the House served as chairman of 
three committees. As a member of the legal 
profession, he was highly popular, not only 
with his colleagues, but among all classes, and 
was universally respected. At the bar he was 
as distinguished as when he sat in both Con- 
gress and Senate, and in 1S57 Rutgers College, 
New Jersey, conferred upon him the honorary 
degree of Master of Arts, in token of the es- 
teem in which his abilities had thus early won 
him. 

With the young men of his time, and es- 
pecially with the then struggling law student, or 
newly-fledged attorney. Judge Nelson's mem- 
ory will be ever held in kindly reverence. To 
these he was always considerate and helpful, 
encouraging and affable, and none ever came 
to him for advice or counsel that was not 
cheerfully given. On one occasion, having 



delivered an address in the Opera House, a 
reporter waited on him with the request that 
he, the Judge, would repeat certain points in 
his address. The Judge not only immediately 
acceded to this, but cheerfully repeated the 
whole of the address to the reporter. In fact, 
Judge Nelson was one of the most urbane and 
courteous of men, and possessed the faculty 
of putting at ease all who approached him. 
He was also possessed of an extremely gen- 
erous heart, was charitable to all deserving 
causes, and the poor at all times had his coun- 
sel "without money and without price." All 
these characteristics, and more, the outcome 
of genuine kindliness of heart, were the com- 
pletion of his well-rounded character. Physic- 
ally he was a man of fine presence, handsome, 
standing six feet in height, and well built in 
proportion. He was fond of sport, even boy- 
ish in his tastes and enjoyments, and de- 
lighted to join with children in their games 
and sports. 

The Judge was married in September, 
1S55, to Miss Helen J. Stearns, daughter of a 
well-known attorney, John M. Stearns, of 
Brooklyn, N. Y. Judge Nelson departed this 
life at Poughkeepsie, April 25, 1891, the cause 
of his death being heart trouble, and on the 
day of his funeral, out of respect to his mem- 
ory, the entire business in town was suspended. 
He was a member of the State Bar Associa- 
tion, and was a Freemason. 



HON. LEVI PARSONS MORTON, ex- 
Vice-President of the United States, and 

ex-Governor of the State of New York, claims 
descent from an old French family, one mem- 
ber of which (supposed to have been Robert 
Comte de Mortain) joined William the Con- 
queror, in Normandy, in his famous expedition 
to England. This Count Robert had a son, 
William, Earl of Moriton and Cornwall, and 
from these first of the name in England 
sprang many men of renown both in Church 
and State. 

Prominent among the English Mortons 
who early came to America were Thomas 
Morton, Esq., Rev. Charles Morton, Land- 
grave Joseph Morton, and (I) George Morton, 
the ancestor of our subject. He was born 
about 1585, at Austerfield, Yorkshire, Eng- 
land, and about 1622, accompanied bj- his 
wife and five children, he set sail for America, 
as one of the "Pilgrims," in the "Ann," 



10 



COMMEAfORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



reaching Plymouth in June, 1623. He did 
not long, however, survive his arrival, dying 
in June of the following year. He married 
Juliana Carpenter, and by her had five chil- 
dren: Nathaniel, Patience, John, Sarah and 
Ephriam. The mother married a second time, 
and died at Plymouth, February, 18, 1665. 

(Ill Hon. John Morton, second son of 
George and Juliana Morton, was born in 
1 6 16- 1 7, and came with his parents in the 
"Ann." From Plymouth he removed to Mid- 
dleboro, in the same county, and there died, 

October 3, 1673. He married I^ettice , 

who married again, and died, February 22, 
1 69 1. 

(HI) John Morton, eldest surviving child 
of Hon. John and Lettice Morton, was born 
at Plymouth, December 21, 1650, and died at 
Middleboro in 17 17. He married, about 1680, 

Phcebe , and after her death wedded, 

about 1687, Mary Ring. 

(IV I Capt. Ebenezer Morton, fourth child 
of John and Mary Morton, was born at Mid- 
dleboro, October 19, 1696, and died there in 
1750. He married, in 1720, Mercy Foster, 
born 169S, died .\pril 4, 1782. 

(V) Ebenezer Morton, fourth child of Capt. 
Ebenezer and Mercy Morton, was born at 
Middleboro, August 27, 1726, and married 
there, July 23, 1753, Mrs. Sarah Cobb. 

(VI) Livy Morton, fourth child of Ebe- 
nenzer and Sarah Morton, was born at Mid- 
dleboro, February 4, 1760; removed to Win- 
throp, Maine, where his children were born, 
but subsequently returned to Middleboro, where 
he died July 19, 183S. He married (first) 
March 13, 1788, Hannah Dailey, born No- 
vember 15, 1760, died in 1807; married (sec- 
ond) in 1808, Catherine Richmond, who died 
in 1849. 

(VII) Rev. Daniel Oliver Morton, A. M., 
eldest son of Livy and Hannah Morton, wasborn 
at Winthrop, Maine, December 21, 1788, and 
died at Bristol, N. H., March 25, 1852. At 
Pittsfield, Vt., August 30, 18 14, he married 
Lucretia Parsons, daughter of Rev. Justin and 
Electa (Frary) Parsons; she was born at 
Goshen, July 26, 1789, died at Philadelphia, 
January 11, 1862. Children of Rev. Daniel 
Oliver, and Lucretia Morton, all born at Shore- 
ham, Vt., were Daniel Oliver, Lucretia Par- 
sons, Electa Frary, Levi Parsons, Mary and 
Martha. 

(VIII) Hon. Levi Parsons Morton, fourth 
child of Rev. Daniel Oliver and Lucretia (Par- 



sons) Morton, was born May 16, 1824. Early 
in life he became a merchant's clerk, and later 
was a merchant in Hanover, N. H., where he 
continued until 1850, in which year he entered 
the firm of Beebe, Morgan & Co.. then one of 
the leading drj-goo^s houses in Boston. In 
the following year the firm opened a branch 
house in New York, to which Mr. Morton was 
detailed as resident partner and manager. On 
January i, 1854, he withdrew from the firm 
to form the dry-goods commission house of 
Morton & Grinnell. In 1863 he established 
the banking houses of L. P. Morton tk. 
Co., in New York, and L. P. Morton, Burns 
& Co., in London. In 1869 the firm be- 
came Morton, Bliss & Co., in New York, 
and Morton, Rose & Co., in London, where 
his principal partner was Sir John Rose, 
formerly Minister of Finance, Canada. It 
was through this house that the United States 
Government paid Great Britain the Halifax 
fishing award of five million five hundred thou- 
sand dollars. Mr. Morton was one of the 
noted American bankers whose advice and as- 
sistance were sought by the Treasury Depart- 
ment in the movements of specie payments. 

Early in his business career in New York 
Mr. Morton evinced an interest in public affairs, 
and his counsel was frequently solicited in the 
political concern of the Republican party, 
especially of New York, but not till 1876 did 
he enter actively into political life. In this 
year he was, without his knowledge, nomi- 
nated for Congress by the Republican party in 
the Eleventh District, and, although unsuccess- 
ful, he nevertheless materially reduced the 
usual Democratic majority. In 1878 he was 
appointed by President Hayes honorary com- 
missioner to the Paris Exposition, and in the 
autumn of the same year he was again nomi- 
nated for Congress, and after a vigorous can- 
vass was elected by 6,000 majority, which 
majority was larger than the number of all the 
votes of his opponent. This was the first time 
the district had been carried b}' the Repub- 
licans. 

Mr. Morton took his seat in Congress (the 
Forty-sixth I March 18, 1879. and he imme- 
diately secured a high position in the legisla- 
tive councils. On April 21, 1879, he was ap- 
pointed on the Committee on Foreign Affairs, 
where he served acceptably and with distinc- 
tion. In 1880 he was again elected to ("on- 
gress from the same district, by an increased 
majority. 



V0MME3I0RATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



11 



When the Convention of 1880 had nomi- 
nated Mr. Garfield for President of the United 
States, it turned to New York to find a candi- 
date for Vice-President, and Mr. Morton was 
urged to permit the use of his name. He, 
however, dechned the honor, and the choice 
then fell upon Mr. Arthur. Mr. Garfield of- 
fered Mr. Morton the choice of the Secretary- 
ship of the Navy, or the position of Minister 
Plenipotentiary and Envoy Extraordinary to 
France. The latter office he accepted, and in 
the summer of 1881 sailed with his family for 
the French capital. 

The pre-eminent fitness of the new envoy 
at once became apparent, and the success of 
his diplomatic career has probably never been 
surpassed, if equalled, by any American repre- 
sentative to a foreign court. Shortly after 
President Cleveland entered upon the duties 
of his office Mr. Morton resigned, and May 14, 
1885, the retiring minister presented his letter 
of recall to the President of the Republic. 

In January, 1885, while he was yet in 
France, Mr. Morton's name was brought be- 
fore the Republican caucus of the New York 
Legislature as a candidate for the Senate of 
the United States, the vote being: William 
M. Evarts, 61; Levi P. Morton, 28; Chauncey 
M. Depew, 3. Two years later his name was 
used in the same connection, but after the first 
ballot in the Legislature Mr. Morton withdrew 
in favor of Mr. Hiscock, who was elected. 

Early in the Presidential campaign of 1888, 
when Gen. Harrison was nominated for Presi- 
dent Mr. Morton was nominated for Vice- 
President, and both candidates were elected, 
after a most hotly contested campaign. The 
successful vote in New York was universally 
conceded to have been largely due to Mr. 
Morton's strength and popularity in that State. 
On March 4, 1889, he entered upon the duties 
of the Vice-Presidential office, and discharged 
the same during his four-year term with marked 
ability; and it may not be too much to say that 
the United States Senate has never been pre- 
sided over with greater courtesy, dignity and 
efficiency. In 1894 Mr. Morton was nomi- 
nated for and elected governor of the State 
of New York, his term of office expiring Janu- 
ary 1, 1897. 

Mr. Morton has not only achieved distinc- 
tion in financial and political circles, but in 
charitable deeds as well, as witness his munifi- 
cent donation to the Irish poor during the 
great famine in Ireland, of 1888, and his gen- 



erosity on several other occasions, .^d^xk to 
the city of Newport; a house and lot^ Han- 
over to Dartmouth College, that thePollege 
might be enabled to erect an art galry and 
museum; $10,000 toward the foundain of a 
professorship of Latin and French inttiddle- 
burg College; $75,000 to Grace Churl, New 
York, to provide a building for a day rsery, 
as a tribute to the memory of his fi ; wife, 
Mrs. Lucy Kimball Morton, and her in est in 
the children of the poor — all these slid out 
from the list of Mr. Morton's public anc rivate 
benevolences. 

From Middleburg College, in 188 lie re- 
ceived the degree of LL. D. , also fro Dart- 
mouth College in 1882. Socially, : is a 
member of the Union, Union League, letro- 
politan. Century, and Lawyers Clubs : New 
York; the Metropolitan Club of Was! gton, 
D. C. ; the Historical and America Geo- 
graphical Societies of New York, and t New 
England Historic Genealogical Societj 

On October 15, 1856, Mr. Mort was 
married at Flatlands, Long Island, t Lucy 
Kimball (born July 22, 1836, died 3* 11, 
1871), daughter of Elijah H. and Sar; Wet- 
more (Hinsdale) Kimball, of Flatland Long 
Island. On February 12, 1873, Mr. jarton, 
for his second wife, married Anna Liigston 
Reade Street, born May 18, 1846, dainter of 
William Ingraham Street, Esq., an Susan 
Kearney, his wife. The following lildren 
have been born to Levi Parsons a Anna 
(Street) Morton: Edith Livingston, orn at 
Newport, R. I., June 20, 1874; Le Kear- 
ney, born at Newport, May 20, 187 Helen 
Stuyvesant, born at Newport, August 1S76; 
Lewis Parsons, born at London, igland, 
September 21, 1877, and died there anuary 
10, 1878; Alice, born at New York, :rch23, 
1879; and Mary, born at New York, ne 11, 
1881. 



Among the finest country seats o 



is Mr. Morton's 
on-the-Hudson, 
adorned, a spot 
proud of. 



" Ellerslie," at 
beautifully laid 
that Rhinebeck 



■merica 

fnecliff- 

t and 

justly 



jr WALLACE SMITH has tlireputa- 
tion of a strictly first-clasausiness 
man, reliable and energetic, and is aitizen of 
whom Poughkeepsie, Dutchess cojy, may 
be justly proud. He is an offsprinaf excel- 
lent stock of stanch Scotch anctry, his 



12 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOIiAPHICAL RECORD. 



grandfather having come from Scotland to the 
New \\'orld, becoming a cabinet-maker of 
New ^■(^r^; Citj-. Politically, he was an Old- 
line \\ liig, and in religious faith was a member 
of the Reformed Dutch Church. 

William Smith, the father of our subject, 
was a native of New York City, where he 
grew to manhood and followed cabinet-mak- 
ing. There he was married to Miss Jemima 
Horn, who was born in that city, and was de- 
scended from Mathew Van Horn, who, with 
his brother James, came from Holland and 
located in New York Cit}-, where their de- 
scendants now live. She was a daughter 
of Mathew and Margaret (Hagerman) Horn, 
who were born, reared and died in that 
city, where her father engaged in the real- 
estate business, owning a large amount of 
property. In the metropolis five children 
were born to the parents of our subject: John 
H., who was one of the valiant soldiers of the 
Civil war, and died of starvation in Salisbury 
(N. C.) prison; W. Wallace, the subject of 
this review; George E., who is engaged in the 
trunk business in New York City; Margaret, 
who died unmarried; and Sarah H. Smith. 
For twenty years after his marriage the father 
continued to reside in New York City, and 
then went to Baltimore, Md., where he en- 
gaged in the trunk business for five years. 
His death, however, occurred in Poughkeep- 
sie, in 1864, where he had removed in 1859. 
His wife died in 1889. In politics he loyally 
adhered to the Republican party. 

The birth of W. Wallace Smith occurred 
in New York City, September 20, 1834, and 
there he spent the days of his boyhood and 
youth, ittending the city schools and learning 
the bookbinding business with A. Appleton & 
Co., with whom he remained until the panic of 
1857. He then shipped on board the "Ni- 
agara" to help lay one of the Atlantic cables, 
which they commenced to lower on reaching 
England; but after it broke he returned to that 
country, though the "Niagara" came on to 
the United States. He ne.xt boarded the "Sus- 
quehanna," making a trip up the Mediterranean 
Sea. In 1858 the vessel was ordered home; 
but during the passage the yellow fever broke 
out, and only eighty -seven of the three hundred 
and fifty on board reached America. Mr. Smith 
then followed his trade of bookbinding in New 
York until the breaking out of the Civil war, 
when he joined Company L, Ninth N. Y. State 
Militia, and remained with the regiment for 



two years, during which time he participated 
in several battles, but while on picket duty 
just before the battle of Bull Run, he caught a 
cold which caused the loss of one eye. Re- 
turning to New York, he was with D. Appleton 
& Co., until 1870. when he came to Pough- 
keepsie and purchased the Poughkeepsie Book 
Bindery, of Gidley & De Garmo, at No. 258 
Main street, and has conducted a very success- 
ful business there ever since, doing all kinds of 
bookbinding. 

In 1 869 Mr. Smith was united in marriage 
with Miss Martha W. Avery, a native of West 
Point, N. Y. , and a daughter of Josiah Avery, 
who was of Holland descent. Four children 
were born of this union, two of whom died in 
infancy. Those living are William Wallace, 
Jr., and Franklin A., who are with their fa- 
ther. In his political views, Mr. Smith coin- 
cides with the Republican party; was elected 
alderman of the Fifth ward of Poughkeepsie, 
Januari" i, 1887, serving four terms, and in 
1893 was elected supervisor of the Seventh 
ward. Socially, he is an honored member of 
the Grand Army of the Republic. He is highly 
respected and esteemed by the entire popula- 
tion of the cit}'. and looked up to as a man 
truly honorable and upright in all things, and 
one whom thej- can depend upon as a friend. 



HON. HARVEY G. EASTMAN. LL. D., 
founder of Eastman Business College, 
Poughkeepsie, and one of the most remark- 
able men of his time, was born October 16, 
1832, in Marshall, Oneida county, New York. 
The earlier years of our subject were passed 
upon the farm which his father owned and cul- 
tivated, receiving as he grew up an academical 
education, and while still very young he became 
a pupil and afterward a teacher in a commer- 
cial school in Rochester, N. Y. , taught by an 
uncle of his. It was while engaged in this 
school that Mr. Eastman conceived the idea 
of a Commercial or Business College, and, as 
the plan took definite form, he put it into prac- 
tice by founding, December 19, 1855 (when he 
was but twenty-three years of age), the first 
school of any prominence of that class in Os- 
wego, N. Y. In the spring of 1858 he opened 
a Commercial College in St. Louis, Mo. , in one 
of the finest buildings in the city, equipped 
with all the appointments for his method of in- 
struction, and, by judicious management and 
systematic advertising, it at the end of the year 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



13 



had become the largest and most popular pri- 
vate school in the West. Owing, however, to 
some differences existing among a certain class 
as to the political status of some of the lecr.ur- 
ers brought to this institution by Mr. Eastman, 
he sold his good will in the College and turned 
his eye eastward for a new and permanent 
location. 

In 1859 Mr. Eastman came to Poughkeep- 
sie — a place he had never visited before, but 
where his name and his College had by skill- 
ful advertising already become "familiar as 
household words " — and here founded the pres- 
ent Eastman National Business College, which 
at once became famed for its practicability and 
usefulness, and has for many years now been 
the recognized leader in business education 
throughout the United States. He rented his 
first room in the old Library building for sev- 
enty-five cents a week, and with temporary 
desks started his school, November 3, 1859, 
with three students in attendance. The be- 
ginning of the second week showed an attend- 
ance of si.xteen, and before the end of the 
month this new school — started by a stranger 
at a few days' notice, and without friends or 
capital, and with no small degree of opposition 
from a large body of citizens — had outnum- 
bered in patronage other institutions many 
years its senior. By 1861 the attendance had 
increased to 500; in 1863 to 1,200, every State, 
Territory and several foreign countries being 
represented; while in 1864-65 the daily attend- 
ance had reached the extraordinary number of 
more than 1,700 students. By 1S64 the col- 
lege proper had increased from one room to 
five distinct buildings, used for instruction 
alone, and sixty-four teachers were employed, 
beside numerous assistants. A secretary and 
six assistants were required to attend to the 
official correspondence, which, it may be in- 
ferred, was one of no small magnitude. Each 
building was supplied with a stationery store 
to supply students, and a bindery belonging to 
the college was devoted exclusively to ruling, 
making and binding the blank books used. In 
1876 the building was considerably enlarged 
to meet the phenomenal growth of the busi- 
ness which seventeen years before had been 
established by Mr. Eastman without the aid of 
idowment to the amount of a dollar, or 
.. .-../. icription to the extent of a penny. 

Mr. Eastman died of pneumonia in the 
prime of early manhood, July 13, 1878, at 
Denver, Colo., whither he had gone for the 



benefit of his health. He was a man of inde- 
fatigable energy, and through his enterprise 
became one of Poughkeepsie's most prominent 
citizens. In 1867, and again in 1873, he was 
appointed a commissioner of charities for the 
Second district; in 1872, and again in 1874, 
he represented the Second district of Dutchess 
county in the Assembly; in 1871, and again in 
1876, he was elected mayor of Poughkeepsie. 
The degree of LL. D. had been conferred on 
him, and he was repeatedly urged to accept 
positions of greater public trust. Personally, 
he was one of the most genial, whole-souled 
men, a polished and accomplished gentleman; 
socially, he was a man of exemplary virtues, a 
true and valued friend; in business he was 
prompt and reliable. Physically, Mr. East- 
man was a tall, slim, winning man, with keen, 
flashing eyes that lit up when engaged, indi- 
cating a soaring, restless ambition; he was 
compactly built, apparently of an iron consti- 
tution, with a vast amount of the go-ahead ele- 
ment in his nature. 

Mr. Eastman was the owner of a valuable 
property of twenty-seven acres, known as 
'• Eastman Park," situated almost in the heart 
of the city, and celebrated as one of the most 
beautiful and valuable private estates in the 
country. On the purchase and the elaborate 
preparation of the grounds he invested upward 
of two hundred thousand dollars, and the en- 
trances were always wide open, inviting citi- 
zens and strangers alike to enter. In the midst 
of this grand park he erected his own resi- 
dence, a castellated building of much attract- 
iveness. On an eminence, known as Eastman 
Terrace, he also erected two blocks of houses 
— twenty-four in number — which have lawns, 
gardens, etc., and command an extended view 
up and down the Hudson. 

In 1857 Mr. Eastman was married to Miss 
Minerva M. Clark, of Canastota, N. Y. , and 
children as follows were born to them, three 
daughters — Cora C, Charlotte C. and Min- 
erva; Minerva died in infancy. In October, 
1884, Mrs. H. G. Eastman was married to 
Clement C. Gaines, president of Eastman 
Business College, Poughkeepsie, and of the 
New York Business College, New York City, a 
sketch of whom appears elsewhere. 

In his political preferences Mr. Eastman 
was a stanch Republican; socially, he was a 
member of the F. & A. M. and K. of P., and 
he was vice-president of the Poughkeepsie 
Bridge Company. 



14 



COMMEMORA TIFE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



The founder and genius of Eastman Busi- 
ness College is no more, but the name of Har- 
vey G. Eastman is held in loving remem- 
brance by the friends who knew him, the stu- 
dents who revered him, and the city svhich 
honored him. Other hands picked up the 
dropped threads, and continued the work 
which his hands had laid aside, and Eastman 
Business College remains a lasting monument 
to his memory. His motto throughout life 
was — " Peace and good will toward all;" and 
his last words were — " I have tried to so live 
as to do no man injustice." 



Lanfine also, where he married Janet Kay Mc- 
Whirter, and they brought up a large family of 
children, the youngest of whom was our sub- 
ject. William spent all his life on a farm. 



JOHN DON.\LD (deceasedt. The subject 
of this sketch was a member of the firm of 
Donald, Converse & Maynard, one of the 
largest dry-goods houses in this section of the 
country. He was born in Lanfine, Scotland, 
August 17, 1844. 

fn early life our subject learned the dry- 
goods trade in Scotland, and with his brother 
William went to Aberdeen, where they formed 
a partnership in that business, continuing it for 
four years. In 1869 John came to America 
and located at Hartford, Conn., where he had 
charge of one of the departments in a dry- 
goods store. He remained there about five 
years, and in 1874 returned to Scotland and 
married Miss Jessie Frew, a native of that 
country, and a daughter of Alexander Frew, a 
tile manufacturer. Mr. Frew married Miss 
Mary Douglas, and they had two children: 
Jessie and William, the latter a physician in 
Scotland. Mr. Frew and his wife died in 
Scotland. 

In 1875 Mr. and Mrs. Donald came to 
Poughkeepsie, and he formed a partnership 
with C. E. Converse and R. L. Maynard, the 
firm name being as above. Two children were 
born to our subject and his wife: William A. 
who is in the store at Poughkeepsie, and 
Douglas, who is at school. Mr. Donald died 
November 20, 1894. Politically he was a Re- 
publican, and fraternally a Mason. He and 
his wife were members of the Congregational 
Church, and took a deep interest in all Church 
affairs. He was an elder and deacon, and su- 
perintendent of the Sunday-school at the time 
of his death. He was a merchant of high 
standing, and greatly respected by all. His 
place in the store has been taken by his son 
William. 

William Donald, the father, was born in 



GEORGE H. WILLIAMS, the son of Ge- 
rome and Catherine \\'illiams, was born 
at Chestnut Ridge, Dutchess Co., N. Y., Sep- 
tember 16, 1844, and resided there until i860, 
when he removed to Poughkeepsie, where he 
has since resided. 

During his residence in the country he at- 
tended the district school, and one year in a 
private school in the Clove kept by George 
Draper, later school commissioner of Dutchess 
county. After removing to Pougnkeepsie he 
took a course at Eastman Business College, 
and then commenced studying under a private 
tutor for the purpose of taking an examination 
for admission to Yale College; but the wave of 
war fever then extending over the country was 
too much for him, so, leaving thought of col- 
lege behind, he, on September 22, 1862, joined 
Company G. 150th regiment, N. Y. S. V., and 
on October 1 1 left with the regiment for the 
front, and continued to serve with it until it 
was mustered out at the end of the war, June 
8, I 865. During the time of his service in the 
army he was engaged in the battle at Gettys- 
burg, Penn., in the campaign from Chatta- 
nooga, Tenn., to Atlanta, Ga., in Sherman's 
march to the sea, in the campaign from Sa- 
vannah, Ga., to Raleigh, N. C, and the sur- 
render of Johnston's army; was wounded in 
the arm and hand at New Hope Church, Ga. ; 
marched in the grand review at Washington, 
D. C, May 24, 1865. 

After his return home he studied law with 
his father at Poughkeepsie, and was admitted 
to the bar May 18, 1866, and has ever since 
practiced law there. He has since been ad- 
mitted to practice in the U. S. Courts. 

In 1865 he joined the 21st regiment, N. G. 
S. N. Y., and continued a member until it was 
mustered out, he being at that time its lieuten- 
ant-colonel. 

Mr. Williams was city chamberlain of 
Poughkeepsie in 1875 and 1876, and Deputy 
Collector of U. S. Internal Revenue during part 
of President Cleveland's first administration. 
He is a Knight of Pythias and a P. C. of Ar- 
mor Lodge 107; a member of the G. A. R. , 
and P. C. of D. B. Sleight Post 331; belongs 
to the Masonic order, and is captain-general 



COMMEMOLATIVE BIOOUAPUICAL liECCRD. 



15 



of Ponghkeepsie Commander_v No. 43, K. T., 
and a member of the Mystic Shrine; and sec- 
retary of the Veterans Association of the i 50th 
regiment, N. Y. S. Volunteers. 

Our subject is descended on the side of his 
father from a brother of Roger WiUiams, who 
settled in Rhode Island, and comes from a line 
of soldiers, his grandfather serving in the war 
of 18 1 2, and his great-grandfather during most 
of the Revolutionary war, and his great-great- 
grandfather being in the French and Indian 
war. On his mother's side he is descended 
from Henry Emigh, who came to this country 
from Holland about 1696 and settled in Clove, 
Dutchess county, building a stone house which 
is still standing and inhabited. 



JAMES SPENCER VAN CLEEF, one of 
the most prominent and successful lawyers 
of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was 
born August i, 1831, at Athens, Greene Co., 
N. Y. He is descended from one of the old 
Knickerbocker families, the first American an- 
cestor being Jans V'an Cleef, who came from 
the town of Cleve or Cleef, Holland, as early 
as 1659, settling in New Utrecht, L. I. He 
was probably a descendant of the old Dukes of 
Cleve, whose inheritance, now vested in the 
Emperor of Germany, was the immediate 
cause of the Thirty-years War. There is also 
a legend that Lohengrin was a Van Cleef. 

Jans Van Cleef represented Borwick (now 
Bushwick) in the General Provincial Assembly 
at New Amsterdam, April 10, 1664, under 
Peter Stuyvesant, Director General, in rela- 
tion to the "protection of the inhabitants 
against the malignant English." He married 
Enjeltje Lowerons Preterse prior to 1661, and 
had eight children, among whom was Ben- 
jamin, the third child and first son, born No- 
vember 25, 1683. He married Hendriks 
Supten as early as 171 1, and settled in New 
Jersey, where they reared a family of twelve 
children. One son, Laurens, married Jen- 
rietje Loan, and had five children, among 
whom was Isaac, our subject's great-grand- 
father, who was born October 24, 1742. He 
married Dorcas Pumyea in 1769, and had 
eleven children. Their son, Cornelius, our 
subject's grandfather, was born January 2, 
1777, and died July 10, 1855. He became a 
leading farmer at Harlingen, N. J., and an 
active supporter of the Reformed Dutch 
Church there. He married Margaret Kershau, 



granddaughter of Lucas Nevius, who was a 
grandson of the Johannes Nevius who was 
clerk of the city council. They had four chil- 
dren, namely: Cornelius, Isaac, George, and 
Matilda, who married Garrett Hegeman. The 
family have generally been engaged in agricult- 
ural pursuits, the majority living in New 
Jersey, but one branch residing on Staten 
Island has engaged in commercial pursuits. 
They have always been adherents of the Re- 
formed Dutch Church, and many have been 
ministers. Rev. Paul D. Van Cleef, D. D., 
of Jersey City, is a member of the family. 

Our subject's father. Rev. Cornelius Van- 
Cleef, was educated at Dickinson College, 
Carlisle, Penn.. with a view to entering the 
ministry. Soon after entering college he 
joined with a fellow student in establishing 
the first students' prayer meeting ever held 
there, meeting once a week in their several 
rooms. For more than a year this faithfully- 
conducted exercise was treated with ridicule 
by the other students, but during the second 
year, on the occasion of the death of Rev. 
John M. Mason, D. D., a son of President 
Mason, of the college, the attendance at the 
prayer meetmg became very large and nearly 
every student was converted, including all but 
one in Cornelius Van Cleef's class. All but 
two of his class entered the ministry, the Rev. 
Dr. George W. Bethune, of Brooklyn, being 
one of the most successful. After leaving 
college Cornelius Van Cleef studied in the 
Theological Seminary of the Reformed Dutch 
Church, then located at New Brunswick, N. J., 
and on graduating, in 1823,. he immediately 
offered his services to the Board of Domestic 
Missions, or what was then called the Board 
of Managers of the Missionary Society of the 
Reformed Dutch Church. He was sent to 
Palatine, N. Y. , where he remained six or 
eight months, and as a result of his labors the 
foundation was laid for the now flourishing 
Church at Fort Plain. He was then trans- 
ferred to Manayunk, near Philadelphia, where 
he remained two years, and there also was 
successful in establishing a Church, now known 
as the Fourth Church of Philadelphia. From 
the missionary field he was called to the Church 
at Athens, N. Y. , where he was installed as a 
settled pastor. He remained there five years, 
and during that time the country was visited 
by its first scourge of cholera, Athens being 
especially afflicted and losing many of its in- 
habitants. Mr. \'an Cleef remained there 



1(3 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



throughout the plague, ministering to the sick 
and the dying, and so generall}- beloved did he 
become that when he returned years afterward 
to visit his old charge all the other churches 
closed their doors for the purpose of hearing 
him. His pastorate there was very successful, 
the membership increasing from forty to about 
one hundred and sixty. In 1833 Mr. Van- 
Cleef accepted a call to the Church at New 
Hackensack, and remained there thirty-three 
years, when, because of advancing age, he 
moved to Poughkeepsie. Here he held no 
stated charges, but preached as opportunity 
offered, and we may without impropriety call 
him the honorary pastor, indeed, almost the 
apostle, of many of the Churches in this vicin- 
ity. It was largely through his efforts that 
the Second Reformed Dutch Church was es- 
tablished in Poughkeepsie in 1848, and the 
Church at Millbrook about 1870. During his 
active ministry he was once appointed presi- 
dent of the General Synod of the Reformed 
Dutch Church, which position he filled with 
great ability and dignity. As a speaker he 
was faithful, earnest and impressive, and be- 
ing more solicitous concerning truthfulness and 
clearness than grace and embellishment, his 
discourses were marked by simplicity and 
Godly sincerity. As a pastor he had in rare 
measure the one qualification which is first of 
all in importance, and without which all others 
are of little avail — a hearty love for his people. 

It has been said of him by one who knew 
him well. "As a Christian man his character 
was so exquisitely beautiful that I know not 
in what character to describe it. " He passed 
the borders of the unseen on Sunday morning, 
June 13, 1875, in his sixty-seventh year, leav- 
ing two children, James Spencer and Sophia 
Somers Van Cleef. 

James Spencer A'an Cleef was educated at 
College Hill, Poughkeepsie, and Rutgers Col- 
lege, New Brunswick, N. J., graduating in 
1852 with the degree of A. B. , to vvhcih was 
added later that of A. M. He entered the 
ofifice of Holden & Thayer, of New York City, 
as a law student, and was admitted to the bar 
there in 1855. In 1858 he began the practice 
of his profession at Poughkeepsie, and in the 
following year formed a partnership with Hon. 
Mark D. Wilbur, which continued until the 
close of the Civil war. During this time Mr. 
Van Cleef had almost exclusive charge of the 
business, Mr. Wilbur being in the army. About 
1870 Mr. \'an Cleef entered into partnership 



with Prof. Samuel W. Buck, of Lyndon Hall; 
but two or three years later this was dissolved, 
and for twenty years he has practiced alone. 
He has been very successful especially in cases 
connected with the Surrogate's court, in which 
he has for many years ranked among the lead- 
ing practitioners. He was married in 1862 to 
Harriet Mulford Howell, daughter of Capt. 
George Howell, a prominent resident of Sag 
Harbor, N. Y., and has had three children: 
Elizabeth Howell, who married Dr. B. C. 
Kinnear, then of Boston, and died in 1886, 
leaving no children; Ellen Shepard, who mar- 
ried \\'alter M. Jones, of the Atlantic Mutual 
Insurance Co., of New York, and has four 
children; and Henry Howell, now a student in 
his father's office. 

Mr. Van Cleef was originally a Whig in 
political faith, but in 18 56 he became an ardent 
supporter of the principles of the Republican 
party. Prior to the Civil war he took an 
active part in the politics of Dutchess county, 
and he has now been a member of the board 
of education in Poughkeepsie for twenty years, 
being the oldest continuous member of same. 
During this time he has been largely instru- 
mental in bringing the schools of the city into 
their present satisfactory condition. In any 
movement for the public welfare he has taken 
a prompt and hearty interest, and one of the 
largest industries in the city was located there 
a few years ago mainly through his influence. . 
For many years he has been an active member 
of the Second Reformed Dutch Church. 

Mr. Van Cleef is known as a very success- 
ful angler; is one of the leading members of 
the State Association for the Protection of Fish 
and Game, and since its organization has 
been a member of the Committee on Law and 
Legislation. In the fall of 1894 he was re- 
tained as counsel for the Senate Committee 
on Game and Fish, and at their request drew 
up the new fish and game law, which was 
passed substantially as the original draft made 
by him. 



GEN. ALFRED B. SMITH (deceased). 
_ Among the leading citizens of Pough- 
keepsie none holds a higher place in the esti- 
mation of his fellow men, or has taken a more 
active part in the development and growth of 
all those enterprises which go to make up a 
flourishing city than did the gentleman whose 
name introduces this sketch. As a man of 



r"\ 




f ^J 




/ 








^^^^^^^vv«. "S^l^^k.. 


1^ 


^^P 


f 



J/Wlu^^Mk. 



COMMEMOBAriVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



17 



business; as a member of the legal fraternity; 
as an honored veteran of the Civil war; as a 
worker in Church and philanthropic matters; 
as a friend of education and as a public official, 
he always commanded the respect and ad- 
miration of those more intimately connected 
with him. 

Stephen Smith, the great-great-grandfather 
of our subject, was a farmer in Massachusetts 
in the early Colonial daj'S. He married Doro- 
thea Matton, a sister of Gen. Matton, of Massa- 
chusetts, who was a major in the Revolu- 
tionary war. Three brothers of Stephen 
Smith also served throughout that war. Arad, 
a son of Stephen, and our subject's great- 
grandfather, was born in Salem, Massachusetts. 

The grandfather, also named Arad, was 
born at Amherst, Mass., and married Salome 
Elmer, by whom he had fourteen children, of 
whom Adolphus H. was the father of our sub- 
ject. In 1808 Arad Smith moved with his 
numerous family to St. Lawrence county, 
N. Y. , and settled on a one-square mile tract of 
land in the primeval forest. There he made his 
home until 1833, when he removed to Elyria, 
Ohio, where he died about the year 1865. 
Politically he was a Whig, and in religious 
belief he was a Congregationalist. 

Adolphus G. Smith, our subject's father, 
born August 22, 1800, at Amherst, Mass., was 
married on July 4, 1824, to Miss Nancy Dodge, 
who was born in Addison, \'t., a daughter of 
Major Thomas Dodge. Her father was of 
English descent, and was one of twelve chil- 
dren, of whom several sons served in the war 
of the Revolution, in the war of 18 12, and 
in the Mexican war. After their marriage 
Adolphus G. Smith and his wife settled on a 
farm in St. Lawrence county, N. Y. , where 
they reared a family of eleven children, of 
whom the following record is given: Alfred 
Baker, the subject of this sketch, was the 
eldest; Selome E. married Xewcomb Perkins, 
a farmer of Augusta, Wis. ; Clarissa C. died in 
1850; Hannah D. is the widow of Harvey D. 
Hyde, who was a farmer in St. Lawrence 
county, N. Y. ; Thomas D. is a farmer in 
Rolla, Mo. ; Martin M. is farming at Massena, 
Cass Co., Iowa; Wallace H. was a clerk in 
the post office at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and 
died in 1875; Silas C. was a carpenter b}' 
trade, and died in 1880, near Rochester, N. Y'; 
Dorothy became the second wife of Newcomb 
Perkins, and died in 1870; Lepha E. is the 
wife of Emmett Russell, a carpenter in Mas- 



sena, Iowa; and Gustavus A. is farming at the 
old homestead. The father always followed 
the occupation of a farmer, and in politics was 
originally an Old-line Whig, in later years be- 
coming a member of the Republican party. 
He died August 26, 1879, his wife passing 
away in January, 1894, at the good old age of 
ninety years. 

Alfred B. Smith was born November 17, 
1825, in Massena, St. Lawrence Co., N. Y. , 
spent his boyhood days on his father's farm, 
and received his early education in the district 
school. When seventeen years old he began 
teaching, spending his vacations in work in the 
fields and other farm duties. In the fall of 
I S48 he entered Union College, at Schenectady, 
N. Y. , from which he was graduated in the 
class of '51. Shortly afterward he came to 
Poughkeepsie, and became teacher of mathe- 
matics in the school of Charles Bartlett, on 
College Hill, which position he filled some 
four years, during that time devoting his lei- 
sure hours to the study of law under Judge 
James Emott. He was admitted to the bar in 
1855, and for three years was a partner of 
Mathew Hale; then formed a partnership with 
Charles Williams, with whom he practiced until 
the spring of 1862. 

In the meantime the Civil war had broken 
out, and the fighting spirit inherited from his 
martial ancestors on both sides proved stronger 
than all other incentives. Our subject was 
among the first to raise a regiment in Dutchess 
county, which became the 150th N. Y. V. I., 
and of which he was made major. His first 
commission was that of lieutenant-colonel; 
later he was promoted to major, and when he 
became colonel he was made brevet brigadier- 
general for gallant and meritorious service 
under Sherman, in Georgia and the Carolinas. 
At the battle of Gettysburg, Gen. Smith's regi- 
ment (mustering about 500 men) formed part 
of the Corps No. 8, No. 12, No. 20 and No. 
28, and was on the celebrated march to the sea. 
The General served until the close of the war, 
and was mustered out with his regiment June 
8, 1865. 

When peace was again restored Gen. Smith 
returned to Poughkeepsie, and resumed his 
practice of law in partnership with L. B. 
Sackett, which connection lasted some twent}' 
years, after which he practiced alone. At the 
time of his death he was the only one li\ing 
of the twelve men who were the first members 
of the Republican party in Dutchess county. 



18 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



and he always took an acti\e part in politics, 
(icn. Smith held various responsible public of- 
fices, and always fulfilled his duties with faith- 
fulness and to the satisfaction of all concerned. 
For thirty-three years he was a member of the 
board of education; was president during eight 
years of that time, and also for some years 
was chairman of the building committee, all 
of the school houses in the district having 
been erected under his supervision. In 1892, 
after being elected city recorder, he resigned 
from the board. 

Just after the war C.en. Smith served as 
deputy collector of internal revenue. In 1867 
he was appointed postmaster of Poughkeepsie, 
by President Johnson, and was reappointed by 
President Grant, holding the office for eight 
years. He also served two terms as supervi- 
sor of the Fifth ward of the city, and did 
much to establish the Hudson River State 
Hospital. He always took a leading part not 
only in political and public affairs but also in 
Church matters, and, indeed, to quote from 
an article printed during his lifetime, in one 
of the city newspapers, "one cannot men- 
tion a good cause in which Gen. Smith 
has not taken a part." He had been an 
elder in the Presbyterian Church and super- 
intendent of the Sunday-school for many 
years, and was sent as delegate to three of its 
General Assemblies which met at Madison, 
Wis., Philadelphia, and Washington, D. C, 
respectively. He was instrumental in the 
formation of what is known as "the Pough- 
keepsie Plan," which has for its object the 
breaking down of the barriers between the 
Catholics and Protestants, and which is rec- 
ognized not only in the United States, but 
also in Europe. Gen. Smith was connected 
with the Electric Light Co. ; was a member of 
the State Bar Association; of the Loyal Le- 
gion; of the Masonic fraternity, and was a 
Knight Templar and chief counsel of King 
Solomon's Temple. In 1867 he organized the 
first G. A. R. Post in Poughkeepsie, now 
know as Hamilton Post No. 20. 

On June 20, 1854, Gen. Smith was mar- 
ried to Ann Eliza Mitchell, who was born at 
Jewett Heights, Lexington, Greene Co., N. Y. , 
a daughter of David and Leah (Dunham) 
Mitchell. Her parents were of English ex- 
traction, and her father was a merchant 
tailor. Two children — one daughter and one 
son — were born to our subject and his wife, 
to wit: Margaret J., born September 2, T855, 



died May 3, 1875; anc" Matthew J., born April 
21, 1S60. Mrs. Smith died January 5, 1894; 
she was a most estimable woman, affection- 
ately remembered by a large circle of warm 
friends. Gen. A. B. Smith departed this life 
at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., January 28, 1896. 



NDREW JACKSON KETCHAM. of 
.^^ Poughkeepsie, one of the oldest and 
ablest financiers in this section, was identified 
with various banking institutions in Dutchess 
county for half a century previous to his retire- 
ment, in 1890, from the position of president 
of the Poughkeepsie National Bank. 

His family originated in England, and his 
grandfather, Solomon Ketcham, who was 
born there April 6, 1757, was the first of the 
line to come to America. He located at Hun- 
tington, L. I., where he followed agricultural 
pursuits throughout the remainder of his life. 
He entered heartily into the struggles of the 
Colonies for freedom, and in a speech by Hon. 
Henry C. Piatt, on " Old Times in Hunting- 
ton, L. I.," this account appears: "He lent 
his energies to the battle-field, and fought for 
the birthright of freedom when the storm- 
cloud of Revolution burst upon the infant 
America and threatened to overwhelm the Na- 
tion in its fiery torrent." ■■ * * "Among 
the prisoners taken b}- the British during the 
Revolutionary war we find the name of Solo- 
mon Ketcham, and they were carried aboard 
the 'Swan' in 1777. Solomon Ketcham 
lived on Main street. He got into difficulty 
with the British soldiers, and snatching a 
picket from a fence offered to fight three or 
four officers. He was afterward confined in 
the fort on Burying Hill, and kept on a diet of 
bread and water. He never forgot his impris- 
onment nor forgave his enemies, and when the 
British fieet dropped anchor in Huntington 
Bay during the war oi 181 2, the old man 
might have been seen prowling around the 
shores of Lloyd's Neck and Bay, gun in hand, 
and woe to the son of Britain who came within 
his reach." He married Rebecca Piatt, who 
died April 17, 1834, and he survived until Feb- 
ruary 19, 1 85 1. They had seven children, 
whose names with dates of birth and death are 
as follows: Jonas, December 4, 1779, died 
October 31, 1842; Hannah, born March 29, 
1782; Solomon, Jr.. December 12, 1784, died 
March 28, 1852; Oliver, October 11, 1788. 
died August 5, 1792; Amos Piatt, May 12, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



19 



1791, died October 19, 1825; Conklin, Octo- 
ber 22, 1794, died December 16, 182 i (lost at 
seaj; John, September 2, 1797. 

Amos P. Ketcham, our subject's father, 
left the old home in Huntington, and moved to 
the town of Amenia, Dutchess county, where 
he ran a fiouring-mill and engaged in farming 
in a small way. In 1 82 1 he removed to Pough- 
keepsie and established the first steam-boat 
house in the city, about 300 yards from the 
dock at the foot of Main street. Later he 
moved into a house on the dock which was 
known as " The Exchange," and was for some 
time the leading hotel of the city. He was 
married September 9, 181 1, to Miss Anna 
Rogers Piatt, who was born November 26, 
1793, and died at Poughkeepsie, October 31, 
1 86 1. After his death she conducted the hotel 
alone until her marriage February 2, 1832, to 
Warren Skinner, who took charge of it. By 
the first marriage she had five children: Es- 
ther Emily, Aionzo R., Zephar Piatt, Andrew 
J. and Rebecca, of whom, the last two are the 
only survivors. Two children by the second 
marriage died in infancy. 

Mr. K.etcham was born in the town of 
Amenia, March 18, 1819, but with the excep- 
tion of two years in a select school there he 
was educated in Poughkeepsie at the Dutchess 
County Academy, which stood in his early 
years on the corner of Cannon and Academy 
streets, but afterward was moved to the upper 
part of the city. His education was practical 
and quite extensive for the times, and his wide 
reading has kept him well abreast of the world's 
progress. In early manhood he became a part- 
ner in a grocery business in upper Main street, 
the firm name being Gale & Ketcham. After 
a few years there he began his successful ca- 
reer in finance as clerk in the Farmers & Manu- 
facturers Bank, under Frederick W. Davis, and 
a few years later was appointed teller. In 
1852 he was appointed cashier of the First Na- 
tional Bank of Saugerties, N. Y., which he had 
helped to organize. In 1861 he started the 
Saugerties Bank, and in 1865 he went to Dover 
Plains, N. Y. , as cashier of the Dover Plains 
National Bank, and held that position nineteen 
3'ears. He retired in 1884 and moved to Pough- 
keepsie; but in 1886 he was made president of 
the Poughkeepsie National Bank, and was in 
charge of that institution for four years. 
Throughout these j'ears of service he has per- 
formed the duties of every position with marked 
ability and unvarying rectitude, and by his wise 



management he has not only won success for 
himself but has satisfactorily cared for the in- 
terests of others. 

Mr. Ketcham was married first, in 1842, to 
Sarah Anderson, daughter of Nathan Ander- 
son, a well-known resident of Rondout, N. Y. 
They had six children: Richard Piatt is cash- 
ier of the Dover Plains National Bank; Annie 
married Arthur Bangs, of Dover Plains; and 
Gaston is secretary of the Borden Con- 
densed Milk Co., of Wassaic, N. Y. Of the 
others, Andrew Golding died at the age of nine 
years, Golding at the age of six, and John at 
one year. Mr. Ketcham formed a second 
matrimonial union, with Mary Frances Cowles, 
daughter of a leading citizen of Stamford, 
N. Y., Jessee F. Cowles. They have one son, 
Charles Andrew, now a clerk in the First Na- 
tional Bank, Poughkeepsie. Mr. Ketcham 
and his wife are prominent members of the 
Second Reformed Church, in which he has 
been an elder for ten years. He takes great 
interest in public affairs, and while he has 
never sought political office, has given strong 
support to the party which represents his con- 
victions. Originally a Democrat, he adhered 
to that party until the Civil war broke out, 
and since that time he has been a Republican. 



J|AMES E. DUTCHER, president of the 
board of public works of Poughkeepsie, is 
one of the best-known and most prominent 
men in Dutchess county, having been a mem- 
ber of the State Legislature, twice elected sher- 
iff, and chairman of the Republican County 
Committee, besides holding minor offices. 

The Dutcher family is of Holland descent, 
and Abraham, the grandfather of our subject, 
was a farmer in the town of Beekman, Dutch- 
ess county, where he died. He had a family 
of eleven children, of whom, Abraham, Jr. 
(the father of our subject), was born in La- 
grange, Dutchess county, and married Miss 
Gertrude, daughter of Stephen Van Vores, 
who was of Dutch descent. They settled on 
a farm in Lagrange, but afterward removed to 
the town of Beekman, where the father died 
in 1869; he followed farming all his life. In 
his early days he was a Whig, afterward be- 
coming a Republican. The mother died in 
1892. Their family consisted of five children, 
as follows: Daniel V. is a resident of Mattea- 
wan, Dutchess county; James E. comes next; 
William H. is a farmer in the town of Beek- 



20 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



man; Mary F. is unmarried, and resides in 
Beekman; and Allison died in 1882. 

James E. Dutcher was born in the town of 
Lagrange, January 21, 1838. He was twelve 
years old when his parents removed to Beek- 
man, and after completing his education worked 
upon his father's farm until his marriage, in 
February, 1869, with Miss Elizabeth Flagler, 
She was born and reared in the town of Beek- 
man, and is a daughter of Benjamin F. Flag- 
ler, a farmer of that town. In 1876 Mr. 
Dutcher was elected sheriff of Dutchess coun- 
ty, and was re-elected in 1882, which office he 
filled three years longer. During this time he 
also served as chairman of the Republican 
County Committee. In all these responsible 
positions he won the confidence and esteem 
of the people by the faithful and impartial dis- 
charge of his duties, and proved himself a 
man of more than usual ability and progressive 
ideas. During his term as sheriff, a house on 
Pawling hill was blown up with dynamite, one 
man being killed, and for this offense three 
men were tried, convicted and sentenced to 
Sing Sing for life. After retiring from the 
shrievalty Mr. Dutcher engaged in the coal 
business, which he successfully carried on until 
1894, when he retired from that. He is at 
present serving as president of the board of 
public works of Poughkeepsie, having been 
elected to that office in May, 1896. 

Socially, our subject is a member of the 
F. & A. M. He is public-spirited, always 
ready to assist in matters relating to the wel- 
fare of his city or county, and is held in high 
esteem by his fellow-citizens. The family are 
identified with the Congregational Church, of 
which Mrs. Dutcher is an active member. 



[ON. JOHN THOMPSON (deceased) was 
a native of Dutchess county N. Y. , born 
in the town of Rhincbeck July 4, 1809, a son 
of Robert Thompson, a farmer of near the 
village of Rhinebeck, and his wife, a Miss 
Scott, the daughter of Rev. Robert Scott, 
who for many years kept a boarding school 
for boys. At this institution our subject re- 
ceived the rudiments of his education, up to 
the age of thirteen years, when, the school 
being discontinued, he for the next four years 
spent the most of his time in establishing his 
always e.xtensively delicate health in the light 
work about the farm, also in reading and 
study. 



On October 2G, 1826, Mr. Thompson en- 
tered the office of Francis A. Livingston, then 
district attorney of Dutchess county, and at 
once began the study not only of law, but of 
general literature. Within the first j'ear of 
his clerkship he acquired a perfect knowledge 
of the routine of the duties of the district 
attorney's office, and in many ways soon made 
himself an indispensable acquisition to Mr. 
Livingston, attending court with him, etc., at 
the same time pursuing his studies in English 
literature and philosophy. 

On the removal of Mr. Livingston to New 
York, in 1829, Mr. Thompson went into the 
office of Hooker & Tallmadge, in the then 
village of Poughkeepsie, and, upon receiving 
his license as an attorney, was taken into 
partnership by James Hooker, then surrogate 
of the county. 

In 1834 Mr. Thompson was married to 
Miss Mary Smith, youngest daughter of Judge 
Isaac Smith, of Lithgow, in the town of Wash- 
ington, Dutchess county, and, she owning a 
farm recei\ed from her father's estate, much 
of her husband's time was taken up in its 
management. In 1840, however, he gave this 
up and devoted himself e.xclusively to his pro- 
fession. He was cotemporary with some of 
the most learned of the old school of lawyers, 
with whom it is but just to say that he " held 
his own," and was engaged in the trial of 
every important case from 1845 till his retire- 
ment. Not the least of his labors was his 
acquisition for the Hudson River Railroad Co. 
of ihe title of much of the lands needed for 
the use of the road from Poughkeepsie to 
Albany. Mr. Thompson was for many years 
connected in business with James H. Weeks, 
under the firm name of Thompson & Weeks, 
which firm, by the admission of Frank B. 
Lown, in 1878, became Thompson, Weeks & 
Lown. Mr. Weeks died in 1887, and the 
firm then remained as Thompson & Lown, 
which partnership continued until Mr. Thomp- 
son's death. 

In the summer of 1856 Mr. Thompson 
was asked to represent Columbia and Dutchess 
counties in Congress, and induced to accept 
the nomination, though the result seemed 
dubious, considering the heavy and influ- 
ential Democratic majority in the district. 
However, he at once organized a series of 
meetings in the two counties, and by a 
thorough discussion of the momentous issues 
then pending, so aroused public sentiment, 






Ju ^Wa/lkAJiydO-l^^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPSICAL RECORD. 



21 



that he was elected by over 1,200 majority on 
the side of the Republican ticket. During 
the sessions of '57-58 Mr. Thompson entered 
into the debates on the floor of the House of 
Representatives, and a number of his speeches 
were circulated throughout the district and 
country. One upon the exciting topic of the 
hour, "The Admission of Kansas," and an- 
other on the "Mormon Question" were 
warmly received, thousands of copies being 
circulated by members all over the Southern 
as well as the Northern States. 

A second nomination was tendered Mr. 
Thompson, but declined by him on account of 
pressing business duties. After his Congres- 
sional career, he held no public office of a 
political nature, but beside his professional 
duties, gave his efforts to benevolent and phil- 
anthropic movements of society and in the 
Church, with which he was united while a 
student at law. For some ten years in the 
earlier history of the organizations of Lyceums 
and Young Men's Associations, he lectured in 
their aid. He twice delivered the oration be- 
fore the literary societies at Union College on 
commencement day — at New Brunswick and 
at Williamstown; was elected a member of 
the Phi Beta Kappa at Union, and received 
the degree of A. M. from Union and Yale. He 
was a lifelong student, devoting his leisure to 
the cultivation of general literature, especially 
of theology, delivered many Sunday evening 
lectures, and also published numerous essays 
— one on "Inspiration," one on the "Atone- 
ment," and another on the "Inner Kingdom." 
He also published an article vindicating the 
miracles of the New Testament. When 
Matthew Vassar had settled upon devoting his 
wealth toward the founding of Vassar College, 
Mr. Thompson was among the first persons 
consulted by him, and was chosen one of the 
trustees of that institution. For many years 
he was vice-president of the Fallkill National 
Bank, of Poughkeepsie, and at the time of his 
death was president of that institution. 

Mr. Thompson, in 1835, built his residence 
at the corner of Market and Church streets, 
and passed the rest of his life there, except 
some four or five summers spent by the family 
at a cottage owned by Mrs. Thompson, in 
New Hamburg, on Wappingers creek. In 1 87 1 
Mr. Thompson spent a year in Europe, both 
for his health and mental improvement. 

Mr. Thompson was possessed of rare for- 
ensic and rhetorical gifts, which gave grace to 



his pen, and beauty and strength to his utter- 
ances. His stj'le was ornate, without weak- 
ness, and philosophical without obscurit}-; on 
the platform or at the bar, he was one of the 
most effective speakers in the land. His kind- 
ness of heart, cheerful temperament, abundant 
humor and quick repartee, made him an agree- 
able companion and the best of friends. The 
weight of his character from early manhood 
had been on the side of Christian principle, in 
which regard he was of vast benefit to the 
moral and philanthropic movements of his 
times. 

Mr. Thompson died June i, 1890, leaving 
surviving him his second wife, Caroline la 
daughter of the late James Bailey, of Pratts- 
burg, N. Y.J, and several children. 



HON. ISAAC S. CARPENTER, one of 
the most prominent citizens of Dutchess 

county, is a worthy representative of an old 
and honored family. He is the eighth gen- 
eration in direct descent from William Car- 
penter, who was born in England in 1576, 
and came to America in 1638 in the ship 
" Bevis," landing at Weymouth, Mass. His 
son, William (2), born in England in 1605, 
accompanied him, bringing also his wife, 
y^bigail. In 1643 the family moved from ^^'ey- 
mouth to Rehoboth, Mass. William and Abi- 
gail Carpenter had seven children : \Mlliam, 
Samuel, Joseph, John, Abiah, Hannah and 
Abraham — the last three born in America. 
John Carpenter came to Long Island in early 
manhood, and in 1663 was chosen townsman 
of Hempstead; later his name is on the records 
as captain of fusiliers in the Narragansett 
expedition. He was married in 1665 to 
Hannah Baright, and made his home at 
Jamaica, where he died May 23, 1695. He 
and his wife had five children: John, William, 
Samuel, Hope and Hannah. \Villiam (3), our 
subject's great-great-grandfather, was born at 
Hempstead, and after his father's death he 
bought his mother's right in the estate there, 
and moved from Jamaica with his wife, Eliza. 
They had three children: Daniel, John and 
Elizabeth. Daniel Carpenter, our subject's 
great-grandfather, was born in Hempstead, 
and in 1752 came to Dutchess county, where 
he bought a farm at Crum Elbow, Hyde Park, 
and there died in 1777. On February 4, 
1729, he married Sarah Hall, of Hempstead, 
by whom he had six children: (i) Joseph, 



22 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



who was a merchant of Bangall, and a justice 
of the peace of the town of Stanford, married 
Dorcas Smith, whose father was an officer in 
the British army during the Revolutionary 
war; they had five children: John and Smith 
(who both entered the naval service), Joseph, 
Benjamin and Dorcas. (2) Daniel, who was 
a resident of Fishkill. (3) William. (4) 
Joseph. (5) Benjamin. (6) Mary, Mrs. John 
Carpenter. 

Benjamin Carpenter, our subject's grand- 
father, was born at Hempstead July 11, 1749, 
and lived for many years at Crum Elbow on 
land given him by his father. He was perse- 
cuted during the Revolution by the Tories of 
his locality for raising a company for the Colo- 
nial army, having his home robbed three times; 
on other occasions he was saved by his immense 
greyhound. He bought land of Job Swift in 
1782, and of Samuel Pugsley in 1796, and in 
1798 he purchased from John Miller a farm on 
"Carpenter Hill," where, in 1S04, he built 
the house now occupied by our subject. On 
September 9, 1773, he married Mary Pugsley, 
who was born March 25, 1756, the daughter of 
Samuel Pugsley, of Westchester. She died 
November 16, 1821, he surviving until January 
^7< 1837. Eight children were born of this 
union, whose names, with dates of birth and 
death are as follows : ( i 1 Sarah, August 6, 
1774, died November 30, 1852 (she married 
George Ferris, of Peekskill). (2) Hannah, 
February 25, 1776, died in 1845 (she married 
Noah Tabor and had two children — Benjamin 
and Maria). (3) ^faria, April 14, 1778, died 
September 2, 1839 (she married Bernard 
Matthewson). (4) Daniel, October 29, 1785, 
died May 3, 1853 (he was a resident of 
Amenia, and was married to Zayde Perlee, 
and had four children — Hannah, Benjamin 
(who married Tamma Hunting), Edmund P. 
(who married Frances Hoag) and Tazde. 
(5) Cornelia, November 6, 1789, died March 
12, 1840 (she never married). (6) Elizabeth, 
April 26, 1 79 1, died young. (7) Samuel P., 
March 8, 1780, died January 30, 18 14. (8) 
Morgan, November 4, 1795, died November 
14, 1871, our subject's father. 

Morgan Carpenter received his early edu- 
cation in the district schools near his home, 
and in a private school near Peekskill. He 
was for some years associate county judge, 
under appointment from Gov. Seward. On 
February 3, 18 19, he was married to Maria 
Bockee, who was born in the town of North- 



east, Dutchess county, January 3, 1794, the 
daughter of Jacob and Catherine (Smith) 
Bockee. In 1852 they moved to No. 333 Mill 
street, Poughkeepsie, where they spent their 
\ later years, his wife dying January 29, 1871, 
less than a year from the time of his own 
death. Nine children were born of this union: 
(!) Catherine, born November 23. 1S19, died 
February 2, 1S20. (2) Benjamin Piatt, born 
November 25, 1821, died December 30, 1836. 
(3) Catharine Bockee, born June 24, 1823, 
married George B. Lent, of Poughkeepsie, 
October 28, 1847, and died September 17, 
1S79. (4) Mary M., born February i, 1825, 
married Edward G. Tyler, October i, 1844 
(he died April 21, 18911, and has three chil- 
dren — Maria Seymour (born February 3, 1846), 
Morgan Carpenter (born December 22. 1847), 
and Mary Catharine (born December 31, 
1856). (5) Jacob Bockee, born July 16, 1826, 
was a leading resident of this locality, and was 
chosen supervisor of the town of Stanford in 

1855, member of the Assembly in 1856, Presi- 
dential elector in i860, supervisor of the Fifth 
ward of Poughkeepsie in 1870, and mayor of 
Poughkeepsie in 1875-76. He lived in Stan- 
ford and Northeast until 1861, and then moved 
to Poughkeepsie, later to Little Rest, where 
he died April 9, 1894. On January 28, i860, 
he was married to Sarah E. Thorne, and had 
three children, whose names, with dates of 
birth, are here given: Mary Thorne, March 
18, 1861; Jacob B., September 17, 1863 (died 
December 15, 1874); and Maria B. , October 
12, 1865, who was married June 5, 1890, to 
Joseph S. Tower. (6) Isaac Smith, June 24, 
1828, was twice married,, first on August 28, 
185 I, to Julia Willson, who died May 22, 1858, 
and second on September 5, 1S60, to Sfirah 
Rebecca Willson. Three children were born 
of the first marriage: Eliza, September 19, 
1852; Morgan, June 7, 1854, was married De- 
cember 14. 1876, to Virginia A. Bartlett, of 
Hampton, V'a., and has two children, Maria 
\'. and Miriam; Maria Bockee, November 21, 

1856, was married, October 17, 1888, to 
Thomas C. Clark, of Grand Island, Neb. , and 
has two sons — Henry C. and Isaac C. Of the 
second marriage three children were born: 
Willson, October 7, 1861, graduated from 
Yale in 1884; Julia, March 25, 1864; and Sarah 
Louisa, December 6, 1865. (7) Louisa S., 
November 26, 1830, was married July 21, 
1851, to Abram Staats, of Red Hook, and had 
one daughter, Catherine Eliza, born May 23, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



1852, died in 1890. (8) Sara Maria, March 
25, 1832, took a prominent part in reform 
movements, and was a member of the State 
Board of Charities. She died March 22, 1894. 
(9) Benjamin P., May 14, 1S37, was a lawyer 
and a prominent politician. He was a super- 
visor of Amenia in 1861, district attorney of 
Poughkeepsie in 1858, member of the Consti- 
tutional Convention, State senator in 1875, 
county judge from 1877 to 1883, delegate to 
the National Republican Convention in 1884, 
governor of Montana in the year 1884, 
and member of the Code Commission. He 
was married in i860 to Esther Thorne, who 
was born July 3, 1840, daughter of Stephen 
Thorne, of Poughkeepsie. Four children were 
born to them: Estelle, June 5, 1861 (died 
January 9. 1863); Nina, August 26, 1863, was 
married April 8, 1885, to Albert E. Tower, 
and has one son — Albert, born November, 
1887; Kate, October 12, 1866; and Stephen, 
June 14, 1869, is now the city attorney of Hel- 
ena, Mont. He was admitted to the bar Decem- 
ber 3, 1890, appointed United States Commis- 
sioner in March, 1892, and elected Assembly- 
man in 1892. 

Isaac Smith Carpenter, the subject proper 
of this sketch, received his early education in 
the public schools of Stanford, the Amenia 
Seminary, Pittsfield Gymnasium, Warren In- 
stitute, in Connecticut, and College Hill, 
Poughkeepsie. He has always lived at the old 
homestead in Stanford. His distinguished 
abilities and high character have enabled him 
to sustain well the position in the community 
which was his by family inheritance, and he is 
foremost among the supporters of any worthy 
public fnovement. He was supervisor of the 
town of Stanford four terms, and was elected 
to the Assembly from the First district in 1879, 
and again in 1880, serving each term as a 
member of the Ways and Means committee. 



iON. JOHN BOWDISH BUTCHER, one 

of the ablest and most distinguished sons 
of Dutchess county, is noted for his ability as 
a financier and as an organizer and manager 
of large corporate interests, as well as for his 
effective work in political lines. The simplest 
summary of the various positions of trust and 
honor which he holds, or has held, would cover 
widely different phases of political, social and 
business life. 



Mathew Dutcher, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, came from Holland, and settled in what 
is now the town of Dover, Dutchess county, 
where he probably passed the remainder of his 
life as a farmer. He died at a comparatively 
early age, but his wife, Sarah Dutcher, sur- 
vived him many years, dying in her ninety- 
first year. They had five children: Harry, 
who located in Ontario county, N. Y.; David, 
our subject's father; Phcebe, the wife of Will- 
iam Kronkright; Clarissa, who married Eph- 
raim Kronkright; and Pattie, the wife of Fer- 
ris Carey. David Dutcher was born in the 
town of Dover in 1796, and lived all his life 
near South Dover. He was a man of strong 
character and great energy, wielding great in- 
fluence in local affairs, and making a success 
of his business as an agriculturist and dealer in 
live stock. In the latter branch he had an ex- 
tensive trade, supplying the local and New 
York City markets. He commenced life poor, 
but at his death, which occurred June 9, 1853, 
he owned about si.\ hundred acres of land. He 
married Amy Bowdish, daughter of Asa Bow- 
dish, and a descendant of an old Quaker fam- 
ily, which had settled at an early period near 
New Bedford, Mass. She was born in 1 799, 
and died June 5, 1875. Eight children were 
born of this union: Albro, who was quarter- 
master in the 2 ist Missouri Regiment during 
the Civil war, and died in the service; Asa, a 
resident of Sharon, Conn.; John B., our sub- 
ject; Jane Ann, who married Frederick Cole- 
man, of Warren, Conn.; Julia, the wife of 
Baldwin Stevens; DeWitt C, who enlisted in 
the army and was drowned while serving on 
the staff of Gen. Viele; and Charles (deceased), 
who was a paymaster in the navy during the 
Civil war, and later resided at White Plains. 

Our subject was born in the town of Dover, 
February 13, 1830, was reared as a farmer 
boy, and obtained his education chiefly in the 
common schools. He has always been en- 
gaged in agriculture, at first in his native town, 
and later in the adjoining town of Pawling. 
In i860 he married Miss Christina Dodge, 
daughter of the late Daniel Dodge, of Pawling, 
and in April, i86i,he located upon his pres- 
ent homestead in that town. He owns 1,600 
acres of fine grazing land in Dutchess county, 
stocked with thoroughbred horses and 250 
cows. His agricultural interests are now man- 
aged by his son, J. Gerow Dutcher (the only 
offspring of his marriage), who was united in 
wedlock in April, 1894, with Miss Helen Titus 



24 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Willetts, daughter of Edward Willetts, of 
Roslyn, Long Island. 

Possessing sound judgment, Hon. J. B. 
Dutcher has gained and kept the confidence of 
the people at large in an unusual degree. He 
was made supervisor of the town of Dover in 
1857, and justice of the peace in the following 
year. A Whig in early years, he became a 
Republican on the organization of that party, 
and is still an ardent advocate of its principles. 
An injury prevented him from going to the 
front during the Civil war, but he was active 
and zealous in recruiting and ecjuipping troops. 
He was a member of the State Assembly in 
1861 and 1862, and of the State Senate in 
1S64 and 1865. In the Assembly he was 
chairman of the committee on Internal Affairs 
and a member of the committee on Railroads; 
in the Senate was a member of the committee 
on Cities, and chairman of the committee on 
Internal Affairs. For sex^eral years he was a 
member of the State Republican Committee. 
In 1864 he was a delegate to the National 
Convention which nominated Lincoln, and in 
1880 he was sent in the same capacity to the 
convention that placed Garfield at the head 
of the National ticket. He keeps closely in 
touch with all the questions of the day, and is 
strongly in favor of the curtailment of the 
liquor traffic as far as possible. 

In 1864 Mr. Dutcher became a director of 
the New York & Harlem railroad, and in 1865 
he took charge of the department of live-stock 
transportation on the New York Central & Har- 
lem railroads, and has ever since held this re- 
sponsible position, to which has been added 
the West Shore railroad and the Rome & 
Watertown railroad. He is also prominently 
identified with other lines, being a director of 
the Spuyton Duy\'al railroad, the Poughkeepsie 
& Eastern railroad, and the New York & Put- 
nam railroad. His other business interests are 
legion. He is president of the Union Stock 
Yards & Market Co., of New York City, and 
was one of its incorporators; president of the 
National Bank at Pawling, succeeding Albert 
J. Akin; director of the American Safe Deposit 
Company; director of the Fifth Avenue Bank; 
and one of the original stockholders in its in- 
corporation in 1875; director of the Mizzentop 
Hotel Company at Quaker Hill, and formerly 
its president; member of the Chamber of Com- 
merce and the Produce Exchange; and for 
many years before its sale was president of the 
St. Louis National Stock Yards, of which he 



was one of the founders. Not the least of his 
labors have been his successful efforts for the 
improvement of the village of Pawling, where 
he has built a fine block containing a hotel and 
number of stores. He is now the president of 
the village, and to his efforts the village is 
largely indebted for one of the best water-sup- 
ply systems in the State; and he is president 
of the board of water commissioners. In his 
agricultural matters he is regarded as a leader; 
he was president of the New York State Agri- 
cultural Societj' for two years, and has been 
president of the Holstein Friesian Association 
of America. Socialh' he is no less prominent; 
he is one of the oldest members of the Union 
League Club, and a member of the St. Nicho- 
las Society of New York City. 



J 



AMES HENRY WEEKS. Among the in- 
fluential and leading citizens of Poughkeep- 
sie, none was held in higher esteem, or was 
more worthy a place in the records of her his- 
tory than the subject of this sketch, who is held 
in kindly remembrance by all who knew him. 
In all the relations of life — as a lawyer, a law- 
maker, a citizen, and a tender and devoted hus- 
band and father — he fulfilled his duties with 
faithfulness and discretion, and left to his chil- 
dren the best of all legacies, "a good name." 

The Weeks family was of old English ori- 
gin, the paternal grandfather of our subject 
having emigrated to America in an early day. 
Thomas Weeks, our subject's father, was born 
in Connecticut, where he follow'ed farming. 
He married Elizabeth Bogardus, a daughter of 
James Cornelius Bogardus, and they came to 
Dutchess county, settling on a farm and rear- 
ing a family of children, as follows: Elizabeth, 
who died in 1892, unmarried; Emily, who mar- 
ried Isaac S. Vary, at one time teller of the 
Farmers' & Manufacturers' Bank, Poughkeep- 
sie; Ann, married to John DePew, of Dutchess 
county; Eloise, who became the wife of Charles 
Barrett, a farmer of Putnam county, N. Y.; 
and James Henry. 

James H. \N'eeks, the subject proper of this 
sketch, was born December 21, 1822, in N. 
Hackensack, N. Y. He attended the district 
school of his locality in early boyhood, continu- 
ing his education at the Dutchess County Acad- 
emy, subsequently reading law with Alexander 
Forbes. He was admitted to the bar at Pough- 
keepsie, May 16, 1845, and shortly afterward 
formed a partnership with Hon. John Thomp- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



25 



son, which continued for nearl}- thirty years, 
until the time of the death of Air. Weeks. 
This firm was then the oldest law firm in the 
State. In 1878 Frank B. Lown was taken 
into partnership, the firm name at Mr. Weeks' 
decease being Thompson, Weeks & Lown. 

Mr. Weeks was married June 28, 1S66, to 
Harriet S. Babcock, a native of Salem, Mass., 
and a daughter of Rev. Rufus Babcock. Her 
father was born in Colebrook, Conn., and was 
pastor of a Baptist Church in Salem, Mass., 
and of one in Poughkeepsie; was also president 
of Colby University, at Waterville, Maine. He 
married Olivia Smith, a native of Barring- 
ton, R. I., born of English descent, and three 
children were the result of this union: Caro- 
line, who married Horatio G. Jones, a lawyer 
of Philadelphia; Emily, the wife of George H. 
Swift, a lawyer of Poughkeepsie, but residing 
in Amenia; and Harriet (Mrs. Weeks). 

Mr. Weeks died November 28, 1887, in 
Poughkeepsie, which had always been his home. 
He was closely identified with the interests of 
the city, and took an active part in all public 
enterprises. In his early years he was a Dem- 
ocrat in his political views, afterward, however, 
becoming associated with the Republican party, 
he was a leading spirit in its councils. He 
held several town offices, and in the winter of 
1853-54 was a member of the Assembly at 
Albany, N. Y., during which incumbency he 
was chairman of the judiciary committee, and 
won the esteem of his constituency for his 
careful and untiring devotion to their interests. 
As a lawyer he was well known for his keen 
insight into human nature, his correct judgment 
on intricate questions, and his thorough knowl- 
ledge of law in all its bearings. Personally he 
was a man of genial manners, generous and 
charitable in his disposition, and greatly beloved 
in his home. He was an able financier, and left 
some valuable property in Dutchess county 
and also in Rhode Island. He was a liberal 
supporter of the Presbyterian Church, to which 
his family belong. Mrs. Weeks and her daugh- 
ters — Caroline Babcock and Elizabeth Mauran 
— are widely known and highly esteemed in 
the community, and are women of culture and 
refinement. 



ON. JOHN A. HANNA, of Dover Plains, 
Dutchess county, member of the New 
York State Assembly from the First District, 
is one of the most distinguished citizens, and 



has made his way to the front in business and 
political life notwithstanding the fact that he 
is still young in years. He was born in \\"i\\- 
iamsbridge, near New York City, on October 
8, 1859, and received a good education, at- 
tending first the schools of his native place, 
and later a private seminary at Dover. After 
his graduation he engaged in mercantile busi- 
ness, and in 1875 he established a general 
store in Dover Plains, which at once became 
a prominent factor in the commercial life of 
the town. His father-in-law, H. \\'. Preston, 
is associated with him under the firm name of 
J. A. Hanna & Co. 

Mr. Hanna possesses the admirable traits 
of character which mark the leader in public 
affairs, and has been prominent in the councils 
of the Republican party from his first entrance 
into politics, being elected to various town 
offices at different times — including that of 
supervisor in 1890, for one year, and in 1893, 
for two years. May 20, 1889, he was ap- 
pointed postmaster of Dover Plains, under 
President Harrison, and held that position un- 
til a short time ago, and in 1895 he was 
elected to the State Legislature, where he has 
served his constituency ably and faithfully. 
He belongs to the Royal Arcanum at Wassaic, 
N. Y. , and is a leading member of the Baptist 
Church at Dover Plains, taking great interest 
in the prosperity and growth of that body. 
His wife, formerly Miss Ada Preston, is a de- 
scendant of one of the oldest families. They 
have one daughter — Julia E. Hanna. 

The Hanna family originated in Mayha- 
land. County Londonderry, Ireland, and Mr. 
Hanna has made a visit to the eld home of 
his ancestors while taking an extended Europ- 
ean tour. Samuel Hanna, his grandfather, 
was born in Mayhaland, County Londonderry, 
Ireland, and was there reared and educated. 
He followed the occupation of a farmer and 
also engaged in the operation of a flax and 
grist mill at that place. He married Matilda 
Furgeson, and to their union were born thir- 
teen children, namely: Jane, who married 
James Sergent; Thomas, who married Mar- 
garet Hutchinson; James and John, who died 
in infancy; Isabella, who married James 
Hutchinson; Nancy, who married William 
Hanna; John, who remained single; Robert, 
who married Matilda Dixon; Eliza, who died 
in girlhood; Peggy, who died in infancy; 
David, our subject's father; Sarah, who mar- 
ried a Mr. Livingston; and Alex. 



26 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



David Hanna, our subject's father, during 
his boyhood attended the schools of his native 
land, and assisted his father in the work of the 
mills. On March 15, 1852, he married Miss 
Eliza Hutchinson, a daughter of Samuel and 
Arabella (Greer) Hutchinson, who lived on a 
farm in County Londonderry. Her father was 
one of the seven children born to Robert and 
Nancy (Patterson) Hutchinson, who were also 
agriculturists of the same locality, the others 
being: John, William, James, Bettie, Alex and 
Thomas. Shortly after his marriage David 
Hanna and his wife sailed from the Emerald 
fsle for the New World, and made their first 
location at Paterson, N. J., where they re- 
mained for some time. On leaving that city 
they went to New York, and for forty-three 
years Mr. Hanna was in the employ of the Har- 
lem road, being fireman for seven years and 
five months, and was then given a position as 
watchman, which he held until his resignation 
a short time ago, owing to his age. His long 
continued service well indicates his faithful 
discharge of duty, and the implicit confidence 
placed in him by his emploj'ers. He had a 
family of seven children, namely: Arabella; 
Samuel, a conductor on the Harlem railroad, 
married Minnie McGlasson, and they have one 
child — Herbert J.; Matilda is now deceased; 
John is our subject; David, a conductor on the 
Harlem railroad, married Mary Hutchinson; 
Dorley is deceased; and Lizza A. 

The ancestors of Mrs. John A. Hanna were 
early settlers in Rhode Island, where her great- 
great-grandfather, Ebenezer Preston, was born 
and educated. He was the first of the family 
to come to Dutchess county, and he became a 
successful farmer in the town of Dover. His 
wife was a Miss White, and they had five chil- 
dren: Bijah married Betsey Ross; Smith mar- 
ried Phoebe Eazenef; John married Amy Wing; 
Ebenezer remained in single blessedness; and 
Hannah married Jackson Wing. John Pres- 
ton, Mrs. Hanna's great-grandfather, was born 
in Dover Plains, and after attending the com- 
mon schools for some years engaged in farm- 
ing. He purchased a tract of land on the old 
post road near Dover Plains, upon which stood 
a house that was one of the historic land-marks 
of the locality, having been used for many 
years as a tavern. The days of the stage 
coach not yet being ended, he maintained it in 
that capacity for some years. He married 
Miss Amy Wing, daughter of Thomas Wing, 
a well-known farmer of Dover, and they had 



eight children, whose names with those of their 
husbands and wives are as follows: Myron mar- 
ried Sarah Ward; Shandinett married Sal- 
lie A. Sheldon; Harvey married Emeline Ta- 
ber; Uriah, no record; George married Mary 
Germond; John married Sallie Thomas; Han- 
nah married Oscar Taber; and Pha-be married 
David \'incent. The two younger daughters 
were twins. 

Myron Preston, Mrs. Hanna's grandfather, 
was born in 1804, and after a course in the 
common schools in the town of Dover engaged 
in farming there. He was greatly interested 
in local politics, and held a number of offices. 
His wife was Miss Sarah Wood, daughter of 
Paltira and Anna Wood, who owned a fine 
farm near Dover Plains. Of the two children 
of this union the younger, Anna, married 
Abram Denton. The elder, Henry W. Pres- 
ton, Mrs. Hanna's father, was born in 1830, 
and was educated in the schools of Dover Plains 
and at the Amenia Seminary. After graduat- 
ing from the latter institution he engaged in 
farming for a time, but later became connected 
with a mercantile firm in Dover Plains as a 
clerk. In 1875 he formed the present part- 
nership with his son-in-law, which has proved 
mutually advantageous. He married Miss 
Julia M. Pierce, the daughter of a prosperous 
saddle and harness maker of Salisbury, Conn., 
and Mrs. Hanna is their only child. 



ON. ALFRED BONNEY. As one of the 
youngest and ablest members of the 
State Assembly of 1882, the subject of this re- 
view rendered good service to his constituency 
of the First District of Dutchess County, and 
proved himself a worthy descendant of an -an- 
cestry which has numbered more than one man 
of ability and note. 

The Bonney family is of Anglo-Norman 
stock, and the head of the American line came 
from Dover, England, about 1604. For sev- 
eral generations the home of the family was in 
Massachusetts; but the numerous descendants 
have since become widely dispersed. Peter 
Bonney, our subject's grandfather, was born 
May 18. 1773, at Charlestown, N. H., and 
April 7, 1800, was married to Eleanor Savage, 
who was born November 16, 1781. Shortly 
after his marriage he settled at Littleton, N. 
H., and engaged in business as a tanner, and 
dealer in wild lands. He was a man of much 
influence, and in 18 10 represented Grafton 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



27 



county, N. H., in the State Legislature. His 
death occurred December 15, 1836, his wife 
surviving him many years, dying at Jamaica 
Plains, Mass., October 7, 1873. They had 
eight children, all of whom (except the young- 
est) are now deceased, their names with dates 
of birth, &c. , being as follows: Emily, May 

30, 1801; Benjamin West, February 2, 1803; 
Elvira, March 14, 1805, married and settled 
near Boston; Almeria, September 9, 1807, also 
married and lived in New Hampshire; Frank- 
lin R., December 6, 1810; Elizabeth M., Oc- 
tober 12, 18 1 5, married and resided in San 
Francisco, Cal. ; Alfred P., August 29, 1820, 
was married, and left a widow and four chil- 
dren, who now reside in Waterford, Caledonia 
Co., Vt., about fourteen miles from St. Johns- 
bury; and Ellen, April 2, 1825, widow of the 
late Rev. Oliver S. St. John, a Congregational 
minister. 

Judge Benjamin West Bonney, our sub- 
ject's father, received an elementary education 
in the common schools at Littleton, N. H., 
and then taught school in order to obtain 
funds for further study. Later he entered 
Dartmouth College, from which he graduated 
valedictorian of his class in 1824, and subse- 
quently settled in New York City, where he 
began the study of law. In 1827 he was ap- 
pointed commissioner of deeds; February 29, 
1828, was admitted to practice as attorney in 
the Court of Common Pleas; on October 29, 
1S30. received his license as counsellor, and on 
the following day was licensed as counsellor at 
law in the Court of Common Pleas. On May 

31, 1 83 1, he became a licensed counsellor in 
all the courts of the State. He practiced 
his profession continuously in New York City 
until his death, e.xcept while serving as justice 
of the Supreme Court of the State of New 
York; and was widely influential in public af- 
fairs, religious, educational and political. He 
was an ardent supporter of the Republican 
party, from its formation. He was president 
of the New England Society in the City of 
New York; chairman of the Board of Audits; 
and one of the earliest members of the Union 
League Club; a director in the Washington 
Life Insurance Co. ; general counsel of the 
Merchants Bank, and counsel for many years 
of Madame Jumel. 

On April 28, 1848, he was married by Rev. 
Mancius S. Hutton, D. D., to Adriana Rapalje, 
daughter of Sylvanus Rapalje, who was born 
July 3, 1795, and died November 12, 1883; he 



was a prominent man of his day, in various 
lines of effort; he was twice married, first on 
June II, 1823, to Susan Roe Van Voorhis, 
who was born April 14, 1805, and died Janu- 
ary 26, 1832. To their union were born three 
children: Adelaide, August 7, 1824; Jeromus, 
February 25, 1S26; and Adriana, our subject's 
mother, November 11, 1827. On November 

16, 1833, he married, for his second wife, 
Rachel Ann Van Voorhis, a native of Fishkill, 
Dutchess county, and a sister of his first wife. 
She died March 23, 1877. They had three 
children, viz.: William, born August 20, 1834; 
Susan Augusta, widow of the late Rev. Lester 
M. Dorman (Yale '54), January 21, 1839; and 
Stewart, September 6, 1843. 

Our subject's parents made their home in 
New York City, where the father died August 
18, 1868, -and the mother on August 15, 1891. 
They reared a family of seven children, to all 
of whom were given unusually good educa- 
tional advantages. Their names, with dates of 
birth, etc., are here given: Eleanor, March 2, 
1849, married Edward F. Brown, a lawyer of 
New York City; Adriana R., March 30, 1850, 
is the widow of Dr. Weber- Liel, late of Bonn, 
Germany, where she now resides; and Benja- 
min W. , April 2, 1852, is a farmer at Fishkill 
Plains; Susan R. , May 20. 1854, married Major 
of Cavalry Carl Emil Schultz-Schulzenstein, 
of Berlin, Germany, and died in Charlotten- 
burg, Germany, September 26, 1895; Alfred, 
our subject; Jeromus R., May 6, 1859, who 
has never married, is a civil engineer; Elvira 
B., July 5, 1863, married Anton L. Bamber- 
ger, who died in London, England. 

Hon. Alfred Bonney was born February 

17, 1857, at No. 18 West 14th street, New 
York City, where his education was begun in 
its schools, and in 1869 he, in company with 
his mother, brothers and sisters, went to Ger- 
many to study. He spent one year at Dussel- 
dorf-on-the-Rhine, and two years at Berlin, 
and then returned to the United States. He 
attended the Brooklyn Polytechnic and Col- 
legiate Institute for a time, and later entered 
Cornell University, where he remained three 
years, making a special study of agriculture. 
In 1878 he settled in the town of East Fish- 
kill, Dutchess county, purchasing his present 
estate of 151 acres, then known as the "old 
Rapalje farm," but now re-christened the 
"Green Meadow farm." Here his thorough 
scientific training for his calling has been put 
to a successful test in the raising of general 



28 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



crops, and he is regarded as one of the lead- 
ing farmers of that section. His activities are 
not confined to agricultural work, however, 
and he has been prominent in the Kepublican 
party, being chosen, as has been said, to rep- 
resent the Assembly District in the Legislature 
at Albany. 

On April 30, 1889, Mr. Bonney married 
Miss Sarah A. Luyster, daughter of the late 
Peter Luyster, and they have one son, Alfred, 
Jr., born April 20, 1890. Mr. and Mrs. Bon- 
ney are members of the Reformed Church at 
Hopewell, in which he has held office as dea- 
con. He is a member of the Alpha Delta Phi 
fraternity, Cornell Branch, and is a life mem- 
ber of the New England Societv. 



BISBEE FAMILY. THE, of which Joseph 
B. Bisbee, of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, is a worthy and respected representa- 
tive, is of English origin, and the progenitorof 
the American line came to this country in 1734, 
the name appearing in the early records as 
" Besbedge." He settled at Plymouth, Mass., 
but his descendants located at various points, 
being named among the first settlers at Mans- 
field, Pembroke and Scituate, Mass. Gideon 
Bisbee located at Chesterfiefd, Hampshire Co. , 
Mass., and was the father of two sons, lotham 
and Gideon. Jotham had ten children: Jon- 
athan, Asenath, Elisha, Lucy, Rebecca, Lydia, 
Rachel, Jotham, Job and Ashael. 

Job was born in 1797, and during his early 
manhood was a farmer at W'orthington, Mass. 
In 1 8 19 he married Miss Susan Buck, who was 
born in 1800, and was of the sixth generation 
in descent from James Buck, of Hingham, 
Mass., who at one time was town clerk of 
Scituate. He died in 1695. His son Isaac 

married Frances , and had a son Matthew, 

born in 1724, who married Elizabeth Howard. 
Their son Thomas married Silence Brett, and 
had a son Cyrus (Mrs. Bisbee's father), who 
was born in 1775 and died in i860. About 
1830 Job Bisbee removed to Ellicottville, Cat- 
taraugus Co., N. Y., with his family, and en- 
gaged in farming until 1864, when he went to 
Poughkeepsie to reside. His death occurred 
there March 11, 1866, his wife surviving him 
until April, 188 1. Job Bisbee was a man of 
strong character and fine mental ability, and 
held a high place in the esteem of his asso- 
ciates. He was well read, much noted as a 
mathematician, and taught with great success 



in Worthington, Mass., and in Cattaraugus 
county, N. Y. Although he was not a mem- 
ber of any Church, he was of unblemished 
Christian character, and his influence was al- 
ways powerful for good. He was especially 
pronounced in his views upon public questions. 
He and his wife reared a family of nine chil- 
dren, to whose education he gave careful at- 
tention: Otis, Alvin (a resident of Nebraska) 
and George (deceased) were born at the old 
home in Massachusetts; the others were na- 
tives of Cattaraugus county. Jane married 
Manley Fuller, and lives at Rochester, Minn. ; , 
Mary married Dr. Edwin Kimball, of Hay- 
wards, Cal. ; Samantha married Dr. John 
Veach (now deceased), formerly of Kentucky, 
but later of Portland, Oregon; Susan never 
married; Adelia is the wife of Oren Cobb, of 
\\'inthrop, Maine; and Anna married George 
Gifford, Esq., of Jamestown, New York. 

Otis Bisbee, one of the most successful 
educators of the State, and the founder and 
principal of Riverview Academy, was born 
February 14, 1822, in the town of Chester- 
field, Hampshire Co., Mass., and came with 
his parents to New York State during boy- 
hood. Until he was fifteen years old his 
schooling was limited to two or three months' 
attendance each year at the district school, his 
help being needed on the farm at other sea- 
sons. The country was new, much rough 
work having to be done, and in that he rapidly 
developed the independent spirit and indus- 
trious habit which carried him through the ex- 
acting duties of later years. At the age of 
thirteen he showed these traits by undertaking 
to make maple sugar by himself, and so thor- 
oughly in earnest was he that he made from 
sixty-five trees a larger proportionate amount 
than any one else in the neighborhood. One 
evening he remained at the camp until about 
ten o'clock, and the next morning traces of 
wolves following a deer were found near the 
place. His father was a well-informed man, 
and encouraged discussion while they were 
working about the farm, and thus the boy's 
mind was early stimulated to thought, and a 
keen desire awakened to learn the answers to 
the questions which remained unsolved in their 
often-interrupted conversations, while his read- 
ing in biography and history helped him to 
form a determination to lea\e his narrow life. 
An accident in his se\enteenth year confined 
him to the house, thereby giving him leisure 
for study; so he availed himself of the oppor- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



29 



tunity by preparing himself for the teacher's 
examination, and subsequently secured a school 
in a backwoods district. Then followed three 
years of work among strangers, in which the 
sorrow of being parted from the old home was 
only relieved by the thought that he was help- 
ing to pay off a debt which lay heavily upon 
his father. He succeeded in this, and in se- 
curing a small fund for himself. The next 
four years were spent with his uncles in Herki- 
mer county in dairy farming, and the last 
three of these were passed in the town of 
Fairfield, where a celebrated academy and 
medical college were located. While there he 
taught for several winters, and studied as he 
could at Fairfield Academy. 

In 1847 he entered the sophomore class of 
Union College, of which Dr. Nott was then 
the head; but young Bisbee was not inclined to 
play any pranks, he did not become as well 
acquainted with that noted educator as some of 
his less steady-going companions. In 1S48 he 
was president of the Adelphi Literary Society, 
and during his term the society held its semi- 
centennial celebration, imposing upon him the 
duty of welcoming back to the old walls the 
Alumni who gathered on that happy occasion. 
Mr. Bisbee left college in 1849, to teach in 
Mr. Charles Bartlett's school in Poughkeepsie, 
and on the graduation of his class he was 
elected to membership in the Phi Beta Kappa 
Society. In 1850 he married Miss Frances C. 
Bartlett, and two years later built a house for 
a dwelling and school on the southwest corner 
of Mill and Hamilton streets, Poughkeepsie. 
[The house standing just south on Hamilton 
street, of the present building, was the school 
room and dormitory.] On the death of Mr. 
Bartlett in 1857 he became, in company with 
Mr. Charles B. Warring (later the principal of 
Poughkeepsie Military Institute), an associ- 
ate principal of the Poughkeepsie Collegiate 
School. Mr. Warring retiring in 1862, Mr. 
Bisbee introduced some changes in the school, 
notably the military character which it after- 
ward retained. In 1866 he erected the build- 
ing known as Riverview Academy, which under 
his able management became one of the best 
institution? of its grade in the State. In^i885 
Mr. Bisbee passed away, and his mantle fell 
upon his son. Joseph Bartlett Bisbee. 

Joseph Bartlett Bisbee, principal and 
proprietor of Riverview Military Academy, was • 
born in 1853 in the building now standing on 
the southwest corner of Mill and Hamilton 



streets. In 1S57, with his father, he moved 
to College Hill, and then began his studies 
and received his military instruction, which 
has been of untold value to him in his career 
as a teacher. In 1867 his father moved the 
school to its present quarter at Riverview. In 
1876 Joseph B. Bisbee entered Amherst Col- 
lege, where he remained three years, till called 
home to assist in the school. In 1 884 Amherst 
College recognized his work and conferred upon 
him the degree of Master of Arts. 

In 1880 Mr. Bisbee married Miss Sarah M. 
Pangburn, of Albany, N. Y. They had one 
child, Elsie P. Mrs. Bisbee died March 3, 
1884. In December, 1885, Mr. Bisbee mar- 
ried Miss Winifred Dana Wheeler, daughter 
of the late Francis B. Wheeler, D. D., who 
was pastor of the Presbyterian Church at 
Poughkeepsie for nearly forty years. They 
have had three' children: Francis Wheeler, 
who died in 18S8; Joseph Bartlett Bisbee, Jr.; 
and Eleanor Dana. Mr. Bisbee is a member 
of the Masonic order, and an elder in the Pres- 
byterian Church. 



OSEPH E. ODELL, M. A. The first 
Baron Odell was a count of Flanders, and 
Matilda, the wife of William the Con- 
queror, was a daughter of one of these counts, 
and presumably the sister of the first Baron 
Odell, whose title and estates were bestowed 
by William. These honors were conferred for 
distinguished military services in the conquest 
of England. The estate consisted of, perhaps, 
twenty thousand acres of land, and extended 
into two counties, containing within its bound- 
aries upward of twenty villages or small towns. 
The head of the Baroncy was at Odell, Bed- 
fordshire, England, where Odell Church and 
Odell Castle still stand, both of which have 
been erected within recent times, but are near 
or upon the site of the ancient fortress. Here 
the church and tovvn records disclose vast 
numbers of inhabitants of that name from re- 
mote times to the present. 

The direct descendants of the first Baron 
Odell were closely related to at least four 
Kings of England: W^illiam the Norman, Al- 
fred the Great, Edward the Second and Henry 
the Eighth. They were also related by blood 
or marriage to upward of fifty families entitled 
to bear arms, that is, those belonging to the 
gentry and nobility of England. The title 
from which the name was derived was be- 



30 



COMMEMORATIVE niOOIiAPniCAL RECORD. 



stowed in 1066, and from about 795 to the pres- 
ent time the line from father to son is unbroken, 
the name of not a single individual being 
wanting. There were many obstacles to the 
completion of the early part of this record, 
but diligent and patient research overcame 
them. Previous to 795, however, no record 
of the family line has been found, and reliance 
must be placed upon general historical state- 
ments discovered here and there, often in rare 
and curious forms of ancient record. Assum- 
ing the correctness of such authorities, there 
existed in the possession of the Counts of 
Flanders a complete and unbroken record, 
traced back, step by step, to Priam, King of 
Troy, or to about 1200 B. C. 

No remnant of this alleged record has been 
discovered. But as such a record would nat- 
urally be in some French repository of ancient 
learning, and therefore difficult of access, it is 
scarcely surprising that the discovery has not 
been made. It is known, however, that through- 
out a long period the Counts of Flanders were 
almost or quite equal in power to the Kings of 
France, and that in the turbulent times of the 
Dark Ages they were practically kings, with a 
horde of dependents to do their bidding. Such 
families make history, and, doubtless, there 
were always at hand persons able and willing 
to write it as fast as it was ready for the pen. 
And astonishing as the statement, of an un- 
broken record back to Priam, appears at first 
glance; on mature reflection, there should ap- 
pear nothing in it more surprising than that 
the record should stand unbroken, as it un- 
questionably does, from 1066 to the present 
time. The keeping of a family history could 
not have been more difficult than it has been 
subsequently. 

The line as traced downward includes about 
thirty generations from the first Baron Odell 
until the present time. His direct descendants 
of the same name are now very numerous, and 
of these the subject of this sketch is a represent- 
ative. To his efforts arc due in a great degree 
the discovery and arrangement of the fafcts 
necessary to furnish proof of the connection 
with the ancient baronial family, and he has 
laid under contribution legal documents, 
church, immigration and shipping records, 
public speeches and prints, and many volumes, 
ancient and modern. The result of these labors 
is a host of facts, sufficient, probably, for a 
large volume. As an example of the exhaust- 
iveness of the investigation, it has been found 



that the name, during a period of about 800 
years, has been authentically used under no 
less than forty different spellings, W'ahul pre- 
dominating at first, and Odell now. To sum 
up, here is a lineage covering 3,000 years, or 
about ninety generations, carrj'ing us back to 
what it pleases us to call the infancy of the 
world. During this time nations have gone to 
decay, languages have perished, a new world 
has been discovered, time and space have been 
annihilated by inventions, the Iliad and Bible 
have been written, and Christ and His religion 
have illumined the world! It would scarcely 
seem presumptuous were the Odells of this 
line to issue a challenge to the world to pro- 
duce a more ancient family record. 

William Odell, the first of the family in 
this country, settled in Concord, Mass., about 
1639, and his descendants have since occupied 
a prominent place in the annals of this country, 
three of them having been Congressmen from 
this State, Moses F. Odell and N. Holmes 
Odell, from Brooklyn, and Benjamin Odell, 
from Newburg. The minor posts of honor held 
by members of the family have been number- 
less. The descendants are widely scattered, 
being found in Massachusetts, Connecticut, 
New York, New Jersey, Nebraska, Illinois, 
Alabama, Minnesota, and also in Nova Scotia. 
They are very numerous in eastern Massachu- 
setts, southern Connecticut, Long Island and 
Westchester, Orange, and Dutchess counties, 
those of the latter locality being mainly off- 
shoots from the Odells of Westchester county. 
At an early date an intermarriage took place 
with the Bolton family, a branch of which has 
long been resident in Dutchess county. The 
Boltons worthily boast a noble and honored 
lineage, stretching back in unbroken line far 
within the luminous mists of the ancient no- 
bility of England. At the same time that Will- 
iam Odell settled at Concord there came also 
the Rev. Peter Bulkeley, who had been a cler- 
gyman in the Odell Church in England, and 
had married a near relative of the Odells there. 
Having been silenced for non-conformit\', he 
came to a freer land, and his descendants have 
made the family name widely known and greatly 
honored, especially in the eastern States. 

In 1639, at Concord, Mass., now a suburb 
of Boston, came William: — then in direct line 
William; then Isaac; then Joshua; then John; 
then Daniel, whose son was Joseph E. Odell, 
the subject of this sketch. John Odell came 
to Dutchess count\' from \\estchester about 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



81 



1795. He settled at Pleasant Plains, where 
for many years he was the proprietor of a coun- 
try store, but later removed to Beekman, where 
he had purchased a large farm, to which his son 
Daniel succeeded and where Joseph E. Odell 
was born April 5, 1848, the third in a family 
of four sons, the others being Eliphalet P., 
John D., and Caspar L. , whose biography ap- 
pears elsewhere. His mother was Malinda, 
daughter of John LeRoy, who for a long time 
was proprietor of the store, flourmill, sawmill, 
shops of various kinds, and farm, where Frost's 
Mills now stand. The church at Pleasant Plains 
probably owes its existence to his liberality, 
and its later prosperity to the generous support 
of his children. 

fn 1856 Prof. Odell's parents moved to the 
town of Hyde Park, a mile south of Pleasant 
Plains church, and in 1868 to Schenectady. 
He attended the common schools of Beekman 
and Hyde Park during boyhood, and in 1867- 
68 studied in the High School at Poughkeepsie 
under Prof. John M. Clarke. He was grad- 
uated from the Union Classical Institute at 
Schenectady in 1870, and from Union College 
in 1S74, standing first in his class in both in- 
stitutions and taking the Nott Scholarship 
Prize of $150 offered yearly in the college to 
the one who should stand at the head of his 
class, not in one but in all studies. He re- 
ceived the degrees of A. B. and A. M. from 
Union College. While a student in the In- 
stitute he originated the A. Z. fraternity, of 
which he was the first president, and he was 
a member of the Psi Upsilon Society at col- 
lege. After graduating, he engaged in teach- 
ing, and was principal of the schools at Fish- 
kill Landing, and Scotia, N. Y., and Storm 
Lake, Iowa. He studied law, and was ad- 
mitted to the bar while at Storm Lake, and 
returning to the East he taught at Berwick 
and Academia, Penn., as principal of the 
academies there. In 1879 he was admitted 
to the bar at Brooklyn, N. Y. , and practiced 
for a short time. He then resumed teaching, 
and was principal of the schools at Greenville, 
N. Y., and Monroe, La., and of Leslie 
Academy, in Poughkeepsie. For the last ten 
years he has been a successsful private tutor 
at Poughkeepsie, giving thorough preparation 
for college to a large number of students. 

Prof. Odell was married in November, 
1875, to Miss Clara A. Page, of Schenectady. 
They have no children. He has done some 
valuable literary work, having been a regular 



contributor to the Poughkeepsie Kagh-, and in 
former years having furnished numerous ar- 
ticles on various topics to other papers and 
periodicals. 

He is also the author of a work on English 
Grammar, and one on Geometry as applied to 
surveying. His learned acquirements include 
many languages, ancient and modern; and, as 
to proficiency in matters purely scholastic, he 
has few superiors. He is remarkably efficient 
as a teacher, and many now successful young 
men can gratefully attribute the beginning of 
their ascent to his wise and helpful instruction 
and advice. 

Prominent among those who have rendered 
assistance in collecting the above facts con- 
cerning the Odell family, is Mr. Rufus King, 
of Yonkers, N. Y. , who is an experienced 
genealogist, whose mother was an Odell, and 
whose father's family, for several generations, 
has taken a leading place in State and National 
politics. There are numerous Odells whose 
connection with this family cannot be estab- 
lished with the facts at hand. Whether they 
are of a difl'erent origin, or are offshoots who 
have lost the proofs of connection with this 
line, seems difficult of determination. 



^ON. STORM EMANS. Among the early 
comers from Holland to this countrj' 
were the ancestors of the Emans family, so 
well and favorably known in this section. 
They came about the time of the Huguenot 
immigration, and located for the most part in 
New England, some of their descendants, how- 
ever, becoming pioneer settlers in Dutchess 
county. 

There is ground for belief that James 
Emans, our subject's great-grandfather, was 
born in Dutchess county, and it is at least 
certain that he spent the greater part of his 
life in what is now the town of East Fishkill, 
where he obtained a grant of 137 acres of land 
from Madame Brett, which tract is still in the 
possession of the family, having never been 
alienated. Here James Emans followed farm- 
ing until his death. He and his wife reared 
a family of eight children, of whom the four 
sons — Cornelius (who died in 1849), James. 
John and Hendrick — all engaged in farming. 
Of the daughters, Elizabeth and Catherine 
never married; Ann was the wife A Samuel 
Betty, a farmer, and Margaret married John 
Miller, also a farmer. John Einans, our sub- 



32 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ject's grandfather, married Abby Way, and 
settled at the old homestead where he passed 
his life. Five children were born to him: 
Albert, who died in 1895, was a farmer in the 
town of Lagrange, and also engaged in freight- 
ing and speculating; James C. is a farmer in 
East Fishkill; John S. is mentioned more fully 
below; George (deceased) was a prominent 
farmer in Lagrange; and Charles W. is also 
an agriculturist in East Fishkill. 

John S. Emans, the father of our subject, 
was born in 1824, and grew to manhood at 
the old homestead. He engaged in agricult- 
ure there, taking also a keen interest in public 
affairs and holding a prominent place in that 
locality. Although he was not a lawyer, his 
mind was of a judicial cast, and he was very 
often called upon to try cases and advise in 
legal controversies. He was a justice of ses- 
sions for some time, represented his town re- 
peatedly on the county board of supervisors, 
and was one of the three excise commissioners 
of Dutchess county. In his political views he 
was a Democrat, and he was elected many 
years ago on that ticket to the State Legisla- 
ture. A man of commanding influence, he 
left a memory which is a cherished legacy 
among his descendants. He married Eliza 
Storm, a member of an old and highly re- 
spected family, and a daughter of Garret 
Storm, of East Fishkill. The Emans family 
have been members of the Reformed Church 
from a very early period, and our subject's 
parents were both active and faithful adher- 
ents. The father died September i, 1877, 
the mother on May 26, 1S82. Of their five 
children, the first and third, Catherine and 
Abby C, died in early youth; Albert S. is a 
merchant at Gayhead, in the town of East 
Fishkill; and Lillian married Dr. Leslie A. 
Sutton. 

Storm Emans, the fourth member of this 
family, was born at the old homestead, June 
12, 1856, and after attending the neighboring 
district schools for some years went to Pough- 
keepsie for a course in Bishop's Select School, 
but ill health compelled him to give up his 
studies sooner than he intended. After leav- 
ing this school he learned telegraphy, and fol- 
lowed it five years at Matteawan, Millerton 
and Millbrook, operating a private line for the 
president of the Dutchess & Columbia rail- 
road. He then went to Saratoga Springs, 
N. Y.. where he met the president of the At- 
lantic & Pacific Telegraph Co., and was ap- 



pointed to open and take charge of the office 
at Newburgh; but he remained in that position 
only a short time, owing to the death of his 
father. Returning to his old home, he was 
chosen, in 1S77, to fill his father's une.xpired 
term as justice of the peace, and in 1881-82-- 
86-87 he served on the board of supervisors, 
and was chairman of various committees. In 
1883 he was a member of the State Assembly, 
having been elected to the office in the First 
Assembly District of Dutchess county, and in 
1890 he was appointed index clerk of that 
body; from 1891 to 1894 he held the office of 
clerk of Dutchess county. At present he is 
secretary and treasurer of the Mitchell Heater 
Co., and his time is devoted to that business 
and the management of his farms. 

On January 26, 18S1, Mr. Emans was 
united in marriage with Miss Alice A. Water- 
bury, daughter of William Waterbury, a promi- 
nent hardware merchant of Saratoga Springs, 
and they have one son, Storm Waterbury, born 
May 22, 18S3. 



E EDWARD HAZEN PARKER, son of Hon. 
^ Isaac and Sarah (Ainsworth) Parker, was 

born in the city of Boston, Mass., in 1823. 

Dr. Parker graduated from Dartmouth 
College in 1846, and received his medical 
degree from Jefferson Medical College in 1848. 
In the same year he was appointed lecturer 
on Anatomy and Physiology at Bowdoin Med- 
ical College, and for the following nine years 
was editor of the "New Hampshire Medical 
Journal." In 1853 Dr. Parker was called to 
the chair of Physiology and Pathology in the 
New York Medical College, and associated 
himself in practice with Dr. Fordyce Barker 
in New York City. He 
lished the "New York 
which he continued to 
many years with great 
In 1854 he received the degree of A. M. from 
Trinity College. In 1S58, as the result of 
overwork. Dr. Parker had serious trouble with 
his eyes, necessitating his removal from the 
city, and in the out-door life of a country 
practice to seek the recovery of his health. 
He came to Poughkeepsie, where, as a general 
practitioner and consultant, he practiced his 
profession for nearly forty years. He was 
elected president of the New "V'ork State Med- 
ical Society in 1862, and in the same year, 
and in the succeeding one, went to the front 



at this time estab- 

Medical Monthly," 

edit personally for 

ability and success. 




^^^^.^^ 



UOMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



33 



as a volunteer surgeon in the service of New 
York State. 

The Doctor was one of the trustees of, and 
visiting surgeon to, St. Barnabas Hospital 
from its opening, until it was closed in 1887. 
In 1887 he was appointed visiting surgeon to 
\'assar Brothers' Hospital, and elected presi- 
dent of the medical board. Dr. Parker died 
November 10, 1896. He was twice married. 
His first wife, Sarah (Heyderk), died in 1880, 
leaving three daughters and one son, Dr. 
Harry Parker, all of whom are living. In 
1883 he married Jeannie C. Wright, who with 
one son survives her husband. 

Dr. Parker was a physician of signal com- 
petency and skill, and as a surgeon he had few 
superiors. He was a man of very fine fibre, 
of unusual cultivation, and of high scholarly 
attainments. His classical education was 
sound and liberal, his sympathies most acute, 
and he was also possessed of a fine poetical 
talent, which in his busy life, were less fre- 
quently exercised than his friends could have 
desired. The poem, a single verse of which is 
given below, was composed by Dr. Parker in 
1 879. It applies most fittingly to his life, which 
was marked through the long years of his de- 
votion to his work by a conspicuous purity of 
character, great unselfishness and self sacrifice. 

"Life's race well run; 
Life's work all done; 
Life's victory won; 

Now Cometh rest." 



CHARLES WALSH, the well-known editor 
of the Amenia Times, is conducting this 
paper with signal ability and success, and 
holds a prominent position among the jour- 
nalists of Dutchess county. 

Mr. Walsh was born at Futtegarh, India, 
March 14, 1854, but is descended from a well- 
known New York family of Irish ancestry. 
William Walsh, his paternal grandfather, was 
a native of Newburgh, N. Y. , and in later 
years was president of the Bank of Newburgh; 
he died there in 1847. 

Rev. John Johnston Walsh, the father of 
our subject, was born at Newburgh, Orange 
county, in 1820, received his classical educa- 
tion at Union College, class of '39, and later 
graduated at the Princeton Theological Semi- 
nary. At the age of twenty-one, he went to 
India as a Presbyterian missionary, and there 
faithfully served for twenty-eight years. On 

account of cataract of the eve, he returned to 
3 



America, where he found that it was incur- 
able, and subsequently for three years was 
pastor of the Presbyterian Church at Miller- 
ton, N. Y. He wrote and published the 
" Martyred Missionaries," a memorial to those 
massacred during the Sepoy rebellion in 1857, 
at which time he was on a trip to the United 
States to leave his children to be educated. 

At Fishkill, N. Y., in 1841, Rev. Mr. 
\\'alsh was married to Miss Emma Brett, a 
daughter of Henry Brett; she is still living, 
making her home at Newburgh, N. Y., but 
her husband died at Amenia in 1884. Henry 
Brett was a direct descendant of Francis Rom- 
bout, proprietor of the famous Rombout Pat- 
ent. The only child and heiress of Francis 
Rombout was Katrina, who married Lieut. 
Roger Brett, of the English navy. Lieut. 
Brett, dying in early manhood, left his wife 
with the management of a large estate, which 
she conducted with marked ability. The 
name of Madame Brett is a noted one in the 
early annals of Dutchess count}' history; she 
died at an advanced age, leaving a goodly 
number of descendants. 

Although born in India, our subject was 
educated in the public schools of New- 
burgh, and at the Newburgh Academy, pre- 
paring for college at Cornwall-on-the-Hud- 
son. For four years he was then engaged 
in the drug business at Newburgh and New 
York City. In 1876 he purchased a half 
interest in the Amenia Times, which was 
established in 1852, and in 1878 bought out 
his partner, William L. De Lacey. He then 
conducted the paper alone until 18S8, when 
he sold a fourth interest to Theron Griffin, who 
has been connected with the office for thirty 
years. It is a bright, spicy paper, well edited 
and non-partisan in politics. On July i, 
1895, Mr. Walsh also purchased the Pawling 
Chronicle, which he has since greatly enlarged 
and improved. 

On April 8, 1890, at Amenia, Mr. Walsh 
was married to Miss Georgia A. Thompson, 
daughter of Hon. George Thompson, Judge of 
the City Court of Brooklyn, N. Y'. , and they 
now reside at their pleasant home in Amenia. 
Mrs. Walsh belongs to the old Dutchess coun- 
ty family of Thompsons, who migrated from 
Connecticut in 1750. 

Mr. Walsh has always been an ardent 
Democrat in politics, and was appointed post- 
master at Amenia in August, 1893. He has 
proved a popular and capable official, and sue- 



84 



COMMEMORATTVIC BTOaRAPMICAL RECORD. 



ceeded in having the office changed to the 
third class December 27, 1894. Socially, he 
belongs to Amenia Lodge No. 672. F. & A. M., 
and to the Royal Arch Chapter, Poughkeepsie, 
and the Royal Arcanum. He is also con- 
nected with Amenia Grange. He takes an 
active part in the work of the Presbyterian 
Church of Amenia, of which he is a consistent 
member, and is at present serving as superin- 
tendent of the Sunday-school. 



JEREMIAH S. PEARCE, the present sher- 
iff of Dutchess county, and a well-known 
citizen of Poughkeepsie, was born August 
28, 1837, in the town of Pawling, Dutchess 
county. The Pearce family is of Welsh ex- 
traction, and the father and grandfather of 
our subject were of the same nativity as 
himself. 

Henry Pearce, the grandfather, married 
Miss I'iebecca Birdsill, who was born in Dutch- 
ess county, and they settled on a farm in the 
town of Pawling. In politics he was a Whig, 
and both he and his wife were members of the 
Methodist Church.' Five children were born 
to them: Nathaniel (who was made assessor 
of his township), Sally, Rebecca, Amie and 
Benoni. 

Benoni Pearce, the father of our subject, 
was reared on the old home farm, and married 
Miss Mary Ann Stark, who was born in the 
town of Dover, Dutchess county, a daughter 
of Benoni Stark, a farmer of that town. After 
their marriage they settled on a farm, and 
there reared a famil}' of seven children, as 
follows: Henry is a physician in Pawling; 
Lillius H. married A. J. Brown, a farmer in 
Yates county, N. Y. ; Jeremiah S. is our sub- 
ject; James S. is a druggist and undertaker in 
Pawling; Charles W. resides in New York 
City; Elizabeth married John Gelder, a farmer 
in Yates county, N. Y. ; and Edwin died in 
1877. In 1849 the family removed to Yates 
counts', where the father carried on farming 
until his death in 1893. He was a Whig, later 
a Republican, and at one time was captain in 
the State militia. Both parents were members 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 

Jeremiah S. Pearce, whose name opens 
this sketch, spent his boyhood days on the 
farm in Pawling, attending the district school 
until about fourteen years of age, when the 
parents removed to Yates county. He was 
twenty-two years old when the Civil war 



broke out, and the same year, 1861, he en- 
listed in Company I, 33d N. Y. V. I., and 
was sent to Washington. Being taken ill, 
however, he was discharged. This did not 
dampen his ardor, and as soon as convalescent 
and able for duty, he re-enlisted, in the spring 
of 1862. this time in the 128th N. Y. V. I., 
being commissioned second lieutenant. In 
I S63 he was made first lieutenant, and the 
following year was promoted to the rank of 
captain of Company B. He served throughout 
the entire war, and was mustered out July 12, 
1865, during which time he participated in 
many important battles, among them those of 
Cedar Creek, Winchester, Fisher's Hill, and 
was in the Shenandoah Valley with Gen. 
Sheridan, besides taking part in minor skir- 
mishes, etc. In all these years of fighting he 
was so fortunate as to escape without a wound. 
At the close of the war Mr. Pearce returned 
to Pawling, and for a number of years was en- 
gaged in various occupations. On September 
8, 1875, he was married to Miss Elizabeth 
Chase, who was born in Pawling, and is a 
daughter of Darius Chase, a station agent on 
the Harlem Road railway. They have two 
children, Carrie L. and Charles D. Mr. 
Pearce is a Republican and prominent in his 
party; served several terms as supervisor of 
Pawling, and twelve terms as assessor. In 
I 894 he was elected sheriff of Dutchess county, 
in which office he is giving satisfaction to the 
public by the faithful and judicious discharge 
of its responsible duties. He is a public- 
spirited man. believes in progress, and is inter- 
ested in all projects for the growth and devel- 
opment of the county and State. He and his 
wife are liberal supporters of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, and are highly esteemed 
citizens. 



T'ELLINGTON C. LANSING, secretary 
and city editor of the Poughkeepsie 
Enterprise, is a native of New York City, 
where he was born June 20, 1855. 

Richard E. Lansing, father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Hyde Park, Dutchess 
Co., N. Y. , January 30, 1830, and there spent 
his early boyhood, going to school and work- 
ing upon the farm. Later he moved to Prince- 
ton, N. J., and clerked in a store, from there, 
after his first marriage, removing to New York 
City, where he clerked in a dry-goods store. 
In 1859 he came to Poughkeepsie, and for ten 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



35 



years was engaged in the grocery business at 
No. 1 6 Washington street, being the leading 
grocer of his time. He is now, and has been 
for the past twenty years, in the real-estate 
and insurance businesses at the same location. 
In religious circles he is quite prominent, and 
has been a director and vice-presideait of the 
Y. M. C. A. ; is a trustee of the Old Ladies' 
Home and of the Old Men's Home; is one of 
the organizers and the first superintendent of 
Cherry Street Chapel, and is a deacon and 
trustee of the Baptist Church; is also a director 
of the Poughkeepsie Lyceum. Politically, he 
is a Republican, and has served as city treas- 
urer of Poughkeepsie, also alderman of the 
Third ward, and was a candidate for mayor. 

Richard E. Lansing has been twice mar- 
ried, first time in 1851 to Miss Emily Welling, 
by whom there was one child, W^ellington C. , 
our subject. This wife was afflicted with heart 
disease, and thrice before she was five years 
old was laid out for burial, her death finally 
occurring May 17, 1863, when she was thirty- 
one years old. Her mother is still living at 
the advanced age of ninety-five years. In 
September, 1876, Mr. Lansing, for his second 
wife, married Miss Sarah Hull, a daughter of 
Thomas Hull, by which union there is no issue. 

Garrett P. Lansing, grandfather of our 
subject, was born in Hyde Park, Dutchess 
county, in 1790, a son of Peter Lansing, who 
died at Hyde Park at the age of ninety-eight 
years. Garrett P. was married to Miss Melinda 
G. Husted, by whom he had fourteen children, 
seven of whom are living, all now over fifty 
years old. They are: William H., of Troy, 
X. v.; George E. ; Lewis L. , of Minneapolis; 
James F., Richard E., Garrett P., Jr., and 
Margaret J., of Poughkeepsie. Mr. Lansing 
was a cabinet maker by trade, and also carried 
on farming. In politics he was a Democrat, 
and at one time was collector of the town of 
Hyde Park. He served in the war of 1812. 
His death occurred January 7, 1847. 

The maternal great-grandfather of Welling- 
ton C. Lansing was one of the original Nine 
Partners, who at one time owned nearly all of 
Dutchess count}'. 

Wellington C. Lansing, our subject, spent 
his early life in the public schools of Pough- 
keepsie, and later attended the Classical and 
Scientific Institute of Hightstown, N. J. He 
was married in Catskill, N. Y., May 17, 1877, 
to Miss Mary D. Bogardus, who is a lineal 
descendant, like himself, of Anneke Jans, who 



owned the Trinity Church property in New 
York City. To Mr. and Mrs. Lansing the fol- 
lowing children have been born: Sarah Emil}', 
who died when eight years old; Charles A., 
born November 7, 1S79; Irene E., born Feb- 
ruary 19, 1S81; Bertha D., born August 12, 
1882; May B., born May 11, 1886. 

Mr. Lansing was employed in the Eagle 
office until 1882, when he and Edward Van- 
Keuren bought the paper called the Dutchess 
Fanner, an agricultural weekly, which they 
conducted until June, 1883, at which time 
they formed a partnership with Derrick Brown, 
who was then editor of the Poughkeepsie ^Vi-zi'.?, 
and they formed a new company, Mr. Brown 
becoming editor-in-chief, and Mr. Lansing 
city editor, while the name of the paper was 
changed to the Evening and VVeek/j Enter- 
prise. In 1892 the paper was bought by a 
company of Cleveland Democrats, and the 
above firm runs the paper for it. Mr. Brown 
is now business manager and treasurer, and 
editor-in-chief, and Mr. Lansing is secretary 
and city editor. 

Our subject at one time was prominent in 
firemen's circles, and was president of Davy 
Crockett Hook and Ladder Co. No. i. He is 
past chancellor of Armor Lodge, K. of P., of 
Poughkeepsie, and past district deputy of the 
same order; was vice-president of the Y. M. 
C. A., which office he has held two terms; 
has been superintendent of the Baptist Sun- 
day-school; president of the Y. P. S. C. E. ; 
president of the Baptist Boys Brigade, and 
president of the Young Men's Mutual Improve- 
ment Association. In principle he is a Prohi- 
bitionist, but votes independently. 



€OLVIN CARD, editor and proprietor of the 
_' Millerton Telegram, the leading paper of 
the northeastern portion of Dutchess county, 
is one of the most prominent of the younger 
men of that region, and one who has without 
doubt a fine future before him. His grand- 
father, Eason Card, was an early settler upon 
the Livingston estate in the town of Ancram, 
Columbia county, and his father, Eason H. 
Card, was born there in 1 826, in early life 
coming to Dutchess county and engaging in 
farming in the town of Northeast. In 1863 
he returned to his native county, and for eight 
years was engaged in mercantile business and 
farming at Scotchtown Mills. In 1S72 he 
purchased a farm of 500 acres of land near 



36 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHIGAL RECORD. 



Boston Corners, and has since resided there, 
being one of the principal farmers of that 
vicinity. In public affairs he is prominent 
also, taking an active part in the work of the 
Democratic organization, and serving for many 
years as justice of the peace. He is a leading 
member of the Presbyterian Church at Ancram 
Lead Mines. In 1856 he married Dorcas 
Decker, a daughter of Everett Decker, and 
they have two children: Adelbert, born August 
28, 1858; and Colvin, our subject. The mother 
died in 1892; the father is still living on the 
old farm. 

The subject of our sketch was born July 
20, 1 866, in the town of Northeast, on a farm 
near Boston Corners, and he was educated 
mainly in the common schools, with some ex- 
cellent practical finishing touches in the office 
of the Millerton Telegram. At the age of 
nineteen years he left the home farm and 
taught school for ten years, being principal of 
the Millerton public schools for four years. 
After two years at Irondale he returned to Mil- 
lerton for one year, and in March, 1889, he 
bought the V^an Scriver interest in The Tele- 
gram, and continued the paper under the firm 
name of Deacon & Card until February 15, 
1 89 1, when he became the sole proprietor. 
Since his connection with the paper it has in- 
creased in circulation from 480 subscribers to 
1,108, and has become the principal paper in 
the locality. In politics Mr. Card himself is 
a Democrat, but his paper is independent. 
He is an energetic, enterprising young man, 
and finds time to conduct some profitable real 
estate transactions, and to carry on a success- 
ful auction business in partnership with W. D. 
McArthur. Always loyal to the interests of 
the village, he is active and influential in local 
politics; has been town clerk for two terms, 
and is now a member of the board of educa- 
tion. Socially he is also prominent, being an 
active member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, and a leader in the choir, and he also 
belongs to Webatuck Lodge No. 480, F. & A. 
M., of Millerton, and to Millerton Lodge No. 
383, I. O. O. F. 



CHARLES P. LUCKEY (deceased), the 
founder and, at the time of his death, the 
senior partner in the well-known firm of 
Luckey, Piatt & Co., the leading dry-goods 
merchants in Poughkccpsie, was born May 30, 



1832, near Ithaca, N. Y. His ancestors set- 
tled in Dutchess county in early times. 

Thomas P. I. Luckey, father of our sub- 
ject, was born in the city of Poughkeepsie in 
1803, and was a farmer by occupation. In 
early manhood he removed to Ithaca, later to 
Chautauqua count}', but he and his wife returned 
to Poughkeepsie to spend their declining 3'ears. 
On April 28, 1824, he was married to Jane 
Ann Hoffman, daughter of Loderwick Hoff- 
man, and they had five children: John, 
Theodore H., Catherine, Charles Pinckney 
and Francis Drake, all now deceased. The 
father died in Poughkeepsie, September 16, 
1868, the mother on March 19, 1879. 

Charles P. Luckey, the subject proper of 
this review, shortly after the return to Dutchess 
county, began his business career as a clerk 
for W. H. Nase, Dover Plains, and for some 
years he was employed in that capacity in 
Hustonville and New Hamburg. In 18 — he 
became a clerk in the dry-goods store of Rob- 
ert Slee, of Poughkeepsie, and in February, 
1866, he was admitted to partnership in the 
firm. In 18 — he established, at No. 328 Main 
street, the firm of Luckey. ^'ail & Mandeville, 
which existed a year and a half, when Mr. 
Vail withdrew, and about eighteen months 
afterward, or in 1869, the firm became Luckey 
& Piatt. Later it became Luckey, Piatt & 
Co., S. L. De Garmo being the third member. 
They owned the largest dry-goods store in the 
city, with a trade which extended through sev- 
eral counties, and their name became a syno- 
nym for enterprise and sound methods. 

Mr. Luckey was twice married, the first 
time in New York City to Miss Annie E. Brush, 
a daughter of Alfred Brush; she died in 1867, 
leaving one son, Frank M. R. Luckey, now a 
Congregational minister at New Haven, Conn.; 
he is remarkably gifted as an orator, in early 
life had an inclination for the stage, and spent 
three years in the company of William Flor- 
ence. His education was thorough, and he 
was a graduate of both Cornell and Yale; his 
wife was Miss Lettie A. Rensley, of Pough- 
keepsie. For his second wife, Charles P. 
Luckey was married, on .April 6, 1 871, to Miss 
Cecelia Reed, a daughter of John Reed, of 
Syracuse, N. Y., by which marriage there were 
no children. Mr. Luckey died January 30, 
1S96, of heart failure, having been afflicted for 
some considerable time; his widow is now liv- 
ing in Poughkeepsie. 

Mr. Luckey held high rank among the 





^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



37 



business men in this region, and took part in 
\arious enterprises. He was director and 
vice-president of the First National Bank, and 
president of the Retail Merchants Association 
in the city. He never engaged in politics, 
and was not a member of any club or secret 
organization; a thorough home man, he was 
ever happiest there. He was a man of large 
heart, generous and charitable in all his acts, 
and possessed of a well-balanced mind. As 
far as his boyhood educational advantages 
were concerned, they were limited, but he 
was fond of reading, and he was twelve years 
old when he entered the arena of business. 
For several years he lived in Eastman Terrace, 
in 1893 removing to his late residence on 
Garfield Place, Poughkeepsie. 



T>HEODORE ADDISON HOFFMAN, 
county clerk of Dutchess county, is a 

native of the county, having been born in the 
town of Red Hook, May 23, 1844. Theodore 
Hoffman, his father, was a son of Zacharias 
Hoffman, who owned a tract of land near 
Tivoli, along the Hudson river. 

Our subject is a member of that steady and 
worthy class whose ancestors were among the 
first settlers of Dutchess county. He received 
his early training at the public schools and at 
Trinity School, from which he was graduated 
at the age of fifteen years. After leaving 
school he was employed as clerk in a general 
store, and at the age of twenty-two he 
embarked in mercantile business at Tivoli, 
N. Y. When twenty-three years old he was 
appointed postmaster at Tivoli, N. Y., which 
office he held for eighteen years, and the office 
has been in his store for some thirty years. 
He was elected president of the village of 
Tivoli. In 1888 he was elected county clerk 
of Dutchess county on the Republican ticket, 
and in 1891 he was removed from office by 
Governor Hill for refusing, as he says, to sign 
what was known as the Mylod return of the 
county canvassers. In 1894, however, he was 
re-elected county clerk, which office he now 
holds. 

In 1 866, at the age of twenty-two, Theo- 
dore A. Hoffman was united in marriage with 
Harriet Saulpaugh, daughter of Augustus Saul- 
paugh, a well-known farmer, and seven chil- 
dren have been born to this union — three sons 
and four daughters : John T., Harry, Fred- 
erick, Helen, Maud, Florence and May. In 



politics Mr. Hoffman is a stanch Republicari; 
in religious faith an Episcopalian; and socially 
he is a member of the Freemasons, and of the 
Ancient Order of United Workmen. 



LBERT R. HASKIN, the well-known 
.t^ secretary and manager of the Eastman 
Business College, Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, and one of the prominent financiers 
of that city, was born August 27, 1850, in 
Elkhart county, Indiana. 

The family is of English origin with a strain 
of Scotch blood, and the first ancestor of the 
American line was an early settler in Vermont, 
his descendants branching out in later years to 
all parts of the country. Samuel Haskin, our 
subject's grandfather, was for a time a resident 
of Ticonderoga, N. Y. , where his son, Caleb 
Almon (our subject's father), was born in 1826. 
When the latter was si.x years old the family 
moved to Addison county, Vt., later to Lock- 
port, N. Y., and still later to Dowagiac, Mich., 
and then to Elkhart, Ind. He became a 
farmer by occupation, and in 1855 went to 
Marshall county, Iowa, where he entered 200 
acres of government land, of which he has 
made a fine farm. He is a leader in the com- 
munity, in both business and political affairs, 
has been a justice of the peace and supervisor 
of his town for many years, and has been 
urged to become the Republican candidate for 
Congress. In school matters he has taken 
more than ordinary interest, and he is also 
active in the work of the Baptist Church, of 
which he is a prominent member. 

On May 27, 1849, Caleb A. Haskin was 
married in Indiana to Miss Rebecca Lacy, 
daughter of Laban Lacy, a leading citizen of 
Elkhart county, Ind., and a descendant of an 
old Virginia family. Seven children were born 
of this union, of whom four lived to maturity 
— one son (our subject) and three daughters, 
namely: Anna C, who married Adam Grimes, 
and died in 1893; Melissa J., the wife of 
Charles F. Ricker, a hardware merchant in 
Grundy Center, Iowa; and Hattie, who mar- 
ried Edward Shelton, of Michigan. The 
mother of this family died in 1S84, and in 
1887 the father married Miss Elizabeth Bibb, 
his present wife. 

Albert R. Haskin, our subject, attended 
the district schools near his father's farm, and 
after acquiring an elementary education there 
he entered Iowa College, at Grinnell, Iowa, 



38 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUWAL RECORD. 



and for four years, from 1 868 to 1872, pursued 
an elective course. In June, 1872, he came 
to Poufjhkeepsie and took a course in the East- 
man Business College, graduating September 
2 of the same \"ear. His work as a pupil had 
been so satisfactory that he was ' appointed 
superintendent of the Banking Office depart- 
ment in the school, a position which he filled 
with marked ability for some years. He then 
became principal of theTheory department, and 
in 1885 was made principal of the school, which 
has prospered greatly under his able manage- 
ment. In November, 1896, he was appointed 
secretary and manager. 

On December 31, 1874, Mr. Haskin 
married Miss Mary A. Cline, a daughter 
of Henry Cline, a prominent resident of 
Dutchess county, and late of Saratoga. N. Y. 
They have had three children, of whom two, 
Albert C. and Minerva M., are living. Mr. 
and Mrs. Haskin are leading members of the 
Baptist Church, in which he has held many 
official positions, and is now trustee and 
deacon. He is also a director of the Y. M. 
C. A. He is an ardent Republican, taking an 
active share in local politics, and in any enter- 
prise for the public benefit. For thirteen 
years he has labored for the interests of the 
public schools as a member of the board of 
education, and he is now president of that body. 
His rare business abilities have won him the 
esteem and confidence of financial leaders, 
and he has become interested in a number of 
important business operations, being a di- 
rector of the Poughkeepsie National Bank, of 
the Home Building & Loan Association, and 
of the Masonic Mutual Benefit Association of 
Dutchess county. He belongs to the I. O. 
O. F., Fallkill Lodge No. 297, and has passed 
the chairs; is also a member of the F. & A. 
M., Poughkeepsie Lodge No. 266, of which he 
is past master; of Poughkeepsie Chapter No. 
172, R. A. M., of which body he is high priest; 
and of Commandery No. 43, K. T., also of 
Mecca Temple, of New York City. 



SAMUEL MANSFIELD. No citizen of 
\\'appingers Falls is better known, or 
stands higher in the estimation of his fellow- 
men, than does this gentleman, who for many 
years has stood in the front rank of the edu- 
cators of Dutchess county. 

Prof. Mansfield was born in New Baltimore, 
N. Y. , July 14, 1834, his family being of Eng- 



lish descent. His grandfather, Samuel Mans- 
field, was born in Greene county, N. Y. , and 
was a soldier in the war of 1812. He married 
Hannah Hallenbeck, who was of Dutch stock, 
and they reared a family of five children, 
namely: William; Jehoiakim, who became a 
ship carpenter; Hannah, who married Peter 
Doty, a farmer of Saratoga county, N. Y. ; 
Margaret, who married James Reed, superin- 
tendent of a paper factory at Saugerties, N. Y. ; 
and Sarah, who became the wife of Sylvanus 
Rutan, a market man of New Jersey. 

William Mansfield, the father of our sub- 
ject, turned his attention to farming. He mar- 
ried Nancy Kelsey, who was born in western 
New York, and they settled in New Baltimore, 
where the following children were born to 
them: Samuel; Silas W'iltsey, who was a sol- 
dier in the Civil war, and is now deceased; 
James Reed, a farmer in Greene county, N. Y. ; 
Sarah Amelia and Hannah Margaret, both de- 
ceased, and William Brooks, who died in in- 
fancy. The parents both died in Greene 
county. They were originally members of 
the Reformed Dutch Church, afterward unit- 
ing with the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
The father in his early life was a Whig, later 
joining the Republican party. 

The subject of this sketch spent his boy- 
hood on his father's farm, and attended the 
common schools of his vicinity until he was 
seventeen years old, when he entered the sem- 
inary at Charlotteville, N. Y. Afterward he 
taught school, and thus assisted in defraying 
his expenses while obtaining an education. 
He entered the Sophomore class of Union Col- 
lege in 1857, and was graduated in i860, being 
chosen class poet. In 1862 he went to Wap- 
pingers Falls, and was appointed principal of 
the Union Free School, which he taught until 
1S78. resigning to accept the principalship of 
the Wappingers Falls Graded School, which 
position he is filling at the present time. Dur- 
ing these long years of service in this responsi- 
ble position. Prof. Mansfield has succeeded in 
securing the confidence and esteem of not only 
those under his immediate supervision, but of 
all those with whom he has been brought into 
business and social relations. As a teacher he 
has the best interests of his pupils at heart, 
and spares no pains in their training. He is 
firm in his government, yet so genial and com- 
panionable that he holds a warm place in the 
affections of all who have ever been under his 
care. He is a man of fine tastes and scholarly 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



39 



habits, and is a student and ardent lover of 
nature, as well as of books. Although popu- 
lar in social circles, Prof. Mansfield has never 
been married, his whole life having been de- 
voted to his vocation. 

In addition to his school duties, Prof. Mans- 
field has always taken a lively interest in mat- 
ters relating to the progress and welfare of the 
village, and has done much to aid in its devel- 
opment. He has been a member of the board 
of trustees of the village for many years, and 
was its president for four years. In 1882 he 
was made a trustee of the Wappingers Savings 
Bank, and in 1884 elected its president, which 
office he still holds. He is president of the 
board of Park commissioners, to which posi- 
tion he was elected in 1892. He is also one 
of the original trustees of the Grinnell Library, 
and chairman of the library committee. In 
politics, he is a stanch Republican, and has al- 
ways taken a lively interest in the success of 
his party and the principles for which it stands. 
.■\lthough not a men-tber of any Church, he is a 
regular attendant at Zion Protestant Episcopal 
Church, of Wappingers Falls. He ranks 
among the best citizens of Wappingers Falls, 
and has the respect and esteem of all classes 
of people. 



LUKE D. WYMBS, the present school 
commissioner for the First District of 

Dutchess county, has been recognized for man)' 
years as one of the leading educators of this 
section. 

Born in Livingston, Columbia Co., N. Y., 
August 21, 1845, he passed his youth at that 
place, attending the public schools, and mak- 
ing such good use of his advantages that at 
sixteen years of age he was qualified to teach. 
He began his professional career February 23, 
1862, and among the schools over which he 
presided were those of Germantown, Living- 
ston, Glencoe Mills, Pine Plains and Glenham. 
In 1S64 he enlisted in Battery M, 3d New 
York Light Artillery, assigned to the army of 
the James, and his battery was in service 
against the fortifications around Petersburg 
and Richmond. At the close of the war he 
returned home and again engaged in teaching, 
spending nineteen years in the Glenham school. 
In the fall of 1893 he was elected on the Re- 
publican ticket to his present position, where 
his superior talents and wide experience enable 
him to benefit the cause of education through- 



out a larger field. He has always been promi- 
nent in teachers' associations, both in Dutchess 
and Columbia counties. On November 3, 1896, 
he was re-elected school commissioner by a 
majority of 2.600. being the largest majority 
ever given a school commissioner in his district. 

In early manhood Prof. Wymbs married 
Miss Mary E. Simmons, of Taghkanick, daugh- 
ter of Jeremiah and Almah (Tanner) Simmons. 
She died May 2, 1873, leaving one daughter, 
lola M., now the wife of Bertrand J. Harder, 
of Mechanicsville, Saratoga Co., N. Y. On 
October 21, 1874, Prof. Wymbs was united in 
marriage with his present wife, Mary A. De- 
Lamater, daughter of Osterhoudt and Mary 
(Decker) De Lamater. The Professor has 
always taken keen interest in public questions 
and in local affairs. He is a member of the 
G. A. R. , and is past commander of Howland 
Post No. 48, Department of New York. He 
and his wife attend the Reformed Church at 
Glenham. 

The Wymbs family originated in Scotland, 
and at the time of religious persecution in that 
country moved to the North of Ireland. Our 
subject's grandparents, Luke and Mary Wymbs, 
were residents of New York City, where the 
grandfather was a merchant in the early part 
of this century. During the war of 18 12 he 
was making a voyage to Ireland with a cargo 
of linseed, accompanied by his wife and son, 
Luke D., when the vessel was captured by a 
British man-of-war, and Mr. \\'ymbs and his 
family were taken to Cadiz, and held as pris- 
oners for five or six months. Luke D. Wymbs, 
the Professor's father, was then a mere boy. 
He was born in 1805, and on attaining man- 
hood became a farmer in the town of Taghka- 
nick, Columbia county. In 1840 he married 
Margaret Ferris, and our subject was their 
only son. Both parents passed from earth in 
1886, the mother on February 13, the father 
on April 25. The mother was born in 1807, 
one of the fourteen children of her parents, 
William Ferris and his wife, Jane (Warren). 



EDWARD BROWN DU MOND, principal 
,' of the Union Free School, in the village 

of Fishkill, Dutchess county, is one of the 
leading educators of this section, his profes- 
sional labors covering a period of nearly thirty 
years, twenty of them in his present position. 
His family, which is of Huguenot extrac- 
tion, has been a resident in this State since an 



40 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



early period, and his great-grandfather, Johan- 
nes Philip Du Mond, was an ensign and lieu- 
tenant in the American armj' during the Revo- 
lution, in the regiment of Col. Johannes Sny- 
der, and the company of Capt. Evert Bogar- 
dus. His commission, which is dated October 
23. 1779. and signed by George Clinton, is 
now in the possession of our subject. He 
married Sarah Elmendorf, and their son Con- 
rad (Prof. Du .Mond's grandfather) married 
Catherine Copp. Philip Du Mond (our sub- 
ject's father) was born May 28, 1817, and fol- 
lowed agricultural pursuits, first in West Hur- 
ley, N. Y., and later (in the "sixties") near 
Kingston, N. Y., where he lived several years, 
finally purchasing a farm at Accord, N. Y. , 
spending the remainder of his active years there. 
He died at Fishkill, February 10, 1892, leaving 
a widow, Mrs. Cornelia Catherine (Brown) Du- 
Mond, and six children, of whom our subject 
is the eldest. Mary Catherine is the wife of 
John H. Davis, a paper manufacturer of Mill- 
hook, Accord, N. Y. ; Martha Antoinette lives in 
New Jersey with her sister Frances; John Cal- 
vin resides at the old homestead at Accord; 
Philip Nelson married Miss Kate Davis, daugh- 
ter of Joseph and Charity Davis, and lives at 
Los Angeles. Cal. ; and Frances Augusta 
married Joachim H. Davis, with the New York 
Afni/ and Express, and lives in New Jersey. 
The mother of this family, who was born June 
28, 18 1 7, now makes her home with our 
subject. She is a descendant of a well-known 
family, a daughter of Matthias and Mary 
(Copp) Brown, and granddaughter of Silas 
and Martha (Robinson) Brown, of whom the 
last named lived to the age of 102 years. 

Prof. Du Mond was born in West Hurley, 
July 9, 1843, and received his education in the 
public schools at Kingston, and in the State 
Normal School at Albany, where he was grad- 
uated in 1 867. His first professional work was at 
Stuyvesant Falls, Columbia Co., N. Y. , where 
he remained a year and a half, and then 
taught the same length of time at Schodack 
Landing, Rensselaer county. In 1870 he be- 
came principal of the Fishkill school, and 
after twelve years of effective work went to 
Pelham Manor, N. Y., where he filled a similar 
position for six years. In 1888 he returned 
to his former place in Fishkill, and since the 
Union School came under the control of the 
Regents in 1894, he has also had charge of the 
academic department, which was then added. 

Prof. Du Mond is one of the honored vet- 



erans of the Civil war, and his entrance into 
the service August 6, 1862. interrupted his 
studies. He was a member of the 120th N. 
Y. V. I., and participated in all the battles 
through which his regiment passed, until 
wounded, viz. : Fredericksburg, Chancellors- 
ville, Gettysburg, Mine Run, W'ilderness, Spott- 
sylvania. North Anna, Tolopotomy, Cold Har- 
bor, Strawberry Plains, and the siege of Peters- 
burg, where his left hand was shot off by a 
shell. He is a member of the G. A. R., and 
in 1890 was a delegate to the National En- 
campment at Boston, where 45,000 men took 
part in the parade. In politics he is a Re- 
publican. 

On March 10, 1870, Prof. Du Mond mar- 
ried Miss Ellen L. Mathewson, daughter of 
Sylvanus and Adelia (Cleveland) Mathewson, 
of Oneida, N. Y. Three children were born 
of this union: Grace Lavina, Edna Brown 
and Marcia Adelle. The Professor and his 
family are members of the Reformed Dutch 
Church at Fishkill. Their home is a beauti- 
ful estate comprising two acres — the old Oppie 
homestead. Mrs. Du Mond owns desirable 
village property at Pelham Manor, N. Y.; she 
is also a graduate of the Albany State Normal 
School. 

Mrs. Du Mond's grandfather, Winchester 
Mathewson, married Abagail Swift, and lived 
in Smithfield, Madison Co., N. Y. , where they 
both died. Their family consisted of fifteen 
children — seven sons and eight daughters. 
Mrs. Du Mond's father, Sylvanus, who was 
the eldest, about the year 1830 married Ade- 
lia Cleveland, and their family consisted of ten 
children — five sons and five daughters — Mrs. 
Du Mond being the sixth child; at the time of 
her marriage she was living in Oneida Castle, 
Madison Co., New York. 



OHN PETER NELSON (deceased). The 
subject of this sketch, who in his day was 
was one of the most prominent men of 
Dutchess county, was born July 29, 18 10, in 
the house now occupied by his widow, at the 
corner of Cannon and Liberty streets, Pough- 
keepsie. 

Francis Nelson, the first ancestor of the 
Nelson family, emigrated from England to 
America about the year 1647, he himself set- 
tling at Mamaroneck, Westchester county, 
while part of his family came to Poughkcepsie 
and part remained in Peekskill. Col. Joseph 




^c^lL. .^f^^^eX 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



41 



Nelson, born April i, 1786, at Clinton, Dutch- 
ess county, a descendant of this Francis Nel- 
son, was an editor in Poughkeepsie, and in 1806 
published a paper known as the Political Bar- 
oiuctci\ and was one of the leading citizens of 
his locality. He knew Washington, Hamil- 
ton, Burr and other prominent men of that 
time. He was a colonel in the war of 1812, 
and during his service contracted typhoid 
fever, from which he died in New York City, 
November 3, 1812. Col. Nelson married 
Hannah Fort, a daughter of Maj. Abram Fort, 
who fought in the Revolutionary war, and was 
well-known in his day. To Col. and Mrs. 
Nelson were born the following children: Jane 
Ann, who married Henry F. Granger, son of 
Judge Granger, of Grangerville; John Peter, 
our subject; and James Fort. Maj. Abram 
Fort was the father of the following children: 
Col. John A. Fort, who was one of Gen. Jack- 
son's aides in the war of 1812; Peter Fort, also 
an aide on Gen. Jackson's staff, who each 
year, on January 8, hoisted the stars and 
stripes in honor of the battle of New Orleans; 
James Fort; Mrs. Pierson;Mrs. Abram Thomp- 
son; Alida; Sarah; Catharine; Mrs. Susan 
Haviland; Mrs. Maria Granger, and Mrs. Han- 
nah Nelson. 

John Peter Nelson, our subject, was edu- 
cated in the private schools of New Orleans, 
where he spent the most of his boyhood. He 
also had a private tutor, and spoke several 
languages. After reaching his majority, he 
became a commission merchant, and owned 
several vessels which plied between New Or- 
leans and England. Some years prior to 1S45, 
he became interested in cotton growing in 
Louisiana, where he had a plantation of 1,400 
acres, and owned 900 slaves who were freed by 
the Emancipation Proclamation. At one 
time, prior to the war, he was the richest 
planter in the State of Louisiana. He con- 
tinued in business until 1874, when on account 
of ill health he retired, and in 1876 went to 
Europe, returning in the fall of 1877. His 
death occurred March 26, 1878. He was a 
remarkable man in many ways, was possessed 
of great firmness of character, a kind heart, 
great generosity — in fact, he was one of nature's 
noblemen. He was a kind father and a good 
husband. On December 5, 1839, he married 
Julia .Ann Keese, who died May 23, 1841, 
leaving one child, Julia Keese Nelson, who 
married George Wetmore Colles, of New York 
City. 



Mr. Nelson was married, the second time, 
in 1845, to Miss Cornelia Mandeville Nelson, 
and the following children were born to them: 
Peter Fort, who died of 3'ello.v fever at New 
Orleans in 1873; William James; Elizabeth 
Parker; Edward Beverly, principal of the 
New York Central Institution for Deaf Mutes, 
at Rome, N. Y. ; Walter Huntington, in busi- 
ness in Washington, but living in Virginia; 
Thomas Grant; and Cornelia Mandeville. 

Mr. Nelson was a stanch Democrat, a 
strong Union man, and did all he could to de- 
feat the ordinance of Secession. He was a 
member of Christ's Episcopal Church, New 
Orleans, and contributed liberally to its sup- 
port. In all matters he was a public-spirited 
man, much admired by all who knew him. 

William Nelson, the father of Mrs. John 
Peter Nelson, widow of our subject, was born 
June 29, 1784, in Clinton (now Hyde Park), 
Dutchess county, and was the son of Thomas 
Nelson, an old citizen and native of the county, 
born in Clinton March 17, 1744, and died in 
Poughkeepsie, November i, 1823. He mar- 
ried (first) Sarah Wright, of Somers, West- 
chester county, April 11, 1769, and (second) 
Maiy Delavan. William Nelson attended the 
Dutchess County Academy, and received his 
legal education also in Poughkeepsie. He was 
admitted to the bar soon after reaching his 
majority, and went to Buffalo with a view to 
opening an office in that city. He spent a 
short time there, however, moving to Peeks- 
kill. He also practiced in the counties of 
Rockland, Putnam and Westchester. In the 
year 18 12 he was elected to the State Senate, 
and took his seat there some two or three ses- 
sions. In 1848-49, and 1850-51, he was sent 
to Congress and was urged for re-election, but 
declined to accept. He was district attorney 
some thirty years, a remarkable length of time 
in that office. He was a man of great energy 
and will power, an extensive reader, and one 
of the foremost men of his community. 

William Nelson was married to Miss Cor- 
nelia Mandeville Hardman, daughter of John 
Hard man, a West India merchant, of New 
York City, whose other children were: Sarah 
Ann, who married Dr. Thomas Mower, a sur- 
geon in the arm}'; and Eliza, wife of Henry 
Starr, of New York City. The children of 
William Nelson were: Joseph, living in Mil- 
waukee; Dorinda, deceased wife of John Ar- 
thur, of San Francisco. Cal. ; George P., a 
lawj'er in New York City; Thomas, also a law- 



42 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



yer in New York City; William Rufiis (de- 
ceased), who was a lawyer in Peekskill; Sarah 
A., who became the wife of J. Henry Ferris, a 
lawyer in Peekskill; Elizabeth, now the widow j 
of Rev. John Johnson, of Upper Red Hook; 
Robert Dean (deceased); and Cornelia Man- 
deville, the wife of our subject. Mr. Nelson 
was an Old-time Henry Clay Whig, and per- 
sonal friend of Daniel Webster, Abraham 
Lincoln and Henry Clay. He was a public- 
spirited man, and took great interest in all 
matters pertaining to his community. He died 
in October, 1869, aged eighty-five years; Mrs. 
Nelson passed away August 28, same year, five 
weeks before her husband. 



REV. BENJAMIN E. DICKHAUT, A. M. 
As pastor, the subject of this sketch is 

one of a long line of able and eloquent work- 
ers in the cause of Christ, and his labors have 
shown him to be well-worthy of a place in 
that illustrious company. 

His father. Rev. J. Conrad Dickhaut. was 
a zealous clergyman of the Reformed Dutch 
Church. He .was born in Germany, February 
17, 181 5, and ordained in New York City, at 
the church in N. Williams street, by the Classis 
of New York. He at once organized the Ger- 
man Mission in Greenwich street, New York, 
but remained only a short time, as he took a 
settled charge at New Brooklyn, where he of- 
ficiated twelve years, building meantime a new 
church edifice. His next pastorate was in the 
Presbyterian Church at East Williamsburg, 
N. Y., and after four years of faithful toil 
there, sickness compelled him to suspend his 
labors for two years. On resuming, he or- 
ganized the Reformed Church at Canarsie and 
ser\ed as its pastor until April, 1887, when 
failing health again caused him to retire, it be- 
ing in fact his last illness, as his death occurred 
December 30, 1887. In early manhood he 
married Miss Eva Ruby, who survives him. 
She was a daughter of Michael Ruby, and his 
wife, Margaret, who was a daughter of Martin 
Leyenberger. The following children were 
born to them; Conrad, Amelia, William, 
John, Sophia, Benjamin E., Timothy, Sam- 
uel and David. Of these, only three are now 
living: Sophia, Benjamin E. and Samuel. 

Benjamin E. Dickhaut, our subject, was 
born in Brooklyn, N. Y. , April 29, 1863, and 
attended the public schools of the city, and 
then the Polytechnic Institute, graduating 



from the latter in 1880. In 1884 he was 
graduated from Rutgers College with the de- 
gree of A. B., and in 1887 he completed his 
course in the New Brunswick Theological 
Seminary, receiving in the same year the de- 
gree of A. M. from Rutgers. At the begin- 
ning of his theological course at New Bruns- 
wick he was chosen for missionary work at 
the Middle Collegiate Church, New York City, 
and spent his vacation in this field. In the 
summer of 1885 he was engaged by the Colle- 
giate Church to do missionary work in con- 
nection with DeWitt Chapel, and during the 
remainder of his seminary course he continued 
working there. On graduating from the semi- 
nary, he was ordained by the Classis of New 
York to do missionary work under the super- 
vision of the Collegiate Church. In October, 
1889, he accepted a call to the First Reformed 
Church of Fishkill, Dutchess county, which 
was his first independent charge. There he 
made his influence felt for good in many lines 
of effort. He was president of the Law and 
Order League of the village, and was on the 
executive committee of the county organization 
for good citizenship. On September i. 1896. 
he accepted the call of the South Reformed 
Church, Brooklyn, N. Y., and the same ag- 
gressive methods employed by him at Fishkill 
have been productive of very encouraging re- 
sults in his new field of labor. He is a most 
decided temperance advocate, and is frequently 
engaged on the platform in this cause. On 
March 17, 1888. he was married at New 
Brunswick to Miss Margaret P. Maddock, 
daughter of Rev. George C. and Mary 1 Price) 
Maddock. Her father is a minister for the 
M. E. Church, New Jersey Conference, and 
at present is chaplain of the New Jersey State 
Prison, at Trenton, N. J. Mr. and Mrs. 
Dickhaut have two children, viz. : Margaret 
Maddock and Dorothy. 

The following is a list of the pastors of the 
Reformed Dutch Church of Fishkill since its 
organization in 17 16 by Rev. Petrus Vas: 
Rev. Cornelius Van Schie. 1731-1738; Rev. 
Benjamin Meynema, 1745-1755; Rev. Jacob 
Vannist, served two and one-half years 
when he died, 1761; Rev. Henricus Schoon- 
maker, 1763-1772; also Isaac Rysdyck, jointly 
with Rev. Schoonmaker, 1765 to 1772, and 
alone until 1790; Rev. Isaac Blanvelt, 1783- 
1790; Rev. Nicholas Van Vranken, 1 791- 1804; 
Rev. Cornelius D. W'estbrook, 1806-1830; 
Rev. Geo. H. Fisher, 1830-1835; Rev. Fran- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOMAPIIWAL RECORD. 



43 



cis M. Kip, 1 836-1 870; Rev. Peter E. Kipp, 
1S70-1875; Rev. Asher Anderson, 1875-1880; 
Kev. M. Bross Thomas, 1 881-1888; Rev. Ben- 
jamin E. Dickhaut, 1889-1S96; Rev. Abel 
Huizioga, 1896, present pastor. 

In the old Reformed Dutch church the 
Tory and other prisoners were confined, and 
from this building tradition teaches us that 
"Harve}' Birch" (Enoch Crosby), having been 
arrested as a spy, effected his escape. During 
the Revolutionary war a part of the army was 
located in Fishkill, and their barracks extended 
from the Van Wyck place to the foot of the 
mountain. The officers' headquarters were in 
the dwelling well-known to the readers of the 
"Spy" as the "Wharton House" (occupied in 
1866 by Sidney E. Van Wyck, and now (1896) 
by Miss Nettie Hustis); near the residence, by 
the large black walnut trees, south of the road 
and at the foot of the mountain, was the burial 
ground of the soldiers. The Episcopal church 
was used as a hospital, as was afterward the 
Presbyterian church at Brinckerhoff, about one 
and one-half miles north of the village. 



E\DWARD ELSWORTH, president of the 
; Fallkill National Bank, and who has held 

various honorable and important offices in the 
city of Poughkeepsie, and in the county, was 
born January 6, 1840, in New York City. His 
parents were John and Martha (Van Varick) 
Elsworth, both natives of New York City, the 
former born in 1802. The father was a de- 
scendant of Christoffel Elsw.art, who was a 
free holder in New York in 1655, and the 
mother was a daughter of Joseph Van Varick, 
who was a merchant of that city. 

In 184S the parents of our subject removed 
to Poughkeepsie, where the father died in 
May, 1873, the mother surviving him until 
1880. Mr. Elsworth was a Democrat, and 
both he and his wife were members of the Re- 
formed Dutch Church. He was a school trus- 
tee of the town of Poughkeepsie, and a mem- 
ber and trustee of the Mechanic Society, of 
New York City. Their famih- consisted of 
four children: Two died in infancy; John K. 
was a merchant in New York City; and Ed- 
ward, the sole survivor, is the subject of this 
sketch. 

Edward Elsworth was eight years of age 
when his parents took up their residence in 
Pousrhkeepsie, and for a number of years was 
a pupil in the Dutchess County Academy. 



His legal education was acquired in the State 
and National Law School, Poughkeepsie, from 
which he was graduated in the class of '58. 
For the following two years he was in the law 
office of Thompson & Weeks, and also in that 
of Judge Nelson. He then went to New York 
City, and for two years was in the law prac- 
tice with Bernard Roelker, and later practiced 
in Rockland county. In 1S66, he returned to 
Poughkeepsie. and, after practicing his profes- 
sion for a time, entered into the hardware 
business in partnership with Guilford Dudley. 
During this time he was made director and 
also vice-president of the Fallkill National 
Bank, and in 1891 was elected its president; 
he is also vice-president of the Poughkeepsie 
Savings Bank. 

On November 26, 1867, Mr. Elsworth was 
married to Miss Mary Johnston. The John- 
ston family are of Scotch extraction, and Mrs. 
Elsworth's father, Samuel B. Johnston, a des- 
cendant of Capt. Archibald Johnston, a Rev- 
olutionary soldier, was a cousin of Gen. Al- 
bert Sidney Johnston. He was a native of 
Connecticut, but for many years a resident of 
Poughkeepsie, where he was a banker, and for 
a long period was vice-president of the Fall- 
kill Bank. Four children have been born to 
our subject and his wife, namely: Grace 
Varick, Mary Johnston, Ethel Hinton and 
Edward Wead, all of whom are at home. Mr. 
Elsworth is a stanch Democrat, and has al- 
ways been prominent in his party. In 1874 he 
was elected supervisor of the Third ward of 
Poughkeepsie, and served one term. In 1880 
he was made school commissioner, which of- 
fice he filled for seven years. In November, 
1886, he was elected mayor of Poughkeepsie, 
served one term, and in 1891 was re-elected to 
the same honorable position. He was elected 
a trustee of Vassar College in 1892, and is still 
serving as such. Mr. Elsworth also holds the 
following offices: Trustee and treasurer of 
Vassar Brothers' Institute; and vice-president 
for Dutchess county of the Holland Society of 
New York. He is also a member of the Sons 
of the Revolution. For several years he was 
judge advocate of the Eighth Brigade of the 
National Guard S. N. Y., and served in other 
offices in that organization. In 1891, he re- 
ceived the degree of A. M. from Rutgers Col- 
lege. The family are members and liberal 
supporters of the Reformed Dutch Church, 
and stand high in social and religious circles. 

From the foregoing facts it will be seen 



44 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



that Mr. Elsworth is a man of more than us- 
ual ability, and business qualifications, and 
that his many sterling qualities are appreciated 
by his fellow citizens. In the numerous re- 
sponsible positions in which he has been 
placed, he has fully merited their confidence 
and esteem, and no man occupies a higher 
place in the regard of the public, or in the 
friendship of his more intimate associates. 



OLIVER II. BOOTH (deceased; was born 
in 1823 upon a farm within the present 
limits of the city of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, and died March 13, 1896, after an ill- 
ness of twenty-two days — the first sickness he 
ever experienced. During his life of well nigh 
three-quarters of a century, he saw a marvel- 
ous transformation, not only in the outward 
appearance of that locality, but in all phases 
of our complex and constantly progressing 
civilization. His early home was on the south 
side of Fallkill creek, opposite the present lo- 
cation of Pelton's factory, and his father, 
George Booth, a prominent citizen of that day, 
had a woolen-mill for manufacturing cloth, the 
first of the kind run b_\- machinery in the coun- 
ty. This was before the days of pins, and 
old citizens remember the large thorn bushes 
in the neighborhood from which Mr. Booth 
obtained thorns to fasten his bundles with. In 
the field north of the church of the Holy Com- 
forter, he raised teazles, which were used in 
" gigging " the cloth. 

During his earl_v boyhood our subject at- 
tended a school that was kept in a small build- 
ing which is yet standing in the rear of No. 
120 Main street, Poughkeepsie, the teacher be- 
ing Aunt Anna Haight, and he was proud of 
being able to say that he also, when a young 
boy, attended the old school at Pawling kept 
by Jacob Willets and his wife. It is said that 
this Jacob Willets was the author of the well- 
known rhyme about months "Thirty days 
hath September" etc.. — which he introduced 
into his arithmetic. Later, Mr. Booth studied 
at the academy in Poughkeepsie. after which 
he was employed in his brother's (Alfred) store 
in Boston, Mass., but at the age of fourteen 
ran away, joining a sea-going vessel as cabin 
boy, and for four years he sailed the ocean. 
We next find him in a bank at Detroit, Mich., 
where he remained some time, then returning 
to Poughkeepsie, at the age of twenty-one, 
became bookkeeper in the V^assar Brewery, of 



which he ultimately was the owner. His 
mother was a sister of Matthew Vassar, Sr. . 
and he became more or less identified with 
many of the extensive interests of that dis- 
tinguished family. He was named as executor 
in the will of Matthew Vassar, Jr., and John 
Guy Vassar, and he was treasurer of Vassar 
Hospital, in which he took much pride, per- 
sonally superintending the extensive improve- 
ments recently made in the grounds. As a 
financier his ability was acknowledged, and 
he was a director in several of the banks of 
Poughkeepsie, also vice-president of the City 
Bank. He left a large estate. 

He was always fond of the sea and of ship- 
ping, and he found time in the midst of his 
extensive business dealing to indulge this taste, 
having been the owner or part owner of more 
vessels than any other resident of the city. 
In sailing vessels, he was interested in the 
sloops "Surprise" (formerly the "Revenge"), 
"Index." "Comet," "Agent," and "Timo- 
thy \\ood;" also in the schooners " Matthew 
Vassar, Jr.," •' Oliver H. Booth," and another 
which he bought in Wilmington, on which to 
bring the machinery for the "Underwriter" 
up the river. He built the steamer "Joseph 
F. Barnard," then the finest tug ever seen on 
the Hudson, and whose history has a tinge of 
romance. During the trouble in Cuba, in the 
" sixties," he sold her to the Cubans, but in 
1867 she disappeared, supposed to have been 
burnt at sea. Mr. Booth owned the news- 
yacht, " Herald," which he rebuilt and named 
the " Commodore." and then sold to parties in 
Norfolk, \'a. ; he also purchased and re-built 
the " O. M. Freleigh " and the "Idlewild," 
the latter being bought afterward by New 
Haven parties. The last boat that he built 
was the speedy steam yacht "No. 83." He 
owned the four-oared gig "Stranger," which 
was manned by workmen from the brewery, 
who were considered remarkably fast rowers 
in their da}-. He was also commodore of the 
old Poughkeepsie Ice Yacht Club, and the 
owner of the ice yacht " Restless." 

The only political office that Mr. Booth 
ever held was that of member of the village 
board of trustees, of which he was elected 
clerk in 1843, and he held that incumbency 
until April 18. 1S54, when the books were 
turned over to the new city government. 
\'ery early in life he became an active worker 
in the Fire Department, and June 18, 1844, 
he by request organized the Phoenix Hose 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGEAPHWAL RECORD. 



45 



Company of Poughkeepsie. About the year 

1850 he resigned as an active member, but 
was on the honorary list up to his death. In 

1851 he was elected chief engineer of the Fire 
Department, and held the office three years, 
during which time the Booth Hose Company 
was named for him. At the time of his death 
he owned one of the old " goose-neck " en- 
gines "No. 7," and m 1886 he paraded with 
her as foreman. In that year the Veteran 
Firemen's Association was formed, of which 
he was chosen president, and he held that 
office several years, at last refusing a re-election, 
at which time his comrades desiring to signify 
their high regard for him, presented nini with 
a costly loving cup on his retirement. Socially 
he was a member of the F. & A. M., Pough- 
keepsie Lodge No. 266. 

Mr. Booth married Miss Ferris, daughter 
of Mr. John Ferris, of Milan, Dutchess county. 
She died in March, 1893, leaving but one 
child, a son, William F. Booth, who now 
resides at the old homestead. The family 
residence on Market street was the scene of a 
solemn and affecting service at the funeral of 
Mr. Oliver H. Booth, which took place March 
t6, 1896, and a large gathering of the prom- 
inent citizens of the city and vicinity showed 
the esteem in which he was held, while many 
beautiful floral tributes offered their silent 
benediction. 



JAMES L. WILLIAMS, one of the distin- 
guished members of the Dutchess county 
bar, was born December 12, 1S46, in the 
city of Poughkeepsie, with whose interests his 
entire life has been identified. 

When a boy our subject received his educa- 
tion in the Dutchess County Academy, and 
after studying law he was admitted to the bar 
in 1867, and began the practice of his profes- 
sion there. His first partner was Hon. Peter 
Dorland, e.\-surrogate of Dutchess county, the 
firm of Dorland & Williams continuing until 
1873, when Mr. Dorland was elected to a third 
term as surrogate. In 1873 Mr. Williams was 
elected district attorney, being the first Demo- 
crat elected to that position in twenty-five 
years; but at the expiration of his term he de- 
clined a renomination. In 1884 he became a 
member of the widely-known firm of Hackett 
& \\'illiams, the senior member being John 
Hackett, who has since been twice elected dis- 



trict attorney. In 1883, without his solicita- 
tion, and even without his knowledge until the 
announcement was made, Mr. Williams was 
appointed State assessor by Grover Cleveland, 
then governor. This office he held until his 
resignation in 1892, serving with marked ability 
and success, and several important amendments 
to the ta.x laws were adopted by the Legisla- 
ture at his suggestion. He holds a prominent 
place in business circles as well as in profes- 
sional life, and is a director of the City National 
Bank, and other corporations. He organized 
and was first president of the Poughkeepsie 
News Company, publishers of the Nezus Press 
and Ncics Telegraph, the leading Democratic 
journals in the Hudson Valley, and until 1894 
was very active in State and local politics, after 
which time till the Presidential campaign of 
1896 he devoted his attention to legal business. 

Mr. Williams has been a member of the 
Democratic State Committee; in 1887 was 
chairman of the State Executive Committee, 
and met and solved with rare courage and skill 
the intricate problems of the campaign of that 
year, complicated as it was with the Henry 
George and Labor movements. In 1894 he 
again served as a member of the Democratic 
State Executive Committee. In the fall of 
1893 the delegations from Dutchess and other 
counties of the Second Department presented 
his name at the judicial convention held in 
Brooklyn as their candidate for justice of the 
supreme court to succeed Hon. Joseph F. Bar- 
nard, whose term expired that fall; but Mr. 
Pearsall, of Brooklyn, received the Democratic 
nomination, and was defeated b}' Hon. William 
J. Gaynor, the Reform and Republican candi- 
date. Early in 1896 he protested against the 
proposed departure of the Democratic party 
from what he regarded as the ancient standards 
of his party, and on the adoption of the Chi- 
cago platform and the nomination of Mr. Bryan 
he formerly severed his connection with that 
party, and entered actively into the campaign 
for the Republican candidates. On January 
I, 1897, he was appointed corporation counsel 
of the city of Poughkeepsie. 

Mr. Williams is a member of many fraternal 
organizations, including the Freemasons, Odd 
Fellows and Knights of Pythias, and he organ- 
ized the Odd Fellows Mutual Benefit Associa- 
tion of Dutchess county with five members, 
the membership now being increased to nearly 
one thousand. He is president of the leading 
social organization of Poughkeepsie, the Dutch- 



46 



COMAfE.VORA TIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



ess Club, having succeeded Hon. Homer A. 
Nelson, its first president, and is a member of 
several clubs in New York and other cities. 



J\ NTHONY UNDERHILL, M. D. (de- 
_ L ceased). Among the talented men who 
ha^e done honor to the medical profession in 
Dutchess county, the subject of this brief 
memoir held a worth}' rank. The son of a 
prominent physician, his natural aptitude for 
the calling had unusual opportunities for 
development, and application in early life, and 
his later years of effort were rewarded with 
well-deserved success. 

His family was of English origin, and his 
father. Dr. Joshua B. Underbill, was a life- 
long resident of Westchester county, N. Y., 
where our subject was born in 1818. The 
common schools of that locality furnished him 
his academic education, and he then began the 
study of medicine with his father, and later 
attended lectures at the College of Physicians 
and Surgeons in New York City. He opened 
a drug store in that city, which he carried on 
for some years previous to entering the medical 
department of Bowdoin College, at Brunswick, 
Me., from which he graduated in 1845. Lo- 
cating at New Hackcnsack, Dutchess county, 
he engaged in the active work of his profession, 
and continued for about forty j-cars, building 
up an extensive practice and enjoying the con- 
fidence of the people throughout a large circuit. 
In 1852 he married Miss Charlotte A. Mar- 
vine, who was born in 1832, in Wilton, Conn., 
the daughter of William M. Marvine. They 
made their home on a farm near New Hacken- 
sack, and reared a family of six children: 
(i) Charles married Miss Annie M. Rapelje, 
and lives at Hopewell Junction, Dutchess 
county, where he is the agent for the N. Y. & 
N. E. and the D. cS: C. railroads. {2) George 
resides at the old homestead. (3) William 
married Miss Mary E. Griffin, and lives at 
Fishkill, where he is employed as general pas- 
senger agent for the N. D. & C. R. R. (4) 
Frank is a farmer at home. (5) Lottie mar- 
ried Dr. R. C. Van W^'ck, of Hopewell Junc- 
tion, who was thrown from his buggy and 
killed in Februar}-, 1S96. (6) Edward A. mar- 
ried Miss Jeannette E. Schubert, and resides 
in Glenham, where he is employed as depot 
agent and telegraph operator. 

Dr. Underbill was prominent not only in 
professional circles, but in local political affairs. 



and took great interest also in educational 
matters, and in various movements for the 
public benefit. His death, which occurred 
September 4, 1889, caused a loss which was 
deeply and sincerelj' mourned among all classes 
of people. One of his sons, Frank, conducts 
the farm, a fine tract of one hundred acres, 
with a handsome residence and other improve- 
ments. 



CHARLES F. COSSUM, of the well-known 
law firm of Wilkinson & Cossum, of 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was born in 
New York City, April 17, 1859. His father, 
Charles Cossum, was born in Hastings, Eng- 
land, in 1S26. 

Richard Cossum, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was also born at Hastings, and was the 
last male of his name of that generation. He 
was educated in England, and by occupation 
was a draper, or dry-goods merchant. In 
1 84 1 he moved with his family to the United 
States and settled in Oswego county, N. Y., 
where he retired from active life. In 181 5 he 
was married to Miss Caroline Foster, and they 
had twelve children, of whom, Charles, Edwin, 
Fannie, Decimus, Elizabeth and Caroline are 
still living. 

Charles Cossum, Sr. , spent his boyhood 
days in Oswego county, N. Y. , and at the age 
of thirteen years he started out on his own ac- 
count. When twenty-five years old he was 
employed by the Hudson River R. R. Co. as a 
brakeman, from which he was promoted 
through the various positions to assistant su- 
perintendent and train master. He has a 
record of forty-two j'ears with this road, and is 
still in the company's employ, stationed at 
Poughkeepsie. In 1858 he was married to 
Miss Sarah Wood, who was born in New York 
City, and who is a daughter of Peter Wood. 
They have four children: Charles F. , our 
subject; Oscar, now living in Stamford, Conn., 
\\'illiam H., a missionary in China, and Car- 
oline. 

Charles F. Cossum attended the schools of 
Peekskill, N. Y., from 1865 to 1872, at which 
time he went to New York City, and in 1873 
was graduated from the Thirteenth Street 
Grammar School. He was then admitted 
to the College of New York City, but did 
not attend as he preferred to work. In 1S75 
he began the study of law with Homer A. 
Nelson, at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , and subse- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



47 



quently entered the office of Robert F. Wilkin- 
son, and was admitted to the bar in 1880. In 
that year he was appointed deputy county 
clerk, and filled that incumbency five j'ears. 
Ir 1886 he went on a business trip to England, 
which occupied him for a year, and upon his 
return he opened an office in New York City. 
In 1 888 he returned to Poughkeepsie and 
formed a partnership with Robert F. Wilkin- 
son, with whom he is still associated. For 
five years he was the attorney for the League 
of American Wheelmen, and was first vice- 
president of the organization during 1896. 
He is president of the Amrita Club and Apo- 
keepsing Boat Club; secretar}' and treasurer of 
the Poughkeepsie Society for the Prevention of 
Cruelty to Animals, and president of the Mitch- 
ell Heater Co. Mr. Cossum has not held any 
public office except that of deputy county 
clerk. Cossum is an unusual family name, 
there being but few persons in the world who 
bear it, and all of them are descendants of the 
grandfather of our subject. 



JAMES C. Mccarty, one of the most able 
law3-ers of Dutchess county, has for many 
years successfully engaged in practice at 
Rhinebeck. He traces his ancestry back to 
Daniel McCarty, who was born February 22, 
1754, in Charlestown, then a suburb of Bos- 
ton, Mass. His father was a Scotchman, who 
owned and sailed a schooner plying between 
New London, Conn., and Boston, and during 
the Revolutionary war he sailed with a full 
cargo and crew from the latter place, and, as 
they never returned or were heard from, it is 
supposed they were captured by the British 
privateers, being killed or taken prisoners, and 
the vessel and cargo confiscated. At the age 
of twenty-one Daniel joined the minute men 
in defense of the country against British ag- 
gression, and April ig, 1775, participated in 
the battle of Lexington, after which he en- 
listed for nine months in the company com- 
manded .by Capt. Josiah Harris. On June 
I/' 1775. he was in the battle of Bunker Hill, 
and soon after with his old captain he joined 
the Continental service, belonging to the regi- 
ment commanded by Col. Bond. After six 
months spent in New York the regiment was 
ordered to Fort Edward, Canada, where they 
joined Gen. Schuyler about December i, 1776. 
Later a thousand troops, including his coin- 
■ pany, were ordered to New Jersey to join the 



army under Washington, where they arrived 
prior to the battle of Trenton, and took charge 
of the prisoners captured there. 

Although his term of service had expired, 
Daniel McCarty remained with his command 
until January, 1777, when the army was en- 
camped at Morristown, where he was dis- 
charged, but could not return home, as he had 
no money, so re-enlisted for three years, re- 
ceiving $20 bounty, and liberty to go to his 
home in Boston and report for duty when or- 
dered. In the spring of 1777 his regiment was 
reorganized under Col. Grayton, Col. Bond 
havingdied, andhewas appointed sergeant, and 
afterward served in that capacity. They were 
again ordered to Fort Edward, Canada, where 
they met Gen. Schuyler's army retreating be- 
fore Burgoyne, but soon after readvanced 
against that general, and engaged in all the 
battles that ended in the surrender of Bur- 
goyne at Saratoga. The troops made a forced 
march from Albany to Kingston in one day, a 
distance of sixty miles, hoping to prevent the 
British from burning the latter place, but ar- 
rived just in time to see them escaping in their 
boats, after its destruction, October 16, 1777. 

Soon after Mr. McCarty accompanied Gen. 
Gates to Yorktown, \'a., as one of his body 
guards and was employed as messenger to and 
from Lancaster, Baltimore, and other places. 
In May, 1778, he returned north with that 
general, serving under him until the following 
December, after which he remained with his 
old company andregiment until honorably dis- 
charged December I, 1779, at Peekskill, N. Y. 
When his enlistment expired he served as a 
substitute for Lieut. Young in Capt. Brown's 
company. Col. Mead's regiment of Connecti- 
cut State troops, employed chiefly in guarding 
the lines from Horseneck to Norwalk. About 
May I, 1781, Gen. Waterbury took command 
of the Connecticut State troops, and gave Mr. 
McCarty a regular commission as lieutenant, 
in which capacit}' he served until the close of 
the war in 1783. . 

For a time Daniel McCarty made his home 
in Stamford, Conn., where his son Stephen 
was born February 14, 17S3, but about r790, 
he came to Rhinebeck, Dutchess Co., N. Y., 
and became head miller at Schuyler's Mills 
(now destroyed) two miles east of the village, 
on the place now owned and occupied by Dr. 
George N. Miller. In 1794, while living there, 
his first wife died and was buried in the ceme- 
tery connected with the little Methodist chapel 



48 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



near their home. The children of this mar- 
riage were: Stephen, Robert, Tolbert, Daniel 
and Katy. He later married a Mrs. Jay, by 
whom he had three children: William, an 
Episcopal minister, who lived and died in 
Canada; Eliza; and Rev. Dr. John McCarty, 
also an Episcopal minister, who was chaplain 
in the United States army, and was known as 
the fighting priest during the Me.xican war. 
The father later removed to the village of 
Rhinebeck, where his youngest son was born 
in the old stone house now standing on the 
Huntington place. He and his wife spent 
their last days on the old homestead of Stephen 
McCarty, father of our subject. 

On that place the birth of James C. Mc- 
Carty occurred May 7, 1824, and at Rhinebeck 
he was educated by Messrs. Bell and Marcy, 
taking what constituted a full academic course, 
with the exception of Greek. On leaving 
school in 1843 he was made deputy clerk under 
his brother, Andrew Z., who was then county 
clerk for Oswego county, having been elected 
in the fall of 1840 for three years, and served 
as a member of the 34th Congress for Oswego 
and Afadison counties, N. Y. For two years 
our subject filled that position, and while 
searching the records of that- county for Peter 
Chandler, conceived the idea of studying law. 
As his term of service expired on January i, 
1844, he returned to I^hinebeck the following 
February and entered the law office of Ambrose 
Wager, with whom he remained for twelve 
years. In January, 1847, he was admitted to 
practice as attorney at law, being admitted at 
the supreme court at Albany, and his diploma 
signed by Green C. Bronson, and by the con- 
stitution of 1846 was counsellor at law and 
solicitor in chancery. While still with Mr. 
Wager he engaged in general practice, but in 
the fall of 1856 he was appointed superintend- 
ent of document room under President Pierce's 
administration, holding the position until the 
following fall, during which time the 34th Con- 
gress held both its first and second sessions. 

Returning to Rhinebeck, Mr. McCarty 
opened an office of his own, where he contin- 
ued practice until 1861, when he was appointed 
assistant assessor of internal revenue for the 
district of Dutchess county, and during that 
year and the two years following was with 
Jacob W. Elsifer, at Red Hook. In 1864, 
however, he again resumed practice at Rhine- 
beck. although he still continued to be revenue 
collector. Up to 1872 he had been alone in 



business, but at that time formed a partner- 
ship with George Esselstyn, which connection 
still continues, theirs being the oldest law firm 
in Dutchess county. He takes rank among 
the successful and prominent lawyers of the 
county, and is one of the most highly respected 
legal practitioners in the community. 

Mr. McCarty was married in August, 1847, 
the lady of his choice being Miss Louisa I. 
Cross, daughter of Moulton Cross, of Pulaski, 
Oswego Co., N. Y., and two sons were born 
to them; J. Canfield, who died of heart dis- 
ease at the age of seventeen years; and Charles 
E., an attorney and counsellor at law, who is '. 
also engaged in the insurance business at 
Rhinebeck. 

Mr. McCarty is an earnest defender of Re- 
publican principles, and is a man whose opin- 
ions are invariably held in respect. He has 
ever taken an active part in political affairs, in 
the years 1852, i860 and 1861 served as 
supervisor of his town, and for several years 
has been clerk of the village, which office he is 
still holding to the satisfaction of all concerned. 
He has been quite prominently identified with 
civic societies, being the oldest living member 
of Rhinebeck Lodge No. 162, I. O. O. F. ; 
belongs to the Knights of Pythias fraternity; 
and in i860 joined the Masonic order, of which 
he is now an honorary member. In earlier 
years he took an active part in fraternal work, 
and passed through all the chairs of the lodges 
to which he belongs. For twenty years he 
has served as vestryman of the Episcopal 
Church, of which he is a faithful and consistent 
member. 



HON. JOHN P. H. TALLMAN, the subject 
of this biographical sketch, was born in 
the town of Washington, Duchess county, 
March 19, 1820. His ancestry for several 
generations had been residents of that county. 
Darius Tallman, his great-grandfather, emi- 
grated from Nantucket, married Miss South- 
worth, and settled on Chestnut Ridge, near 
the place where in later years Mr. Benson J. 
Lossing, the historian, lived. His father's ma- 
ternal grandfather was Capt. Harris, of the 
British army during the Revolutionary war, 
whose wife was a Miss Velie, of Lagrange. 
Deacon Benham, of New Haven, a Revolu- 
tionary soldier, was his maternal grandfather; 
he lived in the town of Washington, and mar- 
ried Miss Comstock. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



49 



Mr. Tallman's father, Darius Tallman, Jr., 
married Almira Benham in 1817. Botii lived 
to be over eighty years of age. 

John P. H. TaHman, the eldest son of 
these parents, worked upon his father's farm 
until he was fifteen years of age, when, being 
desirous of securing an education which would 
enable him to fill a position of usefulness in 
life, he entered the Amenia Seminary as a 
student, and remained at that institution for 
the three years required to complete the course 
of study. During that period he supported 
himself chiefly upon money borrowed for the 
purpose, and these loans were repaid out of his 
first earnings after entering upon the practice 
of his profession. 

On leaving the Seminary he began reading 
Law in the office of Hon. James Hooker, then 
Surrogate of the County, and Hon. Virgil D. 
Bonesteel, in Poughkeepsie. While still a 
student his industry was rewarded by his pro- 
motion to the position of first clerk to the Sur- 
rogate; and upon the appointment of Hon. 
Robert Wilkinson to the surrogateship in 1840, 
Mr. Tallman became his managing clerk. In 
1843, at the General Term in Utica, he was 
admitted to practice in the State Courts, and 
also in the District and Circuit Courts of the 
United States. The ne.xt 3'ear he was ap- 
pointed Master in Chancery for Duchess Coun- 
ty by the Governor, on the recommendation 
of a County Convention of Delegates, Mr. 
Owen T. Coffin and Hon. Gilbert Dean being 
his competitors. 

In 1847 Mr. Tallman received the unan- 
imous nomination of the Democratic party for 
the office of Surrogate for Duchess County. 
His opponent was the Hon. John Thompson, 
the nominee of the Whig part)'. In this con- 
test he was successful; but before the election, 
and especially during the first term of his serv- 
ice, he was so violently and persistently assailed 
by the local organ of the Whigs that he deemed 
it necessary that he should lay before his fel- 
low-citizens a defence of his conduct. This 
presentation of his case attracted much atten- 
tion by its clear and convincing argument. 
Among those who read this paper, and were 
impressed b}' the evidence of intellectual vigor 
it displayed, was the Rev. Dr. Stephen Olin, 
then President of Wesleyan University. Short- 
ly afterward that institution conferred upon 
Mr. Tallman the honorary degree of Master of 
Arts. 

Mr. Tallman's friends insisted upon his be- 



coming a candidate for re-election to the posi- 
tion of Surrogate. To this he consented, and 
he was re-elected by an increased majority. 
At the expiration of his second term, he de- 
clined to be agam a candidate. 

An interesting reminiscence of this period is 
a document to which Mr. Tallman attached 
high value. His political and personal adver- 
saries carried their opposition so far as to pre- 
sent to the Governor of the State, Hon. Ham- 
ilton Fish, a petition for his impeachment. 
The petitioners, who belonged to the same 
political party as the Governor, naturally hoped 
that their request would prevail with him. 
The Governor, after carefully considering the 
arguments and evidence on both sides, wrote 
on the back of the paper: "I see nothing in 
the course 'of the officer complained of but 
what is commendable. H. F"ish." 

After the conclusion of his second term as 
Surrogate he never again held a political office. 
He was, however, for many years interested in 
local and State politics, and for a long time 
was chairman of the County Central Com- 
mittee. His tact in management and his rare 
gift of personal influence over men fitted him 
for success in political lite, had he chosen to 
pursue that course. But although tempting 
offers of preferment were held out to him, he 
concluded to devote himself to the practice of 
his profession. 

His first partnership was with Hon. Gilbert 
Dean, afterward judge. Subsequentlj' he was 
connected with Mr. Charles Powers, Mr. 
George W. Payne, Mr. George W. Lord and 
in later years with Mr. Walter Farrington, 
Capt. Pelatiah Ward, who fell in one of the 
battles of the Civil war; Hon. William I. 
Thorn, Hon. Homer A. Nelson, and Hon. A. 
M. Card were students in his office. 

As a lawyer, Mr. Tallman's chief strength 
was in his comprehensive grasp of any matter 
which he took in hand, and in the cool and 
clear estimate which he formed of its bearings 
both near and remote. His familiarity with 
legal points was clear and accurate, so that he 
was eminently wise in counsel. His great in- 
dustry and unfailing interest in his client's case, 
left nothing to the uncertainties of chance. 
His cases were carefully prepared, and the evi- 
dence was presented with convincing effect. 
Much of his practice was in the Surrogate's 
Court, for which the training and experience 
of iiis earlier professional life specially fitted 
him. He was retained in connection with sev- 



50 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUIVAL RECORD. 



eral important and well-known cases, involving 
large interests. 

In addition to his j^eneral law business, he 
had a special practice in the United States 
District and Circuit Courts. He was a mem- 
ber of the New York State Bar Association, 
and for some years was on the Executive Com- 
mittee. 

During the earlier years of his practice and 
prior to the period when that class of invest- 
ments was taken up by insurance and other 
financial institutions, large transactions in real 
estate, bonds and mortgages were arranged for 
m his office. A wide acquaintance with in- 
vestors was thus formed, which resulted in his 
being called to fill various positions of reponsi- 
bility and trust. 

In 1856 Mr. Tallman was offered the posi- 
tion of Treasurer of the Iowa Central Railroad 
Company. This road was projected from a 
point on the Mississippi river, where the City 
of Clinton now stands, to Cedar Rapids. 
Under another name it now forms part of the 
great line to California. He declined the 
office, but yielded to the request of the officers 
to accompany the rcconnoitcring party over 
the territory. He drew the report of the 
conmiission as to the feasibility of the project 
and the route which the road should take. 

In 1855 he established a banking house in 
Davenport, Iowa, under the name of Tallman, 
Powers & McLean. The resident partner was 
Mr. Powers, who had been his clerk when he 
was Surrogate. The direction of the business 
of the firm was necessarily left chiefly in the 
hands of Mr. Powers. Though at first this 
business enterprise met with much encourage- 
ment, it was ultimately unsuccessful and in- 
volved Mr. Tallman in pecuniary losses which 
seriously embarrassed him for several years. 

In 1859 Mr. Tallman was active in the 
effort to establish the City Bank of Pough- 
keepsie, and was chosen its first President. 
He did not accept the office, but favored in 
his stead the Hon. Joseph F. Barnard, who 
retained that position for upward of twenty 
years. Mr. Tallman, however, was appointed 
attorney to the Bank, and continued to act in 
that capacity for nearly thirty years. 

Early in his career he favored the building 
of the Hudson River railroad. He gave his 
earnest assistance to the establishment of the 
Poughkeepsie and Eastern railroad, and of the 
Poughkeepsie City railroad, of which he,\vas 
one of the mcorporators. In 1853 he aided in 



establishing the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery; 
he was appointed a Trustee and continued to 
hold that position until his death. He was 
instrumental in having the Hudson River Hos- 
pital for the Insane located at Poughkeepsie, 
and was a member of the first Board of Trus- 
tees. In 1852 he helped to organise the Home 
for the Friendless; he prepared its Act of In- 
corporation and was one of the first Board of 
Counsellors. At the time of his death he was 
one of the Trustees of the Vassar Brothers' 
Home for Aged Men. 

He was interested in every plan to beautify 
the Cit\' of Poughkeepsie, and to make it pleas- 
ant and inviting to all who should seek a place 
for elegant and refined homes. 

From his youth Mr. Tallman was one in- 
terested in the cause of temperance, having 
when nine years of age signed what was then 
known as the partial pledge. At the age of 
twenty he became an officer in the Young 
Men's Temperance Society, and soon after 
signed the total abstinence pledge. Later he 
was an officer in the Duchess County Tem- 
perance Society, and occasionally delivered 
addresses before that and similar organiza- 
tions. He was one of the founders of the 
State Inebriate Asylum at Binghampton, of 
which for several years he was a Trustee. 

Mr. Tallman united with the Methodist 
Church at the age of seventeen, while a student 
at Amenia Seminary, then under the super- 
vision of Dr. Merrick, later of the Ohio Uni- 
versity, afterward Bishop, and Dr. Davis W. 
Clark. In 1840 he helped to found the Sec- 
ond Methodist Episcopal Church in Pough- 
keepsie, located in Cannon street. In 1842 
he became a Trustee of that Society, and con- 
tinued to hold that position and to maintain 
other official relations until his death. He 
was the representative of this Society to the 
first Electoral Conference of Laymen of the 
New York Conference in 1872, and was its 
presiding officer. For several years he was an 
officer of the Duchess County Bible Society. 
He was a member of the first and only State 
Council of Methodists of the State of New 
York, which met at Syracuse, February, 1870, 
and was composed of about 600 representatives 
from most of the churches of the denomina- 
tion in the State. This Council voted to 
raise about $200,000 for the Syracuse Univer- 
sity and favored various reforms for Church 
and State. One of these was the establish- 
ment of the State Council of Political Reform, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



51 



which was a potent factor in the overthrow of 
the Tweed Ring. He was a member of the 
State Executive Committee, and, although a 
lifelong Democrat, he disregarded any action 
inconsistent with the platform of the Council, 
which declared : ' ' We leave the party relations 
of ever}' man undisturbed, but when parties 
command the support of bad principles, bad 
measures, or bad men, we must refuse to obey." 

In 1884 he was chosen a Lay Delegate 
from the New York Conference to the General 
Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
which met in the City of Philadelphia. In 
the assemblage of representative men of Ameri- 
can Methodism he filled a place of marked 
importance. Although his voice was seldom 
heard on the floor in the debates, his wise and 
judicious counsels had weight in the delibera- 
tions of the Committees. 

For many years it had been his hope that 
the Society with which he worshiped in the 
Cannon Street church should have a new and 
more eligibly located edifice, and to this sub- 
ject he gave much thought. In the year 1892 
circumstances seemed to favor the consumma- 
tion of the plan. With characteristic earnest- 
ness Mr. Tallmangave himself to this welcome 
work. He encouraged the timid, admonished 
the faltering, guided the sanguine, and used his 
rare personal influence to create and mould a 
united sentiment which should make the move- 
ment for a new church a success. Largely 
through his efforts the site was selected, the 
ground purchased and prepared for building, 
the plans drawn, the mechanics set to work, 
the old property disposed of, the subscriptions 
obtained, the enterprise brought to a happy 
conclusion, and the Society put into the pos- 
session of its present beautiful and commodious 
place of worship. His whole heart was in the 
work, and his cheerful spirit and stimulating 
faith made him a leader whom it was a delight 
to follow. 

In his home relations Mr. Tallman was 
seen at his best. If the work of the day had 
been severe and its results disappointing, no 
trace of this appeared upon his face or in his 
demeanor when he crossed the threshold of 
his home. His personal friendships were 
many, and he delighted to entertain his friends 
in his own house. Over those with whom he 
was brought in contact his influence was mor- 
ally bracmg. He never disguised or com- 
promised his principle. Although far from ob- 
trusive of his religious experiences, he never 



allowed himself to occupy a questionable atti- 
tude in that important relation. 

Perhaps the most pronounced characteris- 
tic of Mr. Tallman was his hopefulness. No 
situation was so full of danger or doubt that 
he could not see a happy outcome. \\'hen 
others faltered, he smiled and pursued hii; way. 
And this did not result from insensibility or 
indifference, but was the endowment of his na- 
ture and the charm of his character. It was 
this that made him a cheerful companion and 
an enthusiastic guide. 

Mr. Tallman married Miss Mary New- 
man, of South Egremont, Mass., in 1840; she 
died in 1850. In 1851 he married Miss Sarah 
J. Anderson, of New York, a lady of rare in- 
tellectual endowments. 

It was permitted Mr. Tallman to enjoy a 
cheerful and healthful old age. He was able 
to attend the business of his office until within 
a few days of his death. His last professional 
service was in the Surrogate's Court on March 
16, 1895. A few days afterward he was taken 
ill and his disease rapidly assumed a threaten- 
ing character. After a week of great suffering 
he passed away, at the age of seventy-five 
years and four days. His funeral was attend- 
ed by a large circle of friends in the Trinity 
Methodist Episcopal Church. The Revs. Doc- 
tors Osbon, Gregory and Stobridge, who had 
been his pastors, conducted the service, which 
was marked by the evidence of sympathetic 
feeling. Dr. Gregory, in the course of his re- 
marks, said: "He was a manly man, with 
strength of principle and great force of char- 
acter, possessed of refined sentiment and re- 
ligious feeling, with clear convictions of truth 
and duty, which were freely expressed, but 
never ostentatiously obtruded. He was tol- 
erant of the opinions of others who differed 
from him. He was not a pessimist, but had 
great faith in God, his fellow-men and in the 
future." 

Mr. Tallman left four children: Mary E., 
wife of Theodore W. Davis, of New York; 
Augusta C, wife of John F. Phayre, of New 
York; John Francis, the General Agent in 
Brooklyn of the New York Life Insurance 
Company; and Katharine Eliot, wife of Rev. 
Dr. Maltbie D. Babcock, of Baltimore. 

In the Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church 
in Poughkeepsie, in the erection of which he 
had labored with such joyous earnestness, the 
loving hands of his son have placed a tablet to 
his memory, bearing as its inscription the fol- 



52 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



lowing words from the Book which he had 
made the guide of his Hfe: 

" He that overconifth I will make 
"him a pillar in the temple of God." 



LEWIS TOMPIvINS (deceased). Few citi- 
zens of Dutchess county have done more 

to advance her interests than did the late 
Lewis Tompkins, of Fishkill-on-the-Hudson, 
who was for many years the acknowledged 
head of the wool-hat industry in the United 
States, and whose extensive factories have fur- 
nished a well-earned livelihood to hundreds of 
workmen whose homes have sprung up in the 
neighboring towns. He was himself familiar 
with the trials of honest poverty,- though hap- 
pily his later years were blessed with every 
comfort, and doubtless his well-known sympa- 
thy with the needy had its origin in a remem- 
brance of his own early struggles. 

Mr. Tompkins was descended from an old 
English family, and the first of the American 
line was Stephen Tompkins, who it is believed 
located first in Connecticut and from there 
moved to Westchester county, N. Y., where 
his later years were passed in cultivating the 
soil. He was the father of sixteen children, 
among whom were James, the great-grandfa- 
ther of our subject, and Jonathan Griffin, both 
of whom rendered gallant service in the Revo- 
lutionary war on the patriot side. James 
served in the Seventh Dutchess county regi- 
ment under Col. Henry Luddington, and in 
company commanded by Capt. George Lane. 
This showed high courage, as Westchester 
county had a large Tory population, and neigh- 
bor was arrayed against neighbor, and friend 
against friend. Much of it was neutral ground, 
but spies were busy on both sides and perils 
abounded. The story of Enoch Crosby, the 
Harvey Birch of J. Fenimore Cooper's "Spy," 
is familiar to all, and there is no doubt that 
many another such romantic history might 
have been told. Jonathan Griffin Tompkins 
was the father of Daniel D. Tompkins, vice- 
president of the United States from 1816 to 
1820. His was a notable career. He was 
graduated from college, read law and practiced 
with distinguished success, was a member of 
Congress, judge of the supreme court of New 
York, and governor of the same State, his last 
act in that office being to recommend the abo- 
lition of slavery. 

Solomon Tompkins, a son of James, had 



a son Solomon (2), our subjecfs father, and 
the two left the old home to locate in the 
wilds of Greene county, near the present vil- 
lage of Ashland, in which region settlers were 
then few and far between. Although Mr. 
Tompkins' father had only limited educational 
advantages, he was not lacking in good judg- 
ment and practical ability, and he took a lead- 
ing place among his associates. He married 
Elizabeth Randall, daughter of Timothy Ran- 
dall, a citizen of Delaware county, but a native 
of Connecticut; she is still li\ing, in a hale and 
beautiful old age, with a married daughter at 
Matteawan. 

Lewis Tompkins, the eldest son of this 
worthy couple, was born at the old farm near 
Ashland, August 5, 1836, and received his 
education in the district schools of the vicinity, 
working upon the farm in summer and attend- 
ing school for a few months each winter until 
he was about seventeen, when he began to 
learn the trade of hat finishing with Strong & 
Ruggles, of Ashland. After serving an ap- 
prenticeship of three years, he established a 
new hat factory at Ashland in 1852, in part- 
nership with Leveritt Conine; but this venture 
ended two years later in a complete failure. 
With characteristic integrity Mr. Tompkins 
gave up everything to the creditors, even part- 
ing with his watch. Soon after he turned his 
face westward with just enough money in his 
pocket to carry him to Chicago, and from 
that point he made his way on foot to Kansas, 
seldom getting a ride, and often passing the 
night upon the open prairie. He finally 
reached Manhattan, Kans., and located upon 
a government claim on Blue river. That was 
a memorable period. The fiery discussion of 
a few years before on the Kansas-Nebraska 
bill had stirred the whole nation, and those 
territories were being rapidly settled. Young 
Tompkins was, of course, a Free-Soiler, and 
was early drawn into the struggle between 
the opposing factions, being appointed deputy 
sheriff and, later, a delegate to the Constitu- 
tional Convention at Topeka. He remained 
in the West about two years, returning home 
in November, 1859, for a brief visit, which 
lengthened into a perinanentstay. At Middle- 
town, Orange county, he accepted a position 
with Wilcox & Draper, which he held for a 
few months, and in the summer of i860 he 
went to Matteawan, where he was employed 
for several years with the Seamless Clothing 
Manufacturing Co., and later he was in busi- 



f. 





Q^^ ^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



53 



ness as a clothier at Fishkill-on-the-Hudson; 
also at Matteavvan. He wisely invested his 
gains in real estate, buying and subdividing a 
large tract. Succeeding in this, he bought 
other tracts of land and built a number of sub- 
stantial dwellings, adding to his own prosperity 
and that of the town. In 1872 he sold out 
his business interests and made a trip to 
Europe, where he remained a year studj'ing 
European industries and business methods. 
On coining home a new enterprise was begun 
— the building of a large hat factory near the 
river at Fishkill-on-the-Hudson, and notwith- 
standing the "hard times" of 1873. the 
Dutchess Hat Works was put into successful 
operation. The business grew from year to 
year, and additions were made to the works as 
needed; but it was soon deemed advisable to 
establish a branch at Tioronda, a mile away, 
and later another branch was opened at Mid- 
dletown. The efficient hand of the founder of 
the business was on it all, mastering every de- 
tail; but he had capable coadjutors in his 
brothers, E. Lakin Tompkins, at Fishkill-on- 
the-Hudson, and Edward D. Tompkins, and 
Frank O. Tompkins, at Middletown. He be- 
came the leading manufacturer of wool hats in 
the United States, and at his death his fortune 
amounted to several hundred thousand dollars. 
One feature of his enterprise was the erection 
of comfortable homes for his employes, which 
proved a benefit to all concerned. 

He was greatly interested in local progress, 
and especially in educational matters. A stu- 
dent of men and affairs rather than of books, 
he still appreciated to the full the advantages 
of a thorough system of popular education, and 
it was largely through his endeavors that Mat- 
teavvan and Fishkill-on-the-Hudson secured 
their new and commodious school buildings. 
The building of the handsome hose house of 
the Lewis Tompkins Hose Co. , at the latter 
place, was chiefly due to him, and he was a 
constant and liberal giver to the Churches of 
both towns. The Highland Hospital was a 
charity which found him a steadfast friend, 
and his purse was ever open to sustain or en- 
large its usefulness. Many of his beneficences 
will never be known, as he could never withhold 
his help when his sympathies were touched, 
and his senre of justice wounded by the sight 
of suffering. He was a Republican in politics, 
and an influential one, but sought no oflice. 
He was a member of the board of education at 
Matteawan, and was at one time president 



of the village of Fishkill-on-the-Hudson. For 
more than thirty years he belonged to Beacon 
Lodge No. 283, F. & A. M. 

In 1862 Mr. Tompkins married Miss Van- 
Voorhis, who did not long survive to bless his 
life. One son was born of their union, Charles 
Randall Tompkins, who died in 1892 in early 
manhood. A second happy matrimonial union 
was formed on January 3, 1868, with Miss 
Helen E. Mather, of Wellsboro, Penn. Her 
father was a lineal descendant of Cotton 
Mather, of New England, and her mother, 
whose name was Beecher, was collaterally 
connected with the Lyman Beecher family. 
The three children of the second marriage are 
all living: Jennie, Helen M. and Ralph S. 
The family residence is a beautiful place. It 
is appropriately named ■ ' Edgewater, " being 
situated on the bank of the Hudson opposite 
Newburgh, and it commands a lovely view up 
and down the river. Here Mr. Tompkins 
proved himself a genial host and generous en- 
tertainer. He traveled extensively both in 
this country and in Europe, spending several 
winters in Paris, Nice, Algiers. Mentone-on-the- 
Mediterranean, Davos Platz, and other places 
rich in associations and delightful for situation. 
Mr. Tompkins had fine taste in art, and en- 
joyed visiting the celebrated galleries in which 
the chief works of the gifted artists of the past 
are preserved on canvas or in chiseled marble. 
In the prime of his manhood, while the 
past was a pleasant memory and the future a 
delightful anticipation, this manly, generous, 
upright citizen passed from earth, breathing his 
last at his home on the 9th day of January, 
1894. It is by his deeds alone that his merit 
was manifested, and the simple record of these 
shows him worthy of honor in every relation in 
life. 



CHARLES E. SEGER, M. D. (deceased). 
The expulsion of the Huguenots from 
France, however it may have been regarded by 
the unhappy exiles at the time, resulted in un- 
mixed good to this country, bringing into its 
rapidly developing civilization a large body of 
high-spirited, courageous, intelligent and God- 
fearing people, whose influence at that critical 
period of our history can scarcely be estimated. 
Among these early emigrants were the ances- 
tors of the subject of this biography. They 
settled near Kingston, Ulster Co., N. Y., about 
1640, and some time afterward two brothers 



54 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



of the name moved to New Salem, Albany Co., 
N. Y., where the home of this branch of the 
family has ever since remained. Garret I. 
Seger, our subject's great-grandfather, was 
born there January 4, 1753, the son of one of 
the brothers alluded to. He became a farmer 
there, married and reared a family of ten chil- 
dren: John, Magdalene, Frederick, Henry, 
Mary, David G., Frances, Polly, Francis and 
Michael. They located in various places as 
they settled in life. Francis was a judge in 
Lewis county, New York. 

David G. Seger, our subject's grandfather, 
was born January 31, 1794, and remained at 
the old homestead, farming and conducting a 
hotel until his death, March 31, 1859. He 
married Mary Stalker, who died leaving six 
children, of whom Garret D., our subject's 
father, was the eldest; John A. is a resident 
of Schoharie county, N. Y. ; Catherine married 
Andrew Allen, a farmer at New Salem; Mar- 
garet, the wife of William McMillen, formerly 
a farmer, is now living in Albany; Laura mar- 
ried (first) John \'an Der Zee, now deceased, 
and (second) George Strevell, a carpenter; Ly- 
man, deceased, was a farmer. 

Garret D. Seger was born October 31, 1 8 1 6, 
and also settled near the old home. He has 
been engaged in farming and mercantile busi- 
ness, and has taken a leading part in various 
local movements. In politics he is a Demo- 
crat, and he belongs to the Christian Church; 
but his wife, formerly Miss Mary Shafer, is a 
Presbyterian. She is a descendant of a Ger- 
man family which has long been prominent in 
the town of Bern, Albany county. Her father, 
John Shafer, an agriculturist, was a soldier in 
the war of 1812. Our subject is the elder of 
two children. The younger, Florence, mar- 
ried Charles Wolf, of Albany, a bookkeeper 
for a fire insurance company. 

On April 8, 1S42, Dr. Seger entered upon 
his life's journey. He received his literary edu- 
cation in the district schools at New Salem 
and at Fort Edward Collegiate Institute, and 
then began his medical studies in the office of 
Drs. Fredenburgh & Mosher, "of Coeymans. 
He remained with them four years, in the 
meantime attending Albany Medical College, 
and graduating in the class of 1863. For two 
years following he was in partnership with his 
former preceptors; but in 1865 he moved to 
Stockbridge, where he practiced successfully 
for nine years. From 1874 to 1885 he con- 
tinued his professional work in Albany, but 



after that time he resided at New Hackensack. 
His ability and skill were widely recognized, 
and he had a fine practice. 

On January 20, 1864, Dr. Seger was united 
in matrimony with Miss Agnes Schoonmaker, 
a native of Bayonne, N. |. Her father, John J. 
Schoonmaker, a shipping merchant of the firm 
of Schoonmaker & Johnson, and his wife, 
Jane Ann Van Buskirk, were both descended 
from old families of that place. Three chil- 
dren were born of this union: Mary L. , Grace 
A. and Garretta K. , who are all at home. 
The Doctor was identified with many progress- 
ive movements in his locality, and was health 
officer of the town of Wappinger for ten'years. 
In politics he was a Democrat; he belonged to 
the F. & A. M., Albany Lodge No. 452. and 
to the Dutchess Medical Society. A victim of 
typhoid fever. Dr. Seger passed to his final 
rest December 10, 1896. Of him the Wap- 
pinger Chronicle says: "Dr. Seger was a 
man of mild and genial demeanor, quiet in 
manner, always the gentleman, and had a 
kind word for everybody. He was conscien- 
tious and punctilious to every duty, and this, 
added to his advanced medical experience, 
made him one, if not the best Health Officer 
Wappinger town ever had. 

" He leaves a widow and three daughters, 
to whom the sympathy of the community is 
generally extended." 



3 EV. ROBERT FULTON CRARY, D. D. 
To the American born, the story of Rob- 
ert Fulton and the steamboat are matters of 
familiar interest, though it is difficult to realize 
that he lived but such a short time ago, and 
we here present a brief review of the life of 
his grandson. Rev. Robert Fulton Crary, D. D., 
rector of the Church of the Holy Comforter, 
Poughkeepsie, New York. 

The Crary family have been known in 
America for over two centuries. Peter (I) 
Crary was a native of Groton, Conn., and 
signer of the Patent of New London October 
14, 1704. In 1677 he married Christobel 
Gallup, daughter of Capt. John Gallup, one 
of tne Crown captains who fell in the Narra- 
gansett Swamp fight, in 1675. In those days 
Groton was known as New Lucien. His son, 
Peter (II), married Anne Culver on January 
1 1, '1709, and his son, Peter (III), had a son, 
Peter (IV), who married Lucretia Palmer De- 
cember 8, 1 77 1, and their son, Peter (\'), a 




^^-^^^v^ ^^^-.^ 




^^ 



4. 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



55 



native of New York Citj- and the j^aandfather 
of our subject, married Elizabeth Denison, a 
descendant of Maj. George Denison, of Ston- 
ington, Connecticut. 

Edward Charles Crary, the father of our 
subject, was the only son of Peter (V) Crary, 
of the well-known firm of Peter & John S. 
Crary, wholesale dry-goods importers, the 
largest firm of the kind in New York City at 
that day. Edward C. was born in New York 
, City, and spent his early days there, attending 
school for a time, but completed his education 
from Columbia College, from which he gradu- 
ated with the class of 1824. In New York, 
on June 20, 1831, he was married to Cornelia 
Livingston Fulton, second daughter of Robert 
Fulton. After his marriage Edward C. Crary 
assumed control of the English branch of the 
house, and he and his bride made their home 
in Liverpool, where their eldest son, Robert 
Fulton, oursubject, was born. Their other chil- 
dren were Edward Francis (deceased); Charles 
Franklin: Ella Cornelia, who married Her- 
man H. Cammann, of New York City, and 
Lena, who died in infancy. The family, return- 
ing to this country about the year 1837, made 
their home in New York. Cornelia L. (Ful- 
ton) Crary was born August 6, 18 12, at Rose 
Hill, which is now about Nineteenth street. 
New York City, but which then was a suburban 
place where Robert Fulton was spending the 
summer and proceeding with his inventions. 
She died October 6, 1893. 

Robert Fulton Crary spent his boyhood in 
New York City, and in June, 1861, was gradu- 
ated from the General Theological Seminary. 
His first charge was as a missionary in Warren 
county, N. Y., where for six years he labored 
for the upbuilding of the Church. As lasting 
monuments to his work for these years are 
three stone churches, which were erected 
through his energies. In 1867 he accepted a 
call to become rector of the Church of the 
Holy Comforter at Poughkeepsie. This Church 
was dedicated in i860, and our subject was 
its second rector. His long term as priest in 
charge has given him an intimate acquaintance 
with his parishioners, and he is now baptizing 
the children of those little ones whom he bap- 
tized in the early days of his pastorate. 

On September 11. 1862, by the Rev. Dr. 
Hawkes, Dr. Crarj- was married at Trinity 
Chapel, New York City, to Agnes Boyd Van- 
Kleeck, daughter of Rev. Robert B. Van- 
Kleeck, D. D., and Margaret Schenck (Teller) 



.\'an Kleeck. Mrs. Crary now owns the old 
Teller homestead at Matteawan, Dutchess 
Co., N. Y., said to be the oldest house in the 
county, having been erected in 1709 by Lieut. 
Roger Brett, of the Royal Navy, who married 
Katharine Rombout, only child and heir of 
Francis Rombout, a famous and influential 
citizen of New Amsterdam, who in 1682, with 
Gulian Ver Planck, was granted, by King 
James II, the large tract of land on the Hudson 
river, known as the Rombout Precinct. The 
union of Dr. and Mrs. Crary has been blessed 
with six children — five daughters and one son: 
Amy; Cornelia Fulton; Alice; Ella (deceased); 
Edith Livingston, who married Charles H. 
van Braam Roberts, June 3, 1S96; and Fulton. 

Believing that before God the souls of men 
stand stripped of all temporal guises, and 
whether high or low, rich or poor, each one 
alike meets that same justice tempered with 
mercy. Dr. Crary has always had a free church, 
never having any charge for pew rent. The 
degree of Doctor of Divinity was conferred on 
him by St. Stephen's College, Annandale, 
Dutchess Co., N. Y., in 1892. Mrs. Crary is 
a worthy helpmeet of the Doctor, and nobly 
typifies "the mission of woman on earth! 
Born to nurse and to soothe, to solace and to 
heal the sick world that leans on her." She 
is a member of the Daughters of the Revolu- 
tion and of the Colonial Dames. 

Of Robert Fulton, the grandfather of Dr. 
Crary, we will give but few words. His life 
and works speak so well for themselves, and 
have been so exhaustively treated by our most 
able writers, that nothing more remains to be 
said. He was married in 1806 to Harriet 
Livingston, daughter of Walter and Cornelia 
(Schuyler) Livingston, the latter an intimate 
friend of George Washington. Harriet Liv- 
ingston Fulton was a niece of Chancellor Liv- 
ingston, and doubly connected with him by 
the marriage of her brother to his daughter. 



JAMES C. GRIGGS, the popular proprietor 
of the "Morgan House," Poughkeepsie, 
was born at Milton, Ulster Co., N. Y., 
October 10, 1847. and is the son of Lewis and 
Eliza (Harcourti Griggs. The maternal grand- 
father, Benjamin Harcourt, was also born at 
Milton, where his father, who came to this 
country from England and located in Ulster 
county, secured a large tract of land. On 
attaining man's estate Benjamin Harcourt was 



56 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



united in marriage with Miss Eleanor Wj'gant,. 
a native of Ulster county, and took his bride 
to his extensive farm in that county, where 
their seven children were born : James C. , 
Charles A., Eli, Eliza, Althea, Deborah A. 
and Sarah. The grandfather was a prominent 
Democrat of Ulster county, and filled the office 
of sheriff for some time. 

The birth of the father of our subject oc- 
curred at Cornwall, Orange Co., N. Y., but he 
was reared at Milton, Ulster county, where he 
afterward taught school. He there married 
Miss Harcourt, and the only child born to them 
was our subject. Shortly after their marriage 
they located upon a farm in Orange county, 
to the cultivation of which the father devoted 
his time and attention until his death in 1850. 
He supported the Whig party in politics, and 
in his religious views was a Presbyterian. His 
widow later married his brother, Henry Griggs, 
and they now make their home in Washington- 
ville. Orange countj-. 

Mr. Griggs, the subject proper of this 
sketch, spent his boyhood upon the farm of 
his grandfather Harcourt in Ulster county, and 
attended the district schools of that locality, 
but completed his education at Newburg, N. Y. 
At the age of fifteen years he entered the 
hardware store of J. C. Hardenbergh, of New- 
burg, N. Y., where he remained as clerk for 
about four years, and for the following six 
years was engaged in the crockery business for 
himself in that city. He then began the manu- 
facture of brick at Fishkill, Dutchess county; 
but after carrying on that occupation for one 
year he leased the " Orange Hotel " at New- 
burg, which he conducted for five years. Dur- 
ing the ne.xt year he carried on a summer hotel 
at Delaware Gap, after which he became the 
proprietor of the "United States Hotel " at 
Newburg, where he remained for seven years. 
In November, 1S83, Mr. Griggs came to 
Poughkeepsie and purchased the " Morgan 
House," situated on the corner of Main and 
Catherine streets, which he has since success- 
fully conducted. There are found all modern 
improvements, including hot and cold water, 
electricity, etc.; it is convenient and comforta- 
ble, while the cuisine is unexceptionable. The 
hotel will accommodate one hundred and fifty 
guests, whose interests and comfort are well 
looked after by the genial and pleasant land- 
lord. 

On the loth of October, 1869, Mr. Griggs 
was married to Miss Josephine Cammack, a 



native of Orange count}', and a daughter of 
Robert Cammack, who was of Scotch descent, 
and a leading stove dealer and plumber of 
Newburg, N. Y. Three children were born of 
this union: Lilly, who died at the age of 
eleven years; Harry E., who died at the age 
of twenty years, and Fred R., who is with his 
father. Mr. Griggs was called upon to mourn 
the loss of his wife, who died October 7, 1893. 
In politics he is a stanch adherent of the prin- 
ciples formulated bythe Republican party, while 
socially he is connected with the Masonic frater- 
nity, the Order of Friends and the Knights of 
P3'thias. He has taken a prominent part in 
public affairs, always lending his influence to 
promote the best interests of the community, 
and is one of the most highly-esteemed citi- 
zens of Poughkeepsie. 



CAPTAIN CHARLES W. BRUNDAGE 
(deceased), late a well-known forwarding 
and freighting merchant and coal dealer at 
Fishkill Landing, was born January 16, 1S30. 
at Gay Head, Dutchess count}'. 

Alton Brundage, father of our subject, was 
a native of East Fishkill, born April 30, 1805, 
and during his active life was a shoemaker at 
Stormville, and a steadfast supporter of the 
Democratic party. He married Lucy Ann 
Burrus, who was born in 1800, at Hopewell 
Junction, the daughter of Joseph Burrus, a 
prosperous merchant of New York City. Of 
the si.x children of this union, Charles W. was 
the eldest, the others being: James, Alonzo, 
Melissa, Catherine and Mary. 

Captain Charles W. Brundage attended the 
district school of Stormville until he was thir- 
teen years old, when he entered the em- 
ploy of Francis H. Bowne as clerk in his dry- 
goods and grocery store. Two years later he 
went to Fishkill Landing to clerk for Charles 
B. Pugsley in the same business, and remained 
with him a year. He then became clerk of 
the " Mansion House " at Fishkill village, con- 
ducted by Mr. Lampson; but after a few 
months he left to take a position as clerk on 
the steamer "William Young," running be- 
tween Low Point and New York City. On 
this boat he spent two years, and one on the 
steamer " Caledonia " with Captain \\'ardrop, 
of the firm of Wardrop. Smith & Co., of New- 
burgh. Afterward he became a clerk for 
Brett & Cromwell, forwarding and freighting 
merchants at Long Dock, Fishkill Landing, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPHIC'AL RECORD. 



and up to the time of his death he had ever 
since been connected with that business, being 
at that time the sole proprietor. At Mr. 
Cromwell's death in 1S69 the firm was 
changed to Brett & Matthews, and two years 
later it became Walter Brett & Co., composed 
of Mr. Brett, John Place (now treasurer of the 
Mechanics' Savings Bank at Fishkill-on-Hud- 
sonj and Captain Brundage. In 1874 Mr. 
Brett withdrew from the firm of Walter Brett & 
Co., and the firm became Brundage & Place 
until 1885, when Captain Brundage bought 
Mr. Place's interest, and up to the time of his 
death conducted the business alone. In Au- 
gust, 1895, he purchased the coal and mer- 
chandise business of Aldridge & Dorland on 
Main street, which he added to his own exten- 
sive coal trade that was established over twenty- 
five years ago, selling in recent years about ten 
thousand tons a year. He ran a daily transpor- 
tation line from Fishkill to New York, trans- 
ferring all kinds of freight to the Ransdell 
Transportation Co. Line of Newburgh. Cap- 
tain Brundage was for many years captain of 
the " Walter Brett " and the "Independence," 
both of which ran from Fishkill to New York 
City. 

On August 2, 1853, Captain Brundage was 
married to Miss Mary Boice, daughter of Henry 
Boice, a citizen of Williamsburg, N. Y. ; she 
died in 1873, leaving no children. His second 
wife was formerly Miss Ella E. Murphy, daugh- 
ter of Prof. John G. Murphy and his wife, 
Sarah C. Myer. Mrs. Brundage is a lineal de- 
scendant of Timothy Murphy, of Revolution- 
ary fame, who participated in the battles of 
Bunker Hill and Saratoga, and was a noted 
Indian fighter, the scene of his exploits being 
largely laid in Schoharie county. Mrs. Brun- 
dage has a pleasant home on Ferry street, 
Fishkill-on-Hudson; she attends the Reformed 
Church of that place. In politics the Captain 
was a Republican. 



GEORGE ESSELSTYN. a prominent at- 
^ torney of Rhinebeck, Dutchess count}', is 
a man who has brought his keen discrimina- 
tion and thorough wisdom not alone in pro- 
fessional paths, but also for the benefit of the 
community where he has so long resided, and 
with whose interests he has been so closely 
identified. He holds and merits a place 
among the representative legal practitioners 
of Dutchess county. 



Mr. Esselstyn was born in Claverack, 
Columbia Co., N. Y. , on September 27, 1841, 
and can trace his ancestry back to Martin 
Esselstyn, who arrived in America about 1640. 
He had two sons, Jacob and Cornelius, the 
latter of whom married Cornelia Vreden- 
burg, of Kingston, N. Y., and among their 
seven sons were Jacob and Gabriel, who 
removed to Claverack in 17 10. Jacob wedd- 
ed Magdalen Brodhead, of Ulster county, 
and to them were born five daughters 
and two sons, the latter being Richard and 
Cornelius. Among the children of Cornelius 
was Richard, who was born in 1731 and died 
in 1783, the year in which peace with Eng- 
land was declared. He was a patriot and 
soldier, holding the rank of major in a regi- 
ment of militia raised in Claverack to resist 
the northern encroachments of the British 
troops. He had two sons — Jacob, born in 
1762; and Cornelius, born in 1765, who were 
the more immediate ancestors of the branch 
of the family now residing in Rhinebeck town- 
ship, Dui chess county. From Jacob have 
descended Tobias, who occupies the very soil 
which has been transmitted down to the sixth 
generation in the same family; Jacob, a resi- 
dent of Wisconsin; and John, of Mellenville, 
Columbia county. 

Cornelius Esselstyn, who was also born 
at Cla\'erack, was the grandfather of our sub- 
ject. He was a large land owner of that 
locality, and one of the leading citizens. By 
his marriage with Clarissa Vonsburgh, he be- 
came the father of the following sons: Rich- 
ard; Jacob, who during his lifetime occupied 
the place of the former patroon; Charles, a 
distinguished member of the bar; Isaac; Will- 
iam; Robert, the father of our subject; and 
Martin; all of whom were well-known citizens, 
worthy of their ancestry. 

The birth of the father also occurred at 
Claverack, about 1807, and his entire life was 
devoted to the occupation of farming. He 
was an intelligent, well-read man, of high so- 
cial ideas and great natural ability, and was 
one of the substantial citizens of Columbia 
county. In early life he supported the Whig 
party, and was a great admirer of Henry Clay, 
later joining the Republican party. Deeply in- 
terested in educational matters, he served for 
many years as trustee of the Claverack Acad- 
emy, filling that position most of his life. He 
was married to Miss Catherine \'edder, daugh- 
ter of Rev. Herman \'edder, who made his 



58 



COMMEilORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



home near Mt. Ross, in Gallatin, Columbia 
county, and for sixty years served as minister 
of the Reformed Dutch Church. After many 
years of usefulness he died at the ripe old age 
of ninety-six years. The Vedder family, as 
well as the Esselstyn, was of Holland-Dutch 
origin. Two children were born to Robert 
Esselstyn and his worthy wife: George, sub- 
ject of this review; and Henry, who died in 
1883. 

The preparatory education of our subject 
was received at Claverack Academy, where he 
took the regularly prescribed course, and at the 
age of sixteen entered Rutgers College, taking 
the full classical course there, and graduating 
in the class of '61. He took up the study of 
law in the office of Gaul & Esselstyn (the latter 
being a cousin), and was admitted to practice 
December 10, 1863, before the supreme court. 
He remained with his old instructors until 
March 20. 1865, when he opened an office at 
Rhinebeck, where he conducted business alone 
for seven years. In 1872 he formed the part- 
nership with Mr. McCarty, which has con- 
tinued from that time, and is now the oldest 
law firm in Dutchess county. He is a man of 
imposing presence, and is one of the most suc- 
cessful attorneys of the community. 

On June 17, 186S, was celebrated the 
marriage of Mr. Esselstyn and Miss Florence 
Cowles, who belongs to one of the old and 
prominent families of Rhinebeck, and is a daugh- 
ter of William S. Cowles, of that village, where 
for years he has carried on merchandising. 
Seven children grace this union — two sons and 
five daughters: Louise, at home; Catherine, 
wife of Rev. William H. Morrison, an Episco- 
pal clergyman of Stafford Spring, Conn. ; 
Florence E., wife of Charles L. Brooke, son 
of Charfes W. Brooke, one of the most promi- 
nent criminal lawyers of New York City; 
Henry, of Stafford Spring, Conn. ; Clara Perle 
and Mabel at home; and Robert, who is at- 
tending school at Sing Sing, New York. 

For thirty-one years Mr. Esselstyn has 
served as attorney for the First National Bank 
of Rhinebeck. He is a stanch Republican in 
politics, working hard for the interests of his 
party; in 1872 was candidate for the Assembly, 
and in 1882 candidate for district attorney. 
For two terms he served as supervisor, being 
chairman of the board half of the time, and 
was also president of the village for two terms, 
while he is one of its oldest directors in point 
of time. For twenty-five years he has been 



one of the trustees of the Starr Institute, of 
Rhinebeck, and has served as secretary of the 
board the greater part of that time. He takes 
a prominent part in the Masonic order, being 
a Knight Templar, and for several terms has 
been master of the lodge, and past chancellor 
commander of the order of K. of T. Relig- 
iously, he belongs to the Reformed Dutch 
Church, but most of his family are Episco- 
palians. 



ENRY H. HUSTIS (deceased), late attor- 
ney and counsellor at law, Fishkill-on- 
Hudson, and one of the oldest and most promi- 
nent members of the Dutchess County Bar, was 
born March 9, 1829, at North Highlands, town 
of Phillipstown, Putnam county, N. Y., and 
died at Fishkill-on-Hudson December 14, 1896. 
His family is of English origin, and the first 
of the American line came to New England 
about 1630. He was of the sixth generation 
from Robert, who came from Fairfield county. 
Conn., about the year 1664. and settled at 
Westchester, Westchester county, N. Y. , where 
David Hustis, our subject's great-great-grand- 
father, was born. He was a captain in the 
Revolutionary army in Col. Van Rensselaer's 
regiment, and must have been over sixty years 
of age at that time. In 1730 he bought from 
the Indians several hundred acres of land in 
Putnam county, three miles from the present 
village of Cold Springs, and this estate has 
since been owned and occupied continuously 
by the family, a portion of it, 120 acres, being 
now owned by our subject. A part of the old 
house built by Capt. David Hustis is still stand- 
ing as it was during the Colonial period, addi- 
tions have been made to it from time to time. 
The farm adjoining is now owned by Samuel 
D. Hustis, whose great-grandfather was a 
brother of our subject's grandfather. The house 
upon that estate was also built in Colonial 
times, and Gen. Washington and his staff 
stopped there on their way to West Point from 
Connecticut, and were met by a messenger 
who told them of the treason of Benedict Ar- 
nold. Capt. David Hustis had a son Joseph, 
who married Mary Hunt, and had three sons: 
Robert, Joseph and David. Robert Hustis 
married Tamar Budd, and had a son Nicholas, 
who was born at the old homestead in 1803, 
and was a farmer there all his life. He mar- 
ried Martha Haight, who was born in 1804, 
and they reared a familj- of nine children. The 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



59 



father died in 1866, and the mother passed 
away in 1886. 

Henry H. Hustis attended the district 
schools near the old home for some time in 
boyhood, and later studied for two years in 
a Quaker school, finishing his academic educa- 
tion at Amenia Seminary. He began the 
study of law in Newburg with Judge William 
Fullerton, the great criminal lawyer of New 
York City, and afterward spent one year in the 
office of Judge Monell; and one year with 
Judge George. In September, 1852, he was 
admitted at Poughkeepsie to the bar of the 
Supreme Court, and June 3, 1853, he opened 
his office at Fishkill-on-Hudson, taking the 
practice of John Owens. For forty-three 
years he was continuously engaged in profes- 
sional work, and won a high reputation as a 
practitioner. He took an active interest in 
local politics, and was an able worker in the 
Republican party. In 1866, 1868, 1870 and 

1873 he was president of the village, and in 

1874 he was elected supervisor of the town, 
and was chairman of the board of supervisors 
of Dutchess county in that year. The family 
have a pleasant home on South avenue. His 
wife was Miss Elizabeth V. W. Anthony, 
daughter of Nicholas and Maria (Knapp) An- 
thony. They had five children. 



JOHN P. ATWATER, M. D. This well- 
known and highly respected citizen of 

Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, is a native 
of Carlisle, Penn., where he was born March 
4, 18 1 3, and where his early life was spent. 
The rudiments of his education were obtained 
at Hopkins' Grammar School, in New Haven, 
Conn., then, in 1830. he entered Yale College, 
and was graduated with the class of '34, after 
which he attended the medical college in New 
Haven, where he secured a practical knowl- 
edge of medicine. 

In 1836 Dr. Atwater went to Cincinnati 
and practiced medicine there for a few years, 
when he retired, and returned to New Haven, 
where he lived quietly. In 1870 the Doctor 
moved to Poughkeepsie and took up his resi- 
dence there. On July 27, 1845, he was mar- 
ried to Miss Lucy J. Phelps, who was from 
West Townshend, Vt., where she was born 
January 14, 1828. Her father. Charles 
Phelps, was a native of Vermont, and a son 
of Timothy Phelps, whose ancestors were 
English. To our subject and his wife were 



born the following children: Edward S. and 
Lucy. The Doctor is a Republican and, with 
his wife, contributes to the support of the F"irst 
Reformed Church. They have a beautiful 
home, surrounded by spacious drives and 
walks, well-kept lawns, cosy nooks within the 
shadow of stately oak trees, and charming 
summer houses. 

Jeremiah Atwater, father of our subject, 
was born in New Haven, Conn., October i, 
1774, where he grew to manhood, and was 
graduated from Yale College. He organized 
Middlebury College, and was selected as its 
first president; in 1809 he held the same office 
of Dickenson College, Carlisle, Penn. After 
moving to New Haven he lived a retired life. 
He married Miss Clarissa Storrs, a native of 
Sandisfield, Mass., where she was born Janu- 
ary 7, 1776. Her father, Eleazer Storrs, was 
born in Mansfield, Conn. Mr. and Mrs. At- 
water had three children: John P., our sub- 
ject; William, formerly a druggist in Brook- 
lyn, N. Y. , who died April 20, 1873: Clarissa, 
born in 1803, who became the wife of Rev. 
Oliver Butterfield, and died January 16, 1871; 
and William, born in 1806. 

Jeremiah Atwater, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born in New Haven, Conn. He 
married Miss Lois Hurd, and they settled in 
New Haven, where he followed the occupation 
of a merchant. Their children were as fol- 
lows: Jeremiah: John, a carriage maker; 
Charles, who settled in North Branford, Conn. ; 
Lewis, who was a carpenter and house builder; 
Fannie, who married Zebul Bradley, a jeweler; 
Nancy, who died unmarried. Jeremiah died 
in 1835. His son, Jeremiah, died July 29, 
1S58. 

Edward Storrs Atwater, a son of our sub- 
ject, was born April 10, 1853, at Cincinnati. 
He took a preparatory course at Phillips Acad- 
emy, Andover, Mass., and was graduated at 
Yale College, in 1875, from the classical course. 
After leaving college he studied law in Pough- 
keepsie with Judge H. M. Taylor, and was ad- 
mitted to the bar in 1S80. He engaged in the 
practice of law in office work until 1891, when 
he was elected president of the Farmers' & Man- 
ufacturers' National Bank, of Poughkeepsie, 
which position he has held ever since. In 
1880 he was married to Miss Caroline P. Swift, 
a daughter of Charles W. Swift, and a gradu- 
ate of Vassar College in the class of '77. The 
following children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Atwater: Morton, Lucy, Eliot and Evelyn, all 



60 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



living at home. Mr. Atwater was formerly a 
Republican, but is now a Democrat, although 
he does not take an active part in politics. 
He is a member of the First Reformed Church, 
and of the Dutchess Club and Amrita Club, of 
Poughkeepsie. In public matters he is one of 
the leading men of the city, and* is a director 
of the Poughkeepsie Iron Co. and of the For- 
est of Dean Iron Co., and a trustee of the 
Savings Bank.' [Since the above was written 
Dr. Atwater died in May, 1897.] 



EV. ACMON P. VAN GIESON, D. D., 
pastor of the First Reformed Church of 
Poughkeepsie. is now in the thirtieth year of 
his beneficent service at that charge. He be- 
longs to one of the old Holland-Dutch families, 
the first ancestor to cross the ocean having 
been Reynier Bastiansen Van Gieson, who 
settled in New Amsterdam prior to 1660, and 
later made his home in New Jersej', where 
many of the name now live. 

A majority of the early members of the 
familj- were agriculturists, and our subject's 
grandfather, Reynier \'an Gieson, followed 
that occupation all his life. He married 
Sarah Kent, daughter of Jacob Kent, who 
entered the Colonial armj' as a volunteer 
at the opening of the Revolutionary war, 
and served until peace was declared. Ira 
Van Gieson, the Doctor's father, was reared 
upon a farm, but engaged in business as a 
manufacturer, being one of the original 
members of the Newark (N. J.) Lime & Ce- 
ment Company. His wife, Sarah Thompson, 
was a native of New Jersey, and a daugh- 
ter of Thomas J. Thompson. Both parents 
died at their home in Newark, N.J. Of their 
five children, the Doctor was the eldest. 
Another son, Ransford E. Van Gieson, M. D., 
of Brooklyn, N. Y. , was a surgeon in the navy 
during the war of the Rebellion, and has a 
son, Ira Van Gieson, M. D. , who is a member 
of the staff of instructors in the New York 
College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York 
City, and chief of the Commission on Path- 
ology of Insanity for the State of New York. 

The subject of our sketch was born Janu- 
ary 13, 1830, in West Bloomfield, Essex 
Co.. N. J., and at four years of age was taken 
by his parents to Newark, N. J., where he 
grew to manhood. Love of study was a marked 
characteristic even in youth, but previous to 
entering college he taught school and clerked 



in a grocery for a time. He took a course in 
the University of New York, graduating in 
1849, and in 1852 he completed his prepara- 
tion for the (ninistry in the Theological Semi- 
nary of the Reformed Church, located in New 
Brunswick. He took charge of the Reformed 
Church at Catskill, N. Y., in the same year, 
and was ordained as its pastor in 1853. In 
1855 he accepted a call to the First Reformed 
Church in Brooklyn, where he remained until 
1859. For the si.x years following he was 
stationed at Claverack, Columbia Co., N. Y., 
and in 1865 a call was accepted from the 
Church of Greenpoint (Brooklyn), his ministra- 
tions there being continued until September, 
1867, when he assumed the pastorate of the 
First Church of Poughkeepsie, one of the 
principal congregations in the city. This so- 
ciety was organized in 17 16, being the oldest 
in Dutchess county. 

Dr. Van Gieson has added to his cares as 
a pastor much literary work, chiefly on theo- 
logical lines, and the value of his effort has 
been recognized without as well as within the 
Church. In 1872 he received the degree of 
D. D., from Rutgers College, and in 1873 he 
was president of the Synod. Among his books 
are a history of the Poughkeepsie Church, 
published in 1892, an address on the "Type 
of Doctrine of the Reformed Church," pub- 
lished in 1876, as one of the Centennial publi- 
cations, and a history of the Ratification of 
the Constitution of the United States by the 
State of New York, published in 1895. He 
has urged effectively the erection of a monu- 
ment in Poughkeepsie, to commemorate that 
important historical event, and this will un- 
doubtedly be done by the Daughters of the 
Revolution, who have taken the project in 
hand. 

On July 9, 1857, Dr. Van Gieson was 
married in Brooklyn, N. Y., to his first wife, 
Miss Anna Skillman, daughter of John Skill- 
man, a well-known resident of the "City of 
Churches," and a descendant of the first white 
child born on Long Island. Of the three 
children of this union one died in infancy. 
The others are: Mrs. D. Crosby Foster, of 
Poughkeepsie; and Mrs. Cecil W. H. Jones, 
of Bermuda. The mother died February 22, 
1865, and December 11, 1878, the Doctor 
formed a second union, with Miss Maria Swift, 
who is still living. Hale and hearty in ap- 
pearance. Dr. \'an Gieson bears his years 
lightly, his tall form being full of the vigor 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



61 



which comes from outdoor exercise, while his 
kindly, pleasant face has a youthful look in 
contrast with his snow-white hair. As a citizen 
he has always taken keen interest in public 
affairs. Early in life he was a pronounced 
opponent of slavery, and he has been a mem- 
ber of the Republican party since its orc];aniza- 
tion. In all matters that pertain to the prog- 
ress of the city where he has made his home, 
his influence is a recognized power for good. 



G GEORGE W. INGRAH.\M, an attorney at 
r law of Amenia, Dutchess county, is de- 
scended from Timothy and Sarah (Cowell) 
Ingraham, who were residents of Boston, and 
later lived at Bristol, R. I. John Ingraham, 
their fourth son, was born December 8, 1701, 
and was married December 12, 1723, to Miss 
Mary Fry. Jereiniah Ingraham, their fourth 
child, was born December 8, 1731, married Re- 
becca Monroe, a cousin of President James Mon- 
roe, and died at an advanced age in the faith 
of the Episcopal Church. Thomas Ingraham, 
the third son of Jeremiah, was born Novem- 
ber 8, 1773, and in 1792 wedded Margaret 
Wardwell. They were the parents of our 
subject. George Ingraham, an uncle, was the 
first of the family to locate in Dutchess coun- 
ty, coming from Bristol, R. I., to Amenia in 
1785. 

In 1795 the parents of our subject be- 
came residents of Dutchess county, arriving 
in Amenia on the 3d of July, that year, with 
their two children. They had made the jour- 
ney from Bristol by water to Poughkeepsie, 
then overland to Amenia. Here the father 
engaged in farming until his death, and was 
also a stockholder in the woolen-mill at Leeds- 
ville, Dutchess county, during the war of 18 12. 
He was a Federalist in politics, and a con- 
spicuous character in the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. For years he held the office of com- 
missioner of highways, and was also overseer 
of the poor. He died May 12, 1841, and his 
faithful wife was called to her final rest .April 
30, 1855. In their family were eleven chil- 
dren: Mary, Samuel, Nathaniel, Allen, Han- 
nah, Thomas Swan, Abigail, Josiah, John, 
George W. and Sally Ann, all of whom are 
now deceased with the exception of our sub- 
ject, and his brother John, of Poughkeepsie. 
George Whitfield Ingraham was born No- 
vember 25, 181 1, in the town of Amenia, where 
his boyhood days were passed. His literary 



education was received in the district schools 
and by one winter's attendance at a select 
school. At the age of seventeen years he be- 
gan reading law under the direction of Robert 
Wilkinson, of Poughkeepsie, but did not apply 
for a diploma until the close of the Civil war. 
For twenty years he served as justice of the 
peace, five terms in succession, and his wise 
rulings ever showed thought and deliberation. 
His practice has been mostly confined to real- 
estate law, and he has also engaged in survey- 
ing and engineering, helping to lay out tfie 
New York & Harlem railfwad. He has ever 
taken a commendable interest in the cause of 
education, and has been inspector and com- 
missioner of schools. 

On October 22, 1S34, at Sharon, Conn., 
Mr. Ingraham was united in marriage with Miss 
Electa Hunt, a daughter of Rev. Aaron Hunt, 
and they became the parents of four children, 
as follows: Sarah J., who married Samuel R. 
Free, of Willimantic, Conn. ; Aaron Hunt, who 
during the dark days of the Rebellion enlisted 
in the 48th N. Y. S. V., was killed while lead- 
ing a charge at Cold Harbor, June i, 1864, 
and his body was there interred; Phebe H. is 
the next in order of birth; and George Irving 
(deceased), who had married Fannie B. Payne, 
and had one daughter, Margery Starr. Mr. 
Ingraham has been called upon to mourn the 
loss of his excellent wife, who died October 
lO, 1889. Our subject cast his first vote in 
support of the Whig party, and since its disso- 
lution has been an ardent Republican; in re- 
ligious faith he is a faithful member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, in which for the 
long period of forty years he has served as 
clerk, and for many j'ears was trustee, steward 
and class leader. He is the originator of the 
law in the State of New York which gives a mar- 
ried woman the right to hold real and personal 
property independent of her husband, which 
took him eight years to get passed; but he 
never gave up until his object was accomplished. 

At the age of twenty-five years he conceived 
the idea that the changes of the weather, in- 
cluding sunshine and clouds, winds and storms, 
could be reduced to a science, and at once be- 
gan to evolve a theory. After close study for 
many 3'ears he decided that his theory was 
correct, and then made known his conclusions 
to some of his friends and neighbors. One of 
those men is now living in the City of New York. 
This company ridiculed his position. Nothing 
daunted, he put his ideas with his observations 



02 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



in a letter and sent the same to Washington, 
D. C, in charge of the then member of Congress 
from his district. That formed the nucleus 
of the present Government weather bureau. 

Mr. Ingraham has always made his home 
upon his farm in the town of Amenia, and is 
widely and favorably known throughout the 
community, being held in the highest regard 
by all with whom he has come in contact. 



CHARLES \V. H. ARNOLD. Among the 
leading lights of the legal fraternity of 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, is Charles W. 
H. Arnold, who was born in New York City 
May 5, 1S60. Though born in the city his 
boyhood was passed on the farms in the towns 
of Hyde Park and Milan, in Dutchess county, 
and here in the district schools he received his 
common-school education. To an active mind 
the law furnished many attractions, as it is a 
study never completed, but whose scope is 
ever widening and changing. Our subject, 
when just out of the school room, followed 
various pursuits, but, when twenty, determined 
to enter the legal profession, and, accordingly, 
entered the office of J. S. Van Cleef, as a stu- 
dent, and in December, 1883, was admitted 
to the bar. He has made a specialty of cor- 
poration law, and holds the office of attorney 
for the Poughkeepsie National Bank (in which 
he is also one of the directors); is attorney for 
the Fallkill Knitting Company, of which he is 
also treasurer and general manager, and attor- 
ney for the New Paltz and Wallkill \'alley 
R. R. In 1894 he was a member of the Con- 
stitutional Convention. 

On October 1 1, 1892, Mr. Arnold was mar- 
ried to Miss Alice Schoutcn, daughter of Rich- 
ard A. Schouten, and two interesting children 
have come to brighten their home, namely: 
Richard Henry and Alice Margaret. Socially 
Mr. Arnold is a member of Triune Lodge, 
Masonic order, Knights of Pythias, and also of 
the Dutchess Club of Poughkeepsie, and he is 
at present president of the Staatsburgh Fire 
Company. Religiously he is an active worker 
in St. Margaret's Episcopal Church at Staats- 
burgh, in which he is vestrj'man, and is serving 
as clerk of the vestr}". 

Henry Arnold, father of our subject, was a 
native of Sa.xony, Germany, and came to this 
country at the age of fourteen. In Schoharie 
county, X. Y., he was married to Margaret 
Hcmstreet, and the following children were 



born to them: Elda, who married Q. F. Shaf- 
ford, of the town of Red Hook, Dutchess 
county; Charles W. H., our subject; Florence, 
who married Frederick Wheaton, of Yonkers. 
N. Y. ; George and Henry. The father of this 
family was river superintendent of the National 
Ice Company. 



TT'ALTER D. O. K. STRONG, M. D. 
Despite the salubrious air and other 
advantages of this favored region, its inhab- 
itants have occasional need for the care of a 
physician. Among the ablest of the practi- 
tioners who minister to the many ills that flesh 
is heir to, even under the best conditions, is 
Dr. Strong, of Fishkill Landing, Dutchess 
county, whose history is well worthy of a 
permanent record among those of the leading 
workers in professional and other lines. 

Dr. Strong was born August 10, 1823, at 
Owasco, Cayuga Co., N. Y. , and is remotely 
of English descent, his ancestors having crossed 
the Atlantic at a very early date. His great- 
grandfather, Asher Strong, had his home in 
youth in eastern New York, but later settled at 
Cooperstown, Otsegocounty. Isaac Strong, the 
grandfather of our subject, moved to Owasco, 
Cayuga county, about the year 1800, and 
engaged in farming and the hotel business. 
He married Miss Elizabeth Waterman, of 
Cooperstown, and had two daughters and one 
son : Walter, the youngest of the trio; Nancy, 
the eldest, married Thaddeus Thompson, a 
wool dresser and the owner of a mill; Eliza- 
beth married E. Clark, a cabinet maker. 

Walter Strong, the father of our subject, 
was born at Cooperstown, but when one year 
old was taken by his parents to Cayuga county, 
where he grew to manhood, and naturally be- 
came familiar with the details of hotel manage- 
ment. For a time he followed the lousiness; 
but, choosing the independence of agricultural 
life, he located later upon a large farm. In 
1833 he traded this for one of 400 acres in 
Crawford county, Penn., where he spent about 
fifteen years, and then made an exchange for 
a hotul and a farm of 100 acres at Jefferson, 
Ohio. He died in 1862, and his wife, Sarah 
(De V'oe), passed away in 1878. She was of 
French descent, and was born in the south- 
eastern part of New York, the daughter of Hon. 
Elijah De V'oe, who was elected to the Legis- 
lature in 1819, and again in 1825. Waiter 
and Sarah Strong had eight children: Elijah, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



08 



the eldest, is a prominent resident of Plymouth, 
Ohio, and has been mayor of the town, and 
has also served for years as justice of the 
peace; Malvina, deceased, was the wife of S. C. 
Stratton, of Linesville, Penn., a tanner and 
currier; W. D. O. K. is our subject; Sarah E. 
married Horatio Shattuck, who was a soldier 
in the Civil war, and is now deceased; Edwin 
T. is a farmer at Jefferson, Ohio; Isaac M., 
who died in 1888, was first a merchant and 
later a banker at Bancroft, Mich. ; Cornelia M., 
an artist of note and the painter of the " Elec- 
trical Commission" (^which was purchased for 
$7,000, and is now in the Capitol at Washing- 
ton, D. C), married Samuel Fassett, a pho- 
tographer, and resides in Washington; Nancy J. 
married John A. Harvey, of Ashtabula, Ohio. 

Dr. Strong's boyhood was spent at his na- 
tive place, where he received his elementary 
education from his grandfather, who was a 
teacher. At nineteen he began a business 
career as a clerk in a store, but after three 
years he engaged in teaching, and gave all his 
spare time to the study of medicine. Desiring 
further literary education, he attended school 
at Kingsville, Ohio, taking an academic course, 
and later studied at Auburn, N. Y. He then 
taught for a few months, and in 1846 he en- 
tered the office of Dr. Benjamin De Voe, an 
uncle, to prepare for entrance to the medical 
department of Buffalo University, from which 
he was graduated April 19, 1849. For one 
year he practiced with his uncle, and then, in 
1850, located at Sennett, Cayuga Co., N. Y., 
being accompanied to this place by his bride. 
Miss Maria Rosa, daughter of Jacob Rosa, 
formerly of Hurley, Ulster Co., N. Y. Five 
years were spent at Sennett in successful prac- 
tice. Dr. Strong serving also as superintendent 
of the local schools for two terms. In 1S56 
he returned to his old home at Owasco, and 
during the winters of 1856 and '57 he attended 
a course of lectures upon homeopathy in Phila- 
delphia. Resuming his practice at home, he 
continued until 1870, when he moved to Mil- 
ford, Del., and followed his profession for ten 
years. Since 1880 he has been established at 
F"ishkill Landing, where he enjoys a large and 
lucrative practice, his abilities, developed by 
wide experience, gaining the confidence of the 
community to a marked degree. 

The Doctor is a firm adherent of the Re- 
publican party, and is interested, as every in- 
telligent citizen should be, in the various pro- 
gressive movements of the time. His only 



son now living, Edwin E., holds a responsible 
position in the First National Bank of Fishkill 
Landing, with which he has been connected 
for thirteen years. An elder son, Jacob R., 
began practice as a physician in the same town, 
but his death in 1892 cut short a most prom- 
ising career. 



MOOSEVELT. The first of the name to 
come to this country was Claas Marten- 
son Van Roosevelt, who emigrated from Hol- 
land to New York in 1647. 

The various members of the family held 
prominent positions in New York, and Isaac 
Roosevelt was one of the first senators from 
that city; one of the framers of the first consti- 
tution of the State of New York, when the 
Constitutional Convention sat at Poughkeep- 
sie; one of the founders and president of the 
New York Hospital; the bank of New York, 
and various charitable institutions. 

James Roosevelt, son of Isaac Roosevelt, 
settled at Mount Hope, a country place near 
Poughkeepsie, and his descendants have had 
homes in the neighborhood of Poughkeepsie 
and Hyde Park ever since. 

The present James Roosevelt of Pough- 
keepsie and Hyde Park, Dutchess county, was 
born at New York City, and has interested him- 
self in railways, etc; was one of the Govern- 
ment Commissioners for the World's Fair held 
at Chicago in 1893; is vice president of the 
Delaware & Hudson Canal Co.; and holds 
various positions of trust. 



HENRY PEARCE, M. D., a leading phy- 
sician and surgeon of Pawling, Dutchess 

county, is one of the best known practitioners 
of that locality. As a surgeon he has won an 
enviable reputation, and his practice extends 
over a wide radius, including the northern por- 
tion of Putnam county. His family is one of 
the oldest in the town of Pawling, his great- 
grandfather, Col. William Pearce, of Revolu- 
tionary fame, having come from Rhode Island 
during the Colonial period. He must have 
been acquainted with Gen. Washington, as the 
latter had his headquarters for some time at 
the foot of Quaker Hill. Col. Pearce was a 
farmer b\' occupation, and owned a tract of land 
west of the village of Pawling, now occupied 
by Charles Hoag. This has been in the posses- 
sion of the family for more than a hundred 



64 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



years. By his first wife Col. Pearce had four 
children: Henry, Benoni, Ro.\ana and Mary. 
Ro.xana married Mr. Hovvland, and went to 
Canada, and became the mother of Sir Will- 
iam Howland. Mary also married. Col. 
Pearce had two sons, William and John, by a 
second marriage. 

Henry Pearce, our subject's grandfather, 
was also a farmer, and lived about three miles 
north of Pawling. He married Rebecca Bird- 
sell, and reared a family of five children, of 
whom our subject's father, Benoni Pearce, 
was the eldest. (2) Nathaniel spent his life 
at the old homestead, and his excellent natural 
abilities made him a leader in the community, 
where for many years he held the office of 
assessor. He married Julia Ferris, but had 
no children. (3) Roxana married Henry Stark, 
and lived in Penn Yan, N. Y. (4) Amy mar- 
ried Jaleel Billings Stark, a leading merchant 
of Pawling. (5) Rebecca married Daniel 
Shove, and lived at Wellsburg, New York. 

Benoni Pearce was born in 1808, and fol- 
lowed farming at Pawling until 1851, when he 
moved to a farm of 200 acres at Penn Yan, 
where he spent the remainder of his days, his 
death occurring there in 1895. Although he 
was never an office holder, he took a keen in- 
terest in political questions, being a Whig in 
early life and afterward a Republican. He 
was a devout Methodist, and for many years 
was an official in the Church. His first wife 
was Mary Ann Stark, a daughter of Benoni 
Stark, and after her death, in 1853, he mar- 
ried her sister, Rachel. Bj' his first marriage 
he had seven children, of whom the Doctor is 
the eldest. The others were Lillius H., wife 
of A. J. Brown, of Yates county, N. Y. 
Jeremiah S., sheriff of Dutchess county 
James S. , who lives in Pawling, N. Y. 
Charles W., who lives in New York City; Ed- 
win M. (deceased); and Elizabeth M., who 
married John Gelder, a farmer and grape 
grower of Yates county. 

Dr. Pearce was born in Pawling, March i, 
1833, and received his academic education 
there and in the schools of Yates county. In 
1853 he entered the Medical Department of 
the University of Michigan, and was graduated 
with the degree of M. D. in 1857. He began 
his professional career at Ulysses, Potter Co. , 
Penn., but after two years there he came to 
Pawling to practice. In 1862 he entered the 
army as assistant surgeon of the 150th N. Y. 
\'. I., with C. M. Campbell. During the 



march to Lookout Mountain his horse fell, and 
the Doctor was so injured that his left leg had 
to be amputated above the knee; although he 
was obliged to resign his former position in 
the regiment, he remained in the department 
until the close of the war. He spent three 
years practicing at Carmel, Putnam county, 
but finally settled at Pawling, where he has 
now been successfully engaged in practice for 
nearly thirty years, his business covering a 
larger territory than that of any other phy- 
sician in that locality. He is also the senior 
partner in the firm of Dr. H. Pearce & Co., , 
the leading druggists of Pawling. 

The Doctor has been three times married. 
His first wife was Sarah Hall, of Pawling. 
His second wife, Augusta M. (Stark), daughter 
of J. W. Stark, died in 1878, leaving one son, 
George Stark Pearce, now a successful phy- 
sician at Dover Plains; a daughter, Bessie, 
died at the age of four years. In 18S8 Dr. 
Pearce married his third wife, Julia (Travis), 
of Carmel, Putnam county. The Doctor is an 
ardent Republican, and, like all of his family, 
is very patriotic and public-spirited. He is a 
member of C. W. Campbell Post, G. A. R. , 
and also of the medical societies of Putnam 
and Dutchess counties. 



ON. JOHN H. KETCHAM. Dutchess 
county has possessed and possesses many 
prominent citizens ; but in all their number 
can be found no one more truly representative, 
more widely or actively awake to the interests 
of the community at large, than the subject of 
this article. 

A native of the county, Mr. Ketchain was 
born December 21, 1832, in Dover, and is a 
representative of one of the oldest families in 
eastern New York, being the second son and 
child of John M. and Eliza A. Ketcham, of 
Dover. His education was received in part at 
Suffield, Conn., in part at Worcester, Mass., 
where he was graduated in 185 1. At the con- 
clusion of his studies, and on his return to his 
native town, he, in partnership with his older 
brother, William S., commenced farming, and 
the conducting of an extensive marble busi- 
ness, which they successfully continued several 
years. During this period his fellow citizens, 
justly recognizing his ability, which was devel- 
oped in an active business life, soon called 
upon him to represent his township on the 
board of supervisors, and he served two terms. 




J^-T^r^^r^Z^.^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



65 



after which he was then sent to the Assembly 
for two terms, from which he passed into the 
State Senate — his entire career in each of these 
responsibilities proving him to be a man worthy 
to represent his constituents. 

In 1861, at the breaking out of the war of 
the Rebellion, Mr. Ketcham was appointed, by 
Gov. Morgan, a member of the war commit- 
tee for Dutchess and Columbia counties, and 
later was commissioned to raise a regiment, 
which he did with characteristic zeal and energy, 
rapidly filling out his quota with picked men 
of Dutchess county, representing for the most 
part the best and most intelligent families. 
His regiment, the i50thN. Y. V. I., proceeded 
first to Baltimore, afterward participating in 
the battle of Gettysburg, where it suffered 
severely. After recruiting his regiment, and 
filling up its sadly depleted ranks. Col. Ketcham 
moved his command southwest, joining Sher- 
man, and was with him in the memorable 
" March to the Sea." While on duty on Ar- 
gyle Island, near the mouth of the Savannah 
river, our subject received a wound, from the 
effects of which he has never fully recovered. 
At Atlanta, for meritorius conduct, he was pro- 
moted to the rank of brigadier-general by bre- 
vet, afterward to brigadier-general, and subse- 
quently to major-general by brevet. While 
with his command in Georgia, he was nomi- 
nated for member of Congress from his Dis- 
trict, and was elected by a large majority. He 
has since served eleven terms in that office, on 
each occasion being nominated by acclamation, 
and receiving the support of the people of his 
District, irrespective of party, his majorities 
being unprecedented in that county. At the 
termination of his twelfth term he was tendered 
a unanimous renomination, but owing to im- 
paired health he respectfully declined further 
service. 

The great secret of Gen. Ketcham's popu- 
larity has always been his untiring and unre- 
mitting efforts to promote the interests of his 
constituents, irrespective of party. During 
the interval of three years when he was not in 
Congress, the General was appointed, by Presi- 
dent Grant, a conmiissioner of the District of 
Columbia, e.\-Gov. Dennison, of Ohio, and 
Hon. H. T. Blow, of Missouri Tsince deceased), 
being his associates, in which incumbencj' he 
served with his usual energy and fidelity for a 
period of nearly three years. About the time 
of his retirement from the office of District 
Commissioner, in 1877, he received letters 
5 



from a large number of the leading citizens of 
the District expressing regret at his resigna- 
tion, and testifying to the ability, industry aijd 
thoughtful consideration manifested by him in 
the faithful discharge of his onerous duties. 

On February 4, 1858, Gen. John H. 
Ketcham was united in marriage with Miss 
Augusta A. Belden, daughter of William H. 
and Sarah Belden, of Amenia, Dutchess county, 
who were among the earliest and representa- 
tive families of the county. Four children 
were born of this marriage, of whom, two 
sons, Henry and Charles, and one daughter, 
Ethel, are living. 

Gen. Ketcham is a man of warm impulses, 
always ready to help a friend or do a kind act 
for a fellow being, and is known and recog- 
nized as the poor man's friend. His native 
State honors him, and with good reason, for 
he is one of her best products — a manly, noble 
man in all the relations of life, one who in his 
remarkable public career has maintained him- 
self with dignity, propriety and honor. 



COL. JAMES VANDER BURGH. Among 
_ ' those who left the shores of the Old World 
for those of the New, and settled very early in 
the vicinity of Poughkeepsie, was a family of 
Vander Burghs, directly from Holland, and it is 
to James Vander Burgh, one of the descend- 
ants of these early settlers, that this sketch 
more especially refers. Not only was he des- 
tined to be named among the noted men of 
Dutchess county, but he proved to be one of 
the country's most sturdy patriots and defend- 
ers. Born in Poughkeepsie, September 4, 
1729, we know little or nothing about him un- 
til his marriage to Margaret Noxon, in Sep- 
tember, 1853, and at this time they lived near 
the little hamlet of Poughquag. Seven chil- 
dren were born to them, and we read in Van- 
der Burgh's diary, thirteen years later, these 
words: " 1776, August ye 9 day my wife de- 
parted this life. Between the our of 3 and 4 
in the morning. Beaing the 8 day from ye 
time of her beaing taken sick. " The follow- 
ing year he married Helena Clark, and of this 
union eleven children were born, among whom 
were Federal Vander Burgh, a noted homeo- 
pathic physician, who died in Rhinebeck in 
1868; Gabriel Ludlow (named after one of the 
first vestrymen of Trinity Church, New York), 
who married Margaret Akin, of Quaker Hill; 



6G 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



and a daughter, Paulina, who married Judge 
Albro Akin, of the same place. The latter 
had three children: ( i) Albert J., born August 
14, 1803, still living, aged ninety-three, mar- 
ried Jane Williams, of New York City (no chil- 
dren). (2 ) Almira Vander Burgh married 
(first) to Joshua Leavitt Jones, and had two 
children; married (second) to John Akin Tib- 
bits (no children). (3) Helen Maria married 
to John W. Taylor, and has two children. 

A brief genealogical record of the branch 
of the Akin famil}' related to the \'ander 
Burghs is as follows: (I) John Akin, born in 
Scotland in 1663, emigrated to America about 
1680, and settled in Dartmouth, Mass. There 
in 1687 he married (first) Mary Briggs, who 
was born in Portsmouth, R. I., August 9, 
1 67 1, a daughter of Thomas and Mary (Fisher) 
I^riggs. Children of this union: (II) David, 
Judith, Deborah, Timothy, Mary, Hannah, 
Thomas, Elizabeth and James. The mother 
of these died, and for his second wife John 
Akin married Hannah Sherman, who bore him 
six children. (I) John Akin died June 13, 
1746. 

(II) David Akin, the eldest son of (I) John 
Akin, was born September 19, 1689, in Dart- 
mouth, Mass., and was there married in 171 1, 
to Sarah Allen, also a native of that locality, 
and by her had the following named children: 
(III) John, Mary, Elisha, Josiah, Abigail, 
Sarah, Hannah, James, David and Jonathan. 
In 1741 the father of this family moved to 
Quaker Hill (formerly called Oblong), where 
he died in 1779. 

(III) John Akin, eldest son of (II) David, 
was born September 15, 1718, at Portsmouth, 
R. I., and January 29, 1742, married Marga- 
ret Hicks, of Portsmouth, R. I., by which 
union children as follows were born: Anna, 
Mary, Abigail and (IV) John. The father of 
these died April 7, 1779, the mother in Octo- 
ber, 1803. 

(IV) John, the only son of (HI) John, was 
born November 11, 1753, at Quaker Hill, and 
December 27, 1775, was married at Pawling, 
N. Y. , to Molly Ferris, who was born April 
20, 1759, a daughter of Reed Ferris, of Pawl- 
ing. Children as follows were born to them: 
(V) Albro, Sarah, Margaret. Ann, Daniel and 
Amanda. Of these (V) Albro married (first) 
Paulina \'ander Burgh, of Beekman (three 
children); (second) married Sarah Merritt (no 
children); and married (third) Jemima Jacacks 
(se\en children). Their son William H. Akin 



married (first) Martha A. Taber (two children); 
married (second) Sarah Miller (no children). 
Albro Akin, son of William H. Akin, married 
Emma Reed (two children), and their son, 
Albert J. Akin, Jr., was born November 12, 
1882. 

A brief genealogical record of the branch 
of the Ferris or Ferriss (anciently svritten Fer- 
rass) family related, as above, to the Akin 
famil}', is as follows: 

(I) John F'erriss. a native of Leicestershire, 
England, a holder of land in several counties 
of England, emigrated with his family to Fair- 
field, Conn, (there are records showing that 
the Ferriss family were in America in 1650), 
and afterward, about 1654, removed to New 
York State. He is said to have been one of 
five brothers who emigrated to this country 
with their families, one of whom, Jeffry, lo- 
cated first, in 1635, in Massachusetts, later, 
in 1660. settling in Fairfield, Conn. Another 
brother, Benjamin, settled in Massachusetts 
in 1640. (I) John Ferriss died in New York 
State in 171 5. 

(II) Samuel, son of (I) John, came from 
Reading, England, about 1658, it is supposed, 
and was one of the first settlers of Groton, 
Mass., whence he afterward moved to Charles- 
town, Mass. He married Jerisha Reed, and 
had one son, (III) Zachariah. 

(III) Zachariah was born, it is supposed, 
at Pequenock (now Bridgeport), Conn., and 
was a Freeman in 1676. In September, 1698 
or 1699, he was married to Sarah Reed, of 
Stratford, Conn. About the year 17 10 they 
moved to New Milford, Conn., and their daugh- 
ter, Sarah, was the first female white child 
born there. The children born to (III) Zach- 
ariah and Sarah (Reed) Ferriss were as fol- 
lows; David, (IV) Benjamin, Hannah, John, 
Zachariah, Sarah Ann, Deborah and Joseph. 
From (III) Zachariah are descended numerous 
persons i5f that name in different parts of the 
United States. 

(IVi Benjamin Ferriss was born -Novem- 
ber 10, 1 70S; in 1728 married Elizabeth 
Beecher, and in 1730 they moved to Oblong 
(now Quaker Hill). Their children were Zeb- 
ulon, (V) Reed, Susannah, Phebe, Lillias, 
Benjamin, Gilbert and Edmund. 

(V') Reed Ferriss was born August 15, 
1730. at New Milford, and died at Pawling, 
N. Y., in March, 1S04. He married Anne 
Tripp, and they lived in Pawling. Their 
house was occupied by Washington when the 



COMMEMORATIVE BWQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



67 



American troops were quartered on a hill near 
by. The children born to Reed and Anne 
(Tripp) Ferriss were: Edmund, Benjamin, 
Lydia, (VI) Molly, James. Warren, Pitt, Mor- 
ris, Anne and Seneca. 

(VI) Molly Ferriss was born April 20, 
1759, and married December27, 1775, to John 
Akin, of Quaker Hill. She died October 30, 
185 I, aged ninety-two years. They had chil- 
dren: (VII) Albro, Sarah, Margaret, Ann, 
Daniel and Amanda. 

(\TI) Albro Akin was born March 6, 1778, 
and was married three times, as above related 
in the Akin family record. 

James \'ander Burgh, the subject proper of 
this review, is supposed to have been a son of 
John and Magdalen Vander Burgh, of Pough- 
keepsie. From a deed in the county clerk's 
office of said place, he is given land in Dutch- 
ess county, in 1752, when his father died. His 
mother and ten children are also m.entioned in 
the deed. One of the daughters, Magdalen, 
named for her mother, married Clear Everitt. 
He it was, no doubt, who built the historic 
"Clear Everitt House," still standing on the 
main street in Poughkeepsie, and now known 
as "Washington Hotel." This house, evi- 
dently an hostelry, was the meeting place of 
the leading men of the Revolution, Governor 
Clinton, Lafayette and Washington being 
among its guests. Everitt was at one time 
sheriff of the county. 

From James Vander Burgh are descended 
many of that name, as well as others, who are 
scattered in various parts of the United States. 
One of his descendants, Edgar H. Vander 
Burgh, of Lithgow, Dutchess county, recently 
said in a letter to Dr. David W. Vander 
Burgh, of Fall River, Mass.: "I had heard 
much through Judge Coffin of Colonel Vander 
Burgh, of his residence and of his entertain- 
ment of Washington in the time of the Revo- 
lution, that he (Washington) frequently stopped 
there over night on his way from Fishkill to 
Danbury on horseback. He used to stop by 
the road side near Colonel Vander Burgh's, 
and with the bridle reins over his shoulder 
draw water from a well sweep and drink. I 
had such a reverence for this history that I 
went to Beekman with Judge Coffin, and found 
the very well, and the timbers of the old man- 
sion laid on the wall. We took pieces of it 
and some nails with which it was made, and 
have them as sacred relics." Another of his 
great-grandchildren remembers, when very 



young, being taken by an old colored woman, 
formerly a slave in Colonel Vander Burgh's 
family, to see the old house in ruins. The 
woman told her that there was where General 
Washington used to visit, and that she remem- 
bered seeing him. James Vander Burgh was 
commissioned lieutenant-colonel on October 
'7' '775' '^nd was made colonel March 10, 
1778. 

James H. Smith's history of Dutchess 
county says: "A short distance northeast of 
the hamlet of Poughquag lived, during the 
Revolution, Col. James Vander Burgh, an 
officer of some prominence in that struggle," 
and from the same source we learn that he 
was appointed assessor of the town of Beek- 
man in 1772, and, in 1775, supervisor, which 
office he held until 1779. This history also 
says: " In the New York Provincial Congress 
and Convention from 1775 to 1779. inclusive, 
when a State government was formed, Dutch- 
ess was represented by men of mark, and 
among them is the name of Colonel James 
Vander Burgh." From Lossing's Field Book 
of the Revolution we glean this bit of knowl- 
edge, which is taken from Washington's diary: 
"May 1 8, 1781. Set out this day for an in- 
terview at Weathersfield with Count de Ro- 
chambeau and Admiral Barras. Reached Mor- 
gan's tavern, forty-three miles from Fishkill 
Landing, after dining at Colonel Vander 
Burgh's." A few days later, during one of 
Washington's visits, a child was born, and in 
Vander Burgh's diary it says: "May ye 24. 
1 78 1, on Thursday, about eleven o'clock at 
night, my wife was delivered of her fifth son; 
we call his name George Washington. God 
send him his blessing." So the little son was 
evidently named after their honored guest. 
Col. Vander Burgh died in Beekman, and was 
buried there in the sixty-fourth year of his age. 
One of his descendants. Miss H. Pauline Tay- 
lor, of Quaker Hill, has a copy of his epitaph, 
his will and his diary, all very quaint and in- 
teresting. 

Of his large family of eighteen children 
only one died before the parents, and that he 
was able to support his large family and give 
each daughter five hundred pounds, and to his 
sons either money or a prosperous farm, we 
learn from a copy of his will, so that his life 
stood out successfully from a financial point of 
view. But that is not all. Col. Vander Burgh 
was a man who closely watched and studied 
public affairs, he was emmentl}' patriotic, and 



68 



COMMEMOBATirB BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



was honored and trusted in civil life as he had 
been on the field, a Christian patriot and sol- 
dier, to duty ever true, to his posterity his 
memory is a rich inheritance. May they emu- 
late his virtues. 



SMITEN (more g;enerally known as S. VIN- 
_ CENT) TRIPP, one of Dutchess county's 
most successful business men, was born in the 
town of Clinton, Dutchess Co., N. Y., August 
31, 1822, being one of a family of eight chil- 
dren, of whom there is only one surviving 
member, Mrs. Susan \N'eed, of Clinton Corners. 

Smiten Tripp, his father, who was also a 
native of Dutchess county, during his early 
years was engaged at the carpenter's trade, 
and later purchased the farm where he spent 
the balance of his life. On November 20, 
1S06, he married Miss Margaret Wickes, in 
what is now known as the Cheesman house, 
which was built by her father, Jacob Wickes, 
in 1800. Her mother was a Miss Nancy Carle. 

S. \'incent Tripp's maternal grandfather, 
Jacob Wickes, lived during the Revolutionary 
war on the Creek road. He was surprised one 
night by the English, and after a severe strug- 
gle he assumed insensibility, and was left for 
dead. One of the bullets fired is still to be 
seen imbedded in the wall of the room of the 
conflict. Vincent was the name of our sub- 
ject's paternal grandmother, she being Miss 
Hannah \"incent. 

In 1848 Mr. Tripp was united in marriage 
with Miss Catherine Losee, daughter of Will- 
iam Losee, of Dover. She was a woman be- 
loved by all who knew her, always liberal in 
her chiirities, and it was greatly by her en- 
couragement and good judgment that Mt. 
Tripp made his business career so successful. 
Two children were born to them, a daughter, 
Priscilla, and a son, Alfred Noxon, the former 
of whom died at four years of age. 

In 1854 Mr. Tripp left the homestead, and 
removed to New York City, where he engaged 
in the carting business for the firm of Earle & 
Co. About two years later he located in 
Cohoes, Albany county, where he entered the 
grocery and feed business, with David Bedell. 
The partnership was discontinued after some 
three years, and Mr. Tripp removed to the 
city of Rochester, from which time he was 
always engaged in the grain business. Toward 
the close of the Civil war the sudden decline 



in grain nearly ruined him, he losing over 
thirty thousand dollars within a few days. 
Wheat declined one dollar per bushel, corn 
seventy cents and oats fifty cents. Oats he 
had been offered one dollar and six cents per 
bushel he sold for fifty-five cents, and wheat 
that he had been offered two dollars and sixty 
cents he sold for one dollar and fifty cents per 
bushel. Still he did not lose courage, but, 
backed by his banking house, he looked for 
his money where he had lost it, and in 1865 
returned to New York and engaged in the 
grain business, until 1867, at Twenty-second 
street and East river, with A. P. Clark, under 
the firm name of Tripp & Clark. During 
1867 and 1868 he was associated with Jacot) 
Bogart at Thirty-fifth street and East river. 
From the fall of 186S until November i, 1875, 
Mr. Tripp continued in partnership with 
George E. Ketcham, at Twenty-second street 
and North river. In the meantime he had 
built the "Tripp Elevator" at Thirty-fourth 
street and North river, which he entered 
November i, 1875, with George Rogers and 
Alexander Bonnell as partners; on November 
I, 1879, a new partnership was formed under 
the firm name of S. V. Tripp & Co., com- 
posed of Mr. Tripp, his cousin, Capt. I. C. 
Wickes, and Alexander Bonnell. Mr. Bonnell 
retired from the firm November i, 1881, and 
since that time the grain business at Thirty- 
fourth street and North river has remained 
under the firm name of S. V. Tripp & Co., 
with only Capt. I. C. Wickes as his partner, 
until Mr. Tripp's death September 22, 1S95. 
The business continued until May i, 1896, 
when Capt. Wickes bought Mr. Tripp's interest 
in the business. 

Mr. Tripp was engaged in many other en- 
terprises. He was a director of the Home 
Bank of New York, and a member of thirty 
years' "standing of the Produce Exchange. 
Through all his prosperity and reverses, he 
never lost courage and energy, but his great 
success was the Grain-elevator business at 
Thirty-fourth street and North river, where he 
made a large fortune; and the business was 
unequalled by any of the twelve firms engaged 
in grain business in New York and Brooklyn. 
In 1886 he removed to Poughkeepsie, and 
purchased the attractive residence on South 
Hamilton street. 

Mr. Tripp was twice married. His first 
wife died in 1890, and three years later he 
married Mrs. Jennie Farrar, daughter of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



69 



Thomas Milligan, a marble dealer of Berkshire 
county, Mass. Rev. F. B. Wheeler officiated 
at the funeral services of Mr. Tripp September 
25, 1895, which were largely attended. Among 
those present were the officers of The Pough- 
keepsie National Bank, of which he was vice- 
president; four of his business partners; a 
committee of ten from the Produce E.xchange; 
and twenty-three employes from The Elevator 
who had been in the services of the deceased 
from ten to twenty-seven years. The inter- 
ment was in the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery. 
The following resolutions in handsome binding 
were presented to Alfred N. Tripp: 

W'htjreas the members of the Xew York Produce Ex- 
change have learned with deep sorrow of the death of S. 
Vincent Tripp, for many years a member of this Ex- 
change, 

Resulred, That in the death of Mr. Tripp the Exchange 
has lost a valued member, who by his long career as an 
upright and public-spirited merchant has won the respect 
and esteem of his fellow members and endeared himself 
to all his associates; 

Resolved, That we extend to his family our sincere 
sympathy in their great loss, and that a copy of these 
resolutions be forwarded to them by the Secretary; 

Mesolneil, That as a mark of respect to his memory 
the President appoint a committee to attend his funeral. 

The son, Alfred N. Tripp, after leaving 
business college was for ten or more years as- 
sociated with his father in the grain business 
in the office and as superintendent of the ele- 
vating department. He was held in great 
esteem and affection by the employes, who 
were visibly affected on learning of his decease. 
In 1888 he married Miss Carrie Eliza Butler, 
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Egbert C. Butler, 
of Clinton, Dutchess county. After the family 
removed to Poughkeepsie he assisted his father 
in his private business, and was a director of 
the Poughkeepsie National Bank. He died 
December 27, 1895, ^"^^ is survived by Mrs. 
Tripp and a little daughter, Katheiine Grace. 
The funeral services, conducted b}' Revs. W. 
Bancroft Hill and Edward G. Rawson, assisted 
by a quartette rendering " Lead Kindly Light" 
and "Thy Will Be Done," were most beauti- 
ful, while Mr. Tripp, looked as though asleep 
among the many flowers he so greatly loved. 
Among those present were the directors of the 
Poughkeepsie National Bank and a large dele- 
gation from The Elevator. The interment was 
in the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery. The 
carriers were the same who bore to their last 
resting place the father and mother of Mr. 
Tripp. 



ENJAMIN HOPKINS. To have held for 
XJ forty-two consecutive years the office of 
justice of the peace among intelligent, discern- 
ing and independent people, is of itself con- 
vincing evidence of the possession of mental 
ability of a rare order, combined with the 
moral qualities which inspire and firmly retain 
public esteem and confidence. Since 1854 
the subject of this sketch has presided over 
the lower tribunal, aptly termed the "People's 
Court, "in the town of East Fishkill, Dutchess 
county, and when one reflects upon the law- 
less and unsettled conditions which prevailed 
here in the earlier days, the force of charac- 
ter, the courage — moral and physical — and 
above all the tact, necessary for the faithful 
and effective discharge of his duties seems 
notable indeed. 

Justice Hopkins comes of an honored ances- 
try, the first of the line crossing the ocean 
from England with the first settlers in Massa- 
chusetts. It is supposed that Edward Hop- 
kins came over in the "Mayflower." Stephen 
Hopkins, one of the patriots who signed the 
Declaration of Independence, was a brother of 
Benjamin's great-grandfather. The branch of 
the family to which our subject belongs settled 
near White Plains, in the town of North Cas- 
tle, N. Y. , in Colonial times, and his grand- 
father, Benjamin Hopkins, removed to the 
town of Fishkill, Dutchess county, during the 
Revolutionary war. He was a native of 
Rhode Island, and prior to his marriage sailed 
a vessel along the coast, being engaged in 
freighting and trading. He married Sarah 
Palmer, about which time his property was 
destroyed by the British, and in 1779 became 
to Dutchess county, as already noted, where 
he bought a tract of four hundred acres of 
land, and where he passed the rest of his life. 

John Hopkins, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Fishkill September 6, 
1779, one of a family of eight children. He 
early became familiar with agricultural pur- 
suits upon the home farm, and continued to 
follow that occupation as a lifework. In 18 19 
he was united in marriage with Miss Mary 
Brill, a daughter of John and Hannah (Cor- 
nell) Brill, natives of Dutchess county. Her 
father was of Holland descent. After their 
marriage Mr. and Mrs. John Hopkins located 
upon the farm now owned by our subject, and 
there reared their four children: Benjamin, 
our subject; Gilbert P., who was a merchant 
of Carthage Landing, Dutchess county, and 



70 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPhwAL JiEVOlW. 



was killed on a boat in 1846; Solomon P., 
who was a freight agent in early life, and later 
engaged in the cattle business in Chicago; and 
Sarah P., married to S. B. Knox, of Carthage 
Landing. The father belonged to the Society 
of Friends, while the mother was a member of 
the Reformed Dutch Church, and both were 
earnest, conscientious Christians. In politics 
he was a Whig, and in his town efficiently 
served as justice of the peace and overseer of 
the poor. 

Benjamin Hopkins, the subject of this 
sketch, was born .-^pril 18, 1820, in the house 
which is still his home, and until he was si.x- 
teen years of age was never absent from the 
home farm. His early educational advantages 
were good, and he took a complete course at 
the old Dutchess County Academy, Pough- 
keepsie, which has since been replaced by the 
Poughkeepsie High School. In i 849 the town 
of East Fishkill was carved out of the town of 
Fishkill, and in the following year Mr. Hop- 
kins was elected a member of the board of 
supervisors, to which office he has been re- 
elected at intervals for ten terms. Since his 
first election as justice of the peace he has 
been re-nominated on the Democratic ticket 
at the expiration of each term, and his re-elec- 
tion has never been seriously opposed. His 
present term will not expire until 1901. It is 
a fact of which he may well be proud that he 
has never had a case reversed in the upper 
courts, his decisions being based upon that 
exact and impartial justice which, when once 
pointed out, commends itself to every honest 
man as sound law. So popular is he that one 
year (1859) he was elected supervisor on the 
Republican ticket by 200 majority, while, as 
justice of the peace on the Democratic ticket, 
he won by a majority of sixty. In 1862 he 
was appointed deputy collector of Internal 
Revenue for the towns of East Fishkill, Pawl- 
ing and Dover, and served three years. He 
has twice been appointed justice of sessions, 
and since the passage of the first free-school 
act of 1847 he has been trustee of the Storm- 
ville school district. In early life he was a 
Whig, but after the defeat of Gen. Scott in 
1852 he became a Democrat, and has sup- 
ported that party ever since. During the Civil 
war he was active in raising recruits to sup- 
press the Rebellion. 

As a business man he has been successful 
in various callings — farming, clerking, auction- 
eering and school teaching. In 1842 he began 



merchandising at Low Point, Dutchess county, 
but the following year returned to the old 
homestead, purchasing the interests of the 
other heirs, and has since engaged in its care 
and cultivation. He has 290 acres of rich and 
productive land, on which he has mainly car- 
ried on general farming. 

On December 6, 1844, Mr. Hopkins was 
married to Eliza Montfort, a native of the 
town of Beekman, Dutchess county, and a 
daughter of Peter and Cornelia (Flagler) Mont- 
fort, both of whom belonged to old families of 
the county. Five children were born of this 
union: Cornelia, who married John Taber, of 
Dover, Dutchess county; Phoebe, who died 
unmarried; Sarah, the wife of William H. Og- 
den, of Kansas City, Mo.; Lodo V., wife of 
John Ogden, also of Kansas City; and John 
G., who is engaged in business at the Exchange 
Building at Chicago. The wife and mother 
was called to her final rest in October, 1S59. 
Mr. Hopkins afterward married his present 
wife, who bore the maiden name of Margaret 
Lasher. She is a native of Columbia county, 
N. Y., and a daughter of Jacob Lasher. Seven 
children have been born to this union: Charles, 
a promising young lawyer, now of Poughkeep- 
sie; and Benjamin, Mary, Harry W., Bertha 
M., and George and Edith M. (twins), all at 
home. Mr. Hopkins is one of the most highly 
respected and prominent men of his commu- 
nity, always faithfully discharging every trust 
reposed in him, and has the confidence and es- 
teem of all with whom he has come in contact. 



STERLING BIRD, M. D., a prominent 
I, member of the medical profession of Dutch- 
ess county, with residence at Hyde Park, 
was born August 29, 1836, at Winchester,' 
Conn. He is descended from an old Connecti- 
cut family, whos«founder in America, Thomas 
Bird, a native of England, located at Hartford 
about 1644, some ten years after its settle- 
ment, and became one of the small freehold- 
ers in the place. His son James was the fa- 
ther of John Bird, who was born in 1695, and 
the son of the latter, Ebenezer Bird, was born 
in 1739. The next in direct line is David 
Bird, whose birth occurred in Bethlehem, 
Conn., in 1776. About 1797 he was united in 
marriage with Elizabeth Church, by whom he 
had the following children: Harmon, Joshua, 
Susan, David (the father of our subject). 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



71 



Lucy, Nancy, Anna, John, Sterling, Frederick 
and Betsy. 

David Bird, Jr., was also a native of Betii- 
lehem. Conn., born March ii, 1S04, and was 
reared upon his father's farm. On reaching 
manhood he engaged in the manufacture of 
woolen goods on a small scale, at Winchester, 
and became one of the successful and prosper- 
ous men of his community. He married 
Eunice Phelps, daughter of Wilcox Phelps, of 
Norfolk, Conn., and they became the parents 
of two children: Sarah and J. Sterling (sub- 
ject of this review). In religious belief the fa- 
ther was a Congregationalist, taking a promi- 
nent part in the work of that Church, in which 
he served as deacon. He was actively inter- 
ested in political affairs, an unfaltering Aboli- 
tionist, and was elected to the State Legisla- 
ture on the W'hig ticket. His death occurred 
in 1863, that of his wife in 1882. 

J. Sterling Bird was educated at Wilbra- 
ham, Mass., taking nearly the entire course, 
and completed his literary training at the age 
of twenty-two. About i860 he took up the 
study of medicine, first entering the Berkshire 
Medical College, Pittsfield, Mass., which he 
attended for one term, in the following year 
entering the College of Physicians & Surgeons, 
New York City, where he graduated in 1863. 
He then took some special courses, though it 
was his intention to engage in general practice. 
During his four-months' vacation he was at 
the United States Military Hospital at Newark, 
N. J. After his graduation he was for a year 
and a half on the medical staff of the Bellevue 
Hospital, New York City, and in that way se- 
cured much practical knowledge. On April 
3, 1865, he arrived in Hyde Park, where he 
immediately opened an office, and, with the 
e.xception of four months in his second year, 
has uninterruptedly been engaged in practice 
there. The Doctor is now one of the oldest 
practitioners in the locality, has been remark- 
ably successful in his treatment of cases, and 
not only does he rank high among his profes- 
sional brethren, but is one of the leading and 
substantial citizens of the town. 

Dr. Bird was married, in 187 1, to Alice E. 
Jones, of Hyde Park, daughter of Rev. J. W. 
Jones, a Baptist minister, and to them were 
born two children: John Sterling, at home; 
and Alice E., who died when about a year old. 
Although the Doctor is a stalwart Republican, 
he has taken no active part in political affairs; 
but he is a public-spirited citizen, at all times 



willing to aid in promoting the welfare of his 
adopted county. He has served as health 
officer, and is a prominent member of the 
Dutchess County Medical Society. An earnest, 
Christian gentleman, he is connected with the 
Reformed Dutch Church of Hyde Park, in 
which he has served as one of the officials. 
Though of a retiring disposition, the Doctor 
has gained many warm friends in his locality, 
and by all he is held in the highest regard. 



TTrENRY A. HOLMES, a prominent busi- 
-Fi ness man of Pawling, Dutchess county, 
is the treasurer of the Pawling Savings Bank, 
and the sole proprietor of one of the oldest 
and most substantial business enterprises of 
that vicinity, the firm having been founded 
by the well-known pioneer merchant, J. W. 
Stark. 

Mr. Holmes can trace his descent from 
two patriots of Revolutionary times, one being 
his great-grandfather, John Holmes. His 
paternal ancestors were among the early set- 
tlers of Westchester county, N. Y. , the family 
homestead being at Pound Ridge, where our 
subject's grandfather, John Holmes, was born 
during the Revolutionary war. He followed 
farming there until he was about fifty years 
old when he came to the town of Pawling, 
Dutchess county, accompanied by his son 
Samuel, our subject's father, who was born at 
Pound Ridge in 1808, and at the time of the 
removal was about eighteen years old. Sam- 
uel Holmes remained with his father, who 
was a farmer by occupation, until 1836, when 
he went to New York City, and was for twelve 
years engaged in the trunk business, in which 
he was but moderately successful. He was 
married in 1834, to Hannah L. Peck, daughter 
of Henry and Betsey (Dean) Peck, grand- 
daughter in the maternal line of Elijah Dean, 
an officer in the Revolutionary war. Of their 
three children, the subject of this sketch was 
the eldest; Caroline L. married J. C. Merritt, 
of Putnam county, and died in 1868; and 
James G. died at the age of twenty-two. The 
mother died in 1854, and the father, soon 
afterward, returned to Dutchess county and 
bought a farm southwest of the village of 
Pawling. He met with success as a farmer, 
and was accounted a man of good business 
judgment. In later years he was extensively 
engaged in the business of furnishing lumber 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPmCAL BECORD. 



and ties for the Harlem railroad. Although 
not a politician he was always a Democrat in 
principle, and took an interest in all measures 
for local improvements. He was reared a 
Presbyterian, and contributed generously to 
that Church until his death in 1885. 

Henry A. Holmes first saw the light at Pat- 
terson, Putnam countj', February 13, 1836. 
His education was obtained in Public School 
No. 4, Rivington street, New York, and at 
Mr. Benedict's select school at Patterson, these 
advantages and his subsequent reading giving 
him a good store of knowledge. On enter- 
ing business life he spent one year as a clerk in 
a retail feed store in New York, and a year 
and a half in clerking for his uncle, R. J. 
Dean, of Patterson. He then went home and 
worked upon the farm for a year, when he 
formed a partnership with his uncle in the 
lumber and feed business under the firm name 
of Dean & Holmes. After three years he sold 
his interest to Mr. Dean, and February i, 
1865, he bought a one-third interest in the 
general mercantile store of J. W. Stark & 
Co., the firm consisting of Mr. Stark, William 
J. Merwin and Mr. Holmes. In 1877, Mr. 
Stark withdrew and the firm became Merwin 
& Holmes, and so continued until the death 
of Mr. Merwin in 1892, when Mr. Holmes 
purchased his interest. This business, now 
one of the largest in the southeastern part of 
the county, had its origin in a small store 
opened hy Mr. Stark in 1848, near the railroad 
at Pawling, and with the exception of a few 
years which Mr. Stark spent in New Milford 
it has been continued ever since. In addition 
to this enterprise, Mr. Holmes has given 
much attention to the affairs of the Pawling 
Savings Bank, which was organized under the 
act of May 7, 1870, the charter being accepted 
September 10, 1890. This is one of the most 
carefully managed banking institutions in that 
locality, J. I. \\'anzer being the president. Mr. 
Holmes is one of the trustees, and succeeded 
Mr. Merwin as treasurer, the office having 
been held by him from the first. In all his 
enterprises, Mr. Holmes has displayed con- 
servative judgment, combined with energetic 
execution of plans once decided upon, and to 
these qualities his success may be attributed. 
In politics he is a Republican, and on all 
national issues he has voted for the candidates 
of that party at every election, since his first 
ballot was given for Abraham Lincoln, but in 
local affairs he is independent. He has held 



the office of commissioner of highways for one 
term. 

In 1867, Mr. Holmes was united in matri- 
mony with Ruth A. Shove, a native of the 
town of Pawling. Her father, Daniel Shove, 
a carpenter by trade, was born in Dover, but 
for many years was a resident of Pawling, and 
now lives at Wellsboro, Penn. Three sons 
were born of this marriage, and their educa- 
tion has been carefully conducted at Bisbee's 
Military School at Riverview. George S. is 
now assisting his father in the store; Frederick 
W. has just completed his course at school; 
and Henry A., Jr., is still a student. The 
family attend the Methodist Church, and Mr. 
Holmes is a generous supporter of its work. 



3)0BERTK. TUTHILL, M. D., of Pough- 
keepsie, Dutchess county, is of English 



ancestry. His great-grandfather, Samuel Tut- 
hill, came from England, and settled on Long 
Island; but after a time removed to Orange 
county, N. Y., where he remained the rest of 
his life. Our subject's father, whose name 
was also Samuel, was likewise a member of 
the medical profession, and for many j-ears 
was a leading practitioner in Poughkeepsie, 
N. Y., to which place he came in 184S. 

Dr. Robert K. Tuthill was born in New- 
burgh, N. Y., January 18, 1835. Early in life 
he showed an inclination to follow in the foot- 
steps of his father, and was thoroughly edu- 
cated, with the view of making the practice of 
medicine and surgery his life work, graduating 
at the New York Medical College in 1859. 
After receiving his degree, he began his pro- 
fessional career in Poughkeepsie, and was en- 
gaged in active practice there, at the breaking 
out of the Rebellion, in 1861. With charac- 
teristic patriotism, he offered his services to his 
country, and was appointed assistant surgeon 
of the Twentieth 'N. Y. S. M. For faithful- 
ness in the discharge of his duties in this ca- 
pacity he was in April. 1863, promoted to the 
position of regimental surgeon of the 145th In- 
fantry, and in June of the same year was made 
brigade surgeon of the First Brigade, First Di- 
vision, Twelfth Corps. Early in 1864, he was 
appointed surgeon-in-chief of Division. He 
had charge of the Fredericksburg hospital in 
1 862, was in all the chief battles of the ' ' army 
of the Potomac," and also did duty in the 
"army of the Cumberland." 

After this service to his country, the Doctor 



.^ 



m 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



again resumed private practice in Poughkeep- 
sie, and was a member of the Surgical Staff of 
St. Barnabas Hospital, from tfie time it was 
organized, in 1870, until it was closed, in 1887. 
He was then selected by the Foutiders of Vas- 
sar Brothers' Hospital on its opening, m 1S87, 
to be one of its surgeons, which position he is 
still filling. He is considered a skillful sur- 
geon, his experience while serving his country 
being of great advantage to him. He has 
served three times as health officer of Pough- 
keepsie; for two terms in succession was presi- 
dent of the Dutchess County iVledical Society, 
and has been a permanent member of the New 
York State Medical Society since 1880. He 
also belongs to Hamilton Post No. 20, G. A. 
R. , Poughkeepsie, and is a member of the 
Loyal Legion of America. Dr. Tuthill is also 
a Knight Templar. Politically, he is a stanch 
Republican, but has never run for an elective 
office. In the year 1864 he married a Pough- 
keepsie lady, and has one daughter. 

Constant, untiring work in his profession 
has made periods of rest and recuperation a 
necessity to him, and these he has found in 
quite extensive travel in this and other coun- 
tries. Twice, accompanied by his family, he 
has spent several months abroad visiting the 
principal places and nearly all of the capitals 
of Great Britain and of the Continent. And 
while he was there gaining physical strength, 
he also embraced the opportunity of visiting 
many of the hospitals and attending clinics in 
the Old World, thus seeking new methods and 
better knowledge for his great work at home. 
His residence is at No. 313 Mill street, where 
he has a capacious of^ce, an extensive and 
well-selected medical and general library and 
a beautiful home. He is a member of the First 
Reformed Church, and has hosts of friends, 
who believe in him, because he has proved 
himself a true and sincere man and a conscien- 
tious, faithful and vigilant physician. 



EV. FRANCIS BROWN WHEELER, 
D. D., who has been for more than half 
a century a minister of the Gospel, and for 
thirty-six years the honored pastor of the First 
Presbyterian Church at Poughkeepsie, is de- 
scended from several families whose names 
are conspicuous in the early history of this 
country. 

The ancestors of the Wheeler line came 
from Wales about 1650, and settled at Dun- 



barton, N. H. William Wheeler, our sub- 
ject's great-grandfather, was born in 1728, 
probably in Salem, N. H., and died March i, 
1804. His home was at Dunbarton, where he 
was a prominent citizen in his day. He served 
through the French and Indian war, and 
throughout the Revolutionary war, being mus- 
tered into service for the latter struggle by 
Gen. Washington. He took part in the battle 
of Bunker Hill under Gen. Stark. In the 
earlier war he was a member of the N. H. 
Rangers at Fort Ticonderoga, in 1755, com- 
manded by Capt. Robert Rogers, and was 
captured by the Indians, but escaped by his 
wit and agility as they were about to tom- 
ahawk him. His wife, Sarah , was 

born in 1735, and died March 15, 1803. 
Their son William, Jr., was also a soldier in 
the Revolutionary war, taking part in the bat- 
tles of Bennington, Vt., and \\'hite Plains, 
New York. 

Their son, Daniel Wheeler, the grand- 
father of our subject, was born in Salem, N. 
H., in 1763, and died in Warner, N. H., in 
1840. He suffered imprisonment at one time 
for refusing to pay the ministerial tax at Dun- 
barton. He married Polly Davis, who was 
born in Amesbury, Mass., in 1772, and died 
in Warner, N. H., in 1S62. She was a lineal 
descendant of Hannah Dustan, of historical 
fame. 

Hosea Wheeler, our subject's father, was 
born March 8, 1791, at Dunbarton, N. H., 
and died January 27, 1823, at Eastport, 
Maine. He was a Baptist minister, and for 
many years lived at Newburyport, Mass. He 
married Sarah Wines, born August 12, 1788, 
the daughter of Rev. Abijah Wines, an emi- 
nent clergyman, and the first professor of the- 
ology in the Theological Seminary at Bangor, 
Maine. Her grandfather, Hon. Benjamin 
Giles, was prominent in our Colonial history, 
the chairman of the Committee of Safety at 
Newport, N. H., and a member of the State 
Provincial Congress. To the union of Mr. and 
Mrs. Wheeler the following children were born: 
Elizabeth, Sarah A., Francis Brown, Sarah 
and Mary. 

Dr. Francis B. Wheeler, whose long serv- 
ice in the Christian ministry has so well sus- 
tained the honor of this distinguished ancestry, 
was born at North Adams, Mass., September 
9, 1 818, and in 1842 was graduated from the 
University of Vermont with a number of class- 
mates who have since attained high standing in 



74 



COMMEilOllATIVE BIOORAPIIICAL RECORD. 



diplomatic and judicial affairs; atnongthem were 
ex-Vice-President Wheeler, Hon. John Kas- 
son, Hon. Robert S. Hale and Hon. E. J. 
Hamilton. His grandfather, father and four 
uncles had been clergymen, and from boyhood 
he had been tilled with the desire to follow in 
their footsteps. After studying at Andover 
Theological Seminary, and with Rev. J. W. 
Ward, an eminent theologian of Massachu- 
setts, he was ordained and installed as pastor 
of the Congregational Church at Jericho 
Centre, Vt., January 22, 1845. During his 
five-years' pastorate there he was for two years 
superintendent of the common schools in Chit- 
tenden county, Vt. On May 29, 1850, he be- 
came pastor of the Congregational Church at 
Brandon, Vt. , and while there was appointed 
secretary of the Vermont Sabbath School 
Union, and also one of the examining commit- 
tee of the University of Vermont. He left 
Brandon September 7, 1854, and removed to 
Saco, Maine, where he assumed charge of the 
First Congregational Church December 6. 
1854. His work there was attended with 
marvelous success, the great revival of 1857-58 
being unprecedented in the history of the 
State. For three months meetings were held 
every day, at which the pastor officiated, 
preaching from house to house, and many prom- 
inent professional and business men with their 
families were brought into the Church. The 
vigor of the climate there endangered the 
health of his family, and Dr. Wheeler was 
compelled to relinquish this beloved charge 
and accept a call from the First Presbyterian 
Church at Poughkeepsie, where he was in- 
stalled May 12, 1859. It is interesting to 
note that whenever he has left a charge the 
congregations were reluctant to sever their re- 
lations, protesting by unanimous and affection- 
ate remonstrance against his removal. Dur- 
ing his pastorate in Poughkeepsie the Church 
has grown and prospered until it is now one of 
the largest in the city. 

One of the secrets of his success is the ab- 
sence of cant and stock phrases so often found 
in pulpit oratory. He is simple and practical 
in his statements of truth, and bases his ap- 
peals to conscience and the sense of duty upon 
reason, calmly leaving the results to appear in 
time as convictions gradually dawn upon the 
hearer. He is faithful, also, in the discharge 
of the arduous duty of pastoral visitation, 
which may be another secret of his helpfulness 
and influence. He belongs to the Calvinistic 



school, but his sermons are never dogmatic in 
tone or controversial in manner, dealing rather 
with the practical problems of spiritual prog- 
ress. Many valuable treatises from his pen 
have appeared in the religious and secular 
press, and he is the author of several Church 
hymns. He is an interesting and forcible 
speaker upon general subjects, and has made 
special addresses on various occasions. Dr. 
Wheeler is a member of the Massachusetts 
Society of the Sons of the American Revolu- 
tion, and of the New York Society of Colonial 
Wars. Many honors have been bestowed 
upon him, his Alma Mater conferrine the de- 
gree of A. M. in 1845, and from Hamilton 
College he received the honorary degree of 
S. T. D. in 1868. In 18SS the University of 
Vermont conferred upon him the same degree. 
In 1878 President Hayes appointed him a 
member of the Board of Visitors at West 
Point Military Academy. 

Dr. Wheeler has been married three times, 
first on September 16, 1843. ^t Williston. Vt., 
to Charlotte A. Parmalee, daughter of Rev. 
Simeon Parmalee, D. D., for many years a 
leading clergyman of the Congregational 
Church in Vermont. She died March i, 1853, 
leaving no children, and October 26, 1854, 
Dr. W^heeler was married to Eliza Dana, 
daughter of Hon. A. G. Dana, M. D., LL. D., 
of Brandon, Vt. Her mother, Eliza Fuller, 
was a lineal descendant of Samuel Fuller, who 
came over in the "Mayflower." She died 
September i, 1865, leaving three daughters: 
Winifred Dana (now Mrs. Joseph B. Bisbee), 
Emma G. and Harriet Wickes. On October 
25, 1876, Dr. Wheeler married his present 
wife, Charlotte P. W^ickes, daughter of Rev. 
Thomas S. Wickes, and his wife. Julia Penni- 
man, who is a direct descendant of Gov. 
Bradford, of "Mayflower" fame. One daugh- 
ter was born of this union, Julia Wickes 
Wheeler, born March 27, 1878. 

On January 23, 1S95, a notable anniver- 
sary was held in Poughkeepsie in honor of 
Dr. Wheeler's fifty years of ministerial labor. 
Denominational lines were broken down, and 
representatives of all creeds joined in honoring 
a career in which the love for and faith in the 
Afaster whom all aim to follow has been so 
abundantly shown. In the afternoon a re- 
ception was held in the church, followed by a 
collation which assumed the aspect of a family 
Thanksgiving Dinner. Rev. Father Nilan. of 
' St. Peter's Catholic Church, was among the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPniCAL RECORD. 



(O 



after-dinner speakers, and said that in eighteen 
years of his hfe in Poughkeepsie he has come 
to look upon Dr. Wheeler as a friend. They 
had talked together and fought together — not 
very bitterly to be sure — and it was evidence 
of progress that one of their discussions had 
been about doctrines which in former times 
caused men to burn each other, yet they had 
not lost their mutual love and respect. Other 
speakers were Rev. Dr. \'an Gieson, of Pough- 
keepsie, and Mr. William W. Smith, who 
spoke for the trustees; there were present also 
Rev. Dr. D. J. McMillan, secretary of the 
Presbyterian Board of Home Missions; Ixev. 
Dr. T; Ralston Smith, Stated Clerk of the 
Synod of New York; Rev. Duncan C. Niven 
and wife, of Highland; Rev. Edgar Beckwith 
and wife, of Pleasant Valley; Rev. James Otis 
Denniston, of Cooperstown; Rev. C. H. Sne- 
deker; Rev. Wayland Spaulding; Rev. Dr. 
Strobridge; Rev. Robert Farrier; Rev. Fields 
Hermance; Rev. William Bancroft Hill; and 
Mr. Cartland, representing the Society of 
Friends. In the evening a large public meet- 
ing was held, addressed by Dr. McMillan and 
Dr. Smith, which closed with the singing of 
an original hymn by Rev. John McNaughton, 
D. D. Letters were read from friends in all 
parts of the Union, many testifying gratefully 
to the worth and effectiveness of Dr. Wheeler's 
labors, one coming from a successful pastor in 
Ohio, who had been influenced by him to 
leave the carpenter's bench for the ministry. 

A remarkable fact in Dr. W'heeler's life is 
that in his half-century of work he has never 
been kept from ministerial duty by sickness 
more than nine days. This he attributes to a 
good constitution, strengthened by the simple 
healthful life of his earl}' years upon the farm, 
with plenty of work, relieved by wholesome 
diversions. 

On Sabbath morning, September 22, 1895, 
owing to the weight of increasing years. Rev. 
Dr. W'neeler presented his resignation, as 
pastor of the Church to which he had so faith- 
fully ministered for thirty-six years. He was 
made Pastor-Emeritus; but as his successor 
was not chosen, up to the time of his death, 
but a few months later, Dr. Wheeler remained 
to the end the pastor of the Church. Very 
suddenly came the summons for him to enter 
into life everlasting. "On the 27th of De- 
cember, 1895, the Angel of Death entered 
into the household of a beloved disciple, the 



Rev. Dr. F. B. Wheeler. Scarcely had the 
air ceased to vibrate with the joyous Christmas 
song of the angelic host, when he who has 
walked in white for thirty-si.x years through 
the streets of the city of Poughkeepsie, an 
epistle known and read of all men, passed 
into his dismantled home with a scholar's love 
and care for his books, to arrange for their re- 
moval to a new habitation. Soon after, the 
angel, at first unrecognized, touched him; 
there was a brief season of helplessness, in 
which it was given his family to gather around 
him, a quiet child-like sleep, and then the 
angel took his hand and led him through the 
group of loving and sorrowing ones, and in a 
moment his oft-repeated text was verified, and 
his eyes beheld ' the King in His beauty. ' 

"A man of wonderful poise, of encom- 
passing catholic spirit, of broad patriotic 
views, commanding the respect and love of 
all classes and conditions of men, he so 
walked with God in the presence of all the 
people, that those who knew him feel they will 
never look upon his like again, while all feel 
the whole city is impoverished because this 
gentle spirit is not, for his Lord has taken him." 



OAQUIM MARILL, M. D., a prominent 
physician of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess coun- 
^' ty, was born at Havana, Cuba, December 
21, 1 84 1, son of Joaquim Marill and Eugenia 
Alvarez, the former of whom was a wealthy 
planter and sugar grower. 

Our subject was educated at his native 
place, graduating from the University of Ha- 
vana in i860, and then went to Paris in order 
to study medicine. In July, 1861, he came to 
Philadelphia, and in October of the same year 
he joined the 137th Regiment, P. V. I., as 
surgeon, and was sent to the front. At the 
second battle of Bull Run he was taken pris- 
oner, and was confined in Libby prison until 
September 24, 1864, when he was exchanged. 
On reporting for duty, he was ordered to 
Sickleboro Hospital, at Alexandria, Va. , where 
he remained until receiving his discharge from 
the service in July, 1865. Returning to Ha- 
vana, he in 1866, before the Rebellion, joined 
the Spanish army as surgeon, remaining until 
1870.. In that year, on account of his politic- 
al views being in sympathy with his country- 
men, he came back to the United States, and 
began the practice of his profession at High- 
land, Ulster county, in 1874 removing to 



76 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



Poughkeepsie, where he has practiced ever 
since, with the exception of eight months he 
spent in Vera Cruz during the yellow-fever 
epidetiiic of 1886, during which period he was ! 
commodore-surgeon of the Alexandria fleet. 
After his return to Poughkeepsie he resumed 
his practice, and has met with remarkable 
success. 

In 1874 Mr. Marill was married, at High- 
land, N. Y., to Miss Amanda \V. Caire, a 
daughter of Louis Caire, and they have three 
children: Minnie, Maria and Pilar. The 
Doctor is an active member of the I\. of P., 
American Legion of Honor, Knights of Honor, 
and of the United Friends, while politically, he 
is a stanch supporter of the Republican party. 

Our subject's father, who was a wealthy 
planter and broker, was descended from an 
old titled family, known until his death as the 
Marquez and Count of Palestine. Our sub- 
ject's mother, Eugenia Alvarez, was a close 
descendant of the house of Alva and Alvarez, 
one of the older Spanish titles, dating back to 
the sixteenth century, in the reign of Philip H. 



ISAAC PLATT came of pioneer ancestry in 
Dutchess county, all of the name in this 

country tracing their descent from the same 
source. Eliphalet Piatt, his grandfather, came 
to Dutchess county at an early date, and set- 
tled northeast of the site of Poughkeepsie, 
where he followed agricultural pursuits. His 
death occurred in Dutchess county, and his 
remains were buried at Pleasant Valley. He 
married Hannah Causten, and reared a family 
of children, among whom was a son Joseph, 
our subject's father, who also engaged in 
farming. He wielded great influence in his 
locality, in a quiet way, and was a leader in 
political and religious affairs. He and his 
wife, Hannah Barnes, had three children: 
Isaac, Joseph Causten, and Catharine, who 
died in girlhood. 

Isaac Piatt was born in 1803, in Albany 
county, N. Y. , where his parents made their 
home for a short time, but the greater part of 
his early life was spent in the town of Pough- 
keepsie, Dutchess county. He attended 
school there, and as a young man became a 
member of a debating club which met in a 
little school house near his home, and had no 
small influence upon his education and his 
subsequent career. One of its members, 
Horatio Potter, afterward became bishop of 



New York; another, Alonzo Potter, was 
bishop of Pennsylvania, and another, John 
Kennedy, became prominent in the M. E. 
Church. These young men were then appren- 
tices in the printing office and book store kept 
by Paraclete Potter, publisher of the Pough- 
keepsie Journal, and being warm friends of 
Mr. Piatt, influenced him to enter the same 
emploj'ment. He served an apprenticeship as 
a printer, and then began teaching school. 
About the year 1824 the Democratic party 
was in need of a new organ in Poughkeepsie, 
and Isaac Piatt and William Sands were em- 
ployed to publish it under the firm name of 
Sands & Piatt. In accordance with this ar- 
rangement the Poughkeepsie Telegraph was 
started, the first issue appearing May 5, 1824. 
This afterward became the Au-iL's-Tcli-grei/'li, 
and is still the Democratic organ of the 
county. 

During the political discussions of 1828 all 
the papers in the city favored Andrew Jack- 
son, leaving the Whigs with no mouthpiece, 
and to meet this need the Dutchess Intelli- 
gencer was started. It failed, however, and was 
purchased by Isaac Piatt and Frederick Par- 
sons, who continued it; but the returns were 
so small that Mr. Parsons decided to abandon 
it. Mr. Piatt wished to keep on, and offered 
Mr. Parsons $7.00 per week to remain as his 
assistant. The offer was accepted, Mr. Par- 
sons regarding this munificient sum as better 
than a share in doubtful profits, and gave up 
his interest as a partner. In spite of discour- 
agements the paper began to prosper under 
Mr. Piatt's management. In 1833 itwascon- 
solidated with the Dutchess Republican, which 
had been in existence for some time. The 
new name — The Intelligencer and Republican 
— was changed during the following year to 
The Eagle. In 1843 Mr. Piatt bought out his 
partner, Thomas S. Ranney, who went to In- 
dia under the auspices of the Baptist Church, 
and in 1844 the Eagle was united with the 
Journal, William Schram joining Mr. Piatt in 
the new firm of Piatt & Schram. The daily 
issue was started December 4, i860. Mr. 
Piatt was a fearless champion of the right as 
he saw it, and the Eagle denounced the fugi- 
tive slave law during Fillmore's administra- 
tion, although Mr. Piatt was holding office at 
the time as postmaster of Poughkeepsie, hav- 
ing been appointed by President Taylor. He 
was the chairman of the boundary commission 
that established the line between New York 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



7? 



and Connecticut in i860, and during the Civil 
war he served as provost marshal of the Con- 
gressional district, making the first draft. In 
local affairs he always took a keen interest; he 
was a warm friend of the public-school system, 
and as a member of the board of education 
helped to introduce many reforms in the city 
schools. He was a pioneer advocate of a rail- 
road along the river from New York City to 
Albany, and wrote a series of articles in the 
interests of that project, which were published 
in a New York paper, signing himself " Civil 
Engineer." All phases of progress command- 
ed his sympathy, and he was a leader in social 
life and in religious work as a member of the 
Episcopal Church. He died June 5, 1872, 
leaving a widow, Mrs. Harriet (Bowne) Piatt, 
and five children: John I., James Bowne, 
Edmund Pendleton, Henry Barnes (now a 
resident of New York City) and Harriet 
Bowne. Mrs. Piatt, to whom he was married 
in 1836, was born in 1804. and died in 1892, 
aged eighty-eight years. She was a daughter 
of Obadiah Bowne, a well-known citizen of 
Dutchess county. 



Hon. John I. Platt, editor of the Pough- 
keepsie Eagle, is a man whose work in the de- 
velopment of this section has won for him a 
place among our leading citizens, and the fol- 
lowing history, in its brief resume of his useful 
career, furnishes an example which is well wor- 
thy of emulation. 

Mr. Platt is a native of Poughkeepsie, born 
June 29, 1839 (his father, Isaac Platt, being 
referred to in the preceding sketch). He ob- 
tained an education in the schools of his native 
place, and as a young man learned the printer's 
trade in his father's office, being advanced later 
to responsible positions in the office of publi- 
cation. On April i, 1865, he purchased Mr. 
Schram's interest, and became a partner in the 
conduct of the paper with his father, the firm 
being Isaac Platt & Son. In 1869 James B. 
Platt, another son, took an interest in the 
concern, and at the death of Isaac Platt the 
two brothers continued the business, the firm 
of Platt & Platt being founded. The Eagle is 
still published under this firm name, though in 
1893 our subject's son, Edmund Platt, became 
a member of it. The plant was moved to its 
present quarters in 1867. At the time the 
Daily Eagle was started. Mr. Platt was tele- 
graph editor, and during the war he held this 
position, taking charge of what was then the 



most important news. In 1865 he became 
manager, and since 1872 he has been the 
editor-in-chief. 

Political questions interested Mr. Platt 
from an early age, and as soon as he attained 
his majority he entered into active work as a 
supporter of Republican principles, stumping 
the county for Abraham Lincoln, and makmg 
eight or ten speeches. He is a talented speaker, 
and his services have been called into requisi- 
tion in each succeeding Presidential campaign. 
In 1865 the city of Poughkeepsie was organ- 
ized in four independent departments, causing 
great irregularities in administration, and a 
new charter being desired a committee of 
twelve was appointed to secure it. Mr. Platt, 
as a member of this body, drew up the char- 
ter as it was presented to the Legislature and 
passed. In 1895 he was among the commit- 
tee chosen to revise the charter; but as the 
amendments did not pass, it was again remod- 
eled, and in 1896 received legislative sanction. 
Mr. Platt served three years on the water 
board, being its president for the year suc- 
ceeding the completion of the works, and he 
did much to shape the action of the board on 
a business basis. In 1886, '87 and '88 he was 
a member of the State Assembly, but declined 
to run for another term. He served on the 
committee on public education, and for two 
years was chairman thereof. For three years 
he served on the committee on appropriations, 
and during his last year he was chairman of 
the committee on revision, each bill, before its 
third reading, being sent to this committee for 
correction. Mr. Platt did much effective work 
while in the legislature, serving ably and faith- 
fully his constituency and the interests of the 
State at large. From April, 1891, to April, 
1895, he was postmaster of Poughkeepsie, and 
for eleven years he was one of the board of 
managers of the Hudson River State Hospi- 
tal, having been appointed by Gov. Cornell. 

Mr. Platt is connected with several busi- 
ness enterprises. He has been a member of 
T.he Poughkeepsie Board of Trade since its or- 
ganization, has served three years as president, 
and is now vice-president. He was one of the 
incorporators of the Poughkeepsie City Rail- 
way Co. (horse-power), and was president for 
one year. His earnest advocacy of a bridge 
across the Hudson at Poughkeepsie was a 
notable service to that section, and the enter- 
prise will always reflect honor upon him as the 
original projector and active promoter. He 



GOMMEMORAriVE BIOOBAPHIVAL llECORD. 



assisted H. G. Eastman (then a member of 
the legislature) and P. P. Dickinson, in secur- 
ing the charter authorizing its erection, and 
did much to raise the money needed. Mr. 
Piatt visited Boston, Philadelphia, and other 
cities in his effort to interest capitalists and 
railroad men, and through A. L. Dennis, then 
a director of the Pennsylvania railroad, secured 
a large subscription from the directors of that 
company toward the project. The panic of 
1873 interferred with this arrangement, how- 
ever, and some time elapsed before the matter 
was revived with a promise of success. The 
American Bridge Co. undertook it, but failed 
after the work was begun, and again the enter- 
prise was halted. In 1886 a new construction 
company, composed mainly of Philadelphia 
capitalists, took hold of it and carried it to 
completion. In 1887 Mr. Piatt secured an 
extension of the charter, after a bitter struggle 
in the legislature, and then, acting upon the 
well-proven principle that "if you want a thing 
done well you should do it yourself," he started 
the construction of the connecting railroad on 
the west, making contracts and grading several 
nnles on his own responsibility, before the 
work was turned over to the company. Mr. 
Piatt is president and treasurer of the Chazy 
(N. Y.) Marble Lime Co., which manufac- 
tures about thirty-three tons of lime per day. 

The oratorical gifts which have made Mr. 
Piatt's services sought for in political cam- 
paigns are valued in other fields, and he was 
chosen to deliver an address on July 26, 1888, 
at the celebration of the centennial of the 
Ratification of the Constitution of the United 
States by the State of New York. 

On June 3, 1862, Mr. Piatt was united in 
marriage with Miss Susan ¥. Sherwood, of 
Montgomery, Orange Co., N. Y., daughter of 
Benjamin C. and Abbie A. (Strong) Sherwood. 
Seven children have brightened their home, of 
whom one died in infancy; Edmund is his fa- 
ther's partner; Eliza S. married George L. 
Hubbell, of Garden City, L. I.; Sarah S. is 
the wife of G. Arthur Hadsell, of Plainville, 
Conn. ; and Isaac, Francis W. and Edith M. 
are at home. 

Active as Mr. Piatt has been in business 
and political lines, religious and philanthropic 
work has found in him a generous helper, 
while socially he and his family hold a high 
place. For many vears he has been a member 
of the Presbyterian Church, and he was one 
of the founders of the Y. M. C. A., of Pough- 



keepsie, and served as its president for a term. 
He has been a delegate to numerous State and 
National conventions of the associations, and 
was secretary of- the international convention 
at Washington, D. C. At the State conven- 
tion held at Lockport, N. Y., he was the presi- 
dent. He was also first chairman of the State 
Executive Committee, and served in that ca- 
pacity for several years. 



Edmund P. Platt, member "of the well- 
known leading dry-goods firm of Luckey, Platt 
& Co., Poughkeepsie, and one of the successful 
and representative citizens of the county, is a 
native of Poughkeepsie, born December 2, 
1843, to Isaac and Harriet (Bowne) Platt. 

Our subject received his education at the 
Dutchess County Academy, Poughkeepsie. and 
at the age of sixteen commenced clerking for 
W. S. & W. H. Crosby, a well-known dry- 
goods firm of the city, with whom he remained 
several years, or until they sold out to J. N. & 
G. W. Candee, Mr. Platt then continuing with 
the latter, in the same store, until 1869. On 
March 22, of that year, he formed a partner- 
ship with C. P. Luckey, under the firm name 
of Luckey & Platt, which later was changed 
to Luckey, Platt & Co., by the association of 
S. L. De Garmo into the business. In 1896 
Mr. Luckey died, and Messrs. Platt and De- 
Garmo purchased the deceased's interest, still, 
however, retaining the old firm name The 
business, which was coiiiparatively small at 
first, has steadily grown until it is to-day the 
largest in the county, in the dry-goods line. 
The premises at first occupied by the store were 
at No. 328 Main street, whence, in August, 
1874, it was removed to the present site No. 
332 Main street; since occupying which, the 
firm have found it necessary to enlarge the 
store from time to time, as business increased, 
the last addition being made in 1890, and it 
now occupies the entire building, Nos. 332, 
334 and 336 Main street. 

In 1870 Edmund P. Platt was united in 
marriage with Miss Mary Emily Bartlett, 
daughter of Charles and Emily (Vedder) Bart- 
lett. of Poughkeepsie. Mr. Bartlett being the 
founder and owner of the Poughkeepsie Colle- 
giate School on College Hill, which has since 
been merged into Riverview Academy. To 
Mr. and Mrs. Platt have been born four chil- 
dren, to wit: Emily, Miriam, Howard and 
AUetta. Mr. and Mrs. Platt are members of 
the First Presbyterian Church of Poughkeep- 





W^'^-.^z^^^^ C^ .^^Z^^i^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



sie, in which he is an elder, and of the Sunday- 
school of which he has been superintendent for 
eighteen years; has also held several other 
offices in connection with the Church and Sun- 
day-school in the count}' and State. In the 
Young Men's Christian Association he has been 
very active, holding office as president, treas- 
urer or director for more than twenty )-ears. 
For the past eighteen years Mr. Piatt has been 
the chairman of the New York State Executive 
Committee of the Young Men's Christian As- 
sociation. He is also actively engaged as an 
officer or director in many missionary and be- 
nevolent enterprises both at home and in for- 
eign lands. He is one of the trustees of the 
new " Rescue Mission" of Poughkeepsie, and 
chairman of its executive and building commit- 
tees. In his political preferences he has al- 
ways been a stanch Republican, and at the 
same time is an earnest advocate of the Tem- 
perance cause. 

All in all, Mr. Piatt has proved himself to 
be one of the most useful men in the commu- 
nity, being assisted in all his works of philan- 
thropy by his amiable wife, who is also very 
active in works of charity. Personally, Mr. 
Piatt is a gentleman of sterling integrity, inter- 
ested in everything that is for the good of the 
community and the best interests of mankind. 
His friendships are of that lasting nature which 
close only with the final summons. 



JOHN CALHOUN OTIS, M. D.. is without 
doubt one of the best known and most suc- 
cessful physicians of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, and to any one familiar with the high 
character of the fraternity in that city this will 
at once convey an idea of merit far beyond the 
ordinar}'. 

Dr. Otis is a native of Dutchess county, 
having been bornin the town of Stanford, Jan- 
uary 4, 1847. He is descended from an old 
English family, and from James Otis, of Bos- 
ton, a noted personage in the early days. The 
Doctor's grandfather, Henry Otis, was born in 
Massachusetts, and passed the greater portion 
of his active business life as a contractor in 
Boston, where he died in 18 12. He had two 
sons and seven daughters, none of whom are 
now living. 

Hon. John H. Otis, our subject's father, 
was born in 1809 at New Brunswick. N. J., 
where the family resided for a short time. He 
learned the carriage maker's trade, and at eight- 



een years of age went to Charleston, S. C, to 
engage in business in the firm of Otis & Rou- 
lane. In 1846 he disposed of his interest and 
came to Dutchess county, where he purchased 
about 700 acres of land in the town of Stan- 
ford, three miles from Bangall. This he sold 
in 1855, and then moved to Poughkeepsie, 
where for some tim>e he was interested with E. 
B. Osborne in the Telegraph, now merged into 
the NezL's Press. For many years he was a di- 
rector of the Merchants Bank, and at the time 
of his death was the oldest member of the 
board. He was a man of strong character and 
positive views, an Old-line Democrat m poli- 
tics, and an active participant in the movements 
of his time. During the Nullification troubles 
of 1832 he was a member of a company of 
"Northern Volunteers " in Charleston, S. C. , 
and he served in Florida during the Seminole 
war. as a sergeant under Andrew Jackson. 
When the Civil war broke out, he supported 
the Union cause, and raised the first company 
of soldiers sent from Dutchess county — Com- 
pany E, 30th N. Y. V. I. He had expected 
to go to the front as their captain, but gave 
way to Capt Harrison Holliday, who was killed 
in the service. This regiment saw some hard 
fighting, and made an honorable record. Later 
Mr. Otis was offered the colonelcy of the 150th 
Reg. N. Y. V. I., but declined it; he went to 
the front, however, in 1863 as captain of Com- 
pany K, 1 6th Heavy Artillery, their first en- 
gagement being at Yorktown. His health 
failed after about nine months' service in the 
field, and he returned home. 

As a citizen he possessed great popularit}' 
and influence. While in the town of Stanford 
he served seven terms as supervisor, and dur- 
ing the war he once came within seven votes 
of being elected mayor of Poughkeepsie, then 
a Republican stronghold. For several years 
he served on the board of health and the board 
of education, and in 1852-3 he was elected to 
the State Senate, but after one term of two 
years he declined a re-nomination on account 
of ill health. He was an active member of 
St. Paul's Church, and for twenty years held 
the office of vestryman. In 1842, while on a 
visit to the North for the summer, he met and 
married Miss Ann B. Buckman, a member 
of a prominent family of Dutchess county, 
daughter of Seneca Buckman, and granddaugh- 
ter of Dr. Amasa Buckman, of the town of 
Stanford, a graduate of Oxford University, En- 
gland. She died in Poughkeepsie, in i860, at 



j^^ 



COJtMBJtOXJirirE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



■ -seven, from pneumonia, leav- 

jn: , i> Man-, wife of Dr. \V. 

K. Case, of Pouj;hkeepsie. and {^2) Dr. J. C 
Otis, of this sketch. T' ' r passed away 

in July, 1SS7. aged sevi , : year?. 

Dr. John C. Otis was about eight years old 
when bus parents moved to Poughkeepsie, 
where, in the Dutchess Academv. and in John 
R. Leslies^ 

quired. Ir. ^ - . - 

quartemiasters ,nt at Milwaukee, Wis. 

For a t •- - -^ ;he University of Ver- 

mont. ; be besran his profes- 

H,iris • , Dr. Case. 

" >. he vvji ,___.:._ from the 
New York HomeopathJc College, and in June 



at 



-It tne 



- -- - ,-- :-. - ...---V . i ques- 

tioa of a location, and after six months at 
Er{r " - . 






etv. and for a number of year&he was surgeon 
of the old Twentj-first Militia, which was dis- 
banded when the Nineteenth Separate Com- 
pany was organized. Notwithstanding his 
activity in professional lines he is connected 
with several business enterprises, and is the 
president of the Delamater Carriage Company 
of Poughkeepsie. a director of the Farmers & 
::urers Bank, and a trustee of the 
, ..epsie Cemetery- .Association. Politic- 
ally, he is a Democrat: for ten years past he 
has 5er*"ed as a member of the board of health, 
and for seven years was vice-president of that 
body. ~^ . he is connected with the 

Amrita :chess Clubs, the K. of P., 

and sev .dcian.- orders. He is a lead- 

ing . c Church, in which he 

is a - jne of the trustees of 

St- Barnabas Fund, disbursing the income of 
the fund in behalf of the committee. 



later Dr. Otises: 



CHARLES E. BOW"NE, a leading mer- 
_ chant of Poughkeepsie, and fonoder of the 
■ - - - --— - C. E. Bowne Jc Sod. is a 

r ?? the prominent families 



i alone et: 



- -;a 

wben be asked 



tars oc-- 

- . - _-. . .-5cn now ..- 

t5~.t he has tnade hK facc3e a: 



ing. Long Island. 



seei meir lonaces 
NewYc-> ~ ---' 



and hucratire bcsness^ £¥. OtES has a general while G 



Marr. t 



:;. -^y serzlers at Flosh- 
His grandfather. Gershom 
^ about the 
: the old he 

-.e settling m 

. — - : - tester coeat}-. 

- the town of Fishkill, 

■ Bowne. 

dnldrrai: 

Gersbom. Samael and James. 

— : - r - - ; farher. 

-.i nassed 



^-s *»^i:: 



iTiIaad. Ha- He -aras a leader in his Iccalitv. hoidine n:anr 



irt. m wfecse hoccr Harts \ ulsse was at Bcinj 



2=s Co.. X- Y. He Eiar- 



Dr. Otis as a asejEber of the 



:l; rem 



-Id 



rei'jotts Co Ene New Yors Scate Medtcai Soo- anc at -r^e i£e ot seTen ccrr 



to 



(. 



# 



% 

* 




i - 







COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



81 



Poughkeepsie to live with his uncle, James 
Bowne, who was then a member of the firm of 
Conklin & Bowne, dealers in merchandise. 
After acquiring a good education in the schools 
of the city, and in a boarding school at Whites- 
boro, near Utica, from which he was graduated 
in 1832, Mr. Bowne entered his uncle's store 
as a clerk, and there remained sometime after 
the change in the firm to Bowne & Trow- 
bridge. In order to perfect his knowledge of 
the business, he went to New York and served 
two years in the wholesale house of T. B. & 
J. Odell, No. 207 Pearl street. In 1844, at 
the strong solicitation of the firm, he returned 
to Poughkeepsie and became his uncle's part- 
ner, Mr. Trowbridge retiring. The partner- 
ship then formed under the name of J. Bowne 
& Co. lasted thirty-five years, when the senior 
member withdrew, and Mr. Bowne continued 
the business under his own name. About five 
years ago the firm became Bowne, Valentine 
& Bowne, the last named being Frederick 
Bowne, a son of our subject. Mr. Valentine 
has since retired from the business, and Mr. 
Bowne intends to give less of his personal at- 
tention to it in the future, as a stroke of par- 
alysis, in the spring of 1895, warned him to 
release himself from care, although his recov- 
ery has been rapid. Fortunately the business 
is in capable hands, his son being a worthy 
successor. Mr. Bowne has been in business 
on Main street for more than fifty years, and 
has seen many changes, his early associates 
and competitors there having all passed away, 
their places being filled by another generation. 
On December 23, 1846, at Staten Island, 
Mr. Bowne married Miss Mary Haggerty, and 
of this union five children were born: Emma, 
who married J. A. Piatt, of Providence, R. I.; 
Charles S., a prominent druggist at Pough- 
keepsie; Henry Haggerty, a leading attorney 
at Jacksonville, Fla. ; Frank, a commercial 
traveler; and Frederick, junior member of the 
firm of C. E. Bowne & Son. On February 
27, 1896, the mother of this family passed 
from earth at the age of sixty-six years, after 
almost half a century of married life. 



FREDERICK BOWNE, junior member of 
JT' the firm of C. E. Bowne & Son, of Pough- 
keepsie, and one of the most capable and en- 
terprising young business men of Dutchess 
county, was born in the city of Poughkeepsie, 
April 14, 1862. 

6 



He was educated in his native place, and 
after graduating from the high school he took 
a responsible position in the office of a large 
jewelry factory at Providence, R. I. , where 
he remained three years. In 1887 he re- 
turned to Poughkeepsie and entered his father's 
store as clerk, in 1890 becoming a partner. 
Owing to the ill health of his father, the busi- 
ness has devolved mainly upon him of late, 
and his prudent and energetic management 
gives promise of the continued success of this 
long-established house. It is the only store 
in the city which is devoted strictly to the 
carpet business, and the firm is in advance of 
all competitors in that line, holding the bulk 
of the trade. 

Mr. Bowne is an ardent supporter of the 
doctrines of the Republican party, and is a 
leader among the younger men in his locality. 
In social life he holds a prominent place, is a 
member of the Order of Elks, Knights of 
Pythias, and was one of the founders of the 
Poughkeepsie Bicycle Club, of which he is now 
president. 



CVASPER L. ODELL, a prominent attorney 
Jj of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, and a 
representative of an ancient and honored fam- 
ily, was born in the town of Beekman, Dutch- 
ess Co., N. Y., December i6, 1850. 

Mr. Odell 's genealogical tree affords an in- 
teresting study, the line reaching back to 
Saluart, father of the first Count of Flanders. 
The family name is variously spelled in the old 
records — Odell, Woodhull, Wodhull, etc. His 
descent may be traced by two lines to Edward 
II of England, and also reaches back to Alfred 
the Great, and to Charles the Bold of France, 
and the family was related by marriage to 
William the Conquerer, and to Catherine Parr, 
Queen of Henry VIII. The biography of 
Joseph E. Odell, a brother of our subject, 
contains additional information as to the re- 
mote history, which, it is alleged, dates back to 
Priam, King of Troy. The following record, 
dating back to 795 A. D. is correct beyond 
question, being founded upon documentary 
evidence: 

Generation I — Saluart, who married Mac- 
larne Eringarde. II — Prince Dijon, first Count 
of Flanders. Ill — Lideric Le Buc, founder 
of the family of Foresters. IV — Ingleram. 
V — Baldwin I, called Audacer and Bras le Fer, 



82 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD 



who married Judith, daughter of Charles the 
Bold, of France. VI— Baldwin II. the Bold, 
married Aelfthry, daughter of Alfred, King of 
England. VII — Arnulf, who married Adelia, 
daughter of the Count of Vermandois. VIII — 
Baldwin I\'. IX — Baldwin V, Le Debonair. 
XI — Walter Flandrensis, the last Count and 
the first Wodhull or Odell. XII— Simon De- 
Wodhull, who married Sibill. XIII— Walter 
de Wodhull, who married Koesia. XIV — Wal- 
ter de Wodhull. XV. — Saher Wodhull, who 
married Joan or Alice W'helton. XVI — Wal- 
ter de Wodhull, who married Helewyse Senes- 
challe. XVII — John de Wodhull, Baron, who 
married Agnes Pinkeney. XVIII — Thomas 
de \\'odhull. Baron, who married Hawise de 
Praers. XIX — John de Wodhull, Baron, who 
married Isabella . XX — Nicholas Wod- 
hull, Baron, who married Margaret Fo.xcote. 
XXI — Thomas Wodhull. Baron, who married 
Elizabeth Chetwood. X.XII — Thomas Wod- 
hull, Baron, who married Isabella Trussell, 
daughter of Sir William Trussell. XXIII — 
John Wodhull, Baron, whose wife was Joan, 
daughter of Henry Eastwell. XXIV — Fulk 
Wodhull, Baron, who married knn Newen- 
ham. XXV — Nicholas W^odhull, Baron, sheriff 
of Northumberland county, who married Eliz- 
abeth Parr, daughter of Baron \\'illiam Parr 
of Horton. XXVI— Fulk Wodhull of Then- 
ford, whose wife was Alice Colles of Leigh. 
XXVII— Nicholas W^odhull of Thenford, who 
married Barbara Hobby of Hales. XXVIII — 
William Odell, born at Odell, near London, 
who emigrated to America, and in 1639 was at 
Concord, Mass. He removed to Fairfield, 
Conn., about 1644, where his will, disposing 
of ^^447, was probated June 12, 1676. He had 
three children: William. John and Rebecca 
(Mrs. Samuel Moorehouse). 

XXIX— William Odell, who was born about 
1634, and died about 1700, was one of the 
first settlers at Rye, N. Y., where he owned a 
large estate. In 1681 he appears on the Fair- 
field records as owning 362 acres there, and in 
1684 he deeded some land at Rye to a "son 
Samuel living in the same county." Another 
deed appears in 1697, ^s resident of Rye, and 
October 2, 1668, he signed a petition there as 
William W^oodhull. Savage mentions him as 
"William, of Greenwich, Conn., in 1681. 
aged forty-seven." He married a daughter of 
Richard Voles, of Fairfield, a freeholder and 
representative in the Colonial government in 
1665-68-69. The}" had eight children: John, 



Samuel, Isaac, Jonathan, Michael, Hachalia, 
Stephen and Sarah. 

XXX — Isaac, of Eastchester, N. Y.. signed 
the oath of allegiance to King William at 
White Plains, in 1699. He married Anne 
Tompkins, and she joined in a deed of lands at 
Rye in 1705. They had three children: Will- 
iam, Tompkins and Joshua. 

XXXI — Joshua married Sarah Jones, and 
had three children: Joshua, Joseph and John. 
XXXII — Joshua married Mary \'incent. and 
had nine children: John, Joseph, Abraham, 
Daniel, James, Joshua, Sarah, Abigail and 
Isaac. XXXIII — John, of Dutchess county, 
was born January 5, 1762, and died January 
26, 1853. He married Esther Crawford, and 
had eight children: Peter, Daniel, James, 
Elizabeth, Abigail, Charlotte. William and 
Ann. XXXIV — Daniel was born in Clinton 
township. Dutchess county, April 15, 1805, 
and died October 22, 1875. He was a farmer; 
he married Malinda LeRoy, and had four chil- 
dren : Eliphalet P. , of Rowland ; John D. , of Salt 
Point; Joseph E., of Poughkeepsie, and Cas- 
per L., our subject. 

The thirty-fifth generation of this remark- 
able family are all worthy representatives, in- 
telligent, progressive and prosperous. Casper 
L. Odell attended during boyhood the public 
schools of Hyde Park, where the family moved 
when he was only five years old. He entered 
Union College at Schenectady, but while in 
the sophomore year his father died, and he 
was obliged to leave his studies and solve in a 
practical way the problem of self-support. For 
a year he was a clerk in the law office of Smith 
and Jackson, at Schenectady, N. Y. , and the 
next year taught school at Scotia. In 1876 
he came to Poughkeepsie and studied law with 
J. S. Van Cleef and William M. Lee, and was 
admitted in 1879. For some time he con- 
tinued with Mr. Lee, and then clerked in the 
county clerk's office under William A. Fanning 
and Wilson B. Sheldon. He is an influential 
worker in the Republican party, and has never 
been defeated at an election. He was chosen 
supervisor of the Third ward in 18 — , serving 
two terms, justice of the peace in 18S6, and 
city recorder in November, 1894. In 1885 he 
opened an office and began the practice of his 
profession, in which he has been unusually 
successful. 

On December 16, 1879. he was married, 
at Lawyersville, Schoharie county, to Katha- 
rine T. Davis, born December 16, 1854, daugh- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



S3 



ter of Rev. William P. Davis. Their children, 
the thirty-sixth generation of the ancient line, 
are LeRoy L. , born October 6, 1880; Joseph 
D., May 22, 1882; Lawrence C. , January 31, 
1885; Ralph M., December 31, 1887; Free- 
man Dewitt, March 11, 1890; and William D., 
March 22, 1893. 

Mr. Odell is a member of the K. of P., 
Poughkeepsie Lodge No. 43, and of the F. & 
A. M., Triune Lodge No. 782, Poughkeepsie 
Chapter No. 172, R. A. M.. King Solomon's 
Council No. 31, R. & S. M., Poughkeepsie 
Commandery No. 43, K. T., Mecca Temple 
No. I, A. A. O. N. M. S., and Poughkeepsie 
Lodge B. P. O. E. 



IE LLISON BUTTS, a well-known member 
.M^L of the Dutchess County Bar, is especially 
distinguished for his knowledge and skill in 
real-estate law and the different questions in- 
volved in trusts. He is descended from one of 
the old pioneer families of New England. The 
first American ancestor, Thomas Butts, came 
from Norfolk, England, May 18, 1660, and 
settled at Little Compton, R. I., which was 
then a part of the Plymouth Colony. He mar- 
ried, and had three sons and one daughter. 
One of the sons, Moses, who was born July 

30, 1673, married, and had seven children, 
among whom was a son John, born August 

31, 1707. 

John Butts married Alice Wodell, October 
26, 1727, and with his family came to Dutch- 
ess county, locating on the " Little Nine Part- 
ners Patent," in the town of Washington, 
where he purchased a farm of 200 acres from 
Isaac Thorn. The original deed, dated Octo- 
ber 4, 1748, is now in the possession of J. De- 
Witt Butts, of Rochester, N. Y. John Butts 
died about 1797, leaving a large estate, which 
was distributed in accordance with his Will, 
probated in the office of the Surrogate of 
Dutchess County, July 25, 1797. He had nine 
children, of whom one, Moses, had died about 
1780, leaving two 3'oung children, Daniel and 
Hannah. Daniel Butts, our subject's great- 
grandfather, was born in 1768, and died in 
1817. He married Isabella Gardner, and about 
179- moved to a farm in the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county, where he built a large and 
substantial mansion, which is still standing. 
Daniel and Isabella Butts had eleven children, 
the eldest being Moses (our subject's grand- 
father), who was born December 16, 1786, 



and, like most of this family, passed his life 
in agricultural pursuits. He was married, 
March 22. 1806, to Mary Waltermire, of the 
town of Stanford, and his death occurred in 
the same township, June 4, 1851. He had 
eight children: David W., William, Hiram, 
Angeline, Daniel, Walter, Alfred, and George 
F., the father of our subject. 

The late George F. Butts was born De- 
cember 13, 1823, in the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county, and had his home throughout 
his life near Cold Spring, in that town. On 
December 16, 1851, he married his first wife, 
Eliza D. Case, by whom he had three sons: 
Allison, our subject, born October 2, 1852; 
Charles H., horn February 5, 1855, now mar- 
ried and living on the old homestead; and 
Elias N., born August 10, 1865, now in the 
Department of the Interior at Washington, 
D. C. By a second wife, Cornelia Ailing, 
there were no children; she is still living at the 
homestead, where the father died, September 
3, 1893. 

Allison Butts spent his boyhood upon the 
farm occupied by his father. He was edu- 
cated in the common schools and academies of 
Dutchess county, and at twenty began teach- 
ing, but continued for a short time only. On 
January i, 1874, he came to Poughkeepsie as 
a clerk for Andrew C. Warren, then county 
clerk, and soon afterward was appointed dep- 
uty county clerk, which office he held through 
both Republican and Democratic administra- 
tions, until January i, 1881, when he re- 
signed. He had in the meantime read law and 
been admitted to the bar, and the large circle 
of friends gained during his long term in the 
county clerk's office made his entrance upon 
his chosen profession a most promising ven- 
ture. He immediately began a general prac- 
tice at Poughkeepsie, and has been intimately 
associated with the law firm of Hackett & 
Williams, occupying offices in connection with 
them. His business is an extensive one, trusts 
and real-estate practice being now the leading 
features. He is often appointed by the courts 
to administer trusts, and has frequently served 
as executor and attorney for large estates. 
While he has conducted many important cases, 
his office practice comprises the larger portion 
of his work, and in his specialties he is recog- 
nized as an authority by his fellow lawyers as 
well as the laity. 

His genial manners make him popular with 
all classes. In municipal affairs he is active 



84' 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPnWAL RECORD. 



and influential. Politically, he is a stanch 
Democrat. He served two terms as police 
commissioner of the city of Poughkeepsie, and 
from 1887 to 1890 was a member of the board 
of education. In Julj% 1S90, he was appointed 
by the board of managers of the Hudson River 
State Hospital to the office of treasurer of that 
institution, which office he now holds, and he 
has discharged the duties with characteristic 
fidelity. 

Mr. Butts was married Uecember 14, 1876, 
to his first wife, Miss Phebe D. Mosher, of the 
town of Stanford, Dutchess county. She died 
December 15, 1882, leaving one son, Ralph 
F., born April 6, 1878, who is now a student 
in the Sophomore class at Harvard College. 
Mr. l:5utts' second wife. Miss Arrie E. Mosher, 
to whom he was married September 16, 1S85, 
was cousin to his first. There are three chil- 
dren by this union: Norman C, born August 
8, 1888; Allison, Jr., born April 26, 1890, and 
Wilbur Kingsley, born September 7, 1895. 
Mr. Butts resides in a handsome home on 
Academy street, Poughkeepsie, erected in 1895. 



JUDGE D. W. GUERNSEY, for twelve 
years past the judge of the County Court 

of Dutchess County, is one of the most 
distinguished members of the legal fraternity 
in this locality. He is descended from an old 
and honored pioneer family, one of the early 
settlers being John Guernsey, his great-great- 
grandfather, who was born in 1709 in Con- 
necticut, either at New Milford or Woodbury. 
He had a son, John Guernsey (2), born in 
.\menia in October, 1734, who had a son, 
Ezekial H. Guernsey, born in the same town 
.\pril 19, 1775, who had a son, Stephen G. 
Guernsey, the Judge's father, who was born 
September 8, 1798, in the town of Stanford.' 

Judge D. W. Guernsey entered upon his 
earthly career March 27, 1834, in the town of 
Stanford, and his early education was obtained 
in the district schools of that neighborhood, 
with one year at Rose Hill Academy at New- 
burg, under Rev. Baynard R. Hall. On 
leaving school, at the age of seventeen, he 
taught for two years in Dutchess county, and 
then began the study of law with George W. 
Houghton, of Buffalo, N. Y. , who was a judge 
in the superior court, and a member of the 
legal firm of Houghton & Clark. The choice 
of Buffalo as the place for study was influenced 
by the fact that many relatives lived there, 



and a cousin. Guernsey Sackett, was also 
pursuing a course in law. In March, 1S56, 
our subject passed his examination, was ad- 
mitted to the bar, and in 1857 he and his 
cousin went to Leavenworth, Kans. , and en- 
gaged in practice. At that time Gen. Sher- 
man and Gen. Ewing were practicing law 
there. The Kansas-Nebraska bill was an ex- 
ceedingly live issue, and as the Judge was a 
Democrat he met with opposition from many 
people, but, notwithstanding, he had a good 
business, consisting mainly of cases before the 
land commissioners, involving questions of 
title. He argued cases before E. O. Perrin, 
Shannon and Matthews, of the Interior De- 
partment. As the time drew near when the 
opposing forces of the Union appealed to arms 
to settle their differences, the place became 
uncomfortable for a man of the Judge's polit- 
ical views, so in January, 1861, he returned 
east. During that year he was managing 
clerk for Ira O. Miller, of New York City, 
and in the spring of 1862 he enlisted as a 
private in Company D, 47th N. Y. V. I., 
which was recruited in Stanford and Pine 
Plains. The 47th made a part of the loth and 
later the i8th Corps, and was assigned to the 
army of the James. The Judge took part in 
many engagements, and was at the seige of 
Fort W^agner, at Morris Island under Gilmore, 
the seige of Petersburg, and the mine explo- 
sion. Drurj''s Bluff, Chapin's farm, Chester 
Station, Cold Harbor, Florida, Fort Fisher, 
Wilmington, Bentonville, and Raleigh, serv- 
ing until mustered out "at Washington. At 
Cold Harbor, his corps, the i8th, lost three 
thousand men in two hours. The Judge was 
promoted to the rank of commissary-sergeant. 
Col. Allen giving him his commission, and 
later was made second lieutenant, his com- 
mission being given by Col. Fenton, then pro- 
moted to first liestenant, and finally to cap- 
tain. Gov. Seymour being the giver of the last 
commission. 

On his return in 1S65, Judge Guernsey be- 
gan the practice of his profession at Pough- 
keepsie as a general practitioner, and has con- 
tinued it successfully ever since. In November, 
1893. he was elected judge of the county court 
for six years, and in 1889 was re-elected for 
another term. Some time ago he was ap- 
pointed by the supreme court to act as com- 
missioner for the City of New York, in the 
matter of the appraisement of the value of 
lands taken by that city. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



85 



The Judge has always maintained his home 
in the town of Stanford. In June, 1S70, he 
was married to Miss Emily Millard, daughter 
of Seneca Millard, a well-known resident of 
Dutchess county, and they have an interesting 
family of seven children: Eleanor G., at 
home; William, a student at Wesleyan Uni- 
versity; Lydia, studying at Vassar College; and 
Daniel W. , Millard, H. Newport and Ruth are 
all at home. In matters of religion the family 
incline to the Baptist faith. 

Judge Guernsey has shown his public spirit 
in many ways, being always ready to encourage 
a forward movement. He is a member of the 
F. & A. M., of Poughkeepsie, and also belongs 
to the Sons of Temperance, Division No. 9. 



T^^FILLIAM A. BLISS, M. D., who was 
jUmI for many years a leading physician and 
surgeon in Brooklyn, N. Y. , is now living in 
well-earned leisure at his beautiful country 
seat on Spy Hill, near Fishkill-on-Hudson, 
Dutchess county, his residence commanding a 
charming view of the river with the bay and 
the city of Newburg. 

The Doctor is a descendant of a family 
which has long been distinguished for nobility 
of character and devotion to principle, and is 
of the tenth generation in direct descent from 
one of the heroic Non-conformists of England 
who upheld their faith in the face of the 
fiercest persecution. His genealogy is of great 
interest, his earliest known ancestor being 
Thomas Bliss, of Belstone parish, Devonshire, 
England. It is recorded of him that he was 
a wealthy land owner, and belonged to the 
class which was stigmatized as Puritans, on 
account of the purity and simplicity of their 
forms of worship. He was persecuted by the 
civil and religious authorities under the direc- 
tion of Archbishop Laud, and was maltreated, 
impoverished, imprisoned, and finally ruined 
in health (as well as in finances) by the many 
indignities and hardships forced upon him by 
the intolerant Church party in power. He 
was born about 1550 or 1560, and died about 
1635 or 1640. 

Second Generation: Jonathan Bliss, son 
of Thomas Bliss, was born at Belstone about 
1575 or 1580, and like his father he was 
doomed to bitter persecution on account of his 
non-conformity and opposition to the iniqui- 
tous practices that had assumed control not 
only of the government, but also of the con- 



sciences of the people; he was subjected to 
heavy fines, much ill-treatment, and a long 
imprisonment, during which he contracted a 
fever from which he never recovered. His 
death occurred about 1635 or 1636. He mar- 
ried, but his wife's name is not known. 

Third Geueralion: Thomas Bliss, of Re- 
hoboth, Mass., son of Jonathan, was born at 
Belstone, England, and on the death of his 
father in 1636, he emigrated to America, land- 
ing at Boston, whence he removed to Brain- 
tree, Mass., thence to Hartford, Conn., and 
from there back to Weymouth, near Braintree, 
from which place he removed in 1643 with 
many others, and commenced a new settle- 
ment, which they called Rehoboth. He died 
there in June, 1649. 

Fourth Generation: Jonathan Bliss, son 
of Thomas and Mistress Ide (or Hyde), was 
born in England about 1625, was married about 
1648 to Miriam Harmon, and died about the 
beginning of the year 1687. He followed the 
occupation of a blacksmith at Rehoboth. 

Fiftli Generation: Samuel, of Rehoboth, 
Mass. (son of Jonathan Bliss and Miriam Har- 
mon of Rehoboth), was born at Rehoboth June 
24, 1660, and married April 15, 1686, to Mary 
Kendrick, who died February 8, 1705-6. He 
died August 28, 1720. They had nine children. 

Sixth Generation : Abraham Bliss, son of 
Samuel and Mary Bliss, was born October 28, 
1697, at Rehoboth, and on July 11, 1728, 
married Sarah Ormsbee, of the same place. 
He died in 1787. Twelve children- were born 
of this marriage. 

Seventh Generation: Abraham Bliss, Jr., 
our subject's great-grandfather, was born April 
10, 1735, in Rehoboth, Mass., and was a lieu- 
tenant in the Revolutionary army. He mar- 
ried Miss Polly Scudder, and had four children: 
Abraham, John, Samuel, Polly. 

Eighth Generation: Samuel Bliss, of 
Schodack, N. Y. , farmer, son of Abraham 
Bliss, Jr., and Polly Scudder, was born in 
Schodack, August 19, 1771, and died Decem- 
ber 14, 1846. He married Elizabeth Pem- 
broke, who was born in Schodack August '26, 
1774, and died there April 16, 1852 or '53. 
They had ten children: Polly, .Rebecca, 
Abraham, Betsey and Anna (twins), Sandford, 
John S., Sally, Clarissa and Christina. 

Ni)itli Generation: John S. Bliss, of 
Sand Lake, Rennselaer Co., N. Y., son of 
Samuel Bliss and Elizabeth Pembroke, and 
father of our subject, was born in Schodack, 



86 



COMilEMORATrVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



N. Y. , May 3, 1809. He was married Janu- 
ary II, 1 83 1 , to Polly Hunt, born at Sand Lake 
January 11, 18 10; she died at Sand Lake Jan- 
uary 8, 1863. He was a farmer at Sand Lake, 
and died at North Nassau. N. Y., September 

'5. "S/S- 

In the Tiiitli Generation of this line there 
were six children: (i) William Anson, born 
at Schodack March 14, 1833, died May 15, 
1835; [2\ Sophronia F. , born in Schodack I'eb- 
ruary 17, 1836, died July 17, 1880; (3) La- 
rissa C, born in Summit, N. Y. , March 26, 
1838, was married March 17, 1869, to George 
G. Merrifield, a farmer at Nassau, N. Y. , who 
died August 24, 1895; (4) William A., our 
subject, was born at Nassau May 5, 1841; (5) 
Mary Frances, born at the same town May 21, 
1846, died April 20, 1895 (she was married 
September 14, 1874, to Edward T. Norton, of 
Greenbush, N. Y., a timekeeper on the B. Jc 
A. R.). (6) Solon P., born at Sand Lake Sep- 
tember 7, 1849, was graduated from Albany 
Medical College in 1873, and after spending 
two years at Tung-Chou, near Ghee Foo, 
China, as a medical missionary, returned to 
this country, took up his practice at No. 646 
Herkimer street, Brooklyn, N. Y., and died 
here July 24, 1896. He never married. 

William A. Bliss was educated at Sand 
Lake, attending the common schools for some 
years, and later taking a full course at the 
Sand Lake .Academy. He then entered Al- 
bany Medical College, and while there he had 
the good fortune to secure a position in the 
office of Dr. Alden March, in his day the 
greatest surgeon of northern New York. On 
graduating, in 1866, the Doctor began his pro- 
fessional career in Brooklyn, and continued 
for twenty-eight years, building up a large 
practice, from which he retired in 1892, re- 
moving to Matteavvan, and two years later he 
built his present residence, which can hardly 
be surpassed for beauty of situation. His 
wife, to whom he was married March 28, 1866, 
was formerly Miss Jennie Jaques, of Albany, 
N. Y. She was born in the village of Nassau, 
N. Y., June 3, 1848, daughter of Edward and 
Emily (Lewis) Jaques, and she is now the 
only surviving member of her immediate 
family, as are the Doctor and his sister Larissa 
and her daughter (Frances) the only surviving 
members of their immediate family. In poli- 
tics Dr. Bliss is a Republican, but his arduous 
professional labors have prevented him from 
taking an active part in public affairs. 



Genealog}- of Mrs. Jennie Jaques Bliss, be- 
ginning with Henry V2i\\\\x\%{First Generation), 
said to have been an officer in the British army. 
He had a grant of five thousand acres of land 
in Philadelphia, Penn.. from William Penn 
before he emigrated to America. He was 
about having a patent of Pawling's purchase, 
now Staatsburgh, Dutchess Co., N. Y., when 
he died. This patent was afterward made to 
his widow and children. He settled in Ulster 
county, and died in Marbletown about 1692, 
leaving a widow and seven children living, one 
other having died. His will dated January 26, 
1 69 1 (1692 new style), and proved March 26, 
1695. His widow was living as late as 1745. 
Henry Pawling married, in Kingston, N. Y. , 
Neeltje Roosa, daughter of Albert Heymanse 
Roosa. Children: |ane, married Jan Con, 
Kingston; Wyntie, married John Brodhead; 
John, baptized 168 1; James, baptized 1683, 
died young; Albert, married Catherine Beek- 
man, widow of John Rutsen, and died in 1745; 
Anne, baptized 1687, married Tjerck DeWitt, 
Kingston; Henry, married Jacomyntie Kunst; 
Mary, baptized 1692. married Thomas \'an- 
Keuren. Marbletown. 

Second Generation : Henry Pawling, Jr., 
lived in Ulster county, N. Y. . until about 1720. 
when he removed to Philadelphia, Penn., to 
lands granted to his late father. His brother 
John also removed to the same place. Henry 
Pawling, Jr., married, in Kingston, Jacomyn- 
tie, daughter of Cornelius Barents Kunst and 
Jacomyntie Sleight. They had children bap- 
tized in Kingston: Henry, 1714; Sara, 1716; 
Elizabeth, 1719; and others born in Pennsyl- 
vania, as follows: Levi, afterward of Marble- 
town, colonel in the army of the Revolution; 
John (Major), afterward of Staatsburgh; and 
doubtless others. 

Third Generation: Major John Pawling 
married (first") Neeltje Van Keuren (a cousin), 
daughter of Thonjas \'an I\euren and Mary 
Pawling. Children: Henry, baptized Novem- 
ber 30, 1755; Cornelius, baptized January 27, 
1758; John, baptized October 24. 1760; Mary, 
baptized November 11, 1764. Major Pawling 
married (second) Maria, daughter of Jacob 
Van Deusen and .\lida Ostrander. Children: 
Levi married (first) Gertrude Knickerbocker, 
(second) Hannah Griffin; Jesse married Leah 
Radcliff; Jacob married Martha Russell; Elea- 
nor married Peter Brown; Rachel married 
Christopher Hughes; .Alida married Peter Os- 
trom; Elizabeth married William Stouten- 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



87 



burgh ; Jacomyntie married Wait Jaques (grand- 
father of Mrs. Jennie J. Bliss); Catharine mar- 
ried Jacob ConkHn; and Rebecca married Fred- 
erick S. Uhl. 

" Major John Pawling was an offtcer in the 
French and Indian war, also in the Revolu- 
tionary war, and was a leading man in his day. 
His- remains lie in the cemetery of the Re- 
formed Dutch Church in the village of Rhine- 
beck, N. Y. " [From Smith's History.] "In 
1 76 1 he built the stone house on the post road, 
now owned by the heirs of Edwin Berg. It 
bears the inscription of J. P. N. P. July '4, 
1761. He took an active part in the Revolu- 
tion and was personally acquainted with Wash- 
ington and many of the prominent men of the 
time." [From History of Rhinebeck.] This 
stone house is on the post road between Staats- 
burgh and Rhinebeck, still standing in nearly 
its original condition, beautifully located with 
tine river views. This was Jemima Pawling's 
(grandmother of Mrs. Jennie J. Bliss) birth- 
place. 

"Levi Pawling, brother of Major John 
Pawling, was a delegate from Marbletown, Ul- 
ster county, to the provincial convention held 
in the City of New York, April 20, 1775, to 
elect delegates to the Second Continental Con- 
gress of the Colonies, and on October 25, 
1/75' was commissioned colonel of the Third 
Regiment of Ulster county militia, which had 
an e.xcellent record in the war. His son. Col. 
Albert Pawling, born in Dutchess county in 
1749, was the first mayor of Troy, and first 
sheriff of Rennselaer county. He died No- 
vember 10, 1837, and was buried in Mount 
Ida Cemetery, near the banks of the Poesten- 
kill." [Here follows the inscription on the 
monument]: 

Albert Pawling joined the Revolutionary army as 
second lieutenant June, 1775; in 1776 he received the 
commission of brigade major, and in 1779 that of lieu- 
tenant-colonel. He took a conspicuous part in the assault 
on Quebec, at the taking of St. John's, at the Battle of 
White Plains and Monmouth. He was the first sheriff of 
Rensselaer county, and the first mayor of the city of Troy. 
In 1831 he united himself to the Second Presbyterian 
Church, laid his honors at the feet of Jesus, gave up his 
earthly in hope of an heavenly inheritance. Col. Albert 
Pawlmg died November 10, 1837, aged eighty-seven years. 

Fourth Generation: Jacomyntie (Jemima) 
Pawling (grandmother of Mrs. Jennie J. Bliss), 
daughter of Major John Pawling and Maria 
Van Deusen Pawling, was born in Staatsburgh, 
Dutchess Co., N. Y., March 12, 1782, and 
died at Nassau, Rensselaer Co., N. Y., March 
22, 1867. She married December 18, 1803, 



Wait Jaques, a farmer, born at Groton, New 
London Co., Conn., April 27, 1762, and died 
at Nassau, November 27, 1857. He was of 
Huguenot descent. They lived in Rhinebeck, 
Dutchess county, many years, where four chil- 
dren were born to them: William, born De- 
cember 4, 1804, died October 26, 1871; Ed- 
ward, born December 12, 1809, died Novem- 
ber 4, 181 1 ; Edward (father of Mrs. Jennie 
J. Bliss), born June 12, 1813, died February 
19, 1886; Janet Montgomery, born November 
9, 1817, died February 27, 1839. 

Fiftli Genfration: Edward Jaques, son of 
Wait Jaques and Jacomyntie (Jemima) Pawl- 
ing, was born in Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, 
N. Y. , June 12, 181 3. He was married Jan- 
uary 2, 1840, to Emily Lewis, born September 
22, 1820, in Schodack, N. Y., daughter of 
Jacob Lewis (who was of Holland descent) 
and Abigail Hughson. For some twenty years 
he was a merchant in Nassau, N. Y. , and ten 
years in Albany, N. Y. , passing his later years 
in Brooklyn, N. Y., where he died February 
19, 1886, and his wife on June 21, 1888. They 
had five children: Janet Montgomery, born 
October 4, 1840, died October 30, 1861; Ed- 
ward Pawling, born September 10, 1842, died 
May 9, 1873; Irving Phillip, born March 6, 
1844, died July 2, 1S63; Jennie (wife of Dr. 
W. A. Bliss), born June 3, 1848; and Willie 
Wait, born February 8, i860, died January 
18, 1869. 

Sixth Generation: Edward Pawling Jaques, 
first lieutenant of Company E, 169th Regiment 
N. Y. V. I., served through the Rebellion, 
was wounded and captured May 10, 1864, in 
the battle at Chester Station, near Richmond, 
and confined in Libby Prison a short time. 
After the close of the war he settled in Albany, 
N. Y., and married, February 28, 1867, Laura 
D. Bingham, daughter of Anson and Laura 
McClellan Bingham. She died November 15, 
1867, and he died May 9, 1873. Irving Phillip 
Jaques (brother of Edward) was sergeant-major 
in the iiith Regiment, N. Y. V. I., and was 
killed July 2, 1863, at Gettysburg. 



URTON GILBERT (deceased) was born 

in Warren, Conn., in 1S02, and received 

his education there. The Gilberts were of 
English stock, and Ezra, the grandfather, was 
one of the earliest settlers of Warren. Capt. 
Samuel Gilbert, the subject's father, was a 
manufacturer of iron, but failed in business 



88 



GOMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



when his son was a mere boy, leaving him 
penniless. 

Thrown upon the world at the early age of 
sixteen, with every discouraging influence 
around him, our subject soon manifested those 
traits of industry, perseverance, and true 
Yankee pluck, which attracted the attention 
of business men, convincing them that he had 
within him the promise of a future. He made 
himself wanted, which is the first element of 
success in a young .man. From the humble 
position of a boy, hired into a merchant's 
family to do common chores, he soon found 
himself behind the counter as clerk; and ere 
long the height of his ambition was realized, 
as he often remarked in after life, when he 
caught the first sight of the sign over the store 
door of " Hartwell & Gilbert." He continued 
in the mercantile business almost uninterrupt- 
edly to the close of life, carrying to the end 
that Same energy, industry and decision of 
character so early manifested in the boy. He 
died in 1882, aged eighty years. A short 
sketch, written by a friend shortly after his 
death, illustrates his life and character: 

"The death of Mr. Gilbert removes one 
of the most familiar landmarks, known to our 
citizens. For more than half a centur}' he 
had been engaged in active business, and pur- 
sued it with untiring energ}', and with marked 
success. Few men in business life have ap- 
parently loved their vocation more than he, or 
left a more honorable record of a busy and act- 
ive career. He was of genial temperament, 
and always had a pleasant and cordial greet- 
ing to extend to all his friends. For these he 
will long be affectionately remembered in this 
and other communities. He had a wide circle 
of acquaintances, extending over western Con- 
necticut, Hartford county, etc. He was also 
well-known to many merchants in New York, 
and distinguished for his high commercial 
standing and credit. He cheerfully bore his 
share of taxation for civil and religious pur- 
poses. He was a member of the Congrega- 
tional Church of Warren, and was its principal 
supporter. He was three times married: In 
1833 he married Maria Carter, of Warren. 
Their daughter Maria (now deceased) married 
Frederick Whittlesey, of New Britain, Conn. 
His second wife was Maria Stone, of New 
Preston, Conn. They had four children: 
Two are now living — Laura, who married 
George S. Humphrey, of New Preston, Conn., 
and Lester H. Gilbert, who now lives in Colo- 



rado. In 1848 he married Thalia M. Miles, 
of New Milford, Conn., whose ancestors were 
prominent among the original settlers of that 
town. Their daughter Emma married Henry 
R. Hoyt, of Poughkeepsie, New York. 

''This brief sketch of the life of this, in 
many ways remarkable, man, if more extended, 
might give many an object lesson for the 
young men of the present day." 



W ARON INNIS. Prominent among the 
.^L, business men of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, stands this gentleman, whose entire 
life has been closely identified with the history 
of the city, while his name is inseparably con- 
nected with its financial records. For many 
years he was president of the city railroads, 
and president of the City Bank of Pough- 
keepsie for a number of years. He is pos- 
sessed of keen discrimination and sound judg- 
ment, and his executive ability and excellent 
management brought to these concerns a high 
degree of success. 

Mr. Innis comes of a family that has long 
been prominent in the affairs of the city of 
Poughkeepsie. The original ancestor, James 
Innis, a native of Scotland, was brought to 
America in 1737, by his mother and sisters, 
who located at Little Britain, Orange Co. , 
N. Y., where he was educated by George and 
James Clinton. He married Miss Sybil Ross, 
of Morristown, N. J., and they became resi- 
dents of Newburg, Orange county, in 1780. 
Ten children were born to them: James, who 
during the Revolutionary war participated in 
the battle of Monmouth, and died unmarried; 
Jane, who became the wife of William Irwin, 
and removed to Ohio; Keziah, who married 
James Owen; Mrs. L3'dia Hanmore; Peter, 
who died unmarried; Benjamin, who wedded 
Margaret Denton; Elsie, wife of Thomas 
Aldrich; Aaron, tlfe grandfather of our subject; 
Sarah, who became the wife of Anthony Pres- 
lor; and \^^illiam, who married Eliza Warring. 
Grandfather Innis was a native of Orange 
county, where he followed farming, and by his 
marriage with Martha Smith, he had a large 
family of children, among whom was Aaron. 
Aaron Innis, the father of our subject, was 
born in Ulster county, N. Y. , and was united 
in marriage with Miss Martha Smith, daugh- 
ter of Eliphalet Smith (who was of English 
extraction), and a leading farmer of Ulster 
county. After their marriage this worthy 




v7rC\Airw ^^Maaa^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL BECORD. 



89 



couple located at Poughkeepsie, where Mr. 
Innis engaged in the freighting business, run- 
ning at first a sloop from there to New York 
City, and later a steamboat named "Em- 
erald." He continued this business up to the 
time of his death in 1838. Politically he cast 
his ballot in support of the Whig party, and in 
religious faith both he and his wife were faith- 
ful members of the Reformed Dutch Church. 

Aaron Innis, whose name introduces this 
sketch, was born in Poughkeepsie, January 
23, 1834, and he is the youngest in a family of 
eight children. In the public schools of that 
city he began his education, and was grad- 
uated at College Hill, on the completion of 
the course. He entered upon his business 
career as general manager of the firm of Gif- 
ford, Sherman & Co., owners of a large dye- 
wood factory, and is still connected with that 
business, which has proved very profitable. 

On May 15, 1856, Mr. Innis was united in 
marriage with Miss Catherine Reynolds, a 
sister of William T. Reynolds, of Pough- 
keepsie, and to them were born four children: 
William R., connected with Studebaker & 
Co., of New York City, where he makes his 
home, and also has an interest in the dye- 
wood business of Poughkeepsie; Catherine, 
the wife of John F. O'Rourke, a civil engineer, 
of New York City; Adele, married to Edmund 
Piatt, a son of the Hon. John I. Piatt; and 
Caroline, who died at the age of si.\ years. 

The several business concerns which have 
been under the management of Mr. Innis at- 
test his eminent and pronounced ability as a 
financier, and he is equally prominent in so- 
cial life. Whether in public or private life his 
integrity is above question, and his honor 
above reproach. Poughkeepsie owes much to 
him and numbers him among her valued citi- 
zens, and he is one of the leading Freemasons 
in the city. He is an earnest supporter of the 
Republican party, and has been a member of 
the board of supervisors; for the past nine 
years he has been a member of the board of 
health of the city of Poughkeepsie; became 
the vice-president under the administration of 
Mas^or Arnold, and reappointed vice-president 
under Mayor Hull. 



QEORGE W. CHASE, the able and popu- 
lar cashier of the National Bank of Pawl- 
ing, Dutchess county, has been in continuous 
service in that institution for thirty-eight years, 



a record probably unequalled by any contem- 
poraneous bank officer in the county. His 
well-proven ability and integrity, and his untir- 
ing devotion to any work to which he applies 
himself, have received the ample recognition 
of his fellow townsm.en who have many times 
shown their confidence and esteem by choos- 
ing him for some of the most important posi- 
tions in their gift, both in business and political 
life. 

The Chase family is of English origin, and 
the founder of the branch of which our subject 
is an honored member, was Isaac Chase, who 
settled at Cape Cod at an early period. His 
son Obadiah had eleven children, who settled 
chiefly in New York State, where many of 
their descendants still live. The eldest son, 
Isaac, lived in Tompkins county; Alvin in 
Dutchess county; Elmer and Ezra in Tomp- 
kins county; John and Jesse in Westchester 
county; Daniel went to Michigan; Hulday 
married Edmond Hopkins, and lived in Tomp- 
kins county; Lydia married Judah Baker, of 
the same county; Mary married Absalom Col- 
well, and settled in Rensselaer county; and 
Catherine married Absalom Caldwell, also of 
Rensselaer county. 

Alvin Chase, our subject's grandfather, was 
born in 1778, and by his first wife, Ruth Cole, 
he had twelve children: Cyrus, a merchant at 
Croton Falls; Naomi, who married a Mr. 
Beardsley, of Kent, Conn. ; Darius, our sub- 
ject's father; Susan, the wife of Joseph Smith, 
of Carmel, Putnam county; Lyman, who was 
a farmer in Iowa, where he reared a large 
family, of whom some were bankers and some 
ministers, and all held prominent position in 
the community; Sarah, the wife of Daniel 
Brown, of Republic, Ohio; Henry, who lived 
in Erie county, Ohio, near Castalia; Hiram, 
who settled in Garden Grove, Iowa, and left 
descendant there; Cynthia, the wife of Gilbert 
Knapp, a wealthy and prominent citizen of 
Erie county, Ohio, residing near Castalia; 
Mary, the wife of Stephen Hawley, of Con- 
necticut; Frank, a farmer of Erie county, Ohio; 
and John, a farmer of Kent, Conn., where his 
son is a successful merchant. For his second 
wife Alvin Chase wedded Martha Dingee. by 
whom he had three children: Alvin, a hotel 
keeper of Patterson and Brewster, N. Y. ; Han- 
nah, who married Moses Peck, a farmer of 
Patterson, N. Y. ; and Elmer, a farmer of the 
town of Pawling. 

Darius Chase, the father of our subject. 



90 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



was born November i, 1807, and during his 
early years was a farmer, first in Putnam 
county, and later in the town of Pawling, 
Dutchess county, where he settled in 1841. 
In 1853 he entered the employ of the Harlem 
Railroad Company, as station agent at Paw- 
ling, and held the position some twenty-seven 
years, when he resigned on account of ill 
health. He is still living, and in spite of his 
eighty-nine years is in the full possession of 
his faculties. He has always been one of the 
substantial citizens of the town, and a success- 
ful business man, being noted for his good 
judgment. In politics he has been a steadfast 
Democrat, and he has held the offices of town 
clerk, collector of taxes, and commissioner of 
highways. At one time he was a captain in 
the State militia, and by this well-earned title 
he is still addressed by his old friends. In 
early manhood he was married to Miss Phoebe 
Smith, who after many years of wedded life 
passed away in 1892, in her eighty-first year. 
Her father. Judge Edward Smith, was one of 
the leading citizens of Putnam county in his 
day, a judge of the county court, and a mem- 
ber of the State Assembly. Our subject is 
one of seven children: Clara, the eldest; 
Emily, who married Egbert M. Toffey, of 
Pawling; Ruth; Susan, the wife of Squire R. 
Barrett, formerly of Sing Sing, later of New 
York City; Elizabeth, who married Jerry S. 
Pearce, sheriff of Dutchess county; and 
Adelaide, who married James S. Pearce. 

George W. Chase was born in the town of 
Kent, Putnam county, July i, 1840, and re- 
ceived his education in the district schools of 
Pawling, Dutchess county, these somewhat 
limited advantages giving him a foundation for 
his subsequent reading by which he has ac- 
cjuired for himself a wide range of knowledge. 
At the age of fifteen he engaged in clerking, 
and spent about three years in this work with 
Orwin Theall and J. W. Stark. His prompt- 
ness and close application to business attracted 
the attention of J. W. Bowdish, then cashier 
of the National Bank of Pawling, and he se- 
cured him a position in the bank as messenger, 
office boy and assistant bookkeeper. At this 
time the institution, which was organized in 
1849, was a State bank, with Albert J. Akin 
as its president. In 1865 it became a National 
bank, and in the same year Mr. Chase was 
appointed assistant cashier, his election to the 
office of cashier following in 1872. He is in- 
terested in many other enterprises, being 



treasurer of the Eastern Building and Loan 
Association; treasurer of the Harlem V'alley 
Agricultural Association; secretary and treas- 
urer of the Pawling Cemetery Association; sec- 
retary, treasurer and director of the Mizzentop 
Hotel Co. ; treasurer of the Akin Hall Library 
Association; vice-president of the Pawling & 
Beekman Turnpike Co. ; one of the original 
incorporators of the Pawling Savings Bank; 
and president of the Society for the Detection 
of Horse Thieves. He has always been a firm 
Republican, and has taken much interest in 
town and county politics. In 1882 he was 
appointed county treasurer by the board of su- 
pervisors, in place of Seneca V. Halloway, and 
in the fall of the same year was elected to the 
office, receiving all but fifteen votes in his 
own town. He was the only Republican can- 
didate elected that year, and his popularity 
was again demonstrated by his re-election in 
1885. He is a member of Dover Lodge, F. 
& A. M., and of the Baptist Church, of which 
he is treasurer. In 1885, he was married to 
Miss Emma M. Chapman, a daughter of Rich- 
ard Chapman, a prominent resident of Paw- 
ling, and they have had three children: Cor- 
nelia T., George W. and Theodore F. , the 
latter of whom died at about the age of seven 
months. 



Jl0k. 



LEAN BARRINGER HENDRICKS, the 
efficient bookkeeper of the First Na- 
tional Bank of Red Hook, Dutchess county, 
is a descendant of one of the leading families 
of this region. Lawrence Hendricks, his great- 
grandfather, came from Rhinebeck to settle 
upon a farm in Red Hook, in 1802, bringing 
with him a family of four children: Samuel 
H., Jacob L. , Johannes and Elizabeth. 

Jacob L. Hendricks, our subject's grand- 
father, was born ,May 13, 1773, and followed 
farming as an occupation. He married Miss 
Anna Moore, a native of Red Hook, born May 
4, 1770, and reared a family of four children, 
whose names with dates of birth are as fol- 
lows: Lawrence Edmund, July 12, 1809; 
Magdalene, October 19, 181 i; Jeremiah, No- 
vember 2, 1813; and Philip, January 29, 1816. 
The mother of this family died April 17, 1825, 
the father on May 24, same year. 

Jeremiah Hendricks, our subject's father, 
attended the district schools of his day, and 
for a time was employed in a store as clerk. 
In I 83 I he engaged in the manufacture of to- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



91 



bacco in partnership with Albert Near, the 
firm changing later to Hendricks & Wells, then 
to J. Hendricks & Co., then to J. & P. Hend- 
ricks & Co., the members at that time being 
Jeremiah and Philip Hendricks, and R. L. 
Massoneau. He was also the owner of a flour- 
mill at Red Hook, and was interested in vari- 
ous other lines of business. He was married 
July 1 8, 1837, to Miss Eliza C. Barringer, of 
Red Hook, b}' whom he had three children: 
Allan B., born November 11, i839;Hattie E., 
August 24, 1 841 ; and Robert J., July 27, 1843. 
After many years as a successful manufacturer, 
Jeremiah Hendricks retired to spend his last 
days in leisure, and died May 30, 1875; his 
widow is still living. 

Allan B. Hendricks availed himself of the 
educational advantages of his native place, and 
later attended the Charlotteville Seminary. 
After leaving school he entered his father's 
mill as bookkeeper, but left this position in 
1 86 1, to engage in the freighting business at 
Barrytown. Six years later he and his brother 
Robert took charge of the flouring-mill at Red 
Hook, the partnership lasting one year, after 
which he continued in the business alone until 
1880. After a short period of leisure Mr. 
Hendricks was tendered the position of book- 
keeper in the First National Bank, which he 
accepted, and has filled same with marked 
ability, commanding the entire confidence and 
esteem of the stockholders and the public gen- 
erally. 

On June i, 1864, Mr. Hendricks married 
Miss Anna Rodgers, of Albany, and has had 
four children: (i) Louise Rodgers, born July 
3, 1865, was married October 8, 1890, to 
Frank B. Shook, and has one child Eleanor 
Varnum Shook, born July 21, 1891. (2) 
Laurence Hutton, born June 8, 1867, was 
married September 21, 1889, to Miss Jennie 
H. Wilson, and has two children: Marian Wil- 
son Hendricks, born July 19, 1893, and Lau- 
rence Hutton Hendricks, Jr., March 16, 1897. 
(3j Anna R. and (4) Allan B. (twins), born 
January 28, 1874, are still at home. Mr. 
Hendricks has been superintendent of St. 
Paul's Lutheran Sabbath-school continuously 
for thirty years. 



MEHEMIAH HALSTED (deceased). As 
a merchant in Clinton Corners and Stan- 
ford ville, Dutchess county, during nearly a 
quarter of a century, the subject of this sketch 



became well known and highly esteemed 
throughout that section, and although his later 
years were spent in retirement, his death, 
which occurred March 20, 1873, caused sin- 
cere grief and a keen sense of loss among a 
wide circle of acquaintances. 

He was a native of the town of Clinton, 
Dutchess county, and his father, Richard Hal- 
sted, a member of the Society of Friends, 
and who was born in Dutchess county, of Eng- 
lish ancestry, followed farming in the town of 
Clinton all his life. He married Hannah Grif- 
fin, and reared a family of nine children: 
Benjamm, Stephen, Richard, Joseph, Jona- 
than, Nehemiah, Mary, Anna and Hannah. 

Mr. Halsted grew to manhood at his fa- 
ther's farm, and in 1836 was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Julia Sharpsteen, a native of 
the town of Washington, and a descendant of 
an old Dutch family, the name having been 
originally Von Sharpstein. The early genera- 
tions of her family were Presbyterians in re- 
ligion. Her grandfather, Peter Sharpsteen, 
was a farmer in the town of Washington and 
was probably born there. Her father, Will- 
iam Sharpsteen, was born, resided and died 
in that town. He married Sarah Lawrence, 
a native of Long Island, whose father, an 
Englishman, was a descendant of Sir Robert 
Laurens (now spelled Lawrence), of Lanca- 
shire, England, who accompanied Richard 
Cour de Lion in his expedition to Palestine. 
In the siege of St. Jean d' Acre, in 1 191, he 
was the first to plant the Banner of the Cross 
on the battlements of the town, for which he 
received the honor of Knighthood from King 
Richard; also, at the same time, the coat of 
arms. In the year 1635 William Lawrence 
came over in the ship "Planter," under the 
care of Gov. Clark, appointed, by the Queen, 
Governor of Long Island. The Lawrences in- 
termarried with the Washingtons, and the 
coat of arms may be seen at Mount Vernon. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. William 
Sharpsteen located in the town of Washing- 
ton, where he carried on a store for many 
years; but in later life he retired to a farm in 
the same town. In politics he was a Repub- 
lican, for years he was justice of the peace, 
and town supervisor, and was justly regarded 
as a representative citizen. He died in 1878, 
aged ninety-three years. He had six children: 
Clark Lavv'rence was a member of the firm 
of Arold & Constable, in New York City, and 
lived abroad, in Paris; George G. was a dealer 



92 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in trotting horses in the town of Washington; 
James and William H. were in business in the 
South; Julia, married Mr. Halsted; and Debo- 
rah married Louis Hutchens. 

Mr. and Mrs. Halsted began their married 
life at Clinton Corners, where Mr. Halsted 
conducted a store for about three years, when 
he moved to Stanfordville and carried on his 
business some twenty years. He then retired 
to a small farm in the town of Washington, 
to pass his remaining days. His wife and 
seven children survive him. Virginia married 
Isaac W. Sherrill, a well-known resident of 
Poughkeepsie; Ella, Ida and Belle are at home; 
Irving is a farmer in the town of Clinton; Wil- 
lis is an express agent in New York City; and 
Frank conducts the "Dutchess Restaurant" 
at Poughkeepsie. Mr. Halsted always took an 
ardent interest in the success of the Republican 
party, and was ready to encourage any worthy 
enterprise in his locality. In religious faith he 
^vas a Quaker, and his quiet, unassuming man- 
ners and upright life gave a consistent and 
effective illustration of the doctrines which he 
cherished. 



HEZEKIAH ROGERS COFFIN, one of 
the oldest pioneers of Dutchess county, 

was born in Mechanic, town of Washington, 
April 23, 1807. He remained on his father's 
farm (with the exception of one year, which he 
spent with Samuel Thorne) until his marriage 
March 22, 1832, to Miss Myra Barlow, who 
was born in the town of Amenia, October 29, 
1811. 

In 1833 Mr. and Mrs. Coffin moved to a 
farm situated where the county house now 
stands, where they remained one year, and 
then came to their present farm, sixty-four 
years ago, and where both are still living, 
sound in mind and body and capable of enjoy- 
ing life to the fullest extent. The following 
children were born to them: Robert, who is 
engaged in business at Brooklyn; Lucy, who 
became the wife of Newton B. Holbrook, 
formerly a merchant of the town of Wash- 
ington, but now deceased; Cora, who married 
Homer Fitch, a farmer in Washington town; 
Magdalene, unmarried; Zaide, who died at the 
age of seventeen, and Lilian, deceased at the 
age of eight. 

Mr. Coffin has a farm of 135 acres, and 
still does general farming. He has always 
been a Democrat, voting in 1828 for Jackson, 



and ever since regularly supporting the ticket 
of his party. He takes an active interest in 
politics, and has been justice of the peace for 
thirty years, but resigned the office when he 
reached the age of seventy years. He has 
been called to sit on the bench at Poughkeep- 
sie many times, and has often been appointed 
foreman of the grand jury. Although past 
eighty-eight years he talks, acts and thinks like 
a patriot, and stands like a sturdy oak in the 
forest of humanit)'. He well remembers the 
transportation of the cannon, and the men 
marching through the town on their way to 
defend the New York harbor against the Brit- 
ish in 1 81 2. The younger generation looks 
up to him with wonder and admiration. Our 
subject has contributed to the local paper (Mill- 
brook A' t^;/«</ Table) articles on the reminiscen- 
ces of early days, which were highly appreci- 
ated. His wife has been a faithful, loving 
helpmate through many years of joys and 
sorrows. 

Robert Coffin, father of our subject, was 
born at Little Rest, town of Washington, Oc- 
tober 2, 1778, and died November 28, 1842. 
He was apprenticed to James Willitts to learn 
the tanner's and shoemaker's trade, and after 
serving his time, he, with his brother-in-law, 
Peter Kipp, bought out the business, which 
they continued in partnership for a year, when 
our subject bought out Peter, and kept at it 
alone until 1814. He then bought a farm of 
180 acres, and lived there until his death. 
He married Miss Magdaline Bentley. a grand- 
daughter of Col. James Van Deberg, of Beek- 
man, with whom Washington and LaFayette 
often stopped. She was born in the town of 
Beekman December 26, 1782, and died August 
30, 1866. Her father was Taber Bentley, a 
farmer in the town of Beekman. To our sub- 
ject's parents were born the following children: 
Jane Ann, who married Caleb Morgan, a mer- 
chant of Poughkeepsie; Alexander H. was a 
farmer and merchant in Union vale; Hezekiah 
R. is our subject; Charleswas a farmer in Union- 
vale; Sarah became the wife of Henry M. 
Swift, also a farmer of Unionvale; Eliza mar- 
ried George B. Caldwell, a merchant; Owen 
T. was surrogate of Westchester county for 
many years, and now lives in Peekskill; he is a 
graduate of Union College; George is in the 
real-estate business in California; Henry was a 
farmer and a railroad man, and owned much 
property (he is deceased); Robert G. is a 
farmer at South Millbrook. Mr. Coffin was a 





Vy^ 





t Utri^^^^-^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



93 



Democrat, and represented the county in the 
Legislature. He was a prominent man, and 
settled many estates. Religiously, he was of 
the Quaker faith. 

Abishai Coffin, our subject's grandfather, 
was born in Nantucket, where he grew up, and 
later went to sea in a whaler, wintering three 
seasons in Greenland. He married Sarah 
Long, a native of Nantucket, in 1774, and 
shortly after came to Dutchess county and set- 
tled on a tract of land in the town of Wash- 
ington. Their children were: Sarah married 
Peter Kipp, a farmer living near Hudson; 
Tristram owned a farm of about 300 acres in 
the town of Washington; Lois died unmarried; 
Robert was the father of our subject; Jeme- 
miah married John Rider, a farmer in Ulster 
county. Mr. Coffin died on his farm in iStg. 
He was a Hicksite Quaker, and overseer of the 
poor. His father's name was Tristram. The 
family is of English extraction. 

Thomas Barlow, father of Mrs. Coffin, was 
born at Cape Cod, and was a son of Afoses 
Barlow, a native of the same place. Thomas 
married Miss Lucy Alerton, and the following 
children were born: Sally married a Mr. 
Crosby, of Massachusetts, and is deceased; 
Jenett also became the wife of a Mr. Crosby, 
and is deceased; Thomas is deceased; Aurelia 
married Barlow Nye, and is still living; Cath- 
erine married Edward Mills, of Connecticut, 
and is deceased; Mary became the wife of a Mr. 
Bartow, of Brooklyn, and is living; B. Frank- 
lin is a farmer in the town of Amenia. Mr. 
Barlow died in 1852, and his wife in i860. 
They were both members of the Presbyterian 
Church, and took an active interest in the 
work. 

Elisha Barlow, brother of Thomas, was 
one of those who helped to frame the consti- 
tution of the State. 



J JAMES F. GOODELL, M. D. Among 
J those who devote their time and energies 
" to the practice of medicine, and have 
gained a leading place in the ranks of the pro- 
fession is this gentleman, who is located at 
Rhinebeck, Dutchess county. He is a native 
of Rockville, Conn., born May 16, 1849, and 
traces his ancestry back to Robert Goodell, 
who was one of the Puritans from the east of 
England who settled at Salem, Mass., in 1634. 
From hitn in direct line to the Doctor is Zach- 
ariah, Thomas (i), Thomas (2), Titus, Thomas 



(3) and Francis. After his marriage to Miss 
Rhoda Grant, Titus Goodell located in New 
Hampshire, where he owned property; but 
when the colonies resolved to throw off the 
yoke of British rule he took up arms, joining 
the Continental army, and was killed at the 
battle of Stillwater. He had left his family 
with his father-in-law in Ellington, Conn., 
and as he never came back the farm descend- 
ed to his children. It became the property of 
Francis Goodell, father of our subject, and 
has now been in the family since 1776. 

The father was a man of unusual natural 
ability, and possessed a mind stored with 
results of wide reading and extensive obser- 
vation of men and affairs. He married Sophia 
Louisa Burpee, and to them were born the 
following children: William, who was a mem- 
ber of the Union army during the Civil war, 
and was killed at the battle of Gettysburg; 
Ellen, wife of Charles Ames; James F. , subject 
of this review; Edwin Burpee, a lawyer of 
New York City; Thomas Dwight, who studied 
in Athens and in the East, and is now pro- 
fessor of Greek in Yale University; and Mary 
Evelyn, wife of W. H. Trippett, of New 
Jersey. The father passed away September 
16, 1896, at a ripe old age, as he was born 
May 29, 181 3; his wife died March 4, 1897. 
In early life he voted the Whig ticket, while 
in later years he was a strong Republican; 
was public-spirited and enterprising, and one 
of the prominent citizens of his locality. A 
faithful member of the Congregational Church, 
he always took an active part in its work, 
and at the time of his death was serving as 
deacon. 

In the public schools of Rockville and 
Ellington, Conn., our subject began his liter- 
ary education, and for one year was a student 
in Cornell University. When about twenty 
years of age he began teaching, being princi- 
pal of the Union School at Unionville, Conn., 
for two years, and was successful in that line 
of work. In 1877 he matriculated at the 
New York Homeopathic Medical College, from 
which he graduated two years later, but has 
ever kept up his investigations, and is now one 
of the most able general practitioners in Dutch- 
ess county. Immediately after graduation he 
began practice in New York City, remaining 
there until 1881, when he opened an office in 
Millbrook, Dutchess county. In 1887, he 
went to Mont Clair, N. J., but in February, 
1S89, returned to Dutchess county, this time 



94 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



locatinfi at Rhinebeck, where he has since suc- 
cessfully prosecuted his profession. He has 
built up a large and lucrative practice, but has 
that true love for his work, without which 
there can be no success. 

In 1885 Dr. Goodell was married to Miss 
Fann)' Tripp, of Millbrook, Dutchess county. 
The Doctor is inclined to be independent in 
political matters, but usually votes with the 
Democrac}'. He holds membership with the 
Episcopal Church, of which he is now serving 
as warden, and wherever he goes he not only 
wins friends, but has the happy faculty of being 
able to retain them. 



FRANK ENO, a well-known and successful 
lawyer of Pine Plains, Dutchess county, 

was born in 1845, in that village, in the house 
he is now occupying. The family is of Eng- 
lish origin, and the name is sometimes spelled 
Enos. 

The first of the name to come to this 
country was James Eno (i), who, in 1648, lo- 
cated in Windsor, Conn., married Hannah 
Bidwell the same year, and had one son, 
James (2), who was born in 165 1, fought in 
the King Philip's war, and had his home in 
Windsor. He married Abigail Bissel in 1678, 
and died in the "Swamp fight," 1714. Their 
second son, William (i), wedded Mary North. 
The next couple in direct descent was William 
(2) and Lillias (Hicks) Eno, the former of 
whom was born in Simsbury, Conn., about 
1726, and inherited a valuable farm from his 
father, William ( 1). William (2) and his wife 
had a son, Stephen, who was the grandfather 
of our subject. He was born at Simsbury, 
Conn., October 4, 1764, and was the first of 
the family to come to Dutchess county, locat- 
ing at Amenia. Later he removed to Pine 
Plains, there building the office which is now 
occupied by his grandson, Frank Eno, and 
which has always been used as a law office. 
He remained at home until ten years of age, 
being taught to read by his father, and never 
attended school more than two months during 
his entire life. At that time he went to live 
with an aunt at Egremont, Mass. , where he 
remained for about five years. He had formed 
a great desire for study, and not having the 
opportunity to go to school, he taught himself, 
slowly acquiring a knowledge of arithmetic 
and writing. For a short time he worked at 
several places after leaving his aunt's, and then 



entered the army at New Haven, Conn. 
Learning the shoemaker's trade, he worked at 
that occupation at Salisbury, that State, for 
six months, and later was employed by a Mr. 
Sanders until he reached his majority. 

At that time Stephen Eno began teaching, 
while his vacations were spent in study. After 
following that profession for about six years, 
he began looking about him for some other 
employment, and began the study of law in 
the office of Philip Spencer, Jr., of Amenia, 
where he had been engaged in teaching. For 
a while he taught school and practiced law at 
the same time. After following his profession 
in the towns of Amenia, Stanford and North- 
east, Dutchess county, he purchased a house 
and lot in Pine Plains for $650, paying two- 
thirds of the amount down, and the remainder 
in one year. He was a man of fine attain- 
ments, and became one of the most able law- 
yers of his time in the county. His death oc- 
curred in Pine Plains, in 1854, at the advanced 
age of ninety years. He continued to wear 
knee trousers and his hair in a queue up to the 
time of his death. He was twice married, his 
first union, being with Mary Denton, by whom 
he had three children: Henry, who went to 
California, and there became a judge; W'illiam, 
the father of our subject, and Edward, who 
became a resident of Springfield, 111. His 
second wife bore the maiden name of Olive 
Shores, and to them was born a son, Rufus. 

On April 21, 1800, William (3) Eno was 
born, and, like his father, he was largel)' self- 
educated. In the office of the latter he studied 
law, was admitted to practice in 1823, and for 
forty years he was one of the prominent and 
leading members of the Dutchess County Bar, 
having a large and lucrative practice. In 1836 
he was elected a member of the Legislature on 
the Democratic ticket, and for two terms served 
as district attorney when the office was filled 
by appointment of the supreme court justices. 
Soon after the adoption of the constitution of 
1848 he was mentioned as judge of the su- 
preme court; but, being fond of agricultural 
pursuits, he retired, spending the remainder of 
his life at Pine Plains, within two miles of his 
landed estate. He was a contemporary of 
Henry Swift, Charles Johnson, Stephen Cleve- 
land, Seward Barcolo, Morton Swift, Elias 
Cole. R. D. Davis, John \'. A. Lyle, John 
Armstrong and D. V. N. Radcliff, and was sec- 
ond to none of them in point of ability and ex- 
tent of his practice. He was a man of great 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



s'O 



natural ability, and became exceedingly promi- 
nent throughout the county. He always sup- 
ported the Democratic party, and attended the 
Presbyterian Church. He died November 17, 
1874. He was married to Eliza A. Stewart, 
daughter of William Stewart, of Pine Plains, 
and to them were born four children: Will- 
iam Stewart, who was one of the ablest law- 
yers of Dutchess county, is now president of 
the Bunnell & Eno Investment Co., of Phila- 
delphia, Penn. ; Henry W., who died Decem- 
ber 14, 1884; Mary, now the wife of Matthew 
Ellis, who is also connected with the Bunnell 
& Eno Investment Co., Philadelphia; and 
Frank, the subject proper of this review. The 
mother's death occurred April 10, 1882. 

Frank Eno was educated at College Hill, 
under Mr. Bisbee, where he took the four- 
years' course. After leaving school he began 
the study of law in his father's office, and was 
admitted to the bar May 13, 1868, since 
which time he has successfully engaged in 
general practice in the surrogate court, and 
has had much to do in the settlement of 
estates. He has one of the finest law libraries 
in the county, accumulated through three gen- 
erations, and has ever been a thorough stu- 
dent of his profession, possessing many of the 
traits that distinguished his father and grand- 
father as sound advocates and able lawyers. 
Mr. Eno is also interested in agriculture, hav- 
ing a fine farm of between 500 and 600 acres, 
whereon he has an excellent herd of Jersey 
cattle. He had "Signal Queen" at the 
World's Fair, and took a medal in the grand 
contest for cheese. On June 15, 1881, Mr. 
Eno married Miss Rachel Rudd, daughter of 
Charles Rudd, of Gallatin, Columbia Co., 
N. Y., and of this union have been born five 
children: William Rudd, Charles, Fanny, 
Mary and Rachel. 

In political campaigns, Mr. Eno has long 
been a potent factor in the support of Demo- 
cratic principles, and during President Cleve- 
land's second term he was appointed post- 
master at Pine Plains. He has always taken 
a deep interest in educational matters, is presi- 
dent of the Seymour Smith Academy, and 
established the Pine Plains Free Library. 
With Stissing Lodge No. 615, F. & A. M., he 
holds membership, of which for fifteen years 
he has been master, and also belongs to the 
Chapter and Commandery in Poughkeepsie. 
He and his wife attend the Meth:^dist Church. 
Socially, he is deservedly popular, as he is 



affable and courteous in manner, and possesses 
the essential qualification to success in public 
life, that of making friends readily and of 
strengthening the ties of all friendships as time 
advances. 



|#/TLLIAM AUGUSTUS DAVIES (de- 
Jml ceased ) was born in Poughkeepsie, 
May 10, 1808. His great-great-grandfather, 
John Davis, of Kington Parish, Hereford, En- 
gland, was of a distinguished Welsh family de- 
riving an unbroken descent from the famous 
Cymric Efell, Lord of Elwys Eyie, who lived 
A. D. 1200, son of Madocap Meredith, Prince 
of Powys Fadoc, sixth in descent from the heir 
of Merwyn, King of Powis, third son of Rodic 
Maur. 

John Davies came to America in 1735, and 
settled in Litchfield county. Conn., where he 
purchased large tracts of land, and where his 
name is still held in honored remembrance for 
his good works, especially fot his generous 
gifts toward the support of his mother Church 
of England, then struggling for existence in the 
Colonies. He was the grandfather of Rev. 
Thomas Davies, missionary of the Society for 
the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, 
who was ordained to the priesthood by the 
Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Seeker, in Lam- 
beth Chapel August 23, 1761. The ministry 
of Rev. Thomas Davies, though brief, was ex- 
ceedingly useful. He had charge of several 
parishes in Connecticut, among them St. Mich- 
ael's Church, Litchfield, of which his grandfa- 
ther was the founder. He died in 1766 at the 
early age of twenty-nine, leaving two children 
— a son and a daughter, the former being Will- 
iam Davies, who settled in Poughkeepsie early 
in the present century. William Augustus 
Davies was the youngest of William DavieS's 
seven children, and was born in his father's 
house at the foot of Main street, where he lived 
(except during the time he was at school and 
at Trinity College, Hartford, Conn.) until 
1842. He devoted himself to the management 
of his property in Dutchess and Ulster coun- 
ties, of which he and his brother, Thomas L. 
Davies, inherited several thousand acres from 
their father; and was one of the original Board 
of Directors of the Farmers' and Manufacturers' 
National Bank of Poughkeepsie, remaining on 
the board till his death, and holding the office 
of president from 1843 until 1892. 

He was a faithful communicant of the 



96 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Church of which his grandfather was a priest, 
and for many \ears represented his parish in 
the conventions of the Diocese of New York, 
and was several times a deputy to the general 
convention as a delegate from that Diocese. 
His greatest work among his many works for 
the Church, was the building, entirely at his 
own expense, of the Church of the Holy Com- 
forter, which stands at the corner of Main 
street and Davies place, and is one of the 
younger Upjohn's best designs. In the noble 
work it has done and is still doing, it is a wor- 
thy monument of his generosity and benevo- 
lence. 

In 1842 he married Miss Sarah Van Wag- 
enen (daughter of Herbert Van Wagenen), 
who died in 1858, leaving no children. It was 
in her memory that the Church of the Holy 
Comforter was built. In 1861 he married 
Miss Frances Mary Barritt, daughter of Josiah 
Barritt. To them were born two sons, Will- 
iam and Augustus, the first of whom died in 
infancy. 

Only those who knew Mr. Davies intimately 
could fully appreciate the beauty of his char- 
acter, which was remarkable from his earliest 
childhood for the same generosity, unselfish- 
ness and simplicity which distinguished him 
through life. It can be said with truth that 
he never intentionally hurt anybody, either by 
word or deed, but was ever thoughtful and 
considerate, courteous and pitiful, honoring all 
men. He died on the sixth of August, 1896, 
in the eighty-ninth year of his age. 



BARCLAY HAVILAND, a well-known cit- 
, izen of Millbrook, Dutchess county, was 

born in the town of Dover, December 18, 
1 81 2. The first of the name to come to 
this country was either William or Benja- 
min Haxiland, who emigrated from England 
and settled on Long Island at an early day in 
the history of the Colonies. From him in 
direct descent was his son Benjamin Haviland, 
who was born on Long Island; his son, Ben- 
jamin (2), was born in 1698; his son, Isaac 
Haviland, was born in August, 1751, in West- 
chester county, N. Y. ; his son, Eleazer, was 
born May 27, 1777, in New Fairfield, Conn.; 
his son, Barclay, is the subject of this sketch. 
Benjamin Haviland, our subject's great- 
grandfather, married Charlotte Park, the 
daughter of a French Huguenot. They settled 
in Westchester county, where they owned a 



farm of 400 acres, and there reared a family 
of thirteen children. 

Isaac Haviland, our subject's grandfather, 
grew to manhood in his native county, and 
after his marriage to Anna Howland, removed 
to Fairfield county. Conn., where he owned 
and carried on a farm of 800 acres of land, 
and was well-to-do. Eleazer, the eldest of 
his five children, was married in 1798 to Abi- 
gail Hiller, daughter of Nathan Hiller, a farmer 
in the town of Dover. Like his ancestors, 
Eleazar Haviland, was a tiller of the soil, 
which occupation he followed throughout his 
life. For many years he was a minister in the 
Hicksite branch of the Society of Friends, and 
made frequent journeys to the different States 
and to Canada in that capacity, which journeys 
were made either on horseback or in a car- 
riage. He died December 27, 1863; his wife 
passed away March 4, 1848. Five children 
were born to this worthy couple, only two of 
whom lived to maturity: Isaac E., the elder 
of the two, removed to Long Island in 1828, 
and became a prominent resident of Queens 
county, where he died in 1885; our subject is 
the younger. 

Barclay Haviland grew to manhood on his 
father's farm at Chestnut Ridge, and at Me- 
chanic, town of Washington, where the family 
moved in 1826. He was educated at the Nine 
Partners Boarding School at Mechanic, and 
later at the Jacob Willets private school. On 
June II, 1S45, he was married to Susan 
Hart Tredway, daughter of Dr. Alfred Tred- 
way, of the town of Washington. They made 
their first home on the farm at Mechanic, re- 
maining in that place until 1855, when they 
purchased the homestead of Mrs. Haviland's 
grandfather, Philip Hart, at Hart's Village, 
where they have since resided. Five children 
were born to them, three of whom are living: 
Katharine A. ijiarried Dr. John C. Otis, of 
Poughkeepsie; Isaac E. is a resident of Toledo, 
Ohio; and Caroline E. resides with her 
parents. 

Mr. Haviland is a Democrat, and has been 
justice of the peace two terms. He was pres- 
ent at the meeting which organized the 
Dutchess County Agricultural Society, \\\ 1841, 
and of this society he was treasurer for a num- 
ber of years. Long one of the leading citizens 
of Dutchess county, his upright life and 
sterling qualities make him respected and es- 
teemed by all who come in contact with him. 
He is a prominent member of the Society of 




^Cc^ircJxir'u (J^GL v^ la^nAiiy 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



97 



Friends, and is always ready to assist in 
works of benevolence. 

Elijah Tredway, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Haviland, was born in Connecticut, and from 
him the genealogy is traced to Nathaniel 
Tredway, born in Sudbury, England, in 1637. 
Dr. Alfred Tredway, his son (and the father 
of Mrs. Havilandj, in his day a well-known 
physician, merchant and land owner of the 
town of Washington, was born in 1782, and 
died in 1826. He married Catherine Hart, 
who was born in what is now Millbrook, but 
at that time was known as Hart's Village, be- 
ing so named for her father, Philip Hart, who 
was then the owner of nearly all the land in 
that locality. Philip Hart was the youngest 
son of Richard Hart, and was born January 
12, 1749, in Little Compton, Rhode Island, 
and came to Dutchess county in 1767, where 
on December 18, 1774, he was married to 
Susanna Akin, daughter of Benjamin Akin. 
He was a prominent business man in his local- 
ity, being engaged in the manufacture of cloth. 
His death occurred August 31, 1837. 

Benjamin Akin came to Dutchess county, 
between 1762 and 1765, from Rhode Island; 
the family is of Scotch extraction, and his 
father, " Squire Benjamin Akin," was born in 
Scotland m 1663, became a leading citizen 
and represented his district in public matters. 
He was appointed chairman of a committee 
which was formed in 1774 to oppose English 
taxation. 



J JAMES H. DUDLEY (deceased) was a na- 
I five of Dutchess county, born in the town 
- of Stanford, July 14, 1817, and was de- 
scended from worthy New England ancestry. 
The founder of the family in America was 
William Dudley, a native of England, where 
he was married, August 24, 1636, to Jane 
Lutman, and on coming to America in the 
spring of 1639 located at Guilford, Conn., on 
a tract of 1000 acres of land, which he and 
his neighbors bought of the Indians, and which 
was divided among them. They gave the 
town the name of Guilford, and there Mr. 
Dudley followed farming. He was one of the 
prominent men of the community, and died 
there March 16, 1684. In his family were 
four children: William, Joseph, Ruth and 
Deborah. Of these, Joseph Dudley was born 
in that locality in 1643, and on reaching man's 
-estate he followed coopering in Guilford, where 



he died June 3, 17 12. He married Ann 
Robinson, and the reared a family of nine 
children, namely: Joseph, Benjamin, Calelf), 
Joshua, Miles, William, Mary, Mercy and 
Anna. 

Miles Dudley, the ne.\t in a direct line to 
our subject, was born at Guilford, Conn., 
December 17, 1676. He married Rachel 
Strong, by whom he had nine children: Miles, 
Timothy- (1), Timothy (2), Stephen, Selah, 
Beriah, Rachel, Mercy and John. The father 
of this family was a blacksmith by trade, and 
followed that occupation until his death, August 
10, 1753. His son, John Dudley, was born at 
Guilford, October 16, 1721, and there passed 
his early life. He was united in marriage with 
Tryphena Stone, and to them were born 
eleven children: Timothy (i), William (i), Try- 
phena (I), Ruth, John, Tryphena (2), William 
(2), Polly, Lois, James and Timothy (2). With 
his family the grandfather removed to Berk- 
shire county, Mass., where he purchased a 
large tract of land on the day the battle of 
Lexington was fought, and became one of the 
best farmers and most prominent citizens of 
the count\^ He died therein 1808. 

James Dudley, the father of our subject, 
was born November 19, 1772, in Guilford, 
Conn., and was a child of three years when 
taken by his parents to Massachusetts, where 
he married Miss Lydia Leete, a descendant 
of the first governor of Connecticut Colony. 
Her father was born on Leete's Island, in 
Connecticut, January 16, 1746, and wedded 
Lydia Leete, by whom he had eleven children: 
John, Lydia, Amie, Lois, Eber, Olive, Mina, 
"Orrit (i), Orrit (2), Harvey and Eli. In April, 
1793, he moved to Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , and 
in the town of Stanford, Dutchess county, 
purchased a farm, where he spent his remain- 
ing days, dying in 1822. His father, Rowland 
Leete, was born at Guilford, Conn., in 1708. 
and by his marriage with Mercy Dudley had 
eleven children: Timothy, Ruth, Anna, 
Sarah (i), John, Asahel, Hannah, Sarah (3), 
Abner, Miles and Rachel. William Leefe, 
the father of Rowland Leete, was born March 
24, 1 67 1, and by his marriage with Hannah 
Stone had seven children: Anna, Elizabeth, 
Margery, Rowland, William, Jordan and Sol- 
omon. He was a son of Andrew Leete, who 
was born in 1643, and wedded Elizabeth 
Jordan, by whom he had six children: Will- 
iam, Caleb, Samuel, Dorothy, Abigail and 
Mercy. The father of Andrew Leete was 



98 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



William Leete, who emigrated from England 
in 1639, or: the vessel on which our subject's 
paternal ancestors came to these shores. He 
was joined in wedlock with Anna Rogers, and 
to them were born nine children: John, 
Andrew, William, Caleb, Gratiana, Perigrine, 
Joshua, Anna and Abigail. Both the Leete 
and the Dudley families were members of the 
Congregational Church, and leading citizens 
in the localities where they made their homes. 

After their marriage, the parents of our 
subject remained for some time in Massachu- 
setts, but later became residents of the town 
of Stanford, Dutchess Co., N. Y. Four chil- 
<iren were born to them: Chester L. , who 
was born July 4, 1806, and became a farmer 
of Ulster county, removing to Memphis, Mich., 
in 1855, where he died June 24, 1879; George 
A. (i), who died in infancy; George A. (2), 
who was born in 18 10, and became a banker 
of Ellenville, Ulster Co., N. Y., where he 
died March 3, 1886; and James H., subject of 
this sketch. The father's death occurred Jan- 
uary 26, 1835, that of the mother on August 
22, 1842. 

On the farm, in the town of Stanford, 
James H. Dudley spent his boyhood until fif- 
teen years of age, when he went to Ulster 
county, and in 1835 he located in Poughkeep- 
sie, where for three years he worked for others 
at the carpenter's trade. He then carried on 
that business for himself until 1853, during 
which time he erected many houses which are 
still standing. In that year he began dealing 
in lumber and coal, continuing the same for 
sixteen years, at the e.xpiration of which time 
he bought the Poughkeepsie Foundry, and 
continued its operation until 18S0, when he 
laid aside business cares. 

On January 4, 1842, he married Miss Char- 
lotte Wiltsie, who was born in the town of 
Lagrange, Dutchess county. May 29, 18 19, 
and died at Poughkeepsie, September 4, 1895; 
she was of Holland extraction. Her father, 
John C. Wiltsie, was a prominent farmer and 
justice of the peace of that locality. Four 
children were born of this union, of whom, 
Guilford, a hardware merchant of Poughkeep- 
sie, is the only one now living; the others were 
Lavinia, Jeromus W. and Lydia L. 

In Mr. Dudley the Republican party found 
an earnest supporter, and he served his fellow 
citizens as supervisor for several terms, was 
alms house commissioner one term, and one of 
the original trustees of the Old Ladies Home. 



For half a century he was a member of the 
Poughkeepsie Lyceum, was actively identified 
with the Temperance cause, and was one of 
the leading and influential men of the city. 
Both he and his wife were consistent members 
of the Congregational Church, of which he 
was clerk some forty-four years, and trustee 
for many years. He was called from earth 
June 30, 1896. 



JOHN H. COTTER, M. D., a prominent 
physician of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess coun- 
ty, whose success in general practice has 
brought him speedy recognition as a profession- 
al worker, has given, with his struggle with ad- 
verse circumstances in early life, a proof of the 
truth of the old saying — ' ' Where there's a will, 
there's a way." 

He is a descendant of an old Irish family, 
and the ancient freehold known as the "Mt. 
Katharine" farm, situated in the parish of Wa- 
ter Grass Hill, County Cork, Ireland, has 
been in the possession of his forefathers con- 
tinuously for many generations, and is still 
owned and occupied by a branch of the family. 
James Cotter, the Doctor's grandfather, 
passed his life there as a farmer, and was also 
interested in a weaving-mill. He was a thrif- 
ty, prosperous man, of unassuming manners, 
never taking any part in public affairs, and like 
his ancestors and descendants was a devout 
Catholic. He and his wife reared a family of 
six sons: John, Patrick, James, William, 
Garrett and Cornelius. James came to 
America and settled in New Orleans, and 
served in the Confederate army as a member 
of the Engineer corps. 

John Cotter, our subject's father, was born 
in the old home in December, 1805, and was 
married in 1840 to Mary Haggerty, a native of 
the same county. He was a farmer by occu- 
pation, and for a short time was engaged in 
business as a miller; but in 1850 he left his 
native land owing to some trouble with the 
English government over the question of 
gathering tithes. Naturally he turned to 
America as a place of refuge, and on coming to 
this country settled in Pleasant Valley, Dutch- 
ess county, where for many years he worked 
as a farm laborer; but gradually he accumu- 
lated a fund of money which enabled him to 
purchase, in 1870, a farm in the town of Clin- 
ton, Dutchess county. His wife died there in 
1872, and there his own remaining years were 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



99 



spent, his death occurring in 1878. He was a 
member of the Roman Catholic Church of 
Rhinechff parish. He had received fair edu- 
cational advantages in youth, and in later 
years he kept well posted upon the topics of 
the day, taking especial interest in political 
questions and in the success of the Democratic 
party, although he was never an active worker 
in the organization. The Doctor was the fifth 
in a family of nine children. Of the others, 
Hannah (Mrs. Patrick Coffey), died in 1877; 
James lives at Clinton Corners; Lawrence is a 
resident of Rock City; Mary married John 
Flemming; Catherine died in infancy; William 
lives in Dover, N. J. ; Cornelius is a farmer in 
Schultzville, and Nora Frances married John 
O'Neil. 

Dr. Cotter was born in the town of Fleas- 
ant Valley, April 6, 1851, and owing to his 
father's reduced circumstances he was obliged 
to make his own way from the age of twelve 
years, when he began working for John Van- 
Wagenen, of East Park, with whom he remained 
five years, attending school in the winter and 
occasionally finding a chance to go during the 
summer term. He was employed as a farm 
hand until the age of twenty-three; but his 
great desire for knowledge, and determination 
to make the most of every opportunity, never 
failed him. In 1868 and '69 he attended 
Dutchess County Academy under Prof. Pel- 
ham, but was compelled to give up his studies 
one month before graduation, and return to 
his labors upon the farm. In 1874 he began 
his medical studies with Dr. Denny, and later 
continued them with Dr. Hoyt. After a pre- 
liminary course of reading he entered the Albany 
Medical College, a branch of Union Univer- 
sity, and his vacations were also devoted to 
study in the office of his preceptor. On Feb- 
ruary 3, 1878, his long toil was rewarded by 
the bestowal of the degree of M. D., and he 
immediately began practicing at Mt. Ross, 
Dutchess county, where he remained until Au- 
gust, 1880, when he moved to Jackson Corners 
and continued his professional work. In May, 
1894, his nephew succeeded him there, and 
he moved to Poughkeepsie, where he has built 
up a flourishing practice. 

In August, 1880, the Doctor married Miss 
Mary Smith, of Gallatin, Columbia Co. , N. Y., 
by whom he had two children: John Isaac, 
born in August, 1881, and William Henry, 
born in June, 1885, and died in August of the 
same year. The mother passed away in July, 



1885, and in February, 1888, the Doctor 
formed a second matrimonial union, this time 
with Miss Mary Frances Calvey, of Gallatin. 
They have had two children: Lawrence, born 
in September, 1891, and Mary Alice, born in 
February, 1893. The Doctor is a well-in- 
formed man on general questions as well as on 
his special line of work, and he is interested in 
politics as a firm upholder of Democratic prin- 
ciples. He was health officer for Milan and 
Gallatin for several years, and at present is 
postmaster at Jackson Corners. He is a mem- 
ber of St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church, 
and of the Catholic Benevolent League; he also 
belongs to the Order of Elks, and is a member 
of the Knights of St. George. 



C!\^RENUS P. DORLAND, surrogate of 
_' Dutchess county, and a prominent lawyer 
of Poughkeepsie, was born February 28, 1848. 
The first of the Dorland family to locate in 
Dutchess county was Enoch, of Holland de- 
scent, who came from Long Island and bought 
a farm in the town of Lagrange. He had 
four children, viz.: Gilbert Dorland, who mar- 
ried Jennie Hegeman, of Lagrange; Dorcas, 
who married George Congdon; Anna, who 
married Treadwell Townsend; and Phebe, who 
married Joseph Irish. Gilbert Dorland, who 
was the grandfather of our subject, left the fol- 
lowing children: Enoch Dorland, who belonged 
to the Society of Friends, and who for a long 
time conducted the Nine Partners School at 
Mechanic, in the town of Washington, in this 
county; Gilbert, who carried on agricultural 
pursuits in Dutchess count}'; John, a farmer 
of Columbia county; Cynthia, who married 
Nemiah Place, who for many years was post- 
master at Fishkill Landing; James, who was 
a lawyer, and who, during the greater part of 
his life, lived in the South; Adrian, who in 
early life followed farming; Dorcas, who mar- 
ried Moses Alley, an agriculturist; Abby. who 
married John Tripp, a farmer; Peter, the fa- 
ther of our subject, is next in order of birth; 
Zachariah, who was for many years a school 
teacher, and is now a commercial traveler; 
Philip, a Quaker preacher; and Phebe, who 
married John Nelson, a farmer. The father 
of this family followed farming exclusively as 
a life vocation, and in religious faith he was an 
Orthodox Friend. 

Peter Dorland, the father of our subject, 
was born at Fishkill Plains, in the year 181 5; 



100 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Avas reared upon a farm, and in his younger 
days taught school in his home neighborhood. 
He married Catherine E. Miller, who was born 
in the town of Lagrange, March 8, 1821, a 
a daughter of John and Margaret Miller, 
farming people of the same town; the former 
was of Holland lineage, and a native of West- 
chester county; the latter was a native of 
Fishkill, Dutchess county. Shortly after their 
marriage Mr. and Mrs. Peter Dorland removed 
to Matteawan, Dutchess county, and he there 
taught school for some time. He then moved 
to Poughkeepsie, where he taught school a 
short time, also studied law, and then returned 
to Matteawan, finished his studies and was 
admitted to the bar. He served several terms 
as justice of the peace of that town. In the 
fall of 1859 he was elected, by the Republican 
party, surrogate of the county, when he again 
moved back to Poughkeepsie, where he lived 
until 1890, having been honored by his party 
with the nomination and election for the third 
time. He held the office for the long term of 
fourteen years. He and his wife were earnest 
workers in the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
Six children were born to them as follows: 
Emma, who never married; Lettie M., who is 
now deceased; John M., an attorney at Pough- 
keepsie; Cyrenus P., our subject, and Myron 
and Kate, both of whom are dead. 

Cyrenus P., the fourth in order of birth of 
the family, spent his early life at Fishkill 
Landing, where he attended the district school. 
After his parents removed to Poughkeepsie he 
attended the public school some time, and 
then entered the Dutchess County Academy, 
where he pursued his studies for three years. 
At the age of seventeen he went to New York 
City, and was employed for some time in the 
wholesale cloth house of S. Hutchinson & Co.; 
then returned home and went into an office 
with his father, who was then surrogate. 

Mr. Dorland studied law, and was admit- 
ted to the bar in 1875. He has always been 
a leading Republican, and in 1879 was elected 
by that party a justice of the city, in which 
capacity he served seven years, having been 
elected the second time. In 1 886 he was nomi- 
nated and elected recorder of the city, and 
after serving his term was nominated and 
' elected surrogate of the county, serving the 
term of si.\ years. In 1896 he was again nom- 
. inated and elected by the same party, by a 
. very large majority, leading the whole ticket 
by a very handsome vote, and is at present 



holding the office. He has discharged its re- 
sponsible duties with ability and faithfulness, 
and to the satisfaction of the people, and has 
now the reputation of a man of integrity and 
high principle. 

In 1S72 Mr. Dorland was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Kate S. Cary, who was born 
in Poughkeepsie, and whose father, Gilbert 
Cary, was for many years engaged in the 
freighting business in that city. Three chil- 
dren were born to them: Leslie C, Clarence 
(deceased) and Mary W. Mr. Dorland and 
his family attended the Washington Street 
Methodist Church. He is a public-spirited 
man, and is interested in all matters pertaining 
to the public welfare. 



CAPT. JAMES E. MUNGER, a leading 
^ business man of Fishkiil-on-Hudson, 
Dutchess county, a wholesale and retail dealer 
in lumber and building materials, also well 
known as a contractor and builder, is a native 
of New York City, born January 29, 1838, the 
son of James E. and Julia A. (Albee) Munger. 
The public schools of his native city af- 
forded him excellent opportunities for an edu- 
cation, and at sixteen he began to learn the 
milling trade, at White Lake, N. Y., with 
John T. Linson. The business was not con- 
genial, but he completed his apprenticeship of 
three years, and then learned the carpenter's 
trade, and engaged in contracting and building 
on his own account at Fishkill, N. Y. With 
the exception of three years during the Civil 
war, he has followed this ever since, in con- 
nection with other enterprises. For eight 
years of the time he owned a schooner, of 
which he took charge as captain, carrying 
freight on the Hudson river, and Long Island 
Sound, and for the last twelve years he has 
been engaged in tjie lumber trade at Fishkill- 
on-Hudson, having purchased the business of 
Andrew Barnes. His office is on Main street, 
while his yard is on Elm street, in rear of the 
"Holland House," where he has a large cov- 
ered yard well stored with all kinds of builders' 
materials. 

Capt. Munger is extremely popular through- 
out this locality, where his family has long 
been well and favorably known, his father 
having been a native of Dutchess county. As 
a leading worker in the Republican party, the 
Captain has been tendered nominations for the 
best offices in the county; but he does not care 





/ 



S^-p^ — 



COMMEXOBATITE BIOGRAPHICAL EECORB. 



101 



to go I'll Ic-rZ-V iiilO pO.iLlCS. nc nSuS. nOW- 

ever. serve"" for many years as tmstee of tbe 
village :: y ^ nrsinceth-e 

of 1*9^ hi; :_ :_ -; _:p supyervisor. : 

re-elected every year: in 1896 was chosen for 
a term of t^o years, and is at present chair- 
man of the board. His war record is an hon- 
orable one. He enlisted in Angost, 1S62, in 
the 128th N- Y. V. I., and was promoted to 
the rank of commissary sergeant, and was also 
actiDg qnartermaster for eig'r- :as in 

the absence of 5. H. Mase. A zis po- 

sition would have excnsed hir ' active 

service on the field, he vo!Gntanl_> ; ._ i part in 
every battle in which his regiment engaged. 
He rose fiom a sick bed tD join in the cght at 
Port Hudson, was in the engagement at Pearl 
River, and ser\"ed all through the Red River 
campaign, while later he was in the battles of 
Winchester. Fisher's Hill and Cedar Creek 
At the latter, when the enemy had all but stir- 
roanded the Federal forces. Capt. Munger 
made a dash to secnre the commissary and 
quartermaster records: but before he cccld 
reach the tent a shell exploded, overrrrrirr 
the tent and scattering its contents 
directions. While gathering cr ; ~= -.:.t 

important papers and placing t: v- 

ersack. another shell exp a 

piece striking the straps of : ;:r ;.ad 

fearing it ont of his hand. Even at that mo^ 
ment. with the death-dealing shells flying and 
bnrsting all around him. his sei?se of humor 
did not desert him, for he : : - = com- 

rades and exclaimed. wh_i ..^. ;.::., up the 
remnants of the haversack: "Look at that, 
boys: pretty hot. aint it ? "" He was at all 
times the life of his regiment, full of fnn and 
ambition, as well as courage, and with his vio- 
lin he cheered many a despondent i~- hr^rre- 
sick comrade. He remained in the ;r: :.;:'. 
the close of the war. and was mustered out in 
July. 1S6;. He is a member of several fra- 
ternal orders: River\-iew Ledge Xo. 560, I. 
O. O. F. : MeLringale Lodge No. 504. K. of 
P.: Beacon Lodge\o. 2S5. F. JcA.M.: How- 
land Post No. 4S. G. A. R, : and is an bonor- 
ars" member of the Lewis Tompkins Hose 
Companv. 



any account of hi: 
come * : ' 

that hr _„: 

enlcsist. 

or wc. 

them, i 



JAMES HERVEY COOK, of Fisbkill-on- 
the-H'>;dson, Dntchess county, is a promi- 
nent member of the legal fraternity. He 
is one of the basi^t of men. devoted to bis 



He thoneht bv such 



"js he bad no-t 

-- _; -"T! 

a tioie a man 
these arozmd 
tiiev Ijad been 



brocght into personal n-encshics- But he 
consented to give a little ouiiine, saying Thar 
as it was the w-ish of the pcblishsrs of this en- 
ter? " - . ■ ' - brie? 

construed were be to deckne to rebate 5:ine- 
thing of the way along which be had come. 
when he had so mach to be thankft:! f or. 

He told US that be was a r ' z- 

sonbcrg. Warren Cc N. J., a : r .as 

the birthplace of Benjamin Lnndy. tbe very 
first of all the great leaders :r : :^atii:g 

the slave, of whom Horace G: .ires 3 

fnU sketch in the £:-: r.e ci nis nisiory of 

the war of the Ret e li is in th-e midst 

of a picturesqae region, there being a succes- 
sion of hills r.:' ' '-' :rd. exiecdiug from 
the AUaiEEchy ; _ a the east, to the 
Blue Mountain range, on the w^t, and in inil 
\-iew some ten miles away, is Delaware Water- 
Gap, which has been fcr a ione time a fashion- 
able resort, being scr- ; and 
charming scenery. Jc:: - '^ ;: eariy 
significance, and was known as Log GaoL be- 
ing the county seat of Sussex .' ": t745- 
and taking its name fseca the ,: hocse 
that served jail pnrposes- Snssex w^s a:\~ced 
in 1S24. and that part became the "dipper por- 
tion of Warren county, named in honor of the 
patriot who fell at Bcnker HiD. and rightly, as 
the majority in those two counties were active 
in battling for freedom in the Revolution- 
Mr ' is of Pilgrim ancesiry. His 
trreat-s: er, Elisha Cooke, migrated from 
the old to'.vs of Plymocth. in Massachusetts. 
about the vear 1745. having the dauntless 
SfHrit of those fathers of New England, locat- 
ing at Srst at Mendham. near Morxistown. 
The oldest tombstone in the old Pnesb^-terian 
churchyard there is that of Dar :e, who 
was most likely a relative. A ..::.; .iter, in 
174S, Eli^a Cooke became one of tbe nrst 
settlers around Johnsonbnrg. N. J., and pur- 
chased some £ve hundred acres of land, which 
has been largely occupied by his niimerons 
descendants. He was of sturdy intellect, in- 
flexible in the religions faith of his fathers, and 
he loved to tell of their virtoes. He was the 



102 



COMVEMORATITE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



fourth in direct descent from Francis Cooke. 
who came with Bradford and Brewster in the 
"Mayflower," and was one of that historic 
company who went with them for conscience 
sake to Holland, where he married a French 
Protestant, a Walloon, a f)eople that had suf- 
fered from so-called religious persecutions. He 
was one of the most respected members of that 
heroic band. He felled trees in their first 
vs^inter alongside of Miles Standish: his house 
was among the first seven that were built, and 
was next to that of Edward Winslow. after- 
ward Governor; as a SDr^■eyor of highways he 
was associated with Winslow and Bradford. 
It is said that he did much to advance the 
growth of the colony, and was one of the most 
thrifty of the settlers. He was on intimate 
terms with those leading families, his children 
marrying into them. One son married a daugh- 
ter of Richard Warren, as did also the father 
of the famous Capt. Church, and another son, 
in direct line with our Mr. Cook, married Da- 
maris Hopkins, whose father was the ancestor of 
Stephen Hopkins, Governor of Rhode Island. 
and a signer of the Declaration of Independ- 
ence. A daughter married a Capt. Thomi>son. 
Grandsons were with Capt. Church in the 
King Philips war. and their families, being 
connected, were brought near to him. and 
were conspicuous when the chieftain fell, one 
of them ordering the friendly Indian at his side 
to fire the fatal shot, his own flint missing fire. 
Mr. Cooks birth was in a farm home, upon 
one of the estates of his grandfather, James 
Cooke, the honored head of a large family, 
with the strict religions views of his New Eng- 
land ancestry, and who had been from the 
first establishment of the Presbrterian Church 
a revered elder. His oldest son, Frederick 
S. . the father of him whom we are sketching, 
was of an unusually good and clear under- 
standing, intelligent, of the strictest integrity, 
and could not be otherwise than religious. 
Li\"ing a quiet life, he was only known fully by 
those immediately around him. He thought 
the letter -'e "" in the Cooke name superfluous, 
and dropped its use, as others of the family 
have done. Edward Cooke, the great Eng- 
ird lawyer, was of this family, and struck out 
one • ' o " ) as we by his biographer to 

please his secc' _ :_ In the earlier days 
there was no regularity in spelling, and in that ; 
way many family names have undergone 
changes in spelling. Mr. Cooks father died in 
1867, much respected by all who knew him. 



His grave is in the family burial plot at Succa- 
sunna. N. J., in the old churchyard of the 
Presbyterian Church. Among other tombs, 
there is that of Mahlon Dickerson. who was 
Governor. United States Senator, and Secre- 
tar\- of the Navy in Jacksons administration. 

Mr. Cook speaks with great affection of his 
mother, as being a woman of ver}" superior 
mould, and as directing her children with her 
wise counsel. She was endowed with the 
finest qualities of a Christian mind and heart, 
and was always an inspiration to them. She 
died a few years ago deeply mourned. Her 
father was Gershom Bartow, a leading man in 
northwestern New Jersey, and a lineal de- 
scendant of Francois Barteau, a Huguenot, who 
came with other Huguenots to Long Island. 
Her mother was an Ogden, a name conspicu- 
ous for ability and patriotism in the annals of 
the State. A noble brother, who did patriotic 
ser\ice in the Civil war, died in 1894. Two 
sisters, who have his warm affection, are in 
the old homestead. 

Mr. Cook was taught in his home and in 
the neighboring schools in early boyhood. He 
speaks of his first teachers as being good in- 
structors, and says that he had a love for 
study. His thirst for learning led him to seek 
it in every way. and the home had often late 
study hours. During his boyhood his father 
moved to the site of Ledgewood. a mountain- 
encircled plain, near Schooleys Mountain, and 
a few miles to the southwest are the famous 
Schooleys Mountain Springs. The Morris 
canal runs along the farm, and near by is one 
of its locks, and a short distance off are two of 
the famous inclined planes. About three 
miles to the northwest is the romantic Lake 
Hopatcong, visited for its great natural beauty. 
Upon the farm is a deposit of valuable Infuso- 
rial Earth, which has attracted the attention 
of learned scientists, and is regarded as being 
in quality equal to the best German beds, in 
which he is interested. 

It was there that Mr. Cook grew to man- 
hood. The public schools were good, and 
he says that he owes much to one of those 
teachers who had a large acquaintance with 
literature, aside from instructing well in math- 
ematics and introducing them to the study of 
Latin. He was a superior elocutionist, and 
his pupils became good readers and declaimers, 
being taught to read eSectively the best liter- 
ary productions. He took great pains to have 
them practice in composition and debating. 



COMiTEMOBA TIV^ BIOGBAPSICAL BE COB I*. 



I'l^ 



and Mr. Cook says he has never known better 
readers and declaimers than there were in that 
countn.' school. Thej" were made familiar 
with the writing? of the best authors. Not in 
the neighboring academ3- did he have better 
teaching. Bnt he tells most prondlj" of his 
later Principal in the Chester Institute, Will- 
iam Rankin, as being one of the finest scholars 
he ever knew. Of rich natural endowments, 
indeed great, he was richer in his scholastic 
attainments, being a rare linguist, a scientist 
and a historian, with the Master's degree from 
Yale. He was a bom teacher, and many went 
out from his school into advanced college 
classes. There Mr. Cook read both Latin and 
Greek, and made himself familiar with the 
classic authors. He admires Virgil, Horace 
and Cicero greatly, and frequently p>ores over 
them, and studies the pages of Homer and De- 
mosthenes. That Principal was his most inti- 
mate friend, and gave him ever\- encourage- 
ment. Another close friend %vas a teacher in 
that school, who loved to argae as well as did 
Goldsmith's schoolmaster, and who became a 
leading legislator in New Hampshire. With 
him he had many friendly contentions in de- 
bate. 

Mr. Cook was early interested in politics, 
and listened with deep and even passionate 
interest to political discussions. He would go 
far and near to listen to eloquent speakers, 
and heard the foremost orators. In political 
meetings he would frequently take part in 
speaking, and would report speeches for his 
party paper, to which he was an occasional con- 
tributor. Those political contests were warm, 
just preceding the Civil war, and at the Insti- 
tute, and later, he firmly planted himself on 
the side of the old ilag. and oSered to give his 
services in the great struggle. His brother en- 
listed, and he could not go, but the whole 
family contributed largely from their means to 
give aid. .\bout that time he began reading 
law, under the direction of Jacob Vanatta. a 
leading lawyer at Morristown, an eloquent ad- 
vocate, and afterward one of New Jersey's 
ablest attorney generals. In the fall of 1S65 
he entered the Law Department of the Uni- 
versity of Alban}-, graduating in November, 
1 866. Two of those professors were Ira 
Harris, then United States Senator, and 
Amasa J. Parker, both distinguished jurists. 
Judge Parker was a stanch friend. * Among 
those classmates were a number who have 
risen to distinction. William McKinlej", now 



President, being the most widely known. Mr. 
■r : : -'- ?. member of t^~ "'--es. whicii 
any talented yc ^ ~ and was 

caosen xresident of the Saiuiuay Evemng 
Congress, a society for general debate, num- 
bering the foremost of those ambitious law 
stndents. although a majority differed from 
him in pwlitics. 

After graduating at the Law School, Mr. 
Cook was urged to spend the winter of 1S66 
and 1S67 at Etover, X. J., to attend to the law 
practice of a prominent lawyer, who had jast 
been elected to the Legislature, and who :n- 

him as a partner; 
:e along the Hud- 
son, Mr. Cook sett 1- .y. 1S67, at Fish- 
kill-on-the-Hudson. where he has since been 



sisted on his remaining with 
but having resolved : ^ 



actively engaged in 
widely known in the 
r -c - tnd advr - 
- - re or les- 



all the courts. He is 
profession. He is both 
"" - ' ~is had many 
c . in which he 
has met with a marked success. He has al- 
wa3"S been painstaking and laborious in ob- 
taining fully the facts from his clients, and 
has been untiring in his efforts to look up the 
law. with a detemiination to state his cases in 
clear arguments to judge and jur\'. 

Mr. Cook has been deeply interested in the 
duties of a citizen, and is pronounced in his 
political views, being attached firmly to the 
principles of the Democratic party, which he 
has never failed to ur^ in public speech; but 
he has never allowed political questions to be 
discussed in his office, believing that those who 
differ from him politically should not be an- 
noyed by fruitless discussions, when business 
should have undivided attention; with that 
reasonable tolerance for the opinions of others 
they have shown a like generosity and the re- 
sult has been that he has as many clients in 
the opposite party as in his own. He has 
never held public office, feeling it is better for 
a lawyer to give himself wholly to his profes- 
sional duties. To gratify a number in his 
pally, he was a candidate, in 1SS6, for the 
Legislature, when he made a strong canvass 
against great odds; but was not elected. At 
that time he had a warm letter from George 
William Curtis, approving of his independent 
coarse. Mr. Curtis mentioned him ver\" hon- 
orably afterward in an editorial in •• Harper "s 
Weekly, " commending him to the whole coun- 
try-. He has not clung to his party when he 
has been satisfied that the candidate was unfit 
for office, and he was a delegate to the famous 



tkm 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Syracuse Convention, when independents met 
ifl opposition to leading men among tiieir for- 
itter political friends, from whom thej' differed 
ih regard to political action growing out of the 
contest which resulted in seating Senator Os- 
borne after the miscount in Dutchess county. 
Mr. Cook at once disapproved of that course 
in a public letter, widely published, and also, 
as to the later candidacy of Maynard for Judge 
of the Court of Appeals, who became involved 
ih that controversy, and who was overwhelm- 
ingly defeated. In 1896 Mr. Cook was again 
a candidate for the Assembly, with no hope of 
success, being among those in his party who 
would not support the majority in his party, 
on account of the financial question, and the 
Un-democratic platform, as he terms it, and 
independently gave aid to the Republican can- 
didate for President, as Mr. Cook did directly 
for patriotic motives. 

Mr. Cook has always been interested in 
historical matters, especially those relating to 
our Colonial and Constitutional history, has 
dorresponded with leading historical scholars, 
and given many historical addresses and papers 
before public assemblies. He is now first 
vice-President of the Historical Society of 
Newburgh Bay and the Highland, is a member 
(or fellow) of the American Geographical So- 
ciety, and has been connected with other socie- 
ties. He has been an occasional contributor 
t'o the press. In his own town he has never 
failed to take an active and decided part in 
public matters. At one time he was a village 
trustee, and for several years was President of 
the Board of Education, and sought most 
Earnestly to have the course of study enlarged, 
that it might compare favorably with the best 
public-school instruction in the State, and 
furnish those children, who could not attend 
academies and colleges with opportunities to 
become good scholars, if so inclined. An im- 
provement in that direction is now seen. He 
is also an officer of the Reformed Church, with 
which he has long been connected. * 

' Mr. Cook was married, soon after coming 
io Fishkill, to an estimable young lady in New 
Jersey, whom he had known from boyhood. 
Her father was a bank president, and his 
brother, himself and two sons were State Sena- 
tors. She died some twenty years ago, leaving 
a son, Pierre Frederic Cook, who graduated at 
Princeton in 1 892 . He was afterward a student 
in the New York Law School, and under his 
father's direction and advice read law in the 



office of the late Governor Bedle of Jersey 
City. He has been admitted to the bar, and 
has before him very good professional pros- 
pects. • 



E>LMER DANIEL GILDERSLEEVE, a 
./ leading merchant of Poughkeepsie, was 

born in the town of Clinton, Dutchess county, 
July II, 1846, son of Smith J. and Rachel 
(Alger) Gildersleeve, and is of Scottish descent. 

Henry Gildersleeve, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born February 13, 1765, at 
Hempstead, L. I., and after his marriage with 
Eunice Smith (who was born April 16, 1766) 
he settled on a farm in the town of Clinton, 
Dutchess county. In politics he was a Whig, 
in religious faith a Quaker. His family com- 
prised eight children, whose names and dates 
of birth are as follows: Elizabeth, September 
5, 1788; Mary, October 5, 1790; Phcebe, Jan- 
uary 28, 1793; Sarah, September 30, 1795.; 
Henry, October 16, 1797; Ruth, August 27, 
1800; Jane, November 29, 1805; and Smith J. , 
August 21, 1809. Of these, Phcebe married a 
Mr. Gurney, a farmer of Saratoga county, 
N. Y. ; Sarah became the wife of Edward 
White, a farmer in the town of Chatham, 
Columbia county; Henry became a farmer in 
the town of Hillsdale, Columbia county; Ruth 
married Leonard Sackett, a farmer of Dutch- 
ess county; and Jane married and went west, 
where she died. 

Smith J. Gildersleeve, the youngest in the 
above-named family, and the father of our 
subject, was born August 21, 1809, in the 
town of Clinton, Dutchess county, and was 
reared on his father's farm. He married Miss 
Rachel Alger, who was born in the town of 
Stanford, Dutchess county, daughter of Daniel 
Alger (born July 26, 1773) and his wife Han- 
nah (born March 5, 17821. Mr. Alger in re- 
ligious faith was a Universalist, by occupation 
a hatter. Four children were born to him 
and his wife, their names and dates of birth 
being as follows: Ann, April ii, 1804; Stephen, 
March 5, 1807; Belinda, June 13, 1810; and 
Rachel, February 16, 18 16. To Mr. and 
Mrs. Smith J. Gildersleeve were born five chil- 
dren, as follows: (i) Belinda, born in 1838, 
married Robert Halstead, a farmer in the town 
of Clinton, and died in 1865; (2) Henry C, 
born in 1840, died in infancy; (3) Henry A., 
born August i, 1840, resides in New York 








L 



U^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



105 



City, and is a judge of the supreme court, 
Ijeing the youngest man ever elected to that 
office in the city [See sketch of him else- 
where]; (4) Frank Van Buren, born in 1842, 
is a physician in New York City. (These two 
brothers, Henry A. and Frank Van B. , served 
in the Civil war, and took part in many of the 
iniportant battles, including that of Gettys- 
burg, Henry returning with the rank of major); 
and (s) Elmer Daniel, the subject proper of 
this memoir, born July 11, 1846. 

Smith J. Gildersleeve followed farming 
most of his life. He was a member of the Re- 
publican party, but sympathized strongly with 
the Prohibitionists as he was an ardent advo- 
cate of temperance. At one time there was a 
combined effort of the " Washingtonians" (as 
the temperance people were called) to put 
their men into office, and Mr. Gildersleeve being 
one of the leaders was instrumental in electing 
their ticket. During the campaign he deliv- 
ered a number of lectures on the subject of 
temperance at which he would sing, and his 
sweet notes were so effective that many signed 
the pledge under the influence of his music. 
In matters of religion he was a Quaker by 
Ipirth, but having married outside the Society 
he was "disowned," and afterward became a 
prominent member of the Christian denomina- 
tion at Stanfordville, during which time he was 
a member of the building committee of a new 
church erected at Schultzville, within one mile 
of his birthplace — the only church in that lo- 
cality. After coming to Poughkeepsie he 
joined the M. E. Church; but all along he 
faithfully held to the faith of his fathers, at- 
tending the Friends meetings during the later 
years of his life. He died in 1881, in Brook- 
lyn, N. Y. ; his wife had passed away in 1864. 

Elmer D. Gildersleeve, whose name intro- 
(jiuces this sketch, spent his boyhood days on 
the home farm in Clinton, where he attended 
the district school, finishing his education at 
the Claverack Institute, in Columbia county. 
In 1866 he came to Poughkeepsie, and was 
employed as a clerk in the general store of 
Trowbridge & Co., remaining with them for a 
year. He was next employed in the shoe store 
of Charles Eastmead for a year, at the end of 
which time he went into the shoe business with 
his father at No. 361 Main street. This they 
carried on for a year when they sold out to D. 
L. Heaton, our subject taking the manage- 
ment of the business for him, and remaining in 
charge of it for twelve years. In 1886, Mr. 



Gildersleeve formed a partnership with Benson 
Van Vliet under the firm name of E. D. Gil- 
dersleeve & Co., and they are still carrying on 
the shoe business at No. 314 Main street, 
where they have the largest and finest estab- 
lishment of the kind between New York and 
Albany. 

Mr. Gildersleeve is a prominent member of 
the Society of Friends, or Quakers, in which 
he was made a minister June 22, 1879. He 
has preached many sermons, and is always in 
request at funeral services, and in many ways 
takes an active interest in religious matters. 
He is a member of the Representative Meet- 
ing of the New York yearly meeting of Friends, 
which is the legislative bodj^ of the Church, 
and one of the oldest members of the Evange- 
listic Committee, which has charge of the 
Evangelistic work of the Church. He is also 
a member of the Y. M. C. A., of Poughkeep- 
sie, of which he was vice-president for four 
years, and one of the board of directors for 
twelve years. He has devoted much time and 
labor to this cause, for which he has a deep 
affection; and in all good works he can always 
be relied on for substantial aid and sympathy, 
devoting as he does a great deal of time to vis- 
iting the sick and afflicted, and especially the 
aged and infirm. In business circles he holds 
high rank as a man of undoubted integrity, ex- 
cellent judgment and progressive spirit, and 
has a large circle of warm personal friends. 
He is a member of the Board of Trade, also of 
the Retail Merchants Association, and believes 
in enterprise and progress. On September i, 
1869, Mr. Gildersleeve was married to Miss 
Phcebe Haviland, who was born at Clinton 
Corners, Dutchess county, and eight children 
have been born to them, namely: (i) Frank 
(deceased); (2) Alexander Haviland, engaged 
in manufacturing business; (3) William Dav- 
enport, an invalid, the result of service in the 
U. S. Regular Army, being one of the young- 
est of the United States pensioners (he resides 
with his parents); (4) Virginia Crocheron, a 
graduate of the Poughkeepsie High School, 
class of '95, at present devoting herself to the 
profession of voice culture (she has a soprano 
voice of great compass, sweetness and expres- 
sion, and takes rank as one of the leading vo- 
calists of the county: she is at present serving 
her second year as soloist of Christ Church, 
Poughkeepsie); (5) Elmer Daniel, Jr., a young 
man of much promise, who is now preparing 
for college in a Friends institute at Westtown, 



106 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOEAPIIICAL RECORD. 



Penn., near Philadelphia; (6) Henry Alger 
(deceased); (7) Edith Haviland; and (8) Roger 
Morton. Mrs. Gildersleeve, one of the most 
highly educated women of the county, and a 
great reader, is possessed of superior mental 
caliber and conversational powers to a marked 
degree; and withal is a most devoted wife and 
mother, her first thought being of her children 
and the welfare of her family. In earlier life 
she possessed more than ordinary efficiency as 
an elocutionist, having completed a course in 
that art at Cook's Institute, Poughkeepsie. 

Isaac Haviland, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Gildersleeve, married Miss Lydia Weaver, and 
shortly afterward settled on a farm at Quaker 
Hill, Dutchess county. They had nine chil- 
dren: Joseph, Daniel P., Isaac, Alexander 
Y. , Jacob, Abraham, Charlotte, Sarah and 
Lydia Ann. The Havilands are of French- 
Huguenot stock, and possess a family crest; 
but the family in America are all members of 
the Society of F"riends. Daniel, the second 
son of this family, married Lilias Aiken. 

Alexander Y. Haviland, father of Mrs. 
Gildersleeve, was born August 25, 1814, at 
Quaker Hill, Dutchess county, and was reared 
to manhood on the home farm, and on August 
8, 1S44, he married Judith M. Griffen, who 
was born January 11, 1814, in Westchester 
county, N. Y., a daughter of Daniel Griffen 
(born in 1790, in the same county), and Phoebe 
Davenport Griffen. They settled on a farm 
at North Castle, where they reared a family 
of nine children: MaryD., Judith M. (mother 
of Mrs. Gildersleeve), Abigail, Esther H., 
Elihu, William D., Jacob, Catherine E. and 
Lydia S. About 1824, Daniel Griffen removed 
to Clinton Corners with his family, and spent 
the remainder of his life on a farm at that 
place. He died August 26, 1858, and his wife, 
on June 11, 1874. The Griffen family is of 
English and Welsh descent, and the great- 
great-grandfather, Elihu Griffen, was born in 
Westchester county, N. Y. After their mar- 
riage Alexander Haviland and his wife located 
on a farm at Clinton Corners, where two chil- 
dren were born to them: Lydia P., who died 
September 23, i860, at the age of fifteen 
years; and Phcebe, wife of our subject. Mr. 
Haviland followed farming until his death, 
which took place May 29, 1853, after which 
his wife disposed of the property and removed 
to Poughkeepsie, where her daughter was edu- 
cated and subsequently married. The mother 
is still living at the good old age of eighty- 



three years, and she and her brother Jacob, of 
Clinton Corners, are the only two survivors of 
this Griffen family. 



COL. HENRY ALGER GILDERSLEEVE 
was born in Dutchess county, N. Y., 
August I, 1840. His early life was spent on 
his father's farm and in attendance at the dis- 
trict school. When fifteen years of age he at- 
tended boarding school, and from that time 
up to the breaking out of the Civil war was 
either at school or engaged in teaching, that 
he might acquire funds with which to pursue 
his studies. He recruited for the 150th Regi- 
ment, N. Y. S. V. Infantry, and was mustered 
in as captain of Company C, October 1 1, 1S62. 
He served with his regiment in the Middle 
Department, under Gen. Wool, and subse- 
quently in the Army of the Potomac, in which, 
with his regiment, he participated in the battle 
of Gettysburg and in the subsequent campaigns 
in Maryland and \'irginia. 

After several months of special duty, Capt. 
Gildersleeve, in June, 1864, rejoined his regi- 
ment at Kenesaw Mountain, where it was at- 
tached to the First Division of the Twentieth 
Army Corps of the Army of the Cumberland, 
at that time commanded by Maj.-Gen. Hooker, 
and forming a part of the command of Gen. 
Sherman, then engaged in fighting its way to 
Atlanta. He served in Sherman's army until 
the close of the war, participating in numerous 
battles and skirmishes, and making the famous 
march with Sherman to the sea. He was 
made provost marshal of the First Division of 
the Twentieth Army Corps, on the staff of 
Gen. Williams, of Michigan. His duties as 
provost marshal were delicate, responsible and 
arduous. They were discharged, however, in 
a manner which met the approval of his 
superior. He was pr^omoted to the rank of 
major of his regiment, and brevetted lieuten- 
ant-colonel U. S. v., by President Lincoln, 
"for gallant and meritorious service in the 
campaigns of Georgia and the Carolinas." 
When mustered out of service, in June, 1865, 
he chose the law as his profession, and in the 
autumn of that year entered the Columbia 
College Law School. Prof. Theodore W. 
Dwight, then at the head of the Law School, 
in a letter written to the Army of the Cumber- 
land, referring to Col. Gildersleeve, who had 
become famous as a rifieman, through the suc- 
cessful achievements in Great Britain and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



lor 



Ireland, in 1875, of the American rifle team, of 
which he was captain, used the following 
language: " In Col. Gildersleeve I feel an es- 
pecial interest, as I had the honor of giving 
him by personal attention his introduction to 
the science of law, and could have predicted 
the precision of his ritle from the accuracy and 
steadiness of his aim while going through his 
legal drill." 

Col. Gildersleeve was admitted to the bar 
in 1866, and from that time until his elevation 
to the bench, in 1875, he was a hard-working 
and successful lawyer in the Citv of New York. 
The duties of his profession did not wean him 
entirely from his fondness for military life. In 
1870 he was unanimously chosen lieutenant- 
colonel of the 1 2th Regiment, N. G. S. N. Y., 
and took a keen interest in his military duties, 
and in promoting the success of the regiment. 
He subsequently became assistant adjutant 
general and chief of staff in the First Division 
of the National Guard of the State of New 
York, with the rank of colonel, which position 
he held for more than twelve years. He was 
honored with the appointment, by Governor 
Dix, of General Inspector of Rifle Practice, 
and was once elected colonel of the Ninth 
Regiment, both of which high positions he de- 
clined in order that he might remain at the 
head of the staff of the First Division. In 
civil life he attracted considerable favorable 
comment as a lecturer and as an agreeable, for- 
cible and interesting speaker. In 1875 he was 
elected judge of the Court of General Sessions 
of the City of New York, and for fourteen 
years sat upon the bench of that court, dispos- 
ing of an immense number of criminal cases of 
every kind and description. He always tem- 
pered justice with mercy, and his record as a 
criminal judge is excellent. He is now in his 
fourth year of service on the civil bench, as 
judge of the Superior Court of the City of New 
York, and has upward of eleven years of serv- 
ice still before him. Under the new amend- 
ments to the constitution he will become judge 
of the Supreme Court, January i, 1896. 

Judge Gildersleeve is now (November, 
1894) in the prime of life, blessed with perfect 
health and iron constitution. With a past so 
varied and eventful, he has still many years of 
usefulness before him. He is a tall, strong 
and heavily-built man, of dignified and rather 
reserved bearing, but with manners of unvary- 
ing courtesy and kindness. He still finds some 
time in which to indulge his fondness for out- 



door sports, and is frequently seen at athletic 
games. A tramp over the hills, or through the 
swamps, wherever game can be found, with 
dog and gun, is his favorite pastime. While 
he has no longer the skill with the rifle that 
he possessed in earlier years, he is still a mas- 
ter with the shotgun. The frequent allusions 
to the fame which he acquired as a rifleman, to 
which he is called upon to listen, always afford 
him much pleasure. It was truly said by a 
prominent editorial writer that though Judge 
Gildersleeve might live to write some of the 
best judicial opinions reported, they would drop 
into insignificance when compared with his 
fame as a rifleman. A prominent man, who 
had been a political opponent of Judge Gilder- 
sleeve, once said of him that his principal char- 
acteristics were his evenness of temper, his 
kindness of heart and his fidelity lo his friends. 
[From Report of the Annual Reunion and Din- 
ner of the Old Guard Association of the Twelfth 
Regiment N. G. S. N. Y., April 21, 1894.] 



LEWIS BAKER (deceased). Perhaps no 
man was ever known better, or known for 
a longer term of years in one community than 
was Lewis Baker, late of the town of Beek- 
man, Dutchess county. Born in that town 
June 4, 1792, he grew to manhood there, and 
at the age of twenty-one years married Sarah 
Allen, daughter of a farmer of the town of 
Pawling, and began farming for himself by 
purchasing forty-eight acres of land, where he 
and his wife lived, in the same house, for over 
fifty years. 

With a debt of $1,250.00 this energetic 
young man started, having good health and 
the aid of a loving wife, to clear himself of 
this incumbrance through his own hard toil. 
Always honest, sober, reliable and industrious, 
and with the success which surely accompanies 
a disposition like his, he not only paid for his 
first farm, but eventually purchased adjoining 
farms until he had a solid body of 400 acres 
of choice farming land, which was all paid 
for, well stocked and in good condition. Every 
acre was paid for without aid from outside 
source of any nature, but from the fruits of 
hard, honest labor as a farmer, having never 
made a dollar from speculation in his life. 
Although he lived far beyond the allotted limits 
of man's life, his clear, bright, honest eye was 
undimmed, and his wonted expression of self- 
reliance was never lost. At the age of ninety- 



108 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



three years he could take his " section " after 
the reaper, and bind seventy sheaves of rye in 
one hour — as he did in the season of 1885; or 
he could walk a distance of five or ten miles 
as quickly as most men who were but half his 
age. 

Notwithstanding the lack of early educa- 
tional advantages, he could write a letter which 
for style and correctness would be envied by 
rnany who have all the advantages of modern 
schools, and his sterling worth and good judg- 
ment are clearl}' shown by the high esteem in 
which he was held b}- the neighbors, among 
whom he had lived all his life, and by the evi- 
dence that the people of his town called upon 
him to serve them as justice of the peace con- 
secutively for over a quarter of a century. 
He was their steadfast friend, advisor and 
counsellor in every emergency. As the Farm 
Journal, in its June issue, 1886, says: "He 
has a record of which anj- man may be proud, 
and we are proud to show his likeness to all 
our one million readers." 

He had five sons, one of whom died young, 
and another, William, who died in 1885 in 
Illinois, where he had become a prosperous 
farmer; the other three, Alexander A., Cyrus 
and Nicholas, are still alive, and for old men 
are remarkably hale and hearty, which goes to 
show the healthy methods which our old friend 
instilled in the minds of his children. Ale.x- 
ander A. is a resident of Poughkeepsie, and 
until late years has followed the vocation of 
farming, and now at over eighty years of age 
is still vigorous and alert. Nicholas is an at- 
torney located in the state of Connecticut, and 
Cyrus is a resident of Highland Falls, Orange 
county, this State. 

The death of his loving wife, after fifty-five 
years of wedded life, made Mr. Baker's home 
seem desolate, and he subsequently divided 
his property among his children, and spent the 
remainder of his life with them alternately. 

Mr. Baker's ancestors are said, on good 
authority, to have come from England in the 
," Mayflower," and settled in New England, 
but his father was a resident of the old town 
of I3eekman. 

Mr. Baker belonged to the sect of Friends, 
and his Quaker views were exemplified in his 
daily life. He was a man who never used vile 
language, was at all times kind and thought- 
ful for others, always a strong advocate for 
justice and peace between man and man. 
Honest in every relation, his word was as good 



anywhere as a bond. He was, indeed, a man 
whose memory should be honored, and this 
world would be better had it more of a like 
character. He died at the city of Poughkeep- 
sie January 12, 1894, at the remarkable age of 
102 years, and was buried in Rural Cemetery, 
leaving three of his children, many grandchil- 
dren and many great-grandchildren to mourn 
the loss of a father and good and wise coun- 
selor. Among the descendants who mourned 
his loss is his grandson'and namesake, Lewis 
Baker, the well-known attorney and counselor 
of Poughkeepsie. 



ILLIAM THACHER REYNOLDS, 

senior member of the well-known 

firm of Reynolds & Cramer, Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, is a descendant in the ninth 
generation of one of the earliest settlers of 
Rhode Island — William Reynolds, who was a 
signer of the original Providence compact in 
1637, -and who there is every reason to think 
was an offshoot of the manorial family of 
Reignoldes of Suffolk. 

This pioneer had a son, James, who was a 
resident of Kingston, R. I., where he died in 
1700. He and his w^ife, Deborah, had a son, 
Francis, of Kingston, who was born October 
22. 1633, and died in 1722. He married 
Elizabeth, daughter of James and Elizabeth 
(Anthony) Greene, and granddaughter of John 
Greene, M. D., of Salisbury, Wiltshire. Eng- 
land, whose father was Richard Greene, Esq., 
of Bowridge Hall, Gillingham, Dorsetshire, 
England. They had a son, Peter, a resident 
of North Kingston, who had a son, John, born 
in 1 72 1, and died there in October, 1804. He 
married .Anne, daughter of ^^'illiam and .\nne 
(Stone) Utter, and widow of Benjamin Greene. 
Their son, William, of North Kingston, who 
was born July 19, 1753, died October 4, 
1 84 1. He married E*aster Reynolds, his secr 
ond cousin, through John, James and Francis. 
He was commissioned ensign of the First com- 
pany of North Kingston in June, 1775, and 
performed about two years' active service dur- 
ing the Revolutionary war, for which he was 
pensioned in 1832. His son, James, our sub- 
ject's grandfather, born in North Kingston, 
R. I., April 7, 1777, moved to Poughkeepsie 
about 1800, and followed the occupation of 
ship carpenter until he established a store at 
Upper Landing, which formed the nucleus of 
the extensive business now conducted bv our 

-■•;,'() 'lOl .".: . 11;., 




O^lf-. iTe^ 




^^'^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECOUD. 



109 



subject. He was a leading citizen of his time, 
and was instrumental in a great degree in the 
early development of the city, then a mere 
village. A Quaker in religious faith, he dis- 
played strong moral qualities joined to perfect 
liberality as to doctrinal points. His strictly 
temperate habits have been followed by all his 
descendants without exception, and the family 
have been noted for the qualities which consti- 
tute good citizenship, although they have never 
taken any active part in politics. He was 
married February 22, 1803, to Elizabeth 
Winans, daughter of James and Joanna (De- 
Graff) Winans, and granddaughter of James 
and Sarah Winans, of Pine Plains, and John 
De Graff, of Poughkeepsie, who was a de- 
scendant in the third generation of Jean and 
Mary (Lawrence) le Comte, of Harlem, 1674, 
de Graaff being a Dutch corruption of the 
French le Comte. 

Their son, William Winans Reynolds, our 
subject's father, received his education in 
Poughkeepsie, and at an early age engaged in 
his father's business, to which he and his 
brother James succeeded. A man of well- 
trained intellect, great energy and sound busi- 
ness judgment, he developed the trade of the 
house extensively, making it the leading one 
of its line along the river. From 1840 to 
1872 the business was the embodiment of his 
own ideas and abilities, owing to his brother's 
ill health and distaste for commercial life. He 
was an active and prominent member of the 
Washington Street M. E. Church, serving many 
years on the board of trustees, to which his 
brother also belonged. Mr. Reynolds was 
married September 10, 1833, to Phebe 
Amanda Thacher (daughter of Rev. William 
Thacher, who was descended from Colonel 
and Hon. John Thacher, of Yarmouth, Mass., 
who served in King Philip's war, and was for 
many years a member of the Governor's coun- 
cil. Rev. William Thacher's maternal grand- 
father was Thomas Fitch, Governor and Chief 
Justice of Connecticut), by whom he had six 
children: Martha T. (Mrs. William D. Mur- 
phy), Catherine R. (Mrs. Aaron Innis), Mary 
Louisa (the widow of Walter C. Allen), Will- 
iam T. (our subject), Hannah M., and Clarence 
James (now a partner of the firm of Reynolds 
& Cramer). 

The subject of our sketch was born in 
Poughkeepsie, December 20, 1838, was edu- 
cated in the public schools there, and has 
always been identified with the interests of the 



city. At the age of sixteen he began working 
in his father's wholesale store, taking a place 
"at the foot of the ladder," and working up 
by degrees until he had familiarized himself 
with every branch of the business. He has 
inherited the excellent qualities which made 
his father and grandfather useful and honored 
citizens, and he has well maintained the credit 
of the Reynolds name in religious, social and 
commercial life. 

On July 6, 1864, William T. Reynolds 
was married to Miss Louise Smith, and they 
have two children: Harris Smith Reynolds, 
born May 19, 1865, also a member of the firm 
of Reynolds & Cramer, and May Louise Rey- 
nolds, born July 5, 1873. Our subject being a 
conservative Republican, has never taken an 
active part in politics, but is possessed of 
strong convictions, and great courage and in- 
dependence in supporting any cause he be- 
lieves to be right. He holds many important 
positions of honor and trust in the community, 
to wit: President of the board of trustees of 
the Washington Street M. E. Church; presi- 
dent of the Vassar Brothers Home for Aged 
Men; trustee of the Old Ladies Home; trustee 
of the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery; director 
of the Fallkill National Bank and the Pough- 
keepsie Savings Bank. 



WALTER C. HULL, well-known in 
Dutchess and surrounding counties as 

a prominent and highly popular attorney at 
law, with offices at No. 52 Market street, 
Poughkeepsie, is a native of that city, born 
July 4, 1857. 

Mr. Hull was educated in part at private 
schools in Poughkeepsie, afterward attending 
McGill University, Montreal, Canada, and 
Harvard, his law studies being completed in 
Columbia College Law School, from which 
latter institution he graduated in 1880. Such 
a thorough education would naturally combine 
to accelerate the development of his character, 
and the furtherance of his future prospects. 
Since 1880 he has resided and practiced his 
profession in Poughkeepsie, his specialty being 
real-estate law and surrogate practice, though 
he has taken some general practice. During 
the years 1893-94 he was associated with Ira 
Shafer, of New York, but with this exception 
he has had no office partner. 

George D. Hull, father of our subject, was 
born February 6, 1821. In 1850 he married 



110 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



Miss Mary E. Cluctt, who was connected with 
the Adams family, of Boston, and children as 
follows were born to them: Louise M. and 
Walter C. The father died in i 886, the mother 
in 1883. 

Walter C. Hull was married, in 18S2, to 
Adele M. Fonda, who died April 5, 1893, leav- 
ing two children: Crosby Livingston, and 
Carlton, born in 1885 and 1890 respectively. 
Mr. Hull, socially, is a member of the Amrita 
and Dutchess Clubs, of the Veteran Firemen's 
Association, Poughkeepsie Gun Club, and of the 
Royal Arcanum. In politics he is a Repub- 
lican, and has served on the Civil Service Com- 
mission of Poughkeepsie. He is one of the 
most prosperous attorneys in his native city, 
and his fame as an erudite and accomplished 
scholar, a ripe lawyer and a close student of 
political economv is not confined to Pough- 
keepsie and Dutchess county, but extends 
throughout the entire State. 



C\HARLES A. HOPKINS, an able young 
1 attorney of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., has made 
unusually rapid advancement in his profession, 
his success in dilTicult cases having already 
won for him an enviable standing. He is a 
native of Dutchess county, and was born in 
Storm ville October 20, 1S64, the son of Ben- 
jamin Hopkins, Esq., a well-known and highly- 
respected citizen of that place, whose biogra- 
phy appears elsewhere. 

Our subject attended the common schools 
of his native town until the age of seventeen, 
when he entered the employ of Thomas O'Don- 
nell, a contractor in the construction of the 
New York & New England railroad, as time- 
keeper; was with him several months in the 
summer of 1881, and in the following winter 
entered the Eastman National Business Col- 
lege at Poughkeepsie, graduating May 2, 1882. 
On the 31st of the same month he entered the 
law office of Hackett & \\'illiams, and was a 
student there until he passed the examination 
for admission to the bar at the General Term 
at Brooklyn, in September, 1885, about one 
month before he became of age. After his 
admission to the bar he remained with Hackett 
& Williams as managing clerk under salary 
until January i, 18S9, when he commenced 
active practice of law at Poughkeepsie for him- 
self at No. 4 Garden street, corner of Main, 
and he has continued in practice at that place 
to date. Mr. Hopkins has a general practice, 



and is attorney for several estates. Some time 
ago he brought an action to compel the Pough- 
keepsie Bridge Co. to open up the bridge for 
foot passengers, in compliance with the act 
creating the company, and defining its powers 
and duties. This was one of his most notable 
cases. For five or six years he has been attor- 
ne)' for the State Game and Fish Protection 
Commission for the Third District of the State 
of New York. Mr. Hopkins was elected Jus- 
tice of the Peace for the City of Poughkeepsie 
in November, 1890, his term expiring January 
I, 1895; his decisions in this office were never 
reversed. Mr. Hopkins is a Democrat in poli- 
tics, and has always taken quite an active in- 
terest in his party. In 1894 he was the candi- 
date for City Recorder, and ran about 300 
. ahead of his ticket; but, as it was the year of 
the Republican tidal wave, he was not elected. 

In 1S95 he was candidate for the Assem- 
bly in the Second Assembly District of Dutch- 
ess county, and again ran ahead of his ticket. 
Socially, he is a member of the K. of P., 
Triumph Lodge No. 165, and of the Dutchess 
Social Club. He was married October 18, 
188S, to Mary Eno Stewart, daughter of Wal- 
ter Stewart, a leading farmer in Clinton, 
Dutchess county, and by this union there are 
two sons: Frank Stewart, born August 18, 
1889, and Ralph Adriance, born January 31, 
1S92. 

The Hopkins family is of English origin, 
and the head of the American branch came 
over on the "Mayflower." They were Hick- 
site Quakers in religious faith. Benjamin 
Hopkins, our subject's great-grandfather, was 
a native of Rhode Island, and in earl}' life was 
engaged in the coasting trade; but after his 
marriage to Sarah Palmer and the destruction 
of his property by the British, which hap- 
pened soon afterward, he came to Dutchess 
county in 1779, and bought 400 acres of land 
in the town of East Fishkill, where he passed 
his remaining years as a farmer. He had eight 
children, among whom was John Hopkins, our 
subject's grandfather, who was born at the old 
farm September 6, 1779, and also became a 
farmer. In 1 819 he married Miss Mary Brill, 
daughter of John and Hannah (Cornell) Brill, 
both natives of Dutchess county. Four chil- 
dren were born of this union: Benjamin, Gil- 
bert P., Solomon P., and Sarah P. (Mrs. S. 
B. Knox). John Hopkins was prominent as a 
Whig, and served the public interests with 
great credit in several town offices. He was a 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGEAPEICAL RECORD. 



Ill 



Friend, but his wife was a member of the Re- 
formed Dutch Church, and both proved the 
sincerity of their faith by their devoted Chris- 
tian lives. 

Benjamin Hopkins, our subject's father, re- 
mained at home until the age of sixteen, when 
he entered school at Poughkeepsie. After 
four years of study, he engaged in teaching, 
and also traveled extensively in the State. In 
1842 he went into mercantile business at Low 
Point, Dutchess county, but in the following 
year he became the owner of the old home- 
stead, purchasing the interests of the other 
heirs. He has 290 acres of excellent land, 
and has been mainly engaged in general farm- 
ing, but he now makes a specialty of the dairy 
business. On December 6, 1844, he married 
Miss Eliza Montfort, a native of Beekman 
township, Dutchess county, by whom he had 
five children: Cornelia (Mrs. John Taber), of 
Dover township, Dutchess county; Phoebe, de- 
ceased, who never married; Sarah (Mrs. Will- 
iam H. Ogden), of Kansas Cit}', Mo. ; Loda 
V. (Mrs. John Ogden), of the same city; and 
John G. , a business man of Chicago. The 
mother of the family died October, 1859, and 
subsequently Mr. Hopkins married Miss Mar- 
garet Lasher, a native of Columbia county, N. 
Y., and daughter of Jacob Lasher. Seven 
children were born of this union: Charles A. 
(our subject), Benjamin, Mary, Harry W., 
IBertha M., and George and Edith M. (twins). 
Benjamin Hopkins is a successful auction- 
eer, and has followed the business for thirty 
years in addition to his other pursuits. In 
politics he was a Whig in early years, and 
later a Democrat, and he has repeatedly held 
the highest official positions in his township, 
his faithful discharge of every duty deepening 
the esteem and confidence of the people. 



WILLIAM JAMES CONKLIN, M. D., of 
Fishkill, Dutchess county, is one of the 

most prominent members of the medical 
fraternity of this section, more than a quarter 
of a century having been given by him to the 
successful practice of this noble calling. 

The Conklin family has been long known 
in the vicinity of Cornwall, N. Y. , the Doctor's 
grandfather, David Conklin, having been a 
leading resident there for many years. Be- 
fore the days of railroads, David Conklin re- 
moved to Elmira, N. Y. , where he spent his 
last days. The late Dr. Peter Elting Conklin, 



our subject's father, who was born in 1809, 
followed his profession at Cornwall for thirty 
years, and had an extensive practice. He 
married Miss Sarah M. Slater (whose an- 
cestor in the country was one of the " May- 
flower's " passengers), a native of Poughkeep- 
sie, born in 1808, and had six children, of whom 
three died in childhood; the eldest, Cornelia P., 
married Henry B. Breed, of Cornwall; and 
Sarah Louise resides in New York City. Both 
parents are deceased, the father dying August 
17, 1867, and the mother on April 3, 1886. 

Dr. Conklin was born at Cornwall, N. Y. , 
January 28, 1846, and after attending the 
public schools there for some time spent three 
years in the Cornwall Collegiate Institute, and 
two years in Madison (now Colgate) University, 
at Hamilton, N. Y. He then took a course 
in the Eastman Business College at Pough- 
keepsie, and followed mercantile pursuits for a 
time; but in 1867 he began the study of 
medicine, and in 1870 was graduated from 
the medical Department of the University of 
the City of New York. On March 17, 1870, 
he opened his office in the village of Fishkill, 
where he has built up a large practice. For 
five years he was health officer of the town, 
and for six years was one of the coroners of 
the county. His standing among his profes- 
sional brethren is high; he has been a member 
of the Dutchess County Medical Society for 
twenty-five years, and a permanent member 
of the State Medical Society for ten years. 

He is actively interested also in local affairs 
of a non-professional nature, and at present is 
a director of the First National Bank of Fish- 
kill Landing, and a trustee of the Fishkill Sav- 
ings Institute. His sympathies are always on 
the side of progress, and he is an earnest sup- 
porter of the free-school system, is now, and 
has been for fourteen consecutive years, a 
member of the board of education of Fishkill, 
and for a time its president. He is a member 
of Beacon Lodge No. 283, F. & A. M., and 
of Hudson River Lodge No. 57, K. of P. On 
May 27, 1875, the Doctor was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Barbra E. B. Walcott, daugh- 
ter of Halsey F. and Jane H. (Bogardus) 
Walcott, prominent residents of Fishkill, of 
whom further mention will be made. Three 
children were born to them, of whom one died 
in childhood; William E. is now a student in 
Cornell University, at Ithaca, N. Y. ; and 
Clarence J. is attending school at Cazenovia 
Seminary, Cazenovia, New York. 



U-2 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGEAPmCAL RECOHA 



Halsey F. Walcott is a well-known busi- 
ness man of Fishkill^one of the oldest now 
actively engaged in commercial life in Dutchess 
county. His well-preserved energies and 
ripened judgment make him a valued adviser, 
and aside from the management of his hard- 
ware store he is interested in some of the 
most important enterprises in his town. He 
was born May i, 1817, at Cumberland, R. I., 
the old home of his family. His grandfather, 
Dr. Jabez Walcott, was a leading physician 
and surgeon of his day in that locality, and 
his son, Abijah Walcott (father of Halsey F. 
Walcott), passed an honored life there, dying 
at the age of si.xty-seven. He married Miss 
Sophia Smith, daughter of Rev. Jonathan 
Smith, a soldier in the Revolutionary army, 
and a pastor of the Baptist Church, who 
preached for sixty years, his life being pro- 
longed to the old age of ninety-four years. 
Halsey F. was the eldest of four children, the 
others being: Angeline, the wife of Rev. T. 
W. Clark, a Baptist minister, and a chaplain 
in the army during the Civil war, now residing 
in Boston; and \\'illiam and Sophia, both now 
deceased. 

Halsey F. Walcott attended the public 
schools of Rhode Island and Massachusetts. 
In 1S46 he married Miss Jane Bogardus, whose 
father, the late Joseph Bogardus, owned and 
conducted the "Union Hotel" at Fishkill, 
which was destroyed by fire in 1872, and after 
his death, which occurred February 3, 1859, 
Mr. Walcott continued the business until 1863. 
He then sold the hotel, and after four years of 
retirement from business life, purchased the 
hardware store of Charles Owen, which he 
has ever since conducted. He was a director 
of the First National Bank of F"ishkill, and 
trustee of the Savings Bank at Fishkill, and 
has been a trustee of the Fishkill Cemetery 
Association for years, and is now its president. 
As a progressive citizen, he has taken great in- 
terest in educational matters, serving as a 
member of the board of education for a num- 
ber of years, and for part of the time as its 
president. In politics he is a Republican; he 
was town clerk for two years, justice of the 
peace some twenty years, postmaster for four 
years, and has held many minor offices, such 
as town auditor, etc. He is the oldest mem- 
ber of Beacon Lodge, F. & A. M., with which 
he united forty-one years ago, and he formerly 
belonged to the I. O. O. F. 

Mrs. Walcott's father was a direct descend- 



ant of Everardus Bogardus, the first clergy- 
man in the New Netherlands. Her mother, 
whose maiden name was Barbra Moffat, of 
Paterson, N. J., was born in Glasgow, Scot- 
land, the granddaughter of Lady Barbra Gil- 
more. Of the two children that have blessed 
the home of Mr. and Mrs. Walcott, one died 
in youth, and the other, Barbra Etta, is nbw 
the' wife of Dr. W. J. Conklin, of Fishkill. ■ 



r-ALTER FERRIS TABER. the subject 
of this sketch, is descended from an- 
cestry antedating the settlement of this coun- 
try as shown by the familj' Coat of Arms, 
whose motto "Virtue alone ennobles" carried 
the stamp of character. 

The Tabers were among the early settlers 
in the Massachusetts Colony, and Thomas Ta- 
ber (great-grandfather of our subject), born in 
New Bedford, Mass., in 1732, and his wife, 
Annetheresa, came on horseback from Rhode 
Island to Dutchess county, in 1760, and located 
upon a grant of land of 500 acres obtained from 
King George III, on Quaker Hill in the town of 
Pawling, a tract known as the "Oblong." 
They had two sons, William and Jeremiah 
(and several daughters), the latter son remain- 
ing upon the farm during his life. [For a more 
extended account see sketch of Geo. K. Taber.] 
He married Delilah Russell, a native of the 
town of Dover, and had six children: Russell, 
a farmer in Dover; Thomas, a farmer, first in 
Dutchess county and later in Broome county; 
John, who died in childhood; William, our 
subject's father; Harriet, who married Jona- 
than Akin, a farmer in Pawling; and Eliza, 
who married Joseph Carpenter, a farmer in 
Westchester county. 

William Taber, our subject's father, was 
born at the old homestead December 10, 1796, 
and always resided there until his death in 
1863. He was a Democrat, and a birthright 
member of the Society of Friends. He mar- 
ried Eliza Sherman, a native of Quaker Hill, 
born March 19, 1803, and died February 5, 
1 84 1, a daughter of Abiel Sherman (one of the 
stalwart family of nine sons that averaged six 
feet in height, and were the terror of the Tories 
in the Revolutionary war), whose ancestry 
traces back on the same lines with Gen. T. W. 
Sherman and Senator John Sherman of Ohio. 
He was a prominent man, and member of the 
State Legislature. Four children were born 
of this union: Eliza, who died in infancy; 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



113 



William H., who now owns and occupies the 
old farm ; Walter F. , the subject of this sketch ; 
and George A., who died at the age of six 
years. The father died in 1863, the mother on 
February 20, 1840. 

Walter F. Taber was born October 29, 
1830, and attended the schools of his native 
town until he was fourteen years of age, after 
which he attended boarding schools during the 
winter terms for five successive years in Wash- 
ington, Dutchess county, and in Sherman and 
Warren, in Connecticut, afterward teaching, 
one winter, a public school, and having charge 
ofthe Willets Boarding School in Washington, 
Dutchess county, for 'one winter. Having a 
natural taste for mechanics, while remaining 
upon his father's farm, he made and repaired 
many farm implements, and after using one of 
the f^rst mowing machines that was invented, 
which was driven by one wheel, he saw the 
necessity for improvement, and after much 
study and trial devised the first iiiozuing ma- 
chine that zuas ever placed upon two driving 
zvhee/s and having a hinged cutter bar that 
could be raised or lozoercd by a lever zohile 
riding the machine. The model of said ma- 
chine is in the Patent Office at Washington. 
This was when Mr. Taber was but nineteen 
years of age. Like many other inventors, he 
failed to secure the benefits of his invention, 
but it made him an efficient agent for the well- 
known Buckeye mower, which he sold for six- 
teen years after leaving his father's farm, which 
he did at the age of twenty-four years to en- 
gage in mercantile business with his brother, 
William H. Taber, at Pawling Station, where 
he resided for about sixteen years. 

On February 16, 1859, Walter F. Taber 
was married to Miss Mary Emma Arnold, 
daughter of Dr. Benjamin F. Arnold, a prom- 
inent physician of Pawling and a descendant of 
one of the pioneer settlers, the family being, like 
the Tabers, of English origin. One son was 
born of this union, Franklin A. Taber, who is 
engaged with his father in his present business. 

Mr. Taber has been a member of the Soci- 
ety of Friends for many years; is treasurer of 
the Society, and was superintendent of the 
Sabbath-school for a number of years. Polit- 
ically he was formerly a Democrat, but for 
several years past has been an advocate of 
Prohibition and working with that party, and 
its candidate for both State and Congressional 
honors. 

On June 27, 1870, Mr. Taber moved from 



Pawling to his present residence, which he 
had previously purchased, one of the old land- 
marks, formerly known as the Judge Sweet 
place, now known as " Lakeview Fruit Farm," 
a short distance outside the limits of the 
city of Poughkeepsie, where he has since re- 
sided. For nearly twenty years he has been 
devoting his attention to the cultivation of 
all kinds of fruits, making a specialty of 
small fruits, and sparing no labor or ex- 
pense in preparing the soil and producing 
fruits of high quality that should find ready 
sale in both home and distant markets. He is 
an authority upon his specialty, and a contrib- 
utor to the horticultural papers. He has given 
addresses on fruit culture at many of the State 
Farmers Institutes, and at the annual meeting 
of the Western New York Horticultural Soci- 
ety in Rochester in February, 1895, of which 
Society he is a member. He is also one of 
the promoters of the Eastern New York Horti- 
cultural Society, and its present vice-president. 
For nine years he has been connected with 
the Dutchess County Farmers Club, and its 
president for most of that time. With a desire 
to contribute something to help mankind, he is 
ever trying some experiment or making some 
improvement whereby to arrive at the most 
successful results and contribute to the general 
good by freely giving of such knowledge as he 
may have acquired in his particular line of 
horticulture. 



ISAAC HAVILAND (deceased). The sub- 
_ ject of this sketch was born in the town of 
Washington, Dutchess county, February 28, 
18 1 2, and was the son of Isaac and Lydia 
(Weaver) Haviland. After marrying, Isaac 
Haviland, Sr., settled on a farm on Quaker 
Hill, Dutchess county, where he followed farm- 
ing and reared the following children: Isaac 
our subject; Joseph, a farmer in Washington 
town; Daniel, who was a farmer and minister; 
Jacob, who was a farmer in the town of 
Poughkeepsie; Abram, who farmed in Paw- 
ling; Charlotte, married to Alfred Moore, a 
farmer and Hicksite (Quaker) minister; Sarah, 
who died unmarried; Lydia A., who became 
the wife of John Martin, a farmer, and Alex- 
ander, who was a farmer at Clinton Corners. 
Mr. Haviland was an Orthodox Quaker, and 
died on Quaker Hill. 

Our subject was reared on the farm, and 
attended the district school, later continuing 



114 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



his Studies at the Providence school. In 1835 
he married Miss Maria Ann Swift, who was 
born in the town of Washing;ton, June 6, 181 5. 
Lemuel Swift, her father, was the twin brother 
of Zebulon Swift, whose sketch appears in 
that of Isaac Swift. Our subject and wife 
went to live on the farm where Mr. Davidson 
now resides, near South Milibrook. It was 
in an uncultivated state, and during Mr. Havi- 
land's residence of thirty years he much im- 
proved it. He and his wife moved to S. Mill- 
brook and lived a retired life there for about 
twenty years and then came to Milibrook, where 
he died March 31, 1894, aged eighty-two 
years. No children were born to our subject 
and his wife. In politics he was a Democrat. 
He was a member of the Orthodo.x Friends 
Church, was benevolent and greatly respected, 
and died a Christian, with a prayer on his 
lips. Mrs. Haviland is still a member of the 
Friends Church, in which she is an elder. 



SMITH L. De GARMO, member of the 
well-known dry-goods firm of Luckey, 
Piatt & Co., Poughkeepsie, is worthy of promi- 
nent mention in the pages of this volume. 

The family is of French origin, and were 
among the early settlers of the country. The 
first of whom we have definite mention was 
Rowland De Garmo (grandfather of our sub- 
ject), who was born November 29, 1785, and 
died June 6, 1838. By occupation he was a 
tanner, carrying on business near New Paltz, 
Ulster Co., N. Y. He married Phebe Sutton, 
born March 12, 1791, and died F"ebruary 24, 
1875. Their children were David S., Elias, 
William Henry, Mary, Eli^a and Daniel. 

David S. De Garmo (father of our subject) 
was born March 6, 181 3, and in early life was 
a tanner. On November i, 1838, he married 
Phebe H. Lawrence, and turned farmer, pur- 
chasing a farm near Highland. In 1851 thej' 
removed to Hibernia, Dutchess county, re- 
maining there till 1866, when Mr. De Garmo 
built a new house in Salt Point, where he 
passed the remainder of his days, d3'ing of 
paralysis of the throat May 29, 1875. His 
wife survived him until October, 1894, when 
she, too, passed away at the age of eighty-two, 
after five years of much physical suffering, 
made as comfortable as po ssiblein the care of 
her only daughter, Mrs. William E. Smith, in 
one of the most attractive of the beautiful 



and far-famed homes of Milibrook, provided by 
her son, the subject of this sketch. 

Capt. Jonathan Lawrence, the maternal 
great-grandfather, served as a captain in the 
Revolutionary war, and a monument to his 
memorj' stands in an old family burying ground 
at Esopus, Ulster county. Thomas, his son, 
was a Ouaker preacher. 

Smith L. De Garmo was born October 10, 
1842, on the farm above mentioned, at High- 
land, and as will be seen was nine years old 
when his parents moved to Dutchess county. 
His education was received in part at the 
common schools, partly at the New Paltz 
Academy, and later at a 'private school kept by 
Rev. Sherman Hoyt, a Presbyterian minister. 
In November, 1868, Mr. De Garmo came to 
Poughkeepsie as clerk in the furnishing-goods 
store of Thomas A. Lawrence. In the follow- 
ing spring he entered the service of William 
H. Broas, and got his first experience in hand- 
ling dry goods. Here he found a congenial 
occupation, and his marked ability brought 
him, in the spring of i S70, to the notice of 
Messrs. Luckey and Piatt, who were then 
doing a moderate but successful dry-goods 
business. It was early manifest to his employ- 
ers that they had secured a valuable factor, 
and he was rapidly promoted. He proved a 
perfect genius in salesmanship, and tireless in 
his efforts. He enjoyed a very large acquaint- 
ance, and by his rare magnetism attracted 
them as customers. Just before his admission 
to the firm, Mr. Luckey said to one from whom 
we get a part of our data for this article: 
"We have been paying Mr. De Garmo prob- 
ably the largest salary received by any clerk 
on the street, and we are satisfied that he 
fully earns it by the new business alone which 
he brings to us." Such merit hac^ its natural 
reward, and February i, 1872, he became a 
partner in the concern. When the time came 
for Mr. De Garmo to ^how his capacity as a 
buyer, he was found equal to the occasion, 
and became conspicuous in the market as hav- 
ing in a large degree the courage, caution and 
knowledge of men, methods and conditions 
necessary to the successful buyer. The busi- 
ness of the firm grew rapidly and steadily, 
until it became, probably, the largest of its Kind 
in any place of the size in this country, and in 
many respects may be considered the model 
dry-goods concern in this section of the State. 
The}' were among the first in their line to in- 
troduce the profit-sharing plan with employees. 




.^^^f^;^-r^^''^^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGliAPHIC'AL RECORD. 



115 



In the year 1894 Mr. De Garmo bought 
the Taggart place, containing the largest and 
most beautifully appointed grounds in the city, 
where he has since made his home. Socially, 
he is a member of the F. & A. M. Lodge, No. 
266, in Ppughkeepsie. In politics he is a Re- 
publican. 



JOHN P. ADRIANCE (deceased). Among 
the men whose enterprise and sound judg- 
ment have developed the industries, and 
e.xtended the commerce, of the city of Pough- 
keepsie, the subject of this sketch held a prom- 
inent place. The family name is derived from 
the given name of a remote ancestor, Adriaen 
Reyersz, son of Reyer Elberts, of Utrecht, 
Holland, whose wife was the mother by a 
former husband of Goosen Gerritse van Schaick, 
ancestor of the Albany van Schaicks. 

Their son, Adriaen Reyersz came to Amer- 
ica in 1646, and settled at Flatbush, L. I. 
He was married July 29, 1659, to Anna, 
daughter of Martin Schenck, a name of 
celebrity in Holland. One of their chil- 
dren, Elbert, born in 1663, settled in Flush- 
ing, arid was married in 1689 to Catalina, 
daughter of Rem. Vanderheeck, the ancestor 
of the Remsens. They had three children, 
Rem, Elbert and Anneke, with whom the use 
of the present surname began. Rem married 
Sarah, daughter of George Brinckerhoff, and 
died in 1730 at the age of forty. His sons 
were Elbert, born in 171 5; George, 17 16; 
Abraham, 1720; Isaac, 1722; Jacob, 1727, 
and Rem, 1729; of whom, George, Abraham 
and Isaac settled in Dutchess county. Abra- 
ham Adriaanse married Femmetje Van Kleef; 
their son Abraham Adriance, born in 1766, 
married Anna Storm; their son John Adriance, 
our subject's father, born in 1795, married 
Sarah Ely Harris. Their home was in Pough- 
keepsie, where he was among the leading busi- 
ness men of his day, and one of the first man- 
ufacturers of harvesting machinery. 

John P. Adriance was born March 4, 1825, 
and after acquiring such education as the 
schools of the city afiforded at that time he 
spent three years and a half as clerk in the 
hardware store of Storm & Uhl. He then 
went to New York City, and took a similar po- 
sition with Walsh & Mallory, remaining until 
1845, when the firm placed him in charge of 
their store in Manchester, N. H. He eventu- 
ally suceeded to the business there; but in 



1852 he returned to New York and went into 
the wholesale hardware trade with a brother- 
in-law, Samuel R. Piatt, and Samuel W. Sears, 
under the firm name of Sears, Adriance & Piatt. 
About this time he became interested in some 
experiments which his father was making with 
the Forbush mower, and seeing the possibili- 
ties opening up in this branch of manufactur- 
ing he decided to engage in it. In 1854 the 
firm purchased the patents of the Manny 
mower for the New England States, and began 
making the machines at Worcester, Mass., the 
business there being conducted under the name 
of Mr. Adriance. The enterprise wasnot wholly 
successful, but in 1857, at a great field trial of 
mowers and reapers held at Syracuse, N. Y. , 
under the auspicesof the United States Agricult- 
ural Society, Mr. Adriance became impressed 
with the merits of a mower patented by .Aultman 
& Miller, of Canton, Ohio, which received the 
first premium. Notwithstanding the opposi- 
tion of his partners to further ventures in that 
line, he succeeded in overcoming their objec- 
tions, and after acquiring the patent rights, he 
began the manufacture of a new machine in 
Worcester, Mass., giving it the name "Buck- 
eye," because of its Ohio origin. In 1859 the 
factory was transferred to the old " Red Mills " 
at Poughkeepsie; but the business increased so 
rapidly as to necessitate the building of more 
commodious quarters, in 1864, on the banks of 
the Hudson, extensive additions and improve- 
ments having since been made from time to 
time. In 1863 the firm of Sears, Adriance & 
Piatt was dissolved, Mr. Sears retaining the 
hardware business, and a new firm for the 
manufacture of mowers and reapers was 
formed, consisting of John P. Adriance, Sam- 
uel R. Piatt and Isaac S. Piatt, and known as 
Adriance, Piatt & Co., under which name it 
was incorporated in 1882 as a stock company, 
with the following officers: John P. Adriance, 
president; S. R. Piatt, vice-president; and I. S. 
Piatt, treasurer. Mr. Adriance continued his 
connection with the business until his death, 
which occurred June 18, 1891. 

Although his time and energy were so 
largely spent in forwarding his business inter- 
ests, Mr. Adriance was much more than a 
business man, taking keen interest in all that 
concerned the welfare of his fellows, and 
he took a prominent part in the promotion of 
many worthy enterprises which might have' 
failed but for his ready and substantial help. 
He never held any public office except that of 



lu; 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGIiAPUWAL RECORD. 



alderman for one year, but was repeatedly 
urged to accept the nomination for mayor, his 
election beinp considered certain if he con- 
sented to become a candidate. But, unwilling 
as he was to hold any public office, he was 
warmly interested in political affairs, and was 
a recognized leader in the local Republican 
organization. Possessing pleasing address, 
his courtesy readily won friends whom his 
sterling virtues retained. He was married in 
1848. to Mary J. R. Piatt, who died Decem- 
ber 24, 1895. One daughter and five sons — 
three of whom are connected with the 
corporation of Adriance, Piatt & Co. — survive 
him. 

John Ekskink Adki.^nce, the second son, 
was born in New York City, December 23, 
1853, and received his education at the Pough- 
keepsie Military Institute, the Churchill 
School at Sing Sing, and Riverview Military 
Academy. In 1871 he entered the arena of 
business, and is now vice-president of the 
Adriance, Piatt & Co. On April 27. 1882, he 
was married to Miss Mary Hasbrouck, of 
Poughkeef>sie, and they have two daughters: 
Jane Hardenbergh and Marguerite Piatt. 



FERDINAND R. BAIN, a prominent real- 
_ estate dealer, of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, is among the youngest of the enter- 
prising and successful business men of his city. 
He was born in Chatham, N. Y., May 3, 1861, 
the third son of Milton and Charlotte (Nash) 
Bain, the others being Francis M., proprietor 
of the "Palatine Hotel " at Newburgh, N. Y., 
and Horatio N., proprietor of the " Nelson 
House," Poughkeepsie. 

At the age of si.xteen our subject left 
school to assist his brother Horatio N. in the 
"Poughkeepsie Hotel," and has ever since 
been engaged in business, but he has supple- 
mented his early educational acquirements by 
reading on a wide range of subjects. His first 
instructor was Miss Wood, a private teacher 
from the Lebanon Academy, and he later at- 
tended the school of George N. Perry, at 
Dover Plains, also Bishop's select school for 
boys. No. 50 Academy street, Pougtikeepsie. 
In 1885, after eight years of hotel work, he 
embarked in the real-estate and insurance 
business, and has built up one of the most ex- 
tensive enterprises of its kind in the city, 
having platted and opened up several import- 
ant additions, among them Bain avenue, Tay- 



lor avenue, a portion of N. Hamilton street, 
the Dean property, and Livingston Manor. 
He has also been influential in securing new 
pavements in various parts of the city. 

Mr. Bain has been largely interested in 
street railways, and for some time was a mem- 
ber of the syndicate which owned the Pough- 
keepsie City Street R. R. Selling out his 
stock, however, he afterward bought a one- 
half interest, and in 1892 was elected presi- 
dent of the road. Under his management 
and upon his suggestion, the Vassar College 
and Driving Park line, and the Wappinger 
Falls line have been added to the system, and 
made electric roads. He is vice-president and 
active manager of the West Coast Steam 
Line, running from Port Tampa to St. Peters- 
burg. The latter was anything but a paying 
business when he took charge, but he has 
placed it on a profitable basis. He is a di- 
rector of the Farmers' and Manufacturers' 
Bank, and Poughkeepsie Gas Co., a member 
of the Board of Trade, and has interested him- 
self in several new manufacturing concerns, to 
bring them to Poughkeepsie. As secretary of 
the Dutchess County Agricultural Societ^y, he 
was successful in raising an incumbrance of 
$9, 500, and he helped to incorporate the 
organization in 1894; also was instrumental in 
securing its meeting in Poughkeepsie in 1890. 
His career has been an honorable one, and his 
investments have so far invariably proved suc- 
cessful. Some of his enterprises give em- 
ployment to large numbers of men. 

In 1885 Mr. Bain married Hattie I. Ken- 
worthy, a daughter of Richard Kenvvorthy, who 
was at one time sheriff of Dutchess county, 
and treasurer of the Hudson River State Hos- 
pital. Three children were born to this union: 
Ethel M., Mary K. and Kathleen. Mr. Bain 
and his wife are prominent members of the Sec- 
ond Reformed Church. He takes an active 
interest in the work of the Republican party, 
was elected supervisor from the Fourth ward 
in 1888, and alderman in 1890 and 1891; and 
at present is city assessor. Socially, he is a 
member of Triune Lodge, F. cS: A. M. ; Knights 
of Pythias, and of the Amrita, Bicycle, Driving, 
and Dutchess Clubs. 



GAIUS C. BOLIN, a talented and enter- 
prising young lawyer of Poughkeepbie, 
Dutchess county, was born in that city Sep- 
tember 10, 1864. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPBIGAL RECORD. 



117 



Abraham Bolin, his father, is a native of 
Dutchess county, born at South Dover, Feb- 
ruary lo, 1830. He lived upon a farm until 
he was twenty-five years old, having begun to 
make his way in the world at the early age of 
seven. In 1S55 he moved to Poughkeepsie, 
where he married Alice Ann Lawrence, an 
educated and refined woman of unusual mental 
ability and foresight. She was also a native of 
Dutchess county, as were her mother and 
grandmother before her. Her father having 
died during her childhood, leaving his widow 
with a large family of children, some kind 
friends in New York City took the bright little 
girl into their home and gave her an e.xcellent 
education and training. 

Abraham Bolin is an intelligent and suc- 
cessful business man, and has conducted at 
different times a meat market, a grocery store 
and a produce commission business, and has 
also engaged in selling live stock. In every 
enterprise his wife has been an indispensable 
helper and adviser. They have had thirteen 
children whose careful and thorough education 
has been their main object, and their willing 
self-sacrifice is already receiving a reward in 
the satisfaction of seeing them fitted for useful 
and honorable stations in life. The names of 
their children living are: Mrs. Alvaretta Deyo, 
George W., Gaius C. (the subject of this 
sketch), Livingsworth W., Paul C., Rev. Mrs. 
Blanche Bolin Crooke, and Miss Oscafora Stra- 
della Bolin; of these Paul C. Bolin is an ad- 
vanced student of the piano, and an instructor 
on that instrument at the National Conserva- 
tory of Music, New York City." For more 
than thirty-five years they have lived at their 
present residence on North Clinton street. 

Gaius C. Bolin attended the public schools 
of Poughkeepsie during his boyhood, and after 
graduating from the high school in 1883, he 
took a two-years course at Prof. John R. Les- 
lie's select classical school, then conducted on 
Academy street, Poughkeepsie. In the fall of 
1885 he entered the freshman class of Will- 
iams College, Williamstown, Mass., and was 
graduated from that institution in June, 1889, 
being the first colored man graduated by this 
historic old college. For a year after leaving 
college he assisted his father in the produce 
commission business, and on September 15, 
1890, he entered the law office of Fred. E. 
Ackerman, Esq., of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., as a 
student. He was admitted to the bar at the 
General Term of the Supreme Court, held in 



Brooklyn, N. Y. , and presided over by Hon. 
Joseph F. Barnard, December 15, 1892, but 
remained in Mr. Ackerman's employ, extending 
his knowledge of legal principles and gaining 
experience in their practical application. On 
May 23, 1895, he opened an ofiice of his own 
at Nos. 46-48 Market street. His watchful de- 
votion to the interests of his clients, as well as 
his upright fair dealing, has won the confidence 
of the public, and he has enjoyed a greater 
measure of success than falls to the lot of some 
practitioners who have no connection with an 
established business. 

A dutiful and affectionate son, he never 
fails to give credit for his success to the advice, 
encouragement and Christian example of his 
father and mother, and the influence of a home 
where love abounds. 



QEORGE B. CHAPMAN, M. D., was born 
^ May 20, 1849, in the town of Dover, 
Dutchess county, and received his academic 
education there and in Phillips Academy at 
Exeter, N. H. He afterward entered Bellevue 
Hospital Medical College for two years, then 
attended the Medical Department of Yale Col- 
lege for one year, graduating from the latter 
in 1875. He began his professional career in 
Amenia Union, N. Y., and remained there for 
thirteen years, building up a large practice. 
In 1888, on account of the overwork and ex- 
posure incident to his profession, his health 
gave out, and he was obliged to give up active 
practice, and spend the two following winters 
in Virginia, and the summers in Minnesota 
and Dakota. While in the West he became 
much interested in real-estate investments, 
was one of the organizers, and the first presi- 
dent of the Webutuck Investment Co. of 
Duluth, Minn., and a director in the Amenia 
and Sharon Land Co. of North Dakota. 

In 1890 he located at Dover Plains, and 
became interested in the invention of Charles 
E. Buckley, since known as the Buckley 
Watering Device, an automatic arrangement 
for securing a plentiful supply of fresh water to 
cattle and horses while confined in the stable, 
a patent being secured in 1891. The im- 
portance of this invention, both from a eco- 
nomic and humanitarian standpoint, was soon 
appreciated by all intelligent and progressive 
stock-breeders and dairymen, and the system 
is now in general use throughout the country. 
Dr. Chapman has made many improvements 



118 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



on the original idea, and is now actively en- 
gaged in the manufacture and sale of the De- 
vice, having bought out Mr. Buckley's interest 
in 1892. 

Dr. Chapman is actively interested in local 
affairs, and is a member of the Masonic fra- 
ternity. In 1874, he married Miss Martha 
Root (daughter of Oliver and Mary Root, of 
Kent, Conn.), who died in February, 1876, 
leaving no children. In September, 1877, he 
married Sarah Hitchcock, daughter of Homer 
and Rebecca Hitchcock, belonging to an old 
and well-known family of Amenia, N. Y. One 
child blessed this union, Rebecca, born July 3, 
1878. 

Israel Chapman, our subject's great-grand- 
father, was born at Bethlehem, Conn., and 
reared a family of sons, among whom was 
William Chapman, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject. He was educated at his native place, 
and early in life followed the carpenter's trade, 
but later moved to South Dover, Dutchess 
county, and conducted a hotel and general 
store. His wife was Miss Rachel Cherrytree, 
and their seven children all lived to maturity. 
They were Israel, who never married; Homer, 
who married (first) Ann Howard, and (second) 
Helen Thompson; Reuben Wooster married 
Marilla Ward; Lyman married Deborah Sher- 
man; Alfred, our subject's father, in 1831 
married Adaline Mabbett; Maria became the 
wife of Charles Thomas; and Betsey became 
the wife of William Tabor. 

Alfred Chapman was born in South Dover, 
Dutchess county, December 11, 1807, and 
after receiving a common-school education 
learned the carpenier's trade, and engaged in 
the business of contracting and building, in 
which he was successful, the high order of his 
work bringing him custom from an extended 
territory. 

Dr. Chapman is the fifth in a family of 
seven children: (i) Ann E.. born in 1832, 
was married in 1854 to William Tabor, a 
farmer. They have had eleven children: 
John and Louisa are unmarried; Florence 
married Frank \'an Auken; Jennie married 
William Sebring; Frank and Harriet are still 
unmarried; and Mary is the wife of Everett 
Travis; the other children died in infancy. (2) 
Benjamin F. was born in 1835, educated at 
Michigan University and the .-\lbany Law 
School. On graduating in i860 from the lat- 
ter institution, he began the practice of law at 
Dover, but his death in 1870 cut short a 



promising career. He married Miss Helen 
Reed, and left one son, David H. R. Chap- 
man, who graduated from Columbia College, 
and is now in the coal business in New York 
City. (3) Mary J. was born in 1836, and in 
1865 married Nicholas Ryan, now residing in 
Brewster, N. Y. She died in 1867, leaving 
two children: Minnie, living in Petersburg, 
Va., and George B., now living in Clove 
Valley, N. Y. (4) Sarah M., born in 1839, 
married Peter T. Young, a live-stock dealer 
in Norfolk and Petersburg, \'a. They have 
two children, Hattie C, born in 1876, and 
Homer T>, born in 1884. (5) Our subject. 
(6) William and (7) Walter died in infancy. 



JOHN VAN WYCK (deceased). The family 
name of the subject of this sketch has been 
held in high esteem, both in Holland, the 
ancient home of the family, and in this coun- 
try, where many of its representatives have 
held positions of usefulness and honor. 

Dr. Van Wyck, our subject's grandfather, 
a native of Dutchess county, owned a large 
tract of land in the town of Fishkill, which he 
cultivated, in addition to his extensive labors 
as a medical practitioner. His son, Gen. John 
B. Van Wyck, our subject's father, was an 
officer in the war of 181 2. He married Susan 
Schenk, by whom he had nine children: Alfred, 
a farmer in Fishkill; John, our subject; Jo- 
hanna, who married Mr. Holmes, a merchant 
in New York City; Mary, the wife of Edward 
Remsen, also a merchant in New York City; 
Catherine; Susan, who married O. Holmes; 
Cornelia; Jane, the second wife of Mr. Holmes; 
and William. 

John Van Wyck, our subject, was born in 
the town of Poughkeepsie, and was educated 
at the Dutchess County Academy. On leav- 
ing school he went to New York City, and en- 
gaged in the wholesale dry-goods business. 
He married Miss Sarah Mesier, a native of New 
York City, born in 18 10. Her father, Peter 
A. Mesier, was a native of New England, and 
became a bank stationer in New York City. 
He was a Whig in politics, and he and his 
family were members of the Episcopal Church. 
His wife was Catherine Mesier, a first cousin, 
and they reared a family of five children: Mary; 
Sarah (Mrs. \'an Wycki; Peter, a merchant in 
New York; Jane; and Margaret, who married 
James Clonny, an artist in New York. The 
Mesiers are of French Huguenot ancestry, and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



119 



their coat of arms bears the appropriate motto, 
"Tiens a la Foi," — Hold to thy faith. The 
Van ^^'yck family also possesses a coat of arms, 
the nearest description of which in the absence 
of any work on heraldry, is as follows: Anns 
— A cross or, in each quarter two tassels, arg. , 
inverted, crossed; over all an escutcheon 
charged with a cart-wheel, proper. Crcst — A 
crown, arg. (in English heraldry this would be 
a ducal crown). Sicpporters — Two gryphons 
(or griffins), sal., regardant, each supporting a 
banner, the de.xter banner charged with a cross, 
as on the shield; the sinister banner charged 
with a cart-wheel, as on the escutcheon. 

Shortly after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. 
Van Wyck settled upon a farm near Manches- 
ter, and, in 1835, moved to the present home- 
stead near New Hamburg, a beautiful estate 
overlooking the Hudson river. Here they 
built an elegant residence, w^hich has been for 
si.xty years one of the most charming homes of 
this vicinity. Eight children were born to 
them: Kate, Mesier (deceased), Sarah, Henry, 
John, Mary, William, and Edmund (deceased), 
who was a physician at Wappingers Falls. 
Mr. \'an Wyck died September 18, 1878, but 
his wqdow is still living, blessed with unusual 
vigor, both physical and mental, and surrounded 
by her children who are all at home. The 
family has been identified with the Episcopal 
Church of Wappingers Falls for more than 
half a century, and is well-known in the most 
exclusive circles of Poughkeepsie society. 



IrFILLIAM LOUIS De LACY, a well- 
known attorney of Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , 
is recognized as the leading pension lawyer of 
that city. He was himself a soldier in the 
Civil war, enlisting as a boy of sixteen years, 
August 13, 1861, and serving until mustered 
out October 11, 1865, and his own experiences 
on the battle fields and in the prisons of the 
South have doubtless turned his attention to 
the disabilities that the hardships of that long 
struggle have brought upon the brave "boys 
in blue," and certainly his record as a soldier 
must have done much to gain for him the con- 
fidence of his large circle of clients. 

His family is of ancient lineage, and, it is 
thought, originated in Lassy, Normandy, and 
was transplanted to England at the time of 
the Conquest. The progenitor of the Amer- 
ican branch, William Lacy, came from the 
Isle of Wight at an early period, and settled in 



Bucks county. Penn., where many of his 
descendants still live. The family is one of 
the oldest and most substantial in that region, 
and its members have usually been engaged in 
agriculture. The first record concerning the 
family is that of a marriage which occurred in 
1 7 18 in the Quaker Church at Wrightstown, 
Bucks Co., Penn. Brigadier-General John 
De Lacy, of Revolutionary fame, was a mem- 
ber of this family. William De Lacy had a 
son William, who had a son William, who had 
a son William, our subject's grandfather. 
There were five brothers of that generation, 
and while William remained at the old home, 
one went to Michigan, one to Mississippi, one 
to Ohio, and the other settled west of the 
Mississippi. William married Miss Mary 
Chidester, and had three daughters — Mary, 
Ann and Jane — and six sons — Israel, the owner 
of the Trenton Pottery at Trenton, N. J. ; 
Joseph, a confectioner; Lafayette and Na- 
poleon Bonaparte, who were on the police 
force in Philadelphia; John P., our subject's 
father; and Aaron, a lumberman of Pike coun- 
ty, Penn. John P. De Lacy was born at the 
old homestead January 27, 1814, and became 
a prominent citizen there, noted for his 
sterling qualities of character. By trade he 
was a carpenter, and he was active in local 
politics as a Jacksonian Democrat, although 
he never sought or held office. He was a 
birthright Quaker. His wife, Caroline Car- 
tier, was a native of Bucks county, Penn., and 
a daughter of Jacob Cartier, who was born in 
Leipsic, Saxony. Six children were born to 
them: Hester, who married Richard Parsons, 
of Bucks county, Penn. ; Harriet, deceased; 
William L. , our subject; Jacob Alfred, a resi- 
dent of Lambertville, N. J. ; John Franklin, a 
mining prospector in the West; and Charles 
Henry, a seaman. The father died October 
8, 1878, but the mother is still living, and at 
the age of seventy-six has not a gray hair in 
her head. 

Mr. De Lacy was born at New Hope, Penn. , 
July 10. 1S45. His opportunities for an edu- 
cation were meagre, his early years having 
been spent mainly upon the Lehigh'canal. He 
worked for one year in the office of the Peo- 
ple s Beacon, at Lambertville, N. J., employed 
by Clark Pierson for a time, and he gained 
some knowledge of reading, both in script and 
print, but at the age of sixteen, when he was 
required to sign the pay roll, on his enlistment, 
he could only make his mark. He soon learned 



120 



COMMEMORA FIVE BIOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



to write, however, and the next time his sig- 
nature was wanted he was prepared to write it. 
He was a member of Company C, 4th N.J. 
Inf., ist N. J. Brigade, of which Gen. Phil 
Kearny was the original commander. He 
took part in many important engagements, 
being at West Point. Va., May 7, 1862; at 
White House Landing; at Mechanicsville, 
twice; and at Gaines' Hill, June 27, 1862, on 
the second day of the Seven-Days' fight, near 
Richmond. Here he was wounded and capt- 
ured with the bulk of his regiment, and, after 
being confined in I^ibby Prison for some time, 
was sent to Belle Isle with the first detach- 
ment of one hundred prisoners, who were com- 
pelled to put up the first tent on the island, 
intended for prison purposes; he spent about 
seven weeks there, and on being exchanged, 
August 12, 1862, rejoined his regiment at Har- 
rison's Landing. Then followed the Second 
Battle of Bull Run, and the engagements at 
'Crampton Gap, or South Mountain. Septem- 
ber 14; Antietam, September 17, and Freder- 
icksburg, December 12, 1862. He was de- 
tailed for train guard duty after this, and his 
next battle was at Rappahaimock Station, in 
October, 1863, followed by that of Mine Run, 
November 26, after which the regiment went 
into winter quarters until May, 1864, when 
Grant took command. In the battle of the 
Wilderness Mr. De Lacy was seriously wound- 
ed, and, as he could not take his place in the 
field again, he remained in the hospital at 
Newark, N. J., until he was mustered out, 
October 11, 1865. On his return to the life 
of a civilian, he spent eight months in the 
Pennington Theological Seminary, and this 
may be said to be the only real schooling that 
he ever had. He left this institution, reluc- 
tantly, to enter business life, taking a place as 
clerk for James E. Goll, an insurance agent at 
Newark, N. J. ; later he went into a market on 
Pacific street. In October, 1866, he went to 
Poughkeepsie with a physician, and, being left 
penniless, he worked for some time in the 
offices of the Press and Hoi^ie. On Septem- 
ber I, 1873, he bought the Amenia Times, in 
partnership with William Wiley, the firm being 
at first De Lacy & Wiley, and afterward De- 
Lacy cS; Walsh. Mr. De Lacy edited the paper 
until 1877, when he sold out to Mr. Walsh, 
and during this time he was twice elected jus- 
tice of the peace, and once appointed to that 
office to fill a vacancy. He had also been 
studying law in private, and after a further 



course with Cyrus Swan, of Poughkeepsie, he 
was admitted to the bar in September, 1879, 
and has since been in active practice, making 
a specialty of pension claims. 

In politics he has always been a Democrat, 
and formerly he was quite active in party work. 
He served two terms as police commissioner 
under Mayors Rowley and Arnold. Since De- 
cember, 1872, he has been a member of the 
I. O. O. F., Fallkill Lodge No. 297, and he 
belongs to the Order of Chosen Friends, 
Dutchess Council No. 50; the Queen City As- 
sembly Royal Society of Good Fellows, No. 
124, and is an honorary member of Phoenix 
Hose Company. He is also a member of 
Hamilton Post No. 20, G. A. R. , in which he 
takes great interest, and has been a delegate 
to the National Encampments at San Francis- 
co, Denver, St. Louis, Indianapolis, Boston, 
Washington and Baltimore. In 1892 he was 
senior vice-commander of the Department of 
New York. 

On March 30, 1868, Mr. De Lacy married 
Weltha A. Wiley, daughter of Clark Wiley, a 
prominent resident of Poughkeepsie. They 
have two sons: George W. , an architect and 
draughtsman, and Charles, who is a clerk in 
the office with his father. 



SHERIDAN SHOOK. The spirit of self- 
help is the source of all genuine worth 
in the individual, and is the means of bring- 
ing to man success when he has no advantages 
of wealth or influence to aid him. It illus- 
trates in no uncertain manner what is possible 
to accomplish when perseverance and deter- 
mination form the keynote to a man's life. 
Depending on his own resources, looking for 
no outside aid or support, Mr. Shook has 
secured a handsome property, although he 
started out in life with naught save a pair of 
willing hands and a determination to succeed. 
Our subject is a native of Dutchess county, 
born February 19, 1828, in the town of Red 
Hook, and is a son of George Shook. He re- 
ceived his education at Piermont Academy, and 
at the early age of fourteen years went to New 
York City, "to make his fortune," in which 
he certainl}' succeeded. For ten years he 
clerked for John Boyce, a dealer in butter and 
cheese, at the expiration of which time he and 
Henry N. Morgan took charge of the business, 
Mr. Boyce having retired. .At the opening of 
the war of the Rebellion, our subject was ap- 





/^.. 



t^t^^ 



COldMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



121 



pointed treasurer of the "Relief Fund," which 
had been raised in the city to meet- the needs 
of the families of those who had g^one to the 
front. In 1861 he was appointed by President 
Lincoln to the position of Internal Revenue 
Collector, which position he held seven years, 
and about the same time he was elected to the 
board of supervisors of New York City. In 
1865, at an outlay of $40,000, he fitted up 
" Gilmores Garden," in New York, which he 
conducted for two years. In 1871 he built the 
Union Square Theatre, corner of 14th street 
and Broadway, and for several years conducted 
same, under the able management of A. M. 
Palmer. Mr. Shook was also engaged in the 
brewery business, at New York, under the firm 
name of Shook & Everhard, and was also pro- 
prietor of the "Morton House," one of the 
leading hotels of New York, which he carried 
on until 1895. 

Mr. Shook has been twice married, his 
second union being on December 21, 1881, 
with Miss Ellen M. Gillespie, a native of Al- 
bany county, N. Y. , born at Greenbush, in 
1846, a daughter of Charles Gillespie, of Al- 
bany, N. Y. She is a member of the Lu- 
theran Church. Mr. Shook in his political 
preferences is a Republican. He is the father 
of four children: Louise Week (Mrs. H. A. 
Hoffman); Sheridan Shook, Jr., of New York; 
Lillie; and one that died in early youth. He 
still has business interests in New York and 
Red Hook, but is not personally engaged there- 
in. He has a fine farm and beautiful residence 
situated about four miles from his birthplace. 
No more genial man can be found than Mr. 
Shook, and he and his estimable wife have 
many friends to whom their hospitality is ever 
e.xtended. They hold a high position in social 
circles, having the esteem and respect of all 
who know them. 



Tr\AVID A. KNAPP, M. D., an eminent 
jUf^ physician and surgeon of Dutchess county, 
has for many years successfully engaged in the 
practice of medicine in the town of Unionvale. 
In his profession he takes a genuine and de- 
voted interest, making a study of " the ills that 
flesh is heir to, " and is one of the most capable 
and conscientious men in his profession. 

His father, Isaac Knapp, also a medical 
practitioner, was a native of Greenwich, Conn., 
where he obtained his literary education, and 



later began the study of medicine, graduating 
at the New York Medical Institute in 1795. 
He commenced the practice of his chosen pro- 
fession in New Fairfield, near Danbury, Conn. , 
and also conducted a select school. In relig- 
ious belief he was a Presbyterian. He married 
Miss Amy Brush, a daughter of Squire Brush, 
a prosperous farmer of New Fairfield, and they 
became the parents of eight children, one of 
whom died in infancy, the others being as fol- 
lows: 

(1) Theressa Knapp was born in the town 
of New Fairfield, Fairfield Co., Conn., and se- 
cured a common-school education. She mar- 
ried Hubbel Piatt, but had no children. 

(2) Isaac Knapp, also a native of New 
Fairfield town, engaged in teaching after the 
completion of his own education, and also fol- 
lowed farming. During the old training days 
he held the commission of captain in the 
militia. He married Miss Maranda Hall, and 
they had one son — Smith, now deceased, who 
was born in Connecticut, and for a time was 
engaged in the real-estate business. He was 
twice married, the first time to a Miss Briggs, 
by whom he had two children, Lula and 
George F. ; later he wedded a Miss Taylor, 
and they had three children. 

(3) Enoch Knapp was born and educated in 
Connecticut, and also taught school. During 
the training days he served as major. He 
married Rachel Barnum, of New Fairfield, 
Conn., and to them were born seven children: 
Almira, who married Daniel W'ood, a farmer 
of Redding Ridge, Fairfield Co., Conn., and 
has five children; Sarah, who married Waite 
Brush, a farmer of Rome, N. Y. , and has three 
children; Mary, who died in infancy; Charlotte, 
an artist by profession, who is now studying in 
France and other parts of the Old World; 
Isaac S., an agriculturist, who married Lula 
Dayton; Mary, who wedded a Mr. Clegett, and 
has a son, Clifton; and Fred, a farmer, who 
married a Miss Howe. 

(4) Sarah Knapp. who was born in the 
town of New Fairfield, married Ephraim 
Leach, a farmer, and they had three sons: 
David (now deceased), a machinist, who mar- 
ried a Miss Bennett; Isaac, an engineer; and 
Henry O., who married a Miss Roberts, of 
Peekskill, N. Y., and has six children: Fannie, 
Hannah, Mabel, Myra, Clara and Theressa. 

(5) Ezra Knapp (deceased) was born in the 
town of New Fairfield, received a common- 
school education, and followed the pursuit of 



122 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



farming. He married Miss Rachel Meade, of 
Greenwich, Conn.; they had no children. 

(6) Dr. David A. Knapp, of this review, is 
next in order of birth, and like the other mem- 
bers of the family, was born in the town of 
New Fairfield, Fairfield Co., Conn. He at- 
tended the district schools near his home, and 
later pursued his studies in a select school of 
that township, in the Danbury Academy and 
in the Middletown Academy. For two years 
he was then a student at Yale College, New 
Haven, Conn., prior to which he engaged in 
teaching for a time. At the age of twenty- 
two years he entered the University of New 
York, graduating from the medical department 
in the spring of 1845. He soon after began 
practice in the town of Unionvale, Dutchess 
county, where he has since made his home and 
has met with excellent results along his chosen 
line of endeavor. He is one of the prominent 
as well as original members of the Dutchess 
County Medical Society. In social circle he 
also holds a leading position, and has been 
called upon to serve in a number of township 
offices. 

In 1846 the Doctor was united in marriage 
with Miss Rebecca Vincent, who was born in 
1827, and is the daughter of Jonathan G. and 
Loretta (Williams) Vincent, prosperous farm- 
ing people of the town of Unionvale. Two 
sons bless their union: (i) David Vincent, 
born in 1863, was educated at Wilbraham, 
Mass., and Hackettstown, N. J., and also 
studied medicine. He married Miss Anna 
Dean, daughter of Cromaline Dean, of the 
town of Lagrange, Dutchess county, and they 
had one child that died in infancy. The wife 
and mother is also now deceased. (2) Ezra 
V. M., the Doctor's younger son, was born in 
the town of Unionvale, February 14, 1875. 
He also attended school at Wilbraham, Mass., 
and the High School at Meriden. Conn., later 
taking a course at the Eastman Business Col- 
lege, Poughkeepsie. He is now carrying on 
farming with his father. In 1895 he took a 
trip to the Pacific coast, remaining there six 
months. 

(7) Euphemia Knapp, the youngest child 
of Isaac and Amy (Brush) Knapp, married 
Willian; H. Morse, an agriculturist of Mass- 
achusetts; they had no children. 

Gilbert Vincent, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Dr. Knapp, was a native of the town of Union- 
yale, and married Miss Phcebe Vail. In their 
family were twelve children, namely: Isaac, 



who married Martha Duncan; Absalom, who 
married Hannah Duncan; Jonathan G. , the 
father of Mrs. Knapp; Thomas, who married 
Eliza Arnold; Richard, who married Helen 
Fowler; Margaret, who married John T. 
Potter; Betsy, who married Jonathan Hus- 
tead; Rebecca and Levina, who never mar- 
ried; Michael, who married a Miss Carey; 
Phcebe A., who married Morris Germond; and 
Hepsobeth, who married Edward Wheeler. 

Jonathan C. Vincent was born in the town 
of Unionvale, and was united in marriage 
with Miss Loretta Williams, daughter of 
Squire Williams, a surveyor, of the same town- 
ship. Seven children were born to them, as 
follows: (i) Elizabeth married Reuben L. 
Coe, and had six children. (2) Rebecca is 
the wife of Dr. Knapp, subject of this sketch. 
(3) John, ex-county clerk, married Rhoda 
I3utler, and had four children — Ella, who 
married Obed Vincent; Minnie, who married 
Charles Andrews; Walter; and Elisha B. (4) 
Gilbert married Kate Uhl, by whom he had a 
son, Ralph, who married Hannah T. Under- 
bill; for his second wife Gilbert wedded Eliza 
Ham, and they have a daughter, Loretta. (5) 
Lewis never married. (6) Michael married 
Estella O'Neil. and has five children — Nellie, 
Minnie, Jonathan, Thomas and Rebecca. (7) 
Mary A. wedded Orin Able, and has two chil- 
dren — Elanita, who married Oscar Shaffer; 
and Claude O. L. 



TAMES G. PORTEOUS, M. D. (deceased). 
In the romantic annals of Scottish history, 
* and made immortal in the romances of Sir 
Walter Scoti, is the name of Porteous, ever 
linked in the struggles for freedom, and worthy 
a place at the side of a Forbes, or a Mar, fol- 
lowing under the leadership of the matchless 
W'allace, or Bruce. In direct line of descent 
from Capt. Porteous, famous in the "Porteous 
mob" at Edinburgh, comes Andrew Porteous, 
a native of that city, born in 181 5 or iS 16, a 
son of Andrew Porteous, Sr. ; he emigrated to 
this country in 1S37 or '38, and helped to lay 
out Jersey City. He later went to Essex county, 
New York, and worked in the mines as a civil 
engineer, afterward going to Glens Falls where 
he engaged in the cement business, and thence 
to Luzerne where he followed agricultural pur- 
suits. He married Jane Blair, also of an 
ancient Scotch family, and they became the 
parents of eight children, as follows: James 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPEWAL RECORD. 



123 



G. , Helen, Marj-, Jane, Charles, Maggie, An- 
nie and Scott, only two of whom — Jane and 
Scott — are yei living. 

James G. Porteous, whose name opens this 
review, was born at Moriah, Essex Co., N. Y. , 
January 3, 1839. \\'hile in Esse.x county his 
educational training was under the guidance of 
a private tutor, and his academic education was 
received at Glens Falls. In 1861 he entered 
the medical department of Harvard College, 
graduating in 1865. During the four 3'ears he 
was enrolled as a student at Harvard, he was 
absent two years in the army. Prompted by 
the same spirit that animated the breasts of his 
ancestors he offered his services to his country, 
to do his part that no star might be missed 
from the field of blue. He enlisted as first as- 
sistant surgeon of the 118th N. Y. V. I., 
and later was promoted to surgeon of the 46th 
N. Y. V. I., where he served during the bal- 
ance of the war. After being mustered out he 
returned to college and passed "perfect" in 
all of his examinations. In 1865 he began 
practice at Luzerne, in Warren Co., N. Y. , 
and for fifteen years he successfully followed 
his chosen calling — to which his large sympa- 
thies so well adapted him — there; but May i, 
1880, he bought out the practice of Dr. Carter, 
of Poughkeepsie, and removed to that city, 
greatly to the regret of his patients at Luzerne. 
His career as a physician in Poughkeepsie was 
one of remarkable success, and he remained 
there until his death, one of the best known 
physicians in this part of the State. 

In 1865 Dr. Porteous was married to Miss 
Sarah F. Wilbur, daughter of Samuel and 
Sarah Wilbur, of Boston, Mass., and three 
children were the result of this union: Effie; 
Flora, who became the wife of Allen H. Craft, 
of New York City; and Lizzie, who married 
Dr. E. E. Hicks, of Brooklyn, N. Y. Soci- 
ally, the Doctor was a member of the Mystic 
Shrine, Knights Templar, and of the Loyal 
Legion and the G. A. R., and was also a mem- 
ber of the Dutchess Club. In religious belief 
he and his wife were faithful attendants of the 
Episcopal Church. The Doctor was very 
strong in his political views, and was an active 
and influential worker in the ranks of the Re- 
publican party. Though for seven years su- 
pervisor of Luzerne, and a member of the As- 
sembly in 1873, he could in no way be regarded 
as an office seeker. His interest was only 
what every public-spirited and patriotic citi- 
zen's should be — "to promote the general 



welfare" — and in this our subject did not fail 
to do his duty, for he was in the fore of any 
movement that tended toward the advance- 
ment of the community. He was one of those 
typical self-made men, whose struggles with 
adverse circumstances broadened the mind, and 
his natural kind-hearted and unselfish nature, 
together with his sincere regard for his brother 
man, made him a man among men, a friend to 
humanity. His heart responded to every call, 
and he could laugh with them that laughed, 
and mourn with them that mourned. No ap- 
peal to his aid was ever made in vain, and 
though he ranked among the foremost of his 
profession in Poughkeepsie, no home was too 
humble for him to enter if thereby he could 
relieve the suffering of mind and body of some 
unfortunate fellow-being. In proof of the high 
regard in which he was held, his patients have 
collected quite a sum of money for the purpose 
of erecting a monument over his grave, that 
there might be in chiseled marble a fitting tes- 
timonial of- the life and character of one of na- 
ture's noblemen. 



JOHN J. BROOKS (deceased) was born in 
Haverstraw, N. Y. , April i, 1821, and was 
^ the son of Capt. William Brooks, a native 
of Stony Point, New York. 

John Brooks was a farmer by occupation, 
and was a prosperous man. He married a 
Miss Cooney, and their children were: Oliver, 
Brewster and Samuel (deceased); Nathaniel, 
a blacksmith by trade, living at Stony Point, 
N. Y. ; John, William, Lavinia, and Mary, the 
latter now living in Marlborough. 

William, or "Capt. Billy," as he was gen- 
erally known, by trade a ship builder, spent his 
entire life in Haverstraw, where he was well- 
known and highly esteemed. He was a man 
of unusual ability, and was prominent in all 
affairs of the county. He was a brave soldier 
in the war of 1812, and a captain in the State 
militia, whence he obtained his title. He was 
a Democrat and a leading man in political cir- 
cles, as well as in the Methodist Church to 
which he and his wife belonged. He was mar- 
ried in the summer of 181 7 to Miss Nancy De- 
Groot, whose father was a large land owner at 
Tompkin's Cove. Eight children were born 
of this union, as follows: William D. is a 
prominent citizen of Rochester, now retired 
from business; John J. comes next; Oliver has 
resided in Detroit, Mich., for a number of 



124 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



years; Walter was a sailor, and was lost at sea; 
Sampson, a builder, lives at Hyde Park; Ed- 
ward is in the carriage business in Syracuse, 
N. Y. ; Sybil died July 3, 1890, unmarried; 
and Jane M. married Hewlett Baker, a promi- 
nent builder in New York City. The father 
of this family died at Haverstraw in the sum- 
mer of 1846; the mother passed away in Pough- 
keepsie, in November, 1881. 

John J. Brooks was reared to manhood in 
Rockland county, obtaining only a common- 
school education, but being possessed of much 
natural ability and a retentive memory he be- 
came a well-informed man. He was very fond 
of reading, and was one of the best mathema- 
ticians in his locality. He was a good business 
man, thorough in everything he undertook, 
and became a leader in all public enterprises 
as a Republican. 

Mr. Brooks was apprenticed when quite 
young to learn the carriage-trimming business, 
and worked for two or three years in Rahway, 
N. J., and New York City, then when he was 
nineteen years old he bought his time, and 
later started a shop of his own on the corner 
of Broadway and Walker street. New York. 
After moving to Poughkeepsie he started on 
the corner of Cranneil and Main streets, soon 
afterward opening a factory at Nos. 424-426- 
428, on Main street, which he carried on until 
about 1870. His first partner in business was 
Marshall, and, later, Thomas Wyatt. This 
factory employed from eighteen to twenty 
men, and was the largest in the county. In 
1870, in company with A. T. Kear, Mr. 
Brooks went into the livery business, which 
he carried on until 1876, when he retired from 
active work. In 1880 he was elected chief of 
police, Poughkeepsie's first chief, which im- 
portant position he held for nine years. He was 
also at one time alderman for the Third ward, 
and again for the Fifth ward, performing the 
duties connected with this office to the entire 
satisfaction of his constituents. He was su- 
pervisor one term, also a member of the ex- 
cise board, and always held a prominent place 
among the public-spirited men of the city of 
Poughkeepsie, being a born leader and full of 
enterprise. Religiously, he was a member of 
the Congregational Church, and was ever 
ready to assist in any good work. In his 
death, which occurred July 17, 1891, the com- 
munity lost one of its best citizens, and his 
family a tender, loving husband and father. 

Mr. Brooks was married June 18, 1845, to 



Elsie A. Hermance, daughter of John Her- 
mance, who was a shoemaker by trade and a 
great temperance advocate. Four children 
were born of this marriage: Herman and Char- 
lie, both of whom died joung; Norman J.; and 
Emma C, who married Charles A. Van De- 
Water, of Poughkeepsie, and their children are 
Irving B., Elsie May and Lena M. 

Norman J. Brooks, only surviving son of 
our subject, was educated in the public schools 
of Poughkeepsie, and in Dutchess County 
Academ}'. When fourteen years of age he 
left school and went into the dry-goods store 
of W'illiam Broas, for a time. He then was in 
his father's office for awhile, after which he 
learned the wagon-maker's trade, and subse- 
quently engaged in the liver}' business for two 
years. In 1874 he was employed as clerk in 
the New York post office, where he remained 
two and a half years. For several years after 
this he was in no particular business. In 1877 
or 1878 he was appointed, by B. Piatt Car- 
penter, as a clerk in the Custom House, 
which position he held for eight years. After 
this he became salesman in the clothing house 
of M. Schwartz, where he remained four or 
five yfears, and then went into the grocery 
business, the firm name being Brooks & Van 
De Water. In 1895 he bought out his part- 
ner, and at present is conducting the store 
himself. He has been successful in this en- 
terprise, and is looked upon as an able busi- 
ness man. 

Mr. Brooks was married September 25, 
1872, to Hilah A. Burger, daughter of W. C. 
Burger, of Ulster county, and four children 
have been born to them: Lulu S. (deceased 
when six months old), Arthur N., Clarence J. 
and Elmer Frank. Mr. Brooks is a Repub- 
lican, and has at times taken quite an active 
part in politics, although he has never been 
willing to accept office; he attends the services 
of the Congregational Church. A public-spir- 
ited citizen, he is interested in any movement 
looking to the growth and welfare of his com- 
munity. 



BOBERT G. COFFIN, the subject of this 
sketch, was born in the town of Wash- 
ington, on what is now called the Altamont 
stock farm. February 12, 1823. His father 
was Robert Coffin, of whom see a biography 
in the sketch of Hezekiah R. Coffin. 

Our subject spent his boyhood on the farm, 





V 








COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



125 



attending the Nine Partners Boarding School, 
and later the Dutchess County Academy. After 
finishing his education he resumed his life on 
the farm of his parents where he resided until 
1887, when he sold the place and bought his 
present property in South Millbrook. 

On April 9, 1851, Mr. Coffin was united in 
marriage with Miss Eliza Sackett, who was 
born in the town of Washington, a daugh- 
ter of Artemas E. Sackett, a farmer in that 
town. The Sackett family was an old one of 
the town of Stanford, where the father of Ar- 
temas E. was born. Nine children were born 
to our subject and his wife, namely: Kate 
died young; Ida L. married Dr. J. O. Pingry; 
Clarence died at an early age; Laura married 
Beverly W. Howard, a farmer in the town of 
Washington; Edwin married Miss Elizabeth 
Tomlinson, and is a farmer in Stanford ; Robert 
married Miss Elnora Lattin, and lives in Ma- 
maroneck, ' N. Y. ; Artemas S. married Julia 
Lattin, and is a merchant at Oak Summit; 
Helen M. became the wife of Dr. D. H. Mac- 
Kenzie, a practicing physician at Mabbetts- 
ville; John L. married Miss Emily Crossman, 
and lives in Washington. Mrs. Coffin died 
November 28, 1894. 

Mr. Coffin is a Democrat, and has been 
quite a prominent man in his community. He 
was instrumental in building the church in 
South Millbrook; was also an active promoter 
of the building of the Newburg, Dutchess & 
Columbia R. R. He was the first bona fide sub- 
scriber to its stock; was one of its first direct- 
ors, and is still one, having served as such 
about thirty years. He suggested calling meet- 
ings along the entire line, at which he and 
others addressed the people in favor of its con- 
struction, which efforts resulted in an almost 
unanimous subscription to its stock. After much 
more hard work the road was completed, and 
its benefits secured to the people. Millbrook 
has now a fine church, a railroad, and has de- 
veloped into a beautiful little village. Mr. Cof- 
fin is greatly admired for his public spirit, and 
possesses the esteem and respect of all who 
know him. 



UY CARLETON BAYLEY, M. D., of 

Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, second 
son of Richard and Mary (Dietzi Bay ley, 
grandson of Dr. Guy Carleton Bayley, and 
great-grandson of Dr. Richard Bayley, was 
born at Poughkeepsie, October 16, 1850. 



Our subject was educated at the Dutchess 
County Academy, and in Mr. Churchill's school 
at Sing Sing, N. Y. In 1867 he entered Dr. 
Jacob Bockee's office as a student of medicine, 
and, in 1869, the office of Dr. Henry B. Sands, 
New York City, by whose advice he took three 
courses of lectures at the College of Physicians 
and Surgeons, in the City of New York, where 
he graduated in 1872. In the same year he 
commenced the practice of his profession at 
Poughkeepsie, where he was appointed visit- 
ing physician at St. Barnabas Hospital, and 
physiclan-in-charge of the Orphan Home and 
Home for the Friendless. In 1884 Dr. Bay- 
ley accepted an appointment on the visiting 
surgical staff of the Womans Hospital of the 
State of New York, New York City, and asso- 
ciated himself in business with Dr. Nathan 
Bozeman, in that city. In 1887 Dr. Bayley 
was appointed resident medical officer of, and 
visiting surgeon to, Vassar Brothers Hospital 
at Poughkeepsie, and was given charge of the 
details of the organizing and carrying on the 
work of the splendidly-equipped and richly-en- 
dowed institution. Dr. Bayley is an original 
member of the New York State Medical Asso- 
ciation, of the American Medical Association, 
and of the New York State Medical Society. 

In 1875 the Doctor married Angelica Cros- 
by Wyckoff, who died in 1876; for his second 
wife he, in 1885, married Ellen Lorraine 
Bulkeley, of New York City. 



LAWRENCE C. RAPALJE, a retired agri- 
culturist and business man of the town of 

East Fishkill, Dutchess county, has been for 
many years a leading citizen of that locality, 
his varied interests ideniifying him with many 
of the most important progressive measures 
there. 

In his veins there fiows the blood of sev- 
eral of the oldest families of the county, mem- 
bers of which have distinguished themselves in 
the past by their devotion to principle, and by 
their work in public lines. On the paternal 
side, the first ancestor came from Holland 
about 1623, and located near Newtown, Long 
Island, where some of his descendants still 
live. Martin Rapalje, our subject's grand- 
father, was a farmer there throughout his life. 
He married Miss Mary Lawrence, daughter of 
Col. William Lawrence, and a member of one 
of the most prominent families in New York. 



12C 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



They reared a family of children, among whom 
was Uaniel L. , our subject's father. 

Daniel L. Rapaije was born in January, 
1800, spent his early years at the old home- 
stead, and then engaged in the wholesale dry- 
goods business in New York City, where he 
passed the remainder of his life, dying in June, 
1850. He was a Democrat in politics. His 
wife, Phoebe Cortelyou, born in April, 1800, 
in Long Island, vvas a daughter of Peter Cor- 
telyou, and is also deceased. The Cortelyou 
family is of French- Huguenot stock, and the 
first of the American branch came from France 
during the religious persecutions. He made 
the first map of New York City. 

Lawrence C Rapaije was born in New 
York City, August 26, 1826, the elder of the 
two sons of his parents; the younger, Adrian, 
died at the age of twenty-one. The schools 
of the city afforded excellent educational ad- 
vantages, of which Mr. Rapaije availed him- 
self, and at an early age he began to familiar- 
ize himself with business methods by clerking 
in his father's store. In 1843 he went to the 
town of East Fishkill to reside, and October 
10, 1855, he was married there to Miss Anna 
Horton, a native of the town. Her family is 
of English extraction, and her father, Maj. 
Coert Horton, vvas a native of Dutchess coun- 
ty, and a well-known farmer and merchant. 
Mr. Rapaije settled upon a farm of 250 acres, 
which he purchased in 1857, and has ever 
since resided there; it is now within the wid- 
ening limits of Hopewell Junction. Here four 
children were born to them: John, who was 
formerly the superintendent of a railroad in 
the West, is now a civil engineer in West Vir- 
ginia, and interested in the development of 
coal lands; Lawrence, Jr., who is a farmer 
at the homestead; Adrian, a civil engineer; 
and Anna, the wife of Charles Underbill, the 
agent for the railroads running into Hopewell 
Junction. The mother of this little family 
passed from life December 30, 1895. 

Mr. Rapaije has not only given much at- 
tention to agriculture, but he has been a 
worker in finance as a director and vice-presi- 
dent of the First National Bank of Fishkill 
(now defunct), and he has also taken an act- 
ive part in railroading, having been a director 
and organizer of the Dutchess and Columbia 
railroad, and a director of the Poughkeepsie 
Bridge Co. He is now a member of the board 
of directors of the Dutchess Mutual Life In- 
surance Co. In local politics he is influential. 



and has been a favorite candidate on the Dem- 
ocratic ticket. In 1861 he was elected super- 
visor, in which office he has served eight years, 
and was justice of the peace for nearly thirty 
years. A born leader, he has taken a promi- 
nent place among his associates and co-labor- 
ers in every line of effort. The Rapaije fam- 
ily adopted the faith of the Reformed Dutch 
Church at a very early period, and to this Mr. 
Rapaije also adheres. 



LEWIS E. WOOD, of the well-known firm 
of Wood Brothers, leading nurserymen 

and florists in the village of Fishkill, Dutchess 
count}', N. Y. , has shown rare skill and ability 
in his calling, having been chosen at the age of 
twenty to superintend the extensive green- 
houses of Burrow & Wood (who established 
the business in 1866), the predecessors of the 
present firm. Hereditary influences have doubt- 
less played a part in his success, as he may be 
said to belong to a family of gardeners, his fa- 
ther, uncle and two brothers having engaged in 
the same business. 

Mr. Wood is a great-grandson of Isaac 
Wood, and a grandson of Joseph W. Wopd, 
who was married three times, first to Mariam 
Odel (mother of Joseph J. Wood, our subject's 
father). Joseph J. Wood was born May 4, 
1828, and in early manhood began his work in 
the nursery business in the employ of John 
Burrow, with whom he remained about sixteen 
years. He then married Rebecca J. \'ernol, 
who was born February 20, 1835, a daughter 
of Epenetus and Ann (La Due) Vernol, and 
five children were born of this marriage: 
Lewis E., Eugene \'., Annie J., Isaac J. and 
Howard E. The parents are still living at 
Fishkill. After his marriage the father took 
charge of the Rapaije estate, where he re- 
mained some eighteen years. In 1874 he 
bought an equal interest in the nursery busi- 
ness of Burrow & Wood, the junior member of 
the firm being his brother, Isaac C. Wood. 
On September 6, 1876, the two brothers pur- 
chased Mr. Burrow's interest, and continued 
under the firm name of I. C. Wood & Bro. , 
the partnership lasting until July i, 1889, when 
our subject and his brothers, Eugene V. and 
Isaac J., bought the entire property and busi- 
ness. They have about fifty acres of land un- 
der cultivation, with some forty greenhouses 
which they have remodeled from time to time 
since they took possession. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPSICAL RECORD. 



1-21 



Lewis E. Wood was born at Fishkill, No- 
vember 20, 1856, and was educated in the 
Union Free School. He attended school 
steadily, winters and summers, until he was 
eighteen years old, when he entered the em- 
ploy of Burrow & Wood, and after two years 
of work in the greenhouses he was placed in 
charge. This responsible position he held up 
to the time that he and his brothers bought 
the business, with the e.xception of two years 
(1879 and 1880) when he conducted a branch 
of the business at Newburg. 

On October 21, 1877, Mr. Wood married 
Miss Ada Jackson, daughter of Orry and Cor- 
nelia (Pink) Jackson, former residents of Milan, 
Dutchess county, and has three children: 
Eugene Wesley, Frederick Morga'n and Flor- 
ence Emily. Mr. Wood emphatically en- 
dorses the principles of the Republican party, 
but is not an active political worker. 



ER PLANCK. The first member of this 
family, of whom a definite account has 
been preserved, was Abraham Ver Planck, 
who often called himself Abraham Isaacse (or 
IsaacsenJ, meaning thereby that he was the 
son of Isaac. The exact date of his arrival in 
America is not known, some authorities claim- 
ing that he came previous to his marriage, 
which took place about 1635, and others indi- 
cating that he accompanied Governor Kieft in 
1630. His name appears frequently in the 
records of the early Dutch settlers, notably in 
connection with the purchase of large tracts of 
land. 

This Abraham \'er Planck married Maria 
Vinge Ross, and by her had a son, Gulian, 
born January i, 1637, who married Hendrika 
Wessels; their son, Samuel, born December 
16, 1668, married Ariantje Bayard; their son 
Gulian, born May 31, 1698, married Mary 
Crommelin; their son, Samuel, born Septem- 
ber 19, 1739, married Judith Crommelin; and 
their son, Daniel C, born March 19, 1762, 
married Elizabeth Johnson. These latter were 
the great-grandparents of Robert Newlin Ver- 
Planck, the subject proper of this biography. 

Gulian Crommelin, son of Daniel C. and 
Elizabeth (Johnson) Ver Planck, and grand- 
father of Robert Newlin, was born August 6, 
1786, in New York. His mother died when 
he was three years old, and his father having 
married again, he was brought up by his grand- 
mother, Judith Crommelin. At the age of 



eleven years he entered Columbia College, 
and graduated in the class of 1801. Not long 
after he studied law, was admitted to the bar 
in 1807, and at once took up the practice. 
As his leaning, however, was rather to litera- 
ture and politics, he devoted himself to them, 
abandoning the practice of law. In 181 1 he 
married Eliza F"enno, and in 18 16 they took a 
trip to Europe, where, in Paris, Mrs. Ver- 
Planck died in 18 17. He subsequently vis- 
ited Holland, England, Scotland, etc., return- 
ing to New York in 1818. After this he took 
part in the political life of the day, and con- 
tributed several articles to its literature, as 
well as on various other subjects, all his efforts 
in that line e.xhibiting considerable ability. 
He was, also, a lover of art, and made a col- 
lection of several good paintings and engrav- 
ings. In 1825 he was sent to Congress as a 
representative from New York City, there re- 
maining through four successive terms, and 
from 1837 to 1841 he sat in the Senate of the 
State of New York. He then undertook what 
may be considered the crowning work of his 
literary efforts — the editing of Shakespere's 
plays and poems — which occupied him three 
years. He died March 18, 1870, at his town 
residence in New York, in his eighty-fourth 
year, and was buried in the cemeterj' of Trin- 
ity Church, Fishkill Village, Dutchess county. 
His children were William Samuel (mentioned 
below), and Gulian, born April 29, 1815, died 
.November 19, 1845. 

William Samuel, father of Robert Newlin 
Ver Planck, was born in New York City, Octo- 
ber 15, 1 812. After graduating at Columbia 
College in 1832, he commenced studying law, 
and in due course was admitted to the bar; 
but he practiced only a short time 
attention to agricultural pursuits, and 
charge first of the Mount Gulian farm, and 
afterward of his father's farms on the Fishkill 
Plains. On November 17, 1837, he married 
Anna Biddle, third daughter of Robert and 
Mary (Brown) Newlin, and eight children were 
born to them, as follows: (i) Eliza Fenno, 
born September 16, 1838, married Benjamin 
Richards, of New York, where they live; (2) 
Mary Newlin, born October 18, 1840, married 
Samuel W. Johnson, who died in 1881 (she is 
now living in New York); (3) Robert Newlin, 
a sketch of whom appears presently ; (4) Daniel 
Crommelin, born April 13, 1845, died April 8, 
1854; (5) Anna, born November 27, 1846, 
married Samuel H. Clapp, who died in 1891 



turning his 
taking 



128 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



(she is now living in Albany, N. Y.); (6) Jean- 
nette, born March 7, 1S49, married Theodore 
M. Etting, of Philadelphia, where they are 
now living; (7) Gelyna, born January 23, 1852, 
married Brig. -Gen. Louis Fitzgerald, of New 
York, where they are now living; and (8) Will- 
iam Edward, born Aprils, 1856, married Vir- 
ginia Eliza Darby, and they live at Mount Gu- 
lian, Fishkill-on-Hudson. The father of this 
family died December 23, 1885, and is buried 
by the side of the mother (who died May 31, 
1883), in the Rural Cemetery, Fishkill. He 
inherited his father's love of reading, and had 
a very retentive memory; was a good farmer 
and a successful one; a thorough sportsman 
and an excellent shot. At the time of his death 
he was president of the Savings Bank, and 
vice-president of the First National Bank. 

Robert Nevvlin Ver Planck was born 
November 18, 1842, ai the family homestead 
one and one-half miles north of Fishkill-on- 
Hudson. This old house was built in 1730 or 
'40 by Gulian Ver Planck, the grandson of the 
Gulian Ver Planck, who by royal charter ob- 
tained from the Indians one-third of the famous 
Roinbout Patent, the first tract of land granted 
within the limits of Dutchess county. It em- 
braced the present towns of Fishkill, East 
Fishkill, and Wappinger, the western part of 
Lagrange, and nine thousand acres within the 
southern limits of the town of Poughkeepsie. 
February 8, 1682, Gulian Ver Planck and 
Francis Rombout obtained a license to pur- 
chase this tract from the Aborigines, the grant 
making the issue of a patent conditional upon 
a prior settlement with them, and the require- 
ments being met the deed was delivered, and 
on the 14th day of August, 16S3, was recorded 
among the State papers at Albany. The Ver- 
Planck homestead was one of the principal 
landmarks in this section in the early days, 
and one of the important events which the 
walls of the historic mansion have witnessed 
was the organization of the Society of the 
Cincinnati, May 13, 1783, when Baron Steuben, 
inspector-general of the Continental army, oc- 
cupied the house for his headquarters, the 
army being then at Newburg. [See Irving's 
"Life of Washington," V'ol. IV, Page 392, 
ct scq.'] 

Our subject was prepared for Harvard 
College by Otis Bisbee, of Poughkeepsie, and 
was graduated from that institution in 1863, 
at the age of twenty-one years. He immedi- 
ately joined the Twenty-second Regiment 



N. Y. State Militia, then stationed at Carlisle, 
Penn., and on the return of the regiment went 
to Washington. On September 15, 1863, he 
was made second lieutenant of U. S. Volun- 
teers, by Gen. Silas Casey's examining board. 
He served as provost marshal of the Third 
Division, Eighteenth Army Corps, Army of the 
James, and participated in all the battles that 
were fought on the north side of the river. In 
the winter of 1864-65 he was made aid-de- 
camp to Brig. -Gen. Truman Seymour, Third 
Division, Sixth Army Corps, Army of the Po- 
tomac, and received brevet for gallant and 
meritorious services on April 2, 1865, when 
the line was broken in front of Petersburg. He 
was mustered out as captain June 21, 1865. 
On his return from the army he engaged in re- 
fining petroleum in Jersey City, continuing in 
this business from September, 1865, till the 
spring of 1871, when he sold out to the Stand- 
ard Oil Company, and took charge of his 
father's lands, comprising seven farms in East 
Fishkill. 

■ On February 24, 1876, Mr. Ver Planck 
was married to Katharine Brinckerhoff, daugh- 
ter of Matthew Van Benschoten and Mary 
(Franklin) Brinckerhoff, and they have five 
children, viz. : Gulian Cromelin, Judith Crome- 
lin, Mary Brinckerhoff, William Samuel and 
Robert St. Clair. 



DAVID E. ACKERT, a leading merchant 
of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, the senior 

partner of the well-known firm of Ackert & 
Son, is a descendant of one of the old Holland- 
Dutch families of the county, his great-grand- 
father, George Ackert, having been the owner 
of a farm three miles south of Rhinebeck. 
This property has been in the possession of 
the family from that time to this, and is at pres- 
ent held by George Ackert. George Ackert (2), 
our subject's grandfather, who was born about 
1780, was a farmer also, and his son, William 
G. Ackert, born about 1809, was engaged in 
the same occupation early in life. His later 
years were spent in Rhinebeck in the employ 
of W. S. Cowles & Co., dealers in dry goods, 
groceries, boots and shoes, farm implements 
and other commodities. He was never active 
in political or religious movements, and his life 
passed uneventfully in the careful performance 
of his duties. He died in 1876, and his wife, 
Permelia Ackert, daughter of George Ackert, 
passed away about 1880. 





'. Q AJc.^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



129 



David E. Ackert, their only son, was born 
September 20, 1832, in the town of Rhinebeck, 
and received his early education in the public 
schools of his native place. At the age of fif- 
teen he became an errand boy for W. S. 
Cowles & Co., and was soon promoted to a 
clerkship, which he held until his purchase of 
the business in 1868. For the last twenty- 
seven years he has successfully conducted this 
store, one of the largest in the town dealing in 
dry goods, groceries and crockery. It is sel- 
dom that one finds such a record of fifty years 
of continuous effort in one enterprise. Of late 
years his son, Ernest Cowles Ackert, has been 
a partner in the firm. 

In September, 1S53, Mr. Ackert married 
Miss Mary Worden, of Rhinebeck, who died 
in 1883, leaving two children — the son men- 
tioned above and a daughter, Emma K., the 
wife of Charles E. Worden, of Saratoga, New 
York. 

Mr. Ackert is a prominent member of the 
M. E. Church, with which he united thirty 
years ago, and is a constant and devout stu- 
dent of the Bible. He has been a Church 
trustee for many years, and has served as pres- 
ident of the board. He upholds the principles 
of the Republican party, but is not a political 
worker, although as a good citizen he is always 
ready to respond to any call to duty, and has 
been president of the village for four years, 
and chief of the Fire Department for five years. 
He is a member of the fraternal order of Odd 
Fellows. 



CHARLES D. SHERWOOD, a leading ag- 
riculturist of the town of Fishkill, Dutch- 
ess county, is one of the younger workers in 
local affairs — religious, political, and social. 

On the paternal side of the house, he is of 
English descent, his ancestors coming to this 
country some time during the seventeenth cen- 
tury and locating in Connecticut. He is of the 
eighth generation in descent from Thomas 
Sherwood and Alice Seabrook, his wife, whose 
son, Matthew, married Mary Fitch, and had 
issue, Samuel, who married Rebecca Burr. 
Their son Thomas married Anne Burr, and 
was the father of Joseph, who was born in 
Greenfield Hill, Conn., January 15, 1754. 
He served for some time as corporal and was 
commissioned, by Gov. Jonathan Trumbull, a 
lieutenant in the Twelfth Company of the 
Fourth Regiment, of Connecticut Militia, May 



20, 1780. As corporal he served during the 
Revolution in the force detailed to reinforce 
Gen. Putnam, on the Hudson, during Bur- 
goyne's expedition, and as lieutenant in the de- 
fense of the Connecticut coast. [Evidence 
found in "Connecticut Men in the Revolu- 
tion;" pp. 520, 521, 576.] Mrs. John I. 
Piatt, of Poughkeepsie, has this commission in 
her possession. He married Sarah Bradley, 
and died in Chester, N. Y. , January 22, 1838. 
His son Samuel settled in East Fishkill, and 
married Ruth Du Bois. They had nine chil- 
dren; the youngest, Isaac, born March 25, 
1826, married Mary Du Bois, June 24, 1851, 
and had one son. 

The Du Bois family, from whom Mr. Sher- 
wood's mother descended, is of French-Hu- 
guenot origin, and one of the oldest in the 
State. The first of that name who emigrated 
to the New World was Jacques Du Bois, who 
was born in Leyden, France, and married 
Pierromie Bentyn, of the same place. They 
reared a family of eight children: Marie, 
Jacques, Marie, Jean, Anne, Jehan, Pierre and 
Christian. 

Pierre Du Bois came with the family to 
America in 1675, and located at Esopus, Ul- 
ster Co., N. Y. , but spent most of his early 
life in Kingston, where he married Jeannetje 
Burhans, October 12, 1697. In 1707 they 
came to Dutchess county, locating in the town 
of Fishkill, about three and one-half miles 
east of the village of that name. Here he 
secured a tract of land, and lived with his 
family. His eldest son was born in Kingston, 
the other children after he had moved to 
Dutchess county. They were as follows: 
Petronella (i), Johannes (i). Jacobus, Chris- 
tiaan, Jonathan, Peter, Abraham, Johannes (2), 
Helen, Elizabeth and Petronella (2). The 
fourth child, Christiaan Du Bois, married 
Nelltje Van Vliet, and they became the par- 
ents of three children: Jannetje, Elizabeth 
and Christian. The last named was born 
June 13, 1746, and was married in 1768 to 
Helena Van Voorhis, by whom he had seven 
children: Henry, Abraham, Garret, John, 
Elizabeth, Catherine and Coert. 

Garret Du Bois, the fourth son, was the 
great-grandfather of our subject. He married 
Hannah Cooper, and located upon a farm near 
Johnsville (now the town of East Fishkill),. 
where they reared their family of three chil- 
dren: Maria, who married Peter S. Montfort, 
father of Peter Y. W. Montfort, of the town 



l^-' 



a>jtx£x*jAArn s ai'M^su^szcm: 



Eiirried Peter Fowler, a iarmisr of Onisge 
coontv, N. Y-; ■" ■ "• - " - "" " - 
Charfe: L. I 






Catfaiatiie Hisbroock. who was borrt ca the the mo^jstracv c 
■ - Her ■ ~ - ^ - ' 



a. He die-: 



.. N. 



near Tl 



re were bcm 



^ae wis ocm ta 



Miry, wtte ot Lsaji,: ^aerw-covi: Garrec 



rea as toilows: Soxaiu Jane c 



tfaer carraeci 



lavi he died m 



uarried Rem VanderbeeGk: Jaskftth. bora Johr 



^ - ^- .- . .d- sec oC I?: : ~ 

Mirv Du Bcis Sherwood, was bcm S 



rr S. i6a.o. mar- 



luve town. ■ 

his Dreoari- 



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Stead near Brtnckerfacc. 

: • -- -: seme :— 

e R C 



CLE? lather Qavms Ch-^rrcfe. He mamied Ar 



- a 
r "of 



Cemeterv. and tmstee and trrastter of the 



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bcm \laicfa 



rz^'t a. jeso- 



Farvts fansen de Rir 



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:. SQQ of 

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cestor ci iu tae 



estate. 



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John, Kschard. Stephen. 



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xnd died in 
. veiTS^ He 



COMMKMOliA Tl V K lUDdllAI'IIICA T. HimOHli. 



liil 



was twice married, and by his first wife ICii/a- 
beth, daiiglitcr of Abraiii r>iiiiivcrbi)rf, had live 
children: Catherine, wiio married Tennis 
Brinkeriioff; Jeroinns; Abraham Brinkcrhoff; 
Aletta, who married James Debevoise; Kicli- 
ard. The sons settiecl at Fishkill, N. Y., 
wiiere their descendants remain. 

Sixth Generation: Richard Rapalje, son 
of John, was thrice married, anil had eleven 
children. 

Sn-rnth (icitcratioii : Catharine ICli/abelh 
Rapalje, daughter of Richard, married Isaac 
E. Cotheal, of New York City,' son of Henry 
and Phebe (Berrian Warner) Cotheal. They 
had three chihiren: Elizabeth M., the wife of 
Dr. Howell White; Anne l\apalje, married to 
Charles D. Sherwood; and Catharine Eliza- 
beth, unmarried. 

On the paternal side Mrs. Sherwood is de- 
scended from William Cotheal, whose father 
was a practicing physician and surgeon. He 
came from France and located first in Con- 
necticut, afterward going to the City of New 
York, and from there to the town of Wood- 
bridge, Middlesex county. New Jersey. 

William Cotheal married Charlotte Dove, 
and they had nine children; the youngest, 
Isaac, married lilizabeth Evans, and had two 
sons, Henry and David. Henry married Phebe 
Berrian Warner, and had six sons and four 
daughters. The youngest son, Isaac, married 
Catharine Eli/abeth Rapalje, and had three 
dauijhters. 



DANIEL M. SHEEDY, M. I)., one of the 
' successful physicians and surgeons of the 
city of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, is a 
native of Norwalk, Conn., where his parents, 
Michael and Johanna CHanlon) Sheedy, were 
married. The father, who was born in Kil- 
kenny, Ireland, was a stock farmer by occupa- 
tion, and he and his wife are both living. In 
their family were the following children: Dan- 
iel (deceased); Mary (deceased wife of Dr. 
Sweeney, of Newburgh, N. Y.); Mary Cather- 
ine, a Sister of Charity; Kate, wife of Law- 
rence Maguire; Thomas John (deceased), who 
was a stock farmer; Dr. B. D. Sheedy, of 
Britigeport, Conn.; Daniel M., subject of this 
sketch, and Fannie, wife of Dr. Thomas 
Byrne, of Union Hill, New Jersey. 

Our subject attended the public schools of 
Norwalk, Conn., from which he was graduated 
in 1885. He then began the study of medicine 



with his hrotlu'r. Dr. B. D. Sheedy, at North- 
ainijton, Mass., after which he entered the 
New \i)rk University, graduating from the 
medical department with the cla.ss of i8,SH. 
He has also taken special courses imder Prof. 
Loomis, on the heart and lungs; under Prof. 
Harry P. Loomis, on pathology; under Prof. 
Whithouse, on chemistry; and under Prof. 
Wright, on surgery. After his graduation he 
was admitted to the Massachusetts Mirdical 
Society, and also holds membershii) with the 
Dutchess County Medical Society. At the 
present time (spring of 1897), he is taking spe- 
cial studies at the Post-graduate Hospital, New 
York City. 

On August 6, 1888, Dr. Sheedy arrived in 
Poughkeepsie, where he established an office at 
his present place of business, and has built up 
a large and lucrative practice. He is an ex- 
tremely l)usy and successful practitioner, and 
stands high among his professional brethren. 
In 1890 he made a trip to Europe, which was 
mostly ff)r pleasure, though he gave some time 
to study. In his religious views the Doctor is 
a Roman Catholic, belonging to St. Mary's 
Church, Poughkeepsie. On April 28, 1897, he 
was married to Miss Agnes Kelly, a graduate 
of Lyndon Hall, 1896, the only daughter of 
Timothy C. Kelly, a successful businessman of 
Poughkeepsie, New York. 



t NNA C. HOWLAND, M. D., who is suc- 
cessfully engaged in the practice of med- 
icine in Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, is a 
native of the Pine Tree State, born in the town 
of Hallowell, Kennebec county, where she 
spent her girlhood, and in the public schools 
and seminaries of that county acquired an ex- 
cellent education. Her father, Henry Cole, 
who was born at Vassalboro, was a well-edu- 
cated man, a county squire and a representa- 
tive to the State Legislature of Maine. He 
engaged in teaching many years, then in the 
manufacture of blocks for stamping oil cloth. 
He is now deceased, and his widow is making 
her home with her daughter, our subject. She 
bore the maiden name of Esther Pope, and is 
the daughter of Elijah Pope, a native of Port- 
land, Maine, and an architect and ship carpen- 
ter by occupation. Our subject is the eldest 
of three children, and the only survivor, her 
two sisters, Sarah and Mary, being now de- 
ceased. 

\\'hile attending the (Quakers' yearly meet- 



13i 



COiniEMORATH'E BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ing school at Providence, R. I., Anna Cole 
met William H. Howland, who was there at- 
tending school, and afterward became his wife, 
their wedding being celebrated at Hallowell, 
Maine, in 1S55. At that time he was engaged 
in teaching at Nine Partners Boarding School, 
near Millbrook, Dutchess Co.. N. Y. . where 
they removed, and there lived for about si.\ 
years. Giving up that profession, Mr. How- 
land began business at Highland. Ulster Co., 
N. Y. . where they remained for four years, 
coming, in 1865, to Poughkeepsie. The fol- 
lowing year the wife entered the New York 
Medical College for women, from which she 
graduated two years later. As Mr. Howland 
died in 1S69, she at once began practice in 
order to educate her four children: Edward 
Cole, who is now the Washington correspond- 
ent of the New York Press : Katherine Flint, 
who makes her home with her mother; Henry 
Cole, on the editorial stafi of the Mail and 
ExfTtss : and Anna Inman, wife of William 
Chaning Russel, Jr., city editor of the Phila- 
delphia RecorJ. whose father was vice-presi- 
dent of Cornell University. 

In 1 868 Dr. Howland entered upon her 
career as a physician in Poughkeepsie, where 
she remained until 1886, when she removed 
to Philadelphia, Penn., practicing there as an 
examining physician for five years. In De- 
cember. 1 89 1, however, she returned to 
Poughkeepsie, where she has since continued 
to follow her chosen profession, and has 
secured a large and lucrative practice. She 
belongs to the Homeopathic school, and in 
connection with her extensive office practice 
conducts a private hospital at her residence. 
For many years she has been secretar}- of the 
Dutchess Count}- Homeopathic Medical Soci- 
ety, and is also a prominent member of the 
Homeopathic State Medical Society. The 
place she has won in the medical profession 
is accorded her in recognition of her skill 
and ability, and the place which she occupies 
in the social world is due to her many 
noble traits of character, and the love 
and confidence which she always inspires. 
She is a conscientious and earnest Christian, 
a faithful member of Christ Church. 



GEORGE MORG.\N was born July 16. 
1S16. at Chatham, Columbia county. 
N. Y. His father. William Morgan, a farmer 
and clothier from Hartford, Conn., had re- 



' moved, in 1819, to Salisburj-, in the same 
State, where the early years of George Mor- 
gan's life were passed, working on the farm in 
summer, and improving the few months of 
schooling during the winter time. 

The history of .American manhood points 
unerringly to the fact that while an education 
thus obtained is usually meager, it is neverthe- 
less valuable; for while he who obtains it may 
lack the exquisite polish which much learning 
is supposed to give, yet he is often better 
equipped in the true elements of knowledge 
than are they who enjoy large opportunities, 
but are devoid of the industry which the ab- 
sence of wealth enlivens. 

At the age of seventeen the subject of this 
notice, with the money earned by him at hard 
work under summer sun and wintry blasts, 
paid his tuition and board for three months' 
attendance at Wilbraham Academy, Mass. ; 
and at the end of this time, by sawing wood 
and doing various other odd items of work, 
he actually paid his way for another term. 

What a commentary we find here on the 
possibilities which surround the young men 
and women of this, the greatest and grandest 
government on earth, where it is decreed that 
individual merit only is the standard of per- 
sonal distinction. The corner stone of the 
American Republic is squared and cemented 
with the declaration that all are equal, and 
that there is no royal road to learning, honor, 
or success. 

His school days ended. Mr. Morgan came 
to Pine Plains. Dutchess Co.. N. Y. , and en- 
tered upon a clerkship in a country store, re- 
ceiving for his services the munificent sum of 
' forty cents per day. But perseverance and 
economy overcome all obstacles in the road to 
success, and at the age of thirty years he had 
accumulated $20,000. He married his first 
wife at about this time, and engaged in busi- 
ness in New York City, only to realize the loss 
ot nearly the whole of his fortune. .About 
the year 1846 he removed to Columbia county, 
where he purchased a farm and again went to 
work. In 1S48 he was elected a justice of the 
peace, holding the office for a term of years. 
In 1857 he leased the Dakin ore mine, in 
Dutchess count}-, for which he paid a heavy 
rent, and afterward bought the property. 
Soon afterward he sold the mine to C. S. 
Maltby. of New Haven. Conn., for $100,000. 

In November. 1S64, he removed to the city 
of Poughkeepsie, where he invested $40,000 





^'. 



/ 



/, 





^t^-^ 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



13B 



in government bonds. Then came the real- 
estate wave, and he was carried along with it, 
the prices running high. He purchased the 
"Morgan House " and the College Hill prop- 
erty, for which latter he paid $33,500. He 
also bought the Swift farm. In looking over 
his farm he discovered several natural springs, 
and concluded by excavating the ground and 
damming it a lake could be formed, and to-day 
"Morgan lake," situated in the suburbs fur- 
nishes the city with pure spring water ice. It 
might appropriately be styled a sparkling 
monument to his memory. 

On September 21, 1879, the earthly life of 
Senator George Morgan was brought to a 
close. To-day he sleeps among his kindred in 
the cemetery at Pine Plains, in the county of 
his adoption, and for whose material interests 
he had so nobly contended; his memory cher- 
ished by a grateful people whose pride is cen- 
tered in his manliness, honesty, courage and 
fidelity. 

In 1869 Mr. Morgan was chosen by the 
people as mayor of the city of Poughkeepsie, be- 
ing the first Democrat ever called to that posi- 
tion; and at the general election in November 
of that year he was elected a member of the 
New York State Senate from the Eleventh 
District, including Dutchess county, defeating 
his Republican opponent, Jonathan Rider, by 
a majority of 1 87. The same district two years 
before had elected a Republican b}' over 700 
majority. 

At about this time is to be recorded one of 
the grandest achievements in the life of George 
Morgan. The question of locating the Hudson 
River Hospital for the Insane was to be de- 
cided. The representative men of the coun- 
ties of Orange, Ulster and Columbia were 
' ' leaving no stone unturned " to secure the site 
for their respective counties. The Dutchess 
county board of supervisors was in session, and 
Mayor Morgan was anxious that they should 
offer inducements for the State officers to 
locate the building in his county. Pinally a 
proper sum was agreed upon, but at the even- 
ing session it was voted down by one majority. 
All the next day Senator Morgan and others 
worked hard to change the vote, and at 6:00 
p. M. the question once more came before the 
board, and was carried by one majority. There 
was no time to lose. The State connnission- 
ers were to meet at Newburgh, Orange coun- 
ty, that very night to settle the matter of loca- 
tion. With a party of friends Mr. Morgan 



drove through a blinding snow storm, and at 
11:45 ''• ^'- they walked into the commissioners' 
room at "Orange Hotel." The offer of the 
other counties had already been made, and Mr. 
Morgan stepped forward and presented Dutch- 
ess county's offer, and the location was awarded 
to Dutchess. I'or the success of the enter- 
prise George Morgan never received the full 
credit to which he was entitled. But for his 
prompt and energetic action the splendid build- 
ing would not to-day grace the eminence on 
the eastern banks of the Hudson just beyond 
the northerly boundaries of the City of Pough- 
keepsie. 



CHARLES W. ARRAS (deceased) was 
' among the more prominent and enterpris- 
ing business men of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, who were of alien birth. Like others 
of his countrymen, he brought to the New 
World the habits of economy and frugality, 
which are inherent characteristics of his native 
land, and the exercise of which, accompanied 
by industry and good management, brought 
him success in his business. 

Mr. Arras was born at Hessen-Darmstadt, 
Germany, November 9, 1841, and was the 
eldest in the family of nine children of Peter 
Arras, a linen weaver in the Fatherland, who 
came to America and located in New York 
City. In his native land our subject learned 
the baker's trade, and on coming to the United 
States when eleven years of age he followed 
that trade in New York City until about 1866. 
at which time he located at Poughkeepsie. For 
about four years he worked for George Goep- 
fert in a bakery, and then bought out his em- 
ployer, successfully conducting the business 
until his death, which occurred November 14, 
1885. 

On October 7, 1866, Mr. Arras was mar- 
ried to Miss Emma A. Bieber, who was born 
in New York City, in 1846, and is a daughter 
of John Bieber, a native of Bavaria, Germany. 
In his native land her father had learned stone 
cutting, but after his arrival in New York City 
he took up the shoemaker's trade, which he 
followed there until 1851, when he came to 
Poughkeepsie and carried on the same occupa- 
tion until he was called from this life, April 
29, 1872. He had married Miss Anna Mary 
Smidt, who was also born in Germany, Sep- 
tember 8, i82r, and they became the parents 
of five children, namely: Emma A. (now Mrs. 



134 



COMMEMORATIVE BWaiiAPHIGAL RECORD. 



Arras); Barbara, wife of John Haiipt, a baker 
doing business on Union street, Poughkcepsie; 
Eliiia, wife of George Bayers, a bookkeeper of 
the same city; Mary E. , wife of John Bayer, 
a cigar-maker; and Fred S., a saloon-keeper, 
of Poughkeepsie. Six children were born to 
our subject and his wife, two of whom died in 
infancy. Frederick S., William H., Albert C. 
and Carl W. are still with their mother, who, 
since her husband's death, has successfully car- 
ried on the business, and displays tact and en- 
ergy in the management of her affairs. 

In religious matters Mr. Arras belonged to 
the German Lutheran Church, and socially he 
was a leading member of the Germania Society. 
He was one of the representative business men 
of the city, wide-awake and energetic, who 
dealt squarely and liberally with his patrons, 
and merited the confidence of the community. 



ISAAC L. VARIAN, a well-known citizen 
of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, where 
he has resided since 1879, is conducting one of 
the leading meat markets of the city. For a 
period of about ten years he carried on busi- 
ness at Nos. 9, II and 13 Garden street; for 
three years afterward he was at No. 299 Main 
street; thence removing to No 357 on the same 
street, where he has since been located. He 
makes weekly trips to New York City in order 
to take advantage of the markets, and now 
has one of the largest establishments of the 
kind in Poughkeepsie, keeping all kinds of 
meat, as well as fish and game, and he has 
secured a large and lucrative trade. 

Mr. Varian was born in New York, August 
14, 1852, of which city his father, James Va- 
rian, was also a native. Isaac Varian, his pa- 
ternal grandfather, was born in Holland, and 
on coming with his two brothers to the New 
World, located in New York City, where he 
was married, and reared his family of children, 
named respectively: Dorcas, Michael, Han- 
nah, Jane, and James, father of Isaac L. In 
politics he was an unswerving Democrat, and 
he was a faithful member of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church. 

James Varian was reared and educated in 
New York City, where he also learned the 
butchering business, which he followed all his 
life. He married Angeline Stephenson, a na- 
tive of Connecticut, and they became the par- 
ents of thirteen children, as follows: James; 
William H., a farmer of Yonkers, N. Y. ; Gil- 



bert and Jacob (both deceased); Carman, a 
mason by trade; Harriet, wife of Frederick W. 
Denton, who is in the United States service; 
George, a carpenter of Kingsbridge, N. Y. ; 
Francis L. , who is also engaged in carpenter- 
ing there; Huram B., a painter at Woodlawn, 
N. Y. ; Charles A. (deceased); Isaac L., sub- 
ject of this sketch; Eugene, a carpenter of 
Kingsbridge; and Angeline, who married How- 
ard Carlough, formerly a grocer of Kings- 
bridge (both now deceased). The father died 
in Kingsbridge, July 16, 1867; the widowed 
mother is a consistent member of the Method- 
ist Episcopal Church, to which her husband 
also belonged, and in politics his support was 
given the Republican party. 

The subject of this narrative remained at 
home with his parents, who during his boy- 
hood and youth lived most of the time at 
Kingsbridge, N. Y., where he attended the 
city schools, completing his education at In- 
wood, Queens Co. , N. Y. When his school 
days were over he began learning the carpen- 
ter's trade, which he followed for three years, 
and then took up butchering. Shortly after 
this he entered into a co-partnership with his 
brother Charles in the butcher business, a con- 
nection that lasted some four years. He then 
came to Poughkeepsie, where he has since con- 
ducted a market with most excellent success, 
and as a loyal citizen he feels it a duty as well 
as a privilege to aid in all matters of public 
interest. 

On November 8, 1881, Mr. Varian was 
married to Miss Clara Marshall, a native of 
Po"ughkeepsie, and a daughter of DeWitt C. 
and Harriet G. Marshall. For several years 
her father was cashier of the Rhinebeck Na- 
tional Bank. Four children grace this union: 
Bessie E., Eleanor F., Harry B. and Ruth 
B. Mr. and Mrs. Varian attend the Method- 
ist Episcopal Church, and in social circles 
they occupy a prominent position. In politics 
Mr. V'arian is a firm supporter of the Republic- 
an party; he holds membership with the Ma- 
sonic fraternity and the Royal Arcanum. 



JOSEPH H. STORM, a representative and 
prominent citizen of the town of Beekman, 
Dutchess county, was born March 25, 
1842, in the town of East F"ishkill, and sprung 
from a good old Holland family, which was 
established on the shores of this country at a 
very early day in its history. Derick Storm 




-^x^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmC'AL RECORD. 



135 



was the first to set foot on American soil, 
landing here in 1662 and making a location on 
Long Island. He wedded Maria Pifters, by 
whom he had four children: Goris, Peter, 
David and Maria. The birth of the eldest, 
Goris Storm, occurred either on Long Island 
or before the emigration of his parents. He 
married Engletie Van Lyck, and they located 
at Brooklyn, where their two sons were born 
— Derick in 1695, and Thomas in 1697. 

Thomas Storm purchased land of Col. 
Phillips, in the manor of Phillipsburg, Tarry- 
town, N. Y. He had nine children: Thomas, 
Jacob, Garret, Goris, Abraham, John, Isaac, 
Catherine and Engletie. When well advanced 
in years he came to Dutchess county, where 
he bought about 406 acres of land on the north 
side of the Fishkill, 204 acres of which he 
gave to his son Goris, and the remaining 202 
to Abraham. The latter received the land 
which his father had secured by a second pur- 
chase, with the exception of ten acres on the 
south side of the Fishkill. To Isaac he gave 
his possessions in Tarrytown, where his birth 
occurred, but he traded these'with his brother 
Abraham, and came to Dutchess county, where 
he was married and reared a family of several 
children, among whom was Abraham, the 
grandfather of our subject. 

Abraham Storm was born in the town of 
East Fishkill, in 1771, and he married Sarah 
Vincent, of the town of Beekman. They lo- 
cated upon the homestead, and there reared 
their five children: Isaac was an attorney in 
early life, but later turned his attention to 
the tobacco business, and retired at the age of 
fifty with a capital of a million and a half; 
William was a farmer in the town of Lagrange, 
Dutchess county; John V. is the father of our 
subject; Charlotte first wedded D. E. Remson, 
and, after his death, married Joseph Genung, 
both of whom were farmers; and Elizabeth be- 
came the wife of John Humphrey. 

John V. Storm was born on the home farm 
in the town of East Fishkill in 1800, and there 
passed his boyhood and youth. He married 
Jeannette E. Woolley, a native of Beekman 
town, and a daughter of William and Hester 
(Pell) Woolley, farming people. Her ancestors 
were English, John Woolley having come from 
England and located on Long Island. His son 
Joseph, who was born in 1740, was the grand- 
father of Mrs. Storm. He engaged in the fur 
business with the Astors, and at his death left 
a large estate. After their marriage the parents 



of our subject continued to live upon the old 
Storm homestead, where their seven children 
were born: Abraham, Joseph, William J., 
Frances, Elizabeth, Cornelia and Helen. 
During his active life the father always followed 
agricultural pursuits, but is at present living 
retired in the village of Fishkill. His faithful 
wife passed away June 22, 1886. He is a 
Democrat in political sentiment, and has been 
called upon to fill a number of official posi- 
tions, being supervisor of East Fishkill town- 
ship several terms, and also justice of the 
peace. The Storm family have mostly been 
members of the Reformed Dutch Church, 
while the Woolleys were Episcopalians. 

The early life of Joseph H. Storm, subject 
of this review, was passed in the usual une- 
ventful manner of most farmer boys, upon the 
old homestead where his ancestors had long 
resided, and in the district schools obtained 
his early education. Later he attended an 
academy, after which he took a business course 
in the Eastman Business College, Poughkeep- 
sie, and then returned to the farm where he 
remained until his marriage, September 4, 
1867, to Miss Sophia D. Sheldon, daughter of 
Wilson B. Sheldon, a prominent agriculturist 
of the town of Beekman, and they began their 
domestic life upon the farm in the same town- 
ship which is still their home. To them two 
children have been born: Wilson B., who is 
engaged in business with W. J. Storm; and 
Jeannette, wife of Frederick Ryer, Jr., of 
Mount Vernon, N«w York. 

Upon his valuable farm of 120 acres Mr. 
Storm is engaged in general farming, with good 
success. Being a popular and influential citi- 
zen, he has been called upon to serve in sev- 
eral positions of honor and trust, representing 
his district in the State Legislature in 18S5 
and 1886, and holding the office of supervisor 
of Beekman town in 1879 and 1880. He is 
an ardent supporter of the Republican party, 
and by Secretary Rusk was appointed appraiser 
of the Bureau of Annual Industry, which posi- 
tion he capably filled for two years. He has 
been vice-president of the Dutchess County 
Agricultural Society many years; vice-presi- 
dent (and also president pro tciii) of the New 
York State .Agricultural Society for some time; 
and at Chicago was elected vice-president of 
the Farmers National Congress of New York. 
Socially he affiliates with the Masonic frater- 
nity. Upright and honorable in all the rela- 
tions of life, Mr. Storm holds an enviable posi- 



136 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



tion in the estimation of his fello\v-citi;rens, no 
man in Dutchess county being held in higher 
regard. 



DANIEL WASHBURN. In every agricult- 
ural community there will fortunatel}- be 
found men whose progressive management 
serves to demonstrate the value of the judi- 
cious application of modern scientific principles 
to the ancient business of farming, and to this 
worthy class belongs the subject of this sketch, 
who is a successful agriculturist of the town of 
Pawling. Dutchess county. 

Mr. Washburn is a native of the county, 
born in the town of Beekman, November 29, 
1850, and his education was obtained in the 
common schools near his home. At an early 
age he engaged in agricultural pursuits, which 
he has followed ever since with unusually satis- 
factory results. At present he rents the Slocum 
farm of 286 acres, also rents the William Lud- 
dington farm of 176 acres, upon which he em- 
ploys many assistants. He devotes his time 
to the raising of general crops, but has made a 
success of tobacco culture, and is an expert in 
all its branches, as well as in the more common 
details of farming. His business cares do not 
prevent him from taking an active interest in 
public movements, and although until a few 
years ago he was an ardent supporter of the 
principles of the Democratic party he is now 
one of the leading Prohibitionists of his town. 
He has held the office of excise commissioner; 
belongs to Patterson Lodge No. 173, I. O. O. 
F. , Pawling, and is a member of Christ Church, 
Quaker Hill. His first wife, Miss Sarah E. 
Koe, was a daughter of Daniel and Maria Roe, 
prominent among the farmers of the town of 
Dover. The present Mrs. Washburn was for- 
merly Miss Edith Ette, who was born in 1856, 
in New Milford, Conn., and was educated in 
New Fairfield, Conn. Of the three children 
of our subject by his first wife, Ella, born Jan- 
uary 9, 1874, married George Ette, a farmer 
of Patterson, and has had one daughter, Se- 
rena; Serena, born February i, 1876, married 
Charles Lutz, a farmer of the town of Pawl- 
ing, and has had one child, Ethel; and Fannie 
B., born May i8, 1879, is at home. 

The Washburn family has been prominent 
in Putnam county, N. Y., from early times, 
and Samuel Washburn, our subject's grand- 
father, was born and reared there, becoming a 
farmer by occupation. He was a soldier in 



the Revolutionary war. He and his wife, 
Phebe (Baker ), reared a family of six children: 
Jonathan, who married Naomi Dykeman; Levi, 
who remained single; Absolom, who died in 
boyhood; Zebulum, our subject's father; Eliza, 
who never married; and Mrs. Hannah Rob- 
inson. 

Zebulum Washburn was born in Carmel, 
Putnam county, in 1804, and his education 
was acquired there in the district schools. He 
was a well-known farmer, and was prominent 
in local affairs as a Democrat; but, although 
he held a number of minor town offices, he 
never aspired to political distinction. His 
death occurred in 1862. He married Miss 
Serena Luddington, daughter of Joseph Lud- 
dington (a leading blacksmith of Pawling) and 
his wife, Susan (Ferris). Our subject was the 
fourth in a family of seven children. Of the 
others (i ) Susan never married. (2) George H. 
was born in the town of Beekman in 1840, 
was educated in the schools there, and in i860 
enlisted in Company E, 19th N. Y. V. I., being 
the first man from the town of Beekman to 
respond to the call for troops. He served 
three years and then re-enlisted, and, his regi- 
ment having moved on, he was transferred to 
the 128th N. Y. V. I. He met his death at 
the battle of Shenandoah. (3) Samuel was 
born and reared in the town of Beekman, and 
followed farming there. He married (first) 
Miss Hattie Gregory, and had three children — 
William, Walter and Louis; for his second 
wife he married Miss Carrie Mosier, and has 
had one daughter — Ella. (5) William S. was 
born at the old homestead in 1853, and after 
attending the schools of Beekman engaged in 
business, and is now foreman for William B. 
Wheeler, taking charge of the Latta estates. 
He married Miss Lizzie Lutz, daughter of 
Henry Lutz, a well-known gardener of the 
town of Pawling, and has had three children — 
William, Leo and Fredie. (6) Anna A., born 
in 1856, married Horace Orton, a farmer of 
the town of Dover, and has had four children — 
Sarah, Minnie, George and Herbert; of these, 
Sarah married William White, also a farmer 
of Dover, and they have one child, Jennie. 
(7) Jane died in infancyj. 



LUDWIG PETiLLON (deceased) was one 
of the best known citizens of the county, 
of later years as a wealthy, retired business 
man residing on a charming estate two miles 






yU J^^/(>-i>C^^-l^-L 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



137 



from the city of Poughkeepsie. He came of 
German origin, and his grandfather, Isaac 
Petilion, who was a farmer in Bavaria, was a 
soldier in the German army during the Napo- 
leonic wars. He reared a family of children, 
among whom was a son, Jacob, our subject's 
father, who was born December 23, 181 3, in 
Bavaria, grew to manhood there, and learned 
the butcher's trade. 

At the age of twenty Jacob Petilion sailed 
for America, landing in New York July 4, 
1833. Coming to Poughkeepsie, he found em- 
ployment at his trade, and with characteristic 
enterprise and good management he made his 
way to success, continuing in the same busi- 
ness throughout his life. He was a Republic- 
an in politics, and took a keen interest in the 
questions of the day. He married Catherine 
Hey, also a native of Bavaria, born March 28, 
181 1, and had four children: Caroline C. , the 
wife of Charles Ivirchner, a well-known resi- 
dent of Poughkeepsie; John Jacob, who was 
born January 16, 1840, and at the time of his 
death, May 22, 18S4, was a successful business 
man of Poughkeepsie; John, now a resident of 
that city; and Ludwig, our subject. The fa- 
ther of this family died July 11, 18G1, the 
mother surviving him until January 7, 1885. 
Both were devout members of the German 
Lutheran Church, to which their children also 
belonged. 

Ludwig Petilion was born in Poughkeepsie, 
September 20, 1845, and was educated in the 
public schools of that city. He was only 
fourteen years old when the death of his fa- 
ther compelled him to become a "bread win- 
ner," and he and his brother, John Jacob, con- 
ducted their father's business from that time 
with marked success. At first they had a 
wholesale trade, but later they engaged in a 
retail business with Charles Kirchner, contin- 
uing until 1889, when Mr. Petilion retired 
from the active management. 

On April 7, 1874, Mr. Petilion was mar- 
ried to Miss Catherine Steitz, a native of 
Poughkeepsie, and a daughter of Philip and 
Catherine Steitz, well-known citizens of Ger- 
man birth. They had no children. On his 
retirement from business Mr. Petilion pur- 
chased from W. S. Johnson a beautiful farm 
of eighty acres near the city on the electric- 
car line, which he improved with winding 
paths and drives, and a residence which com- 
pares well with those of of the neighboring 
wealthy New Yorkers. He was an intelligent, 



progressive man, highly esteemed among all 
classes, and was a generous supporter of local 
improvements. In politics, he was a Repub- 
lican, and he and his wife were prominent ad- 
herents of the Lutheran Church, to which they 
contribute liberally. Mr. Petilion died Feb- 
ruary 2 1, 1896. 



JOHN HACKETT, of the well and favorably 
known law firm of Hackett & Williams, of 
~ the city of Poughkeepsie, which enjoys an 
enviable reputation throughout the Valley of 
the Hudson, for the success each member has 
met with in the handling of the extensive legal 
business that for years has been entrusted to 
their care, is a native of Ireland, born on the 
farm of his father, near Clonmell, June 8, 
1845. 

His father, John Hackett, with his famil}', 
came to America in 1852, and located in Hyde 
Park, Dutchess Co., N. Y. , where John Hack- 
ett was reared, and where he was given the 
benefit of the public schools of the village; he 
also attended the Eastman Business College, 
and was graduated therefrom in 1863. Not 
content with the idea of being an accountant 
through life, young Hackett determined on a 
professional career, and began the study of 
law, pursuing his studies in the office and un- 
der the direction of Chester Brundage, at 
Poughkeepsie. He was admitted to the bar 
in 1866, and at once settled in the practice of 
his profession in the city of his adoption, and 
where he was reared and educated. In 1873 
he was made assistant district attorney under 
James L. Williams, and served as such until 
the close of Mr. Williams' term of office. In 
1S84 he was the Democratic nominee for the 
same office, and was elected over George 
Esselstyn, the Republican candidate; on the 
expiration of his term of office he was again 
the nominee for district attorney, and was re- 
elected over his competitor, W. R. Wooden, 
by a large majority. He very ably and suc- 
cessfully performed the duty devolving upon 
him as a public official, in a position of so 
much responsibility, and both socially and 
professionally became widely and favorably 
known. In 1876 he formed a partnership 
with James L. Williams (under whom he had 
served as assistant district attorney), which 
partnership continues to exist. They have an 
extensive and lucrative practice, and are men 
of high standing and position in the community 



138 



GOMMEMORA TIVE BIOORAPHIOAL RECORD. 



in which they have so long resided. The firm 
is recognized as one of the strongest in that 
section of the country. 

On April lo, 1880. Mr. Hackett was mar- 
ried to Miss Hattie V. Mulford, daughter of 
Hon. David H. Mulford, of Hyde Park, who 
was one of the representatives from Dutchess 
county in the Legislature in 1870-71, and to 
their marriage the following children have 
come: John M. and Henry T. , both of 
whom are now attending the Bisbee Military 
School, at Poughkeepsie. Mr. Hackett and 
family reside at Hyde Hark. 



JAMES COLLINGWOOD (deceased) was 
born in Wigan, England, March 19, 1814, 
and came to America at the time of the 
first cholera epidemic, being then eighteen 
years old. He came directly to the city of 
Newburg, where he worked at the shoemaker's 
trade for a few years, and then moved to Fish- 
kill, Dutchess county, where he engaged in the 
shoe trade, and built several houses. From 
Fishkiil he went to a farm near West Park, 
Ulster county, and there engaged in farming. 

Mr. Collingvvood came to Poughkeepsie 
and started in the lumber business, buying a 
residence on the river a short distance from 
the city. He was first married at Newburg to 
Hannah Frost, who died in Poughkeepsie dur- 
ing the second year of the cholera scourge in 
New York, leaving four children: Jennie S., 
who married G. W. Millard, and is now de- 
ceased; William A. and James H., both also 
deceased; and Eugenia Elizabeth, who married 
E. B. Taylor, and is now deceased. After 
the death of his first wife, our subject married 
Miss Mary E. Clark, a daughter of George 
Clark, who was born in Poughkeepsie. Of 
this marriage five children were born, namely: 
(ij Sarah, who married Charles A. Brooks; 
(2) John G., who married Josepha Chichester, 
and they have two children — John C. and 
Fannie M. ; (3) George married Mary E. Carey; 
(4) Fannie married G. W. Millard, and is de- 
ceased; and (5) Edwin James married Cora L. 
Schickle, a daughter of John Schickel, of 
Poughkeepsie. 

Our subject's parents were William and 
Jane Collingvvood, the former of whom started 
out for himself at the age of eighteen years. 
He was a self-made man, and became one of 
the largest coal and lumber dealers along the 



Hudson river. He was very highly spoken of 
in Poughkeepsie, and his career was an exam- 
ple of thrift and energy to others. He built 
the opera house and the block in front of it, in 
Poughkeepsie, as a private enterprise. His 
death occurred May 16, 1874. 



E^DWARD CRUMMEY (deceased). To in- 
;/ tellectual gifts and training which fitted 

the subject of this sketch to take rank among 
the leaders of the legal profession, there was 
added the ardent heart of a reformer, and a 
steadfast faith in human nature that made him 
an inspiration for good in every life that came 
in contact with his own. His sympathy and 
help have lifted more than one degraded drunk- 
ard to renewed self-respect and determination, 
while his influence among his associates brought 
to the various temperance organizations large 
numbers of able and cultured workers who in 
their turn have carried on the noble work. 

Mr. Crummey was born in New York City 
in August, 1827, and after the early death of 
his parents, James and Sarah Crummey, he 
was brought at the age of fifteen to live in the 
family of Smiten Vincent Tripp, near Clinton 
Corners, Dutchess Co., N. Y. He attended 
the district school there for some years, and 
pursued a higher course of study in the school 
on College Hill, then conducted by Charles 
Bartlett, Bisbee and Warring. He taught at 
Stanford and Schultzville, and then went to 
California in 1849, and engaged in gold min- 
ing with the late Hon. A. P. K. Safford, then 
a prominent resident there, and later on Gov- 
ernor of Arizona. They were successful, and 
Mr. Crummey returned home with the means 
to carry out a cherished wish to become a law- 
yer. He prepared for the bar at Prof. Fow- 
ler's Law School, Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and 
at Poland, Ohio, in 1856, was admitted to 
practice, and he at once opened an office in the 
city of Poughkeepsie, where for nearly forty 
years he carried on his professional work. In 
1857, when a County Board of E.xcise was ap- 
pointed under the new law, Mr. Crummey be- 
came clerk and attorney for that body, serving 
with marked ability for several years. At the 
time that the i 50th Regiment N. Y. Volunteers 
was raised in Dutchess county, Mr. Crummey 
opened a recruiting office in Poughkeepsie, 
and succeeded in raising an entire company; 
but as he had no liking for military life he 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHWAL RECORD. 



139 



never asked for the commission as captain to 
which he was entitled, but gave it to the late 
U. S. Capt. Piatt Thorn. 

In 1865 he became interested in the tem- 
perance cause, and united with the Sons of 
Temperance, his zeal and influence bringing 
large accessions to the organization. He was 
also instrumental in founding a Father Mat- 
thew Society in Poughkeepsie, and in starting 
a series of public meetings in the court house 
and in Old Pine Hall, which aroused and main- 
tained for several years wide-spread interest in 
the total-abstinence movement. To Mr. Crum- 
mey, more than to any other one person, the 
success of these several enterprises was due. 
He was a fine extemporaneous speaker, and 
an able and dignified presiding officer. In the 
Sons of Temperance he seven times held the 
office of Grand Worthy Patriarch of Eastern 
New York, and later was made Most Worthy 
Patriarch of the United States and Canada. 
In the formation of the Prohibition party he 
gave it his allegiance. He was always a ready 
friend to any man, no matter how low and de- 
graded, who attempted to reform, and he gave 
freely of both time and money to secure them 
employment, and to establish them in an hon- 
orable mode of life. He was a member of the 
Masonic fraternity. 

On November 10, 1857, Mr. Crummey was 
married in the town of Stanford to Miss Ger- 
aldine B. Arnold, a descendant of a pioneer 
family; her great-grandfather, Ahab Arnold, 
her grandfather, Welcome Arnold, and her fa- 
ther, Archibald H. K. Arnold, were all promi- 
nent residents there. Two sons were born of 
this union, Saffokd Arnold and Edward 
Daly, both of whom, with their mother, sur- 
vive the beloved father and husband, who 
passed beyond the gates that separate the seen 
from the unseen, July 20, 1894. Surely he 
" hath done what he could." 



GEORGE HUNTINGTON, M. D. The 
life of a country physician, who labors 
day and night through all seasons for the alle- 
viation of human suffering, lacks the spectac- 
ular features which bring some men, in far less 
useful callings, into public prominence, but no 
one will deny or even question the superior 
value of the work done by the unassuming 
medical practitioner. 

Dr. Huntington is a descendant of an old 
New England family, and several of his an- 



cestors were physicians of note. Simon Hunt- 
ington, the head of this branch of the family, 
came from England with three sons soon after 
the settlement by the Pilgrim Fathers. Our 
subject's great-grandfather and grandfather 
were natives of Norwich, Conn., but the latter, 
Dr. Abel Huntington, moved to East Hamp- 
ton, L. I., when a young man, and began the 
practice of medicine. He was a leader among 
his associates, and served two terms in Con- 
gress under Jackson's administration. His 
wife was Miss Frances Lee, daughter of Col. 
Lee, of Lyme, Conn., and they had four chil- 
dren: Marrietta, the wife of Dr. David Gar- 
diner; Cornelia, a well-known writer of prose 
and poetry; Abbie L. ; and George Lee Hunt- 
ington, our subject's father, who also became 
an able and successful physician. He passed 
his youth at East Hampton, and studied medi- 
cine with his father for some time, continuing 
his course later with Dr. Valentine Mott, of 
New York City. He took charge of his father's 
practice when the latter was elected to Con- 
gress, and then for some time followed his 
profession in Brooklyn, N. Y., where he mar- 
ried Miss Mary Hoogland, a member of an old 
Knickerbocker family. Soon afterward he re- 
sumed his practice at East Hampton, contin- 
uing until his death in 1884. Of his four chil- 
dren the eldest, Benjamin H., is president of 
the Dime Savings Bank of Brooklyn. (2) Abel 
Huntington, M. D., is medical director of the 
New York Life Insurance Co., of New York 
City, and Mary E., now a resident of Brook- 
lyn, is the widow of the late Frederick Bridge, 
who was engaged in trade with China and 
Japan, and who for several years was a resi- 
dent in those countries. 

George Huntington, the third child of this 
family, was born in East Hampton, April 9, 
1850, and received his literary education mainly 
at Clinton Academy, at that place, studying 
the classics under the tuition of John Wallace. 
In the fall of 1868 he began the study of medi- 
cine with his father as preceptor, and later at- 
tended three courses of lectures at the College 
of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City, 
graduating in 187 I. In the following year he 
located in Pomeroy, Ohio, but after a few 
months returned home and united with his fa- 
ther in practice, remaining there until 1874, 
when he established himself at Lagrangeville, 
Dutchess county. There he has met with the 
appreciation which his thorough mastery of his 
profession deserves. 



140 



COMMEMORATrVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



In 1874 the Doctor married Miss Mary E. 
Heckard, daughter of Judge Martin Heckard, 
of Pomcroy, Ohio, a well-known mining engi- 
neer, and for some years the judge of the pro- 
bate court there. Six children were born of 
this marriage: Katharine, Charles Gardiner, 
Abel (deceased), lilizabeth, Edwin Horton and 
Eleanor. The Doctor holds a high place in 
the esteem of his professional brethren, as well 
as with the public generally. He is a member 
of the Medical Society of Dutchess county, and 
was its president in 1887-88; in April, 1894, 
he was made an honorary member of the 
Brooklyn Society for the study of Neurology. 
He also belongs to the Audubon Society of New 
York City, and he achieved world-wide recog- 
nition as a scientific observer by a paper on 
"Chorea," read before the Meigs and Mason 
Academy of Medicine, in 1S72, and published 
in the ' ' Medical and Surgical Reporter. " This 
paper describes a peculiar form of hereditary' 
chorea existing in Long Island, N. Y. , which has 
since attracted much attention both at home and 
abroad, and which has been designated "Hunt- 
ington's Chorea." We quote the following 
from an article by William Osier, M. D., pro- 
fessor of medicine in John Hopkins University, 
Baltimore. " Twenty years have passed since 
Huntington, in a postscript to an everyday sort 
of article on chorea minor, sketched most 
graphically, in three or four paragraphs, the 
characters of a chronic and hereditary form 
which he, his father and grandfather had ob- 
served in Long Island. In the whole range of 
descriptive nosology there is not, to my knowl- 
edge, an instance in which a disease has been 
so accurately and fully delineated in so few 
words. No details were given: the original 
cases were not (nor have they been) described, 
but to Huntington's account of the sympto- 
matology no essential fact has been added." 
In I 897 Dr. Huntington was made one of the 
auxiliary staff of the new General Hospital at 
Fishkill-on- Hudson. 



LEWIS FREDERICK STREIT (deceased), 
,' a former well-known carriage manufac- 
turer of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess, county, was 
born at Cniildirland, Albany Co., N. Y., De- 
cember 2, 1 8 16. . 

Frederick Streit, the great-grandfather of 
our subject, born in 1709, came from Bavaria, 
and settled at a place called Keskatomi Nijse, 
northwest of Catskill, N. Y., owned a farm on 



land bought by Henry Beekman of the Indians 
about 1700; he afterward sold this farm and 
purchased one at Rhinebeck, N. Y., where he 
passed the rest of his days, dying February 8, 

1 78 1, aged seventy-two years. He married 
Catharine Mowel (Moult from the west side of 
the river, who was born in 1702, and died 
February 23, 1785, at Rhinebeck. They had 
eight children: Christina, born F"ebruary 27, 
1740, married ("aspar Ham; Elizabeth died in 
1740; Anna, born May 26, 1734, died May 27, 
1740; Mariah, born March 8, 1742; Frederick, 
born March 8, 1742, died May 21, 1800; 
Lodowick, born April 12, 1745; Catharine 
married Frederick Ham; and Anna married 
John Ackert. 

Frederick Streit, the grandfather of Lewis 
Frederick, was born March 8, 1742, and died 
May 21, 1800. He settled at Guilderland, 
N. Y. ; married (first) Catharine Benner. Feb- 
ruary 7, 1762, daughter of Henrich and Cath- 
arine (Boetzer) Benner (they had one daugh- 
ter, Catharine, born August 9, 1768); and 
(second) Elizabeth Rauh, and to the latter 
marriage were born four children: Hannah, 
born November 14, 1770, died August 23, 
1776; Mary, born July 14, 1773, died August 
16, 1776; John, born November 2, 1775, died 
August 21, 1776; and Lodowick, born Decem- 
ber 26, 1777, died July 9, 1783. For his third 
wife Frederick Streit married on February 18, 

1782, Catharine Moore, born June 8, 1752, at 
Red Hook, N. Y., died March 16, 1843, the 
only daughter of Phillip Hendricksen (born 
December 28, 171 3) and Engel (Dederick) 
Moore; they had four children: Frederick, 
born May 2, 1780; Phillip, born September 
21, 17S3, died July 4, i Soo, married Eliza- 
beth Cramer; Lodowick, born February 26, 
1785, went to Canada; Hannah, born May 14, 
1789, died February 3, 1833, married John M. 
Rowc, November 5, 1809. 

Phillip Streit, the father of our subject, 
born September 21, 1783, died July 4, 1867, 
at Rhinebeck. N. Y., married November 6, 
1803, to Elizabeth Cramer, born August 24, 
1784, died November 25, 1861, daughter of 
John Nicholas and Elizabeth (Tipple) Cramer, 
the former born January 22, 1743, died Octo- 
ber 18, 1S06, and the latter born in 1752. 
They had five children; Caroline Catharine, 
born September 9, 1804, at Rhinebeck, mar- 
ried (first) Lemuel Savage, of Granville, N. Y. , 
November 30, 1802, and (second) Seth More- 
house; Anna Maria, born December 20, 1807, 




SZe^oJH^ '^ ^jiJ^M/^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BlOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



141 



at Guilderland, married George Lamoree, of 
Staatsburg, died September 20. 1895; J^ne 
Elizabeth, born January 3, 181 i, married Seth 
Morehouse, died January 4, 1862; Lewis 
Frederick, born December 2, 18 16, died March 
I, 1 891; Margaret Ellen, born November 27, 
1821, married David Henry Schryver, of 
Khinebeck, New York. 

There is a legend in the Cramer family 
that the great-grandfather of Elizabeth Cram- 
er was one of the Princes of a small division 
of Germany. They lived in a castle supposed 
to have been at Baden-Baden; her grandfather 
married a daughter of a family with whom his 
father was at feuds, and they were conse- 
quently disowned by both families. John 
Nicholas, father of Elizabeth, was one of 
three sons born in Baden in 1743. It is 
said the children went to their grandfather's 
castle gate, and repeated the Lord's Prayer, 
according to an old German custom for restor- 
ing peace, but it was unavailing, so the father, 
his wife and three sons sailed for America. The 
passage was very long (three months) and 
stormy; the father died and was buried in the 
deep, and the children were sold, according to 
the prevailing custom of that time, to pay ex- 
penses; the wife married again in Virginia. 
Two sons, John N. and another brother, Jacob 
or Wendel, settled in Rhinebeck. They 
brought with them an old German Bible print- 
ed in 1585, which is now in the possession of 
one of the members of the family. 

Lewis Frederick Streit received the bene- 
fits of a common-school education. In 1830 
he came to Poughkeepsie, and engaged in the 
carriage and sleigh-making business with John 
P. Myers, afterward carrying it on on his own 
account until 1853, when he took George 
Lockwood into partnership with him. The 
firm prospered, and in 1888 they sold their 
business and retired. Mr. Streit invested in 
real estate in Poughkeepsie, which at the pres- 
ent time is very valuable. In politics, he was 
a Republican, although he never sought public 
office, was made a member of the board of 
village trustees of Poughkeepsie, and repre- 
sented the Fourth ward as alderman in 1854. 
In early manhood he became connected with 
the Presbyterian Church, with the interests of 
which he was associated until his death. He 
was twice married; by his first wife, Martha 
Wigg, daughter of Nathaniel and Elizabeth (De 
Groff) Wigg, and born December 23, 181 r, 
married January 31, 1838, died in October, 



1861, two children were born: a son who died 
in infancy, and a daughter, now Mrs. Elizabeth 
Raub, of Poughkeepsie. By his second wife, 
Rebecca Matilda Duncan, he had one child, a 
son who died in infancy. Mr. Streit died 
March i, 1891. He will always be remem- 
bered as an honorable, upright man, who 
gained and held the respect and esteem of his 
fellow citizens. He was identified with the 
industries of the city, and for many years was 
a director in the Poughkeepsie National Bank. 
His taste and enterprise, courtesy and probity, 
were noteworthy, and in no sphere was he more 
honored than in the Church where his name 
was recorded nearly all his manhood. His 
widow is living at the old home, and in 1886 
she purchased her own old homestead at 
Unionvale, near Millbrook, New York. 

Elizabeth Streit (the daughter of our 
subject by his first wife) was born in the city 
of Poughkeepsie, married James M. Raub, of 
Raubsville, Penn., who died July 20, 1872; 
they had two daughters: Alma, now Mrs. 
Halsey Haines Cheney, and Lena, now Mrs. 
John Morton Swift. 



ROBERT FORSTER (deceased) was born 
in Canada March 14, 182 1, of English 

and French ancestry. The father died when 
Robert was a small boy, and the latter went to 
New York City, where he received his early 
education. 

Mr. Forster learned the machinist's trade 
with John Matthews, with whom he lived for 
several years. While in Mr. Matthews' em- 
ploy as foreman of the factory, our subject was 
married June 6, 1843, to Emma Manning. In 
1846 he came to Poughkeepsie, and followed 
his trade, that of a machinist. In 1S47 he 
built the apparatus for the manufacture of soda 
water, and engaged in the bottling business, 
in which he was the pioneer in Poughkeepsie. 
He first started in the retail business, which 
soon rapidly increased to wholesale, and he 
supplied the trade of Poughkeepsie and other 
cities. He was an active member of the fire 
department, but would never hold a political 
office. His business, which is now the largest 
in the city, is carried on by his widow, she has 
an adopted son, George, who assists her. He 
married Miss Emma Louise Hager, and they 
have three children: Grace T. , Emma N. 
and Robert. Mrs. Forster also has in her 
employ James Du Bois, who has been with her 



14fJ 



cojoiEJiOBArrrs biograpbical record. 



since 1S55. and Robert William Polhemus. a 
nephew, who has been with her since 1873. 
Mr. Forsier died in Poughkeepsie June 2S, 
1863. 

Charles Manning. Jr.. the father of Mrs. 
Forster. was bom at Hyde Park. Dutchess 
county, in 1795. where he spent his boyhood 
attending public schools. He was a soldier in 
the war of 1S12. On Januajy 4. 18 17. he 
was married to ^^iss Maria Tra\-is. who was 
bom in the town of Pleasant Vallej-. August 
16, 1795. and children as follows were bom to 
them: Elizabeth and Hester ^^both deceased^ : 
Emma: Sarah, who married William S. Pol- 
hemus, of Poughkeepsie: James, and Charles. 



the latter being deceased. 



Mr. Manning was 



engaged in farming in Hyde Park until i S26, 
when he went to New York City and went into 
business there. Later he returned to Dutch- 
ess county, and died January 2. 1S57. 

Charles Manning, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Forster. was a farmer in the town of Hvde 



moved to the town of Egremont. Berkshire 
county, where he carried on agricultural pur- 
suits until bis death, which occurred August 
II, 1870. 

Henry E. Codding, bom June i6, 1S26. 
obtained his elementary education in the com- 
mon schools of Berkshire county, and com- 
pleted his literarj- training in the old Lenox 
.■\cademy. His active business life was all 
devoted to farming in the town of Egremont, 
where he died November 24, 1S96. A con- 
scientious, earnest. Christian man. for several 
years he was deacon in the Baptist Church, 
and officially served as justice of the peace, 
being appointed by the governor of Massachu- 
setts. In December, 1S49, he was united in 
marriage with Miss Emeline. daughter of 
Stephen Eldgerley. of Glendale. Berkshire Co., 
Mass.. and thej- became the parents of three 
children: Marcia R. . who was bom November 
9. 1S50. and is now the wife of .\lfred J. Hub^ 
bard, of LeRov. N. Y. : Clara G., who was 



Park, where he was bom July 17, 1771. He bom May 11. 1S32. and died in June. 1S92; 
married Miss Elizabeth Myer. who was bom 
April 20. 1772. and they had fourteen chil- 
dren. Charles Manning, the great-grand- 
father, was one of the early pioneers of the 
town of Hyde Park. Isaac Travis, the ma- 
ternal grandfather, was bom in the town of 
Pleasant Valley. February 10. 1763. and was 
married to Miss Elizabeth ConkUn, who was 
bom June 3, 1760. They had nine children, 
of whom. Maria, the mother of Mrs. Forster, 
was the fifth. 



GEORGE H. CODDING. M. D.. a leading 
_ ph\'3ician and surgeon of Amenia. Dutch- 
ess count\'. was bom at Egremont. Berkshire 
Co.. Mass.. August i, 1S54, and comes of a 
family that for several generations have been 
prominent agriculturists of that county. His 
great-grandfather. Cobb Codding, whose birth 
occurred at Taunton. Mass.. in 1774. became 
a prosperous farmer and lumberman in the 
town of Washington. Berkshire county. 

There. Ephraim Codding, the grandfather. 

was bom Febniarj- 20. iSoo. and spent his 

da\-s upon his father's farm. .\t 

<. Conn., he married Miss Ann Eliza 

Remington, who died in 1872. and to them 

'.V - - — --'-^ children: Henry E.. the 

ect. and Ann ElLza and Sarah 

i -ed. After a short resi- 

c -?. he in March, 1S45, re- 



and George H.. of this re\new. The mother 
of these children was called to her final rest 
May 26. i860, and Mr. Codding again married, 
his second union being with Cornelia Eggles- 
ton. daughter of David Eggleston. of the town 
of Northeast. Dutchess Co.. New York. 

Dr. Codding was reared upon the home 
farm in the town of Egremont. Berkshire Co., 
Mass., and attended the Egremont Academy, 
after which he taught school for a year and a 
half, and in 1S7S took up the study of medi- 
cine with Dr. Henr\- M. Knight, of Lakeville, 
Conn. On the death of that gentleman, be 
continued to pursue his medical studies under 
the instruction of Dr. John C. Shaw, at that 
time superintendent of the Kings County In- 
sane Asylum at Flatbush. Long Island, and 
subsequently graduated at the College of Phy- 
sicians and Surgeons in New York City, in the 
class of Si. 

The Doctor then entered Kings County 
Hospital at Flatbush. as assistant physician, 
and later was appointed second assistant at the 
Kings CountA' Insane Asylum, thus gaining 
much practical knowledge. On January 9. 
1SS2. he arrived in Amenia. where for three 
years he was in partnership with Dr. Desault 
Guernsey, but since that time has been alone, 
and is now at the head of a large practice. He 
is a member of the Dutchess Countj- Medical 
Society, and was one of the founders of the 
New York State Medical .Association. 



COMMEMOIiATirE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



143 



On March 28, 1883, Dr. Codding was mar- 
ried to Miss Irene Hinman Warner, daughter 
of Sherman B. Warner, of Southbury, Conn., 
and to them were born two children — Joel 
Hinman, born May 29, 1884; and Desault 
Guernsey, born September 28, 1886, and died 
July 23, 1887. 



CHARLES BROWN HERRICK(de- 
_ ceased). Among the prominent citizens of 
Foughkeepsie, Dutchess county, who have 
passed to the unseen world in recent years, 
the late Charles B. Herrick held an honor- 
able place, and the announcement of his 
death at Haines' Falls, in the Catskills, 
July 29, 1896, caused sincere and wide-spread 
grief among all classes in the city where the 
best of his years had been spent. Although 
it was well-known that he was stricken 
with a serious ailment — locomotor ataxia — 
his unvarying composure under suffering had 
led many of his friends to hope that the 
disease would not prove fatal. In the prime 
of life, having just crossed the half cen- 
tury line (for he was born August 15, 1845), 
he had scarcely begun to reap the rewards and 
honors due to his able and conscientious work 
in the legal profession, while the community 
which he had faithfully served in the various 
official capacities has lost an untiring supporter 
of its best interests. 

Like many of the foremost citizens of the 
country, he was born and reared upon a farm, 
and his father, William Herrick,. still resides 
at the old home at Salt Point, Dutchess coun- 
ty. Our subject prepared for college at East 
Hampton, Mass., and was graduated from 
Yale College in 1869. His legal studies were 
prosecuted in the office of Thompson & Weeks, 
and in 1870 he began to practice, his office 
being located in the old " Lawyers' Row," on 
Market street at the site of the present post 
office. In 1876 he formed a partnership with 
Col. Henry E. Lose}-, which continued until 
his death. Mr. Herrick's interest in educa- 
tional and literary pursuits was shown in many 
ways; he was a trustee of Vassar Institute, and 
also served three years as a member of the 
board of education. In politics he was an act- 
ive worker, and for a number of years pre- 
vious to his death he was chairman of the 
Democratic City Committee. When the 
water board was organized he was appointed 
clerk, which office he held for several years. 



and his work as city attorney under the ad- 
ministration of Mayor Elsworth and of Mayor 
Ketcham reflected great credit upon him, and 
was satisfactory in the highest degree to the 
people. The Poughkeepsie Courier said at 
the time of his retirement from office: 

During Mr. Herrick's incumbency, suits aggregating 
between Sl.')0,000 and S200,000, have been brought against 
the city, and the total recovery has only been S^J.TOO. 
This is quite a remarkable record, most of the actions 
for damages resulting from slii)[)ery sidewalks. In addi- 
tion to defending all suits against the city, Mr. Herrick 
has been the right hand man and confidential adviser of 
two mayors, and the official adviser for six years of all 
the city boards, at the same time has attended to a large 
private practice. \'ery little business, however, will re- 
main uncompleted at the close of bis term. Only one 
suit is pending against the city. 

In all relations of life, Mr. Herrick was a 
typical American gentleman. Dignified in ap- 
pearance, at the same time he was pleasing in 
manners, and he fully appreciated the value of 
the friendship and esteem of his associates. 
Although he was always earnest in the support 
of any cause which he espoused, he never 
made use of any methods that were not hon- 
orable and straightforward, and neither in 
public or private life was he ever swerved by 
criticism, ridicule, or invective from the dis- 
charge of his duty as he saw it. His innate 
kindness and justice were displayed in his 
characteristic reluctance to express an opinion 
where character or reputation was involved. 
His legal brethren held him in the highest 
esteem, and a meeting of the Bar Association 
of Dutchess County, held shortly after his 
death, was largely attended, and eloquent 
tributes of respect were paid by Messrs. Frank 
Hasbrouck, ex-Judge Henry M. Taylor, Frank 
B. Lown, Gifford Wilkinson, J. Hervey Cook, 
Safford Crummey, Martin Heermance. and 
others. Resolutions of condolence with the 
sorrowing relatives were adopted, and the 
words of praise of the life so prematurely 
ended voiced the feelings of all present. 

Mr. Herrick left a widow, formerly Miss 
Ada Van Benschoten, daughter of Philip and 
Jane Ann (O'Dell) Van Benschoten, of the 
town of Lagrange, and three sisters and a 
brother also survive him. The funeral serv- 
ices were held at the home of the deceased on 
Hooker avenue, and his remains were interred 
in the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery, a large 
company of friends gathering to pay the last 
token of affection. For several years the de- 
ceased was a member of the University Club 
of New York City. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQBAPHICAL RECORD. 



145 



cratic airs of the other lines, calHng their home- 
steads after different castles of the local Lord 
Livingstons in Scotland, to whom, according 
to the investigation published in the " Curio," 
Vol. I., 1 887-1 888, pages 45 and 46, they can- 
not trace their connection. Burke says as 
much in his " Lost Peerages." Even E. Brock- 
hoist Livingston, F. S. A.: Scot., who has 
written so largely on the subject, admits he 
cannot supply " the missing link " ("Curio," 
I., 46). There were almost as many so-styled 
"Livingston Manor houses" as there were 
well-to-do heads of families of that name. 
Nevertheless, there was only one real "manor 
house," situated on the north shore of the Roe- 
liff Jansen Kill, near the railroad station, just 
to the north of its junction with the Hudson 
river, which was burned down in the preced- 
ing century, never rebuilt, and the possession 
of its site has passed into other hands. 

Like the Hapsburg family, who boasted of 
the growth of their possessions by marrying 
heiresses, the first Livingston laid the founda- 
tion of his fortune in his union with the widow 
of a Van Renssalaer. Mrs. Martha J. Lamb, 
in her " History of ' the City of New York," 
Vol. I., pp. 275 and 276, furnishes a pen pic- 
ture of him, moral and physical, and his de- 
scendants have not lost his peculiar character- 
istics to this day. 

The different scions of the Watts family, 
moved by affectionate recollections of the old 
home in Scotland — once just without, now 
within the city limits of Edinburgh — called all 
their rural residences in the Province and State 
of New York, "Rose Hill," the title borne by 
their forefathers' mansion for several hundred 
years. The simple appellation " Rose Hill " 
was a common weal. They did not arrogate 
to their homes the titles of different castles of 
Earls and Lords in Scotland, scattered through- 
out the realm, not aggregated, as here, in a 
small district. 

Guisbert, or Gilbert, who married Cornelia 
Beekman, had Mills near Rock City, in the 
town of Milan, and they were still in existence 
and known by his name until recent date, if 
not still in use. His eldest son, Robert Gil- 
bert Livingston, married Catherine, daughter 
of a wealthy man, John Mac Pheadris, who 
was the first to introduce the mining and 
smelting of iron in Dover Valley in Duchess 
county. The brother of this John, known as 
Capt. Mac Pheadris, afterward resided in Ports- 
mouth, N. H., and built — 1718 to 1723 — a 
10 



famous mansion, described at length by Brew- 
ster in his "Rambles about Portsmouth," ist 
ed., pp. 138-140 inclusive. It cost i,'6,ooo, 
equivalent to $30,000 Colonial coinage, pos- 
sessing at that time a purchasing power equal 
to $150,000 to-day. 

Helen, eldest daughter of Robert Gilbert 
Livingston and Catherine MacPheadris, mar- 
ried Samuel Hake, a commissary general in 
the British army, whose only daughter, again 
Helen, married Frederic de Peyster, grand- 
father of the subject of this sketch. Catherine, 
another daughter, married John Reade, of 
Poughkeepsie, who was the brother of Sarah 
Reade, daughter of Hon. Joseph Reade, mem- 
ber of the King's Council, etc. This Sarah 
married James de Peyster, father of the Fred- 
eric above mentioned. Samuel, only son of 
Gen. Hake, having lost all his children, left 
all his landed property in Duchess county to 
the sons of his sister, Mrs. de Peyster, whence 
(through his honored father, Frederic de Pey- 
ster) it came into possession of' her grand- 
child, the General. The Century for Decem- 
ber, 1896, in the article " A Group of Amer- 
ican Girls," alludes to these ladies.* 

Helen Hake had for guardians Nicholas 
William Stuyvesant and Vice-President Aaron 
Burr, one of the most malignantly misrepre- 
sented of mortals. She was married to Fred- 
eric de Peyster, from the house of her great 
uncle, Gilbert Robert Livingston, at Upper 
Red Hook Landing, now Tivoli. This gentle- 
man had been an officer in the British service, 
and this fact saved his mansion, known as 
" Green Hill," on the high ground overlooking 
the river, between the Upper and Lower 
Landings of the two freighting establishments 
which are now embraced within the village of 
Tivoli. This title was derived from the resi- 
dence built by an old French gentleman, M. 
Delabegarre, and by him styled the " Chateau 
of Tivoli," of which the part of the original 
walls of the '' cncicnte" were standing until 
within the year, and the postern gate still re- 
mains. M. Delabegarre was a visionary, and 
among his other wild plans he laid out, for a 
grand city, a large portion of the domain, 
Rose Hill, now belonging to Gen. de Peyster, 
as well as the " Chateau " at first given to his 
second son, Frederic. The plotting and plan__ 
of this city, a perfect " Chateau en Espagne, ". 
was drawn and engraved by the famous Saint 

*I*erhaps the best succinct or properly digested genealogical 
statement of Gen. de Peyster's family is to be fonnd in Munsell's 
■■ American Ancestry," Vol. I., Part 3, 18S8, Pages 83-86. 



146 



COyrMKMORATrVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Meniin, the artist who took and engraved so 
many portraits of distinguished people about 
1796, the same time that he laid out the pros- 
pective city of Tivoli, in which not a spade 
has turned a sod for any improvement, or any 
structure great or small undertaken. On these 
grounds the first — or at all events one of the 
first — silk-worm mulberry groves was planted 
in the United States. By the way, tradition 
holds that Delabegarre was an Americanism 
for L'Abbe de Seguard, which, if true, would 
indicate that he was a waif of the French 
Ke\olution who, like so many thousands of 
Others, drifted to the United States. 

General de Peyster's residence and asso- 
ciations with Duchess county have been con- 
tinuous since 1841. He was an early contrib- 
utor to the Poughkeepsie Edg/c, in the office 
of which a number of his works were printed 
that won him high distinction at home and 
abroad. One, "The Life of Torstenson," re- 
ceived an honorable acknowledgment from 
His Majesty, Oscar I., the king of Sweden, 
accompanied by three exquisite silver portrait 
medals. Several of his subsequent works 
were reprinted in Europe, and one of them, 
the "New American Tactics," was followed by 
the inauguration of the ' ' New Method of Fight- 
ing Infantry;" just as his "Winter Cam- 
paigns," according to the opinion of Gen. 
Wm. P. Wainwright, was succeeded by activ- 
ity at a season in which, previously, armies 
had rested or remained inactive. It is some- 
what curious that his want of recognition has 
been due to his having always been ahead of 
his times. Just as he was the first to report 
in favor of the mobilized twelve-pounder, or 
Napoleon gun, which did so much service 
during the "Slaveholders' Rebellion," just so 
his indications were remarkable for their fore- 
sight and his predictions for their fulfillment, 
as in succession he wrote and published on 
various militarj' subjects. That these claims 
are not an afterthought or unfounded is sus- 
ceptible of immediate and the fullest proof, 
because his opinions and suggestions were all 
in print or preserved in manuscript written long 
previous to the events to which they referred. 
To the case of General de Peyster most appro- 
priately apply the lines: 

" The man is thoufjht a knavt or fool 
Or bigot plotting crimt-, 
Who for the advancement of his age 
Is wiser than his time." 

In 1844 he was a staff officer in an Infantry 



Brigade of the Northern Districts of Duchess 
county, and next year colonel of the iiith 
Regiment N. Y. S. Infantry, recruited in the 
towns of Red Hook, Milan and Rhinebeck. 
Rendered a Supernuinerary officer by the Act of 
1845, although the youngest colonel in the 
new 22d Regiinental District N. Y. — which 
comprised the northern towns of Duchess 
county and those in the southern half of Colum- 
bia county, including the City of Hudson — he 
was assigned, as a necessity for the complete 
organization of the force, to its command over 
the heads of a number of officers of his rank 
holding older commissions. Within one year 
the adjutant-general of the State complimented 
him with the decision that Col. Willard, of 
Troy, an old army officer, and himself, were 
the only two who had completely enforced the 
law in their districts, of which the population 
were considered the most difficult to handle 
and the most unruly at that date in the whole 
State. In 1S51, when the militia law was 
again changed, and anything but for the better. 
Col. de Peyster was the first officer selected by 
Gov. Washington Hunt for promotion as brig- 
adier-general, and his was the first such appoint- 
ment to a rank hitherto elective made by the 
chief executive, independentl}', in this State. 

Just as he had been assigned in 1849 for 
"meritorious conduct ", he was made brigadier- 
general for "important service". On 'this 
occasion Gov. Washington Hunt wrote, in the 
summer of 1850, to Hon. George Cornell, who 
ran for lieutenant-governor in 1850 on the 
same ticket with him, but was defeated, that 
"if he had an army of 30,000 regulars he 
knew no officer to whom he would entrust 
their command with such perfect confidence 
as he would to his friend General de Peyster; 
but he was not so sure that he was as fit to 
command militia and what was then styled 
volunteers." His meaning was that the Gen- 
eral simply understood the application of 
"must", implying the enforcement of the 
strictest discipline; whereas militia and volun- 
teers — which latter did not signify at the time 
— as afterwards — troops subjected to the 
sternest articles of war — had to be coaxed, 
which is something that the General could not 
understand. 

Sent out to Europe in 1851 as military 
agent of the State of New York, confirmed and 
endorsed in the strongest manner by the gen- 
eral government, the young Brigadier, although 
a great invalid, made such a thorough exam- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOEAPHWAL RECORD. 



147 



ination into subjects in which he was expected 
to take interest, that on his return tie handed 
in a report which has stood the test of time as 
to its merits, as will be shown. One of the 
results of his observation and influence was the 
establishment of a paid fire department with 
steam tire engines, and the present municipal 
police of New York City, to which fact letters 
or certificates and testimonials exist. For 
his reports Gov. Hunt presented to him a gold 
medal with a most flattering inscription, and 
his officers gave him another gold medal, 
equally complimentary for his efforts in elevat- 
ing and disciplining his brigade. 

When Myron H. Clark was elected Gov- 
ernor of the State of New York in 1854, he 
tendered the position of Adjutant-General to 
General de Peyster in the most flattering terms, 
irrespective of political opinions; andon various 
occasions, when the exigencies of the time re- 
quired, conferred on his Chief of Staff all the 
powers which the Chief Executive himself pos- 
sessed, to meet and suppress riot and other 
breaches of the peace. Although Governor 
Clark put such implicit confidence in his Adju- 
tant-General, he was surrounded by men who 
were laboring solely for their own interests, 
without regard to the interests of the service, 
and did all they could to neutralize General de 
Peyster's labors. By the advice of such gen- 
tlemen as Ogden Hoffman, Attorney-General, 
he determined to resign, but the result of his 
honest labors in office manifested itself, and 
won for him the most flattering attests from 
officials most worthy of confidence, and the 
best military judges. Perhaps the highest 
compliment to his fidelity and judgment was 
the privilege of selecting his successor, and he 
chose Robert H. Pruyn, at one time United 
States Minister to Japan, as one whose astute- 
ness in politics fitted him to grapple with the 
noxious elements which environed the Gov- 
ernor. General de Pevster had been selected 
as an educated soldier, and did not profess to 
understand the underhand workings of politi- 
cians. He would not submit to men who in- 
duced the Governor to do many things in his 
guilelessness which his Adjutant-General could 
not endorse, and would not enforce, as con- 
trary to right and propriety. On taking leave 
of him, the Governor gave him the strongest 
testimonials of his esteem and confidence, and 
again and again, at a later date, expressed his 
regret that he had not listened to the advice 
and warnings of his Chief of Staff. 



In 1 86 1, when the Rebellion broke out, 
General de Peyster, in spite of the advice of 
his physicians and medical friends, proceeded 
to Washington to offer his services as Briga- 
dier-General with three regiments. He had a 
long and very extraordinary interview with 
President Lincoln, and it*is greatly to be re- 
gretted that all who were cognizant of the facts, 
as well as Senator Harris, who introduced the 
General to the President, and was present 
throughout the interview, are dead. President 
Lincoln had just called out 75,000 volunteers, 
and said he did not want anymore troops, but 
offered to take into consideration the General's 
offer of his personal services. The only testi- 
mony of what followed is the memorandum 
left by Mr. Halstead, of New Jersey, whose in- 
timate relations with the White House were 
well known at the time. 

According to that President Lincoln in- 
tended to take General de Peyster as Chief of 
his Personal Staff, which he purposed to or- 
ganize; but he was induced to give up this 
idea, as it was urged that the influence thus 
brought immediately to bear upon him might 
contravene and subvert the plans and interested 
projects and arrangements of other parties. 

Perhaps it is sufficient proof of the confi- 
dence placed in General de Peyster's military 
judgment, that Gen. Kearny wanted his cousin 
(whose eldest son and namesake was a volun- 
teer and aide-de-camp on his staff), to come on 
to Washington and draw up a plan for the en- 
suing campaign. General de Peyster answered 
that a fixed plan would not be capable of suc- 
cessful execution; because with the number of 
traitors and spies at headquarters, it would.be 
betrayed to the enemy, who would be thus en- 
abled to meet, anticipate and defeat it. 

Curious to say, it was only while this 
sketch was being written, that it was discov- 
ered that this was exactly the reply of the 
famous Suworrow to a similar proposition. 
He said "that the best conceived plans are 
exposed to the gravest difficulties or disadvan- 
tages, because it is impossible to calculate in 
advance the modifications which the resistance 
of the enemy or his counter projects, knowing 
the fixed plan, may bring to bear in opposition ; 
secondly, that plans digested and committed 
to paper, and thus known to different indi- 
viduals on whom it was necessary to rely, in- 
evitably would be betrayed to the enemy, who 
would at once take measures to meet and de- 
feat the movements which had been divulged 



148 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



by some traitor or spy." [See " Thiebault's 
Memoirs, " II., 143 to 177 — same idea, " a fixed 
plan always betrayed."] 

After General de Peyster's return from 
Washington, the haemorrhages from which he 
had long suffered became so profuse, that he 
could scarcely make up each day, by the aid of 
devoted phj'sicians and remedies and food, for 
the daily loss of blood. This condition lasted 
for many years, and has not been entirely over- 
come. 

Notwithstanding the miserable condition 
of his health, Gen. de Peyster returned to 
Washington late in the fall of 1861, to offer 
to the Government two regiments, instead of 
the three at first proposed, which he could 
still raise in Duchess and Columbia counties, 
provided he was appointed to command them, 
with the rank of brigadier-general. He was 
well-acquainted with Mr. Thomas Scott — 
afterward president of the Pennsylvania rail- 
road — then assistant secretary of war, who re- 
ceived him very kindly. The General was 
offered by Senator Harris the command of the 
First Regiment of cavalry, which bore that 
gentleman's name, and also a regiment of light 
infantry by Edwin D. Morgan, the governor of 
New York, with the rank of colonel; but he 
told them that he was not in a condition of 
health to discharge the duties of such a posi- 
tion, recalling the remark of the famous Gen. 
Wolfe, "that he was grateful for promotion to 
the rank of major-general* (equivalent to brig- 
adier-general), because it enabled him to com- 
mand those comforts and resources without 
which, in his feeble state of health, he could 
not undergo the hardships of active service, 
and do his duty thoroughly." 

As in his previous interview with President 
Lmcoln, he was told that the Government did 
not want any more troops nor general officers. 
He afterward learned that at this time, the Gov- 
ernment, with a want of foresight incomprehen- 
sible, were actually disbanding regiments which 
had cost so much to raise, and could not be 
replaced without far greater expense and irre- 
parable loss of time when fresh calls were 
made for troops. He also had an interview 
with Gen. McClellan, who told him "they 
had no need of testimonials; that his reputa- 
tion was sufficient. " On returning to the War 
Department Gen. de Peyster saw the Sec- 
retary, Simon Cameron, who was very po- 

*" Thiebault's Memoirs." II. 233. Major-General under Na- 
poleon, equivalent lo General of Brigade. 



lite, but assured his visitor that his proposi- 
tion was altogether inadmissable, because the 
Government had no need of more troops or 
officers. This decision was confirmed by Mr. 
Scott. 

It is needless to proceed further with such 
reminiscences; and refusing to make further 
visits to officials. General de Peyster re- 
turned home, repeating the remarks of Maj.- 
Gen. Mansfield, U. S. A., that "if such was 
the course pursued towards men worthy of 
attentiort, Jefferson Davis would some day be 
warming President Lincoln's chair." 

In 1863 Gen. de Peyster was invited by the 
Historical Society of \'ermont to deliver a War 
speech in the State Capitol of Montpelier, the 
Capital of that State. He chose for his sub- 
ject, "The Sonderbund; or. Secession War in 
Switzerland in 1846," a perfect parallel to the 
American Slaveholders' Rebellion down to the 
smallest details, its genesis and termination, 
with this difference: the Swiss loyal States 
appreciated the incalculable value of time, and 
the necessity of determined action, which ours 
did not. They called out the whole available 
force of the loyal Cantons or States, and over- 
whelmed the revolution before the neighboring 
monarchs, anxious to interfere on behalf of the 
rebels, had time or opportunity to interpose. 
The whole affair was over in thirtj'-two days, 
about one-third of the term Secretary Seward 
erroneously declared from time to time that 
our rebels would be crushed, whereas, hostili- 
ties lasted over four years. The conclusion of 
Gen. de Peyster's oration was a perfect pro- 
phecy, fulfilled to the letter. These are the 
exact words spoken: 

Here we should observe a few facts extremely perti- 
nent to our own situation. Notwithstanding the extreme 
defensibleness of the mountains of Switzerland — particu- 
larly those of the original Forist Cantons, embraced 
within the limits of the SONDERBL'.ND — as soon as Lucerne 
(corresponiiint; to the Riehmoud of the United States 
Rebels) had yielded, the Rebel leaders, at once, acknowl- 
edged that the fate of the Swiss secession depended upon 
the possession of the large fortified towns and upon 
the maintenance of the masses about them. This should 
be a consolation to those who fear that a guerilla war in 
the South can lead to any successful result or defer for 
more than a short period its entire subjugation. The 
Sonderbund generals saw at a glance the game was up, 
after their armies had been dissi])ated and the principal 
jilaces taken. So it will be with our Southern secession. 
It will collapse at once when the armies of Lee, Bragg, 
Beauregard, Johnson and Magruder are destroyed. 
I Page BS of •• .Secession in .Switzerland and in the L'nited 
States Compared ;" being the .Annual .Address delivered 
20th October, 18H;3, before the Vermont State Historical 
Society in the Hall of Rejiresentatives, Montpelier, by J. 
Watts de Peyster. Catskill : Joseph Joesbury, Printer, 
Journal office, 1864.] 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



149 



Nevertheless, General de Peyster was not 
inactive, and his support of the Government 
was so influential that his efforts were ac- 
knowledged in the most striking manner by the 
Legislature of his native State, in 1866. Since 
he could not be brevetted by any existing law, 
by ''Special Act," or Concurrent Resolution 
of the New York State Legislature, the brevet 
of Major-General, after investigation and de- 
bate, was conferred upon him. In this, Sec- 
retary Folger (afterward U. S. Secretary of 
the Treasury, and so cruelly slaughtered at the 
polls when running for Governor of the State 
of New York against Grover Cleveland in 1881), 
then a stranger to the recipient of the honor, 
made an address which was conclusive. 

There is no instance in the history of this 
country of such an honor having been con- 
ferred upon any citizen by the Legislature of 
any State. Only one case resembles it in de- 
gree; and that was far less complimentary in 
the manner, and a general's commission con- 
ferred under a totally different condition of 
circumstances. 

The General's gifts and benefactions to 
public institutions, or to found public institu- 
tions, have been a characteristic and notable 
feature of his life. He has given a number of 
special libraries to educational institutions or 
library associations — special libraries e.xhaust- 
ive of the subjects which they present, and 
which were gathered together by him in 
furtherance of the laborious investigation which 
has always preceded his published works on the 
various themes which he has elaborated. Fol- 
lowing his published studies of the characters 
of Mary, Queen of Scots, and the Earl of Both- 
well (which studies included a drama inspired 
by this theme which elicited the highest enco- 
miums, in addition to the five well-known his- 
torical analyses of character and of the times), 
he gave the library which he had collected on 
this subject to Columbia College. Some of 
his other gifts to this university have already 
been mentioned. To the New York Historical 
Society, in addition to the invaluable "de 
Peyster family papers," he gave special libra- 
ries collected during his studies upon many in- 
teresting and little-known phases of Dutch his- 
tory (of which a partial catalogue, Part i, 
January, 1868, constitutes a pamphlet of 24 
pages), together with a library on Napoleon and 
the campaign culminating at Waterloo. Of 
this society his father was long the honored 
President, as he was also its generous bene- 



factor. The special libraries donated to the 
New York Society Library* and to Franklin and 
Marshall College have been referred to. Thou- 
sands of volumes have also been distributed 
miscellaneously in various directions, including 
many valuable books given to the Cazenovia 
Lyceum and to the Order of the Brothers of 
Nazareth of Unionvale, Duchess county, 
which books were destroyed in the conflagra- 
tion which consumed the original institution, 
and valuable volumes donated to the College of 
St. Stephens, also of Duchess county. 

General de Peyster has given a number of 
works of art, of superior excellence and repre- 
senting the expenditure of large sums of money, 
to New York City, the City of Hudson, and 
various public institutions. Several of these 
are statues of heroic size in com.memoration of 
historic members of his own family. The most 
striking object which salutes the eye of the 
visitor to the famous Trinity Churchj'ard, on 
lower Broadway, New York City, is the bronze 
statue, heroic size, of the General's eminent 
grandfather, Hon. John Watts, Jr. This 
notable statue has been characterized as one 
of the most artistic of the monuments which 
adorn the various parks, squares, and public 
places in New York. It is the work of George 
E. Bissell, the well-known sculptor of Pough- 
keepsie. Duchess county, N. Y. The "Year 
Book and Register of the Parish of Trinity 
Church in the City of New York," for 1893, 
contains the following, as introduction to an 



*Xe\v York Historical Societv. 

At a Stated Meeting of the Society, held on Tuesday evening 
May 3. 1892, the President submitted and read a letter from Gen. J, 
Watts de Peyster, presenting to the Society a collection of Family 
Papers. 

The following Resolutions presented by Mr. Edward F. de 
Lancey were unanimously adopted : 

JitriOhtil : That the thanks of the New York Historical Society 
be and hereby are given to Gen, John Watts de Peyster for 
the 'od'pfe and mo.'if rahuthle gift of the ancient historical manu- 
scripts, documents, maps and deeds, so long in the possession of 
this distinguished New York family, of which he is a well-known 
representative; a gift which illustrates in the clearest and strongest 
manner New York as a Dutch Colony, an English Province, an Inde- 
pendent Sovereignty, and the greatest member of the Republic of 
the United States of North America, 

Ji€80lrfd : That this collection be added to that formerly given 
to this Society by the donor's honored father [Frederic de Peyster], 
one of its Presidents, and that in honor both of the father and the 
son. the joint collection be denominated " The de Peyster Papers," 

Extract from the Minutes. [Signed) ANDREW WARNER, 

RtcoriHng Strretnry. 

Came early, hoping to see you and to thank you in person for 
your most generous and acceptable gift. It was highly appreciated by 
the Society. (Card) JOHN A. KING, 

[1th May, 1S92,] [Prfsiclenf X. Y. H. S.] 

My dear General : 4th May, 189>. 

I had hoped to see you this morning. but you were an earlier bird 
than myself, and were already on the wing. I wanted to tell you 
how gratified the Society was with your generous and noble gift, and 
of your still continuing remembrance and friendship, De Lancey 
wrote the Resolutions at my request, and the Society welcomed the 
gift with universal applause. Again thanking, and hoping we may 
always remain fresh in your memory. I am, Verv truly vours, 
[Signed,] JOHN A. KING, 

Gen. J. Watts de Peyster, [Presiddit X. Y. H. S.\ 



150 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



account of the family and public career of John 
Watts. * 

Another munificent gift to the city of New 
York is the bronze statue, also heroic size, of 
Gen. de Peyster's famous ancestor. Col. Abra- 
ham de Peyster, who was one of the most 
eminent and public-spirited citizens during the 
Colonial period of the history of the city and 
State of New York. This gentleman was a 
friend of William Penn, the most intimate 
friend and adviser of the Earl of Bellemont, 
perhaps the best of the Colonial governors, 
was mayor of New York City from 1691 to 
1695; colonel, commanding the city troops in 
1700; Chief-Justice of the Supreme Court the 
same year; president of the Council and acting 
Governor of the Province of New York in 
1 70 1, and was Treasurer of the Provinces of 
New York and New Jersey from 1706 to 1721, 
holding this trust until his death. The beau- 
tiful statue of this notable benefactor of early 
New York is likewise the work of Mr. Bissell, 
and comprises the chief decoration of the 
famous square on lower Broadway, "Bowling 
Green." Opposite this square Gen. de Peyster 
was himself born, in the handsome old resi- 
dence. No. 3 Broadway, of his grandfather 
Watts. 

To the city of Hudson the General also 
gave the beautiful bronze statue of " St. Win- 
efride Evoking the Fountain Which Feeds the 

*The Bronze Statue of John Watts. 
During the past year there has been erected in Trinity C'hurch- 
yard, by Gen. |onn Watts de Peyster, a statue of bis distini^uished 
ancestor. John Watts, the last Royal Recorder of tlie City of New 
York. This tine work of art stands to the south of the churchyard, 
nearly on a line with the porch toward Broadway. The statue and 
pedestal are together about fifteen feet high. The inscription on the 
base runs as follows ; 

VIR .EtJL'ANIMIT.XTIS. 
,I()HN WATTS. 

BuKN IN THK ClTV OF NkW YukK. .\t'(:i'ST 27. 1741) [U. S.) AXI> DlElJ 

THKut; Sei'tk.muku :(. l.ssii iN'. s.) 

LASTRt>YAI, HECOItDKll OK THE (JiTV OF NEW YoltK. 1774-1777 — No 
UEroHllS JH'lilXti THE KEVOl.t'TlO-V ; SfEAKEH OF ASSE.MIII.Y 

OF THE State of New Yokk. .lANt'Auv .i. 17111. to 

.lA.M'AKY 7. 17114; Me.miikh of (Jo.vghess. 171l;i-17;)3; 

KlllST Jt'J>GE OF WesTCHESTEII Co.. IStU*.; I-'ot'N- 

DEK AN!) KXIH)WEK t)F LeAKE A.N']> WaTTS 

Olil'HAX Hol'SE IN TIIE ClTY l>F NEW 

Y^)ItK: ONE OF THE KofNIJEH.S AND 

AFTEltWAIlDS i'KESIOENT OF THE 

New YoiiK Ui.si'ensary. 1821- 

is:«i. &,(■.. Ac. 

His Kemaixs lie in His .Vimatent Family Val-lt in this 

[TUIXITY I ('lirltCIIYAKO. 

EllECTEl) IX (JKATEFI'L liEME.MUItA XCE HY llis OHANDSOX, ONLY 

CHILI) OF Ills YofXGE.sT H'illl.I) AX1)J IlAfliHTEH. 

.\lAitY .IrsTiXA Watts (de I'eysteh], 
.loHN Watts de I'eysteh. 

Gen. de Feystcr's idea in erecting this statue was, as stated to 
the writer, that there might still be in this city, as there had been for 
many years, a visible memorial of liis grandfather. His name has 
long been connected with the well-known pharity. " The Leake and 
Watts Orphan House." which was a noble and sulficient monument 
to him ; but when that building, witli the site, was sold to the trus- 
tees of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, the memorial disap- 
peared through the removal of the institution to Vonkers. Therefore 
his descendant conceived the idea of erecting a statue of imperish- 
able bronze, and placing it in some position in which it might stand 
for ages, keepinj^ the name and good deeds of an eminent citizen in 
view of the public. 



Holy Healing Well. " This exquisite work of 
art (the adjective is well-deserved | was origi- 
nally intended for a site in Duchess county, 
the " pinetum " surrounding Gen. de Peyster's 
new Home for Consumptives, in the town of 
Unionvale. But the methods of those for 
whom the gift was designed, and who had 
been the recipients of numerous and extensive 
benefactions, changed the destination of the 
donation. It now adorns the beautiful foun- 
tain in the city of Hudson which issues out of its 
rock pedestal. The pedestal itself is a mass of 
natural, moss-grown rocks taken from Beacraft 
Mountain, in the Lower Claverack Manor, near 
the city of Hudson, of which Gen. de Peyster 
was the last patroon. 

Another statue, also of the distinguished 
mayor of New York (e.xecuted in Paris, and 
pronounced even finer than that which stands 
in Bowling Green), has been completed and 
but awaits the selection of the proper site for 
its reception. If it can be said, on the one 
hand, that few Americans can boast an ances- 
try so illustrious and so upright, concededly, 
in public estimation, as that of Gen. de Pey- 
ster, it is equally certain that no one could be 
found who more truh' appreciates his ancestral 
heritage and venerates the memories of those 
who have preceded him and rendered the fam- 
ily name so notable. The philanthropic spirit 
of his ancestors he has likewise emulated by 
linking their names with memorials which are 
lasting public benefactions. 

The Home for Consumptives in Unionvale, 
before referred to (a donation to the Methodist 
American University), was conceived as a 
monument to the virtues and gentleness of 
those whose memories are dear to the General, 
as the following tablet for the Home testifies: 

Ekected u\ 
(JEN. JOHN WATTS UE I'EYSTEH. 

as a .MEMOItlAl. OF 

Thuee Exe.mi'lahy Wo.MEX: 

His (iltAXD.MOTHEU. 

.Iaxe de Lance^', 

WIFE OF 

Hon. .Iohx Watts: 

His .\fXT. 

Eliza iiETH W.\tts, 

Mahhieu 

Hexky I.aight; 

His .Mothek. 

Maky .Ii"STix.\ Watts, 

Mauhied 

Fkedekic de Peysteh. 

The General's donation of the extensive 
lands occupied by the Brothers of Nazareth, 
of Unionvale, has been already mentioned. 
More than 130 acres of his ancestral domain, 
besides an adjoining farm, a purchase, were 
given for this purpose, while the Training 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL REVORB, 



151 



School represents a still more generous outlay. 
This school is one of the landmarks of that sec- 
tion of the county, and is a model, both for 
architectural beauty and in respect to its ar- 
rangements and appointments. The inscrip- 
tion above the exquisite marble mantel in the 
hall of the Training School is as follows: 

This Brii,])iNG, 

St. Pai'i/s Tkaixixg School fi)k Hovs. 

WAS Erected Hehe ox Prospect Fak.m ok Hu.l. which 

HAD BEEX IX HiS FaMILV FOR SkVEX GEXERATIOXS, BV 

JOHN WATTS DE PEYSTP:K, 

AS A Memohtal ov His Father. 

FREDEKIf DE PEYSTEK. 

AXD OF His Mateuxal Graxdfatheu. 

JOHN WATTS, 

ForXDER AXD EXDOWEK OF THE 

Leake and Watts Urphax' Hoi'se ix New York. 
Mr. OX'oxxor. Htdsox. Architect. 

It is not generally known that the estab- 
lishment of the Order and institutions of the 
Brothers of Nazareth within the borders of 
Duchess county was entirely due to the gen- 
erous gift of land by the General, at a time 
when the thought of location in this county was 
so far from the mind of the authorities of the 
Order as even to be deemed at first utterly im- 
practicable, the county being rejected as too 
remote from New York City. 

To Gen. de Peyster, Duchess county, and the 
Methodist Episcopal denomination in particu- 
lar, is indebted for the handsome church-build- 
ing erected in the village of Madalin.^ This 
gift called forth the following resolutions from 
the Methodist Conference: 

This beautiful edifice the General built as a 
memorial of his daughters. Upon the outside of 
the church is a tablet containing the following: 

This Methodist Episcopal CnrucH. dedicated to God. 

THE Savior. AXD the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, 

IS Erected by 

JOHX WATTS DE PEYSTER. 

AS A Memuki.^l of His Datghters, 

EsTELLE Elizabeth Pri'dexce 

A X D 

Maria Beata. 

*The New York Annual Conferenxe 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, assembled at Tarryiown. N. Y., 
April 8. 1893, ordered the following minute to be entered upon its 
Journal : 

W^erfcts, Gen. de Peyster has presented to the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church at Madalin a church editice. as a tribute to the mem- 
ory ot his daughters, free from debt, beautiful in architectural 
design and wisely adapted in all its appointments for church work; 
and, 

Whereas, Gen. de Peyster, with a benevolence not prompted by 
a denominational relation with Methodism, as he is not a member of 
our Church, has not only presented this well-equipped Christian 
temple to Methodism, but has also built and paid for, and presented 
to the Church at Madalin a parsonage: therefore, 

Rfsoiffil, That this Conference extends to Gen. de Peyster its 
sincere gratitude for his large and generous benefactions, and assures 
him of its earnest prayers that he may share in time and in eternity 
the blessings of the Christian faith which his dedicated gifts will 
perpetuate on earth, and that the memory of his beloved daughters 
may always be associated in his and in our memory with the preach- 
ing of that Gospel which comforts the sorrowful and pardons the 
penitent. 

Resolved, That the Secretary of this Conference be instructed to 
prepare two engrossed copies of this action, signed by the presiding 
Bishop and the Secretary, one to be presented to Gen. de Peyster. 
and the other to the Quarterly Conference of the Church at Madalin. 
[Signed] [Signed] 

C. W. Millard, John M. Walden. 

Secretary. Presiding Bishop. 



Upon a tablet within the church appears 
the inscription appended: 

This Chi'Rch was Desigxed by Johx Watts de Peyster. 

Embodyix*; Si'ggestioxs by its Pastor. Rey. 

Thomas Elliot. The Plans were drawx 

BY HeXRY DrDLEY. ARCH'T.. X. Y. AXD 

THE W()RK Carried ott axd Com- 

i'LETED IX Acc6KDAXCE WITH 
SPECIFICATIOXS .\XI> fXDER 

the sl'perixtexdexce of 
Mr. O'C'onxor. Arc't. 

This church has been the object of much 
admiration as one of the most picturesque 
country church buildings to be found anywhere. 
Another notable example of important benefac- 
tions in Duchess county is the General's gift 
to the Methodist denomination of the large 
home for friendless girls, known as the *' \\^atts 
de Peyster Missionary Home ", with its build- 
ings and extensive grounds at Madalin. This 
gift inspired the following acknowledgments.^ 

Important gifts by the General have also 
been made in other parts of the country, in- 
cluding many States. To the city of Kearney, 
Neb., he presented a handsome bronze bust 
of his distinguished cousin, Maj. Gen. Philip 
Kearny, the typical captain of the Civil war, 
in memory of whom that municipality was 
named. In acknowledgment of this gift, the 
General received a handsonie set of resolutions 
of thanks from the Mayor and a committee of 
the Board of Aldermen of the city of Kearney, 
dated January 27, 1892. The General also 
donated valuable books to the public librar}* of 
Kearney. The State of Nebraska was likewise 
indebted to General de Peyster for a handsome 
chapel, erected by him at Nebraska City, a gift 
through the very Rev. Robert W. Oliver, dean 

*Watts de Peyster Missionary Home, 

Kingston. N. Y., June VZ, 1894. 
Rec. A. M. Grifffn, Mailalin. N. K., Pastor of de Peyster Memorial 
Mfithodisi Chnrrh: 

Dear Bro.— At the District Convention of the W. H. M. Society, 
of the Kingston District, recently held in the St. James Church, 
Kingston, N. Y.. Mrs. Mary Fish Park read a communication from 
Mrs. Dr. James M. King, stating that Gen. de Peyster had donated a 
fine property within the bounds of your charge to the W. H. M. 
Society, of the New York Conference, to be used as an Italian Home. 
And. on motion, it resolved by a unanimous raising vote that the 
thanks of the Convention be tendered General de Peyster for his 
magnificent gift through the Rev. A. M. Griffin, Pastor at Madalin, 
N. Y. 

We shall esteem it a favor it you will kindly inform the General 
of the action of the Convention. Yours Truly. 

Mrs. O. a. Merchant, Mrs. E. S. Oseos, 

Recording Secretary. President. 

Dear General— I take pleasure in presenting this to yon. 
which explains itself. Yours, Etc.. 

Arthur M. Griffin. 

I-l-l W. 12-Jd Street, New York, Jane 7. 1894. 
Gen. de Peyster: 

Dear SiR~The ladies of the Committee on Italian Girls Indus- 
trial Home, at their monthly meeting, held at the residence of Mrs. 
King, on Tuesday last, passed a hearty and unanimous vote of 
thanks to you for your noble and munificent gift to their work, which 
I was authorized to convey to you by letter. 

Trusting that you may be blessed in the gift, and that the Watts 
de Peyster Home may be the means of lightening the burdens from 
many lives for years to come, and that our Society may prove wise 
almoners of your bounty, I am. in behalf of the Committee, 
Gratefully Yours. 

Martha Griffin, Secretary. 



152 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORAPHICAL RECORD. 



of Nebraska, and in memor)- of the General's 
dead soldier sons. This building was afterward 
taken down, and its materials — at all events, 
its tablets in memory of his sons — was re- 
moved to Kearne}'. 

Something of the same kind occurred to a 
church v;hich the General finished in Altoona, 
Penn., as a memorial of his youngest daughter, 
Maria Beata, which church, contrary to orig- 
inal understanding, was torn down and rebuilt. 
Nevertheless, the Memorial Parish School and 
Parsonage which he erected were allowed to 
stand unchanged. 

Another gift of note by the General will be 
the handsome library building which is being 
erected at Lancaster, Penn., a donation to 
Franklin and Marshall College.* The com- 
memorative character of this noble benefaction 
will be made known in the following simple 
and modest tablet, which has been very much 
admired: 

Tims Luiuahv is Kuected 

AS A 

Mejiohiai, 
JOHN WATTS. 

" VlU vEgrANIMITATIS." 
AND OF 

l-KKDKKIC De PEYSTER, 

" ^'IR ArCTOKITATIS," 

BY A 
(iUAXDSOX AM) SoX. 

Who. Beahixi; ikith Xa.mes. Seeks tu Coxtixte ix theik 

HdXCHi, THE (tool) THEV DM) AND TaIGHT Hi.M. 

To General de Peyster must likewise be 
credited the notable gift of the "Annex" to the 
Leake and Watts Orphan House, of which 
great charity his grandfather, Hon. John 
Watts, Jr., was the founder, relinquishing an 
immense inheritance that it might be devoted 
to the establishment of this splendid institu- 
tion. The inscription upon the Annex, built 
by General de Peyster, is as follows: 



•Franklin and Marshall College. 

Lancaster, Pa., July 0, 1894, 
General ./. Wultn tie Peyster: 

Dear Sir — I have the honor to inform you that the Board of 
Trustees at its annual meeting, held on the ITthult.. was officially in- 
formed that, during the past year, "General John Watts de Peyster. 
Litt. D, of Tivoli. Dutchess Co., N. Y.. presented to the library of 
the College nine hundred and twenty volumes (he had previously 
presented three hundred and twenty volumes), many of which are 
quite valuable." [In all some seventy boxes of books have been 
presented.) The corresponding secretary was. therefore, directed to 
convey to General de Peyster the hearty thanks of the Board for his 
great kindness; and it was further ordered that this action bespread 
upon the minutes. 

Permit me to say that it affords me pleasure to be the medium 
of this coinmunicalion, and to assure you that your generosity is 
gratefully appreciated by all the friends of the Franklin and Mar- 
shall college. Yours very truly, 

Jos. H. DuBBS. Corresponding Secretary. 



THI.'* AX.N'EV to THE 

Leake and Watts Orphax Hoi'se, 

ouigixai.i.v fofxded a.vd exdowei) hy 

JOHN WATTS. 

was Ekected as a Me.muhial of His Yoi'xgest (.'hii.d. 

My Mother, 

JlSTlX.V Maky, 

BoKX 2IjTH October, Isoi; Died 3Sth .Iilv. 1S21. 

Wife of Frederic de Peyster. 

FOR .iO Years Clerk of the Board of Thistees. L. & W. (). H., 

AXD OF heh Mother. 

Jane de Lancey \Vatts. 

BoHx .iTH September. 17.5i;: Died 2xd March. ISOS. 

"I CALL to KE.MEMBRAXCE THE I'XFEIGXED FaITH WHICH 

Dwelt First in thy (iRAXUMOTHER. Lois [Fa.viois Holiness], 
AND Thy Mother. Eunice [happy victory)." (2 Timothy i. 5.) 
by 
John Watts de Peyster. 

The following letter from the late Gov- 
ernor Abbott, of New Jersey, explains itself: 



: * State of New Jersey. 

Great Sea! : Executive Department, 

(,(,l,g : Trenton, February 9, 1891. 

; General J. Watts de Pevster, 
: state of New Jersey: 59 East 21st St. 

; i Xew York City, X. Y. 

Dear Sir: It gives me great pleasure to transmit 
to you to-day the thanks of the" legislature of New Jersey 
for your gift to this State of an equestrian portrait of your 
kinsman, the gallant General Kearny. 

In forwarding to you this certified copy of their ac- 
tion, please let me express my thanks officially for this 
generous act on your part, anti believe me. 
Yours very truly, 
(Signed Leon Abbott, Governor. 

Commonwealth of New Jersey. 

Whereas, Gen. J. Watts de Peyster, of New York 
City, has presented to this State a large equestrain por- 
trait of the late Major-Gen. Philip Kearny; therefore, 

Ri'Kolred (the House of Assembly concurring), That 
the thanks of the Legislature of this State are hereby 
given to Gen. de Peyster for his generous gift of the 
picture of one of New Jersey's most gallant soldiers of the 
late Civil war. 

Rexolrtd, That his Excellency the Governor be re- 
quested to forward a certified copy of this Resolution to 
Gen. de Peyster. 

I hereby certify that the foregoing resolution is a true 
copy of the original as passed by the Senate, February 
2, 1891. John Carpenter, Jr. 

Secretary of Senate. 

I hereby certify that the foregoing resolution is a true 
copy of the original as passed by the House of Assembly, 
February 3, 1891. Thomas F. Noonan, Jr. 

Clerk of the House of Assembly. 

59 East Twentv-first Street. New York, 
11-2-91. 
Hi:^ Excellency Leon Abbott, 

Governor State of New Jersey. 
Dear Sir: I desire to acknowledge in fitting man- 
ner the receipt of the concurrent Resolutions of the Hon- 
orable Legislature of the State of New Jersey in regard to 
my gift of the etiuestrian ])ortrait of Maj-Gen. Philip 
Kearny, my only male cousin on my mother's side, with 
whom I was brought up in the house of our dear grand- 
father, Hon. John Watts, and to whom my eldest son and 
namesake was Aide-de-Camp, and while doing so I desire 
to emphasize my appreciation of the handsome manner 
in which you transmitted to me the resolution. 
Yours \'ery Truly, 
[Signed] J. W.\'tts D'e Pevster. 

Brev: Maj-Gen., S. N. Y. 

Similarly, the following official communi- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



153 



cation from the government of the State of 
Pennsylvania requires no comment ; 

IN THE NAME AND BY AUTHORITY OF THE 
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA. 



GREAT SEAL 

OK THE 

CO^IMONWEALTH 

OF 
PEXNSYLVAXTA. 



PENNSYLVANIA. 



office of the 

Secretary of the Commonwealth, 

Harrisburg. 

Executive Department, 
In the Scnnti, March CVIh, 1S91. 
Whereas, Brevet Maj.-Gen. J. WATTS de PEY- 
STER, of No. 59 East Twenty-first street, New York 
City, author, soldier and public-spirited citizen, from his 
private collection of paintings, has presented to the State 
of Pennsylvania an Equestrian Portrait of one of Penn- 
sylvania's most gallant sons : i\Iaj.-Gen. SAMUEL 
PETER HEINTZELMAN, who was born in Manheim, 
Lancaster county, September 30, 1805, and whose service 
in the Army from his graduation at West Point Military 
Academy in 1826, until his death, May 1, 1880, is the 
special pride of his native State ; therefore, be it 

Resii/ved, By the Senate (the House of Representa- 
tives concurring). That, as evidence of the appreciation 
of this generous and valued gift, the thanks of the people 
of Pennsyleeinia be, and they are hereby extended to Bre- 
vet Maj.-Gen. J. WATTS de PEYSTER. 

Resolved, That the portrait of General HEINTZEL- 
MAN be appropriately marked and placed in the State 
Library. 

E. W. Smilev, 

Chief Clerk of the Senate. 
John W. Morrison, 
Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives. 
Approved the 7th day of April, Anno Domino one 
thousand eight hundred and ninety-one. 

Robert E. Pattison, 

Governor. 



GREAT SEAL OF THE 

STATE OF 

PEXXSYLVANIA. 



Pennxi^leiinia, ss: 



William F. Harritv, 
Secretary of the Commonwealth. 



59 East Twenty-first Street, 
New York, April 18th, 1891. 
His Exeelleney, Robert E. Pattison, Ooeernor of the Com-, 
monwealtli. of Pen?isi/lvania : 

Sir: — Accept this effort inadequately to express mv 
appreciation of the exquisite manner in which the vote of 
thanks for the Equestrian Portrait of Major-General 
HEINTZELMAN has been transmitted to, 
Very respectfully and gratefully, 

J. Watts de Peyster. 

The documents subjoined, from Gov.Werts, 
of New Jersey, and the Clerk of the House ot 
Assembly of that State, record another hand- 
some gift to that Commonwealth of two paint- 
ings of Gen. then Capt. Kearny's famous 
charge up to the very gate of Mexico, and a 
bronze medallion of the General. 



Executive Department, State of New Jersey. 

Trenton, June 9, 1894. 
Gen. J. Watts de Peyster, Tivoli, N. Y. 

Dear Sir: It gives me great pleasure to enclose you 
a properly authenticated copy of the resolution passed 
by the legislature of the State of New Jersey at its last 
session in reference to gifts made by you to this State. 
\'ery truly yours, 
George T. Werts, Governor. 

The State of New Jersey. 

Whereas, Gen. J. Watts de Peyster, of New York 
City, has presented to this State two beautiful paintings 
of the charge made by Gen. Philip Kearny, of New Jer- 
sey, in the Mexican war, and a bronze medallion of Brevet 
Maj.-Gen. Robert McAllister, of the New Jersey \'olun- 
teers; therefore. 

Resolved (the Senate concurring). That the thanks of 
the Legislature of this State are hereby given to Gen. de 
Peyster for his generous gift of pictures of a spirited 
charge in battle made by New Jersey's most gallant 
leader, and the bronze relief of one of her truest heroes 
in the Civil war. 

Resolved, That his excellency, the Governor, be re- 
quested to forward a certified copy of this resolution to 
Gen. de Peyster. 

I certify that the above is a true copy of a resolution 
offered in the House of Assembly of New Jersey by Mr. 
Olcott, of Essex, on April 17, 1894; duly adopted by said 
Assembly on said day, and returned by message from the 
Senate, April 18, 1894, as having been duly concurred in 
by the Senate. "j. Herbert Potts, 

Clerk of the House of Assembly, Session of 1894. 

Similarly, by a resolution adopted in the 
New York Assembly March 20, 1894, and by 
the Senate March 31, 1894, "Brevet Maj.- 
Gen. J. Watts de Peyster, a public-spirited 
citizen of this State," was tendered "the 
thanks of the people of the State of New 
York " for the gift of a bronze bas-relief repre- 
senting a notable Revolutionary scene at West 
Point. The text of the resolution is as follows: 

ASSE.MBLY ChA.MBER, StATE OF NEW YoRK. 

By unanimous consent, Mr. Gray offered for the con- 
sideration of the House a resolution in the words fol- 
lowing. 

Whereas, Brevet Major-General J. Watts de Peys- 
ter, a public-spirited citizen of this State, has presented to 
the State a bronze bas-relief representing the " Encamp- 
ment of the Continental Troops at West Point on the 
Hudson, during the Revolution;" therefore, 

Res<dved (If the* Senate concur). That, as an evi- 
dence of the high appreciation of this generous and valued 
gift, the thanks of the people of the State of New York 
be, and they are hereby extended to Brevet Major-General 
J. Watts de Peyster. 

Resolved, That the bronze bas-relief, representing 
the " Encampment of the Continental Troops at West 
Point on the Hudson, during the Revolution," presented 
by Major-General J. Watts de Peyster, be appropriately 
marked and placed in the Capitol by the trustees. 

The Speaker put the question whether the House 
would agree to said resolution, and it was determined in 
the affirmative. 

Ordered, That the Clerk deliver said resolution, to 
the Senate and request their concurrence therein. I 
certify that the above is a true copy of the resolution of- 
fered in the House of Assembly of New York, by Mr. 
Gray, of Dutchess, on March '2ij, 1894, duly adopted by 



154 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



said Assembly, on said day, and returned by message 
from the Senate, March 31, 1894, as having been duly con- 
curred in by said Senate. 

G. \V. Dl-xn. 
Clerk of the House of Assembly, 
Session of 1894. 

Gen. de Peyster has been a very prolific 
writer, and has published avast amount in the 
daily press, weeklies, monthlies and pamph- 
lets and monographs on the two "Wars for In- 
dependence " and the " Slaveholders' Rebel- 
lion." The aggregate, if collected in book 
form, would fill many volumes. A partial list 
of his volumes, monographs, etc., etc., are ap- 
pended. 

With his military information, derived from 
distinguished soldiers, and a multitude of the 
best works on War, those with whom he con- 
sulted were of the opinion that no one could 
write a history of the Rebellion better than 
himself. He was the intimate friend of a 
number of our most distinguished generals of 
the highest rank, also of some of our grandest 
admirals. 

Gen. George H. Thomas, "our greatest 
and our best, "talked to him with a confidence 
which, it is said, he seldom showed. Gen. A. 
A. Humphreys, it is likely our most scientific 
major-general, was his most intimate friend. 
To cite all with whom he was in the closest 
relations would fill pages: McDowell, Heint- 
zleman, Wright, Rosecrans, Gordon-Granger, 
Cullum, Vogdes, Butler, Fry, Hancock, Hook- 
er, Warren, and a host of others whose names, 
after the war, were in everyone's mind and 
mouth; among the admirals, Farragut, Alden, 
Nicholson, Baldwin (one of the most lovable 
and charming of men). Flag, Capt. Percival 
Drayton, and in Europe the Count of Paris, 
besides many foreign celebrities. 

His works on the war have been constantly 
and copiously quoted, without giving him the 
credit to which he is entitled, and often no 
credit at all for wholesale thefts. 

With these opportunities of learning the 
inner working of operations, his prodigious 
memory, industry and capability, he has been 
constantly urged and begged to write and pub- 
lish, or, at all events, to leave behind him 
memoranda to enable a future historian to 
prepare a more authentic story. 

On the other hand his most intimate friends 
have advised him not to reveal facts — precious, 
indeed, but which might occasion bitter ani- 
mosities and open wounds which it would be 
difficult to heal. Perhaps he is the only man 



living, at all events one of very few, who are 
aware of several of the "Little Reasons" 
which occasioned momentous results — pre- 
venting successes and causing disasters — 
timidities or selfishness, jealousies and rivalries 
such as influenced Buonaparte's marshals, es- 
pecially in Spain, which were "the beginning 
of the end " of the Corsican's e.xtraordinary 
career. 

Disgusted at the reception of his articles, 
which proved that Truth was the last thing 
desired, the General refused to have anything 
more to do with writing upon the war of the 
Rebellion, and turned to other subjects, in 
which he would not make enemies among those 
with whom he was brought into daily contact 
and forced to associate. 

In preparing for the different hiftorical 
works which General de Peyster wrote as they 
appear in the list of his publications, in each 
different case he collected a library of authori- 
ties. Those on Holland, of which the names 
alone fill a pamphlet Part I., of twenty-four 
pages, besides subsequent additions even more 
numerous. He gave a most valuable collection 
of works on the Thirty Years' War, and Seces- 
sion in Switzerland, to the New York Society 
Library, to fill an alcove to bear the name of his 
father (who died while president of that institu- 
tion) and himself. Disgusted at the manner in 
which this library, to his mind, was conducted, 
he ceased donating; and books intended to 
complete the sets he had given have been 
transferred to other societies, particularly to 
Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, 
Penn. He likewise donated a valuable col- 
lecton of rare old law books which belonged 
to his grandfather, John Watts, last Royal 
Recorder of the city of New York, and to his 
great-grandfather of the same name, who was 
President of the King's Council prior to the 
Revolution, to the New York State Library. 
For this it is doubtful if the donor ever received 
the slightest acknowledgment from a State al- 
ways ungrateful to her citizens for generations 
' ' native here and to the manner born. " But it 
must be remembered no State is so thoroughly 
in the possession of aliens to its blood, relig- 
ious interests and antecedents as New York. 

While producing his six Studies upon Mary 
Stuart, Queen of Scots, and James Hepburn, 
Earl of Bothwell, he gathered a large number 
of works and portraits all across Europe, even 
to St. Petersburg. This collection, which 
may'be considered unique, with two marble 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHIOAL RECORD. 



155 



busts of Washington, one by Greenough and 
one by Crawford, both originals, and the first 
most likely without a duplicate; also a beauti- 
ful bust of his grandfather, John Watts, and 
of his father, Frederic de Peyster; likewise a 
miniature fac-simile of George A. Bissell's 
statue of Lincoln, of which the original was 
erected in Edinburgh, Scotland, and paid for 
by subscribers in this country, of whom the 
General was one; and a medallion in bronze of 
his cousin, Maj.-Gen. Phil Kearny, were pre- 
sented to Columbia College (now University). 

One of the most remarkable publications 
of General de Peyster was a series of articles 
on the Medical Organization of the Roman and 
other Ancient Armies, published in the Army 
and Nai^y Journal in i 864. 

The famous Professor Charles Anthon, of 
Columbia College, who could not be charged 
with the crime of being ever complimentary 
to pretenders, who had styled General de 
Peyster "the Tyrtieus of the War" on ac- 
count of some stirring pieces of military poetry 
he had written, when applied to to assist 
further investigation on this interesting subject, 
replied finally that he could not offer the 
slightest assistance, since the General had ex- 
hausted all available authorities.* 

General de Peyster has also won reputation 
as a poet. A number of his published poems are 
characterized by a deeply poetical spirit, and 
elicited the admiration and praise of the famous 
author of " Thanatopsis," William Cullen 
Bryant, who was also one of the ablest of crit- 
ics. Bryant declared that the General's poems 
"had the true ring." His poem on " Oris- 
kany" was translated into German, while he 

*The author notes in corroboration what justifying or justitica- 
tory vouchers or evidence he has examined : 

New York. October 5. 18(j4. 

Dear Sir: — The information which you seek is scattered over 
many ancient writers. I think, however, that one of ihem. Vege- 
tins, will ans" er your purpose. His work is entitled "Rei Militaris 
Instituta," and may be found. I suppose, in the Astor Library. If 
not. my copy is at your service. Vou will find in one part an account 
of the duties of the Prefect of the camp, among which is the super- 
intendence of the camp •" Medici." physicians who were probably 
all freedmen. This alone would prove the existence of a Medical 
Department in the Roman armies. In another part (Book III., 
chap. 'i). there is a particular chapter entitled " Quemadmoduln San- 
itas Gubernature E-xercilus," embracing plans of encampment, water, 
reasons medicinal exercise, etc. 

You will find some sood information also in Le Clerc's "His- 
toire de la Medicine " and " Spraneiell's Histoire de Medicine par 
Jourdau." There is also a ''Sketch of the History of Medicine," 
founded originally by Bockbock. of which I have a copy. If I can 
be of any further aid to yon, vou may command my services without 
hesitation. Very truly yours. CHARLES AXTHON. 

Mr. DK Peyster, Tivoli, N. Y. 

New York. October 8. 186'.1. 

Dear Sir; — Many thanks for the two articles from tlie Ai'mn 
and Napy Jonnial, \\\i\c\\\ herewith return. They do you a very 
great deal of credit. My reference to Vegetius was like carrying 
coals to Newcastle. The poetry is capital, and I have shown it to 
several of my friends — one of whom wants to rechristen you "The 
American Tyrtasus."' I handed the two photographs to my sister, 
who has placed them, as great prizes, in her album. 

Very truly yours. CHARLES ANTHON. 

General De Pevster, Tivoli. 



himself made a translation of Korner's famous 
" My Fatherland," which is remarkable for its 
vigor and fidelity to the original, both in re- 
spect to the warrior r3thm and inspiring lan- 
guage of the notable patriot appeal. This stir- 
ring battle hymn was one of those trumpet- 
blasts of patriotic genius which aroused Prussia 
to arms, and led to the subsequent overthrow 
of Napoleon. 

On a certain occasion in 1864, General de- 
Peyster paid a visit to the office of the chief 
editor of the New York Times, who seemed 
lost in thought. This gentleman had previously 
observed that he considered his visitor was one 
of the very few (about a dozen) original think- 
ers he had ever met. " What are you think- 
ing about so intensely.'" "That the ancients, 
especially the Romans, should have had no 
Medical Administration connected with their 
armies." " Nonsense; they had. Who told 

you they did not have.'" "Professor ." 

Now Professor was considered a judge of 

last appeal on all questions upon which he 
elected to sit in judgment. " The Professor 
manifests his ignorance in talking so. What 
reason does he give for such an opinion.'" ' ' He 
says Cwesar makes no mention of tlicm [Medical 
Men or Medical and Surgical Corps] in his 
Commentaries." "A very poor argument. 
Does Caisar mention camp-diseases among his 
troops.' Do you suppose that his camps were 
any more free from disease than any camps 
have ever been? To prove that tlie great au- 
thority, Professor , does not know what 

he is talking about I will demonstrate the con- 
trary to be the fact." 

The result was Gen. de Peyster wrote a 
series of articles for the Army and Navy Jour- 
nal, in which he showed that the ancients had 
far better medical arrangements than medieval 
troops possessed, and far better than most of 
the European armies enjoyed down to within 
one hundred and fifty years. 

He was proceeding to produce additional 
confirmatory testimony when the editor refused 
to print any more, remarking, " Are you not 
satisfied.' You have got your opponent down, 
and I will not let you kick him or grind his face 
in the dust." 

So the balance of the matter remains in 
manuscript to this day. 

A writerhas characterized General de Peyster 
as "an author of extraordinary fertility and 
unlimited scope, the omnivorous character of 
whose studies is displayed on every page of his 



156 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



writings; an author whose works comprise 
scores of volumes, with hundreds of smaller 
works, treatises and pamphlets, of which the 
entire amount would be doubled by the addi- 
tion of innumerable articles and series of papers 
published in magazines and newspapers, and 
never yet collected together; the author of 
poetry and drama of an unusual excellence, 
and an endless miscellany on almost every 
conceivable subject, and who yet, in his own 
peculiarly pre-eminent field as a military biog- 
rapher, military historian and military critic, 
has no peer in America."- Some indication 
(though merely that) of his miscellaneous 
authorship has been given in the preceding 
pages. But his special place as a military 
critic — and it is not an e.xaggeration to say 
that he "has no peer in America" in this ca- 
pacity — can be readily shown by the citation 
of a few characterizations of him by persons 
competent to pronounce judgment. 

The late Lieut. (Brevet Capt.) Frederick 
Whittaker, author of "Volunteer Cavalry," 
etc., after asserting that " until the close of 
the [Civil] war" we Americans "had been ac- 
customed to look to Europe, and especially to 
France, for our military historians," adds, 
emphatically: " But we are glad to say that 
we have changed all that, and now possess in 
America a military historian of the first rank." 
It is, of course. General de Peyster whom he 
thus eulogizes, and whom he describes as the 
" author of the best military writing our coun- 
try has yet produced." It was of de Peyster 
also that Gen. Barnard, brother of the former 
President of Columbia College, exclaimed: 
" His judgment of military matters is almost 
infallible ! " It was, again, de Peyster's ex- 
haustive methods of research and indefatiga- 
ble energy in collecting authorities to which 
Gen. Adam Badeau bore witness when he 
wrote to a friend: "He has accumulated a 
wonderful amount of original matter, some of 
which is absolutely invaluable, and I expect to 
avail myself of it." It was de Peyster, like- 
wise, of whom Gen. W. T. Sherman, in con- 
junction with Maj.-Gen. H. W. Slocum, wrote: 
" He is thoroughly conversant with all the 
military operations of both armies during the 
late war. He has written considerably on this 
subject, and his writings have attracted much 
attention." General de Peyster, also it was, 
whom Brev. Brig. -Gen. William P. Wain- 

•"Gen. J. Watts de Peyster, Author, Soldier, Historian, Military 
Biographer and Critic." New York. 1894, p. .3. 



Wright thus characterized: "His keen eye 
for topography, his long and still unceasing 
military education, his uncommon memory, 
his powers of description, and his opportuni- 
ties for using his abilities, constitute him the 
only, as well as the first, military critic in 
America." When Maj.-Gen. A. Pleasanton 
penned the words: " His great acquaintance 
with military matters, his long and faithful re- 
search into the militarj- histories of modern 
nations, his correct comprehension of our own 
late war, and his intimacy w^th many of our 
leading generals and statesmen during the 
period of its continuance, with his tried and 
devoted loyalty and patriotism," — it was of 
General de Peyster of whom he wrote, while 
Gen. Grant endorsed this characterization in 
writing. Of de Peyster, also, Maj.-Gen. A. A. 
Humphreys wrote: 

Washington, May :^0, 18T2. 

My Dear General: — 1 fully appreciatt; your labors, 
which I am conscious have brought into clear relief what 
was before obscure and ill-detined. Let me for a moment 
suppose 1 am writing to a friend, not yourself, for you are 
one of the few persons to whom one may write, as it were, 
impersonally, and that implies a very high tribute to your 
sense of the just. 

Your industry in collecting facts upon any subject 
you treat of, is literally untiring. In a long experience 
among the working men of the country, 1 have rarely 
found your equal, never, I think, your superior: and I 
may pay the same tribute to your conscientious labor, in 
the task of evolving the truth from the mass of matter 
collected, much of it contradictory and apparently irrecon- 
cilable with any known truths. Possessing a clear appre- 
ciation of the great fundamental principles which should 
govern military operations and battles, you are quick to 
perceive adherence to, or departure from, them, and as 
the extended study of the great military writers and his- 
torians has imbued your mind with just military views, 
so has it richly stored your memory with a redundant 
supply of a[)t illustrative examples for every imiiortant 
event or incident of our war. 

To all these (jualiticatlons as a military critic, you 
have addeii a ready, rapid, courageous pen, and a power 
of application, that physical ailments, growing out of a 
delicate jihysitpie. have not impaired, though they have 
sorely tried jt * * * Sincerely Yours, 
(Signed) A. A. Hu.mphreys. 

To Maj.-Gen. J. Watts de Peyster. 

Washington, Sunday, September 29, 1872. 
My Dear General (oe Peyster);— I returned to 
Washington, * * found a letter for me from Gen. Ba- 
deau, * * intending to send you extracts from Ba- 
deau's letter, in which he speaks so highly (and justly) of 
your labors and pajiers. * * * He says, " you 
have accumulated a wonderful amount of original matter, 
some of which is absolutely invaluable, and I expect to 
avail myself of it. etc., etc." You would not think I had 
lost interest in the subject of your labors, had you heard 
me talk to some Philadelphians about the pursuit of Lee. 
I learnt only this summer of the effect of Stanton's tele- 
gram on the (ith or 7th of April, giving the whole credit 
of overtaking and attacking Lee, on the (>th of April, to 
Sheridan. "There," they said in Philadelphia, (I am 
told,) " the generals of the .Army of the Potomac are lag- 
gards: it required Sheridan and Grant to overtake and 
beat Lee." What an outrage on Wright and mvself that 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



157 



telegram was! We laggardsl The impression thus made 
on the public in this movement of success, has never been 
effaced; it remains to this day. To you, I am indebted, 
my dear general, for the first presentation of the subject 
to the public, that will tend to efface this impression. 

Sincerely Yours, 
(Signed) A. A. Hu.mphrevs, 

Major-General U. S. V. ; Cbief of Staff. Army o£ tlie Potomac, lS(;:i-'4 ; 
Brijj.-Gen.; Brev. Maj-Gen.; Chief of Engineers. U. S. A. 

Still more significant was the testimony of 
Sir Edward Cust, General, and author of the 
nine volumes of "Annals of the Wars" and 
six volumes of "Lives of the Warriors," in 
dedicating his second series to Gen. de Pey- 
ster, whom he only knew through the latter's 
writings. From this dedication of twenty-eight 
pages the following sentences have been extract- 
ed: "I am desirous of marking my deep obliga- 
tions to you by requesting permission to dedi- 
cate my concluding volume to you and to your 
military brethren. We appear to be men of 
much the same mind, and of common sympa- 
thies, desirous alike of employing our common 
language for a common object — that of en- 
lightening our comrades of a common profes- 
sion with the necessity of applying the pre- 
cepts of military history to the useful compre- 
hension of their callirfg. Both of us agreeing 
that the best instruction for all officers is to be 
acquired from the deeds of the old masters in 
the art of war ^ -^ -s^ The United States 
were on the eve of a melancholy crisis of in- 
ternational conflict, when you naturally wished 
and you very reasonably desired to show, by 
the introduction of a better system of war, 
how to stay the waste of blood among your 
countrymen in a strife which made every 
brother on either side a soldier. ^ '^ ■^ I, 
on the other hand, had fallen • upon the sere 
and yellow leaf ' * *^ ^ and ^ ^ ^ 
had " * " as an old stager, become 
disturbed by the intrusion of a new school 
at our military colleges, pre-eminently among 
the instructors of military history, who were 
seeking to introduce a theory of war, against 
which I sought to recommend a knowledge of 
the past, or, as you put it, ' practical strat- 
egy-' " ^ " I do not claim the merit 
of originality. * ^ -f^ }^jy works were 
written by me for the use of youths who 
have already entered the service of arms, and 
whose career has commenced, but whose pro- 
fession has yet to be learned. * ^ ^ You 
address the higher ranks of the army, and ap- 
pear to seek to philosophize the art of war by 
showing it to be capable, under its most scien- 
tific phases, of being less lavish of human 



blood. "^ " * To both our grievances the 
remedy is the same — practical strategy. I 
readily accept from you this expression. It 
comprises all that be said or written upon 
skill in war, and while I agree with you that 
this is best evinced by sparing the lives of its 
instruments as much as possible, I hold that 
this is in fact the whole art of war." 

Reference has already been made to a re- 
mark of Gen. Adam Badeau, in a letter to a 
friend, in view of the help he expected to 
receive from Gen. de Peyster's resources in 
connection with an important military work on 
which he was engaged at the time. "He," 
(de Peyster), wrote Badeau, "has accumulated 
a wonderful amount of original matter, some 
of which is absolutely invaluable, and I e.xpect 
to avail myself of it." Not a few have been 
under the deepest obligation to Gen. de Peys- 
ter in this way, although he has not always 
received the credit which is, one would think, 
the very least which a service of this character 
deserves. The most astonishing case of this 
kind is to be credited to the late Comte de 
Paris, who, in spite of the greatest obligation 
to General de Peyster, made not the slightest 
acknowledgment in his work on our Civil War. 
When the Count was preparing the volume of 
his history, embracing the battle of Gettys- 
burg, he enlisted the assistance of General de 
Peyster, who himself, or through his friend, 
Major-General A. A. Humphreys, U. S. A., 
must have furnished the Count information, 
including statistics and opinions founded on 
thorough examination, equivalent to hundreds 
of pages of paper. The Count acknowledged 
the correctness of his correspondents' judg- 
ment, and his American editor or translator, 
after applying to the General for the trans- 
lation of a passage which no one else could 
explain, wrote that he recognized the influence 
of the General throughout the Gettysburg 
pages. 

Although the Count remained in the most 
intimate correspondence with the General — a 
correspondence which has been preserved — 
writing continually from whatever spots the 
General's letters reached him, even from the 
Escurial in Spain, he did not acknowledge in 
his introduction to the Gettysburg volume his 
indebtedness to his American correspondent; 
most likely because General de Peyster was 
not a regular army officer; consequently, the 
General refused to meet him when he came to 
the United States, although he admitted to a 



158 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



relative how much assistance the General had 
afforded. 

So astounding was the Comte's conduct in 
this matter that mutual friends in America, 
cognizant of all the facts, did not scruple to 
express in writing their disapproval of what 
he had done. Thus in a letter to General de 
Peyster, dated at Philadelphia, June 29, 1893, 
soon after the appearance of the Comte's 
book, his American editor wrote: "In place 
of writing letters he (Comte de Paris) had bet- 
ter have done you justice. If ever I have a 
chance I shall say so to him in pretty strong 
language." 

The same writer, in a letter to General de 
Peyster dated at Philadelphia June 23, 1S83, 
says: 

It was the Comte's duty, after having used your 
pamphlets and reviews to the extent that he did, and ax 
n/iowii Iji/ till text, to have at least expressed his obhga- 
tion. .And the biographical ])ortion appears in some cases 
to be a reprint. That is rather strong, but I mean what 
I write. 

It may have been the unusual method of 
appropriating General de Peyster's materials, 
alluded to here, which made the Comte so 
reluctant to give him credit, very prudently 
deeming it unwise to advertise the source of 
matter //nts laid hold of. The editor's sugges- 
tion that the Comte should have "done justice" 
in "place of writing letters," is in allusion to 
the Comte's prolonged correspondence with de 
Peyster. Indeed, the Comte seemed to over- 
look the fact that in this correspondence he 
had left behind him the most indubitable proofs 
of the obligation which he was so loth to con- 
fess. Such "royal" injustice is of curious in- 
terest, and some passages from the Comte's 
letters to General de Peyster will be given here. 
Lest the charge of a deviation from exact lit- 
eralness might be made, the precise phrase- 
ology and spelling of the Comte will also be 
preserved. His command of English was won- 
derfully direct for a foreigner, but not abso- 
lutely perfect. In a long letter to the General, 
dated November 23, 1877, he wrote: 

I must apologize for having been so long before re- 
turning to you my best thanks for the rabiable informa- 
tion concerning the battle of Gettysburg which you were 
kind enough to furnish me with, both in your letter and in 
the notes which you forwarded to me as a kind of appendix 
to your paniplet on that battle. I was so busy upon all 
these materials that I had no time to write. I have now 
to acknowledge the receipt of your letters dated the 21st 
of September, the (ith, loth and 22nd of October, and the 
first of November. I really feel quite ashamed to have 
left unanswered until now so many and such interesting 
letters, but if I did not write to you 1 worked hard on these 
letters as well as on the notes from your " Decisive Con- 



flicts," which go as far as No. 68. I dare say I k note the 
ir/(ole net Ijji heart. It is full of raried information of views 
icliich throir a great and often a nete light upon the events 
and of incidents irhirh the historian carefully picks up to 
reliere the barrenness of his narratire. * * * Such are 
the main points upon which I think it necessary to tell 
you my opinion in answer to the remarks contained in 
your letters. Whenerer I hare only to nay antin and fully 
agree irith yo'i, I do not in.iist. I shnllarail myself of yovr 
kind 2>ermis«iiin to put you frankly any ijuestion irhich my 
future readings may suggest. 

He writes to the same, under date Decem- 
ber 1 8, 1877: 

Receive my best thanks for your two letters of No- 
vember 21st and December 1st, as well as for the notes 
which you did send me under the same seal as a continu- 
ation of those previiiusly received by me. * * * J 
knew of the existence of the maps which you mention of 
.■\dams county, Pa., and Frederick county, .Md., but 1 
have not yet been able to get a copy of these through the 
American agency of Stevens in London. Where could I 
apply to get these? 

On January 29, 1878, he writes again (in a 
letter of very great length i: 

I avail myself of the ojiportunity to acknowledge the 
receipt of your letters of December 19th, 2»th, ;Wth and 
of January 1st, as well as of Gen. Whipple's report with 
your post.script. You seem to think that some of your let- 
ters addressed to me last summer have been lost. It irould 
be indeed rery unjortunate and f/iope it it not the case: but in 
order to ascertain the fact, as 1 keep all those letters to- 
gether, so as to he able to consult them as often as I icant, 
as soon as I return home I shall send you a list of every 
letter received from you last year. You may be assured 
that J shall carefully ireight the information which you gave 
me concerning the numbers engaged at Oettysburg. * * * 
/ ijuite agree with yov and my excellent friend. Gen. 
Ilinnjihreys, when you assert that the Army of the Poto- 
mac did not number as many men on the field of battle as 
would appear from the field returns |)repared some days 
before. * * * )7(« see by the length of my answer how 
fully I raluc your letters and my gratitude for the trouble 
you take in giving me every iuformation within your reach. 

On March 6, 1878, he wrote: 

1 thank you very much for your letter of January 29ili 
and February 16th, the last received yesterday, with the 
photographs which you were kind enough to send me. 
* * * I shall gratefully accept any papers concerning 
reliable and unpublished information on the Civil war, 
posterior to July 4, ISfUl What you tell rhe of Sickles' 
coolness when wounded is very striking. * * * The 
jilan and pamphlet on Gettysburg are also received. 

Again (March 23, 1878): 

I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letters 
dated February 2:ird and March Island 4th, ((«(/ ^//</h* 
you most heartily for the varied information which these 
contain. * * ♦ [ received Ditterline's pamphlet, for 
which 1 thank you very much. * * * If there is any- 
thing which seems to me still douhl{u\ I shall not fail to 
apply to you. 

Again, writing of Chancellorsville and 
Gettysburg, he says (April 19, 1S78): 

I had not the letters for the 20th of June. I thank 
you very much for the whole. * * * Thanks for the 
very full explanation given first by Gen. Humphreys and 
then by yourself. * * * I thank you for Fitz Lee's 
answer to Longstreet, which you took the trouble to send 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



159 



me. * * * I am always g;i"ateful for the smcere ex- 
jjressiun of your opinion on things and men. * * * 
As for your judgments on men you may rely on my 
discretion. 

The long letter of May 12, 1878, contained 
the following acknowledgments: 

I have to acknowledge the receijjt of your letter 
dated April 10th and 20th, as well as of the copy of Gen. 
Humphreys' letter, his endorsement of a paper from the 
War Office, your Inaugural Address, as well as the num- 
ber of the Historical Magazinf containing Maj. Kearny's 
letter. I thought I had already mentioned to you the 
latter, as I read these letters with great pleasure. I beg 
you to believe, my dear General, that I am always ready 
to revise the conclusions to which I may have .come when- 
ever I get hold of documents or facts which throw a new 
light upon the questions which I have already studied. 
* * * I quite agree with you that Meade did not 
actually fight the whole of his men present for duty. I 
do not think that he can be blamed for it. In the after- 
noon of July 2nd he collected on the threatened flank 
more troops than he could have fought with on that 
ground. On the 3rd, Lee's attack was so quickly and de- 
cisively repulsed that Meade could not before 4 P. M. 
have engaged more men than he did. A great general 
would no doubt have seized at once the op|iortunity of 
Pickett's repulse and taken the offensive. A direct attack 
on the front of Lee, covered as it was by the artillery, 
would in all probability have failed; but the counterpart 
of Longstreet's move the day before ought to have been 
attempted. Meade ought to have thrown forward from 
the Round Tops the 5th and the 6th Corps at once, so as 
to strike the Emmetsburg road south of Peach Orchard. 
He would no doubt have achieved a great success. Still, 
there is some e.xcuse for a commander so new for not 
having adopted this bold design. But wlitre I eiitinly 
atjTit icitlt you, my dear General, it is in the Judgment i/ou 
pass on Meade's conduct from, the Ifth to the IJfth of Julji. 
Even if Lee's army had been as strong as he believed, 
his conduct would be below criticism; but if he was not 
aware of its weakness it is his fault, he should have 
tested it. He positively acted during these ten days as if 
he had no other object than to facilitate Lee's retreat into 
\'irginia. I have come to that conclusion by the careful 
study of Meade's dispatches; but as these papers were 
given to me, most kindly by his own son, Col. Meade, 
1 beg !/iai to keep thtit opinion <juite for yourself; it will he 
time to utter it token 1 publish my account. My deliberate 
opinion is that Meade, under the impression of the Con- 
federate repulse at Gettysburg, had made up his mind 
never to attack, and to let Lee have his own ways, rather 
than to take the offensive on the field of battle. 

On May 22, 1878, he wrote: 

I hasten to acknowledge the receipt of your letter 
dated May 5th, and to assure you that I received some 
time ago the Inaugural address mentioned in that letter. 
I read that address with great profit and pleasure. * * * 
What you say about Crawford is very striking. It is 
doubtless that his forward move was made late in the 
evening. * * * Whenever there is something which 
seems doubtful to me, I shall take the liberty of asking 
your advice. 

On June 24, 1878, he says: 

I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your letters dated 
■27th of Slay and June 3rd, as well as the pamphlets 
mentioned in these letters. * * * The limits which 
you give me concerning the real causes of the fadure of 
Meade's " campaign of manceVres," are very interesting, 
and that failure cannot be understood otherwise than by 
a great jealousy between his subordinates. 



Under date of August 18, 1878, he writes : 

Various occupations have prevented me from ac- 
knowledging sooner the receipt of your interesting letters, 
dated June '^'20th and July 4th and' 8th. * * * I quite 
agree in your judgment upon Rosecrans. He was not 
a brilliant, perhaps, but certainly a very able leader. He 
had the qualities most important in an army of volunteers, 
firmness of purpose and that obstinacy which springs 
from an indomitable will. \'ery few- generals who have 
stood as he did at Murfreesboro, very few, indeed, (that) 
would not have given up the game and thrown victory 
into their opponent's arms. He snatched victory by his 
stubbornness. * * * Any new information concerning 
Chickamauga would at present be very useful to me. 
* * * I received and read with interest the papers you 
did send me concerning the American War of Independ- 
ence. Receive my best thanks for that communication. 
Your views on the present situation and the prospects of 
the socialists in America are very striking and valuable. 

On September 21, 1878, the Count wrote: 

I have to thank you for your letters, dated August 
21st and 31st, as well as for the number of the Atlantic 
Monthly, containing an article by General Lippitt on 
Pope's campaign in X'irginia. * * * .My subject now 
is Chickamauga and Missionary Ridge. I have not a 
great deal of information on that subject. 

October 13, 1878, he writes: 

I have to acknowledge the receipt of your three 
letters, dated September 15th and 24th, containing the 
manuscript paper on the campaign of Chickamauga, and 
the newspaper articles on the yellow fever and the Peters- 
burg crater. I beg you to receive my best thanks as well 
for the pamphlets mentioned in the first letter, and duly 
received shortly afterwards. I have found a special 
interest in the particulars which you give me of your talk 
with Gen. Humphreys about the operation of Grant in 
May, 1864, and his supposed plan of turning the left of 
Lee. 

Again he says, October 20, 1878: 

I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letters of 
September 28th and of October '2d, 6th and 7th. I thank you 
very much for the trouble you take in supplying me with 
whatever kind of information you think may be useful to 
me, and still more in gicing me your own cities on the military 
fjuestions which that information may raise. The papers 
of Col. Crane, which I duly received, will no doubt be of 
great value to me. 1 already advised you of the receipt 
of the Legend of the Army of the Cumberland. The two 
other papers, viz.. Col. Coburn's report of the fight at 
Thompson's Station, and the e.xtracts of the Life of For- 
rest concerning the same fight, reached me at the same 
time. I have only rapidly perused the documents, but I 
have seen enough to appreciate their importance. The 
promised statement of Col. Crane of his treatment as a 
prisoner will be very interesting. * * * Thank you 
for the information you give me concerning Col. Goddard. 

On November 9, 1878, he writes: 

I punctually received your two letters, dated Oc- 
tober 9th and '23rd, as well as the book manuscript you 
mention, viz., the Legend of the .-Xrmy of the Cumberland, 
and the papers relating to the fight at Thompson's Sta- 
tion, including the statement of Col. Baxter Crane's life 
after his capture with Coburn's command. These docu- 
ments are rery useful for the study I am now engaged in. 
I thank you once more for the valuable assistance irhich 
you gice me in my arduons task, and I fully appreciate'the 
pains which you take tn furnish me with the unpublished 
documents. As for reading bad handwriting I can man- 



160 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



age to do it, but 1 hate to work on manuscripts hard to 
deciper. and therefore am very grateful to your copyist for 
his clear hand. * * * j thank you for the notice 
concerning Rosecrans. 

Again (December 3, 1S78): 

Col. Crane's statement of the battle of Thompson's 
Hill is so plain, so natural, and-describes so well what one 
feels and sees in his first fight, that it carries conviction 
into the reader's mind. It has been of great use to me, as 
well asColburn's reports. The narrative of his prison life 
is of the same character. I keep it for the future, as I in- 
tend to discuss the whole question of the treatment of the 
prisoners on both sides quite to the end of my work. I 
received the pamphlet on that subject mentioned in your 
letter of the 4th. In that of the 6lh you mention the bal- 
ance of the Legend of the .Army of the Cumberland, and 
the copy of the official notice of the commencement and 
termination of the Slaveholders' Rebellion as being dis- 
patched at the same time; these papers have reached me 
safely. 1 shall look for Gen. T. Oliver's letter on the sup- 
ercedure of Rosecrans by Gen, Thomas in the first pack- 
age sent by you through Humphreys. At the time I re- 
ceived it I picked out only what was for my immediate 
use, and the remainder was put aside for future ex- 
amination. * * * \"an Home's book is very use- 
ful to me. * * * In answer to your letter of the 
11th I shall first thank you for having found out the 
maps which you had mentioned to me, and could best 
procure, but 1 am really sorry and ashamed to see what 
amount of trouble it gave you. 

His acknowledgment December 21, 1878, 
is as follows : 

Receive my best thanks for your three letters, dated 
November l!)th and 23d, and December -ath, which have 
reached me, as well as the papers mentioned in these 
letters. I thank you especially for the copy of Gen. 
Paine's memorandum or private diary. * * * I thank 
you for the very remarkable articles which you did send 
me concerning the battle of .Monmouth in 1778, and which 
1 read with the greatest pleasure and interest. The 
report of Gen. Carr, a manuscript, reached me at the 
same time as your last letter. I have no doubt that will 
prove very useful to me. As you say, sometimes an inci- 
dental remark made without premeditation by an eye- 
witness may give the long-sought-for solution of some of 
the most difficult problems of history. I quite agree with 
you about Warren in regard to his action at Mine Run. 

Again (January i, 1879): 

I received your slips concerning the death of Reno. 

* * * I thank you for sending me the part of the 
Legend of the Army of the Cumberland, which e.xplains 
the strange blank in Van Home's returns. 

On January 17, 1879, he writes : 

I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letters, 
dated December 21st, 27th and 31st, the two last named 
ones adorned with the most picturesque engravings. * 

* * What you say in your letter irf the 21st concerning 
the place where the Federal line was broken at Gettys- 
burg, viz., near the Peach Orchard, about Birney's right, 
is in accordance with all the best accounts of the battle. 

* * * I received the installment of Paine's diary men- 
tioned in your letter of the 27th. It will be very useful to 
me, especially on account of its accuracy about the dates. 

* * * I thank you very much for having at last fur- 
nished me with the half page which Dr. \'an Home's 
printer had left in blank. 

Again (February 10, 1879): 

I received a few days ago a letter frorn Gen. Hum- 
jihreys informing me that according to your wish he had 



sent me a set of maps completed by Gen. Warren, of the 
country of the Rapidan and Centreville. * * * i 
thank you very much for mentioning the pamphlet of 
Col. Brooke Rawle on the operations of the L nited States 
cavalry on the right flank at Gettysburg. * * * As you 
say, tfie maps are very valuable. * * * I received 
to-day the copy of the narrative of the part taken by the 
11th N. J. in the Mine Run campaign, by Col. McAllister, 
and I shall certainly make use of it when 1 review my 
account already written of that campaign. 

On March 30, 1S79, he wrote: 

I avail myself of the said leisure I can find between 
two visits to the sick room, to answer your letters as well 
as 1 can. * * * Nevertheless, I can assure you that I 
am most grateful for all the information given in your 
letters, as Well as for the documents which you take the 
trouble to furnish me with. All the papers mentioned in 
your letters as having been sent to me separately have 
reached me safely. I have in hand the regimental re- 
port of the 11th New Jersey, and the narrative of events 
from November 2f5th to December 3, 1863, which will be 
very useful for the correction of my narrative of the Mine 
Run campaign, as well as the " preacher," as you call it, and 
I quite agree with you in your judgment on Gen. .McAllis- 
ter. Your conversation with Gen. Palmer, as reported m 
your letter, is interesting. * * * Your picture of the 
relations between .Meade and Webb is very striking, and 
I shall keep it in mind. I knew personally very little of 
Meade, while Webb was a friend, and still is, and I had 
the greatest respect for his military character. I received 
alsoall the papers mentioned in your letter of the .>th of 
February, viz., the manuscript copied in two different 
inks, which is very good concerning the fall of 1863 in 
Virginia, and your account of Gen. John Hartranft. I 
thank you for both, as well as for the picture you make of 
Hartranft in that letter. The balance of Gen. Jlc.-XUister's 
diary which, as you say, will merely be useful to me by 
its great accuracy, reached me at the same time as your 
letter, begun on the 8th and closed on the 14th of Febru- 
ary. It gives very carefully the state of the weather, 
which is an important element of military operations very 
often overlooked in the best narratives. * * * The 
particulars given in your letters of February 24th and 26th 
about Thomas at the battle of Chickamauga are very in- 
teresting. I received the manuscript of \'an Home's 
chapter on Chattanooga from his Life of Thomas. It will 
no doubt prove very valuable, but I cannot use it before 
I have begun myself the account of that campaign, which 
implies that I should have ended with Chickamauga. 
Please therefore tell me whether you wish it to be re- 
turned, or whether I may keep it for some time. * * * 
I thank you very much for remarks on \'an Home's Chat- 
tanooga,'which will be very useful as soon as I reach that 
period of the campaign. * * * You are quite right 
when you say that good and clear maps are sadly wanted 
for the easy intelligence of Van Home's .Army of the 
Cumberland. Hissmall map of the battle of Chickamau- 
ga is perfectly wretched, and unfortunately I know of no 
better one. 

It would require a volume to record the 
notable literary and critical achievements, the 
remarkable forecasts of political and military 
events, the practical suggestions which have 
been adopted and found to be of great public 
utility, and the solution of difficult problems 
in medical and general science through intui- 
tion, close reasoning and the application of 
extensive reading, of which General de Peyster 
has been the author. A few e.xamples, which 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



161 



readily occur to mind, will be noted miscel- 
laneously, with no attempt to classify them. 

Through his wide reading, giving him a 
knowledge of a similar phenomenon following 
ancient eruptions of volcanoes, he was one of 
the first to give an account of the pink sunsets 
which occurred for several years after the fa- 
mous eruption of the Javanese Krakatoa, in 
August, 1883. In the "Bulletin of the Amer- 
ican Geographical Society" [Vol. XXI, No. i, 
March 31, 1889, p. 117, note] he is given 
credit for calling the attention of geographers 
to a notable case of the kind. "Gen. J. Watts 
de Peyster," says the writer, "has found * - - 
Berthelot's account of the strange skies seen 
after the eruption of Skaptar jTikull in 1783." 

General de Peyster is the author of a re- 
markable discussion of the question, " Did Our 
Blessed Saviour Speak Greek.'" This paper 
enjoyed the distinction of being read before 
the Society of Literature, Arts and Science of 
London, England. 

For a number of years he was vice-presi- 
dent of the Saratoga Battlefield Monument, in 
connection with which he did effective work. 
He resigned when he found his efforts were 
unavailing to restrain what he considered waste 
and innocent misapplication of the funds. He 
donated an historical cannon to the monument. 

In addition to his many other services, and 
proffer of services during the Civil war, it 
should be noted that the General offered his 
extensive new buildings near the corner of 
Broadway and Thirty-sixth street, free of 
charge, to the city of New York, to the Fed- 
eral Government, as quarters for recruits in 
1861. 

Again, General de Peyster was one of the 
first to recognize the infectious or contagious 
nature of consumption. His notable gifts of 
hospitals for the care of consumptives has been 
already mentioned. 

The General defended John Brown, in his 
assaults on slavery, on the principle that, un- 
justifiable as he might be in his method of war- 
fare upon slavery, he was surpassed in this 
respect by the slave-holders in their attacks 
upon freedom in the North. The General 
was the first to suggest the employment of 
negroes as soldiers in the Civil war, and was 
reviled by his Democratic neighbors on account 
of his advocacy of views so radical. At the 
close of the war, however, he protested against 
the indiscriminate conferring of the electoral 
franchise upon the negroes of the South. It 
11 



was not alone the general condition of illit- 
eracy which influenced his judgment, but a 
clear foresight of the condition of things (which 
he prophesiedj which resulted; that the pro- 
posed measure nmst inevitably defeat the 
political end for which it was intended, and 
only give the South increased representation 
while leaving the power in the hands of the 
whites as securely as ever, and strengthening 
their influence materially in national politics. 

General de Peyster had a number of unique 
experiences during his travels in Europe as 
military agent of the State of New York. He 
saved the Italian soldier, Siro Pesci, a fol- 
lower of Mazzini, from condemnation to the 
salt mines at Sardinia, from which few ever re- 
turn alive, after long terms of service. He 
secured passports for the Italian as his servant, 
and carried him into France (and subse- 
quently into Switzerland), to the chagrin of 
the Gendarmes, who had an inkling of what 
was being done, but could not go behind the 
passports. 

When we consider General de Peyster's 
many works of military criticism on nearly all 
the famous wars of Europe, together with his 
contemporaneous interpretation of the Euro- 
pean wars in progress during his own lifetime, 
it is remarkable that he wrote so little on the 
Crimean war of 1854-5. But this e.xplained 
by the fact that at the time he was immersed 
in his historical studies of the Thirty Years' 
War, resulting in his various works on this 
theme, and notably his remarkable " Life of 
Torstenson." But very few men, historians 
or military critics, have mastered the facts as 
to this prolonged and general European war, 
as General de Peyster mastered them. His 
astonishing grasp of the topography of 
Europe, and of the military situation of the 
European States, was demonstrated in connec- 
tion with the wars of this century in Europe, 
subsequent to that of the Crimea, he being able 
to foretell the course of events and the issues of 
campaigns with an accuracy which astounded 
the best military critics. With the outbreak 
of the Franco-Austrian war these remarkable 
prophecies began, in his contemporaneous 
contributions to the New York Express, in 
which he followed and anticipated the military 
movements with analysis and forecast. It 
chanced that in 1834 he had witnessed just such 
a flood in Lombardy as that of 1859, which 
hindered and thwarted the combatants, and 
particularly the Austrians. Again, in the case 



162 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ot the Austro-Prussian war of 1866, he was 
completely at home, being well-nigh as famil- 
iar with the scene of the operations as with his 
own farm. He foretold the results of this 
struggle, and put his finger upon the decisive 
locality. The same thing was true of the 
Franco-Prussian war of 1 870-1. He prophe- 
sied the Prussian movement upon Sedan, and 
its results, in such detail, it was almost an 
exact prophecy of the genesis and exodus or 
result. The contribution of his critical pen 
toward the success of the Federal cause in our 
own Civil war is little understood. One can 
only say that it would be almost impossible to 
overestimate his services. 

It would, indeed, be a " work of superero- 
gation " to add anything to such estimates of 
General de Peyster's remarkable abilities and 
phenomenal labors as those which have been 
quoted, and it certainly will not be attempted 
here. One might say in passing, however, 
that if it be true that " a prophet is not with- 
out honor save in his own country, " in this case, 
honor and recognition abroad, at least, there 
a.ssuredly is. Perhaps the best idea of the 
honors which have been won by the General 
can be conveyed by subjoining a (partial) list 
of his many degrees, and memberships. He 
would be entitled to write after his name sev- 
eral formidable titles. 

The reader will find subjoined a partial list 
of the published works of General de Peyster. 
It is by no means a complete list, for time and 
circumstances prevented a perfect presentation, 
since many of his most interesting articles on 
subjects of the greatest moment and widest 
range are scattered in magazines and news- 
papers. Were these collected and republished 
(which their merit and interest assuredlj' justi- 
fies), they would make many additional vol- 
umes. But, although incomplete, the following 
list will suffice to give some idea of the aston- 
ishing versatility of the General's authorship. 
The immense range of reading, of which these 
•works show themselves to be the fruit, is 
also evidenced on every page of the thou- 
sands of books to be found in the General's 
large library, as well as in connection with the 
libraries given away. There probably has 
never been a private library of such size brought 
together, nor 10,000 to i 5,000 volumes given 
away, which through marks and marginal notes 
in the available space on nearly every page 
afford such evidence of close, thorough and 
critical reading. These notes are so charac- 



teristic of the General's entire library that they 
enhance the value of these volumes for a stu- 
dent to a large degree which none but t/ir 
student, capable of availing himself of their 
help, could understand or appreciate. If books 
are a blessing there is also peri/ connected with 
their use; but in the marginal notes of these 
volumes (the rich fruit of the General's enor- 
mous research, astonishing memory and critical 
judgment) the student finds that commentary, 
or citation of either corroborative or adverse 
evidence elsewhere, which only the painstak- 
ing investigation of innumerable authorities 
could supply — and some of them so rare that 
the chances are against the ordinary student's 
having the knowledge of their existence, much 
less suspecting that they contain anything bear- 
ing upon the subject. 

I'.-VRTIAL LIST OK I'IIBLICATI()N,S. 

Rki'drts — 1st. On thi' Or^anizatiuns of the National 
Guards and the Municipal Military Institutions of Europe, 
and the ."Xrtillery and Arms best adapted to the State 
.Service, 18.52. (Reprinted hy order of the N. V. State 
Legislature, Senate Documents, No. 74, March 2H. 18.53.) 
2d. Organizations of the English and the Swiss Militia, 
the French, Swiss, and Prussian Fire Departments. Sug- 
gestions for the Organization of the N. Y. Militia, &c. 1853. 

Life of (the Swedish Field Marshal) Leonard Tors* 
tenson (rewarded with three splendid Silver Medals, &c., 
by H. R. M. Oscar I., King of Sweden). 18.55.— Thirty 
Years War, and Mditary Services of Field-Marshal Gen- 
eralissimo Leonard Torstenson (Series), N. Y. Weekly 
Mail, 1873 ; A Hero ,if the .WII Century (Torstenson).— 
The \'olunteer, Weekly Mag., \'ol. 1., No. 1., 18(ii>.~-The 



Career of the celebrated Condottiere Fra Moreale, Weekly 

, Mail, 
1873. — Eulogy of Torstenson, 4to., 1872. 



Mail, 1873. — Frederic the Great. (Series.) Weekly! 



The Dutch at the North Pole, and the Dutch in 
Maine. 18.57.* 

Appendix to the Dutch at the North Pole, lN:c. 18.58.* 

Ho, for the North Pole! 1860.—" Little's Living 
Age." -The Dutch Battle of the Baltic, 18.58. 

The InvincibleArmada. (Series.) 18()0. — Examples 
of Intrepidity, as illustrated by the E.xploits and Deaths 
of the Dutch Admirals. (Series.) 1860-1. Military 
Gazette. 

Gems from Dutch History. (Series.) 1855. — A Tale 
of l.eipsic, Peabody's Parlor Mag., 1832. 

Carausius, the Dutch Augustus, and Emperor of 
Britain and the Menapii. 18.58. 

The Ancient, Mediaeval and Modern Netherlanders. 
1858. 

Address to the officers of the New York State Troops. 
1859. 

Life of Lieut.-Gen. (famous " Dutch Vauban" — styled 
the "Prince of Engineers") Menno, Baron Cohorn. 
(Series.) 18H0.— Military Lessons. (Series.) 1861-3.— 
Winter Campaigns. 1862. 

Practical Strategy, as illustrated by the Life and 
Achievements of a blaster of the Art, the Austrian Field- 
Marshal, Traun. 18()3.— Personal and Mditary History i>f 
Major-General Philip Kearny, .512 p[)., 8vo. 1869. — 
Secession in Switzerland .ind the United States compared ; 
being the Annual Address, delivered 20th October, 1863, 
before the \'ermont State Historical Society, in the Hall 
of Representatives, Capitol, Montpelier. 1864.* 

•Noticed as well as others in Annual Report of tlie American 
Historical Association, 1895. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



163 



Incidents connectt-d with the War in Italy. (Series.) 
1859. 

Mortality amont( Generals. (Series.) ISIil. — The 
Battle of King's Mountain. (Series.) 1861-2,1880. Oris- 
kany, 1878— Monmouth, 1878— Rhode Island, 1878. 

Facts or Ideas Indispensible to the Coni]jrehensi()n of 
War; Notions on Strategy and Tactics. (Series.) 1861-2. 
Eclaireur, .Military Journal. (Edited.) 1854-S. — In Me- 
moriam. (Edited.) 1st, 1857 ; 2d, 1862. The Bible in 
Prison. 1853. — A Discourse on the Tendency of High 
Church Doctrines. 1855. 

A Night withCharlesXII. of Sweden. A Nice Young 
Man. Parlor Dramas. 1860-1. 

Aculco, Oriskany, and Miscellaneous Poems. 1860. 

Genealogical References of Old Colonial Families, 
&c. 1851. 

Biographical Notices of the de Peyster Family, in 
connection with the Colonial History of New York. 
1861. — Biographies of the Watts, de Peyster, Reade and 
Leake Families, in connection with Trinity Churchyard. 
1862.— Military (1776-1779) Transactions of Major, after- 
wards Colonel Sth or King-'s Foot, B. A., Arent Schuyler 
de Peyster and Narrative of the Maritime Discoveries of 
his namesake and nephew, Capt. Arent Schuyler de 
Peyster, N. Y., 1870. — Local Memorials relating to the 
de Peyster and Watts and affiliated families. 1881. In 
Memoriam, Frederic de Peyster, Esq., LL.D., Prest. N. 
Y. Historical Society, St. Nicholas Society, St. Nicholas 
Club, &c., &c. 1882. 

Articlks published in United Serinre Magazine 
(equal in matter to 12mo. volumes); Torstenson and the 
Battle of Janikau, July, 1879; Joshua and the Battle of 
Beth-horon — Did the sun and moon stand still? Febru- 
ary, 1880; Hannibal, July, lKSO;Gustavus Adolphus, Sept., 
1880; Cavalry, I„ Sei)t., 1880; Cavalry, II., Nov., 1880; 
Cavalry, III., Dec, 1880; Army Catastrophes — Destruc- 
tion of Pharaoh and his host; how accomijlished, &c., tkc. 
February, 1881,— Hannibal's Army of Italy, Mar., 1881; 
Hannibal's Last Campaign, May, 1881; Infantry, I., June, 
1881; Infantry, II., Aug., 1881; Battle of Eutaw Springs, 
1781, Sept., 1881; Siege of Yorktown, 1781, Nov., 1881; 
Infantry, III., April, 1882; Waterloo, July, 1882; Vindica- 
tion of James Hepburn, Eapl of Bothwell, Sept., 1882, 
Oct., 1882; From the Rapidan to Appomattox Court 
House, July, 1883. — Burgoyne's Campaign. July-Oct., 
1777, and .-Vppendix, Oct., 1883. — Life and Achievements 
of Field-Marshal Generalissimo Suworrow, November- 
December, 1883. —Biographical Sketch of Maj-Gen. 
Andrew Atkinson Humphreys, U. S. A., March, 1884.— 
Address, Maj.-Gen. A. A. Humphreys, before the Third 
Army Corps Union, 5th May, 1884. Character and Serv- 
ices of Maj.-Gen. A. A. Humphreys, U. S. A., Manhattan, 
N. Y., Monthly Magazine, August, 1884. 

Suggestions which laid the basis for the present ad- 
mirable Paid Fire Department in the City of New York, 
in which, as well as in the Organization of the present 
Municipal Police of New York City, Gen. de Peyster was 
a co-laborer with the Hon. Jas. W. Gerard and G. W. 
Matsell, for which latter Department he caused to be 
prepared and presented a Fire Escape, a model of sim- 
plicity and inestimable utility. Republished in the New 
York Hittorir.al Magazine. Supplement, Vol. I.X, 1865. 
John P. Shea, Editor and Proprietor. 

The Pearl of Pearls, or the " Wild Brunswicker " and 
his " Queen of Hearts," a novel, founded on facts, 1865. — 
Mary Stuart, a Study, 1882; James Hepburn, Earl of Both- 
well, a Vindication, 1882; Bothwell and Mary Stuart, an 
Enquiry and a Justification, 1883. — Bothwell, an Histori- 
cal Drama, 1884. — The Life and Military Services of Sir 
John Johnson, Bart. 1882. — Notices and Correspondence 
of Col. A. S. de Peyster and Brig. -Gen. Sir John Johnson, 
Bart, during and after the American Revolution, 1776, 
&c. 1884. 

State Sovereignty. 1861. — Life and Services of the 
great Russian Field-Marshal Suworrow. 1882. — La Roy- 



ale, the Grand Hunt [or Last Campaign of the Army of 
the Potomac] Nos. I., II., III., IV., \"., \'I., 1872; \'II. 
1873; \TII., 1871.— Battles of Fredericksburg, Chancel- 
lorsville and Gettysburg in Onward, a monthly. 1869-70. 
— And Gettysburg and Williamsport, in the ,'io/diers' 
Friend, a weekly, 1870.— Col. J. Watts de Peyster, Jr., 
U. S. V. A. Threnody. 1874.— Sir John Johnson, Bart.: 
An Address delivered before the N. Y. Historical Society, 
6th Jan., 1880, with two voluminous Appendices of author- 
ities. — Address before the Historical Society of New 
Brunswick, 1883.* — Benjamin Fletcher, Colonial Governor 
of the Province of New York — Address before Oneida 
(N. Y.) Historical Society.* 

Centennial Sketches of the American Revolution, 
which apfieared in the N. Y. Timex, and especially in the 
N. Y. Evening Mail and Mail and K-rprexs. 1776-82. — De- 
cisive Conflicts of the late Civil War or " Slaveholders' 
Rebellion:" I. Shiloh, Antietam, iVc.,1867; II. Murfrees- 
boro to Chattanooga, &c., 1866; HI. Gettysburg, 1867; 
•I\'. Nashville, 1876. — Biographical notices of Major-Gen- 
erals Philip Schuyler — Address delivered before the 
N. Y. Historical Society, 2d Jan., 1877; Geo. H. Thomas, 
(likewise two Addresses delivered upon the same subject 
before the N. Y. Historical Society, 5th Jan., 1875, and 
Jan., 1876); also of Bancroft, Burnside, Crawford, Heint- 
zleman. Hooker, Humphreys, McAllister, Mahone, 
Meade, Edwards Pierrepont, Pleasanton, Sickles, Tre- 
maine, &c., &c. 

The Battles of Monmouth and Capture of Stony 
Point; a series of voluminous and exhaustive articles pub- 
lished in the Manmouth Enquirer, N. J., 1879. — Eclaireur 
(The), a Military Journal, Vols. II. and III., edited 1864-5. 

History of the Third Corps, Army of the Potomac, 
1861-65. This title, though not technically, is virtually 
correct, for in a series of elaborate articles in dailies, 
weeklies, monthlies, monographs, addresses, &c., every- 
thing relating to this Corps, even to smallest details, from 
1861 to 1865, was prepared with care and put in print. 
These articles ap]5eared in the Citizen, and the Citizen and 
Rdund Table; in Foley's Volunteer, and Soldiers'' and 
Sailors' Half-Dime Tales of the late Rebellion; in Mayne 
Reid's magazine Onward; in Chaplain Bourne's Suldiem' 
Friend; in " La Roy ale or Orand Hunt [or ihe last cam- 
paign] of tJie Army of the Potomae, from Petersburg- to 
Appomattox Court House, April 2-9, 1865," illustrated 
with engraved likenesses of several of the prominent 
Generals belonging to the corps, and careful maps and 
plans; in the life of Major-General Philip Kearny; in the 
"Third Corps at Gettysburg; General Sickles vindicated" 
\'ol. I., Nos. XI., xii,xii. The Volunteer; in a Speech de- 
livered before the Third Army Corps Union, Sth May, 
1875, profusely illustrated with portraits of Generals who 
commanded or belonged to that organization, Sic. These 
arranged and condensed would constitute a work of five 
or six volumes 8vo., such as those prepared by Prof. John 
W. Draper, entitled the "Civil War in America," but 
were never given as bound volumes to the public, because 
the expense was so great that the author, who merely 
writes for credit and amusement, was unwilling to assume 
the larger outlay, in addition to what he had already ex- 
pended on the purchase of authorities, clerk-hire, print- 
ing, &c., &c. 

A complete list, comprising almost as many 
more titles, not included in the foregoing 
presentation, was drawn up by the writer, but 
mislaid, and was omitted for want of time and 
space. 

The General's latest series of works were a 
succession of monographs on the Wars of- 

*Noticed in Annual Report of the American Historical Associa- 
tion, IS'.15, 



1C4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Buonaparte. One, a translation of the records 
of Colonel Pion des Loches in 1812, then be- 
longing to the Artillery of the Imperial Guard, 
which ran through five numbers of The Golden 
Magazine (January, February, March, April 
and May, 1895); with copious notes and along 
commentary upon the whole campaign and 
upon Buonaparte as a commander by the Gen- 
eral himself. 

2. Waterloo, "The Campaign and Battle," 
a bird's-eye view. (1893). 

3. Waterloo. (1S94). 

4. Prussians in the Campaign of Water- 
loo; in which it is conclusively shown that, 
although too much credit cannot be conceded 
to Wellington and his Anglo-Allied Army for 
the heroism of the command and the intrepid- 
ity of the commander, the rescue of Welling- 
ton from defeat, and the annihilating victory 
over the French, was assuredly due to Blucher 
and his Prussians. (1895). 

5. Authorities treating of the last cam- 
paigns of Buonaparte — 1S12-13-14-1 5; being 
critical reviews of numerous authorities on the 
Buonaparte wars, especially of 1814 and 1815. 

(1894-5)- 

6. A translation of Vermeil de Conchard s 
Life of Blucher, from his correspondence; with 
niass!7-e notes from the best authorities, in 
English, German and French, filling double 
the number of pages occupied by the transla- 
tion. (1896). 

7. The Real Napoleon Buonaparte. (1894- 

1895)- 

8. Napoleone di Buonaparte. Two series; 

a sequel to No. 7, which the noted sportsman, 
writer, lawyer and railroad man, Charles E. 
Whitehead, wrote, " read like volleys of mus- 
ketry," just equivalent in force of expression 
to Adj. -Gen. Pruyn's letter, "the courage to 
divide a hornet's nest. " 

Fr.^nk Allaben. 



JOHN P. RIDER was born in Rhinebeck, 
Dutchess county, N. Y. , January 28, 1S35. 
His father, Albert .\. Rider, was born in 
Rhinebeck in 1807, and his mother, Caroline 
(Jenningsj, was born in the same town in 
1808. His paternal grandparents were Philip 
Rider, born at Dartmouth, Mass., in 1781, 
and his wife, Catherine (Van Fredenburgh), 
born at Rhinebeck, N. Y. . in 1786. His ma- 
ternal grandparents were John Jennings, born 



in 1773, at Windham, Conn., and Aurelia 
(Bard), his wife, born in 177S, at Sharon, 
Conn. His paternal great-grandparents were 
Thurston Rider and Hannah (Cummings), 
both of Dartmouth, Massachusetts. 

It will thus be seen that our subject traces 
his lineage back on one side to genuine Yankee 
blood, and on the other to the stalwart Dutch 
of New York. His primary education was re- 
ceived in the district schools of his native 
town, and later he attended the old Rhinebeck 
Academy, one of the best schools of that day, 
where he easily took a leading position among 
the students from his exceptional abilit}'. His 
classmates often recalled, in later years, his 
quiet, unobtrusive ways, his sterling qualities 
of mind and character, his fine progress in his 
studies, and his clean, manly record through 
his school-days. When sixteen years old, he 
took a clerkship with his uncle, John F. Jen- 
nings, at Kingston, N. Y. , where he began his 
successful business career. He remained there 
two years, and then returned to Rhinebeck to 
act as deputy to his father, who had been ap- 
pointed postmaster by President Pierce. In 
1 85 5 he accepted a position in a wholesale 
dry-goods establishment in New York City, and 
has, therefore, a very vivid recollection of the 
great financial panic of 1857, for, though but 
just of age, his employers furnished abundant 
proof of his ability and trustworthiness by 
sending him on a collecting tour through the 
far Western States. 

In i860, a few months before the breaking 
out of the Civil war, he was married to Cor- 
nelia A. De Forest, who is a lineal descend- 
ant of Col. Johannis Snyder, of the First Regi- 
ment of Militia in Ulster county, which was 
formed at New Paltz on the iQth of January, 
1776. 

In 1863 he was appointed secretary of the 
New York Rubber Co., and held that position 
in New York City until 1883, when the com- 
pany expressed their further confidence in him 
by making him vice-president of the company, 
and putting him in charge of their affairs at 
j Matteawan, N. Y., where their extensive man- 
i ufacturing works are situated. He then be- 
came a resident of Fishkill-on-Hudson, and 
has ever since been identified with the best in- 
terests of the historic town of Fishkill. In 1886, 
while absent on a visit to Florida, the people 
honored him with an election as supervisor for 
the town, and the following year he was re- 
elected, and was, moreover, chosen chairman 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



165 



of the board of supervisors of Dutchess county. 
Here he displa}ed the same marked ability 
and unswerving integrity in presiding over their 
deliberations that he had shown in managing 
the business of the town. He was subsequently 
elected president of the village of Fishkill Land- 
ing, in which capacity he served one term with 
signal success. He was afterward Democratic 
candidate for member of the Assembly for the 
First District of Dutchess County, and although 
there was a Republican majority of 1,200 in 
the district, his popularity brought him such a 
flattering vote that the usual majority was re- 
duced one third. But Mr. Rider is not quite 
the kind of a man to make an all-round poli- 
tician. He has too fine a sense of right; too 
keen an appreciation of his dutj- to the 
people; too firm a determination to do that 
duty on all occasions; and too much self-respect 
to make him a subservient tool of the leaders 
in practical politics. ■ Whatever political oflices 
he held came to him unsought, and all their 
obligations were faithfully fulfilled. His sterl- 
ing worth, his business integrity, and public 
confidence in his sound judgment caused him 
to be elected vice-president of the recently in- 
corporated Matteawan National Bank, to the 
success of which he has largely contributed. 

Mr. Rider is a Free and Accepted Mason 
of forty years' honorable standing, a member 
of Palestine Commandery, Knights Templar, of 
the famous Mecca Temple of the Mystic 
Shrine, and has attained the e.xalted position 
of the Thirty-second degree in the Ancient Ac- 
cepted Scottish Rite Masonry in the Valley of 
New York, Northern Jurisdiction of America. 
These facts serve to emphasize the esteem in 
which he is held by his fellow-citizens and by 
the Masonic craft. He is a man of quiet, un- 
obtrusive, retiring manners, yet always a pol- 
ished gentleman and man of the world, apt at 
business, cool, calm and reticent, yet endowed 
with a cultivated insight into men and business 
which makes him a wise administrator of af- 
fairs, public or private, a successful employer 
of labor, and a valuable citizen. He is a fine 
specimen of such as carve out their own careers 
in this free land. Not a college graduate, he 
is still a well-read man, not only in commercial 
matters, but also in polite and elegant litera- 
ture, and in the various departments of science. 
Genial and entertaining among his friends, en- 
dowed with a fund of wit and humor always at 
his command, he is respected and loved most 
by those who know him best. 



CASSIUS M. C. SMITH, the enterprising 
_ and popular proprietor of "The Woron- 
ock," at New Hackensack. Dutchess county, 
one of the best hotels in this region, is a native 
of Columbia county, but his family has been 
identified with Dutchess county for several gen- 
erations. 

David Smith, his grandfather, was born in 
the town of Clinton, and spent his life there, 
following agricultural pursuits. He had nine 
children: Lewis, Thomas, Stephen, Henry, 
Joseph, Solomon. Sarah, Eliza and Carrie. 
Lewis Smith, our subject's father, was born 
March 14, 18 18, and passed his early years at 
the old homestead. He married Elizabeth 
Hicks, a descendant of one of the pioneer fam- 
ilies of the town of Pleasant \'alley, where her 
great-grandfather, Joseph Hicks, and his wife, 
formerly Miss Filkins, located in Colonial times, 
obtaining a grant of land from Queen Anne. 
Her grandfather, Samuel Hicks, a prominent 
resident of that locality, married Margaret Doty, 
and reared a family of three children; Ben- 
jamin, Mary (Mrs. Samuel Halstead) and Sam- 
uel S., Mrs. Smith's father, who enjoyed fine 
educational privileges owing to his inability to 
perform the hard labors of the farm. He be- 
came a teacher in Poughkeepsie, but after his 
marriage to Miss Mary Peters returned to the 
old home to reside. Mrs. Smith was one of 
the following children: Margaret, who mar- 
ried Thomas Smith, a farmer of the town 
of Washington; Hewlett P., a resident of the 
town of Clinton; Elizabeth (Mrs. Smith); Ed- 
ward S., a retired farmer of Pleasant \'alley; 
Elias, a merchant in Rochester, N. Y. ; Burtis, 
a farmer in the town of Clinton; Hannah, the 
widow of Asa Smith; and Mary (deceased), 
who married Solomon Merritt, a carpenter at 
Rochester. 

After their marriage our subject's parents 
lived upon a farm in the town of Clinton for a 
short time, and then moved to Columbia coun- 
ty, and remained twenty years. On returning 
they settled at Clinton Corners, where Mr. 
Smith's father was engaged in the cattle busi- 
ness. In 1S59 he bought a farm in the town 
of Lagrange, where he died June 12, 1884. 
He was a Republican politically, and he and 
his wife, who survived him, adhered to the 
Quaker faith. 

Our subject was born February 6, 1848. 
He was only seven years old when his parents 
moved to Clinton Corners, and ten, when they 
established their home on the farm, where he 



if;c, 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



grew to manhood. At twenty-two he engaged 
in the butcher's trade, which he followed twen- 
ty-three years. In April, [892, he purchased 
"The Woronock ", at New Hackensack, a 
" landmark " of the place, formerly known as 
" Yates Tavern ", and moved there November 
I, following. Under his business-like manage- 
ment steam-heat and other modern improve- 
ments have been added, and it is a favorite 
resort of tourists. It will accommodate about 
forty guests, and in the summer season it is 
well filled. One especially pleasing feature is 
the cuisine, as Mr. Smith keeps a farm of forty 
acres to supply his table. 

On February 26, 1872, he married Carrie 
A. Dorland, and they have one daughter, Edith 
C. Mrs. Smith's ancestors were early residents 
of the town of Lagrange, and her father, Sam- 
uel Dorland. was a well-known farmer and 
blacksmith there. He was a cousin of Peter 
Dorland, father of Cyrenus Dorland, surrogate 
of Dutchess county. Mr. Smith is a public- 
spirited, influential man, his circle of friends 
extending far beyond local limits. In politics 
he is a Republican. 



WILLIAM R. MOORE. The subject of 
this personal narrative, now residing 

at Upper Red Hook, N. Y., was born at 
Barrytown, N. Y., in a house standing in Revo- 
lutionary times. His present residence com- 
mands one of the finest views of the Catskills 
from any inland point, its surrounding forty 
acres combining village privileges with space 
and comfort. 

Mr. Moore's family record runs back to the 
time when New York State was but a Province. 
The old stone house still standing near Barry- 
town Corners was in the family for five gener- 
ations. The tract of land coming into his 
possession as he reached his majority, and 
which he sold in later years to John Aspinwall, 
was originally a portion of the grant of Col. 
Peter Schuyler, and deeded to Phillipus Hen- 
drich Mohr, his great-grandfather, in 1771. 
He died in 1775, before the Declaration of 
Independence was declared. Puterus Moore, 
his son, served in the Revolutionary army, 
and family traditions picture his wife subjected 
to the depredations of the British soldiery (as 
they sailed up the Hudson in their sloops), 
hiding her food and begging them to spare her 
last horse. The line of descent is as follows: 
Phillipus Hendrich Mohr, born about 1723, 



died in 1775, married Engel Dederick. Pe- 
terus Moore, their son, born November, 1743, 
died May, 1833, married Christyna Behner, 
December, 1770. Garret Moore, their son, 
born March, 1793, died June, 1826, married 
Lanah Rowe, January, 18 15. William R. 
Moore, their son, was born August 22, 1826, 
and was united in marriage with Jane Ann 
Ten Broeck, who was born on the old Ten 
Broeck homestead in Germantown, Columbia 
Co.. N. Y. , April 27, 1830, and was educated 
in Hudson Academy. To this worthy couple 
have been born five children, namely; .^nna 
B., William B., Helen R., Hattie E. and 
Minnie. Hattie E. died when she arrived at 
maturity. Helen R. is the wife of Rev. John 
Morrison, of Fishkill-on-Hudson, by whom 
she has two chiMren: Stewart Ten Broeck 
and Anna Janette, and the family is now loca- 
ted at Portland, Ore., where Mr. Morrison is 
pastor of a flourishing Presbyterian Church. 
The early history of the Ten Broeck family, 
to which Mrs. Moore belongs, dates bark to 
162G, when Wessel Ten Broeck, a merchant 
from Munster, Westphalia, came over in com- 
pany with Peter Minuit (^pronounced Menewe), 
the newly appointed director of New Nether- 
lands. He settled in New Amsterdam as a 
merchant. He had three sons, Derick Wessel, 
Hendrick Wessel and Joachim Wessel. Derick 
Wessel, the eldest, was born in 1639, and 
known in history as Maj. Wessel. As early 
as 1662 he was the largest fur-trader at Beaver- 
Wyck ("now Albany). He was largely engaged 
in Indian and other public affairs. The his- 
torical records of New York show that in 1689 
he was employed by Gov. Dongan as ambassa- 
dor to Canada to settle matters of Provincial 
difficulty. He was also major of militia, com- 
missary first recorder of Albany in 1686, mayor 
of AHjany in 1696, and Indian commissioner. 
He bought of the heirs of Anneke Jans, in 
1662, her residence on the east corner of State 
and James streets, which became his city 
dwelling, being the same lot now occupied by 
the Mechanical & Traders Bank and the 
Evcjiiit}; Journal buildings. He owned much 
real estate, and Ten Broeck street in Albany 
was named for him. By deed of date Octo- 
ber 26, 1694, Robert Livingston conveyed to 
him a tract of land on both sides of Roeliff 
Jansen's Kill, containing about 1,200 acres, 
also a tract on the Hudson river of 600 acres, 
situated 200 paces south of the old Livingston 
Manor House. 



COiOfEAfOSATTVE BIOGBAPEICAL BECOBD. 



167 



In 1663. he married Christyna Van Buren, 
who died November 23, 1729; his death oc- 
curred September iS, 17 17. Their eldest son. 
Wessel. was Indian commissioner, recorder of 
Albany, and lieutenant of militia. From this 
line descended Gen. Abraham Ten Broeck, of 
Revolutionary- fame. As president of the 
committee of safety of Xew York, he carried 
on an able and patriotic correspondence with 
Hon. John Hancock, President of Congress. 
He married Elizabeth, sister of Stephen ^'an- 
Renssalaer. the fourth Patroon of the Manor 
of Renssalaerwyck. Their son. Derrick Ten 
Broeck, a lawyer, was for three sessions the 
eloquent speaker of the House of the Assembly. 
New York State. All these facts are proved 
true in histories and documents in the State 
Library at Albany. Up to the present date, 
the tract of land on the Hudson, at German- 
town, deeded by Robert Livingston to Derrick 
Wessel Ten Broeck. in 1694. has descended 
from eldest son to eldest son. so that, most 
literalh", it maj- be called "old homestead," 
having been in the familj- over two hundred 
years. There is preserved the oldest known 
family Bible in the Ten Broeck line, and also 
a portrait of an ancestor, Jacob Ten Broeck, 
born in 1700, son of the above Wessel. This 
ancestor was married in 1725 to Christyna 
Van Alen. who died July 28. 175S. His death 
occurred September 14. 1774. 

From the founder in America to the eldest 
brother of Mrs. Moore, this branch of the Ten 
Broeck family is traceable through the eldest 
sons, (i) Derrick Wessel married Christyna 
Van Buren in 1663. {2) Wessel married 
Cathryna Loermans in 1684. (3) Jacob mar- 
ried Christyna Van Alen, September 29. 1725. 
(4) Wessel married Janetje Person. February 
4. 1764. (5) Jacob married Christina Schep- 
mas. (6'^ Jacob ^the father of Mrs. Moore), 
who married Anna Benner. is the next in 
direct descent. (7 Jacob Wessel. her brother, 
married Sarah Ann Evarts. May 24. 1S4S. S) 
Andrew J., his son, married Julia Winans, Oc- 
tober 26, 1SS2'. 

Hon. Jacob Ten Broeck. the father of Mrs. 
Moore, was born on the Ten Broeck home- 
stead at Germantown, Ma\- 13. 1800. In 
1S44 he removed to Hudson. lea\nng his son, 
Jacob Wessel, the old homestead: was made a 
charter director of the Farmers National Bank, 
of Hudson, at its organization in 1S39, and he 
was the oldest officer of that institution at the 
time of his death in 1S83. During the troub- 



lous times of the Civil war he efficiently served 
as mayor of Hudson, and wast also a member 
of the Assembly from Columbia county in later 
years. He married Anna Benner. who \va3 
born November 15, 179S. and was a daughter 
of Hendrick Benner. of the towTi of Red Hook, 
Dutchess ccunty. She died March 26, 1S79. 



MRS. CATHERINE E. TAYLOR, the 
_ subject of this sketch, spent her earh" 
life in the town of Lagrange, Dutchess county, 
attending the district schools and Miss Booths 
boarding school, besides a private school at 
Fishkill. She met Edward Preston Taylor in 
Poughkeepsie. where they were married. He 
was born in Orange. N. J., and was a member 
of the firm of Nelson & Taylor, cabinet makers, 
with their place of business on the comer of 
Main and Crannell streets. 

After their marriage our subject and her 
husband conducted the " Forbus House. " which 
stood where the *• Nelson House "" now is. and 
was where the old stage house was located, a 
very historic spot. When Mr. Taylor died. 
Mrs. Taylor continued to run the • • Forbus 
House" until 1S75, when she built the new 
• • Nelson House, "' which was opened April 1 . 
1S76. The house was named in honor of our 
subjects brother. Judge Homer A. Nelson. Two 
children were bom to Mr. and Mrs. Taylor: 
Ella Kate, and Nelson ^deceasedV Ella mar- 
ried F. J. Jewett, of Albany. N. Y.. and they 
have two children — Rev. F. G. Jewett. rector 
of St. Pauls Church at Albany, and Edward 
Taylor Jewett. of the Albany Engraving Co. 
The Rev. F. G. Jewett has one daughter. 
Catherine Pauline, and a son. F. G. Jewett ^^3"'. 

Reuben Nelson, the great-grandfather of 
our subject, was bom in Dutchess county: was 
drafted for the Revolutionary war. and ser\ed 
as one of the •• Minute men. " receiving a pen- 
sion for his services. He married Miss Han- 
nah Morse, a native of Delaware countj'. N. Y. 
Reuben Nelson. Jr.. grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born in the town of Lagrange, where 
he went to school, and later engaged in farm- 
ing. He married Miss Catherine Garzee. 
whose birth took place in Newport, R. I. She 
was a daughter of a French sea captain, who 
owned a vessel and came to America and joined 
LaFayeites army in the cause of American 
Independence. John M. Nelson, the only child 
of Reuben, was bom on the old homestead in 
Lagrange, where his earlv education was ob- 



168 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



tained, and where he was married to Miss 
Eliza Smith, who was born in Boston of Eng- 
lish parents. Their children were: Catherine 
Eliza, our subject; Laura, Homer A.. Charles 
and John, of New York City; and Cora, who 
married Dr. \'andenser. 



JOHN W. SPAIGHT, a prominent resident 
of Fishkill-on Hudson, Dutchess county, 

whose able editorial management of the 
Standard has made that paper influential 
throughout the community, is one of the men 
whose energies and abilities have been con- 
stantly and consistently devoted to the best in- 
terests of the town. 

He is a native of Dutchess county, having 
first seen the light in Poughkeepsie, May 26, 
1833. He attended the common schools of 
that city until the age of fourteen, and in 1849 
entered the office of the Poughkeepsie Tc/c- 
grapli as an apprentice, remaining five years. 
On attaining his majority he took charge of 
the Higliland Eagle at Peekskill, the prede- 
cessor of the present Higliland Democrat. 
The following year he purchased the paper, 
and carried it on successfully for three years, 
when he sold it with the intention of going 
into business elsewhere; but his plans failing 
he remained in charge of the of^ce for another 
year. In the spring of 1859 he returned to 
Poughkeepsie, and formed a partnership with 
A. S. Pease and J. G. P. Holden for the pub- 
lication of the Daily Press; but this venture 
proved a failure, and he lost all that he had 
made while in Peekskill. After three years in 
Poughkeepsie he purchased the Fishkill Stand- 
ard with the assistance of his brother-in-law, 
James E. Member, and February 10, 1862, he 
assumed the control of the paper. The office 
was a very small one and the paper only a 
seven-colunm folio; but by untiring industrj' 
and judicious management the enterprise has 
been made to prosper, and the Standard has 
been enlarged from time to time until it is now 
a folio of nine columns. 

Mr. Spaight was married January i, 1856, 
at Peekskill, to Miss Eliza J. Diven, of that 
village, and they have four children — three 
sons and one daughter. The sons are all con- 
nected with the Standard office in various ca- 
pacities, and are giving evidence of the same 
qualities which have marked their father's suc- 
cessful work in the journalistic field. The 
family are identified with the Methodist 



Church, Mr. Spaight and his wife having be- 
come members while in Peekskill, and he has 
been steward, district steward, trustee (for 
thirty-three years), and president of the board 
of trustees. In the Sunda\-school he was a 
leading worker for twent\-five years, having 
been a teacher, secretary, treasurer, and super- 
intendent. He resides in a beautiful part of 
the village, on high ground overlooking the 
river and bay, the view including the mount- 
ains and city of Newburgh. His place has 
been named "The Cedars," from the fact that 
the hill was formerly covered with a fine 
growth of cedar trees, only a few of which now 
remain. 

As a public-spirited citizen Mr. Spaight has 
always been ready to encourage any worthy 
movement and to assist in local affairs. He 
was the first treasurer of the village of Fish- 
kill Landing; holding the office for several 
years, and a trustee four terms; was a trustee 
of the public schools for about sixteen years, 
and is now treasurer of the school district. 
He has been connected with the Howland Cir- 
culating Library, as its secretary, since its or- 
ganization in 1872; is a trustee of the Mechan- 
ics Savings Bank, for several years has been 
a member of the funding committee, and is 
now its second vice-president. He is affiliated 
with the Masonic fraternity, was secretary of 
Beacon Lodge No. 283, F. & A. M., for some 
time, and for the last seventeen years has held 
the office of treasurer. 



WILLIAM B. MILLARD, for many years 
the senior member of the firm of W. 

Millard Sons, of New Hamburg, Dutchess 
county, now the Millard Lumber Co. , is a 
worthy representative of a family which has 
been distinguished through several generations 
for business ability, integrity, public-spirit, and 
all those admirable qualities of character which 
go to make good citizenship. The head of the 
American branch of the family came from 
France at an early date, settling in New Eng- 
land, and John Millard, our subject's great- 
grandfather, lived in Cornwall, Conn., where 
he had a sawmill. 

Charles Millard, our subject's grandfather, 
was born in Cornwall, Conn., in 1763, and be- 
longed to the army of the Revolution in 1780, 
in his eighteenth year. His first wife was 
Lydia Pride, a native of Poughkeepsie. He 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



169 



settled in Marlboro, Ulster county, where he 
was engaged in the lumber business until 1824, 
when he moved to New Hamburg and opened 
a lumber yard. He manufactured his lumber 
from the raw material and had an extensive 
trade for that early day, the distance from our 
own times being more easily realized when the 
fact is recalled that he witnessed the trial trip 
of Robert Fulton's steamer on the Hudson in 
1807. He was prominent in local affairs and a 
leading member of the Presbyterian Church. 
On June 17, 18 16, his first wife died, leaving 
seven children, and October 22, 1818, he mar- 
ried Sarah Miller, by whom he had two chil- 
dren. His own death occurred April 30, 1827. 
Of the first family the eldest son ( i) John was 
born May 21, 1789; (2) Charles Millard, born 
September 15, 1792, located in New Orleans, 
where he acquired a large fortune. He was a 
man of unusual energy and business ability, 
and took a prominent part in affairs in his 
adopted city. (3) James, born August 15,1 795, 
was a wholesale dealer in lumber and coal at 
Catskill. (4) Cornelia, born June 27, 1797, 
married Hackaliah Purdy, of Marlboro. (5) 
William born June 19, 1800, settled in 
Galena, 111., and became a leading business 
man there, holding the office of postmaster 
at one time. His later years were spent 
in traveling in Europe and the United States, 
and he died while in Jacksonville, Florida. 
(6) Walter, our subject's father, is men- 
tioned below. (7) Catherine, born August 21, 
1803, married Elem Dunbar, then of Pough- 
keepsie and later of Cortland county. The 
children of the second family were Margaret 
G., born May 24, 1820, and Franklin, born 
February 26, 1824. 

Walter Millard was born in Marlboro, Feb- 
ruary 27, 1802, and remained there until the 
removal of the family to New Hamburg. Un- 
til 1 834 he was engaged in the lumber business 
exclusively, but at that time he became inter- 
ested in the freighting business and built the 
barge " Lexington," which ran between New 
York and New Hamburg. In 1844 he pur- 
chased the steamboat "Splendid," which car- 
ried freight from New Hamburg and Marlboro 
to New York City. About 1855 he disposed of 
this line of business to give his attention to 
dealing in lumber and coal, which he continued 
until his death, August 20, 1880. He was a 
man of remarkable business acumen and the 
energy and enterprise to carry his projects to 
completion. A strict Presbyterian in religious 



faith, his life was marked by integrity and fair 
dealing. In politics he was in early years a 
Whig and later a Democrat. He was mar- 
ried, November 14, 1834, to Martha Hyer 
Bull, a native of New York City, who died 
June 14, 1896. Her father, William Bull, 
who was of English birth, was a well-known 
saddle and harness dealer in New York, and 
was the first to import hame collars from Eng- 
land. He had six sons, viz.: William B., 
Walter P., Howard C. , Charles, I. Edward 
and Fenweck T., the last two named being 
now deceased. 

William B. Millard was born at New Ham- 
burg, June 10, 1836. When a young man he 
began clerking in his father's office, and in 
1863 became a partner in the business, the 
firm name being W. Millard & Son. After his 
father's death he conducted the business under 
the same name until 1884, when his brothers, 
Howard C. and Charles, entered the firm, 
which became known as W. Millard Sons. 
On November i, 1893, a corporation was 
formed under the present title of the Millard 
Lumber Company. They employ about 1 50 
men in the various departments of their work, 
which includes the manufacture of the finished 
product from sawed green lumber, their mills 
and factory being located at Rouse's Point, in 
the Adirondack region. They do a wholesale 
business there, while their retail trade is sup- 
plied from their yards at New Hamburg and 
Marlboro. 

On February 8, i860, Mr. Millard was 
married to Miss Cordelia A. Lawson, a lady of 
Dutch descent, and daughter of William I. 
and Ann (Smith) Lawson, of New Hamburg. 
Two children were born of this union: Martha 
H., the wife of Harris S. Reynolds, of Pough- 
keepsie, and William I., who is not married. 
Mr. Millard and wife are prominent members 
of the Presbyterian Church, and he has taken 
an active interest in many movements tending 
to promote the public welfare, being especially 
devoted to the temperance reform and to the 
improvement of the schools. He has been 
president of the board of education, and is a 
member of the National Division of the Sons 
of Temperance. In politics he is a Democrat, 
but favors a liberal tariff. He has at times 
held minor offices, declining, however, further 
honors, although as one of the leading men 
in southern Dutchess county, he has more 
than once been urged to enter the political 
arena. 



170 



COMiTEilORATirE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



THOMAS McWHINXIE. a well-known 
_ manufacturer, of Poughkeepsie, Dutch- 
ess county, was born in that city. March 20, 
1S42. and is the son of James and Euphemia 
(Hall I McWhinnie, both natives of Scotland, 
the former born at Glasgow in iSo". and the 
latter at Paisley in 1S19. 

Thomas McWhinnie. the grandfather of 
our subject, was born it is supposed in Edin- 
burgh, as he came from there, and was a 
weaver by trade. His brother. John, up to 
his death, was keeper of Edinburgh Castle, 
where the Scottish regalia are kept. Grand- 
father Thomas McWhinnie was married in 
1S04 to Janet Crawford, who was the mother 
of all his children. She died in 1S19, and in 
1S2S he married Margaret McAllister. In 
May, 1S29. the famih- sailed from Greenock in 
the sailing vessel 'Roger Stewart." arriving, 
on the fourth of July following, in New York 
City, where they made their first home in the 
New World on 20th street, between Sth and 
9th avenues. Grandfather McWhinnie's second 
wife did not come to this country with him; 
but after a year or two's sojourn here he went 
back to Scotland, and staid there until her 
death, when he again came to the United 
States, and died in New York. 

Grandfather McWhinnie had six chil- 
dren, namely: i Margaret, married to Alex- 
ander Cameron, a machinist; 2) Janet, mar- 
ried at West Farms. Westchester Co., N. Y. 
(^now a part of New York CityJ. to Robert B. 
Wilson, who in his younger days was captain 
of a sloop running on the North, or Hudson, 
river, the East river and the Bronx, up to 
West Farms; (31 Elizabeth, who became the 
wife of James Reed, who was in the Custom 
House at Glasgow a great many years until 
pensioned of!; 14) Peter, who was a weaver by 
trade; (5) John, also a weaver, who died in 
New York City; and James, the father of 
Thomas. Our subject's parents came to 
America before their marriage, and resided in 
New York City and other places, finally mov- 
ing to Poughkeepsie. where they were married. 
Here the father followed his trade as a weaver 
for about thirty-three years. He then re- 
moved to New York City, where he continued 
to work at weaving until his death July 17, 
1866; his wife died September ii, 1851. He 
was originally a Whig, later a Republican. 
They had four children: Catherine and James 
died in infancy; Thomas is the subject of this 
sketch; and Archibald is a farmer in Wisconsin. 



The father was bom in Glasgow. Scotland, in 
1S07. and reared there, being twenty-two years 
old when he came to this country in 1S29. 

Thomas McWhinnie attended the public 
schools in Poughkeepsie until he was twelve 
years old. when he went to Wappingers Falls, 
where he worked in the cotton mills for nine 
months at two dollars a week. He then re- 
turned to Poughkeepsie. and worked for two 
and a half years in a bakery at $25 a year and 
his board, the first year; at $30 a year and 
his board, the second year; and at $35 a year 
and his board the remainder of the time, leav- 
ing the bakery in the winter of 1S57. the year 
of the financial panic. In the spring of 1858 
he went to learn the tinner's trade, but left it 
after serving about one and one-quarter years, 
and went to work in Chichester & Co. s chair 
factory, which stood on the site where his own 
facton." now stands. In 1S63 he was employed 
for a few months in repairing railroad bridges. 
afterward going to New York City and work- 
ing in a chair factor)' for four years, and for 
about one year more was a partner in a chair 
factory. 

In 1S69 Mr. McWhinnie again returned to 
Poughkeepsie. and embarked in the business 
in which he has since been successfully en- 
gaged; manufacturing all kinds of wheelbar- 
rows — such as canal, coal, garden, ore. stone, 
brick and wood barrows; also the celebrated 
Dutchess Bolted Canal, and Dutchess Bolted 
Garden wheelbarrows. His first location was 
at No. 25 N. Water street, but in 1SS3 he 
erected the large brick factory in which he is 
now established, at Nos. 39 and 41 South 
Water street, and 31 and 33 South Front 
street. His products are shipped to New 
York City and other points, whence they are 
sent all over the world. Mr. McWhinnie is a 
man of progressive ideas, of excellent business 
ability and great energy, and has worked his 
way up from a poor boy to his present posi- 
tion. He is popular with his associates, and 
is a loyal citizen always ready to assist in pub- 
lic enterprises. 

Mr. McWhinnie was married June i. 1871, 
to Miss Fannie Whitwell. who was born in 
Poughkeepsie. Her father. Thomas Whit- 
well. and her mother Marj' (Arnold* Whit- 
well, were natives of Peterborough, England. 
He followed farming in East Park. Three 
children were born of this union: Mary E. , 
who was married to Frank Brooks on October 
7, 1896; Fannie J. and Roy A. ; the last named 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



171 



died January 13, 1893. '^^r. McWhinnie is a 
Republican, and in 1882 he was elected alder- 
man of the Second ward, serving some two and 
one-half years; in 1896 he was selected by his 
party to represent them on the board of super- 
visors, being elected for two years. He is a 
member of the Congregational Church, and has 
been a trustee of that body for eight years. 
Sociall}' he has been a member of the Masonic 
order since 1864, and also belongs to the 
Ancient Order of United Workmen. 



AMES STUART CHAFFEE. The family 
to which the subject of this 'sketch belongs 
is of good old Puritan stock, having been 
founded in the New World in 1635, at Hing- 
ham, Mass., by Thomas Chaffee, who landed 
at Boston a year or two previous. He re- 
moved to Hull, where he died in 1683. His 
son, Joseph Chaffee, married Ann Martin, of 
Swansea, Mass., and died in that town in 
1689. His son, John Chaffee, removed to 
Woodstock, where Joel Chaffee, the son of 
John, died. Joshua, the youngest son of Joel, 
was born in Woodstock, Conn., in 1733, and 
in 1755 moved to Sharon, Conn. On Jul}' 
22, 1755, he wedded Mary St. John, and they 
continued to live at Sharon until 1760, when 
they removed to Ellsworth, Conn. , where his 
death occurred October 8, 1789, and she 
passed away August 28, 1824. Their son, 
Joshua Bignall Chaffee, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born at Sharon, Conn., March 8, 
1 78 1, and became a farmer by occupation. 
On June 4, 1809, he was united in marriage 
with Ann Seymour, a daughter of Amos and 
Sarah (Cook) Seymour, of Plymouth, Conn. ; 
her death occurred June 4, 18 19. Later he 
was united in marriage (December 25. 1820) 
with Hannah Birdsey, who was born at Corn- 
wall, Conn., September 29, 1791. At the 
time of his death, the grandfather was most 
acceptably serving as one of the magistrates of 
Sharon. 

The birth of Jerome Seymour Chaffee, the 
father of our subject, occurred at Ellsworth, 
Conn., December 14. 1S14, and he was there 
educated in the common schools. At Kent, 
in that State, on October 24, 1839, he was 
married to Miss Aritta Stuart, daughter of 
James and Melinda Stuart. She was born De- 
cember 15, 18 12, and was called to her final 
rest November 24, 1872. Later, the father 
was married (June 8, 1876), at Sharon, to 



Adelia Emma Fuller, who was born March 
13, 1 84 1, the daughter of Cyrus Sackett 
and Harriet Fuller. Until 1855 Jerome S. 
Chaffee continued to reside at Sharon, at 
which time he came to the town of Amenia, 
Dutchess county, where he has since engaged 
in farming. He is a consistent member of the 
Congregational Church at Ellsworth, Conn., 
and politically cast his first vote in support of 
the Whig party, later becoming an Abolitionist, 
and since its organization has been a stalwart 
Republican. By his fellow citizens he has been 
called upon to serve in the positions of high- 
way commissioner and assessor. 

James Stuart Chaffee, whose name intro- 
duces this review, was born at Sharon, Conn., 
October 3, 1846, and was educated at Wes- 
leyan Academy, Wilbraham, Mass. He was 
married at Kent, Conn., on September 17, 
1872, to Miss Lydia A. Judd, who was born 
December 16, 1850, and is a daughter of Ed- 
ward Matthew and Laura (Cartwright) Judd. 
Of their union there are five children: Jerome 
Stuart, born November 11, 1873, is a graduate 
of the Yale University, and expects to com- 
plete the course in the medical department of 
the University of Pennsylvania with the class of 
'97; Edward Judd, born August 6, 1875, mar- 
ried Celia M. Cline; Aritta L. , born August 22, 
1877, graduated at Wesleyan Academy in 
1896; Everitte St. John, born November 15, 
1879; and Rollo N., born February 28, 1S82. 

After his marriage Mr. Chaffee removed to 
his present residence in the town of Amenia, 
and for about four years was engaged in the 
flour, feed, grain and lumber business with 
William H. Tanner, of Wassaic, butwiih that 
e.xception his entire life has been devoted to 
agricultural pursuits, and with excellent results, 
showing that he thoroughly understands the 
occupation which he has chosen. His unwav- 
ering support is given the Republican party, 
and he has served in several positions of honor 
and trust, such as highway commissioner and 
justice of the peace and supervisor. 



CHARLES F. HASBROOK, a leading busi- 
ness man of New Hamburg, Dutchess 
county, the senior member of the well-known 
firm of Capt. Wm. Hasbrook's Sons, forward- 
ing and commission merchants, was born Jan- 
uary 2, 1S45, St Cortlandville, in the town of 
East Fishkill, where his ancestors were among 
the early settlers. The family originated in 



172 



COMSIEMORATTVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



Holland, and its representatives in this locali- 
ty are descended from three brothers who came 
to this country together, two settling in Ulster 
county, and one in Dutchess county, at Fish- 
kill. 

Francis Hasbrook, our subject's grandfa- 
ther, was born there August 5, 1789, and be- 
came a merchant at Cortlandville, where he 
was a prominent citizen, an active supporter 
of the Whig party and a leading member of 
the Reformed Church, with which most of his 
descendants have united. He married Mar- 
garet Blatchly, a native of Fishkill, who died 
July II, 1839, and he survived her until 
March 8, 1S54. They bad three children, of 
whom William Hasbrook, our subject's father, 
was the eldest, the others being: Susan H., 
born July 25, 1824, married to Albert Emans, 
a farmer in Fishkill, and Sarah R., born 
March 20, 1830, married to John P. Storm, a 
farmer at Stormville. 

William Hasbrook was born at Cortland- 
ville November 12, 1822, and grew to man- 
hood there. He was engaged in the mercan- 
tile business with his father for some time, 
and later conducted it alone, but in 1857 he 
became captain of the steamer "Wyoming," 
which he ran for twelve years. From 1869 to 
1872 he followed the freighting business at 
New Hamburg, and then for five years was 
captain of the "Walter Brett," a steamboat 
running between New Hamburg and New 
York, and on leaving this he resumed the 
freighting business and continued it until his 
death, which occurred December iS, 1S93. 
He was a Republican in politics, and promi- 
nent in local affairs, serving some time as clerk 
of the town of East Fishkill, and he was the 
first postmaster of that village. On August 
17, 1S43, he married Maria Storm, daughter 
of Gory and Anna (Boice) Storm. She died 
June 28, 1874, leaving three children, of whom 
our subject, Charles F. , was the eldest, the 
others being: Emily, born December 11, 
1849, died April 9, 1852, and George A., 
born Julj' 27, 1856, is a member of the firm. 

Charles F. Hasbrook was educated in the 
schools of New Hamburg and Hughsonville. 
On leaving school he clerked for four years in 
a grocery in New York City, and then came 
back to New Hamburg, where he was engaged 
for a year in the feed business, afterward in a 
grocery. On March i. 1886, he became inter- 
ested in his father's business, and since the 
latter's death the two sons have carried it on 



successfully. On January 13, 1869, Mr. Has- 
brook married Miss Jennie E. Van Voorhis, 
who was born September 10, 1S45, ^t Brink- 
erhoff\ille. Her parents, William H. and 
Elizabeth iHaightt \'an \'oorhis, were both 
natives of Dutchess county, the former having 
been born at Matteawan. May 24, 1809. Three 
children were the result of this marriage, of 
whom only one is now living, Edward G., born 
October 24, 1870. 

Mr. Hasbrook, as one of the leading men 
of southern Dutchess county, has been influen- 
tial in local affairs, and is prominent in the 
Republican party, although he has never held 
office, with the exception of four years as 
justice of the peace of the town of Wappinger. 
He is a member of the F. & A. M. , Wappingers 
Falls Lodge No. 671, of Poughkeepsie Chap- 
ter No. 172, and Poughkeepsie Commandery 
No. 43. 



ZEBULON RUDD. The subject of this 
sketch was born in the town of North- 
east, Dutchess Co., N. Y., September 24, 
1823. 

The family for a long time had been one 
of influence in the eastern part of the county, 
and also in western Connecticut, from which 
locality Mr. Rudd's great-grandfather came. 
The following is a brief record of the family: 

Lieut. Jonathan Rudd, the founder of the 
family in America, came to New England 
about the year 1637. He was a resident of 
New Haven, Conn., in 1644, when he took 
the oath of fidelity to the government. He 
was at Saybrook in 1646. In the winter of 
1646-47 he was married. The occasion was 
a romantic one, and is often referred to in the 
State disputes concerning boundary lines. 
The magistrate, who had been engaged to per- 
form the ceremony, was delayed by a great and 
sudden snowfall, and application was at once 
made to John Winthrop, then acting as mag- 
istrate under the jurisdiction of Massachusetts. 
In order that he might obviate any infringe- 
ment of the law, the parties agreed to meet 
at a little stream — to this day known as Bride 
brook — which served as a boundary between 
New London and Lynn. There, in the 
solemn stillness of the forest, Winthrop, stand- 
ing upon one bank, joined together the man 
and woman who stood upon the other. 

Jonathan Rudd was a settler of Norwich, 




^eiLl^c^c/X 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHIOAL RECORD 



173 



Conn., later on, and died in 1668, leaving 
four children. ' His eldest son, Jonathan, 

born about 1650, married Mercy — in 

1678, and died in 16S9, leaving a son born in 
1684, who afterward became Ensign and Cap- 
tain Nathaniel Kudd. He moved to Wind- 
ham, Conn., where he was a highly respected 
member of society, and died at a ripe old age 
February 20, 1760. His first wife, the mother 
of his children, was Rebecca, daughter of 
John Waldo, of Chelmsford, Mass., and his 
wife Rebecca, daughter of Samuel Adams, the 
progenitor of the Adams family of Massachu- 
setts. Nathaniel and Rebecca Rudd had four 
children, the third of whom was Zebulon, 
born at Windham, Conn., in 1 717. In 1742 
he was married to Jerusha Brewster, and 
about 1750 moved to Dutchess county, N. Y. , 
and resided in the town of Amenia, and also 
in Northeast. He died in 1802. His family 
consisted of eight children — si.x daughters and 
two sons. The eldest child, Nathaniel, born 
in 1742, married Naomi St. John, in 1768, 
and died in 1774, leaving a widow and three 
children. He was the ancestor of the Rudds 
of St. Lawrepce and Wayne counties, in New 
York, and of Litchfield county, in Connecticut. 

Zebulon's other son, Bezaleel, born in 
1751, survived his brother seventy-two years, 
and died in 1846, aged ninety-five years and 
one month. During the greater part of his 
life he resided at Northeast, Dutchess Co., 
N. Y. He served faithfully during the war of 
the Revolution. Having signed the pledge 
with his father, Zebulon, in July, 1775, he 
served in the Continental arm}' from August, 
1775. to February, 1777, when he left the 
army with the rank of major. That same year 
he married Ruth Brush, and they had seven 
children, of whom the second was Reuben 
Brush Rudd, born in 1780. He lived at the 
old place at the northern end of Rudd Pond, 
Northeast, N. Y., but in middle life spent 
many years at Poughkeepsie. He was presi- 
dent of the village of Poughkeepsie in 18 14. 
He married on February 22, 181 3, Elizabeth, 
daughter of Capt. Israel Smith, of Newburg, 
N. Y., and his wife, Mary, daughter of Col. 
Jonathan Hasbrouck. 

Elizabeth Smith was born September 3, 
1783, in the house which is now known as 
"Washington's Headquarters", Newburg, but 
then owned by Col. Hasbrouck's son Isaac. 
Mr. Rudd's family still possess a brocaded satin 
cloak given by Lady Washington as a baptis- 



mal robe for the child which was born a few 
days after Washington's departure. 

Reuben B. Rudd had five children: Mary, 
born November 25, 181 3, married Milton 
Smith, and died February 14, 1895; Sarah, 
born October 29, 181 5, and married to Alex- 
ander W. Trowbridge, is still living at Ansonia, 
Conn. John, born December 28, 18 17, died 
at Mobile, Ala., October 9, 1842. Charles, 
born March 17, 1820, and married to Frances 
E. Folk, is still living at Pine Plains, N. Y. ; 
and Zebulon, the present representative of the 
family in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. His early youth 
was spent upon his father's farm. Financial 
reverses, however, coming upon the family, 
the boys were early compelled to seek their 
own livelihood. 

In 1842 Mr. Rudd came to Poughkeepsie 
to take a position as clerk in the dry-goods 
store of Joseph Wright. Here he remained 
two years, and then accepted a clerkship with 
Bowne & Co., where he remained eight years. 
He was then appointed teller and bookkeeper 
in the Fallkill Bank, remaining there six years. 
Mr. Rudd was next offered the cashiership of 
the Dover Plains Bank. Six years after bis 
going to Dover Plains the First National Bank 
of Poughkeepsie was organized, and the direct- 
ors tendered the position of cashier to Mr. 
Rudd. He accepted the offer, and for twen- 
ty-five years held the position until his resig- 
nation in 1889. Since then he has been en- 
gaged in the brokerage and investment business 
in Poughkeepsie. 

Mr. Rudd was married May 23, 1855, to 
Blandina V. Adriance, second daughter of 
John Adriance, the founder of the "Buckeye 
Manufacturing Co." Three children have 
been born to them: Charles Adriance (now 
deceased), who married Ella Robinson, of 
Poughkeepsie; John Adriance, who married 
Bertha Strawn Morgan, of Trenton, Neb., 
and is now living in Poughkeepsie; and Ar- 
thur Belding, who at the present time is study- 
ing in New York City. 



B. STOCKHOLM, a prominent resident 
and leading business man of Poughkeep- 
sie, Dutchess county, is engaged in the crock- 
ery and glassware business at No. 306 Main 
street, where he has carried on operations 
since 1885. He was born in that city January 
6, 1849, and is descended from Aaron Stock- 
holm, whose birth occurred on Long Island, 



174 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



but who early came to Dutchess county, where 
he located on a farm in the town of Hopewell, 
and there married, reared his family and died. 
His brother located in St. Lawrence county, 
N. Y., obtaining about one thousand acres of 
wild land by a grant from King George, and 
there are now four villages in that county 
named in honor of him. 

The son of this Aaron Stockholm (who also 
bore the name of Aaron) was the grandfather 
of our subject. He was born in Hopewell, 
town of East Fishkill, Dutchess county, and 
after his marriage with Miss Painter continued 
to reside upon the old homestead, where his 
death occurred. In politics he was a Demo- 
crat, and religiously was connected with the 
Reformed Dutch Church. His family included 
three sons: Aaron, who was a harness dealer at 
Peekskill, N. Y. ; Richard, who went west to 
Illinois and became a general merchant, and 
Abram, the father of our subject. 

On April 2, 18 19, Abram Stockholm was 
horn in Hopewell, town of East Fishkill, and 
upon the old home farm spent his boyhood and 
youth. He was united in marriage with Miss 
.\ntoinette Lyon, who was born in Westches- 
ter county, N. Y., and was a daughter of Wal- 
ter S. Lyon, a retired minister, of English de- 
scent. In 1840 the young couple located at 
Poughkeepsie, where the father engaged in the 
furniture business until his death, which oc- 
curred in 1872. He was a firm supporter of 
the Democratic party, and he and his wife con- 
tributed to the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
She is still living; by her marriage with Mr. 
Stockholm she became the mother of three 
children; Maria L. , who married John S. 
Gilbert, a farmer of the town of Hyde Park, 
Dutchess county; Helen L. , who married W. 
H. Haight, a brick manufacturer of Pough- 
keepsie, and A. B., the subject of this review. 

When A. B. Stockholm had reached a 
sufficient age he entered the public schools of 
his native city, and completed his literary 
training in the old Dutchess County Academy, 
in 1865, after which he entered the general 
store of Trowbridge & Co., remaining with 
them for eleven years. He then clerked for 
Robert W. Frost for three years, and in the 
fall of 1877 began the retail carpet business at 
No. 1 50 Main street, as a member of the firm 
of Marshall & Stockholm, which partnership 
was continued until March, 1885, when our 
subject sold out his interest, and has since 
engaged in his present business. 



In 1874 Mr. Stockholm was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Jennie Ward, a native of the 
town of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county, and 
a daughter of Daniel I. Ward, a farmer of' 
that township, whose ancestors came from 
England. One daughter has been born of 
this union, named Helen. In politics, Mr. 
Stockholm affiliates with the Republican party, 
being an earnest advocate of its principles, 
and he is prominently identified with the Royal 
Arcanum, of which for three years he served as 
regent. He and his wife are consistent mem- 
bers of the Congregational Church, and for 
eight years he has served as its treasurer. He 
is a highly respected and esteemed citizen of 
Poughkeepsie, and as a merchant bears the 
reputation of an honest, upright and trust- 
worthy man. 



M 



ARSHALL 
merchant 



HERRICK, 



of 



Poughkeepsie, 



a promment 
and one of 

the most enterprising and prosperous of the 
business men of that city, is a native of Dutch- 
ess county, born at Salt Point, in the town of 
Pleasant Valley, December 10, 1852, the son 
of William and Catharine Elizabeth Herrick, 
whose family are the lineal descendants of Sir 
Henry Herrick, of England, in the fifteenth 
century. 

Mr. Herrick, after profiting by the some- 
what limited course of study offered by the 
local schools, prepared for college at Amenia 
Seminary. He entered Cornell University 
with the class of '74. and for two years pur- 
sued an elective course. While there he was 
a member of the Theta Delta Chi fraternity. 
At the close of the Sophomore year he returned 
home, intending to take up scientific farming, 
but circumstances called him aside, and he set- 
tled in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , in 1876. In 
1882 he and Elmer Van Vliet purchased the 
good will and business of Crosby & Spaulding, 
at No. 391; Main street, Mr. Herrick being the 
senior member of the new firm. In 1888 he 
bought Mr. Van Vliet's interest, and since then 
has carried on the business alone, removing it, 
in 1890, to Nos. 375 and 377 Main street, its 
present location. He has from time to time en- 
larged, and taken in other lines of goods, and 
now styles himself a general house furnisher, 
supplying everything needed in fitting up a 
house. This is the only place of the kind in 
the city, and the largest in the Hudson River 
Valley, and has proved a profitable venture. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



175 



Mr. Herrick has shown unusual ability as a 
business man, learning the details of his chosen 
line of work by practical experience. His 
judgment has always balanced his spirit of 
enterprise, and he has now an extensive trade, 
with a prospect of even greater things in the 
near future. 

In 1876 Mr. Heirick married Miss Julia 
Allen, a daughter of James M. Allen, a leading 
citizen of Salt Point, and a descendant of one 
of the old families of Dutchess county. Their 
only child now living, Harold Allen Herrick, is 
at River View Academy preparing for Yale 
College. Politically, our subject is a Demo- 
crat with strong Prohibition tendencies, and of 
late years has taken an influential part in the 
local work of the latter organization. He is a 
man of high moral principle, has been an active 
member of the Presbyterian Church since he 
was twelve years of age, and is now a deacon. 
He has done a large amount of reading for a 
man absorbed in business cares, his preference 
being for writers of a substantial nature and 
especially those on history, political economy 
and the topics of the day. 



WILLIAM J. BROWN, who is well 
known in connection with the Frank- 

lindale Company, and is a prominent citizen 
of Wappingers Falls, Dutchess county, was 
born in the latter place, January 10, 1844. 

Samuel Brown, the father of our subject, 
was a native of County Monaghan, Ireland, 
and there followed the occupation of folder. 
He was married in 1831, and that year came 
to the United States. He found employment 
in what is known as the Dutchess Print Works, 
at Wappingers Falls, and followed that voca- 
tion until 1848, when he went into the mer- 
cantile business, in which he continued until 
his death, January 22, 1S76. His wife sur- 
vived him until 1880. Their children were 
nine in number, as follows: Elizabeth, Joseph, 
Samuel R. , John H., William J., Martha, 
Henry, and two who died in infancy. Mr. 
Brown was originally a Whig, but later be- 
came a Democrat. He took an active part in 
politics, and held a number of local offices. 
He was poor master, justice of the peace 
and collector for the town of Poughkeepsie; 
was one of the first board of trustees of Wap- 
pingers Falls, and was a trustee of the Savings 
Bank of that village. 



William J. Brown attended the district 
school of his native village during his boyhood, 
and in 1861-62 wasa student at Princeton, N. 
J., afterward attending Williston Seminary at 
East Hampton, Mass. Then went to New 
York City, and for four years was employed 
as custom-house clerk for the large importing 
house of Barclay & Livingston, 24 Beaver 
street. On January 4, 1871, Mr. Brown was 
married to Miss Esther, daughter of George 
Warhurst, of Wappingers Falls, and for a short 
time was a clerk in his father's store. On 
May I, 1872, he was made bookkeeper in the 
Franklindale office. In 1881 he was made 
superintendent of the Franklindale cotton-mill, 
continuing there until the destruction of the 
mill by fire in October, 1885. Mr. Brown 
has since been bookkeeper for the Franklindale 
Company, and in connection with that position 
is also superintendent of the outside business 
of the Clinton company, under William Bogle, 
agent. He is a man of fine business ability, 
and has the confidence and esteem of the firm 
with which he has so long been engaged. He 
has always taken an active part in public af- 
fairs; has been the village treasurer for eighteen 
years, and is still holding that position. He 
was collector for the town of Poughkeepsie in 
1 87 1, and supervisor for the town of Wappin- 
ger in 1892. He has been a trustee of the 
Savings Bank for twenty-two years, since 1 874 ; 
is treasurer of Zion Episcopal Church, and a 
trustee of the cemetery association. Socially, 
he is a Knight Templar, and, politically, he 
belongs to the Republican party, in whose in- 
terests he is an active worker. He is popular 
with all classes of people, and a good citizen of 
Wappingers Falls. 

Mr. and Mrs. Brown have an interesting 
family of six children, all of whom are at home, 
namely: Edward McKinlay, Mary Louisa, 
Edith, Violetta, Alice and Clayton W. 



CHARLES I. ROUND, one of the most 
' prominent builders and contractors of 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was born Oc- 
tober 28, 1844, in Birmingham, England, where 
he received his- early education and had his 
home until he was twenty-two years old. 

In his twenty-second year Mr. Round came 
alone to America, landing at New York, whence 
he went to California, where he remained a 
year, and then returned to New York. For 



176 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



three years he worked for Lyons & Bunn, 
builders, during which time he built the East- 
man Terrace High School, an addition to 
Vassar College, and a gas tank at the gas 
works. He then returned to California, re- 
maining there for a few months, subsequently 
coming to Poughkeepsie and rebuilding the 
rolling mill. In 1877 he went into the fsuild- 
ing business for himself, and erected the Vas- 
sar I?rothers Institute, the Vassar Brothers 
Hospital, and two sections of the State Asylum, 
although most of his work has been outside of 
the city. He built the Thorn Memorial Build- 
ing at Millbank, a fine building for Archibald 
Rogers on the Hyde Park road, and at the 
present time (spring of 1897) has secured the 
contract for the building of the New Adriance 
Memorial Library, which is to cost $70,000, 
and is to be finished in November, 1897. 
Although starting at the bottom he has worked 
his way up to the top, and is to-day one of the 
most successful business men in the county. 

Mr. Round was married in New York City 
June 20, 1S70, to Miss Mary Seckerson, a 
native of Dudley, England, and five children 
have been born to them, three of whom are 
now living: Maud (who married Frank Sco- 
field). Bertha and Charles. Our subject is a 
member of Triune Lodge, F. & A. M., Pough- 
keepsie Chapter R. A. M., and of the I. O. 
O. F., Lodge No. 21. 

Eli Round, father of our subject, was a 
builder by trade, which the Round family for 
four generations have followed. Eli married 
Miss Mary Ann Staley, who is yet living. 
They had seventeen children, si.\ of whom are 
living: Staley, Adelaide and Alfred are in 
England; Charles I., Eli and Herbert are 
living in Poughkeepsie. The father died in 
England in November, 1896, at the advanced 
age of eighty years. 



MELSON LOUIS BOICE, one of the most 
energetic and industrious men of Pough- 
keepsie, Dutchess county, was born in Water- 
ford, N. Y., November 2, 1852, and is a son of 
Benjamin I-5oice, whose birth occurred in 1808, 
in Poughkeepsie, where he passed his early 
life, receiving his education in its public 
schools. For a number of years the father 
conducted a hotel at Channingville, Dutchess 
county, and for several years was engaged in 
the livery business on Catherine street, Pough- 



keepsie. His death, however, occurred at 
Waterford, N. Y. He was twice married, by 
the first union having one son, William, of 
Worcester, Mass. At Poughkeepsie he wed- 
ded Lettie A. Ostrander, a daugfiter of Peter 
M. Ostrander, and to them were born three 
children: Louisa, wife of Franklin S. Haw- 
ley, of Broadalbin. N. Y. ; Carrie, wife of C. 
B. Olmstead. of the same place; and Nelson 
Louis. 

Our subject was only a year old when his 
father died, and by his mother he was taken to 
Fulton county, N. Y., where his boyhood days 
were spent upon a farm, and in the district 
schools he obtained his primary education. 
This he supplemented by a course in the high 
school at Broadalbin. His mother later be- 
came the wife of Giles W^ Churchill, a farmer 
(now deceased). In August, 1872, Mr. Boice 
came to Poughkeepsie, where he was first em- 
ployed by Trowbridge & Co., with whom he 
remained six years, and for the following two 
years was with Joseph G. Frost, an under- 
taker. He then returned to his former em- 
ployers, for whom he worked two and one-half 
years, after which he entered the grocery store 
of James H. Mills, at No. 2S2 Main street. At 
the end of two years he secured a situation 
with Willard H. Crosby, an undertaker, by 
whom he w-as employed for the same length 
of time, and the following year was passed 
with Leonard Carpenter. Returning to Mr. 
Mills, he remained with that gentleman for 
two years, and then formed a partnership with 
W. V. Holmes, under the firm name of Holmes 
& Boice, grocers, at No. 364 Main street. At 
the end of a year and a half this partnership 
was dissolved, and Mr. Boice became book- 
keeper for Hull & Co.", for one j-ear. He 
then joined Mr. Selfridge, and they conducted 
the undertaking business for Mrs. W. H. 
Crosby for a year, when she turned the busi- 
ness over to Mr. and Mrs. Selfridge, with whom 
our subject remained five years. On March 
15, 1897, he started in the undertaking busi- 
ness for himself at No. 395 Main street. 

In Poughkeepsie, on October 12, 1881, 
Mr. Boice was married to Miss Mary W. 
Brown, a daughter of Thomas S. Brown, super- 
intendent of the Buckeye Works. They are 
held in high respect by all who know them, 
and are sincere Christian people, faithful mem- 
bers of the Baptist Church. Socially, Mr. 
Boice holds membership with the Royal Ar- 
canum Lodge. 




"" Pl^at,, 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOQEAPHICAL RECORD. 



177 



^lAILLIAM H. BADEAU. The subject of 
tllL our sketch is a descendant of French 
Huguenots. A numerous band of these, in- 
cluding the names of Flandreau, Coutant, Ba- 
deau, and many others, left La Rochelle, 
France, and founded New Rochelle, a suburb 
of New York City. Elie Badeau, on his arrival 
there in 1708, purchased 120 acres of land. 

Two generations later, and before Horace 
Greeley's "Young Man, go West " was given 
to the world, John Badeau, of New Rochelle 
(descendant of Elie) went north, acquired a 
large tract of land, and in 1775 located at Ma- 
hopac Falls, in Putnam county, N.Y. One of 
the sons of John Badeau was Isaac Badeau, Sr. 
His son, Isaac Badeau, Jr.. married Elizabeth 
Hart, also of Mahopac Falls. Their children 
were: Gilbert H. (deceased), William H. (our 
subject), Matilda S., and Joseph N. They also 
" went North," locating in Dutchess county in 
1846. 

The restless ambition of W. H. Badeau 
(second of the foregoing) begat aspirations for 
something beyond the field of possibilities in 
sight to him in Fishkill surroundings, and he 
accepted an appointment in a wholesale fancy 
dry-goods house in the down-town section of 
New York City. The proprietor, G. S. Ely, 
was a brother-in-law of Col. Richard M. and 
Robert Hoe, the great inventors and builders 
of lightning printing presses. Mr. Badeau was 
more fortunate than many young men resort- 
ing to great cities, in that he was successful in 
arranging residence with the proprietor in his 
own home in Brooklyn. He became at once 
actively interested in Sunday-school, choir and 
Church work at the Clinton Street Presbyterian 
Church, Brooklyn Heights, whose pastor was 
Rev. Ichabod S. Spencer, D. D., author of "A 
Pastor's Sketches " and other works. After 
seven years passed in the business house, and 
very delightful home of G. S. Ely, Mr. Badeau 
arranged connection with the renowned firm 
of E. & H.T. Anthony & Co., No. 591 Broad- 
way, New York, manufacturers, importers, 
publishers and wholesale dealers in every class 
of photographic requisites. 

Transferring now his residence to the Sev- 
enth ward. New York City (at that time a 
pleasant quarter), and making as his Church 
home the Allen Street Presbyterian, Rev. W. 
W. Newell, D. D., pastor, was afterward 
elected a member of its board of trustees. Mr. 
Badeau was at this time a member of the 
Twenty-second Regiment, New York City, 
which was ordered to temporary service in 

Pennsylvania, at the time of the battle of Get- 
12 



tysburg, and at the same time he volunteered 
to put a man in the army at his own cost of 
several hundred dollars. 

The business of E. & H. T. Anthony & 
Co. became a rapidl)' increasing one, and had 
for its field every State in the Union, the Can- 
adas, Mexico, West Indies, Central America, 
South America, Australia, Europe, and even 
China. At this juncture, and as showing the 
then course of events, we copy from a little 
historical brochure issued by E. & H. T. An- 
thony & Co. not long since: 

"After a time these gentlemen found it impossible 
to look after all the interests of the firm, and William H. 
Badeau, after being associated with the Brothers Anthony 
for several years, was admitted to the firm, and became 
the representative of the house in Europe." 

Mr. Badeau made many voyages across the 
water both before and after the formation of 
the co-partnership. By the way, one crossing 
was by the monster steamship ' ' Great East- 
ern," which was one-eighth of a mile in 
length. It was a smooth August trip, eighteen 
hundred merry-making souls being on board. 

It soon became necessary that Mr. Badeau 
should remain permanently abroad, and he ac- 
cordingly established his residence by turns at 
the capitals of the Old World — Vienna, Berlin, 
Paris and London — making occasional tours 
through Italy, Austria, Germany and France, 
also through all parts of the United Kingdom; 
and in midsummer (for recreation) to the Ork- 
ney and Shetland Islands. 

Whilst residing at the Austrian capital, and 
during the Vienna Exhibition, Mr. Badeau 
(his firm co-operating) set his heart upon and 
addressed himself assiduously to the captur- 
ing, in that international contest, of the 
" Medal of Progress." There was only one 
prize medal of this rank, and that was to be 
competed for by the wide world. 

After the close of the World's Fair he shipped 
part of his exhibit from Vienna to London, and 
entered it at the 'annual exhibition of British 
Photographers. As setting forth the outcome 
of his efforts to carry off honors at Vienna, we 
quote froin the "British Journal of Photogra- 
phy" of October 31, 1873, a part of its serial 
critique upon that autumn exhibition, viz. : 

"And first of all let us accord a hearty welcome to a 
firm as well-nown in this country as it is in .America: 
we mean that of Messrs. E. & T. H. Anthony & Co., of 
New York — a firm which, although young so far as mere 
years are concerned (seeing that it has only recently en- 
tered upon its fourth decade), is yet as old as it can pos- 
sibly he, finding as we do that it dates from the introduc- 
duction of Photography in 1843. This establishment is 
so colossal in its extent and ramifications as to occupy 
40,000 square feet of floor room: and its industries are so 
numerous and varied as to necessitate the services of 200 
skilled work people and forty warehousemen. Wc are 



178 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



glad to see so eminent a firm contributing to our annual 
collection of pictures, knowing what personal powerthey 
possess in securing American representation; for much 
is gained in many ways by the international advances 
toward each other of two great nations so intimately 
connected in lineage and language, thus promoting the 
mutual interchange of whatever is exceptional and valu- 
able in the pursuit of our art-science as practiced in both 
the Old and New Worlds. Let us hope that through the 
friendly agency of this, the largest photographic firm in 
the World, and through the cordial services of Mr. Will- 
iam H. Badeau, the English resident partner, American 
photography will henceforth be adequately represented 
at our annual exhibitions. It is fitting that we should 
here remind our readers that the senior member of this 
great firm, Mr. Edward Anthony, has generously offered 
SoOO in prizes to be contested for in February next ; and 
as the artistic encounter is an international one, we urge 
upon the photographers of the United Kingdom to com- 
mence the preparation of such works as will enable our 
trans-Atlantic brethren to see that, although the progress- 
ive proclivities of their nation have secured for the firm 
to which we have referred the only and much valued 
'Medal of Progress ' awarded at the Vienna Exhibition, 
yet, that Englishmen will retaliate by wresting from our 
American friends, if they can, the munificent prizes of- 
fered by Mr. Edward Anthony. We should have been 
pleased to have seen the 'Medal of Progress' sent to 
England; but as the fates or jurors otherwise decided, it 
only remains for us to congratulate the fortunate recipi- 
ents of this coveted award." 

During his whole stay abroad, whether in 
visit or in residence. Mr. Badeau was the for- 
eign contributor to the columns of "An- 
thony's Photographic Bulletin" over the nom- 
de-plume "Viator." 

Fifteen years with the firm of E. & H. T. 
Anthony & Co., he, after a much varied and 
e.xceedingly pleasant experience, and having 
acquired a competency, retired from the firm 
(The portrait accompanying this sketch is a 
copy of the photographic souvenir made on 
that occasion). 

Personally Mr. Badeau is a gentleman of 
simple habits, culture, well educated, lover of 
science, research, art. To his tastes the 
whole co-partnership career was contributive, 
bringing him into hand and hand intimacy 
with Art of both worlds. 

Relinquishment of the bustling activities 
found installation of appreciations for the frui- 
tions of Post Commercial Relations. Pleasure 
travel, the diversified diversions and numerous 
private affairs have made his life (since retir- 
ing) one of busy leisure, he residing by turns in 
Europe, New York City, State of Iowa, and the 
counties of Schoharie, Rockland and Dutchess 
in New York State. Mr. Badeau has many in- 
terests in the West. He is a member of the 
board of directors, and vice-president of the 
First National Bank of Glidden, Iowa. 



BENJAMIN H. BREVOORT. The Bre- 

-tJ^ voorts came originally from Holland, the 
first of this family known in this country being 



Hans, who settled in Putnam county, N. Y. 
Of his history not much is known. Dean, the 
great-grandfather of our subject, was a soldier 
in the Revolutionary war, and at one time was 
in the employ of Gov. Kemble. 

Thomas J. Brevoort, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born in Putnam county about 1828; 
was a farmer by occupation, but for many 
years held the position of superintendent of 
the Mott Haven Ore Company, of New York 
City. For seventeen years he was a justice of 
the peace in his county, and was a leading citi- 
zen, a man of good natural ability, and suc- 
cessful in whatever he undertook. He was 
well acquainted with all the prominent men of 
the county, and took an active part in politics, 
being a strong Democrat. He belonged to the 
Baptist Church, and to the Masonic Order at 
Cold Spring, and in all the relations of life 
was well thought of by his associates and a 
large circle of warm personal friends. 

In 1846 Mr. Brevoort was married to 
Phoebe White, daughter of Joshua ^^'hite, who 
for many years was a justice of the peace in 
the town of Pawling. Her mother was a de- 
scendant of the Townsend family. Two chil- 
dren were born to Mr. and Mrs. Brevoort: 
Benjamin H. (our subject) and Jennie (who 
married C. W. Horton, of Stormville). The 
father died in 1873, and the mother in 1886. 

Benjamin H. Brevoort, our subject, was 
born in the town of East Fishkill, April 23, 
1847. He first attended school at the Pough- 
keepsie Collegiate Institute, College Hill, aft- 
erward entering upon his profession at Boyds 
Corners, in Putnam county, which public works 
were under the management of Gen. George 
S. Greene, now the oldest living graduate of 
West Point. In 1864 Mr. Brevoort was ap- 
pointed assistant city engineer of St. Paul, 
Minn., and later received the appointment of 
civil engineer on the St. Paul & Chicago rail- 
road. He was then recalled to New York and 
put on the Canal Department at White Hall 
Harbor, under the supervision of the State. 
He was assistant engineer in this work, but 
later was put in charge of the Topographical 
Department for the enlargeinent of the Cham- 
plain canal. He was afterward assigned to 
work on the New Croton aqueduct, where he 
remained until that great undertaking was com- 
pleted. In all these responsible positions he 
showed great ability, and secured the confi- 
dence and esteem of all with whom he was 
associated. He has been in close intercourse 
with all the leading civil engineers of the State, 
and has had valuable and extensive experience 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



179 



in his line of work. In his various undertak- 
ings Mr. Brevoort has been uniformly success- 
ful, and is now following his profession in the 
city of Poughkeepsie. He was also at one 
time a clerk under William C. Whitney, with 
whom he studied law, and was admitted to the 
bar, when the latter was corporation counsel. 
Mr. Brevoort was first married in 1873, to 
Miss Fisher, of Danbury, Conn., who died in 
1882, leaving two children, Thomas and Eva. 
The daughter resides in Buffalo. In 1894 our 
subject married, for his second wife, Miss 
Kittie Riley, a native of Walden, Orange Co., 
N. Y. For a number of years Mr. Brevoort 
was a Democrat, and was a delegate to the 
convention at Rochester which ruled Boss 
Tweed out of power. Soon after this he went 
over to the Republican party, and has been 
quite active in its interests ever since. Socially 
he is a Royal Arch Mason, and in all public 
matters is a generous and progressive citizen, 
who is ever ready to do his part. 



UFCUT FAMILY. In early times a set- 
tlement was made along what is now 
known as the Ten Miles river, in Dover, in 
eastern Dutchess county, by immigrants from 
the upper Rhine (now Alsace) and from Hol- 
land. One of these families who came from 
Ingersheim, in Alsace, was named Hoffgoot. 

John Lodwick Hoffgoot is the first of which 
there is authentic knowledge. He claimed to 
be a Lutheran minister. Objection was made 
by Rev. Christian Knoll, the Lutheran minis- 
ister of the Beekman's Precinct, to his officiating 
in Dutchess county, and he was ordered by 
the Consistorj' not to preach. He appealed to 
the Colonial Governor, George Clinton, of 
New York, who, after investigating the matter, 
granted him on the 24th day of February, 
1748, a license as a minister to preach the Gos- 
pel. He is said to have had a son Nicholas, 
and that Nicholas was the father of John (born 
in 1760), who spelled his name Hoofcoot. 
John could speak both German and English, 
and his wife, Jane Koens, who was of Holland- 
Dutch descent, could talk the Dutch language. 
John and Jane were the parents of George, 
Nicholas and others. Of these, George, who 
spelled his name Hoofcut, married Hannah 
Benson, and their children were: John, Car- 
oline, George, Jane, Henry, Shadrach, Will- 
iam, Betsey, Obed and Perry. All of these 
married, and left issue, except Jane and Shad- 



rach. John Hoofcoot, the father of George, 
Nicholas and others, died about 184S, and was 
buried in the cemetery at Dover Plains. He 
was called "Captain John Hoofcoot " on the 
tombstone. George, the son of John, was a 
farmer and lawyer at Dover, and died about 
1853, aged seventy-eight. 

George, his son, married Sarah A. Dennis. 
The first of her family was John Dennis, who, 
in 1647, received a deed of land at Cape May, 
in Jersey, from an Indian chief named Pank- 
toe, in behalf of the Indians. While the Rev- 
olutionary war in America was in progress 
Thomas Dennis, then a resident of New Jer- 
sey, was captured by the British, carried off a 
prisoner and died. His two children, Joseph 
and Sarah Dennis, being left without any one to 
care for them, a relative from Beekman, Dutchess 
county, brought them from New Jersey to Beek- 
man, Dutchesscounty, and they were there cared 
for. This Joseph Dennis, who married Re- 
becca Tanner, was the father of Sarah Dennis, 
whom George Hoofcut married. In 1827 this 
George Hoofcut changed the spelling of his 
name to Hufcut. He was a farmer and law- 
yer, owning mills and quarries at Dover Plains, 
and carried on considerable business there. 
He served his apprenticeship in one of the 
small cloth factories which were in almost 
every town throughout Dutchess county, from 
1820 to 1835. They made sattinet (a mi.xture 
of cotton and wool), and also dressed and col- 
ored the homespun woolen cloths made by the 
farmers' wives; carding machines were also 
connected with these establishments, to make 
the rolls of wool which the women spun at 
their home. He never engaged in the busi- 
ness. All the Hufcuts carried on farming at 
Dover e.xcept John, who resided in Lewis 
county, and was a farmer there. George and 
Sarah Hufcut were the parents of George, 
Horace D. and Rachel. George Hufcut died 
in 1 88 1, aged seventy-five; Sarah, his widow, 
died in 1885, aged seventy-nine. He was ad- 
mitted as an attorney and counselor in 1848. 

Horace D. Hufcut, now residing at Pough- 
keepsie, was born in Dover, Dutchess Co., 
N. Y. , October 12. 1837. He was educated 
at the schools of Poughkeepsie and at Amenia 
Seminary, then studied law with George Huf- 
cut, his father, at Dover Plains, and was ad- 
mitted as an attornej' and counsellor in i860. 

In politics Mr. Hufcut is a Democrat, arid 
as such ran for the office of school commis- 
sioner in the first Lincoln campaign, in the 



180 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



First Assembly District of Dutchess county. 
He was elected and served as town clerk and 
also as supervisor of the town of Dover; in 
1866 he was appointed and served as clerk of 
the board of supervisors. In 1863 he was ap- 
pointed, by Governor Horatio Seymour, recruit- 
ing agent for the First Assembly District of 
Dutchess county. He enlisted, and had ac- 
cepted by the United States mustering officer, 
150 men. After the war he continued to 
practice his profession in partnership with his 
father, under the name of G. & H. D. Hufcut, 
until January i, 1884, when, having been 
elected surrogate of Dutchess county, he re- 
moved to Poughkeepsie and served in that in- 
cumbency until January i, 1890. In 1891 he 
was elected district attorney of Dutchess county, 
and served as such for three years. In 1892 
he associated with him Everett H. Travis, and 
since that time has practiced his profession, 
under the name of Hufcut & Travis, at No. 54 
Market street, Poughkeepsie. In the election 
of 1896 he supported the regular Democratic 
ticket. He is a member of the M. E. Church. 
Mr. Hufcut's wife, Alice M. (Glidden), was 
a daughter of Samuel G. and Martha A. Glid- 
den, and was born at Damariscotta, Maine. 
They have two children: Florence G. and 
Horace G. 



COL. ROBERT F. WILKINSON, one of 
_' the most prominent lawyers of Pough- 
keepsie, and a veteran of the Civil war, is a 
member of one of the most distinguished fam- 
ilies of Dutchess county. 

John Wilkinson, his great-grandfather, was 
a well-known citizen of his day, a farmer by 
occupation and the father of a large family, 
among whom were three sons (triplets) — Rob- 
ert, our subject's grandfather; Gilbert; and 
Livingston, who died when a young man. 
They were named for Robert Gilbert Living- 
ston, a prominent resident of Dutchess county. 
John Wilkinson lost his life by the fall of a 
bridge over the Housatonic river, across which 
he was driving on his way to New Haven to 
place his son Robert in college. 

Robert Wilkinson, our subject's grandfa- 
ther, was born in 1787, and in 1806 was grad- 
uated from Yale College as the valedictorian 
of his class. He married Phoebe Oakley, 
daughter of Jesse Oakley, who was the head 
of a large family, .■\nother of his daughters 
married Judge Abraham Bockee, a member of 



the Court of Errors, and for several years a 
representative of this district in the State Sen- 
ate and in Congress, while still another daugh- 
ter married Gilbert Wilkinson, one of the trio 
above named. Robert Wilkinson moved to 
Glens Falls in 181 2, and was surrogate of 
Warren county for two years, but returned to 
Dutchess county to practice law at Dover 
Plains, where he remained until the election of 
his brother-in-law. Judge Thomas J. Oakley, 
to Congress in 1828, when he moved to Pough- 
keepsie and succeeded to a considerable part 
of Judge Oakley's practice. He was a schol- 
arly man, eloquent, with many fine natural 
gifts. Holding strong convictions upon the 
reform movements of his time, he became 
widely known as a promoter of religion and of 
the temperance cause. He was a Whig, and 
a warm personal friend of Henry Clay, but he 
never held any official position except that of 
surrogate of Warren county, as stated, and 
surrogate of Dutchess county, by appointment 
just previous to the adoption of the Constitu- 
tion of 1846. He died in Poughkeepsie in 
1849. 

His son, William Wilkinson, our subject's 
father, was born at Poughkeepsie, May 7, 1810, 
and after receiving a common-school and aca- 
demic education, he attended the Rensselaer 
Polytechnic Institute, at Troy, N. Y., then 
under the control of the celebrated Prof. Eaton. 
He then studied law and practiced with his 
father, and later with the late William I. 
Street. He was a leading member of the Pres- 
byterian Church, and a man of considerable 
literary attainments, being a frequent writer 
upon various subjects. In 1842 he married 
Mary E. Trowbridge, daughter of Stephen B. 
Trowbridge and his wife, Eliza Conklin, both 
of whom were members of well-known families 
in the county. He died December 12, 1864, 
leaving five children: Robert F., our subject; 
William; Edward T. ; Eliza, who married Au- 
gustus E. Bachelder, of Boston, Mass.; and . 
Catherine, who married Peter French, and 
died in 1885, leaving two children. 

Robert ¥. Wilkinson was born at Pough- 
keepsie June 10, 1843. He studied at the 
Dutchess County Academy, and under a priv- 
ate tutor, and then spent one year in the State 
and National Law School at Poughkeepsie. In 
1859 he entered Williams College with the 
class of 1863, and the next year joined the 
class of 1 86 1. He left college in 1861 without 
graduating, but he and other students who. 





^x/yi MuC<jL^C^H^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



181 



entered the army were given the degree of A. 
B. by vote of the trustees, and he has since 
received from Williams College the honorary 
degree of A. M. Returning home he spent 
some time as a student in his father's office, 
and in July, 1862, he became captain of Com- 
pany I, i2Sth N. Y. \. I., raised in Dutchess 
and Columbia counties. They went to the 
front in September, 1S62, and Mr. Wilkinson, 
after serving with his regiment through the 
siege of Port Hudson, Louisiana, was assigned 
to duty as judge advocate of the First Division 
of the Nineteenth Corps, on the staff of Gen. 
W. H. Emor}-, and served as a staff officer 
until the end of the war. In 1865 he was 
promoted to the rank of major, and thereafter 
received from the U. S. Government a brevet 
commission as lieutenant-colonel for distin- 
guished gallantry at the battle of Winchester, 
September 19, 1864, and later a brevet com- 
mission as colonel for distinguished gallantry 
at Cedar Creek, October 19, 1864. He re- 
ceived several severe wounds during the latter 
engagement, and after some weeks spent in 
the hospital he returned home, where he re- 
mained until his recovery. In February, 1865, 
he rejoined the arm}', and acted as inspector- 
general and adjutant-general of the post of 
Savannah. In July, 1865, he was mustered out, 
having seen service in the departments of the 
Gulf, in the Shenandoah Valley under Sheri- 
dan, and in Georgia. 

Returning home to Poughkeepsie at the 
close of the war, he was admitted to the bar 
in 1866, and has since that time continued to 
practice law. He has conducted several of 
the most important litigations originating in 
Dutchess county, has a large equity practice, 
and transacts much railroad and other cor- 
poration business. Always a Republican, and 
formerly active in politics, he nevertheless is 
independent in his political belief and conduct. 
He has never held office except the recorder- 
ship of Poughkeepsie for four years. 

In 1867, Col. \\'ilkinson married Julia 
Gifford, daughter of Elihu Gifford, of Hud- 
son, N. Y., and they have four children: 
Edith; Gifford, who graduated at Williams 
College in 1891, and is now a lawyer in Pough- 
keepsie; Emily C. ; and Robert, a graduate of 
Yale College in the class of '95, and now a 
member of the Harvard Law School at Cam- 
bridge, Massachusetts. 

Being fond of hunting, fishing, walking, 
and all out-door exercises, Mr. Wilkinson 



spends his vacations in the Adirondacks and 
the Catskills. He is a member of several 
noted social organizations — the University, the 
Century, the City, and the Lawyers Clubs of 
New York, also the Adirondack League Club 
and the Sigma Phi (college) Fraternity, and 
to the Bar Associations of the State and City 
of New York. He is a warden of St. Paul's 
Episcopal Church in Poughkeepsie, of Vhich 
his family have long been members. 



CHARLES W. PILGRIM, M. D., a lead- 
_, ing physician of Poughkeepsie, and a well- 
known writer on medical topics, was born in 
Monroe, Orange Co., N. Y., March 27, 1855, 
and is a son of Roe C. Pilgrim, a native of the 
same place. 

Morris B. , the great-grandfather of our 
subject, was a native of Holland. The grand- 
father, also named Morris B., was born in 
Orange county. He married Ann Coleman, a 
native of the same county, and settled down 
to farming, which occupation was interrupted 
by service in the war of 18 12. They had three 
children: Aminda, Susan and Roe C. ; of 
these, Aminda married Phineas B. Thompson, 
of Orange county, and Susan became the wife 
of John Knight, a farmer and miller of the 
same county. Roe C, the father of our sub- 
ject, was reared upon the farm, and married 
Frances, daughter of George Wilkes, of Orange 
county. The latter was a prominent man of 
the county, and for many years a justice of 
the peace. After their marriage our subject's 
parents located on the old homestead, where 
they reared a family of six children, as fol- 
lows: Augusta A. married Henry Ingram, a 
merchant in New York City; Morris B. is a 
business man in Jersey City; Mary died in in- 
fancy; Charles W. is our subject; Susan M. 
died when eighteen years old; Roetta married 
Charles Sumner, an official of the Erie Railway 
Company. The father ot this family practiced 
law in Orange county. He was a member of 
the Episcopal Church, while his wife was a 
Presbyterian. He died in October, 1858, and 
she in September, 1880. 

Our subject's early schooling was obtained 
in Monroe, Orange county, and when ten 
years of age he went to Jersey City, where he 
attended the city and private schools. In 
1876 he began the study of medicine with Dr. 
Herman Canfield, who was one of the physi- 
cians in the Bellevue Hospital at New York 



182 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



City, and was graduated from Bellevue Hospi- 
tal Medical College in the class of '80. He 
then became house physician to the hospital, 
in which position he remained for a year and a 
half, when he went to Auburn, N. Y., as as- 
sistant phj'sician in the Asylum for Insane 
Criminals. There he remained about ten 
months, and then went to Utica, where he 
was engaged in the State Hospital as fourth 
assistant, a year later becoming first assistant 
physician. Dr. John P. Gray was head phy- 
sician at that time. Dr. Pilgrim remained in 
this institution about five years, and in the 
early part of 1S85 entered the University of 
Vienna, Austria, afterward becoming a volun- 
teer physician in the Woman's Hospital at 
Munich. In 1886 he returned to Utica, and 
on June 12, 1889, was married to Miss Flor- 
ence Middleton. Her father, Robert Middle- 
ton, who was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, is 
president of the Globe Woolen Co., at Utica. 

After their marriage Dr. Pilgrim and his 
wife went abroad, and were absent about five 
months. On his return the Doctor was of- 
fered the superintendency of the Willard State 
Hospital, and began his duties as such in Feb- 
ruary, 1S90. In that office he remained about 
three years, at the end of that time becoming, 
on May i, 1893. the successor of Dr. Cleve- 
land as superintendent of the Huson River 
State Hospital at Poughkeepsie, which posi- 
tion he is now occupying. Dr. and Mrs. Pil- 
grim have one child, Florence M. 

Dr. Pilgrim is a member of the Masonic 
Fraternity, and of the Royal Arcanum. He 
is also a member of the Physicians' Mutual 
Benefit Association, the New York State Medi- 
cal Association, the Bellevue Alumni Society, 
and the County Medical Society of Dutchess 
county. From 1882 to 1890 he was associate 
editor of the "American Journal of Insanity," 
and, among other valuable contributions to 
medical science, is the author of the following 
papers: "Acute Lober Pneumonia with Car- 
diac Failure" — Indcpcitdcnt Practitioner; 
" The Advantages and Dangers of Intra-Ute- 
rine Injections" — idem July, 1882; "A Case 
of Epileptic Insanity with the Echo Sign Well 
Marked " — American Journal of Insanity, 
April, 1884; "A Case of Spontaneous Rupt- 
ure of the Heart," — idem, January, 18S5; 
"Pyro-Mania (so called) with Report of a 
Case" — idem, 1885; " A Visit to Gheel" — 
idem; "A Study of Suicide " — Popular Science 
Monthly; "Genius and Suicide" — idem; 



"Schools for the Insane" — idem; "Com- 
municated Insanity" — idem. 

Dr. Pilgrim is a man of much intellectual 
ability and mental culture, a deep student and 
thoroughly interested in all matters pertaining 
to his profession, especially in cases involving 
brain diseases. He is popular, not only with 
his patients, but with the public at large. 



JOHN POWELL WILSON, M. D., a prom- 
inent physician of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, was born January 27, 1845, at 
Hobart, Delaware County, New York. 

Dr. Wilson's family is of Scotch origin. 
John Wilson went from Scotland to the North 
of Ireland at the time of the Reformation, and 
bought two towns of land in Armagh which he 
entailed to pass to the John Wilsons in a 
direct line of descent. He was a Covenanter. 

John Wilson, our subject's grandfather, 
sold his birthright in Ireland, and came to 
America in 1795, locating first in New York 
City and later in Harpersville, Delaware coun- 
ty. He sailed from Warrenpoint, Ireland, on 
the ship "American Hero," May 12, 1795. 
He was a member of the Masonic order, and 
by occupation was a farmer and mason. He 
married Ann Tate, and their son, Robert Wil- 
son, our subject's father, was born in Harpers- 
ville, Delaware county, in 18 18. He was in 
the iron business, and was a man of promi- 
nence in his locality. He married Polly Ann 
Powell, and had six children, our subject being 
the eldest. Calista married William S. Bon- 
ton, of Nebraska; Mary married Charles L. 
Hicks, of Roxbury, Delaware Co., N. Y. ; 
Charles lives in- Nebraska; Frank is a success- 
ful physician in Brooklyn, N. Y. ; and Egbert 
died at the age of twenty-two years. 

His mother's great-grandfather was John 
McKeel, who was a first lieutenant in Col. 
Sam Drake's regiment of Westchester militia, 
which did good service in the war of the Rev- 
olution. John McKeel's ancestors sailed from 
Amsterdam, Holland, April 16, 1663, in a ship 
known as the "Brindled Cow," otherwise 
spoken of as the " Spotted Cow. " They set- 
tled at Fordham, N. Y. Her paternal grand- 
father, Reuben Powell, lived in Fishkill, and 
was a soldier of the Revolution. 

Dr. Wilson's boyhood was spent at Rox- 
bury, Delaware county, where he attended the 
public schools. In 1867 he entered the Al- 
bany Medical College, and later the College of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



183 



Physicians and Surgeons in New York City, 
from which he was graduated in 1870. He 
practiced one year at Stamford, Delaware, 
county, and then came to Pleasant Valley, 
where he followed his profession for some years 
with marked success. In 1879 he moved to 
Poughkeepsie, and has established a fine prac- 
tice entirely on his own merits. His abilities 
have been widely recognized. He has been 
health officer of the city of Poughkeepsie, and 
held the same position in Poughkeepsie town 
for twelve years. He was in the State mili- 
tary service about twenty-one years; in 1871 
was commissioned assistant surgeon of the 
21st Regiment, and in 1883 of the 19th Sepa- 
rate Company, with the rank of captain. 

On August 18, 1885, Dr. Wilson was mar- 
ried to Miss Geraldine Siever, a daughter of 
George Siever, a well-known citizen of Pough- 
keepsie, and they have one son, George Rob- 
ert, born November 28, 1886. Socially, the 
Doctor and his wife occupy a leading position 
in the most exclusive circles. He belongs to 
the order of Elks and to the Masonic frater- 
nity, being past master of Shekomeko Lodge 
No. 458, F. & A. M. His residence is No. 40 
Cannon street, Poughkeepsie, New York. 



GEORGE H. WILLIAMS, M. D., M. R. 
_ C. S. , L. R. C. P. But few members of 
the medical fraternity of this locality have 
enjoyed the advantage of as thorough prepara- 
tion for the exacting duties of their calling as 
has the subject of this sketch, now a success- 
ful practitioner at Fishkill. To a course in 
one of the best of our American medical col- 
leges, he has added prolonged study in foreign 
institutions, where he has won degrees repre- 
senting years of research and observation 
under the guidance of eminent workers in his 
profession. 

Although he has been among us but a few 
years, the standing which Dr. Williams has 
already won makes it most appropriate that 
his biography should be given at some length 
in this volume. He was born May 30, i860, 
in Johnstown, Fulton Co., N. Y., and is of 
English descent in both lines of ancestry. 
His paternal grandfather, Roger Williams, was 
a native of the "Merrie Isle," and followed 
the business of carriage manufacturing there 
in early manhood, and later in Sing Sing, 
N. Y. , and Bridgeport, Conn., where he and 



his wife, Elizabeth Spiller, passed their last 
days. 

Rev. W. H. Williams, our subject's father, 
was born in Plymouth, England, and was ap- 
proaching manhood when he came to America. 
He received an important portion of his edu- 
cation under the able instruction of Rev. Dr. 
Coit, rector of St. John's Church, Bridgeport, 
Conn., who prepared him for entrance to Trin- 
ity College, Hartford, Ccnn. He completed 
his theological course at Middletown, Conn., 
where he was ordained to the ministry in the 
Episcopal Church. His first charge was at New 
Canaan, Fairfield Co., Conn., and his second 
at Johnstown, N. Y.; but some years after lo- 
cating there the Civil war broke out, and he 
served until its close as chaplain of the 87th 
N. Y. V. I. On his return to the North, he 
became rector of the Episcopal Church at 
Winsted, Conn., and in 1867 he went to Dixon, 
Fulton Co., 111., to take charge of the con- 
gregation there. In 1 87 1 he accepted a call 
to the Church at Albany, Ga., and from 1873 
to 1876 he served as rector of the Church at 
Pontiac, near Providence, R. I. He returned 
to England in 1876; in 1879 he was called as 
vicar to Christ's Church, Padgate, Warrington, 
and died there in 1889. He was, we believe, 
the second American clergyman who held a ben- 
efice, or "living," in the Established Church. 
His wife, Maria (Merritt), to whom he was 
married in 1848, was a daughter of John 
B. Merritt, a prominent resident of Bridge- 
port, Conn. She was born in that town, 
but her family was of English extraction. 
Five children were born of this union, of, 
whom three died in infancy. Of the two 
survivors the elder. Rev. John W. Williams, 
is rector of St. Paul's Church (Episcopal) at 
East Orange, New Jersey 

Dr. G. H. Williams, the younger son, 
passed his youth in various places owing to the 
changes of location which are so common an 
incident in a clergyman's life. His elementary 
education was obtained mainly in the school of 
the Rev. C. M. Selleck, Norwalk, Conn., and 
in 1876 he entered Trinity College, Hartford, 
Conn., where he spent two years. In 1878 
he was enrolled as a student in the medical 
department of Yale College, and the following 
year he joined his father at Warrington, Eng- 
land, where he pursued his professional 
studies at Owen's College (Medical), Manches- 
ter. Later" he graduated at the College of 
Physicians at Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1883, 



184 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



and in January, 1884, he was graduated as 
a member of the Royal College of Surgeons 
at London, these honors conferring the 
right to use the titles commonly abbreviated 
to L. R. C. P. Edin., and M. R. C. S. Eng. 
He served one term as house surgeon of the 
Royal Infirmary in Manchester, and two years 
as house surgeon of the North Lonsdale Hos- 
pital at Barrow-in-Furness, Lancashire, and 
in 1887 became assistant surgeon to Dr. J. A. 
Hall, of Huddersfield, Yorkshire, with whom 
he remained one year. In 1888 he established 
an independent practice at Warrington, Lan- 
cashire; but returning in 1890 to his native 
land, he opened an office in New York City, 
in West Eighty-first street. During his first 
year there he completed his course at Yale, 
securing the degree of M. D. from that univer- 
sity. In 1S94 he purchased the practice of 
Dr. F. T. Hopkins, at Fishkill, and has now 
become well established among the leadmg 
physicians of that place. 

On January 12, 1S93, Dr. Williams mar- 
ried Miss Sarah \'acher, second daughter of 
John Van Vorst, a prominent resident of Jer- 
sey City, N. J. Three children — Agnes Van- 
Vorst, Helen Merriit and Sarah Vacher — have 
blessed this union. The Doctor is a member 
of the Episcopal Church, and also belongs to 
the Masonic fraternity. While he takes an 
intelligent interest in all the questions of the 
day, he is not a partisan in politics. 



CHARLES EDWARD LANE, M. D., a 
prominent and successful physician and 
surgeon of Poughkeepsie, is descended from 
one of the old families of Dutchess county, his 
great-grandfather, Jacob Lane, having resided 
here before the Revolution. Jacob Lane had 
two sons, Peter, and John G., our subject's 
grandfather, who was born May 22, 1776, and 
passed his life in the town of Beekman (now 
Unionvale). He married Betsey Emigh, and 
had twelve children: Thomas, Benson, Mar- 
vin, Jackson, William, Reimselaer, Jeremiah, 
Edward, Betsey, Hannah, Phcebe and Julia, 
all of whom lived in Dutchess county except 
Jackson, who moved to Michigan. 

Edward Lane, father of our subject, re- 
ceived a limited education in his youth, and at 
an early age left home to support himself. He 
embarked upon a whaling voyage, and several 
years passed before he returned to his native 
land. Having a bright intellect, he spent his 



leisure hours in study, trying to gain as best he 
could the education denied him in his earlier 
years. On his return home he served on sev- 
eral boats on the Hudson as pilot and captain, 
and later became the owner of a schooner, 
which at that time was the largest that ran to 
Troy. In 1854 he married Jane A. Hall, a 
lady of Dutch descent, and daughter of Gilbert 
and Mary Hall. Three children were born to 
them, as follows: Charles Edward; Celestia 
A. died in infancy; and Irvin J. is a prominent 
physician at Sing Sing, N. Y. In 1863 Ed- 
ward Lane sold his schooner after a final trip 
to Providence, R. I., accompanied by his family, 
and he then bought a farm in Seneca county, 
N. Y., whereon he lived three years, when he 
sold it and purchased his present farm in Fish- 
kill. ■ 

The subject proper of these lines, wnose 
name appears at the opening, was born at 
Clove, Dutchess county, August 16, 1855, 
and lived with his parents until he was nine 
years old, when he returned to his place of 
birth in order to make his home with his uncle 
and aunt, Mr. and Mrs. Joseph M. Cutler, the 
latter being his mother's sister, and as they 
had no children they practically adopted our 
subject. At sixteen he had obtained such ele- 
mentary education as was afforded by the dis- 
trict schools of the neighborhood, and was sent 
to the Wesleyan Academy, at Wilbraham, 
Mass. ; but before his course there was com- 
pleted, his uncle's failing health caused him to 
return and devote his entire attention to the 
'sufferer. Upon the latter's death, in 1876, 
he bequeathed to our subject the old home- 
stead of the Hall family, and associated as it 
is with memories of mother, grandparents and 
others. Dr. Lane still retains it as a prized 
possession. In 1876 our subject took the 
business course at the Eastman Business Col- 
lege, Poughkeepsie. On March 28, of the fol- 
lowing year, he married Hattie A. Yoemans, of 
Clove, by whom he has had two sons: Theron, 
born February 27, 1878, who died in infancy; 
and George Edward, born November 30, 1883, 
who is at home. 

In 1880 Dr. Lane entered the New York 
Homeopathic Medical College, from which he 
was graduated in 1883, and for five years he 
successfully practiced his profession at Clove. 
In 1888 he moved to Poughkeepsie, where his 
abilities as general practitioner and specialist 
in orificial surgery won for him speedy recog- 
nition from the medical fraternity, as well as 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



185 



from the public. From 1889 to 1894 he was 
secretary of the board of examining surgeons 
of the U. S. Bureau of Pensions; he is a mem- 
ber of the Dutchess County Medical Society, 
and of the New York State Homeopathic Med- 
ical Society. While taking a prominent part 
in the social life of the city of Poughkeepsie, 
he still retains an active interest in local affairs 
at his home in Clove, and he is a member of 
the Christian Church there. He affiliates with 
Triune Lodge No. 7S2, F. & A. M. ; Pough- 
keepsie Chapter No. 172, R. A. M. ; Pough- 
keepsie Commandery No. 43, K. T. ; Mecca 
Temple of the Mystic Shrine; Poughkeepsie 
Council No. 391, R. A.; with the I. O. O. F., 
Fallkill Lodge No. 297; and with the I. O. G. 
T. , Lodge No. 80, and the International Su- 
preme Lodge. 



GEORGE MARVIN WELLMAN, A. M., 
M. D., a prominent physician of Dutchess 
county, residing at Dover Plains, is a de- 
scendant, in the seventh generation, of (I) 
Thomas W'ellman,' who in 1640 came to 
America, probably from PoundsfordPark, Som- 
ersetshire, England, locating in Lynn, Mass. ; 
and also in the seventh generation, of Thomas 
Bliss' and his wife Margaret, who likewise came 
from England and settled in Springfield, Mass. , 
in 1639. Thomas Wellman' (I) died October 
10, 1672, leaving no will. His estate was 
settled by agreement of the heirs, which 
agreement was accepted by the court, and is 
on the records of the town of Lynn, Massa- 
chusetts. 

Thomas Wellman' (I) married Elizabeth 
— [surname not now known], and by her had 
si.x children, as follows: "I Abigail"; 'II Abra- 
ham,' born about 1643, died in 17 17; Mil 
Isaac,'- the date of whose birth is unknown, 
but record says that he was living December 
17, 1710; and°IV Elizabeth-, ''V Sarah'-, and 
'VI Mary-, all three of whom were living and 
not of age, at the time the agreement was 
signed, March 22, 1673. Of this family Isaac'-' 
(4) was the great-great-great-grandfather of 
Dr. George M. Wellman. A descendant of 
Abraham Wellman- (3) is Rev. Joshua W. 
Wellman, D. D., whose home is at No. 117 
Summer street. Maiden, Mass., and who was 
born in Cornish, N. H., November 28, 1821. 
His grandmother, Althea (Riplej') Wellman, 
was a descendant, in the seventh generation, 
of Governor William Bradford, of Plymouth 



Colony, Mass. Rev. J. W. Wellman, D. D., 
is a member of the New England Historical 
and Genealogical Society, and has quite full 
records of the descendants of Thomas Well- 
man, the immigrant of 1640. To him Dr. 
Wellman, the subject of this sketch, is in- 
debted for many of the events and dates 
recorded herein. 

Isaac Wellman'- (4) was married March 13, 
1679, to Hannah Adams, who, it is thought, 
in 1723 (being then a widow), moved with 
her son, Isaac, to Norton, North Precinct . 
(now Mansfield), Mass., as related farther on. 
Her children were as follows: " I Isaac, ^ 
born February 7, 1680, died September 19, 
1 681; '■' II Stephen', born September 6, 1681, 
died January 21, 1767, aged eighty-five; '"III 
Isaac (sd),-' date of birth not known, died in 
1740, at Mansfield. Of this family Isaac ■' (2d) 
(10) was the great-great-grandfather of Dr. 
Wellman. 

Isaac Wellman-* (10) married Mary Slafter, 
who was born in November, 1688, the eldest 
of ten children of John Slafter, of Lynn, Mass. 
[See "Slafter Memorial," pp. 4-7]. In 1723 
Mr. Wellman and family removed to Norton, 
North Precinct, Mass., where he purchased 
118 acres of land for the sum of 236 pounds 
sterling, lawful money of the province of Mas- 
sachusetts Bay, the deed bearing the date of 
" this twenty-third day of May, Anno Domini, 
1723, in the ninth year of the reign of our 
Sovereign Lord, George of Great Britain," 
etc. Mrs. Mary (Slafter) \\'ellman died Jan- 
uary 12, 1793, "in the 105th years of her age; 
a religious woman." At the time of her hus- 
band's death (1740) there were five children 
in the family, the youngest of whom died soon 
after, and the name of that child is not on 
record. The others were as follows: "I 
Isaac, ^ baptized June 8, 1718, died in Norton, 
North Parish, December 30, 1804; 'TI Eb- 
enezer,* born about' 1720, died February 11, 
1776, in the fifty-sixth year of his age; "III 
Hannah,^ baptized May 27, 1722; and "IV 
Timothy,^ born about 1724. Of these Isaac* 
(I I ) was the great-grandfather of Dr. Wellman. 

Isaac Wellman^ (11) was a resident of 
Mansfield. He married, August 4, 1748, 
Hannah Wellman, of Attleboro, Mass., who 
died November 29, 1794, at Mansfield. Her 
ancestry is as yet unknown. Their children 
were: ''I Peter,'' born August 7, 1750, died 
May 28, 1791; '"II Ebehezer,-^ the grand- 
father of Dr. Wellman; ''HI Mary,^ born 



186 



CO.VME.VORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



May 12, 1756; unmarried; and '*'IV Sarah, ^ 
born September 19, 1758, unmarried. 

Ebenezer Wellman^ (16) was born at Mans- 
field, Mass., September 22, 1752, and died 
January, 183 1. When a young man he re- 
moved to Vermont, where he purchased a farm 
at Grassybrook, since called Brookline, in 
Windham county. 

Ebenezer Wellman' (12) (who was born 
about 1720), married (first). May 28, 1747, 
Sarah Payson, of Stoughton, Mass.; (second) 
March 26, 1761, Priscilla Day, of Stoughton. 
Children of first marriage: ''' I Joseph,'' born 
December 28, 1747; '^ II Sarah,' born March 
27, 1749; '-'III Samuel,^ born March 13, 1751; 
"IV Benjamin,'* born March 18, 1753; -*V 
Mary,' born June 9, 1755; -^ VI Judith,' born 
February 9, 1757; and *' VII Phebe,' born July 
2, 1759. Children of second marriage: '-''VIII 
Oliver,'' born October 18, 1761; ^ IX Lucy,= 
born November 30, 1763; -'*X Abigail,'' born 
July 21, 1767; '-"■' XI Betty,' born March 24, 
1769; and ^XII Ebenezer,^ born May 4, 1772. 
Of these, Joseph^ ( 19) and Oliver' (26) rendered 
military service in the Continental army, in 
the Revolutionary war. 

Timothy Wellman^ (14) (who was born about 
1734) married, August 14. 1755, Rachel New- 
land, of Norton, Mass. Their children (as far 
as known) were: "I Timothy,'' born in 1757 
in Mansfield, Mass., died in Brookline, Vt., 
March 8, 1842; ■'"-'11 John,^ [birth and death 
unknown]; '"III a daughter [birth and death 
unknown]; ■" IV a daughter [birth and death 
unknown]; '*V Darius [birth and death un- 
known]. There is no full record of their chil- 
dren, but it is believed that it was their eldest 
son, Timothy' 1 31), who married Lucy Skin- 
ner, of Princeton, Miss. This son Tim- 
othy^ (31) was a soldier in the Revolutionary 
war, and was in the fight on Dorchester 
Heights, Mass. There is evidence that he 
was "a brave, generous and energetic man, a 
true Christian and a public benefactor." At 
the close of the war he removed to Brookline, 
Vt. There is no record of the date of his mar- 
riage, nor of his wife's family. 

Peter Wellman' (i 5) married February 5, 
1780, Hannah Capron, of Mansfield, Mass. 
Their children were: *I Solomon,'' born De- 
cember 21, 1780, died at Lowell, Mass. , July 
13, 1 851; '^11 Hannah'' born January 20, 
1783, died September i, 1874, aged ninety- 
one years; 'Til Deliverance," born February 
25, 1785; -'TV Christiana. " born February 26, 



1788, died September, 1809; '"V Isaac,'' born 
June 8, 1790. The widow of Peter* ( 15) mar- 
ried, for her second husband, Solomon Grov- 
ener, of Jamaica, \'t., September 15, 1796. 
They had children, and she died about 1840, 
in Jamaica, \'ermont. 

Ebenezer Wellman'' (16) (grandfather of 
Dr. Wellman) married in Mansfield, Mass., 
Miss Sarah Austin [no date of their marriage 
given, and no record of her parentage or 
birth]; she died in Brookline, Vt., September 
16, 1803. Their children were: "I Sarah,'' 
born November 8, 1783; ^TI Ebenezer, "^ born 
November 11, 1787, died March 20, 1852; 
^'III Isaac,'' born May 20, 1790, died November 
24, 1866; "IV Abigail Ann,'' born February 25, 
1797, died February 28, 1865; '''V Marvin," 
born at Brookline, Vt., June 6, 1800; died at 
Dover Plains. N. Y., March 20, 1876. 

Timothy Wellman' (3 1 ), who married Lucy 
Skinner, had by her twelve children, as fol- 
lows: *'I Isaac," born January i, 1784, died 
January 26, 1848, at Lagrange, Wyoming Co., 
N. Y. ; ''II Lucy," [date of birth unknown]; 
'*III Lucinda," born 1790; 'TV Asa," [birth 
date unknown] died 1 820; '"V William, "[date 
of birth and death unknown]; *'\T De Louis", 
born 1796; ''-VII Hannah," born 1797; '^'VIII 
Hiram," born 1799; '''IX Timothy," born 1801; 
■"X Daniel," born November 5, 1802; -^'XI 
Laura, " born 1804, died 1877; '^'XII Elmira", 
born 1809. 

John Wellman '' (32) married at Mansfield, 
Mass., April 26, 17S4, Cloe Wellman, who 
was probably youngest daughter of Elkanah 
Wellman and his wife, Mehitabel Wellman. 
Cloe Wellman was baptized in Lynnfield, 
Mass., May 20, 1764. John and Cloe re- 
moved to Brookline, Vt., and are reported to 
have had two sons (58) and (59) [names not 
known]. The family afterward removed to 
Amherst, Mass., and conducted a forge, about 
a mile north of the college buildings. 

Solomon Wellman," (36) married Elizabeth 
Tripp Leeds, daughter of Thomas Leeds, of 
Dorchester, Mass. [date not known]; she 
was born September 26, 1791, and died Sep- 
tember 4, 1849. Their thirteen children were: 
'*'I George," born March 16, 18 10, in Boston, 
Mass., died April 4, 1864; '''II Eliza Ann", 
born March 25, 181 1, in Boston, died June 9, 
1875; "-'III Caroline Capron,' born August 23, 
1 81 2, married Josiah Shaw, of Abington, 
Mass. ; '*'IV Lucinda Boyden," born December 
3, 1813, died January 26, 1833; '"'V Mary Eliz- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHIGAL RECORD. 



187 



abeth," born January 21, 1S15, married Martin 
Bayley Pierce, of Abington, Mass. ; '"VI Clar- 
issa Slaria,' born December 9, 18 17; "'VII 
William Lloyd,' born October 23, i8i9;"^VIII 
Henry Ripley," born March 20, 1821, died 
May 14, 1848; *IX Charles Payson," born De- 
cember 13, 1823; "'X Otis,' born January 26, 
1827, died in infancy ; ""XI Harriet Angeline," 
born March 25, 1828, married John Adams 
Floyd, of Abington, Mass. ; ''XII Elisha,' born 
October 21, 1830, went to California; '■^XIII 
Lucinda Jane,' born January 26, 1833. 

Hannah Wellman'' (37) married April 25, 
1805, Jesse George, of Wrentham, Mass. He 
was born October 22, 1783, and died Septem- 
ber 5, 185 1. Their eight children were: "I 
Emily,' born October 7, 1S05; '^11 Elizabeth,' 
born November i, 1807, died July 8, 1834; 
'■'III Hannah Maria," born April 8, 181 1, died 
January 31, 1816; '"IV John Capron," born 
November 4, 18 13, died November 2, 1882. 
Resided in Boston; '"V Lyman Augustus,' born 
March 17, 18 17, resides in Boston, Mass.; ™VI 
Hiram,' born June 23, 1820, resides in Wrent- 
ham, Mass.; '''VTI William Emerson," born 
August II, 1823; *VIII Catharine Augusta," 
born July 20, 1826, died April 22, 1879. 

Deliverance Wellman "(38) married Wind- 
sor Wheelock, of Mendon, Mass. Their si.\ 

children were: "'I Clara Elizabeth," born , 

died September 18, 1857. She married her cou- 
sin Hiram George, '(78) who survives and lives 

in Wrentham, Mass. ; *"TI Charlotte," born , 

married Marvel Marr, and had as children 
Waldo and Maria, who reside in West Thomp- 
son, Conn. ; "^'III Nancy" [birth and death dates 

unknown]; "IV Mary,' born , married 

Philip Taft; had son Philip; *V Sylvia," born 

, married Nelson Steere, and had children 

Adelbert and Sarah, who reside in Burrillville, 

R. I.;*VI Peter," born , married [name 

of wife unknown], and had Joseph and Mary, 
who live in Woonsocket, Rhode Island. 

Christiana Wellman" (39) married Harvey 
George, and hadMary'(87), who died in infancy. 

Isaac Wellman" (40) married (first) Lucinda 
Boyden; (second), Nancy Boyden, sisters, of 
Medfield, Mass. He had at least seven chil- 
dren by his first wife [names and births not 
known.] He removed to Alabama, Genesee 
Co.. N. Y. After his first wife died he re- 
moved to Grattan, Kent Co.. Michigan. 

Sarah Wellman" (41) married Zachariah 
Holden [no dates]. Their children were: *T 
Elmore" [dates of birth and death unknown]. 



married and lived in Dansville, N. Y. ; -''II 
Elvira" [no dates given] died young. 

Ebenezer" (42) married Susannah Moore 
[no dates given]. Their ten children were: 
*I Leavit K. ,' born December 25, 1809; "'11 
Elvin M.,' born August 10, 181 1; ''Til Peter 
Dallas,' born March 9, 1813; ''TV Norman An- 
drews," born April 15, 181 5; '"V Mary Moore," 
born June 8, 1817; ''''VI Sarah Austin," born 
September 22, 1819; ''"VII Abigail Marsh," born 
October 23, 1821 ;'''VIII Marvin," born Novem- 
ber I, 1823, died in Illinois; "^IX Luke,' born 
January 3 I, 1826; '■''■'X Chelis," born 1829. The 
first four were born in Brookline, Vt., the next 
four in Montgomery, Vt., and the other two in 
Avery's Gore, Vermont. 

Isaac Wellman" (43) married July 1 2, 1 8 1 2, 
in Brookline, Vt., Kesiah Robbins, daughter of 
William and Kesiah (Benson) Robbins. She 
was born July 6, 1792, and died November 24, 
1866. They had only one child,'"" I Everett 
Perry Wellman," born in Brookline, Vt., Jan- 
uary 5, 181 3, died in Brookline, Vt., February 
22, 1891. 

Abigail Ann Wellman'' (44) married June 
28, 1 8 14, Allen G. Andrews, of Providence, 
R. I. They emigrated in 1814, to Hardin 
county, Ky., and in 1828 removed to Mon- 
mouth, Warren county. 111., where they spent 
the remainder of their lives. Their ten chil- 
dren were: ""I Sarah Elizabeth", born Octo- 
ber 10, 18 1 7, married April i, 1S34, Nathaniel 
Hopper; '"TI Allen Talbot (ist),' born March 
10, 1819, died August 27, 1829; '"-Til Abby 
Ann,' born November 28, 1821, married March 
20, 1845, Norman Buck; '"^IV Roland Green," 
born March 17, 1823, married November 2, 
1848, Ann Carter, and died August 4, 1849; 
'"■'V Alexine Southgate.'born February 3, 1827, 
married October 12, 1847, Elvin M. Wellman; 
'""VI Lydia Beals,' born March 2, 1828, mar- 
ried April 2, 1845. Seth Gates; "^VII Cynthia 
Jane," born October 13, 1829, died August 13, 
1843; '*VIII Elkanah W. ,' born August 26, 
1 83 1, died March 19, 1834; '"TX Lusannah 
R.,' born October 17, 1835, married February 
25, 1853, William Ward; ""X Allen Talbot 
(2nd),' born .April 19, 1837, married; lives in 
Monmouth, Illinois. 

Marvin Wellman "(45) (the father of Dr. 
George M. Wellman), in April, 1822, became 
a resident of Springfield, Mass. , where he spent 
most of his life, engaged in conducting a store 
at the corner of Maine and William streets. In 
1 866 he sold his property in Springfield, and 



188 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPUICAL RECORD. 



home in Fay- 
native town), 
he brought 
making his 
On June 8, 
a daughter 



born 
Mary 

Sep- 
• born 
1833; 



returned to Vermont, buying a 
ettevilie (near Brookiine, his 
where he hved until 1872, when 
his wife to Dover Plains, N. Y., 
home with his son. Dr. Wellman. 
1826, he married Miss Mary Bliss 
of Zenas and Mary (Babcock) Bliss, of Spring- 
field. Mass. [See the Bliss genealogy as given 
farther on]. The children of Marvin'' (45) 
and Mary Bliss Wellman: ^"I Abigail,' 
June 21, 1S27, did not marry; "'11 
Bliss," born October 11, 1829, married 
temberg, 1S61; "'III Isaac Austin (first), 
December 11, 1S31, died February 25, 
"*IV Isaac Austin (second\" born April 27, 
1S34; "'V George Marvin" (the subject of this 
sketch I, born February 24, 1837; "''VI Laura 
Bliss," born August 5, 1S39, did not marrj'; "" 
VII Emma Lucretia," born July iS, 1843, 
married July 18, 1S88, James Y. Robinson, of 
Kansas, a veteran Union soldier of the war of 
the Rebellion. No children. They reside in 
Ouenemo, Kansas. 

Isaac Wellman'' (46), son of Timothy'^ (31) 
and Lucy Skinner Wellman, of Brookiine, Vt., 
married April 21, 1808, Sally Bixby, who was 
born in Brookiine, March 12, 1787. In 1824 
they removed to Friendship, Allegany Co., N. 
Y. Thence they removed to Wx'oming coun- 
ty, N. Y. , where they spent the remainder of 
their lives. They were deeply religious people 
and belonged to the Baptist denomination. 
Isaac"* (46) was a second cousin of Isaac" (43). 
There were two branches of \\'ellmans in 
Brookiine, \'t. , Isaac" (46) was a deacon and 
preacher, and several of his sons were elected 
deacons. Their children: "*I Chauncev," 
born July 16, 1810; "»II Nelson H.," born 
April 21, 181 5, died December 21, i88_ 
Sarah C," born June 14, 1817, died 1885 
IV Alvin," born May 17, 1822; "^'V Miriam De- 
light," born September 26, 1S24, in Friendship, 
N. Y. ; '-'\'I Harvey," born April 17, 1S27. 
The first four were born in Brookiine. 

Everett Perry Wellman" (^lOO) married 
Electa Butterfield, daughter of Samuel and 
Polly (Miller) Butterfield, at Newfane. Vt., 
August 13, 1840. She was born September 
10, 18 1 3, and died June 9, 18S9. Everett 
Perrj" (100) was a quiet, industrious farmer, 
universally respected; and honored by his fel- 
low townsmen by a seat in the\'ermont House 
of Representatives. Their children: ^'M Mary 
Abby Ann.* born October 20, 1846, at Brook- 
line, Vt. ; '^ II Martha Electa,* born July 9, 



1*1 1 1 

131 



I S49, at Brookiine, \'t. ; Mary Abby Ann" 1124), 
married at Brookiine, November 16, 1882, 
Judge Andrew Asa Wyman, who was born 
March 12, 1830, and died suddenly November 
21, 1894, of heart disease, upon the steps of 
the capitol at Montpelier, Vt., where he was 
in attendance as a member of the House of 
Representatives. They had no children. 
Martha Electa" (125) married, March 25, 
1895, at Athens, \'t.. Rev. George Henry 
Bolster, who was born in Alstead, N. H., Feb- 
ruary 26, i860. 

Mary Bliss Wellman" 1I12) married Sep- 
tember 9, 1 86 1, at Ouincy, 111., John Sprout, 
a native of Pennsylvania, a substantial farmer 
and stock breeder. After their marriage they 
removed to Monmouth, 111., where they have 
since remained. Their children: '^"''I John 
Wellman, " born September, 1S64; '■'• II Ma- 
mie,* born August, 1867. 

Isaac Austin Wellman i second) "(114) mar- 
ried November 5, 1S79, at Solomon Rapids, 
Kans.. Mrs. Sarah Mitchell, of the same place. 
Mr. Wellman is a merchant, and resides at 
Centropolis, Kans. They have had only one 
child, ^^ I Emma May," 'born July 15, "1882, 
at Centropolis, Kansas. 

Dr. George Marvin Wellman ' ( 1 1 5) mar- 
ried, at Otego, N. Y., on September 8, 1869, 
Miss Jeannie S. Cole, daughter of James H. 
and Augusta Cole, substantial farmers of Ote- 
go, Otsego Co., N. Y. She was born at Ote- 
go, N. Y. , July 3, 1849, and died at Dover 
Plains, N. Y. , December 13, 1S86. Children 
of Dr. George M." (115) and Jeannie S. Cole 
Wellman: '"'I Marion Augusta,* born Novem- 
ber 25. 1870; '* II Fred Browning,* born Au- 
gust 31, 1877, died June 12, 1878; '" III 
Maude Sherman,' born December 24, 1884. 
Marion Augusta Wellman* (129; married at 
Dover Plains, N. Y.. July i, 1896, Rev. Ed- 
ward Duncan Kelsey ^a sketch of whom fol- 
lows). They have one child '*-'I Marion Wellman 
Kelsey.'' born at Sharon. Conn., May 17, 1897. 

Dr. George M. Wellman, the subject of 
this sketch passed his early life in Springfield, 
Mass. In the high school of that city he pre- 
pared for college, and in 1857 he entered Am- 
herst College, where, working his own way by 
teaching school, he completed the classical 
course, graduating in 1861, receiving the de- 
gree of A. B. Five years later the degree of 
A. M. was conferred upon him. In 1861 he 
entered the government hospital service at 
Washington, D. C as ward master in Lincoln 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



189 



Hospital, serving until 1864, when he obtained 
an appointment in the Ordnance Office of the 
War department, where he continued for four 
years. In the meantime he had taken up the 
study of medicine in the Georgetown Medical 
College, Washington, D. C, where he gradu- 
ated in 1868 with high honors, delivering the 
valedictory at the commencement exercises in 
Wall's Opera House in that city. Proceeding 
to New York City, he then took a one-year's 
course of study at the College of Physicians 
and Surgeons. 

In 1869 Dr. Wellman located at Dover 
Plains, Dutchess county, where he soon built 
up a large and lucrative practice. His plain 
common sense, good judgment, thorough knowl- 
edge of medicine and skill in surgery, at once 
won for him the confidence of the people, and 
his success was an assured fact. He is one of 
the prominent members of the Dutchess Coun- 
ty ^Iedical Society. As a citizen he stands de- 
servedly high, and has often been urged to ac- 
cept public office, but cares little for political 
preferment. 

Rev. Ed\v.\rd Duncan KELSEY,who married 
Miss Marion A. Wellman, is a son of Lysander 
and Mary (Duncan) Kelsey, the former of whom 
was born October i, 18 17, at Rutland, Vt., 
the latter on March 4, 1826, in Maysville, Ky. 
They were married May 30, 1847, and became 
the parents of the following children: Rev. 
Francis Duncan, born February 15, 1849, re- 
sides at Oberlin, Ohio; Charles Duncan, born 
August 25, 1850, died August, 1874; Rev. 
Edward Duncan, born January 16, 1853, at 
Wheelersburg, Ohio, resides in Sharon, Conn. ; 
Elizabeth Duncan, born March 15, 1855, mar- 
ried to George S. Van Every, of Portland, 
Oregon, resides at Los Angeles, Cal. ; Caro- 
line Duncan, born October 31, i860, married 
to Charles H. Hauks, of Washington, D. C. , 
resides at Tacoma, W'ash. ; George Duncan, 
born August 28, 1864, has been twice married, 
resides at Meadville, Penn. ; and Frederick 
Duncan, born June 8, 1866, married and re- 
sides at Juneau, Alaska. The father of this 
family died May 24, 1889, at Portland, Ore- 
gon, where the mother is yet residing. 

Rev. Edward Duncan Kelsey removed, in 
1857, to Columbus, Ohio, where he graduated 
from the high school; from 1870 to 1874 he 
attended Marietta (^Ohio) College, graduating 
in the latter year; in 1875 he entered Andover 
(Mass.) Theological Seminar}-, where he re- 
mained two years. In 1877 he went to Ash- 



ville, N. Y., where for two years he was pas- 
tor of the Congregational Church; then, in 
1879, entered Yale Theological Seminary, New 
Haven, Conn., graduating there in 1881. 
From 1882 to 18S4 he was settled as pastor at 
Almont, Mich.; from 1884 to 1885 was assist- 
ant pastor of the Seventh Presbyterian Church, 
New York City; from 1885 to 1889 he was 
pastor of the First Presbyterian Church at 
Cutchogue, L. I., N. Y. ; from 1889 to 1890 
was settled at Prospect, Ohio; from 1890 to 
1894 was pastor of the Presbyterian Church in 
South Amenia, N. Y. In 1894 he became 
principal of the high school at Sharon, Conn., 
in which position he has since remained. Mr. 
Kelsey has been twice married, first time on 
June 29, 1 88 1, to Miss Julia C. Baldwin, of 
New Haven, Conn. She was born at Milford, 
Conn., February 23, 1S57, and died February 
I, 1894, at South Amenia, N. Y. The chil- 
dren of this union were: Frank Childs, born 
July 19, 1882, died September 3, 1883; 
Arthur Baldwin, born September 10, 1884; 
Florence Duncan, born October 13, 1886; and 
Josephine Dykeman, born July 25, 1893. 



The Bliss Gciiralot 



-Zenas Bliss was a 



descendant of Samuel Bliss, the youngest son 
of Thomas and Margaret Bliss, who settled in 
Springfield, Mass., in 1639. Samuel's son, 
Ebenezer Bliss, married Mary Gaj'lord, of 
Madison, Conn., January, 1707. Ebenezer's 
son, Jedediah Bliss, was born February 7, 
1708, and married Rachel Sheldon July 2, 
1733. and had by her eight children, and nine 
by his second wife — seventeen in all. They 
were: Rachel, born July 24, 1734; Moses, 
born January 16, 1735; Jedediah, Jr., born 
April 20, 1738; Mary, born December 1 1, 1739; 
Lucy, born March 9, 1741; Lucy (second), 
born November 24, 1742; Aaron, born 1745; 
Patience, born October 24, 1747. 

Jedediah Bliss, Sr. , married his second wife, 
Miriam Hitchcock, August 19, 1748, and had 
by her nine children, viz : Miriam, born May 
17, 1749, married Silas Bliss; Ebenezer, born 
January 26, 1750, married (first) Miss Nevens, 
and (second) Sarah Ferry; Reuben, born No- 
vember 3, 1 75 I, killed in the war of the Revo- 
lution; .Alexander, born October 11, 1753; 
Zenas (grandfather of Dr. Wellman"), born 
February 3, 1756, married Mary Babcock; 
Martha, born December 7, 1757, married a 
Mr. Gridley; Isaac, born August 10, 1760,' 
married Welthy Butters; Jacob, born March 
12, 1763, married Mary Collins, who was born 



190 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOIiAPIIICAL RECORD. 



in 1765; Naotni, born October 22, 1766, mar- 
ried a Mr. Kneeland. 

Zenas Bliss (grandfather to Dr. Wellman) 
married Mary Babcock, December, 1784 (she 
was born August 20, 1758, and died Septem- 
ber 25, 1824), and had by her ten children, all 
born in Spriiif^tield, Mass., at the old home- 
stead, corner of Main and W^illiam streets. 
They were as follows: Horace, born Febru- 
ary 13, 1786, died March 26, 1S44; Elisha, 
born November 25, 1787, died at Hartford, 
Conn., January i, 1881, aged ninety-three 
years; Abigail and Harvey (i) (twins), born 
November 24, 1789 (Abigail died March 5, 
1807, and Harvey (i) died December 3, 1789); 
Harvey (2), born March 27, 1792, died Novem- 
ber 23, 1869; Lucretia, born May 3, 1794, 
died unmarried February 26, 1844; John B., 
born February 17, 1797, died February 22, 
1884, aged eighty-seven years; Isaac, born 
September 8, 1798, died ^Iarch 5, 1892, aged 
ninety- three years; Mary (the mother of Dr. 
Wellman). born January 8, 1803, married 
Marvin Wellman, June 8, 1826, died March 10, 
1877; Emeline, born February 19, 1805, died 
February 2, 1806. 

Of these children of Zenas and Mary Bab- 
cock Bliss: Horace was twice married,, and 
had by his Hrst wife three children, Eliza, 
Mary and Emily; and by his second wife, had 
also three — Horace, Charles and Lucretia. 
Elisha married Almira Sikes, and by her had 
eight children — Elisha, Almira, Harriet, Frank, 
Edward, Richard, Mary, and Elizabeth. Har- 
vey married Abbie Grout, of Putney, Wind- 
ham Co., \'t., and by her had eight children — 
Edwin, Marshall, Isaac, Harvey, Emma, 
Laura, Sylvester and Samuel; of these, Edwin 
and Isaac were for many years missionaries in 
Armenia. John B. married Maria Parker, and 
had six children — Roswell, Charles, Abbie, 
Hiland, Sarah and Earle. Isaac married 
Eleanor Titus, and had seven children — Horace 
C. , Isaac K. , Elisabeth L. , Eleanor M., 
Samuel B., Ephraim T. , and Edgar. Mary 
married Marvin \\'ellman, and had seven chil- 
dren, as shown in the \\'ellman genealogy. 



JOSEPH MARTIN FAMILY. The village 
of Red Hook, Dutchess county, was in the 
earliest times a favorite point with the Dutch 
settlers of this region, and it boasts of one of 
the oldest houses in the State of New York, 
built for a residence by Hendrick Martin, who 



crossed the ocean in 1727. On his arrival he 
took a lease from the Beekman patentee, and 
at once erected this house, which he located 
about one-eighth of a mile from the old New 
York and Albany post road, and adjacent to 
the present village of Red Hook. It has re- 
ceived alterations from time to time, but parts 
of the original structure still stand. In 1751 
he leased other lands adjoining, from the Van- 
Benthuysen patentee. 

When Hendrick Martin's son, Gotlob, was 
married, the father cut a big stake, and walk- 
ing across the farm drove it into the ground, 
remarking to the young bridegroom that it was 
time for him to ''swarm for himself, " and upon 
this spot Gotlob built a plain but substantial 
stone house, which stands to-day. The car- 
penters were putting up its rafters while the 
Declaration of Independence was being read 
in Philadelphia, July 4, 1776. To this house, 
in 1789, John Martin, son of Gotlob, brought 
his bride, Isabella Fulton, a relative of the 
famous Robert Fulton. It had been willed by 
Gotlob to his grandchildren, but the sons would 
not take it from their mother, and after her 
death Edward Martin, a son of John, pur- 
chased it for a home for his sister, who, like 
himself, never married. He was born Febru- 
ary 18, 181 1, and lived beyond the ordinary 
limit, dying December 3, 1893. He made a 
fortune as a civil engineer by taking his pay in 
land from a railroad company he was employed 
by, some of which property now lies within 
the present boundaries of Chicago. 

To John and Isabella Martin eleven chil- 
dren were born, viz.: Philip, Michael S., Au- 
gustus, Henry G., Robert, Claudius G., James, 
Edward, Joseph, John and Serena. Joseph 
Martin was born February 8, 1S14, and was 
educated in the schools of the neighborhood. 
At an early age he learned the trade of tanner 
and currier; afterward studied law and prac- 
ticed until his death, November 25, 1889. He 
was identified with the old militia, holding all 
the offices, from second-lieutenant to colonel, 
both inclusive, in the iiith Regiment New 
York Militia, and he served a short time in 
the war of the I^ebellion. On January 10, 
1837, he was married to Miss Margarite S. Bar- 
ringer, of Red Hook, and had ten children, 
whose names, with dates of birth, are as fol- 
lows: (i) Frederick A., December 7, 1837; 
(2) John D., October 21, 1840; (3) Joseph F. , 
April 15, 1842; (4) Claudius E., March 13, 
1844; (5) Augustus, October 3, 1845 (died 




C?x 




J^^^f'-il^c^c^^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD 



191 



April 20, 1846); (6) Gertrude A., June 8, 1847; 
(7) Isabella F., May 15, 1849; (8) Elizabeth 
B., July 20, 1852; (9) Harriet A., January 7, 
1854; (10) Sarah S., August 6, 1857. 

All the boys in this family served in the 
Civil war, and one, John D., corporal of Com- 
pany B, 7th N. J. V. I., died in the army Jan- 
uary 3, 1862. Claudius E., at the outbreak 
of the Rebellion, offered himself as a recruit 
for a New Jersey regiment, but was refused on 
account of his youth, being under sixteen years 
of age. Returning home, however, he ob- 
tained his father's written consent, and went 
out as one of the original members of the Fifth 
New York Cavalry. At the organization of 
this regiment as a veteran regiment, he re-en- 
listed and served until the close of the war. 
He had a horse shot under him, and was 
wounded and captured at Orange Court House, 
but was re-captured by his own regiment the 
same day. Returning home at the close of 
the struggle, he settled upon a farm in Warners, 
Onondaga county, where he still resides. Joseph 
F. (or J. Fielding) enlisted at Trenton, N. J., 
April 20, 1 86 1, in Company C, First N. J. 
Militia, for three months; re-enlisted at Tren- 
ton, August 27, 1 861, this time in Company B, 
7th N. J. V. I., for three years; again enlisted, 
this time at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., September 
13, 1864, for one year, and October 24, 1864, 
was commissioned as first lieutenant in the 
59th N. Y. S. V. I., and was honorably dis- 
charged September 14, 1865. Prior to the 
war he had finished his studies in Poughkeepsie, 
and after his return he studied law in the West, 
then practiced his profession in Illinois, South 
Dakota and New York State. While in Illi- 
nois he was elected justice of the peace in the 
town of Seward, Kendall county, and was 
commissioned as such by Gov. Shelby M. Cul- 
lom April 28, 1881. On November 15, 1884, 
he was admitted to practice as an attorney and 
counselor at law in Sully county, Dakota (now 
South Dakota), of which county he was elected 
county judge November 3, 1885. On March 
3, 1889, he was admitted to practice as attor- 
ney and counselor at law in the United States 
District Court of the Territory of Dakota, at 
Huron (now South Dakota), and October 8, 
1890, was appointed by the board of county 
commissioners of Sully county. South Dakota, 
as a member of the board of insanity. On 
November 16, 1892, he was admitted to prac- 
tice in the superior court of Dakota, at 
Pierre; on December 6, 1892, was admitted to 



practice in the U. S. District and Circuit 
Courts of South Dakota, at Sioux Falls; on 
May I I, 1893, was admitted to practice in the 
Supreme Court of the State of New York at 
Poughkeepsie, and October 22, 1894, was ad- 
mitted to practice in the Supreme Court of 
the North Grand Division of Illinois, at Ot- 
tawa, Illinois. 

Frederick A. Martin entered the service on 
the organization of the i 15th N. Y. V., in Au- 
gust, 1862; was wounded and captured at the 
surrender of Harpers Ferrj', September, 1862, 
and paroled with the surrendered garrison. 
At Olustee, Florida, February, 1864, he was 
wounded and left on the field, but escaped 
with the assistance of mounted officers of his 
regiment. For a time he was detailed in 
charge of commissary stores at Hilton Head, 
S. C and later as inspector of the Port of 
Beaufort, S. C, thenreturning to his regiment 
served until the close of the war. In his 
youth he had learned the trade of carpenter 
and builder, and on returning home he en- 
gaged for five years in car building; then en- 
tered the office of the Boston & Albany R. R., 
remaining some twenty-five years, and he has 
since carried on a drug store at Ford Edward, 
N. Y. In October, 1865, he was married to 
Miss Susan L. Near, of Red Hook, and has 
one son, Joseph Louis, who is now in partner- 
ship with him. He is a member of several 
Masonic bodies in Albany, N. Y., mcluding 
Temple Commandery No. 2, K. T., and is 
commander of the G. A. R. Post No. 491, 
Fort Edward, N. Y. Joseph Louis, his son, 
is also a member of various Masonic bodies, 
including Cyprus Temple, Nobles of the Mystic 
Shrine, Albany, N. Y. , and is also a graduate 
of the Albany College of Pharmacy. 

Two of the daughters married, Gertrude 
A. and Isabella F. , the former of whom is liv- 
ing in Bayonne, N. J., the latter in Brooklyn, 
N. Y. The Misses Elizabeth B., Harriet A. 
and Sarah S. Martin occupy an elegant resi- 
dence on the site of the old homestead of the 
Barringer family, to which their mother be- 
longed, and have always held a prominent place 
in the most refined and exclusive social circles. 



r/ ILLIAM BOGLE, president of the 
_1\L Dutchess Print Works, located • at 
Wappingers Falls, Dutchess county, is one of 
the best known and most highly esteemed res- 
idents of the county. This extensive plant 



192 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



was established in 1832, and has been engaged 
in printing and dyeing cotton goods for over 
sixty years. Some 1,1 50 hands are employed 
in the works, all of whom reside in or near the 
village, forming a goodly portion of the popu- 
lation. Mr. Bogle has ^been connected with 
the establishment for thirty-nine years, fifteen 
as its president, and it has been re-organized 
three times during the last twenty years in or- 
der to suit the times and the market. 

Mr. Bogle was born near Manchester, 
England, September 7, 1834, a son of John 
Bogle, who was born in the same locality in 
1799, and lived until 1880. He was a color- 
mixer in a cloth-printing business for sixty-five 
years. At Middleton parish church, Lan- 
cashire, he married Ann Brooks, a native of 
Ainssvorth, England, and they reared a family 
of ten children, our subject being seventh in 
the order of birth. None of the family except 
William ever came to America. James Bogle, 
the father of John, was born in Scotland, 
whence he went to England, and in 1805 es- 
tablished a print works in Lancashire. He 
was one of the earliest master printers in that 
country. 

Our subject lived in England until he was 
twenty-three years of age, and there learned 
the business of color-mixing with his father. 
On July 22, 1857, he was married to Miss 
Selina Hoyle, of Manchester, -and on the first 
of August following sailed for the United 
States, reaching Wappingers Falls, Dutchess 
county, August 14, 1857. He came to that 
place under a contract with the Dutchess Print 
Works, and for nine years was employed by 
them as a color-mixer. He then became as- 
sistant superintendent, holding that position 
for eleven years, and on .April i, 1876, was 
made superintendent of the works, which of- 
fice he now holds. Mr. and Mrs. Bogle have 
three children: John, born in 1858, has 
charge of the cambric "department in the print 
works; Alice, born in i860, is at home with 
her parents; and Mary, born in 1862, married 
John Macauley, who is an engraver in the print 
vvorks. Our subject is a Republican in his po- 
litical views, and all the family are members 
of the Episcopal Church. 

Mr. Bogle, as may be inferred from the 
foregoing sketch, holds an important place in 
the community. He stands high with his busi- 
ness associates as a man of ability, strict in- 
tegrity and of progressive ideas. In all the 
relations of life he has fulfilled his duties with 



fidelity, and his enterprise and industry have 
brought him financial prosperity as well as the 
good will of his fellow men. No citizen of 
Wappingers Falls is more deserving of respect 
and esteem or more worthy a place in this 
volume. 



NTHONY BRIGGS (deceased) was one 

of the leading agriculturists of the town 

of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county, and one 
of her well-to-do citizens. He was widely 
known and honored, and in his death Dutchess 
county, in whose welfare he always took a 
commendable interest, has lost a valued citi- 
zen. His integrity of character, unbounded 
benevolence, and never failing courtesy, made 
him beloved by all who had the honor of his 
acquaintance. 

Mr. Briggs was born in the town of Pine 
Plains, Dutchess county, May 25, 1829, 
and his father, who was a son of .\nthony 
Briggs, was also born in that town, March 25, 
1800. The family is of English lineage. The 
father married Clarissa Benham, who was also 
of English descent, and a native of New Haven, 
Conn., and they became the parents of three 
children: Elizabeth, wife of John H. Jewett, 
who is living retired in Poughkeepsie; Harriet, 
wife of Benjamin White, a farmer of Wiscon- 
sin ; and .Anthonj-, subject of this sketch. The 
parents began house-keeping in the town of 
Pine Plains, on a farm, but later removed to 
Washington town, Dutchess county, where 
they reared their family. 

Our subject passed the first three years of 
his life in his native town, after which he was 
taken to Washing! m town, where he received a 
good education, and became a surveyor, which 
business he followed in early life, being three 
years thus employed in Wisconsin. On Febru- 
ary 24, 1852, Mr. Briggs was united in marriage 
with Miss Hannah White, who was born in 
the town of \\'ashington, April 9, 1830, and is 
a daughter of Ethan White, who was also born 
there, the date of his birth being October 19, 
1802. Her mother, who bore the maiden 
name of Myra Northrope, was born in the town 
of Amenia, Dutchess county, April 9, iSoi, 
and after her marriage with Mr. White they 
located on a farm in the town of Washington, 
where they reared their seven children as fol- 
lows: Mary, wife of Hiram T. Beecher, a 
farmer of Pleasant Valley town; Benjamin, an 
agriculturist of Wisconsin; Abner (deceased), 





*-^^^^^^^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



193 



who was a farmer of Washington town, Dutch- 
ess county ; Seneca, also a deceased farmer of 
Washington town; Catherine, wife of Edward 
R. Kinney, of the same town; Hannah, widow 
of our subject; and Davis, who operates a farm 
in Washington town. In politics the father 
was a Republican, and he and his wife be- 
longed to the Methodist Church; he died in 
1 87 1, she in 1868. Abner White, the paternal 
grandfather of Mrs. Briggs, was a native of the 
town of Washington, and a son of Charles 
White, who was a descendant of Peregrine 
White, the first white male child born in 
America. Her maternal grandfather, Benja- 
min Northrope, a native of Redding, Conn., 
was the son of Samuel Northrope, who was of 
English descent, and became one of the leading 
farmers of the town of .^menia. Both the 
White and Northrope families were very prom- 
inent in this part of the State. 

For fifteen years after his marriage, Mr. 
Briggs engaged in farming in the town of 
Washington, but in 1869 he removed to the 
farm now owned by his widow, which com- 
prises 300 acres of good land. There he car- 
ried on general farming in connection with 
surveying, and was very successful in his un- 
dertakings. In the family were three children: 
Davis W., of whom special mention will 
presently be made; Mary E. , who died at the 
age of three years; and Homer E., a well- 
known lawyer of Poughkeepsie. Mr. Briggs 
was a stanch advocate of the policy pursued 
by the Republican party, held the office of 
supervisor for two terms, was justice of the 
peace in the town of Washington, eleven years, 
and five years in Pleasant Valley, ever dis- 
charging his duties with promptness and fidel- 
ity. While in Wisconsin he was elected 
superintendent of schools in the town of Em- 
pire, and after returning to Washington he 
taught school several months. The whole 
community mourns with the bereaved family 
the taking away of this noble-hearted and 
generous man, who died February 5, 1895. 
He was a sincere member of the Methodist 
Church, to which his widow also belongs. 

Davis W. Briggs, the eldest son of this 
honored couple, was born February 24, 1853, 
in the town of Washington, Dutchess county, 
and received his education in both Washington 
and Pleasant Valley towns. He is now oper- 
ating the old farm in Washington, and also 
the homestead farm in Pleasant Valley. On 
October 18, 1882, he married Irene Bower, 

13 



who was born February 20, 1858, in Pleasant 
Valley, daughter of Joseph and Hannah (Kirk) 
Bovver, and four children have been born to 
this union: Anthony J., Mary Alida, Harold 
G and Norton Augustus. In politics he is a 
Republican. His wife is a member of the 
Episcopal Church of Pleasant Vallej'. 



jpRISTRAM COFFIN is a descendant of 
JL the Coffyns, of Devonshire, England. 
The Manor of Alwington in that county was 
assigned to Sir Richard Coffyn by William 
the Conqueror in the eleventh century. It has 
remained in the family ever since, and is now 
known as Portledge Manor. It is located on 
the coast near Plymouth, and contains about 
four thousand acres. The family mansion and 
one of the churches on the estate are ancient 
stone buildings. Many of the memorial stones 
of members of the family are in this old church. 

Tristram Coffyn, the first of the race who 
settled in America, came to Massachusetts in 
1642. He lived for a time in Haverhill and 
Newburyport, and removed to Nantucket in 
1660. In company with nine others, he pur- 
chased the Island from the Crown and the In- 
dians. He was prominent among the early 
settlers, and became chief magistrate of the 
Island. He died there in 1681. His letters 
to Sir Edmund Andros, the English Colonial 
Governor of New York, are preserved in the 
State archives in Albany. 

The accurate genealogical records existing 
in Nantucket, enable members of its old 
families to trace their lineage back to England 
in unbroken lines. The names of the succes- 
sive sires of the nine generations of the Coffin 
family, ancestors of Tristram Coffin, were as 
follows: Nicholas, Peter, Tristram (the pio- 
neer), John (who died at Martha's Vineyard in 
1711), Peter, Tristram, Abishai (who settled 
in the town of Washington, Dutchess county, 
in 1774), Robert and Alexander H. With the 
exception of the last, these names are inscribed 
on the family monument in the burial ground 
of the old Friends' meeting house at Nine 
Partners (now Millbrook), New York. 

Alexander H. Coffin, father of Tristram, 
died in Poughkeepsie in 1890. His wife, Jane 
Vincent, also died there, in 1871. They had 
three children: Owen Vincent Coffin, ex-Gov- 
ernor of Connecticut, who resides in Middle- 
town, in that State; Tristram; and Harriet .\I. 
Valentine (deceased). Through his mother, 



I'.t4 



COyniKMORATIVK BWORAPHWAL RECORD. 



Mr. Coffin is related to the Vincent, Fowler 
and Vail families of Dutchess county. Capt. 
Israel Vail, of the Revolutionary army, was 
one of his ancestors. Through his father he is 
connected with the \'anderburgh and Bentley 
families. Henry \'anderburgh, his ancestor five 
generations back, was one of the early settlers 
in Poughkeepsie. James, son of Henry Van- 
derburgh, who was Mr. Coffin's direct ancestor 
four generations removed, lived and died in the 
town of Beekman. He was a colonel in the 
Revolutionary war. Washington mentions in 
his journal having dined at Col. X'anderburgh's 
on several occasions, while the army was en- 
camped above the Highlands. 

Tristram Coffin was born in the town of 
Unionvale, and attended the district school, 
and, later, Amenia Seminary. He left home 
at an early age, and was in business in New 
York for several years. He made a number 
of trips through the South and West before 
the war of the I^ebellion. After the outbreak 
of the war, he studied law in the office of 
Joseph W. Gott, of Goshen, Orange Co., 
N. Y. Leaving Goshen in 1 863, he entered the 
Albany Law School, from which he was grad- 
uated in 1864. He then w-ent to Poughkeep- 
sie, where he was a law student in the office 
of the late Hon. Allard Anthony for one year 
before commencing practice. In 1870 he was 
elected district attorney of Dutchess county, 
and held the office for three years. In 1881 
Mr. Coffin delivered the principal oration at the 
meeting of the representatives of the Coffin 
family of the United States held at Nantucket. 
He has been asked to compete for different 
public positions, and to accept office in monied 
and other corporations, but has invariably de- 
clined. For about twenty years he. devoted 
himself untiringly to the practice of his profes- 
sion in Poughkeepsie, in which he was sucess- 
ful from the outset. While in the midst of a 
lucrative practice, and in the prime of life, he 
surprised his clients and friends by refusing to 
receive any new business. For several years, 
although he has kept an office for the transac- 
tion of his duties as trustee of a number of 
estates, he has been absent much of the time. 
He remained a bachelor until 1890, when he 
married Miss Ida M. Gardner, a native of 
Michigan, and a descendant, of the eleventh 
generation, from Sir Thomas Gardner, of 
Yorkshire, England. 

Mr. Coffin is a gentleman of sterling char- 
acter, refined tastes, an ardent lover of nature 



and an enthusiastic traveler. He has seen much 
of his own country, and has made a number of 
trips to Europe and the East. He has been 
a frequent contributor to newspapers and peri- 
odicals, and possesses marked literary abilit}'. 
He is a collector of antiques, rare books and 
autographs. His collection of manuscripts is 
especially rich in Colonial and Revolutionary 
letters and documents. 

Mr. Coffin has an attractive country home 
on the Hudson, at Milton, Ulster county, 
where he usually spends the summer. — F. C. 
Valentine. 



EDWIN JUCKETT, who was called from 
: this earth on the 2d of February, 1896. 

had spent his entire life in Dutchess county, 
and for many years was a leading blacksmith 
and wagon-maker of Stanfordville, where his 
death occurred. His honorable upright life 
had secured for him the respect of all. 

Mr. Juckett was born in the town of Amenia 
September 24, 1824, and was one of the three 
children of Lewis M. and Juliette (Bennett) 
Juckett, the others being Stephen and Sally, 
both now deceased. On both the paternal and 
maternal sides he was of French descent, and 
his father, who was born in Kent, Conn., be- 
came a prominent farmer of the town of 
Amenia, Dutchess county, where Edwin passed 
his school days. On leaving the parental roof, 
in 1844, he began working for S. O. Rogers, 
Sr. , in an axle factory at Stanfordville, and 
five years later bought the Daniel Young place, 
near that village, where he erected a house and 
shop, the former of which is still standing. 
The shop was burned in March, 1873, but he 
at once rebuilt, and there carried on black- 
smithing and wagon- making up to the time of 
his death — a period of almost half a century. 

On October 31, 1849, Mr. Juckett was 
married to Miss Elsie A. Gildersleeve, daugh- 
ter of Joseph Gildersleeve, a woolen manu- 
facturer of Stanfordville. Her birth occurred 
April 30, 1824, and she died on March 17, 
1874. In their family were five children: 
(i) Mary B. , after graduating from D. G. 
Wright's private school at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , 
engaged in teaching until her mother's death, 
after which she kept house for her father, and 
still makes her home in Stanfordville. (2) 
George B., after learning the blacksmith trade 
with his father, followed the trade at Stanford- 
ville and Wassaic, in the town of Amenia, for 



COMME^^ORATIrE BIOORAPEICAL liECORD. 



195 



several years. He then engaged in the milk 
business with his uncle in Brooklyn, \. Y. , 
with whom he remained several years. Later 
• he studied stenography under the tuition (jf 
Prof. T. J. Ellin wood, for twenty-five years 
the official reporter of Henry Ward Beecher's 
sermons. In 1883, after completing his study 
of stenography, he entered the employ of Col. 
George Bliss, of New York City, a well-known 
lawyer and legal author, as his stenographer 
and private secretary, with whom he remained 
twelve years. During the year 1895, while 
Mr. Bliss was traveling in Europe, he was in 
the employ of the Grant Monument Associa- 
tion, under Gen. Horace Porter, president of 
the Association, and the present ambassador 
to France. During this year Gen. Porter 
dictated to him his ' ' Campaigning with Grant. ' ' 
Upon Col. Bliss' return from Europe he again 
entered his employ, with whom he still remains. 
(3) William M., a native of the town of Stan- 
ford, attended school there, and began his busi- 
ness career as a clerk in a store at Bangall, 
X. Y. He then held a similar position in 
Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , after which he became 
traveling salesman for his uncle, who was con- 
nected with the wholesale dr3'-goods house of 
Tefft, Weller & Co. , of New York City. At 
the end of three 3'ears he left this firm to accept 
a position as salesman for the wholesale dry- 
goods house of Butler, Clapp & Co., with 
whom he remained seven years. He then be- 
came connected with the dry-goods house of 
E. S. Jaffray & Co., remaining with them 
until their failure. He is now a traveling 
salesman for Dunham, Buckley & Co., whole- 
sale dry-goods merchants at No. 340 Broadway. 
New York City. He married Margaret Husted, 
and they now make their home at Attlebury, 
N. Y. (4) De\\'itt, after following the black- 
smith trade for several years, then became 
traveling salesman for Joseph Ruppert, a 
wholesale hardware merchant at No. 212 
Duffield street, Brooklyn, N. Y. He married 
Miss Elma Green, of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., by 
whom he has had three children : Elsie A. and 
Lizzie B. (both deceased), and William. He 
resides at No. 313 Glenmore avenue, Brooklyn, 
N. Y. (5) Carrie E., after graduating from 
the Eastman Business College, Poughkeepsie, 
N. Y., entered the employ of Orvis Bros. & 
Co., bankers and brokers, of No. 44 Broad- 
way, New York City, as stenographer, remain- 
ing with them eight years. She is now the 
wife of George C. Trefry, and two children 



bless their union: Edwin J. and George Clifford. 
They reside at Nc. 36 Morton street. New 
York Cit}-. 



PETER BURHANS (deceased). The sub- 
ject of this sketch, who was formerly a 

well-known wagon manufacturer of Pough- 
keepsie, was born in Pleasant Yallej-, Dutch- 
ess county, January 2, 1812, and was the sen 
of \\'illiam and Mary (Smith) Burhans. Jacob 
Burhans arrived in this country prior to Decem- 
ber, 1660. Jans, a son, who arrived in April, 
1663, married Miss Helena Traphagan, and 
from them the subject of this memoir is de- 
scended through Barent and Johannes and 
Petrus. 

Our subject had no schooling to speak of, 
but was a man of good mechanical abilit}'. He 
spent his younger days in Pleasant Valley, 
coming to Poughkeepsie when about eighteen 
years old to learn the wagon maker's trade. 
He worked as a journeyman only a few years, 
and then started in business for himself in the 
city, later forming a partnership which proved 
somewhat disastrous. About the 3'ear 1844 he 
carried on business at No. 377 inow 3S5) Main 
street. In 1851 or 1852 he purchased the 
premises, and continued to carry on business 
there until the spring of 1877, when he retired 
on account of ill health, and had the building 
altered to suit other business. In 1S55 "i^ 
bought the adjoining lot, and put up a frame 
building which was used by various parties as 
a blacksmith shop till the summer of 1877, 
when it was demolished to give place to a 
more substantial brick building — Nos. 387^ and 
389 Main street. Both buildings are still in 
the possession of the family. He was a self- 
made man, very thorough, careful, and pains- 
taking, and his work had the reputation of 
being the very best. 

Mr. Burhans was twice married, his first 
wife being Miss Johanna B. Smith, a daugh- 
ter of Uriah Smith, a farmer in the town 
of Hyde Park ( who died a comparatively 
young man), and niece 
Smith, of Lithgow. She 
To Mr. and Mrs. Burhans 
children: Albert, who died young; Ella, who 
married Isaac Germond; and Mary, who died 
in 1875, aged twenty-three years. His sec- 
ond marriage was, in i860, to Miss Eliza 
Pinckney, daughter of Jacob Pinckney, of 
Bethel, Sullivan Co., N. Y. Our subject 



of Judge Isaac 

died in 1859. 

were born three 



lOfJ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



was a Republican, r.nd took quite an in- 
terest in political matters. Although receiv- 
ing but little schooling, he supplemented it 
with a great deal of reading, and was well in- 
formed on current topics of the day. He was 
a member of the Methodist Church, and was 
early in life associated with the sons of tem- 
perance, having strong views and ideas regard- 
ing total abstinence. He died in 1887, in his 
seventy-sixth year. Mrs. Germond has one 
daughter, Clara, now (1897) eight years old. 

William Burhans was a farmer by occupa- 
tion. He married Miss Mary Smith, and they 
had the following children: Henry, Elmira, 
Peter, William (2), Edwin S., Charles, John, 
Willitt (who died in 1894), and George H. 
(who lives in Pleasant Valley, and is the only 
survivor). William (Sen.) died about 1S55. 

IsA.-\c Gekmond, mentioned above, is a 
member of one of the very oldest families in 
the county, who formerly owned a large tract 
of land surrounding "Germond Hill," near Ver- 
bank, and one of the descendants, Lewis D. 
Germond, still occupies a part of the original 
tract in the town of Washington. George 
Washington Germond, father of Isaac, died in 
1 891 in his ninetieth year, leaving five sons 
and two daughters. The Germonds, Germans 
and Jarmans are said by some to be all de- 
scended from four brothers who came from 
France about two hundred years ago, one set- 
tling on Long Island, one in Harlem, one in 
the town of Washington, Dutchess county, 
and one in the town of Stanford, Dutchess 
county. 



HON. SAMUEL K. PHILLIPS, county 
_ judge of Dutchess county, and a lawyer 
of wide reputation for ability and success in 
the management of important cases, is a na- 
tive of Brooklyn, N. Y., born February 12, 
1858, but since the age of four years he has 
had his home in the village of Matteawan. 
His father, Edmund S. Phillips, was the first 
lawyer to locate at Matteawan. 

Judge Phillips received his education in the 
private and public schools of Matteawan, and 
at an early age began his professional studies 
in his father's office. He was admitted to the 
bar in May, 1879, having just attained his 
majority, and immediately engaged in practice. 
During the past sixteen years he has made an 
enviable record, and has been retained as 
counsel, on one side or the other, in nearly all 



the cases of note that have arisen in this lo- 
cality. He was engaged by the State of New 
York to take charge of the legal matters in 
connection with the location of the State Hos-" 
pital at Matteawan, and later was employed 
by the State in the important matter of acquir- 
ing a right of way for a sewer from that insti- 
tution to the Hudson river. He is now the 
attorney for the Mechanics Savings Bank, of 
Fishkill Landing; for The Matteawan Savings 
Bank, and for The Matteawan National Bank, 
and has been the legal advisor of the pro- 
moters of many of the leading business enter- 
prises of the town. In some of the most im- 
portant of these ventures he is personally 
interested; he is president of The Matteawan. 
Savings Bank, a director of The Matteawan 
National Bank, and was one of the projectors, 
and is still a director and one of the principal 
stockholders of the electric railway system of 
the town of Fishkill. He is a trustee and the 
treasurer of Highland Hospital; a trustee of 
the Fairview Cemetery Association, chairman 
of the board of trustees, and for more than 
twenty years secretary of the Sunday-school of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church at Matteawan. 
For the past ten )'ears he has been a member 
of the board of education, and during the last 
year of his service therein was its president. 

Able and popular, possessing all the quali- 
ties which insure success in public lif(?, it is 
not surprising that he should already have be- 
come a leader in political affairs. In Novem- 
ber, 1895, he was elected on the Republican 
ticket to the office of county judge. Com- 
menting upon his nomination, the Poughkeep- 
sie S/ar says: " * * * young in years 
but old in experience, a good lawyer, a man 
to be trusted by the people. Although there 
are many attorneys in the county who feel 
that this is a good year to be the nominee on 
the Republican ticket, all were united in en- 
dorsing Mr. Phillips as the choice of the 
party." The Fishkill S/d;n/irn/, the leading 
Democratic paper of the locality, said: "As a 
citizen of the town of Fishkill, and as an active 
professional man, we have only words of com- 
mendation for Samuel K. Phillips. Raised in 
Matteawan, and educated in the public schools 
there, he has always been before the eyes of 
the public, and has won his way to distinction 
and success by many excellent qualities. That 
he will make a good county judge, if elected, 
and be a worthy successor of those who have 
preceded him, issuie." 




c/a:. 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



197 



The Judge is a prominent Free Mason, and 
at present is master of Beacon Lodge No. 283, 
F. & A. M., a member of Highland Chapter 
No. 52, R. A. M., Hud.-^on River Command- 
er}', K. T. , and Mecca Temple, Order of the 
Mystic Shrine. In October, 1885, he married 
Miss Henrietta Reid, daughter of Luke and 
Abigail (Darling) Reid, of Hudson, N. Y. 
They have one son, Samuel Vincent Phillips. 



GUERNSEY FAMILY. (I) John Guern- 
sey, the progenitor of the Guernsey fam- 
il\' in America, appears in Milford, Conn., 
about 1634. (II) Joseph Guernsey, son of the 
above, born in 1639, married Hannah Colej', 
daughter of Samuel Coley, Sr. , April 10, 1663, 
resided at Milford, and was a " free planter." 

(Ill) Joseph Guernsey, son of Joseph, was 
born at Milford, 1674. Large land owner. 
He married Hannah Disbrow, daughter of 
Gen. Disbrow, of Horse Neck, and removed to 
Woodbury, Conn., where he died September 
15, 1754. ( I\') John Guernsey, son of above, 
born April 6, i 709, married ' ' .•Xnn Peck, daugh- 
ter of Jeremiah Peck, and granddaughter of 
the Rev. Jeremiah Peck, well known through- 
out New England. " He removed to Litchfield, 
Conn., thence to Amenia, N. Y. , where he 
died and was buried, 1783. 

(V') John Guernsey, son of John and Ann 
Guernsey, was born October 28, 1734. He 
married Azubah Buel; removed to Broome 
county, N. Y. , where he owned 1,000 acres of 
land; afterward returned to Amenia, where he 
died in 1799, and was buried near the grave of 
his father. (VI) Ezekiel Guernsey, M. D., 
son of the above, was born in 1775, married 
Lavoisa Bennett, daughter of Col. Peter Ben- 
nett, and died at Stanford, Dutchess county, 
N. Y., in 1856. 

(VIIj Stephen Gano Guernsey, son of Eze- 
kiel and Lavoisa Guernsey, was born in the 
town of Stanford, September 8, 1799, and 
died in the town of Stanford in 1875; married 
Lienor Rogers, of Litchfield, Conn., daughter 
of Dayton Rogers and granddaughter of a 
Revolutionary soldier. 

(\TIIj Stephen Gang Guernsey, son of 
Stephen Gano and Elenor Guernsey, was born 
April 22, 1848, in the town of Stanford, Dutch- 
ess county, N. Y., and in his boyhood winters 
attended the common schools of the locality, 
while in the summers he did general work on 



the farm. His education he finished at Fort 
Edward Institute, Glens Fails, New York. 

In 1870 Mr. Guernsey moved to Pough- 
keepsie, where he read law with Judge Charles 
Wheaton and his brother, D. W. Guernsey, 
and was admitted to the bar in 1871. In 1874 
he was appointed deputy county clerk, which 
incumbency he held until 1876, when he re- 
signed to commence the practice of law for 
himself in the office of Jacob Jewett, who died 
some few months later. Mr. Guernsey contin- 
ued in the same office, and has since remained 
in active practice, which is a general one. In 
his political preferences Mr. Guernsey is a 
Democrat, and has served as member of the 
board of education four years — from 1890 to 
1894. He was U. S. Loan Commissioner, ap- 
pointed under Gov. Robinson, and has been 
re-appointed by each succeeding governor to 
the present time, although, owing to a change 
of the State laws, there is little business for 
the of^ce at present. In 1892 he was elected 
president of the Poughkeepsie National Bank, 
and is still serving as such. 

In 1877 Mr. Guernsey was married to Miss 
Marianna Hicks, and children as follows were 
born to them: Raymond Gano (IX) Homer 
Wilson, Louis Gildersleeve and Emeline. Our 
subject is a careful, conservative business man. 



ELIZABETH H. GEROW, M. D., a pio- 
neer woman physician of Poughkeepsie, 

Dutchess county, whose success has been a 
pleasing and convincing test of the abilitj" of 
her se.x to cope with all the dif^culties of her 
profession, is a descendant of an old Huguenot 
family, the name being originally Giraud. 

Her ancestors were early settlers in Ulster 
county, and her great-grandfather, William 
Gerow, was a resident of Plattekill, where the 
homestead has ever since been maintained. 
Her grandfather, Elias Gerow, lived and died 
there; he married Elizabeth Coutant, and their 
son, Elias Gerow (2), our subject's father, was 
also a lifelong resident, following farming as 
an occupation. He married Sally Ann Baker, 
a native of Westchester county, who survived 
him and died at our subject's home in Pough- 
keepsie. Ten children were born of this union 
— four daughters and six sons — of the latter 
only four are now living. 

Dr. Elizabeth H. Gerow attended the 
schools of Plattekill during her childhood, and 
later studied in the Friends' School at Union 



198 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Springs, N. Y. She taught for some time in 
Ulster county, and then, desiring to prepare 
herself for the medical profession, she entered 
the Woman's Hospital in Boston, Mass. After 
eight months there she began the course in the 
Medical Department of Michigan University, 
from which she was graduated in the spring of 
1875. ^he had, in the meantime, continued 
her studies in the Woman's Hospital during 
her vacations, spending about three years, in 
all, in the institution, and gaining an experi- 
ence which at that time was seldom obtainable 
by a woman. She became an expert in deal- 
ing with the diseases of women and children, 
and, from the first, has met with unusual suc- 
cess in her practice. On ,\fay i, 1875, she 
opened her office in Poughkeepsie, and in five 
years had all the business that she could attend 
to. For the past ten years she has devoted 
her entire time to her large office practice. 

Dr. Gerow is held in high esteem among 
her professional associates, as well as with the 
general public, and was appointed on the 
first ^fedical Board of the Vassar Hospital in 
Poughkeepsie, and she is a member of the 
Dutchess County Medical Society, and a cor- 
responding member of the Boston Gynecolog- 
ical Society. 



WILLIAM L. DAVIS (deceased), a well- 
known farmer and auctioneer of the 

town of Washington, was born in Columbia 
county, February 10, 1835. His father, 
Henry D., was born in the same county, where 
he married and settled on a farm. To him 
and his wife were born these children: Or- 
ville, who married Miss Maria Emigh, and is 
now farming in the town of Clinton; he has 
one son, Henry T. ; Esther died unmarried, 
April 10, 1896; William L. is our subject. Mr. 
Davis farmed in Columbia county and in Wis- 
consin, dying in the latter place in 1837. His 
wife was Miss Jane Ann Lawton, who was 
born in the town of Washington May i, 1809, 
the only child of Seth Lawton, who was born 
June 18, 1782, in Rhode Island, and died in 
November, 1869, and Esther (Peck) Lawton, 
who was born near New York City, August 25, 
1786, and died December 6, 185 1. David 
Lawton, the father of Seth, was a farmer in 
Washington town. 

^Villiam L. , our subject, remained at home 
in the town of Washington until December 27, 
1856, on which date he was married to Miss 



Mary L. \\'ilson, daughter of Thomas and 
Mary (Streight) Wilson. Mr. and Mrs. Davis 
secured a farm in this town, and three children 
were born to them, namely: Thomas L., born 
March 6, 1859, died October 7, 1862: Seth L., 
born December 17, 1862, died December 20, 
1864; Willard H., born September 15. 1865. 
Mr. Davis was ;-. Democrat, and he and his 
wife were both members of the Methodist 
Church. 

W^ILL.\KI)H. manages the farm of 168 acres, 
on which he raises Jersey cattle, Berkshire 
hogs, and Thorndale horses. The farm is 
called " Brookside Stock Farm." 

Thomas Wilson, the father of Mrs. Davis, 
was born and reared in the town of Unionvale; 
his wife was born in Stanford. They settled 
on a farm in Unionvale, and reared a family of 
six children: Eseck, a retired citizen of 
Poughkeepsie; Maria became the wife of Dr. 
John Perry, of Amenia, and after his death 
she married Moses Conger, a lawyer in the 
town of Clinton; Sally A. married Henry 
Chamberlin, a tanner and currier ( both are de- 
ceased) ; Mary L. is our subject's wife; John 
died in the Civil war; George, a farmer, died 
August 21, 1896, in Ashley, Illinois. Thomas 
Wilson died in 1843, and his wife Jul)- 3, 1879. 

Joseph Wilson, Mrs. Davis' grandfather, 
was born in Ireland, where he followed the oc- 
cupation of a weaver. Henry Streight was 
the maternal trrandfather of Mrs. W^ilson. 



HLLIAM R. KIMLIN, who was a prom- 
/ inent contractor and builder in Pough- 
keepsie, Dutchess county, and whose death 
took place December 8, 1891, was born in 
that city October 7, 1843. His father, W^ill- 
iam Kimlin, was born in Ireland in 1800, and 
came to America in 1839. 

\\'illiam Rimlin obtained a good education 
in the public schools, and also in that con- 
nected with Christ Church (Episcopal). He 
was a man of keen perceptions, and, having 
always been a great reader, was well informed 
on all subjects of general interest. After leav- 
ing school he learned the trade of a mason, 
serving an apprenticeship of three years with 
Mr. Harlow while the latter was engaged in 
buililing Vassar College. He was a journey- 
man mason for some time, and was also fore- 
man for Elias Spross for several years. About 
1874 he started as a contractor and builder in 
partnership with James Mathews, the firm 



COMMEMOUATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



199 



name being Kimlin & Mathews. This connec- 
tion continued for three or four years, when 
Mr. Kimlin assumed entire charge of the busi- 
ness for himself. During this time he made 
contracts for some of the largest buildings in 
the city, among others the post office, which 
was begun in the fall of 1884, Mr. Kimlin com- 
pleting his part of the work in 18S6. He was 
one of the foremost men in his trade, and, 
having more than average ability and judg- 
ment, was successful in his enterprises. He 
possessed strong individuality, and made him- 
self felt in any matters in which he was 
interested. 

Mr. Kimlin was married September 17, 
1873, to Miss Mary, daughter of Thomas Conn, 
of New York City. Her father was a butcher, 
and was of Irish descent, his family coming 
from County Down. Five children were born 
of this union: William T. is in the employ of 
F. J. Nesbitt; Stewart T. , Lottie S. and Edith 
B. are at home with their mother; and one 
died in infancy. Of these, William T. and 
Stewart T. have learned the mason trade, and 
expect in about a year or so to enter in the 
same business as their father. 

Mr. Kimlin was strongly in sympathy with 
the Republican party, although he never took 
an active part in politics. He belonged to the 
E.xempt Firemen, and was a member of 
Christ Church, Episcopal. He was a loyal' 
citizen, and always ready to do his share toward 
promoting the interests of his community. 



GEORGE TOFFEY DOUGHTY (de- 
_ ceased) was throughout life identified 
with the interests of the town of Beekman, his 
birth having occurred at Greenhaven, in that 
township, October 6, 18 16. The Doughty 
family came from England at a very early pe- 
riod in the history of this country, one of the 
first being Francis Doughty, a clergyman of 
the Church of England. 

Joseph Doughty, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born on Long Island, and fol- 
lowed farming as a life work. He was a sin- 
cere member of the Society of Friends. He 
married Miss Psyche Wiltsie, and tothern were 
born twelve children, namely: Thomas, who 
became a farmer of Beekman town; Joseph, 
who in early life was a merchant, and later 
lived in Beekman town; Cornwell, a farmer 
and merchant of the same township; Nehe- 
miah, a farmer and miller, also of Beekman 



town; William, the father of our subject; 
Martin, also a farmer of Beekman town; Jacob, 
a merchant of Greenhaven; Psyche, who 
married Samuel Vail, a prominent citizen of 
Albany, N. Y. ; Mary, who wedded Jonathan 
Hoag, a farmer of Nassau, N. Y. ; Jane, who 
married Philip Flagler, an agriculturist; John 
and Elizabeth. 

William Doughty, the father of our sub- 
ject, was a native of the town of Beekman, 
and on attaining to man's estate was united in 
marriage with Mrs. Sarah Vanderburgh (nee 
Van Wyck), by whom he had si.\ children: 
Phebe, John J., Pysche, William, Sarah and 
George T. All his life .the father carried on 
farming in the town of Beekman, where he 
was numbered among the highly-esteemed cit- 
izens. He died in 1854 at the age of eighty- 
four years, the mother in 1865 at the age of 
ninety-four years. 

During his boyhood, George T. Doughty 
attended the district schools near his home in 
Beekman town, and for three years resided 
with his sister at New Lebanon, N. Y. He 
was also for a time a student in the Nine Part- 
ners Boarding School in the town of Washing- 
ton, Dutchess county. He always followed the 
vocation of farming, and erected all the build- 
ings upon his place with the exception of the 
residence. 

On December 14, 1836, in the town of 
Beekman, Mr. Doughty married Miss Eliza- 
beth Van Benschoten, of the town of Lagrange, 
Dutchess county, and to them were born three 
children: Mary G. ; William H., of New York 
City, who married Mrs. Edith Bryant [uee 
Chatterton), and to them was born one child 
— Laura Isabelle; and Edward, deceased 
The mother of these died May 17, 1S43, and 
in the same township Mr. Doughty was again 
married, his second union being with Hester 
Kelley, by whom were also born three children: 
James A., of Torrington, Conn., who was 
married to Miss Alice J. Brooker, of the same 
place, and to them were born two children — 
Ella Brooker (deceased) and Marion Seymour; 
Phebe J.; and Cornell, of Brooklyn, N. Y., 
married Miss Anna J. Butts, of New York 
City, and to them was born one child — Isa- 
belle Perry. 

For three terms, Mr. Doughty filled the 
office of supervisor of the town of Beekman, 
and enjoyed the popularity which comes to 
those generous spirits who have a hearty shake 
of the hand for those with whom they come in 



200 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOIiAPUIC'AL RECORD. 



contact from day to day, and who seem to throw 
around them in consequence so much of the 
sunshine of life. He was a member of the 
Society of Friends, and was one of nature's 
noblemen, the world being better for his hav- 
ing lived. His death, which occurred in the 
town of Beekman, June 7, 1887, was widely 
and deeply mourned. 



GEORGE E. CRAMER, president of the 
Board of Trade of Poughkeepsie, and a 
leading grain dealer and wholesale grocer of 
that city, was born in Pleasant N'alley, Dutch- 
ess county, August 31., 1841. 

Our subject's ancestors came originally 
from Holland, settling in Dutchess county at 
an early date. His grandfather, Philip Cra- 
mer, was born in 1783, near Poughkeepsie, 
where he was a farmer for some years before 
his removal to Pleasant Valley, Dutchess 
county, where he died at the age of forty-nine 
years. He married Susannah Reynolds, and 
they had three children: Phccbe, who married 
Jehial Smith; Elizabeth, the wife of Henry 
Burhans, and George B., our subject's father, 
who was born in Poughkeepsie in 18 14. His 
schooling was limited to a few years' attend- 
ance at the public schools of that city, but he 
was a man of common sense, and acquired a 
good practical education in the course of his 
life. He was a carpenter and builder in Pleas- 
ant Valley for manj' years, and was quite suc- 
cessful; but failing health compelled him to 
choose another occupation, and, in 1874, he 
engaged in the butcher trade at the same place. 
Politically, he was first a Whig, and later a 
Republican, but although he was greatly in- 
terested in the welfare of his party, he was 
never an office-seeker. For full half a century 
he was a devout and consistent member of the 
Presbyterian Church, and was a trustee for 
many years. He married Miss Mary A. Dun- 
can, a daughter of Joshua Duncan, a well- 
known manufacturer of cotton goods at Pleas- 
ant Valley, in partnership with George P. Far- 
rington. The Duncans are among the oldest 
families in that locality. Nine children were 
born of this marriage, seven of whom are still 
living, and all residents of Dutchess county. 
The mother died in 1880, the father surviving 
her until May, 1893. 

The subject of our sketch attended the dis- 
trict schools of Pleasant \'alley, and studied 
for a time with a private tutor, supplementing 



these limited opportunities in his later years by 
I an extended course of reading. At the age of 
eleven he began to work for his uncle Duncan 
in the grocery business in Poughkeepsie, but 
after two years he returned home and clerked 
in a country store for about two years. At 
the age of si.xteen he went to Poughkeepsie as 
clerk for John Mcl^ean, grocer, remaining four 
years; then engaged as bookkeeper for John 
H. Matthews in the freighting business at the 
Lower Landing, and after five years there he 
spent two years in the same capacity with 
Gaylord, Vail& Doty, at the Main Street Dock. 
In I §7 1 he entered the employ of W. W. 
Reynolds & Co., as bookkeeper, and three 
years later became a member of the firm, then 
known as I'leynolds & Co., and composed of 
William T. and John R. Reynolds and George 
E. Cramer. On January i, 1890, the firm be- 
came Rej'nolds & Cramer, and as the senior 
member is not in good health, the more active 
management of the business devolves upon 
Mr. Cramer. This is one of the oldest houses 
in the cit}', dating back to 1820, and under the 
able and enterprising direction of Mr. Cramer 
its already extensive trade has been enlarged 
to five times its volume at the time of his en- 
trance into the firm, and is now the largest es- 
tablishment of its kind in the Hudson River 
Valle}'. He holds high rank in commercial 
circles, and has been president of the Pough- 
keepsie Board of Trade for the past four years. 
In 1892 he was appointed president of College 
Hill Park Commission, by William W. Smith, 
who bought this property and donated it to 
the city as a public park. 

In 1866 Mr. Cramer was married to Miss 
Mary A. Barnes, a daughter of Mrs. Jane A. 
Barnes, and a descendant of one of the old 
families of Poughkeepsie. They have one 
daughter, Ella W. Cramer. Although he is a 
Republican in principle, and has taken an act- 
ive interest in the success of his party, Mr. 
Cramer is not an office seeker, and has refused 
to accept any nominations for public office. 
He is ready to assist an\' movement for the 
welfare of the city, and takes especial interest 
in the schools, serving for eleven years in the 
board of education, and for several years its 
president. He belongs to the Washington 
Street M. E. Church, of which he is a trustee 
and the treasurer, and has been superintend- 
ent of the Sunday-school for twenty-five years. 
At one time he was active in the Masonic fra- 
ternity, of which he is still a member, and is 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



201 



past master of Poughkeepsie Lodge No. 266, 
and past eminent commander of Poughkeep- 
sie Commander}' No. 53, Knights Templar. 



HOWELL WHITE, M. D., a prominent 
physician of Fishkill, Dutchess county, 

is a descendant of a family which has been 
notable for generations for its connection with 
the medical profession. His great-grandfather 
was a phjsician, and had two brothers in the 
calling, and the same is true of his grandfather 
and his father, three brothers in each genera- 
tion choosing the deep researches and arduous 
labors of the medical practitioner. 

Dr. White was born at Fishkill June 12, 
1856, the son of the late Dr. Lewis H. White, 
whose long and successful career as a physician, 
and excellent qualities as a citizen, won 
him a lasting reputation. He was given good 
educational advantages, and, after leaving the 
public schools of Fishkill, studied two years at 
Warring's Military School, in Poughkeepsie, 
and four years in the private school of Hugh 
S. Banks, at Newburg, and then entered Wil- 
liston Seminary at East Hampton, Mass. , 
where he was graduated in 1875. A complete 
course in Bellevue Medical College, New York 
City, followed, and on his graduation in 1879 
he became an interne in the Presbyterian Hos- 
pital in that city, securing invaluable practical 
work. He began his professional labors in 
Fishkill in 1S80, and has been constantly in 
practice ever sir.ce, meeting with marked suc- 
cess. He is a member of the Dutchess County 
Medical Society, and of the New York State 
Medical Society. In politics he is a Repub- 
lican. 

On June 9, 1881, the Doctor married a 
lady of Huguenot descent. Miss Elizabeth M. 
Cotheal, whose interesting genealogical record 
is given below. They have four children: 
Catherine Elizabeth, Lewis Howell, Richard 
Rapalje and Helena. Both the Doctor and 
his wife are members of the Reformed Dutch 
Church of Fishkill, and take a generous in- 
terest in all advanced movements. 

Doctor White's lineage is a long and hon- 
orable one, as he is in the eighth generation in 
descent from Thomas \^'hite, of Weymouth, 
Mass. , who was Representative in General 
Court in 1636-37. He died in 1679, leaving 
(according to Farmer) five children: Joseph, 
of Mendon; Samuel, born in 1642; Thomas, 
of Braintree; Hannah, who married John Bar- 



ter; and Ebenezer, born in 164S, died August 

24, 1703- 

Second Generation : Ebenezer, the fifth 
child of Thomas, of Weymouth, was the fa- 
ther of the Rev. Ebenezer White, who was 
pastor of the Presbyterian Church at Bridge- 
hampton. Long Island. 

Third Generation : Rev. Ebenezer White, 
of Bridgehampton, was born in 1673, and died 

in 1756. He married Hannah , and they 

had children: Elnathan, born 1695, died 
1773; James; Rev. Sylvanus, born 1704, died 
1782; Silas, born 1710, died 1742. 

Fourth Generation: Rev. Sylvanus White, 
second son of Rev. Ebenezer White, of Bridge- 
hampton, L. I., was born in 1704, and went 
to Weymouth, Mass., in 171 5, to attend a 
classical school. He entered Harvard College 
in 1719, graduating in 1723. In 1727 he as- 
sumed the pastoral charge of the Church at 
Southampton, L. I., which he retained for 
nearly fifty-five years. He died October 22, 
1782. He married Phebe Howell, only daugh- 
ter of Hezekiah Howell, and had nine children, 
viz. : Sylvanus, Edward, Hezekiah, Daniel, 
M. D., Silas, Phebe, Ebenezer. M. D., Eben- 
ezer (2), Henry, M. D. Except the first Eb- 
enezer, who died in infancy, they all lived to 
adult years. 

Fifth Generation: Ebenezer, the seventh 
son of Rev. Sylvanus, after being instructed 
in the classics by his father, commenced the 
study- of medicine, as did also his brothers 
Daniel and Henry, availing himself of all the 
facilities existing in our country, at that time, 
for acquiring a thorough knowledge of his cho- 
sen profession. In early lite he married Hel- 
ena, daughter of Theophilus Bartow, of New 
Rochelle, and granddaughter of Rev. John 
Bartow, of Westchester, and great-grand- 
daughter of Gen. Bartow, who fled from France 
to England in 1685 (on the revocation of the 
Edict of Nantes). This marriage was a union 
of Puritan with Huguenot. The young couple 
commenced life together where they ended it, 
in Yorktown, \^'estchester Co., N. Y. The 
old homestead is still standing, and is occupied 
by a grandson, Josephus L. White. The Doc- 
tor soon acquired an extensive practice, and 
engaged in the cultivation of a large farm. 
Here, on what afterward became the neutral 
ground at the commencement of the Revolu- 
tionary war, found him, and from the first of 
which struggle to the end he was the zealous, 
uncompromising advocate of his country's 



202 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



cause. Many were the advantages and thrill- 
ing incidents he would relate to his listening 
grandchildren of Tory raids and persecutions, 
and many of the wounds received in these af- 
frays came under his professional care and 
treatment. [See Dr. Thatcher's Military Jour- 
nal — Boston, 1823, page 307; also Bolton, in 
his history of Westchester Co., Vol. II., page 
384, relates one of many incidents in Dr. 
White's experience during the war.] He was 
elected to the State Senate, and afterward as 
Presidential elector. He was born in South- 
ampton in 1746, and died in Yorktown in 
1827, after more than half a century's success- 
ful practice of his profession. His wife sur- 
vived him only a few years. Their children 
were: Catharine, Bartow, Ebenezer, Henry, 
Lewis, James and Theodosius. 

Sixth Giiuration : Ebenezer, the second 
son of Dr. Ebenezer, of Yorktown, also made 
choice of the profession of medicine, as did his 
brothers Bartow and Henry. He was a pupil 
of his father, and finished his studies by at- 
tending medical lectures in the City of New 
York. He married Amy, daughter of the late 
Samuel Green, of the town of Somers, West- 
chester county, and located there in the house 
now owned and occupied by his son Samuel. 
After a practice of more than sixty years, he 
died March 18, 1865, at the advanced age of 
eighty-five. He was surrogate of Westchester 
county, and represented Dutchess county in 
the State Legislature. In politics he was a 
Republican; in religion a Presbyterian; and in 
theorj' and practice an ardent temperance man. 
He had nine children, of whom three sons 
adorned the profession which their father so 
long followed. 

Scventli Generation : Bartow p., M. D., 
married Ann Augusta Belcher, of Round Hill, 
Conn., and located there; Stephen G., a mer- 
chant of Somers, died unmarried, aged twen- 
ty-three; Helen A., married James Brett, of 
Fishkill; Lewis H., M. D., married Helena Van- 
Wyck, of Fishkill; Oliver, M. D., who settled 
in New York, married Catharine O. Ritter; 
Phebe married Robert Calhoun; John P., a 
merchant of New York, married Margaret Bry- 
son; Euphemia married James W. Bedell, of 
Somers; Samuel married Emma Jackson, and 
is now living in the old homestead at Somers, 
Westchester county. 

Dr. Lewis H. White, the father of Howell, 
was born in Somers, March 17, 1807. He 
studied at Yale College, New Haven, in after 



years receiving an honorary medical degree 
from the University Medical College of New 
York. He settled in Johnsville, Dutchess 
county, and after several years of practice re- 
moved to Fishkill, where he resided the re- 
sided the remainder of his life. He practiced 
his profession in Fishkill and Johnsville for 
fifty-eight years, occupjing a position in his 
profession equalled by few and excelled by 
none. He was a member of the Dutchess 
County Medical Society, and for eleven years 
its president; also a member of the New York 
State Medical Society. On June 7, 1853, he 
married Helena, daughter of John C. and Delia 
Van Wyck, of Fishkill. They had three chil- 
dren: Howell, born June 12, 1856; Catharine, 
born June i, 1859, died July 16, 1862; Kate, 
born October 3, 1865, married Hasbrouck 
Bartow, of Hackensack, N. J., and now resides 
there. It is a noteworthy fact that Dr. Lewis 
H. White, his father and grandfather each 
practiced his profession for over half a century. 
Mrs. \\'hite is a daughter of Isaac E. 
Cotheal and his wife, Catherine E. (Rapalje), 
and on the maternal side is a descendant in 
the eighth generation from Joris Jansen de 
Rapalje, one of the proscribed Huguenots, 
from " Rochelle in France," and the common 
ancestor of all the American families of this 
name. He came to this country with other 
colonists in 1623, in the "Unity." a ship of 
the West India Company, and settled at F"ort 
Orange (now Albany), where he remained 
three years. In 1626 he removed to New 
Amsterdam, and resided there until after the 
birth of his youngest child. On June 16, 1637, 
he bought from the Indians a tract of land 
computed at 335 acres, called Rennegacouck, 
now included within the city of Brooklyn, and 
comprehending the lands occupied by the 
U. S. Marine Hospital. Here Mr. Rapalje 
finally located, and spent the remainder of his 
life. He was a leading citizen, acted a prom- 
inent part in the colony, and served in the 
magistracy of Brooklyn. He died soon after 
the close of the Dutch administration, his 
widow, Catalyntie, daughter of Joris Trico, 
surviving him many years. She was born in 
Paris, and died September 11, 1689, aged 
eighty-four. The original familj' record, pre- 
served in the library of the New York Histor- 
ical Society, gives the names and dates of 
birth of their children, as follows: Sarah, born 
June 9, 1625, was married (first) to Hans 
Hausse Bergen, and then to Tennis Gysberts 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



203 



Bogart; Marritie, born March ii, 1627, mar- 
ried Michael Vandervoort; Jannetie, born Au- 
gust 18, 1629, married Rem Vanderbeeck ; 
Judith, born July 5, 1635, married Pieter Van- 
Nest; Jan, born August 28, 1637, married, but 
died in 1662 without issue; Jacob, born May 

28, 1639, was killed by Indians; Catalyntie, 
born March 28, 1641, married Jeremias West- 
erhout; Jerominus, born June 27, 1643; An- 
netie, born February 8, 1646, was married 
(first) to Marten Reverse, and then to Joost 
Fransz; Elizabeth, born March 28, 164S, mar- 
ried Dirck Hooglandt; Daniel, born December 

29, 1650. 

Second Generation : Jerominus Rapalje 
became a man of some prominence, a justice 
of the peace, and a deacon of the Brooklyn 
Church. He married Anna, daughter of Tennis 
Denys, and had nine children born, as follows: 
Joris, born November 5, 1668, married July 27, 
1694, Nellie, daughter of Jan Conwenhoven, 
died at Cripplebush, in 1697; Tennis, born 
May 5, 1 671; Jan, born December 14, 1673; 
Femmetie, born October 5, 1676, married Jan 
Bennet; Jacob, born June 25, i679;Jerominus, 
born March 31, 1682; Catalina, born March 
25, 1685, married Peter DeMond, of Raritan, 
N. J.; Sarah, born November 4, 1687, married 
Hans Bergen; and Cornelius, born October 
21, 1690. 

Tliird Generation: Jan Rapalje, son of 
Jerominus, married Annettie, daughter of Coert 
Van Voorhees, and was a farmer on a portion 
of the family estate in Brooklyn, which at his 
death in 1733 Fie left to his son George. They 
had three children: George C, Jeromus, and 
John, who married Maria Van Dyke, in 1737. 

Fourth Generation: Jeromus Rapalje, son 
of Jan, inherited a farm at Flushing, where he 
died in 1754. He was twice married, and left 
six children: John, Richard, Stephen, Ann, 
Ida and Elizabeth. 

Fifth Generation; John Rapalje, son of 
Jeromus, was born in 1722, and died at Jamaica 
at the age of about fifty years. He was twice 
married, and by his first wife, Elizabeth, 
daughter of Abraham Brinckerhoff, had five 
children: Catherine, who married Tennis 
Brinkerhoff; Jeromus; Abraham Brinkerhoff, 
born 1 76 1, died 1818; Aletta, who married 
James Debervoise; and Richard. The sons 
settled at Fishkill, N. V., where some of their 
descendants remain. 

Sixth Generation: Richard Rapalje, son 
of John, was born on Long Island August 30, 



1764, removed to Fishkill during the Revolu- 
tionary war, and died September 2, 1825. He 
was married three times, first on January 31, 

1795, to Letty, daughter of Isaac and Eliza- 
beth \'an Wyck. She was born November 21, 
1775, and died September 11, 1800. They 
had children: Elizabeth, born March 21, 

1796, died September 13, 1796; John Van- 
Wyck, born August 18, 1798, died Septem- 
ber 13, 1798; Eliza Van Wyck, born Feb- 
ruary 28, 1800, died January 17, 1801. Mr. 
Rapalje married December 2, 1801, for his 
second wife, Jane Van Wyck, a sister of his 
first wife. She was born March 15, 1782, 
and died November 23, 1806. They also had 
three children, viz. : William Edward, born 
October 11. 1802, died and was buried 
at sea while on his return from Europe June 
2, 1833; Isaac Van Wyck, born Novem- 
ber 8, 1804, died December 7, 1809; John 
Augustus, born October 6, i8o6, died same 
day. On September i, 18 10, Mr. Rapalje 
married Ann, daughter of Archibald and Cath- 
arine Currie, of New York (born September 13, 
1777, died January 31, i860), and they had 
children as follows: Jane Ann, born June 18, 
181 1, died July 4, 1825; Isaac Van Wyck, born 
March 14, 1813, died August 2, 1824; Richard, 
born March 16, 181 5, died December 26, 1846; 
Archibald Currie, born January 16, 1817, died 
July 28, 1 831; Catharine Elizabeth, born July 
8, 1 8 19, died January 8, 1864. 

Sez'enth Generation: Catharine Rapalje 
married October 22, 1856, Isaac E. Cotheal, 
born August 12, 1817, died May 8, 1884, of 
New York City, son of Henry and Phebe (Ber- 
rian Warner) Cotheal. They had three chil- 
dren: Elizabeth M., born February 25, 1858, 
the wife of our subject; Anne Rapalje, born De- 
cember 13, i860, who married Charles D. Sher- 
wood; and Catharine Elizabeth, unmarried. 

The old homestead, known as "Robinia," 
where Mrs. White was born, contained be- 
tween 500 and 600 acres, and was originally 
part of the Madame Brett Patent, transferred 
at first to the Van Wyck family, from them to 
the Southards, from them, in the year 1795, 
to Richard Rapalje (Mrs. White's grandfather), 
who built the present residence in 1800. At 
his dekth the estate came to Catharine Coth- 
eal, his daughter; and, at the death of her hus- 
band, to Mrs. White. After her marriage to 
Dr. Howell White they lived there for eight 
years, when they sold it in 1893 to its present 
owner, William T. Blodgett. 



2t)4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



MON. AUGUSTUS B. GRAY, the able 
and popular representative from the Sec- 
ond Dutchess District in the New York Assem- 
bly, was born April 2, 1861, in New York Citj-, 
of New England ancestry, being a descendant 
of Henry Gray, one of two brothers, John and 
Henry, who settled at Fairfield, Conn., in 
1643. Hiram B. Gray, father of our subject, 
was born at Fairfield, Conn.. March 22, 1801, 
and lived when a child at Pawling, Dutchess 
county, and Paterson, Putnam county. At 
the age of twenty-one he went to New York 
City and engaged in mercantile business. On 
December 20, 1847, he was married in Schuj'- 
ler county to Miss Nancy Hager, a native of 
that county, and of their children two are now 
living: John Hiram, born August 20, 1852, 
who is engaged in the building and real-estate 
business in New York City; and Augustus B., 
our subject. Hiram Gray, who was a strong 
supporter of Lincoln's administration, was 
burned out during the draft riot in New York 
City, in July, 1863, and he then went to Schuy- 
ler county, where he bought two farms where- 
on he remained until 1866, in that year dis- 
posing of them. In 1870 he bought the home- 
stead now occupied by our subject on the out- 
skirts of Poughkeepsie; he died in New York 
City, January 27, 1872; his wife, Nancy 
(Hager), still survives. 

Our subject was born April 2, 1861, and 
spent his boyhood in New York City, attend- 
ing the public schools and preparing for col- 
lege. After his father's death he took up his 
residence at the homestead which he has man- 
aged with great ability, gaining a high reputa- 
tion among farmers throughout the State. 

On June 23, 1882, in Tompkins county, N. 
Y. , he was married to Miss Mary Case, daugh- 
ter of Homer Case, of Schuyler county, a gal- 
lant soldier of the 103rd N. Y. V. I., in the 
Civil war, who lost his life in 1862 in defense 
of the Union. Four children were born of 
this marriage: George W. , January 17, 1885; 
Nancy Isabel, April 9, 1886; Harry Augustus, 
February 24, 18S8; and Homer B., Julv 10, 

1893- 

Mr. Gray is a Republican, and devoted to 
his party. He has taken a deep interest in 
town politics, and rendered faithful service on 
the board of supervisors in 1888, 1889 and 
1890, his constituents showing their apprecia- 
tion b}' re-electing him the third time without 
opposition. He succeeded in bringing in a 
minority report in regard to keeping the pres- 



ent site of the State Armory, and gained the 
good vvill and support of the militar}' men and 
taxpayers. In 1893 he was elected to the As- 
sembly by a plurality of 237 votes over J. W. 
De Peyster Toler, and has been re-elected in 
the years 1894, 1895 and 1896, having re- 
ceived increased majorities, and in 1896 hav- 
ing received 2,144 plurality. 

In 1896 and 1S97 he served as chairman 
of the Committee on Banks, and has served on 
the Labor Committee for three years, and his 
support by the laboring classes shows that he 
always has the interest of the laborer at heart, 
and does all in his power to advance their 
cause. He has served for three years on the 
Committee on Agriculture, Commerce and 
Navigation. In fact, his entire record has 
proved him to be a most efficient supporter of 
the interests of his district. 

He has served on the Republican County 
Committee for twelve years, and chairman of 
the Town Committee, and is treasurer of the 
Dutchess County Agricultural Societj". He is 
a member of Poughkeepsie Chapter No. 172, 
R. A. M., and Triune Lodge No. 782, F. A. 
M., and Armor Lodge No. 107, K. of P. 



PHILIP CLAYTON ROGERS. Among 
the leading citizens of Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, none hold a higher place in 
the estimation of the public than the gentle- 
man whose name introduces this sketch, and 
who comes of a long line of distinguished and 
worthy ancestors. 

Moses Rogers (the grandfather of our sub- 
ject!, born in 1750, died November 30, 1825, 
was one of the merchant princes of New York 
City. He was engaged in the West Indies' 
trade for many years, and was a wealthy man 
for those early days, being one of the fifteen 
merchants in the city who could afford to keep 
horses and carriage. He was one of the found- 
ers of Grace ("hurch, and was much devoted 
to Church work. He was a brother-in-law of 
Archibald Gracie. who was even more cele- 
brated than himself. He was a man of ex- 
treme sagacity, and was very successful in all 
his enterprises. The family is of English de- 
scent, and came, probably, from Yorkshire. 
They are connected with President Dwight, 
the first president of Yale College, and by mar- 
riage with the Woolseys and Governor Fitch, 
first Colonial governor of Connecticut ; the \'er- 
plancks, the Winthrops, Van Rennselaers, and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGUAPUICAL RECORD. 



205 



Pendletons of \'irgiiiia. Moses Rogers mar- 
ried Sarah Woolsey, and they had four chil- 
dren: Benjamin Woolsey, Archibald Kogers 
(our subject's father); Frances married Frank 
Winthrop; and Julia became the wife of Sam- 
uel Hopkins, of Geneva, N. Y. Mr. Rogers 
died in 1S25, and his wife passed away in 1820. 
Archibald Ivogers, the father of our subject, 
was born in 1791 at Shippan Point, Stamford, 
Conn., where his father had his summer home. 
He was educated in Yale College, and in about 
1 8 16 took a trip abroad at the suggestion of his 
father, whose favorite son he was, in company 
with Tom Moore, nephew of Bishop Moore, of 
Virginia. He spent three years in traveling, 
and among other places visited the held of 
Waterloo, where he secured some interesting 
relics. He was married in 1S21 to Miss Anna 
Pierce Pendleton, only daughter of Judge Na- 
thaniel Pendleton, of New York City, who was 
(Ml the bench before Judge Emmott. To this 
union eight children were born, and the follow- 
ing record of seven is given: (1) Nathaniel 
Pendleton, who was born .April 29, 1822, was for 
many years a prominent lawyer in New York, 
and was associated with Alexander Hamilton, 
a grandson of the famous Alexander Hamilton 
of history, and Francis Reeves, son of Francis 
Reeves, minister to France, the firm name 
being Hamilton, Rogers & Reeves. In his 
later years he lived at " Placentia, " Hyde 
Park, until his death, which occurred at his 
town residence in New York City, April 22, 
1892. (2) Julian, born February 12, 1824, 
died when six months old. (3) Edmond Pendle- 
ton, born in 1827, father of Col. Arch'd Rogers, 
of Gov. Morton's staff, and died at Hyde Park, 
February 9, 1895, married "Virginia Dummer, 
of Jersey City, in 1850. (4) Archibald, born 
August 10, 1825, died March 21, 1831. (5) 
Philip Clayton, our subject, was born August 
13, I 829 (he was named after Major Phil Clay- 
ton, of the Catalpas, of whom he was a 
lineal descendant, who settled in Culpeper 
county, Va., in 1643). (6) Archibald (2), born 
November 12, 1832, died in New York City, 
December 20, 1836. (7) Susan Bard, born 
November 4, 1834, married Herman T. Liv- 
ingston, only son of Herman Livingston, of 
Oake Hill, opposite Catskill, and lives in New 
York. Anna P. Rogers, their mother, died at 
Hyde Park, December 26, 1873, in the eighty- 
seventh year of her age. After his marriage 
our subject's father passed the remainder of 
his life in the (juiet pursuits of a country gen- 



tleman. He was a great hunter and lisher- 
man, and enjoyed these sports to their full ex- 
tent. He was a man of great generosity of 
character, and was universally esteemed. 

The Pendletons, ancestors of our subject's 
mother, were of an old English family (the 
name is mentioned in I'ving Edward's time, 
" Penniltonns "), members of which came to 
this country and settled in Virginia in 1628. 
Edmund Pendleton was the first president of 
the Virginia State Assembly, and was a close 
friend of General Washington and Patrick 
Henry. He was one of the most distinguished 
of the Pendletons. He lived in Culpeper 
county, Va. Martha Washington was a Dan- 
dridge, and the Pendletons and Dandridges are 
closely connected. Judge Nathaniel Pendleton 
became a soldier in the Revolutionary war 
when only eighteen years old, and by his 
bravery rose to the rank of major. He distin- 
guished himself greatly at the battle of Eutaw 
Springs, serving at that time on the staff of 
General Nathaniel Greene; the General's pis- 
tols are still in the family. After leaving the 
army he married Susan, a daughter of Dr. 
John Bard, of I]urlington, N. J. The Bard 
family is of good old Huguenot stock, and 
came to this country after the Edict of Nantes. 
Dr. John Bard was a distinguished physician 
of Burlington, N. J., son of Gen. Peter Bard, 
of the Revolutionary army, afterward settling 
in New York City, where he lived a number 
of years. He died at Hyde Park, where he 
resided the latter part of his life. His epitaph 
reads: " The longer he lived the more he was 
beloved." 

Judge Pendleton was the second to Gen. 
Hamilton in the latter's famous duel with 
Aaron Burr at Weehawken, in 1804. He was 
a noted lawyer of his day in New York City, 
and at the time of his death was ajudge in the 
court at Poughkeepsie. He bought a place at 
Hyde Park which he named "Placentia," 
meaning " Rest," where he died in i82r, in 
his sixty-first year. His eldest son, Edmund 
Henry, who eventually filled his father's place 
at the bar in Poughkeepsie, and was judge 
from 1830 to 1840, married Frances Maria 
Jones, of Jones Wood, N.Y. ; he went to Europe 
in 1836, and spent the balance of his life be- 
tween Hyde Park and New York City. He 
died in 1863 without issue, his large property 
being left to his only sister's eldest son, Na- 
thaniel P. Rogers. 

Nathaniel Greene Pendleton went to Cin- 



20(5 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



cinnati, when a young man, and practiced law, 
becoming very successful and being twice sent 
to Congress. His first wife was Jane Hunt, 
a daughter of Gov. Hunt, of Ohio, and his sec- 
ond, Miss Anna Bullock, of Kentucky. He 
left a large family — his most distinguished son 
being George Pendleton, of Ohio, who wassent 
twice to Congress, was a U. S. Senator from 
that State, was minister to Berlin, and was a 
candidate for Vice-President on the ticket 
with Gen. George B. McClellan, in 1864. He 
married Alice Key, daughter of Francis Scott 
Key, the American poet (who was born in 
1780, and died in 1843), author of the "Star 
Spangled Banner." James M. Pendleton, 
M. D., married Margaret Jones, a member of 
one of the prominent families of New York 
City; he was a distinguished physician, and 
having a large fortune spent much of his time 
in practicing among the poor people of the 
city, never accepting any money for his 
services. 

Philip Clayton Rogers, the subject proper 
of this review, was educated in his younger 
days in the celebrated school of Dr. Huddart, 
in New York City. In 1840 he entered 
Columbia College, where he remained until 
1845, leaving in the junior year to take a posi- 
tion in the counting-room of Robert K.ermit, 
of the old Red Star Line. In 1853 he was 
appointed secretary of the Second Avenue 
Railroad Co., filling that office for three years. 
At this time a change took place in the man- 
agement, and Mr. Rogers removed to Hjde 
Park. In 1859 he took a trip to China, going 
out as a passenger and coming back "before 
the mast," having a strong wish to see strange 
climes and people. In 1861 he enlisted as a 
private in the famous New York Seventh Reg- 
iment (Old 8th Company, Capt. Shumway), 
and went to Washington, returning in June of 
that year in company with his brother, Ed- 
mund P. Rogers, to whom he was devotedly 
attached. The following August he was made 
second lieutenant in the 55th N. Y. \'., and 
this regiment, ne.xt year after, being consoli- 
dated with another, he was made first lieuten- 
ant of Company H, 39th Regiment. He was 
soon promoted to the captaincy, and was ap- 
pointed aid-de-camp in the First Brigade, 
First Division, of the Second Army Corps. In 
the second day's fight at the battle of the 
Wilderness, May 6, 1 864, he was taken pris- 
oner and carried to Macon, Ga., whence he 
was sent to the jail at Charleston. On his way 



there, he in company with eighty other offi- 
cers who were prisoners jumped from the cars 
at Pocataligo Station, and made a bold dash 
for freedom, but were hunted down by hounds, 
only one succeeding in escaping. He was 
afterward e.xchanged by special order of Gen. 
Foster, and was sent back to New York on 
board the steamer "Arago," in August, 1864. 
In October he resumed his duties on the staff 
of the First Battalion, First Division, Second 
Corps, remaining at his post until F"ebruar3' 
20, 1865, when worn out by the hard life of a 
soldier he took an honorable discharge. He 
wears a bronze cross of the 7th Regiment, 
N. Y. S. \'., which was given him for long and 
faithful service, and is among his choicest 
treasures. 

In 1865 Mr. Rogers was married to Miss 
Julia Kavanagh, of New Rochelle, a descend- 
ant of the Kavanaghs of Ireland, a very old 
family. To this union four children have been 
born: Philip Clayton, Jr., Juliana, \'irginia 
and James M. The latter, who was a favorite 
child of his father, was killed when seven 
years old by the discharge of a gun in the 
hands of a playmate. 

Capt. Rogers has seen many stirring events 
in the course of his long and eventful life, and 
bore an active part in one of the strangest and 
bloodiest wars in history, when brother was 
arrayed against brother and State against 
State. He lived to see a re-united country, 
more prosperous and happy than ever before, 
and with most brilliant prospects for still 
greater power and glory in che future. He is 
now passing the evening of his life in peaceful 
retirement, happy in his family and friends 
and with the consciousness of having done his 
part well in whatever he has engaged. 



OBEKT KIDER THOMPSON (de- 
X ceased), at one time a prominent citizen 
of Smithfield, widely and favorably known, 
was a native of Dutchess county, born in the 
town of Stanford, December 14, 1814. His 
grandfather, Elias Thompson, was also a resi- 
dent of the county, where the birth of his fa- 
ther, James Thompson, occurred. The latter 
served his apprenticeship to the hatter's trade, 
but never followed that business, devoting his 
time principally to agricultural pursuits in the 
town of Stanford, where he died at the age of 
seventy-six years. His political support was 
given the Democratic party. He was married 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



207 



to Rebecca Rider, daughter of Robert Rider, 
and to them were born nine children: Eme- 
hne, Robert R., Hannah, Jane, David, Mehs- 
sa, Edwin, EHas M. and Henrj- P., all of whom 
are deceased except David and Elias M. 

After attending the district schools for a 
time, our subject entered the Nine Partners 
Boarding School, but finished his education in 
the Amenia Seminarj', after which he aided 
in the work of the home farm during the sum- 
mer season, while the winter months were de- 
voted to school teaching until his marriage. 
That important event of his life was celebrated 
in I 84 1, Catherine Sanford becoming his wife. 
After a long and happ}' married life of over 
half a century she was called to her final rest in 

1893- 

Fourchildren blessed their union, as follows: 
(i) Ellen C. is the wife of William J. Clanney, 
of Amenia, by whom she has five children — 
Grace, George, Robert, William and Clarence. 
(2) George married Nellie Le Roy; he died in 
1895, leaving no children. (3) John R., a 
leading resident of Amenia, is the superintend- 
ent of the water works at that place and at 
Pine Plains and ^^"assaic. In 1877 he married 
Mary F. Bertine, and the}' have three children 
— Kate, John R. , Jr., and Anna Frances. (4) 
Edward B. was born at Smithfield, November 
8, 1S62, and there spent his boyhood, later 
attending the Amenia Seminary. At the early 
age of ten years he took quite a fancy to ducks, 
which he engaged in raising for a few years, 
and then turned his attention to Plymouth 
Rock chickens, paying $8 for his first setting 
He then began dealing in fancy fowls 
and now makes two shipments a 



of eggs 
and eg 



week. He has successfully exhibited his fowls 
in New York City, Chicago and Philadelphia, 
and has won many premiums. Socially, he is 
connected with Amenia Lodge No. 672, F. & 
A. M., of which he has twice served as master, 
is a Democrat in politics, and is a member of 
the Smithfield Presbyterian Church. At New- 
burg, Orange Co., N. Y., in February, i8qi, 
he was united in marriage with Miss Mary Ada 
Smith, daughter of Rev. W. E. Smith, and 
has two children — Edward \'alentine, born in 
1S92, and Walter Carlyle, born in 1893. 

After his marriage, Robert R. Thompson 
located at Smithfield, where he made his home, 
and for forty years was successfully engaged 
in the fire, life and accident insurance business. 
For twenty-five j-ears he also served as post- 
master of Smithfield, and was school inspect- 



or. He cast his ballot in support of the prin- 
ciples advocated by the Democratic party, and 
affiliated with Amenia Lodge No. 672, F. & 
A. M. He was a pleasant, genial gentleman, 
winning man}- friends, and faithfully discharged 
every duty that devolved upon him. He passed 
away at his home December 26, 1896, at the 
ripe age of eighty-two years and ten days, in 
full possession of his business faculties to the 
verv last. 



ILTON H. ANGELL, M. U., one of the 
JXJL, leading physicians of Dutchess county, 
is established in Salt Point, where he follows a 
career of usefulness, having thoroughly fitted 
himself for the duties of a most responsible 
position. He gives his entire attention to his 
chosen profession, with most satisfactory re- 
sults to himself and patrons. 

Ephraim Angell, the paternal grandfather 
of our subject, was born in Rhode Island, of 
English origin, and after his marriage with 
Mary Thorne he located in Columbia county, 
N. Y. Their family included nine children, 
namely: Augustus carried on farming in 
Columbia county; Joseph died in early man- 
hood; Stephen is the father of our subject; 
Henry (deceased) was in early life a farmer, 
but later became a coal dealer in Chicago; 
William carries on agricultural pursuits in 
Columbia county; Ephraim is engaged in the 
same occupation in that county; Sarah is the 
wife of Elisha Clark, a farmer of Columbia 
county; Martha first wedded Ashley Niles, a 
merchant of that county, and after his death 
became the wife of Nodiah Hill, a very learned 
man; and Emma (deceased) married Dr. 
William Vail (now deceased), who was en- 
gaged in the practice of medicine in New 
Hampshire. The father of this family fol- 
lowed farming exclusively in Columbia county 
until his death. 

Stephen T. Angell, the father of our sub- 
ject, was a native of the village of Spencer- 
town, Columbia county, where he grew to 
manhood. He married Hannah E. Ham, who 
was born in the town of Clinton, Dutchess 
county, and is a daughter of George Ham, an 
agriculturist. They began their domestic life 
upon a farm near Salt Point, in Pleasant Val- 
ley town, where their five children were born 
as follows: Evelyn; George H., a merchant 
of Wappingers Falls, N. Y. ; Augustus, a physi- 
cian and oculist, of Hartford, Conn.; J. Thorne, 



208 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



engaged in railroad business in Pine Plains, 
Dutchess county; and Milton, the subject of 
this review. Besides general farming the 
father was successfully engaged in breeding 
Shorthorn cattle and Southdown sheep. For 
many years he served as justice of the peace, 
was ever identified with the Republican party, 
and a man of most estimable character. His 
death occurred in October, 1S89, his faithful 
wife still surviving. 

On the family homestead at Salt Point, Mil- 
ton H. Angell was born October 8, 1856, and 
under the parental roof spent his boyhood, dur- 
ing which period he attended the district 
schools. Later he entered the Military Acad- 
emy at Poughkeepsie, and for three years pur- 
sued his studies at De Garmo Institute, Rhine- 
beck, N. Y., after which he taught school for 
one year. He then began the study of medi- 
cine, taking a course of lectures at the New 
York Homeopathic Medical College, where he 
was graduated with the class of '82. Shortly 
afterward, the Doctor located at Wappingers 
Falls, where he engaged in practice for a year 
and a half. Then he removed to Stanfordville, 
Dutchess county, where he followed his chosen 
profession for six years, and in 1890 succeeded 
his brother. Dr. Augustus, at Salt Point, where 
he enjoys a large and lucrative practice. 

On October 13, 1886, Dr. Milton H. Angell 
was married to Miss Frances McKay, a daugh- 
ter of Robert McKay, a native of Brooklyn, N. 
Y., who is now living retired; he is of Scotch 
descent, and a son of Samuel McKay, a prom- 
inent hatter and furrier. Two children have 
been born to the Doctor and his wife: Evelyn 
and Milton. Dr. Angell stands high in the 
ranks of the medical fraternity of Dutchess 
county; politically, he is an adherent to the 
principles of the Republican party. 



WILLIAM HENRY TABER. One of 
the first grants of land in the far-famed 

Oblong Valley, in Dutchess county, was made 
by King George III. in 1760, conveying the 
title of 500 acres to Thomas Taber, the great- 
grandfather of the subject of this sketch. He 
came from New Bedford, Mass., where he was 
born in 1732, and in 1760 made his home upon 
this estate, which has ever since been in the 
possession of the family. 

His son, Jeremiah Taber, our subject's 
grandfather, was born there in 1762, and like 



his father was a farmer by occupation. He 
was prominent in local affairs, also in the So- 
ciety of Friends at Quaker Hill, and being a 
man of unusual sagacity he was greatly re- 
spected throughout the locality. He lived un- 
til 1834, and his wife, Dillalah Russell, daugh- 
ter of Elihu Russell, departed this life in 1852. 
They had six children: (i) Eliza, who mar- 
ried Joseph Carpenter, a native of Harrison 
township, Westchester Co., N. Y. , a farmer, 
and they had three children — Harriet A., mar- 
ried to Daniel Griffin; Mary T. , wife of Joseph 
Parks, of the firm of Parks & Tilford (they had 
two sons — George and Herbert — in business 
with their father), and Arthur, now deceased. 
(2) Russell, who succeeded to his mother's 
homestead, and lived there during his life, mar- 
ried Deborah Hoag, and had four children — 
Mary H., who married Alfred Wing, brother of 
Ebby P. Wing; Eliza, who died when young; 
Ann, unmarried, and John, who wedded Delia 
Ross. (3) Thomas, a farmer, settled in 
Broome county, N. Y. , where he left descend- 
ants; he married Mary (jilbert, and had four 
children — Amelia, who married Morton Crane, 
of Putnam county; Gilbert, who first married 
Amanda Tripp, and had one daughter, Hattie 
(now Mrs. Birdsell); Delilah, who married 
\\'arren Merchant, and Jeremiah, who lives in 
Delaware county. (4) William, our subject's 
father. (5) Harriet, who married Jonathan 
Akin, and with her husband was greatly es- 
teemed in the Society of Friends, as well as in 
the community at large. (6) John, who died 
at the age of sixteen. 

William Taber, who was born December 
10, 1796, inherited 260 acres of the old farm, 
by buying out the other heirs. He was a suc- 
cessful farmer, a Quaker in religion and an ex- 
emplary citizen, noted for his unfailing kind- 
ness to the unfortunate. Although he never 
took an active part in politics, he was a stanch 
Democrat in principle. He married Eliza, 
daughter of Abial Sherman, a leading resident 
of the southern part of the town of Pawling. 
She died February 5, 1841, and he survived 
her until 1863, when he breathed his last at 
the old homestead. Of their three children, 
one died February 4, 1846, at the age of six 
years. Walter F. Taber, the youngest of the 
two surviving sons, is a well-known resident of 
Poughkeepsie. 

W'illiam Henry Taber, the eldest son, was 
born May 4, 1825, and has spent the greater 
part of his life on the old estate. After finish- 



■^fe*** 






COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



209 



ing the course of study afforded in the district 
school of the neighborhood, he attended the 
Jacob Wiliets select school for some time, and 
then studied one winter in Poughkeepsie, with 
Prof. Hyatt. He received a fair education for 
the times, which his naturally active mind has 
enabled him to enlarge by reading and observa- 
tion. He remained at home until his marriage 
in 1852 to Miss Catherine Flagler, daughter of 
Benjamin F. Flagler, a prominent citizen of 
Beekman, when he settled upon a farm be- 
longing to an aunt of his wife, conducting same 
for two years. In 1854 he bought J. J. \ande- 
burg's interest in a general store at Pawling, 
and gave his whole attention to the business. 
In the following year Mr. Merritt sold his in- 
terest in the same store, to Walter F. Taber, 
and the two brothers continued ;n partnership 
until 1863, when our subject moved to the old 
homestead, buying up all other claims upon it. 
Here he has carried on general farming, and has 
also engaged in other lines of business, dealing 
extensively in li\e-stock, in the slaughter of 
cattle, and in the sale of meat at retail. His 
purchases of Western cattle to supply the local 
demand for milk cows have been large and 
profitable — in fact, his enterprises have been 
uniformly successful. He was an incorporator 
and one of the original trustees of the Pawling 
Savings B.ank, has been for many years its 
vice-president, and for more than twenty years 
has been an inspector of the National Bank of 
Pawling. 

Mr. Taber's first wife died on September 
26, 1855, leaving two daughters: Eliza, the 
wife of William H. Osborne, of Pawling; and 
Amelia, who married Edwin R. Ferris, of Jer- 
sey Heights. In 1858, for his second wife, 
Mr. Taber wedded Elizabeth Thomas, daughter 
of Charles Thomas, a well-known resident of 
the town of Dover, and three children were 
born to them: George A.; Nellie, wife of 
Stephen Moore; and Charles W., who resides 
at Gaylords Bridge. The mother of this family 
died April 6, 1874, and Mr. Taber formed a 
third matrimonial union January 10, 1888, 
with Miss Louise Frost, daughter of ,\lva Frost. 
They have had twosons: William Henry, Jr., 
and Sherman, both at present attending school. 

Mr. Taber is an influential worker in the 
Democratic party, and served as supervisor 
and justice of the peace in 1854. He is active 
in local affairs also, and has been assessor for 
nineteen years, during which time he has re- 
vised the entire assessment list. 

14 



HENRY D. WHITE. M. D., a leading 
physician and surgeon of Hopewell Junc- 
tion, Dutchess county, belongs to a family 
that has had several able representatives in 
the medical profession. His great-grandfather, 
Ebenezer \\'hite, was an eminent practitioner 
of Westchester county, N. Y. , where his en- 
tire life was passed. The White family is of 
old English stock, and was founded in this 
country during the early period of its settle- 
ment. In religious belief they have been 
principally members of the Reformed Dutch 
Church. 

His grandfather. Dr. Bartow F. White, 
was a native of Westchester county, N. Y., 
but engaged in the practice of medicine in 
Connecticut. In politics he was a stalwart 
supporter of the Democratic party. He mar- 
ried Ann Augusta Belcher, a native of Round- 
hill, Conn., and a daughter of Elisha Belcher, 
M. D., who served with distinction during the 
Revolutionary war, and whose ring, worn by 
him at that time, is now on the finger of the 
Doctor. Four children were born to the 
grandparents: Stephen; Alethea, who mar- 
ried Dr. Henry A. Weeks, of New York City 
(and whose son, Bartow F. , was assistant dis- 
trict attorney of that city) ; and William and 
Elisha, deceased. 

Stephen White was born at Roundhill, 
Conn., was reared to manhood in New York 
City, and has been engaged in mercantile pur- 
suits e.xclusively, both in that city and in 
Brooklyn, but is now living retired. He was 
united in marriage with Caroline Elizabeth 
De la Pierre, whose birth occurred in New 
York City. Her father was a native of Hol- 
land, but of French-Huguenot parentage. The 
Doctor is the third in order of birth in a fam- 
ily of three children, his sisters being Alethea 
A., and Caroline De la Pierre, who died at the 
age of six years. His parents are highly-es- 
teemed people, members of the Protestant 
Episcopal Church, and his father is an adher- 
ent of Democratic principles, always supporting 
that party. 

Dr. White was born at Brooklyn, Febru- 
ary 8, 1866, there received his primary educa- 
tion in a private school, and later attended 
the Polytechnic Institute. After the com- 
pletion of his literary course he entered the 
College of Physicians and Surgeons, of New 
York City, where he graduated with the class 
of 1887. after which for one year he was house 
physician of St. John's Hospital of Brooklyn, 



210 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



thus gaining much valuable practical experi- 
ence. He located at Hopewell Junction in 
1896, and from the present outlook will soon 
be at the head of a large and lucrative prac- 
tice. He has that love for his profession 
which is sure to win success, and his skill can- 
not fail to be recognized. Like his ancestors, 
the Doctor is also an ardent Democrat, and 
socially holds membership in the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows and the Royal Arcanum, 
both in New Jersey lodges; also in the New Jer- 
sey Society of the Sons of the Revolution. 
Professionally, he is a member of the Dutch- 
ess County Medical Society. 



DAVID COLE (deceased) was one of the 
most genial and whole-souled men of 
Dutchess county. He had accumulated a 
good property by his own thrift and industry, 
owning at the time of his death the property 
in the town of Red Hook, known as the Will- 
iam Waldorf farm, which contains sixty-nine 
acres of rich and fertile land. His tastes 
always inclined him to agricultural pursuits, 
and that industry found in him a most able 
representative. He was a son of David Cole, 
a leading farmer of the town of Rhinebeck, 
Dutchess county. 

In 1846 our subject was married to Miss 
Catherine Lewis, who was born in Woodstock, 
Ulster Co., N. Y., in 1825, and educated in 
the common schools of that place. To this 
worthy couple were born six children, (i) 
James Lewis was born in the town of Red 
Hook, and when eighteen years of age enlisted 
in the Union army at Albany, N. Y., becom- 
ing a member of the United States Cavalry. 
In an engagement he was taken prisoner by 
the Rebels, and while confined in one of those 
loathsome Southern prisons contracted the 
measles, from which he died when in the nine- 
teenth )'ear of his age. (2) Prudence is the 
next in order of birth. 13I Alida married Al- 
fred Henion, and had four children — Jennie 
Louise, born March 24, 1872; Philip Hiram, 
born November 9, 1874; Watson Lewis, born 
January 9, 1879, and died in infancy; and 
Ethel Catherine, born August 21, 1888. (4) 
Luella is the fourth in the family. (51 Eliza- 
beth died in infancy. (6) Philip Henry was 
also born in the town of Red Hook. He be- 
came a student in Union College at Schenec- 
tady, N. Y. , and also attended the New York 
College for one year. He then became pro- 



fessor in the former institution, which position 
he held until 1895, at the same time being 
pastor of the Second Reformed Church at 
Schenectady. He has been quite an exten- 
sive traveler, having visited Europe several 
times. He married Miss Anna Furbeck, of 
Schenectady, and they have two children: 
Edward Martin, born August 30, 1892, and 
Lewis Furbeck, born June 6, 1893. 

Garrett Lewis, the father of Mrs. Cole, 
was a native of Woodstock. Ulster county, 
and during his boyhood and youth attended 
the public schools of the locality. He fol- 
lowed farming as a lifework. He was united 
in marriage with Miss Fannie Ewyrie, of the 
same place, and they became the parents of 
ten children, as follows: Bowen remained 
single; William H. married Nellie Kipp; John 
married Eliza Smith: Christopher married 
Sophia Homer; Marie married .Andrew Wol- 
vern: Nellie married John Whittaker; Leah mar- 
ried Peter John; Philip died in childhood; Mat- 
thew died in infancy; and Catherme (widow 
of David Cole, of this review) completes the 
family. 



CARPENTER FAMILY. Tradition, Par- 
ish and Church records, and other infor- 
mation quite conclusive, tell us that the first of 
the Carpenters, of whom this sketch relates, 
was a German of the name of (I) Gotlieb Zim- 
merman, who about the year i 500 emigrated 
from Prussia to England, where he angliced 
his name to Caleb Carpenter. William and 

(II) Richard Carpenter are supposed to have 
been his immediate descendants, and the only 
children of their parents to attain to man's es- 
tate, (II) Richard being the only one of the two 
who left issue. William was engaged exten- 
sively in ship chandlery, and later in the ship- 
ping business, chiefly with the West Indies, 
and when he died in 1700 at the age of ninety- 
seven years, he left an estate said to have been 
valued at three million pounds sterling, devised 
by will (bearing date 1684:1 to his legal heirs, 
who are supposed to have been his nephews 

(III) Ephraim and Timothy Carpenter, then 
residing in America; and Josiah and Phebe Car- 
penter (both then residing in Wales), children 
of (III) Ephraim Carpenter, only son of (II) 
Richard Carpenter. 

(Ill) Ephraim Carpenter had issue: Eph- 
raim, (IV) Timothy, Josiah, and Phebe, who 
died in Wales; the other three emigrated to 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



211 



America about the year 1678; but Josiah re- 
turned to Wales a few years afterward, and 
died there. Ephraim and (I\') Timothy pur- 
chased a large tract of land of the Indians on 
Long Island, in the then Province of New 
York, embracing a large portion, if not all, of 
the town of Hempstead, and settled thereon at 
or near what is now known as Jerusalem. 

(I\'i Timothy Carpenter was born in Eng- 
land December 19, 1665. About 1688 he mar- 
ried Mercy Coles, of Oyster Bay, Long Island, 
and a short time thereafter they moved to 
Westchester county. Their family consisted 
of the following children: John, born June 13, 
1690; Hulda, August 29, 1692; Jeptha, Decem- 
ber 18. 1693; i\') Benjamin. March 25, 1696; 
and Timothy, Jr., April 1, 1698. 

(V) Benjamin Carpenter was born in 
Westchester county, N. Y. , March 25, 1696. 
and for his first wife married. October 30. 1 7 1 8. 

Dinah . who was born March 19, 1698. 

Children as follows were born to them: Eliza, 
September 12, 1719; Elijah, December 23, 
1722; Ezra, May 6, 1726; Luther, August 16, 
1730; Sarah, July 11, 1734, and (VI) Caleb, 
September 25, 1736. After the death of his 
lirst wife, November 3. 1758, (\') Benjamin 

married Lydia . born August 4. 171 2. 

died November 25. 1778. (V) Benjamin died 
March 26. 1778 or 1779. 

(VI) Caleb Carpenter was born Septem- 
ber 25, 1736, in Westchester county, N. Y. 

For his first wife he married Amy , who 

was born November 25, 1738, and children as 
follows were born to them; Sebe, born July 4, 
1760; Benjamin, April i, 1762; Mary, June 
26, 1767; Lydia, August 4, 1769, died August 
-7. 1796; fVII) John, October 20, i77i;Zeno, 
December 8, 1773, died February 8, 1795; 
Ruth, January 24, 1776, and Caleb, October 
24, 1778, died December 3, 1814. The 
mother of these died January 18, 1795, and 
for his second wife iVI) Caleb married Zip- 
porah Kip, who died February 12, 18 18, aged 
sixty-nine years. (\T) Caleb died December 
20, 1826. 

(VIIj John Carpenter was born at White 
Plains. Westchester county. October 20, 1771. 
and died October 10. 1828. He was married 
February 16. 1799, to Amy Green, who was 
born January 7, 1781, daughter of Isaiah and 
Elizabeth Green, and children as follows were 
born to them: Leonard, November 8, 1799; 
(VIII) Emory, March 5, 1801; William G., 
October 24, 1802; Jacob, November 24, 1804; 



Caleb, February 5, 1807, and John G. . in No- 
vember. 181 2. The father of these followed 
farming exclusivel}', and he and his wife were 
members of the Hicksite Quakers Society. 
He died 10th 9th Mo., 1828, she on 8th 7th 
Mo., 185 1, aged seventy years, six months, 
one day. 

(VIII) Emory Carpenter was born March 
5, 1801, in Westchester county, where he 
lived until he was sixteen years old, and then 
came to the town of Clinton, Dutchess county, 
later removmg to Ulster county. In that 
county, at New Paltz, by Rev. Bogardus, Oc- 
tober 22, 1825, he was married to Jane Ann 
Du Bois, who was born April 15. 1806, in 
Plattekill, Ulster county, daughter of Joseph 
and Abigail ( Coopen Du Bois. of Ulster coun- 
ty, whose children were: Jane Ann, Hannah, 
Martha, Rachel, Josiah C. and Elias M. 
Joseph Du Bois was a lifelong farmer. Peter 
Du Bois, son of Jacques, who was the Hugue- 
not who emigrated to America in the year 
1674, was the great-great-great-grandfather of 
William J. and J. Du Bois Carpenter, both of 
Poughkeepsie. His descendant, Elias Du Bois. 
married Elizabeth Tompkins. Soon after their 
marriage (VIII) Emory Carpenter and his wife 
located on a farm near Poughkeepsie, later re- 
moving to New York for a time. They had 
the following children: Edmund, born June 29, 
1826, died September 10, 1827; Caleb, August 
25, 1827, died August 5, 1828; (IX) William 
J., December 10, 1828; Amy J., May 8, 1831; 
(IX) J. Du Bois, March 14, 1833; Harriet N., 
November 13, 1834; George E., May 13, 1836; 
Elias Du Bois, December 11, 1837; and Jacob 
G., August 2, 1843. Of these, William J. lives 
a retired life in Poughkeepsie; Amy J. married 
Capt. Smith, who is deceased: Harriet N. be- 
came the wife of Nathan Williams, of Ulster 
county; George E. is a clerk with his brother, 
J. Du Bois; Elias D. is captain of a steamer 
on the Hudson; and Jacob G. has been con- 
nected with the Brooklyn Kn^o^lf for twenty- 
three years. After leaving the farm near 
Poughkeepsie, the parents moved to another 
in the town of Lagrange, where the father died 
August 17, 1844; politically, he was a Demo- 
crat, in religious faith a Hicksite Ouaker. The 
mother, for her second husband, married Sel- 
leck Carpenter, August, 1856. She died June 
10, 1891. 

(IX) Josiah Du Bois Carpenter, one of the 
leading and oldest grocers of Poughkeepsie, 
was born at New Paltz, Ulster Co., N. V.. 



212 



COHMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPBTCAL RECORD. 



March 14. 1833. When one year old he was 
taken to Poughkeepsie, where he attended the 
district schools until fourteen years of age, and 
then studied with his uncle. Josiah C. Du Bois, 
after whom he was named. Mr. Carpenter 
entered a general store at Highland conducted 
by his uncle Josiah C. Du Bois, where he 
stayed for five years; then returned to Pough- 
keepsie and clerked in a dry -goods store for 
John W. Miller one year; then clerked for 
Cornwall & Heath for the same length of time. 
Subsequently he engaged in the grocery busi- 
ness with his brother. William J. , which he con- 
tinued from 1854 until 1S61, when he left the 
grocery business for freighting; but in 1863 he 
resumed the grocery trade. On May 28, 1857, 
Mr. Carpenter was married to Miss Elizabeth K. 
Southwick, who was born .August 25, 1835, in 
Napanoch, Ulster Co., N. V.. daughter of 
.^dna H. Southwick. The following children 
were the result of this union: Stella B., born 
April 10, 1858; Alice M.. born December 31, 
1863; Mary A., born January 28, 1866; died 
March 16, 1S66; Lydia S. , born October 10, 
1867; and Du Bois, born March 22, 1873. 
Of these. Alice M. was married April 2, 18S6, 
at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., to Clinton D. Park- 
hill, son of Mortimer and Eleanor (Shultz) 
Parkhill, of Canisteo, N. Y., and children as 
follows have been born to them: Clinton D., 
Jr., born August 2, 1887; J. Du Bois, born 
May 24, 1892, died September 28, 1892; 
Mortimer" S.. born December 10, 1S94; and 
Reynolds S., born February 13, 1896, died 
July 17, 1896. 

(IX) Josiah Du Bois Carpenter is a Repub- 
lican in politics, a member of the Royal Ar- 
canum, and he and his wife belong to the 
Methodist Church. He has always taken an 
active interest in all public matters pertaining 
to the welfare of Poughkeepsie; was first presi- 
dent (for two years) of the Merchants .Associa- 
tion, and has served on several committees 
for the improvement of the city. His place of 
business is on the corner of Main and Acad- 
emy streets, opposite the ■• Morgan House." 



Gi:ORGE K. TABER. a leading agricult- 
urist of the town of Pawling, Dutchess 
county, and a director of the Pawling National 
Bank, is a descendant of one of the oldest and 
most distinguished families of that vicinity. 
His ancestors were originally from England. 
Thomas Taber, great-grandfather of our 



subject, was born in New Bedford, Mass., in 
1732, came to Dutchess count}' in 1760. and 
bought a farm at Quaker Hill, where he passed 
the remainder of his life. He was a Quaker 
in religion, and most of his descendants ad- 
hered to the same faith. His death occurred 
September 18, 1783, when he was aged fifty 
years; his wife, Anne Theresa Taber, was born 
in 1734, and died August 29, 1805, at the age 
of seventy-one years. They had eleven chil- 
dren, whose names, with dates of birth and 
death, are as follows: Hannah 1 wife of Edmond 
Ferris). November 12, 1753 — December 4. 
1777; Salome, June 1 1, 1755 — 1766; Nathaniel 
(son), April 26, 1757; Meribah, March 23. 
1759 — June 4. 1850; William. November 6. 
1760 — November 3. 1836: Jeremiah, August 
26, 1762— May 8, 1S34; .Anne Therese, April 



■1789: 



August 29, 



2, 1766— 1856; Ruth. -April i. 1768 
Salome ( wife of Charles Hurd 

1 77 1 — 1827: Almy. .August 28, 1773; Mary, 
November 18. 1775 — May27, 1852. Of these. 
William, grandfather of our subject, married 
Martha Akin, who was born March i, 1761, 
and children as follows came to this union, 
names and dates of birth being given: Isaac, Oc- 
tober II, 1782; Hannah, November 25, 1783; 
Thomas, May 19, 1785; George P., June 25, 
1787; Phebe, January 13, 1790; Sybilla, June 
27, 1791; Abigail, December 21, 1793: Jona- 
than Akin, March 7, 1797: and .Ann. P'ebruary 
I 5. '799- Of these, Thomas married. Febru- 
ary 2, 1820, Phebe Titus, daughter of Stephen 
Titus and his wife Elizabeth *" Holmes), and 
their children were: Stephen, born March 7, 
1 82 1, and Samuel Titus. .April 13, 1824, 
died at Roslyn, Long Island, t'ebruary 4, 1871. 
The father of these died March 21, 1862, at 
Roslyn. Long Island, the mother on August 
13, 1824, at Chestnut Ridge, Dutchess Co.. 
New York. 

Stephen Taber, son of Thoma.s and Phebe 

Titus Taber, married Rosetta M. Townsend 
May 27, 1845, ^n^ their children were: Sam- 
uel T., who was lost at sea in October. 1865: 
William T., married to Sarah Canton: Ade- 
laide, married to Walter R. Willets (their chil- 
dren — Rosetta. Elsie. Gertrude and Edna ; 
Gertrude, married to Benjamin Kirk: and 
Thomas T. . married to Katharine Brooks (have 
one son— William T.). The father of these 
died in New York City April 23. 1886. the 
mother on March 4, 1883. 

Samuel Titus Taber married Katherine C. 
Hiller, September 2. 1845, and they moved 




...."*** 



^^ '^J^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



213 



from Dutchess county to Long Island, in 1856. 
Their children are two in number: ( i ) Martha 
Elizabeth, born July 2, 1846, married Will- 
iam H. Willets, September 12, i<S67 (their 
daughter, Katherine Taber Willets, born Oc- 
tober 10, 1868, married Alfred A. Gardner, 
August 22, 1892; they have one son, born 
November S, 1896); and (2) Sarah Phebe, 
born November 4, 1847, married William 
Willets in 1869 (their children are: Samuel 
Taber Willets, born October 15, 1872; 
Stephen Taber Willets, born August i, 1878; 
and Robert Henry Willets, born June 24, 
1881). 

William Taber, grandfather of our subject, 
became a man of distinction and note. He 
was a Democrat in politics, was one of the 
judges of sessions in Dutchess county, and in 
1790 was a member of the State Assembly, 
his strong, upright character and aggressive 
disposition giving him great influence with all 
classes. He was an extensive land holder, 
owning about one thousand acres which he di- 
vided among his sons. He married Martha 
Akin (daughter of Jonathan and Lillias ( Ferris) 
Akin), who died January 3, 1847, in her eighty- 
si.xth year. Of their nine children, the eldest, 
Hannah, married (first) Mr. Pierson, and (sec- 
ond) Daniel I^umsey; she left a son, William 
T. , who married (in 1842) Caroline Field, and 
settled at Fairfax Court House, Va., where he 
and his family still live. (2) Thomas married 
Phcebe Titus, of Hempstead, L. I., and they 
lived at Chestnut Ridge, Dutchess county, un- 
til, about 1856, the family moved to I'ioslyn, 
L. I. They had two sons: Stephen (who 
went to Congress from there, serving two 
terms — 1864 and 1866) and Samuel T. 
Thomas lived at Chestnut Ridge, and took a 
prominent part in the political movements of 
his time, serving as a member of the Twen- 
tieth Congress. (3) George P. married Helen 
Akin, and had three children: William (who 
died F"ebruary 16, 1859), Oliver (who died 
September 17, 1878), and Philip (the only 
one now (1897) living). George P. died in 
February, 1870, in his eighty-third year, and 
of his three children, above named, William 
married Helen Kirby. Oliver married Eliza 
Irwin, of East Albany, and Philip is a bach- 
elor residing on the homestead; William and 
Oliver both died without issue. (4) Sybil 
married John Pierce, and had one son — 
George T. Pierce. (5) Abigail married Cyrus 
Tweedy. (6) Phiebe married Thomas Sweet. 



(7) Ann married Chesterfield King, and had 
two children — William T. and Helen. 

Jonathan Aiken Taber, our subject's father, 
was born in 1797, ^nd with his two brothers 
inherited the homestead, his share being 260 
acres, to which he afterward added until he 
owned more than 600 acres. His life was 
passed in agricultural pursuits, and he did not 
take a prominent part in politics; but he was 
always interested in public questions, and took 
a decided stand against slavery, becoming a 
Republican in his later years. He was one of 
the most substantial and public-spirited men 
of his town, and he and his cousin, Jonathan 
Akin, were among the prime movers in the 
construction of the Harlem railroad, to which 
he gave much time and energy. Like his 
father and a majority of the family, he was a 
lifelong supporter of the Society of P"riends. 
His first wife, Hannah Kirby, daughter of 
George Kirby, died December 25, 1832, leav- 
ing two children, of whom our subject is the 
elder. The other, Martha Ann, married Will- 
iam H. Akin, and had two children: Albro 
and Amy. His second wife was Abigail Ayers, 
by whom he had five children: Hannah, who 
married Edward Wanzer, and has one daugh- 
ter, Margaret; William T. , who married Emma 
L. Crawford, and has one child, Frederick C, 
who has been bookkeeper in the National 
Bank of Pawling some twenty years; James 
Ayers, who married Virginia Houghton, and 
has three children — William, James Akin and 
Gertrude; Mary, who died at sixteen years of 
age; Abbie, who died in 1880, aged thirty-two 
years. The father of this family died in 1868, 
and his second wife survived him until 1889. 

George K. Taber, the subject proper of this 
sketch, was born P''ebruary 5, 1822, at the old 
homestead about two miles below the village 
of Pawling. He received a common-school 
education, which was supplemented with a 
three-seasons' course at Dutchess County 
Academy, Poughkeepsie, where he graduated 
when about twenty-one years old. He has 
been engaged in farming all his life, and for 
twenty-four years lived on the Ravincwood 
farm, about three miles southeast of the vil- 
lage. In 1869 he bought his present property, 
and built the house in which he now resides. 
As a business man he is successful, and he is 
one of the most influential men of the locality. 
In October, 1845, he married Charlotte l^~ield, 
who was born January 16, 1826, in the town 
of Pawling, only child of Comfort Field, and 



214 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



granddaughter of Gilbert Field. The family 
is one of the oldest in this region, and her 
ancestors were early settlers at North Salem, 
Westchester county, where the old homestead 
is still in the possession of lineal descendants. 
Of the five children of this union, two are liv- 
ing : Gilbert Field, the eldest child and only 
son, born September, 1846, died August, 1889. 
He married Mary B. Allen, and had three 
daughters — Hattie A., Hannah and Mary, all 
yet living; he was a farmer and cattle raiser, 
importing the first Red-Polled cattle ever 
brought to this country. Hannah K. died at 
the age of twenty. Martha A. and Alicia are 
at home. Lottie died in 1880, at the age of 
eighteen years. Mr. and Mrs. Taber are Bap- 
tists in faith, and have always taken great in- 
terest in the work of the Church, and in all 
measures for the public welfare. In politics 
he was formerly a Republican, but of late 
years he has affiliated with the Prohibition 
party, taking a strong stand in the cause of 
temperance. His father was one of the first 
to prohibit the use of stimulants in the harvest 
field and on other occasions, as the custom 
then was. 



E^UGENE S. CRAFT, one of the most 
4 straightforward and energetic business 

men of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, spent 
the first ten years of his life in Port Chester, 
Westchester Co., N. Y. , where his birth took 
place February 14, 1867. He is a son of 
John W. and Phcebe 1 Merritt) Craft, who were 
married in that city; but when he was only 
three years of age his mother died, leaving 
eight children, namely : Graham, Earls, 
Phttbe, John, Manford, Eouis, Eugene Sloat 
and Washington. The father, who was a 
native of Putnam county, X. \'., became a 
highly-educated man, and for seven years fol- 
lowed the profession of teaching. By trade he 
was a stone mason, and while following con- 
tracting in that line was employed as overseer 
on the masonry of the West Shore railroad 
passing through Newburgh, N. Y., where he 
is now engaged in the grocery business. For 
his second wife he married Eliza Terwilliger. 
In the public schools Eugene S. Craft 
obtained his education, and was ten years of 
age on going to Newburgh, where he remained 
eight years. On the expiration of that time 
he came to Poughkeepsie, first being in the 
employ of Mr. Griggs, at the "Morgan House," 



where he remained some three years. He next 
entered his father's grocery store as clerk, and 
two years later the business was sold to S. J. 
Kelder, for whom he also worked two years. 
In 1892 he entered into partnership with J. G. 
Bloomer, under the firm name of E. S. Craft, 
but at the end of six months he purchased his 
partner's interest. In January, 1894, he 
bought his present store at No. 466 Main 
street, from Mr. Bloomer, and admitted that 
gentleman to a partnership in the store at No. 
521. Nine months later he sold his interest in 
the latter establishment to his partner, retain- 
ing the store at No. 466, of which he is sole 
proprietor. He has been quite successful in 
his business ventures, and now receives a 
liberal patronage. 

While a resident of Newburgh. Mr. Craft 
held membership with Trinity Church, and 
now belongs to Washington Street Methodist 
Episcopal Church, while he is also assistant 
superintendent of the Cherry Street Chapel. 
Socially he is connected with the Knights of 
Pythias Lodge, and in politics is an earnest and 
strong advocate of the principles of the Prohibi- 
tion party. He is a conscientious. Christian gen- 
tleman, an active worker for the temperance 
cause, and upright and honorable in all the 
walks of life. 



MAJ. WILLIAM HAUBENNESTEL, of 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, senior 
member of the well-known firm of Hauben- 
nestel cS; Son, dealers in boots and shoes, is 
one of the representative men of that place. 
He has been identified with the city since his 
childhood, for, although he is a native of New 
York City, born in 1843, he was taken to 
Poughkeepsie six years later by his parents. 

After leaving school he learned the shoe- 
making trade, and in 1867 started for himself 
in the shoe business, which he has conducted 
ever since. Mr. Haubennestel is a stanch Re- 
publican, and has served his party faithfully 
on many occasions. He was assessor in 1872- 
74-76, and was elected supervisor of the Sec- 
ond ward in Poughkeepsie in 1S87. In that 
body he did valiant service, and it was through 
his instrumentality that the matter of caring 
for the insane was amicably arranged, saving 
the city thousands of dollars. In 1894 he was 
elected treasurer of Dutches:; county with a 
majority of 2,290. 

In military circles Mr. Haubennestel is 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



215 



known throughout the entire State. On May 
2, i860, he joined Company D, 21st Regiment, 
N. Y. V. I. (now the Nineteenth Separate 
Company), as a private, and received rapid 
promotion as loilows: July 2, 1861, second 
sergeant; July 3, 1862, first sergeant; Novem- 
ber 3, 1862, second lieutenant; April 6, 1866, 
first lieutenant; November 12, 1866, captain; 
and on January 2, 1876, by virtue of long 
service, he was promoted to the rank of brevet- 
major. During all these years he had served 
his country faithfully without a furlough or 
even a leave of absence. At the front his rec- 
ord is bright. In June, 1863, when the Na- 
tional Capital and the whole North was threat- 
ened by the victorious army of Gen. Lee, the 
command left Poughkeepsie, reported to Maj. 
Gen. Schenck at I->altimore, and was assigned 
quarters at Belgier's barracks. It was at this 
critical juncture that the history of Company 
D and Maj. \V. Haubennestel became closely 
linked. He was then a lad of only eighteen 
years, and was with them in all the exciting 
times until mustered out of service in August, 
1863. He was repeatedly offered the position 
of post adjutant, but his age prevented his ac- 
ceptance. On February 20, 1897, he was ap- 
pointed battalion commander of the Eleventh 
Battalion, embracing the territories of West- 
chester, Putnam, Dutchess and Columbia 
counties. 

To this gentleman the city of Poughkeepsie 
is indebted for the beautiful armory on Market 
street; for almost alone, for seven long years, 
he fought for its erection, making at least three 
hundred trips to Albany before he secured his 
purpose. In May, 1891, on Decoration Day, 
the corner stone was laid with imposing cere- 
monies, and now the grand structure is a mon- 
ument to his energy and perseverance. 

Our subject was married October 10, 1867, 
to Alice Buys, and two children have been 
born to them: Ella L. and Louis P. 

Major Haubennestel's friends are legion, 
and he is active in fraternal society work. In 
1866 he joined the I. O. O. F., at Poughkeep- 
sie, Lodge No. 21, in which he has passed all 
the chairs, and he has been a representative to 
the Grand Lodge several times. He is also an 
old member of Poughkeepsie Lodge No. 266, 
F. & A. M., having joined same in 1868. In 
1 880 he united with Hamilton Post, G. A. K. , 
and he is a member of the \'eteran Fireman 
.Association. The Nineteenth Separate Com- 
pany Fife, Drum and Bugle Corps, the crack 



drum corps of the State of New York, was or- 
ganized in the fall of 1888 by Mr. Haubennes- 
tel, assisted by his son Louis P. Haubennestel, 
who is leader of the corps, and was the promo- 
ter of the organization. 

Louis P. Haubennestel, the junior member 
of the firm of Haubennestel & Son. was born 
in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. . August 16, 1870, and 
his education was completed at Riverview 
Academy, where he held the position of drum 
major. He was the commanding officer of St. 
Paul's Co., Knights of Temperance, in 1890, 
when they won the prize banner for drill, in 
New York City. On April 11, 1894, he was 
married to Minnie Avis Barton, daughter of 
Edward and MinafFe^^n) Barton, of Salisbury, 
Conn., where she was born. Her grandfather, 
who was a prominent Democrat, in 1842 de- 
livered a political address in Poughkeepsie, and 
in 1852 he carried the official vote of the State 
of Connecticut to Washington. From 1852 to 
iS56hewas a member of the Assembly, and 
in 1873 was State senator. He is still living 
at Salisbury, Conn. Mrs. L. P. Haubennes- 
tel's father is also prominent in Democratic 
circles and has held several positions of trust. 



JOSE MANUEL GODINEZ, of the firm of 
C. H. Gallup & Co., is as his name would in- 
dicate, of Cuban origin, born August i , 1853, 
on the island of Cuba, where his father, Fran- 
cisco J. Godinez, was the owner of a large 
sugar plantation. 

Jose .Manuel Godinez passed his boyhood 
in his native land, and received his education 
in the lower schools, from which he took the 
degree A. B., and in the University of Havana. 
When yet quite young he was made one of the 
guards of the Captain-General of Cuba, and 
stationed at Havana. He served three years, 
receiving the rank of lieutenant, and then ob- 
taining a furlough, came to the United States, 
and at once declared his intention of becoming 
a citizen; he remained here until after his 
final papers were signed, and then went home 
on a visit. In 1876 he entered the Eastman 
Business College at Poughkeepsie, and took a 
full business course. During all this time he 
made frequent visits home to see his parents. 
Even now, while Poughkeepsie is his home, he 
still retains a large plantation of several thou- 
sand acres in Cuba, though this has been laid 
waste and the buildings all burned in the prog- 
ress of the present Cuban war. In 1890 he 



216 



C'OMMEMORA TIVE ntOURAl'llirAL RKCOHD. 



entered partnership with Mr. Tialhip in the 
photograph business. 

In 1877, in Poiighi<eepsie, Mr. Godinez was 
married to Miss Eihi (ialiup, daughter of 
Charles H. Gallup, and sister of his present 
partner in business. To this union one child 
has been born, Francisco Laurent, now at- 
tending Rivervievv Military College. Mr. God- 
inez is a member of the Masonic fraternity — 
Ancient Scottish Kite — which he joined in 
Cuba. He is alscj a member of the Pough- 
keepsie Gun Club. 



ISAAC \V. SHEI^IilLL, who has twice 
served as county treasurer, and who is one 

of the most prominent citizens of Poughkeep- 
sie, was born in New Lebanon, Columbia Co., 
X. v.. May 16, 1849. a son of \\'alter and 
Amy (Fowler I Sherrill. 

The Sherrill family is of English ancestry, 
and the first of the name in this country set- 
tled on Long Island, whence some of them 
came to Dutchess county. Isaac Sherrill, the 
grandfather of our subject, was born in the 
town of Stanford, Dutchess county, where he 
carried on farming. On June 18, 1809, he 
married Betsy Jackson, and they had five chil- 
dren, of whom the following record is given: 
Jeremiah is a farmer in the town of Washing- 
ton, Dutchess county; Walter is the father of 
our subject; Hunting is a farmer in Columbia 
county, N. Y. ; Eliza M. married Lewis Adsit, 
also a farmer, and now deceased; and Marga- 
ret married George Fowler, now deceased. 

Walter Sherrill was born in the town of 
Stanford, and was reared on the home farm. 
He married Amy E., daughter of Israel Fow- 
ler, who was born at Unionvale, Dutchess 
county, and they settled on a farm in Columbia 
county, where the father died in 1852, and the 
mother in 1854. They were consistent mem- 
bers of the Christian Church, and in his polit- 
ical belief the father was a Whig. They had 
two children: Isaac W. ami Henrietta, the 
latter being now deceased. 

Isaac W. Sherrill was a child of three 
years when his father died, and his mother's 
death following two years later, he was taken 
by his uncle, Jeremiah Sherrill, with whom he 
lived in the town of Hillsdale, Columbia county, 
until twelve years of age. His uncle at that 
time removed to the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, and there our subject attended 
the district school, later taking a course at 



the Dutchess County .Academy. His educa- 
tion was completed at Gary's Institute, Pough- 
keepsie, and when twenty-one years of age he 
returned to that city and entered the hardware ' 
store of Uhl & Husted, as clerk. With this 
house he remained two years, and then went 
into the general store of Budd & Trowbridge. 
A year later he bought the interest of Mr. Budd, 
and the firm became Trowbridge & Sherrill. 
In the following year Peter Adriance was ad- 
mitted to the partnership, and the name was 
changed to Trowbridge, Sherrill & Adriance. 
This connection continued for three years, 
when Mr. Sherrill sold out his interests, and 
for a short time was engaged in the manufac- 
ture of shoes with Bayly & Halsted. 

In 1878, Mr. Sherrill was elected alderman 
of the Third ward, on the Republican ticket, 
and was re-elected in 1S80, serving two terms. 
He was afterward appointed city chamberlain, 
by Mayor Ezra White, which ofifice he held 
four years. In 1886 Mr. Sherrill started as a 
dealer in investment securities, a business he 
is yet carrying on, at No. 19 Market street. 
In 1888 he was elected county treasurer, and 
at the expiration of his term was re-elected, 
serving in this capacity until January i, 1895. 
In April, 1897, Governor Black appointed him 
one of the Board of Trustees of the New York 
State Soldiers' and Sailors' Home, located at 
Bath, Steuben Co., N. Y., which is an institu- 
tion of about fifteen hundred inmates. In 
June of the same year he resigned from that 
position, and the Governor appointed him to 
the honorary position of one of the Board of 
Managers of the Hudson River State Hospital, 
located at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., which is con- 
sidered a position of prominence in the State. 

On October i, 1873, our subject was united 
in marriage with Miss N'irginia Halstead, a 
native of the town of Stanfonl, Dutchess coun- 
ty. The Halsteads are of English descent, and 
her father, Nehemiah Halstead. was for a time 
a merchant at Bangall, Dutchess county, after- 
ward following farming. Four children have 
been born to our subject and his wife: Wil- 
fred H., Harold W., Virgil C. and Arthur L. 
Mr. and Mrs. Sherrill attend the Congrega- 
tional Ch\irch. Mr. Sherrill is a Re|)ublican 
in politics, and has always taken a lively in- 
terest in public matters, lending his inlluence 
to all projects for the growth and welfare of 
his conununity. His ability as a business man 
is well-known, and he stands high in the esti- 
mation of his associates. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



217 



JAMES HARVEY SWIFT (deceased) was 
born in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , April 23, 
1825, and was a brother of George H. 
Swift, a leading citizen of the town of Amenia, 
Dutchess county. His boyhood days were 
passed in his native city, attending the Dutch- 
ess County Academy and College Hill Academy. 
For two years later he was a student at Yale 
College, after which he entered Rutgers Col- 
lege at New Brunswick, N. J., taking the class- 
ical course and graduating with the class of 
'44. He then came to the town of Amenia, 
where, for a year, he lived upon a farm with 
his brother John, and subsequently purchased 
the Burton farm, where he lived until his 
marriage. 

On February 4, 1847, Mr. Swift was mar- 
ried in New York City to Miss Frances Au- 
gusta Swift, daughter of Thomas Swift, and 
they became the parents of seven children, 
namely: Alida Warner, born November 9, 
1847, died December 12, 1S92; Henry, born 
December 31, 1849, died January 15, 1865; 
Frances Augusta, born December 12, 185 1, 
died March 15, 1852; Thomas James, born 
March 6, 1853; Charles Rowland, born Janu- 
ary 28, 1858, died April 30, i860; Freeborn 
Jewett, born February 11, 1862, died Decem- 
ber 15, 1864; and John Morton, born October 
6, 1865. 

In 1857 Mr. Swift purchased the Philo 
Reed farm, which continued to be his home 
until his death, on September 27, 1889. Dur- 
ing his active business life he carried on farm- 
ing in the town of Amenia, with the exception 
of when, in connection with his brother, George 
H., he was executor of his brother Charles' es- 
tate, at which time he resided in Poughkeepsie. 

Mr. Swift was a most earnest and consis- 
tent member of the Presbyterian Church at 
South Amenia, in which he served as elder 
from 1864, and politically was a Republican. 
His record was an honorable one, and his 
memory will be long cherished by the many 
who had the pleasure of his acqaintance, for 
his sturdy worth and for his countless acts of 
benevolence and kindness, of which often only 
the recipient and himself knew. He was an 
influential man, and contributed liberally to all 
good enterprises. 

Mrs. Swift was born in the town of Dover, 
Dutchess county, July 35, 1828, and before 
her marriage was a distant relative of her hus- 
band, both tracing their ancestry back to 
Judah Swift, their paternal great-grandfather. 

14 A 



The founder of the family in America was 
William Swift, and from him in direct line to 
Judah are William, Ephraim and Samuel. 
Judah Swift, by his marriage with Elizabeth 
Morton, had eight children: Lois; Samuel; 
Nathaniel; Moses; Rebecca; Seth, the grand- 
father of Mr. Swift, of this review; Elizabeth; 
and Moses, the grandfather of Mrs. Swift. 
Seth wedded Mary Wells, and they had six 
children: Henry, Moses, E. Morton, Ann W., 
Maria and Thomas W. Henry, the eldest, 
married Rebecca Warner, and to them were 
born six children: Charles Wells, Maria, 
John Morton, George Henry, Frances, and 
James Harvey, whose name introduces this 
sketch. 

Moses Swift, the grandfather of Mrs. Swift, 
spent his entire life in the town of Amenia. 
He married Hannah Hurd, of the town of 
Dover, on June 9, 1785, and one of their chil- 
dren was Thomas Swift, the father Mrs. James 
H. Swift. He was born in Amenia, January 
24, 1789, and was three times married, his 
first wife being Maria Barlow, and his second 
Mary L. Grant. After the death of the latter 
he married Asenath Cline, the mother of Mrs. 
Swift. She was born October 6, 1793, and 
died April i, 1891. The father was principal- 
ly engaged in hotel keeping throughout life, 
conducting the "Forbes House" at Pough- 
keepsie; the "Atlantic Hotel" at Hoboken, 
N. J.; and the "Bull's Head" in New York 
Citv. His death occurred January 25, 1872. 



E 



MERY WING (deceased) was born at 



^ Wing's Station, on the Harlem railroad, 

in the town of Dover, Dutchess county. May 
20, 1825. There he remained during his 
youth, attending the public schools. 

At the age of twenty-two he went to Al- 
bany, and clerked in the wholesale grocery 
store of Cook & Wing; stayed there three 
years, and then for one year traveled with the 
circus and menagerie of G. C. Quick & Co; 
next clerked in the "Northern Hotel," at the 
corner of Mill and Washington streets, for four 
years. Mr. Wing was married in the town of 
Washington to Ann Maria Vail, and then en- 
gaged in the fancy dry-goods and millinery 
business at No. 304 Main street, later buying 
the store at No. 306 Main street, and building 
the place now occupied by A. B. Stockholm. ' 
He remained in business from 1855 to 1877, 
and in 1872 bought his late residence on South 



218 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



avenue, where he passed the rest of his days. 
His first wife died November 9, 1875, -^^^ 
September 17, 1876, he married Miss Mary 
Eliza \'an Kleeck, a daughter of Levi \'an- 
Kleeck. Of this union there were two chil- 
dren: Irene K., born October 7, 1877, died 
August 2, 1878, and Emery, jr., born March 
14, 1880. Mr. Wing had a large orchard, and 
was a very successful fruit grower, and for the 
past twenty years of his life he lived retired 
on South avenue, dying May 9, 1896. 

Elijah Wing, father of our subject, was 
born at Wing's Station, where he spent his 
youth. He married Lucy, daughter of Brad- 
ford Holmes, M. D., and children as follows 
were born to them: (i) John, deceased; (2) 
Maria H., married (first) to Erastus Burch, 
and they had one child — Mary E. — and (sec- 
ond) wedded Edward M. Buckley, by whom 
there were three children — Charles, Arthur 
and Emery W. (3) Emery, our subject. (4) 
Walter F., who was on the whaling vessel, 
"Yonkers. " (5) Hiram. Mr. Wing was a 
farmer, and gave all his time and attention to 
that occupation. 

Thurston \N'ing, the grandfather, was born 
in Rhode Island, and came to the town of 
Dover when a boy. He married Mary Young- 
er, and they had the following children: Arch- 
ibald (deceased), Rhodie (deceased) married 
Zebulon Ross, Mary Ann became the wife of 
Theodorus Sheldon, and Elijah and Thurston 
(both deceased). Mr. Wing died in 1844, an 
adherent of the Quaker faith. 

Thomas Wing, the great-grandfather, was 
born in England, and came to America,, locat- 
ing first in Rhode Island, and later in Dutch- 
ess county. He was the earliest ancestor of 
the Wing family in this country. 



CORNELIUS LAMOREAUX CANNON, 
the well-known contractor and builder of 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was born 
February i, 1850, at the old homestead of 
the family on South Hamilton street, Pough- 
keepsie. 

His early education was acquired at the 
public schools of his native place, at the 
Dutchess County Academy, and at the Eastman 
Business College, from which he was gradu- 
ated in 1867. His father, the late Arnout 
Cannon, was prominent in the building trade, 
and our subject learned the business thor- 
oughly under his instruction, serving a three- 



years' apprenticeship. He was then made 
foreman of his father's shop, and held that 
position until 1S73. when he and his brother 
Arnout, an architect, went into business under 
the firm name of A. Cannon's Sons. This ar- 
rangement lasted until 1881, when they sep- 
arated, our subject continuing his work as 
builder, and his brother following architecture 
exclusively. Mr. Cannon is a leader in his 
line, and employs about twelve men the year 
round. 

On April 28, 1873, Mr. Cannon was mar- 
ried in Poughkeepsie to Miss Julia E. Schon, 
a native of St. Croi.x, Danish \\'est Indies. 
Her father, J.ames N. Schon, was born in Co- 
penhagen, Denmark, in 181 5, and went to St. 
Croi.x when a young man as superintendent of 
a large hospital. He was married there to 
Miss Maria Schuster, a native of the place, 
who had been educated at New Haven, Conn. 
They had two children, Julia E. and Charles 
E. After twenty-two years at St. Croix, Mr. 
Schon came to the United States, spending 
one year in New York City before making his 
home in Poughkeepsie. He was for a short 
time employed as bookkeeper for the iron 
works of Edward Beck, and then became pri- 
vate secretary to the late Matthew Vassar. 
On the foundation of Vassar College he be- 
came registrar and assistant treasurer, and 
held those offices until his death, which oc- 
curred March 26, 1875. 

Mr. and Mrs. Cannon have had eight chil- 
dren, whose names with dates of birth are as 
follows: Frederick, March 17, 1874; Nellie, 
October 7, 1876; James Schon, October 25, 
1878; Clara Louise, November 22. 1880; 
Ernest Alton, March 19, 1883; Wallace Cor- 
nelius, July II, 1885; Francis Jones, April 3, 
1887; and Julia Gardner, November 10, 1889. 
Politically Mr. Cannon is a Republican, but 
while he is a stanch and influential supporter 
of the doctrines of his party he is not an office- 
seeker. He is a member of the I. O. O. F., 
No. 297, and of the Royal Arcanum. 



CAPTAIN LUTHER ELTING, one of the 
oldest and most highly respected residents 
of the city of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, 
was born August 2, 181 5, at Highland, Ulster 
county, then known as New Paltz Landing. 

His ancestors were earl}' settlers in that 
locality, and his grandfather, Noah Elting, was 
born there, and became one of the prominent 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



219 



business men of his daj', being extensively en- 
gaged in the freighting business and in sloop 
building; he was also the originator of the ferry 
line between Highland and Poughkeepsie. He 
married Hannah Deyo, of Ulster county, and 
had the following named children: Deyo, 
Henry D., Philip, David, Abram, Mrs. David 
Fowler, Mrs. Clinton Woolsey, Mrs. Bradner 
Woolsey and Joseph. 

Abram Elting, our subject's father, was 
born at New Paltz Landing in 17S5, and after 
acquiring an education in the Dutch schools of 
New Paltz he engaged in freighting and sloop 
building, later conducting also a store and a 
farm, in all of which lines of effort he met with 
success. He was a leading member of the 
Presbyterian Church, and stood high in the es- 
teem of the community. He married Miss 
Betsey Ransom, of Highland, and had seven 
children: Noah, who died at eighteen years; 
Milton, who died at three; Phcebe Ann (de- 
ceased) ; Luther, our subject ; Albert (deceased) ; 
Mary Ellen, who married Ezekiel Elting, of 
Highland ; and John J. ( deceased). The mother 
of this family died in 1851, and the father in 
1859. 

Capt. Elting's school days were spent in 
the district school at Highland, and at four- 
teen and one-half years of age he began the 
freighting business with his father. After 
twelve years on the sloop "Intelligence," he 
ran a barge for another twelve years. In 1854 
he moved to Poughkeepsie, where he had 
bought his present residence a short time be- 
fore, and he has since lived a retired life so far 
as business is concerned, with the exception of 
four years — 1860-64 — when he was in the ice 
business under the name of Rockland Lake Ice 
Co., now the Knickerbocker Ice Co. 

On January 26, 1853, at Middletown, 
Orange county, he was married to Miss Sarah 
E. Watkins, a lady of Welsh descent, and a 
daughter of Hezekiah Watkins. Of their three 
children, only one, Irving (the second child 1, 
is now living. Theodore Hezekiah died in in- 
fancy, and Eugene at the age of two and one- 
half years. 

Irving Elting, born May i, 1856, is a 
prominent attorney of Poughkeepsie. After 
graduating from Harvard University, in 1878, 
he studied law at the Harvard Law School, 
and then in his native city. In 1882 he opened 
an office there, and has met with great success 
in cases involving patent rights and copyrights, 
of which he makes a specialty. On November 



5, 1885, he married Miss Susan D. Green, a 
daughter of Jacob Green, a well-known resi- 
dent of the town of Poughkeepsie, and to their 
union has been born one child — Elisabeth. 



[\ IKEN T. BRILL, a well-known residetn 
of the town of Pawling, Dutchess county, 
is one of the leading workers in his chosen 
occupation of farming and gardening. An 
apprenticeship of six years with J. B. Dutcher 
gave him unusual opportunities for perfecting 
himself in the details of the latter business, and 
his work as gardener for Miss M. B. Monahan, 
of Quaker Hill, does credit to both his training 
and native ability. 

Egbert Brill, father of our subject, was one 
of the patriots who served his country during 
the Civil war, being a member of Company F, 
128th N. Y. V. I. He participated in many 
engagements, among which were the battles 
of Bull Run, Port Hudson and Gettysburg. 
He was finally discharged on account of dis- 
ability. 

Aiken T. Brill is a native of the town of 
Pawling, and grew to manhood there, acquir- 
ing his education in the public schools. He 
married Miss Georgiana Squires, who was born 
in the same town, August 6, 1867. In her 
childhood her parents moved to the old home- 
stead at Roxbury, Conn., and she there at- 
tended the schools and grew to womanhood; 
and there also she and our subject were rnar- 
ried. Mr. and Mrs. Brill have four children : 
Clifton, Mabel, John C. , and one whose name 
is not given. 

Mrs. Brill's ancestry deserves especial note 
because of the patriotic services rendered dur- 
ing the Revolutionary war by the representa- 
tives of the family in that day. Her great- 
great-grandfather, Gideon Squires, was born 
and educated in Roxbury, Conn., and was 
captain of a company in the Colonial forces. 
He lost his life in the struggle for freedom 
while crossing Lake George. Having raised 
up in the boat to see where they were, he was 
shot by an Indian who was on the watch for a 
chance to take aim at the voyagers. He mar- 
ried Miss Martha Warner, a sister of Col. Seth 
Warner, who was second in command at the 
battle of Bennington. Four children were born 
to them: Abjathy, Eben, Martha and Mar- 
garet. Abyathy Squires, Mrs. Brill's great-- 
grandfather, was born at Roxbury, Conn. , and 
made his home there, follosving farming during 



220 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORAPIIWAL RECORD. 



his manhood. He served throughout the Rev- 
olutionary war, as sergeant, and drew a pen- 
sion of $20 per month until his death at the 
age of eighty-nine years. He and his wife, 
Rachel Atwell, reared a family of four children, 
of whom Mrs. Brill's grandfather, Cyrus Squires, 
was the youngest. Of the others Levi died at 
the age of ten years; Moses married Clarissa 
Curtis; and John married Miss Eunice Hunt. 

Cyrus Squires was born at the old home in 
Roxbury, June 24, 1804, and after completing 
his studies in the common schools there he 
engaged in farming. He married Miss Sarah 
Wilcox, daughter of Elisha Wilcox, a leading 
farmer of the town of Dover, Dutchess county, 
and his wife, Elizabeth Bircham. Of their 
two children, the elder, Moses, died at the age 
of seven years. The younger, George M., the 
father of Mrs. Brill, was born at the old home- 
stead, September 13, 1839. He attended the 
common schools there in his youth, and learned 
the hatter's trade when it came time to pre- 
pare for taking a place in the business world; 
but after following the trade fifteen years he 
gave it up to engage in agriculture. He served 
in the governor's guards in the State of Con- 
necticut, and was drafted during the Civil war. 
He died May 9, 1897, when he was aged fifty- 
seven years. His wife was Miss Emily Amelia 
Woodin, daughter of Henry L. and Laura 
(Chaplin) Woodin, of the town of Pawling, 
Dutchess county, her father being a well-known 
farmer. Mrs. Brill was the elder of two 
children. Her brother, Origen G. Squires, 
an adopted child, was born in New Milford, 
Conn., April 4, 1876, and died at fifteen years 
of age. He was taken by Mr. and Mrs. Brill 
when only eight days old and adopted as their 
own child. 



J WILSON POUCHER, M. D., a promi- 
nent physician of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 

county, and a representative of one of the 
oldest families of this State, was born July 24, 
1859, at Claverack, Columbia Co., N. Y. His 
family originated in France, but his ancestors 
fled to Holland at the time of the "Massacre 
of St. Bartholomew", later coming to the New 
World. 

Simon Poucher (or l^oucher, as the name 
was then given) was born in France, came to 
America in 1658, and settled upon the \'an- 
Rensselaer estates which included several 
counties, the site of the present city of Albany 



being a portion thereof. He was a millwright 
by trade, and was employed on the manor by 
Patroon Van Rensselaer, his home being in 
the vicinity of Claverack, where his descend- 
ants have since resided, many of them attain- 
ing to positions of great prominence. His son, 
Pierre Boucher, was born about 1675, ^^^ A\ed 
February 19, 1739. One of his sons, Jacob 
(born January 13, 171 5, died in 1786), had a 
son Antoine (born .\pril 30, 1775. died 1856) 
who had a son Johannes, our subject's grand- 
father (born October 11, 18061, who had a 
son, Peter, our subject's father (born May 5, 
1835). With the exception of the last-named 
these all followed the millers' trade in the vi- 
cinity of Claverack. Peter departed from the 
rule, engaging in agriculture exclusively, and 
being industrious, temperate and thrifty has 
made a success of a business which is not al- 
ways profitable in these days. He is a mem- 
ber of the Baptist Church, and in politics is a 
I3emocrat, taking no part, however, in the 
active work of the organization. He married 
Miss Mary Cummings, daughter of Jacob Cum- 
mings, a native of New England, and a prom- 
inent resident of Claverack. She died in 1870, 
and of their five children only three are now 
living, our subject being the eldest. 

Dr. Poucher received his primary education 
at the public schools of Claverack, later attend- 
ing Claverack College, from which institution 
he was graduated in 1 879, in the classical 
course. For one year he taught in the public 
schools, and then entered Union College, 
graduating in 1883 from the medical depart- 
ment. Locating at Modena, Ulster county, 
he established a general practice; but wishing 
to pursue his studies further, he disposed of 
his business in 1885 and went to Europe for 
two years, spending the first year in Berlin, 
then dividing the second between Vienna and 
Paris, making a specialty of surgery and gyne- 
cology. On his return, in 1887, he opened an 
office in Poughkeepsie, and has since built up 
a large general practice. Although a general 
practitioner, he makes a specialty of surgery, 
in which respect he is widely known through- 
out this section of the State, and takes rank 
among the foremost of his profession. He is 
a surgeon on the staff of Vassar Brothers' 
Hospital, a member of the State and County 
Medical Societies, and a liberal contributor of 
articles to meetings of these societies. He 
has lately been appointed to the board of 
Pension Examining Surgeons. 





'^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



221 



In 1892 Dr. PoLichcr inanieil Miss Cath- 
erine D. Le Fever, daughter of Hon. Jacob 
Le Fever, member of Congress, and one 
child, a daughter, has been born to them. 
Both the Doctor and his wife are prominent 
in the social life of the city, and are leading 
members of the Washington Street M. E. 
Church, of which he is a trustee. He is a 
member of the Sons of the Revolution, and 
Mrs. Poucher's ancestry entitles her to a place 
in the society of the Daughters of the American 
Kevolution. Dr. Poucher is a member of the 
Holland Society, the Society of Colonial Wars, 
and the Society of Old Guard. He is inter- 
ested also in athletics, and belongs to the 
Tennis, Golf, and Boat Clubs, and to the 
Amrita Club. Of all movements for local im- 
provement he is a prompt and hearty support- 
er, and in political affairs his influence is given 
to the Republican party. He has served as 
alderman of the Fifth ward, and at the present 
time is one of the commissioners of the board 
of public works, the first member elected to 
that board, previous ones having been appoint- 
ed. Socially he affiliates with the F. & A. M., 
Triune Lodge; Poughkeepsie Chapter and 
Commandery; the Mystic Shrine of New York 
City; and he is a life member of the Ancient 
and Accepted Scottish Rite of New York, 
which gives him the 32nd degree. 



CLARK KIRBY. For over a century the 
Kirby family has been identified with the 
interests of Quaker Hill, town of Pawling, 
Dutchess county, New York. 

In 1757, in the village of New Bedford, 
R. I., was born George Kirby, of English de- 
scent. In 1780, he came to Quaker Hill and 
settled just across the road from where the 
new school house now stands. He possessed 
about one hundred acres of land at this place, 
and here made his home for some time, later 
buying what was then known as the old Reed 
Ferris farm, but subsequently called the "old 
Kirby House." Some time afterward he 
bought the farm consisting of about three 
hundred acres, and on this he passed his re- 
maining days. He married (probably after his 
coming to Dutchess county) .Anna Stocum, and 
by this marriage had seven children- -five sons 
and two daughters: Clark, of whom special 
mention is made below; Gideon, who was as- 
sociated with his brother Clark, and died on 



the homestead; Uriah, who lived in Amenia; 
William, who lived near Poughkeepsie; Hum- 
phrey, deceased while young; Hannah, who 
married Akin Taber; and Amy, who died un- 
married. With the exception of the son Hum- 
phrey, the entire family lived to advanced 
ages. The father died in the year 183 i, be- 
loved and respected by his fellowmen. He 
was one of the leading men in the community, 
and in his religious faith was a Quaker, prac- 
ticing in his daily life the simple tenets of that 
sect, and in his kindly, courteous manner, an- 
nouncing his unfaltering belief in the Brother- 
hood of Man. His wife died February 18, 
1894. 

Clark Kirby, the eldest son of George 
Kirby, was born on Quaker Hill, February 16, 
1794, and made his home there until the re- 
moval of his parents to the Kirby farm below 
the Hill. Here he and his brother Gideon 
owned a large tract of land, some eight or nine 
hundred acres, and followed farming as an oc- 
cupation all their lives. In this they had 
more than ordinary success, and were ranked 
among the leading men of the place. 

Clark Kirby had acquired an education such 
as was obtained by very few men in these 
times, and was especially fond of mathematics. 
He was a natural student, and his leisure time 
was spent in reading, which covered a wide 
range, and he became a well-informed man on 
general topics of interest — ancient and modern. 

On November 28, 1833, he was married 
to Charlotte Hungerford, of New Milford, 
Conn., and they became the parents of three 
daughters, as follows: Caroline, who married 
George Miller, of New York City; Helen, who 
married William Akin Taber, of Pawling, 
Dutchess Co., N. Y. ; and Frances. Mr. Kirby 
was one of the original board of directors of 
the Pawling National Bank, and held this po- 
sition for over twenty years. In politics he 
was first a Whig, later a Republican, and as a 
private citizen was much interested in public 
affairs, though he had no desire to pose before 
the world in the fierce light that beats on pub- 
lic officials. In his quiet, unassuming way he 
served the public only by his conscientious 
performance of every duty, a worthy example 
for emulation. Like his father before him, he 
was a believer in the religion that sprung from 
the teaching of George Fox. In 1881 this 
gentle spirit was gathered to his fathers, and 
1894 his wife, too, entered upon the unseen 
life. 



222 



GOMMEMORATrVE BIOORAPEWAL RECORD. 



F 



RANK L. R. TETAMORE, M. D. Al- 

W^ though but a recent acquisition to the 
medical fraternity of this section. Dr. Teta- 
inorc, of Matteawan. has a reputation, gained 
in other fields of practice, which has at once 
placed him in the front rank of the profession 
here. In 1882 he began his active practice in 
Brooklyn, N. Y. , and continued there until Sep- 
tember, 1896, when he opened his present 
offices in Matteawan, and also established a 
sanitarium for the accommodation of his 
numerous patients, who will find here pure 
air, quiet, and the soothing influences of charm- 
ing natural scenery. Dr. Tetamore has at- 
tained prominence as a surgeon, and, to quote 
from the Brooklyn Rnoic/, is a "specialist" 
in those delicate operations which relate to the 
restoration of the face by transplanting tissue. 
He successfully demonstrated that the bones 
of animals could not be utilized in restoring 
injured portions of the face, but by the trans- 
planting of tissue he succeeded in constructing 
an artificial face for a lady from Scranton, 
I'enn., who was fearfully disfigured in an acci- 
dent on the Reading railroad. " Many natu- 
ral deformities have been successfully operated 
upon by him — crooked limbs, backs and necks 
straightened under his methods." 

A brief outline of Dr. Tetamore's history 
will be of interest to the readers of this vol- 
ume. His family originated in Holland, the 
first of his ancestors to cross the ocean being 
his great-great-grandfather Tetamore, who 
served in the Revolutionary war. He married 
an Indian squaw, and their son, our subject's 
great-grandfather, who was born in the north- 
ern part of this State, served as a soldier in 
the war of 181 2. William Tetamore, the 
grandfather of our subject, was born in 1806, 
in the town of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, 
and throughout his mature years made his 
home in the village of Red Hook, where he 
died in 1895. For seventy years he was a 
member of the old Dutch Church of Rhine- 
beck; his talents were of an unusual order, and 
he invented the old hay press, which has been 
in common use for many years, and has not 
yet been superseded. He married Hannah 
Amie, of the town of Milan, Dutchess county, 
and has three children: John W. ; Anna, who 
married C. C. Coons, an extensive horticult- 
urist of Gcrmantown, Columbia county; and 
Mary E., the wife of V. O. Ricker, a house- 
finisher at 1 1 6th street. New York City. 

John W. Tetamore, the Doctor's father. 



was a native of Red Hook, where he first saw 
the light in 1830; he lived in Dutchess county 
until he was twenty-one, when he went to New 
York City. He married Elizabeth Martin, a 
daughter of Robert and Maria (Done) Martin; 
the fortner, a well-known merchant and tin- 
smith of Hudson, N. Y., was a soldier in the 
war of 1 81 2, and the grandfather, Robert 
Martin, a native of the North of Ireland, served 
in the Revolutionary war; Mrs. Maria Martin 
was a daughter of Ezra Done, of Columbia 
county. 

After their marriage the Doctor's parents 
settled for a time in Hudson, but at present 
they reside in Brooklyn. They are both mem- 
bers of the Baptist Church, although the Tet- 
amore family have always been Lutherans. 
In politics, however, J. W. Tetamore agrees 
with the other members of his family, and is a 
stanch Republican. The Doctor is the eldest 
of si.\ children, the others being: Lelia mar- 
ried Geo. W. Granger, of Brooklyn; Jane T. B. 
is the wife of E. A. Anderson, an assistant su- 
perintendent of the New York Life Insurance 
Co. ; Henry M., who died at the age of twenty- 
eight, was a dentist in Brooklyn; Lewis J., a 
printer in New York City, is married to Miss 
Ada Pouch, of Brooklyn; and William, who is 
now twent3'-one years old, resides in New 
York City. 

Dr. Tetamore's earthl}- career began Au- 
gust 28, 185 r, at Hudson, but until he was 
eleven years of age his time was chiefly spent 
in Red Hook. He then returned to his native 
place, and attended the public schools for 
about two years. At thirteen he went to 
Albany as clerk in the drug store of Collins & 
Kirk, and after two years there he went to 
Staten Island in a similar capacit\'. Later he 
returned to Albany and entered the employ of 
H. B. Clement & Co., druggists, for a time, 
and then he took charge of the drug store of 
Dr. William H. Peer, of Brooklyn, remaining 
a year and a half. While there he attended 
the New York Dental College, and although 
he did not graduate, he began to practice at 
Brooklyn, and at the same time began to read 
medicine with Dr. George K. Fowler, surgeon 
of the Second Brigade, N. Y. N. G. Contin- 
uing his medical course, he was graduated in 
1882 from the Long Island Ho.spital College, 
and after spending a short time as Curator of 
the college, he established an office at Brook- 
lyn, and began his work as a practitioner. 



His abilities have received 



from 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



223 



many sources. He was appointed hospital 
steward of the Fourteenth Regiment, N. Y. 
N. G., in 1879, assistant surgeon in 1885, 
surgeon in 1890, and State medical inspector 
of U. S. Camp at Peekskill, N. Y. , in 1896. 
As has been noted, he went to Matteawan in 
the fall of 1896, and has leased the residence 
of the late Dr. J. P. Schenk, where he has an 
office on Leonard street, near Fountain Square. 
On No\-ember 25, 1873, Dr. Tetaniore 
married Miss Mary E. Davison, daughter of 
William Davison, of Brooklyn. Three chil- 
dren have blessed this union: Walter D., 
born in 1874; Florence M., born in 1876; 
and Clarence, born in 187S. Politically the 
Doctor is a Republican. In religious faith he 
is a Baptist, and while living in Brooklyn he 
served as superintendent of a Sunday-school, 
which increased under his care from fifty 
pupils to 1,200. Re belongs to the I. O. 
O. F. , also the Junior Order of American 
Mechanics, and is a prominent member of the 
N. Y. County Medical Association. Altogether 
it will be seen that Matteawan has reason to 
congratulate herself upon Dr. Tetamore's 
choice of a home. 



GEORGE NORTON MILLER, M. D., a 
_, prominent citizen of the town of Rhine- 
beck, Dutchess county, resides upon a beautiful 
estate two miles from the village of Rhinebeck. 
It was there that he first saw the light Sep- 
tember 27, 1857, and in his mature years 
he finds it the pleasantest spot in which to 
pass the leisure which culture and refinement 
can so well emplo}' in congenial tasks." He 
attended school in his boyhood in New York 
City, and later entered Harvard College, and 
was graduated from the literary department 
with the degree of A. B. , in 1 879, and from the 
medical department, in i 882. A trip to Europe 
followed, with two years of study at Vienna and 
Heidelberg, and he then returned to his native 
land. April 18, 1886. he was married to Miss 
Martha LeRoy Glover, who was born in New 
York City in 1864, and received there a liberal 
education. Ever since their marriage the Doc- 
tor and his wife have resided at the old home. 
They have three children: George Norton, 
born January 6, 1888, the third of the name in 
direct line of descent; Helen LeRoy, born July 
8, 1889, and Catherine Caroline, born March 
7, 1890. 

The Miller family is of English origin, and 



the Doctor is of the si.xth generation from Will- 
iam Miller who settled in 1648 at Ipswich, 
Mass., where he became a freeholder and was 
one of the heaviest tax payers. He and his wife 
Patience had a son Abram, who was born Jan- 
uary 20, 167 1, at Northampton, Mass. He 
married Harriet Clapp, and had a son Jona- 
than, who was born in 1703, and died in 1787. 
He was married January 2, 1723, to Sarah 
Allen, and had a son Elisha, our subject's great- 
grandfather, who was born in Connecticut in 
1730, and died in 1807. October 18, 1764, he 
married Sarah Fowler, whose death occurred in 
1772. Their son William, our subject's grand- 
father, who was born in Connecticut in 1768, 
became a well-known minister of the Congre- 
gational Church. He died in 1 8 1 8 ; but his wife, 
Anna Starr, who was born in 1772, lived 
nearly a century, passing away in 1865. 

George Norton Miller, our subject's father, 
was born in Hartford, Conn., July 27, 1805, 
and for many years was a prominent business 
man in Charleston, S. C. In October, 1855, 
he married Miss Caroline Tucker Chace. She 
passed to her eternal rest September 19, 1872; 
but his life was prolonged until March 10, 
1892. Of their four children all but one, a 
daughter, survive, viz.: William Starr, H. 
Ray, and the subject of our sketch. 



JiOSEPH FIELD (deceased) was born in 
• the city of New York, January 7, 1829, and 
was a son of Joseph and Hannah (Dusen- 
berry) Field, the former a native of Westches- 
ter county, N. Y. In that city he was reared 
and educated in its public schools. After learn- 
ing the wagon-maker's trade, in 1851 he went 
to Kings Bridge, N. Y. , where he engaged in 
that business, tt was there that he met Tem- 
perance R. Darke, to whom he was married, 
December 8, 1853; in the following spring, 
on account of ill-health, he gave up wagon- 
making. 

About 1S65 Mr. Field removed to a farm 
near Sharon, Conn., which he operated until 
1868, when he came to the village of Amenia, 
where he conducted a market up to the time 
of his death, January 27, 1892. He was made 
a Mason in Shekomeko Lodge at Washington 
Hollow, Dutchess county, and later affiliated 
with Amenia Lodge No. 672, F. & A. M., 
while politically he was an ardent Republican, 
but would never accept official positions. He 
was faithful in the discharge of every duty, was 



224 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOIiAPUWAL RECORD. 



a man of excellent principles and a blameless 
life, and thoroughly enjoyed the esteem and 
respect of every community in which he re- 
sided, and died, mourned by a large circle of 
friends and acquaintances. 

Mrs. Field, a most estimable lady, was 
born June 24, 1832, and is the daughter of 
Charles and Temperance R. (Hayden) Darke. 
By her marriage she became the mother of 
three daughters: Ella, born February 12, 
1855, married Charles Jenkins, by whom she 
has three children — Maria Louise, Harry and 
John Roy; Maria, born May 26, i860, died 
March 21, 1864; and Gertrude, born June 14, 
1872, completes the family. 

Charles Darke, the father of Mrs. Field, 
was a native of Bloomingdale, N. Y., and most 
of his life was engaged in the market business 
at Kings Bridge. However, he spent his last 
years in Ameiiia, where both himself and wife 
died and were buried. They had four chil- 
dren: Temperance; Charles H., of Poughkeep- 
sie, N. Y. ; Isaac D. , of Springfield. Mass. ; and 
Emma, wife of George T. Willson. 



HEERMANCE FAMILY, THE, now rep- 
resented in Dutchess county by Martin 
and Dewitt Heermance, is descended from 
Jan Heermance, who came to America from 
Holland in 1659. His will, written in Dutch, 
is on record in the surrogate's office in New 
York City. His descendants settled, at an 
early date, in Dutchess county. One of 
them, Hendricus Heermance, married a daugh- 
ter of Gerrit Artsen, one of the partners to the 
first purchase of land from the Indians, at 
Rhinebeck (the Kipsbergerj in 1686, subse- 
quently confirmed by royal patent in 1688. 
In 1 7 16 Hendricus Heermange bought, of his 
father-in-law, property now known as Ellers- 
lie, the present home of Governor Morton. 
Catharine Heermance, a granddaughter of Jan 
Heermance, married John The Baptist Kip, a 
grandson of Jacob Kip, one of the original 
grantees under the royal patent of 1688. 

Jacob Heermance, a grandson of Jan, and 
brother of Catharine, married Catharine Vos- 
burgh, a daughter of Jan Vosburgh and Cor- 
nelia Knickerbocker. They had eight chil- 
(Jren — four sons and four daughters — Jacob, 
John, Andrew, Martin, Cornelia, Anna, Doro- 
thea and Eleanor. Cornelia Heermance mar- 
ried Gen. David Van Ness; Eleanor married 
Peter Cantine; Dorothea married Henry De- 



Witt, and Anna married Isaac Stoutenburgh. 
Martin Heermance married a daughter of Dr. 
Hans Kiersted, a direct descendant of the Dr. 
Hans Kiersted who in 1642 married Sarah 
Roeloffe Jans, daughter of Anneke Jans, from 
whom came the millions now possessed by the 
Trinity Church Corporation of New York City. 
Martin was the only son of Jacob Heermance, 
who left sons. F"or many years he was a 
leading citizen of the county, and was com- 
missioned brigadier-general in the war of 1812. 
One of his daughters married Archibald Smith, 
a prominent lawyer of Saratoga county, while 
another daughter married Dr. Henry Van- 
Hoevenberg, at one time health officer of the 
Port of New York. Andrew J. Heermance, 
one of his sons, bought the property on which 
stands the house built by the Kips in the year 
1700, and which was subsequently owned by 
the Beekman and Livingston families. It is 
still in a good state of preservation. He was 
a public-spirited, progressive man, and an 
honored citizen, and for several terms repre- 
sented the town of Rhinebeck in the board of 
supervisors of Dutchess county. 

Rev. Harrison Heermance, another son of 
Gen. Martin Heermance, was a minister of the 
Reformed (Dutch) Church. At the breaking 
out of the Civil war he was settled in Lenawee 
county, Mich.; but he resigned his charge and 
entered the army with the 4th Mich. Cav., 
and subsequently served as chaplain of the 
128th N. Y. \'. His son, Isaac Henry Heer- 
mance, then under sixteen years of age, en- 
listed at the same time, in the same regiment, 
and died in the service before he was eighteen. 
At the close of the war Rev. Harrison Heer- 
mance resumed his residence at Rhinebeck, 
his native town, and died there in 1883. His 
wife was Rebecca A. Van Denbergh, of Lan- 
singburg, N. Y. Their two surviving sons, 
Martin and DeW'itt Heermance, were born in 
Michigan, but frnm their early childhood have 
lived at Rhinebeck, and were educated in the 
De Garmo Classical Institute, then located in 
that town. They have since taken up their 
residence in Poughkeepsie. In 1881 M.\ktin 
Hekum.xnce was elected supervisor of the 
town of Rhinebeck, and was re-elected in 
1882. In 1883 he was admitted to the bar, 
and entered upon the practice of his pro- 
fession in Poughkeepsie. In 1888 he was 
elected district attorney of Dutchess county, 
and his brother DeWitt, who had graduated 
at the .Mbany Law School several years be- 




yMoMxA^j' 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



225 



fore, and was then in partnership with him in 
the practice of law, was assistant district at- 
torney. In 1896 Martin Heermance was ap- 
pointed one of the three State assessors of 
New York, by Gov. Morton, and was made 
chairman of the board. Both Martin and De- 
Witt Heermance are members of the Holland 
Society. Martin is a member of the Masonic 
order, and while residing at Rhinebeck was 
twice elected master of Rhinebeck Lodge. In 
1 88 1 he married Nina Radcliffe, daughter of 
the late David Van Ness Radcliffe, of Albany, 
N. Y., and they have one child, Radcliffe 
Heermance. In 1892 DeWitt Heermance 
married May Hallenbeck, daughter of the late 
John J. Hallenbeck, of Montclair, N. J., and 
they have one son, Andrew Hallenbeck Heer- 
mance. Jacob Heermance, the great-grand- 
father of Martin and DeWitt, had a brother 
Nicholas, who left descendants, none of whom 
are known to be residents of Dutchess county. 
The late Rev. Henry Heermance, of Kinder- 
hook, and Col. William L. Heermance, now 
residing at Yonkers, are descended from this 
branch of the family. 



HENRY L. YOUNG, a prominent resident 
of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, now 

living retired from active business, was born in 
New York City, August 28, 18 18, the son of 
Henry L. and Mary L. (Hyde) Young. 

The Young family i^f English extraction, 
and Quakers in religious belief. Alexander 
Young, the grandfather of our subject, was a 
farmer at Sing Sing, N. Y. He married Miss 
Ann Slausson, and they reared a family of five 
children, namely: Jacob, who became captain 
of a Hudson-river vessel. Hiram, who was a 
sailor; Nathaniel, who was a farmer in West- 
chester county, N. Y. ; Charlotte, married to 
William H. Smith, a merchant of New York, 
and Henry, father of our subject. 

Henry Young was born in [792 at Sing 
Sing, N. Y. His wife, Mary L. (Hyde), was 
born at Norwich, Conn., and her family was 
also of English descent. After their marriage 
they lived in New York City, where Mr. Young 
carried on a large hardware business. They 
had four children, namely: Henry L., our 
subject; Mary, who married a Mr. Barnes, a 
merchant in New York City (now deceased); 
James, who lives in New York City, and is re- 
tired from business, and Martha, married to 
Henry S. Leavitt, a merchant of New York 

15 



City. The father served in the war of 1812, 
and he and his wife were members of the Pres- 
byterian Church. 

Henry L. Young, the subject proper of this re- 
view, spent his boyhood days in New York City, 
where he attended the private schools, and on 
completing his education clerked in his father's 
store for four years. He then went to Avon 
Springs and settled on a large farm, where he 
remained for eleven years. On June 23, 1842, 
Mr. Young was united in marriage with Miss 
Mary E., daughter of Henry Dwight, of Utica, 
N. Y. , and who was of English descent. Five 
children have been born to them: Edmund, 
who resides in Poughkeepsie; James H., resid- 
ing in Brooklyn; Mary D., at home with her 
parents; William H., an attorney in New York 
City, and Henry D., who died while a student 
at college. 

In the fall of 1853 Mr. Young removed to 
Poughkeepsie, which has since been his home. 
He has a beautiful residence at No. 98 South 
Hamilton street, with fine grounds filled with 
flowers, and every comfort and luxury attaina- 
ble. Here, with no cares of business to annoy 
him, he is passing the evening of his life in 
peace and happiness, his only sorrow being the 
loss of his beloved wife, who passed from 
earth January 9, 1890. She was a member of 
the Reformed Church (as is also Mr. Young), 
and was a most estimable woman. 

Mr. Young held various positions of honor 
and trust, having been a trustee of \'assar Col- 
lege forten years; vice-president and director of 
the Farmers' and Manufacturers' Bank for sev- 
eral years; trustee of the Savings Bank; presi- 
dent of the cemetery board; and president of 
the board of water works for three years. He 
was one of the committee who drafted a new 
charter for the city of Poughkeepsie, and has 
always taken an active interest in its growth 
and prosperity. He is a man of sterling integ- 
rity, and has frequently been made executor of 
large estates. In every relation of life Mr. 
Young has borne an unblemished reputation, 
and his worth as a man and a citizen is well 
known and thoroughly appreciated, not only by 
the public generally, but by a host of warm 
personal friends. 



REUBEN WILEY (deceased). During the 
__ Civil war, the subject of this sketch, then 
in the prime of his manhood, offered himself 
to the Union cause. Enlisting in the Eighth 



226 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



N. Y. H. A., he served with the quiet heroism 
of the true soldier until death came to him in 
the midst of the hard-fought struggle before 
Petersburg, June i6, 1864. 

Mr. Wile_v was of Scotch descent, his 
great-grandfather, Hugh Wylie, being the first 
ancestor to come to America. .Arriving in early 
manhood, he located in the town of Clinton, 
Dutchess county, where he became the owner 
of a farm of 300 acres near Clinton Hollow. 
He married Mary Hall, and had two children: 
Reuben and Mary. Reuben Wiley's son, John 
Wiley, our subject's father, was born and edu- 
cated there, and also engaged in fanning in 
mature years. He married Sarah Allen, and 
eight children were born of this union: En- 
sign (deceased), Allen, Reuben (our subject), 
Mary Jane, Hannah M. , Martin (who served 
as a soldier in the 150th N. Y. V. I.), and 
William and Adeline (both deceased). 

Reuben Wiley was born at the old home- 
stead July 17, 1827, and received his early edu- 
cation in the neighboring schools. At the age 
of seventeen he went to Saratoga and engaged 
in a general mercantile business, later moving 
to New York City, where he went into the 
commission business on Washington street. 
W'hile there he married Miss Mary T. Adee, a 
native of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county. 
Of this marriage two children were born: 
Samuel, now a resident of Fairbury, Neb., 
and S.Mv.^H -A., who was married October 13, 
1875, in the town of Clinton, to John W. 
Dutcher, a son of Lotan Dutcher and Eliza 
(Doughty) Dutcher, of Lagrange. He was 
educated at Clinton Hollow and Pleasant 
Plains, later engaging in farming, and is now 
one of the agriculturists of his vicinity. After 
their marriage they lived in the town of Clin- 
ton for two years, when they moved to the 
town of Washington, remaining there twelve 
years. In 1889 they returned to Clinton Hol- 
low, where they have since resided. They 
have two children: Reuben W. and Lotan IL 
In politics Mr. Dutcher is a Republican. 



RTHUR FRANCIS HOAG, M. D., a 
prominent physician of Millerton, is a 
native of the town of Northeast, Dutchess 
county, born November 1 1 , 1856. His family 
is of English origin. 

William P. Hoag, our subject's father, was 
born in the town of Pine Plains, Dutchess 
county, in 18 19, and received a good literary 



education. He was of a scientific turn of 
mind, and while he was always an interested 
reader on general subjects, he made a special 
study of geology. Until 1873 he was a farmer 
in the town of Northeast, whence he removed 
to Wabasha, Minn., where for some years he 
conducted a storage elevator for grain, later 
going to Cass county. North Dakota, and en- 
gaging in farming. He married Mar}' Jane Sim- 
mons, daughter of John Simmons, a wealthy 
farmer of near Chatham, Columbia county, 
N. Y., and had four sons: William Edward, 
born May 4, 1852, now a traveling salesman; 
Arthur Francis, our subject; Robert Henry, 
born November 22, 1858, a commission mer- 
chant of Minneapolis; and Charles Simmons, 
born November 25, i860, a farmer at Nor- 
cross, Minn. On his removal to the West, 
Mr. Hoag was accompanied by all of his fam- 
ily except our subject, and since 1890 has made 
his home with his son in Minneapolis. He has 
always been a Republican, but has never 
sought or held office. In religious belief he is 
a Quaker, and has by his upright and consist- 
ent life commanded the esteem of his asso- 
ciates. 

Dr. Hoag received an excellent education 
in his youth, studying the English branches, 
and also the classics with Rev. A. H. Seeley, 
of Smithfield, Dutchess county. At the age of 
seventeen he entered the office of Dr. Sidney 
Stillman, of Millerton, as a medical student, 
where he remained three years, making a spe- 
cialty of surgery. In 1876 he entered the med- 
ical department of Columbia College, and was 
graduated in 1879, having taken special work 
in anatomy and surgery in addition to the pre- 
scribed course. He took clinics with Dr. 
Sands, and did a great deal of hospital work. 
On August 16, 1876, he returned to Millerton 
and formed a partnership with Dr. Stillman, 
which continued three years, since which time 
he has practiced alone. His preparation for 
his work has been most thorough, and he is no 
less painstaking in his practice, and as a result 
he has a large business extending throughout 
the northeastern part of the county. He holds 
in a high degree the confidence of the commu- 
nity, and has been health officer of the town of 
Northeast and the village of Millerton for about 
ten years, being elected on the Republican 
ticket. He is also medical examiner for eight 
life insurance companies; he is a member of 
the State Medical Society and the County Med- 
ical Society. The Doctor is a liberal-minded 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



227 



man, and holds to the simple and tolerant 
Quaker faith in which he was reared. So- 
cially, he is a member of Webatuck Lodge No. 
4S0, F. & A. M., in which he has held various 
offices. He takes an active interest in local 
affairs, and is now a member of the board of 
education. 

In 1 88 1 Dr. Hoag was married to Miss 
Jessie L. Wheeler, daughter of the late Nor- 
man Wheeler, of the town of Northeast, and 
they have two sons: Arthur Edmond and 
William Harvey. 



GEORGE W. CONKLIN (deceased). A 
life so strongly marked by worthy ambi- 
tion and well-directed energy as that of the 
subject of this brief memoir, cannot fail to 
con\'ey to every reader a practical lesson which 
they would do well to heed. Although of good 
family, Mr. Conklin's chief inheritance con- 
sisted of the vigorous mentality and upright 
character upon which his success was based. 
His ancestors were among the early settlers of 
Putnam Valley, Putnam county, and his par- 
ents, William and Phcebe (Sirrine) Conklin, 
resided upon the old Conklin homestead north 
of Oscawana Lake, where on January 3, 1828, 
our subject was born. 

Mr. Conklin was educated in the schools 
near his home, and had no other advantages; 
but, being fond of books, he supplemented his 
common-school education by extensive read- 
ing, and became a man of broad information. 
As a student of human nature, he enjoyed fic- 
tion, and Dickens' works were his especial 
favorites. He was phenomenally successful in 
business. When seventeen years of age he 
went to Maryland to get out ship timber, and 
immediately after arriving there he was recog- 
nized as a young man of good ability, and was 
put in charge of a gang of men who were en- 
gaged in that work. He remained there until 
1850, when he was married to Miss Elizabeth 
Jenkins, of Phillipstown, Putnam county. He 
then gave his attention to building bridges on 
the Hudson River railroad, having charge of a 
gang of men on the extension from Poughkeep- 
sie north, and was in the employ of the road 
until the last year of the Civil war. He went 
to Port Royal in March, 1865, returning in 
July of that year, and then entered the em- 
ply of the government in the navy yards at 
Brooklyn. He laid tracks, and was the gen- 
eral overseer during his stay of four years. 



There he became acquainted with R. G. Pack- 
ard, and later he formed a partnership with 
him in the dredging business. This was an 
extensive enterprise, and he was quite success- 
ful, continuing for twenty-six years at least. 
After leaving the navy yard Mr. Packard and 
Mr. Conklin went with Morris & Cumings; 
but after a while Mr. Packard went into busi- 
ness for himself, and Mr. Conklin accompanied 
him, and continued in the business until within 
three years of his death, which occurred May 
8, 1893. He helped in the making of dredg- 
ing machinery, and in all the different branches 
of the business, having a natural talent for 
mechanics. By nature he was energetic and 
forceful, and would have been successful in 
anything. 

In his political faith Mr. Conklin was a 
strong Republican, but he was not especiallj' 
active in party work. For some time he was 
a member of the fire department at Pough- 
keepsie, Cataract Company No. 4, and be- 
came an exempt fireman. In religion he was 
was a Methodist. 

Mr. Conklin had a pleasant home and a 
charming family. His wife was a daughter of 
David and Ann (Stevens) Jenkins, of Phillips- 
town, Putnam county. Six children blessed 
their union: (11 George L., born November 
14, 1852, is a machinist, and has been in the 
dredging business. He married Miss May 
Pickert, and has three children: May Eliza- 
beth, George Wesley and L. Clyde. {2) Lillie 
J. is married to William Saltford, an English- 
man, and a florist by occupation. They have 
two sons: W. Arthur and George C. (3) 
Minnie C. married William Seeholzer, of Mid- 
dletown. N. Y. , proprietor of the R. R. res- 
taurant, and has one daughter, Helen C. (4) 
Lizzie M. is at home. (5) Josephine and (6) 
Carrie died in infancy. 

Mrs. Conklin is the granddaughter of Joel 
Jenkins, a native of Maine, who was a soldier 
in the Revolutionary war. He and two broth- 
ers were among the first to enlist in that strug- 
gle, and the three were engaged in the first 
battles. One brother was shot in one of the 
earl}' engagements, but Joel Jenkins and other 
brother served throughout the war, and after 
its close he settled south of the Croft's church, 
in the town of Phillipstown. The Jenkins 
fann'ly of that place are descended from him. 
He married Elizabeth Garrison, and had the 
following children: David, Mrs. Conklin's fa- 
ther; Polly, who married Daniel Bishop; Sarah 



228 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



(Mrs. Masters); Isaac, who lived at Garrison; 
Abram, the fifth in order of birth; Hannah 
("Mrs. Curry); Susan, wife of James Croft; 
James; and Ann, who married Mr. Jennings. 



HENRY E. ALLISON. M. D., medical 
superintendent of the Matteawan State 

Hospital, at Matteawan, was born December 
I, 185 I, at Concord, N. H., a son of William 
H. and Catherine (Anderson) Allison. 

He received his preliminary education at 
the public schools of his native city, later at- 
tending Kimball Union Academy at Meriden, 
N. H., where he graduated in 1871. In the 
fall of the same year he entered the classical 
department of Dartmouth College. He was 
elected president of the class in his Senior 
year, and graduated with honors in 1875. 
Among his classmates was Gov. Frank S. 
Black, of New York. After graduation, in 
the fall, he taught the high school of Hills- 
borough Bridge, N. H., and during the follow- 
ing year attended the full course of Tectures 
and instruction at Dartmouth Medical Col- 
lege. In June, 1878, he received the degree 
of M. D. at Dartmouth, and in August com- 
menced the practice of his profession in the 
capacity of an assistant physician at the Wil- 
lard Asylum, in the town of Ovid, N. Y. , an 
institution then containing some twelve hun- 
dred patients. Here he remained in charge of 
various medical departments of the service 
until March, 1883, when he resigned, although 
strong inducements were offered him to re- 
main. After pursuing a post-graduate course 
at the New York Polyclinic, he commenced 
the general practice of medicine at ^^'aterloo, 
Seneca Co., N. Y., where he remained some 
fourteen months, meeting with excellent suc- 
cess. During this time (1883-84) he served 
as town physician. At the urgent request of 
the board of trustees of the Wiliard Asylum, 
he returned in 1884 to that institution as first 
assistant physician, passing the State Civil Serv- 
ice examinationfor that position held in New 
York City. On July 1, 1889, he was ap- 
pointed medical superintendent of the State 
Asylum for Insane Criminals at Auburn, Ca- 
yuga Co., N. Y., an institution at that time 
containing two hundred and nineteen patients. 
By virtue of this office he also became, by 
statute, a member of the commission created 
by the Legislature to erect a new asylum for 
insane criminals which was founded at .Mat- 



teawan, Dutchess county, and to which, upon its 
completion, the inmates of the old Auburn 
asylum were transferred April 25, 1S92. This 
new institution is now known as the Matteawan 
State Hospital, of which Dr. Allison is the med- 
ical superintendent and treasurer. The total cost 
of the buildings and grounds was in the neigh- 
borhood of $900,000; the hospital has accom- 
modations for five hundred and fifty patients. 

Dr. Allison became a member of the Seneca 
County Medical Society in 1879, and was 
elected president of the society in 1S86; was 
also president of the Seneca County Medical 
Association. He is a member of the Dutchess 
County Medical Society, the Newburgh Bay 
Medical Society, and of the American Medico- 
Psychological Association, and an honorary 
member of La Soci^te de Medecine Mentale, 
of Belgium. 

Dr. Allison has published the following pa- 
pers and monographs: "A Case of Multiple 
Tubercular Tumor of the Brain " [New York 
Medical Record, August, 1882]; "Cerebral 
Lesions in the Chronic Insane" [Alienist and 
Neurologist, July, 1885]; "Moral and Indus- 
trial Management of the Insane " [Alienist and 
Neurologist, April, 18S6]; "Mental Changes 
Resulting from the Separate Fracture of Both 
Thighs" [American Journal of Insanity, July, 
1886]; "Notes in a Case of Chronic Insanity" 
[American Journal of Insanity, April, 1887]; 
"An Historical Sketch of Seneca County Med- 
ical Society" [Press of Brandow & Speed, Al- 
bany. 1887]; "On a General System of Report- 
ing Autopsies in American Asylums for the In- 
sane" [Read before the Association of Medical 
Superintendents of American Institutions for 
the Insane, Newport, R. I., June, 1SS9; Amer- 
ican Journal of Insanit}', October, 1889]; a 
short contribution to " De La Responsibilite 
Attenuee." by Henry Thierry, Paris, 1891; "On 
Motives Which Govern the Criminal Acts of 
the Insane" [Read before the Association of 
Medical Superintendents of .American Institu- 
tions for the Insane, Washington, D. C, May, 
1892; American Journal of Insanity, October, 
1 892] ; ■ ■ The Insane Criminal " [The Summary, 
December, 1S92]; " Insanity Among Criminals" 
[Read before the American Medico-Psycho- 
logical Association, Philadelphia, Penn., May, 
1894; American Journal of Insanity, July, 
1894; Criminal Law Magazine and Reporter, 
Vol. 16, 1894]; "On the Care of the Crimi- 
nal Insane in the State of New York " [Read 
at the annual meeting of the Trustees and Su- 





i^i 



Lx^^--cr*-^ ^ 



COMMEMOBATIVE BIOGBAJ'SICAZ RECORD. 



-OOQ 



perintendents of the State Hospitals of New 
York, Matteawan. October, 1S94: Conglomer- 
ate, October, 1894]; ••Some Relations of 
Crime to Insanity and States of Mental En- 
feeblement" [Read at the annual meeting of 
the American Medical Association, Atlanta. 
Ga., May, 1896: Journal of the American Med- 
ical Association, September, 1896]; ••Simple 
Melancholia and its Treatment " [Read at 
Newburgh Bay Medical Society: Medical Rec- 
ord, January, 1897]; four annual reports of 
the "State Asylum for Insane Criminals," 1889. 
'90, "91, '92; four annual reports of the "Mat- 
teawan State Hospital, ■■ 1893, '94, '95, '96. 
In addition, although not seeking the work, he 
has been frequently called upon to testify as an 
expert medical witness in various important 
trials before the courts. 

On Octobers. 1884, Dr. Allison was married 
to Miss .\nna M. De Puy, daughter of Lewis 
and Sabina E. (Schoonmaker) De Puy. of 
Kingston, N. Y., and four children, as follows, 
have come to brighten their home: Catherine 
De Puy, Elizabeth Shand. William Henry and 
Anna. On February 24. 1889, at Ovid. N. Y., 
he united with the Presbyterian Church, and 
is now a member and an elder of the First Re- 
formed Dutch Church at Fishkill Landing, N. 
Y. ; socially, he is a member of Union Lodge, 
No. 114, F. & A. M.; of Dartmouth College 
Association of New York, and of the Associa- 
tion of the Alumni of Dartmouth College. 



the courts of the State where the plea of in- 
sanity' arises as a defense for crime. Such 
persons are committed to its custody <iuring 
the continuance of their mental disease. The 
population again rapidly increased at Mattea- 
wan. until, within four years from its opening 
on the new site, the hospital was filled to more 
than its utmost capacity. The desirability of 
separating the convicted from the unconvicted 
inmates had long been recognized, and it was 
recommended that this end should be accom- 
plished by providing a hospital in connection 
with one of the State Prisons, to be built by 
1, convict labor, and for the purpose of caring 
onlv for the convict insane. Gov. Morton in 
his annual message approved the project, and 
an appropriation for this purpose was made 
at the legislative session of 1896. Complete 
plans for the new Institution, designed when 
finished to accommodate six hundred inmates, 
were prepared by Dr. Allison, and the buildings 
are now under construction. The change will 
relieve the Matteawan State Hospital of an un- 
desirable class of patients, and enable the hos- 
pital to expand along lines more favorable to 
its proper development and growth. 



T/ic Matteaivan State Hospital was origi- 
nally established at Auburn, in 1855, and 
opened for the reception of patients in Febru- 
ary, 1859. Next to Utica it is the oldest of 
the State hospitals for the insane. Designed 
at first for the care of insane convicts, its 
scope has been gradually enlarged until it now 
provides for all classes of insane criminals, and 
occupies a position of highest iiiiportance 
among the hospitals of the State. Its growth 
at .\uburn was not rapid, but the buildings be- 
came overcrowded in the course of years, finally 
rendering it necessary to erect a new institu- 
tion upon a larger scale and a more convenient 
site; and Matteawan, in the Hudson River 
\'alley, was selected. Modern buildings, com- 
plete in every detail, were erected there, and 
the new asylum opened in April, 1S92. Its 
name was subsequently changed from the State 
Asylum lor Insane Criminals to the Matteawan 
State Hospital. It receives patients not only 
from penal institutions, but also all cases from 



I 



CORNELL, M. D., a prominent 
X phvsician of Wappingers Falls, Dutchess 
county, was born in Defreestville, Rensselear 
Co.. N. Y.. April 26. 1851, the son of Rev. 
William A. and Helen M. (Wyckoffl Cornell. 

Peter Cornell, the great-grandfather of our 
subject, was born April i, 1756, and married 
Maria Meserole, who was born October 22, 
1758. and their family comprised nine children 
as follows: Cornelius, born in 1781, was a 
farmer in Lagrange; Isaac (i) died in infancy; 
Isaac (2) was the grandfather of our subject; 
Sarah married a Mr. Van Valen; Jane married 
Matthew Luyster; Margaret died unmarried: 
Maria and Cornelius died in infancy; Eliza- 
beth, born in 1790, married Oliver Todd. 
Peter Cornell and his wife were members of 
the Reformed Dutch Church. Of this family, 
Isaac married Miss Hoffman, a native of Dutch- 
ess county, and they settled on a farm in La- 
grange, where they reared their seven children, 
to wit: Peter M.. a farmer in the town of 
Lagrange; William .\., father of our subject; 
Frederick, a farmer in Kansas; Margaret mar- 
ried to Darius Howland; and Mary, Elizabeth 
and Isabella. 

William .\. Cornell, father of Isaac M., 



230 



OOMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



grew to manhood on his father's farm, and 
after completing a common-school education 
entered Rutgers College, at New Brunswick, 
N. J., where he prepared himself for the min- 
istry. During the better part of his life he was 
a preacher in the Reformed Church, but his 
health becoming impaired he returned to the 
farm at Lagrange, where he died August i8, 
J876. During his ministry he was pastor of 
the churches at Athens and Blooming Grove, 
N. Y. , or Defreestville, as it is now called. 
About 1853 he gave up regular work, but 
preached occasionally until the time of his 
death. On April 12, 1843, he married Miss. 
Helen M., daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth 
Wyckoff, the former of whom was a native of 
New Brunswick, N. J.; the family was of old 
Holland stock. Of this union six children 
were born: Elizabeth W., who married 
Thomas B. Burnett, of Orange, N. J. ; Helen, 
who died in infancy; Sarah I^. , who married 
James Y. Luyster, of New Hackensack, N. Y.; 
Isaac M., our subject; William A., who mar- 
ried Bertha Schultz, and lives at Sioux Falls, 
S. Dak.; and Jacob W., assistant treasurer of 
the Wappingers Savings Bank, who married 
Emma Stockholm, and resides in Wappin- 
gers Falls. 

The subject of this sketch was brought up 
on his father's farm in Lagrange, and attended 
the district school until he was fifteen years of 
age. Subsecjuently he became a student in 
the Carey and Pelham Institute, Poughkeep- 
sie, N. Y., and then began the study of med- 
icine with Dr. S. S. Greene, of Lagrangeville. 
In 1873 he entered the Medical Department of 
the University of New York, and graduated 
therefrom m the class of 'yj. After his grad- 
uation Dr. Cornell went to Buffalo, N. Y. , and 
for some time practiced with his old precep- 
tor; then resided at New Hamburg, N. Y. , 
and in the spring of 1878 settled at Wap- 
pingers Falls, where he has since made his 
home. The Doctor stands high with his pro- 
fessional brethren, and has been very success- 
ful in his calling. He has secured the confi- 
dence of the public, and has made many 
friends by his genial manners and kindly dis- 
position. His practice is one of the largest in 
the vicinity. 

On October 30, 1878, Dr. Cornell was 
married to Miss Kate E. Dorland, a sister of 
C. P. Dorland, the county surrogate. She 
died July 29, 18S0, and June 6, -1883, the 
Doctor was married to Elizabeth W., a 



daughter of Joseph D. Harcourt. a sketch of 
whom will be found on anotfier page. Mar- 
tense H., born December 26, 1884, is the 
only child of this union. In his political 
views, the Doctor is a Republican. From 
1883 to 1886 he was health officer of the town 
of Wappinger, and in 1878 was appointed to 
the same office for the town of Poughkeepsie. 
He has been a member of the Dutchess County 
Medical Society since 1878; is a trustee of the 
Wappingers Savings Bank; belongs to Wap- 
pingers Lodge No. 671, F. & A. M., at Wap- 
pingers Falls, to Poughkeepsie Chapter No. 
172, R. A. M., and PougkheepsieCommandery 
No. 43, K. T. In all respects he is one of the 
leading citizens of W'appingers Falls. 



WILLIAM MORGAN LEE, one of the 
prominent attorneys of Poughkeepsie, 

Dutchess county, is a member of a family 
which has long held a leading position in this 
locality. 

Darius Lee, his father, was born July 28, 
1794, in East Fishkill, and in early manhood 
moved to Poughkeepsie, where he became 
identified with several important business enter- 
prises, a general store, a carriage factory, and 
a hotel at Arlington. He was one of the 
founders of Heading M. E. Church, was for 
many years a class leader and local preacher, 
and he held for a long time the office of justice 
of the peace in the town of Poughkeepsie. He 
married for his second wife Naomi Odell, who 
was born July 28, 1812, a native of Putnam 
county, and they had seven children, of whom 
our subject is the eldest; the others were: 
Kate, a successful teacher in the public schools 
of Poughkeepsie; F"rank K., a physician; Ed- 
ward, who resides at Mt. Vernon, S. Dak. ; 
David (deceased); Sarah; and Henry G. (de- 
ceased). The father died in 1858, and the 
mother on February 26, 1883. 

William Morgan Lee was born May 18, 
1838, in Poughkeepsie. His literary and 
scientific studies were pursued in the public 
schools of that city, and with private tutors. 
When twenty years old he taught a school at 
Pleasant Valley, and in the same year he began 
the study of law in the office of Wilbur & Van- 
Cleef, with whom he remained one year. He 
then taught for a few months at Schultzville, 
and in 1862 entered the office of the provost 
tnarshall at Poughkeepsie, where he was em- 
ployed for two years and a half. Resuming 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPHICAL RECORD. 



281 



his legal studies in the office of Judge Charles 
Wheaton, he prepared for his examination, 
and was admitted to the bar in 1866. For 
some time he practiced with Judge Wheaton, 
and later with Judge Allard Anthony. He is 
an able and influential worker in the Repub- 
lican party, and in 1869 was appointed city 
chamberlain, serving five years; in 1873 he was 
elected supervisor of the Sixth ward, and city 
attorney in 1877, which latter incumbency he 
held for nine years. In i S83 he was nominated 
for surrogate on the Republican ticket against 
H. D. Hufcut. but, like the other candidates 
of his party at that election, he was defeated. 
From 1889 to 1893 he was deputy collector of 
Internal Revenue for the Fourteenth District. 
His well-proven abilities have given him a high 
standing in business circles, and from 1893 to 
to February, 1895, he was auditor and general 
passenger agent for the P. & E. R. R. 
Through all the varied and exacting duties of 
these different positions he has carried on his 
regular professional work, and enjoys an ex- 
tensive and profitable practice. 

On June 23, 1870, in Poughkeepsie, Mr. 
Lee was married to Miss Mary Worrall, a na- 
tive of Pittsburg, and the daughter of John 
Worrall. Her grandfather, William Worrall, 
was an early settler in Poughkeepsie, and at 
one time owned most of the land upon which 
the eastern part of the city now stands. Two 
children were born of this union: Maud and 
Frederick William. Mr. Lee and his wife are 
leading members of the Episcopal Church, and 
he has been a vestryman for thirteen years, 
clerk of the vestry for four years, and is also 
the treasurer of the Archdeaconry of Dutchess 
county. 

He is an active member of the Masonic 
fraternity, and he was received into Pough- 
keepsie Lodge in March, 1869; Poughkeepsie 
Chapter No. 172, Royal Arch Masons, in Sep- 
tember, 1869; Poughkeepsie Commandery, 
Knights Templar, in October, 1870; and was 
elected High Priest of the Chapter in Decem- 
ber, 1872, and re-elected four successive 
terms. In May, 1876, he was chosen Com- 
mander of Poughkeepsie Commandery, and 
held the office six years. He was a charter 
member and first Master of Triune Lodge No. 
782, organized in 1879, and became a member 
of King Solomon Council, Royal and Select 
Masters, in 1880, serving as Master of the 
Council for two years. In 1883 he served on 
the staff of J. Edward Simmons, and in 1884 



with William Brodie as Deputy Grand Master. 
In 1887 he was Grand Principal Sojourner of 
the State, and he has been Grand Steward in 
the Grand Council, and is now the Repre- 
sentative of the State of Wisconsin near the 
Grand Council of the State of New York. In 
1889 he became a member of Mecca Temple 
of the Mystic Shrine in New York City. 



ICHARD A. VARICK, M. D. (deceased), 
t^ was born in the City of New York, April 



24, 1806. His ancestors were Holland- Dutch, 
and the name was originally spelled Van 
Vaarick. 

Dr. Varick spent his early days on his fa- 
ther's farm, after which he took a course of 
lectures in a Medical College in New York, from 
which he was graduated with the class of 1827. 
After completing his course in medicine he 
came to Poughkeepsie, and practiced with Dr. 
John Barnes, with whom he remained until the 
latter's death, after which our subject practiced 
alone. He married Miss Eliza Harris, of 
Poughkeepsie, and two children — one son and 
one daughter — were born to them: John B. is 
a wholesale hardware merchant in New Hamp- 
shire; and Elizabeth Harris married William 
R. Pell, of New York. Mrs. Varick died in 
1837, and Dr. Varick subsequently married 
Miss Isabel Shepherd, who was born in ^Albany 
June 27, 1809. By this union there were 
children as follows, five in number: (i) 
Robert S. was in the hardware business in 
New York City, and died when a young man. 
(2) Remsen was in the Civil war, and was on 
the first boat that went to Richmond, Va. ; 
after the war he returned to Poughkeepsie and 
entered the drug business; he died in 1883. (3) 
Richard A., Jr., died while attending college. 
(4) Ellen S. married Edward Barnes, a drug- 
gist of Poughkeepsie. (5) William was a 
merchant of Boston, and died in 1878. In 
politics. Dr. Varick was originally a Whig, 
later a Republican. He was a prominent citi- 
zen, and stood high in the esteem of his fellow 
men. He and his wife were liberal contribu- 
tors of the Reformed Church. He was a mem- 
ber of the Society of Cincinnati, as eldest son, 
in nearest male line, inheriting it through Col. 
Richard Varick, of the Revolutionary army, 
and being succeeded at his death by his eldest 
son, John B. Varick. Dr. Richard A. Varick 
died August 10, 1871. 

John V. B. Varick, father of our subject, 



232 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



married Miss Dorothy Remsen in New York 
City, shortly after which he located on a farm 
in the town of Poughkeepsie, where he followed 
agricultural pursuits a few years. Returning 
to New York, he there remained until his death. 
To him and his wife the following children 
were born: Richard A.; Henry, who was an 
attorney in Poughkeepsie, and died there; 
James L. , a merchant in New York; John was 
a farmer on the homestead, where he died; 
Abram was a resident of Poughkeepsie; Jane 
married Richard \'. Gilbert, a resident of Bridge- 
port, Conn., and Poughkeepsie (both are now 
deceased); Antoinette married William Pell, a 
sea captain; and Kate became the wife of 
Abram \'an Santvoord, a resident of New York 
City. By his second wife, who was a Miss 
Romeyn, John V. B. Varick had two children: 
Susan, who married Cornelius Van Santvoord, 
a prominent lawyer of New York; and Theo- 
dore R., who was surgeon general of New 
Jersey till his death. 



HENRY DU BOIS VAN WYCK, proprie- 
tor of Knickerbocker Lodge, Van W3'ck 
Lake, near Fishkill \'illage, Dutchess Co., 
N. Y. , and also the owner of extensive property 
interests at Norfolk, Va., is one of our most 
talented and successful men of affairs, ha\'ing 
given to various financial enterprises through- 
out his life the generalship, the energy, the 
insight, and the indomitable will which mark 
the highest type of business man. 

He is a native of Fishkill, born October 
27, 1823, at the old Van Wyck homestead, 
on the Hudson, a place which has been in the 
possession of his family for one hundred years. 
The mansion is of the Colonial type, and is 
famous as the house in which the proceedings 
of the first legislature of the State of New 
York were printed, and it is now occupied by 
the Misses Vandervort, Mr. \'an Wyck's nieces, 
the estate having been sold to them by him 
for one-tenth of its value. His father, John C. 
Van Wyck, was the owner of large tracts of 
land in that vicinity, and for many years fol- 
lowed mercantile pursuits in New York City. 
He married Delia Griffin, and reared a family 
of seven children: Letitia, Catherine, Jacob, 
Helena, Henry Du Bois, Mary Ida and Adelia. 

Mr. \'an Wyck was educated in the dis- 
trict schools near his home, also at College 
Hill, Poughkeepsie, and on leaving school he 
went to New York City and clerked in a large 



wholesale tobacco house for three years. He 
then spent two years in the oil busmess; went 
to Kalamazoo, Mich., with a large drove of 
sheep, and located there upon a large farm 
which he devoted to sheep raising and wheat 
growing, his first crop of wheat from 600 acres 
of land being the first large crop harvested in 
the United States. In 1849 he went to San 
Francisco, Cal. , meeting there William Annin, 
of Fishkill Landing, and bought the barque 
"Galindo," in which Mr. \'an Wyck made an 
exploring trip to the North along the coast of 
California and Oregon. Mr. Van Wyck was 
captain, with James Riddell as sailing master, 
and they carried sixty passengers, who were 
in search of a river which was laid down on 
one of Van Couver's charts as flowing into 
Trinidad bay. They found the bay, but no 
stream large enough to be called a river. One 
whale boat was sent north from this point 
and one south, with five men in each, but they 
returned on the fifth day, having lost four men 
while entering the mouth of Humboldt bay. 
There was a mutiny on board of the barque, 
which lasted several days, the passengers be- 
ing of a very rough class. The party found a 
tribe of Indians at Trinidad bay, who treated 
them with great kindness, as did another large 
band at Klamath river under Chief Cawtapish, 
numbering about 1,800 warriors. Mr. \'an- 
Wyck's party were the first whites they had 
ever seen, as the generation which had greeted 
Van Couver's men had gone to the happy 
hunting grounds. 

James Johnson and Mr. \'an Wyck were 
the discoverers of the great Gold Bluff claims, 
eight miles south of the Klamath river, which 
are still being worked. In 1850 Mr. \'an- 
Wyck sold his interest to A. J. Butler, brother 
of Gen. Benjamin F-. Butler, and then having 
procured thirty mules from San Francisco, he 
started on an exploring expedition through the 
Indian country, following the Klamath river, 
and at the end of forty-four days they struck 
the rich camp known as Yreka Mining camp, 
near the foot of Mt. Shasta. They had passed 
through several different large tribes of Indi- 
ans, viz.: The "Chora," "Mad Rivers," 
"Klamaths," " Smith Rivers, ' " Rogue Riv- 
ers," "Scott Rivers," "Shastas, " "Mo- 
docs," and others, always being treated well, 
although the Indians had never seen a white 
person before, and Mr. \'an Wyck thinks there 
never would have been any trouble with the 
Indians if the white men had used them justly. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHIC'AL RECORD. 



233 



Many noted chiefs were amono; these tribes, 
and Mr. Van Wyck says, '• he never saw 
more beautiful women than were many of 
these Indian maidens," particularly on the 
coast. The Modoc Indian Jim, afterward 
known as " Shack Nasty Jim," rode for one 
year the bell animal, leader of a train of mules, 
that Mr. Van Wyck was running from Yreka 
to Portland, Oregon, and also to Marysville, 
Cal., and other towns, where goods could be 
procured. Mr. Van Wyck gave him a furlough 
that he might visit his people, who were sup- 
posed to be camping at the Lava Beds, sixty 
miles from Yrel^. When he reached the Lava 
Beds, he found they had gone to Pitt river, 
fishing for salmon, and he came back after 
three or four days in a very filthy condition, 
having laid on the earth after heating it, so as 
to keep warm, during the cold nights. He 
had lived for two days on shack berries (a very 
nutritious fruit), and when he appeared before 
Mr. \'an Wyck, the latter said to him, "Jim, 
you look so filthy, and having lived on shack 
berries, I think your name ought to be changed, 
so I will give you a new one, that of ' Shack 
Nasty Jim;' " and this nickname clung to him 
until his death. 

The Modocs were alwaj's very kind to the 
whites, until the whites by misusing them 
caused them to be enemies instead of friends. 
As an instance: In 1853, during the immense 
immigration across the plains (all the men and 
women being sick, and the catfle exhausted, 
on account of the shortness of supplies), a 
party of 300 emigrants went into camp near 
the Modoc country, and one of the Modocs 
volunteered to carry word of their sad plight 
to "Yreka." On his arrival the message was 
delivered to Mr. Van Wyck at his store, as he 
was the largest dealer in that country. He im- 
mediately called a meeting of the citizens, and, 
as gold dust was as plenty as dirt, quickly 
raised enough to purchase cattle, provisions, 
medi^'nes and everything needed to bring them 
through. An expedition was sent out under 
the charge of a supposed merciful man, who 
distributed the supplies among the suffering 
emigrants. Having one fat ox left, he killed 
it, barbecued a quarter of it, and invited the 
leading men of the Modoc tribe to partake of 
the feast. It was said at the time that strych- 
nine had been put on this quarter, which he 
had taken out to kill wolves in order to get their 
pelts. At any rate, the party returned to 
Yreka with eleven Indian scalps, and said that 



they had had a terrible fight with the Modocs, 
and the scalps were the trophies of their vic- 
tory. Yreka people learned afterward that 
there had been no fight, but that the Indians 
had been poisoned. This accounts for the 
manner in which Capt. Jack of the Modocs 
treacherously killed Gen. Canby, of the U. S. 
Army, as he always said he would get even by 
killing some "big Boston fighting man." Mr. 
Van Wyck remained at Yreka until i860, when 
he went to Portland, Oregon, and remained 
there six months, forming another expedition 
which started for Idaho Territory, passing 
through the Dallas, Umpqua, Umatilla, and 
the place where the city of Walla Walla now 
stands, on through Grand Ronde valley, and 
over the Blue mountains, to the site of Boise 
City, then a wilderness; from there they went 
north and camped on a small stream sixty 
miles from Boise City, and finding placer gold 
in abundance, they started Idaho City, and in 
nine months 18,000 miners were there at work 
washing out the precious metal in enormous 
quantities. On this trip the party passed 
through the " Nez Perces" Umatillas, Grande 
Ronde, Boise Rivers, Bannocks, and other 
tribes of Indians without losing a man or even 
having any trouble, being treated well all the 
time. The Yreka camp and the Idaho City 
camp were two of the richest mining places 
ever discovered in the United States, and Mr. 
Van Wyck was the leader of the party who dis- 
covered both camps. In attempting to cross 
Boise river with their mules they were detained 
over twelve hours to allow a school of salmon 
to pass up the stream, as the mules could not 
be persuaded to go into the water until the fish 
had passed. At this early period these rivers 
were literally filled with salmon, and other fish. 
Mr. Van Wyck ran stages from Yreka to 
Red Bluff, Cal. (160 miles), for several years, 
carrying Wells, Fargo & Co.'s express daily, 
and having at times from 500 to 1,000 pounds 
of gold dust to be minted at San Francisco and 
carried back as coin. He never lost one dol- 
lar by the "road agents," and it was said that 
he was " in with the ' road agents,' " as, know-" 
ing them all, and being very kind to them, 
loaning them money whenever they needed it, 
they had promised him that his stage coaches 
should never be attacked, while the robberies 
of other coaches were constant. Both Idaho 
and Yreka Camp were filled with the roughest 
elements in the world in those days, and mur- 
ders were of daily occurrence, as from one to 



234 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



seven men were found murdered every morn- 
ing in the streets. Mr. \'an Wyck ran the 
Bonaparte Gold & Silver (in which he was a 
quarter-owner) for five years, doing his own 
amalgamating, retorting and assaying, having 
received a perfect knowledge of this science as 
a student of the celebrated Joseph Oesstricher, 
the gold and silver assayer of Idaho City. 

Mr. Van Wyck was at one time given a 
pass-word by Caw-Ta-Pish, chief of the Klam- 
ath's tribe (whose life he had saved on one 
occasion), which was often of great service to 
him among the tribes who understood the 
jargon language. The pass-word was this^ 
Cho, Ko, Nez, Wa, Gee, which expresses that 
Mr. Van Wyck had been a great friend of the 
Indians. Mr. Van Wyck at this point again 
asserts his belief that there never would have 
been bad Indians if it had not been for the bad 
whites, some of whom would shoot a poor 
Indian for their own amusement. 

George P. Gordon, the inventor of the 
Gordon printing press, with whom Mr. Van- 
Wyck had been acquainted since 183Q, induced 
him to sell his interests in Idaho and join him 
in Southern speculating, and in 1869 Mr. Van- 
Wyck went to Norfolk, Va., to look after 
property to purchase. Being pleased with the 
outlook and location, he wrote for Mr. Gordon 
to come down immediately, and their first pur- 
chase was the Mallory plantation, for which 
they paid $51,000 cash, at the same time buy- 
ing four other estates adjoining at a cost of 
$21,000 more, making three thousand acres in 
all of the most beautiful trucking land in \'ir- 
ginia. Mr. Gordon died in 1879, and three 
years later Mr. Van Wyck married his widow, 
who died in California in 1890 of pneumonia. 
Mr. Van Wyck was the pioneer in the garden 
truck business in Virginia, working 180 negroes, 
and eighty mules, and six horses daily, and he 
still has an interest in the plantations which 
will soon be sold to close up the estate of the 
late Mrs. Van Wyck. He also owns many 
buildings in Norfolk, Va. , including Van Wyck's 
Academy of Music on Main street, which was 
built twelve years ago at a cost of nearly $171,- 
000, and is a temple of the dramatic and lyric 
arts, of which Norfolk is justly proud. It is 
four stories high, 200x150 feet ground plan, 
and has an auditorium seating 1,600 people, 
at the same time affording standing room for 
some seven or eight hundred more. Its stage 
is 45 X 60 feet, with a height of twenty feet to 
the grooves, and a height in the clear of sixty- 



five feet. The proscenium arch is thirty-two 
feet wide by forty feet high. These dimensions, 
the general design of the house and its hand- 
some decorations and finish, have earned for it 
the reputation of being the finest theatre south 
of Washington. The best talent on the Amer- 
ican stage is engaged for this house. The 
present manager, who has had charge for the 
past five years, is A. B. Duesberry, a Rich- 
mond man of considerable experience in the- 
atrical matters. The treasurer, C. M. Mayes, 
has been with the house, in various capacities, 
for the last seven years. 

In 1890 Mr. Van W'yck •purchased the 
property known as the Ross farm, at Fishkill, 
Dutchess Co., N. Y., and constructed the lake 
and buildings known as Knickerbocker Lodge, 
Van Wyck Lake, improving and beautifying 
the place at a cost of $51,000. The spring of 
water located there has no equal in the world 
for the cure of diabetes, and the charming 
scenery and other advantages make it a delight- 
ful summer resort. 



E\DMUND L. HENDRICKS ^deceased). 
'I The family name of Hendricks has long 

been prominent in business circles in this re- 
gion, and the subject of this sketch sustained 
well the reputation for enterprise, good judg- 
ment and public-spirit which was his birth- 
right. His grandfather, Lawrence Hendricks, 
was a well-kn'own resident of Red Hook. He 
had a son, Jacob L. Hendricks, our subject's 
father, who married Anna Moore, and reared 
a family of children whose names with dates of 
birth are as follows: Edmund L., July 12, 
1809; Magdalene, October 19, 181 1; Jeremiah, 
November 2, 18 13; and Philip, January 29, 
1816. 

Edmund L. Hendricks received the name 
of Lawrence Edmund at his baptism, but in 
later years he transposed it to Edmund Law- 
rence. He was educated at the Upper Red 
Hook Academy; then learned harness making, 
and afterward engaged in the manufacture of 
harness at Red Hook. He retired in Septem- 
ber, 1863. On September 25, 1832, he was 
married to Miss Barbara Ann Davis, of Red 
Hook, and six children were born of this union: 
Francis Theo, Mary Elizabeth, Cornelia A., 
Ediiumd D., William E. and Magdalene A. 
Of this family all are now deceased except Mary 
E. and Magdalene A. Their home was char- 
acterized by refinement and quiet devotion to 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



235 



Christian principles. After fifteen years of 
wedded life, the mother died August 19, 1847, 
the father surviving until November 27, 1883. 
The Misses Hendricks still occupy the resi- 
dence built by their father in 1842. They 
were educated in Red Hook, and have taken 
a leading position in social, religious and phil- 
anthropic enterprises, and both are regarded 
as most ready, active and generous supporters 
of any measure tending to promote the welfare 
of their community, or of that wide circle which 
includes all humanity as one family. 



m BRAM WRIGHT, one of the most prom- 
Jb^ inent business men of Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, was born Novembers, 1812, 
in the town of East Fishkill, and now carries 
the burden of his eighty-five years with a 
sprightliness and vigor which many men 
younger than he might envy. 

Isaac Wright, his father, was born in 1764 
in Westchester county, N. Y. , where he grew 
to manhood and married Miss Mary Hamilton, 
who was born in 1763, a native of the same 
county. Her father was born in the North of 
Ireland, of Scotch-Irish parentage. Thirteen 
children came of this union, of whom our sub- 
ject is the youngest and now the only survivor. 
Isaac Wright engaged in farming at his native 
place after his marriage, and a few years later 
moved to East Fishkill, being one of the ear- 
liest settlers there. He was a man of very 
strong constitution, and never knew what ill- 
ness was until his last years. He died in 1839, 
his wife surviving him nine years. They were 
members of the M. E. Church, and so hospit- 
able were they to ministers and other travelers 
in those days that their home was known far 
and near as the " Methodist Tavern." 

Abram \N'right passed his boyhood on the 
farm where he was born, his educational op- 
portunities being limited to the neighboring 
district school. His first money-making em- 
ployment was in a country store at Coldspring, 
Putnam county, at $4 per month and board. 
Later, while visiting a brother at New Orleans, 
he was persuaded by him to go into the cotton 
commission business at Manchester (now Yazoo 
City), Miss. There he remained six years, 
when he was burned out, sustaining a loss of 
$50,000. Gathering up what he could, he 
again embarked in business, locating at Vicks- 
burg, where for eight years he dealt extensively 
in plantation supplies. He then returned to 



New Orleans, holding an interest with his 
brother Hamilton for two years, but sold out 
and came back to his early home. After a few 
years passed at Coldspring he moved to 
Poughkeepsie, Where in 1857 he bought his 
present place. He is a man of great energy 
and business acumen, and has engaged in vari- 
ous profitable enterprises. He was a stock- 
holder in the company which built the Pough- 
keepsie bridge, a director in the Farmers' and 
Merchants' Bank, and is now one of the trus- 
tees of the Poughkeepsie Savings Bank. He 
has also speculated in real estate to some ex- 
tent, and has built five stores on Main street 
between Academy street and Eighme place. 
Business cares have not, however, engrossed 
his thoughts to the exclusion of matters of 
public moment, for he has always been ready 
to forward any movement for the welfare of 
the city; he has held office on the board of ed- 
ucation, and on the alms house commission; 
has been alderman from the Sixth ward, and 
has served several times on the waterworks 
board, having been a member of that board at 
its organization. Politically, he has always 
been a stanch Democrat. 

Mr. Wright was married, in 1837, to Mary 
Warren, a daughter of Judge Warren, of Cold- 
spring, and has had seven children: Eliza, 
Charlotte, Webster, Sarah (Mrs. Leonard Car- 
penter), Cornelia, Ida and William, of whom 
only two are now living: Webster, a resident 
of Plainfield, N. J., and William, who lives in 
Poughkeepsie. 



CHARLES DAVIS, whose death occurred 
' in 1895, was one of the leading and influ- 
ential agriculturists of the town of Dover, 
Dutchess county. Timothy Davis, his grand- 
father, was a native of Delaware county, N. Y., 
and was also a farmer. He wedded Miss Mary 
Wilbur, by whom he had five children: Zilla, 
Wilbur, Silas, Ruth and Sarah. 

Wilbur Davis, the father of our subject, 
was born and educated in Delaware county, 
N. Y. , and followed the occupation to which 
he was reared. He married Miss Ethel Man- 
chester, and seven children came to bless their 
union, as follows: (i) William, who was born 
and educated in the town of Dover, Dutchess 
county, there engaged in farming, and married 
Miss Janet Clark. To them were born six 
children — Walter and Chester, who died in 
infancy; Mary, who wedded James Wood; 



236 



COVMEMORATITE BIOGRAPHICAL BECOED. 



George, who married Eniil\- Tripp: Mina, who 
married Lewis Waldron: and Harry, who died 
in infancy. (2i Betsy married William Smith, 
a farmer of Dover Plains. Dutchess county, 
and they had two children— Frances, who 
married Charles Cooper: and Jane, who mar- 
ried James Deacon. (3) Charles, subject of 
this sketch, was the next in order of birth. 
(4) Silas, a hat manufacturer, enlisted in a 
Connecticut regiment, and served all through 
the war of the Rebellion. He married Miss 
Margaret Abbott, but no children were born 
to them. (5) Sarah was never married. (6 
Theron was engaged in the foundry business. 
and married Miss Anna Hart, by whom he had 
three children — Mary. John and Albert. (7) 
Henr}- carried on farming in the West. He 
married Miss Margaret O'Conners. but they 
had no children. All of the above-named 
family were born in the town of Dover, Dutch- 
ess county, and were there educated. 

The subject proper of this sketch was born 
in the town of Dover. Dutchess county, in 
1824. and like the other members of the fam- 
ily attended the common schools near his 
home. He earh- became familiar with the 
work that falls to the lot of the agriculturist, 
and made farming his life work. He was a 
highly-respected citizen, having the confidence 
and esteem of all who knew him. and man\" 
friends mourned his death. 

Mr. Davis was united in marriage with 
Miss Elizabeth Benson, a daughter of Jeffer- 
son and Fannie (Glenn) Benson, of Amenia. 
Dutchess county, and they became the par- 
ents of eight children, namely: George, bom 
in 1S49. has for several j-ears been a conductor 
on the Harlem railroad: he married Ellen 
Duncan, and has one child — Ed J.: John. 
born in 185 1. was for years conductor on the 
Harlem railroad, and had his arm crushed in 
1891: William, bom in 1853. was on the same 
road for years, and is now on the Brooklyn 
bridge: he married Eliza Benson, and has 
eight children — Charles. Albert, Nellie. Anna, 
Emma. Sophia. Arthur and Lula. Edward, 
born in 1855. died at the age of nineteen years. 
Frank, born in 1857. was a conductor on the 
Staten Island road, and was killed in a colli- 
sion in 1893: he married Katie E. Spencer. 
Walter, born in 1859, is a fireman on the 
Harlem road: he married Jennie Proper, and 
has two children — Ida and Ethel. Jefferson, 
bom in i860, is an engineer on the Brooklyn 
bridge: he married Emilv Duncan, and has 



three children — Edith. Harry and Mabel. 
Arthur, born in 1862. was a policeman at the 
time of his death in 1888: he married Georgia 
Schamerhorn, and had one child — Katie E.. 
who died in infancv. 



BENJAMIN N. BAKER. M. D., one of the 
ablest and most successful medical practi- 
tioners of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, was 
bom October 2. 1833. in Montgomery county, 
Pennsylvania. 

His family is of English origin, and has 
long been established in Nottingham, England., 
where his grandfather. John Baker, was a well- 
known resident in his day. Rev. John J. Baker, 
our subjects father, was the first of the family 
to come to America, and fifty years of his life 
were spent as a devoted minister of the Baptist 
Church in Philadelphia and in different towns 
in New Jersey. He married Miss Elizabeth 
Nicholson, daughter of Benjamin Nicholson, a 
Revolutionan,' soldier, who was at one time 
imprisoned in a man-of-war in New York har- 
bor. Thirteen children were bom of this union, 
of whom the following seven lived to adult age: 
Benjamin N.. William. Lansing B.. John J., 
Catherine. Margaret and Allie. The father 
died in 1890. and the mother in 1S91. 

Dr. Baker received a good education in his 
youth, graduating in 184S from the Central 
High School in Philadelphia, to attend which 
he walked three miles each day. Soon after 
leaving school he engaged in the drug business 
in the same city, and later took the general 
course in medicine in the Pennsylvania Med- 
ical College, and was graduated in 1S57. He 
then began the practice of his profession at 
Lawrenceville. N. J., and remained there twelve 
years, with the exception of one year in the 
army, in 1862-63. He entered as second as- 
sistant surgeon of the ist N. J. C and later 
became first assistant of the 28th N. J. I., and 
then first surgeon of the Third Division, Second 
Corps. Hospital in the field, and was mustered 
out while holding this rank. He returned to 
LawTenceville. but in 1S68 moved to Rhine- 
beck, and has been in general practice there 
ever since, winning an enviable reputation 
throughout the surrounding countr\' for the 
successful and scientific treatment of difficult 
cases. In his professional work he is naturally 
a diligent reader, and he keeps well informed 
also on the topics of the day. Political work 
he has left entirely alone. He votes the Dem- 





LL^ 



<^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



237 



ocratic ticket, though formerly a Rcpubhcan, 
and he is interested in all movements for the 
public benefit, and has been health officer for 
several years. 

On April 7, 1858, he was married to Miss 
Sarah S. Exton, daughter of Thomas Exton, 
a well-known citizen of Clinton, N. J., and 
granddaughter of Hugh Exton, who came 
from England at an early date and purchased 
one thousand acres of land, now known as 
Union farms. T-hey have had eight children, 
four of whom are now living: Lizzie, who 
married Edward Holley, of Hudson, N. Y. ; 
Ella, the wife of R. R. Jarvis, of Arlington, 
N. J.; Harriet, the wife of Thomas J. Sinclair, 
of Philadelphia; and Mae, who is at home. 
The Doctor united with the Presbyterian Church 
in his youth, but he and his wife are now active 
members of the Reformed Dutch Church. The 
Doctor takes great interest in the G. A. R., 
being a member of Armstrong Post, and he also 
belongs to the Masonic order. 



THOMAS W. EMBLEY, M. D., of Fish- 
kill, Dutchess county. Among the tal- 
ented young physicians of this region, we 
should name the subject of this sketch as hav- 
ing demonstrated in an unusually short time 
the possession of native ability for his profes- 
sion, as well as the thorough training which, 
however necessary to a successful practitioner, 
is useful only where the other exists to be de- 
veloped. 

Dr. Embley is a native of Fishkill-on-Hud- 
son, where he was born July 22, 1874. His 
family originated in England, and for 300 years 
there has been a Thomas Embley in the direct 
line of descent. The Doctor's great-grand- 
father, Thomas Embley, lived in Lancashire, 
England, and was a mason by trade. He was 
accidentally killed by the falling of a scaffold, 
and left a small family, among whom was a 
son, Thomas, our subject's grandfather, who 
was born at Clitheroe, in northern Lancashire. 
He became a carder of cotton goods in his 
youth, and later followed teaming, but finally 
engaged in the grocery business. He died in 
1857, aged seventy-five \'ears, and his wife, 
Ann (Tiplady), followed him a year later, aged 
fifty-eight. Her father, John Tiplady, was a 
lead miner of Yorkshire, England. Thomas 
and Ann Embley were devout members of the 
Church of England. Of their three children, 



the youngest, Thomas, our subject's father, is 
now the only survivor. Mary A. married 
William Fitton, now deceased, and Alice was 
the wife of the late John Seddon. 

Thomas Embley, the Doctor's father, was 
born at Hyde, Cheshire, England, August 6, 
1839, and was the only one of the family to 
cross the ocean. The first eleven years of his 
life were spent at his native place, and he then 
became a switch-tender in a railroad j'ard at 
Gorton. At fourteen he went to Manchester 
to learn the art of decorating interiors, and for 
several years he was successfully engaged in 
painting and paper-hanging. In 1873 he came 
to America, and visited Fishkill and neighbor- 
ing towns in his search for a suitable location. 
The prospects there being favorable he began 
working at his trade, but in 1876 he estab- 
lished a saloon business at Fishkill Landing, 
and has met with marked success. In 1889 
he built the brick block at the corner of Wal- 
nut and Main streets, where he has since con- 
ducted his business, and until taking possession 
of that place he was also engaged to some ex- 
tent at his old trade of decorator. At present 
he is treasurer of the Liquor and Beer Deal- 
ers' Association of Fishkill. 

In his political views Mr. Embley is inde- 
pendent, voting for the best men and measures 
without regard to party. He inclines toward 
the Episcopal Church, having been a member 
of the Established Church before coming to 
the United States. While living in Godley, 
England, he was active in Church work, and 
was a teacher in the Sunday-school. He also 
joined the I. O. O. F. in his native land. He 
was married in the old country, August 6, i S69, 
to Miss Lucy J. Fisher, daughter of William 
Fisher, of Leiston, Suffolk, England. Only 
one child, our subject, lived to adult age, and 
to him we will now return. 

Dr. Embley was educated in Fishkill, and 
on completing his course in the local schools 
he began the study of medicine with Dr. J. G. 
Dawson, of Matteawan. After eighteen months 
of preparatory reading he was enrolled in Oc- 
tober, 1893, as a student at Hahnemann Med- 
ical College at Philadelphia, Penn. He was 
graduated in 1896, and in July of that year 
opened his office at Fishkill village, where he 
is making his way by his own merits. He has 
already had some difficult cases, and was asso- 
ciated with Dr. Dawson, his former preceptor, 
in a very important operation requiring intelli- 
gence and skill, by which they saved a leg for 



238 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



a man who had been run over by the cars. So 
far the Doctor has not donned the Hymeneal 
yoke. 



> EV. JAMES NILAN. D. D., pastor of 

St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church, 

Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, is a native of 
Ireland, born in County Galway, in 1836. At 
the age of seventeen he came to this country, 
and was educated at St. John's College, Ford- 
ham, N. Y., from which he graduated with 
the first gold medal conferred by Archbishop 
Hughes. Subsequently he pursued his theo- 
logical studies at Rome, where, in 1S63, he 
was ordained to the priesthood, at St. John 
Lateran. 

On his return to this country he was as- 
signed to missionary service at the Church of 
the Holy Cross, New York, and in 186S he 
was sent by Cardinal McCloskey to the charge 
of the Catholic Church at Port Jervis, N. Y. 
Here, during his pastorate, he succeeded in 
securing the erection of one of the finest 
church buildings in that diocese. In Novem- 
ber, 1877, on the appointment of Dr. Patrick 
McSweeney to St. Bridget's Church, New 
York, Dr. Nilan was transferred to the pas- 
torate of St. Peter's Church, Poughkeepsie. 

During the pastorate (1S44-187OJ of Rev. 
M. Rlordan, the present St. Peter's church 
building was begun and completed, two large 
school buildings and a rectory being also 
erected. In 1872, during the pastorate of 
Rev. Dr. McSweeney, the rectory was en- 
larged, and arrangements were made whereby 
the parochial school buildings were placed 
under the control of the city board of educa- 
tion. The parish of St. Mary's was estab- 
lished in the upper part of the city. During 
Father Nilan's pastorate the church building 
has been enlarged, and provided with stained- 
glass windows at a cost of $10,000. Its Sab- 
bath-school numbers nearly seven hundred. 
It has five sodalities for the young members of 
the congregation; a young people's literary 
society, with a good library; a boys' temper- 
ance society of over 300 members; and a total 
abstinence and benefit society of several hun- 
dred men and women. The average income 
of the church is $8,000, nearly $5,000 of 
which is from pew rent. 

Few churches present a more complete ar- 
ray of parish organizations, in successful oper- 
ation to-day, than does the Church of St. 



Peter's. Dr. Nilan's pronounced temperance 
principles, his warm sympathies with the hum- 
blest of his flock, and his frank acceptance of 
all the responsibilities of citizenship, have com- 
bined to give him an enviable position, not only 
with the members of his parish, but in the 
community at large. In the general benevo- 
lent, temperance and literary movements of 
the city. Dr. Nilan has always taken a promi- 
nent part, and he possesses in a marked degree 
the esteem of all classes of the people. 



MT. PULTZ, M. D., a prominent physi- 
_ cian of Stanfordville, Dutchess county, 

is a great-grandson of one of the pioneer agri- 
culturists of the town of Khinebeck, David 
Pultz, who came from Germany at an early 
day to make a home in this country. His son, 
Michael D. Pultz, our subject's grandfather, 
was reared to the occupation of farming, and 
also worked at the carpenter's trade. He was 
a member of the old militia, and took an act- 
ive part in the local affairs of his day. He 
and his family belonged to the Lutheran 
Church, attending at Wurtemburg. By his 
first wife, who was a Miss Cookingham, he 
bad six children: Julia, Reuben, Mary, Mar- 
tin, Griffin and Lavina, of whom Mary is now 
the only survivor. 

Martin Pultz, our subject's father, always 
resided at the old homestead, receiving his 
education in youth in the neighboring schools. 
In politics he was a Whig, and in movements 
of his time and locality he was influential, be- 
ing especially interested in the early agitation 
of the temperance question, and an active 
worker in the Sons of Temperance. He mar- 
ried Catherine Traver, a daughter of Phillip I. 
Traver, of Milan. His death occurred in 
1850; his widow makes her home with our 
subject. 

Monroe Traver Pultz, the only child of 
this union, was born at the old home farm 
July 17, 1843. After making the most of the 
somewhat limited facilities afforded by the 
local schools, he studied for some time at 
Rhinebeck Academy, then one year at Wilbra- 
ham Academy in Massachusetts, and a year at 
Fort Edwards, N. Y. He then for a time 
pursued the scientific course in Union College 
with the class of '6"/, and later began the 
study of medicine with Dr. I. F. \'an Miet, at 
Rhinebeck, after which he took a three-years' 
course in the College of Physicians and Sur- 



COMifEMOIiATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



239 



geons. New York City, graduating in 1868. 
In June of the same year he located at Stan- 
fordville, where he has since practiced with 
great success, his native abilities and fine 
scholarship giving him high rank in his profes- 
sion. He has been twice married, first to 
Miss Emma Amelia Bailey, a daughter of 
Richard Bailey, a well-known resident of 
Rhinebeck. She died in 1877, leaving two 
sons, Fred A. and Lee, the latter a graduate 
of the Albany Medical College in the class of 
'95. In 187S Dr. Pultz was married, the sec- 
ond time, in the town of Stanford, to Miss 
Alice Clark, daughter of Almon Clark. 

In politics the Doctor is a Democrat, but 
he takes no share in party work, although he 
is a supporter of all measures tending to the 
public welfare, and has served as health offi- 
cer of the town of Stanford. He is a member 
of the Christian Church, and of the F. & A. 
M., Rhinebeck Lodge; he holds a prominent 
place in the Dutchess County Medical Associa- 
tion, in the New York State Medical Asso- 
ciation, and in the American Medical Associa- 
tion. 



E\DWIN R. PEASE. Among the old resi- 
: dents of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, 

probably none were better known that the late 
Edwin R. Pease. Mr. Pease was born June 
22, 1820, and died March 16, 1885. He was 
a son of Dudley S. Pease, an early settler in 
the village, who came from the East. 

In early life Mr. Pease learned the shoe- 
making industry, and at the age of twenty-two 
years he established business for himself, man- 
ufacturing shoes and running a retail store. 
He started in business on the north side of 
Main street, near Bayeau street, where he re- 
mained for about a year, when he moved to No. 
309 Main street, and there continued the bus- 
iness up to the time of his death. He was one 
of the most prominent merchants of the city, 
always identified with all matters of public in- 
terest. Although one of the most substantial 
and respected residents, and owner of much 
real estate, he never aspired to official honors. 
He was a Democrat, but never held any polit- 
ical office, except that of police commission- 
er, which incumbency he was hol^ding at the 
time of his death. For many years he was a 
trustee of the old Cannon Street M. E. Church, 
to which he was a liberal contributor. 

Mr. Pease married January 11, 1844, Cor- 



nelia Stanton, a daughter of Morris and Eliza 
Stanton. Morris Stanton, the father of Mrs. 
Pease, was born in Ulster county, and followed 
the cooper's trade. Eliza Stanton, the mother 
of Mrs. Pease (more familiarly known as Eliza 
Bates, which name she inherited by marriage 
to her second husband, Joseph I. Bates, in 
June, 18351, was born November 10, 1798, in 
a house on Academy street, standing where 
George W. Scott's livery stable is now located. 
She built the handsome building now occupied 
by the Dutchess Restaurant and the Dutchess 
Club, at No. 309 Main street, where she lived 
for many years, and died February 25, 1888, 
honored as the oldest Methodist in Pough- 
keepsie. She was a member of the first 
Methodist Sunday-school in Poughkeepsie, 
holding their meetings in the old church on 
Jefferson street. She was a daughter of Til- 
man Seabury, a sergeant in the Revolutionary 
army, who married Cornelia Kip, a direct 
descendant of Anneka Jans, of Trinity-Church 
fame. 

Tradition affirms that while the Revolu- 
tionary soldiers were stationed at Poughkeep- 
sie, Tilman Seabury, wishing to make the 
acquaintance of Cornelia Kip, whom he had 
seen, purchased some handkerchiefs, and 
asked her to hem them for the soldiers, as 
the "girls" were all anxious to do work for 
the soldiers. She accepted, and an acquaint- 
ance was then formed which resulted in court- 
ship, and the records of the old Dutch Church 
at New Hackensack show that on February 
27, 1778, Tilman Seabury and Cornelia Kip 
were married by the Rev. Isaac Rysdyke. 

Mrs. Stanton (Mrs. Bates) was a grand- 
niece of Bishop Seabury, the first Episcopal 
bishop in America. Mrs. Stanton (Mrs. Bates) 
was also a direct descendant, through Samuel 
Seabury, of John Alden and Priscilla Mullens, 
who came to this country in the " Mayflower." 
Mrs. Stanton, by her marriage to Morris 
Stanton, had three children : Sarah, who 
died August 14, 1873, unmarried; Cornelia 
(Pease), who lives at No. 117 Academy street, 
and Mary, who married the Rev. B. D. 
Palmer, now living at Paterson, New Jersey. 

Dudley S. Pease, the father of Edwin R. 
Pease, came from Connecticut to Poughkeep- 
sie, where he engaged in the shoe business. 

He also kept a grocery store. He was. 
785, and died March 17, 



March 



born 

1855. On November 14, 1805, he married 

Lewrelly Loomis, bj- whom he had two chil- 



240 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



dren, Charles and Sylvia L. For his second 
wife he married, June 14, 18 10, Maria Seares, 
by whom he had two children, Maria L. and 
Albert. For his third wife he married, De- 
cember I, 18 14, Sarah, daughter of Samuel 
(and Margaret) Killey, a descendant of Seth 
Killey, of Yarmouth, by whom he had six sons 
and two daughters: Richard P., Margaret, 
Edwin R., Catherine J., Franklin, Albert S. , 
Walter S. and Egbert K., all of whom are 
now dead except Albert S., who lives at Sara- 
toga, N. Y. Edwin R. and Cornelia Pease 
had four children — two sons and two daughters 
— all of whom are now living. 



ROBERT SANFORD, a prominent citizen 
and a lawyer of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 

county, who has been a resident of that city 
for the past forty years, was born in Albany, 
N. Y., December 10, 1831. 

When he was three years of age, his par- 
ents, Nathan and Mary (Buchanan) Sanford, 
removed from Albany to Flushing, L. I., where 
they resided four years, or until the death of 
the father in October, 1838. During the fol- 
lowing two years, Mr. Sanford traveled with 
his widowed mother, and at the age of ten 
years entered schools at Hartford, Conn. , where 
he remained for five years, then becoming a 
pupil in the school of the celebrated instructor, 
Dr. Muhlenberg, at College Point, L. I., where 
he remained four years. During the next two 
years he was under private tutors, one of them 
being Rev. Dr. George H. Houghton, rector of 
the historical "little church around the cor- 
ner " on 28th street, just east of Fifth avenue, 
New York City, who coached him in Greek, 
and said to him: "Bob, you are the most 
stupid jackass lever saw!" After that mental 
castigation, "Bob" respected his tutor, and 
improved in that ancient language so much as 
to write a letter in Greek, into which the asin- 
ine still existed, according to the worthy Doc- 
tor. For one year after this he was a student 
at the Kinsley Military Institute, West Point, 
N. Y., and the next two years were passed by 
him at Schenectady, N. Y. He then traveled 
in Europe for a couple of years with his mother. 

In 1857 Mr. Sanford located at Poughkeep- 
sie, and began the study of law at the New 
York State and National Law School, graduat- 
ing with the class of '58. For two years he 
was in the law office of Joseph H. Jackson, 
and during the following two years practiced 



law for himself. In i860 he set out on another 
extended European trip, which occupied two 
years, during which he attended a course of 
lectures at the Sorbonne, in Paris, and was 
presented at the Court of Napoleon III. Re- 
turning to the United States, he practiced law 
in Poughkeepsie for three years, or until 1865, 
at which time he commenced his third trip 
across the Atlantic, the winter being spent at 
Ventnor, Isle of Wight, hunting, and the sum- 
mer in London, where he was presented at 
Court by his cousin, Charles Francis Adams, 
then minister of the Court of St. James. At 
the end of about two years he returned to the 
United States, and to Poughkeepsie. 

On May 23, 1867, Mr. Sanford was united 
in marriage with Miss Mary Helen Hooker 
Stuyvesant, eldest daughter of John R. 
Stuyvesant, a resident of Edgewood, Hyde 
Park, Dutchess county, and a great-grand- 
daughter of Petrus Stuyvesant, Colonial Gov- 
ernor of the State of New York. Five chil- 
dren have been born of this union: Mary 
Buchanan, Henry Gausevoort, Helen Stuyves- 
ant and Desire McKean. Of these, Stuyves- 
ant died August 13, 1890; the others are at 
home with their parents. 

Mr. Sanford in his political predilections is 
a Republican, but no partisan, and while a 
loyal citizen has always declined office. So- 
cially, he is a member of the Sigma Phi Fra- 
ternity, the Aztec Society (a Mexican war so- 
ciety); the Amrita Club, of Poughkeepsie; the 
Dutchess Hunt Club; the Union League Club, 
of New York City; the Society for the Pre- 
vention of Cruelty to Animals, in which 
society he has always taken great interest; the 
American Geographical Society; the Church 
Club of New York, besides many others. He 
is a trustee of the Church of the Holy Com- 
forter, at Poughkeepsie; and was a member 
of the board of education from 1862 to 1866, 
having to resign on account of his going to 
Europe. 

Physically, Mr. Sanford, who is now (1897) 
sixty-six years of age, is of about medium 
height, and of the blonde type; is possessed of 
a well-knit frame, having from his youth kept 
up his out-door exercise — skating, riding, walk- 
ing, etc., as well as fencing — in fact, he is a 
moderate ^11-round athlete, without ever ex- 
celling in any one exercise. Ventilation, sew- 
erage, and sanitary matters in general, and, 
above all, pure air, have been his "hobbies," 
so much so that he has sometimes been called 



VOMMEMOBATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



241 



a " crank " on these subjects; indeed, he claims 
that the foul air of the court rooms finally drove 
him away from active practice in them. 

Mr. Sanford has a delightfully picturesque 
home in Poughkeepsie, beautified with wide 
lawns, winding walks, and a romantic little 
brook; while the house is commodious, and 
elegantly designed and furnished. Everywhere 
are seen evidences of cultivated taste and re- 
fined associations, while souvenirs of his travels 
in foreign countries recall to him many pleas- 
ant memories of years of sight-seeing. No 
family stands higher than that of Robert San- 
ford, and the hospitable home is always open 
to a large circle of warm friends. 

Sanford F.^mily. The ancient family of 
Sontford, Sonforde, or Sanford of Sandford, 
came to England with William the Conqueror, 
and the name of its founder occurs in every 
known copy of the " Battle Abbey Roll." [See 
Burke's " Landed Gentry of Great Britain and 
Ireland."] 

Thomas Sanford, the grandfather of Rob- 
ert Sanford, was born in Connecticut, married 
Phcebe Baker and settled on Long Island, at 
Bridgehampton, where he practiced medicine, 
and also followed farming, and where he died. 
He had two children, Nathan, our subject's 
father, and Phebe, who married Dr. Rufus 
Rose, a physician. 

Nathan Sanford, father of our subject, was 
born at Bridgehampton, L. I., November 5, 
1777, and grew to manhood on his father's 
farm. He received an elementary education 
at Clinton Academy, Easthampton, L. I., and 
in 1793 entered Yale College, but did not grad- 
uate. In 1797 he studied law with Samuel 
Jones, Sr., and was admitted to the bar in 
1799. In 1800 he was one of the United 
States Commissioners of Bankruptcy, and in 
1803 was made United States District Attor- 
ney for the Southern District of New York, 
which position he held twelve years. In iSi i 
he was chosen speaker of the State Assembly, 
being the last speaker to preside in a cocked 
hat. The following year he was elected to 
the State Senate, and his portrait, ordered by 
the State, is now in the Capitol at Albany. 

In 18 1 5 Mr. Sanford was elected to the 
United States Senate, and soon after relin- 
quished the practice of his profession, devoting 
himself in his legislative capacity to the inter- 
ests of his country. In 1831, after the e.xpi- 
ration of his term of office, he was chosen a 
member of the convention for framing a new 

16 



constitution for the State of New York. In 
1823 he was appointed to succeed the Hon. 
James Kent as chancellor of the State, which 
position he filled with honor until 1825, when 
he was again elected to the U. S. Senate, in 
place of Dr. Rufus King, by a unanimous vote of 
both branches of the Legislature. He was 
chairman of the committee on Foreign Affairs, 
the most prominent of all Senate Committees. 
In the Presidential election of 1824 Senator 
Sanford was one of the candidates for the vice- 
Presidency of the United States. .^.t that 
period candidates were not formally nominated 
by their parties as at the present day. In this 
election there were four candidates for that 
office: William H. Crawford, nominated by 
the Democratic members of Congress; Andrew 
Jackson, nominated chiefly by numerous con- 
ventions; the candidate of the people, John 
Quincy Adams, nominated by the Legislatures 
of most of the Eastern States; and Henry 
Clay, nominated by his friends in various 
States. Mr. Sanford was put on the ticket 
with Clay, and the other candidates for the 
Vice-Presidency were: Calhoun, Macon, Van- 
Buren, Jackson and Clay. Neither candidates 
received a majority of votes, but Adams was 
elected when the vote was thrown into the 
House of Representatives. Calhoun received 
a large majority for Vice-President. 

Among the many eminent men of New 
York, no one served in more important posi- 
tions in the same length of time than did 
Nathan Sanford. He was an educated man, 
and master of many languages. At the expi- 
ration of his senatorial term, he retired to his 
estate at Flushing, L. I., where he resided 
until his death, which occurred October 17, 
1838. He was married three times, his third 
wife being Mary Buchanan, who was born in 
Baltimore, November i, 1800, a daughter of 
Andrew and Anne (McKean) Buchanan, the 
former of whom was a merchant in that city. 
Mrs. Sanford was the second in a family of 
four children, the others being Susan, Thomas 
and Ann. 

Dr. George Buchanan, the maternal great- 
great-grandfather of Robert Sanford, our sub- 
ject, was born in Scotland in 1698, and emi- 
grated to Maryland in 1723. His son George, 
also a physician, was born in Baltimore, Sep- 
tember 19, 1763, and married Laetia McKean, 
by whom he had eleven children, Andrew, the 
grandfather of Robert Sanford, our subject, 
being the fifth in order of birth. Laetia Mc- 



242 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOaRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Kean was the daughter of Thomas McKean, 
one of the Signers of the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence, and at one time governor of Penn- 
sylvania and Delaware. The McKeans were 
of Irish extraction. 

The marriage of Nathan Sanford and Mary 
Buchanan took place in the White House at 
Washington. President John Ouincy Adams, 
Miss Buchanan's nearest relative, giving away 
the bride. But one child, Robert, was born 
of this union. Nathan Sanford died October 
17, 1S38, and his wife on April 23, 1879, at 
Poughkeepsie. [The above historical facts in 
relation to the Hon. Nathan Sanford are taken 
from Appleton's Encyclopedia of American 
Biography, Vol. \\ p. 391.] 



JOHN F. MARQUET (deceased), who in 
his lifetime was a prominent agriculturist 
of the town of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, 
was a descendant of one of the pioneer settlers 
in that vicinity, and was born July 13, 1828, 
upon the farm he lately occupied. 

His great-grandfather, George Marquet, 
emigrated from Holland, and at an early date 
settled upon a tract of land near the present 
site of Wurtemburg, and it has ever since been 
the 'home of his family. George Marcpiet, our 
subject's grandfather, passed his life there; he 

married Anna , and reared a family 

of children: John G. and William H., both 
farmers in Rhinebeck; David; and Margaret, 
who married Philip Pultz, a farmer of the 
same locality. 

David Marquet, our subject's father, was 
born November 8, 1794, and was married 
November 5, 181 5, to Savina Cookingham, 
born November 13, 1794. a daughter of Fred- 
erick Cookingham, of Rhinebeck. They also 
settled at the old farm where four children 
born to them, as follows: AnnaE. , March 
30, 1817; Matilda, June 2, 1820; Margaret, 
April 8, 1824; and John F., our subject. The 
father of this family died at the old home 
April 3, 1838, the mother on July 28, 1889. 

The youth of John F. Marquet was passed 
much the same as that of any other healthy 
country boy, and as he grew to manhood h^ 
too, determined to become a general fanner. 
He was married October 2, 1851, to Emily 
Cookingham, whose ancestors came from Hol- 
land in the early days, and settled in the town 
of Rhinebeck, where her grandfather, George 
Cookingham, was a leading farmer of his time. 



Her father, David I. Cookingham, also a 
farmer there, married Mary Schryver, a lady 
of German descent, and daughter of John 
Schryver, of Rhinebeck. After their marriage 
Mr. and Mrs. Marquet lived for fifteen years 
upon a farm near the church, a part of which 
they then sold for the beautiful Wurtemburg 
Cemetery. In 1866 they moved to the 118- 
acre farm at the old homestead. Two daugh- 
ters blessed their home only to be taken away 
in early womanhood: Ida, born January 31, 
1853, died June 20, 1877; and Mary, born 
May 19, 1857, died May 10, 1884. The par- 
ents are both also now deceased, the father 
passing away February 15, 1896, and the 
mother on February 19, 1896. This family 
was always connected with the Lutheran 
Church, and Mr. Marquet and his wife were 
leading members of the congregation at Wurt- 
emburg. In politics he was a Republican, but 
he never was in any sense a politician, and 
sought no office. 



JOHN ^^LLARD (deceased). The subject 
of this sketch was born in Poughkeepsie, 

Dutchess county. May 21, 1789, and was 
the son of Charles and Lydia (Pride) Millard, 
the former of whom was born in Cornwall, 
Conn., February 19, 1763. 

Our subject lived but a short time in 
Poughkeepsie, moving in early life to Marl- 
borough. Ulster county. He married Miss 
Sarah Purdy, a daughter of John S. and Eliza- 
beth (Jennings) Purdy, who was born in White 
Plains, Westchester county, in 1793, where she 
lived until fourteen years old. After their 
marriage Mr. and Mrs. Millard located in New 
York and subsequently in Brooklyn, where our 
subject carried on a wholesale and retail gro- 
cery business. The following children were 
born to them: Lydia resides in Poughkeep- 
sie; Elizabeth; Hester lives in Poughkeepsie; 
Sarah; Charles; Martha J.; John P. is a resi- 
dent of Poughkeepsie; Samuel N. is a retired 
citizen of Marlborough, Ulster county; James. 
Our subject, with his wife, was a member of 
the Presbyterian Church, and he took an act- 
ive interest in all public matters. His death 
took place April 28, 1871, and that of his wife 
October 6, 1881. 

Charles Millard was in the army at New- 
burgh, N. Y. , under Washington, when Ar- 
nold, the traitor, fled from West Point. In 
1800 Mj.. Millard was living in Marlborough, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



243 



Ulster county, and was engaged in the lumber 
business. He was married to Miss Lydia 
Pride, of Poughkeepsie, a daughter of John 
and Magdaline Pride. The latter couple were 
proprietors of the half-waj- house between Al- 
bany and New York, on the old post-road 
north of the City of Poughkeepsie. To Mr. 
and Mrs. Millard were born the following chil- 
dren: John, our subject; James, who was a lum- 
ber merchant at Catskill, N. Y. ; Charles, who 
was a merchant of New Orleans; William, who 
was a man of means and traveled extensively; 
Walter, who was engaged with his father in 
the lumber business; Cornelia, married to 
Hackaliah Purdy, a farmer of Ulster county; 
Catherine, who became the wife of Elam Dun- 
bar, a farmer of Connecticut, who previously 
had conducted a hat factory in Poughkeepsie; 
Caroline, who died unmarried; and by a second 
marriage, Margaret and Franklin. Mr. Mill- 
ard moved his lumber business to New Ham- 
burg, in 1S24, and died there in 1827. John 
Millard, the grandfather, was born January i 5, 
1736, in Massachusetts, and died November 



22, 181 



J- 



He married Miss Christiana Rust, 



who was born November 21, 1742, and died 
June 17, 1831. Theirchildren were: Charles; 
Rufus; Philo, who was a musician; Ira, who 
was a manufacturer at \\'appingers Falls, 
Dutchess county; Russell, who was a resident 
of Connecticut. Robert Millard, the great- 
grandfather, was a native of Massachusetts. 
His ancestors were of French-Huguenot stock. 
John S. Purdy. the father of Mrs. Millard, 
was born in Westchester county, N. Y. , July 
II, 1763, and died September 23, 1856. He 
was a patriot, and when a mere boy served in 
the Revolutionary war. He married Miss 
Elizabeth Jennings, a daughter of Peter Jen- 
nings, who was born May 12, 1765, and died 
in 1S42. They were married March 21, 1786, 
and had the following children: Hester, born 
June 1 7, I J'ij , married Dennis H. Doyle, who, in 
the year 1807, with Robert Fulton, took the 
first trip up the Hudson, on the "Clermont"; 
Peter, born January 19, 1789; Elisha, born May 
3, 1 79 1 ; Sarah, born April 17, 1793; Lydia, born 
December 15, 1795, married William Smith, 
who was in the war of 181 2; Hackaliah, born 
November 22, 1797; Eliza, born July i, 1799; 
Martha, born April 3, 1801 ; Maria, born March 
5, 1803; Dennis, born December 4, 1805; 
William J., born October 16, 1809. Dennis 
is the only one living now (1897), at the age of 
ninety-one. Elisha Purdy, father of John S. , 



was born at White Plains, Westchester county. 
He married Mehitable Smith, a daughter "of 
Rev. John Smith, I). 1)., and they reared these 
children: John S., Thomas, James, Hetta, 
Challie, Elizabeth, Winfred, Nancy, and Ainee. 
Elisha was a farmer in Westchester and Ulster 
counties. Nathaniel Purdy, father of Elisha, 
was a native of Westchester county, and was 
an Episcopal minister. His father was John 
Purdy, a son of Joseph, a son of Francis, who 
came from Yorkshire, England, in 1658, and 
settled in Fairfield, Conn. The Purdys were 
originally from Wales, and settled in England. 
Two sons of Francis Purdy, Joseph and Fran- 
cis, were commissioned surveyors by the Crown, 
and sent to America. 

I^ev. John Smith, D. D., above referred 
to, was born in England in 1702. He was 
educated at Oxford, and for thirty years, until 
his death in 1771, served as pastor of the 
Presbyterian Church at Rye. Westchester Co. , 
N. Y. He married Mehitable Hooker, a great- 
granddaughter of Rev. Thomas Hooker, the 
founder of Hartford, Conn., in 1636. 



P)ETER B. HAYT, of the firm of Peter B. 
Hayt & Co., was born in Poughkeepsie 
October 8, 1835. In the spring of 1836 his 
parents moved to a farm in New Hackensack, 
Dutchess county, where he was reared, early 
in life attending a private school and later a 
district school, and finishing his education at 
Amenia Seminary. 

In 1854 Mr. Hayt went to Newburgh and 
clerked for Stephen Hayt & Co., dry-goods 
merchants, where he remained until 1862, 
when he came to Poughkeepsie and entered in 
the merchant-tailoring business under the firm 
name of Seward, Vail & Hayt. The firm was 
subsequently changed to Seward & Hayt, Sew- 
ard, Hayt lS: Co., Seward & Hayt, Peter B. 
Hayt & Co., Hayt & Alley, Hayt cS: Lindley, 
and, in 1892, to Peter B. Hayt & Co. The 
business at present is located corner of Main 
and Garden streets. 

Mr. Hayt is a Republican, but has never 
held a political of^ce; he is a member of the 
Masonic fraternity, and is a director and vice- 
president of the Poughkeepsie Electric Light & 
Power Co. He is a member of Davj- Crockett- 
Hook and Ladder Co., which organization he 
joined in 1862, and has been treasurer of the 
company since 1873. 



244 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



WILSON B. SHELDON. Among the 
citizens of mark of Dutchess county no 

one is more worthy of consideration than this 
gentleman. Although now well advanced in 
years, he is still one of the most energetic 
and wide-awake citizens in the town of Beek- 
man. A native of Dutchess county, he was 
born in the town of Dover, August 3, 18 10, 
and is of English e.xtraction. 

Caleb Sheldon, his grandfather, was also 
born in the town of Dover, and there he 
learned the blacksmith's trade, which he fol- 
lowed in early life, later, however, turning his 
attention to farming. He married a Miss 
Waldo, by whom he had four children — two 
sons (Agrippa, a cattle dealer; and Luther, 
father of our subject) and two daughters, all 
born in Dover township. 

Luther Sheldon grew to manhood upon a 
farm, and was married to Miss Mary Butts, 
who was also born and reared upon a farm in 
the town of Dover. Their entire lives were 
there passed in rural pursuits, the father 
dying in 1863, and the mother in 1865. They 
were earnest Christian people, devout mem- 
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and 
in politics he was first a Whig and later a Re- 
publican. Eleven children were born to this 
honored couple, as follows: Phcebe, Anor, 
Delilah, Theodorus and Electa (twins), 
Ophelia, Albro, Wilson B., Jeremiah, Har- 
rison and Almira, all of whom married and 
had children, but all are now deceased, except 
Wilson B. 

Our subject received a somewhat limited 
education, and his boyhood time was much 
occupied in the arduous work of the farm, so 
much so that his schooling was limited to 
about two months during the winter seasons. 
Later, however, he was a student at the Nine 
Partners School, in the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, and on leaving school he re- 
turned to the old farm, where he remained un- 
til attaining his majority. In starting out in 
life for himself, he commenced as a drover, 
his first experience in that line being in the 
year 1831, when he loaded one hundred sheep 
into a boat, to be taken to New York City. 
Near Tarrytown, the boat sank, but his sheep 
were taken ashore, and he drove then; to the 
city, which he reached after thirty-six hours. 
Having sold them for a high price, he was-so 
encouraged that he decided to remain in the 
stock business, which he continued to follow 
with good success for twenty-five years, dur- 



ing which time he did an extensive business. 
In 1842 he purchased his present farm in the 
town of Beekman, to which he removed four 
years later, and has since engaged in agri- 
cultural pursuits. 

On April i, 1840, Mr. Sheldon was mar- 
ried to Miss Hannah Maria Doughty, who was 
born upon their present farm, a daughter of 
Joseph Doughty, whose ancestors came from 
Holland. Seven children were born to this 
worthy couple, three of whom died in infancy, 
and William H. at the age of twelve years and 
six months. Sophia is the wife of Joseph H. 
Storm, a leading farmer of the town of Beek- 
man; she has two children — Wilson B. and 
Jeannette, the former of whom married Mary 
T. Berry (he is in the coal and lumber business 
at Storm Lake), the latter being the wife of 
Frederick Ryer, and living at Mount \'ernon, 
N. Y. Ida tirst married William A. Storm, a 
farmer in the town of Lagrange, and her sec- 
ond husband was Augustus A. Brush, warden 
in the prison at Sing Sing, who is now deceased 
(she had one child by her tirst husband, named 
Susie Sheldon Storm). Allie is the wife of 
Frank St. John, a farmer of the town of Beek- 
man. and has two children — Sheldon and Ida. 

Mr. Sheldon has an excellent farm of 500 
acres, all under a high state of cultivation and 
well improved. He has made a specialty of 
cattle raising, sometimes fattening as high as 
eighty head in a season, but now devotes his 
time to the dairy business. For over fifty-six 
years he and his wife have traveled life's jour- 
ney together, and to-day seem as happy and 
almost as young as when starting out. In 
their hospitable home they have entertained 
both friends and strangers in a most praise- 
worthy manner, and many are the kind deeds 
which have not only brightened their own 
pathway, but have contributed to the comfort 
and happiness of those about them. Although 
now eighty-six years of age, Mr. Sheldon does 
not look over sixty, as he has not a gray hair, 
and is quite active. 

In 1 83 1 he cast his first vote for John Q. 
Adams, and has always taken a prominent 
part in political affairs, now supporting the 
Republican party. For four terms he served 
as supervisor of his township; was elected 
county clerk in 1858, which position he filled 
for six consecutive years; in 1867 was a dele- 
gate to the Constitutional Convention held in 
Albany; and in 1880 was again elected county 
clerk, being at that time seventy years of age. 





r 



^Cy 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



245 



Socially he is a member of the F. & A. M., 
Lodge No. 1 66, Poughkeepsie. He has ever 
been true to the duties devolving upon him, 
both in public and private life, and is one of 
the most public-spirited citizens of Dutchess 
county. 

Joseph Doughty, father of Mrs. Wilson B. 
Sheldon, was born in the town of Beekman, 
Dutchess county, and was there married to 
Elizabeth Brill, by whom he had four children, 
viz.: Hannah Maria (Mrs. Sheldon); Sophia, 
who married a brother of our subject; Phcebe 
Jane, wife of James S. Hopkins; and Thomas 
J. (deceased), who married Mary Tompkins, 
and had one daughter. The father of this 
famil}-, who was a lifelong farmer, died in 1833, 
the mother in 1859. 



S\AMUEL H. BROWN, M. D., an eminent 
.^ physician of Dutchess county, is success- 
fully engaged in practice at Madalin. He was 
born August 4, i860, in New York City, and 
he belongs to a family of French Huguenots, 
who early came to this country to escape re- 
ligious persecution. His grandfather, Samuel 
Brown, was born in New Canaan, Conn., in 
1786, and was the son of Abram Brown, a na- 
tive of the same place. On reaching man's 
estate the former was united in marriage with 
Abigail Young, also of French origin, and a 
descendant of one of the Revolutionary heroes. 
Five children were born to this worthy couple, 
namely: William, Charles, Jeannette, Samuel 
H. and Sylvester. All his life the grandfather 
engaged in agricultural pursuits, and he passed 
away in October, 1867. 

Samuel H. Brown, Sr., the father of our 
subject, was born at Greenwich, Conn., June 
24, 1824, and when a young man began the 
study of medicine in the University of Harvard, 
where he was graduated with the class of 1850. 
He immediately began the practice of his pro- 
fession in New York City, but on the breaking 
out of the Civil war was commissioned sur- 
geon of the 174th Metropolitan Regiment, and 
became one of Gen. Banks' staff officers. 
While at the siege of Port Hudson, he con- 
tracted typhoid fever, which terminated his 
life, August I, 1863, he thus laying down his 
life on the altar of his country. His first vote 
was cast for the Whig party, but on its or- 
ganization he joined the Republican ranks, 
and ever afterward fought under its banner. 
He had married Miss Sarah Tripp, a native of 



Westchester county, N. Y. , and a daughter of 
Benjamin Tripp, who was of Holland descent 
and a farmer by occupation. Her death oc- 
curred August 13, 1891. 

Our subject spent his boyhood days in New 
York City until thirteen years of age, when he 
entered Oakhill Seminary, where he pursued 
his studies for four years, after which he be- 
came a student in St. Stephens College, Ann- 
andale, Dutchess county, and graduated with 
the class of 1881, receiving the degree of A. B. 
He ne.xt took a two-years' course at the College 
of Physicians and Surgeons, New York City. 
On May 9, 1883, the Doctor was united in 
marriage with Catherine Tanner, a daughter of 
Henry and Almena (Staats) Tanner, farming 
people of the town of Red Hook, where her 
birth occurred. Her paternal grandfather. 
Job Tanner, was a native of Columbia county, 
N. Y. , and probably of German descent, while 
her maternal grandfather, Henry Staats, who 
was of Holland extraction, was born in the 
town of Red Hook, Dutchess county, and in 
religious belief his family were Lutherans. 
On May 17, 1883, only a few days after their 
marriage. Dr. Brown sailed with his bride for 
Europe, where he took a two-years' course at 
Wurzburg, Bavaria, receiving the degree of 
M. D. on the i ith of June, 1885. Returning 
to America, he located at Madalin, Dutchess 
county, where he has since engaged in practice. 
His thorough knowledge of medicine and skill 
in surgery have won him the confidence of the 
people to such an extent that he has secured a 
large and lucrative patronage. He is a prom- 
inent citizen, a member of the Masonic fra- 
ternity, and is a Democrat. 

Mrs. Brown is an only child. Her father, 
Henry Tanner, was born in the town of Galla- 
tin, Columbia Co., N. Y. , in 1821, and for 
some time was a leading merchant of Rhine- 
beck, Dutchess county. He was called from 
this life March 8, 1872, but his wife is still 
living. 



OMER WALLER (deceased) was one 
'X of the representative agriculturists of the 
town of Dover, Dutchess county. He was a 
man of excellent Christian character and of a 
blameless life, and thoroughlj' enjoj'ed the es- 
teem and respect of the community in which 
he resided. He was a native of Connecticut, 
born at Gaylordsville, in the town of New 
Milford, Litchfield county, in 1823, and there 



24C 



COJtfyfEMORATrFE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



attended the public schools, finishing his edu- 
cation at the Amenia Seminary. His training 
in farm work was under the instruction of his 
father upon the old homestead. In later life 
he devoted his time and attention to that oc- 
cupation. He always took quite an active in- 
terest in politics, and held a number of minor 
township offices, including that of justice of 
the peace, in which capacity he ser^■ed for 
some time. 

On the paternal side Mr. Waller traced his 
lineage in an unbroken line to Samuel Waller, 
who was born in England in 1702, and was a 
member of a large family, all of whom were 
educated and reared in the northern part of 
that country. Three of these children, of 
whom Samuel was one. emigrated to America 
after they had reached their majority. He lo- 
cated in the town of Kent. Conn., which at 
that time was one of the colonies of England, 
and from King George HI obtained a grant of 
land three miles long at Kent, running from 
Warren Pond to Spectacle Pond. There he 
founded the present Waller family in America, 
and died at that place in 1797. He married a 
Miss Ransom, and to them was born a large 
family of children. 

One of these. Peter Waller, grandfather of 
Homer Waller. Jr. . was bom at Kent Hollow, 
in the town of Kent. Litchfield Co., Conn., 
and received his education in that locality. 
He followed the occupation of farming, oper- 
ating the original tract belonging to his father, 
which descended to him. Most of his life was 
passed upon that place, he d\ing at Gaylords- 
ville, at the age of eighty- four years. He was 
united in marriage with Miss Hannah Baldwin, 
of Gaylordsville, Conn. , and to them were born 
ten children, namely: Pinina ,11 died in in- 
fancy; Pininat^^i married John Elliott; Samuel 
married Sally Taylor; Homer was the father of 
our subject; Rebecca remained single; Almeda 
became the wife of Solomon Brown; Love 
died in infancy; Celestia wedded Theodore 
Buck; Betsy married David Sterling, and Electa 
died while young. 

The birth of Homer Waller, Sr., occurred 
on the 29th of March, 17S1, at the old home- 
stead in Kent Hollow, and he attended the 
schools of the neighborhood. He succeeded 
to the home farm, which he conducted many 
years; was prosperous as a farmer, and a de- 
vout member of the Methodist Church. In 
iSi 1 he married Miss Martha Merwin, and the 
wedding of this couple was one of the great 



society events of the time, especially in the 
town of New Milford, Conn., where it was 
celebrated. All the traveling in those days 
was by carriage or horseback, and most of the 
guests came the latter way. with their wives or 
intended wives back of them. The trousseau, 
which was considered quite exp>ensive for those 
days, was purchased in New York, and sent 
to New Milford by saddle-bags. The wedding 
journe)- was made on horseback, from New 
Milford to Kent, the bride riding behind her 
husband on what was called a pillion. Forty 
couples accompanied the pair to their destina- 
tion. This saddle and wedding outfit are still 
in the possession of the family, together with a 
great many other relics of Colonial days. 
Upon the old homestead at Kent two children 
were born to this worthy couple: Merwin and 
Elizabeth M. The former was born January- 
15. 1S13. Thej- removed in 1S19 to Gaylords- 
ville. town of New Milford. Litchfield Co.. and 
Homer was born there. Merwin was educa- 
ted in the public schools at home, and at the 
"Friends Boarding School" in the town of 
Washington, Dutchess Co., N. Y. Smith M., 
his youngest son, now owns and occupies the 
handsome old Waller home, he being of the 
fourth generation. He was married April 8, 
1896, to Miss Julia S. Coleman, of Dover, 
N. Y. The Waller family, from the time 
their ancestor settled in Kent unto the present, 
have been a respected and prominent family. 
The old homestead at Kent Hollow is still 
owned by members of the family, their title 
still being from the King of England. 

Merwin Waller was a prominent farmer of 
New Milford township, Litchfield Co.. Conn. 
On October 15, 1S45, he was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Julia Ann Mitchell, by whom 
he had one son. Edwin M.. bom July 24. 1S48. 
After the death of his first wife Merwin Waller 
was married, December 31, 1S50. to Miss Julia 
Morehouse, land they had one son. Smith M., 
bora April 6, 1S53. Elizabeth M. Waller, the 
sister of our subject, was born July 24, 1S16, 
and on January 2, 1S56, she became the wife 
of John Fry, son of William Fry. After his 
death she married Cornwall Hoag, of Dover, 
Dutchess county. She had no children. 

On January 31, 1S50, Homer Waller mar- 
ried Miss Elizabeth Fry, and they became the 
parents of three children: George S. , born 
May 4. 1S51; Martha D., born March 25. 1853, 
and died December 9. 1875; and William H., 
born July 21, iS-;5. The elder son, George 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



247 



S. Waller, was married in 1879 to Miss Mary 
A. Beeman, daughter of Edwin Beeman, of 
New Preston, Conn., and three children bless 
their union: Maitha U., born in 18S1 ; Homer, 
born in 1884: and Everett, born in 1891. With 
his family George S. Waller resides in Minne- 
apolis, Minn., where he is engaged in the com- 
mission business. 

Christopher Fry, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Homer Waller, was a native of New Bedford, 
Mass., where he obtained his education, and 
was one of the heroes of the Revolutionary 
war. For his services in that struggle he ever 
afterward received a pension. He married Miss 
Elizabeth Allen, by whom he had three chil- 
dren: John, Millicent and William, the last 
named being the father of Mrs. Waller. He 
was born in Dover, Dutchess Co., N. Y. , April 
14, 1800, and with his father he learned the 
trade of a tanner, after which he conducted a 
plant in his native town for a number of years. 
He married Miss Deborah Hoag, a daughter of 
Isaac and Mary Hoag, of Quaker Hill, Dutch- 
ess county. Her father lived to the extreme 
old age of one hundred years, and was ever 
a very prominent member of the Society of 
Friends. To William Fry and his wife were 
born seven children: Harriet and Mar}', who 
never married; John, who wedded Elizabeth 
M. Waller; Cordelia, who remained single; 
James, who married Elizabeth Dutcher; Eliza- 
beth, the widow of our subject; and Albert, 
who first married Sarah Edmonds, and after 
her death wedded Julia Thompson. 



JOSHUA BENSON (deceased), who was so 
well known throughout Dutchess county, 
was numbered among the leading and rep- 
resentative agriculturists of the town of Ame- 
nia. His father, John Benson, was born in 
Rhode Island, and there attended the common 
schools during his boyhood and youth. When 
quite a young man he accompanied his brother 
to Dutchess county, N. Y. , and they took up 
land in the town of Amenia, where they suc- 
cessfully engaged in farming. That property 
is still in the possession of the famih'. The 
father of our subject took an active interest in 
the affairs of his country, and served as a sol- 
dier in the war of 181 2. He married Miss 
Rachel Darling, of Rhode Island, and to them 
were born seven children: Samuel, Joshua, 
Peltiah, John, Polly, Philadelphia and Abigail. 
Upon the old homestead in the town of 



Amenia our subject was born in 1786. When 
he had reached a sufficient age he entered the 
public schools of the locality, and there ac- 
quired a practical education. He earlj- be- 
came familiar with the duties that fall to the 
lot of an agriculturist, and continued to op- 
erate the old home farm throughout life. The 
place was one of the most noticeable in the 
township for the air of thrift and comfort that 
surrounded it, and the evidence of enterprise, 
taste and skill. Mr. Benson married Miss 
Amanda Hopkins, daughter of Prince and 
Jemima Hopkins, of Warren, Litchfield Co., 
Conn., where her father followed merchandis- 
ing. Fourteen children were born of this 
union, as follovvs: Lodema married Milton 
Pray; Henry married Annis Ferris; George 
died in childhood; Vanness married Frances 
Tompkins; Amanda married Charles Darling; 
Jeannette married William Dutcher; Zadie is 
ne.xt in order of birth; Dewitt married Susan 
Bartlett; Rachel died unmarried; Edwin mar- 
ried Emily Ensign; Sarah married Henry 
Walker; ^laria married Henry Morgan; The- 
resa married Robert Ryan; and Egbert mar- 
ried Sarah Hopkins. 

Mr. Benson always took a deep interest in 
political affairs, and steadfastly adhered to the 
principles formulated by the Whig party, al- 
though not a seeker after official position. He 
was one of the leaders of his party in the com- 
munity where he so long made his home, and 
his opinions were invariably held in respect. 
He lived to the advanced age of ninety-four 
years, and when called to the rest and reward 
of the higher world his best monument was 
found in the love and esteem of the community 
in which he had lived for so many years. 



DR. FRANCIS M. ROBINSON, a leadmg 
dentist of Pawling, N. Y. , is one of 
Dutchess county's most enterprising sons. 
Borri in Matteawan, October 9, 1857, he was 
educated in the schools near his home, and his 
success reflects credit upon the section which 
afforded him his opportunities, as well as upon 
himself. 

His family is of English and French de- 
scent, and his great-grandfather was one of 
the early settlers of the town of Kent, Putnam 
Co., N. Y. His grandfather, Adonigee Robin- 
son, a man of fine native abilities, was born 
there and became one of the prominent men 
of his locality. He was a colonel in the State 



248 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



Militia wiien they used to train at Boyd's Cor- 
ners, and his business interests were varied 
and extensive, as in his earl}' years he carried 
on a foundry, store and mill at Farmers Mills 
or Milltovvn, and later was engaged in business 
at Matteawan. In politics he was a Democrat, 
and in religious faith he was an active and in- 
fluential member of the Baptist Church. His 
death occurred in 1892, but his wife, whose 
maiden name was Sophia Russell, is still living 
in her eighty-seventh year. They had ten 
children — Keziah, Jane, Peter A., Julia, Levi, 
Hattie, Coleman, Nathan, Ophelia and Emma, 
of whom all but two are living. 

Peter A. Robinson, our subject's father, 
was born at the old home in Putnam county, 
in 1834, and in early manhood engaged in 
business at Wappingers Falls, and later was 
interested in broom-making for a short time. 
He became blind when about twenty-four 
years old, and, as a consequence of this sad 
hardship, his life has been somewhat secluded. 
Although he has been totally blind for nearly 
forty years, he goes about freely, his memory 
and sense of touch having become marvelously 
developed. He married Miss Matilda Badeau, 
daughter of Isaac and Elizabeth Badeau, who 
were natives of Putnam county, but have re- 
sided in Matteawan since 1845. The Badeau 
family is noted for energy and mental ability, 
and has held a high position in this section. 
General Adam Badeau, well-known as a writer, 
as well as in military affairs, especially in con- 
nection with Grant's Memoirs, is a near rela- 
tive of Mrs. Robinson. The Doctor was sec- 
ond in a family of five children. Of the others 
William Badeau is a dentist in Middletown, 
N. Y. ; Lenora died at the age of two years; 
Lizzie Badeau is at home; and Charles Cole- 
man is a recent graduate from the Pennsylva- 
nia College of Dental Surgery. 

Dr. Robinson finished his academic course 
in the schools of Fishkill Landing at about 
sixteen years of age, and then clerked for a 
year with C. F. Brett, and for three years 
with S. G. & J. F. Smith. In 1876 he spent 
a short time in a dry-goods house in Fulton 
street, Brooklyn, N. Y. , and then began the 
study of dentistry with Dr. Barlow, of Fishkill 
Landing, now of Poughkeepsie. After one 
year with him, and one year with Dr. Cornell 
in Brooklyn, he began the practice of his pro- 
fession at Patterson, N. Y., where he remained 
seven years. During this time a law was 
passed requiring all practicing dentists to regis- 



ter before the county clerk. In 1885 he re- 
moved to Pawling, and has since been actively 
engaged there in his chosen calling. He has 
an office in Amenia also, where he spends 
Monday and Thursday of each week to accom- 
modate his numerous patrons in that vicinity. 
In 1876 the Doctor married Miss Henrietta 
Dodge, daughter of Thomas Dodge, a well- 
known citizen of East Fishkill. Three chil- 
dren were born of this union: Edwin Dodge, 
Harry Sanford and Francis Adams. Although 
a Republican in principle, the Doctor is not 
active in politics. He is interested in local 
improvements, and is always ready to take 
part in any movement tending to progress. 
Like many professional men, he finds recrea- 
tion in different forms of work, and for ten 
years has given much attention to the breeding 
of Black Langshans. His strain have become 
famous throughout the United States, England 
and Canada. The Doctor exhibits his birds 
annually at the Madison Square Garden, New 
York City, where they have made a world- 
wide reputation, winning the grand special 
prize for best and finest display three years in 
succession. 



JEREMIAH SHELDON (deceased) was a 
leading agriculturist of the town of Beek- 
man, and as a valued citizen, a kind father, 
and an affectionate husband, his memory should 
be cherished and perpetuated by all. He was 
born in the town of Dover, Dutchess county, 
December 29, 1812, and was a son of Luther 
and Mary (Butts) Sheldon. In his native town- 
ship he spent his boyhood days, and attended 
the district schools. While yet a young man 
he became a cattle dealer, driving his stock to 
New York City, and later followed that busi- 
ness there. In 1849 he returned to Dutchess 
county, purchasing the farm now occupied by 
his daughter, Mrs. A. B. Anhkews, and there 
continued to make his home up to his death, 
which occurred May 1^9, 1882. 

On January 11, 1843, in the town of Beek- 
man, Mr. Sheldon married Miss Sophia M. 
Doughty, daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth 
Doughty, and of their union were born three 
children: Amelia B., wife of Kromaline An- 
drews; Mary J.; and William H., who was 
engaged in the coal and lumber business at 
Poughkeepsie, but is now deceased. The 
mother was called to her final rest February i, 
1886. Mr. Sheldon took an active interest in 





^C^-y-^n^ci. 




■rOe'0^\^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



249 



all affairs tending to the improvement of his 
town and county, and for several terms he 
served as supervisor of the town of Beekman. 
In early life his political support was given to 
the Whig party, and, on its dissolution, he 
became a Republican. 

Kromaline Andrews is a native of the 
town of Unionvale, Dutchess county, and is 
the son of Philip Schuyler Andrews, who is 
now living at Shaffers Mills, town of Lagrange, 
Dutchess county. The son attended the dis- 
trict schools near his home in Unionvale, and 
later was a student in Carey's school in Pough- 
keepsie, after which he clerked in the dry- 
goods store of George Van Kleeck in that cit}' 
for awhile. Returning to the town of Union- 
vale he operated his father's farm, and while 
thus engaged was married October 22, 1879, 
to Miss Amelia B. Sheldon. After the death 
of her father, they removed to the old Sheldon 
farm, where they have since resided and are 
numbered among the highly respected people 
of the community. In politics Mr. Andrews 
is a Republican. Mary J. Sheldon, a single 
lady, and sister of Mrs. A. B. Andrews, makes 
her home with Mr. and Mrs. Andrews. 



CHARLES H. GALLUP, of the firm of C. 
H. Gallup & Co., which is in the front 
rank along with the leading art firms of the 
State, and which in the city of Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, is not excelled in the class 
of work executed, has descended from one of 
the intelligent and educated families of New 
York State. 

The first representative of the family in 
America was John Gallup, who came in 1630 
from England in the pilgrim ship "Mary and 
John, " and located near Stonington, Conn. 
One of his sons founded Gallupsville, Schoharie 
Co., N. Y. Samuel Gallup was the great- 
great-grandfather of the subject of this sketch, 
and the latter's grandfather was Nathan Gal- 
lup, a millwright by trade, who resided in 
Schoharie county. Of Nathan's children, 
Henrv Gallup, A. M., the father of Charles 
H., of whom we especially write, was born in 
181 1. He was educated at Williams College, 
from which he was graduated and received the 
degree of A. M. Subsequently he spent three 
years at Berlin University, Berlin, and trav- 
eled through Europe, crossing the Alps on 
foot with a friend, and in so doing acquired the 
language of that section of tfie continent. 



For years Prof. Gallup was principal of the 
Academy at Monticello, N. Y., as well as of a 
number of other institutions of learning, and 
later was principal of New Paltz Academy in 
Dutchess county for three years. In 1866, 
retiring from active business, he came to 
Poughkeepsie, where he died in 1887. In 
1849 he had married Julia Stone, who is now 
living with her daughter in Poughkeepsie. 
Their children are: Charles H., Ella (Mrs. ]. 
M. Godinezj and Albert C. 

Charles H. Gallup was born in the Acad- 
emy at Monticello, N. Y. , on November 17, 
1852. He was educated in the schools of 
which his father was principal, then served an 
apprenticeship in a machine shop at Pough- 
keepsie, N. Y. , which occupation he followed 
some ten or more years. In 1879 he went to 
Cuba, where for five years he was in charge 
of a large sugar plantation near the center of 
the island. In 1884 he returned to Pough- 
keepsie to visit his parents, and was persuaded 
by his mother to remain. In the following 
year he purchased the Seeley photograph gal- 
ler}', which business was established in 1857, 
and carried on by S. L. Walker, one of the 
pioneers in the art of photography. Mr. 
Walker had been a pupil of and was aided by 
Prof. S. F. B. Morse, who had brought with 
him from France the ideas of Daguerre, and 
imparted them to Walker, who introduced the 
daguerrotype process in the city of Pough- 
keepsie. Our subject seemed well adapted to 
the business which he entered upon with his 
intelligence and his usual energy and snap, 
and the result is the building up of a first-class 
art gallery complete in all appointments, 
where a successful business is being carried 
on. He and his partner are progressive men, 
affable and courteous, and have kept abreast 
of the times. At their art emporium is dis- 
played good work; they employ a number of 
specialists, and all the work there executed is 
of the highest order, first-class in every re- 
spect. A man of tact, Mr. Gallup has seen 
what the people want, and has met that want. 
He has spared no pains in the use of printers' 
ink, but advertised extensively, and is meeting 
the popular demand of a good quality of work 
at a low price. His ten-dollar life-size crayon 
work, and three-dollar cabinet pictures re- 
ceived the highest medal awarded at the 
Dutchess County F^ir, for superior work. 
His motto is "Superior Work at Reasonable 
Prices." It remained for our subject to intro- 



250 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOHAPmCAL RECORD. 



duce the process of instantaneous photography 
into Poughkeepsie. 

On September 20, 1893, Mr. Gallup was 
married to Edna M., a daughter of O. ^^^ 
Eggleston, assistant general roadmaster of the 
N. Y. C. & H. R. railroad, now a resident of 
White Plains, N. Y. Mr. Gallup erected in 
1895 one of the most tasty and convenient, as 
well as attractive, homes in the city, located on 
Balding avenue. He designed his own plans, 
and the building was erected entirely under 
his own super\ision. 

Many of Mr. Gallup's ancestors fought in 
the Indian wars, in the war of the Revolution, 
and in that of 181 2, three bearing the rank of 
captain and two that of colonel. In the his- 
tory of the family are given the, names of over 
sixty Gallups who fought in the Revolution 
and in the war of 18 12, besides of those who 
participated in the Indian wars of the colonies. 
They were rewarded with many grants of land 
for bravery, etc. Capt. John Gallup, in 1637, 
off Block Island, had an encounter with a band 
of Indians who had captured a sloop from 
Capt. John Oldham, which was the first naval 
engagement fought in this country. Capt. 
Gallup captured the Indians, and took them 
prisoners to Boston. They were of the Pecjuot 
tribe, and this was the opening of the cele- 
brated bloody Pequot war of American history. 



JOHN TROWBRIDGE. No family in the 
city of Poughkecpsie is better known than 

that of which our subject is a member, and 
which has held a prominent place in the busi- 
ness community for over half a century, dur- 
ing that time establishing in financial circles 
an enviable reputation for judicious manage- 
ment, integrity and ability. 

John Trowbridge was born in the town of 
Washington, Dutchess county, July 20, 1829, 
and traces his paternal ancestry to Thomas, of 
the sixth generation, who was born in Somer- 
setshire, England, and was the first of the 
name to settle in America. From him the or- 
der of descent was as follows: William, born 
about 1634, in Connecticut; Samuel, born Oc- 
tober 7, 1670; Samuel, born August 26, 1700; 
Stephen, born in Connecticut January 30, 
1726; Stephen, born in Danbury, Conn., Jan- 
uary iS, 1756; Stephen B., father of our sub- 
ject, born in the town of Northeast, Dutchess 
Co., N. Y., March 19, 1799. The grandfather 
of our subject was a soldier in the Revolution- 



ary war. [For a history of our subject's father 
see following sketch of N. C. Trowbridge.] 

The subject of our sketch was six years of 
age when his parents removed from their farm 
in the town of Washington to Poughkeepsie, 
in which latter place he attended both the 
academy and the Poughkeepsie Collegiate 
School on College Hill. He was married on 
January 18, 1853, to Miss Eliza Robinson, who 
was born in the town of Fishkill, Dutchess 
county, the daughter fif Duncan and Mary 
Robinson, the former of whom was a farmer 
by occupation. Three children were born of 
this union, viz.: (i) Mary R., married to John 
W. Pelton, now a resident of Poughkeepsie, 
formerly a member of the well-known firm of 
C. M. & G. P. Pelton, for fifty years manu- 
facturers of carpets in Poughkeepsie. (2) Ella, 
the wife of S. C. Nightingale, a son of Rev. 
Crawford Nightingale, of the well-known fam- 
ily of that name in Providence, R. I. ; he is 
head of the firm of S. C. Nightingale & Childs, 
of Boston, Mass., dealers in railroad and mill 
supplies. (3) George S., who died when two 
years of age. When a young man Mr. Trow- 
bridge began in the mercantile business, hav- 
ing a general store on Main street, and for 
nearly forty years was engaged in that line, 
handling during that time nearly all kinds of 
mercantile goods. His establishment became 
one of the largest and most important in the 
county, and his reputation as a merchant was 
of the best. The business in which the Trow- 
bridge family was prominent was founded and 
conducted as follows: (i i Nathan Conklin, Jr. , 
& Co.; (2) Conklin, Bowne & Co. ; (3) Bowne 
& Trowbridge; 14) Bowne, Trowbridge & Co. ; 
(5) by retirement of Mr. Bowne the firm be- 
came Trowbridge & \\'ilkinson, which con- 
tinued till 1 86 1, when it became Trowbridge 
& Co., consisting of the brothers, N. Conklin 
and John Trowbridge. In 1887 John retired, 
and in 1888 N. Conklin also retired, and in 
his elegant home, having amassed a comforta- 
ble fortune, our subject is now living a quiet 
life, in the enjoyment of the results of his 
early labors. 

Until the formation of the Republican 
party Mr. Trowbridge was a Wnig, but since 
that time has been in sympathy with the latter 
party, although he has never taken an active 
part in politics, and has never consented to 
hold public office. He has, however, always 
been a loyal citizen, and a generous con- 
tributor to all enterprises having for their ob- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



L'ol 



ject the welfare of the city and county. Since 
1853 he has been a member of the Masonic 
fraternity, in which he has held several of the 
higher offices. Both he and his wife are mem- 
bers of the Reformed Dutch Church, and are 
prominent members of society. 



NCONKLIN TROWBRIDGE, who was 
one of the oldest and most prominent 

citizens of Poughkeepsie. and a brother of 
John Trowbridge (a sketch of whom appears 
above), was born in the town of Northeast, 
Dutchess county, July 20, 1821. 

Stephen B.. Trowbridge, the father of our 
subject, was also a native of Northeast, and 
was born March 19, 1799. He married Miss 
Eliza Conklin, whose birth took place August 
29, 1802, in the same town in which her hus- 
band was born. She was a daughter of Na- 
than Conklin, who was a descendant of the 
East Hampton, L. I., family of that name, 
formerly spelled Conkling, which came at an 
early day to Northeast, Dutchess county. 
After their marriage our subject's parents loca- 
ted on the old farm in Northeast, living there, 
however, but a short time, when they moved 
to the town of Washington. Of their eight 
children the following record is given: N. 
Conklin is the subject of this sketch; Mary E. 
married William Wilkinson, a lawyer in Pough- 
keepsie; Nathan was druggist in Poughkeep- 
sie, and died in early manhood; John is 
living at Poughkeepsie, retired from business; 
Phcebe E. married fohn G. Boyd, a business 
man of Poughkeepsie; Cornelia B. married 
Henry Seymour, of New York City; and Julia 
and Eliza reside at the old home in Pough- 
keepsie. The parents of our subject remained 
upon the farm in the town of Washington 
until 1834, when they removed to Poughkeep- 
sie, Mr. Trowbridge becoming one of the firm 
of Conklin, Bowne & Co., with whom he con- 
tinued in business for many years. He died 
March 25, 1S84. Nathan and Mulford Conklin, 
of the above-mentioned firm, were two brothers 
who came from the town of Northeast in 1810, 
and established themselves in business in 
18 14, the firm name at first being Nathan 
Conklin, Jr., & Co. In 1835 they built their 
brick store house, which is still standing, and is 
one of the old landmarks of the city. They 
were very prominent men in their day, and 
Conklin street was nam.ed for them. They 
were the maternal uncles of our subject. 



Stephen Trowbridge, grandfather of our 
subject, was born in Danbury, Conn., and be- 
came a farmer. He married Elizabeth Bar- 
num, who was a connection of the well-known 
Barnum family of Connecticut, and six chil- 
dren were born to them. He enlisted May 
12, 1775, as a private in Company 6, of the 
Artesian Corps, which was recruited mainly 
in Fairfield county, and took part in the bat- 
tles of Hubbardston, Bennington, Saratoga 
and Fort George. While in the army he 
learned the saddle-making trade, and mended 
Gen. Washington's saddle. 

N. Conklin Trowbridge, the subject of this 
sketch, was seven years old when his parents 
moved from the town of Northeast to a farm 
in the town of Washington, where he spent 
the following seven years. In 1835, at the age 
of fourteen years, he went to Poughkeepsie, 
where he attended school at College Hill for 
two years, after which he entered the general 
store of Nathan Conklin, Jr., & Co., as clerk. 
He steadily advanced in this business, finally 
becoming the proprietor and carrying on the 
establishment until 1888, or more than half a.^ 
•centurj', when he retired from the firm. Mr. 
Trowbridge died April 19, 1897. 



JAMES LYNCH is one of the reliable and 
progressive young business men of Pough- 
^ keepsie, Dutchess county, where his birth 
occurred November 20, 1869. 

His father, James Lynch, Sr. , was a na- 
tive of Ireland, and on coming to the United 
States when a small boy located at Pough- 
keepsie, there being employed by a Mr. Bis- 
sell, a sculptor, until 1878. Mr. Lynch then, 
in that year, established himself in the marble 
business, which he conducted with success up 
to his death, which occurred on August 25, 
1 89 1. He was a very quiet, conservative 
rnan, giving the strictest attention to his busi- 
ness, and well deserved the success which 
came to him. At Newark, N. J., he had mar- 
ried Miss Maria O'Mera, and they became the 
parents of five children: Catherine, Annie, 
James, Mary and Ellen. 

Since the death of his father our subject 
has had complete charge of the business, and 
has displayed e.xcellent ability in its manage- 
ment. He takes quite an active interest in 
civic societies in Poughkeepsie, belonging to 
the Knights of Pythias, the Order of Good 
Fellows, and to the Fire Department. He 



252 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



enjoys the esteem and confidence of all with 
whom he comes in contact, and no doubt a 
brill'ant future awaits him. 



GEORGE W. LUMB. senior member of 
the firm of George W. Lumb & Son, 
proprietors of one of the most important in- 
dustries of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess count}-, 
was born in Yorkshire, England, September 
1 6, 1837, and when about two years of age 
was brought to Poughkeepsie by his parents, 
Thomas and Elizabeth (Beaumont) Lumb, na- 
tives of the same country. He is the eldest 
in their family of three children, the others 
being Levi and Elizabeth, the latter of whom 
died in infancy. On his arrival in Poughkeep- 
sie in 1839, the father secured employment in 
the carpet factory of C. M. & G. P. Pelton, 
but later opened a grocery store, which he 
conducted until about two years 'before his 
death. He held membership with the Con- 
gregational Church, and in politics was first a 
Whig, later a Republican. 

Our subject spent his boyhood dajs in 
Poughkeepsie, attending Mrs. \Vheeler's school 
and the grammar schools, after which he 
worked in the factory where his father was 
employed. Later he entered the sash and 
blind factory of William E. Beardsley, where 
he learned his trade, and there remained 
eleven years. For three years thereafter he 
was employed as foreman in the John E. 
Price Sash and Blind Factory, after which he 
entered the service of the New York Central 
Railroad Co., as fireman on an engine, first 
running between Poughkeepsie and Albany, 
afterward between Albany and New York. 
In 1863 he entered the United States navy, 
was stationed on the Grand Gulf, making 
three trips to Aspinwall, and was in the block- 
ading squadron at Galveston. The vessel 
later acted as flag ship at New Orleans, in 
which city our subject received an honorable 
discharge. 

On his return north, Mr. Lumb again en- 
tered the employ of the Railroad Co., but at 
the end of a year he and his brother Levi 
started a sash and blind factory in Pough- 
keepsie, at the corner of Dutchess avenue and 
Water street, which for two years was op- 
erated by horse power. They then removed 
to the present factory of our subject, and ad- 
mitted William T. Swart as a member of the 
firm, it being known as Swart, Lumb & 



Brother. This partnership was continued 
until 1885, Mr. Lumb in that year buying out 
his brother's interest, and his son Charles L. 
becoming a member of the firm, which assumed 
the name of Swart, Lumb & Son. Two years 
later, however, Mr. Ssvart sold out, and the 
name was changed to George W. Lumb & 
Son. They do an e.\tensi\e business, and 
well deserve the liberal patronage which is ac- 
corded them. In i8g2 Mr. Lumb purchased 
the old Vassar House property, where he 
erected a four-story brick building for Mrs. 
Brazier's knitting mill, which was then con- 
ducted by himself, his son, C. W. H. Arnold 
and Miles Hughes. Mr. Lumb is not now con- 
nected with this industry, and has rented the 
building. Our subject is connected with sev- 
eral of the leading indu.stries of the city, being 
a stockholder in the new piano factory and the 
electric-light plant, and also owns about fifty- 
three houses and forty vacant lots in the city. 

In Poughkeepsie George W. Lumb and 
Sarah W. Dean, a native of Taunton, Mass., 
were united in marriage, and to them have 
been born four children, namely: Charles L. ; 
Jessie B., for whom her father has named a 
boat; George J., a graduate of 'ooth the high 
school and Eastman Business College; and 
Maud D. In his political principles Mr. Lumb 
is an unswerving Republican, devoted to the 
best interests of his party, yet has never soughi 
or desired political preferment, having only 
served on the water board for one term, So- 
cially he is a member of the F. & A. M., Lodge 
No. 266, and in religious faith he is a Congre- 
gationalist. The family now live at No. 16 
Davis place, which residence our subject pur- 
chased of Mayor Harloe. 

Charles L. Lumb, the eldest son of our 
subject, is a native of Poughkeepsie, where he 
secured his education, being a graduate of the 
high school, and in 1880 he received a diploma 
from Eastman Business College. After work- 
ing in the factory of his father for five jears 
he was admitted to partnership, and is now 
general manager of the business, doing all of 
the office work. He is also secretary of the 
Fallkill Knitting Co., and is a director of the 
Reimer Piano F'actory. On October 2, 1S89, 
in Poughkeepsie, he was united in marriage 
with Minnie E. Lovejoy, daughter of J. Fred 
LoN'ejoy, and a daughter graces their union, 
Ethel Dean, born July 11, 1893. Mr. Lumb 
is a stockholder in the Electric Light Co., in 
the Masonic Temple and other enterprises. In 




9^ ,_ // ^ J(Zui^7.-^l^^f 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



253 



religious belief he is an Episcopalian, holding 
membership with Holy Comforter Church; so- 
cially he af^liates with the F. & A. M., Triune 
Lodge No. 782, with Poughkeepsie Chapter, 
Commandery and Council, the Mystic Shrine, 
and the Royal Arcanum, and is a prominent 
member of the Lincoln League Club. He is 
secretary and treasurer of the Poughkeepsie 
Branch of the New York Mutual Savings & Loan 
Association, also of the Mason Mutual Benefit 
Association, of Massachusetts, and is now presi- 
dent of the Poughkeepsie Horse Owners Associ- 
ation. A gentleman of fine address and thor- 
ough culture, he occupies a first place in 
society as well as in the commercial circles of 
Poughkeepsie. Since January, 1895, he has 
served as president of the water board, and 
since 1891 has been notary public. 



JILLIAM ADRLANCE, for over thirty 
L years one of the most prominent and 
highly respected citizens of Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, and a member of an old and 
much esteemed family of that locality, was 
born December 12, 1814, in what was then 
the village of Poughkeepsie. 

Theodorus Adriance, his grandfather, was 
probably a native of Dutchess county, and was 
a successful farmer, owning a large tract of 
land near Stormville. He was one of the 
early members of the Hopewell Reformed 
Dutch Church, and was a leader in the vari- 
ous local movements of his day. He married 
Miss Hacheliah Swartout, and had si.x children, 
of whom we have mention of : Elizabeth, 
who married a Mr. Doughty; Caroline, who 
married a Mr. Wilson; Theodorus, Jr.; and 
Charles Piatt, our subject's father. 

Charles Piatt Adriance was born in Hope- 
well October 12, 1790, and received his first 
instruction in the district schools there. When 
he was ten years old he went to Poughkeepsie, 
to the home of his sister, Mrs. Abram Storm, 
and he and John Adriance were apprentices 
together in the shop of Abram G. Storm, a 
silversmith, learning the mysteries of jewelry 
making, watch repairing, and all other branches 
of the trade. On beginning business for him- 
self, he followed the trade for a short time in 
Poughkeepsie, but in 18 16 he went to Rich- 
mond, Va., where he found a more profitable 
field for his efforts in that line. There he 
remained until August, 1832, when he returned 
to Poughkeepsie and bought a farm on what is 



now known as College Hill, comprising eighty 
acres of land, where he followed agriculture for 
more than thirty years. Although he never took 
an active part in politics, he was an interested 
observer of current events, and in early life 
was in principle a Henry Clay Whig, later a 
Republican. In all local movements he was a 
leading worker, especially in religious move- 
ments. He was a member of the First and 
Second Reformed Dutch Churches when 
formed, and was one of the organizers of the 
latter, and an elder until the time of his death. 
In 1864 he removed to the corner of Mill and 
Garden streets, Poughkeepsie, where he died 
November 25, 1874. On June 13, 181 3, he 
was married to Miss Sarah Camp, a daughter 
of Aaron Camp, a well-known resident of 
Rhinebeck. Together they spent over sixty 
years of wedded life, and she survived him 
but a short time, dying August 22, 1877. Six 
children were born to them, as follows: Will- 
iam is our subject; Thomas Edward died 
February 18, 1832; Mary Frances (Mrs. John 
R. Weeks, of Newark, N. J.j died April 2, 
1880; Elizabeth (Mrs. John B. Pudney, of 
Passaic, N. J.); Harriet Newell, born January 
II, 1830, died February 20, 1832; and John 
Rice, born February 11, 1833, died December 
30, 1843. Of these, Mrs. Elizabeth Pudney 
is now the only survivor. 

William Adriance, our subject, received a 
good education in youth, attending the sub- 
scription schools of Richmond, Va., and later 
studying for some time at Amherst, Mass. He 
has been a great reader, and has kept well 
abreast of the times. On leaving school he 
became a clerk in his father's store, and after 
a time went to New York City, where he re- 
mained two years. In November 1835, he 
engaged in the jewelry business in Natchez, 
Miss. , carrying same on successfully for seven 
years. In May, 1843, he went to St. Louis, 
and opened a dry -goods store, making a success 
of the venture. In 1864 he disposed of it, 
and in May of that year moved to Poughkeep- 
sie. where he has since lived a retired life. On 
July 26, 1837, Mr. Adriance was married to 
Miss Mary Elizabeth Harrington, whose father 
was a prominent resident of New York. Nine 
children were born of this union, as follows: 
Cornelia Hyde, born May 30, 1838, died De- 
cember . 14, 1847; James Edward, born June 
I, 1840, died January 6, 1849; Charles Henry, 
born October 8, 1S42, died in March, 1S69; 
and William Nevins, born July 26, 184S, died 



254 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



July 19, 1849. Of the others, Edward Cor- 
nelius, born June 23, 1850, is a dry-goods mer- 
chant in Brooklyn; Samuel Winchester, Janu- 
ary 9, 1853, is a Congregational minister at 
Winchester. Mass. ; Mary Elizabeth, born De- 
cember 2, 1855, married Elias G. Minard; and 
the youngest, John Rice, born February 13, 
1858, died March 6. 1858. The mother of 
this family died August 2, i860, and Septem- 
ber 17, 1862, Mr. .\driance married Miss Abbie 
Lovell Bond, of Norwich, Conn., daughter of 
Rev. Ur. Alvan Bond. Mr. .^driance died of 
heart disease January 2, 1897, after three days' 
illness. 

Politically, our subject was in early years 
an Old-line W'hig, but in 1856 he espoused the 
principles of the Republican party, to which 
he afterward adhered. He was no political 
" wire-puller, " but always gave his influence 
to secure the election of good men for posi- 
tions of trust. He was a leading member of 
the Presbyterian Church of Poughkeepsie (Rev. 
Dr. Wheeler, pastor), and was a strong sup- 
porter of many important movements for the 
benefit of the community. 



JAMES M. HADDEN, president of the 
Poughkeepsie Gas Company, and one of 

the leading citizens of that enterprising city, 
to which he came twenty years ago as an as- 
sistant engineer, is descended from a sturdy, 
industrious, intelligent ancestry to which his 
own career does credit. 

The" first of the family in this country, of 
whom there is any knowledge, was Ephraim 
Hadden, who died at Woodbridge, N. J., Jan- 
uar}- 15, 1725. One of his children, and the 
one from whom James H. descended, was 
Thomas Hadden ( i) a carpenter and farmer by 
occupation. He was appointed many times to 
attend and represent Woodbridge at the Ouar- 
terly Meetings of the Quakers held at Shrews- 
bury; also as a member of various boards, be- 
ing the medium by which all disputes were set- 
tled. His second wife was an Episcopalian, 
and for this marriage he was disowned by the 
Quakers. When the Episcopal Church of 
Woodbridge received its charter from George 
HI in 1769, Thomas Hadden was named as 
one of the vestrymen. He served as overseer 
of the poor, 1733-36; as a surveyor of high- 
ways, 1736-39; again as overseer of the poor 
in 1 742-1 75 5, and 1770. He was married 
three times, having issue only by the first mar- 



riage to Margaret Fitz-Randolph in 1727, one 
of whom, Thomas (2), was the great-grandfa- 
ther of James M. He was born at the old 
homestead in Woodbridge in 1736, of which 
upon reaching his majority he became the pos- 
sessor; married in 1758 Annabel Crowell. He 
was by occupation a carpenter, farmer and mill- 
wright. In 1755 he was captain of the first 
regiment of Middlesex county militia under 
Col. Nathaniel Heard; became first major of 
the regiment, and in 1778 lieutenant-colonel. 
The militia of New Jersey performed good serv- 
ice at Trenton, Princeton, Germantown and 
Monmouth, in all of which it is probable the 
men of Monmouth took part. Thomas Hadden 

(2) died in 1788 while in commission, and his 
wife in 1 82 1. Of their children, Nathaniel 
Hadden, the grandfather of our subject, was 
born in Woodbridge, N. J., January 8, 1765, 
and became a prominent ship-builder and lum- 
ber dealer. He was a quiet man, of upright 
life and strong religious convictions, and for 
many years was an elder in the Presbyterian 
Church, his honorable and consistent life win- 
ning for him the esteem of the entire commu- 
nity. He was three times married: first time, 
in 1788, to Mahala Martin, to which union 
three children were born: (i) Annabel, born 
October 9, 1789, died August 5, 1872, was 
married three times, first to John Hampton, 
second to William Ford, and last to Abram 
Webb; (2) Nancy, born August 15, 1798, died 
January 10, 1878, married Smith Martin; and 

(3) Ephraim, born September 28, 1806, died 
January 12, 1842. The mother of this family, 
born May 20, 1767, died Nov. 19, 1807, and 
for his second wife, .August 13, 1808, he wedded 
Sarah Marsh Brown, born March 6, 1776; of 
this union came Samuel Brown, our subject's 
father, born June 29, 1809. Sarah Marsh 
Brown Hadden died on November 23, 18 14, 
and on July 13, 1819, Mr. Hadden was mar- 
ried to .Mary Halsey Marsh, born March 26, 
1769, and died December 6, 1828. 

Samuel Brown Hadden remained at his 
birthplace, Rahway, N. J., until 1845, and 
during this time was engaged in ship building 
with his father. He purchased a farm of 100 
acres in the outskirts of Elizabeth, N. J., where 
the suburban town of Linden now stands, and 
by subsetiuent additions became the owner of 
200 acres there. He was a practical, thorough- 
going farmer, unusually successful in business, 
and one of the leading citizens of the locality. 
Although his manner was quiet and retiring, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQEAPHICAL RECORD. 



255 



he possessed a strong character, ;ind was a 
man of firm purpose. On May, 12, 1833, he 
was married to ^Iiss Phcebe Woodruff W'inans, 
born February 20, 1814, and of their nine 
children seven lived to maturity, of whom 
James M. Hadden is the youngest. The 
mother of the latter died February 16, 1882, 
and the father on May 28, 1892. 

James M. Hadden, the subject proper of 
this review, received his early education at 
Elizabeth, X. J., where he attended a private 
school conducted by |ohn Young. At the age 
of seventeen he left school, but he has ever 
taken a deep interest in literature and science, 
and by reading has acquired a fund of informa- 
tion. His first employment was as a clerk for 
Jeremiah Lambert in the Greenwich block. 
New York City ; but at the end of two years 
he returned home on account of ill health. 
After a short vacation he became bookkeeper 
for the Seymour Manufacturing Company, at 
Elizabeth, X. J., remaining with them seven 
years. On April 13, 1875, he went to Pough- 
keepsie as assistant engineer for George W. 
Harris (a relative by marriage) in the Citizens 
Gas Company, and worked in that capacity for 
two years, when he became chief engineer. 
On the consolidation of the business with that 
of the Poughkeepsie Gas Company in Decem- 
ber, 18S7, he was made superintendent of the 
works, and in i8gi was elected president of the 
company, a position which he has filled with 
distinguished ability. 

On April 30, 1879, Mr. Hadden was mar- 
ried to Miss Mary McAdam Hay, who was born 
July 8, 1852, in Ayrshire, Scotland — about 
nine miles from the home of Robert Burns. 
She is a daughter of William and Elizabeth 
(McKinley) Hay, and granddaughter of Mary 
(Anderson) McKinley, who was an acquaint- 
ance of the poet and familiar with many of the 
circumstances which inspired his writings. .A 
great-uncle of Mrs. Hadden was the subject of 
one poem. A great-great-uncle was the invent- 
or of the MacAdam pavement, for which valua- 
ble service he was titled by the English govern- 
ment. Mrs. Hadden is. through her mother, 
a niece of William McKinley, of Elizabeth, 
X. J., and a distant relative of President Mc- 
Kinley. Two daughters and one son gladden 
the home of our subject: Elizabeth G., Helen 
S. and William McKinley Hay. 

Mr. Hadden and his wife are members of 
the First Reformed Church, in which he is a 
leadinsr official. He is a Mason, a member of 



Triune Lodge Xo. 782. In local matters he 
lends his assistance to all worthy measures and 
movements. He is not a politician in the 
strict sense, but he is a strong supporter of the 
Republican part}'. 



FRANK LATSON, D. D. S., a leading 
_ dentist of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, 
was born in that township, August 26, 1853, 
his family having been residents of that local- 
ity for four generations. 

Dr. Latson's ancestors were French Hugue- 
nots, who were among the early settlers of this 
region, and his grandfather, Peter Latson, a 
native of Rhinebeck, was a prosperous carpen- 
ter there. He married Betsey Hannaburgh, 
and had nine children: Henry; William, a 
dentist in New York; James, a carpenter; 
Regina, who married Stephen H. Powers, of 
Brooklyn; Margaret, the wife of Philip Van- 
Steenburgh, of Red Hook; Rachel; Amanda; 
Maria; and Matilda. 

Henr)' Latson, our subject's father, was 
born in the town of Rhinebeck in 18 14, and, 
after learning the carpenter's trade, engaged in 
the business of contracting and building, which 
he carried on successfully for about fifty years. 
He was a self-educated man, possessed great 
natural ability, at the same time displaying 
marked originality of thought and keen analyt- 
ical powers. He was his own architect, and 
the many structures designed and erected by 
him give evidence of fine artistic taste. His 
business was extensive, four-fifths of the build- 
ings constructed in Rhinebeck and vicinity, 
during his active life, being his work. The 
beautiful interior of the M. E. church was de- 
signed by him, and was but one proof of his 
devotion to the welfare of that society, of which 
he was a member and an official for many 3-ears. 
He was not active in politics, although he was 
an ardent Republican in principle, and fre- 
quentlj' served as trustee of the village. He 
married Maria Teal, daughter of Peter W. 
Teal, a well-known resident of the town of 
Stanford, and had three children, of whom our 
subject was the youngest. John is a physician, 
and Norman L. died at the age of twenty-nine 
years. The father died May 19, 1885; the 
mother, now at the age of seventy-eight, re- 
sides with our subject. 

Dr. Latson was educated at De Garmo 
Classical Institute, and later took a course in 
the New York College of Pharmacy. In 1878 



256 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



he entered the New York College of Dentistry, 
from which he was graduated in 1880. He 
located in his native place, where he has built 
up an extensive practice, and ranks among the 
most successful men of the town. He was 
married in 1886 to Miss Bertha Bradley, of 
New York City, daughter of Perry Bradley, 
and a descendant of one of the old families of 
Kinderhook. They have two children: Lillian 
Kirkland and Frank Waldo. Politically, the 
Doctor is a Republican, but he is not a party 
worker. He is, however, greatly interested in 
local improvements, and is a member of the 
village board of trustees and the local fire 
department. 



BENJAMIN MALTBY FOWLER, a promi- 
nent attorney of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 

county, was born at Durham, Conn., April 
27, 1854. He comes of pure New England 
stock. 

William Fowler, of whom he is a direct 
lineal descendant, arrived at Boston from 
England in 1637, with Rev. John Davenport. 
He was one of the prominent founders and 
officials of the New Haven Colony, which was 
afterward anne.xed to and became a part of 
Connecticut. Many of the early ancestors of 
Mr. Fowler (the subject of this sketch), took 
an important and conspicuous part in public 
affairs in the early days of the colonies; one of 
the most prominent among them being John 
Read, who was Oueen's attorney for the 
Colony of Connecticut in 171 2, and later 
attorney-general of Massachusetts for several 
years, and also a member of the Governor and 
Council. Robert Treat Paine, one of the 
Signers of the Declaration of Independence, 
was a member of the family from which he 
also traces descent. 

Jonathan C. Fowler, his grandfather, was 
a highly-respected resident of Northford, Conn. 
He married Eliza Maltby, a descendant of a 
large and iniluential family of that name in 
Connecticut. 

Dr. Benjamin M. Fowler, our subject's 
father, was born at Northford, Conn., in 1821. 
After practicing his profession for awhile at 
Durham, Conn., he in 1856 moved to Pough- 
keepsie, where he died two years later (Sep- 
tember 8, 185S) full of promise and greatly 
beloved and respected by a large circle of 
acquaintances, which he had formed in the 
short time that he resided there. On Sep- 



tember II, 1850, he married Mary Payne, 
whose ancestors were among the early settlers 
of America. Three children came of this mar- 
riage : William S., born May 31, 1852, died 
February 7, 1871; Benjamin M., our subject; 
and Harriet J., born March 16, 1856, married 
Julius Maltby, of Waterbury, Conn. Thomas 
Payne, the father of Mary Payne, was a lead- 
ing resident of Amenia. Dr. John C. Payne, 
her brother, has been for many years a leading 
physician in Poughkeepsie. Although the 
Paynes early settled in Amenia, Dutchess 
county, yet they also came from New England. 
Thomas Payne (or Paine, as the name was 
then spelled), the first one of that branch of 
the family to arrive in America, landed at 
Plymouth in 1621, having emigrated from the 
County of Kent, England. Most of his descend- 
ants settled in Connecticut. 

Thomas Payne, grandfather of our subject, 
married Sarah Bartlett. The Bartletts were a 
distinguished family of Redding, Conn., but 
many members of which settled in Amenia. 
Daniel C. Bartlett, the father of Sarah Bart- 
lett, was a valiant soldier of the Revolutionary 
war; her grandfather. Rev. Nathaniel Bart- 
lett, second pastorof theCongregational Church 
in Redding, Conn., served as such for fifty- 
seven years — the longest pastorate, it is said, 
known to the New England Churches. He 
was an ardent supporter of the Revolutionary 
cause, as appears from the local histories of 
Redding, Conn. 

Benjamin M. Fowler has lived in Pough- 
keepsie since boyhood. After graduating at 
the high school there, he took a special course 
at Riverview Military Academy, and shortly 
afterward began the study of law with Thomp- 
son & Weeks, with which firm, and its suc- 
cessor, Thompson, Weeks & Lown, he spent 
most of his clerkship, although for a time he 
was with Anthony & Losey and Robert E. Tay- 
lor. He was admitted to the bar May 13, 
1875. While stutlying law Mr. Fowler also 
took up the study of shorthand. As he was 
the pioneer stenographer in Dutchess county, 
his services were in constant demand in the 
various courts in that locality, and he was fre- 
quently called upon to report speeches and lec- 
tures of various sorts, as well. He was official 
stenographer of the Dutchess County Court, 
Surrogate's Court and State Board of .Assess- 
ors, for a number of years. Many important 
cases were reported by him during this time. 
His experience in the surrogate's court and his 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



257 



connection with Thompson & Weeks, who 
were largely employed in the settlement of es- 
tates, gave him unusual opportunities for ac- 
quiring a knowledge of the procedure in that 
line of legal business. 

In 1889 he gave up the practice of stenog- 
raphy to give attention to the settlement of the 
late John Guy Vassar's estate; he having been 
appointed by Mr. Vassar an executor of his 
will. As the estate was an unusually large 
one, and was the subject of considerable liti- 
gation, it attracted much public attention. 
Notwithstanding the litigation was carried 
through the various courts, including the court 
of appeals, the estate was finally settled and 
distributed within three years, a remarkable 
record, which reflected great credit on Mr. 
Fowler and his associates. In 1891 he was 
appointed one of the administrators of the es- 
tate of the late Hon. Homer A. Nelson, and 
since 1888 he has been secretary and assistant 
treasurer of Vassar Brothers' Hospital. While 
he has never sought or held public office, the 
fact that these and other large interests have 
been committed to his care, indicates the es- 
teem and confidence which his energetic and 
conscientious discharge of duty has won for 
him. 

On December 15, 18S1, at Jersey City, N. 
J., Mr. Fowler married Miss Ada M. Douglas, 
daughter of the late M. S. Douglas, a New 
York merchant. Of this union three children 
were born: Douglas P., August 11, 1S83; 
Maltby S., July 18, 1886; and Benjamin M., 
Jr., September i, 1890. 



DR. W. E. ACKERT, a well-known veter- 
' inary surgeon in the town of Rhinebeck, 

Dutchess county, and an agriculturist of prom- 
inence, was born in that town October 5, 
1840. 

Like so many of the substantial and pros- 
perous citizens of this country, his family was 
of German origin, the first of the American 
line coming from the Fatherland at an early 
date. The grandfather of our subject, John 
M. Ackert, born about 1784, in the town of 
Rhinebeck, was a leading farmer in his day; 
his son William, our subject's father, also a 
native of Rhinebeck, was born in 1809, and 
married Maria Pultz, of the same town, born 
in 1 8 12, a descendant of an old Holland fam- 
ily. In politics Mr. Ackert was a Republican; 
and in- religious faith was a devout and consist- 

17 



ent adherent of the Lutheran Church, as is 
also his wife. They were the parents of four 
children: John H., a farmer of Rhinebeck, 
now deceased ; Virgil .A.. , a farmer near the old 
home; Sarah A., who married Egbert G. Tra- 
ver, also a farmer of that vicinity; and W. E., 
the subject of this review. The mother is 
still living and makes her home with her 
daughter, Mrs. Traver. 

Reared as a farmer's boy, the Doctor en- 
joyed the educational opportunities afforded by 
the public schools, and his natural abilities 
have enabled him to improve upon them by 
private reading, until he is an unusually well- 
informed man. In his specialty, the treatment 
of that noble animal — the horse — he has made 
thorough study of all the related branches, and 
stands at the front of his profession. He owns 
a farm of fifty acres, of which his sons assume 
the active work, while he devotes his time to 
his extensive practice. 

On November 24, 1864, Dr. Ackert was 
married to Miss Sarah Hanaburgh, a daughter 
of Peter H. and Eliza Ann (Montfort) Hana- 
burgh, of Rhinebeck, the former born in 1812, 
in the town of Rhinebeck, of German descent, 
and the latter born October 2, 1S49. Four 
children have been born to the Doctor and his 
wife, as follows: Edward E., who died March 
5, 1 891; David H., Jennie and Raymond P., 
who are all at home. Mrs. Ackert has in her 
possession a quilt made from the dress of an 
old slave — Aunt Betta — in the Montfort family. 
" Aunt Betta " was at least one hundred years 
old at the time of her death, and had worked 
in the Montfort family when Mrs. Ackert's 
mother was a child. In politics the Doctor is 
a Republican, and takes an active interest in 
all movements of the day. 



>iEV. DOCTOR CORNELIUS VINCENT 
iri MAHONY, pastor of the Catholic Church 
at Wappingers Falls, Dutchess county, is a 
native of New York City, where his birth took 
place December i, 1851, and he is a son of 
Cornelius and Anna O'Connell Mahony, both 
natives of County Cork, Ireland, the former 
born on January 18, 18 18. After their mar- 
riage they emigrated to the New World, and in 
New York City the father engaged in mercan- 
tile pursuits for about thirty years. He then 
lived retired until his death in 1893. His wife 
had long preceded him to the other world, dy- 
ing in 1869. In their family were two children: 



258 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Michael Joseph, who was born in 1849, and 
Cornelius \incent, subject of this sketch. 

Doctor Mahony spent his boyhood days in 
New York City, attending the public schools 
until eleven years of age, when he entered the 
Jesuit College, where he remained for seven 
years. After graduating there he became a 
student in the Troy Seminar)-, completing the 
theological course there at the age of twenty- 
one; but being too young for ordination he 
went to Rome, where he took the entire theo- 
logical course, receiving the degree of D. D. 
He then traveled through Europe with Dr. 
McGlynn for three months, after which he re- 
turned to America, and was located for one 
year at St. Stephens, in New York City. Dur- 
ing the following five years he was professor of 
menta' philosophy and ethics in the Troy Sem- 
inar\-, which position he then resigned, and in 
1 884 came to Wappingers Falls, where he has 
since been located. 

His force of character, talent and ability 
are phenomenal, and he possesses great power 
for good among his people. Father Mahony 
is himself a ver>- intelligent and cultured man, 
and has done much toward instilling into the 
minds of his parish children a taste for 
literature. 



EGBERT VAN WAGNER (deceased). 
The subject of this sketch was bom July 

21, 182 1, in Pleasant Valley. Dutchess county, 
where he passed his youth, following farming. 
On May 31. 184S. he was united in marriage 
with Miss Cornelia B. Pulver. who was born 
in the town of Pine Plains August 3. 1826. a 
daughter of Andrus Pulver. a native of the 
same place. He married Miss Margaret 
Thomas, and the following children were born 
to them: Mar)-, who became the wife of 
Lewis D. Hedges, a merchant of Pine Plains 
Cnow deceased); Frances, who married Henry 
Myers, a farmer and speculator i now deceased i ; 
Cornelia B., our subject's widow; Elizabeth, 
and Nicholas, who died in infancy. Andrus 
Pulver was a farmer and hotel keeper. Both 
he and his wife are deceased. 

Our subject and his wife, after their mar- 
riage, lived a few years on the farm m Pleasant 
\'alley, and five years in Pine Plains. They 
then moved to Poughkeepsie, in 1856. and 
bought the farm on which Mrs. Van Wagner 
now resides. The following children were 
born to them: Henrv. a farmer here, married 



to Miss Ruth Brown; Margaret, married to 
Eley R. Deyo, a merchant, who died August 4, 
1S87; Albertson, who died October 19, 1S55. 
at the age of twelve years; Walter, who died 
March 7, 18S0; and Elizabeth, who became 
the wife of John J. C. Howe, a farmer. Mr. 
Van Wagner was a Democrat, and held the 
office of commissioner of highways for several 
terms. He took an active part in politics. 
He was public-spirited, and took a deep in- 
terest in all matters pertaining to the town 
and its aSairs. He donated the site of the 
present depot, and was postmaster of the 
\'an Wagner station for about twenty years. 
His wife was a member of the Presb\terian 
Church. 

John Van Wagner, the father of our sub- 
ject, was a native of Pleasant Valley, where he 
was reared, and where he was married to Miss 
Elizabeth Albertson, born in Pleasant \'alley. 
These children were born to them: Sarah, 
who became the wife of David Doty, a farmer 
of Pleasant Valley; Isaac, married to Sally 
Ann Vincent; Hiram, a farmer, who married 
Mar)- Badgley; Elsie, who became the wife of 
Tunis Conklin. a farmer; Mary .\.. who died 
unmarried; Willett. married to Catherine Sill 
(he was a farmer and merchant^ ; Egbert, our 
subject; Susan, who died unmarried; and Eli, 
who died in infancy. 

Nicholas Van Wagner, the grandfather, 
came from Long Island and settled on the 
farm in Pleasant Valley, where he reared the 
following children: John, our subject's father; 
Jacob, a farmer in Pleasant Valley, where he 
lived and died; Evert, who farmed for a while 
in Clinton, and then went to the western part 
of the State, where he died; Solomon, who 
farmed in Schoharie county; and Esther, 
married to John \'an Wagner, a farmer in the 
town of Poughkeepsie. The Van Wagners 
were in the war of 1776. 



GEORGE W. CANNON, a prominent resi- 
_ dent of Poughkeepsie. Dutchess county, 
was born July 31, 1834. in New York City, 
which had been the home of his ancestors for 
many years. 

His grandfather Cannon was a man of note 
in his day, a soldier in the war of 1S12, and 
at one time the sherifi of New York City. 
The late Arnout Cannon, our subject's father, 
was a prominent contractor and builder in 
Poughkeepsie. He was born July 13. 1S05, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



259 



in New York City, and there learned the trade 
of a mechanic, in 1S36 coming to Poughkeep- 
sie and engaging in the building business, in 
which he continued until his death, September 
12. 18S2. He was a member of the Masonic 
fraternity. Lodge No. 266, Poughkeepsie, and 
held a leading place in many of the pro- 
gressive movements of the day in his locality. 
He was married in New York Citj- to Miss 
Naomi Chilson, a native of Orange county, 
N. Y., born June 11, 1812. and eight children 
came to this union: Hester (deceased); George 
\V. , our subject; Charles H., a well-known 
carpenter of Poughkeepsie; Arnout, Jr., a 
prominent architect there; William H., a 
resident of Chicago; Maria, widow of James 
Gifford; Cornelius L., a leading contractor 
and builder of Poughkeepsie; and Emma Kate, 
the wife of Charles E. Schon. The mother 
of this family is still living in Poughkeepsie. 

George W. Cannon, the subject of this 
review, attended the public schools of Pough- 
keepsie until he was twelve years old, and then 
entered the Dutchess County Academy on 
South Hamilton street. After completing his 
course there he learned the carpenter's trade 
in his father's shop, serving an apprenticeship 
of seven years. His first independent business 
venture was the establishment of an art store 
with a photograph gallery attached, which he 
conducted successfully for six years in the 
building now occupied by W. H. \'an Keuren. 
He sold this, giving up the artistic surround- 
ings of oil paintings, and bronze and marble 
statuarj- for the prosaic business of a coal 
dealer, which he followed for three years on 
Hooker avenue. In this as in all his proj- 
ects he displayed great enterprise, and he 
bought and operated the first wood-splitting 
machine ever seen in the city. After dispos- 
ing of this business Mr. Cannon traveled 
through the West for twenty years, and then 
returned to Poughkeepsie to reside. In 1890 
he purchased the old Hicks place, with a man- 
sion now known as River Villa, the building 
of which cost over $35.cx30. Here he enter- 
tains his friends with lavish yet elegant hospi- 
tality. During the triangular boat race on 
the Hudson in June, 1895, between Cornell, 
Pennsylvania and Columbia, the Cornell crew 
made their home there; also in 1896. Mr. 
Cannon has been married three times, first 
time, in the city of Poughkeepsie, to Miss 
Harriet Hall, who died leaving three children: 
Irene, now Mrs. Charles Wells, of Indianapo- 



lis; Julia, who resides in Indianapolis; and 
Arnetta, a trained nurse in New York City. 
Mr. Cannon's second wife was Miss Elizabeth 
Wyley. of Detroit, Mich., who lived less than 
a \ear after their marriage. At Detroit he 
subsequently married Mrs. Emma Rich, a 
native of Deep River, Conn., but at that time 
a resident of Bay City; she has one daughter, 
Mary B. Rich, a graduate of the School of 
Music of Vassar College, and now the wife of 
David Gibson, of Indianapolis, Indiana. 

Mr. Cannon has a high standing in financial 
circles, his business abilities being widely rec- 
ognized. He owns the patents for the New 
York Safety Dumb Waiter, also for the Dia- 
mond Point Nail Set, and derives a large roy- 
alty from each. 

Charles H. Cannon, a younger brother of 
our subject, was born in Poughkeepsie Novem- 
ber 6, 1826, and was educated in the city pub- 
lic schools and the famous old Dutchess County 
Academy. He learned the trade of sash and 
blind making with Harry Seaman and Joseph 
Irish, and after an apprenticeship of two and 
one-half years he opened a shop of his own on 
South Hamilton street, where he did well for 
a few years. But the breaking out of the war 
bringing "hard times" to his line of work, he 
gave it up and became foreman of a large car- 
penter shop at Providence, R. I. , having charge 
of over forty workmen. After three years 
there he went to Detroit and spent five years, 
when he returned to Poughkeepsie and em- 
barked in the saloon business on Main street, 
but was burned out in 1 8" i , since which time 
he has been engaged in the carpenter's trade. 

On June 24, 1855, at Buffalo, N. Y., Mr. 
Cannon was married to Miss Margaret O'Con- 
nor, and in i860 he built his residence on 
Hooker avenue, Poughkeepsie. where the fam- 
ily still resides. Of his ten children five are liv- 
ing: Ettie^Mrs. Albert Jenksy; Fannie, wife of 
William Brown, of New York City; Emma 
Kate (Mrs. Fred Rogers); William, a resident 
of Pittsfield, Mass. ; and Minnie, who married 
Clarence Martens, of Mt. \'ernon. 



BURTON A. SNYDER fdeceased) was born 
_ in 1867, in the town of Gallatin. Colum- 
bia Co., N. Y. , and died on Easter eve, April 
18, 1897. 

Henry Snyder, paternal grandfather of our 
subject, was born in the town of Livingston, 
Columbia Co., N. Y. , received a common- 



2G0 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



school education, and at an early ag;e began 
farming, which occupation he continued to 
follow throughout life. When quite a young 
man he married Miss Eliza Robison, who was 
the daughter of a farmer of the town of Liv- 
ingston. To this worthy couple were born five 
children: Celia, who married Charles Moore; 
Mary, who became the wife of William Finger; 
Catherine, who wedded Theodore Hapeman; 
Annie; and Charles. The last-named, who 
was the father of our subject, was born in the 
town of Livingston, Columbia county, and 
after completing his literary training in the 
public schools he took up farming as a life 
work. He married Miss Mary Warehouse, 
daughter of John Warehouse, a farmer of the 
same township, and one child graced this 
union. Burton A., our subject. 

Burton A. Snyder, like his ancestors, re- 
ceived only a common-school education. At 
the early age of twelve years he began farm- 
ing with his uncle, and afterward followed 
that occupation. In i8Sg he married Miss 
Gertrude Snyder, a daughter of Albert Snyder, 
a farmer of the town of Red Hook, Dutchess 
county. The farm, which belongs to Mrs. 
Snyder, has been in the possession of her fam- 
ily for many years. It contains 225 acres of as 
fine farming land as is to be found anywhere 
in the locality, and is supplied with all the 
accessories and conveniences to be found upon 
a model farm of the nineteenth century. 

William Z. Snyder, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Snyder, was a native of the town of Khine- 
beck, Dutchess county, where he acquired his 
education in the district schools, and he also 
followed farming as a life work. He wedded 
Miss Margaret Traver, of the same township, 
and to them were born two children: Albert; 
and .Anna, who became the wife of Edgar L. 
Traver. The former was also born, reared 
and educated in the town of Rhinebeck, but 
he later purchased the farm ui the town of 
Red Hook, which his daughter now occupies. 
He was united in marriage with Miss Gertrude 
M. Burger, of Rhinebeck town, and their only 
child is Mrs. Gertrude M. Snyder. 



WARREN P. LASHER was one of the 
most straightforward, energetic and 
successful business men who ever lived in 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, where he de- 
parted this life in March, 1890. In his death 
the community was deprived of one of its best. 



most useful and public-spirited citizens, and 
rich and poor alike mourned his departure from 
their midst, for he was beloved by men in every 
walk of life. 

Mr. Lasher was born at Tivoli, Dutchess 
county, April 8, 1841, and was the only son of 
Philip and Catherine (Millham) Lasher, though 
he had one sister, Carrie C. , now the wife of R. 
C. Brewster, who resides in Brooklyn, N. Y. 
His father was a merchant of Tivoli, and quite 
a prominent man in the localitj-, who served as 
brigadier-general in the State Militia in the 
old training days, as postmaster of Tivoli. and 
as a member of the General Assembly in 1858. 
He was twice married, his second wife being 
the mother of our subject. 

The education of Warren P. Lasher was 
obtained in the schools of Tivoli and Claverack, 
N. Y.. and when only sixteen years old he 
served as Assemblyman's Clerk, while his father 
was a member of the Legislature. Three 
years later he became a clerk in the general 
store of Faulkner Brothers, at Wappingers 
Falls, where he remained until he was twenty- 
three years of age, when he came to Pough- 
keepsie and secured a position in the dry-goods 
store of Cornwell & Elting. He was after- 
ward with Spring & Thalheimer, whom Saun- 
ders & Lasher bought out in 1871, and the 
firm later became Lasher, Haight & Kelley. 
They also began the manufacturing business, 
making ladies' skirts; and after selling out the 
retail dry-goods business, the firm was changed, 
Mr. Lasher associating with Luckey & Piatt, 
while still later it became Forbey & Lasher. In 
the manufacture of skirts and overalls they ran 
forty machines by water power. The new 
firm had been in existence about a year when 
Mr. Forbey, the silent partner, died, and his 
interest was purchased by Frank Hull, the 
name being then changed to Lasher & Hull. 
At the end of eight years our subject sold out 
his interest to Mr. Hull, and formed a company 
composed of Lasher, Eastmead & Osborne, 
for the manufacture of overalls. Mr. Lasher 
was also a member of the firm of Hcrmance 
& Hance, manufacturers of shirts, but later 
Messrs. Eastmead & Osborne purchased Mr. 
Hermance's interest, and the name was changed 
to Hance & C(x On account of failing health, 
in 1889, Mr. Lasher disposed of his share in 
in the company of Lasher, Eastmead & Os- 
borne, but retained his interest in Hance & 
Co. up to the time of his death. 

While clerking at Wappingers Falls .Mr. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



261 



Lasher met Miss Altnira J. Hermance, who 
was visiting a cousin there, and on January 19, 
1870, they \vere united in marriage. They be- 
gan their domestic hfe in Poiighkeepsie, where 
were born to them two sons: Claude, a member 
of the firm of Lansing & Lasher, real estate 
and insurance; and Frank H. Mr. Lasher 
was a conscientious, earnest Christian, a trus- 
tee of the Baptist Church of Poughkeepsie, 
and an active worker in the Young Men's 
Christian Association. His benevolence was 
unostentatious and genuine, and there is noth- 
ing in the story of his life to show that he 
ever, for a moment, sought to compass a given 
end for the purpose of e.xalting himself, as he 
was a man of retiring disposition and averse 
to making any show. He was a member of 
the Amrita Club, and as a man held the honor 
and esteem of all classes of people. 

Richard M. Hermance, the father of Mrs. 
Lasher, was born at Clifton Park, Saratoga 
Co., X. v., June 3, 18 17, and was the son of 
Cornelius and Anna (Westfall) Hermance, the 
former a native of Red Hook, Dutchess county, 
and the latter of Claverack, Columbia Co., 
N. Y. For many years her father carried on 
farming in Saratoga county, and, on disposing 
of his land, went into the foundry business, 
manufacturing stoves and plows at Stillwater, 
Saratoga county; he patented many articles, 
among which was the low reservoir used on 
cooking stoves. He wedded Emeline Du Bois, 
daughter of Ivichard Du Bois of Round Lake, 
Saratoga count}-, and they became the parents 
of six children, namely: Almira J.; Theodore; 
Albert; George C. ; Mary; and Emma J., wife 
of Henry Richmond. The mother of this fam- 
ily died in 1886. 



OBED W. VINCENT (deceased). The 
\'incent family, which is one of the oldest 
and most prominent in Dutchess county, 
is of English origin, the ancestors of the sub- 
ject of this sketch having come to America at 
a very earlj' date, settling as pioneer farmers 
in the town of Unionvale. 

Isaac \'incent, our subject's grandfather, 
was a farmer and merchant in Unionvale, and 
his son, David D. Vincent, the father of our 
subject, followed the same pursuits, in which 
he proved an unusually successful business 
man. He was always a Republican, and took 
great interest in local politics, holding various 
offices, including that of supervisor. He mar- 



ried Phcebe Preston, whose ancestors were 
leading farmers in the town of Dover, where 
he died in 188S. He and his wife had three 
children: Isaac, who was a farmer and store- 
keeper at the Clove, and died in 1S89; Martha 
(deceased), who married Stephen Moore; and 
Obed W., who died July 14, 1892. 

Our subject was reared by an aunt on a 
farm at Chestnut Ridge, and was married April 
15, t88o, to Miss Mary Ella Vincent, a grand- 
daughter of Jonathan Vincent. Her father, 
John W. Vincent, was born in the town of 
Unionvale, and w^as a school teacher in early 
life, later removing to Poughkeepsie and be- 
coming an influential politician. He was 
county clerk and justice of the peace for a 
number of years, and was otherwise prominent 
in political affairs; he died in 188 1. He at- 
tended the M. E. Church, and was interested in 
various progressive movements. He married 
Rhoda Butler, who was born at Chestnut Ridge, 
and is still living. This family is of English 
descent. Her father, Peter L. Butler, was a 
well-known farmer in the town of Dover. Of 
the four children born to John and Rhoda 
Vincent our subject's w-ife was the eldest; 
Minnie married Charles Andrews, of Lagrange- 
ville; Walter, who married Julia O'Brien, is 
in business at the stock yards in Chicago; and' 
George E. resides with Mrs. Vincent. 

After their marriage Obed Vincent and his 
wife lived at Chestnut Ridge with his aunt, 
where their only child. Hazel Blanche, was 
born. Mr. Vincent was a man of influence in 
his locality, a Republican in politics, and ably 
sustained the high reputation which was his 
birthright. Since his death Mrs. \'incent has 
managed the large fortune with great abilitj'. 
In May, 1895, she bought a beautiful residence 
at Manchester Bridge, three miles from Pough- 
keepsie, where she now resides, her home be- 
ing the center of a refined and gracious 
hospitality. 



WILLIAM THOMSON, a wealthy retired 
merchant of New York City, now re- 
siding upon a fine estate near Rhinebeck, was 
born at No. 92 Watt street. New York, Sep- 
tember 11, 1836. His family had long been 
prominent in that city, and his father, \\'illiam 
A. Thomson, was born there on Cedar street, 
May 29, 1 80S. He served during his life as 
president of the Mercantile Fire Insurance Co. , 
also serving for many years as president of the 






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aOMMEMOUATIVE lilOaiiM'llirjAL HECOHD. 



■mi 



falo. This was in 1849. during the great epi- 
demic of Asiatic cholera that swept over almost 
the entire country. Buffalo was suffering from 
this dread disease, and while on the canal Mr. 
Howell was stricken with the scourge, and was 
laid out on the bank to die, whence he was 
taken to the hospital. Hundreds died of the 
disease; but Mr. Howell, after a long illness, 
finally recovered, and on gaining his strength 
started for New York; he. however, engaged 
again on the canal for a few months. 

After some years he became interested in 
horses, and was superintendent of the Samuel 
Townsend stock farm in Niagara county, where 
he continued for nine years. In 1871 he came 
to Dutchess county, and for twenty years man- 
aged the large stock farm of Edwin Thorne, 
well known as Thorndale Stock Farm, located 
near .Milibrook, Dutchess county. The horse 
department here has from 100 to 150 horses 
all the time. Since 1891 he has engaged in 
the hotel business, first at Hopewell Junction, 
and later in Arlington, at the edge of Pough- 
keepsie. Mr. Howell married Miss Sophia 
Barton, and they have become the parents of 
fourteen children, eleven of whom are living. 

Frank Howell came with his parents to 
Dutchess county, where, surrounded by fast 
horses, he developed a taste for handling and 
breaking them, assisting his father in his work 
until he gradually learned by actual practice 
all the work of a practical trainer. He devel- 
oped unusual skill in his undertaking, and Mr. 
Thorne selected him as his trainer. Then, 
assisted by his former employer, he started out 
for himself, working his horses on the Pough- 
keepsie track. Mr. Thorne at one time owned 
the Poughkeepsie Driving Park, which Mr. 
Howell superintended until it was sold, in 
1888, to the present owner, Jacob Ruppert. 
His training stables are finely equipped and 
conveniently located near the tracks. Among 
the horses he has driven or owned may be 
mentioned: Kate C record 2:15!; Elber, 
2:i5i; Mithra, 2:17; Prince, 2:2o|; Niel 
Whitbeck, 2:2i|^; Carlton Chief, 2 -.211; Marks- 
man Maid, 2:21 J; Kentucky Blanch, 2:26; 
Edwin Thorne, 2:\(y\; Daisy Dale, 2:19^; 
0.\ford Chief, 2:22|, and Miss Murray, 2:28. 

On June 24, 1882, Mr. Howell was mar- 
ried to Miss Julia Webb, daughter of Edward 
and Lucy (Clarke) Webb, of English origin. 
Mr. Webb was a skilled florist and landscape 
gardener by occupation, and after selling out 
his business in England, came to America with 



his family in 1 86^ . ^ home in Dutchess 

county, where he spent the remainder of his 
life. He expired suddenly from heart disease, 
December 5, 1892, but his wife still survives. 
In their family of children were: Jonathan 
Edward; Julia E. ; Marie C, and Louise A. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Frank Howell have been bom 
the following children : Lucy Clarke; Julia 
Webb; Nellie Viall and Louise Webb. Mr. 
Howell is a very public-spirited man. and 
takes an active interest in all movements for 
the advancement of the community. 



JOHN HA LPT, the proprietor of a well- 
known bakery situated at the corner of 

Church and Gate streets, Poughkeepsie, is 
one of the thrifty German-born citizens of the 
county. His present success is emphatically 
due to hard work and economy, and reflects 
great credit upon him. 

Mr. Haupt was born August 24, 1845, at 
Grcss-hen Zog, um Hessen, a son of Jacob 
Haupt, also a nativeof Germany, born in 1801. 
The father was the owner of a stone quarry, 
and was engaged all his life in the business of 
taking out rough building stone. He and his 
wife, Magdalena fUhinkj, both died about the 
year 1887. Of their ten children, nine grew 
to adult age: Barbara (the eldesti; Mattice, 
now living in Germany; Agnes, who lives in 
New York City; Jacob, in Germany: Lizzie, in 
East New York; Mary, in Germany; Sybilla, in 
Brooklyn; Frank, whose whereabouts are not 
known; and John, our subject. 

John Haupt came alone to America when a 
boy of thirteen years. He made his home 
with a sister in New York City for a short time 
in 1857, while looking for employment, and as 
he had alreadj' acquired a common-school edu- 
cation, he devoted his thoughts from that time 
to making his way in the business world, a 
sufficiently difficult task as it proved. He has 
always been engaged in the baker's trade, his 
first work being with a baker in Williamsburg 
at $3 per month, with whom he remained six 
months, and from that time was employed by 
various parties at increasing wages, working 
one year at one place for $5 per month, and 
si.x months at another for $7. He became 
third helper in a large establishment at $3 per 
week, and then going to New York secured a 
place as second hand at $4 a week, remaining 
during one winter. His next employer, Mr. 



264 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



Feltz. gave him $9 a week, and after seven 
months he entered the service of Mr. Kein- 
hardt at the corner of iith avenue and 45th 
street, for $12 a week. Here he injured his 
eyes so that he gave up the position in four 
months, and went to work in 9th avenue for 
$9 a week. In December, 1865. he came to 
Poughkeepsie as head baker for Mr. Bice, at 
$12 a week and his board, and in July, 1866, 
he began to work for P. S. Rowland as a cake 
maker. With him he remained fourteen 
months, and then returned to New York as 
foreman for Mr. Doring at the corner of 3rd 
avenue and 46th street, at $15 a week and 
board; after three months, however, he went 
back to Poughkeepsie and worked for Charles 
Arras a little over a year. In 1869 he spent 
five months in Hoboken. N. J., as foreman for 
Mr. Weidner on First street, and then en- 
gaged in business for himself in East New 
York; but the venture proved unprofitable, and 
after five months he returned to Poughkeepsie 
and again worked for Charles Arras for six 
j'ears. In August, 1876, he bought his present 
establishment of George Mallmann, and has 
successfully conducted same for over twenty 
years, building up a large and profitable trade. 
On June 9, 1867. Mr. Haupt was married 
to Miss Barbara Bieber, daughter of John and 
Mary Bieber, highly respected residents of 
Poughkeepsie. Four children were born of 
this union: John, born September 26, 1868. 
is a clerk in his father's establishment; Rai- 
mund, born January 25, 1 871, assists as a cake 
baker; Alfred E., born December 2, 1872, 
died at the age of sixteen; and George W., 
born July 26, 1S79. is in school. The family 
attend the Lutheran Church, but Mrs. Haupt 
is an Episcopalian. Mr. Haupt has won the 
respect of the people wherever he is known, 
and is prominent among the self-made men of 
his locality. He has taken an active interest 
in politics, voting the Republican ticket as a 
rule, and in 1895 ^^'^s elected supervisor of the 
Second ward. Sociallv, he is a member of 
the I. O. O. F. 



GEORGE H. BONTECOU. The first an- 
cestor of the Bontecou family, of whom 
we have a definite account, was William Is- 
brand Bontekoe, who lived in the early part of 
the seventeenth century. In 16 18 he was cap- 
tain of the " Nouvelle Hoorn." a ship of 1,110 
tons burden, and a crew of 206 men, which in 



that year set sail for the East Indies. He 
had touched at the uninhabited island of Mas- 
caruque and at Madagascar, and was nearing 
Batavia when a fire broke out in the vessel, 
and while making efforts to extinguish it he 
was deserted by sixty-six of his men, who es- 
caped in a shallop and a small skiff. He was 
unable to subdue the flames, and when they 
reached the magazine the ship was thrown into 
the air and totally destro\ed, but Bontekiie in 
falling had the good fortune to grasp a spar, 
which supported him until he was picked up by 
the shallop. At another time, while in command 
of a ship of thirty-two guns, Bontekiie took 
part in the expedition in which Cornelius, with 
eight vessels, ravaged the coast of China. 

Bonteki.e wrote an account of his voyages, 
and the incidents referred to have been util- 
ized by Alexander Dumas in a story entitled 
" Bontekr)e," the first in his volume — " Les 
Drames de la Mer. " Unfortunately no known 
record exists relating to this man's ancestors 
or descendants, but his family was doubtless 
of Dutch or Flemish origin, and it is probable 
that one of his sons crossed the line and set- 
tled in France, where we next hear of the 
name in connection with the events attending 
the revocation of the Edict of Nantes, October 
18, 1685, by which Louis XI\' put an end to 
the exercise of Protestant forms of worship in 
France, and compelled all who would not 
adopt the Catholic faith to leave his realm. 
Among the refugees who lied to England at 
this time were Pierre Bontecou and his wife, 
Marguerite Collinot, and five children: Mar- 
guerite, Peter, Sara, Daniel and Susanne. Ac- 
cording to the ' ' .Archives Nationales, " at Paris, 
they left the Isle of Re in 1684 for " La Caro- 
line " [a general term used to designate the 
continent of North America]. Their residence 
had previously been in the city of La Rochelle, 
a place of great commercial importance and a 
stronghold of Protestantism. It is certain 
that one of the children, Daniel, was born 
there in 1681, and doubtless the others were 
natives of that place. Pierre Bontecou and 
his little family found refuge in England for a 
few years, but in 1689 they came to America 
and settled in New York City, where three 
children were born, Marie and Rachel (twins), 
July 21, 1690, and Timothy, June 17, 1693. 

Timothy Bontecou, our subject's great- 
great-grandfather, no doubt spent his boyhood 
in New York, but in early manhood went to 
France to learn the silversmith's trade, and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



265 



remained, it is supposed, about twenty years. 
\\'e have no history of him during this period; 
but he was probably married in France, as his 
wife, Mary, died in New Haven, Conn., No- 
vember 5, 1735, at the age of thirty-three 
years, according to the inscription on her mon- 
ument in the old cemetery in that city. On 
September 29, 1736, he married his second 
wife, Mary Goodrich, daughter of David and 
Prudence (Churchill) Goodrich, of Wethers- 
field, Conn. His death occurred in New 
Haven, February 14, 1784, at the age of 
ninety. By his first marriage he had one son, 
Timothy, born in 1723, probably in France. 
There were five children by the second mar- 
riage: Peter, who was born in New Haven, 
1738; Daniel, born 1739, died 1778; David, 
born 1742, died 1766; James, born 1743, died 
1760; and a daughter. Mrs. Lathrop, of whom 
all trace is lost. 

Peter Bontecou, the great-grandfather of 
our subject, was married November 14, 1762, 
by Rev. Chauncey Whittlesey, to Susanna 
Thomas, daughter of Jehiel and Mary Thomas, 
of New Haven. Thej- had nine children, whose 
names, with dates of birth and death, are here 
given: Polly Augusta, August 13, 1763, died 
March 28, 1849; James, August 6, 1766, died 
July 12, 1806; David (i), August 23, 1767, 
died in 1767; David (2), September 9, 1768, 
died January 26, 1769; Susannah (i), 1769, 
died in infancy; Susannah (2), 1770, died De- 
cember 25, 1777; Peter, 1770, died June 12, 
1794; Sarah, July 30, 1775, died January 9, 
1861; and David (3), March 17, 1777, died 
May 5, 1854. 

David Bontecou, the grandfather of our 
subject, was married October i, 1769, to Pol- 
ly Claik, daughter of Samuel and Anna (Haw- 
ley j Clark, and reared a family of eight chil- 
dren, of whom the first four were born at the 
old home of the family in New Haven, and the 
remaining four in Coeymans, N. Y. Their 
names with dates of birth are as follows: 
Peter, January 26, 1797; Elizabeth, October 
14, 1798; Susannah, July 25, 1801; James 
Clark, July 11, 1803; Sarah, May 19, 1805; 
David, October 25, 1807; Samuel Stover, 
January 23, 1810, died July 11, 1812; and 
George, our subject's father. 

George Bontecou was born June 23, 1812. 
He was married September 6, 1838, to Lydia 
Ann Whipple, who was born May 28, 18 18, 
the daughter of William and Hannah (Adams) 
Whipple, of Troy, N. Y. She died in Troy, 



February 20, 1S64, and July i, 1S69, Mr. 
Bontecou married Margaret Dustin, daughter 
of Ananis and Margaret (Hunter) Dustin, of 
\\'aterford, Erie Co., Penn. The family 
moved from Troy, N. Y. to Vineland, N. J., 
in 1866, and he died there August 7, 1893. 
There were ten children b\' his first marriage, 
their names with dates of birth being as fol- 
lows: Mary Hannah, August 19, 1839; Will- 
iam Whipple, August 17, 1841, died October 
14, 1842; Susan, May 29, 1843; William 
Wright Whipple, June 19, 1845; Elijah Whip- 
ple, June 27, 1847; George Henry, May 17, 
1849; Philip Dorlon, January 23, 1853; Abby 
Whipple, April 12, 1856; and Reed and Fran- 
cis (twins), December 26, 1858 (of whom the 
latter died July 24, 1859). By the second 
marriage there were two children: Lydia Ann, 
born April 5, 1870; and John, born February 
20, 1876, and died April 4, 1879. 

As will be seen by the above record, George 
Henry Bontecou, the subject proper of this 
sketch, is of the sixth generation in direct de- 
scent from the brave Huguenot pioneer, Pierre 
Bontecou. A native of Troy, N. Y., he was 
educated in the common schools there, and at 
the age of thirteen entered the employ of the 
New York Central & Hudson River railroad. 
In 1867 he went to Minnesota as an employe 
of the Southern Minnesota Railroad Co., and 
remained until 1872, when he became station 
agent at Dutchess Junction for the N. Y. C. 
R. R. and the N. D. & C. R. R. This posi- 
tion he has held ever since, his able manage- 
ment giving entire satisfaction to the compa- 
nies which he represents, and to the traveling 
public. For the last five years he has also 
been engaged in the manufacturing of common 
building brick for .the New York market, his 
yards being located at Dutchess Junction. His 
excellent judgment in business affairs has made 
him a valued worker in different enterprises, 
among them the Matteawan Savings Bank, of 
which he is a trustee. His counsel is sought 
in political matters also, and he is secretary of 
the Republican committee of the town of Fish- 
kill, and was a delegate to the Republican 
State Convention at Saratoga in 1895. He is 
foreman of the Willar H. Mase Hook and 
Ladder Co., of Matteawan, also a member of 
the State Firemen's Association, and he is 
also secretary of the Matteawan Club. In the 
Masonic fraternity he is an active worker, be- 
longing to Beacon Lodge No. 283, Highland 
Chapter of Newburg, Hudson Commandery, 



266 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOUAPUIVAL BEVORD. 



K. T. of Newburg, and Mecca Temple of New 
York City. 

He has a pleasant home at Matteawan, and 
he and his wife (formerly Miss Emma Masej 
are leading members of the M. E. Church, in 
which he holds the office of secretary of the 
board of trustees. They have had four chil- 
dren: George died at the age of fifteen; 
Howell is a student in the Medical Department 
of the University of Pennsylvania; Edna and 
Pierre are at home. Mrs, Bontecou is a daugh- 
ter of Sylvester H. and Almira (Cornwell) 
Mase, and a descendant of a family which has 
been distinguished in several generations for 
patriotism, her great-grandfather, Peter Mase, 
having been a soldier in the Revolutionary 
war, while her grandfather, Peter Mase, served 
in the war of 1812. Her father was second 
lieutenant in the 128th N. Y. V. I. during the 
Civil war. He was one of the most prominent 
men of Matteawan, engaging in hat manufac- 
turing, in the dry-goods business, also in the 
wholesale and retail leather business, and he 
held the office of sheriff of Dutchess county for 
two terms. 



CHARLES G. BAUMANN, a prominent sa- 
loon keeper of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, was born in that city November 23, 
1863. 

The home of his ancestors was in Waldurn 
Baden, Germany, where his father, John Bau- 
mann, was born March 16, 181 2. The latter 
attended the school of his birthplace during 
boyhood, and later learned the shoemaker's 
trade, serving an apprenticeship of five years. 
He afterward traveled through Switzerland as 
a journeyman cobbler, and in 1853 came to 
America, where he followed his trade in Cin- 
cinnati, but shortly afterward returned to 
Poughkeepsie and engaged in the manufacture 
and sale of cigars in a wholesale way. He was 
cautious and conservative, and made a success 
of the enterprise, accumulating a fine property. 
An independent voter, he thought more of se- 
curing good men for office than of party ties, 
and he never sought political preferment for 
himself. He was a prominent member of the 
Church of the Nativity (Roman Catholic), and 
was a leader among the German-born popula- 
tion. In 1842 he was married in Germany to 
Eva Catharine Spieler, who died July 16, 1889. 
In the following year he disposed of his busi- 
ness, and on May I, 1 89 1, he, too, departed this 



life. Of the nine children of this union five 
lived to adult age and four are still living: 
August; Josephine, the wife of Adam Messer- 
schmidt, of New York; Mary Louisa, the widow 
of Robert Farley; and Charles G., our subject. 

Charles G. Baumann was educated in the 
German Catholic school at St. Michael, and 
attended the public schools for one year. He 
became familiar with both English and Ger- 
man, and has been quite a reader of current 
literature. After leaving school he tended 
bar for three years for Albert Von Der Linden, 
on Market street, and then took a similar posi- 
tion with Charles Matheis, at No. 116 Slain 
street. On his employer's death si.\ years later, 
Mr. Baumann continued the business for the 
widow for one jear, and then on .May 1, 1885, 
bought the business and the building. He has 
been the agent for Jacob Ruppert's beer for 
twelve years. As a business man he has been 
remarkably successful, and he takes a promi- 
nent part in various local movements, being a 
member of the Germania Singing Society, the 
Phtenix Hose Co., the Young American Hose 
Co. No. 6, the Veteran Fire Association, the 
Dutchess Social Club, and he is an honorary 
member of the Knights of St. George, and a 
charter member of the Elks. In religion he 
follows the faith of his father, and adheres to 
the Roman Catholic Church. 

On October 8, 1889, Mr. Baumann married 
Miss Anna M. Haidlauf, the only child of Dr. 
John and Rosalie Marie Elizabeth Haidlauf, 
the former of whom (now deceased) was one 
of the leading German physicians of Pough- 
keepsie. To the union of Mr. and Mrs. Bau- 
mann two children have come: Rosa Helena 
and Katie Josephine, the latter being now de- 
ceased. 



L 



EWIS PINCKNEY, an industrious and 
progressive agriculturist of the town of 
Pawling, Dutchess county, was born January 
I. 1851, in the town of Carmel, Putnam Co., 
N. Y., where his forefathers were among the 
most prominent of the early settlers. His 
grandfather. Gen. Stephen Pinckney, was a 
native of that place, and passed his life there 
in agricultural pursuits, to which, in later 
years, he added mercantile business. He held 
the rank of general in the militia of his day, 
and was a leader in many important local 
movements. His first wife. Miss Hill, died 
not long after their marriage, and he formed 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



267 



another matrimonial union, this time with 
Miss Ann Hager. Eight children were born 
to them: William; Ira, who never married; 
Mrs. Arabella Pircle; Mrs. Nancy Smith; Perry; 
Michael; Alva and Stephen. Most of the 
members of this family settled near the old 
home, and the others located at Norwalk, Con- 
necticut. 

Perry Pinckney, our subject's father, was a 
carpenter by trade, but was also engaged at 
times in farming. He was an energetic man, 
successful in business, especially in early man- 
hood; a member of the Baptist Church and a 
leading supporter of the Democratic party. 
A large portion of his life was passed near 
Lake Mahopac and in his native town, but his 
last years were passed in Luddingtonville, 
where he died November 25, 1879. His wife, 
Eleanor Lockwood, daughter of Daniel Lock- 
wood, departed this life January i, 1868. Of 
their seven children, si.x lived to maturity, 
namely: Sarah, who married Robert Lee; 
Lewis, our subject; Sophia, the wife of Walter 
Tompkins; James S. , who resides west of 
Pawling; Lorainy, who is not married; and 
Carrie, the wife of John Pattison, of White 
Plains, New York. 

The subject of our sketch received his edu- 
cation mainly in the district schools of the 
town of East Fishkill, and after his mother's 
death began working by the month for farmers 
in the locality during the summer season and 
attended school during the winter at Peekskill, 
Pawling and other places, obtaining as good 
schooling as the locality afforded notwithstand- 
ing many discouragements. He was employed 
at farm work until he was thirty-eight years 
old, working at Hurd's Corners for many 
years, with one winter in Scrub Oak Plains, 
one year in East Fishkill, one year with Jere- 
miah Mead, eight months with Albert Corbin, 
eight with Arnold Brothers, below Pawling, 
and then after a winter in Mr. Allen's school 
in that village he worked for Allen Light for a 
few months and for his father-in-law at Cold 
Spring for two years, returning again to Mr. 
Light's for a short time. His next employer 
was Theodore Wheeler, of Dover, with whom 
he stayed nine years and eight months, and he 
then went West, spending some months in 
Kansas and Iowa. On his return in the fol- 
lowing spring he again engaged in farm work, 
spending one year each with Mr. Ferguson, 
J. B. Dutcher, John Arnold and John L. 
Haynes. In 1890, after twenty-two years in all 



at this work, he rented his present farm of 
664 acres near Pawling from Hooker & Ham- 
merlies. He has thirty-seven cows and is 
largely interested in dairying. 

His sterling qualities of character and the 
indomitable perseverance that has enabled him 
to make his way without the aid which helps 
so many men to a prosperous career, have 
won for Mr. Pinckney the respect of all who 
know him. He has so far passed his life in 
single blessedness. He is a member of the 
Methodist Church in Pawling, and supports the 
principles ot the Democratic party without 
taking an active share, however, in political 
work. 



F,ETER MILLER. This gentleman worthi- 
ly illustrates the commonly-accepted view 

of the character of the enterprising German 
citizen, who has made his own way in this 
country, and is now at the head of a good re- 
tail boot and shoe business. A native of 
Westphalia, he was born September 28, 1848, 
and is the son of John J. Miller, who was also 
born in the same place, in 181 5, and by trade 
was a shoemaker, which occupation was fol- 
lowed by his father and grandfather. 

In his native land John J. Miller was united 
in marriage with Misc Anna C. Heller, also a 
native of Westphalia, and to them were born 
five children, namely: John, a shoemaker of 
Germany; Peter, of this sketch: Regina, wife 
of Mathew Zeigen, of Poughkeepsie; Cather- 
ine, who died in infancy; and Carl, a shoe- 
maker, of Germany. The father never left 
the Fatherland, where he continued to follow 
his trade until he was called from this earth in 
1 86 1. His wife had passed away in 1850. 
They were devout members of the German 
Catholic Church. 

Mr. Miller, of this sketch, was an enter- 
prising, ambitious boy, and after working at 
the shoemaker's trade in Germany until he had 
reached his majority, he determined to seek his 
fortune on this side of the Atlantic. Accord- 
ingly he set sail in 1871, and has since been 
one of the worthy citizens of Poughkeepsie, 
where he was first employed at shoemaking, 
and also as a clerk in the store of Frank Marks 
for about a year and a half. After filling a 
similar position with Michael Tiinmins fornine 
years, he in 1883 started in the shoe business 
on his own responsibility at No. 123 Main 
street, where he carried on operations for five 



268 



COAfMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



years, and then purchased his present store at 
No. 131 on the same street. 

In January, 1S76, Mr. .Miller led to the 
marriage altar .Mrs. Mary C. Muckenhoupt, a 
widow lady who had nine children by her first 
union, and they became the parents of one 
son — Charley T. Both our subject and his 
wife are members of the Roman Catholic 
Church, and in politics he gives his allegiance 
to the Democratic party. He is a progressive, 
wide-awake business man, enjoj'ing a liberal 
patronage and is held in high esteem in both 
business and social circles. 



SIMON J. KELDER, one of the leading 
young merchants of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., 
and a most respected and useful citizen of that 
city, is a native of the town of Rochester, Ulster 
Co., N. Y. His great-grandfather was a resi- 
dent of Marbletown, Ulster county, he being 
one of the leading farmers of his day. His 
grandfather was a resident of the same place, 
he also being a farmer, and he held several 
public ofifices. To him and his wife, Susan 
Christian, were born seven children, one of 
whom, George Kelder, was the father of Simon 
J., the subject of our sketch. 

George Kelder was born in the town of 
Rochester, Ulster Co., N. Y., January 15, 1840. 
On October 9, 1861, he was married to Miss 
Martha A. , daughter of Jacob and Nancy Roosa, 
of the town of Rochester, Ulster county, and 
they had one child, Simon J. The father was 
a bright and capable young man, with a promis- 
ing future, but whose life was taken at the early 
age of twenty-four years — when but at the 
threshold of his active career — he dying from 
brain fever in 1864. His widow subsequently 
married Edward L. Rymph, of Hyde Park, 
Dutchess county, this State, of which place 
she is still a resident. 

Simon J. Kelder passed his earl}' boyhood 
in Ulster county, and at the age of five years, 
on his mother's re-marriage, went with her to 
Hyde Park and there lived, making his home 
with his parents until seventeen or eighteen 
years of age, working on a farm; in the mean- 
time he attended the common schools, and for 
a period the seminary at New Paltz. He then 
went to Poughkeepsie and engaged in the hat 
and cap business, being located at No. 283 
Main street, which business he continued to 
follow some six years, when he disposed of it 
and purchased the grocery business of J. Craft, 



at No 521 Main street, in the same city. In 
1894 he removed to No. 396, on the same 
street, from which house his retail business is 
done, and the wholesale department is at No. 
391. Mr. Kelder began his business life at an 
earl}' age. and with small means, but from an 
humble beginning and in a limited way he has 
steadily forged ahead until to-day he stands 
among the foremost young business men of 
Poughkeepsie. He is one of the self-made 
men of our times, and by close application to 
business, coupled with wise judgment and busi- 
ness tact, he, though yet a young man, has 
made for himself a position m business circles 
of which he may well be proud. In politics 
Mr. Kelder is a Republican, and has served in 
several official relations. He is now one of 
the aldermen of Poughkeepsie, serving from 
the Sixth ward, to which office he was elected 
in 1897. He takes an active interest in all 
movements looking to the advancement of 
morals and religion in the community; is a 
member of Trinity M. E. Church, of Pough- 
keepsie; also is identified with the K. of P. 

On November 19, 1884, Mr. Kelder was 
married to Miss Jennie S. Sutton, a daughter 
of Henry and Louisa Sutton, of Newburg, 
N. Y., and to the union were born: Florence; 
George T., who died in the eighth year of his 
age; Louisa; and Stanley M.. who died in his 
infancy. Their home, one of the comfortable 
ones of Poughkeepsie, is located on Hooker 
avenue, designated as No. 5. 



NICHOLAS HOFFMAN. Amongthe 
many worthy citizens of German birth 

who have made their fortunes in this State, 
I and who ha\e been residents of Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, stood prominent the gentle- 
man whose name opens this sketch, and who 
left many friends to cherish kindly remem- 
brances of him when death called him hence. 

Paul Hoffman, the father of our subject, 
was a native of Aschaffenburg, Bavaria, Ger- 
many, and was a shoemaker by occupation. 
He married, and had the following named 
children: Nicholas, our subject; Frank. li\ing 
in St. Helena, Cal. ; \'alentine, who died in 
Poughkeepsie; Philip, who died in Norfolk, 
Va. ; and Margarett and Caroline, who still 
live in their native town in Germany. 

Nicholas Hoffman was born at Aschaffen- 
burg, Bavaria, Germany, February 28, 1832. 
He received a limited education in his native 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



269 



land, and served a three-years' apprentice- 
ship at the shoemaker's trade. In 185 i, when 
nineteen years of age, he came to this country, 
landing at New York City, where he worked 
as a journeyman for a year, and then set up a 
shop of his own, in a room in the tenement 
house where he lived, on Third street, near 
Avenue A. After a year and a half spent in 
this way he left New York for Whiteport, 
Ulster county, where he followed his trade for 
the succeeding two years. He then purchased 
a team, and was engaged in teaming some ten 
years, at the end of which time he purchased 
a canal boat and went to canaling for himself 
on the D. &H. canal, continuing several years. 

In 1866 he sold his canal boat and moved 
to Kingston, and entered into partnership 
with a Mr. Sturgis in the brewing business, 
but soon afterward, owing to his illness, he 
sold his interest to his partner, and in 1868 
came to Poughkeepsie, where he purchased a 
saloon at No. 403 Main street, remaining there 
until 1872, when he purchased the building on 
the corner of Main and Hamilton streets, built 
by Philip Goldstein, and moved his saloon to 
a part thereof in 1875. From 1875 until his 
death Mr. Hoffman was proprietor of the 
" Hoffman House," which is one of the finest 
buildings of its kind in Poughkeepsie, and 
which, under his judicious management, be- 
came a very popular hotel. In 1878 he opened, 
in connection with his other business, a shoe 
store, which was conducted by his two sons, 
Henry and Nicholas, until 1886, when he sold 
the shoe business and opened his saloon in the 
room where it had been, named it the " Hoff- 
man House," by which name it is at present 
known. 

Mr. Hoffman was a man of considerable 
business ability, possessed of excellent judg- 
ment and great perseverance and enterprise. 
He landed in this country among strangers, an 
unsophisticated lad, with only ten cents in his 
pocket, and totally unacquainted with the lan- 
guage. He taught himself to speak, read and 
write English, and became a generally well- 
informed man in English literature, not only 
became prosperous financially, but succeeded 
in making friends among the best class of citi- 
zens who appreciated his generous, whole- 
souled nature, and admired his sterling quali- 
ties. Among his business associates he had 
the reputation of being careful, thrifty and 
thoroughly honest, and in public matters he 
was liberal and always ready to assist in any 



way desired. A Democrat in politics, he was 
not a partisan, and in local affairs was willing 
to see the best men put in office regardless of 
their party affiliations. In religious faith he 
was a member of the German Catholic Church, 
and prominent in its councils. His death oc- 
curred August 28, 1877. 

In 185 1, in New York City, Mr. Hoffman 
was married to Elizabeth Kunney, daughter of 
xAndrew and Margaretta Kunney, and who had 
come to America on the same ship with him, 
and seven children blessed their union, namely: 
Frank and Katherine died in early childhood; 
Caroline, at home; Henry and Nicholas (both 
deceased); Katherine and Frank, both living at 
home. The family are highly esteemed and 
respected by all who know them. 



MULFORD WHEELER, one of the act- 
ive, prominent and enterprising agri- 
culturists of the town of Pine Plains, Dutchess 
county, was born April 27, 1840, in the town 
of Amenia, that county, a son of B. Hampton 
Wheeler, who was born in the town of North- 
east, in 1 81 3. Eben Wheeler, paternal grand- 
father of our subject, was born in 1750, also in 
the town of Northeast, where he continued to 
follow farming up to the time of his death, 
which occurred about i860. The family was 
first founded, however, in Connecticut by En- 
glish emigrants, and the grandfather aided the 
Colonies in their struggle for independence. 
He wedded a Miss Conklin, and they became 
the parents of ten children, namely: B. Hamp- 
ton, Albert, Edmond E., Emeline, Harriet, 
Betsy Ann, Julia, Cornelia, Mariette (Mrs. 
Story) and Alma, wife of Robert Rowe. 

The father of our subject was an e.xtensive 
farmer and one of the leading citizens of the 
town of Amenia, his place being located about 
one mile south of the village of Amenia. He 
was a strong man, of more than ordinary abil- 
ity, possessed excellent business judgment and 
great energy, and accumulated a handsome 
property, having at one time three large farms 
inthe town of Amenia, all the result of his own 
enterprise and diligence. He took quite an 
active part in political affairs, voting the Dem- 
ocratic ticket and held several offices in the 
locality, including that of assessor, which he 
filled for several \'ears. He was prominently 
connected with the Amenia Fair Association, 
being its president for several years, and was 
identified with everything that would promote 



270 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



the welfare of his town or county. He mar- 
ried Emeline Clark, daughter of Dugass Clark, 
of the town of North»ast, and they became the 
parents of five children: Mulford; Mrs. Sarah 
Bartholomew; Elizabeth; Clark D. (of the 
town of Northeast) and Collin, who died at the 
age of ten years. 

Mulford Wheeler acquired an excellent ed- 
ucation in the Amenia Seminary, which at that 
time was one of the first schools of the county, 
and in later years he supplemented the knowl- 
edge there acquired by extensive reading. 
After the age of twelve he was able to attend 
school only in the winter season, as his serv- 
ices were needed upon the home farm, where 
he remained until 1865. After operating one 
of his father's farms in the town of Amenia for 
some time, in March, 1871, he removed to his 
present place in the town of Pine Plains, hav- 
ing purchased it of the Eli Collin estate. It 
comprises 309 acres of rich and arable land, 
which he has converted into one of the best 
farms of the township. 

In January, 1867, Mr. Wheeler was mar- 
ried to Miss Sarah F. Collin, who was born 
June 24, 1847, ^ daughter of Eli Collin, who 
was born February 23, 1805. Her great-great- 
grandfather, John Collin, was born in France 
in 1706, and on coming to the New World 
located at Milford, New Haven Co., Conn., 
where his son, Daniel Collin, was born Febru- 
ary 19, 1734. The latter became the father 
of James Collin, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Wheeler, who was born April 15, 1777. He 
was a large land owner of Dutchess county, 
having at one time about 1,000 acres, and the 
family was one of the most prominent in the 
county. Eli Collin was born in the town of 
Northeast, where he continued to make his 
home until 1828, when he removed to the 
farm now owned by our subject, and was one 
of the most successful agriculturists of the 
locality. On February 20, 1830, he married 
Betsy Finch, and they had nine children: 
Almira, Julia, James and William, all now de- 
ceased; Henry, living in the town of Northeast; 
Lydia and Myra, both now deceased; Sarah, 
wife of our subject; and Bryan, lixing in New 
York City. Mr. Collin was originally a Whig 
in politics, later becoming a Republican. He 
died in 1861, his wife eight years later. 

Mr. Wheeler has always been an ardent 
Democrat in political sentiment, taking an 
active part in local political matters, and was 
elected to office before he had reached his 



majority. He served as assessor for three 
years, and was commissioner of highways in 
the town of Amenia. Always public-spirited, 
every worthy enterprise for the benefit of the 
community receives his support, and he and 
his wife attend and contribute liberally to the 
Presbyterian Church, of which Mrs. Wheeler 
is a member. 



JAMES E. WAIl E, a well-known conduct- 
or on the New York Central & Hudson 

River railroad, and one of the most trusted 
employes of the company, was born July 6, 
1843, in 'he town of Unionvale, Dutchess 
county, where his father, Joseph Waite, and 
his grandfather, Joseph Waite, were also born. 
The latter engaged in farming there, and mar- 
ried a Miss Draper, by whom he had seven 
children: Joseph, George, Patience, Mary, 
Sarah, Katie .\. and \'alley. 

Joseph Waite, the father of James E., was 
a prominent citizen in his day. He acquired 
a good practical education in the schools of his 
native town, and then put his fine talent and 
skill in mechanical work to good use as a car- 
penter anil builder. In this business he was 
regarded as an expert, and his work is to be 
seen in many of the best houses of that region. 
He built many of the substantial residences of 
Dover Plains, including the one now occupied 
by our subject. He was held in high esteem 
by all classes and took great interest in town 
afTairs, but he never aspired to political dis- 
tinction and many times refused to become a 
candidate for public office, although strongly 
urged to do so. In earlv manhood he married 
Miss Amelia Applebee, of the town of Wash- 
ington, Dutchess county, and they had ten 
children, of whom the followii>g five are now 
recalled: John, who married Catherine \'an- 
Wagenen; William, who married Louisa Ro- 
zell; Charles, who married Susan J. Bortem; 
Nehemiah (deceased); and James E. 

The subject of our sketch availed himself 
of the educational advantages to be found in 
his native place, and then learned the carpen- 
ter's trade with his father, for whom he worked 
for some time. Finding the business uncon- 
genial, he engaged in farming, but soon after- 
ward began driving a stage, and continued this 
business for sixteen years, when he entered 
service on the Harlem railroad as a brakeman. 
After eleven years he was promoted to con- 
ductor, which position he has now held for 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



271 



twelve years to the entire satisfaction of his 
employers and the public. He is an active 
worker in the Masonic fraternity, a member of 
the Mutual Benefit Association, and of Lodge 
No. 666, of Dover Plains, in which he has held 
most of the offices. He has twice served as 
junior warden, and is master at the present 
time. He married Miss Carrie Rozell, who 
was also a native of the town of Unionvale, 
Dutchess county, where she received an ex- 
cellent education. Two children were born to 
them, neither of whom is now living: (i) 
Clarence J. Waite was born in Unionvale, in 
1863, and after acquiring a good education 
there engaged in mercantile business at Pawl- 
ing, Dutchess county. Later he entered the 
service of the Harlem Railroad Co., and re- 
mained until his death, which occurred De- 
cember 30', 1890. In 1887 he was married to 
Miss Kittie Brusie, daughter of Wesley Brusie, 
a leading farmer of the town of Northeast, and 
his wife Helen. One child blessed this union, 
Clarice J. Waite, born March 14, 1891. (2) 
Irving Waite, the second son of our subject, 
was born in Unionvale in 1865, and attended 
the district schools of that vicinity till death 
terminated his bright and promising life at the 
age of twelve years. 

The Rozell family has been prominent in 
Unionvale for many years. Albert Rozell, 
Mrs. Waite's grandfather, was born and edu- 
cated there and later became a leading farmer 
of the town. He married Miss Betsy Horton, 
of the same place, and had twelve children, of 
whom only five are now known: Beekman, 
Albro, James, Mary and Albert (Mrs. Waite's 
father). Albert, like his father, was educated 
in the common schools of the town, and then 
engaged in farming. As a politician he wield- 
ed great influence m town and county affairs, 
and he held the office of sheriff for many years, 
as well as various positions in his township. 
He and his wife, Tamar Orton, reared a family 
of eight children, all but one of whom mar- 
ried. The names, with dates of birth and their 
respective partners in matrimony, are as fol- 
lows: Emma, 1837 — John Schafer; Henry, 
1838 — Lizzie \'an Black; James, 1841 — Annie 
Green; Carrie, 1843 — James Waite; Rhoda, 
1845 — Rennselaer Lane; George, 1852, is not 
married; Celia, 1854 — Elias Fleet; and Alice, 
1856 — Benjamin Squires. The younger chil- 
dren of our subject's grandfather Waite all 
married and settled in Dutchess county. 

George Waite was born in Unionvale, 



Dutchess county, in 1789, and received a com- 
mon-school education there. He then learned 
the shoemaker's trade, at which he worked for 
some thirty years, when he engaged in farm- 
ing. He was a Democrat in politics, and held 
numerous town offices, serving as justice of the 
peace for a number of terms. He married 
Miss Lucinda Bently, daughter of William 
Bently, a farmer of Beekman, and his wife, 
Susanna Spencer. Eight children were born 
to George and Lucinda Waite: (i) Joseph died 
in infancy. (2) George W. Waite was born 
in 1812, in the town of Beekman. After his 
school days were ended he learned the carpen- 
ter's trade, at which he worked all his life. 
He married Almira Van Wike, daughter of 
Theo. \'an Wike, a farmer of Unionvale, and 
had four children: Frank Waite married Mary 
Hayte; Fred O. married Annie Frier; Corne- 
lius married Ida Waite; and K-ate married 
William Voce. (3) Neilson was born in the 
town of Beekman in 18 16. and engaged in 
farming, teaching and merchandising. He 
married Miss Annie White and had two chil- 
dren: Dwight and Emma J. (4) Cornwell 
Waite was born in the town of Beekman in 
1 8 1 8, and was educated in the common schools 
of Unionvale. Early in life he engaged in 
farming in that town, and continued until he 
was thirty-five or forty years old, when he 
moved to South Dover, purchasing the Harri- 
son Sheldon farm, containing 160 acres of land, 
where he has now resided for a number of 
years. His first wife was Miss Silby Corn- 
well, daughter of James and Cloey (Sherman) 
Cornwell, farmers of the town of Beekman, 
Dutchess county. By this marriage he had 
one child, Harriet A., who married Mr. Ald- 
ridge, of Pawling, and had three children: 
Allie and Cornelia (who are not married), and 
Morton (the latter dying in infancy). The 
mother of this family died in 1850. Mr. 
Waite afterward married Mrs. Hannah t Ward) 
Sheldon, widow of Harrison Sheldon, of Do- 
ver. They have had four children: Minnie 
Waite, who was educated in the Poughkeepsie 
Normal School, is not married. Henry C. 
Waite, who was born in Dover town, and was 
educated at Mt. Union (Ohio) College and at 
Wilberham, Mass., graduating at the latter 
place. He taught school for a few years, and 
is now connected with the Erie railroad, in the 
mail department, in New York City. He mar- 
ried Addie Kingsbury, but has no children. 
Irving P. was educated at Prangs, Dover 



272 



COyfMEMORATIVB BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Plains, and De Garmo Institute, at Rhinebeck. 
He has always been engaged in farming, and 
is not married. William A. was educated at 
W'ilberham. Mass.. and at Mt. Union fOhio) 
College. He taught school for a number of 
years, and then took a clerical position at New 
York with the Erie railroad; he is now en- 
gaged in the express business in New York 
City. He married Anna Davis, and has two 
children: Stewart D. and Eleanor. (51 Helen 
is not married. 6/ Harriet married Moses 
VVaite, a carpenter of Dover, and had one 
child, George S. White. (7) Catharine re- 
mained unmarried. ('8) Sarah was born in 
the town of Unionvale, and married Isaac D. 
Tripp, a farmer and miller of that town. They 
had no children. 

Patience Waite, the third child of Joseph 
Waite, Sr., was born in the town of Union- 
vale, and married Richard Cornwell, a farmer 
of the town of Beekman. They had one son, 
Joseph Cornwall, who died at an early age. 

Mary Waite, also a native of the town of 
Unionvale, married Baria Austin, a farmer of 
that town. They had three children: Aaron 
B., who married Julia Lane; Sarah, Mrs. 
David Amie, and Jane, Mrs. William W. Abel. 

Sarah Waite married John Hall, a farmer 
of Unionvale. and had thirteen children: Piatt, 
De Peyster, Jay, Katie fwho married David 
Hawerj. Polly, Phrebe Twho married Henry P. 
Amie», Ellen, Jane, Mary, and four others, 
whose names are not known. 

Katie A. married William McDowel, a 
farmer of the town of Warrington, Dutchess 
county, and had two children: Joseph ''who 
married Miss Van Wageneu; and Katie Ann. 

V'alley Waite married William Hall, a 
farmer. He was a cripple, but filled a promi- 
nent place in the community, and during the 
greater part of his life was collector of the town 
of Unionvale. They had two children, Joseph 
and George. 



UNDI-IRHII^L BUDD, the subject of our 
sketch, one of the most progressive and 
intelligent agriculturists of the town of Wap- 
pinger. Dutchess county, is a descendant of 
one of the oldest Colonial families in this coun- 
try. He is the seventh son of Elijah Budd. a 
prominent farmer of Dutchess county in his 
day. Elijah fiudd was born in the year 1781, 
on the same day that Lord Cornwallis surren- 
dered his army to Gen. Washington at York- 



town, at the close of the Revolution. Elijah's 
father, Gilbert, came from Westchester county, 
and settled in the Highlands, north of Cold 
Spring. From there he came to Fishkill, and 
purchased a farm just west of the village on the 
old post road, known as the Old Budd home- 
stead, and owned at the present time by Fred- 
erick Haight. Here Elijah was born. After 
the death of his father, Elijah came into pos- 
session of the farm. In 1S06 Elijah married 
Abigail Sebring, daughter of Isaac Sebring, an 
e.xtensive and prosperous farmer of Dutchess 
county. Isaac Sebring married, December 31, 
1776, Catherine Van Benschoten, a daughter 
of Tunis Van Benschoten, of New Hackensack, 
Dutchess county. Isaac Sebring died in his 
seventy-eighth year, his wife, Catherine ("Van- 
Benschoten) in her seventy-seventh year. 
Tunis Van Benschoten died in his eighty-first 
year, his wife, Annie ( Sleight j, in her ninety- 
first year. Elijah Budd sold the old home- 
stead, and bought a farm of John Brincker- 
hodd. on the Hudson, now Low Point, and 
moved there in the year 1822. 

On this farm Underbill Budd was born 
August 3. 1823. On October 12, 1852. Mr. 
Budd married a daughter of Matthew I. Snook, 
whose ancestors emigrated from Holland in 
the early part of the seventeenth century. 
His father was in the American army through 
the Revolutionary war. .A.fter his marriage 
Mr. Budd went west to the State of Illinois, to 
look after the estate of a deceased brother who 
left a large landed estate, and lived there three 
years. Mr. Budd became a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church at the age of six- 
teen years, and while in Illinois he received a 
license as a local preacher, and was associated 
with a regular Conference preacher, on the 
Sabbath preaching sometimes twice, and riding 
from ten to twenty miles. He has sustained 
his relations to the Church for forty years, and 
has been a member thereof some fifty-six years. 
During that period he has filled almost every 
position of trust in the Church, and has never 
received or solicited any compensation for his 
labor whatever, giving his time and labor 
freely for the cause of Christianity, and also 
paying liberally toward the support of the 
Church. At the end of three years he returned 
to Dutchess county, and took charge of his 
father's farm. His elder brothers having all 
left home, he felt it his duty to look after 
them during the period of fifteen years in the 
faithful discharge of his duty. His mother 




oil 71 UjhaJUuX B^L^e(^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHWAL RECORD. 



273 



died in the year 1866 at the age of eighty-one 
years. His father lived until 1S69, and died 
in the eighty-ninth year of his age. Mr. Budd 
stayed on the farm until the estate was sold 
and settled up, and then, in 1875, moved to 
the farm of his father-in-law, who died in that 
same year in the eightieth year of his age. 
On this farm Mr. Budd still lives, and although 
in his seventy-fourth year he is active, both 
physically and mentally. Mr. Budd lays his 
activity to the fact that he has always abstained 
from the use of tobacco and spirituous liquors 
in any form. Mr. and Mrs. Budd have two 
sons: Prof. I. S., a graduate of the New 
England Conservatory of Music at Boston, and 
is now residing in the city of Newburgh, en- 
gaged in the profession of music; and Matthew 
V. B. Budd, who owns a farm adjoining his 
father, and is living at home at the present 
time. 

Sketch of English History of Budd 
Family. — Baron Gene Budd, a great soldier 
and commanding officer under Charles the 
Great, who established the great empire. 
Charles gave him a large body of land on the 
coast of what is called Normandy. Here he 
ruled like a freeman, and he and his descend- 
ants were in many battles. They were called 
French when the Normans invaded that part 
of France, and they fought till they were over- 
come and slain, only a few men left, and their 
land taken by the conquerors. Some scattered ; 
but William Budd remained and worked on 
the seashore, at a place called Rye. His 
sons and grandsons were in time allowed their 
land, and they became soldiers. Here William 
the Great came when his barons wished to 
slay him; but Richard Budd gathered his men 
and protected him till the Duke, through his 
assistance, was able to check the insurgents 
and bring them to a better understanding. 
During the Norman Conquest three sons of 
William Budd crossed over to England, and 
are supposed to have named the town of Rye, 
County of Sussex, England, leaving men there 
for certain occasions. The father of Richard 
settled back in Normandy, and inherited his 
father's feudal rights. 

The Duke rewarded Richard Budd by giv- 
ing him greater possessions. His son John 
inherited them, and when Edward of England 
died he was the first to muster his knights and 
soldiers and land at Rye, England, to defend 
the claim of William of Normandy to the 
throne of England, and in the great battle 

18 



which took place it is claimed by our ancestors 
that his valor turned the tide of battle, in 
which the Saxons were defeated. After this 
battle William the Great was made king of 
England. John Budd married a sister of Will- 
iam the Great, and was made Earl of Sussex. 
John Budd and his descendants built up Rye, 
but the town and all the records were burnt in 
the wars which followed. They held positions 
of soldiers and knights. They married in the 
Nevils, Brownes, and Montagues, and during 
the war of the Red a^d White Roses many of 
them were slain with the brave Earl and Lord 
Montague, their cousins, who fell at Barnet 
with axe and sword in hand after piling heaps 
of slain around them. Edward the Fourth 
having secured the crown, the descendants of 
the Nevils, Budds and Brownes found no favor 
with him or his reigning heirs, and many of 
their large estates were confiscated. 

John Budd resolved to find freedom in 
America, and made the first settlement in Rye, 
Westchester county. It was on the past re- 
nowned history of the Budd family in France 
that Joseph Bonaparte, Count Survillers, ex- 
King of Spain, while visiting Col. John Budd, 
at Budds Lake, Morris Co., N. J., claimed the 
aged sire to be of high French blood, and 
everything went along smooth enough with 
them until Joseph's daughter happened to find 
a picture of Napoleon on horseback, being led 
by the Russian bear, which had been placed 
in some room unknowingly to the Colonel. 
The Countess brought the picture to her father, 
in tears, and Joseph, finding the Colonel in the 
dining-room, threw the picture at his head, 
and soon the blood was high on both sides, 
Bonaparte claiming the Colonel a traitor to his 
great French ancestors, and the Colonel claim- 
ing Joseph to be a coward by deserting his 
brother Napoleon in his great trial; and that 
he knew nothing of the picture, it having been 
placed in the room by some summer visitor 
who had recently left. The hot blood did not 
abate in the quarrel, and the Colonel ordered 
Joseph Bonaparte to leave the house and 
premises without delay, which he did and re- 
turned to Bordentown, never to visit the lake 
again. 

Prominent Members of the Budd Fami- 
ly IN the early History of the Country. 
Thomas Budd was blown up in the "Ran- 
dolph," while engaging a British frigate during 
the Revolutionary war. John Budd, the first 
son of Daniel Budd, was born April 5, 1762, in 



274 



COMMEMOSA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



the town of Chester, and at the age of sixteen 
years entered the Continental service under 
George Washington. He had charge of a bat- 
tery when the British were advancing on 
Springfield, and kept the enemy in check un- 
til the militia gathered in force, which was 
about the time the " Red Coats" (as he called 
them) made a charge on his guns. Seeing that 
he could not save them, he ordered his horses 
to be cut loose, and under their fire and shouts 
of Yankee curses to halt, made good his re- 
treat. The militia having gathered, the Brit- 
ish got the worst of it, and the guns were re- 
covered. At the battle of Monmouth he took 
part on that hot day, and was made colonel. 
Joseph Budd was a captain in the war of 1812, 
commanding his company at Sandy Hook, N. 
J., and other places of defense. Daniel Budd, 
born July 27, 1722, was assessor of the township 
of Roxiticus, N . J . , and a captain in the reserves 
of the Revolutionary war. James Budd re- 
sided in Burlington, and was a member of the 
Colonial Assembly in 1668. He was drowned 
in the Delaware at Burlington, N. J., in 1692. 
Gilbert Budd was a surgeon in the British 
navy for thirty years. He returned to this 
country after the Revolutionary war, and lived 
with his cousin. Col. Gilbert Budd, of Mamaro- 
neck, N. Y. , till his death, which occurred in 
1805, when he was aged eighty-five years. 

American History of Budd Family From 
1632. — John and Joseph Budd came to this 
country in the year 1632. They arrived in 
New Haven in 1639 as one of the first plant- 
ers of that place [New Haven Col. Rec. , Vol. 
1-7-425.] He removed to Southhold, L. I., 
from thereto Rye, Westchester Co., N. V., in 
1 66 1. In 1663 John Budd was deputy from 
Rye to the General Court of Connecticut. He 
was the first proprietor of Apawquamus, or 
Budd's Neck, purchased of the natives Sachem, 
Shamrocke and other Indians. The original 
conveyance is on the records of Westchester 
county, dated November 8, 1661, and was so 
large a grant of land that the other proprietors 
of Rye were jealous, and thej- petitioned the 
General Court assembled at Hartford (now 
Connecticut) not to confirm; but John Budd's 
influence was such that he retained his pur- 
chase. He left sons, John and Joseph, and his 
will dated October 13, 1669, bequeathed to 
his 5on John all his portion of the mills on 
Blind brook, and to Joseph all of Budd's Neck. 
Joseph Budd's influence with the Crown ob- 
tained a patent dated the 20th of February, 



1695; but, owing to deficiencies in the bound- 
ary line between New York and Connecticut, 
the Courts refused to act on this patent, and 
it was not until 1720 that it was confirmed 
under the great seal of the Province of New 
York. The patentees then yielded yearly to 
the Governor, on the fast day of the Blessed 
Virgin Mary, the annual rent of one pound 
and nineteen shillings. This was under 
George I. 

Lieut. John Budd married Catherine 
Browne, a descending relative of Sir Anthony 
Browne, the founder of the Montague family 
and Henry \' of England. Lieut. John Budd 
left two sons, John and Joseph, and two 
daughters, Judith and Jane. Lieut. John 
Budd died 1670. [M. 3 Hartford, Vol. 1-425 
contains his will.] 

Joseph Budd, the second son of John Budd 
(i). was known as Capt. Budd in 1700. He 
was a prominent officer in 1701, and justice of 
the peace from 1710 to 1716 and from 1720 
to I 722. In 1720 he obtained a patent for the 
tract purchased by his father known as Budd's 
Neck. He died in 1722, and left children: 
John, Joseph, Elisha, Underbill. 

John Budd, son of Joseph, is mentioned in 
the records of Rye, from 1720 to 1745. He 
inherited the estate on Budd's Neck, which he 
sold in 1745, mostly to Peter Jay. Gilbert 
Budd, born in Westchester county, in 1736, 
grandfather of Underbill Budd (subject of our 
sketch), married Deborah Searls, born June 
14, 1738; children: Underbill, Seeley, Elijah 
(i), Mary P., William, Gilbert (i), John, Gil- 
bert (2) and Elijah (2). Elijah Budd, father 
of Underbill, married Abigail Sebring; chil- 
dren: Isaac S. (died in his seventy-fourth 
year). Van Benschoten (died in his eighty- 
fourth year), John J., Jacob (died in his eighty- 
fifth year), Tunis G., Matthew, Margaret 
(died in her seventy-eighth year), Maria M. 
(died in her seventy-sixth year). Underbill, 
Amelia A. and Edward. The father, Elijah 
Budd, died in his eighty-ninth year; the 
mother, Abigail (Sebring), died in her eighty- 
first year. 

Prominent Members of the Family of 
To-day. — James H. Budd, who was congress- 
man, and is now Governor of California; Jo- 
seph Budd, judge of Superior Court, Stockton, 
Cal. ; Oliver H. Budd, who is now serving his 
second term in the Legislature; Jtranes Bgdd; J'' 
president of the Agricultural College of Iowa; 
W. H. Budd, lawyer, New York City; Will- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



275 



iam Budd, lawyer and senator, Mt. Holly, 
N. J. ; Joseph K. Budd, banker, St. Louis; 
Dr. Henry Budd, Geneva, N. Y., and others. 



HENRY B. BEVIER. The Bevier family 
has been so long and so prominently 

identified with the leading interests of this re- 
gion that to be ignorant of its history "argues 
one's self unknown." From the days of the 
Huguenot pioneer, Louis Bevier, one of that 
little company of exiles who came to America 
in 1660, lo the present time, the bearers of 
this name have been distinguished for the pos- 
session of those qualities which constitute good 
citizenship, and many have held positions of 
honor in the public service. 

Henry B. Bevier, our subject, is a well- 
known druggist and apothecary of Matteawan, 
Dutchess county, born August 31, 1857, at 
Napanoch, N. Y., the son of Dr. Benjamin R. 
Bevier and his wife, Ellen M. Bange. His 
education was obtained at his native place, in 
the public schools, and at the Van Vleck Sem- 
inary. At an early age he entered the employ 
of Alexander A. Taylor, a druggist at Summit, 
N. J., and while there he passed the examina- 
tion before the State Board of Pharmacy, 
obtaining a license to follow his chosen calling. 
Later he was employed as a clerk in Newark, 
N. J., and other places; but in 1877 he went 
to Matteawan, where he purchased the drug 
store of Daniel Y. Bayley, which he has since 
conducted. His business is now very ex- 
tensive, and he is the proprietor of Bevier's 
Expectorant and Bevier's Malaria Pills, reme- 
dies whose effectiveness has given them an 
immense sale, especially in the eastern and 
middle States. 

Like all of his family, he is public-spirited 
and takes great interest in local progress. He 
was elected coroner on the Republican ticket 
in November, 1894, for a term of three years, 
having a majority over his competitor of more 
than 2,000 votes. As a member of the board 
of education he has done much to maintain 
the efficiency of the Matteawan schools. He 
is a trustee of the Matteawan Savings Bank, 
and a member of various social and fraternal 
societies — the Matteawan Club, the F. &A. M., 
Beacon Lodge No. 2S3, Newburg Chapter, and 
of the order of Foresters, " Court Oueen," of 
Hudson. 

On September 14, 1887, he was married to 
Miss Kate Brown, a member of a leading fam- 



ily of Matteawan, and daughter of the late 
Monroe Brown and his wife, Mary Jones 
Brown. They reside on the corner of Schenk 
avenue and Ackerman street, and their pleas- 
ant home is gladdened by two sons, Benjamin, 
born in 1888, and Monroe, born in 1893. Mr. 
and Mrs. Bevier attended the Presbyterian 
Church, and are prompt to lend their sym- 
pathy to any worthy cause. 

Mr. Bevier is of the tenth generation in di- 
rect descent from the Huguenot exile, and 
Conrad Bevier, his great-grandfather, who/was 
an officer in the Revolutionary army. ' Dr. 
Benjamin R. Bevier, his grandfather, ohe of 
the most prominent physicians of his day, was 
born September 10, 1782, and died at Napa- 
noch, New York, June 17, 1866. As a prac- 
titioner, he was distinguished for the rapidity 
and accuracy of his diagnoses in diffiqult cases, 
his fidelity to his patients, and his genial man- 
ner. The latter excellent quality both his son, 
Dr. Benj. R. Bevier, Jr., and his grandson, 
Henry B., inherit to a remarkable degree. He 
traveled mostly on horseback, and may be 
said to have lived nearly forty years in the 
saddle. In a civil capacity, his life was full of 
labors, and honors. He had a remarkably 
sound judgment, abundant executive resources, 
unflinching integrity, and correct and system- 
atic business habits. When only thirty years 
of age. Gov. D. D. Tompkins signalized his 
respect and esteem for him by making 'nim one 
of the judges of the Ulster county court, which 
office he soon resigned, as it interfered too 
much with his professional work. He was 
twice a candidate for Congress in his district 
at times when the Old "Whig party, with which 
he was connected, was some 3,000 in the mi- 
nority, and was defeated in one instance by 
only one hundred and fifty, and in the other 
by only six votes. He subsequently served 
the county several terms in the State Legis- 
lature, and was also supervisor of his town. 

On February 5. 1807, he married Cathar- 
ine E. Ten Eyck, and reared a family, among 
whom was Dr. Benjamin R. Bevier, Jr., our 
subject's father, who was born January 21, 
1828, at Napanoch, and after completing his 
literary studies at New Paltz Academy and the 
Dutchess County Academy, studied medicine 
in Poughkeepsie with Drs. Cooper and Hugh- 
son, and later at the College of Physicians 
and Surgeons in New York City, graduating in 
1849. He has ever since followed his profes- 
sion in his native town, and is still in active 



276 



CO.VMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



practice. He is a leading member of the Ul- 
ster County Medical Society, and takes a 
prominent share in local progress, having rep- 
resented his town in the board of supervisors, 
and served two terms as county coroner. On 
June 12, 1850, he was married to Miss Ellen 
M. Bange. and has had si.x children, of whom 
two died in infancy. The surviving four are: 
Mary B., the wife of Prof. Brainard G. Smith, 
of Hamilton College; Henry B., the subject of 
this sketch; Conrad B. , a licensed pharmacist, 
now in his brother's employ; and Irene, who 
is at home. 

The maternal grandfather of our subject, 
the late Frederick Bange, was born in Holland 
in 1 80 1, and came to this country when he 
was ten years old. Immediately after his ar- 
rival he was apprenticed to Squire White, of 
Hartford, Conn. He was afterward a clerk 
for Mr. Solomon Porter, and while in his em- 
ploy accumulated $1,000, with which he en- 
gaged in the crockery business, importing his 
goods from England. In time, he made a 
large fortune, and then began a shipping busi- 
ness between New London, Conn., and the 
West Indies, sending out horses and mules, 
exchanging them for sugar and molasses. 
While in this business, he became involved 
through the failure of those whom he had 
assisted, and with that strict integrity that had 
always characterized him, he paid every cent 
of his indebtedness, and began a new financial 
life as a poor man. In striving to obtain what 
was due him from a sea captain who had de- 
frauded him, he was obliged to go to Mexico, 
and while there formed the plan of engaging 
in the hide and wool trade. Assisted by friends 
in New York, he fitted out a vessel, and later 
several vessels, of which he became the owner. 
Thus began a trade which has made many 
fortunes. Mr. Bange regained his lost com- 
petence in this trade, and then retired, buying 
a country seat on the Passaic river at Newark, 
N. J., where he resided for several years. He 
was induced to buy the tannery at Lackawack, 
Ulster county, N. Y. , and this was conducted 
several years by his son Henry. Then he 
purchased real estate and water power at 
Napanoch, N. Y., upon portions of which 
Forges were built, where railroad axles and 
bar-iron were manufactured. He made the 
iron for the Niagara and Ohio suspension 
bridge. In 1852 he built the Napanoch Blast 
Furnace, and opened the iron-mine, which he 
operated for four or five years, but the iron 



trade becoming much depressed he was obliged 
to make an assignment for the benefit of his 
creditors. The entire property was sold, and 
he was left in his old age, after a life of unre- 
mitting toil, with very little means. He was 
one of the kindest, best and most unselfish of 
men, always considerate in regard to the wel- 
fare and happiness of his family and friends. 
He was honest and upright in all his transac- 
tions, and set an example in his life which all 
would do well to imitate. 



JOHN SCUTT, a prominent business man 
and manufacturer of Millerton, Dutchess 
" county, is a native of the county, born at 
Pine Plains, February 21, 1821. His ances- 
tors on the paternal side came from Germany 
in the early p-rt of the last century, settling in 
Columbia county, N. Y. , where his grandfa- 
ther, John Scutt, and his father, William Scutt, 
were born, the latter in the year 1777. 

William Scutt, our subject's father, was a 
farm laborer by occupation, and the greater 
part of his life was spent in the towns of Pine 
Plains, Northeast and Amenia, Dutchess coun- 
ty. Always industrious, thrifty and steady in 
his habits, he was held in great esteem by all 
who knew him, and without being a member 
of any Church he gave evidence in his daily 
life of high morality. Politically he was a 
Democrat. He married Hannah Strever, a 
descendant of an old Holland-Dutch family, of 
Columbia county. Fourteen children were 
born to this union. The father died in 18S7, 
in his ninety-first year, and the mother in April, 
1840. 

The subject of our sketch attended the 
schools of Amenia during boyhood, acquiring 
a good education for the time, and he devoted 
to his studies the same energy which has made 
his business career such a notable success, 
while his subsequent reading has kept him well 
informed on current topics. At the age of 
nineteen he left school and began work on a 
farm; but after four years of this, having de- 
cided to learn the blacksmith's trade, he went 
to Chenango county to work with John Tryon, 
to whom he hired for one year at $4 per month. 
In the following year, 1844, they formed a 
partnership which lasted one year, when Mr. 
Tryon moved to the West. A new firm was 
then organized under the name of Moon, Dodge 
& Scutt, Mr. Scutt paying fifty dollars and be- 
coming an cc]ual partner. .-Mter three years 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



211 



with this firm he moved to Chenanj^o Forks, 
and formed an equal partnership with Myron 
HoUister, remaining one year. In 1849 he 
opened a shop of his own at Gallatinville, and 
in the spring of 1854 moved to Northeast Cen- 
ter, where he engaged in the same business for 
two years. In September, 1856, he purchased 
his present shop at Millerton, from Paine & 
Fuller, and began the business of wagon-mak- 
ing and blacksmithing, employing three wagon- 
makers and five blacksmiths. In 1861 he built 
a furnace for the manufacture of plows and 
castings, and for general custom work, and as 
this was the only furnace in the vicinity he 
speedily secured a large trade. He bought the 
patterns of the Eddy plow, of the " Rough and 
Ready," in Washington county, and has since 
manufactured and sold several in all parts of 
the county. Success has attended all his en- 
terprises, and he has won a high standing in 
business circles. 

In 1843, Mr. Scutt married Miss Julia Ann 
Eddy, of the town of Pine Plains, and has had 
six children: Charles, a prosperous young 
painter of Millerton; Jane, who married Edgar 
Drum; and four who have died — Melinda, 
John R. , Adelbert and William — the latter 
passing away in infancy. The mother died 
April 8, 1890, and is buried at Pine Plains. 
Mr. Scutt is one of the pioneer members of 
the Republican party, voting that ticket in 
1856, and has been an influential worker in 
local affairs. He held the office of supervisor 
in 1886, 1887 and 1890, has been justice of 
the peace for thirty-two years, and has lately 
been re-elected for another term. He became 
a Freemason in 1858, and has taken great in- 
terest in the work of the order, having held 
every office in Webatuck Lodge, No. 480. 



CHARLES S. VAN KLEECK. The Van- 
_ Kleeck family originated in Holland, and 
the first of the name to emigrate to this coun- 
try was Baltus (the great-great-great-grandfa- 
ther of our subject), who came to New York 
City in the seventeenth century, locating on 
the land whereon Trinity Church now stands. 
It is not known in what year he came to Pough- 
keepsie, but he built the first house in 1702, 
and was the largest landholder in the country. 
He represented the county in the i6th and 
17th Colonial Assembly, and died in the 
spring of 17 17. He had si.\ children: Barent; 



Johannis, born in 1680; Lawrence, who died 
in 1769; Peter, Sarah and Elizabeth. 

Col. Barent Van Kleeck (who was a colonel 
in the French and Indian wars) married An- 
toinette Palmatier, and six children were born 
to them: Baltus (born in 1707), Michael, 
Ahazuerus, Peter, Catherine and Sarah. Peter 
married Antoinette Frear, the daughter of a 
French Huguenot, and their family comprised 
eleven children: Barent, Simon, Antoinette, 
Levi, Jeremiah, Henry, Peter P., Deborah, 
Mary, Trientje and David. Three sons were 
soldiers in the Revolutionary war, two of them 
being killed in the battle and buried in unknown 
graves. Barent, the father of these, bought 
1,640 acres of land in the town of Lagrange. 

Peter P. Van Kleeck, youngest child of this 
branch of the family, was the grandfather of 
our subject, and was born in the town of La- 
grange August 21, 1757. He was the young- 
est son, and when the other boys enlisted in 
the army he remained at home to work the 
farm and care for his aged parents. At that 
time many farmers in the town were called on 
to carry provisions to the troops, and he among 
the rest was engaged in that occupation. On 
one occasion he was sent with his load to Wash- 
ington's headquarters at Newburg, and it be- 
ing a severely cold day Gen. Washington came 
out and invited him to go into the house and 
get warm. He did so, and the General gave 
him a glass of wine, after which they spent 
nearly two hours together in conversation. He 
afterward fought in the battle of White Plains 
in the Revolution. 

Peter P. Van Kleeck was married three 
times. His first wife was Miss Meddaugh, 
who bore him two children: Deborah and 
Sarah; Sarah died. His second wife was 
Emily Sabin, whose children were: John, Si- 
mon and Syrena; for his third wife he married 
Charlotte Sickles, of Albany, whose father, 
John Sickles, was a captain in the Revolution- 
ary war. Of this union four children were 
born: Catherine, Levi, George and Andrew J. 

Andrew Jackson Van Kleeck, the father of 
our subject, was born May 22, 1829, on the 
old homestead in the town of Lagrange, which 
had been the birthplace of his father and grand- 
father before him. When he was four years 
old his parents removed to Poughkeepsie. 
Here he lived until thirteen years of age when 
he commenced sailing on the ocean. At the 
age of eighteen he was fireman on the " Chris- 
tian City," and when twenty-eight he became 



278 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



engineer on the " Empire," a vessel plying be- 
tween New York City and Albany. This oc- 
cupation he followed until he was thirty years 
of age, when he returned to Poughkeepsie and 
worked at the mason's trade for ten years. He 
then bought the homestead farm in Lagrange 
town, and there remained the rest of his life. 
When a boy he attended the old Dutchess 
County Academy at Poughkeepsie, and vvas a 
man of much intelligence, well posted in cur- 
rent events. For nine years he was a member 
of the volunteer fire department at Pough- 
keepsie, and he was a member of the Mason's 
Union. The old homestead farm was surveyed 
in July, 1768, and the father of Andrew helped 
to drive the stakes. This property, which 
originally contained 1,640 acres, was later 
divided up into four farms. 

Andrew J. Van Kleek was married Novem- 
ber 6, 185 1, when he was twenty-two years 
old, to Abigail A. Alverson, and the following 
children were born to them: Susie E., Edgar 
(who died January 14, 1857), John P., Mary, 
Gaius Andrew, Minnie (who died December 
15, 1866), Charles Swift, and Katherine Ethel 
(who died August 15, 1875). Of these, Susie 
E. is the wife of Fred Mulcox; John P. mar- 
ried Florence Teats, and they have three chil- 
dren — Raymond, Clifton and Leola, only one 
of whom is living. 



MJ. LYNCH, florist, Poughkeepsie, Dutch- 
ess county, is a native of Ireland, born 

June 8, 1846, in county Limerick, and is a son 
of Matthew and Margaret (Fitzgerald) Lynch. 
They had a family of five children: John, 
Patrick, Thomas, Bridget and M. J., all now 
deceased e.xcept the last named. The father, 
who was a gardener by occupation, died when 
our subject was but six months old. 

In 1847 or '48 the widowed mother came 
to America, bringing her infant boy (M. J.) 
with her; but two years later they returned to 
Ireland, where he remained until he was eight- 
een years old, attending school up to the age 
of eleven. At that early time of life he took 
an engagement with the liarl of Clare, whose 
estate lay on the river Shannon, to work on 
the farm and in the garden, at fivepence a day. 
During his service of seven years on this estate 
his wages were increased from time to time, 
and when he left he was in the enjoyment of a 
pretty fair income for a boy. In 1864, in 
company with his mother and brother, Thomas, 



he set sail for America, his brother Patrick hav- 
ing preceded him in 1862 (the other brother, 
John, and sister, Bridget, had both died). On 
arriving in New York our subject soon became 
impatient to find work, and it so chanced that 
one day he met a lady on the street with whom 
he engaged to go to Staten Island to take 
charge of her greenhouse. 

Without waiting to apprise his mother of 
his intentions, the lad set out at once and 
landed on the island with just twenty-five cents 
in his pocket, which he invested in peaches. 
His pay to commence with was to be $8 per 
month, and at the end of a fortnight he asked 
for a part of his wages, but did not get it then, 
nor since. However, he succeeded in borrow- 
ing enough material to enable him to write to 
his mother to let her know of his whereabouts. 
He now threw up his somewhat unprofitable 
situation and engaged with a C. G. Genoux at 
$14 per month, at Clifton. Staten Island; but 
a year and a half later we find him in the em- 
ploy of Timothy Ryan, florist, at Yonkers, 
N. Y., at $18 per month. Receiving, how- 
ever, an offer of $20 a month as assistant gar- 
dener under William Chalmers, Mr. Lilenthal's 
gardener, Mr. Lynch soon made a change, and 
with this gentleman remained one year. The 
next engagement was with W. H. Aspinwall, 
of Tarrytown, N. Y. (now the Rockefeller 
place), as foreman of the greenhouse depart- 
ment; but after twelve months he went to Col. 
Babbit, of Newton, N. J., laid out his grounds 
and built extensive greenhouses for him. In 
1 868 he again made a change, this time ac- 
cepting the position of head gardener to Will- 
iam B. Dinsmore, of "The Locusts", on the 
Hudson, having charge of the greenhouses and 
ornamental grounds, and here he remained 
two years. At the expiry of that time he went 
to Belleville to lay out J. B. Harvey's grounds 
and one year later came to Poughkeepsie, 
where he commenced his present business as 
florist at the corner of Academy street and 
South avenue, which property he had pre- 
viously purchased. He began in a small way, 
having at first only one greenhouse, 12x50 
feet in dimensions, a modest nucleus to his 
present mammoth establishment comprising 
ten greenhouses, ranging from 100 to 160. feet, 
employment being given to five men all the 
year 'round. In addition to this he owns val- 
uable property at No. 256 Main street, where 
he has his seed and flower store. All seeds 
sent out by him are tested before shipment. 



UOMMEMOliATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



279 



and parties desiring plants, bulbs, shrubs or 
seeds may order as safely by mail as though 
they were on the grounds to make their own 
selection. 

In 1870 Mr. Lynch was married to Cath- 
erine, daughter of John and Mary (Murphy) 
Powers, of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, and 
natives of County Wexford, Ireland, but both 
now deceased, as is also Mr. Lynch's mother. 
The children of John and Mary Powers were: 
Patrick and James, both liverymen of Brook- 
lyn, N. Y. ; Edward, of Chicago; Thomas, who 
was a veterinary surgeon, and is now deceased; 
John, who was a liquor dealer, and is now de- 
ceased; and Catherine. The children born 
to our subject and wife are: Thomas and 
John, associated with their father in business; 
Mary; Maggie, a bright, happy girl, who 
died at the age of sixteen; James and Kate. 
All the family are members of St. Mary's 
Catholic Church at Poughkeepsie, and in poli- 
tics Mr. Lynch is neutral. 



,^^ UGUST KOCH. The subject of this 

sketch is a well-known merchant tailor 

of Poughkeepsie, N. Y. He was born at Leut- 
nitz, Fuerstenthum Schwarzburgh-Rudolstadt, 
Germany, March 2, 1834, and is the youngest 
of nine children, four sons and five daughters, 
of Nicolaus. Casper Koch and his wife, Anna 
Barbara, a Miss Fridrich, also of said place, 
now both deceased. 

The early life of A. Koch was spent in his 
native town. At the age of six years he com- 
menced his schooling, and was a regular scholar 
up to the age of fourteen, when he received 
as good an education as the average children 
at that time. 

At the age of fifteen he left his home, go- 
ing to Stadt Remda, Sachs Weimer, to learn 
his trade with Ernest Heinze, one of the best, 
if not the best, master tailors in that city. At 
the age of nineteen Mr. Koch came to America, 
landing in New York May 21, 1853, where he 
remained, working at his trade, until July, 
1 8 54. He then went to Albany, still working 
at his trade in that city. In November, 1855, 
he came to Poughkeepsie, and was engaged as 
cutter by the late Jacob Bahret, then a well- 
known merchant tailor and clothier. 

In 1856 Mr. Koch married his estimable 
wife. Miss Julia Caroline Bahret, a daughter 
of his employer; their married life has been a 
very pleasant one. Four children were born 



to them, three sons and one daughter, as fol- 
lows: Charles Henry, William Edward, Julia 
and Augustus Wesley. The eldest died when 
an infant. William is a plumber and tinsmith 
by trade; he married Miss Sadie S. Karcher, 
three children being born to them — Ernest 
Harrison, Ethel J. and Florence C. 

In 1866 Mr. Koch formed a co-partnership 
in the merchant-tailoring business with J. J. 
Bahret, a brother of his wife, and took full 
charge of the cutting department. This part- 
nership continued up to 1883, when poor health 
made it necessary for him to retire from the 
business, selling his interest to his partner. 
No sooner had he gained his health and strength 
than he again took up the business he always 
liked so well, and started in merchant tailor- 
ing at No. 146 Main street, where he still han- 
dles his tape, square and shears. His son 
Augustus assists him in the business. 

Mr. Koch has been an active member of 
the German M. E. Church since 1854, and 
has been a hard worker in the Sunday-school 
for nearly forty years. He is a self-made man, 
starting in life with no capital, and what he 
has accumulated has been through his indi- 
vidual efforts, energy and perseverance. 



STEPHEN SCOFIELD, one of Pough- 
_; keepsie's most prominent, industrious and 
progressive citizens, who for the past thirty- 
seven years has been engaged in the business 
of stair-building, is a native of Wayne county, 
N. Y. , born April 13, 1828. 

Lebbens E. Scofield, father of our subject, 
was born in Dutchess county, in 1801, a son 
of Ephraim S. Scofield, who in an early day 
moved from Connecticut to New York State. 
Lebbens during his lifetime was a resident of 
three different counties in the Empire State — 
Dutchess, Wayne and Tompkins — and a por- 
tion of his earlier manhood was passed in the 
town of Fishkili, near the village of Glenham. 
His first occupation was that of a farmer, he 
afterward serving as a watchman in factories, 
etc., this change being occasioned by an ac- 
cident, whereby he lost the fingers of one 
hand, thus incapacitating him for manual 
labor. He married Susan Van de Water, who 
was born, in 1797, in the town of Fishkili, 
Dutchess county, of Holland-Dutch ancestry, 
and eight children bless this union, viz. : Abbie, 
married to Walter C. De Golyier, and living 
in Danbury, Conn. ; Julia, wife of John Spald- 



280 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ing, a florist of New London, Conn. ; Stephen, 
our subject; Edmund, accidentally drowned in 
a pond at Glenham; Hannah (widow of Horace 
Crocker), living at Payne. Ohio; Phcebe, de- 
ceased wife of Daniel Smith, of W'appingers 
Falls; Susan, single, a dressmaker, comfort- 
ably situated at 103 Pine street, Poughkeepsie; 
and Harmon C. who died in infancy. The 
father of this family was called from earth in 
1S48, and the mother in 1886. 

Stephen Scofield, the subject of these lines, 
received a liberal education for the times, first 
attending the common schools of Tompkins 
county, later, when a young man, receiving 
instruction in a night school in W'appingers 
Falls, while he worked in a cotton factory. 
He has alwajs been a great reader, especially 
of ancient history and mechanics, becoming 
on most topics a well-informed man. His first 
occupation in life was farming, and in 1S41 he 
removed with his parentsfromTompkins county 
to Dutchess county, where, in the village of 
Glenham, he secured work in a cotton factor}-. 
After three years engaged in that line, he went 
to W'appingers Falls, and there worked in a 
cotton factory until 1847, in which year he 
commenced learning the trade of carpenter 
with Stephen Armstrong, in Poughkeepsie. 
Returning to W'appingers Falls, he continued 
in that line of work as journeyman until 1859, 
when he took up the specialty of stair-build- 
ing — his present business^in Poughkeepsie, 
where he has since resided, meeting with un- 
qualified success in his occupation, which is a 
branch of carpentry requiring the highest grade 
of skill. For many years he was the only 
e.xclusive stair-builderln Poughkeepsie — in fact 
in his section of the country — and his services 
in buildings have extended from fifty to one 
hundred miles in all directions. He has done 
work in Great Barrington, Mass., also in 
Staten Island, X. Y. , in Providence, R. I., 
and in New York City. 

In 1850 Mr. Scofield was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Letitia Mott, daughter of 
Abram and Margaret Mott, of Bangall, Dutch- 
ess county, and two children have been born 
to them: Isabella, married to J. Frank Clark, 
of Norwich, Conn. , who has charge of Osgood's 
drug business in that city; and Frank L. , a 
musician, leader of an orchestra and band, 
who married Miss Florence Eastmead (daugh- 
ter of Charles and Janet Eastmead), by whom 
he has four children. Mrs. Florence Scofield 
died in 1890, and for his second wife Frank L. 



married Maud Rounds, daughter of Charles F. 
Rounds. 

Mr. Scofield in his political preferences has 
been a Republican ever since the formation of 
that party, prior to which he was a Whig, and 
has always been most pronounced in his views, 
as well as an active worker in the party. In 
religious faith he is a member of the Presbyte- 
rian Church. Socially, he is a charter member 
of the K. of P., Armor Lodge No. 107, Pough- 
keepsie; and of the I. O. O. F., Fallkill Lodge, 
No. 297, Siloam Encampment No. 36, and 
Excelsior Rebekah Degree Lodge No. 7, all of 
Poughkeepsie. He has always taken a zealous 
interest in fraternal work, and in the K. of P. 
he is past chancellor, while in the I. O. O. F. 
he has passed all the chairs and been a dele- 
gate to the Grand Encampment. 

One act in Mr. Scofield's life, for the bet- 
terment of his fellowmen, is his determined 
and uncompromising fight against the use of 
tobacco in any form, contending that it is an 
incentive to the worse habit of drinking. He, 
himself, is strictly temperate, a man of bright 
understanding, and an excellent conversation- 
alist. A firm and enduring friend, it may also 
be said of him that he has never been a bitter 
or vindictive enemy, and he enjoys the respect 
and esteem of all with whom he comes in con- 
tact. 



GEORGE W'. KIDDER is a successful coal 
and lumber dealer of Staatsburg, Dutch- 
ess county. From researches that have been 
made it has been ascertained that the Kidder 
family is one of the ancient families of Eng- 
land. Some account relating to a transfer of 
land there dated as early as 1370, in which the 
name of Kydder is a party, is said to be still 
extant. Tradition says that they are of the 
stock of ancient Britons, and existed as a 
family previous to the incursions of the Saxons, 
Danes, or Romans, and were not disturbed at 
the Conquest. 

Nelson Kidder, the father of our subject, 
was born at East Alstead, N. H., August 22, 
1 803, was a man of more than ordinary ability, 
well-informed, and highly successful in his 
chosen occupation — that of farming. On De- 
cember 22, 1829, he married Sophia George, 
daughter of Ezra George, of Acworth, N. H., 
where she was born July 22, 1803, and they 
became the parents of five children: Clarissa, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



281 



deceased wife of Mr. Roys, of Alstead, N. H.; 
Miranda (Mrs. Sawyer), deceased; ErastusE., 
engaged in tfie lumber business at Alstead; Va- 
laria, the wife of Andrew Morrison, a large 
farmer of Alstead; and George Wilder, the 
subject of this sketch. The father was a strong 
Democrat, but did not take an active part in 
political matters, though he was naturally one of 
the leading men of the community. He was a 
great Church worker, belonging to the Methodist 
denomination, and was one of twelve who 
built the Brook church at East Alstead, where 
his death occurred December 21, 1871. 
There his estimable wife also died. May 26, 
1883. 

At East Alstead, Cheshire Co., N. H., 
George W. Kidder was born April 10, 1845, 
and in the common schools of the place ac- 
quired a good English education. He re- 
mained upon the home farm until he had 
reached his majority, when he purchased a 
half-interest in a machine shop at Alstead, be- 
ing a member of the firm of Roob & Kidder 
for two years, selling out in the fall of 1869, 
and coming to Staatsburg, Dutchess county. 
Until the following spring he worked as a car- 
penter for William Densmore, and then began 
dealing in lumber and building material, as a 
member of the firm of Herrick & Kidder, which 
connection was continued for five years, or 
until after the fire in April, 1875, when the 
partnership was dissolved. Going to New 
York City, he was for ten years employed by 
the Mutual Benefit Ice Co., being weighmaster 
in the summer and superintendent on the river 
during the winter season. In 1887 he bought 
out the coal business of James Roach, at 
Staatsburg, to which he immediately added a 
stock of lumber and building material, since 
when he has carried on business very success- 
fully, having a large and paying trade. 

In December, 1874, Mr. Kidder was mar- 
ried to Miss Julia Rersley, daughter of William 
H. Rersley, of Staatsburg, and to them have 
been born one son and one daughter: Bertha 
M. and George Nelson. Mr. and Mrs. Kidder at- 
tend the Methodist Church, and in social cir- 
cles hold an enviable position. Mr. Kidder's 
sterling integrity and general urbanity of man- 
ner have won him a large number of friends in 
his community. In politics he is a stanch and 
true Democrat, at National or State elections, 
but on local matters he votes independently. 
Socially, he is connected with Rhinebeck 
Lodge No. 432, F. & A. M. 



^ YRON SMITH, a well-known citizen of 
Millbrook, town of Washington, Dutch- 
ess county, and who at this writing is holding 
the office of superintendent of the poor, was 
born in Amenia, Dutchess county. May 12, 
1 85 1, a son of John H, and Maria (Reed) 
Smith. His early days were spent in the dis- 
trict school, which he attended until fifteen 
years of age, and in assisting his father at 



wagon-making. 



His schooling he finished in a 



private school at Dover, and for the following 
three years he clerked in stores at Dover and 
Wassaic. He then was employed as book- 
keeper for the New York Condensed Milk Co., 
at Wassaic, for three years. 

On February 18, 1875, Mr. Smith was 
united in marriage with Mary E., daughter of 
Henry and Mary H. (Arnold) Tripp. Mrs. 
Smith's father was a farmer in the town of 
Washington, but she was born in Amenia April 
5, 1854. Of this marriage three children have 
been born, as follows: Howard, deceased; 
Edna L. and Frank. After his marriage Mr. 
Smith located on a farm in Washington town, 
which he carried on until January i , 1 889, at 
which time he was made superintendent of the 
poor of Dutchess county, and has held that 
position ever since. In this responsible office 
he has given general satisfaction by his excel- 
lent management, and has shown himself to be 
a man of good business ability, integrity and 
kindly disposition. 

Mr. Smith has always been a stanch Re- 
publican, and cast his first Presidential vote 
for Gen. Grant. He takes a leading part in 
political affairs in his locality, and has served 
as assessor of the township for two terms, and 
has also been inspector of elections. He be- 
longs to the Masonic fraternity and the K. of 
P., and is a prominent member of the Mill- 
brook Club, at Millbrook, where his social 
qualities are highly appreciated. In public 
matters he has always been on the side of prog- 
ress, ready to assist in all worthy enterprises, 
and commands the respect and esteem of his 
fellow citizens. 

The Smith famil_\- of which our subject is a 
member is said to have descended from the Rt. 
Rev. Dr. Smith, who was born in the parish of 
Prescott, Lancashire, England, about 1460. 
He was Bishop of Lincoln and Litchfield, and 
with Sir Richard Sutton, was the founder of 
Brazenose College. Oxford University. Nehe- 
miah Smith and his brother John came to 
America about 1638, and located at what is 



282 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



now New London. Conn. Fourteen years 
later he obtained a grant of land for a home- 
stead on the other side of the river, at what is 
now known as Poquonock, in the town of 
Groton. The first house on the land was built 
by Neheiniah Smith about 1652, on the east 
side of the road, and was burned down during 
the Revolutionary war. The second house 
, was built by Nathan Smith, the grandfather of 
our subject. From Nehemiah Smith the line 
of descent is as follows: Nehemiah (2); Isaac, 
born December 29, 1707, married Esther Den- 
ison; William, born October 26, 1749, was 
married, in 1772, to Sarah Smith; Nathan, 
born at North Lyme, Conn., November 12, 
178S, married Nancy Waterman, of Salem, in 
1 8 10. To this last named couple five children 
were born, namely: Sarah M., Gilbert B., 
Nathan W., Nancy L. and John H. 

John H. Smith, father of our subject, was 
born near New London, Conn., June i, 1821. 
He spent his boyhood on his father's farm, and 
when fifteen years of age left home to learn 
the wagonmaker's trade. He was married on 
June I, 1847, to Maria Reed, a daughter of 
Myron Reed, of Amenia, N. Y. For some 
time after his marriage Mr. Smith lived at 
Amenia; but subsequently removed to Wassaic, 
where he followed his trade until his death, 
which occurred in October, 1892. The father 
was a Republican, and a prominent man in his 
locality, holding various town offices, such as 
justice of the peace, etc. He and his wife were 
consistent members of the Baptist Church and 
were estimable people. Their children were 
seven in number, of whom the following rec- 
ord is given: Nathan is a merchant in Amenia 
Union; Sarah M. married Charles M. Hoyt, a 
hatter in Danbury, Conn. ; Myron is the sub- 
ject of this sketch; Belinda is a school teacher 
and has never married; Esther M. married 
William S. Tripp, a butcher in Millbrook, and 
is deceased; Edwin U. is a farmer in Pough- 
keepsie town; and John H. is a wagon maker 
in Wassaic. 

The following short history of the family of 
our subject's mother will prove of interest. 
"The Reeds of Amenia were from Norwalk, 
Conn. In 1 759 James Reed was one of a com- 
pany of Connecticut troops who passed through 
Amenia on their way to Canada to the aid of 
Gen. Wolfe in the siege of Quebec. While on 
their way the company received news of the 
capture of Quebec, and were ordered to return. 
Mr. Reed was so pleased with the Oblong Val- 



ley through which he leisurely returned, that 
he induced his father, Daniel Reed, of Nor- 
walk, to purchase for him some land, fifty-three 
acres in all. The brothers of James Reed, who 
removed here a few years later were: Ezra, 
Elijah and Eliakim. The emigrant ancestor 
of this family was John Reed, who came from 
England in 1660. He had been an officer in 
the army of the Commonwealth, and came 
away at the time of the Restoration. He died 
in Norwalk in 1730, aged ninety-seven years. 
He was a good specimen of a Puritan soldier, 
who held his ' sword in one hand, and his Bible 
in the other.' " 



ERNEST HOCHSTADTER, one of the 
: most prominent contractors in eastern 

New York, is a notable instance of success in 
life attained solely by diligence, thrift and 
judicious management, having risen from a 
humble position, where hard toil was repaid 
with but meager wages, to a high rank in the 
business world. 

Mr. Hochstadter was born in Lauenburg, 
Prussia, Germany, April 11, 1838, the son of 
Henry Hochstadter, a native of Hohenhorn, 
born in 1801, and a successful teacher who oc- 
cupied a responsible position in the public 
schools for many years previous to his death 
in 1839. He married Wilhelmina Turnow. a 
native of Hagenow, Mechlenburg-Schwerin, 
and had three sons, of whom our subject was 
the youngest; August, who was' for some time 
in business with the latter, died in Poughkeep- 
sie in 1873, and Henry is a prominent grocer 
in Brooklyn. The mother came to America 
in 1865, and in 1882 passed away at the home 
of her son in Poughkeepsie. 

Ernest Hochstadter received an excellent 
education in the schools of his native village, 
and being also fond of reading has become un- 
usually well-informed. He was only one year 
old when his father died, and as he grew older 
was obliged to make his own living at such 
employment as could be obtained, being an 
errand boy at Lauenburg and in Hamburg for 
about two years and a half. He then secured 
a clerkship in Hamburg, where he remained 
until 1862, at which time he came to this 
country. Locating in Brooklyn, he bought a 
horse and cart and engaged in trucking, and in 
1867 he obtained a contract from the city for 
grading and paving a part of Si.xth avenue, 
quite an achievement, all things considered. 



COMMEMORATIVE BWOItAPniCAL RECORD. 



283 



He then began the business of constructing 
sewers in partnership with his brother August, 
and did $200,000 worth of work in Brooklyn 
alone. In 1871 they came to Poughkeepsie to 
take contracts on sewerage, and built all thesew- 
ers in the city except the one in Main street and 
a few collateral lines. They employed from four 
hundred to five hundred men for two years, 
and on the completion of the work in 1873 
they went to Hudson and laid all the pipes for 
the water works there. Returning to Pough- 
keepsie, they laid all the pipes for the new 
Gas Company, and then transferred their base 
of operations to Sandusky, Ohio, where they 
laid twenty-two miles of water pipe in rock, 
and constructed three miles of sewer. Other 
important works were the construction of the 
Phcenica & Hunter railroad in the Catskill 
Mountains; the work in the Wallkill Valley 
with a steam shovel, and the work on the 
West Shore east of Rondout creek, about one 
and one-half miles; in addition, the building 
of the tunnel at Rosendale. They also per- 
formed part of the work on the Poughkeepsie 
Bridge. Mr. Hochstadter is very systematic 
in all that he does, and doubtless his success 
is due largely to his careful attention to detail. 
In 1863 Mr. Hochstadter was married to 
Miss Margaret Grimm, a native of Barmbeck, 
Germany, and has had five children, all of 
whom died in infancy. In politics he was a 
Republican until the attempt to nominate Gen. 
U. S. Grant for a third term, since which time 
he has been a Democrat. He was street su- 
pervisor under Mayor Ellsworth for two years; 
but has been usually too busy with his own 
affairs to take an active share in party work, 
although his influence has often been e.xerted 
in a quiet way to further beneficial movements. 
Among the German-born citizens he is regarded 
with pride as a worthy representative of their 
race. He is a member of the Lutheran 
Church. 

SAMUEL SLEE was born in Poughkeepsie, 
_) N. Y., in 1854. His father, Robert Slee, 
was born in Poughkeepsie in 18 18, educated 
at Willets' Academy, at the old Nine Partners, 
and soon after coinpleting his studies became 
a successful merchant, retiring from business 
in 1866 to become vice-president, and, shortly 
after, president of the First National Bank of 
Poughkeepsie, of which he had been an incor- 
porator, remaining president until his death in 
1893. 



Robert Slee was interested in many public 
enterprises and in all movements for the ad- 
vancement of his native place, and was largely 
instrumental in securing the location in Pough- 
keepsie of the Hudson River State Hospital 
for the Insane, the construction of railways 
and the Hudson River bridge. He was of 
studious disposition, and read largely, keeping 
in touch with the progressive thought of the 
time and cultivating the friendship of men of 
like spirit; he passed the greater part of his 
time in the enjoyment of his home and the 
entertainment of his intimate friends, among 
whom were many prominent in the profes- 
sions, especially the ministry. Mr. Slee's pa- 
ternal grandfather, from whom he was named, 
was born in Gloucester, England, in 1771; 
came to America in 1792, bringing his bride, 
Esther, and household goods. Esther died in 
1804, and was buried in Christ churchyard. 

The elder Samuel Slee was admitted to 
citizenship in 1802. During the State admin- 
istrations of George Clinton and Daniel D. 
Thompkins the elder Mr. Slee held success- 
ively appointments of coroner, sheriff and 
judge. He was also trustee of the village of 
Poughkeepsie, and acted as its president. He 
engaged in the manufacture of woolen goods, 
importing machinery and workmen from Eng- 
land, encouraged by the policy then in force 
of protection to home productions. Upon the 
conclusion of the war of 1812, and before the 
news of the signing of the Treaty of Ghent 
arrived in this country, English ships loaded 
with woolens entered our harbors, and the 
rising industry, left without protection to com- 
pete with foreign makes, was swamped, and 
Mr. Slee became financially involved and 
forced into litigation which only found its end 
in the Supreme Court of the United States, 
where the principles for which he contended 
became the law of the land. He subsequent- 
ly engaged in the manufacture of boots and 
shoes, and accumulated a fortune the second 
time after he was forty years of age. Mr. 
Slee was universally known as "Major" Slee, 
and was in actual service six months in the 
war of 18 12, stationed at Plattsburg. His 
military career commenced in 1804 when he 
was appointed first lieutenant (Capt. Nathan 
Myers) of a company of artillery attached to 
the brigade commanded by Brig. Gen. Theo- 
dorus Bailey, by Gov. George Clinton; in 1806 
Gov. Morgan Lewis appointed him captain of 
the same company, in 1808 he became second 



284 



COMHIEMORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



major of the 3rd Regiment of artillery on 
appointment of Gov. D. D. Thompkins, by 
whom he was in 1809 promoted to be first 
major. In 181 5 Major Slee received his com- 
mission of lieutenant-colonel commandant of 
4th Artillery. 

Major Slee died November 9, 1852,3 much 
honored and respected citizen. He had mar- 
ried the present Mr. Slee's grandmother, 
Isabella Newby, in July, 1812. She was also 
born in England, in Westmoreland, in 1788, 
coming to America in 1797 with her father, 
Robert Newby, and his family. She was un- 
usually beautiful intellectually, and was the 
" Queen" to seven sons and many of their 
intimate friends. She died July 4, 1869. Mr. 
Slee's mother was Enieline Gregory, born at 
Sand Lake, Rensselaer Co., N. Y., in 1820. 
She was one of nine children, each one of 
whom was either a preacher or an instructor, 
several of whom have become eminent in let- 
ters. Her father, Joseph Gregory, was born 
at Dover Plains, Dutchess county, in 1787. 
He served two terms in the State Assemby. 
During this time he was engaged in an agita- 
tion for the amelioration of the law of land 
tenure which was known as the anti-rent war, 
and largely through his efforts and the ex- 
penditure of his private fortune a reform was 
effected which removed this question from the 
politics of the State. In 18 16 Gov. D. D. 
Thompkins appointed Joseph Gregory lieuten- 
ant of a company of light infantry in the 43d 
Regiment, and Gov. DeWitt Clinton, in 181 8, 
promoted him to be captain of the same com- 
pany. He came of sturdy English stock, as 
did his wife, Rachel Bullock, one of the early 
American women noted for her mental gifts, 
of whom one said: " She was the first citizen 
of Rensselaer county." 

Our subject was admitted to the bar in 
1877, practicing law in Poughkeepsie and 
New York City until 1888, when with his fam- 
ily he settled at \\'ashington Hollow, Dutchess 
county, and engaged in farming. In 1892 he 
removed to Poughkeepsie and resumed the 
practice of his profession. He takes an active 
interest in politics and agriculture, and finds 
his greatest pleasure in his home and family. 
Like his father, he is an extensive reader, and 
is fond of out-of-door life. In 1S78 he mar- 
ried Marie Louise, daughter of the late Will- 
iam Tryon, of Katonah, N. Y. , and has two 
sons: Ralph Burton (1885) and Robert Don- 
ald (^1892;. Mr. Slee's only brother, John 



Gre£ 



Slee, 



.gory blee, is a D. X. S., practicing at Bos- 
ton, Mass. Their sister, Emeline Gregory 
Slee, is a graduate of \''assar, and now re- 
siding with her brother, Samuel Slee. 



WILLIAM BEDELL ranks among the 
progressive and enterprising farmers of 

the town of Clinton, Dutchess county. His 
residence is pleasantly situated near Clinton 
Corners, where he is engaged principally in 
general farming. 

Jeremiah Bedell, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born P^ebruarj' 22, 175 1, and for 
some time lived in Dutchess county, previous 
to his removal to Greene county, N. Y. He 
wedded Marian Gildersleeve, who was born in 
Dutchess county, January 13, 1756, and their 
union was blessed with twelve children, seven 
sons and five daughters, all of whom but two 
lived to advanced ages, and were respected 
and upright citizens. One son held the office 
of supervisor over twentj" successive years, in 
Greene county, N. Y. The father of these 
died August 12, 181 5, the mother on October 

3. iSo7- ' 

Jacob, the father of our subject, was born 
March 16, 1801, and died February 25, 1865. 
He, the youngest in the above family, was a 
native of Greene county, N. Y. , where he 
spent his boyhood days, and after completing 
his education he taught school there. He 
was married in the town of Clinton, Dutchess 
county, February 21, 182 1, to Hannah H. 
Cornell, who was born in that town September 
22. 1802, daughter of Matthew and Sarah 
(Halsted) Cornell, and died January 15, 1877. 
Three children graced their union: David, who 
was born January 22, 1822, was married to 
Elizabeth D. Wing, January 26, 1843, and 
died June 25, 1877; William, the subject of 
this review; and Mary, who was born March 
5, 1838, and is now the widow of George P. 
Smith. After his marriage the father located 
on a farm two miles west of Clinton Corners, 
where he operated his land until the spring of 
1855, at which time he laid aside business 
cares, living retired up to the time of his 
death. He belonged to the Society of Friends, 
and was widely- and favorably known through- 
out the county. 

William Bedell, our subject, was born 
Aprils, 1S33, in Dutchess county, and his boy- 
hood days were passed in the manner of most 
farmer lads in those davs — between school- 




% 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPEWAL RECORD. 



285 



ing and working on the home farm. Besides 
attending the district school, he also received a 
part of his education in the Jacob Willets school, 
in the town of Washington, Dutchess county. 
On September 13, 1854, Mr. Bedell was 
united in marriage with Mary Elizabeth Doty, 
daughter of Thomas Sands and Maria fWing) 
Doty, and a native of the town of Clinton, 
Dutchess county. By this union there are two 
sons: George Doty, who was born April 27, 
1868, married Etta Hicks, a daughter of Wal- 
ter D. Hicks, and Jay Sands, born August 16. 
1870. The mother of these died April 10, 
1890, and at Yorktown, Westchester Co., N. 
Y., May 17, 1892, our subject was again mar- 
ried, this time to Henrietta (Hallock) Irish. 

Upon the old home farm, Mr. Bedell re- 
mained until 1866, when he removed to Pough- 
keepsie, N. Y. , where the following three 
years were passed, and then for eight \'ears he 
lived near Morgan Lake, N. Y. He has been 
engaged in the crockery, gas and steam-fitting 
businesses, and for a few years was interested 
with A. M. Doty in a drug store; but in the 
spring of 1S77 he purchased his present farm 
near Clinton Corners, and has since made 
that place his home. He is one of the direc- 
tors of the First National Bank of Poughkeep- 
sie, and has been e.xecutor of many important 
estates. He takes quite an active interest in 
the welfare of his town and county, but has 
always refused to accept public office, as his 
time has been fully occupied by his own busi- 
ness affairs. 

JAMES DENN BURGESS, a prominent con- 
tractor and builder of Poughkeepsie, was 
' born September 27, 1843, at Kingston, 
Canada, the son of James and Elizabeth (Denn) 
Burgess. 

John Burgess, the paternal grandfather of 
our subject, was a native of Somersetshire, 
England, born in the town of Shepton Mallet, 
where he spent his entire life. He was a car- 
penter by trade, and had a family of four chil- 
dren : John, Michael, James and Sarah; the 
latter married a Mr. Brown, of England. 

James Burgess, the father of our subject, 
was born in Shepton Mallet, Somersetshire, 
in 181 5, and obtained a good common-school 
education. He was a great reader all his life 
and became a well-informed man. In 1830, 
when a lad of fifteen, he came to America 
with his brother Jojin, and settled in Kingston, 
Canada, where he spent the remainder of his 



life. He learned the trade of carpenter, serv- 
ing an apprenticeship of five years, and for 
some years after worked as a journeyman. 
He then became a contractor and builder, and 
for twenty years prior to his death was fore- 
man of the government works at Kingston. 
He was an able man, and one of the foremost 
in his vocation. He was very successful in his 
business affairs, and his prosperity was due 
entirely to his own exertions, as he began life 
dependent on his own resources. 

James Burgess married Elizabeth Denn, 
daughter of William Denn, of Kingston. 
Her father came from England about 18 13 
in connection with the Dock Yard and Naval 
Store Department, established in Kingston. 
He was a prominent citizen, both in Church 
and business matters. Three children were 
born of this union : William, who died in 
infancy; James Denn, the subject of this 
sketch; and Sarah Ann, who died when 
three years of age. Mr. and Mrs. Burgess 
were members of the Wesleyan Methodist 
Church, in whose work they took an active 
interest. In politics Mr. Burgess was a Con- 
servative, and a stanch follower of Sir John A. 
MacDonald. He never aspired to office, but 
held a high place in the esteem of his fellow 
citizens. He died in Kingston, Canada, on 
April 4, 1887, his wife surviving him until 1889. 

James D. Burgess attended a private school 
in Kingston, Canada, until about si.xteen years 
of age, when he learned the trade of a ma- 
chinist, at which he worked two years. Being 
compelled on account of ill health to give up 
this occupation, he took up carpentering with 
his father, and after working one year as a 
journeyman he went into business for himself. 
Four years later he married Annie M. Foote, 
the daughter of a confectioner in Kingston, 
and removed to Napanee (Canada), where he 
established himself in the bakery and confec- 
tioner3' business, and carried that on for seven 
years. His wife died about this time, January 
29, 1872, and he returned to his old trade of 
carpenter, in which he was engaged for the 
following six \'ears. 

At the end of this time Mr. Burgess re- 
moved to Deseronto, Hastings Co., Ont., 
Canada, and became connected with the Rath- 
burn Company, a large corporation, and was 
given charge of all their building operations, a 
very responsible position. In 1885 he went to 
Hyde Park to take charge of the erection of 
the Archibald Rogers buildings, and remained 



286 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



with Mr. Rogers for two years. He then went 
to Poughkeepsie as superintendent for Powers 
& O'Keilley in the erection of the second lot 
of buildings for the Hudson River Hospital. 
Some years later he had the contract for the 
building of the third set of cottages for the 
hospital. For the past eight years Mr. Bur- 
gess has been carrying on business on his own 
account, and is considered one of the leading 
contractors and builders in the city. Among 
other large structures which have been built 
by him are Trinity church and a large addition 
to the Gallandet House for Deaf Mutes. 

Mr. Burgess, for his second wife, married 
Miss Southwood, of Belleville, Canada, and 
for his third wife wedded Mrs. Dowling, whose 
maiden name was Ellen Bogert. She died in 
Deseronto, in 1883. In 1884 Mr. Burgess was 
united in marriage with Miss Eva Chambers, a 
daughter of Charles Chambers, a native of 
Yorkshire, England, and a retired farmer of 
Deseronto. who has been one of the leading 
men of the count)". 

The children of our subject are: Harr)', 
who is a bookkeeper for the Rathbun Co., 
Oswego, N. Y. ; Laura, who married Rev. 
Robert Knapp. of Walton, N. Y. ; Ada. who 
married Rev. Merrick E. Ketcham, of Cincin- 
nati, Ohio; William, who graduated from the 
Syracuse University in June, 1895, and now 
practicing law in Buffalo, N. Y. ; and Lillian, 
Charles and Denn Maltby, at home. 

Mr. Burgess is a self-made man, one who 
has achieved his success by his own industry 
and enterprise. He has always been a reader, 
and is well-posted on all topics of the day. 
He is a Republican in his political views, al- 
though he sympathizes with the Prohibitionists 
on the temperance question. He is quite a 
worker for his party, but has never been an 
office-seeker. As a citizen he is public-spirited, 
and is always at the front in matters relating 
to the welfare of his community. He is a 
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
and takes an active interest in Church work; is 
one of the trustees, and has been superintend- 
ent of the Sunday-school for live years. 



SAMUEL CARPENTER BARIGHT, one 
./ of the substantial farmers of Dutchess 

county, is a native of the same, having been 
born in the town of Pleasant Valley, July 5, 
1826. There are several branches of the fam- 
ily in this country, one in Columbia county, N. 



Y. , one in Lockport, N. Y., and one in Can- 
ada. The Columbia county and Canada 
branches spell the name " Boright.," The 
Barights were of the Quaker faith, though 
some were Presbyterians. 

The old Baright homestead was in the 
family for several generations, and was sold 
by Elijah Baright to A. R. Bartholomew, who 
is its present owner. Our subject's great- 
grandfather settled on the tract of land which 
he received as a grant from the English 
crown, when it was all wilderness. There his 
son John (born October, 1763, died January, 
1 81 3) grew up. and married Miss Eleanor 
Drake, and they continued their married life 
on the old farm, where they reared the follow- 
ing family: Sarah married Jacob Stringham, 
and went to Michigan, where he farmed, and 
where the}' both died. Augustin was a farmer 
in Pleasant Valley, where he embarked in the 
mercantile business; he died at Batavia, N. 
Y. Susanna died unmarried. Elizabeth be- 
came the wife of Daniel Stringham. a farmer 
in the town of Lagrange. John died young. 
Elijah, who was the father of our subject, 
married Amy Doty Carpenter, daughter of 
Samuel Carpenter, of the town of Clinton, 
born 1763, died 1844. His pedigree dates 
back to Timothy Carpenter, born in Wales, 
1698, subsequently settled on Long Island, X. 
Y.. and his descendants are supposed heirs to 
a large estate, held by the Bank of England. 

Our subject grew up on the farm in Pleas- 
ant Valley, and November 12, 1850, was 
united in marriage with Miss Frances Dean, 
who was born in New York City, February 
18, 1827, and in 1853 they came to their 
present home, where they have since resided. 
The following children have been born to 
them: Arthur Garwood is a horticulturist in 
the town of Poughkeepsie. Anna founded 
the School of E.xpression in Boston, Mass. ; 
she subsequently married S. S. Curry, Ph. D., 
of Boston, where they are engaged in teaching 
the Art of E.xpression. Helen Dean, special- 
ist in the Art of Expression, married Charles 
D. Craigie, of Boston, Mass., who is engaged 
in the mercantile and publishing business. 
Genevieve is an artist and specialist. Elijah 
Kirk is a salesman in one of the houses of the 
Armour Packing Co., Poughkeepsie. Mary 
Louise is professor of the Art of Expression 
and Literature, in the University of Oregon, 
at Eugene, Ore. Mr. Baright has a farm of 
120 acres one mile north of the city of Pough- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



287 



keepsie, where lie does general farming. Po- 
litically he is a Republican, and takes an active 
interest in the affairs of the party; in religious 
faith he is a member of the Society of Friends. 

Joseph C. Dean, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Frances Dean Baright, was a member of the 
Society of Friends of the town of Pleasant 
Valley, and was a land owner and merchant. 
His mother's father was Joseph Castin, one of 
the " Nine Partners " of a portion of Dutch- 
ess county. Joseph C. Dean married Sarah 
Mabbett of the town of Washington, and sev- 
eral children were born to them: Jonathan, 
their eldest son, and the father of Mrs. Ba- 
right, married Helen, the daughter of Gen. S. 
A. Barker, of the town of Lagrange; Edwin, 
the second son, was engaged in the theatrical 
profession (he married Julia Drake, of Louis- 
ville, Ky., and Julia Dean, the celebrated 
actress, was their daughter). 

Mrs. Frances Dean Baright's grandfather 
on her mother's side was Samuel A. Barker, 
who was a general in the war of 1812, and a 
private in Capt. Brinkerhoff's regiment, of the 
Dutchess count}' militia in the Revolutionary 
war. He owned an estate in the town of La- 
grange, and held slaves; was active in public af- 
fairs, and was an assemblyman at Albany. His 
second wife was Meriby Collins, and they had 
several children, one of whom, Helen Barker 
Dean, was the mother of Frances Dean Ba- 
right. 



CORNELIA VAN KLEECK was born in 
Poughkeepsie, and has resided there ever 
since. 

The Van Kleeck family came originally from 
Holland, and settled in Dutchess county at a 
very early day. Baltus Van Kleeck, grand- 
father of our subject, w'as born in Dutchess 
county, N. Y. He left two children: Mar- 
garet, who married John G. Vassar (a brother 
of Matthew \'assar, the founder of the college 
of that name, and who was in the brewing 
business with him); and Leonard, the father 
of our subject. 

Leonard B. Van Kleeck was born in Pough- 
keepsie, April 18, 1785, and there married 
Elizabeth Phillips, who was born in the same 
city, in 1791. Her father, James Phillips, was 
also a native of Poughkeepsie, and was a farmer. 
He was of English descent. He married Cor- 
nelia Van Vlack, and to their union were born 
children as follows: John was a grocer in 



Poughkeepsie, and died in the West; Abram 
was a hotel-keeper in Poughkeepsie ; Mary mar- 
ried John Wyley, a farmer in Dutchess county; 
Catherine married Robert Green, and lived in 
New York City; Jane married Jacob Harris, a 
farmer in Dutchess county; Sarah married 
Isaac GrifSn, a butcher; Barbara married Isaac 
Cubney, a farmer and blacksmith in Pough- 
keepsie; and Elizabeth became Mrs. Van- 
Kleeck. The parents both died at Pough- 
keepsie. 

After his marriage Leonard Van Kleeck took 
charge of a hotel in Poughkeepsie, and at one 
time owned a large amount of city property. 
Six children were born to him and his wife, 
namely: Margaret, who died in infancy; Henry, 
who was a clerk for his father, and died in 
1850; James was city librarian, and died in 
1894; Alfred was a merchant in Mobile, Ala., 
and died in 1849; Cornelia is the only surviv- 
ing member of the family; Edgar A. became a 
Baptist minister, and died in 1S89. Leonard 
Van Kleeck died in 1854, and his wife in 182S. 
They were members of the Baptist Church, 
and iijost estimable people. Mr. Van Kleeck 
was a strong Republican, and prominent both 
in his party and in all public affairs. 

Cornelia Van Kleeck, our subject, is a de- 
voted member of the Mill Street Baptist Church 
in Poughkeepsie, to which church in the last 
seven years she has contributed large sums of 
money. She is very generous and charitable 
to all in distress, and is always ready to assist 
every philanthropic or religious enterprise. 



P)HEBE THORNE WILLIAMSON, M. D. 
Among those who devote their time and 

energies to the practice of medicine, and have 
gained a leading place in the ranks of the pro- 
fession, is the lady whose name introduces this 
sketch. She makes her home in Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, having an office at No. 13 
Liberty street, but also spends a part of each 
week in New York City, where she has an of- 
fice at No. 1244 Broadway, and in both cities 
she has secured a large and lucrative practice. 
Dr. Williamson is a native of Dutchess 
county, born at Millbrook. where her earl}' life 
was passed, and attended the old Nine Part- 
ners Boarding School, there acquiring her lit- 
erary education. Judge Stephen Thorne. her 
paternal grandfather, practiced law in Pough- 
keepsie, and also made his home in Milan, 



288 



CO.VME.VORATrVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Dutchess county. In his family were five chil- 
dren, all of whom died within six years of each 
other, namely: Benjamin, a physician of Mil- 
an; Herrick, who was given the maiden name 
of his mother; Stephen; Cynthia; and John S. 

The last named was the father of our sub- 
ject. He was born at Milan in 1823, and was 
there reared and educated, .\fter studying 
medicine with his brother for some time he en- 
tered the medical college at Castleton, Vt. , 
and later graduated from the medical depart- 
ment of the New York University, after which 
he engaged in practice at Bangall, Stanford 
town, Dutchess county. There he was united 
in marriage with Frances C. Barlow, daughter 
of Cyrus Barlow, and to them were born two 
daughters — Georgie, wife of James T. Haight, 
of Stanford ville, Dutchess county; and Phebe 
Anna. .After following his profession in that 
village for several years, he removed to Mill- 
brook, where he was engaged in practice for 
thirty years, and was very successful in his 
chosen calling. He was a very influential 
man, and for many years served as county 
physician. He belonged tp the Knights of 
Pythias lodge of Poughkeepsie, the Independ- 
ent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Masonic 
fraternity of Washington Hollow, Dutchess 
county. Though not a member of any relig- 
ious denomination, he gave liberally to the 
support of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
He was called from life in 18S0, and his death 
was widely and deeply mourned. 

Phebe Thorne began the study of medicine 
with her father, whom she assisted in his prac- 
tice, and after attending a four-years' course 
of study in the Woman's Medical College and 
Infirmary of New York, she was graduated in 
1878. The year previous she had married 
Albert Williamson, and they have a daughter 
who was born in 1882. After her father's 
death our subject was county physician at 
Millbrook for a year and a half, and in 1882 
removed to Brooklyn, where she was engaged 
in practice for three years, during which time 
she was the first woman appointed on the 
Brooklyn Eastern District Hospital staff. She 
was compelled to leave that city on account of 
ill health, and came to Poughkeepsie, where 
she confines her practice to the diseases of 
women, and obstetrics. She stands high 
among the members of the medical fraternity, 
is a close student, and, being thoroughly in 
love with her profession, her success is assured. 
Dr. Williamson purchased the "Windsor Ho- 



tel," on Hooker avenue, which she converted 
into a sanitarium and summer hotel; but as it 
was so difficult to secure competent help, and 
so much responsibility rested upon her, that 
she gave up the sanitarium and now rents the 
place to Vassar College for an extra dormitory 
and class rooms. She holds membership with 
the Dutchess County Medical Society and the 
Kings County Medical Society. The Doctor 
not only holds a leading place in the medical 
profession, but is also a valued and prominent 
member of society, being held in the highest 
regard by all who know her. 



JAMES EDWARD DEAN, of Fishkill, Dutch- 
ess county, treasurer of the Fishkill Sav- 
ings Institute, and for many years its presi- 
dent; proprietor of Monumental Works, and 
one of the founders of the Fishkill fFivX'/j' 
Tiiius, is among the prominent citizens of 
that village. 

He is the son of William George and Phebe 
Ann (Van Nostrand) Dean, and his ancestry 
is a notable one, his paternal grandfather, 
Ephraim Dean, and great-grandfather, \^'ill- 
iam Dean, having been soldiers in the Revo- 
lutionary army, enlisting in Westchester county 
in 1775, and serving until the close of the war. 
During the winter of 1776-77, they were both 
with the troops that were encamped at Fish- 
kill. On the maternal side his great-grand- 
father Alexander Mead, and great-grandfather 
Michael Rogers, were also participants in the 
struggle for independence; while another an- 
cestor, Aaron Van Nostrand, was granted a 
service of plate by the Colonial Assembly for 
bravery in the French and Indian war; and 
still another, Jacobus Swartwout (father of 
Gen. Jacobus Swartwout), served in one of 
the Colonial wars. The elder Swartwout was 
the first judge of the court of common pleas 
of Dutchess county, and at the time of his 
death was the first supervisor of Rombout 
Precinct. Mr. Dean's mother died April 14, 
1896, aged ninety- five years, four months and 
fifteen days, having seen eight generations of 
her family, including two of her great-grand- 
fathers, who lived until she was seventeen 
years old, and her own great-great-grandchil- 
dren. Of her seven children, all lived to ma- 
turity, the first to pass away being Helena Du- 
Bois Dean, who died March 19, 1896, at the 
age of sixtv-one. 





cc^. 





^ cu^i-t^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



289 



James Edward Dean was born in Fishkill, 
May lo, 1830, the third child and eldest son 
of his parents, and his education was obtained 
in the public schools of the village, later in 
the academy which was then conducted by the 
Rev. Dr. Pinsjry. In the spring of 1848 he 
went to Rochester, N. Y., to learn the marble- 
worker's trade, but was called home in Au- 
gust, 1850, by the death of his father, and 
for several years he worked as a journeyman 
for Roswell Lamson, of Fishkill. On May 
10, 1854, he married Miss Jerusha Powell Hil- 
liker, daughter of Samson and Mary (Gilder- 
sleeve) Hilliker, and soon afterward moved to 
Glens Falls, N. Y., where he and his brother 
engaged in the marble business under the firm 
name of J. E. & G. W. Dean. Returning to 
Fishkill in the spring of 1S55, he purchased 
the yards of Roswell Lamson, and has carried 
on the business ever since, the making of mon- 
uments, headstones, vaults, enclosures, and 
and everything pertaining to that line of work. 
In 1870 he was elected president of the Fish- 
kill Savings Institute, and held the office 
twenty-one years, when he resigned and was 
chosen treasurer. In 1862, Mr. Dean, in com- 
pany with Milton A. Fowler, now of Pough- 
keepsie, purchased the Fishkill Journal, which 
they sold in 1866 to George W. Owen, who 
removed it from Fishkill to Matteawan in 1882. 
Not long after this, Mr. Dean and several other 
gentlemen established the Fishkill Weekly 
Times, still conducted by Mr. Dean and his 
son Herman. 

The Deans were prominent adherents of 
the Democratic party for generations previous 
to the Civil war, and Mr. Dean's first vote was 
cast for Franklin Pierce in 1852; but in 1855 
he joined the Republican party at its organi- 
zation, and has held to it ever since. In 1B59 
he was elected town clerk, and the following 
year justice of the peace, holding each office 
one term, and declined a renomination. For 
twelve years he was postmaster at Fishkill, 
previous to November, 1885, his commission, 
which was signed by President Grant, bearing 
date of June 16, 1873. Since 1863 he has 
shown his interest in educational advancement 
by continuous service as a trustee of Union 
Free School, District No. 6, town of Fishkill. 

Mr. Dean was one of the earliest promot- 
ers in the organization of the Fishkill Rural 
Cemetery, of which he was made trustee and 
treasurer, and held both positions for thirty 
years, but declined re-election as treasurer in 

19 



1895. His father held the positions of justice, 
postmaster and school trustee in the same vil- 
lage for many years before him, and his son, 
Herman, is now the successor of both, as justice. 
Mr. and Mrs. Dean have four children: 
William Edward is a well-known lawyer in 
Fishkill; Anna is at home; Herman is justice 
of the peace, and the editor of the Fishkill 
Weekly Times ; and Robert Edo is in the mon- 
ument business with his father. Mr. Dean's 
ancestors h;'.ve been identified with the Re- 
formed and Episcopal Churches for genera- 
tions, and most of the family are now members 
or regular attendants of Trinity Episcopal 
Church, Fishkill. By virtue of his ancestry 
Mr. Dean is a member of the Society of the 
Sons of the Revolution, New York branch, 
and is also eligible to membership in several 
other similar societies. Mrs. Dean's grandfa- 
ther served in the same regiment (the 3d West- 
chester) that Mr. Dean's ancestors did in the 
Revolution, and from both sourcees his daugh- 
ter derives her claim to membership in the 
Society of Daughters of the American Rev- 
olution. 



ILLIAM BOSTWICK, one of the busi- 
l^lt est, most energetic, and most enter- 
prising men of Pine Plains, Dutchess county, 
is now the president of the Stissing National 
Bank, the history of which is here given: 

A meeting was held at the home of Henry C. Myers, 
in the village of Pine Plains, February 15, 18;i9, at which 
Aaron E. VVinchell was chosen chairman, and F. I. Cur- 
tiss, secretary, for the purpose of forming a bank under 
the general banking law passed April 18, 1838. At this 
meeting Aaron K. VVinchell, R. W. Bostwick, Backus 
Culver, Justus Booth and Cornelius Husted were ap- 
pointed a committee to report a board of directors, which 
was as follows: Aaron E. VVinchell, R. VV. Bostwick, 
Walter Reynolds, Justus Booth, Backus Culver, Corne- 
lius Ilusted, Frederick I. Curtiss, George VV'. Barton, 
Henry Hoffman, John P'erris, William W. Pulver, Abram 
Dibble, William VVinchell, .Samuel Deuel, Xiles Hart- 
well, William Eno, and Leonard Rowe. At a meeting of 
the directors held jMarch IB, 18:i9, Reuben W. Bostwick 
was elected jiresident; William Eno, vice-president; and 
Walter Reynolds, attorney for said bank; and .-Xpril 15, 
following, Frederick VV. Davis was called as cashier. 
The bank was located in the Dilible store March 23, 1839. 
At a meeting held August 2li, 1847, F. W. Davis resigned, 
and John F. Hull was appointed. The latter resigned at 
the meeting of May 4, 1852, and Reuben Bostwick was 
appointed cashier. This organization was known as the 
" Pine Plains Bank." 

At a meeting appointed for the organization of a 
bank held May 2!>, 1858, the' subscribers to the stock 
thereof voted tile name should be ".Stissing Bank," and 
Justus Booth was made president, with Reuben Bo-stwick 
as cashier. The lot was purchased June 19, 1858, and 
contract for building the banking house was made July 
10, following. Justus Booth declining re-election for an- 



290 



COMifEiTOBATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



other year, William S. Eno was elected president May 
14, 1864. At a meeting held March 4, IStw, the name (it 
the bank was changed to " Stissing National Bank." 
Reuben Bustwick contiifued as cashier until July 11, 
1870, when, at a special meeting, Kred Hostwick, his old- 
est son, was elected cashier, and William Bostvvick was 
chosen clerk. This continued until the resignation of 
Fred Bostwick was accepted May il, ISS.'i, and William 
Bostwick was apjjointed cashier by the board and officers. 
On May 16, 188."), William M. Sayre was apjfointeil assis- 
tant cashier, and, after his death, J. H. Bostwick was 
elected asst. cashier May 21, 1887. On Jan. 14, 1896, Will- 
iam Bostwick was elected president in the place of Will- 
iam S. Eno, who retired, and J. H. Bostwick was ap- 
pointed cashier. The bank is now in a flourishing condi- 
tion, for which great credit is ilue its efficient officers. 

The Bostwick family was founded in Amer- 
ica by English immigrants. Reuben Bostwick, 
the father of our subject, was a native of 
Dutchess county, born in 1821, and was the 
son of Reuben W. Bostwick, who for many 
years was a general merchant of Pine Plains. 
The son was reared in that village, and there 
spent his entire life, being associated with his 
father in the store until he was elected cashier 
of the bank, in 1852, which position he con- 
tinued to fill until 1870. He was an able busi- 
ness man, possessed of more than ordinary 
ability. He was married to Elizabeth Hunt- 
ing, daughter of John Hunting, of the town of 
Pine Plains, and their family included seven 
children: Fred, of Pine Plains; William, sub- 
ject of this review; Ida; Hattie; \\'alter and 
Walker, both of whom died when young; and 
J. Hunting. The father did not take an active 
part in political affairs, but voted the Repub- 
lican ticket, which is also supported by his 
sons, and in religious belief the family are 
Presbyterians. 

On December 28, 1851, William Bostwick 
was born in the town of Pine Plains, where 
his primary education was received. Later he 
was a student at College Hill Military Acad- 
emy, and also at Riverview Academy. At the 
age of fifteen years he left the school room, 
and soon afterward obtained a position in the 
bank, where he served as clerk until 1S84, and 
was then cashier until elected president, in 
1896. The banking interests of Pine Plains 
have for many years been well represented by 
members of the Bostwick family, and our sub- 
ject has been one of the most discreet and 
able officers of the Stissing National Bank. 
He has a remarkable faculty for the conduct- 
ing and dispatching of business, and his ability 
to fill the important position which he now 
occupies has been well proven bj' his faithful 
service as cashier. 

Mr. Bostwick has been twice married, his 



first union being with Miss Belle Eno, who 
died in 1883. The lady who now shares his 
name and fortunes was in her maidenhood Miss 
Eugenia Covey, daughter of Lyman Covey, 
and to them have been born three sons: 
Walker, Harry C. and l^alph. Although only 
interested in politics as a citizen an.\ious to 
have good government, Mr. Bostwick has made 
a careful study of political matters, and casts 
his ballot in support of the I^epublican party. 
Socially, he is identified with the I-ioyal Arca- 
num. Courteous, genial, well informed, alert 
and enterprising, he stands to-day one of the 
leading representative men of his county — a 
man who is a power in his community. 



TENRY A. ALDEN (deceased). The his- 
^Ji tory of the privations, an.xieties and 
struggles of the Pilgrim Fathers after the land- 
ing at Plymouth Rock is brightened bj' one 
beautiful strain of romance, the story of John 
and Priscilla Alden, who were the direct an- 
cestors of the subject of this sketch. John 
Alden was one of those (the seventh) who 
signed the compact in the cabin of the " May- 
flower" in 1620, and was the last male sur- 
vivor of the devoted band of voyagers. He 
was not of the Leyden Church, but. as I^rad- 
ford in his " History of the Plymouth Planta- 
tion " informs us (the spelling in the original 
being preserved), " was hired for a cooper at 
Southampton, where the ship victuled; and 
being a hopful yong man was much desired, 
but left to his own liking to go or stay when 
he came here; but he stayed and marj'ed here." 
He was distinguished for his practical wis- 
dom, integrity and decision, and early acquired 
and retained during his long life a command- 
ing influence over his associates. He was much 
employed in public business; was an assistant 
to the Governor for many years, and in every 
position he fulfilled his duties promptly and to 
the satisfaction of his employers. His ances- 
tors in England have not been traced, so far 
as is known. He was born in i 599, and died 
at Duxbury, Mass., September 12, 1687. 
His marriage took place probably in 1621. 
Priscilla was the daughter of William Molines 
(or Mullins), who with his wife came also with 
the " Mayflower, " and both died in February 
succeeding their landing. Tradition repre- 
sents Priscilla as being very beautiful in her 
youth, and John also was a comely person, 
and considering his other accomplishments it 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



291 



is not surprising that when he was sent by 
Capt. Standish. after the death of his wife, 
to solicit her hand for the Captain in marriage, 
she preferred the messenger to the message. 
"As he warmed and glowed, in his simple 
and eloquent language, quite forgetful of self 
and full of praise of his rival, archly the maiden 
smiled, and, with eyes overrunning with 
laughter, said, in a tremulous voice, ' Why 
don't you speak for yourself, John?' " Their 
residence after a few years was in Duxbury on 
the north side of the village, on a farm still in 
the possession of their descendants of the 
seventh generation, having never been alien- 
ated. He made no will, having distributed 
the greater part of his estate among his chil- 
dren during his lifetime. 

Jonathan, his third son, with whom he re- 
sided on the old homestead, administered on 
his estate and made a final settlement with the 
heirs, June 13, 1688. The settlement is as 
follows: '■ We, whose names are subscribed, 
personally interested in the estate of John 
Alden, Sr., of Duxbury, Esquire, lately de- 
ceased, do hereby acknowledge ourselves to 
have received, each of us, our full personal 
proportion thereof from Jonathan Alden, Ad- 
ministrator thereof, do by these presents for 
ourselves, our heirs, and executors, acquit, 
discharge fully, the said Jonathan Alden, his 
heirs, forever of and from all right, dues, de- 
mands, whatsoever relating to the aforesaid 
estate. In witness whereof we have hereunto 
subscribed and sealed this 13th day of June, 
Anno Domini 1688." — John Alden {seal), 
Joseph Alden (seal), David Alden {seal)', 
Priscilla Alden {seal), William Paybody {seal), 
Alexander Standish ( seal) in the right of Sarah, 
my wife, deceased, John Bass {seal) in the 
right of my wife Ruth, deceased, Mary Alden 
{seal), Thomas Dilauno [seal). As only eight 
children are named in this instrument it was 
• supposed, until recently, that he had no more. 
Bradford, however, states in his history, that, 
at the time of his writing, John Alden and his 
wife Priscilla were both living and had eleven 
children, and that their eldest daughter was 
living and had five children. In the document 
copied above her name is written Priscilla. 
According to this account the children were: 
John, born about 1622; Joseph, 1624; Eliza- 
beth, 1625; Jonathan, Sarah, Ruth, Mary, 
David, the names of the other three being 
unknown. 

Seeoiul Generation : Joseph Alden, of 



Bridgewater, farmer, son of John (i), was born 
1624, died February 8, 1697. He married 
Mary, daughter of Moses Simmons, Jr., and 
had five children, viz. : Isaac, Joseph (born 
1667), John. Elizabeth and Mary. 

Third Generation : Deacon Joseph Alden, 
Bridgewater, farmer, son of Joseph, was born 
in 1667. He married Hannah, daughter of 
Daniel Dunham, of Plymouth, who died June 
13, 1748. Their children were, viz. : Daniel, 
born January 29, 1691; Joseph, August 26, 
1693, died December 9, 1695; Eleazer, Sep- 
tember 27, 1694; Hannah, in February, 1696; 
Mary, April 10, 1699; Joseph, September 5, 
1700, died October 5, 1700; Jonathan, Decem- 
ber 3, 1703, died November 10, 1704; Samuel, 
August 20, 1705; Mehitabel, October 18, 1707; 
and Seth, July 6, 17 10. 

Foni-th Generation : Samuel Alden, of 
Titicut, son of Deacon Joseph, was born Au- 
gust 20, 1705, and died in 17S5. He was 
married in 1728 to his first wife, Abiah, daugh- 
ter of Capt. Joseph Edson, and had nine chil- 
dren, viz. : Abiah, born 1729; Mehitabel, i 732; 
Sarah, 1734; Samuel, 1736; Josiah, 1738; 
Simeon, 1740; Silas died aged twenty-one 
years; Mary; Hosea, killed by the kick of a 
horse. Samuel Alden married, in 1752, his 
second wife, who was a daughter of Josiah 
Washburn. 

Fifth Generation: Josiah Alden was a. 
farmer at Ludlow, Mass. He was married, 
in 1 76 1, to Bathsheba Jones, of Raynham, 
and had nine children: Elijah, Azel, Abiah, 
Bathsheba, Charity, Josiah, Lucy, Rebecca 
and Benjamin. 

Sixth Generation : Josiah Alden, of Lud- 
low, a farmer, was born September 3, 1773, 
and died in 1833. He married Olive Brown, 
and had ten children, viz. : Azel, Justin, Char- 
ity, Zenas, \^'ashington Brown, Charles, John, 
Alary, Oram us, Eunice. 

Seventh Generation: Zenas Alden, of Lud- 
low and Springfield, Mass., was born Novem- 
ber I, 1795, and died in January, 1840; he 
married Betsey Taylor, of Hartford, Conn., 
and had six children, viz. : George Washing- 
ton, who died at Springfield in 1863 or 1864; 
Henry A., our subject; Charles, a resident of 
Hartford, Conn.; Jane; Caroline married a 
Mr. Taylor, of Hartford, Conn.; and William. 

The late Henry A. Alden was born March 
10, 1S23, at Springfield, Mass., where his 
father was engaged in manufacturing rifles for 
the U. S. Government. During his boyhood 



292 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



he attended the public schools of his native 
place, and at eighteen he became associated 
with Charles and Henry Goodj'ear, the well- 
known inventors, in the manufacture of India- 
rubber goods. After several years with them, 
he opened a factory on Staten Island in 1S47, 
under the name of the New York Rubber Co. 
In 1S57 the works were removed to Fishkill- 
on-Hudson. and, as Mr. Alden had become 
familiar with the rubber-goods trade in all its 
branches, he was made superintendent. Hav- 
ing become a leading stockholder in the com- 
pany, he was elected president, and held this 
position until his death, which occurred De- 
cember 6, 1 882. His business cares prevented 
him from taking an active part in public affairs, 
but he was a stanch Republican in politics, and 
was always ready to encourage any measure 
for local improvement. 

On July 16, 1S47, he was married to Miss 
Mary M. Bishop, of Woodbury, Litchfield 
Co., Conn., and two sons were born of this 
union. The elder, Henrj- Bishop Alden, was 
born at Newtown, Conn., February 17, 1850. 
and died September 30, 1875. He was married 
June 20, 1872, to Miss Susie B. \'an Liew, 
daughter of Henry and Mary (Fitzgerald) \'an- 
Liew, of Sing Sing, N. Y. They had one 
daughter (posthumous:, Mary, born February 
3, 1S76, at Sing Sing. The youngest son, 
George Fuller Alden, was born March 10, 
1853, at Newtown, Conn., and died March 7, 
1886. He was married June 14. 1877, to 
Miss Cornelia DuBois, daughter of Henry and 
Adelia (Van Voorhis) DuBois, of Fishkill, N. 
Y. She survives him with one daughter, 
Edith, who was born at Fishkill, December 
15, 1 88 1. 

Mrs. Henry A. Alden was the second in a 
family of four daughters, the others being 
Fannie, Emily M., and Elsie M., who is the 
wife of George C. Smith, of Fishkill. The 
father. Miles Bishop, \vas a soldier in the war 
of 1S12, and his regiment was stationed at 
London, Conn., to guard Fort Griswold, when 
Roger Griswold was governor of Connecticut. 
Mrs. -Alden's paternal great-grandfather was 
-Miles Bishop, and her grandparents were Lu- 
ther and Sybil ( Long) Bishop, who had nine 
children: Charles, Salmon, Julia, Raney, 
Thyrza. Seth, Sallie, Garwood and Miles. 
Her maternal great-grandparents were Aner 
Ives, who was born January 13, 1740, and his 
wife Rachel, born June 11, 1744. Their son 
A^ael, Mrs. Alden's grandfather, born June 25, 



1764, married Elsie Foote. who was born 
October 19, 1756. They had eight children, 
whose names with dates of birth are as follows: 
Amasa, October 15, 1784; Asael \\'., August 
31, 1787; Fannie, February 16, 1790; Garrett, 
March 19, 1792; Cynthia, January 23. 1795; 
Harmon, March 31, 1797; Nancy, January 17, 
i8cx) (died in infancy); and Nancy (2 1, April 
16, 1804. 

Elsie Foote Ives, Mrs. Alden's grandmoth- 
er, was a daughter of Abraham and Lucy 
AVilmot) Foote; her father was a captain in 
the Revolutionary army, and also served in 
the French and Indian war. 



GEORGE W. OWEN, the well-known edi- 
tor of the Fishkill Journal, which has 
been for many years a powerful aid to the best 
interests of the community, is one of the most 
prominent citizens of Matteawan, Dutchess 
county. 

On the paternal side Mr. Owen is descended 
from a family which has long been held in es- 
teem in Putnam and Westchester counties, his 
ancestors having been among the earliest set- 
tlers in the vicinity of Peekskill. He first saw 
the light in Orange county, N. Y.. near the 
southwestern border of the town of New Wind- 
sor, and his youth was spent upon a farm. 
Possessing an active and inquiring mind, he 
devoted his evenings and the few moments of 
leisure that he could hnd, amid the exacting 
duties of farm life, to reading and study, thus 
supplementing the limited educational advan- 
tstges afforded by the brief winter terms of the 
country schools. In this manner he mastered 
not only the ordinary branches but the higher 
mathematics and the natural sciences, and 
made a thorough study of the English language 
and literature, giving also some attention to 
Latin, on account of the assistance which it 
would give in the analysis of English. Saving 
something from his earnings, he managed to 
take a course in a large academical institution, 
where his time was chiefly spent in reviewing 
the studies that he had pursued in private. 
He had feared that some erroneous conclusions 
might have been made by him. but it is hardly 
necessarj- to state that he found that his thor- 
ough work in the seclusion of the farm enabled 
him to take a high rank among the pupils to 
whom "Dame Fortune" had apparently 
shown more favor. 

The employment which first became avail- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



293 



able was that of teaching school, and this he 
followed for about eight years. In 1865 he 
purchased the Fishkill Journal, then a small 
weekly published in Fishkill \'illage. It was 
printed upon an old-fashioned hand press, as 
were most of the similar papers of that time; 
but after working for a year with this anti- 
quated plant, he procured a cylinder press 
and new type, and brought out the foiir- 
nal in a new dress. He also enlarged it, 
and, as he was a Republican, he could not re- 
frain from making the paper, which had pre- 
viously been neutral, reflect his own views 
upon the stirring issues of the Reconstruction 
period. Andrew Johnson, raised to the Presi- 
dency through the death of Abraham Lincoln, 
was then setting himself at variance with the 
party that elected him, and the Fishkill Jour- 
nal, with its earnest discussions of the prob- 
lems of the hour, became a power in Dutchess 
county politics. In the fall of 1877 Mr. Owen 
purchased a job-printing office in Matteawan, 
and for several years conducted this, as well 
as the Journal office in Fishkill Village. In 
August, 18S2, he removed the Journal plant 
to Matteawan, and combined the two estab- 
lishments. On September 14, 1885, hestarted 
the Fishkill Daily Journal, which he con- 
ducts in connection with the weekly edition. 

In his journalistic work Mr. Owen has been 
identified with all that is enterprising and up- 
lifting to the community, encouraging philan- 
thropic movements and endorsing every effort 
for advancement in whatever line. Some sub- 
stantial advantages gained of later years could 
no doubt be traced to his influence exerted 
either personally or through the columns of his 
paper, and his power for good has been none 
the less real for being quietly used. Mr. Owen 
has also devoted some time to literary work, 
and is the author of two works of fiction of a 
somewhat practical nature, which were well 
received by the public, and had a large sale. 

Although Mr. Owen has never sought pub- 
lic office, he was for several years a member 
of the Matteawan board of education, and his 
fine abilities make him a valued adviser in vari- 
ous enterprises, notably the Matteawan Sav- 
ings Bank, of which he is a trustee. He has 
been for many years a member of the F. & A. 
M., Beacon Lodge No. 283. 

During his journalistic career, Mr. Owen's 
recreations have consisted chiefly in making 
tours through various parts of the United 
States. Having a passion for natural scenery, 



he has most frequently visited the regions 
whose features were picturesque, grand or 
beautiful. The wilderness of the Adirondacks; 
the grand cataract of Niagara; the picturesque 
St. Lawrence river, with its Thousand Is- 
lands, its rushing rapids, where the steamboat, 
with its human freight, plunges down between 
the rocks as if to certain destruction, the quaint 
old city of Quebec; also the rugged White 
mountains of New England, with their snow- 
capped Mount Washington; the orange groves 
of Florida; the far West; the grand Sierra 
Nevadas; California, with all its marvelous 
beauties and resources — these have all been 
scenes of his travels and themes for his pen, 
wherein he entertained his readers with many 
a well- written article. Thus he combined 
business with pleasure and profit to his readers. 
The most important of these travels was 
an extended tour across the continent, when 
the Pacific railroad had been completed but a 
comparatively short time, and the country 
opened up by this great thoroughfare was still 
in almost its native wildness. Going by rail, 
he took plenty of time, stopping at various 
points of interest along the way, writing, graph- 
ically, descriptive articles for his paper. The 
unique features of the desert plains, then 
roamed over by the buffalo, the antelope, the 
lively coyote, and other wild animals in their 
native freedom, were set forth in entertaining 
articles. He visited Salt Lake City, when 
Brigham Young was living and reigning in all 
his glory, and had an interview with the great 
Mormon. Continuing his journey by rail to 
California, he passed over the Sierra Nevadas 
in the month of June, when the snow in huge 
banks still lay in the gorges, and the scene 
was one of wild and rugged grandeur. Arriv- 
ing in San Francisco, he remained in that city 
for a considerable time, and then started out 
in excursions through various parts of that 
remarkable country. Railroads were not as 
numerous there then as now, and a large part 
of the travel was done in stages over thorough- 
fares which could only be termed roads by 
courtesy; and on horseback through trackless 
forests. He reached the famous Yosemite 
Valley in this manner, part of the way by 
stage, and when a point was reached where no 
trace of a road existed, the remainder of the 
journey was performed on the back of a mus- 
tang, the only paths being simply trails where 
previous traveling parties had left footprints. 
Here, also, he visited the famous Mariposa 



294 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



grove of big trees, the greatest known giants 
of the forest, and performed the oft repeated 
feat of riding on horsebaci< through a hollow 
log which lay prostrate on the ground. 

After establishing himself for a time in the 
Yosemite \'alley, and familiarizing himself 
with its grand and wonderful features, he 
made frequent excursions on horseback among 
the lofty mountains of the Sierra range in the 
vicinity, among snow banks in summer, the 
intrepid mustang climbing cliffs where a man 
alone would find it difficult to keep his footing. 

Mr. Owen's articles on the Yosemite Val- 
ley and the big trees were pronounced to be 
fine literary productions, highly entertaining to 
his readers; and after his return he embodied 
some of these in a lecture, which he delivered 
free on several occasions. These articles are 
preserved now only in the old files of the 
Jouriia/. 



HENRY TIEDJE, a leading confectioner 
of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was 
born August 27, 1858, in the village of Ring- 
stead, Province of Hanover. Germany, the son 
of Henry and Bertha Tiedje. 

Our subject was educated in the schools of 
his native place, and at the age of seventeen 
started out to make his way in the world, with 
with no capital but his own abilities. He 
bame to America to find a better field for his 
energies than the Fatherland afforded, and lo- 
cated first in New York City, where a brother 
secured him employment in a small confection- 
ery store. In New York he remained seven 
years, engaged in various occupations, and 
then went to Poughkeepsie to work as a candy- 
maker for Charles H. Gerdes. On May 24, 
1883, Mr. Tiedje bought the business of his 
employer, and has continued it since at the 
old stand, No. 358 Main street, with the ex- 
ception of three years at No. 366 Main street. 
In 1893 Mr. Tiedje bought the building in 
which his store is located. His success has 
been remarkable, and is based solely upon 
industry, economy and good business man- 
agement. He manufactures his own plain 
candies, soda water and ices, in which he has an 
extensive trade. 

On October 23, 1889, he was married, by 
Rev. F. B. Wheeler, to Miss Mary E. War- 
ren, daughter of Albert Warren, a well-known 
citizen of Poughkeepsie. They have one child, 
Estelle E., born September 20, 1S90. Mrs. 



Tiedje is a true helpmeet for her husband, and 
her energy and business ability have been im- 
portant factors in her husband's advancement, 
and he takes manly pride in acknowledging the 
fact. Mr. Tiedje is a naturalized citizen of 
the United States, but he does not take any 
active part in politics, his attention being 
given to his business interests. 



BENJAMIN A. SLEIGHT (deceased), for- 
merly a prominent business man and agri- 
culturist of the town of Wappinger, Dutchess 
county, was a member of one of the oldest 
and most highly esteemed families of that vi- 
cinity, and as a substantial citizen of his own 
day he sustained well the reputation won by 
his forefathers. He was born in 1786, in the ' 
town of Poughkeepsie, and his active life cov- 
ered a period of great importance in the devel- 
opment of that region. 

Abraham Sleight, father of Benjamin A., 
and a native of Kingston, Ulster county, was 
a prominent citizen of the town of Fishkill 
during the latter part of the eighteenth cen- 
tury, and served as a soldier in the Revolu- 
tionary war, a grateful country awarding him 
a pension in his later years. He followed 
farming all his life, settling in Fishkill shortly, 
after his marriage with Miss Ruth Roe. a na- 
tive of Dutchess county. Both became active 
supporters of the Reformed Dutch Church in 
Fishkill. They had eight children: Sarah, 
who married James M. Jones, of Dutchess 
county; Abraham, a farmer, who died in early 
manhood; Benjamin A., our subject; Ann, 
Ruth. John (an invalid), and Nellie (none of 
whom ever married), and Sophie E. (Mrs. R. 
D. E. Stoutenburgh). Among other represent- 
atives of the Sleight family in that locality was 
Peter R. Sleight, a cousin of our subject, and 
the father of Alexander Sleight, of Lagrange. 

Benjamin A. Sleight was reared upon the 
farm, and attended the schools of Kingston, 
where he acquired a good academic education. 
After leaving school he engaged in mercantile 
business in the town of Poughkeepsie. He 
married Miss Caroline Ackerman, daughter of 
James Ackerman, a native of the town of 
Poughkeepsie, and a leading farmer of the 
town of Lagrange, where she was born. Her 
grandfather. Gurioyn Ackerman. was a leading 
resident of the town of Poughkeepsie in his 
time, and her ancestors were among the most 
highly esteemed of the Holland-Dutch settlers 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



295 



of Dutchess county. Not long after his mar- 
riage Mr. Sleight settled in the town of Fish- 
kill, where his well-known integrity of charac- 
ter and judicial mind caused him to be elected 
to the office of justice of the peace, and his 
faithful discharge of the duties in that position 
occupied most of his time for many years; 
but later he devoted himself to the manage- 
ment of his farm. In politics he was a Dem- 
ocrat, and like his parents he adhered to the 
old Reformed Church. His wife died in 1854, 
and four years thereafter he, too, passed away. 

Eight children were born to their union: 
Edgar, who died in 1892, was a farmer in the 
town of Wappinger; Louise is at home; Frank, 
a hardware merchant in Poughkeepsie, died in 
1S77; Amelia was married to Francis B. Pye, 
the famous inventor; Anna married M. V. B. 
Schryver, of Rhinebeck, and died in 1894; 
Eliza is at home; John is a resident of Green- 
bush, N. Y. ; and Sidney died therein 1873. 

The late Francis B. Pye, whose name is 
known in all parts of fhe civilized world as the 
inventor of the time lock, was a native of 
Newark, N. J., and a descendant of an old 
English family. His grandfather, Thomas Pye, 
was the pioneer lock manufacturer of America, 
while he (Francis B.) was the first to manu- 
facture cast-iron locks in this country, and was 
the head of the Trenton Lock Co., one of the 
most important firms engaged in that line of 
business. Since his death, which occurred in 
January, 1877, Mrs. Pye has lived at the old 
homestead near Fishkill Plains, a fine estate 
with a tasteful and commodious brick residence. 
She possesses unusual executive ability, and 
manages the farm of 167 acres with great skill. 
Her specialty is horticulture, and she has 1,200 
apple trees in her orchards, which are among 
the most e.xtensive in the locality. 



THOMAS I. STORM (deceased), who in 
in his lifetime was a wealthy and influ- 
ential citizen of the town of East Fishkill, 
Dutchess county, residing near Stormville, was 
one of the leading agriculturists there, as were 
several generations of his ancestors. 

John Storm, his great-grandfather, was one 
of three brothers who came from Holland at 
an early period and settled upon a large tract 
of land in the wilderness — Goris in Westches- 
ter county, N. Y. ; Isaac in York county, Penn., 
and John at our subject's present farm in East 
Fishkill. 



Thomas I. Storm, our subject's grandfather, 
was born and reared there, and after his mar- 
riage to Dianah Adriance, November 9, 1788, 
made it his permanent home. Seven children 
were born to him: Isaac, a wholesale mer- 
chant in New York City; Thomas, a specula- 
tor in New York City, and the owner of a farm 
in Orange county; Charles, a tobacco mer- 
chant in New York City; Gallette, who mar- 
ried Gilbert Wilkinson, of Poughkeepsie, a 
boatman by occupation; Catherine, the wife 
of Henry Teller, a farmer in Orange county; 
Theodorus, our subject's father; and Emeline, 
who married George Doughty, a farmer. 

Theodorus Storm settled upon the old farm, 
and married Susan Storm, a native of Fishkill, 
and the daughter of Col. John Storm, a de- 
scendant of one of the three brothers above 
mentioned. Seven children were born of this 
union: Susan, who married John T. Storm, 
now living in retirement in Beekman; Maria 
L. , the wife of William Humphrey, a farmer 
in Pleasant Valley; Catherine (deceased); Theo- 
dore, who is blind; Cornelia, who married 
Henry Wooley, a farmer in Beekman (both 
now deceased); Thomas I., our subject; ^nd 
one child that died in infancy. The father of 
this family died August 10, 1865. He was a 
Democrat in principle, though not especially 
active in political affairs, and he and his wife 
were both prominent members of the Reformed 
Dutch Church. 

Thomas I. Storm was born April 14, 1827, 
and passed his entire life upon the old estate 
to which the residence of so many of his fam- 
ily have lent pleasant associations. On June 
10, 1857, he was united in wedlock with Susan 
Maria Arthur, a lady of Irish descent, and a 
native of Dutchess county. Her father, John 
Arthur, a well-known agriculturist, was a 
cousin to ex-President Chester A. Arthur; her 
mother was a daughter of Major Abram Ad- 
riance, of East Fishkill. Of the four children 
by this marriage, all are residents of the town 
of East Fishkill. Arthur is a horticulturist; 
Walter follows agriculture; Adriana married 
Eugene Storm, formerly a merchant of New 
York, who died January 9, 1890, leaving a 
widow and one child, William T. Storm, born 
September 2, 1885; and Doretha, married to 
Benjamin D. Haxtun, a farmer, and has two 
children: Maria Arthur Haxtun, born October 
22, 1894, and Adriana Storm Haxtun, boTn 
February 22, 1897. 

Thomas I. Storm died very suddenly June 



296 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



17, 1896. He took an active part in the local 
Democratic organization, and ser%'ed as town 
assessor. He was a leading adherent of the 
Reformed Dutch Church, of Hopewell, as is 
also his widow. 



JOHN G. DUNCAN (deceased; was born in 
the town of Unionvale, Dutchess Co., 
N. Y., in the year 1793. He received a 
good common-school education, and while yet 
a young man entered the general store of 
Jacob Fowler as clerk. By strict attention to 
business he rose rapidly, and soon became 
owner of the store at Hoxie Corners. By de- 
grees he acquired several farms in the vicinity, 
among them being the Oakley and the Stryker 
places. His health failing, he retired, when 
about thirty-four years of age, to his farm at 
Verbank, where he passed his declining years, 
dj'ing December 19, 1857. Shortly after his 
death his widow removed to Poughkeepsie, 
and died there January' 4, 1875. 

Mr. Duncan in his political preferences 
was first a Whig, afterward a Republican, and 
served as justice of the peace for many years. 
He was fond of reading, and for a long time 
was custodian of the circulating library known 
as the Franklin Library, and he was also in 
charge of the District School Library. 

He was progressive, being quick to appre- 
ciate and advance whatever pertained to the 
welfare of the community, and his sterling 
qualities earned for him the respect and con- 
fidence of his fellow townsmen. In his domes- 
tic relations he was a kind husband and father, 
always preferring the quiet seclusion of home 
to the more bustling activities of his business 
life. He suffered not a little from rheumatism, 
and was also quite deaf, which latter infirmity 
accounted for his absence from many public 
assemblages. 

The old house on the \'erbank farm (which 
is still in the possession of the family) was con- 
sidered unusually handsome in its day, its 
architectural features being admired by many 
from a distance. The walls, which were hard 
finished, are still well preserved, a;id the past 
se\'enty years have made little impression on 
the solid timbers. The land now covered by 
the Verbank station, as well as a good portion 
of the Verbank Rural Cemetery, originall}- be- 
longed to "Ingleside," the farm owned by the 
subject of our sketch. 

The Duncan famil)', of which John C. 



Duncan was a member, originally came from 
Scotland, first locating in Canada, thence mov- 
ing to Boston, and from there to Dutchess 
county. William Duncan married Mary 
Wooley, their son George marrying Lucy Rey- 
nolds, leaving a son John G. 

In 1 8 14 Mr. Duncan married Mary \'ail, 
second daughter of Piatt Vail. To Mr. and 
Mrs. Duncan were born seven children as 
follows: 

(i) Maria Jane was born in Unionvale in 
1 8 16. She attended Miss Proctor's school at 
Poughkeepsie. She was married to Leonard 
B. Sherman, of the town of Washington, 
and died in 1847, leaving two daughters, (a) 
Mary and fbj Matilda. (a) Mary married 
Lewis Germond; (b) Matilda married Chauncey 
Colwell. 

(2) Ovid was born December i, 18 19, in 
the town of Unionvale. He spent his boy- 
hood on his father's farm, attending school at 
Amenia Seminary in Dutchess county. He 
early became associated with his father in 
mercantile pursuits, and later purchased the 
Alonzo Haight farm. For many j-ears he was 
widely known as a dealer in cattle. He mar- 
ried Ann Davis, leaving two daughters, Caro- 
line (now deceased) and Annie Kate; also four 
sons — John, Jesse (deceased), Everett and 
Theron. All those who are living reside in 
Dutchess county. 

(3) Antoinette died in infancy. 

(4) George Piatt was born June 23, 1825. 
His school days were passed at Amenia Semi- 
nary. On the death of his father, the home- 
stead came into his possession. In 1864 he 
married Anna Brown Downing, of Lagrange, 
and took up his residence in this town, dying 
there March 23, 1874. He was honorable in 
his business affairs, faithful in his friendships 
and respected by all. He left two sons, 
Charles Henry (born July 1 1 , 1 866) and George 
Richard (born February 14, 1868), both of 
whom attended private schools in Poughkeep- 
sie, and later St. Stephens College, Dutchess 
county. The former was graduated from St: 
Stephens in the class of '87, and from Gen. 
Theological Seminary in 1S90. His first 
charge was in Geneva, N. Y., from which 
place he was called, in 1891, to St. James 
Church, Watkins, N. Y. After spending five 
years there he was elected to the rectorship of 
Grace Church, Millbrook, N. Y. As the tastes 
of the latter inclined toward business, he left 
school at an early age to take up newspaper 




f^ «?---^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPEICAL RECORD. 



297 



work, which he followed with success until his 
health became affected. He now resides in 
North Granbj', Massachusetts. 

(5) Catherine Amelia was born at the home- 
stead, Unionvale, June i, 1827. She joined 
the Methodist Church at an early age, attend- 
ing school at Nine Partners and Anienia Sem- 
inary. In company with her mother and sis- 
ters she removed to Poughkeepsie in 1 S64, be- 
coming a communicant of St. Paul's Church in 
1877, where she continued a devoted member 
up to her death, which occurred March 26, 
1897. She was unmarried. 

(6) Rebecca Matilda was born at the 
homestead, town of Unionvale. She attend- 
ed Nine Partners School and Amenia Semi- 
nary, and was a member of the M. E. Church 
in her youth. Removed to Poughkeepsie and 
was married June 22, 1864, to Lewis F. 
Streit, an elder in the Presbyterian Church, of 
which Church she subsequently became a 
member. 

(7) Frances Emma, the youngest child, 
was born at the homestead in Verbank, town 
of Unionvale. She was a member of the 
Methodist Church at that place. Attended 
school at Tookers Female Academy, Pough- 
keepsie. In 1864 she came to Poughkeepsie 
to reside, and in 1877 she was confirmed in 
St. Paul's Church, Poughkeepsie. She is liv- 
ing at her home in the above-named place, 
and is unmarried. 

The father of Mary (Vail) Duncan was 
Piatt Vail (born 1769, died 1822), who was 
married to Catherine Reynolds (born 1767, 
died 1852). His father was Capt. Israel Vail, 
of Beekman Precinct, who served with dis- 
tinction in the war of the Revolution, and 
whose record appears as follows, according to 
the secretary of the New York Society, ' ' Sons 
of the Revolution:" "Captain Israel Vail, 5th 
Regt., Dutchess Co., N. Y., Militia. (Col. 
James Vanderburg) March loth, 1778." 



GEORGE SCHLEGEL. There is no ele- 
ment which enters into our composite 
national fabric which has been of more practi- 
cal strength, value and utility than that fur- 
nished by the sturdy, persevering and honora- 
ble sons of Germany, and in the progress of our 
Union this element has played an important 
part. The subject of this review, who comes 
from stanch German stock, was born at Carls- 
ruhe, Grand Duchy of Baden, April 20, 1823. 



There he was educated, and learned the shoe- 
maker's trade. 

Hoping to benefit his financial condition, 
Mr. Schlegel, in 1844, sailed for America, and 
on landing at New York secured work there at 
his trade for five years, at the end of which 
time he came to Poughkeepsie. Here he 
opened a retail shoe store, and also engaged in 
the manufacture of boots and shoes, conduct- 
ing his business on Main street, near River 
street, until 1870, when he disposed of his 
stock. He then came to his present location 
at Nos. 544 and 544,, Main street, where he 
has since successfully carried on a variety 
store, and has built up an extensive trade. 

In 1846 Mr. Schlegel was united in mar- 
riage with Johanna Reinhard, a lady of Ger- 
man birth, who died in Poughkeepsie in 1867. 
Four years later he was again married, his 
second union being with Emma Meyerhuber, 
a native of Carlsruhe, Germany, and to them 
have been born two children, George C, 
born August 23, 1873, a druggist of Pough- 
keepsie; and Emma, born June 5, 1876. Mrs. 
Schlegel is the proud possessor of a medal and 
cross given her by King William I, of Ger- 
many, for the services she rendered during the 
war of 1870, while in the hospital taking care 
of the sick and wounded. In religious belief 
both she and her husband are Protestants, and 
they have made many warm friends in their 
adopted country. Politically, Mr. Schlegel 
uses his right of franchise in support of Demo- 
cratic principles, and has maintained a lively 
interest in the advancement of the industrial 
and popular interests of the city of his adoption. 
He is a man of genial, social nature, a member 
of the Germania Society, and is a representa- 
tive German-American citizen. 



PETER ADRIANCE, senior member of the 
firm of Peter Adriance & Son, plumbers, 
tinners, steam, hot water and gas fitters, whose 
place of business is No. 393 Main street, Pough- 
keepsie, was born in the town of East Fish- 
kill, Dutchess county, April 19, 1843, on the 
farm where his great-grandfather. Ram I. 
Adriance, located, the first of the family to 
come to Dutchess county. 

There also was born, in 1787, Peter Adri- 
ance, the grandfather of our subject, and 
there his entire life was devoted to agriculture. 
He married Catherine Storm, and they reared 
a family of three children: Thomas, the fa- 



298 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ther of our subject; Mary A., who wedded 
James Wilkinson, of Dutchess county; and 
Amelia, who married Willett Culver, a farmer 
of Dutchess county. The parents of these 
were both faithful members of the Reformed 
Dutch Church. 

Upon the old homestead Thomas Adriance 
(father of our subject) was born in 1811. He 
married Catherine Culver, a native of the 
town of Hyde Park, Dutchess county, and a 
(lauf^hter of a farmer of that locality. Her 
people were members of the Society of Friends. 
Five children were born to this union: Peter; 
Edgar, who deals in fancy goods in Pough- 
keepsie; Amelia, wife of S. A. Walker, of 
Brooklyn, N. Y. ; Robert, a merchant of Fish- 
kill, Dutchess county; and Mary A., who died 
in infancy. The father followed farming ex- 
clusively through life; in his political senti- 
ment he was an ardent Democrat. He died 
in 1861, his wife in 1885. 

Like most farmer boys Peter Adriance 
passed his early life, and the education he ac- 
quired in the old district school of the neigh- 
borhood was supplemented by a course in the 
Dutchess Academy, and at the Hudson River 
Institute at Claverack, N. Y., after which he 
returned to the home farm, where he con- 
tinued to work until twenty-five years of age. 
In 1 861 he married Miss Alice Adriance, 
who was born in the town of Fishkill, a 
daughter of John V. Adriance, an agricultu- 
rist. One child was born to them, Eugene, 
who is now in business with his father. After 
living upon the farm for about four years, Mr. 
Adriance entered the grocery store of Dart & 
Co., at Glenham, Dutchess county, as clerk, 
but soon after came to Poughkeepsie, where 
he was similarly employed by D. O. Smith 
for about a year. For two years he then 
clerked in the hardware store of Budd & Trow- 
bridge, and then for the same length of time 
was with L. T. Mosher, in the pork-packing 
industry, after which he returned to the hard- 
ware store, which was then owned by Trow- 
bridge & Sherrill. He soon secured a third 
interest in the firm, the name being changed 
lo Trowbridge, Sherrill & Adriance; but at the 
end of three years Mr. Sherrill sold out. The 
firm of Trowbridge & Adriance did business 
until 1893, when our subject purchased his 
partner's interest, and his son was given a 
share in the business, which has now grown 
to extensive proportions. The liberal patron- 
age which they receive is well deserved, as 



they strive to please their customers, and their 
work is all first-class in every particular. 

Mr. Adriance is public-spirited in an emi- 
nent degree, and has done much in behalf of 
the general welfare of the community. He is 
popular, and is the center of a large circle of 
friends and acquaintances who honor and es- 
teem him for his many virtues and genuine 
worth. He is largely interested in the Co- 
operative Savings and Loan Association, and 
prominently identified with the Masonic Order 
and the Royal Arcanum. He and his estima- 
ble wife contribute to the Reformed Church, 
which they attend. The line of descent of 
which our subject is a member, is as follows: 
(i) Adrian Reyersz, emigrated from Holland, 
1646; (2) Abram Adriance, born 1680, settled 
in Flatbush, N. Y. ; (3) Ram L Adriance, 
born 1753, was the first to come to Dutchess 
county; (4) Peter Adriance, born 1787, in 
Dutchess county; (5) Thomas Adriance, born 
in 181 1, in Dutchess county; (6; Peter Adri- 
ance, our subject. 



GEORGE SCHLUDE. A brilliant example 
_^ of a self-made American citizen, and a 
grand exemplification of the progress that an 
ambitious foreigner can make in this country 
of unbounded opportunities, is shown in the 
case of our subject, one of the leading Ger- 
man-American residents of Poughkeepsie. His 
singular success is due to his own energy and 
the high ideal which his lofty and laudable ambi- 
tion placed before him. Success m any walk of 
life is an indication of earnest endeavor and 
persevering effort — characteristics that Mr. 
Schlude possesses in an eminent degree. 

Our subject was born in Hochberg, Hohen- 
zollern, Sigmeringen, Prussia, Geri7iany, Feb- 
ruary 2, 1832, and is the elder of the two chil- 
dren of Boletus and Elizabeth (Grazer)Schlude, 
both natives of the same locality as is George, 
where the father died in 1834. The younger 
child, Josephine, wedded John Rumsburger, a 
merchant of Germany, but both are now de- 
ceased. 

In the Fatherland George Schlude grew to 
manhood, securing the usual education afford- 
ed by the public schools of that country, and 
there learned cabinet-making. Hearing much 
of the splendid opportunities afforded young 
men in the New World, he at the age of eight- 
een years sailed for the United States, and in 
New York City and Philadelphia worked at his 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



299 



trade for about two years, when he returned 
to Germany, and there spent a similar period. 
However, in 1854, we again find him in Amer- 
ica, and this time he located at Poughkeepsie, 
where he was employed at his trade until 
1S72. He then began the furniture business, 
which he has since continued, at the present 
time located at Nos. 150 and 152 Main street, 
the firm being now George Schlude & Sons. 
For the past- five years he has occupied his 
present store, where he carries a full line of 
furniture and pictures, and in connection con- 
ducts an undertaking department. 

In 1855 Mr. Schlude married Miss Caroline 
Hummel, a native of Baden, Germany, and 
eight children bless their union: Caroline, 
Charles, Emma, Frederick, Ida. George, Lil- 
lie and Leonard. Charles, Frederick and 
George are in business with their father. As 
a Democrat in politics, Mr. Schlude takes 
great interest in all political questions, although 
not an aspirant for political preferment. He 
has done much for the upbuilding of Pough- 
keepsie, and in his varied relations in business 
affairs, and in social life, has impressed all 
with his sincere and manly purpose to do by 
others as he would have others do by him. 



ABRAM STORM HUMPHREY, a mem- 
_ ber of the well-known wholesale and re- 
tail drug firm of Doty & Humphrey, Pough- 
keepsie, was born in the town of Beekman, 
Dutchess county, October 12, 1848. 

Thomas Humphrey, his great-grandfather, 
was a farmer in Dutchess county, and mem- 
bers of the family served in the Revolutionary 
war. Abram Humphrey, grandfather of our 
subject, was born in Beekman, July i, 1785, 
and followed the occupation of a farmer until 
his death, which occurred February 9, 1821, 
in Dutchess county. He married Miss Letitia 
Adriance, also a native of the county, and 
their three children were as follows: Cath- 
erine, who married Ale.xander Hasbrouck, a 
farmer of East Fishkill; Sarah, who married 
Jacob Pudney, a farmer in Dutchess county; 
and John (our subject's father). 

John Humphrey, father of our subject, 
was born in Beekman, Dutchess county, June 
12, 1818. He was reared upon a farm, and 
married Miss Catherine E. Storm, who was 
born in East Fishkill, June 25, 1814. Her 
father, Abram Storm, who was a native of the 
same place and a farmer, was the son of Isaac 



and Elizabeth Storm, the former of whom was 
born in Tarrytown, N. Y., October i, 1772, 
and with four brothers — Jacob, John, Abram 
and Thomas — came in an early day, to Dutchess 
county. They took up a very large tract of 
land, some of which is still in possession of the 
family. The Storm family lived on Long Is- 
land in 1620, or thereabouts, and their coat 
of arms has been handed down to the present 
generation. 

Our subject's parents after their marriage 
located on the old farm in Beekman, where 
they reared a family of si.x children, two of 
whom died in infancy. The others were 
Helen; Letitia, who married William Uuin- 
tard, of the firm of Ouintard Brothers, jewel- 
ers, of Poughkeepsie, and died July 18, 1887; 
John V. , a wholesale and retail druggist of 
Poughkeepsie; and Abram S., our subject. 
The father of this family died October 20, 
1853, the mother on August 24, 1885. He 
was a Democrat in his political views, and 
both were members of the Reformed Dutch 
Church. 

Our subject spent his younger days, after 
1856, in Poughkeepsie, where he attended the 
Dutchess County Academy, and at the age of 
si.xteen he entered the drug store of Elias 
Trivett as clerk. There he remained for about 
four 3'ears, then went to Kingston, N. Y. , and 
clerked for Van Dusen Brothers for some five 
years. His ne.xt location was Providence, R. 
I., where he engaged in the drug business for 
himself for one year, after which he returned 
to Poughkeepsie, and a year later formed a 
partnership under the firm name of Humphrey 
& Bowne. This continued two and one-half 
years, when Mr. Bowne sold out his interest to 
John V. Humphrey, and the business was then 
conducted under the name of Humphrey Broth- 
ers. Eight years later Abram S. sold out his 
interest, and became secretary and treasurer 
of the Storm Spring Company, holding these 
offices for eight years. In 1890 he became a 
member of the present firm of Doty & Hum- 
phrey, which does a large wholesale and retail 
drug business. 

On October 8, 1873, Mr. Humphrey was 
united in marriage with Miss Mar}- Vignes, 
who was born in Kingston, May 20, 1850, a 
daughter of John Vignes, of that city, who 
was of French descent. Mr. Humphrey is a 
stanch Republican, and takes an active inter- 
est in all matters relative to the welfare of his 
community. In 1884 he was elected alder- 



800 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



man for the Sixth ward, and served two terms; 
also two terms on the water board, and at the 
present time represents his ward in the board 
of supervisors. Socially, he belongs to the 
Royal Arcanum, and both he and his wife are 
members of the Reformed Dutch Church, of 
which he is also a member of the Consistory. 



ISAAC VINCENT, Sr., father of Mrs. Phcebe 
_ A. Wing, was born January 26, 1781, in 
the town of Unionvale, Dutchess Co., N. 
Y. , son of Gilbert and Phcebe (\'ail) \'incent, 
both also natives of Dutchess county, and highly 
respectable farming people. In religious faith 
they were members of the Society of Friends. 
They had a familj' of thirteen children, named 
respectively: Isaac, Absalom, Rebecca, La- 
vina, Jonathan, Leonard, Thomas, Margaret 
and Elizabeth (twins), Richard, Michael, 
Phebe Ann, and Hepsibeth. Of these, Mar- 
garet married John Potter, and had two chil- 
dren — Jane, who married Theron Thompson, 
and Thomas, who was a soldier in the war of 
the Rebellion, and died of wounds received at 
the battle of Antietam. Elizabeth married 
Jonathan Huestis, and had two children — Eg- 
bert, married to Mariette Williams ithey had 
three children, and both are now deceased), 
and Jane, married to Isaac Mabbett (they have 
no children; Mr. Mabbett is deceased, and his 
widow resides in Chicago). 

Isaac Vincent, the eldest in the above men- 
tioned family of thirteen children, in 1S07 mar- 
ried Martha Duncan, who was born at Dover, 
Dutchess county, in 1788, and died October 
30, 1873. Isaac was a merchant, and opened 
the first store at Chestnut Ridge; he was also 
a farmer, and accumulated a considerable 
amount of property. Altogether he was a man 
of no small influence in his day, too busy to 
accept office, though a strong Whig and Re- 
publican. He was the first postmaster at 
Chestnut Ridge, and when advanced years 
came upon him he handed the office over to 
his son Edgar, at whose death Mrs. Phoebe A. 
Wing took charge thereof; it has been in the 
family the long period of eight}' years in all. 
The record of the children born to Isaac and 
Martha (Duncan) Vincent is as follows: 

(i) Horatio N. was born September 16, 
1808, and died unmarried, May 27, 1862. 

(2) David was born March 10, 18 10, and 
died February 5, 1887. He married Phcebe 
Preston, who was born November3, 1817, and 



died September 20, 1856; they had three chil- 
dren — Isaac, born May 16, 1847, died January 
25, 1889; Martha, born July 13, 1849, died 
July 16, 1874; and Obed, born in 1855, died 
Jul}' 13, 1892 (he married Ella \'incent, and 
hacl one daughter, Hazelj. Obed was a Re- 
publican in politics. Isaac, Jr., son of David, 
married Mary E. Albro, and had three children 
— Phcebe Ann, David D., and Martha A. (now 
Mrs. John A. Gaffney). Martha, daughter of 
David, married Stephen Moore, and had one 
son — David, a merchant and farmer at Cloe 
\'alley; he married Minnie \"incent, and they 
have two children — Edna M. and \'incent. 

(3) Gilbert, born March 14, 1812, married 
Mary Van W\ck, October 2, 1856, and they 
had two children — Horatio N., born January 
I. 1859, died March 14, 1S60; and Phcebe A., 
born May i, 1S61 (she married John L. Beld- 
ing, and had two children — Vincent, born Au- 
gust 26, 1879, died June 26, 1880, and John 
L., born April 16, 1882; their mother, Phcebe, 
died August 26, 1884). Gilbert Vincent died 
September 23, 1875. 

(4) Edgar, born December i, 18 13, re- 
ceived a liberal common-school education, and 
became a leading business man, was a Repub- 
lican in politics, and a leader in his party. In 
18 — he was elected to the State Assembly; 
was also county clerk six years, and, as already 
stated, was postmaster at Chestnut Ridge, in 
addition to which he tilled many minor offices, 
all with the same degree of ability and integ- 
rity characteristic of him. No man had a wider 
acquaintance than Edgar X'incent, and none 
was more deserving of the high esteem in 
which he was held by all classes in the com- 
munity. He died unmarried, May 14, 1874, 
deeply regretted by all who knew him. 

(5) Phcebe A., the youngest daughter and 
child of Isaac and Martha (Duncan) Vincent, 
was born at Dover, Dutchess county, Novem- 
ber 4, 1 8 18. She was married in 1840 to 
Obed Wing, who was born August 2, i8i7,and 
died January 17, 1882. They had no family, 
but reared from childhood Martha Pray, a 
daughter of George and Nancy (Baker) Pray, 
who, at their death, gave Martha to Mr. and 
Mrs. Wing, and she became as dear to them, 
as if she was their own daughter. She has 
three brothers: Elias N., George and Seward, 
and one sister, Ida (now Mrs. Charles Duncan). 
Mrs. Phckhe A. Wing is in many ways a re- 
markable woman, there being few of her age 
who can boast of her wonderful vitality and 




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^;^<J^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



801 



brightness. To-day, with the assistance of 
Miss Pray, she is conducting a large farm with 
all the ability and acumen of many a man of 
half her years, and ever since her brother Ed- 
gar's death, up to September, 1S95, she was 
the efficient and courteous postmistress at 
Chestnut Ridge. Far and wide she is known 
and respected, and the wish of all is that she 
may be spared many years of usefulness and 
beneficence. 



JEDEDIAH I. WANZER. The Wanzer 
family, which has held an influential posi- 
tion in this region for many generations, 
is of old pioneer stock, and the hardy virtues 
of their ancestry are well e.xemplified in their 
numerous descendants. 

The first of the line was Abraham Wanzer 
(i), who lived at Horse Neck, on Long Island 
Sound, in the town of Greenwich, Conn., 
about 1700. He was married first to Abigail 
Husted, of that place, who died several years 
before him. He afterward married Deborah 
Classon, who survived him several years. He 
had two children by his first wife, Anthony 
and Moses (i), and by his second wife, one 
child, Deborah. Later in life he moved with 
his family to the town of Sherman, Fairfield 
Co., Connecticut. 

Moses Wanzer (I ) was born at Horse Neck, 
about the year 1722. He married Elizabeth 
(Benedict) Knapp, of Danbury, Conn., and 
lived and died on the farm in Sherman owned, 
in 1870, by Abram Wanzer, their grandson. 
They had eight children: <L Abram (2), (H) 
Nicholas, (III) Moses i'2). (IVi Ebenezer, (V) 
Abigail, (VI) Husted, (VH) Elizabeth, and 
(VIII) John. 

(li Abram Wanzer (21 lived in New Mil- 
ford, Conn., and had a large family. His eld- 
est son, Zebulon, married Sybil Wing, whose 
father was killed at a raising of a sawmill at 
Oblong. They lived on a farm near New Mil- 
ford, Conn., and had four children, as follows: 
(i) Michael went to Iowa when a young man, 
married and had two children, who, being 
orphaned at an early age, were taken in charge 
by their uncle Elihu, living at Macedon, N. Y., 
but later returned to the West. (2) Elihu, 
son of Zebulon, married Tammy Eddy at 
Quaker Hill, and removed to Macedon, N. Y., 
where they resided in 1873. They fiave no 
issue. (3) Elizabeth married Ward Bryant, 
and lived in Amenia, Dutchess county. They 



had eleven children: Laura, Calvin, Elihu, 
James, Amos, Sarah, Jane, Ezra, Phebe, Reu- 
ben, and Coralie. (4) Jane married Luther 
Bencroft, and lived near Macedon Locks, 
New York. 

Moses Wanzer, the son of Abram (2), mar- 
ried Sally Akin, daughter of Benjamin Akin, 
of Pawling, Dutchess Co., N. Y., they lived in 
Sherman, Conn., and had fifteen children — 
Nicholas Akin, Phebe, Benjamin, Elizabeth, 
Martha, Jane, Anna, Sarah, Lydia, Moses, 
Margaret, Edward, Mary, Harriet, Martha — 
of whom, Sarah Wanzer married Mr. Congdon, 
and lived inBeekman; her son James attended 
Cornell University, and died about the year 
1872. Lydia married James Haight, lived at 
Chappaqua, N. Y., and had two daughters. 
Margaret married Dr. Holcomb, of New York 
City, where they were living in 1873; Moses, 
Jr. , a farmer, married the daughter of Ezra 
Haight, of Chappaqua, N. Y. ; Edward A. mar- 
ried a daughter of Akin Taber, a farmer of 
Pawling; Harriet lived to maturity; (the others 
died young). 

(II) — Nicholas Wanzer, son of Moses, Sr. , 
married Phebe Miller, and lived in the town of 
New Milford, Conn. He had no children. 

(Ill) — Moses, son of Moses, Sr. , married 
Sarah Hill, and moved to Vermont. They 
had seven children: Hill, Nicholas, Moses, 
John, Amy, Betsey and Sarah. Of these, 
Moses lived at Bath, Long Island, and later 
moved to Illinois, where he died about 1879. 
He was engaged in the clothing business in 
New York City. He had several children, 
among whom was a son named Moses, who, 
when a young man, went to Illinois, married 
and had several children. He lived in or near 
McHenry county. 

(IV) — Ebenezer, son of Moses, Sr. , mar- 
ried Betsey Hendrick, and lived in or near 
Brookfield, Conn. He had seven children: 
David, Phebe, Anna (3), Ebenezer, Ira, Hiram 
and William. Of these, David never married, 
and lived and died in the old homestead. 
Phebe married Lewis, son of Thomas Havi- 
land, and lived in the town of New Milford, 
Conn.; they had two children: Ebenezer 
Wanzer Haviland and Betsey P. Ebenezer 
married Betsey S. Wheeler, and a daughter of 
theirs, Betsey P. Haviland, married Robert 
Post, of Long Island, and settled at Quaker 
Hill, in Pawling, N. Y., where they now 
live. They have three children — Edmond 
Phebe and Isaac. Anna (3) married David 



3U2 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOGRAPHWAL RECORD. 



Merritt. and lived on Quaker Hill, N. Y.; she 
died young; they had two children, who died 
in infancy. Ebenezer married Lucy, daughter 
of William Leach, settled near Brookfield, 
Conn., and had three children — William L., 
Phebe L. and Betsey. Ira married Laura 
Hayes, of New Fairfield; he was the author 
of an arithmetic, which was esteemed as a 
valuable work; they had five children — David, 
Levi, Mary, Flora and Betsey. Hiram died 
young. William married Hannah, daughter 
of Zachariah Ferris, of Jerusalem, Conn., and 
lived in or near New Milford, Conn.; they had 
four children — Charles, Hannah, Ellen and 
Anna; of these, Charles married Carrie Tread- 
well, and had three children--William D., 
Minnie and Alice. 

(V'l) — Husted Wanzer, son of Moses, Sr. , 
born March 3, 1762, for his first wife married 
Lucy I^each, daughter of Ebenezer and Mary 
(Marsh) Leach, of Sherman, Conn. She died 
25th of 1 2th month, 1797, and for his second 
wife he married Mary, daughter of Stephen 
Osborn, of New Milford, Conn., who did not 
live long. He then married, for his third wife, 
Florilla Pepper, daughter of Dan and Sarah 
Pepper, of Sherman, Conn. Husted Wanzer 
had five children — three by the first marriage, 
(i) Daniel, (2) Elizabeth, (3) Ebenezer, one 
by the second marriage, (41 Nicholas, and one 
by the third marriage, (5) George, (i ) Daniel 
married Hannah, daughter of Daniel and 
Sarah Haviland, of Oblong, or Haviland Hol- 
low, and they had seven children — Husted, 
Haviland, John, Richard, Henry, Isaac and 
Ann. 1 2) Elizabeth Wanzer was born 12th 
of 5th month, 1793, married Henry, son of 
Edward Briggs, of Quaker Hill, and had four 
children — Annan, who married Polly Akin; 
Edward, who died single; Husted, who mar- 
ried Elizabeth Wanzer, and Henry, who mar- 
ried Almira Haws. (3) Ebenezer, born De- 
cember 20, 1795, married Sarah, daughter of 
Amos and Esther Irish, of Quaker Hill, 
Dutchess county, in 2d month, 1820. She 
died on the 20th of December, 1823, and in 
6th month, 1825, he married Esther Irish, sis- 
ter of his tirst wife. She died on 3d of loth 
month, 1838; and on 20th of 8th month, 1842, 
he married Eliza Boughton, daughter of Thad- 
deus and Lucy Boughton, of Victory, Cayuga 
county. He had nine children, of whom, two 
were by the first marriage: Lucy, born 15th 
of 8th month, 1821, died 22d of 2d month, 
1842; and Elias, born T2th of 12th month, 1823, 



died in September, 1896 (he married Hannah 
Haight. and had two sons). The children by 
the second marriage were: Sarah, born 7th 
of 6th month, 1826; Charles J., born 26th of 
2d month, 1828; James M., born 9th of 9th 
month, 1829; Elizabeth B., born 12th of 7th 
month, 1 83 1 ; Caroline, born 29th of 4th month, 
1835; Daniel H.. born 3d of I2th month. 1837; 
and Mary, who only lived to be some thirteen 
years of age. (4) Nicholas, born January 8, 
1804, and died 27th of loth month, i875;mar- 
ried Almira, daughter of Jedediah and Lydia 
Irish, of Quaker Hill, N. Y., and settled in 
New Fairfield, Conn. They had the follow- 
ing children: Jedediah I., our subject; Eben- 
ezer H., born December 24, 1831, and died 
unmarried October 31, 1855; Mary Jane, born 
June 21, 1834, married Harvey H. Barnum, 
February 6, 1854; Gilbert, born April 27, 1836, 
died October 11, 1861, unmarried; Henry B., 
born July 9, 1839, first married April 3, 1861, 
Sylvia D. Sheldon, who died August 21, 1863, 
and he married for his second wife Phoebe J. 
Haynes; John L. , born August 8, 1843, died 
January 13, 1844; and Elizabeth B., who was 
born October 11, 1847, and died December 6, 
1S79, married Perley M. Cummings, and had 
three children, one of whom died in infancy; 
Cora Emily, born June 13, 1876; and Ralph 
H., born October 4, 1877. (5) George Husted 
Wanzer, born February 8, 1820, was the only 
child of the third marriage of Husted Wanzer, 
and lives on the homestead at Sherman, Con- 
necticut. 

(VH) Elizabeth, the seventh child of Moses, 
Sr. , married Thomas Haviland, a resident of 
Leach Hollow. They had eight children — 
Horace, Willis, John, Jane, Elizabeth, Phebe, 
Nanc}' and Sophia. Of these, Horace married 
Eunice, daughter of Ichabod Leach, of Leach 
Hollow, and settled in that place, where he 
followed the blacksmith's trade; he had one 
son, Israel, who married Abby, daughter of 
Zachariah Ferris. Willis Haviland, for his first 
wife, married Phebe Searing, and settled at 
Hartsville, Dutchess county, where her death 
occurred; they had three daughters, Sarah 
Eliza (married to Philip (son of Isaac) Merritt, 
of Millbrook, N. Y.); Mary, who never mar- 
ried, and Harriet. Willis Haviland, for his 
second wife, married Elizabeth, daughter of 
Philip Hart. John Haviland married Mary 
Ann Ferris, daughter of Zachariah Ferris, and 
lived near New Milford, Conn.; they had one 
child — Jane Ann, who married Gersham Gid- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



303 



dings, but nothing is l<nown of their issue. 
Jane Haviland married Simeon Hinmon, of 
New Milford, Conn. ; nothing is known of their 
issue; she died and he afterward moved to 
Seneca county, N. Y. Eliza Haviland married 
Ira Leach, son of William Leach, and lived 
and died at Leach Hollow, Conn. ; they had 
two children, whose names are not known. 
Phebe Haviland remained single. 

(\'ni) John Wanzer, youngest son of Moses 
and Elizabeth (Knapp) Wanzer, lived in New 
Fairfield, Conn. He married Grace Swords, 
and their children were: Abraham, Isaac, 
Jacob, Ithamar, Abigail, Amittai, Elizabeth, 
John Jay, Francis D. S., Abbie Jane, and 
Willis H. Of these, Abraham married (first) 
Anna Leach, and (second) Phebe (Haviland) 
Hathaway. Isaac Wanzer married (first) 
Eliza Treadwell, and (second) Cornelia Tread- 
well; children by first marriage: Jabez, Grace, 
Jane Ann, John, Lucy Eliza, and Andrew; 
children by second marriage: Elizabeth, Mar- 
garetta, George Munson, Sarah C. and Grace. 
Jacob Wanzer married Phebe Leach, and had 
children: Lucy Ann, Mary, Abigail, Merritt 
L. , Jane and Julia. John Jay Wanzer married 
Ann Eliza Dennison. Francis D. S. Wanzer 
married Lucia S. Osborn, and had children: 
Harriet A., Sarah, Mary E., Abbie Jane, 
Richard D., Franklin, Thalia Grace, George 
and Lottie E. Willis H. Wanzer lived on his 
father's homestead in New Fairfield, Conn. ; 
he married (first) Lydia Ann Leach, and (sec- 
ond) Sarah Ann Kellogg, and had children: 
Henry J., Hanford Kellogg, Willis H.,Jr., 
Lydia Ann and Rachel Sophia. (Willis Wan- 
zer represented New Fairfield in General As- 
sembly of Connecticut in 1855, 1S58 and 1873). 
Amittai Wanzer married Homer J. Leach. and 
had children: Daniel Francis and Abbie Jane. 
Elizabeth Wanzer married Andrew A. Skid- 
more, and had children: Elizabeth, Jane S. , 
Andrew A. and James W. 

Amos Irish, the maternal great-grandfather 
of our subject, was a son of Joseph, who was 
a son of Jedediah, of one of the early families 
of Rhode Island. Amos was born in Pawling, 
May 20, 1757, was educated there and engaged 
in farming. He was a birthright Friend. He 
married Esther Irish, a cousin, who was born 
May 2, 1757, and they had ten children, 
whose names with dates of birth are as fol- 
lows: Jedediah, 31st of 8th month, 1780; 
Ruth, 4th of 7th month, 17S2; Rachel, 27th 
of 5th month, 1784; Joseph, 22d of 3d month. 



1786; Charles, 14th of 4th month, 1788; 
Cynthia, 20th of 5th month, 1790; David, 
20th of 6th month, 1792; Jonathan, 23d of 
8th month, 1794; Esther, 22d of 2d month, 
1797; and Sarah, 13th of 9th month, 1799. 
Of these children all lived to a good old age, 
excepting Cynthia, who died young. They 
married as follows: Jedediah — Lydia Hoag; 
Ruth — Abram Wing; Rachel — Warren Giles; 
Joseph married (first) Miss Dorland, and 
(secondj Jane Stevenson; Charles — Rhoda 
Ketcham; David — Martha Titus; Jonathan 
married (first) Ruth Chase, and (second) Han- 
nah Tallman; Esther — Ebenezer Wanzer; and 
Sarah — Ebenezer Wanzer. 

Jedediah Irish, grandfather of our subject 
on the maternal side, was born in or near the 
town of Pawling, Dutchess county, and spent 
his lifetime there, dying September 4, 1818. 
He was educated in the common schools of 
that town, and taught school for many years. 
He married Lydia Hoag, who was born Sep- 
tember 20, 1792, and they had seven children, 
who married as follows: Amos — Matilda Giles; 
Cynthia — Nathan O'Banks; Almira — Nicholas 
Wanzer; Martin — Mary A. Haviland; Rebecca 
— Gilbert Jennings; Jane — John Lawrence; 
and Willis — Phcebe Haviland. 

Almira Irish, mother of our subject, was 
born January 13, 1807, in the town of Sher- 
man, Conn., educated there, and married 
Nicholas Wanzer, of Pawling. She died Sep- 
tember 21, 1861 . 

David Irish, father of our subject's present 
wife, was born in the town of Pawling, and edu- 
cated in the common schools. He was always 
engaged in farming, and also followed survey- 
ing. He was a Friend, and a minister in the 
Friends Society. He married Martha Titus, 
daughter of William and Mary (Cock) Titus, 
farmers of Orange county, N. Y. He died 
October 2, 1894, at the age of ninety-two, and 
his wife passed away February 22, 1873, aged 
eighty-four. They had three children: (i) 
William Irish, born in Pawling, April 16, 1820, 
engaged in farming. He married Miss Annie 
Ouimby, who was born on the istof 2d month, 
1825, daughter of Aaron and Phebe Ouimby, 
and had one son — David A. Irish, born 3d of 
8th month, 1850, in Pawling, where he en- 
gaged in farming. He married first Miss 
Phebe M. Hallock, by whom he had no issue. 
For his second wife he married Miss Henriette 
Hallock, a sister, and by her he had one child, 
who died in infancy. (2) Mary Irish was 



304 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



born in Pawling', June 7, 1824, and married 
David I. Wing, a farmer in that town. They 
had four children: Elizabeth, born 12th of 
5th month, 1S48; Martha T., 3d of 2d 
month, 1850; Phebe P., 27th of 7th month, 
1853; Caroline, 25th of 7th month, i860; 
Elizabeth married Edward Ryder; Martha re- 
mained single; Phebe married Edward Wilcox; 
Caroline remained single. (3) Phebe T. Irish 
(present wife of our subject) was born in Pawl- 
ing, September i, 1S28, and educated there. 
She married (first) Joseph Pierce, Jr., a farmer 
of Westchester county, N. Y. , by whom she had 
four children: (1) William, born June 12, 
1S53, died in infancy. (2) Annie S. married 
Charles Irish, and they have two children — 
Mary S. and Frederick. (3) Joseph D. , born 
June 27, 1857, died March 6, 1893; became a 
farmer; he married Jennie L. Jones, daughter 
of Edward and Caroline Jones, and they had 
one child — Edward H. Pierce. (4) Henry, 
born in Pawling, June 7, 1S59. was educated 
there, graduated at Cornell College, and be- 
came a civil engineer; he is now in the employ 
of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad Co. ; he 
married Miss Mary L. Hyatt, of Ithaca, and 
they have no issue. The father of this family, 
Joseph Pierce, Jr., died in November, 1858, 
and his widow, seven years later, married our 
subject. 

Jedediah I. Wanzer, the subject proper of 
this sketch, is a native of New Fairfield, 
Conn., born May 13, 1829. He grew up on a 
farm, and had such schooling as fell to the lot 
of the average farmers' sons of that day. At 
the age of twenty-one he joined a surveying 
party as chain-bearer in making the survey for 
the Danbury & Norwalk railroad. In this ca- 
pacity he worked for two years, and in that 
period prepared himself for the position of a 
civil engineer, which for ten years he followed 
as an occupation. In the spring of 1852 he 
went west and engaged in surveying in Illinois 
and Iowa, through the spring and summer, 
and that fall he had charge of and completed 
a division of the C. B. & O. R. R. , west of 
Aurora, III., the work requiring one 3^ear; was 
ne.xt engaged in similar work on the C. N. W. 
R. R. , west of Dixon, III. In 1856 he re- 
turned to Western, N. Y. , and, as assistant 
engineer, superintended the widening of the 
Erie canal, west of Albion, N. Y. On the 
completion of this work in 1859, he again 
went west, purchased a farm in Clinton coun- 
ty, Iowa, on which he settled. In the winter 



of 1864-65 he sold the farm and returned east 
(to Knowlesville, N. Y.). Later he went to 
Danbury. where he again engaged in survey- 
ing, and in 1867 purchased the farm upon 
which he now resides, and which comprises 
300 acres of valuable land. 

On May 6, 1858, Mr. Wanzer was married 
to Miss Frances Arabella Sawyer, daughter of 
John F. and Mary J. (Gilbert) Sawyer, both 
natives of Vermont, the former born June 2, 
1S02, and the latter on March 25, 1823. 
John F. Sawyer had five brothers, who were 
Baptist ministers. The Sawyers trace their 
ancestry back to one Thomas Sawyer, who 
was born in England in 161 5, and in 1639 
came to America, settling in Lancaster, Mass., 
in 1647, in which \ear he married Mary 
Houghton. His death occurred September 
12, 1706. To our subject and wife were born: 
Henry S. (at Lyons, Iowa), May 28, 1859, 
who married Lillie Jones (they have two chil- 
dren — Helen, born April iS, 1883, and Harry 
Jay, born February 28, 1889); and Helen A. 
born (at Lyons, Iowa) August 29, i860, died 
June 16, 1885; she married Frank E. Cole, 
May 25, 18S2. (They have two children: 
Emery, born April 30, 18S3, and Esther W., 
born December 30, 1884). On February 2, 

1865, Mrs. Wanzer died, and on May 14, 

1866, Mr. Wanzer married (for his second 
wife) Phcebe T. (Irish) Pierce, the widow of 
Joseph Pierce, Jr. 

Our subject is one of the substantial men 
of the community; is the possessor of a fine 
tract of land above referred to, and has a fine 
home. In 1870. on the organization of the 
Savings Bank at Pawling, he was one of the 
original members, was made secretary of the 
same, and served as such until 1888, when he 
was made president, which position he now 
sustains with the bank. In politics he was a 
Republican through the Civil war; in 1872, 
he voted for Horace Greeley, and has since 
affiliated with the Democratic party. 



NF,WTON HEHARD, cashier of the First 
National Bank of Amenia, has for many 

years been connected with the financial inter- 
ests of that place. He is a native of Dutchess 
county, born at Poughkeepsie, October 14, 
1837, and is descended from Capt. Robert 
Hebard, who was born in England in 1737, 
at an early date becoming a resident of Dutch- 
ess county, where he died May 17, 1798. He 




jN^^Y^arJ^^ — . 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



305 



married Miss Lydia , wlio was born in 

1737, and died August 21, 1S19. They be- 
came the parents of seven children: Reuben; 
Benjamin, who was born April i, 1765, and 
died April 24, 1837; Daniel, the grandfather of 
the subject of this review; Robert, who died 
May 24, 1S55, at the age of eighty years, ten 
months and four days; Ruth, who died Janu- 
ary 28, 1S08; Sarah; and Lydia, who died 
January 6, 1788, at the age of eighteen years. 

The birth of Daniel Hebard occurred June 
I, 1766, and on reaching manhood he was 
united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth, daugh- 
ter of Capt. Colbe Chamberlain. She was 
born June 25, 1769, and died August 27, 1796. 
They had three children: Salina, who was 
born April i, 1790, and died May 22, 1847; 
Aurelia, who was born August 17, 1792, and 
died June 27, 1858; and John J., the father of 
our subject. After the death of his first wife, 
Daniel Hebard married her sister, Letitia 
Chamberlain, and they became the parents of 
eight children: Frederick, born January 20, 
1798, died February 13, 1799; Henry, born 
October 16, iSoo, died October 20, 1885; Ed- 
ward, born November 22, 1807, died Septem- 
ber 28, 1880; Susan, born May 14, 1809, died 
died January 10, 1810; Charles, born October 
17, 1810, died December 15, 1845; Elias 
Nixon, born January 14, 18 14, died August 
17 of the same year; Frederick, born Septem- 
ber 5, 1820, died May 21, 1896; and Susan, 
born February 17, 1824, is the widow of Col. 
Henry Rundall (deceased). The father of this 
family died January 6, 1841. 

John J. Hebard, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Amenia, April 27, 
1794, and during his boyhood days attended 
school at Sharon, Conn. On November i, 
1818, he was married to Miss Harriet E. De- 
lano, who was born March 19, 1795, and died 
September 5, 1857. Their family consisted 
of si.x children, namely: Elizabeth, born July 
23, 1820, died July 17, 1869; Jethro Delano, 
born May 7, 1822, died February 21, 1864; 
George, born May 8, 1824, died December 29, 
1847; John, born July 14, 1827, died Februar.y 
28, 1849; Harriet Salina, born January 21, 
1 83 1, died April 29, 1881; and Newton, sub- 
ject of this sketch, the only one now living. 
By trade the father was a silversmith and 
clockmaker, and was thus employed at Amenia 
Union at the time of his marriage. Removing 
to Poughkeepsie, he engaged in the same busi- 
ness there for a time, later engaging in the 
20 



manufacture of soap, and then conducted a 
store at that place. In 1862 he returned to 
the town of Amenia, where his death occurred 
in 1874, when he was aged eighty years. He 
was a soldier in the war of 1812, under Capt. 
Judson, New York State Militia. 

The early school days of Newton Hebard 
were passed at Williamsburg, N. Y. , and after 
graduating from the academy in that city, he 
clerked there in a store for four years. He was 
engaged in farming near Newburgh, N. Y., for 
the same length of time, after which he went to 
Brooklyn, and clerked in a hat store for two 
years, and then for two years and a half he was 
in the real-estate office with G. W. Kelsey. 
Coming to the village of Amenia in 1862, he was 
employed in the store of C. M. Benjamin until 
1865, when he started a private bank under 
the firm name of N. Hebard & Co. In Febru- 
ary, 1867, the bank was blown open and 
robbed; but his good friends put him on his 
feet again, and in the following fall the First 
National Bank was purchased by the people of 
Amenia. Mr. Hebard then closed out his 
business to become clerk in that institution, 
and four years later he was made cashier, 
which important position he is still filling to the 
satisfaction of all concerned. 

In Amenia, on October 5, 1864, Mr. He- 
bard was married to Miss Harriet E. Per Lee, 
daughter of Walter P. Per Lee. In 1858 our 
subject was initiated into the mysteries of the 
Masonic Order, and now holds membership 
with Amenia Lodge No. 672, F. & A. M. ; in 
religious faith he is a membes of the Baptist 
Church; politically he has always been an un- 
compromising Republican on National issues, 
although at local elections he votes for the 
one he regards as best qualified for the office 
to be filled. Personally he has no ambition 
for political preferment. He is vigorous and 
well-preserved, with a remarkable faculty for 
the conduct and dispatch of business, and in 
social as well as in business life stands de- 
servedly high. 



OLIVER WELDON BARNES, civil engi- 
_ neer, is a well-known resident of the village 
of Fishkill, Dutchess county, having settled 
there in 1867 while he was engaged in the 
construction of the Dutchess and Columbia 
railroad, of which he was the chief engineer.. 
His ancestors came from England in the seven- 
teenth century, settling in Boston, and later 



306 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPUIUAL RECORD. 



generations resided in Marlboro, Mass., where 
his father, Henry Barnes, was born in 1790. 
His mother, Marilla (Weldon), was a native of 
Connecticut, born in Hartford count}- in 1796. 
In 1825 they moved to Philadelphia. 

Our subject was born in the town of Ber- 
lin, Hartford Co., Conn., May 15, 1823. and 
his education was begun there in early life. 
At sixteen years of age he was sent to Bur- 
lington College. Burlington, N. J.,and he subse- 
quently went to Europe to complete his engi- 
neering studies. On his return, in April, 
1847, he was appointed an assistant engineer 
in the first corps sent out from Philadelphia to 
survey the western division of the Pennsylvania 
railroad, extending from the summit of the 
Alleghany Mountains to Pittsburg. He be- 
came the principal assistant engineer in charge 
of the field parties, and made the final location 
on the bold lines that distinguished that divi- 
sion as the first engineering work on this conti- 
nent at that time, and remained in charge of 
his division until its construction was completed 
in 1854. He was then appointed chief engi- 
neer of the Pittsburg & Connellsville railroad, 
extending from Pittsburg to Cumberland, now 
the Pittsburg division of the Baltimore & Ohio 
railroad, and remained on that work until 
1857, when he took charge of the construction 
of the last eighty-four miles of the Pittsburg, 
Fort Wayne & Chicago railroad, and com- 
pleted it to Chicago in December, 1858. He 
then returned to Philadelphia, and built some 
branch lines for the Pennsylvania railroad. 
In 1866 he came to Dutchess county, surveyed, 
located and constructed the Dutchess & Col- 
umbia railroad, from Dutchess Junction to 
Afillerton, fifty-eight miles in length, and sub- 
sequently was chief engineer on the surveys 
for the extension of the Boston, Hartford & 
Erie railroad, from Waterbury, Conn., to Fish- 
kill-on-Hudson, superintending the construc- 
tion of the work near the River Terminal until 
the suspension of operations consequent upon 
the financial difficulties of that company in 
1869. Leaving the service of the Boston, 
Hartford cS: Erie Railroad Co., in 1S70, he be- 
came the promoter and chief engineer of the 
Connecticut Western Railroad Co., the sur- 
veys and location of that line from Hartford to 
the State Line of New York, near ^fillerton, 
being made under his personal supervision, and 
the work was subsequently constructed under 
his charge in 1870 and 1871. 

He then became the president and chief 



engineer of the New York City Central Under- 
ground Railroad Co., which was authorized 
by a special charter to construct a line of 
underground railwaj' for rapid transit through 
the city of New York from City Hall Park to 
the Harlem river. He prepared the surveys 
and plans for the construction of the line; but 
the political obstructions of the Tweed com- 
bination rendered it impossible to secure the 
capital for its construction at that time. In 
1872 the control of the company was trans- 
ferred to influential capitalists interested in the 
proposed New York & Montreal Railroad Co., 
who were intending to use its corporate rights 
for an entrance into the heart of the city, but 
were compelled by the financial panic of 1873 
to abandon the scheme; the enterprise re- 
mained dormant until the Rapid Transit Com- 
mission was appointed in 1891, when the plans 
of the New York City Central Underground 
Railroad Co. were presented to the commis- 
sion by Oliver W. Barnes, who had again 
been appointed the chief engineer of the com- 
pan\'. These plans were favorably considered 
by the commissioners, but they finally adopted 
a more elaborate and enormously expensive 
four-track system, so costly, in fact, that the 
Supreme Court in May, 1896; refused to sanc- 
tion its construction, and declared it contrary 
to public policy for the City of New York to 
undertake it. In 1882 Mr. Barnes was ap- 
pointed chief engineer for the proposed South 
Pennsylvania railroad, which William H. 
Vanderbilt and his associates undertook to 
construct as an extension of the Philadelphia 
& Reading railroad system, from Harrisburg 
to Pittsburg — a distance of 218 miles, through 
the southern tier of counties. The line was lo- 
cated on a bold direct route, which required 
the construction of seven tunnels, each a mile 
or more in length, and a large amount of other 
heavy work; construction was commenced, and 
the tunnels well advanced, when the Pennsyl- 
vania Railroad Co. persuaded Mr. Vanderbilt 
to abandon the completion of the line, and sell 
the financial control of the enterprise to that 
company. Litigation and opposition by the 
people of the State of Pennsylvania prevented 
the transfer of the property to the Pennsyl- 
vania Railroad Co. for several years; but it is 
now fully under its control and ownership, to 
be completed when the policy of that company 
requires it as a part of its system. 

In 1884 Mr. Barnes was appointed the 
chief engineer of the New York, Lake Erie & 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



307 



Western Railroad and Coal Co., and built a 
line of railroad from the Erie railroad to the 
company's coal lands in Elk and Jefferson 
counties, Penn. It was a work of great en- 
gineering difficulty for the most part in the 
Alleghany Mountain range; on it was con- 
structed the celebrated Kinzua Viaduct, a 
steel structure 2,240 feet in length and 301 
feet high. It has been a very successful line, 
and now carries a very large tonnage from the 
company's mines to its main line. On com- 
pletion of this work Mr. Barnes became the 
chief engineer of several other lines in Mary- 
land and Virginia, which were prepared for 
future construction; in 1885 he was appointed 
a commissioner of the New Croton Aqueduct 
and chairman of the Construction Committee. 
This position he held until 1887, when polit- 
ical changes caused a reorganisation of the 
commission, and new men were appointed by 
the mayor of the city of New York. 

Mr. Barnes was chosen, in the same year, 
as Chief Engineer of the New York & Long 
Island Railroad Co., a corporation chartered 
by the State with authority to construct a 
double-track tunnel and railway from the west 
side of the City of New York at the Hudson 
river, eastwardly along Forty-second street at 
a depth of one hundred feet under the surface, 
to and under the East river to Long Island 
City, and thence to Brooklyn. The line has 
been surveyed, located and construction com- 
menced, and financial arrangements are now 
in progress for the active construction of the 
work. He is also chief engineer of the New 
York Connecting Railroad Co. (which will be 
a continuation of the New York & Long Island 
railroad), from Long Island City to the New 
York, New Haven & Hartford railroad, and 
other lines in and near Port Morris in the 
Twenty-third ward of New York City. . This 
line is now nearly ready for construction, and 
will be consolidated with other lines so as 
to connect all the trunk lines which now ter- 
minate in Jersey City with the New York, 
New Haven & Hartford railroad on a termi- 
nal property near East Bay. at the Bronx 
river. Mr. Barnes is a member of the Ameri- 
can Society of Civil Engineers, the Union 
League Club of New York, the New England 
Society, also the Engineers Club of Philadel- 
phia, and his distinguished abilities and high 
character as a man have won for him an en- 
viable standing wherever he is known. 

Mr. Barnes was married, while he was Res- 



ident Engineer on the western division of the 
Pennsylvania railroad, to Miss Elizabeth Den- 
ny Harding, of Pittsburg, the ceremony being 
performed January 7. 1851. at Allegheny 
Arsenal, where her father, Major Edward Hard- 
ing, of the United States Army, was in com- 
mand as ordnance officer. Her mother's 
maiden name was Nancy Denny, and her fam- 
ily was one of the oldest in Pennsylvania; her 
father, Ebenezer Denny, when a young man, 
went from Carlisle m Cumberland county to 
reside in Pittsburg, prior to the Revolution. 
He was an aid on the staff of Gen. Arthur St. 
Clair during the whole period of the Revolu- 
tionary war, and frequently met Gen. Wash- 
ington. When the city of Pittsburg was in- 
corporated in 1816, he was chosen as mayor 
of the city. Mr. and Mrs. Barnes have two 
daughters, and one son, Edward Harding 
Barnes, a civil engineer, in the employ of the 
Pennsylvania Railroad Co., near Pittsburg. 



ELI H. COLLIN, a prominent merchant 
: of Red Hook, Dutchess county, was born 

January 22, i860, in the village of Pine Plains, 
which had been for several generations the 
home of his family. 

His grandfather, Eli Collin, was born there> 
and, with a brother, once owned and cultivated 
about 1. 000 acres of valuable farm land in the 
vicinity. He married Miss Betsy Finch, of 
Pine Plains, and reared a family of eight chil- 
dren: James. William. Henry. Bryant, Lydia, 
Myra, Sarah and Julia. William Collin, our 
subject's father, was reared upon his father's 
farm and educated in the neighboring schools, 
and in later life followed, like his ancestors, the 
calling of agriculture. He married Miss Carh- 

arine Conklin, a daughter of • Conklin, a 

leading citizen of Mt. Ross. 

The subject of this sketch was the only 
child of this union, and at two years of age 
was taken by his parents to the town of North 
Easton, where he received his elementary edu- 
cation. Later he attended the Amenia Semi- 
nary at Amenia. and after graduating he man- 
aged his father's farm, relieving his later years 
of care. After his father's death he turned 
his attention to mercantile pursuits, first in 
Hudson, where he remained two years, and 
later in Red Hook, where he established a 
millinery and fancy-goods store, of which he 
has made a success, ranking among the sub- 
stantial business men of that locality. He was 



,^f)S 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



married, September 21, 1887, to Miss Marian 
Rider, a daughter of Oliver D. Rider, a wealthy 
mason of Red Hook, and has two sons — Will- 
iam O., born in July, 1889, and Henry B., 
born in June, 1893. 

Mr. Collin is an active member of the fra- 
ternal order of Odd Fellows, and is now past 
grand of Christian Lodge No. 379, of Red 
Hook, and financial scribe of Shiloh Encamp- 
ment No. 68. 



W NDREAS VALETTE HAIGHT, a lead- 
£^^ ing printer and publisher of Poughkeep- 
sie, whose original and artistic work in color 
printing has won recognition among his craft 
both in Europe and America, is a native of 
Ellenville, Ulster Co., N. Y., born February 
4, 1842. 

Eburn Haight, from whom our subject's 
branch of the family comes in direct line, was 
a descendant of one Jonathan Haight, who 
was born 1670- 1684, and lived at Rye, West- 
chester Co., N. Y. He was a man of prom- 
inence in his day, and served as high sheriff of 
Westchester county. One of his descendants, 
David, born in 1701, also lived at Rye, and 
died about 1798. Eburn Haight, above men- 
tioned, was born some time prior to 1754, and 
was a resident, like his immediate forefathers, 
of Westchester county, N. Y. His son, also 
named Eburn, was born about 1744 in that 
county, and married Joanna Fowler, of Ellen- 
ville, Ulster Co. , N. Y. Of their eight children 
David was the father of the subject of these 
lines. 

David Haight was born March 31, 1801, 
in Plattekill, Ulster Co., N. Y., and on Feb- 
ruary 20, 1 83 1 , married Anna Barbara Valette, 
daughter of John J. Valette, of Plattekill, 
Ulster county. They were the parents of seven 
children, as follows: Caroline Adelia, married 
to George Warren, and living at Ellenville; 
Susan Van Wyck, wife of William H. Deyo, 
of Ellenville; Ruth, who died young; Phoebe 
Jane, married to William Warren, and also 
living in Ellenville; Andreas \'alette, our sub- 
ject; and Eburn Fowler and George Emory, 
both residents of New York City. 

After completing his education in the 
schools of his native town, our subject began 
to learn the printer's art in the office of the 
Ellenville Journal, going thence to Rondout, 
and from that place to New York City, where 
he found employment, which, however, he 



gave up to enter the army. He enlisted in the 
Ninth Regiment, N. Y. S. M., and soon after- 
ward was transferred to the 20th Regiment, 
N. Y. S. M., and on finishing his three-months' 
term of service he re-enlisted in the Fourth N. 
Y. Cavalry, from which he received an honor- 
able discharge in 1863. On his return from 
the field he went to California, where for some 
time he worked in the office of the San Fran- 
cisco Call, and later had charge of the job- 
printing department of the State printing works 
at Sacramento. In 1868 he returned to the 
East, and became a partner in the publication 
of the Ellenville (Ulster county) Journal, and 
began to make a reputation as a typographic 
artist. Of the quality of his work the "Ameri- 
can Art Printer" says: " He (Mr. Haight) was 
the first of our more modern printers to depart 
from the sometimes over-delicate tint work of 
pioneers like William J. Kelly (exquisite 
though the latter's was), and combine there- 
with more daring tones and even full brilliant 
dashes of rich coloring, that shot his work 
straight into admiring notice. " In an article 
by John Bassctt in an English journal, his 
work, in general, is highly praised, and made 
the te.xt of a brief exhortation to the English 
artists in this line: "To wake from their 
period of Rip Van Winkleism, and put into 
their pages a little 'go,' which should stimu- 
late the coming generation of English Caxtons 
to emulate their cousin across the pond." He 
mentions especially Mr. Haight's new designs 
for type faces, several being among the most 
popular productions of the type foundries. 

In 1874 Mr. Haight became superintendent 
of the Rondout Frcentait, and later was pro- 
moted to its entire control, becoming a share- 
holder in the company and holding the offices 
of secretary and treasurer. In 1878 he re- 
signed his position on the Freeman, and opened 
an office in Poughkeepsie, where he has devel- 
oped an extensive business. He was a large 
exhibitor of specimens of printing at the Cax- 
ton Celebration in 1877, and also in the first 
two Printing Trades Exhibitions held in Lon- 
don, England. His " Specimens of Printing," 
published yearly, has won the praise of experts 
in his line, and reflects great credit upon the 
capabilities of his workmen as well as upon the 
designer. In 18S6 the Public Printer at Wash- 
ington officially invited Mr. Haight to give. ex- 
pert opinion on matters in connection with the 
government printing office. At the time of the 
opening of the new bridge at Poughkeepsie the 




k- 



'^"i'^jA 



w 



ivri/n 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORAPffWAL RECORD. 



309 



Eag/f of that city published a souvenir edition 
consisting of forty-four pages, concerning which 
the proprietors gave notice that they intended 
to ecUpse all previous efforts of the kind. The 
work occupied some months, and was executed 
in the Eagle office under the direct supervision 
of Mr. Haight. The frontispiece covered a 
superficial area of 216 inches, and was the 
largest which has ever appeared in a paper, and 
the entire paper, which contains many por- 
traits, one of Mr. Haight being among them, 
was an artistic success. As a contributor to 
various trade papers Mr. Haight has furnished 
many practical and original ideas to his breth- 
ren of the craft. Among other articles may be 
noted the following in the " Inland Printer:" 
"Does Good Printing Pay.'" "About Job 
Composition," and a series on "Colors and 
Color Printing." 

Notwithstanding his activity in business, 
Mr. Haight finds time to take part in the social 
and political life of his city, and has served 
two terms as alderman and three as supervisor, 
displaying his characteristic energy and ability 
in his public duties. He is a member of the 
G. A. R., D. B. Sleight Post, of which he is 
past commander, and also belongs to the 
Masonic order, being a past master of Triune 
Lodge, F. & A. M. ; past high priest (two 
terms) of Poughkeepsie Chapter, R. A. M.; 
deputy master of King Solomon Council R. & 
S. M. ; eminent commander for five consecutive 
terms of Poughkeepsie Commandery No. 43, 
K. T., and a member of Mecca Temple, Mystic 
Shrine, in New York City. 



«\ M. DOTY, of the well-known drug firm 
IL of Doty & Humphrey, Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, was born in the town of 
Clinton, near Clinton Corners, Dutchess coun- 
ty, February 5, 1850. Until about sixteen 
years old he lived upon the old farm, attend- 
ing the district school, at which time, his par- 
ents moving to Poughkeepsie, he there finished 
his education, at the Riverview Military Acad- 
emy. 

On September 17, 1869, Mr. Doty entered 
the drug store of Varick & Gerard, Pough- 
keepsie, where he remained less than one year, 
and then accepted a position with Van Vaik- 
enburgh & Brown, who were also in the drug 
business in that city. Here he worked for six 
months, and then took charge of a branch 
store at the corner of Main and Bridge streets. 



which he conducted for some time, purchasing 
a one-third interest in the business on Novem- 
ber I, 1872. On November 25, 1873, with 
William Bedell, Mr. Doty bought out the firm 
of Van Valkenburgh & Vreeland, at the old 
main store, taking Mr. Brown in as a partner, 
under the firm name of Brown, Doty & Co. 
This partnership lasted about two years, at the 
end of which time Mr. Bedell sold his interest, 
and the firm name became Brown & Doty, 
which lasted until 1881, when the partnership 
was dissolved, and Mr. Doty continued the 
business in both the main and branch stores 
for several years. During the time he pur- 
chased the drug store of L. P. Hatch, of Mil- 
lerton, N. Y. , which was run by him success- 
fully in connection with the above. When the 
firm name was Brown, Doty & Co., they 
bought out Peter M. Howard, at No. 265 Main 
street, and moved their stock from No. 249 
Main street. In 1889 Mr. Doty took in his 
present partner, A. S. Humphrey, and in 1890 
they moved from No. 265 Main street to the 
corner of Main and Crannell streets, which is 
much larger and better adapted to their rap- 
idly-increasing business. The store is hand- 
somely fitted up, and the firm deals wholesale 
as well as retail in drugs, medicines, sundries, 
paints, oils, glass, seeds, etc. 

On September 8, 1880, Mr. Doty was 
united in marriage with the onlv daughter of 
R. W. Wing, of New York City. While on 
the streets of Poughkeepsie, viewing a fire- 
men's parade, September 22, 1890, Mr. Doty 
was struck by a stray bullet fired from a re- 
volver in the hands of some unknown drunken 
Eastman student. Mr. Doty was carried to 
his j'oung wife unconscious, and remained in 
bed several weeks, having had a marvelous 
escape from instant death. One child, Her- 
bert A., born January 7, 1884, has blessed the 
union. Mr. Doty is an independent Demo- 
crat, and a public-spirited citizen. He has 
served as trustee of the Baptist Church at 
Poughkeepsie over fourteen years, and Mrs. 
Doty is a member of that organization. He 
has repeatedly refused many offers of public 
trust. 

Thomas S. Doty, father of our subject, was 
born in 18 10, in the town of Clinton, Dutchess 
county, where he married Miss Maria Wing, 
also a native of Clinton, born in 18 15. a 
daughter of George and Mary Wing, who were 
also born in Dutchess county. After their 
marriage Mr. and Mrs. Doty settled on the 



810 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



old homestead (arm, he following farming and 
stock raising until seven years before his 
death, when he lived a retired life in the city 
of Poughkeepsie, and died January i8, 1873. 
To him and his wife were born the following 
children; Uavid, who is in the hotel business 
at Mound City, Kans. ; Mary E., married to 
William Bedell, a farmer in the town of Clin- 
ton, once our subject's partner in the drug 
business at Poughkeepsie, she died in 1893; 
George, a farmer and stock dealer in Dutchess 
county; Carrie, wife of Frank E. Whipple, 
cashier of the First National Bank of Pough- 
keepsie; Amelia Uevine, residing in Pough- 
keepsie; Alexander, who died in May, 1870; 
Agrippa Martin, our subject; Maria, the wife 
of Frank Palmer, of Princeton, Kans. ; Lavinia, 
wife of James Cookingham, the leading grocer 
of Clyde, N. Y. ; and Thomas S., in the agri- 
cultural-implement business in Manchester, 
Iowa. In politics, Mr. Doty was a Democrat, 
and in religious faith he and his wife were 
members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
He died in 1873; his widow is still living in 
Poughkeepsie. 

David Doty, the grandfather of our subject, 
was born in Clinton, May 13, 1787. He 
married Miss Elizabeth Sands, who was born 
May 31, 1785, and they settled on the old 
homestead, where he followed farming up to 
his death, January 29, 1828; his wife passed 
away November 26, 1826. They were mem- 
bers of the Society of Friends, and he was an 
enthusiastic Democrat. The following chil- 
dren were born to them: Hannah, who became 
the wife of Alexander W'ing, a farmer of 
Dutchess county; Mary, who became the wife 
of Moses Sands, at one time sheriff of Dutch- 
ess county, but now deceased (her present 
husband is George Howell, who is in the real- 
estate business in Jersey City); Esther, mar- 
ried to Jacob Smith, formerly a farmer, later 
a liveryman in Poughkeepsie, and now de- 
ceased; David A., our subject's father; and 
one that died in infancy. The Dotys are of 
Scotch descent, and the first of the family in 
this country came over in the " Mayflower." 



JOHN CORCORAN, a prominent business 
man of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, a 
leading retail grocer and an active member 
of the Board of Trade, is a native of that city, 
born January 13, 1842. 

He is of Irish parentage, and was named 



for his grandfather, a lifelong resident of the 
Emerald Isle. His father, William Corcoran, 
was born there about 181 5, and in early man- 
hood came to America with his wife, Ellen 
(Ryan), locating at Poughkeepsie, where he 
became a prosperous gardener and florist. He 
died in 1853, and his wife survived him until 
1875. 

John Corcoran, our subject, attended the 
public schools of his native place until he was 
thirteen years old, and, with the exception of 
one winter in a night school at Norwalk, Conn., 
his education was mainly self-acquired. His 
habits of reading and close observation have 
enabled him, however, to secure a range of 
practical information which some men of wider 
opportunities might well envy. At thirteen he 
began working in a brass foundry, and later 
followed the trade of florist for twelve years. 
He spent three years in that business in Nor- 
walk, Conn., but since 1S68 he has been en- 
gaged in the grocer)" business in Poughkeepsie, 
first at th e corner of Mansion and Bridge 
streets, and for eighteen years past at the cor- 
ner of Mill and Bridge streets. His success is 
substantial, and, as he believes in making the 
most of life and its good gifts, he has invested 
some of his gains in a pleasant home for his 
family, his residence on Bain avenue being one 
of the finest in the city. 

He has been twice married, first, in 1866, 
to Miss Mary Ann Delaney, who died, leaving 
three children: William, Catherine and Ellen. 
Mr. Corcoran's present wife was Miss Mary 
Oldfieid, a daughter of Michael and Ellen Old- 
field. Eight children were born of this mar- 
riage: John (deceased), Clarice, Frances, Mary, 
Joseph, Elizabeth, James L. and Edward. 
The family are leading members of St. Peter's 
Catholic Church, and Mr. Corcoran is promi- 
nent in the work of the Catholic Benevolent 
Society. In fact, he has taken an active part 
in many enterprises — civil, religious and polit- 
ical, as well as those which have pertained to 
finance alone. He has been president of the 
Retail Merchants Association for two terms; 
vice-president of the Board of Trade for two 
terms, and a member of that body for many 
years. While he is an ardent supporter of the 
principles of the Democratic party, he does 
not seek political office. About 1886 he was 
appointed alderman from the First ward, and 
was elected to the position about 1887, but 
resigned before the expiration of his term. 
About 1890 he was appointed member of the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



311 



board of water commissioners, by Mayor Ells- 
worth, and he has given to the discharge of the 
duties of each place the ability and energy and 
fidelity which have distinguished his business 
career. 



FREDERICK WORMSLEY, a successful 
__ and enterprising grocer of Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, was born in Prussia, Ger- 
many, November 30, 1842, and is the son of 
Jacob and Catherine (Otto) Wormsley, the 
former of whom held the office of tax collector 
under the German government. Both the 
parents died in Germany. 

Our subject spent his early days in Prussia, 
and at the age of fourteen came to Poughkeep- 
sie with his sister, making his home first at 
East Poughkeepsie. He worked for his board, 
taking care of fourteen horses, milking five 
cows, and going to school in the winter. Later 
he clerked for Mr. Baker in a grocery store, on 
Main street, and then for James Husted, on 
Market street, for several years. In 1869 he 
started a grocery store where Wallman's 
bakery now is, and then conducted a store 
where Mr. Bloomer's place now stands. This 
he ran from 1S82 to 1S87, when he sold out 
and lived a retired life until September 21, 
1S95, when he again went into business on 
Main street. 

Mr. Wormsley was married May 10, 1868, 
to Annie, a daughter of John Munsell. She 
was born in Germany, but has been a resident 
of Poughkeepsie since she was six months old. 
They have no children. Our subject was con- 
firmed in the Lutheran Church before leaving 
Germany. He is a member of the Improved 
Order of Red Men; a Veteran Fireman, life 
member of Steamer Company No. 2; and a 
member of Freigangrath Lodge No. 549, D. O. 
Haragari. He has been a lifelong Democrat, 
but has never sought public office. He began 
life as a poor boy, and has succeeded in ac- 
cumulating a comfortable property. Mr. 
Wormsley is a straightforward business man, 
and is highly respected by his neighbors and 
associates. 



EDWARD HUNTTING BEDFORD (de- 
1 ceased). The Bedford family has been 

prominent in the vicinity of Glenham, Dutch- 
ess county, for many years, and by intermar- 
riage it is related to several other distinguished 



families of this section. The subject of this 
brief memoir was a worthy descendant of such 
an ancestry, and although his life was passed 
in the quiet calling of agriculture he displayed, 
on all occasions, characteristics which would 
have adorned any sphere of life. 

He was born at Glenham, July 14, 1835, 
the son of John and Sarah H. (Waldroni Bed- 
ford, and grandson of John Bedford, a jeweler 
and watchmaker at Fishkill. His father was 
born May 16, 1791, and died February 24, 
1845, after spending his later years as a farmer 
at Glenham. His wife, whom he married 
February 20, 1828, was born April 28, 1800, 
survived. him many years, dying January 15, 
1882. She was a daughter of Peter Waldron 
(who was born April 23, 1754, and died May 
10, 1827) and his wife, Edea Swartwout iborn 
October 9, 1764, died January i, 1847). Their 
marriage took place February 21, 1796. 

Edward H. Bedford was one of two sons, 
his brother Andrew, who was born March 15, 
1830, being the elder. Our subject attended 
the district schools at Glenham, and the acad- 
emy at Fishkill, then conducted by Rev. Dr. 
Pingree, and later entered Yale College, but 
was obliged to leave on account of ill health 
before his course was finished. Returning 
home, he assumed the management of the farm, 
which he continued until his death, which oc- 
curred January 20, 1872. He was prominent 
in the varied activities of his locality, being one 
of the leading officials of the Fishkill Savings 
Bank, and an earnest supporter of the Repub- 
lican party. In the Reformed Dutch Church 
at Glenham he was an active worker, holding 
the offices of deacon, treasurer and superin- 
tendent of the Sunday-school. 

On October 13, 1859, he was married to 
Miss Anna Bevier, daughter of Rev. John H. 
and Margaret (Van Wyck) Bevier. Her father 
was at that time the pastor of the Reformed 
Dutch Church at Glenham, and he performed 
the ceremony in the parsonage there. On the 
maternal side her grandparents were Cornelius 
C. and Lctitia (Adriancei Van Wyck, of Fish- 
kill. To Mr. and Mrs. Bedford eight children 
were born, as follows: Edward Huntting, Jr., 
December 25, i860, died August 11, 1864; 
John Bevier, February 27, 1862 (of whom 
further mention is made); Andrew Wortman, 
August II, 1863, died December 30, 1882; 
Wilhelmus, January 24, 1865, died January .3, 
1894; Sarah Van Wyck, May 21, 1866; Anna 
Huntting, July 12,1 868, was married at ' ' Glen- 



312 



COMilEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



villa," Glenham, May 23, 1894, to the Rev. 
Peter Stryker Beekman, by the Rev. Benjamin 
E. Uickhant; Charles \'an Wyck, March 14, 
187 1, is a minister of the Reformed Dutch 
Church; and Edwin Rapelje, August 19, 1872, 
is a physician at Brooklyn, New York. 

John Bevier Bedfokd was educated in the 
public schools of Glenham and Matteawaii, 
also in a private school at Fishkill Landing and 
a boarding school at Poughkeepsie. After 
leaving school he settled on the old home- 
stead, where he has ever since resided. In 
1 888 and '89 he passed a year in the West and 
Southwest, spending part of the time at Omaha, 
Neb., and Wichita, Kans. After his return 
home he was appointed postmaster at Glen- 
ham, beginning with the administration of 
President Benjamin Harrison, and which posi- 
tion he held for five consecutive years. He is 
now clerk of the school board, having held the 
office for nearly three years. In politics he is 
a Republican. 

Genealogy of the Bevier Family — First 
Generation: Louis Bevier and Maria Lablane 
emigrated from France between the years 1672 
and 1675. Children of Scco/id Generation: 
Maria, born July 9, 1674; John, January 2, 
1676; Abram, January 20, 1678; Samuel, Janu- 
ary 21, 1680; Andries, July 12, 1682; Louis, 
November 6, 1684; Ester, 1686; Solomon, 
July 12, 1689. Third Generation: Abram 
Bevier was married to Rachel \'ernooy, 1707. 
Their son Samuel was baptized in 171 5, and 
they had nine other children beside him. 
Fourth Generation: Samuel Bevier, Jr., was 
married to Sarah Le Fever. They had three 
sons and four daughters; Andries, their eldest 
son, was born April 4, 1742. Fifth Genera- 
tion: Andries Bevier married Jecomyntie 
Du Bois, June 2, 1764. She was the daugh- 
ter of Cornelius Du Bois and Margaret Hough- 
taling. They had the following children; 
Sarah, born August 18, 1765; Samuel, October 
25, 1766; Cornelius, April 27, 1769; Wilhel- 
mus. May 10, 1771; Lewis, born December 5, 
1773; Abraham, July 28, 1776; Janatie, No- 
vember 30, 1 78 1, died in infancy; Margaret, 
baptized May 30, 1779; Josiah, baptized Feb- 
ruary 7, 1783; Rachel, baptized March 13, 
1 79 1. Sixth Generation: Wilhelmus Bevier 
was married January 11, jSoi, to Anna Hoorn- 
beek, born May 29, 1771. and died June 3, 
1850. They had the following children: (i) 
Jemimah, born November 24, iSoi, died 
October 19, 1885; (2) Catherine, born Sep- 



tember 14, 1803, died March 8, iS64;(3j John 
H., born July 21, 1805, died August 14, 1880; 
(4j Maria, born August 29, i8b7, died June i, 
1885; (5) \\'illiam, born August 29, 1809, 
died June 14, 1834; (6) Benjamin H., born 
March i, 18 12, died September 7, 1S80; (7) 
Sarah, born June 24, 181 4, died March 20, 
1863. John H. Bevier married Margaret Van- 
Wyck and had the following children: Corne- 
lius Van Wyck, born April 19, 1833, died Sep- 
tember 28, 1889; Anna, born March 24, 1835 
(widow of Edward H. Bedford), resides at 
"Glenvilla," Glenham; Wilhelmus. born April 
23, 1840, died January 26, 1844; and Laetitia 
Van Wyck, born April 19, 1842, resides at 
" Glenvilla." 

Genealogy of the \'an \\'yck Family: Cor- 
nelius C. Van Wyck, born April 25, 1763, 
died December 9. 1832. Letitia Adriance, 
hrs wife, born February 5, 1766, died May 22, 
1858. They were rnarried May 3, 1786. To 
them were born the following children: Isaac, 
born January 31, 1787. died April 16, 1858; 
Letty, born October 26, 178S, died June 9, 
1835; Peter Schenck, born January 19, 1790, 
died September 28, 1875; Susan, born July 
30, 1791, died July 2, 1878: John C, born 
March 24, 1793, died June 2, 1867; Sally, 
born February 5, 1795, died February 18, 
i860; Maria, born December 15. 1796, died 
March 18, 1879; Ida Eliza, born May 16, 1799, 
died September 2, 1800; Charles, born April 
7, iSoi, died March 28, 1880; Albert, born 
February 25, 1803, died November 23, 1806; 
Caroline, born January 22, 1805, died August 
16, 1875; Margaret, born July 3, 1810, died 
November 20, 1868 (she was the wife of the 
Rev. John H. Bevier). 



JOHN SUTCLIFFE, one of the best known 
and most successful business men of Pough- 
^ keepsie, Dutchess county, was born in Stain- 
land, near Halifax, Yorkshire, England, July 
29, 1837, a son of Eli and Mary (Lumb) Sut- 
cliffe. His grandfather John, and great-grand- 
father Eli Sutcliffe, were natives of the same 
locality, the former of whom carried on a 
woolen business, the latter conducting a pa- 
per-mill. 

Eli Sutcliffe, the father of our subject, was 
born April 7, 1815, also in Stainland, near 
Halifax, England, grew to manhood in his na- 
tive country, and there married Miss Mary 
Lumb, who was born in Barkisland, near Hali- 





^^^^,5/1^^:^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



313 



fax, England, September 23, 181 5. Her fa- 
ther, John Lunib, a weaver of woolen goods, 
was also born in that part of the country. 
About four years after their marriage the young 
couple came to the United States, and in 1840 
settled in Poughkeepsie, where Mr. Sutcliffe at 
first worked in a woolen-factory, afterward en- 
gaging in teaming. In 185 1 he opened a gro- 
cery store at the corner of Union and Clover 
streets, which he carried on some eighteen 
years. In 1855, in partnership with David 
Scott, he went into the manufacture of soap 
and candles, later, however, disposing of this 
business, also, in 1867, of his interest in the 
grocery store to his son William H., after 
which he retired from active business. In poli- 
tics he was originally a Whig, and for many 
years since has been an active member of the 
Republican party; he has served as assessor 
for the city of Poughkeepsie. In religious faith 
he is a consistent member of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, as was also his wife, who 
departed this life September 10, 1894. Five 
children were born to this worthy couple, as 
follows: John, the subject of this sketch; 
Sarah E., who married Benjamin F. Brinker- 
hoff; William H., a grocer in Poughkeepsie; 
Eli D., an Episcopalian minister in Oregon; 
and George T., who died in infancy. 

John Sutcliffe, our subject, was three years 
old when his parents came to this country, 
and was reared in Poughkeepsie, where he at- 
tended the public schools, and also the Dutch- 
ess County Academy. His business career he 
began as clerk in his father's store, and in 
1 861 went to Peekskill, where he became as- 
sistant manager of the Peeksville Blast Fur- 
nace, a position he filled for two years. He 
then drew the plans for a new furnace to be 
established at Coldspring, Putnam Co., N. Y. , 
known as the Phillips Iron Works, and which 
he also built and started. After getting this 
well under way, owing to some disagreement 
with the management, he resigned his position 
and went to England in order to post himself 
more thoroughly in the details of the iron busi- 
ness. In the fall of 1864 he returned to the 
United States, and began the building of new 
iron works at Verplanck's Point, N. Y. ; but 
owing to the financial panic in 1865 they were 
not completed. In the latter year he erected the 
building on the corner of Union and Clover 
streets, Poughkeepsie, for his father, and be- 
came interested in a woolen business with an 
uncle. In the following spring he went to Hyde- 



ville. \'t., to take charge of the works of the 
Eagle Slate Co., and remained with that com- 
pany for four years, managing the business with 
great success, and making many improve- 
ments in the establishment. In 1868 he went 
to Wales and England, where he made a study 
of the manufacture of slate, and on his return 
built the machinery for working up refuse 
stock into billiard tables, mantels and other 
slate work. He also built the mill which he 
successfully operated until 1870, when he left 
the company on account of a difference of 
opinion. In the summer of 1870 he remodeled 
a slate mill at the Chapman slate quarries in 
Pennsylvania, and in the winter of 1870-71 re- 
turned to Poughkeepsie to build the filter beds, 
docks, etc., for the city water works, and 
spent the year 1871 in constructing the same. 
The filter beds were the only successful ones 
of the kind in the United States at that time, 
and are still in operation. 

Mr. Sutcliffe spent a portion of the follow- 
ing year traveling through the South and West, 
studying and looking up the large iron fields, etc. 
In the fall of 1872 he again returned to Pough- 
keepsie and built the Hudson River Iron Works, 
and the docks now known as the Phceni.x 
Horse Shoe Works. In 1873 he took con- 
tracts to build sewers and lay water pipes in 
the city of Poughkeepsie; but before the con- 
tracts were finished, owing to the stringency in 
the money market, in the fall of 1873, the city 
could not raise sufficient money to meet its 
obligations, and requested Mr. Sutcliffe to sus- 
pend work. However, he obtained the neces- 
sary funds from private sources, and finished 
the work. He also managed the Franklin 
Iron Works near Utica, N. Y., which had two 
blast furnaces, and in addition to his other en- 
terprises built a row of brick buildings in 
Poughkeepsie. 

In the spring of 1 874 he was called to Penn- 
sylvania to settle up the business of the Pond- 
Eddy Blue Stone Company, which was located 
on the Erie railroad, in Pike county, in which 
affair he displayed much ability, and matters 
were satisfactorily arranged. He was next 
employed by the Vallecillo Silver Mining Co. , 
to look up their mines in Mexico, and if he 
thought they could be run with profit, to take 
the management of them, and if not, to return 
and receive one j-ear's pay for his services. 
His investigation proved so satisfactory that 
he took charge of the mines and operated them 
for ten years, during which time he succeeded 



314 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in placing them on a good paying basis with- 
out any cost to the company. In the fall of 
1884 he returned home and took a year's rest 
after his arduous labors, at the end of which 
time he was engaged by the receiver of the 
Steel Company of Canada, Nova Scotia, to 
take charge of its affairs as general manager, 
and owing to the success attending his man- 
agement a new company was organized under 
the title of the Londonderry Iron Company, 
Limited, in which he took an interest, and of 
which he became general manager. In the 
fall of 1889 he resigned his position as mana- 
ger, consenting, however, to act as consulting 
engineer, with his residence at Poughkeepsie 
instead of Nova Scotia. Since that time he 
has made his home in Poughkeepsie, and has 
been engaged in various contracts, and acting 
as consulting engineer. 

On July 26, 1876, Mr. Sutcliffe was mar- 
ried to Miss Sarah E. Swart. Her father, 
William Beekman Swart, was of Dutch de- 
scent, a descendant of Anneke Jans, and an 
old settler of Dutchess county, whose father, 
Maj. Thomas Swart, served in the Revolution- 
ary war, and was an officer in the war of 1S12. 
Three children have been born of this union, 
Paul, Allen and John \V. 

Mr. Sutcliffe is a strong Republican, and 
served as police commissioner for two terms. 
In religious matters he is not a sectarian, but 
has a kindly feeling for all denominations. He 
was formerly an Odd Fellow, and is now a 
member of the Masonic fraternity; is a mem- 
ber of the Canadian Society of Civil Engineers, 
and the American Institute of Mining Engineers, 
also of the Engineers Club of New York City. 
In the various responsible positions that he 
has filled he has earned the reputation of a 
man of integritj', good judgment and keen 
business ability, and is everywhere respected 
and esteemed for his many sterling qualities. 



law in the law office of Tristram Coffin, with 
whom he remained two years, and then en- 
tered the Albany Law School, graduating with 
the class of '76. Returning to the old home- 
stead, he has here been engaged in farming 
ever since. 

On January 14, 1885, Mr. \'ail was mar- 
ried to Miss Gertrude B. Flagler, who was 
born at Overlook in the town of Lagrange, a 
daughter of Philip D. Flagler, a farmer. Mr. 
and Mrs. Vail have two children: Elias C. and 
Lavina C. In 1895 our subject purchased a 
house on the corner of South Hamilton and 
Barclay streets, Poughkeepsie, which is one of 
the finest residences in Poughkeepsie. He is 
a Republican, and one of the foremost citizens 
of the place. 

Elias D. Vail, the father of our subject, 
was also born at Verbank, as was also Isaac, 
the grandfather, and Elias, the great-grand- 
father of our subject. Isaac, the grandfather, 
was the father of thirteen children, of whom 
Elias D. was the youngest. The latter grew 
to manhood on the farm, and married Miss 
Lavina Cornell, who was born in the town of 
Beekman, a daughter of George Cornell, a 
farmer. The Cornell family was also of Hol- 
land stock. To Elias D. and his wife chil- 
dren as follows were born: Willard C. ; 
George E. and Edwin G. (twins), the former 
of whom died at the age of sixteen years, 
while the latter is a farmer on the old home- 
stead. The mother died October 22, 1861; 
the father lives on the old homestead; he is a 
Republican in his political preferences. 



WILLARD C. VAIL, of Poughkeepsie, 
was born in Verbank, Dutchess coun- 
ty. May 17, 1856, and is a descendant of Hol- 
land ancestors. He spent his boyhood on the 
old farm, and attended the district schools, 
from which he went to the Oswego Institute, 
and spent one year at the Poughkeepsie Mili- 
tary Institute. Later he entered the hard- 
ware store of X'alentine & Coleman, in Pough- 
keepsie, holding the position of clerk and book- 
keeper. Next he commenced the study of 



JOHN VINCENT HUMPHREY. Among 
the prominent business men of Poughkeep- 
sie few names are better known than that 
of the subject of this sketch, who, since 1874, 
has successfully conducted a drug business 
there. He is a native of Dutchess county, 
born in the village of Beekman, October 20, 
1853, and is a son of John Humphrey, whose 
birth also occurred at that place, in 1818. 
There the father engaged in farming until he 
was called from this earth, when our subject 
was only a few days old. At Stormville he 
was united in marriage with Catherine E. 
Storm, a daughter of Abram Storm, and to 
them were born four children: Helen R. ; 
Latitia C, deceased wife of William M. Ouin- 
tard ; Abram and John V. The paternal grand- 
father, who bore the name of Abram Hum- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD 



315 



phrey, also engaged in agricultural pursuits at 
Beekman. 

The boyhood days of our subject were 
passed in Poughkeepsie, where he attended, 
and completed his literary education in, the 
Dutchess County Academy. He began his 
business career as a partner in the drug store 
of his brother, Abram S. Humphrey, who was 
then conducting the drug business, and in 1882 
purchased his brother's interest, since which 
time he has been connected with the drug 
trade in Poughkeepsie. His first place of 
business was at No. 3S4 Main street, where he 
remained two years, and then removed to No. 
386, there carrying on operations for five 
years. He then purchased his present store at 
No. 388 Main street, where he carries a full 
and complete line of drugs, patent medicines, 
etc. As a business man he is enterprising, en- 
ergetic, always abreast with the times, and 
has been rewarded with a well-deserved success. 

Mr. Humphrey was married at Poughkeep- 
sie, October 3, 1877, to Miss Sarah Millard, 
daughter of John P. Millard, and four children 
grace their union: John Huson Millard, born 
November 29, 187S; Abram Storm, born April 
16, 1880; Ogden Hoffman, born July 16, 1883, 
and Olive, born January 28, 1897. Mr. Hum- 
phrey is a man of generous impulses, giving 
liberally of his time and money to all worthy 
causes, and in everything he does he tries to 
make the world brighter and better. He holds 
membership with the Second Reformed Church 
of Poughkeepsie. 



JAMES EDGAR SADLIER, M. D. Among 
the young followers of .Esculapius who have 
" won their way unaided and attained promi- 
nence in their profession, is James Edgar Sad- 
lier, of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county. He 
was born at Walden, Orange Co., N. Y., 
March 28, 1S65, of French ancestry. 

James Sadlier, Jr., the father of our sub- 
ject, was a native of France, the son of James 
Sadlier, Sr. , also a native of France, who, at 
the time of his son's birth, was visiting with 
other members of his family in England. 
When James Sadlier, Jr., was five years old, 
his parents removed to the United States, and 
located in New York. His education was re- 
ceived at the public schools of that city, and 
on leaving school he at once entered the busi- 
ness world. He established himself in the to- 
bacco business at the corner of Broadway and 



Maiden Lane, where he remained until 1873. 
In Orange county, N. Y., he was married to 
Miss Ann Jeannette Woodruff, daughter of 
Richard and Charlotte Woodruff, prominent 
residents of that county. Si.x children were 
the result of this union, three of whom died in 
infancy; the others are: Charles Whittemore, 
secretary and treasurer of the Walden Savings 
Bank, and teller of the Walden National Bank; 
James Edgar; and Augustus, who is at the old 
home in Walden, N. Y. The father of this 
family passed to his final rest January 4, 1876, 
at the age of fifty-one years. He was a man 
highly esteemed for his many sterling qualities, 
and well liked by all who knew him for his 
genial nature, a characteristic of the French 
nation. 

James Edgar Sadlier, the subject proper of 
this review, received an unusually good educa- 
tion, first attending the public schools of his 
native town, later attending an academy at 
Montgomery, Orange Co., N. Y. , and also one 
at New Paltz, Ulster Co., N. Y. He decided 
to enter the medical profession, and accord- 
ingly went to Pine Bush, Orange county, and 
began the study of medicine under the careful 
tuition of his uncle. Dr. William H. Woodruff; 
after studying with him for sometime our sub- 
ject, in 1S84. was enrolled as a student in the 
Medical Department of Union College at Al- 
bany, N. Y. , completing his course in 1887. 
His advantages had well disciplined his mind, 
and his careful attention to detail had given 
him a reputation before leaving the class room 
that years of practice often fail to acquire. 
On leaving school he was appointed on the 
staff of the Albany City Hospital for the period 
from October, 1887, to April i, 1889. After 
his term at the hospital had expired he came 
to Poughkeepsie, and began the regular prac- 
tice of his profession. His untiring and un- 
ceasing labor, coupled with his skill. Foon won 
recognition, and he, by his own exertions, had, 
in a short time, built up a large and lucrative 
practice. In July, 1891, he was appointed 
one of the attending physicians of Vassar 
Brothers Hospital, which position he is still 
holding. He is also physician for the pension 
department of this district. 

On June 18, 1891, Dr. Sadlier was united 
in marriage with Miss Hattie C. Millspaugh, 
daughter of Theron L. Millspaugh, of W'alden, 
N. Y. No children have been born to them; 
Socially the Doctor is a member of Armor 
Lodge, Knights of Pythias, and in the social 



810 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



life of the city he and his charming wife are 
\vell-i<nown and important factors. He served 
as secretary of the Dutchess County Medical 
Societ}- from January, 1891, to January, 1897, 
when the society elected him delegate to the 
New York State Medical Society for the ensu- 
ing three years, which necessitated his resig- 
nation as secretary. 



SHERMAN NICHOLAS HAIGHT. The 
subject of this sketch is a representative 
of tlie ninth generation of the Haight family 
in America. Simon Haight, the founder of 
the family on this side of the Atlantic, came 
from England to Massachusetts in 1628. His 
son Nicholas (i) married Susanna Joyce, and 
had a son, Samuel, whose son Nicholas {2) 
married Patience Titus, and, purchasing land 
from the Nine l^artners, came to Dutchess Co. 
from Long Island. Jacob 1 1), son of Nicholas 
(2), was born on Long Island and married Sarah 
Hicks; they came from Poughkeepsie in an 
ox-cart, and settled on the farm where Clem- 
ent Haight now lives. The place was then a 
wilderness, and wolves were numerous; they 
built a log cabin, the door of which was bark. 
To this pioneer couple were born the following 
children: Elizabeth, John, Stephen, Nicho- 
las (3), Jacob (2), Patience, Sarah, Samuel |2J, 
and Phcebe. Nicholas (3) married Miss Mar- 
garet Vincent, and in their family of several 
children was Nicholas (4), who married Ph(ebe 
Skidmore, and followed the occupation of a 
farmer e.xclusively. Both he and his wife 
were Quakers, and they reared the following: 
Andrew, the father of our subject; Sally, who 
died unmarried; Elias, who married Lavina 
Vail, and was a farmer in the town of Wash- 
ington; James, who married Eliza Smith, and 
was a farmer on Chestnnt Ridge; and Louisa, 
who died unmarried. 

Andrew Haieht, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Washington, May 16, 
1805. He married Sarah Ann Sherman, a 
daughter of Jedediah and Catherine (Gage) 
Sherman, born October 17, 1803, either in 
Dutchess or Saratoga county. After their 
marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Haight settled on a 
farm, and two children were born to them: 
Nicholas, who died in infancj', and Sherman, 
our subject. The father died September 10, 
1877, and the mother on April 8, 1869. In 
politics he was a Republican, and, religiously. 



both he and his wife were followers of the 
Quaker faith. 

Jedediah Sherman, the maternal grand- 
father of Sherman Haight, was a prosperous 
farmer in the town of Washington, born Feb- 
ruary 26, 1 78 1. His first wife (whose name is 
not now known) was born June 8, 1 780. ]iy her 
he had five children, of whom the following 
is the record: (i i Mosher B., a miller at Lit- 
tle Rest, first married Miss Barton, by whom 
he had two children — Kate and Isaac — and for 
his second wife wedded Miss Phcebe Conklin, 
a sister of Isaac Conklin, a sketch of whom 
appears elsewhere. (2) Howland R. , a dyer, 
who married Caroline Innis, by whom he had 
one child — Kate. (3) Jeremiah D., a mer- 
chant at Mabbettsville and later a farmer, who 
married Hannah Tabor, and they had children 
as follows — Elizabeth, Sarah, Caroline, Philip 
J., Martha, George, and Kate. (4) Leonard, 
who first married a Miss Duncan, b\' whom he 
had two children — Mary and Matilda; after 
the death of his wife he again married, and 
three children were born of this union — Jane, 
Henrietta, and Charles. (51 The mother of 
our subject. 

Sherman Haight, the subject proper of this 
sketch, was born in the town of Washington, 
May 27, 1 84 1. He spent his boyhood on the 
home farm, and on December 7, 1869, was 
united in marriage with Miss Sarah E. Sisson, 
a native of Washington town, and a daughter 
of Henry and Eliza (Bryan) Sisson. After 
their marriage our subject and his wife located 
on their present large dairy farm, which is one 
of the finest in Dutchess county. The follow- 
ing children have graced the union of Mr. and 
Mrs. Haight: Sarah Eliza, Anna Sisson, An- 
drew Henry, Sherman David, and Samuel 
Moore, all of whom are living and unmarried. 
Politically, our subject is a Republican, and 
he and his wife are prominent in social circles. 

Henry Sisson, the father of Mrs. Haight, 
was born in Washington township, April 10, 
1S07, a son of Lemuel, Jr., and Sarah (Suther- 
land) Sisson, the former of whom was a native 
of Rhode Island, a son of Lemuel, Sr. , who in 
turn was a direct descendant of old Huguenot 
stock. The other children in the family of 
Lemuel Sisson, Jr., were: Jacob, Job, William, 
Anna, Richard, Lydia, Phoebe, Sally, Isaac 
and Marah Deborah. On reaching manhood, 
Henry Sisson was united in marriage with Miss 
Eliza Bryan, who was born March 16, 1810, 
in the town of Northeast, a daughter ot Amos 





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J^^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



317 



and Elizabeth (Flint) Bryan, and to them 
were born four children, namely: Emily, who 
married Waltei? F. Conklin, a merchant and 
musician; James B., a farmer and auctioneer, 
who married Miss Helen Titus; Anna, who 
became the wife of Samuel H. Moore, for 
many years associated with Adriance Piatt & 
Co., manufacturers of harvesting machinery; 
and Sarah E. (Mrs. Haight). 

Amos Bryan, the maternal grandfather of 
Mrs. Haight, settled on the Bryan homestead 
farm, in Northeast town, after his marriage 
with Elizabeth Flint. They had a family of 
nine children: David, Isaac, Ward, Ezra, 
James, Laura, Mary, Sarah E. and Eliza. 
William Cullen Bryant was related to this 
family. 



CHARLES IvIRCHNER, the well-known 
_ ' proprietor of a large meat market at 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, and one of 
the most extensive real-estate holders of that 
city, is a native of Germany, born May 31, 
1835, in Otterberg, Rhenish Bavaria. 

His ancestors were prominent residents of 
that place for many generations, and William 
Kirchner, his great-grandfather, was Dominie 
in the Erst Reformed Church there. Frantz 
Ivirchner, our subject's grandfather, a butcher 
by trade, had six children: Catherine Good- 
hart; William and Henry, who came to Phila- 
delphia at an early date; Jacob, who was an 
unusually fine specimen of physical manhood, 
being over six feet in height, and was a mem- 
ber of Napoleon's famous body-guard of three 
hundred men in the ill-starred Russian cam- 
paign, from which he never returned. 

Conrad Kirchner, our subjects' father, born 
in 1800, succeeded to his father's business, 
and remained at the old home, where he died 
in 1877. In I 82 5 he married Elizabeth Godel, 
who was born in Otterberg in 1800, and died 
in 18S0. They had ten children: Elizabeth, 
the wife of Charles Nunce, of Newark, N. J. ; 
William, who inherited his father's house and 
business, and died in 1892; Caroline, who re- 
mained in Germany and married John Hubing 
there; Jacob (deceased), formerly a butcher at 
Otterberg; Charles, our subject; Conrad, who 
was a butcher in Otterberg for many years, 
and died in Poughkeepsie in 1892; Wilhelmina, 
who married (tirstj Christian Strause, and 
(second) Baron Von Gutterman, both promi- 
nent men in Germany; Louis, a butcher in 



Poughkeepsie; and Philip and Henry, both in 
the butcher business at Newark, N. J. The 
brothers have all been successful in business. 
The parents came to America in 1869 to visit 
their sons, and the father, who was a man of 
'fine presence and genial nature, made many 
friends among the leading people of Pough- 
keepsie. In the summer of 1875 Mr. and 
Mrs. Conrad Kirchner celebrated their golden 
wedding at their home in Otterberg, Germany, 
for which occasion eleven members of the 
Kirchner family in America proceeded to Ger- 
many to be present at the event; there were 
eighty members present. 

Charles Kirchner, the subject proper of 
this review, attended the schools of his native 
town until he was fifteen years old. He made 
good use of these opportunities, and has since 
kept well informed on the topics which inter- 
est all intelligent people. At the age of eight- 
een he began to assist his father in business; 
but soon after, in May, 1854, he came to 
America, being the first of the sons to leave 
the old country. After a short stay in New- 
ark, N. J., he went to Poughkeepsie, arriving 
there on July 5, same year. He secured a po- 
sition as clerk with Jacob Petillon, remaining 
six months, when he returned to Newark and 
clerked in a butcher shop for a year and a 
half. During this time he learned the trade, 
also familiarized himself with the English 
language, and in August, 1856, he engaged in 
business for himself in Newark, continuing it 
successfully until October, 1862, when he re- 
moved to Poughkeepsie and opened his market 
at No. 156 Main street, which he has now con- 
ducted for more than thirty-four years. His 
success in this line has been marked, and he 
has also made some judicious investments in 
real estate, which have proven profitable. At 
one time he owned the Poughkeepsie Driving 
Park, which he sold to Edwin Thorn, and at 
present he pays the largest taxes on real estate 
of anyone in the city. In 1872 he built 
" Kirchner's Hall " for a State Armory, which 
is allowed to be one of the best buildings in 
the city, and in 1891 he converted it into a 
public hall, for which purpose it is one of the 
finest in the State. His rare judgment and 
business skill have been widely recognized in 
financial circles, and he is often consulted in 
important enterprises. 

In 1867 Mr. Kirchner married Miss Caro- 
line C. Petillon, daughter of Jacob Petillon, his 
first employer in this country. They have no 



818 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



children. Mr. Kirchner has thirty-five nephews 
and nieces in German)' and America, to whom 
he is most generous and affectionate, being 
especially interested in their education. One 
he has sent to the Bishop School; one to the 
Bisbee Military School: one to the Theological 
Seminary, at Rochester, while a niece gradu- 
ated from V'assar in 1893. He is always ready 
to risk something to help another, has been 
bondsman for many city officers and bank 
officials, and has never lost a dollar. As a 
lover of horses, he delights in owning and 
driving a fine team. 

Mr. Kirchner has made four visits to the 
Fatherland, one for four months, in 1861, 
while he was in business in Newark; one of 
seven months in 1874, and one in 1S80 at the 
time of his mother's death, when he re-interred 
his father's remains by her side in a new burial 
plot, and erected a handsome monument. His 
last visit was in 1890, when his wife accom- 
panied him, and they traveled some eight 
months, visiting many points of interest. He 
and his wife are leading members of the I-ie- 
formed Dutch Church, and in local affairs, he 
is regarded as a friend of every progressive 
movement. He is an intiuential worker in the 
Republican party, and has been urged to be- 
come a candidate for the office of mayor, but 
he has never permitted his name to be used in 
such connection. 



Y.\N W'VCKS. The ancestor of the \'an- 
Wycks in Dutchess county was Cornelius 
Barents \'an Wyck, who, in 1650, came to 
New Netherlands from the town of Wyck, 
Holland, and in 1660 married, at Flatbush, 
Kings Co., N. Y., Ann, daughter of Rev. 
Johannis Theodorus Polhemus, the first Re- 
formed Dutch minister in that county. 

The Van Wycks, of Holland, are an aris- 
tocratic family, and continue to use the same 
coat of arms as those brought here by the 
American Van Wycks upward of two and one- 
half centuries ago. From the beginning of 
the history of Dutchess county the Van- 
Wycks have been prominent in the professions, 
and in the public service, as judges, legislators, 
congressmen, senators, and soldiers of all the 
wars of our country, including that for Amer- 
ican independence. 

Theodorus Van Wyck, son of Cornelius 
Barents \'an Wyck and Ann Polhemus, was 



born in Flatbush in 1667. He rnarried Mar- 
garet Brinckerhof; took oath of allegiance at 
New Amsterdam in 1687. 

Theodorus Van Wyck, son of Theodorus 
Van Wyck and Margaret Brinckerhof, was the 
surveyor and original purchaser of a tract of 
900 acres of land in the town of East Fishkill. 
He was a very prominent man of his time. 
Together with Col. John Brinckerhof, he was 
appointed one of the first judges of the Court 
of Common Pleas, on the 24th of February, 
1752, by George Clinton, Captain General 
Governor, and Chief of the Province of New 
York, and the territories thereon depending in 
America, under King George H. [This old 
document is now in the Armory Museum at 
Poughkeepsie.] He married Elizabeth Creed. 

Theodorus Van Wyck, son of Theodorus 
\'an ^^^yck and Elizabeth Creed, was born in 
1730, and died in 1797. He married Altje, 
daughter of Col. John Brinckerhof and his 
wife, Janetje Van Voorhees. He was a physi- 
cian, and the earliest in the county; he was 
among the first to renounce his allegiance to 
King George, and because of his outspoken 
sentiments was compelled by his Tory neigh- 
bors, in 1775, to leave Fishkill. He removed to 
New York City, and was elected a delegate to 
the Second Provincial Congress in that year. 
The patriots becoming more bold and out- 
spoken throughout the county, he returned to 
his farm in the early part of 1776, and was 
again elected to Congress in that year from 
Dutchess county. During the Revolution he 
was an active patriot. His family have from 
time to time held many offices of trust. The 
sons of Dr. Theodorus \'an Wyck and Altje 
Brinckerhof, his wife, were Abraham \'an- 
Wyck, John Brinckerhof \'an Wyck, and 
William \'an Wyck. 

Abraham Van Wyck held the commission 
of major-general in the war of 18 12; he was 
a large landowner in Fishkill. W'illiam Van- 
Wyck was elected to Congress from Dutchess 
in the early part of the century. John Brinck- 
erhof Van Wyck married (first) Gertrude 
Brinckerhof, and (second) Susan Scheiick; his 
sons by his second wife" were: Alfred, John, 
William and Edmund. He was a large land- 
owner in Fishkill, and was a general in the 
State militia. He was elected to the Assem- 
bly of this State in 1812 and 18 16; was a 
successful breeder of Merino sheep, and made 
a fortune in wool and land. Old documents 
in possession of the family show that he held 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



319 



several civil appointments from Governors 
John Jay and Dewitt Clinton. 

Alfred Van Wyck, eldest son of John B. 
Van Wyck and Susan Schenck, was a farmer 
in the town of Fishkill, occupying the old 
homestead. In i860 he moved to Illinois, 
buying a tract of land that afterward be- 
came a part of the town of Clifton. He died 
in 1894, aged ninety-two years. He married 
Miss Charlotte \'iets, by whom he had one 
son, John B., and two daughters, Mary and 
Charlotte. 

John Van Wyck, second son, had an in- 
clination toward a mercantile life; he became 
a partner in a large dry-goods house in New 
York City, and remained there for some years. 
He afterward retired from business, and, return- 
ing to Dutchess county, purchased a handsome 
place at New Hamburg, where he died in 1878. 
He married Miss Sarah Mesier;their family were 
ten in number: four daughters — Kate, Cor- 
nelia, Sarah and Mary; and six sons — Mesier, 
Abraham, Henry, Edmund, John and Will- 
iam. 

William Van Wyck, third son, studied law 
and was admitted to the bar. He died from 
an accident in 1854. He married Miss Augusta 
Forman ; they had no family. 

Edmund Van Wyck, fourth son, was born 
January 31, 18 18; he was a farmer, and always 
lived in Dutchess county. After attending 
private schools in Poughkeepsie and New York 
City he traveled to some e.xtent through the 
West. He married, January 9, 1845, Miss 
Josephine Barnes, a daughter of the late David 
Barnes, and the following children were born 
to them: William (died in 1870 unmarried), 
David Barnes, Stephen, Paul Schenck, Joseph, 
and Alex. W. Mr. Van Wyck lived upon a 
farm in the to\vn of Poughkeepsie. In 1852 
he moved to the town of Lagrange, where he 
resided until his death, September 10, 1888. 
Mrs. Van Wyck died in 1861. 

David Barnes, second son, a physician of 
Lagrange, was born in that town April 24, 
1852. His early education was received at 
the little " Red School House " near Manches- 
ter Bridge, and later he attended the Cary 
Institute, a Quaker school in Poughkeepsie. 
Upon leaving school he entered the drug store 
of Van Valkenburg & Brown, where he re- 
mained se\-eral years. He was also with Hop- 
kins & Arnold, Chas. S. Bowne, and Webb & 
Sherwood. He next went to Kansas, remain- 
ing there nine years; studied medicine in the 



Omaha Medical College, and then went to the 
Bellevue Hospital Medical College, New York, 
from which he was graduated in 1889. He is 
a member of Stissing Lodge, A. F. & A. M., 
and Poughkeepsie Chapter No. 172, R. A. M. ; 
also of the Dutchess County Medical Society. 

Stephen, third son, was born June 28, 
1854; his education was obtained at Pelham 
Institute and at Manchester. He lived at 
home until 1881, when he removed to Kansas 
to enter the sheep business with his brothers, 
David and Paul. He gave this up after a few 
years to enter upon the study of law, and was 
admitted to the Bar in the State of Kansas. 
In 1886 he was elected Probate Judge, and re- 
elected in 1888. On December 25, 1890, he 
married Miss Helen Dicken, and they have 
three children: Edmund, William and Harlan. 

Paul Schenck, fourth son, was born May 
19, 1856. He was educated at the district 
school and Pelham Institute. In 1880 he 
went to Kansas, where he began sheep breed- 
ing. He returned to Dutchess county in 1886, 
and here remained until 1895, when he entered 
into business in the city of Buffalo. 

Joseph, fifth son, was born October 8, 
1858; was educated at the same institution as 
was Paul; and has always resided upon the old 
homestead in Lagrange. On January i, 1S80, 
he married Miss Charlotte Bartlett, and they 
have the following children: Jennie L., Jo- 
sephine, Edmund, and Paul Schenck. Mr. 
Van Wyck is a Republican, and in 1896 he 
was elected supervisor of the town of Lagrange 
for two years; he has always followed the occu- 
pation of farming. 

Alex. W., si.xth son, was born March 5, 
1 861; was educated with his brothers, and in 
1 88 1 went to Nebraska, where he remained a 
year. He then went to Washington Territory 
(now State), settling at New Whatcom, and 
was elected city treasurer. On July 21, 1888, 
he married Miss Annie Kalloch, daughter of 
the late Hon. I. S. Kalloch, mayor of San 
Francisco, Cal. In 1 896 he was elected county 
auditor after one of the hottest political battles 
in the record of the county. He is a Repub- 
lican. He and his wife have two children: 
Phillip and Catherine. 

Other well-known members of the family, 
descendants in the same line, and residents of 
Dutchess county, are: S. Miller Van Wyck, 
lawyer, residing at Fishkill-on-Hudson; B. W. 
Van Wyck, of Poughkeepsie; Abraham \'an- 
Wyck and James \'an Wyck, of East Fishkill. 



320 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



An examination of the family coat of arms 
shows that an ancestor was in the Crusades, 
which commenced about the year 1096 under 
Pope Urban II. 



IfSAAC HAIGHT, Jr. (deceased). For sev- 
_[ eral generations the family name of the 
subject of this sketch has been a familiar one 
in this locality. The first of the family in di- 
rect line to emigrate to America was Simon 
Haight, who arrived in the New World in 
1628. Originally the Haights lived in Wales. 
Simon Haight was the father of Nicholas (i) 
Haight, who in turn had a son Samuel. 
Samuel Haight resided on Long Island, 
and there his son Nicholas (2), the great-great- 
grandfather of our subject, was born. 

Nicholas (2) became the father of Jacob 
Haight, who was born on Long Island in 1705. 
Jacob, the great-grandfather of our subject, 
was united in marriage wiih Miss Sarah Hicks, 
and to them the following children were born: 
Elizabeth, born in 1734; John, 1736; Stephen, 
1738; Nicholas, 1740; Jacob (2) 1742; Pa- 
tience, 1744; Sarah, 1746; Samuel, 1748; and 
Phoebe, 1750. 

Jacob (2) was married to Miss Phcebe 
Haviland, who was born in 1745, and they 
reared the following children: Charity, born 
in 1769; Patience, born in 1771; James, de- 
ceased in infancy; Sarah, born in 1775; John, 
the father of our subject, born in 1777; Eliza- 
beth, born in 1779; Jacob, born in 1782, and 
Isaac, born in 1784. 

John Haight was born in Hart's Village, 
where he married Miss Elsie Thorne and set- 
tled on a farm on which a part of Millbrook 
now stands. Four children were born to him 
and his wife, namely: William, who was a 
farmer on the old homestead; Isaac, our sub- 
ject; Jacob, who died in 1S45; and Anna, who 
married Jacob H. Allen, a farmer at Skaneat- 
eles, Onondaga Co., N. Y. The father was a 
farmer; in religious faith he and his wife were 
Quakers. He died April 26, 1836. 

Isaac Haight, the subject proper of this 
sketch, was born June 26. 1807, in what was 
then called Hart's Village, town of Washing- 
ton. After passing his youth on his father's 
farm, he clerked in a store in Poughkeepsie, 
and also at Hart's Village. 

In 1835 he was united in marriage to Miss 
Hannah L. Wintringham, who was born in 
New York City in 1812, a daughter of Thomas 



and Ruth (Lawton) Wintringham. After their 
marriage our subject and his wife located on a 
farm on the present site of Millbrook. Four 
children were born to them: William Ed., 
who died in the Civil war; Sidney \\'., who 
died in 1882; Frances; and Emily R. Mr. 
Haight was a Democrat, and held the office of 
supervisor of his town; he was a substantial 
and progressive citizen, a leader among men, 
and is well remembered as a kind and gener- 
ous citizen. His death occurred November 
15, 1864; his wife survived until February 15, 
1893. 

Thomas Wintringham, the father of Mrs. 
Haight, was born in Holmpton, Yorkshire, 
England, in 1775. He came to America and 
located in New York City, where he was a 
vintner. He married Miss Ruth Lawton, and 
they became the parents of the following chil- 
dren: David L. ; Hannah W'., wife of our 
subject; Sidney, deceased in infancy; Sidney 
(2); Jeremiah; and Ruth. Of these, David was 
a retired citizen of Jersey City; Sidney lived in 
Brooklyn, retired; Jeremiah was also a retired 
citizen of Brooklyn; Ruth married Henry 
Clement, a merchant of Flushing, L. I. Mrs. 
Wintringham came from Rhode Island, where 
her family were Quakers. 



CHARLES A. STORM (deceased) was a 
man of the strictest integrity, whose hon- 
orable, upright life won the commendation of 
all. His birth took place in the town of East 
Fishkill, September 16, 1846, and he belonged 
to a family which had for many years been 
prominently identified with the history of 
Dutchess county. His grandfather was Col. 
John G. Storm, a native of Dutchess county, 
and the son of Charles G. Storm. 

Charles G. Storm, the father of our sub- 
ject, was also born in Dutchess county, and 
here devoted his entire life to agricultural pur- 
suits. He wedded Mary Adriance, a daughter 
of Isaac Adriance, and after their marriage 
they located upon a farm in the town of East 
Fishkill, where they reared their family of five 
children: Susan M., the widow of William 
P. Storm, who %vas a merchant of New York 
City, but in later life engaged in farming; 
John, a resident of White Plains, N. Y., who 
married Henrietta Albro, a native of New 
York City; Margaret, who died unmarried; 
George, who married Emma Haight, ? native 
of White Plains; and Charles A., of this re- 




^Jcu^cx'. ^yVc^*- 



e /-xy^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



821 



view. The father always turned his attention 
to farming, was an unfaltering Republican in 
politics, and with his family held to the belief 
of the Reformed Dutch Church. 

Like most farmer boys, our subject passed 
his childhood, in assisting his father in the 
work of the home farm, and in attending the 
district school; later he was a student in the 
Bisbee school at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. After 
finishing his education he returned to the farm, 
and January 24, 1872, was united in marriage 
with Miss Elizabeth B. Storm, a daughter of 
John V. Storm, and a sisterof Abram J. Storm, 
Joseph H. Storm and W. J. Storm. They 
began housekeeping upon his father's place, 
which he operated for five years, and the fol- 
lowing two years were spent upon her father's 
farm. In 1879, he purchased the farm on 
which Mrs. Storm now resides, and where Mr. 
Storm's death occurred June 22, 1892. His 
attention was devoted exclusively to his farm- 
ing interests, and his political support was ever 
given the Republican party, which had in him 
a most earnest advocate. No man in the town 
of East Fishkill gained and retained more 
friends, or was held in higher esteem by his 
fellow citizens than Charles A. Storm. 



CHARLES DOUGHTY (deceased) was one 
_ of the representative and honored citizens 
of the town of Beekman, where his birth oc- 
curred, April I, 1 841. He was a descendant 
of Rev. Francis Doughty, who about the year 
1633 emigrated from England and located at 
Taunton, Mass., which places him among the 
earliest of the Puritan fathers following in the 
footsteps of the " Mayt^ower " pioneers. The 
Doughty family in England is of ancient ori- 
gin, dating back before the Norman conquest. 
The name was originally spelled Doghtig, and 
the family motto was " Palina non sine pul- 
vcrc. 

Joseph Doughty, the great-grandfather of 
our subject, was a native of Long Island, and 
was the first of the family to come to Dutch- 
ess county, locating upon the farm in the town 
of Beekman, between Greenhaven and Pough- 
quag, now occupied by John Brill. Upon 
that place he erected a log house, and spent 
the remainder of his life. He was united in 
marriage with Miss Psyche Wiltsie, who was 
born September 16, 1736, and they became 
the parents of twelve children, whose names 
with dates of birth are as follows: Mary, March 

21 



-l< '754; John, June 8, 1757; Thomas, April 
27. 1759; Jane, July 4, 1761; Joseph, Octo- 
ber 14, 1763; Psyche, March 6, 1766; Martin, 
March 14, 1768; William, November 5, 1770; 
Jacob, October 20, 1772; Elizabeth. October 
18, 1774; Cornwell, October 28, 1776; and Ne- 
hemiah, October 14, 1780. 

William Doughty, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born in the town of Beekman, 
and there carried on farming throughout his 
life. He married Mrs. Sarah (Van Wyck) 
Vanderburg, and in their family were six chil- 
dren: Phebe, born August 18, 1805; John J., 
April 12, 1807; Psyche, July 9, 1809; Will- 
iam, June 7. 18 1 1 ; Sarah, June 22, 1813; and 
George T., October 26, 1815. The father of 
these died in 1854, at the age of eighty-four 
years; the mother died in 1865, at the age of 
ninety-four years. 

William Doughty, Jr., the father of our 
subject, spent his entire life in the town of 
Beekman, and after reaching years of maturity- 
devoted his time and attention to agricultural 
pursuits. He was united in marriage with Jane 
F. Brock, also a native of the town of Beek- 
man, and to them three sons were born: 
Charles, subject of this review; Walter, who 
was born in 1844, and is now secretary and 
treasurer of a company at the Union Stock 
Yards at Chicago, 111. ; and Edgar, who died 
in 1865. The mother's death occurred in De- 
cember, 1874, that of the father on June i, 
1893. In religious belief he was a member of 
the Society of Friends. 

In the district schools near his home 
Charles Doughty secured his education, and 
he always remained upon the homestead farm 
in the town of Beekman, dying there Novem- 
ber 13, 1884. He took a lively interest in 
political affairs, being one of the most earnest 
supporters of the Republican party, and after 
the civil war served as revenue collector of 
Dutchess county. He also held the office of 
justice of the peace of Beekman township, and 
discharged his duties, whether public or private, 
with promptness and fidelity which won him 
the commendation of all. Socially' he affili- 
ated with Hopewell Lodge, F. & A. M. He 
was universally respected, and his word was 
considered as good as his bond. By his death 
the county lost one of its most honored and 
and useful citizens. 

On May 23, 1865, Mr. Doughty was mar-' 
ried to Miss Mary E. Brown, a lady who is 
greatly respected in the community. Two 



322 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPnWAL RECORD. 



children blessed this union: Morton B. and 
Christopher Brown. The former was born 
January lo, 1868, was educated in the district 
schools, also in the Pingry school, at Eliza- 
beth, N. J., and was reared on a farm. On 
August 14, 1895, he married Miss Lillian 
Tormoehlan, daughter of W'illiam and Louise 
(Sherbourne) Tormoehlan, the former of whom 
was born in Germany, the latter in Cincinnati, 
Ohio. The mother died December 9, 1882, 
the father on June 5, 1892. The family 
reside in Chicago, where Mrs. Morton Doughty 
was born. Christopher Brown, the second 
son of Charles and Mary E. Doughty, was 
born June 30, 1871, and at the present time 
is steward of the "Garden City Hotel," New 
York City. 

Christopher Brown, the father of Mrs. 
Doughty, was a native of Germany, where he 
learned the trade of a miller, and in early 
manhood he came to America, locating in the 
town of Beekman, Dutchess county, where he 
made his home for forty-five years, during 
which time he followed milling at Greenhaven. 
At Fishkill, Dutchess county, he was united in 
marriage with Miss Nancy Griffen, and they 
had two daughters: Mary E. and Phebe, 
the latter of whom married Homer Chapman. 
The parents were both widely and favorably 
known, and enjoyed the confidence and respect 
of all. The father died March 5, 1883, the 
mother on I'ebruary 18, 1896. 



ALBERT J. AKIN, of Pawling, Dutchess 
_ county, one of the ablest financiers 
which this section has produced, has rendered 
important service to his community by pro- 
moting various enterprises which have devel- 
oped its commercial relations, and led the way 
to the expansion of its business interests. 

He is descended from a long line of Quaker 
ancestry, the head of the American branch of 
the family being John Akin, who was born in 
Scotland in 1663, and about the ye.ir 1680, or 
earlier, on account of religious persecutions, 
emigrated to America. He located in Dart- 
mouth, Mass., when about seventeen years of 
age. He married Mary Briggs, who was born 
August 9, 1 67 1, the daughter of Thomas 
Briggs, and they had eight sons and seven 
daughters. Their eldest son, David Akin, 
born September 19, 1689, was the next an- 
cestor in direct line of descent, and the first of 



the name to settle at Quaker Hill, where he 
probably occupied the property now owned by 
the family of Mr. Gould. He had a record for 
good service during the Revolutionary war, 
and his death occurred in 1779. In 171 1 he 
married Sarah Allen, of Portsmouth. R. I., 
and removed to Quaker Hill (formerly called 
the Oblong), in 1741. Si.\ sons and four 
daughters were born to them, and their son, 
John Akin, born September 15, 1718, became 
the next in line of descent. He married Mar- 
garet Hicks, who was born in Portsmouth, 
R. I., January 12, 1713, and they had three 
daughters and one son, as follows: Anna, 
Mary, Abigail and John. 

John Akin was born November 11, 1753, 
and December 27, 1775, married Molly Ferris, 
who was born April 20, 1759, daughter of 
Reed Ferris. They had two sons and four 
daughters: Albro (our subject's father), Sarah, 
Margaret, Ann, Daniel and Amanda. 

Albro Akin was born March 6, 1778, at 
Quaker Hill, and became one of the most in- 
fluential and distinguished citizens of his day 
in this section, a contemporary of Taber, Rirby 
and others of note. He was a successful mer- 
chant and agriculturist. On March 24, 1815, 
he was appointed judge of the court of com- 
mon pleas of Dutchess county by Gov. Daniel 
D. Tompkins. On the organization of the 
Poughkeepsie National Bank, he became a 
member of its first board of directors. He 
was married three times, first in 1801, to 
Pauline N'ander Burgh, who was born in 1783, 
and they had three children: Albert John, 
born August 14, 1803, married Jane Williams; 
Almira, born February 3, 1806, married Joshua 
L. Jones; and Helen M., born July 4, 1810, 
married John W. Taylor. The mother of this 
family died in 18 10, and Mr. Akin married 
Sarah Merritt, who died leaving no children. 
On December 4, 181S, Mr. Akin married a 
third wife. Miss Jemima Jacacks, and their 
pleasant home at Quaker Hill was brightened 
by seven children, as follows: Mary J. ; Will- 
iam Henry ; Cornelia; Gulielma Maria; Amanda, 
who married Dr. C. W. Stearns; Annie E., 
who married W. H. Ogden; and Caroline, 
who married Adolph Wilm-Beets. 

Albert John Akin left home when nineteen 
years of age, going to New York City, where 
he served a clerkship of two years with Will- 
iam and Charles Underbill, and then com- 
menced business on his own account under the 
firm name of Seaman & Akin. After contin- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



323 



uing successfully for several years he was com- 
pelled, on account of ill health, to retire to 
the country under advice of his phjsician. 
With health restored, he re-entered business 
life, at the age of thirty, engaging in farming 
upon 200 acres of land which his father had 
given him, continuing in this calling exclusively 
until about 1849, when he began to give his 
attention to railroading. The Harlem rail- 
road was projected at that time, and Mr. Akin 
helped to secure the right of way, and was one 
of the committee appointed to raise $100,000 
for the road, John Ketcham being also a mem- 
ber. Later Mr. Akin was appointed to pay 
out the installments of money received, and 
his own high reputation did much to assist the 
credit of the road. Two years were occupied 
in this work, and, no one being willing to fur- 
nish ties or timber for the road, Mr. Akin ad- 
vanced money for the same. It was also 
through his influence that the present refresh- 
ment house was located at Pawling, which 
contributed much indirectly to the growth and 
prosperity of the town. After the road was 
finished, December 30, 1849, there being no 
depot building, Mr. Akin put up the first one, 
and also, in company with other business men, 
furnished money for a small hotel. In 1849 
he organized the Pawling National Bank, and 
was elected president of the institution, which 
prospered under his management. This posi- 
tion he held until January, 1895, when he re- 
signed on account of his advanced age. Busi- 
ness has been a pleasure to him. He has been 
a director of the Harlem railroad for fifteen 
years, when Commodore Vanderbilt was con- 
nected with it, and has also been a stockholder 
in the Utica & Schenectady railroad, and in 
the New York Central. His enterprise and 
foresight have done much for Pawling and 
Quaker Hill, and he owns 500 acres of land at 
the latter place. He built Akin Hall, and en- 
dowed the Akin Hall Association with $150,- 
000, and erected the " Mizzentop Hotel," 
which helped to develop the place as a sum- 
mer resort, also erected four or five cottages 
for renting purposes. 

In religion Mr. Akin is non-sectarian, with 
strong inclination toward the faith of his fore- 
fathers. Politically he is an Independent, has 
eschewed partisan work, but served as a Presi- 
dential elector in the electoral college which 
placed the lamented Garfield in the White 
House. On December 21, 1835, he married 
Jane Williams, who was born in New York 



City. They have no children. For the last 
thirty years his winter residence has been in 
New York Citv. 



CORYDON WHEELER. Among the self- 
,J made men of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, who have attained a high rank in their 
various callings by their own unaided e.xertions, 
may be found this gentleman, who has become 
widely known as an architect of ability. He 
was born December 21, 1837, '" the town of 
Boonville, Oneida Co.. N. Y., and is the son 
of Albert and Mary (Hitchcock) Wheeler, the 
former of English descent. 

Albert Wheeler, our subject's father, was 
born in New Hampshire, in 1803, and was 
reared upon a farm. Removing to Oneida 
county, he there carried on farming during his 
entire life, becoming one of the thrifty and 
well-to-do men of that locality, and highly re- 
spected in his community. He was possessed 
of literary tastes, and was well informed on 
all current topics. In politics he was an Old- 
line Whig. He married Miss Mary Hitchcock 
(daughter of Pownell Hitchcock), who was born 
in Schoharie county, N. Y. , in 1812. Five 
children were born of this union, as follows: 
Almarine, who became the wife of Nathan W. 
Jones; Mary Ann, married to Austin Walcott; 
Corydon; Elbridge, who died when nineteen 
years old; and Caroline, married to Francis 
M. Reed, of Boonville. Oneida Co., N. Y. 
The father died in 1859. and the mother in 

1873- 

Corydon Wheeler had but limited oppor- 
tunities for an education in his early days, his 
only schooling being obtained in the common 
schools of his locality, which he attended until 
fourteen years of age. He was, however, very 
fond of reading, and when a young man be- 
gan collecting a library, at present owning a 
fine assortment of books. He has improved 
every opportunity of acquiring an education, 
and is to-day one of the well-informed men in 
the county. On leaving school he worked on 
his father's farm until eighteen years of age; 
but his tastes inclining to mechanical pursuits 
he took up the carpenter's trade, and later be- 
came a contractor and builder, erecting some 
of the large stores and residences in Pough- 
keepsie. During this time he had been study- 
ing the profession of an architect, and since 
1884 has devoted himself to that line of busi- 
ness. He has made the plans for some large 



S24 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



buildings in various places, among these being 
a large structure in Chicago, an extensive hotel 
in Sheffield, Ala., and Trinity Methodist 
Church in Poughkeepsie. In all his work he 
shows intelligence, artistic taste and careful 
attention to the purposes for which the build- 
ings are to be used, making his work satisfac- 
tory, both ornamentally and practically — ^con- 
sequently he has been successful in his enter- 
prises, and is among the foremost in his pro- 
fession. 

On October 8, i860, Mr. Wheeler was 
married to Miss Celia A. Kellogg, of Trenton, 
Oneida Co., N. Y. , and four children have 
been born to them, two of whom survive: 
Jessie L. , the wife of William P. McNeil, of 
Poughkeepsie; and Winthrop Iv., a carpenter, 
residing in Poughkeepsie. Chester A. died 
when a little over two years old, and Lauretta 
at the age of seven months. Mr. Wheel- 
er was for some years a Republican, and cast 
his first Presidential vote for Abraham Lin- 
coln, but in 1874 joined the Prohibition party, 
his sympathies being with the advocates of to- 
tal abstinence. He is a man of strong convic- 
tions, and is governed by principle in all his 
actions. He is a member of the Trinity M. 
E. Church, and one of its official board. He 
has also been a member of the Church choir 
for many years, and is always ready to assist 
in Church work. In public matters he is a 
worthy citizen, and may be counted on to do 
his share in whatever is proposed for the wel- 
fare and progress of the community. 



REV. TERENCE F. KELLY. The 
powers of a consecrated life extend far 

beyond the reach of the spoken word, setting 
at naught all differences of creed, and Rev. 
Father Kelly, of St. Joachim's Church, Mattea- 
wan, while working quietly in his appointed 
sphere, has gained the esteem and regard of 
all classes in the community. The history of 
this devoted worker will be read with interest, 
and will convey its own lesson. 

Father Kelly was born in New York City, 
December 26, 1855, the son of William and 
Ann (Dowling) Kelly, who were natives of 
Dublin, Ireland. The father was a carpenter 
by trade, following that occupation in the old 
country, and, for a short time, in New York 
City, but later, on moving to Montreal, Can- 
ada, he engaged in mercantile business, in 
which he was very successful, owning several 



stores. His last days were spent in New York 
City, to which place he and his wife returned 
when the subject of this sketch was about 
eleven years old. They reared a family of 
children, among whom was a son, Michael, 
who was a mechanical genius, and was famous 
throughout the United States for his work in 
that line, being employed by the Goulds and 
others. He died February i, 1893, at his 
residence in Charleston, South Carolina. 

Until the age of fourteen Father Kelly at- 
tended the public schools of his native city, 
and he then entered St. Francis College, in 
Brooklyn. A first cousin, Bishop Phelan, of 
Kingston, Canada, first awakened in the young 
lad's mind the consciousness of his vocation, 
and the long course of preparation was pur- 
sued by Father Kelly with the same ardor 
which has since characterized his pastoral 
work. At nineteen he became a student at 
St. Lawrence College, Montreal, Canada, and 
on May 30, 1878, he was ordained to the 
priesthood. Since that time his lot has been 
cast in this section, his first appointment being 
at Matteawan as assistant pastor to Father 
Henry. He had been there about two years 
when the Dominican Fathers resigned the 
charge of the New York Catholic Protectory, 
and Father Ouinn, the Vicar General, ap- 
pointed Father Kelly to the post, with an as- 
sistant. About a year later came an appoint- 
ment to a charge which included Staatsburg, 
Hyde Park, and Clinton Corners, and while 
there Feather Kelly built churches at Staats- 
burg and Clinton Corners, and enlarged and 
improved the parsonage at Hyde Park. Six 
years after his transfer to this post Archbishop 
Corrigan added the care of the parish of Rhine- 
cliff, which had become financiallyembarrassed, 
and gave Father Kelly two assistants, Fathers 
White and Fagan. His present appointment 
dates from December i, 1890, when he suc- 
ceeded Father McSwyggan, and during that 
time he has done much to build up and 
strengthen his congregation in both numbers 
and intluence. In the refurnishing and decor- 
ation of the church edifice, and in various im- 
provements in the other property of the parish 
one may see the results of his wise manage- 
ment; but to rightly judge of his work one 
must visit the schools where the Sisters of 
Charity and the Franciscan Brothers train the 
children of the parish, and must view the un- 
ceasing labors in the pastorate through which 
the spiritual life of the people is quickened and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



325 



developed. Modest and unassuming in man- 
ner, and ever ready to give to his efficient 
assistants the credit for the work which is 
being done, Father Kelly's personality reveals 
the quiet strength which unobtrusively yet ef- 
fectively inspires, directs, and molds the lives 
of all whom his influence touches. By his 
people he is greatly beloved, and on the occa- 
sion of the fifteenth anniversary of his ordi- 
nation they presented him with a handsome 
purse, in token of their affectionate ap- 
preciation. 

Outside of his own fold Father Kelly is 
known and honored in a remarkable degree, 
and he numbers among his friends Gov. Ntor- 
ton of this State. During his stay at Rhine- 
cliff he was elected trustee of the local schools, 
a fact which speaks more loudly than words 
could do of the impression which his worth 
makes upon all who know him, and since go- 
ing to Matteawan he has been appointed a di- 
rector of the village hospital. In his clerical 
work Father Kelly is efficiently assisted by Rev. 
James A. White and Rev. P. C. Gary. 



AMASA DAKIN COLEMAN (deceased), 
after whom Goleman Station was named, 

and who for a number of years was a leading 
agriculturist of the town of Northeast, Dutch- 
ess county, was a descendant of one of the old- 
est families in this country, the record reach- 
ing back to the year 1635. In Hinman's 
Catalogue of Early Settlers of Connecticut 
we find the following: " Thomas Goleman, of 
Marlborough, England, farmer, embarked at 
Hampton in the 'James,' of Lundon, about 
April. 1635. Thomas Coleman died at Had- 
ley, Mass., in 1674. The births of children 
are not recorded at Westfield, but Noah and 
John are his sons. Noah died at Hadley in 
1676." John had sons, Noah and Ebenezer, 
who removed to Colchester, Conn., about the 
year 1700. Ebenezer married Ruth Niles, of 
Colchester, in 1705, and they had a son, Niles, 
who had a son, Josiah, born at Hebron, Conn., 
April 4, 1733, who married Elizabeth Root, of 
Hebron, November 6, 1755, and removed to 
Sharon, Conn., about 1771, and represented 
that town in the Legislatures in 1783, 1784 
and 1788. He was a farmer by occupation. 
On November 6, 1755, he married Elizabeth 
Root, of Hebron, and had five sons: Josiah, 
who served in the Revolutionary war, died in 
Milford, Conn., in 1777; Aaron, a physician at 



Warren, Conn.; Elihu; Jesse: and Amasa, our 
subject's father. The latter was born in Shar- 
on, Conn., March 21, 1772. He was a farmer 
at the old homestead there until his death, 
which occurred March 23, 1805, when he was 
but thirty-two years old, before his fine capa- 
bilities had an opportunity for full development. 
He was married December 25, 1799, to Achsa 
Dakin, who survived him many years, dying 
December 2, 1846. She was a daughter of 
Caleb Dakin, and a granddaughter of Simon 
Dakin, a pioneer settler of Northeast, N. Y., 
who had much to do with the early history of 
the town. Of the two children of this mar- 
riage, our subject was the vounger. Myra C, 
born October 16, 1800, married Gerard Pitch- 
er, of Northeast, New York. 

Amasa D. Goleman was born June 28. 
1S04, at Sharon, but owing to his father's 
death, his home from the age of nine months 
was with his grandfather, Caleb Dakin. Here 
he received a fair education for those times, 
in the district schools, and as he possessed 
good mental ability and was fond of reading, 
he in later years acquired a large fund of in- 
formation. He came into the possession of 
the Dakin homestead before the death of his 
Another, buying out the other heirs, and con- 
tinued to cultivate it until his death. This 
tract consists of more than 150 acres of land, 
and is one of the best in the town. As a 
farmer he was very successful, securing his 
estate largely through his own efforts. In all 
movements for local improvements he was 
among the leading supporters, and he was al- 
ways greatly interested in the success of the 
Republican party, which he joined in the first 
years of its existence, having previously been 
an ardent Abolitionist. His interest in poli- 
tics was wholly unselfish, as he never sought 
official preferment. His family had been ad- 
herents of the Congregational Church, although 
few were Methodists, and it is probable that 
his father belonged to that body; but Mr. 
Coleman united with the Presbyterian Church 
at Amenia. and remained throughout life an ac- 
tive and consistent member. 

On September 28, 1843, Mr. Goleman 
married Miss Elizabeth Rugg, daughter of 
Seth Rugg, a prominent resident of New Marl- 
boro, Berkshire Co. , Mass. They had two 
children, of whom the elder, Josiah, born 
July 23; 1848, died July 31, 1872. Elizabeth, 
born June 19, 1850, married a Mr. Welsh, 
October 8, 1896. Mr. Coleman's death oc- 



32(3 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL JiECORD. 



curred October 7, 1876, and brought a serious 
loss to the community, his excellent judg- 
ment, public spirit and manly character hav- 
ing gained the esteem and confidence of all 
who knew him. His widow passed away 
May 12. 1896. 



C'APTAIN ISAAC H. WOOD, the well- 
Ji known steamboat agent at Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, and the proprietor of the 
"Exchange Hotel" of that city, enjoys in a re- 
markable degree the esteem and affection of 
all classes of people, his heroism as a life-saver 
gaining friends for him far and near. He and 
his four sons have saved 123 persons from 
death by drowning in the Hudson river, and 
in recognition of their courage and unselfish 
devotion the citizens of Poughkeepsie pre- 
sented each of them with a diamond medal a 
few years ago, the tokens being of great value 
and beauty. 

The family originated in Holland, but 
Stephen Wood, our subject's grandfather, was 
probably born in Dutchess county. He was 
for many years a resident of Poughkeepsie, 
where he reared a family of five children, of 
whom our subject's father, Stephen Wood (2/, 
was the only son. He grew to manhood in 
Poughkeepsie, and after establishing himself 
in business as a shoemaker married Eliza Dis- 
brow, a native of New York City, and the 
daughter of a leading detective there. This 
family is also of old Holland-Dutch stock. On 
the breaking out of the Mexican war Stephen 
Wood enlisted, and he met his death in the 
battle of Buena Vista. His widow survived 
him until 1878. Of their three children the 
youngest died in infancy, and the eldest, Mary 
J., married the late George Valentine, of 
Poughkeepsie. 

Capt. Wood, the second member of this 
family, was born in Poughkeepsie, October 23, 
1822, and after passing his boyhood there 
went to New York City and lived with an 
uncle for some time, and later spent four years 
in Yonkers, N. Y. In 1840 he returned to his 
native city to make his permanent home. He 
started the (irst express business in the place, 
known as Wood's Original Express, and then 
entered the employ of the American Express 
Co. for a time. About 1856 he engaged in 
the steamboat business, and is now the agent 
for the daily lines of boats. For many years 
he has been the proprietor of the "Exchange 



Hotel" also, and he has won a high reputation 
for business ability. 

In 1S54 the Captain formed a matrimonial 
union with Miss Maria Rodman, daughter of 
William Rodman, a prominent boat builder 
and leading Democrat of New York City. 
The Rodmans were among the early settlers of 
Dutchess county, and were probably of Hol- 
land-Dutch descent. Six children were born 
of this marriage, and the four sons are all in 
business in Poughkeepsie, where they are held 
in great esteem as worthy descendants of their 
honored father, as well as for their individual 
excellence. Edward A. is a machinist by 
trade; Rodman H. is in the express business; 
George is a commission merchant, and Amarr 
is a barber. Of the two daughters, Eliza 
married Hiram Wood, a commission merchant 
of New York City, and Ida M. (deceased) was 
formerly the wife of John Westfall, of Syra- 
cuse, New York. 

Capt. Wood is an active worker in the 
Democratic party; was alderman for one 
year, and supervisor of the First ward for 
three terms. He has been a leader in the 
fire department for many years, serving as 
chief engineer for four years and assistant for 
three years. He was vice-president of the 
Veteran's Dept. , for some time, and is now 
the president of the \'eteran Fire Association, 
an insurance order. In fraternal societj' work 
he has also taken an interest at times, and he 
belongs to the. Knights of Pythias, as well as 
to other orders of less note. 



MORGAN L. MOTT (deceased). "No 
man in an unofficial position was more 
widely known in this city or county or by the 
past and passing generation in the metropol- 
itan portion of the State. No man was more 
deeply respected w-herever known for his ad- 
mirable simplicity of character and sterling 
honesty. He was the very embodiment of in- 
tegrity. His habits were those of a thoroughly 
self-respecting man, and in speech and action 
he was irreproachable." These words of well- 
deserved praise appeared in a leading journal 
of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., concerning the subject 
of this memoir at his death, w'hich occurred 
April 24, 1891, and to those who knew him 
they convey but a faint impression of the 
qualities of mind and heart which bound them 
to him in the ties of friendship and esteem. 
Mr. Mott was of English descent, his an- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGMAPHIC'AL RECORD. 



827 



cestors being among the followers of the Quaker 
faith who found freedom of conscience in this 
country at an early period. His father, Will- 
iam B. Mott, was a native of Long Island, but 
his life was spent mainly in New York City, 
where he engaged in mercantile business. He 
married Miss Mary Milton, who was born in 
that city January 14, 1790, and died at New 
Hackensack, the home of her son, Morgan, 
November 26, 1894, at the age of 105 years. 
Her father, a Hollander by descent, was a man 
of great importance and influence during the 
rule of Petrus Stuyvesant. Her mother was a 
member of the famous Co.x family of Long 
Island. Shortly after their marriage, our sub- 
ject's parents came to Dutchess county, and 
located, in 1813, on a farm in the town of 
Hyde Park, where their five children were 
born. After a few years they returned to New 
York to reside. Their children all settled 
there. Jehu was a butcher by occupation; 
Mary, the only surviving member of the fam- 
ily, married (first) Robert Wilson, a merchant 
in New York, and (second) John Francis; 
John was a wheelwright; and William B. was 
a painter. 

Morgan L. Mott, the fourth in order of 
birth, was born April 14, 1818, and was only 
a few years old when his parents moved to 
New York. On leaving school he engaged 
in the grocery business, and before many years 
became prominent in the Democratic party 
there. He was warden at Blackwell's Island 
for several years. In 1849 he went to Cali- 
fornia with a party, among whom was Senator 
Broderick, of New York, who was afterward 
assassinated. Mr. Mott was in business in 
San Francisco until 1853, during which time 
he was active in promoting order, being one 
of the first aldermen, and serving for several 
months as president of the board and as act- 
ing mayor of the city. He also made a trip to 
San Diego, and brought back nearly 2,000 
horses and cattle. On his return to New York 
he conducted a hotel there until 1863, when 
he moved to a farm at New Hackensack, 
where he spent his remaining years. 

Mr. Mott married Miss Jane Mcintosh, a 
native of New York City, whose father was a 
Scotchman. Of their several children, two 
died in childhood; William B., a farmer, died 
at the age of forty-five; Morcan L. , Jr., is a 
farmer at the old homestead; Edmond died at 
fifteen; Robert lives at home, and with his 
brother manages the farm; Mary Elizabeth, a 



lovely girl of beautiful character, died when 
just budding into womanhood. The home 
farm is a fine estate of about 200 acres of level 
land, beautified by trees, and the buildings and 
other improvements speak well for the enter- 
prise and good taste of its owners. 



LOUIS C. FEIERABEND. Among the 
prosperous and popular citizens of foreign 

birth who made their homes in Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, will be found the gentleman 
whose name introduces this sketch, and who 
was born at Wimpfen-on-the-Neckar, Hessen- 
Darmstadt, Germany, July 13, 1849. 

Jacob Feierabend, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born at Wimpfen, Hessen-Darmstadt, 
Germany, July 4, 1780, and died September 
20, 1846; was a farmer by occupation; he 
married Johanna Bramminger, who was born 
June I, 1786. and died March 20, 1847. 

Fredrick Feierabend, father of our subject, 
was born April 16, 181 1, also at Wimpfen, 
and learned the business of comb-making, 
which he followed all his life. On September 
6, 1838, he married Miss Eva Christina Hess, 
who was born June 20, 1818, at Biebrach 
O. A. Heilbrom, Wurttemberg, Germany, and 
children, as follows, were born to them: (i) 
Christoph F., born February 19, 1840, mar- 
ried Miss Louisa C. Weying, of Wimpfen, 
December 18, 1866. (2) Christina Johanna, 
born February 14, 1841, married Carl Speer, 
a locksmith, of Wimpfen, March 14, 1S65. 
(3) Christoff Ludwig, born June 6, 1842, died 
July 17, 1842. (4) Christina Louise, born 
September 10, 1844. (5) Elizabeth Louise, 
born October 31, 1846, came to America, Oc- 
tober 15, 1872, and married William Kraft, of 
Laufen O. A. Heilbrom, W^urttemberg. Ger- 
many, April 20, 1874; and (6) Louis Christian, 
our subject. The father of this family died 
November 19, 1892; the mother is still living. 

Louis Feierabend, the subject proper of 
this review, learned the comb-making business 
with his father, but afterward took up butcher- 
ing as an occupation, following same for two 
years in Germany. On September i, 1868, 
he came to the United States and located in 
Poughkeepsie, where he had an aunt living. 
Here he worked for various persons in the 
butchering business until May i, 1874, when 
he started a meat market of his own, on the 
corner of Jefferson and Church streets. As a 
partner in the concern he received William 



328 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOORAPEWAL RECORD. 



Kraft, which connection lasted until 1877, 
when Mr. Feierabend took entire charge. In 
1 88 1 he formed a partnership with Charles 
Haberman, which continued for four years. 
His present partner is William Knauss, and 
the firm is well known as an enterprising and 
reliable one. They do a large retail business 
in meats of all kind, also some wholesaling. 

On May 6, 1874, Mr. Feierabend was 
united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Miller, 
of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., daughter of Valentine 
Miller, and four children blessed their union: 
Peter C, born August 29, 1875, died July 8, 
1896; Louis Frederick, born July 22, 1877; 
William Henry, born June 11, 1882; and 
Louisa Elizabeth, born March 29, 1885. Mr. 
Feierabend has been very successful, finan- 
cially, and owes his prosperity solely to his 
own hard work and good management. He 
came here a poor young man, working at first 
for eight dollars a month; to-day he is the 
owner of a good business, and much valuable 
property, comprising his brick business block 
and handsome brick residence, two stores ad- 
joining his meat market; and two tenement 
houses on Jefferson street. He stands high in 
business circles, and is popular with all classes 
of people. In politics he has always been a 
stanch Republican, and in religious faith is a 
member of the German Lutheran Church, in 
which he has been a trustee for ten years. As 
a loyal citizen he takes an active interest in all 
matters of public improvements, and what- 
ever is projected, tending to the welfare of the 
city and county, receives his ready support. 



REV. EDWARD J. CONROY, pastor of 
St. Mary's Church, Poughkeepsie, Dutch- 
ess county, was born July 10, 1853, in New 
York City. , His primary studies were made in 
St. Bridget's Parochial school, and his gram- 
mar course in the old school on West 24th 
street, and in the new school house on West 
20th street. In 1866 he entered St. Francis 
Xaviers College, West 15th street, and after a 
full collegiate course graduated in 1873. 

On October 4, 1873, our subject sailed for 
Europe on the Cunarder "Batavia," and No- 
vember 5th entered the American College, at 
Rome, Italy, where, after attending the lec- 
tures in the Propaganda four years, he was 
raised to the priesthood May 26, 1877. After 
several months " doing" Europe, he returned 



to America on the then crack Cunarder, 
" Russia. " 

Rev. Father Conroy's first missionary work 
was in the Cathedral on Mott street. New York 
(now St. Patrick's Church), and after filling, 
temporarily, a few missions was assigned per- 
manently to St. Michael's Church, West 32nd 
street, under the charge of Rev. Arthur J. 
Donnelly, afterward the vicar-general. After 
three years' duty in St. Michael's, Father Con- 
roy was assigned to St. Monica's, East 79th 
street, at that time a new parish under the 
charge of Rev. James J. Dougherty. LL. D. 
Almost ten years were spent by him in this 
new field of labor, when he was assigned to 
the rectorship of the Church of St. Francis of 
Assissi, Mt. Kisco, N. Y. After the comple- 
tion of the church building, which was effected 
in five months, he was transferred to the 
charge of St. Joseph's Church, Kingston, N. Y. 
Three years were spent b}' him in the spiritual 
and temporal labor of that parish, about the 
end of which time he received word to take up 
his present charge, and finish the new church 
building that had been commenced under the 
administration of Father Earley. 

The congregation of St. Mary's was organ- 
ized in 1873, when the edifice on Cannon 
street, for many years occupied by the Univer- 
salists, was purchased. This building, now- 
torn down, was erected by the Presbyterians in 
1826. The building was purchased for the 
Catholics by the Rev. Patrick F. McSweeny, 
D. D., then pastor of St. Peter's Church, of 
this city, now pastor of St. Brigid's Church, 
New York City. 

The first pastor of St. Mary's was the Rev. 
Edward McSweeny, D. D., now of Mount St. 
Mary's College, Emmittsburg, Maryland. The 
old building was dedicated by His Grace Arch- 
bishop I afterward Cardinal) McCloskey. The 
clergymen who assisted the Archbishop were 
Rev. John M. Farley, his secretary, now assist- 
ant Bishop and Vicar-General of the Archdio- 
cese of New York; Rev. Edward McGlynn, D. 
D., then of St. Stephen's Church, New York; 
Rev. R. L. Burtsell, D. D., now of Rondout; 
Rev. P. F. McSweeny, D. D.; Rev. Edward 
McSweeny, D. D.; Rev. J. C. McSweeny; 
Rev. Patrick Rigney; and Rev. Fathers Shee- 
han and Briody. 

In 1879, all the church property belonging 
to St. Mary's was transferred by the Archbishop 
to a corporation, consisting of the Archbishop, 
his Vicar General, the pastor, and two laymen. 




^^t^i. z^'-^^i'tL.^ 




.(^- 




yT^^/Cl>'^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



329 



In iSSo, the pastor, Rev. Edward McSweeny, 
being absent in Europe, the Rev. Michael Mc- 
Swiggan, then acting pastor of St. Marj-'s, su- 
perintended the erection of a new parochial 
school, on South Hamilton street, which was 
opened in September of that year, with one 
hundred pupils. Up to the year iS8i, the 
pastor had no regular assistant. In that year, 
the Rev. John B. Creeden, now pastor at Sing 
Sing, began his mission in the priesthood as 
the first assistant pastor of St. Mary's. In 
1883, the Decennial was celebrated, and it was 
then, after ten years of steady growth, and 
prosperity, that the nucleus for a new edifice 
was commenced. In 1885, the Rev. Edward 
McSween}" resigned from parish work to accept 
a professorship in Mt. St. Mary's College, Em- 
mittsburg. where he has since been, with the 
e.xception of a short time spent in St. Paul, 
Minnesota. Then came the Rev. Cornelius 
Donovan (since deceased), who acted as pastor 
for a short time. On May 13, 1887, the third 
pastor of St. Mary's was appointed, the Rev. 
Terence J. Earley. It was under the adminis- 
tration of Father Earley that the present new 
edifice was begun. He labored for four years 
with incessant industry, and was then promoted 
to the charge of the parish of St. Peter's, at 
New Brighton, Staten Island. 

The present pastor, the Rev. Edward J. 
Conroy, whose portrait appears here, was ap- 
pointed pastor of St. Mary's, on April 23, 1891, 
and under his management the work of com- 
pleting the new church edifice has been brought 
to its present satisfactory state. Thus, after 
a quarter of a century, the congregation of St. 
Mary's takes possession of one of the hand- 
somest church edifices in the city. 

The general design of the building is of the 
Gothic order, of the simple rather than the 
ornate style. The principal facade is faced 
with Indiana limestone, treated in the rock- 
faced order, with just sufificient dressed stone 
trimming to relieve the monotony of the gen- 
eral rough stone. The front has been e.xtended 
to embrace porch and tower entrances, and 
from the tower access to the organ and choir 
gallery is had by means of a solid ash staircase, 
trimmed in cherry. On the choir level, or second 
floor of porch, is a choir meeting room, lighted 
by a system of small Gothic windows which ex- 
tend continuously across the entire front. The 
ceilings of the porches, tower, and under side 
of organ gallery have been finished in the old 
English style of exposed rafter and deep panel- 



work. The main church ceiling has been 
treated in the open-work type of truss, the sur- 
faces between trusses laid off in deep panels, 
diagonally sheathed and heavily molded. Each 
truss is finished with cherry-molded tracery 
work, and bracketed cornice. The aisle ceil- 
ings are treated to match main roof, but of a 
more simple style. The entire body of the 
church has been wainscoted nearly six feet 
high with Gothic panel work, in combination 
of cherry and white wood, with neat molded 
capping and base. The columns are wains- 
coted to match the walls, as also the face of 
the gallery. The entire floor surface of the 
church has been laid, first with one and one- 
eighth-inch white pine flooring, and on top of 
this a two-inch thick floor of the best clear 
long-leaf, comb-grain Georgia pine. 

The plaster work of the church is one of its 
principal merits. It is done in a pearl gray 
tint stucco plaster, tracery moldings over all 
windows and other openings, as well as over 
the interior arches. The iron columns were 
first encased in fire-proof clay tile, and the 
finished plaster work then applied. Each 
column is surmounted by an ornate Corinthian 
capital, from which the clere-story arches 
spring in succession. Owing to the large num- 
ber and size of the windows, it was deemed 
advisable not to assume the expense at this 
time of ornamental figured windows in leaded 
glass work, and for this economic reason the 
windows have been temporarily glazed with 
plain amber-tinted glass of several shades, the 
foliated tracery work of the upper parts being 
treated in brighter color effects. The building 
is heated by steam by means of handsome 
radiators. The gas fixtures, of polished brass, 
are very handsome, and the gas is lighted from 
an electric battery placed under the gallery. 
Any required number of the fixtures may be 
lighted, one, a dozen, or the entire comple- 
ment, as may be desired — by a simple turn of 
the battery crank. There are over three hun- 
dred lights in the church. Taken in its entirety, 
the Church of St. Mary's, so near to completion, 
is a grand tribute to the untiring zeal and 
ability of its pastor. Rev. Edward J. Conroy. 



STEPHEN A. PERKINS, a well-known 
_ merchant, holds a leading place among the 
enterprising and prominent men of Poughkeep- 
sie, where his birth occurred May i, 1846, 
having always identified himself with its inter- 



330 



COMMEWORATfVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ests. He belongs to a family of English or- 
igin, whose members mostly belonged to the 
Reformed Dutch Church. His paternal grand- 
father, Warren Perkins, was a farmer of the 
town of New Paltz, Ulster Co., N. Y. , and 
his family included two sons: Alexander VV. , 
the father of our subject; and Stephen, a car- 
riage maker, of Washington. Pennsylvania. 

The former was born March i, 1818, upon 
a farm in the town of New Paltz, Ulster coun- 
ty, where the first seventeen or eighteen years 
of his life were passed. He then came to the 
town of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, and 
entered into agricultural pursuits, which he 
has followed, with very few years exception, 
his entire life; he has held several town offices. 
He enjoys in a marked degree the confidence 
and esteem of his neighbors; his vote al- 
ways being cast with the Democratic party. 
He was twice married, his first wife, the 
mother of Stephen A. Perkins, was in her 
maidenhood Miss Rebecca M. Ackerley, a na- 
tive of the town of Poughkeepsie, where her 
father, Lemuel Ackerley, engaged in farming. 
She was of English lineage, and was called to 
her reward in 1856. By her marriage she be- 
came the mother of six children: Jacob A., a 
business man of Poughkeepsie, who is inter- 
ested with our subject in the ice business; Syl- 
vester, who was a carpenter, of Pine Plains, 
Dutchess county, and died in November, 1S93; 
Stephen A., of this sketch; Jane A., who be- 
came the wife of J. L. Donaldson, of Ulster 
county, who died in March, 1894; Elizabeth 
H., who died unmarried; and William J., a 
resident of Poughkeepsie, who is interested 
with our subject in the coal business. 

Upon a farm about three miles outside the 
city limits of Poughkeepsie, Stephen A. Per- 
kins grew to manhood, attending the dis- 
trict schools of the neighborhood, and finished 
his education at the Dutchess County Acad- 
emy. P'or one year he was then employed as 
teacher of a district school, after which he 
learned the carpenter's trade, following that 
occupation for about five years. He next be- 
came connected with the Poughkeepsie & 
Eastern railroad, serving in a number of differ- 
ent capacities for about eighteen years. In 
1888, in connection with his brother Jacob A., 
he entered into the ice business, leasing the 
Morgan Lake. He conducted this business 
very successfully and made many friends for 
himself and brother. In May, 1894, he formed 
a co-partnership with his brother, William J. 



Perkins, and Herman King in the coal trade, 
under the firm name of Perkins, King & Co. 
They now do a flourishing business, their 
courteous treatment of customers, and upright, 
honorable dealings, having won them a liberal 
patronage. 

In 1875 ^Ir. Perkins was married, the lady 
of his choice being Miss Charlotte Holmes, 
who was born in the town of Pleasant \'alley, 
Dutchess county, and is a daughter of George 
Holmes, also a native of that county, and a 
farmer and merchant by occupation. He died 
about 1886. One child blesses the union of 
our subject and his wife: Bertram R. , who is 
now a dentist by profession. They are mem- 
bers and contribute to the support of the Pres- 
byterian Church, while socially, Mr. Perkins 
is a prominent member of the Masonic Order, 
and politically votes the Democratic ticket. 



SAMUEL HILTON AMBLER, who is now 
_ practically living retired in the village of 
Stissing, Dutchess county, was for a quarter of 
a century a prominent merchant of the place. 
The Ambler family, of which he is a worthy 
representative, was founded in America during 
its early history. The first to locate in New 
England was Richard Ambler, who was born 
in Somersetshire, England, in 1609, and was 
one of twenty-four men who organized the 
town of Watertown, Conn., taking deed for 
the same from the Indians, and he became a 
leading resident of that town. He was twice 
married, and became the father of three chil- 
dren: Sarah, Abram and Abraham. His death 
occurred in 1699. Of his family, Abraham, 
who was a Baptist minister in Bedford. Conn., 
was born in 1642, and he was also twice mar- 
ried, his union with Mary Bates being cele- 
brated in 1662; they made their home in Stam- 
ford, Conn. Their son John was born in 1668, 
and in his family were three children: John, 
Stephen and Martha. The birth of John Am- 
bler, of this family, occurred at Stamford, 
Conn., in 1695, and he became a resident of 
Danbury, in the same State, where he died. 
By his will he bequeathed his gun and sword 
to his only son, John. He was the father of 
seven children: John, Elizabeth, Sarah, Mary, 
Martha, Anna and Rachel. The only son was 
born in 1733, and died October 21, 1814. By 
his marriage with Huldah Fairchild he had eight 
children: Peter, Squire, Stephen, Gilead, 
Diodote, Silas, Huldah and Deborah. The 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



b31 



father of tliese was sergeant of a company of 
lOO men raised in Danbury, May 17, 1775, 
which joined the 6th regiment, commanded by 
Col. David Waterbury. 

Peter Ambler, of the above family, was the 
grandfather of our subject. He was born at 
Danbury, Conn., September 20, 1759, and 
there continued to engage in farming through- 
out life, owning the land on which the Dan- 
bury fair is now held. During the Revolution- 
ary war he served as artificer in the Colonial 
army, and later took a prominent part in pub- 
lic affairs, being a member of the State Legis- 
lature for one term. He held membership 
with the Baptist Church, in which he served 
as deacon, and died in that faith March 7, 
1836. On October 21, 1784, he had married 
Miss Hannah Shove, who was born October 
27, 1 76 1, and was the daughter of Deacon 
Benjamin and Sarah Shove, and their family 
included the following children: Fairchild, 
Benjamin. David, Thomas, Joseph, Silas, 
Sarah, Rachel and Hannah. The mother of 
these died April 22, 1S43. 

Rev. Silas Ambler, Baptist minister, father 
of our subject, was born at Danbury, Conn. , 
March 12, 1798. He was married August 29, 
1822, to Miss Eunice D. Olmstead, who was 
born October 28, 1800, at Wilton, Conn., and 
died October 3. 1892, at Stanford, N. Y. 
They had a family of seven children: Samuel 
H., our subject; Mary E., who makes her 
home in Greene county, N. Y. , is the widow 
of Ezekial Griffin; Augustus, born April 19, 
1829, died April 22, 1852; Catherine, born 
May 23, 1 83 1, is the widow of Levi Boyce, of 
Greeneville, N. Y. ; Sarah, born January 31, 
1835, is the wife of Henry Ivnickerbocker, of 
Bangall, N. Y. ; Emeline. who was born April 
6, 1837, and died April 3, 1869, was the wife 
of Charles Sheldon, now deceased; and John 
P., a sketch of whom appears elsewhere. The 
father was for a time a minister in the Baptist 
Church, having charge of congregations at 
Cornwall and Norfolk, Conn., but in 1840, on 
account of ill health, he gave up preaching and 
located upon a farm in the town of Stanford. 
Dutchess Co., X. Y., near Stissing, which is 
now owned by our subject. He there spent 
his remaining days, dying November 22, 1857, 
honored and respected by all. 

The birth of Mr. Ambler, the subject of 
this review, occurred at Danbury, Fairfield 
Co., Conn. , June 3. 1824, but most of his early 
life was passed at Norfolk, in the same State, 



where he attended school and remained a 
member of the parental household until his 
marriage, March 20, 1851, in the town of 
Stanford, Dutchess county, to Miss Olive 
Boyce, a daughter of Jacob and Olive fMorse) 
Boyce. To our subject and wife have come 
the following children: Franklin A., born De- 
cember 31, 1856, died at San Jose, Cal., June 
II, 1884; he had married Hattie Vassar 
(daughter of John E. Vassarj, by whom he 
had two children — Alice May and Edward 
Vassar. Emma D. was born May 20, 1858. 
Asa T. , born March i, i860, wedded Mary 
Deuell, and they have two children — Chester 
Franklin and Olive Martha. Charles, born 
February 2, 1S64, married Elizabeth \'ande- 
water. Alfred Silas, born November 25, 1867, 
is now the medical superintendent of the 
Kingston Avenue Hospital, at Brooklvn. New 
York. 

For twenty years after his marriage. Mr. 
Ambler engaged in agricultural pursuits, but in 
1870 he sold his farm, as he had been ap- 
pointed agent on the N. D. & C. R. R.. and 
erected a store building at Stissing. where he 
was engaged in general merchandising for 
twenty-five years, which store is now 
ducted b}' his sons. Charles and Asa T. 
was made postmaster of the village, and 
served as agent for the P. & E. R. R. 
politics, Mr. Ambler casts his ballot is support 
of the men and measures of the Republican 
party, and has held the office of e.xcise commis- 
sioner. For forty years he has been a member 
of the Baptist Church, at Bangall, and his 
genial, social nature makes him a popular 
citizen. 



con- 
He 
also 
In 



LFRED ALLENDORF (deceasedj was 
.^^ born September 17, 1829, a son of Philip 
and Elizabeth (Stickle) Allendorf, prosperous 
farming people of the town of Red Hook, 
Dutchess county. 

After completing his literary education Mr. 
Allendorf began his mercantile career as a 
clerk, and gradually worked his way upward. 
At the close of a few years of preparatory 
labor in this line, he left the firm by whom he 
was employed, and established a general mer- 
chandise store at Upper Red Hook, which 
they conducted some three years, then coming 
to Red Hook, they opened a store under the 
firm name of Conkling & Allendorf, which ven- 
ture proved highly successful. Through hon- 



332 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



orable and upright dealing they soon gained 
the confidence of the public, which they suc- 
ceeded in holding for over twenty years, at 
the end of which time the partnership was dis- 
solved, Mr. Ailendorf taking the store and Mr. 
Conkling the lumber and coal business. 

On October ii. 1854, our subject was mar- 
ried to Miss Catherine A. Shook, \\\\o was 
born July 6, 1830, at the old homestead of the 
Shook family, where her father was engaged 
in farming. Two daughters blessed this union: 
(i) Nellie S., born at Red Hook, February 28, 
1856, who became the wife of Silas S. Schoon- 
maker, October 30, 1878, and they now re- 
side at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. ; they have one 
child — A. Ailendorf, born January 14, 1880. 
(2) Fannie L. , born at Red Hook, April 27, 
i860, married Charles B. Hoffman, and they 
have two children — Bessie C, born November 
II, 1881 ; and£. Marjorie, born May 15, 1885. 
Mrs. Schoonmaker and Mrs. Hoffman received 
their primary educations at the schools of Red 
Hook, completing their studies at the De- 
Garmo Institute, Rhinebeck. 

John Shook, the father of Mrs. Ailendorf, 
was also a native of the town of Red Hook, 
where his entire life, was devoted to agricult- 
ural pursuits. He wedded Miss Nellie Shoe- 
maker, daughter of George Shoemaker, of 
Red Hook, and they became the parents of the 
following children: George Adam, born May 

3, 1803, was educated for the ministry of the 
Reformed Dutch Church, at Carlisle, but ow- 
ing to ill-health was prevented from accepting 
a call, and died in 1836; Anna Maria, born 
March 18, 1805, became the wife of Moses 
Ring; Cornelia, born June 22, 1807, married 
Lewis Elseffer; Helen, born September 20, 
1809, wedded Everet Traver; Aaron, born Sep- 
tember 6, 181 I, married Catharine Cramer; 
Gertrude C, born December 21, 1813, re- 
mained single; Walter, born April 4, 18 16, 
married Eliza A. Allenford; Alonzo, born May 

4, 1818, died in infanc}-; Archibald, born Julv 
24, 1820, wedded Elizabeth Lamoree; Ale.\- 
ander, born October 6, 1822, married Clar- 
issa Squires; John A., born July 3. 1825, mar- 
ried Frances Lathrop; and Catherine A. (wile 
of our subject) completed the family. 

The integrity of Mr. Ailendorf stands as 
an unquestioned fact in his history — endowed 
by nature with a sound judgment and an accu- 
rate, discriminating mind, he did not fear the 
labprious attention to business so necessary to 
achieve success. This essential quality was 



ever guided by a sense of right which would 
tolerate the employment only of the means 
that would bear the most rigid examination, 
by a fairness of intention that neither sought 
nor required disguise. He was a thorough 
Christian, a devout member of the Lutheran 
Church, and was prominently identified with 
the Masonic fraternity and the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows, being at the time of 
his death one of the members of Christian 
Lodge, I. O. O. F., of Red Hook. 



OX. EDWARD HARRIS THOMPSON. 
JJA The family of which the subject of this 
sketch is a distinguished representative orig- 
inated in England, where it has held an hon- 
ored position from an early period, its coat of 
arms bearing the motto, "In liniiinc luce", 
being an interesting reminder of the olden time. 
The head of the American branch. Anthony 
Thompson, came to this country with his wife, 
two children and two brothers, John and Will- 
iam, in the company of Governor Eaton, Rev. 
Mr. Davenport and others of Coventry, Eng- 
land, arriving at Boston, June 26, 1637, ac- 
cording to Winthrop's Journal, or July 23, 
1637, as stated by Cotton Mather. Like 
many other dissenters from the Church of Eng- 
land at that day, they sought in the New 
World freedom to worship in accordance with 
their own faith, and relief from the persecu- 
tions and burdensome ta.xation which were 
their lot in their native land. The party led by 
Messrs. Da\enporl and Eaton had a larger pro- 
portion of wealthy and energetic men than any 
other which had arrived up to that time, and 
several towns made tempting offers to the 
emigrants, but it was Quinipiac, or New Hav- 
en, that was finally decided upon as a location. 
Anthony Thompson signed the Colony Con- 
stitution June 4, 1639, and all ihe brothers 
soon secured farms in the vicinity. John's 
estate at New Haven, where he died Decem- 
ber II, 1674, is said to be still in the posses- 
sion of some of his numerous descendants. 
Anthony and William resided at New Haven. 
Anthony died March 23, 1647, and left a large 
estate, which was divided under his will be- 
tween his six children and his second wife. 
His original purchase and the house thereon 
was given to his son John, and the lands after- 
ward acquired, to Anthony, Jr., while with the 
exception of a certain sum to his daughter 
Bridget, a child of his first wife, on condition 




C^c 



C<A^'- 






COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPEICAL RECORD. 



33S 



that she would marry in accordance with the 
wishes of the deacons of the Church, the re- 
mainder was left to his wife, Catherine, and 
her three daughters. The wife's share was 
conditional upon her widowhood, and as she 
married Nicholas Camp, July 14, 1652, it 
probably reverted to this family. Anthony, 
Jr., made his will December 26, 1682, while 
on a visit in Milford, and died three days 
later. The greater part of his property was 
left to his brother, John. William Thompson 
was probably a bachelor as at his death in 
1682 his will, which was made Ocfober 6th of 
the same year, distributed his property among 
his relatives, particular mention being made of 
his nephew John. 

John Thompson seems to have been a 
sea captain. He died June 2, 1707, and an 
inventory of his estate is on record. Three 
children are named in the registry of the town, 
viz.: Mary, born September 9, 1667; Samuel, 
born May 12, 1669; and Sarah, born January 
16, 1 67 1, but he probably had two or three 
previously. Samuel was married, November 
14, 1695, to Rebecca Bishop, daughter of the 
Lieutenant Governor, and lived at the Beaver 
Pond, now Westville, about two miles from 
New Haven. He was captain of the military 
company in New Haven, and must have been 
a man of great physical vigor, as in his eighty- 
second year he rode from New Haven to 
Goshen, about fifty miles, on horseback, this 
trip being among the reminiscences of his 
grandson Hezekiah, who rode behind him. 
<»amuel died at Goshen. His children's names, 
with dates of birth, are as follows: Samuel, 
December 2, 1696; James, June 5, 1699; 
Amos, March 3, 1702; Gideon, December 25, 
1704; Rebecca, February 23, 1*708; Judah, 
June 10, 1710 (died August 5, 1712); Judah 
(2d), October 5, 17 13; and Enos, August 18, 
1 71 7. Most of this family lived to an ad- 
vanced age, and some settled in what is now 
the town of Stanford, Dutchess county, others 
in Connecticut. Samuel located on the east 
line of the town of Stanford, near Federal 
store, and in 1785 he, or Ezra [Enos.'], built 
a brick house, which has been occupied by the 
family ever since. In 17S3 his son Caleb built 
a brick house in the same locality. James 
Thompson died in 1737. as a result of a fall 
from a cherry tree, and his son, Hezekiah, 
then two years old, was placed under the 
guardianship of his uncle Enos, who bound 
him out at the age of fourteen to learn the 



saddler's trade. The boy had higher ambi- 
tions, however, and, as soon as he could, 
began the study of law at Woodbury, where 
he rose to prominence in the profession and 
built himself a stately residence. He died in 
March, 1803, leaving two sons: W^illiam, who 
lived in Sullivan county, N. Y. , was the first 
judge of that county, and died December 9, 
1847; and John, an Episcopal clergyman at 
New Durham, Greene Co.. N. Y., and died 
August 4, 1864. 

Amos Thompson settled near Thompson's 
Pond, now Hunn's Lake, in the town of Stan- 
ford, Dutchess county, about 1746. He and 
his wife Sarah (Allen), whom he wedded in 
1726, had seven children: Allen, born in 
1727; Rebecca, in 1729; Amos, in 1 731: Ezra, 
in 1734; Sarah, Eunice and Mary. .Allen 
died soon after the removal to Dutchess county. 
Amos was educated at a college in New Jersey, 
and became a Presbyterian minister, locating 
first at North Canaan, Conn., and later in 
Loudoun county, Va., where he died in 1804. 
He married Miss Jane Evans, of Maryland. 

Gideon Thompson lived at Goshen, Conn. 
Rebecca married Mr. Austin, of New Haven, 
and had a son. Deacon Austin, who became a 
citizen of that place. Judah (2d i probably lived 
and died in New Haven. Enos had a son. 
Smith Thompson, who became a judge of the 
Supreme Court of the United States, and later 
was secretary of the navy. Enos Thompson 
Throop, a grandson of Enos, was governor of 
New York State and charge d'affairs at Naples. 
'' ■ Arrros Thompson, born in 1731, married 
Mary Smith, of Suffield, Conn. Asa Allen 
John, their son, born January 12, 1760, married 
Mary Knap, January 19, 1783, and died May 
28, 1813. Their son, Allen Thompson, our 
subject's grandfather, was born August 10, 
1783, on the old homestead at Thompson's 
Pond, now known as Hunn's Lake, in the town 
of Stanford, and passed a considerable portion 
of his life there, following his chosen work of 
farming, in which he was unusually successful. 
In later life (in 1825) he moved to a farm in 
the town of Pine Plains, now occupied by C. 
C. More, where he died May 20, 1849. His 
wife, Eliza (Pugsley). to whom he was married 
March 18, 1806, died December 29, 1S61. 
They had five children, whose names, with 
dates of birth, are here given: Edward P., 
born February 6, 1807; John Allen, November' 
6, 1808; Cornelius Allerton, December 20, 
1 8 10 (died November 15, 1832); and Corne- 



;i34 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



lius, March lo, 1824. John Allen Thompson, 
our subject's father, was born at Thompson's 
Pond, but his life was spent mainly in the town 
of Pine Plains, Dutchess county, where he 
owned a farm of 120 acres southwest of the 
village of Pine Plains. From a business stand- 
point, he was very successful, accumulating a 
fine property, and he was also prominent and 
influential in local affairs. He was a leading 
member of the Presbyterian Church, holding 
office for many years; but he never sought or 
held political place, although he supported 
stanchly the principles of the Whig party in 
early life, and later espoused with equal ear- 
nestness the Republican faith. An earnest 
student of his times, he was well-informed on 
all the topics of general interest. On May 9, 
1855, he was married to Lucy Ann \'iele, a 
member of one of the most prominent families 
of Washington county, N. Y., and her father, 
Stephen L. Viele, was a member of the State 
Assembly in 1S36. 

The subject of the sketch, the only son of 
this marriage, was born at Pine Plains, Sep- 
tember 25, 1856, and was educated at the 
Hudson Academy. In 1882 he entered the 
Millerton National Hank as bookkeeper, George 
S. Frink being president, and William M. 
Dales, cashier. On the death of the latter in 
1883, Mr. Thompson was elected to the vacant 
position, and in 1886 he was chosen president, 
which office he held until 1895. On June 9, 
1 886, he married Rachel Irene Carpenter, 
daughter of Hon. Edmund T. Carpenter, who 
was mayor of Hudson City, N. J. They have 
had three children: Harry Scott, Lucy Irene, 
and John Allen. 

Mr. Thompson is a man of fine physique 
and great industry. His energy and ability 
have not been confined to business life, his 
success there, combined with his high reputa- 
tion for integrity, winning him the confidence 
of the people, and leading to his election on the 
Republican ticket to various positions of pub- 
lic trust and responsibility. His interest in 
local movements has always been recognised as 
a strong influence for progress, and E. H. 
Thompson Hose Co. was named in his honor. 
He was a trustee of the village for five years, 
and was its president at the time for the build- 
i, ing of the water works of which he was one of 
the chief promoters. In 1892 he was elected 
supervisor of the town without opposition, and 
in the same year he was chosen to represent 
the first district of Dutchess county in the As- 



sembly by 419 plurality over James H. Rus- 
sell, Democrat, and Tiel, Prohibitionist. In 
1893 Mr. Thompson submitted to the Assem- 
bly a bill amending the charter of the city of 
Poughkeepsie, and one relating to the Mattea- 
wan State Hospital for Insane Criminals. On 
returning to the Assembly in 1894, having been 
re-elected in 1893, bj- a plurality of 843 over 
Oakly I. Xorris, Democrat, and \'. M. Buck, 
Prohibitionist, he was appointed chairman of 
the committee on Banks and a member of the 
committee on Railroads, and the committee 
on Charitable and Religious Societies. That 
year he introduced a bill amending the bank- 
ing law, and one incorporating the Poughkeep- 
sie and Wappinger Falls Electric Railway Co. 
He was again re-elected in 1894, receiving 
4,692 votes against 3,418 cast for S. M. 
Davidson, Democrat, and 210 for C. N. Nich- 
ols, Prohibitionist. In 1895 he was chairman 
of the committee on Commerce and Naviga- 
tion, and a member of three important com- 
mittees — on Ways and Means, on Banks and 
on Military Affairs. In 1895 Mr. Thompson 
introduced a bill largely increasing the scope 
of investments of savings banks of the State. 
The banks had for years endeavored to secure 
such legislation, but failed. By his untiring 
efforts the bill became a law, and is known as 
the "Thompson Law," and is highly regarded 
by the banks. On May i, 1896, Hon. F. D. 
Kilburn, superintendent of banks of the State 
of New York, appointed Mr. Thompson a bank 
examiner, located in the City of New York. 



HARVEY BRETT, a venerable and highly 
respected resident of Matteawan, is a de- 
scendant of one of the oldest families of Dutch- 
ess county, being a direct descendant of Mad- 
ame Brett, whose ability and forceful charac- 
ter, no less than her extensive landed posses- 
sions, made her a leading figure among the 
early settlers of this section. She was the 
only daughter and heir of Francis Rombout, 
the patentee of the Rombout tract, which pat- 
ent was granted to him October 17, 1685, and 
from whom the first titles to lands in Fishkill 
were derived by the settlers. He was a native 
of Holland, and was sent as supercargo to 
New Amsterdam (New York) by the Dutch 
East India Compan)'. At the expiration of his 
apprenticeship he engaged in business in that 
city with Gulian \"erplanck, forming a co- 
partnership which lasted several years. He 



COMMEMORAriVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



335 



was for several years alderman of New York, 
and mayor of that city in 1679. In Septem- 
ber, 1683, he married Mrs. Helena Van Bal- 
leu (lu'c Teller), whose first husband was 
named Bogardus. Only one child graced this 
union: Catharyna, who was born in New 
York, and at the age of sixteen married Roger 
Brett, an Englishman, and a merchant of New 
York City. A few years later she and her 
husband took up their residence in Fishkill, 
on lands which, after the death of her father 
m 1691, became her heritage. The precise 
year of their settlement here is not known; but 
January 10, 1709, they gave a joint bond 
(they previously partitioned the tract between 
themselves so as to hold it in severalty) to 
Capt. Gylob Shelly, of New York City, to se- 
cure payment of ^'399, 6s, with which it is be- 
lieved they built a dwelling house and a grist- 
mill the following year. The house, built in 
1709, is still standing in Matteawan, in good 
preservation, and is known as the "Teller 
Mansion." The gristmill was located at the 
mouth of the Fishkill, on its north bank. It 
was the first of its kind in the town or county, 
and e.xerted an immense and beneficial in- 
fluence on the settlements in the locality. 
Madame Brett died in 1764. She had three 
sons — Francis, Robert and Rivery — and one 
daughter, married to Jacobus Depuyster. Of 
the sons, Francis married Margaret \'an- 
Wyck, and had two daughters — Hannah (mar- 
ried to Henry Schenck), and Margaret (the 
youngest; married to Peter A. Schenck) — and 
two sons — Theodorus and George. Rivery 
(the youngest son of Mrs. Brett) died at the 
age of seventeen. 

George Brett, our subject's grandfather, 
was born in the town of Fishkill, and passed 
his life there engaged in agriculture. He and 
his wife, whose maiden name was Marie 
Cooper, were devout members of the Re- 
formed Dutch Church, although George had 
in his youth been identified with the English 
Church. Their children were: Deborah and 
Margaret (deceased), who never married; 
Francis G., the father of our subject, and Sal- 
ly, who married a Mr. Willett, a cabinet- 
maker. 

Francis G. Brett was tjorn in the town of 
Fishkill, in 1775, and for many years operated 
the mill at Matteawan, belonging to the Brett 
estate. He was a Whig in politics, and was 
influential in local affairs. His wife, Margaret 
Campbell, who was born in 1777, probably in 



Dutchess county, died April 9, 1835, ^"d Mr. 
Brett's death occurred August 14, 1835. They 
were highly esteemed among their associates, 
and while not members they inclined toward 
the Reformed Church. They reared a family 
of eight children: William, a machinist of Mat- 
teawan, died in Brooklyn, N. Y. ; James, also 
a machinist (now deceased), was a resident of 
Matteawan; Alfred, a silk dyer, of Matteawan, 
passed away in early manhood; Harriet and 
Jane Ann (deceased) did not marry; Harvey, 
our subject, is mentioned more fully below; 
Edgar, who died in Albany, was prominent in 
religious work as a member of the M. E. 
Church, and in later life was a local preacher; 
Charles is a pattern maker in Newark, New 
Jersey. 

Harvey Brett was born January 15, 1813, 
and throughout his eighty-four years he has 
had his home in the beautiful little city of 
Matteawan. At an early age he displayed 
mechanical ability of a high order, and in 1830 
he began to learn the blacksmith's trade, which 
he followed until June 28, 1873. He then re- 
tired from business, but his active mind and 
still vigorous physique have occasionally found 
congenial e.xercise in the creation of some 
article of use or ornament. He works in all 
kinds of metals, also in wood, some beautiful 
pieces of furniture in his home giving evidence 
of his skill in that line. Among the choice 
specimens of his works in metals is an elegant 
jewel case of copper. Mr. Brett has always 
taken an intelligent interest in public ques- 
tions, and in politics is a Republican. For 
many years he has been a member of the M. 
E. Church. On October 10, 1837, he mar- 
ried Miss Susan Colman, a native of Orange 
county, N. Y. , a daughter of Abram Colman, 
a well-known resident of Orange county. She 
passed away in 1880, the mother of four chil- 
dren: Charles is a merchant at Matteawan; 
Abram died in 1893; Wesley is employed with 
his brother Charles; Emily died at the age of 
six years. 

IBefore closing this sketch we give the 
copies of two original letters from Lord Corn- 
bury, governor of New York, in possession 
of Miss Hannah Teller, and dated "New 
York, lOver 4, 1709," the other in the pos- 
session of Mrs. Hannah Wiltse, Fishkill Land- 
ing, and dated December 15, 1709. 

Sir: — The nurse telling me a boat was going up to 
you, I was not willing to omit the opportunity of writing 
to you, though we have no news here, only of a great bat- 
tle in Flanders, where my Lord Marlborough has obtained 



330 



COMMEMORATIVE BlOGliAl'UlCAL RECORD. 



a great victory. I expfct to hear every day of the arrival 
of the X'irginia Fleet, by which 1 hope to have news from 
England. In the meantime, I wish you and Mrs. Brett all 
the health, happiness and satisfaction of a merry Christ- 
mas and happy New Year and am, sir, 

^'our most humble servant. 

CORNBURY. 
My service to Mrs. Brett. 



Sir: — Yours of the 9th of the last came safely to my 
hands, for which 1 return you thanks. I would have sent 
an answer sooner, but I can't find one master of a sloop 
that will undertake to deliver a letter. There is no news 
of the fleet, and by what I hear from other parts, I believe 
we shall see no fleet this year; nor do I yet know what our 
peo|)le here will resolve upon. I have not yet heard one 
tine from England, since my Lord Lovelace arrived. I 
hope my daughter is arrived there safe before this time. 
I am glad she did not go with the last fleet, for Capt. Rid- 
dle, who commanded the Falmouth, in which she must 
have gone, was attacked by a French man-of-war of twenty 
guns, who boarded him, but Riddle got clear of him and 
got safe into Plimouth with all his fleet. We have no 
news to entertain you with; as soon as I have any you 
shall have it. I am sorry to hear Mrs. Brett has not 
been well. I hoi>e before this time you are all well. 

I was in hope before this time I should have seen 
you or Mrs. Brett here, where, with my short commons, 
you will always find a most hearty welcome. I entreat 
you to give my humble service to Mrs. Brett, and do me 
the justice to believe that I am, sir, 

• Your humble servant, 

CORNBURV. 



EDWARD W. SIM.MONS, of Millerton, 
one of the most prominent citizens of 
Dutchess county, is distinguished for his ability 
in educational work, and in public affairs, and 
as a lawyer, his labors in these widely different 
lines being equally able and effective. 

His ancestors for three generations have 
been farmers of that locality, his great-grand- 
father, Peter Simmons, having come from 
Holland in the eighteenth century, and settled 
in the northern part of Dutchess county, or 
possibly in the adjoining portion of Columbia 
county. Nicholas Simmons, our subject's 
grandfather, was born in Dutchess county, and 
although he learned the shoemaker's trade his 
attention was mainly devoted to agriculture. 
He married Christina Snyder, and they had 
eight children. He and his wife both died in 
1840, and their remains were buried in Broome 
county. New York. 

William Simmons was born in Pine Plains, 
in 1787, and grew to manhood there. He en- 
gaged in farming in the town of Northeast for 
a time, until, in 1818, he moved to Ancram, 
Columbia county, and purchased a farm where 
he lived for five years. He then returned to 
Northeast, and in 1824 settled on the old Roe 
homestead, remaining there until 1831, when 
he rented a farm of the Winchell heirs, where 



Millerton now stands, subsequently purchasing 
the Thomas Paine farm, which he sold in 1837. 
In thafyear he moved to Broome count}', and 
there lived until 1S64, when he returned to 
Millerton to end his days. He was a success- 
ful farmer, and ranked among the leaders in 
local affairs, holding various official positions. 
He entered the war of 18 12 as a private, and 
became a non-commissioned officer. His wife, 
Clarissa Roe, a lady of Scotch and Irish 
blood, whose parents, Silas and Mercy {Har- 
vey ) Roe, reared a family of ten children : Uziel, 
Amos, Alva, Harvey, Jeduthan, Lyman, Anna, 
Laura, Clarissa and Amanda. Mrs. Simmons 
was killed September 13, 1827, by a fall from 
a wagon; her husband died February 14, 1868. 
They had five children, whose names with 
dates of birth are as follows: Harvey Roe, 
September 29, 1814; Edward W., April 14, 
1816; Julia (Mrs. Lewis Barnes, of Broome 
county), February 5, 1819; Amanda (Mrs. 
Henry Wheeler, formerly of Amenia, now of 
Morris, 111.), October 19, 1822; and James, 
April 17, 1827, who is now a leading minister 
of the I3aptist Church. Owingto his mother's 
premature death he was placed in the care of 
his brother Edward at an early age, and was 
prepared for college by him. He was grad- 
uated from Brown University, also from the 
Newton Theological Seminary, at Rochester, 
and has since been given the honorary degree 
of D. D., by Brown University. His first pas- 
torate was in Providence, R. I., and later he 
was in charge of Churches in Indianapolis, 
Philadelphia and New York. In 1866, he 
went to New York City as secretary of the 
American Baptist Home Mission Society, and 
a few years afterward was called to Trinity 
Baptist Church, on Fifty-fifth street. He has 
since entered the service of the Baptist Publi- 
cation Society of Philadelphia, and has charge 
of their interests in New York and other 
States. He has been a devoted worker in the 
cause of Home Missions, and in the building of 
schools in the Southern States, the institution 
at Abilene, Texas, known as Simmons Col- 
lege, having been established through his ef- 
forts. 

Edward W. Simmons was born on the old 
farm, about one mile from the village of Miller- 
ton, and with the exception of a few months 
at the academy at Hudson, his schooling was 
limited to the district schools of the neighbor- 
hood. He made the best of his opportunities, 
! however, and also studied diligently in private. 





/-/M^-^/K^tC^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



mi 



and in the winter of 1S32-33 began teaching 
at Lime Rock, Conn. From that time until 
1S4S he followed this occupation with marked 
success, his thorough mastery of the studies 
through which he had plodded without assist- 
ance enabling him to understand and relieve 
the difficulties of his pupils. In 1838-39 he 
taught a school of high grade at Greene, 
Chenango Co., N. Y., and from there went to 
Great Barrington, Mass., and conducted a 
large and prosperous school for two years. 
He then spent two years at Sheffield, Mass., 
teaching Latin and Greek in addition to the 
higher English branches. His health failing, 
he returned to Millerton in 1843, and opened 
a private school with an able assistant, the 
late Alexander Winchell, who afterward be- 
came eminent as a geologist, and was lor 
many years a professor in the University of 
Michigan. Mr. Simmons spent the most of 
his time for the next two years in Broome 
county, and in 1S51, his health being restored, 
he built the store now occupied by James 
Finch, which was the first building erected in 
Millerton. He opened a general store there, 
which he conducted for twenty-five years, 
when he transferred the business to Mr. Finch, 
who had been his clerk for fifteen years. 

Mr. Simmons gained a practical knowledge 
of surveying in his youth, and did a great deal 
of work in that line at different times, and as 
his wide range of studies had already included 
some reading on legal subjects, he was often 
employed in conveyancing. The confidence 
which his clear judgment and accurate infor- 
mation inspired caused him to be consulted more 
and more frequently upon general legal points, 
and upon the suggestion of Judge Hogeboom, 
he engaged in the practice of law, being ad- 
mitted to the bar in 1867, while still in mer- 
cantile business. He has been very successful, 
has a large number of substantial clients, and 
has taken a notable share in public affairs. He 
was financial secretary of the New York State 
Constitutional Convention, in 1867, of which 
William A. Wheeler was president, and Samuel 
J. Tilden, Horace Greeley and other well- 
known men were members. In local affairs it 
would be difficult to enumerate his varied serv- 
ices. He was supervisor for five terms, being 
chairman of the board during the first year, 
and he was one of the committee to go before 
the State board of assessors to secure a reduc- 
tion in the assessment of Dutchess county, 
their action resulting in a saving to the county 
22 



of $200,000 in three years. He has been an 
unwearied advocate of good schools, and every 
measure for local improvement has found in 
him a champion. He was a Free-soil Demo- 
crat in early years, but voted for Fremont in 
1856, and since that time has been a Repub- 
lican. 

On April 23, 1839, Mr. Simmons was mar- 
ried to Harriet N. Winchell, daughter of John 
Winchell, and had two sons: Alfred, who was 
born November 8, 1842, and died August 6, 
1864; and James, born in 185 1, and died in 
1853. Mrs. Simmons died December 29, 1S68, 
and June 16, 1869, Mr. Simmons married 
Mrs. Sarah E. Trowbridge, nci- Mead, a 
daughter of Deacon John K. Mead, of Amenia. 
He has been a member of the Baptist Church 
for sixty-three years; belongs to Webatuck 
Lodge No. 480, F. & A. M., in which he has 
held the office of senior deacon, and is a mem- 
ber of the New York State Bar Association. 
Although now eighty-one years old, Mr. Sim- 
mons enjoys comparatively good health, and 
attends daily to his profession. 



AMES B. SIMMONS, D. D. The subject 
of this article is a native of Dutchess coun- 
ty, and the youngest brother of Edward 
W. Simmons. Exiled from home in his early 
boyhood, Edward took him into his own fam- 
ily to live, and into his academy to fit him for 
college. Not only so, but he admonished him 
as a father, helped him when in trouble, guided 
him in counsel, and, above all else, led him 
savingly to Christ. The two have been greatly 
attached all their lives, and for the best of 
reasons. 

The only account we have been able to se- 
cure of James is the following by a Confeder- 
ate soldier now residing in one of the Gulf 
States. The author of this sketch is an emi- 
nent Doctor of Divinity, widely known not 
only throughout the United States, but in other 
lands also. Speaking of Dr. Simmons as "A 
Foundation Builder," he says: 

"When a small edifice or a temporary 
structure is to be erected, one man frequently 
plans, erects, completes, and uses the building. 
But when the great cathedral at Cologne was 
finished, the man who had conceived the plan, 
and laid the foundation, had lain in his grave 
over five centuries. The glory of the cathcr 
dral, however, is a sufficient monument to his 
memory. For a large structure, there must 



338 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



be breadth of thought and work in the founda- 
tion. Dr. Simmons is peculiarly gifted in the 
ability to plan wisely, and lay such broad 
foundations that future generations may suc- 
cessfully build thereon. 

"This is illustrated in his work in behalf 
of Christian education. He does not believe 
in working for one race, or one caste, or one 
section, but has distributed his labors to differ- 
ent races and different sections, and made 
them so broad that the capstone must of ne- 
cessity be laid long after the founder has ceased 
to live on the earth. 

" Under his wise administration, as Corres- 
ponding Secretary of the American Baptist 
Home Mission Society, locations were secured 
for seven Christian schools for the negroes of 
the South; one each in Washington, Rich- 
mond, Columbia, Raleigh, Augusta, Nashville 
and New Orleans. These are well chosen, 
strategic points, every one of them. Six of 
these institutions, on the very localities pur- 
chased by Dr. Simmons, have had marvelous 
growth. The properties, to-day, are vastly 
more valuable than when he acquired them. 
For the thirty acres of the Roger William Uni- 
versit}- at Nashville which he purchased for 
$30,000, the Home Mission Society, as I am 
told, could since have taken $200,000, had 
they been willing to sell. 

" It was deemed advisable to remove the 
school located at Augusta to Atlanta, and it is 
doing a magnificent work there. Dr. A. E. 
Dickinson, editor of the ' Religious Herald of 
Virginia, ' has well said: ' Those seven institu- 
tions of learning for the colored people of the 
South, which Dr. J. 13. Simmons was instru- 
mental in establishing, will be a better monu- 
ment to his memory, than seven towering shafts 
of granite.' 

" Seven streams of light and knowledge for 
over a quarter of a century have been flooding 
the South with blessings from these young Col- 
leges. And these streams have been broaden- 
ing and deepening as the years roll on, and will 
doubtless continue to bless generations yet un- 
born. These schools were not founded for a 
day, a year, or a generation, but for all time. 

' ' Here we have the example of a man, who 
was the grandson of a New York slaveholder,* 
devoting seven years of the most intense toil, 

*Silas Roe is here referred to. lie was the maternal grandfather 
of James B. Siniiuons, and owned five hundred acres about one mile 
southwest of where Millcrton now stands. When the Act of Emanci- 
pation for the State of New York went into effect, on July 4. 1827, 
Silas Roe was the owner of two negro slaves, whose names were 
Simon West and Samuel Bowen. 



anxiet}', and labor to the Christian education 
of those who had been slaves, and succeeding 
in establishing seven institutions of learning, 
and raising money to secure properties ample 
for their use in the long )-ears to come. The 
foundations were well laid, not on the sands of 
popular enthusiasm or partisan prejudice, but 
on the firm rock of Christian duty, in loyalty 
to Jesus Christ. 

"Rev. H. M. Tupper, D.D. , president of 
Shaw University at Raleigh, N. C, used to 
say that Dr. Simmons had the best concep- 
tion of any man he knew, as to the sort of 
schools needed for the education of the Freed- 
men. And it is not too much to add that the 
seven original Freedmen Colleges, which were 
fashioned under his molding hand, became in 
no small degree the models for those that have 
been added since. At the same time he praises 
in most emphatic terms the good men who 
have preceded him, as well as the good men 
who have followed him in the work. 

"When Dr. Simmons retired from his 
office as Corresponding Secretary of the 
American Baptist Home Mission Societj', that 
organization, in annual meeting assembled, 
adopted the following minute: 

' The present condition of our educational work in 
the Southern States bears a most impressive testimony to 
the wisdom, the energy and the consecration exhibited by 
Rev. James B. .Simmons, ]J.D., in the location and con- 
duct of the Freedmen's Schools, and in the develo])ment 
of Christian enterprise and liberality in their behalf. He 
has written his name upon the religious history of an 
emancijiated race. The future will be his monument.' 

"But Dr. Simmons was too broad a man 
to confine his work to one race. He saw the 
need of the colored people, and gave his heart- 
throbs, tears and prayers, accompanied in 
every instance by his monied contributions, to 
help them. Many years before this, however, 
he had laid his vigorous hand to the work of 
helping the cause of education among the 
white race. As early as 1859, nearly a decade 
before he was called to be Secretary of Home 
Missions, and when he was not worth as much 
as fifteen hundred dollars all told — he pledged 
one thousand dollars of that amount to assist 
in founding an institution for the higher educa- 
tion of young ladies in Indianapolis, Ind., 
where he was then settled as pastor. And he 
paid every cent of that money. The coming 
on of the war, and other causes, led to the 
discontinuance of the school, and this thousand 
dollars, with other property of the Institute, 
was afterward turned over to the Divinity 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOEAPHICAL RECORD. 



339 



School at Morgan Park, which is now a part of 
the great Chicago University, and is still doing 
good in the cause of Christian education there. 

"In 1874, when there was a crisis in the 
financial affairs of Columbian University, lo- 
cated at the national capital, he threw himself 
in the breach, at the call of his brethren, and 
raised, in six months, sixty-four thousand dol- 
lars, to complete the required conditions for 
an endowment of three hundred thousand dol- 
lars ($300,000), thus establishing the perma- 
nency of that institution for Christian educa- 
tion in the heart of the nation. 

"In 1 89 1 the writer of this, from his official 
position, chanced to know that Dr. Simmons 
was not content with what he had done for the 
cause of Christian education, but was looking 
around for further opportunity to do good. 
About this time I received a letter from Rev. 
G. W. Smith, of Abilene, Texas, asking if I 
knew of any source from which help could be 
obtained in founding a much-needed institu- 
tion of learning in that rapidly-growing section 
of central Texas. I gave him the address of 
Dr. Simmons, and correspondence was begun 
between them. Dr. Simmons and his son vis- 
ited the field, and the result was that, through 
the benefactions of himself and family, Sim- 
mons College, at Abilene, Texas, has begun 
its career of blessing in the great Southwest. 
Located in a fertile country, with a field to 
draw from as large as the entire State of New 
York, and which is rapidly filling up with a 
superior population, it is difficult to estimate 
the future possibilities of Simmons College. 
As to a name forthis new school. Dr. Simmons 
chose ' Christlieb College,' which means ' Col- 
lege of Christ's Love.' But his family, and 
the vote of the College Trustees, overruled 
him. 

•■A Northern man, a strong opponent of 
slavery, and one who had given so much of 
his time to aid the negroes in education. Dr. 
Simmons now gave his means to found a col- 
lege for white people in one of the old Slave 
States. He has helped fen colleges all told. 
With him the question was not whether a man 
is a white man, a negro, an Indian, an Arme- 
nian, or a Chinaman; not whether he is a 
Northern man, a Southern man or a Western 
man, but was he a man, and was help needed, 
and could it be given.' The foundations he 
has endeavored to la}' are as broad as the needs 
of humanity, without reference to race or con- 
ditions. Strong in his convictions and out- 



spoken in the e.xpression of them when neces- 
sity requires he is the soul of courtesy to all, 
and charitable toward the opinion of others. 
He always leans toward mercy's side. 

" The following incident beautifully illus- 
trates this characteristic. Rev. John S. Ezell, 
a Baptist minister of South Carolina, was con- 
fined in the militar}- prison at Albany, New 
York, having been convicted of complicity 
with Ku-Kluxism in his native State. South- 
ern papers were denouncing his incarceration. 
But Dr. Simmons, instead of stopping to talk, 
went straight to Albany, visited the imprisoned 
minister, encouraged him to tell his story, 
went to Washington and personall}' laid the 
matter before Gen. Grant, then President of 
the United States, and obtained his release. 
He then took Bro. Ezell to his home, which 
at that time was in Brooklyn, and treated him 
with Christian hospitality, and sent him on 
his way rejoicing. Dr. Simmons did not 
sympathize in the least with the spirit of Ku- 
Kluxism, or any other lawlessness, but he de- 
lighted to assist a Christian gentleman in dis- 
tress. No wonder that Bro. Ezell has often 
written him with gratitude, saying: ' I was 
in prison and you visited me. ' 

"Rev. J. "^L. Reynolds, D. D., of South 
Carolina, referring to Dr. Simmons having 
secured from President Grant a pardon for 
Ezell, says: 'This was well and nobly done. 
Such a deed appeals to the South, and will 
do more toward bringing about the era of good 
feeling, than all the resolutions that could be 
written, or harangues that could be spoken. 
We thank Bro. Simmons.' 

" I have spent months in Dr. Simmons' 
company. We differed widely upon many 
questions, and discussed them freel}' without 
the slightest acrimony or ill feeling. Tena- 
cious of his own opinions, and firm in his con- 
victions, he is yet so broad and full of Chris- 
tian love and courtesy, that he is the finest 
example I ever knew of the " fortitcr in ri\ ct 
sitavitcr in viocio ' — (Vigor in execution, ac- 
companied by gentleness of manner). 

" We may learn three lessons from his 
life: 

"I. A poor boy, thrown upon his own re- 
sources at fifteen years of age, he has attained 
great distinction as a man of learning, and 
wide influence. Let no boy despair of mak- 
ing a full-grown man because he is poor. 

"2. He has often told me that he never could 
have accomplished a tithe of what he has but 



340 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



for the educational training which he received. 
He spent three years in the preparatory 
school, four years in college, graduating at 
Brown University, and three years in his theo- 
logical course, graduating at Newton — ten 
years in all. Let no man rush into his life- 
work without thorough preparation. Rather 
than work with dull tools, make any sacrifice 
to sharpen them. 

'•3. Dr. Simmons has a loving place in the 
hearts of the people of all sections, and of the 
different races of the country, because he loved 
them all. Let no man despair of being es- 
teemed and loved just as broadly as he es- 
teems and loves others. I am proud to num- 
ber Dr. James B. Simmons among my warm- 
est friends, on account of his great learning, 
his true heart and his broad Christian 
Charity." 



E 



BBE P. WING, one of the honored and 

respected citizens of the town of Dover, 

Dutchess county, is still residing on the old 
homestead farm, where his birth occurred in 
1806, and although he has reached the age of 
ninety years, he is yet an active, well-pre- 
served man. On completing his education in 
the common schools near his home, he turned 
his attention to farming, and at the age of 
twenty-four years purchased a farm near 
Poughkeepsie, which he operated some three 
years. He then returned to the old home- 
stead, where he has since remained. 

Thomas Wing, his paternal grandfather, 
was a native of Massachusetts, born near Cape 
Cod, where he was educated, and when still a 
boy he learned scythe making in Boston. 
Coming to Webatuck, town of Dover, Dutch- 
ess county, he there engaged in that business 
for himself. Previously to his removal he had 
married Miss Hannah White, and in Rhode 
Island one child was born to them, but the births 
of the nine others occurred in Dover town; 
they were Thurston, George, Jackson, Benja- 
min, Rhoda, Mary, Katie, Annie and Deborah. 
The eldest son, Thurston, was two years of 
age when brought to Dover town, where he 
attended the common schools and engaged in 
farming as a life work. By his marriage with 
Miss Mary Young he has seven children: 
Archibald, Elijah, Thurston, Pheebe, Rhoda, 
Sallie and Mary Ann. George, the second 
son, was also educated and engaged in farm- 



ing in Dover, his native township, wedded 
Miss Martin, and to them were born eight 
children: Theodorus. John, Martin, Shed- 
rick, Thomas and Agrippa (twins), Hiram 
and Maria. 

Jackson Wing, the third son, and the 
father of our subject, was born on Christmas 
Day, 1 77 1, received a common-school educa- 
tion, and from the age of seventeen carried on 
farming in connection with his father until his 
marriage, at the age of twenty-eight. He 
wedded Miss Hannah Preston, daughter of 
Ebenezer and Pheebe (Odel) Preston, who had 
six children: John, Abijah, Smith, Ebenezer, 
Hannah and Mary. Her grandparents were 
Ebenezer and Hannah (Smith) Preston. After 
his marriage the father of our subject engaged 
in agricultural pursuits on his own account, 
which proved very successful, and also con- 
ducted a mill which came into his possession 
through his wife. The large brick house 
which still belongs to the family was built by 
him in 1806. Later in life he conducted the 
tavern at South Dover known as the ' ' Moose 
Head," for fifty years. He was a man of re- 
markable memory and of good business ability. 
In politics he was a Democrat, and was once 
elected poor master. 

Our subject is the third in order of birth in 
the family of seven children, of whom John 
and Daniel died in infancy. Pheebe, born in 
1808, became the wife of Egbert Sheldon, by 
whom she had two children, William and Or- 
ville. Alfred, born in 181 1, wedded Miss 
Mary Tabor, daughter of Russell Tabor, a 
farmer of Dover town, and they had one child, 
Hannah, who died at the age of twenty years. 
Preston, born in 181 3, never married. Obed, 
born in 1817, married Miss Ann Vincent, of 
Dover Plains. 

Like his father, Mr. Wing, the subject 
proper of this review, always votes the Demo- 
cratic ticket, and is one of the prominent and 
representative citizens of the township. On 
reaching man's estate he was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Maria Sheldon, and they be- 
came the parents of three children: Hannah 
was born in the town of Dover, in 1831, mar- 
ried Theodore Preston, by whom she had two 
children — John, who died in infancy, and Mary, 
who died at the age of twenty years; Sheldon, 
a well-known farmer of Dover town; and Ed- 
gar, born in 1841, died at the age of twenty- 
four years. 

Agrippa Sheldon, the father of Mrs. Wing, 






LU^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



341 



was also a native of Dover town, where on 
reaching manhood he engaged in cattle drov- 
ing and as a general farmer. He married 
Polly Palmer, and to them were born eight 
children: Egbert, Levina, Hebern, Abbie, 
Maria, Palmer, Emeline and Ann. 

Jackson S. Wing, grandson of the gentle- 
man whose name introduces this sketch, was 
born May 23, 1858, reared on the farm, and 
educated at the common schools, also at Ame- 
nia seminary. At the age of sixteen he com- 
menced working in a store at Wings Station, 
where his present place of business is, and for 
five years clerked there, during the winters at- 
tending school. In 1880 he took an interest 
in the mercantile firm of Chapman & Wing, 
which continued three years, at the end of 
which time Mr. Wing sold out his interest, and 
then clerked a short time in Poughkeepsie; 
but owing to impaired health he had to aban- 
don work for a time. On February 15, 1882, 
.he married Miss Mary O. Straight, who was 
born in the town of Kent, Litchfield Co., 
Conn., and was educated in Amenia Semi- 
nary, and in 1893 one daughter, Winifred 
Straight, was born to them. In 1887 he was 
appointed mail agent on the run between New 
York and Chatham, in which capacity he re- 
mained some eighteen months, in 1890 estab- 
lishing his present extensive mercantile busi- 
ness at Wings Station. In politics he was 
originally a Democrat, but for some years back 
he has voted the Prohibition ticket; he is at 
present serving his second term as postmaster 
at Wings Station, and was town clerk one 
term. In religious faith he is a member of the 
M. E. Church. Mr. Wing has traveled 
throughout the United States considerably, 
and is a man of good solid information. 

Henry Straight, the great-grandfather of 
Mrs. J. S. Wing, went from Rhode Island to 
Litchfield county, Conn., locating first in the 
town of New Milford, and later in the town of 
Kent, where he followed his occupation of 
farming! He was three times married, his 
first union being with Miss Peet, and to them 
were born four children: Catharine, Polly, 
Sarah and Hannah. He next wedded Mrs. 
Terrel, a widow lady who had two daughters. 
and to them was born a son, Augustus. After 
the death of the second wife he married Mrs. 
Martha Hendricks. 

Henry Augustus Straight, the grandfather, 
was born in the town of New Milford, Litch- 
field Co., Conn., was there educated in the 



common schools, and engaged in farming. He 
was a prominent member of the Friends 
Church, as was also his wife, taking an active 
part in their services at the old Branch meet- 
ing house at South Dover, Dutchess county. 
He married Miss Abigail Sherwood, of New 
Milford, Conn., by whom he had four chil- 
dren. 

(1) Marshall Straight, who was born in 
1 8 16, in Kent, Litchfield Co., Conn., followed 
farming, and for his first wife wedded Mary 
Buckingham, by whom he has four children: 
Carl, who was killed in the army; Alice, who 
became the wife of Theodore Wickwire; and 
Fred and Orin, the former of whom married 
Emma Beech. After the death of the mother 
of these children, Marshall Straight married 
Miss Asenith Wilbur, and after the latter 
passed away he married her sister. Miss Han- 
nah Wilbur. His fourth wife bore the maiden 
name of Sophia Terrel, and after her death he 
married Miss Josephine Wakeman. 

(2) Olive Straight, who was born in Kent, 
Conn., in 18 19, became the wife of William 
D. Hoag, a farmer of Quaker Hill, Dutchess 
county, and they had three children: Mary 
E., who remained single; Ira, who married 
Sarah Hoag, and Aurelia, who married Ed- 
mund Post. 

(3) Henry Straight was born in Kent, July 
4, 1825, was educated in the common schools, 
and also followed farming. He married Miss 
Roccelanie Peet, daughter of Riley and Sarah 
Peet, agriculturists of the town of New Mil- 
ford, Litchfield Co., Conn. Three daughters 
were born of this union: Helen S., who re- 
mained single; Augusta, who married Seymour 
Woolsey; and Abbie, who married Chester 
Wittlesey. 

(4) John Straight, the father of Mrs. J. S. 
Wing, was born in the town of Kent, Litch- 
field county, in October, 1831, and like the 
rest of the family received a common-school 
education, and engaged in agricultural pur- 
suits. By birthright he was a member of the 
Society of Friends, was a Republican in poli- 
tics, and held a number of township offices. 
He married Miss Rachel A. Peet, a daughter 
of Riley and Sarah Peet, of New Milford, 
Conn., and to them were born three children: 
Flora A., who was born in Kent town, in 1856, 
and married John R. Judd, a farmer of that 
township; Mary O., who was born in i860, 
and is now the wife of. Jackson S. Wing; and 
and Walter A., an agriculturist, who was born 



342 



COMMEytORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in 1S65, in Kent town, and married Miss Min- 
nie Sheldon, daughter of William and Frances 
(^Ward) Sheldon, farming people of South Do- 
ver, Dutchess county. Walter Straight and 
his wife have two children: Walter A., born 
in 1SS6, and Mae B., born in 1S8S. 

On the maternal side, Nfrs. Jackson S. 
Wing traces her ancestry back to three broth- 
ers who came to this country from England — 
Samuel, John and William Peet. The first 
named was her ancestor. Her great-grand- 
father, who bore the same name, was born and 
educated in Connecticut, where he engaged in 
farming, and married Miss Luc\' Bostwick. by 
whom he had six children: Ebenezer, who 
married a Miss Beacher; Samuel: Luna, who 
married Anson Sperry; Elijah, who remained 
single; Ryley: and Carlos, who died when 
young. 

Ryley Peet, the grandfather, was born at 
New ^filford, Conn., in 1787, was there edu- 
cated-, and also followed farming as a lifework. 
A strong Democrat, he served in the Legisla- 
ture of his native State for one term. He 
married ifiss Sarah Terrill, daughter of James 
and Sarah Terrill, agriculturists of New Mil- 
ford, and to them were born eight children: 
(i) Luna ^^., who married Abel Bristol, has 
two children — Andrew, who married Hannah 
Camp; and Eleanor P., who first became the 
wife of ^^r. Woodhull, and after his death 
married Rufus Leavitt. (2) Sarah F. is the 
wife of Horace Merwin, and had five children 
— Carlos F.. who married .Alice Monroe; Gar- 
wood, who died in the army; Sarah, wife of 
Daniel Nfarsh; Orange, who married Mary 
Beach; and Florence C, wife of Henrj- Lemon. 
(3) Lucy A. married Anan Marsh, and has one 
child — Alice G., who married Walter B. Bost- 
wick. (4y Roccelanie, as before stated, mar- 
ried Henry Straight. (5) Samuel R. married 
Laura Tompkins, and has four children — Ed- 
gar A., who wedded Hattie Squires; Don C. , 
who married Urania Buckingham; Adelaide, 
who never married; and Sarah, who married 
Charles Tabor. (6) Rachel A. married John 
Straight, and is the mother of Mrs. J.S. Wing. 
(7) ilary A. wedded Benone Camp, and has 
one daughter— Nfary, who became the wife of 
Franklin Gibson. (8) Lehman H. married 
Justina Howland, and had four children — ^^er- 
ritt, who married Cadelia Lake; Garwood, who 
married Maude Bixbee; Hattie, who married 
Walter Hatch; and Ralph, who wedded Mary 
Newton. 



ENOS J. CHASE (deceased). Among the 
influential citizens in his day. in the town 

of Pine Plains, Dutchess county, and one of its 
most prosperous and successful business men 
was this gentleman. He was entirely a self- 
ade man in the truest sense of the word, hav- 
ing been the architect of his own fortune, and 
for thirty-three years he was at the head of a 
large general mercantile store in Pine Plains, 
which grew from a very humble origin. 

Mr. Chase was born at Hibernij, Dutchess 
county. May 22, 1840, and was of German de- 
scent. His father. Edward Chase, was a mil- 
ler by occupation, and at one time was quite 
prosperous, but later in life lost all. He mar- 
ried Sarah Ann Carhart, and to them were 
born three children: Enos J. ; Thomas H., of 
the town of Stanford, Dutchess county: and 
Sarah, wife of Isaac Butler, who is from Mora- 
via. The father's death occurred at Bangall, 
Dutchess county, in July, 1874. Our subject 
received excellent educational advantages for 
those early days, having attended the public 
schools at Bangall, also the Nine Partners 
school near Hibernia, and became a well-in- 
formed man. On starting out in life for him- 
self he commenced as clerk for Elias August, 
with whom he remained for one year, and in 
1863 began business for himself in the store 
which he occupied some thirty-three years. 
At first, as his capital was quite limited, he 
carried a small stock of drugs and groceries; 
but he kept adding thereto until he became 
the proprietor of a large general mercantile es- 
tablishment. For about three years, during 
the early seventies, he had a partner; but with 
that exception he carried on business alone for 
thirty-thfee years with most gratifying results. 
He was a man of even temperament and ex- 
cellent judgjnent, and these, together with in- 
domitable energy and laudable ambition, 
brought him success. As he had concentrated 
his whole attention upon his business, he had 
little time to devote to politics, aside from 
casting his ballot in support of the Democratic 
party, and he always refused to accept public 
office. He was reared amid the Society of 
Friends, and grew up to be a man of high 
moral standard. For several j-ears he served 
as treasurer of the Presbyterian Church at Pine 
Plains. 

In 1866, Mr. Chase was united in marriage 
with Miss Augusta Ham, daughter of Freder- 
ick T. Ham, and to them were born three 
children: Frederick H., who is in charge of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



343 



the store; Jennie; and Frank Edward, also in 
the store. Mr. Chase died February 22, 
1893. 

The Ham family was one of the oldest in 
Pine Plains. Peter F. Ham, the grandfather 
of Mrs. Chase, was a large land owner in the 
western part of the township. He married 
Catherine Trumpour, who died October 8, 
1S48, and his death occurred in 1865. Their 
only child, Frederick T. Ham, was a farmer 
in his earlier days, about 1846 removing to 
Pittsfield, Mass., where he engaged in mer- 
chandising tor two years. Until 1867 he carried 
on farming, but in that year went to Rhine- 
beck, Dutchess county, where he was indirect- 
ly interested in business for a short time. 
Going south in 1S71, he located upon a large 
plantation in Georgia, and was there engaged 
in cotton raising until his death in 1879. He 
had married Susannah Fulton, daughter of 
Ephraim Fulton, and their family consisted of 
four children: Fulton P., who died in 1874; 
Sarah A., wife of W. B. Vibbert, of Pine 
Plains; Augusta, Mrs. Chase; and Newton, 
who is living upon the plantation in Georgia. 
The mother's death occurred in 1881. 



JONATHAN M. GARRATT (or Jonathan 
Miller Garrett) is a native of Albany county, 

N. Y.,born at ^^'esterlo, January 21, 1821, 
and is a son of Levi Garratt, whose birth oc- 
curred in the town of New Baltimore, Greene 
Co., N. Y. His great-grandfather was a farmer 
of Saratoga county, N. Y., and by his mar- 
riage with a Miss Potter, of Bristol, R. I., had 
a family of sixteen children — ten sons and six 
daughters. Two of the sons located in Prince 
Edward county, Canada, two in Maryland and 
Virginia, two in Saratoga county, N. Y., two 
in Greene county, N. Y. , and one in Maine, 
while one died in youth. The sisters married 
and settled in Greene, Albany and Columbia 
counties. 

Simeon Garratt, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born in Saratoga county, where 
he was reared, and married Lois Curtis, but 
later became a resident of Greene county, 
there following farming until his death, which 
occurred when he was ninety-four years old. 
His family included six children, as follows: 
Levi fthe father of our subject). Potter, Fet- 
ter, Samuel and Elim, all agriculturists, and 
Zada, who married Daniel Gregory, a black- 
smith. 



Levi Garratt married Lydia Miller, also a 
native of Greene county, daughter of Jona- 
than and Lydia (McCabe) Miller. Her father 
was born in Putnam county, N. Y. , of English 
descent, where he learned the tanner's trade; 
but after his marriage he drove with a double 
team from his native count}' to Greene county, 
becoming one of its pioneer settlers, and in 
the midst of the wilderness took up 600 acres of 
land, where he ever afterward made his home, 
dying at the age of seventy-five, his wife when 
ninety-six years old. He was the father of 
eight children: Mathew, a farmer of Saratoga 
county ; Jonathan, Jesse and Sherod, agricultur- 
ists of Greene county (the last mentioned mar- 
ried a Miss Garratt, and had two children); 
Hannah, wife of Ephraim Garratt, a farmer of 
Albany county; Sarah, who married a Mr. 
Greene, of Greene county; Lydia, the mother 
of our subject, and Rhoda, wife of Rev. Levi 
Hathaway, a minister of the Christian Church, 
and a man of great power and energj'. 

Shortly after their marriage the parents of 
our subject removed to Albany count}-, N. Y., 
where they located on a farm. Eleven chil- 
dren were born to them: Elmina. the eldest, 
married Ab. Seaman, a farmer of Albany 
county; the twin of Elmina died in infancy; 
Roxey Ann married Thomas C. Seaman, a 
stone dealer; Edward W. married Miss Bedell, 
and was a farmer of Greene county; Jonathan 
M. is the next child; Simeon C. married Miss 
Fish, and is a farmer of Ulster county, N. Y. ; 
Rhoda wedded George Lee Shear, a farmer of 
Albany county; Caroline became the wife of 
Albert Bedell, also a farmer of Greene county; 
Lydia M. married Smith Powell, a farmer of 
Greene county; Alzada married Albert Holen- 
beck, a carpenter and builder of Coxsackie, 
Greene Co., N. Y.; and one child died in in- 
fancy. The parents were conscientious, ear- 
nest Christians, and in politics the father was a 
Democrat. His death occurred in 1885, when 
he was aged about ninety-eight years; the 
mother died October 2, 1866, aged seventy- 
five years. 

On the home farm in Albany county Mr. 
Garratt, the subject proper of this review, 
passed his early life, and he followed teaching 
in the winter seasons for ten years, his summer 
months being devoted to agriculture. During 
the following seven years he was engaged in 
the cultivation of a farm of 200 acres; but in 
the spring of 1867 he came to Poughkeepsie, 
and formed a partnership with Thomas C. 



344 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



Seaman, his brother-in-law, in the stone busi- 
ness, which connection lasted about fifteen 
3'ears. 

On September 3, 1873, Mr. Garratt mar- 
ried Mrs. Lydia G. Doty {lu'e Smith), of 
Poughkeepsie, a widow lady, and is a native of 
Dutchess county. Mr. Garratt is identified 
with the Democratic party, and, though past 
his three-score years and ten ( seventy-six), is 
still well-preserved, both mentally and physic- 
ally. He is an intelligent, well-informed man, 
possessed of sound common sense, and has the 
respect and confidence of all who know him. 
Mr. Garratt, after losing his wife, who died 
February 22, 1896, bought a farm in the town 
of Lloyd, Ulster Co., N. Y. , to assist his 
brother and sister (Simeon and Lydia) in their 
financial difficulty, with whom he is making 
his home, post office address: Highland, Ulster 
Co., N. Y. The family naine was originally 
Garratt, but is now usually spelled Garrett. 



SHELDON \\'ING, a prominent and pro- 
,_ gressive agriculturist and stock dealer of 
Dutchess county, and the only living son of 
Ebbe P. Wing, of the town of Dover, was born 
December 10, 1833, in Manchester, a village 
of the town of Lagrange, Dutchess county. 

Mr. Wing received a liberal education at 
the district schools of the neighborhood of his 
boyhood home, subsequently taking two terms 
at a Quaker boarding school. After he was 
fourteen years of age he worked on a farm 
during the summer, and when he was twenty- 
one he commenced for his own account on his 
present farm, which at that time comprised 
270 acres, and so continued eight years. In 
1855 he paid a four-months' visit to Ohio and 
Iowa, and in February, 1861, he gave up farm- 
ing, and proceeding once more to the latter 
State embarked in the stock business, buying 
cattle and hogs and shipping same to Chicago 
and New York. This line of trade he prose- 
cuted with great success some four years, or 
until 1S65, when, owing to the sickness of his 
brother Edgar, he returned to the town of 
Dover, and was induced by his father to re- 
main, although he was strongly inclined to go 
back to Iowa. He has since conducted the 
old homestead, which now comprises about 
600 acres of prime land, whereon he keeps 
1 10 cows, shipping the milk to New York, be- 
sides engaging in general farming, and he has 
also done a considerable amount of commis- 



sion business in that city — buying and ship- 
ping all kinds of produce; and during the thirty 
years has paid several more business visits to 
the West. Of the many well-to-do-farmers of 
Dutchess count}-, he is among the most pros- 
perous and influential, active and enterprising, 
and highl}- respected for his straightforward 
dealings and uniform integrity. In politics he 
is a Democrat, and has been urged many times 
by his friends to stand for office, but on ac- 
count of his business interests has invariably 
declined; he was nominated for sheriff in the 
fall of 1894, refusing to run, however, and he 
has served as supervisor of the town of Dover 
two terms. Socially, he is a member of the 
F. & A. M., No. 666, Dover Plains. 

On October 21, 1856, Mr. Wing was mar- 
ried to Miss Jane L. Chapman, who was born 
in 1837 at Dover Plains, Dutchess county, the 
only daughter of Reuben W. and Murilla (Ward) 
Chapman, by which union there were two chil- 
dren: Jackson S. (mention of whom is made 
in the sketch of Ebbe P. Wing), and Anna F. 
(who resides at home). 

Reuben W. Chapman, father of Mrs. Wing, 
and a farmer and carpenter by occupation, was 
born in the town of Dover, Dutchess county, 
December 28, 1798, a son of William and Ra- 
chel Chapman. On September 28, 1S26, 
Reuben W. married Murilla Ward, and they 
had four children — three sons and one daugh- 
ter: (i)Higham W., a merchant, born January 
9, 1829, married Cordelia Sheldon January 9, 
185 1, and died January 16,1882; he had three 
children — George T., William T., and Allie, 
who married William Arnold. (2) George 
W., born May 9, 1833, married Sabina Haff, 
February 7, 1 866, of which union there are 
two daughters living — Ella L. and Adelaide; 
the father died July 15, 1885, and the mother 
is also deceased. (3) Mrs. Wing comes next. 
(4) Homer W., born November 23, 1843, 
married Phcebe Brown on October 13, 1869, 
and they have two children — Cora (now Mrs. 
Richard Brill) and Edna (at home). Reuben 
W. Chapman died July 27, 1859: his wife, 
Murilla, born July 4, 1S07, died December 
30, 1873. 



GEORGE STORM (deceased). As an ex- 
tensive land owner and successful agricult- 
urist, the subject of this memoir held a prom- 
inent place among the business men of the 
town of East Fishkill, Dutchess countv. But 




j0^u!.^^ji/.£/^ yy^cMo 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



345 



in the estimate of his character, his abihty in 
financial affairs counts far less than the quali- 
ties which as an upright and public-spirited 
citizen identified him with the high interests of 
the community. 

The Storm family is widely dispersed, yet 
the different branches can all trace connection. 
Mr. Storm's parents, Charles and Mary (Adri- 
ance) Storm, were both natives of the town of 
East Fishkill, and his mother was born in the 
house which is now occupied by the family. 
They had children as follows: Susan, the 
widow of William P. Storm, formerly a tea 
merchant in New York City; John, a farmer in 
East Fishkill, Dutchess county; George, our 
subject; Charles (deceased;, formerly a farmer 
in East Fishkill. 

George Storm was born August 1 1, 1839, at 
the present homestead, and passed his entire 
life there. On September 23, 1868, he mar- 
ried, for his first wife, Miss Emma Haight, of 
Westchester county, who bore him four chil- 
dren: Mary (i), Henrietta, Maria H., and 
Mary (2); of whom, Maria H., now at home, 
is the only survivor, the others dying in early 
youth. The mother passed away March 11, 
1880, and on October 10, 1883, Mr. Storm 
married her sister, Carrie Haight, a native of 
Westchester county. She is the daughter of 
the late Epenetus Haight, a well-known farmer, 
and granddaughter of Daniel Haight. Her 
mother, whose maiden name was Maria Hunt, 
was a daughter of William Hunt, and a de- 
scendant of an old English family. No chil- 
dren were born of the second marriage. 

Mr. Storm owned about 430 acres of land, 
from which he raised a variety of crops. The 
home is a beautiful one, and the estate very 
valuable. Politically, he was a Republican, and, 
while he was not a politician, he took great inter- 
est in all public questions. He was actively help- 
ful in religious and philanthropic movements, 
and he and his wife were leading members 
of the Reformed Church. His death oc- 
curred November 4, 1893, and in his taking 
away a loss was felt throughout a wide circle 
of friends, to whom his quiet but steadfast 
Christian character had endeared him. 



'ILLIAM J. MERWIN (deceased) was 
descended from an old Connecticut 
family. His grandfather, Capt. John Merwin, 
was born and reared in that State, and became 
a prominent agriculturist at New Milford (now 



1 8 16. Capt. 

his first mar- 



Bridgewater). His first wife, Mercy, was born 
in 1706, and died November 7, 1776. On 
December 31, 1777, he married Mrs. Ruth 
Welsh, a widow, who was a member of the 
well-known Gaylord family, of Gaylord's 
Bridge. She died March 16, 
Merwin had seven children by 
riage, and si.x by his second. 

Daniel Merwin, our subject's father, was 
born March 28, 1788, at the old home at 
Bridgewater, and was educated in the local 
schools. He followed agricultural pursuits 
there throughout his active business life. On 
November 22, 181 5, he married Miss Amy 
Peck, who was born in 1799, the daughter of 
Andrew Peck, of Newton, Conn., and they 
had eight children, as follows: (i) Ruth, 
born April 7, 1S17, was married four times. 
(2) John H., born September 7, 1S21, married 
(first) Miss Julia Buckley, and (second) Mrs. 
Elizabeth Starr, but had no children. (3) 
Sarah, born June 3, 1823, married (first) Oli- 
ver Smith, and had children — Fred, Ella, 
Josephine, Almon (who married Delia Rug- 
gles), Cornelius, William and Ida; she married 
(second) Clover Sanford, a man of wealth and 
prominence, of Bridgeport, Conn., a manu- 
facturer of hats. (4) Daniel G., born Novem- 
ber 28, 1825, married Miss Susan Atwood, and 
they had three daughters — Emma, Alma and 
Nellie. (5) George A., born May 20, 1828, 
married Miss Charlotte Tompkins, and had 
three children — Homer, Florence and Frank. 
(6) Frederick S., born October 2, 1830, mar- 
ried Miss Lucy J. Carter, and is proprietor of 
a hardware establishment in Pawling. (7) 
William J., our subject, conies next in order 
of birth, and will be more fully spoken of 
presently. (8) Harriet O., born November 
12, 1834, married Charles S. Trowbridge, a 
paper-box manufacturer of South Norwalk, 
Conn. ; they have three children — George, 
Flora and Nellie. 

William J. Merwin was born in ISridge- 
water, Conn., November 3, 1833, and attend- 
ed the schools of his native town until he was 
about sixteen years old. He possessed good 
literary taste, and was always fond of substan- 
tial reading, history being his favorite study. 
Soon after leaving school he went to Savannah, 
Ga., and engaged in mercantile business for 
for some years, later removing to Barcelona, 
Spain, for his health, where he spent one yeaf. 
After his return to Connecticut, he again went 
to Savannah, as clerk in a large dry-goods 



34(3 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



house; but the outbreak of the Civil war caused 
him to come north again, his sympathies being 
with the Union cause. In i860 he located at 
Pawling, purchasing an interest in the firm of 
J. W. Stark & Co., dealers in dry goods and 
groceries, Mr. Merwin and Mr. Wilde being 
the junior members. Later, Mr. Holmes 
bought Mr. Wilde's interest, and on the dis- 
posal of the Stark interest some time afterward, 
the firm became Merwin & Holmes. This was 
one of the largest establishments of the kind in 
that part of the county, and its success was 
due in a large measure to Mr. Merwin's efforts. 
His genial nature, even temper and gentle- 
manl\- manner, made for him many friends, 
and he held a gift for dealing with the public 
which served him well on many occasions. He 
was much interested in thesuccess of Republic- 
an principles, and took an active part in local 
politics. Previous to 1884 he held the office 
of postmaster at Pawling for a number of years, 
and wassupervisor-of the town also, for several 
terms. As treasurer of the Pawling Savings 
Bank from its organization, in 1871, until his 
death, 1892, he was the responsible official of 
the institution, and it was largely through his 
instrumentality that it gained its present high 
reputation. In early years he was an Episco- 
palian, but there being no Church of that de- 
nomination in Pawling, he united with the 
Methodist Episcopal Church in later life. So- 
cially he was affiliated with the Masonic fra- 
ternity. A self-made man, his experiences 
have served to broaden his natural sympathy 
for the unfortunate, and by his counsel and as- 
sistance helped many a deserving person to 
prosperity. Mr. Merwin married Miss Eliza- 
beth Mitchell Campbell Van De liurgh, daugh- 
ter of Hexton Van De Burgh, and had one son, 
William J., who is now a student in ^^'esleyan 
University. 

Hkxtox V.an De Bukgh, born in 181 5, 
was a merchant in Pawling and Beekman, 
later a farmer, and was always interested in 
public affairs. He was a son of Gen. George 
Van De Burgh, who was an officer in the war 
of 18 12, and was one of the prominent men 
of the county. He was a brother of Dr. Van 
De Burgh, of Rhinebeck, a noted homeopathic 
physician. Hexton Van De Burgh married 
Catharine R. Campbell, daughter of Archibald 
and Elizabeth (Mitchell) Campbell, and grand- 
daughter of Archibald Campbell, the first of 
that family to come to America. He came 
over here as an officer in the English army. 



and was killed at the skirmish of White Plains 
on the night before the battle. He lived here 
as an officer, and was granted a large tract of 
land in Putnam and Dutchess counties, N. Y. 
Col. Archibald Campbell married Jane Mon- 
roe, and had three children: Archibald; Dun- 
can, born in 1767, who was a surgeon in the 
English army in the West Indies; and Mary, 
who was born in 1776, and never married. 
Archibald Campbell was born in the year 1769, 
near the depot in what is now the town of 
Pawling, and as a son of an officer in the En- 
glish army he was taken to England to be 
educated; but after a few years, becoming tired 
of that country, he returned to America with 
a cargo of merchandise. About 1791 he en- 
gaged in mercantile business at what is now 
Pawling, and was thus employed for some 
years. He then bought the home on which 
Irving Hurd, his grandson, now lives, and kept 
adding to his landed possessions until he had 
about one thousand acres. He was a man of 
strong character, great executive ability and 
fine mental gifts, and was much consulted as 
an arbitrator. He was one of the foremost 
men of the M. E. Church. As a Jacksonian 
Democrat, he was somewhat prominent in lo- 
cal politics, and, taken all in all, he was a 
unique character. He married Elizabeth 
Mitchell, daughter of Thomas Mitchell, and 
had children as follows: Archibald, born in 
'793; Jsn6 married Rev. Cyrus Foss, and had 
three sons who were ministers, one being 
Bishop Foss, of Philadelphia: Eliza married 
Daniel Calhoun, a merchant; Mary married 
Benjamin Hurd; Stacia married Cushion Green; 
Duncan C. was the father of Henry Campbell; 
Sarah married Samuel Merrick; Harriet mar- 
ried (first) Dr. Fowler, and (second) Rev. John 
Pierpont, of Boston, the well-known poet and 
preacher, and grandfather of J. Pierpont Mor- 
gan; Thomas C, a lavvj'er in New York, mar- 
ried Cordelia Noxon, of Beekman. Archibald 
Campbell died in 1847, his widow on January 
27, 1858. 



JOHN H. VAN KLEECK, one of the lead- 
ing insurance men of Poughkeepsie, Dutch- 
ess county, was there born December 27, 
1837, and is a son of George M. and Eliza 
(Wilson) Van Kleeck, the former also a native 
of Poughkeepsie, and the latter of England. 
The Van Kleeck family was founded in this 
country by Holland emigrants who located in 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHIOAL RECORD. 



347 



the Empire State, and in Poughkeepsie John 
M. Van Kleeck, the grandfather of our subject, 
was born and reared. As a life work he fol- 
lowed freighting on the Hudson. In his fam- 
ily were the following children: Robert M., 
who was a farmer iu the town of Fishkill, 
Dutchess county; George M., the father of our 
subject; Edgar M., a dry -goods merchant of 
Poughkeepsie, who early went to California, 
but returned to that city, where he died; and 
Hester F., who died unmarried. 

The entire life of the father was spent in 
Poughkeepsie, where for many years he en- 
gaged in the dry-goods business. Our subject 
is the eldest in his family of four children, the 
others being: Robert (now deceased), who was 
teller in the Savings Bank of Poughkeepsie; 
Richard, who is now a resident of California; 
and Hester M., the wife of Jacob V. Overock- 
er, who carried on farming near Poughkeepsie. 
The parents were both communicants of the 
Episcopal Church, and in politics the father 
was first a Whig and later a Republican. He 
departed this life in 1884, his wife in 1892, 
respected and esteemed by all who knew them. 

The boyhood days of John H. Van Kleeck 
were spent in Poughkeepsie, where he attended 
private schools, and after finishing his educa- 
tion he entered his father's dry-goods store as 
a clerk. He there remained from the age of 
fifteen until forty-five, being for some time a 
partner; but in 1879 they disposed of their 
stock, and entered into the fire-insurance busi- 
ness under the name of George M. Van Kleeck 
& Son, which they carried on until the death 
of Geo. M. Van Kleeck, since which our sub- 
ject has continued it. Their first office was 
on Market street, whence they removed to the 
Savings Bank building, and later to the present 
place on Garden street. 

In politics, Mr. Van Kleeck is a Republican, 
supporting the men and measures of that party, 
and religiously is connected with the Episcopal 
Church. He leads a moral, honest and upright 
life, and as a result has won the respect and 
esteem of the community in which he lives. 



:ON. JAMES ADDIS SEWARD (de- 
1 ceased). Few among the able sons of 
Dutchess county have displayed the versatile 
talents and business acumen which character- 
ized the subject of this memohr. In politics 
and finance he was a leader, and his influence 
in social, religious and educational affairs was 



no less pronounced. His family was among 
the oldest of New England, the head of this 
branch having come from England in 1638. 
His grandfather, William Seward, was born in 
Guilford, Conn., but settled in Dutchess 
county, town of Fishkill (now Wappingeri, 
where his son. Philander, our subject's father, 
was born. Philander Seward was a prominent 
farmer and mill owner at New Hackensack, 
where he died in 1853. He married Susan 
Montfort, by whom he had si.\ children : Will- 
iam H. was drowned in Te.xas in early man- 
hood; P. George, an enterprising young busi- 
ness man, who conducted grist and saw mills 
in his native town, died at an early age; Mau- 
rice Dwight will be fully spoken of presently; 
Caroline A. died at fourteen; James A. is our 
subject; Ogden T. was a banker at Elgin, 
111., and died at the age of thirty-four. 

Maurice Dwight Seward was born October 
lO, 1830, at New Hackensack, N. Y. , where, 
in June, 1854, he married Mary Marvin, and 
in September of that year he moved to Elgin, 
111., where he engaged in the agricultural-im- 
plement business. His health failing, he, in 
1857, removed to Rosemond, 111., where he 
lived on a fruit farm until the latter part 
of 1865. In the spring of 1866 he removed 
to Normal, that State, where he engaged (first) 
in a general merchandise business, and (after- 
ward) in a loan and real-estate business. In 
1 87 1 he was one of the originators and organ- 
izers of the company known as the Blooming- 
ton Stove Co., Bloomington, 111., in which 
business he remained until his death, October 
27, 1876. In his position as superintendent 
of sales of the company, and also as inventor 
of a number of stoves and furnaces, he placed 
the company in the fore ranks with their com- 
petitors. During all his life he was interested 
in Church work, being an organizer of several 
of the Churches of which he was a member, 
and latterly was quite prominent in the Second 
Presbyterian Church, Bloomington, 111. He 
was held in high regard by his business asso- 
ciates, and by those with whom he had busi- 
ness dealings, for his strict integrity and busi- 
ness qualities. His home life was an unusu- 
ally happy one; he was of gentle manners, and 
his thoughtfulness for others made him greatly 
looked up to and revered, not only by his 
family, but by all with whom he came in con- 
tact. 

James A. Seward, the subject proper of 
this memoir, was born in New Hackensack, 



848 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



January 3, 1836, and acquired his education 
in part at the neighboring district schools, in 
part at those of the viihige of Fishkill. At 
seventeen he went to New York City and spent 
two years as clerk in a cloth-importing house. 
He then visited Illinois, and was engaged in 
photography at Elgin, but after a short time 
returned east. On October 12, 1858, he 
married Miss Mary B. Piatt, a native of the 
town of Wappinger. Three brothers by the 
name of Piatt came to this State from Con- 
necticut at an early period, of whom one set- 
tled at Plattsburg, and one, Zephania Piatt 
(Mrs. Seward's grandfather), located in Dutch- 
ess county, in the town of Wappinger, where 
her father, Hervey D. Piatt, was born. He 
was a \\'hig in politics, and a member of the 
Reformed Dutch Church. He married Miss 
Phctbe F. Cary, a member of one of the old- 
est families in the town of Beekman, and made 
his home upon a farm in his native town, 
where he died in 1877, and his wife in 1862. 
Mrs. Seward was the eldest of three children. 
The others, Ebenezer C. and Elizabeth R., 
are both deceased. After their marriage Mr. 
and Mrs. Seward lived for two years on a 
farm at East Mills, Dutchess county, and then 
moved to Poughkeepsie, where Mr. Seward 
was interested in various business enterprises. 
He was also for a time engaged in the manu- 
facture of carriages in Baltimore, Md. Later 
was in the furniture business at Poughkeepsie 
and New York City; but he finally returned to 
his native town, where his death occurred Mav 
I, 1892. A man of great public spirit and 
wide sympathies, he entered heartily into all 
movements in which he saw good. He and 
his wife contributed liberall)' to the Reformed 
Dutch Church, and his interest in religious 
work, as well as in educational movements, was 
shown in many ways. He was active in the 
Masonic fraternity, and in the Republican 
party, holding several prominent offices at 
various times, including two terms as Assem- 
blyman from the First District of Dutchess 
county. He was also the first supervisor of 
the town of Wappinger, serving in that capacity 
for two consecutive terms. 

Mr. and Mrs. Seward had three children: 
Irving P. died at the age of eight years; Carrie 
A. married John C. Kingman, of Cedar Falls, 
Iowa, and died at the age of twenty-nine, 
leaving one child, Arthur S. Kingman; and 
Sarah S., the wife of Robert Johnston. The 
family has always occupied a high position 



socially, and their home at New Hackensack 
is one in which cultured tastes and wealth 
combine to make it charming. 



COL. SAMUEL LEITH. To a patriotic 
_ American there can be no badge of honor 
equal in merit to a title won by gallant service 
in the field of battle for the cause of freedom 
and union. The subject of this sketch, now 
a prominent resident of Matteawan, Dutchess 
county, enjoys this distinction, and though of 
foreign birth has demonstrated his devotion to 
his adopted country in bloody combat, in toil- 
some marches, in the camp, and in the loath- 
some prisons of the South, in which so inanj' 
brave souls found death a welcome relief from 
intolerable suffering. 

The many friends of Col. Leith will be glad 
to find a permanent record made of a life so well 
worthy of emulation. He was born August 
22, 1839, in Dumfriesshire, Scotland, but his 
family has long been identified with Leith, one 
of the oldest cities in Scotland, his ancestry 
being traced back lo about 1200 A. D. His 
grandfather, Andrew Leith, was a butcher by 
trade, and in fact that occupation seems to 
have been hereditary in the family. Andrew 
Leith married a ^Iiss MacGregor, and had 
seven children; James, David, Andrew, John, 
Samuel, Walter and Margaret, none of whom 
came to America. David Leith, our subject's 
father, was born in Leith, Scotland, and dur- 
ing his active business career was a butcher 
and drover, his trade in the latter line extend- 
ing into England and Ireland, where much of 
his buying was done. He was killed by acci- 
dent, in 1840, while traveling on a mail coach. 
His wife, Margaret (McMaster), who like him- 
self was a devout Presbyterian, had passed 
away the previous year. Six children were 
born to them, of w^hom our subject was the 
only one to settle in America: David died in 
Scotland; Andrew, a retired butcher and 
drover, is living in the old country; John died 
there; Margaret married James McKnight, a 
celebrated artist in Edinburgh, Scotland, but 
neither is now living; Elizabeth (deceased) 
never married. 

Col. Leith's boyhood was spent in his na- 
tive land until the age of eleven years. He 
was trained to habits of industry, and while 
attending school would spend some time before 
and after the daily sessions in driving a butch- 
er's cart. In 1850 he started from Liverpool 





^^7^7, 




!-£> 




^-^/O 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



349 



on the saiiinf( vessel, " William Nelson," for 
the New World, and on landing in New York 
worked at such emploj-ment as he could find. 
He drove a butcher's wagon for a time, and 
then, after a short service in a tin shop, was 
employed by Julius Closs in the wholesale 
butchering business until 1858, when he located 
at Fishkill Landing, and established a butcher 
shop. The breaking out of the Civil war found 
him eager to defend the Union, and at Fish- 
kill he recruited Company C, i8th N. Y. V. I., 
becoming lieutenant April 23, 1861. There 
being no time to wait for " red tape " in those 
perilous days, he paid the railroad fare of his 
company to Albany in order to get them to the 
front at once. For this generous expenditure 
he was re-imbursed seventeen years later, 
through the efforts of Hon. James Mackin. 
From Albany they went to Virginia, via Wash- 
ington, and they took part in the battle of 
Manassas Junction. The regiment then re- 
turned to Alexandria for drill, and in the 
spring of 1862 participated in the seven-days' 
fight on the peninsula near Richmond. About 
this time Col. Leith, on account of not receiv- 
ing the promotion he felt he was entitled to, 
resigned his position, and returning to the 
North helped to raise a new company in New 
York and Brooklyn, known as Company H, 
I32d N. Y. V. I. On this he held the rank of 
first sergeant, and after passing an officer's ex- 
amination he was made orderly sergeant. 
This regiment took part in the battle of An- 
tietam, and our subject's gallantry won him 
a promotion to the rank of second lieu- 
tenant. After the battle of Blackwater, Va. , 
he was made first lieutenant, and soon after 
his regiment was ordered to rejoin the army of 
the Potomac for the campaign through Penn- 
sylvania and Maryland. He was in the battle 
of Gettysburg during the first three days of 
July, 1863, and was wounded there. On being 
granted a thirty-days' furlough he came home, 
and on his return to his regiment was promoted 
to captain. Not having fully recovered from 
his injuries, he could not safely resume active 
work in the field, and he served six weeks as 
provost marshal of Newbern, N. C. , before 
taking charge of his company, which was then 
in that State. From there he was ordered to 
Washington for an examination, which he 
passed with honors, and he was then commis- 
sioned colonel of the 49th U. S. Colored Troops; 
but preferring to remain with his old comrades, 
he did not take the position. After his return 



to his regiment he saw much active service in 
the battles of Kington, Woodbury, Whitehall 
and Goldsboro, and in the running fight known 
as the Tarboro and Newbern raid, his conduct 
on the field winning him new honors, he being 
promoted to the rank of major. At the battle 
of Bachelor's Creek, February i, 1864, he was 
wounded and captured, and then began what 
was for him the hardest experiences of his long 
service. He was incarcerated in Libby Prison 
until Grant had fought the battle of the Wil- 
derness, when Major Leith was transferred, 
with other prisoners, to Danville, Va., and 
later to Greensboro, N. C, and Macon, Ga., 
where they were kept in a stockade. While 
there a money broker from the South bought 
from Mr. Leith a note on the Newburg (N. Y.) 
Bank for $100 in gold, paying him $10,000 
in Confederate money, with which he bought 
provisions and shared them with his comrades. 
A little later he gave another note of like value 
and obtained $50,000 in Confederate money 
for same, with which he again fed his starving 
friends. By his generosity he must have saved 
hundreds of lives. After Sherman captured 
Atlanta another transfer took the prisoners to 
the jail at Charleston, S. C. , where they re- 
mained for a short time before removal to An- 
napolis, Md. Afterward they were taken to Wil- 
mington, N. C, and here Major Leith was final- 
ly liberated; but he was so weakened by suffer- 
ings that he was obliged to spend two weeks in 
hospital at Annapolis before he could return 
home, where he arrived in March, 1865. On 
April 5, he reported for duty at Annapolis; but 
fortunately the long struggle was nearing its 
end, and on June 29, 1865, he was mustered 
out of the U. S. service at Raleigh, N. C, and 
later was discharged from the State service at 
Harts Island, N. Y. At that time he held 
the rank of brevet colonel, and his popularity 
with his old company is shown by a gift from 
them of a gold watch as a token of their affec- 
tion and their admiration of his bravery. A 
beautiful silk flag had been presented to the 
company through Col. Leith by ladies of Fish- 
kill, including Mrs. Samuel Ver Planck, Mrs. 
Charles M. Wolcott, Mrs. Walter Brett. Mrs. 
James Mackin and Mrs. John G. Monell. After 
entering active service Col. Leith found the 
caring for the flag too much of a responsibility; 
so, when he was at Alexandria, \'a., he sent 
it by express, addressed to Hon. James Mackin, 
of Fishkill Landing. On his rifcturn home he 
found, however, that the flag had never reached 



350 



comrEyroEATiTE btogeapstcal record. 



its destination, and no trace of it has ever been 
discovered. Our subject holds a commission 
as colonel of the 49th Reg. U. S. Colored 
Troops, signed by President Lincoln. 

After his return to the paths of peace Col. 
Leith carried on the butcher business at Fish- 
kill Landing until 1873. when he was employed 
as watchman of the Glenham Carpet Mills. 
This position he has now held for nearly a 
quarter of a century, his fidelity making him 
invaluable to his employers. His services 
have also been in demand by the people for 
various public offices, and he is at present the 
collector of taxes for the village of Matteawan. 

On January i, 1861, Col. Leith was mar- 
ried to Elizabeth Miller, of Fishkill. She 
died July 16, 1889, leaving five children: 
Emma, Samuel. Jr., David, William and 
Walter. Of these all are single except Will- 
iam, who married Catherine Ward; he resides 
at Matteawan. 

Col. Leith is a steadfast Republican, and 
has never wavered in his allegiance to that 
party. His sterling qualities of character com- 
mand the esteem of all who know him, and his 
influence is felt for good in local affairs. 
Fraternally he is a Freemason, having joined 
the order nearly thirty years ago, and for 
twenty-eight years he has been a member of 
the G. A. R., Holland Post No. 48, in which 
he has held the office of commander, and 
various other offices. At present he is in- 
spector of the G. A. R. for Dutchess and Put- 
nam counties. 



CHARLES H. ROBERTS, United States 
appraiser of cigars and tobacco at the 
Port of New York, is a prominent resident of 
Pawling, Dutchess county, and has done much 
to advance the educational interests of that 
town, and to encourage progress in other lines. 
Mr. Roberts is a native of Utica, Oneida 
Co., N. Y. , bom in 1856, and was educated 
in New York City, attending the public schools 
for some years, later taking a collegiate course. 
^' 'ing business life he first secured em- 

p .: with the Weed Ore Mines, later 

with J. M. Childs Sc Co., of Utica, and after- 
ward spent some time as bookkeeper for a 
large paper factory. In 1883 he was appoint- 
ed to his present position, in which he is re- 
garded as an expert. In political faith he is a 
Republican, but he has never taken an active 
share in party work or aspired to a place on 



the ticket. His hearty assistance is given to 
any effort for the benefit of Pawhng, and he 
was one of the first school trustees under the 
union free school movement, and aided in 
bringing the schools under the control of the 
regents. He is a Master Mason, a member of 
White Plains Lodge, and of Lodge No. 330, 
K. T., of New York. On February 22. 1882, 
he was married to Miss Margaret A. Bangs, 
and they have had five children: Arthur B., 
bom February 14. 1886: Lucy K. , May 11, 
1889; Deane J., June 15. 1891; Donald, April 
23. 1894; and Helen M. , January 2, 1896. 

Mr. Roberts is a son of Thomas David 
Roberts, a well-known mechanical engineer of 
New York City, and his wife, Catherine Ma- 
tilda '^Danai, a descendant of one of the oldest 
and most distinguished families of this coun- 
try. The first of the line, Richard Dana, 
settled at Cambridge, Mass., in 1640, and 
his son, Jedediah, was one of the pio- 
neers of Ashford, Conn. Jedediah Dana 
and his wife Elizabeth had a son James, 
our subject's great-great-grandfather, who won 
high honors by his gallantry as a soldier in the 
Revolutionary army. He was bom at Ash- 
ford, Conn., October 10, 1732, and appears to 
have commenced his military career among the 
Provincial troops under Sir William Johnson. 
He assisted in building the fort at Lake 
George, and was at the battle of Lake Champ- 
lain when the fortification there was attacked 
by the French, and Gen. Johnson was wounded. 
At the beginning of the Revolution he was cap- 
tain in Col. Storr's regiment. Gen. Putnam's 
brigade of Connecticut Militia. He arrived at 
the American camp in Cambridge immediately 
after the battle of Lexington, joining the forces 
under Gen. Ward, and was among the troops 
who were detailed to throw up breast-works on 
Bunker Hill, where during the night a fortifi- 
cation of earth was hastily constructed. Col. 
Prescott was the engineer, and he requested 
Capt. Dana's orderly sergeant to assist in lay- 
ing out the redoubt. The British forces crossed 
the river at Urummesset Ferry, and when the 
second division of 500 men landed they 
marched up Maiden river to gain the rear of 
the fortifications. This movement was first 
perceived by Capt. Dana, who informed Gen. 
Putnam. By his order 500 of the Continental 
troops marched to meet the Bntish, and took 
up their position in two lines behind a fence. 
Capt. (afterward Col.; Knowlton was in charge 
of the detachment, with Capt. Dana second in 



COMMEHOHATITS biograpbical becosl. 



?I! 



commaxid. Gen. Pntnam in giving his direc- 
tioDs to these officers, asked : •• Do yon re- 
member my orders at Ticonderoga? " ■• Yes," 
was the reply. ' • j^ou told us not to nre 
until we could see the whites of the ene- 
my's eyes. "" ••Well." said Gen. Putnam. 
"I give the same order now." The British 
advanced ■«ith muffled drums and soft fifes. 
and soon passed over the fence south of the 
one where the Americans were drawn up. 
Capl. Dana was directly in the line of the 
British forces, and the men awaited their com- 
ing in f)erfect qaiet. word having been grren 
that it would be death to any man to ure be- 
fore Capt. Dana. When the column was eight 
rods distant the Captain ordered the rear rank 
to lie down dat. and at this word the British 
oflncers faced about and ordered their rrer. tc 
deploy from the center. On the ins: : 

Dana. Lieut. Grosver - ■ " Ord-Serj. ^ 

fired, and the British nder, suppc<sed to 

be Maj. Pitcaim, fel^ n;orti...y v« The 

British troops broke and retreate rmed 

and advanced again, the movement occupying 
perhaps twenty — - -— When they reached 
the fence they - . Lieut. Grosvenor was 

wounde.: .d a bullet •• 

passed :.:;_ _^.: _ :_.. ..dged ui>cr ,- r_„: 
flattened and harmless. He bound up his 
band and retired from the fie: ' ~ :" ' 
ton's musket \%"as broken by ,_ 
within five minutes after Lieut. Grosvenor was 
injured a cannon ball struck a rail which hit 
Capt. Dana in the breast and knocked him 
down, 'breathless. He recover 
and remained until the line was 
but after his arri\-al at the quarters be was 
confined to his r\?om for several da\^ Thi> 
first countersign given by Gen. Washinsto 
aXter the battle of Bua'scer Hill was "r\ 
and the first parole was Dana. In j 
same year an oration was delivered by Dr. 
Leonard. Gen. Washington's chaplain. .=. ' 
declaration read, and at the co 



ever, with Gen. PatBsin. «iio. :- 

way. dapped Cap*. T"> --:- on ihs i^ -; ^.^ i 

sajd witi: an i/Jd-fashi coed oath: ■ • E^ana. v;.- 

look like a white ~\'^ ' " " ■ - - i 

cl^iT away;' aud the =rn:_ _ -: 

right aud left to make a passafc ioi Gecc- 
Washington a~sd " " : " ~ rers. Tb= nex: day. 

Capt. Daca ^__ __:..: „^ __: . .5- 

playicg the Sag. 

The C-aptair was ^ feeS. CQe cijt- i^ 

promotiDu in the anav be imifornnjv oecitiaed- 

E-atcn. distir ^ - m the wax witi 

TripoIL his i^: ; ..^ ...i. ..acsd him ax the 

a£^e Ci sfteen uiHJer CaDt. Daiia's care. At 
: ~ " irc Da i 

r k. Y.. 

oocujaed a small 1<^ cabin, bsii 2-tw:tt!5t£r><i- 



: ^in. Was ; _„ - 

ton held a itLoerai serrice at tbe bosse of tise 



m'»(*(?''.;t.mi .>* 



exercises an aid of Gen. Was 

from headquarters bearing t":;. .,... c 

ard with an order from Washington to Capl. 

Dana to carr\- it three times .xv 

and interior circle of the army, w; 

tion that he must not let the color? tail, as it 

would be considered a bad omen for the .\mer- 

ican cause. The Captain declined, doubting 

his ability to pertorm the duty in :' 

manner, and the aid returned to he.-. 

with his apolog>\ He soon came Kvck, how- 



m teat part 01 tae >tate. loe ODtiiC was 

placed Qpon a bier, and a heavy paU thrcwu 

over all. with newer? and evergreens in pri>- 

- heroes weie cfaiei rooEiDess 

Geai- James Dana anid his ■ 

- --.3x1 Sive 

. Mr?. ^ - . 
beth Buder and Polly- \V iiiian> Dasia wss 
■ - at CoWeskilL June :r. ■ ' ' ■ 

v.:ar\- r. iSf^. He was 
-^er .:.". i.-oj, to .\r.- ^ > 

-\>ra April I - : ~ " ; ._ 

They had t . race. 

Hir.im. Ellri:\:t::. r>r.vC£y. ^\c i. t..: ani 
Nvincy. 

Horace ". ct's grx 

was born a: .....^.s . ...ich i. : 
after acquiring an edacation in th. 
- - "-.ere he , , " 

X. Y. 
tics, and prcntitneni m Maso«jJc circ.es. 



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C 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



353 



an eminence overlooking the limpid waters of 
the picturesque Cross river, and, while there 
has been no pretense at architectural grandeur, 
it stands to-day, in its simplicity, one more ev- 
idence of man's desire to glorify the Omnipres- 
ent and Omnipotent God. On October 14, 
1890, it was solemnly dedicated to Almighty 
God under the title of St. Mary, by His Grace 
Michael Augustine Corrigan, Archbishop of 
New York. Father McGrath's administration 
of parish affairs was characterized by good 
judgment and financial ability, and, therefore, 
he was promoted to a larger and more promi- 
nent parish at Fishkill Landing, N. Y. On 
December 4, 1890, he was installed as pastor 
in present congregation at Fishkill, and the 
work of improvement was at once begun there, 
a beautiful new church being erected in the 
following year. Later the rectory and school 
were built, making a notable record of prac- 
tical work. But while these results may at- 
tract the attention of the casual observer to 
the exclusion of all others, it is in the unifica- 
tion and inspiration of his people that Father 
McGrath finds his best reward for the past la- 
bors, and a hope for the future widening and 
deepening of the spiritual influences which pro- 
mote true prosperity. 



THOMAS HENRY NELSON (deceased), 
who in his lifetime was a prominent rep- 
resentative of the farming interests of the town 
of Red Hook, Dutchess county, where he pos- 
sessed one of its model homesteads, embrac- 
ing 210 acres of rich and fertile land, was 
born October 21, 1822, and died November 
30, 1S96. 

The homestead is supplied with all modern 
conveniences and accessories, the fields are 
well tilled, the buildings are of a substantial 
character, and the whole place denotes the late 
owner to have been a man of progressive spirit, 
energetic and industrious, and a capable man- 
ager. This pleasant home is presided over by 
his sister. Miss Sarah C. Nelson. Our sub- 
ject was a native of Dutchess county, born in 
the town of Poughkeepsie, and had been fa- 
miliar with the various employments of farm 
life since a boy, having been reared in the ag- 
ricultural districts of Dutchess county, mostly 
in the town of Red Hook, where he. acquired 
his education in the academy of that place. 
The ancestry of our subject is traced back 

23 



to Polycarpus Nelson, who came from Eng- 
land about 1725 or 1730, and purchased a 
tract of land in the town of Clinton (now Hyde 
Park), Dutchess county. In 1736 he deeded 
this to his son, Francis Nelson. The latter 
wedded Miss Mary Skinner, of Mamaroneck^ 
Westchester Co., N. Y., and to them were 
born fourteen children — seven sons and seven 
daughters: Reuben, Samuel, Mephobosheth, 
Mary Ann, Catherine, Anna, Lucretia, John,. 
Theophilus, Joshua, Justus, Frances, Christi- 
anna and Charity. Of this family, John Nel- 
son in 1743 married Elizabeth Davenport, of 
Cold Spring, Dutchess county, and to them 
were born two children: Thomas, the grand- 
father of our subject; and Elizabeth, who be- 
came the wife of Abner Armstrong, and eleven 
children grace their union. For his second 
wife John Nelson, in 1748, wedded Rebecca 
Scott, of Kinderhook, Columbia Co.. N. Y., 
and they became the parents of four children: 
Anna, born in 1750, married Thomas Barker 
in 1 77 1 ; William married Nancy Emory, the 
daughter of a major in the British army; 
Francis married Miss Wright in 1775, and 
John married Sarah Reed. 

Thomas Nelson, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born in the town of Clinton, 
Dutchess county, March 17, 1744, and was 
united in marriage April 11, 1769, with Miss 
Sarah Wright, daughter of Jacob Wright, who 
came to Dutchess county from Long Island 
prior to the Revolutionary war. He married 
Elizabeth Haight, daughter of John Haight, of 
Stephentown, N. Y., and to them were born 
seven children: Jacob, who was killed during 
the. Revolution; Nathan, who wedded Mary 
Vail; Joseph, who was killed while aiding the 
Colonies in their struggle for independence; 
Elizabeth, who became the wife of Seth Whit- 
ney; and Sarah, the wife of Thomas Nelson. 
Thirteen children were born to the grandpar- 
ents of our subject, several of whom died in in- 
fancy. The following grew to maturity: Wright 
was born February 2, 1 770; John, born July 3 i , 
1 77 1, married Celia Pells September 18, 1794, 
and they had four children; Elizabeth, born 
May II, 1773, became the wife of George 
Parker, of Lancashire, England, December 
22, 1798, and they had six children; Jacob, 
born May 8, 1779, is known to have left sev- 
eral children, although there is no authentic 
knowledge concerning him; William, born 
June 29, 1784, who became a lawyer of prom- 
inence, and served two years in Congress, left 



354 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



a large family, several of whom are still living; 
Joseph, born April i, 1786, left a number of 
children, none of whom now survive, but there 
are several of his grandchildren living; Sarah 
married John Nalross;and Samuel, the young- 
est, was the father of our subject. 

Of this family Samuel was born in the town 
of Clinton, February 14, 1/9.^, and November 
15, 1820, he was married to Miss Christina 
Banner, who was born May 1 1, 1799, a daugh- 
ter of Hendrick Benner. The following chil- 
dren blessed their union: Thomas Henry, 
whose name introduces this sketch; Sarah C, 
born December 10, 1824; Theodore Ten 
Broeck, March 22, 1827; Arthur, June 15. 
1S29: Christina J., January 27, 1832; and 
Elizabeth, .^pril 4, 1835. 



JOHN T. SMITH has been identified with 
the business interests, progress and growth 
of Fishkill, Dutchess county, for a period 
covering nearly forty years. His ancestors on 
the father's side were originally from England 
and Holland, but have been natives to the 
soil for five generations. During the war of 
the Revolution they shared the privations and 
hardships of the Continental soldiers. Thomas 
Smith was born on a farm in the town of Kent, 
Putnam county, in 1782: his father, Philip, 
and his grandfather, Edward, were farmers, 
and he followed in their footsteps. His father 
left an estate of considerable value, but it 
was largely spent in litigation. He was mar- 
ried in 1802 to Heiliche, the daughter of John 
and Rachel i Danielsj Smith; the family came 
originally from Holland. 

Thomas and Heiliche Smith had two sons: 
Philip T. and Silas G. The latter was born 
in the town of Kent, Putnam Co., N. Y. , in 
1 8 16, and his early life was spent on the farm. 
In 1835 the family removed to Matteawan, 
and he became a clerk in the Matteavjan Com- 
pany's store, then under the management of 
David Davis. In 1839 he was married to 
Jane A. .Alexander, daughter of John and 
Margaret (McDowell) Alexander, of the town 
of Butternuts, Otsego Co. . N. Y. ; the fam- 
ily emigrated from the North of Ireland. 
Thomas Smith purchased a farm in Steuben 
county, and removed there in 1838. He died 
at the home of his son Silas, in 1852, his wife, 
Heiliche, djed also at the home of Silas in 
1866. 



Silas G. Smith removed to Pulteney, Steu- 
ben Co., N. Y., in 1840, and was engaged in 
selling merchandise 'and buying grain for the 
New York market until 1853, when at the re- 
quest of Mr. David Davis, his former employ- 
er, he returned to Matteawan, and formed a 
co-partnership with him in the store formerly 
owned by the Matteawan Company. For 
three years they conducted a successful busi- 
ness, but the company operating the mills be- 
came financially embarrassed, and Mr. Smith 
disposed oi his interest in the business to Mr. 
Davis, and purchased the property at Fishkill- 
on-Hudson since occupied by the firm of S. 
G. &J. T. Smith. When the village of Fish- 
kill Landing was incorporated, he served as a 
a member of the first board of trustees, and 
was re-elected several times, but was always 
averse to accepting public office. He was presi- 
dent of the Mechanics Savings Bank for ten 
years previous to his death. In politics he 
was a \\'\\\g in early years, and became a Re- 
publican on the organization of the partj'. 
He was a man of a high sense of honor and of 
the strictest integrity, and was a consistent 
member of the Baptist Church. He died F'eb- 
ruary 9, 1883, leaving a reputation without 
blot, or blemish. 

John T. Smith was born in Matteawan 
July 15, 1840, in the house opposite the 
" Beacon Hose Co. House," at the corner of 
Fountain and Liberty streets. While still an 
infant his parents removed to Pulteney, Steu- 
ben Co., N. Y., and from the time he was old 
enough he attended the public schools in 
Pulteney until the family returned to Mattea- 
wan, in 1853. In 1854 he attended a private 
school in Matteawan kept by Mr. Oliver, and 
in 1855 and 1856 the private school of G. H. 
Caswell. After his father conmienced busi- 
ness at Fishkill Landing, in the fall of 1857, 
his time was entirely devoted to business, and 
in 1861 the firm of S. G. & J. T. Smith was 
formed. The business was successful from 
the first, being conducted on such lines that it 
won the confidence and support of the com- 
munity, and it was gradually extended until at 
the present time it occupies the building 
25 X 2CX) feet fronting on Main street and run- 
ning through to Spring street, and also an 
annex on the east side of 45 feet, used as a 
shoe department, and the second story of the 
Savings Bank building, used as a carpet de- 
partment. In 1873 a branch store was opened 
on Fountain Square, Matteawan; in 1878 it 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



355 



was removed to the corner of Main and North 
streets, and now occupies the double store at 
this location. 

Mr. Smith was married at Northfield, Ver- 
mont. September 5, i 866, to Carrie A., daugh- 
ter of Rev. John B. and Mary A. (Cady) Pit- 
man. They have had five children, one of 
whom died in infancy, the others are: Ber- 
tram L., who graduated from Williams Col- 
lege in 1894, and Arthur Raymond, who was 
educated at Mount Beacon Academy, both of 
whom are associated with their father in busi- 
ness; Clarence A. is a student at Trinity Col- 
lege, Hartford, Conn., and Elsie A. is attend- 
ing De Garmo Institute. 

The family attend the Reformed Church. 
Mr. Smith has been, since early life, a member 
of Beacon Lodge, F. & A. M. He has served 
several years as trustee of the public schools, 
and a number of terms as trustee of the village, 
of which he was president from 1877 to 1882. 
He was elected supervisor of the town in 1882, 
and was re-elected the three succeeding years, 
serving as chairman of the board in 1883 and 
1885. 

To mention the business operations in 
which Mr. Smith has been engaged, would be 
to make a list of the most important undertak- 
ings in his locality since he entered business 
life. He was largely instrumental in securing 
the location of the Dutchess Hat Works in the 
\-illage. In 1879 he joined with several gentle- 
men of the town in organising the Fishkill 
Telephone Co., and was the active manager 
until the company was merged in the Hudson 
River Telephone Co. Lines were built in the 
principle streets of Fishkill Landing and Mat- 
teawan, and extended to Fishkill Village, Wap- 
pingers Falls, New Hamburgh, and Newburg, 
a cable being laid across the river at the latter 
place. The company had a larger number of 
subscribers, and a generally more satisfactory 
service than has been had since. The Fishkill 
Boot and Shoe Company is another enterprise 
with which he was associated; but this proved 
an unfortunate venture. He was one of the 
organizers and a trustee of the Mount Beacon 
Academy Association. On the organization of 
the Mechanics Savings Bank, in 1866, he was 
elected secretary, and served in that capacity 
until the death of his father in 1883, when he 
was elected president, which position he has 
occupied since; he is the only charter member 
now in the board. He succeeded James Macken 
as president of the First National Bank, in 



1886, and still holds the position. The banks 
have always retained the full confidence of the 
public, and never during time of the most seri- 
ous financial panic and disaster has there been 
a run or any indication of want of faith in their 
stability. The National Bank has recently 
erected one of the finest and strongest Safe De- 
posit Vaults between New York and Albany. 
The average line of deposits in the National 
Bank is about $300,000, and it has a surplus 
of about $80,000. The Savings Bank has one 
million, four hundred thousand dollars on de- 
posit, with a surplus of one hundred and eighty 
thousand. 

Up to 1892 the local transportation be- 
tween the villages of Fishkill Landing, Mattea- 
wan and Glenham, and the depots and ferry, 
was by hack, stage or omnibus. Mr. Smith 
and some of his friends, believing that the in- 
terests of the town required a more expeditious 
and convenient mode of transit, undertook to 
supply the deficiency by an electric street rail- 
way, and accordingly the Citizens Street Rail- 
way Company was organized, with Mr. Smith 
as president and general manager. Work was 
commenced May 27, 1892, and the first car 
ran over the line August 27, 1892, the success 
of the enterprise justifying fully the judgment 
of those who planned and built it. In 1895 
the Fishkill Electric Railway Co. was organ- 
ized, and Mr. Smith was elected president. A 
road four and one quarter miles long joining 
the Citizens at the Fountain Street crossing, 
Matteawan, and running to Fishkill village, 
was laid out and completed June 13, 1895. 
This road was leased to the Citizens Company, 
and the two are now operated under one man- 
agement. Notwithstanding the great depres- 
sion in business for the last three years, the 
roads have proved a success, and have earned 
a reputation for enterprising management and 
prompt and efficient service second to none of 
the roads in the smaller cities of the countrj'. 
As may be inferred, Mr. Smith is devoted to 
business and is an indefatigable worker, mas- 
tering all the details of every duty he assumes. 
Systematic and thorough in all his undertak- 
ings, his knowledge of affairs and close obser- 
vation allows little to escape his notice, and 
keeps him closely in touch with the numerous 
duties that demand his attention. He is par- 
ticularly fortunate in his family relations. His 
home erected in 1871 comprises about five 
acres of lawn and garden, commanding a mag- 
nificent view of mountain and river, and is 



356 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



presided over by a lady whose kindliness, cul- 
ture, refinement and devotion to her family 
makes an ideal home. 



CHARLES SHERMAN (deceased) was a na- 
_ tive of the town of Beekman, Dutchess 
county, born October 24, 1826, and belonged 
to a family that for several generations has 
been prominently identified with the interests 
of Dutchess county. Benjamin Sherman, his 
great-grandfather, was born February 3, 1736, 
and died in 1805, while his grandfather, Uriah 
Sherman, was born in 1765, and died February 
26, 1822. The latter married Paulina Hurd. 

The father of our subject, who also bore 
the name of Benjamin Sherman, was born in 
the town of Dover, Dutchess county, Decem- 
ber 29. 179S, but passed most of his life in the 
town of Beekman, dying there November 10, 
1862. He married Miss Hannah Brill, and 
they became the parents of seven children: 
John B., who is engaged in business at the 
stock-yards in Chicago; Charles amd Alexan- 
der, both deceased; Maria, wife of James 
Ashly, of Chicago; I. N. Walter, of Chicago; 
Phebe E., wife of George Brill, of Chicago; 
and William W., of the same city. By trade 
the father was a blacksmith. 

The subject of this sketch received a good 
district-school education in the town of Beek- 
man, where his early life was passed, and 
when a young man he went to Chicago, 111., 
becoming connected with the stock-yards, in 
fact helping to found the stock-yards at what 
was then the foot of Madison street and the 
southwestern plank road (now Ogden avenue). 
He was engaged in that business for many 
years, and in 1865 returned to the town of 
Beekman, where he carried on farming during 
the remainder of his life. 

In the town of East Fishkill, Dutchess 
county. Mr. Sherman was married to Miss 
Mary A. Rogers, and to them were born a 
daughter, Caroline Adriance, and a son, George 
Benjamin, born April 28, 1867, died April 22, 
1876. Stephen Rogers, the father of Mrs. 
Sherman, was a native of the town of Beek- 
man, as was also his father, John Rogers. 
The former was a farmer by occupation, and 
was killed by a runaway before his daughter 
was born. Her mother bore the maiden name 
of Caroline Adriance. There were only two 
children in the family, the brother of Mrs. 
Sherman being Jacob A. Rogers (now deceased). 



In politics Mr. Sherman first affiliated with 
the \\'hig party, later becoming an ardent Re- 
publican, while socially he was a member of 
Hopewell Lodge, F. & A. M. Throughout his 
career his duties were performed with the 
greatest care, and his personal honor and in- 
tegrity were without blemish. His memory 
will be a sacred inheritance to his relatives, 
and will be cherished by a multitude of friends. 
As a husband and father he was a model wor- 
thy of all imitation, unassuming in his manner, 
sincere in his friendships, steadfast and un- 
swerving in his loyalty to the right. He died 
October i 5, 1882. 



GEORGE LOCKWOOD, a retired carriage 
manufacturer and well-known citizen of 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was born in 
Yorkshire, England, near Huddersfield, July 
17, 1823, and was a si.x-year-old boy when 
brought to this country by his parents. 

Our subject spent his boyhood in the city 
of Poughkeepsie, and in 1842 was apprenticed 
to Lewis F. Streit for two years, after which 
he went into partnership with Mr. Streit in 
the manufacture of carriages, remaining with 
him until the business was discontinued in 
1888. Since then Mr. Lockwood has led a re- 
tired life. He was married in Poughkeepsie 
November i, 1853, to Miss Alvira Mason Jenks, 
by whom he had three children: Alma Kate, 
who married William Oscar Poole; Ella Paul- 
ine; Edgar Streit, who married Miss May E. 
Howard, and they have one child — George 
Howard, born March 14, 1887. Mr. Lock- 
wood is a member of the Veteran Firemen's As- 
sociation, and of Niagara Steamer Co. No. 2, 
of which latter he has been a member since 
1843. In politics he is a Democrat, and in 
1 863 was elected alderman from the Sixth ward ; 
he also served as Alms House commissioner. 

William Lockwood, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born in Yorkshire, England, where 
he received his early education, and later was 
engaged in the manufacture of woolen cloth. 
He was married in Yorkshire to Miss Hannah 
Hurst, and they had the following children: 
Rachel, married to Joseph Eastmead; Sarah, 
married to William Kin'ght; George; John, mar- 
ried to Margaret Wigg; Henry; Margaret, mar- 
ried to Theron Shaw; Jane, married to J. H. 
Dakin; and Mary, married to Henry Godfrey 
(now deceased). They are all now deceased 
except George, Jane and Mar\'. In 1829, the 




y^/^^-^;^ ^OOyC-'U^T/Tn<^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



357 



father came to this country, and to Poughkeep- 
sie, where he worked in the Williams factory 
for several years, and then went to Titusville, 
in the town of Lagrange, where he lived for a 
time. From there he set out by boat for Michi- 
gan, with the intention of buying a farm in 
that State; but while sailing up the lake he was 
drowned near Detfoit. This was in 1850. His 
wife died in Titusville, N. Y. , in 1876. 

George Jenks, the father of Mrs. George 
Lockwood, was born in the town of Amenia, 
Dutchess Co. ,N. Y., June 24, 1795. He mar- 
ried Miss Catherine Knickerbocker, who was 
born in Amenia October 8, 1803. and to them 
came four children, namely: Alvira Mason, 
Sarah Ann, Andrew M., and Lucy Maria, the 
latter of whom is now deceased, ^^r. Jenks, 
who was a blacksmith by trade, died August 
19, 1832; his wife departed this life in Novem- 
ber 30, 1 88 1. 

William Jenks, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Lockwood, was one of the early settlers of 
Amenia. He married ^fiss Sarah Mygatt, and 
they followed the occupation of farmers. Both 
were natives of Rhode Island. 



OSEPH G. FROST, a leading undertaker of 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, is also one 
of the most popular officials of that city, 
having the distinction of being the only Re- 
publican candidate to be elected at one of the 
elections on the city ticket. His family is of 
English origin, and he is a descendant of one of 
three brothers of that name who came from 
England in early times, one settling in Massa- 
chusets, one on Long Island, and one, his an- 
cestor, near Rensselaerville. Albany Co., N.Y. , 
where many descendants now live. 

George Frost, our subject's grandfather, a 
farmer by occupation, was a life-long resident 
there, and three of his six sons settled in the 
neighborhood. Of the others one located near 
Madison, Wis., and two in Poughkeepsie, one 
engaging in the confectionery business. The 
other, William Frost, our subject's father, 
born in 1799, was nineteen years old when he 
went to Poughkeepsie and found employment 
as a clerk with his cousin, Solomon B. Frost. 
He was admitted to partnership after a few 
years, but later formed the firm of Frost & 
Van Wyck, and was in the dry-goods business 
at No. 316 Main street at the time of the great 
fire. He rebuilt the store, which is now occu- 
pied by Ouintard Bros., and continued his 



business there until 1849, when he disposed of 
it and went to Washington, then called Nine 
Partners, the location of the well-known board- 
ing school, and conducted a store there for two 
years. In 1851 he returned to Poughkeepsie 
and resumed his business there, but after the 
death of his brother, Stephen, in 1854, he sold 
out and took his brother's store, which he sold 
four years later to Mr. Atkins and his son Rob- 
ert. He then purchased the business of R. D. 
C. Stoughtenburgh, on the corner of Main and 
Garden streets, continuing it at the corner of 
Main and Crandall streets, occupying three 
stores. This was one of the largest stores in 
the city at the tmie of his death, January 13, 
1878. He was a Hicksite Quaker, and his up- 
right character made a friend of every ac- 
quaintance. In early life he was an Old-line 
Whig, but the introduction of the slavery 
question into politics made him an earnest sup- 
porter of the Republican party from its very 
beginning. He married Sarah H. Woolley, 
daughter of Joseph P. Woolley, a prominent 
resident of Dutchess county, and they had three 
children, of whom our subject was the young- 
est. Robert W. was a well-known business 
man of Poughkeepsie, who died in 1892. Mary 
E. is now the wife of George G. Berry, of 
Brooklyn. New York. 

Joseph G. Frost was born February 6, 
1839, in Poughkeepsie, at No. 302 Mill street. 
in the house now owned by Mr. Pelton. He 
received a good education for the time, at- 
tending the Dutchess County Academy under 
Prof. P. S. Burchan and Prof. McGeorge. In 
1854 he began the study of dentistry with Dr. 
Charles H. Roberts and remained with him 
until the spring of 1859, when he opened an 
office for himself at No. 292 Main street. In 
1862 he was obliged to abandon all work on 
account of ill health, and after two years of 
rest he engaged in clerical labor in the office 
of Provost Marshal W. S. Johnson, where he 
remained until his appointment in 1865 to the 
office of city chamberlain. In 1866 he was 
reappointed to the common council, and in 
1867 and 1868 was elected city collector on 
the Republican ticket. In 1868 he formed a 
partnership with Robert H. Woolley, under 
the firm name of Woolley & Frost, and pur- 
chased the harness business of James Bogardus, 
which he continued until 1874, the firm name 
being changed several tmies, however, first 
to Frost & Parrish, then to Frost & Davis, 
and finally to J. G. Frost. On disposing of 



358 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGUAPUIVAL RECORD. 



this enterprise to Overocker Bros, in 1874, 
Mr. Frost engaged in the undertaking business 
with Mallory & Doughty, and later with Nel- 
son & Seward, and in US76 he established a 
business in his own name at the corner of 
Main and Academy streets, which he has since 
continued successfully, removing five years 
ago to his present location. No. 319 Main 
street. In 1881 he was elected coroner for 
three years, and has held the office for five 
consecutive terms. His last election falling at 
a time when the Republicans encountered re- 
verses everywhere, he was the only one on the 
ticket to win the day. He has held the office 
of supervisor of the Third ward for two years, 
1877 and 1878. He was one of the founders 
of the Hudson River Driving Park Association 
and its secretary for several years, and has 
taken an influential part in man}- local move- 
ments. 

In 1S65 Mr. Frost married Miss Rebecca 
C. North, daughter of Reuben North, who was 
for many years the cashier of the Poughkeepsie 
National Bank. They have six children: 
Helen North, Mina Louise, Raymond Mott, 
Allen, Marion North and Louis North. Mr. 
and Mrs. Frost are members of Christ 
Church (Protestant Episcopal), and he is an 
active supporter of its various lines of effort. 
In his younger days he was much interested in 
the fire department, and he is now a member 
of the Veteran Firemen's Association. He 
also belongs to the F. & A. M. and the K. of P. 



rRS. MARYAIELVILLE WATKINS. As 
'4!, a substantial citizen of Pawling, Dutch- 
ess county, the late Ale.xander Watkins was 
widely known, and his high character as a man 
drew to him the friendship and warm esteem 
of those whom business relations had brought 
into acquaintance. For many years he had 
been engaged in business as a blacksmith, win- 
ning a reputation as a leading worker in his 
line, and his death from pneumonia, in 1891, 
caused sincere grief among the people who had 
known him as neighbor and friend, as well as 
among the closer circles of the home, where 
the loss fell heaviest. He left a widow, Mrs. 
Mary Melville Watkins, and si.\ children by his 
first wife. Miss Ella Dougherty, also survive 
■him, namely: Harry, Charles, William, Agnes, 
Ale.xander and George. 

Mrs. Watkins is a native of Brooklyn, N. Y. , 
and her education was acquired in the schools 



of that city. Her family is of Irish origin, the 
home of her ancestors being at Dublin, where 
her grandfather, John Melville, was born, lived 
and died. He was educated in the schools 
there, and became a carpenter by occupation. 
He and his wife, Madge Farrell, reared a family 
of children, among whom was John Melville, 
Mrs. Watkin's father, who was born in Dubliin, 
but was brought to .America at a verj' earh' age. 
His education, which had already been begun 
in the schools of his native place, was com- 
pleted here, and he then engaged in business 
as a ship carpenter, and was employed in that 
capacity for about thirty years in the navy 
yard at Brooklyn, N. Y. , where his death oc- 
curred in 1863. He married Miss Mary How- 
ard, and of their four children Mrs. ^^■atkins 
is the only survivor, the others — James, John 
and Bessie — having died in childhood. 



y ICHARD TITUS (deceased) was born in 
t the town of Lagrange, Dutchess county, 
February 4, 1838, and was a well-known citi- 
zen of that locality. [A history of his ancestry 
will be found in the sketch of his brother Rob- 
ert.] His boyhood days were spent in Titus- 
ville, where he attended the district school, 
and he later became a student at the private 
school of E. R. Roe, in Cornwall. 

Mr. Titus learned the business of paper 
manufacturing in Columbia county, N. Y., but 
for many years was a member of the firm of 
E. Titus & Sons, manufacturers of woolen 
goods. Wnen the Civil war broke out he re- 
sponded to the call for volunteers, and in Oc- 
tober, 1862, enlisted in the 150th Regiment, 
N. Y. W I., which was assigned to the .Army 
of the Potomac. He served until the close of 
the war, and his record as a brave soldier is a 
truly precious legacy to his family. He en- 
tered the army as first lieutenant, was pro- 
moted to captain, and for gallant conduct was 
breveted major. The war ended he returned 
to Lagrange, and resumed his business, which 
he carried on until his death, March 19, 1882. 
He was a quiet, unostentatious man, fond of 
his home and famih', and universally liked and 
respected by his associates. He was married 
in the town of Lagrange September 5, 1865, 
to Miss Harriet Hopkins, whose birth took 
place in that township May 18, 1841, and of 
this union six children were born, namely: 
Elias, Elizabeth, Florence, Alida, Marion and 
Richard ^^'illiam. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



859 



Dr. William H. Hopkins, the father of 
Mrs. Titus, was born in Carmel, Putnam Co., 
N. Y. , February 3, 1813. He was graduated 
from the Medical Department of Yale Univer- 
sity in 1837, and in the following year passed 
as physician and surgeon of the State prison 
at Sing Sing. In 1838 he located at Sprout 
Creek, in the town of Lagrange, Dutchess 
county, taking the practice of Dr. Sleight. 
On February 5, 1840, he was united in mar- 
riage with Jemima, daughter of Elias T. Van- 
Benschoten, and the following children blessed 
their union: Harriet, born May 18, 1841; 
Elias T. , September 3, 1843; John, July 8, 
1845; Elizabeth, May 10, 184S; and William 
G., February 28, 1850. 

Dr. Hopkins remamed at Sprout Creek 
until 1 868, then went to Providence for a year. 
In 1870 he removed to Hyde Park, where in 
connection with his practice he carried on a 
drug store until his death, which took place in 
1890. Dr. Hopkins' ancestors came over in 
the "Mayflower" and he inherited the best 
characteristics of his Puritan forefathers. He 
was a man of much ability, and held an hon- 
ored place in his profession. In politics he 
was a Republican; socially a member of the 
Masonic order: in Church connection, a vest- 
ryman and treasurer of St. James Episcopal 
Church at Hyde Park. 



OSEPH D. HARCOURT (deceased). In 
,j 1866 J. W. Harcourt, of Albany, N. Y., 
obtained the escutcheon and genealogical 
chart of the Harcourts, which traces that 
family back to the remote period of A. D. 87^, 
and shows it to have l)een one of the most 
ancient, honorable and wealthy in England. 
Further research having been made, it has de- 
veloped that Richard Harcourt ( i) was the son 
of a sister of Francis Weston, and settled in 
Warwick, R. I., about 1650. He married 
Elizabeth, daughter of Robert Potter, who 
was an ancestor of Bishop Potter. Richard 
Harcourt (i) removed with the Townsends to 
Long Island about 1656, and afterward became 
one of the first settlers of Oyster Bay. He 
was twice a member of the Court of Commis- 
sioners, and at Oyster Bay was constable, 
justice of the peace and surveyor, appointed to 
confer with the governor, which offices in those 
days were among the very highest. His chil- 
dren were Daniel, Benjamin, Isabel, Elizabeth, 
Mary Dorothy, Sarah, Mercy and Meribah. 



Of Daniel nothing is known except that his 
wife's name was Sarah, and that he moved to 
New Jersey. Benjamin married Hannah Dick- 
enson, and had two sons, Nathaniel and Rob- 
ert. In his will Nathaniel speaks of his 
"mother Esther," probably Esther Townsend, 
of Oyster Bay, as she was married to a Har- 
court. The residence of Richard Harcourt (i) 
was situated about 200 yards from the present 
steamboat landing at Oyster Bay, a beautiful 
spot. The family gra\-eyard has been ploughed 
up, and all traces of the headstones lost. The 
Harcourt family has always been prominent 
in the history of Wappingers Falls, and its 
member are worthy of place in the records of 
Dutchess county. 

Richard Harcourt {2), father of Joseph D., 
was born September 27, 1779, in Alilton, 
Ulster Co., N. Y., a son, it is supposed, of 
Nathaniel Harcourt, above mentioned. He 
married Elizabeth Merrit, who was born De- 
cember 26, 1788, in the town of Marlboro, 
Ulster count}', and eight children were born to 
them, their names and dates of birth being as 
follows: Jane, 1805; Nelly M., 1807; John 
W., 1809; Caroline, i8ii; Elizabeth, 181 5; 
Mercy, 18 19; Joseph D., 1822, and Sarah A., 
1824. The father of these, who had been a 
farmer all his life, died July 12, 1827, the 
mother on January 13, i860. 

Joseph D. Harcourt, the subject of this 
memoir, was born in Milton, Ulster Co., N. Y. , 
January 6, 1822, and received his education 
there. His first employment was as a clerk in a 
store at Clintondale, from which place he went 
to Albany, N. Y., where, for about five years, 
he was superintendent of a steamboat house, 
which ran a steamboat over the People's Line 
on the Hudson river. His next location was 
at Wappingers Falls, whither he removed 
after his marriage, and with whose interests 
he was identified for over half a century. He 
engaged in the mercantile business, which he 
carried on until his death, October 13, 1882. 
He was married, March 4, 1S44, to Miss Mary 
E. Woolsey, who was born in the town of 
Lloyd, Ulster county, September 4, 1823. 
Her father, Daniel Woolsey, was from the 
same township as was his father, Moses Wool- 
sey. The latter married Miss Kilsey, and had 
several children. Daniel married Miss Eliza- 
beth Deyo, the daughter of Noah Deyo, of 
one of the old families of Ulster county. Of 
this union seven children were born, as fol- 
lows: Abby, who married Monroe Deyo; 



360 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



Phebe, who became the wife of James Elting; 
Mary E., who became the wife of our subject; 
Warner, married to Sarah Allen; Roenna, who 
married Orlando Elting; Anthony, married to 
Phebe Curtis; and Charles, married to Hattie 
Carmon. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Harcourt 
settled in VVappingers Falls, where Mrs. Har- 
court still makes her home. Here the follow- 
ing children were born to them: Jay D. , who 
is interested in the machine and foundry busi- 
ness in Poughkeepsie; Mary E., married to 
Denis Van Wyck, a native of Hopewell Junc- 
tion, Dutchess county (Mr. \'an Wyck died 
August 4, 1880, leaving one child, Nellie) 
Emma W. and Carrie, who died in infancy 
Elizabeth W. , married to Dr. I. M. Cornell 
Israel T. N.. a merchant at Wappingers Falls. 

During his active life Joseph D. Harcourt 
was one of the leading citizens of his village, 
and took part in all matters of public in.terest, 
such as schools, churches, etc., and was presi- 
dent of the Wappinger Savings Bank. He 
was a liberal contributor to all worthy enter- 
prises, and did much to promote the growth 
of the town. He was a kind husband and 
tender father, and had many warm personal 
friends who deeply mourned him. His widow 
is a most estimable woman, and his children 
rank among the best people of the village where 
their parents spent so many years. 



THOMAS REED, one of the oldest mem- 
bers of the New York Stock E.xchange, 

and a well-known business man, now residing 
at Rhinebeck, was born in that village, Sep- 
tember 14, 1822. 

For many generations his ancestors resided 
in Cumberland, England, and his grandparents, 
Thomas and Anna (Hall) Reed, reared there a 
family of three children: Stephen, Mary and 
John. Stephen Reed died in 1785. His son, 
John, our subject's father, was born in 1777, 
and received his education in his native place. 
In 181 1, inspired with a desire to try his for- 
tunes in the New World, he came to America, 
and locating at Rhinebeck, engaged in farm- 
ing. He was a Baptist in religious faith, and 
ever active in furthering the cause of religion. 
He married Elizabeth Scott, a daughter of 
Robert Scott, one of the pioneers of Rhine- 
beck, who came to the county in 1795 from 
Lincolnshire, England. Robert Scott was a 
man of fine talents, and his excellent education 



enabled him to become a very successful 
teacher; in 1796 he opened a school at Rhine- 
beck, and enrolled the children of some of the 
best families in New York City, many of the 
pupils becoming men of note. Before coming 
to this country, Robert Scott, though of a family 
belonging to the Established Church, had be- 
come a Weslej'an, and traveled about his na- 
tive country preaching as a minister of that 
denomination. He later became a Baptist, 
and then followed his trade, that of cabinet- 
making, until his coming to this country, and 
also for a few weeks after he reached New 
York. He became the founder of the Baptist 
Church at Rhinebeck, and was the first pastor. 
He died September 24, 1834, and his wife, 
Elizabeth Kitching, survived him twenty years, 
dying at the age of ninety-four. Of their four 
children, Mrs. I^eed was the eldest; Ellen mar- 
ried O'Hara D. T. Fox, of Ulster county; Ann 
married Charles Logan, of Rhinebeck, and 
died at the age of eighty-nine years; Mary mar- 
ried William Hughan, and died at Rhinebeck 
in I 831; and Jane married Jacob Dedrick, and 
died at Saugerties. John Reed died in 1857, 
and his wife in 1852. Of their two children, 
Thomas, our subject, is the elder, and Mary is 
now the wife of Cornelius A. Rynders, of 
Rhinebeck. 

Thomas Reed received a good education 
for his time in the schools of his native town, 
and his later reading has made him un- 
usually well informed upon current topics. 
His first employment was in the dry-goods 
store of William B. Piatt, as a clerk and later 
as a partner, in all covering a period from 1837 
to 1850; he then clerked in New York in the 
wholesale dry-goods store of L. & \'. Ivirby 
for two years, thence going to Saugerties, 
where under the firm name of Wilbur, Reed & 
Russell he was engaged in the wholesale Blue- 
stone and general merchandise businesses until 
1864, since which time he has been connected 
with the New York Stock Exchange. His 
first partner as a stock broker was C. N. Jor- 
dan (the firm being Reed & Jordan), the pres- 
ent sub-treasurer of New York. 

On June 7, 1851, Mr. Reed was united in 
marriage with Julia A. Van Keuren, a daugh- 
ter of Garrett Van Keuren, and a grand- 
daughter of Abram Van Keuren, an early set- 
tler at Rhinebeck, and a soldier in the war of 
the Revolution. Abram Van Keuren bought 
the estate now occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Reed, 
in 1782, and built the house in which they now 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD 



361 



live, and in which his death occurred in 1817. 
To our subject and his wife have been born 
six children, namely: Cora married Rev. 
Lewis A. Mitchell, of Niagara Falls; Anna 
Hall is at home; Thomas Reed, Jr., an attor- 
ney and counselor at law, is a member of the 
New York Stock Exchange; Sarah married 
Frank Herrick, of Rhinebeck; Henry, Helen 
(a member of the class of '86 of Vassar Col- 
lege) and Julia are at home. Mr. Reed is now 
located on his charming estate at Rhinebeck, 
and there, with his wife and family, is now 
enjoying the fruits of his past labors. He is a 
man of much public spirit, a Republican in 
politics; and he and his family are members of 
the Baptist Church, taking a generous interest 
in its various lines of work. Mr. Reed is also 
a member of the New York Historical Society. 



G^\EORGE T. BELDING, who passed from 
_r earth December 19, 1888, at the age of 
fifty-eight years, was one of the prominent 
citizens of Dover Plains, Dutchess county, 
where, as a leader among men, his name is 
held in reverence and honor. He was born 
January 28, 1830, the son of Dr. Silas T. 
Belding, of Dover Plains, who was quite a lit- 
erary man in his day. Previous to the out- 
break of the Civil war our subject had estab- 
lished a clothing store in Chicago, 111., but 
after the close of that struggle he returned to 
Dover Plains, and purchased the William H. 
Belding farm in the town of Dover, which he 
conducted for some time. He afterward 
erected a three-story building in the village, 
where he carried on merchandising up to the 
time of his death. 

During his residence here, Mr. Belding 
was very influential in public affairs, as by his 
strong force of character and undoubted integ- 
rity, he gained the confidence of the people, 
who saw in him a man whom they could trust 
as a guide, and well fitted to hold public office. 
He filled many positions of honor and trust, 
including that of supervisor, which he held for 
several terms. His death left a vacancy hard 
to be filled, and was considered a severe blow 
to the material interests of the town. 

Mr. Belding was united in marriage with 
Miss Sarah E. Adriance, who was the only one 
of the three children born to John and Eliza 
(Storm) Adriance that lived to adult age. 
Both parents had been previously married. 
To our subject and his estimable wife were 



born five children: Elias S., who was born in 
Chicago, and is now the wife of Henry Has- 
brouck, superintendent of the Ralston Brick 
Company; Walter A., who married Caroline 
Lawrence, by whom he has two children — 
George T. and Chester L. ; Fred K., who is an 
employe of the Harlem road; and Mary B. and 
Harriet C, who died in infancy. 

The Adriance family are of Dutch descent 
and were among the early Holland people 
who came to America. Mrs. Belding has the 
coat of arms that was worn by Heinrich von 
Adriance, who was bourghermeister of Frei- 
burgh in 1 549, and who is described in the 
records as Friheir or Baron. The arms are a 
cross upon a rock between two grape vines 
supporting two wolves. 

Abraham Adriance, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Belding, was a native of Hopewell, Dutchess 
count}', born April 6, 1766, and after com- 
pleting his education in the common schools 
always devoted his time to agricultural pur- 
suits. On July 13, 1788, he married Miss 
Anna Storm, whose birth occurred in 1760, 
and five children were born to them: John, 
the father of Mrs. Belding; Edwin, who mar- 
ried Eliza O'Connor; Albert; Eliza, who be- 
came the wife of Richard Parmalee; and Cath- 
erine, who wedded Charles Carmen. 

John Adriance was also born at Hopewell, 
his birth occurring January 10, 1795, where he 
graduated from the public schools, and after 
learning the trade of silversmith established 
himself in that business at Poughkeepsie. He 
was associated with a Mr. Hayes, under the 
name of Hayes & Adriance, and this firm did 
a successful business. As the firm was one of 
the best and most reliable, much of the solid 
silverware in use in this part of the country 
was stamped with their name. Mr. Adriance 
was always of an inventive turn of mind, and 
it was through his efforts that the famous 
Buckeye Mower was placed upon the market. 
He established the first plant for manufactur- 
ing that machine at Poughkeepsie, where he 
also made plows and other agricultural imple- 
ments, but made a specialty of the mower and 
he always conducted that business alone. As 
previously stated, he was twice married, his 
first union being with Miss Sarah Harris, a 
daughter of Capt. Joseph Harris, of Pough- 
keepsie, and to them were born five children: 
George H., Walter, John P., Anna E. and 
Blandena. 

(i) George H. Adriance, deceased, the first 



362 



COMMEMUBATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



son of John Adriance, Sr. , was born in Pough- 
keepsie and was educated there and at Dover 
Plains. He married Miss Matilda Ross and 
they had three children: George, Anna and 
Nellie. In religious belief Mr. Adriance was a 
devout Methodist. 

(2) Walter Adriance, the second son, was 
born and reared at Poughkeepsie, there ob- 
taining his education, and on reaching man- 
hood was united in marriage with Miss Cor- 
delia Brinckerhoff, a daughter of Derrick 
Brinckerhoff, who was an agriculturist, and 
belonged to one of the oldest families of 
Dutchess county. Four children were born of 
this union, as follows: William died in in- 
fancy; Sarah B. married Stanley Kipp, by 
whom she has three children; Anna, who 
wedded Henry Raynor, also has two children; 
and Nellie died in infancy. Both daughters 
now make their home in Rutherford. New 
Jersey. 

John P. .\driance, the third son, was also 
born in Poughkeepsie, where he attended 
school, and was later a student in the Dover 
Plains Academy, from which he graduated. 
Goijjg to New Preston, Conn., at an early 
age, he there engaged in merchandising for 
sometime and was very successful. On sell- 
ing out that business he went to New York 
City, where he conducted a hardware estab- 
lishment, associating with him Mr. Piatt, the 
firm being known as Adriance & Piatt, who 
were located at 165 Cortland street. Previous 
to his removal to that city, however, he had 
conducted a similar business in New Hamp- 
shire. The firm of Adriance & Piatt became, 
in a short time, one of the leading business 
houses of the city, and always held a high rep- 
utation. Owing to pressing business in Pough- 
keepsie, at the Buckeye Mower plant, which 
was conducted by his father, Mr. Adriance re- 
moved to that city, though he still kept his 
interest in the New York firm. Being a man 
of superior business ability and good manage- 
ment, he assumed control of the works. Many 
of his relatives find employment in different 
ways with the firm. He always took a deep 
interest in political affairs, but could never be 
prevailed upon to accept public positions. He 
took great pleasure in fast horses, and owned 
some fine stock. An active Church worker, 
all worthy projects and deserving people al- 
ways found in fiim a willing and ready helper, 
but his charities were always performed in a 
quiet way. 



On June 22, 1S91, John P. Adriance was 
called from this life, and the following ser- 
mon, which was preached at his funeral, 
plainly indicates the character of the man: 

Tin- greatness of sewing— Mark .\:4;:i-44. Whosoever 
will be great among you, shall he your minister; and 
whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of 
all. 

Throughout the preaching of this sermon, I am sure 
there has been in your mind, even as there was in mine 
tliroughout the preijaration of it, the thought of one, who 
with abundant and most sincere sorrow- was laid to rest, 
only six days ago. Our loss is so fresh and deep that it 
will force itself upon our attention at every turn, and to 
take no notice of it this morning here in this church 
which he loved so well, and helped so richly, were well 
nigh imjjossible. Words of praise concerning him it is 
needless for me to speak. 

The silent sorrow permeating the whole city is elo- 
quent; and the spontaneous expression of esteem uttered 
by all who w-ere accjuainted with him; the lamentations 
of those who had been privileged to share his friendship; 
and above all the tender benedictions of the many to 
whom he had been a generous benefactor are his best 
eulogy. Nor would words of public jiraise be titting. 
He never sought them, nay, he rather shunned them. 
On these days when ostentation and flourish of trumpets 
are found so often, even in philanthropic and religious 
activity, it w-as delightful to meet one who was wholly 
free from them — one who obeyed so constantly the divine 
injunction : "When thou doest alms let not thy left hand 
know what thy right hand doeth." And to jiroclaim his 
good deeds openly now, pleasant as the task would be, 
were a violation of the modest secrecy with which he 
covered them. But the lesson of his life is plainly before 
us and may be spoken of, though very briefly, from this 
pulpit to-day. 

John P. Adriance was un(iuestionably one of the 
chiefest among our citizens. Public opinion, with no dis- 
senting voice, declares that no man held a higher place 
in the confidence and esteem of his fellow-s, no man had 
a wider influence, or will be more sorely missed. The 
secret of his supremacy is the same which our text has 
brought before us. There have been among us other 
men more wealthy than he, just as wise and able in busi- 
ness matters, equally blessed with the graces which make 
a charming social life. But his endowments, to a most 
unusual degree, he constantly employed in the service of 
others. Wealth to him was a sacred trust, and in public 
gifts, and still more in private charities, know^n only to 
the recipients and to Heaven, he made his money of serv- 
ice to all. Because he thus used it he found the true 
power which lies in large possessions; and the envy and 
the bitterness which riches often beget were felt by none 
toward him. The poor rejoiced in his prosperity, becau.se 
they felt it in a certain sense to be their own. In like 
manner his practical wi.sdom and business ability were at 
the service of all who needed it. The man who was in 
perplexity and needed safe counsel came confidently to 
him; he gave it — not as men often give, carelessly and 
impulsively — but with the same due consideration and 
deep thought, as if the matter were his own. The man 
who found himself amid the breakers of financial disas- 
ter, lost unless .some stronger arm and cooler head should 
take the helm, found such in him. There are business 
men to-day, in this city and elsewhere, to whom in an hour 
of greatest danger he cameas an angel of salvation. 

.Vnd the joys of private life w-ere of little value to 
him, save as he could share them with others. His house 
was like a home to the many to whom he gave a father's 
thoughtfulness, a brother's love. His acts of gracious 
service to those who were in sorrow, or trial, or loneliness, 
or need of any kind, were numberless. To a remarkable 
degree he put himself in your place, and acted according 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



'im 



to the revelation thus given. He was a great man; great 
because he rendered great service. Up from the whole 
city, from the hearts of poor and rich ahke, from ail sorts 
and conditions of men, comes the common testimony — 
" He ministered to me." Is not this true greatness ? Can 
any other compare with it ? The secret of such a life of 
all lives which humble themselves to help others, lies in 
Christianity. It is possible only to one who walks hum- 
bly as the servant of God, who loves Christ, and seeks to 
be like Him, and who looks upon all men as suffering, 
needy, helpless brethren of the dear Lord and Master of 
us all. May each of us learn the lesson which lies in the 
beautiful years of him we mourn to-day; and may a 
double portion of his spirit rest upon all who take \\\i the 
service from which he has been called to receive reward. 
While in New York City, John P. Adriance 
was united in marriage with Miss Mary Ruth- 
ven Piatt, daughter of Isaac Piatt, a wealthy 
and retired merchant of that city. To them 
were born the following children: Isaac R., 
who married Ada Campbell; John E., who 
wedded Mary Hasbrouck; Harris E. , who 
wedded Sarah Holmes and is a minister in the 
German Reformed Church; William A. , who 
married Minnie Horton; James Ruthven, who 
died at the age of twenty-one; Francis, who 
married Mary Hampton; and Marion R., who 



became the wife of Silas Woode 
children were college graduates. 

James R. Adriance was the 
above family to pass away. He 
New York, June 8, 1856, but 
years of age was taken by 



All of these 



first of the 

was born in 

when only two 

his parents to 



Poughkeepsie, and in that beautiful city on the 
banks of the Hudson, his childhood and youth 
were passed. He was fitted for college under 
the care of Otis Bisbee, Esq., at Riverview 
Academy, and in the summer of 1871, with an 
older brother and another young man, sailed 
for Europe in charge of Rev. Alfred E. Myers. 
They spent a year in foreign travel, extending 
their tour as far east as Athens, Constantinople 
and Smyrna, returning the following summer. 
He completed his preparatory studies and en- 
tered the freshman class of Williams College 
in September, 1S74. In the early spring of 
1876, during his sophomore year, he entered 
upon a Christian life, connecting himself at a 
later period with the Second Reformed Church 
of Poughkeepsie. He graduated with honor 
in July, 1878, and was elected by his class, 
one of the two marshals. He again sailed 
for Europe toward the close of the summer, 
and during the remainder of the Paris Expo- 
sition took charge of business connected with 
his father's firm. Being particularly fond of 
the study of languages, he at once entered 
upon a course of instruction, with the view of 
perfecting himself in the French language. 



He remained in Paris through the winter for 
that purpose, and in February joined a party 
of friends who ft'ere visiting the south of 
France and Italy, spending a few days in 
Rome at the time of the Carnival. He there 
contracted the fatal fever, which developed 
itself soon after his return. He spent a short 
time in Paris, and ten days in England, sail- 
ing for home Monday, April 7. After a dis- 
agreeable voyage they arrived on the following 
Monday. After reaching home he was stricken 
down, and, notwithstanding the best of care, 
he died on April 21. 1879: 

(4) Anna E. Adriance, the oldest daughter, 
married Dr. F. H. Simpson, who was a prom- 
inent dentist of Poughkeepsie, and was also 
quite a musician, being a member of the Men- 
delssohn Musical Society of that place. They 
removed to the far West. In their family 
were five children: Annie, who died in infancy; 
Albert A.; Sarah E., who married William 
Egbert; Louis, who died in infancy; and Harry 
Adriance. The second child, Albert, is now 
emplox-ed in the Buckeye Works of Pough- 
keepsie. He married Miss Lizzie Campbell, 
and they have a son, Albert Simpson. 

(5) Blandena Adriance married Zebulon 
Rudd, teller of the Fallkill bank of Poughkeep- 
sie. He was made cashier of the Dover Plains 
National Bank at the time of its organization, 
was later cashier of the First National Bank of 
Poughkeepsie, and afterward engaged in the 
brokerage business for himself. Three chil- 
dren were born to him: Charles A., w'ho 
married Miss Ella Robinson, died in 1894; 
John A. has been quite a traveler, and at one 
time was engaged in the lumber business at 
Seattle, Wash., but now makes his home in 
Poughkeepsie (he married Miss Bertha Morgan, 
of Nebraska, and they have one daughter — 
Helen M.); Arthur B. attended Williams Col- 
lege, and is now a theological student in New 
York City, preparing for the Episcopal min- 
istry. 

Mrs. Sarah (Harris) Adriance died June 3, 
1838, and for his second wife Mr. Adriance 
was married to Mrs. Eliza (Storm) Orton, 
whose birth occurred in 1804, a daughter of 
Abram G. and Mary (Adriance) Storm, and 
who by a former marriage had one son, who 
died February 5, 1828. To the second mar- 
riage of Mr. Adriance were born at Pough- 
keepsie, N. Y., the following: Sarah E., 
September 27, 1842; and Susan and Mary, 
twins, who died in infancy. The mother of 



864 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



these children died in 1845 and the father 
April 19, 1873. 



PHILIP HOAG is a worthy representative 
of a family lonj:; identified with the history 

of Dutchess county. His grandfather, Benja- 
min Hoag, a farmer bj" occupation, was a na- 
tive of Dutchess county, born at Pawling, and 
was a son of John Hoag. Being a member of 
the Society of Friends, he could not take up 
arms during the Revolutionarj- war, but was 
ever a patriotic man. He married Miss Abi- 
gail Wing, of Quaker Hill, Dutchess county, 
and to them were born seven sons: (i) Elihu, 
the father of our subject, who will be spoken 
of presently. (2) Philip married Barbara Lys- 
ter, and had two children — Peter and Abby 
Jane (of these, Peter married Hannah Tomp- 
kins, and had five children: Sarah Elizabeth, 
Mahala Allen, Philip Henry, Jane and Mary 
Frances, the sons being in Ohio, the daughters 
in Missouri. Abby Jane married Alfred Haight, 
and had two children: Amanda and Cornelius, 
the latter of whom lives in Michican, and has 
two children — Alfred and Edith; Amanda mar- 
ried Joseph Van Voorhes, and had five chil- 
dren — Mariam, Alfred, Court, Emily and Wil- 
lis). (3) Eliab died in infancy. (4) Sanford 
married Mahala Allen, and had one son — 
Charles, now deceased. (5) Matthew married 
Sallie Spalding, and has two children — George 
and Phcebe, both deceased. (6) Willet mar- 
ried Jane Shears, and has one son — Benjamin, 
living in Palmyra, Neb. , of which city he has 
been mayor. (7) Abraham married Phcebe 
Ferris, and had two children — Edith and San- 
ford. The last named (Sanford Hoag; married 
Lydia Benson, and three children graced their 
union: Edith, Elihu and Charles; Elihu mar- 
ried Ida Benton, and they have four daughters 
— Gertrude, Eda, Ida, and Annie. 

Elihu Hoag (the father of our subject), who 
was always known as " Squire Hoag," was a 
native of the town of Pawling, followed the 
vocation of farming, and for a number of years 
served as justice of the peace. He wedded 
Arabella Marsh, daughter of Joseph Marsh, of 
Connecticut, and five children graced their 
union: Philip, the subject of this review; Lang- 
don (deceased), who married Mary Dorland; 
Hannah and Arabelle, both single, who reside 
at the old home in South Dover; and Nora 
A., deceased in infancy. Langdon, the sec- 
ond son, was born and educated in Dover 



town, where he carried on farming for some 
time, but the latter part of his life was passed 
in Poughkeepsie. 

In the town of Dover, Dutchess county, 
Philip Hoag, our subject, was born June 23, 
1818. He attended the common schools, la- 
ter a select school at Warren, Conn., where 
he paid $3.00 a term for tuition, and $1.25 
for board, with flour at $11.00 per bar- 
rel. After leaving school he assisted his fa- 
ther upon the farm till the latter's death, after 
which event he and his sisters remained on the 
homestead by their father's desire, and he has 
ever since followed agricultural pursuits, to 
which he was reared. He has held numerous 
town offices with credit to himself, and to the 
satisfaction of all concerned. In politics he is 
an Old-line Democrat, and from boyhood has 
been possessed of strong Prohibition tenden- 
cies. Always a great reader, he is well-in- 
formed on the general questions of the day, as 
well as histor}-. He has been e.xecutor for 
many estates, both among his neighbors and 
at a distance from home. 

Mr. Hoag has been twice married, first 
time to Miss Mary A. Ward, by whom he had 
three children: (i) Nora, born in Dover, mar- 
ried Gilbert Taber, a farmer, and has four chil- 
dren — George (married to May Stevens), Will- 
iam, W'right (married to Ida Hufcut), and Mary 
(married to G. A. Stripling). (2) Martha, 
who was born in Dover town, married Rozell 
Meade, a farmer of that town, and they have 
children — S. Jennie, Nora B. , Mary L. . Morris 
P. and Jerry L. (3) Frank, also born in Dover 
town, is there engaged in farming; by his mar- 
riage with Miss Elizabeth R. Stark, a daugh- 
ter of Cyrus Stark, of Do\er, he has two chil- 
dren — Mary E. and Frank P. After the death 
of his first wife, our subject married her sister. 
Miss Sarah A. Ward. 

Mrs. Hoag traces her ancestrj' back to 
Peltiah Ward, who was born in England, and 
who was one of five brothers — Ichabod, Pel- 
tiah, Ebenezer, John and Nathan — who in an 
early day sailed from Ireland to America, 
Peltiah locating in Massachusetts, where he 
died. He was born December 21, 1689, and 
was married December 20, 1725, at Killing- 
worth, R. I., to Jerusha Kelsey. A son, Ich- 
abod, later moved to Killingworth, R. I., and 
thence to New York State, locating in Dutch- 
ess county. He was a captain in the Revolu- 
tionary war. Ichabod, the son of Peltiah, and 
a farmer by occupation, was the great-grand- 




-J. 



& 



' < !■ 




PHILIP HOAG. 



ELIHU HOAG. 





FRANK P. HOAG. 



FRAHK HOAG. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



365 



father of Mrs. Hoag. He was born in 1743, 
in Kiliingvvorth, R. I., and died December 30, 
1S22, in Dutchess county. He married Me- 
hetable Marcy, and to them were born nine 
children: (i) Griffin married and had four chil- 
dren — John, who wedded Miss Carhart, daugh- 
ter of Jacob Carhart; Spencer, who married 
Miss Pattie Soule; Annie, who became the wife 
of a Mr. Traver; and Mehitabel, who married 
WiUiam Lee. (2) Peltiah (the grandfather of 
Mrs. Hoag) was born in 1770, and educated 
in the town of Dover, and was a farmer and 
cattle drover; he was married February 27, 
1 79 1, to Miss Anna Soule, who was born Sep- 
tember 24, 1774, a daughter of Ichabod Soule, 
and to them were born five children- — Henry, 
who married Almeda Beardsley; Ira; Edward 
P. (father of Mrs. Hoag); Griffin; and Sarah, 
who married Miron Preston. Peltiah Ward, 
the father of these, died November 2, 1830, 
his wife on July 20, 1840. Henry Ward and 
wife have four children, namely: George, born 
December 18, 1S14, married Elizabeth Somers, 
and they had a daughter, Frances, who mar- 
ried William Sheldon; Jane, born November 
17, 1819, never married; Peltiah, born Decem- 
ber 31, 1 82 1, married Jane Hermance, of 
Poughkeepsie, and to them were born si.\ 
children. He was first an attorney and later 
a minister of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
and at the breaking out of the Civil war was 
the presiding elder of the Ellenville district, N. 
Y. He immediately recruited a company, of 
which he became captain, went to the front, 
and was killed at the battle of Bull Run, Vir- 
ginia, falling with the tiag of the regiment, 
which he was carrying at the time. Martha, 
the fourth child of Henry Ward, was born 
March 27, 1826, and married Jackson Bow- 
dish, by whom she has one child, a daughter, 
Cornelia, who married A. W'ing. The latter 
was cashier of the Pawling Bank for thirty 
years. His death occurred at Poughkeepsie, 
N. Y. (3) Ichabod, an agriculturist, married 
Rachel Hurd, and they have one child, Myron. 
(4) Joseph, also a farmer, wedded Eliza New- 
ton, and they had seven children: Phcebe; 
Marilla, who married Reuben Chapman; New- 
ton and Alfred (twins); Mrs. Eliza Flower; 
Mrs. Sallie Sweet; and Mrs. Hetty Pool. (5) 
Ebenezer, an agriculturist, married Miss Abba 
Sheldon, daughter of Agrippa Sheldon, by 
whom he had seven children: Waldo, Aman- 
da, Lodesca, Ebenezer, Polly, Henry and 
Oneida. (6) John, an agriculturist, married 



Miss Cynthia Cyher, daughter of Peter Cyher, 
and they had one son. Griffin. (7) Jerusha 
became the wife of Reuben Wooster, by whom 
she has five children: Peter, Ichabod, Will- 
iam, Oliver and Hannah. (8) Mehitabel mar- 
ried Edmond Varney, a farmer, and they had 
seven children: Alfred; John, who married 
Alma Stone; Milton; Ann; Mrs. Almeda Still- 
well; Clarinda, who married Dr. D. T. Mar- 
shall; and Frances. (9) Polly married Dan- 
iel Cutler, a farmer, and they had seven chil- 
dren: John, Fannie, Elma, Mrs. Jane Dru- 
fee, George, Ward and Amor. 

Edward P. Ward, the father of Mrs. Hoag, 
was born in the town of Dover, Dutchess 
county, November 10, 1796, was there edu- 
cated, and was employed as a carpenter and 
millwright. In February, 18 17, he married 
Miss Amy Pray, who was born March 3, 1796, 
a daughter of Andrew and Mary (Duncan) 
Pray, and they became the parents of ten 
children: (i) Andrew, who lives in Eden, 
Fond du Lac Co., Wis., was born December 
20, 1817, married Miss Almere Sheldon, 
daughter of Luther and Mary Sheldon, by 
whom he had four children — Annie, Mary, 
Delilah and Sarah L. ; after the death of his 
first wife, he wedded her sister, Miss Amanda 
Sheldon, and they had two children — George 
and Hasley. (2) Mary A. , born January 20, 
1820, was the first wife of our subject. (3) 
Hannah, born March 17, 1S22, married Har- 
rison Sheldon, and they had two children — 
Marion, who became the wife of William D. 
Williams; and Emily, who married George 
Preston (after the death of her first husband 
Mrs. Sheldon married Cornell Waite, and 
they had four children — Mary A., unmarried; 
Henry, who married Adda Kingsbury, from 
Alliance, Ohio; William, who married Annie 
Davis; and Irving, unmarried; Mr. and Mrs. 
Waite live in Dutchess county). (4) Thad- 
deus, born February 4, 1824, married Lois 
Dean, daughter of Zenus Dean, of Deposit, 
Broome Co., N. Y. , and they had one son — 
George, who married Ella Rosencroft, of 
Ithaca, N. Y. ; Thaddeus is deceased, and his 
family reside at Deposit, Broome Co., N. Y. 
(5) Francis M., born March 27, 1826, married 
Charlotte Northrup, and they had four children 
— Josephine (who married Charles Lawrence), 
John, Jesse and Bennie; Francis M. resides at 
Newton, Sussex Co., N. J., and has been rn 
the Legislature three years, both as assembly- 
man and senator. {6) Louisa M., born F"eb- 



366 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



ruary 20, 1829, died unmarried. (7) Sarah 
A., born September 17, 1831, is the wife of 
our subject. (8) Henry, born September 11, 
1835, married Bathsheba Barnes, and had six 
children — Amy, single; Sarah E., wife of Wal- 
lace Freeman, of Norfolk, \'a. ; Henry B., 
single; Mary L., wife of Albert H. Prentice; 
Edna G. ; and Edward P. Henry, the father 
of these, has for the past twenty-eight years 
been a Presbyterian minister in Buffalo, where 
he has built a fine church, and has a congre- 
gation numbering over 1,200. (9) Martha, 
born November 4, 1837, died in infancy. (10) 
Edward, born January 14, 1840, wedded Mary 
Mygatt (whose parents were from Amenia, 
Dutchess county), and had three children — 
Charles and Clinton, both unmarried; and a 
daughter who died in infancy; Edward lives at 
Deposit, Broome Co., N. Y. Edward P. 
Ward, the father of this numerous family, died 
August 15, 1855, and his wife on April 17, 
1869. 

Mrs. Philip Hoag has been a member of 
the W. C. T. U. of Dutchess county for the 
past twenty years; is serving her fifth year as 
vice-president of same; has been a delegate to 
the National Convention of that society, three 
times, and to the State Convention nearly 
every year. 



EDWAI^D BUCHANAN MANNING, the 
: superintendent of the extensive works of 

C. S. Maltby at Millerton, Dutchess count}', 
was born November i, 1847, on the Shenan- 
doah river in Jefferson county, W. Va. , than a 
part of the Old Dominion. The family is of 
English origin, the first of the name settling in 
Virginia about the year 1774. Nathaniel 
Manning, our subject's great-grandfather, was 
born in New Jersey in 1738, was graduated 
from Princeton College in 1762, and became a 
physician and surgeon. Later he went to 
England and was ordained as a minister by the 
Bishop of London, and on his return to the 
colony settled in Hampshire county, Va. , 
where he was in charge of a parish until his 
death in 1776. 

Jacob Manning, our subject's grandfather, 
was born in New Jersey, and became a suc- 
cessful farmer. He married Miss Mary Ruth- 
erford, lu'c Darke, a widow, the daughter of 
Gen. William Darke, an officer of the Revolu- 
tionary army, and a representative of one of 
the wealthiest and most aristocratic families in 



the State. He was a large landholder, and 
his daughter inherited from him an immense 
estate. He took a proniinent part in public 
affairs and in militarj' operations at various 
times, and he and a son were with St. Clair at 
the time of his defeat in 1791, when the son 
was killed and the General wounded. Darke 
county, Ohio, is named in his honor. The fol- 
lowing extract from a biographical sketch of 
Gen. William Darke appears in Vol. X\'II of 
Harper's Magazine: "Hi-; name belongs to 
the Biography of American Heroes; nor is it 
unknown in the early statesmanship of Vir- 
ginia. Gen. Darke was in the State Conven- 
tion of 17S8, and voted for the Federal Con- 
stitution. He was badly wounded at St. 
Clair's defeat and his son, Capt. Joseph Darke, 
was slain. He served previously in the Revo- 
lution and suffered long as a prisoner. He was 
one of the Rangers of 1755 (then nineteen 
years old), serving under Washington in Brad- 
dock's ill-managed march toward Fort Du- 
quesne. He was born in Pennsylvania, but 
came to Virginia in 1741, when six years old. 
The splendid estate, where he reared his fam- 
ily, was on Elk Branch, Duffield's Depot be- 
ing included in it." This sketch also states 
that Darke was one of the few officers who 
served uninterruptedly throughout the Revolu- 
tionary war and the subsequent struggle with 
the Indians in the Northwestern Territory — a 
fact which is shown by the large grant of land 
in this county (Jefferson) made to him by the 
Commonwealth of Virginia. Jacob Manning 
was not active in public affairs, but was prob- 
ably a Whig in politics. He died about 1824 
and his wife in 1842. They had four children: 
Jacob, Mary, Nathaniel W. and Monroe. 

Nathaniel William Manning, our subject's 
father, was born in 1814, in the Shenandoah 
Valley, and followed the occupation of farm- 
ing, in which he was fairly successful. He 
was a man of fine intelligence and studious 
habits, and at one time studied medicine with 
Dr. Briscoe, a brother-in-law, although he 
never practiced. In the political affairs of his 
locality he was a leader, holding various offices, 
including that of sheriff of Jefferson county. 
He married Martha Craighill, daughter of 
Price and Eliza (Little) Craighill. This fam- 
ily was of Scotch descent and among the most 
prominent of that region. The eldest son, 
William Nathaniel Craighill, was the father of 
William Price Craighill. who is chief of engi- 
neers in the United States arniv with the rank 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPHIQAL RECORD. 



367 



of brigadier-general. He was second in his 
class at West Point and was a professor there 
for a number of years. The other children 
were Addison, Martha (Mrs. Manning), John 
Little, Samuel and Fenton. Mrs. Manning 
died in 1S76, and her husband survived her 
onlj' two years. Six children were born to 
Nathaniel William and ^fartha Manning: 
Fannie, Mary, William, Edward B., Addison 
and Lucy, all of whom are living. 

Edward B. Manning was unfortunate in his 
early educational opportunities, as the war in- 
terfered with the schools of his neighborhood 
during the years when he might have found 
them most helpful. He had no schooling after 
the age of thirteen, but his naturally quick and 
, intelligent mind has enabled him to remedy 
the deficiency to a great extent and gain a 
good, practical education. Among his recol- 
lections of the exciting scenes of his boyhood, 
the trial and execution of John Brown are 
prominent and he also visited him in his prison 
cell. At the age of twent}' he left home and 
secured employment as a fireman on the Balti- 
more & Ohio railroad, in the west division, and 
a year later he went to Jefferson county and 
for five years ran a steam sawmill in the Shen- 
andoah Valley, in which he had an intereft. 
In the spring of 1873 he began to work for C. 
S. Maltby, as engineer at his iron furnace in 
Knoxville, Md., and in the fall of the same 
year he came to Millerton as assistant engi- 
neer. He soon became first engineer, and also 
founder in charge of the furnace. In 1884 he 
was appointed superintendent of the entire 
plant, and this responsible position he still 
holds with satisfaction to his employers and 
great credit to himself. The furnace is now 
closed and Mr. Manning takes charge of the 
mine. He is actively interested in public 
affairs and has a wide acquaintance with the 
leading men of his native State, ex-Postmaster 
General Wilson being one. Although he is 
known as a Democrat, he is inclined to be in- 
dependent, being an advocate of protection 
and sound money. He was elected highway 
commissioner in 1889, 1890 and 1891, and 
later was appointed to fill a vacancy, and he is 
now the nominee of his party for the office of 
supervisor. He belongs to the Masonic Order, 
W^ebatuck Lodge No. 480, F. & A. M., of 
Millerton, of which he has been master for 
three years, and also to the Poughkeepsie 
Chapter No. 72. 

In 1880 Mr. Manning married Miss Jose- 



phine Traver, who was born in Frederick 
county, Md., and is the daughter of Freeman 
Traver, a well-known citizen of Columbia 
county. Mr. and Mrs. Manning have seven 
children: William, Lucy, Perry, Nathaniel, 
Virginia, Elizabeth and Freeman. 



^\||//ILLIAM B. PLATT (deceased). The 
subject of this memoir, who was for 
many years a prominent merchant of Rhine- 
beck, Dutchess county, and later was presi- 
dent of the First National Bank of that place, 
was a native of Poughkeepsie, born February 
I, 1799. His family originated in England, 
and his father, John Piatt, who served in the 
Revolutionary war, and was a farmer by occu- 
pation, was an early settler in Dutchess county, 
coming from Long Island, where a branch of 
the family had located some time before. He 
married Catherine Barnes, by whom he had 
three children, our subject being the second. 
Isaac, the youngest son, was a resident of 
Poughkeepsie, while Eliphalet became a prom- 
inent physician at Rhinebeck and w^is noted 
for his varied talents as well as for his skill in 
his profession. There was also a half brother, 
Henry. 

William B. Piatt engaged in mercantile 
business in Hyde Park at an early age and in 
1 830 removed Rhinebeck and opened a general 
store at the northwest corner of Montgomery 
and W. Market streets. After conducting it 
alone for several years he formed a partnership 
with Christian Schell. which lasted for a num- 
ber of years, when Mr. Piatt retired. He then 
became interested in the First National Bank 
as director, and was soon after chosen presi- 
dent, which position he held with marked abil- 
ity until his death. He was never active in 
politics, although, first as a Whig and later as 
a Republican, he took keen interest in the 
questions of his time. In various religious and 
philanthropic movements he was a helpful fac- 
tor, and he was for many years a leading offi- 
cial in the Reformed Church. 

On December 6, 1826, Mr. Piatt was mar- 
ried to Miss Sarah C. Stoutenburgh, born in 
1807, the daughter of John I. and Sally (Grif- 
fin) Stoutenburgh, of Hyde Park. Two chil- 
dren blessed this union: John H. (deceased), 
born in 1827, was a well-known lawyer of New 
York; and Elizabeth, born in 1830, marrie-d 
Charles H. Adams, a prominent manufacturer 
of knitted goods at Cohoes, N. Y. They had 



368 



COMME.VORATTrE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



two children — a daughter, Mary Egberts 
Adams, now the widow of Robert Johnston, 
who was interested in the Harmony Mills at 
Cohoes (she has one son, Robert, born in 1 8S2), 
and a son, William Piatt Adams, formerly in 
the knitting business, but now retired. 

The subject of our sketch departed this life 
in 1879, his death bringing a sense of loss to 
all who had ever come within his influence. 
Nine years later his wife followed him, and the 
remains of both now rest in the cemetery at 
Rhinebeck. Thoroughly progressive, and ever 
loyal to the interest of his town, Mr. Piatt was 
a leading citizen of his day, and was esteemed 
and loved by everyone for his mental ability 
and moral worth. His personal appearance 
was most prepossessing, his manners genial, 
courtly and refined, and his kind heart and 
well-stored mind made him a valued friend 
and companion. 



JOHN G. WAIT, a prominent dairyman and 
agriculturist residing near Dover Plains. 
Dutchess county, was born July 8, 1829, 
in the town of Unionvale, where his family 
has been well known for many years. He 
was educated there, and in early manhood 
engaged in his present business, which he has 
conducted twenty-eight years, keeping as many 
as fifty cows. In local affairs he has taken 
an influential part, holding various township 
offices at times, and supporting the principles 
of the Republican party. He married Miss 
Catherine Van Wagoner, a descendant of one 
of the old families of Clinton, Dutchess county, 
and has had si.\ children : Hattie, the wife of 
Arthur Benham; Sophia and Joseph, who are 
not married; Franklin, who married Sarah 
Schermerhorn, and they have one child — Eva; 
Minnie, who is at home; and Isaac P. (de- 
ceased). 

The ancestors of the Wait family were 
early settlers of Rhode Island, where Joseph 
Wait, our subject's grandfather, was born and 
educated. He settled in Unionvale, town of 
Dover, and he and his wife, Sarah (Draper), 
reared a family of eight children, of whom, 
Joseph Wait, our subject's father, was the 
eldest. Of the others, George married Lucinda 
Beatty; Patience married Robert Cornwall; 
Catherine married William McDowell; Mahalie 
never married; Helen was the wife of Beria 
Suthern; Mary married a Mr. Hall; and Sarah 
was the wife of Braria Austin. 



Joseph Wait was born in the town of 
Unionvale, Dutchess county, in 1797, and 
after acquiring the education afforded by the 
time and locality he learned the carpenter's 
trade, and engaged in house building. He was 
the leading builder of the day there, having 
erected most of the houses in the township, 
besides the churches in Dover and the resi- 
dence now occupied by our subject. He mar- 
ried Miss Amelia Applebee, by whom he had 
ten children : Helen, Catherine, Edgar, Mary, 
Oliver and Nannie, all six now deceased; the 
others are: Charles, who married (first) Susan 
Bertram, (second) Anna Kelley. and (third) 
Sarah Porter; John G., our subject; William 
M., who married Louisa Russell, and James E., 
who married Carrie Rozell. 

Mrs. Waite's ancestors have been engaged 
in agricultural pursuits in Clinton for several 
generations, and her grandfather. Solomon 
Van Wagoner, was born there. He married 
Hannah Ham, and had eight children, of whom 
two died in infancy; the six who lived to ma- 
turity were: Perlee, our subject's father; 
Alonzo, who married Mary Dart; Lewis, who 
married Polly Finks; Margaret, the wife of 
Stephen Harris; Mary, who never married; 
and Julia A., the wife of Stephen Hoag. Per- 
lee Van Wagoner was also a lifelong resident 
of Clinton, where he was well known and highlj' 
respected. He and his wife, Hattie (Traven, 
had four children, Mrs. Wait being the eldest; 
Mary J. married Chancey Isabell; Theron is 
not married; and Cornelia is the widow of Dyer 
Holdridge. 

Our subject owns a fine farm of 219 acres 
of land at Lithgow, in the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, which he farms in connection 
with the place of 365 acres, on which he has 
resided some twenty-one years. He has a 
beautiful home, and he can look upon his pos- 
sessions with pride, as he came by them through 
his own efforts. 



FRANKLIN LENT HAIGHT, a well-known 
teacher of this section, is at present the 
superintendent for eastern New York and north- 
ern New Jersey of the business of the Central 
School Supply House, of Chicago, 111., the 
largest dealers in school specialties in the 
United States. In this occupation, as well as 
in his previous career as a teacher, Mr. Haight 
has been eminently successful, his work in es- 
tablishing agencies, meeting school boards and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



369 



superintendents, and others interested in the 
purchase of suppUes, being performed with 
tact and ability, and the introduction of many 
new and valuable methods and appliances into 
the schools of this section may be attributed 
largely to his judicious exposition of their 
worth. Apparatus for teaching physiology, 
and a new series of relief forms showing the 
topographical features of the earth's surface, 
are the main specialties. 

The Haight family appears to have de- 
scended from Baron Johanus Von Height, who 
went from Normandy to Britain during the 
thirteenth or fourteenth centuries. The imme- 
diate ancestors of the American branch were 
among the earliest settlers of Massachusetts, 
Simon Haight (or Height, as it appears on dif- 
ferent records), with his wife and three or four 
children arriving from England on the ship 
"Abigail," in 1628 or '29, and settling at Sa- 
lem, Mass., under Endicott. The descendants 
are now very numerous, and are located in 
various parts of the country, many of them, in 
past, as well as present times, occupying places 
of trust and honor. 

Mr. Haight was born at Fishkill, Dutchess 
county, November 7, 1853, the son of Sylva- 
nus Haight, a well-known agriculturist. He 
was a native of Putnam county, N. Y., born 
March 20, 182 3, and his wife, Margaret Lent, 
was born in Westchester county, September 17, 
1825. Both are living, as are seven of their 
eight children, viz: Anna A., Mary Z. , Eugene 
H., Frederick C. , Franklin L., Sherman and 
Howard. Katie, the sixth child, died at the 
age of six years. After attending the Fishkill 
schools for a time Mr. Haight, in 1874, en- 
tered the State Normal School at Albany, and 
was graduated in 1876. He then taught suc- 
cessfully in the public schools of southern 
Dutchess county for nearly fifteen years, and 
in 1S93 he accepted the position which he now 
tills so abl}'. In politics he is a Republican. 

Mr. Haight has a charming home, known 
as " Sylvan Place," an estate of about twenty 
acres, located on Hopewell avenue, three- 
fourths of a mile east of Fishkill \'illage. The 
house is spacious, and the grounds in front of 
it, 125x225 in extent, are beautified by large 
maples and other shade trees. There are two 
orchards on the propert}-, containing a variety 
of fruit, including seventy apple trees and five 
hundred peach trees, with some pear trees. 
Mr. Haight married Miss Anna Snook, daugh- 
ter of Gilbert Snook, a life-long resident of 

24 



Fishkill, and his wife, Antoinette (Young), 
formerly of Westchester county. Two chil- 
dren were born of this union: May Elizabeth, 
in 1883, and Clifford Lent, in 1884. Both 
Mr. and Mrs. Haight are active members of 
the M. E. Church at Fishkill, with which he 
has been connected as trustee and steward for 
several years. 



J CORNELIUS HAIGHT. The Haight 
family, which has been prominent for 
many years in this section, both numerically 
and by virtue of their ability and energy in 
various lines of effort, is of Puritan ancestry, 
and the subject of this sketch, a well-known 
retired business man of Fishkill-on-Hudson, is 
of the eighth generation in direct descent from 
Simon Hait, or Hoyt, or Hoit, who was born 
in 1595, in Dorsetshire, England, and died 
September i, 1657, at Stamford, Conn. He 
was one of the Puritans who left their native 
land for America on October 6, 1628, in the 
vessel "Abigail," with Col. John Endicott, 
who was afterward appointed Governor of the 
colony. 

Second Gaicmtion: John Hoyt, the eld- 
est son of Simon, was born in Dorsetshire, 
England, in 161 4, and died September i, 
1684, at Rye, Westchester Co., N. Y. He 
was fourteen years old when he landed in this 
country, and lived for some years in Massa- 
chusetts, later at Fairfield, Conn., and in 1665 
moved to Westchester county, N. Y., being 
one of the grantees who purchased land of the 
patent of Thomas Pell. He married Mary 
Budd, and had five children: Samuel, Mary, 
Rachel, John and Simon. 

Third Generation: John, the fourth child 
of John and Mary Hoit, was born at East 
Chester in 1665. On June 26, 1696, he was 
chosen town clerk of Rye, Westchester coun- 
ty ; as constable in 1 702 ; as supervisor in 1 7 1 1 ; 
served as a representative or member of the 
Assembly from 1712-13-14-15- I" '7 16 he 
was justice of the peace, and was honored 
with the distinctive title of "Mr." John 
Haight. He was again chosen supervisor in 
1717-19-20. He was chosen churchwarden 
of Grace Church, at Rye, in 1719. He had 
been a vestryman in 17 12. On February 11, 
1715, he was one of a committee appointed to 
lay out the tract of land purchased from the. 
Indians, and on March 13, 1721, he obtained, 
from King George II,- Royal letters of Patent 



870 



coM^n:?.roRATiVE biographical record. 



to the Charter of White Plains. His father, 
in company with Joseph Budd and Daniel 
Purdy, had also received letters of patent from 
the crowned King George I, to a large tract in 
Westchester county, containing about 1,560 
acres. Mr. John Hoit married Elizabeth 
Purdy, daughter of Daniel Purdy, and had 
eight children, as follows: John, Samuel, 
Jonathan, Joseph, Daniel, Elizabeth, Eunice 
and Mary. 

I'otn-tli Gcncratioi: Daniel, fifth child of 
John and Elizabeth Haight, was born about 
1688, died at Yorktowii, Westchester Co., 
N. Y. , in 1772, a prominent Episcopalian. 
He married in 171 8 Elizabeth Norton, daugh- 
ter of Joseph Norton, and had nine children: 
Joseph, James, William, Daniel, Jonathan, 
Rachel, Jemimah, Elizabeth and Charity. 

Fifth Generation: Joseph, born at York- 
town, Westchester Co., 17 19, died in Phillips- 
town, July 30, 1776; married Hannah Wright, 
daughter of John Wright, of Yorktown, West- 
chester Co., N. Y. They both died of smallpox 
on the same day, only an hour and forty-eight 
minutes apart. Their twelve children were: 
Mary (or Polly), John, Joseph, Sylvanus, 
Stephen, William, Daniel, Beverlj-, Hannah, 
Phebe and Esther (twins), and Martha. Phebe 
married Col. Zebulon Butler, of the Revolu- 
tionary army. Daniel, the father of Joseph, 
purchased a tract of land on the water lot of the 
Phillips patent, called Phillips Precinct, old 
Dutchess (now Putnam) county, in 1748, con- 
taining 640 acres. Joseph (h'ls father having 
given him a deed in 1750) moved from Rye, 
Westchester county, to Phillipstown in 1751, 
and erected a log house by the old Indian 
path on the west side of Clove creek. In 
1765 he built the first frame house on the east 
side of Clove creek, all the material for it 
being made on the farm, which at that time 
contained a sawmill, blacksmith shop and car- 
penter shop. Joseph and two of his sons were 
carpenters. 

Sixth Generation : Capt. John Haight, 
son of Joseph and Hannah (Wright) Haight, 
was born at Rye, August 18, 1743, and on 
March 20, 1770, in the old Col. Beverly Rob- 
inson house, in Putnam county (from this house 
the traitor Arnold made his flight), was mar- 
ried to Merriam Swim, who was born Decem- 
ber 25, 1749, at Highland Falls, daughter- of 
Cornelius Swim, of Highland l*"alls. Orange 
county. Mr. Haight was a prominent man, a 
captain in the Revolutionary army in the Sev- 



enth Regiment, otherwise called Col. Henry 
Luddington Regiment (John Haight, captain, 
date of appointment May 28, 1778), and served 
throughout the war. In 1807 and 180S, he 
was a member of the Assembly from Old 
Dutchess county (comprising both Dutchess 
and Putnam). In 18 13 he was associate jus- 
tice of Putnam county, and in 1820 served as 
judge of the Putnam Court of Common Pleas. 
In religious affiliation he was a member of the 
old Presbyterian Church of Brinckerhoff, and 
held the office of ruling elder for forty years, 
which incumbency he tilled with satisfaction to 
his constituents. His death occurred July 15, 
1836, in the old Haight homestead at Phillips- 
town, Putnam county. To* Mr. Haight and 
his wife were born the following children: 
James, Joseph I., Cornelius I., Sylvanus, 
Henry (deceased in infancy) John, Henry, 
Mary, Stephen, Jacob I., Hannah, and Miriam, 
widow of Capt. John Haight, March, 1842. 
Beverly Haight, son of Joseph and Hannah 
(Wright) Haight, and brother of Capt. John 
Haight, was born in 1763, and married Char- 
ity, daughter of Joseph and Sarah ( Larrabee) 
Hustis. They had eight children, as follows: 
Elizabeth, Joseph, Joshua, Mary, David, 
Esther, Beverly, and John. 

Seventh Generation: Beverly Haight, son 
of Beverly and Charity (Hustis) Haight, and 
father of our subject, was born at the old 
homestead in the town of Fishkill, Dutchess 
county, March 30, 1801, and passed his life 
there, being actively engaged in farming until 
his sixty-fifth year, when he retired. He 
served as assessor of the town of Fishkill, 
1 859-60. He was twice married, his first wife 
being Eleanor Burroughs Haight, who was the 
daughter of Cornelius I. and Hannah (Bur- 
roughs) Haight, granddaughter of Capt. John 
Haight. She was born February 10, 1800, 
in the town of East Fishkill, Dutchess county, 
and died January 24, 1866, in Phillipstown, 
Putnam county. They were the parents of our 
subject. For his second wife Beverly Haight 
was married, November 16, 1S68, to his sec- 
ond cousin, Susan A. Mead, daughter of Rob- 
ert and Sarah (Purdy) Mead, of Newburg, 
Orange county. She died in Newburg Octo- 
ber 2, 1882, leaving no issue. 

Eighth Generation: J. Cornelius Haight, 
our subject, was born at the old farm July 16, 
1835, and was the only child of his parents. 
His early education was acquired in the joint 
district schools of Fishkill and Phillipstown, in 



COMMEMOBATIVE BIOGRAPEICAL RECORD. 



871 



the academ}- at Fishkill Village, and in the 
English Classical school kept by the Rev. Dr. 
Pingree, at Roseville, N. J. On completing 
his course of study, he returned home and 
worked for his father during the following 
season. The next two winters were spent in 
teaching at Davenport's Corners, Putnam 
county, and then, after a few months as clerk 
in the store of Daniel J. Haight, of Peekskill, 
N.' Y. , he went hom£ for a time. He has been 
twice married: In the winter of 1858 he wed- 
ded Miss Sarah Jane, daughter of Henry 
Warren and Jane (Mekeel) Haight, and a lin- 
eal descendant of Uriah Mekeel, one of the 
earliest settlers near Cold Spring, Putnam Co., 
N. Y. In the spring of 1859 Mr. Haight was 
employed in a store at Union Corners, near 
Hyde Park, but after a few months he moved 
to Matteawan and entered the service of the 
Seamless Manufacturing Co., of which D. W. 
Gitchell was manager. He remained there 
two years, when the attractions of the old 
home and the free life of a farmer led him to 
return to the homestead. His first wife, Sarah 
Jane, died December 4, 1873, and September 
5, 1877, he married Julia Matilda Raynor, who 
was born in New York City September 9, 1842, 
daughter of John and Mary A. (Bijatall) Ray- 
nor, of the same city. One child, Willie Ray- 
nor, was born to this union, August 18, 1S78, 
but died in infancy. 

Until 1880 Mr. Haight assisted his father, 
and then bought a farm in the town of Wappmg- 
er, for four years enaging in horticulture there. 
Selling out in 1884 he moved to Fishkill Plains 
for one j^ear, and then to Arthursburg, where 
for a \-ear he was in the dairy business, and 
for the year following was engaged in garden- 
ing, and in carrying the mails from Arthurs- 
burg to the station. In 1S86 he went to Fish- 
kill village, spending a year with a son-in-law, 
John R. Phillips, then removed to Phillipstow'n, 
and lived at the homestead of his mother's 
famil}' until May, 1895, when having purchased 
a tract of land in Fishkill-on- Hudson from Mrs. 
Sophia Grohl, and built a residetice thereon, 
he removed to that place. He now owns ten 
building lots there. 

As an ardent Republican Mr. Haight takes 
an active share in party work, and has been a 
delegate to se\'eral county conventions. Since 
1856 he has been a member of the M. E. 
Church, of which he has now been a steward 
for eight 3'ears and trustee for six years. He 
and his wife are both helpful in Church work. 



and are teachers in the Sunday-school. He 
is also a member of the Sons of the Revolu- 
tion. Of his nine children by his first wife 
five died in infancy, and a brief record of the 
others is as follows: Eleanor A., the eldest 
survivor, married John R. Phillips, of Fishkill, 
and died March 20, 1886, leaving one son, 
Charles H. Edgar Holden resides at the Bev- 
erly Haight homestead. Beverly W. is in the 
grocery business at Newark, N. J. Grace A. 
married Charles D. Rogers, a farmer and dairy- 
man near Fishkill village. Mr. Haight has 
been engaged for several years past in the 
compilation of a genealogy of the Haight 
Family with the expectation of publishing it 
in book form. 



born August 
Briggs. 



KIN FAMILY, whose name both in past 
^ and present times has been closely asso- 
ciated with the most important events in the 
history of this section, is of Scotch origin. 

John Akin, the first ancestor of whom there 
is a definite account, was born in Scotland in 
1663, and when about seventeen years of age 
he came to America and located at Dartmouth, 
Mass. He married Mary Briggs, who was 
9, 167 1, a daughter of Thomas 
Of their ten children, the eldest son, 
David, born September 19, 1689, at New 
Bedford, Mass., engaged in farming, and after 
his marriage to Sarah Allen came to Dutchess 
county and made his home at Quaker Hill. 
Two children were born to him, John and 
Jonathan. John Akin, the great-grandfather 
of Miss Mary J. Akin, of Pawling, married 
Margaret Hicks, by whom he had one son, 
John; that son, John, married Mollie Ferris, 
and had the following children: Albro, Sarah, 
Margaret, Ann, Daniel and Amanda. John 
Akin also had three daughters: Ann, Mary and 
Abagail. 

Albro Akin, our subject's father, was born 
at Quaker Hill, March 6, 1778, and in his day 
was one of the leading citizens of Dutchess 
county. On March 24, 181 5, Gov. Daniel D. 
Tompkins appointed him to the office of judge 
of the court of common pleas for life, as was 
the custom in those days. When he was sixty 
years old he resigned, having been judge for 
twenty-three years. This position he filled 
with distinguished ability. His first wife, 
Paulina Vanderburgh, who was born Decem- 
ber 15, 1783, died in 18 10, leaving three chil- 
dren: Albert John, who married Jane Will- 



372 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



iams; Almira V., the wife of Joshua L. Jojies; 
and Helena Maria, who married John W. Tay- 
lor. Mr. Akin's second wife, Sarah (Merritt), 
died without issue, and he married a third wife, 
Jemima Thorne Jacacks, daughter of David 
and Mary (Thorne) Jacacks. Se%'en children 
were born of this union: (i) Mary J., who 
has always been a leader in the social life of 
the locality, filling every duty with grace and 
dignity. Among other events in which she 
took part was the ceremony attending the 
opening of the Harlem railroad, where she was 
chosen to hand the shovel to the one who 
broke the first sod for that undertaking. (2) 
William Henry, who married (first) Martha 
Taber, and (second) Sarah Miller, and had 
two children: Albro, who married Emma Read, 
and has two children — Albert and Helen; and 
Amy, who married Benjamin Aymer Sands, 
and has one daughter — Mary E. (3) Cornelius 
is still single. (41 Gulielma Maria Springet 
Penn was named after William Penn's wife, 
whose name was Gulielma Maria Springet 
Penn. (5) Amanda, who married Dr. Charles 
W. Stearns. (6) Annie, who married Will- 
iam Hamilton Ogden, and has one daughter — 
Harriet Hamilton. (7) Caroline, who married 
Adolph Wilm-Beets, from Hamburg, Ger- 
many. 



LEACH FAMILY, THE, which has long 
held a prominent position in the town of 

Pawling, Dutchess count}', is one of Colonial 
stock, and by intermarriage it is related to 
others of our leading pioneer families, notably 
the Akin and Ferris lines, so well known in the 
history of this region. The genealogical rec- 
ords of these families give interesting data of 
the early times. 

Amos Leach (I), the head of the Leach 
family, came from Wales to America with two 
brothers, and landed in Massachusetts. After 
living there for some time he moved to Con- 
necticut and settled in Leach Hollow, town of 
Sherman. He married Mercy Martin, of Do- 
ver, Dutchess county, and to their union were 
born seven sons and five daughters, as follows: 
(i) Amos Leach (II) married Deborah Wan- 
zer, November 25, 1752. (2) John Leach 
married (first) Martha Wanzer, April 2, 1760, 
and (second! Hannah Page, July 9, 1772; he 
removed in 1785 to New Fairfield, Vt., with 
his large family of children, where many of 
his later descendants are still living; he was 



the executor of his father's will, which is now 
on file at Danbury, Conn. (3) Simeon Leach 
married Elizabeth Prindle, January 22, 1766. 
(4) Ephraim Leach married Dorothy Bennett, 
F"ebruary 8, 1762. (5) Ebenezer Leach is 
more fully spoken of farther on. (6) James 
never married. (7) Ichabod Leach married 
Ruth Marsh. January i, 1776. (8) Mercy 
Leach married Ebenezer Wright, (g) Sarah 
Leach married Silas Hall, January 4, 1757. 
(10) Jemima Leach married David Prindle, 
January 19, 1763. (11) Miriam Leach mar- 
ried Samuel Marsh, November 13, 177 1. (12) 
Johannah Leach married Thomas Northup, 
August 25, 1757. 

Ebenezer Leach, fifth son of Amos Leach 
(1), married Mary Marsh, daughter of Elihu 
and Mary Marsh, whose children were: Elihu, 
Joseph, Samuel, John, Daniel, Amos, Sophia, 
Eunice, Lydia, Mary and Ruth. Ebenezer 
Leach and his wife Mary (Marsh) had three 
children: Lucy, who married Husted Wan- 



mentioned below; 
Gilbert Lane, and 



and 
had 



zer; William, who is 
Susanna, who married 
eleven children. 

William Leach (I), second child of Ebe- 
nezer Leach, was married 25th of the loth 
month, 1792, to Charlotte Stedwell, who was 
born 19th of 5th month, 1772, daughter of 
Gilbert and Mary Stedwell. To William Leach 
and his wife were born the following children: 
(i)Anna Leach, born 27th of 9th month, 1793. 
married Abraham Wanzer (no issue). (2) 
Mary Leach, born iith of lOth month, 1795, 
died November 30, 1875, aged eighty years; 
she married Philo Woodin, of Columbia, N. 
Y., February 26, 1822, and had three chil- 
dren. (3) Moses W. is more fully spoken of 
below. (4) Lucy Leach, born 4th of 7th 
month, 1800, died May 28, 1885, aged eighty- 
five years lacking five weeks, married Ebene- 
zer Wanzer, October 26th, 1820, and had 
three children. (5) Susan Leach, born 2ist 
of 1st month, 1803, died February 27, 1885, 
married George Mooney, November 17, 1825, 
and had five children. (6) Phebe Leach, born 
13th of 6th month, 1805, died January 16, 
1867, married Jacob Wanzer, October 26, 
1826, and had six children. (71 Ira Leach, 
born 4th of loth month, 1807, died May 7, 
1857, married Elizabeth Haviland, November 
12, 1830, and had three children. (8) Merritt 
H. Leach, born 11th of 12th month, 1809, 
died October 13, 1850, aged forty-one years, 
ten months; he married (first) Phebe Dorland 




MARTIN LEACH. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



373 



Purdy, and (second) Susan W. Marriot, Octo- 
ber lO, 1838, by whom he had three children. 
(9) Paulina Leach, born 26th of 12th month, 
181 1, died July 14, 1882, in the seventy-first 
year of her age; she married Dr. David Sands, 
of New York City, June 16, 1834, and had 
eleven children, (ro) William Leach (II), born 
4th of 6th month, 1S15, died October 19, 
1874, aged fifty-nine years, four months and 
thirteen days, married Catherine Peck, of 
Brookfield, Conn., and had three children. 
(11) Jane Charlotte Leach, born 31st of ist 
month, i8i8,died March 9, 1852, aged thirty- 
four years, one month, married David Sanford 
Dunscomb, of Reading, Conn., and had three 
children. The father of this family died No- 
vember 20, i860, aged eighty-nine years and 
thirteen days. The mother passed to her final 
rest in September, 1846, aged seventj'-four 
years and four months. 

Moses W. Leach, third child of William 
Leach (I), was born i8th of 3rd month, 1798, 
died October 18, 1S4S, aged fifty years and 
seven months. He married Phebe Akin, Sep- 
tember 26, 1 82 1, and they became the parents 
of seven children, as follows: (i) Peter A., born 
January 16, 1824, died March 29, 1888, aged 
sixty-four years, two months and sixteen days. 
(2) Anna A., born October 19, 1825, died Au- 
gust 31, i860. (3) LiLLius Cornelia, born 
August 22, 1829, is the one who furnished the 
data for this memoir. (4) Isaac A., born No- 
vember 20, 1833, died July 22, 1855. (5 & 6) 
Elizabeth F. and Abigail (twins), born April 
9, 1837; the former died May 17, 1856, aged 
nineteen years, one month and four days, the 
latter died August 8, 1837, aged four months. 
(7) Martin, whose portrait here appears, was 
born September 6, 1839, at Kinderhook, Co- 
lumbia Co., N. Y. , and is the only male de- 
scendant living of this Leach family. He had a 
high-school education, is a farmer by occupa- 
tion; he is living at the old Akin homestead, as 
is also his sister, Lillius C. In religion and 
politics, father and son represent the same. 

Moses W. Leach, the father of this inter- 
esting family, was of an ingenious turn of 
mind, and invented the first mowing machine. 
He had a good education for his day, and was 
well-informed on all questions of the times in 
which he lived. In religious faith he was a 
member of the Friends Society, and in politics 
he was a stanch Democrat, but no office- 
seeker. 

Jonathan Akin (I), son of David and Sarah 



Akin, of Quaker Hill, the great-grandfather of 
L. C. Leach and her brothers and sisters, was 
represented in the government; also his grand- 
son, Jonathan Akin (II), the son of Isaac A. and 
Anna Wing Akin, of Pawling. The fore- 
fathers were people of large estates, and agri- 
culturists by profession. The Akin family were 
people of high standing, and were well known 
at home and abroad. 

Genealogy of the Akin Family, of 
Dartmouth. — John Akin, of Scotland, emi- 
grated to America about 1680, and settled at 
Dartmouth, Bristol Co., Mass. He died June 
13, 1744, aged eighty-three years. He was 
twice married, first to Hannah Hriggs, and 
(second) to Miss Sherman. He had fifteen 
children, namely: (i) David, born September 

19, 1689, married Sarah .Allen, and they set- 
tled on Quaker Hill. (2) Thomas, born March 

20, 1702, married Abigail Allen, of Dartmouth, 
in 1727. (3) James, born August i, 1706, 
married, November 14, 1728, Anne Fish; his 
second wife was Ruth Sandford. (4) Benjamin 
married Eunice Taber, September 13, 1739; 
second wife, Lydia Almy; third wife, widow 
Barker, from whom he separated in about one 
year; he died in 1800, aged eighty-seven years. 
(5) Ebenezer, who was a militia captain, died 
November 16, 1770. (6) Timothy, born June 
6, 1695, died a bachelor. (7) Elihu, born Au- 
gust 6, 1720, married Ruth Penny, in 1744; 
for his second wife he married Miss Wilcox, 
when he was seventy years old. (8) Joseph 
was lost at sea. (9) Deborah, born December 
30, 1692. (10) Mary, born January 23, 1697, 
married a Mr. Aldin, and died aged over ninety 
years, (ii) Hannah, born March 12, 1699. 
(12) Judith, born January i, 1691, married 
John Getchel, April 10, 1727; she died aged 
ninety-three years. (13) Elizabeth, born May 
20, 1704. (14) Susanna, born September 27, 
1718, married Hicks, of Fall River. (15) 
Abigail. 

David Akin, eldest son of John Akin, came 
to Quaker Hill and there settled. He and his 
wife Sarah (Allen) reared a family of ten ch-1- 
dren, as follows: (i) John Akin married Mar- 
garet Hicks, of Portsmouth, R. I., January 29, 
1742, she died October 8, 1803, and he passed 
away April 7, 1779. (2) Mary Akin married 
Abraham Thomas, at Dartmouth, July 24, 
1740. (3) Elisha Akin married Elizabeth 
Tripp, July 5, 1734. (4) Josiah Akin married 
Judith Hurdleston, of Dartmouth, in 1746. (5) 
Abigail Akin married Murry Lester. (6) Sarah 



374 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Akin died young. (7) Hannah Akin married 
James Birdsall. (8) James Akin married 
Patience Howard. (9) David Akin (II) mar- 
ried Deborah Gray. (10) Jonathan Akin 
(born July 26, 1737) married Lillius Ferris, 
daughter of Benjamin (I) and Phebe (Beecher) 
Ferris. They had eight children, whose 
names and dates of birth and their matrimon- 
ial partners are here given: Elizabeth, April 
3, 1758, married Peleg Howland, son of Na- 
thaniel Howland. (2) Isaac, August 27, 1759, 
married Anna Wing (daughter of Jersham 
Wing and Rebecca, his wife), moved to Canada, 
and their two children were — Martha, who 
married Daniel Merritt, and Jonathan Akin (II), 
who married Harriet Taber. (31 Martha, 
March i, 1761, married William Taber, son 
of Thomas Taber. (4) Benjamin, October 
26, 1762, married Martha Palmer, daughter 
of John and Hope Palmer; moved to Green- 
blish; Benjamin Akin was drowned in the Hud- 
son river. (5) Abigail, March 9, 1764, mar- 
ried Mathew Pendergast, and had two children 
— William and Lillius. (6) Sybil, November 
26, 1767. married William Field. (7) William, 
June 13, 1769, married Matilda Gary, daughter 
of the eldest Dr. Ebenezer Gary (lived in 
Greenbush). (8) Peter is more fully referred 
to below. 

Peter Akin, of Pawling, Dutchess count}', 
was the youngest child of Jonathan and Lillius 
(Ferris) Akin, grandson of David and Sarah 
(.Allen) Akin, of Quaker Hill, and great-grand- 
son of John Akin, of Scotland, who came to 
America about 1680, and settled at Dart- 
mouth, Bristol Go., Mass. He was born Jan- 
uary 8, 1771, and married Abigail Ferris, only 
child of Mathew and Sarah (Kelly) Ferris. 
They became the parents of the following chil- 
dren: (i) Sarah Akin married Jesse Skid- 
more, and had four children, viz.: Peter A., 
who married Ruth Moore; Andrew J., who 
married Fannie Wing; and Elizabeth and Abi- 
gail (^both deceased). (2) Mathew F. Akin. 
(3) Phebe Akin, born September i, 1803, 
married Moses W. Leach, died February 21, 
1858, aged fifty-four years [record of children, 
etc., given in Leach genealogy]. (4) Lillius 
Akin married Daniel P. Haviland, and had 
nine children, as follows: Elizabeth F. mar- 
ried Thomas Wetherald; William T. married 
Elizabeth D. Hoag; Abigail A. married Philip 
H. Haviland; Isaac H. died August 15, 1858, 
aged eighteen years; Jonathan A. married 
Angeline Hungerford; Daniel J. was drowned; 



Lydia W. married Merritt Haviland; Lillie A. 
married Samuel R. Neave; and Joseph H. 
married Ella Patchen. (5) William P. Akin, 
born July 23, 1810, died August 16, 1882, 
aged seventy-two years and twenty-three days; 
he married Lydia Moore, October 23. 1833, 
and to their union came the following chil- 
dren: Ruth M. Akin married Franklin Haight 
(deceased); Abigail F. .Akin married Charles 
Wild; Jonathan Akin married Anna Tweedy 
(both now deceased); Lydia Akin married 
Cyrus Hiliker (deceased); Anna M. Akin mar- 
ried Daniel Edward Wanzer (both now de- 
ceased). (6) Isaac Akin (2) died February 17, 
1S63, aged forty-nine years. (7) John Akin 
died March 28, 1829. (8) Peer Akin died in 
October, 1805. (9) Infant son, died 1797. 
(10) Infant daughter, died 1799. The father. 
Peter Akin, died December 2, i860, aged 
eighty-nine years, ten months and twenty-five 
days. The mother, Abigail, passed away July 
16, 1844, aged seventy years. 

Gene.alogv of the Ferris F.amilv. — 
Samuel Ferris and Jerusha Reed, Presbyterian 
or Puritans, came from Reading, England, 
probably about the year 1678. There are 
records in Stratford showing that the Ferris 
family were in America in 1650. 

Zachariah Ferris, son of Samuel Ferris, 
married Sarah Noble in 1698, and had eight 
children, whose names with dates of birth are 
as follows: (i) Deborah, June, 1700; ^2) Jo- 
seph Ferris, September 27, 1703, married 
Hannah Weltch, November 11, 1725; (3) David 
Ferris, May 10, 1707; (4) Benjamin P^erris, 
November 10, 1708; (5) Sarah Ferris, Novem- 
ber 10, 1 7 10 (the first white child born in New 
Milford. Conn.); (6) Hannah Ferris, August 6, 
171 2; (7) John Ferris, February 6, 17 14, 
more fully spoken of below; (8) Zachariah, 
September 30, 171 7. Five children of this 
family, viz. : David, Benjamin, Hannah, John 
and Zachariah became eminent and valuable 
Quaker preachers. Their lovely mother also 
became a Friend or Quaker in the early days 
of that society. 

Benjamin Ferris, fourth chiUl of Zachariah 
Ferris, married Phebe Beecher, of Litchfield, 
Conn. They had eight children, whose names 
with dates of birth are here given: Zebulon, 
born March 19, 1729; Reed, born August 16, 
1730, married Anna Tripp; Susannah, born 
September 8, 1731, married Elijah Doty; 
Lillius, born July 9, 1736, married Jonathan 
Akin, son of David Akin; Benjamin, born Sep- 



C'O.V.VEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



375 



teniber 25, 1738; Gilbert, born March 15, 
1740; Phebe, born and died 1734; and Ed- 
mond, born July 4, 1748. 

Benjamin (III) Ferris, son of Benjamin (II), 
married Mar}' Howland, and seven children 
were born to them, as follows: Walter, Jan- 
uary I, 1768; Lilliiis, September 25, 1769; 
Wayman, September, 1771; Edwin, February 
20, 1778: Peleg, January 21, 1781; Ebor, May 
26, 1784; Phebe, January 28, 1788. 

John Ferris, seventh child of Zachariah (I), 
and grandson of Samuel Ferris, was tortured 
and killed by the Indians betwen 1740 and 
1750. He married, and had two children — 
Zachariah and Huldah (the last named married 
a Mr. Beardsley:. Zachariah married Huldah 
Adams, granddaughter of John Adams, from 
Wales, who lived to the age of i 10 }ears. To 
their union were born the following children: 
(i) Mary, who married Seth Whittock, and 
had one daughter — Nannie, who married Philo- 
men Prindle, and had eleven children; (2) 
Betse}', who married Ebor Ferr'is, son of Ben- 
jamin Ferris, of Quaker Hill, thus bringing to- 
gether the two branches of the family. They 
had twelve children, of whom three died in 
childhood, and one, Zachariah, in 1825, at the 
age of seventeen. (31 Julia Ann, married Cal- 
vin Hyde, and had nine children. 



LEWTS D. HEDGES (deceased) was for 
several \-ears one of the leading merchants 

of Pine Plains, Dutchess county. He is a na- 
tive of that section, born at Jackson Corners, 
town of Milan, Dutchess county, in 18 12, and 
on both the paternal and maternal sides was 
descended from old English families, who lo- 
cated on Long Island at a very early day in the 
history of this country. His grandfather, John 
Hedges, was there born, and his farm on Long 
Island is now owned by one of his grandsons. 
He there married Jerusha Hunting, daughter of 
Rev. Hunting, the first Presbyterian minister 
on that island, who had seven daughters. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Hed.ges were born seven chil- 
dren: Mrs. Jerusha Huldred; Mrs. Lucinda 
Hedges; Mrs. Harriet Hand; Stephen; John; 
Josiah; and Harriet, who died unmarried. 

Prior to 181 2, Josiah Hedges, the father of 
our subject, removed to Dutchess county, lo- 
cating in the town of Milan, w-here he engaged 
in farming, and was one of the prominent and 
representative men of the community. He was 



united in marriage with Elizabeth Dibble, 
daughter of Christopher and Eliza Dibble, and 
to them were born two children: Mary, wife 
of Isaac Smith, whose descendants now live at 
Millbrook, Dutchess county; and Lewis D. 
The father was called from this life in 1844, 
and his wife died in 1851. 

In the district schools of the town of Milan, 
Lewis D. Hedges secured his elementary edu- 
cation, and being a great reader he became a 
well-informed man. In 1840 he began general 
merchandising in Pine Plains, and later formed 
a partnership with William Davis, which con- 
nection was continued for about a j'ear. He 
carried on mercantile pursuits up to the time 
of his death, which occurred on January 4, 
1859, and met with a well-deserved success. 
His first location was where the opera house 
now stands, but he later removed to the store 
which is now owned by W. S. Eno. He was 
one of the foremost merchants of the place, and 
was highly respected by all with whom he came 
in contact. 

On August I, 1844, Mr. Hedges led to the 
marriage altar Miss Mary Pulver, daughter of 
Andrus and Margaret (Thomas) Pulver, who 
were of English descent. Her paternal grand- 
father, Nicholas N. Pulver, resided on a farm 
east of the village of Pine Plains, and by his 
marriage with Polly Parks had children : 
Andrus, Nicholas, Filer, Mary, Sutherland, 
Matilda, Lewis and Julia. His death occurred 
in 1850, and his wife died in December, 1856. 
The father of Mrs. Hedges was born in 1800, 
and in later life purchased of Dr. Reynolds 
what is now known as the " Stissing Hotel." 
but was then called the •• Pulver's Hotel, " 
which he conducted for many years. He 
stood very high in the estimation of his fellow- 
men, and' had the confidence of all who knew 
him. In his family were three children who 
grew to years of maturity: Mary; Frances 
Thomas, wife of Henry Myers; and Cornelia 
B. , wife of Egbert Van Wagner. The mother 
of Mrs. Pulver bore the maiden name of Den- 
ton, and her mother was a Peck. Mrs. Pulver 
for her second husband married Henry C. 
Myers. Two daughters blessed that union: 
Elizabeth, wife of B. C. Rizedorf, and Mar- 
garet, who married (first) Eben Husted, and 
(second) William Juckett. 

Three children blessed the union of Mr. 
and Mrs. Hedges: Lewis M., of Chicago, 
who married Catharine O. Crononin; Henry C, 
who is at the head of the advertising agency of 



376 



COMMEAfORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Barnum's circus; and Elizabeth, wife of Isaac 
Rollins, of the town of Milan, by whom she 
has two children — Mary H. and Lewis H. H. 
In politics, Mr. Hedges affiliated with the 
Whig party, was very positive in his views, and 
was greatly interested in all local political 
affairs. He was public-spirited and progress- 
sive, giving his support to all measures for the 
benefit of the community, and was an impor- 
tant factor in the upbuilding of the locality. 
He was one of the reliable members of the 
Presbyterian Church, and was a conscientious 
Christian gentleman. 



J WATSON VAIL, a prominent citizen and 
leading photographer of Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, whose gallery is located 
at Nos. 254 and 256 Main street, is a native of 
Dutchess county, born May 18, 1849, on a 
farm in the town of Unionvale, where the 
family have lived for several generations. 
They were of English origin, and the great- 
grandfather of our subject, who served as a 
captain during the Revolutionary war, was 
born probably on the old family homestead in 
Unionvale. 

There the birth of Israel \'ail occurred, and 
on attaining adult age he was united in mar- 
riage with a Miss Hall, also a native of Dutch- 
ess county, by whom he had nine children: 
Hiram, who became a builder and, later, a 
banker of Amenia, Dutchess county; Jarvis, a 
farmer of Dutchess count)-; Isaac, who was 
also an agriculturist; Edmond, the father of 
our subject; Hubbard, a mason by trade; Alan- 
son, who carried on farming; Mary, wife of 
Alfred Van Black, a miller of Unionvale; Re- 
becca, who never married; and PhcEbe, wife of 
James Losee, a farmer. On the old homstead 
the father of this family departed this life. 

Edmond Vail, the father of our subject, 
was born and reared there, and educated in 
the district schools of the neighborhood. He 
wedded Martha Husted, who was born in the 
town of Washington, Dutchess count}', and 
was a daughter of Lewis Husted, a farmer b\' 
occupation and a native of Dutchess county, 
his birth having occurred in the same house 
where his father was born. The parents of our 
subject began their domestic life upon a farm 
in the town of Unionvale, but later removed 
to Poughkeepsie, where the father was en- 
gaged in the insurance business until his death 
in 1884. In politics he was an ardent Repub- 



lican. The parental household included five 
children, namely: Lewis H., who is president 
of the Dutchess County Insurance Co.; Her- 
bert, now engaged in clerking; J. Watson, the 
subject of this sketch; Alonzo H., who is in 
partnership with our subject, and is also in the 
insurance business; and Dr. Edwin S., a spe- 
cialist, who is engaged in the practice of medi- 
cine at Enfield, Connecticut. 

Until he was seventeen years of age J. 
Watson \'ail, whose name introduces this 
record, remained upon the home farm, assist- 
ing in its cultivation and attending the com- 
mon schools of the locality. His first inde- 
pendent effort in life was as an employe in a 
carriage factor}- which he entered in 1865, and 
there remained for about a year and a half. 
He then took instructions in photography un- 
der Isaac N. \'an \\^agner for about fifteen 
months, after which he went to Fishkill, N. Y. , 
where he opened a small gallery; but at the 
end of five months he returned to Poughkeep- 
sie. On May*20, 1868, he opened his present 
gallery, where he has since successfully en- 
gaged in business. 

On April 5, 1876, Mr. Vail was united in 
marriage with Miss Flora H. Sterling, of 
Poughkeepsie, a daughter of Junius Sterling, a 
dry-goods merchant of that place. Her father 
was born in Salisbury, Conn., and was the 
son of William C. Sterling, who owned large 
iron interests in that State, but later in life 
came to Poughkeepsie, and was president of 
the Fallkill National Bank. The political 
support of Mr. Vail is given the Republican 
party, in the success of which he takes a deep 
interest. In manner he is pleasant and genial, 
in disposition kindly, and is universally held in 
the highest regard. 



ASA B. CORBIN. The Corbin family is 
well known in the town of Pawling, 

Dutchess county, and its members in every 
generation have given evidence of the qualities 
which constitute good citizenship. 

John Corbin, the father of the subject of 
this sketch, was a native of that town and 
passed his life there, acquiring his education in 
its public schools, and engaging in agricultural 
pursuits on arriving at manhood's estate. He 
was a devout Methodist, working actively to 
advance the cause of religion, and was beloved 
throughout the community. He married So- 
phia Burdick, and had three children, of whom 




ASA B. CORBIH. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



377 



Asa B. was the second. The eldest. John 
Corbin, Jr., was born in the town of PawHng, 
and his education was obtained in the pubHc 
schools. He was engaged in business as a 
carpenter and wagon maker during the greater 
portion of his life. He and his wife Matilda 
(Ferris), had one daughter, Alice, who was 
born in Pawling, is now the wife of Mr. Gar- 
ner, a farmer in Connecticut, and they have 
one child. The youngest of the three children 
of John Corbin, Sr., Betsy, born 1813, mar- 
ried Horace Haviland, and died March 28, 
1894. 

Our subject was born December 16, 18 14, 
was educated at the common schools, reared 
on a farm, and learned the trade of a carpenter, 
later also that of wagon maker. Some forty 
years ago he established that business, in con- 
nection with undertaking, in Pawling, and con- 
tinued same up to his death which occurred- 
February 28, 1887. He was a man of good 
executive ability, and accumulated a fine prop- 
erty. On December 16, 1859, he married 
Mary L. Allen, and they had one daughter, 
Grace A., born September 22, 1866, now the 
wife of Alonzo M. Leach. The mother died 
June 16, 1889; she was born April 25, 1835, ^ 
daughter of Horatio and Hannah (Pendley) 
Allen, farming people of the town of Pawling, 
who had a family of four children: Susan, 
Ruth, Gideon and Mary L. Asa B. Corbin 
was a progressive man, originally a Whig, and 
later a Republican in politics, finally joining 
the Prohibition party on its formation, and in 
i860 he served as supervisor of his county. In 
temperance work he was extremely active, 
giving freely to the cause of his time and 
mone}', and he was a zealous member of the 
M. E. Church. 

Alonzo M. Leach was born January 18, 
1855, in Sherman, Conn., a son of David W. 
and Samantha M. (Hawes) Leach, who were 
the parents of three children, Alonzo M. being 
the youngest. Florence, the eldest, married 
Edward P. Briggs, a merchant of Sherman, 
Conn., and they have one child, Belle. 
Charles L, the second in David W. Leach's 
family, married Ida H. Wanzer, and they have 
had two children, Ray, and one that died in 
infancy. They live on the old farm in Leach 
Hollow, Conn. The Leach family are of 
Scotch extraction, and trace their pedigree 
back to Ichabod Leach, who was one of three 
brothers (sons of Moses Leach) who came 
from Scotland. David W. Leach, the father 



of Alonzo M., was born in 1822, a son of 
David Leach. He was a Democrat, served as 
a captain in the old State militia, and was a 
member of the State Legislature, besides hold- 
ing other minor offices at various times. Sa- 
mantha M. (Hawes) Leach (the mother of Al- 
onzo M.) was the third in the family of thir- 
teen children born to David Hawes and his 
wife. She died in 1877. 

Alonzo M. Leach received his primary ed- 
ucation at the common schools of the neigh- 
borhood of his boyhood home, afterward at- 
tending the Golden Hill Institute, Bridgeport, 
Conn., where he was graduated in 1874. He 
then worked on a farm until 1882, in which 
year he came to Pawling, where he entered 
the employ of Merwin & Holmes, general mer- 
chants, with whom he has remained ever since, 
with the exception of one year he spent in 
Bridgeport. On October 19, 1892, he and 
Miss Grace A. Corbin were united in marriage. 
They have one child, Helen M., born Decem- 
ber 31, 1894. In his political preferences Mr. 
Leach is a Republican. 



C<\OURT B. CUNLEY, the well-known to- 
J bacconist of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess coun- 
ty, was born near Hillsdale, Mich., November 
13, 1 838, a son of Daniel and Sarah Ann (Van- 
Voorhees) Cunley. 

Our subject spent his boyhood at Fishkill, 
attending the public schools. He learned the 
tobacco trade of the John Jay Cox Co., at 
Fishkill, and then went to New York City, 
where he finished his trade. Returning to 
Fishkill he again worked for the John Jay Cox 
Co., subsequently going to Red Hook and 
again to New York City. In 1867 he came to 
Poughkeepsie, and started business at the old 
stand established by Rudolph Griner in 1835. 
Mr. Cunley began the manufacture of cigars 
in 1879, and in 1882 moved into the store he 
now occupies. 

Our subject was married at Fishkill, June 
II, 1858, to Sarah J., a daughter of Morgan 
Owen, and their children were: Frank G., 
Minnie V. and Fred. Mr. Cunley is a mem- 
ber of Poughkeepsie Lodge No. 266, F. & A. 
M. ; Poughkeepsie Chapter No. 172, R. A. M. ; 
Commandery No. 43, Knights Templar; King 
Solomon's Council of Royal and Select Mas- 
ters; member of the N. Y. Mystic Shrine of 
Mecca Temple; thirty-second Degree of Aurora 
Grata Consistory of the Valley of Brooklyn, 



378 



COif-VEMOBATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



X. Y. ; past exalted ruler of the Elks; member 
of the K. of P. No. 43; and of Fallkill Lodge 
No. 297, 1. O. O. F. He attends the services 
of the Hedding Methodist Episcopal Church. 
In politics our subject is a Republican, and for 
six years represented the Third ward in the 
city council. He was on the water board for 
three years, and for the same length of time 
on the Alms House board. He was a pro- 
moter of the Electric Light & Power Co., in 
Poughkeepsie, and was chairman of the light- 
ing committee in the council. As it was 
through his zeal that the plant was put in, he 
was called the "electric light alderman.' He 
has always taken a great interest in politics. 
Since living in Marshall street he has built 
three houses, and he also owns property on 
College avenue and Grand avenue. 

Daniel Cunley, the father of our subject, 
was born June 12, 1801, in Stuttgart, Ger- 
many, where he received his schooling. He 
was in the German arm\- for five years. In 
1822 he came to Fishkill and worked in a 
woolen-mill as dyer, and was married in that 
town to Miss Sarah Ann \'an V'oorhees, who 
was born in Fishkill, October 20, 1S09. They 
went to Hillsdale, Mich., soon after their mar- 
riage, making the journey by packet on the 
canal and across Lake Erie. In Hillsdale he 
bought a farm of about 352 acres, but, becom- 
ing afflicted with the. ague, he sold out and 
moved to Allegany county, N. Y. , and farmed 
there; but on account of the fever and ague he 
again sold out and returned to Fishkill, where 
he remained until his death. September 25, 
1S85. Mrs. Cunley died February 29, 1884. 
They had the following children: Court B. , 
our subject; William H.. born in [840; George 
A., born in 1843: and Mary, John Wesley and 
Fletcher, who are deceased. 

The following is the pedigree of the Van- 
Voorhees family, taking only our subject's 
branch. The full record of this family makes 
a volume of over 700 pages. The English 
meaning of the Holland name of Van Voor- 
hees is " from before Hees, " Van meaning 
••from" and Voor meaning •'before." Hees 
being a small village about a quarter of a mile 
south of the town of Ruinen, in the province 
of Drenthe. Holland, which, in 1660, con- 
tained nine houses and about fifty inhabitants. 
The earliest of the family of whom we have 
any definite information is Coert Alberts of 
Voorhees, the father of the emigrant ancestor, 
Steven Coerte Van Voorhees, and from the 



fact of his second name being Albert, with the 
terminal ''s," we know that his father's first 
name must have been Albert. 

I. Coert .\lberts Van N'oorhees had seven 
children, of whom Steven Coerte Van Voor- 
hees was the eldest. 

II. Steven Coerte Van Voorhees was bom, 
in 1600, at Hees, Holland, and died February 
16, 1684, at Flatlands. Long Island. He 
married ( i ) in Holland ( wife's name not knosvnj ; 
i2j prior to 1677 on Long Island, Willempie 
Roelofse Senbering, born in 16 19, died in 
1690. He emigrated from Hees. April. 1660, 
in the ship •• Bontekoe "(•• Spotted Cow "j, 
November 29, 1660. He purchased from Cor- 
nelis Dircksen Hoogland nine morgens of corn 
land, seven morgens of woodland, ten morgens 
of plain land, and five morgens of salt meadow 
in Flatlands, Long Island, for 3,000 guilders. 
He also bought the brewery. He and his wife 
were members of the Dutch Church of Flat- 
lands. 

III. Coert Stevense V'an Voorhees third 
child of No. II), born 1637, died 1702, mar- 
ried 1664 to Marretje Gerritse Van Comoen- 
hoven, born April 10, 1644, died 1709. He 
was a representative of Flatlands in the Gen- 
eral Assembly at New Amsterdam city hall 
April 10, 1664. and delegate to the convention 
of March 26, 1674, at New Orange, to confer 
with Governor Colve. He was deacon of Dutch 
Church, magistrate 1664 to 1673. and captain 
of militia in 1689. He had nine children, of 
whom Johannes Coerte Van Voorhees was the 
youngest. 

IV. Johannes Coerte Van \'oorhees, born 
April 20, 1683, married ( i ) November 19, 1703, 
Barbara Van Dyck, (2) May 2, 1744, Sarah 
Van \liet, died October 10. 1757. After his 
first marriage he left Flatlands and settled at 
Freehold, N. J., on a farm of 200 acres. From 
there he moved to Rombout precinct, now 
Fishkill, Dutchess county, buying 2,790 acres 
of land of Philip Verplanck, of the manor of 
Courtlandt. He was one of the organizers and 
many years elder of the Dutch Church at Fish- 
kill village. The tombstone in the Dutch 
church-yard bears this inscription: '• Here 
lyes the body of John \'an Voorhis, aged sev- 
enty-five years. Deceased October 10, .\nno 

173/- 

V. Coert Van Voorhees (second child of 
No. IV) was born April 5, 1706, married June 
16, 1727, Catherine Filkin, died March 19, 
1785. He lived at Fishkill. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



b79 



VI. Zachariah \'an Voorhees (tenth child 
of No. V) was born March 25, 1748. Mar- 
ried (i) February I3, 1772, Anna Lawrence, 
born .\ugust 27, 175 i, died December 10, 1781; 
(2) November 25, 1786, to Nancy Springsteen, 
who was born May 15, 1763, and died February 
9, 1851. He died July 3, 181 1. He resided 
at Fishkill. 

VH. Coert Van Voorhees (third child of 
No. VI j was born July 15, 1777, married May 
8, 1803, to Elizabeth Palmer, born 1787, died 
December 17, 1869. He died in 1818. 

VIII. Sally Ann Van Voorhees (third child 
of No. VII) was born October 20, 1809. She 
married Daniel Cunley, and died February 29, 
1884. 

IX. Court B. Cunley (eldest child of No. 
VIII) was born November 13. 1838. 



SAMUEL VAN COTT (deceased). Among 
the sturdy, energetic and successful farm- 
ers of Dutchess county, who thoroughly under- 
stand the vocation they follow, and conse- 
quently are enabled to carry on their calling 
with profit to themselves, 'was the subject of 
this sketch, who was actively engaged in agri- 
cultural pursuits in the town of Lagrange, some 
'fourteen years. 

Our subject was born in the town of Dover, 
Dutchess county, February 8, 1826, and came 
of Holland lineage. His grandfather, John 
Van Cott, who was born in Long Island, N. Y. , 
married a Miss Titus, and in their family was 
Stephen Van Cott, the father of our subject, 
who was also born on Long Island, and en- 
gaged in farming, in the town of ^oth Dover 
and Washington, Dutchess county. He was 
united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Doty, 
and to them were born the following children: 
Nelson (deceased), Martha, Jane, George 
Samuel, and Caroline and Oliver (both de- 
ceased). 

Samuel Van Cott was reared amid the hills 
of the town of Washington, and there breathed 
the spirit of freedom and independence which 
was so largely characteristic of him. He se- 
cured his education in the common schools, 
and early in life received a home training upon 
the farm, which well fitted him for the calling 
he so long followed. He was born in the 
town of Dover, but most of his boyhood days 
were spent in the town of \\'ashington, where 
he remained until nineteen years of age, when 
he went to Onondaga county, N. Y., there 



conducting a store for a short time. For five 
years he was engaged in farming in Broome 
county, N. Y. , after which he went to Cali- 
fornia, where he remained in the mining dis- 
tricts some three years. Returning to New 
York State, he again located in Broome county, 
where for some time he followed agricultural 
pursuits, and was also engaged in the same oc- 
cupation in Herkimer county several years. 
Later, for seventeen years, he conducted a 
farm in Onondaga county, but in 1882 he re- 
turned to Dutchess count}', and made his 
home in the town of Lagrange until his death, 
which occurred February 6, 1896. 

On Long Island in i860, Mr. Van Cott 
married Miss Elizabeth R. Velsor, daughter of 
John Velsor, and the following named five 
children blessed their union: John, Valentine, 
Henry R., George S. and Charles P. A 
stanch adherent to the Republican party, Mr. 
Van Cott took an active interest in politics. 



ENRY JOSEPH TAYLOR, a highly-re- 
JfJi spected citizen of Poughkeepsie, Dutch- 
ess county, is a native of New York, born at 
Highland Falls, December 4, 1862. Manj' of 
the ancestors of our subject were natives of 
Dover, Dutchess count}', where his paternal 
grandfather's birth occurred; but most of his 
life was passed in Danbury, Conn., at which 
place he was employed as a hatter. 

The father, Ezra Ta\lor, was also born at 
Dover, where his early education was received, 
and for ten years he there worked as a me- 
chanic, after which he removed to Spuyten 
Duyvel, N. Y. , where he worked at his trade 
for several years. He then went to West 
Point, N. Y. , where he was employed by the 
government until 1885, and during the Civil 
war enlisted there in the Union service, but 
did not leave that post. For over twenty 
years he made his home at Highland Falls, N. 
Y. , where he was highly respected by his fel- 
low citizens. He was a man of excellent edu- 
cation, with scarcely an enemy in the world, of 
a retiring disposition, and. though often ten- 
dered public office, would never accept. At 
Dover, Dutchess county, Ezra Taylor married 
Deborah Lee. daughter of Thomas Lee, but 
she died in April, 1892, leaving five children: 
Royal E., a carpenter of Peekskill, N. Y. ; 
Martha A., wife of Capt. H. H. Meeks, of 
Yonkers, N. Y. ; Warren Madison, who is con- 
nected with the Ansonia Clock Company, of 



380 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



South Brooklyn, N. Y.; Henry J., subject of 
th-s review; and William E., head salesman 
for C. Crum, furniture dealer, at Newburg, 
New York. 

The boj'hood days of Henry J. Taylor 
were spent at Highland Fails, where he at- 
tended school until sixteen years of age, when 
he came to Poughkeepsie and for three years 
worked for his uncle, William Taylor, in the 
grocery business. He then went to New York 
City, where he remained five years, being em- 
ployed by the New York, New Haven & Hart- 
ford Steamboat Company, and on his return 
to Poughkeepsie was in the grocery store of R. 
B. Cary for one year. The following fi\e 
years he worked for Holmes & Boice, after 
which he went to Arlington, where he and his 
uncle, William Taylor, engaged in the grocery 
trade, under the firm name of Taylor & Tay- 
lor, for a couple of years. On selling out his 
interest to his uncle, our subject entered the 
employ of E. S. Craft, with whom he has re- 
mained since July, 1894. 

On October 24, 1888, at Highland Falls, 
Mr. Taylor was united in marriage with Miss 
Olive T. Faurot, daughter of Capt. Theodore 
Faurot, and their union has been blessed with 
two children: Lee Faurot, born in July, 1889, 
and Henry Earle, born in October, 1892. Mr. 
Taylor has made many friends since coming 
to Poughkeepsie, and by all who know him he 
is held in the highest esteem. 



I 



DC. TRIPP, M. D., the leading physician 
and surgeon of the town of Beekman, 
was born July 6, 1848, at Ithaca, N. Y. , the 
only child of F. W. and Rebecca (Taber) 
Tripp, the former of whom was a native of 
Pawtucket, R. I., the latter of New York. 
The father owned and operated a machine- 
shop at Ithaca, where the iron work for canal 
boats, etc., was turned out. 

Our subject, after completing his educa- 
tion at the schools of his native town, entered 
the office of Ur. S. P. Sackett, where he com- 
menced the study of medicine. "Subsequently 
he attended Bellevue Hospital Medical College, 
New York City, where he was graduated in 
1875. For a time he practiced on Twenty- 
fourth street, that city, while taking a post- 
graduate course, but being persuaded by his 
relatives to return to Ithaca, he did so, and for 
the following seven years was in active prac- 
tice there. 



While attending medical college in New 
York, the Doctor met Miss Sarah Elizabeth 
Sands, daughter of Dr. Samuel Sands, of 
Darien, Conn., to whom he was married June 
5, 1878. On April 3, 1885. he became a resi- 
dent of the town of Beekman, Dutchess coun- 
t}', having bought the practice of Dr. Clark A. 
Nicholson, who soon afterward died. He was 
the leading physician of the locality, and Dr. 
Tripp has proven himself a worthy successor. 
Successful from the start, he has a large and 
growing practice, not only in the town of 
Beekman, but in the towns adjacent on the 
west. He stands high among the medical fra- 
ternity of the county, and is a member of the 
Dutchess County Medical Society. 



JUDGE ANDREW COLE (deceased). A 
man's reputation is the property of the 
world. The laws of nature have forbidden 
isolation. Every human being either submits 
to the controlling infiuence of others, or as a 
master spirit wields a power either for good or 
for evil on the masses of mankind. There can 
be no improprietj" in justly scanning the acts 
of an}' man as thej- affect his public and busi- 
ness relations. If he is honest and eminent in 
his chosen field of labor, investigation will 
brighten his fame, and point the path that 
others may follow with like success. From 
among the ranks of quiet, persevering, yet 
prominent citizens there is no one more de- 
serving of mention in a \olume of thfs charac- 
ter than Andrew Cole, who departed this life 
at his late residence in Pleasant \'alley, De- 
cember 3, 1896. 

Judge Cole was a native of Dutchess coun- 
ty, born in the town of Unionvale, July 31, 
1825, and was the son of William Cowles (as 
the name was spelled by his ancestors). The 
father was also born in the town of Unionvale, 
the date of his birth being October 14, 1790, 
and was the only child of John M. Cowles, 
who was of Holland descent, and a prominent 
farmer of Unionvale town, where both he and 
his wife passed the remainder of their lives. 
They were earnest members of the Society of 
Friends. William Cowles was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Charlotte Lake, who was born 
September 30, 1792, in the town of Lagrange, 
Dutchess county, where her father, James Lake, 
was a lifelong agriculturist. The young couple 
began housekeeping upon a farm in Lagrange 
town, and later became residents of the town 




^^C q7-^:.^M.^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPEWAL RECORD. 



381 



of Unionvale, and upon the old homestead 
there the father died February 20, 1845; his 
wife passed away February 23, 1871. They, 
too, were members of the Society of Friends, 
as were also the maternal grandparents of our 
subject, and in politics the father was a Dem- 
ocrat. 

Andrew Cole, whose name opens this 
sketch, was the fifth in order of birth in the 
family of seven children, the others being 
Milton, who engaged in farming in the town 
of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, where his 
death occurred; James, who followed the same 
pursuit in Lagrange town, where he died; 
Parleman, a conductor, who died in Pennsyl- 
vania; Elizabeth, who became the wife of Jar- 
vis Emigh, a miller and the postmaster at 
Hyde Park, Dutchess county, and now makes 
her home in Poughkeepsie; Mitchell, who is 
engaged in wagon making; and William H., 
who at one time followed carpentering in 
Dutchess county, later in Brooklyn, where he 
died. 

In the usual manner of farmers' boys our 
subject spent his boyhood and youth, receiving 
his literary education in the old district school, 
and at the Nine Partners School, in which he 
taught for a time. He then entered the law 
office of Varick&Eldridge, Poughkeepsie, where 
he remained some time, from there proceed- 
ing to LaCrosse, Wis., where he was admitted 
to the bar, and tried his first suit in that now 
thriving city. It was then a mere hamlet, the 
houses being all made of logs, and he built the 
first frame house on what is now Second street. 
He was also one of the first lawyers of Winona, 
Minn. ; here he was appointed district attorney, 
and afterward elected probate judge of Winona 
county, there remaining until 1857, when on 
account of ill health he returned to Pleasant 
Valley, where he passed his declining days. 
While a resident of Winona he was one of its 
most active and influential citizens, and served 
as attorney for the owners of the city. 

In 1852 Judge Cole was united in marriage 
with Miss Sarah A. Mastin, a native of New 
York City, and a daughter of James B. Mastin, 
who finally became a resident of Pleasant 
Valley, where his death occurred. The an- 
cestors of the Mastin family were from Eng- 
land. By the union of our subject and wife 
were born three children; Lilly N., Zoda A. 
and Wilhelmina, all of whom died in child- 
hood. 

Although Judge Cole was not engaged in 



active practice of law after his return to Dutch- 
ess county, his services were, nevertheless, 
frequently sought in legal matters, and he took 
a lively interest in everything pertaining to the 
legal fraternity. He was prominently identi- 
fied with the Democratic party, but was never 
prevailed upon to accept office, though often 
urged to do so. His estimable wife holds 
membership with the Presbyterian Church, 
but he always adheres to the faith of his an- 
cestors, being a Friend to the day of his 
death. In the taking away of Judge Cole, 
the Dutchess county Bar has lost one of its 
most able members; Pleasant Valley, one of 
its most prominent and most highly esteemed 
citizens; and those of his own household, a 
genial companion and sympathetic adviser. 



JOHN C. SICKLEY, the city librarian of 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, is a native 
- of Springfield, N. J., born August 29, 1855, 
and is descended from John Sickley, Sr., a 
sea captain, of Holland birth. John, Sr. , was 
married in Holland; his wife was drowned at 
sea. Their only child, John Sickley, Jr., was 
born at Schooley's Mountain, N. J., and in 
that State engaged in agricultural pursuits. 
By his marriage with Sarah Allen he became 
the fatherof nine children: Margaret: James; 
John, who was shot during the Revolutionary 
war, at Millstonebridge, N. J.; Archibald, the 
grandfather of our subject; William; Catherine; 
Obediah; Eliza and Robert. 

By occupation the grandfather was a farmer 
and successfully followed that pursuit in New 
Jersey, his native State, but his death oc- 
curred in California. He was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Sarah Hazen. of the same 
State, and they became the parents of six 
children: John C, the father of our subject; 
Ziba H., who was a merchant of Spring- 
field, N. J. ; Jane, who married Theodore 
Pearsoi;, a farmer, millwright and county judge 
of Union county, N. J. ; Clarissa, who wed- 
ded Halsey Burnett, a boot and shoe mer- 
chant; James, a farmer of New Jersey: and 
Andrew J., a farmer of the Empire State. 

The father of our subject was born in Spring- 
field, N. J., and was reared on a farm in that 
State. On reaching manhood he there kept a 
country hotel for some time. The lady who 
became his wife bore the maiden name of Mary. 
C. Bradbury, and she was also a native of 
Springfield. Her father. Samuel Bradbury, 



382 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHWAL RECORD. 



was a paper manufacturer of that place, and 
was the son of John Bradbury, who was born in 
England and sent out by that country to travel 
through America and report on the condition of 
the country. He published a work on his trav- 
els, entitled, " Bradbury's Travels in America in 
1809-10-11." After their marriage the par- 
ents of our subject located on a farm in Spring- 
field, where six children were born to them, 
namely: Ellen and Clarissa, both of whom 
died in childhood; John C, subject of this 
review; George, who died while young; and 
James and Mary, who are living with their 
mother upon the old homestead. The father, 
whose life was passed in farming and hotel 
keeping, died in August, 1865. In politics he 
was an unswerving Democrat, and held sev- 
eral important offices in his locality. 

Our subject spent his early daj's upon the 
home farm, aiding in its operation, and attending 
the district schools of the neighborhood ; his edu- 
cation, however, was completed in the schools of 
Poughkeepsie, where his mother removed with 
her family in 1870. He began the study of 
law with Judge Nelson, and later was with Mr. 
Crummey. On being admitted to the bar in 
1877, he began the practice of his chosen pro- 
fession, which he continued for some time; but 
in 1883 was appointed city librarian, and is 
still serving in that capacity to the satisfaction 
of all concerned. 

Mr. Sickley married Miss Olivia M. Town- 
ley, a native of New Jersey, and a daughter of 
Albert Townley, a farmer by occupation, who 
is of English lineage. One child blesses this 
union, Katherine O. The parents attend the 
Episcopal (Church, and are widely and favor- 
ably known. 



COI^INELIUS R. VAN WYCK (deceased) 
was one of the iniiuential and highly re- 
spected citizens of the town of East Fishkill, 
where almost his entire life was passed. There 
his birth occurred, March 28. 1814, and there 
his great-grandfather, Richard Van Wyck, a 
native of Long Island, located at an early day, 
the grandfather of our subject, Cornelius R. 
Van Wyck, being born there January 26, 1753. 
C. R. \'an Wyck was a lineal descendant of 
Cornelius Baruse Van Wyck, who emigrated 
from Holland in 1650, and settled in New 
Amsterdam. 

Col. Richard C. Van Wyck, the father of 
our subject, was also a native of the town of 



East Fishkill, born June 11. 1783, and through- 
out life engaged in milling, farming and mer- 
chandising, in Dutchess county. He married 
Elizabeth Thorn, and to them were born the 
following children: Rynier, a farmer of Fish- 
kill, who married Elizabeth \'an Wyck; Cor- 
nelius R., subject of this review; Jane E., who 
became the wife of John Adriance, a farmer; 
Anna, who married Jacob Horton, a farmer of 
East Fishkill; Phcj.be, who married Cornelius 
S. Van Wyck, also an agriculturist; Henrietta, 
who married James Du Bois, a farmer of Hud- 
son, N. Y. ; and Mary, who wedded Robert 
McMurry, a merchant of New York City. 

Our subject was reared to agricultural pur- 
suits, but for a short time during early life he 
was engaged in merchandising in Poughkeepsie, 
after which he again turned his attention to 
farming. He continued to operate his farm in 
the town of East Fishkill with the exception 
of seven years, when he carried on the same 
occupation in Culpeper county, Va., and was 
quite successful in his undertakings. 

On January 11, 1843, Mr. Van Wyck was 
united in marriage with Miss Phcebe C. Wort- 
man, who was also born in the town of East 
Fishkill, and is the daughter of Denis and 
Elizabeth (Rapalje) Wortman, the former a 
native of Westchester county, N. Y., and the 
latter of East Fishkill town, this county. Her 
mother was the daughter of Jeromus and Eliz- 
abeth (Bedell) Rapa'ije, the former born on 
Long Island, while her paternal grandfather, 
James Wortman, was a native of Westchester 
county, and a farmer and architect by occupa- 
tion. James Wortman, father of Dr. Denis 
Wortman, was a descendant of Dirck Jansen 
Wortman, who emigrated from Holland in 1646 
and settled in Brooklyn, and was of Huguenot 
descent. After their marriage her parents 
located at East Fishkill, N. Y. , where her 
father engaged in the practice of medicine for 
the long period of forty-seven years, and was 
a most successful physician. He died greatly 
lamented May 2, 1864, surviving his wife only 
a few months, her death having occurred Jan- 
uary 14, 1864. They were earnest members 
of the Reformed Dutch Church, and reared a 
family of four children: Elizabeth, who mar- 
ried John P. Flagler; Phcebe, widow of our 
subject; Denis, a prominent Reformed Dutch 
minister of Saugerties, N. Y. ; and Ann Aletta. 

Mr. and Mrs. Van Wyck commenced their 
married life at P'ishkill Plains, N. J., afterward 
moving to the home in Hopewell, N. Y., for- 



COMMEMOEATirS BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



383 



merly the home of Dr. \^'ortman and wife 
(the father and mother of Mrs. \'an Wyck). 
Ten' children were born to them: Richard C, 
a prominent and beloved physician, who mar- 
ried Charlotte Underbill, and died January 28, 
1896; Denis W., a merchant of Wappingers 
Falls, N. Y. , who married Mary E. Harcourt, 
and they had one child, Phebe Ellen (he died 
August 4, 1S80); Eliza, who died at the age of 
f]ve years; Anna; Eliza Janette; Mary, who 
died August 18, 1873; Phoebe Jane; Margaret 
W. ; James C, a merchant of Matteawan,- N. 
Y. ; and Henrietta Du Bois. 

Richard C. Van Wyck, M. D., eldest son 
of Cornelius R. and Phcebe C. Van Wyck, was 
a prominent and beloved physician. He was 
graduated in medicine from the College of 
Ph\'sicians and Surgeons in New York City, 
March 12, 1867, after which he served two 
years in Bellevue Hospital on the Surgical 
Staff. He then went to Europe for the pur- 
pose of perfecting himself in his chosen profes- 
sion. Returning, he practiced awhile in Denr 
ver, Col., and afterward in Virginia (where he 
went on account of his health). Recovering 
his health, he settled in Hopewell, and con- 
tinued in active practice until his death. He 
was thrown from his carriage, his horse taking 
fright at a railroad crossing, and fatally in- 
jured January 25, 1896. and died January 28, 
1896. There are few physicians who possess 
more completely the confidence of their pa- 
tients than he did, and few have been more 
widel}' missed or so sincerely mourned. Denis 
W'ortman \'an W}ck, second son, was greatly 
beloved and respected, and was a merchant at 
Wappingers Falls. 

The parents were both devout members of 
the Reformed Dutch Church, and in political 
sentiment Mr. Van Wyck was an ardent Demo- 
crat. His death occurred June 14, 1S79, and 
was mourned by many warm friends. He was 
an active, public-spirited citizen, who had the 
respect of all who knew him, and took a prom- 
inent part in those matters relating to the best 
interests of the communitj". 



WILLIAM PLATTO. Among those who 
followed the old flag on Southern bat- 
tlefields is this gentleman, now one of the lead- 
ing business men of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, where he is conducting a successful 
carriage manufactory. He was born in that 



city, December 23. 1S45, and is the son of 
Thomas Platto, a native of Schenectady, N. 
Y. His paternal grandfather, Thomas Platto, 
who was a farmer by occupation, was born in 
the Mohawk Valley, and became the father of 
five children. It is a family tradition that 
great-great-grandfather Thomas Platto was 
killed by Indians at Tribes Hill in the Mohawk 
Valley. " 

In Schenectady, Thomas Platto, Jr., passed 
his boyhood days midst play and work, and 
learned the carriage maker's trade. When 
about twenty years of age he came to Pough- 
keepsie, where he met and married Mary 
Proper, who was born in the town of Milan, 
Dutchess county, and was the daughter of Isaac 
and Mary Proper, agriculturists of that locality. 
The young couple began their domestic life in 
Poughkeepsie, where the father engaged in the 
manufacture of carriages during the remainder 
of his active career. He died there in 1872, 
and his wife in 189K He was first a Whig in 
politics, and later cast his ballot with the Re- 
publican party; both he and his wife were de- 
vout members of the Baptist Church. The 
family of this worthy couple consisted of five 
children. ( i) James H., who was engaged as 
a bookkeeper in Chicago, 111., died in iS8i; 
he belonged to the Knights of Pythias frater- 
nit}', and was also a member of the Masonic 
order. (2) Charles V. L. is an assistant edi- 
tor of some newspaper and a resident of Hoos- 
ick Falls, N. Y. (3) William is next in order 
of birth. (4) Sarah married Frank Kennedy, 
of Syracuse, N. Y. ; (5) Catherine G. is the 
wife of Charles H. Baker, of the same city. 

William Platto, whose name introduces 
this review, spent his boyhood days in Pough- 
keepsie, receiving his education at the Dutch- 
ess County Academy, but when a youth of only 
seventeen summers, the Civil war having broken 
out, he enlisted in July, 1862, in Company D. 
128th N. Y. V. I. After participating in many 
hotly-contested engagements, and making for 
himself an honorable war record, he was dis- 
charged and returned to his home in Pough- 
keepsie. In 1 866 he took charge of his father's 
carriage business, and was very successful in 
its operation. The plant was located at Nos. 
7, 9 and 1 1 South Hamilton street, and our 
subject still owns that block, which has been 
in the hands of the family for about sixty years. 

Mr. Platto is an unswerving Republican, 
taking an active part in political affairs, and in 
January, 1895, was appointed chief of the po- 



384 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



lice department of Poughkeepsie, in which of- 
fice he is still sen'ing with credit to himself 
and to the satisfaction of all concerned. He 
is an active worker in the Grand Army of the 
Republic, belonging to Hamilton Post, of which 
for three terms he served as commander, and 
is numbered among the valued citizens of 
Poughkeepsie who have been devoted to the 
public welfare. He has manifested the same 
loyalty in days of peace as in days of war, and 
all who know him have for him the highest 
regard. 



WILLIAM H. SHELDON, in whose 
death Poughkeepsie lost one of her 

brightest, most progressive and useful young 
business men, was born October 29, 1859, in 
Beekman, Dutchess county. New York. 

Jeremiah Sheldon, father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Dover, Dutchess 
county, of English ancestry, and was a farmer 
by occupation. A stanch Whig and Repub- 
lican, he took an active part in political mat- 
ters. He married Miss Sophia M. Doughty, 
also born in Dutchess county, daughter of Jo- 
seph Doughty, and their children are as fol- 
lows: Amelia B., married to Kromaline An- 
drews fthey make their home on the old farm); 
Mary J., unmarried; and William H., the sub- 
ject of these lines. The father died May 19, 
1882, the mother on February i, 1886. 

William H. Sheldon passed his early days 
on his father's farm, attending the district 
school, and, later, the academy at Moores 
Mill. Subsequently he entered Claverack 
(Columbia county) College, and completed his 
education at Wilbraham I'Mass. 1 Academy; then 
returned to the farm, where he remained until 
his uncle, Wilson B. Sheldon, was elected 
county clerk, when he became his assistant in 
the office, there remaining some time. Our 
subject then formed a partnership with R. D. 
Cornell in the hay, straw and feed commission 
business; but after a short time this partner- 
ship was dissolved, and in the fall of 1881 Mr. 
Sheldon embarked in the coal business. He 
began in a very small way, but was so success- 
ful, and his trade grew so rapidly, that he be- 
gan wholesaling, supplying coal for the Har- 
lem Railroad Company. At the time of his 
death he was the largest wholesale and retail 
dealer in the vicinity, and had a prosperous 
future before him, his well-known integrity and 
fair dealing making him popular throughout the 



county, and bringing him customers from all 
parts. Besides attending to his regular busi- 
ness he acted as general manager of the 
Poughkeepsie & Eastern railroad, which was 
purchased some j-ears ago by Russell Sage, 
who appointed Mr. Sheldon general manager 
of that road. So faithfully and thoroughly 
did our subject do his work, that his employer 
took him into his confidence, and was influ- 
enced by him in his business probably more 
than by any other man. Too close applica- 
tiorr to business, however, and his earnest de- 
votion to the many societies, etc., of which he 
was an active member, began ultimately to 
make inroads upon his health, and for some- 
time prior to his death evidences of a breaking 
up of his constitution became apparent to his 
friends, and even to himself. The close of the 
year 1894 found him engaged in a more than 
usual amount of work, preparing for the ensu- 
ing year, thereby necessitating additional ex- 
ertion from his already impaired sjstem; nev- 
ertheless, unflinchingly he worked early and 
late, carrying all his duties to a successful ter- 
mination. The strain, however, was more 
than exhausted nature could stand, and one 
evening, while at the home of a neighbor, his 
tired brain refused longer to work. Kind hands 
guided Mr. Sheldon to his home, where the 
best of care was given him for a time, but his 
frenzies became so wild and uncontrollable 
that, for the better protection, he was taken to 
the State Hospital for the Insane, where, in 
spite of all that science and medical skill could 
accomplish, he grew weaker every day, till 
January 19, 1895, death relieved him from his 
sufferings. 

The earthly career of William H. Sheldon' 
was cut short just when most promising, and 
when he had made the reputation of being one 
of the ablest and most enterprising business 
men in Poughkeepsie. In his home circle and 
among his personal friends his untimeh' de- 
parture from their midst was most deeply felt. 
Full of life and energy, buoyant in spirits, and 
of a loving, generous disposition, he was 
missed as few men are, and his place will be 
hard to fill. He was a member of nearly all 
the fraternities in the county, and also of the 
New Manhattan Athletic Club of New York 
City; was a Thirty-second degree Mason in high 
standing, and also a member of the Methodist 
Church. In politics he was a stanch Repub- 
lican, and he served as alderman of the Fifth 
ward of Poughkeepsie. No better citizen, or 





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J 






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i, ^^'^ 


H^ 


^Mh, 






^^^^^i '^H 




■^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



385 



one more highly esteemed, has left his impress 
upon the community. 

On December 26, 1883, Mr. Sheldon was 
married to Miss Augusta Baright, who was 
born in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , January 27, 
1S63. Her father, Daniel S. Baright, who 
was a native of the same township, born 
March 25, 1838, married Mary Wing, who was 
born in the town of Clinton, June 15, 1840, 
and their children were: Augusta, William 
M., Irving G. and Frederick. Mr. Baright is 
a farmer, and also deals in agricultural im- 
plements. His grandfather was a native of 
Holland, and his father, Elijah Baright, born 
in the town of Pleasant Valley, N. Y., was a 
wealthy farmer. He married Amy, daughter 
of Samuel Carpenter, and a relative of J. Du- 
Bois Carpenter, elsewhere represented in this 
volume. In religious faith the Barights were 
all Hicksite Quakers, and in politics were 
Whigs or Republicans. The maternal grand- 
father of Mrs. Sheldon, Alexander Wing, a 
quiet, unassuming man, spent his entire life 
on a farm in Clinton; he was a Democrat in 
politics, and attended the Christian Church. 
One child. George B., born December 3, 1891, 
is ail the family born to our subject and his 
wife, whose all too short happy married life was 
brought to so sad a close. 



CHARLES EDGAR FOWLER, of Pough- 
keepsie, Dutchess county, was born in 
Carmel, Putnam Co., N. Y. , April 6, 1841. 
He is a son of Ammon Merrick Fowler, who 
was a son of James H. Fowler, of Car- 
mel, and a grandson of Ammon Fowler, of 
Bedford, Westchester Co., N. Y., and a great- 
grandson of Joseph Fowler, of West Patent. 
Ammon Fowler (the father of Charles) 
lived near Lake Mahopac, in the town of Car- 
mel, Putnam county. He was an upright, un- 
assuming man, of noble. Christian character, 
and for many years was an elder in the Gilead 
Presbyterian Church of Carmel. His wife 
(the mother of Charles) was a woman of clear 
intelligent Christian faith, and a worthy mem- 
ber of the same Church as her husband. She 
was Charlotte Louisa Crane, daughter of Na- 
thaniel Crane, of the town of Carmel, and 
granddaughter of John Crane, of the same 
town. John Crane held a captain's commis- 
sion under the Provincial Congress of the 
Province of New York, and after the Declara- 
tion of Independence received a captain's 

25 



commission from George Clinton, then Gov- 
ernor of New York, and held it through the 
war. John Crane's grandfather was Joseph 
Crane, and Joseph Crane's grandfather was 
John Crane, from England. 

Charles E. Fowler received a common- 
school education, and from 1857 to 1861 
worked at wagon-making; from 1 861 to 1869 at 
mill construction and repairs, and the develop- 
ment of water powers. During this latter 
period he pursued the study of mechanical^ 
hydraulic and civil engineering. In 1869 he 
married Louisa Maria Richards, daughter of 
David Belden Richards, of the town of South- 
east, Putnam Co., N. Y., a man of marked 
integrity of character. D. Belden Richards" 
wife, mother of Louisa, was Delia Foster. 
daughter of Thomas Foster, of the town 
above mentioned. She was a most worthy 
woman, and a consistent member of the Pres- 
byterian Church. Thomas Foster, father of 
Delia, was the son of James Foster, grandson 
of Thomas Foster, and great-grandson of Chil- 
lingworth Foster. Chillingworth was the son 
of John Foster, and grandson of Thomas Fos- 
ter, who came from England in 1634. 

In 1869 Charles E. Fowler entered the 
employ of the Peekskill Manufacturing Co., 
of Peekskill, N. Y., as draughtsman and me- 
chanical engineer. In 1871 he began the 
practice of land surveying and civil engineer- 
ing, in connection with the work of the Manu- 
facturing Co. In 1872 he opened an inde- 
pendent office, but continued the work for the 
Manufacturing Co. This practice continued 
until 1 88 1. During this period he, as chief 
engineer, designed and supervised the con- 
struction of the public water works of the vil- 
lage of Peekskill, also a system of water works 
for the village of Tarrytown, N. Y. He was 
also corporation surveyor for the village of 
Peekskill during several years of this period. 
In January, 1881, he was appointed superin- 
tendent of the water works and sewers of the 
city of Poughkeepsie, which office he held 
until May, 1896, when the water works and 
sewers, under a revised charter, became a 
part of the public works of the city, and he 
was appointed superintendent of public works, 
which office he now holds. 

In 1857 he united with the Presbyterian 
Church of Carmel, and in 1870 with the First 
Presbyterian Church of Peekskill. He was an 
elder in the latter Church from 1874 till his 
removal to Poughkeepsie in 1S81. In 18S1 



386 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



he united with the First Presbyterian Church 
of Poughkeepsie, was chosen an elder in that 
Church in 1S91, and still retains that office. 

The water and sewer systems of the city of 
Poughkeepsie, with which Mr. Fowler has so 
long been identified, are worthy of note for the 
fact that they were constructed by the same 
commission, at the same time, were designed 
to work in harmony and have continued under 
the control of one department of the city gov- 
ernment, thereby securing the best attainable 
sanitary results. The water system is further 
notable for being the first in this country to 
adopt artificial purification by means of sand 
filtration on the European method. The 
Hudson river is the source of supply, the 
water being pumped from the river to the sand 
filters, and thence to a reservoir on College 
Hill, at an elevation of 280 feet above mean 
high water in the river. The works were 
built in 1869-1872, and originally comprised 
about seventeen miles of water mains and 
about thirteen miles of sewers. Seven miles 
of water mains and three and one-quarter 
miles of sewers have been added during Mr. 
Fowler's term of service. The original water 
commissioners, in 1869, were Stephen M. 
Buckingham, Edward Storm, Edward L. 
Beadle, Edgar M. VanKIeeck, James H. 
Weeks and Abram Wright. 

The water commissioners held their final 
meeting on May 2, 1896; the last commis- 
sioners being Charles L. Lumb, Edmund 
Piatt, Howard W. Welles, Abraham S. 
Humphrey and Charles H. Shurter. The 
numerous commissioners holding office be- 
tween the years 1869 and 1896 comprised 
some of the most esteemed citizens and busi- 
ness men of Poughkeepsie. The Board of 
Public Works, having charge of the water 
works, sewers, streets, bridges and parks, was 
organized ^fay 2, 1896. The commissioners 
were James E. Dutcher, James B. Piatt and 
Walter R. Case. 



CHARLES M. WOLCOTT (deceased). The 
Wolcott family have held a distinguished 
place in the history of this country from the 
earliest times, Colonial records showing vari- 
ous members to have occupied high positions, 
and one of the name is enrolled among the 
immortal signers of the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence. 

The first of the family to leave the ances- 



tral home in Somersetshire, England, was the 
Puritan Henry Wolcott, who crossed the ocean 
with his son Simon in 1630, and settled in 
Windsor, Conn. The town of Wolcottville 
(now Torrington) was named in honor of the 
family. These early pioneers were men of in- 
dependent means, and Henry and Simon were 
active in the administration of the public busi- 
ness of the colony. Simon's son, Roger Wol- 
cott, who was born in Connecticut, was elected 
Governor in 1750, and served for four years. 
Oliver Wolcott, a son of Roger, and the grand- 
father of the gentleman whose name opens 
this sketch, was one of the representatives of 
the Colony of Connecticut, whose names are 
affixed to the Declaration of Independence, 
and during the Revolutionary war he held the 
rank of brigadier-general in the patriot forces. 
His part in the struggle was a notable one, 
and the histories of that time make frequent 
mention of him. An incident in his life was 
interesting. A leaden equestrian statue of 
George III stood in the Bowling Green, in the 
city of New York. At the breaking out of the 
war this was overthrown, and, lead being 
highly valuable, it was sent to Gen. Wolcott's 
at Litchfield, Conn., for safe keeping, where, 
in process of time, it was cut up and run into 
bullets by hif children and their friends. Oli- 
ver Wolcott was elected Lieutenant-Governor 
in 1786, and Governor in 1796, which office 
he held until his death, December r, 1797. 

Judge Frederick Wolcott, the father of our 
subject, preferred the practice of law to public 
life, and on two occasions declined a nomina- 
tion as a gubernatorial candidate. His brother 
Oliver, however, did not share this disinclina- 
tion for official duties, and not only served as 
Governor of Connecticut but was Secretary of 
the Treasury under President Washington. 
Judge Frederick Wolcott was a graduate of 
Yale College, and prepared for the bar in early 
manhood; later he engaged actively in pro- 
fessional work, and served as judge for uiany 
years. He was one of the leaders in the Whig 
party of his day, and despite his reluctance to 
enter political life was elected to various posi- 
tions, which he filled ably, including the post 
of representative in the State Legislature. 
He married (first) a Miss Huntington, daugh- 
ter of Joshua Huntington, a well-known citi- 
zen of Connecticut, and (second) Mrs. Amos 
Cook, daughter of Samuel Goodrich, of Berlin, 
Conn., a member of another old and influential 
family which has been prominently represented 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



387 



in political, social and business life, and has 
produced a nuinber of eminent clergymen. 

Charles M. NN'olcott was one of a family of 
twelve children, his birth occurring in Litch- 
field, Conn., November 20, 1816. On com- 
pleting his education he left home to en- 
gage in commercial life, entering the commis- 
sion business in Philadelphia. After a time he 
transferred his offices to New York City, form- 
ing a partnership with his brother Henry, who 
went to China in the interests of the firm. On 
November 26, 1849, he married Catharine A. 
Rankin, daughter of Henry Rankin, Esq., a 
prominent merchant of New York City, who 
was a native of Scotland, and for forty years 
was an elder in the Scotch Presbyterian 
Church, under the pastoral care of the cele- 
brated divine, Dr. John Mason. After his 
marriage Mr. Wolcott settled at Fishkill-on- 
Hudson, upon an estate known as " Rose- 
neath," where his wife had previously resided. 
From that time his attention was chiefly occu- 
pied with the m '.nagement of his extensive 
landed interests, and he was identified with all 
the progressive movements of the locality, 
whether in agriculture and manufacturing or in 
the no less important fields of art and Htera- 
ture. In politics he was an Independent. His 
wife passed away June 24, 1889, and he sur- 
vived her but a short time, breathing his last 
on November 20, of the same year. 

Three children were born to this union: 
Henry Goodrich, a well-known attorney at 
Fishkill; Katharine Rankin, wife of Samuel 
Verplanck; and Annette Rankin, who is not 
married. Mrs. Verplanck still resides at the 
family homestead " Roseneath," which is a 
charming place overlooking the Hudson, the 
elegant residence and extensive grounds dis- 
playing in their appointments a refined and 
cultured taste. 



A 



BRAHAM W. IRISH. The early ances- 
tors of our subject were French, were 
military men, and served in the first and 
second Crusades; the name was originally 
"D'Irey." The family moved to Germany, 
where the D' was dropped, and the name be- 
came Irey. In the wars between Germany and 
England the Ireys espoused the cause of the 
English. They were successful as generals, 
and one of them was knighted on the field of 
Flodden. 

When the family went to England the 



name was changed to Irish, and one of the 
members became sheriff of London, holding 
the office for nine years. Another, member of 
the family came to this country as a common 
soldier under Miles Standish, and it is from 
this ancestor that the family in America are 
descended. 

Abraham W. Irish was born in the town of 
Pleasant Valley March 31, 1825, and after his 
mother's death was taken by his uncle, Abra- 
ham Wing, and his wife, by whom he was 
brought up and educated, and who were the 
only parents our subject ever lived with. Mr. 
and Mrs. Wing were Quakers. Abraham lived 
with them until he was of age, when he went 
to New York City and secured a situation in a 
store in Bleecker street, remaining there during 
the summer of 1844. In the summer of 1845 
he went to Matteawan, and taught school 
there for six years. In 1851 he was mar- 
ried in that city to Miss. Caroline West, and 
began farming. His health failing him from 
overwork, he bought a store on his grandfa- 
ther's place in the town of Lagrange. This he 
sold in 1863 and moved to Poughkeepsie, where 
he took a position as cashier for Smith Broth- 
ers. In politics Mr. Irish is a Republican. 
He was in the county clerk's office for nine 
years, and in the surrogate's cffice for eight 
years. He is now clerk of the surrogate's 
court, which position he has held for six years, 
during which time he has not missed a day at 
the office on account of sickness. When he 
was out of office Mr. Irish was in the millin- 
ery and fancy-goods business, and at one 
time was with a Mr. Sisson, dealer in second- 
hand furniture. Mrs. Irish died in 1887, and 
our subject subsequently married Mrs. Rachel 
Le Roy. 

Amos Irish (grandfather of our subject), a 
farmer by occupation, was a Quaker, and was 
greatly persecuted during the Revolutionary 
war. His children were as follows: Jedediah, 
Charles, Joseph. Asa, Ruth, Rachel, Esther, 
Jonathan and David, all of whom are now 
deceased. 

Joseph Irish (our subject's father) was born 
in Pawling, where he spent his youth. He 
was married, in the town of Beekman, to Miss 
Phcebe Dorland, a daughter of Enoch Dor- 
land, and they had the following children: 
Edmund, Catherine, Jane, all now deceased, 
and Abraham W. (there were also half broth- 
ers, Charles, and William and Henry, twins). 
Our subject's mother died when he was two 



888 



COSfMEMOBATIVE BIOGHAPUIVAL liECOlil). 



weeks old. Joseph moved to Pleasant Valley 
after his first marriage, and engaged in farm- 
ing. After the death of his wife he moved to 
New York City and worked at trucking. He 
was matried there to Miss Jane Stephenson, 
who was born at Gaylords Bridge, Conn. 
None of their children are living. Mr. Irish 
died in Pawling at the age of eighty-six years. 



FRANK B. VAN DYNE, one of the prom- 
inent business men and leading undertak- 
ers of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was 
born in Milton, Ulster Co.. N. Y., October lo, 
1857, but belongs to a family of Holland ori- 
gin that has been connected with the history 
of Dutchess county for several generations. 
Here his grandfather, Oliver Van Dyne, was 
born, reared and engaged in farming through- 
out life. He wedded Susan Smith, by whom 
he had two sons: James A., a carpenter by 
trade; and William H., the father of our 
subject. 

The birth of the latter occurred in Dutch- 
ess county, December 18, 1832, and he early 
became familiar with the duties that fall to the 
lot of an agriculturist, as his boyhood days 
were passed upon his father's farm. He mar- 
ried Miss Anna C. Brevoort (a lady of Holland 
descent), who was born in Fishkill, N. Y., 
where her father, Benjamin Brevoort, was em- 
ployed at shoemaking. Five children were 
born to this union, namely: James H., a sign 
painter of Poughkeepsie; Frank B., subject of 
this sketch; Susan, wife of Arthur Kockwell, a 
silk manufacturer of Matteawan, N. Y. ; Min- 
nie, who died in infancy; and Edward, a resi- 
dent of New York City. Shortly after his 
marriage the father went to Milton, Ulster 
county, where he formed a co-partnership with 
his brother in a general store. He next re- 
moved to Hackensack, N. Y. , but at the end 
of two years came to Poughkeepsie, where he 
has since resided. He is an earnest supporter 
of the Democratic party, and holds to the 
faith of the Reformed Dutch Church, in which 
he was reared. His faithful wife departed this 
life July 3, 1893. 

Frank B. Van Dyne was two years old 
when he left his native village, and in 1864 he 
came to Poughkeepsie, where he attended the 
public schools. On the completion of his edu- 
cation, he was employed in various ways until 
1875, when he began working for different un- 



dertakers. In 1888 he formed a partnership 
with John Mellady, at No. 391 Main street, un- 
der the firm name of Van Dyne & Mellady. 
which connection lasted until May, 1893, when 
it was dissolved, and our subject removed to 
No. 406 Main street, where he has since been 
alone in business. He is exclusively engaged 
in undertaking, and thoroughly understands his 
business in its various departments. 

On June 30, 1891, Mr. \'an Dyne was 
united in marriage with Miss Minnie C. Cox, 
daughter of William A. Cox, of the town of 
Clinton, Dutchess county, where he was born. 
One child blessed their union, Ruth, born Oc- 
tober 23, 1892; but March 11, 1893, the wife 
and mother was called to her final rest, leav- 
ing many friends as well as relatives to mourn 
her death. Mr. Van Dyne is a representative 
business man, enterprising and industrious, and 
holds a high place in the estimation of his fel- 
low citizens. He is prominently identified 
with several clubs and social orders, among 
which are the F. & A. M., the Knights of 
Pythias, the Elks and the Royal Arcanum, 
while his political connection is with the Dem- 
ocratic party, whose principles he earnestly 
advocates. 



CHARLES M. COLWELL, a well-known 
business man of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, is noted for his accurate and practical 
judgment of values, his high reputation in this 
regard making him an acknowledged expert in 
the appraisal of property and the adjustment 
of insurance claims. 

The Colwell family is of Scotch origin, and 
four geneiations have been residents of Dutch- 
ess county. Samuel Colwell, our subject's 
great-grandfather, was a native of the town of 
W^ashington; his son, Archibald Colwell, was 
born in 1794, in the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, and in early life was engaged 
in the manufacture of cotton goods, being em- 
ployed as foreman in the factories at Pough- 
keepsie, Pleasant Valley, Hart's \'illage and 
Verbank. In his later years he followed agri- 
culture. He was an old-fashioned Methodist, 
and often served as an unlicensed preacher. 
His wife, Abigail Hall, was a native of Con- 
necticut and a relative of the Hubbards of that 
State. He died in januar}", 1877, and his 
wife in August, 1866. They had eight chil- 
dren: Hubbard; Louisa (Mrs. Nathan Beach); 
Archibald L. ; Julia (Mrs. John Burnett): Sam- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPEICAL RECORD. 



389 



uel; Edwin; Mary (Mrs. William Ackeniian); 
and Sarah (Mrs. Henry H. SeanianJ. 

Archibald L. Colwell, our subject's father, 
was born March 22, 1819, in the town of 
Washington. His early life was passed in 
Poughkeepsie, but for the last fifty-five years 
he has lived at \'erbank, following the occupa- 
tion of shoemaker and dealer. He has always 
been quiet in his tastes, but is a man of good 
natural powers, and has been successful in 
business. Before the war he was a Whig, and 
later a Republican, and he has served one 
term as justice of the peace and two terms as 
postmaster at Verbank. Like the majority of 
his family, he is a Methodist. In 1841 he 
married Sarah Seaman, daughter of Samuel 
Seaman, a well-known resident of the town of 
Washington. Her family is of English de- 
scent, and one of the oldest in the county. 
Mrs. Colwell died in August, 1S93, but her 
husband still survives. They had five children, 
to whom they gave 'excellent educations, (i) 
Seaman A. was graduated from the Albany 
Normal School in 1862, and for some time 
was a teacher and county superintendent of 
schools in Pulaski county, 111. ; he is now a 
successful farmer and horticulturist there. (2) 
Charles M. is our subject. (3) Mary M., who 
is a graduate of Claverack College, Columbia 
county, N. Y., married Dr. A. G. Paine, of 
Chicago, 111. (4) Armeda J., who was gradu- 
ated from Amenia Seminary, married Charles 
T. Bird, of Wilkesbarre, Penn. ; both have been 
dead for a number of years. (5) Phcebe mar- 
ried B. F. Conkright, a leading real-estate 
dealer of Chicago, Illinois. 

Charles M. Colwell, the second in order 
of birth, was born January 4, 1847, in the 
town of Unionvale. He accjuired the rudi- 
ments of knowledge in the district schools at 
Owego village, which were unusually good, 
and afterward studied at Claverack College 
one year. At eighteen he left school and went 
to Poughkeepsie to learn the carpenter's trade 
with Nelson Seaman. He followed this occu- 
pation for twenty years, and that of contractor 
and builder for about twelve years. He was 
superintendent of construction of the U. S. 
Government Building at Poughkeepsie under 
appointment of Charles J. Folger, Secretary of 
the Treasury. About 1887 he became engaged 
in the insurance business as appraiser of dam- 
aged buildings, and his services have been 
called into requisition in different parts of the 
State. He has done a great deal of work be- 



fore the State Board of Assessors, and in con- 
demnation proceedings in railroads acquiring 
real estate. 

A strong Republican in principle, he has 
been active in political work. In 1873 he was 
elected assessor, and served for nine consecu- 
tive years; in 188S he was elected supervisor 
of the Fifth ward, and held that office one 
term. At the beginning of President Har- 
rison's administration he was appointed clerk 
in the Revenue office of the Fourteenth Dis- 
trict, and held this throughout Harrison's 
term. When a successor was appointed he 
became deputy revenue collector for the coun- 
ties of Dutchess and Columbia for six months. 
In 1894, three days before the expiration of 
his term, he was elected clerk of the board of 
supervisors of Poughkeepsie, which office he 
yet holds, and January i, 1895, he was ap- 
pointed president of the board of civil service 
for the city. He has always taken an interest 
in affairs of a non-political nature, and was in 
the National Guard for eight years, serving as 
first lieutenant of Company A, 21st Regi- 
ment. 

On March 22, 1S68, Mr. Colwell married 
Miss Mary F. Hayman, daughter of Richard 
R. Hayman, a prominent resident of Pough- 
keepsie, and they have three children: Grace 
F., the wife of Charles J. Knapp, of Pough- 
keepsie; and May M. and Richard H. at home. 
The family attend Trinity M. E. Church. 



FRANK VAN KLEECK, a well-known 
merchant of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 

county, was born in that city June 25, 1857. 
Here also his paternal ancestors for six gener- 
ations back lived. 

Baltus Barentszen Van Kleeck, who was 
the first of the name to emigrate from Holland 
to this country, bought a farm, in 1697, where 
the city of Poughkeepsie now stands, and later 
built the first stone house in the place, which 
was situated on Mill street, nearVassar. This 
was in 1702, at which time the present fine 
city consisted of only a few huts, no houses. 
He was a member of the Colonial Assembly, 
and was succeeded by his son Johannes. Six 
children constituted his family, namely: 
Barent. Johannes, Lawrence, Peter, great- 
great-great-grandfather of our subject; Sarah 
and Elizabeth. Of these Peter became the 
father of Baltus, and he the father of Peter 
B., the great-grandfather of our subject. His 



390 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



son, Tunis Van Kleeck, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born June 14, 1773, in Pough- 
keepsie, where he was reared to manhood and 
learned the trade of a hatter, establishing him- 
self in business there in 1799, his first store 
being situated opposite Crannell street. His 
second location was where Joseph's clothing 
store now stands, while the third was on the 
site of the present store, which was occupied 
in 1854. On January 15, 1792, he married 
Irene Bacon, and nine children were born to 
them, of whom the following record is given: 
Sally A. married B. Davis Noxon, a lawyer of 
Syracuse, N. Y. ; Cornelia married George W. 
Somarindyck, of Poughkeepsie; Eliza became 
the wife of Rufus Cossit, a lawyer of Syracuse; 
George married Mary E. Tallmadge, a mer- 
chant in Poughkeepsie; Edgar who was a mer- 
chant in New York City, and married Nancy 
Graham (he died in Orange county); Albert 
was our subject's father; Mary became the 
wife of Willett Raynor, of Syracuse; Louisa 
married Edward Beach, a merchant in Pough- 
keepsie; William H., who was a wholesale 
grocer in New York City, married for his first 
wife a Miss Mary Haight, and for his second 
wedded Miss Margaret Hardenburg. On the 
death of the father of this family, which took 
place September i, 1S31, the business was 
continued by his son Albert, and has been in 
the family ever since. In politics he was a 
Whig. 

Albert \an Kleeck, father of our subject, 
was born December 27, 1807, in Poughkeepsie, 
where (as has been stated) he carried on his 
father's business as a hatter until his own death, 
November 7, 1866, and he was succeeded by 
his son Edward, who, on February i, 1890, 
took his brother Frank in as a partner. Ed- 
ward died November 13, 1890, and his widow 
and Frank continued the management of the 
establishment until February, 1894, since 
which time the latter has assumed full control. 
On September 25, 1833, Albert Van Kleeck 
was married to Miss Eliza Green, a native of 
England, and of this union ten children were 
born, as follows: Davis, Edward, Harriet, 
Elizabeth, Julia, Cornelia, Albert, Augustus, 
Irene and Frank. The mother of these died 
in 1863. Mr. Van Kleeck was a prominent 
man in his community. In 1857 he was elected 
treasurer of Dutchess county, and was ap- 
pointed postmaster under Lincoln. He was re- 
appointed under Johnson, and died during that 
administration. In politics he was originally 



a Whig, becoming a Republican on the forma- 
tion of that party. 

Frank V'an Kleeck was married September 
24, 1 891, to Miss Sarah P. Sleight, who was 
born in Dutchess county, a daughter of Henry 
A. Sleight. Mr. Van Kleeck is a Republican, 
a member of the F. & A. M., of the Holland 
Society, and of the Amrita Club, a social or- 
ganization, of which he has been president. 



ON. AUGUSTUS MARTIN (deceased). 
IfA Among the able men who hc'.ve repre- 
sented Dutchess county in the State Assembly 
the late Hon. Augustus Martin will always hold 
a notable place in the history of the locality; 
his integrity and high sense of honor, no less 
than his practical sagacity in public affairs, 
winning and retaining for him the esteem of 
all classes of people. 

His family has had in (he past many mem- 
bers whose lives have been conspicuous for 
the same admirable qualities, and his direct 
ancestors were among the pioneer settlers in 
this section. Hendrick Martin, who came to 
America in 173^ built at the village of Red 
Hook, Dutchess county, a residence which is 
one of the oldest houses in the State; occa- 
sional repairs and alterations have still left in- 
tact a large portion of the original structure. 
It is located about one-eighth of a mile from 
the old New York & Albany post road, upon 
land leased from the Beekman patentee. In 
175 1 Hendrick Martin leased some adjoining 
lands from the Van Benthuysen patentee. It 
is related that when his son Gotlob married, 
the father took a large stake, and walking to a 
suitable spot drove it into the ground, remark- 
ing to the son that it was time for him to 
"swarm for himself. " Here Gotlob built, in 
1776, a stone house of the substantial Colonial 
type, which is still standing. At the moment 
when the Declaration of Independence was be- 
ing read in Philadelphia, the rafters of this 
historic mansion were being put in place by 
the workmen. Gotlob's son John married, in 
1789, Isabella Fulton, a relative of Robert 
Fulton, the inventor, and had ten children: 
Philip, Michael S., Augustus, Robert, Claudius 
G., James, Edward, Joseph, John and Serena. 
Their grandfather willed the estate to them, 
but they were not willing to take it from their 
mother, and after her death it was purchased 
by Edward as a hotne for his sister, who, like 
himself, never married. Edward Martin, who 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



391 



was born February iS, 1811, and died Decem- 
ber 3, 1893, made a large fortune as a civil 
engineer, some real estate, which he took in 
payment from a railroad for his services, prov- 
ing very valuable, a portion of it lying within 
the present limits of Chicago. 

The late Augustus Martin was born in Red 
Hook, December 13, 1808, and although his 
early educational opportunities were limited to 
the common schools of that town, his fine 
mental endowment enabled him to acquire a 
wide and liberal education through the channels 
of observation and private reading. While a 
.young man he was elected on the Democratic 
ticket to the State Assembly, and was a mem- 
ber of that body for two years (1852-53) un- 
der Gov. Seymour. In local affairs he held a 
prominent place, and was chosen to many 
positions of trust, including that of supervisor, 
and his interest in educational affairs, and de- 
sire that children of all classes should have 
ready access to the paths of ■ knowledge, led to 
years of faithful service as a school trustee. 
He was an active helper in religious movements, 
and was a trustee of the Lutheran Church, at 
Red Hook, of which he was a member. His 
wife, Lydia Maria (Benner), was born in Red 
Hook, December 28, 181 1, the daughter of 
Judge Jacob Benner, a leading member of the 
legal fraternity. She died February 23, 1864, 
and Mr. Martin followed her January 14, 1875. 
Of their six children the first two — Margaret 
M. and Marian M., died in infancy; the others 
are: Cora A. (Mrs. John B. Scott); Ella A.; 
Isabella (now Mrs. Luther L. Stillman); and 
Serena. 



rrRS. JANE M. CHAPMAN. The late 
Frank Chapman, whose sudden death 
in 1893, from heart disease, cut short a life 
which had been filled with quiet but effective 
endeavor, was a native of the town of Dover, 
Dutchess county, where he received his educa- 
tion. As a young man he engaged in mercan- 
tile business in Pawling, Dutchess county; but 
after some years he went to New York City, 
as bookkeeper for J. B. Dutcher, and held 
that responsible position until his death. His 
widow, formerly Miss Jane M. Bishop, was 
born in the town of Washington, Dutchess 
county, in 1831, and was educated in the town 
of Amenia. Their marriage took place in 
1861, but no children were born of the union. 
Mrs. Chapman now resides in Pawling. 



The Bishop family was known in New 
England at an early day, and Abiah Bishop, 
Mrs. Chapman's grandfather, was a soldier in 
the Revolutionary war. He was born and 
educated in Rhode Island, and in early man- 
hood learned the cooper's trade. His wife, 
Ruth (Wilbur), was a native of the town of 
Washington, Dutchess county, and a descend- 
ant of a prominent Quaker family. Two sons 
were born of their union; Archibald, who mar- 
ried Angeline ; and George (Mrs. Chap- 
man's father), who was born in the town of 
Washington, in 1809, and after availing him- 
self of the advantages afforded in the common 
schools learned the trade of wagon making. 
He followed this for some time, later becom- 
ing station agent at Wassaic, Dutchess county, 
in which position he continued until his death, 
in 1874. He married Miss Desire Northrop, 
whose father, Samuel Northrop, was a promi- 
nent farmer of the town of Washington. Her 
mother's maiden name was Mary Benham. 

Mrs. Chapman was the eldest in a family 
of eight children; the others were born and 
educated in the town of Amenia. (2) Seneca 
S. followed the sea from early manhood, and 
since sailing for the West Indies has never been 
heard from; it is not known whether he mar- 
ried or not. (3) Mary A. married (first) John 
Clark, and had two children who died, and 
after his death she wedded Joseph Hobbs, by 
whom she had one son, Amos A. (4) George 
W. was a machinist by trade, and became 
master mechanic of the New York & New 
Haven railroad; he married Miss Isabella Mc- 
Connell, and had six children: George, Jen- 
nie, Isabella, Hattie, Minnie and .Ida F. (5) 
Charles W. was engaged in business in New 
York City at the beginning of the Civil war; he 
enlisted in the 6ist N. Y. V. I., and lost his 
life in the seven-days' struggle at Bull Run. 

(6) Catherine M. married Edward Brown, an 
engineer of Amenia; they have no children. 

(7) William G. was connected with the con- 
densed milk factory at Wassaic; he married 
Miss Josephine Nichols, and had one son, 
Harry, who died in infancy. (8) Noah L. was 
superintendent of the Gail Borderi Condensed 
Milk factory at Wassaic; he married (first") Miss 
Hattie Noyce, and after her death he wedded 
Miss Jennie Jones; by his first marriage he had 
one son, Frank, who died in infancy, and by 
the second there were three children: Lena, 
the wife of Dr. Fred Brace; Cora L. , who is at 
home; and one who died in infancy. 



S92 



COMMEMOUAriVE BWUllAl'UICAL RECORD. 



J 



AMES \'AN WVCK. The \'an Wyck family 
is prominent in this region not only by rea- 
son of the number of its members, but for 
the ability and public spirit shown by many of 
them in past and present times. The first of 
this branch of the family to locate in Dutchess 
county was Theodorus Van Wyck, our sub- 
ject's great-grandfather, who was born at 
Hempstead, Long Island. He purchased 900 
acres of land of the Madame I^rett patent in 
the town of Fishkill (now East Fishkill), 
Dutchess county, and in 1740 built the house 
which is still occupied by his descendants. 

Although this old homestead has rarely ap- 
peared in print, there are few of our old places 
more permanently associated with the pleasant 
social life of the early settlers, and with the 
personal presence of the prominent actors in the 
Revolutionarj' period. Dr. Dorus \'an W'jck, 
on his marriage, abandoned the homestead to 
a tenant farmer, and took up his residence on 
the north side of the Fishkill creek, near Gen. 
Swartwout's. At this time the Jay family, in- 
cluding the distinguished patriot. Governor and 
Chief Justice John Jay, moved north, seeking 
refuge from the threats and depredations of the 
Tories and "cowboys" who infested the lower 
counties, under the protection of the British at 
New York. The Van Wyck homestead being 
vacant, it was hospitably offered them by its 
owner, and it was occupied by Gov. Jay for 
about two years. It was during his residence 
here (the family fortunately being absent), that 
a band of " cowboys " crossed the mountains 
one night and robbed them of a quantity of 
silver plate. A "spontoon," or rude lance, 
dropped by the robbers, is now preserved at 
Washington's headquarters, at Newburg. It 
was from this house that John Jay set off on 
his mission to France, to aid in negotiating a 
treaty of peace with England. 

Theodorus Van Wyck was a man of 
marked ability, a farmer and surveyor, and 
was so greatly interested in the development 
of the locality that with his negroes (slaves) 
he opened up highways through the forests in 
many directions. His maps of Poughkeepsie 
and the Nine Partners tracts are still in ex- 
istence. He was an active worker in the 
Presbyterian Church. In 1752 he was ap- 
pointed judge of the court of common pleas of 
Dutchess county, by George Clinton, then 
governor of the Province of New York. His 
death occurred in 1755. His wife was born 
on Long Island, of English descent, and they 



reared a large famih', consisting of two sons 
and a " noble group of girls," whose married 
names were Piatt, Hoffman. Graham, Bailey 
and Adriance, respectively. The daughter of 
one of these became the wife of Chancellor 
Kent. Of the sons, the elder, William, was a 
farmer in East Fishkill. while the other, Dorus, 
our subject's grandfather, became a leading 
ph3sician in the same locality. He married 
Diana, a daughter of Col. John Brinckerhoff, 
and made his residence at the old Brincker- 
hoff estate. They had several daughters, and 
three sons — John B.. Abraham, and William 
— who settled upon farms in East Fishkill. 

Gen. Abraham \'an Wyck, our subject's 
father, married Miss Susan Haight, the daugh- 
ter of a prominent farmer of Westchester coun- 
ty, N. Y. , and reared a family of five children: 
Henry, a farmer in Hughsonville, who married 
Miss Ann Lee, of Yorktown; James, our sub- 
ject; Ann, who married Ralph Mead, a mer- 
chant in New York City; Louisa, the wife of 
the Rev. Samuel Van Vechten; and Susan, 
who married Robert Lane, a merchant in New 
York City. 

James \'an Wyck was born September 4, 
1 8 10, at the residence built by his father. Gen. 
Abraham Van Wyck, higher up on the ridge, 
and now in the possession of the family of his 
grandson, the late Richard T. V^an \\'yck. 
On his marriage in 1834 James \'an Wyck re- 
modeled the old mansion for his own abode, 
which was again enlarged and renovated a few 
years since, and here he has happily resided 
for more than three score years. 

On arriving at man's estate our subject en- 
gaged in farming, succeeding to 414 acres 
which belonged to his father. He has been 
largely interested in raising stock and grain, 
although not giving e.xclusive attention to them. 
He has been twice married: First, on No- 
vember 12, 1834, to Miss Cornelia Ann \'an- 
Wyck, daughter of Richard T. Van Wyck, a 
leading resident of Fishkill. To this union 
were born two sons: Abraham J., who was a 
Methodist minister at Casenovia, Mich., and 
died January 9, 1887; and Richard T., who- 
was a farmer in his native township, and died 
January 2, 1892, leaving a widow, two sons 
and a daughter. On October 3, 1849, Mr. 
Van Wyck, for his second wife, married Miss 
Elizabeth M. Van Brunt, of Brooklyn, a de- 
scendant of one of the old Dutch families of 
Long Island; her father, Nicholas \an Brunt, 
was a well-known merchant of New York. In 





,f^^^^-^^<:^t-J^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



393 



politics Mr. Van Wyck is a Republican, and 
in religious faith he adheres to the Reformed 
Dutch Church, he and his wife attending serv- 
ices at Hopewell Junction. Both as a sub- 
stantial business man and a progressive citizen, 
he commands the esteem of the people of the 
vicinity. 



T^HOMAS H. SEAMAN. As an enterpris- 
ing and wide-awake business man of 

Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, and one who, 
through his own efforts, has established him- 
self among the prominent men of the city, we 
take pleasure in giving a brief biography of this 
gentleman. He is engaged in the stone busi- 
ness, taking contracts for street work and build- 
ing purposes. 

Mr. Seaman was born at Syracuse, N. Y., 
June 13, 1849, and is of Holland extraction. 
His father, Thomas C. Seaman, was a native 
of Albany county, N. Y. , and was a son of a 
farmer of that locality. On starting out in life 
for himself he engaged in teaching, and on 
leaving his native county went to Syracuse, 
where for a short time he followed farming. 
He then located at Coeymans, N. Y., engag- 
ing in the stone business at that place until his 
removal to Wilbur, where he was similarly em- 
ployed. In 1 86 1 he established himself in that 
line of trade in Poughkeepsie, which he contin- 
ued to follow until his death in November, 
1888. His political support was given the 
Republican party. He had married Miss Roxey 
A. Garratt, a native of Greene county, N. Y. , 
and a daughter of LeviG. Garratt, an agricult- 
urist. Five children were born of this union: 
Lydia M., who married George Stoddard, a 
truckman, of Poughkeepsie; Annie E. , who 
died unmarried; Alvena H., wife of Daniel 
White, a moulder of Poughkeepsie; Ursula, 
who wedded Henry Warner, an engineer; and 
Thomas H., of this review. 

The childhood days of our subject were 
mostly spent in W^ilbur, N. Y., where he was 
educated, and early began to learn the stone 
business with his father, with whom he con- 
tinued operations until the latter's death. He 
still continues to deal in stone at Poughkeepsie, 
and has built up a large and lucrative business. 

Mr. Seaman was united in marriage with 
Miss Catherine DuBois, a native of Dutchess 
county, where her father, James DuBois, fol- 
lowed the occupation of farming. One child 
has been born to them: Mary N., now the 



wife of William L. Dobbs, of Poughkeepsie. 
The parents are earnest Christian people, faith- 
ful members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
and take an active interest in everything in- 
tended to promote the moral or material ad- 
vancement of the community. Politically, Mr. 
Seaman votes the Prohibition ticket, as the 
platform of that party embodies his principles 
on the temperance question. 



MARTIN FENDEL, the well-known and 
_ popular proprietor of the "Old German 

Tavern", No. 229 Union street, Poughkeepsie. 
Dutchess county, was born at Bingen-on-the- 
Rhine, Germany, March 7, 1864. He spent 
his boyhood in Germany, attending school in 
the town of his birth, and was then in the coal 
business with his father for two years. 

In 1885 Mr. Fendel came to America on a 
visit, and traveled throughout the United 
States selling wines to wholesale dealers, and 
he traveled back and forth between the two 
countries thirteen times. He was married in 
New York City, in 1889, to Miss Messerschmidt, 
a native of that place. Of this union the fol- 
lowing children were born: Freddie, born in 
Bingen; Josephine and Kate, born in New York 
City; and Gertie, born in Poughkeepsie. There 
was also an adopted child, Joseph, who died 
when three months old. After his marriage 
our subject spent one year in Germany, and 
two and a half years in New York City, en- 
gaged in selling wines to the wholesale trade. 
In March, 1894, he came to Poughkeepsie and 
opened the "Old German Tavern," a typical 
German inn. 

Mr. Fendel is a member of Concordia 
Lodge, Knights and Ladies of Honor, and at- 
tends the Catholic Church. He is a natural- 
ized citizen, but takes little interest in politics. 



CHARLES H. BUCKINGHAM, a promi- 
_ nent resident of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
count)', whose extensive travels have made 
him at home in nearly every country on the 
globe, is in direct descent of the eighth gener- 
ation from one of the earliest settlers of Con- 
necticut. 

The name Buckingham is derived from 
"Bucan," "Becen," or "Beechen" — beech 
trees — and "ham" — a village — as a famUy 
name it doubtless has its origin in the county 
of Buckingham, England, whose shire town is 



394 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



also Buckingham. Many members of the 
American branch of the family have filled po- 
sitions of honor and importance in various 
fields of effort. Thomas Buckingham, the 
Puritan ancestor of this line, was one of the 
company to which Eaton and Hopkins, two 
London merchants, and two ministers, Daven- 
port and Prudden, belonged. They arrived at 
Boston June 26, 1637, in the ship "Hector," 
and on March 30, 1638, sailed for Ouinnipack 
(now New Haven), where such records as this 
are found on the old town books: "Mr. Wilke 
is ordered to pay Thomas Buckingham five 
bushels and a half of Indian Corn destroyed 
by Mr. Wilkes hogs." 

In 1839 Thomas Buckingham settled in 
Milford, Conn., where his name stands fifth on 
the list of Free Planters, and he was one of 
the " seven pillars of the church " there. He 

was married twice, first to Hannah , 

by whom he had five children: Hannah, 
Daniel, Samuel, Mary and Thomas. For his 

second wife he married Ann . His 

youngest son. Rev. Thomas Buckingham, was 
born November 8, 1646, and began preaching 
in Wethersfield when only eighteen years old. 
In 1665 he preached in Saybrook. He was 
one of the founders of Yale College, and a 
Fellow of that institution. Among the clergy- 
men of his time he held a high rank, leading 
in all the efforts for the prosperity of the 
Church, and he was one of the Moderators of 
the famous Synod of 170S, which convened at 
Saybrook, and formed the platform for the 
Churches. On September 20, 1666, he mar- 
ried his first wife, Hester Hosmer, by whom 
he had nine children: Hester, Thomas, Daniel, 
Stephen, Samuel (i), Samuel (2), He^ekiah, 
Temperance and Anne. His second wife, 
whom he married August 10, 1703, was Mary 
Hooker. He died April i, 1709. 

Thomas Buckingham (3) was born Sep- 
tember 29, 1670, and lived to be nearly one 
hundred years old, dying September 12, 1769. 
He was a landholder in Lebanon, Conn., and 
a prominent man in town affairs, being ap- 
pointed to many offices of trust, and was also a 
leading member of the Church. On Decem- 
ber 16, 1 69 1, he married Margaret Griswold, 
and had eight children : Thomas, Samuel, 
Jedediah, Margaret, Mary (i). Mary (21, Jo- 
seph and Sarah. 

Thomas Buckingham (4), the great-great- 
grandfather of our subject, was born January 
24, 1703, and became a seafaring man. On 



April 5, 1722, he married Mary Parker, by 
whom he had four children, whose names with 
dates of birth are as follows: Jedediah, Janu- 
ary 20, 1727; Stephen, September 20, 1729; 
Mary, July 27, 1732; and Sarah, 1734. He 
died December 13, 1760, and his wife survived 
him at least eleven years. 

Jedediah Buckingham, our subject's great- 
grandfather, was born at Saybrook, Conn., 
married Martha Clark, of Lebanon, and set- 
tled in Columbia, Conn., where he died July 
9, 1809, his wife surviving him until May 20, 
1 82 1. They had children: Sarah, Thomas, 
Joseph and Mary (twins), Jedediah P., Sarah, 
Stephen, Esther, Martha and Nancy Ann. 

Stephen Buckingham, our subject's grand- 
father, born May 12, 1763, was a farmer and 
large land owner at Columbia, Conn. He 
served three years in the Revolutionary war, 
was sent to France to effect an exchange of 
prisoners, and was absent about a year, being 
shipwrecked in the Bay of Biscay. On Janu- 
ary 2, 1798, he was married to his first wife, 
Polly Dorrance, of Lebanon, who died Janu- 
ary 26, 1799, and on June 30, 1807, he mar- 
ried, for his second wife, Polly Brewster, of 
Exeter Society, Lebanon, a descendant in the 
sixth generation from Elder William Brewster, 
of Plymouth, Mass., and daughter of I.shabod 
and Lucy Brewster. She was born August 12, 
1777, and in 1869 was living in Poughkeepsie 
in her ninety-second year, in good health, able 
to walk about the house without assistance. 
Stephen Buckingham died February 26, 1814, 
leaving four children whose names with dates 
of birth are here given: Mary Dorrance, Jan- 
uary 26. 1799; Stephen M., July 12, 1808; 
Charles J., July 7, 1810, and Ichabod B., Au- 
gust 3, 1S13, who died November 8, 18 19. 

Charles J. Buckingham, the father of our 
subject, passed his childhood at the old home 
in Columbia, Conn., and prepared for college 
at Boston Academy, Colchester, Conn. He 
entered Trinity College in 1829, with a view 
to the ministry of the Episcopal Church; but, 
his health failing, his studies were remitted for 
a time. On resuming them, he again found it 
necessary to desist. After a long voyage in 
the Mediterranean he made a third attempt; 
but was finally compelled to relinquish his lit- 
erary pursuits. He made another voyage to 
Europe, and on regaining his health engaged 
in the mercantile business there and in New 
York City, where he resided until his removal 
to Poughkeepsie in 1849. During the later 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



395 



years of his life he devoted much of his time 
to the pubhc schools of the latter city, and to 
other educational interests. 

On October i6, 1839, he was married, at 
Poughkeepsie, to Emily Williams, a native of 
New York City, born January 21, 1818, the 
daughter of Josiah and Martha (Loomis) 
Williams. She died in Poughkeepsie, January 
26, 184S, and he survived her until October 
2, 1889. They had four children: Emily 
Adelia, who was born November 7, 1840, and 
died December 30, 1840; Charles Henry, our 
subject, born September 13, 1S42; Richard 
Cook, born January 11, 1844, who died July 
20, 1845, and Martha Williams, born Septem- 
ber 26, 1845, who was married December 27, 
1 87 1, to George W. Wood. 

Charles H. Buckingham, our subject, was 
born at Bowling Green, New York City. His 
boyhood was mainly spent in Poughkeepsie, 
where he attended the College Hill School. 
At the age of twenty he went to New York and 
engaged in the dry-goods commission business 
with Hunt, Tillinghast & Co., with whom he 
remained eight years. He was also interested 
in mining in Colorado and ranching in Ne- 
braska. Since 1870 he has spent most of his 
time traveling, and has circumnavigated the 
earth once, and been partly around it several 
times. He was on the first merchant steamer 
that entered the harbor of Osaki, Japan, and 
was one of the first Americans to visit the city 
of Pekin, after it was taken by the English and 
French in i860. Some years were spent in 
visiting points in France, South America, 
Me.xico, Java, the island of Juan Fernandez, 
and other places of interest, and he has been 
in nearly everj' country on the globe. On 
March 22, 1888, in Poughkeepsie, he was 
married to Elizabeth Van Loan, daughter of 
Benjamin \"an Loan, a well-known resident of 
Catskill Village. His wife has accompanied 
him on many long journeys, but they are now 
enjoying the comforts of their elegant home in 
Poughkeepsie. 



LEWIS CARMAN (deceased), who in his 
lifetime was a well-known business man 

of Bangall, Dutchess county, a dealer in coal 
and farm produce, and the ef^cient agent of the 
N. D. & C. R. R., was born in the town of Stan- 
ford February i, i860. 

The family name was originally Preston, 
and his paternal grandfather, Martin Preston, 



was a native of the town of Milan, Dutchess 
county, where, in his later years, he followed 
farming. He was a Quaker in religious faith; 
married and had three children: Ada M., who 
died in 1886: Leonard L., our subject's father, 
and Nathan C, who was in the United States 
naval service for many years, including the 
stirring times of the Civil war. He died in 
1886.' 

Leonard L. (Preston) Carman, our sub- 
ject's father, lived in New York City until the 
age of seven, later moving to Stanfordville, 
where he spent some years, meanwhile attend- 
ing the schools of that village; for two win- 
ters he studied at the Nine Partners Boarding 
School, in the town of Washington. At the 
age of nineteen he was adopted by an uncle, 
Leonard L. Carman, of the town of Stanford, 
his name being changed by act of Legislature 
from Preston to Carman. At the age of twen- 
ty-one he took charge of the farm, on " Bangall 
Lane,'' relieving his adopted parents of care 
during. their later years, and on their death, in 
i860, he succeeded to the estate, where he 
continued to reside until his death, October 
30, 1892. He was a member of the Baptist 
Society. In his earlier years he was a Whig, 
later becoming a Republican. He was twice 
married, first to a Miss Sackett, who died leav- 
ing no children. His second wife was Miss 
Emma J. Preston, a daughter of Ebenezer 
Preston, a leading resident of the town of 
Stanford. Two children were born of this 
union: Lewis, our subject, and Ada M., who 
married Joshua R. Traver (deceased). 

Lewis Carman, the subject of this sketch, 
attended the district schools of the town of 
Sanford during early boyhood, and later studied 
at a private school in the same locality. After 
he had learned all that they were prepared to 
offer, he studied for some time at the Pe'ham In- 
stitute, Poughkeepsie. Returning home, he 
assisted upon the farm until 1884, when, hav- 
ing learned telegraphy at home, he accepted 
the position of agent of the N. D. & C. R. R. 
at Bangall. He also dealt extensively in coal 
and farm produce. Politically he was a Re- 
publican and was one of the leaders among 
the younger members of the party in his vicin- 
ity. For several terms he served as town 
clerk, and April i, 1889, he was appointed by 
President Harrison postmaster at Bangall, re- 
tiring August I, 1893. He was married .'\pril 
12, 1887, to Miss S. Jeannette Crampton, a 
daughter of H. E. Crampton, M. D. , of New 



89G 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



York Citj", and four children were born to 
them: Lewis C, Jeannette, Leonard and 
Ward. Mr. Carman was a leading member of 
the Baptist Church, and he belonged to the 
K. of P. Lodge No. 43, at Poughkeepsie. He 
died September 27, 1896, of typhoid fever, 
after an illness of only two weeks. 



JULIUS BENEDICT, a prominent resident 
of the town of Northeast, and proprie- 
tor of an extensive iron foundry in New 
York City, is a direct descendant in the eighth 
generation from Thomas Benedict, who was 
born in Nottinghamshire, England, in 1617, 
and came to America in 163S, settling on Long 
Island. 

His son Samuel, from whom this branch of 
the family traces their descent, was one of the 
early settlers of Danbury, Conn. Samuel's 
son, Nathaniel, born March 27, 1679, had a 
' son Nathaniel, who was a soldier in the Revo- 
lutionary war. He had a son Nathaniel, 
whose son, Nathaniel, our subject's grand- 
father, was born January i, 1768, and became 
a farmer at Salisbury, Conn., where he died 
January 23, 1835. He was married (first") 
August 24, 1787, to Jerusha Terry, who died 
at Sharon, Conn., October 10, 1822, and he 
married (second) Rebecca Darrow. By his 
first wife he had eight children, whose names 
with dates of birth are as follows: Ethel, 
November 15, 1788; Abel, November 3, 1789; 
Delia, November 23, 1791, married January 
30, 18 17, to Nathaniel Cady; Benjamin, March 
7. '793. moved to the town of Northeast, 
Dutchess county, where he became a well-to- 
do miller, owning the stone mill now belong- 
ing to Martin Paine; Nathaniel, who married 
Polly Fuller, and lived in Connecticut and later 
in Yellow Springs, Ohio, was an iron founder, 
and a man of political and military prominence, 
being a member of the Connecticut Legisla- 
ture in 1 833, '34. '38 and '5 i ; a justice of the 
peace at Salisbury, Conn., in 1830, '43 and 
'49; assessor in 1850; captain of the Con- 
necticut Militia in 1820, major in 1828, and 
lieutenant-colonel in 1835; Asahel. also an 
iron founder, married Betsey, daughter of 
Charles Belden, of Canaan, Conn., and died 
in May. 1839; Olive, April 6, 1803, was mar- 
ried (first) on April 24, 1825, to Horace 
Wheeler, and (second) to Ammon Williams; 
James, May, 1805, was married April 11, 
1 83 I, to Maria, daughter of Richard and Eliza- 



beth Kellogg, of Sharon. Conn., and resided 
at Wellington. Ohio, where he died. 

Abel Benedict, our subject's father, was a 
native of Bethel. Conn., but spent most of his 
life at Sharon, where he and his brother Na- 
thaniel owned an iron foundry. He was of 
an inventi\e turn of mind, and was the main 
factor in the success of the enterprise. In 
later years he engaged in farming at Sharon. 
He was never active in politics, but was much 
interested in local improvements and in re- 
ligious movements. He married Wealthj- 
Wheeler, daughter of Amos Wheeler, and had 
S!X children, as follows: Angeline married 
Francis Rogers, of Parma, Mich. ; Caroline 
married Charles Lamb; Julius, born November 
3, 1818; Horace; Lucy A. married Edwin 
Hartwell, of Sharon; Mary married Lee Can- 
field, Jr. ; and Matilda M. married Charles 
Lamb, of Sharon. 

Julius Benedict was born at Sharon, Conn., 
and during his early years he attended the 
public schools there. He also studied for a 
short time at Salisbury, and acquired a fair 
English education, which he has supplemented 
by a generous course of reading on current 
topics. He remained with his father until he 
was about twenty-four 3-ears of age, learning 
the details of work in the foundry, and in 
1845 he established a foundr}' at F'alls Village 
on his own account. This he carried on suc- 
cessfully until 1854, when he removed to Iron- 
dale, Dutchess county, and built a blast fur- 
nance, w^hich emploj-ed eight or ten inside 
workmen and se\eral colliers. In i860, he 
disposed of this, and then conducted a small 
foundr\' at the same place for two years, man- 
ufacturing shot and shell for Mr. Hotchkiss, 
the inventor. The exigencies of the war cre- 
ating a large demand for these articles, the 
business was transferred to New York, and 
conducted on a larger scale, and Mr. Benedict 
leased the foundry on East Seventeenth street, 
where he remained three years, removing after- 
ward to West Forty-sixth street. In 1878 he 
bought the property at No. 548 West Fifty- 
fifth street, where his foundry now stands. 
Since 1867 he has been engaged principally' in 
manufacturing sash weights, and grate bars for 
steam boilers, and for some years he has made 
the patent grate bar of W. W. Tupper & Co. 
He employs a force of about thirty-five men 
usually, and enjoys an extensive and profita- 
ble trade. 

On January 5. 1846. Mr. Benedict was 






^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



397 



married to Maria, daughter of Lee Canfield, 
of Falls Village, Conn., and made his perma- 
nent home on the old Wheeler homestead, 
near Coleman Station, a fine farm of 140 
acres, which he purchased in 1887. His wife 
died June 9, 1885, leaving one son, \\'illiam 
B., who was born April 13, 1848, was a banker 
in New York City, but died in Denver, Colo., 
in Februarj', 1886; there was also a daughter, 
Clara Maria, born February 2, 1855, and died 
in February, 1872. Mr. Benedict's close at- 
tention to business has prevented him from 
taking an active part in political life, but he is 
a generous sympathizer in all movements for 
the public welfare. In early life he was a 
Whig, voting for Gen. Harrison in 1840, and 
and he became a Republican on the formation 
of that party. 



JOHN J. BAHRET, a well-known business 
man of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, is 
- a native of that thriving city, born May 
15, 1S40. 

Jacob Bahret, father of our subject, was 
born in 1809 in W^urtemberg, Germany, was 
educated in the schools of Burgstal, and learned 
the tailor's trade. In 1835 he came to Amer- 
ica, locating first in New York City, where he 
remained three years. He then moved to 
Poughkeepsie and engaged in merchant tailor- 
ing at the head of Jay street, near Market, 
but after a time he entered the employ of 
Smith & Fineley at No. 280 Main street, and 
in 1844 he bought their business, which he 
carried on until his death, in 1865. He was a 
man of sterling qualities, fully identifying him- 
self with the best interests of his adopted coun- 
try, and during the Civil war he was an active 
member of the Union League. He was mar- 
ried in New York City in 1836 to Miss Dor- 
othea Furch, a native of Germany, by whom 
he had six children: Julia Caroline, the wife of 
August Koch; John J., our subject; Phcebe R. 
(now living), who married C. Buechler (now 
deceased); Mary C. and August P. (twins 
both deceased); and George, a resident of St. 
Louis, Mo. The mother of these died in 1849 
and the father subsequently married Miss Fred- 
erica Dietz. Seven children were born of this 
union, of whom only three are now living : 
Louisa Nesbit, Charles H. and Frederick, all 
residents of Poughkeepsie. 

John J. Bahret received his early education 
in the public schools of his native city, also at 



the Lancaster school. At the age of thirteen 
he became a salesman for his father, as time 
passed learning the trade, and after the death 
of his father he took charge of the business in 
partnership with August Koch, at Nos. 276 
and 262 Main street. In 1882 the partnership 
was dissolved, and Mr. Bahret continued the 
business at No. 262 until 1894, when he moved 
to No. 174 Main street, where his sons, A. H. 
and P. E. Bahret, now conduct it. For over 
thirty years Mr. Bahret held a prominent place 
in business circles, and was for some time a 
director in the Farmers' & Manufacturers' Na- 
tional Bank of Poughkeepsie. He was twice 
married, first on September 6, 1863, to Miss 
Mary Griffin, of West Redding, Conn., who 
died in October, 1869. Two children were 
born to them, Willie G. and Dora, both of 
whom died in infancy. Mr. Bahret was mar- 
ried the second time September 5, 1870, in 
Saugurties, Ulster county, to Miss Sarah T. 
Allard, and their children are Adella, James 
L. , Arthur H., Percy E. and Ruth E. He 
and his wife are leading members of Trinity 
M. E. Church, of Poughkeepsie, and the fam- 
ily have taken an influential part in many 
philanthropic movements within and without 
the Church. 



t BRAM B. CRAPSER, the well-known 
_ engineer of the steamer "Hasbrouck, " 
was born November 21, 1832, in Pleasant 
Plains, town of Clinton, Dutchess county, and 
is of German origin. His great-grandfather 
was a native of Wurtemberg, Germany, and 
on coming to America his passage was paid by 
his mother. On his arrival he bound himself 
out to a man living in Wurtemburg, town of 
Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, which village 
was named for his birthplace. At that time 
he had some money, and as his employer was 
in need of financial assistance, he aided him. 
Later he became a large property owner in 
Clinton town, Dutchess county. He was mar- 
ried at Wurtemburg, N. Y., and became the 
father of four sons, one of whom was John 
Crapser (the grandfather of our subject), who 
was born May 20, 1750. 

On February 19, 1778, John Crapser was 
married to Charity Ostrum, who was born 
March 12, \y6o, and fourteen children were 
the result of this union, their names and dates 
of birth, etc., being as follows: John J.. July 
5, 1780, died September 12, i860; Anna, Oc- 



398 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



tober 27, i/Si.d. December 7, 1S59; Albertus, 
January 14, 1784, d. September 4, 1S80; Fred- 
erick, September 20, 1785, d. March i, 1S61; 
Cornelius, August 30, 1787; Catherine, August 
23. 1789, d. May 8, 1832; Elizabeth, Septem- 
ber 25. 1791, d. August 21, 1854; Margaret, 
January 24, 1794; Mary, June i, 1796, d. Jan- 
uary 12, 1823; Levi, July 14, 1798, d. May 
21, 1855; Gertrude, August 25, 1800, d. Jan- 
uary 5, 1852; Philip, June 3, 1803, d. Sep- 
tember 19, 1872; Sarah Ann, March 27, 1S05, 
d. July 3, i860; and Elias. June 21, 1807, d. 
February 7, 1786. The father of this family 
was a member of the Lutheran Church, and 
devoted his life to agricultural pursuits in the 
town of Clinton until his death, which occurred 
February 24, 1824. His wife was called from 
earth December 28, 1851. 

Elias Crapser, thej'oungest in their family, 
and the father of our subject, was born in the 
town of Clinton, where his early life was passed 
in rural pursuits. In 1830 he went upon the 
river, at first as the owner of a sailing vessel, 
and afterward, for half a century, as pilot and 
captain on steamboats, for many years being 
with the Commercial Transportation Co. From 
1850 up to the time of his death he made his 
home at Poughkeepsie, passing the last four 
years with his son, Abram B. Crapser. He 
was married January 14, 1830, to Rebecca C. 
Nickel, of the town of Rhinebeck, and they 
became the parents of the following children: 
Anna M., born September 22, 1830, became 
the wife of Abram Wallace, December 2, 
1847; Abram H., whose name introduces this 
sketch, is the next in order of birth; Emeline 
G., born November I 5, 1835, married Ransom 
La Paugh, January 6, 1855 (he died May 16, 
1896); Catherine E., born April 5, 1838, 
wedded George Clarke, February 12, 1S61; 
Levi, born April 8, 1841, married Mary J. 
Ackert, June 29, 1864; William H., born No- 
vember 3, 1843, married Catherine \Miitner, 
of Brooklyn, August 15, 1868; Henrietta was 
born September 22, 1846; Rebecca, born De- 
cember 7, 1849, died July 23, 185 1; Nelson, 
born March 15, 1852, married Julia Fraleigh, 
October i, 1873; and Charles, born Novem- 
ber 4, 1854, wedded Rose Golden, January 5, 
1882. The mother of these died April 18, 
1879. 

Our subject spent his boyhood in New 
York City, where he was educated, and at the 
early age of ten years began boating with his 
father during the warmer months, while in the 



winter he attended school. At the age of six- 
teen he secured a position as deck hand on a 
steamer, where he remained for nearly one 
year, and then was made assistant engineer on 
the "Cygnet," being thus employed by the 
Commercial Transportation Co. of the Phila- 
delphia and .Albany line for four years. At 
the age of twenty he was made chief engineer, 
filling that position on the "Swan," " Pa- 
troon," "Commerce," "Tempest," "Consti- 
tution," "Commodore Foote," "Commodore 
Du Pont," "William H. Aspinwall," "Col- 
umbus," "Francis King" and "Reliance." 
During the Civil war he was chief engineer on 
the ' ' Vidette, " in the Burnside expedition, and 
for three years was in the government service. 
Since the close of the struggle he has been chief 
engineer of the steamer "John L. Hasbrouck," 
all of which will indicate his faithful discharge 
of duty, and the high regard in which he is 
held by his employers. He is the pioneer en- 
gineer of the Crapser family, and he now has 
four brothers, a nephew, son-in-law and two 
sons, who are also engineers, raised by him to 
the trade, besides a brother-in-law (now de- 
ceased.) 

On December 13, 1855, Mr. Crapser was 
married, to Adaline Ackert, who was born in 
Pleasant Plains, town of Clinton, September i, 
1833, and seven children blessed their union, 
namely: Lester A., born February 22, 1858, 
and married Carrie Falk June 5, 1882; Ethel- 
ward v., born December 12, 1859, married 
Mary Tracy, ^L^rch 18, 1885; Ida M., born 
February 12, 1S62, became the wife of W'alter 
L. Simmons July i, 1883; Ella R. , born April 
25, 1865, died February 19, 1868; Ira E., born 
October 18, 1868, died February 2, 1869; Lil- 
lie Belle, born .August 26, 1872, married Sam- 
uel H. Miller November 14, 1894; and Freddie 
B., born June 3, 1874, died on the 26th of 
July following. The children that married all 
have families. 

Mr. Crapser is one of the oldest members 
of Lodge No. 266, F. & A. M., of Poughkeep- 
sie, which he joined February 21, 1859, and 
also belongs to and is one of the charter mem- 
bers of the Masonic Mutual Benefit -Associa- 
tion, and a member of the Marine Engineers 
Beneficial Association. His courteous, genial 
manner has gained him a large circle of warm 
personal friends, and he justly deserves the 
confidence and esteem of all with whom he 
comes in contact either in a business or social 
way. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



399 



JOHN P. AMBLER, wholesale and retail 
dealer in books, stationery and fancy goods, 

Poughkeepsie, Dutchess count}', was born 
June 25, 1 841, in the town of Stanford, Dutch- 
ess county, and is the son of Rev. Silas and 
Eunice D. (Olmstead) Ambler. 

The Ambler family, of which our subject is 
a worthy representative, was founded in Amer- 
ica during its early history. The first tc locate 
in New England was Richard Ambler, who 
was born in Somersetshire, England, in 1609, 
and was one of twenty-four men who organ- 
ized the town of Watertown, Conn., taking 
deed from the Indians, and he became a lead- 
ing resident of that town. He was twice mar- 
ried and became the father of three children: 
Sarah, Abram and Abraham. His death oc- 
curred in 1699. Of his family, Abraham, who 
was a Baptist minister in Bradford, Conn., was 
born in 1642, and he was also twice married, 
his union with Mary Bates being celebrated in 
1662; they made their home in Stamford, 
Conn. Their son John was born in 1668, and 
in his family were three children: John, 
Stephen and Martha. The birth of John Am- 
bler, of this family, occurred at Stamford, 
Conn., in 1695, and he became a resident of 
Danbury, in the same State, where he died. 
By his will he bequeathed his gun and sword 
to his only son, John. He was the father of 
seven children — John, Elizabeth, Sarah, Mary, 
Martha, Anna and Rachel. The only son was 
born in 1733, and died October 2 i, 18 14. By 
his marriage with Huldah Fairchild he had 
eight children: Peter, Squire, Stephen, Gilead, 
Diodote, Silas, Huldah and Deborah. The 
father of these was a sergeant of a company of 
100 men raised in Danbury May 17, 1775, 
which joined the 6th Regiment, commanded 
by Col. David Waterbury. 

Peter Ambler, of the above family, was the 
grandfather of our subject. He was born at 
Danbury, Conn., September 20, 1759, and 
there continued to engage in farming through- 
out life, owning the land on which the Dan- 
bury Fair is now held. During the Revolu- 
tionary war, he served as artificer in the Colo- 
nial army, and later took a prominent part in 
public affairs, being a member of the State 
Legislature for one term. He held member- 
ship with the Baptist Church, in which he 
served as deacon, and died in that faith March 
7, 1836. On October 21, 1784, he had mar- 
ried Miss Hannah Shove, who was born Octo- 
ber 27, 1 76 1, and was the daughter of Deacon 



Benjamin and Sarah Shove, and their family 
included the following children: Fairchild, 
Benjamin, David, Thomas, Joseph, Silas, 
Sarah, Rachel and Hannah. The mother of 
these died April 22, 1843. 

Rev. Silas Ambler, Baptist minister, father 
of our subject, was born at Danbury, Conn. , 
March 12, 1798. He was married August 29, 
1822, to Miss Eunice D. Olmstead, who was 
born October 28, 1800, at Wilton, Conn., and 
died October 3, 1892, at Stanford, N. Y. They 
had a family of seven children: Samuel H., 
a sketch of whom appears elsewhere; Mary E., 
who makes her home in Greene county, N. Y., 
is the widow of Ezekial Griffin; Augustus, born 
April 19, 1829, died April 22, 1852; Catherine, 
born May 23, 1831, is the widow of Levi 
Boyce, of Greenville, N. Y. ; Sarah, born 
January 31, 1835, is the wife of Henry Knick- 
erbocker, of Bangall, N. Y. ; Emeline, who was 
born April 6, 1837, and died April 3, 1869, 
was the wife of Charles Sheldon, now deceased; 
and John P., born June 25, 1841, is the pro- 
prietor of a book store at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. 
The father was for a time a minister in the 
Baptist Church, having charge of congregations 
at Cornwall and Norfolk, Conn., but in 1840 
on account of ill health he gave up preaching, 
and located upon a farm in the town of Stan- 
ford, Dutchess Co., N. Y., near Stissing, which 
is now owned by our subject. He there spent 
his remaining days, dying November 22, 1857, 
honored and respected by all. 

John P. Ambler spent his boyhood days on 
his father's farm in the town of Stanford, and 
when fifteen years of age entered Greenville 
Academy, where he spent two years. He then 
taught school in Stanford for one year, and the 
following year drove a market wagon. During 
the winter of 1860-61 he attended Eastman 
Business College, at Poughkeepsie, and in 
1861 entered the bookstore of J. H. Hickok, 
in Poughkeepsie, as clerk, remaining there 
some si.x years. He was next employed in a 
similar business with H. A. Reed, and on July 
12, 1869, he purchased a small news business 
on Market street. From this modest begin- 
ning he has built up an extensive and prosper- 
ous trade, and now owns a large building facing 
on both Market and Main streets. Here he 
has a fine assortment of fancy goods, a com- 
plete line of stationery; his establishment is the 
headquarters for all the latest publications. 
His industry, enterprise and undoubted integ- 
rity, as well as his courteous manners, have 



400 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



made him popular with all classes of people 
and have brought him well-deserved success, 
and a host of warm friends. 

On November t6, 1870, Mr. Ambler was 
married to Miss Mary A. Tracy, a native of 
Shelburne, \'t. , and daughter of Hon. Guy 
Tracy, a farmer of that place. They have one 
child, Donna Louise. Mr. Ambler is a Demo- 
crat and in 1884 was a candidate on that ticket 
for county treasurer, being defeated by only 
fifteen votes. He has been a member of the 
board of health for two terms. Socially, he 
belongs to the I. O. O. F., Royal Arcanum, 
and of the Reform Club, of New York City, 
while in religious faith he and his wife are 
members of the First Reformed Church. 



JOHN U. ABEL (deceased) was numbered 
among the prosperous and skillful farmers 
of the town of Unionvale, Dutchess coun- 
ty. Here his grandfather, Daniel Abel, reared 
his family of seven children: Jacob, John, 
Lawrence, William, Peter, Mary 1 who became 
the wife of Daniel Uhl) and Gideon. Jacob 
Abel, the father of our subject, spent his en- 
tire life in Unionvale, devoted to agricultural 
pursuits. He married Miss Margaret Uhl, and 
in their family were three children: (i) Will- 
iam W., who married Helen Cornell, and had 
two children — Mary Elizabeth, deceased; and 
Evaline, who married Henry Brill, by whom 
she has two children — Theodore R. and Helen. 

(2) Our subject is the next in order of birth. 

(3) Mary wedded Luman B. Odell, who was 
killed by accident, and they had three children 
— Daniel, Wright and Flora. 

In the town of Unionvale, Dutchess coun- 
ty, John U. Abel was born October 11, 1821, 
and he acquired such an education as the 
common schools of the locality afforded, and 
for one year attended school at Quaker Hill. 
For some time he followed the profession of 
teaching; but his time was mainl)- devoted to 
his farming interests, which were quite exten- 
sive, and at his death, which occurred Novem- 
ber 6, 1893, he left a large estate. He was a 
popular and influential citizen, one who easily 
gained the friendship of those with whom he 
met either in a business or social way, was 
charitable and benevolent, and took a com- 
mendable interest in the welfare and prosper- 
ity of those around him. For a number of 
years he served as supervisor of his township, 
was president of the Agricultural Society, and 



held several other positions of honor and trust. 
He was prominently identified with the Ma- 
sonic order, in which he took an active inter- 
est. On June 4, 1846, he was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Esther Odell, who was born in 
the town of Unionvale, March 9, 1829, and 
was educated there and in Amenia. She still 
survives her husband, and like him is held in 
the highest respect. 

Uriah Odell, the grandfather of Mrs. Abel, 
was a native of Pawling town, Dutchess coun- 
ty, and followed the vocation of a farmer. He 
married Miss Esther Sheldon, and to them 
were born the following children: John, Dan- 
iel, Benjamin, Isaac, Abijah (who married Ann 
Hubbard I, Ann, Latnira (who married Davis 
Hubbard), Sallie, and Polly (who married 
Daniel Butler). 

Daniel Odell, the father of Mrs. Abel, was 
born in Pawling town in 1781, attended the 
common schools of Delaware county, N. Y. , 
and later carried on farming in Unionvale 
town. In the old training days he served as 
captain of a company of militia, and took a 
prominent part in public affairs. For his first 
wife he married Miss Esther Stevens, daughter 
of Archibald Stevens, of Dover town, Dutch- 
ess county, and to them were born two chil- 
dren: (i) Samuel, born December 3, 1809, 
married Hannah Hunt, and had three chil- 
dren — Duane, Sheldon and Adeline. (2) Eb- 
enezer, born August 23, 18 12, married Sallie 
A. Baker, and had two children — Ann E., who 
married Duane Odell; and Levina. who died 
unmarried. 

On June 20, 18 17, his first wife died, and 
November 17, 1S17, Daniel Odell married Miss 
Esther Cole, a daughter of Royal and Hannah 
Cole. During the Revolutionary war her fa- 
ther aided the Colonies in securing their inde- 
pendence, and lived to be over ninety years of 
age, dying on the Fourth of Julj'. Seven chil- 
dren graced the second marriage, namely: 
(i) Olive A., born June 2, 1818, married 
Henry W. Uhl, a farmer of Unionvale, by 
whom she had a son, Daniel H., who died 
when young; her death occurred in 1847. 
(2) Daniel W., born April 28, 1821, was a 
farmer by occupation, and married Hannah 
Devine, daughter of Abel Devine, by whom he 
had a daughter, Mary E., who died at the age 
of seventeen years. F"or his second wife, Dan- 
iel wedded Elizabeth Giddley, of the town of 
Lagrange, Dutchess county, and they had two 
children: Ardell E., who married Robert Mo- 





\ 





s \ 



w- 











^ 

^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



401 



rey, and later became the wife of Zachariah 
Dorland; and Willis B., who married Annie 
Baker. (3) Newton B., born January 18, 
1823, married Christina Baker, and they had 
one child: Ida, who married Frank Akerley. 
After the death of his first wife he wedded 
Annie Morey, and to them was also born a 
daughter: Levina M. (4) Luman B. , born 
February 23, 1S26, wedded Mary Abel, and 
had three children : Daniel J. , who married Hat- 
tie Coe; Wright, who married Inez A. Brill; 
and Flora M., who married Charles Brill, Jr. 

(5) Mrs. Esther Abel is next in order of birth. 

(6) Alexander J., born April 17, 1832, wedded 
Mary L. Taber, of W^ashington town. (7) 
Hannah L. , born March 6, 1840, married 
Rev. S. W. Butler, a minister of Fall River, 
N. Y. , who is now living in Nebraska. They 
had two children: Weight A.; and Odell C, 
who was born at Fall River, February 22, 
1874, was educated in the De Garmo Institute, 
of Fishkill-on-Hudson, and is now engaged 
in farming. 



I BIAH W. PALMER, who was called from 



yr^ this life in January, 1882, was widely 
known throughout Dutchess county, having 
spent most of his life in Amenia, and by all 
was held in the highest regard. He was born 
January 25, 1835, at Amenia, on the old home- 
stead which was deeded to his father by the 
Nine Partners, the son of Abiah Palmer, Sr., 
who removed from the town of Stanford, Dutch- 
ess county, to Amenia, in 1789, and immedi- 
ately took an active part in public business, 
being a successful farmer and mine owner. 
He died before his son was born, and the 
mother of our subject passed away when he 
was only nine years old. He then made his 
home with two half brothers and two half 
sisters. 

Mr. Palmer pursued his academical course 
at the Amenia Seminary, later was a student 
in the Cazenovia Seminary, and at the age of 
twenty years entered Union College, which 
he attended for two years. On account of ill 
health he was not permitted to graduate, be- 
ing compelled to relinquish his studies in 1856, 
and soon afterward he started for Europe, 
where the following two years were passed in 
travel. On his return home he was not strong 
or thoroughly well, but greatly improved in 
health. Being nominated by the Republican 
party in 1859, he was elected to represent his 

" 26 



district in the General Asseinbl\-, 
over seven hundred majority, and at once took 
high rank in that body. In the following year 
he was unanimously renominated, an honor he 
was compelled to decline; but later he was in 
the Senate for two consecutive terms, taking 
there, also, a prominent and active part, and 
serving on several important committees. 

Among the valuable property owned by 
Mr. Palmer was the iron mine at Amenia, 
which he sold just before the Civil war broke 
out. For years he served as president of the 
First National Bank of Amenia, and was re- 
elected to that position the day after his death, 
as the news of that sad event had not reached 
the village. He was always a strong Repub- 
lican in politics, socially was connected with 
Amenia Lodge No. 672, F. & A.M., and was 
a man of deep religious convictions, but not a 
member of any Church. Public-spirited and 
progressive, he was one of the most popular 
citizens of the community, and no words are 
needed to assert his high and delicate sense of 
honor — his blameless integrity, both in public 
and private life. In 1 860 he received the nomi- 
nation for comptroller of New York State, but 
was defeated. At Westfield, Mass., in 1872, 
he was married to Miss Jeanette Yeamans, a 
daughter of Roland Yeamans, and two children 
were born to them: Roland Swift and Katha- 
rine. 

Mr. Palmer was a man of great influence, 
his advice being often sought and deferred to 
by far older men, and no one's opinion in 
the community on any subject of business 
action, or social expediency, carried greater 
weight than his. He had a marvelous faculty 
of seeing, in any emergency, the precise thing 
that should be done. His sympathetic, genial 
nature put him often in confidential relations 
with all, and no person was so unpopular or 
so obscure as to forfeit his kind attention. For 
a number of years prior to his death he was in 
very poor health, and often made trips to the 
South and to Colorado. A year before his 
death he located permanently at Manitou 
Park, Colo., hoping that the high latitude and 
pure air would give him, at least, a partial 
restoration of health. But it was decreed 
otherwise, and he would have been glad to 
have returned to Amenia; but the condition of 
his health rendered it imposible. He breathed 
his last at Manitou Park, and his remains were ' 
brought back to Amenia and interred. We 
cannot better close this brief record of his life 



402 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



thai) by quoting a letter written by Bishop H. 
N. Powers in tribute to him: 

" I wish that I might stand up among those 
who gather at Mr. Palmer's grave, and pay a 
tribute to his youth. I knew him from his 
early childhood to the years when he bore 
great public trusts with distinction and honor, 
and my recollection of him is singularly delight- 
ful. All through his boyhood and youth I can 
recall nothing about him but what is suggestive 
of rare qualities and a noble nature. His in- 
clinations from the first were good. With his 
unfolding intelligence he seemed instinctively 
drawn to what was morally wholesome, refin- 
ing, uplifting. 

"From his incipient boyhood he showed 
those traits and that disposition which are 
prophetic of an honorable and useful manhood. 
As time went on he developed into the thought- 
ful, gentle, ingenuous, studious youth of high 
aims and most attractive presence. His nat- 
ural talents were remarkable. His sympathies 
led him into the best associations. His spirit 
was lovely. There is no face, among those of 
my early acquaintances, more clearly stamped 
upon my memory than his, and every linea- 
ment of it indicated sincerity, sensibility, a 
keen, bright intelligence. His deep, soft, 
luminous eyes, so trustful and searching, seem 
looking upon me now, with meanings that go 
to my heart. 

" I thank God that it has been my privilege 
to see and live in contact with a young life so 
fair and lovely as his. The very thought of it 
is refreshing, and I shall carry its sweetness 
with me while I live. " 



'ENDEL STROBEL (deceased). Many 

of the best class of citizens of Dutchess 

county have come from over the sea, particu- 
larly from the empire of Germany. They 
have transported to this country the industry, 
thrift and economy of their native land, and 
have been important factors in the upbuilding 
and advancement of the land of their adoption. 
Of this class of honest, alien-born citizens, 
none have occupied a more prominent place 
than Mr. Strobel and his family. He was 
born, reared and educated in Germany, and 
was one of the twelve children of Peter Stro- 
bel and wife, who were also natives of the 
Fatherland. 

In the year 1S26, in Hessen-Darmstadt, 
Germany, Mr. Strobe! was married to Miss 



Christina Kuth, who had received an excellent 
education in her girlhood. Three children 
were born to them, the birth of the eldest oc- 
curring before they left their native land. 
They are as follows: Peter, who served as a 
soldier in the German army; Mary; and Will- 
iam, who married a young lady of Barrytovvn, 
Dutchess Co., N. Y. , by whom he has four 
children. In 1846, with his family, Mr. Stro- 
bel left Germany for America, and in Barry- 
tovvn made his home until called from this life 
about four years ago. He enjoyed the esteem 
and regard of the entire community, and at his 
death was deeply mourned. 

Henry Hirtsel, the maternal grandfather of 
Mrs. Strobel, was born in Hessen-Darmstadt, 
Germany, and there married Barbara Metz. of 
the same place. They had both received a 
common-school education in their native land, 
and in the same province where their births 
occurred were born their two children: Peter, 
who married Eliza Stormf; and Susan; the lat- 
ter was given excellent educational advantages 
in the Fatherland, and there she married Val- 
entine Ruth. They always made their home 
in Germany, where were born to them five 
children, as follows: Mary, who remained 
single; Catherine, who married Anthony Han- 
sey; Christina, widow of our subject; Eliza- 
beth, who died at the age of fifteen years; and 
Valentine, who was also married. Mrs. Stro- 
bel and the other children were all born and 
married in Germany. 



CHARLES L. FLETCHER, M. D. The 
first of the Fletcher family to come to the 
New World was Cotton Fletcher, a Congrega- 
tional minister, who was born in England. He 
reached the shore of this country in 1630, land- 
ing at Plymouth, Mass., with which colony 
was his mission, and from him sprang the 
present family of Fletcher, of which our sub- 
ject is a worthy representative. 

Calvin Fletcher, the grandfather of the 
Doctor, was born at Poultney, \'t., in 1738, 
but in childhood removed with his parents to 
Grand Isle county, of the same State. He re- ' 
ceived a common-school education, and be- 
came a very successful farmer. He took a 
prominent part in political affairs, and was 
called upon to serve in numerous town offices. 
By his marriage with Miss Eunice Davidson, of 
Vermont, he had nine children: Asenith, who 
married Benager Phelps; Olive, who married 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



403 



Fisher Ames; William, who married Mary 
Landon; Thomas, who married a Miss Phelps; 
Cotton, who married Ann Landon; Edward, 
the father of our subject; Ruth, who married 
Benjamin Boardman; Lydia, who married 
Calvin Robison; and Eunice, who married G. 
H. Rice. 

Edward Fletcher, the father, was born in 
Grand Isle county, Vt. , in 1819, and after the 
completion of his education turned his atten- 
tion to mercantile pursuits for a number of 
years. He then engaged in farming for a time, 
but afterward returned to merchandising. He 
was one of the active and leading members of 
the Republican party in the comijiunity where 
he made his home, and at different times filled 
all the town offices with credit to himself and 
to the satisfaction of all concerned. 

Edward Fletcher was married to Miss 
Eliza M. Landon, a daughter of Baldwin and 
Minerva (Phelps) Landon, agriculturists of 
Vermont. Ten children were born to this 
worthy couple, as follows: (i) Arelia E. mar- 
ried Edwin Phelps. (2) Henry C. engaged in 
the ranch business in Montana, and was there 
married. (3) Edward C. died at the age of 
fifteen years. (4) Charles L. is the ne.xt in 
order of birth. (5) Edgar E., who was born 
in Vermont in 1853, was educated in the same 
academy and university as our subject, and is 
now engaged in the practice of medicine at 
Boulder, Mont. He married Miss Emma Rob- 
inson, and they have three children. (6) Fred 
F. is now engaged in civil engineering, and 
owns a foundry at Bozeman, Mont. (7) Frank 
E. studied law, but never engaged in its prac- 
tice; for some time he followed farming, but 
was later connected with the Eagle Condensed 
Milk factory at Wassaic, N. Y. ; he married 
Miss Carrie Rozwell, and has four cliildren — 
Barbara, Leon, Edna and Francis. (8) El- 
mer is now engaged in the mercantile business 
at New Bedford, Mass. (9) Kate M. is the 
wife of Hegiston Hoag, a prosperous farmer, 
and they have three children. (10) Ernest, 
the youngest of the family, is now engaged in 
the ranch business at Boulder, Montana. 

The birth of our subject occurred in the 
town of Milton, Chittenden Co., Vt., while his 
primary education was obtained in the public 
schools, and he supplemented the knowledge 
there acquired by a course in the academy at 
South Hero, Vt., from which he graduated. 
He then entered the medical department of the 
\'ermont University, graduating with the class 



of '73. at the age of twenty-two. The follow- 
ing year he commenced the practice of his 
chosen profession in the town of George, 
Franklin Co., Vt., but in the fall of 1881 lo- 
cated at South Dover, Dutchess county, and 
has since been one of the most successful phy- 
sicians of the community. In 1892 the Doc- 
tor purchased a fine farm of 335 acres on what 
is called Chestnut Ridge, which is well stocked 
and highly improved. Before coming to this 
county he held a number of town offices in his 
native State. As a Master Mason, he is con- 
nected with Dover Plains Lodge No. 666, F. 
& A. M. He stands deservedly high as a mem- 
ber of the medical fraternity, and as a private 
citizen also holds an enviable position in the 
estimation of his fellowmen. 

Dr. Fletcher was married to Miss Helen 
Corwin, and to them were born four children: 
Helena and Edward, who died in infancy; C. 
Harold, who was born in 1880, and is now 
preparing for college; and Alice C, who died 
at the age of nine years. 



T^HOMAS K. CRUSE, A. M., M. D., a 
leading physician and surgeon of Wap- 
pingers Falls, Dutchess county, was born in 
Baltimore, Md., March 3, 1849, and is a son 
of Isaac Cruse, whose birth occurred in Alex- 
andria, Va. , in 1806. His paternal grand- 
father, Thomas Cruse, was a native of Dub- 
lin, Ireland, by occupation a linen merchant, 
and he there married a Miss Hamilton, of the 
same city. About 1798, a contmuance of resi- 
dence in Dublin having become impossible by 
reason of his affiliation with the fomenters of 
Emmet's rebellion, Thomas Cruse and family 
emigrated to Virginia, and there he started a 
successful business in the importation of Irish 
linens. In religious belief he was an Episco- 
palian, and m politics a Federalist. His fam- 
ily comprised four children, namely: Mary, 
who became the wife of a Mr. Power, of Car- 
lisle, Penn. ; Eliza, who married James Creigh- 
ton, of Philadelphia; Franklin, who died in in- 
fancy; and Isaac, the father of the subject of 
this sketch. 

On reaching manhood Isaac Cruse left the 
Old Dominion for Baltimore, Md., where he 
engaged in merchandising. He there wedded 
Mary W. Kelso, a native of Pittsburg, Penn. 
She was a daughter of Dr. Joseph Kelso, sur-' 
geon to the Pennsylvania Hospital, Philadel- 
phia, he being of Scotch descent through the 



404 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPET/CAL RECORD. 



Galbraiths of Revolutionary fame. Six chil- 
dren were born to Isaac and Mary W. Cruse: 
Anna E., who married Uavid H. Paige (vice- 
presidentTexas iS; Houston Central railway), of 
New York City; Bertha, wife of Charles H. 
Currier, of the same city; Mary VV., married 
to Edward J. Peters, also of New York City; 
X'irj^inia, wife of Eugene \V. Watson, captain 
United States navy; Emmeline H., widow of 
Graham Blandy, long a member of the New 
York Stock Exchange, and Thomas K. , subject 
of this sketch. On leaving Baltimore, Isaac 
Cruse removed to New York City, where for 
twenty-five years he was an active member of 
the Produce Exchange, and at one time its 
president. Throughout life he was a stanch 
Democrat, and a pillar of the Madison Square 
Presbyterian Church, now under Dr. Park- 
hurst's charge. 

When a child, Thomas K. Cruse accom- 
panied his parents to New York City, where 
through five years he attended old ward school 
No. 45. in Twenty-fourth street. Leaving 
school, he was successful in gaining entrance 
to the College of the City of New York, from 
which institution he took his Bachelor of Arts 
degree in 1868. Having thus completed a 
sound literary and scientific education, he began 
the attendance of lectures at Bellevue Hos- 
pital Medical College, from which he gradu- 
ated as Doctor of Medicine in 1870, when 
barely twenty-one years of age. Immediately 
after graduation, and after a hard competitive 
examination, he was appointed resident sur- 
geon to Bellevue Hospital, subsequently, also, 
receiving the appointment of surgeon to the 
Bellevue Hospital Bureau of Relief for Ouf- 
Door Poor. These positions kept the Doctor 
hard at work during most of the first four 
years of his professional life, although for a 
few months of that period he served also as 
surgeon to the White Star line of transatlantic 
steamers. 

After a term of hospital attendance in Lon- 
don, England. Dr. Cruse started private prac- 
tice in New York City, later at Tarrj'town, 
N. Y., and in 1876 took up his residence at 
Wappingers Falls, N.Y., where he has made 
his permanent home, although for a year he 
was absent in England and France, and later 
in Florida, traveling. For a time also he held 
the post of professor of genito-urinary diseases 
in the College of Physicians and Surgeons at 
Chicago, III., and in 1886, after competitive 
civil-service examination, was appointed Med- 



ical Examiner at Washington, D. C, in the 
Pension Office. After serving for awhile in 
Washington, he resigned his position, and has 
since given all his energies to his Dutchess 
county practice. 

On November 3, 1883, Dr. Cruse was mar- 
ried to Florence S. Warhurst. of Brooklyn, N. 
Y. , she being a daughter of Thomas War- 
hurst, the veteran dramatic agent. They have 
had two children, boys, one, Thomas Gal- 
braith, born in 1893, died in 1895; the other, 
Creighton, born in 1896, survives. 

The Doctor is an independent in politics, 
is a member of the I. O. O. F. , and of the 
Foresters of A/nerica, of various professional 
organizations, of the Dutchess Club, of Pough- 
keepsie, of the Chi Psi Alunmi Association of 
New York City, and of the Society of Alumni 
of Bellevue Hospital Internes. He is surgeon 
to the F"oresters, to the Hudson River Stone 
Supply Co., and from 1885 to 1893 served the 
village as health officer, during which time he 
was zealous and impartial in his efforts to en- 
force strict isolation of persons suffering from 
contagious diseases. At one time Dr. Cruse 
gave a bigslice"of his time to writing papers for 
medical journals and others — original papers 
and criticisms. Two of his productions have 
been honored with prizes. One. on "Rupture 
of the Bladder, " took the one-hundred-dollar 
prize of the Alumni Association of Bellevue 
Hospital Medical College, and was published 
in the Medical Record in 1871 ; the second, on 
" Injuries which happen to the Wrist Joint," 
especially dislocations and fractures, received 
the one-hundred-dollar prize of the New York 
State Medical Society for 1874, and was pub- 
lished in the volume of transactions of the So- 
ciety for that year. 

Dr. Cruse, although not in the metropolis, 
has won an enviable reputation as an up-to- 
date operative surgeon, and the great esteem 
in which his abilities are held by his profession- 
al brethren is the best testimony to his worth. 



Mli.LlCK BROTHERS is the name of a 
well-known firm of Poughkeepsie, Dutch- 
ess county, dealers in marble and granite, 
whose place of business is located at Nos. 100 
and 102 Market street. In 1894 Philip and 
Valentine M. Miller formed a partnership, since 
which time they have conducted their present 
business with reuiarkable success, combining 





.X 





M 





i 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



405 



the virtues of energy and perseverance with 
excellent judgment and industrious habits. 

Valentine Miller, father of our subject, 
was born in Germany in 1825, and was there 
reared to habits of thrift and economy, which 
principles characterized his whole life. Hop- 
ing to better his financial condition, he, in 
1S55, emigrated to the New World, locating 
finally at Poughkeepsie, where he first worked 
with Peter Joy in the bluestone business. 
Not long afterward he became a member of 
tbe firm of Nellson & Miller, in the marble 
business, which connection continued until the 
death of Mr. Nellson, when Mr. Haxby was 
received as a partner. On the latter's death, 
the firm became Miller & Van Wyck, which so 
continued until Mr. Miller was called from 
earth, in August, 1877. 

Valentine Miller married Elizabeth Dilge, 
also a native of the Fatherland, and a family 
of eight children were born to them: Feier- 
abend and Peter, residents of Poughkeepsie, 
where the former is in the butchering business; 
Phillipina, deceased; Philip and Valentine M. 
(who comprise the firm of Miller Brothers), 
and Maggie (wife of John Hall, a coal dealer), 
Kate, (wife of \'alentine Hall), and Jacob (a 
printer), all of Poughkeepsie. The mother of 
these died in August, 1S93; the father was a 
prominent member of the Lutheran Church, 
thoroughly identified with its interests, and in 
politics he affiliated with the Republican party. 
Both he and his wife were highly respected and 
esteemed as valuable members of the com- 
munity. 

Philip Miller, the senior member of the 
firm of Miller Bros., was born at Poughkeep- 
sie January 17, 1861, and in the city schools 
acquired his education, subsequently learning 
the marble business with his father. In 1891 
he went to Jersey City, where he was em- 
ployed in that line until 1894, when he re- 
turned to Poughkeepsie and formed the part- 
nership with his brother, \'alentine M., in the 
marble and granite business at their present 
location' on Market street, since which time 
they have done an extensive business. 

Philip Miller was married to Miss Mamie 
Kuhner, a member of the Zither Club. 

V.\LENTiNE M. Miller, the junior mem- 
ber of the firm of Miller Bros., was born April 
18, 1864, at Poughkeepsie, N. Y.. where he 
received his education. He wedded Miss Cath- 
erine Laufersweiler, and one daughter, \'iola 
May, has been born to them. \'alentine M. 



Miller is a member of the order of Chosen 
Friends and of Fallkill Lodge, Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows. 

Although still young men, the Miller Broth- 
ers are very liberal and public-spirited men, 
taking a foremost position in every movement 
or enterprise promising to accrue to the bene- 
fit of the people in general. In politics they 
follow in the footsteps of their father, and 
hold an equally high position in the regard of 
their fellow citizens. 



I.ICHARD BRIMSON CARY (deceased). 

Few among the business men of Dutchess 

county, past or present, have devoted to com- 
mercial life as many years as did the subject 
of this biography. Born November 26, 18 14, 
in East Fishkill, he began his mercantile career 
at the age of twenty-one, and not until the 
early part of 1896 did he lay aside his active 
responsibilities. 

His ancestry is an honorable one. His pa- 
ternal grandfather, Joseph Car}', was a soldier 
in the Colonial army during the Revolutionary 
war, and enjoyed the unique distinction of 
having first seen the light February 22. 1732 — 
the day and year of Gen. Washington's birth. 
The parents of our subject, Isaac and Nancy 
(Burrow) Cary, were highly respected residents 
of East Fishkill, and he and a younger brother, 
Uriah, constituted the family. 

Richard B. Gary's early education was 
such as the district schools of the locality af- 
forded in his day, and although they do not 
compare favorably with those of to-day, yet 
he managed to secure a good foundation for 
later progress through reading and observation. 
His first business venture was in a general 
merchandise store at Johnsville, N. Y. , in part- 
nership with William Pierce, and on the dis- 
solution of the firm seven or eight years after- 
ward Mr. Cary went to Glenham, N. Y., the 
manufacturing village between Fishkill village 
and Matteawan, and carried on a similar busi- 
ness for three years, with Thomas Burroughs 
as a partner. Mr. Cary then moved to Fish- 
kill village, where he and Jacob G. \'an Wyck 
opened a general store, and after a time Mr. 
Cary purchased Mr. \'an Wyck's interest, and 
for many years continued the business alone. 
During the past twenty-five years he was a 
commercial traveler, representing a firm of 
paper manufacturers; but failing health com- 



406 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOIiAPfflCAL RECORD. 



pelled him to retire, and he died a few months 
after, August 25, 1896. 

Mr. Cary was married October 22, 1844, 
to Miss M. Garetta Washburn, daughter of 
Jarvis and Hettie (Fuller) Washburn. Mrs. 
Cary passed away December 26, 1891, in her 
si.xty-fifth year, mourned as a loving wife and 
mother, and by many as a cherished friend. 
They had five children: Jarvis, Edgar, Mary, 
Frank and Arthur, of whom all are living ex- 
cept Frank, who died in infancy, and Edgar, 
who died at the age of thirty-six years leavmg a 
widow and two daughters. Politically Mr. 
Cary was a Republican, but he did not take 
an active share in party affairs. 



EDWARD BR AM AN, of Hyde Park, 
,' Dutchess county, is the representative of 

a well-known family there, connected with the 
Sextons, Van Vliets, and others, whose gen- 
ealogies are of unusual interest. 

The name of Braman first appears in New 
England in 1653, at Taunton, Mass., where 
the first settlers were mostly from Somerset- 
shire and Devonshire. The name belonged to 
Plymouth, in Devonshire, in that day, but 
there were also Bramans in London and Chi- 
chester, then and later. Thomas Braman. of 
Taunton, 1653, is believed to be the ancestor of 
all bearing the name in this country. 

The immediate ancestor of the family, who 
came to live in Dutchess county, was James 
Braman, of North Kingston, R. I. He also 
owned lands in \'oluntown and Preston, near 
Norwich, Conn., and about 1733 he took up his 
residence in Voluntown, where he died about 
January i, 1741, leaving, by his wife Eliza- 
beth, seven children: Elizabeth, b. March 
2, 1730; John, b. April 12, 173 1; James, b. 
October 13, 1732 (ancestor of the Bramans of 
Richfield. N. Y.); Anna, b. August 28, 1734; 
Thomas, b. May 25, 1736; Benjamin, b. June 
6, 1738, unmarried; and Esther, b. Febru- 
ary I, 1741. Of these, John and Thomas died 
in Dutchess county. Thomas, after serving 
in the "old P'rench war" (he was at Fort 
Edward in August, 1756), bought land near 
Old .\ttlebury, in Stanford, in 1761 and 1765. 
His wife, Anna, born December 21, 1735, 

died February 9. 1799. He died 26, 

1808 (tombstone injured), and they were buried 
in the ground he gave for a church long since 
extinct. He left no children, but made his 
nephew, Braman Barlow, his principal heir. 



John Braman, eldest son of James and 
Elizabeth, was born in North Kingston, R. I., 
April 12 (O. S.), 1731, and died at Hyde 
Park September 6, 18 10. He married, Feb- 
ruary 5, 1763, Eunice, eldest daughterof Ben- 
jamin Adams, of Lexington, Mass., baptized 
June 3, 1731. died August 15, 1774. They 
had five children: Anna, b. December 6, 
1763, d. 1846, second wife of the Hon. Ben- 
jamin Fitch, of Pawlet, Vt. ; Cyrus, b. No- 
vember 28, 1766 [See below]; Lucy, b. June 
14, 1768, d. August 20, 1796, first wife of 
Benjamin Fitch, above mentioned; Eunice, b. 
September 15, 1 770, d. November 21, 1836, 
m. Samuel Palmer, of Preston; and Mary, b. 
May 18, 1772, d. 1809, m. Job Wickes, of 
Burlington, Otsego Co., N. Y. John Braman 
settled in the East, or "Long Society," of 
Norwich fwhich was set off to the adjoining 
town of Preston in 1786), near the junction of 
the Quinebaug and Shetucket rivers. After a 
residence of forty years in a very pleasant lo- 
cality, all his children being married, he sold 
his property there, in order to make his home 
with his only son, with whom he removed to 
Clinton, now Hyde Park, in April, 1800. 

Cyrus Braman, born at Norwich, Novem- 
ber 28, 1766, died at Hyde Park, October 10, 
1850. He first married, on December 26, 
'793. Elizabeth Dunbar, only child of Capt. 
Joseph Teel and Elizabeth Searle, born at 
Charlestown, Mass., July 9, 1775, died at Hyde 
Park December 4, 1801. Her mother was of the 
family of the Rev. John Searle, of Stoneham; 
and her father was descended from one of the 
oldest families of Maiden, Mass. Capt. Teel 
fought at Bunker Hill, and was in the Massa- ' 
chusetts Line in the succeeding war, was pres- 
ent at White Plains and at Burgoyne's surren- 
der, etc. At one time he was a paymaster. 
He died at his son-in-law's house, at Hyde 
Park, February 14, 1843, aged ninety-eight 
years. He was long an elder in the Reformed 
Dutch Church. Cyrus Braman married, sec- 
ond, on April 11, 1802. Mary, born February 
27, 1772, died October 26, 1S49, only surviv- 
ing daughter of Samuel Hitt and Ruth, his 
wife, daughter of W'illiam and Magdalena 
(W^oolsey) Dusenbury, of Harrison's Purchase. 
Westchester county. The Dusenbury home- 
stead was in the family nearly a century and a 
half. It was later owned by Benjamin Halli- 
day and, since, by the Hon. Whitelaw Reid. 
Samuel Hilt was the only child of Samuel 
Hitt, of Harrison (then a part of Rye), who 



VOMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



407 



died in 1742, when the son was only a year 
old. He received a classical education, and 
inherited a considerable estate, which was 
much diminished by the vicissitudes of the 
Revolutionary days, as he lived "between the 
lines" and suffered from both sides. His 
daughter was old enough to remember some of 
the events of those troublous times. 

After the war he removed to Dutchess 
county, and for some years lived on the place, 
late of Elias Butler, then the property of Judge 
David Johnston, of Lithgow. Here his wife 
died, March 20, 1807, aged sixty-one; he died 
August 3, 1 8 10, aged sixty-nine. By his first 
wife Cyrus Braman had four children: Joseph 
Teel, b. January 29, 1796, d. August i, 1869, 
unmarried. Elizabeth Dunbar Teel, b. June 
22, 1797, d. January 16, 1875; m. m 1S16 
John Church, of Yates county, N. Y. John 
Adams, b. January 18, 1799, d. September 13, 
1886, unmarried; some time a merchant in 
New York and Syracuse. Cassandana, b. 
October 24. 1800, d. December 12, 1801. 
By his second wife he had seven children: 
Ruth Hitt, b. January 8, 1803, d. in New- 
York Decembers, 1846; m. in 1821 William 
Elsworth, of New York, afterward of Hyde 
Park, and had four children. Mary Smith, b. 
March 8, 1805, d. May 12, 1881, unmarried. 
Samuel Hitt, b. January 20, 1807, of whom 
mention will presently be made. Catharine, 
b. February 12, 1809, d. in Poughkeepsie, Jan- 
uary 30, 1890; became the second wife of 
William Elsworth; no children. Cyrus, b. 
March 17, 181 1, d. June i, i8i2- Phebe Ste- 
venson, b. May 23, 1813, d. August 15, 1861, 
unmarried. William Henry, b. December 27, 
181 5, d. in New York February 24, 1876; 
he was a merchant in New York; he mar- 
ried Sarah, daughter of John W. Elsworth, 
and sister of William Elsworth, and by her 
(who is living, 1897) had one child, Adelaide, 
who married Dr. William Brinck, now of New- 
burg. Cyrus Braman was educated at a high 
school at Norwich. After his first marriage he 
lived in Norwich for several years, but in 1796 
Joseph Teel bought property in Rhinebeck 
(afterward owned by Freeborn Garrettson, Jr., 
and since by the Astors), and this led to the 
removal of the Braman family to Hyde Park. 
In November, 1799, Cyrus Braman bought of 
Phinehas Eames "Lot No. 2," of the Hyde 
Park Patent. This had belonged to Anna 
Magdalen Valleau, wife of Lucas Lesier fcom- 
monly called " Madame Lesier "), sister to the 



wife of Dr. John Bard; and thus an heir of 
Peter Fauconnier's estate. She built the stone 
house, part of which stood until 1894. At an 
early date this place was named " Belgrove ", 
perhaps by Madame Lesier. In 1800 Mr. 
Braman bought the adjoining farm, "Lot No. 
3," of Capt. Samuel Cook, both purchases 
comprising together 2 1 2 acres, with a frontage 
of about half a mile on the river. This was 
his home for fifty years. In 1824 he built 
barns, still standing, considered a marvel of 
convenience in their day; and in 1832 he built 
a new residence, having a fine river and moun- 
tain view. He was a Federalist, and later a 
Whig, but was averse to taking any part in 
political affairs. He died at the age of eighty- 
four, and his portrait shows him a man of 
venerable and dignified appearance. In 1853 
his executors sold the estate to his son-in-law, 
William Elsworth, who died here in 1870, aged 
seventy-four, leaving three sons, Cyrus B., 
William H. and Eugene. His executors sold, 
in 1873, to Nathaniel P. Rogers. 

Samuel H. Braman was born at Belgrove, 
January 20, 1807, and died there June 16, 
1846. He married. May 16, 1832, Helen, 
daughter of Cornelius Van Vliet, Jr., of Staats- 
burg, and Mary Russell, born at Staatsburg, 
June 22, 1807, and died there October i, 1857. 
They had six children: (i) Edward (now of 
Hyde Park), b. December 13, 1833. (2) 
Caroline, b. May 20, 1836, m. Samuel J. M. 
Sexton. (3) Hiram Van Vliet (of Pough- 
keepsie. and No. 321 Clinton avenue, Brook- 
lyn, late importer, of New York), b. June 12, 
1838, m. Irene Barlow, daughter of Charles 
Thomas Newcomb, of Pleasant Valley,' and 
Elizabeth A. T. Sexton, and has had seven 
children— Helen Elizabeth (died in infancy), 
Mary Newcomb (m., June 1 1, 1896, to Francis 
L. Noble, counselor at law, of New York), 
Charles Francis (died aged fourteen years), 
Irene Moir, William Reginald (died aged three 
years), Hiram Van Vliet, Jr. (d. April 8, 1896, 
aged eighteen years), and Emily Louise. (4) 
Emily Bailey (living at Hyde Park), b. Sep- 
tember 22, 1840. (5) Samuel H., Jr., b. 
April 13, 1842, d. February 14. 1869. (6) 
Helen, b. November 13, 1845, d. May 27, 
1864. Samuel H. Braman took some interest 
in military affairs. He was a captain, major 
and finally colonel of the Eighty-fourth Regi- 
ment of Militia. His sons all went early to 
New York, and (later with their sisters) made 
their home there many years. 



408 



COMMEMORA TIVE BTOOIiAPIIIC'AL RECORD. 



The ancestry of the Sexton Family* is 
fully set forth in Stiles' "Ancient Windsor." 
The first of the name who came to live in 
Dutchess county was the late Samuel J. M. 
Sexton, of Hyde Park. His line of descent 
from the first George Sexton, of Windsor, 
Conn., and Catharine, is: Capt. Joseph (1666- 
1742) and Hannah Wright; Joseph, Jr. (1694- 
17 — ), and Sarah Parsons; Deacon Joseph 
(1726-18 1 9) and Rebecca Chapin; Joseph 
(1753-1823) and Hannah Cadwell, of Wilbra- 
ham and Monsoon. Mass., whose eldest son 
was Francis Sexton, born at Wilbraham, No- 
vember 22, 1779; a merchant in New York, 
where he died August 7, 1839; he lived riiany 
years at No. 28 Dey street, where all his chil- 
dren were born. He married, December 14, 

1809. Sarah -Mills, born March 10, 1792, died 
September 21, 1862, daughter of William 
Koss and Johanna, his wife, daughter of Capt. 
Alexander Leslie (who was lost at sea) and 
Sarah Tufts (who married, second, John Mills, 
of New York). Mrs. Leslie-Mills came of a 
distinguished ancestrj'. She was a daughter 
of the Rev. Joshua Tufts and Abigail Ellery 
(cousin of William Ellery, signer of the Dec- 
laration of Independence), both of whom 
died at Halifax, Nova Scotia, in 1766. Her 
grandfather, the Rev. John Tufts, of Newbury, 
Mass., was the first to publish a collection of 
psalm tunes in New England, thereby greatly 
improving the singing in Churches. He was 
son of Capt. Peter Tufts, of Medford, and 
Mercy, daughter of the Rev. Seaborn Cotton, 
of Hampton (son of the Rev. John Cotton, of 
Boston), b}' Dorothy, daughter of Gov. Simon 
Bradstreet. and Anne, his wife (the poetess), 
daughter of Gov. Thomas Dudlej'. Mrs. 
Mills (Sarah Tufts) was born November 24, 
1744, and died in New York, September 19, 

1810. She lived in New York during the 
British occupation, being then a widow, and 
w'ith her bounty relieved the wants of many 
unhappy prisoners of vyar confined there. She 
and her husband were prominent members of 
the Brick Church, and she was very active in 
benevolent and charitable works, and a co- 
worker with the celebrated Mrs. Isabella Gra- 
ham. Mr. Mills died in 18 15. 

Francis and Sarah M. Sexton had sixteen 

•The arms of Sexton, called "of London," by Burke, .ire: 
" Argent, tliree chaplets in bend gules, between two bendlets of the 
last; Crest, out of a ducal cort>net or, a dexter arm in armour em- 
bowed proper, Karnished of the (irst. holding in the gauntlet an 
anchor sable, fluke and cable or." An ancient seal engraved with 
the above crest has come down, as an heirloom, to the present S. B. 
Sexton, of " Torhain;" and it furnished an appropriate design for 
his private yacht signal. 



children, eight of whom died young. Those 
who survived were: (i) Sarah Mills, b. De- 
cember 30, 1 810, d. at Hyde Park November 
23, 1872; m. John H. Newcomb, of Pleasant 
Valley, and late in life of Hyde Park, and left 
two surviving children, Thomas, and Johanna, 
now widow of Walter Allen Seymour. The 
first of this family in the county was Thomas 
Newcomb, who bought "the greater part" of 
Lot No. 8, Great Nine Partners. His son, 
Zaccheus, built the well-known "Brick House," 
and Thomas, son of the latter, was father of 
John H. and Charles T. Newcomb [See 
Newcomb Genealogy, by J. B. Newcomb]. 
(2) Francis William, b. i8i2,d. 1849, unmar- 
ried. (3) Elmira, b. 181 5, d. 1865; m. John 
Mills Tufts, of Woodbridge, N. J., and left 
no surviving children. (4) Johanna, b. r8i8, 
d. 1883, unmarried. (5) Elizabeth Ann Tufts, 
b. October 17, 1819, d. January 20, 1889; m. 
(first) Charles Thomas Newcomb, of Pleasant 
Valley, and (second) Col. Charles Stiles Phelps, 
of Brooklyn [See Stiles' "Ancient Windsor"]. 
By her first husband she had Irene B., m. H. 
V. V. Braman, and Mary E. , who died unmar- 
ried. (6) Mary Jane, b. 1823, d. 1885; m. 
Charles Morgan, of New York. (7) Emily H., 
m. William Moir, of New York. (8) Samuel 
John Mills, b. August 11. 1832, d. at Hyde 
Park May 3, 1873. Samuel J. M. Sexton 
married. May 30, i856, Caroline, daughter of 
Samuel H. Braman, of Hyde Park, and had 
one child: Samuel Braman Sexton, now of 
"Torham," Hyde Park, born July 19. 1869; 
married at Grace Church, New York, Novem- 
ber 2, 1S93, Jean Hunter Denning, daughter 
of the late Edwin James Denning, of New 
York. 

The name of V.-^n Vliet can be traced very 
far back in the annals of the Netherlands. In 
the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and 
later, several of the name achieved distinction 
in the fields of literature and art, and in mili- 
tary and civil life, the relation of which is not 
here necessary. That branch of the family 
which settled in this country came from the 
diocese or Province of Utrecht. Their ar- 
morial bearings, as given by Reitstap, are 
"D'or, a trois losanges de gules: Casque 
couronne: Crest, une tf-te et col du chein 
braque de gules." In the Documentary His- 
tory of New York [Vol. II, Colonial Docu- 
ments] is an account of the powder used by 
the authorities in New Amsterdam, giving 
some interesting glimpses of passing events. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPEICAL RECORD. 



409 



On July i8, 1661, Governor Winthrop arrived 
in New Amsterdam, to proceed to " Father- 
land," in the "Trouw"; July 21 the ships 
"Arent," "Hope "and " Trouw" sailed hence 
for Fatherland, and eighteen pounds of powder 
were fired. The "Trouw" sailed again, on 
her return to New Amsterdam, March 21, 
1662, under the command of Capt. Jan Jansen 
Bestevan, and arrived on June 13, following, 
when six pounds of powder were fired. Among 
the passengers on this voyage were Adrian 
Gerritsen, agriculturist, from the Province of 
Utrecht, with his wife and five children, aged 
thirteen, twelve, eleven, eight and seven years. 
That he was the Adrian Gerritsen, or Adrian 
Gerritsen Van Vliet, who shortly after appears 
at "the Esopus" (Kingston), there can be no 
doubt. At marriage some of his children are 
recorded as ' ' geboren in 't Stigt Van Uytrecht " 
(born in the Diocese of Utrecht). In the 
Indian attack of June, 1663, a daughter of 
Adrian was one of the prisoners taken, but was 
soon recovered with the rest. On April 28, 
1667, Adrian signed, with others, reasons for 
being in arms. By grant and purchase Adrian 
became the owner of several parcels of land 
in Kingston and the adjacent parts of Ulster 
county [See Doc. Hist, of N. Y. ; Sylvester's 
Hist. of. Ulster County; Schoonmaker's Hist, 
of Kingston; N. Y. G. & B. Record, 1871, p. 
145, &c.]. On September i, 1689, at Kings- 
ton, " Gerritt Van ffliett " and "John Van- 
ffliett" (sons of Adrian) took the oath of alle- 
giance; but it is recorded that " Arre Gerritt 
Van ffliett" and " I3errick Van Vliet" (his 
other son) did not appear. [Doc. Hist, of 
N. Y., Vol. I., p. 173]. The wife of Adrian 
was Agatha Jans Spruyt, doubtless a descend- 
ant of the ancient family of Spruyt, of Kriek- 
enbeck and Utrecht. She was frequently 
a witness at baptisms in Kingston. Their five 
children were: (i) Gerrit, or Gerard, ancestor 
of the Fishkill branch. (2) Jan (or John) 
married Judith, daughter of Frederick Hussey, 
an English settler and large landholder at 
Kingston; most of this branch remained in 
Ulster county, but one son, Frederick, settled, 
in 1725, in Somerset county, N. J., where his 
descendants write the name "Van Fleet." 
Vice-Chancellor Abraham Van Fleet, recently 
deceased, was a descendant of Thomas, son 
of this Frederick Van Vliet. (3) Dirck [See 
farther on, " line of Dirck \^an Vliet "]. (4) 
Geertruyd married Gysbert Crom, of Marble- 
town, the owner of a large estate there, and a 



brother of Floris Willemse Crom, of Flatbush, 
Long Island, patentee of the " Crom Patent ", 
at Haverstraw. (5) Machteld married (first) 
Barent Van Borsum, son of Egbert \'an Bor- 
sum, of New York [See N. Y. Gen. & Biog. 
Record, 1895-96], and (second) Jan Jacobsen 
Stol, son of Jacob Jansen Stol, one of the 
earliest magistrates at the Esopus. [The wife 
of Jacob was Geertruyd Andriese Van Does- 
burg. She married (second) Aert Martensen 
Van Doom; then she died, and he married 
Aeltie Lansing, widow of Gerard Slegtenhorst, 
and mother of Elizabeth Slegtenhorst, wife of 
Nicholas William, son of Governor Stuyves- 
ant.] 

Line of Gerrit Van ]'lict — Gerrit Van- 
Vliet, probably the eldest son of Adrian and 
Agatha, married Pieternelle, daughter of 
Tennis Cornelissen Swart, of Albany, etc., 
and Elizabeth Van der Linde. Their children 
were: Cornelia, bapt. August 28, 168 1; m. 
Andries Davidsen. Agatha, born about 1683; 
m. Marcus Van Bommel, of Poughkeepsie. 
Tennis, bapt. July 19, 1685, died young. Eliz- 
abeth, bapt. October 2, 1687; m. Nathaniel 
Davenport, of Kingston. Jannetje, bapt. Oc- 
tober 30, 1692; m. Lewis DuBois, of Pough- 
keepsie. Geertje, bapt. November 11, 1694; 
m. Christoffel Van Bommel, of Poughkeepsie, 
one of the judges of the " Inferior Court of the 
County of Dutchess." Neeltje, bapt. Febru- 
ary 21, 1697; m. Johannes Ter Bos, of Fish- 
kill. Arie Gerritse, bapt. March 26, 1699 
[See next family]. Teunis. bapt. June 14, 
1702; m. Sara, daughter of Evert Van Wag- 
enen and Hillegond Van Heyningen. [For 
his family see N. Y. G. & B. Record, 1891, p. 
154]. Nelly (also Neeltje, perhaps originally 
Pieternelle), presumed to be a daughter, m. 
Christian DuBois, of Fishkill. 

Gerrit Van Vliet was one of the petitioners 
for a minister at Kingston, 1676. He settled 
first at Marbletown, but removed to Fishkill, 
probably about 1709. His name appears in 
the first census of Dutchess county, in 1714, 
with a family of eight persons. At that time 
there were only sixty-seven heads of families 
in the county. His sons, Arie and Teunis, sub- 
scribed toward calling a minister for Pough- 
keepsie and Fishkill in 1745. [Hist, of the 
Reformed Church, Poughkeepsie.] 

Adrian Van Vliet (" Arie Gerritse "), bapt. 
March 26, 1699, m. Janneke, daughter of 
Frederick Cloet, of Alban)' and Kingston, and 
Francina Du Mont. Children: Nelly (Pieter- 



410 



COilMEyiOEAnVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



nelle) m. Isaac Van Bunschoten; Francina in. 
Petrus Low, of Poughkeepsie, and was dead in 
1769; Garret, living 1792 (Dutchess county 
deeds): Petrus, bapt. January i, 1737 [See next 
family]; Tennis, bapt. October 7, 1740, m. 
Lam.uetje Romeyn, 1762; Frederick, living 
1792, m. Catharina Van de Water, I779- 

Catharine Brett, of Fishkill, widow, sold, 
31 August. 1726, to Adrian Van Vliet, of the 
same place, yeoman, for ^'98, New York 
money, a piece of land at a place called the 
"Steen Vlackte. or Stony Plain," lying upon 
Wappingers creek, "containing 80 acres and 
noe more." It is found that, later, he owned 
other lands adjoining this purchase. His will, 
dated 27 September, 1769, was proved 3 July, 
1778. and recorded in New York. He gives 
all his estate, real and personal, to his wife 
"Janakye," for life; then to be sold; and to 
eldest son Garret ■•^25 and 'my gun;" to 
daughter Nelly, wife of Isaac Van Bunschoten, 
;^30; to the three children of deceased daugh- 
ter I Francina). wife of Petrus Low, ^30; and 
all the remainder among his four sons, equally: 
Garret, Petrus, Teunis and Frederick, the first 
three executors. Garret, Peter and Frederick 
Van Vliet, and Peter Low. signed the " Revo- 
lutionary Pledge" in 1775. in Poughkeepsie 
Precinct. Garret and Petrus Van Vliet were 
deacons in the Reformed Dutch Church, in 
Poughkeepsie, and both first elected in 1778. 
[Hist, of Ref. Church, Poughkeepsie.] 

Petrus Van Vliet, son of Adrian and Jan- 
neke, bapt. January i, 1737. m. Johanna, 
daughter of Johannes Van Wormer,* of Al- 
bany, and Engeltje, his wife, daughter of John 
Concklin, of Poughkeepsie. Her tombstone, 
at Fishkill Landing, says •• Hannah Van Vliet, 
died March 4. 1S34, aged eighty-four years. " 
Children: Engeltje (Angelica), afterward called 
"Anne." bapt. April 6. 1766, d. May 18. 185 1; 
m. first John Cromwell, second Peter Bogar- 
dus. Jane. b. July 26. 1768. m. Jeremiah 
Myers, of Fishkill. Johannes Van Wormer 
(known as John), b. September 25, 1770 [See 
next family]. Arie. b. July 20, 1773, m. a 
Miss Borgardus, removed to Western New 
York. Petrus, b. October 31, 1775. of Char- 
lotte. Vt. [See farther on]. Garret, b. Decem- 
ber 23, 1777. of Fishkill. d. December 27, 
1843, unmarried. Alida, b. February 25, 

•The will of Johannes Van Wormer. of .Albany. 23 October. ITSi. 
proved 16 Ociober. 1T33. Dames wife Eneellje and three daughters. 
Hannah. Alida and Marj. Executor?, his - beloved father" (inlaw), 
John Concklin. and ■ beloved brother "■ (in lawi. Henry G.Living- 
ston. The latter married Susanna Concklin: the Rev. Dr. John H. 
Livingston was their son. 



1780. m. William Higbee, removed to Ver- 
mont. Francina (later Cynthia i, b. August i, 
1782, m. Jacob Bartley, removed to Ver- 
mont. Teunis removed to Vermont, then to 
Canada, and finally to the West. Frederick 
removed to Vermont, and later to Westfield, 
N. Y. Christian, b. January 2i, 1790, m. (first) 
Rachel Hough, of Ferrisburg. Vt.. and (second) 
Maria Cromwell, of Fishkill. He lived sev- 
eral years in \'ermont. but returned to Fishkill. 
Gen. Stewart \"an Vliet, U. S. A. (grad. West 
Point in 1840), is a son by his first wife [See 
Appleton's Cyclopedia of American Biography] ; 
and a son by his second wife was the late 
Lieut. Frederick VanVliet, U. S. A. 

John \'an Vliet, son of Petrus and Johanna 
(or Hannah), b. September 25, 1770, d. in 
Fishkill October 25, 1S47. He married Eliza- 
beth Cromwell, b. February 25, 1769, d. May 
17. 1837. Children: Rachel, b. November 
27. 1793, d. January 1 1, 1874; m. Peter Brett, 
of Fishkill. Peter, b. July 20, 1795, d. March 

20. 1846; m. Phebe Rickey; line extinct. 
Joseph Cromwell, b. April 24, 1797, d. May 
27, 1803. Hannah, b. June 5, 1799, d. June 2, 
1879, at Galesburg. IlL.m. Benjamin C. Weeks. 
Cornelia, born June 19, 1801, d. October 6, 
1886. at Matteawan: m. William Brett. John, 
b. April 7, 1S03, of Fishkill, living, 1897: m. 
(first) Hannah, daughter of Isaac Bogardus, and 
(second) Henrietta Wiltsie; by his first wife he 
had: Adelaide, d. young; Jacob Sebring, d. 
young; Granville, of Low Point, m. Mary C. 
Lounsbury. and has children; Amelia, d. March 

21, 1877; Theodore, of Matteawan, m. Caro- 
line Allen, and has children; Charles B. R.. d. 
young; and Sarah Sebring. Benjamin Crom- 
well, b. August 14, 1805, d. February 25, 
1 85 1, of Poughkeepsie; m. first. Sarah A. Da- 
kin, and, second. Persis Balding [See Russell 
Genealogy]. Phebe Ann, b. September 7, 
1807, d. ^Iarch 16, 1836; m. Dr. Roderick 
Royce, of Monticello; no surviving issue. Syl- 
vanus, b. March 5, 1810, d. April 8, 1889. of 
Fishkill Landing; not married. William Henry, 
b. February 18, 1S13, living 1897. at Fishkill; 
m. Sarah A. Cromwell, and has children. 
Cornelius Westbrook. b. October i. 1815, d. 
April 10. 1889: of Birmingham. Conn.;m. 
Eveline Hurst, and left children. 

Peter Van Vliet. son of Petrus and Johanna, 
born October 31, 1775, went to Vermont when 
he became of age and settled at Charlotte, 
near Burlington, where he died. September 18. 
1853. He married Sarah Hough, and had 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



411 



fifteen children, some still living. None of 
these are connected with Dutchess county ex- 
cept his son Aaron (Arie), b. December lO, 
1804, who returned to Fishkill, where he set- 
tled, and died March 4, 1839. He married 
(first) Anne Catharine, daughter of Peter Bo- 
gardus and Anne Van 'Vliel (no surviving 
issue), and (second) Matilda, daughter of Peter 
Brett and Rachel Van Vliet, by whom he had 
one son, Benson Van Vliet, of Poughkeepsie. 
Benson Van Vliet, born at Fishkill Landing, 
August 22, 1837; m. October 12, i860, Kath- 
arine B. Saxton. Children: Bertha, Annie, 
Helena and Florence. He is business mana- 
ger of Vassar College. 

Line of Dirck Van Vliet — Dirck Van Vliet, 
son of the first Adrian and Agatha, died in 
Kingston in 1702. He married, April 23, 1685, 
Anna, only surviving child of Andries Barent- 
sen and Hilletje Hendricks, from Meppel, in 
Drenthe, who arrived in the " Trouw, " in De- 
cember, 1659. Andries was wounded in the 
Indian attack on "Wiltwyck," in June, 1663, 
and, dying soon after, his widow married Albert 
Jansen Van Steenwyck. Anna was baptized 
in Kingston, September 10, 1662. She long 
survived her husband, and her Bible, printed 
in 1629, is now in the possession of Henry R. 
Van Vliet, of Clinton. Children: Arie (Ad- 
rian), b. June 10, 1686. Hilletje, bapt. Janu- 
ary I, 1688; m. Gysbert Peele, son of Paulus 
Peele. Andries, bapt. November 5, 1691, 
d. unmarried after 1722. Agatha, b. 1693; 
m. Teunis, son of Adam Swart. Cornelia, 
bapt. June 7, 1695; m. Matthew Edward 
Thompson; he was still living when Kingston 
was burned in 1777; his house, corner of John 
and East Front streets, shared the common 
fate; he rebuilt the house with the same walls, 
and it stood until recently. Gerrit, bapt. July 
4, 1697; d. young. Rachel, bapt. May 7, 1699; 
m. Teunis, son of Cornelius Swart, cousin of 
Agatha's husband; both nephews of the wife of 
Gerrit Van Vliet. Dirck, bapt. January i, 
I70i;m. Marritje Crispel; left one daughter. 
Catharina, b. November 12, 1702, "between 
1 1 and 12 o'clock." 

Arie, or Adrian, Van Vliet was born in 
Kingston, June 10, 1686, and was the ov\y 
son of the first Dirck who left sons to carry 
the name. He married, February 26, 171 1, 
Gerritje, daughter of Cornelius Masten and 
Elizabeth Van Wagenen. Cornelius was son 
of John Marston (as he wrote his name), an 
Englishman (of New York, and afterward one 



of the patentees of Flushing), and Dievertje 
Jans Van Langendyck, from St. Martins, in 
North Holland. He was probably named for 
Cornelius Wynkoop, who married his mother's 
sister, Marritje, and settled in Kingston, where 
Cornelius Masten also came to live. Adrian 
and Gerritje had nine children: Anna Cath- 
arina. b. June 30, 1 71 2, d. young. Elizabeth, 
b. August 8, 1713; m. Gerrit Freer, of Ulster 
county. Catharina, b. August i, 171 5, m. 
William Wood, of Ulster county. Cornelius, 
b. October 13, 1716, d. unmarried in 1764. 
Marritje, b. February 17, 1718; m. her cousin, 
Arthur Masten. Dirck, b. November 26, 1721, 
of Clinton, Dutchess county [See farther on]. 
Johannes (twin), b. November 26, 1721, m., 
first, his cousin, Cornelia, daughter of Teunis 
Swart and Agatha Van Vliet, and. second, 
Seletje, daughter of Juriaan Snyder, and sister 
of Col. Johannes Snyder, of the Revolutionary 
army. Benjamin, b. May 20, 1723; m. Mach- 
teld, daughter of John Ostrom. Anna. b. 
April 5, 1726; m. John Ostrom, son of Roelof 
Ostrom. Adrian Van Vliet, about 1740 to 
1750, bought several parcels of land in Dutch- 
ess county, mostly in the Nine Partners Pat- 
ent, on which he settled his four sons. From 
their new homes they could still see the Cats- 
kill mountains, on which four generations of 
the family had now looked. Cornelius and 
Dirck remained where they settled, near 
Pleasant Plains; but John soon returned to 
Ulster county, where he settled on other 
lands of his father, near the present Eddyville; 
while Benjamin, about 1772. removed to the 
Mohawk Valley, near Schenectady. Cornelius, 
in his will, i June, 1763, proved 20 June, 
1764, styles himself " of Charlotte Precinct, in 
Dutchess County, gentleman," and besides 
other bequests gives two nephews named for 
him, each ^200. 

Dirck Van Vliet, born November 26, 172 1, 
settled in the present town of Clinton (then 
Crumelbow, and afterward Charlotte Precinct), 
where his great-grandson, Lewis Van \'liet, 
now lives, and died there September 26. 1800. 
He was buried in the Reformed Churchyard, 
at Rhinebeck, of which Church he had been a 
deacon. [Historical Address, by Rev. Dr. 
Drury,] He married (first) December 21, 
1 74 1, Rachel, daughter of Tjerck Van Keuren 
and Marytjerl Ten Eyck, and great-grand- 
daughter of Tjerck Claessen DeWitt, bapt. 
February 18, 1722; by her he had one child, 
Marytjen, bapt. August 8, 1742, who d. young. 



412 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



He married (second) February i, 1754, Helena, 
daughter of Johannes Weaver and Catharina 
Elizabeth Denmarken (of Palatine families), 
born July 24, 1733, and died in Clinton July 
27, 1805; buried at Rhinebeck. Children: 
Catharine, b. September 15, 1755. d. Septem- 
ber 29, 1804; m. Col. John DeWitt, son of 
Capt. Petrus DeWitt, of Wittmount and 
Rocksdale, in Staatsburg, and Rachel Rad- 
cliff. Gerritje, b. April 15, 1757; m. Abraham 
Freligh, and removed, after the Revolution, to 
Frelighsburg, Lower Canada. Anna, b. Feb- 
ruary 10, 1759; m. (first) Denis Relyea, Jr. 
(of Huguenot descent), and (second) William 
Brink, and removed to Broome county. Cor- 
nelius, b. December 21, 1760, of Clinton [See 
farther on]. Elizabeth, b. October 20, 1762; 
m., first, Benjamin, brother of Denis Relyea, 
and, second, Conrad Sharpe, and removed to 
Chenango county. Helena, b. August 19. 1764; 
m. Ebenezer Babcock, of Poughkeepsie. John, 
b. July 2, 17C6, d. at Odelltown, Lower Can- 
ada. September, 1851; m. Helena, daughter 
of Charles Traver and Jemima Garrison. Rich- 
ard (Dirck), b. June 23, 1768, d. at Schodack 
December 9, 1841; m. Sarah Masten. Lydia, 
b. March 18, 1770, d. July 3, 1828; m. Jacob 
Sleight, of Clinton. Mary, b. September 17, 
1773. d. April 13, 1839; m. Henry Sleight, of 
Clinton. Henry, b. July 9, 1775; m. Mary 
Seaman; removed to .Aurora, Erie county. 

When the Revolution came, and every man 
was expected to choose one side or the other, 
many respectable, law-abiding men were not 
ready for extreme measures. The list of 
those classed as " Loyalists " shows the names 
of some members of most of the best families 
in all the Colonies, and the greater number of 
these were men who, honestly differing in 
opinion, took no active part, and wished as 
well for their country as did the other party. 
Yet they suffered banishment or confiscation, 
or both, rather than do what they considered 
wrong. One of this class was Dirck Van- 
Vliet. He had held an office, and had taken 
the oath of allegiance to "the Crown." Now 
when asked to take the oath of allegiance to 
tne newly-constituted government, he said 
"he could not break his oath." Then he was 
required to retire within the I^ritish lines, and 
did so. He remained in banishment on Long 
Island five years, "without seeing one of his 
family," as a grandson, in Canada, records. 
Sabine, in his "American Loyalists," states 
that he was permitted to return "on the peti- 



tion of Whigs, " in 17S4. The names of some 
of these are known. They believed his banish- 
ment as needless as it was cruel. He escaped 
confiscation, and so fared better than many 
others. While some of his descendants may 
wish his record had been different at this time, 
they may feel somesatisfaction in contemplat- 
ing his character, as a man who was willing to 
suffer rather than do what he thought was 
wrong. 

Cornelius Van Vliet, son of Dirck and 
Helena, born in Clinton. December 21, 1760, 
died there February 7, 1848. He settled near 
his father, just east of Pleasant Plains Church. 
He married (first) Helena, daughter of Jost 
Garrison and Magdalena Van Dyck, born March 
12, 1757, died June 10, 1801. Among her 
ancestors are the names of De Groot, Montross, 
Van Dyck. of New York, and Van Egmont, of 
Albany. He married (second) Susanna, daugh- 
ter of Epenetus Piatt, of New Milford. and 
Susanna Mervyn, born August 25, 1762, died 
January 23. 1852. He had nine children by 
his first wife, and one by his second, viz. : Cor- 
nelius, b. February 10, 1783; of Staatsburg 
[See next family]. Levi, b. Januarj' 6, 1786; 
of Clinton [See farther on]. Rachel, b. April 
30. 1788, d. March 15, 1810, unmarried. 
John, b. December 3, 1789 [See farther on]. 
Elizabeth, b. December 15, 1791. d. July 13. 
1795. William Benthouse, b. September 27, 
'793' <^'- J^''y 28. 181 1 (he was thrown from 
a horse). Clarissa Maria (twin), b. September 
27. 1793. d. January 26, 1871: m. John Cas- 
well, of Poughkeepsie. Henry Hiram, b. Au- 
gust 19, 1796, d. June 15, 1855; merchant in 
New York. m. Jane, daughter of Capt. Joseph 
Harris, of Poughkeepsie, d. December 31^ 
1855, aged fifty-two; they had seven daughters 
• — Cornelia (m. William H. Nevins, of New 
York), Jane (m. Henley W. Chapman, of Green 
Bay. Wis.). Josephine (m. Van Buren Brom- 
ley, of Green Bay), and four who died young. 
Richard Garrison, b. June 10. 1801. d. De- 
cember 5, 1 80 1. Piatt Garrison (by second 
wife), b. May 15, 1807 [See below]. 

Cornelius Van Vliet, Jr., of Staatsburg, son 
of Cornelius and Helena, was born I'ebruary 
10, 1783, and died April 22, 1863. He mar- 
ried Mary, daughter of Capt. Isaac Russell 
and Hannah Fairbanks, who was born at Sher- 
burne, Mass., April 15, 1783, and died April i, 
1849. Isaac Russell fought at Bunker Hill, 
and was in the succeeding war. He was a son 
of Thomas and Hannah (Coolidge) Russell 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



418 



[For his ancestry see "Descendants of John 
Russell, Sr. fof Woburn i, " by John R. Bart- 
lett]. Children: Helen, b. June 22, 1807, d. 
October i, 1857; m. Samuel H. Braman. 
Hannah, b. March 16, 1809, d. December 21, 
1892, unmarried. Hiram, b. January- 27, 
181 1, d. August 26, 1837, unmarried. Clar- 
issa Maria, b. April 9, 1813, d. February 20, 
1881, unmarried. William, b. June i, 1815, 
d. in New York, February 25, 1872; m. Caro- 
line, daughter of David ^lulford, and'had, Jane 
Augusta, m. John C. Shaw, counselor at law, 
of New York, James Mulford, d. young, and 
Frederick, d. unmarried. Susan, b. October 
7, 1 8 17, d. July 21, 1891; m. the Rev. Will- 
iam Barham Heath, and had one child, Cor- 
nelius V. V. Heath. James Russell, b. April 
4, 1820, d. April 28, 1893, of Staatsburg; un- 
married. Isaac Fiske, M. D., b. June 11, 
1822, d. February 23, 1876; of Rhinebeck 
[See below]. Mary Asenath, b. April 13, 
1827, d. February 13, 1892, unmarried. Mr. 
Van Vliet and his brother John bought the 
Rocksdale estate, about 500 acres, formerly 
the property of Capt. Petrus De Witt, and 
divided it between them, John taking the west- 
erly portion (now Mr. Alfred De Witt's), and 
Cornelius the easterly, with the old mansion; 
and this remained the home of the family until 
1866. 

Dr. Isaac F. Van \'liet settled at Rhine- 
beck. He married, in 1847, Susan, daughter 
of David C. Benjamin, of Fishkill, who died 
in Poughkeepsie February 10, 1893, and had 
four children: Ella, m. the Rev. Henry L. 
Ziegenfuss, D. D., Archdeacon of Dutchess. 
She died in Poughkeepsie, January 23, 1894, 
and he died February 8, following. William 
B., now of Johnstown, N. Y., m. Frances S., 
daughter of Judge Fowler, of Milford, Conn.; 
no children. Edward B., d. Februar}- 19, 
1875, aged nineteen. Frank B., d. in Hon- 
duras, December 6, 1S93, aged twenty-seven; 
unmarried. 

Levi \'an Vliet, son of Cornelius and Hel- 
ena, was born January 6, 1786, and died 
August 25. i860. He married Mary, daughter 
of Capt. Frederick Uhl and Huldah Mulford, 
born February 10, 1792, died January 27, 
1869. Children: George, b. July 21, 1816, 
d. July 12, 1845; of Poughkeepsie, civil engi- 
neer; ni. Helen, daughter of John Bard and 
Eliza Helen Russell, and granddaughter of 
Anthon}' Bard, of Rhinebeck; no children. 
Lewis, b. March 18, 1827; late justice of the 



county court; m. (first) Jane A., daughter of 
William I. Brown, and (second) Mary J., 
daughter of John Caswell; no children. Henry 
Richard, b. December 8, 1833; m. Hannah, 
daughter of John Le Roy, Jr., and has one 
son, George S., who m., in 1894, Mercedes, 
daughter of Jacob L. Tremper, of Rhinebeck. 
Levi Van Vliet became the owner of the home- 
stead of his grandfather, and later that of his 
father. The former he left to Lewis, and the 
latter to Henry. In 1847 he built a new 
house on the site of the one built by his grand- 
father, Dirck, in 1753. The old house was of 
stone, similar to many yet remaining in King- 
ston. 

Col. John \'an \'liet, son of Cornelius and 
Helena, born December 3, 1789, died at El- 
bridge, Onondaga Co., N. Y., in 1874. He 
married (first) Maria E. , daughter of John 
Beadle, of Pleasant Valley, and sister of Dr. 
Edward L. Beadle, who died March 8, 1827; 
and (^second) Ann, daughter of Thomas Thurs- 
ton, of Lagrange, and widow of Baltus Over- 
ocker. By his first wife he had: Ann Maria, 
m. Edward Y. Barnes, and d. August 3, 1886, 
aged sixty-six. John Beadle, merchant in New 
York; m. Abbie J., daughter of Alexander 
Purdy, of Macedon, and had, Purdy, of New 
York; counselor at law, and William, d. 
young. Henry Edgar, of Elbridge, N. Y. , d. 
September 27, 1873, aged forty-nine; m. 
Mary, daughter of James Gillies, and had, John 
and Mary. Erastus Lockwood, accidentally 
killed, while hunting, near Fremont, Kans., 
September 28, i860, aged thirty-four, un- 
married. In 1836 John Van Vliet sold his 
property at Staatsburg, and removed to Mace- 
don, Wayne Co., N. Y. ; but late in life he re- 
sided at Elbridge, to be near his son; and 
there he and his second wife died. 

Piatt G. Van V'liet, son of Cornelius and 
Susanna, born May 15, 1807, died Decem- 
ber I, 1873; married Nancy, daughter of 
Timothy Lamoree, of Pleasant Valley, who 
died April 11, 1891, aged eighty-two. Chil- 
dren (only one of whom survived the parents): 
Catharine E., d. July i, 1854, aged nineteen 
years. Susan E., d. October 13, 1851, aged 
fifteen years. De Witt,' d. October i, 1872, 
aged thirty-four; m. Elrna Marshall, and left 
two children, George Piatt, who m., in 1894, 
Florence Aldrich, of Whitfield, N. J., and Caro- 
line, d. 1889, aged nineteen. George L. d. Sep.- 
tember 30, 1871, aged thirty-one: m. Emily 
C. Dale; no children. Elmer Piatt (of Hud- 



41-! 



COJtXEJfORATTTE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



son . b. January 26. 1S43; ni. Grsti Han- 
nah E. Doty, and isecondi Mary E AHen, 
and has, b 

neiios. J _ _ : .: 

aged tea nxMiths. Tbeodoce. d. Febmaiy 1 1 . 
1857. ■ -? Alice, d. December 

70. ! > - •?5r= After he father's 

rchased by 
^^■. - _.. ...... .._.. ^. . __ . ..ci renxived 

to Salt Point, where he had porchased a 
far ere be 

rci 



Tc 
a ' 



^IxTILLIAM E. BADGLEY. a well-known 

Dutchess : - :ae 

oldest and most highly esteer. .les o£ 

.-_ - - - .. - _ 4 . -■_ -jij he : rd the 

" ard te . 31am- 

". as a 

.:_:--•-. : - ;..;..-- -:tizen. 

He is a native of Datch^s coontv. bom in the 

- ; ' 3i6. His 

•". ofme in 

ere his son 

^-.._.. ._:;..--.;_: :.... vasbornin 

1752. 

Ge - married Elizabeth Moss, a 

native - connty. and porchase>d a 

farm in Pleasant Valley, where they passed 
the remainder c- -'- - -ves. He died Septem- 
ber 10. 1825. on Anffost 28. 182S. 
They had twelve 
tied Mr. Peters, a 
Josbaa. a farmer of the same locality; John. 



rho was slsTj a 



:>i 



arried. 



: Peter rr near 

„- .._ „_: Mary. v_ ; :;.:i: An- 
thony, a merchant in Pleasant Valley: Jona- 

:' Clinton: Stephen, 
:y: .Ann. who mar- 
ned j -ner in Delaware coun- 

ty: Gc_;.. _ -. ----.- ■-■-^r: and Joseph 
and E'Lsha. neither of 

The fs: 
mar)- 8. i' 

old farm in Pleasant \' alley. 
Emma Seelye. ■ - zs bom f -- ~ 
179.1. and was -:of the 

Dr. L - 

WajTIr 

wife. Desire .Mott. Of the others, ir 

never married: Pollr was the wife ot 



He 



Feb- 

it the 

married 

Vf 

3f 



' • r in Wayne county: Milton was 

New York: and L.ewis was a 
Df Rochester, and repre- 
;-_:-- --- _.--;.-. :n Congress. (He was a 
blacksmith by trade). After their marriage 
ocr sabject's parents s- ron a farm in 

the town of Clinton. " rv Tide their 

ent home. Thr trians 

-_ :..- = - = '-h. and ;. .: . ..: ...iigley 

was a I He died November 3, 1 88 1. 

'iv 5. 1S7S. Of their 6ve 
: is the eldest. The others 
were Geo^:e i_. who died in infancy: Mary 
E.; Ge-'-^ ~ a farmer in the town of Pleas- 
ant Vs. Emma C. . who married J. G. 
Pe* m: Vailey. 

.. _ attended the district 
.:ty for some years, and 
ri~ Cocnrv .Academv. His 



scr 

la:. 



- vr35 3s a clerk in New" York. 



On November 27. 1839. be n: a 

~" ■ ^ ■ -■ " . •,'■-.: was 

:•? Samoel 
Tn -Val- 

ley. ^. . -^^ ^.^. ^ ^-:.-. .:. ^.. _ .^:^ cot 
many of the towns of his vicinity and some of 
rets of Pooghkeepsie; he was -_ - a 

^. affairs, being elected t? - i:e 

Legislature in 1823. In : . : 1840 

Mr. and Mrs. Badgley - rm of 

ir; acres bve miles fr t. ad- 

.cucrAi iofukiijE. 1 en 

:hem: Catherine died 

in infanc)-; Mary E. married Edward Van- 
Wagner, of Newboig; George manages two 
l3.r?e f^rTTS. and is pr opr ietor of a ■• Temper- 
--shingtc - ■' v: Calvert 
.^...in, res:__., ...^ Poagh- 
et. a farmer, is living on the 
^:;^^. - itber; 

. E. is i .3ton: 

Flora and Minerva womanhood: 

Charles is a grc---- . r^ . Emma J. lives 

at home. Mrs -v died December 11. 



ding with their children and grandchiidreo 
No- - — ■--- 2- •--" There are four goiera- 
tior. - :rre being a great-grandson. 

Wm. E. Vi ewborg. 

In all : ities of his com- 

T unity Mr. Badgley has always been a pcomi- 
- -- 'rror: he is i —-—--- -- --; Presbv- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAFUICAL RECORD. 



415 



terian Church, and an ardent worker in the 
temperance cause, in later years votinj^ the 
Prohibition ticket. 



If: DRIAX M. CORNELL. The Cornell 
-trjL^ family is of French ancestry. The mem- 
bers went to Holland on account of religious 
persecution, and from there came to America 
in the seventeenth century. They were origi- 
nall}' Huguenots. 

Adrian Martense Cornell, the subject of 
this sketch, was born in the town of LaGrange, 
Dutchess county, April i, 1818. His early 
life was spent there on the home farm and in 
attending school. At the age of twenty-five 
years he left home and bought a farm in the 
town of Clinton, and engaged in farming. In 
the fall of 1 84 1 he was married to Miss Melissa 
Diamond, who was born in Lagrange, and who 
was a daughter of Henry Diamond. Of this 
marriage two children were born: Margaret 
Jane, who married George K. Brand, and 
Henry, an insurance agent in New York City. 

In the spring of 1864 Mr. Cornell gave up 
farming, after an experience of twenty-three 
years, as his health began to fail, and came to 
Poughkeepsie, where, in 1873, he engaged in 
the dry-grocery business, carrying a stock of 
tea, coffee, spices, etc., in which he has con- 
tinued for twenty-two years. For twenty-one 
of these he has been located at 227^ Main 
street. He is an enterprising citizen, a con- 
scientious business man, and a member of the 
Presbyterian Church. Mrs. Cornell departed 
this life in 1871. 

Cornelius Cornell, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born on Long Island, and his parents 
moved to Lagrange when he was seven years 
old. He married Miss Deborah' Van Kleeck, 
a native of Lagrange, and a daughter of Peter 
Van Kleeck. Her father died forty years ago, 
and her mother twenty-five years ago. Mr. 
Cornell spent his life in farming, and was said 
to have been the best farmer and to have had 
the best farm in the town of Lagrange. 

Peter Cornell, grandfather of our subject, 
was born on Long Island He married Miss 
Mar\- Mesoole, and six children were born to 
them: Cornelius. Isaac, Jane, Eliza, Sarah 
and Margaret. Mr. Cornell was in the gro- 
cery business at Flat Bush, L. I., where they 
were kept prisoners at the time of the Revolu- 
tionar}' war. After the war was over he 
moved with his family to Lagrange, and 



bought a farm of 400 acres, on which he lived 
the rest of his life. He owned a number of 
slaves, which he freed after going to Lagrange. 
He was an elder in the old Dutch Church, and 
was much respected in the community. 

Gideon Cornell, the great-grandfather, who 
was born in France, eicigrated to America, re- 
siding in Long Island until the opening of the 
Revolutionary war, when he moved to Bucks 
county, Penn., where he died. He came to 
America in the year 1736. 



ILLIAM C. ALBRO. The Albro fam- 
ily, of which this well-known resident 
of Pokeepsie is a worthy representative in 
this generation, has a notable history, as will 
be seen by the following chronological record: 
(I) John Albro, born in England in 161 7, 
died December 14, 1712, at Portsmouth, 
R. I. ; married Mrs. Dorothy Potter, widow of 
Nathaniel Potter. 

lf)34. Embarked on ship " Francis " from Ipswich, 
England, under care of WiUiam Freeborn, landing at 
Boston. 

1688. Went with Freeborn to the Colony of Rhode 
Island. 

1644. Served as corporal in the Colonial militia, 
rising successively to lieutenant, captain and major. 

1649. Was chosen to view cattle; was clerk of 
weights and measures, and member of the town council. 

1660. Was commissioner and member of the com- 
mittee to receive contributions for agents in England. 

1666. Appointed with two others, to take areas of 
highways and driftways not set off. 

1670. W' ith three others, loaned the Colony seven 
pounds on account of town of Portsmouth. 

1671. Elected assistant in some public office. 

1676. With three others, was the committee for the 
care and disposal of a barrel of powder for the supply of 
Portsmouth: also with others, was a commissioner to 
order watch and ward of the Island during King Philip's 
war; also a member of a court martial at Newport to try 
certain Indians. 

1677. Committee with others in the matter of injur- 
ious and illegal acts of Connecticut. 

1679. One of a committee to draw up a letter to the 
King, giving account of the Territory of Mount Hope, and 
of the late war with the Indians; also a])i)ointed with one 
other to lay out the western line of the Colony. 

1685. ' Major John Albro, assistant and coroner, sum- 
moned a jury in the case of an Indian found dead in Clay 
Pit Lands, the verdict being "That said Indian, being 
much distempered with drink, was bewildered, and by 
the extremity of cold lost his life." 

1686. Member of Sir Edmund Andros' council, and 
present at its first meeting in Boston, December ;30, 1686. 

1697. Allowed twenty shillings for going to Boston. 

1710. By his will, dated December '28, proved 171:3, 
he divided a considerable amount of real and personal 
property among his sons and daughters, and their chil- 
dren. He was buried in his own orchard. His children 
were: Samuel. Elizabeth, Mary, John and Susannah. 

(II) — John Albro, born 16 — , died De- 
cember 4, 1724. He married Mary Stokes in 



416 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



1693. 1677 — He was among those who were 
granted 5,000 acres of land, to be called East 
Greenwich. 1687 — He was fined 6s. 8d. for 
refusing to take oath as a grand juror. 1720 
— His will proved, December 14, 1724, left a 
good estate, both real and personal. His chil- 
dren were: John, Mary, Sarah and Samuel. 

(HI) — John Albro, born August 23, 1694, 
died 17 — . He married Abigail Ballou in 1713. 
In 17 17 became a Freeman. In 1739, moved 
from Portsmouth to New Kingston. Some of 
his children subsequently going to Exeter. 
His children were: John, Samuel, Mary, 
Maturin, Sarah and Peter. 

(IV) — Samuel Albro, born October 10, 

1716, died in 1767. He married Alice . 

He went from N. Kingston to Exeter, where 
he passed the rest of his days. His widow 
died in 1787. He was an elder in the Baptist 
Church at Exeter. His children were: Alice, 
Thomas, Samuel, Martin and Waite. 

(V) — Samuel Albro, born October 12, 1749, 
died in 18 16. He married Patience Bull. He 
migrated from Exeter to the Clove Valley, 
about eighteen miles east from Pokeepsie, 
N. Y. He returned to Rhode Island for a 
wife, who was a descendant of Henry Bull, 
Colonial Governor of Rhode Island in 1685- 
1686. He introduced an apple called the 
Rhode Island Greening into Duchess county, 
where it thrived and became very popular, and 
is still a marketable winter apple. His chil- 
dren were: Thomas, Samuel, Waite, Alice 
and Hannah. 

^VI) — Thomas Albro, born May 9, 
died September 24, 1852. He married 
Tice. He lived a very uneventful life 
moving from the farming section in which he 
was born. Was elected a constable at one 
time, which seems to have satisfied his polit- 
ical ambition. His children were: Joseph, 
Samuel, John, Louisa, Catherine, William, 
and Philo and Zeno (twins). 

(VII) — Zeno Albro, born June 10, 1809, 
died November 25, 1883. He married Mary 
A. Clark in 1847. He lived in many different 
places in New York and Pennsylvania; he was 
a man of thorough integrity, and much trusted 
by other men. He did not seem to inherit a 
taste for farming, but cast about for opportuni- 
ties to buy and sell horses, cattle, carriages, 
merchandise and real estate, in most of which 
transactions he showed shrewdess and good 
judgment. At one time he owned a farm upon 
which the present City of Scranton, Pennsyl- 



1779. 
Ever 
never 



vania, is in part built. His children were: 
WiLLL\M C, Louise (deceased), John P., Mary 
E., and Merlin. 

(VIIIj — William Clark Albro, born August 
16, 1848, married Theodora Rogers, Novem- 
ber 3, 1875. He attended W'esleyan Acad- 
emy, at Wilbraham, Mass., and Cornell Uni- 
versity and Columbia College Law School, 
then under the management of Theodore W. 
Dwight, receiving at the latter institution the 
degree of LL. B. He was admitted to the 
New York Bar in 1874, and has since resided 
at Pokeepsie engaged in the practice of his pro- 
fession. He enjoys a general practice, and has 
been executor or administrator of several im- 
portant estates. Since 1891 he has been a 
member of the Pokeepsie board of education, 
and is deeply interested in the public schools. 
His children were: Florence, who died in in- 
fancy, and Edna Clark, who, after completing 
a course at Lyndon Hall School at Pokeepsie. 
entered Vassar College in 1895. 



KEY. JOHN B. WESTON. D. I)., Presi- 
dent of the Christian Biblical Institute at 

Stanfordville, Dutchess Co. , N. Y., was born in 
Somerset county, Maine, July 6, 1821, the son 
of Stephen and Rebecca Weston. 

His grandparents, Stephen and Martha 
Weston, were among the earliest members of 
the Christian Church in that part of Maine, 
and his parents belonged to the same denomi- 
nation, his grandfather and father both being 
deacons. In his fourteenth year the subject 
of our sketch was converted, and baptized, and 
united with the same Church. Reared upon 
a farm, his earlier years were spent in hard 
work, to which he is indebted, however, for 
tlfe habits of industry which have made his life 
fruitful. His opportunities for schooling were 
meagre, but he learned easily, and by faithful 
use of such advantages as he had, and im- 
proving his leisure moments at home, he made 
unusual progress in study, standing high in 
ordinary branches, and gaining a thorough 
knowledge of algebra, geometry, trigonometry, 
surve\ing and navigation by private stud}-, with 
his father's aid. At seventeen he began teach- 
ing school in winters; and from eighteen to 
twenty-two, at other seasons of the year, he 
attended the Academy at Bloomfield, Maine, 
when he could be spared from the farm work, 
making the equivalent about four terms in all. 






' ^^.^-i^^^^i. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



417 



In this time he prepared for college in Latin 
and Greek, and gained proficiency in French 
and other advanced branches of a college 
course; but his means would not permit him 
to go to college at that time. He attended 
the first Sunday-school organized in his native 
place, and at sixteen years of age he became a 
teacher of a class. At about the same age he 
assisted in organizing the Young People's Total 
Abstinence Society, the first society pledged to 
total abstinence that he had ever known, and 
was one of its first officers. He has from that 
time taken an active interest in Temperance 
work. From the time of his conversion, and 
especially from his seventeenth year, he was 
interested in all religious work, and had a 
strong impression that it was his duty to enter 
the ministry, though his natural timidity made 
him shrink from the work. This conviction 
became so urgent that in 1843, before he was 
twenty-two, he united with the Maine Central 
Christian Conference, and was approved as a 
licentiate. In August of that year he accepted 
a call to a small church in West Newbury, 
Mass. In 1844 he was ordained, and con- 
tinued to minister to his first charge until 
1846, spending some time in Boston, however, 
in the study of Hebrew with Dr. Eli Noyes, 
and of elocution with James E. Murdoch, the 
tragedian. In 1846 he was called to be office 
editor and publishing agent of the "Herald of 
Gospel Liberty," then published at Exeter, 
N. H. After seven months there he moved 
with it to Newburyport, Mass., and in the fol- 
lowing year he accepted a call to the Christian 
Church at Skowhegan, Maine, where he preached 
three years. He was married in 1849 to his 
first wife, Miss Nancy McDonald, who proved 
to him a true helper. 

In 1850 he was a delegate to, and one of 
the vice-presidents of, the Christian Convention, 
held at Marion, N. Y., where the denomina- 
tion determined to establish Antioch College. 
Early in 1852, he became pastor of the Chris- 
tian Church in Portland, Me., and remained 
until October, 1853, when, to fulfill his long- 
delayed wish for a collegiate education, he en- 
tered the first class in Antioch College, of Yel- 
low Springs, Ohio, of which Hon. Horace 
Mann was president, graduating in 1857. At 
the end of his third year he was invited by 
President Mann to take the position of Princi- 
pal of the Preparatory Department; but he de- 
clined, accepting the appointment, however, 
after his graduation, when it was again ten- 

27 



dered. During the war the entire responsibil- 
ity of the College was on his shoulders. At the 
close he became professor of Greek, remaining 
until 1 88 1, making twenty-eight years at An- 
tioch. In October, 1 881, he was elected Pres- 
ident of the Christian Biblical Institute, as suc- 
cessor to Dr. Austin Craig, and assumed the 
position January i, 1882. During the fifteen 
years in which he has held this position the 
Institute has had a steady growth and improve- 
ment. The endowment funds have been more 
than quadrupled; two resident professors and 
one non-resident professor have been added to 
the Faculty; the courses of study have been re- 
organized, and the standard of requirements 
raised. Students have gone out every year 
from the school, who are doing valuable service 
and holding important positions as ministers of 
the Gospel. Besides being the President of the 
school and giving daily lectures, he has done 
other professorial work usually devolving upon 
several Chairs. Since 1891 he has also been 
the Treasurer of the Institute, and the oversight 
of the property and the management of its 
funds have been in his hands, and important 
improvements have been made in the buildings 
and grounds. Both these positions he still 
holds, and now (1897) at the age of seventy- 
six, he is in vigorous health, and actively dis- 
charging the multiplied duties of his positions. 
Dr. Weston's first wife died in May, 1858, 
and in June, i860, he married a classmate, 
Miss Achsah E. Waite, of Chicago, who has 
been his assistant at Stanfordville, as she was 
at Antioch. He has never been athletic, but 
has always enjoyed good health, and had great 
capacity for endurance. During his forty-three 
years of school work he has never once missed 
meeting his classes on account of his own 
health, and never has called in a physician to 
see him, except on the occasion of a single ac- 
cident. Possessing rare intellectual ability, 
united with practical judgment and force of 
character, he could have made his way in any 
sphere of life; and his unswerving devotion to 
the interests of the Christian Church, local and 
general, has made him a helpful influence in 
many of her most important enterprises. 



STEPHEN HOLMES IRELAND (de- 
' ceased) was one of the leading and pro- 
gressive agriculturists of the town of Clinton, 
Dutchess county, where his entire life was 
passed, his birth occurring there October 7, 



420 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



February 3, 1781; Elizabeth, October 4, 1782; 
Jeremiah, June i, 1784; Thomas, December 
15, 1783; Milton (2), September 7, 1787; Deb- 
orah, November 15, 17S9; Rachel, April 23, 
1 791; and Catherine, July 31, 1793. Of this 
family Elizabeth Gushing was a native of 
Dutchess county, and on June 5, 1803, she 
became the wife of Ebenezer Stevens, who 
was born in Dutchess county, April 4, 1776, 
and died in 1843; her death occurred Decem- 
ber 22, 1840. In their family were six chil- 
dren, namely: Maria T., born October 30, 
1804, married Benjamin K. Delevan; Herman, 
born May 12, 1806, married Miss Lucy Beid- 
ing; Elizabeth A., born October 16, 1808, was 
the mother of our subject; Catherine, born 
June 26, 1 8 10, was married October 11, 1831, 
to John R. Preston; William, born August 26, 
1821, was married in June, 1842, to Miss 
.Mary E. Ross; and Ebenezer, born July 27, 
1824, was married in 1845 to Miss Sarah K. 
Beldon. 

To John M. Ketcham and his estimable 
wife were born nine children, as follows: (i) 
William S. was born, reared and educated at 
Dover Plains, and on reaching manhood he 
married Miss Emily Titus, daughter of Judge 
Titus, of the town of Washington, Dutchess 
county ; he always took an active part in poli- 
■ tics, as a stanch Democrat, and held several 
local offices, among them that of supervisor of 
the town of Dover. (2j John H. was also 
born in Dover Plains. (3) Maria L. married 
William R. Butts. (4) George W. is next in 
order in birth. (5) James C. and (6) Ebenezer 
both died at the age of six years. (7) Eliza- 
beth C. married Romine Waterbury. (8) 
James C. married Miss Alice F. Meeker. (9) 
Morris married Miss Rosie H. Lowery, of 
Washington, D. C. The father of this family 
died June 17, 1853, the mother on December 
21, 1888. 

George W. Ketcham, whose name intro- 
duces this memoir, was born in the town of 
Dover, Dutchess Co., N. Y. , in 183S, and re- 
ceived an excellent education at Brown Uni- 
versity, Providence, R. I., where he graduated 
in i860. He then engaged in the marble busi- 
ness at Dover Plains, and also conducted a 
large farm near the village ; but most of his 
attention was devoted to the former. Like his 
brothers, he has always taken a deep interest 
in political affairs, and has served as super- 
visor of his native town. Through his busi- 
ness he has not only promoted his own in- 



terests, but has aided in the advancement and 
welfare of his town and county. He stands 
high in financial circles, and is exceedingly 
popular with all classes of citizens. Generous 
and strictly conscientious and upright in all his 
dealings, his career is one that he can look 
back upon with just and pardonable pride. 

On February 20, 1867, George W. Ketcham 
married Miss Elizabeth A. Schofield, of Brock- 
ville, Canada, in which city her father, Augustus 
Schofield, was engaged in merchandising. Her 
grandfather. Dr. Peter Schofield, was a native 
of Dutchess county, N. Y., where he married 
Miss Deborah Gushing ; but a few years after 
the birth of their first child they removed to 
Canada, where he followed his profession. 
Four children were born to them : Augustus, 
Milton, Elizabeth and Herman. Augustus 
Schofield was born at Pawling, Dutchess county, 
and was four years old when taken by his pa- 
rents to Canada, where he was educated in the 
public schools. After laying aside his text 
books he commenced merchandising in Brock- 
ville, and successfully conducted his store for 
a number of years ; he was also United States 
consul at Brockville some twelve years. He 
married Miss Electa Breckenridge, daughter of 
David Breckenridge, an officer in the British 
army, who for his services had been granted 
considerable valuable farming land in Canada. 
Three children were born of this union : Will- 
iam H. (deceased); Elizabeth, who died at the 
age of seven years, and Elizabeth A., the wife 
of our subject. 



WILLLAM D. BUDD, a prominent man- 
ufacturer and speculator of Dutchess 
Junction, Dutchess county, has been for many 
years a leading worker in the development of 
that locality, having participated in some of 
the most important constructions and enter- 
prises undertaken there. He is a native of 
Phillipstown, Putnam county, the youngest 
son of William and Elizabeth Haight Budd, 
the other children being Martha, Hannah, 
Jane, Mary, John and Underbill. 

During his childhood his parents removed 
to Matteawan, and his education was acquired 
in the public schools of that town. He began 
to display his business ability at an early age 
by speculating in real estate, improved and 
unimproved, and also engaged in the wood 
business. In 1848 and 1849 he assisted in 
the construction of the Hudson River railroad^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



421 



and was one of the first men to ride on cars 
from Fishkill to New Hamburg, or "Old 
Troy," as it was then called. This was the 
season of the great cholera epidemic, and was 
marked also by the loss of the steamer " Em- 
pire," and the drowning of many of her pas- 
sengers and crew. The coroner, who was 
called to hold an inquest on the bodies, died 
of cholera before he had completed the task. 
In 1868, the same year in which ground was 
broken for the construction of the N. D. & C. 
R. R., Mr. Budd began the manufacture of 
brick, in partnership with Charles Griggs, 
whose interest he purchased four years later 
for $12,000. He continued the business alone 
for some time, and then sold a share in it to 
the Terry Brothers, the partnership then 
formed lasting six years, when the business was 
put up for sale at auction. Mr. Budd bought 
in the plant, and for the last eighteen years 
has carried on the business alone. The yards 
are located upon a tract of twenty-six acres of 
land originally bought from the railroad, and 
have recently been enlarged and much im- 
proved. He has always continued his real- 
estate speculations more or less, and is still 
interested in some important transactions in 
that line. He has taken part at times in vari- 
ous other business enterprises, and was for 
many years a trustee of the Fishkill Landing 
Savings Bank. 

Mr. Budd married Miss Ann Rogers, a 
daughter of Samuel and Catherine (Scottj 
Rogers, and they have two children, Lizzie 
Kate, and Ella. The family attend the Meth- 
odist Church, and Mr. and Mrs. Budd have 
always shown an active interest in whatever 
concerned the welfare and advancement of the 
town. They have a pleasant home at Dutchess 
Junction. In early manhood Mr. Budd was a 
Democrat in politics, later becoming a Whig, 
and in 1 860 he cast his ballot for Abraham Lin- 
coln, since which time he hasgivenhis support to 
the Republican party. He held the office of 
collector for his town for three years — 1858, 
1859, and about 1877 — and has been trustee 
of the schools of Matteawan, his interest in 
improved educational advantages being shown 
by his able discharge of the duties of that 
position. 

CHARLES F. SEGELKEN, the efficient 
manager of the Western Union Telegraph 
office at Dover Plains, Dutchess county, is one 
of the leading residents of that town. He is a 



native of Germany, and was born in 1835, in 
the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg, where his 
family had been prominent for many genera- 
tions. His grandfather, Herman Segelken, 
was a highly educated man, and held the posi- 
tion of captain of a vessel. He married, and 
reared a family of four children: Mary; Ann; 
Theresa; and Herman, our subject's father. 
Herman Segelken, too, was born in the Grand 
Duchy of Oldenburg, Germany, and after re- 
ceiving a liberal education became a grain mer- 
chant and hotel keeper. His wife was Cath- 
erine S. Luhrs, also a native of Germany, and 
our subject was the eldest of their three chil- 
dren; Heinrich died in infancy; and Herman 
was the third. 

Our subject enjoyed excellent educational 
advantages in his youth, and in 1854, at the 
age of eighteen, he came to the United States 
to seek his fortune. His first employment was 
in New York City, where he remained five years, 
and he then entered the service of the old 
American Telegraph Company, first as battery- 
man and then as lineman. In 1861 he was 
sent to Dover Plains as a line repairer and in 
1864, having learned the art of telegraphy, he 
was appointed operator, and assistant agent of 
the Harlem road. In the following year he 
was appointed agent by J. C. Buckhouse, su- 
perintendent, and later was made the manager 
of the western office at that place, under Geo. 
B. Prescott, superintendent. He takes an ac- 
tive part in local affairs, and is well liked wher- 
ever he is known. In politics he is an ardent 
Republican, and he has served as health officer 
of the town. He is prominent in Masonic cir- 
cles, and is a charter member of Dover Lodge 
No. 666, which was organized in 1867, and he 
has held the office of secretary for twenty-six 
years. 

In 1866, Mr. Segelken married Missjean- 
nette L. Talladay, a descendant of one of the 
old families of the town of Dover, and four 
children have blessed their union: Herman, 
born December 15, 1866: Charles F., Jr., 
August 19, 1S79; George W., September 16, 
1882; and Harrison, June 13, 1884. All are 
living except George W., who died in 1883. 

Isaac Talladay, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Segelken, was born and educated in the town 
of Dover, where he engaged in agriculture. 
He married Miss Martha Griffin, and had eight 
children: Isaac; Jacob, who died in childhood; 
Seneca; John; Neilson, father of Mrs. Segel- 
ken; Alex; and Martha. Neilson Talladay 



422 



COMJfEJfORATIVE -BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



was also a native of Dover, where he carried 
on carpentering. He married Miss Elizabeth 
Colby, the daughter of a prominent farmer of 
the same town, and had five children: Phcebe; 
Jeannette L. 'Mrs. Segelken); Mary; Elizabeth; 
and Frank, a sketch of whom appears else- 
where. 

REV. JOSHU.\ COLLINS, a well-known 
retired minister of the Presbyterian 
Church, has been for nearly twenty years a 
resident of Wappingers Falls, where his quiet 
but earnest and effective work in various move- 
ments tending to moral and intellectual prog- 
ress is a recognized influence for good. 

He was born in the town of Pleasant Val- 
ley, Dutchess county, July lo, 1814, and his 
ancestry on both sides was of English origin. 
His paternal grandfather, Joshua Collins ffor 
whom he was named;, was a native of Rhode 
island, but settled in Dutchess county in early 
manhood. He married Mary White, who was 
also of English descent, and reared a family of 
six children: Martin \V., our subject's father; 
Oliver, a leading resident of Pleasant Valley, a 
school teacher by occupation, and for many 
years a Justice of the Peace; Joshua, a farmer 
in Illinois; Gideon, a farmer in Franklin 
county, N. Y. ; Martha, who married Mr. 
Viele, a farmer in the town of Lagrange, and 
Susan, the wife of Caleb Angeline, a business 
man of Poughkeepsie. 

Martin \V. Collins was born at the old 
homestead in the town of Rhinebeck, Dutchess 
county, and lived there until his marriage 
to Anna Foreman, a daughter of Isaac 
Foreman, a prominent agriculturist of Pleas- 
ant Valley. The early ancestors of this fam- 
ily also came from England. Shortly after 
his marriage, Mr. Collins settled upon a farm 
in Pleasant Valley, and he became one of the 
leading men of that locality, taking great inter- 
est in the work of the Democratic party, and 
other public movements, holding the office of 
Alms House Keeper, and Justice of the Peace 
for many years. He and his wife were Presby- 
terians in faith. He died in 1876, and Mrs. 
Collins survived him ten years. The subject 
of this sketch was the eldest of their four 
children; Isaac is a well-kmown resident of 
Poughkeepsie, where his son, Martin Collins, is 
also attaining to a prominent place; Mary Ann 
married William Gurney, a business man of 
New York City, but both are now deceased, 
and Rhoda lives at Wappingers Falls. 



Rev. Mr. Collins spent his youth upon the 
farm; but his abilities and inclinations fitted 
him for a wider sphere of action, and at the 
age of twenty-three he entered Yale College; 
but his eyes failed him, and after one year 
there he was compelled to give up his inten- 
tion of graduating. From 1842 to 1847 he 
was in charge of the Mathematical and Clas- 
sical departments of West Point College; but he 
then retired to the old homestead in Pleasant 
Valley. In 1877 he moved to \\'appingers 
Falls, and in 1880 he was united in matri- 
mony with Miss Isabella Johnston, a lady of 
Scotch descent. Although unfortunately de- 
terred from carrying out his plans in early life, 
Mr. Collins has been a thorough student, fol- 
lowing many branches of learning as oppor- 
tunity afforded, and his years have been faithful 
in good works. He was ordained a clergv'man 
of the Congregational Church in 1859, at 
Arlington, Vt.. and two years later was taken 
into the North River Presbytery, and he has 
preached effectively in several places. He 
takes an active and intelligent interest in pub- 
lic affairs, is a Democrat in politics, and has 
been for many years a leading worker in 
temperance reform. 



DR. ISAAC NEWTON MEAD. Many of 
the most prominent citizens of Dutchess 
county served their country during the dark 
dajs of the Rebellion, making a record hon- 
orable and glorious. Among these brave boys 
who "wore the blue" is the gentleman whose 
name introduces this sketch. He is now an 
honored resident of Amenia, where for many 
years he has been successfully engaged in busi- 
ness. 

The Doctor is a native of Dutchess coun- 
ty, born in the town of Ame.nia, September 
13, 1840, and traces his ancestry back to Na- 
than Mead, who died February 24, 1777, at 
the age of eighty-six years. Job Mead, the 
son of the latter, came to Dutchess county 
from Horse Neck, Long Island, at an early 
date, and bought a farm from the Nine Part- 
ners in the town of Amenia, where, during 
the remainder of his life, he carried on agri- 
cultural pursuits. When the colonies resolved 
to throw off the British yoke, he joined the 
Continental army, and served through the war 
of the Revolution as captain. He married 
Miss Mercy King, and to them were born five 



COMMEyrORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



423 



children: Job, Jr., the grandfather of the 
Doctor; Nathan; Joshua; Mercy and AHce. 
The mother of these children died August 28, 
1812, and the father passed away April 23, 
1 8 19, at the age of eighty-four years. 

Job Mead, Jr., spent his boyhood days on 
the home farm in the town of Amenia, and, 
like his father, he also took up arms against 
Great Britain, serving in the war of 18 12. 
He was united in marriage with Miss Ruth 
Hebard, who died January 29, 1808, at the 
age of forty-six years, and they had six chil- 
dren: Nancy, Sarah, Mary, Henry, John K. 
and Barak. The grandfather's death occurred 
Januar}' 12, 1838, when he was aged seventy- 
seven years. 

John K. Mead, the father of our subject, 
was born September 6, 1799, on the home- 
stead farm in the town of Amenia, where his 
early life was passed in aiding in the work of 
the fields, and in attending the district schools 
of the neighborhood. All of his active busi- 
ness life was devoted to the improvement and 
cultivation of the home farm. On February 
28, 1827, he married Miss Jane A. Suther- 
land, who was born November 17, 1807, and 
died April 20, 1885. Six children blessed 
their union: Sarah Esther, born September 
II, 1829, married E. W. Simmons; Mary 
Jane, born July 3, 1832, married Rev. E. W. 
Clark, a missionary to India; John F., born 
March 16, 1834, died September 29, 1888; 
Isaac N. is next in order of birth; Henry 
Sutherland, born May 25, 1842, is living in 
Millerton, N. Y. ; Ruth Alida, born June 11, 
1853, married Charles Benham, of Amenia. 
Religiously, the father was a Baptist, taking 
an active part in the work of his Church, in 
which he served as deacon for many years, 
and was also quite prominent in public affairs, 
being a member of the New York Assembly 
in 1844, and serving as supervisor of Amenia 
and justice of the peace. His first vote was 
cast in support of the Whig party, and on its 
dissolution he became a stalwart Republican. 
He died March 27, 1873, passing away at the 
end of a long and well-spent life. 

The boyhood and youth of Dr. Mead were 
passed upon the old home farm, and he ob- 
tained his literary instructions in the district 
schools and the Amenia Seminary. In 1857 
he entered astore in Smithfield, town of Amenia, 
where he clerked for one year, and then was 
similarly employed by Oliver Chamberlain at 
Amenia. In the spring of 1859 he began the 



study of medicine at Millerton, Dutchess coun- 
ty, with Dr. Lucius P. Woods, and the follow- 
ing fall took a partial course in the Berkshire 
Medical College, at Pittsfield. Mass. In 1859— 
60 he attended the College of Physicians and 
Surgeons at New York City, after which he 
returned to study at Millerton. 

In response to the call of the general gov- 
ernment for volunteers to defend our national 
life, Dr. Mead enlisted in the fall of 1862 as a 
private in Company A, 150th N. Y. V. I.; on 
the following Christmas Day was transferred 
from this regiment to the 5th N. Y. C. as hos- 
pital steward, and in the fall of 1864 was pro- 
moted to assistant-surgeon. He remained in 
active service with that command until August, 
1865, when he was mustered out at Harts 
Island. He escaped uninjured, but had two 
horses shot under him — one at Hanover, Penn., 
June 30, 1863, and the other at Winchester, 
Va. He was always found at his post of duty, 
gallantly defending the old flag, and saw much 
hard service, participating in the following 
battles: Upperville and Aldie, \'a. ; Hanover, 
Penn.; Gettysburg; Barnesboro; Hagerstown, 
Md. ; Falling Waters; Culpeper; Brandy Sta- 
tion; Wilderness; Spottsylvania; North and 
South Anna River; Cold Harbor; Petersburg; 
raid to Richmond; Winchester; Cedar Creek; 
Fisher's Hill; Waynesboro; Charlotteville; Ap- 
pomatox; and Five Forks. The 5th N. Y. C. 
served under Gens. Sheridan, Kilpatrick and 
Custer. When hostilities had ceased. Dr. 
Mead returned to New York, and again en- 
tered the College of Physicians and Surgeons, 
where he graduated in the spring of 1866. For 
one year he then engaged in practice in Amenia, 
then in 1868 removed to Millerton, where he 
practiced for the same length of time, when 
he again came to Amenia. 

On January 13, 1869, the Doctor was mar- 
ried to Miss Julia Mygatt, daughter of Abram 
P. Mygatt, and they now have one child, Alice. 
Since his marriage the Doctor has successfully 
followed his chosen profession in Amenia. In 
1873 he became a member of the firm of Bart- 
lett & Mead, handling drugs, groceries, hard- 
ware, agricultural implements, grass seeds, 
etc., which connection continued until 1889, 
when Horace B. Murdock bought out the in- 
terest of Mr. Bartlett. 

Socially, Dr. Mead holds membership with 
Amenia Lodge No. 672, F. & A. M., in which 
he served as first master; with John M. Greg- 
ory Post, G. A. R. , Department of Connecticut, 



424 



COMMEMORA TTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



No. 59; and Cavalry Society of the Army of 
the United States. In politics the Doctor 
afifiliates with the Democratic party, although 
his first vote for President was cast for the 
martyred Abraham Lincoln. In religious be- 
lief he is a Presbyterian, belonging to the 
Church of that denomination in Anienia. He 
has won his way to the regard of the people 
with whom he comes in contact in his daily 
rounds by his read}' tact and kindly sympathy, 
and is as faithful to his country in days of 
peace as in the dark days of the Rebellion. 



E 



DGAR iM. VANDERBURGH, a farmer 
and stock raiser, was born in the town of 
Canaan, Columbia county, August 26, 1820, 
and is the son of Martin and Mary (Halsteadj 
Vaxiderburgh. ^..^ 

(Col. James Vanderburghy'gFeafcgrahdfather 
of eur subject,\was a farmer in the town of 
Beekman. Hts father was of Dutch descent, 
and was probably born in Holland. Col. \'an- 
derburgh served all through the Revolutionary 
war, and Washington and La Fayette made 
his home their stopping place. The \'ander- 
burgh mansion, which was built some time 
prior to the Revolution, was the first substan- 
tial house in Beekman. It stood about one- 
quarter of a mile northeast of the village of 
Poughquag, and was torn down in i860. It 
was built of wood and stone, and a broad, cov- 
ered veranda e.xtended across the front of it. 
The slaves had quarters in the basement. In 
this house Col. James \'anderburgh had eight- 
een children born to him, all of whom reached 
maturity, and whose descendants are reckoned 
among the solid and substantial residents of 
Dutchess county to-day. It is said that a 
"Tory" plot was once hatched to kill him in 
his own house, but was frustrated by his wife, 
who barricaded the mansion so effectually that 
the "Tories " despaired of their purpose and 
ran away. It was after that event that Col. 
Vanderburgh entertained Gen. Washington at 
his hospitable table. Many traditions clustered 
around this old house, and it is a pity such a 
historic spot should have been blotted out. 

Col. Vanderburgh was born September 4, 
1729, and died April 4, 1794. He was mar- 
ried to Miss Margaret Noxon on September 29, 
1753, and to them the following children were 
born : Elizabeth, Henry, Bartholomew, James, 
Magdalen, Peter and Stephen. Mrs. \'ander- 



burgh died August 9, 1766. On October 25, 
1767, Col. Vanderburgh married Miss Helen 
Clark, and these children were born : William, 
Margaret, Richard, Gabriel L., Egbert B., 
Clarissa, George W., Paulina, Almira, Federal 
and Caroline. In "The Surrogate", a maga- 
zine published in New York, March, 1891, ap- 
pears the following: "Col. James \'ander- 
burgh was one of the most influential citizens 
of Beekman, Dutchess county, and was de- 
scended from Holland ancestors, who settled 
at an early day in that region. He was a 
member of the Provincial Congress in 1776, 
and during the Revolutionary war was a zeal- 
ous friend of the patriot cause, and while Gens. 
Washington and La Fayette were in his vicin- 
ity he entertained them and their staffs at his 
home." In later life he followed farming in 
Beekman, where he diedTj 

Henry \'anderburgh, grandfather of our 
subject, was born in the town of Beekman. He 
married and located in the town of Hyde Park, 
where he reared the following family of chil- 
dren: Lewis, Margaret, Martin, Fannie, John, 
Richard, Lucinda, Eliza, Maria and Katherine. 
The grandfather died in Hyde Park in May, 
1 841; his wife had passed away several years 
previous. Henry \'anderburgh was a captain 
in the Revolutionary war, and participated in 
the battle of Bunker Hill. 

Martin \'anderburgh attained his majority 
in Hyde Park, and was a merchant and school 
teacfier. He married Miss Mary Halstead, 
who was born in the town of Clinton. Her 
father, Richard Halstead, was a native of 
Westchester county; he married a Miss Griffin, 
and they had a large family of children. After 
their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Vanderburgh 
moved to Canaan, Columbia county, locating 
on a farm; they became the parents of nine 
children, namely: Emeline, Susan, Oscar, 
Edgar M., John, Richard, Annie E., Maria, 
and Lucinda. Of these, Emeline died unmar- 
ried; Susan married V. J. Wilcox, a farmer in 
Columbia count)'; Oscar is a retired farmer 
in the town of Chatham, Columbia county; 
John (deceased; was a farmer and merchant; 
Richard was also a farmer and merchant, and 
is now deceased; Annie E became the wife of 
S\-lvester S. Kady, a merchant of Jamestown; 
Maria married Rev. C. W. Havens, and is 
now deceased; Lucinda became the wife of 
E. W. Levensworth, a farmer and landlord in 
Columbia county. The parents of this family 
went to Columbia county in 1820, where the 




g; /7/. e^r^/la^^J^^ Uy^^ 




COMMEMORA TIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



425 



father died in 1864, and the mother in 1866; 
in politics, Mr. Vanderburgh was a Whig, and 
in religious failh both he and his wife adhered 
to the Society of Friends. 

Edgar M. Vanderburgh, the subject of this 
sketch, spent his boyhood days on the farm in 
Columbia county, and attended the district 
school until fourteen years of age, when he 
went to Canaan Center Academy. He was 
obliged to earn his own living, so taught school 
in winters and attended them in summers; but 
failing health prevented him from completing 
the classical course. He married Miss Han- 
nah Sutherland in 1844, and they had three 
children: Anna, who married Philip J. Sher- 
man, a farmer and school teacher; Amelia 
married Rev. U. Symonds, and died in 1882; 
Henry is at home. In 1845 our subject moved 
to the town of Stanford, where he farmed, 
and where his wife died in 1853. In 1870 he 
married Mrs. Kate (Sackett) Lockwood, the 
widow of John F. Lockwood, and moved to 
his present place at Lithgow. His wife is a 
descendant of one of the old families. Mr. 
Vanderburgh was originally a Whig, voting 
first for Henry Clay, and since the organiza- 
tion of the Republican party he has supported 
it at every National election, including that of 
1896. He was elected superintendent of com- 
mon schools in 1849, and again in 1S50, '51, 
'52, and '53; in 1857-58, he was elected su- 
pervisor of the town of Stanford; in 1864 he 
was elected superintendent of the county poor, 
being the iirst incumbent to that office in the 
county, and he held it for six consecutive 
years. 

Mr. Vanderburgh is a firm believer in the 
Christian religion; that Christian unity should 
embrace the faithful of all denominations; that 
Christ is more than creed; that Christianity is 
more than sect; and that Christian character 
should be the test of Christian fellowship. 
The following lines represent some of his 
ruling maxims: 

What conscience dictates to be done, 

Or warns me not to do, 
This teach me more than hell to shun, 

That more than heav'n pursue. 

Teach me to feel another's woe, 

To hide the faults I see; 
That mercy I to others show. 

That mercy show to me. 

If I am right, Thy grace impart! 

Still in the right to stay; 
If I am wrong, oh! teach my heart 

To find that better way. 



MRS. MATILDA VAIL NOXON. Among 
the well-known pioneer families of the 

town of Unionvale, Dutchess county, the Vails 
have always held an honored place. Each 
generation has been engaged mainly in tilling 
the soil, and industry, frugality, and progress- 
ive spirit of the typical American farmer have 
been marked characteristics. 

Moses Vail, the grandfather of the subject 
of this sketch, was born and educated in the 
town of Unionvale, and established his home 
there upon a farm. He and his wife, Phcebe 
Losee, had eleven children: (i) James, a 
farmer, married Anna Montfort, and had six 
children, of whom, Stephen M., a clergyman, 
married Louise Cushman; Isaac M. married 
Mary Wheeler; Susan L. married Rev. James 
Runyon; Phcebe A. married Henry Segine; 
Cordelia E. married John Segine; and James 
W. died in young manhood. (2) Isaac mar- 
ried Rebecca Vail, and had one child — 
George W. (now deceasedj. (3) Stephen died 
at an early age. (4) Thomas married Susan 
A. Barlow, and had five children — Elisha B., 
who is single; Phoebe (Mrs. Charles Elmore); 
Maria J., the wife of Mr. Pultz; Caroline (Mrs. 
Presten); and Louisa, unmarried. (5) John 
is mentioned below. (6) Lavina married Tunis 
Van Benschoten, and had seven children — 
Phcebe Ann (Mrs. James Thurston); Mary 
(Mrs. Elisha Frenchj; Sarah (Mrs. Jones); 
Elizabeth (Mrs. Bronson); Jennie; Catherine 
White; and Phcebe (Mrs. Philo Vincent). (7) 
Mary married Levi Vincent, and had eleven 
children — Phebe (Mrs. J. Velie); Isaac (de- 
ceased); Deborah (deceased); Gideon; Piatt; 
Thomas (deceased); Lavina (Mrs. Brown); 
Edwin; Chester (deceased); Albert (deceased); 
and Mary Ida (Mrs. Phelps). (8) Elias mar- 
ried Jane A. Cook. (9) Simon inarried Mary 
Potter, and had six children — Henrietta (Mrs. 
Helms); Fredrick; Edwin (deceased); Clarence, 
who married Maria Bartlett; Alice (deceased); 
and Evelenia (unmarried). (10) Moses mar- 
ried Hester Bussing, and had no children; he 
was well educated, and practiced law in New 
York City, but died at Saratoga, N. Y. , in 
1888. (11) Piatt married Amelia A. Davis, 
and had five children — James D., who mar- 
ried Phoebe Vincent; Julia and Lavina, who 
are not married; Jesse, who died in the army 
in 1864; and Moses (deceased). 

John Vail, our subject's father, was born 
at Verbank, Dutchess county, in November, 
1800, and was educated in the schools of the 



42G 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



town. His main occupation was farming, but 
he was also engaged in mercantile business, and 
conducted a woolen-mill at \'erbank for some 
time. He married Elizabeth Vincent, and 
had ten children: (i) Sarah, born February 
8, 1828, married Jacob Baker, a blacksmith 
of Freedom Plains, and is now deceased. (2) 
Matilda is mentioned below. (3) Loretta, born 
April 4, 1 83 1, remained single all her life. (4) 
Samuel, born July 4, 1832, was a carpenter 
by trade, and had four children — Libbie fwife 
of Leonard Secord); Charles (who married 
Carrie Cass), William and Abbie (both de- 
ceased). (5) Mary, born October 13, 1834, 
married Simon Losee, and has two children — 
Lizzie and \\'esley. (6) Martha, born January 
14, 1836, was educated in Amenia Seminary, 
became a successful teacher, and is now de- 
ceased. (7) Rebecca (deceased), born Octo- 
ber I, 1837, married Richard Hall, a farmer 
of the town of Beekman, Dutchess county, 
and had four children — Everett; Libbie (de- 
ceased); Herbert and Minnie. (8) Stephen, 
born February 23, 1839, is a carpenter by oc- 
cupation. (9) James (deceased), born Febru- 
ary 22, 1 84 1, was a blacksmith by trade, and 
he and his wife had one daughter, Sarah (now 
Mrs. Richard Case). (10) George, born May 
23, 1843, is a well-known dairyman of Union- 
vale; he married Miss Phcebe Noxon, and has 
three children — Henry, Hettie and John. 

Matilda Vail first saw the light September 
14, 1S29, at the old home in Verbank. She 
was educated there, and later became the wife 
of Dewitt C. No.\on, son of Abram Noxon, a 
well-to-do farmer. Mr. Noxon followed mer- 
cantile pursuits in early life, and then for a 
time engaged in farming, but he spent his later 
years in New York City on the police force. 
He bravely served his country in the Civil war 
as a member of Company I, 1 28th N. Y. V. I. , 
but was discharged on account of ill health. 
He died in 1870. Mr. and Mrs. Noxon had 
two children: Emma and Ada, of whom the 
latter died at an early age; Emma (now also 
deceased) married John G. Duncan, and had 
two children — J. Davis and Emma. 



CLEVELAND H. TITUS, general mer- 
_' chant, and the popular postmaster of 
Webatuck, town of Dover, Dutchess county, 
was born on January 29, 1843, in New York 
City. There the birth of his grandfather, 
Richard Titus, occurred, and as an occupation 



he followed trucking in that city. In his fam- 
ily were five children : Joseph R. and Ben- 
jamin J. (twins j, Richard, Alonzo and Sarah. 

Joseph R. Titus, father of our subject, was 
born in Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, in 
1809, but received his education in New York 
City, and,, like his father, engaged in trucking. 
He spent two years in the West, where he fol- 
lowed farming; but owing to ill health returned 
to New York. He married Miss Ruth Amelia 
Titus, daughter of Samuel J. Titus, a farmer 
of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county. 

The parental household included fourteen 
children, (i) Adaline C. , born November 3, 
1841, died in 1851. (2) Cleveland H. is next 
in order of birth. (3) Stanley, December 23, 
1844, died July 27, 1861. (4) Agnes I., born 
August 24, 1846, died July 22, 1847. (5) 
Eugene, born June 29, 1848, died November 
27, 1849. (6) Albert, born June 15, 1850, 
died March 9, 1853. (7) Louisa J., born 
August 13, 1852, died October 20, 1857. (8) 
Mary A., born April 3, 1854, in New York 
City, was there educated, and married Ferdi- 
nand Blackenhorn, of Poughkeepsie, who 
served as cashier of the Third National Bank 
of New York City, but is now deceased — dying 
in 1893. Six children were born of their 
union — Barbara, Amie, Jacob F., Ethel, Eu- 
gene and Ruth. (9) Ida, born April 15, 1856, 
died April i, 1862. (10) Stephen, born April 
17, 185S, in New York City, where he was 
educated, married Miss Agnes O'Neill, of that 
place, and they have three children — Ruth, 
Albert and Cornelius B. (11) Frank L. , born 
December 5, 1859, m New York, married Miss 
Ellen Diamond, of that city, and they are now 
located at Palouse, Wash., where he is en- 
gaged in merchandising. They have three 
children — Joseph, Stanley and Margaret. ( 1 2) 
Mellie S., born July 7, 1861, in New York 
City, completed her literary education in the 
New York Normal College, and after studying 
law in the office of Mr. Hildreth, of New York, 
was admitted to the bar in 1894 to practice 
in the Supreme Court. However, she is now 
engaged in teaching in the Eighty-sixth street 
grammar school. (13) Eliza I., born May 13, 
1864, was also a school teacher, and died 
April 15, 1896. (14) George 1., born Novem- 
ber 14, 1865, in New York City, is now em- 
ployed as ticket agent on the Second Avenue 
Elevated road. 

Our subject pursued his studies in the 
common schools of the town of Dover, and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



427 



was employed in merchandising for his uncle 
for some time. After the latter's death, he 
turned his attention to farming until about 
eight 3'ears ago, since which time he has con- 
ducted a general store in Webatuck, where he 
also served as postmaster. He carries a full 
and complete stock, and secures a liberal share 
of the public patronage. Socially, he is a 
charter member of Dover Lodge No. 666, F. 
& A. M. , of Dover Plains. 

On May 17. 1868, Mr. Titus was united in 
marriage with Miss Sarah E. Allis, daughter 
of Huram and Mary J. (Hoag) Allis, of the 
town of Dover, Dutchess county, and they 
now have two sons: (i) Joseph A., born 
April 17, 1869, in Dover, received a common- 
school education, and followed the mercantile 
business with his father until his marriage in 
1892, to Miss Matie Orton, daughter of Judson 
and Susan (Wheeler) Orton. agriculturists of 
Dover Plains (he is now engaged in carrying 
the mail). (2) Stanley H., born July 23, 1879, 
in the town of Dover, was there educated, and 
is now in the store with his father at Webatuck. 

David Allis, the grandfather of Mrs. Titus, 
was also a native of the town of Dover, Dutch- 
ess county, and after leaving school always 
engaged in agricultural pursuits. He married 
Miss Sarah Burton, and they had three children, 
of whom Huram was the eldest. Alva, the 
second son, removed to Pennsylvania, where he 
followed farming, but previously he had mar- 
ried Miss Mariette Briggs, of Amenia, Dutchess 
county, by whom he had two children — Sarah 
J., and one who died in infancy. Phcebe, the 
only daughter, was born and educated in the 
town of Dover. She became the wife of a 
Mr. Sherman, a farmer of that town, and they 
had one son, Ebenezer. 

Huram Allis, the father of Mrs. Titus, was 
born in the town of Dover, April 8, 1802, and 
as a life-work also followed farming. Religious- 
ly, he was a member of the Society of Friends. 
He wedded Miss Mary G. Hoag, daughter of 
Joel and Hannah Hoag, the former a farmer 
and blacksmith of Dover. Three children 
graced their union: Phcebe, born February 
20, 1840, married Elias H. Deuel, by whom 
she had one daughter, Nellie L., wife of Eg- 
bert Slocum, and the mother of one son, 
Homer; Martin A., born December 23, 1842, 
died at the age of three years; Sarah E., born 
April 24, 1849, is the honored wife of our 
subject. 

Cleveland H. Titus and his wife are the 



possessors of some 165 acres of land, which is 
rented for farming purposes. In politics, Mr. 
Titus is a Democrat. 



WILLIAM A. BREWSTER. Esteemed 
and respected by all, there is no man 

in the business circles of Wappingers Falls, 
Dutchess count}', who occupies a more promi- 
nent position than this gentleman, not alone 
on account of the success he has achieved, but 
also on account of his honorable and straight- 
forward dealings. He was born September 
17, 1S54, in Hughsonville, town of Wappin- 
ger, this county, and has always made his 
home in that locality. 

Mr. Brewster's paternal grandfather was 
William Brewster, of Bloomingburg, Sullivan 
Co., N. Y., whose son, William H. Brewster 
(the father of the subject of this sketch), was 
born in that village in 1S12. When a young 
man he came to Hughsonville, Dutchess Co., 
N. Y. , where he engaged in his occupation as 
carpenter and contractor, afterward accepting 
the position as foreman of the carpenter de- 
partment of Garner & Co. 's print works at 
Wappingers Falls, N. Y., which position he 
held for about thirty years. He was married 
September 18, 1852, to Mary Eliza Hoyt, 
daughter of William and Maria (Roe) Hoyt, 
and is still living at a ripe old age; but his wife 
died July i, 1863. 

Our subject's maternal grandfather was 
William Hoyt, whose parents came from Sau- 
gerties, Ulster Co., N. Y. ; he married Maria 
Roe, daughter of Joseph C. Roe, who was a 
tanner and currier, and owned and conducted 
that business at Gayhead, Dutchess Co., 
N. Y. William Hoyt died August 3, 1885; 
his wife still survives him, at the age of eighty- 
five. 

W' . A. Brewster, the subject proper of this 
review, is the only child of this union. His 
boyhood days were spent at Hughsonville, 
where he began his education, which was com- 
pleted at Poughkeepsie. On laying aside his 
te.xt books, he was employed in the print 
works at \\^appingers Falls, at the carpenter's 
trade, for about two j'ears. On January i, 
1875, he became bookkeeper in the Bank of 
Wappingers Falls, a deposit bank, where he 
remained until he became cashier of a private 
bank of the same place, although at that time 
he was only twenty-six years old. After fill- 
ing that position for a short time he was, on 



428 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



April 15, 1 88 1 , elected treasurer of the Wappin- 
gers Savings Bank, and November j, 1884, was 
elected trustee of the same institution. He is 
also a local fire insurance agent, representing 
ten of the largest American and foreign com- 
panies. 

Mr. Brewster was married October 19, 
1 88 1, to Miss Sarah S. Siddle, who was born 
in Clinton, Iowa, and is a daughter of Abram 
Siddle, a paper manufacturer of that place. 
The Siddle family is of English origin. A 
daughter, Helen, graces the union of our sub- 
ject and his wife. As a Democrat in politics, 
Mr. Brewster takes great interest in political 
questions, and has served as trustee of the 
Hughsonville school district, was town clerk 
of Wappinger, and also represented his town 
on the board of supervisors. He is an hon- 
ored and valued member of Wappinger Lodge 
No. 671, F. & A. M., of which he is a past 
master; of Evening Star Lodge No. 98, K. of P. ; 
and of Lafajette Lodge No. 18, I. O. O. F. 
He stands high in social as well as commercial 
circles, and his career has ever been such as 
to warrant the trust and confidence of all. 



STEPHEN T. DEUEL. Prominent among 
the leading and influential farmers and 
stock raisers of the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, is the gentleman of whom 
this sketch is written. He has one of the 
finest farms in the township, comprising 250 
acres of valuable and productive land, which 
he has placed under a high state of cultivation, 
and made thereon many substantial and useful 
improvements. The passerby is at once at- 
tracted by its neat and thrifty appearance, 
and knows the owner to be a man of industry 
and of progressive methods. 

Mr. Deuel was born in the town of Wash- 
ington, May 27, 1833, and can trace his an- 
cestry back to William Deuel, who emigrated 
to this country August 3, 1640. The family 
is of French origin, the name being originally 
spelled Davol, and later assuming the present 
mode. Jonathan Deuel, the son of William, 
was born at Dartmouth, Mass., and died in 
1709. His son, Jeremiah Deuel, was .also 
born at Dartmouth, and died November 29, 
1753. In direct line to our subject, he was 
followed by Timothy, who was born at Bristol, 
R. I., January i, 17 14, and married Lydia 
Mosher, by whom he had eight children, 
namely: Lydia, Philip, Hannah, Rhoda, 



Juele, Silas, John and Benjamin. For many 
years he engaged in farming in Rhode Island, 
and about 1750 came to Dutchess county, lo- 
cating on a tract of land near Millbrook. 

The seventh in that family, Silas Deuel, 
was born at Bristol, R. I., July 13, 1748, and 
by his marriage with Hannah White became 
the father of eleven children: Eunice, Sarah, 
John, Ruth, Lydia, Silas S., Hannah, Phcebe, 
Benjamin, Isaac and Malessa. The father, 
who was an agriculturist, lived to quite an ad- 
vanced age, dying January 9, 1825. His tenth 
child, Isaac Deuel, who was born in Washing- 
ton township, Dutchess countj', November 25, 
1798, became the father of our subject. He 
was united in marriage with Cynthia Thorne, 
and five children blessed their union: Will- 
iam, Josephine and Henry, deceased; Thorne, 
a farmer in Washington town; and Stephen 
T. , whose name introduces this sketch. The 
father followed the various pursuits of farmer, 
miller and merchant, and died in 1854. 

Our subject was reared upon his father's 
farm, and educated in the district schools of 
the neighborhood. .After attaining his ma- 
jority he commenced farming for himself, which 
occupation he made his life work. As a com- 
panion and helpmeet on life's journey he chose 
Miss Louise M. Allen, a native of Washington 
town, born August 6, 1840, and their marriage 
was celebrated in that town, Februarj' i, 1859. 
She was the daughter of Norton Allen, a na- 
tive of Connecticut, who became a merchant 
of Hart's \'illage. After their marriage Mr. 
and Mrs. Deuel located on a farm near Mill- 
brook, where they resided about five years, 
and where she died January 24, 1864. One 
child blessed their union, Isaac N., who mar- 
ried Miss Katie F. Maroney, who was born in 
\\'ashington town, a daughter of Patrick and 
Margaret (Whalen) Maroney. To Isaac N. 
Deuel and his wife have been born three chil- 
dren: Stephen T. , Isaac M., and Olive C. 
For his second wife Stephen T. Deuel married 
Miss Kate Maroney, a lady of Irish descent, 
and a native of Washington township. 

In 1866 Mr. Deuel removed from Mill- 
brook, and settled at Little Rest, where he 
purchased the homestead and an adjoining 
farm, where he now lives. On his land is an 
old mill, which was once a school building and 
used for that purpose 125 years ago, and %vas 
at that time an old building. He also has a 
deed for the first land owned by the Deuels in 
Dutchess county, the date whereof is 1759, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



429 



and the signature that of Daniel Wood. Mr. 
Deuel is entirely independent of party lines in 
politics, considering, in the exercise of his 
elective franchise, rather the fitness of the man 
for the office than the party who placed him in 
nomination. Public-spirited to a high degree, 
he takes great interest in every measure cal- 
culated to benefit the community. 



WILLIAM RECORD, a prominent mer- 
chant of Dover Plains, Dutchess coun- 
ty, and one of the most public-spirited citizens 
of that town, is related by descent or marriage 
with several of the oldest families of the local- 
ity. On the paternal side of his grandfather 
was John Record, a native of South Mountain, 
Dutchess county, where he passed his entire 
life, receiving his education in the common 
schools of the town of Dover, and later en- 
gaging in the manufacture of chairs, in which 
business he won a notable success. The name 
of his wife is not known, and of their children 
three only are now remembered: George W. ; 
Mary, who married Fred Shafer; and Amanda, 
who married Mr. King. George W. Record, 
our subject's father, was reared in his native 
village of South Mountain, attending the pub- 
lic schools and learning the blacksmith's trade. 
For a number of years he conducted a shop 
on Chestnut Ridge, and then he moved to the 
village of Dover, where he became a leading 
worker in that line of business. He always 
took great interest in religious matters, and 
was an active member of the Baptist Church 
of Dover Plains. He married Miss Susan 
Burlingame, daughter of John and Phcebe 
Burlingame, well-known residents of the town 
of Washington, Dutchess county, who reared 
a family of children as follows: Susan, born 
March 28, 1816; Salina, January 11, 1818; 
Jiles and Miles, twins. May 11, 1821; Harriet, 
May 13, 1823; John, April 3, 1825; Mary, No- 
vember 7, 1827; and Philip, May 10, 1830; 
the youngest child, Phcebe, was born in 1831. 
George W. Record and his wife had five chil- 
dren: Mary (Mrs. Samuel Hobson); Amanda 
(Mrs. William G. Evans); William, our sub- 
ject; Charles, who died in the army; and 
Emma, who died at the age of twenty-six years. 
The subject of our sketch was born June i, 
1845, ^t the old homestead in Dover Plains, 
and received a good education in the public 
schools there. His first experience in business 
was gained as a clerk in a general store, which 



he entered at the age of fifteen. After a few 
years in this employment he engaged in farm- 
ing, continuing with marked success until 1872, 
when he returned to mercantile pursuits, estab- 
lishing a flour, feed, coal and lumber business. 
This is one of the principal enterprises in the 
place, his trade having increased at a gratify- 
ing rate as time has passed. Mr. Record is 
progressive in ideas, and has the advancement 
of the town at heart. He has always been 
identified with the Republican party, and has 
held a number of town offices, including those 
of supervisor, collector and commissioner, hav- 
ing been elected to the last-named position 
several times. He belongs to the Masonic 
Lodge, No. 666, of Dover Plains. In 1871 
he was united in matrimony with Miss Adelia 
Lee, and they have four children: (i) George, 
born in 1871, is now his father's partner in 
business, and one of the leading young men of 
the town. On June 20, 1894, he was married 
to Miss Martha Moore, daughter of the late 
Henry Moore, once a professor of penmanship 
in the Eastman Business College at Pough- 
keepsie, and later a well-known farmer of the 
town of Dover. He died at the age of thirty- 
four years, and his wife. Amy, at the age of 
thirty-six. (2) William Record, Jr., born in 
1873, married Anna Weaver. (3) Theo, born 
in 1876, is at home. (4) Obed, born in 1878, 
died in infancy. 

Mrs. Record was born, in 1849, in the town 
of Dover, Dutchess county, and was educated 
there. Her grandfather, William Lee, was a 
native of Gaylords Bridge, Conn., where he 
was engaged in farming for some years. He 
married Miss Mehitabel Ward, by whom he 
had six children: Jane (Mrs. Edward Ferris); 
Louisa (Mrs. Oliver Warner); Ward (Mrs. 
Record's father); Egbert, who married Abbie 
J. Carey; Emily, who married (first) George 
Travers, and (second) Ira Bowlby; and Emiline, 
the wife of George Wickham. Ward Lee was 
also born at Gaylords Bridge, but he was edu- 
cated in the town of Dover, Dutchess county, 
his parents removing to that locality when he 
was a child. He learned the carpenter's 
trade, and followed it all his life with the ex- 
ception of ten years which he spent in farming, 
and many houses in the town of Dover were 
built by him. In politics he was a Democrat; 
was road commissioner for a number of years,' 
and held other offices at various times. In 
1846 he was married to Miss Mary Cutler, and 
had four children: Adelia (Mrs. Record); 



430 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



Emily (Mrs. Alvin Marcy); William, who died 
in infancy; and Angelina (Mrs. Darwin War- 
ner). Mr. Lee died August 12, 1886, in the 
si.xty-eighth year of his age, and while his 
death was keenly felt among a large circle of 
friends it left the deepest sorrow within the 
home where his qualities of mind and heart 
were best known. Mrs. Record's mother, 
Mary Cutler Lee, was born in 1828, in South 
Dover, Dutchess county, where her ancestors 
were early settlers. Her grandfather, Will- 
iam Cutler, was a native of that place, and 
passed his life there as a well-to-do farmer. 
He married Miss Elizabeth Hiller, and had 
eight children: (i) Rhoda (Mrs. Isaac Xorth- 
rupj; (2) Abigail (Mrs. Thomas Tompkins); 
(3) Mahala, who never married; (4) Thursie, 
who died; (5) Bigelow and (6) Thomas, the 
names of whose wives are unknown; (7) Will- 
iam, who married Irene Brush; and (8) Calvin, 
the father of Mrs. Lee. He was born in South 
Dover in 1799, and after obtaining an educa- 
tion in the schools of that place engaged in 
agriculture. His wife was Miss Keziah Varney, 
daughter of John and Mary (Rodgers) Varney, 
prosperous farmers in Connecticut. Eight 
children were born to this marriage: John 
and Jerome, who died in infancy; Elihu, who 
married Lydia Wilcox; Elezer, who married 
Maranthy Eggleston; Francis, who married 
Elizabeth Carey; Priscilla (Mrs. William Hall); 
Mary (Mrs. Ward Lee); and Sarah (Mrs. Will- 
iam Hooker). 



WILLIAM S. TRIPP. As an enterpris- 
ing and wide-awake citizen of Mill- 
brook, Dutchess county, engaged in the butch- 
ering business, we take pleasure in giving this 
brief biography of the gentleman whose name 
introduces this sketch. He is a native of 
Dutchess county, born in the town of Wash- 
ington, near Millbrook, on June 24, 1856, and 
is a son of Daniel Tripp, who was born at the 
same place in 1833. On that farm his great- 
grandfather, Samuel Tripp, had located after 
his marriage with Miss Mary Howard, and 
there reared their family of eleven children, 
whose names and dates of birth are as fol- 
lows : Phabe, January 29, 1779; John, No- 
vember 27, 1780; Hannah, March i, 1782; 
Susanna, January 31, 1784; George, Novem- 
ber 16, 1785; Howard, December 5, 1787; 
Patience, October 20, 1789; Mary, November 
21, 1791; Samuel, April 6, 1794; Wasson, 



July 8, 1796, and Isaac, October 7, 1798. 
The father of this family was born November 
15, 1751, and his wife on Novembers, 1757. 
In religious belief the family were Friends. 

Wasson Tripp, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born on the old homestead, where he 
was reared, and which he continued to culti- 
vate after reaching man"s estate. In 1 818 he 
was united in marriage with Sally Buckbee, by 
whom he had two children : Edward B., who 
was born October 7, 18 19, and followed farm- 
ing as a means of livelihood, and Maivina, who 
was born August 17, 1821, and became the 
wife of Henry C. Haight, also an agriculturist. 
Both are now deceased. For his second wife 
Wasson Tripp chose Hannah Tompkins, and 
their wedding was celebrated May 18, 1825. 
Seven children blessed their union, namely : 
Howard, born June 26, 1826, became a mer- 
chant and, later, station agent at Millbrook ; 
Charles, born July 27, 1828, was for a time a 
merchant in New York City, but now makes 
his home in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. ; Sarah, born 
August 8, 1S30, married Edwin Curtis, a mer- 
chant, but both have passed away ; Daniel, 
born October 28, 1833, is the father of our 
subject ; Maria, born May 7, 1836, is the wife 
of William Rust, a contractor of Poughkeepsie; 
George, born February 23, 1839, is a cigar 
merchant of Poughkeepsie, and Mary E., born 
January 3, 1842. 

After reaching manhood, Daniel Tripp was 
married to Miss Mary E. Seeley, a native of 
the town of Stanford, Dutchess county, and a 
daughter of William Seeley, who in early life 
followed farming, but his later years were 
passed in retirement at Poughkeepsie. After 
their marriage they located upon the old fam- 
ily homestead, where they reared their famih- 
of nine children: Wasson, who died in March, 
1865; \\'illiam S., of this review; E. Bennett, 
who makes his home in Poughkeepsie; Hiram, 
a resident of Millbrook; Gertrude, wife of 
Clark Barmore; Edward and Daniel, who live 
in Moores Mill; Kate, wife of Frank Taylor, of 
the same place; and Elizabeth, at home. The 
father still carries on farming at Moores Mill, 
and in politics is an ardent Democrat, by 
which party he has been elected to several 
positions of honor and trust. 

The boyhood days of \\'illiam S. Tripp 
were spent upon the home farm until sixteen 
years of age, when he started out to fight life's 
battle, being employed as a farm hand until 
he was twenty-two. He then came to Mill- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



431 



brook, and for a year and a half worked at the 
butchering business for Hiram Warner. He 
has since made that business his life work, and 
has met with a fair degree of success, estab- 
lishing his present shop in September, 1881. 
He is numbered among the promment busi- 
ness men of Millbrook, and stands high in the 
estimation of his fellow citizens. 

On January 18, 1882, was celebrated the 
marriage of Mr. Tripp and Esther M. Smith, 
and one daughter was born to them — Esther; 
but the mother was called from this life April 
18, 1884. For his second wife our subject 
wedded Frances La Due, a native of the town 
of Pleasant \'alley, and a daughter of Alex- 
ander La Due, who is of French descent and 
a farmer by occupation. The lady is a con- 
sistent and faithful member of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, while in political sentiment 
Mr. Tripp is a Democrat. 



MRS. ANN A. HAYES. It is not alone by 
eloquence of speech and force of argu- 
ment that the modern advancement in the 
status of women — which means the advance- 
ment of the human race — has been brought 
about. The changes in public sentiment 
which have made it possible for the women of 
to-day to extend their activities to every line 
of effort have found their most potent justifi- 
cation and cause in the lives of thousands who 
have quietly taken their places in public life, 
and proved the wisdom of their course by an 
unmistakable success. The subject of this 
sketch, a descendant of two of the oldest and 
most highly esteemed families in the county, 
has spent more than forty years in the service 
of the government as assistant postmaster at 
Quaker Hill, Dutchess county; a fact which in 
itself speaks volumes for her abilit}-, energy 
and independence of character, for in the be- 
ginning of this long term the employment of 
women in such positions was by no means 
common. It is well for the present aspirants 
to official places that the pioneers labored so 
successfully as to disarm the objections of the 
most conservative. 

Mrs. Ann Akin Hayes was born at Quaker 
Hill, where her grandfather, John Toffey, set- 
tled prior to the Revolutionary war. He was 
a native of England, born June — , 1748, and 
in early years was a hatter by trade, but later 
a farmer, his estate at Quaker Hill being the 
same that is now occupied by Mrs. Hayes. 



He was married January i, 1776, to Abigail 
Akin, daughter of John Akin, of the well- 
known Quaker family, whose various members 
have held conspicuous posts of honor and use- 
fulness. Mrs. Toffey was a member of the So- 
ciety of Friends, to which her husband in- 
clined. He was a man of strong character, 
and was prominent in the locality. His death 
occurred in 1825; that of his wife in 1829, when 
she was in her eighty-first year. They have 
five sons, who in manhood had not a pound 
of difference in their weight. Their names and 
dates of birth are as follows: Hewlett, De- 
cember 5, 1776, who married Miss Scofield, 
and settled in Canada; Akin, June 28, 1781, 
who lived at Quaker Hill; George, June 15, 
1783, a resident of the town of Beekman; 
John, January 21, 1786, Mrs. Hayes' father; 
and Daniel, May i, 1788, who settled at 
Quaker Hill. 

John Toffey inherited the homestead, and 
for many years carried on a general mercantile 
business in a store adjoining his farm, erecting 
a new building in 1 823. He was a thrifty man, 
successful both as a farmer and as a merchant, 
and was also prominent in local politics, hold- 
ing the office of postmaster for manj- years. 
His honesty and generosity were noticeable 
traits, and he was highly respected by the peo- 
ple of his locality. Although he was a Friend in 
principle, he never united with the Society. 
He was married September 18, 18 14, to Es- 
ther H. Akin, daughter of James Akin, of 
Quaker Hill, and had three children. Polly, 
born April 4, 181 5, married DeWitt C. 
Thomas, and settled near Delhi, Delaware 
county, N. Y. ; John James, born March 3, 
1819, died January 12, 1838; Ann Akin, our 
subject, was born March 12, 1821. The father 
died March 15, 1867, in his eighty-second 
year; his wife passed away July 12, 1879, in 
her eighth-third year. In 1847 the subject of 
our sketch was united in matrimony with John 
P. Hayes, who took charge of the store and 
continued the business successfully for man\- 
years. They have no children. 



MATTHEW V. B. SCHRYVER, a lead- 
_ __ ing citizen of Rhinebeck, Dutchess coun- 
ty, and president of the board of trustees of 
that village, is a member of one of the oldest' 
and most influential families of that locality. 

John T. Schry ver, his grandfather, was born 
about 1788, in Dutchess county, and was one 



432 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



of the principal workers in securing the incor- 
poration of the village, and was the first to 
hold the office of president, which his grand- 
son now fills so ably. John T. Schryver, who 
was of German descent, married Miss Helen 
Conklin, a native of Fishkill, Dutchess county, 
born about 1780, and a descendant of a well- 
known Holland-Dutch family. Their son, 
George W. Schryver, our subject's father, was 
born in Rhinebeck, in 18 10, and spent the 
greater portion of his life there. His wife, 
Maria E. Fellows, was born in 18 19. They 
had six children, of whom two died in infancy. 
Matthew was the youngest of the four who 
lived to maturity, the others being : Helen, 
Mrs. E. Marshall Pavey, of New York (de- 
ceased); Kate, Mrs. Edward D. Cowman, of 
New York f deceased); and Georgia, now Mrs. 
D'Linton W. Greenfield, of Rome, New York. 
Matthew V. B. Schryver began his mortal 
career January 12, 1859, in Rhinebeck. He 
was carefully educated, and completed his lit- 
erary studies at De Garmo Institute, gradu- 
ating in 1875. He prepared for the legal pro- 
fession, receiving the degree of LL. B. in 
1880, from the law department of Columbia 
College, and was admitted to the bar immedi- 
ately after graduation. He began to practice 
in New York City, and after two years went to 
Stevens Point, Wis., where he spent one year 
in professional work. In comparison with other 
places the old home acquired new attractions, 
and he returned to Rhinebeck, where he is now 
engaged in insurance business in connection 
with certain lines of legal work. For nine 
years past he has served as justice of the peace 
- — his logical, well-trained mind making him a 
most valuable official. He is identified with 
the progressive movements of the locality and 
is especially prominent in municipal affairs, as 
is attested by his successful administration of 
his office as president. 



RUFUS S. CRAIG, engineer and engine 
dispatcher on the Harlem railroad, with 

residence at Dover Plains, Dutchess county, is 
descended from a worthy Scotch family. Alex- 
ander Craig, his grandfather, was born in 
Scotland, and, having joined the British army 
as a commissioned officer, came to the United 
States with Gen. Burgoyne, at the age of 
nineteen years, being with that commander at 
the time of his surrender to Gen. Gates. He 
served as lieutenant, and participated in seven 



battles in this country. He wedded Miss Mary 
Newton, of Groton, Mass.. and to them were 
born eight children: Thomas, who married 
Sarah Ailard; Carrie and George, who were 
also married; Silas, the father of our subject; 
Aaron, who married Olive Allen; Rebecca, 
married to Devilla Lawrence ; Mary, who mar- 
ried Chester Cooley; and Elizabeth, married 
to Isaiah Lawrence. 

Silas Craig was born at Westfield. Mass., 
August 29, 1792, and was educated in the 
common schools. By occupation he was a 
farmer, and in politics was an unswerving 
Republican, but cared nothing for public office. 
He was united in marriage with Miss Mary 
Wood, a daughter of Hezekiah and Mary 
(Savage) Wood, farming people of Vermont, 
in whose family were eight children: Joel; 
Peter, who married Laura Hitchcock; Thomas, 
who married Mary Cooley; John, married to 
Betsey Clark; Betsey, who married Dudley 
Hayes; Mary, the mother of our subject; Har- 
riet, who married William Clark; and Levina, 
who married John Livingston. Eight children 
were born to the parents of our subject, as 
follows: 

(i) Obediah, born at Highgate, Franklin 
county, Vt., in 1824, worked at the carpenter's 
trade and at bridge building there throughout 
life. He married Miss Arvilla Fuller, daughter 
of Rodnay Fuller, a farmer, and they had two 
children — Frank and Flora. Of these, Frank 
was born at Dorchester, Mass., in 1858, and 
was educated in the schools of Lowell, that 
State. He entered the railroad service with 
the Vermont Central at Lowell, and from there 
went to Santa Fe, N. M., being an engineer 
on the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe rail- 
road, on which road he was killed in 1894. 
He was a charter member of Fort Madison 
Lodge of the Masonic fraternity, and served as 
master of a lodge in Iowa. In that State he 
also held membership with the Order of Red 
Men, and was grand high sagamore. He was 
one of the leading railroad men of the West, 
and served as chief engineer of the Brother- 
hood of Locomotive Engineers. He married 
and had two children — Ida, who died at the 
age of nine years ; and Frank B. Flora, the 
daughter of Obediah Craig, was also born 
at Dorchester, Mass., and married Charles 
Shearer, a railroad employee, formerly of New 
Hampshire, and they have three children. 

(2) Eunice, a sister of our subject, was 
born at Highgate, Vt., and married Josiah 




c^^^-^^^-^-^-^^o f-^ ^yi-/\^-<^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



433 



Clark, a farmer of that State. They have no 
children hving. 

(3) Richard Baxter, also a native of the 
Green Mountain State, was there educated 
and followed farming and milling. He mar- 
ried Miss Agnes Daniels, daughter of Joseph 
and Agnes Daniels, in whose family were five 
children: Ezra, Margaret, Ira, Agnes and 
Joseph. Richard Ba.xter Craig and his wife 
had three children: Sewell, born in 1862; and 
Darwin and Baxter (twins), born in 1868. 

(4) Abraham was born in Vermont, and 
there engaged in farming. He married Miss 
Laura Allen, and had five children: Rufus S., 
Joshua C, Emma, Annie and Ellen. 

(5) Rufus S., the subject of this sketch, is 
next in order of birth. (6) Harlo, a native of 
Vermont, who is engaged in farming in Canada, 
married Miss Marion Davis, and has two chil- 
dren: Warren and Ida. (7) Myron enlisted 
in the Second Vermont Cavalry, becoming a 
member of Company M, during the Civil war; 
was also in the navy for three years, and now 
draws a pension for both army and navy serv- 
ice. He was also married. (8) Flora married 
John Whiting, an agriculturist, of Highgate, 
\'t., and they have four children. 

Rufus S. Craig, the subject proper of this 
sketch, was born at Highgate, Franklin Co.,Vt., 
January 10, 1834, and there secured his educa- 
tion. At the age of sixteen years he started 
out in life for himself, going to Michigan, 
where for one year he was fireman on the 
Michigan Southern railroad. He then went 
to Lake Erie, as assistant engineer on the old 
" United States," where he remained for two 
years. At Boston, Mass., he next secured a 
position on the Boston & Providence railroad, 
being with that road for two years as fireman 
and engineer. On March 6, 1865, he came to 
Dover, Dutchess county, and has since been 
with the Harlem railroad as engineer and 
engine dispatcher. His long continued service 
well indicates his faithful discharge of duty, 
and he is held in the highest esteem by all who 
know him. On June 13, 1866, he joined King 
David Lodge, F. cS: A. M., of Taunton, Mass., 
whose charter dates back to 1798, being one of 
the oldest lodges in the country, and assisted in 
the establishment of Dover Plains Lodge No. 
666. He is also a member of the Brotherhood 
of Locomotive Engineers. 

Mr. Craig was united in marriage with Miss 
Harriet M. Thornton, a daughter of Joseph 
and Mary Thornton. Her father, who was a 

28 



native of Nantucket, Mass., was a mason by- 
trade, but became a prosperous farmer of Ded- 
ham, that State. She was the third in order 
of birth in a family of five children, the others 
being Susan, who married James Kinney ; 
Louisa, who married John Johnson ; Mary J., 
who married George Varney; and Mrs. Lu- 
cretia Taylor. Mr. Craig has been called upon 
to mourn the loss of his faithful wife, who died 
July 16, 1886, and was laid to rest in Brook- 
vale cemetery, Dedham, Massachusetts. 

Sewell Craig, a nephew of our subject, was 
born in Franklin county, Vt., in 1862, and is 
the son of Richard Baxter and Agnes ( Daniels) 
Craig. After finishing his education in the 
public schools of that State, he became con- 
nected with a brass foundrj', but later entered 
the employ of the Harlem railroad in the round 
house. He was promoted to engineer on that 
road, a position he now fills, and is one of their 
most trusted and careful men, as his long serv- 
ice of fifteen years indicates. He holds mem- 
bership with the Brotherhood of Locomotive 
Engineers, and also with Dover Plains Lodge 
No. 666, F. & A. M. , while politically he is a 
Republican. 

In 1 886 Sewell Craig was married to Miss 
Alice Dennis, who was born in England, and 
in 1 88 1 came to the United States. They 
have two children : Richard B., born August 
25, 18S7; and Cora E., born October 1 1, 1888. 
Thomas Dennis, the grandfather of Mrs. Craig, 
was born, reared and educated in England, 
where he also learned the carpenter's trade, 
which he followed throughout his life. He 
married Miss Emma Godfrey, and they always 
made their home in England. Their only child 
was Benjamin (the father of Mrs. Craig ), also 
a carpenter by trade ; he married Miss Sarah 
E. Dennis, a distant relative, and they had two 
daughters: Alice (Mrs. Craig) and Maude, 
who was also born and educated in England. 
She married a Mr. Beardwell, of that country, 
where they still reside, and have one child, 
Charlotte Rose. 



EOAH L. BISHOP, a worthy citizen of 
Wassaic, Dutchess county, was there 

born June 20, 1848, his father, George Bishop, 
being depot agent, and a local preacher of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church at that time. 
George Bishop was twice married, having by' 
the first union two daughters and three sons, 
namely: Jennie, wife of Francis Chapman, 



iU 



COinfEyrORATTTE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



deceased, of Pawling, Dutchess county: Mary 
A., wife of Joseph S. Hobbs, of Centralia, 111. ; 
Seneca Smith, who was a sailor and is sup- 
posed to have died at sea; George W. , a me- 
chanic, who died and was buried at sea while 
on his way to Japan, where he was going to 
superintend the erection of some buildings (he 
left a wife and four children at New Haven, 
Conn.); and Charles Wesley, formerly a busi- 
ness man in New York Citj-, who died in the 
army. After the death of his first wife George 
Bishop wedded ^^is5 Louisa Butts, and to them 
were born three children: William G., now 
deceased; Catherine M., wife of Edward 
Brown; and Noah Lent. 

The education of our subject was such as 
the district schools near his home afforded: but 
at the early age of ten years he laid aside his 
text books and began work for Gail Borden as 
an errand boy in the condensed milk factory, 
where he has since remained, serving as super- 
intendent since 1S70. His promotion was 
gradual: after serving as errand boy for a time 
he worked at filling cans by hand in the fore- 
noon, putting up all the milk there made: next 
heated up the milk in the wells as received, 
and was then engaged in sealing the milk. In 
the tin shop he was next employed at general 
work: later fired the boilers, then became 
operator at the vacuum pans, and subsequently 
ser\-ed as milk inspector until appointed to his 
present responsible position in 1S70. His 
long-continued ser\ice well indicates his faith- 
ful discharge of duty, the confidence and trust 
reposed in him, and the capable and efficient 
manner in which he conducts the business. 

At Wassaic Mr. Bishop was married to Miss 
Jennie A. Jones, daughter of Jar\i5 Jones, and 
they now have two children: Lena M. , wife 
of Dr. F. Bruce, of Brooklyn, N. Y. ; and Cora 
J. Mr. Bishop takes quite an active interest 
in civic societies, being a member of Amenia 
Lodge No. 672, F. & A. M., and the Royal 
Arcanum at Wassaic, while politically he uses 
his right of franchise in support of the men 
and measures of the Republican party. 



GEORGE T. WILLSON, senior member 
of the well-known firm of Willson & Eaton, 
wholesale grain dealers of Amenia, Dutchess 
county, belongs to that class of reliable and 
trustworthy citizens to whom may be attrib- 
uted the stable welfare and prosperity of a 
community. .\ native of Dutchess countj-, he 



was bom February- 3, 1S37, in the town of 
Northeast. His paternal great-grandfather, 
Robert Willson, a native of Scotland, was one 
of the early settlers of that town, securing his 
land from the Indians. 

The grandfather, who also bore the name 
of Robert Willson, was born, reared and edu- 
cated in the town of Northeast, and on reach- 
ing manhood there followed farming. He was 
one of the heroes of the Revolutionary war, 
and was a Presbyterian in religious belief, serv- 
ing as deacon in his Church. He married Miss 
Sarah Thompson, and to them were bom nine 
children, namely: John. Hiram, Theron. Sam- 
uel, Edmund, Henry, Barak, Sarah and Re- 
becca. 

Theron Willson, the father of our subject, 
was also bom in the town of Northeast, and 
spent his boyhood days upon the home farm. 
By occupation he was also a farmer, and was 
a strong temperance man. He married Miss 
Eliza Collins, daughter of Capt. James Collins, 
of Northeast, and they became the parents of 
five children: Collins, who lives at Pine Plains. 
Dutchess county; Eli, of Northeast: Sarah, 
wife of Joseph Belding, of Amenia; George T., 
of this review: and Lydia, wife of Samuel 
Guernsey, of Northeast. The mother was 
called to her final rest in 1856. and the father 
died in January", 1S62. 

George T. Willson was reared on the home 
farm, and acquired his education in the dis- 
trict schools. On the breaking out of the 
Civil war, he joined his country's service, en- 
listing in Company A, 150th N. Y. V. I.; this 
regiment was assigned to the Eastern army 
until after the battle of Gettysburg, when it 
was transferred to Gen. Sherman's command. 
Our subject continued with his regiment all 
through the war without receiving a furlough. 
At the battle of Gettysburg he was wounded 
in the head, and taken up for dead: on ascer- 
taining that life was not extinct, he was taken 
to the hospital, and a few days later was able 
to rejoin his command, with which he served 
until mustered out at Poughkeepsie. He par- 
ticipated also in the battles of Nashville, Chat- 
tanooga. Resaca, and in the Atlanta campaign. 

Retuming to the town of Northeast, he re- 
sumed work upon the home farm, where he 
remained for three years, and then removed 
to the village of Amenia to engage in the horse 
and cattle trade. In March, 1878, he assumed 
control of the feed and grain business hereto- 
fore run by B. Willson & Co., taking as his 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



485 



partner Lewis F. Eaton, and the firm has since 
been Willson & Eaton. They were the first 
to sell hominy chop in the locality, and they 
are now at the head of an extensive and con- 
stantly increasing business, their wholesale 
trade extending throughout several counties in 
New York, while they carry on a retail trade 
at Amenia, Wassaic and Shekomeko. 

In the town of Amenia, in May, 1876, Mr. 
Willson was married to Mrs. Emma (Darke) 
Reed, daughter of Charles Darke, and they 
now have four children: Charles T., Bessie, 
Georgia and Lee. Mr. Willson is public-spir- 
ited and progressive, and faithfully discharges 
every duty of citizenship with the same fidehty 
that he displayed on Southern battlefields, 
when he followed the stars and stripes to vic- 
tory, and thus aided in the perpetuation of our 
glorious republic. In political sentiment he is 
a Republican. 



JOHN J. HUMESTON, who is practically 
living retired in the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, is one of the most promi- 
nent citizens of the community. He was born 
in that town on July 5, 1835, ^^d is a son of 
James E. Humeston, whose birth occurred in 
the town of Dover, Dutchess county, Decem- 
ber I, 1795, while his grandfather, Eli Humes- 
ton, and his great-grandfather, Joyton Humes- 
ton, were both natives of East Haven, Conn. 
After his marriage, the grandfather, who was 
a wagon-maker, removed to the town of Dover, 
where he reared his family of five children, of 
which the father of our subject was the eldest. 
He was followed by Hannah, who married 
Joseph Palmer, a farmer of Dover; Edwin and 
Joseph, both wagon-makers of Dover; and 
Hariett, wife of George Bassett, a railroad 
man of Chicago, 111. The family belonged to 
the Society of Friends. 

James E. Humeston grew to manhood in 
the town of Dover, where he learned the 
wagon-maker's trade, and there married Eliz- 
abeth Perry, by whom he had two children: 
Thomas P. (deceased July 22, 1885); and 
Catherine E. (deceased October 19, 1895), 
who became the wife of George T. Underbill, 
a farmer of the town of Washington. Mrs. 
Humeston died June 12, 1831, and for his sec- 
ond wife Mr. Humeston wedded Lydia V. Un- 
derbill, the ceremony taking place February 5, 
1832. She was born in the town of Washing- 
ton, September 24, 1804, and was a daughter 



of Nathaniel Underbill, a native of the town of 
Stanford, Dutchess county, and of English 
descent. After his marriage Mr. Humeston 
located upon a small farm near Hibernia Mills, 
where our subject, the only child by the second 
union, was born. In politics, the father was 
a Whig and for several years served as justice 
of the peace. His death occurred in the town 
of Washington, July 31, 1872, and his wife 
departed this life October 4, 1881. 

The earliest years of John J. Humeston 
were spent near Hibernia in the uneventful 
manner of most farmer boys, and in early life 
he learned the carpenter's trade. On February 

20, 1 86 1, Mr. Humeston was married to Miss 
Lydia A. Deuel, a native of the town of Dover 
and a daughter of Jacob and Charity (Gould) 
Deuel, the former of whom was born January 

21. 1797, on the same farm where his daugh- 
ter's birth occurred, and the latter May 24, 
1804, in Ballston, Saratoga Co., N. Y. Mr. 
and Mrs. Deuel were farming people, and the 
parents of eight children, namely: Anna M., 
who died November 10, 1876; Lydia A., hon- 
ored wife of our subject; Phcebe G., who 
wedded Jonathan Benham, a farmer living 
near Lithgow, Dutchess county; Mary G. 
(twin sister of Phcebe), who died May 11, 
1856; Elias H., a farmer and landlord at South 
Dover, Dutchess Co. ; Myra J., who died March 
10, 1854; Emily H., wife of E. W. Benson, a 
farmer of South Dover; and Obed J., also a 
farmer of that locality, who married Charlotte 
Horton, has always remained on the home- 
stead. The father, who supported the Democ- 
racy, was elected road commissioner and town 
assessor, and in religious belief both he and his 
wife were Quakers. He was called to his final 
rest October 27, 1879, and his wife died June 
2, 1895. He was a son of Joshua Deuel (a 
farmer of the town of Dover), whose father 
and grandfather both bore the name of Benja- 
min. The maternal grandfather of Mrs. 
Humeston was Joel Gould (a son of Adam 
Gould), who was born in the town of Washing- 
ton, where on reaching manhood he engaged 
in farming. 

After his marriage, Mr. Humeston took his 
bride to Amenia, Dutchess county, where he 
followed his trade for two years, and then 
went to Dover, where he engaged in the same 
occupation for some thirteen years, after which 
he came to the town of W'ashington. For the 
past three years he has resided upon his pres- 
ent farm, where to a limited extent he engaged 



436 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in agricaltural pursuits, but is practically liv- 
ing retired. He has a beautiful home, and is 
surrounded by all the comforts and many of 
the luxuries of life. In the family are two 
children — Mar\- C. and Phebe A. — and they 
bold a high position in the social circles of the 
community, where true worth and ability are 
received as the passports into good society. 
In politics, Mr. Humeston is entirely inde- 
pendent of party lines, preferring to vote for 
the man who, he thinks, will best fill the 
position. 



ARTHUR V. ROCKWELL, -silkthrow- 
ster ' of one of the leading manufactories 

of Matteawan, was born February- 14, 1S66, 
at Millbrook, Dutchess county, the only son of 
the late Ralph Rockwell and his first wife, 
Elizabeth Broadhurst. 

It seems quite in the natural order of things 
that Mr. Rockwell should be engaged in the 
silk business, his father having been prominent 
in that line of work, while his ancestors on the 
mothers side were even more closely identi- 
fied with that industr}-, being among its earli- 
est promoters in this country. John Broad- 
hurst, Mrs. Rock\veir5 father, wove the first 
piece of broad silk goods ever made in Amer- 
ica, and her brothers were masters of ever}- 
detail of the art of silk manufacturing as it 
was carried on in their day, having perfected 
their knowledge in the great silk mills of Mac- 
clesfield, England. But, if these pioneers 
should to-day visit the extensive warp spinning 
works at Matteawan, they would find much to 
interest them while examining its highly im- 
proved machiner}- so delicately adjusted that 
the breaking of a single fibre of silk stops the 
" take up. " Formerly both warp and filling 
were spun at this establishment, but now its 
16,000 spindles are devoted exclusively to the 
making of warp, and turn out about 33,600,- 
000 yards per day. 

.Arthur V. Rockwell, the presiding genius 
of this busy place, a courteous yet business- 
like young man, was educated at Poughkeep- 
sie, graduating from the high school in 1S84. 
and from the Eastman Business College a year 
later. He then engaged in the silk-throwing 
business with his father, who was a partner in 
the firm of J. Silbermann & Co., at Pough- 
keepsie. and in 1890, when the father moved 
to Matteawan and established the present 
plant, in partnership with John Cummings, 



our subject took charge of his interests in 
Poughkeepsie. In 1892 he also moved to 
Matteawan, took Mr. Cummings' interest in 
the firm, and has since remained there, carry- 
ing on the business for the estate since his fa- 
ther's death, December 27, 1894. He mar- 
ried Miss Susie ^'an Dyne, daughter of Will- 
iam H. and Anna C. Brevoort; \'an Dyne, of 
Poughkeepsie. They are members of the First 
M. E. Church of Matteawan, and are promi- 
nent in social life. Mr. Rockwell is a Repub- 
lican in politics, and he belongs to the Mattea- 
wan Club, the Hudson River Lodge No. 57, 
K. of P., and is president of the Beacon En- 
gine Co., of Matteawan. 

The late Ralph Rockwell was born Septem- 
ber 27, 1837, in the town of South Windsor, 
Conn., and at an early age engaged in the 
woolen business at South Manchester, Conn., 
remaining three years. He then began his 
long experience as a silk manufacturer, enter- 
ing the factor}- of Cheney Bros., well-known 
pioneers in this business, where he spent seven 
years learning the trade in all its branches. 
On leaving them he went to Yonkers as super- 
intendent of G. B. Skinner's mills, and after 
six years there he moved to Paterson, N. J. , 
the "Lyons of America, ' and, with William 
S. Archer as a partner, purchased the factory 
known as the Benson Mills, now one of the 
old landmarks of this business. He sold his 
interest in this plant in the following year, and 
for some time occupied the famous old •' Red 
Mill' at Poughkeepsie; but the failure of the 
water power there led to his removal to Hart's 
Village, in i860, where he took the factory 
owned bj' Abraham Swift at the Upper Pond. 
The death of his first wife occurred Feb. 19, 
1866, and shortly afterward Mr. Rockwell re- 
turned to Yonkers and embarked in business 
there, remaining about six years. While there 
he married Miss Clara J. Du Bois. who sur- 
vives him. On leaving Yonkers he resumed 
business at Paterson. and after four years re- 
turned to New York City, and established for 
J. Silbermann a factor}- for "silk throwing" 
on Tenth avenue, which was transferred to 
Poughkeepsie four years later. The partner- 
ship with Mr. Cummings, referred to above, 
was succeeded by the firm of Rockwell & Son, 
which continued until the death of the senior 
member; but for some years previous the active 
management of the works devolved upon our 
subject, his father retiring to an estate at Mill- 
brook, where he died of heart disease Thurs- 




c^^' 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



437 



day afternoon, December 27, 1894, at the age 
of fifty-seven years. 

Tfiough not lacking in public spirit, Mr. 
Kockwell never sought public office, and was 
best pleased when he could remain quietly at 
home. His business associates speak highly 
of his fairness and liberality, and say that he 
took more pleasure in paying them than in 
collecting debts. His circle of acquaintances 
in this vicinity was not large, but those who 
knew him best speak most highly of his excel- 
lent qualities of head and heart. As a friend, 
neighbor and citizen, his death was deeply 
mourned, He was a Master Mason, a charter 
member of Manchester Lodge, at South Man- 
chester, Conn., and was one of the oldest 
members of the fraternity in the State of Con- 
necticut. His remains now rest in the ceme- 
tery at Wapping, Conn., his birthplace. 

Russell Rockwell, our subject's grandfather, 
was a prominent resident of Windsor, Conn., 
the owner of a sawmill, and a pioneer in the 
cultivation of tobacco in that section. At one 
time he had the option of purchasing, for $300, 
the entire site of the present village of Rock- 
ville. Conn. ,■ including the remarkable water 
power at that point, a property now worth 
millions of dollars. 



[ciiTriLLIAM K. ROY, the popular post- 



jLiL master of Wappingers Falls, Dutchess 
county, and one of the most prominent citi- 
zens of that village, was born there December 

31. 1853- 

James Roy, the father of our subject, was 
born in Belfast, Ireland, in 1816, learned the 
business of calico printing, and became fore- 
man of his father's works, when only a boy. 
When eighteen years old he came to America, 
and for a short time lived at Stockport, N. Y., 
being foreman engraver in the print works at 
that place. In 1837, he removed to Wap- 
pingers Falls, and took a position in the print 
works there, retaining same for nearly ten 
years. In 1848 he opened a drugstore, which 
he carried on until his death, which occurred 
in 1868. James Roy was married May 25, 
1843, to Susanna Darling, who was born at 
Cumberland Hill, Mendon, Mass., in 1818. 
She was the daughter of Seth Darling, a native 
of Cumberland, Mass., and Susanna Clark, 
who was also born in Massachusetts, on both 
sides the families were of English descent. 



The Clarks came to America at a very early 
period and settled in Rhode Island, where our 
subject's mother spent a part of her childhood 
on the old homestead. When she was eight 
years old her parents removed to Fall River, 
Mass., where she grew to womanhood. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Roy 
came to Dutchess county, and settled at ^^^ap- 
pingers Falls, where they reared a family of 
eight children, of these, James S. married Car- 
rie A. Orr, and has two children; Emma Dar- 
ling married Edward Griffith, of Newport, R. I. ; 
WilliamK., the subject of this sketch; Albert M., 
who is in the drug business with his brother in 
Wappingers Falls (he graduated with honors in 
the class of 1 885 from the College of Pharmacy, 
New York City, taking two prizes); Elizabeth 
Clark married George H. Kelley, of Newport, 
R. I., a descendant of one of the old and lead- 
ing families of that State. Three other chil- 
dren died in infancy. Since the death of her 
husband Mrs. Roy has conducted the drug 
business in which he was engaged, and has 
made a great success of it. She is thoroughly 
conversant with all its details, and so high does 
she stand in the estimation of medical men, 
that when the State Board of Pharmacy was 
organized, she was sent a certificate authoriz- 
ing her to practice pharmacy without taking 
an examination. She is one of the best known 
business woman in Dutchess county, and pos- 
sesses unusual ability in that direction, besides 
being a lady of refinement and culture. 

Mr. Roy took an active part in all matters 
of public interest, especially in the cause of edu- 
cation. He was instrumental in building up 
the present excellent school system in the 
county, and was one of the principal promoters 
in the establishment of the high school; he was 
one of the small number who secured the ground 
and laid out the beautiful cemetery at Wap- 
pingers Falls, and was the secretary and treas- 
urer of the association up to the time of his 
death. In politics he was a Democrat, and in 
all the relations of life proved himself a most 
loyal and honorable man, whose influence will 
be felt many years to come. 

William K. Roy was graduated from the 
Union Free School No. i, Wappingers Falls, 
Dutchess county, in 1870, and in 1872 entered 
Cornell University, taking two courses, those 
of civil engineering and chemistrj-, and was 
graduated with high honors in the class of '76. 
During the Centennial at Philadelphia, in 1876, 
he was in charge of some of the chemical ex- 



438 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



hibits. Of late years he has been connected 
with his brothers in the drug business. Mr. 
Roy is a Democrat in his political belief, and 
has held a number of responsible offices. He 
was town clerk for two terms in the town of 
Poughkeepsie; was supervisor for one term in 
18S7; was clerk of the village board two years; 
and was made postmaster at Wappingers Falls 
in May, 1887. This position he held until 
July, 1892, when he resigned to become Index 
Clerk of the State Assembly at Albany, serv- 
ing in that capacity for two years. On Janu- 
ary 30, 1896, he was again appointed post- 
master, and is now tilling that office to the 
satisfaction of the public and with honor to 
himself; he has made many improvements in 
the arrangements and handling of the mails. 

Mr. Roy has always taken much interest 
in everything pertaining to the growth and 
welfare of his community. He was one of 
those instrumental in building the bridge across 
the river at Wappingers Falls; was influential 
in getting the electric road built, and is a di- 
rector in the company. He is also secretary 
of the board of park commissioners, and was 
a prominent factor in having the park legally 
located in the village. For the past twenty 
years he has been a member of the Democratic 
County Committee, and for ten years was one 
of the executive board, at present its secretary. 
He is one of the directors and a member of 
the executive committee of the Wappingers 
Falls Savings Bank, and is trustee and secre- 
tary of the board of the Grinnell Library in 
that village. No man is more closely identi- 
fied with the best interests of the place, and 
none is held in higher esteem than Mr. Roy. 

James S. Roy, the eldest brother of our 
subject, has efficiently managed the drug busi- 
ness since the death of his father, in 1867, and 
has been prominent in the public affairs of 
Wappingers Falls. He was secretary of the 
board of health, and chairman of the board of 
highway commissioners. Mr. Roy, after serv- 
ing several terms as village trustee, was elected 
president of the village, and is now serving his 
seventh consecutive term as village president. 
The good roads of the town are a monument 
to his zeal in this direction; the purchase and 
embellishment of the beautiful village park was 
mainly effected through his efforts; he has also 
been treasurer of the village; is a trustee and 
first vice-president of the Wappingers Falls 
Savings Bank, and a member of its funding 
committee, and has held other minor offices. 



These sons of a worthy father have followed 
in his footsteps, and none are more deserving 
of a place in this record of the county. 



WILLARD W. HICKS. On the nth 
of November, 1621, the ship "For- 
tune" arrived at Plymouth, Mass., from Lon- 
don. She followed the " Mayflower, " bring- 
ing over the parts of families left behind by 
those who came in that famous vessel the year 
before. In the "Fortune" with this second 
body of Puritans came Robert Hicks, the an- 
cestor of the family in America. He was a 
leather-dresser from Bermondsey street, South- 
wark, London. His father, James Hicks, was 
lineally descended from Elias Hicks, who was 
knighted by Edward the Black Prince on the 
battlefield of Poictiers, September 9, 1356, for 
bravery in capturing a set of colors from the 
French. 

Margaret, the wife of Robert Hicks, and 
her children, came over in the ship "Ann," 
which arrived at Plymouth during the latter 
part of June, 1622. This family settled in 
Duxbury, Mass. ; but two of the sons, John 
and Stephen, subsequently (about 1642) came 
to Long Island. In October, 1645, Gov. Kieft 
granted a patent to Thomas Farrington, John 
Hicks and others for the township of Flushing, 
Long Island. John Hicks seems to have taken 
a leading part in the affairs of the settlement, 
and was appointed at various times to fill the 
most important offices. His name, also that 
of his son Thomas, appears in connection with 
almost every public measure for many years. 

Robert Hicks married (first) Elizabeth Mor- 
gan, and had the following children: Eliza- 
beth, Thomas, John, Stephen. For his second 
wife he married Margaret Winslow, and had 
children, viz: Samuel, Ephraim, Lydia, Phcebe. 
His son, John Hicks, and the third child of his 
first marriage, married Rachel Starr, and had 
three children: Thomas, Hannah and Eliza- 
beth. Their son, Thomas Hicks, married 
May Washburn, and had two children: Thomas 
and Jacob. He married, for his second wife, 
Mary Doughty, and had the following chil- 
dren: Isaac, William, Stephen, John, Charles, 
Benjamin,' Phcbe, Charity, Mary and Eliza- 
beth. 

Jacob Hicks, the second child of the first 
union, married Hannah Morgan, and had the 
following children: Samuel, Stephen, Thomas, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



439 



Joseph, Jacob, Benjamin,- Elizabeth, John, 
Sarah and Hannah. Their son, Joseph Hicks, 
married (first) Elizabeth Desler, and had the 
following children: Mordecai, Thomas, Ber- 
nard, Elizabeth. For his second wife he mar- 
ried Catharine Filkins, and has the following 
children: Isaac, Benjamin, •' Catharine, John, 
Joseph, Abraham, Sarah, Samuel and Stephen. 
— Benjamin Hicks'' married Deborah Doty, 
and had the following children: Elias, Joseph, 
Benjamin,^ David, Amy, Elizabeth, Sarah, 
Deborah, and Annie. — Benjamin Hicks ^ mar- 
ried Hannah Couse, and had the following 
children: Samuel, Ury, George, Annie, Ed- 
ward, Asa, Zadieann, Perry, Elizabeth, Cath- 
arine, and Benjamin.'' — Samuel Hicks married 
Eliza Ann Link, and had the following chil- 
dren: Emily, Willard W. (our subject), Esther, 
Jasper, Irving, and Samuel E. — Willard W. 
Hicks married Fannie H. Smith, daughter of 
Egbert Smith, a well-known citizen of Pine 
Plains, and has had two children: Iduma E. 
and Emma Z. 

Our subject is one of the leading residents 
of the town of Pine Plains, Dutchess county, 
and was born May i8, 1844, in the town of 
Milan, near Fayetteville. Until the age of 
eighteen he attended the district schools of that 
neighborhood, and then spent one term at the 
little Nine Partners School at Millbrook. At 
nineteen he taught a term of four months in 
the Bartlett district, town of Milan, also a 
winter term in his home district, and the fol- 
lowing year he spent nearly two terms as a stu- 
dent at Charlotteville, Schoharie county, to 
further prepare himself for the work of teach- 
ing. In this calling he was very successful, 
having natural talent and inclination for it, 
and he became known as one of the leading 
educators of the locality. He taught three 
successive terms at home, several years in the 
Germain district, two terms in the Carroll dis- 
trict, in the town of Stanford, and one in Mt. 
Ross district, but he has also given his atten- 
tion toother pursuits. In the summers of 1865 
and 1866 he was engaged in carpentering, and 
he has followed this trade intermittingly since 
that time. Since 1873, the year of his mar- 
riage, he has owned and cultivated a farm of 
153 acres in the western part of the town of 
Pine Plains, to which he added ninety-six acres 
more in 1883. He is quite extensively engaged 
as a dealer in sheep and cattle, Michigan sheep 
being his preference on account of their thrift, 
hardiness, quiet and orderly inclinations. From 



that State he has brought many car-loads to 
his locality, where at all times he finds a ready 
market. He is also engaged somewhat as an 
auctioneer, and has the credit of succeeding in 
securing first-class prices for goods which he 
sells. He says his motto is "Better wear out 
than rust out," and that he has no affinity with 
idleness or inactivity — "God helps him who 
helps himself." 

Mr. Hicks is a director in the Farmers Mu- 
tual Insurance Company, of Milan, Pine Plains 
and Stanford townships. As a well-read man, 
versed in legal forms, he is often engaged by 
his neighbors to draw up contracts, leases, 
deeds, mortgages, wills, and other papers, and, 
as may well be supposed, he is a very busy 
man. Enterprising in private business he is no 
less so in public affairs; and, having in mind 
the difficulties with which he contended in gain- 
ing his education, he has been especially active 
in the interests of the local schools, serving as 
trustee for a number of years. On national 
questions he has always been a stanch supporter 
of the Democratic party, but in local matters 
he votes independently, choosing the best man. 
He has been town assessor for five years. He 
and his wife are leading members of the Chris- 
tian Church of West Pine Plains, in which Mr. 
Hicks holds the office of deacon. 



MRS. MARY J. (VELIE) TRAVER. The 
__ name of Velie is a reminder of the early 
days to any one familiar with the history of 
the development of Dutchess county, the an- 
cestors of this respected Holland-Dutch family 
having been pioneer settlers in the town of La- 
grange. Minard B. Velie, the grandfather of 
the lady whose name appears at the opening 
of this sketch, was born and educated in that 
town, and at an early age engaged in agricult- 
ural pursuits, which he continued throughout 
his life. He married Miss Mary Baldwin, and 
had seven children: Isaac, who married Pam- 
alie Wheeler; Baltus, who remained single; 
Mary A., who never married; Richard, our 
subject's father; Susan (Mrs. Elias Tompkins); 
Carrie, the wife of Peter Pells; and Phoebe 
(Mrs. John Losee). 

Richard Velie was born in the town of La- 
grange, and after receiving an education in the 
common schools of that town, he engaged in 
farming, as had his father before him. His 
wife, Rebecca Traver, was a daughter of 
David and Catherine (Pells) Traver, who were 



440 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



prominent among the agricultural residents of 
the town of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county. Of 
their two children, our subject was the elder. 
The younger, Phoebe R. , was born and edu- 
cated in the town of Unionvale, and has never 
married. 

Mrs. Mar}' J. Traver was also a native of 
the town of Unionvale, and her education was 
obtained in the common schools of that local- 
ity. She married (first) Albert Ingraham, a 
farmer of the same locality. They had no 
children. By a second marriage, to Herbert 
L. Traver, also a farmer and well-known citi- 
zen of Unionvale. she has one son, Arthur E. 

Another branch of the Velie family in this 
section traces its descent from William Velie, 
who lived and died in the town of Lagrange, 
Dutchess county, where his son, Baltus, was 
born February 19, 17S5. The latter also 
passed his life in that town and died there May 
25, 1 87 1. His early years were spent upon 
his father's farm with the common-school ad- 
vantages of that time, and later he learned the 
details of tanning and shoemaking at Pleasant 
\'alley, Dutchess county, but his main business 
throughout his active career was agriculture. 
He owned an excellent farm, upon which he 
built a comfortable residence and other build- 
ings. He was a self-made man and a good 
citizen, taking a hearty interest in public ques- 
tions; the Whig party received his support 
until the Republican organization was formed, 
when he became one of its steadfast adherents. 
He was married at Pleasant \'alley to Miss 
Nancy Losee, a lady of French descent, who 
was a devoted member of the Presbyterian 
Church. Ten of the fourteen children of this 
union have joined the silent majority, and 
their names with dates of birth and death are 
as follows: Simon, July 12, 1808 — Novem- 
ber 4, 1876; Hepsibeth, April 5, 1807 — March 

14, 1867; Egbert, December 12, 1809, died 
in childhood; Zacheus, March 12, 181 1 — June 
29, 1885; Eliza Ann, March 21, 18 13 — -July 

15, 1849, (married John Pells); Catherine, 
June 4, 1815 — November 16, 1851. (married 
Jacob Baker); Jacob O., February 26, 1817 
— 1829; Mary Rebecca, August 26, 1819 — 
August 2, 1869; Alonzo B., July 8, 1822 — 
February 26, 1896; Isaac, January 5, 1825 — 
October 16, 1829. Four of the family are 
still living: William Morris, December 31, 
1826, resides on Main street, Poughkeepsie; 
William J., May 17, 1829; Susan Jeannette, 
March 29, 1831, is mentioned below, and 



George Edward, September 28, 1833, lives at 
Poughkeepsie. 

Susan J. Velie was married January 28, 
1857, to John Henry Brinkerhoff, who was 
born in the town of Fishkill, Dutchess county, 
in September, 1835, son of John H. Brinker- 
hoff, a prominent agriculturist residing in Dow 
Point. Mr. Brinkerhoff's boyhood was spent 
in his native town, and on learning the car- 
penter's trade he settled in business there, re- 
maining until 1869, when he moved with his 
family to Lagrange, where they lived for sev- 
eral years. The only son, Clarence \., was 
educated at Leslie's private school at Pough- 
keepsie, and became a pharmacist in that city, 
first with Strickler (SiSwartz, and later with A. 
M. Doty. On January 28, 1891, he wedded 
Miss Stella ^'an ^^■yck, daughter of Abram C. 
Van Wyck, and granddaughter of James Van- 
Wyck, of Unionvale. Two children were 
born of this union: George, March 11, 1892; 
and Frank Raymond, January 14, 1894. 



JOHN REDMAN, an enterprising and pros- 
perous business man of Fishkill-on-Hud- 
son, is one of the leading plumbers of the 
county, and a member of the New York State 
Master Plumbers' Association, also of the 
National Plumbers' Association. His exten- 
sive establishment at Fishkill contains a show 
room fitted up with all the latest appliances for 
gas, steam, and hot water plumbing, and for 
arrangement and workmanship it will compare 
favorably with any in the United States. 

Robert Redman, our subject's father, was 
a native of Bradford, Yorkshire, England, and 
followed the occupation of a plumber. He 
married Rhoda Jennings, who was a descend- 
ant on the maternal side of an old and well- 
known family, the Ogdens. To their union 
were born two children: Susanna, who mar- 
ried John Horrocks, and resided in Fishkill, 
where she died in November, 1S95; and John, 
our subject. The father died in 1842. 

John Redman, our subject, was born in 
Bradford, Yorkshire, England, in 1839, and 
was baptized in Haworth Church by Charlotte 
Bronte's father. He was left fatherless at the 
age of three years, and received but little 
schooling, his attendance being limited to 
half-days from his ninth to his twelfth year, 
the other half of his time being spent in work- 
ing in a factory. From twelve to fifteen he 
was employed full time in a woolen-factory, 




\ 



^^if::»mtja^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



441 



and then he began to learn the plumbing busi- 
ness, receiving seventy-five cents per week 
during his apprenticeship. He worked at his 
trade in different shops until 1870, when he 
came to America, and, in 1 871, he opened a 
shop in Fishkill, which he carried on with 
gratifying success. In 1895 he built his pres- 
ent show room, with a workshop adjoining 
show room, that are considered models in con- 
struction, fitting and arrangement. 

In 1864 Mr. Redman married Miss Susan 
Taylor, daughter of John and Jemima Taylor. 
Their only daughter, Rhoda, married Dr. 
James Richard English, of Matteawan. The 
family are all members of the Episcopal 
Church, and take a leading part in the social 
life of the locality. Mr. Redman votes the 
Republican ticket, but is not an active political 
worker. He is interested in fraternal society 
work, and is a member of the K. of P. Our 
subject is the only Redman of his branch of 
the family living. In 1880 he made an ex- 
tended tour throughout England, visiting 
among other places the scenes of his child- 
hood. In 1 88 1 his wife and daughter (the 
latter being but eight years of age) made a 
similar tour. 

Dr. James Richard English, our sub- 
ject's son-in-law, one of the leading physicians 
and surgeons of Fishkill, was born August 27, 
1865, at Constableville, Lewis Co., N. Y., the 
son of Dr. R. S. English and his wife Marga- 
ret (Gormully). He was the youngest of four 
children, the others being John Bernard, Gus- 
tavus Pierce, and Alice E. His academic 
education was obtained in the public schools 
of his native town, and after graduating from 
the high school he began the study of medi- 
cine at the Long Island College and Hospital, 
in Brofjklyn, N. Y., from which hewasgradu- 
ated in 1892. He began the practice of his 
profession at Fishkill-on-Hudson, and has al- 
ready established a large and lucrative busi- 
ness. In politics he is neutral. Socially he 
and his wife are prominent, and he is a mem- 
ber of the I. O. O. F., theR. A., and I. O. F., 
of the home lodge of which latter organization 
he is a ph sician. 



GEORGE HUFCUT has been a leading 
and prominent citizen of Dover Plains, 
Dutchess county. His father, who was a 
lawyer and surrogate, practiced his profession 
in Dover Plains for many years; was also a 



politician of abilitj', and a leader in his party. 
He was honored with a number of town offices, 
and was a prominent worker in Masonic cir- 
cles, taking a great interest in that order. 

Our subject was born at Dover Plains, and 
in early life entered upon a mercantile career, 
engaging in that business for some years. 
Later he conducted the mill of his father in the 
town of Dover, but at the latter's death the 
plant was sold to a Mr. Reiner. He has been 
called upon to serve in several local offices, in- 
cluding that of assessor of his township. 
Socially, he is a member of the Masonic fra- 
ternity, and is affable and pleasant in manner, 
winning friends wherever he goes. The house 
in which the family lived for years was burned 
to the ground in March, 1897. 

Mr. Hufcut was united in marriage with 
Miss Jennie Flinn, who was born and educated 
in New York City, and they have become the 
parents of two children: William M., and 
Sara B. Her father, John Flinn, was a 
native of Dublin, Ireland, and belonged to the 
nobility of that country, his father being a 
titled gentleman and one of the large land 
owners there. The son was highly educated 
in his native city, and had in his own right a 
large income after he had reached man's estate. 
Owing to his love of adventure, he with his 
valet and fortune, embarked for the United 
States without the knowledge of his family. 
He located in New York City, where he 
established himself in the crockery and glass- 
ware business on an extensive scale. This 
venture proved very successful, and after con- 
ducting the business for a number of years, he 
laid aside business cares, and lived a retired 
life. Mr. Flinn married Miss Sarah Powell, 
daughter of William Powell, a prominent and 
wealthy lawyer of England, and to them were 
born six children: Morris R., Charles B. and 
John I., all of whom died in infancy; Mary T. , 
who became the wife of George Terry, of Bos- 
ton, Mass.; Sarah, who died in infancy; and 
Jennie A., the estimable wife of our subject. 



PETER V. ^^■. MONTFORT, a leading 
agriculturist of the town of Wappinger, 

Dutchess county, is the owner of one of the 
choicest farms in that vicinity, a tract of 450 
acres, which has been in the possession of his 
family for more than a century. He is a de- 
scendant of two of the oldest and most dis- 
tinguished families in the county. On the 



442 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL HE CORD. 



paternal side, his great-great-grandfather, Peter 
Montfort, was a native of Holland, coming to 
America in Colonial times with three sons, one 
of whom located on Long Island, and the 
other in New Jersey. Our subject's great- 
grandfather, Peter ^Iontfort, who about 1735 
settled in Fishkiii, Dutchess county, upon land 
of which the present homestead is a part (it 
being then known as the Verplank Patent), 
was born in 171 1 and died in 1791. The farm 
consisted of 370 acres, and he built and oc- 
cupied the stone house still standing. He had 
five children: Mary, who married Albert Mont- 
fort, from Long Island; Peter, who will pres- 
ently be spoken of; Magdalene, who married 
Cornelius \'an Wyck; Jacobus, married to 
Ruth \'an \'oorhis; and Jeanette, wife of 
Major Fort. 

Peter Montfort, grandfather of our subject, 
was born December 14, 1760, on the home- 
stead just referred to, and passed his entire busi- 
ness life as a farmer. At the age of sixteen he 
served in the Revolutionary war, and our subject 
has the musket which he carried at that time, 
and a fowling piece which in those days cost 
a hundred bushels of wheat, rated at $3 per 
bushel. For a short time after the close of 
that struggle grandfather Montfort lived near 
Harlem, where he married Susan Waldron. 
Returning home after his father's death to his 
half of the farm, he there built a residence on 
the site of the one now occupied by our sub- 
ject, and which was burned in 1 860, and he 
also added ninety acres to the farm. He died 
in 1824. His brother Jacobus lived in the 
original stone house until 1825; he had five 
sons: Cornelius, Elias, Peter J., James and 
Abraham. 

Peter P. Montfort, our subject's father, 
was the only son of his parents, and was born 
at the old homestead November 10, 1795. 
After the death of Jacobus Montfort, his uncle, 
he bought the stone-house part of the farm. 
Agriculture was his principal occupation 
throughout his life; but he was also engaged 
for some time in boating and in mercantile 
business. He was- a man of great force of 
character, active in local affairs as a member 
of the Whig party, and at his death, February 
26, 1854, he was a member of the State Leg- 
islature. His wife, Maria Du Bois, to whom 
he was married November 26, 1817, was a 
native of Fishkiii, born April 22, 1798. She 
was a daughter of Garret Du Bois, and a 
granddaughter of Christian Du Bois, both in 



their time leading residents of Fishkiii, the 
family being descended from the old Huguenot 
stock which has been represented by so many 
able and prosperous citizens in Dutchess and 
Ulster counties. She died October 13, 1836, 
and of the family of four children our subject 
is the only survivor. Susan, born July i, 18 19, 
married George Brinkerhoff, and both died at 
an early age; Garret, the twin brother of our 
subject, died at the age of thirteen; and Han- 
nah, born May 13, 1825, died in September, 
1855. 

The subject of our sketch, the second child 
of this union, was born January 19, 1821, 
and has always lived at the old farm. On 
December 27. 1843, he was united in marriage 
to Julia A. Stockholm, daughter of John C. 
Stockholm, a native of Dutchess county, and 
a prominent farmer of the town of Fishkiii, 
and his wife, Eliza Underbill, who was from 
Eastchester, Westchester county. Mrs. Mont- 
fort died November 5, 1871, leaving seven 
children, all of whom are still living: John P. 
is a traveling man, and resides in New Paltz, 
Ulster county; Charles D. B. is a farmer in the 
town of Wappinger; Maria L. is at home; 
Eliza is the wife of Jeremiah Fowler, of 
Providence, R. I.; Meta married George 
White, of the town of Wappinger; Julia A. 
married Milo J. White, a lawyer, of Mt. Ver- 
non, and Eugene is a farmer in the town of 
Wappinger. 

Mr. Montfort's time has been mainly em- 
ployed in the supervision of his farm, upon 
which he raises a variety of crops. He has 
always been prominent in local affairs, and 
although he has never sought political office is 
an influential member of the Republican party. 
The Montforts have always been zealous sup- 
porters of the Reformed Dutch Church, and 
their influence has been a helpful factor in 
every line of progress. 



MRS. MARY LEE is the widow of Ward 
Lee, who, prior to his death at Dover 
Plains, Dutchess county, a few years ago, was 
one of the well-esteemed and earnest-hearted 
men of that village whose influence always 
count for social well-being and advancement 
in the community in which they live. He was 
unassuming in manner, but was called by his 
fellow-citizens to serve in various local offices, 
among which were those of commissioner of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



443 



highways for three terms and collector for 
two terms. 

Mr. Lee was a native of Connecticut, where 
he was born in 1820. His parents were Will- 
iam and Mahetable ( Ward ) Lee, who were 
descendants of New England people. Ward 
Lee was a boy, in his early " 'teens," when he 
left his native State and settled in the town of 
Dover, Dutchess county. He was the eldest 
of six children, as follows : Ward, Egbert, 
Jane, Louise, Emily and Emiline ( twins). He 
was married at South Dover, November 7, 
1848, to Miss Mary Cutter, who was born 
at Dover Furnace, and is the daughter of 
Calvin and Kesiah ( Varney ) Cutter, of Amer- 
ican ancestry for generations. Four children 
were born to Ward and Mary (Cutter) Lee, 
namely : Adelia Ann. born July 14, 1849 ; 
Emily S. , who was born July i, 1850, married 
Alvin Maray, and has since died, her husband 
surviving ; William, born November 17, 185 i 
(now deceased); and Angeline I\., born Janu- 
ary 26, 1853. By trade Mr. Lee was a car- 
penter, and he followed this calling through 
life. His political affiliations were with the 
Democratic party. He died August 12, 1888, 
aged sixty-eight years, and was buried at South 
Dover. Mrs. Mary Lee, his widow, survives 
him, and is now living at Dover Plains in a 
pleasant home which is her own property, 
and among friends whom she has known almost 
from her childhood. 



MRS. MARY FLAGLER FOOTE, now a 
__ __ resident of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess coun- 
ty, spends a portion of the season at her resi- 
dence at Green Haven, town of Beekman. 
The propert}' owned by her is a portion of the 
large tract of land owned by her great-great- 
grandfather, Joshua Carman, who came from 
Long Island and settled here, being a large 
land owner and prominent in the early history 
of Dutchess county. 

Her great-grandfather, Capt. Cornelius 
\'an Wyck, married Sarah Carman, and lived 
at Hopewell, Dutchess county. He served 
with distinction in the Revolutionary war, and 
was killed in the battle of White Plains. Octo- 
ber 31, 1776. Her other great-grandfather, 
Joseph Doughty, was born in England in 1744. 
He came to this country when a boy with his 
mother (then a widow), and settled on Long 
Island. His mother, for her second husband, 
married John Carman, and moved to Green 



Haven, town of Beekman. Joseph Doughty, 
married Psyche Wiltsie, of Fishkill, and paid 
;^ioo for the right to settle on a tract of land 
adjoining the Carman estate. He had the 
honor of entertaining Gen. La Fayette when 
on his travels through Beekman about the year 
1824. Her grandfather, William Doughty, 
married a widow, Sarah Van W'yck Vander- 
burgh, and was a highly respected citizen of 
his time. The above are ancestors on her 
mother's side. 

On her father's side, her grandfather, Zach- 
ariah Flagler, was born in the town of Beekman. 
His first wife was a Miss Wilkinson, by w-hom 
he had one daughter, Mary. His second wife, 
Catherine Collins, was a native of the town of 
Unionvale, and to them were born ten chil- 
dren: Collins, John, Zachariah, David, Frank- 
lin, Enoch, Philip, Shadrach, and George and 
Gilbert (twins). Religiously the family were 
members of the Society of Friends. 

Gilbert Flagler, the father of Mrs. Foote, 
was also a native of the town of Beekman. 
He married Psyche Doughty, daughter of Will- 
iam Doughty, and after his marriage located 
on a farm near Green Haven. To them were 
born five children: Mary, Martha R. , who is 
the widow of John Peters, and resides in Fish- 
kill village, Dutchess county; Theodore \'. W. 
(now deceased) married Helen Jones; Henry 
died unmarried; and Sarah died in infancy. 
Mr. Flagler was a consistent member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, dying in that 
faith in 1 873. His widow passed away in 
1894 at the ripe old age of eight-six years. 
They had many warm friends, and were held 
in high esteem in the locality which was so 
long their home. 

Mary Flagler was married September 10, 
185 I, from her home in the town of Beekman, 
to George Benton Foote, pf New Haven, Conn. 
Mr. Foote was a merchant in New York City 
for a number of years, engaged in the import- 
ing of fine cloth. The latter part of his life 
was passed in the town of Beekman, where he 
died December 11, 1 87 1 . Two sons were born 
to them: Gilbert F. and George B., Jr. 

Gilbert Flagler Foote married Clara Will- 
iams, of Poughkeepsie, December 5, 1S93, 
and to them two children were born: Andrew 
Giraud, February 2, 1895; and Gilbert Flag- 
ler, Jr., September i, 1896. 

George Benton Foote, Jr., married Ida 
Williams, of Poughkeepsie, June 14, 1894, a 
sister of Clara Williams, and daughter of Orren 



444 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



A. and Josephine Giraud Williams, both 
families being prominently known in Pough- 
keepsie society. 

All of Mary Flagler Foote's ancestral fam- 
ilies have been prominent in the history of 
Beekman and Dutchess county. Mrs. Foote 
merits and receives the esteem of all who know 
her, and is beloved by all with whom she 
comes in contact for her noble traits of 
character. 



RS. MARY H. ROSS, like many of the 
J^^ prominent and highly respected citizens 
of the town of Dover, Dutchess county, comes 
of an honored family that was early established 
in Connecticut. There her paternal grand- 
father, Josiah Hungerford, was born, on Sep- 
tember 15, 1774, in the town of New Milford, 
Litchfield county. On the completion of his 
literary studies he began harness and saddle 
making, which he continued to follow through 
life. He married Miss Hannah Miles, who 
was born November 18, 1779, and to them 
was born a son, Abner G., the father of Mrs. 
Ross. The wife and mother died September 
12, 1805, and Mr. Hungerford was again mar- 
ried, his second union being with Miss Mary 
Miles, a sister of his first wife; she was born 
August 19, 17S6. His death occurred Decem- 
ber 25, 1S52, and that of his wife, Mary Miles 
Hungerford, March 5, 1829. They had two 
sons: (i) Averil, born February 14, 1808, in the 
town of New Milford, Litchfield county, mar- 
ried and had one child that died in infancy; 
his second wife bore the maiden name of Cor- 
nelia Demorest; his death occurred December 
28, 1878, and that of his second wife, Decem- 
ber 27, 1879. (2) P'red G., born October iS, 
1812, married Miss- Mary M. Freer, and they 
had one daughter, Mary Frances, who married 
George Neilson, a prominent lawyer of New 
York City, and died one year later; Fred G. 
died February 26, 1881. 

Abner G. Hungerford, the father of Mrs. 
Ross, was also born in the town of New Mil- 
ford, Litchfield Co., Conn., February 21, 1805, 
and in the district school near his home ac- 
quired his education. Learning the harness 
maker's trade, he followed that occupation 
during early life, but later turned his attention 
to farming. As early as 1830 he removed 
from (Juaker Hill, Dutchess county, to a farm 
which he had purchased in the town of Dover. 
On May 7, 1828, he was joined in marriage 



with Miss Maria Sabin, born June 10, 1803, 
daughter of Jeptha and Anna Sabin. Her fa- 
ther was a harness maker of Brookfield, Conn. 
Jeptha Sabin was born January 5, 1770, and 
on March 17, 1794, married Anna Starr, who 
was born April 23, 1773; his death occurred 
June 26, 1838, and that of his wife January 
24, i860. The death of Abner G. Hungerford 
occurred October 4, 1892, and that of his wife, 
December 9, -1888. 

Mrs. Ross, the onl}' child of her parents, 
was born in the town of Dover, July 20, 1833. 
During her girlhood she attended the public 
schools of the locality, where she acquired a 
good education. She was united in marriage 
with Duncan Ross, whose birth occurred in the 
same township, March 8, 1827. In his native 
county he alwaj's followed farming and butch- 
ering, but at one time, for seven j'ears, had 
charge of stables at the Union Stock yards, at 
Chicago. He departed this life September 23, 
1883. In politics he was a Republican. 



ALFRED E. HALL, one of the most 
_ valued and reliable citizens of the town 
of Anienia, Dutchess county, purchased the 
Jacob Rundall farm, between Amenia and Was- 
saic, in 1889, a most beautiful place, where he 
has since resided, and during the summer 
months he keeps boarders, easily accommo- 
dating twenty. Mr. Hall was born in Berk- 
shire county, Mass., near Monterey, Novem- 
ber 21, 1854, and for several generations the 
family have made their homes in that State. 
Luke Hall, his great-grandfather, emigrated 
from England to New London, Conn. . but later 
became a resident of Marlboro, Mass. The 
grandfather, George Hall, was born at New 
Marlboro, and for a companion and helpmeet 
on life's journey chose Miss Cynthia Fargo. 

Their third son, William A. Hall, is the 
father of our subject, and is still living at 
Monterey, Mass. His educational privileges 
were such as the common schools afforded, and 
as a young man he worked at the carpenter's 
trade. However, he later turned his attention 
to agricultural pursuits, and also speculated 
in timber. He is a devoted member of the 
Congregational Church, and in politics is a 
stalwart Republican, always supporting the 
candidates offered by that party. He was 
united in marriage with Miss Fannie E. Clark, 
of Sheffield, Mass., and they became the par- 




DUNCAK ROSS. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



445 



ents of three sons — Alfred E., William B. and 
Frank — and one daughter — Georgia A. 

Until eighteen years of age Alfred E. Hall 
remained at home, attending the common 
schools of Monterey, and then became a stu- 
dent in the Connecticut Literary Institute, at 
Suffield, Conn., taking a three-years' course. 
The following two years he passed at home, 
and was then for the same length of time fore- 
man of a farm at Great Barrington, Mass. 
Subsequently he worked on a farm on shares 
at Kent, Conn., for two years, whence he 
came to Dutchess county, and operated the 
farm of George W. Ketcham, at Dover Plains, 
for six years, since which time he has resided 
on his present place. In connection with the 
cultivation and improvement of his land, he 
also handles agricultural implements for D. M. 
Osborne & Co., in which he has built up a 
good trade. 

At Monterey, in 1881, Mr. Hall was mar- 
ried to Miss Minnie V. Langdon, daughter of 
Chauncey D. Langdon, and they now have 
four children: Mary, Laura, Chauncey and 
William. On April 15, 1895, Mr. Hall re- 
ceived the appointment of county deputy of the 
Patrons of Husbandry, and during the winter 
of 1895-6 he organized five granges in the 
county. Although his residence here is of 
comparatively short duration, he takes an ac- 
tive interest in the public affairs of the locality, 
and to all improvements of a substantial na- 
ture he gives a generous aid. Like his father, 
he also supports the Republican party, and in 
religious belief is a Presbyterian, holding mem- 
bership in the Church at Amenia, of which he 
is an elder, and one of the trustees. 



JN. BULLIS. No country has afforded 
greater opportunities for the poor man than 

our own; it is, indeed, the poor man's 
country. Here, an industrious, frugal man 
has a chance to accumulate wealth. Many 
fail to do so, but the best of our population lay 
by some of their earnings, and soon find them- 
selves in the possession of a handsome prop- 
erty; among them is the gentleman whose 
name introduces this article. He is a native 
of the town of Stanford, Dutchess county, and 
now makes his home at Bangall. 

His father, David Bullis, was the only child 
of Thomas Bullis, and always resided in the 
town of Stanford, where he engaged in farm- 
ing. There his death occurred in 1845, at 



the age of fifty years. Politically he was 
identified with the Whig party. By his mar- 
riage with Deborah Keed he became the fa- 
ther of the following children: Thomas has 
now passed away; Jane, deceased, was the 
wife of Robert Hoffman; Peter, deceased, 
married Permelia Carroll; Julia is the wife of 
Edward Walters, of Mclntyre, Dutchess coun- 
ty; John N. is ne.xt in order of birth; and 
George W., deceased, married Emma Den- 
ozell. 

During his boyhood John N. Bullis attended 
the district schools of the town of Stanford, 
and as his parents both died when he was quite 
small, he was early thrown upon his own re- 
sources, being compelled to seek his own live- 
lihood while still quite young. He worked by 
the month for various farmers, his first em- 
ployer being Stephen G. Guernsey, Sr. , and 
was thus engaged until seventeen years of age, 
when he began clerking in the store of Moses 
Denney, at Hull's Mills. At the end of eight 
months, however, he went to Stissing, where 
he conducted a store on shares for two years, 
and for the following seven years clerked 
for N. Halsted and G. G. Sharpenstein, at 
Bangall. Going to Poughkeepsie, he was there 
engaged in the spring-bed business with E. L. 
Bushnell for two years, and for the same length 
of time he was in the employ of Arnold Con- 
stable & Co., of New York City. Purchasing 
a store at Bangall, he conducted the same for 
seven years with good success, but at the end 
of that time sold out the stock and has since 
rented the building. He also purchased his 
present residence there. 

On December 6, 1S58, Mr. Bullis was mar- 
ried to Mary Husted, daughter of Henry D. 
Husted, of Washington Hollow, Dutchess 
county. Three children were born to them: 
Henry D., who died at the age of nine and a 
half years; May, who died at the age of four 
months; and John N. Mr. Bullis has now 
retired from the active labors of life, and is 
spending his later days in the ease and com- 
fort to which he is ju.stly entitled. Politically 
he affiliates with the Republican party. 



LBERT L. RIDER, the efficient and 
popular postmaster at Rhinebeck, Dutch- 
ess county, and one of the most prominent 
citizens of that locality, was born July 11, 
1842, at Westkill, Greene county. 

The American branch of this family origi- 



446 



COMMEMORATIVE IJIOQBAPUICAL RECORD. 



nated with three brothers who came from 
Holland and located in Connecticut, from 
whence some of their descendants came to New 
York State. Our subject's father, Lewis 
Rider, was a native of Schoharie county, born 
March i6, 1808. He married Celia La Ment, 
a lady of French descent, but a native of 
Westkill, where Mr. Rider engaged in the tan- 
ning business. In 1844 he moved to Poland, 
Herkimer county, and a few years later went 
to Florence, Oneida county, continuing the 
same business, which he followed in all forty- 
five years. In 1871 he and his wife came to 
Rhinebeck, and for some years he was engaged 
in contracting in partnership with a son-in-law, 
John O'Brien, and contracted the R. & C. R. 
R., and many miles of the D. & H. canal, but 
he afterward retired from active business and 
died November 15, 1896, at the ripe old age 
of eighty-eight years. He held a prominent 
place in every community in which he was 
known, and represented the town of Florence 
in the board of supervisors of Oneida county 
for many years, and in 1851 he was elected 
from Florence (Third Assembly District), to 
the Assembly on the Democratic ticket. Of si.\ 
children only two are now living. George has 
been for some years employed in developing 
his father's mining interests in California, but 
is now at home; Adelbert died at the age of 
four years; Albert L. is the subject of our 
sketch; Sarah married John O'Brien, men- 
tioned above, and died in 1886; John, Lucy 
and Elijah died in infancy. 

Albert L. Rider received his early educa- 
tion in the academy at Me.xico, Otsego county, 
and the Walworth Commercial College, at 
Rome, N. Y. , and then entered the tanning 
business with his father, carrying it on until 
1875; in 1 867- 1 868 was supervisor from Flor- 
ence, Oneida county, when he came to Rhine- 
beck. After a short time he went to Kingston 
as agent of the American Express Co. ; but he 
soon became interested in organizing a com- 
pany to build the " Grand Hotel " in the Cats- 
kill Mountains, and was engaged for two years 
in its construction. He then began to contract 
for different important enterprises, among 
which may be noted especially the Catskill 
to Burden Iron Mine railroad, Utica & Bing- 
hampton and several others; the dredging of a 
part of the D. & H. canal, the building of one 
and one-half miles of aqueduct at Yonkers, 
and the Sodam dam at Brewsters, which was 
the largest of its kind in the country at the time. 



In 1895 he returned to Rhinebeck to reside, 
and he has since identified himself with the 
best interests of the town. He was married 
February y, 1 864, to Cynthia Comstock, a 
daughter of Abner Comstock, a leading farmer 
of Williamstown, Oswego county. Her family 
is of English origin, the first of the American 
line settling in Connecticut, and among their 
descendants are some of the most prominent 
residents of New York City. Two children 
were born of this union: Sarah Mosella and 
Celia Alberta, both at home. 

Mr. Rider is an inlluential counsellor in the 
Democratic party in his vicinity, and is active 
in all local affairs lending his aid to any bene- 
ficial measure. In 1867-68 he was supervisor 
from Florence, Oneida county. On May i, 
1 894, he was installed as postmaster of his town, 
and has since discharged the duties of the office 
with signal success. 



CHARLES C. GARDNER, now one of the 
most progressive, energetic and successful 
farmers of the town of Dover, Dutchess coun- 
ty, is a native of Connecticut, where the fam- 
ily was founded at an early day. Thomas 
Gardner, his grandfather, was born in New 
Fairfield, Fairfield Co. , Conn., and after fin- 
ishing his literary course in the common schools 
of that locality, he learned the tanner's trade, 
which he followed throughout life. He mar- 
ried Miss Johanna Pepper, and to them were 
born eight children: Seth, who married Polly 
Bullard; Michael, who married Anna Davis; 
Humphrey, who married Kuth Morris; Thomas, 
who married Jane Morris; Lois, who married 
Allen Joyce; Zuba, who married Francis 
Sturges; Ann, who married Benjamin Well- 
man; and Hannah, who died in infancy. After 
the death of his first wife, Thomas Gardner 
wedded Hannah Chase, daughter of Gideon 
Chase, and they had three children: Gideon, 
who died when young; Franklin, who married 
Christina Eggleston; and Mary, who married 
Milan Steddel. 

Michael Gardner (the father of our subject), 
who passed away May 16, 1884, at the age of 
seventy years, was born in the town of New 
P""airiield, Fairfield Co., Conn., where he at- 
tended the common schools and was reared to 
farm life. The first land which he owned was 
in the town of Sherman, that county, where 
he made his home for twenty-five years, and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



447 



then purchased a farm in South Dover, Dutch- 
ess county. During the old training days he 
served as a drummer in the militia. 

On October 15, 1837, he married Miss 
Anna Davis, whose grandfather, Stephen 
Davis, was a native of England, whence at an 
early day he came to New Fairfield, Conn., 
where he engaged in farming. He married 
Miss Hannah Leach, and to them were born 
eight children: William, who married Sallie 
Quimby; Daniel, the father of Mrs. Gardner; 
Paul, who married Miss Morehouse; Lucy, 
who married Holman Marsh; Rilla, who mar- 
ried Eli Brush; and three who died when 
young. Daniel Davis was born May 6, 1797, 
in New Fairfield, was there educated and en- 
gaged in farming. His death occurred Febru- 
ary 5, 1S35. He had married Miss Mermelia 
Hodge, who was born January 16, 1797, and 
died October 23, 1887, when over ninety years 
of age. To them were born four children, 
Mrs. Gardner being the eldest. The others 
are as follows: Miner, who was born in Con- 
necticut, engaged in farming, and married 
Miss Mary Osborn, by whom he had three sons 
— Stephen, who died at the age of fourteen 
years; Charles and Marshall. Julia, also born 
in Connecticut, married Daniel Whaley, and 
had three children — Daniel and Leander, who 
died in infancy; and Gertrude, who married 
Theodore Carter. Flora, born in Connecticut, 
married George Abbot, and had six children — 
Permelia, who died in infancy; Emeline, who 
married Thomas Hoyt; Henry, who married 
Laura De Camp; Julia, who married John 
Gallop; Hannah, who married Myron Knapp; 
and Stephen, who married Cora Roberts. 

To the parents of our subject were born 
five children: (i) Edward D., born in 1842, 
was educated in the public schools, and 
learned the trade of tinsmith, at which he 
worked during the greater part of his life. 
Socially, he was a member of the Ancient 
Order of United Workmen. He married Miss 
Electa Brewer, and, as they had no children of 
their own, adopted two sons, Howard and 
Taylor Gardner. He died very suddenly on 
the 2 1 St of November, 1893. (2) George K. 
was born in 1845, at Sherman, Conn., where 
he acquired his education, and is now follow- 
ing farming in the West. He wedded Miss 
Mary Wilbur, of Schenectady, N. Y., and they 
had two children — Eliza, who was born May 
I, 1S79, and died at the age of five years; and 
Nellie C. , born November 14, 1885. (3) 



Charles C, subject of this review, is ne.\t in 
order of birth. (4) Martha, born at Sherman, 
Conn., in 1840, married William F. Wildman, 
a farmer of Brookfield, Conn., and had two 
children — Carrie Bell, who was born June 8, 
1868, and married Charles Jackson, but died 
at the age of twenty years; and Ray Clifford, 
born March^23, 1882. (5) Lydia, born in 
1843, married Stephen A. Barnum, a carriage 
trimmer of New Fairfield, Conn., and they had 
eleven children, whose names and dates of 
birth are as follows — Effie Arminta, March 4, 
1862; Charles E., November 21, 1863; Anna 
E., November 14, 1865; Emma P., April i, 
1868; Mary J., February 5, 1870; Julia G., 
March 5, 1872; Lottie M., May 17, 1874; 
Hattie E. , February 5, 1876; Stephen D., 
September 18, 1879; Grace L., May i, 1S82; 
and Kittle M., September 21, 1S83. 

Charles C. Gardner was born in the town 
of Sherman, Fairfield Co., Conn., in 1847, 
and during his boyhood and youth he pursued 
his studies in the common schools of his native 
place. As a life work he chose the occupation 
of farming, which he has always followed very 
successfully. He has served as collector of 
the town and on the board of excise of the 
town of Dover, and has held other minor 
offices. His political support is always given 
the Republican party, and, socially, he holds 
membership with Dover Plains Lodge No. 
666, F. & A. M. He has made many friends 
since coming to the county, and has the high- 
est regard of all who know him. He was 
united in marriage with Miss Kate Dennis, and 
they have one son, Chester C. , born Septem- 
ber 3, 1883. 

Robert Dennis, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Gardner, was a native of the town of Union 
Vale, Dutchess county, where on reaching 
maturity he followed farming and married a 
Miss Rozell. Mrs. Gardner's father, Lewis 
Dennis, was born in the same township, in 
1837, was there educated and also engaged in 
farming. He wedded Miss Mary Stillwell, of 
Union Vale, and they became the parents of 
five children: George married Ida Sweet, by 
whom he has two children — Mary and Sarah; 
Royal married Kate Oliver; Phct-be married 
Isaac \'ermilyea, by whom she has three chil- 
dren — Irving, Grace and Arthur; Nathaniel 
married Angeline Van Scay, by whom he has 
five children — George, Mary, Emma, Lewis ' 
and Edna; and Kate, the wife of our subject, 
completes the family. 



448 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



MISS MARGARET B. MONAHAX. It is 
_ said that in the Hebrew language there is 
no word which corresponds to our word 
"charity", but that a term is used instead 
which signifies Justice. In this distinction, 
with its deep lessons, the philosopher may see 
one reason, if not the reason, for the close 
union and general prosperity of that wonder- 
ful race. With such an idea of helpfulness, a 
Hebrew who sees another in need says to him- 
self, "There is something wrong that this my 
brother, my sister, should be in want in this 
beautiful world. It is my duty to right this in- 
justice as far as I can, and so help to establish 
that order jof things which will make such a 
deplorable evil no longer possible." And so 
he does not carelessly deal out a few dimes or 
dollars in self-righteous satisfaction, and dis- 
miss the matter from his mind; but he inter- 
ests himself in the case as if it were his own, 
devoting his wisdom, his experience, and influ- 
ence to the task, and gives that friendly, prac- 
tical assistance which he would wish for were 
he in the same plight. 

What a different world this would be if 
such a conception of our duties to each other 
were to prevail! Here and there we see in- 
stances of it, and their quiet but effective work 
contrasts nobly with that of some of our loudly- 
advertised charities although their beneficent 
influences may attract little or no attention. 

Miss Margaret B. Monahan, whose mind, 
prompted by the kindly impulses of her char- 
itable nature, originated the plan of giving a 
cultured rest to the weary working-girl, was 
born in New York City, the daughter of 
Thomas and Mary A. (Beers) Monahan, both 
of whom were natives of the same city. She 
was educated at a private school. 

John Monahan, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born at Banbridge, in the linen dis- 
trict of Ireland, and was there married to Miss 
Mary Campbell, also a native of that place, 
and they early came to this country. He had 
received a good education in the "Emerald 
Isle," and on arriving in New York taught 
school for a time. Several years later he 
moved to English Neighborhood, N. J., now 
called Fairview, where he engaged in farming, 
and where, also, his death occurred. To him 
and his wife were born the following children: 
Arthur, Hugh, Thomas, all three deceased; 
William (retired), now living in Brooklyn; 
Catherine, deceased, unmarried; and John, a 
retired merchant of New York, never married. 



Thomas Monahan was born in New York 
City August 27, 18 1 3. When he was fifteen 
years of age he began to fight the battle of 
life alone, by entering the employ of Cyreneus 
Beers, a commission merchant of New York 
City. In this place he remained ten years, or 
until 1838, when he started out in the same 
business for himself. On March 15, 1848, he 
was united in marriage with Miss Mary A. 
Beers, one of the thirteen children of his former 
employer. On her mother's side she was a de- 
scendant of an old Dutch family. Van Ant- 
werp, well known in the early days of the 
Dutch colonies. Her father was a native of 
Newtown, Conn., coming to New York when 
quite young, and by industry laying the found- 
ation of the fortune that made him one of the 
foremost business men of his day in New 
York. 

Thomas Monahan continued in the com- 
mission business until 1S58, when his natural 
abilities as a financier were publicly recognized 
by his election to the presidency of the Fulton 
National Bank, New York City, which posi- 
tion he held until his death. May 13, 1886, 
followed November 28, 1890, by his faithful 
and devoted wife. The union of this worthy 
couple was graced by two children — one of 
whom died in infancy, and Margaret B. Mr. 
Monahan was the architect of his own fortune, 
accumulating his property by slow and con- 
servative methods rather than by speculation. 
He was a man of quiet, retiring disposition, but 
ever ready to aid in anything for the general 
good of the community. In early days he was 
a member of the old Volunteer Fire Depart- 
ment, of New York, and was one of those who 
fought the great fire of 1835. He united with 
no Church, but his wife belonged to the Duane 
Street Presbyterian Church, now Dr. John 
Hall's. 

After Mr. Monahan's death, his wife and 
daughter continued to be residents of New 
York City until 1S90. At that time they 
purchased a farm at Quaker Hill, Dutchess 
county, intending to make it their summer 
home, but after Mrs. Monahan's death, in the 
following November, her daughter decided to 
live there permanently. 

Both Mr. and Mrs. Monahan were much 
interested in the life of working girls in New 
York, and were in cordial sympathy with their 
daughter's work among them ; so, when, in 
June, 1893, Miss Monahan rented a quaint, 
little, century-old cottage near her own place, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



449 



Broadfields, and opened it to a small party of 
working girls from New York, it was but the 
carrying out of long-talked-of, and much-cher- 
ished, plans. The invigorating air, the charm- 
ing views of hill and valley and open skies, 
the drives and picnics, the refinements of that 
delightful home, and, above all, the cordial 
friendship of their hostess, were a revelation to 
these over-worked and under-paid girls whose 
lives were clouded by the experiences of the 
dreary tenement houses and noisy workshop. 
Heroic in spirit these girls are, working un- 
complainingly year in and year out, many of 
them supporting some helpless relative, and 
who can estimate the benefit that this bright 
e.xperience gave them ? The good work thus 
begun could not be abandoned by one who had 
the heart to begin it at all. The house rented 
was the summer residence of Mrs. E. M. Scott, 
a well-known New York artist, who was then 
abroad ; but, as she intended to occupy it on 
her return, other quarters had to be provided. 
A house was, therefore, built for the e.xclusive 
use of the girls; and every summer "Hill 
Hope ", as it is called, holds group after group 
who come to stay two weeks or more and then 
return to their weary routine. The invitations 
have thus far been extended through the New 
York City Mission ; but all the expenses con- 
nected with the outing are met by the hostess, 
except the railroad fares, which are paid by the 
Tribune Fresh Air Fund at the City Mission. 
The guests at Hill Hope write their names in 
a visitors' book, with their occupations — a 
strange and motley list, including the making 
of fishing tackle, hat frames, rubber coats, 
perfumes, casket lining, dresses and under- 
wear, and embroidery, polishing jewelry, filling 
salt bags, washing (by a girl of fourteen), bar- 
ring button-holes, ten thousand a day. One 
girl stirs, constantly, a steaming cauldron at a 
wholesale chemist's, watching lest it boil up 
and explode. "It did twice last year," said 
the girl, " and hurt a lot of people, but that," 
she added, " was before I came." 

There is no matron at Hill Hope; the 
"house mother," as the girls love to call her, 
is an experienced trained nurse, and associated 
with her is some younger lady, who, being free 
from household responsibilities, has leisure to 
devote herself to the girls, and her constant 
though unobtrusive presence among them does 
away with the most objectionable feature of 
the ordinary vacation home. The King's 
Daughters, of Quaker Hill, are more than 

29 " 



kind to their sisters, taking them into their 
hearts as well as their Circle. 

About eighty girls are usually entertained, 
in all, and many more such homes could be 
filled with those who are equally needy. Miss 
Monahan has plans, or rather hopes, for the 
enlargement of the work, in time, to include 
industrial training. Perhaps abetter idea can- 
not be given of the present scope of the enter- 
prise than by some extracts from a report made 
in 1893: 

Beautiful for situation is Hill Hope. Eight hundred 
feet above the Harlem \'alley, and 1,.500 feet above sea 
level, it stands facing the sunset, with the beauty of the 
Shawangunk Mountains before it and the lovely fertile 
valley at its feet. A good garden su[)plies fresh vegeta- 
bles and berries, while the Jersey milk, eggs, butler and 
home-cured hams come from Broadfields, the farm of 
which Hill Hope is an offshoot. 

Over the ninety acres of this farm, including a bit of 
woodland divided by a [lebbly brook, the girls have free 
range to come and go as they please. During haying sea- 
son the fields are alive with girls; they run after the 
mower, toss the hay, ride the ropes, and come home on 
the loads of fragrant hay, driving the horses and chatter- 
mg to "Chris" in his native German. 

The daily routine at Hill Hope is very simple. An 
hour each morning is devoted to care of rooms and other 
housework, and arranging flowers for the table; half an 
hour at noon, the same at night. Every Saturday a thor- 
ough cleansing of rooms takes place, in anticipation of the 
incoming party of girls in the afternoon; this completes 
the work required. Family worship morning and even- 
ing; and who among the girls but will recall the pleasant 
little talks and the prayers offered at this time? For 
evenings and rainy days there are books and music, 
games, quiet and noisy, without end, with croquet, bean- 
bags, etc., and hammocks and lounging chairs for the 
long summer evenings. They enjoy even the chill rainy 
days, because they offer an excuse for a wood fire in the 
fireplace in the dining room. An occasional candy-pull, 
also, enlivens the wet days. Many of these girls have 
never been in the country before; very many see cows 
milked and horses groomed for the first time; and the 
hay-scented barn, at milking time, with the long rows of 
soft-eyed Jersey cattle, and the farmer and his assistants 
answering questions, is an inexhaustible fund of amuse- 
ment. Each set walks to the old Quaker Meeting House, 
a relic of ante-Revolutionary days, and listens to the 
thrilling stories of events which happened "on the spot;" 
and they often walk to the post office, where a gentle 
Quaker lady and her daughter entertain them, bringing 
out Quaker bonnets many years old, and relating their 
history. 

Then there are picnic days, when " Chris " and the 
horses arrive early, and all are off for a drive through 
shady woods to the lake, a long day of boating, fishing 
and lunching in the woods, and at sunset a drive home 
" over the hills." Through the kindness of a gentleman, 
whose lovely home crowns the hill, the freedom of the 
lake was one year extended to Hill Hope; boats, fishing 
tackle, bathing suits, ice, lemonade, etc., being freely ten- 
dered to the girls at any time. Through the kindness of 
another gentleman from a distance, an outing fund was 
provided, so the girls might have driving when the home 
teams were not available. A lady has devoted many aft- 
ernoons and evenings to our girls, reading and walking . 
with them, taking tea in the woods, and making barn pic- 
nics for them. Many of the summer residents have shown 
thoughtful kindness by sending in quantities of fresh 
vegetables; and, once, the girls were invited to one of the 



450 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



finest gardens in the place to pull all the flowers they 
wished. Said one pallid, sickly-looking girl: "1 never 
saw a sweet pea growing before." She and her compan- 
ions gathered almost a bushel that morning, and in the 
afternoon assisted the King's Daughters Circle to arrange 
them to send to the New York Flower Mission. 

Another set were invited by the manager of the 
" Dutcher House," in Pawling, to hear the band play. 
After a drive of six miles and an hour spent m rambling 
through the hotel grounds, they were served with ices in 
the music room. 

One lovely September afternoon another set was asked 
by a lady, owner of a beautiful summer residence, to take 
tea at her home, and there charmingly entertained for two 
hours; after which they went, also by invitation, to walk 
through the garden and grounds of the gentleman who 
gave them the use of the lake, and whose wife has taught 
the successive parties of girls faithfully in the Sunday- 
school all summer, winning the heart of everyone of them 
by her sweet graciousness of manner and her earnest 
teachings. Who can estimate the influence of this sim- 
ple, kindly hospitality and friendliness upon the toilful, 
cramped lives of our poor girls, except, indeed. He who 
spoke the "Inasmuch"? 



GEORGE H. CRAMER, the proprietor of 
a well-known meat market at Red Hook, 
Dutchess county, is a representative of several 
of the oldest families of the vicinity. His 
ancestors on the paternal side settled here at 
an early date and bought land which succeed- 
ing generations cultivated. His grandfather, 
George Cramer, married Miss Allendorf, of 
Red Hook, and had seven children : Frederick, 
George, Henry A. , Gettie, Lydia, Caroline 
and Bailey. 

Henry A. Cramer, our subject's father, was 
born in 1804, was educated in the schools of 
Red Hook, and, like his forefathers, became a 
farmer. He married Miss Catherine W'al- 
dorph, and to their union were born the fol- 
lowing children : Balinda A., in 1827; John 
V. R., in 1830; George H., in 1834 ; James A., 
in 1836 ; and William C. , in 1845. The 
mother died in 1895, at the age of eighty-three 
years ; the father in 1880. Our subject's 
mother was a descendant of another pioneer 
family which has taken a prominent part in 
the history of that locality. The old house, 
which has been the home of the family for 
generations, is still standing, a landmark which 
is looked upon with interest at this day. Mrs. 
Cramer's father, John Waldorph, was an influ- 
ential man of his time. He succeeded to the 
fertile acres which composed the family estate, 
and early in life married Miss Regina Benner, 
a daughter of Peter Benner, a leading farmer 
of Red Hook. Seven children were born of 
this union: William, John, Christopher, David, 
Maria, Catherine and Elizabeth. 



George H. Cramer, our subject, attended 
the schools of his native place during his youth, 
and assisted his father upon the farm. He 
was'married in October, 1862, to Miss Sarah 
C. Allendorf, a daughter of Philip Allendorf, a 
well-known resident of Red Hook, and one 
child blessed this union: Emma A., born 
October 30, 1866, who married Dr. \\'illiam 
E. Traver, a promising young dentist of Red 
Hook. In 1876 Mr. Cramer gave up agricult- 
ural pursuits to engage in the meat trade in 
partnership with Philip Stickel. A year later, a 
brother-in-law, P. \. Allendorf, succeeded Mr. 
Stickel, but three years afterward he died and 
Clarence Shook took his interest, continuing for 
ten years, when C. N. Hicks, then an employe 
of the firm, purchased his share. Two years 
afterward Mr. Cramer bought out Mr. Hicks, 
and has since conducted the business in his 
own name, his energj- and fine business ability 
assuring his continued success. 



WILLIAM A. SHOOK, of " Ardmore " 
farm, the well-known horticulturist 

and dairyman, whose large and admirably-con- 
ducted farm near Wappingers Falls, Dutchess 
county, is considered a model of its kind, is 
one of the most progressive citizens of the 
county. 

His family has been prominent in the 
vicinity of Red Hook. Dutchess county, for 
several generations, and many of the name 
still reside there, among them being Sheridan 
Shook, a second cousin of our subject. 

John Shook, our subject's grandfather, a 
native of Red Hook, was a leading agricultur- 
ist in his day, and an influential Democrat. 
He married Miss Nellie Shoemaker, and they 
reared a family of ten children, as follows: 
Christina, Maria, Helen, Cornelia, Aaron, 
Archibald, John, Walter, Alexander and Cath- 
erine. The parents were both members of 
the Lutheran Church. Aaron Shook, the fa- 
ther of our subject, grew to manhood at the 
old homestead, and married Miss Catherine 
Cramer, a descendant of an old Holland fam- 
ily, a daughter of Frederick Cramer, a leading 
carpenter of Red Hook. They settled on a 
farm there, and seven children were born to 
them: Lucetta, now the widow of Sylvester 
Teator, a farmer; Cornelia, the wife of Charles 
Schryver, a harness maker by trade; Helen, 
who married Robert W. Lewis, a farmer; 
William A., our subject; Gordon L. , a farmer 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



451 



by occupation (now deceased); Lydia E., who 
is at home; and Frederick, a resident of Rhine- 
beck. Aaron Shook died at the old home in 
1884, his wife some five years later. He was 
an active worker in local affairs, and in the 
Democratic party, and held the offices of col- 
lector and poor master. ' 

William A. Shook, our subject, was born 
April 24, 1S37, and spent his early years at 
the old homestead. In 1862 he married Miss 
Sarah D. Stickle, a daughter of Stephen P. 
Stickle, and granddaughter of Halley Stickle, 
both of whom were natives of Columbia coun- 
ty, N. Y. Her mother, Elizabeth fCouse) 
Stickle, was also born in that county, and both 
families traced their lineage to early Holland- 
Dutch settlers. Mr. and Mrs. Shook made 
their first home upon a farm in Red Hook, but 
in 1S89 they moved to their present home, 
"Ardmore " farm, a fine estate of 400 acres. 
Since that time Mr. Shook has made majiy 
improvements. His specialties are fruit, 
bottled milk and cream, and garden produce, 
and he has about fifty cows, mostly Jerseys, 
besides other cattle. Among his extensive 
orchards there are 4,000 peach trees. 

Mr. and Mrs. Shook have three sons: 
Frank B., manager of " Ardmore " farm, who 
married Miss Louise R. Hendricks; Edgar A., 
who married Miss Mary Scofield, and lives in 
the village of Fishkill; and Alfred E., at 
home. 



ROBERT M. GREENE, a prominent hor- 
ticulturist of the town of Rhinebeck, 

Dutchess count}-, was born December 23, 
1827, in the town of Milan. His family is of 
English extraction, and the first to come to 
America were Quakers in religious faith, and 
settled at an early period in Rhode Island — 
that refuge of the persecuted for conscience 
sake. His grandfather, Tobias Greene, was 
a native of that State, and passed his life there. 
John R. Greene, our subject's father, was 
born near Providence, R. I., April 16, 1788, 
in early manhood came to Dutchess county, 
where he married Sabrina Martin, a lady of 
English descent, born April 8, 1793, a daugh- 
ter of George Martin, a leading farmer of the 
town of Milan. After his marriage he settled 
upon a farm in the same town, where he re- 
mained a number of years, removing later to a 
farm in the town of Rhinebeck. He was a 
Democrat of the old-fashioned sort, and he 



and his wife belonged to the Christian Church, 
and were among the leaders in their vicinity in 
many of the progressive movements of their 
time. They had thirteen children: Mahala, 
who married (first) Mr. Hicks, and (second) Mr. 
Piatt; Sarah J., the wife of Peter Welch, a 
farmer; Emeline, who married William C. 
Rikert, a butcher; Margaret A., the wife of 
Edward Knickerbocker, of Albany, who was, 
in early life, a teacher, but later on was a lum- 
berman; Martin T., a retired merchant, of 
Kane county, Ilf. ; George N. , who died in 
childhood; John, who was a farmer in the town 
of Clinton; Elizabeth, who married Andrew J. 
Fish, a retired mechanic, in Iowa; Robert M., 
our subject; Theron, who died in infancy; 
Martha, who married (first) Mr. H. Gray, and 
(later) Mr. Foster, of Hiawatha, Kans. ; Walter 
N. (deceased), a lumber merchant at Burling- 
ton, Vt.; and Edmund, a wagon maker in the 
State of Washington. The father of this fam- 
ily died in 1867, his wife July 2, 1882. 

The subject of our sketch was seven years 
of age when he came with his parents to his 
present home, where he has now lived for sixty- 
two years. He was married November 5, 
1 85 I, to Ann Eliza Vail, a native of the town 
of Stanford, born April 10, 1829, and a daugh- 
ter of Aaron Vail, a leading farmer there. 
They have had seven children: Evelyn, the 
wife of H. J. Lown, a farmer of Rhinebeck; 
Alice; Bertha; Hubert, a resident of the same 
township, and married to Miss Susie Harris; 
Delbert, who married Bertha V. L'Homme- 
dieu; Fanny; and Anabel, who married Reuben 
F. L'Hommedieu November 25, 1896. 

Mr. Greene's farm comprises 138 acres de- 
voted to fruit raising, in which he has made a 
marked success. In politics he is a supporter 
of the principles of the Republican party, but 
he takes no active share in political work. 



BENJAMIN H. FRY, a wide-awake, ener- 
getic and progressive business man of 
Amenia, Dutchess county, was born in that 
village April 2, 185 1. His father, Simeon Fry, 
was a native of Winchendon, Mass., born in 
18 17, and on reaching manhood was married 
to Miss Phebe Harris, of Pine Plains, Dutchess 
county, whose death occurred in 1852. In 
1846 the father established the tin and stove 
business in Amenia, which he successfully con- 
ducted until 1870, when the management was 
turned over to our subject, who ten years 



452 



COintEMORATnrE BrOORAPBICAL RECOBD. 



later : his father, assumed full 

contr.. .. :... .-;... ess. Politically, he was 
first a Whig, and later sapported the Repnb- 
lican party, while socially he was identified 
with Amenia Lodge No. 672, F. Jc A. M. 

Mr. Fry, of this sketch, was an only child. 
and his boyhood and youth were spent in 
attendance at the district schools and the 
Amenia Seniinary. where he completed his 
literary coarse. At the age of seventeen he 
left the schoolroom to leam the tinner's trade 
with his father. In Febmafy. 1876. he was 
married in the town of Washington. Datchess 
county, the lady of his choice being Miss Ida 
B. Warner, daughter of Frederick Warner, 
and to them have been bom four children: 
Clara. Louie. Helen, and Florence. 

The Amenia Foundry was established by 
Mr. Fry in 1890 for the manufacture of gen- 
eral castings, making a specialty of sash 
weights, since which time the foundry has 
been in continuous operation, producing 1.500 
tons of castings per year. As a manufactory 
of sash weights it ranks as one of the best in 
the country. 

In connection with the foundry. Mr. Fry 
also has the largest and best -equipped tin and 
stove store on the line of the Harlem railroad. 
There a specialty is made of the manufacture 
of copper wash boilers, making 7,000 a year, 
for which he has a large wholesale trade 
throughout the Elastem States as far north as 
Portland, Maine. He employs iorcy men and 
eight teams, with a pay-roll of $1,500 per 
month. Although one of the infant industries 
of the county, it seeks not the protection of a 
high protective tariS, but owes its success to 
the untiring perseverance and able manage- 
ment of Mr. Fry. The Amenia Foundry is one 
of the few enterprises which furnish the life 
and prosperity of the village of Amenia. In 
1895 ooi" subject established a simDar foundry 
at Waterbury. Conn. . in connection with Julias 
Benedict, one of the oldest manufacturers of 
sash weights in this countrj-. and thej' there 
employ from twenty to thirty men. 

The different industries with which Mr. Frj- 
has been connected have been crowned with 
success. Many of the men employed in the 
foundry- when started are there at the present 
time, some of them hanng been with Mr. Fry 
for a quarter of a century, which fact speaks 
well for the judgment of the employer and the 
capabilities of the employes. From the time 
of the establishment of the business, in 1846. 



up tc the present time, a period of fifty years, 
a Saturday pay-day has never been missed, at 
which time the men find the cashier as free to 
give as they to receive. The fact that Mr. 
¥i\ is at the head is a guarantee for the pros- 
perity and success of any enterprise, and we 
take pleasure in expressing our admiration for 
his remarkable business ability. 

Socially. Mr. ¥t\ affiliates with Amenia 
Lodge No. 672, F. ic .\. M., of which he has 
been master, and is also coimected with Pough- 
keepsie Chapter, Cotmcil and Commandery, 
and Mecca Temple of Mystic Shrine in New 
York Citj-. He is president of the .Amenia 
Water Company, of which he is one-third 
owner. 



ALBERT W. CORBIN (deceased.. On 
ihe 4th of August, 1S93, there passed 

away at his home, in the town of Pawling, 
Dutchess countj-. the subject of this sketch, 
whose life of quiet and consistent usefulness 
had endeared him to a large circle of friends. 
.Although by choice he followed the peaceful 
life of agriculture, he took a helpful part in the 
various local enterprises which marked the so- 
cial, religious and educational advance of the 
community, and his sympathies were always 
given to the side of progress. 

Bom in Patterson, Putnam Co., N. Y.. 
Mr. Corbin was reared in Dutchess coimty. and 
as he reached manhood's estate he identified 
himself completely with the interests of 
this localitj-. His family was already well- 
known here, his grandfather, Jabez Cor- 
bin, ha\-ing come to the town of Pawling 
in the latter part of the last century, from 
Long Island, where the first ancestor of 
the American branch had settled at an 
early period on his arrival from England. 
Jabez Corbin probably located at Quaker Hill. 
He married Lucy Cheeseman, and reared a 
family of eight children — Isaac, our subject's 
father; William, a blacksmith at Johnsville; 
George, a carpenter at Sherman. Conn.; 
Thomas, who lived near Fishkill: Benjamin, a 
farmer in Pennsylvania: Tallman, who also 
went to Pennsylvania: Lawrence, a resident of 
Putnam county: and Sarah, who married 
Hany Case, of Matteawan. 

Isaac Corbin was bom at Quaker Hill. 
November lo. 1790. and in early manhood 
lived for a time at Patterson, but in 1823 he 
returned to his native county and established 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



453 



his home in the village of Pawling, in the house 
occupied later by James Ferris. He was a 
blacksmith by trade, his shop being located 
just south of the Baptist church, and his in- 
dustry and successful management gained for 
him a fine competence. At one time he owned 
all that portion of the village site which lies 
west of the railroad. He wielded great influ- 
ence in local affairs, and was a strong sup- 
porter of the Democratic party. His wife, 
Martha (Haynes), was born January 8, 1796, 
a daughter of Archibald Haynes, a well-known 
resident of Patterson. They had four children, 
whose names with dates of birth are as follows: 
Jane, February 17, 18 17, married John Ferris; 
Emeline, October 8, 18 19, married Sheldon 
Haynes; Albert W., August 27, 1821; and 
Helen M., December 11, 1S25, married Henry 
W. Wright, of Beekman, and is now the only 
surviving member of the family. The father 
died February 10, 1878, the mother on Oc- 
tober 28, 1882. 

Albert W. Corbin attended the district 
schools of the town of Pawling, and a select 
school at Quaker Hill conducted by Serenus 
Jones; but although his advantages were the 
best which the time and the locality afforded, 
he was in a large degree self-educated, his 
reading in later years being unusually broad in 
its scope, history being his favorite study. ,He 
learned the blacksmith's trade with his father, 
but did not follow it, preferring agriculture. 
He began by working a farm east of the village, 
on shares, and gradually acquired large tracts 
of farming land, among them the Howland 
farm, upon which he made his home, the 
Stockholm farm, the Cook farm, and the one 
whereon Mrs. Corbin now resides, making him 
one of the most extensive real-estate holders in 
the town. He also at one time owned the ore 
bed at the top of the mountain, and was a stock- 
holder in the lower ore bed, of which he was 
superintendent for some years. He was an 
e.xcellent business man, cautious, yet enterpris- 
ing, and of unquestioned integrity, and his 
advice was asked and followed in many im- 
portant enterprises. He was one of the orig- 
inal incorporators of the Savings Bank at 
Pawling, of which institution he held the office 
of trustee until the time of his death; and he 
was often called upon to assist in the settle- 
ment of estates. Possessing much public spirit, 
he took a generous interest in local affairs, and 
was a leader in the Republican organization of 
his town, serving for several terms as assessor, 



and for five terms in succession as township 
supervisor. 

In 1842 Mr. Corbin married Miss Julia A. 
Beardsley, a lady of English descent, and the 
daughter of Lewis Beardsley, a prominent 
resident of New Fairfield, Conn. Two chil- 
dren came of this union, viz.: Isaac L., born 
October 5, 1849; and Anna E., born January 
12, 1851, now the wife of Edwin B. Dodge, a 
leading citizen of Pawling. Lewis Beardsley, 
father of Mrs. Corbin, was born January 17, 
1798, in New Fairfield, Conn., and November 
10, 1817, married Paulina Barnum, by whom 
he had five children: (i) Eliza married Will- 
iam H. Wright, and had nine children: Willi- 
am H., John L. , Thomas E., George W., 
Harriet E., Paulina, Albert W., Daniel B., 
and Albert D. ; (2) Julia A. (Mrs. Corbin) 
comes next; (3) Daniel H. married Mary Lind- 
ley, and had three children: Huldah A., Alice 
and Lewis D. ; (4) Huldah deceased when 
eighteen; (5) Paulina married Orris Haynes, 
and had two children: Lew^is I., and Mary 
(deceased.) The mother of this family died 
October 7, 1832, and February 17, 1833, Mr. 
Beardsley wedded Miss Harriet Barnum (a 
sister of his first wife), and one child was born 
to them, named Hannah; her mother died in 
1886. Mr. Beardsley passed from earth April 
24, 1843, a member of the Presbyterian 
Church. By occupation Mr. Beardsley in his 
younger days was a farmer, later a speculator 
and merchant for some ten years, also bought 
and sold cattle. 

Edwin B. Dodge, son-in-law of Mrs. Cor- 
bin, was born August 18, 1851, in the town of 
Pawling .Dutchess county, a son of John B. 
and Julia (Allen) Dodge, farming people, the 
other children in the family being Charles S., 
Priscilla F. and Ida A. The father of these 
died in 1861; the mother is yet living. Ed- 
win was married February 12, 1874, and they 
had two children: Essie A., born September 
2, 1876, died September 24, 1877; and Albert 
E., born November 11, 1878, at present hold- 
ing a lucrative position in the general passen- 
ger agent's office New York Central & Hud- 
River R. R., city. 

Edwin B. Dodge has served as collector of 
taxes, commissioner of public works, elected 
twice supervisor from Pawling, was nominated 
for member of Assembly in the First district of 
Dutchess county, but declined the nomination- 
is also a composer of religious, comic, and 
sentimental music. 



454 



COMMEMORATIVE JlIOQIiAI'UICAL RECOHD. 



Isaac L. Corbin, eldest child of Albert 
W. and Julia A. Corbin, married Jennie Sher- 
man, June 14, 1 87 1, and three children came 
of this union: Albert I., born November 6, 
1872; Annie Maud, February 12, 1875, ^'^d 
April 23, 1875; Charles L., born March 3, 
1876. The mother of these children died 
May 2, 1882, and Isaac L., in June, 1883, 
married for his second wife Mary F. Allison, 
of Canada. The children by this marriage 
are six in number: Willie A., born April 4, 
1884; Frank B., born September 11, 1885; 
Cecil I., born June 12, 1887; Ethel B., born 
May II, 1889; Lewis D., born April 2 1, 1891; 
Clement W., born April 27, 1896. 

I. L. Corbin has large farming interests in 
Pawling, has always confined himself to agri- 
cultural pursuits, and is a conceded authority 
on up-to-date farming. 



CHARLES H. SLOCUM, a traveling sales- 
man for the wholesale grocery house of 
Wright, Depew & Co., Nos. 103-105 Murray 
street, New York City, was born in the town 
of Pawling, Dutchess county, in 1S60, and is 
about eight generations removed from Roscom 
Slocum, the founder of the family in the New 
World. He was a wealthy planter, and his wife, 
a Miss Fitzgerald, belonged to a prominent and 
well-to-do Irish family; she ran away from 
home, and her future husband paid her pas- 
sage in cattle. 

Hiram Slocum, the father of our subject, 
was born in 1S34, in the town of Dover, 
Dutchess county, where the birth of his father. 
Pardon Slocum, also occurred, and there the 
latter devoted his life to agricultural pursuits. 
Hiram Slocum's mother died when he was an 
infant, and he was reared by an uncle living 
near Cornwall Bridge, Litchfield Co., Conn., 
where he received only a limited district-school 
education. At the age of nineteen years he 
started out in life for himself, coming to Dover, 
where he engaged in shoemaking for a time. 
There he wedded Mary Olivett, by whom he 
has five sons: William E. , of Poughquag; 
Hiram, a builder of the same place; Charles 
H., of this sketch; and Henry D. and Fred, 
also of Poughquag. After his marriage the 
father turned his attention to agricultural pur- 
suits in the town of Dover, where he remained 
until 1867, when he removed to his present 
farm in the town of Beekman. He is a self- 
made man, his possessions being the result of 



his diligence, enterprise and perseverance, and 
he well deserves the success that has come to 
him. In politics he is a Democrat, and re- 
ligiously his wife is an earnest member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. 

In the town of Beekman, Charles H. 
Slocum attended the district schools, and after 
completing his education clerked in the store 
of H. Colwell for two years. At the age of 
nineteen years he bought out his employer, 
and conducted the business from March, 1880, 
until November 10, 1894, when his property 
was destroyed by fire, but he rebuilt the store, 
which he now rents to S. L. Davis & Dibble. 
Since June, 1895, he has been on the road in 
the wholesale grocery business as the outside 
financial agent for the firm. He was at one 
time treasurer and manager of the American 
Electric Light Company. As a business man 
he is winning success, and his unabating energy 
and diligence are important factors in his pros- 
perity. 

At South Amenia Mr. Slocum was married 
to Miss Ella M. Odell, daughter of George W. 
Odell, and to them have been born two chil- 
dren: Blanche and Russell. Like his father, 
our subject also supports the Democratic 
party; was supervisor of the town of Beekman 
in 1885, being the youngest member of the 
board; and in the fall of 18S6 was nominated 
as a member of the General Assembly, but 
declined the honor. Since 1884 he served as 
postmaster of Poughquag except when Ben- 
jamin Harrison was filling the Presidential 
chair, and in both public and private life he has 
ever discharged his duties in a prompt and 
efficient manner. Socially he is connected 
with Hopewell Lodge No. 596, F. & A. M., 
and holds membership in the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church at Poughquag. Although he 
sustained a heavy loss at the time he was 
burned out, he was able to pay all his creditors 
one hundred cents on the dollar. All who 
know him esteem him for his sterling worth, 
his unimpeachable integrity and his up- 
right life. 



CHARLES B. MORGAN, one of the highly 
respected citizens and leading business 
men of Amenia, was born at his present resi- 
dence in the town of Amenia, Dutchess county, 
June 28, 1852, and is a son of George Morgan, 
whose birth also occurred on the old home- 
stead, June 14, 1S23. There William Morgan, 







A^'^ P^cn^^- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



455 



the grandfather, had located on coming from 
Redding, Conn., in 1806. On June 3, 1S05, 
he married Miss Polly Wood, who was bom 
September 8, 1786, and died October 2, 1876. 
In their family were eleven children, whose 
names and dates of birth are as follows : Nel- 
son, September i, 1806 ; Caroline, September 
20, 1808 ; Evaline, October 10, 18 10; an infant 
son, October 8, 1812 ; Russell, December 8, 
181 3 ; Amanda, July 18, 1816 ; Minerva, No- 
vember 18, 181 8 ; Benson W., March 25, 1821 ; 
George, June 14, 1823 ; Mariette, September 
15, 1826 ; and Andrew J., December 12, 1827; 
all are now deceased except Amanda and 
Mariette. 

The grandfather, who was of Welsh de- 
scent, was born November 26, 1782, and in 
early life learned the carpenter's trade. He 
and his wife migrated on horseback to Dutch- 
ess county in 1806, having scarcely enough 
money at that time to pay for the one acre of 
ground which he purchased in the town of 
Amenia. Here he established the manufac- 
ture of grain cradles, which is now carried on 
by our subject, and also engaged in the manu- 
facture of coffins. He was entirely a self-made 
man and became quite well-to-do, leaving a 
good property at his death, which occurred 
January 21, 1S59. 

George Morgan, the father, spent his boy- 
hood days in Amenia, .attending the district 
schools, and with his father learned cradle- 
making, which he continued to follow through- 
out life, having a good trade in the Hudson 
Valley and in western Connecticut. A capable 
business man, he deserved the success which 
rewarded his efforts ; in politics was a Demo- 
crat, and was a member of the old militia. At 
Hudson, N. Y. , he was married November 18, 
1848, to Laura B. Hood, a daughter of Samuel 
Hood, and to them were born two sons : 
Charles B., of this sketch ; and William, who 
was born June 27, 1850, and died March 30, 
1852. The death of the mother occurred May 
5, 1891, and the father passed away October 
9, 1894. 

.•\fter attending the public schools, our sub- 
ject entered the Amenia Seminary, where he 
completed his literary education. He then 
learned the trade of cradle-making, which his 
grandfather and father followed, and since 
1889 has had complete charge of the business, 
which he is now successfully conducting. In 
the year 1896 he also manufactured cider from 
12,000 bushels of apples, and also evaporated 



over 5,000 bushels, thus using over 17,000 
bushels, and is engaged in farming to a small 
extent. Politically, he follows in the footsteps 
of his father, supporting the Democratic party, 
and is now serving as school trustee in his 
district. 

At Smithfield, in the town of Amenia, 
October 9, 1874, Mr. Morgan was married to 
Miss Cora Van Hovenburg, daughter of John 
Van Hovenburg, and they have two children: 
Clara Belle and Harry B. The family holds 
an enviable position in social circles, and has 
many friends throughout the community. 



The 



Flint 



CHARLES A. FLINT. ihe name 
was given to a minor Saxon god represented 
by a great flint stone. It appears in old Colo- 
nial records asFflint, Fflynt, Flinte and Flynt, 
and the latter form should have been retained 
by the family. The first to come to America 
were Thomas and William Flint, who became 
early settlers of Salem, Mass., probably locat- 
ing there before 1638. The former, from whom 
our subject is descended, purchased 150 acres 
of meadow and pasture land from John Pick- 
ering, in 1654, and in 1662 bought fifr.y acres 
from Robert Goodall. That farm is still in the 
possession of his descendants. By his mar- 
riage with Anne Sutherick he had six children 
— Thomas; Elizabeth, born in 1650; George, 
who was born in 1652, and died in 1720; John; 
Anna, who was born in 1657, and died in 1663; 
and Joseph, born in 1662. The father died 
April 15, 1663, and the mother on March 20, 

1673- 

John Flint, the fourth in order of birth, 

was born in 1655, was made a freeman of Salem 

in 1690, and died in 1730. He took up arms 

in defense of the colonists during King Phillip's 

war. His wife was Elizabeth Putnam, and to 

them nine children were born: Samuel, John, 

Hannah, Stephen, Joshua, Joseph, Lydia, Sarah 

and Elizabeth. 

Joshua Flint, the fifth child of John, was 
born October 28, 1689, and in 17 16 removed 
to Windham, Conn. He lost his life at sea. 
Twelve children were born of his marriage with 
Miss Deborah Ingalls: Sarah, Mary, Joshua, 
James, Asher, Bartholomew, Huldah, Eliza- 
beth, Abner, Eliphalet, Aikelas and Theodora. 

Asher Flint, of this family, was born at 
Windham, Conn., June 6, 1724, and the year 
1 77 1 witnessed his removal to Willington, that 
State. On August 20, 1752, he was married 



456 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUWAL RECORD. 



to Sarah Bingham, who died in 1754, at the 
age of twenty-two years. Later he married 
Lucy Kimball, whose death occurred October 
20, 1800, and he passed away in January, 1803. 
In his family were the follcwing children :Jabez, 
Lucy, Aaron, Sarah, Elisha, Enoch and Asher. 

Jabez Flint, the eldest, was born May 2, 
1756, at Windham, and when the colonists 
took up arms against the mother country he 
joined their forces, faithfully serving in the 
Revolutionary war. He was the grandfather 
of our subject, and was the first of the family 
to migrate to Dutchess count}', locating in the 
town of Amenia about 1782, and erecting the 
present residence of Charles A. Flint in the 
summer of 1815. There his death occurred 
March 28, 1844. He was married May 16, 
1782, the lady of his choice being Mrs. Eliza- 
beth Merritt Willson, who died August 28, 
1790, and on May 10, 1792, he was again mar- 
ried, his second union being with Elizabeth 
Paine. He was an Old-line Whig in politics, 
and ably served as justice of the peace from 
1797 until 18 12. His family included nine 
children, namely: Merritt P., Maurice Kim- 
ball, Alfred, Philip, Eliza M., Mary Paine, Ed- 
ward, Augustus and Jane Maria. 

Augustus Flint, the father of our subject, 
was born March 28, 1807, and acquired his 
education in the district schools of the town of 
Amenia, Dutchess county. After he had at- 
tained two years of maturity he served as colo- 
nel in the State militia, and was a devoted 
member of the Presbyterian Church, dying in 
that faith October 29, i 88 i . He first wedded 
Catherine J. Bockee, who was born in 181 1, 
and died April 9, 1843, leaving three children: 
George Peters, who was born August 29, 
1836, and died at Camp Douglas, Chicago, 
October 27, 1862; Jacob Bockee, who was 
born December 12, 1838, and died in 1844; 
and Martha B., born August 8, 1841. For 
his second wife, Augustus Flint chose Julia 
Lord, their wedding being celebrated March 
4, 1847. Her birth occurred April 10, 1814, 
and she survived her husband until November 
16, 1895. 

Charles Augustus Flint, of this review, was 
the only child born of the second union, his 
birth taking place at his present residence, De- 
cember 20, 1847. He spent his early life in 
much the usual manner of farmer boys, ac- 
quiring his primary education in the schools 
near his home, was later a student in the 
Amenia Seminary, and completed his literary 



training by a course at Fort Edward Collegiate 
Institute in Washington county, N. Y. On 
laying aside his text books he returned to the 
old homestead, where his entire life has been 
passed. 

On October 6, 1880, Mr. Flint was mar- 
ried to Matilda P. Hall, who was born Novem- 
ber 20, 1848, and they have four children: 
Gilbert A., born March 27, 1883; Julia Mi- 
nerva, born February 5, 1885; Charles Hall, 
born March 8, 1887; and Dorothy Lord, born 
November 4, 1893. Mr. Flint is an advocate 
of the principles of the Republican party, and 
displays his allegiance thereto by casting his 
ballot for its nominees, while religiously he is 
an earnest member of the Presbyterian Church 
at Smithfield. He is public-spirited and pro- 
gressive, devoted to the welfare of the com- 
munity, and his standing among his fellowmen 
is high. 



WILLIAM J. STORM, of Stormville, 
Dutchess county, is the senior member 

of the firm of W^ J. and W. B. Storm, dealers 
in Hour, feed, coal, lumber, builders' materials, 
and other commodities. In addition to the 
management of his extensive trade, he owns 
and conducts a farm of 330 acres in the town 
of East Fishkill, Dutchess county, the old 
homestead of his family. 

The family, of which he is a member, in 
this country dates back to Derrick Storm, who 
came to America in 1662 from the Mayorality 
of Borch, Holland, and, being both intelligent 
and well-educated, speedily arose to prom- 
inence, being secretary of Brooklyn in 1670, 
town clerk of Flatbush, and clerk of sessions 
in Orange county, from 1691 to 1703. He 
also tilled the important office of school master 
in different places. He owned land and paid 
taxes when Peter Stuyvesant was Governor of 
New Amsterdam. He and his wife, Maria 
Pieters, reared a family of four children: Goris, 
Peter, David and Maria. Goris married An- 
geltey Van Lyck, daughter of Thomas Van- 
Lyck, of New Utrecht, and had two sons — 
Derick, born in 1695, and Thomas T. , our 
subject's great-great-grandfather, who was 
born in 1697. He purchased a large tract of 
land from Col. Phillips, of the Manor of Phil- 
lipsburg, in Westchester county, N. Y., and 
settled at Tarrytown, where many of the de- 
scendants now live, and where he was buried. 
His wife's name was Annie , and their 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



457 



nine children were Thomas, Jacob, Garrett, 
Goris, Abraham, John, Isaac, Catherine and 
Angeltey. Two of the sons died in early man- 
hood, leaving children. In a will dated June 
17. 1763. now on record in the surrogate's 
office in New York City, he makes division of 
a large amount of property. The will was 
made and executed in Dutchess county, where 
he was probably visiting his children, and it 
was probated before Bartholomew Cronnett, 
in Dutchess county, January 15, 1770. To 
his grandson, Abraham, son of Isaac, he gave 
one hundred pounds, and to his granddaugh- 
ters, Christina and Anna, forty pounds. To 
his sons, Garrett and Goris, he gave the lands 
which he had purchased from Madame Brett, 
in Romhout Precinct, lying on the north side 
of the Fishkill, and containing 406 acres, of 
which Garrett received 204 acres and Goris 
202. This was known as the " first purchase. " 
To his son Abraham he gave, with the exception 
often acres, the lands of his "second pur- 
chase, " lying south of the Fishkill, and to 
Isaac he gave his improved estate at Phillips 
Manor. Later these two exchanged posses- 
sions, and Isaac came to Fishkill. The fact 
is especially worthy of note that now, after a 
period of more than one hundred and fifty 
years, these lands still remain almost intact, 
in the hands of the descendants. 

Isaac Storm, great-grandfather of William 
J., married Elizabeth Locy, and their son 
Abraham ( grandfather of William J.), who 
was born October i, 1772, married Sarah ^'in- 
cent, daughter of Philip and Catherine (Haleck) 
\'incent, and had five children : Isaac, Will- 
iam, John v., Charlotte and Elizabeth. 

John V. Storm ( father of William J.), now 
the only survivor of this family, was born No- 
vember 24, 1800, and was educated in the 
district schools of Stormville. His manhood 
has been passed mainly in the management of 
the ancestral estate, which is beautifully situ- 
ated, surrounded by primeval forests, and com- 
manding a view of Nicopee and the Beacon 
Heights, of the Highlands, in the distance. 
Under his hands the property has assumed new 
beauty and fertility until even the passing 
stranger is attracted by its appearance. His 
stables have always held some of the best horses 
in the country, and his fields have been cov- 
ered with waving crops of the finest grain ever 
grown in the rich and productive valley of the 
Fishkill. He has held, too, various positions 
of trust and responsibility ; for many years he 



was a civil magistrate, and also supervisor of 
the town, and at the organization of the Fish- 
kill Savings Bank he was chosen a director 
and the first president of that institution. 

On December 4, 1839, John V. Storm was 
united in wedlock with Miss Jeannette E. 
Wooley, a lady of English descent, and daugh- 
ter of W^illiam Wooley, a leading farmer of the 
town of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county. 
She died in June, 1886, leaving three sons and 
four daughters. The eldest, Abraham J., a 
civil engineer and extensive land-holder, be- 
sides being largely interested in the cattle busi- 
ness in Texas, was married October 29, 1878, 
to Miss Kate Fowler. Joseph H., the owner 
of a fine farm at Green Haven, Dutchess 
county, was married September 4, 1867, to 
Miss Sophia Sheldon, and has two children — 
Wilson and Jeannette. William J. is the sub- 
ject proper of this sketch. Of the four daugh- 
ters the eldest, Sarah Frances, was married 
June 7, 1876, to Sylvester Southard, of Fish- 
kill, and has one daughter — Jane Wooley 
Southard. Elizabeth B. was married January 
24, 1873, to Charles A. Storm, of Hopewell. 
Helen and Cornelia Storm (twins) are at home. 

The reminiscences of Mr. Storm, the pa- 
triarch, would make an interesting book. He 
takes an especial delight in talking over the 
incidents of the more primitive conditions in 
which his youth was spent. When he was 
about eighteen 3'ears old he and his father 
drove to Kingston to get a load of shingles, 
crossing the ice at Rhinecliff, and by starting 
at 2 A. M., they made the entire distance, 
eighty miles, in one day, arriving home before 
midnight. Fortunately his advancing years 
have not brought with them the usual tokens 
of old age, and with the exception of impaired 
eyesight his health is excellent and his facul- 
ties undimmed. His mind is clear, and his 
memories of the past make his conversation 
most interesting to his hearers of later gener- 
ations. He is an honored resident of Fishkill 
village, Dutchess county. 

William J. Storm, the subject proper of 
these lines, was born July 9, 1845, and re- 
ceived his first instruction in the school of 
District No. 5; later he attended Dutchess 
Academy and the Albany High School, and at 
nineteen returned home to engage in farming. 
In 1872 he married Miss Isabel Harpel, a. 
native of New York City, and a daughter of 
George M. Harpel. Shortly after his marriage 
he settled at the old homestead, and in 1873 



458 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



he purchased the estate from his father. Four 
children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Storm: 
G. Harpei, who was with G. A. Benedict, in 
New Yori< City, and Ethel M., William R. 
and Isabel M., all three at home. 

Mr. Storm does not make a specialty of 
any particular branch of agriculture, raising a 
variety of crops and stock. On his farm is a 
beautiful lake of about twenty-five acres in ex- 
tent, that is fed by bubbling springs, but has 
no visible outlet. On the banks of this lake is 
situated a creamery from which is sent forth 
115 cans of milk daily. In 1885 he carried 
on lumber and coal business on commission 
for another party, and in 1895 he formed a 
partnership with W. B. Storm. The firm has 
a fine office and well-managed yards, and does 
an extensive and lucrative business. A Demo- 
crat in principle, Mr. Storm gives his influence 
to his party in a quiet way, and has never 
sought office. His parents were adherents of 
the Reformed Church, and he and his wife are 
now among the leading members of that de- 
nomination in their vicinity. 



JSACKETT ALLING is a prominent and 
influential agriculturist of the town of 
Stanford, Dutchess county. Asa -Ailing, 
his grandfather, came to Dutchess county from 
New Haven, Conn., at an early date, and lo- 
cated near Hunns Lake, in the town of Stan- 
ford, where he was engaged in farming during 
the remainder of his life. He married Jemima 
Purdy, by whom he had five children : Stephen, 
Sally, Anna, Rhoda and Asa, the last named 
being the father of our subject. 

Upon the homestead in the town of Stan- 
ford Asa Ailing was born in 1789, and there he 
spent his entire life. In 1812 he was united 
in marriage with Cornelia Sackett, the eldest 
daughter of Jehiel Sackett, of the town of 
Stanford, and to them were born four children: 
Emily ^deceased) was the wife of Jordan 
Phillips, of Hudson, N. Y. ; Samantha E. was 
the wife of Jeremiah W. Payne, of the town 
of Northeast, Dutchess county ; J. Sackett is 
the next in order of birth ; and Laura H. is the 
widow of William D. Humphrey, of Jackson 
Corners. After the death of his first wife Mr. 
Ailing wedded Mary Thompson, daughter of 
Asa A. Thompson, and to them were born two 
children: John T., of Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , 
and Cornelia S., widow of G. F. Butts, for- 
merly of Stanford. The latter gave his alle- 



giance to the Democratic party, and served as 
supervisor and justice of the peace, while, re- 
ligiously, he held membership with the Bap- 
tist Church. 

J. Sackett Ailing, the subject of this sketch, 
spent his boyhood days upon the home farm, 
attending the district schools of the neighbor- 
hood, and later was a student in Amenia Sem- 
inary and the Jacob Willets Boarding School, 
in the town of Washington, Dutchess county. 
He was born May 17, 1822, and remained a 
member of the parental household until twenty 
years of age, working on the farm during the 
summer months, while during the winter sea- 
son he taught school. In 1845 he went to 
New York City, where he was engaged in the 
carpet business some twenty years, when he 
returned to the old homestead, of which he 
purchased 170 acres, and has since lived upon 
that place. 

In 1855, in New York City, Mr. Ailing 
married Miss Ann Eliza Bertine, who was born 
in 1835 in that city, of Huguenot ancestry. 
This worthy couple became the parents of 
nine children: Charles Sumner, who died at 
Seward, Neb., in 1S93; Frank P., of Bangall,. 
Dutchess county; Robert B., a lawyer of New 
York City; Samuel D. (deceased); Jehiel S., 
of Great Falls, Mont.; Newton D., who is 
connected with the Nassau Bank, New York 
City; Asa A., of the legal firm of Hennessey, 
Grain & Ailing, corner of South William and 
Beaver streets, New York City; Lewis W., 
bookkeeper for the above firm; and Mary, who 
died in childhood. Although Mr. Ailing has 
reached the age of seventy-five years, he is still 
well-preserved and quite active. He has al- 
ways been successful in his business undertak- 
ings, and by his fair and honorable dealings 
has won the esteem and regard of all with 
whom he has come in contact. Politically, he 
is a member of the Democratic party, and he 
adheres closely to the lines drawn by that 
organization. 



CHARLES C. ANDREWS. The subject 
of this narrative is one of the leading agri- 
culturists of the town of Unionvale, Dutchess 
county, and has contributed his quota toward 
advancing the interests of the locality. His 
grandfather, Thomas Andrews, also engaged 
in farming in the same town, and at an early day 
carried the mail through this section of the 
county. He married a Miss Cline. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



459 



Philip S. Andrews, a native of the town of 
Unionvale, was the father of our subject. 
There he secured his education, and early be- 
gan to assist in the labors of the farm. As a 
life work he has since followed that occupation, 
and has served his fellow citizens as overseer 
of the town. He married Miss Cornelia I\rom, 
daughter of Lucas Krom, of Ulster county, N. 
Y. , and by their marriage they had six children : 
Charles C, of this sketch; Mary E. ; Kroma- 
line, who married Amelia Sheldon; Anna M., 
wife of Eliphus Delamiter; James Emmet, who 
married Josephine Woodward; and Isaac, who 
inarrieJ Carrie \'anBlack. 

Charles C. Andrews was born in the town 
of Unionvale, in 1850, and, after there com- 
pleting his elementary education, took a course 
of study at Poughkeepsie. After completing 
his education, he went to California, where he 
remained for five years greatly enjoying the 
delightful climate. On April 4, 1S78, he mar- 
ried Miss Minnie M. Vincent, daughter of John 
W. Vincent, and they have four children — 
Bessie M., Gordon Schuyler, Mabel R. and 
Norman C. Since his marriage he has fol- 
lowed agricultural pursuits exclusively with 
most gratifying results. Their pleasant home 
is the center of attraction to a large circle of 
friends and acquaintances, whose esteem and 
confidence they have won by their cordial 
manners, kind acts and hearty sympathy with 
all. 

Jonathan J. \'incent, the grandfather of 
Mrs. Andrews, spent his entire life in the town 
of Unionvale, and married Miss Loretta Will- 
iams, daughter of Squire Williams, a surveyor 
of that town, and they became the parents of 
seven children — Elizabeth, who married Reu- 
ben L. Cole; Rebecca, who married Dr. David 
Knapp; John, who married Rhoda Butler, and 
they became the parents of Mrs. Andrews; 
Gilbert, who married Kate Ule, and after her 
death wedded Eliza Ham; Lewis; Michael, who 
married Estella O'Neil; and Mary A., who 
married Orin Able. 



FREDERICK J. CORNWELL, of Rhine- 
cliff, Dutchess county, is a self-made 

man. one who, without any extraordinary 
family or pecuniary advantages at the com- 
mencement of life, has battled earnestly and 
energetically, and by indomitable courage and 
integrity has achieved both character and suc- 



cess in business. By sheer force of will and 
untiring effort he has worked his way upward, 
and is now at the head of the largest general 
store in his village. 

Mr. Cornwell is a native of Dutchess coun- 
ty, born October 5, 1852, at Rock City, in 
the town of Milan, and is the son of James 
B. Cornwell, who was born in the town of 
Stanford, Dutchess county, in 1820. The 
family is of English descent, being founded 
on this side of the Atlantic by three brothers 
who located on Nantucket Island, and on sepa- 
rating took the names of Conell, Cornwall 
and Cornwell. William Cornwell, the grand- 
father of our subject, was a son of the latter. 
He was a farmer by occupation, and lived for 
many years in the town of Milan, Dutchess 
county. He was married to a Miss Bernard, 
and to them were born four children: Reuben, 
James B., Eliza (wife of \N"alter Crandallj, and 
Amy. 

When a young man the father of our sub- 
ject learned the wagonmaker's trade in La- 
Fayetteville, Dutchess county, and for many 
years followed that occupation at Rock City. 
He was an expert workman, and had the re- 
spect and esteem of his fellow citizens. He 
married Helen Emeline Cramer, daughter of 
Frederick Cramer, and they became the par- 
ents of five children: Frances, wife of Henry 
D. Ostrom, a merchant of Rock City; Julius 
W. , of Wurtemburg, N. Y. ; Frederick James, 
subject of this sketch; Charles Bernard, of 
Fonda, N. Y., where he is engaged in book- 
keeping; and Byron H., a painter and paper 
hanger, of Troy, N. Y. Members of the 
family belong to the Friends and New Light 
Churches. The father was called from this 
earth in 1872, but his wife still survives him. 

Although Frederick J. Cornwell received 
but a limited education in the common schools 
of Rock City, which he was compelled to 
leave at the age of fourteen years, he has be- 
come a well-informed man by reading in sub- 
sequent years. On leaving the school room he 
entered the employ of his brother-in-law, H. 
D. Ostrom, with whom he remained eight 
years, and August 23, 1875, he came to Rhine- 
cliff, where he established a general store, in 
partnership with Mr. Ostrom. At the end of 
a year and a half he removed his stock to an- 
other store building, where he remained for 
four and one-half years, and in April, 1S82, 
came to his present site. He is a careful, con- 
servative business man, and well deserves the 



460 



COMJIEMOBATIVE BIOGBAPBICAL RECORD. 



success which has come to him. as he gives 
the closest attention to his affairs. , 

On August 17. 1S75. Mr. Comwell was t 
married to Miss Cora Fero. daughter of Eli 
Fero, of Rock City, and to them has been 
bom a daughter, Edna B. They also have 
an adopted son. Fred R. . a son of Mrs. 
Cornwell's brother. Our subject casts his 
ballot with the Republican party, but takes I 
no active part in political affairs as his busi- 
ness occupies his entire time. He has served 
as postmaster of Rhinecliff. for three and 
one-half years under President Harrison, and 
four jears under President Cleveland, and 
is still serving as postmaster under President 
^^cKinley. For two terms he was one of the 
assessors of his township. He is an active 
member of the Methodist Church, of Rhine- 
cliff, of which he has served as trustee and 

steward for manv years. i 

I 



JOHN H. DRAPER, a worth}- representative 
of the commercial interests of Poughquag. 

Dutchess county, where he has engaged in 
merchandising for twenty-three jears, belongs 
to that class of American citizens who take j 
advantage of surrounding opportunities, and 
working their way upward have attained a 
competence. In the spring of 1873 he arrived 
in Poughquag. where he purchased the store of 
Daniel F. Brill, which he has since conducted 
with good success, and in the spring of 1889 ; 
erected his present building. I 

George W. Draper, his father, was born 
about 1 8 16, in the town of Dover, where he 
acquired his education in the district schools, 
and was bound out to Ephraim Cronkright, a 
farmer of that township; but he bought his 
time and began work for Elihu Hoag. Having 
secured a little money he entered Jacob Wil- 
lefs boarding school, in the town of Washing- 
ton, Dutchess county: and after completing his 
education he engaged in teaching in the town 
of Unionvale. Dutchess county, and continued 
for twenty-four consecutive years, becoming 
one of the most able instructors in the county. 
He also served as school commissioner for 
three terms. In Unionvale he was united in 
marriage with Ruth E. Hall, who died in April. 
1867, and his death occurred twenty years 
later. In their family were three children: 
Maria C, wife of Gilbert H. Purdy, of Pough- 
keepsie; Angeline, who died in infancy: and 
John H. The father belonged to Shekomeko 



Lodge. F. & A. M.. of Washington Hollow, 
and in politics was a Democrat until the war 
of the Rebellion, when he joined the Repub- 
lican party. 

John H. Draper, our subject, was bom in 
the town of Unionvale Januar}- 4, 1849, and 
his literary education was obtained under the 
able instruction of his father. For one term, 
in 1865-66. he attended Brjant & Stratton 
Business College, at Poughkeepsie. He began 
his business career as a clerk in the store of 
David D. Vincent, of Unionvale. where he re- 
mained during 1S64 and 1865, and in the sum- 
mer of 1866 was employed in the driig store 
of Wood <Sl Tittamer, of Poughkeepsie. while 
in the following fall he was engaged in teach- 
ing in the town of Unionvale. He ne.xt oper- 
ated the home farm in that town until 1873, 
during which time he served as school trustee, 
and was elected justice of the peace in 1S72. 
Since leaving the farm he has carried on his 
present business, and he well deserves the lib- 
eral patronage accorded him. Besides his 
store, in which he carries a stock of $10,000, 
he does an extensive business. 

In 1S70. in the town of Beekman. Mr. 
Draper was married to Miss Jane Noxon. 
daughter of Alfred and Deborah iGanung) 
Noxon. farming people of Delaware county, 
who had a family of three children: Elizabeth, 
William and Jane 1 Mrs. Draper). The mother 
of this family died in 1878. the father is yet 
living. Mr. and Mrs. Draper have two chil- 
dren: Fred and Elizabeth, both at home. 
Politically, Mr. Draper is an ardent Repub- 
lican, and is a public-spirited, progressive citi- 
zen, deeply interested in all that pertains to 
the welfare and advancement of the town and 
county with which he is identified. In 1877 
and 1S78 he served as supervisor, and at the 
present time is the efficient town clerk, having 
been elected in 1S94 and again in 1S96. For 
the past four years he has been a member of 
the county committee. During Harrison's ad- 
ministration he ser\ed as postmaster. 



MILES BUCKLEY. The Buckley fam- 
ily, of Wassaic. Dutchess county, is a 
remarkable one, whose histor}' is as honorable 
as it is unique. Joseph Buckley, the grand- 



father, was bom 



m 



England 



m 1792, 



and 



when only ten years of age was brought to 
America bv his uncle and aunt, Mr. and Mrs. 





^t^' i^-^Jryz^cii 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



461 



Hinchcliff. In the district schools of Amenia, 
Dutchess county, he acquired his education, 
and during his youth learned the weaver's 
trade, at which he worked for many 3ears. 
His death occurred in 1864. He was united 
in marriage with Miss Julia Chapman, daugh- 
ter of Robert Chapman, of Sharon, Conn., 
and to them were born eight children: Henry, 
Benjamin, Betsy, Robert, Joseph, Sarah, Sey- 
mour and Miles, all now deceased with the 
exception of Betsy, who is the wife of Charles 
Hall, of Cornwall Bridge, Connecticut. 

Benjamin Buckley was born in the town of 
Amenia, November 20, 1S12, and was there 
reared, attending the district schools of the 
neighborhood. When a young man he went 
to Ohio, where he lived for three years, and 
on his return east located in New York City, 
where he learned the shoemaker's trade, which 
he followed for some time at Sharon, Conn. 
There, at the age of twenty years, he was 
married to Miss Sally Ingraham, by whom he 
had one daughter, Julia, who was born May 
13, 1834, and is now the wife of Gilbert Lake, 
of Sharon. After a six-years' residence at that 
place the father removed to Amenia, Dutchess 
county, where the death of his first wife oc- 
curred. At Pleasant Vallej', Dutchess Co., N. 
Y., June 24, 1840, by Rev. B. F. Wiles, Ben- 
jamin Buckley was married to Harriet Lewis, 
daughter of Hezekiah Lewis, of Amenia. 
Twelve children — ten sons and two daugh- 
ters — blessed this union, namely: Seymour, 
born March 24, 1841. lives at Amenia; Albert 
P., born June 15, 1842, resides at Dundee, 
III.; Louisa L. , born February 8, 1844, is the 
wife of George Berch, of Wassaic; Lewis, 
born March 29, 1845, ^'^o lives in Wassaic; 
Henry, born January 10, 1847, is a carpenter 
of South Dover, Dutchess county; Elijah S. , 
born June 13, 1848, makes his home at New 
Berlin, N. Y. ; Benjamin Franklin, born Sep- 
tember 17, 1849, resides in Elgin, 111. ; Charles, 
born February 27, 1851, is a resident of Was- 
saic; Miles, born December 16, 1852, also 
lives in Wassaic, N. Y. ; Edward, born June 
4, 1S54, also lives in Wassaic; Catharine, born 
September 10, 1855, died May 26, 1865; and 
Norman R., born September 5, 1856, is living 
in Dundee, 111. The children were all born 
within the space of fifteen years, and received 
honest, sensible names. Elijah, Charles, Ed- 
ward, Lewis, Albert and Norman are all in the 
employ of the New York Condensed Milk Co. 
All are now married, and are thrifty, enter- 



prising citizens, owning comfortable homes of 
their own. 

For three years after his second marriage, 
Benjamin Buckleycontinued to make his home 
at Amenia, and then removed to Ellsworth, 
Conn., where he lived for eight years, at the 
end of which time he located in the village of 
Amenia, there passing the following four years. 
After six months then passed at Sharon, Conn., 
he removed to Wassaic, where most of the 
family have since resided. His death occurred 
March 6, 1893, at the ripe old age of eighty- 
one years. He was a Republican in politics, 
and an honored veteran of the Civil war. The 
war record of the family is one of which they 
may be justly proud, four of its members enter- 
ing the Union army to defend the country in 
its hour of peril. Although over fifty years of 
age, the father enlisted in Company A, 150th 
N. Y. V. I., in which he faithfully served until 
the close of the war; while of his sons, Sey- 
mour was a member of the 13th Connecticut; 
Albert, of the 48th New York, and Lewis of 
the 2nd Massachusetts regiment. 

The mother died June 13, 1896, at the age 
of eighty years, while she looked to be not over 
sixty. She was the daughter of Hezekiah and 
Lydia (Perry) Lewis (the former a native of 
Connecticut, the latter of Amenia, Dutchess 
county), and was the third in a family of six 
children, all now deceased. They were Sarah, 
wife of John Church; Louisa, wife of Calvin 
Day; Abigail, wife of Norman Bates; Lydia 
Ann (unmarried); and Catherine, wife of Will- 
iam McArthur. Her father, who was a soldier 
in the war of 1812, always lived in the town of 
Amenia, where he followed the trade of a car- 
penter. Her grandfather, Joseph Lewis, was 
a resident of Great Barrington, Mass., and 
a Revolutionary soldier, faithfully serving 
throughout the entire struggle for independ- 
ence. 



IRGIL G. WINANS. one of the most 
__ energetic and enterprising agriculturists 
of the town of Stanford, Dutchess county, 
where he operates a good farm, is a native of 
the county, born in Pine Plains, Februar}' 15, 
1S67, the only son of Seymour and Caroline 
A. (Guernsey) Winans. He obtained his early 
education in the district schools near his home, 
later attending the Seymour Smith Institute, 
in the village of Pine Plains. 

Mr. Winans began life for himself, in 1888, 



462 



COMMEMORATIVE BJOORAPEWAL RECORD. 



on the Desault Guernsey farm, where he has 
since resided, and has placed the land under a 
high state of cultivation. On June 7, 1893, 
he was united in marriage with Miss Susie 
Conklin, a daughter of Isaac P. Conklin, of 
the town of Washington, Dutchess county. 
Mr. Winans is a prominent member of Stan- 
ford Grange. Although yet a young man, he 
is rapidly growing into the esteem and respect 
of his neighbors, and bids fair, in the near 
future, to assume a prominent and influential 
position in the community. 

Calvin P. Guernsey, his maternal grand- 
father, was born in the town of Stanford, No- 
vember I, iSii, and was a son of E/;ekiel 
Guernsey. His boyhood days were spent upon 
the home farm, near Hunns Lake, and in the 
district schools of the neighborhood he secured 
his education. He studied medicine with Dr. 
Haight, in the town of Clinton, Dutchess 
county, and also with Dr. Peter Guernsey, of 
New York City. After practicing for some 
time at Clinton Corners he removed to Schultz- 
ville, Dutchess count}', but finally returned to 
the town of Clinton, where he continued in 
successful practice up to his death, which oc- 
curred December 3, 1855. 

On October 30, 1839, in the town of Clin- 
ton, Dr. Guernsey was married to Miss Louisa 
A. Arnold, who was born May 5, 1822, and 
died December 4, 1853. They became the 
parents of two children, namely: Welcome 
A., who was born March 4, 1841, married 
Laura Morris, of New York City, and died 
January 22, 1867; and Caroline A. (mother of 
our subject), who was born June 29, 1846, and, 
December 7, 1864, became the wife of Sey- 
mour Winans. Since i860 she has been a 
faithful member of the Baptist Church, and is 
a most estimable lady. Her mother was the 
daughter of Welcome Arnold, who was born 
September 11, 1783, and died October 2, 
1 88 1. He wedded Mary Rowe, by whom he 
had three children (all now deceased), namely: 
Archibald H. K., Melinda, and I^ouise. The 
mother was born November 27, 1788, and de- 
parted this life March 24, 1876. 



GEORGE HENRY SWIET, one of the 
representative and highly respected busi- 
ness inen and farmers of the town of 
Amenia, Dutchess county, is descended from 
William Swift, who came from England in the 
great Boston immigration of 1630-1631. He 



was born in the county of Esse.x, England, 
and on his arrival in Massachusetts located at 
Watertown. In 1637, however, he sold his 
possessions there, and removed to Sandwich, 
Mass., on the cape, where he purchased the 
largest farm in the locality, which is to-day 
still owned and occupied by his lineal de- 
scendants. In his family were three children: 
William, Hannah and Esther. 

William Swift, the son, was born in Eng- 
land, and accompanied his father to America. 

He married Miss Ruth , by whom he had 

eleven children: Hannah, William, Jireh, 
Josiah, Temperance, Esther, Dinah, Ephraim, 
Samuel, Ruth and Mary. Ephraim Swift was 
born at Sandwich, June 6, 1656, and died in 
January, 1742. By occupation he was a car- 
penter and cooper. He married Miss Sarah 

-, who died in August, 1734, and to them 

were born seven children: Elizabeth, Johann, 
Samuel, Ephraim, Sarah, Hannah and Moses. 
Samuel Swift, the third son, was born at 
Sandwich, Mass., April 9, 1686, and by trade 
became a carpenter and blacksmith, which 
pursuits he followed up to his death in Decem- 
ber, 1757. At Falmouth, Mass., December 
24, 17 1 2, he had married Miss Ruth Hatch, 
and they became the parents of nine children: 
Ephraim, Manasseh, Judah. Reuben, Moses, 
Mary, Joanna, Joan and Lydia. 

Judah Swift, the third child of the above 
family, was born at Sandwich, September 3, 
1 7 16, and December 14, 1738, was united in 
marriage with Miss Elizabeth Morton, of Fal- 
mouth, Mass., where they continued to reside 
until 1769. In that year the}' became resi- 
dents of Dutchess county, traveling the entire 
distance to Amenia with an ox-team. Mr. 
Swift there purchased what is now known as 
the Barlow farm; but desiring a larger tract, 
he e.xchanged it for the farm now owned by 
Nathan W. Smith. He became one of the 
most extensive land owners of the county, 
owning at the time of his death (January 17, 
1807) 1,800 acres of valuable land. Politic- 
ally he was a Torj'. In his family were eight 
children: Lois, Samuel, Nathaniel, Moses, 
Rebecca, Seth, Elizabeth and Moses. 

Seth Swift, the sixth of the family, was 
the grandfather of our subject. He was born 
at Falmouth, Mass., March 16, 1757, and died 
November 12, 1823. He erected a house upon 
a portion of his father's vast estate, and there 
continued to carry on agricultural pursuits until 
his death. In 1782 he wedded Mary Wells, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



463 



by whom he had six children: Henry, Moses, 
E. Morton, Ann W. , Maria and Thomas. 

Henry Swift, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Amenia February 5, 
17S4, and, after attending the district school 
near his home, entered Yale College, where he 
graduated in 1804. He then studied law with 
Van Ness & Livingston, of Poughkeepsie, N. 
Y. , and was admitted to the bar in 1807. He 
began the practice of his chosen profession at 
Washington Four Corners, in the town of 
Washington, Dutchess county, where he re- 
mained until December, 18 16, at which time he 
removed his office to the three-story brick build- 
ing opposite the Farmers' and Manufacturers' 
Bank, Poughkeepsie, there successfully engag- 
ing in practice until his death, November 5, 
1866. From 1 84 1 until called from this life he 
resided inthe house now occupied by Dr. A. P. 
Van Gieson, on Cannon street. Socially, he 
was identified with the Masonic fraternity, and 
held a high position in the regard of his fellow 
citizens. At Poughkeepsie, July 23, 1807, he 
married Rebecca Warner, who was born there 
June 26, 1785, a daughter of Thomas and 
Alida ^^'arner, and died October 7, 1855. In 
their family were the following children : 
Charles Wells, born June 27, 1812, died No- 
vember 19, 1877; Maria, born September 22, 
1814, died June 2, 1841; John Morton, born 
September 18, 1816, died April 3, 1887; George 
Henry, of this sketch, is next in order of birth; 
Frances, born November 29, 1821, died No- 
vember 13, 1887, and James Harvey, born 
April 23, 1825, died September 27, 1889. 

George Henry Swift, the only one of his 
father's family now living, was born at the 
famih' residence on Market street in Pough- 
keepsie, February 8, 1820, and acquired his 
early education at the Dutchess County Acad- 
emy, and at Judge Hall's private school, Elling- 
ton, Conn. , while he completed his literary 
course at Yale College, entering in 1837 and 
graduating in 1840. Returning to Poughkeep- 
sie, he began the study of law in the office of 
his father, and was admitted to the bar at 
Utica, N. Y. , in 1843. He at once began the 
practice of his profession at Poughkeepsie in 
connection with his father and brother, Charles 
W., and there remained until the spring of 
1846, when he sold out to them and came to 
the town of Amenia, for one year making his 
home with his brother John. He then pur- 
chased the farm on which he has since lived, 
devoting his attention mainly to agricultural 



pursuits, though he still engages in the prac- 
tice of law to a limited extent. He is now 
president of and attorney for the First Na- 
tional Bank of Amenia. A conscientious, 
earnest Christian gentleman, he has for many 
years served as local preacher of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church at Amenia Union, and in all 
the relations of life he has faithfully discharged 
his duties to himself, his neighbor and his 
country. 

On January 28, 1844, at Poughkeepsie, 
Mr. Swift married Emily Eddy Babcock, 
daughter of Elder Rufus Babcock, pastor of 
Lafayette Place Baptist Church, and they had 
one son, Rufus Eddy, who was born October 
25, 1844, and died July 3, 1870. The wife 
and mother departed this life November 5, 
1844. At Amenia, March 17, 1847, Mr. Swift 
was again married, his second union being 
with Pamela Forrest Paine, daughter of Har- 
vey and Hannah Paine, of that place. Six 
children graced this union: Emily Eddy, born 
January 21, 1848, died June 20, 1855; Eliza- 
beth R., born July 23, 1849, is the wife of 
Samuel L. Brengle, of New York City, a ma- 
jor in the Salvation Army, and they have two 
children — George S. and Elizabeth S. ; George 
P., born March 26, 1851, died November 19, 
1864; Harvey W. , born July 23, 1855, died 
December 10, 1864; Maria R., born May 12, 
i860, died November 29, 1864, and Susan F. , 
born July 10, 1862, graduated at Vassar in 
1883, and is now a brigadier in the Salvation 
Army, and stationed at National headquarters. 
New York City. The mother of this family 
passed away June 20, 1896. 

Politically, Mr. Swift is a Republican, and 
in 1854, at Washington Hollow, he took a 
prominent part in the mass meeting that organ- 
ized the Republican party in Dutchess county, 
and he has ever been one of its active sup- 
porters. He has efficiently served as super- 
visor and clerk, but has never been an office- 
seeker. 



ATHAN SMITH, a reliable and energetic 
business man of Dutchess county, is now 
successfully conducting a general store at 
Amenia Union, where since 1891 he has effi- 
ciently served as postmaster. A native of the 
county, he was born in the town of Amenia, 
April 21, 1848, and is a son of John H. and 
Maria (Reed) Smith. His father, who was a 
well-known wagon maker of Amenia, traces his 



4C>4 



COHMEMOEATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ancestn' back to Nehemiah Smith, who came 
to this counin" from England some time before 
1637. He married Annie Bourne, and their 
onlv son, who also bore the name of Nehemiah, 
married Lydia Winchester. Their son Nehe- 
miah married Dorothy Wheeler, by whom he 
had twelve children, the seventh being Isaac, 
who wedded Esther Denison. Of their family 
of eleven children. William was the ninth in 
order of birth. He married Sarah Smith, and 
to them were bom eleven children, Nathan 
Smith, the seventh, being the grandfather of 
our subject. By his marriage with Nancy 
Waterman, he had five children, of whom John 
H. was the youngest. 

At the public schools of Wassaic. our sub- 
ject acquired his education, and at the age of 
eighteen jxars he began working on the farm 
of Homer Hitchcock. The following winter 
he passed at Schenectady, N. Y. , after which 
he returned to Dutchess county and was em- 
ployed on the farm of his uncle, Nathan W. 
Smith, for a year. Subsequently he clerked 
for two and a half years for Oliver Chamber- 
lain, and was again with his uncle Nathan for 
three years. Four years later he spent in farm- 
ing at Cornwall Bridge. Conn. In 1S72 he 
married Miss Josephine L. Hufcut. a daughter 
of William Hufcut. of the town of Dover. 
Dutchess county, and by her had one daughter. 
Josephine. The wife and mother was called 
to her final rest in 1875, and in the spring of 
1S77 Mr. Smith was married at Amenia to 
Miss Sarah Barrett, and they have one son, 
Nathan Collins. 

After his second marriage, Mr. Smith went 
to Poughkeepsie township, Dutchess county, 
where for two years he operated the farm of 
Lawyer Weeks, and on his return to Amenia 
town he conducted his uncle's farm for two 
years. He was next superintendent of D. H. 
Sherman's farm for a year, and the following 
four years he rented land of W. A. Sherman. 
On leaving that place he purchased the Jacob 
Rundall farm, between Amenia and Wassaic, 
where he made his home for three years, and 
at the end of that time sold out to A. E. Hall. 
In the spring of 1SS9. he purchased of A. D. 
Buckley the old Lambert store at Amenia 
Union, and has since engaged in general mer- 
chandising at that place, carr^nng a large and 
well-selected stock. His courteous treatment 
of his customers, and his systematic methods of 
doing business, have won for himself a liberal 
patronage, so that he now enjoys a lucrative 



trade. Politically, he supports the men and 
measures of the Republican party, and is promi- 
nently connected with Webatuck Grange, while 
in religious belief he is a Baptist, being a lead- 
ing member of the Church of that denomina- 
tion at Amenia. 



WRIGHT DEVINE, the efficient post- 
master of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess 

county, who, in relation to the village, has 
largely promoted its interests and supported 
all measures calculated to prove of public 
benefit, was bom December 13, 1S38, in that 
locality. 

In the early Colonial days there came from 
Holland to .\merica the founder of the family 
in the New World. He was the great-grand- 
father of our subject, and his son, the grand- 
father. Abram Devine. was bom in New Jer- 
sey. The latter married Ann Devine, and 
located on a farm in the town of Pleasant 
Valley, where he reared a family of seven chil- 
dren, as follows: Daniel, a farmer of Pleasant 
Valley; Abel, who carried on agricultural pur- 
suits in the town of Washington; Jonathan, 
father of our subject; Joshua, also a farmer of 
Washington ; Phctbe, who married Abram Van- 
Vlack, a farmer of Dutchess county; Nancy, 
who married William Welling, of Dutchess 
county; Joel, a physician of Poughkeepsie. 
Grandfather Devine made farming his lifework 
and died on the old homestead in 1850, a life- 
long Democrat, his wife passing away some 
years previous. 

Jonathan Devine, the father of our subject, 
was bom and reared on the old home place, 
and became a shoemaker by trade. In 1827 
he married Catherine Van Mack, a native of 
Dutchess county, and a daughter of Andrew 
and Elizabeth \'an Vlack, the former of whom 
was also descended from Holland ancestry. 
Mr. and Mrs. Devine took up their residence 
upon a farm in the town of Pleasant Valley, 
and reared a family of ten children: Abram and 
Albert, who follow farming in Pleasant Valley; 
Marj- E. . deceased; Sarah J.: Bartlett, who 
operates the old homestead: Reuben C, a 
farmer of Lagrange township; Erastus and 
Theodore, both deceased: Anna E. . wife of E. 
C Drake, a merchant of Pleasant Valley; and 
Wright. The father died October 3, 1881. at 
the age of eighty-four, the mother on October 
29, 1890. aged eighty-one years. He was a 
Democrat in politics, and for thirty years 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



465 



served acceptably as justice of the peace, dis- 
charging his duties in a highly creditable and 
satisfactory manner. 

Throughout his life Wright Devine, our 
subject, has lived in Pleasant Valley. Farm 
work and study in the public schools occupied 
most of his time during childhood, and after 
leaving the district school he engaged in teach- 
ing in the town of Lagrange for one year. 
He afterward continued his education in the 
Nine Partners School, and later resumed teach- 
ing, after which he was employed as a sales- 
man in a general mercantile store at Four Cor- 
ners. His ne.xt service was in the employ of 
a fire insurance company, which he repre- 
sented in Ulster county. He is now serving 
as postmaster of Pleasant Valley, to which 
position he was appointed by President Cleve- 
land, and his administration of the affairs of 
the office commends him to the respect and 
confidence of all. He has been justice of the 
peace some twelve years, and town clerk for 
several years. Mr. Devine was married Sep- 
tember lo, 1866, to Miss Julia M. Way, daugh- 
ter of James Way, a carpenter, and they have 
two children: Grace E. and Seward W. The 
mother died in 1893, a devout member of St. 
Paul's Church. 

In the spring of i S67 Mr. Devine, in con- 
nection with his brother Albert, purchased his 
present store, and after a partnership of two 
years became sole proprietor. He is an enter- 
prising, progressive merchant, and his large 
and carefully selected stock receives the pat- 
ronage of the public in a liberal degree. Mr. 
Devine is never too busy to devote a portion 
of his time to the public welfare. He was 
largely instrumental in building the sidewalks 
in Pleasant Valley village, and is interested in 
all that pertains to the upbuilding of the com- 
munity. In religious faith he attends St. 
Paul's Church, of which he is vestryman and 
treasurer. Socially, he is a member of the 
order of F. & A. M. , and for two years was 
master of Shekomeko Lodge No. 458, and he 
is now treasurer of that lodge. His innate 
nobility of character, and his devotion to every 
manly principle, have made him one of the 
most highly esteemed residents of Pleasant 
Valley. 

EDWIN BROWN, a well-known artist, re- 
: siding near Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, 

finds much of the inspiration for his beautiful 
landscapes in the picturesque scenery which 

30 



surrounds his home. His farm had been in 
the possession of his family for several gen- 
erations. 

Bastian Brown, great-grandfather of our 
subject, and who was one of three brothers 
who came from Holland about 1730, leased a 
large tract of land from Col. Beekman soon 
after his arrival, and a portion of it comprises 
Mr. Brown's present estate. Bastian Brown 
married Margaret Schultz, and had three chil- 
dren: Peter (our subject's grandfather), Elea- 
nor, and John. Peter Brown married Eleanor 
Paulding, and settled at the old homestead. 
Si.x children were born of this union: Sebas- 
tian (our subject's father), John (who died in 
childhood), Margaret (Mrs. Camp, of Newark, 
N. J.), William and Edwin (who never mar- 
ried), and Abigail (who married James Clear- 
man, of New York). 

Sebastian Brown was born at the old farm 
in 1795. He married Eliza Bard, a daughter 
of Anthony Bard, a prominent butcher of 
Rhinebeck. He was a native of Germany, 
and the name of the family was originally 
Barth. For some years after their marriage 
our subject's parents lived upon a farm in 
Hyde Park, but in 1844 they returned to the 
old homestead, where they spent their remain- 
ing years. They had eight children: Peter, 
a painter in Rhinebeck; Helen (deceased), 
formerly the wife of Harry Wheeler, a carpen- 
ter; Emily, who married Levi Baker, a mer- 
chant; Eliza (deceased); Lewis, a carpenter 
(now deceased); Edwin, our subject; John C, 
a resident of Rhinebeck; and Henry H., who 
lives in Philadelphia. The mother of our sub- 
ject died September i, 1850, the father on Oc- 
tober 21, 1883. He had been a Whig in his 
younger days, later becoming an adherent of 
the Republican party, and still later voting the 
Prohibition ticket. 

The subject of this sketch was born De- 
cember 21, 1833, in the town of Hyde Park, 
and he was eleven years old when his parents 
moved to the homestead, where he has since 
resided. He was married, July 7, 1863, to 
Miss Geraldine F. Pultz, a daughter of the 
late Philip Pultz, a prosperous butcher of the 
town of Rhinebeck. They have had five chil- 
dren: Nettie married David L. Parliman; 
Emily is at home; Charles H. married Augusta 
Pless, and lives in New York; Robert B. is at 
home; and Mabel died in childhood. The- 
early generations of his family adhered to the 
Reformed Dutch Church, but our subject and 



im 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



his wife are members of the Metfiodist Church. 
In every movement for the educational or 
social improvement of the community they 
take deep interest, and they are prominent 
supporters of the temperance cause, Mr. Brown 
giving his vote of late years to the Prohibi- 
tion party. 



TOHN L. HAMMOND, an honored and 
I worthy representative of one of the pioneer 

families of Dutchess county, is a true type 
of the energetic and progressive farmers of the 
present day. He is a native of the county, 
his birth having taken place in the town of 
Northeast, August 7, 1850, and he is a son of 
James Hammond, who was born in the town 
of Washington, January 31, 1810. 

Benjamin Hammond, paternal grandfather 
of our subject, was of English lineage, and be- 
came a leading farmer of the town of Wash- 
ington. By his marriage with Anna Fitch, he 
had si.\ children, namely: Cyrus, a farmer of 
Washington town; John, who also engaged in 
farming in that township, but died in Niagara 
county, N. Y. ; Isaac, who was a harness 
maker of this locality, and died unmarried; 
James, the father of our subject; Andrew B., 
also an agriculturist of Washington town; and 
Lydia, wife of Nathaniel Lockwood, a farmer 
of the same township. 

After reaching man's estate James Ham- 
mond married Lucinda B. Washburn, a native 
of Erie county, N. Y. , and a daughter of Sol- 
omon Washburn, who was of English descent, 
and a blacksmith by trade. They began their 
domestic life upon a farm in the town of 
Northeast, where they reared their four chil- 
dren, who in order of birth are as follows: 
Anna M. is the wife of Calvin Bryan, a farmer 
of the town of Northeast; Henry C. died un- 
married in 1872; James E. spent his life on 
Wall street, New York, and died in the town 
of Stanford, Dutchess county; and John L. is 
the subject of this review. Throughout his 
entire life the father carried on the occupation 
of farming, and was quite prominent in politic- 
al circles, being a leader in the Republican 
party in his communitj'. In 1847-48 he was 
a member of the General Assembly of New 
York, and he held many minor offices, being 
sheriff of Dutchess county in 1859-60-61. Re- 
ligiously he was a member of the Friends 
Church, to which his widow also belongs. His 
death occurred in 1867. 



Our subject received the benefits of a good 
common-school education, and was otherwise 
fitted for the battle of life. On attaining his 
majority he left the parental roof, going to 
Buffalo, N. Y., where for two years he was 
employed by R. L. Howard in the Howard 
Iron Works; in 1872, however, he returned to 
tHe farm in the town of Northeast, where he 
remained until 1883, when he removed to his 
present farm. It comprises 170 acres of rich 
and arable land, and besides general farming 
he is also extensively engaged in the dairy 
business, which proves to him a profitable 
source of income. 

Mr. Hammond was married, in 1877, to 
Miss Josephine M. Bertine, who was born in 
New York City, a daughter of Robert and 
Mary Bertine. The family is of French origin. 
Two sons have been born of this union: James 
E. and Robert B. Mr. and Mrs. Hammond 
are members in good standing of the Reformed 
Church, and number their friends by the score 
in that locality. He uniform!}' votes the Re- 
publican ticket, and has materially assisted in 
the progress and development of the country 
around him. 



CHARLES J. VAN WYCK, a leading under- 
taker of the town of Unionvale, Dutchess 
county, is a worthy representative of a family 
that has long been identified with the inter- 
ests of the county. He is descended from 
Cornelius Van Wyck, who was born and edu- 
cated in the town of Beekman, and when the 
Revolution broke out he entered the Continen- 
tal army and was made captain of his com- 
pany. At the time of his enlistment, in 1776, 
he was living at Green Haven, Dutchess 
county. He proved a brave and fearless 
officer, and was killed at the battle of White 
Plains. As an occupation he followed farm- 
ing and milling throughout life. In his family 
were two children: Theodorus, the great- 
grandfather of our subject; and Sarah, who 
married William Doughty. 

Theodorus Van Wyck was also a native of 
the town of Beekman, in early life followed 
farming, but later turned his attention to hotel 
keeping and milling. He married Miss Clarissa 

Vanderburgh, daughter of George and 

(Clarke) Vanderburgh, of the town of Beekman, 
and to them were born eight children: Robert, 
the grandfather of our subject; James, who 
married Ann Cline; Cornelius; George, who 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



467 



married Jane A. Scriber; Gilbert, who married 
Rebecca White; Almira, who became the wife 
oi G. Washington Waite; Caroline, who 
wedded Robert Miller; and Clarissa, who mar- 
ried William Miller. 

Robert Van Wyck was born in the town 
of Beekman in 1800, was there educated and 
learned the carpenter's trade, at which he 
worked until 1S28. when he took up the 
occupation of farming. He became a Re- 
publican in politics, and was called upon to 
fill some minor offices in his locality. He 
married Miss Caroline Van Sicklin, daughter 
of Court and Sarah (Van Wyck) Van Sicklin, 
and they became the parents of seven children: 
John S., the father of our subject; Sarah A., 
who married Joseph Vincent; William, who 
married Catharine Lawrence; Mary, who first 
married Gilbert J. \'incent, and after his death 
wedded Benjamin Shelley; Caroline, who mar- 
ried Charles White; Clarissa, who married 
Oliver Lawrence; and Phoebe, who married 
John L. Wright. 

The birth of John S. \'an Wyck took place 
on Pearl street, in New York City, in 1827, 
but he was educated in Dutchess county, and 
on starting out in life he engaged in the butch- 
ering business. Later he has been employed 
at milling, hotel keeping and farming. He 
has taken a prominent part in public affairs, 
always supporting the Republican party bj' his 
ballot, and has efficiently served as supervisor, 
town clerk, assessor, poor master, and in many 
other town offices, but is now living retired. 
Socially, he is connected with the Hopewell 
Lodge No. 596, F. & A. M. In 1848 he mar- 
ried Miss Mary E. Brill, daughter of Cornell 
Brill, and to them vv^ere born three children: 
Cornell B. married Lottie Morris, and had si.x 
children — Sarah, Eddie, Georgiana, Edith, 
Herbert and Ida; Sarah A. married James 
Adriance, and has two children — Frank and 
Elizabeth; and Frank Van Wyck died when 
young. After the death of his first wife, Mr. 
Van Wyck wedded Miss Mary A. Duncan, 
daughter of Jacob and Sarah (Gardner) Dun- 
can, and five children graced their union: 
Carrie, who died in childhood; DeWitt C, 
who married Alice Vincent, and has two chil- 
dren — Ida and Annie M. ; Charles J., subject 
of this review; John G. ; and Ida, now the 
wife of William A. Ross, by whom she has 
two children — Viola and Inez. 

Charles J. Van Wyck was born in the town 
of Beekman, and acquired a good education in 



the schools of Beekman, and at Poughkeepsie. 
He began his business career as a farmer, later 
was for three years in the employ of Mr. Os- 
trander, an undertaker of Poughkeepsie, and 
since that time has engaged in the undertaking 
business on his own account in the town of 
Uniondale. He is a popular and highly re- 
spected citizen, one who easily makes friends, 
and has the happy faculty of retaining them. 
He married Miss Lillie E. Knapp, daughter of 
George J. Knapp, a farmer and miller of the 
town of Beekman, and to them has been born 
a son, Charles G. 

John Knapp, the great-grandfather of Mrs. 
Van Wyck, was a native of England, where he 
was reared and educated, and on coming tothe 
United States located in Putnam county, N. 
Y., there carrying on the occupation of farm- 
ing. By his marriage with Nancy Shaw he had 
eight children: John, Isaac, Israel, Michael, 
William, Enoch, Lizzie and Denia. 

William Knapp, the grandfather, was born 
in Putnam county, and there followed farming 
throughout life. He married Statia Jewell, 
and nine children were born to them, namely: 
Clarissa A., who married John R. Knapp; 
Phcebe, who married a Mr. Belknapp; Han- 
nah, who married Charles Van Dine; William, 
who died in infancy; Nancy, who married Will- 
iam Ellis; George J., the father of Mrs. Van- 
Wyck; Catherine, who first married a Mr. 
Stricklin, and after his death wedded Henry 
Bush; Emma, who married Oscar Budd; and 
Robert D., who remained single. 

In Putnam county, N. Y. , George J. 
Knapp was born in 1842, and received his 
education at Cortlandville, N. Y. The princi- 
pal part of his life has been devoted to agricult- 
ural pursuits, but he is now engaged in mill- 
ing. He was united in marriage with Miss 
Sarah E. Warner, and their only child is now 
Mrs. Lillie E. Van Wyck, who was born in 
1869. The mother was born in New Milford, 
Conn., and the parents now make their home 
in the town of Beekman, Dutchess county. 

Thomas Simpson, the great-grandfather of 
Mrs. Van Wyck, of the maternal side, was a 
native of Dutchess county, and in early life 
learned the shoemaker's trade, which he con- 
tinued to follow. He also was a Revolutionary 
soldier. He married Miss Sarah Whaley, and 
to them were born the following children: 
Isaac; Brunson, who married Clarissa Pendly; 
Peter; George, who married Catharine Sey- 
mour; William H., who married Mary Pattie; 



4G8 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Neilson; John; Abel, who married Rachel 
Clarkson; Hannah; and Cornelia, who died in 
infancy. Of this family Hatmah Simpson was 
born and educated in Dutchess county, and on 
reaching womanhood married Rozell Warner, 
a miller of Dutchess county, by whom she had 
six children — Harriet; Isaac S. , who married 
Sarah Lee; John S. (deceased); Thomas S., 
who married Lillie Blithman; Armette A., who 
became the wife of Henry Canaday, and 
Sarah E., the mother of Mrs. Van Wyck. 



MRS. RUHAMER W. PULVER BIRD, 
_ _ who is prominently identified with the 
best social circles of the town of Stanford , where 
she resides on a fine estate near Shekomeko, 
is a member of a family which has long been 
held in high esteem in this locality. 

Her grandfather, William W. Pulver, a 
German by birth, was a leading agriculturist 
of his day in the town of Pine Plains, Pulver's 
Corners being named in his honor. He was 
married there to Christina Millais, by whom 
he had eleven children: John, William, Henry, 
Levi, Peter, Jacob, Catherine, Mary, Herman, 
Anthony and Esther. Henry Pulver, Mrs. 
Bird's father, was born January 13, 1806, and 
passed his early life at Pulver's Corners, where 
he attended the district schools, and later pur- 
sued more advanced studies under tutors at 
home. He was married June 7, 1829, to Jane 
Eliza Cook, a descendant of one of the old 
families of Amenia, born November 23, 1808, 
daughter of Lewis Cook, and granddaughter of 
Col. Cook, who once kept the "Pratt House" 
at that place. Six children were born of this 
union, whose names with dates of birth are as 
follows; Ruhamer W. (Mrs. Bird), February 
28, 1830; Frances S.. April 10, 1831, the wife 
of Orrin Wakeman, of Millerton; Mary J., De- 
cember 20, 1832, who married Myron H. 
Sherman, of Beekman, N. Y., and died No- 
vember 17, 1882; Henrietta P., March 26, 
1834, the wife of L. L. Barton, of Coleman 
Station; E. Maria, November 28, 1839, who 
married Collins Sheldon, of Millerton, and Del- 
lie A., June 3, 1S45, who died May 24, 1S79. 
Soon after his marriage Mr. Pulver settled 
upon a farm at Livingston Manor, Columbia 
county, where he remained until 1839, when 
he came back to his native county and located 
permanently upon the homestead now occu- 
pied by Mrs. Bird, her present beautiful resi- 
dence being erected by him. He was promi- 



nent in local affairs, and, although never an 
office-seeker, he took great interest in political 
questions, first as a Whig and then as a Re- 
publican, and he was a member of the M. E. 
Church at Bangall, the family, of the Presby- 
terian Church at Smithfield. His wife passed 
from earth August 21, 1880, and he survived 
her until July 19, 1894. 

On February 17, 1858, the subject of our 
sketch was married to the late Virgil Bird, a 
member of an old New England family, whose 
interesting genealogical record is given below. 
He was born at Salisbury, Conn., May 31, 
181 5, but was educated at the Nine Partners 
Boarding School, in the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county. . He became a carpenter and 
joiner, and followed that trade until 1849, 
when he went to California and spent three 
years in mining. Returning to Dutchess coun- 
ty, he engaegd in the cattle business at Amenia; 
but after his marriage he moved to Binghamp- 
ton, where he resided until 1866. The follow- 
ing fifteen years were passed at Salisbury, 
Conn., and in 1881 he came back to this 
county, and spent his remaining days in the 
town of Stanford, where he died March 27, 
1895. He was a man of many admirable 
qualities of character, and was held in the 
highest regard by all who knew him. In poli- 
tics he was a Democrat; but he made no effort 
to secure personal advancement in public life. 
Of the eight children of Mr. and Mrs. Bird, all 
but two survive: Cora C. married Myron E. 
Gillette, of Ansonia, Conn. ; Henry P. married 
Daisy Wedge, of Naugetuck, Conn. ; James E. 
married Grace Scott, of Danbury, Conn. ; Jen- 
nie P. is at home; Virgil B. lives at Ansonia, 
Conn.; Ruey W. died July 4, 1892, aged 
twenty-two years; Isaac B. is at home; and 
Salome T. died in infancy. 

The subjoined sketch of the Bird family 
was written by Rev. Isaac Bird, in 1855, and 
was intended to show mainly the male de- 
scendants of the original ancestor of the 
Ame^icar^ line, omitting, especially in the early 
generations, the names of the daughters and 
such of the sons as left no issue that has sur- 
vived to the present day. The records cover 
eleven generations, as follows: (I) — Thomas 
Bird, first known at Hartford 1644, died 
about 1660, leaving legacies to two sons — 
Joseph and James Bird — and two daughters 
— Mrs. North and Mrs. Scott. 

(II) — Joseph and James Bird are found 
among the first settlers and proprietors of 






i^tcf<^iy 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



469 



Farmington, about 1660, and both, with their 
wives, were members of the Church. Joseph 
had eight children — five sons and three daugh- 
ters — and died in 1695. James married Lydia 
Steele, and died in 1708, leaving one son and 
six daughters, all married. 

(Ill) — Joseph, son of Joseph, married Mary 
Steele, had three sons and two daughters, and 
died in 1729. Thomas, son of James, lived in 
that part of Farmington afterward called 
Northington (now Avon), of "Shady Side" 
memory. He united with the Church in 1691, 
married Mary Woodford, July 3, 1693, had 
three sons and five daughters, and died 1725. 

(IV) — Samuel, son of Joseph, son of Joseph 
(2), married Eunice Wadsworth, February 13, 
1730, had three sons and four daughters. 
John, Joseph and Jonathan, sons of Thomas, of 
Avon. The two former were among the first 
settlers and proprietors of Litchfield, and 
Joseph, of Salisbury, also — John was born 

1695, married his second wife, Mary Atwood, 
June 20, 1728, by whom he had six sons and 
two daughters. He died about 1750. His 
wife lived till 1 794, and died at Bethlehem, aged 
ninety-two. Joseph was born December 27, 

1696, went to Litchfield in 17 18 or 17 19, 
married (1721) Dorcas N orto n, daughter of 
John Norton, Jr., and of Ruth Moore, his 
wife (who was a daughter of Deacon Isaac 
Moore), all of Farmington; removed to Salis- 
bury, 1748, lost his wife, Dorcas, in 1750- 
51, married widow Eldredge, 1752, by 
whom he had one daughter. He died 1754. 
He had seven sons and three daughters — 
Jonathan was born December 28, 1699, mar- 
ried Hannah Thomson 1732, had three sons 
and four daughters, died in Kensington, 1748, 
worth 1,600 pounds. 

(V) — Joseph, son of Samuel, was born 
1736, had three wives and many children. 
Sons of John, Joseph and Jonathan: (i) Of 
John — Seth, Ebenezer, Atwood and Jonathan. 
Seth was born January 4, 1733, married sec- 
ond wife, Hannah Sheldon, February 8, 1768, 
one surviving son; died 1805 at Litchfield, 
South Farms. He was a physician of consid- 
erable eminence. Ebenezer was born 1739, 
married about 1773, died Bethlehem 1789. 
Left four sons — Amos, David, Ebenezer and 
Daniel. Atwood, born about 1741, was mar- 
ried twice, died Verona, N. Y. — a man re- 
markable for his integrity. He had one son 
by first wife; had eight children by his second. 
One by the name of Chauncey was supposed, 



in 1855, to be still living. Jonathan, born 
1 743, married Amy Humphrey about 1777; had 
two sons and four daughters; died 1786, in 
Simsbury, Conn. , aged forty-three. Was a 
physician. The daughter left children by the 
names of Bodwell, Everett and Goodwin. (2) 
Sons of Joseph (V) — James (VI), Joseph and 
Amos. James (VI) was born in Litchfield, 
1722; married Abigail Gridley, of Kensington, 
1750; had two sons and three daughters; died 
in Salisbury, September 28, 1794, aged 
seventy-two; his wife died 181 5, aged eighty- 
four. Of his three daughters, Dorcas married 
Col. Noah Lee, of Castleton, Vt. ; Abigail 
married D. Mcintosh; and Eunice, (first) J. 
Lord, fsecond) William Mather, a physician of 
Torringford, Conn. All have numerous de- 
scendents. Joseph, born in Litchfield, June 18, 
1733; married Huldah Sprague; had six sons and 
six daughters intermarried respectively with 
Messrs. Garfield, Herrick, Chapin, Fowler 
and Curtis. Amos was born in Litchfield, 
May 13, 1 741; married Hannah Swift, of Sal- 
isbury; died greatly respected, in Castleton, 
Vt., 1773, leaving a young daughter, Dorcas, 
who married William Holabird, of Canaan, 
Conn. (3) Son of Jonathan — Jonathan born 
Avon, 1747; graduated Yale college, 1768; 

married Hogeboom; lost son and wife 

early; died 181 3 in Hebron, Conn., was a 
preacher and physician. 

(VI)— Benjamin (son of Joseph, of Samuel) 
was born October 23, 1780; married Deborah 
Carrington, 1801; had two sons and three 
daughters. The daughters married, respect- 
ively, Messrs. Cloyes, Hammond and Lewis. 
Benjamin still lives. His residence is in Plain- 
ville, Conn. (II) Grandsons of John, of Litch- 
field — (I) John of Seth; born Litchfield, 1769; 
graduated Yale College, 1786; married (first) 
Eunice, daughter of Col. J'oshua Porter, of 
Salisbury, (second) Sally Buell, of Litchfield; 
had two sons; died Troy, N. Y., 1806, aged 
thirty-seven. He was a lawyer and politician. 
(2) Sons of Ebenezer, of John, viz. : Amos, 
David, Ebenezer and Daniel. Amos was born 
Bethlehem, June 13, 1774; married Miss Cook, 
of Wallingford, 1797; now (1855) living in 
New Haven, Vt. ; has had three sons and six 
daughters; one son living; the daughters mar- 
ried into the names of Ballou, Washburn and 
Hinman. David born in Bethlehem 1776^ 
married Elizabeth Church about 1797; both 
died in 1849, aged seventy-three. They had 
ten children: Three of the daughters took the 



470 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



names of Gaylord, Thompson and Loomis. 
Ebenezer was bom June 6, 1778, married Lois 
Barber, 1S06; had five sons, among whom were 
Daniel, Ebenezer M. and Newton, and six 
daughters. Four of the latter married Thomp- 
son. Eddy, Gregory and Crowley, Ebenezer 
lives in Victory, Cayuga Co., N. Y. Daniel, 
supposed in 1855 to be still living near his 
children at Prairie Ronde, Kalamazoo Co., 
Mich., has two sons and three daughters. One 
of the daughters married \V. B. Austin, of New 
York. 131 Son of Atwood, viz.: Chauncey 
married in Farmington, resided a while in 
Litchfield: afterward removed his family to 
some part of Onondaga county, N. Y. , and in 
1838 to Michigan. (Another son of Atwood 
married in Farmington, and lived in Cincin- 
nati, where he died. He was wealthy, and 
left a son supposed to be living in 1855 in New 
York City.) (41 Son of Jonathan, of John, 
viz.: Jonathan, born Simsbury, 1775; married 
Betsey Grinnell, of Greenfield. Mass. ; had 
three sons and one daughter; died Greenfield, 
Mass., 18 13, aged thirty-seven. 

The grandsons of Joseph (V) of Litchfield 
and Salisbury, (i) The two sons of James 
(VI), viz. : Thomas and Isaac i VII 1. — Thomas, 
son of James, was born Salisbury, April 22, 
1754; married Betsey Chamberlin, 1777, of 
South Canaan, Conn. ; had five sons and three 
daughters. The daughters married Messrs. 
Dibble, Rockwell and Collamer, of Sandy 
Hill, N. Y. Isaac, brother of Thomas; born 
May 5, 1757; married Rhoda Selleck, of Salis- 
bury, February 28, 1780; had four sons and 
three daughters. He died Salisbury, January 
16, 1829. His daughters married Messrs. 
Covey, of Penfield, N. Y., Wheeler, of Salis- 
bury, Conn., and Reed, of Bethany, Penn. . 
respectively. 

(2) Three sons of Joseph, of Tyringham, 
Mass. — (i) Moore was born October 22, 1756: 
married Delavergne, of Amenia, N. Y. ; had 
four sons and two daughters; died in Amenia. 
His daughter, Julia, married Hiram Brown. 
(2) Joseph was born August 8, 1759; married 
Cynthia Binney: had five sons and four daugh- 
ters. He is still living in Bristol, Vt. His 
daughters married into the names of Keeler, 
Foote and Eastman. (3) Nathaniel was born 
in Salisbury. 1761; married Hannah Ballard; 
lived in North Marlboro; removed to Westfield, 
N. Y., 1 8 16; had five sons and six or seven 



daughters. 



He died at his daughter Foster's 



house, near Buffalo, while on a visit. His 



daughters married into families named — Ma- 
comber, Foster, Sessions and Heminway, re- 
spectively. 

(\\\) — (i) Son of Benjamin — George, bcrn 
March 10, 1802; married first Elizabeth Stan- 
ley, of Plainville, second Miranda Munson, of 
Plymouth; resides New Haven, Conn., has 
daughter, Sarah Ely, and a son, Norton Stan- 
ley. (2) Great-grandsons of John of Litch- 
field. — (I) Sons of John, of Troy, son of Dr. 
Seth, of Litchfield, viz: John Herman, born 
1790; was killed on board the frigate "Presi- 
dent " by a ball from the "Belvidere," June 23, 
18 1 2. William A., born 1797; has two sons 
and two daughters; resides at Black Rock, near 
Buffalo, N. Y. (2) Sons of Amos, David, 
Ebenezer and Daniel of Generation VI. — 
Canfield, son of Amos, of New Haven, Vt. ; 
born February, 1803; married Elizabeth 
Washburn, of Leominster, N. H., December 
30, 1S28; has three sons and four daughters; 
resides in New Haven, Vt. — Harmon, son of 
David, of Bethlehem, Conn.; born August, 
1798; married November, 1823; one son, 
James. — Joshua, of David; born May 21, 1800; 
married Carol Jackson September 5, 1822; 
children — five sons and three daughters: reside 
in Bethlehem, Conn. — David, of David, born 
March 11, 1804; married Miss Phelps about 
1835; one son and one daughter; resides in 
Winchester, Conn. — Daniel, son of Ebenezer, 
of Victory; born March 20, 1819; married 
Mary Thompson, .August, 1840. — Ebenezer 
M., do. ; born October 25, 1821: married Eliza 
Barney, 1846. — Newton L., do.: born Decem- 
ber 4, 1826; married Mary Ann Martin, .Au- 
gust, 1845. — Sons of Daniel, of Michigan; two 
in number: names unknown; reside in Prairie 
Ronde, in Michigan. (3) Sons of Chauncey, 
unknown. 141 Sons of Jonathan, son of Dr. 
Jonathan, of Simsbury; these are George, 
Jonathan and Edward, residing in Belleville, 
New Jersey. 

The great-grandsons of Joseph , of Litchfield 
and Salisbury: (i) Son of Thomas, son of 
James, of Salisbury; Orren, born in 1794, died 
1S24, Sandy Hill, left one son. (2) Sons of 
Isaac (VII I of James: James i VIII ;, born Janu- 
arj- 27, 1785; married Susan Dauchy; five sons 
and five daughters; died in Kirkwood, N. Y. , 
January 25, 1865. His daughters are all mar- 
ried. Isaac, born June 19. 1793. graduated 
Yale College, 1816; a minister; married -Ann 
Parker, of New Hampshire, November, 1822; 
ten children — six living, two sons and four 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



471 



daughters; resides in Hartford, Conn. ; died 
Great Barrington. Mass., May or June, 1876, 
at the Sedgewick Institute, of which he and 
his son, James Bird, A. M., were successful | 
principals many j'ears previous to, and at the j 
time of, his dearh. 

(3) Sons of Moore, of Amenia, N. Y. : Au- 
gustus, removed to West Michigan, near Kal- 
amazoo; died leaving a family; Henry resides 
in Amenia with a family; has two sons married. 
(4) Sons of Joseph, of New Haven, Vt. : 
H Thomas had two sons and four daughters; 
died Canton, N. Y. — Gustavus A., born about 
1 791; graduated Middleton College, 1812; had 
one son and two daughters; died in Missouri. 
One daughter, Jane, married Lorenzo D., son 
of Nath. Bird, of Westfield. Frederic A. had 
eight sons and one daughter. The daughter 
married H. Dorrance, Rutland, Vt. The sur- 
viving sons are Roderick D., Myron L. , Charles 
L. , Edwin, Riley and Dr. Amos, supposed 
without family. Anson is in New Haven, Vt. ; 
has two sons, James and Joseph. 

(5) Sons of Nathaniel, of Joseph, of Tyring- 
ham, Mass. : Amos, went from N. Marboro 
to Westfield, N. Y., 1812; married Mary Grif- 
fith, 1814; died 1823. Surviving children — 
two sons and one daughter. Frederick mar- 
ried Lovisa Warren about 1823; died 1844; 
left seven children; two sons in California; a 
married daughter and the remaining children 
with their mother at Warrenville. Ira R. was 
married, 1834, to Caroline Beecher, niece of 
Dr. Lyman Beecher; died 1841; two surviving 
children — Lorenzo D. , born 181 3; graduated 
Yale College, 1839; went to Missouri, 1842; 
married Jane, daughter of Gustavus Bird, of 
St. Genevieve, Mo., practicing law in Weston, 
a town 400 miles up the Missouri river. Charles 
Lee, born 18 16; married Ellen Kent; has one 
son; has lately gone to California with his 
family. 

fVIII) — fi) Children of George, of New 
Haven, Conn.: Susan E. , Norton S., and 
perhaps others. Two children of William A., 
of Black Rock: John H., a physician in Chi- 
cago; another son educated at Union College. 
Two other children, daughters. (3) Children 
of Canfield, of Vermont: Julia, born in New 
Haven, July 6, 1S30; Amos Cook, born Octo- 
ber 14, 1832; Ellen Sophia, born December 

II, 1834; James , born in Richland, 

Mich., February 16, 1837; Elijah Washburn, 
born in New Haven, September 30, 1840; 
Emma Melinda, June 26, 1845; Mary Eliza- 



beth, November 16, 184S. (4) Son of Har- 
mon, of Bethlehem: James. (5) Children of 
Joshua, of Bethlehem: Andrew Jackson, born 
November 28, 1823, died in 1824; Theodore, 
June 8, 1825, married Eliza, daughter of Rev. 
F. Harrison, October 9, 1849; Elizabeth Mary, 
born October 9, 1826; Samuel Jackson, born 
August 7, 1828; David, died young; Stanton, 
born July 3, 1833; Caroline Martha, born Oc- 
tober 19, 1837; Sarah Imogene, born June 26, 
1840. — Son of David, of Winchester, Sterling. 

(6) Grandchildren of Daniel, of Michigan. 

(7) Grandchildren of Chauncey, who moved 
from Litchfield to Onondaga and to Michigan. 

(8) Son of Orren, of Sandy Hill. (9) Henry, 
of Isaac, of Salisbury, has a widow remaining, 
and a daughter married E. N. Hart, of Still- 
water, N. Y. (10) Children of Agustus and 
Henry, sons of Moore, of Amenia, N. Y. ; the 
former are in Michigan, the latter in Amenia. 
(11) Children of Thomas, son of Joseph, of 
IBristol, Vt. : One son, Joseph, and four daugh- 
ters, now living near Canton, N. Y. (12) 
Children of Gustavus A., of St. Genevieve: 
One son and two daughters; one of these 
daughters married Lorenzo D. Bird, son of 
Nathaniel. (13) Children of Frederick A.: 
Eight sons and one daughter, viz. : Rhoderick 
D., of Waynesburg, Greene Co., Penn. ^who 
has a son and daughter), Myron L., Charles 
L. , and as before mentioned M. L. and C. L. , 
have gone to California. (14) Children of 
Anson, viz.: James, and Joseph, New Haven, 
Vt. (151 Children of Amos, of Nathaniel, of 
Westfield, viz. : Philander, merchant, Roscoe, 
III. ; Nelson, of Chautauqua county, a farmer. 

His daughter married Boilvin, of Peoria. 

(16) Children of Frederick: Byron B., and 
Edwin, in California; Ellen D., married to a 
physician — with Henry and three daughters 
all in Warrenville, 111. (171 Children of Ira 
R. : Two only survive, viz. : Franklin ( a printer 1, 
western Missouri, and William w-ent to Cali- 
fornia and China. 

(IX) — Children of James, son of Isaac, of 
Salisbury: Ripley, Virgil, Henrietta married 
B. Cook, Annis married Eliza Leach, Isaac, 
Celestia married John Leach, James, Sarah 
married J. Woodruff, Marion married M. 
Langdon, George, all born in Salisbury. The 
family homestead is now in Conklin, near 
Binghamton, N. Y. (10) Children of Isaac, 
son of Isaac, viz. : William, born on the island 
of Malta, August, 1823; graduated Dartmouth 
College, 1844, married Sarah F. Gordon, of 



472 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPBICAL BECORB. 



Exeter, N. H., February, 1853, resides near 
Beirut, Sj'ria; Emily Ann, born Beirut, 1825; 
married Rev. H. J. \'an Lennep, of Constan- 
tinople. Turkey, April, 1850; James, born 
Beirut, 1826; Martha Jane, born Malta; Mary 
E., born Beirut; Caroline, born in Smyrna. 
(IX) It will be seen from the foregoing that a 
few representatives of the ninth generation 
had begun to appear at the time of the prepar- 
ation of the record, among them Virgil Bird, 
the second son of James, of Salisbury. (X) The 
children of Virgil and Ruhamer Bird. (XI) 
The children of Cora C. and Myron E. Gil- 
lette: Eva May, December 20, 1883. (2) 
Children of Henry P. and Daisy Bird (none). 
<3) Children of James E. and Grace Bird: 
Isaac Knox, born July 20, 1896. 

Of the other branches of the family the 
record, rapidly widening, is not yet written. 
Of the early ancestors, a few incidents of more 
than ordinary importance should be noted 
here. The name of Thomas Bird appears in 
different records of Massachusetts, and some 
have isuggested that Thomas B., of Scituate, 
and of Dorchester, Mass., of 1642, might be 
the same man with our ancestor of Hartford. 
But the Dorchester Birds seem to have been of 
a separate origin. Of that family are many 
of the Birds in Boston and New York, and of 
the same was the Rev. Samuel Bird, a pastor 
of one of the New Haven churches, just before 
the Revolution, and who, though he did not 
graduate, was educated at Cambridge, in the 
class of 1744, leaving college a little before 
the commencement that year. Thomas Bird 
came to Hartford some ten years after its first 
settlement, and was proprietor only of a small 
homestead south of the city limits, and of a par- 
cel of land of about fourteen acres, constitut- 
ing, as the records say, " an island in the great 
river over against the Landing." Whether he 
removed with his sons to Farmington, or 
remained and died in Hartford, is unknown. 
It is remarkable how the male descendants of 
Joseph, son of Thomas, have been, in the 
providence of God, removed. He appears to 
have but three of these representatives remain- 
ing now alive, one in the VI Generation, one 
in the VII, and one in the VIII. 

Thomas (Generation III) was the only 
male heir of his father, and was possessed of 
an estate valued at 550 pounds, a sum which 
constituted riches in those days. As Noah 
occupied the place of the second great head of 
the Human family, so this second Thomas 



Bird stands as the great second head of nearly 

all the families of Birds. 

John and Joseph (Generation IV), sons of 
Thomas, seem to have been men of unusual 
enterprise. They were pioneers in the settle- 
ment of Litchfield, and were among the chief 
town officers. The two home lots of land, 
that fell to them in the town, are still pointed 
out S. S. E. of the present village, they being 
designated on a map published within a few 
jears, with a pamphlet, by G. C. Woodruff, 
Esq.. of Litchfield. John went on in specula- 
tion in lands farther west. He was one of 
the company known by the name of The Little 
Nine Partners, who purchased lands extending 
from the Connecticut line to the North river. 
This company became involved, and unable to 
meet the demands of their creditors, and John, 
overcome by his disappointments, died, it is 
said, in a state of mental derangement. He 
built a stone house in Dover on land, probably, 
which he owned as one of the company, 
which house is supposed to be still standing. 
Joseph must have obtained some addition to 
his means by his marriage. Deacon Isaac 
Moore, one of the wealthiest farmers in Farm- 
ington, had four children, all daughters. Ruth 
was married to John Norton, Jr., son of a 
very respectable settler, lately come from 
Branford. Dorcas, the youngest daughter of 
this connection, became the wife of Joseph 
Bird. She was sister of Thomas, father of 
Lot Norton, the elder, of Salisbury. Joseph, 
in ten years, while in Litchfield, was chosen 
nine times to the General Court or State Leg- 
islature, and was at his death a justice of the 
Quorum. His grave in Salisbury is marked by 
a tombstone of Italian marble, lately erected 
by the children of his grandson Isaac. 

Dr. Seth Bird (of the V Generation) was 
one of the most skillful physicians of his time. 
It is said of him that he lived on very intimate 
and friendly terms with one of the neighboring 
physicians, so that they were in the habit of 
generously recommending to each other, their 
own patients, whenever one thought the other 
to be more skillful in the cure of any particular 
complaint. He has a marble monument in the 
cemetery of Litchfield, S. Farms, erected to 
his memory by his son John. 

Jonathan Bird, of Simsbury, brother of 
Seth, was a physician, and, as it appears, a 
Freemason. There is said to be extant a 
eulogy on his character, prepared after his 
death, and on his tombstone is this inscription: 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



473 



In memory of Dr. Jonathan Bird, who (after 
exhibiting a striking example of Philosophic 
Patience and Fortitude through a distressing 
illness) departed this life on the i/th of De- 
cember, A. D. , 1786, in the forty-third year 
of his age. 

FAITH. HOPE. CHARITY. 

Stop, brother, and impart a generous sigh, 
0\r one in prime called to resign his breath ; 

Since all your social band this scene must try. 
Square all your work before the hour of 
death. 

Jonathan, son of Jonathan, son of Thomas, 
was educated at Yale College, graduated 1768; 
he studied for the ministry, and became a 
preacher about 1773, though he never was or- 
dained, and of course is never called by the 
name of "Reverend." His brethren in the 
ministry called him a good preacher, and it is 
related of him, that, happening late in life to 
be in Boston, Dr. Grififin took him and would 
have him preach to his people. He addressed 
them a number of times in the course of a 
week, and they were so well pleased and so 
much profited that they presented him with a 
new suit of clothes. He was a sound theo- 
logian, but not an awakening, animated speaker. 
He was embarrassed by deafness, so that, after 
preaching a while, he betook himself to the 
practice of medicine. Near the close of his 
life he prepared a few of his sermons for the 
press, which, under the direction of Rev. Dr. 
Bassett, of Hebron, appeared, in a small vol- 
ume, after his decease. He had had two or 
three occasional sermons published previously, 
and was the author of an article in the Boston 
Panoplist, on Infidelity, it being the substance 
of a letter actually written and sent to one of 
his nieces in Hartford in 181 1. [See Pano- 
plist, February, 1873.] His place of resi- 
dence, at the time he died, was Conway, 
Mass., but his death occurred in the family of 
his friend. Rev. Dr. Bassett, at whose house 
he happened to be on a visit when he was 
overtaken by his last illness. He had lost 
both his brothers and his only son, and with 
him expired his father's male branch of the 
family. 

It seems a matter of some doubt whether 
there was not another son of John Bird be- 
longing to this IV Generation, whose name is 
doubtful, and does not appear in this sketch. 
The following are the words of William A. 



Bird, Esq., of Black Rock, son of John and 
grandson of Dr. Seth, of Litchfield: "In re- 
lation to the brother of my grandfather, who 
went to Philadelphia, my mother knew very 
well that such a brother resided there. Will- 
iam, I think his name was. Dr. Seth, she 
told me, once went to see him, and my father 
once met a son of his in New York, when he 
was in the Legislature in New York, say in 
1796." May not this be the same case as that 
mentioned by Gen. David B., of Bethlehem, 
who says that Atwood B. had a son (name un- 
known), who went to Cincinnati [Philadel- 
phia.'], became rich and died, and has a son 
now living in New York.' Of the Generation 
just spoken of was Amos, son of Joseph, 
whose short life may merit a few special re- 
marks. He is spoken of as a man of great 
enterprise, and was the leader in commencing 
the settlement of the town of Castleton, in 
Vermont, near which a prominent mountain 
still bears and perpetuates his name. The 
settlement was yet in its infancy when it 
pleased the Lord to remove him, and the first 
products of the first sawmill, which he had 
erected there, were made use of for his coffin. 
On a new monument, lately placed over his 
remains, were the following inscriptions: 

(In front.) 

Erected October ip, i8.f.2, to the memory of 

Col. A mos Bird, 

By citizens of Castleton, and friends, as a 

tribute of respect to a ivorthy man. 

Born at Litchfield, Conn., 

and died September 16, 1772, aged ^^o years. 

(On one side.) 

Col. Birdzvas the first white man who as- 
serted dominion in Castleton, zvhere he arrived 
in January, 1766. He was the first possessor 
of the soil for civilisation, and the first called 
to resign it, leaving the fruits of his bold en- 
terprise to others. 

(On the east side.) 

Tlie mortal remains of Col. Bird were first 
interred by his direction, near his dwelling in 
the valley of Bird Creek, and after seventy 
years disinterred and here entombed to zuait 
the summons that azcakes the dead. 

It may be added here that the settlement 
of the town was continued by Noah (after- 



474 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



ward Col. i Lee, who married Bird's niece, a 
daughter of James, and who had accompanied 
him in his enterprise. Lee entered into the 
war of the Revolution, which broke out about 
this time, and there continued to its close. 
At his own expense he raised a company of 
"Green Mountain I^oys, " and acted for a time 
in concert with Ethan Allen. He was after- 
ward at the battles of Trenton, Princeton and 
Germantown, and witnessed the surrender of 
Lord Cornwallis. He died at Castleton, 1840, 
aged ninety-si.x years, leaving a large number 
of descendants. 

John B., of the Si.xth Generation, son of 
Dr. Seth, was the second of the descendants 
of Thomas, of Hartford, who was educated at 
college. He read law, it is believed, in Salis- 
bury, Conn., where he had relatives. After 
this he resided in Litchfield for a time, and 
then removed to Troy, where he was chosen 
repeatedly to the State Legislature, and after- 
ward to Congress. He died suddenly at the 
early age of thirty-seven. He is universally 
spoken of, by those who knew him, as a man 
of extraordinary powers of mind. 

Chauncey, son of Atwood, had the reputa- 
tion among his Litchfield neighbors of possess- 
ing very eminent natural gifts, not falling, if 
any, in this respect, much behind his cousin 
John. But Chauncey had not the advantages 
of education enjoyed by John, and his line of 
life was not such as to bring him before the 
public. Of his later history we have very lit- 
tle information. He is supposed to be still 
alive, and somewhere in the State of Michigan. 

Isaac, son of James, enlisted about the age 
of eighteen under Col. Burrall, of Canaan, in 
the Revolutionary army of the North against 
the Canadas. The smallpox having broken 
out in the army, he was among the number 
that had to be inoculated. In connection with 
this disease he was seized with remarkable 
swellings, which greatly debilitated him, and 
in this condition, by a reverse in the fortunes 
of the army, he was left, with many other sick 
men, to shift for himself, and he resolved to 
attempt finding his way to his sister's (Mrs. 
Noah Lee's) in Castleton. This he succeeded 
in accomplishing, and after begging his bread 
through many weary days and nights of travel, 
he at length presented himself at the door of 
the log cabin, in the complete habit and con- 
dition of a common mendicant. Here, how- 
ever, he had all the aid which a sister's care, 
in a new settlement, could offer; but his re- 



covery was too slow and too imperfect to en- 
able him to return to the army. Joseph, son 
of Joseph, of Tyringham, witfi one exception 
was, in 1855, the only living representative of 
the Generation to which he belonged. He was 
one of those men to whom we owe so much 
for having, at the expense of great suffering, 
and hazard of life, defended our liberties and 
achieved our national independence. He en- 
listed in the army in 1776 and spent the sum- 
mer at Ticonderoga, and in autumn, in com- 
pany with others, was discharged. He soon 
after enlisted for three years, or during the 
war, and went during the campaign of 1777 as 
an attendant of Dr. Binney, of Tyringham, 
whose daughter he afterward married. He 
was in the field at the various battles with 
Burgoyne. When Gen. Frazier was killed, 
and Maj. Ackland wounded and taken pris- 
oner, the latter was brought to Joseph Bird's 
tent, and there it was that Lady Harriet, of 
whose character Burgoyne himself has given 
so affecting a description, came and nursed 
him. After the surrender of Burgoyne, the 
soldiers of the Northern army were sent to 
unite with forces of Washington at Valley 
Forge, and Bird went with them. When Gen. 
Clinton commenced his march from Philadel- 
phia toward New York, the Americans moved 
also to attack him in the rear. The account 
that follows is in the language of Roderick D. 
Bird, of Waynesburg, Penn., grandson of Jos- 
eph. "My grandfather," he says, "was sent 
with a detachment of 2,000 men on the east 
road, and another detachment of 2,000 men 
was sent on the west road to harass the enemy 
until the main army arrived. On Saturday, 
June 27, Gen. Lee joined us at Monmouth 
with 2,000 men, and orders to attack Clinton's 
army. At that point, our army retreated. The 
British followed until Washington came up 
and commanded to file to the right and left. 
My grandfather was with the left wing. At 
this period the cannon began to boom on both 
sides, which lasted from one and a half to two 
hours. Grandfather says he caught a number 
of cannon balls in his camp-kettle as they 
rolled upon the ground. The first that he saw 
coming in that way a young soldier put out his 
foot to stop, which dislocated his ankle. About 
I o'clock the British right wing undertook to 
tlank our left. Col. Selby called for volunteers 
to turn it. Grandfather went with others and 
turned it, and charged and drove them back. 
In this charge he received a wound. The 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



475 



contending parties were not more than one or 
two rods apart. He was shot through the left 
arm, the ball breaking the bone and leaving a 
detached fragment of about one inch in length. 
The ball then penetrated his left side, and re- 
mains there to this day. He says he well re- 
members his sensations when the ball hit him. 
It beat his breath from him, and he staggered 
a while and fell. When he came to he was 
lying with his face upward exposed to the rays 
of the burning sun; he supposed he had simply 
been asleep, but soon found that he was 
wounded. That night he was taken with 
others to Monmouth church, where his wound 
was dressed. He was then carried to Eliza- 
bethtown, where he was left, through a dreary 
night, in a barn, having for his companions 
the wounded and dying. He suffered most for 
want of water, and they had no light. The next 
day they were taken in wagons to Princeton 
College, where he remained, having the best 
of treatment." He was considered unfit to re- 
sume the duties of the army until October, 
'79, when he rejoined his regiment at West 
Point, and was subsequently employed, with- 
out any very important military occurrence, in 
protecting the inhabitants of the Mohawk Val- 
ley from the incursions of the British and 
Indians. 

Benjamin Bird, of Connecticut, and Joseph 
Bird, of Vermont, are now the only living 
members of the Generation VI; the one de- 
scended from the elder of the two sons of 
Thomas, of Hartford, the other from the 
younger. 

It is worthy of remark, that while the liv- 
ing male members of the family, who stand as 
guardians of the name, scarcely exceed, if they 
even reach, the number of fifty; the descend- 
ants of the female lines probably far exceed a 
thousand. As we look back upon these sev- 
eral past generations that have risen and fallen 
in quick succession, we are forcibly reminded 
of the rapid flight of time and the shortness of 
life. " We have here no continuing city." The 
generations of men have been aptly compared 
with the waves of the sea. They rise and roll 
on, each urging his predecessor forward, till, 
one after another, they dash upon the shore 
and disappear. We ourselves are pressed on 
by the resistless tide behind, and there is no 
escape for us more than for others. But there 
is a sea, and there is a shore, where no surg- 
ing and dashing and disappearing exist — where 
generations of all ages mingle in harmony and 



rest, and if our days are but spent in ' ' Wis- 
dom's ways," 

They'll waft us safely o'er 

Tfiis life's tempestuous sea. 
And soon we'll reach the peaceful shore 

Of blest eternity. 



PATRICK ROGERS is numbered among 
the stalwart and substantial citizens of 

the town of Dover, Dutchess county, who are 
of alien birth. He is a native of County Ca- 
van, Ireland, where he secured his education, 
and there followed farming until emigrating to 
the United States in 1846. He is the son of 
Peter Rogers, whose birth also occurred on 
the Emerald Isle, and his mother bore the 
maiden name of Miss Mary Riley. In their 
family were six children: John; Hugh and 
Peter, who never married; Patrick; Mary, who 
became the wife of James McCarty; and Ann, 
who married John Clark. 

On reaching the New World, our subject 
located in New York City, where he married 
Miss Margaret Rogers, also of Ireland, who 
came to America in 1863. From that city 
they removed to their farm in the town of 
Dover, where they now reside. They have 
been blessed with seven children: John, born 
October 9, 1864, married Kate Sheehan; Pat- 
rick, born July 4, 1S67, married Mattie Kin- 
nie, by whom he has one son. Hall; Peter, 
born April i, 1869, wedded Mary Hacy; Mary, 
born April 6, 1 871, is the wife of John Bridge- 
ford, by whom she has one child, Leo; Mar- 
garet, born May 15, 1874, Catharine, born 
September 12, 1878, and Thomas, born Janu- 
ary 10, 1883, are all at home. 

Charles Rogers, the grandfather of the wife 
of our subject, was born, reared and educated 
in Ireland, where he followed weaving in con- 
nection with agricultural pursuits. In his fam- 
ily were five children: Philip, who married 
Catharine Lynch; Lawrence, who married 
Margaret McCall; Thomas, who married Mary 
Lynch; John, the father of Mrs. Patrick Rog- 
ers; and Patrick, who married Elizabeth Riley. 

John Rogers, like his ancestors, was born 
and educated on the Emerald Isle, where, dur- 
ing manhood, he carried on the pursuit of 
farming. He married Miss Ann Martin, daugh- 
ter of Patrick and Ann Martin, of the same 
country, and seven children were born to them: 
Patrick, who married Catharine McBrean; 
Thomas, who also married a Catharine Mc- 



476 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Brean, no relative, however, of his broth- 
er's wife; Mary, who remained single; Cath- 
arine, who married Philip McBrean; Ann, who 
married Patrick Boyle; Margaret, who married 
Patrick Rogers, subject of this sketch; and 
John, who married Mary Coonie. 



CHARLES H. SHURTER, a public-spirited 
and enterprising citizen of Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, whose place of business is 
located at No. 368 Main street, is engaged in 
plumbing and gas fitting, and also deals in hard- 
ware and house-furnishing goods. He is car- 
rying on a successful and well-established busi- 
ness, occupying an important place among the 
various industries of that thriving cit}', and 
conducted on strictly honest principles. He 
is looked up to as a useful and honorable citi- 
zen, one who takes a commendable interest in 
the welfare and progress of his city and county. 

Mr. Shurter was born March 28, 1836, in 
Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and is a son of Isaac H. 
Shurter, whose birth occurred in Fishkill, 
Dutchess county. His great-grandfather came 
to the New World from Holland, and located 
upon a farm in Ulster county, N. Y., where 
Frederick Shurter, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born. After his marriage the latter 
located in the town of Fishkill, Dutchess coun- 
ty, where he followed farming, and reared his 
five children. 

In early life Isaac H. Shurter learned the 
shoemaker's trade, and in the town of Fishkill 
was united in marriage with Miss Clorinda 
Wheeler, a native of that township, born of 
French descent. The young couple removed 
to Poughkeepsie in 1832, where for about five 
years the father engaged in the grocery busi- 
ness, and then began boot making, in which 
line he continued for a number of years. He 
was called from life in 1875, his wife in 1872. 
They were conscientious, earnest Christians, 
and for about thirty-five years had been mem- 
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Dur- 
ing his later years the father was an ardent 
Republican. 

Charles H. Shurter attended the first free 
school ever held in Poughkeepsie, and after 
finishing his education, about the year 1850, 
began to learn the tinsmith's trade, which oc- 
cupation he followed until 1876. At that time 
he formed a partnership with George H. Briggs 
in the hardware trade, being located at No. 
368 Main street, where he still carries on busi- 



ness. In 1868 he married Miss Mary Kidney, 
a native of Poughkeepsie, and a daughter of 
Charles and Maria Kidney, the former of whom 
was a leading liveryman of Poughkeepsie, and 
belonged to a family that was early established 
in Dutchess count}-. In January, 1892, our 
subject was called upon to mourn the loss of 
his wife, a most estimable lady. 

Politically, Mr. Shurter votes the straight 
Democratic ticket, and he is now a member of 
the water board of Poughkeepsie. He was 
one of the seven men who organized the O. 
H. Booth Fire Company, in 1853, since which 
kime he has been actively connected with it, 
and has held all the positions in the same, be- 
ing foreman eight jears, chief of the fire de- 
partment three years, and twenty years a rep- 
resentative of the company, which position he 
still holds. He is a member of the Order of 
American Firemen, was the first president of 
the local organization, and is now past presi- 
dent. For twenty-nine years he has been 
trustee of the local lodge of the I. O. O. F., 
is a member of the Encampment, and also 
belongs to the Sons of Temperance. To Trin- 
ity Church he and his faithful wife were lib- 
eral contributors. 



CHAPPELL ROBINSON, a well-known 
agriculturist of the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county, started in life with nothing 
save his own indomitable energy, and his ac- 
cumulation of this world's goods is attributable 
to his good judgment, perseverance and indus- 
try. His word in business transactions is con- 
sidered as good as his bond, and he is justly 
recognized as one of the energetic and repre- 
sentative citizens of Stanford. 

In the town of Kent, Putnam Co., N. Y., 
our subject was born November 23, 18 16. 
There his grandfather, Chappell Robinson, 
with two brothers, had located at an early 
day, and he continued to make the town of 
Kent his home until late in life, when he re- 
moved to Tompkins county, where his death 
occurred. By occupation he was a farmer. 
He wedded Miss Mary Sprague, by whom he 
had five children: Stephen, Sabins, Squire, 
Mary and Eli. 

Stephen Robinson, the father of our sub- 
ject, was also a native of the town of Kent, 
Putnam county, where his education was ac- 
quired in the common schools, and he there 
married Martha Kelly, daughter of Seth Kelly. 




{/,^:fjpLJ^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



477 



To them were born thirteen children, namely: 
Chappell, Seth Kelly, Osborn, Enos, Emily, 
Zillah, Jarvis, Ada, Nathaniel, Priscilla, Rob- 
ert, Catherine and William. The father en- 
gaged in farming in his native township until 
1836, when he removed to the town of Stan- 
ford, Dutchess county, where he followed the 
same pursuit for several years. The following 
twelve years were passed at Lithgow, in the 
town of Washington, Dutchess county, after 
which he returned to Stanford town, where he 
died in February, 1876, at the ripe old age of 
eighty years. He had served as a soldier in 
the war of i8i2, and was a faithful Republic- 
an in politics. 

The early life of our subject was passed 
upon the home farm in the town of Kent, 
where he attended the district schools, and he 
remained a member of his father's household 
until he attained his majority, when he started 
out for himself as a farm hand, working in 
that way some three years. On December 13, 
1845, he was united in marriage with Miss 
Mary Bunnel, a daughter of Levi and Lois 
(Mosherl Bunnel, the former of whom was a 
native of Hyde Park, Dutchess county, and 
was descended from Connecticut Yankees. 
To our subject and his wife were born four 
children, namely: Charles H. and Enos, who 
died in infancy; Henrietta, who became the 
wife of Seth K. Winans; and Ida, who mar- 
ried Almon Harrison. Mr. Robinson began 
his domestic life upon a farm near Stanford- 
ville, where he lived until March, 1880, since 
which time he has resided upon his present 
farm. His time and attention have always been 
devoted to general farming, and he has met 
with a well-deserved success in his undertak- 
ings. During the three years he was employed 
by others, when a young man, he never lost 
but seven days time, six being spent in train- 
ing (or he would have been fined) and the 
other in attending a political celebration at 
Poughkeepsie. His political allegiance is al- 
ways unfalteringly given the Republican party, 
and he has been called upon to serve as assess- 
or of the town of Stanford. As a citizen of 
the community in which he has so long made 
his home, Mr. Robinson is highly respected, 
enjoying the confidence of his neighbors and a 
wide circle of friends. Since 1840 he has 
been an active member of the Baptist Church 
at Bangall, in which he has served as trustee 
and deacon, and has also been superintendent 
of the Sunday-school. 



GEORGE E. PARKS, owner and propri- 
etor of a general mercantile store at 
Hibernia, in the town of Clinton, is one of the 
promising young business men of Dutchess 
county, where his entire life has been passed. 
His father, Richard J. Parks, was born in 
London, England, June 22, 1833, and is the 
eldest in a family of eight children born to 
Richard and Hannah Parks, also natives of 
that wonderful city. By trade the grandfather 
was a shoemaker, and when his eldest son was 
eighteen years of age he emigrated with his 
family to America, making his first home at 
Poughkeepsie, N. Y. He later became a resi- 
dent of Highland, where his wife died, and he 
passed away while in Poughkeepsie. After 
coming to the New World he continued to fol- 
low his trade of shoemaking. 

In the schools of London the father of our 
subject obtained his literary education, and on 
coming to Dutchess county began working on 
a farm in the town of Washington. Later he 
purchased land in the town of Stanford, which 
he operated for twenty years, on the expiration 
of which he sold out and returned to the town 
of Washington. For thirteen years he was 
engaged in farming there, and he is now living 
in the town of Millbrook, Dutchess county. 
He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, and 
is highly respected by all who know him. In 
Washington town he was united in marriage 
with Hannah Smith, and to them were born 
four children : George E., Charles (who died 
at the age of ten years), Sarah and Robert. 

The birth of George E. Parks occurred 
June 20, i860, in the town of Stanford, where 
his early life was passed in an uneventful man- 
ner, the greater part of the time being spent 
in the school room or in aiding his father in 
the work of the farm. He remained under 
the parental roof until twenty years of age, 
when he took up the profession of teaching, 
which he followed for twelve years, his first 
school being near Bangall ; was then employed 
at Stanfordville, Hibernia, Pleasant Valley, Salt 
Point and Clinton Hollow. In December, 
1894, he started in his present business, in 
which he is meeting with well-deserved suc- 
cess, having secured a large and lucrative trade. 
He is also serving as deputy postmaster of 
Hibernia. 

In the town of Stanford, December 24, 
1884, Mr. Parks was joined in wedlock with- 
Miss Carrie E. Vail, a daughter of George Vail, 
and two children bless their union : Charles 



478 



COMMEMORATrVE BIOGIiAPHICAL RECORD. 



E.. born April 19, 1886; and Roy I., born 
July 17, 1887. Socially, Mr. Parks holds 
membership with the Knights of Pythias lodge 
No. 143, of Poughkeepsie, N. Y. He has made 
a very successful start in life, and by his sys- 
tematic methods of conducting his business, 
his strict attention to it in all its details, and 
his thorough, upright dealings, have already 
made him an honorable record in the business 
world. 



ALFRED VAN WEY, one of the enter- 
prising and wide-awake citizens of Barry- 
town, Dutchess county, has held his present 
position in the employ of the New York Cen- 
tral Railroad Company for thirteen years. 
He is descended from one of the early families 
of Ulster county, N. Y., where his paternal 
grandparents, Henry and Cornelia Van Wey, 
were both born. In their family of five chil- 
dren were Mary, Cornelia and DeWitt. The 
maternal grandparents, Zacharia and Gertrude 
(Near) Cole, were natives of the town of 
Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, and in their 
family were thirteen children, namely: Jacob 
married Catherine Hapeman; Frederick mar- 
ried Sarah Aldridge; Edward L. married Eliza 
Traver; Simon married Julia Broadhead; 
George \V. married Catherine Straut; Eliza 
married John McCurdy; Catherine married 
Charles Riggins; Susan married Henry Batcher; 
Lydia married Alfred Plass; Sarah married 
John Van Etten; Lucy remained single; Delia 
was the mother of our subject; and Margaret 
married F"rank Stickle. 

De Witt \'an Wey, the father of Alfred, 
was born in the town of Rhinebeck, Dutchess 
county, and by trade was a wagonmaker, 
which occupation he followed throughout most 
of his life. He died in 1890. He had mar- 
ried Delia Cole, who was also a native of the 
town of Rhinebeck, and was there educated. 
Two children were born to them: Alfred, the 
subject of this review; and Charles, who wed- 
ded Hattie Traver, by whom he has four chil- 
dren — Ralph, Charles, Marion and Minnie. 

Alfred Van Wey was united in marriage 
with Anna Albers, who was born in New York 
City in 1857, and in its public schools acquired 
a fair education. Two children haye come to 
bless their union: Mildred, born in 1884; and 
Clara, born in 18S5. Mrs. Van Wey is the 
daughter of Christian Albers, who was born in 
Germany. He was an engineer, and on emi- 



grating to the United States first located in 
New York City, where he married Maria Wul- 
pin, also a native of the Fatherland, who had 
come to this country for that purpose. They 
became the parents of five children: Anna, 
wife of our subject; John; Mary, who became 
the wife of Thomas Quillen; Lewis, who mar- 
ried Emma Daily; and Herman, who died in 
infancy. 

Mr. and Mrs. \'an Wey are pleasant, in- 
telligent people, and well deserve the esteem 
and respect of those among whom they make 
their home. Socially, he is prominently iden- 
tified with Christian Lodge, L O. O. F. , of 
Red Hook, and is also a member of Shiloh 
Encampment of the same place. He is a pro- 
gressive and public-spirited citizen, taking a 
commendable interest in the advancement and 
upbuilding of his town and county. 



LOUIS SCHAFER, a well-known business 
man of Dover Plains, Dutchess county, 
where he has been for many years engaged in 
the shoe trade, was born February i, 1844, in 
Brunswick, Germany, which has been the 
home of his ancestors for many generations. 

William Schafer, father of our subject, was 
born there, and received a good education in 
the public schools, and after learning the shoe- 
maker's trade engaged in business there. He 
married Fraulein Sophia Schrieber, and had 
six children: William, who married Sophia 

; Henry, who died in the U. S. army; 

Louis, our subject; Charlotte, who married; 
Anna, who died in infancy; and Sophia, who 
died at the age of twenty-three. 

Our subject's early educational opportuni- 
ties were excellent, and he improved them well 
during boyhood. He learned the shoemaker's 
trade with his father, but his business career 
was interrupted by a compulsory service of 
three years in the German army. At the end 
of his term he obtained a pass and came to 
the United States, locating in Brooklyn, N. Y., 
where he followed his trade for three years. 
In 1872 he moved to Dover Plains, and estab- 
lished his present prosperous business. He 
has always been a Republican in politics, but 
has never aspired to office, and he is a promi- 
nent member of the Baptist Church at Dover 
Plains. In 1872 he was married to Miss Cath- 
erine Miller, and has two children: Albert, 
born November 10, 1875, and Lizzie, born 
December 16, 1879. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



479 



Antonie Miller, Mrs. Schafer's father, is a 
native of Reichshoffen, Alsace-Lorraine (then 
a part of France), and was educated there. 
He was for some time engaged in farming, 
later becoming a tavern-keeper there. His 
wife was Catherine Bruner, daughter of Michael 
and Barbara Bruner, well-to-do farmers of 
Reichshoffen, and they had four children: 
Catherine (Mrs. Schafer); Philomane, who 
married George Durrenburger; Louis, who 
died at the age of twenty-three years; and 
Annie, the wife of Mr. Mower. 



MENRY J. YEOMANS is a wide-awake 
and progressive citizen of the town of 

Unionvale, where he is successfully engaged in 
the operation of his farm. He is a native of 
Greene county, N. Y. , born in Cairo township, 
August 22, 1847, and is a son of William Ira 
Yeomans, whose birth occurred in the same 
place in 1817. There the father attended the 
common schools, and after reaching years of 
maturity turned his attention to farming. On 
November 25, 1846, he married Miss Mary 
Haight, daughter of John and Sarah Haight, 
farming people of Dutchess county. Four 
children were born of thi's union, but with the 
exception of our subject all died when young. 
They were John H., born August 31, 1849; 
Charles W., born May 7, 1852; and Sarah 
Lucinda, born December 30, 1854. The wife 
and mother died in June, 1863, and later the 
father married Mrs. Harriet M. Green. 

William Yeomans, the grandfather of our 
subject, was also a native of Greene county, 
received a district-school education and from 
early life engaged in farming. He married 
Miss Lucinda Blackmer, and they had nine 
children: Leonard; Elisha; George, who mar- 
ried Eliza Haight; Henry, who died unmarried; 
William I.; Hannah, who married Isaac Place; 
Annis, who married Cornell White: Catharine, 
who married John Hill; and Almira, who mar- 
ried Emmer Haight. 

The advantages of our subject for securing 
an education were such as the public schools 
of his native county afforded, and on starting 
out in life for himself he engaged in mercantile 
business. Later he purchased the farm of 
ninety-four acres, of Mary Taber, on which he 
has since resided, and now has the place under 
a high state of cultivation and well-improved 
with all modern conveniences. He is a man 
of good financial ability and excellent judg- 



ment, and since becoming a resident of Union- 
vale has won the respect and confidence of the 
community, and occupies a leading position 
among its influential citizens. 

Mr. Yeomans was united in marriage No- 
vember 4, 1868, with Miss Mary Jane Wilber, 
who was born in 1849, at Duanesburgh, Schen- 
ectady county, N. Y. Eleven children blessed 
their union, whose names and dates of birth 
are as follows: William H., March 31, 1872; 
George D., October 23, 1873; Sarah Eliza, 
October 14, 1875; Charles E., July 20, 1877; 
Bradford W., May 14, 1879; Edwin J., Jan- 
uary 16, 1 88 1 ; Ester D., April 4, 1883; Theron 
J., September 21, 1885; Lizzie \'., February 
28, 1888; Lena M., November 21, 1891; and 
Florence, June 4, 1893. All are still living 
with the exception of Charles E. William H., 
the eldest son, was born in the town of \\'ash- 
ington, Dutchess county, was educated in the 
district schools, and is now carrying on farm- 
ing. On November 28, 1893, he married Miss 
LaNeta Colwell. 

Benjamin Wilber, the great-grandfather of 
Mrs. Yeomans, was a native of Dartmouth, 
R. I., but became a resident of Schoharie 
county, this State, where he engaged in agri- 
cultural pursuits, which he made his life work. 
In 1799 he married Miss Mary Wilber, of 
Dutchess county, who though of the same 
name was no relative. They became the par- 
ents of seven children: Nathaniel (the grand- 
father of Mrs. Yeomans), Alanson, Briggs, 
Benjamin, Joseph, Rachel and Rhoda. 

The birth of Nathaniel Wilber occurred in 
Schoharie county, June i, 1800, and there he 
received his education. In earl}' life he en- 
gaged in farming, but later carried on the meat 
business. In 18 18 he wedded Rachel Brad- 
ford, who was born in Stanford in 1797, and 
by her he had six children: David, Bradford, 
Benjamin, Julius, Nathaniel and Sarah A. 

David Wilber, the father of Mrs. Yeomans, 
was born in Schoharie county, in 1823, and 
after finishing his education learned the carpen- 
ter's trade, at which he was employed through- 
out the principal part of his life. For his first 
wife he married Miss Eliza N. Hoag, a daugh- 
ter of Enoch and Mary (Norton) Hoag, farm- 
ing people of Quaker Hill, Dutchess county, 
and the only child born of this union was Marj- 
Jane, the wife of our subject. The wife and 
mother died in 1850, and later Mr. Wilber- 
married Miss Monemia Levey, daughter of 
Philip and Monemia Levey. 



480 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



Of the nine children by the second mar- 
riage of Mr. Wilber, Rosa, born in 1871, died 
in infancy, and another died in infancy un- 
named. The others are as follows: (i) Charles 
E., born March 30, 1853, in Duanesburgh 
township, Schenectady county, is a carpenter 
and wagon maker by trade; on November 4, 
1882, he married Sliss Sarah J. Van Pelt, 
daughter of Ale.xander Van Pelt, and they had 
five children — Mary, Avan (deceased). Pearl, 
Roscoe (deceased) and Rosie. (2) Julius R., 
born in Schoharie county, June 22, 1856, is a 
conductor in the employ of the Albany & Sus- 
quehanna Railroad Company; he was married 
February 22, 1883, to Jennie Donahue, and 
they have three children — Nina, Ivy and Ray- 
mond. (3) William J., born January I, 1858, 
died at the age of twenty-one years. (4) Brad- 
ford B. , born in Schoharie county, August 11, 
1859, married Minnie Van Steenburgh, of 
Dutchess county, by whom he has a daughter. 
Hazel; he is engaged in merchandising. (51 
Edwin P., born in Schenectady county, Sep- 
tember 22, 1 86 1, is on a ranch in Meeker, Colo. ; 
he married Mollie Watson, and has three chil- 
dren — Frank (deceased), Ella, and one whose 
name is not given. (6) Agnes, born in Sche- 
nectady county, November 7, 1863, is the wife 
of William Showers, who is at the head of the 
electric works at Schenectady, and they have 
two children — Flossie and Edna. (7) Ella 
M., born in Schoharie county, November 24, 
1865, is the wife of Frank Watson, a carpen- 
ter of Meeker, Colo., and they have one child — 
Everett. 



rYMAN B. ROSA. The well-known firm 
of H. B. Rosa & Son, of Fishkill and 
Matteawan, undertakers and dealers in furni- 
ture, is one of the oldest business concerns of 
that locality, having been founded in 1827 by 
the father of the subject of our sketch, John 
H. Ivosa, who was a prominent citizen of Fish- 
kill during the early part of this century. The 
home of the family had previously been at 
Hurley, Ulster county, where our subject's 
grandfather, Hyman Rosa, a son of Jacob 
Rosa, was a leading resident of his day. He 
and his>wife, Rebecca Sleight, reared there a 
family of six children : Jacob, Jane, Maria, John 
H., Caleb Merritt and Newkirk. John H. Rosa 
married Margaret Crispell, and settled in Fish- 
kill, where he at once engaged in business. 



They had a family of seven children: Abram 
Gaasbeck, Hyman B., Jane Ann, Sarah C, 
Theodore A., John C. and Mary D. 

Hyman B. Rosa was born in Fishkill vil- 
lage, January 26, 1829, and after attending 
the public schools of that place until the age 
of fifteen, he began to help his father in the 
store, acquiring there a complete knowledge 
of the business. In 1857 he was taken into 
partnership, and at the death of his father, in 
i860, he became sole proprietor, and contin- 
ued alone until his son, Frederic L., was ready 
to take a place in the firm. Since that time 
the business has been greatly enlarged, a 
branch at Matteawan having been established 
under the charge of his junior partner. 

Mr. Rosa married Miss Sarah B. South- 
ard, daughter of Richard and Elizabeth South- 
ard, and their union was blessed with four 
children: Margaret C, Frank (who died at 
the age of eight years), Laura and Frederic L. 
The family are leading members of the Re- 
formed Dutch Church, at Fishkill Village, and 
Mr. Rosa has taken an influential part in many 
local movements, giving his support to the 
Republican party on all political issues. 

Frederic L. Rosa, who has already 
given evidence in his business career of the 
possession of that inherited ability, foresight, 
and energy which has built up in past years 
the success of the firm of H. B. Rosa & Son, 
was born in Fishkill Village, March 15, 1867, 
and received his education in the public 
schools there. At the age of sixteen he entered 
the store as a clerk, and in 1888 became a 
partner. The wide acquaintance and high 
reputation which his firm has enjoyed for more 
than half a century justified the establishment 
of the branch store at Matteawan, which was 
opened in October, 1S94, and has since been 
carried on under his supervision. He also has 
full charge of their large undertaking business 
in Matteawan and Fishkill Landing, and has 
the finest hearses andother paraphernalia to be 
found in the county. 

In June, 1893, F. L. Rosa married Miss 
Effie B. Coldwell, daughter of Samuel A. and 
Rebecca (Tompkins) Coldwell, and they reside 
at Fishkill Landing, in a pleasant home at the 
corner of Church street and Cottage place. 
They are prominent in the Reformed Dutch 
Church of that locality. Mr. Rosa is an active 
member of the K. of P., holding, at the pres- 
ent time, the office of prelate in Melzingah 
Lodge No. 304; also a member of Evergreen 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



481 



Lodge No. 131, I. O. O. F., and of the Lewis 
Tompkins Hose Company. In politics he ad- 
heres to the Republican party. 



GEORGE FEROE. Few men are more 
^ prominent in the enterprising village of 
Tivoli than this gentleman. He has been an 
important factor in business circles, and his 
popularity is well deserved, as in him are em- 
braced the characteristics of an unbending 
integrity, unabated energy and industry that 
never flags. He is public-spirited, and thor- 
oughly interested in whatever tends to promote 
the moral, intellectual and material welfare of 
the community. 

Mr. Feroe was born in the town of Red 
Hook, October 14, 1825, and is a son of Henry 
Feroe, also a native of that town. The birth 
of the paternal grandfather occurred in France, 
and on emigrating to this country he located 
in the town of Red Hook, Dutchess county, 
where he engaged in farming and reared his 
two children: Henry; and Betsy, who became 
the wife of Jacob Van Steenburgh, a farmer 
of the same township. The grandfather was 
a faithful member of the Reformed Dutch 
Church. 

Although reared to agricultural pursuits, 
Henry Feroe learned the carpenter's trade, 
which he followed exclusively through life. He 
was united in marriage with Maria Lasher, a 
native of the town of Red Hook, and of Hol- 
land descent. Her father, Sebastian Lasher, 
followed the occupation of farming. After 
their marriage the young couple located upon 
a farm in their native township, where they 
reared their family of eleven children: John is 
a retired carpenter of Tivoli; William (de- 
ceased) was a shoemaker by trade; Peter is 
also a carpenter of Tivoli; Betsie (deceased) 
was the wife of John Huffman, a shoemaker; 
Edward is a carpenter of Fishkill, N. Y. ; 
Eugene and Robert died unmarried; Margaret 
wedded Stephen Clum, a carpenter; Matilda is 
the widow of Mr. Leason, an undertaker; 
Cornelia, who married Eli Best, a farmer, now 
makes her home in Tivoli; and George, of this 
review, is the eighth in order of birth. The 
parents, who were consistent members of the 
Reformed Dutch Church, have both departed 
this life. 

Our subject remained upon the home farm 
until reaching his majority when he went to 
Tivoli, where he worked by the day. In 1843 



he married Miss Sarah J. Simonson, a native 
of Red Hook town, and a daughter of James 
and Julia Simonson, the former a merchant. 
The following year Mr. Feroe started west- 
ward, going by steamboat to Albany, thence 
up the Erie canal to Buffalo, from there to 
Toledo, Ohio, and then up the Maumee river 
to Logansport, Ind., but did not long remain 
there, returning to Red Hook in the fall. 
After working at the carpenter's trade for some 
time he went to New Jersey, where he en- 
gaged in farming for four years, and for two 
years followed the same occupation in Michi- 
gan. Returning to New Jersey, he was there 
employed at painting and carpentering for 
some time, and in the city of Newark for four 
years followed gardening. His ne.xt home was 
near I^oria, 111., where he engaged in agricult- 
ural pursuits some four years, after which he 
followed the same occupation in Michigan for 
thirteen years. In 1863, however, he returned 
to Tivoli, purchasing his present place, and 
has here since made his home. In connection 
with landscape gardening he is also engaged in 
the cooperage business, and in 1893 made 60,- 
000 fruit barrels, one-half of the whole amount 
manufactured in Dutchess county. 

Five children were born to our subject 
and his wife, two of whom died in infancy, 
and Adda passing away in 1893. Those living 
are Clarence, a resident of Tivoli; and Emma, 
wife of Montgomery Queen, who also lives in 
Tivoli. The mother's death occurred May 18, 
1876. The present wife of our subject was 
Mary L. Moore, of Dutchess county, whom he 
married in 1876. They contribute liberally to 
the support of St. Paul's Church, and hold a 
high position in the social circles of the com- 
munity. Although not very active in politics, 
Mr. Feroe keeps himself well informed on 
current events, and uniformly votes the Re- 
publican ticket. 



31 



GBERT WOODIN, who is pleasantly lo- 

cated in the town of Beekman, Dutchess 

county, is operating successfully as a farmer, 
and, although now over eighty-one years of 
age, is still numbered among the industrious 
and enterprising men of the county. He is a 
native son of Dutchess county, born in the 
town of Pawling, July 24, 18 15, and here his 
entire life has been passed, his boyhood being 
spent in the place of his birth, but for thirty- 
five years he has resided upon his present farm 



482 



COMMEMOSATirE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in the town of Beekman. Active and ener- 
getic, he has not laid aside his business cares ; 
in the spring of 1896 he planted a large field 
of corn. 

Solomon Woodin, his father, was also born 
in the town of Pawling, and was the eldest in 
the family of seven children belonging to Amos 
and Lucretia (Millard) Woodin, residents of 
that township. There the father was reared, 
and was married to Miss Annie Franklin. In 
1845 they removed to Beekman town, where 
he carried on farming and where their deaths 
occurred. Thirteen children were born to 
them: Ransom, Esther, Ira. Milton, Sarah, 
Amos, Federal, Lucretia, Egbert, Henry, Ben- 
jamin, Ruth and Chauncey. All are now de- 
ceased with the exception of Sarah, Federal, 
Egbert, Henry and Ruth. 

The boyhood days of our subject were 
passed in the town of Pawling, but he was 
married in the town of Beekman, in 1833, to 
Miss Mary Millard, and they have three chil- 
dren: Elizabeth, the wife of Dr. John H. 
Doughty, of Matteawan, Dutchess county; 
Matilda, widow of W. H. Wright, and Robert, 
of Ann Arbor, Mich. Since 1838 Mr. Woodin 
has been a resident of the town of Beekman, 
and has been prominently identified with its 
affairs. He was first a Whig in politics, and 
now votes the Republican ticket; he has most 
acceptably tilled the offices of collector and 
overseer of the poor. For over forty years he 
has held membership in the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church at Poughquag, in which he is now 
serving as steward, and is a most consistent 
and earnest Christian. 



JACKSON HUSTED, who occupies a fine 
and well-improved farm in the town of 
Clinton, Dutchess county, is numbered 
among its prominent farmers, who from a 
small beginning has built up one of the best 
homesteads within its borders. The residence 
and its surroundings are highly creditable to 
the proprietor, and indicate him to be a man 
of industry and energy, one who has kept his 
eyes open on what is going on in the world 
around him, and availed himself of the most 
approved methods of carrying on agriculture. 
Mr. Husted was born in October, 1828, in 
Saratoga county, N. Y. , where his grandfather 
had made a settlement at an early day. The 
latter was a native of England, and on coming 
to the United States made his first home in 



Maine, whence he removed to Saratoga county. 
There the father of our subject, Louis Husted, 
was also born and reared, and on reaching 
man's estate wedded Phtebe Jackson, by whom 
he had four children: Walter W. (deceased); 
Jackson, subject of this review; Mary Ann, 
widow of John Robinson; and Phcjebe Jane, 
wife of John H. Miller. The father continued 
to carry on agricultural pursuits in his native 
county until 1831. when he brought his family 
to Dutchess county, locating upon a farm in 
the town of Stanford, where his death occurred 
about 1855, and his wife survived him but a 
few years. He was a sincere Christian, and 
a member of the Baptist Church. 

Being only three years of age at the time 
of his arrival in Dutchess county, Jackson 
Husted was here reared, attending the com- 
mon schools of the town of Stanford during 
the winter terms, and assisting his father on 
the farm during the seasons of sowing and 
reaping. On starting out in life for himself he 
engaged in farming in the town of Stanford, 
but later removed to Washington town, where 
he farmed for sixteen years, and the following 
two years were passed in Pleasant Valley town, 
Dutchess county. In 1881 he located upon 
his present farm in the town of Clinton, to the 
cultivation and improvement of which he has 
since devoted his attention. 

In Stanford town Mr. Husted was united 
in marriage with Marj- Elizabeth Haight, 
daughter of George Haight, and to them have 
been born three children: Sarah H. is the wife 
of Jordan Cornelius, of LaFayetteville, town 
of Milan. Dutchess county; George L. was 
married in the town of Washington, Septem- 
ber 9, 1879, to Annie M. Sissons, and they 
now make their home in Clinton town; and 
Judson is a resident of Stanford town. Mr. 
Husted, politically, votes with the Republican 
party, and he is a man worthy of the regard in 
which he is held by all. 



LEONARD L. MOREY has for the last 
thirty-two years been successfully oper- 
ating on a fine farm in the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county, with most excellent results. 
The place, with its tasteful and substantial 
buildings, and its general air of thrift and com- 
fort, forms one of the most attractive spots in 
the landscape of the township. As a citizen 
and business man, Mr. Morey stands high in 
the esteem of his neighbors. He is a native 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



483 



of Dutchess county, born in the town of Wash- 
ington January 17, 1825. 

John Morey, grandfather of Leonard L., 
was born about 1767, in the town of Lagrange, 
Dutchess county, where throughout life he 
carried on agricultural pursuits. He was a 
conscientious. Christian man, and a faithful 
member of the Reformed Church. He mar- 
ried Catherine Dean, who was born about 
1770, and to them were born four children: 
Elizabeth, Isaac, Margaret and John. 

Isaac Morey, the father of our subject, was 
born in the town of Lagrange March 4, 1798, 
and there spent his early days. On reaching 
manhood he was married in the town of Hyde 
Park, Dutchess county, to Miss Maria Pells, 
daughter of Evert and Deborah (Lewis) Pells, 
and they became the parents of five children : 
Evert P., Leonard Lewis, Deborah, Mary and 
John. Leonard Lewis, grandfather of Mrs. 
Isaac Morey, was the first judge of Dutchess 
county. For about five years after his mar- 
riage Isaac Morey engaged in the cultivation of 
land in the town of Washington, at the end of 
which time he came to Stanford town, where 
he followed farming during the remainder of 
his life. In political sentiment he was first a 
Whig and later a Republican, while in matters 
of religion he held membership with the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church of Bangall, N. Y. He 
lived to an advanced age, dying in March, 
1887; his wife passed away December 20, 
1876, at the age of eighty-one jears. 

The early life of our subject was spent 
after the manner of most farmers' sons, his 
education being carried on in the district schools 
of the town of Stanford. He continued to 
assist in the care and cultivation of the home 
farm for five years after his marriage, October 
17, 1850, in the town of Pine Plains, Dutchess 
county, to Miss Elizabeth L. Hicks. This 
estimable lady, who was the daughter of Ben- 
jamin and Hannah (Couse) Hicks, was born 
June II, 1830, and died December 20, 1887, 
leaving many friends as well as her immediate 
family to mourn her death. One child came 
of this union: Ida J., born October 26, 1854, 
married January 6, 1874, to Philip Dorland, 
by whom she has two children: Anita, now 
the wife of Emmer Haight. and has one child 
— Ruth A., born November 29, 1895: and 
Eula. The entire life of Mr. Morey has been 
devoted to farming in the town of Stanford, 
and there are few men in the community more 
widely or favorably known, or who have a 



larger list of warm friends 



In politics he is 
identified with the Republican party, and is a 
strong believer in its principles. 



JOHN HOPKINS, one of the enterprising, 
energetic and industrious citizens of Hyde 
Park, Dutchess county, conducts a drug 
store there, and has done much toward pro- 
moting the welfare of the place. By close 
application to his business and good manage- 
ment he has built up an excellent trade. 

Mr. Hopkins is a native of Dutchess county, 
his birth having occurred in the town of La- 
grange, July 8, 1845, and he is a son of Will- 
iam H. Hopkins, who was born in Putnam 
county, N. Y. His paternal grandfather, Will- 
iam G. Hopkins, was also a native of Putnam 
county, and was one of the leading physicians 
of Peekskill, N. Y. He married Elizabeth 
Frost, of Croton Landing, N. Y., and to them 
were born two sons and two daughters, namely: 
William H. ; Calista, who became the wife of 
Reuben Baldwin, of Mahopac, Putnam county; 
Phcebe Jane; and Alonzo (deceased), who was 
a farmer in Illinois. The grandfather died 
in 1870. 

The father of our subject was educated at 
Yale College, and began the study of medicine 
with his father, afterward graduating from the 
College of Physicians and Surgeons, in New 
York City. About 1838 he began practice for 
himself at Sprout Creek, N. Y. . traveling 
round to see his patients on horseback, with 
his saddle bags. In 1868 he removed to Provi- 
dence, R. I., where he also followed his pro- 
fession, to some extent, until coming to Hyde 
Park, two years later. Prior to 1S85 he en- 
gaged in general practice, but from that time 
until his death. May 23, 1890, he did mostly 
an office practice, and was one of the leading 
allopathic physicians of the community, receiv- 
ing a liberal patronage from all the surround- 
ing country. As a private citizen he took 
quite an active interest in politics, voting with 
the Republican party, and for a number of 
years served as postmaster at Hyde Park. He 
held membership with St. James Episcopal 
Church, of which he was a vestryman, and 
was serving as treasurer of same at the time of 
his death, while early in life he belonged to the 
Masonic fraternity. He was an intelligent, 
cultured gentleman, thoroughly conversant 
with his profession, and kept well-informed on 
matters of general interest. Dr. Hopkins 



484 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



married Jemima Van Benschoten, daughter of 
Elias Van Benschoten, of Lagrange town, and 
they became the parents of five children: Har- 
riet (now deceased I ; Ehas, freight agent for 
the West Shore railroad at Brooklyn, N. Y. ; 
John, subject of this review; William G., who 
is engaged in the manufacture of jewelry at 
Providence, R. I. ; and Elizabeth, who died 
at the age of twelve years. 

John Hopkins, the subject proper of these 
lines, attended the Poughkeepsie Academy, 
finishing his literary training at the age of six- 
teen, and in 1861 entered the drug store of 
Wood & Tittamer, where he remained some 
eight years, during which time he thoroughh' 
learned the trade. Going to Providence, R. I., 
in 1869, he there engaged in the drug business 
for two years, after which, for one year, he 
was a member of the firm of Hopkins & Ar- 
nold, conducting their store where Charles E. 
Bowne is now located. Selling out to Charles 
Mitchell, he entered the drug store of his 
father, at Hyde Park, and in 1S93 purchased 
the establishment, which is one of the oldest 
stores of the kind in the village. Politically, 
Mr. Hopkins is a stalwart Republican, strongly 
endorsing the course of that party, and takes 
quite an active interest in public affairs, being 
treasurer of his School and Fire districts. 



TIMOTHY HERRICK is a prominent and 
well-known agriculturist of the town of 
Hyde Park, Dutchess county, and the capable 
superintendent of the e.xtensive farm of the 
late William B. Dinsmore, known as "The 
Locusts." He traces his ancestry in this 
country back to Henric Herrick, who was 
born in England in 1604, and became one of 
the three original ancestors of the Herrick 
family in America. He was the fifth son of 
Sir William Herrick, who was born in 1557, 
and lived at Beau Manor, in Leicestershire, 
England. His father was John Eyrick (or 
Heyrick), who was born in 15 13, in the same 
county, and was a son of Thomas Eyrick, of 
Houghton. The latter's father, Robert Ey- 
rick, was born at Houghton about 1450, and 
was a lineal descendant of Erick the Forester, 
who was a Danish chief, and one of the in- 
vaders of England during the reign of Alfred, 
the Saxon King of Britain, by whom he was 
overcome and compelled to settle in East 
Anglia, in which is that part of England now 



called Leicestershire, and where his descend- 
ants still reside in great affluence. 

Joseph Herrick. of Cherry Hill, Mass., 
was the son of Henric Herrick, the founder of 
the family in the New World, and was born at 
Salem, in 1645. Of him Upham's "Salem 
Witchcraft " says: " He was a man of great 
firmness and dignity of character, and, in ad- 
dition to the care and management of his large 
farm, was engaged in foreign commerce. As 
he bore the title of Governor, he had probably 
been at one time in command of a military 
post or district, or perhaps at the West India 
Colony. He was the acting constable of 
Salem, and as such concerned in the early 
proceedings connected with the witchcraft 
prosecutions. For a while he was under the 
delusion; but his strong and enlightened mind 
soon led him out of it. He was one of the 
petitioners in behalf of an accused person, 
when intercession by any for any was highly 
dangerous; and he was a leader in the party 
that rose against the fanaticism, and vindicated 
the character of its victims." His son John 
was born January 25, 1670, and was the father 
of Josiah, born February 6, 1704. The next 
in direct line also bore the name of Josiah 
Herrick. He was born November 10, 1733, 
and became the father of Joseph Herrick, of 
Beverly, Mass., who was born November 3, 
1775- The father of our subject, Nathaniel. 
Brown Herrick, was the latter's son, born at 
Beverly, Mass., April 23, 1813, and removed 
to Antrim, N. H., at the age of six years, with 
his parents. 

Timothy Herrick, the subject of this re- 
view, was born at Antrim, N. H., October 19, 
1836, and during his boyhood he supplemented 
the knowledge acquired in the common schools 
by a two-terms' attendance at an academy at 
P'rancistown, N. H., securing an excellent ed- 
ucation for those times. He has always been 
much of a student, and has made a special 
study of agriculture in all departments. At 
the age of seventeen years he completed his 
literary education, but continued working upon 
his father's farm under that gentleman's most 
able instructions, who instilled into his son thor- 
ough-going business principles. In the winter 
of 1856-57 he was employed by Esquire Dodge 
(of Bennington, N. H.), an uncle of William 
B. Dinsmore, and upon the former's recom- 
mendation he became superintendent of "The 
Locusts" for Mr. Dinsmore. The farm then 
consisted of only 100 acres, and he had but 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



485 



two men under him; but it has gradually grown 
until it now comprises over 1,000 acres, and it 
is now necessary to employ forty men in its 
cultivation and improvement. For the last 
forty years Mr. Herrick has had entire control 
of the place, conducting it exactly as if 
it were his own, and its interests have ever 
been forwarded in his hands. He possesses 
great executive ability, and is the peer of any 
in his life endeavor. The place well indicates 
his able management, industry and progressive 
spirit. 

In 1858, Mr. Herrick wedded Elizabeth 
Muldoon, daughter of John Muldoon, of New 
York City, and they have become the parents 
of five children: ( i) George A., born July 
20, 1859, is an engineer on ihe Hudson River 
railroad, with residence at Croton, N. Y. (2) 
Mary Elizabeth, born July 16, 1861, married 
Eugene \'. Daly; after graduating at a female 
medical college, she practiced her profession in 
New York City for twelve years, during which 
time she became well known; she is quite tal- 
ented, and is very popular among her acquaint- 
ances. (3) Luella J., born August 26, 1864, 
is the wife of Dr. Barker, of Woodside, Long 
Island. (4) John]., born April 5, 1866, is a 
graduate of Cornell University, and is now 
superintendent of the Department of Docks 
in New York City. (5) Albert E., born Janu- 
ary 19, 1869, is connected with the National 
Ice Co. , of New York City. 

In politics, Mr. Herrick is a strong adher- 
ent of the doctrines of the Democratic party, 
and takes considerable interest in local affairs. 
In 1871-72, and again in 1884-85, he served 
as supervisor of the town of Hyde Park, and has 
frequently been urged to accept other offices in 
the county. He is prominently connected with 
the Masonic order, belonging to Rhinebeck 
Lodge No. 432, F. & A. M., at Rhinebeck; the 
Royal Arch Chapter No. 45, at Kingston, N. Y., 
and of the Knights Templar, at Poughkeepsie. 



ENRY S. MARSHALL, an enterprising 
and progressive agriculturist of the town 
of Washington, Dutchess county, is of pioneer 
stock, his ancestors in more than one line of 
descent having been early residents of the 
county. 

His grandfather, Henry S. Marshall, was 
born in Pleasant \'alle3', and married Sarah 
Gifford, a native of Stanford, by whom he had 
six children: Susan, Ann, John Gifford, Theo- 



dore, Caroline and Edward H., none of whom 
are now living, except Edward H. Marshall, 
of Millbrook. He is a leading farmer of the 
town of Hyde Park, and a well-known auc- 
tioneer; he is a Hicksite Quaker in religious 
faith, and in politics a Democrat. 

John Gifford Marshall, our subject's father, 
was born in the town of Hyde Park, July 16, 
1824, and died there March 8, 1892, having 
always lived at the old homestead, following 
agriculture as an occupation. His education 
was carefully supervised at home in early boy- 
hood, and later he entered Jacob Willett's 
Boarding School in the town of Washington. 
Like his ancestors, he was a member of the 
Society of Friends. He was married in Hyde 
Park to Phcebe Jane Marshall, daughter of 
Henry B. Marshall, a prominent resident of 
that town. Of the three children of this union 
our subject was the youngest; the others are: 
(i) Leonora married Oliver H. Drew; (2) 
Theodore, deceased, married Anna Foreman. 

Henry S. Marshall was born April 6, 1861, 
in the town of Hyde Park, and was reared at 
the old homestead. He attended the public 
schools there for some time, and was then sent 
to Gideon Frost's school on Long Island, and 
De Garmo Institute at Rhinebeck. He mar- 
ried Miss Vernie Smith, daughter of George 
P. Smith, a leading citizen of Clinton Corners, 
and has three children: Atherton G. , Gifford 
H. and George S. Mr. Marshall has been 
engaged in farming in Hyde Park and the town 
of Washington since he first began in business 
for himself. He is active and influential in 
local affairs, and at present holds the office of 
school director at Clinton Corners. 



JOHN H. ENSIGN, a well-known resident 
of Dover Plains, Dutchess county, is one 
of the most valued employes of the Harlem 
Railroad Company, having been in their service 
for a quarter of a century. He was born in 
Dover Plains in 1845, and after attending the 
schools of that place during boyhood entered 
the employ of the railroad company as brake- 
man, and his faithful discharge of his duties 
soon led to his promotion to the position of 
conductor. He is actively interested in local 
affairs, and is a member of the Masonic frater- 
nity. Lodge No. 666, of Dover. In 1882 he 
married Miss Ida \'incent, of Dover, and thej' 
have one son, John O. Ensign, born in 1885. 
The Ensign family is of New England 



480 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



origin, and our subject's grandfather, Asa 
Ensign, was born and educated in Massachu- 
setts. He was a blacksmith by trade, and 
came in early manhood to Dutchess county, 
locating in the town of Dover, where he and 
his wife, Catherine, reared a family of six 
children: John, our subject's father; Samuel, 
who married (first) Julia Orton, and (second) 
Adelia Hubbel; Stillman, who married Amy 
Sherman; Eliza and Maria, who never mar- 
ried; and Sarah, the wife of Harrison Sherman. 

John Ensign was born in the town of Dover, 
Dutchess county, in 1800, and on leaving 
school he learned the carpenter's trade. He 
then engaged in contracting and building, and 
followed this business throughout his life. He 
married Miss Almira Manchester, daughter of 
Stephen Manchester (a well-known blacksmith 
of Dover) and his wife Elizabeth. Five chil- 
dren were born of this union: Eliza, who is 
not married; Emily, the wife of John E. Ben- 
son; Mary, who died at twenty-six years of 
age; John H., our subject; and Catherine, who 
died in infancy. 

Mrs. Ensign is a descendant of one of the 
old families of the town of Dover, Dutchess 
county, her grandfather, Jonathan Vincent, 
having been a native of that locality. He 
married Miss Martha Duncan, and settled upon 
a farm there, where their eight children were 
born and reared. William married Ann 
Eggleston; Allen, Mrs. Ensign's father, is men- 
tioned below; Isaac married (first) Jane A. 
Beers, and (second) Imogene Butts; George 
married Amanda Coolie; Leonard and Edgar 
are not married; E. Ann married William 
Colby; and Amanda was the wife of Oscar 
Wilcox. Allen Vincent grew to manhood in 
the town of Dover, and engaged in agriculture. 
His wife was Miss Mary Stage, daughter of 
David and Mary Stage, prominent residents of 
Dover Plains. Mrs. Ensign was the eldest of 
six children. Of the others, Addie married 
George Vincent; Mary — Martin Wilcox; Mar- 
tha — William Brown; Augusta — Fred Wilcox; 
Daisy is not married. 



JOHN A. FRALEIGH. The name of this 
gentleman is well and favorably known 
throughout the town of Red Hook, Dutch- 
ess county, where he is prosperously engaged 
in farming. The family have long been resi- 
dents of that locality, of which Peter Fraleigh 
(2), (a son of Peter Fraleigh (i) ), the grand- 



father of our subject, was a native (born Feb- 
ruary 25, 1772, died October 8, 1853), and 
there he followed agricultural pursuits through- 
out life. He was twice married, his first union 
being with a Miss Teator, by whom he had 
two children, both now deceased; Katie, who 
became the wife of William Feller; and Peter, 
who married Lany Link. After the death of 
his first wife, Mr. Fraleigh wedded Mrs. 
Catherine (Coon) Cooper, a widow. 

The only child born of the latter union was 
George W. Fraleigh, the father of our subject, 
whose birth occurred in the town of Red Hook, 
June 6, 1S16. After completing his education 
he took up farming, and made that occupation 
his life work. In the old training days he was 
a member of a company of cavalry; in early 
life held a number of township offices, and he 
was a stalwart Republican in politics. He 
was united in marriage November 28, 1838, 
with Miss Regina Waldorf (who was born April 
23, 1820), a daughter of Capt. William Wal- 
dorf, and five children were born to them: 
Peter W., who married Helen Crandall, and 
is now deceased; John A., subject of this 
sketch; Monroe, who married Gertrude Martin; 
Rosalie; and Philip E. , who wedded Phoebe 
K. Conklin. The father of these died July 
15, 1866, the mother on December 28, 1870, 
and they are both buried in the M. E. ceme- 
tery at Red Hook. 

Our subject was born in the town where 
he still makes his home, and was there edu- 
cated. Reared beneath the parental roof- 
tree, he remained with his father and mother, 
assisting in the manual labor incident to the 
life of an agriculturist, until 1S69, when he 
secured a position in the New York post ofBce 
under Postmaster James, being appointed by 
Governor Fenton. After leaving that employ, 
he returned to the town of Red Hook and 
assumed the management of his father's farm, 
which he purchased after the latter's death in 
1 87 1. He has since conducted the farm with 
remarkable success, and is one of the reliable 
and most esteemed membersof the community. 
He makes a specialty of dairy and fruit farm- 
ing, and by the exercise of industry and ex- 
cellent management his efforts have been re- 
warded with a well-merited success. In 1871, 
Mr. Fraleigh was united in marriage with 
Miss Irene Curtis, daughter of John Curtis, of 
Red Hook, and three children now grace their 
union: Curtis, born June 24, 1872; Rosalie M., 
born May 5, 1875; ^"d Herbert E., born De- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



487 



cember 27, 1877. Of these, Curtis is a clerk 
in the hardware store of P. E. Fraleigh, at 
Red Hook; Rosalie M. is receiving her edu- 
cation at Dr. Clark's, Tivoli, and at Mrs. 
Currie's, Albany; and Herbert E. is attending 
Moody's school at Mt. Hermon, preparing 
himself for the study of civil engineering. 
Mrs. Fraleigh was born September 2, 1845, 
in the town of Red Hook, and received her 
education at the Stocking Academy (afterward 
known as the De Garmo Classical Institute), 
Rhinebeck. Her father, John Curtis, was a 
native of Rhinebeck, born February 17, 18 18, 
married Jane B. Beaumont, a native of York- 
shire, England, and to them were born eight 
children, to wit: LeGrand, in the Hudson 
River Hospital; Edwin S., a captain in the 
U. S. regular army, having joined in 1861; 
Irene (Mrs. John A. Fraleigh); Florence, 
Grace and Willis (all three deceased); Herbert 
J., of Red Hook; and J. Canfield (deceased). 
Mrs. Fraleigh's grandfather, LeGrand Curtis, 
was a native of Trumbull, Conn., and was a 
son of Capt. John Curtis, who was a captain 
in the Light Horse during the Revolutionary 
war, and is interred at Barrytown, in Dutchess 
county. 



E 



'\ LATHROP BARRETT, one of the most 



El/ i progressive and enterprising agriculturists 
of the town of Northeast, Dutchess county, 
and the owner of a fine farm near Coleman 
Station, was born in that vicinity August 30, 
1858. His grandfather, the late E. Lathrop 
Barrett, a native of Norwich, Conn., came to 
Dutchess county in early manhood, locating 
first at Pine Plains, and later in the town of 
Northeast. He was a carpenter by trade, but 
after purchasing a tract of 120 acres of land in 
Northeast, he devoted his time to its cultiva- 
tion, and became noted for his successful man- 
agement. He married Rhoda Dakin, daugh- 
ter of Caleb Dakin, and a descendant of one 
of the earliest settlers of the town. He died 
in 1857, and his wife in i860. They had five 
children: Sarah Louise, Dakin, Edward L. , 
Myron, and Oliver, our subject's father. 

During his boyhood the subject of this 
sketch attended the district schools near his 
home, and a private school in Sharon, Conn., 
later studying for one year in Cazenovia Sem- 
inary, a Methodist institution at Cazenovia, 
N. Y., receiving a good English education. 
As he has always been a reader, he has ac- 



quired a large fund of information on subjects 
of general interest. At nineteen years of age 
he returned home, where he remained for some 
time, but on June 16, 1881, he entered the 
service of the Harlem Railroad Co. , as agent 
at Coleman Station, having the entire charge 
of their interests there. He remained twelve 
years without interruption, with the exception 
of a six-months' leave of absence. 

He married Miss Alice N. Clark, a member 
of one of the oldest families of Northeast, and 
a daughter of Philo W. Clark, a well-known 
farmer there. They have one son, Raymond 
Lathrop, born June 21, 1894, and one daugh- 
ter, Louisa Alice, born April 16, 1896. In 
1892 Mr. Barrett purchased Mr. Clark's farm 
of 215 acres, and January 16, 1893, he resigned 
his position with the railroad company to en- 
gage in agriculture. He gives especial atten- 
tion to horticulture, and has a fine orchard 
upon the estate. As a careful yet progressive 
manager he has been successful in his enter- 
prise. In politics he is a Democrat, but he 
has never done any political work, although 
in local affairs, which do not involve any par- 
tisan issues, he has at times been a prominent 
helper. He and his wife are active members 
of the Presbyterian Church, and he is also a 
member of the Masonic fraternity, belonging 
to Webatuck Lodge, of Millerton, in which he 
has held all the offices, Poughkeepsie Chapter 
No. 172, and Commandery No. 43. 



ISAAC CORBIN. Among the pleasant rural 
_ homes of the town of Pawling, Dutchess 
county, is that of Mr. Corbin, a prosperous 
agriculturist and one of the leading citizens of 
the town. His present wife, whose maiden 
name was Mary F. Allison, was born in Hast- 
ings county, Canada, Aug. 29, i860, and re- 
ceived her education in the common schools of 
her native country. Their marriage took place 
in 1883. By his first marriage, to Miss Jennie 
Sherman, Mr. Corbin had three children: Al- 
bert J., born November 6, 1872; Anna M., 
February 12, 1875; and Charles L., March 
3, 1876; and there are six children of the sec- 
ond union: William, born April 4, 1884; B. 
Frank, September 11, 1885; I. Cecil, June 
12, 18S7; Ethel B., May 11, 1889; D. Lewis, 
April 21, 1 891; and Clement, April 27, 1896. 
The Allison family has been identified with 
Prince Edward county, Canada, from a very 
early period. Mrs. Corbin's grandfather, John 



488 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Allison, was born in New Jersey and educated 
there, and served in the British army in the 
Revolutionary war. On his return home he 
purchased land there and followed farming and 
weaving throughout the remaining years of his 
life. He married Miss Ann Sprague, and had 
eight children, of whom Benjamin I., Mrs. 
Corbin's father, was the first. Of the others, 
Henry B. married Delanie Schamerhorn; Da- 
vid wedded Jane Smith; Joseph — Catherine 
Wood; Phoebe — Griffin Howell; Betsy — Myron 
Wood; Catherine died in infancy; and Sophia 
married Samuel Parks. 

Benjamin I. Allison was born at the old 
home in Canada in 1817, and after availing 
himself of the educational privileges afforded 
in the common schools of his native place, be- 
came a farmer there. He was a great sports- 
man, and was much interested in political 
questions, espousing the liberal side, but he 
never aspired to public office. He married 
Miss Eliza H. Greeie\', daughter of Jonathan 
and Harriet (Roblin) Greeley, the former of 
whom was a well-known surveyor and farmer. 
Twelve children were born of this union, all 
of whom were educated in the schools of Hast- 
ings county: (i) Absalom G. has been a train 
dispatcher on the Grand Trunk railroad in 
Canada for over thirty years. He married 
Miss Nancy Simpkins, and has had five children : 
Maude, who married Ned Dickson, and has 
two daughters — Florence and Nettie; Florence, 
who married Kep C. Lyons, and has one daugh- 
ter — Grace; Arthur; Claude; and Emma. 

(2) John S., a farmer in Pennsylvania, mar- 
ried Miss Mary Wilson, and has had four chil- 
dren: Benjamin, William, Fred and Maggie. 

(3) Jonathan, a farmer in Canada, married 
Miss Sarah Prentice, and has had five children: 
May, Olive, Flossie, Pearl and Lena. (4) 
Harriet married William Toppings, and has 
had four children: James, Jonathan, Eva and 
Laura. (5) William H. has been train dis- 
patcher on the Credit Valley & Canadian Pa- 
cific railroad for eighteen years. He married 
Miss Georgiana Cole, and has one son, Cecil. 
(6) Benjamin R., a speculator in Canada, 
married Miss Kate Hazzel, and has one daugh- 
ter, Gertrude. (7) Phcebe E. married James 
Ferris, and has had three children: Allison, 
Bessie and Greeley. (8) Sarah C. married 
Charles Baker, of Winnipeg, Manitoba, and 
and has seven children: Dufferin, Horace, 
Robert, Elma, Victoria, Ruth and Florence. 
(9) Eva H. married John Noble, of St. Paul, 



Minn., and has had five children: Frank. Clara, 
Benjamin, Mabel and Marion. (10) Mary F. 
is the wife of Isaac Corbin. (11) Martha N. 
married Benjamin Frank Burr. (12) Joseph 
C. died in infancy. 



JOHN OSBORNE WHITEHOUSE (de- 
ceased) was born July 19, 1 817, at Gonic, 

a village near Rochester, N. H., and was of 
French and English descent. His father, who 
was a farmer, gave his son the best education 
which the neighborhood afforded, but the j'oung 
man developed an early desire for a wider field, 
and when scarcely more than si.xteen years old 
went to New York, which has been so aptly 
termed the " City of Opportunity," and few 
ever made better use of the city's opportunity. 
Entering a jobbing house in boots and shoes, 
utterly without e.xperience, he in a very few 
years thoroughly mastered the business, out- 
stripping many older employes. He went to 
live in Brooklyn, and in 1838, when but twen- 
ty-one, married Fanny Smith, later buying a 
house and establishing his home in Clinton 
avenue. In the meantime he started in the 
boot-and-shoe business in Brooklyn for him- 
self, as head of the firm of Whitehouse & Co. 
His success was marked, and his advancement 
rapid. Among other remunerative contracts 
which he had during the ne.xt few years was one 
on Randall's Island. 

In 1863, having sold his Brooklyn business, 
Mr. Whitehouse removed to Poughkeepsie and 
built an immense shoe factory, which he con- 
ducted with increasing success until his death, 
often employing as high as five hundred opera- 
tives. His close attention to business, indom- 
itable energy, skill in adapting himself to the 
needs of the times, prudence and upright char- 
acter brought their logical rewards, and he 
amassed a large fortune. Interests outside of 
his business attracted his serious attention but 
once. In 1S72 he consented to become a can- 
didate for Congress on the Democratic ticket, 
in the district comprising the counties of 
Dutchess, Putnam and Columbia, a district 
supposed to be hopelessly Republican. Into 
this campaign Mr. Whitehouse brought the 
same energy and sagacity which had marked 
his business career, and though skilled and ex- 
perienced politicians were pitted against him, 
he was elected by nearly a thousand majority, 
defeating John H. Ketcham. The campaign 
was an exciting and memorable one, and is 





^..^^^ 




z^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL BECORB. 



489 



Still spoken of as a remarkable instance of 
what a trained business man may accomplish 
in politics when so disposed. Two years later 
he was re-elected, but declined a third nomina- 
tion. His terms in Congress were marked by 
hard and honest work, and were satisfactory 
to his constituents. 

On moving to Poughkeepsie Mr. White- 
house bought a large estate on the edge of 
town and established a country home, the 
beautifying and enlarging of which became his 
pride. This estate adjoined " Springside," 
the home of Matthew Vassar. In 1 868 ' 'Spring- 
side " was annexed and incorporated with the 
Whitehouse property. Mr. Whitehouse was a 
stockholder in various financial institutions, 
and the largest stockholder and managing 
director of the Ninth National Bank, of New 
York. During the Civil war he was loyal to 
the Union and active !n promoting its cause, 
and became a member of the Union League 
Club. 

Mr. Whitehouse may probably best be 
described as a typical American in the best 
sense of the term. No trait of his character 
was more marked than his independence and 
self-reliance. He made up his mind on a 
given subject carefully, and from a thorough 
understanding of all its details, and then acted 
with the full courage of his convictions. 
Loyalty to his friends was another of his 
marked characteristics. He died at Pough- 
keepsie August 24, 1S81 ; his wife passed away 
January 13, 1893. Of their si.\ children, John 
O., Spencer S., William, Fanny A., and 
James H. are deceased, leaving Mary Jose- 
phine, wife of Eugene N. Howell, as the 
only surviving child. She, with her husband 
and son, John Whitehouse Howell, reside dur- 
ing the summer months at Poughkeepsie, on 
the old Whitehouse estate. 



FRANK BENTLEY WILBUR, an expe- 
rienced farmer and most genial and com- 
panionable gentleman, has made his home on 
his present fine farm in the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county, since 1869. He is a man of 
great energy and perseverance, and has effected 
many improvements on his place since taking 
possession. He is recognized as a valued ad- 
dition to the community, a man possessed of 
excellent judgment, and giving his support 
and encouragement to those enterprises calcu- 
lated for the general welfare. 



His grandfather, Samuel Wilbur, who was 
a native of Milan town, Dutchess county, mar- 
ried Elizabeth Hicks, by whom he had eight 
children: George, Hiram, Ephraim, Benjamin 
(father of our subject), Jeptha, Cynthia, Mary 
and Phcebe, all now deceased save Hiram and 
Phcebe. The family is of English origin, and 
was founded in this country at an early day. 
The grandfather of our subject spent most of 
his life engaged in farming in Pine Plains, where 
he was a well-known and highly-respected citi- 
zen. His political support was given to the 
Whig party. 

Benjamin Wilbur, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born in the town of Pine Plains Jan- 
uary 17, 1815, and, after completing his edu- 
cation in the common schools, taught there 
for several years. On December 10, 1842, in 
his native township, he was united in marriage 
with Miss Antoinette Bentley, a daughter of 
Hiram Bentley, of Pine Plains, and to them 
were born four children: Frank Bentley, sub- 
ject of this review; Emma V., who was born 
January 9, 1846, and is now the wife of Charles 
L. Carrol, of Pine Plains; Guliette, who was 
born September 9, 1855, and died December 
24, 1859, and Cora L. , who was born March 
I, 1859, and died on the 28th of December 
following. After his marriage the father lo- 
cated upon a farm in Pine Plains town, where 
he followed agricultural pursuits until his 
death, which occurred July 23, 1893. He 
took a leading part in the affairs of the town- 
ship, served his fellow citizens in the offices of 
assessor and commissioner, and was promi- 
nently identified with all public interests. Po- 
litically he was an ardent Republican in later 
years, and previous to the organization of that 
party supported the Whig candidates. He was 
a faithful member of the Christian Church at 
Pine Plains, in which, for many years, he 
served as deacon. His loving wife died July 
12, 1893, only a few days previous to his 
death. 

Frank B. Wilbur remained at home until 
his marriage, assisting his father in the opera- 
tion of the farm during the summer months, 
while in the winters, during his boyhood days, 
he attended the district schools, where he ac- 
quired a practical education, and was thus 
fitted for the responsible duties of life. In the 
town of Stanford, October 19, 1869, he mar- 
ried Miss Mary B. Sackett, daughter of Phineas 
K. Sackett, of that township, and they have 
become the parents of three children, namely: 



490 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD'. 



Nina B., who was born March 12, 1871, and 
who was married June 20, 1S94, to Henry E. 
Cornehus, of Stanford town (they have two 
children: Elinor, born April 26, 1895, and 
Mary, born December 29, 1896); Mae S. , born 
October 9, 1873, and Effie G., born October 
7, 1878. On July 17, 1895, Mr. Wilbur was 
called upon to mourn the loss of his estimable 
wife, who had ever been a faithful companion 
and helpmeet to him. 

Politically our subject is a stanch adherent 
of the doctrines formulated by the Republican 
party, finding in that organization what to him 
seem the principles most calculated to perpet- 
uate our form of popular government. He is 
one of the prominent and representative men 
of his township, looked up to and esteemed by 
the entire community. 



JOHN GOLLENBECK. Among the most 
enterprising citizens of this country are 
those who were born in Germany, and who 
have brought to this fertile and productive 
land the thrift and economy of the Old World. 
Among these there is no figure that stands out 
more prominently in the history of Dutchess 
county than the gentleman whose name intro- 
duces this sketch, and who is now a leading 
farmer in the town of Unionvale. 

His paternal grandfather, John Wiseman, 
was born in Liebstadt, Prussia, and was a 
farmer by occupation. He wedded Miss Maria 
Linman, and to them were born si.\ children: 
Stephen, Harry, John, Katie, Elizabeth and 
Mary. Stephen Wiseman, the father of our 
subject, was a native of the same place, was 
there educated and learned the wagon-maker's 
trade, at which he worked most of his life. 
His employer left his business to him, provided 
he would take his name, which was Gollen- 
beck. This he assumed, and took control of 
the property. He was united in marriage with 
Miss Maria Scheroff, and they had four chil- 
dren: John, William, Frank and Maria. 

John Gollenbeck, our subject, was born in 
Westphalia, Germany, in 1825, and in the 
place of his nativity attended school. In the 
old country he also learned the wagon-maker's 
trade, at which he worked until crossing the 
Atlantic to America in 1855. He at first lo- 
cated in New York City, where he worked at 
his trade for thirteen months, but at the end 
of that time came to the town of Unionvale, 
Dutchess county, and turned his attention to 



farming. During the dark days of the Rebel- 
lion, he resolved to aid his adopted country in 
preserving the Union, and at Poughkeepsie en- 
listed in Company A, 150th N. Y. V. I., with 
which he faithfully served until hostilities had 
ceased. He now holds membership with Ham- 
lin Post, G. A. R. 

Mr. Gollenbeck was married to Miss An- 
toinette Austin, daughter of Irving Austin, a 
laborer of Dutchess county, and they have two 
children: Mattie and William. Mattie is the 
wife of Obed Hewett, a butcher, carpenter 
and farmer of Arthursburg, Dutchess county, 
and they have si.x children: Robert, Ephraim, 
Judson. Lehman, Mabel and Florence. Will- 
iam was born, reared and educated in the town 
of Unionvale, where he is now carrying on 
farming. 

J. Au.stin, the grandfather of Mrs. Gol- 
lenbeck, was one of the Revolutionary heroes. 
He was a native of Dutchess county, and a 
farmer by occupation. By his marriage with 
Miss Sallie A. Mclntyre he had five children : 
Sallie, who married Joseph Bowman ; John, 
who died when young; Irving, the father of 
Mrs. Gollenbeck; Jane, who married Jacob 
Rozell, and Mary, who became the wife of 
Clark Duncan. Irving Austin was born in 
Dutchess county in 1803, received a common- 
school education, and during his youth learned 
the shoemaker's trade, but the principal part 
of his life was devoted to general farming. 
He married Miss Ann Sweet, daughter of 
Uriah Sweet, a collier, of Dutchess county, 
and they became the parents of seven chil- 
dren: Almira, who married George Van Cott; 
Lavina, who married John Rosterhauft; Sarah 
A., who married Romaine Stevens; Amelia; 
George, who married Emily Dennis; Henry, 
who married Hannah Cooper; and Antoinette, 
the honored wife of our subject. 



GEORGE W. RYMPH. This gentleman 
occupies no unimportant position among 
the leading citizens of the town of Hyde Park, 
Dutchess county. He is a native of Ulster 
county, N. Y. , born in the town of Gardiner, 
near Tuthill, July 19, 1839, and is a son of 
James Rymph, whose birth occurred at the 
old Rymph homestead on the Hyde Park road 
in this county. The family name was origi- 
nally spelled Rim, and the great-grandfather, 
George Rymph, who was a native of Witten- 
berg, Germany, came to this country with the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



491 



Cookinghams, who settled at Wurtemburg. He 
arrived a few years prior to 1769, when the 
house on the old homestead was built, and the 
farm, consisting of 215 acres, was purchased 
of Dr. John and Susanna Bard, the Doctor 
being one of the Great Nine Partners. Mr. 
Rymph, being a thrifty and enterprising man, 
added to his land until at the time of his death 
he had 600 acres, and was one of the prosper- 
ous and prominent citizens of the locality. His 
sons were George, Abram, Luke, James and 
John, and, of his three daughters, one married 
a Mr. Buckingham, of Catskill, N. Y., and 
another married a Mr. Beeman. George mar- 
ried and went west, but the other four sons 
remained upon the old homestead in the town 
of Hyde Park, where they were held in the 
highest regard. Slavery was still tolerated at 
that time in this section, and the family owned 
a few slaves. With the e.xception of John 
Rymph, the grandfather of our subject, the 
other sons that remained on the homestead 
did not marry. He wedded Wyenna Has- 
brouck, who belonged to one of the old Hu- 
guenot families of Ulster county, and to them 
were born the following children: James; John; 
William George; David; Edward L. ; Maria, 
who became the wife of Abram S. DuBois; 
Margaret, who married Benjamin L. Has- 
brouck; Sarah, who wedded Jacob Chambers, 
of Ithaca, Tompkins Co., N. Y., brother of 
Dr. George Chambers, of Stone Ridge, Ulster 
Co., N. Y. ; Rachel, who married John P. 
Schryver, of Hyde Park; and Susan. All of 
this family lived to quite advanced ages. In 
early life their father was a captain and boat- 
man on the Hudson river, but after his mar- 
riage his time was devoted to agricultural pur- 
suits upon the old homestead farm. 

James Rymph, the father of our subject, 
was joined in wedlock with Hannah Budd, 
daughter of James Budd, of the town of Pleas- 
ant Valley, Dutchess county, and the aunt of 
Gov. James H. Budd, the only Democratic 
governor elected in California; and the sister 
of Joseph H. Budd, a justice of the supreme 
court of that State. To this worthy couple 
were born si.x children, three sons and three 
daughters — Ellen, who died in infancy; George 
W., of this review; Jane, who died unmarried; 
John J., living in Clinton, Dutchess county; 
Mary A., twin sister of John, who died un- 
married; and Albert J., who is living in Har- 
per, Harper Co., Kans. During the first two 
or three years of his married life the father 



lived in what is now Gardiner, and then pur- 
chased a farm in the town of Clinton, Dutch- 
ess county, where he spent his remaining 
years. For that farm of 148 acres he went 
$7,000 in debt, but so well did he succeed in 
his business undertakings that at the time of 
his death he had two other farms, was direc- 
tor in the City National Bank, and one of the 
original stockholders in both the Rhinebeck 
Bank and the City National Bank of Pough- 
keepsie, all of which property was the result of 
his own untiring efforts and perseverance. He 
was originally a Democrat in politics, but at 
the time of the Civil war he joined the Repub- 
lican party, and was ever afterward one of its 
stalwart supporters. He was a well-read, in- 
telligent man, a member in good standing of 
the Presbyterian Church at Pleasant Plains, in 
the work of which he took an active part, and 
was a leading citizen of the community. His 
earthly career was ended m 1884. 

Mr. Rymph, whose, name introduces this 
sketch, was educated in a private seminary and 
the Dutchess County Academy (the latter of 
which he attended a part of two years), and 
is well informed on the current events of the 
day. On leaving the school-room he returned 
to his father's farm, where he remained until 
1883, giving his attention to its management 
and also to the one his father had given to 
him. In the spring of 1884 he removed to 
the latter place, on the Hyde Park road, then 
comprising 165 acres, to which by purchase he 
added fifty acres, making the original 215 
acres which belonged to his great-grandfather, 
George Rymph. 

In December, 1883, was celebrated the 
marriage of Mr. Rymph and Miss Estelle 
Pearsall, of the town of Hyde Park, slaughter 
of Samuel H. Pearsall, and they have two 
sons and one daughter, — George H., James 
G. B., and Marguerite E. Reared in the Re- 
publican party, our subject has always adhered 
to its principles, but at local elections usually 
votes independent of party ties, supporting the 
man whom he thinks best qualified to fill the 
position. In 1875 he was elected assessor of 
his town, and in the spring of 1894 was elected 
justice of the peace for a period of four years. 
Socially, he is connected with Poughkeepsie 
Lodge No. 266, F. & A. M.; religiously, he is 
identified with the Reformed Dutch Church, 
which he attends. He is at present serving as 
secretary and treasurer of the Farmers Town 
Co-operative Insurance Company, of the town 



492 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



of Hyde Park, and is one of the stockholders 
of the Huguenot Bank of New Paltz, Ulster 
Co., N. Y. He has aided in the advancement 
of his town and county in many wajs, and is 
uniformly the friend of progress and education. 



FRANK HERRICK, an enterprising and 
prosperous merchant of Rhinebeck, Dutch- 
ess county, was born February 2, 1852, in the 
town of Pine Plains, where his family has long 
been prominent. 

He is a great-grandson of Ephraim Herrick, 
who had a son Ephraim Herrick (2), whose 
son, John A. Herrick, our subject's father, was 
born in 18 17, and became one of the leading 
citizens of Pine Plains. He followed farming 
during his active life, but is now passing his 
declining years in retirement in the village of 
Rhinebeck. His fine mental ability and high 
character have made him deservedly popular 
among a wide circle of acquaintances, and he 
has often been called upon to fill positions of 
trust, and was supervisor of the town of Pine 
Plains for eight years, and for a long period 
was assessor and commissioner of highwaj-s. 
Politically he was a Democrat, and has given 
much of his attention to the interests of his 
party in his locality. He married Miss Mar- 
garet Sherwood, daughter of Isaac Sherwood, 
a well-known resident of Milan. Of their three 
children, our subject is the second; the others 
are: Louisa, the eldest, married John D. 
Hedges, of Milan; and Minerva married Charles 
Ferris, formerly of Milan, now of Rhinebeck. 

Frank Herrick received a good English ed- 
ucation in his youth, attending the district 
schools near his home for some years, and 
later the seminary at Amenia, and as he pos- 
sesses an active mind, and is of an investigatinsr 
turn, he has smce gamed much information by 
reading and observation. On leaving school 
he began to learn the practical details of mer- 
cantile life in "Dibble's Store" at Pine Plains, 
where he clerked for one year, then, in 1875, 
went to Rhinebeck as a clerk for his uncles, 
I. & P. Sherwood, leading grocers of that 
town, and on the death of the senior partner, 
in 1 88 1, he was taken into the firm, which 
became Sherwood & Herrick. In 1892 Mr. 
Sherwood retired and Mr. Herrick removed to 
his present stand, and added coal and lumber 
to his stock, an enterprise which has been jus- 
tified by its success. He has one of the most 
complete stores in the locality, it being ad- 



mirably adapted in every way to the demands 
of the business, wholesale and retail. His ex- 
tensive trade is, perhaps, the largest in volume 
of any store in the town, is evidence of the 
confidence and esteem in which he is held 
throughout the community. 

He is public-spirited; in politics a Demo- 
crat, and always ready to forward any meas- 
ure for local improvement, but he has not been 
active in political work, as his business inter- 
ests demanded his exclusive attention. In 
1884 he was married to Miss Sarah Reed, a 
daughter of Thomas Reed, a leading citizen of 
Rhinebeck; she was born Decembers, 1858, 
in Saugerties, Ulster county, and educated in 
the De Garmo Institute at Rhinebeck. [For 
history of her ancestry see sketch of Thomas 
Reed, elsewhere in this volume.] Mr. and 
Mrs. Herrick are active members of the Bap- 
tist Church, in which he is an official. He 
belongs to the Relief Hook and Ladder Co., 
and served as foreman for several years. 



ATHAN W. SMITH, residing upon a 
valuable farm in the town of Amenia, 
presents in his life a splendid example of hard 
labor, close application to business, and perse- 
verance. He commenced life at the foot of 
the ladder, but by his own well-directed efforts 
he is now able to take life easily and comfort- 
ably, in the enjoyment of the fruits of his early 
industry. 

Mr. Smith was born on the old family 
homestead at North Lyme, Conn., January 
12, 1818, and is a son of Nathan and Nancy 
(Waterman) Smith, in whose family were five 
children, the others being: Sarah M., who 
became the wife of Columbus Reed; Gilbert 
B.; Nancy L. and John H. His father was 
born at the same place, November 12, 1788, 
and was four times married, his first wife be- 
ing the mother of our subject; they svere mar- 
ried in 1 8 10, and she died July 2, 1824. After 
her death he married Hannah Stark, by whom 
he had two children — Fitch C. and Henry S. 
His third wife was Nancy Baker, widow of 
Mathias Baker, and daughter of Deacon Eli- 
phalet Hillyard, and after her death he mar- 
ried Mary Gallup. At one time he was cap- 
tain of a sloop, but the greater part of his life 
was devoted to agricultural pursuits at Salem, 
Conn. He lived to a ripe old age, dying 
March 26, 1886. For many years he served 
as deacon in the Baptist Church at North 




w. 









^s 



^^ 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



493 



Lyme, Conn. ; was one of his country's defend- 
ers in the war of 1S12, and was always an up- 
right, honorable man, who had the confidence 
and esteem of all with whom he came in 
contact. 

Our subject can trace his ancestry back to 
Nehemiah (i) Smith, who landed in Massachu- 
setts prior to 1637, and was prominently con- 
nected with the early history of Connecticut. 
In his family of nine children there was only 
one son, Nehemiah (2), who for several years 
served as a member of the General Assembly 
at Hartford. His son, Nehemiah (3), was a 
farmer of New London county, Conn., and 
was the father of Isaac Smith, in whose family 
was William Smith, the grandfather of our 
subject. The latter, who was a farmer in New 
London county, married Sarah Smith, a daugh- 
ter of Nathan and Elizabeth Smith, and to 
them were born twelve children: William, 
Sarah, Elizabeth, Gurdon, John D., Edward, 
'Nathan, Phebe, Charlotte, Lucy, Almira and 
Ansyl. 

N. W. Smith, whose name introduces this 
sketch, attended the district schools near his 
boyhood home at North Lyme, Conn. , and com- 
pleted his education at Essex Academy. For 
two years he then clerked in a general store at 
North Lyme, later was similarly employed at 
Hamburg, Conn., for a year, after which he 
went to Saratoga county, N. Y. , where he 
worked on a farm for a season. By stage 
and steamboat he then came to the town 
of Amenia, Dutchess county, to visit his 
sister, Mrs. Columbus Reed, and subsequently 
was employed by Noah Gridley on a farm at 
Wassaic, where he remained two years. For 
the same length of time he worked for Mrs. 
Jacob Rundall, after which he went to Chicago 
by way of canal, railroad and Great Lakes, 
but after a short time spent in that city he re- 
turned to Dutchess county, and for three years 
was in the employ of William A. Benton, of 
Leedsville. 

In January, 1847, Mr. Smith was united in 
marriage with Miss Adeline E. Holly, who 
died in October, 1848. To them had been 
born one son, John Holly, who died in infancy. 
In the town of Washington, Dutchess county, 
on February 4, 1850, he was again married, 
his second union being with Esther J. Odell 
(born in 182S), one of the four children of 
Peter and Sarah Odell, of Jefferson county, 
the others being George, Levi and Elizabeth. 
In 1847, Mr. Smith removed to Northeast 



town, where for two years he engaged in farm- 
ing, but the following year he passed as a 
clerk in the store of Columbus Reed, at Was- 
saic. He was again on the farm of Jacob 
Rundall for three years, and for seventeen 
years operated the Noah Gridley farm. In 
1870 he removed to his present place south 
of South Amenia, a farm consisting of 400 
acres, which he purchased for $30,000, but 
mortgaged it for $20,000, and also bought 
several thousand dollars worth of stock. 
Three years later he sold 1 1 5 acres for $8, 500. 
So well did he succeed in this undertaking that 
by 1883 the place was free from indebtedness, 
and was yielding a handsome return for the 
care and the labor expended upon it. His 
achievement was all the more remarkable as 
the man who had previously lived upon the 
place declared he could not make a living 
there. Industry, perseverance and energy are 
numbered among his chief characteristics, and 
as he has been dependent upon his own re- 
sources from boyhood, his success is but the 
just reward of his own unaided efforts. 

At the age of seventeen years, Mr. Smith 
united with the Baptist Church at Lyme, 
Conn., and now holds membership with the 
Church at Amenia, of which he is a deacon. 
His father and grandfather before him held the 
same position in the churches to which they 
belonged. Since the organization of the Re- 
publican party, he has been one of its most 
earnest advocates. 



B BEVERLY W. HOWARD. The subject of 
!) this sketch stands second to none among 

the well-to-do farmers of the town of Wash- 
ington, Dutchess county, whose record it has 
been deemed wise to preserve in this manner 
for the perusal of the coming generation. As 
a judicious tiller of the soil he has met with 
success, and as a man and citizen holds a 
good position among his neighbors. He be- 
longs to a family long prominent in the history 
of Maryland, where the founder of the family 
in the New World (who was from England) 
located at an early day. He was born in the 
city of Baltimore on April 21, 1850. 

His grandfather, Samuel Howard, was born 
in Baltimore county, Md., in 1785, where his 
early life was passed. He was a man of lei- 
sure, as he was possessed of considerable wealth. 
By his marriage with Miss Ariana Cole, also a 
native of Baltimore county, he became the fa- 



494 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



therof eight children, as follows: Abrani, de- 
ceased, was a farmer of Muskingum county, 
Ohio; George W. is the father of our subject; 
Samuel and John died in childhood; Eliza be- 
came the wife of James Fulton, a merchant, 
but both are now deceased: Celia is the widow 
of William L. Rieman, a merchant of Balti- 
more; Sarah married Eli Beckwith, a real-es- 
tate dealer of Cleveland, Ohio, and both have 
now passed away; and Anna is the widow of 
Luther Norris, a merchant of Westminster, 
Md. The parents of this family were Meth- 
odists in religious belief. The grandfather 
spent his last days in Muskingum county, Ohio. 

George W. Howard, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born in Maryland, October 12, 18 10, 
and after reaching man's estate was for fifty 
years a wholesale dry-goods merchant of Balti- 
more. In later life he wrote a book of that 
city, entitled "The Monumental City." He 
was quite a prominent man, widely and favor- 
ably known. His political support was given 
the Democratic party. His death occurred in 
Baltimore, on November 26, 1S88, but his 
wife is still living. In that city he had married 
Carrie Foreman, a daughter of Arthur Fore- 
man, who was engaged in milling. They be- 
came the parents of two children: Ella and 
Beverly W. The former wedded Henry J. 
Davison, a civil engineer of New York City, 
who became very wealthy; he had learned his 
trade in the Novelty Iron Works of that city, 
after which he became connected with the gas 
business, also engaged in the building of steam- 
boats, and in this way secured a fortune, so 
that at his death, which occurred July 12, 
1890, he left a large estate. His wife had 
died July 12, 1878. In their family were four 
children — George Howard, Clarence B., Car- 
rie Theresa and Ella C. 

The boyhood and youth of Beverly W. 
Howard were passed in Baltimore, Md. , and 
in 1873 he came to Mabbettsville, Dutchess 
county, where he purchased his present farm of 
213 acres of valuable land, now under a good 
state of cultivation, so that it compares favor- 
ably with other fine farms of the locality. 

On October 8, 1878, Mr. Howard was 
married to Miss Laura H. Coffin, a daughter 
of R. G. Coffin, and their union has been 
blessed by the advent of eight children, name- 
ly: Samuel B., born November 27, 1879; an 
infant, who was born January 21, 1882, and 
died March 10, following; Robert C, born 
March 21, 1883; Henry D. born August 29, 



1885: Ella T., born September 4, 1888; Mar- 
ietta B., born December 5, 1890; Evlyn, born 
May 5, 1893; and Clarence K., born Septem- 
ber 2, 1895. Mr. Howard takes an intelligent 
and earnest interest in public affairs, actively 
promoting any scheme that will benefit the 
community, and is eminently worthy the trust 
and regard in which he is held by his fellow 
citizens. He uses his right of franchise in 
support of the men and measures of the Dem- 
ocratic party. 



CHARLES ALBERT CLINE, of the well- 
known firm of Cline Brothers, of Miller- 
ton, Dutchess county, leading commission 
dealers in wholesale dressed beef, was born No- 
vember 22, 1857, in the town of Amenia. He 
is of Holland-Dutch descent, the family name 
being originally Klein, then Kline and later 
Cline. His great-grandfather was John Cline, 
of Amenia, and his grandfather, Philo Cline, 
was born in Amenia, Dutchess county, with 
his three brothers. All four settled in the 
Oblong valley, and all left descendants who 
are now living in Dutchess county. Philo Cline 
was engaged in mercantile business and in 
conducting a hotel for some time, and he also 
owned large tracts of land in the town. His 
good education and naturally powerful intel- 
lect, united with perfect integrity and imparti- 
ality, gave him great influence in the commun- 
ity, and he was often called upon to settle dis- 
putes, both unofficially and in his capacity as 
justice of the peace. He was often employed 
to conduct cases in court, and sometimes was 
chosen to plead both sides. Politically, he 
was first a Whig and later a Republican, and 
in religion he held liberal and tolerant views.' 
He died in 1864, and his wife, Harriet Swift, 
daughter of Moses Swift, departed this life in 
1 86 1. They had two sons: Albert, our sub- 
ject's father; and Franklin, born in 1833, who 
is now a farmer in the town of Amenia. 

Albert Cline was born March 3, 1828, and 
in early manhood was a miller at South 
Amenia. Since 1863, he has been a success- 
ful farmer there, also having a fine farm of 
350 acres which he inherited. He has made 
many improvements, and is regarded as one of 
the leading agriculturists of that locality. In 
public affairs he is active, giving his influence 
to the support of the Republican party, and he 
has held a number of local offices, including 
that of supervisor. He is a member of the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



495 



Masonic fraternity, and is progressive and 
broad in his views on all the questions of the 
day. He married Eliza Reed, adopted daughter 
of Philo Reed, of Amenia. She died in 1872, 
leaving four children: Hattie, who married 
Frank Baylis, of Amenia; Philo R., of the 
firm of Cline Brothers; Charles Albert; and 
Maria, who married Walter A. Sherman. 

The subject of our sketch received his 
elementary education in the district schools 
near his home, and later attended Dover Plains 
Academy, and Fort Edward Institute, at 
Fort Edward, N. Y., for three years, being 
compelled because of ill health to leave before 
completing his course. Returning home in 
1876, he conducted the farm on shares for one 
year, and then moved to Millerton, and be- 
came bookkeeper for the East St. Louis Beef 
Company. A year later, when Nelson Morris 
bought out the company, Mr. Cline and his 
brother were made their agents, and for the 
last five years they have been in the commis- 
sion business under the firm name of Cline 
Brothers. They supply a large section of the 
surrounding territory, including many points 
in western Connecticut, and for a long distance 
up and down the Harlem railroad, and by 
their energy and enterprise they have accumu- 
lated a fine property. On March 20, 1888, 
Mr. Cline was married to Miss Cornelia F. 
Sherman, daughter of Samuel W. Sherman, 
and they have one son, Charles Sherman Cline. 
As a citizen Mr. Cline has shown great public 
spirit, and is a leader among the younger men 
of the town. He has always been a Republic- 
an, and takes an active share in party work. 
In 1894 he was elected supervisor for a term 
of two years, and performed his duties so ably 
that he was re-nominated in 1896. 



FREDERIC BOSTWICK. who since the 
age of twenty years has been connected 
with banking interests, was born in the village 
of Pine Plains, on September 8, 1849, and is 
a son of Reuben Bostwick. On the paternal 
side he traces his lineage in an unbroken line 
to Arthur Bostwick, who was born in Tarpaly 
parish, Cheshire, England, in 1603. He had 
two sons: Arthur, born in 1636, and John, 
born in 1638. The children of the latter were: 
John, Zachariah, Joseph, Marj', Elizabeth and 
Jane. John, the first of this family, was born 
in 1667, and became the father of the follow- 



ing children: John, Robert, Ebenezer, Joseph, 
Nathaniel, Lemuel, Daniel and Mary. In the 
family of Nathaniel Bostwick, who was born 
in 1699, were eleven children, namely: Arthur, 
Sarah, Lois, Reuben, Zadock, Abigail, Elijah, 
Gideon, Eunice, Tamer and Ichabod. Reu- 
ben, of this family, was born in 1734, and he 
had three children: Benjamin R., Mabel and 
Electa. The only son, Benjamin R. , was 
born in 1762, and in his family were the fol- 
lowing children: Lodema, Almon R., Reuben 
W., Charles B., William H. and Horatio N. 
Reuben W. Bostwick, of this family, was the 
grandfather of our subject. He was born in 
1788, and had four children: Reuben, Eliza 
Ann, William and Jerusha. Reuben, the father 
of our subject, was born in 1823, and in his 
family were seven children: Frederic, William, 
Ida, Hattie, Walter, Walker and J. Hunting. 

Our subject was educated at Poughkeepsie, 
at the College Hill Military Academy, which 
was then conducted by Otis Bisbee, and there 
continued his studies for three years. After 
his graduation from that institution he returned 
to his home at Pine Plains, and at the age of 
twenty years entered the Stissing National 
Bank, being appointed cashier in 1870, suc- 
ceeding his father in that position. William 
S. Eno was at that time president of the bank. 
He continued to serve as cashier until 1889, 
when he resigned in order to accept the ap- 
pointment of National Bank Examiner, ten- 
dered him during President Harrison's admin- 
istration. He had charge of three counties in 
New York — Columbia, Dutchess and West- 
chester. Later he went to Massachusetts, 
where he examined banks for nearly a year, 
and was then detailed for the same business in 
what is known as the Southern District of New 
York, comprising the counties of Rockland, 
Orange, Ulster, Greene, Delaware, Oneida, 
Erie, a part of Albany county, and the coun- 
ties bordering along the Pennsj'lvania line. 
For a year after the expiration of his term he 
was still retained in the office, which fact 
clearly indicates the capable manner in which 
he filled the position. 

In his political views Mr. Bostwick has al- 
ways been a strong Republican, taking a deep 
interest in the success of his party, and is now 
serving as county committeeman. He has per- 
sonally promoted many of the local enterprises 
of a public nature in Pine Plains, and is one of 
its most popular and influential citizens. He 
attends the Presbyterian Church, to which his 



496 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



family all belong, and socially is a prominent 
member of the Dutchess Club, of Pough- 
keepsie. 



JOHN M. HASKINS, a well-known resident 
of Amenia, Dutchess count}', is now living 
retired from active labor and in the enjoy- 
ment of all the comforts and many of the lux- 
uries of life. A native of Dutchess county, his 
birth occurred February 14, 1824, in the town 
of Washington. His father, Alexander Has- 
kins, was born on Long Island, but, when a 
young man of about twenty years, located in 
the town of Washington, where he engaged in 
farming until 1826, when he removed to the 
town of Amenia, there following the same oc- 
cupation. Politically he was a decided Demo- 
crat. He married Miss Deborah Masten, a 
native of the town of Milan, Dutchess county, 
and their family consisted of four children: 
Phebe, Levi and Ezekiel, all deceased, and 
John Masten, of this review. The father's 
death occurred August 7, 1848, and the mother 
was called from this life in 1857. 

At the age of two years our subject was 
brought by his parents to the town of Amenia, 
where he attended school until the age of ten 
years, when he started out in life for himself. 
For six years he worked in the Gridley Iron 
Mine at Amenia, but on the expiration of that 
time, on account of his father's failing health, 
he returned to the old home, caring for his 
parents until they crossed the dark river of 
death. Subsequently Mr. Haskins enga|;ed in 
teaming for a few years before the railroad was 
constructed, and in 1S58 entered the Manhat- 
tan Iron Mine at Sharon Station, Dutchess 
county, where he remained for eight years. 
He then again entered the service of the Grid- 
ley mine at Amenia, where for the long period 
of twenty-one years he capably served as 
superintendent, but has now laid aside all 
business cares. 

At Pine Plains, Dutchess county, July 31, 
1850, Mr. Haskins was married to Miss Mary 
M. Piatt, who was a daughter of Hiram and 
Matilda Piatt, and died August 4, 1884. To 
them were born four sons — William and 
George W., deceased; one who died in infancy, 
and John M., Jr. Since 1868 Mr. Haskins 
has been identified with Amenia Lodge No. 
672, F. & A. M., and he is a highly-respected 
and honored citizen of the community. He 
was first a Whig in politics, but since the dis- 



solution of that party he has been an active 
Republican, supporting the principles of his 
party with all the force of his convictions, and 
in 1894 and 1S95 was a member of the excise 
board. 



DAVID BRYAN, a well-known and pros- 
perous agriculturist of the town of Amenia, 
is a worthy representative of a family that for 
a century and a half has been prominently 
identified with the best interests of Dutchess 
county. 

The first of the family of whom there is any 
record was Alexander Brj'an, who lived in Con- 
necticut, where his death occurred in 1760. 
In his family were two sons and one daughter, 
namely: Elijah, Ezra and Sarah. Ezra Bryan, 
the second in this family, was the grandfather 
of our subject. He was born November 30, 
1740, and at the age of twenty-one was mar- 
ried, in Newtown, Conn. , to Sarah Peck. From 
there the young couple made their way on 
horseback to the town of Northeast, Dutchess 
county, where Mr. Bryan took up a farm of 
400 acres, and cultivated it in connection with 
his trade of cabinet making. He was a mem- 
ber of the Society of Friends, and through his 
loyalty to the Colonial government lost the 
bulk of his property in supporting the Revolu- 
tionary cause. He died while on his way to 
meeting, July 7, 1825. 

Amos Bryan, the father of our subject, was 
born in the town of Northeast ( formerly Ame- 
nia), January 31, 1779, and was the youngest 
in the family of five children. His education 
was obtained in the district schools of his na- 
tive town, and on reaching manhood he pur- 
chased 150 acres of the old homestead from 
the other heirs, which he operatgd. He also 
carried on the fanning-mill business, and, to- 
gether with Calvin Chamberlain, originated the 
' ' Chamberlain Plow " . He took quite a prom- 
inent part in public affairs, serving as assem- 
blyman in 1840, and also as supervisor and 
justice of the peace. By birthright he was a 
Quaker, and died in that faith April 12, 1863. 
In the town of Northeast, Dutchess Co., 
N. Y., on October 14, 1804, Amos Bryan was 
married to Betsey Finch, who was born Octo- 
ber 5, 1 78 1, and died May 24, 1863. Their 
family consisted of nine children: Laura, born 
in 1805, died in 1831; Ward W., born April 
12, 1807, died December 14, 1863; Eliza, born 
March 16, 18 10, became the wife of Henry 




/ 



^(jt^^irL£L /y-?-^i 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



497 



Sisson, of the town of Wasliington, Dutchess 
county, and died September 3, 1884; Ezra, 
born March 4, 1812, died March 22, 1876; 
Isaac, born August 25, 1815, died September 
14, 1885; James, born November 27, 1817, 
died March 16, 1839; David is next in order 
of birth; Mary, born December 9, 1822, died 
November i, 1853; and Sarah, born April 10, 
1825, died April 15, 1872. 

The birth of David Bryan occurred at the 
family homestead in the town of Northeast, 
September 22, 1819. He began his education 
in the district schools, and the knowledge there 
acquired was supplemented by a term's attend- 
ance at the Peekskill Military Academy and by 
a course in the Banks boarding schools at Do- 
ver Plains, Dutchess county. He remained 
upon the home farm and carried on the fan- 
ning-mill business until i860. Removing to 
the "Square" in the town of Northeast, he 
bought the farm of Judge Smith, comprising 
454 acres, where he lived until the fall of 1884, 
when he came to his present place in the town 
of Amenia. 

On October 21, 1854, Mr. Bryan was united 
in marriage with Miss Annvennette L. Sackett, 
a daughter of Phineas K. Sackett. Her death 
occurred July 21, 1858, and at Astoria, Long 
Island, March 20, 1867, he was again married, 
this time to Miss Cornelia T. Willson (daugh- 
ter of John H. Willson), by whom he had one 
son, Frederick, born August 23, 1868, and 
died June 26, 1S72. In his political views Mr. 
Bryan coincides with the Republican party, 
whose ticket he usually supports, and previous 
to the organization of the party he was a Whig. 
He has ever taken a commendable interest in 
the upbuilding and prosperity of his native 
county, and by his fellow-citizens has been 
called upon to serve in several positions, in- 
cluding those of supervisor, assessor and justice 
of the peace in the town of Northeast. He is 
a stockholder and at present a director in the 
First National Bank of Amenia. 



PETER W. FUNK. Prominent among the 
leading citizens of Barrytown, Dutchess 

county, is the gentleman whose name stands 
at the beginning of this biographical notice. 
He is a native of Columbia county, N. Y., 
born in the town of Clermont, January 23, 
1843, and is of Holland origin. 

David Funk, his grandfather, was born in 
Holland, and was a member of the British 

32 



army until coming to the United States. Lo- 
cating in Columbia county, N. Y., he there 
followed his trade of shoemaking. He mar- 
ried Miss Betsy Olmstead, also of Holland, 
and to them were born eight children: Jacob, 
John, Edward, Alexander, Andrew, Margaret, 
Deborah, and a daughter that died in infancy. 

The birth of Alexander Funk, the father of 
our subject, occurred in the town of Clermont, 
Columbia county, in 1818; there he received 
a common-school education, and followed 
farming through the greater part of his life. 
He wedded Miss Nancy Plass, a daughter of 
Peter Plass, a farmer of the town of Clermont, 
and they became the parents of nine children, 
of whom our subject is the eldest; Edward 
married Mary Van Tassel; John married Dora 
Brazie; David married Mary Lasher; Winfield 
married Alice Buck; Alonzo married Jennie 
Vandemark; Frank died in infancy; Mary E. 
was three times married, her first union being 
with Alexander Palmetier, the second Martin 
Drum, and the third Hiram Dutcher; and 
Catherine died in infancy. 

In the common schools of his native coun- 
ty, Mr. Funk, of this review, acquired his edu- 
cation, and after leaving the school-room he 
worked at farming, but was rudely awakened 
from his quiet dreams of the future, by the 
dark cloud of war that overshadowed our be- 
loved country. On August 28, 1862, his pa- 
triotism having been aroused, he enlisted in 
the 150th N. Y. V. I., which was raised in 
Dutchess county, and participated in many of 
the famous battles of the war, including Get- 
tysburg, Buzzards Roost (which was fought 
May 14, 1863), Resaca (on the isth), Gulps 
Farm (on the 22d), and Dallas (on the 25th of 
the same month), and Peach Tree Greek (on 
the 20th and 22d of June following). The 
following winter the regiment was quartered at 
Savannah, Ga. , and the following spring was 
in two important engagements, one at Averys- 
boro and the other at Bentonville, N. C. He 
was with Sherman on his celebrated march to 
the sea, participating in the capture of Atlanta 
and Savannah, and was in the last engage- 
ments of the war. He had entered the serv- 
ice as a private, but for meritorious conduct 
had been promoted to the non-commissioned 
office of corporal, and after the close of hos- 
tilities was honorably discharged in June, 1865. 

Mr. Funk was united in marriage with Miss 
Delia Houghtaling, daughter of Jeremiah 
Houghtaling, of the town of Milan, Dutchess 



498 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



county. They now have a pleasant home in 
Barry town, where our subject is employed as 
clerk in a mercantile house. He is a promi- 
nent member of Christian Lodge, I. O. O. F. , 
of Red Hook, which he joined in 1894, and 
has filled several chairs of importance in that 
order. He is also a charter member of Shiloh 
Encampment, of the same place, and a mem- 
ber of the Odd Fellows Mutual Benefit Asso- 
ciation of Dutchess county, with headquarters 
at Poughkeepsie. He keeps up his acquaint- 
ance' with his army comrades by his connection 
with Armstrong Post No. 104, G. A. R., of 
Rhinebeck, Dutchess county. He has mani- 
fested the same loyalty in days of peace as in 
days of war, and all who know him have for 
him the highest regard. 



ISAAC SWIFT belongs to a family that for 
many generations have resided in this coun- 
try and taken a prominent part in its history. 
He traces his origin back to William Swift, 
who was born in England in 1634 and died in 
that country in 1705. He was followed by his 
son William, who was born in 1654, and died 
in 1 701. The next is Benjamin Swift, whose 
birth occurred in West F'almouth, Mass. He 
wedded Mary Gifford, and died in 1775. Their 
third son, Zebulon, wedded Rebecca Wing, of 
Falmouth, and Abraham, their third son, who 
was united in marriage with Johanna Sisson, 
liecame the grandfather of our subject. 

The earliest recollections of Isaac Swift 
are of the old home farm where his birth took 
place November 19, 1822, and he there early 
became familiar with the duties which fall 
to the lot of an agriculturist. On reaching 
manhood he continued the cultivation and im- 
provement of that place until April, 1881, 
when he disposed of the same, and has since 
lived retired, enjoying the fruits of his former 
toil. 

Mr. Swift was married to Miss Lydia H. 
Almy, a native of Vermont, and a daughter of 
Obediah and Rhoda (Barrett) Almy, who were 
the parents of si.x children, namely: Helen, 
Lydia, Rhoda, Margaret, Stephen and James. 
On both the paternal and maternal sides Mrs. 
Swift was of English origin, and the families 
were all members of the Society of Friends. 
She died November 12, 1857, leaving two 
children: Charles I., a contractor and builder 
of Milbrook, Dutchess county; and Henrietta, 
wife of W. L. Swift, editor of the " Round 



Table," of Millbrook. On January 5, 1858, 
our subject was united in marriage with Rhoda 
A. Almy, a sister of his former wife. 

As a farmer, Mr. Swift was quite success- 
ful, always fair and honorable in all his deal- 
ings, and has the confidence and respect of all 
who know him. He is a progressive, enter- 
prising citizen, taking a deep interest in every- 
thing for the advancement of his town and 
county. He uniformly casts his vote with the 
Republican part}', and he and his estimable 
wife are members of the Friends Church. 



JAMES H. WRIGHT. This highly respected 
citizen of the town of Stanford, Dutchess 

county, has resided upon his present farm 
since 1853, and is successfully engaged in gen- 
eral agriculture. His early ancestors emi- 
grated from England to this country, and his 
grandfather, John Wright, was a native of the 
town of Fishkill, Dutchess county, where he 
devoted his whole life to agricultural pursuits. 
In his family were twelve children, as follows: 
Polly, Susan, Lydia, Ruth, Isaac I., John, 
Aaron, Esther, Dena, Peter, Freelove and 
Harvey. 

Isaac I. Wright, the father of our subject, 
was also born in the town of Fishkill, where 
he later attended school, and learned the car- 
penter's, wagonmaker's and blacksmith's trades. 
In 1836 he came to the town of Stanford, lo- 
cating on a farm near Mclntyre Station, which 
he operated for a number of years. The lat- 
ter part of his life, however, was spent at 
Bangall, where he died in 1 871, at the ripe 
old age of eighty-two years. He was a self- 
made man, having made all his possessions by 
his own industry, diligence and economy, and 
is entitled to high praise for his commendable 
activity. He was a member of the Baptist 
Church at Bangall, and in politics was first a 
Whig, later a Republican. He was married 
in the town of Fishkill to Jennett Howe, daugh- 
ter of Libbens Howe, and they became the 
parents of the following children: Margaret 
and Hannah Maria (both deceased); Ymar 
(deceased); James Harvey, subject of this 
sketch; John (deceased). Lucy Ann, wife of 
Joel Williams; Rebecca, wife of Clark Guern- 
sey; Phctbe, wife of Eli Wright; and George, 
of Mount Ross, Milan. 

The birth of our subject occurred April 5, 
1 820, in the town of East Fishkill, where he 
began his education, later continuing his stud- 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOGRAPEWAL RECORD. 



499 



ies in the town of Stanford, and at the Jacob 
Willets Boarding School in the town of Wash- 
ington, Dutchess county. He grew to man's 
estate upon his father's farm, and as soon as 
old enough assisted in its cultivation until his 
marriage, gaining a good practical knowledge 
of the business under the wise guidance of his 
father. 

In the town of Stanford, Decembers, 1853, 
Mr. Wright was married to Mary A. Humphrey, 
daughter of John and Clarissa Humphrey, of 
that township. To them were born si.\ chil- 
dren, in order of birth as follows: (i) John H. 
married Ella Vandewater, December 21, 1880, 
and they have three children — Ralph, Maud 
and Roy. (2) Clara, of Yonkers, is the wife 
of Franklin Talmadge, by whom she has two 
children — Mabel and Marian. (3) Isaac I. is 
deceased. (4) Charles W., who makes his 
home at Clinton Corners, Dutchess county, 
married Delia Stewart, and they have three 
children — Harold and Edith (twins) and Ethel. 
(5) Ira is the next in order of birth. (6j Net- 
tie, the youngest, is also deceased. 

Mr. Wright is a keen, practical man, well 
gifted with mental vigor. His genial manners 
and sturdy integrity have won him a host of 
friends, and he is highly regarded by all with 
whom he comes in contact. He is a sincere 
and earnest Christian, a member of the Bap- 
tist Church for fifty-four years. He united 
with the Church in 1842, and served the same 
for several years as chorister and superintend- 
ent of the Sabbath-school, and trustee; was 
elected clerk of the Church in 1874, and still 
continues as clerk; and later was elected dea- 
con of said Church. On account of his views 
on the temperance question, he is a stanch 
supporter of the Prohibition party. 



I WIGHT ABEL. Jacob Abel, grandfather 
of our subject, was born in the town of 
Unionvale, Dutchess county, where he passed 
his days in agricultural pursuits. He married 
Miss Margaret Uhl, by whom he had three 
children: \\'illiam W. , John U. and Mary. 

William W. Abel, father of our subject, 
was born March i, 18 14, in the town of Union- 
vale, and during his boyhood attended the 
Nine Partners School, after which he taught 
school for a time. Later he followed agricult- 
ural pursuits exclusively, becoming one of the 
most extensive farmers in his township. He 



took an active interest in political matters, al- 
ways voting with the Whig or Republican 
party, and held a number of township offices, 
including those of supervisor, justice of the 
peace and revenue collector. He was twice 
married, first time to Helen Cornell, by whom 
he had two children: Evaline and Mary, the 
last named dying at the age of twelve years. 
Evaline married Henry Brill, of Beekman, N. 
Y. , and two children were born to them: 
Theodore R. , who married Miss Emma Hicok, 
and Nellie C. For his second wife William 
W. Abel wedded Miss Mary Jane Austin, 
daughter of Beriah and Sarah (Waite) Austin, 
and four children were born to them: Orlin 
B., Dwight, H. Clay and John Jacob. Of 
these Orlin B. is more fully spoken of else- 
where; H. Clay was born in the town of Un- 
ionvale, and received a good common-school 
education, after which he followed the pro- 
fession of teaching. He is now engaged in 
mercantile business at Wappingers Falls, Dutch- 
ess county. Socially, he affiliates with the F. 
& A. M. He married Miss Maggie Traver, by 
whom he had two children, William C. and 
Melburn T., and after her death he wedded 
Miss Mary Manning. 

Dwight Abel was born in 1846 in the town 
of Unionvale, where his entire life has been 
passed. His elementary education was re- 
ceived at the schools of the neighborhood of 
his boyhood home, and later he pursued his 
studies at Charlotteville, Schoharie Co., N. 
Y. He early began to assist in the labors of 
the home farm, and has since devoted his 
time and attention to rural pursuits with ex- 
cellent results. Politically, he is identified with 
the Republican party, but has never aspired to 
public office. He is enterprising and public- 
spirited. On December 18, 1867, he married 
Miss Adaline E. Coe, daughter of Reuben L. 
Coe, of Unionvale, and they became the par- 
ents of three children: Charles H., born Jan- 
uary 27, 1869, and who died at the age of 
twenty-one years; Walter J., born April 25, 
1872; and Jennie L., born February 25, 1887. 
The second son, Walter J. Abel, was born in 
the town of Unionvale, in 1872, attended the 
Claverack College, and is now engaged in farm- 
ing in the town of Lagrange, Dutchess county. 
He married Miss Anna C. Hyzer, daughter of 
Abram Hyzer, an agriculturist of that town- 
ship, and their union has been blessed with 
one child, Edwin Dwight, born January 11, 
1896. 



500 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



EDWARD M. SMITH. In Munsels "Amer- 
ican Ancestry, giving the name and de- 
scent of the male line of Americans whose an- 
cestors settled in the United States previous to 
the Declaration of Independence," we have 
the genealogy of Edward M. Smith, the author 
of the History of Rhinebeck, as follows: 

Edward Martin Smith, of Rhinebeck, N. 
Y., born at Red Hook, N. Y. , March 29, 1S17, 
the eleventh of thirteen children, left home at 
the age of twelve to work on uncle's farm; 
tailor's apprentice 1833-1838; journeyman 
tailor in Rhinebeck 1838-1840; master tailor 
from last date; co-founder of the Rhinebeck 
Gii::ctti 1846; merchant tailor 1S50; president 
of the village 1875; president of the school 
board 1 881-1889; author of the History of 
Rhinebeck 1881; married September 13, 1842, 
Mary Elizabeth Davis, daughter of Jabez Davis, 
of Shropshire, England. 

Son of Philip Smith, born June 27, 1773; 
died at Milan, N. Y., December 13, 1851; 
farmer; spoke German, Dutch and English 
with equal fluency; possessed much mechanical 
skill and ingenuity; married December 4, 1796, 
Anna Coopernail, daughter of William Cooper- 
nail, of the Mohawk Valley, descendant from 
Jan Van Koppenol, who came to America in 
1659. 

Son of Johannes Schmidt, born in Rhine- 
beck, March 30, 1730; died April 18, 181 3; 
married February 3, 1761, Elizabeth Sipperley, 
born August 12, 1741; died March 25, 1804; 
daughter of Frederick Sipperley and Catharine 
Wegeler, daughter of Hans Michael Wegeler, 
one of the Palatine founders of the town of 
Rhinebeck; married August 15, 1727. 

Son of Zacharias Schmidt, born in Ger- 
many; was clerk, fore-reader, deacon, elder 
and treasurer of the Reformed German Church ; 
located on part of his farm three miles north of 
the present village of Rhinebeck; married 
about 1728 Anna Maria, daughter of Valentin 
Biiuder, who with his wife, Anna Margaretha 
Stopplebeen, came to America in 1710 on the 
ship "Midfort," Capt. Fowles, with the Rev. 
Joshua Kocherthal and other Protestant re- 
ligious refugees from the Palatinate on the 
Rhine. 

At the death of his father, Philip Smith, 
the only one of four sons who remained a 
farmer and at home at maturity, became the 
owner of the homestead, with the farm-stock 
and three slaves, Tom and Flore and their son 
Tobe. As the older sons of the fainilv were 



approaching manhood, Tom, an intelligent 
negro, made up his mind that his master could 
do very well without him, and besought him, 
very earnestly, to sell him to Peter Van Ben- 
thuysen, who had expressed a wish to own 
him; which, after much hesitation, he finally 
did. Before Tom had been a fortnight on the 
premises of his new master he absconded, 
without leaving a clue to his destination be- 
hind him. 

After 1827, when New York had freed all 
her slaves by an act of the Legislature, Tom 
came into the State from Massachusetts with 
a good team of horses and a wagon, his own 
property, with which he was earning his living 
as a teamster. He was on his way to the 
Hudson river for a load of merchandise, and 
sought out his old master, then living in the 
town of Milan, to tell him that when he im- 
portuned him to sell him he had fully made up 
his mind to run away, but preferred to do so 
from a new rather than his old master, to whom 
and his family he had become greatly attached; 
and that he was quite as eager that he should 
obtain a good price for him as he was that he 
should sell him. 

Tobe had long been given away, a mar- 
riage present to a daughter of the family; Flora 
had gone away, the. wife of a decent negro, 
able to support her; at his death she found a 
home with her son, Tobias, her only offspring, 
who earned his living mainly by fishing and 
fiddling. Old and tottering, she walked four 
miles to be present at her old mistress' funeial. 

In 1822 Philip Smith sold the leasehold of 
the old Red Hook home, and took his family 
of twelve children to a larger farm in Colum- 
bia county, N. Y., under a Livingston Lease, 
where the thirteenth child was soon added to 
the family. Here the older children soon 
found it necessary to look beyond the farm for 
a livelihood, and drifted away to various occu- 
pations. Before 1830 this farm was also dis- 
posed of, and what was left of the family be- 
came the owners in fee of a small farm in the 
town of Milan. Here the father died, Decem- 
ber 13, 1 83 I, his children all living, and at his 
funeral; the mother October 26, 1864, her 
thirteen children all living and at her funeral, 
the youngest forty-one years old, who is now, 
and has been for several terms, a justice of the 
peace in Gerniantown, Columbia Co., N. Y. 
The grandfather, Johannes Schmidt, served as 
a soldier in the French and Indian war; was 
an " Associator" at the outbreak of the Revo- 




^, Ayi. S-yi^i^^^^ATT^ 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



501 



lution, and did what he could for the freedom 
and independence of his country. 

On May 2, 1896, the semi-centennial of the 
Rhinebeck Gazette, the present editor and pro- 
prietor pubhshed what follows about its founder 
and his History of Rhinebeck: 

When Mr. Smith disposed of the Oazette establish- 
ment, and ceased to be its editor, he did not wholly 
abandon his literary work. The following item copied 
from Mason's Illustrated History of Dutchess County, 
published in 1882. gives due credit to what he has since 
done in the literary line: 

"During his residence of forty-three years in Rhine- 
beck, Mr. Smith has collected from various sources the 
material included in his history of this old town. It is a 
work of years, in the preparation of which much time, 
labor and money have been expended, and to which, 
through the kindness of the author, we are indebted for 
nearly all the data relating to Rhinebeck. His work, 
more complete in its minutia? than can be any history of 
the county at large, may be justly regarded as a valuable 
contribution to the historical data of the county and State. 
Mr. Smith's History of Rhinebeck was published in 1881, 
mainly for subscribers, and the entire edition was e.\- 
hausted in a few months. No copies are to be had now, 
' for love or money.' Persisting in his researches, we are 
told that he is now in possession of facts related to the 
history of the town and its early settlers that will enable 
him to revise, correct and greatly enhance the interest of 
the work, and that he is accordingly employing some of 
his leisure time in re-writing and enlarging it. Having 
entered the eightieth year of his age, Mr. Smith will hardly 
assume the task of its republication. We hojiesome one 
will secure the manuscript, and in due time offer it to the 
people." 



GEORGE W. CRONK. Prominent among 
the successful and enterprising farmers of 
Dutchess county maj' be found the subject of 
this biographical sketch, whose home is situated 
in the town of Unionvale, and who is consid- 
ered one of the most industrious and worthy 
citizens of this part of the county. Here his 
entire life has been passed, his birth having 
occurred in the town of Amenia, in 18 18, while 
his education was obtained in the schools of 
Lagrange and Fishkill town. His paternal 
grandfather, Jacob Cronk, was a native of Hol- 
land, and on coming to the New World lo- 
cated in the town of Hyde Park, Dutchess 
county, about eight miles from Poughkeepsie, 
and there engaged in farming. 

Timothy Cronk, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Hyde Park, in 1748. 
He became a resident of the town of Fishkill, 
where he worked at his trade of coopering, and 
was a faithful soldier in the war of 1812. He 
was twice married, by his first union having 
three children; Hiram, Samuel and Rhoda. 
For his second wife he wedded Deborah A. 
Brown, and to them were born five children: 



Sarah, who married Saxon Raymond; Harri- 
son, who was killed in war; Henry, who died 
unmarried; Nelson, who married Harriet Mar- 
shall; and George, our subject. 

During his youth George Cronk learned 
the weaver's trade, at which he worked for 
nine years, later for ten years was in the mill- 
ing business, and then turned his attention to 
carpentering and masonry. For the past thirty 
years, however, he has devoted his attention 
exclusively to his farming interest, and though 
enterprising and public-spirited, has never 
cared for office. He married Miss Emeline 
Howard, who was born April 26, 1824, in the 
town of Dover, and was there educated in its 
common schools. 

Ten children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Cronk, namely: (1) Mary, born August 10, 
1843, married George Hillker, a farmer of the 
town of Poughkeepsie, and they have one son, 
George Henry, now an operator on an elevated 
railroad in New York City. (2) George H., 
born October 18, 1S45, who engaged in farm- 
ing after completing his education. At the age 
of twenty-one years he enlisted at Poughkeep- 
sie in the 150th N. Y. V. I., and served until 
the close of the war, being in the battle of 
Petersburg, and also at Appomatox when Lee 
surrendered. He holds membership in the 
Grand Army of the Republic. Carpentering 
is now his occupation. He married Annie 
Harrington, and they have had four children — 
George B., who married Agnes Salter; Julia 
A., who married William E. Ostram; William, 
who died at the age of eleven years; and Her- 
bert. (3) Helen A., born April 3, 1848, died 
May 18, 1849. (4) Albert, born June i 5, 1850, 
went to California as overseer of a farm for 
Governor Stanford, and later was inspector in 
gold mines. He married Sarah S. Perry, of 
that State, and died May 15, 1884. (5) Will- 
iam B., born August 20, 1852, died July 8, 
1874. (6) Emma, born November 27, 1854, 
married James P. Organ, a farmer of Noxon, 
Dutchess county, and they have two sons — 
Floyd and William. (7) Martha, born July 
26, 1858, married Harvey Van Dewater, for- 
merly a farmer, but now engaged in merchan- 
dising at New Hackensack, N. Y. (8) John, 
born October 23, i860, is by trade a carpenter, 
but is also engaged in farming in the town of 
Washington, Dutchess county. He married 
Ella Bostwick, an adopted daughter of Henry 
Bostwick. (9) Charles E., born May 30, 1862, 
is an architect of Herkimer, N. Y., and is now 



502 



COMyfEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



finishing the plans for ex-President Harrison's 
summer residence in the Adirondack Mount- 
ains. He married EUzabeth Risedorf. (lo) 
Sarah E. , born October 23, 1864, completes 
the family. On April 28, 1897, she married 
John E. Forshay, a carpenter by trade, of New 
York City. They were all born and educated 
in the town of Amenia. Dutchess county. 

Zebaniah Howard, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Cronk, was a native of the town of Dover, and 
engaged in farming from youth until his death, 
conducting a good farm which he owned on 
Chestnut Ridge. In religious belief he was a 
Friend. By his marriage with Miss Lydia 

he had the following children: John, 

Charles, Sylvester, Valirie, Pontius, Edward 
and Silas. 

The birth of Silas Howard, the father of 
Mrs. Cronk, occurred in the town of Amenia, 
but most of his life was passed in F"ishkill 
town, and throughout his life he followed the 
profession of teaching, being one of the able 
instructors of the county. By birthright he 
was a member of the Society of Friends. He 
was united in marriage with Miss Amelia Cash, 
daughter of David and Amelia Cash, farming 
people of Columbia county, N. Y. They be- 
came the parents of nine children, namely: 
William, born August 15, 1S09, married Pau- 
lina Storms; Rachel, born May 28, 181 1, mar- 
ried Isaac Harrington; Aaron, born March 26, 
181 3, married Harriet Sweet; David, born 
February 21, 181 5, married Caroline Sweet; 
Silas, born December 21, 18 16, married Cath- 
arine Odell; Asa, born September 24, 18 19, 
married Jane Northrop; Lydia, born August 
29, 1 82 1, married John Ulrich; Emeline, wife 
of our subject, is next in order of birth; and 
Elizabeth, born February 28, 1828, married 
Joseph Martin. 



JOHN W. PULVER, a well-known business 
man of Millerton, Dutchess county, and the 
proprietor of extensive bottling works, was 
born July 23, 1830, at Red Hook, Dutchess 
Co., N. Y. , where his ancestors were among 
the pioneer settlers. His grandfather, David 
Pulver, was a native of the same place, and 
became a successful farmer there, owning a 
tract of land near the old post road between 
Upper and Lower Red Hook, now belonging 
to Mr. Coons. David Pulver was a substan- 
tial citizen, influential in local matters, and 
prosperous in business. In addition to his 



farming, he engaged largely in the breeding of 
running horses. He died in 1842, and his 
wife, formerly Catherine Simmons, died in 
Red Hook, in 1836. They had seven children: 
David, Henry, Peter and Zachariah (twins), 
.•\nna (Mrs. William Fredenburgh), Peggy 
(Mrs. John Witherwax), and one who died in 
infancy. 

Zachariah Pulver, our subject's father, was 
born at the old home at Red Hook, in 1793, 
and lived there until 1835, following farming 
as an occupation. He and his brother, Peter, 
made their home together for sixty years, and 
married two sisters, the daughters of Philip 
Teeter, a leading citizen of the town of Milan, 
and a descendent of a German family. Peter's 
wife's name was Maria, and Zachariah's wife's 
name was Catherine. A few years after mar- 
riage the)' moved to Columbia county, and 
bought a farm of 209 acres in the town of 
Chatham, adding to it later until the farm 
contained about 300 acres. Zachariah Pulver 
was a strong Democrat, and a leading official 
of the Lutheran Church, of which this family 
have been members from early times. He 
died in 1873, his wife surviving him fourteen 
years. They had five children, of whom two 
are now living. Mary died in infancy; Cather- 
ine at the age of three, and David Henry in 
1874. The survivors are John W. , our sub- 
ject; and Elizabeth A., who married Lewis 
Smith, of Chatham, New York. 

The subject of our sketch received a good 
English education in the district schools of the 
town of Chatham, and was especially noted for 
his ability as a mathematician, being considered 
the best in Columbia county. His brother 
David also possessed the same powers to an 
unusual degree. Mr. Pulver left school at the 
age of sixteen, but he has been an unwearied 
reader and is well informed upon general topics. 
He remained at home until he was twenty-two 
years old, and then took charge of a farm be- 
longing to his father, in Rensselaer county, and 
three years later he moved to another at the 
head of North Chatham Village, where he re- 
mained eleven years. He then sold out to a 
brother and removed to Nassau, Rensselaer 
county, and engaged in the milling business in 
a rented mill. Later he bought the property 
and formed a partnership with Mr. Davis, the 
owner ; but this venture proved unfortunate, 
and he sold his interest to Mr. Davis before a 
year had elapsed. The following year he was 
in partnership with E. M. Crum in the mow- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



503 



ing-machine business, and on disposing of his 
share in that he bought a store and followed 
the business alone. In 1871 he moved to 
Amenia, and engaged in his present employ- 
ment of bottling during the summer season, 
and cutting pork and making sausage in winter. 
This establishment was removed to Millerton 
in 1877, and has since commanded the largest 
business of the sort in this locality. 

Mr. Pulver is one of the leading men of the 
town of Northeast, an unwavering Democrat 
and an earnest worker for local improvements. 
He was supervisor in 1888 and 1889, and in 
1890 was defeated by only one vote. In 1852 
he was married to Miss Abbie Middlebrook, 
daughter of Aaron Middlebrook, and has had six 
children: Luella, who married Collins Barton, 
of Northeast town; Elzada; Elmer; Anna M. ; 
George ; and Andrew, the proprietor of the 
' ' Millerton House ". Of this family the eldest 
and the youngest are the only survivors. Mr. 
Pulver and his wife have been prominent mem- 
bers of the Presbyterian Church for many years, 
and he also belongs to Webatuck Lodge No. 
480, F. & A. M. 



J VAN NESS DUTCHER is a prominent 
citizen and a worthy representative of one 
of the honored pioneer families of the 
town of Dover, Dutchess county. Cornelius 
Dutcher, his grandfather, was numbered among 
the first settlers of the township, where through- 
out life he followed agricultural pursuits. In 
his family were ten children, whose names and 
dates of birth are as follows: Simeon, April 
21, 1772; Gabriel, July 11, 1773; Cornelius, 
March 15, 1775; Priscilla, December 27, 1776; 
Peter, July 20, 1779; Wheaton, October 20, 
1781; Joshua, May 12, 1784; Ruleff, June 25, 
1786; Betsy, March 19, 1788; and Sylva, 
April I, 1792. 

The birth of Joshua Dutcher, the father of 
our subject, occurred in the town of Dover. 
He acquired his education in the common 
schools and followed farming. He was united 
in marriage with Miss Sarah Carrington, daugh- 
ter of Daniel and Thankful Carrington, agri- 
culturists, of Connecticut. Three children 
graced this union, namely: (i) Jennette, born 
July 9, 1 82 1, married Aaron Butts, a police- 
man of New York City, and they had three 
children — Cora; Blendina, married to J. G. 
Suydam, of New York City; and Joshua, who 



married Josephine Way, of Mabbettsville, and 
had one child, Laura Jennette, that was left 
an orphan at an early age, its father and 
mother both dying. (2) J. Van Ness is ne.xt 
in order of birth. (3) Elizabeth, born Febru- 
ary 25, 1826, became the wife of James Fry, 
a farmer, of the town of Dover, and to them 
was born a son, Frank, who married Miss 
Emma J. Wing, and has two children. 

J. Van Ness Dutcher was born January 31, 
1823, in the town of Dover, where on reach- 
ing a sufficient age he attended the public 
schools, and, like his ancestors, has devoted 
his time and energies to the cultivation of the 
soil. He is public-spirited and progressive, 
taking a genuine interest in the enterprises set 
on foot for the advancement and welfare of 
his native county. 

Mr. Dutcher was united in marriage with 
Miss Harriet M. Benson, daughter of Samuel 
and Sarah Benson, farming people of the town 
of Dover. Five children came of this anion: 
(i) Mary Estella, born in February, 1863, is 
the wife of Alfred Still, a carpenter of White 
Plains, Dutchess county, and they have one 
child— Ida F. , born July 26, 1883. (2) Ber- 
tha E., born October 22, 1867, is the wife of 
George Cutler, a postal clerk of New York 
City, and they have one child — Ethel, born 
November 26, 1891. (3) Harriet V., born 
January 13, 1871, is the wife of Elmer Dutcher, 
an agriculturist, and they have one child — 
Mabel, born September 10, 1895. (4) Van- 
Ness, born April 2, 1874, a farmer by occupa- 
tion, married Amelia Rozell, daughter of Obed 
Rozell, by whom he has one child — Mary, born 
February 15, 1895. (5) Cora, born October 
27, 1876, completes the family. 



OHN CORNELL SHEAR was for many 
years one of the most prominent and influ- 
ential citizens of the town of Lagrange, 
Dutchess county. He was born in that town- 
ship, October 12, 181 1, and is the son of John 
C. and Margaret (Cornell) Shear, the former 
born November 21, 1776, and the latter Au- 
gust 25, 1 78 1. The parental household in- 
cluded six children: Anna, born October 31, 
1800, died January 8, 1891; Catherine E., 
born April 8, 1803, died in December, 1888; 
Israel J., born February 26, 1806, died July 7, 
1821; John Cornell, subject of this review; 
Abraham, born October 8, 181 5; and Sarah, 



504 



COM^fEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



born December 3, 18 18. The father owned 
and operated a farm in the town of Lagrange, 
where his death occurred August 14, 1825, and 
his wife, who long survived him, passed away 
November 25, 1868. 

The educational advantages of our subject 
were good for that early day, as he supplemented 
the knowledge acquired in the district schools 
of his native township by a course in the Jacob 
Wiliets Boarding School, in the town of Wash- 
ington, Dutchess county. He also early be- 
came familiar with the labors of the farm, and 
in connection with his brother Abraham oper- 
ated land in Lagrange town until 1888, when 
their interests were separated, and our subject 
removed to his present farm in the same town- 
ship. He has always been an energetic, pro- 
gressive man, and secured through his efforts a 
handsome competence. 

On April 27, 1876, Mr. Shear was united 
in marriage with Catherine L. Pierce, who is of 
French ancestry, and a daughter of Caleb 
Pierce, of Fishi<ill, Dutchess county. One 
child blessed this union, Anna. Mr. Shear 
is recognized as one of the valuable mem- 
bers of the community, giving his support and 
encouragement to those enterprises calculated 
for the general welfare, and has ever been 
held in the highest respect and esteem by his 
fellow citizens. While engaged in active busi- 
ness, he was one of the most noted stock-rais- 
ers of Dutchess county, giving special atten- 
tion to the raising of cattle and sheep. On 
February 16, 1874, he sold in the New York 
market a couple of " Durhams," weighing 
4,616 pounds, for $450. His sheep were of 
the Southdown and Cotswold breeds, for which 
he received first premium at the county fair 
held at Poughkeepsie. 

Johannes Shear, the great-grandfather of 
our subject, was born in 171 8, in Germany, 
and came to America in 175 1. His son, John 
C. Shear, grandfather of our subject, was born 
in America, in 1751. 



JOHN WOODBURY PUTNAM (deceased). 
The thanks of a grateful nation are due to 
the heroes who, in their country's hour of 
peril, went forth in defense of the Union, and 
beneath the burning rays of the Southern sun 
displayed their loyalty to the " flag of the free 
heart's hope and home." The gentleman 
whose name introduces this review belonged 



to that noble army that proved the country's 
salvation, and he well deserves a place on the 
pages of its history. 

The earliest ancestors of the Putnam fam- 
ily in this land was John Putnam, who, in 
1634, came to America from Buckinghamshire, 
England, bringing his wife, Priscilla, and his 
three sons — Thomas, Nathaniel and John. 
The sons grew to manhood in Salem, Mass., 
and became the owners of large estates. In 
1 68 1 the three paid one-seventh of the total 
tax to Church levied on the ninety-four tax- 
payers in Salem village. Thomas Putnam was 
twice married, his second wife being Mary 
\'eren, the daughter of a large ship owner. In 
the family of Thomas Putnam was a daughter 
who was one of those accused of witchcraft in 
1692, and only saved her life by fleeing into 
the wilderness until the search was given up. 
His son, Joseph, born in 1670, married, in 
1690, Elizabeth, daughter of Israel Porter, and 
among their eleven or twelve children was 
Israel Putnam, well-known and endeared to 
every American for his gallant services during 
the Revolutionary war — a general who " dared 
to lead where any dared to follow." He was 
born July 7, 17 18, and died May 19, 1790. His 
wife was Hannah Pope, a sister of John Pope, 
with whom, in 1739, Israel Putnam bought a 
large tract of land in Connecticut. David, a 
lineal descendant, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was a native of Massachusetts; but his 
active business life was spent in farming in 
New Hampshire. He, too, was a soldier in 
the war of the Revolution, and fought at Bun- 
ker Hill. By his marriage with Miss Phcebe 
Woodbury he had a family of six children — 
three sons and three daughters — of whom 
John Putnam, the father of our subject, was 
the youngest. The latter was born and reared 
in the Old Granite State, and remained upon 
the home farm, in Croydon, Sullivan county, 
dying in that town in 1885. He married Al- 
mira French, whose death occurred in 1862. 
Seven children were born to them: James, a 
Universalist minister, who for fifteen years 
preached at Danvers, Mass., and was the father 
of two children — Eliza and James H. ; Lucy, 
widow of the late T. C. Eastman, a successful 
cattle dealer of New York City: John W., of 
this review: Franklin (deceased), who was an 
attorney at Kansas City, Mo.: Ellen (deceased); 
Nathaniel French, formerly an Episcopal min- 
ister, and who died at Salt Lake City, leaving 
four children — Graham, an attorney at Salt 





f /^ M-^L-^-^y^-f'-T^*' 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



505 



Lake City, married and has one son, John; 
John F. (deceased), Louisa and Ella; and 
Georg;e F. , a banker and attorney at Kansas 
City, Missouri. 

On April 6, 1825, in Croydon, Sullivan 
Co., N. H., John Woodbury Putnam was 
born, and in the district schools and academy 
he secured a good practical education. He 
was married in his native town to Laura S. 
Hall, a daughter of Carlton and Rhoda (Fos- 
ter) Hall, and they became the parents of 
three children: Minnie, now the wife of 
Howard Kinney, a farmer in Stanford town- 
ship, by whom she has two children — -Laura 
and Roswell P.; Katharine B., wife of Harry 
B. Conklin, traveling salesman for the Ameri- 
can Brush and Broom Co., of New York; and 
Drury W., deceased. 

Carlton Hall, the father of Mrs. Putnam, 
was the son of James and Hulda (Cooper) Hall, 
the former of whom was a soldier in the Rev- 
olutionary war, and the latter a descendant 
of Roger Sherman, a signer of the Declaration 
of Independence. Carlton Hall, a farmer and 
cattle dealer by occupation, married Rhoda 
Foster, by whom he had three children: Carl- 
ton F. died when about fifty years old, leaving 
five children; Mary Ann died at the age of ten 
years; and Mrs. Putnam. The mother died in 
1838; the father on April 28, 1856. The Halls 
are descended from Edward Hall, who came 
from England to Du.xbury, Mass., in 1636. 

After his marriage Mr. Putnam lived upon 
a farm in Croydon, Sullivan Co., N. K., 
where he resided thirteen years previous to his 
coming to Amenia, N. Y. Before his marriage 
he had taught school winters, and assisted his 
father on the farm summers. In 1861, when 
the news spread throughout the North that 
Sumter had been fired upon, the martial spirit 
that had animated the breast of the much- 
loved "Old Put" stirred the pulses of this 
younger generation, and John Woodbury Put- 
nam enrolled his name as a member of the 6th 
N. H. V. I., commanded by Gen. Burnside, 
and was commissioned captain of Company G, 
which he had enlisted in his own county; but 
while in the swamps of North Carolina, he 
contracted typhoid pneumonia, and in 1863 
was honorably discharged and returned home. 
He participated in a number of skirmishes, and 
in the battles of Roanoke Island and Falmouth, 
Va., at the latter of which he was slightly 
wounded. In February, 1866, he came to 
Amenia, Dutchess county, and made it his 



home until his death, which occurred February 
5, 1897. 

In politics Mr. Putnam was an earnest ad- 
vocate of the principles of Democracy; served 
his town as supervisor, assessor and commis- 
sioner, and was frequently called upon to pre- 
side at Democratic conventions. He once ran 
for Assembly in the First District of Dutchess 
county, and his great personal popularity 
nearly overcame the heavy normal majority. 
Fraternally, he is connected with Mt. Vernon 
Lodge, F. &A. M., at Newport, N. H. He 
was a man of strong convictions of his own, 
and knew how to respect the opinions of 
others; quiet and reserved in manner, a true 
friend, and in all the relations of life he dis- 
charged his duties with loyalty and fidelity. A 
man whose word was as good as a bond, who 
made no boast of his religion, but practiced it 
in his every-day life. 



ROBERT D. BUTLER, a well-known ag- 
riculturist residing near Chestnut Ridge, 

Dutchess county, is one of the most active and 
influential workers in local affairs in that lo- 
cality. He is a native of Dutchess county, 
born and reared in the town of Unionvale, and 
he began his business career in Dover town in 
early manhood as a merchant. After some 
years in that calling, he engaged in agriculture 
at his present farm. Politically he has always 
been a supporter of the principles of the Re- 
publican party, and he has held various town- 
ship ofiices. He is actively interested in the 
Masonic order, being a member of Dover 
Lodge No. 666, of Dover Plains, with the rank 
of Master Mason. His life has so far been 
spent in single blessedness. 

The first ancestor of his family to come 
to America was his great-grandfather, Sam- 
uel Butler, a native of England, who lo- 
cated in. Rhode Island for a time, and then 
moved to a farm in the town of Unionvale, 
Dutchess county, where his last years were 
spent. His son, Daniel Butler, married Mary 
Hoxsie, and had five children: (i) Allen mar- 
ried Sarah Crouse; (2) Samuel, Eliza Fowler; 
(3) Peter, Mary Haight; (4; Elizabeth died 
in earlv youth; and (5) Joseph married Amy 
Wolley. 

Peter Butler, our subject's father, was born 
in the town of Unionvale, Dutchess county, 
December 10, 1799, and was educated in the 
common schools of that section. He learned 



50G 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



the carpenter's trade and worked at it until his 
marriage, when he engaged in farming. This 
occupation he followeii for many years success- 
fully, and he became a leading citizen of his 
locality, and was one of the strongest adher- 
ents of the Republican party there. His wife 
was Miss Mary Haight, daughter of Robert 
and Phoebe Haight, of the town of Washing- 
ton; seven children were born at the old home- 
stead in Unionvaie, and received the best edu- 
cation that the common schools of that neigh- 
borhood afforded, (i) Elizabeth has taught 
school for some time in Dover, and is regarded 
as one of the most successful educators of that 
town. She and her sister Julia, the second in 
order of birth, have, like their brother Robert, 
the third child and first son, chosen to remain 
unmarried. (4) Joseph H. engaged in farm- 
ing, but some years later learned the black- 
smith's trade and opened a shop at New Mil- 
ford, N. Y. , where he now resides. He mar- 
ried Maria Underbill, and has seven children: 
Peter, John, Minnie, Ella, Joseph, Irene and 
Prank, none of whom is married except Peter, 
who wedded Hattie Gray and has two chil- 
dren — Townsend and Oscar. (5) Benjamin 
F., a farmer by occupation, is now married. 

(6) Rhoda J. married John Vincent, a promi- 
nent resident of Poughkeepsie, who for some 
time held the offices of justice of the peace 
and county clerk. They had four children 
born and educated in Poughkeepsie. (a) Ella 
married Obed Vincent, a farmer of Dover, and 
has one child. Hazel, (b) Minnie married 
Charles Andrews, a farmer in the towns of 
Lagrange and Unionvaie, and has four chil- 
dren: Bessie, Gordon, Mabel and Norman, 
(c) Walter and (d) Elisha V. are not married. 

(7) Peter died at the age of fourteen. 

On the maternal side Mr. Butler is a de- 
scendant of the Haight family, which has long 
been prominent in Dutchess county. His 
grandfather, Robert Haight, was born and 
reared in the town of Washington, and estab- 
lished himself in business at Mabbettsville as 
a merchant and hotel keeper. He and his 
wife, Ph(ebe (Tripp), reared a family of ten 
children: Concerning (i) Seneca, (2) Edward, 
and (3) Josiah, no particulars are given. (4) 
Morris married Miss Howell, and had three 
children: Theron, Julia and Alvira. (5) Neil- 
son married Miss Hoffman, and had five chil- 
dren — Milton, Robert, .Abraham, Hoffman and 
Edward. (6) Deborah, who was born in the 
town of Washington, married Dr. Benjamin 



S. Wilbur, a leading physician and surgeon of 
Pine Plains, and they have nine children: 
Robert, William, Francis, Benjamin, Theron 
(married), Kate (Mrs. Fred Lewis), Charles, 
Slaggie (Mrs. Williams), and Henry, who is 
not married, is a physician and surgeon in 
Pine Plains. (7) Julia was born in Mabbetts- 
ville, and married Jacob Sparks. Two sons 
were born to them — Homer and Cornelius — 
who, at the breaking out of the Civil war, en- 
tered the army with their father, and all three 
lost their lives in defense of the Union. Mrs. 
Sparks married a second husband, Henry 
Davis,' a carpenter in Poughkeepsie, and they 
have one daughter, Lizzie, now the wife of 
John Propson, of Poughkeepsie, and the 
mother of five children. (8) Mary married 
Peter Butler, our subject's father. (91 Eliza- 
beth married Cornelius Lamoreaux; and i^io) 
Milton married Miss Howell. 



NDREW C. SMITH, a leading merchant 
of Bangall, Dutchess county, was born 
July 26, 1S65, in the town of Pleasant \'alley, 
where his ancestors were among the early set- 
tlers. The late William S. Smith, his father, 
was a lifelong resident of that town, and he 
and his wife, formerly Loretta Husted, had 
been active members of the M. E. Church for 
many years previous to their death. They 
had five children: Egbert and Mary (both de- 
ceased), Jane (who married Daniel Albertson), 
William, and Andrew C. 

Our subject spent his boyhood days in his 
native town, attending the district school, and 
later engaged in clerking as the best possible 
training for a mercantile career. After one 
year at Salisbury, Conn., one at Cold Spring, 
N. Y., and three in Bangall, he opened his 
present store, where he carries a line of gen- 
eral merchandise, his fine business ability and 
high character winning for him a constantly 
growing trade. He was married December 4, 
1892, to Miss Martha D. Millis, a daughter of 
William Millis, a well-known resident of Ban- 
gall. 

In politics he is a Democrat, and he is 
among the foremost among the younger local 
workers. In 1893 he was elected clerk of the 
town of Stanford, and has since filled the posi- 
tion with marked satisfaction to the public. 
Socially, he belongs to the K. of P., Pough- 
keepsie Lodge No. 43. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQBAPHIOAL RECORD. 



507 



UGUSTUS HOLDRIDGE, one of the 
leading and representative citizens of 
Dover Plains, Dutchess county, is now con- 
nected with G. D. Chapman, in the firm of C. 
E. Buckley & Co., manufacturers of the Buck- 
ley water device. The Holdridge family has 
long been prominently identified with the in- 
terests of Dutchess county. Dr. Augustus 
Holdridge, the grandfather of our subject, was 
a well-known physician practicing in Union- 
vale and Beekman towns. He was born at 
Spencertown, Columbia Co., N. Y. , and was 
very prominent in Masonic circles; the apron 
which he wore at his lodge is still in the pos- 
session of the family. He had six children, 
namely: Standish; Myron, the father of our 
subject; Peter, who married ^Irs. Margaret 
Friday; Mrs. Elsie Sweet; Harriet, who mar- 
ried James Hamblin; and Betsy, who died in 
1896. The last named was the wife of Sey- 
mour Tomlinson, proprietor of a hotel at 
Washington Hollow, Dutchess county, who 
died in 1856. Until recently the county fair 
was held upon his land. 

Myron Holdridge, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Dover, Dutchess coun- 
ty, in 1806, was there educated, and followed 
farming. He held membership with Dover 
Plains Lodge No. 666, F. & A. M., and was 
the oldest member of the Sons of Temperance 
in the community, being a charter member of 
the lodge to which he belonged. He was 
Democratic in politics, and at one time he was 
elected coroner,, but would not qualify, as he 
cared nothing for public office. He died Octo- 
ber 30, 1889. He married Miss Lucina Til- 
ton, a daughter of Daniel and Lucy (Salisbury) 
Tilton, of Deerfield, Oneida Co., N. Y., 
who removed to Dover Plains when she was 
but two years old. Her father was three 
times married, his first union being with a 
Miss Wilbur, by whom he had two sons, Peter 
and Wilbur. By his second wife, Lucy, he 
had two daughters, Lucina and Mary. His 
third wife, who bore the maiden name of Abi- 
gail Foss, was the sister of Rev. Job Foss, a 
Baptist minister of Dutchess county. Mrs. 
Holdridge died May 31, 1895. 

Augustus Holdridge, the subject of this 
sketch, who is an only child, was born at 
Dover Plains, Dutchess county, January 5, 
1846, and there received his literary training. 
He followed farming until 1869, when he 
turned his attention to railroad work, at first 
being employed on the Harlem road, but later 



was with the Long Island Railroad Co. for 
about si.xteen years as conductor. Like his 
father and grandfather before him, he is iden- 
tified with the Masonic fraternity, having 
joined Dover Plains Lodge No. 666, F. & A. 
M. , in 1868, but is now connected with Peconic 
Lodge, of Greenport, Long Island. Like his 
father, he is a Democrat. 

Mr. Holdridge was united in marriage, Sep- 
tember 8, 1870, with Miss Ruth Rosalie Gid- 
ley, who was born at Hanover, Chautauqua 
Co., N. Y., December 3, 1848, and they have 
become the parents of six children, namely: 
Grace, born July 9, 1872; Myron T., who was 
born December 9, 1874, and died September 
28, 1875; Augustus, born October 16, 1876; 
Harvey G., born October 4, 1880; Frank H., 
born June 11, 1884; and Henry E. , born Au- 
gust 20, 1889. 

Jonathan Gidley, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Holdridge, was born and educated in the town 
of Lagrange, Dutchess county, and was a 
farmer by occupation. His political support 
was given the Democratic party. He wedded 
Miss Mary Hall, and to them were born nine 
children: Elizabeth, who married John A. Van- 
Vlack; Waite, who married Richard Ferguson; 
Mrs. Ruth Moe; Mrs. Polly Morey; Rebecca, 
who died unmarried ; Henry, who wedded Mary 
Kelley; Hall, who married Currence .A. Daton; 
Jonathan, who married Jane Kelley; and Tim- 
othy. 

Timothy Gidley, the father of Mrs. Hol- 
dridge, was a native of Dutchess county, born 
in the town of Lagrange, August 27, 1806, 
and, like his father, engaged in agricultural 
pursuits. He was a stanch Democrat in poli- 
tics, but cared nothing for the honors or emolu- 
ments of public office. A great Church worker, 
he always took part in the progress of the 
Methodist Church, of which he was a promi- 
nent member in Chautauqua county, where he 
removed soon after his marriage, which oc- 
curred August 27, 1 83 1, Miss Mary Christie 
becoming his wife. She was the daughter of 
Leonard and Ruth Christie, of the town of La- 
grange, Dutchess county. By this union there 
were six children, all born in Hanover town- 
ship, Chautauqua county. Catherine R. , born 
October 4, 1835, '^•ed unmarried at the age of 
twenty-seven years; Hall, born August 27, 
1838, a carpenter by trade, married Miss Lu- 
cinda E. Smith, daughter of Daniel C. and 
Cordelia Smith, agriculturists of Hanover town- 
ship; Henry R., born October 10, 1840, also 



508 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



a farmer, married Miss Ella D. Kewley, daugh- 
ter of John and Dorcas Kewley, farmers of 
Hanover township; Mary A., born November 
1 6, 1843, died September 29, 1844; Harvey 
J., born November 22, 1846, engaged in mer- 
chandising in Dunkirk, N. Y., and married 
Miss Nettie M. Ellis, daughter of Frank and 
and Abi Ellis, of Forestville, N. Y., by whom 
he has one son, Ellis Harvey, born June 28, 
1885; Ruth Rosalie, the wife of our subject, 
completes the family. 



LEONARD D. HALL. There is probably 
no man in the town of Beekman more 

widely or favorably known than this gentle- 
man, who is now a resident of Poughquag. 
In that town he was born December 28, 181 1, 
and is the grandson of William Hall, a native 
of Rhode Island, who became one of the earli- 
est settlers of the town of Beekman, where he 
followed fanning throughout life, dying in 
1822. 

Our subject's maternal grandmother was a 
daughter of Simeon Draper, a native of Mas- 
sachusetts, who prior to the Revolutionary 
war, with thirty-five others, bought near where 
is now Wilkesbarre, Penn., seventeen town- 
ships of land. He died there, however, very 
soon after his settlement on the place, and 
later the family were driven away by the In- 
dians. Many years afterward our subject, 
then a lad of seventeen summers, accompanied 
by his mother, drove with a team from Union- 
vale, Dutchess county, over to this property 
with the intention of trying to recover at least 
a portion of it; but as the records had been 
destroyed nothing could be done. Mr. Hall 
says the trip was an arduous one, occupying 
some two weeks, and adds that it was the only 
time he ever felt homesick. 

Israel Hall, the father of our subject, was 
born in the town of Beekman, Dutchess county, 
the second son in the family of ten children of 
William and Mary ( \'ailj tfall, and his educa- 
tion was secured at the district schools of the 
neighborhood. He married Catherine Albro, 
a native of Rhode Island, and a daughter of 
Benjamin and Eleanor (Draper) Albro, and 
nine children blessed their union, as follows: 
Amy, who died unmarried at the age of eighty- 
eight years; Eleanor, widow of Isaac Northrup; 
Mary and Leonard D. (twins), the former 
being the wife of John Townsend; Margaret, 
living at Union vale, on the old homestead; 



Maria Ann and Draper, both deceased; Rutsen 
S. , a prosperous farmer, living "on the old 
homestead in Unionvale; and Richard V., de- 
ceased. With the e.xception of two years 
passed in the town of Clinton, Dutchess 
county, Israel Hall devoted his entire life to 
agricultural pursuits in the town of Beekman. 
In the war of the Rebellion he had been com- 
missioned a lieutenant, and received 160 acres 
of land from the government for his services. 
In politics he was an Old-line Whig. 

Leonard D. Hall, the subject of our sketch, 
received a liberal education at the district 
schools of his native place, and remained un- 
der the parental roof until he was thirty-seven 
years of age. After he became of age he re- 
ceived $100 a year for his time, his father giv- 
ing his note for the same, which note our sub- 
ject deposited in a crack in the old house, 
where it remained one year, and was then paid. 
In the fall of 1849 Mr. Hall was married to 
Maria Lossing, a cousin of Benson J. Lossing, 
the historian. In the fall of 1884, she was 
called from earth, and February 4, 1886, Mr. 
Hall married Harriet Eliza Hurd, daughter of 
Benjamin D. and Mary (Campbell) Hurd, both 
natives of the town of Pawling, Dutchess 
county, where they passed their entire lives, 
the father dying June 16, 1872, in the seventy- 
eighth year of his age, the mother passing 
away January 7, 1882, at the age of eighty- 
one. They were highly respected farming 
people, and Mr. Hurd was a stanch Repub- 
lican in his political preference. They had a 
family of seven children, as follows: Archi- 
bald C, who, when twentj- years old, died 
January 18, 1842, in Cuba, whither he had 
gone for the benefit of his health; William T. , 
who married Mary Cook, and had three chil- 
dren (he died June 26, 1854); Harriet Eliza 
(Mrs. Leonard D. Hall); Mary Jane, who mar- 
ried Thomas Brill, and died in June, 1893, 
leaving five children; Edgar I., a farmer in 
the town of Pawling, who married Caroline 
Howard, and has four children; Eustacia A., 
who married Gerome Dodge (now deceased), 
and had one daughter, Efifie, who died when 
eight years old; and Julia G., who married 
James Longhead (now deceased), and lives in 
Pawling with her only child, Robert. To our 
subject and his wife have been born no chil- 
dren. 

On leaving the old home, Mr. Hall began 
the operation of a 480-acre farm in the town 
of Dover, Dutchess county, on shares, work- 




^^.^^-<f^^^a^^^^£. ^y£) , 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



509 



ing in that way some four years, and the fol- 
lowing eight years were passed upon a farm of 
700 acres in the town of PawHng, which be- 
longed to James Hooker, of Poughkeepsie. 
Returning to the town of Beekman he pur- 
chased 160 acres, on which he made his home 
for thirteen years, when he disposed of the 
same, and for three years boarded at Pough- 
keepsie. On the expiration of that period he 
bought his present residence at Poughquag, 
where he has since lived. 

Mr. Hall has made his own way in the 
world, the money he earned from his father, as 
before related, being the sole pecuniary founda- 
tion of his prosperity. His boyhood ambition 
was to become comfortably well off and inde- 
pendent, and his expectations have been real- 
ized, for to-day he is a man of wealth, made 
so, not by speculation, but by industry and 
good management. He relates many interest- 
ing tales of adventure which his ancestors had 
with the Indians, one being about Amos Spaf- 
ford, a distant relative, lying concealed for 
many days in the swamps in order to avoid 
capture by the Indians, at which time the rest 
of the family escaped. Mr. Hall has always 
voted the Republican ticket, and never had a 
desire to change; he has never cared for polit- 
ical preferment, though at one time he served 
as commissioner of highways in the town of 
Beekman. He has never united with any re- 
ligious denomination, but is liberal of his 
means in support of the M. E. Church, of 
which his wife is a member, while he believes 
in God and humanity. This honored couple 
have the esteem and friendship of all who 
know them — young and old, rich and poor — 
and their hospitable home is always open to 
the reception of their numerous friends. Mr. 
Hall attributes his prosperity to hard work, 
honesty and sound judgment. 



ILLIAM BURNAP JORDAN, a well- 
IMl known and reliable agriculturist of the 
town of Pine Plains, Dutchess county, is a 
native of the same, having been born there 
December 4, 1848, and is a son of Josephus 
D. Jordan, who was born in Hillsdale town- 
ship, Columbia Co., N. Y. , in 1808. The 
family came from Belfast, Ireland. 

Major William Jordan, the great-grand- 
father of our subject, was born at North Cas- 
tle, Westchester Co.,, N. Y. , September 22, 
1 75 1, and obtained his title while serving as a 



soldier in the war for independence. By oc- 
cupation he was a farmer, a pursuit he fol- 
lowed the greater part of his life in Columbia 
county. By his marriage with Ruth Ferris, 
of the town of Stanford, Dutchess county, he 
had eleven children, whose names and dates 
of birth are as follows: John, 1774; William, 
1777; Rebecca, 1781 ; Benjamin, i783;Abram, 
1785; Nancy, 1787; Ambrose, 1789; Daniel 
Gano, 1791; Lucy, 1793; Hannah, 1796; and 
Asa Allen, 1798. Of this family, Ambrose 
became a prominent and leading lawyer, hav- 
ing a State-wide reputation. 

The birth of William Jordan, Jr., the 
grandfather of our subject, occurred in Hills- 
dale township, Columbia county, and in 1803 
he was married to Rhoda Allen, who was born 
in 1782, the wedding being celebrated at the 
old Allen homestead, which has been in the 
possession of the family for over a century and 
a half. He was a captain in the war of 18 12. 
The names and dates of birth of their children 
are as follows: Hanna J., 1805 ; Moors, 1806; 
Josephus Dunham, 1808; Ambrose Latting, 
1809; Ruth, 181 1 ; Cornelia Allen, 1813; Polly 
Hoffman, 1814 ; Sally Ann, 1816; James 
Philip, 1818; Harriet Tuttle, 1820; Mathias 
Bragden Talmadge, 1821; Jane Elizabeth, 
1823; and William Howard Allen, 1826. 

Josephus D. Jordan received an academic 
education at Claverack, Columbia count}', and 
later studied law with his uncle, Ambrose L. 
Jordan. After his admission to the bar he 
practiced his profession at Hudson, N. Y., for 
a number of years, and later at various places 
in Columbia and Dutchess counties. He was 
one of the leading attorneys of his time, was 
a well-read man, understood civil engineering, 
and was much interested in music, in which 
he was well educated. In religious belief he 
was a Presbyterian; politically, he supported 
the Republican party. On January 13, 1844, 
Josephus D. Jordan was married, by Rev. W. 
N. Sayre, to Mary Elizabeth Knickerbocker, 
who was born at Poughkeepsie, October 19, 
1 8 19, a daughter of John Knickerbocker. 
Three children graced this union, namely: 
Mary Burnap, born in 1846, died unmarried; 
William B., subject of this sketch; and Laura 
Ailing, born in 1852, who became the wife of 
L. O. Pitcher, of New York City, but is now 
deceased. The mother of these children died 
in 1867, the father in 1885. 

William Burnap Jordan completed his edu- 
cation by one year's attendance at the academy 



510 



COifiTEifORATrrE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



conducted by Mr. Bisbee, known as the 
Poughkeepsie Military Institute, and since 
leaving the school-room, at the age of nine- 
teen years, he has been engaged in the oper- 
ation of his fine farm of 1 50 acres, one of the 
best in the town of Pine Plains. Being quite 
a reader, he is well informed on the current 
literature of the day. Public-spirited and pro- 
gressive, he has always taken quite an interest 
in local affairs, and is a strong Republican in 
politics. From 1S78 until iSSo he ser\ed as 
supervisor, and during that time was on the 
equali2ation committee, the district attorney 
committee, and the committee on the county 
treasurers accounts, and the physician s and 
coroners accounts. With the Presbyterian 
Church he and Mrs. Jordan hold membership, 
and he has served as elder and trustee in same. 
On December jS, 1S76, Mr. Jordan was 
united in marriage with Miss Mary Elizabeth 
Harris, of Grand Rapids, Mich., and three 
children have been bom to them, as follows: 
Mary Elizabeth, born in 1S77, a graduate of 
Seymour Smith's Academy in the town of Pine 
Plains, class of '95, and at present teaching 
school in her home town; Cyrus N'ictor, bom 
in iSSo, also a graduate of Seymour Smith 
Academy, class of 95, and now attending col- 
lege in New York City; and William Burnap. 
bom in 1SS5. The mother of these died in 
1SS9, and in 1894 Mr. Jordan wedded her half- 
sister Myra. 

Israel Harris, the grandfather of Mrs. Jor- 
dan, was a son of John Harris, who came from 
Lynn. Mass., and founded the Pine Plains 
branch of the family in Dutchess county. His 
children were: William and John, who be- 
came residents of Onondaga count)-. X. Y.; 
\'ictor and Myron, who in 1S49 removed to 
Grand Rapids, Mich., where they became ex- 
tensively engaged in the lumber business; 
Eunice, the wife of Henry Akin, of Fort Col- 
lins, Colo. ; Mary, wife of William Herrick, of 
Salt Point. N. Y. : and Silas, who made his 
home in Grand Rapids, Mich. Of these, My- 
ron was a member of the House of Represent- 
atives of Michigan; Silas ser%ed as speaker of 
the same body, and Victor was a State 
senator. 

Myron Harris, the father of Mrs. Jordan. 
was born in Dutchess county, in 1S20. He 
married Mary Gleason. by whom he had chil- 
dren as follows: Mary Elizabeth, first wife of 
William B. Jordan (she graduated from Oak 
Hill Seminary, New Haven, Conn.); and Mat- 



tie Gleason, who married C. B. Bogue. For 
his second wife Mr. Harris wedded Miriam 
Carpenter, daughter of Benjamin Carpenter, 
of Lansing, Mich., and by her he had four 
children, viz.: Abbie, who died unmarried; 
Myra, second wife of W. B. Jordan ^she grad- 
uated from Seymour Smith Academy ; Lucy 
Carpenter, wife of George Strayer, of Denver, 
Colo. ; and I. Victoria, of Fort Collins. The 
father of this interesting family was one of the 
prominent Democrats of Michigan, and con- 
tinued to make his home at Grand Rapids up 
to his death in iSSo. /s»^' \ 




JAMES H. HAIGHT. ^ prominent miller of 
Stanfordville. Dutchess county, was born 
December 9, 1S51. in the town of Wash- 
ington. He is of Puritan ancestry, being of 
the eighth generation in direct descent from 
Simon Hayt lor Haight*. who came from Eng- 
land in 1S29 and located first at Salem, Mass. 
He was one of a party to leave that town and 
settle at Charlestown. Mass.. where, previous 
I to their coming, there was but one white fam- 
ily. From Charlestown he went to Dorches- 
ter, where his name appears about 1630, and 
from there to Scituate and later to Windsor, 
Conn., his name appearing there in 1640. He 
afterward moved to Fairfield, and then, about 
1649. to Stanford, Conn., where he died. He 
had two sons — Benjamin and Moses. The 
latter was bom before 1637, and came from 
Fairfield, Conn., to East Chester, N. Y. , in 
1665. He married, and reared one child. 
Moses, who was born before 1C62. and lived 
in East Chester. He married, and had several 
children, among them a son. Moses, who was 
born in East Chester, October 28, 1696. He 
was a farmer by occupation, and moved, in 
early manhood, to Crum Elbow, being the first 
Quaker to come to this locality. He married 
and reared a family, among whom was a son, 
Joseph, bom in Dutchess county, who married 
and had eight children — Joseph, Jonathan, Oba- 
diah, Rachel. Reuben. Amos, David and Dan- 
iel. Reuben was born in Washington town- 
ship. January 17, 175S. He married Miss 
Mary Haight, and reared a family of eleven 
children, whose names with dates of birth and 
death are as follows: Stephen, Januan,- 8, 
17S8, died September 15, 1851; Silas R., Feb- 
ruar\- 4, 1790, died January 18, 1848; Jona- 
than, April 27. 1792. died November 13. 1873; 
David, February 3, 1794. died March 31, 1795; 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



511 



Uavid (2), October 17, 1/55. died March 23, 
1800; Daniel, August 24, 1797, died in August, 
i860; Sarah, July 10, 1799, died October 19, 
1839; Phctbe, August 9, 1 801, died January 
17, 1885; Walter, April 26, 1803, died May 
27, 1879; Joseph, May 31, 1805, died Decem- 
ber 7, 1851, and John R., June 17, 1808. 

Silas R. Haight, our subject's grandfather, 
was born in the town of Washington. He 
married Lydia Congdon, a native of the town 
of Unionvale, Dutchess county, where her an- 
cestors were among the early settlers, her great- 
grandfather, James Congdon, coming from 
Rhode Island. His son Ephraim, her grand- 
father, and James Congdon, her father, were 
leading farmers in their day. After their mar- 
riage Silas Haight and his wife moved to a 
farm in Pleasant \'alley, where they lived eleven 
years, and then came to the town of Washing- 
ton to spend their last days. They had three 
children : James, who died in childhood ; 
Reuben S. , our subject's father; and Phcebe J. , 
who married John Clement, a farmer of Wash- 
ington. Silas Haight was a Democrat in poli- 
tics, and he and his wife were both Quakers in 
religious faith. His wife survived him thirteen 
years, dying December 25, 1861. 

Reuben S. Haight was born in the town of 
Pleasant Valley, January 24, 1828, and moved 
to a farm in the town of Washington with his 
parents in 1835. He married September 11, 
1849, Marie Antoinette Howard, a lady of En- 
glish descent, who was born in Ontario county, 
a daughter of James Howard, a native of the 
town of Pawling, Dutchess county. Her uncle, 
Thomas Howard, was a farmer in Washington. 
Reuben Haight and his wife lived on a farm 
north of Millbrook for seven years, and in April, 
1866, after one year on a farm near Washing- 
ton Hollow, and eight in the town of ^^'ashing- 
ton, Mr. Haight bought a gristmill at Millbrook, 
and has since resided there. He is one of the 
leading citizens of the place, and a Republican 
in politics, and he and his wife are members of 
the Reformed Church, in which he has been an 
eider for several years. They have six chil- 
dren : Laura, who married Thorn Devel, a 
farmer of Washington ; James H., our subject; 
Gertrude, the wife of Albert V. Smith, a lum- 
ber dealer in Millbrook; Lucy, who lives at 
home; and Howard and Jay, who conduct a 
feed store at Millbrook. 

James H. Haight, the subject proper of our 
sketch, attended the district schools of the 
town of Washington, and later the Nine Part- 



ners Boarding School, mastering his studies 
with characteristic energy. Until he was 
twenty-one he worked in his father's mills, and 
in the spring of 1873 he started in the same 
business near Stanfordville, although at that 
time he had no capital, and paid interest on all 
the money invested. Of this he has made a 
success, and his proved ability, judgment and 
enterprise give him a high rank in business 
circles. He was married on June 14, 187G, to 
Miss Georgia A. Thorne — daughter of Dr. John 
S. Thorne, of Millbrook, and has two children: 
Francis T. and Thorne. 

Politically, he is a stanch Republican, but 
he is not a politician in any sense and has not 
held office. He is, however, prominent in 
local affairs, and a leading supporter of every 
movement for the welfare of the community. 



WILLIAM TOMPKINS, who was called 
from this earth January 23, 1894, was 

one of the well-known and highly respected 
native citizens of Dutchess county, his birth 
having occurred in the town of Pine Plains 
March 9, 1810, and was a son of Thomas and 
Judith (Acker) Tompkins. His father, who 
was born in Westchester county, N. Y., in 
1778, devoted his entire life to agriculture in 
that county and in the town of Pine Plains, 
Dutchess county. He passed away November 
23, 1854. His household included five chil- 
dren, namely: John, deceased; Stephen; Will- 
iam; Jemima, deceased wife of Smith Acker; 
and Thomas, deceased. 

At the age of si.x years William Tompkins 
accompanied his parents to Westchester coun- 
ty, where he attended school and was reared to 
rural life. He contributed his share to the 
cultivation and improvement of the old home- 
stead, and later secured employment on the 
sloops running from Sing Sing to New York 
City. He served as foreman on the construc- 
tion when the aqueduct was being built to 
New York, but most of his life was devoted to 
agricultural pursuit, in which he was very suc- 
cessful. 

In the town of Mount Pleasant, Westchester 
county, December 20, 1837, was celebrated 
the marriage of Mr. Tompkins and Miss Jane 
Merritt, daughter of John Merritt, and they 
became the parents of three children, as fol- 
lows: Ophelia was born June 5, 1839, mar- 
ried Arthur Sherman, January, 1865, and had 
one child, Jennie Sherman; Uriah W. , an at- 



51: 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



torney of New York City, was born December 
12, 1840, married Hattie Coons (she died 
leaving three sons — Harry L., William C. and 
Frank \V. »; Emmet, of Staatsburg, Dutchess 
county, was born October 23, 1842, and mar- 
ried Henrietta Kipp, by whom he had the fol- 
lowing children: William (deceased), Luella, 
and Sanford (deceased). 

After his marriage, Mr. Tompkins removed 
to the town of Pine Plains, where he engaged 
in farming until 1S70, when he went to Rhine- 
beck, and there lived for five years. On the 
expiration of that period he went to Clinton 
Corners, where his remaining years were passed 
in retirement. He was one of the self-made 
men of the county, having commenced life 
without capital other than his strong hands 
and resolute will, and attained to a fine posi- 
tion, socially and financially, among his fellow 
citizens. He was a man of indomitable energy 
and perseverance, and in early life was an un- 
tiring worker, so that he secured a comfortable 
competence, which enabled him to lay aside 
business cares and rest in the enjoyment of 
his former toil. In his religious views he held 
to the faith of the Society of Friends, and his 
death was widely and sincerely mourned. In 
politics he was an earnest Republican. 



WILLET TITUS. In the year 1635, on 
the third of April, the good ship 

"Hopewell", William Burdick, master, sailed 
from London, England, for Massachusetts. 
With her came Robert Titus ( i), husbandman, 
of St. Katherines, aged thirty-five, and his two 
children — John imaged eight years) and Edmund 
(aged five years). This family at first located 
in Boston, but soon moved to Weymouth, and 
from there to Rehoboth, where four children 
were born, namely: Samuel, Susannah, Abiel 
and Content. About 1654, the entire family, 
except the eldest son, John, went to Long 
Island, and took up land in Huntington, Suf- 
folk county. The second son had previously 
(about 1650) settled in Westbury, L. I., where 
he had acquired a large tract of land, and 
erected the house in which his descendants 
still reside. Edmund and his wife were Quak- 
ers, and most of his descendants still hold to 
that faith. Robert Titus (i) married Hannah 
— and had children: John, Edmund (2), Sam- 
uel, Susannah, Abiel, Content. Of these, 
Edmund (2), married Martha Washburn, and 
had eleven children, as follows: Samuel, 



Phoebe, Martha, Mary, Hannah, Jane, John 
(3), Peter, Silas, Patience and Temperance. 
Of these, John (3) married Sarah Williams, 
and the following were born to them: Mary, 
John (4), Philadelphia, Jacob, William, Sarah. 
He married (second) Mary Smith, and had 
one child, Richard. Of these, John (4) mar- 
ried (first) Sarah Pearsall, and they had si.x 
children: Henry, Mary, James (5I, Elizabeth, 
Sarah, Jonathan. He married (second 1 Phcebe 
Thomas, and had no issue. Of these, James 
(5) married Ann Cook, and they had: Martha, 
John, Joshua, Willett (6). Sarah. Of these, 
j Willett (6) married Ruth Stratton, and the 
following children were born to them: Eliza- 
beth, Anne, James, Jonathan (7), Sarah, John, 
Mary. Of these, Jonathan (7) married Nellie 
Roosa, and had the following issue: Willet, 
Ann, Peter, Jonathan (81, Catherine, Richard, 
Mary, William, Sarah, John. Andrew J., Henry 
B. Of these, Jonathan (8» married Helen 
Hasbrouck, and children as follows were born: 
Willet (9), Joseph H., Henry T., Sarah Jane, 
Nellie. (Of these, Sarah Jane married Will- 
iam A. Wright, and the following were the 
issue: Florence Fraternity, Mabel, Helen Has- 
brouck, Jennie M., William, Titus, Mar\', Adna 
Damerel). 

Willet (91 Titus, our subject, was born July 
3, 1844, m the town of Shawangunk, Ulster 
Co., N. Y. , attended the public schools of his 
native place, and then for three years studied 
at Kno.x College, Galesburg, 111. He was 
much interested in mathematics and philoso- 
phy, and gave particular attention to those 
branches of study. After his mother's death 
he went to High Falls, and lived one year with 
his uncle, James H. Van Demark; then was 
apprenticed for four years to L. B. Van Wag- 
oner, of Kingston, to learn the carpenter's 
trade. For Mr. Van Wagoner he worked a 
few months after serving his apprenticeship, 
and in the spring of 1866 went to Newburg, 
where he remained a while, then returning to 
Mr. \'an Wagoner, continued with him until 
July, 1 867, at which time he went to Red Hook 
and built a house and barn for William H. 
Teator. In Red Hook he remained about a 
year, and August 3, 1S68, came to Pough- 
keepsie, where he was engaged in journeyman 
work until 1875, '" which year he commenced 
his present business of contractor and builder. 
He is one of the oldest contractors in the city, 
and has built up a large and lucrative business, 
employing not less than fifteen men in the win- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



513 



ter and as many as fifty men in the summer. 
In connection with Mr. Rounds our subject 
built the Vassar Hospital. He has also built 
the library and rectory at Wappingers Falls 
(for $25,000); Archibald Rogers' stables (for 
$43,000); State Hospital, section E, and Doc- 
tors' residence and attendance house; the dor- 
mitory at Vassar College, and four cottages at 
the same place; Mrs. Jackman's residence (for 
$23,000); the Thorn memorial school at Mill- 
brook (for $80, 000); and the private residences 
of I. R. Adriance and William Adriance. Mr. 
Titus has built many of the largest buildings 
in the city and county. He also had the con- 
tracts for the building of Recitation hall at 
Vassar College, and the Adriance Library. 

Our subject was married April 17, 1872, 
to Miss Sophia Leslie, a native of Poughkeep- 
sie, N. Y., and they had one son, Harry Les- 
lie, who died at the age of nineteen years. In 
politics Mr. Titus is a Democrat, but in local 
matters votes independently; in religious faith 
he is a member of St. Paul's Episcopal Church; 
socially he is affiliated with Triune Lodge No. 
92, and belongs to all the branch lodges, chap- 
ters and commanderies, being a past officer in 
the order. He has always been a public-spir- 
ited man, is an e.xtensive reader, well informed 
on all current topics, is a typical self-made 
man, and in business one of the most suc- 
cessful. 

Jonathan Titus, the father of our subject, 
was born in Shawangunk, November 20, 1821. 
He followed the occupation of a farmer until 
1868, when he engaged in the lumber business 
in Galesburg, 111., together with the carpenter 
trade, in which he continued until 1874, when 
he retired. He married Miss Helen Hasbrouck, 
who died in November, i860. Jonathan sur- 
vives her. 

Jonathan (7) Titus, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was also a native of Shawangunk; was a 
farmer, and spent his entire life in Ulster 
county. The members of the Titus family have 
generally been Democrats in their political 
views, and, although stanch citizens, have not 
been active in such matters. They have always 
been members of the Reformed Dutch Church, 
and fairly active in Church work. 



GEORGE T. CHAPMAN, the senior mem- 
ber of the well-known firm of George T. 
Chapman & Co., of Pawling, Dutchess coun- 
ty, is one of the leading citizens of that town. 
33 



He was born April 26, 1858, in Dover 
Plains, Dutchess county, the grandson of 
Wooster Chapman, and son of Hiram W. 
Chapman, who first saw the light in the town 
of Dover in 1829, and was for many years suc- 
cessfully engaged in mercantile business in 
Dutchess county. He had a store in Dover 
Plains for nearly a quarter of a century, with 
three or four different partners, and for more 
than twenty years of the time he was post- 
master there. His home, however, was in 
Dover, whence he removed toAmenia in 1865, 
where he owned a large farm, and after clos- 
ing out his business at Dover Plains he spent 
twelve years in agricultural pursuits. In 1877 
he moved to Pawling, N. Y. , bought out the 
assignments of Ballard & Peck, and continued 
in mercantile business until his death in 1882. 
He was the principal merchant in Dover 
Plains, and possessing great energy and nat- 
ural ability, accumulated a fine property. He 
was a Democrat, though not very active in 
politics; while in Amenia, he attended the 
Presbyterian Church, but in Pawling he at- 
tended the Methodist Church. He married 
Cordelia Sheldon, daughter of Theodorus B. 
Sheldon, also of Dover, and a well-known 
farmer and blacksmith in that place. To this 
union were born three children: Allie T., who 
married William H. Arnold; George T. , our 
subject; and William T., who was postmaster 
under President Harrison for four years, and is 
now deputy postmaster. 

George T. Chapman was educated mainly 
in Amenia Seminary, and also attended school 
at Fort Edward, N. Y. , for over a year. On 
leaving school, at the age of nineteen, he en- 
gaged in farming in South Amenia for two 
years; in 1877 went to Pawling with his father 
and was with him as clerk until the latter's 
death. At that time (1882) Mr. Chapman be- 
came the head of the firm of George T. Chap- 
man & Co. , the ' ' Co. " being the brother, Will- 
iam T. , and his mother. In 1 889 he bought out 
his brother's interest, and since that time Mr. 
Chapman and his mother have been sole own- 
ers. Mr. Chapman has enlarged the stock and 
greatly increased the business, and is regarded 
as one of the successful men of his locality. 
He has always been a Democrat in politics, 
and has taken quite an interest, in an unofficial 
way, in the success of his party. On August 
30, 1894, he was commissioned postmaster by 
President Cleveland, and later he was appoint- 
ed by the President, the Senate confirming the 



514 



COMMEMORATIVE BI06RAPEICAL RECORD. 



nomination on December ii, 1894. He in- 
clines toward the Methodist faith, contributing 
to that Church, and in many ways he has shown 
his loyalty to the best interests of the town. 

In 1882 Mr. Chapman married Miss Sarah 
White, daughter of Sewell and Nancy (Emeigh) 
White, of Pawling, N. Y. , and to them ha%'e 
been born four children: Mary Louise, Ella 
Cordelia, Grace Sophia and George T., Jr. 



JAMES R. KERLEY. No man, probably, 
in Dutchess county is more worthy of rep- 
resentation in a work of this kind than he 
whose name introduces this sketch. He has 
been identified with the agricultural interests 
of the town of Red Hook, Dutchess county, 
most of his life, and there owns a fine farm of 
100 acres of land, equipped with good and 
substantial buildings. The estate is one of 
the most valuable in that section of the county, 
and indicates in all its appointments the super- 
vision of a man of intelligence and sound judg- 
ment. 

Our subject was born December 29, 1829, 
at Tivoli, Dutchess county, and is a son of 
James Kerley, who was born in the town of 
Red Hook. His great-grandfather came to 
the United States from Scotland, and here 
married a lady who was a native of Holland. 
The birth of their son, James Kerley, occurred 
in Vermont, and when he had reached man's 
estate he removed to Dutchess county, N. Y. , 
and wedded a Miss Miller, by whom he had 
four children: Catherine, who became the 
wife of Michael Leonard, a merchant of Co- 
himbia county, N. Y. ; John, a farmer of 'Red 
Hook town; James, the father of our subject; 
and Hannah, wife of Edwin Greene, who was 
4 farmer of Dutchess county and represented 
his district in the General Assembly. 

The father of our subject grew to manhood 
upon the farm in Red Hook town, where his 
parents had located soon after their marriage. 
He married Miss Sarah A. Graves, a native of 
Columbia county, where her father, Titus 
Graves, engaged in farming. After their mar- 
riage they made their home at Tivoli, where 
the father engaged in merchandising until his 
death, in 1830. His wife died in 1874. Their 
family consisted of two sons: John D., a phy- 
sician and farmer of the town of Northeast. 
Dutchess county; and James R. 

Our subject was but three months old when 
his father died, and upon a farm he passed his 



childhood days, attending the district schools 
of the locality, finishing his education at the 
Hudson Academy, after which he returned to 
the farm. In September, 1854, he married 
Eliza K. Pitcher, who was born in the town of 
Red Hook, a daughter of Abram Pitcher, whose 
ancestors came from Holland. In 1890 he 
was called upon to mourn the death of his 
wife, who was a most estimable lady. Six 
cnildren graced their union: R. D., a farmer 
of Red Hook town; Abram P., a chemist and 
druggist of New York City; James E., a 
painter; Charles G., a physician of New York; 
John G., an agriculturist of Red Hook town; 
and Mary E. 

On October i, 1S62, Mr. Kerley was ap- 
pointed Deputy Internal Revenue Collector 
for his district, which position he held for 
twenty-one years, during which time he also 
engaged in the insurance business, and con- 
tinued the operation of his land. Since that 
period, however, he has devoted his time ex- 
clusively to the cultivation of his farm. He is 
an active, enterprising citizen, taking a lively 
interest in Church and educational matters, 
and is one of the stockholders of the academy 
at Red Hook. In politics he is a stanch 
Republican. 



MATTHEW J. CASHIN is a prominent 
_ and enterprising merchant of Wapping- 
ers Falls, where he has built up a fine grocery 
trade by honest dealing, courteous treatment of 
his customers, and by carrj'ing the best stock 
that the markets afford. He is a native of 
Dutchess county, born in the town of Pough- 
keepsie, December 11, 1859. The birth of 
his father, James Cashin, occurred in County 
Kilkenny, Ireland, and when a young man he 
bade adieu to the friends and scenes of his 
youth, and sailed for America, locating in 
the town of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, 
he here carried on agricultural pursuits up to 
the time of his death. Here he wedded Cath- 
erine Harold, also a native of the Emerald 
Isle, and to them were born six children: 
Matthew J., Thomas J., John F., William H., 
Edward C., and a daughter who died in in- 
fancy. The mother is still living. The father 
was a devout member of the Catholic Church, 
and was a stalwart supporter of the Demo- 
cratic party. 

Mr. Cashin, whose name introduces this 
record, waS reared upon the home farm. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



515 



where he was trained to habits of usefulness, 
and after his education was completed in the 
district schools, he and his brother Thomas 
carried on the retail milk business, started in 
the year 1876 by their father, carrying on that 
enterprise until April i, 1886, when our sub- 
ject sold out to his brother, and established 
his present grocery store. 

On October 31, 1883, Mr. Cashin was 
united in marriage with Miss Margaret E. 
Burns, who was born at Wappingers Falls, 
and is the daughter of Peter Burns, a native of 
Ireland. A family of four children have been 
born to this worthy couple: Katie, James, 
Mary and Joseph. The parents are commu- 
nicants of the Catholic Church, and are highly 
respected people. In his political views Mr. 
Cashin coincides with the principles of the 
Democratic party, taking an active interest in 
the local campaigns of that organization, and 
was trustee of the village for one year, after 
which he resigned, preferring to give his entire 
attention to his business interests. 



JOHN R. SCHULTZ, a prominent agricult- 
urist and dairyman of the town of Rhine- 
beck, Dutchess county, was born April 26, 
I S49, on a farm which has been in the posses- 
sion of his family seventy-three years. 

His great-grandfather, Peter Schultz, a na- 
tive of Holland, came to America soon after 
the Revolutionary war, and located in the 
town of Rhinebeck. His son Abram, our sub- 
ject's grandfather, made his home upon this 
farm throughout his life. He married Miss 
Shell, and had four children: Margaret, who 
married Edgar Ratcliff, a butcher at Yonkers; 
Julia, who married James Schryver, also a 
butcher at Yonkers; Richard, our subject's 
father, and one who died in childhood. Rich- 
ard Schultz was born October 4, 18 19, and al- 
ways lived on the old homestead. He was a 
leading farmer of the vicinity, a Democrat in 
politics, and a member of the Reformed Dutch 
Church. He married Frances Rowe, a daugh- 
ter of William M. Rowe, a well-known farmer 
of the town of Milan. She was a member of 
the M. E. Church from her childhood to her 
death, which occurred February 13, 1895, her 
husband surviving her only a few months, dy- 
ing May 21 of that year. They had five chil- 
dren, of whom our subject is the eldest. Will- 
iam M. is a farmer on the old homestead; Edwin 



resides in New York City; David E. died in 
Rhinebeck March 23, 1857, and Julia F. mar- 
ried Herman Brown, of Dutchess county, a 
traveling salesman by occupation. 

John R. Schultz grew to manhood on the 
old home, and December 15, 1869, he married 
Sarah A. Cronk, a lady of Welsh descent, the 
daughter of Nathaniel T. and Aurilla (Hall) 
Cronk, both of whom were natives of West- 
chester county, where Mr. Cronk's father set- 
tled on his arrival in this country from Wales. 
Four children were born of this marriage: Car- 
rie L. , the wife of William B. Traver, of Hud- 
son, N. Y. ; Hattie F. , who is at home; Harry 
R., who died December 12, 1883, and Edwin 
B., now at home. 

In his specialty of dairying Mr. Schultz is 
among the leaders of his locality, as was his 
father before him. For eighteen j'ears he has 
sold milk in Rhinebeck at retail, but previous 
to that he wholesaled it. His farm of eighty 
acres is a beautiful one, commanding a fine 
view of the Hudson. He and his wife are ready 
sympathizers with all progressive movements 
in their vicinity, and they contribute to the M. 
E. Church. Politically he is a Democrat, and 
an influential one; his intelligence and public- 
spirit making his judgment valuable, he has 
been commissioner of the town of Rhinebeck 
for nine years. 



AMILTON PRAY, who is at the head of 
one of the important industries of the 
town of Unionvale, Dutchess count}', was 
there born in 1844, and was educated in the 
schools of Amenia. On starting out in life 
for himself, he first engaged in farming, but 
later turned his attention to blacksmithing. 
In 1890 he invented and patented an ice plow, 
which has completely revolutionized the ice 
trade in this country, and at once sprang into 
public favor. It is designed for horse power, 
and he established a factory at North Clove, 
in the town of Unionvale, which he has run 
to its utmost capacity. In 1892 he took out 
other patents on the improvements in the plow, 
which is one of the most important inventions 
perfected in Dutchess county, and has lessened 
the price of ice plows throughout the entire 
country. Mr. Pray can safely be called the 
father of the two cutter beams, known as a 
marker and cutter beam combined. He is 
justly entitled to a place among the leading 



51G 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



inventors of the county, and has more than 
ordinary ability as a business man. He is a 
wide-awake, progressive citizen, fully abreast 
with the times in every particular, and his 
career has been one of honorable activity. 

Andrew Pray, the grandfather of Hamilton 
Pray, was a resident of the town of Dover, 
and was a member of Asssembly from there. 
He married Mary Duncan, and had ten chil- 
dren: (I) Amy, who married Edward Ward, 
and had nine children, Andrew, Thaddeus, 
Mary, Frank, Hannah, Louisa, Sarah, Henry 
and Edward; (2) Hannah, never married; (3) 
Sarah, who married William Ross, and had 
six children, John, Mary, Delia, Andrew, 
Washington and Duncan; (4) David, who 
married Sarah Stephens, and had two children, 
Richard and Mary; (5) Mary, who married 
Josiah Dickerson, and had three children, Will- 
iam H., Wilhemina and Estella; (6j Martha, 
who married Isaac Stephens, and had two 
children, Mary and Henry; (71 Albert, who 
married Margaret B. Wyman, and had six chil- 
dren, Hamilton (subject of this sketch), Mary 
L., Emma P., Blanche, Andrew and Alber- 
tine; (8) George, who married Nancy Baker, 
and had five children, Elias, Lavinia, Martha, 
George and Seward; (9) Andrew, and (10) 
John, who never married. 

David Wyman, the maternal grandfather 
of our subject, was a resident of the town of 
Clinton, and a mechanic. He married Lorana 
Lapham, and had nine children, namely: Lor- 
anda, who married David Donald; Lapham, 
who married Susan Woolsey, and had eleven 
children, Lorana, Holmes, Henry, Jane, Lor- 
anda, Lorenzo, Alice, Frank, Clifford, Nelson 
and Charles; John, who never married; Tacy, 
who married Jacob Rider, and had one child, 
Wyman; David never married; Phebe, who 
married Albert Bullard; Solon, who married 
Mary Woolsey, and had two children, Dick 
and Don; Harris, who married Elizabeth 
Tompkins, and had one child, George; and 
Margaret, who married Albert Pray. 

Hamilton Pray was united in marriage with 
Miss Sarah E. Gregory, who was born in the 
town of Dover, Dutchess county, and was 
educated at the Clove, in Unionvale town. 
Five children were born to them, namely: 
Albert G., born in 187S; Mary L. , born in 
1880; William H., born in 1884; Andrew G., 
who was born in 1885 and died in infancy; and 
David H., who was born in 1S95, and also died 
in infancy. 



Philo Gregory, the great-grandfather of 
Mrs. Pray, was a native of New London, 
Conn., and a farmer by occupation. He had 
two sons, Samuel and Philo. The former was 
born and educated in the town of Unionvale, 
Dutchess county, and followed agricultural 
pursuits. He married Miss Ann Burton, a 
daughter of Daniel and Naomi Burton, and to 
them were born six children: Elizabeth, who 
became the wife of Orville Le Due; Silas, who 
first married Eliza Sheldon, and after her 
death wedded Phcebe Emigh; Sarah, who re- 
mained single; William, the father of Mrs. 
Pray; Naomi, who married Charles Brazer; 
and Charles, who married Lydia Thayer. 

William Gregory is a native of the town of 
Dover, Dutchess county, and throughout life 
was engaged in farming and minmg. Socially 
he holds membership in the Masonic Lodge at 
Shekomeko. He was joined in wedlock with 
Miss Lucy J. Lee, a daughter of Lyman and 
Harriet (Soule) Lee, farming people of the 
town of Dover. Five children graced this 
union, namely: Mary L., born in Dover 
town, in 1851, wedded Theodore Nickerson, 
and had two children, Ella and Willie; Sarah 
E., born in 1853, wife of the subject of this 
sketch; Harriet A., born in 1855, married 
Adelbert Terwilliger, and has three children, 
Leander, Frank and Effie; George L. , born 
in 1866, engaged in farming, and married to 
Lillie Babcock; Carrie, born in 1869, the wife 
of John P. Ham, by whom she has one daugh- 
ter, Mary. 

On the maternal side, Mrs. Pray traces her 
ancestry back to John Lee, a native of Con- 
necticut. His son, Hezekiah Lee. was born, 
reared and educated in Connecticut, and was 
a farmer by occupation. He served his coun- 
try in the war of 18 12. By his marriage with 
Miss Jane Wilson, he had the following chil- 
dren — Peter; Reuben; Lyman, the grand- 
father of Mrs. Pray; Sallie, who married John 
Chamberlain; Rosanna, who married Isaac 
Jordan; Betsy, who first married a Mr. Bost- 
wick, and after his death wedded Jason Cross; 
Lucy, who married John Benson; Jeannette, 
who married William Atkins; and Jennie, who 
married Smith Perry. 

Lyman Lee was a native of Kent, Conn., . 
and was also an agriculturist. He married 
Miss Harriet Soule, a daughter of Henry and 
Abigail (Benson) Soule, and they became the 
parents of ten children, as follows: Susan, 
who married Austin Frink, a farmer, by whom 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



517 



she had five children, George, Arthur, Albert, 
Henrietta and Harriet; Lucy, the mother of 
Mrs. Pray; Frances, who married Isaac Greg- 
ory; Hannah, who married Lyman Benson 
and has three children, John, Hattie and El- 
mer; Senaca never married; Henry, a rail- 
road employe, who married Sarah Raymond, 
and had three children, Edwin, George and 
Clara; Hezekiah never married; Harriet, who 
married Peter Sliter, and has three children, 
Ella, George and Mary; George remained 
single; Josephine, who married Charles Sher- 
wood, and has five children, Frankie (who 
married Earnest Buckley), Fred, Bertha (who 
married Bert SpencerJ, Anna, and Maude. 



OHN D. HOWARD, who is now living 
retired from active life in his pleasant home 
in Poughkeepsie, was born in the town of 
Washington, Dutchess county, September 22, 

1835- 

Edward Howard, the paternal great-grand- 
father of our subject, was born Decem- 
ber 24, 1724, and was one of the early set- 
tlers of the town of Pawling, Dutchess 
county. He married Phcebe Hart, who was 
born May 3, 1735, and the names and dates 
of birth of their children are as follows: Ste- 
phen, May 26, 1753; Matthew, September — , 
1754; Ruth, February i, 1756; Mary, Novem- 
ber 8, 1757; Richard, March 13, 1760; Sarah, 
September 20, 1761; Edward, April 26, 1763; 
Patience, November 8, 1764; Phoebe, Decem- 
ber 8, 1767; Thomas, May 14, 1770; Benjamin, 
June 14, 1773; John, December 21, 1774; 
William, March 6, 1777. All the members of 
this family married. The father died October 
I, 1 80 1, and the mother on August 4, 1804. 

Thomas Howard, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born in Pawling, and married a Miss 
Haynes. Their children were as follows: 
Thomas, Patience, Anna, Lucy, Jane, Laura, 
Sophia, and James (the father of our subject). 

James Howard was born September. 2, 
1804, in Pawling. On October 24, 1827, he 
was married to Ann Dodge, who was born 
August 24, 1806, also in Pawling. In 1847 
they removed to Lagrange, where they spent 
the remainder of their lives, the father dying 
October 29, 1890, and the mother about 1879. 
Their children were: Marie Antoinette, born 
March 26, 1829, married September 11, 1849, 
to Reuben S. Haight; Lucy Ann, born July 16, 



1830, died January 26, 1863; Frances Helen, 
born January i, 1832, was married August 25, 
1863, to Dodge P. Blackstone; Caroline Au- 
gusta, born October 23, 1833, married E. 
Irving Hurd, April 28, 1859; John Dodge, born 
September 22, 1835, married Adeline B. 
Barnes, October 24, 1 861; Thomas N.,born 
July 19, 1S39, died Ma^^ 13, 185 1; Jay, born 
March i i, 1848, was married in the year 187 1, 
to Ruth A. Halleck; Sarah Jane, born Septem- 
ber 10, 1841, died December 22, 1858; Laura, 
born August 7, 1844, died September 10, 
1854; Zenobia, born January 7, 1845, died 
February 8, 1851. One of these sons. Jay, 
remained upon the farm in Lagrange with his 
father until the latter's death, they being as- 
sociated in their work for nearly fifty years. 
Jay Howard was married in Stamford, N. Y., 
in 1 87 1, to Miss Ruth A., daughter of Samuel 
Halleck. She died October 26, 1874, leaving 
three children: Frank, Kathryn and Ruth 
A., all of whom are at home with their father. 

John D. Howard, the subject of this sketch, 
received a good common-school education in 
the schools of Lagrange; and at the Nine Part- 
ners School, also attending a private school in 
Washington township. On October 24, 1861, 
in Lagrange, he was married to Adeline B., 
daughter of William Barnes. The children 
born of this union are: Sophia, who married 
Nicholas Flagler, and has two children — Ethel 
and Sophie; James, who married Ella Acker- 
man, and has two children — John and Willard 
D.; Lucy, who married Charles Stark, and has 
two children — Howard and James; Annie, who 
married Henry Taylor; Sally, Mary and Ade- 
line. Of these, Sally was a professional nurse, 
and for three years was superintendent of 
nurses at the Womans Hospital, corner of 
Forty-ninth street and Fourth avenue, New 
York; she was married in February, 1897, to 
Dr. Burch, of the city of Washington, and re- 
sides there. Sophia, Lucy and Annie were 
for a time teachers in Dutchess county, the 
last named being a graduate of Linden Hall, 
Poughkeepsie. 

Mr. Howard has spent the greater portion 
of his life in agricultural pursuits, but in 1890 
left his farm in charge of his son, and went to 
West Superior, Wis., where he remained two 
years. Since his return he has miade his home 
in Poughkeepsie, and is not now engaged in 
any active employment. His wife departed 
this life June 14, 1886. Mr. Howard has been 
a Republican ever since the formation of the 



518 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOSAPHICAL REVORD. 



party, and has worked for its interests. He 
was supervisor of the town of Lagrange for 
three terms, and has always been an enterpris- 
ing, public-spirited man. 



HENRY VAN BENSCHOTEN. The sub- 
ject of this sketch, one of the most prom- 
inent agriculturists of Dutchess county, was 
born on the old homestead in the town of 
Lagrange, June 6, 1822. 

Elias T., father of our subject, was also 
born on the old homestead, December 27, 
1783. He married Miss Cynthia Velie, Sep- 
tember 10, 1807. She was born October 5, 
1786. Their children were: John E., born 
December 5, 1808, died March 6, 1873; Philip, 
born February 10, 181 1, married on February 
20, 1840, to Miss Hannah Thorn, and they 
had one child. Thorn, born February 17, 
1 84 1; Sarah, born January 21, 181 3, died 
February 13, 1830; Harriet, born February 
23, 1815, became the wife of Aris I. Vander- 
bilt October 19, 1841, and died June 13, 1869; 
Eliza, born March 3, 18 18, married J. Harry 
Pettit, September 4, 1844, and died January 
>^. •'^Qj; Jemima, born November 29, 18 19, 
married Dr. W. H. Hopkins February 5, 1840; 
Henry, born June 6, 1822, married Miss Mary 
Jane Ver Valen December 9, 1857; Cynthia, 
born May 9, 1824, married David H. Mulford 
October 22, 1857; Elias, born August i 5, 1826, 
married Cornelia Harris December 9, 1857, 
and for his second wife Sarah L. Wooster, 
January 6, 1875; Jane, born in August, 1S28, 
died December 19, 1866. 

Mr. Van Benschoten was well known and 
highly respected. Tall, erect, and remarkably 
active, physically he was a type of man with 
whom we associate the stirring events of the 
early history of the country. He was an ex- 
cellent citizen and neighbor, and his uniform, 
genial temperament made his presence always 
attractive in the social circle. By his industry 
and business capacity he acquired a handsome 
competence, and became one of the largest 
land owners in his section of the country. His 
entire life was spent on the old home in La- 
grange, and he was a member of the Presby- 
terian Church. 

Tunis Van Benschoten, the grandfather, 
was born October 9, 1755, and was married 
August 23, 1775, to Miss Elizabeth Van Der- 
burgh, who was born October 13, 1759. He 
departed this life December 23, 1835, and his 



wife December 31, 18 19. Their children were 
as follows: Jemima, born July 13, 1776, 
became the wife of Oliver Green; Henry, born 
August 30, 1778, married Miss Mary Jackson, 
and died September 25, 1832; Elias T; Sarah, 

born January 8, , died September 5, 

1803. Tunis was an elder in the Hackensack 
Church. He owned the first one-horse pleas- 
ure wagon in Lagrange. He was born upon 
the old homestead now owned by our subject. 

The great-great-grandfather of our subject 
was Elias Van Banschoten, as the name was 
first spelled. His son, Elias, Jr. , owned the old 
place, which was deeded to him by his father 
in 1738, through Gideon Ver Vealin, great- 
grandfather of Mrs. Van Benschoten. The 
deed is now held by our subject. 

The children of Dr. W. H. and Jemima 
Hopkins were: Harriet, born May 18, 1841, 
married Richard Titus; Elias, born September 
3, 1843, married Miss Emily Field; John, born 
July 8, 1845; Elizabeth, born May 16, 1848, 
died in infancy; William, born February 28, 
1850, married Miss Ida Sayles. These chil- 
dren were born to Mr. and Mrs. Pettit: Sarah, 
June 30, 1845, married James O. Conklin; 
James, October 4, 1846, married Miss Ella 
Flagler; Cynthia, January 27, 1849; John H., 
November 10, 1850, married Miss Maria Bab- 
cock; Janie, January 26, 1862. The children 
of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Van Benschoten were: 
Anna, born February 19, 1859. married De- 
Witt Bergen September 16, 1885; Louise, 
March 25, 1S61, married the Rev. Joseph 
Paige Davis, who is deceased; Elias, April 19, 
1867; John E., July 27, 1870. Mr. and Mrs. 
Mulford had one child, Hattie, who married 
John Hackett. She was born October 25, 1859. 

Henry Van Benschoten spent his boyhood 
days on the old homestead, and attended the 
district schools. He has held the offices of 
town clerk, assessor and supervisor, elected 
on the Democratic ticket. He was appointed 
by the I^egislature town auditor in i860. 



GEORGE C. PAYNE, a valiant member of 
the Union army during the Civil war, is 
now one of the prominent and representative 
business men of the town of Stanford, where 
he is successfully engaged as a wholesale and 
retail butcher. He was born in that township 
January 7, 1841. 

The birth of his father, Samuel Payne, oc- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



519 



curred July 8, 1799, and in Putnam county, 
N. Y., on September 18, 1822, he married 
Miss Ann Hager, who was of German ances- 
try. She was born May 4, 1803, and died 
May 5, 1879. Seven children were born of 
this union: (i) Rachel O., born September 10, 
1824, became the wife of David L. Thompson. 
(2) Anthony H., born December 28, 1826, 
makes his home in Brooklyn, N. Y. (3) War- 
ren C, born May 31, 1829, resides at Bangall, 
Dutchess county. (4) John H., born Decem- 
ber 19, 1831, enlisted in Company B, 128th 
Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry, Au- 
gust 20, 1862, and was discharged November 
19, 1864, at Albany, N. Y., on account of dis- 
ability. He is at present living at Stanford- 
ville, Dutchess county. (5) Grra S. , born 
August 30, 1836, became a member of Com- 
pany A, 20th New York State Militia, October 
22, i86i,and was discharged March 20, 1863, 
on account of wounds received at the battle of 
Chantilly. (6) Jehiel P., born August 30, 
1836, died August 17, 1848. (7) George C. , 
subject of this review, completes the family. 
For several years after his marriage the father 
remained in Putnam county, N. Y., but later 
became a resident of Stanford town, Dutchess 
county, where he engaged in farming until his 
death, which occurred November 24, 1865. 
Politically he was a Democrat, and religiously 
was a consistent member of the Baptist Church 
at Bangall. 

The education of our subject was obtained 
in the schools of Stissing, and, after completing 
his education, he was employed as a farm hand 
for three seasons. While thus engaged the 
storm of war broke over our beloved country, 
and in response to the call for men he enlisted 
August 20, 1862, in Company B, 128th Regi- 
ment, New York Volunteers, and served until 
the South laid down its arms. He participated 
in the Red River expedition, the siege of Port 
Hudson, the expedition up the Pearl river, 
and the campaign in the Shenandoah Valley. 
He was mustered out at Albany, N. Y., July 
27, 1865. For some time after his discharge 
he was in poor health, having become ill while 
in Savannah, Georgia. 

After his return home Mr. Payne engaged 
in farming for a time, and then opened a gen- 
eral store at Bangall, which he conducted for 
a year, after which he clerked a year for C. H. 
Humphrey, at that place. He then removed 
to the town of Washington, Dutchess county, 
where for three years he carried on agricultural 



pursuits, after which he returned to Stanford 
town, and for the past twenty years has been 
engaged in the meat business. 

Mr. Payne was married October 20, 1869, 
to Miss Emeline C. Mosher, who was born at 
East Chatham, Columbia Co., N. Y., January 
12, 1850. Her father, David Mosher, was a 
native of Saratoga county, N. Y. , where his 
father, Benjamin Mosher, was also born. The 
latter married Jane Bloom, and they became 
the parents of seven children: Joseph, David, 
Jane, Mary, Rennselaer, Amy and Esther. 
The father of this family spent his entire life 
in farming in Saratoga county. There his son 
David was educated in the common schools, 
and on reaching his manhood he was united in 
marriage with Miss Alice Mosher, by whom he 
had two children: Edwin B., who became a 
member of the 21st New York Cavalry during 
the Civil war, and was shot by a guerilla; and 
Emeline C, the wife of our subject. Her 
maternal grandfather, William Mosher, was 
born March 5, 1786, and wedded Martha A. 
Mosher, by whom he had ten children. His 
father, Barnabas Mosher, was born September 
2, 1758, and married Ruth Mosher, who was 
born July 13, 1757. In their family were 
eight children. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Payne were born five 
children: Edward Van Rensselaer, born on 
March 24, 1872, is now a civil engineer, lo- 
cated at Lockport, N. Y.; Alice Gertrude, 
born September 28, 1874; William Mosher, 
born February 22, 1882, died April 9, 1885; 
Rose Cleveland, born February 8, 1886, died 
February 18, 1895; and Albert Henry, born 
September 19, 1887, completes the family. 

As a Democrat Mr. Payne takes great in- 
terest in political questions, and has served as 
collector of Stanford town. In religious be- 
lief he is a Baptist, holding membership with 
the Church of that denomination at Bangall, 
and socially is identified with Warren Lodge 
No. 32, F. & A. M., at Schultzville, N. Y. 
As a soldier he displayed bravery, sagacity and 
true patriotism; as a business man his actions 
have been above reproach or criticism, and as a 
citizen he is an illustration of a high type of 
American manhood. In social circles he 
and his wife occupy a prominent position. 
She is an earnest worker in the Woman's 
Christian Temperance Union, and for four 
years has been recording secretary for the 
Dutchess County Woman's Christian Temper- 
ance Union. 



520 



COMMEMORATTFE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



CHARLES W. HOAG (deceased) was one 
of the most genial and whole-souled men 
of Dutchess county, vvhere was spent his long 
and useful career. The genealogy of the fam- 
ily can be traced to John Hoag, who was born 
in 1643 and died in 1728. On April 21, 1669, 
John Hoag married E. Emery, by whom he 
had the following children: John, born Feb- 
ruary 28, 1670; Jonathan, born October 28, 
1671; Joseph, born January 10, 1677; Ben- 
jamin; Hannah, born January 3, 1683; Judith, 
born April 20. 1687; and Mary. 

For his first wife Benjamin Hoag wedded 
Sarah Morris, and they became the parents of 
six children: Mary, born April 5, 1704; John, 
born September 3, 1706; Jonathan, born in 
December, 1708; Sarah, born May 3, 171 1; 
Benjamin, born November 15, 17 14; and 
Judah, born April 29, 17 16. By his second 
wife, who bore the maiden name of Esther 
Sneatt, he had ten children, whose names and 
years of birth are as follows: Patience, 1719; 
Daniel, 1720; Moses, 1721; Elizabeth, 1723; 
Anna, 1724; Mary, 1728; Isaiah, 1730; Aben- 
ezer, 1 73 1 ; Theodore, 1732; and Esther, 1734. 

John Hoag, the second child of the first 
union, was joined in wedlock with Mary Hoag, 
who was born January 9, 1706, and they had 
six children: Elijah; Enoch, born in 1731; 
John, born May 10, 1734; Abner, born in 
1736; Mary; Paul, born in 1741. For his sec- 
ond wife John Hoag married Patience Rogers, 
and to them were born four children: Isaiah, 
in 1754; Rachel, in 1756; Jeremiah, in 1759; 
and Nathaniel, in 1765. 

The next in direct line was John Hoag, a 
resident of the town of Washington, Dutchess 
county. He was united in marriage with 
Mercy Tripp, who was born March 16, 1738, 
and they became the parents of eight children, 
whose names and dates of birth areas follows: 
Abel, December 12, 1761; Philip, December 
6, 1764; Lucy, March 17, 1767; Amy, June 2, 
1769; Charles, December 25, 1771; Ruth, 
April 22, 1775; Tripp, March 6, 1778; and 
Mary, May 25, 1782. 

The fifth child of that union, Charles 
Hoag, was the grandfather of our subject, and 
died January 23, 1840. On November 21, 1793, 
he married Betsy Denton, who was born April 
5, 1772, and died August 30, 1852. Their 
family included nine children, as follows: 
Anna, born October 2, 1794; John T. , Sep- 
tember 27, 1796; James D. , February 14, 
1799; Henry C, May 3, 1801; Phoebe, Au- 



gust 13, 1805; Ezra B., December 11, 1807; 
Benjamin, October 23, 1810; Deborah, Octo- 
ber 18, 1812; and Mary, February 25, 1815. 

The father of our subject, John T. Hoag, 
spent his boyhood days at Pine Plains, Dutch- 
ess county; on November 30, 1825, he was 
united in marriage with Mary C. Bedell, born 
July 20, 1800. By this union they had two 
children: Charles W. , born October 7, 1826; 
and Mary B., born June 10, 1835. For some 
time the father engaged in farming in Colum- 
bia county, N. Y., and on his return to Dutch- 
ess county first located in Clinton town, but 
later removed to the old homestead in Pine 
Plains town, which he operated up to his death. 
May 8, 1849. He was reared in the faith of 
the Society of Friends, and was highly re- 
spected and honored. His wife departed this 
life on July 14. 1858. 

Charles \V. Hoag passed his early life in 
the usual manner of farmer boys, in the town 
of Pine Plains, and secured a good education 
at the Nine Partners Boarding School, in the 
town of Washington, Dutchess county. He 
assisted his father in the labors of the home 
farm until he was married, June 10, 1857, to 
Laura Bryan, whose birth occurred April 21, 
1831. They became the parents of five chil- 
dren: Ward B., now a physician of New 
York City; he was born July 3, 1859, and 
married L. Lilian Sills, of New York City, 
May 9, 1895; John E., born November 2, 
1861 ; Mary E., who was born November 25, 
1863, and December 9, 1891. wedded William 
H. Ulrich, of Greenfield, Mass. ; Anna Ger- 
trude, born July 6, 1868; and Charles Will- 
iam, born February 14, 1870. 

For two years after his marriage Mr. Hoag 
remained in the town of Pine Plains, and the 
following eight years were passed near Miller- 
ton. Dutchess county. In April, 1869, he re- 
moved to the town of Stanford, where he 
erected the large house at the upper end of 
Upton Lake, now known as the " Upton Lake 
House." and there continued to live until his 
death, which occurred March 4, 1893. He 
was classed by his fellow citizens as one of the 
public-spirited and representative men of the 
county, and merited and received the warmest 
confidence and esteem of the entire com- 
munity. 

The family of Mrs. Hoag has also long 
been identified with the history of Dutchess 
county, her great-grandparents, Ezra and 
Sarah Bryan, being residents of the town of 





^:^-tZ.^^^^ 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



521 



Northeast. Their son, Amos Bryan, who also 
lived in that township, married Betsey Finch, 
and to them were born nine children, of whom 
WardW. , the father of Mrs. Hoag, was the 
eldest. His entire life was passed upon the 
old homestead farm in the town of Northeast. 
On December 12, 1829, he was united in mar- 
riage with Elizabeth Wanzer, and they became 
the parents of eleven children, whose names 
and dates of birth are as follows: Laura, April 
21, 1831; Calvin, January 6, 1833; Elihu (de- 
ceased), July 26, 1835; Amos (deceased), Oc- 
tober 9, 1836; James, March 25, 1839; Sarah 
(deceased), November 25, 1840; Jane, Febru- 
ary 25, 1843; Ezra, December 16, 1844; 
Phcebe, February 5, 1847; Reuben, June 20, 
1849; and Coralie (deceased), February 9, 
1853. The father, who was a faithful mem- 
ber of the Friends Church, died December 
14, 1863; his wife survived him till July 27, 
1885. 



E\DWARD BARMORE, of the town of La- 
<l grange, Dutchess county, is a representa- 
tive agriculturist, his farm, near Moores Mill, 
being among the best of its size in that locality. 
He is a native of Dutchess county, but his 
father, Clark C. Barmore, was born May 25, 
1805, in Westchester county, N. Y. , and came 
to Dutchess county with his parents when he 
was six years old. He attended the district 
schools of the town of Unionvaie, and taught 
for several terms in early manhood. On De- 
cember 26, 1 83 1, he was united in marriage 
with Mary C. Alley, who was born December 
8, 1810, the daughter of James Alley. For a 
few years after his marriage Mr. Barmore was 
engaged in farming in Unionvaie, but, in the 
spring of 1836, he moved to the town of La- 
grange, and settled upon the farm now occu- 
pied by his grandson, Clark Barmore. He was 
a birthright Quaker, always adhered to the old 
forms of speech, and was a regular attendant 
at the Friends' meetings, serving as clerk for 
many years. A self-made man, he was very 
successful as a farmer, and his fine character 
gave him great influence among his acquaint- 
ances. He was a life-long Democrat, and held 
several offices in the town of Lagrange. His 
death occurred there September 30, 1873, ^"^ 
his wife followed him February 22, 1880. 
They had nine children: Phcebe, who mar- 
ried Crumline Patterson, of Arthursburgh, 
N. Y. ; Edward, our subject; Stephen, deceased; 



Caroline, the wife of Andrew S. Wanzer, of 
Moores Mill; Eliza M., deceased; Sarah, who 
married Cyrus Perkins, of Moores Mill; John, 
deceased, who married Josephine Phillips; 
Charles, deceased, and Mary Adelia, the wife 
of Gilbert V. Downing, of Poughkeepsie. 

Edward Barmore was born in the town of 
Unionvaie November 8, 1835, but accompa- 
nied his parents to the town of Lagrange at 
the age of four months. He was educated in 
the district schools of his neighborhood and at 
a boarding school at Oswego village. He 
taught successfully in Lagrange during the 
winter terms of 1856 and 1857. On Novem- 
ber 24, 1858, he was married in the town of 
Beekman to Miss Lucy E. Wanzer, daughter 
of Isaac Wanzer, and a native of the town of 
New Milford, Litchfield Co., Conn. Immedi- 
ately after their marriage they settled upon the 
farm, where they now reside, in a house built 
by Mr. Barmore. Three children blessed their 
union: (i) Clark, a farmer in the town of 
Lagrange, born February 13, 1862, is a grad- 
uate of Eastman Business College; he was 
married December 17, 1885, to Gertie Tripp, 
daughter of Daniel Tripp; he is a member of 
the Lagrange Farmers Alliance and Industrial 
Union; was one of the organizers of the Farm- 
ers' Insurance Co., of Lagrange, of which he 
is a director and the treasurer. (2) Mary 
Eliza is president of the local W. C. T. U., 
and treasurer of the County Union; at the 
time of the Constitutional Convention of New 
York State, in 1894, she canvassed the town 
of Lagrange for signatures to the Equal Suf- 
frage petition, securing nearly 300 names; she 
was also secretary to .the county campaign 
committee. (3) Emma B. was married Jan- 
uary 2, 1890, at the age of twenty, to Charles 
Huestis, of Unionvaie. 

Mr. Barmore is a Prohibitionist politically, 
and his wife is one of the leading members of 
the W. C. T. U. of Lagrange. He is a non- 
combatant, and, having been taken in the first 
draft during the war, he was released by Pres- 
ident Lincoln, owing to his conscientious scru- 
ples against the use of arms. 



LEWIS SMITH. Among the young and 
; enterprising citizens of Barrytown, Dutch- 
ess county, there is probably none more ener- 
getic or thorough-going than the gentleman 
whose name introduces this sketch. He made 
his appearance on the stage of life at Rondout, 



522 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOGBAPEWAL RECORD. 



Ulster Co., N. Y.,in 1868, and acquired a 
good practical education in the schools of 
Canarsie and Hrooklyn. N. Y. He learned 
the art of pilotinjj, and was granted a license as 
a pilot on the Hudson river, New York harbor 
and Long Island sound. He now follows that 
calling, being mostly engaged in taking freight 
steamers. He is one of the prominent and 
representative young men of Barrytown, where 
he now makes his home, and has the respect 
and esteem of all who know him. His estima- 
ble wife was Miss Hattie Moody, daughter of 
George and Lucinda Moody, of Clinton town- 
ship. Dutchess county. 

Mr. Smith is of German descent, his par- 
ents, Robert and Sophia (Helm) Smith, both 
being natives of the Fatherland, the former 
born at Glangstadt in 1841, and the latter at 
Maxfeld, Prussia, in 1844. The}' were edu- 
cated in Germany, and in 1S65 took passage 
on the same vessel, bound for the United 
States. They met on board the ship, and, 
their friendship ripening into love, they were 
married on reaching Rondout, N. Y. The 
father had been a sailor previous to his loca- 
tion in this country, and had visited almost 
every country on the globe. At present he is 
a boatman, and makes his home in Barrytown. 
In the family were seven children, namely: 
William, who died at the age of seventeen 
years; Lewis, subject of this review; Eliza- 
beth, who died in infancy; and Robert, Mar- 
tha, Rebecca, and Albert, all at home. 

John Helm, the maternal grandfather of 
our subject, was born at Mecklenburg, where 
he was educated, and there married Miss Eliza- 
beth Yager, also a native of Prussia. They 
became the parents of eight children, but the 
names of the oldest three are not known. The 
others are: William, who married a Miss Rus- 
sell; Mary, who became the wife of Charles 
Klopp; Sophia, the mother of our subject; 
Caroline, who wedded August Heidman; and 
John, who when a young man served in the 
Prussian army, and who died of a fever soon 
after his return home. 



PL.\TT V. AND JOHN J. HALL, leading 
and prominent citizens of the town of 
Unionvale, are worthy representatives of an 
honored family of Dutchess county. William 
Hall, their grandfather, was born in what was 
then the town of Beekman, but is now Union- 
vale, and secured his education in its public 



schools, after which he followed the vocation 
of farming. He wedded Miss Mary Vale, 
daughter of Israel \'ale, who held the commis- 
sion of captain in the Colonial army during the 
Revolutionary war. The following children 
were born of this union : Levina, who mar- 
ried Solomon Duncan; Ruth, who became the 
wife of Henry Deyo; John, the father of our 
subjects; Israel, who married Catherine Albro; 
Isaac, who wedded Mary Rogers; Gideon and 
Benjamin, who remained single; Mary, who 
became the wife of William Pine; William; 
Abigail, who married Isaac Titus; and Rebecca, 
who married Joseph Losee. 

John Hall, Sr. , who was born in the town 
of Beekman, in 1776, was educated in the 
schools near his home, and there engaged in 
agricultural pursuits. He married Miss Mary 
Waite, daughter of Joseph and Catherine 
Waite. Her father was a lawyer by profes- 
sion, and also followed auctioneering, and was 
a prominent member of the Masonic order. 

Thirteen children graced the union of the 
parents of our subjects, as follows: (i ) Cath- 
arine, born in the town of Beekman, Novem- 
ber 10, 1802, married David Hawes. They 
had eight children: John D., who married a 
Miss Fuller; Daniel; Charles, who married a 
Miss Briggs, and, after her death, wedded a 
Miss Wheeler; Erthemer, who married a Miss 
Edmonds;, Phcebe, who married George Hall; 
George; Benjamin; and Judson. (2) Mary, 
born August 3, 1804, married Smith Titus. 
(3) Phcebe .\., born August 13, 1806, married 
Henry P. Emigh, by whom she had one child 
that died in infancy. (4) Pauline A., born 
August 2, 1 80S, married Levi Haskel. (5) 
Abigail, born March 3, 1810, married Fred- 
erick Davis. (6) Levina. born December 10, 
iSii, married Smith Titus. (7) Ruth, born 
January C, 1814, died unmarried. 

(8) Piatt V. Hall, one of our subjects, was 
born in Beekman, Dec. 25, 1S15, and, after 
completing a common-school education, turned 
his attention to farming. He was united in 
marriage with Miss Louise Paul, daughter of 
Alfred and Levina Paul. Her father was a 
hotel keeper in Chenango county, N. Y. Two 
children were born to Piatt V. Hall and his 
worthy wife, namely: Mary L., who was born 
September 6, 1S65, and died in infancy; and 
Alfred P., who was born in the town of Union- 
vale, July 26, 1868. For twenty-five years 
their father served as postmaster of Mansfield. 
Alfred P. Hall was educated in the State 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



523 



Normal School, at Albany, N. Y., and as a life 
work chose the occupation of farming. Since 
1894 he has acceptably filled the office of as- 
sessor of Unionvale town, has been inspector 
of elections and held other public positions of 
honor and trust. In 1S90 was celebrated his 
marriage with Miss Loda K. Pitcher, daughter 
of Charles J. and Wealthy (Tanner) Pitcher, 
the former a farmer and lumberman of Sheko- 
meko, Dutchess county. Two children were 
born to Alfred Hall and wife: Susie V., born 
April 6, 1892; and Paul A., born January 8, 
1894, and died in infancy. 

(9) Rebecca, the ninth child of John Hall, 
Sr. , was born April 24, 181 8, and married 
George Hopkins, by whom she had two daugh- 
ters: Sarah and Mary, twins, the former the 
wife of Egbert Benson, and the latter the wife 
of George Tillinghast. After the death of her 
first husband, Rebecca became the wife of 
Victor Fuller, who was a soldier in the Civil 
war, and to them were born two children: 
Ruth and Estelle, both of whom died in in- 
fancy, (lo) Helen, born March 31, 1820, 
married Joseph Benson. They had eight chil- 
dren: Levina, deceased; Mary, who became 
the wife of Truman Case; Piatt J., who first 
married Flora Dickerman, and after her death 
wedded Louisa Benson; Franklin D. married 
Carmel Gay; Homer, deceased; Fred J., de- 
ceased: Augusta, who married Clarence Oak- 
ley, and Ella, who wedded Fred Irish. (11) 
Sarah E., born October 26, 1821. 

(12) John J. Hall, another of the subjects of 
this sketch, was born in the town of Beekman, 
February 10, 1S24, and obtained an excellent 
education in the Staie Normal School, of 
Albany, N. Y. He was admitted to the bar 
in 1868, but has never engaged in practice. 
His early life was principally devoted to teach- 
ing, but in later years he has carried on farm- 
ing with good success. For eight years he has 
filled the office of justice of the peace, having 
the unanimous vote of the people; was also the 
first postmaster appointed at Mansfield, and 
was superintendent of the schools of Unionvale 
town, all of which offices he creditably filled, 
proving a most trustworthy and capalale offi- 
cial. 

(13) Fred D. Hall, the youngest of the 
family, was born in the town of Unionvale, 
September 17, 1827. After finishing his liter- 
ary education, he entered the law school at 
Ballston, N. Y. , under Professor Fowler, and 
was admitted to the bar in 1852. He removed 



to Chickasaw, Iowa, where he was elected dis- 
trict attorney, but is now engaged in farming. 
He married Miss Harriet Moore, by whom he 
has children as follows: Amos, John and Mary 
Emily. 

The farm now occupied by Alfred P. and 
John J. Hall is the old Hall homestead, which 
has been in the possession of the Hall family 
from 1767 to the present time. 



JHAVILAND HAIGHT was born in the 
town of Washington, Dutchess county, 

February 12, 1828. He spent his early 
life in Clinton, where he attended the district 
and Quaker schools, finishing his education at 
the Amenia Seminary, in the eastern part of 
the county. 

After leaving school our subject settled on 
a farm in the town of Washington, where he 
remained two or three years, removing then to 
Poughkeepsie, and engaging there in the coal 
and lumber business for a short time with James 
Collingwood, later with Charles Pearl, in the 
saddlery and hardware business. In 1855 he 
went to Iowa, stayed there until 1864, returned 
to Poughkeepsie and lived here until 1 87 1 , when 
he went to Kansas and engaged in farming for 
some twenty years. In 1866 he was united in 
marriage with Miss Mary Wanzer, daughter of 
Dr. H. C. Wanzer, of Rochester, N. Y. In 
January, 1891, Mr. Haight moved from Kan- 
sas to Poughkeepsie, where he is now living a 
retired life. Mrs. Haight died August 23, 
1894. Although our subject takes an interest 
in politics, he is no politician, being independ- 
ent in politics more than anything else. He 
is a member of the Hicksite Quaker Meeting, 
and is interested in all matters pertaining to 
the development and improvement of the city 
in which he resides. 

Dr. Charles Haight, father of our subject, 
was a native of the town of Washington, born 
June 15, 1806. After obtaining a common- 
school education he went to New York City 
and studied medicine. He returned to Dutch- 
ess county, and at Four Corners practiced un- 
til 1845, when he moved to Poughkeepsie and 
practiced there until his death, September 26, 
i8gi. He married Miss Elizabeth Haviland, 
who was born in the town of Washington, a 
daughter of Jacob Haviland. After their mar- 
riage Dr. and Mrs. Haight located at Four 
Corners, which, with Hart's Village, is now 
known as Millbrook. Our subject was the 



524 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



only child. Mrs. Haight died in 1856. Dr. 
Haight was a Republican, and he was a 
highly successful physician. 

Jacob Haight, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, also born in Dutchess county, married 
Amy Clement, and they settled on a farm 
where they reared a family of four children, as 
follows: Charles, father of our subject; Alonzo, 
a prominent farmer and physician in Dutchess 
county; Alexander, who was a farmer in Vir- 
ginia; and Maria, married to James Barlow, a 
merchant of \ew York, but at one time a 
farmer in \'irginia. Mr. Haight followed farm- 
ing in Dutchess county until 1840, when he 
went to Virginia and farmed there until his 
death. 

Jacob Haviland, father of Mrs. Haight, 
was a native of Dutchess county, where he 
followed the occupation of farming. Daniel 
Haviland, great-grandfather of Mrs. Haight, 
was a Quaker preacher, and followed farming 
as a vocation. 



J 



JOSEPH HARRISON BENSON was born 
in the town of Amenia, Dutchess county, 
September 8, 181 5, and acquired his educa- 
tion at the district schools. At the early age of 
si.xteen years he left the home farm and began 
working by the month and year as a farm hand. 
His attention has always been devoted to agri- 
cultural pursuits. 

While still a young man he and his brother, 
Samuel K. Benson, bought the Thomas Swift 
farm. After running this farm together for 
three years, he decided to branch out for him- 
self, and, selling his interest to Samuel, he 
bought the Reuben Reed farm on the hill near 
the Steel works, where he lived for twenty-five 
years. Wishing to enlarge his farming opera- 
tions, he bought the farm known as the Judah 
Swift farm, one and one-half miles south, 
where he still resides. 

In the meantime he was united in mar- 
riage, in March, 1842, to Hellen S. Hall, of 
the town of Union vale, Dutchess Co., N. Y., 
daughter of John Hall, who was an influential 
member of the Friends (or Quaker) Church at 
Mechanic, N. Y. Mrs. Benson passed to the 
better land in June, 1880. Unto them were 
born eight children: Lavina and Frederick 
De Peyster (both deceased); Mary E., wife of 
Truman Case, of Norwich, N. Y. ; Piatt J. ; 
Franklin De Peyster; Augusta, wife of Clar- 
ence Oakley, of Norwich, N. Y. ; John Homer 



(deceased); and Ellen, deceased wife of F. M. 
Irish, of Wassaic, New York. 

Like his father, Mr. Benson was first a 
Whig, and now advocates the principles of the 
Republican .party, but has never aspired to 
political preferment. In 1877 he purchased 
the handsome residence and farm situated at 
the junction of Tower Hill and Dover Plains 
road, known as the Cal. Nase property, also a 
place on Chestnut Ridge, both of which he 
presented to his two sons, Piatt J. and Frank- 
lin D. He is now in his eighty-second year, a 
living monument to the coming generations, 
showing what a young man with a pair of will- 
ing hands and good judgment may accomplish. 

Franklin De Peyster Benson, one of 
the sons of Joseph Harrison Benson, and a 
thorough and systematic farmer of the town 
of Amenia, Dutchess county, was born there 
March 22, 1854. He belongs to a family 
that has for several generations carried on 
agricultural pursuits within the borders of that 
town. Samuel Benson, his great-grandfather, 
was a native of Horseneck, R. I., but early 
became a resident of Dutchess county, locat- 
ing in the southern portion of Amenia town, 
where he engaged in farming. He married 
Rachel Darling, and reared a family of four 
sons and three daughters: Samuel, Joshua, 
Bethiah, John, Abigail, Phila and Polly. The 
grandfather, who also bore the name of Sam- 
uel, was born in Amenia town, where he spent 
his boyhood days attending the district 
schools. He was married at Otsego, N. Y., 
to Sarah Knapp, but soon afterward returned 
to Amenia town, and there followed farming 
until his death. In early life he was a Whig, 
and on the organization of the Republican 
party he joined its ranks, becoming one of its 
faithful supporters. There were eleven chil- 
dren in his family, namely: Joseph H., father 
of our subject; Samuel K. and John, deceased; 
James v., of Dover town, Dutchess county; 
Ebenezer, of South Dover; Darius, of Amenia; 
Charles and Sarah Jane, both deceased; Ada, 
wife of J. G. Dutcher; Harriet, wife of Van- 
Nest Dutcher, of South Dover; and Joshua, 
deceased. 

Franklin De Peyster Benson obtained his 
literary education in the district schools, Fort 
Edward Academy and the Amenia Seminary. 
After attaining his majority he went to western 
Kansas, where for five years he was engaged in 
the stock business, and he still owns a large 
cattle ranch there. Returning to Amenia, he 




^ 



^ 



.Ci 



^rJ 




^ 



X 



COMMEMORATIVE BJOGBAPEICAL RECORD. 



525 



located upon his present farm in 1887, and 
has since been engaged in its cultivation and 
improvement. He follows in the political 
footsteps of his father and grandfather, voting 
the Republican ticket, and is deeply incerested 
in the success of his party. In Lane county, 
Kans. , January 24, 1 887, he was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Carmel Gay, a daughter of 
Rev. E. L. and Mary A. I'Masseyj Gay. Her 
father, who was from Boston, Mass., is now 
serving as pastor of the Baptist Church at 
Dighton, Kans. Three children bless the 
union of Mr. and Mrs. Benson, namely: 
Luther Joseph, Frank De Peyster and Fannie 
Augusta. 

Piatt J., a brother of Franklin De Peyster, 
and a prosperous farmer of Amenia town, was 
born April 29, 1852, and attended the district 
school and the Amenia Seminary. In Amenia 
he married Flora Dickerman, who died April 
3, 1892, and to them were born nine children: 
Clarence, Sadie, Helen, Joseph, Hadley, Milo 
(deceased), Anna, and Flossie and Flora 
(twins). For his second wife he wedded 
Louisa Benson, daughter of Samuel Benson. 
Politically he supports the Republican party. 



OLIVER BARRETT, one of the enterpris- 
_^ ing and prosperous agriculturists of the 
town of Northeast, resides on a farm near Cole- 
man Station, which has been in the possession 
of the family without interruption for nearly 
one hundred years. The Barretts are of En- 
glish descent, but is not known positively when 
the first of the name came to this country. 
Ezekiel Barrett, our subject's grandfather, was 
born September 17, 1742, in Norwich, Conn., 
where he passed his entire life, following the 
trade of carpenter and joiner. He was not 
prominent in politics, nor was he a Church 
member, although he was a Universalist in be- 
lief. On July 7, 1773, he married Sarah 
Lathrop, who was bom in Norwich, April 29, 
1749. She was a descendant in the fifth gen- 
eration from Rev. John Lathrop, a Congrega- 
tional minister, who left England on account 
of religious persecution, and arrived at Scitu- 
ate, Mass., September 28, 1634, accompanied 
by his six sons and two daughters. He died 
in 1653. His son, Samuel Scudder Lathrop, 
had a son, Israel, who married Rebecca Bliss; 
their son William married Sarah Huntington; 
their son Ezra, Mrs. Barrett's father, married 
Esther Clark. Mrs. Barrett died October 27, 



181 1, in her sixty-third year, her husband sur- 
viving until February 10, 1838, when he passed 
away at the age of ninety-six years. They had 
four children: Mary B., born May 19, 1774; 
Ezra Lathrop, born September 27, 1775; and 
Oliver and Backus (twins), bom April 10, 

1779- 

Ezra Lathrop Barrett, our subject's father, 
was a carpenter and joiner, and worked at his 
trade for many years. He came to Dutchess 
county prior to 1800, and, after a short stay 
at Pine Plains, he moved to Northeast and 
managed the Caleb Dakin farm, now occupied 
by Mrs. Coleman. Later he bought the farm 
which our subject owns, moving there in the 
spring of 1820. The house he built at that 
time is still in excellent repair, and he con- 
structed other substantial buildings, including 
Mrs. Coleman's present home, built for Caleb 
Dakin. He was a Democrat, and verj' positive 
in his views on public matters, and was a mem- 
ber of the Masonic fraternity. Earlj' in life he 
united with the Congregational Church at 
Sharon, Conn., but afterward assisted in the 
establishment of the Northeast Center Congre- 
grational Church, in which he held theof&ce of 
deacon until his death. On January 3, 1805, 
he married Rhoda Dakin, daughter of Caleb 
and Rhoda 'King; Dakin, and granddaughter 
of Simon Dakin, a well-known Baptist minis- 
ter, and an early settler of the town. Of this 
union five children were born: Sarah Louise, 
born December 6, 1805; Caleb Dakin born 
November 21, 1807, married Caroline, daugh- 
ter of Douglas Clark; Edward Lathrop, bora 
July 26, 1 8 10, married Sarah Fish; MjTon, 
born September 9, 18 16, a minister of the 
Presbyterian Church, married Emma Elizabeth 
R\erson; and Oliver, born December 9, 18 19. 
Ezra Barrett died November 18, 1857; his 
wife died May 23, i860. 

The subject of our sketch has always lived 
at the old homestead, having been absent from 
it not more than six months in all. There are 
two other farms in the vicinity, which have 
been owned by the family for about one hun- 
dred 3"ears, having been handed down by in- 
heritance. Mr. Barrett has been very suc- 
cessful, his prosperity being attained by close 
attention to business, and he has added to 
his original farm of 123 acres, the Smithfield 
farm of 188 acres, acquired from the Dakin 
estate. On November 21, 1854, he was mar- 
ried to his first wife, Catherine Sophia Hom- 
fager, daughter of Adam Homfager. Five 



526 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



children were born to them: Charles Miller, 
October 24, 1855, a farmer, married to Jose- 
phine Devoe; Ezra Lathrop, August 30, 185S, 
married to Alice N. Clark; Khoda Louise; 
Cornelia, who died in 1865; and Albert, the 
railroad agent at Coleman Station, married 
Edna Dodd Hazard. The mother of this 
family died in 1870, and in 1874, Mr. Barrett 
married Julia Elizabeth Pulver, daughter of 
Nicholas N. Pulver, and a descendant of one 
of the old Holland-Dutch families. 

Mr. Barrett is well informed on general 
topics, and takes an intelligent view of the 
questions of the day. In politics he has 
always been a Democrat, and he has taken an 
active part in local affairs, and served two 
terms as justice of the peace. He and his 
family have always belonged to the Congrega- 
tional Church, in which he held the offices of 
trustee and deacon. 



[ILES SCOFIELD. The Scofield fam- 
ily in this country is descended from Sir 
Cuthbert Scofield, of Scofield Manor, parish of 
Rochdale, Lancashire, England, two of his 
grandsons, Daniel and David Scofield, having 
come to America in 1639, in the ship " Susan 
and Ellen," settling in Stamford, Conn. The 
family history is now in process of completion, 
and, according to present expectations, will 
shortly be in print, giving a complete account 
of the many descendants of these pioneers. 
The subject of this sketch traces his lineage to 
Daniel Scofield, through along list of ancestors. 

His great-grandfather, Jacob Scofield, mar- 
ried Hannah Knapp; his grandfather, Miles 
Scofield, married Abigail Hustis, and their son, 
Ephraim M., our subject's father, was born 
November i, 1796, in Putnam county, N. Y. , 
south of Fishkill, near Cold Spring. He was 
a farmer in Fishkill, and, January 8, 1S24, 
married a native of that town, Catherine Phill- 
ips, who was born September 24, 1802, the 
daughter of Henry Phillips, a Hollander by 
descent, and his wife, Sarah Southard, an 
English lady. Our subject was one of a fam- 
ily of nine children: Emily, Miles, Joseph, 
Julia, Mary, Sarah, Catherine, Ephraim and 
Cordelia. The father departed this life July • 
21, 1878, and the mother December 29, 1893. 

Miles Scofield was born August 3, 1827, in 
the town of Fishkill, and was educated in the 
common schools of the village of Fishkill, un- 
der J. C. Howard and Rev. Mr. Pingree, and 



in the Fishkill Academy. He left school in 
1850, and February 5, 1852, he sailed from 
New York for California on the steamer " Pro- 
metheus, " for Greytown, by the Nicaragua 
route. On the Pacific coast he took the old 
steamship " North America, " which was 
wrecked on the coast of Mexico 100 miles 
below Acapulco, the vessel being a total loss. 
The passengers were taken by land to Acapul- 
co, where they remained five weeks, and then 
took passage to San F"rancisco on the steamer 
" Independence," arriving April 10, 1852. Mr. 
Scofield with three others started immediately 
for the gold mines on the Yuba river, where 
they purchased an interest and went to work 
with a will. After three years of mining in 
Yuba and Nevada counties, Mr. Scofield joined 
a company in constructing the Excelsior canal, 
to supply the hydraulic works in Rose Bar 
township, Timbuctoo Diggings. They brought 
the water first from Deer creek, a distance of 
sixteen miles, and later extended the canal to 
the South Yuba river, thirty-one miles away. 
While in California Mr. Scofield was a strong 
supporter of the N'igilancemovement in 1856. 
He left the mines and went down to San Fran- 
cisco, where he offered himself to the \'igilance 
committee to be held in reserve for use if 
needed. He remained in California four jears 
and a half, and then, in the fall of 1858, came 
back to his native place, where he purchased 
his present farm of eightj-five acres near Fish- 
kill village, now known as Fruit Ridge, then 
Osborn Hill. 

In the following year, October 2, 1859, he 
married Miss Mary Vail, daughter of William 
R. and Sarah Ann (Bogardus) Vail, highly es- 
teemed residents of the town of Fishkill. A 
new home was built in the spring of 1859, and 
there Mr. and Mrs. Scofield began their 
wedded life. For some time he devoted his 
land to general farming and dairying, but 
gradually put it into use in fruit grosving, and 
at the present time he has fifty acres in fruits 
of various kinds, and is considered one of the 
best horticulturists in that region. In 1890 he 
purchased a residence on Main street, in the 
village of ^'ishkill, where he has since resided, 
although he still owns and cultivates his farm. 
His wife's father lived with them for three 
years and died July i, 1896, in his ninety-first 
j'ear, leaving a large estate. Mr. and Mrs. 
Scofield have had two children, of whom, 
F"rank died in infancy; the other, Mary Louisa, 
is the wife of Edgar A. Shook, formerly of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



527 



the town of Red Hook, but now a resident of 
Fish kill. 

Mr. Scofield and his wife are leading mem- 
bers of the Reformed Church of Fishkill, in 
which he holds the office of elder. He was 
appointed to attend the general synod of the 
Church at Kingston in June, 1896. In poli- 
tics. Mr. Scoiield is a Republican. He 
was elected assessor in 1877, and he served 
two terms of three years each. For several 
years he has held the office- of school trus- 
tee, and he has been a trustee of the Fish- 
kill Rural Cemetery Association from its organi- 
zation to the present time. In business circles 
he is also prominent, and for many years he 
has been connected with the management of 
the Fishkill Savings Institute, and is now its 
vice-president. 



J WESLEY VAN TASSELL, a leading citi- 
zen of the town of East Fishkill, is noted 

no less for his ability as a business man 
and political worker than as an agriculturist, 
his success in various lines of effort showing 
unusual grasp of affairs. 

His family originated in Holland, but his 
ancestors settled in Westchester county, N. Y., 
at an early date, acquiring e.xtensive estates 
there. Henry \'an Tassell, our subject's grand- 
father, was born there and became a promi- 
nent agriculturist. He married a Miss Tickly, 
and reared a family of six children: John L. , 
our subject's father; Isaac, Henry, Jones, Jane 
and Delia. 

John L. \'an Tassell, who was born August 
25, 1817, and spent his early years upon the 
old homestead in Westchester county, married 
Miss Catherine Baker, a lady of English de- 
scent, whose family had been located in Dutch- 
ess county for several generations. Her father, 
Bennajah Baker, was a well-known carpenter 
and builder. After his marriage Mr. \^an Tas- 
sell settled in Old Fishkill, where he engaged 
in business as a farmer, miller and speculator 
in cattle, his shrewd judgment enabling him to 
make a success of each. Politically he was a 
Republican. His wife died March 16, 1888, 
and he did not long survive, passing to his rest 
February 16, 1895. They had eleven chil- 
dren: Sarah (deceased), formerly the wife of 
AlonzoTownsend, a carpenter in Connecticut; 
J. Wesley, our subject; James, who died at an 
early age; Wilbur, a resident of Lagrange; 
Eliza, who has never married; Benjamin, a 



farmer in Wappinger town; Isaac, who lives 
at Fishkill Plains; Phcebe, the wife of John 
Nolin, a farmer near Matteawan; Kate, who 
married Charles Dains, of Matteawan; and 
Eugene and Charles, who are not married. 

J. Wesley Van Tassell was born October 
12, 1845, aii'J was educated in his native town 
of Fishkill, attending first the district schools, 
and later the old academy at Fishkill. On 
completing his studies he engaged in farming, 
which he has always followed, speniJing about 
three years at his first place, in East Fishkill, 
and six upon another farm in Fishkill Plains, 
two in the town of Northeast, and afterward 
returning to his present farm in East Fishkill. 
On September 19, 1866, he married Carrie C. 
Haight, a descendant of the well-known fam- 
ily of that name. She is a native of Dutchess 
county, and was the youngest daughter of 
Henry Haight, a leading agriculturist of East 
Fishkill. They have had seven children, 
whose names with dates of birth are as follows: 
Cora, October 26, 1867, married C. M. Dol- 
son, a farmer in the town of Wappinger; Clin- 
ton W., July 15, 1869, the manager of a com- 
mission store in New York City; Milton J., 
June 9, 1874, a cashier in a restaurant, No. 1305 
Broadway, New York City; How^ard C, Octo- 
ber 26, 1875, a cashier in a restaurant, -No. 221 
Sixth avenue, New York City; Carrie Mae, 
September 11, 1879, at home; Orrin, April 28, 
1884, died July 24, of the same year; Wesley 
Augustus, November 5, 1888, at home. 

In addition to his agricultural interests Mr. 
Van Tassell carries on a fire-insurance busi- 
ness in Dutchess, Putnam and Westchester 
counties. He has been an able and energetic 
public official, and a prominent worker in the 
Republican party. Ever since he was twenty- 
one years of age Mr. Van Tassell has been 
closely identified with the politics of the 
county. He has been a delegate to every Re- 
publican county convention since that time, 
and has cast a vote at every election. He was 
elected assessor of East Fishkill in 1873, over 
Abram Adriance, for three years. While on a 
farm in Middleton, 1877-79, he investigated 
the iron ore interest of J. V. W. Brinckerhoff, 
of that town. In 1880 he was elected com- 
missioner of highways in the town of East 
Fishkill for three years. In the fall of 18S8 
he was elected sheriff of Dutchess county for 
three years, defeating Storm Emans by a ma- 
jority of 466. He was elected supervisor of 
the town of East Fishkill in 1S94, for two 



528 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPBICAL RECORD. 



years, and in the spring of 1896 he was re- 
elected for a similar term. He was appointed 
in 1886 assistant superintendent of the State 
Stove Works at Sing Sing, and held the posi- 
tion for two years. 

While sheriff of Dutchess Co., Mr. Van Tas- 
sell managed the two farms of A. A. Brush, and 
was proprietor of the flour, feed and grist mill 
at Hopewell. He has held school trusteeship 
in every town in which he has lived. In the 
spring of 1897 his name was frequently men- 
tioned as a candidate for sheriff on the Ivepub- 
lican ticket. 



PHILIP KLADY, who during the greater 
portion of his life was an esteemed citi- 
zen of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was 
born October 22, 1828, at Muehlhoffen, Rhein- 
Pfaltz, Bavaria, Germany, the son of Jacob 
and Lucetta (Alexander) Klady. His father 
was also born in that town, and was a member 
of one of its old families which came originally 
from France, and are descendants of Hugu- 
nots; his mother's family were also descendants 
from Huguenots. The name Klady originally 
was Kloedy. 

Our subject had one brother, Jacob Klady, 
and four sisters, Catherine (who married Jacob 
Strope), Elizabeth (who became Mrs. Philip 
Riedinger, of Poughkeepsie), Mary (who mar- 
ried Jacob Barth), and Eva (who married Paul 
Baur, of Cincinnati, Ohio). The family were 
Lutherans in their religious views, but became 
members of the Reformed Dutch Church. 
The father was a carriage and wagon manu- 
facturer by occupation. 

Philip Klady obtained his education in the 
common schools of his native land, and then 
learned the trade of cooper, at which he served 
an apprenticeship. In 1849 he came to the 
United States, his destination being Pough- 
keepsie, where he had two sisters and a 
brother living. He was soon employed by the 
Vassars, for whom he worked some years; he 
also spent a short time in Hudson, N. Y. Mr. 
Klady followed his trade as journeyman cooper 
until 1857, when he formed a partnership with 
Valentine Frank, in the brewing business, un- 
der the firm name of Frank & Klady, and in 
this business Mr. Klady was engaged until Oc- 
tober I, 1875, when he retired from the firm. 
During the continuance of this partnership a 
large business was built up, it becoming one of 



the most prosperous and substantial firms in 
the city. 

Mr. Klady was married, in 1857, to Mary- 
etta, daughter of William Keesler, one of the 
old and prominent citizens of Poughkeepsie, 
and of this union one child, George Robert, 
was born in 1867. 

Mr. Klady 's second marriage took place in 
the City of New York, June 10, 1875, when 
he was united with Miss Lena Alexander, a 
cultured and refined lady, daughter of George 
Alexander, whose family are also descendants 
of Huguenots; no children have been born of 
this marriage. The death of Mr. Klady oc- 
curred September 18, 1892, at Lahr, Baden, 
Germany, whither he had gone for his health, 
his remains being brought home for burial. 

For some years previous to his decease Mr. 
Klady had not been engaged inactive business, 
but spent his time in retirement at his pleasant 
home, and in traveling. He was much de- 
voted to his family and friends, finding his 
greatest enjoyment in their society. In busi- 
ness affairs he showed excellent judginent, and 
a resolute will that overcame all obstacles. 
Coming to this country a poor young man, he 
accomplished his purpose of becoming a suc- 
cessful financier, and during his active life he 
held an enviable position among his business 
associates as a man of integrity and upright 
life. His generosity and benevolence were 
well known, and his tender heart could never 
refuse assistance to those in need. Mr. Klady 
took great interest in all public matters, and 
was a loyal citizen of his adopted country. 
He belonged to the Royal Arcanum, and was 
an attendant of the First Reformed Church. 
His widow is yet a resident of Poughkeepsie, 
but spends her winters at Tarpon Springs, 
Florida. 



STEPHEN C. VAN WYCK, an agricult- 
urist of energy and ability, belongs to a 
family that long has been prominently con- 
nected with the interests of the town of East 
Fishkill, Dutchess county. His great-grand- 
father, Cornelius R. Van Wyck, was married 
March 2, 1775, to Ann Dur^'ea, by whom he 
had five children: C. R., Annie, Duryea, 
Stephen D. and Richard C. For his second wife 
he married Magdalene Montfort, and they also 
had a family of five children: Stephen D. and 
Peter M. (twins), Annie, Barbara, and Cor- 
nelius R. 




§t M^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



529 



Stephen D. Van Wyck, grandfather of our 
subject, was born in the town of Fishkill, 
March 3, 1795. He was a farmer, and in 
1 840 efficiently served as sheriff of Dutchess 
county. His death occurred June 3, 1S79. 
He was united in marriage with Hetty Purdy, 
a native of Fishkill Landing, and they located 
in the town of Fishkill, where they reared their 
family of six children: Cornelius S., the father 
of our subject; Francis P., who was a whole- 
sale dry-goods merchant of Chicago, and was 
the American minister to Turk's Island at the 
time of his death; Jane Ann, widow of David 
Heacock, at one time a glove manufacturer of 
Gloversville, N. Y. ; John P., who died when 
a young man; Helen M., deceased, unmarried; 
and Tunis B., a retired merchant of Chicago. 

Cornelius S. \'an Wyck, the father of our 
subject, born in Fishkill town, March 9, 1831, 
grew to manhood on a farm, and October 14, 
1846, married Phcebe Van Wyck, who was 
born in the town of Fishkill, March 9, 1823, 
the daughter of Richard C. Van Wyck, whose 
father was Cornelius R. Van Wyck, the pa- 
ternal great-grandfather of our subject. After 
their marriage they located upon the farm now 
occupied by Stephen C, who was the second 
in their family of four children, the others be- 
ing Robert ^l., born May 20, 1S48, and now 
a retired jeweler of Chicago; John Adrian, 
born May 23, 1852, and died February 16, 
1859; and Francis, born October 24, 1854, 
and at one time a merchant of Fishkill Plains, 
but now living retired. The father followed 
farming, but for ten years lived at Poughkeep- 
sie, while he was educating his sons, during 
which time he served as alderman and super- 
visor of the Si.xth ward. He was a Republic- 
an in politics, and both he and his wife were 
earnest members of the Reformed Dutch 
Church, while he served as deacon in the 
Church in Poughkeepsie. She passed away 
March 7, 1880. Cornelius S. \'an Wyck mar- 
ried, for his second wife, Helen Josephine Bar- 
den, of Earles, Yates county, in December, 1883. 
After his marriage he united with the Presby- 
terian Church in Balona, and was elected 
elder of the Church, and was elder at the time 
of his death. He was one of the building 
committees of the Memorial Church. He 
died June 18, 1S95, and was buried in the 
family plot at Hopewell, his widow surviving 
him. 

On June 22, 1850, in the town of Fishkill, 

was born Stephen C. Van Wyck, the subject 
34 



of this sketch, and in the schools of Pough- 
keepsie he acquired his education. On leaving; 
school he clerked for some time for a Mr. Van- 
Wyck. On October 23, 1872, our subject 
married Miss Libbie Underwood, a native of 
Poughkeepsie, and a-daughter of Capt. Charles 
Underwood, who was born in Peekskill, N. Y. , 
but has spent most of his life in Poughkeepsie, 
where he is now living retired. Mr. and Mrs. 
Van W\ck began their domestic life upon the 
farm, comprising 120 acres, which is still their 
home, and there they have reared their two 
children: Charles U., born June 3, 1874; and 
Robert M., born January 16, 1876, the elder 
of whom is now studying law. In 1879 Mr. 
Van Wyck erected his present beautiful resi- 
dence. His political support is unwaveringly 
given the Republican party, and both himself 
and wife are faithful members of the Reformed 
Dutch Church. 



JOEL N. BUDD. The subject of this no- 
tice is certainly entitled to be considered 

not only one of the enterprising farmers of 
the town of Hyde Park, Dutchess county, but 
one of its representative and honored citizens, 
and a man of more than ordinary ability. He 
was born in the town of Pleasant Valley, 
Dutchess county, August 10, 18 19, and is the 
son of James Budd, also a native of the county, 
born in the town of Fishkill, December 18, 
1781. 

Mr. Budd's paternal ancestors were of 
French descent. The e.xact date when the 
first of the name emigrated to America is un- 
known, but it was early in the Colonial history 
of the nation. John Budd, the grandfather of 
our subject, was born about 1730, and was an 
early settler in Dutchess county. He moved 
from the town of Fishkill to the town of Wash- 
ington, and later purchased the farm, in the 
town of Pleasant Valley, now owned by Mr. 
Van De Water. He married Miss Mary Mer- 
ritt, who was born September 19, 1741. The 
twelve children of John and Mary Budd were 
as follows: Gilbert, born December 25, 1758, 
settled in Columbia county, N. Y. ; Joseph, 
born November 14, 1760, died of yellow fever 
in New York City October 13, 1795; Mary, 
born January 24, 1763, married and settled in 
Canada; John, born December 28, 1766, set- 
tled in Kentucky, and there married; Abigail, 
born April 4, 1768, married Mr. Emmans, and 
settled in the town of Fishkill, Dutchess 



•530 



COMMEifORATTVE BIOORAPnWAL RECORD. 



county; Daniel, born June 27, 1770, left home 
May II, 1799. and settled near Rochester, 
N. Y. ; Elijah, born October 11, 1772, died 
January 28, 1796; Merritt, born March 3, 
1775, died June 6, 1795; Hannah, born April 
22, 1777, died June 6, 1802; Underhill, born 
October 17, 1779, settled in Greene county, 
,N. Y. ; James, father of our subject, born De- 
cember 18, 1 78 1, remained on the home farm, 
and Sarah, born February 13, 1783. John 
Budd, who was regarded as one of the suc- 
cessful farmers of Dutchess county, died on 
his farm in Pleasant Valley October i, 1813; 
his wife departed this life July 31, 1820. 

\\'hen about sixteen years old James Budd, 
the father of Joel N., accompanied his father 
to the town of Pleasant Valley, and soon after- 
ward assumed the active management of the 
farm. His education was mostly obtained at 
night schools, where he became a good mathe- 
matician, and by subsequent reading and study 
he became a well-informed man. His whole 
life was devoted to agricultural pursuits, and he 
added to the original farm until he had over 
208 acres of highly cultivated and productive 
land. He was married November 23, 1805, to 
Miss Eleanor Schryver, a daughter of John 
Schryver, and by her he had the following 
children: Mary, born September 30, 1806, 
married William Traver; John, born January 
26, 1808; Caroline, born February 20, 1812; 
Gilbert, born September 6, 181 3; Hannah, 
born June 23, 1815, wedded James Khymph; 
George, born August 6, 1817; Joel N. ; Joseph 
H., born January 13, 1822; Jane Ann, born 
November 23, 1825, married Charles N. Cole; 
Elizabeth, born September 28, 1826, married 
Oliver Stelle, of New Jersey; and Albert, born 
August 16, 1830. Aside from casting his bal- 
lot in support of the Whig party, the father 
took but little part in political affairs, though 
he was always willing to give his aid to any- 
thing for the good of the community, and was 
held in the highest regard by all. 

Joseph H. Budd, a brother of our subject, 
graduated from Williams College about 1844, 
and was the leader of his class in mathematics. 
After studying law in Poughkeepsie, N. Y., he 
went to Janesville, Wis., where he engaged in 
practice, and also became largely interested in 
the manufacture of agricultural implements; 
but during the panic of 1857 his business was 
ruined. Going to California, he began life 
anew, and after winning a case for his em- 
ployer he became quite prominent, and is now 



one of the foremost lawyers and leading Dem- 
ocrats of the State. He is now judge of the 
superior court of his district. His son John is 
a prominent lawyer of California; and James, 
another son, is the present governor of that 
State. 

Joel N. Budd entered the New Paltz Acad- 
emy, where he pursued his studies for two win- 
ters, thus acquiring a good practical education. 
He remained on the home farm, which, after 
the death of the father, in 1844, was divided 
between himself and his brother, Albert. 
There he resided until 1872 when he sold, and 
in the spring of 1876 purchased the farm which 
he now owns, to the cultivation and improve- 
ment of which he has since devoted his time 
and attention with good success. 

In 1850 Mr. Budd was married to Miss 
Elizabeth Du Bois, daughter of Peter K. Du- 
Bois, of the town of Pleasant \'alley, Dutchess 
county, and by her had the following children: 
Warren J., who died at the age of nineteen 
years; Bertha M. and Frederic Albert (twins), 
the latter of whom died in infancy; G. Gordon; 
Charlotte DuBois, who died at si.\ years of age; 
George N.; and Rosamond, wife of John Van- 
De Water. On February 22, 1888, Mr. 
Budd married Mrs. Mary Jane Van Wagner, 
daughter of Oliver Wilber. 

Mrs. Budd is a descendant in the seventh 
generation of one of the earliest New England 
settlers, William Wilber (as the name was 
then spelled;, who in 1630 came to America 
with his uncle, Samuel Wilber, from Doncas- 
ter, Yorkshire, England. They were Quakers, 
and, settling first at Boston, were driven out 
by religious persecutions. William Wilber 
settled at Portsmouth, R. I., in 1656, and died 
there in 17 10. He had a family of ten chil- 
dren, several of whom settled at Little Comp- 
ton, R. I., where they owned a large tract of 
land, some of which yet remains in the pos- 
session of descendants. The seventh child 
was Samuel Wilber, born in 1664; he married 
Mary Potter, and died in 1740; they had eleven 
children; the farm where they lived is still 
owned by descendants, and includes the burial 
ground where seven generations are at rest. 
William Wilber, son of Samuel and Mary (Pot- 
ter) Wilber, was born June 6, 1695, and died 
in 1774; in 17 17 he married Esther Burgess, 
of Little Compton. Their children were 
Thomas, born June i, 1718; Mary, born in 
1720; Esther and Lydia (twins); William; 
Daniel; Samuel and Charles. Samuel married 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



531 



Elizabeth Shaw, and died in May, 1791. The 
children of Samuel and Elizabeth Wilber were: 
Sylvanus, born August 18, 1749; Clark, born 
May 3, 1752; Anthony, born July 24, 1759. 

Sylvanus Wilber, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Budd, was married January 20, 1770, to Syl- 
via, daughter of James Chase, born in 1749. 
The twelve children of Sylvanus and Sylvia 
Wilberwere: Huldah, born June, 1771; Eliza- 
beth, born July 16, 1772; James, born Sep- 
tember 5, 1774; Rhoda, born September 22, 
1775; Sarah, born March 16, 1778; Abner, 
born July 16, 1779; Elsie, born November i, 
1780; Sylvanus, born August i, 1783; Clark, 
born August i, 1786; and Cynthia, born De- 
cember 29, 1788. All these children were 
born at Little Compton, R. I., except Samuel, 
the youngest, who was born in the town of 
Hyde Park, Dutchess Co., N. Y. Oliver and 
Samuel were soldiers in the war of 181 2, and 
Samuel died at Harlem. \ 

In May, 1793, Sylvanus Wilber sold to his' 
brother Anthony his farm in Little Compton, 
R. I., and with his wife and eleven children, 
and the families of Philip Irish and Isaac 
Wood, came to Hyde Park, Dutchess county, 
settling on a farm which his grandchildren now 
own. It was from a point in Sakonnet rivef 
that the party of Rhode Islanders embarked oii 
a sloop and made the journey by way of the 
sound to New York, thence up the Hudson 
river to the landing at Hyde Park. 

Oliver Wilber, the father of Mrs. Budd, 
was a corporal in the American army during 
the war of 1812. On January 15, 1818, he 
married Maria Hoffman, who was born March 
18, 1798. He died July 26, 1869, his wife 
on December 26, 1887. Eleven children were 
born to them, namely: (i) Evas V., born 
February 20, 18 19, died January 10, 1829; 
(2) Benjamin V., born July 26, 1821, died 
July 20, 1828; (3) Catherine H., born Sep- 
tember 20, 1823, diefl July 27, 1828; (4) Syl- 
via Ann, born April 15, 1825, died March 15, 
1828; (5) Stephen Pettit, born March 18, 
1827, died April 27, 1856; (6) Emeline E., 
born August 2, 1829, married William A. Lat- 
tin, a farmer, February 9, 1848; they had two 
children: Henry W. (a wagonmaker, who 
married Mary Crapser, and has two children — 
Emma and Harriet), and Ardell (who married 
Augustus Cramer, who died in 1889; they had 
two children — Ethel and William Augustus); 
(7) John A., a farmer, born April 6, 1831, 
married Emily Dunn, and has one child — Lena; 



(8) Mary Jane, born July 27, 1S33; (9) Mor- 
gan L. , a butcher, born October 30, 1835, 
married Josephine Ackert; (10) Henry K., a 
farmer, born December, 1837; and (11) 
Amelia K., born October 5, 1840, married 
George H. McLean, March 24, 1865, and 
died July 13, 1873. Mrs. Budd, the eighth 
child of Oliver and Maria Wilber, was first 
married January 15, 185 1, to Evert A. Van- 
Wagner, a farmer, who died October 30, 1884. 
Their five children are: (i) Amelia C, who 
married Silas W. Downing, and has four chil-* 
dren — Harry S., Francis Vivian, Bertha M. 
and Arthur R. ; (2) Theron C, a farmer, who 
married Louise Lattin, and has two children — 
Libbie and Clayton ; (3) Oliver Wilber, a 
farmer; (4) Christable; and (5) George M. , a 
farmer, who married Ernestine E. Devine, 
and has two children — Inez and Wilber. 

Mr. Budd is a clear-headed, intelligent 
man, with sound, common-sense views of life 
and its duties. He is active in well-doing, sober, 
industrious, and of good business habits; in 
fact, possessing in an eminent degree all the 
qualities that go to make up a good citizen 
and honorable man. In politics he was 
formerly a Republican, but is now independ- 
ent, usually supporting the Democratic party. 
He attends the Baptist Church. 



MULFORD CONKLIN. Amongthe pros- 
perous farmers of the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county, the record of whose lives 
fills an important place in this volume, it gives 
us pleasure to commemorate the name of the 
gentleman here presented. One of the native- 
born, energetic, progressive citizens of the 
community, actively identified with all its in- 
terests, he was born in the town of Northeast, 
Dutchess county, December i, 18 19. 

Nathan Conklin, his grandfather, was born 
in Amagansett, Suffolk Co., N. Y. , April 20, 
1758, and in Long Island was married, in Sep- 
tember, 1 78 1, to Amy Mulford, who was born 
July 7, 1759. Their family included the fol- 
lowing children: Nehemiah, born January 20, 
1783; Jeremiah M., born February 23, 1785; 
Nathan, born November 20, 1787; John H., 
the father of our subject; Henry, born April 
16, 1793, married May 20, 1818, to Mary Ann 
Hewett; Betsy, born November 9, 1795, died 
April 9, 1800; Phebe, born October 8, 1798, 
married September 9, 1823, to James Bowne; 
and Eliza, born August 29, 1802, married Au- 



532 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOJiAPHWAL RECORD. 



gust 15, 1S20, to Stephen B. Trowbridge. All 
of these are now deceased. The grandfather 
served in the Revolutionary war, and at its 
close removed to Dutchess county, where he 
purchased a farm in the town of Northeast. 
He made the journey from Long Island on 
horseback, with his wife on the pillion behind 
him, and they came by way of an Indian trail, 
as few roads had been laid out at that time. 
Upon his farm here he died April 23, 1827. 
He was known to every one by the title of 
•" Major." 

John Herriman Conklin, the father of our 
subject, was born in the town of Northeast, 
July 27, 1790, and was educated in the public 
schools near his home, where he remained 
until his marriage. On December 24, 18 18, 
he wedded Miss Eliza Hunting, who was born 
January 25, 1800, and died October 12, 1863. 
They became the parents of five children: J. 
Mulford, subject of this review; Isaac H., born 
July 29, 1822, died in 1890; Elizabeth, born 
August 12, 1824, married Israel R. Wilson, of 
the town of Northeast; John N., born August 
12, 1826, is a resident of the same town; and 
Nathan, born March 13, 1829, is now deceased. 
The father was one of the most prominent citi- 
zens of Northeast, where he successfully fol- 
lowed farming through much of his life. Po- 
litically he affiliated with the Democratic party, 
and held a number of local offices, including 
that of supervisor, which he held for two 
terms. Like his father, he went to the de- 
fense of his country, serving in the war of 
1812, and participated in the engagement at 
Harlem Heights. He was a conscientious, 
earnest Christian, a member of the Presby- 
terian Church, in which he served as elder, 
and faithfully followed its teachings until called 
from life, September 14, 1870. 

J. Mulford Conklin, whose name introduces 
this record, was supplied with e.xcellent edu- 
cational advantages during his boyhood and 
youth. After attending the district schools 
for a time, he entered a private school at 
Poughkcepsie, later was a student in College 
Hill Seminary under Charles Bartlett; attended 
the Amenia .Academy, and completed his edu- 
cation at Warren, Conn. On laying aside his 
text books he assisted in the labor of the home 
farm until he had reached his majority, when 
he came to the town of Stanford, Dutchess 
county, and located upon his present farm, 
where he has since resided. 

In Stanford town, September 12, 1844, 



Mr. Conklin was married to Miss Mary E. 
Husted, who was born in that town. April 4, 
1826, a daughter of James and Elizabeth 
(Harris) Husted. She received her education 
at the schools of Poughkeepsie. For over 
half a century Mr. and Mrs. Conklin have now 
traveled together as man and wife, and are 
nearing the last milestone that marks the end 
of life's journey; but they are surrounded by 
many loving kindred and friends, and can look 
back upon their honorable and useful lives, 
knowing that they have accomplished much 
good in the world. Three children were born 
to them: Mary Elizabeth (deceased), who was 
the wife of Henry C. Thompson, by whom 
she had two sons — Mulford C. and Edward P. ; 
Phcebe E., the wife of Frank Dibble, by whom 
she has a daughter, Cora M.; and Ella M., the 
wife of Joseph Brace, of West Hartford, Conn. 
Mr. Conklin is one of the leading representa- 
tive men of the town of Stanford, one who 
merits and receives the warmest confidence 
and esteem of his fellow citizens, and his pub- 
lic spiritedness and charity are proverbial. In 
the exercise of his elective franchise he invar- 
iably supports the candidates offered by the 
Democratic party, has himself served as super- 
visor for two terms, and also been excise com- 
missioner. He and Mrs. Conklin, their chil- 
dren and grandchildren, are members of the 
Presbyterian Church of Pine Plains. 



TDE WITT VAN WYCK, one of the 
wealthiest and most prominent agricult- 
urists in the town of Wappinger, Dutchess 
county, is a descendant of an old Holland 
family whose representatives have held an in- 
fluential place in that locality for nearly two 
hundred years. The head of this branch of 
the family was one of five brothers who came 
to America between 1690 and 1700, his ances- 
tor settling in Fishkill after a short stay on 
Long Island. In an old Bible printed in Hol- 
land in 1690, we find the following record 
in Dutch: "In the year 1668, I, Theodore 
Van Wyck, was born September 17. In the 
year 1675, the 3d of February, Margerita Abra- 
hams was born. In the year 1693, the 29th 
of .'\pril, we were married." The children of 
this marriage were Cornelius, born April 21, 

1694; Abraham, November 7, 1695; Theo- 
dorus, October 15, 1697; Catrina, July 15, 

1699; Susanna, March i, 1701; Berent, March 
4, 1703; and Altia, May 19, 1706. The next 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



533 



inscription is in English, as follows: " In the 
\ear 1717, I, Cornelius Van W'j'ck, married 
my wife, Hannah Thorn. The age of my wife, 
she is born in the year 1 700, February the 1 7th. 
The following children were born: Phcebe, 
December 5, 1717, and Theodorus, May 4, 
1720. In the year 1741, my wife died, the 
27th of August. In the year 1753 my grand- 
father Van Wyck died, December 4th; 1761, 
June 28th, my father Cornelius died; 1771, 
August 23d, the wife of Cornelius, who was 
Hannah, died." This is the family record of 
Richard Van Wyck, who was born November 
25, 1730, and they were married May 12, 
1749. Four children were born of this union: 
Cornelius, January6, 1753: Catherine, Novem- 
ber 23, 1756,. the wife of Henry Boerman; 
Theodorus, November 18, 1761, who married 
Hannah Griffith; and Hannah, June 30, 1764. 
The mother of this family died August 16. 
1807, and the father three years later, April 
5, 1810. 

Cornelius Van Wyck, our subject's grand- 
father, a farmer by occupation, was married 
March 2, 1777, to his first wife, Anna Duryee, 
who was born October 6, 1758. She died 
April 9, 1 79 1, and for his second wife he mar- 
ried Magdalene Monfort. His death occurred 
October i, 1820, the father of eight children, 
whose names with dates of birth are as fol- 
lows: Of the children of the first marriage — 
Anna, December 31, 1777, married Turnus 
Brinkerhoff, of Poughkeepsie; Stephen, March 
27, 1 78 1, was a farmer in East Fishkill; Rich- 
ard, June II, 1783, was a farmer and miller in 
the same town; Abraham D., April 11, 1785, 
is mentioned below; and Theodorus, July 15, 
1787, was a physician at Bloomingburg, N. Y. 
The four children of the second marriage were: 
Peter and Stephen (twins), March 3, 1795; 
Anna, August 25, 1797; and Barbara, Febru- 
ary I 5, 1800. 

Abraham D. Van Wyck, our subject's 
father, grew to manhood on the old home- 
stead, and January 27, iSio, was married to 
Phoebe Boerum, who was born May 8, 1790, a 
descendant of an old Dutch family. He then 
settled upon a farm in Fishkill, where he be- 
came prominent in local affairs. He was a 
strong believer in the policy of Prohibition, but 
always voted the Republican ticket on national 
issues in lateryears, having been a Whig previous 
to the war. His wife died July 17, 1851, and 
he survived her until 1866. They were leading 
members of the Reformed Dutch Church, and 



highly esteemed in the vicinity. The}- reared 
a family of five children, whose names with 
dates of birth are as follows: Jane A., March 
10, 1 8 12 (died September 24, 1832), married 
John Adriance, a farmer of Fishkill, who died 
in Chicago; Elizabeth, November 4, 181 5, 
married R. S. \'an ^^'yck, a farmer and miller 
in the town of East Fishkill; T. DeWitt, July 
28,- 1822; Duryee, February 27, 1827, is a 
farmer in the town of \\'appinger; and Cort- 
land, March 8, 1829, is now living in retire- 
ment at Dunkirk. 

The subject of our sketch spent his boy- 
hood at the old home farm, and attended the 
district school in the neighboring village of 
Fishkill Plains, until the age of eighteen, when 
he engaged in farming. On February 28, 
1855, he was united in marriage with Miss 
Catherine Luyster, who was born December 
10, 1829, in what was then known as the town 
of Fishkill. Her father, Matthew Luyster, 
who was a well-known farmer there, was of 
Dutch stock, and a descendant of one of the 
oldest families in the county. Four children 
have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Van Wyck: 
Abraham D., February 14, 1856; Mathew, 
May 15, 1858; Estella, March 20, 1866; and 
Charles H., October 9, 1870. The daughter 
is at home, and the sons have all settled upon 
farms, one in the town of Lagrange, and three 
in the town of Wappinger, comprising in all 
about 500 acres devoted to general farming. 
In politics Mr. Van Wyck is a steadfast Re- 
publican, and he is always ready to encourage 
any progressive movement, being especially in- 
terested in the temperance cause. He and his 
wife are prominent members of the Reformed 
Dutch Church; he is an elder in the Hopewell 
Church, and for sixteen years has been a trus- 
tee of Fishkill Plains Chapel. 



JACOB S. ACKERMAN, a prominent and 
influential resident of Low Point, Dutchess 
county, is a member of a family that has 
been identified with that locality since Colonial 
times. His ancestors were from Holland 
originally, and his great-grandfather, John 
Ackerman, was the first to locate in Dutchess 
county. His son, Peter, who was born in 
1779, was married March 15, 1801, to Eliza- 
beth B. Lent, also a native of Dutchess coun- 
ty. They located upon a farm in the town of 
Fishkill, where they reared a family of ten 
children, (i) John, a farmer, in Dutchess 



534 



COMMEJfORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



county, married Ann Terboss. (2) Dorothy 
never married. (3) Abram L. was the foun- 
der of the Matteawan Cotton Factory, and 
with his brother, David L. , was the builder of 
the first locomotive for the N. Y. C. R. R. ; 
he married Miss Hagerman, and his later years 
were spent in Pennsylvania. (4) P.^ter S. 
was a farmer, and married Deborah Vail. 
(5) Margaret A. married Jacob Sebring, a 
farmer. (6) David L., a farmer and machin- 
ist by occupation, married Cynthia Robinson. 
(7) Jasper C, a farmer, married Susan Col- 
lins. (8) Eliphalet P., a Methodist minister, 
married Julia B. Hedden. (9) Samuel B. is 
mentioned below, fio) Sylvester B. never 
married. 

Samuel B. Ackerman, our subject's father, 
was born in what is now Wappingers Falls, 
in 1820, and was reared upon the old home- 
stead. His wife was Delia Brinkerhoff, a 
native of the town of Fishkill, born September 
I, 1822. Her father, John W. Brinkerhoff, 
was a well-known farmer there, and later be- 
came a merchant in Fishkill. After their 
marriage our subject's parents settled upon a 
farm near Newburg, Orange county, where 
they reared a family of three children, of 
whom our subject was the eldest. Edward 
F. , born June 7, 1846, was a farmer and lead- 
ing Republican in Pleasant Valley, Dutchess 
county, and died there April 20, 1894. Fred 
E., born June 24, 1856, is a prominent lawyer 
in Poughkeepsie. Our subject's father was a 
highly-respected citizen, a Republican in poli- 
tics, and he followed farming all his life. He 
died in 1889, and two years later his wife fol- 
lowed him to the grave. 

Jacob S. Ackerman was born Nov. 11, 
1843, in Newburg, and at the age of four 
years he was taken to Low Point where he 
grew to manhood, receiving his education 
there with the exception of a short time in 
the schools of Schodack. He learned the art 
of photography on leaving school, but followed 
it only a year and a half, when he began to 
learn the house-painter's trade. This he 
found uncongenial also, and he then returned 
to the farm, and has since given his time to 
the agricultural pursuits. He was married 
October 9, 1867, to Sarah C. Eshleman, a 
daughter of Eurich Eshleman, a well-known 
baker of Poughkeepsie. Three children were 
born of this marriage, all of whom reside at 
Low Point. Frank married Miss Eva Ward; 
Charles married Miss Bertha Leubert; and 



Kittie is at home. Mr. Ackerman has a small 
estate on the Hudson river, his pleasant resi- 
dence commanding a charming view. He 
also owns several houses in the village. He 
takes an influential part in the local work of 
the Republican organization, and has held the 
offices of pathmaster and excise commissioner. 



HENRY CH.ATTERTON. For more than 
half a century the subject of this sketch 
was engaged in agricultural pursuits upon his 
late farm near the village of Moores Mill, 
Dutchess county, and he was one of the oldest 
and most highly respected residents of that 
locality. He was born January 4, 1818, in La- 
grange, Dutchess Co., N. Y. , and spent his 
boyhood there, receiving his education in the 
district schools near his home. On arriving 
at manhood's estate he engaged in farmmg, 
and always followed that calling, locating at 
his late home in 1844. 

His first wife, who was Miss Mary Ann 
Haviland, of Unionvale, died, leaving no chil- 
dren, and for his second wife he was married, 
in Unionvale, to Miss Helen Miller (now de- 
ceased). One daughter, Mary Ann, was born 
of this marriage, but she did not long brighten 
his home, passing away at the age of four and 
one-half years. Mr. Chatterton always "took 
an intelligent interest in public questions. In 
early life he was an adherent of the Whig 
party, later espousing Republican principles. 
He died December 21, 1S96. 

Underbill Chatterton, father of our sub- 
ject, was a native of Dartmouth, Mass., whence 
he was brought by David S. Dean to Dutchess 
county when ten years old, and afterward 
made his home there. By occupation he was 
a farmer and tanner, and his life was spent 
mainly in Lagrange. In religious faith he was 
a Quaker. He was married in Lagrange to 
Miss Elizabeth Gidley, and they reared a fam- 
ily of thirteen children, all now deceased. 



DURYEE VAN WYCK, one of the most 
intelligent and prosperous agriculturists 
in the town of Wappinger, Dutchess county, 
was born February 27, 1827, upon the estate 
which he now owns. His ancestors came from 
Holland about the year 1700, and were among 
the early settlers of that locality, and the family 
has held a prominent place there for several 
generations, our subject's brother, T. DeWitt 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHIGAL RECORD. 



535 



Van Wyck, of the town of Wappinger, being 
among its representatives. 

The subject of our sektch received an ex- 
cellent education for the time, supplementing 
the course at the Fishkill district school by 
an attendance at the schools at Rhinebeck, 
New Paltz, and Middletown Point, N. J., spend- 
ing a year at each, and he afterward studied 
for six months in the Polytechnic College near 
Red Bank, N. J., which was founded by O. 
S. Fowler, the phrenologist. Onleavingschool, 
Mr. Van Wyck returned to the old homestead, 
and remained until 1 86 1 , when he bought a farm 
near Hopewell, where he lived about thirteen 
years. He then returned to his present home, 
where he cultivates between 250 and 300 acres. 
The land is unusually level, and lies near Sprout 
creek. 

In June, 1863, Mr. Van Wyck married Caro- 
line D. Stockholm, adescendant of an old Hol- 
land family, and a daughter of Andrew Stock- 
holm, a native of Dutchess county, and a promi- 
nent agriculturist of near Hopewell. The only 
daughter. Miss Ella Van Wyck, is at home 
with her parents. In politics our subject is an 
ardent Republican in principle, but he has 
never been a seeker after political honors. 



WILLIAM C. HOLMES, a prosperous 
farmer of Dutchess county, was born 

near Washington Hollow, in the town of Pleas- 
ant \'alley, December 21, 18 18. There he 
was reared and received his education. 

At the age of twenty-five Mr. Holmes was 
married, on March 6, 1844, to Miss Sarah C. 
\'an De Water, who was born in the town of 
Hyde Park, April i, 18 18, and whose death 
occurred May 31, 1892. Our subject bought 
his grandfather's farm in 1843, lived on it for 
seven years and then traded it for another farm 
in Tompkins county, where he lived seven 
years. He then rented a farm in Hyde Park 
for a year, and one in Bloomingdale, Pleasant 
Valley, for two years. He next went to live 
on the farm with his father, and remained there 
until the latter's death, when he bought the 
homestead. After seven years' residence on 
the place, he traded it for other property. In 
1885 he moved to the town of Lagrange. His 
children were: Phoebe Elizabeth, born August 
30, 1845, married December 16, 1864, to Or- 
lando E. Gazely; William V., born September 
18, 1847, married Miss Emma E. Ayres De- 
cember 25, 1S69; Lavina Adelaide, born Octo- 



ber I, 1849, became the wife of C. W. Stout- 
enburg, December 2, 1874; Florence Augusta, 
born March 5, 1852, married April 14, 1875, 
to John Welch; Henrietta, born February 22, 
1855, married William B. Merritt February 
27, 1884; Joel O., born July 7, 1862, married 
September 23, 1884, to Miss Emma F. White, 
who died April 10, 1891. Our subject is a 
stanch Democrat in politics, but has always 
refused to accept public office. 

Wheeler C. Holmes, father of our subject, 
was a native of the town of Pleasant Valley, 
where he spent his boyhood, attending the 
public school. He married Phcebe, daughter 
of William Allen, and moved to a farm about 
two miles from the paternal homestead, where 
he lived for over fifty years and reared the fol- 
lowing children: Allen, Nathaniel, Phcebe 
Maria, and Joel O., all deceased, and William 
C. , our subject. Mr. Holmes was again mar- 
ried, his second wife being Miss Beisy Craw- 
ford. Of their children only one is living, 
Isaac, who is in Colorado. Mr. Holmes was 
a Democrat, and a member of the Presbyte- 
rian Church. Both the parents and the step- 
mother of our subject died in Pleasant Valley. 

William Holmes, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, came of Scotch ancestors. He settled in 
Pleasant Valley before the Revolutionary war, 
being one of the first pioneers. He married 
Miss Phoebe Cromwell, who was of Holland 
descent, and they had the following children: 
Nathaniel, Joseph, Isaac, Wheeler, Joshua. 
Mr. Holmes was a soldier in the Revolution- 
ary war, and lived to the ripe old age of nine- 
ty years. 



JOHN B. FREDRICK, an enterprising and 
successful business man of Dover Plains, 
~ Dutchess county, and the proprietor of a 
first-class meat market there, was born in 1856, 
in the town of Lloyd, Ulster county. He was 
educated in the public schools, and on enter- 
ing business life learned the butcher's trade 
with J. H. Brown. After working at the 
trade some time for different parties, he 
moved to Dover Plains, in 1S86, and opened 
his present fine establishment. The firm was 
at first known as Shelly & Fredrick, and then 
Mr. Fredrick conducted the business alone for 
a time. Later the firm became Fredrick & 
Boyce, and then Fredrick & Fox, but our sub- 
ject is at present the sole owner. He is a 
public-spirited citizen, but has never been de- 



536 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



sirous of political office, although at one time 
he served as excise commissioner. In 1881 he 
married Miss Emma J. Terwilliger, and their 
home has been blessed with eight children, of 
whom all but two are living. The names, with 
dates of birth, are: Herbert J., 1882; Lilly 
M., 1883; Edith, 1884; Bessie, 1885 (died in 
infanc}): Clarence, 1887; Mabel, 1888; Arthur 
(deceased), 1S91, and Clayton, 1895. 

Mr. Fredrick is of the fifth generation in 
direct descent from Peter Fredrick, a native of 
Holland, and a miller by trade, who came to 
this country at an early date and settled in 
New Jersey. His son Peter, our subject's 
great-grandfather, was born and educated in 
New Jersey, but he and two brothers left home 
and settled in Ulster county, where he en- 
gaged in farming. He married, and reared a 
famil\- of seven children: Jacob; William; 
Catherine, who married Mr. Decker; Lucy, 
the wife of Louis Palmater; Hannah, who 
married John Banker, and two whose names 
are not known. William Fredrick, our subject's 
grandfather, was born in Ulster county, and 
after acquiring a common-school education, 
also engaged in agriculture. His wife was 
Miss Devoe, and they had two children: Dor- 
cas, the wife of Abram Tompkins; and George, 
our subject's father, who was born in 1836, in 
the town of Lloyd. Ulster county, and always 
lived in that neighborhood, receiving his edu- 
cation there, and spending his later years as a 
farmer. He married Miss Emerett Johnson, 
daughter of Andrew Johnson, a well-to-do 
farmer of Ulster county, and had si.x children, 
of whom our subject is the eldest. The two 
youngest children — W'illiain, and one whose 
name is not given — died in infancy, and the 
others are: Maria, who married Warren 
Palmer; Evelena, the wife of Joseph O'Don- 
nel; and George W., who is not married. 

Mrs. Fredrick's ancestors were early set- 
tlers in Ulster county, and her grandfather, 
Cornelius Terwilliger, was a native of New 
Paltz, and a leading farmer there. He mar- 
ried Miss Wicklow. and had five children, of 
whom Ira Terwilliger, Mrs. Fredrick's father, 
was the youngest. Hiram died at the age of 
twenty; Elijah married Catherine Freer; Elmira 
married David Dunn, and Sarah was the wife 
of Anthony Dunn. Ira Terwilliger was born 
in New Paltz in 1826, and passed his entire 
life there, following the carpenter's trade. His 
partner in life was Miss Harriet \'an Noy, 
daughter of Andrew J. Van Noy, a well-known 



wagon-maker of the town of Lloyd, Ulster 
county, and Hester Johnston, his wife. Mrs. 
Fredrick was the oldest of five children — the 
others being Annie, the wife of Wallace Phil- 
lips; Andrew, who married Alice Smith; 
George, who is not married; and Carrie, who 
died at the age of twenty-one years. 



HENRY LIVINGSTON CAMPBELL (de- 
ceased), in his day an honored and wor- 
thy citizen of the town of Unio'nvale, Dutchess 
county, was born March 23, 1829, in the town 
of Pawling, in the same county. He was a 
grandson of Archibald Campbell, who followed 
farming and merchandising throughout life. 
He married Miss Elizabeth Mitchell, of Pough- 
keepsie, Dutchess county, and they became the 
parents of ten children, as follows: ( i) Cap- 
tain Archibald married Miss Samantha Sher- 
man. (2 1 Mary, born in Pawling, wedded 
Benjamin Hurd, and they had six children — 
Harriet E., who married Leonard Hall; Irving, 
who married Miss Howard; William T. ; Mrs. 
Mary J. Brill; Stacia, who married Jerome 
Dodge; and Julia. (3) Harriet Louise mar- 
ried Dr. Fowler, and they had one son — Archi- 
bald, who also became a physician; after the 
death of her first husband she married Rev. 
John Pierpont, the paternal grandfather of 
John Pierpont Morgan, the great railroad mag- 
nate. (4) Stacia married Cushen Green. (5) 
Jane became the wife of Rev. Dr. Foss, father 
of Archibald Campbell Foss, and Cyrus Foss, 
Methodist Episcopal Bishops. (6) Catherine 
married Haxton \'an Deburg. (7) Duncan was 
the father of our subject. (8) Sarah married a 
Mr. Merrick. (9) Thomas Clement married 
Cordelia Noxon; he was district attorney of 
Poughkeepsie some time, but now a prominent 
lawyer of New York; (10) Eliza married Mr. 
Calhoun. 

Duncan Campbell was born and educated 
in the town of Pawling, and also at Pough- 
keepsie Academy, and engaged in farming in 
Pawling, becoming quite prominent in business 
affairs. He married Amanda Ferris, and five 
children graced their union: Amanda Ferris; 
Henry Livingston: Priscilla; Harriet Louise, 
who died when young; and Duncan, who died 
in infancy. 

Henry Livingston Campbell was educated 
at Pawling and Amenia. As a lifework he 
took up the occupation of farming, in which 
he was successful. In public affairs he took 




HEHRY L. CAMPBELL. 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



537 



an active and leading part, and by his fellow 
citizens was called upon to fill such offices as 
supervisor, justice of the peace, and others of 
equal honor and trust, the duties of which he 
discharged in an able manner. He married 
Miss Emeline C. Collins, and five children 
were born to them, as follows: (i) Duncan 
wa^ educated at Helmuth College, London, 
Ontario, Canada, and at the Bisbee Military 
School, Poughkeepsie, N. Y., graduating with 
the highest honors, in 1874; he is now en- 
gaged in operating the home farm, also the 
father's farm in Pawling. (2) Ada Ferris 
Campbell was educated at Linden Hall, 
Poughkeepsie, and Helmuth College; she mar- 
ried I. Reynolds Adriance, a manufacturer of 
Poughkeepsie, by whom she has two children 
— Marion C. and John P. (3) Elizabeth Bor- 
den Campbell was educated at Linden Hall, 
Poughkeepsie; she is now the wife of Albert 
Adriance Simpson, superintendent of the Buck- 
eye Binder Department of the Adriance Piatt 
& Co., manufacturers of mowers, reapers and 
binders, of Poughkeepsie, by whom she has one 
son — Albert Adriance. (4) George Collins 
died in infancy. ( 5) Harry Borden died at the 
age of four years. 

Hezekiah Collins, the paternal great-grand- 
father of Mrs. Campbell, was the son of Heze- 
kiah Collins, %vho was the son of Humphrey 
Collins. Hezekiah was the father of eight 
children: Hezekiah, Joseph, Solomon, Joshua, 
Samuel, Jabez, Nathan and Mary. The last 
named Hezekiah Collins was the grandfather 
of Mrs. Campbell. He was born December 
I, 1739, and in 1765 married Miss Rhoda 
Ricketson, whose birth occurred August 8, 
1748. Their family included thirteen children: 
Catherine, born in 1767, married Zachariah 
Flagler; Meredith, born in 1768, married Gen. 
Barker; Mary, born in 1770, married David 
Arnold; Lydia, born in 1772, married Martin 
Doughty; Elizabeth, born in 1774, married 
a Mr. Manney. of Poughkeepsie; Phcebe, born 
in 1776, married Jacob Doughty; Rhoda, born 
in 1777, married Morton De la Vergne; Ricket- 
son, born in 1779, married Elizabeth Robin- 
son; Martha, born in 1781, married Gurline 
Ackerman; Ann, born in 1784, married Dr. 
Burrows; Gilbert, born in 1786, married Miss 
Susan Bogart; George, born in 1788, was the 
father of Mrs. Campbell; and Lancelot Wen- 
del, born in 1792, never married. 

George Collins, the father of Mrs. Camp- 
bell, was born in the town of Unionvale, at- 



tended the schools of that locality, and there 
engaged in farming throughout life. He mar- 
ried Miss Elizabeth Borden, by whom he had 
three children — Phebe (i) who died in infancy; 
Phebe (2) who married (first) Isaac Ackerman, 
by whom she had three children — Emma, 
George C. and Jacob H. — and after his death 
wedded ^^'illis Case, by whom she had 
two children — Oscar and Olive A.; and 
Emeline C, who was born in Unionvale 
April 22, 1835; she was educated in Pough- 
keepsie and New York City, and, as already 
related, married Henry Livingston Camp- 
bell, the subject proper of this review. She 
is a most estimable lady, whose circle of 
friends is only limited by the circle of her ac- 
quaintances. The Collins family crest is two 
doves and an olive branch, emblems of love 
and peace*. 

Perry Borden, Mrs. 
grandfather, was a son 
Borden; Perry married 
nephew, Simeon Borden, was at one time a 
member of the Massachusetts Legislature. In 
1830, Simeon Borden devised and constructed 
for the State of Massachusetts an apparatus 
for measuring the base line of the trigono- 
metrical survey of that State, which at that 
time was the most accurate and convenient in- 
strument of the kind e.xtant. Mr. Borden as- 
sisted in the measurement of the base, and in 
the subsequent triangulation. In 1S34 he took 
charge of the work and completed it in 1841. 
It was the first geodetic survey ever completed 
in this country, and its precision has since 
been proved by the coast survey. 



Campbell's maternal 
of Samuel and Peace 
Phcebe Sisson. His 



JACKSON GIDDINGS, a leading citizen of 
the town of Dover, Dutchess county, who 
throughout his active business career fol- 
lowed wagon making, is descended from a 
family that for many years made their home 
in Connecticut. 

At Chestnut Sand, in that State, his grand- 
father, William Giddings, was born, reared 
and educated. He was a prosperous tiller of 
the soil, and during the old training days 
served as captain in the militia. By his mar- 
riage with Miss Armida Noble he had eleven 
children: (i) George married Phcebe Hunger- 
ford, and two children were born to them — 
Orissa, who married Nelson Hoag; and Susan, 
who married Edwin Hungerford. (2) William 
. was married, and had two children. (3* David 



538 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



married Betsy Salmon, and had two children 
— Ammi, who married Augusta Page; and 
David B., who married Hannah Beecher. (4) 
Noble remained single. (5) Bueil was the 
father of our subject. (6) Daniel, who was 
born in Connecticut, married Betsy Gorman, 
and has three children — Ralph; Jay; and Pau- 
line, who died at the age of sixteen years. 
(7) Sarah married Bennett Picket, and had 
five children — Noble, who married Laura Gid- 
dings; William, who married a Miss Stewart; 
Daniel; Eunice, who married David Strong; 
and Bueli, who now lives at Kockford, 111., 
and is nearly eighty-six years of age. (8) Dor- 
cas married William Leach. (9) Lucinda 
married Abraham Seaman, and had seven 
children — Hannah, who married Joshua Mor- 
gan; Eliza, who married Timothy Holloway; 
David, who married Malissa Howarfl, and was 
elected sheriff of Dutchess county in the early 
forties; Nancy, who married Archibald Wing; 
Polly, who married Benjamin Soule, and they 
settled in Kent, Litchfield Co., Conn, (they 
had three children — John, Adaline and Sea- 
man; in 1835 they removed to Chemung coun- 
ty, N. Y. ; the youngest son. Seaman, now 
lives in Michigan); and Harvey and Permelia, 
who remained single. (10) Ann became the 
wife of John Seeley, and has four children- — 
Franklin, who never married; Morgan, who 
married Minnie Page; Abel became a merchant, 
and enlisting as a soldier during the Rebellion 
died in the service; and Charlotte, (in Lydia 
married Samuel Giddings, and has seven chil- 
dren — Rebecca, who married Hiram Giddings; 
Sallie A., who never married; Dorcas, who 
married William Turner; Alfred, who married 
Sophia Picket; Henry, who married a Miss 
Leach; Ann, who remained single; and Caro- 
line, who married David Fuller. 

Buell Giddings, the father of our subject, 
was born September 20, 1781, in the town of 
Sherman, Fairfield Co., Conn., and at his na- 
tive place acciuired his education in the com- 
mon schools. . On leaving the school room he 
learned the wagon maker's trade, at which he 
worked the greater part of his life. On com- 
ing to the town of Dover, Dutchess county, he 
established business at Webatuck. In early 
life he was connected with the Whig party, 
and on the organization of the Republican 
party joined its ranks, ever afterward being 
one of its stalwart supporters. By his fellow 
citizens he was called upon to fill a few minor 
offices in the town. He was united in mar- 



riage with Miss Sarah Reasoner, daughter of 
Peter and Betsey Reasoner, farming people of 
the town of Beekman, Dutchess county. By 
this union five children were born: (i ) Adelia 
A. married Luther Dutcher, a manufacturer, of 
Dover, by whom she had four children — Hiram, 
Gilbert, George and William. (2) Jackson, 
the subject of this sketch, is next in order of 
birth. (3) Orin N. at the age of sixteen went 
to Poughkeepsie, where he clerked in a dry- 
goods store, and married Miss Harriet Cox; in 
1835 he removed with her father's family to 
Kalamazoo county, Mich., and became a mer- 
chant; after the financial crash of 1S37 he en- 
gaged in milling, but was soon after elected 
clerkof the county, and removed to Kalamazoo, 
where he is now engaged in the insurance and 
real-estate business. He has represented his 
county in the State Legislature, and was ad- 
jutant-general of the State during the Civil 
war. He has one son, Theron F. , now State 
commissioner of insurance for Michigan. (4) 
Martin L. learned the wagon-maker's trade 
with his brother Jackson, but did not follow it, 
becoming a cattle drover. He married Miss 
Mary Hoag, and died in 1862, leaving no 
children. (5) William M., the youngest, did 
not marry. 

Jackson Giddings was born in the town of 
Beekman, Dutchess county, in 1812, and in 
the common schools of the town of Dover re- 
ceived a fair English education. Learning the 
wagon maker's trade, he followed that occupa- 
tion until eighty years of age, since which time 
he has laid away business cares, and is now 
enjoying a well-earned rest. In early life he 
took quite a prominent part in public affairs, 
and served as assessor and in other town 
offices. His ballot is always cast in support of 
the men and measures of the Republican party. 
Mr. Giddings married Miss Deborah Hoag, a 
daughter of John and Delila Hoag, of the town 
of IJover, and to them have been born four 
children: (i) John H. first married .Amanda 
Chase, and after her death wedded Maria 
Olivet; (2) Almira became the wife of James 
Reynolds, and has two sons — Jackson and 
Harry B. (3) George W. married Jennie Vill- 
inger, and has four daughters — Grace, born in 
1886; Almira in 1887; Laura, in 1888; and 
Hazel, in 1891. (4) Andrew completes the 
family. 

Mrs. Gidding's ancestors have long been 
residents of Dutchess county, the birth of her 
great-grandfather, John Hoag, occurring in the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



539 



town of Dover, where he engaged in farming. 
In his large family of children was Nathaniel, 
an agriculturist, who married Mollie Howland, 
and had three children: Priner, who married 
Eliza Griffin; John, father of Mrs. Giddings; 
and Deborah, who wedded Russell Tabor. 

John Hoag was a native of the town of 
Dover, followed general farming and stock 
raising. For his first wife he married Miss 
Delia Whitley, and to them were born five 
children: Almira, who married Isaac Geroe; 
Deborah, wife of our subject; William, who first 
married Betsy Baldwin, and after her death 
wedded Phcebe Bowman; Elizabeth, who 
never married; and Mary J., who wedded 
Hiram Whitley. After the death of the 
mother of these children, Mr. Hoag was united 
in marriage with Phcebe Preston. 



RTEMAS SACKETT BARTON, a valued 
^^ citizen and popular business man of Pine 
Plains, Dutchess county, is a native of Colum- 
bia county, N. Y., born at Ancram October 
30, 1S38, and is descended from an old English 
family that long made their home in Dutchess 
county. His great-grandfather was Josiah 
Barton, of the town of Stanford, and his grand- 
father, Dr. Leonard Barton, who was born in 
that town, was one of the early practitioners 
of the county. 

Dr. Leonard Barton married Rachel Gale, 
granddaughter of William Gale, and daughter 
of Josiah and Rachel (Mead) Gale, who lived 
in Stanford, and had eight daughters and two 
sons, as follows: Sarah Gale, born October 
17, 1767, married Henry Kinney; Rebecca, 
born March 23, 1769, married Enoch Good- 
ridge; Rachel, born February 2, 1771, mar- 
ried Leonard Barton; Phebe, born April 6, 
1773, married Andrew Finch; Roba, born July 
26, 1775, married Lewis Austin; Nancy, born 
April 19, 1777, married Henry Griffin; Betsey, 
born April 19, 1779, married Nathan Beck- 
with; Clorinda, born November 12, 1783, 
married Ebe Lete; Josiah, born August 11, 
1786, died in 1809; and George W., born 
December 3, 178-, married Harriet Sheldon. 
Dr. Leonard Barton and his wife had eleven 
children, as follows: Hiram; James married 
Caroline Canfield; Nelson, not married; George 
W. married Elizabeth Hoffman; Josiah mar- 
ried Eliza Briggs; Edward married Malissa 
J. Worthy, of Northeast town; Eliakim mar- 
ried Tammy Germond; Julia married Morgan 



Hunting; Sally married Anthony Hoffman; 
Rachel married Stephen Sackett; Nancy mar- 
ried John Davis. 

George W. Barton, the father of our sub- 
ject, was also born in the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county. May 14, 1795, and was a 
farmer by occupation. He became quite 
wealthy, owning two farms, each of 250 acres, 
in Columbia county, one in the town of An- 
cram and the other on Pugsley's Hill, the old 
homestead. He was a man of great natural 
ability, and was essentially self-made. He 
was identified with the Democratic party in 
politics, and attended the Presbyterian Church. 
He died September 17, 1872, and his wife died 
August 26, 1879. He had married Elizabeth 
Hoffman, daughter of Henry Hoffman, who 
lived near Bethel, N. Y. , and to them were 
born nine children: Mariette, born March i, 
1824, married Warden Hiserodt, of New York 
City, and died September 12, 1873; William 
H., born August 25, 1825, married Cornelia 
Decker, and died January 24, 1879; George, 
born May 19, 1S27, married, first, Sarah Col- 
lins, and, second, Mary French, and resides 
in the town of Northeast, Dutchess county; 
Catherine, born December 15, 1829, wife of 
William McArthur, of Wisconsin; Rachel, 
born December 16, 183 1, married James Col- 
lins, of the town of Northeast; Leonard, born 
December 14, 1834, married Henrietta Pulver, 
and is now living in the same town; Anthony 
H., born July 4, 1836, married, first, Emily 
Sackett, and, second, Isaphene Wilkinson, and 
resides in Pine Plains town; Artemas S., sub- 
ject of this review; and Frederick, born May 
24, 1 841, married, first, Libbie Hoysrodt, and, 
second, Zada Tripp, and resides at the old 
homestead in the town of Ancram, Columbia 
county, which he owns, and also a half inter- 
est in the old Dr. Barton homestead in the town 
of Stanford. The children were lovers of mu- 
sic, especially our subject, who organized a 
string band, called "Barton's Band," com- 
posed of his brother, uncle and others, and 
playing for nearly all the public and private 
parties in northern Dutchess and southern Co- 
lumbia counties, from 1865 to 1880, the music 
not so artistic, but the prompting excellent. 

The education of our subject was such as 
the district school of the neighborhood afford- 
ed, and he early became familiar with the du- 
ties of the agriculturist. Being a great read- 
er, he has become a well-informed man, and 
is posted on the current events of the day. 



540 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



On leaving home at the age of twenty-four, he 
opened a general store at Ancram Lead Mines, 
which he conducted three years, and the fol- 
lowing year he spent in Wisconsin and Iowa. 
He was then with the \'an Ambergh show for 
a year, and on returning to Pine Plains, he 
worked on the railroad for the same length of 
time, building fences. He was next engaged 
in the commission business, dealing in coal 
and hay from 1882 until 1893, when he re- 
moved to his present site, buying a part of the 
Clark estate, where he now carries on the 
lumber trade. He has been quite successful, 
and is one of the steady-going, reliable busi- 
ness men of Pine Plains. 

Mr. Barton has been twice married, his 
first wife being Anna Rockafeller, of Columbia 
county, who died in 1866. For his second 
wife he chose Jane Tripp, daughter of DeWitt 
Tripp, who has lived in both Pine Plains and 
Northeast town, Dutchess county. Two chil- 
dren grace this union, Carrie and Artie. So- 
cially, Mr. Barton is prominently identified 
with the Masonic order, being one of the old- 
est members of Stissing Lodge No. 615, F. 
& A. M., in which he has filled nearly all the 
chairs. He is a stanch adherent of the Dem- 
ocratic party. For three terms he served as 
justice of the peace, was pathmaster two 
years, and inspector of elections for a number 
of years at Pine Plains; while in Ancram he 
served for about three years as town clerk. 
He takes an active interest in public affairs, 
and earnestly supports measures for the bene- 
fit of the community. He attends the Method- 
ist Church. 

Henry Hoffman, father of our subject's 
mother, married Catherine Betesle, and lived 
in .-Ancram, Columbia county. They had the 
following children: Margaret, born Septem- 
ber 25, 1786, married Rowland Sweet; Cath- 
erine, born October 12, 178S, died young; 
Eleaner, born December 28, 1790, married 
Walter Dorchester; Henry J., born May 17, 
'79.5. married Almyra Culver; Polly, born Au- 
gust 27, 1795, niarried Jeremiah Conklin; 
Catherine (2), born January 28, 1798, died 
young; an infant, born in 1799; Betsey, born 
May 28, 1800, married G. W. Barton; Laura, 
born June 23, 1803, married Artemas Sackett; 
Anthony, born September 15, 1805, married 
Sally Barton. The father of this family was 
born January 6, 1761, and died in 1840; the 
mother was born January 6, 1762, and died in 
1850. 



Anthony Hoffman resided in the town of 
Pine Plains, and he and his wife had four 
daughters and three sons, as follows: Henry, 
born December 26, 1829, married Mary A. 
Strever; Sarah, born December 6, 1831, mar- 
ried Herman Snyder; Leonard, born Novem- 
ber 24, 1833, died January 8, 1865; Catherine, 
born February 22, 1835, married J. C. Hoag; 
Julia, born October 30, 1837, married Elias 
Halsted; Laura, born January 20, 1840, mar- 
ried Edgar Eggleston; and Anthony, born Sep- 
tember 8, 1844, not married, died November 
21, 1882. 



E^ DWIN SUTTON (deceased) was a popu- 
> lar citizen of the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, where, a leader among men, 
his memory is held in reverence and honor. 
Almost his entire life was passed in Dutchess 
county, and by his strong force of character 
and undoubted integrity he gained the confi- 
dence of the people. His death, which oc- 
curred September 16, 1887, left a vacancy 
difficult to fill, and it was considered a severe 
blow to the material and moral interests of the 
township. 

Mr. Sutton was a native of Brooklyn, N. 
Y., born in 1836, and was a son of Abram and 
Jane (Mabbett) Sutton, the former born in 
Westchester county, N. Y., and the latter on 
Chestnut Ridge, in the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county. Shortly after their marriage 
his parents removed to the farm where Hal- 
cyon Hal! is now located. The paternal house- 
hold included si.x children, three of whom, 
however, died in infancy. The two brothers 
of our subject who reached adult age were: 
William H. (nowdeceased), who was a farmer 
and merchant; and Franklin, who is engaged 
in the insurance business in Poughkeepsie, New 
York. 

When but two years old Edwin Sutton was 
brought by his parents to the town of Wash- 
ington, where his childhood was passed, and 
after finishing his education he went to New 
York City, where he engaged in the retail feed 
business for several years. On the death of 
his father, however, he returnetl to the town 
of Washington and took up farming, which he 
continued until his death. In 1878 Mr. Sut- 
ton married Miss Mary L. Donington, who was 
born in Elizabeth, N. J., and is the daughter 
of Henry and Mary (Badgley) Donington, also 
natives of Elizabeth, where the father lived 





C^n/^i v^^^l^^ 




n^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



541 



retired. Mrs. Sutton is one of their family of 
nine children. The father's death occurred 
in 1 86 1, while his wife passed away in 1S87. 
He was a son of Jacob Donington, also a na- 
tive of Elizabeth, N. J., and of English de- 
scent. On both sides of the family Mrs. Sut- 
ton is descended from Revolutionary heroes, 
Cornelius Badgley, her maternal great-grand- 
father, having been an officer in that war, and 
William Shute, her great-uncle on the father's 
side, was a major in the same struggle. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Sutton 
located at South Millbrook, where Mrs. Sut- 
ton still makes her home. They became the 
parents of a daughter, Carrie Donington, born 
in 1S79. Our subject was an earnest Chris- 
tian man, taking an active interest in religious 
affairs, as an adherent of the Hicksite faith, 
while his wife holds membership with the Pres- 
byterian denomination. His political views 
were in accordance with those of the Repub- 
lican party, and for a number of years he 
served as postmaster of South Millbrook, pre- 
vious to which time he had been assistant 
postmaster, when the office was known as 
"Washington." 



I IRAM H. BRIGGS, a general merchant 
X^X of Hyde Park, Dutchess county, has done 
much to promote the commercial activity, ad- 
vance the general welfare and secure the ma- 
terial development of the place. As a business 
man, he is enterprising, energetic and always 
abreast with the times, and has been rewarded 
by success in his undertakings. He was born 
in the town of Hyde Park, Dutchess county, 
December 27, 1834, a son of Stephen D. and 
Phcebe T. (Hewlett) Briggs. 

His father was born in 1806, and was the 
son of Stephen Briggs, Sr. In early life he 
followed the occupation of a farmer in the 
northeast part of the town of Hyde Park, and 
then, after living for a time in Pleasant Val- 
ley, located in the northwest portion of the 
town, where he carried on the same occupa- 
tion. In 1853, however, he came to Hyde 
Park, where for twenty-five years he engaged 
in contracting and building, which business he 
followed until the day of his death, dying while 
at his work. He was a man of great energy, 
became a successful contractor and builder, 
and was widely known throughout the county, 
where he had been employed in the capacity 
of mover. He was essentially a self-made 



man, whose success was well deserved. In 
politics he was prominently identified with the 
Republican party, and served his fellow-citi- 
zens as collector of Hyde Park and school 
trustee. He was reared amid the Society of 
Friends, and ever held to that faith. He was 
married to Miss Phcebe T. Hewlett, daughter 
of Samuel Hewlett, of Hyde Park, and to them 
were born five children, who grew to adult 
age: Hiram H., subject of this sketch; Mary 
J., wife of Coster De Groff; Charlotte H., 
who married Ulrick Eshelman, of Poughkeep- 
sie, but is now deceased; Sarah B., twin sister 
of Charlotte, who married Samuel Gunn, and 
is also deceased, and Martha C. , deceased 
wife of De Witt C. Degolier, of Poughkeepsie. 
The father's death occurred in 1878, but the 
mother is still living. 

After pursuing his studies in the district 
schools of the town of Hyde Park for some 
time, Hiram H. Briggs entered a boarding 
school at Oswego Village, and, on completing 
his education at the age of twenty years, he 
was well fitted for the practical duties of life. 
He had previously, however, clerked in the 
store of John K. Hewlett, his maternal uncle, 
for a year and a half, and later was with that 
gentleman for about a year. Going to New 
York City, he took a clerkship in the whole- 
sale dry-goods establishment of Lewis Havi- 
land & Co., where he remained for two years 
and a half, and, in the spring of 1863, began 
clerking for H. N. Vedder, in the store which 
he now owns at Hyde Park. For seven years 
he filled that position, and then for about four 
months was in a grocery store in New York 
City; but the following winter he was with Uhl 
& Husted, of Poughkeepsie. The next year 
he was again with Mr. 'Vedder, after which he 
returned to New York, and was in a retail gro- 
cery for three months. Later going to Dover 
Plains, Dutchess county, he there remained 
for two years and a half, when he entered the 
employ of Mark H. [Hitchcock of Poughkeepsie, 
serving in that position for four months. It 
was January i, 1886, that he started in busi- 
ness at Hyde Park as a general merchant, the 
firm being H. H. Briggs & Co., but May 4, 
1895, the partnership was dissolved, and he has 
since been alone in business. He now has 
the largest store in the place, and his stock is 
well selected. 

The record of Mr. Briggs is that of a man 
who has by his own unaided efforts worked his 
way upward to a position of affluence. His 



542 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



life has been one of industry and perseverance, 
and the systematic and honorable business 
methods which he has followed have won 
him the support and confidence of many. 
Without aid of influence or wealth, he has risen 
to a position among the most prominent busi- 
ness men of the county, and his native genius 
and acquired ability are the stepping-stones 
on which he mounted. He is an attendant of 
the Episcopal (Church; is an honored member 
of Poughkeepsie Lodge No. 266, F. & A. M.; 
and in political affairs'takes an active interest 
in the success of the Republican party, which 
he always supports by his ballot. 



'ILSON B. STORM, an enterprising and 
reliable business man of Stormville, 
was born in the town of Beekman, Dutchess 
county, June 28, 1868, and is the son of Joseph 
H. Storm, a prominent citizen of the county. 
His boyhood and youth were passed upon a 
farm, and his education received in the district 
schools. Later he was a student in the Mount 
Beacon Academy, at Fishkill-on-the-Hudson, 
and subsequently took a business course at the 
Eastman Business College, at Poughkeepsie, 
graduating with the class of 1888. On laying 
aside his te.xt books he worked on the farm of 
his grandfather in the town of Beekman for six 
years. 

On August I, I1S95, Mr. Storm began mer- 
chandising at Stormville, in connection with 
W. J. Storm, one of the leading business men 
of the town of East Fishkill, and the owner of 
the farm on which is located Storm Lake, 
which is a beautiful sheet of water covering 
twenty-five acres, fed by springs, and in which 
many different varieties of fish abound. Upon 
the east bank of the lake a creamery was erect- 
ed and put in operation in April, 1896, and to 
which the New England railroad has built a 
side track. The business carried on by these 
gentlemen has grown to e.xtensive proportions, 
and they deal in Hour, feed, hardware and 
agricultural implements. Since April i, 1896, 
Wilson B. Storm has laid aside agricultural 
pursuits, and now devotes his whole time and 
attention to merchandising. 

On October 24, 1895, Mr. Storm was 
married to Miss Mary T. Berry, a native of the 
town of East Fishkill, where her father, Edward 
W. Berry, engages in farming, and to this union 
has been born one child — Georgia Sheldon — 



January 26, 1897. Our subject is a stanch 
supporter of the Republican party, was elected 
supervisor of the town of Beekman in 1894, in 
which position he served for two years or until 
his removal to East Fishkill, and was the young- 
est member of that board. In social as well 
as business circles he holds a high position, 
and is a young man of more than ordinary 
ability. Religiously, Mrs. Storm holds mem- 
bership in the Reformed Church at Hopewell. 



DAVID EDWIN COLWELL, a highly es- 
teemed resident of Matteawan, Dutchess 
county, is one of the favored few, who, on 
reaching the ordinary limit of three-score years 
and ten finds life still enjoyable, old age being 
but the harvest time for their previous years 
of toil. He was born in Pleasant Valley, 
Dutchess county, April i, 1825, and is a de- 
scendant of an old Scotch family. 

His direct ancestors lived in the North of 
Ireland for some generations, and his great- 
grandfather was the first of the line to come to 
America. He was a Protestant, and the ma- 
jority of the family have been members of the 
Methodist Church. Samuel Colwell, our sub- 
ject's grandfather, married Mary Smith, whose 
brother was a soldier in the Revolutionary 
war. Their son Archibald, our subject's fath- 
er, married Abigail Hall, and had eight chil- 
dren: Calvin Hubbard (deceased); Louisa, 
now Mrs. Reed, of Moores Mill; Archibald 
L. , of Verbank; Samuel Augustus, of Peoria, 
111.; David E., our subject; Julia Ann, now 
Mrs. Burnett, of Connecticut; Mary L. Ack- 
erman; and Sarah A. Seaman. 

When David E. Colwell was six years old 
his parents moved to Verbank, and at an early 
age he began to work in a cotton factory there, 
which was the first of its kind to be operated 
in this State. In 1845 he went into the shoe 
business with his brother Archibald, but in 
1855 entered the service of the Fishkill Land- 
ing Machine Co., and in due time became a 
skilled machinist. For a short time he was 
employed by the late H. N. Swift, in the man- 
ufacture of lawn mowers, and then he moved 
to Passaic, N. J., to take a lucrative position 
with the New York Steam Engine Co. After 
a few years he went to Yonkers, N. Y., and 
was engaged in Waring's hat factory until his 
retirement from active business. He has re- 
sided at Matteawan for many years, and is a 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



543 



leading member of the M. E. Church there. 
On January 14, 1847, he was married to Miss 
Jane A. Beach, and on January 14, 1897, they 
celebrated their golden wedding anniversary, 
a most joyous occasion. They have two sons, 
Winfield S. and Frank W., both residents of 
Matteawan. 

Frank W. Colwell was born in Mattea- 
wan, April 9, 1859, and after receiving an ed- 
ucation in the public schools of that place, 
went to Yonkers to learn the jewelry and 
watchmaking business with H. F. Von Storch, 
with whom he remained for more than four 
years. He then worked at this trade in various 
places, spending some time with the Independ- 
ent Watch Co., at Fredonia, N. Y. , four years 
with the Waterbury Co.. at Waterbury, Conn., 
and two years with the Cheshire Watch Co., 
of Cheshire, Conn. In 1888 he returned to 
his old home and engaged in business for him- 
self in a small way, beginning with one window 
in a millinery store on Main street. He pros- 
pered, and after seven or eight months he 
moved into a more convenient store in a new 
building, and has since carried on his business 
there with a constantly growing patronage. 
His store is fully equipped with all the modern 
appliances, and a complete stock of watches, 
clocks, and jewelry of all kinds. He has a 
pleasant home at No. 21 Vine street, but in 
January, 1895, it was darkened by the death 
of his beloved wife, Carrie E. Tiel, to whom 
he was married November 10, 1880. Four 
children survive her: Minnie A., Jennie R., 
Frances B. and Edmund T. 

Mrs. Colwell was a member of one of the 
leading families of Matteawan, a granddaugh- 
ter of -the late William H. Tiel, and a daughter 
of J. William Tiel, a well-known hat manu- 
facturer. He married a lady of English de- 
scent. Miss Julia Rogers, a native of Falen- 
ville, Greene Co., N. Y. , and both are still 
living. Of their eight children the first two 
and the last died in infancy. The others were 
Dr. Arthur R. Tiel, Edson L., J. William, Jr., 
Carrie E. and Minnie A. In politics Mr. Col- 
well is a Republican, and he is an active 
worker in the M. E. Church, holding at pres- 
ent the office of superintendent of the Sunday- 
school. He is much interested in fraternal 
society work, belonging to the I. O. O. F. , 
Evergreen Lodge, in which he has been a trus- 
tee for six years, and to the F. & A. M., Bea- 
con Lodge, having joined the Masonic order 
while residing in Cheshire. 



E EDWARD ANTHONY UNDERHILL, the 
1^ genial and able station agent at Glenham, 

Dutchess county, is also well known in busi- 
ness circles in that locality, being an extensive 
wholesale and retail dealer in coal. He is a 
native of New Hackensack, Dutchess county, 
and was born August 7, 1865. the son of Dr. 
Anthony Underbill, who practiced medicine 
successfully at New Hackensack for more than 
forty years. Dr. Anthony Underbill first saw 
the light November 12, 1818. His death oc- 
curred September 4, 1889, and his wife, Char- 
lotte Augusta Marvin, who was born Decem- 
ber 22, 1823, survives with their six children: 
Charles, George, William, Frank, Lottie, and 
Edward A. 

Our subject availed himself of the usual 
district school advantages, and then entered 
the employ of his brother William in the coal 
business at Fishkill. After one year he went 
to Hopewell as assistant agent at the Union 
Depot for the N. Y. & N. E. R. R. and the 
N. D. & C. R. R. , and remained seven years, 
when he was appointed agent at Glenham for 
the N. D. &C. R. R. In the same year, 1890, 
he purchased the coal business there from his 
brother William, and has combined the two 
enterprises satisfactorily. In politics he is a 
Republican. 

On July 3 1, 1895, Mr. Underbill was united 
in marriage with Miss Jane Edith Schubert, 
daughter of Charles E. F. and Amelia W. 
Schubert, and made a wedding trip to Europe. 
Mr. Underbill was one of the lucky ten in a 
voting contest for a tour offered by the New 
York Press, standing second on the list with 
23,525 votes. The Press gave its guests first 
class steamer and railway tickets and hotel ac- 
commodations, three meals a day being pro- 
vided according to the custom of the hotel, 
and every other necessary expense was liber- 
ally met, including omnibuses between stations, 
piers, and hotels, carriage drives to points of 
interest, fees to hotel servants, railroad por- 
ters, and local guides and care-takers, while 
there was free transportation of the usual al- 
lowance of baggage on the steamer, and fifty- 
six pounds on the railways. An experienced 
conductor accompanied the party, superintend- 
ing the arrangements throughout, and it would 
have been impossible to secure similar privi- 
leges for less than $800 each. The tourists 
left New York August 3, 1895, on theCunarder 
" Aurania " and on August 12 arrived at Liv- 
erpool, where they stopped at the " Adelphia 



544 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Hotel." On the same day they went to Lon- 
don and spent five days there, three being 
given up to carriage drives about the city; here 
they were quartered at the "Midland Grand 
Hotel." They left via Harwich for Antwerp 
on the evening of August 17, and arriving on 
the following day, remained until the afternoon 
of the 19th, when they made the trip to Brus- 
sels, which occupied one hour. A carriage drive 
there on the 20th gave them a view of the main 
points of interest in the city, and on the 21st 
they went to Rotterdam, where they remained 
until the evening of the 2 2d. The next two 
days were passed at the Hague, the first in an 
extended carriage drive, and on the evening of 
the 24th they went to Amsterdam, where the 
following day, Sunday, August 25, was made a 
day of rest to the travelers, fatigued by their 
continuous sight seeing. An early train took 
them to Cologne on the 26th, and that day was 
spent in visiting the wonderful cathedral and 
other places of note. On the 27th they took an 
express steamer on the Rhine for Mayence, 
and on the next day continued the trip by rail 
to Heidelberg, and after a short stay there 
they went to Strasburg by an early afternoon 
train, and saw the great wonder of that city, 
the Cathedral, with its world-renowned clock. 
August 29, found them tii route for Paris, and 
the next five days were spent there at the 
"Grand Hotel," three days being devoted to 
carriage drives, and on the evening of Sep- 
tember 3 they started via Dieppe for London, 
where they spent one day, leaving in the even- 
ing for Liverpool to embark on September 5 
on the Cunarder " Gallia," for Boston. They 
landed there September 15, and left in the 
evening by the Fall River line for New York 
City, arriving at 7:30 k. m. September 16. 

Mr. Underbill had purchased a home at 
Glenham before his marriage, and on their re- 
turn he and his wife immediately began house- 
keeping. They take a prominent part in the 
social life of the village, and attend the I\e- 
formed Dutch Church. 



SILAS E. CARD (deceased), in his life- 
time a prominent citizen of Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, and a member of a well- 
known firm of Satterlee & Card, merchant 
tailors, was a native of Ancram, Columbia 
Co., N. Y., born July 18, 1845, a"d ^ied 
March 27, 1896. 

He came of old pioneer stock, the ances- 



tors of the American line being two brothers 
who came from Ireland in 1600 and settled in 
Rhode Island. Of their numerous descendants 
many came west from time to time, following 
the advancing line of civilization, and Edson 
Card, our subject's grandfather, who was born 
in Connecticut, became one of the early set- 
tlers of Ancram, Columbia Co., N. Y., where 
he was engaged in farming. He married Char- 
lotte Witheral, and had nine children: Edson 
(i) (deceased), Catherine, Mary (deceased), 
Eton H., Emma (deceased), Sarah, Edson (2), 
Charlotte, and William (deceased;. 

Edson Card, our subject's father, was born 
November 29, 1817, in Ancram, and was there 
married to Miss Mary Miller, who was born in 
1 8 14, a daughter of Silas Miller, of Copake, 
Columbia county, who was of Dutch ancestry, 
and followed the occupation of a farmer all his 
life. They had five children: Albert M., an 
attorney of New York City, who resides at 
Sharon, Conn.; Silas E., our subject; Lottie 
H., born in 1848, now a resident of Pleasant 
Valley; Charles M., born in 1S50, also of 
Pleasant Valley; George, born in 1854, an at- 
torney at Poughkeepsie; and Edson, born in 
1856, who was graduated from the College of 
Physicians and Surgeons, New York, in 1882, 
and is now a prominent physician at Lake 
Mahopac, Putnam county (he married Miss 
Cora Badeau, and has one son, Badeau Card). 
For eight years after their marriage our sub- 
ject's parents lived at Ancram, but in 1847 
I they removed to a farm in the town of Stan- 
ford, Dutchess county. In 1869 they went to 
Pleasant Valley, there to pass their declining 
years. The father was a man of influence in 
his neighborhood, possessing the esteem. of all 
classes of people, and for many years he was 
a justice of the peace in the town of Pleasant 
Valley, and held the office of assessor for many 
years. He died May 12, 1888; his widow is 
still living at Pleasant Valley. 

Silas E. Card was only two years old when 
he came to Dutchess county, and he was edu- 
cated in the public schools of his vicinity and 
and in the seminary at Amenia. In 1865 he 
came to Poughkeepsie to engage in business, 
and after spending fifteen years in the store of 
Seward & Hayt he bought an interest in George 
P.Satterlee's merchant-tailoring establishment, 
at No. 280 Main street. He was admirably 
qualified for success in his chosen line, and 
held a high rank among the enterprising mer- 
chants of his vicinity. On November 4, 1874, 




^ 



/y^j*^ 






n 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



545 



in the town of Stanford, he married Miss E. 
Belle Ailing, a daughter of John T. and Frances 
(Mabbett) Ailing, and five children were born 
of this union: John A., born May 20, 1877, 
graduated from the Poughkeepsie high school 
at the age of sixteen, and is now completing 
his course in medicine at the College of Physi- 
cians and Surgeons, New York; Frank M., 
who died when one year old; Mary E., born 
December 5, 1882; George H., born July 17, 
18S6; and Albert N., born May 14, 1890. 

In politics Mr. Card was a Democrat, and 
he took an influential part in the work of the 
organization in his locality. He was the can- 
didate of his party for mayor in 1894; but that 
was a year of tribulation for Democrats, and 
he with all the others on the ticket suffered 
defeat. He was one of the City Alms House 
commissioners for ten years, and was an Ex- 
empt Fireman of Phcenix Hose Company No. 
I , of which he was treasurer. In the Masonic 
order he was a member of Triune Lodge No. 
7S2, Poughkeepsie Chapter and Commandery, 
and of the Royal Arcanum, and was District 
Deputy of Dutchess county. He was a promi- 
nent member of Washington street M. E. 
Church, at the time of his death holding the 
office of steward. 



J 



[AMES HENRY HIGNELL, the junior 
member of the firm of McFarlane & Hig- 
nell, the well-known boiler manufacturers, 
of Fishkill Landing, Dutchess county, is among 
the most prominent of the younger business 
men of that place. 

The family name is English in its origin, 
and our subject's paternal grandfather, Joseph 
Hignell, came from England in early man- 
hood, and was married in this country to Mrs. 
Rachel Lawson, a widow. Their son, Daniel 
L. Hignell, our subject's father, was born at 
Barnegat, N. Y. , April 28, 1833, learned the 
blacksmith's trade in youth, and is now the 
Fishkill Landing Machine Company's foreman. 
He married Miss Mary Odell, who was born 
November 23, 1832, near Cold Spring, Put- 
nam county, the daughter of Elijah and Sa- 
brina (Perry) Odell. The Odell family is an 
ancient one, and this branch was established 
in this country in Colonial times. Our sub- 
ject was the eldest of three children, the others 
being Millard Fillmore Hignell; and Mamie, 
who married James E. Tomlins, and resides at 

Tuxedo Park. 
35 



James H. Hignell was born at FishkilC 
Landing, October 22, 1856. He has been 
identified with the village all his life, receiving 
his education in the public schools, and at 
thirteen entering upon his practical business 
career. Until the age of eighteen he worked 
at different employments, and then followed 
theharness maker's trade about sixyears; bur, his 
health becoming impaired he left this occupa- 
tion in 1880, to take a position as bookkeeper 
with the late John J. Herley, the boiler manu- 
facturer. On the death of Mr. Herley in the 
spring of 1892, Mr. Hignell formed his present 
partnership, and purchased the business from 
the estate. Their work embraces not only 
boiler-making, but the manufacture of tanks 
and everything in that line, and their trade is 
extensive, reaching throughout New York State 
and to various portions of the South and West. 

On February 2, 1S81, Mr. Hignell married 
Miss Kate Chase, a native of Glenham, N. Y. 
Her father, Henry Chase, came from Switzer- 
land; her mother, Ann Roe, from Ireland, and 
their marriage took place at Fishkill Landing. 
Mr. and Mrs. Hignell are prominent members 
of the Reformed Dutch Church at Fishkill 
Landing, and are interested in all that pertains 
to social and religious progress. They have 
one daughter, Lelia Ella, born August 17, 
1887. 

Politically Mr. Hignell is a Republican. 
He is a charter member of River View Lodge 
No. 560, I. O. O. F., has passed through the 
chairs, and is now trustee and treasurer. On 
June 18, 1896, he helped to organize a lodge of 
the Improved Order of Redmen at Fishkill 
Landing, and was elected to the order of 
Sachem. On March 18, 1897, he was elected 
treasurer of the general hospital of the town of 
Fishkill, N. Y. ; was also elected treasurer of 
the executive committee. 



WILLIAM E. HAVENS, the efficient su- 
perintendent of the Fishkill Electric 

railway and the Citizens Electric railway of 
Fishkill-on-Hudson, is one of the rising young 
practical electricians of his locality. His al- 
ready wide and varied experience in the 
mechanical arts has especially fitted him for 
the understanding of the difficulties which at- 
tend the application of electricity to business 
uses, while he possesses also rare gifts as an 
organizer and manager of men. 

He is a son of William H. and Anna 



546 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



(Dixonj Havens, and grandson of Edward 
Havens. His father, who is a native of 
Oswego, N. Y., born July 4, 1840, is now a 
well-known engineer. He had three sons — 
Frederic Dare Havens, Charles P. and William 
E. — and one daughter — Jennie Lee. Our 
subject was born in Oswego, N. Y., August 
24, 1863. His early education was obtained 
in the public schools of his native city, also in 
Rome, N. Y., and at the age of thirteen he 
began to learn photography, at which he 
worked for about three years. He then spent 
a number of years in different pursuits, learn- 
ing in each one some lessons which were to 
prove of benefit in after life, possibly in une.x- 
*pected ways. He spent one year in a machine 
shop, three years in the business of steam en- 
gineering at Rome, two years as special col- 
lector of the Howe Sewing Machine Co., two 
years in the National Express Co., and one 
year with the Edison Electrical Illuminating 
Co., at Rochester, N. Y. He then went to 
Syracuse, N. Y., and passed two years in the 
employ of the Third Ward Electric Street 
Railway Co., and their successors, the Consol- 
idated Street Railway Co., and later held the 
position of night engineer of the New York 
Central & Hudson River railroad depot at 
Syracuse for six months. On July 6, 1892, 
he came to Matteawan as electrician for the 
Citizens and the Fishkill Electric Railway 
Companies, and in September, of the same 
year, he was appointed superintendent of 
those lines. 

Mr. Havens has a pleasant residence on 
Main street, Fishkill-on-Hudson. His wife, 
whom he married June 10, 1885, formerly 
Miss Minnie E. Moore, is a daughter of An- 
drew W. and Ovanda (Craig) Moore, of Cohoc- 
ton, Steuben Co., N. Y. , and they have three 
children: Catherine E., Jennie Lee and Will- 
iam Henry. Mr. and Mrs. Havens are prom- 
inent members of the Episcopal Church at 
Fishkill, and are ever ready to sustain any pro- 
gressive movement. In politics he is a Repub- 
lican, and he also takes an active interest in 
fraternal society work as a member of Melzin- 
gah Lodge No. 304, K. of P., and Court Bea- 
con No. 296, F. of A. 



BENJAMIN HAMMOND, one of the resi- 
dents of the village of Fishkill-on-Hudson, 
Dutchess county, is the proprietor of the exten- 
sive establishment known as Hammond's Slug 



Shot and Paint Works, and a manufacturer and 
wholesale dealer in paints, oils, chemicals and 
similar commodities, his trade extending in his 
specialties to all parts of the United States. 

Mr. Hammond was born in Kidderminster, 
Worcestershire, England, July 12, 1849. His 
father, Benjamin Hammond, the son of Levi 
Hammond, was born in that locality in 18 17, 
and in 1 848 married Miss Mary Twemlow, for 
his second wife. Our subject is the oldest of 
the five children of this union, the names of 
the others being Mary, Levi, So()hia and 
Sophronia Warren. In 1855 the father came 
to America, bringing his family, and after 
locating for a time in New York City, he re- 
moved to Carlinville, Macoupin Co., 111., where 
he remained until 1858. Returning east, he 
made his permanent home in Brooklyn, where 
he died in November, 1876. The son began 
his business life with Lazeil, Marsh & Gardi- 
ner, at No. 10 Gold street. New York City, as 
office boy, and after nine years with them he 
went, in 1873, to Mt. Kisco, in company with 
Charles S. Ware, who had purchased the drug 
business of Mrs. Dr. Fenton, a sister-in-law of 
the late Gov. Fenton, of New York. The 
business was continued and developed until 
the fall of 1884, when Mr. Hammond removed 
to Fishkill Landing and founded his present 
establishment. Mr. Hammond is one of the 
pioneers in the United States in the manufac- 
ture of economic insecticides, and this particu- 
lar branch of his business is known all over the 
world, as he ships his product to London 
(England), Auckland (New Zealand), Nova 
Scotia, and all other parts of Canada. His 
works are located on the N. E. corner of Long 
Dock Landing, opposite the N. Y. & N. E. 
depot, and near the H. R. R. depot and New- 
burg Ferry, and the business under his judi- 
cious and vigorous management has been on 
the increase ever since its establishment. In 
politics Mr. Hammond is a Republican. In 
Mount Kisco, Westchester county, in connec- 
tion with Stephen and Samuel Carpenter, he 
established a local newspaper, known as the 
Moil III Kisco ]\'c'fk/v, of which he was the ed- 
itor for several years. He was chairman of 
the Republican town committee, was elected 
justice of the peace of the town of New Castle, 
and a member of the board of education of the 
Mount Kisco Union Free School District. In 
the incorporation of the village of Mount Kisco 
he took an active part, and obtained the so- 
briquet of " Prime Mover." 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



547 



In Mount Kisco Mr. Hammond met Miss 
Isabel Monilaws (who subsequently became 
his wife), a woman of refinement and culture, 
the daughter of the Rev. George Monilaws, of 
Somers, Westchester county, in which village 
she was born. They were married by Rev. 
Dr. C. W. Baird, of Rye, July 25, 1S75, and 
three daughters, all born in Mount Kisco, 
were the issue of this marriage: Marion Isa- 
bel, Grace Twemlow, and Elsie. Mrs. Ham- 
mond died at her home, " Spy Hill," Fishkill 
Landing, N. Y. , May 28, 1892, and was buried 
in the Fishkill Rural Cemetery, Fishkill, N. Y. 
On April 6, 1897, Mr. Hammond was again 
married, his second wife being Miss Laura An- 
thony,daughter of the late Richard Kip Anthony 
and Ann Bowie Dash, of New York, the cere- 
mony having been performed by the Rev. 
Charles W. Fritts, D. D., of Fishkill-on-Hud- 
son. New York. 

Mr. Anthony took up the ordinary duties 
of a good citizen, and interested himself in the 
development of his locality. In October, 
1889, at the formation of the Union Free 
School District of Fishkill Landing, he was 
elected a meinberof the boardof education, and 
as clerk to the board took a leading part in the 
planning and building of the splendid school 
building which was erected in 1890-91. In 
1S94 Mr. Hammond was elected president of 
the board. For three successive terms he was 
elected president of the village of Fishkill 
Landing, and close attention to all the details 
of the position was the marked peculiarities of 
his term of service. He has served as town 
auditor, and while a pronounced temperance 
man was elected, after a hard contest, a mem- 
ber of the Town Board of Excise, with a 
handsome majority. The village of Fishkill, 
because of its situation between great brick 
yards, is proverbial for its many saloons and 
liquor shops. Mr. Hammond is a member of 
the Reformed Dutch Church, and an officer of 
the same, being for years a Sunday-school 
teacher, a deacon and an elder. His residence 
is finely located on Park avenue, overlooking 
Newburg Bay, surrounded with ample grounds, 
well-kept and planted with beautiful flowers, 
shrubs and hedges. 



GILMAN D. HOLMES, a prominent citi- 
zen of Matteawan, Dutchess county, has 
been for many years the master mechanic of 
the N. D. & C."R. R., in charge of the build- 



ing and repair shops at Dutchess Junction, 
and has proved himself an able e.xecutive of- 
ficer in that department, uniting in a rare de- 
gree practical knowledge of the details of the 
work with the faculty of managing effectively 
a large force of men. 

He is a "Yankee" by birth, his parents, 
Lewis and Mittie (Osgood) Holmes, being resi- 
dents of Francestown, N. H., where his fa- 
ther was a well-known farmer and miller. 
There were three children: Sarah A., Mason, 
and Oilman D. 

Oilman D. Holmes was born November 
29, 1842. The public schools of his native 
place furnished educational advantages, of 
which he made good use until he was twenty 
years old, when he began to learn the trade of 
machinist in the railroad shops of the N. N. 
H. R. R. , now the Boston & Maine R. R. 
Eight years there gave him a thorough mas- 
tery of the business in all its branches, and he 
then came to Dutchess Junction, and was em- 
ployed by the N. D. & C. R. R. for about 
fifteen years before his appointment, in 1885, 
to his present responsible position in the car 
shops. His ten years of faithful work in that 
place completes a term of a quarter of a cen- 
tury in the service of the same road. He is 
loyal to the interests of his fellow workers as 
well as to his employers, and is a member of 
the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers. 

Mr. Holmes married Miss Emma S. An- 
son, daughter of Nathan Anson, a native 
of Stanfordville, and his wife, Catherine 
(Cashner), a descendant of a well-known 
family of Rhinebeck. The pleasant home of 
our subject on Ackerman street, Matteawan, 
is gladdened by one son, Lewis A., born in 
1884. In politics Mr. Holmes is an independ- 
ent voter, supporting either party under vary- 
ing circumstances as his conscience dictates. 
He and his wife are Methodists in faith, and 
take a generous interest in the work of the 
Church at Matteawan. 



S\AMUEL BRYANT, a well-known citizen 
,_j of Matteawan, Dutchess county, was born 
February 10, 1833, in Gloucestershire, Eng- 
land, where his family has resided for many 
generations. His grandfather, Richard Bry- 
ant, was a prosperous hat manufacturer there, 
and his four sons — George, Jonathan, Samuel, 
and Henry — all lived and died in England, 



548 



00]ifME.\fORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



and were highly esteemed members of the 
EstabHshed Church. 

Jonathan Bryant, our subject's father, was 
born at the old home, and learned the hatter's 
trade in his father's factory. He followed this 
business successfully until his death, in 1875; 
his wife, Esther (Gardner), a native of the 
same place, died in 1883. Her father, George 
Gardner, was also engaged in hat manufactur- 
ing. Of the thirteen children of this union, 
nine are living: (i) George (deceased! was a 
hatter in Matteawan, where his son, Albert R. 
Bryant, still resides; (2) Mary A., a twin of (3) 
Samuel, our subject, married John Skidmore, 
of England, and lives in that country; (4) 
Esther married John Connells, of Australia; 

(5) Henry is a resident of Sydney, Australia; 

(6) Richard lives at Yonkers, N. Y. ; ij) West- 
ley resides in Sydney. Australia; (8) Albert 
died in England; (9) Clara married (name not 
given), of London; (lo) Eving and (in Jona- 
than live in England; (I2) Luke and (13) 
Richard died in infancy. 

The subject of our sketch was reared in 
Gloucestershire, England, learning the ances- 
tral occupation, in which he engaged in early 
manhood. In 1855 he came to the United 
States, his hrst designation being Yonkers, 
N. Y. He remained there only a few days. 
and then went to Riverstreet, N. J., and 
worked at his trade for a short time. In 1856 
he made his permanent home at Matteawan, 
engaging first in the hatter's business, but since 
1885 he has conducted a saloon. He was 
married, in 1857, to Miss Charlotte Gifford, 
a native of England and a daughter of Thomas 
Gifford. They have had six children: Mar- 
tha M., now the wife of Fred Moore, of Mattea- 
wan; Clara 1 Mrs. Richard Van Voorhis), of 
the same place; Jane (Mrs. George Van Ors- 
dale), also of Matteawan; Evan and Edward, 
who are in the saloon business at Fishkill 
Landing; and Lizzie, at home. The family 
attend the Episcopal Church. Mr. Byrant has 
many friends, and takes a loyal interest in 
public questions, voting independently both on 
local and national issues. 



E\ LAKIN TOMPKINS, one of the most 
'' prominent residents of Fishkill-on-Hud- 
son, Dutchess county, and the able manager 
of the Dutchess Hat Works, was born in Ash- 
land, Greene Co., N. Y., July 9. 1842. 

His family is of English origin, and he is of 



the fifth generation in direct descent from 
Stephen Tompkins, who came to America in 
Colonial times, and, after a short residence in 
Connecticut, settled in Winchester county, 
N. Y., where he and two of his sons did good 
service on the side of the colonies all through 
the Revolutionary war. He had sixteen chil- 
dren, and his remote descendants are very 
numerous. One of his grandsons, Daniel D. 
Tompkins, was vice-President of the United 
States from 1S16 to 1820, and many other 
members of the family have held positions of 
honor and usefulness. The great-grandfather 
of our subject, James Tompkins, supposed to 
be a son of Stephen, rendered important serv- 
ice in the Revolutionary war. He served in 
the Seventh Dutchess County Regiment under 
Col. Henry Luddington, and in the company 
conmianded by Capt. George Lane. His son, 
Solomon, our subject's grandfather, was one 
of the earliest settlers at Ashland, being ac- 
companied by his son, Solomon (2j, father of 
our subject, who became a prominent farmer 
there and married Elizabeth Randall, who sur- 
vives him and now resides at Matteawan. 

E. Lakin Tompkins was educated in the 
public schools of Ashland, and in September, 
1862, at the age of twenty, went to Matteawan 
to work for the Seamless Clothing Manufactur- 
ing Co. , with whom he remained eight years. 
He then clerked for a year or two in a clothing 
store belonging to his brother Lewis, and in 
1872 he and John F. Gerow purchased his 
brother's interest. He disposed of this, how- 
ever, and in July, 1874, became superintendent 
of the Dutchess Hat Works, which Lewis 
Tompkins established at that time. Our sub- 
ject has managed this extensive plant ever 
since, and much of the time it has been under 
his sole charge, owing to the ill health of his 
brother and his absence abroad. At the death 
of the latter Mr. Tompkins was appointed exec- 
utor of his estate. An able business man, 
displaying in every enterprise, energy and good 
judgment, Mr. Tompkins has conducted or 
assisted in various successful ventures. In 
1889 he purchased a tract of land in the north- 
ern part of the village, and laid it out in fifty 
building lots, many of which have been sold 
and are now occupied by dwelling houses. He 
is a director of the First National Bank, and a 
trustee of the Mechanics Savings Bank. In 
politics he is a Republican. In 1878 he was 
elected trustee of the village of Fishkill-on- 
Hudson, was re-elected to the position for sev- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIHCAL RECORD. 



549 



eral years in succession, and served one year as 
president of the village. In August, 1892, 
President Harrison appointed him postmaster 
of his village, and this position he held four 
3'ears, three and one-half years under President 
Cleveland's administration. For ten years he 
was a member of the board of education, being 
elected term after term successively; but early 
in 1896 he resigned on account of the demands 
of other important interests upon his time. 

Mr. Tompkins has a beautiful residence, 
built in 1893, situated on High street and com- 
manding a charming view of the river. His 
wife was formerly Miss Cordelia E. Knapp, of 
Greenwich, Conn., a daugtiter of the late John 
E. and Joanna Knapp. Her father spent his 
last days at their home, and passed from earth 
Thursday, March 12, 1896, in his eighty-fifth 
year. Two children were born of this mar- 
riage, Reta I. and Harry \\. Mr. and Mrs. 
Tompkins are leading members of the M. E. 
Church, and he is especially active in its in- 
terest, being a trustee and class leader at pres- 
ent, and for many years he served as Sunday- 
school superintendent. He has been a Free- 
mason for about thirty years, and has held the 
office of master in Beacon Lodge No. 283, F. 
& A. M., for two successive terms. 



E^DMUND H. SHEAFF, the superintend- 
'I ent of the Fishkill and Matteawan water 

works, and widely known as an able and 
efficient manager of large enterprises, was born 
in Radnor, Delaware county, Penn., June 29, 
1850. 

His family is of English origin, and he is a 
direct descendant of Gen. Sheaff, of the Eng- 
lish army. His grandfather, William Sheaff, 
was a wealthy tanner in Pennsylvania, and his 
father, William Sheaff, Jr., born in 1797, was 
a prosperous farmer, and also a prominent 
business man of Delaware county for many 
years before he retired from active business. 
His death occurred in Philadelphia August 25, 
1 86 1. On May 28, 1828, he married Miss 
Margaretta Fry Sinquette (a descendant of an 
old French Huguenot family), who died in 
1883. They had eleven children: John, Will- 
iam, George, Sarah, Noah, Susannah, Mary, 
Gertrude, Edmund H., Margaret and Adele. 

Edmund H. Sheaff received his education 
in part in the Philadelphia public schools, in 
part in Crittendens Business College, same city. 



When a mere boy, he enlisted, November 17, 
1864, in Company K, 196th P. V. I., under 
Capt. Edward Lyster, for a term of three 
months, and served until he was mustered out 
at the close of the war. He then went to Rio 
de Janeiro, Brazil, and spent three years on a 
coffee plantation, and on returning to the Uni- 
ted States engaged in the transportation busi- 
ness in New York City. In 1870 he went to 
Cuba, and took charge of sugar plantations at 
Sagua de la Grande and Cardinas; but after 
two years went to New Orleans and then to 
San Francisco, and in the following year en- 
gaged in mining at Virginia City, Nev., where 
he remained several years. On returning to 
the East, he took up his residence at Hoboken, 
N. J., and for three 3-ears was emploj'ed by 
John H. Starin Transportation Co. In 1881 
he was engaged by Decker & Rapp, as wharf- 
inger, having charge of their docks at New 
York City. In 1884 he went to Mt. \'ernon, 
N. Y. , as superintendent and general manager 
of the Mt. Vernon water works, remaining 
seven years, and in 1891, representing the in- 
terest of Taintor & Holt, bankers. No. 1 1 Wall 
street. New York, he came to Fishkill to take 
the management of the Fishkill & Matteawan 
system. This duty he discharged most ably, 
winning the respect and esteem of the entire 
community. He is a Democrat in politics, and 
a member of the First Baptist Church, of Mt. 
Vernon, New York. 



►)ENJAMIN M. TALBOT, a prominent res- 
I ident of Fishkill-on-Hudson, is a well- 
known dealer in real estate, and the owner of 
valuable property in that vicinity. 

He is a native of England, and a descend- 
ant of an old Yorkshire family. His paternal 
grandparents were Charles and Jane Talbot, 
whose son Thomas, the father of our subject, 
was a prosperous cloth merchant at Holmfirth, 
Yorkshire, England. He married Judith 
Winter, daughter of Matthias Winter, and 
reared a family of eight children: Elizabeth, 
Benjamin M. ( our subject ), Charles, Jane, 
Richard, Thomas, Matthew and Emily. 

Benjamin M. Talbot was educated in the 
schools of his native town, and in early man- 
hood came to America, where he located first 
in Newburgh, N. Y. After one 3'ear there he 
moved to Fishkill Landing, and in 1866 en- 
gaged in the wholesale and retail liquor traffic, 



550 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



continuing until 1886 — twenty years to a day. 
He then sold his business and partially retired 
from active life, his attention being given to 
some extent to dealing in real estate. He is 
the owner of several stores and other property, 
and in his investments has always shown line 
business judgment. 

Mr. Talbot has a beautiful home at Fish- 
kill-on-Hudson, on the corner of Dutchess 
terrace and Verplanck avenue. His wife, 
formerly Miss Elizabeth Bates, whom he mar- 
ried November 9, 1868, is a daughter of Will- 
iam and Mary Ann ( Rothwell ) Bates, of 
Yorkshire, England. Five sons have blessed 
their union, one of whom died in infancy, and 
another, Frederick, at the age of twenty years. 
The surviving three are: James G., a book- 
keeper in New York City; William R., a law 
student in the law office of J. Hervey Cook, 
attorney at law, and Henry Talbot, attending 
school. Mrs. Talbot is a prominent member 
of St. Luke's Protestant Episcopal Church at 
Matteawan, and interested in the various lines 
of parish work. In politics Mr. Talbot is a 
Republican, but he keeps aloof from partisan 
strife, and does not seek official honors. He 
belongs to the order of the Knights of Pythias 
Lodge at Matteawan. 



SILAS TERWILLIGER. a merchant of 
Matteawan, Dutchess county, is well 
known throughout the State as an able and 
energetic business man, many years of success- 
ful work as a contractor and builder of impor- 
tant structures having established his reputa- 
tion. Among other enterprises successfully 
carried out by him was the building of large 
tlour-mills and a cotton factory in Columbia 
county, and for some time was engaged upon 
the Delaware & Hudson canal, rebuilding the 
" weighlock " at Eddyville, a very particular 
piece of work involving the construction of the 
' ' cradle " or frame, in which the boats rest 
while being weighed. He also worked in the 
State armory at Syracuse, N. Y. , and had a 
contract from a Mr. Austin, the builder, to lay 
the floors. 

His family is one of the oldest and most 
prominent in the town of Marbletown, Ulster 
county, and his great-grandfather, Solomon 
Terwilliger, was the first patriot in that town to 
sign the following paper. [Copied from the 
Calendarof New York Historical MSS. Revolu- 
tionary papers]: 



Vol. 1, Page 5. 

Old Senate House, Kingston. 
Goshen, Orange County, Ai-ril 29, 1775. 
General A'am-iation: 

Persuadefl that the salvation of the Rights and Liber- 
ties of America depends under God on the firm union of 
its inhabitants, in a vigorous prosecution of the measures 
necessary for its safety, and convinced of the necessity of 
preventing the anarchy and confusion which attend a dis- 
solution of the powers of Government. We, the Freemen, 
Freeholders and Inhabitants of the county of Orange, 
being greatly alarmed at the avowed design of the .Min- 
istry to raise a revenue in .America, and shocked by the 
bloody scene now acting in the Massachusetts Bay, do in 
the most solemn manner resolve never to become slaves, 
and do associate under all the ties of Religion, Honor and 
Love to our country, to adopt and endeavor to carry into 
execution whatever measures may be recommemled by 
the Continental Congress, or resolved upon by this Pro- 
vincial Congress for the purpose of preserving our Con- 
stitution, and opposing the e.xecution of the several arbi- 
trary and oppressive acts of the British Parliament, until 
a reconciliation between Great Britain and America, on 
Constitutional principles (which we most ardently desire) 
can be obtained; and that we will in all things follow the 
advice of our respective Committees, respecting the pur- 
pose aforesaid, the preservation of peace and goixi order, 
and the safety of individuals and private property. 

From Calendar of New York Historical MS.S. Revol- 
utionary papers, Vol. 1, Page 3S, among the Associators 
in Marbletown appear the names of 292, that of Solomon 
Terwilliger being the very first. 

Solomon Terwilliger and his wife, Helen, 
(Bodly) had a son Derrick, who was a farmer 
in the town of Marbletown, Ulster county, and 
a soldier of the war of 18 12. He married 
Margaret Krom, and had a son William, our 
subject's father, who became a prominent car- 
penter and builder of the same locality, fol- 
lowing that occupation until a few years pre- 
vious to his death. He and his wife, whose 
maiden name was Nellie A. Hill, and whom 
he married August 12, 1829, reared a family 
of foursons: Alfred, Silas, Edgarand Jacob H. 

Silas Terwilliger, our subject, was born 
June 23, 1834, at Stone Ridge, Ulster county, 
and after passing through the common schools 
of his native town attended a select school for 
two terms. At sixteen he began his business 
career, learning the trade of mill-wright with 
Fred Paine, of Connecticut, who took con- 
tracts in all parts of the country. An appren- 
ticeship of three years familiarized Mr. Ter- 
williger with all the details of the trade, which 
he then followed continuously until i860, fill- 
ing many e.xtensive contracts with entire satis- 
faction to all concerned. In 1862 he took a 
contract from C. B. Morse to do the wood 
work on all cotton and woolen machinery made 
at the Union Iron Works at Rhinebeck, N. Y. , 
and after six years there he moved (in 1868) 
to Matteawan to take charge of the pattern 
shop of J. B. Schenk & Sons, with whom he 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



551 



remained one year, and then entered the em- 
ploy of the Matteawan Manufacturing Co. , to 
superintend their building and repairs. He 
spent eighteen years in this position, and was 
then compelled by ill health to resign and 
spend some months in recuperating. In i88S 
he purchased the property in Spring street, 
opposite the Union Free School, where he has 
since conducted a store, enjoying a fine cus- 
tom. He also owns three houses and lots in 
the village, and a farm of eighty acres in the 
vicinity. 

On June 26, 1852, he was married to 
Rachel Hasbrouck, daughter of Garrett and 
Martha Hasbrouck. Her death occurred Jan- 
uary 3, 1873, and Mr. Terwilliger has since 
wedded Sarah E. Sutherlin, daughter of David 
and Maria (Schoonmaker) VanWagenen, who 
were natives of Ulster county, N. Y. Of the 
two children of this union one died at the age 
of seven years, and the other, Nellie A., is at 
home. She and her mother are members of 
the M. E. Church, but Mr. Terwilliger, who 
was reared in the faith of the Reformed Dutch 
Church, still inclines to that belief. Politic- 
ally, he is a Democrat, and he was trustee of 
the village of Matteawan for two years. 



THOMAS S. JUDSON, one of the leading 
business men of Matteawan, Dutchess 

county, is the head of the Beacon Ice Com- 
pany, the superintendent of the mechanical 
goods department of the New York Rubber 
Company, and a shareholder in many other 
prosperous enterprises. 

Mr. Judson was born in Newtown, Conn., 
September i, 1833, a son of Zenas and Fannie 
(Torrence) Judson, and grandson of John Jud- 
son. He is of English descent on his father's 
side, of Irish origin on his mother's. His 
father was for many years the proprietor of a 
merchant-tailoring establishment in New York 
City. Our subject is one of a family of thir- 
teen children, si.x of whom are still living. 
The public schools of Newtown afforded him 
his only educational opportunities, and as he 
grew old enough to help upon the farm his at- 
tendance was limited to the winter terms. At 
the age of sixteen he began to work in the 
village of Sandy Hook for the New York Belting 
& Packing Company, located in the town of 
Newtown, and remained in their employ until 
1858, when he came to Matteawan as foreman 
for the New York Rubber Company. This po- 



sition he held some twenty-four years, and 
since 1883 he has superintended the mechan- 
ical department of those works. He is now a 
stockholder in the concern, and he has be- 
come interested in various other business ven- 
tures. For over twenty years he was the pro- 
prietor of the Beacon Ice Company, now 
managed by his two sons, George G. and Will- 
iam H., and he is a trustee and vice-president 
of the Matteawan Savings Bank, director of 
the Matteawan National Bank, stockholder in 
the "Holland Hotel," and trustee of the Hotel 
Association. In politics he is a Republican, 
and in 1S79-S0 he was collector of the town 
of Fishkill; in 1881-82 was township super- 
visor, and in 1887-88 he was president of the 
village of Matteawan. He is a member of 
Beacon Lodge No. 283, F. & A. M., and has 
held the office of trustee for some 3'ears. His 
sound, conservative views, so rarely found in 
combination with such enterprise as he has 
always displayed, make him as valued an ad- 
viser and helper in public affairs as in business 
concerns. 

On July 30, 1854, Mr. Judson married 
Eliza Glover, daughter of the late Capt. D. J. 
and Pollie (Briscoe) Glover, of Newtown, Conn. 
They have three children: Two sons, George 
G. and William H., and one daughter, Lillian 
F., married to C. E. Jaynes. The family at- 
tend the M. E. Church of Matteawan, and 
take an interest in its varied lines of effort. 
Mr. Judson has a charming home at the cor- 
ner of Sargent avenue and Wincopee street. 



EMIL PARMENTER, proprietor of the 
! "Mechanics Hotel" at Glenham, Dutch- 
ess county, was born August 2, 185 i, at Strass- 
burg, Germany. He traces his descent from 
a family which has long been engaged in agri- 
cultural pursuits, and his grandfather, Nicolas 
Parmenter, was a farmer in the Province of 
Lorraine, where he reared a family of chil- 
dren, all of whom lived and died in their na- 
tive land. 

Nicholas Parmenter, our subject's father, 
was born in Lorraine, in 1823, and followed 
agriculture all his life, his death occurring in 
1895. His wife, Caroline Weber, who is still 
living, was a native of Strassburg and a daugh- 
ter of Anthony Weber. Her grandfather Weber 
lost his property during the Napoleonic wars, 
and nearly lost his life. After their marriage 
Nicholas and Caroline Parmenter settled in 



552 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Strassburg, and eleven children were born 
there, of whom our subject was the eldest: 
(2) Caroline, widow of John Swing, lives in 
Strassburg; (3) Lewis resides at the old home, 
and is now in the employ of the government; 
(4) Charles, a resident of Nancy, France, is a 
master carpenter, and was sent to the World's 
Fair in Chicago to superintend the installation 
of certain machiner\'; (5) Magdalene remained 
, in Germany; (6) Edward is engaged in the 
cooper's trade in Strassburg; (7) Mary mar- 
ried Xavier Vix, a restaurant-keeper at Nancy, 
France, and has become thoroughly French in 
speech and customs; (8) Eugene is a cooper 
at Strassburg; (9) Albert is a carpenter at 
Holyoke, N. Y. ; ( 10) August died when about 
nine years old, and the eleventh child died in 
infancy. 

Emil Parmenter remained in his native place 
until he reached the age of twenty-one, and 
there acquired a knowledge of the mason's 
trade. In 1872 he crossed the ocean, and has 
since made his home at Glenham, Dutchess 
county. For some time he followed his trade, 
and for a few years he was engaged in the 
grocery business. Six years were spent in 
the wholesale ale business, and then he began 
dealing in beer; but in 1884 he opened the 
hotel and saloon which he has ever since con- 
ducted. In 1876 he married Miss Ella Boyce, 
a native of Dutchess county, and a daughter 
of Robert and Sarah Boyce. Three children 
have blessed their union: Emily and Ella, who 
are both at home, and Louis, who died at the 
age of four and one-half years. 

Mr. Parmenter is a public-spirited citizen, 
taking great interest in all improvements. He 
has been a Democrat, but is now a Republican 
in political faith. Fraternally he is a member 
of the I. O. O. F. , with which order he united 
in 1883. 



HON. EDWARD M. GORING was born 
in Manchester, England, April 20, 1828. 

No citizen of the pleasant and prosperous vil- 
lage of Wappingers Falls, Dutchess county, is 
more deserving of notice in this Commemora- 
tive Biographical Record, and none is better 
known and esteemed than the gentleman 
whose name introduces this sketch, and who 
has spent almost his entire life in the locality 
where he still makes his home. 

Robert Goring, the paternal grandfather of 
our subject, was born in England in 1770, and 



married Jane Morris on February 4, 1802. 
They had four children: John M., the father 
of our subject; James, born in 1807; Thomas, 
born in 1813, came to the United States and 
located in Wisconsin, where he died; and Jane, 
who died unmarried. 

John M. Goring was the eldest of the fam- 
ily, and was born in Manchester in 1804. He 
learned the business of engraving to calico 
printing, and followed it all his life. He mar- 
ried Miss Martha Heald, who was born in 
Lancashire, England, where her father was a 
cotton broker. One member of the family, 
James Heald, was member of Parliament from 
Stockport, in that county. Nine children were 
born of this union, of whom the following rec- 
ord is given: Edward Morris is the subject of 
this sketch; Walter H. lives in Wappingers 
Falls; Mrs. Jane E. Myatt, in Bridgeport, 
Conn. ; Mrs. Lucy A. Babcock, in Haverstraw, 
N. Y. ; Thomas W., in Chicago; \'ictoria A.; 
Martha M. and John M., Jr., of Wappingers 
P"alls; Anna, died in 1852. The father of this 
family came to the United States in 1832, first 
locating at F'all River, and later at Boston. He 
was a close friend of Alvan Clark, the maker of 
the lenses for the great Lick telescope, and for 
the large Yerkes telescope, of Chicago. In 
1 836 Mr. Goring removed to Wappingers Falls, 
where he died January 22, 1879. His wife 
died April 15, 1886. He was originally a 
Whig, later a Republican, and although an 
active politician, he never held an office. He 
was a strong advocate of temperance, and was 
interested in all matters pertaining to the pub- 
lic welfare. 

Edward M. Goring, our subject, was only 
eight years of age when his parents left Eng- 
land, but had already attended school for a 
time. His education was completed in the 
district school at Wappingers Falls, and in 
1845 he was apprenticed to the trade of en- 
graving to calico printing, which he followed 
from 1845 to 1S60. For the succeeding nine 
years he was engaged in the coal business, and 
in 1869 he was a member of the firm of Dis- 
brow & Goring, iron founders; was in the real- 
estate business until 1872, when he built Gor- 
ing Hall and opened a drug store. In this 
business he was engaged until 1890, since 
which time he has retired from active business 
pursuits. 

In 1850 Mr. Goring married Miss Jane E., 
youngest daughter of Alexander Thomson, of 
Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county. Of this 






,\rv^v(? 



^ 






>^; 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



553 



union four children were born: Thomson E., 
who is superintendent of the large overall 
factory of Sweet, Orr & Co., and whose sketch 
immediately follows; Maria J., who mar- 
ried Ashley S. Worsley, chief engineer in the 
Providence Electric Light Company's works; 
Prescott C, a printer; and Ada M., who died 
in childhood. Mr. Goring was an Old-line 
Whig, coming into the Republican ranks on 
the formation of the latter party. He has 
always taken a lively interest in public affairs, 
and has held a number of important offices, 
being collector of Fishkill town in 1862; 
Deputy Collector of Internal Revenue from 
1865 to 1S67; Assistant U. S. Assessor Inter- 
nal Revenue from 1867 to 1871. He was 
the first Republican supervisor elected in that 
township in ten years, and was re-elected by a 
large majority. In 1871 he was a member of 
the New York Assembly, and sergeant-at- 
arms of the Assembly in 1872. He was presi- 
dent of the village in 1 879, and is its present po- 
lice justice. In 1 8S3 he was appointed, by Presi- 
dent Arthur, postmaster at Wappingers Falls, 
which office he held four years. Mr. Goring 
has been a trustee of the Grinnell Library for 
thirty years. In local enterprises, notably the 
creating oi*the town of Wappinger from the 
town of Fishkill; in the incorporation of Wap- 
pingers Savings Bank, and Bank of Wappin- 
gers; the incorporation of Wappingers Falls as 
a village; in the laying out of the new road to 
New Hamburg as a public, instead of a toll, 
road, as chartered by the Legislature; in the 
law authorizing the erection of the $15,000 
public-school building in the village, and in 
other kindred enterprises, Mr. Goring was the 
initiator and earnest promoter. In all these 
responsible and honorable positions, he has 
acquitted himself with credit to himself, and 
for the best interests of the public. 



T THOMSON E. GORING, eldest son of 
Hon. E. M. Goring, was born at Wap- 
pingers Falls, Dutchess county, September 27, 
1852, and after graduating from the public 
schools was for some time associated with his 
father in the drug and stationery business at 
Goring Hall. In 1878 he entered the employ 
of Sweet, Orr & Co., who recognized his abil- 
ities in 1884 in appointing him to his present 
position. 

Mr. Goring's abilities and kindly disposition 
have won him a firm place in the regard of the 



community at large, and, although his views 
on the Temperance question are somewhat in 
advance of the sentiment in that locality, he 
received a hearty support as candidate for the 
office of president of the village. 

He is one of the three honorary members 
of the K. of T. No. 22, St. Andrews Guild, 
and is a vestryman of Zion Episcopal Church. 
He is also a thirty-second degree Freemason; 
a life member of the Lodge of Perfection; 
Council Princes of Jerusalem; Chapter of Rose 
Croix; the Consistory of New York City — the 
first three named orders being also of New 
York. He is also an illustrious noble of Mecca 
Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., and wears a past 
master's jewel presented by the brethren of 
Wappingers Lodge No. 671, F. Sc A. M. , on 
his retirement from his second term of office. 
Mr. Goring is also a member of Poughkeepsie 
Chapter No. 172, R. A. M. ; King Solomon's 
Council No. 31, R. & S. M. ; and a past senior 
warden of Poughkeepsie Commandery No. 43, 
K. T. At the Masonic fair held in Pough- 
keepsie in 1896 he was awarded a past master's 
apron, which had been offered to the past mas- 
ter of any lodge in Dutchess county receiving 
the largest vote. Mr. Goring is also a mem- 
ber of Lafayette Lodge No. 18, I. O. O. F., 
Lafayette Encampment No. 95, and Evening 
Star Lodge No. 98, K. of P., all of Wap- 
pingers Falls, and also belongs to the Amrita 
Club of Poughkeepsie. In politics he is a 
Republican. While fully recognizing his social 
obligations, Mr. Goring, with all his business 
cares, is not without an interest in the world of 
sport and recreation, as is shown by his mem- 
bership in the Dutchess County Golf Club, the 
Carthage Ice Yacht Club, and the organization 
known as the Long Island Wheelmen of the 
City of Brooklyn. He is also a member of 
L. A. W. 

Mr. Goring's first wife was Miss Mary J. 
Myatt, a daughter of James Myatt, of Bridge- 
port, Conn. Three children were born of this 
union: Myatt E., Maud A. (who died Sep- 
tember 27, 1888), and Ethel M. The mother 
of these passed away March 11, 1886, and 
May 21, 1S94, Mr. Goring formed a second 
matrimonial alliance, his bride being Miss 
Martha Nelson, of Wappingers Falls. Her 
father. Justice Reuben W. Nelson, was born in 
New Jersey, of English stock, and her mother, 
Mary A. Phillips, was a daughter of James A. 
Phillips, of French ancestry. 

Mr. Goring, as the able and popular sup- 



554 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



erintendent of Sweet, Orr & Co. 's overall fac- 
tory at Wappingers Falls, Dutchess county, 
seems to have settled in a satisfactory manner 
the difficult problem of maintaining the inter- 
ests of his employers efficiently while establish- 
ing with the workers of the establishment a 
feeling of respect and esteem which eliminates 
friction. His genial and generous temperament 
enables him to find a way to secure discipline 
without sacrificing harmony, and the affection 
of the emploj'es has been evidenced by the valu- 
able testimonials of their regard. A genuine 
lover of the beauties of nature, he has thought- 
fully striven to make the factory an inviting 
place to the eye; and from spring to fall the 
vine-covered buildings, with their windows and 
roofs brightened by a profusion of flowering 
plants, make a refreshing picture. In the 
center of the factory is a court which is made 
a veritable bower in the warm season, while 
scattered about in the various departments 
are potted plants, palms and ferns. There is 
also a greenhouse containing a large collection 
of plants valued for their beauty and rarity. 
In this connection it is appropriate to mention 
that Mr. Goring is also a member of the 
Dutchess County Horticultural Society. 



JOHN HENRY TIEMEYER. Among our 
thrifty, energetic citizens of German birth 

the subject of this biography, the well- 
known proprietor of the '• Union Hotel" and 
stables at Fishkill village, is a notable figure. 
His untiring and well-directed energy, and wise 
management, qualities so thoroughly character- 
istic of his race, have won for him an enviable 
success in life from a start which could scarcely 
have been more discouraging. 

He was born January 9, 1838, in Osna- 
bruck, Hanover, Germany, where his father, 
John Gerhard Henry Tiemeyer, owned a good- 
si/ed farm. The mother, whose maiden name 
was Drietchen Zurmellen, died when our sub- 
ject was only six years old, leaving a family of 
two sons and two daughters. Until the age 
of fifteen, Mr. Tiemeyer enjo\'ed excellent edu- 
cational advantages in the public school near 
his home, but after that time he was employed 
upon his father's farm. At twenty-two he 
came to America, and on landing in New York 
City he immediately secured a situation in a 
grocery at $3.00 per month and board. Five 
months later he was offered $5.00 per month 
at another store, and he spent four months in 



hard work there; but this employer failed, and 
he received nothing for his efforts but his 
board. At his next place he worked one year, 
his wages being raised during that time from 
$8.00 a month to $12.00, and he then found 
a place where he began at $13.00 a month, 
and stayed three years, receiving in the latter 
part of the term $15.00 a month. His last 
employer, Henry Klute, furnished him money 
to engage in the grocery business for himself, 
and he accordingly opened a store on Twenty- 
eighth street, between Seventh and Eighth 
avenues, where he continued successfully for 
a year and a half. As his landlord wished to 
raise his rent, Mr. Tiemeyer moved to another 
store near by, having by this time saved 
enough money to be independent as to his lo- 
cation. About a year later, his former land- 
lord having come to terms, Mr. Tiemeyer took 
the building again, and carried on the two 
stores. Later he opened another, and con- 
ducted the three for a time until a brother-in- 
law purchased one, and after a time he sold 
one of the others to a cler(k who had been with 
him for three years. He then took a trip to 
the " Fatherland," and on his return disposed 
of his last store. Having accumulated about 
$5,000 he purchased the store building belong- 
ing to his first landlord, and carried on busi- 
ness there for some time; but as real-estate in 
that locality was depreciating in value, he took 
advantage of an opportunity to exchange it for 
property in Kingston, N. Y. Then he en- 
gaged in soap-making, and later carried on a 
milk business; but after a time he moved to 
College Point, and while there lost all he had 
previously gained. 

He had to begin life anew, and for several 
years he worked at different kinds of employ- 
ment; in 1880, with the help of a friend, he 
bought out a saloon, where for a year and a 
half he managed to make a living. In 1882 
he purchased, in partnership with two others, 
the fixtures and stock of a saloon on the cor- 
ner of Seventy-second street and Second ave- 
nue. New York City, for $8,000, with a lease 
of five years at a yearly rental of $1,200. 
Mr. Tiemeyer was a silent partner, and man- 
aged the business, succeeding so well that two 
years later he purchased the interest of one of 
the active partners. As the time drew near 
for a renewal of the lease, in 1887, the land- 
lord raised the rent to $2,500, so Mr. Tie- 
meyer bought the interest of his other partner, 
and removed the business to the corner of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



555 



Eight3'-ninth street and Second avenue, where 
he remained four years. In 1891 he pur- 
chased his present hotel property at Fishkill, 
where he now lives. 

On February i, 1S68, Mr. Tiemeyer was 
married to Miss Rebecca Meyer, daughter of 
Franz and Elizabeth Meyer. Of eight chil- 
dren born to them five are now living: Louise, 
Frank Henry, John M., Rudolph and Eddie. 
The other three died in childhood. Although 
Mr. and Mrs. Tiemeyer are members of the 
German Lutheran Church, they attend the Re- 
formed Dutch Church at present, as the Lu- 
therans have no organization at Fishkill. On 
political questions Mr. Tiemeyer generally 
gives his vote to the Democratic party, but he 
is not a politician in the strict sense. He is a 
member of the Knights of Honor, Empire 
City Lodge No. 228. 



LEWIS W. GENUNG, a prominent citizen 
and leading business man of the town of 

East Fishkill, Dutchess county, conducting a 
general store at Johnsville, was born February 
20, 1843, at Swartout, in the town of Wap- 
pinger, Dutchess county, and comes from one 
of the good old families of the community, 
which is probably of French origin. His pa- 
ternal grandfather, after his marriage, located 
upon a farm in the town of Fishkill, where he 
reared his three sons: Adrian, the father of 
our subject; Joseph, a farmer of the town of 
East Fishkill; and Benjamin, a farmer of 
Wayne county. New York. 

In the town of Fishkill Adrian Genung was 
born, and on attaining to man's estate was 
united in marriage with Miss Susan Boice, 
whose birth occurred in the town of Wappin- 
ger, Dutchess county. Her father, Isaac Boice, 
was also a native of Dutchess county, and a 
carpenter by occupation. After their marriage 
the young couple located at Swartoutville, 
where the father engaged in merchandising for 
many years, but later in life turned his atten- 
tion to agricultural pursuits, dying upon his 
farm in East Fishkill town in 1S80. He was 
a man of the strictest integrity, and a Demo- 
crat in political sentiment. His wife passed 
away in 1 88 5. Of the seven children born to 
them, four died in infancy, and Ella is also 
now deceased; Adriana married Willet Pierce, 
a butcher; Lewis W. completes the family. 

Our subject's early life was spent at Swart- 
outville, and after finishing his education he 



engaged in teaching for about ten years, prin- 
cipally in the town of Lagrange, Dutchess 
county. In February, 1866, he married Miss 
Mary E. Pierce, who was born at Johnsville, 
and is a daughter of Caleb Pierce, a native of 
East Fishkill, and a farmer and butcher by 
occupation. For three years after their mar- 
riage they continued to live at Johnsville, but 
at the end of that time removed to Lagrange 
town, where Mr. Genung followed the pro- 
fession of school teaching. Returning to Johns- 
ville in 1878, he opened his present store, 
which he has since successfully conducted, and 
as a business man is straightforward and hon- 
orable in all his dealings. Two children have 
been born to Mr. and Mrs. Genung: Fred L., 
who assists his father in the store; and Grace 
E. Politically, our subject is identified with 
the Republican party, and was appointed post- 
master at Johnsville shortly after the close of 
the Civil war, which position he has held al- 
most continuously since; he is also notary pub- 
lic. He is a most highly esteemed citizen. 



ENJAMIN F. TREEN, a prominent citi- 

\) zen of the town of Fishkill, Dutchess 

county, and superintendent of the e.xtensive 
straw works, was born in Wallace, Nova 
Scotia, March 27, 1848. 

His ancestors came from England at an 
early period, and his great-grandfather, Jo- 
seph Treen, and his grandparents, Joseph and 
Mary Treen, were residents of Nova Scotia. 
His father. William Treen, married Mary 
a daughter of Benjamin Cook, and had six 
children: Joseph, Benjamin F., Edward, 
Ellen, Elizabeth and Mary Jane. William 
Treen was a prominent ship builder, and often 
sailed as captain of one of his vessels. He 
was lost at sea in 1855, his brig, the "Mary 
Jane," being wrecked off the coast of Nova 
Scotia. 

Benjamin F. Treen received his early edu- 
cation in the public schools of his native place, 
and at the age of fifteen entered the employ of 
Thomas Flynn to learn to make tine custom 
boots and shoes. After working at this trade 
for five years, he came to the United States 
and found employment at Holliston, Mass., 
with Peter R. Johnson, a boot and shoe manu- 
facturer, for whom he worked one year. For 
the next ten years he was engaged in clerking 
for Timothy Daniels in the retail grocery and 
dry-goods business, and he then became inter- 



556 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ested in the manufacture of straw goods, and 
worked three years with D. C. Mowrey & Co., 
learning the details of hat making. This done, 
he became superintendent of B. H. Spaulding's 
straw hat factory at Milford, Mass., and two 
years later he came to Matteawan to take 
charge of the plant of the Matteawan Manu- 
facturing Co. He resigned this position after 
seven years to accept a similar one with W. 
H. Mase, but in two years he returned to the 
former company, with which he has since been 
connected as superintendent. He is now a 
stockholder and the secretary of the company, 
of which Leonard M. Hills and Frank E. 
Whitman, of .\mherst, Mass., are the princi- 
pal members. 

On December 20, 1876, Mr. Treen married 
Miss Ida Frances Blake, daughter of Johnson 
R. and Abbie S. (Gunnj Blake, of Greenwich, 
N. Y. . and has two daughters, Marion Louise 
and Emma Gertrude. The family attend the 
Presbyterian Church, and take a generous in- 
terest in various philanthropic movements. In 
politics Mr. Treen is a Republican, and he is 
at present a member of the board of educa- 
tion. He is a member of the Matteawan Club, 
andiof the Masonic order, Beacon Lodge No. 
283, F. & A. M., Matteawan; Highland Chap- 
ter No. 52, R. A. M., Newburg; Hudson River 
Commandery No. 35, K. T., Newburg, and 
Mecca Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., New York 
City. 



BENJAMIN \V. \AN WYCK, a prominent 
, citizen of Poughkeepsie, and senior part- 
ner of the firm of \'an Wyck & Collins, which 
owns the extensive marble and granite works 
at Nos. 175 and 177 Main street, was born Oc- 
tober 27, 1S35, in the town of Pleasant Valley, 
Dutchess county. 

Theodorus Yan Wyck, great-grandfather 
of our subject, was one of three brothers who 
emigrated from Holland, and, coming to the 
United States, settled on a farm at Jamaica, 
Queens county. Long Island. There they 
were all married, and two of the brothers, 
John and .\bram, remained and reared their 
families: Theodorus \'an Wyck settled at Hemp- 
stead, Uueens county. Long Island, and there 
Samuel, grandfather of Benjamin, was born. 
He married Katura Sammis, who was born in 
that locality, and in 1792 came to Pleasant 
Valley, Dutchess county, settling on a farm. 
A family of six children were born to this couple, 



of which the following names are given: 
Charles, Walter. Cornelia and Betsey. Sam- 
uel \'an Wyck followed farming during his life, 
and was a soldier in the Revolutionary war. 
He and his wife were members of the Presby- 
terian Church. 

Charles \'an Wyck, father of our subject, 
was born in 1S06, in Pleasant \'alley. He 
was married in 1822 to Miss Eliza Rugar, who 
was of Dutch descent, and was born in Pleas- 
ant \'alley. Five children were born of this 
union: Mary E. is the wife of Henry M. 
Owen, a farmer in Pleasant \'alley; Lewis C. 
is a machinist at Newburg; Amelia died in 
1858; Benjamin W. is our subject; Martha 
died in infancy. The father was a machinist, 
and worked in the mill at Pleasant \'alley. 
He was a Whig in politics, and both parents 
were members of the Presbyterian Church. 
He was very domestic in his tastes, fond of 
his home and family, and highly respected by 
all who knew him. He died May 15, 1838; 
his wife died July 9, 1896, at the advanced age 
of about eighty-seven years. 

Benjamin W. \"an Wyck, our subject, ob- 
tained his early education in the schools of his 
native village, and when old enough began 
learning the trade of a marble-cutter at Fish- 
kill. Later he went to Glens Falls, where he 
perfected himself in the business, and in 1S60 
finished his schooling at the Oswego Institute. 
He then went into the marble business at 
Pleasant Valley; but had hardly more than 
made a beginning when the Civil war broke 
out, and he felt it his duty to rally to the de- 
fense of the Union. On September 4, 1862, 
he enlisted in Company D, i2Sth N. Y. I., 
and served throughout the war, being dis- 
charged July 12. 1865. He was with Banks 
on the Red River (La.) campaign, and with 
Sheridan during the Shenandoah Valley cam- 
paign, also in the battle at Cedar Creek, where 
he had a narrow escape from death, and was 
in other important engagements. On his re- 
turn from the war he took up his residence in 
Poughkeepsie, where he worked for a tmie in 
the marble works of Haxby & Miller. In April, 
1867, he bought the interest of Mr. Haxby, 
the firm then becoming Miller & Van Wyck. 
This partnership lasted until the death of Mr. 
Miller in 1878, and for the succeeding three 
years Mr. \'an Wyck had sole control of the 
business. In 18S1 he sold a half interest to 
Mr Collins, and the present firm of Van Wyck 
& Collins was organized. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



bol 



In the extensive works owned by this firm 
all kinds of marble work is done, such as in- 
terior work in buildings, vault linings, wains- 
coting and flooring, table and buffet tops, as 
well as monuments. Mr. Van Wyck was the 
first dealer in this part of the State to intro- 
duce granite work to supersede that of marble, 
in this line, and they are well equipped with 
steam machinery, etc. , to turn out very fine 
specimens, both in design and workmanship. 
They also keep on hand all kinds of encaustic 
tiles, grates, fireplaces and brass goods for the 
same. They buy stock in the rough, and cut 
and polish to suit their trade. Their steam 
plant and other accessories have been twice 
enlarged so that they have now one of the 
best manufactories in the State, and turn out 
superior work in everj^ line of their business. 
The integrity and fair dealing of the firm is 
well known, and it has a high reputation in 
business circles. 

Mr. Van W\xk was married October 1 1 , 
1865, to Miss Mary L. , daughter of Alfred C. 
Van Vlack, of the town of Unionvale. Her 
father, generally known as Major Van Vlack, 
is of Dutch descent and a miller by occupa- 
tion. No children have been born to this 
union. Mr. and Mrs. \'an Wyck are members 
of the First Reformed Dutch Church, and are 
highly esteemed by all who know them. Our 
subject is a Republican, but has never con- 
sented to hold office. He is public-spirited, a 
loyal citizen, and always ready to assist in 
worthy enterprises. He is a member of the 
F. & k. M. and the G. A. R. 



EDWARD EVERETT HAVEN'S, a well- 
known dealer in groceries and provisions 

on Main street, Fishkill-on-Hudson, Dutchess 
county, is one of the leading business men of 
that town, and is noted not only for prudence 
and sagacity in that enterprise, but for the 
energy which carries his plans to successful 
completion. 

He was a native of the beautiful village in 
which he now resides. His father, Joseph 
F. Havens, was born in Xew London, Conn., 
and he and his wife, Katherine O'Shaugh- 
nessy, are still living. Of their twelve chil- 
dren, eleven survive, the eldest being now 
about forty years of age, and the youngest 
seventeen. Their names are: Rhodolphus 
Augustave: Joseph Francis; Edward Everett, 
our subject; Catherine, who died in infancy; 



May 21, 1885, died 
Wilson, born April i, 
28, 1858, died April 



Adella, William, James Henr}-, Maryette, 
Sandford Wilson, Lewis H., Herman and 
Walter. 

The paternal grandparents of Edward Ev- 
erett were Silas and Maryette ' Griffin 1 Ha- 
vens. The former was born February 4, 1794, 
and died January 20, 1857; the latter was 
born December 6, 1809, and died April 18, 
1884. They had twelve children, whose fam- 
ily history is as follows: (i) Silas Nathaniel 
Havens, born March 2, 1S27, married Arabella 
Smith February 24, 1858; no children. (2) 
Sabroh Angeline, born April 7, 1829, married 
Samuel Beckwith March 15, 1853; nine chil- 
dren — Fannie Maryette, who was born Octo- 
ber 3, 1855 (married Jerome Munger January 
I, 1882, and has two children, ^Iina Estella, 
born July 23, 1883, and Emma May, born 
^ray 4, 1 886 1 ; ' Wilbur 
1857; Albert, born April 
4, 1886; Flora Elvira, 
born September 4, 1862; Emery Mel vin, born 
January 7, 1864; Angle Alida, born April 27, 
1865; Effie May, born June 4, 1867; Emma 
Estelle, born April 12, 1869, died June 12, 
1884; Edna Luella, born November 12, 1870. 

(3) Cynthia Margett, born February i, 1831, 
married March 2, 1849, Nathaniel B. Crocker, 
who died Jul}' 3, 1864; five children — Nelson 
Steadman, born May 27, 1851, died Septem- 
ber 24, 185 1 ; Allen Wilson, born February 1 1, 
1853, died September 6, 1853; Alfred Walter, 
born February 1 1, 1853, died August 12, 1853; 
Ella Maryette, born August 27, 1855, married 
Edmund Smith May 7, 1873, and has one 
child, Millie Smith, born October i, 1874 (Ella 
Maryette was again married, this time February 
8. 1885, to .\rthur Baker); and Perry Willis, 
born March 2, i860, died January 26, 1861. 

(4) Sanford Wilson, born March 5, 1833, mar- 
ried October 8, 1857, Laura Ellen Gallup; 
one child — Walter Louis, born December 29, 
1 86 1. '5) Joseph Francis, born April 26, 
1835, married Katherine O'Shaughnessy, Au- 
gust 5, 1855; twelve children— Rhodolphus 
Augustave, born June 24, 1856 (married Ella 
Corcan, November 25, 1877, and has three 
children, Katie A., born December i, 1S78; 
Ella, born October 15, 1879, died September 
5, 1 881; and Mary G. , born November 25, 
1882); Joseph Francis, Jr., born March i, 
1858, married Jennie Benedict, May 9, 1883; 
Edward Everett, whose sketch appears below; 
Katie, born June 5, 1862, died July 6, 1864; 
Adella, born June 25, 1864, married to Philip 



558 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Knapp, May 12, 1883; William S., born May 
21, 1866; James Henrj-, born March 7, 1868; 
Sandford \V., born December 12, 1869; Mar- 
gelta, born August 26, 1870; Lewis H., born 
January 12, 1873; Herman, born August 5, 
1875; Walter Lee, born May 21, 1876. (6) 
Nelson Monroe, born November 12, 1837, 
married Mary A. Luce, December 14, 1862; 
two children — Jennie Marian, born June 5, 
1868, died April 21, 1869; and James Luce, 
born August 25, 1871. (7) Melissa Jane, born 
October 22, 1840, married William F. Beck- 
with, March 17, 1858; two children — Elmer 
Leslie, born April 16, 1866; and Elsie Melissa, 
born November 12, 1874. (8) Alfred Word- 
ing, born October 29, 1842, married Mary B. 
Chapman, May i, 1872; one child — Willis 
Monroe, born May 17, 1875. (9) Sophia 
Amelia, born December 4, 1844, married 
James \'alentine Luce, December 30, i860. 

(10) Terrie Florella, born May 18, 1847, mar- 
ried James \'alentine Luce, December 2, 1883; 
one child — Laura Sophia, born May 12, 1885. 

(11) Wilbur Edson, born October 29, 1849, 
married Lottie Rosella Jordan, November 25, 
1875 ; three children — Arthur Edson, born 
September 26, 1876; Florence Rosella, born 
March 13, 1878; and Edith Gertrude, born 
November 16, 1879. (12) Herman Edgar, 
born February 8, 1854, married Jessie Fre- 
mont Beebe, February 7, 1882; one child — 
Myrtle Sophia, born December 23, 1882. 

Edward Everett Havens, the subject of our 
sketch, was born February 9, 1861, and was 
educated in the public schools of Fishkill. On 
leaving school at about the age of fourteen, he 
secured a situation as clerk in the grocery store 
of K. H. Delaney, in the town of Beekman. 
He remained there three years, and then went 
to work in the A. T. Stewart mill at Glenham, 
and during the three or four years spent there 
learned several different trades connected with 
the manufacture of woolen cloth. After leav- 
ing this place he entered the employ of Rev. 
Father McSweegan, in Matteawan, and for 
about a year worked on church improvements, 
and the next four years were spent witfi James 
A. Murray, a carpenter and builder. In Oc- 
tober, 1886, the business in which he is now 
engaged was founded, beginning in the build- 
ing next door to his present establishment, 
which he erected in 1892. 

Mr. Havens' partner in life's joys and sor- 
rows was Miss Mary C. McCarroll, a daughter 
of Robert and Mary McCarroll. Thej' have 



four children: John E., Mary A., Robert 
Francis, and James Herman. They are mem- 
bers of the Roman Catholic Church at Fish- 
kill. 

In politics Mr. Havens is a Democrat, and 
he has been the candidate of his party for 
commissioner of the poor, and also for trustee 
of the village. As the town is generally Re- 
publican, and as the years in which he led the 
forlorn hope exceptionally unfavorable for the 
Democratic party, he was defeated. He is a 
member of Dutchess Council C. B. L., and is 
at present its treasurer. He is also a member 
of the Catholic Knights of America, member 
No. 49120, of the Catholic Benevolent Society, 
and of Court O.ueen of the Hudson No. 81 19, 
A. O. F. of A." 



FRANK M. EDMOND is one of the most 
able and enterprising young business men 

of Matteawan, Dutchess county, the inventor 
of a wire-spring support for upholstered chairs 
and car seats, which promises well, his patent 
having been obtained and a company formed 
for the manufacture and sale of the appliance, 
with Ross Judson, president, Samuel K. Phil- 
lips, secretary and treasurer, and Mr. Edmond, 
as superintendent. No one who knows Mr. 
Edmond will fail to wish him well in this new 
undertaking, as his courageous and energetic 
efforts during past business reverses have won 
universal admiration and good will. 

He is a son of the late William Romain 
Edmond, who for over twenty years was a 
stockholder in the Matteawan Hat Manufac- 
turing Co. , and the foreman of its extensive 
works. He was a native of Windham, Greene 
Co., N. Y., and went to Matteawan at the 
time the late Lewis Tompkins and the Mase 
brothers began their investments in the hat 
business at that place. He died of paralysis 
July 10, 1889, his wife, formerly Mary E. 
Bump, and six sons surviving him. Our sub- 
ject is one of eight children: George; Addie, 
who died in childhood ; Nelson ; William ; Frank 
M. ; James; Horace; and Lucius, who died in 
early youth. 

Frank M. Edmond was born February 18, 
1863, and resided at Matteawan throughout 
his early life, attending the public schools until 
the age of twenty, and later working in a 
straw-hat factory. After six or seven years in 
that emploj'meot he eng;aged in the furniture 
business at Fishkill Landing in partnership 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



559 



with Mr. Otto Deicke, one of the best uphol- 
sterers and carriage trimmers to be found on 
the Hudson. This partnership was terminated 
four years later by the death of Mr. Deicke; 
but his interest was taken by his son Herman 
and the firm continued for another year under 
the same style of Deicke & Edmond. The 
business had prospered, and the firm was 
carrying at this time a full line of household 
goods, including stoves and ranges, but their 
trade was largely "on time", and when the 
business depression came and their customers 
were unable to meet their obligations, the firm 
was forced to discontinue. Mr. Edmond was 
thus compelled to make a new start in life, but 
he had his tools and an abundant supply of 
"pure grit", which in combination with his 
trained alwlities were a sufficient capital. In 
1891 he began work in repairing bicycles and 
upholstering furniture, and his success enabled 
him to open a shop of his own in Matteawan 
on Main street, under the ''Dibble House", 
in the spring of 1896. He also holds the 
agency for a fine line of bicycles, and is at pres- 
ent the manager of Scharbauer & Sargent's 
Bicycle Manufacturing and Repair Shops. 

On June 4, 1890, Mr. Edmond married 
Miss Emma Deicke, a daughter of his former 
partner. Otto Deicke, and his wife, Marie 
Deicke. X^^y have two children, Romain and 
Bertha, and reside in a pleasant home on 
Washington avenue, Matteawan. Both attend 
the Presbyterian Church, and Mr. Edmond is 
a member of the I. O. O. F., Evergreen Lodge, 
Matteawan. He has always voted the Demo- 
cratic ticket. 



|ANIEL H. MONKS, a well-known resi- 
jy? dent of Fishkill, Dutchess county, was 
born August 19, 1858, in Dublin, Ireland. His 
family has been prominent in that city for 
many years, and his father, the late William 
Monks, a native of the place and a man of in- 
dependent means, passed the. greater part of 
his life there. With his wife, Anna ( Murphy), 
and their family, he came to America to spend 
his last years, and his death occurred in the 
town of New Windsor, Orange Co., N. Y. He 
took a keen interest in all the questions of the 
day, and especially in political problems, his 
sympathies being with the Democratic party. 
In religious faith he was a Roman Catholic, as 
is his estimable wife, who survives him. 

Of their seven children, the eldest, James, 



gave his life for his adopted country, dying in 
Andersonville prison in the latter part of 1864. 
He enlisted first in the i6Sth N. Y. V. I., and, 
after receiving an honorable discharge at the 
end of two years' service, he re-enlisted, this 
time in the i 5th N. Y. Cav. He was captured 
three times, and the cruel hardships of the 
historic stockade at Andersonville finally proved 
too much for his gallant spirit and once strong 
and healthy frame. The other members of 
the family were: Margaret (deceased), for- 
merly the wife of James A. Dunn, an under- 
taker at Newburgh, N. Y.; Mary, wife of Nich- 
olas Lee, of Newburgh; John, a liquor dealer 
in the same city; Daniel H., our subject; 
Fannie, wife of Robert Greening, of New 
Windsor, N. Y. ; and Anna (deceased). 

D. H. Monks was but a child when his 
parents came to this country, and his youth 
was spent mainly in Newburgh. He learned 
the business of molding iron and brass, which 
he followed for some time; but in 1889 he en- 
gaged in the retail liquor business at Fishkill 
Landing. Since 1890 he has carried on a 
wholesale trade, making a specialty of How- 
ard & Child's beer. 

Mr. Monks was married, in 1886, to Miss 
Elizabeth Smith, of Fishkill Landing, a daugh- 
ter of James Smith, whose ancestors came 
originally from the Emerald Isle. No chil- 
dren were born of this union. In politics Mr. 
Monks is a Democrat, and he is a prominent 
member of St. John's Roman Catholic Church 
at Fishkill. 



LEXANDER HAMILTON DUDLEY. 

\^ The Dudley family is of English origin, 
and the branch to which the subject of this 
sketch belongs traces its lineage to Lord Guil- 
ford Dudley and his wife. Lady Jane Gre}-. 
The first of the line to come to America left 
Leicestershire, England, at a very early period, 
and located in New England, where his de- 
scendants have been prominent in various 
walks of life, some having been Governors of 
States. 

Asael Dudley, our subject's grandfather, 
married Hannah Woodhouse. He died May 
31, 1830, in the eighty-second year of his age, 
and his wife on December 16, 183 1, at the 
age of eighty-three. Their son, Joseph S. 
Dudley, our subject's father, was born in Wil- 
ton, Conn., in 1786, and died September 16, 
1865. He was a tanner and currier by trade, 



5G0 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



and owned a tannery at Hughsonville. His 
wife, Betsey (Cole), was a daughter of William 
Cole, of Wilton, Conn. She was born in 
1790, and died January lo, 1855. Of their 
nine children only two survive. John died in 
infancy; William S. in 1867; Harriet in 1891; 
John G. on April 24, 1867; Charles H., born 
October 24, 1823, and died September 17, 
1850; Joseph H. is still living; George W., born 
May 21, 1828, died January 23, 1848; Alex- 
ander H.is the subject of this sketch; Hannah 
M. died October 14, 1869. 

Alexander Hamilton Dudley was born April 
24, 1830, in the town of Peekskill, Westches- 
ter Co., N. Y. , and was educated in the 
district schools of that locality, and at Wilton 
Academy, \\'ilton. Conn., where he remained 
one year. On leaving school he went to New 
York City and engaged in the business of buy- 
ing and tearing down old buildings, and sell- 
ing the materials. His office was located on 
23rd street, between Fifth and Sixth avenues. 
In 1864, after eighteen years in this business, 
he moved to Brinckerhoff, Dutchess county, 
and purchased the Starr gristmill, which he 
has conducted ever since. The water privi- 
leges on this property are excellent as he has 
never been obliged to shut down during the 
driest season. There is an interesting history 
connected with the mill also, as it stands upon 
the site of one which was burned by the Hes- 
sians during the Revolutionary war, and was 
built, by order of Gen. Washington, by a de- 
tail of soldiers belonging to the Colonial forces. 
There is not a sawed stick in it, all have been 
hewed from solid hardwood and mortised to- 
gether, and it bids fair to stand as solidl}' as 
ever through many years to come. On De- 
cember 23, 1S59, Mr. Dudley was married to 
Miss Frances S. Hamilton, who was born No- 
vember 27, 1S27, the daughter of William 
Hamilton. Her death occurred November 14, 
1885, and Mr. Dudley afterward wedded Mrs. 
Mary (Brett) Fountain, daughter of James and 
Helen (White) Brett, and widow of Hosea 
Fountain, by whom she had one child. Po- 
litically, Mr. Dudley is a Republican, and a 
member of the Reformed Church at Fishkill. 



WA L T 1-: R LIVINGSTON T E N- 
BROI-XK, an agriculturist whose pro- 
gressive and scientific management has made 
him one of the successful men ot the town 
of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, was born 



July 8, 1830, at Livingston, Columbia Co., 
N. Y. The district schools of that day af- 
forded but limited educational opportunities; 
but such as they were he made the most 
of them, and by intelligent observation and 
constant reading he has since acquired thor- 
ough information upon many subjects, and 
especially upon branches of science relating to 
his occupation. 

Mr. Ten Broeck remained at the home- 
stead until he was twenty-five years of age, 
and April i, 1854, he purchased a farm near 
Rhinebeck; but two years later sold this prop- 
erty and moved to the estate upon which he 
has now resided for forty-one years. He pos- 
sesses fine executive ability, and the 160 acres 
of land to which he devotes his attention are 
kept in a high state of cultivation. "In 1 866 he 
became a life member of the New York State 
Agricultural Society, and he has always taken 
a prominent part in local affairs; but although 
he is a firm supporter of the principles of the 
Democratic party, he has never held public 
office, having refused to serve when elected. 
He was married in 1855 to Helen U. Schult2, 
daughter of Peter I. Schultz, of Rhinebe^:k, and 
has had eight children: Derrick Wessel; Peter 
S., who died at the age of eight years; Helen 
R. (Mrs. Wallace Traver); Albertina S., who 
is at home; Jane L., who died at, the age of 
twenty-one years; and Mary E. , Lucys and 
Weaker T. L. , who are all at home. Mrs. 
Ten Broeck is a leading member of the Re- 
formed Church at Rhinebeck, and a generous 
worker in its varied lines of effort. 

The Ten Broeck family is one of the oldest 
and most distinguished in America, and our 
subject is one of the seventh generation from 
Wessel W. Ten Broeck, of Munster fa city of 
Westphalia, Prussia, situated near the border 
line of Holland), who landed at New Amster- 
dam in 1626 in company with the Hon. Peter 
Minnit, third director of the Holland \\'est In- 
dia Compan}'. (Cornelius Maj', of Hoorn, 
having been its first director, in 1624, and 
William \'an Hulst its second director, in 1625). 
.And when we reflect that the first known out- 
line map of New Belgium (now New York), in- 
accurate as it was, was made in 161 8; that 
Boston was only settled in 1630, and Maryland 
in 1632; that when this ancestor of the Ten- 
Broecks came to this countr\' in 1626, New 
Amsterdam (now the mighty city of New 
York) contained only 270 souls, including 
men, women and children; that Albany, the 





-1 Crt 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



561 



capital of our great Empire State, contained 
only twenty-six inhabitants, including one white 
woman; it may be truly said that Director 
Minnit and his protege. Ten Broeck, came to 
New Belgium when it was a very feeble col- 
ony, and, dating from that origin, this family 
is one of the most ancient in the New World. 

Nor were the early ancestors unknown or 
undistinguished. The first settler became the 
most extensive merchant of his day at Albany; 
and the historical records of New York show 
that in 1689 Dirck Wessel Ten Broeck, his 
son, was employed by Gov. Dougan as em- 
bassador to Canada to settle matters of Pro- 
vincial difficulty; and that in the same year he 
was his majesty's recorder of the city of Al- 
bany; and in 1690 the same recorder is certi- 
fied to with high commendation for energy and 
philanthropy in relieving the people of Schen- 
ectady from suffering, after the destruction of 
their town by the French and Indians; and 
subsequently for his great zeal in furthering 
the Governor's designs against the French in- 
vasion then in progress. Guided by such 
lights, we can safely assume that the father 
and son, for that primitive day, were no ordi- 
nary men; but it is foreign to this notice to 
attempt the history of the whole family. 

Other descendants, too, have shared much 
public honor and confidence, and it may not 
be inopportune to say: That the able and 
patriotic correspondence of Abraham Ten- 
Broeck, president of the committee of safety 
of New York, with Hon. John Hancock, Presi- 
dent of Congress; the polish and eloquent 
power of Derick Ten Broeck, his son, for 
three sessions speaker of the House of Assem- 
bly of the State of New York; and the gal- 
lantry of Maj. Leonard Ten Broeck (the grand- 
father of our subject) at the taking of Bur- 
goyne, are matters of history so clear that no 
historical scholar will question the general tal- 
ent, inlluence or gallantry of the descendants 
of the original emigrant. 

Mr. Ten Broeck's father, the late Gen. 
Leonard W. Ten Broeck, served as a member 
of the State Assembly, and one term as sheriff 
of Columbia county, and was one of the most 
influential and popular men of his day. On 
the maternal side our subject is a grandson of 
Walter T. Livingston, of Clermont, a repre- 
sentative of another family distinguished from 
the earliest periods of our country's history. 

Capt. Samuel Ten Broeck, an elder brother 
of our subject, born in Livingston June 5, 

36 



1826, just 200 years after the landing of his 
ancestor in this country, was a soldier in our 
Civil war, and a hero worthy of the patriotic 
blood of these illustrious families, identified 
with the Declaration of Independence and the 
stern trials of our Revolutionary struggle. He 
devoted some years of his life to mercantile 
pursuits, but at the outbreak of the Rebellion 
he was one of the first to respond to the call to 
arms, joining Company M, 5th N. Y. V. C, 
and from that time his every energy was given 
to his country. He died July 4, 1863, leaving 
a wife, son and daughter, the parting from 
them being his severest trial. Columbia county 
mourned the death of this generous and chiv- 
alric officer; on the day of his burial the flags 
of the shipping and public buildings at Hudson, 
a point twelve miles distant from his residence 
and place of burial, were lowered to half-mast; 
and a concourse, unequalled by numbers in 
that section of country upon any previous occa- 
sion, escorted his earthly remains to their last 
spot of rest — and affection deposited in his 
grave many a sprig of evergreen dedicated to 
his virtues and his memory. But the finale is 
so graphically told by one who knew and loved 
him well, in an obituary notice published the 
day succeeding his death, that we will close 
this notice by its insertion as follows: 

Capt. Ten Broeck was one of nature's noblemen — 
one of the very few so happily constitute<I that he had no 
enemies, but many ardent, ardent friends; his nature was 
so genial, his benevolence .so ex|iansive, his affections so 
enthusiastic, that, as husband, jiarent, brother, friend, his 
loss is irreparable, and, therefore, deeply and widely 
mourned. 

As Masonic brother, his heart and hand were in 
many charitable offices, and the tear of sorrow has often 
been hushed from the orphan's eye. As a companion, the 
light of many a social circle has been dimmed; as hus- 
band, father, and friend, his voice of cheerful kindness 
has been hushed forever, to leave a sad and aching void. 

Capt. Ten Broeck was widely known and valued in 
Columbia county as a judicious and public-spirited citi- 
zen, having served as a member in its board of super- 
visors with marked ability, and as a member of the 
Assembly from its Second District in 18.5(1. 

But his brightest phase of character was unswerving 
patriotism which shone forth brilliantly in the first boom- 
ing of rebellious cannon upon the stars and stripes at 
Fort Sumter. Descendetl from a stock who were among 
the first settlers of this country, and whose swords leaped 
gallantly from the scabbards in the trials of 177G, his soul 
fjurned with native fire to resent the impious insult to our 
flag, and he early volunteered in a New York cavalry 
corps, where, amidst other active services, he endured 
such exposure and fatigue while following his admirable 
leader three weeks in the saddle, almost without inter- 
mission, that he was sent on a furlough to his home, a 
victim of severe typhoid fever; and, after partial recov- 
ery, urged on by over anxiety to be with his regiment and 
in the service of his country, he returned too soon to the 
scene of conflict, and still too weak to follow in the train 
of his intrepid commander, was intrusted with command 



562 



COMMEMORA rrVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



of the camp, until, hiirnc (li)wn by insiduous disease, he 
came home on a Ihirty-ilays' furlouf^h to recover, if ijossi- 
hle, vet so spent tliat'in threi; chiys after his arrival, sur- 
rounded hy his loved ones and in his own house, tliat 
manly spirit took flight. Farewell, dear Captain; our 
national day of jubilee was a fitting one for the death of 
so devoted a patriot. 



RICHARD COURTLAND HORTON is 
the owner of a property in the town of 
East Fishkill, Dutchess county, his handsome 
residence beinj; set ofT by a back ground of 
dense foliage, while the grounds are intersected 
by winding paths, the whole presenting a most 
attractive appearance. The farm, which com- 
prises I 30 acres, has been brought to a high 
state of cultivation through the untiring efforts 
of our subject, and yields bountiful harvests. 

Mr. Horton was born at Gayhead, town of 
East I'ishkili, August 2, 1832, and is a lineal 
descendant of Barnabas Horton, who came 
from England to this coimtry, in 1640, locat- 
ing in Southhold, Long Island. A wing of the 
old house which he erected in that year is yet 
standing and the property is still in the posses- 
sion of the Horton family. He was a minister 
of the Gospel, and a most excellent man. 

Capt. Joseph Horton, the great-grandfa- 
ther of our subject, was born at Southhold, 
Long Island, and there grew to manhood. He 
removed to New York City, and from there to 
Moodna, Ulster (afterward Orange) county, 
where his death occurred. During the Revo- 
lutionary war he had the pleasure of entertain- 
ing Gen. La Fayette and Gen. Washington at 
the old home. He married Miss Jane Van- 
Voorhis, and to them were born two sons and 
several daughters. Of the former, Jacob 
never married and lived but a short time after 
they located at Gayhead; Courtland was the 
grandfather of our subject. After the death 
of her husband, Mrs. Horton purchased the 
property at Gayhead, in the town of East 
Fishkill, Dutchess county (now owned and 
occupied by our subject), and at her death was 
buried at Hopewell, while her husband was in- 
terred on Murdners creek, or Moodna. 

Courtland Horton was born at Murdners 
Creek, in Orange county, N. Y., and was quite 
a young man when he came to Dutchess coun- 
ty. He wedded Hannah \'an Wyck Hrincker- 
hoff, who was born at Hopewell, in the town 
of East Fishkill, where Mr. L. C. Rapalje now 
lives. After their marriage they located at the 
old homestead, where they reared their four 
children: Richard \'an \\'\ck, who died when 



a young man; John G., who was also quite 
young at the time of his death; Jane, who 
died unmarried; and Jacob, the father of our 
subject. The three former were never mar- 
ried. The grandfather was a prominent man 
of his time, was a merchant at Gayhead, and 
was also a large landholder in the locality. 
Religiously he was a member of the Reformed 
Dutch Church, and his political support was 
given the Whig party. 

.^t the old homestead at Gayhead the birth 
of Jacob Horton occurred, and on reaching 
manhood he also followed farming and mer- 
chandising at that place. He took an active 
part in religious affairs, assisting in the erec- 
tion of the Reformed Dutch church, of which 
he was a member, and was first a Whig in pol- 
itics, later a Republican. He married Diana 
Storm, a native of Hopewell, and a daughter 
of Col. John Storm. Her death occurred Au- 
gust 16, 1840, that of her husband on March 
9, 1865. In the family were six children, in 
all: Jane, who married Edward H. Seely, of 
Brooklyn; Richard Courtland, subject of this 
sketch; John Storm; Jacob, who was a minis- 
ter of the Gospel, and died in Bethel, Maine; 
Diana, who married Henry W. Brower, of 
New York City; and Elizabeth \'an Wyck. 
The last three are brother and half-sisters of 
our subject. 

Upon the farm where he still resides, Rich- 
ard Courtland Horton passed his early life, at- 
tending the local schools, and later pursuing 
his studies at Danbury, Conn., at the Amenia 
Seminary, and at Newburg, N. Y. .\fter fin- 
ishing hi.s education he returned to the home 
place, where he has since resided. He was 
married to Miss Mary Brown, a native of New- 
burg, and a daughter of Judge John W. Brown, 
who was born in Dundee, Scotland, and held 
many public offices in the State, among them 
that of Supreme Court Judge for sixteen years, 
and latterly justice of the court of appeals. 
Two children graced this union: Mary Brown, 
wife of William \. Adriance, of Poughkeepsie; 
and Ralph Courtland, of New \ork City. 

Since 1S52 Mr. Horton has given his at- 
tention exclusively to agricultural pursuits. 
Politically, he is a Republican, and in 1844 
was appointed postmaster at Gayhead, which 
position he faithfully filled for thirty years. 
Both himself and wife are members of the 
Reformed Church, and they certainly well de- 
serve the high regard in which they are held 
bv all who know them. Their beautiful home 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



563 



indicates the refined and cuitLired taste of the 
inmates, and its hospitable doors are ever 
open to the reception of their manj' friends. 



LEONARD V. PIERCE, a substantial and 
progressis'e horticulturist of the town of 
East Fishkill, Dutchess county, is one of the 
most extensive grape growers in this section of 
the State, having upon his place several vari- 
eties of fanc}' grapes. He has been visited by 
many of the leading men engaged in that par- 
ticular industry from all over the country, and 
his fruit farm has often been referred to in ar- 
ticles on the grape subject in horticultural 
magazines. 

A native of Dutchess county, Mr. Pierce 
was born in the town of Beekman, March i8, 
1842, and the family have mostly made their 
homes in that county for the last century, 
his grandfather, Daniel Pierce, having come 
from Westchester county about 100 years ago. 
He followed the vocations of carpenter and 
farmer. 

Isaac Pierce, the father of our subject, was 
one of the fourteen children born to Daniel 
Pierce, his birth occurring in the town of East 
I'^ishkill, where he grew to manhood upon a 
farm. In early life he learned the tailor's 
trade, was later an agriculturist, and still later 
in life conducted a general store at Johnsville, 
Dutchess county. His political support was 
given to the Whig party until its dissolution, 
when he became a Republican. 

Isaac Pierce married Jane E. Wilcox, who 
was also born in the town of East Fishkill, 
and was a daughter of Abner Wilcox, a 
native of Dutchess county, and a farmer by 
occupation. Six children blessed this union: 
Elizabeth, who married Abraham Stout, a 
farmer of the town of East Fishkill; Leonard 
v., our subject; Louisa, widow of Abraham 
Way, a wagonmaker; Cora, wife of William 
H. Griffin, an agriculturist of East Fishkill; 
Antoinette, who married DeWitt Conover 
(both are now deceased); Mary J., wife of 
Dearborn Wixon, a farmer of East Fishkill. 
The mother died in 1888, the father in 1893, 
respected by all who knew them. 

The childhood of our subject was passed in 
the town of Beekman, but the greater part of 
his life was spent in East Fishkill. For eight 
years he clerked in the store of his father at 
Johnsville, since which time he has been engaged 
in the culture of fruit with most satisfactory- re- 



sults, upon his present farm of seventy acres. 
He also raises vegetables, but gives his spe- 
cial attention to his vineyards, in which he 
may well take a just pride. 

On December 31, 1868, Mr. Pierce was 
united in marriage with Miss Mary E. Way, 
who was born at Johnsville, and is a daughter 
of Abraham Way, a farmer of the town of 
East Fishkill, and a wagonmaker by trade. 
At their present comfortable home, which was 
erected by Mr. Pierce, he and his wife began 
their domestic life, and two sons came to 
brighten the household: Walter S. and Henry 
B. Like his father, our subject is a Republic- 
an in politics, has served as collector and 
supervisor of the town of East Fishkill, and 
and was postmaster of the village of Johnsville 
for many years, which position he held to the 
satisfaction of all concerned. For about ten 
years he was vice-president of the Dutchess 
County Agricultural Society, and was also su- 
perintendent of the fruit and Hower depart- 
ment. 



WINTHROP SARGENT, of " Woden e- 
the," a charming country estate in the 

town of Fishkill, Dutchess county, finds in this 
highly-favored region an environment most 
congenial to a man of fine culture and artistic 
tastes. He was born in the city of New York, 
April 3, 1840, the eldest in a family of four 
children, of whom he is now the only survivor. 

Henry Winthrop Sargent (his father), of 
Boston, Mass., for some years was a member 
of the firm of Gracie cS: Sargent, agents in that 
city of Welles & Company, of Paris, France, 
the earliest American bankers in Europe. 
Samuel Welles, the head of the house, was 
his uncle. The mother of Winthrop Sargent 
was Caroline, only child of Francis Olmsted, 
a member of the old New York firm of Peter 
Remsen & Company. 

When Winthrop Sargent was but a few 
months old, H. W. Sargent, having retired 
from business, purchased a country estate 
in the town of Fishkill, Dutchess county, 
where he resided until his death in 1882. He 
soon became one of the leading horticulturists 
of the countr}-, and exhibited in the gardens 
and grounds of " Wodenethe " the highest 
skill in cultivation, and in the art of landscape 
gardening. At the death of his mother in 
1887, Mr. Winthrop Sargent inherited 
"Wodenethe," where he had lived since in- 



5&4 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



fancy, and where he continues to spend his 
summers, passing the winter months in 
Boston. 

W'inthrop Sargent was graduated from 
Harvard College in the class of 1862, and from 
the Harvard Law School in 1864. Since the 
year 1766, in this college, all of the men of 
his family have received their education. 
After leaving Harvard, Mr. Sargent made an 
extended tour in Europe. He was married in 
1873 to Miss Aimee Rotch, daughter of the late 
B. S. Rotch, Esq., of Boston, and grand- 
daughter of the Hon. Abbott Lawrence, who, 
through two administrations, was United States 
minister to the Court of St. James. The 
Rotch family were old and honored residents 
of New Bedford, Mass. ; one of their early 
ancestors was Francis Rotch, the owner of the 
" Dartmouth," the ship from which 1 14 chests 
of tea were thrown overboard in 1773, by the 
indignant Colonists of Boston, disguised as 
Indians. 

Mr. Sargent's first American ancestor was 
William Sargent, who came to this country 
from Exeter, England, in 1650, and settled on 
Cape Ann, Massachusetts, where he had a 
grant of land. His eldest son married a grand- 
daughter of John Winthrop, first Colonial 
Governor of Massachusetts, since which time 
there has been a Winthrop Sargent in each 
generation of the family. A grandson of Will- 
iam Sargent was severely wounded in the bat- 
tle of l^unker Hill; another grandson, Win- 
throp Sargent, commanded a sloop of war in 
1745; his son, Winthrop Sargent, was a dis- 
tinguished officer in the war of the Revolution, 
and fought at the battles of Trenton, Brandy- 
wine and Germantown, and endured the priva- 
tions at Valley Forge. He was at one time 
adjutant-general to Gen. Wayne, and at an- 
other time was aid-dc-camp to Gen. Howe, 
and was greatly distinguished by Gen. Wash- 
ington. Later he became Governor of the 
Mississippi Territory under the administration 
of President John .Adams. 

Three members of the Sargent family ren- 
dered distinguished service in the war of the 
Rebellion, one of whom was killed in battle. 
A curiously romantic story has been handed 
down through the generations of the Sargent 
family since 1738. In the reign of James I, 
of England, there lived in London one Mas- 
ter George Heriot, goldsmith to the King, and, 
if report has spoken truly, a lender of large 
sums of monev to that monarch. Sir Walter 



Scott made him a prominent character in his 
novel called the " Fortunes of Nigel," in which 
the King familiarly calls him "Jingling 
Geordie. " Some exquisite specimens of gold 
and silver work are still shown in England as 
the work of Heriot. It is related that one 
day, through the carelessness of the attendant, 
the only daughter of Master Heriot, a child of 
tender age, fell from the window of his house 
on London Bridge into the Thames below. 
One of her father's apprentices, Francis Os- 
borne, seeing this, jumped from a window into 
the water, and saved the child from death. 
After some years had passed, F"rancis Osborne 
married his master's daughter, whose life he had 
saved; succeeded to his business, became a 
great merchant, and, like Whittington, was 
thrice Lord Mayor of London, and was knighted 
by King Charles I. One of his direct descend- 
ants was afterward ennobled, and that branch 
has held in succession to the present day 
the title and estates of the Duke of Leeds. 
\\'hile this was going on in England, a male 
descendant of Sir Francis Osborne found his 
way to this country in the early Colonial days, 
and settled in Rhode Island. One of his de- 
scendants, Hon. John Osborne, became a res- 
ident of Boston, and his daughter married, in 
1738, a great -great-grandfather of the subject 
of this sketch. 



ADOLPH G. HUPFEL. One of the most 
beautiful and well-appointed estates in 
this region of elegant country homes is the 200- 
acre farm, near Johnsville, belonging to the 
subject of this sketch. Nature did much for 
it, but no expense has been spared to add to 
those attractions all the improvements which 
artistic taste and utility could desire. 



Mr. Hupfel was born 



August 



184; 



in 



Orange county, N. Y., the son of Adolph and 
Catherine Glaser (lu'c Bross), the former a 
native of Neviges, Prussia, the latter being of 
Holland. The family of Adolph Glaser was of 
some note in Prussia, he enjoying the distinc- 
tion of Burgomaster of Neviges, and holding 
other important local offices; took part in the 
revolution of 1848, was banished, and after 
a general amnesty was declared he returned to 
his native place where he taught languages; 
he lost all through his participation in the 
1 848 trouble. They passed the first years of 
their residence in this country in New York 
City, where the father worked as a cabinet 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



565 



maker, in 1843 removine; to Orange count}', 
N. Y. , where he engaged in the manufacture 
of fishing rods, which he continued until his 
death in 1849. His widow conducted the busi- 
ness about three years, and then married Anton 
Hupfel, who took it in charge, continuing 
same until 1854, when he associated himself 
with Roemelt & Assheimer. in the brewery 
business, at Nos. 223-229 38th street, New 
York. In 1858 he bought out his partners, 
and carried on the business alone until his re- 
tirement in 1873, his two stepsons, Adolph G. 
and John C. G. Hupfel, taking the place in 
partnership, under the firm name of A. Hup- 
fel's Sons. 

Adolph G. Hupfel attended the district 
schools of Orange county for some years and 
at the age of nine accompanied his parents to 
New York City, where he took a course in the 
jiublic schools, graduating in 1861. He then 
spent a short time in a private school, and on 
leaving this entered business life at the foot of 
the ladder, being employed as driver of a beer 
wagon for two years. For the five years fol- 
lowing he collected the debts and kept the 
books of the establishment, and then worked 
in the brewery, learning the business in all its 
details. His health failing at this time, he 
was sent to Europe to recuperate, and on his 
return he took charge^ of all the out-door in- 
terests of the brewery. After succeeding to 
the business in 1873, Mr. Hupfel and brother 
conducted it for ten years, together with 
another establishment, at the corner of i6ist 
street and Third avenue, which their step- 
father had purchased in 1863. In 1883 John 
C. G. Hupfel retired froni the i6ist street and 
Third avenue plant, and our subject continued 
alone for about si.x years, when he sold a part 
of his interest, but continued the management. 
In the following year he bought his farm near 
Johnsville, then known as the Du Bois prop- 
erty, now called " Echodale." There were no 
improvements of any kind upon it, and he has 
spent many thousands of dollars in bringing it 
to its present state of perfection. His resi- 
dence is one of the finest in the county, and his 
liarns are models of construction and arrange- 
ment; he still owns property in New York City, 
including a residence, but he makes his home 
constantly at the farm. 

On April 11, 1870, Mr. Hupfel married 
Miss Catherine I\entz, of New York City, who 
died in February, 1871, with her only child. 
On May 11, 1S73, Mr. Hupfel wedded her sis- 



ter, Miss Magdalen Kentz, by whom he has 
had four children: Catherine G., who mar- 
ried H. W. McMann, of New York City; and 
Adolph G. , Jr. , Antoinette G. , and Otto G. , all 
three at home. In politics Mr. Hupfel is an 
independent Democrat. 



7ILLIAM BAKER. To the traveler of 



to-day the voyage across the Atlantic 
is only a short pleasure trip, and it is difficult 
to realize the discomforts and, perhaps, hard- 
ships endured by the emigrants to this country, 
before the advent of steam as a motive force. 

The father of our subject, John D. 
Baker, a native of Germany, came to America 
in the early part of this century in a sailing 
vessel, spending six months upon the way. 
Among the other passengers was Miss Eliza- 
beth Rickerts, in whom he found a sympa- 
thizer in his aspirations for the freer life in the 
New World. For some time after landing 
Mr. Baker worked on Staten Island as a com- 
mon laborer, but later he became a farmer, 
and after marrying Mis» Rickerts, settled in 
the town of New Paltz, Ulster county, where 
the subject of our sketch was born, July 16, 
1820, the sixth in a family of eight children. 
The others were: Catherine, who married 
Hiram Donaldson, a farmer in Dutchess 
county, both deceased; Mary, the widow of 
the late Alanson Vail; Nancy, who married 
George Pray, a farmer in Dutchess county, 
both deceased; Jacob, deceased, a farmer and 
blacksmith at Freedom Plains, N. Y. ; John 
deceased, a carpenter and farmer at Freedom 
Plains and New Hackensack; Henry, a miller 
in the town of Unionvale, and Isaac, a resident 
of Lagrange township. In 1823 the father 
moved to a farm in Freedom Plains, where he 
passed his remaining years. In politics he 
was a Republican, and he and his wife were 
both members of the Presbyterian Church. He 
died in 1854 and his wife in 1852. 

William Baker was only three years old 
when the family moved to Freedom Plains, 
where he spent his early years. At the age of 
twenty-one he began to learn the blacksmith's 
trade, and followed it at that place for about 
six years. In 1851 he went to Sprout Creek, 
and later to New Hackensack, carrying on his 
business successfully in both localities. He 
purchased his present farm in 1864, and built 
the house in which he now resides. His eighty 
acres of land have been highly improved under 



5G0 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



his judicious manaf^ement, and make one of 
the best farms of the size in that section. 

On January 25, 1849, Mr. Baker married 
his first wife, Miss Catherine E. Meddaugh, 
daughter of James Meddaugh, a well-known 
farmer of the town of I^agrange. Two chil- 
dren were born to them: Amiie E., who died 
at an early age, and Mary, the wife of Court 
A. Van Voorhis, a farmer in the town of Wap- 
pinger. Mrs. Catherine Baker died December 
24, 1S75, and January 17, 1877, Mr. Baker 
was united in marriage with Harriet A. Croft, 
daughter of Henry I). Xecdham, a farmer in 
the town of W'appinger. 

In politics, Mr. Baker is a I^epublican, but 
he does not take an active part in public af- 
fairs, preferring a (juiet home life and the 
peaceful enjoyment of the fruits of his past 
labors. 



WILLIS DE.'\N, a prominent agricult- 
urist, residing near Wappingers F"alls, 
Dutchess county, is one of the most highly 
respected citizens of- that county. He is de- 
scended from an old English family, and his 
ancestors in the American line crossed the 
Atlantic at a very early period. John Dean, 
his grandfather, was a leading farmer in the 
town ol Kent, Putnam Co., N. Y., and Niles 
Dean, our subject's father, succeeded to the 
homestead, and followed the same occupation. 
He married Nancy Northrup, also a native of 
Putnam count}', and reared a family of nine 
children: Milton, a farmer in Putnam county; 
Rensselaer, a carpenter in Patterson, N. Y. ; 
Anner, who married Philip Smith, a farmer in 
Steuben county, N. Y., both now deceased; 
Willis, our subject; Ursula (deceased), who 
married the late Benjamin Stone, a farmer in 
Steuben county; I-afayctte, an agriculturist in 
the same county; Jackson, a carpenter in Lee 
county, Iowa; Erastus, a machinist in Bing- 
hampton, N. Y. ; and Oliver, a comb manu- 
facturer in Binghampton. Our subject's father 
was a man of prominence in his locality, and 
in politics was a Whig. He died in 1837, 
and his wife survived him many years, de- 
parting this life in 1858. 

The subject of our sketch was born at the 
old homestead, September 10, 1821, and re- 
in;iined there until he attained his majority, 
when he learned the butcher's trade. He fol- 
lowed this for two years in the same vicinity, 
and in 1845 moved to Glenham, I^utchess 



county, and about three years afterward settled 
in Hughsonville. He continued his business 
successfully until 1875, when he retired, and 
purchased the farm of 100 acres upon which 
he has since resided. A good manager, his 
industry and thrift have enabled him to accumu- 
late a competency, and in addition to his farm, 
he owns four houses in Hughsonville. 

On December 22, 1846, he lUdrried his 
first wife, Miss Catherine Squires, a daughter 
of Jonathan Squires, a well-known farmer in 
Putnam county. She died in 1880, leaving no 
children. In 1S89 Mr. Dean married his pres- 
ent wife, a lady of Holland-Dutch descent, 
Miss Jeannie Westervelt. She is a grand- 
daughter of Ge»rge Westervelt, and a daughter 
of John C. Westervelt, a native of New Jersey, 
who has been for years a prominent manufac- 
turer and coal dealer in New York City. Her 
mother, Cornelia Westervelt, a native of New 
York, is no longer living. 

Mr. Dean has always endorsed the princi- 
ples of the Democratic party, and has held 
several minor offices. The Dean family is 
noted for advanced views on the temperance 
question and other reforms, and has always 
been connected with the Baptist Church, which 
both Mr. and Mrs. Dean attend. 

Seven brothers are living. The eldest, 
Milton, is now eighty-three, and the youngest, 
Oliver, is sixty-si.\. They have their annual 
reunion in the month of June. All have 
Christian principles, using no intoxicating 
liciuors, speaking no profane language, and are 
straightforward in every respect. 



HENRY B. KNICKERBOCKER, a repre- 
sentative and successful farmer of the 
town of Pine Plains, Dutchess county, was 
born on P"ebruary 28, 1832, upon the farm 
which is still his home. There his grandfather, 
Benjamin Knickerbocker, located over a cen- 
tury ago, and it has been in the family ever 
since. The grandfather was a man of excel- 
lent judgment, and was very successful in the 
operation of his land. He married Alatika 
Smith, by whom he had four chiKlren — two 
sons and two daughters — namely: Peter, 
Alatika, Henry, and Hannah (who became the 
wife of Lewis A. Pulver). 

The birth of Henry Knickerbocker, the 
father of our subject, occurred upon the home- 
stead in 1798, and he inherited half of the 
place from his father. He followed agricult- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



567 



ural pursuits throughout life, and in his earlier 
days also conducted a gristmill upon the farm. 
He was united in marriage with Miss Lydia 
Pulver, daughter of Peter Pulver, and four 
children were born to them: Cornelius and 
Emeline (now deceased); Henry B., subject of 
this review; and Jane, widow of William 
Smith. The father died in 1861, the mother 
in 1886. 

Our subject received a somewhat limited 
education in the district schools, but this has 
been greatly supplemented by extensive read- 
ing and observation in later years, so that he 
may be termed a self-educated man. At the 
age of eighteen he took charge of his father's 
farm, assuming the entire responsibility, and 
since that time has successfully managed the 
place. On reaching his majority he came into 
possession of 109 acres belonging to his father, 
and in 1S65 purchased of Hiram Wilson the 
remainder of his grandfather's farm, so that 
he now has a valuable place of 215 acres. He 
is careful and methodical in business, and has 
converted his land into one of the most highly 
cultivated and attractive places in his locality. 
Besides general farming he is successfully en- 
gaged in sheep raising. 

On September 26, i860, Mr. Knickbocker 
married Miss Phcebe Stickle, daughter of 
Jacob and Hulda (Card) Stickle, and they have 
become the parents of two children: George 
H., of the town of Northeast, married to Julia 
Collin; and Fred, at home. Until President 
Lincoln ran for his second term, Mr. Knicker- 
bocker had always supported the Democracy, 
but at that time he voted for the martyred 
President, and was a Republican for several 
years, but now his allegiance is given to the 
Prohibition party. He and his wife and sons 
are members of the Presbyterian Church of 
Pine Plains, of which he is an officer, and takes 
an active interest in Church work. In the 
prosperity of his town and county he has been 
an important factor, assisting in everything 
for their improvement, and throughout the 
community he has many warm friends. 



EDGAR CLARK (deceased). The subject 
, of this sketch, formerly one of the leading 
agriculturists of the town of Northeast, Dutch- 
ess county, was a descendant of one of the 
oldest families in the country, the head of the 
.'\inerican line, Thomas Clark, having been a 
passenger on the "Mayflower." 



Several generations of the family have 
made their home at Plainfield, Conn., and 
there our subject's grandfather, Ezra Clark, 
was born in 1748. He came to Dutchess 
county in 1795, and became very prominent, 
owning large tracts of land, and taking an in- 
fluential part in local affairs. He married 
Mary Douglas, and had ten children, among 
whom was Moses Clark, our subject's father, 
who was born May 20, 1785, at the old home 
in Connecticut. He was ten years of age at 
the time of his father's removal to Dutchess 
county, and the remainder of his life was here 
passed. On November 3, 1808, he married 
Mary Wiggins, daughter of Arthur Wiggins, 
of New Milford. This family was of Scotch 
origin, but had lived in the North of Ireland 
for some time previous to emigration to Amer- 
ica. Soon after his marriage Moses Clark 
purchased the farm of 600 acres near Miller- 
ton, now owned by Ambrose Culver, and made 
his permanent home there. Later he bought 
another farm of 176 acres, now owned by his 
granddaughters, Elizabeth and Carrie D. 
Clark, and at one time he had about 1000 
acres of land at diil'erent points. He was a 
man of great energy and excellent judgment, 
and possessed much influence in the commun- 
ity. He died August 12, 1854, and his wife 
April 25, 1874. They had eight children, a 
brief record of whom is as follows: An)brose, 
born September 11, 1809, married Julia A. 
Collin, of Northeast; Mary E., born January 
13, 181 1, married Ambrose Mygatt, of Amenia, 
N. Y. ; Edgar, born February 22, 1813, was 
married (first) to Mary Ann Holbrook, of 
Northeast, and (second) to Emeline Dakin, 
also of Northeast; Julia L. , born October 26, 
1 8 14, was married (first) to Peter Righter, of 
Pine Plains, N. Y., and (second) to Solomon 
Weaver, of Branchport, Yates Co., N. Y. ; 
Emily A., born June 25, 1816, married George 
E. Crane, of New Milford, Conn. ; George, 
born May 3,1818, was married (first) to Emily 
Rogers, of Fishkill, N. Y. , and (second) to 
Ada Stevens; Harriet J., born April 19, 1827, 
married Willard Weed, of Torrington, Conn.; 
and Moses C, Jr., born April 29, 1833. None 
of this family are now living except Mrs. Emily 
A. Crane and Mrs. Harriet J. Weed. 

The late Edgar Clark was a man of wide 
and accurate information, always interested in 
the topics of the day. He received a good 
English education in boyhood, attending the 
common schools near his home, and, later, 



568 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPEWAL RECORD. 



the academy at Hudson. In 1837 he bought 
the farm where Leonard L. Barton now lives, 
and resided there until 1S53, when he pur- 
chased from his father the farm of 176 
acres above mentioned, and moved there. 
On October 18, 1838, he was married to 
Mary Ann Holbrook, daughter of Nicholas Hol- 
brook, a prominent merchant of Northeast 
Center. She died March 3, 1849, leaving 
three children: Mary Elizabeth, born July 
-i' '839, now living at the old farm; Emily 
I^eora, born October 8, 1840, the wife of Mar- 
\ ill Reed, of LaUeville, Conn. ; and Rachel 
H., born June 23, 1844, who married Arthur 
J. Mead, of Fayetteville, N. Y. On October 
15, 1849, Mr. Clark, for his second wife, mar- 
ried Emeline Dakin, daughter of Jacob Da- 
kin, in his day one of the most prominent 
men of the town of Northeast, and the 
owner of about 1,000 acres of land. One 
child came of this marriage, Carrie D., born 
December 2, 1850, who now resides on the 
old homestead. Her mother died December 
25, 1882, a little more than five years after 
the death of Mr. Clark, which occurred Sep- 
tember 12, 1877. He was an e.\cellent busi- 
ness man, and was often asked to assist in the 
settlement of estates, his integrity as well as 
his ability being unquestioned. Although he 
was not a member of any Church, his life dis- 
played in every phase the loftiest morality. 
He took a hearty and generous interest in all 
worthy public movements, and in local affairs 
was a leading worker, being elected on the 
Republican ticket to various offices, including 
that of township supervisor, which he helci 
for several terms. During the Civil war he 
was active in securing the quota of men re- 
quired from his township, and he greatly re- 
gretted the fact that his advanced age pre- 
vented him from going to the front himself. 
He was a member of Webatuck Lodge No . 
4S0, F. & A. M. 



EDWIN BARNES, M. D., the well-known 
|)li\sician of Pleasant Plains, Dutchess 
county, is a representative of one of our most 
prominent families, his own achievements in 
the line of his profession adding lustre to the 
record. 

His great-great-grandfather Barnes was 
born on Tower Hill, London, England, and 
came to America before the Revolutionary 



war, but returned to England early in the 
struggle, his .sympathies being with the British 
government. His family, however, were pa- 
triots, and remained in this country. His son, 
Joseph, our subject's great-grandfather, was 
born November i, 1744, in the town of Clin- 
ton, Dutchess county, and became a farmer 
there. He was married, November 7, 1771, 
to Sarah Butts, who was born January 4, 1745. 
They were Quakers in faith, and both died in 
18 I 3 — he on March 15, she on April 5. Thir- 
teen children were born to them, their names 
with dates of birth being as follows: Benja- 
min, August 25, 1772; Thomas, April 10, 
1774; Joseph, Jr. (i), July 22, 1775; Moses, 
November 7, 1776; Elizabeth, June 14, 1778; 
Joseph, Jr. (2), December 10, 1779; John, 
April 30, 1782; William, October 15, 1783; 
Stephen and Samuel (twins), April 19, 1785; 
Jacob, April 19, 1787; Sarah. July 15, 1790; 
and Mar}-, March 12, 1793. Samuel, our sub- 
ject's grandfather, lived for many years at the 
old homestead in the town of Clinton, and 
afterward in Livingston county, N. Y., but in 
his old age he moved to Canada, where he 
died. He married Fanny Armstrong, who was 
born October 26, 1787, and died in Pough- 
keepsie, January 11, 1S54. They had three 
children: Stephen S., born July 18, 181 1; 
Edwin, born September 6, 1817, died April 3, 
1842; and Hannah (now Mrs. Moses Camack), 
born December 2, 18 19. 

Stephen S. Barnes, our subject's father, 
learned the cooper's trade in early manhood, 
and later became the junior partner of the 
firm of A. B. Nash & Co., brewers, of Troy, 
N. Y. He married Huldah Britton Hall, 
daughter of Camillus Hall, of East Westmore- 
land, Cheshire Co., N. H., and children as 
follows were born to their union: Elizabeth 
(now Mrs. Caleb C. Hewlett), March 2, 1837; 
Charles Nash, February 8, 1840, a resident of 
Denver, Colo.; George Waters, March 27, 
1842, died in infancy; Edwin, July 28, 1844, 
our subject; and Clark Phillips, November 1 1, 
1846, who resides near Denver, Colo. The 
family always made their home in Hyde Park 
township, although the father's business often 
required his absence. He died in Anderson 
county, Kans.. March 29, 1886, his wife sur- 
viving until August 6, 1892. 

Dr. Barnes was born in Troy, N. Y., but 
he passed his boyhood at the old home, at- 
tending first the district schools of Hyde Park 
and then a private school at Pleasant Plains, 




tydLC^^<^ fiojV^-cJ-^Cf) 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



569 



taught by Re\'. Sherman Hoyt. He began his 
medical studies with an uncle, Camillus Hall, 
M. D., at Burlington, Ohio, where he remained 
a year and a half. He then entered the Al- 
bany Medical College, but, in 1864, before his 
course was completed, he joined the army as 
a cadet on the medical staff. He served in 
the Department. of the Cumberland, of West 
Virginia, and of the East, until mustered out, 
February 3, 1866. In the meantime, his de- 
gree of M. D. had been conferred upon him by 
Albany Medical College, December 28, 1865, 
while he was on duty at the Ira Harris General 
Hospital. Ten days after his return home he 
began the practice of his profession at Pleas- 
ant Plains, where he has since resided. 

On November 13, 1866, Dr. Barnes was 
married in Macedon, N. Y., to Matilda Arms- 
strong, whose grandfather, Jacob Armstrong, 
was a resident of Clinton. Her father, Tru- 
man Armstrong, was born August 15, 1804, 
and for the greater part of his life was a 
farmer in the towns of Clinton, Unionvale and 
Hyde Park; but in 1863 he moved to Palmyra, 
Wayne county, where he lived a retired hfe. 
He was married Sep'>.ember 19, 1833, to Eliza- 
beth Powell, who was born February 15, 
1804, and they had four children: ( i) Daniel, 
born December 27, 1833, was a machinist in 
New York and Chicago, and died January 25, 
1891; (2) Jacob, born August 30, 1837; {3) 

Theodore, born , 1845, who died in 

infancy; (4) Matilda, born August 11, 1841, 
and (5) Anna, November 22, 1842. Jacob en- 
listed in Company D, 128th N. Y. \'. I., and 
served until mustered out with the rank of first 
lieutenant, July 28, 1865. He took part in a 
number of important battles, among them be- 
ing Port Hudson, Pleasant Hill, Sabine Cross 
Roads, Winchester, Cedar Creek, being taken 
prisoner at the latter place, and not again 
joinmg his regiment until February, 1865. 
After the war closed he engaged in the real- 
estate and lumber businesses in Chicago, where 
he died June 15, 1893. Mrs. Barnes' father 
died at Palmyra, January 13, 1878, her mother 
surviving until September 9, 1883. Our sub- 
ject's pleasant home has been brightened by 
three children, of whom the first, Marion, born 
February i, 1868, died October 25, 1871; the 
others are Myrta Elizabeth, born August 17, 
1877; and Percy Raymond, August 9, 1880. 

In politics the Doctor is a Republican, and 
he took profound interest in the abolition of 
slavery. Professionally, he stands high, and 



he has been president of the Dutchess County 
Medical Society, and vice-president of the 
New York Medical Association. 



EDMOND A. MOREY (deceased) was one 
of the popular and highly respected citi- 
zens of Dover Plains, Dutchess county, and 
at the time of his death was connected with 
the Harlem railroad. The Morey family was 
founded in Dutchess county by his grandfather, 
Abraham Morey, who was born in Connecticut, 
September 15, 1778, and from his native State 
he removed to Dutchess county, locating in 
the town of Washington. He was a promi- 
nent farmer. He was the ninth son of Stephen 
and Sarah Morey, who were born in the town 
of Washington, Dutchess county. When he 
had attained to man's estate he was married 
on Christmas Day, of 1806, to Miss Phebe 
Boyce, who was born in the town of Wash- 
ington, June 9, 1780, and was the daughter of 
Isaac and Remembrance Boyce. Si.x children 
were born to them; Alonzo, born November 
5, 1807, died April 5, i860 (he served two 
terms as sheriff of Dutchess county); Barak, 
the father of our subject, was next in order of 
birth; Alanson was born January 5, 18 10; 
Harriet, born I'ebruary 25, 1812, was married 
October 22, 1856, to Isaiah Reynolds, by Rev. 
Abram Davis, at her father's home, in the 
town of Washington, and she died March 4, 
1888, at the age of seventy-six years; Julia, 
born November 27, 18 16, died November 26, 
1887, at the age of seventy-one years; and 
Priscilla, born May 13, 1821, died September 
7, 1872. The father of this family died July 
15, 1859, at the age of eighty years and ten 
months, and his wife passed away on Septem- 
ber 18, 1866. 

Barak Morey, the father of our subject, was 
born in the town of Washington, Dutchess 
county, December 16, 1808, and there received 
his education in the common schools. He 
later, for some time, engaged in merchandising 
at Hulls Mills, Dutchess county, and on dis- 
posing of that business purchased a farm in 
the .town of Amenia, which he cultivated for 
thirty years. He always took a great interest 
in politics, and held a number of town offices 
to the satisfaction of all concerned. His 
earthly career was ended on April 12, 1886, at 
the age of seventy-eight years. 

Barak Morey was twice married, his first 
union being with Miss Mary L. Toby, daughter 



570 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



of Albert Toby, of the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county; she died September i8, 1847, 
leaving one child, Albert B., who was born 
August 29, 1847, 3nd died, unmarried, No- 
vember 7, 1S92, aged forty-five years. Mr. 
Morey was again married December 9, 1849, 
the lady of his choice being Miss Sarah Eliza- 
beth Howes, a daughter of Edmond Howes, a 
farmer of Sullivan county, N. Y. Of the five 
children that graced this union Edmond A. 
was the oldest. Alonzo H., born December 
20, 1853, never married, and died February 
23, 1 893, at the age of thirty-nine 3'ears. Ira 
A., born September 28, 1856, died November 
10, 1880, at the age of twenty-four years. 
Cinda E., born February 28, i860, married 
Reuben A. Brown, of Westfieid, Mass., who 
is now engaged in the manufacture of cigars at 
I^uffalo, N. Y. Samuel, born June 14, 1862, 
makes his home at Amcnia, where he is en- 
gaged in business. 

Mr. Morey, of this review, was a native of 
Dutchess county, born in the town of Stanford, 
on September 15, 1851, and his education was 
such as the common schools afforded. Most of 
his life was devoted to agricultural pursuits, 
but after his removal to Dover Plains he was 
in the employ of the Harlem railroad. A 
stanch Democrat in politics, he kept well 
posted in regard to current events, and held 
a number of minor town offices. Social!)', 
he held membership with the Odd Fellows 
lotige of Poughkeepsie, No. 297, and also be- 
longed to the Odd F'ellows Mutual Benefit Asso- 
ciation of Dutchess county. He was classed 
among the best people of the community, well 
worthy of any distinction that might have been 
conferred upon him. Mr. Morey was united 
in marriage with MissThedorah Odell. a daugh- 
ter of Samuel and Elmira Odell. of Pleasant 
Valley, and to this union was born one child, 
Jennie E., born September 21, 1874, and on 
September 2, 1896, at half-past two o'clock, 
was married by the Rev. S. J. McCutcheon 
to Emanuel C. Benson. Edmond A. Morey 
passed to the unseen world December 19, 1896, 
at the early age of forty-five years. 

Samuel D. Odell, father of Mrs. Morey, 
was born in the town of Washington, Dutch- 
ess county, July 3, 1793, and was the son of 
Samuel D. and Sarah Ann (Doty) Odell, the 
former a native of the town of Washington, 
and the latter of Salt Point, Dutchess county. 
In early life he learned the hatter's trade, 
which he followed for a number of years, but 



afterward engaged in farming and carpenter- 
ing. By his marriage with Miss Permelia Mar- 
shall, he had ten children; Edwin, Sallie A., 
George, Bartlet, Marshall, Lewis, William, 
Seneca, Elizabeth and Joseph; of these, Sen- 
eca was made colonel of the 28th Regiment. 
September 5, 1862, which regiment went out 
1,600 strong, and when mustered out, July 
13, 1865, numbered but 400. After the death 
of his first wife he married Miss Almira Baker, 
who was born in 1822, and was the daughter 
of John Baker, of the town of Pleasant Valley, 
Dutchess county. Si.x children blessed this 
union: Leander, born December 21, 1844, 
married Miss F'rances Hustead ino children 
were born to them); Charles A., born Novem- 
ber 29, 1846, was in the Union army during 
the Civil war, and is now married and has 
two children; Jacob J., born May 16, 1849, 
married Mrs. Elmira Finkle, and they have 
one child, Mary; Theodora, born May i, 1851, 
is the wife of our subject; Mary F., born Oc- 
tober 29, 1853, wedded Andrew Lake, a sol- 
dier of the Civil war, who now receives a pen- 
sion, and they have nine children — Oran, Ale.x. 
James, Fred, Arthur J., Mary, Ah'ereta, Alice 
and Ida; and Cornelia, born April 27, 1858, 
died August 18, 1866, at the age of eight years. 



POLHEMUS W. MYER, leading agricult- 
urist of the town of Wappinger, Dutchess 
county, is a member of one of its old and 
highly respected families. His ancestors came 
from Holland at an early period, and his grand- 
father, Reuben Myer, was born in that county 
and spent his life there. He married Catherine 
Van \'oorhis, and had seven children, none of 
whom are now living: (i) John R. was a 
farmer upon the estate now owned by our sub- 
ject; (2) Abraham R. resided in Hughsonville; 
('3) Zachariah was a hotel-keeper in Arlington, 
Dutchess county; (4) Egbert was a resident of 
Hughsonville; (5) Ellen married William Van- 
Voorhis, a carriage painter; (6) Nancy married 
William Monfort; and (7) Warren D. 

Warren D. Myer, the youngest of the fam- 
ily, was born and reared in New Hackensack, 
and in early manhood began his successful 
mercantile career by clerking for his brother 
in Hughsonville, where he afterward conducted 
a general store for twenty-si.x years. His wife 
was Miss Susan Lyster, daughter of John P. 
Lyster, a well-known farmer of East Fishkill, 
and a descendant of another old Holland- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



571 



Dutch family. They attended the Presby- 
terian Church, and were prominent in its work. 
Ill later years Mr. Myer purchased the present 
homestead, near Hughsonville, where he re- 
sided until his death, in 1872. His wife sur- 
vived him twenty years. Of their four chil- 
dren, the eldest, Delancey L. , died in 1891, 
and Margaret and Olevia died in infancy. 

The subject of this biography, the young- 
est child, was born in Hughsonville, July 31, 
1846, and after availing himself of the educa- 
tional facilities of his native town settled at 
the homestead, and the management of its 133 
acres has since occupied his attention. On 
September 6, 1S83, he married his first wife, 
Miss Kitty H. Denny, a native of the town of 
Hyde Park, Dutchess county. They had two 
children — Maud K. and Emma H., who are 
both at home. Their mother died October 
22, 1888, and on October 25, 1893, Mr. Myer 
wgs again married, this time to Miss Jennie E. 
Cutler, who was born in Westchester county, 
the daughter of Cyrus Cutler, a prominent 
farmer. 

Mr. Myer is a Democrat, as was his father 
before him, but his influence is exerted in a 
quiet, though forceful, way. 



HENRY HOFFMAN, who was born on 
January 26, 1S29, in the town of Pine 
Plains, Dutchess county, was there success- 
fully engaged in farming for many years. He 
was a worthy representative of an old and 
honored family of the locality. The founder 
of the family in the New World was Hendrick 
Hoffman, his great-grandfather, who was born 
in Germany about 17 19, and on crossing the 
water located in Ancram,"Columbia Co., N. Y., 
where he secured the farm now occupied by 
his great-grandson, Frederick Barton. By his 
marriage with Sybil Magdalene Yunghans he 
became the father of three children: Henry, 
who was the grandfather of our subject, was 
born in Ancram January 6, 1761; Matthias, 
who married Anna Maria Strever, and Marga- 
ret, who wedded a Mr. Talmadge, of Rensse- 
laer county, N. Y., a distant relative of T. 
DeWitt Talmadge. 

The grandfather came to the town of Pine 
Plains, Dutchess county, in 18 12, locating on 
the hill where the Hoffman Mills now stand, 
and in this town he spent the remainder of his 
life, dying in 1840. He was one of the most 
prosperous farmers of the vicinity, owning 500 



acres of valuable land. His wife, who was 
born January 6, 1762, survived him about ten 
years. On January 15, 17S6, he had married 
Catherine Veterle, of Red Hook, N. Y., and 
they became the parents of ten children, 
namely: Margaret, born September 25, 1786, 
married Rowland Sweet, of Copake, Colum- 
bia Co., N. Y. ; Catherine, born October 12, 
1788, died unmarried; Eleanor, born Decem- 
ber 28, 1790, married Walter Dorchester; 
Henry, born May 17, 1793, married Almira 
Culver, of Pine Plains; Polly, born August 27, 
1795, married Jeremiah Conklin, of Pine Plains; 
Catherine, born January 28, 1798, died in 
childhood; one child, born June 15, 1799, died 
in infancy; Betsey, born May 28, 1800, mar- 
ried George Barton; Laura, born June 23, 
1803, married Artemas Sackett, of the town 
of Washington, Dutchess county; and Anthony 
was born in Ancram, Columbia county, Sep- 
tember 15, 1805. 

Anthony Hoffman, the father of our sub- 
ject, spent his entire life upon the farm which 
his father had located in the town of Pine 
Plains, where the family had long been a lead- 
ing and prominent one in the community. ' He 
was a progressive and enterprising man, and 
kept the old homestead property intact. He 
was married to Sally Barton, of the town of 
Stanford, Dutchess county, and to them were 
born the following children: Henry, of this 
review, was the eldest; Sarah, born December 
6, I S3 1, wedded Herman Snyder, of Gallatin, 
Columbia county; Leonard, born November 
24, 1833, died unmarried; Catherine, born 
February 22, 1835, married J. Culver Hoag; 
Julia, born October 30, 1837, became the wife 
of Elias Halstead, of Ancram; Laura, born 
January 20, 1840, married Edgar Eggleston, of 
the town of Northeast, Dutchess county, and 
Anthony, born September 8, 1844, died un- 
married. All of the children are now deceased 
with the e.xception of Catherine and Laura. 
The father's death occurred September 10, 
1876; his wife passed away November 23, 1884. 

Our subject was educated in the district 
schools of the neighborhood, and in a select 
school at Millerton, Dutchess county, con- 
ducted by E. W. Simmons, and by reading in 
subsequent years became a well-informed man. 
He succeeded to the eastern end of the old 
homestead, consisting of 153 acres, and on 
that farm spent his entire life. He was natu- 
rally a man of good business ability, and was 
numbered among the substantial and industri- 



572 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORAPHICAL RECORD. 



oils farmers of Pine Plains. The farm is now 
occupied by his only child, Leonard, making 
the fourth generation that has resided there. 
In 1866 Mr. Hoffman married Miss Mary A. 
Strever, who was born July 31, 1836, and is a 
(laughter of Adam and Eliza fEno) Strever. 
Their son Leonard married Ella J. Miller, 
daughter of Adam Miller, of Pine Plains, and 
they have two children, Ira and Harry. Mr. 
Hoffman used his right of franchise in support 
of the men and measures of the Democratic 
[jarty, and took an active interest in public 
affairs. He was straightforward and honora- 
ble in his dealings, and gained the high regard 
of all with whom he came in contact. 

The Strever family, of which Mrs. Hoffman 
is a member, is of German origin, and the 
name was formerly spelled Streibel, later cor- 
rupted to Strevel and afterward to Strever. 
About 1720 Johannes Strever came to America 
from the Fatherland, and on his arrival in New 
York City was sold to pay his passage. A man 
by the name of Couse brought him to the town 
of Milan, Dutchess county, where he worked 
his time out. He was born December 24, 
1731,' and married Maria Dings, who was born 
in 1742, the daughter of Adam Dings. His 
death occurred February 24, 1804, and his 
wife survived him about four years. In their 
family were si.\ children, namely: John Adam, 
born June i, 1760, married Lizzie Strever; 
Jacob, born June 18, 1762, married Anna 
Maria Hoysradt; Anna Maria, born April 5, 
1764, married Matthias Hoffman; Eva, born 
March 27, 1766, became the wife of Hendrick 
Hoysradt; John, born July 4, 1768, wedded 
Mary Hoysradt; and Benjamin, born Novem- 
ber 8, 1 77 1, married Maria Righter. 

The ne.xt in direct line to Mrs. Hoffman is 
John Strever, who was born on a farm near 
Ancram Lead Mines, now owned by Jacob 
Miller, and by his marriage with Mary Hoys- 
radt had ten children: Polly, born October 
23, 1790, became the wife of Cornelius Hoys- 
radt; Henry, born March 18, 1793, married 
Betsey Snyder; John, born January 13, 1796, 
never married; Adam, born March 13, 1798, 
was the father of Mrs. Hoffman; Elizabeth, 
born April 28, 1800, died while young; Ben- 
jamin, born June 20, 1802, married Cornelia 
Snyder; J. Iloysradt, born November 24, 
1805, wedded Abbie Marsh; Tammy, born in 
November, 1807, became the wife of John 
Silvernail; Eliza, born February 9, 18 10, died 
unmarried; and Fanny, born January 18, 1812, 



also died unmarried. On June 7, 1790, the 
father of this family purchased of Mr. Gra- 
ham, one of the Little Nine Partners, 700 
acres of land, for which he gave 900 pounds 
in English money, and that property has been 
in the family ever since. 

On the family homestead Adam Strever, 
the father of Mrs. Hoffman, was born and 
reared his family. He was an able financier, 
being very successful in business matters, up- 
right and reliable, and could be depended upon 
under any circumstances. He was naturally a 
quiet man, and one of the most highly esteemed 
men of the community. He married Miss 
Eliza Eno, daughter of Julius and Amanda 
Eno, of Schoharie county, N. Y. , and to them 
were born three daughters: Mary Amanda, 
now Mrs. Hoffman; Jane W., born November 
23. 1837; and Julia, born August 30, 1840. 
On August 27, 1872, the last named married 
Daniel Poole, by whom she had one son, Strje- 
ver, and her death occurred August 6, 1895. 
The father passed away February 18, 1872, 
and the mother on July 25, 1845. 

Among many heirlooms, Mrs. Hoffman has 
a German Bible, sent to Johannes Strever some 
time after his arrival in this country, and it is 
now about 140 years old. This family, it is 
quite evident, was one of considerable stand- 
ing in the Old World. 



MARTIN W. COLLINS, a pronnnent busi- 
ness man of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, was born October 14, 1847, in the 
town of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess Co. , N. Y. , 
and is a member of one of the old families of 
that locality. 

The following record is given of Mr. Col- 
lins' immediate paternal ancestors: Isaac F. 
Collins, his father, was born May 22, iSi8, in 
Pleasant Valley, Dutchess Co., N. Y. ; Martin 
W. Collins, his grandfather, was born in the 
town of Rhinebeck, in 1790; and Joshua Col- 
lins, the great-grandfather, was born near 
Providence, R. I. He was the son of Joseph 
Collins, who was a native of England, and 
came to America, settling near Providence, 
where he reared a laige family of children, of 
whom the sons were- : Joshua, Hezekiah, 
Joseph, William and Charles. Of these, Heze- 
kiah came to Dutchess county, N. Y. , and set- 
tled on a farm in Unionvale; he married, and 
reared a large family. Joseph lived in Rhode 
Island, where his family became prominent. 




Tl^Lon^ TP^ Cuiu^ 



COMME^VORATirE BIOORAPHICAL RECOHD. 



578 



William also made hi^^ homo in Rhode Island, 
and there reared a family. Charles removed 
to Columbia county, X. V., where he married 
and settled on a (arm; he had two children, 
one of whom. Charles, became a lawver and 
lived in Brooklyn. 

Joshua, the eldest of the family above re- 
corded, and great-j^randfather of our subject, 
was reared in Rhode Island, where he married 
Mary White, and shortly after ^about 1774") 
came to New York, settling in Rhinebeck, 
Dutchess county, and taking charge of prop- 
erty belonging to Gen. Montgomery. In iSoo 
he bought a farm in eastern Pleasant N'alley, 
where he remained until his death in iSjg. 
He had a family of seven children, namely: 
,\^ Henry, married Miss Cox, of Rhinebeck, 
and followed farming, yi') Gideon married 
Miss Sweet, of Lithgow, Dutchess county, 
moved to Chautauqua, N. Y., and there reared 
a family. (3) Joshua married Miss Rowe, 
and located at Cocymans, N. Y.. from there 
moving to Illinois. 14) Susan married Caleb 
Angevine, a stock dealer in Now York City. 
(5) Oliver married Miss Ward, and lived in 
Pleasant ^■alley (he was a school teacher, and 
also a merchant). (6) Patty married Minavd 
\'elie, who was a farmer and sltK~kraiser, of 
.Lagrange. 1^7) Martin W. was the grand- 
father of our subject. 

Martin W. Collins lived in Rhinebeck until 
ten years of age, but was reared to manhood 
in Pleasant \'alley. He married Miss Nancy 
Forman, a native of tlie latter place, and for 
some time after his marriage lived on his 
father's farm. He afterward bought a large 
farm in the town of Washington, Dutchess 
county, where he died October i, 1876, his 
wife surviving him until November JO, 1886. 
He served as lieutenant in the war of 181J, 
and was very prominent with the Democratic 
party of his locality, and heltl the office of su- 
pervisor for many terms, and also superintend- 
ent of the County Poor. To the union of this 
worthy couple were born four children: (0 
Joshua, the eldest, is living at Wappingers 
Falls at the age of eighty-two years; he has 
for many years been a minister of the Gospel, 
Presbyterian Church, but is now retired from 
active work. {2) Mary A. married William 
H. Ciurncy, who lived in Dutchess county, 
and was a stockdealer in New York City. (3^ 
Isaac is our subject's father. (^4) Rhoda, 
who never married, is now seventy-four years 
old. In religion the family were Uuakers. 



Isaac Collins, father of our subject, grew 
up on his father's farm, and earl_\- in life stud- 
ied surveying and engineering, which profes- 
sion he followed during the greater part of his 
life. He married Miss Phabe J. Holmes, who 
was born at Pleasant \'alley August lo, 18^2. 
Slx^ was the daughter of Isaac Holmes, a 
farmer, and granddaughter of Joseph Holmes, 
who came from Westchester county, N. Y. 
The family was of Gorman descent. Four 
children were born to Isaac Collins and his 
wife, as follows: ^H Isaac H. died when eight 
years old. (J^ Mary .\nn married James Ho- 
gan, of Rhinebeck, and died December \2, 
1871. 1^3'' Martin W. is our subject. ^4) 
Peters 11. died at five years of age. The 
mother passed away March 10, 1895; the fa- 
ther is now living in Poughkeepsie, at the age 
of seventy-seven years. He is a Democrat, 
and was county superintendent of schools from 
1868 to 187 J, taking an active part in all 
matters pertaining to education. Ho and his 
wife contributed liberally to the support of the 
Second Reformed (."lunch at Poughkeepsie, 
and have always commatuiod the respect and 
esteem of the community. 

Martin W. Collins, the subject of this 
sketch, lived in the town of Washington, whore 
he attentled the district school until ho was 
fifteen years old, when his parents removed to 
Rhinebeck. Ho then entered the Dutchess 
County Academy. Poughkeepsie, where he re- 
mained two years, and for one year was a stu- 
dent in the Seminary at Ameiiia. In 1870 he 
began teaching at Rhinebeck, continuing in 
this occupation some live years. In the fall 
of 1873 he was elected school commissioner, 
and was re-elected in 1877, serving until Jan- 
uary I, 1882. At this time ho formed a part- 
nership with Henjamiii W. \'an Wyok in the 
marble and granite business, under the firm 
name of \'an Wyck cS: Collins, in which busi- 
ness he is still engaged. 

Mr. Collins was married September 19, 
1870. to Miss Mary, daughter of Isaac P'. Kir- 
by. of NewA'ork. who died in .\ugust. 1873. 
One child was born to them. Jennie, who mar- 
ried William K. Hrown, of Poughkeepsie. Mr. 
Collins, on December .'o, 1877, married, for 
his second wife. Miss lunily M., daughter of 
William I. Foster, a farmer of Pleasant \'al- 
ley. i^riio I'Yisters are of luiglish descent, and 
came to Dutchess county from New Ilamp- 
shiroV C>f this union two childron have boon 
born: Maltie V. and Ruth M. 



574 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Mr. Collins is a Democrat, and ia public- 
spirited man, one who takes an active interest 
in all public matters. He is broad and pro- 
gressive in his ideas, and as a loyal citizen is 
held in the highest esteem. Socially he be- 
longs to the I. O. O. F. and K. of P., and he 
and his wife attend the Reformed Church. 



CHARIJ-:S EMERY BAKER. As pioneer 
farmers of the town of Pawling, Dutchess 
county, the Baker family held a prominent 
place in the development of that town in early 
days, and the numerous descendants of this gen- 
eration ably sustain the reputation won by their 
forefathers for industry, business acumen and 
public spirit. 

Henry Baker, the grandfather of our subject, 
was born at the old homestead, and became 
the owner of a farm of about loo acres, ad- 
mirably adapted to the dairy business, which 
land is still in the possession of the family. He 
was a successful man, and was regarded as a 
representative citizen of his town. He was 
married, and reared a family of eight children. 
The five sons, James, Warren, John, Henry and 
Joshua, all followed agricultural pursuits. The 
three daughters were Ann, who married Harry 
Peck; Betsey, the wife of Luman White; and 
Hulda. All lived to the age of nearly si.xty 
years or more, but have now joined the silent 
majority. 

Harry ISaker, our subject's father, was born 
on the old homestead in 1818, and succeeded 
to it after the death of his father, buying out 
the claims of the other heirs. Hisentire life was 
passed there, and he added to the acreage from 
time to time. Possessing the usual native abil- 
ity, he was even more influential in public life 
than his father, for many years taking active 
part in the support of Republican principles. 
He served as assessor from eight to ten years, 
also held other important offices of the town at 
different times, and was a prominent member 
of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Reynolds- 
ville. His death occurred in February, 1883, 
and his wife, Rebecca Jane Denton, followed 
him May, i S93. She was a native of Reynolds- 
ville, a daughter of Josiah Denton. Our sub- 
ject was one of the family of seven children, 
as follows: Josiah was a soldier in the Civil 
war, having enlisted in 1 862, but only lived four 
weeks thereafter, dying of smallpox. George 
H. , the eldest living, and a farmer in Putnam 
county, married Ann Rent, but has no children. 



James H., a resident of Pawling, was twice 
married, first to Anna Gage, and after her death 
h& wedded her sister, Sarah; by his first wife 
he had two children: William and Anna. 
Charles Emery, our subject, comes next. 
Amos D. is deceased. John Wesley, who resides 
at the homestead, married Ida I^allard, and 
they have two children, the elder, Harry, 
being now deceased, the j'ounger, Stanley, yet 
living. David L. , the youngest brother of our 
subject, a resident of Matteawan, married 
Emma I^adue, and has two children: Edith 
M. and Ralph. 

Charles E. Baker, our subject, was born 
at Re\'nolds\ille, April 27, 1849, and his edu- 
cational opportunities were restricted to an at- 
tendance at the district schools of that village 
until the age of twenty, the last four years 
being limited to the winter term. Study was 
a pleasure to him, and he became especially 
proficient in mathematics, while a wide course- 
of reading in later years has kept him well 
abreast with the topics of the time. At twenty- 
one he left home to engage in fanning, and 
after his marriage, in 1872, to Miss Juliette 
Mead, daughter of Robert Mead, of Farmers 
Mills, Putnam county, he spent one year on the 
Mead homestead. On April i, 1873, he settled 
on his present farm in the town of Pawling. 
The place was known as the Hillcr home- 
stead, and was owned by Alfred Hillcr; but, 
after nine years, Mr. Baker purchased the prop- 
erty, which contains 255 acres, and is consid- 
ered one of the best farms in the town. As Mr. 
Baker had only $300 when he moved to this 
farm, he may well be proud of the success which 
his industry and good management have brought 
him. He is interested largely in dairying, keep- 
ing about sixty cows. In politics he has always 
been a Republican and an active one, having 
attended many conventions. In 1891 and 1892 
he held the office of commissioner of highways. 
He and his wife attend the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church of Pawling. Socially, he is a mem- 
ber of Dover Lodge No. 666, F. & A. M., of 
Dover Plains. 

Of their three children, Charles H. is a 
graduate of the military school at Claverack, 
in Columbia county, while Edith V. is attend- 
ing school at Chappaqun, Westchester county, 
and I'Vances L. , the youngest, is at home. 

Mrs. Baker, wife of our subject, was born 
January 14, 1850, near F"armers Mills, in Put- 
nam coimty, a daughter of Robert and Abbie 
M. ( Smith) Mead, who were the parents of three 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



57') 



children: Naomi J., wlio married James W. 
Tompkins, a farmer of East Fishkill, and has 
two children: Nellie and William D. ; Juliette 
(Mrs. Baker) comes next; and Robert R. , who 
married Addie O. Thomas, and resides at Mat- 
teawan, where he is engaged at horse dealing. 
The father of these was born in Putnam county 
in 1822, and died in 1858. By occupation he 
was a farmer and drover, and also conducted 
a store. He was a Democrat. The mother 
was born in Putnam county in 18 19, and died 
in January, 1894. 



CLEMENT HAIGHT, who has ever been 
_ closely identified with the agricultural in- 
terests of the town of Washington, Dutchess 
county, was born August 27, 1814, on the 
farm where he still makes his home. His an- 
cestors came from England to America, the 
founder of the family in this country, Simon 
Haight, landing in 1628. He had a son, Nich- 
olas (i I, who married Susanna Joyce, and had 
a son, Samuel; Samuel married, and became 
the father of Nicholas (2), who married Pa- 
tience Titus, and had a son, Jacob (i); Jacob 
(ij by his marriage with Sarah Hicks became 
the father of Jacob (2), the grandfather of our 
subject. Jacob i2) married Phcebe Haviland, 
and to them were born seven children, as fol- 
lows: Jacob (3), who in early life engaged in 
farming in the town of W'ashington, Dutchess 
county, but later removed to Virginia, where 
he owned a tract of land; John, who operated 
a farm and engaged in cider-making at Mill- 
brook, N. Y. ; Isaac, father of our subject; 
Elizabeth, who wedded Philip Allen, a farm- 
er, tanner and currier; Patience, who died un- 
married; Sarah, who became the wife of Abner 
Wing, a resident of W^ashington town, but 
whose death occurred in Ohio; and Charity, 
who married Obediah Thorne, an agriculturist 
of Washington town. The grandfather always 
followed the pursuit to which he was reared, 
and died in the faith of the Society of Friends. 
On the old family homestead Isaac Haight, 
the father of our subject, was born November 
25, 1784. He married Johanna Clement, a 
native of Long Island, whose father was a 
shoemaker by trade. To them were born five 
children: Clement; Phcebe is the widow of 
Daniel B. Haight, who carried on farming in 
Washington town; Jacob C. , who was also an 
agriculturist, is now deceased; Mary T. ; and 
one deceased in infancy. The father's entire 



life was devoted to farm labor, and on the old 
home farm both he and his wife passed away, 
the former in 1856 and the latter in 1855. 
They belonged to the Society of Friends, and 
in politics Mr. Haight was an Old-line Whig. 

Clement Haight grew to manhood under 
the parental roof, receiving the usual educa- 
tional advantages afforded by the schools of 
that day, and was active, industrious and ca- 
pable in the discharge of the farm duties fall- 
ing upon him. He was united in marriage 
with Maria C. Almy, a native of Otsego coun- 
ty, N. Y., and a daughter of Clark Almy, an 
agriculturist of that county. Their entire mar- 
ried life was spent upon the Haight home- 
stead, which he operated, with the exception 
of three years he was engaged in merchandis- 
ing at Little Rest, Dutchess county. Three 
children came to brighten their home: Clark 
A., a farmer of the town of Washington; Mar- 
ian and Isaac. Mrs. Haight was called from 
this earth in ICS93, leaving many friends to 
mourn her departure from their midst. 

Our subject is numbered among the sub- 
stantial and thrifty farmers of his township, 
where he owns a valuable farm of i 50 acres, 
which for the care and labor bestowed upon it 
yields a golden tribute in rich and bountiful 
harvests. His ballot is generally cast with the 
Republican party, but he is also a strong Pro- 
hibitionist. He believes that precept should 
be accompanied by practice, and his exemplary 
life has won the confidence and respect of all. 



GEORGE BROWN, a wealthy agriculturist 
residing near Fishkill Plains, Dutchess 
county, is one of the most progressive and sci- 
entific workers in that ancient calling to be 
found in this region, his extensive estate being 
managed in a model manner. 

He is the son of the late David H. Brown, 
who was born in London, England, April 20, 
1806, and crossed the Atlantic at the early age 
of twelve years, in the care of a friend of the 
family. After a short stay in Quebec, Canada, 
he ran away and joined a party of Indian 
traders, with whom he remained about five 
years at the head of the Mississippi. On lea\*- 
ing them he went to Nantucket and learned 
the ship-carpenter's trade, which he followed 
throughout his active business life, principally 
in New York City, but to some extent in Geor- 
gia and New Orleans, La. In politics he was 
in his later years a Republican. He married 



570 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOIiAPUICAL RECORD. 



Miss Maria Van Slyck, a lady of Holland-Dutch 
descent, whose ancestors were among the earli- 
est settlers in Columbia county, where her 
father, Barant Van Slyck, was a prominent 
farmer. For some years after his marriage 
Mr. Brown made his home in New York City; 
but in 1 86/ he bought the farm now owned by 
our subject, and resided there a few years. 
His wife died December 12, 1869, and in 1872 
he purchased another farm on the banks of the 
Hudson river, where he passed his declining 
years in retirement. He departed this life 
September 19, 1889. 

George Brown, whose name opens this 
sketch, was born in New York City, February 
13, 1 84 1, and was the eldest of three children. 
Henry, the second son, is now a patient in the 
Hudson River State Hospital; he succeeded to 
the farm lying on the Hudson. Catherine, the 
youngest child, died in infancy. After ac- 
quiring an education in the schools of the 
metropolis, our subject engaged in the retail 
grocery business; but since 1867 he has lived 
upon his farm, which contains 235 acres, and 
lies upon the line between Wappinger and East 
Fishkill. He raises a variety of crops, and 
devotes much of his time to the care of his 
estate. So far, he has not donned the matri- 
monial yoke. Intelligent and progressive in 
his ideas, he stands high in his locality. He 
votes the Republican, ticket, and is a member 
of the F". & A. M., Hopewell Lodge No. 596. 



GEORGE HUGHES. Among the leading 
merchants of Foughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, is found this gentleman, who is pro- 
prietor of the largest furniture establishment 
on the Hudson river. 

Mr. Hughes was born in County Armagh, 
Ireland, February 8, 1S43, and is a son of 
I'Vancis and Rose (Ward) Hughes, the former 
(jf whom was born in County .Armagh, in 1808. 
The family is of Welsh-Briton ancestry, but 
nio:;t of its members have been residents of 
Ireland for centuries past, and the old home- 
stead in the county mentioned is still in the 
hands of relatives of our subject. For many 
years the men of this family have been build- 
ers and contractors, and were the leaders in 
this line of business in their locality; also had 
contracts in England. Scotland and on the 
continent. Charles Hughes, an uncle of our 
subject, built the cathedral in the city of 
Armagh, the church and school in Middle- 



town, and the church and parochial school in 
Ready; he was also a great railroad bridge 
builder in the British Isles. His son Charles 
succeeded him in business, and owns the old 
homestead yet. Bernard Hughes, a cousin of 
Francis, is the largest baker in the world, his 
bread finding its way to the continent, and to 
England and Scotland; he grinds his own 
flour, and ships car-loads of bread every 
morning, employment being given to four hun- 
dred men in his establishments. His popular- 
ity is great, and he has served as mayor of 
Belfast, the chief city in the North of Ireland. 
The Right-Rev. John Hughes, formerly Arch- 
bishop of New York, was of this family, and 
many other Catholic prelates originated from 
same. 

Owen Hughes, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, and who was a farmer and builder, mar- 
ried Miss PhcL-be Thornton, a native, like him- 
self, of County Armagh, and a member of one 
of the oldest families of that section, of an- 
cient Briton ancestors who settled in Ireland 
after the Conquest of Britain by the Romans. 
This family also had many extensive contract- 
ors and builders in New York City, William, 
Bernard, John, Peter and Hugh Thornton be- 
ing of the number. Seven children were born 
to Owen Hughes and his wife, as follows: 
Bernard, who was a large land owner. George 
(whom our subject is named after), who died 
when a young man; he was noted for his great 
strength and athletic powers. Charles, who 
remained in Ireland. Francis, who came to 
America. Mathew, who lived in Ireland. 
Phcebe, who married a Mr. Hagan, of Middle- 
town, County Armagh. Bridget, who never, 
married, and remained in Ireland. 

F"rancis Hughes, the father of our subject, 
received a liberal education, for his time, in 
the schools of Middletown and city of Armagh, 
and learned the cooper's trade. Prior to 
coming to America he also followed farming 
and cooperage, dealing in cattle in conjunction 
with his trade. In 1840 he built a fine stone 
house on his farm at Carriclane. On first ar- 
riving in this country he lived for a time in 
Rochester, N. Y., where I'Vancis L. Hughes 
and Edward Denney (a relative) lived. He 
afterward went to New York City, and was 
engaged with the Thornton Brothers in build- 
ing and contracting in that city and in Brook- 
lyn for a number of years. In partnership 
with George Clark, he erected several blocks 
of buildings in those cities, and about 1854 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



577 



took a contract from Matthew V'assar to build 
V'assar Row on Main street, and for the large 
carriage factory of J. W. Fredericks, in Pough- 
keepsie. In all of these contracts they did all 
the work, masonry, carpentering, etc., com- 
pleting each job in full, and turning the keys 
over to the owners. 

On May i, 1854, George Clark and Mr. 
Hughes brought a boatload of building tools 
and material, twenty-five workmen and their 
families, their own families and house-furnish- 
ing goods, and Mr. Hughes took up his resi- 
dence in Poughkeepsie, where he carried on 
business the remainder of his life. During his 
later years he became a great friend of Mat- 
thew Vassar, acting as a sort of manager and 
confidential adviser. Mr. Hughes was a man 
of strong will and great energy, and was success- 
ful in his enterprises, becoming quite wealthy 
before his death. In 1842 he was married 
to Miss Rose Ward, daughter of Bryan Ward, 
of County Monaghan, Ireland, the same county 
from which Gen. John A. Logan came. The 
Wards were an influential family in Ireland, 
and of old Irish stock going back before the 
time of St. Patrick, and were largely engaged 
in farming and stock-raising, while Bryan 
Ward was a great horse-breeder, jobber and 
dealer. Col. James Kelly, who succeeded Col. 
Corcoran, 69th Regiment, after the battle of 
Bull Run, was of this family. Two children 
were born to Francis Hughes and his wife: 
George, the subject of this sketch, and Sarah 
Ann, who became the wife of Patrick Camp- 
bell of Brooklyn, but is now deceased. Mr. 
Campbell has just retired from the Brooklyn 
police force, in which he made a fine record 
of over twenty years' service. Francis Hughes 
died February 5, 1882, and his wife on April 
29, 1873. 

George Hughes obtained his early education 
in the schools of Middletown, County Armagh, 
Ireland, where he was under the instruction of 
Prof. Afinew, a member of the family of which 
the celebrated Dr. Agnew, of New York, is 
one. After coming to America he attended St. 
Paul's school, in Brooklyn, of which Prof. 
Bridges was in charge, and finished his school- 
ing in Poughkeepsie. He has been a great 
reader all his life, has a most retentive mem- 
ory and is especially well-versed in history. 
He is a man of broad and progressive ideas, 
well-informed on a variety of subjects, and 
keeps abreast of the times. 

After leaving school Mr. Hughes learned 
37 



the trade of a carriage painter and finisher with 
David Olmstead, with whom he was employed 
until i860. He then took charge of a carriage 
shop at Libertyville, Ulster county, for two 
years, and the following year worked for the 
Brewsters, in New York City, at his trade. In 
1864 he moved to Peekskill, and took charge 
of a carriage shop for Golding & Lent. On 
October i, following same, he came back to 
Poughkeepsie and went into business for him- 
self on Grand street, where he worked at car- 
riage manufacturing, painting and trimming un- 
til 1867. He then went into the Red Mill 
building, his business having largely increased, 
he doing the painting and trimming work for 
the small wagon and carriage makers for from 
thirty to forty miles around Poughkeepsie, 
and making a financial success of a then new 
business enterprise. 

In February, 1870, Mr. Hughes bought 
out Charles H. Wygant, a carriage manufac- 
turer in Newburgh, Orange Co. , N. Y. , and 
who had just been elected sheriff, and carried 
on the business very successfully until 1873. 
The lease being broken, however, by the sale 
of the property by John P. Embler's creditors, 
Mr. Hughes was obliged to give up the prop- 
erty, so in 1873 he returned to Poughkeepsie, 
and on April 29, of the same year, purchased 
the large building comprising Nos. 406, 408 
and 410 Main street. Of this he retained No. 
406 for his own establishment, as carriage re- 
pository, same year building a three-story brick 
structure in the rear of Nos. 406, 408 and 410, 
for his carriage and sleigh manufactory, and fit- 
tad up the remainder for the furniture store and 
warerooms of Coe & Deyo. In 1S75 he sold 
out the carriage manufacturing business and 
leased the building to Schoonmaker & Bailey for 
a term of ten years, for a time retiring from 
active business; but his energetic nature would 
not allow him to long remain idle, and in the 
fall of the same year he took up the auction 
and commission business, which he carried on 
until 1880. In 1887 Mr. Hughes purchased 
the old George Carson property, known as Nos. 
•398, 400, 402 and 404 Main street, and Nos. 
4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 South Hamilton street, in- 
cluding the corner of those two streets. The 
buildings on South Hamilton street had been 
old frame landmarks, which Mr. Hughes 
caused to be torn down, in their place erecting 
the present substantial and commodious stores. 
The South Hamilton street property consisted 
of a solid rock, towering some twenty-five or 



578 



COMJfEMOSA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



thirly feet above the level of the street, a prop- 
erty that real-estate dealers were afraid to spec- 
ulate in. Undoubtedly the site was valuable, 
and at one time the former owner had refused 
as much as $40,000 for it! Four years were 
spent by Mr. Hughes in blasting and hauling 
away this massive rock before it was brought to 
a proper level, and the cellar floor for the block 
of buildings about to be erected there is solid 
rock. The foundation and inside masonry of 
the new Christ Church building in Poughkeep- 
sie is of rock hauled from this "quarry," 
while the foundations for hundreds of houses 
were made of it. and thousands of loads of 
"chips ■' and broken stone were sold and de- 
livered to the city at ten cents a load, for 
street improvement purposes, which was about 
one-tenth of their value. On the corner of 
Main and South Hamilton streets there now 
stands a fine brick building, which Mr. Hughes 
concluded to put up after doing some blasting 
in the blue-stone rock foundation, hewing a fine 
cellar out of the solid rock. He owns the 
large stores fronting on Nfain street, three 
stories in height, equipped with the largest 
plate-glass front in the city, and occupying a 
very prominent location. In the meantime 
Mr. Hughes had been gradually working into the 
furniture trade, and in 1880 he opened up a 
furniture establishment which has constantly 
increased in size, and volume of business, and 
to which he has added the manufacture of 
some of the best of his goods, the carriage 
factory having been converted into a furniture 
factory and store house. Twice each year 
Mr. Hughes takes a business trip to the prin- 
cipal furniture markets in the country — Grand 
Rapids, New York City, Chicago, Detroit, 
Cincinnati, etc., buying from manufacturers 
in car-load lots, securing, also, e.xclusive 
agency, and choice of manufactured goods, 
something unusual for places outside of large 
cities. In 1885 Mr. Hughes admitted his son, 
Charles F., into partnership, and the concern 
has since so continued, the volume of business 
steadily increasing each year. 

Mr. Hughes' traveling has not always been 
on matters of business, for he has made some 
most pleasant and interesting journej'S "on 
pleasure bent." On July 8, 1 891, he set out for 
a six-months' tour across the Atlantic, the voy- 
age being made in the " City of New York," 
on which were Prince George of Greece (with 
whom Mr. Hughes became personally ac- 
quainted) and retinue. In Ireland, our sub- 



ject visited his old home and birth-placc, saw, 
conversed and visited with hundreds of friends 
and relatives, and made a tour of the island 
from Cape Clear to the Giant's Causeway; in 
Scotland he saw, among many other interest- 
ing sights, the celebrated bridge over the Firth 
of Forth; then toured through England where 
he saw all the principal points of interest in 
London and vicinity), Wales, France and part 
of Germany. In the summer of 1S96 he took 
an ocean tour along the Eastern seaboard. 



m- 



cluding that of the 



Canadian Maritime prov- 
inces, visiting St. John (New Brunswick 1, and 
sailing up the St. John river to Fredericton, 
thence proceeding to Halifax (Nova Scotia), 
and from there homeward, via Boston and New 
York. 

On September 20, 1863, Mr. Hughes was 
married to Miss Bridget Carroll, of Ohioville, 
Ulster Co., N. Y. , and member of the family 
of "Charles Carroll of Carrollton," one of 
the signers of the Declaration of Independ- 
ence, and John Carroll, first Catholic Bishop 
of Baltimore and all America, and a native of 
Waterford, Ireland. Six children were born 
of this union: Charles Francis, who will be 
spoken of more fully presently; Mary Bridget, 
at home; George Dennis, employed in the De- 
partment of Public Printing at Washington, 
D. C. ; William Carroll, employed in his fa- 
ther's business; Rose Agnes (deceased), and 
Loretta Anna, at home. Charles F. was born 
June 29, 1864, in Peekskill, N. Y., received a 
liberal education, and graduated from Pough- 
keepsie High School, of the Alumni Associa- 
tion, of which institution he was first secre- 
tary. On November 19, 1S90, he was mar- 
ried, in Poughkeepsie, to Miss Mary Skelly, 
daughter of John Skelly, and two children are 
living, viz.: George Francis and Charles Will- 
iam. In 1 88 5 Charles F. Hughes became as- 
sociated in his father's business, as above re- 
lated. For the past five or six years he has 
been inspector of elections. 

In 1892, George Hughes, our subject, pur- 
chased his residence property. No. 51 N. Clin- 
ton street, fronting on the Mansion Square 
Park, and in the following year he remodeled 
and enlarged the building, making it into a 
large suitable family residence, where his mar- 
ried son also resides. In addition to his many 
real-estate investments, he owns eight cleared 
buildinglotson " The Heights" at Newburgh, 
and it may be here mentionad, as another il- 
lustration of his shrewdness and business sa- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



579 



gacity, that in iS66 he built the residence No. 
185 Union street, a very substantial structure, 
and in 1873 sold it and an adjoining building 
lot for $10,000. He has been remarkably suc- 
cessful in his various enterprises, a fact due to 
his untiring perseverance, good judgment and 
reliable business methods, which have given 
him a deservedly high standing with the pub- 
lic; his word is as good as his note; he has 
always paid one hundred cents to the dollar. 
He is progressive in his ideas, liberal in his aid 
of all worthy objects, and has done much to- 
ward the growth and prosperity of his city. In 
politics he is a Republican, and is a strong Pro- 
tectionist from principle ; has made a study of the 
question, and has taken an active part in calling 
the attention of the people to its beneficial 
results. He served as chairman of the first 
Republican convention held during the Harri- 
son campaign, of 1880. Although giving 
much time and attention to political matters, 
he has never been an office seeker. He and 
his family attend the services of St. Peter's 
Church, Poughkeepsie, and take an interest in 
all Church work. He is broad and open in 
his religious views, claiming that any religion 
is better than none. During the war of the 
Rebellion Mr. Hughes was captain of Com- 
pany C, 2 1st N. Y. V. I., which regiment was 
organized in Dutchess county. In 1870 he 
took an active part in the Fenian raid on Can- 
ada, being District Center, at the time, of 
Dutchess, Columbia, Orange, Putnam and 
Rockland counties. He was captain of an 
Irish volunteer military company, and for- 
warded over a hundred men to Ogdensburg 
and northern New York, transportation and 
equipage being largely paid out of his own 
pocket. 

To the above Mr. Hughes adds; "He 
was a firm believer at the time that the men 
of Ireland had a perfect right to strike the 
British flag wherever it floated, and counte- 
nanced the scheme of the Fenian Brotherhood 
to capture Canada and make it a base of oper- 
ations to work from for the liberation of Ire- 
land. After the capture of Fort Erie and de- 
feat of the ' Queens Own ' crack Canadian 
regiment by aljout 500 of the Fenian volun- 
teers, who succeeded in crossing Lake Erie on 
floats. President Johnson issued his neutrality 
proclamation, and Gen. Mead, who was in 
command of the lakes, was only too eager to 
enforce it. The 50,000 Fenian volunteers 
who had then assembled on the Canadian bor- 



ders came to the conclusion that rather than 
precipitate the United States Government into 
a war with England, they gave up the project 
and returned to their homes, notwithstanding 
the fact that reinforcements were continuously 
arriving from all parts of the United States, 
the majority of whom were men who had just 
been discharged from the United States army, 
after the Southern Rebellion was suppressed, 
and for love of old Ireland volunteered their 
services without fee or reward. There was no 
power on earth that could have stopped them 
from capturing Canada; but the United States 
had just passed through four years of the great 
Rebellion, and Irishmen thought too much of 
America to plunge her into a war with England 
so soon thereafter." 



AMBROSE M. CULVER, one of the most 
prominent agriculturists of the town of 

Northeast, Dutchess county, is a native of that 
county, born in the town of Amenia, Septem- 
ber 2, 1869. His grandfather, Bachus Culver, 
who was born in the town of Pine Plains, was 
a noted farmer of his day, owning and culti- 
vating, in early life, a large tract of land in 
the town of Pine Plains. He was also en- 
gaged in cattle dealing, and, his ventures being 
uniformly successful, he accumulated a fine 
property. By his marriage he became the 
father of three children: Dudley, a member 
of the firm of Sherman & Culver, of New York 
City; Lavinia, who married William Bartlett, 
a brick manufacturer of the town of Amenia; 
and Walter B. , our subject's father. Bachus 
Culver was a member of the Presbyterian 
Church, to which the later generations have 
also adhered. His last years were spent in 
Amenia town, where he and his wife both died. 
Walter B. Culver was born at the old 
homestead in the town of Pine Plains, and re- 
mained there until 1864, when he married Miss 
Harriet Mygatt, daughter of Ambrose My- 
gatt, a leading resident of the town of Amenia, 
and a descendant of one of the oldest families 
of the town. For some years prior to his mar- 
riage, Mr. Culver located upon the Bartram 
farm, near Sharon Station, where he remained 
several years, and then removed to the My- 
gatt farm, in Amenia, where he now resides. 
He has been very successful, and is nov.- the 
largest landholder in the township, owning 
four farms besides the one upon which he re- 
sides, comprising in all over 1,000 acres. He 



580 



COMMEMORA TIVE DIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



is a Democrat, and has been active in local 
politics, holding office as assessor, road com- 
missioner, excise commissioner and school 
trustee. In educational matters he has taken 
great interest, and has been ready to befriend 
every movement foi the benefit of the commu- 
nity. He and his wife are leading members of 
the Presbyterian Church at Amenia, of which 
he is a trustee. They have had eleven chil- 
dren, of whom eight are now living: May 
Emily, Laura B., Ambrose M., Dudley D., 
Harry W., Arthur B., George R. and Bessie, 
all of whom are at home except our subject 
and Dudley, who is a farmer of the town of 
Amenia. 

Ambrose M. Culver was educated in the 
public schools of his native town, and later at- 
tended Amenia Seminary for about six years, 
receiving a good English education. After 
leaving school, at the age of seventeen, he 
stayed with his father four years, and then 
took the Wheeler farm, just east of his father's, 
and conducted it on his own account two 
years. In 1893 he purchased the George 
Clark farm, in Northeast town, George Clark 
being a brother of Mrs. Culver's mother. Ac- 
cording to the original survey of this farm it 
contained 600 acres, but it is probab!}' larger 
than that. It is on the State line, and a por- 
tion of it is in Connecticut. Mr. Culver has 
made many improvements upon the estate, and 
has made it one of the best farms in the town. 

On February 15, 1894, Mr. Culver mar- 
ried Miss Ida Estelle Chapman, daughter of 
David S. Chapman, of Millerton, a well-known 
traveling salesman. They are members of the 
Baptist Church at Millerton, and are promi- 
nent in the best social circles of the locality. 
Being an intelligent and public-spirited young 
man, Mr. Culver has taken an active interest 
in local improvement, and is an active worker 
in the Democratic ranks, always giving his in- 
fluence toward the selection of able and relia- 
ble officials. 



FREDERICK HENRY STREVER. There 
_ are numerous tine farms in Dutchess 
county which will compare favorably with any 
others in the State, as regards production, and 
also to the improvements that have been made 
upon them, many of which places are owned 
by men comparatively young in years. As a 
representative of this class of agriculturists, 
great pleasure is taken in presenting the name 



of the subject of this notice, who has always 
lived in the town of Pine Plains. He was 
born on the old Strever homestead December 
II, 1861. 

His paternal grandfather, Adam A. Strever, 
was a native of .Xncram, Columbia Co., X. Y., 
born November 24, 1793. He made farming 
his life occupation and continued to reside in 
Ancram until April, 1835, when he removed to 
the town of Pine Plains, Dutchess county, 
and purchased a farm consisting of 188 atres, 
on which he spent the remainder of his life, 
there dying July 14, 1866. He was a Jackson 
Democrat, and a loyal, patriotic man. Enlist- 
ing in the war of 18 12, he immediately started 
for Plattsburg, but the battle was fought be- 
fore he reached his destination, and he was 
discharged. He stood firmly by the Union 
during the late Rebellion. A faithful member 
of the Presbyterian Church, he gave his sup- 
port to everything that would advance the 
moral and material welfare of the community, 
and was a public-spirited and enterprising 
man. In the family to which he belonged 
were four sons and four daughters. His 
brothers and sisters are as follows: Margaret, 
who became the first wife of William Tanner; 
Betsey, wife of Joseph Gillis, who located at 
Argyle, Washington Co., N. \'. ; Maria, wife 
of Abram Reynolds, also of Argyle; Sally; 
John; Uldrick, who married Amanda Kinney 
and lived in .\rgyle; and Benjamin A., who 
died unmarried at the home of his cousin, John 
B. Strever. 

Adam A. Strever was married to Clarissa 
Tanner, who was born January 16, 1797, to 
Samuel and Rachel (Mcintosh) Tanner, and 
died December 4, 1S77. They became the 
parents of three children: Rachel, who was 
born October i, 1820, and died unmarried 
August 2, 1882; Sylvester, born March 29, 
1822; and Benjamin .\., the father of our sub- 
ject. The father of Mrs. Strever, Samuel 
Tanner, was born .\pril 4, 175S, in Dover, 
Dutchess county, where he li\ed some years. 
He first wedded a Miss Mcintosh by whom he 
had five children: William, born February 4, 
1783, first married Margaret Strever, after her 
death Mrs. Finch, and his third wife was Bet- 
sey Davis; John, born March 6. i~S8, for his 
second wife chose Mrs. Christine Mosher; 
Rachel was born March 20, 1784; Alexander, 
born February 20, 1785, was married and had 
two children, one daughter marrying Dr. Plat- 
ner; and Margaret, twin sister of Alexander, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



581 



was also married. For his second wife Sam- 
uel Tanner chose Rachel Mcintosh, who was 
born August 4, 1767, and was a daughter of 
Alexander and Rachel (Yonkhoncei Mcintosh, 
and to them were born ten children, namely: 
(I) Mary Magdalene, born November 2, 1790, 
married William T. Woolridge. (2) James, 
born January 12, 1793, was married three 
times. (3) Reuben S. was born January 12, 
1795. (4) Clarissa was the wife of Adam A. 
Strever, the grandfather of our subject. (5) 
Anthony, born August 13, 1799, was twice 
married, and died January 14, 1877. (6) 
Henry was born November 9, 1801. (7) 
Samuel was born August 6, 1804. (8) Morris 
was born April 26, 1867. (9) Almyra, born 
May 24, 1810, was married to Jeremiah Lown. 
(10) Eliza, who completed the family, was 
the twin sister of Almyra, and married Andrew 
Case. x\le.\ander Mcintosh, the father of 
Mrs. Rachel Tanner, was undoubtedly a native 
of Scotland, and his parents died while on the 
voyage to the New World, and he worked for 
three years to pay his passage. The sister 
of our subject now has in her possession a 
small straw-covered trunk which he brought 
over about 1 740. It is supposed that he sailed 
from England, and took the oath of allegiance 
to the King of England. Rather than break 
that oath he went as a' baker in the Colonial 
army during the Revolutionary war, and was 
called a Tory as he would not take up arms 
against the mother country. He remained in 
New York City for some time, where he mar- 
ried Clara Yonkhonce, but November i, 1786, 
he bought land of George Clinton, and removed 
to the farm now owned by his great-grandson, 
Samuel Tanner. It is said that while looking 
for a place to build he accidently stepped into 
a spring, and said "here is where I will put 
my house." His wife's parents located about 
the same time on the land now owned by the 
Du.xberry family. 

Benjamin A. Strever, the father of our 
subject, was born on the old homestead in the 
town of Ancram, Columbia county, June 19, 
1830, and in the district schools of the town 
of Pine Plains, Dutchess county, received a 
good common-school education. He was 
reared to agricultural pursuits, and in connec- 
tion with that occupation also engaged to some 
e.xtent as blacksmith, carpenter, mason, artist, 
etc. In 1884 he removed to the farm still oc- 
cupied by the family. 

On December 26, 1855, Benjamin A. 



Strever married Amelia Jane Collier, who was 
born November 11, 1831, the daughter of 
Simeon Mace and Maria (Jones) Collier, and 
to them were born three children: ii) Frank- 
lin Adam (who still owns and occupies the old 
Strever homestead in Pine Plains), born Oc- 
tober 18, 1857, was married December 5, 1883, 
to Mary Elida Vosburg. who was born June 26, 
1858, and is the daughter of John and Rhoda 
Ann (Scutt) Vosburg, and three children blessed 
their union — Rhoda Anna, born April 16, 
18S5; Raymond. V., born June 24, 1886; 
and Senella Blanche, born December 17, 
1887. (2) Frederick Henry, whose name 
introduces this sketch, is ne.xt in order of birth. 
(3) Rachel Tanner, born November 17, 1865. 
Simeon Mace Collier, the maternal grand- 
father of our subject, was born July 30, 1S07, 
and was married December 16, 1830, to Maria 
Jones, by whom he had two children: Amelia 
Jane and Gilbert Henry. She was born 
August 22, 1805, to Isaac and Sally (Ross) 
Jones, and died July 18, 1834. Her paternal 
grandparents were Isaac and Anna Jones, and 
her mother, who bore the maiden name of 
Sail}- Ross, was the niece of Captain Ross, 
who is buried at Mt. Ross. On December 10, 
1839, Simeon Mace Collier was again married, 
his second union being with Eliza Thomas, 
who was born May 2, 1S06, and was the 
daughter of John and Elsie (Hollow; Thomas, 
and to them were born five children: Frances 
C. , Thomas, George M., Gertrude Arnold and 
Amy Thomas. The father of this family was 
the fifth and youngest child of Noah and Leah 
(Mace) Collier. His mother was born Octo- 
ber 16, 1775, and after the death of Noah 
Collier, she became the wife of John Benson, 
and died in 1857. She was the second daugh- 
ter of Simeon and Deborah (Fillow) Mace. 
Her mother was born September 13. 1757, 
and in 1772 became the wife of Simeon Mace, 
who was born January 2, 1752, and died De- 
cember 24, 1822. Her death occurred Jan- 
uary 17, 1839. She was the daughter of John 
and Phebe (Olmsted) Fillow. John Fillow 
was born probably about 1704 and married 
before 1726. He was the son of John and 
Sarah Fillow. It is thought that John Fillow, 
Sr. , was born in France about 1667, and was 
about thirty-three years of age when he came 
to America, bringing his wife and three sons, 
who came here Huguenot refugees to escape 
religious persecution. On coming to the New 
World he located at Norwalk, Conn. He 



582 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



died about 1765, at the extreme old age of 
ninety-eight years. 

In the usual manner of farmer lads Fred- 
erick H. Strever was reared to manhood, as- 
sisting his father in the labors of the farm, 
and attending the schools of the neighborhood. 
He has been (]uite successful in his agricultural 
pursuits, which he has continued to follow, and 
now has a farm of 140 acres of rich and arable 
land. He takes quite an active interest in 
local political matters, voting with the Repub- 
lican party, and is interested in school work. 
He is one of the representative young farmers 
of the locality. 



ISRAEL R. WILLSON, a prominent agri- 
_ culturist and dairyman of the town of North- 
east, Dutchess county, residing near Coleman 
Station, is a descendant of a hard}', long-lived 
Scotch-Irish ancestry, whose shrewd judgment 
and upright character won for them a leading 
place in this community. His great-grandfa- 
ther, Robert Willson, was one of three broth- 
ers who came from the North of Ireland at an 
early day, his ancestors having moved from 
Scotland to Ireland a number of years before. 
He settled upon a tract of 100 acres west of 
the present residence of Mr. Slee, where he 
followed farming successfully. He was an en- 
terprising, public-spirited man, and did much 
to develop the neighborhood, being one of the 
founders of the Congregational Church north 
of Amenia. He died in the latter part of the 
eighteenth century, and his wife, Betsey Hind- 
man, to whom he was married after coming to 
this country, lived to be over 100 years old. 
They had seven children, whose names and 
dates of birth are as follows: Reuben, Octo- 
ber 16, 1755; Amos, March 10, 1758, both of 
whom moved to Saratoga county, N. Y. ; Han- 
nah. May 15, 1760; Mary, April i, 1763; 
Thomas, September 11, 1767, who moved to 
Ohio in early manhood; Margaret, September 
9, 1769, the wife of Reuben Gaston, of Chan- 
tilly, N. Y. ; and Robert, May 14, 1772, our 
subject's grandfather. He inherited his fa- 
ther's farm, but sold it and purchased the 
Murdoch property, containing about 400 acres, 
where he passed the greater part of his life. 
He was a captain in the State Militia, and a 
man of prominence in this region, active in 
politics as a member of the \N'hig party, and 
in business circles as a successful manager of 
his fine estate. He belonged to the Presbyte- 



rian Church of Amenia City Tnow Smithfield), 
and was a deacon for many years. He was 
married November 1 1, 1795, to Sarah Thomp- 
son, of Amenia City, born February 7, 1777, 
and had eight children, whose names and 
dates of birth are here given: John, June 3, 
1797; Hiram, August 12, 1799; Rebecca, May 
17, 1801, who was married January 6, 1820, 
to Philip Flint; Samuel T., October 3, 1803, 
who was married February 21, 1833, to Eme- 
line Shornberger; Theron, June 10, 1805, who 
was married January 8, 1829, to Lydia Collin; 
Robert E. , March 28, 1807, a well-known 
minister of the Presbyterian Church, who was 
married February 20, 1838, to Mary Strong, 
sister of Justice Strong of the United States 
Supreme Court; Sarah, August 12, iSii, who 
died at an early age; Henry, July 12, 1S14, 
who was married to Sarah E. Cady, October 
25, 1838; and Barak, January 24, 1817, who 
married Cordelia Collins, September 24. 1840. 
Capt. Willson died October 21, 1854. and his 
wife survived him until July 6, 1872, when she 
died at the age of ninety-five years. 

Hiram Willson, our subject's father, also 
followed farming as an occupation, and spent 
many years on the homestead at Amenia City. 
He moved to the town of Pine Plains in 1844, 
and bought a place known as the Knicker- 
bocker farm, where he passed his remaining 
years, his unusual executive ability enabling 
him to accumulate a fine property. He 
was married February 18, 1S24, to Eliza 
Reynolds, a lady of English descent, and a 
granddaughter of Stephen Reynolds, who 
came from Rye, Long Island, and located at 
Pine Plains. Her father. Dr. Israel Reynolds, 
was one of the prominent citizens cf that local- 
ity. He married Deborah Dorr, of Lym.e, 
Conn., and had three children — Walter, who 
was an able lawyer of Pine Plains; Julia and 
Eliza. Hiram Willson died June 22, 1873, 
and his wife September 30, 1892. Their six 
children were born as follows: Ellen, October 
8, 1825; Israel, November 2, 1827; Julia (Mrs. 
Isaac Carpenter), February 11, 1830; Edward 
P., December 26. 1S32, who married Olive 
Sinks, of Leavenworth, Kans.; Sarah R., May 
2. 1836, who was the second wife of Isaac 
Carpenter; Elizabeth D., July 20, 1838. who 
married Theodore Strong, of Pittston, Penn.; 
a brother of Justice Strong, of the United 
States Supreme Court. 

Israel Willson first saw the light of day at 
the farm now occupied by John N. Conklin in 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPUICAL RECORD. 



583 



the town of Northeast. He received a good 
academic education, attending the district 
schools near his home, and later the schools 
of Warren, Conn., and Pittsfield, Mass. 
He is a very intelligent man, a great reader, 
and has taken the New York Tribune for 
forty years. On leaving school in 1852, 
he bought a farm of 160 acres of Barak Will- 
son, to which, four years later, he added 120 
acres purchased of Stoughton Moore, and sub- 
sequent additions have enlarged it to a tract of 
320 acres, making one of the best farms of the 
town. The Harlem railroad was built through 
it in 185 1, and, in the following spring, Mr. 
Willson engaged in the milk business, being 
one of the pioneers in that line, and has met 
with gratifying success. 

On September 16, 1S52, he married Eliza- 
beth Conklin, a daughter of John Conklin, and 
granddaughter of Major Nathan Conklin, an 
officer in the Revolutionary war, who came to 
Dutchess county from East Hampton, Long 
Island, about 1781. They have had three 
children: Elizabeth Hunting, who was born 
August 16, 1856, and died June 7, 1878; and 
Julia, born November 11, 1858; and Helen P., 
born August 14, 1S64, who married D. Dewey 
Merwin. Mr. Willson and his family are lead- 
ing members of the Presbyterian Church at 
Amenra, and he is one of the active workers in 
all matters of local improvement. Although 
he never aspired to office he was town as- 
sessor for six years, and he takes great interest 
in national affairs, being in early years a Whig, 
and later a Republican. 



I'HOMAS O'BRIEN, one of the most en- 
_l_ terprising and prosperous agriculturists 
of the town of Dover, Dutchess county, resides 
near Dover Plains on a fine farm of 225 acres, 
which he devotes to dairy work and stock rais- 
ing. He is a native of Parish Vancha, County 
Tipperary, Ireland, where his ancestors have 
made their home for many years. His father, 
Daniel O'Brien, conducted a large dairy farm 
there, supplying the neighboring cities with 
milk. He married Margaret Dempsy, and had 
six children: Daniel, who died at an early age, 
Jeremiah, John, Thomas, Margaret and Mary. 
Mr. O'Brien came to the United States in 
1854, and located for a time upon a farm in 
the town of Beekman, Dutchess county. Later 
he purchased his present property, known as 
the Hall farm. In politics he is a Democrat, 



and he has always taken an intelligent interest 
in all that concerns the welfare of his adopted 
country. He was married at Wappingers 
Falls to Miss Mary Cunningham, who was born 
and educated in the Emerald Isle, and came 
to America in 1850 at the age of twenty. They 
have three children: (i) MaryT. , who was 
born in the " Clove " in 1862, married Thomas 
Mclncram, a farmer in Amenia, and has four 
sons — Thomas, Joseph, John and Leo. (2) 
John who was born in 1863, received his edu- 
cation in the schools of Dover, and is now en- 
gaged in farming with his father. (3) Julia A. 
is at home. 

Mrs. O'Brien's grandfather, Thomas Cun- 
ningham, was born in the Parish of Golden, 
County Tipperary, Ireland, where he was a 
farmer during his mature years. He and his 
wife, Bridget, reared a family of children, 
among whom was a son, Patrick, Mrs. O'Brien's 
father, who moved in early manhood to Tulli- 
mane Parish, Lethard, County Tipperary, Ire- 
land, and engaged in agriculture. He married 
Bridget Markley, daughter of Dennis Markley, 
a farmer of the same locality, and his wife, 
Johanna. Thirteen children were born to 
them, of whom four died in infancy. Of the 
others, Thomas married, first, Catherine Hayes, 
and, second, Miss Penneferth; Patrick married 
Kate O'Brien; Dennis. Miss Hayes; Michael, 
Mary O'Brien; John; Johanna, Charles Wat- 
son; Margaret, Mr. Kennedy; Mary, Thomas 
O'Brien; and Bridget died at an early age. 



E\UGENE HAM, a progressive agriculturist 
<l of the town of Washington, is now de- 
voting his time and attention exclusively to his 
farming interests, operating the old homestead 
where his life has, for the most part, been 
passed. 

Conrad Ham, grandfather of our subject, 
was a native of Dutchess county, born in the 
town of Washington, in 1757, and was there 
educated in the common schools. By his mar- 
riage with Elizabeth Haight he had six chil- 
dren: Henry, George, Milton, Lewis, Jonathan 
(father of our subject 1 and Hannah. Of these, 
Henry was born, reared and educated in the 
town of Washington, and married Miss Eliza- 
beth Thorn, by whom he had four children: 
C. Conrad, Joseph, Sarah and Elizabeth fwife 
of Peter Mesicki. George, a farmer by occu- 
pation, married Miss Catherine Marshall, and 
they had two children: Stephen (who married 



584 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Sarah Sleight) and Hannah (who married Ste- 
phen Angell). Milton, also an agriculturist, 
wedded Miss Phebe F. Ferris, and they had 
three children: John (who married Rhoda 
Sleight), Sarah, and George (who married 
Miss Grace Seymoure); Lewis never married. 

Jonathan Ham, the father of our subject, 
was a native of the town of Washington, and 
after attending the common schools near his 
home took a course in the Jacob Willets school. 
Quite early in life he began tilling the soil, and 
became a very successful farmer, acquiring a 
large tract of land in both Washington and 
Unionvale towns, on which he carried on gen- 
eral farming. He married Miss Mary Vincent, 
daughter of James and Mary (Sisson) Vincent, 
prosperous farming people of the town of 
Unionvale, and three children were born to 
them: Eugene, Helen and Elizabeth B. 

In the town of W'ashington, Eugene Ham, 
the subject proper of this sketch, was born in 
1850, received his primary education in the 
local schools, and later was a student at Col- 
lege Hill, in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. After his 
return he turned his attention to agricultural 
pursuits, purchasing the old homestead in the 
town of Washington, where he has since re- 
sided. He is a wide-awake, progressive citi- 
zen, taking a deep interest in the, welfare of 
the community, and is widely and favorably 
known. On June 15, 1S81, he was married 
to Miss Mary K. Sleight, who was born in the 
town of Lagrange, Dutchess county, and re- 
ceived her education at Poughkeepsie. They 
have become the parents of six children: Mary, 
Francis, Irene, Edwin S., Lewis E. (who died 
in infancy) and Eugene. 

James Sleight, the great-grandfather of 
Mrs. Ham, was a native of Ulster county, N. 
Y. , and was a gallant Revolutionary soldier. 
By his marriage with Miss Elsie de Reimer he 
had five children: Peter R., Henry A., Har- 
riet, Elsie and James Edwin. The first named, 
Peter R. Sleight, was born in the town of 
Poughkeepsie, July 20, 1S04, and there secured 
a common-school education. He engaged in 
farming, and was also president of the Dutch- 
ess Count}- Mutual Insurance Company at 
Poughkeepsie. He took a great interest in all 
public improvements, and was a highly re- 
spected citizen. He was twice married, his 
first union being with Sallie A. Barnes, by 
whom he had one son, James Edwin, the fa- 
ther of Mrs. Ham. After her death he wedded 
her sister. Miss Catherine Barnes, and they 



had three children: Sarah A., David B. (who 
died in the army during the Civil wan, and 
Alexander W. 

James E. Sleight, father of Mrs. Ham, was 
a native of Lagrange, and after completing his 
education engaged in farming. Later he con- 
ducted a mill and also carried on farming. 
He married Miss Frances E. Titus, daughter 
of Elias and Annette (Hoag) Titus, the former 
of whom was a woolen manufacturer of Pough- 
keepsie. Mrs. Ham, who was born in 1854, 
is the eldest of four daughters, the others be- 
ing Rhoda, the wife of John M. Ham, of Wash- 
ington Hollow, N. Y. ; Sallie, the wife of Dr. 
Augustus Angell, now of Hartford, Conn.; and 
Fannie, the wife of Henry Winchester, a mer- 
chant of South Amenia. Dutchess countv. 



ROBERT J. STUART, proprietor of the 
extensive foundry and machinery works 

at New Hamburg, Dutchess count}', is well 
known throughout that county as a prosperous 
and thorough-going business man. He was 
born May 15, 1847, at Darkley, County Ar- 
magh, Ireland, as was also his father, William 
Stuart, and comes of Scottish ancestry on his 
father's side. 

William Stuart married Sarah Harvey, who 
was also born in County Armagh, and they 
settled on a farm in Ireland, where seven chil- 
dren were born to them, namely: Eliza, Rob- 
ert J., William, John, Nathaniel, Jane and 
Sarah. In 1858 the father came to America, 
first locating in New York City, the rest of the 
family following in 1862, and Emily J. and 
Thomas H. were born in that city. In 1865 
they moved to Saugatuck, Conn., where they 
lived until 1884; then removed to Middletown, 
N. Y. , thence after two }-ears moving to their 
new home in New Hamburg. The parents are 
members of the Presbyterian Church; in poli- 
tics the father is a Republican. 

Robert J. Stuart attended school in his na- 
tive country, and was fifteen years old when 
he came to America. In New York City he 
began to learn the trade of a machinist with 
the Dalton Knitting Machine Co., and when 
this firm removed to Connecticut our subject 
went with them and finished his apprentice- 
ship. He then returned to New York City, 
and worked at his trade for about four years. 
For the following twelve years he lived at 
Yonkers, N. Y., and while there became in- 
terested in an automatic paper-feeding ma- 




.^^^^^T^^jk 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



585 



chine, which, after ten years of hard and per- 
sistent struggle and experimenting, he suc- 
ceeded in perfecting. This was the first ma- 
chine of the kind to be put in successful opera- 
tion in this or any other country, and was the 
most successful one seen at the World's Fair 
in 1893. Mr. Stuart is entitled to the credit 
of bringing into practical use this important 
and wonderful invention, which has worked a 
revolution in the old methods of handling sin- 
gle sheets of paper. In 1882 Mr. Stuart went 
to Poughkeepsie and formed the Sedgwick & 
Stuart Manufacturing Co., for the purpose of 
putting the machines on the market, which 
company lasted two years, when he sold his 
interest to Whitman & Burrel, and for the first 
time started in business for himself, renting a 
foundry and machine shop at Middletown, N. 
Y. In two years business had so increased 
that he was compelled to find larger quarters, 
and purchased, of McArdle & Hart, his pres- 
ent propert}' in New Hamburg, Dutchess 
county. 

Since the date mentioned Mr. Stuart has 
been carrying on a large and prosperous busi- 
ness, in his patent shaft couplings and dryer 
outfits for brick, terra cotta, and various clay 
products, salt, starch, etc. He also builds 
various kinds of machinery, does all kinds of 
repairing, makes castings of every description, 
as well as patterns, and, in fact, does all kinds 
of work to be done in first-class foundries and 
machine works. His trade is extensive, and 
he tills orders from all over the country, his 
well-known skill ' and ingenuity guaranteeing 
satisfaction to his patrons. As a citizen here 
he is held in high esteem, and is always ready 
to assist in all enterprises tending to the growth 
and prosperity of the community. 

In 1 88 1 Mr. Stuart was married to Miss 
Esther, daughter of Joseph and Ann (Piatt) 
Toburn, of Yonkers. No children have blessed 
this union. Mr. and Mrs. Stuart are members 
of the Presbyterian Church, and are liberal 
contributors to all its needs, as well as active 
workers in Church affairs. In politics our sub- 
ject is a Republican, and in everything is a 
lo3'al citizen to his adopted country. 



JOHN A. MARSHALL. Among the relia- 
ble, substantial and prosperous farmers of 
the town of Hyde Park there is probably 
none who stands higher in the public estima- 
tion than the gentleman whose name is here 



recorded. He was born in the northwest cor- 
ner of the town of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess 
county, November 21, 1835, the night of the 
great fire in New York City, and is a son of 
Isaac P. Marshall, whose birth occurred in 
1806, on the same farm, which is known as 
the old Marshall homestead. 

The paternal grandfather, Zacheus Mar- 
shall, on coming from England to the New 
World, first located at Horse Neck, Conn., 
whence he removed to the town of Pleasant 
Valley, Dutchess county, receiving the title to 
the home farm there from King George, and 
he was the original ancestor of the Marshalls 
in that section. By trade he was a carpenter, 
which occupation he carried on to some extent 
in connection with his agricultural pursuits. 
He belonged to the Society of Friends, and 
helped to erect their church in his locality. 
He was three times married, his second union 
being with a Miss Dean, while his third wife 
bore the maiden name of Jane Ouimby. She 
was a native of \^'estchester county, N. Y., and 
was a witness of the battle of White Plains 
during the Revolutionary war. 

The only son of the third union was Isaac 
Powell Marshall, the father of our subject, who 
was a farmer by occupation. He was a suc- 
cessful business man, of sound judgment, quite 
popular in his neighborhood, having the confi- 
dence and esteem of all who knew him, and 
did much in the settlement of estates. He 
was united in marriage with Maria Van Wag- 
ner, a woman of strong character, and to her 
was due much of the success of her husband. 
Three children were born to them : Culver, a 
civil engineer of California, is a man of great 
natural ability and versatility, and was one of 
the brave and valiant Union soldiers during 
the Civil war; John Allen, of this sketch, is 
next in order of birth; and Albion, who died 
in 1893. The father af^liated with the Demo- 
cratic party, and was one of the leading citi- 
zens of the town of Pleasant Valley, where he 
served for many years as supervisor and jus- 
tice of the peace. He took a commendable 
interest in the free schools of the county, as 
well as in other worthy objects for the benefit 
of the community. He was a faithful member 
of the Society of Friends, and spent his entire 
life upon the old Marshall homestead, his 
death occurring February 24, 1872. His wife 
passed away February 9, 1892. 

The primary education of John Allen Mar- 
shall was obtained in the district schools, after 



586 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



which he attended the Friends school at Me- 
chanicstown, N. Y., and for two years was 
a student at Claveracic, N. Y. , taking the full 
course in the academy there. He thus ac- 
quired an excellent education, becoming well 
fitted for the practical duties of life, and at the 
age of twenty-one began teaching in the dis- 
trict schools of the towns of Pleasant Valley 
and Hyde Park during the winter season, 
while in the summer months he assisted in the 
operation of the home farm until his marriage, 
at the age of twenty-six years. Going to 
Brooklyn, he there engaged in the milk busi- 
ness, which he also followed in Jersey City for 
two years. Since 1866, however, he has been 
principally engaged in the cultivation and im- 
provement of his present farm in Hyde Park 
town, though the year 1888 was spent by him 
in the West, and for another year he was 
in the South. 

Mr. Marshall wedded Miss Eimira D. Cul- 
ver, daughter of John A. Culver, and to them 
have been born five children: Nellie, wife of 
Benjamin Haviland; Edwin Vincent, who is 
still upon the home farm; Culver, who is em- 
ployed in the New York Central depot, at New 
York City; Jennie Maria, at home; and John 
Allen, who is engaged in teaching in East 
Park, Dutchess county. The religious views 
of Mr. Marshall incline toward the Society of 
Friends, in which he was reared. In politics 
he is an ardent Democrat, taking a warm in- 
terest in the success of his party, and during 
the years 1875 and 1876 he served as super- 
visor of his township. He is a progressive, 
enterprising man, broad and liberal in his 
views, and is very popular in his neighborhood, 
where he numbers many friends. 

The Culver family, of which Mrs. Marshall 
is a member, is of Scotch origin, and was 
founded in America by three brothers, Jacob, 
John and James, who located first on Long 
Island, but later bought farms in Hyde Park, 
Dutchess county, the titles to which came 
from King George at an early date. John had 
two sons, James and Allen, while the other 
brother became the father of four sons, Sam- 
uel, Cornelius, Peter and John. Of the latter 
family, John settled near Battle Creek, Mich., 
and the others became prominent men of west- 
ern New York, having located near Rochester. 
Until his marriage James Culver, Jr., remained 
upon the family homestead in Hyde Park town, 
and then for many years lived in Orange 
county. New York. 



Allen Culver spent his entire life upon the 
old home farm, in the cultivation of which he 
was very successful, and became the owner 
of over 300 acres. He married Abigail 
Marshall, daughter of Henry Marshall, and 
they became the parents of eleven children: 
Marshall, Hester, John A., Willet, Deborah, 
Mariam, Emeline, Maria, Catherine, Hiram 
and Jacob, all now deceased except John A., 
Maria and Hiram. In religious belief the 
family were Friends, and though not an active 
politician, the father was a strong Federalist. 

John A. Culver, the father of Mrs. Mar- 
shall, was born January 10, 1S09, on the farm 
adjoining the one where our subject now lives, 
and there continued to reside until after reach- 
ing his majority. He later purchased the 
farm once owned by his grandfather Marshall, 
which he operated for seven years, and then 
engaged in the mercantile and lumber business 
in the village of Hyde Park for about four 
years. On the expiration of that time he pur- 
chased a farm in the northwest corner of the 
town of Pleasant Valley, where he continued 
to make his home some twenty-three years, 
and as an agriculturist was very successful. 
Going to Poughkeepsie in 1S65, he there lived 
retired for many years. On October 31, 1834, 
Mr. Culver married Miss Catherine Skidmore; 
daughter of Walter Skidmore, and on the 
maternal side a granddaughter of Jesse Bell, 
who served as captain in the Continental army 
during the Revolution, and was one of the 
honored citizens of Dutchess county. Three 
children blessed this union, Mrs. Marshall 
being the only one now living; Jane Ann died 
at the age of seventeen; and Henry M. at the 
age of seven years. The mother passed away 
February 29. 1840. For his second wife, Mr. 
Culver wedded Elizabeth Brown, on February 
2, 1842, and they had two children: Charles 
Wheaton, who died at the age of two years; 
and Amanda, who died when twenty-one years. 
The mother was called from this life May 4, 
1890. By birthright Mr. Culver is a member 
of the Friends Church, and has ever been one 
of the leading and influential citizens of the 
county, serving as alms-house commissioner 
while a resident of Poughkeepsie. 



LEONARD LYON. Few sections of this 
_ country can boast of more charming and 
quietly picturesque scenery than that to be 
found within the limits of Dutchess county, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



587 



and nowhere will there be found people more 
progressive and companionable. The house 
of Mr. and Mrs. Lyon on Quaker Hill, town 
of Pawling, is one of the pleasant spots of that 
favored region, and its occupants hold a high 
place in the esteem of the community. Mr. 
Lyon was formerly engaged in agriculture in 
Cayuga county, N. Y. , but has become fully 
identified with the interests of his adopted 
county. 

Mr. Lyon was born March ii, 1843, '" 
Sherwood, Cayuga Co., N. Y., a son of Alfred 
and Harriet (Valentine) Lyon, the former of 
whom, a native of Bedford, Westchester Co., 
N. Y. , was a merchant there in early life, 
later moving to Cayuga county, where he fol- 
lowed farming. He was twice married, first 
time to Lavina White, and by her had seven 
children, of whom five died when young, the 
two yet living being George and Lavina. By 
his second wife, Harriet (Valentine), Alfred 
Lyon had seven children, as follows: (i) Hi- 
ram, a farmer of Cayuga county, married to 
Abbie Gifford, and had six children — Sanford, 
Genevieve, Edith, Gertrude, Lyman and Her- 
bert. (2) Elizabeth married Henry Grimshaw, 
and had three children — Samuel, Howard and 
Delia. (3) Samuel married Delia Nye, and 
had three children — Howard, Alfred and 
Page (the entire family live in Chicago). (4) 
Leonard, our subject, comes next in the order 
of birth. (5) James, a farmer of Sherwood, 
Cayuga county, married Sarah Hopkins, and 
had three children — Warren, Hettie and 
Rossa. (6) Hattie married Frank Fowler, and 
five children were born to them — Mary, Hom- 
er, Delia, Stanley and Ada. (7) Mary mar- 
ried William Avery, and they moved to Fort 
Collins, Colo., where he died; they had one 
child — Pearle. (8) Charles, a dealer in horses 
at Atalissa, Iowa, married Lucy Avery, and 
had one son — Alfred. The father of this fam- 
ily died in 1880, the mother in June, 1893. 
He was known as Col. Lyon, having served 
as a colonel in the State Militia; was a mem- 
ber of the State Assembly several times, and 
a justice of the peace many years, besides hold- 
ing minor offices. Politically, he was origi- 
nally a Whig, later a Republican. Col. Alfred 
Lyon was of English and Scotch descent, the 
present Lord Lyon and Lord Howe being 
relatives. The silver dram-cup and cane, 
bearing the name of John Lyon (one of three 
brothers who came to .America, and the one 
from whom Col. Lyon was descended) are 



now in possession of John Lyon, of Bingham- 
ton, N. Y. Col. Lyon's aunt (his father's 
sister) married John Jay, the first chief justice 
of the United States. The family coat of 
arms is still in the possession of the family. 

Leonard Lyon, whose name introduces this 
sketch, received a liberal education, and grad- 
uated from Cayuga Lake Academy, after which 
he took up farming, which vocation he has 
ever since followed, having, in 1864, settled on 
his present well-improved farm of 220 acres, 
whereon he has erected some fine buildings. 
In 1863 he was married to Mary Haines, a na- 
tive of Pawling, Dutchess county, and they 
have one daughter, Jessie H., born in Pawling 
in 1878, who is now being carefully educated 
by private tutors at home. Mr. Lyon, our 
subject, is a Republican in politics, but no 
offtce-seeker. 

The ancestors of the Haines family were 
among the early settlers in Dutchess county. 
Caleb Haines, Mrs. Lyon's great-great-grand- 
father, was born and educated in Rhode Island, 
whence he came to Dutchess county in his 
manhood, to engage in farming. At one time 
he owned most of the land upon which Pawl- 
ing now stands. He married Deborah Lewis, 
and had two sons: Sylvester and Caleb. The 
elder of these married, and reared a family of 
ten children: Chauncey; Andrew, who married 
Phcebe Howard; Charles, the grandfather of 
Mrs. Lyon; Peleg, of whose marriage no par- 
ticulars are known; James, who is mentioned 
below; William, who married (first) Eliza 
Smith, and (second) Alma Belts; Lewis, who 
wedded Maria Tabor; Caleb, who remained 
single; Sarah, wife of Benjamin Sheldon, and 
Sylvester, who never married. 

James Haines was born on the old farm in 
the town of Pawling, in 1790, and after ac- 
quiring a common-school education engaged in 
farming. He was a strong Republican, and 
held some minor township offices. He mar- 
ried Miss Hannah Sheldon, daughter of Jede- 
diah and Jerusha (Hotchkiss) Sheldon. Her 
father was a leading farmer of the town of 
Dover. They had seven children: John, who 
married Abbie J. Allen; Sheldon, who married 
Emeline Corbin; Jane, who died in infancy; 
Maria, wife of Archibald Dodge; Susan, wife 
of Aaron Baker; Lydia, wife of Cyrus Baker; 
and Jackson, who married Lydia M. Cook. 

Maria Haines was born in the town of 
Pawling, in 18 19, and was educated there. 
She married Archibald Dodge, who was born 



588 



COMMEMOBATIVE BIOOJiAPUfCAL RECORD. 



in 1810, and educated in the common schools 
of that town, afterward engaginj:; in farming. 
He is now very bright and active at the age of 
eighty-eight years, and he sowed an acre of 
wheat at that age. They have one daughter: 
CorneHa, who married T. J. Arnold, a farmer, 
and has three children: Helen M., Archie 
and Carrie H. Labon Dodge married Miss 
Libbie Birch, but they have no children. 

Charles Haines, Mrs. Lyon's grandfather, 
was born in the town of Pawling, and moved 
West to engage in farming. He married Miss 
Mary Spaulding, and had three children: Albro 
A., the father of Mrs. Lyon; Harriet, wife of 
Simeon Walters; and Eli/^a, wife of Leonard 
Cole. 

Albro A. Haines was born in the town of 
Pawling, in March, 18 13, and educated there, 
but later engaged in farming in the town of 
Pawling. On July 7, 1S33, he married Miss 
Sarah Orton, daughter of William and Sarah 
Orton, and Mrs. I^yon is the only child. Albro 
A. Haines died July 31, 1891, a stanch Repub- 
lican in his political preferences. 



E>LIAS SPROSS, a retired contractor and 
builder, with residence in Poughkeepsie, 

Dutchess county, was born in Rhein Pfaltz, 
Germany, August 5. 1826. 

Michael Spross, father of our subject, was 
a farmer in the Fatherland, and took part in 
the war of 1S13, when Germany was invaded 
by the French under Napoleon. He married 
Miss Margaret Handschuh, and the}' settled 
on a farm whereon they reared children as fol- 
lows: Thomas was a mason contractor, and 
died in 1895; Philip died in Switzerland at 
the age of twenty-five years; Margaret married 
Conrad Rissberger, who was a boiler maker in 
Albany, N. Y., and both are now deceased; 
Elias, our subject, comes next; Joseph is a 
farmer in Monroe county, N. Y. ; and Michael 
is a shoemaker in Poughkeepsie, The father 
of this family died in 1872, the mother in 
1842; both were members of the German 
Catholic Church. 

The early life of our subject was spent in 
his native land; in 1851 coming to America, 
and locating in Poughkeepsie, he followed the 
mason's trade, which be learned in Germany, 
and at which he continued to work in this 
country until his retirement from business in 
1884. From 1853 to 1858 he worked with 
his brother Thomas in the Poughkeepsie Iron 



Works or Furnace, also in Cold Spring, Man- 
hattan, Peekskill, and other places until 1S58, 
doing the mason work. In the latter year he 
took work in Poughkeepsie, and began con- 
tracting on his own account, in which he con- 
tinued until his retirement as above related. 
In 1875 he did the mason work on the fourth 
section of the Hudson River State Hospital, 
and in 1876 took another big contract to do 
the mason work on another section of the 
hospital — the center building from basement 
to second story. He has filled many other 
contracts in Poughkeepsie, the last being for 
the building of the post office in 1884, if we 
except his contract in 1888, for putting in the 
foundation of St. Mary's Catholic church. 

Mr. Spross was married July 25, 1851, to 
Miss Barbara Bollman, who was born in Ger- 
many, and who came to America on the same 
vessel as did our subject. They have no chil- 
dren. In 1 87 5 they took a trip to the Father- 
land, and in 18S9 Mr. Spross again visited the 
old country, rambling among the scenes of his 
boyhood. He also visited England, particu- 
larly to see an old friend, Frank Brown, of 
Castle Villa, Keighley, Yorkshire, England, 
from there going to Germany. The latter 
country he left August 12, for the Exposition 
held in Paris that year, to meet Mr. F. Brown, 
and after a stay of two weeks they went back 
to England, where he stayed until Septem- 
ber 2. when he left on his homeward trip to 
the United States, after a three-months' tour. 
Mr. and Mrs. Spross have a beautiful brick 
residence at No. 8 Garfield place, Poughkeep- 
sie, which he built in 1S77. Their home has 
always been in that city since June, 185 1. He 
is a Democrat in politics, and has served on 
the water board, and was an alderman from 
the Fourth ward of Poughkeepsie. Socially, 
he has been a member of the Germania So- 
ciety for forty years, and has devoted much 
time and attention to its welfare. He and his 
wife are members of the German Catholic 
Church. 



GEORGE A. TROWBRIDGE. The Trow- 
bridge family has been so long and favor- 
ably known in this section that its history will 
be of unusual interest to many. The great- 
great-grandfather of our subject, Billy Trow- 
bridge, was born November 4, 1748, the son 
of Deacon Samuel and Sarah (Seeley) Trow- 
bridge. He received a common-school educa- 




Xv^^. , i/fht^l> 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



589 



1856; 
1854; 

Polly, 



tion, and then engaged in agriculture. In 
June, 1777, he married Miss Rhoda Beards- 
ley, who was born February 14, 1758, and 
died February 8, 1S44. A year or two after 
their marriage they settled in Carmel, Putnam 
county, N. Y. , and in 1798 moved to Truxton, 
Cortland county; but Mr. Trowbridge died two 
days before the little party reached its desti- 
nation. They had nine children , whose names, 
with dates of birth and death, are as follows: 
Ephraim, March 22, 1778, died Alay 5, 1791; 
Alvah, September 4, 1779, died June 10 
Billy, March 26, 1781, died May 8, 
Levi, February 16, 1783, died 1846; 
April 3, 17S6; died 1818; Samuel, December 
I, 1788, died 1817; Sally, February 23, 1792, 
died 1810; Ephraim, June 15, 1795, died 
1798; John C, October 18, 1797, died 1831. 
Alvah Trowbridge, our subject's great- 
grandfather, received the education obtainable 
in the common schools of his day, and later 
became a farmer. He was married November 
30, 1797, to Miss Sally Crane, daughter of 
Judge John Crane, of Carmel, N. Y. She 
was born June 27, 1780, and died of measles 
April 6, 1833. Eight children were born to 
them, whose names, with dates of birth and 
the names of their respective partners in 
matrimony, are here given: PhineasB., De- 
cember 4, 1798 — Sally B. Raymond; AdaZ. , 
October 18, iSoo — Levi Knox; Allerton M., 
February 24, 1S03 — Letitia Coe ; Aralinda, 
February 26, 1S05 — Orrin Richards; William 

C, April 15, 1807 — Mary E. A. Holley; Cor- 
nelia A., November 8, 1809 — Reynolds Piatt; 
Sarah B., March 21, 1S21 — David B. Rogers. 

Phineas Beardsley Trowbridge, the grand- 
father of our subject, was born and educated 
in the town of Southeast, Putnam county, and 
at an early age engaged in farming near 
Wings Station, later following the blacksmith's 
trade. He was married October 28, 1823, to 
Miss Raymond, who was born October 22, 
1S03. They have six children, whose names 
with dates of birth are as follows; Edwin M., 
November i, 1824 (died August 29, 1854); 
Amanda, December 5, 1826 (died August 8, 
1885); John C, September 24, 1828; Cor- 
nelia A., April I, 1 83 1 fdied August 26, 
1 848 1; William R., May 6, 1833; and George 
Piatt, July 19, 1S40 fdied April 15, 1845). 
Only two of that family entered the matri- 
monial state; Edwin, who married Miss Sarah 

D. Marsh, and William R., our subject's 
father. He was born and reared in the town 



of Southeast, Putnam county, and has been for 
many years a prominent farmer near Wings 
Station. He purchased his present farm of 
300 acres about twenty-seven years ago, and 
makes a specialty of dairywork. He married 
Miss Maria W. Sheldon, daughter of Albro 
and Elizabeth (Edmond) Sheldon. Four chil- 
dren were born to Mr. and Mrs. Trowbridge: 
(i) Cora B., born September 20, 1858, mar- 
ried June II, 1878, Arthur Dorn, a inerchant 
in Springfield, Mass., and son of Albert Dorn, 
of Beekman, N. Y. They have one child, 
Mabel, born September 30, 18S0. (2) George 
A., born September 20, 1861, is a farmer and 
merchant at South Dover; he married, March 
19, 1889, Miss Eva Dutcher, daughter of 
George W. and Nettie (Hill) Dutcher, well- 
known residents of Dover. He has two chil- 
dren: William D., born June 6, 1891, and 
Nettie A., born March 4, 1894. (3) Ada, born 
December 27, 1863; and (4) Eliza, born April 
17, 1866, are at home. 

Mrs. Trowbridge is a member of one of the 
old families of the town of Dover, and her 
great-grandfather, Caleb Sheldon, was born 
and educated there, also passed his mature 
years in farming. His death occurred there 
November 22, 1841, at the age of ninety-three. 
His son Luther, Mrs. Trowbridge's grand- 
father, was a blacksmith for a number of years, 
and later engaged in farming. He died Au- 
gust 28, 1 86 1, at the age of eighty-six years, 
and his wife, formerly Miss Mary Butts, of 
Delaware county, died October 13, 1S63, aged 
eighty-seven years. They had eleven children, 
all of whom married except one. Their names, 
with those of their respective husbands and 
wives, are as follows: Phcebe — Abraham Sher- 
man; Theodoras — Mary Wing; the twins. 
Electa (died at the age of seventeen) and De- 
lilah (married Duncan McDonald); Albro — 
Eliza Edmonds; Ophelia — Henry P. Amey; 
Anner — Wilson Johnson; Jeremiah — Sophia 
Doughty; Wilson B. — Hannah M. Doughty; 
Harrison — Hannah Ward; and Almeah — An- 
drew Ward. 

Albro Sheldon, the father of Mrs. Trow- 
bridge, was born in 1808, and became a prom- 
inent farmer. He was active in local affairs, 
and held a number of town offices. He mar- 
ried Miss Eliza Edmonds, daughter of Kenedy 
Edmonds (a well-known farmer of the town of 
Dover) and his wife, Leah C. Edmonds. Mrs. 
Trowbridge was born in 1840, the eldest of 
four children. Sarah A. Sheldon, born No- 



590 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPIIICAL UEUOBD. 



vember 1 1 , 1 844, married (first) George Root, 
by whom she had one son — George S. Root, 
born April 23, 1871; Mr. Root died July 
29, and she married Myron Edmonds; one 
child came of this union — Carrie L. , born 
March 12, 1882. Wilson B. Sheldon, born 
October 22, 1846, is a prominent farmer in 
Dover; he married Nellie J. Root, and has two 
children — Albro, and Grace (Mrs. Frank Den- 
toni. Almira Sheldon, born August 16, 1848, 
married William Wheeler, a farmer of the 
town of Dover, and has five children: Carrie, 
born in 1877; Maude, 1879: Phcebe, 1881; 
Howard, 1883; and AUie, 1886. 



WALTER B. CUL\'ER, a worthy repre- 
sentative of the agricultural interests 
of the town of Amenia, and one of the large 
land owners of Dutchess county, is descended 
from good old Revolutionary stock, Joshua 
Culver, his great-grandfather, having assisted 
the colonies in gaining their independence. 
His grandfather, who also bore the name of 
Joshua, was a native of the town of Amenia, 
and in early life learned the tanner's trade with 
Capt. William Young, at Amenia Union. Sub- 
sequently he established himself at Pine Plains 
in the tanning business, conducting it with re- 
markable success and becoming a wealthy man 
for his day. He married Lavinia Backus, 
whose birth also occurred in Amenia, and to 
them were born five children, all now deceased, 
namelv: Eimira, Eliza, Backus, Roxanna 
and Phebe. 

Backus Culver, the father of our subject, 
was born at Pine Plains, Dutchess county, in 
1806, was there reared and educated, and later 
turned his attention to agricultural pursuits. 
From farming he drifted into stock raising, 
becoming an extensive dealer in live stock be- 
fore a railroad had been constructed through 
this section of the country. He married ^fiss 
Abbie Drew, and they had nine children: 
Joshua, Mary, Laura and Sanford (^all four 
deceased);. Walter B. ; Dudley G. ; Lavina, 
wife of William H. Bartlett; and Phebe and 
Henry, both deceased. The father, who was 
an earnest Democrat in politics, was called 
upon to serve in several official positions, in- 
cluding those of supervisor and assessor of 
Pine Plains. In the spring of 1 864 he removed 
to Amenia, where he lived until life's labors 
were ended, in 1870, in which year his faithful 
wife also died. 



Walter B. Culver was born in Pine Plains, 
May 7, 1837, and in the village schools he 
began his education, supplementmg the knowl- 
edge there acquired by a course at Dominie 
Benedict's private school at Patterson, N. Y., 
and also at the Dutchess County Academy, of 
Poughkeepsie, and the Amenia Seminary. 

He remained on the home farm until after 
attaining his majority, and in 1859 located 
upon the old Culver place, south of the depot 
at Amenia, where he continued to live until 
the spring of 1SC4. On December 17, 1863, 
he married Harriet J., a daughter of Ambrose 
Mj'gatt. Their children are: Mary E., I-aura 
B., Ambrose M., Dudley D. . Harry W., 
Arthur B., George R. and Bessie H. Like 
his father, Mr. Culver has always been an un- 
swerving Democrat in his political views, and 
has acceptably served as commissioner and 
assessor of his town. He is one of the most 
progressive farmers of the community, and is 
a straightforward and reliable citizen, one 
whose word is considered as good as his bond. 



WILLL\M VAN DE WATER is num- 
bered among the native sons of the 

town of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county, and 
for more than a centurj' the family of which he 
is a representati\e has been connected with the 
history of that county. It furnished its repre- 
sentatives to the Revolutionary war, to the war 
of 1812, and to the Civil war, and its mem- 
' bers have ever been loj'al and patriotic citizens, 
I giving a hearty support to all interests or 
measures calculated to benefit the communities 
in which they have resided. 

As the name indicates, the family is of Hol- 
land origin, and was founded in America by 
Harman Van De ^^'ater, who with several 
brothers came from Holland to America. One 
of the number located in Canada, another in 
Fishkill, and Harman on Manhattan Island. 
He served as a soldier in the Revolutionary 
war. After the British had captured New 
York, he removed to Pleasant \'alle}', Dutch- 
ess count)', now the town of Poughkeepsie, 
locating on a farm. His death occurred at 
Pleasant \'alley in July, 18 16. He married 
Maria Barnes, a sister of David and Joshua 
Barnes, and they became the parents of six sons 
and one daughter, namely: Benjamin, who 
was born November 25, 1782, and died in 
Buffalo, N. Y. ; William, who was born De- 
cember 2, 1784, and died in Hyde Park, No- 



CQMMEMOBATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



591 



vember 30, 1834; Richard, born May 8, 1790; 
Samuel, born in 1793; George, born January 
27, 1795; Joshua, born January 21, 1799, his 
death occurring in Cincinnati. Ohio, in 1877; 
and a daughter who died in early life. 

William Van De Water, grandfather of our 
subject, was drafted for service in the war of 
1812, was with the command of Capt. \'alen- 
tine. and by him was honorably discharged. 
After his death the grandmother received a 
pension. Farming was his life work, and both 
he and his wife were members of the Presby- 
terian Church. In their family were ten chil- 
dren: Sarah, who became the wife of William 
Holmes, a farmer of the town of Lagrange; 
Maria, deceased; George, father of our sub- 
ject; Ale.xander, formerly a farmer, now living 
in Hyde Park; William A., who was a farmer 
and milk dealer, but is now deceased; Henry, 
an agriculturist in the town of Hyde Park; 
Hiram, a deceased farmer; John, a farmer in 
the town of Hyde Park; Alfred, an agricultur- 
ist of Kansas; and one who died in infancy. 

George Van De Water was born April 
29, 1821, in the town of Hyde Park, 
where, on his father's farm, he spent his 
boyhood days. He married Elizabeth Phillips, 
a native of Poughkeepsie, and a daughter of 
M. D. L. F. Phillips, who was named for Gen. 
La Fayette, a friend of the family. The an- 
cestry of the Phillips family is English. Upon 
their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Van De Water 
located upon a farm in Pleasant Valley, where 
he has now made his home for fifty-one years, 
devoting his energies e.xclusivel}" to agricultural 
pursuits. He gives his political support to the 
Republican party, and has served as assessor. 
Both he and his wife are consistent Presbyte- 
rians. Of their family of seven children, 
Lavina died in infancy, William is the next 
younger; Marquis P. is a farmer of Pleasant 
Valley; Wilson A. was married, and both he 
and his wife were killed bj' a train in 1890; 
Jennie M. died at the age of nineteen years; 
Carrie is the wife of Israel D. Marshall, a 
farmer of Hyde Park; and Elizabeth is the 
wife of Charles Ambler, a merchant of Stissing, 
Dutchess county. 

William \'an De Water, whose name in- 
troduces this review, was born on his father's 
farm, in the town, of Pleasant Valley, June 4, 
1846, and to farm work devoted his energies 
in the summer months, while in the winter he 
attended the district school of the neighbor- 
hood, completing his education in the Colum- 



bia County Academy, at Claverack. Subse- 
quently he went to New York City, and en- 
tered upon his business career as a salesman 
for the firm of Lord & Taylor. He was mar- 
ried September 4, 1867, to Caroline E. Ganse, 
who was born at Wappingers Falls, a daugh- 
ter of Henry Ganse, a farmer who was of Hol- 
land lineage. After his marriage, Mr. \'an- 
De Water located upon a farm in the town of 
Pleasant \'alley, where he lived until 1881, 
and then embarked in the milling business at 
Salt Point, which he continued for five years. 
On the expiration of that period he purchased 
his present farm of 122 acres, and is now en- 
gaged in the cultivation of his land. He has 
placed many improvements upon his farm, and 
his progressive methods and well-directed ef- 
forts class him among the leading agriculturists 
of the county. 

Mr. Van De Water gives his political sup- 
port to the Republican party, and both he and 
his wife are members of the Presbyterian 
Church. They are parents of five children: 
Rosilla M., svife of Harry A. Russell, a farmer 
of the town of Pleasant \'alley; Cora A., wife 
of William H. Allen, a farmer, and the presi- 
dent of the Salt Point Creamery Co. ; George 
H., who was killed by the kick of a horse, in 
North Dakota, in 1891; and Casper G. and 
Ethel M., at home. 



MRS. MARY J. WOODIN. TheWoodin 
__ family, which has been identified with 

the town of Pawling, Dutchess county, from 
early times, traces its origin to three brothers, 
Amos, John and Daniel Woodin, who came 
from England during the Revolutionary war 
as soldiers in the service of the British gov- 
ernment. When the struggle for freedom was 
ended they settled here — Amos locating in the 
town of Pawling, Dutchess county; John on 
Huckleberry Mountain; and Daniel in Ansonia, 
Connecticut. 

Amos ^^'oodin married Lucretia Miller, 
and had six children: Solomon; Joel; DanieP 
(who married Mary Pierce); Henry (who re- 
mained single;; Hyal (who married Betsy 
Turner), and Esther (who married John 
Brownell). Solomon Woodin was born in the 
town of Pawling, in 1780, and his education 
was obtained there in the schools of that time. 
He married Miss Annie Prosser, daughter of 
Dr. Prosser's sister. Thirteen children were 
born to them, of whom all married but one, 



592 



COMJUEMOSATirE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



their names, together with those of their re- 
spective partners in matrimony, being as fol- 
lows: Ransom — Charlotte Brairtain; Esther — 
Jarvis T. Sweet; Sallie — Duncan Mead: Ira — 
Caroline W^oodin; Chauncey, who never mar- 
ried; Milton — Malonie Lawrence; Federal — 
Maria Brazee; Benjamin — Esther Brownell; 
Amos — Naomi Griffin: Egbert — Mary Miller; 
Henrj' L. — Laura Armstrong; Ruth — John 
Willard; and Lucretia — Peter Brazee. 

Henry L. Woodin was born in the town of 
Pawling, in iSi6, and on finishing his course 
in the schools there he became a collier, which 
occupation he followed some forty years; he 
is now engaged in farming. He and his wife 
have had four children: Ransom married Ma- 
rinda Beers; Amelia is the wife of George 
Squires; Solomon married Alice Wilcox; and 
Coleman married first) Elizabeth Sprague, 
and (second I Ida Ett. 

D.\NiEL T. Woodin, the son of Daniel 
Woodin-', was born in the town of Pawling, 
in 1812, and was reared at the old farm, at- 
tending school in the neighborhood. He learned 
the cooper's trade, and followed it for some 
3-ear5, and later engaging in farming. Ha\'ing 
an active mind with a legal bent, he also prac- 
ticed law for some time. His wife, Mrs. Mary 
J. (Clump I Woodin, is a lady of unusual men- 
tal force and ability, and the descendant of one 
of the old families of the town of Poughkeepsie. 
They have had four children: ( i) Isabelle was 
born and educated in the town of Pawling, 
and is now the wife of Prof. Edward T. Pierce, 
principal of the State Normal School at Los 
Angeles, Cal.; they have had three children — 
Ethel Elbora; Harold, who died in infancy; 
and Hilda Bell, who died when two j-ears old. 
(2) Daniel W. Woodin, Jr., was born in the 
town of Pawling, and, since he completed his 
studies in the schools there, has been engaged 
in farming. (3) Arvine was born at the old 
homestead, in 1855, ^^^ ''^^ f^he others ob- 
tained her education in the local schools. 
("4) Gertrude B. died at an early age. 

Mrs. Woodin's maternal grandfather, Sam- 
uel Lucky, was born and reared in Poughkeep- 
sie, and in manhood became a successful 
farmer. By his first wife. Miss Rebecca Wil- 
sey, he had six children: Samuel, Thomas, 
James, Robert, John, and Jane, Mrs. Woodin's 
mother, who was a native of the town of 
Poughkeepsie, and was reared at the old home 
there. She married Cornelius Clump, and 
had eight children, of whom Mrs. Woodin is 



the youngest. Rebecca married James Mar- 
tin; Gertrude married (first) Charles Hoffman, 
and (second) James Benson; John L. married 
Celia A. Tompkins; Sam married Eliza Phil- 
lips; Peter died in infancy; Almira is the wife 
of Walter Shader; and Joanna married George 
De La \'ergne. 



FRANK B. LOWN was born at the village 
of Red Hook, Dutchess Co., N. Y. . on 
the first day of January, 1849. He is the son 
of David and Jane M. Lown, and with his par- 
ents removed to the city of Poughkeepsie in 
1857, where he has since resided. 

Mr. Lown was educated in the public 
schools of the city of Poughkeepsie. and in 
1 87 1 entered the law office of Nelson & Baker 
as a law student. After being admitted to the 
bar, he became a clerk in the office of Thomp- 
son & Weeks, then the oldest firm of practi- 
tioners in the county. In 1S78, the firm of 
Thompson, Weeks & Lown was formed, and 
upon the death of James H. Weeks in 1887, 
and of John Thompson in 1S91, Mr. Lown be- 
came the sole survivor. He is still engaged in 
the practice of his profession in the city of 
Poughkeepsie. 



LEWIS B. BARTON, proprietor of the 
•• Amenia House, " at Amenia, Dutchess 

county, comes of a well-known and honora- 
ble family that has long been connected with 
the professional and business interests of the 
county. Dr. Lewis Barton, his great-grand- 
father, was one of the early residents and suc- 
cessful practitioners of the town of Stanford, 
where he served as assessor in 1793, that being 
the first town meeting held in the town of Stan- 
ford in the house of Ephraim Paine. The 
farm owned by him in that township is still in 
the possession of the family. He died in 
18 1 3, at the asre of eighty-nine years. 

Dr. Leonard Barton, the grandfather, was 
born there in 1769, and he also devoted his 
life to the practice of medicine in the town of 
Stanford, where he owned a large farm, and 
was a prominent and influential citizen, hold- 
ing several important offices. As early as 1 797 
he served as town clerk, and was supervisor 
of his township in I SiS, 1819, 1S20, 1829 and 
1830. His political support was given the De- 
mocracy, and socialh" he affiliated with the 
Masonic fraternity. He was twice married. 



,:(■'■■: 


.'^^eBhH^^L.'^ 






^fl 


^^^^^^H^^if. ^^^^^Slflfif' 




E' Ti 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



593 



his first wife being Miss Thompson, and to 
them was born a son, John. After her death 
he wedded Rachel Gale, and they had ten 
children: George; James; Eliachim; Edward 
P., of New Milford, Conn.; Josiah L. ; Julia, 
who married Morgan Hunting; Rachel, who 
married Stephen Sackett; Nancy, who mar- 
ried John Davis; Nelson, who died in 1852; 
and Sarah, who married Anthony Hoffman. 
All are now deceased with the exception of 
Edward P. ; Dr. Leonard Barton deceased in 
1 84 1, at the age of seventy-two years. 

Josiah L. Barton, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born August i, 18 16, in the town of 
Stanford, and acquired an excellent education 
at the Nine Partners Boarding School, in Wash- 
ington township, Dutchess county, after which 
he began the study of medicine, but later 
gave it up. In 1S44 he married Miss Annor 
Eliza Briggs, who was born in the town of 
Clinton, Dutchess county, March 29, 1822, a 
daughter of Enoch Briggs. They became the 
parents of three children, of whom our sub- 
ject is the eldest; (2) Arzelia is the wife of 
Bryant Strever, of Ancram, N. Y. , by whom 
she has one son, Henry; (3) Julius L. , of Mil- 
lerton, Dutchess county, married Annie Pul- 
ver, and they had two children, Ethel (de- 
ceased) and Harry. After his marriage the 
father removed to Ancram Lead Mines, Co- 
lumbia Co., N. Y., where he engaged in farm- 
ing from 1844 until 1849, and then removed to 
the village of Ancram Lead Mines. There he 
conducted a hotel until the spring of 1854, when 
he came to Pulvers Corners in the town of 
Pine Plains, Dutchess county, and carried on 
the same business for a year. In the spring 
of 1S55 he removed to Dover Plains, where 
he ran the "Stone Church Hotel " for the 
same length of time. Going to Ancram he 
lived there until 1863, when he returned to 
Ancram Lead Mines, where his death occurred 
in 1866, and as he was a member of Warren 
Lodge, F. & A. M., he was buried with Ma- 
sonic honors. He was also connected with 
the I. O. O. F. at Pine Plains. He died Feb- 
ruary 20, 1866, at the age of forty-nine years, 
six months and twenty days, and at the time 
he was serving as collector at Ancram. 

Lewis Briggs Barton, whose name intro- 
duces this sketch, was born in the town of 
Ancram, Columbia Co., N. Y., August 5, 1846, 
and during his early years accompanied his 
parents on their various removals, attending 
school at Ancram Lead Mines, Pulvers Cor- 

38 



ners and Dover Plains. On leaving the par- 
ental roof he went to Lithgow, in the town of 
Washington, where he carried on fanning un- 
til 1871. On November 15 of that year he 
was there married to Miss Mary Anna Tomp- 
kins, daughter of Enoch Tompkins. He then 
engaged at Lithgow in the butchering business 
with Cyrus Hammond for two years, after 
which he followed the same line of trade at 
Wassaic, N. Y. From 1873 until 1876 he 
conducted the "Wassaic House." In the 
spring of 1880 he removed to Amenia, where 
he has since had charge of the "Amenia 
House," which was opened for guests in 1852. 
It is conveniently arranged and well furnished, 
and in all its appointments, under its present 
excellent management, a first-class hotel, and 
is well patronized. Mr. Barton holds mem- 
bership with the Hotel Men's Mutual Benefit 
Association, also the New York State Hotel 
Association, and since 1868 has been connect- 
ed with the Masonic order, joining Sheko- 
meko Lodge No. 458, F. & A. M., at Mab- 
bettsville, now located at Washington Hollow, 
Dutchess county. He makes a genial, popu- 
lar host, and as a private citizen stands de- 
servedly high in the estimation of his fellow- 
men. 



CORNELIUS WINNE GRIFFEN, the 
well-known member of the firm of Griffen 
Brothers, proprietors of the Union Mills at 
Leedsville, Dutchess county, was born in New 
York City, March 11, 1 8 56. He belongs to 
an old and prominent family of Dutchess 
county, his grandfather, Bartholomew Griffen, 
who w-as a blacksmith by trade, having been a 
resident of Unionvale. He married Sarah 
Filkins, by whom he had eight children, 
namely: Bartholomew (deceased); George; 
Cornelius (deceased); Alonzo; Mary; Carohne 
(deceased); Jane Ann; and Timothy S., the 
father of our subject. 

The birth of the last named occurred in the 
town of Unionvale, Dutchess county, July 19, 
181 1, and until thirteen years of age he there 
spent his boyhood. He then entered the old 
Red Mill, near Pawling, where he learned the 
milling business, which he subsequently fol- 
lowed at Verbank, Dutchess county. At that 
place he wedded Mary LeRoy, daughter of 
John LeRoy, and to them were born three 
children: Charles E. , of Wassaic, Dutchess 
county; Catherine M., of New York City; and 



594 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Frances, of Colorado. About 1837 Timothy 
S. Griffen removed to South Amenia, where 
he conducted a mill for about three years, 
after which he returned to \'erbank for a short 
time, and in 1842 moved to Leedsville, here 
running a mill on shares for nine years. In 
185 1 he went to New York City, where he was 
engaged in the grocery and meat-market busi- 
ness until March, 1857, when he removed to 
Salisbury, Conn., there operating the Long 
Pond mills until 1861, in the spring of which 
year he returned to South Amenia. He then 
conducted the Weebotuck mills until the 
spring of 1877, when he again brought his 
family to Leedsville, where his death occurred 
June 10, 1885. He was strictly a self-made 
man, honest and industrious, and in politics a 
supporter of the Republican party, while so- 
cially he belonged to the L O. O. F. at Sharon, 
Conn., and religiously was a member of the 
Episcopal Church at Amenia Union. 

For his second wife, Timothy S. Grif?en 
married Miss Helen Beach, by whom he had 
two children: John and Helen. At Schodack, 
State of New York, he was subsequently united 
in marriage with Lydia Ann Winne, and they 
became the parents of eight children: William 
A. (deceased); George A., of Leedsville; Frank 
P., of Chicago, 111.; Cornelius Winne, of this 
sketch; Mary A., wife of Charles E. Still, of 
Wassaic, Dutchess county; Alon^o D. (de- 
ceased); Peter A., of Leedsville; and Ida S. 

In 1877 our subject began the milling busi- 
ness at Leedsville, and two years later took 
his brother, George A., as a partner. In 
March, 1886, they purchased the mill property 
which they still own, and in the fall of 1887 
admitted their younger brother, Peter A., as a 
member of the firm, which then assumed the 
firm style of Griffen Brothers. They are man- 
ufacturers of and dealers in Hour, feed, grain, 
etc., and also buy and sell hams, shoulders, 
pork, lard and butter. In connection with 
their other business they in 1893 established a 
grocery store, which they have since success- 
fully conducted. They are wide-awake, ener- 
getic business men, and success has come to 
them as a just reward for their labor. 

At Amenia, December 23, 1886, Cornelius 
W. Griffen was married to Miss Georgiana 
Palmer, daughter of Hiram Palmer, and four 
children have blessed their union: Clarence 
P., Harry Stephen, Elsie Alide and Joel C. 
The cause of education has ever found in Mr. 
Griffen an earnest advocate and supporter; for 



four successive terms he has been the efficient 
trustee of his school district, and is now (1897) 
serving his fifth term. His life is a living il- 
lustration of what ability, energy and force of 
character can accomplish, and while promot- 
ing his own interests he has materially ad- 
vanced the welfare of the community. 



DANIEL VAN DE BOGAKT, a prominent 
resident of Ked Hook, Dutchess county, 
and one of the leading contractors and builders 
of that region, is a descendant of one of our 
most distinguished pioneer families. 

The great-great-grandfather of our subject 
was Myndert \'an De Bogart, who in 1702, 
with his brother. Jacobus, emigrated from 
Amsterdam, Holland, and settled on the site of 
Poughkeepsie. They acquired a large tract of 
land and built one of the first eleven houses in 
that city. Jacobus \'an De Bogart was one of 
the first sheriffs of Dutchess county, in 1726. 
The two brothers. Jacobus and Myndert, gave 
the land and contributed liberally to the first 
church in the village, which was to be a Re- 
formed Dutch meeting-house. In 171 5 Jaco- 
bus \'an De Bogart leased land to the county 
for a court house and jail, and in 1734 it was 
made a count)' seat. Myndert was in 1744 
married to Gretchert Kipp, daughter of Jacob 
and Engellge Pells. Myndert \'an De Bogart, 
Jr., was married in 1765 to Miss Hanna \'elie. 
Peter, son of Myndert Van De Bogart, was 
married in 1807 to Mary Maria Wilco.x. 

James Van De Bogart, our subject's father, 
was a lifelong resident of Poughkeepsie, re- 
ceiving his education there, and afterward fol- 
lowing the trade of mason. He married Miss 
Mary Ann Windover, of the same city, and had 
se\en children: James K., who died in in- 
fancy, Ellen, Lydia Ann, Daniel, Eugene, 
James and Harriet. 

Daniel Van De Bogart was born De- 
cember 25, 1849, and, after availing himself 
of the excellent educational advantages offered 
in the schools of Poughkeepsie, he learned the 
mason's trade with William Sague, a promi- 
nent mason of that city. For a few years he 
worked as a journeyman and then went into 
business for himself at Verbank, and met with 
such success that he looked about for a wider 
field for operations. In 1873 he moved to 
Red Hook, and since that time he has erected 
many of the finest structures in that and other 
towns. Among the most notable are the two 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



595 



elegant residences at Summit, N. J., built for 
Miss Donaldson and Mrs. Bronson; St. Paul's 
Lutheran Church of Red Hook: the Methodist 
Church at Red Hook, erected in 1S93; the 
beautiful mansion of Johnston Livingston on 
the banks of the Hudson at Tivoli; several 
charitable institutions built by Gen. John 
Watts De Peyster; the De Peyster Memorial 
Church at Tivoli, erected in 1S92; the St. 
Paul's Training School; the Hospital for Con- 
sumptives at Verbank, in 1894-95; ^"d the 
anne.x to the Leak & Watts Orphan House at 
Yonkers, N. Y. , 1S96. These and other sub- 
stantial and artistic buildings will stand for 
ages to come as a monument to his skill and 
ability. 

On September 3, 1873, Mr. Van De Bo- 
gart was married to Miss Estella Pulver, a 
daughter of Louis Pulver, a prosperous farmer 
of Red Hook. Of this union eight chil- 
dren were born: Allard A. March i, 1875; 
Mary, April 28, 1877; Ediia, October 30, 
1879; li)aniel, March 19, 1882; Ernest. 
July 17, 1884; Lucinda, May 9, 1887; 
Ralph, November 7, 1S89; and ^faynard J., 
April 17, 1892. In all local movements our 
subject takes an influential part on the side of 
progress, and he has found time to fill credit- 
ably several ofBcial positions, having been col- 
lector of the town of Red Hook, and one of 
the trustees of the village, when it was incor- 
porated in 1894. In 1893 he received the 
nomination for supervisor of the town of Red 
Hook. He has been a member of the I. O. O. 
F., for man\' years but is not at present active 
in the order. 



GEORGE C. SMITH, superintendent of 
one of the most important departments 
in the extensive works of the Xew York Rub- 
ber Companj-, and a prominent resident of 
Fishkill-on-Hudson, was born January 8, 1840, 
at Shrub Oak, \\'estchester Co., N. Y., of 
English descent. 

Leonard Smith, his father, son of Jacob 
Smith, and a well-to-do farmer of Westchester 
county, was born in 1806, and married Mary 
A. Carpenter, who was born April 13, 1814, a 
daughter of Walter and Nancy (Somerbell) 
Carpenter. Ten children were born of this 
union, of whom eight lived to adult age: 
George C, Ferdinand, Leonard, Lewis, Theo- 
dore, William, Lauretta, and Mary I. (who 
married Charles E. Martin, a grocer of Fish- 



father of these died 
mother on March 16, 



kill-on-Hudson). The 
January 21, 1868; the 
1869. 

George C. Smith attended the district 
schools at Shrub Oak in early boyhood, and 
then pursued a wider ccurse of study in the 
public schools of Peekskill, and the well-known 
academy of the same town. When he at- 
tained the age of seventeen he left home to 
make his own way in the world, and, going to 
Brooklyn, he secured employment in a gro- 
cery and feed store, owned by George & Alfred 
Wallace. With them he remained two years, 
and then came to Fishkill Landing, where he was 
emplo)'ed by William Teller & Co. until 1861. 
in which year he entered the service of the 
New York Rubber Company. He began as a 
day hand, but so efficient and capable did he 
prove that he was promoted, from time to 
time, until he was appointed to the responsi- 
ble position of superintendent of the hollow- 
goods department, which employs 130 men, 
boys and girls, the entire plant containing in 
all about 250 employes. This honorable rec- 
ord of continuous service speaks more elo- 
quently of his essential trustworthiness than 
could any words, and Mr. Smith, who is a 
stockholder of the company, is, as may well 
be imagined, a valued worker in other business 
enterprises, being a stockholder and director 
in the Holland Hotel Company, and for twenty 
years past a trustee of the Mechanics Savings 
Bank, of Fishkill-on-Hudson. He takes a 
prominent part in local politics, also being an 
ardent supporter of the Republican party. In 
1875 he was elected trustee of the village, and 
has since held that office almost continuously. 
In 1895 he was elected president of the vil- 
lage; in March, 1896, was again chosen to 
that office, and also in 1897. For a number 
of years he was a member of the 21st Regi- 
ment New York State Militia, which was called 
out during the Civil war, and served thirty 
days at Baltimore. Socially he is affiliated 
with Beacon Lodge No. 283, F. & A. M. 

Mr. Smith has a pleasant home overlook- 
ing the Hudson river and the city of Newburg, 
where he owns two large lots opposite his resi- 
dence. His wife, whom he married in August, 
1 86 1, was formerly Miss Elsie M. Bishop, 
daughter of Miles and Cynthia (Ives) Bishop, 
of Woodbury, Conn. Her ancestors were 
early settlers in New England, and one was a 
soldier in the Revolutionary war; her father 
served in the war of 1S12. Mr. and Mrs. 



51)(5 



COM.VE.VOIi A TIVE BIOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



Smith are members of the Reformed Church. 
They have one son, Walter A. Smith, who is 
at home. 



WARRENS. DIBBLE, one of the substan- 
tial business men of Matteawan, Dutch- 
ess county, is the proprietor of the popular 
hotel known as the "Dibble House," and also 
of the Dibble Opera House, a favorite place 
of amusement for the best people of that town. 

His great-grandfather, Jonathan Dibble, 
was a soldier in the Revolutionary army. His 
grandparents were Seth and Diana (Sherwood i 
Dibble, and his father was the late Augustus 
N. Dibble, a well-known farmer of Litchfield 
county, Conn., who was born February 20, 
1 8 1 1 . He married Henrietta Morgan, and they 
reared a family of three children, of whom our 
subject is the eldest; Mary E. is the wife of 
Robert Cooley, of Albany, N. Y. ; and Belle 
married William Daly, Waterbury, Connecti- 
cut. 

Warren S. Dibble was born July 1 1, 1S42, at 
Cornwall, where the schools afforded excellent 
educational advantages, of which Mr. Dibble 
availed himself, attending the public schools 
for some years, and later the Adelphi Institute. 
After his graduating, in 1858, he taught for 
several years in different places, and then went 
"on the road" as an auctioneer. A few years 
later he engaged in the hotel business, first at 
Cornwall, Conn., and then at Pine Plains, N. 
Y. , and in 1877 he purchased his present hotel 
at Matteawan. then known as the Jaycox 
property. This he has greatly improved, 
making additions from time to time until it now 
contains seventy-five rooms; and he has also 
built a commodious stable. In 1886 he erected 
the Dibble Opera House, which he is at present 
managing, and is furnishing a high class of 
entertainment to an appreciative public. He 
has also built several tenement houses which 
he rents. Genial in manner, but possessing 
keen discrimination in financial matters, Mr. 
Dibble holds the confidence of the people in an 
unusual degree. He is a Republican, politically, 
but is not an active worker in the party. 

On April 11, 1870, Mr. Dibble married 
Miss Jane Stoddard, daughter of Jasper and 
Sophia (Hubbard) Stoddard. She is a member 
of the Baptist Church. They have one daughter, 
Daisy M., a young lady of tine social gifts, 
who attends the Episcopal Church, and takes 
an active part in various charitable enterprises. 



JOHN FLANNERY. The "Flannery 
House ' at Fishkill Landing is one of the 
finest and best managed hostelries in that 
locality, and its genial proprietor, the subject 
of this sketch, has demonstrated his business 
sagacity in his liberal j'et judicious expendi- 
tures, in its building and equipment. When 
he purchased the property, in 1878, it was 
simply a marshy lot with an old shanty upon 
it, but as its location near the dock made it 
especially suitable for his purposes, he secured 
it at a cost of $10,000, and he has since spent 
$25,000 in the improvements which he has 
made from time to time. 

Mr. Flannery was born March 25, 1S49, in 
Dublin, Ireland, but his father, Patrick Flan- 
nery, a native of the same place, was for some 
years a farmer in County Tipperary before 
coming to America. Our subject's mother, 
whose maiden name was Katie Moore, was 
also a native of Dublin, and her death occurred 
there in 1S54. Of their four children, our 
subject was the youngest, (i) James died at 
the age of four years; (2) Patrick E., who 
served as a soldier throughout the Civil war, 
is now a successful hotel-keeper at St. Paul, 
Minn.; and (3) Mary is the wife of Michael 
Ormand, a wealthy resident of Hastings, Minn. 
The father, Patrick Flannery, married a sec- 
ond wife, and for some time after his arrival 
in America lived upon a farm at Goshen, N. 
Y. He is now living in retirement, having 
sold the place to our subject. In religion he 
is a devout Catholic, and he has been an ad- 
herent of the Democratic party ever since he 
came to this country. 

As John Flannery was but a child when he 
made the trip across the Atlantic, his boyhood 
was mainly spent at Goshen, where he re- 
ceived his elementary education. He also at- 
tended school at Campbell Hall, Orange coun- 
ty, and in Poughkeepsie. His first venture in 
the business world was at Goshen, where, when 
a mere boy, he conducted a hotel, and in seven 
months made $12,000, a remarkable beginning. 
He continued in the hotel business for two 
years, and then spent one year in rest and 
recreation, after which he went to Poughkeep- 
sie, as mentioned, and studied for a year. 
Resuming business, he conducted a hotel at 
Newburg for three years, and then bought one 
in the country, in Orange county, which he 
sold after two years, returning to Newburg 
and continuing in business there for three 
years. In 1S76 he moved to Fishkill Land- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



597 



ing, leasing the old " Myer's Hotel," near the 
depot, where he remained until he established 
his present place. Since taking up that enter- 
prise he has purchased a wholesale liquor busi- 
ness in Newburg, and he is also interested in 
thoroughbred horses, having owned many val- 
uable trotters. He is highly respected, and 
has always been noted for his liberality in po- 
litical, educational or philanthropical move- 
ments which appeal to his judgment, and es- 
pecially to the Catholic Church, of which he 
is a member. In politics he is a Democrat, 
and his influence in the organization is widely 
recognized. 

In 1867 Mr. Flannery married his first 
wife. Miss Mary Groody, of Binghamton, N. 
Y., a daughter of John Groody, a well-known 
brewer of ale. Three children were born of 
this union: John, Jr. , who died at the age of 
eighteen; William, who died at twenty-four; 
and Katie, the wife of Daniel Glinn, of New- 
burg. Mrs. Mary Flannery died at Fishkill 
Landing, in 1892, and on October 17, 1894, 
our subject was married to Miss Margaret J. 
Faulkner, an Episcopalian, the ceremony being 
performed in the Catholic Church, by Father 
T. F. Kelly. One son, John G., brightens 
their home. 

Mrs. Flannery is a native of Newburg, where 
she was born May i, 1870. Her family orig- 
inated in England, but her great-grandfather, 
who was a major in the English army, settled 
in the North of Ireland, in County Antrim, 
where her grandfather, Richard Faulkner, was 
born, and is still living at an advanced age, 
having passed his life there as an extensive 
agriculturist. He is a strict Episcopalian, and 
a generous contributor to various charities. 
He married Margaret Ewing, who was of 
Irish descent, and had the following children 
John and Jane, twins, who died in infancy 
Richard (i) deceased; John H. ; James (i) 
Mary, wife of James Weir, of Ireland; George, 
a well-to-do farmer there; Robert H., a police 
captain at Derry, Ireland; Elizabeth, wife of 
James Walters, of Ireland; William, a success- 
ful farmer at the old homestead; Margaret, 
deceased, formerly the wife of John Nesbitt, 
principal of a school at Randallstown; Richard 
{2), and James (2). 

John H. Faulkner was reared in the old 
country, attending school at Seymour Bridge, 
and in early manhood engaged in the grocery 
business at Belfast. On June 25, 1867, he 
wedded Miss Agnes Colville, who was born 



August 5, 1844, at Ballymena, County Antrim, 
Ireland, daughter of Hugh Colville, and grand- 
daughter of Alexander Colville. Her mother, 
Jane (Gordon), was also born there, and both 
families were among the old residents of the 
town. Mr. Faulkner continued in business in 
Belfast about three years after his marriage, 
and in 1870 he and his wife came to Newburg, 
where he became a salesman in a wholesale 
liquor store. It was not long before he had 
acquired a sufficient acquaintance with his 
new surroundings to warrant him in opening a 
similar establishment on his own account, and 
he has ever since been engaged in the business. 
In 1880 he removed to Matteawan, but later he 
transferred his interests to Fishkill Landing, 
where he has remained. Eleven children were 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Faulkner, as follows: 
Agnes and Jennie, who died in infancy; Robert 
C. , who graduated from the School of Phar- 
macy in New York City, and is now a druggist 
at Cornwall, N. Y. ; Margaret J. (Mrs. Flan- 
nery); Martha, a graduate of De Garmo Insti- 
tute, who is at home; Richard, a publisher in 
New York City, and a member of the Seventy- 
first regiment, N. Y. N. G. ; Esther, who died 
in infancy; John G. and Esther (2), who are 
at home; Agnes, deceased, and another child 
who died in infancy. 



FRANCIS TI MONEY, a wealthy brick man- 
ufacturer of Dutchess Junction, Dutchess 

county, is one of those business men whose in- 
dustry and enterprise seem limitless, their ac- 
tivity in varied lines of work appearing to be 
an easy and natural exercise'of their inborn 
capacity for organization. 

Mr. Timoney was born August 4, 1829, in 
County Fermanagh, Ireland, and is the third 
of his name. His grandfather, Francis Tim- 
oney (i), married Winifred Gallagher, and 
their son, Francis Timoney (2) ( our subject's 
father), married Abbie Duffy, by whom he had 
eight children: Dennis, Patrick, James, 
Francis, John, Winifred, Mary and Bridget. 
The common schools of his native land did 
not afford Mr. Timoney the advantages that 
he needed, and he was partly educated by pri- 
vate tutors. At the age of twenty-three he 
came to America, and located at \'erplanck's 
Point, Westchester county, where he found 
employment in the brick yard of S. M. Dyke- 
man. After three years he was put in charge 
of the yard as foreman, and held that position 



598 



COMMEMOUA TIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



for two years, when he began to work on 
shares, Mr. Dykeman furnishing the plant, 
horses, carts, and implements, and Mr. Tim- 
oney supplying the labor and feeding the 
horses. This arrangement lasted two years, 
and then Mr. Timoney purchased a half inter- 
est in the business, and four years later he 
bought the other half and continued the busi- 
ness alone until iS86, when he purchased his 
present property at Dutchess Junction at a 
cost of $42,000. There was at the time one 
yard in working order, and he has since fitted 
up two others, expending from $50,000 to 
$75,000 upon his improvements. He now has 
three yards which he would not hesitate to 
compare with any on the Hudson. He can 
turn out a quarter of a million brick per day, 
and his daily expenditure for labor alone is 
from $300 to $500. He owns two barges 
which he uses to convey his brick to market, 
most of which is disposed of in New York City. 
For twent}' years past he has been a promi- 
nent member of the Brick Exchange in that 
city, and his thirty-seven years of continuous 
work in brick manufacture has made him au- 
thority on all points relating to the business. 
But his success in this line of effort has not 
prevented him from engaging in others, and 
while at Verplanck's Point he carried on a gro- 
cery and dry-goods store for over eighteen 
years, the butcher business for two years, and 
the coal business for four years. Since com- 
ing to Dutchess Junction he has devoted his 
attention to his main line of business, but he 
takes an active interest in the Matteawan Na- 
tional Bank, in which he is a stockholder and 
director. 

In politics Mr. Timoney is a Democrat, and 
while living at Verplanck's Point he was for 
two years a member of the board of auditors 
of Cortland township; but his business interests 
have prevented him from taking a very active 
part in political affairs. 

On July 6, 1S55, he married Miss Margaret 
Reed, daughter of John and Margaret (McKil- 
lup) Reed, and they have had eleven children, 
four of whom died in infancy. Their eldest 
child, Mary Ann, is the wife of John C. Mc- 
Namara, a commission merchant of New York 
City, formerly a resident of Fulton, N. Y., but 
now living at Fishkill Landing. Francis A., 
one of the leading young business men of 
Dutchess Junction, is a brick manufacturer, 
merchant, and at present the postmaster there, 
having been appointed in January, 1894. He 



married Miss Margaret Grady, of Fishkill 
Landing. Five younger children — Theresa, 
Susie, John, James and Clara — are still at 
home. The family are members of the Roman 
Catholic Church. 



ROBERT P. L.AWSON, a wealthy iisher- 
man and real-estate holder of New Ham- 
burg, Dutchess county, was born in that village 
about seventy years ago. His ancestors came 
originally from Holland, and the family is one 
of the oldest in the county. 

Cornelius Lawson, our subject's grand- 
father, was born in Dutchess county, and fol- 
lowed the occupation of farming all his life. 
He reared a large family of children, among 
whom was Cornelius Lawson (2), our subject's 
father, who passed the greater part of his life 
in the village of New Hamburg, where he en- 
gaged in the occupation of lime burning. He 
married .Miss Amy Lawson, a native of that 
village, and reared a family of five children, of 
whom our subject (the third son) is now the 
only survivor. Jeremiah and Cornelius were 
boatmen on the Hudson; John was a farmer of 
Dutchess county; and Ann, the youngest child, 
married Moses Sensabal, now deceased. The 
parents passed away many years ago. 

Robert P. Lawson has spent his entire life 
at New Hamburg, and has secured a fine com- 
petence, being the owner of a valuable property 
in the village, and his industry and thrift have 
won for him the high esteem of his associates. 
In 1 85 5 he married Miss .^nn Orbson, a native 
of Ulster county, who died in 1S93, leaving no 
children. In politics Mr. Lawson is a Demo- 
crat, as was his father before him, and he has 
never wavered in his devotion to the principles 
of his party. 



A 



LONZO S. WTLTSE, a well-known citi- 

zen of Fishkill-on-Hudson, Dutchess 

.county, proprietor of a grocery located on the 
corner of Main and Ferry streets and South 
avenue, is descended on both sides of the 
family from old Holland-Dutch ancestry. 

His father, the late Benjamin Wiltse, was 
born May 4, 1799. and became a farmer in 
the town of Fishkill. He married Margaret 
Ann Tidd, who was born December 22, 1801, 
and had eight children: Jane, Annis, Cath- 
erine, Margaret, Peter, Charles, Cyrus and 
Alonzo S. Of this family, our subject and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



599 



three daughters are the only survivors. The 
father died January i, iSSi, and the mother 
on January 9, 186S. 

Alonzo S. Wiltse was born at the old 
homestead in the town of Fishkill, April 24, 
1840, and was educated in the district schools 
of the neighborhood, his attendance, after he 
reached the age of twelve, being limited to the 
winter terms as his help was needed in sum- 
mer in the work on the farm. At nineteen he 
began his business career at Fishkill-on- 
Hudson as a clerk for S. G. & J. T. Smith, 
dealers in dry goods and groceries, with whom 
he spent six years. He then entered the em- 
ploy of the Newburg, Dutchess and Connecti- 
cut R. R. Co., taking charge of the buildings 
and bridges alcng the entire line. This po- 
sition he held until iSSo, when he received 
the appointment to the post of engineer at 
Sing Sing Prison, which he held eight years. 
In 1 888 he resigned and returned to Fishkill,^- 
on-Hudson, where he established his pres- 
ent business, in which he has met with well- 
deserved success. 

Mr. Wiltse married Miss Mary E. Benson, 
a descendant of one of the prominent families 
of Highland, Ulster county,' and the daughter 
of Capt. John Benson and his wife.Priscilla H. 
Benson. Two children were born of this union: 
Charles B., who has been for some time a 
train dispatcher on the X. D. & C. R. R. , 
and Carrie L., a successful teacher in the pub- 
lic schools of Fishkill. The family attend the 
Methodist Episcopal Church of Fishkill Land- 
ing. In politics Mr. Wiltse has always been 
a steadfast Republican; socially, he is a mem- 
ber of Beacon Lodge No. 2S3, F. & A. M. 



I 



BRAHAM BRETT was a descendant of 
yjL one of our oldest families. His pater- 
nal great-grandfather, George Brett, married 
Hannah Cooper; their son, Francis G. Brett, 
married Margaret Camel, and their son, Har- 
vey Brett, married Susan Coleman, and had 
three sons: Wesley, Abraham and Charles 
Fletcher, and one daughter — Emma — who 
died in her seventh year. Abraham Brett was 
born in Matteawan February i, 1843, and 
died April 13, 1893. He attended the schools 
of the village and the Tarrytown Institute for 
some years, and then entered Claverack Col- 
lege, Claverack, Columbia county. After 
graduation he at once began a mercantile ca- 
reer, spending two years as a clerk for Mr. 



Wells in a general store at Highland Falls, 
N. Y. , and then went to Newburgh. to enter 
the employ of Isaac Wood, at that time a 
prominent dry-goods merchant there. After 
one year he returned to Matteawan, and 
clerked for David Davis in his general store, 
which was long known as the "old Matteawan 
store." The building has since been torn 
down and replaced by the Music Hall build- 
ing, now occupied by S. G. and J. T. Smith 
as a dry-goods store. After learning the de- 
tails of mercantile business, Mr. Brett opened 
an establishment of his own August i, 1865, 
the first e.xclusive dry-goods store in the town, 
and about a year later his brother, Charles F. 
Brett, was taken into partnership, under the 
firm name of A. & C. F. Brett. The first lo- 
cation was in what was known as the Mechan- 
ics Hall building, and from there they moved 
to the Phillips building, and remained until 
1876, w^hen they went to a store which they 
had just completed, next to the Howland Li- 
brary building. Here the business is still car- 
ried on, C. F. Brett conducting it since his 
brother's death, and retaining the same firm 
name. In politics the late Abraham Brett 
was a Republi/;an, and in religion a Methodist, 
being an active member of the Church. In 
1863 he married Jane, a daughter of Solomon 
and Elizabeth Randall Tompkins. They had 
three children: Albert \'., Emma S. and 
Harvey, Jr. 



GEORGE SILVERS, a retired clothing 
merchant and hotel proprietor, of Pough- 
keepsie, Dutchess county, was born October 
3, 1824, in Hanover, Germany, where he grew 
to manhood and learned the tailoring business. 
Mr. Sievers was united in marriage with 
Miss Louisa Frese, who was also born in Han- 
over, and was a daughter of Henry Frese. 
They were married in Hanover September 19, 
1847, and directly thereafter came to America, 
locatmg in Albany, where our subject follow-ed 
his trade for three years. He and his wife 
then came to Poughkeepsie, and have since 
remained here. Mr. Sievers worked at his 
trade for a year, and then went into the cloth- 
ing business, his store being located at No. 282 
Main street, where he remained until 1861, 
and then started a hotel on the corner of 
Bridge and Main streets, carrying on at the 
same time a liquor business, until 1870, since 
which time he has been retired. The follow- 



600 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



ing children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Sievers: Susie, who became the wife of Charles 
Achuster, a butcher, and died in 1884; Charles 
died at the age of twelve years; Louisa mar- 
ried Dr. Harper, of Cambridge, who is de- 
ceased; Anna married Bonocio B. Llensa, and 
they own a plantation in Porto Rico; Jeraldine 
is the wife of Dr. John P. Wilson. 

When President Lincoln called for volun- 
teers in 1863, Mr. Sievers answered the call, 
and was appointed lieutenant of Company G, 
N. Y. S. M. He is a member of the Masonic 
order, and, with his wife, attends the German 
Lutheran Church. He is a fine German citi- 
zen, one who has helped to promote mat- 
ters of public interest in Poughkeepsie. He 
possesses considerable real estate, and is one 
of the leading men of the city. 

Our subject's father. Christian Sievers, was 
born in England, learned the tailoring business 
and followed it all his life. He married Miss 
Dora Tilke, a native of Hanover, and the fol- 
lowing children were born to them: Christian, 
Henry and Carl, tailors by trade, who died in 
Germany; Dora, who died unmarried; and 
George, our subject. The father died in 1838 
and the mother in 1S31. Xhe grandfather 
was a French Huguenot, born in France. 



THOMAS G. NICHOLS (deceased), the 
founder of T/ic Sunday Courier, of 
Poughkeepsie, now owned and edited by 
Arthur G. Tobey, was born in Boston, Mass., 
January 8, 1827. While he was quite young 
his parents removed to Poughkeepsie, N. Y., 
where he attended the common schools, and 
then commenced an apprenticeship to the 
printer's trade. Soon after his apprenticeship 
ended he opened a job-printing office, the first 
one in Poughkeepsie. In May. 1852, in part- 
nership with John H. Bush mow also de- 
ceased), under the name of Nichols & Bush, 
he started the first daily paper published in 
the city, which was called The City Press ; 
but in 1858 it was sold to Albert S. Pease, who 
changed its name to T/ic Daily Press. Mr. 
Nichols then gave his attention to job print- 
ing, and continued exclusively in that line un- 
til 1868, when with the assistance of George 
Innis and others he established another daily 
paper called The Morning Nen's, which soon 
became quite popular. Receiving a favorable 
offer, however, from Hegeman & Wilbur, Mr. 
Nichols sold the paper to them, and they 



changed its name to The Poughkee/'sic Xei^'s. 
Subsequently J. O. Whitehouse purchased the 
paper, and for a year or two Mr. Nichols re- 
mained looking out for a good opportunity to 
enter anew the field of journalism. The fav- 
orable time came, and December 15, 1872, he 
commenced the publication of The Sunday 
Courier, the first Sunday paper issued between 
New York and Albany. Many of his friends 
doubted the wisdom of his enterprise; but it 
prospered, thanks to his own indomitable 
perseverance and energy, as well as the influ- 
ence and patronage of his many friends; and 
when in 1888, owing to failing health, he con- 
cluded to sell his newspaper, he realized a 
competence which enabled him to retire from 
business, and take his ease for the remainder 
of his days. He died August 26, 1895, at the 
residence of Mr. Ackerman, at Carthage Land- 
ing, N. Y. , where for some time previous he 
had been making his home, having never mar- 
ried. He was peculiarly fitted for the profes- 
sion which he chose to adopt, was careful, 
painstaking and discreet, his editorials, withal, 
showing marked ability and thought. 



ARTHUR G. TOBEY. the well-known 
editor and sole proprietor of The Sunday 

Courier, was born May 5, 1850, in the city of 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, where he lived 
until eight years of age, and then went with 
his parents to Utica, N. Y., where he attended 
the public schools. Later he was employed 
in a drug store at Rome. N. Y., remaining 
there for about two years, and subsequently 
returning to Poughkeepsie, where he learned 
the printing business, with T. G. Nichols, who 
was then conducting the Morning N^ews with 
singular ability. 

In 1 87 1 Mr. Nichols sold the Xeics to Hege- 
man & Wilbur, and Mr. Tobey was made fore- 
man and, subsequently, local editor. Later 
our subject went to New York City and en- 
gaged in the restaurant business. Disposing 
of his restaurant in December, 1872, he in the 
following month returned to Poughkeepsie and 
assumed the position of manager and local 
editor of The Sunday Courier, which was 
established December 15, 1872. He held 
that position until December, 1888, when he 
purchased the paper, which at that time had a 
circulation of 5,000. This he has increased to 
8, 500. Mr. Tobey has never aspired to polit- 
ical or party honors, but has devoted his entire 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



601 



time and attention to his business, and has 
always conducted his paper on a non-partisan 
basis and with eminent personal popularity 
and pecuniary success. Beside the sole owner- 
ship of T/ic Courier and a full modern plant, 
he has constructed and resides in an attractive 
residence on one of the most pleasant avenues 
in the city. 

In 1875 Mr. Tobey was married at High- 
land, Ulster county, to Miss Florence Deyo, a 
daughter of the late Monroe Deyo, and they 
have two children: Earle D. and Florence E. 
Our subject is a member of Triune Lodge, 
F. & A. M., of Poughkeepsie Council No. 391, 
R. A., and of Hudson River Lodge, A. O. U. W. 

Henr}' L. Tobey, our subject's father, was 
born in Poughkeepsie, and was one of the 
editors of the Utica Herald at the time of his 
death. He learned the printer's trade in the 
office of T/ic Ecig/c\ in Poughkeepsie, going 
from there to Kingston, where he was em- 
ployed as a writer on The Journal. He sub- 
sequently went to Utica, where he died at the 
age of thirty-five. He was married in Pough- 
keepsie to Miss Eliza A. Seabury, and they had 
the following children: Heman A. (deceased); 
Clara (deceased); Arthur G., our subject; and 
Kate E. , wife of George R. Mooney, of New 
York. 

Heman Tobey, the grandfather of Arthur 
G., was born in Sharon, Conn., and was at 
maturity a merchant in Poughkeepsie, where 
he married Miss Hannah Bolan. 



GEORGE WARHURST, the present effi- 
cient superintendent of the engraving de- 
partment of the Dutchess Print Works, at 
Wappingers Falls, Dutchess county, has now 
held that position for sixteen years, and the 
long period of fifty-three years connected 
with that business plainly indicates his fidelity 
to duty. He has been longer in the employ 
of the company than any other man, and his 
trustworthiness and capability have been fully 
appreciated by those over him. 

Mr. Warhurst was born at Newtonmore, 
England, April 19, 1824, and is a son of 
George and Mary ( Wood ) Warhurst, both 
also natives of England, the former born in 
1799, and the latter in 1798. Their marriage 
was celebrated in England, and some of their 
children were born there, while the births of 
the others occurred after their removal to 
America; they were as follows: William, de- 



ceased, was a gold-leaf manufacturer of New 
York City; Ann married William D. Snow, 
who in early life was a block printer, and later 
^became a shoe merchant of Wappingers Falls, 
but both are now deceased; Thomas (i) died 
in infancy; George, of this review, is next in 
order of birth; Thomas (2), for several years 
served as agent on the road for " Blind Tom," 
the musician, and others, but is now living re- 
tired in New York City; Betsy, deceased, was 
the wife of Mr. McGinn, of Newburgh, N. Y. ; 
James was a carpenter and shipyard superin- 
tendent in Chicago, but has now laid aside 
business tares; and Mary died in infancy. On 
his emigration to the United States, the father 
located first at Belleville, N.J., in 1 831, where 
he worked at his trade of blacksmithing for a 
short time, and then came to Wappingers 
Falls, where he followed the same occupation. 
His death occurred in New York City, and his 
wife, who survived him, has also departed this 
life. The famih' were earnest and faithful 
members of the Episcopal Church. 

When seven years of age George Warhurst 
was brought by his parents to the New World, 
and at Wappingers Falls grew to manhood. 
During his youth he learned machine-engraving 
— to calico printing — and has followed that 
business continuously since, being connected 
with the Dutchess Print Works for over half a 
century, as previously^ stated. 

In 1845 Mr. Warhurst was joined in wed- 
lock with Mary Turner, who was born near 
Leeds, England, and is a daughter of William 
and Mary (Wood) Turner. After coming to 
America her father followed the leather busi- 
ness for a time, both in New York City and 
Wappingers Falls, but his last days were spent 
upon a farm in Wisconsin. To our subject 
and his estimable wife have been born the fol- 
lowing children: William, who died in Wis- 
consin; Mary, wife of Dan Ives, of Brooklyn, 
N. Y. ; Rowena, wife of Dr. William Baxter, 
of Wappingers Falls; Esther, wife of William 
J. Brown; Lizzie, wife of Dr. L. C. Wood, 
also of Wappingers Falls; George and Joseph, 
both machine-engravers of the same place; 
Martha, who died in infancy; Violetta, wife of 
James Hunter, of Wappingers Falls; Edith, 
wife of W. J. Van Aden, a merchant of New 
Hamburg, Dutchess county; Martha; Frank, a 
die maker, who is living at home; and Louisa, 
wife of Richard A. Pott, a publisher of New 
York City. 

As neighbors, friends and citizens, Mr. 



002 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Warhurst and his wife are held in the high- 
est regard. Both are members of the Episco- 
pal Church, in which he is at present a vestry- 
man. They are passing quietly down the 
sunset hill of life, enjoying the esteem and 
confidence of their neighbors, and the affection 
of their children and friends. In politics Mr. 
Warhurst has been a life-long Republican, has 
served as trustee of the schools of Wappingers 
Falls, and for two terms was trustee of the 
village. He is a trustee of the Grinnell Li- 
brary Association, and is at present trustee of 
the \\'appinger Savings Bank. For forty years 
he has been a member of the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows, and with the Masonic 
lodge. No. 671, F. & A. M., in which he has 
served as master, he has been connected for 
many years. 



A ^ AH EL DENMAX LYON was born 
August 12, 183S, in the town of Hyde 
Park, Dutchess county, a son of Clinton and 
Jane (Denman) Lyon. His father was the 
son of Aaron Lyon, a surveyor by profession, 
who married a Miss Nelson, an ancestor of the 
Nelsons of Poughkeepsie. The Lyon family 
came" from England. 

Clinton Lyon, our subject's father, was a 
machinist and a fine workman. He was a man 
of great natural ability, and when Henry Clay 
ran for President he " stumped " Orange coun- 
ty in his behalf, and becam^ well-known as a 
fluent and forcible speaker. He was well 
qualified to hold a high position in societ\-, and 
was a warm friend of the historian Benson J. 
Lossing, and of Egbert Kelley. They were all 
members of the same reading class, and were 
in accord in many things. Clinton Lyon 
worked on the construction of the first steam- 
boat which ran on the Hudson river, and on 
many other important structures. He was a 
liberal Democrat, afterward becoming a Whig 
and a strong Protectionist. He died in 1840, 
esteemed and respected throughout the county. 
The wife of Clinton Lyon was a daughter of 
John Denman, and a granddaughter of Asahel 
Armstrong, who was a brother of Gen. Arm- 
strong. They had seven children, namely: 
John Robert, Adeline, Horatio, Sheridan and 
Julia (both died when si.xteen years old), Asa- 
hel, and William Henry (born August 27, 1840, 
lives in Susquehanna county, Pennsylvania). 

Asahel D. Lyon received only a limited 
education, but has been a great reader, and is 



a man of keeVi perception, one of close obser- 
vation, in which way he learns much. He is 
well-informed on all current topics, and is a 
man of sterling good sense. When Asahel 
was only two years old his father died, and as 
soon as he was able to work the lad was put 
out on a farm, the wages of even so small a 
boy of eleven years being a help to his widowed 
mother. He worked by the month until eight- 
een or nineteen j'ears old, when he started 
out for himself, running a threshing machine 
for three years. He was married when twenty- 
two, and after working for awhile on a farm 
went into the butchering business, which has 
grown to be quite extensive, and in which he 
is still engaged. He has also for a number of 
years done some auctioneering. 

In 1 87 1 Mr. Lyon bought his present farm 
of 120 acres, which he is carrying on, as well 
as his other business, and has become a very 
successful agriculturist. He is active and en- 
ergetic, and puts through whatever he under- 
takes, qualities which are essential in a farmer 
as much as in any other man, and which sel- 
dom fail to bring prosperity. In politics he is 
a Republican, and believes strongly in Protec- 
tion. In public matters he has always been 
ready to assist in the development and growth 
of the community, and has taken a special in- 
terest in the schools of the county, doing all 
in his power to make them equal to any in the 
State. 

On February 22, i860, Mr. Lyon was 
married to Sarah A. Lawless, daughter of 
Jacob and Anna Lawless, of Clinton. Two 
sons have been born to them: Asahel Anson 
and George Morgan. The family are highly 
esteemed by all who know them. 



JOEL S. WINANS, one of the prominent 
and influential citizens of the town of Stan- 
ford, Dutchess county, comes of an old es- 
tablished family in the county. 

James Winans, born in 17 15. first of the 
name in Dutchess county, was descended from 
ancestry who came from Brabant, Belgium, in 
1630, He and his wife Sarah migrated from 
Horse Neck, Long Island, to Dutchess county, 
about 1770, settling in the town of Stanford, 
on the late Dr. Isaac M. Hunting farm. Their 
children were as follows: James, Ira, Girau- 
dus, David and Sarah. Of these. James mar- 
ried Hannah D. Groff, of Poughkeepsie, and 
had eleven children; Ira married Mary , 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



603 



and had children; Giraudus (" Grand ") mar- 
ried (first) Hannah Merritt, and (second) Vi- 
letta Knickerbocker; Sarah married Peter Smith. 

David Winans (mentioned above), grand- 
father of our subject, came from Horse Neck 
to Dutchess county with his father, and was a 
lifelong agriculturist. He served as a soldier 
in the war of the Revolution, gallantly fighting 
for the freedom of the colonies. He was an 
earnest Ghristian gentleman, and politically 
was a supporter of the Whig party. By his 
marriage with Miss Tammy Smith he had the 
following children: David, Leonard, Morris, 
Smith, Seymour, Egbert, Ambrose, Amanda, 
Gertrude, Tammy, Maria, Harriet and Eliza- 
beth. 

Upon the old homestead in the town of 
Pine Plains, Leonard Winans, the father of 
our subject, was reared to manhood. He was 
married in the town of Stanford to Miss Sally 
Ann Sutherland, daughter of Joel Sutherland, 
an early settler of that township, and to them 
were born six children, namely: Brush and 
John (deceased); Joel S., subject of this re- 
view; Walter H., of near Amenia, Dutchess 
county, a sketch of whom follows; William, a 
superanuated minister of the Methodist Epis- 
copal Ghurch, now located at Gatskill, Greene 
Co., N. Y. ; and Mary. The mother of these 
children died in 1828, and Mr. W''inans after- 
ward married Miss Elizabeth Thompson, of 
the town of Stanford. Four children graced 
their union: Sally Ann and Margaret (both de- 
ceased); Elizabeth, wife of Nathaniel Robin- 
son, of Poughkeepsie, N. Y. ; and Isaac ide- 
ceasedi. For many years Leonard Winans 
operated the farm in the town of Pine Plains, 
and in 1830 returned to the old homestead in 
that township, which is now owned by Frank 
Eno. At the end of six years, however, he re- 
moved to Stanford town, locating near Bangall, 
where he farmed for many years, but finally 
laid aside all business cares, and spent his last 
days in that village, dying there in 1868, at 
the age of eighty-five years. He was always 
interested in the success and welfare of his 
country, and took part in the war of 181 2. 
Politically, he was first a Whig and later a Re- 
publican, while in religious faith he was 
one of the most active and prominent workers 
in the Methodist Episcopal Church, being the 
founder of the Church of that denomination at 
Bangall. 

Joel S. W'inans, the subject proper of this 
sketch, was born November 5, 1820, in the 



town of Pine Plains, Dutchess county, where 
he attended the district schools, and aided his 
father in the cultivation and improvement of 
the home farm until he had attained the age 
of thirty years. On October 2, 1S50, in the 
town of Stanford, Mr. Winans married Miss 
Lucy Ann Wright, who was born July 29, 
1822, in the town of Fishkill, daughter of Isaac 
and Jeanette (Howe) Wright, natives of Dutch- 
ess county. Three children were born of this 
union: (i) Tamar Ella, who married Charles 
H. Carpenter, of Stanfordville, N. Y., and 
has three sons — George Irving, Joel S. Wi- 
nans, and Henry Sesson; (2) Sophie D. H., 
married to George E. Rogers, by whom she 
had one daughter, Sophie, and two sons, 
George E., Jr., and Clayton, who died in in- 
fancy; and (3) W. Irving (only son), who died 
while attending school at Fort Edward Insti- 
tute, N. Y. in 1877. 

Mr. Winans first located upon a farm at 
Attlebury, in the town of Stanford, where he 
continued operations until 1866, when he re- 
moved to his present farm near Stanfordville, 
and in connection with the cultivation of his 
land he also for a year ran a freight boat on 
the Hudson from Poughkeepsie to New York 
City. As an agriculturist he has been quite 
successful, having secured for himself a com- 
fortable competence. He has always been 
one of the most progressive, reliable and popu- 
lar citizens of the town of Stanford, where he 
has held a number of prominent positions of 
honor and trust, having been justice of the 
peace for the long period of forty-three years; 
revenue collector for seven years, which office 
he filled during the trying years of the Civil 
war; and from 1869 to April, 1887, was bond- 
ing commissioner for the town for the New- 
burgh, Dutchess & Connecticut railroad. Po- 
litically, he early became a stalwart Abolition- 
ist, and on the organization of the Republican 
party joined its ranks, becoming one of the 
leaders of that party in his locality. In re- 
ligious belief he and his wife are Baptists. 

Isaac Wright, father of Mrs. Winans, was 
born in Fishkill, Dutchess county, as was also 
her mother, he in 1787, and she in 1791. 
They had nine children, eight of whom grew 
to manhood and womanhood, one dying at 
the age of eleven }ears, and five yet living. 
The father, who was a carpenter and joiner 
by trade, died in 1871; the mother died in 
1873. Lebbens Howe, maternal grandfather 
of Mrs Winans, served in the war of the Rev- 



C04 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



olution. John Wright, her paternal grand- 
father, came from England, and settled in 
Fishkill, Dutchess county, in a very early day. 



ALTER H. WIXANS, a prosperous 
agriculturist, residing near Amenia, 
Dutchess county, is one of our most highly re- 
spected citizens.the sturdy virtues of his Scotch- 
Irish ancestry being well exemplified in his 
character and his successful, though quiet, 
career. [A sketch of his immediate ancestry 
will be found in that of his brother, Joel S. 
W'inans. ] 

Walter H. Winans was born in the town 
of Pine Plains, Dutchess county, April 2 1 . 
1823, and the district schools of the locality 
afforded him the usual opportunities for instruc- 
tion. Until the age of twenty-three he re- 
mained at home, and then he began farming 
in the town of Stanford, where he made his 
home for many years, and took a leading part 
in local affairs, and at one time held the ofifice 
of collector. In 1870 he purchased a farm in 
the town of Washington, Dutchess county. 
April I, 1892, he removed from that farm to 
his present estate. December 24, 1846, he 
was married in the town of Stanford to Miss 
Emily Robinson, with whom nearly a half- 
century of wedded life was passed, before she 
was called to the unseen world, her death oc- 
curring February 27, 1893. Si.x children were 
born to their union: Franklin; Mary Eliza- 
beth; Seth K., who married Miss Nettie Robin- 
son; Brush; Amy and Ellsworth. Amy mar- 
ried Christian Lang, and has had three chil- 
dren: Walter, Miriam and Emily. Ellsworth 
married Miss Ida Wheeler, and resides in the 
town of Washington. He is possessed of the 
same self-reliance and industry for which his 
family is noted, and has never had anv finan- 
cial aid from his father. 

Mrs. W. H. Winans was a descendant of 
a well-known Putnam county family, her 
grandfather, Chappell Robinson, a farmer, 
having located there, with two brothers, in the 
earh' days. He married Miss Mary Sprague, 
and had five children: Stephen, Sabins, S(]uire, 
Mary and Eli. Stephen Robinson. Mrs. 
Winans father, was born in the town of Kent, 
Putnam county, and was married there to 
Miss Martha Kelley, daughter of Seth Kelley. 
Thirteen children were born to them as follows: 
Chappell, Kelley. Osborn, Enos, Emily, Zillah, 
Jarvis, Ada, Nathaniel, Priscilla, Robert, 



Catherine and William. In 1836, Mr. Robin- 
son moved to the town of Stanford, Dutchess 
county, continuing there his chosen calling of 
agriculture. Later he spent twelve years in 
Lithgow, Dutchess county, but returned to the 
town of Stanford, where he breathed his last 
in February, 1876, at the age of eighty years. 
His patriotism and gallantry were proved in 
the war of 18 12, and the various issues in na- 
tional politics never ceased to interest him, his 
influence in his later years being given to the 
Republican party. 



CORNELIUS SMITH VAN ETTEN.M.D., 
who is distinguished as one of the most 
successful practitioners of Dutchess county, is 
a descendant of one of the oldest families in 
the State, being the seventh generation in 
direct line from Jacob Jansen \'an Etten, who, 
when a young man. came to America from 
Etten, North Brabant, Holland. He settled in 
Ulster county, N. V., and on January 4, 1665 
(according to the record in the First Reformed 
Church of the city of Kingston, N. Y. 1, he mar- 
ried Anna Ariense \'on Amsterdam. This 
union was blessed with three sons: Jan, Peter 
and James, who lived and died in Ulster coun- 
ty. Jan was baptized January 3, 1666, and 
about 1690 was united in marriage with Jen- 
nette Roosa, daughter of Arien Roosa. They 
had two sons — Arien and Jacob — besides a 
large family of daughters. Jacob was baptized 
at Kingston December 25. 1696, and at the 
same place on April 22, 1719, was married to 
Autje Westbrook, of Rochester, Ulster coun- 
ty. About the year 1720 he settled in the 
Delaware \'alley, and reared a large family of 
children, among whom was Johannes, the fifth 
son, who was born at Namanock, N. J., in 
1 73 1. When near the age of twenty years, 
Johannes settled upon a tract containing 1,500 
acres near Milford, Penn., which is still owned 
by his descendants. He died February 15, 
181 5, in his eighty-third year, and was buried 
on his own farm. He had been twice married, 
and by his second wife, Rachel Williams, had 
a son, Cornelius, our subject's grandfather, 
born near Milford, December 8, 1782. 

Cornelius \'an Etten married Anna Smith, 
and became the father of eight children: 
Rachel, Solomon (our subject's father). Mary, 
Amos, Catherine, Robert, Margaret, and 
Amanda. This family all settled near Milford, 
and Catherine, Robert and Amanda are still 






^ZlU^ 




COMMEMOEATIVE BIOQBAPEICAL RECORD. 



605 



living. Amos Van Etten was the father of 
Edgar Van Etten, who is now general super- 
intendent of the New York Central & Hud- 
son River railroad. The Pennsjlvania Van- 
Ettens have usually followed farming, and 
have been prominent in non-political local af- 
fairs, but have never sought public office. 

Solomon Van Etten was born near Milford, 
May 1 8, 1806. He married Hannah Mettler, 
daughter of Mathias Mettler, and a descendant 
of one of the oldest families of Hunterdon Co., 
N. Y. They had seven children: William 
and Amos, who died in infancy; John H., a 
lawyer in Milford; Cornelius Smith, our sub- 
ject; Mathias M., a farmer at Dover, N. J.; 
and Frank and Anna, both deceased. The 
father died in 1873 in his si.xty-eighth year, 
mother in 1894, at the age of eighty-two years. 

Dr. Cornelius Smith Van Etten was born 
at the old homestead September 13, 1846. 
He completed the regular course of study at 
the seminary at Schooley's Mountain, N. J., 
and in 1870 entered the medical department 
of the University of Pennsylvania for a three- 
years' course. On graduating in 1873 he lo- 
cated in the lower part of the Wyoming Val- 
ley; but after a few months was called home 
by the death of his father. He then remained 
at home until 1876, when he came to Rhine- 
beck, and has here engaged in general practice. 
He has been very successful — his line abilities, 
his thorough training, and his firm but kindly 
manner, have won for him the entire confidence 
of the community. 

On June 7, 1882, the Doctor was united 
in marriage with Miss Sarah Hill, who was 
born June 16, 1849, a daughter of Edwin and 
Catherine (Cramer) Hill, the former a leading 
citizen of Rhinebeck, and, until recently, pres- 
ident of the First National Bank. To Dr. and 
Mrs. Van Etten have been born two sons, 
Edwin and Royal, and the home is one of the 
most charming in the town, a fine library be- 
ing an especial feature. The Doctor and his 
wife are active workers in the Reformed 
Church. In politics he is a Republican, but 
his professional duties have never allowed him 
time to be very active in political affairs. He 
is a director in the First National Bank, a 
trustee of the Savings Bank, and in municipal 
matters has taken a great interest, being health 
officer of the town, member of the fire depart- 
ment, and, for ten years past, the president of 
the school board. He is a trustee of Starr In- 
stitute, and treasurer of the Rhinebeck Gas 



Company. In professional circles he is equally 
prominent, and is a member of the New York 
State Medical Association, and of the United 
States Medical Association. 



LEWIS F. EATON is one of the most en- 
terprising business men of Dutchess coun- 
ty, and is a resident of Amenia. His opera- 
tions as a wholesale grain dealer are extensive 
in their scope, and he belongs to that class of 
representative American citizens who promote 
the general welfare while advancing their indi- 
vidual prosperity. For over a quarter of a 
century he has been identified with the inter- 
ests of Amenia, and the connection has been 
as honorable as it is long. 

Mr. Eaton was born at Syracuse, N. Y., 
May 7, 1850, and is a son of Lewis Eaton, a 
native of Fayetteville, Onondaga Co., N. Y. 
After completing his common-school education 
the father clerked in a store for a time, and 
subsequently was connected with the Syracuse 
& Oswego line of transportation in New York 
City and vicinity for about fifteen years. Re- 
turning to Fayetteville, he became general 
freight agent for the New York, Syracuse & 
Chenango railroad, which position he retained 
up to the time of his death, in 1878. At Fay- 
etteville he had married Miss Sarah Willson, 
daughter of John H. Willson, and to them 
were born four sons: Robert W., of Fayette- 
ville; Frank H., of Terre Haute, Indiana; 
Charles B., deceased; and Lewis F., of this 
sketch. The mother's death occurred in 1875. 

The primary education of our subject was 
received in the village schools of Amenia, and 
he later attended the public schools at Astoria, 
Long Island. At the age of fourteen years he 
entered the Peoples Line Transportation Com- 
pany in New York City, where he remained 
for one year, after which he was in the canal 
collector's office, where he was second clerk 
the first year, and first clerk the three succeed- 
ing years. 

At the age of eighteen Mr. Eaton came to 
Amenia, becoming bookkeeper for B. Willson 
& Co., dealers in fiour, feed, lumber and coal. 
In March, i87S,he became manager for George 
T. W'illson, who had assumed control, and in 
the following May was made a partner in the 
business, under the firm name of Willson & 
Eaton. About 1881 the firm started a whole- 
sale trade, which now e.xtends through several 
counties of New York, Vermont, Connecticut, 



(JOG 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and they also 
have three retail stores, one at Amenia, an- 
other at Wassaic, and the third at Shekomeko. 
Their sales have increased from $40,000, in 
1881, to three-quarters of a million in 1895. 
Their specialty in the wholesale trade is that 
of feed and grain, and they were the first to 
sell cotton-seed meal in this vicinity. They 
have a wood-working factory in connection 
with their other business, manufacturing house 
trimmings, doors, sash, blinds, etc., and Mr. 
Eaton also handles life and fire insurance. He 
is a man of remarkable business qualities, re- 
sourceful and energetic, and the scope of his 
operations and his varied interests show that 
a master hand and mind is in control of his 
affairs. 

On October 24, i ^~y, Mr. Eaton was united 
in marriage with Miss Julia Per Lee, daughter 
of Walter P. Per Lee. He is an earnest ad- 
vocate of Republican principles, is connected 
with the fire company at Amenia, and in re- 
ligious belief is a Presbyterian. His hobby is 
that of stamp collecting. 



PETER PRATT, the popular proprietor of 
the "Pratt House" in Amenia, Dutchess 
county, traces his ancestry back to Peter 
Pratt, a college-bred man, who was a resident 
of Wallingsford, Conn. He married a ^frs. 
Ingraham, widow of a sea captain, with whom 
he boarded while attending Yale College, and 
to them were born two children: Peter, and 
Sophia, who married Oliver D. Cook, of 
Hartford, Conn. When his son was three 
years old he removed to Kent, Conn., where 
for twenty years he served as collector, and 
his old home there is still in the possession of 
the family. He became one of the leading 
men of that place and an earnest worker in the 
Presbyterian Church. 

Peter Pratt, the son, was the grandfather 
of our subject. He was born at Wallingsford, 
Conn., in 1762, and died at Kent in 1845. At 
the latter place he attended the district schools, 
and always lived on the old homestead farm, 
engaging in its operation, and in running a 
sawmill and forge. He was appointed captain 
in the militia, was a Whig in politics, and a 
Presbyterian in religious belief. He was 
united in marriage with Miss Sally D. Bard- 
well, a daughter of Rev. Joel Bardwell, who 
was pastor of the Presbyterian Church at Kent 
for over half a century- She was born in 



1768, and her death occurred in 1849. In the 
family were nine children, all now deceased 
with the exception of John M., the father of 
our subject, who was next to the youngest, 
the others being; Philo B., Sherman, Joel, 
Ralph, Peter, Sophia, Sarah and Cook. 

John M. Pratt was born at Kent, Conn., 
May 22, 1S09, attended the public schools 
and completed his literary course in an acad- 
emy. He remained at home until February 
7, 1838, when he married Miss Charlotte 
Mills, who died in 1846. She was the daugh- 
ter of Deacon Lewis Mills, a merchant and 
farmer, and was a most estimable lady. They 
had five children, as follows: Charlotte M. 
is the wife of John D. Piatt, of P"armington, 
Conn. , by whom she has three children — 
Frank, William and John; Jane, a resident of 
New Milford, Conn., is the widow of Sheldon 
Wheaton, by whom she had one daughter — 
Nellie; Mary (deceased) was the wife of Seth 
Hobson, and the mother of one child — Eliza- 
beth; Peter is next in order of birth; and 
Sophia is the wife of Walter B. Camp, of 
Ansonia, Connecticut. 

The father carried on farming in the town 
of Kent, Litchfield Co., Conn., until 1S67, 
when he purchased the "Putnam House," the 
name of which hechanged to the "Pratt House." 
This hotel has been greatly improved since 
that time, and is now one of the best equipped 
in the county, everything being prosided 
for the convenience and comfort of the 
guests. Since coming to Dutchess county, Mr. 
Pratt has also engaged in buying and selling 
sheep, cattle and horses, and in this line of 
business has been quite successful. Previous 
to 1857, he was a Whig, but since that time 
has been a firm supporter of Republican prin- 
ciples. A strictly moral, upright and temper- 
ate man, he has never gambled, bet on a horse 
race, or been drunk in his life. He makes his 
home with our subject. 

Peter Pratt, whose name begins this sketch, 
spent his boyhood days in the town of Kent, 
Litchfield Co., Conn., attending the district 
schools and assisting his father in the operation 
of the farm. In 1865 he married Julia A. 
Stone, of New Milford, Conn., and they 
have one daughter, Minnie S. 

Since 1 867 Mr. Pratt has successfully en- 
gaged in the hotel business at Amenia. The 
greater part of his present hotel has been 
erected since locating there, so that the place 
is now a comfortable, modern structure, neatly 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



GOT 



furnished, and the cuisine is all that could be 
desired. Like his father, he is also an ardent 
Republican, and socially is a member of 
Amenia Lodge No. 672, F. & A. M. 



OHN C. DUBOIS, one of the leading mer- 
chants of Wappingers Falls, Dutchess coun- 
ty, combines energy and pluck with excel- 
lent judgment, an embodiment that has brought 
great success to his efforts and labors. His 
entire life has been passed at that village, 
where his birth occurred on June 20, 1S57, 
and those who have known him longest are 
numbered among his most faithful friends. 

The paternal ancestors of Mr. DuBois were 
French. In his native land Jacques DuBois 
married Pierrone Bentyn, and April 15, 1675, 
sailed from France to America, locating at 
Kingston, Ulster Co., N. Y., thus becoming 
the founders of the family in the New World. 
Their son Pierre wedded Jeannetje Burhans, 
and to them was born a son, Jonathan, who 
was united in marriage with Ariantje Ooster- 
hout. The son of the latter, Cornelius (i) 
DuBois, married Charity Griffin, and their 
son, Cornelius (2), a farmer by occupation, 
was the grandfather of our subject. . He was 
born at Saratoga, N. Y., and by his marriage 
with Deborah Payne became the father of 
twelve children, namely: Parmelia, Jane, Har- 
riet, Elizabeth, Chester, John, Charity, Cor- 
nelius G., Smith, Richard, Harvey and James. 
The family were mostly members of the Pres- 
byterian Church. 

John DuBois, the father of our subject, 
was born January i, 1825, at Saratoga, N. Y., 
and upon the home farm he remained until 
nineteen years of age, when he began teaching, 
which profession he continued to follow up to 
the time of and several years after his mar- 
riage. His wife bore the maiden name of 
Mary S. Scoiield, and was a native of Fishkill, 
Dutchess county, where her father, Corrtelius 
Scofield, was also born. He was of English 
e.xtraction. Her mother's maiden name was 
Elizabeth Warren, and she was a relative of 
Gen. Warren, of military fame. After their 
marriage the parents of our subject made their 
home at Wappingers Falls, N. Y., where the 
father taught in the old Wappinger Seminary 
for several years. In 1857 he began merchan- 
dising on Market street, having a general store, 
and continued at his first location until 1863, 
when he removed to another building on the 



same street. Later, he conducted the busi- 
ness across the creek in the Egan building, in 
partnership with Adam Bently, which connec- 
tion was continued until 186S, when he sold 
out. He then opened a wholesale dry-goods 
business, conducting same until called from 
this life, May iS, 1876. He had just erected 
his beautiful residence, where his widow now 
makes her home. He was a conscientious and 
faithful member of the Presbyterian Church, 
in the work of which he took an active part, 
and his political support was unwaveringly 
given the Republican party. 

During his early life our subject aided his 
father in the store, under whose able direc- 
tions he became a thorough business man. 
After the death of the latter, his uncle, James 
B. Scofield, had charge of the store until he, 
too, was called from this life. Our subject 
then purchased the stock, and since 1879 has 
successfully conducted a general store. He 
carries a large and well-selected stock, and is 
abundantly able to meet the demands of his 
customers. In November, 1881, he married 
Miss Ada M. McKeel, a native of Cold Springs, 
N. Y., and a daughter of Caleb McKeel, who 
was of English origin. One child graces this 
union: Chester M., born in August, 1882. 

Mr. Du Bois is an influential member of 
the Republican party, and takes a conspicuous 
part in public life. In 1895 he was elected a 
member of the village board, in which position 
he is still serving. He is prominently identi- 
fied with the Knights of Pythias, the American 
Mechanics, and the American Legion of Honor. 
He and his wife contribute to the support of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church, and they en- 
joy the esteem and respect of all in the com- 
munity. 



^; LEXANDER W. SLEIGHT, supervisor 
of the town of Lagrange, Dutchess coun- 
ty, was born in that town July 4, 1841, and is 
the son of Peter R. and Catherine S. (Barnes) 
Sleight. 

The ancestors of our subject were original- 
ly Holland-Dutch, who came to this country 
in 1652, and the known record extends back 
five generations, to Cornelius Barentsen Sleght, 
who came from Worden. Holland, on the 
Rhine, and vvho married Miss Tryntje Tysen 
Bos, from Bue Stee, Holland. The name 
was spelled Sleght until the time of James, 
grandfather of our subject. Matthew Sleght, 



C(t8 



CO^fME^fORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



son of Cornelius, married Maria Magdalena 
Crespel. Jan, son of Nfatthew, married Miss 
Elizabeth Smeedes. Abram, great-grandfather 
of our subject, was born in the city of Kings- 
ton, where he spent his boyhood and received 
his early education. He married MissAriantje 
Elmerndorf, and moved to what is now the 
town of Lagrange, cleared the farm land, 
built a stone house, and reared his children 
there. He died October 21, 1800. She died 
in 1796. 

James, or Jacobus, Sleight, our subject's 
grandfather, was born in the old stone house 
above mentioned April 19, 1753, and died 
September 2, 1833. He married Miss Elsie 
Deriemer, and the following children were 
born to them: James Edwin, Peter R., Elsie 
D., Harriet E., Henry A., all of whom are de- 
ceased. In 1776 Mr. Sleight served seven 
months in the Revolutionary war at Fort Mont- 
gomery, under Capt. Dorland, as orderly ser- 
geant, and in 1777 he served seven months at 
Fort Constitution, and then went with the 
army as first lieutenant under Capt. Henry 
Wynkoop, and was with it when Kingston was 
burned. In 1778 our subject's grandfather 
served one month under Gen. Scott at White 
Plains, and at Fort Independence, near King's 
Bridge, as quartermaster under Zephaniah 
Piatt, colonel. He was afterward made a 
colonel. [The foregoing is from the Archives 
of the State of New York, Vol. 1, page 473, 
and is taken from records left by Mr. Sleight 
in his own handwriting and signed by him.] 
He took a prominent part in the affairs of La- 
grange, where he held the office of justice of 
the peace. 

Peter R. Sleight, father of our subject, 
spent his boyhood days upon the farm, and in 
attending the district schools, also the Jacob 
Willets school, in the town of Washington. He 
was married in the town of Poughkeepsie 
(first) October 3, 1827, to Sarah K. Barnes, 
who was the daughter of David Barnes, of 
Poughkeepsie, and one child, James Edwin, 
was born to them, August 31, 1829, who died 
September 16, 1868. Mrs. Sleight was called 
from earth October 20, 1829, and Mr. Sleight 
married (second) Catherine S. Barnes (sister of 
his first wife) December iS, 1832, and the fol- 
lowing children came of this union: Sarah A., 
born September 5, 1835, was married Novem- 
ber 14. i860, to Stephen M. Ham; David B., 
born April 30, 1838, was killed in the battle of 
Averysboro. N. C, March 16, 1865 (he held 



the rank of first lieutenant); James Edwin 
married Frances E. Titus, March 9, 1853, and 
they had four children — Mary Kate, Rhoda, 
Sallie, and Frances. Peter R., the father, was 
captain of a company of militia, and was as- 
sessor, commissioner of highways, and railroad 
commissioner when the town was bonded. At 
the time of his death he was president of the 
Dutchess County Mutual Insurance Co., to 
which ofiice he was elected in 1881, and for 
several years was a director of the First Na- 
tional Bank. In politics he was a Republican. 
On December 18, 1882, he and his wife cele- 
brated their golden wedding. Mr. Sleight 
died in Lagrange, March 15, 1S88, Mrs. 
Sleight on February 11, 1894. 

Alexander Wheeler Sleight, our subject, 
spent his youth on the paternal farm in the 
town of Lagrange, where he attended the 
district school, also the Dutchess County 
Academy, and the Cornwall Collegiate School. 
He was married in Lagrange October 7, 1868, 
to Miss Mary C. Pells, a daughter of John G. 
Pells, and the following children were born to 
them: Josephine W., March 14, 1S75; Peter 
R., April 19, 1877; and David B., November 
27, 1880. Mr. Sleight was elected supervisor 
of Lagrange on the Republican ticket for ten 
terms. He is a member of the B. P. O. E., 
or Elks, and is a popular and public-spirited 
citizen. 



JACOB GRIFFEN, a citizen who has been 
useful in his community, and ever taken a 

prominent place in the enterprises tending 
to the enlightment of the people; the friend of 
education, and active in all good works, has 
all his life been a tiller of the soil, and still 
finds therein his great pleasure. 

Elihu Griffen, grandfather of our subject, 
was an earlj' resident of Westchester county, 
N. Y. , where his entire life was spent in agri- 
cultural pursuits. By his marriage with Cath- 
erine Underbill he became the father of three 
sons (all now deceased), named, respectively, 
Daniel, Jacob and Abraham. He belonged to 
the Society of Friends, and always attended 
the monthly meetings in New York City, mak- 
ing the trip thither on horseback. 

Daniel Griffen, the father of our subject, 
was born near the city of Sing Sing, in West- 
chester Co., N. Y., June 11, 1790, and there 
attended the district schools of the neighbor- 
hood. He remained under the parental roof 







^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



609 



until his marriage, in 1810, with Phoebe 
Davenport, who was born August 17, I7'93. 
They became the parents of nine children, 
their names and dates of birth being as follows: 
Mary D., August 11, 181 1 : Judith M., January 
II, 1814; Abigail S., April 6, 1817; Esther H., 
April 19, 1 819; Elihu, September 6, 1821; 
William D., February I2, 1824; Jacob, Octo- 
ber 10, 1 82 5; Catherine E., December 27, 
1830; and Lydia Sigourney, April 29, 1834. 
All are now deceased with the exception of our 
subject and his sister, Judith M., who is now 
the widow of the late Alexander Haviland. 
The father engaged in farming in North Castle 
township, Westchester count}', until 1826, 
when he removed to the present farm of our 
subject in the town of Clinton, Dutchess coun- 
ty, and there continued to make his home un- 
til his death, August 26, 1S58; his wife died 
June II, 1874. They were faithful members 
of the Society of Friends, and in a church of 
that denomination were married. As was the 
custom at that time, they rode to the house of 
worship on horseback, and our subject still 
has in his possession the saddle used by his 
mother. Although the father started out in 
life a poor boy, he worked his way steadily 
upward by persistent and untiring efforts until 
he secured a comfortable competence, and 
was numbered among the well-to-do citizens 
of the town. 

Jacob Griffen, our subject, was born in 
North Castle township, Westchester county, 
whence when an infant he was brought to the 
farm which is now his home, and in the town 
of Clinton he began his education under the 
instruction of private tutors, and in private 
schools. Later he entered a boarding school 
at Westtown, Penn., and completed his literary 
studies at the Nine Partners Boarding School, 
in the town of Washington, Dutchess county. 
In that town,. October 10, 1878, Mr. Griffin 
was married to Miss Alice Wilson, by whom 
he had three children: Catherine, Anna and 
Frances Elsie. 

With the exception of the twelve years 

during which he farmed an adjoining place, our 

subject since his infancy has lived on the old 

home farm, which he successfully operates. 

He has served as commissioner of highways in 

the town of Clinton, to which position he was 

elected on the Republican ticket, that being 

the party with which he always affiliates. The 

entire family are members of the Friends 

Church, to the support of which they contrib- 
39 



ute liberally, and heartily co-operate in its 
good works. Mr. Griffen is public-spirited 
and enterprising, giving his support to all 
measures which he considers beneficial to the 
community. 

Mrs. Griffen was born in the town of La- 
grange, Dutchess county, a daughter of John 
V. and Mary Ann (Barnes) Wilson, and re- . 
ceived her education in the town of Washing- 
ton, where she had her home up to the time 
of her marriage. Her father was born in Un- 
ionvale town in 1832, and died in 1864, in the 
army, while serving as a member of Company 
L 158th N. Y. V. I. By his marriage with 
Miss Mary Ann Barnes he had five children: 
Henry G., Alice, Thurston J., Clarence and 
Belle, the last two being now deceased. Mrs. 
Griffen's grandfather, John Barnes, born in 
1792, died when about seventy years of age. 
Her grandmother, Mary Wilson, died July 5, 
1879, at the advanced age of eighty years. 



CYRUS F. HAWLEY, the proprietor of a 
large dry-goods store at Millerton, ranks 
among the leading merchants of northern 
Dutchess county, and the adjacent portion of 
Litchfield county, Conn. His family is of 
English origin, and his ancestors were early 
settlers of the village of Hawleyville, Fairfield 
Co., Conn., where Harmon Hawley, his father, 
was born about 1809. His grandfather, Haw- 
ley, was born probably at the same place. 
Harmon Hawley was a hatter b}' trade, and 
followed this occupation for a few years at his 
native town. He married Emma Freeman, a 
prominent resident of the town of Amenia,and 
shortly afterward moved to Wawarsing, Ulster 
Co., N. Y. , where he established a sawmill 
and charcoal furnace. He was a man of fine 
business ability and great energy. He bought 
and cleared large tracts of land, which he 
afterward disposed of, and carried on the two 
enterprises with great success until his death, 
which occurred in his forty-eighth year. His 
wife survived him with seven children: Will- 
iam, Martha, Cyrus, Fannie, Josephine, Charles 
and John. 

The subject of our sketch was born at 
Amenia Union, March 24, 1846, and was edu- 
cated mainly in the district schools of that 
vicinity, attending the Amenia Seminary only 
one year. These somewhat limited advantages 
have been improved upon in later years by 
reading, and his information covers a wide 



610 



COMMEMORA TIVB BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



range. At the age of thirteen he began work 
on a farm in the town of Amenia, and at six- 
teen he became a clerk in Sharon, Conn., for 
G. A. Kelsey and G. B. Reed. Here he re- 
mained ten years, acquainting himself with all 
the details of mercantile life, and in 1876 he 
and two others formed a partnership under the 
firm name of Beach, Hawley &C0., and estab- 
lished a store at Millerton. After the death of 
Mr. Beach in 1886, the firm name remained 
C. F. Hawley & Co. for three years, when Mr. 
Reed withdrew, and since that t'me Mr. Haw- 
Jey has conducted the business alone. In 
1894 he built one of the finest stores to be 
found in any town of the size in the county. 
His trade is very large, extending throughout 
a wide territory, where his enterprise and 
sound judgment have won him the confidence 
of the people. 

Mr. Hawley takes an active interest in all 
that concerns the advancement of the commu- 
nity, and has been ready to promote any move- 
ment for the public good, but although he has 
always been aDemocrat.henever joins in politic- 
al work. He married a member of one of the 
oldest families. Miss Afartha Brown, daughter 
of Douglass Brown, of Northeast, and has one 
son, Cyrus. 



E 



'\D\VIN G.VAIL, of the town of Unionvale, 



one of the younger members of the board 
of supervisors of Dutchess county, was born 
in that town October 15, 1861, the younger 
of the two sons of Elias and Lavina (Cornell) 
Vail. 

Isaac \'ail, our subject's great-grandfather, 
was for many years a resident of Unionvale, 
and died August i, 1 801, at the age of sixty-one 
3'ears. His wife, Lavinia (Ketcham), passed away 
March i, 1803, aged fifty-eight years. Their 
son, Elias, our subject's grandfather, was born 
in Unionvale in 1775, and followed farming as 
his life work. He died August 3, 1851, his 
wife on July 20, 1851. She was born in 178 1, 
and was a daughter of David Duncan, a na- 
tive of the town of Dover, where he was a 
merchant farmer. 

Elias Vail, father of our subject, was born 
September 15, 1823, and was the youngest of 
the thirteen children born to Elias Vail, Sr., 
and his wife, Hannah (Duncan) Vail. He was 
twice married, first time, in 1853, to Lavina 
Cornell, by which union were born two chil- 
dren: W. C. , of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and 



Edwin G. It is believed that their mother 
descended from Perry Green White, who came 
over in the " Mayflower," and whose son, or 
daughter, was the first white child born in the 
New World. Mrs. Vail died October 22, 
1 861, aged thirty-six years, and for his second 
wife Elias \'ail married, January 10, 1867, 
Miss Jane W. Haight, of the town of Wash- 
ington, Dutchess county, a daughter of John 
J. Haight. Mrs. Vail died January 21, 1891, 
aged fifty-eight years. 



OHN FRANCIS MYERS. To the thrift, 
industry and economy of the German immi- 
grants this country owes much, and finds 
among their descendants many of our most 
substantial and respected citizens, and to this 
class belongs John Francis Myers, of New 
Hamburg, the subject of this sketch. 

The family to which Mr. Myers belongs is 
one of the oldest in Dutchess county, the first 
of the American line having come from Ger- 
many at an early date, locating at what is now 
known as Myers' Corners, in the town of Wap- 
pinger, where the homestead has ever since 
been maintained. John Myers, the grand- 
father of our subject, was a farmer and hotel- 
keeper, a Democrat in politics and a prominent 
man in the locality. He married Susanna 
Bussing, and reared a family of seven children: 
Joseph, who went to California and died there; 
Peter, a resident of -Hughsonville; John, who 
was an extensive land holder; Francis, our 
subject's father; Deborah; Elizabeth (de- 
ceased), formerly the wife of Henry Patterson; 
and Amelia, the wife of Edward I^ayard. 

Francis Myers, the father of our subject, 
was reared on the old home farm, and married 
Ann Roy, a native of London, England, and 
an aunt of William K. Roy, of Wappingers 
b'alls. For some time after, his marriage 
Francis Myers followed farming in his native 
town, but in 1855 he became employed in a 
grocery at Wappingers Falls, and moved his 
family there. In 1S60 he went to New Ham- 
burg, and engaged in the manufacture of black- 
ing; but later was in the grocery business, 
which he carried on successfully until 1895, 
when he retired. He has always been a Dem- 
ocrat, and served as supervisor of the town of 
Poughkeepsie for several years; he and his wife 
now live in Florida. To this worthy couple 
have been born five children: Anna, who (first) 
married J. E. Willard, of New Hamburg, and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



611 



after his death wedded (second) Walter Jame- 
son, of Walden, N. Y. ; Charles is the super- 
intendent of the Southern Express Co. ; at 
Jacksonville, Fla. ; Mary married Dr. Russell 
Dean, of the same city; James R. is a farmer 
at the homestead; and John Francis, the 
youngest of the family, is the subject of this 
review. 

John Francis Myers was born December 7, 
1856, at New Hamburg, and has spent his 
entire life in his native place, with the excep- 
tion of two years at \\'appingers Falls during 
his childhood. Under the careful tuition of his 
father, he so mastered the details of the grocery 
business at an early age that, although one of the 
younger business men of the place, he became 
one of the most successful and enterprising, 
conducting a retail grocery, which commanded 
an extensive trade, and which is now conducted 
by Mrs'. H. A. Myers. In 18S2 he married 
Miss Harriet Scofield, daughter of William 
Scofield, a well-known farmer of near Low 
Point (formerly known as Carthage Land- 
ing). Three children were born of this 
union : James L. , Eeleelah and Francis S. 
Mr. Myers is a public-spirited citizen, and, 
like his ancestors, is a Democrat in political 
faith. He and his wife are prominent members 
of the Reformed Dutch Church, of which his 
family have always been influential adherents. 



lORTIMER B. COLE is prominently 

identified with the business interests of 

the town of Pleasant Valley, being actively en- 
gaged in the retail feed, grist and saw mill 
businesses in Salt Point, where he also con- 
ducts a general store and sells farming imple- 
ments, etc. His success has all been achieved 
by his own unaided exertions, and as the j'ears 
have passed he has gained experience and busi- 
ness ability, which have secured him prosperity 
while yet in the prime of life. 

Mr. Cole was born in the town of Pleasant 
Valley, December 13, 1S54, and is a son of 
Charles N. Cole, whose birth occurred in Put- 
nam county, N. Y., January i, 1820. His 
paternal grandfather, Elisha J. Cole, also a 
native of Putnam county, was the son of Jesse 
Cole, who was born in New England, and at 
an early day located in Putnam county, where 
he married a Miss Ogden. He there engaged 
in the grist, saw and carding mill business. 
In his family of seven children, four sons and 



three daughters, were Hiram and Jesse (both 
farmers, ) and Elisha J. , the grandfather of our 
subject. In his native county the last named 
grew to manhood, and in 1800 married Lydia 
Frost, after which they located upon a farm, 
where they reared four children: Charles N., 
George, and two daughters who died while 
young. He died in the town of Pleasant \'al- 
ley, Dutches.s county, in 1879, his wife having 
preceded him to the world beyond. In relig- 
ious belief he was a Baptist; politically, he first 
supported the Whig party, and later the Re- 
publican. His youngest son, George Cole, was 
a wholesale liquor dealer, but is now living re- 
tired in Chicago, Illinois. 

After completing his own education, Charles 
N. Cole taught school for a time. He was 
united in marriage with Miss Jane Ann Budd, 
who was born in the town of Pleasant Valley 
in 1827, and is a sister of Joel and Albert J. 
Budd, prominent citizens of Dutchess county. 
To them were born two children: Edward, who 
was killed in infancy; and Mortimer B., of this 
review. The parents located upon a farm 
which the father operated until his death, which 
occurred September 4, 1891, but he also in- 
vented many different articles, being of an in- 
genious turn of mind. He was a strong Re- 
publican, and held many local offices of honor 
and trust. His estimable wife is still living on 
the same farm, which is managed by Mortimer 
B. Cole. 

In the usual manner of farmer boys, our 
subject spent his childhood, receiving his ele- 
mentary education in the district schools, after 
which he pursued his studies for two winters 
at Pleasant Plains, and finished his education 
in the Amenia Seminary. Returning to the 
farm, he later married Antoinette Sands, a na- 
tive of the town of Stanford. Dutchess county, 
and a daughter of Isaac G. Sands, who was 
also born in Stanford town, and was of En- 
glish descent. For one year the young couple 
lived upon a farm, but the following year Mr. 
Cole worked his father-in-law's farm. The 
next two years, however, were spent in agri- 
cultural pursuits, after which he ran a skating 
rink in New Jersey for a short time, and on 
returning to this county again worked his fa- 
ther-in-law's farm for a couple of years. In 
1887 he came to Salt Point, where he pur- 
chased a half interest in a gristmill and flour- 
mill, but the following year bought out his 
partner, and has since conducted the business 
alone. He is also engaged in sawing lumber, 



Gli 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



and deals in all kinds of general merchandise 
and farm implements. 

Three children grace the union of Mr. and 
Mrs. Cole, namelj': Stanley S., born Novem- 
ber II, 1881; Jennie B. , born May 27, 1884; 
and Pinnia, born December 29, 1886. Mr. 
and Mrs. Cole are active in the community. 
He is a strong believer in the principles of the 
Republican party, which he always supports 
with his ballot. 



CH.AKLES H.DUNCAN. This gentleman 
bears the family name that figures promi- 
nently in the annals of Dutchess county, his 
ancestors having been long and prominently 
connected with the history of Pleasant Valley. 
The Duncans, of whom we write, are origi- 
ally of Scotch extraction. The grandfather 
of our subject, Joshua Duncan, was for many 
years assistant superintendent of the cotton 
factory at Pleasant Valley, and was widely 
known as a straightforward, honorable busi- 
ness man. His political support was given 
the Republican party. Both he and his wife 
spent their last days in the locality where they 
had so long made their home, and where they 
had reared their family of six children, namely: 
Mary, wife of George Cramer; Margaret, wife 
of Richard Cronkrite, a farmer of the town of 
Pleasant \'alley; Rachel, wife of John McCord, 
a native of Dutchess county, now living in 
Denver, Colo. ; Jane, widow of Samuel Bullock, 
and a resident of Pleasant Valley; John B., 
the father of our subject; and Henry, a farmer 
of the town of Lagrange. 

John B. Duncan was born and reared in 
Duchess county, and in his early life learned 
the machinist's trade, which he followed for 
some years. After his marriage he located in 
Pleasant Valley, where for many years he en- 
gaged in general merchandising, for a short 
time as a part of the firm of Duncan & Has- 
tings, and then as sole proprietor of his well- 
conducted store. His last years were spent in 
retirement from business cares. He gave his 
political support to the Republican party; for 
several years served as postmaster of Pleasant 
\'alley, and was also town clerk for a number 
of terms, and he also acceptably served as 
president of the board of village trustees. 
Mrs. Duncan, who bore the maiden name of 
Jane E. Cronkrite, was a daughter of John 
Cronkrite, a farmer of Lagrange town, de- 
scended from Holland ancestry. The family 



of Mr. and Mrs. Duncan included five children, 
namely: Addison G., a resident of Streator, 
111.; Charles H. and Marsden F., prominent 
merchants of Pleasant \'alley; Grace; and 
Jennie, wife of I. D. Le Roy, M. D., of Pleas- 
ant \'alley; two children died in infancy. The 
father died May 30, 1880; the mother is still 
living. 

Charles H. Duncan spent his boyhood days 
under the parental roof, and began his educa- 
tion in the district schools, which, later, he 
continued in Pelham Institute, Poughkeepsie. 
Returning to Pleasant \'alley in 1875, he soon 
after entered upon his business career by 
securing a clerkship with Heath & Co., of 
Poughkeepsie, in whose service he remained 
some four years. He then entered the employ 
of Solomon Strauss, a dry-goods merchant, 
with whom he remained five years, and then 
began business on his own account, in Pleas- 
ant \'alley, in partnership with his brother, 
Marsden F. Under the tirm style of Duncan 
Brothers they carry on business, and have a 
large trade, which their honorable dealing and 
courteous treatment of their customers justly 
entitles them. 

Charles H. Duncan was married June 12, 
1889, to L. Ida Pray, who was born in La- 
grange town, Dutchess county, a daughter of 
George Pray, who followed farming in that lo- 
cality. The family has long been identified 
with the history of this community. An inter- 
esting family of five children — Ethel Pray, 
Martha Lavinia, Hazel May, Virginia Ida, and 
John Howard — grace the union of Mr. and 
Mrs. Duncan. The parents are esteemed 
members of the Presbyterian Church, of which 
he is trustee and treasurer. His political 
support connects him with the Republican 
party, and socially he affiliates with the 
Masonic fraternity. 



ALFRED HAVILAND MOORE. In 
1S12 a mill was erected in the town of 
Lagrange, Dutchess county, around which the 
thriving village of Moores Mill has since 
grown up, its development and prosperity be- 
ing largel}- due to the energy and business sa- 
gacity of the subject of this sketch, and other 
members of his family. 

His grandfather, Stephen Moore, a native 
of Plattsburg. X. Y. , owned and operated the 
mill in his day. He married Ruth Clark, and 
reared a family, among whom was Alfred 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEWAL RECORD. 



613 



Moore, our subject's father, who was born at 
Verbank, Dutchess county. He was educated 
in the district schools of that town and of 
Moores Mill. On attaining manhood he en- 
gaged in farming in the western part of the 
town of Lagrange, but after ten years he re- 
moved to Moores Mill, where he conducted a 
farm and ran the old mill. He was a high- 
minded, progressive man, a Quaker in faith, 
and a devoted friend to Libert}', his house 
having been a station on the " Underground 
railroad," by which so many slaves made their 
way to freedom. Although he never sought 
political honors, he was an earnest supporter 
of the Republican party. Deeply conscious 
of the necessity for broad and thorough educa- 
tion for the masses, if our form of government 
is to endure, he never failed to champion the 
cause of education, as a worker in the Society 
of Friends, attending meetings regularly from 
boyhood, and often preaching to the congre- 
gation. He probably officiated at more funer- 
als than any other minister of his day in 
Dutchess county. His wife, Charlotte Havi- 
land. was a daughter of Isaac Haviland, a 
well-known resident of Quaker Hill, and both 
lived to a ripe old age, Mr. Moore departing 
this life in his seventy-eighth year, and his 
wife at the age of eighty-nine. They had 
seven children: (i) Lydia, the wife of Daniel 
Willets, of Jericho. L. L ; (2) Ruth ( Mrs. P. 
A. Skidmore); (3) Susan, who resides at 
Moores Mill; (4) Albert H., our subject; and 
three, Charlotte, Andrew and Annie, who are 
now deceased. 

Alfred H. Moore, our subject, was born at 
the village of Moores Mill November 27, 1843, 
and his early education was acquired in the 
district schools there and in a boarding school 
in Unionvale, N. Y. He has thoroughly iden- 
tified himself with the interests of his native 
place, and in addition to the work of conduct- 
ing the mill and farm, he started the first store 
in the village, opened the first telegraph office, 
and the first post office, serving as postmaster 
for several years. After some time, he disposed 
of the store, and now gives his attention to the 
ancestral occupation, and since 1876 has been 
the sole manager of the mill. He has been 
extensively engaged in breeding fine Holstein 
cattle on his farm. 

In politics he is a Republican, and he is ac- 
tive in the Friends Meetings. He is a man of 
excellent ability and upright character, and is 
held in high esteem. His courtesy is unfail- 



ing, and in conversation he gives pleasure not 
less by the wisdom of his remarks than by 
their form, the soft "thee," "thou," and 
"thy " lending their grace to his well-turned 
sentences. He was married at Jericho, L. I., 
to Phcebe Willets, daughter of Jacob Willets, 
and they have three children : Herman Wheeler, 
Jacob Willets, and Daniel W. 

Miss Susan Moore, our subject's sister, is 
the proprietor of the "Floral Home" at 
Moores Mill, a delightful summer boarding 
place. She is a model hostess, untiring in her 
efforts for the comfort of her guests, of whom 
there are usually about seventy-five throughout 
the season. The house takes its name from 
the abundance of beautiful roses and other 
flowers which bloom there, making the place a 
charming retreat. 



E 



-LMORE FERRIS, a well-known dealer 



in lumber, feed and coal at Pawling, 

Dutchess county, is one of the most enterpris- 
ing and successful business men of that locali- 
ty. He was born October 19, 1S37, in Mid- 
dlefield, Otsego Co., N. Y., and was educated 
in the district schools there, his attendance 
after the age of twelve years being limited to 
the winter terms. At fifteen he left school 
and began working bj' the month for farmers, 
and at eighteen he came to Pawling town, 
Dutchess county, where his ancestors have 
had their homes for several generations. In 
1859 he began to learn the carpenter's trade 
with Mr. Mclntyre, and followed this for nine 
years; but in 1867 he purchased a one-half in- 
terest in J. C. Merritt's lumber, feed and coal 
business. Two years later he bought Mr. 
Merritt's share, and has since continued the 
business alone, building up a large and profit- 
able trade. Energetic and self-reliant in bus- 
iness, he is also interested in local affairs, and 
is regarded as one of the leaders in the com- 
munity. He has always been a stanch Re- 
publican, and although he has never been an 
office seeker, he is at present trustee of the 
village. He married Miss Mary Jane Holmes, 
daughter of James Holmes, and has four chil- 
dren: Carrie M., Harriet E., Jam.es H., and 
Claude, all at home. 

The Ferris family is one of the oldest and 
most prominent in this section. The genea- 
logical record dates back to John Ferris, a na- 
tive of Leicestershire, England, who emigrated 
with his familv to Fairfield. Conn., and after- 



614 



CO.VMK.VORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ward, about 1654, removed to New York 
State, dying in 171 5. He is said to have been 
one of five brothers who came to this country 
with their families, one of whom, Jeffrey, set- 
tled first in Massachusetts in 1635, and then 
in Fairfield, Conn., in 1660. Another brother, 
Benjamin, settled in Salem, Mass., in 1640. 

Samuel Ferris, a son of John, was born in 
Reading, England, and was among the first 
settlers of Grotoii. Mass., whence he removed 
to Charlestown. Mass. His only son, Zach- 
ariah Ferris, married Sarah Reed, of Stratford, 
Conn., and had eight children, of whom there 
is the following record: (i) Deborah, born 
June 17, 1700; (2) Joseph, born September 
27. 1703. married a Hannah Noble; (3) David, 
born March 10, 1707, in Stratford, died in 
Wilmington, Del., December 5, 1779; (4) Ben- 
jamin, born in 1708; (5) Sarah Ann, born No- 
vember 10. 1 7 10, married a Mr. Noble; (6) 
Hannah, born August 6, 171 2, married (first) 
Gains Talbot, and (second) Dobson Wheeler; 
(7) John, born February 7, 17 14, married 
Abigail Tyron, of New Fairfield, Conn.; (8) 
Zachariah, Jr., born September 30, 1714, was 
a Quaker preacher of \\'ilinington, Del. : and 
Daniel comes next in order of birth. Zach- 
ariah Ferris, Sr. , was in Charlestown in 1675, 
and afterward settled at Stratford, Conn., and 
then about the year 17 10 removed to New Mil- 
ford, Conn. From him are descended per- 
sons of that name in different parts of the 
United States. Five of the children — David, 
Benjamin, Hannah, John and Zachariah. Jr. 
— together with the mother, joined the Society 
of Friends. David was educated for a Presby- 
terian minister, but afterward became a cele- 
brated preacher among the Friends. He went 
to Philadelphia in 1733, and was there mar- 
ried to Miss Mary Massey, and often attended 
the Oblong meetings, visiting his brother Benja- 
min. He traveled about with William Rus- 
sell and Paul Osborne, preaching, being a 
minister among the Friends for twenty-four 
years. The Oblong meeting house was on 
land owned half by a Russell and half by a 
Ferris. 

Benjamin Ferris was a Quaker preacher, 
and was among the very first settlers of the 
Oblong (now Quaker Hill), Dutchess county, 
between the years 1734 and 1736. The 
name "Oblong" is derived from the shape of 
that portion of equivalent land that was set 
off from Connecticut about 1730. He was 
very prominent in the meetings there through- 



out life. In his old age, his son Zebulan's 
store mow occupied by William Clark) was 
robbed by the cowboys during the Revolution, 
and he was so far non-resident in his ideas, 
that he desired those present to "seize the 
rascals." Benjamin Ferris married Elizabeth 
Beecher, and had the following children: (i) 
Zebulon, born in New Milford, Conn., March 

19, 1729, married Ruth -; (2) Reed, our 

subject's great-grandfather, born August 15, 
1730, in New Milford, married Anne Tripp; (3) 
Susannah, born in New Milford, in 1732, mar- 
ried Elijah Doty; (4) Phcebe, born in 1734, in 
New Milford; (5) Lillius, born in 1736, in Ob- 
long, married Jonathan Akin; (6) Benjamin, 
born September 25, 173S, in Oblong, married 
Mary Howland; (7) Gilbert, born in 1740, in 
Oblong; and (8) Edmund, born in 1748, in 
Oblong. 

Reed Ferris, tradition and history informs 
us, freely offered his fine mansion (known 
as the "old Kirby House ") to Gen. Washing- 
ton for his use as headquarters, at Pawling, 
N. Y. In James H. Smith's history of Dutch- 
ess county we find the following: "The old 
• Kirby House ' was built by Reed Ferris in 
1 77 1, and at the time Washington was in 
Pawling was a new house. Mr. Ferris was a 
substantial farmer, and his house, like his 
means, was large. Mrs. Akin, mother of the 
late Judge Albro Akin, and another lady used 
to tell of its occupancy. One day two aides- 
de-camp rode up and informed Mr. Ferris that 
Gen. Washington would like to make his home 
there for a while. Mr. Ferris consented, and 
to notify all intruders that this was the house 
of the commander-in-chief, they fastened a 
paper to the front door, reading: • Headquar- 
ters of Gen. Washington.' The Ferris house 
has been torn down, and all that remains is 
the front doorstep with ' R. F.' and ' 1771 'cut 
in it." The farm is now owned by Archibald 
Dodge. Reed Ferris and Anne Tripp had 
the following children: Edmund, born March 
30, 1752; Benjamin. July 29. 1754; Lydia, 
July 5, 1756, married a Mr. Wanzer; Molly, 
April 20, 1759, married John Akin; James, 
July 2, 1761; Warren. February 19. 1764; 
Pitt, July 4, 1766; Morris, October 16. 1768; 
Anne. January 5. 1771. married a Mr. Havi- 
land; and Seneca, February 15, 1773. 

Edmund Ferris, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was married four times, and had nineteen 
children. On October 30, 1771, he married 
his first wife, Mary Akin, who was born No- 



coynrEvoBATrrE biogbapsical becobd. 



•515 



vember i. 1747. and had one son — John Akin 
Ferris, bom October 17. 1772. at Pawling. N. 
Y. The second wife. Hannah Taber, became 
the mother of two children: Thomas Taber. 
October S. 1776. and Hannah, bom Novem- 
ber 22. 1777. The third wife of Edmund 
Ferris was Martha Birch, bom in 1760. whom 
he married in 1781 : she died Jannarj- 22, 1794- 
Their children were: Wlllett F.. who was 
b:m May 19. 1782. and died April 12. 1853; 
Betse}-. bom November 14. 1783: Amy, bom 
Jannary 17. 1785: Ira, bom October 23. 1788: 
Sophia, bora May 17. 17S9; and Oliver, bom 
Etecember 5. 1793. For his fourth wife, he 
inarried Sally Birdsall, who was bom in 1777. 
and to them were bom ten children, whose 
-asies and dates of birth are as follows: Ann. 
Febman.- 25. 1706: Philelus. November 5, 
1797: Minerva. March iS. 1799: Horace. Feb- 
ruary 9. I So I: Ransom. Febmary 24, 1S03; 
Matilda. December 30. 1804: Garrett, May 
2S. 1806: Sally. April 26. 1S09; Alfred. Sep- 
:ember 29. 1810: and Massilla. September 26, 
I S 1 2. The third and fourth wives of Edmund 
Ferns are the ancestors of nearly all of the name 
InPawlia?. The grandfather of our subject was 
a fanner, and succeeded to a part of i: 
of his father. He lived on Quaker H... -,:- 
ing a pcTtion of his life, and later on the Daniel 
Dc-ise farm. He was qnite a laret ' ' - ' [-- 
at cne time, and was prominent ir: - 
He served in the war of 1812. and wa- 
as Major Ferris. 

Horace Ferris. o:ir subject s father, was a 
tanner who went to Otsego county. N. Y.. 
about 1830. purchased a farm and spent the 
remainder -of his life there. He had only a 
small estate, but was a man of push and en- 
ergy. He was a Whig, although he never took 
an active part in politics, and he attended the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. He died in 1873. 
and his wife. Emeline Bentiey. a daughter of 
Thomas Bentiey. of the town of Bt ' 
passed away in 1891. She was the tr^ : 
family of five children, the others being: El- 
mer: Luman; Harriet who married Philo Fer- 
ris, and lived in Chenango county. N. Y. 1; and 
Clarirda who married Mr. Garrett, and lived 
and died in Pawling . The Bentleys were also 
of English origin. To Horace Ferris and his 
wife were bom children as follows: Clarissa, 
who married 1 first Cyms Groves, and .second 
Adam Dje: Matilda, wife of John Corbin: 
Walter H., who married Caroline Terwiiliger: 
Ellen, wife of John Prau: Maiy, who married 



(firsty Albert Coie. 
quins; Phcebe. ' ''- 
who married A 
in girlhood; E.more, 
sketch; Alfred, who 
and was a soldier in 
of Isaac Tec^' ■ 
wounds recei • T 
served in the Uaion 
len; and twins who : 
family live in Otse. 



and second' Emery Ja- 

- Farren Pratt: Eldmond, 

-on; Elizabeth, who died 

•a-hose name o|>=ns this 

married Amanda Chase. 

the Civil war; Levisa, wife 

? -'-^rd. who died from 

y; Leroy iwho also 

armvi married M. J. Do- 

\-.=t vcang. Most of the 



RICHARD A. SCHOUTEN. proprietor of 
a meat market at Staatsbcrg. Dutchess 

county, is a man of strong and intelligent con- 
victions and -' . -.--.- :t. He is a 
native of Do: : November 
22, 1835, in the : East F - 
known as Fishki . . i.. - .5 descer _,. 
Schouten. a Holland emigrant, v - to 
r ■ :.^nof 
F - ~ ~ en, was 
bom. The latter was the grandfather of our 
subject, who lived upon :~= ----- - —-7 - ; 

entire life and was very = . 

cultural porr_ :? ". . 1 fn^jizZTC x-err*". 

who was z izz. .0 ?.-:_. o 1777. and to 

them was bom a son. Stockholm, the father 
of our subject. In Hyde Park. Datchess coun- 
tv. the erandfather died. March 22. iSoi. and 



nis w:: 

20. I - 

of F ■ 
sprin; 
HvdePar 
Vizr. '•- 



^as bora Deo=:o.oer 
e farm in the town 



about a miie nortn 01 i:.ast 



-? . procuring 
: v De Witt 



place. He spent his last da\-s. however, with 
his son. a or:~:oent Ia\vv-er of Pr r- =;osie. 
He ^as 00 'ot rent, well-read : - :ng 

Tt ■ il advantages, and 

";- , . ; „ nanirai talent. He 

t ; nent part in local political 

a±i:r5-n;;:o risoklll ar "- t Park town, 
alwavs v;tinj wlih z'zt D- : party, and 

served for many years as overseer of the poor 
in the former town. In later !;fe he was an 
earnest member of the Methodist Episcopal 
Cborcb. d}~;ng :n that faith March 13. 1876, 
at the ire ::' seventy-two years. 

S: - zhouten married Miss Ann 



61fi 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



Maria Underhill, who was born December i6, 
1810, and died April 7, 1883; she was the 
daughter of Absalom Underhill. Children as 
follows were born to this union: Ann Eliza, 
born August 19, 1S30, became the wife of 
William S. Ladin, and died in August, 1849, 
the year she was married. John S., born Oc- 
tober 8, 1832, is a farmer of the town of 
Pleasant \'alley, Dutchess county; he served 
in the Civil war, enlisting as private, and was 
promoted to sergeant. Richard A. is next in 
order of birth. William Kipp, born January 
27, 1839, became a promising young law\er of 
Poughkeepsie, but was called from this life 
February 18, 1870, at the age of thirty-one 
years, one month and four days. Charles An- 
drew, born November 23, 1843, was a soldier 
during the Civil war, and was promoted to ser- 
geant; most of his life has been spent in the 
dry-goods business in New York City, but he 
is now assistant superintendent in a post-grad- 
uate hospital, 2 1st street and 2d avenue. New 
York. Phcebe Helen, born October 2, 1847, 
died in 1866, the year of her marriage. Julia, 
born March 14, 1850, married to William Nel- 
son, and had two children — Guy Lockwood 
and Grace Deere; Julia died about the year 
1885. Stockholm, born March 27, 1853. was 
a printer of Poughkeepsie, where he died Oc- 
tober 6, 1879. 

The education of our subject was such as 
the common schools of Fishkill and Hyde Park 
towns afforded, and he is well posted on the cur- 
rent events of the day. For one year after 
attaining his majority he still remained upon 
the home farm, and then began the butcher- 
ing business on a small scale, for a few months 
running a wagon. The following year he 
bought a small place east of Hyde Park, where 
he resided for about four years, but in 1863 
succeeded to the business of M. E. Lattin, in 
Staatsburg, starting a small market on the 
west side of the track. For nine months he 
conducted a shop at Red Hook, Dutchess 
county, and for about a year one at Newburg, 
N. Y., but in 1872 he purchased his present 
building of William B. Densmore, and has 
since successfully carried on a market there, 
handling the best meats and controlling the 
trade of the town. He is careful and method- 
ical in his business dealings, and his success is 
the just reward of his own diligence, enter- 
prise and good management. 

In 1S57 Mr. Schouten was united in mar- 
riage with Laura J. \'elie, daughter of Henry 



Velie, and they have become the parents of 
the following children: Charles Henry, who 
was born August 3, 1858, and is now in the 
shop with his father; Alice L. , who was born 
January 5, 1863, and is the wife of C. W. H. 
Arnold; Francis M., who. died May 3, 1879, at 
the age of thirteen years; Richard U., born 
January 15, 1875, and died in 1894. at the age 
of nineteen years; Laura Velie, who was born 
February 10, 1S70, and is at home; Sterling 
Bird, born May 17, 1879; and Emma Deere, 
born May 23. 1882. Politically, Mr. Schouten 
votes the straight Democratic ticket, and has 
served his fellow-citizens as school trustee and 
collector of his town. He is a devoted mem- 
ber of the Methodist Episcopal Church of 
Staatsburg, in which he has ol^ciated as trus- 
tee, and superintendent of the Sunday-school. 



ORLANDO JAMES COWL, a retired mer- 
chant tailor of Pawling, Dutchess county, 
has been for many years a leading resident of 
that town, and he and his estimable wife, who 
recently passed from earth, have been helpful 
factors in the important social, phiianthropical 
and religious movements which have contrib- 
uted to the development and progress of the 
community. 

Mr. Cowl is a native of New York City, 
born November 14, 1825. His family is of 
English origin, and the home of the American 
branch may be said to be at Cowl's Corners, 
east of Patterson, in Putnam Co., N. Y. , where 
many of the name now live. Capt. William 
Cowl, our subject's grandfather, was a promi- 
nent citizen of that locality, and was greatly 
respected for his sound judgment and upright 
and temperate life. Possessing great energy, 
he engaged successfully in various business en- 
terprises, being a merchant, a shoemaker, and 
the owner of a large tannery, and he also took 
an active share in local politics as a supporter 
of the Whig party. His title was a well-earned 
distinction gained in the war of 1812. He 
died in i860, and his wife, Elizabeth Gorham, 
in 18 — . They had seven children: Eliza; 
Harry; Orrin; James; one who went to the 
West; Mrs. Flora Anderson; and Anna (also 
married). 

James Cowl, our subject's father, was born 
in 1799, and about 1826 engaged in the gro- 
cery business at Pawling, at what was then 
known as Goosetown, on the spot now occu- 
pied by the residence of James Ferris. He 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHWAL RECORD. 



617 



afterward moved to New York, and followed 
the same business at the corner of Church and 
Franklin streets, but at the age of thirty-five 
he was compelled to abandon mercantile pur- 
suits on account of ill health, and from that 
time he was engaged in the real-estate busi- 
ness. The family has always been distin- 
guished for excellent business judgment, and 
his career would serve to confirm that reputa- 
tion, his energy and foresight enabling him to 
accumulate a fortune. He did not care for 
public honors, and refused to become a 
candidate for office when urged ; but he was 
interested in political questions of national im- 
portance, and was at first a Whig, later, as a 
strong opponent of slavery, becoming a Re- 
publican. He was a cheerful giver to any 
worthy cause, and a steadfast adherent of the 
Presbyterian Church for many years before his 
death, which occurred April 15, 1892. His 
first wife, our subject's mother, was Miss 
Phcebe Martin, a daughter of John Martin, a 
well-known resident of Quaker Hill. She died 
a few years after their marriage, and his sec- 
ond wife, Mary (Ludlum), was a victim of the 
cholera epidemic of 1848. He then married 
Mrs. Stanton, by whom he had one son. In 
no place did the strong character of James 
Cowl show to a better advantage than in his 
home life. The best of fathers, he gave his 
children good advantages, and started them 
well in life. Of the three children of his first 
family, Harriet, the wife of Alexander Allen, 
was the youngest. Martin H., who died at 
the age of forty-five years, was a carriage- 
maker by trade, and was noted for his fine 
natural abilities. George Cowl, the son of the 
third marriage, is a successful drug broker in 
New York City. 

The subject of our sketch received a good 
academic education in New York during his 
boyhood, completing his studies in the school 
conducted by Profs. Iving and Peaks, on Broad- 
way, near Bleecker street. At eighteen years 
of age he began to learn the tailor's trade in 
that city, and when he was twent3--two years 
old he opened a shop of his own while living 
with his brother-in-law, Mr. Allen. In 1865 
he started a merchant-tailoring establishment 
at Pawling, near the depot, which became the 
principal house in that line in the town. He 
was obliged to give this up in 1S71 on account 
of failing health, and in the following year he 
built his present residence, and has since given 
his attention to the care of his extensive gar- 



dens. As a business man he has been very 
successful, displaying force of character com- 
bined with clear and sound judgment. In poli- 
tics he was first a Whig, later a Republican, 
and he is a strong upholder of the temperance 
cause. 

In 1866, Mr. Cowl married Miss Phoebe A. 
Beardsley, daughter of Bennett Beardsley, a 
prominent citizen of Poughkeepsie. She pos- 
sessed rare qualities of mind and heart, and 
her death, which occurred July 19, 1894, was 
deeply mourned. The memory of her efforts 
as a devoted and self-sacrificing worker for the 
good of others will always be cherished in that 
community. She and her husband were both 
active, members of the Methodist Church, and 
Mr. Cowl has held the office of steward for 
many years. 



ILLIAM H. PARKER has, smce 
1872, been a successful merchant of 
Hughsonville, Dutchess county, dealing in 
stoves, house furnishing goods and groceries. 
His fair dealing and systematic methods of 
doing business have won for him the confi- 
dence and respect of all with whom he comes 
in contact, and his property has been acquired 
by the exercise of sound judgment, good busi- 
ness talents and industry. 

Thomas Parker, father of our subject, was 
a native of Connecticut, born at Chester, in 
1800. The family is of Welsh origin, three 
brothers having come from that country and 
settled in America about 1650. When ten 
years of age the father became a resident of 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess Co., N. Y. , where he 
learned the tin, sheet-iron and copper trade, 
and later followed his chosen occupation at 
Rochester, Troy and Elmira, N. Y. In 1841 
he removed to Milwaukee, Wis., but his last 
days were passed at Dubuque, Iowa, where he 
died in December, 1856. In early life he was 
a Whig in politics, but later supported the 
Democratic party. He was a very religious 
man, a faithful member of the Episcopal 
Church, to which his wife also belonged. 
Thomas Parker was united in marriage with 
Miss Sarah De Groff, who was born in 1804, 
at Poughkeepsie, where their marriage was 
celebrated, and was the daughter of Cornelius 
De Groff, a native of the same place. The 
De Groffs were originally from France, but, on 
going to Holland, they intermarried with that 
nation, and representatives of the family came 



018 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



to America at a very early period in the his- 
tory of this country. Shortly after their mar- 
riage the parents of our subject removed to 
Troy, N. Y. , where part of the children were 
born, the remainder being born at Rochester. 
They are as follows: Jeffrey A., a resident of 
Dubuque, Iowa; Adaline, deceased wife of 
William R. .Anderson, a captain on the Mis- 
sissippi river; Thomas, who died in Milwau- 
kee at the age of eighteen years; Maria and 
Julia, who died in infancy; William H., of 
this review; and Elizabeth, wife of Thomas 
Prest, of Whitinsville, Mass. The mother's 
death occurred at Hughsonville, X. Y. , in 
1S93, when in her ninetieth year. 

At Troy, N. Y. , on July 4, 1837, William 
H. Parker first opened his eyes to the light, 
and was only a year old when taken by 
his parents to Elmira, where they remained a 
short time. As early as 1841 he became a 
resident of Milwaukee, Wis., where his boy- 
hood days were passed, and there he learned 
the tinner's and plumber's trade with Henry 
J. Nazro & Co. In May, 1S56, he started 
overland to Kansas by cattle train, and was 
three months en route. He traveled exten- 
sively through the West and South for some 
time, but finally, in 1858, came to Poughkeep- 
sie, Dutchess county, where he remained for 
a short time. He then worked at his trade in 
many large cities, including Cincinnati, Pitts- 
burg, Philadelphia, New York and Boston. 
On the outbreak of the Civil war, he went to 
Monticello, N. Y. , where he enlisted in the 
First New York Mounted Rifles, but because 
of a rupture did not enter into active service. 

In June, 1864, Mr. Parker was married to 
Miss Mary Kelly, a native of Orange county, 
N. Y. , and a daughter of Thomas Kelly, who 
was of Irish extraction. Nine children were 
born to them, but four died in infancy. Those 
still living are Willard, Fred, Jennie, Charles 
and Addie, all at home. Shortly after his 
marriage, Mr. Parker located at Wappingers 
Falls, where he worked at his trade for A. W. 
Armstrong for three years, and the following 
year was in business for himself at that place. 
Going to Troy, N. Y., he engaged in the 
wholesale spice-box business, manufacturing 
tinware there for four years. Since 1872, 
however, he has been a resident of Hughson- 
ville, where he has engaged in his present line 
of business. 

Politically, Mr. Parker affiliates with the 
Republican party, being one of its most ear- 



nest supporters, and betakes quite a prominent 
part in public affairs. In 1889 he was elected 
justice of the peace, in which office he served 
for four years, for the same length of time was 
the efficient postmaster of Hughsonville; in 
1893 was elected supervisor of Wappinger 
township, and at the end of a year was re- 
elected, serving in that position until the pres- 
ent time, when superseded by Mr. Barlow. 
He is a very intelligent man, being well-read 
on literary and scientific subjects, and is one 
of the prominent men in the community, stand- 
ing high in the estimation of his fellow-citizens. 



MILES HUGHES. In past ages the his- 
tory of the countrj' was the record of 
wars and conquests; to-day it is the record of 
commercial activity, and those whose names 
are foremost in its annals are the leaders in 
business circles. The conquests now made 
are those of mind over matter, not man over 
man, and the victor is he who can successfully 
establish, control and operate extensive com- 
mercial interests. Mr. Hughes is unquestion- 
ably one of the most successful men of Dutch- 
ess county. Tireless energ}', keen perception, 
honesty of purpose, genius for devising and 
executing the right thing at the right time, 
joined to every-day common sense, guided by 
resistless will power, are the chief character- 
istics of the man. He is at the head of a large 
mercantile establishment at Staatsburg, where 
he is also engaged in handling grain, feed and 
flour, having one of the finest elevators in the 
county; is president of the Fallkill Knitting 
Co., of Poughkeepsie; president of the Dutch- 
ess Land Co., vice-president of the Gilbert 
Arnold Land Co., and is also largely inter- 
ested in property at Superior, \\'isconsin. 

The family is of English ancestry, being 
founded in America by those of the name who 
took up their residence in New England dur- 
ing Colonial days. The great-grandfather of 
our subject, Christopher Hughes, was a native 
of New Haven, Conn., and in early life was a 
sea captain. He was the first of the family to 
come to Dutchess county, where he purchased 
about 600 acres of land in the town of Hyde 
Park, southeast of Staatsburg, also the prop- 
erty on which A. J. Briggs is now living. His 
son, Christopher, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was one of the first officers in the town of 
Hyde Park after it was set off from Clinton. 
He was born in New Haven, Conn., and by 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



619 



occupation was a farmer, operating the land 
which his father had here purchased. He 
was one of the leading members of the locality, 
took an active part in Church work, and was 
one of the founders of St. James Episcopal 
Church at Hyde Park. He married Rachel 
Paulding, belonging to the family of which 
John Paulding, one of the captors of Major 
Andre, was a member, and also James Kirk 
Paulding, the author and statesman. Of this 
union eight children were born: Samuel; 
Miles; Christopher, the father of our subject, 
who is the only one of the sons now living; 
Brooks; Elizabeth, who married Mr. \\'ade, of 
Albany county, N. Y. ; Harriet, 'who became 
the wife of John Uhl; Maria, who wedded Mr. 
Skidmore; and Lucinda, wife of Hercules 
Reed, of Hulburton, New York. 

Upon the family homestead in the town of 
Hyde Park, the father of our subject was born, 
in July, 1805, and has always followed agri- 
cultural pursuits, in which he has been suc- 
cessful, being a man of good judgment in busi- 
ness matters. He married Miss Sarah Lamo- 
ree, daughter of John Lamoree, who belonged 
to one of the oldest families of Dutchess coun- 
ty, of French origin, and was one of the most 
successful farmers and prominent men of the 
community. Mrs. Hughes is one of a family 
of seven children, the others being Daniel; 
Isaac; George V.; Nathaniel; Millie, who 
married Harris Marshall; and Mary, who 
wedded Jeremiah Shultz, of 'the town of Clin- 
ton, Dutchess county. To the parents of our 
subject were born four children: Sarah, now 
the widow of Jacob Cookingham; Miles, of this 
review; Edgar, who died at the age of fifteen 
years; and Lucinda. In his early years the 
father took a great interest in military matters, 
being captain of a cavalry company in the 
State Militia, and was always known by his 
associates as Capt. Hughes. He is still living 
at the advanced age of ninety-one years, while 
his devoted wife is in her eighty-ninth year. 
He early became connected with the Episco- 
pal Church of Hyde Park, but now holds mem- 
bership with the Church at Staatsburg, in the 
work of which he takes an active part, and 
has always served as one of its officers. Pub- 
lic interests also receive his attention, espe- 
cially educational affairs, and for many years 
he served as school trustee. His political 
support has always been unswervingly given 
the Democratic party. 

Miles Hughes was born April S, 1836, on 



the old family homestead at Staatsburg, 
Dutchess county, and received a good aca- 
demic education, finishinghisliterary studies at 
Hinsdale, Mass., where he went with the in- 
tention of preparing for Williams College. At 
the age of eighteen, however, he left school 
and began teaching in the home school, hold- 
ing that position for about six months. He 
was very successful in that undertaking, and 
now looks back upon his work there with as 
much satisfaction as anything he has accom- 
plished in life. For about seven years after- 
ward he assisted in the cultivation of the home 
farm; but in February, 1S64, he began the gen- 
eral merchandising in connection with a Mr. 
Wood^ of Clinton town, and the firm contin- 
ued to do business for some seven years, when 
our subject bought out his partner's interest, 
and has since conducted the concern alone. 
He has one of the largest trades in the county, 
won by the high grade of goods which he car- 
ries, fair and honorable dealing, and his court- 
eous treatment of customers. He has been 
successful in all his business ventures, the re- 
sult of his own untiring efforts. 

In October, 1865, Mr. Hughes was mar- 
ried to Miss Pier, of Upper Red Hook, Dutch- 
ess county, daughter of Benjamin S. Pier, for- 
merly of New York City, but later a resident 
of Upper Red Hook, N. Y. As a coppersmith 
he made the first pans for the Borden Con- 
densed Milk Company. Five children grace 
the union of our subject and his wife: Edwin 
B., in the store at Staatsburg, and Marian, 
both living; and Pier, Mary and Emily, all 
three deceased. Mr. Hughes is a fine repre- 
sentative of the Republican party, always a 
firm supporter of its principles, and has served 
as justice of the peace. He takes great inter- 
est in St. Margaret's Episcopal Church, of 
which he is a member, and is now senior war- 
den. Public-spirited in a high degree, he has 
ever been loyal to his home interests, and the 
town owes as much to Mr. Hughes as to any 
other man for its growth and stability, while 
throughout the community no one is more 
widely or favorably known. 



LOUIS YOUNG was born August 24, 1837, 
at a place called Oberingelheim, in Ger- 
many, and came to America when he was thir- 
teen years old. The following eight years were 
spent mostly in traveling through the country 
on pleasure trips, and when he had reached the 



620 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



age of twenty-four years, he had settled down 
in Wappingers Falls, where he was employed 
for ten years by John Barlow in the bakery 
business'. In 185S, Mr. Young purchased the 
business from Mr. Barlow, and carried it on 
until the time of his death, which event took 
place November 12, 1889. He was very suc- 
cessful in his undertakings, being a man of strict 
honesty, careful management, and reliable in all 
his methods of dealing. He started in" life in 
the village with a capital of fifty cents, and at 
his death left property valued at $10,000.00. 
He built the brick store which he occupied, and 
the one now occupied by Matthew J. Cashin, 
and also two brick houses on Mesier avenue. 

On November 21, 1871, Mr. Young was 
married to Miss Eliza Smith, who was born in 
Orange county, N. Y., a daughter of Thomas 
Smith, a native of England. Of this union four 
daughters were born: Josephine, Mary, Sarah 
and Wilhelmina. They are all young ladies of 
culture and refinement, and with their mother 
are popular members of society. 

Mr. Young was a Republican, but never as- 
pired to become an office holder. He was 
quiet and unostentatious, and used his influence 
in making improvements in the village, and 
doing good in an unobstrusive manner, rather 
than in seeking prominence for himself. He 
will long be remembered for his many kindly 
deeds. Socially he belonged to Wappinger 
Lodge, F. cS:A. M. ; Eafayette Lodge, I. O. O. 
F.; and the Legion of Honor. The family are 
all members of the Episcopal Church, to which 
their father was a liberal contributor. 



EDWARD ELSWORTH PERKINS, law- 
! yer, born in the town of Poughkeepsie, 

February 4, 1863, is one of the prominent 
young members of the Dutchess county Bar, 
and a son of Alexander \V. Perkins and his 
wife, Elsie A. Kay. 

The old homestead, known as the " Spack- 
enkill Farm" (now owned by Edward), stands 
on the post road between the city of Pough- 
keepsie and Wappingers Falls. There Mr. Per- 
kins had the usual experience of a country boy, 
attending thedistrict school in the neighborhood 
until the age of fifteen, when he entered Pel- 
ham's Institute, on Montgomery street, in the 
city of Poughkeepsie, for a three-years' course. 
At the expiration of that he returned to the 
farm for two years, and then at the age of 
twenty commenced to prepare for his profes- 



sion in the law office of O. D. M. Baker. At 
the age of twenty-one he was elected j-ustice 
of the peace of his town, which office he held 
for three years. In 1886 he was admitted to 
the bar at the December term of the Supreme 
Court held in Brooklyn, having the highest 
standing in a class of seventy. He immedi- 
ately engaged in practice at the city of Pough- 
keepsie, in the office of his preceptor, and met 
with a degree of success. 

Mr. Perkins in 1887 was one of the organ- 
izers of the Poughkeepsie & Southeastern 
Railroad Company (now the Dutchess County 
R. R.j, extending from Poughkeepsie Bridge 
to Hopeweil Junction, and was elected its first 
secretary and treasurer. 

In 1890 Mr. Perkins went to Texas for 
New York and Philadelphia capitalists, and 
engaged in organizing and building the exten- 
sion of the Fort Worth cS: Rio Grande railroad 
form Comanche to Brownwood. Completing 
this work, he went to Fort Worth, Tex., and 
associated with T. L. Marsalis, of Dallas, 
Tex., in the completion and extension of the 
Dallas & Oak Cliff railroad, and later in the 
building of the West Dallas railroad, of which 
Mr. Perkins became president. 

Mr. Perkins while in Fort Worth was 
elected president of the American Savings 
Bank and Trust Company, and was chosen by 
the Travelers Insurance Company, of Hart- 
ford, Conn., as their financial and loan repre- 
sentative for the State of Texas. In 1893 he 
organized the American National Bank; was 
elected a director and its first vice-president. 
In 1893 he removed to his native town, and 
resumed the practice of his profession. 

Mr. Perkins is one of the governors of the 
Dutchess Club, member of the Gentlemen's 
Driving Club of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
County Golf Club, Poughkeepsie Tennis Club, 
and is a Democrat in political faith. 

On June 23, 1891, Mr. Perkins married 
Miss Mary D. Beard, daughter of Col. O. T. 
Beard, a prominent resident of Poughkeepsie. 
Their children are three in number: Olive 
Elizabeth, Jeannie Marie and Argenta. 



DOUGLAS MERRITT, one of our most es- 
teemed citizens, residing upon a beautiful 

farm called " Leacote," is of the sixth genera- 
tion in descent from Thomas Merritt, who set- 
tled at Rye, Westchester county, in 1670, and 
was a prominent citizen, and a deputy to the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



021 



General Court of Connecticut in 1699. He 
had four sons: Thomas, Joseph, Ephraim and 
Samuel, of whom, Joseph, who died in 1754, 
left three sons: Joseph, Thomas and Nehemiah. 

Nehemiah was born in 171 5, married 
Dinah Hopkins, of Oyster Bay, and in 1758 
moved to Quaker Hill, Dutchess county, where 
he owned a large farm. He died there in 1 794, 
leaving four children: Daniel, Nehemiah, Icha- 
bod and Anna. 

Nehemiah, Jr., born in 1740, married 
Phoebe Wing, in 1760, and was a merchant of 
the town of Washington, where he died in 
1793, leaving eleven children. His youngest 
son, Benjamin, was born in 1777, married 
Thankful, daughter of Col. Matthew Scott, 
and was a merchant in New York and Tro^'. 
He died in 1854, leaving ten children, of whom 
the eldest son, George, was born in Washing- 
ton county in 1807, and married Julia, daugh- 
ter of Alanson Douglas and Ann Sutherland. 
He became an eminent dry-goods merchant in 
New York, and was noted for his beneficence. 
His death occurred at his country seat, 
" Lyndehurst, " Irvington-on-Hudson, in 1873. 
Of his six children the eldest, Douglas, was 
born at No. 42 Barclay street. New York, De- 
cember 4, 1847, was educated at the school of 
John MacMullen and the Columbia Grammar 
School, passed two years in Europe, and was 
graduated from the Columbia Law School in 
1874. He purchased his farm called "Lea- 
cote" in 1875, and was married August 3, 
1876, to Elizabeth Cleveland, daughter of Rt. 
Rev. Arthur Cleveland Co.xe, Bishop of West- 
ern New York. They have two children: 
Ethel Douglas and Alan Douglas. 

Mr. Merritt has always taken an interest 
in public affairs and the progress of the neigh- 
borhood. He is a trustee of St. Stephens 
College, Annandale; St. Johns Church, Barry- 
town; the Starr Institute, Rhinebeck, and the 
Public School No. 3, and was a member of the 
last Board of E.xcise. He is also senior war- 
den of the Church of the Messiah, Rhinebeck, 
and has for many years been a delegate from 
that Church to the Diocesan Convention. 



JOHN H. SMITH, Jr.. was born at the 
Steel Works in the town of Amenia, Dutch- 
ess county, March iS, 1863, and is a lineal 
descendant of Nehemiah Smith, whose birth 
occurred in England about 1605, and who 
came to America and made application to be 



admitted as a freeman at Plymouth, Mass., 
March 6, 1637. For two years he lived on 
Long Island, but in 1644 removed to Stratford, 
Conn., where he kept a flock of sheep on the 
west bank of Oyster river, and was conse- 
quently known as Shepherd Smith. Later he 
removed to New Haven, Conn. ; in the spring 
of 165 1, to Norwich, L. I.; and two years 
afterward to London, Conn. Owing to trou- 
ble with the Indians he continued to reside at 
New London until after 1665, when he re- 
moved to his farm at Smith Lake, Poquonock, 
where he doubtless had been making improve- 
ments for several years. He was one of the 
original proprietors of Norwich, buying the 
land from the Indian chief, Uncas, in 1659, 
and was among the earliest settlers of several 
new towns in Connecticut. He always took 
an active interest in Church affairs, and, doubt- 
less, of^ciated in the absence of the regular 
pastor. He died about 1686. On January 
21, 1639, he married Annie Bourne, of Marsh- 
field, Mass., who died in 1684, and to them 
were born the following children : Sarah, born 
in 1642; Mary; Hannah, born in 1644; Mercy 
and Elizabeth (twins), born in 1645; Nehe- 
miah, born in 1646; Lydia, born in 1647; Ann 
and Mehitable. 

Nehemiah Smith, the only son, was born 
at New Haven, Conn., in 1646, and was bap- 
tized October 24, of that year, by Rev. John 
Davenport, first pastorof the first Church at that 
place. When ten years of age he accompanied 
his father to the farm at Poquonock, Conn. , and 
was seventeen when the latter moved to Nor- 
wich, leaving him on the farm. On October 24, 
1669, he married Lydia Winchester, daughter 
of Alexander Winchester, of Roxbury, Mass. 
In that year he was a member of the General 
Assembly at Hartford, and also in several sub- 
sequent years. He and his wife became mem- 
bers of the first Church at New London, Conn. 
About 1 69 1 or 1692 he purchased a large tract 
of land at Niantic, Conn., of Joseph and John 
Bull, of Hartford. 

Nehemiah Smith, a son of Nehemiah and 
Lydia (Winchester) Smith, was born Novem- 
ber 14, 1663, and April 22, 1696, was united 
in marriage with Dorothy Wheeler, who was 
born December 6, 1679 (a daughter of Isaac 
Wheeler), and died May 25, 1736. Soon 
after their marriage they both joined the first 
Church at New London, and he was always 
known as an honest and highly respected farm- 
er; in 1 712 and 1714 he served as townsman. 



622 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



His entire life was spent upon the old home- 
stead farm near Smith Lake, Poquonock, Gro- 
ton. Conn., where his death occurred Novem- 
ber 2 1, 1724. In his famil}' were twelve chil- 
dren, namely: Dorothy, Hannah, Elizabeth, 
Nathan, John, William, Isaac, Mary, Lydia, 
Jabez, Anna and Sarah. 

Isaac, the seventh child of Xehemiah and 
Dorothy (Wheeler) Smith, was born Decem- 
ber 29, 1797, atGroton, Conn., and November 
4, 1729^ wedded Esther, dauj^hter of Deacon 
Daniel Denison. Both became members of 
the First Congregational Church at New Lon- 
don, Conn., He departed this life March 14, 
1783, and his wife died on August 17, 1798. 
In their family were eleven children, whose 
names and dates of birth are as follows: 
Daniel, December i, 1730; Amos, December 
13, 1732; Esther, August 9, 1734; Hannah, 
August 9, 1734; Simeon, June 9, 1738; Abigail, 
February 15, 1740; Mary, November 15, 1743; 
Lucy, November 11, 1746; William, October 
26, 1749; and Silas and Phebe, twins, April 
18, 1752. 

William Smith, the ninth of the family, 
engaged in farming at Mt. Archer and North 
Lyme, New London Co., Conn., and served 
as deacon in the Baptist Church, of which he 
was a consistent member. In 1772 he mar- 
ried Sarah Smith, daughter of Nathan and 
Elizabeth Smith, who died July 14, 1831, and 
his death occurred September i, 1841. They 
also had twelve children, whose names and 
dates of birth are as follows: William, Janu- 
ary 22, 1775; Sarah, February i, 1777; Eliza- 
beth, December i, 1779; Gurdon, December 
4, 1 781; John D., August 12, 1782; Edward, 
August 24, 1784; Phebe, August 20, 1786; 
Nathan, November 12, 1788; Charlotte, Jan- 
uary I, 1 791; Lucy, February 14, 1793; Al- 
mira, March i, 1797; Ansyl, April 2, 1799; 
and Edward. 

Nathan Smith, the seventh in order of 
birth, was born at North Lyme, Conn., and 
■was the grandfather of our subject. In iSio 
he was married to Nancy Waterman, of Salem, 
Conn., who died July 2, 1824, and they be- 
came the parents of five children: Sarah M., 
born August C, 1814, married Columbus Reed; 
Gilbert B. was born April 10, 1816; Nathan 
W., born January 12, 1818, is now living at 
South Amenia, Dutchess Co., N. Y. ; Nancy 
L., born August 12, 1819, died January 11, 
1S74; and John H., born June i, 1821, died 
October 13, 1892. For his second wife Na- 



than Smith married Hannah Stark, and they 
had two children: Fitch C, born January 19, 
1826; and Henry S., born May 20, 1828. His 
third wife was Nancy Baker, widow of Mathias 
Baker, and daughter of Deacon Eliphalet Hill- 
yard, and his last wife was Mary Gallup. For 
a time he was captain of a sloop, but most of 
his life was devoted to farming at Salem, Conn. 
At the time of his death, which occurred March 
26, 1S76, he was serving as deacon of the 
Baptist Church at North Lyme, Conn. , of 
which he was a faithful member. 

John H. Smith, the father of our subject, 
was born at Lyme, Conn., was there educated 
in the public schools, and at the age of four- 
teen years walked from his home to Wassaic, 
Dutchess Co., N. Y., where he resided with a 
sister for a time. At Williamstown, Mass., 
he learned the trade of wagon making, after 
which he worked in the mill at Amenia, where 
he continued to reside for one year after his 
marriage. Removing to the Steel Works, he 
began wagon making, which business he con- 
tinued to follow up to the time of his death. 
He was entirely a self-made man, having 
started out in* life tor himself empty-handed, 
at the early age of fourteen years, and suc- 
ceeded in accumulating a good property by 
persistent labor and well-directed efforts. In 
religious belief he was a Baptist, belonging to 
the Church at Amenia, and in politics he was a 
stalwart Republican. He was called upon to 
serve his fellow citizens in the offices of assessor 
and justice of the peace. 

At Amenia, June i, 1847, was celebrated 
the marriage of John H. Smith, Sr. , and Miss 
Maria, daughter of Myron Reed, and to them 
were born seven children: Nathan, who was 
born April 21, 184S, and is now a merchant 
of Amenia Union; Sarah M., who was born 
September 11, 1849, and was married June 
26, 1879, to Charles, son of Philo S. Hoyt, of 
Danbury, Conn.; Myron, born May 12, 1S51, 
who is serving his third term as superintendent 
of the poor of Dutchess county; Belinda, born 
April II, 1855; Esther M., born September 
22, 1856; Edwin D., of Poughkeepsie, born 
Januarj' 18, 1859; and John H., whose name 
introduces this sketch. 

John H. Smith, Jr., spent his boyhood days 
in Amenia, attending the district schools and 
the Amenia Seminar)', and learned the trade 
of wagon making with his father, who then 
gave him an interest in the business. Since 
the death of his father he has successfully con- 



VOMMhiMOUATIVE BIOORAPUWAL RECORD. 



628 



ducted the trade alone, handling all kinds of 
goods in the wagon line, and is now at the 
head of a large and constantly increasing busi- 
ness. Socially he affiliates with the Royal Ar- 
canum at Wassaic, Dutchess county, and polit- 
ically is identified with the Republican party. 
At Plainsville, Conn., December 22, 1887, he 
was united in marriage with Miss Carrie Grid- 
ley Parrish, a native of Hillsdale, Columbia 
Co., N. Y. , and they have two children: Celia 
M. and William Parrish. 



frENRY M. BARKER, who for the past 
five years has been the efficient superin- 
tendent on the place of Mr. Mills, of the town 
of Hyde Park, is a native of New Hampshire, 
born at Antrim, August 24, 1838, and is of 
Scotch-Irish lineage, but for -several genera- 
tions representatives of the family have made 
their home in New England. 

His paternal grandfather, Capt. Peter 
Barker, was born in Atkinson, N. H., and 
was the son of Zebediah Barker. He was a 
soldier in the Revolutionary war, being captain 
of the alarm list, and served for seven years in 
that terrible struggle. By occupation he was 
a farmer, and was one of the most successful 
and prominent men of the community in 
which he lived. He wedded Sallie Wood, of 
Atkinson, N. H., and to them were born the 
following children: Samuel, Hannah, Peter, 
Isaac, Thomas, Moody M. and Sallie. The 
family were all faithful members of the Pres- 
byterian Church, and the male representatives 
were ardent Democrats, \ery firm in their polit- 
ical convictions. The death of Capt. Peter 
Barker occurred on the 23d of May, 1829. 

Moody M. Barker, the father of our sub- 
ject, first opened his eyes to the light in New 
Hampshire, May 24, 1795, became a promi- 
nent farmer of that State, and would have 
been an honor to any community. He became 
captain of the State Militia, and served for 
about four months in the war of 1812. He 
was married to Miss Nancy Bixby, of Hills- 
boro, N. H., a daughter of John Bixby, and 
they became the parents of five children: 
John B., a paper maker, who became the 
foreman of a factory in Mexico, where he died 
in 1863; Emily, who became the wife of Sam- 
uel Brown; Adeline, who married Charles 
Woods; Miles, who is living at Nashua, N. H.; 
and Henry M., of this review. On March 24, 
1873, the father departed this life, and his 



loving wife only survived him two days. They 
were earnest Christian people, who had the 
respect of all who knew them. 

Mr. Barker, whose name introduces this 
record, attended both public and select schools 
during his youth, and as he is quite a reader, the 
knowledge thus acquired has been greatly sup- 
plemented, and he is now a well-informed man. 
On starting out in life for himself, for five years 
he was clerk in a dry-goods store at Manches- 
ter, N. H. ; but in 1864 he returned to the old 
home farm, to which he devoted his time and 
attention until 1878. In that year he came to 
Staatsburg, Dutchess county, as manager for 
Mrs. Major Lowndis on her farm, just above 
the one on which he is now located. At the 
end of a year, however, he became superin- 
tendent on the farm of Maturin Livingston, with 
whom he remained until the latter's death, and 
for the past five years has been on the same 
farm with Mr. Mills. It is needless to say that 
he gives general satisfaction, as his long-con- 
tinued service well indicates that fact. 

For the last two years Mr. Barker has taken 
quite an active part in local political affairs, 
adhering closely to the principles of the Repub- 
lican party, and at the election in the spring 
of 1894 was chosen supervisor of the town of 
Hyde Park. Since coming to the county he 
has always held a prominent and influential 
position, and stands remarkably high in the 
estimation of the community, as an honorable, 
upright and trustworthy man, In religious 
belief he is a Presbyterian, and socially is a 
member of the Knights of Pythias fraternity of 
Staatsburg. 

In November, 1 864, was celebrated the mar- 
riage of Mr. Barker and Miss Mary J. Colbourn, 
of New Boston, N. H., a daughter of Luther 
Colbourn, and three sons grace their union: 
Herbert L., a practicing physician of Wood- 
side, Long Island; Harry C, an attorney at 
law, of Poughkeepsie, N. Y. ; and Fred M., 
at home. 



r^ILLIAM J. CAREY, a well-known mer- 
Itlt chant at Pawling, Dutchess county, is 
one of the most enterprising and successful 
young business men of the town, having built 
up his trade from the start to its present hand- 
some proportions. 

His ancestors have had their home for 
many generations in Kings county, Ireland, 
and his grandfather, Andrew Carey, a farmer, 



624 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPUICAL RECORD. 



left there in 1858 to come to America, where 
he foilovved his occupation first in the town of 
Pawling, Dutchess county, and later at Clare- 
mont, N. H. His last years were spent in re- 
tirement at that place. He married, and had 
eight children: John, a resident of Manches- 
ter, England, who died in 1896; Mary, the wife 
of James Kating, of Claremont, N. H. ; Christo- 
pher, formerly a farmer, but now a resident of 
Danbury, Conn.; Joseph, deceased, who lived 
at Claremont, and has a son practicing law in 
Washington, D. C. ; Edward and Thomas, both 
residents of Claremont; Margaret, the wife of 
M. Fitzgerald; and Andrew, our subject's 
father. 

Andrew Carey was born in the Emerald 
Isle in 1844, and was about fourteen years old 
at the time of the emigration to this country. 
He is now one of the substantial citizens of the 
town of Dover, Dutchess county, owning a 
farm of 160 acres, gained by his industry and 
thrifty management. He is a member of the 
Catholic Church at Pawling, and in politics is 
a Democrat, and his sound common sense and 
public spirit have made him influential in local 
movements. Thoroughly patriotic in his de- 
votion to the best interests of his adopted 
country, he enlisted in 1863 in the 28th Con- 
necticut \". I., under Capt. Hoag, and served 
for one year, taking part in several important 
engagements. He now belongs to Campbell 
Post No. 661, G. A. R. , of Pawling. He married 
Miss Mary Ellen Donahue, daughter of William 
Donahue, of Pawling, N. Y. , and they have 
ten children, of whom our subject is the eldest. 
Mary Ellen married Daniel J. Driscoll, an en- 
gineer, of Boston, Mass. ; John Edward is head 
clerk in the store of his brother, William J.; 
Margaret is in Boston; and Elizabeth, Sarah, 
Andrew, Alice, Emma and Frank are at home. 

The subject of this sketch was born No- 
vember 20. 1865, in the town of Pawling, and 
was educated in the common schools near his 
home, attending only the winter terms after 
he reached the age of eleven. At sixteen he 
left school and began business life, but he has 
always taken a keen interest in reading, and is 
well informed upon the topics of the day. His 
first employment was in a pleating shop in 
Boston, in 1883, and after some time there he 
went to Brooklyn and secured work as a porter 
in a chop house for the winter season. In 
March, 1884, he took a position as driver for 
Dr. E. H. Hasbrook, and remained with him 
until November, 1886. The ne.xt two years 



were spent at home, working part of the time 
by the day upon the farm, and meanwhile 
farming some rented land. On December 5, 
1888, he opened a candy and cigar store at 
Pawling, at the corner now occupied by Olm- 
stead's store, and continued there in a small 
way until April 25, 1889. when he moved to 
his present place and added groceries to his 
stock, his business having so increased as to 
justify the investment. Since that time his 
trade has extended until it is regarded as 
among the largest in the town. 

Mr. Carey's matrimonial partner is Cath- 
erine Lehan, daughter of Daniel Lehan, a 
prominent resident of Pawling, and they have 
one daughter, Madeleine. Like his ancestors, 
he is a Catholic in religion, and he is an active 
worker in local affairs, supporting the Demo- 
cratic ticket, and serving the community as a 
member of the board of education and of the 
fire department. 



JAMES RUSSELL PAINE, the senior mem- 
ber of the well-known firm of J. R. Paine 
& Son, leading hardware merchants of Mil- 
lerton, was born June 20, 1S31, in the town 
of Northeast, upon the old Paine homestead, 
which has been in the possession of the family 
since the first settlement of the town of North- 
east. He is of English descent, the founder 
of the American line being Thomas Paine, who 
landed at Plymouth in 1621. 

Mr. Paine's descendants have held a distin- 
guished place in the early history of the coun- 
try, Robert Treat Paine, one of the signers of 
the Declaration of Independence, being among 
them. Thomas Paine had a son, Elisha, who 
settled at Canterbury. Conn., and his son 
Abram located in Amenia about 1741, and 
was the first to take steps toward organizing a 
Church there. Joshua Paine, also of Canter- 
bury, probably a son of Thomas, came to 
Dutchess county in 1749, and purchased land 
in the eastern part of the township, and Sec- 
tion 59 of the "Oblong," where he followed 
farming and blacksmithing. He was the father 
of Barnabus Paine, Sr., and of Judge Ephraim 
Paine, who was county judge in 1778, being 
the first to be appointed to that office in Dutch- 
ess county after the organization of the gov- 
ernment of the State of New York. Elihu 
Paine, our subject's great-grandfather, owned 
and cultivated the old farm in Northeast, as 
did his son, Jeremiah, who, as one of the 





^^2^t-^f'tJ^_^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



625 



most influential and prosperous men in the 
community, sustained the well-deserved repu- 
tation of the family. He was a justice of the 
peace for many years. He married Betsey 
Woodard, and had six children: Lorinda (Mrs. 
Eggleston); Piatt A., our subject's father; 
Sarah Ann (Mrs. Bailey Bowditch) ; Rachel 
(Mrs. Mortimer Worthey); Jeremiah W. ; and 
Mary (Mrs. Darius Penny). His death oc- 
curred about 1855, and that of his wife about 
1848. 

Piatt A. Paine was born June 19, 1806. 
He conducted the old homestead for a time in 
early manhood, but later bought the Roe farm 
of 244 acres, and lived there for nearly twenty 
years. He became interested in Western lands 
also, and made a number of successful deals. 
In politics he was a Republican, and an active 
one, holding various offices in that town, in- 
cluding those of supervisor and justice of the 
peace. He was highly esteemed in the neigh- 
borhood, and was a deacon in the Baptist 
Church, with which his family has been closely 
identified from very early times. He married 
Julietta Russell, daughter of Eli Russell, in 
his day a leading citizen of Northeast. Both 
lived to a good old age, and retired in 1859 to 
the village of Millerton to spend their declin- 
ing years. Mrs. Paine died there in 1876, her 
husband survivingher only three years. They 
had five children: James R. ; Judson P., now 
of Annawan, 111.; Theron J., of New York 
City; Martin W., living in Millerton; and Julia, 
who married George Houston, now of Penn- 
sylvania, but at that time the superintendent 
of Maltby's furnace in the town of Northeast. 

James R. Paine was educated mainly at a 
select school in his native town, of which E. 
W. Simmons was principal. He attended 
there until he was nineteen years old, and at- 
tained a good academic education. His vaca- 
tions were spent in farm work, and until his 
marriage, at the age of twenty-two, he re- 
mained at the old farm, assisting his father. 
In 1853 he bought a life lease of a farm in 
Northeast, where he lived for ten years, buy- 
ing in the meantime another farm. In 1863 
he sold both properties, and for three years 
was engaged with \Villiam Dayton in the hotel 
business at Millerton. Later he made several 
changes, moving to Canaan, Conn, (where he 
owned a farm for a time), to Great Bar- 
rington and to Sheffield, Mass., where he en- 
gaged in speculating in real estate and stock. 
After a successful year there he returned, in 

40 



1869, to his native county, and established 
himself in business in Millerton, buying out 
Mr. Merrifield's interest in the hardware store 
which he had been conducting in partnership 
with Darius Penny. The new firm continued 
the business for three years, when Mr. Paine 
purchased Mr. Penny's interest, continuing 
alone until January, 1 878, when his son became 
a partner. This is the oldest mercantile house 
in the town, and commands a large and profit- 
able trade. Mr. Paine's well-proved ability 
and judgment have made him a valued ad- 
viser in many business enterprises; he has 
been a director of the Amenia National Bank, 
and was one of the original directors of the 
Millerton National Bank, of which he has for a 
number of years past been the vice-president. 
Mr. Paine has been married four times, 
first to Miss Julia Eggleston, who died leaving 
one son — Piatt N. ; and second to Miss Julia 
Dayton, by whom he had two sons — William 
H., a resident of Roanoke, Va. ; and Lester, 
who conducts the homestead. His third wife, 
who was Miss Ann Friss, had one daughter, 
Florence, a successful music teacher at Keene, 
N. H. ; his present wife, formerly Miss Cynthia 
Tripp, has one son, James Russell Paine, Jr. 
The family are active and influential supporters 
of the Baptist Church, of which Mr. Paine has 
been a communicant since the age of twelve 
years, and for many years has been a deacon. 
In local affairs he has always been a leader, 
but, although he is an influential Republican, 
he has never cared to hold office. He served 
a term as town assessor, but has since declined 
to be a candidate for any position. 



PLATT N. PAINE was born December 25, 
1854, and received a good academic edu- 
cation in the schools of Millerton, Canaan, 
Great Barrington, and Amenia. On leaving 
Amenia Seminary at the age of nineteen, he 
engaged in clerking for his father; but in 1876 
he went to Port Royal, S. C, and became 
interested in gardening and draying, with the 
view of supplying the government fleets at 
Port Royal harbor. He sold out after eight 
months, however, and returned to Millerton to 
make his permanent home. On January i, 
1878, he formed a partnership with his father 
in the hardware business, and he has also been 
engaged in the building of houses for sale. 
Some of the finest cottages in the town have 
been erected by him, five being located in 



626 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Park Lot. He has already disposed of nine 
houses, and has made this branch of his work 
very profitable. Some years ago he under- 
took the work of surveying with W. E. Sim- 
mons, and is now engaged in that also. He 
takes an active part in public affairs 
and is among the leaders in the Re- 
publican organization in his town, serving 
as trustee for several terms, and as treasurer 
of the village to fill a vacancy; he has now 
also held for some time the offices of justice 
of the peace, sealer of weights and measures, 
and superintendent of the water works. He 
introduced the original motion for the con- 
struction of these works, and has been one of 
the chief promoters of various other measures 
for local improvement. He is a prominent 
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
of which he is a trustee. 



/I LLEN H. DUTCHER, a most genial 
^^ and companionable gentleman, has 
through a long and useful career been promi- 
nently identified with the interests of the town 
of Dover, Dutchess county. He is one of 
the representative and public-spirited citizens, 
always aiding in everything that will in any 
way benefit his town or county, and has the 
respect and esteem of all with whom he comes 
in contact. 

The Dutcher family is of Holland origin, 
and the first of its members to locate in the 
town of Dover, Dutchess county, was Christo- 
pher Dutcher, the great-grandfather of our 
subject. He erected the first tiourmill in this 
part of the county, and a portion of it is still 
standing. He conducted the same during his 
entire life, grinding much of the liour that was 
sold at Poughkeepsie and other places in the 
locality. As Dover Plains was then the ter- 
minus of the Harlem road, which was built 
before the New York Central, all the Pough- 
keepsie freight and passengers were brought 
to that village by stage, and it became quite 
a center of trade. The grandfather of our 
sul^ject, Lawrence Dutcher, was born in the 
town of Washington, Dutchess county, where 
his education was later acquired, and he be- 
came a farmer by occupation. He was twice 
married, by the first union having three chil- 
dren, and by his second wife, who bore the 
maiden name of Waldo, had eleven children. 

Belden Dutcher, the father of Allen H., 
was also born in the town of Washington, 



Dutchess county, in the year 1790, and after 
completing his education there engaged in ag- 
ricultural pursuits. During the old training 
days, he served as major of a troop of militia. 
An earnest and sincere Christian, he took a 
prominent part in religious work, giving the 
ground at Dover Plains, on which the Baptist 
Church was built and still stands. He also 
took a prominent part in the imbuildingof the 
village, erecting two good hotels, and he suc- 
ceeded in getting the first mechanics to locate 
there. He was united in marriage with Miss 
Maria Hurd. a daughter of Capt. Allen Hurd, 
and six children were born to them: Egbert, 
Allen H., Elizabeth, William, Thomas, and 
one that died in infancy. The mother was 
called from this life in July, 1862, and for his 
second wife, Mr. Dutcher wedded Mrs. Abbie 
Burrows. 

The birth of our subject occurred at Dover 
Plains, Dutchess county, in 18 19, and he ac- 
quired a practical education in the academy 
of that place. During early life he learned 
the trade of a wagon maker, at which he 
worked for about eight years, when he entered 
upon a mercantile career. He has held every 
office in his town with the exception of two, 
and it is needless to say that he ever discharged 
his duties with promptness and fidelity. For 
seventeen years he served as postmaster of 
Dover Plains, and for eight years was revenue 
collector. He is at present justice of the 
peace, and his decisions are marked by fairness 
and impartiality, being well calculated to 
serve the ends of jtistice. He is also engaged 
in the fire-insurance business. 

Mr. Dutcher married Miss Maria Preston, 
daughter of Clark Preston, of Dover Plains, 
Dutchess county, and to them was born a son: 
Ernest P., who married Isabella Gridley, of 
New York, by whom he has one child, Isa- 
bella E. In 1856 Mr. Dutcher lost his wife, 
and about four years later he wedded Miss 
Mary A. Bricker, daughter of William Bricker, 
of England. To them was born one child, 
that died in infancy. 

James Bricker, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Dutcher, was a native of Wotton-under-Edge, 
Gloucestershire, England — a most beautiful 
place, surrounded by mountains. In his fam- 
ily was William Bricker, who was born and 
educated at the same place. He there mar- 
ried Miss Hannah White, and in England were 
born to them three daughters: Mary A., wife 
of our subject; Caroline, who became the wife 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



627 



of William Beldin, son of Dr. Beldin, of Dover 
Plains; and Emily. In January, 1842, the 
father came to the United States, locating at 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county. When he had 
been here a year and nine months, he sent for 
his family, which arrived in 1844, and ever 
afterward made their home in this county. 
After the death of his first wife in 1850, he was 
again married, and his death occurred in Fond 
du Lac, Wis., in 1882. Although an English- 
man by birth, he became a thorough American 
citizen, and always stood by his adopted home. 
In his native land he had engaged in the manu- 
facture of broadcloth, but in this country gave 
his entire attention to agricultural pursuits. 



CHARLES A. SIMMONS, who occupies an 
intiuential and prominent position among 
the citizens of Stanford town, Dutchess coun- 
ty, resides near Bangall, where he is engaged 
in the breeding of Jersey cattle and raising 
fancy poultry. When a young man he learned 
the profession of an architect, contractor and 
builder, which he followed at Pine Plains, 
Dutchess county, for four years, and then re- 
moved to his present home, where h£ still en- 
gages in that business to some extent. 

Mr. Simmons was born at Pine Plains, De- 
cember 24, i860, and is the only child of 
Norman and Emeline (Eldridge) Simmons 
His father was a native of Copake, Columbia 
Co., N. Y., and the youngest of a family of 
three sons and two daughters born to John B. 
a"nd Catherine (Hover) Simmons, who for 
many years resided in Pine Plains town, Dutch- 
ess county. After his marriage, the father of 
our subject made his home in the village of 
Pine Plains, where he was one of the leading 
contractors and builders, and his wife, who 
is a milliner and dressmaker, has there carried 
on that business ever since. He learned his 
trade at Philmont, Columbia county, where he 
served a seven-years' apprenticeship, and was 
entirely a self-made man. In politics he was 
an ardent Republican, and held the office of 
overseer of the poor. He died in 1881, at the 
age of forty-nine years, in the faith of the 
Baptist Church, of which he was a consistent 
member. 

Charles A. Simmons spent his early days 
in the village of Pine Plains, where he attended 
the public schools, and completed his literary 
education in the Seymour Smith Institute, of 
that place, after which he began his business 



career. In the city of Albany, N. Y., he was 
married, August 12. 1892, to Miss Eva Wilber, 
daughter of Zachariah Wilber, of the town of 
Milan, Dutchess county. Both are highly re- 
spected in their community and foremost in all 
good work. Mr. Simmons uses his right of 
franchise in support of the men and measures 
of the Republican party, and is a member of 
the Baptist Church at Bangall. 



JAMES R. BARLOW, one of the leading 
citizens of Wappingers Falls, Dutchess 

county, was born in that village, June 4, 
1836, and is a son of John and Elizabeth Bar- 
low, the former of whom was born near Burn- 
ley, Lancashire, England, and for many years 
followed the sea. In 1827 he came to Amer- 
ica, and located in New York City, where, for 
some time, he followed the trade of a dyer. 
He married Miss Elizabeth Holt, of Rockland 
county, N. Y. , a daughter of Thomas Holt, an 
Englishman, who was one of the first to intro- 
duce calico machine printing into this country. 

After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. John 
Barlow settled at Wappingers Falls, where 
three children were born to them: Patience, 
who died aged twelve years; James R., the sub- 
ject of this sketch; and Sarah J., who married 
George Stevenson, a merchant of Wappingers 
Falls. About 1S54 John Barlow became in- 
terested in the manufacture of combs, an in- 
dustry he carried on until 1858, when he em- 
barked in the bakery business, which he fol- 
lowed during the succeeding ten years. He 
then went into partnership with George Stev- 
enson, in the hardware business, in which he 
was engaged until his death in September. 
1892. His wife passed away in Februar}-. 1885. 
Mr. Barlow was a Republican in politics, and 
both he and his wife were members of the 
Episcopal Church. 

James R. Barlow, our subject, spent his 
boyhood days at Wappingers Falls, and in 
1852. then a lad of si.xteen. was apprenticed 
to learn calico engraving to calico printing, at 
which he worked for nine years. In 1861 he 
went to New York City, and engaged in the 
commission business some eighteen months, 
then proceeding to Chicago, was there em- 
ployed as clerk in the Stock Y^ards for a short 
time. His next occupation was that of fore- 
man in a cracker factory at Sparta. Wis. 
After a short tour through the Western States. 
Mr. Barlow returned to Wappingers Falls, 



628 



COilMEMORATlVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



where, on July 5, 1S64, he opened a grocery 
store; which he carried on until 1S69, at that 
time going into partnership with Mr. Sweet, 
the firm becoming Sweet iS: Barlow. In 1880 
Mr. Barlow went to Newburg, N. Y., and 
started the Sweet, Orr & Co.'s overall factory, 
of which he took charge until 1882, when he 
returned to Wappingers Falls, and settled up 
the business of his own firm, which was then 
discontinued. In the year last mentioned he 
became one of the partners in the Eagan over- 
ail factory, remaining with the firm until 1884, 
when he withdrew, and the following year he 
sold goods for Sweet, Orr & Co., on the road. 
In iSSghe became proprietor of the dry-goods 
store which he is at present carrying on. He 
is a good business man and commands a large 
trade, his acquaintance throughout the sur- 
rounding country being extensive, and his many 
sterling qualities making him numerous warm 
friends. 

Mr. Barlow was married, in September, 
1862, to Miss Mary A. Hayes, a native of 
Wappingers Falls, and a daughter of John and 
Elizabeth Hayes, who were of English de- 
scent. Two children came to this union: 
Fred, born in 1867, died in 1872; and May, 
born in 1875. The wife and mother died De- 
cember 29, 1886. Our subject cast his first 
Presidential vote for Abraham Lincoln, in 
i860, and he has ever since been a stanch 
Republican. He served two terms as trustee 
of \\'appingers Falls, and March 3, 1896, was 
elected supervisor, an office not sought by 
him, but for which he received a majority of 
240 votes, the largest ever given a candidate 
in that town, and which testifies to his popu- 
larity with his fellow-citizens. 

Mr. Barlow is a member of the Episcopal 
Church, and is clerk of the vestry; for three 
years he was secretary of the Cemetery Asso- 
ciation. He belongs to the Masonic Order, 
being a member of the Royal Arch at Pough- 
keepsie. In all the relations of life he bears 
the reputation of an honorable, upright man. 
and is highly esteemed wherever known. 



JACOB H. FEROE. The records of the 
lives of our forefathers are of interest to 
the modern citizen, not alone for their his- 
toric value but also for the inspiration and e.\- 
ample they afford; jet we need not look to 
the past. Although surroundings may differ, 
the essential conditions of human life are ever 



the same, and a man can learn from the suc- 
cess of those around him, if he will heed the 
obvious lessons contained in iheir history. 
Turn to the life record of Mr. Feroe, study 
carefully the plans and methods he has fol- 
lowed in bringing about his wonderful success 
in business affairs. He is a man of keen per- 
ception, of great sagacity and unbounded en- 
terprises, who is now at the head of exten- 
sive business interests at Tivoli. 

He was born October 15, 1S41, at Tivoli, 
then known as Myersville. His father. John 
K. Feroe, was born in the northern part of 
Red Hook town, and is the son of Henry Fe- 
roe, who was of French descent. John K. 
Feroe was married to Miss Anna Coon, who 
was born in Clearmont town, Columbia Co., 
N. Y. , in 1820. She is the daughter of Jacob 
Coon, also a native of Columbia county, and 
of Holland extraction. Upon their marriage 
the couple located at Tivoli, where the father 
has followed his trade of carpentering since 
that time; they are faithful and devout mem- 
bers of the Methodist Church. Four children 
were born to them: Sarah, wife of David 
Affleck, station agent at Tivoli; Jacob H., 
subject of this review; Frances, who married 
Rensselaer Potts, a bookkeeper; and Libbie. 
wife of James Greene, station agent at Sau- 
gerties. 

Mr. Feroe, whose name introduces this 
sketch, spent his boyhood days at Tivoli, at- 
tending the district schools and also a private 
school, but when only fifteen years of age he 
began teaching near the village. He later 
taught school for two' years and a half at 
Unionville, in the town of Saugerties, Ulster 
Co., N. Y., after which he clerked and kept 
; books for Gilbert A. Melham for nearly a year 
' and a half, and then conducted a school at 
Nevis, Columbia county, for two years. For 
the same length of time he had a select school 
at Tivoli, and met with great success as a 
teacher. For a time Mr. Feroe carried on 
fruit farming, his principal product being straw- 
berries, of which he raised as high as 500 
bushels per season, at the same time teaching 
at Tivoli. After having charge of a school at 
Glasco, Ulster county, for four years and a half, 
he taught the public school at Tivoli for five 
years, during the last two years of which he 
also engaged in the coal and lumber business 
on the Tivoli dock, and has since carried on 
the latter occupation. He has built up an ex- 
tensive trade along that line, does a general 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



629 



freighting^ business, conducts a grist and cider 
mill, and has large real-estate interests, renting 
about forty houses. 

In September, 1871, Mr. Feroe was mar- 
ried to Miss Evelin Cooper. Her father, 
Ozias Cooper, was a native of Dutchess 
county, a miller by occupation, and the uncle 
of Charles Davis, of Saugerties, Ulster county. 
A family of four children have been born to 
our subject and his wife: Harry Cooper, who 
married Harriet Laflin, and is now a book- 
keeper for his father; Thomas J., also a book- 
keeper for his father; Millie and Florence. 

In manner Mr. Feroe is social and genial. 
He is the center of a circle of friends, who 
honor and esteem him for many manly virtues 
and genuine worth. His prosperity cannot be 
attributed to a combination of lucky circum- 
stances, but has risen from energy, enterprise, 
integrity and intellectual effort, well directed. 
He is a worthy representative of that type of 
American character, that progressive spirit, 
which promotes public good in advancing in- 
dividual prosperity. 



CHARLES E. SMITH, a skillful black- 
smith of Amenia, Dutchess county, was 
born in that village, June 20, 1854, and comes 
of a family that have long been residents of 
the county. Stephen Smith, his grandfather, 
was born in Pawling, and throughout most of 
his life was engaged in blacksmithing at South 
Dover. He married Hannah Skelton, by 
whom he had the following children: William 
and Edward (deceased; ; George \V. ; Sarah 
(deceased); Emeline; Abbie J. (deceased); 
Amanda; Asa; and Mary (deceased). 

George \V. Smith, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born in Dover, January 14, 1824, 
and in the town of Dover he passed his boy- 
hood and youth, acquiring his education in 
the schools near his home. With his father 
he learned the blacksmith's trade, and about 
1847 came to Amenia, where he worked in the 
shop of Clark Fish. Subsequently he began 
business for himself down by the mill pond at 
Amenia, later removing to a shop nearly op- 
posite the B. H. Fry foundry, afterward con- 
ducting business near the present residence of 
Dr. Rockwell, and on leaving that location he 
engaged in farming and blacksmithing at 
Sharon, Conn. On his return to Amenia, he 
opened the shop now carried on by our sub- 
ject. He was initiated into the mysteries of 



the Masonic Order in Montgomery Lodge 
No. 14, F. & A. M., at Lyme Rock, Conn., 
and later became a charter member of Hamil- 
ton Lodge No. 54, at Sharon, Conn. In re- 
ligious belief he is a Methodist, and was serv- 
ing as trustee of the Church at Amenia when 
it was disbanded. He cast his first vote in 
support of the Whig party, is now an earnest 
Republican, and in 1893 was collector of taxes 
in Amenia. He is an upright, honorable man, 
devoted to the best interests of his native 
county, and has a host of warm personal 
friends throughout the community, where he 
has so long made his home. 

On November 25, 1850. in the town of 
Dover, Mr. Smith was married to Miss Mary 
Ann Van Tassell, daughter of John P. Van- 
Tassell, and by their union were born eight 
children: William H., who was born Novem- 
ber 26, 1852, and is now a painter and decor- 
ator of Torrington, Conn.; Charles E.. sub- 
ject of this sketch; Hattie, wife of Walter S. 
Harrison, of Patterson, N. Y. ; George W., a 
painter and decorator, of Amenia; Myra E. ; 
Frederick J., a tinsmith, of Brewster, N. Y. ; 
Frank (deceased); and Helen A., wife of 
Frederick Adams, of Torrington, Conn. The 
wife and mother departed this life in Septem- 
ber, 1890. 

The boyhood days of Charles E. Smith 
were passed in Amenia, N. Y., and Sharon, 
Conn., and in the latter place he secured his 
education. Learning the blacksmith trade 
with his father, he has since followed that 
business, having entire charge since May 24, 
1886. He is now at the head of a large and 
constantly increasing business, doing all kinds 
of blacksmithing and wagon repairing. In 
politics he is a straight Republican, and so- 
cially, is connected with the Masonic Order, 
being a member of Amenia Lodge No. 672, 
F. & A. M. , and the Eastern Star at Sharon, 
Connecticut. 

At Oxford, Conn., October 10, 1878, Mr. 
Smith was married to Miss Rosella Russell, 
daughter of Theodore D. Russell, and they 
have two sons: Clarence Russell and Howard 
Alfred. 



ARTHUR S. PEACOCK is one of the 
__ _ prominent citizens and enterprisingyoung 
business men of Wappingers Falls, Dutchess 
county, where he is successfully engaged in 
the drug business. He is a native of New 



G30 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



York, born at Haverstraw, Rockland county, 
March 24, i860, a son of William M. Peacock, 
whose birth occurred in Birmingham, England. 
His paternal grandfather, who also bore the 
name of William, was a native of England, 
where he was married, and reared a family of 
four children, of whom the father of our sub- 
ject was the eldest. The others are: Thomas, 
a carpenter and millwright of F"ishkill Landing, 
Dutchess county; George, a fish and oyster 
dealer of New York City; and Elizabeth, wife 
of Robert Wainright, of Philadelphia, Pennsyl- 
sylvania. 

When a young man William M. Peacock, 
father of our subject, emigrated to America, 
and at Bloomfield, N. J., learned the machine- 
printing business. His marriage with Miss 
Minerva Young was celebrated at Columbia- 
ville, Columbia Co. , N. Y. ; she was born in 
Columbia county, N. Y. , where her father was 
engaged in agricultural pursuits. In their fam- 
ily are two children, who grew to adult age, 
namely: Elmira, wife of John L. Shrader, who 
conducted the drug store in Wappingers Falls, 
which our subject now owns; and Arthur S. 
The father still works at his trade in Wap- 
pingers Falls, where he was employed by the 
Dutchess Company Print Works for nearly 
half a century. In his political views he coin- 
cides with the platforms formulated by the 
Republican party, and religiously he and his 
family are Episcopalians. 

Our subject was only four years old when 
brought by his parents to Wappingers Falls, 
where he grew to manhood, receiving his early 
education in the Hughsonville district school, 
and later attended the public schools of Wap- 
pingers Falls, where his literary education was 
completed. For some time he was a clerk in 
the law office of Mr. J. W. Bartram, and for 
a year and a half was employed in the Dutch- 
ess Company Print Works, after which he was 
a clerk in his brother-in-law's drug store for 
about three years. Going to New York City, 
he held a similar position in the drug store of 
\\'illiam Mettenheimer, at the corner of Forty- 
fifth street and Si.xth avenue, being there em- 
ployed during the day, until ten and eleven 
o'clock at night, exxept on college nights, 
when he would attend lectures, and after go- 
ing to his room at night would study phar- 
macy. He then attended the New York Col- 
lege of Pharmacy, and during his vacations 
clerked for F. C. Corner, of Poughkeepsie, N. 
Y. Returning to New York City, he clerked 



in a drug store while attending college during 
the senior year, but at the end of three months 
gave up his position in order to devote his en- 
tire time to his studies, and graduated with 
the class of 18S5. In January, 1885, previous 
to his graduation, Mr. Peacock had purchased 
his present drug business, and since leaving 
college has built up an excellent trade, which 
is certainly well deserved. His store is one of 
the best of the kind in the county, carrying 
only first-class goods, and he attends strictly 
to the wants of his customers. 

On October 14, 1886, Mr. Peacock mar- 
ried Miss Eliza Clinton, of Catskill, N. Y., a 
daughter of Joseph Clinton. Politically, he is 
a Republican, a stanch adherent of the princi- 
ples of the party, and for the last two years 
has served as collector of the town of Wap- 
pinger. He was also nominated as president 
of the village in the spring of 1896, but with- 
drew his name. He is very popular with his 
fellow citizens, and always lends his support 
to promote the best interests of the commu- 
nity where he makes his home. Socially, he is 
identified with the Masonic Order and the In- 
dependent Order of Odd Fellows. He is also 
an enthusiastic yachtsman, owning the yacht 
" Orient," which is a very fast one, and, taking 
part in almost all the regattas held in this 
section, he spends the most of his time on the 
water, as a benefit to his health, as well as a 
means of pleasure. 



ROBERT JACKSON HUNGERFORD is 
a prominent young business man of Was- 

saic, Dutchess county. Having a large amount 
of industry, perseverance and energy, he has 
made a noble record as a successful merchant, 
and is one of the reliable citizens of the 
county. His birth occurred at New Milford, 
Conn., November 7, 1866. 

Edwin Hungerford, his grandfather, was a 
native of Sherman, Conn., and there devoted 
his entire life to agricultural pursuits. He 
was an earnest Christian gentleman, and 
served as deacon in the Congregational Church. 
By his marriage with Susan Giddings he had 
five children: George, of Sherman, Conn.; 
Martin Luther, father of our subject; Phebe 
(deceased); Annie; and Linus, of Mabbetts- 
ville, Dutchess Co., N. Y. Martin Luther 
Hungerford was born at Sherman, Conn., 
January 16, 1841, there spent his boyhood and 
acquired his education in the district schools. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



mi 



On starting out in life he began freighting 
from South Dover, Dutchess county, and Pat- 
terson, Putnam county, to New York City, in 
which business he was engaged for five years. 
He then turned his attention to the tobacco 
trade, raising and selling at wholesale at Gay- 
lordsville, in the town of New Milford, Litch- 
field Co., Conn., but is now living retired, 
looking after his real-estate interests. He is 
an earnest member of the Congregational 
Church, and a stalwart Republican in politics. 
At Sharon, Conn., he was joined in wedlock 
with Miss Julia, daughter of Edwin Jackson, 
and to them were born four children: Robert 
Jackson; John Edwin and Arthur, of New Mil- 
ford, Conn., and Genevieve. 

In the place of his nativity our subject was 
reared, obtaining his education in the district 
schools and in a select school at Cornwall 
Plains, Conn. On laying aside his te.xt-books 
he began the cigar business, buying and sell- 
ing at retail, later selling cigars on the road 
for two years, and for one year was on the 
road selling fruits and vegetables. In March, 
1 89 1, he began general merchandising at Was- 
saic, which business he has since successfully 
followed, and in the spring of 1894 he erected 
his present store building. At Brooktield, 
Conn., June 8, 1887, Mr. Hungerford was mar- 
ried to Miss Jennie Simmons Peck, daughter 
of Clark S. Peck, and they have three inter- 
esting children: Martin Luther, Jessie Irene 
and Robert Jerrold. Socially, Mr. Hunger- 
ford is connected with Amenia Lodge No. 672, 
F. & A. M. , and of the Royal Arcanum at Was- 
saic; politically, he supports the men and 
measures of the Republican party. 



EBENEZER J. PRESTON, who is success- 
I fully engaged in the tobacco business at 

Amenia, Dutchess county, was born March 24, 
1855, in the town of Dover, that county, where 
his branch of the family was founded at a very 
early day by Ebenezer Preston, who was 
probably from Rhode Island, and came to the 
county with his brother Martin. The ne.xt in 
direct line also bore the name of Ebenezer, 
and was born in the town of Dover. His son, 
Abijah Preston, was the grandfather of our 
subject. The latter took quite an active in- 
terest in political affairs, served as captain of 
the militia, and as a life work followed farm- 
ing in the town of Dover. He married Eliza- 
beth Ross, and to them were born four chil- 



dren: John R. , who became a butcher of 
New York City; Mary; Phcebe E. ; and Ebene- 
zer A. 

Ebenezer A. Preston was born in the town 
of Dover, September 20, 1818, there acquired 
his primary education in the district schools, 
and later attended the Amenia Seminary. 
When a young man he was for a time in the 
cattle business with his brother in Texas, and 
engaged in driving cattle from the West to 
the East. Returning to Dutchess county, he 
carried on the marble business at South Dover, 
and also followed farming, being a large land 
owner in this county. Socially, he was a mem- 
ber of Dover Lodge, F. & A. M., while his 
political support was ever given the Democ- 
racy, and in 1848 he served as supervisor of 
the town of Dover. He wedded Miss Marie 
Elizabeth Jewett, daughter of John Jewett, a 
prominent surveyor of the town of Dover, and 
they became the parents of five children, 
namely: Mary Ellen, wife of A. F. Bates, of 
Ontario, Cal. ; Cornelia Alice, wife of George 
B. Upham, an attorney-at-law, of Boston, 
Mass. ; Ida, wife of E. L. Nichols, professor of 
physics in Cornell University, of Ithaca, N. 
Y. ; Ebenezer Jewett, of this sketch; and Au- 
gusta, wife of Stephen C. Bedell, of New York 
City. The mother departed this life May i, 
1887, and the father's death occurred Decem- 
ber 20, 1 89 1. 

At the old homestead in the town of Dover 
our subject spent his early days, and was pre- 
pared for college by private teachers. He 
then entered Cornell University, taking a 
scientific course, and was graduated in 1875. 
He is a member of the Delta Upsilon fraterni- 
ty. Returning to Dover, he remained with his 
father until 1882, when he took a trip to 
Europe, visiting many points of interest. Sub- 
sequently, in connection with J. A. Thompson, 
he represented P. L. Van Wagonen's interest 
in the tobacco . business at Poughkeepsie. 
Since that time he has engaged in the tobacco 
trade at Amenia, buying from the farmers and 
packing the leaf. He is one of the most wide- 
awake and energetic business men of Dutchess 
county, and his success was assured from the 
start. 

At his present residence in Amenia, Sep- 
tember 19, 18S5, Mr. Preston was married to 
Miss Carrie A. Kirby, who died January 17, 
1892, and to them were born three children: 
Mary Reynolds; Elizabeth Jewett, and Eben- 
ezer Kirby. Mrs. Preston also belonged to a 



632 



COMME.VORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



family that has been long identified with the 
interests of Dutchess county. George Kirby, 
her great-grandfather, was a native of Rhode 
Island, but became an early settler of Pawling, 
where he followed blacksmithing, and was a 
large land owner in that section of the county. 
His son, Uriah Kirby, was born in the town 
of Pawling, and throughout most of his life 
carried on agricultural pursuits in the western 
part of the town of Amenia, where he died in 
1855. at the age of si.\ty-one years. By his 
marriage with Phebe Gerow, he had five chil- 
dren: William, deceased; George, the father 
of Mrs. Preston; Solomon; John; and Amelia, 
deceased. 

George Kirby is also a native of the town 
of Pawling, born in January, 1830, but was 
reared in the town of Amenia. He wedded 
Miss Mary E. Reynolds, who died October 15, 
1874, and they became the parents of two 
children: Carrie A., who was born July 31, 
1857, and became the wife of our subject; and 
Frank R., who was born November 9. 1858, 
and died .\ugust 20, 1861. After his marriage, 
Mr. Kirby purchased a farm at South Ameni , 
where he resided for about three years, and 
then reinoved to the present residence of Mr. 
Preston. B}' occupation he is a farmer, po- 
litically is an ardent I-iepublican, and is one of 
the prominent, representative citizens of the 
community. 

In connection with his local business. Mr. 
Preston has also traveled through the West, 
selling tobacco to jobbers and wholesale deal- 
ers. At Altoona, Penn. , he was again married. 
Miss Minnie Helen McKean becoming his wife. 
Both as a business man and true citizen he is 
held in high esteem, and in 1885, on the Union 
ticket, was elected supervisor of the town of 
Dover. Socially, he is prominently identified 
with Triune Lodge, F. & A. M., of Pough- 
keepsie. He was elected first master of the 
Pomona Grange of Dutchess county, organized 
in March, 1897. 



EDWARD S. HICKS, of Pleasant Valley, 
Dutchess county, has accomplished satis- 
factory work as a farmer, and acquired a com- 
fortable competence so as to enable him to live 
retired from acti\e business life, and he is now 
making his home at the "Pleasant Valley 
Hotel " in that village. 

The Hicks family, of which our subject is 
a member, was founded in Dutchess countv, 



by Joseph Hicks, who was born on Long 
Island, and after his marriage with Miss Fil- 
kins became a resident of the town of Clinton, 
Dutchess county. From there he and his wife 
removed to Bloomingdale, Pleasant Valley 
town, and located upon a farm in the eastern 
part of the town, where his death occurred. 
He obtained a grant of title from Queen Anne. 
Twice married, he became the father of a large 
family of children, among whom was Samuel 
Hicks (the grandfather of our subject), who 
was born in the town of Pleasant \'alley. He 
was reared to agriculture, which was mainly 
his life work; in early life he also followed 
shoemaking to some extent. He wedded 
Margaret Doty, a native of Dutchess county, 
and they became the parents of three children: 
Benjamin, who carried on farming in the town 
of \\'ashington, Dutchess county, where his 
death occurred; Mary, who became the wife 
of Samuel Halstead, a farmer of Clinton town; 
and Samuel S., the father of our subject. The 
parents of both these died in Pleasant Valley 
town, the father in 1845. the mother in 1827. 
They were Hicksite Quakers. 

Upon a farm in the town of Pleasant Val- 
ley, Samuel S. Hicks was born and reared. 
As he was a cripple and thereby unable to per- 
form much labor on the farm, he was given 
good educational privileges, and later became a 
teacher in Pcughkeepsie Academy. On Sep- 
tember 4, 18 16, he was united in marriage with 
Mary Peters, a native of the town of Pleasant 
Valley, where her father, Hewlett Peters, was 
also born, and spent his entire life in agricult- 
ural pursuits. The Peters family was of 
French origin, and on crossing the Atlantic its 
members first located on Long Island. After 
their marriage the parents of our subject set- 
tled upon the old farm, where they reared 
their family of eleven children, as follows: 
Margaret, born June 23, 1S17, married Thomas 
Smith, a farmer of the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county; Hewlett P., born April 5, 
1 8 19, wedded Sarah Smith, and is now living 
retired in the town of Clinton. Edward S. is 
the subject of this sketch; Elias, born Febru- 
ary 20, 1825, is a merchant in Rochester, 
N. Y., married to Miss Elizabeth Howland; 
Burtis, born April 3, 1827, married Mary J. 
Wiley, and is engaged in agricultural pursuits 
in Clinton town; Hannah, born May 8. 1829, 
became the wife of Asa U. Smith, who at one 
time was a farmer of Dutchess county, but 
died in the West; and Mary, born June 9, 1831, 





^ 








COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



633 



was the wife of Solomon Merritt, a carpenter 
of Rochester, N. Y. , and died in 1862. The 
mother of these was called to her final rest 
June 28, 1831; the father died March 31, 
1869. In religious belief they were Hicksite 
Quakers, and in politics he was an earnest 
Whig. 

Upon the old homestead farm in Pleasant 
Valley town, Edward S. Hicks, our subject, 
was born March 26, 1823, and was reared to 
rural life, receiving the usual education of the 
district school, after which he taught in the 
neighborhood for one term. On September 
25, 1844, he married Emily Wilber, a native 
of the town of Hyde Park, and a daughter of 
Sylvanus Wilber, who was born in Rhode 
Island, and devoted his entire life to farming. 
Two children blessed their union: Sylvanus 
W. , a farmer of Pleasant Valley, born De- 
cember 7, 1845, married Dorcas M. Wood, of 
Hyde Park, September 5, 1866; and Barnard 
B., a traveling salesman, born October 4, 1847, 
married Hannah A. Doty, of Pleasant Valley, 
June 13, 1866. Dr. Edward E. Hicks, of 
Brooklyn, son of Barnard B., born November 

18, 1870, married Lizzie Porteous, of Pough- 
keepsie City, June i, 1S93. The mother of 
these died February 4, 1862, and November 

19, 1862, Mr. Hicks married his present wife, 
Jennie M. Lattin, who was born in Pleasant 
Valley town, where the birth of her father, 
John W. Lattin, also occurred (in October, 
1810). Her mother bore the maiden name of 
Hannah E. \\'ilber, and was the sister of our 
subject's first wife. Four daughters were born 
to Mr. and Mrs. Lattin, namely: Sarah C, 
who died unmarried; Ellen W., wife of John 
L. Marshall, a farmer of Pleasant Valley town; 
Emily C. (the twin sister of Mrs. Hicks), who 
first wedded George B. Dale, a farmer, and 
after his death became the wife of George Van- 
Vliet, a miller at Salt Point, Dutchess county, 
who is now also deceased; and Jennie M., the 
wife of our subject. The Lattin family was 
founded in this country on Long Island, but 
Nathaniel Lattin, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Hicks, early became a leading farmer of the 
town of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county. 

After his first marriage Mr. Hicks located 
upon a farm in the town of Clinton, where he 
spent two years, the following year being 
passed on the old home in Pleasant \'alley; he 
then removed to a farm in the same town, 
which he occupied some four years. For 
eighteen vears he next cultivated a farm in 



the western part of the town, and the follow- 
ing year he was a resident of Poughkeepsie. 
At the end of that time he returned to the 
town of Pleasant Valley, where he purchased 
a farm, on which he made his home until 
1889, when he sold out, and has since lived at 
the '• Pleasant Valley Hotel." 

Politically, Mr. Hicks affiliates with the 
Democratic party, in whose principles he 
claims he finds the best guarantees for the 
preservation of the government. Both him- 
self and wife are members of the Presbyterian 
Church, of which for the past si.xteen years he 
has been deacon, and for twenty-five years as- 
sistant superintendent of the Sunday-school. 
After long lives of toil, surrounded by the love, 
respect and esteem of a large circle of friends 
and acquaintances, Mr. and Mrs. Hicks are 
resting from their labors, and quietly and 
pleasantly passing their time. 



WELDON F. WESTON, one of the 
leading citizens of Fishkill-on-Hudson, 

Dutchess county, and the proprietor of Wes- 
ton's Express and Transportation line running 
between Fishkill, Nevvburg, and neighboring 
points, is a native of Litchfield, N. H., and a 
member of a family which has long held a 
prominent place in political, business and 
social life. Jonathan Weston, his great-grand- 
father, served with honor in the Revolutionary 
war, enlisting from Reading, Mass., three 
different times. 

Amos Weston, grandfather of our subject, 
was born in Reading, Mass., April 21, 1767, 
and was married June i, 1790, to Polly Flint, 
who was born November 8, 1767. Amos died 
at Manchester, N. H., April 4, 1843, his wife 
on December 4, 1858. They had nine chil- 
dren, whose names with dates of birth and 
death are as follows: Amos (2), March 18, 
1781, died June i, 1859; Betsey, October 17, 
1793, died August 27, 1878; Mary, December 
29. 1795. died August 13, 1838; Nathaniel F., 
September 5, 1798, died December 29, 1799; 
Sally, October 26, 1800, died May 12, 1881; 
Harriet, January 23, 1803, died April 2, 1892; 
Elbridge, July 23, 1805, died March 7, 1863; 
Achsah, August 26, 1807, died March 17, 1849; 
and Harrison, December 17, 1811. died June 
19, 1883. Amos (2) was the father of Hon. 
James A. Weston, who was elected Governor 
of New Hampshire in 1871 and 1874. The 
esteem in'which he was held throughout the 



634 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



State is attested by his election on the Dem- 
ocratic ticket, he being the only member of 
his party chosen to that office in New Hamp- 
shire in nearly half a century. He was mayor 
of Manchester, N. H., serving four terms, and 
when he died. May 18, 1895, was president of 
the New Hampshire Fire Insurance Company, 
the Manchester National Bank, and was con- 
nected with several other institutions in that 
city. Elbridge J. Weston was the father of 
Sarah, who married Hon. George S. Merrill, 
of Boston, for many years past the Insurance 
Commissioner of the State of Massachusetts. 
He is prominent in Grand .Army circles, hav- 
ing been commander in chief of the National 
body. 

Harrison Weston, our subject's father, was 
born in Manchester, N. H., and lived there 
forty-two years, removing thence to Litchfield, 
N. H., December 19, 1853. He was a farmer 
during the greater part of his life, but in early 
years was lock-tender and collector of tolls on 
the Merrimac river at Crummell's Fall and 
Moores Fall. In those days transportation 
was done mainly by waterways, railroads being 
unknown. He was a man of modest preten- 
sion, possessed of sterling integrity, and was 
respected and honored by all who knew him. 
During a brief stay in Fishkill in his later 
years he made many friends, who hold him in 
affectionate remembrance. In politics he was 
a Democrat, always taking a lively interest in 
public affairs, and his townsmen honored him 
with nearly every office in their gift. He died 
in Laconia, N. H., and was buried beside his 
wife, Betsey J. I'Richardson), at the old home in 
Litchfield, in the cemetery which owed its 
e.xistence mainly to his enterprise and fore- 
sight, and which had been improved under his 
sole supervision. Of the five children of this 
estimable couple all are living. Their names, 
with dates of birth, are as follows: Mary J., 
September 3, 184S; Wilbur Harrison, Febru- 
ary II, 1851; Warren J., June 28, 1853; Wel- 
don F., April 14, 1S56; and Ellura H., June 
12, 1859. 

Wilbur H. Weston (popularly known as 
" Maj. Weston " ) resides in Newburg, and has 
been engaged in the railroad industries in 
Dutchess and Orange counties throughout his 
business life. In recent years he has given 
special attention to the construction of electric 
street railways in Fishkill and Newburg, and 
is also connected more or less intimately with 
many other important business ventures of his 



city. He is prominent in fraternal and social 
circles, and has been active in political matters 
for several years, having many friends through- 
out the State. William H. Moore, for twenty 
years general passenger agent and auditor of 
the N. D. & C. R. R., is a half-brother. At 
the early age of eighteen years he enlisted as 
a private in Company K, ist Massachusetts 
Heavy Artillery; was made quartermaster's 
clerk, and served three years; then re-enlisted 
for other three years, but was discharged Janu- 
ary 7, 1865, by reason of wounds received in 
an engagement near Strawberry Plains, Va., 
.August 15, 1S64. 

^^■eldon F. Weston received instruction at 
the public schools of his native place during 
boyhood, and later attended Pinkerton Acad- 
emy, at Derry, N. H., finishing his education 
at the New Hampshire Conference Seminary 
and Female College, at Tilton, N. H. After 
a brief experience as a teacher, he, at the age 
of twenty, came to Newburg, as shipping clerk 
for the Erie railroad, at the Homer Ramsdell 
Transportation Company's line of barges. 
After two years there, he returned to New 
Hampshire and engaged in mercantile business 
for three years; but in 1879 he came back to 
his former position at Newburg, for another 
season. The next six years he spent at Mat- 
teawan as station agent for the N. D. & C. R. 
R., and in 1S88 he and his brother, W. H. 
Weston, purchased the Matteawan & Fishkill 
Landing Stage Line, and were engaged in the 
express and trucking business in connection 
with the stage line, until 1892, when the 
electric railroad superseded the stage route; he 
then purchased his brother's interest in the 
business. He is still extensively interested in 
transportation business with adjoining towns, 
and is a director of the Citizens Street railroad 
and the Fishkill Street railroad. He has a 
pleasant home at No. 42 High street, Fishkill- 
on-Hudson. His wife (formerly Miss Anna 
Jeanette Elkins), to whom he was married 
September 26, 1878, is a daughter of Charles 
M. and Elizabeth A. (Davis) Elkins, of Wake- 
field, Massachusetts. 

Politically, Mr. Weston is a Republican. 
In 1 89 1 he was elected president of the village 
of Matteawan, and was re-elected in 1892 
without opposition, being the first incumbent 
of the office to be chosen without an opposing 
candidate since the incorporation of the village. 
At the present time he is president of the 
Board of Trade of Matteawan and Fishkill-on- 



COMilEilORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



635 



Hudson; president of the board of health of 
Fishkill Landing; and president of the Fairview 
Cemetery Association. He has taken an in- 
terest in fraternal society work, also, and has 
been warden of Beacon Lodge, F. &. A. M. ; 
also chancellor of Hudson River Lodge, K. of 
P., has twice represented the latter society in 
the Grand Lodge of the State, and has been 
deputy for this district. 



JOHN V. O'FARRELL, who is engaged in 
the ice business in Wappingers Falls, 

Dutchess county, although a resident of 
Hughsonville, was born in County Tipperary, 
Ireland, March 2, 1845. 

The father of our subject, James O'Far- 
rell, was a native of the same county, and a 
baker and shopkeeper by occupation. He 
married Margaret Lamphier, and they reared 
four children, namely: P. W., who' is a gen- 
eral merchant in Blackville, S. C. ; Margaret, 
who married John Sullivan, of Goshen, Orange 
Co., N. Y., who is now deceased; John V.; 
and Elizabeth, who died unmarried. The fam- 
ily came to America in 1850, and Mr. O'Far- 
rell, who was then an officer in the English 
army, left his family at Wappingers Falls 
while he went to Canada, to which country he 
had been ordered. He died in Montreal in 
185 1. His wife survived him until 1 882. They 
were members of the Catholic Church, and 
their children were brought up in that faith. 

John V. O'Farrell was only five years old 
when his parents settled at Wappingers Falls, 
and in the common schools of that village he 
obtained his education. When old enough he 
found employment in the Dutchess Print 
Works, and worked there until 1864, when he 
enlisted in Company L 3d New York Cavalry, 
and served until the close of the Civil war. 
He was discharged, June 17, 1865, at Suffolk, 
Va., and returned to his home, where he 
learned the carpenter's trade, and for the past 
thirty years has been one of the most success- 
ful builders at the Falls. In 1880 he formed 
a partnership with John M. Goring in the fur- 
niture and undertaking business, which con- 
nection lasted for four years. He then sold 
out to E. W. Flynn, and engaged in the ice 
business, which he has since carried on, also 
being interested in buying and selling real es- 
tate. He has been very successful, and is 
among the prosperous and substantial citizens 
of Wappingers Falls. 



On January 7, 1877, Mr. O'Farrell was 
married to Miss Mary A. Downey, who was 
born in Wappingers Falls, and is a daughter 
of Peter Downey, Sr. , a native of Ireland. Of 
this marriage six children have been born, all 
of whom are living: "Vincent, Leo, Joseph, 
Raymond, Marie, and Emmett. 

Mr. O'Farrell was a Democrat until 1886, 
since which time he has been in sympathy with 
the Republican party. He was for two terms 
assessor of the town of Poughkeepsie, for three 
years chief of the Wappingers Falls fire de- 
partment, and for nine years one of the village 
trustees. He is a member of the Foresters, 
and also of the G. A. R. Post, in which he has 
held all the offices and was commander for 
three terms. He and his family are devoted 
members of the Catholic Church. Mr. O'Far- 
rell is a man of progressive ideas, always ready 
to assist in matters for the public good, and is 
one of the most loyal and enterprising of the 
business men of the village. He has many 
warm friends, and is popular with all who 
know him. 



JOHN M. GORING, a leading and represent- 
ative business man of Wappingers Falls, 
where he has a furniture and undertaking 
establishment, is a member of the well-known 
firm of Goring & Flynn. He was born in that 
village, December 21, 1851, and is a son of J. 
M. Goring. There he grew to manhood, being 
educated in the public schools, and learned the 
trade of a tinsmith and plumber with A. W. 
Armstrong, by whom he was employed for 
eleven years. In 1882 he started his present 
business, being at that time connected with 
John O'Farrell, under the firm name of O'Far- 
rell & Goring, which partnership continued for 
two years, when the senior member withdrew, 
and Edward W. Flynn became a member of 
the firm, which then assumed its present style. 
They have one of the leading establishments of 
the kind in the town, and the liberal patronage 
they receive is well deserved. 

On November 20, 1S76, Mr. Goring was 
married to Miss Mary C. Downing, of Clinton 
Point, Dutchess county, a daughter of Edward 
and Jane Downing, who were both born in the 
North of Ireland, and were of Scotch lineage. 
Our subject and his wife have become the par- 
ents of four children (two pair of twins) : How- 
ard D. and Harold V., born September 23, 



030 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



1884; and J. Morris and Mary C, born Janu- 
ary 6, 1897. 

In politics, Mr. Goring is identified with the 
Republican party, and is at present serving as 
treasurer of his school district. He is a highly 
respected and esteemed citizen of the place, 
and as a merchant bears the reputation of an 
honest, upright and trustworthy man. His 
gentlemanly deportment and genial manners 
are gaining him hosts of friends, and rapidly in- 
creasing his business. He takes quite an active 
part in civic societies, belonging to Wappinger 
Lodge No. 671, F. & A. M., of which he is 
past master; Poughkeepsie Chapter, K. A. M. ; 
La Fayette Lodge No. 18, I. O. O. F. ; and 
Evening Star Lodge No. 98, K. P. 



AMES M. De GARMO, proprietor of De- 
I Garmo Institute, Fishkill Landing, Dutch- 
ess county, was born in the town of Hyde 
Park, near Crum Elbow, N. Y. , December 22, 
1838, a son of Peter and Sarah Gilchrist (Mar- 
shall) De Garmo. The father was born March 
4, 1798, also in the town of Hyde Park, the 
mother on July 24, 1800, in Westchester 
county, N. Y. Peter De Garmo, the paternal 
grandfather of our subject, was born Septem- 
ber 2, 1751, in New Jersey, and the paternal 
grandmother, Mary D. Robinson, on Novem- 
ber 12, 1763. James I. Marshall, the mater- 
nal grandfather, was born January 6, 1773, the 
maternal grandmother, Elizabeth (Gilchrist), 
on December 2, 1772. 

On his father's side James M. De Garmo 
is a lineal descendant of French Huguenots, 
while his mother's familj' were Rhode Island 
Yankees. During the Huguenot persecution 
in France, the De Garmos of Normandy fled 
to Holland, where some of them married Dutch 
women, and, later, three brothers — Elias, 
Jacob (or James) and John — with their fami- 
lies, came to America and settled at Pompton 
Plains, N. J., and from them the whole De- 
Garmo clan in America is descended. 

Peter De Garmo and his father before him 
were tanners and farmers, retaining many of 
the physical and mental characteristics of their 
French ancestry, for they were mostly men (jf 
small stature, of nervous temperament, but 
cheerful and happy disposition, active and vig- 
orous in mind and body. James was one of a 
family of nine children, and was never a very 
hardy, tough boy, like most of his age. His 



primary education was obtained from the old- 
fashioned district school of the time. But at 
eleven years of age he was needed on the farm, 
left school and worked till he was seventeen; 
then he went three months to the Dutchess 
County Academy at Poughkeepsie, under the 
Scotch Prof. William McGeorge. After these 
three months he returned to the farm, and 
worked till he was nineteen, when he began, 
in April, to teach in the academy where he 
had studied, and at the same time began his 
studies for college. In two years and a quar- 
ter, as he was about to enter college, his health 
failed, and he took charge of a boarding-school 
at Oswego Meeting House, near what is now 
Moores Mill, under Ouaker auspices. In the 
following spring he was in such ill-health that 
he went home to recruit, spending some of the 
time in the wild Adirondacks, and in \"ermont. 
In November he again took charge of the Os- 
wego school, teaching till spring, when he went 
to Poughkeepsie, and, under private instruct- 
ors, studied French, German, Latin and Greek, 
continuing till the next February, when he 
entered a co-partnership with Prof. McGeorge 
and Mr. Stewart Pelham, to conduct the Old 
Academy. At that time he was married to 
Emily L. Drake, of Pleasant \'alley, and soon 
began his life-work at teaching. The co-part- 
nership, not proving congenial, was dissolved, 
and in April, 1864, he went to Rhinebeck, 
N. Y., and took charge of the Rhinebeck Acad- 
emy, which he soon after purchased, changed 
to De Garmo Institute, entirely rebuilt and im- 
proved, and continued to manage it until 1890, 
when he moved to Fishkill Landing, where he 
hired Mt. Beacon Academy, and has taught 
till the present time. His school has been 
one of the best known in the county or State. 
Soon after going to Rhinebeck, Princeton 
College conferred upon Dr. De Garmo the hon- 
orary degree of Master of Arts, and later, in 
187S, Hamilton College, at Clinton, N. Y. , 
gave him the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. 
Both degrees were conferred in recognition of 
his success in preparing boys for college, and 
for his scientific studies. In October, 1867, 
he was initiated, passed and raised a Free 
and Accepted Mason, and is now past master 
of Rhinebeck Lodge No. 432; past master of 
Beacon Lodge No. 283; grand representative 
of the Symbolic Grand Lodge of the United 
States of Mexico, near the Grand Lodge of the 
State of New York; and a thirty-second-degree 
Mason of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite 



COMMEMOnATIVB BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



G37 



in the Valley of New York, for the Northern 
Jurisdiction of America. 

Dr. De Garmo has never held any political 
office, but since his eighteenth year has spoken 
on the Republican side in every Presidential 
campaign but one. In the famous Greeley 
campaign he was silent. He has lectured fre- 
quently and acceptably on scientific topics, 
was an active member of the Poughkeepsie 
Society of Natural Science, and later of Vassar 
Brothers' Institute. He is an after-dinner 
speaker of some reputation, and writes occa- 
sional poems, which have been well received. 
But whatever he may have of enduring reputa- 
tion will come from his long and faithful work 
as a teacher. Although a linguist by profes- 
sion, he has devoted much time to scientific 
studies, is a fair microscopist and astronomer, 
and familiar with lepidoptera and with orni- 
thology and geology, in all which departments 
he has collected fine cabinets and museums. 
He has delivered many lectures, especially on 
science, is a skilled manipulator of apparatus 
either before a class or a public audience, and 
is a man, on the whole, of rather versatile 
talents. 



lAVID AND HENRY RUNDALL are 
prominent and representative citizens of 
the town of Amenia, Dutchess county, the 
former residing in the village of Amenia, and 
the latter on the old family homestead on the 
road between Amenia and Wassaic. About 
the middle of the eighteenth century the fam- 
ily was founded in Dutchess county, and their 
great-grandfather was buried in the old aban- 
doned cemetery between Bangall and Mclntyre, 
in the town of Stanford. 

David Rundall, the grandfather, was born 
January 4, 1757, in the town of Horse Neck, 
Fairfield Co., Conn., but came to the town of 
Amenia, Dutchess county at the age of four- 
teen years, in company with his brother, to 
whom he was bound out as an apprentice to 
learn the tailor's trade. They moved their 
entire worldly effects on horseback, and located 
in that part of the town which was then called 
Separate. The apprenticeship was ended at 
about the time of the inauguration of the Rev- 
olutionary war, in which the grandfather served 
through two campaigns, one in the North and 
the other in the South, in the years 1775 ^"d 
1776. After obtaining his discharge he re- 
turned to Amenia, where he followed his trade, 



which was then called "whipping the cat," 
being employed on both sides of the mountains, 
wherever he could secure work for a few days. 

After his marriage the grandfather lived for 
six years at Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, at 
the end of which time he returned to Amenia, 
taking up his residence in the old house near 
the H. W. Peters homestead, and a few re- 
maining apple trees standing on the opposite 
side of the road mark the stop of the orchard 
which he set out. There he resided until 
•795. when he removed to the place now oc- 
cupied by Henry Rundall, where his death oc- 
curred January 21, 1848. During his resi- 
dence on the old Peters farm, the first Meth- 
odist Church was organized in Amenia, of 
which he was for several years the only male 
member. 

The grandfather was thrice married. On 
January 7, 1777, he wedded Catherine Pow- 
ers, who died May 14, 1799, and they had six 
children: Betsey, born February 8. 1780, 
died February 26, 1829; Mary, born January 
5, 1783, died August 15,1831; Jacob M., born 
May 26, 1785, died October 8. 1833; Abigail, 
born August 26, 1787, died in December, 
1 871; William, born October i, 1794, died 
October 2, 1795; and Henry, born March 4, 
1799, died November 3, 1871. ■ In March, 
1 80 1, he marrfed Elizabeth Cole, \vho died 
July 6, 182 I, and to them was born a daugh- 
ter — Catherine, born January 5, 1803, and 
married Henry Ingraham. His third wife was 
Alice Allerton. 

Henry Rundall, the father of our subjects, 
during his boyhood attended the "Johnny 
Cake " school between Amenia and Wassaic, 
and throughout life operated the old home- 
stead farm. On December 12, 1821, he was 
united in marriage with Nancy T. Sutherland, 
who was born April 18, 1803, a daughter of 
Roger B. Sutherland, and died January 31, 
1869. Six children graced this union, namely: 
Sarah S., born August 7, 1825, married Dr. 
Isaac M. Hunting, and died November 29, 
1895; Elizabeth M.,vborn August 24, 1827, 
married George W. Center, of Amenia, N. Y. ; 
David and Henry are next in order of birth; 
Mary B., born January 10, 1833, wedded John 
J. Harrison, and died in November, 1S82; and 
Catherine P., born October 2, 1835, married 
Henry C. Dauchy, and died November 25, 
1895. For his second wife the father chose 
Susan Hebard, who still survives him, residing 
at Sharon, Connecticut. 



C38 



COMMEMORATIVE BWORAPH/r'AL RECORD. 



Henry Rundall, Sr., was a faithful member 
of the Presbyterian Church, and was the first 
man in the town of Amenia to abolish the use 
of liquor upon his farm. In early life he had 
belonged to the Methodist Episcopal Church. 
He was an active Democrat in politics previous 
to 1857, but at that time became an earnest 
supporter of the Republican party, as in ante- 
bellum days he was very much opposed to 
slavery. 

The followin}; is a copy of the commissions 
of the father as captain, major and colonel 
in the New York State Militia: 

The Ptoplc of the State of New York, To all to 
whom these presents may come: Know ye, that pursuant 
to the constitution anil laws of our said State, we have ap- 
pointed and constituted and by these presents do appoint 
and constitute Henry Rundall, captain in the Twenty- 
ninth Kegiment of Infantry of our said State (with rank 
from May Vi, 182t)), to hold said office in the manner 
specified in and by our said constitution and laws. 

In testimony whereof we have caused our seal 
for military commissions to be hereunto affixed. Witness 
De\Vitt Clinton, Ksquire, Governor of our said State, 
general and commander-in-chief of all the militia and 
admiral of the navy of the same, at our city of Albany, 
the 22nd day of June, in the year of our Lord, one 
thousand eight hundred and twenty-six. 

DkWitt Ci.inton. 
Passed the adjutant-general's office. 

N. K. lilcCK, Adjutant-General. 

The commission of major reads exactly 
like that of captain, but dated July 30, 1827. 
The commission of colonel of the Twenty- 
ninth Regiment reads like the other two, dated 
July 23, 1830, and signed by Enos T. Troop, 
Esquire, Lteutenant-Governor of the State, 
and by M. H. Webster, Adjutant-General. 
These papers are still in the possession of 
David Rundall, of Amenia. 

D.AViD Rundall, whose name intro- 
duces this review, was born on the old 
homestead in the town of Amenia, Dutchess 
county. August 2, 1829, and he also began his 
education in the "Johnny Cake" school, but 
the knowledge there acquired was supple- 
mented by a course in the Amenia Seminary. 
Until reaching his majority he remained upon 
the home farm, and then for ten years oper- 
ated land near the village of Amenia, after 
which he engaged in farming for twenty-one 
years on the road to W'assaic. Since 1888, 
however, he has made his home in the village 
of Amenia, and is now capably serving as town 
clerk. He has also been collector for several 
terms, aixl his duties are always discharged 
with credit to himself, and with satisfaction to 
all concerned. By his ballot he supports the 
Republican party, and religiously himself and 



family are connected with the Presbyterian 
Church. 

At Amenia, September 14, 1852, David 
Rundall was married to Harriet P. Rey- 
nolds, a daughter of Jonathan P. Rey- 
nolds. She died February 5, 1863, leaving 
one son, William P., who was born in De- 
cember, 1862, and married Fanny McHugh, 
by whom he has a daughter, Hattie; he is a 
resident of the town of Amenia. On Feb- 
ruary 10, 1864, at Mechanicsville, Saratoga 
Co., N. Y. , David Rundall married Sarah 
Catherine Barrett, daughter of Henry E. Bar- 
rett. Harry Barrett Rundall, the only child 
of the second union, was born November 24, 
1864, and after finishing his education in the 
Amenia Seminary, on March 17, 1 881, he en- 
tered the First National Bank of Amenia as 
bookkeeper, which position he has since filled to 
the satisfaction of the bank officials. He is 
at present serving as justice of the peace, and 
socially is a member of Amenia Lodge No. 
672, F. cS: A. M. 

Henry Ri'nd.^ll, of this review, was born 
July 6, 1 83 1 , on the farm where he still resides, 
and like his brother was educated at the 
"Johnny Cake ", school and the Amenia Sem- 
inary. He has always engaged in the cultiva- 
tion of the home farm, and since 1853 has also 
dealt in milk. At Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , July 
6, 1853, he married Lucinda A. Ransom, a na- 
tive of Highland. Ulster Co.. N. Y.. and a de- 
scendant of the Deyo family, early settlers of 
that county. Seven children were born to 
them, as follows: (i) Herbert R., pastor of 
the Presbyterian Church at Hammonton, N. J., 
first wedded Mary Herrick, of Saratoga coun- 
ty, N. Y., by whom he had a daughter, Millie 
R. . and after her death married Eli;;abeth En- 
dicott; (2) Clarence A. married Julia Roberts, 
by whom he has a son. Warring Deyo. and 
they now live at Brewster, Putnam Co., N. Y. ; 
(3) Arthur S. is with the Phcenix Insurance 
Company, of Chicago, 111.; (4) P'rank D. , on 
February 10, 1897, married Frances Thompson 
Reed, daughter of Henry V. D. Reed, and 
lives at Amenia Union, N. Y. ; (5) Bell H., 
born July 11. 1864. died February 24, 1876; 
(6) Martin K. married Jennie Rutledge, and 
has two children, Olin Rutledge and Henry 
T. ; (/) Laura J. is the wife of J. Henry Hal- 
stead, of Rye, Westchester Co., New York. 

Henry l^undall is one of the prominent and 
active members of the Presbyterian Church of 
Amenia, in which, for thirty years, he has 



COMMEyWEATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



639 



served as elder, and will continue to hold the 
office through life. He is connected with the 
Amenia Grange, in politics is an ardent Re- 
publican, and has served as assessor of the 
town of Amenia. In manner, the Rundall 
brothers are quiet and unassuming, j'et their 
sterling qualities command the respect and 
confidence of all, and have secured for them 
the high regard of a large circle of friends. 
They are numbered among the valued citizens 
of the community, who have been devoted to 
the public welfare, and are assuredly worthy 
of representation in a volume of this nature. 



ILLIAM H. BARTLETT. one of the 
JC'l^ prominent and leading business men of 
Amenia, Dutchess county, traces his ancestral 
line back to the Colonial epoch. His great- 
grandfather, Daniel C. Bartlett, was born at 
Redding, Conn., where his father, Rev. 
Nathaniel Bartlett, a Congregational minister, 
had located May 23, 1753. The latter was 
called from this life January 10, iSio. On 
the breaking out of the Revolutionary war, 
one Sabbath day, he presented his sword, 
which he had newl)' ground, to his son Daniel 
with the instruction to go and defend his coun- 
try. With Montgomery's forces he went to 
Quebec, and was at the capture of Fort St. 
John in November, 1775. He was also pres- 
ent at the burning of Danbury, Conn., in 
1777. Later in life he became a resident of 
Dutchess county, N. Y. , in 1803 purchasing 
the Joel Gillett farm in the town of Amenia, 
on which his great-grandson, Sanford J. Bart- 
lett, now resides. In his family were five 
children: William, Collins, Mrs. John Barker, 
Mrs. Thomas Paine and Mrs. William Paine. 
William S. Bartlett, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born upon the family homestead in 
the town of Amenia, attended the district 
schools during his boyhood and youth, and in 
later life carried on agricultural pursuits in his 
native township. His birth occurred January 
23. 1809, and October 13, 1830, he was mar- 
ried to Miss Jane Eliza Reynolds, daughter of 
Jonathan P. Reynolds. They became the 
parents of four children: Jonathan R., born 
July 15, 1831, was married October 5, 1863, 
to Hannah L. Grant, and died September 8, 
1872; Adelaide Amelia, born January 10, 
1836, died April 27, 1838; William Henry, 
subject of this sketch, is the next in order of 
birth; and Sanford Jarvis, Sr. , born December 



29, 1842, was married March 12, 1873, to 
Mary Lizzie Hill, of Bridport, Vt., and they 
are now living on the home farm; they have 
two sons: William Edgar, born February 14, 
1873, and Sanford Jarvis, Jr., born August 4, 
1876. Politically the father of this family, 
William S. Bartlett, was a Whig in early life, 
later uniting with the Republican party, and 
at one time served as assessor in his township. 
He was one of the leading members of the 
Presbyterian Church at Amenia, in which he 
served as deacon, and was a generous contrib- 
utor toward the erection of the house of wor- 
ship. A broad-minded man, he was liberal in 
his religious views as well as in other things. 
After a long and well-spent life he was called 
to his final rest November 6, 1881. His wife, 
who was born December 25, 18 12, died June 
I, 1881. 

In the town of Amenia our subject was 
born, February 14, 1839, and acquired his 
education in the Amenia Seminary. Later he 
accepted a position in the store of William 
Burrell, of Brooklyn, N. Y., where he re- 
mained for two years, and was then engaged 
in clerking in Amenia for a short time. While 
thus calmly employed, the storm of war which 
had been gathering for so many years over the 
country broke out, and, bidding adieu to home 
and its influences, Mr. Bartlett enlisted, in the 
fall of 1862, in Company A, 150th N. Y. \. I., 
and from private was promoted from time to 
time until he became adjutant. He partici- 
pated in many important engagements, and at 
Peach Tree Creek, in front of Atlanta, was 
wounded. He now holds membership with 
Hamilton Post, No 20, G. A. R , of Pough- 
keepsie, New York. 

When the war was over Mr. Bartlett re- 
turned to Amenia and purchased the store in 
which he had formerly clerked, conducting the 
same until 1888, since which time he has en- 
gaged in the manufacture of brick, under the 
firm name of the Amenia Brick Company. In 
the town -of Amenia, October 30, 1867, he 
was united in marriage with Miss Lavina Cul- 
ver, daughter of Backus Culver. Our subject 
is devoted to all interests that are calculated 
to advance thg welfare of his County, State 
and Nation, and has done much for the up- 
building of the community' where he has al- 
ways made his home. With a strict regard 
for business ethics, he has won the confidence 
and esteem of all, and is to-day one of the 
most honored citizens of his countv. For 



640 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



two terms he served as supervisor of Amenia, 
and was unanimously nominated by the Re- 
publican party for sheriff. Being elected, he 
took the office January i, 1892, and acceptably 
served until January i, 1895. Socially, he is 
connected with Amenia Lodge, F. & A. M., 
and is a charter member of the Benevolent 
Protective Order of Elks at Poughkeepsie, 
New York. 



R RAYMOND RIKERT, the editor and 
_ proprietor of the Rhinebeck Gazette, is 
one of the youngest journalists in Dutchess 
county, and at the same time is one of the 
most prominent in all the Hudson River 
Valley. 

The Rikert family have long occupied an 
honored place among the old families of New 
York, the great-great-grandfather of the sub- 
ject of this review being a patroon. George 
I. Rikert, his son, was born in Clermont, Co- 
lumbia county, and by occupation was a farm- 
er, operating one farm for nearly half a cen- 
tury. He married Margaret Snyder, and to 
them were born five children: Robert, Reu- 
ben, John, Mary (wife of Chancellor W'yllie), 
and Eliza (wife of John Kilmer). Although 
he enlisted in the war of 1S12, he never took 
part in any important engagement. 

John Rikert, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born at Rhinebeck in iSii, and for 
many years was an employe at the State dock. 
In 1857 he began the butchering business in 
the village of Rhinebeck, which he continued 
to follow up to the time of his death in i860, 
and was quite successful in that undertaking. 
His political support was given to the Whig 
party, and religiously he was a Lutheran. As 
a companion and helpmeet on life's journey he 
married Phebe Dedrick, daughter of Jacob 
Dedrick, of Rhinebeck, who had come from 
Claverack, N. Y. Five children blessed this 
union, but Nelson died at the age of three 
years; the others are, Wellington,- Franklin, 
Calvin and Elmore. The mother is still 
living. 

Franklin Rikert acquired his education in 
the Rhinebeck Academy, and at the Flat Rock 
school, laying aside his te.xt books in 1859 to 
enter upon the more active duties of life. He 
served an apprenticeship as a butcher in Rhine- 
beck, but on the outbreak of the Civil war he 
laid aside personal plans and interests, and on 
President Lincoln's second call for troops be- 



came a member of the 128th N. Y. 'V'. I. He 
was attached to the department of the Gulf, 
was in the Red River campaign, and in 1864 
returned north with Gen. Sheridan, being with 
him in the Shenandoah Valley and at the bat- 
tle of Winchester. At Cedar Creek he was 
taken prisoner October 19, 1864, was incar- 
cerated in Libby prison. Castle Thunder, and 
at Salisbury, N. C., and the following spring 
was paroled at Goldsboro, that State. At 
Annapolis, Md., he was discharged in July, 
1865, under general order No. "]', and re- 
turned home with an honorable war record. 

On October 19, 1869, Franklin Rikert was 
joined in marriage with Miss Ellen Cramer, 
daughter of John P. Cramer, and to them was 
born a son, R. Raymond. On May 18, 1870, 
he formed a partnership with J. H. Rikert in 
the butchering business, which connection con- 
tinued until August, 1883, when the latter 
died. Through his own unaided efforts he has 
achieved success in the business world, and is 
oneof the most popular and highlyrespectedciti- 
zens of Rhinebeck. He takes quite an active 
interest in local political matters, voting the 
straight Republican ticket, and has been a 
member of the board of health for many years. 
He holds membership with Armstrong Post 
No. 104, G. A. R. ; also with the Masonic 
fraternity; and is an honorary member of Re- 
lief Hook & Ladder Co. In religious faith he 
belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church. 

R. Raymond Rikert, the subject proper 
of this sketch, was born November 14. 1871, 
in Rhinebeck village. He received his edu- 
cation in the De Garmo Institute, and was 
graduated from that institution in 1891, a 
member of the first class to graduate from that 
time-honored school after its removal to 
Fishkill-on-Hudson. After completing his 
education, and until January i, 1893, heacted 
in the capacity of bookkeeper for his father at 
Rhinebeck. On the above date, in connection 
with William R. Tremper, he purchased the 
Rhinebeck Neics of William N. Tyler, and at 
the same time assumed the management of the 
Gazette. On July i, 1894, the Gazette w^s, 
purchased from the estate of Lewis H. Livings- 
ton, and our subject bought out the interest 
of his partner, and is now the sole owner of 
the business, which is rapidly increasing. The 
office employs about si.x men the year round, 
and has a weekly circulation of 1000. 

Although young in years, Mr. Rikert has 
made a grand success of his undertaking, both 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



641 



from a financial and from a literary point of view, 
and is regarded as one of the strong men of 
Dutchess county. Politically the paper is in- 
dependent, but the editor is a stanch Repub- 
lican. He is secretary of the Rhinebeck Gas 
Company; and socially is a member of the F. 
& A. M., the S. of v., and of the Hook and 
Ladder Fire Company. 



LEONARD I. TRIPP, an enterprising and 
prosperous blacksmith of Clinton Hollow, 

Dutchess county, was born in the town of 
Rhinebeck, May 20, 185 1. 

The family is of French descent, and our 
subject's grandfather, Smiten Tripp, was one 
of the early residents of Clinton. He married 
a Miss Wicks, and had several children, among 
whom was George C. Tripp, the father of our 
subject. He grew to manhood in the town of 
Clinton, and was married there to Mary A. P. 
Haight, a native of the same locality, and a 
lady of rare nobility of character. She was a 
daughter of Isaac S. Haight, a Quaker, who 
was born in Rhode Island, where his great- 
grandfather had settled on coming from Eng- 
land; but he spent the greater part of his life 
farming in the town of Clinton. He married 
Hannah Bedford, and had five children, as 
follows: Hannah, Sarah, Susan, Leonard and 
David; all are now deceased except Hannah. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. George 
C. Tripp settled upon a farm in the town of 
Hyde Park, and later moved to Rhinebeck. 
They had nine children: Julia F. ; Helen Au- 
gusta (deceased); James S., a contractor and 
builder at Rochester, N. Y. ; Jacob W., aeon- 
tractor and builder at Salt Lake; Martin F., 
who is in the same business in Cole county, 
Mo.; Leonard I., our subject; Hiram M., a 
contractor and builder at Bergen, N. Y. ; and 
Elting B. , a policeman in New York City. To 
Mrs. Tripp belongs the credit of bringing up 
this family, and giving them those industrious 
habits and sound principles which have marked 
their successful careers. She was a faithful 
member of the Christian Church for many 
years previous to her death, which occurred 
March 15, 1895, when she \vas aged seventy- 
six years. 

The subject of this sketch attended the 
schools of Clinton Hollow in his early boy- 
hood, and at the age of eleven he began work- 
ing out on neighboring farms. At nineteen he 
entered H. S. Van Dyne's blacksmith shop at 

41 



Clinton Hollow, and served an apprenticeship 
of three years, receiving $40 a year, with the 
privilege of working twelve sunny days in har- 
vest time. After learning his trade he worked 
one year at Washington Hollow for Charles 
McCorniick, also for three years at Millbrook 
for Henry Shaw, and in March, 1877, he re- 
turned to Clinton Hollow and bought the shop 
where he had learned the business, and has 
conducted it since with growing popularity and 
success. On April 19, 1877, he married Al- 
meda D. Briggs, a daughter of George C. and 
Margaret Briggs, well-known residents of Clin- 
ton Hollow. Mr. Tripp is a public-spirited 
citizen, and takes an influential place in local 
affairs. He is an active supporter of the Dem- 
ocratic party, has been inspector of elections, 
and has held the office of town clerk for two 
terms. 



JOSEPH KLINE, a well-known resident of 
Pawling, Dutchess county, engaged in the 
livery business, has also been for some time 
in the employ of the United States Government 
as mail clerk on the Harlem railroad. He 
learned the carriage maker's trade in early life, 
but did not follow it long as a business. He 
and his wife, formerly Miss Carrie Mabie, have 
three children: Anna A., Mary E. and Agnes 
J., who are all at home. 

Mrs. Kline was born and reared in the town 
of Dover, Dutchess county, and is a descend- 
ant of early settlers in Patterson, Putnam coun- 
ty, where her grandfather, Samuel Mabie, first 
saw the light. His education was acquired in 
the common schools there, and he engaged in 
farming in early manhood. He was united in 
matrimony with Miss Polly Bolts, and had six 
children, of whom Hiram, Mrs. Kline's father, 
was the eldest. William married Laura Dyke- 
man; Phcebe married Nathan Dykeman; Ruth 
was the wife of James Dykeman; Adaline mar- 
ried J. B. Swan; and Sarah died at an early age. 

Hiram Mabie was born in 1823, inTowners, 
Putnam county, and after obtaining a common- 
school education there followed agricultural 
pursuits. He married Miss Julia Pagsley, 
daughter of Benjamin Pagsley, a leading butcher 
of Patterson, and his wife, Polly Crosby. Mrs. 
Kline was the fourth in a family of five children. 
Of the others, ( i) Mary E. has never married. 
{2) Washington was educated in the town of 
Dover, Dutchess county, and is now engaged 
in farming. He married Miss Jennie Fowler 



642 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



^nd had three children — Estelle, Gertrude and 
Clarence. (3) Estelle was born and reared in 
the town of Dover, and she is now the wife of 
John Haynes, an agriculturist of the town of 
Pawling. They have two children — Fred and 
Ruth. (5) Florence, Mrs. Kline's youngest 
sister, married John Merrick, a resident of 
Towners, and has no children. 



JOHN G. DOYLE, the junior member of 
the well-known firni, Lewis & Doyle, of 
W'assaic, was born at South Dover, L)utch- 
ess county, September 27, 1863. 

The boyhood and youth of Mr. Doyle were 
passed uneventfully at Wassaic, where he at- 
tended school, and at the age of fourteen 
years he entered the store of M. K. Lewis, with 
whom he has since remained. Until the 25th 
of July, 1894, he served as clerk, but since 
that time has been a partner, and the firm is 
now enjoying a large and paying business. 
He has always been a stanch Democrat, and 
in 1893 ^V3S appointed postmaster of Wassaic, 
by President Cleveland, which position he has 
since capably filled to the satisfaction of all 
concerned. He is a business man of more 
than ordinary abilit)', and justly deserves the 
success which has crowned his efforts. So- 
cially, he is identified with Amenia Lodge No. 
672, F. & A. M., and is a past regent of 
Council No. 1291, Royal Arcanum, at Was- 
saic. 

At Pawling, N. Y., January 20, 1886, Mr. 
Doj'le was united in marriage with Miss Mary 
F. Barrett, of Charleston, S. C, daughter of 
Pierce Barrett. They have had one son, Percy 
Vincent, who died in infancy. The young 
couple hold a high position in the social circles 
of the community. 



I E WITT C. HUSTED, the enterprising 
proprietor of a combined bakery and con- 
fectionery store and restaurant at Millerton, 
Dutchess county, and one of the most success- 
ful business men of that village, was born in 
the town of Clinton, Dutchess county, Jan- 
uary 2, i860. His ancestors were early set- 
tlers in the town of Pleasant Valley, where his 
grandfather, Nathaniel Husted, and his father, 
Luther Husted, were born, the latter in the 
year 1840. 



The subject of our sketch was educated in 
the district school at Clinton, which was ex- 
cellent for that day, and being fond of reading 
he has supplemented this course in later years 
by keeping " well posted " on current events 
and the advance of scientific thought. At 
eighteen he left school and a-ssisted his father 
for three years, when he started out in life for 
himself, first as attendant for Dr. Knight at 
Lakeville, Conn. Three years later he and 
his brother, Elmer, took charge of his father's 
store at Wassaic, the partnership continuing 
two years. The next two years, Mr. Husted 
conducted a store of his own, and then after one 
year of retirement from business he came to 
Millerton in the spring of 1892 and established 
the bakery, confectionery and restaurant busi- 
ness, which he has since conducted. This is 
one of the finest stores of its kind in the town, 
and enjoys an extensive patronage. A self- 
made man, Mr. Husted has always displayed 
the energy and good management which win 
success, and every enterprise in which he has 
engaged has prospered. 

On January 25, 1888, he was married to 
Miss Etta Jenks, of Lakeville, Conn. ; they 
have one son, Harry, born April 13, 1890. 
Mr. Husted is among the leaders in local affairs, 
and has been at times active in politics, and, 
not being bound slavishly by party ties, he has 
always worked for the nomination and election 
of siich men as he has considered best qualified 
to carry out the will of the people. 

Mrs. Husted is the only surviving daughter 
of William and Caroline (Edwards) Jenks. 
She was born at Hillsdale, N. Y., August 11, 
1858, and in her girlhood accompanied her 
parents to Orehill, Conn., where they made 
their home some six years, thence moving to 
Lakeville, Conn. Here she attended the pub- 
lic school, later taking a one-3'ear's course at 
New Preston, Conn. Then, for ten years, 
and until her marriage, she lived at Norfolk, 
Conn. Her father was born October 10, 1824, 
in Nesv York. Her mother was a native of 
Connecticut, born in New Milford, December 
3, 1817. They were married October i, 1840, 
and became the parents of five children, as 
follows: Rachel and Mary Amanda (both de- 
ceased); George, a resident of Torrington, 
Conn.; Fred E., of New Haven; and Etta 
(Mrs. Husted). Her maternal grandfather Ed- 
wards was born September 12, 1784, and in 
1803 married Sarah Bennett, who was born 
May 2, 1783. They had five children: Ap- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



G43 



phia, Abel, Caroline, Sarah and Rachel. Of 
these, the last two are yet living. 

John Jenks, the paternal grandfather of 
Mrs. Husted, was born April 9, 1782. Mary 
(White), his wife, was born October 11, 1793. 
They were married November 20, 1S13. The 
former died September 3, 1833, the latter, 
December 17, 1874. Their seven children 
were: John Fredrick, born September 13, 
1814; Mariette, born February i, 1816; Ann 
Maria, born November 24, 1817; Harriet 
Emily, born October 20, 18 19; Sarah Jane, 
born June 3, 1821; Clarissa Amanda, born De- 
cember 16, 1822; and William Hunt, born Oc- 
tober 10, 1S24. Of these only John Fredrick 
and Clarissa Amanda survive. The paternal 
great-grandfather of Mrs. Husted was Thomas 
Jenks, who married Sarah Barton and died, 
aged forty-one years. 

Abel Edwards, the maternal great-grand- 
father of Mrs. Husted was a Revolutionary 
soldier. He enlisted May 4, 1775, in the com- 
pany of Capt. Samuel Whitney, of Stratford, 
5th regiment, Col. David Waterbury com- 
manding. He married, for his first wife, Lucy 
Hawley, and, for his second, Sarah Mann. 



GVEORGE HAM ANGELL, a leading citi- 
Ji zen and enterprising, progressive business 
man of Wappingers Falls, is one of the prom- 
inent dry-goods merchants of the place. He 
is a native of Dutchess county, born January 
8, 1852, at Salt Point, in the town of Pleas- 
ant Valley. The family of which he belongs 
is of English origin, and its members mostly 
belonged to the Society of Friends. Ephraim 
Angell, his paternal grandfather, who was also 
born in Pleasant Valley town, located upon a 
farm near Spencertown, Columbia Co., N. Y., 
after his marriage with Mary Thorne, where he 
reared a family of eight children — Joseph, 
Augustus, Stephen, Henry, Ephraim, Sarah, 
Emma and Martha — and there he continued 
agricultural pursuits until his death. 

Upon that farm in Columbia county, 
Stephen T. Angell, the father of our subject, 
was born, October 31, 1817, and when he had 
attained his seventeenth year, he began teach- 
ing school in that locality. He was united in 
marriage with Miss Hannah E. Ham, a daugh- 
ter of George Ham, who was born in the town 
of Washington, Dutchess county, and was a 
farmer by occupation. After their marriage 
the parents located at Salt Point, where the 



father engaged in farming until called from this 
life in 1889. His estimable wife still survives 
him. Politically, he was in earl}' manhood a 
Whig, and, upon the abandonment of the old 
party, cordially endorsed the Republican prin- 
ciples, which he ever afterward sustained. He 
was prominent in the public affairs of the 
county; having served one term as justice of 
the peace of Pleasant Valley township, and 
two terms as president of the Dutchess County 
Agricultural Society. He was a man of ster- 
ling integrity, and possessed great force of 
character, which won for him the confidence 
and esteem of the community in whicb he 
lived. The parental household included five 
children: Eva, George H., Augustus, a prom- 
inent oculist of Hartford, Conn., who was 
graduated from the Homeopathic Medical Col- 
lege, of New York City; Milton H., a well- 
known physician of Salt Point; and J. Thorne, 
who is station agent and telegraph operator for 
the Poughkeepsie & Eastern R. R. Co. , at 
Pine Plains, Dutchess county. 

At Salt Point our subject spent his boy- 
hood days, where he attended the district 
schools, and later was a student at a private 
school in New Hampshire. Going to Chatham, 
Columbia Co., N. Y., he was there employed 
as a salesman in a dry-goods store for about 
five years. He was afterward with Luckey, 
Piatt & Co., and Donald, Converse & May- 
nard, of Poughkeepsie. On coming to Wap- 
pingers Falls in 1880, Mr. Angell formed a 
partnership with William A. Clapp in the dry- 
goods business, which connection lasted for 
three years, since which time our subject has 
been sole proprietor, and has ever been prom- 
inently connected with the business interests of 
the place. 

In 1882, Mr. Angell married Miss Margaret 
J. Stevenson, a daughter of Thomas Steven- 
son, a comb manufacturer, and a niece of 
George Stevenson, a prominent resident of 
Dutchess county. One son graces this union, 
Wintield Thorne. In politics, Mr. Angell is a 
firm supporter of the Republica party, and has 
taken a prominent part in public affairs, always 
lending his influence to promote the best in- 
terests of the community. His personal in- 
tegrity, both in private and public life, is of 
the highest order. He is endowed with a 
clear, well-balanced intellect, sharpened by a 
sound education and keen powers of observa- 
tion. Both himself and wife are consistent 
members of the Presbyterian Church, in which 



644 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHIVAL RECORD. 



he is serving as deacon, and he is at present 

one of the trustees of the Grinnell Library, at 
Wappingers Falls. 



EDMUND NELSON LANDON, an enter- 
prising and successful merchant of Miller- 
ton, Dutchess county, was born November 23, 
1852, at Town Hill, Salisbury, Conn., which 
has been the home of the family for more 
than one hundred years. The family estate 
there is at present in the possession of acousin, 
having been continuously passed from heir to 
heir since Colonial times without a single trans- 
fer by deed. Mr. Landon is the si.xth generation 
in direct descent from a Landon who came from 
Wales to Connecticut sometime in the seven- 
teenth century, and after a short stay in Litch- 
field settled at Salisbury. A son, Capt. James 
Landon, who was born there about 1700, and 
lived until 1773, was a member of the Colonial 
legislature in 1759, and justice of the peace 
about the same time. His title was gained by 
serving in the Colonial militia. He married 
Mary Reed, and had twelve children, three of 
whom were named: Ashbil, David, Joel. 
Capt. Ashbil Landon, our subject's great- 
grandfather, who died in 1838, was also an 
officer in the militia, and was a prominent 
man of his time. He lived on Tory Hill, so 
called from the loyalty of his family to the 
British government during the Revolutionary 
war. He married Lorain Chapman, by whom 
he had six children: Betsey, Letty, William, 
Horace, Edmund and James. 

Edmund Landon, our subject's grandfa- 
ther, was born in 1790, and died in 1845. He 
was a farmer, as nearly all his family have 
been, and was fairly successful in that occupa- 
tion. He was twice married, first to Sylvia 
Fitch, who died leaving four children: Nel- 
son, Fitch, Abigail and Ann. His second wife 
was Sarah Lord, who survived him several 
years, dying in 1862. She had four children: 
Ashbil, Thomas Newton, George and Asa. 
Thomas Newton died at the age of eleven. 

Nelson Landon, our subject's father, was 
born in 1817, and died in 18S7, his life having 
been passed in agricultural pursuits. He 
owned a farm of 200 acres, acquired by his own 
efforts, and gave but little attention to public 
affairs, preferring a quiet life. He was, how- 
ever, a well-informed man of broad ideas, a 
Whig in political faith during his early years, 
and later a Republican. His wife was Mary 



Raymond, daughter of Gershom Raymond, of 
South Norwalk. This family was of French 
descent, the name being at one time Raiment. 

The first ancestor of the American line was 
one of the founders of South Norwalk. and one 
of the original patentees of the land there. 
Seven children were born of this marriage: 
Fannie Reed, Mary Ella, Edmund Nelson, 
Raymond Fitch, Jennie (deceased), Horace 
and Angeline. 

Edmund N. Landon received a good edu- 
cation in his youth, attending first the district 
schools of the neighborhood, and later the 
academies of Lakeville and Lime Rock, Conn. 
After leaving school, in 1874, he taught at 
Orr Hill (one term), Sharon and Salisbury, 
and then began clerking for W. B. Hawley, 
at Sherman, Conn., in a general store. There 
he remained about six years, and then became 
traveling salesman for J. L. Clark & Son, 
manufacturers of carriages, Oshkosh, Wis., 
and for two years represented them in the east- 
ern and middle States. He then traveled for 
the house of L D. Ware, of Philadelphia, 
manufacturer of varnishes and japans, and 
later for the Ware Brothers, publishers of the 
Carriage Monthly, remaining with them 
four years. In 18S7, he left "the road" to 
take a position in the store of C. B. Dakin & 
Co., of Sharon, Conn., and early in the follow- 
ing year became to Millerton, where he opened 
a general store on the ist of April, under the 
firm name of E. N. Landon & Co. In 1893 
he sold this business to Hoag & Reefer, and 
bought a store building of Julius Benedict, in 
which he established his present business as a 
dealer in fiour, feed, grain and coal. He has a 
large trade, extending for a considerable dis- 
tance around Millerton, and amounting to 
about forty thousand annually. His keen 
judgment and energetic methods have insured 
his success in his undertakings, and he has a 
high standing in business circles. 

On March 30, 1887, Mr. Landon married 
Miss Adelaide Cross Barker, daughter of Henry 
Barker, a well-known resident of White Creek, 
Washington Co., N. Y. , and they have one 
daughter, Adelaide Barker Landon. On na- 
tional political (juestions Mr. Landon is a Re- 
publican, but on local issues he votes independ- 
ently, giving his support to the "best man." 
He has repeatedly been urged to enter the po- 
litical field himself, but has declined to do so, 
and on one occasion when elected justice of 
the peace he did not qualify, as he did not 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



645 



wish to take the office. He takes a hearty in- 
terest in local improvements, however, and is 
always ready to promote them in a quiet way. 



;^ENRY BODENSTEIN, a prominent and 
|rl worthy citizen of Staatsburg, is exten- 
sively engaged in the manufacture of ice tools, 
having a large plant in that village. He was 
born September 28, 1S52, in Nesselreden, 
Hessen, Germany, a son of John H. and 
Dorothia (Boerner) Bodenstein, natives of 
the same place, and of whom mention is made 
elsewhere. 

In 1858 our subject came to America with 
his parents, and in the common schools of 
Staatsburg, Rockland Lake, N. Y., Jersey 
City, N. J., and Athens, N. Y. , he received 
his education. At the age of sixteen he left 
the school-room in order to start out in life 
for himself, and for two 3'ears he worked at 
cigarmaking in Hudson and Athens, N. Y. 
At this time his father was much in need of 
help, so he decided to learn the trade, and ac- 
cordingly entered the establishment of his 
father, who was then in the manufacture of 
ice tools in Staatsburg. He gradually 
worked his way upward until he became mas- 
ter of every department of the business, and 
remained in his father's employ from 1868 to 
1875. After the latter's death he, with his 
brother, continued the business for the estate 
until 1877, and then formed a partnership 
under the firm name of J. G. Bodenstein & 
Brother. In 1887, the name was changed to 
J. G. & H. Bodenstein, and the firm con- 
tinued to do business until March 22, 1890, 
when the co-partnership was dissolved. Our 
subject has since conducted the business alone 
at the same stand where his father carried on 
operations, and has built up a large trade 
which extends over the whole country. 
While the name Bodenstein is a guarantee as 
to workmanship and the quality of material 
used in the manufacture of their tools by the 
use of improved machinery, he has increased 
the facilities for getting out ice tools. 

In 1879 Mr. Bodenstein was united in 
marriage with Antoinette Podrabski, and to 
them have been born eight children: Clar- 
ence Henry, Charles Irving, Morgan, Harriet 
Eliza, Sarah Margaret, Ernest Frederick 
Adam, Laura Antoinette and Louise Amelia. 
Formerly our subject cast his ballot with the 
Republicans, but is now a strong Prohibition- 



ist, as that party embodies his views on the 
temperance question. He and his wife are 
faitliful members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, in which he has served as trustee and 
steward. Socially he is identified with Rhine- 
beck Lodge No. 432, F. & A. M. 



WILLIAM C. ARMSTRONG is one of 
the popular and esteemed citizens of 

Pleasant Valley. Though his connection with 
the history of Dutchess county extends over a 
period of thirty-three years, he was in his ear- 
lier life an extensive traveler, and thereby be- 
came a man of broad mind and liberal views. 
He was born in New York City October 24, 
1830, but for many generations his ancestors 
had lived in Scotland. His father, Henry 
Armstrong, an only child, was born in Glasgow, 
Scotland. He wedded Mary Clifford, and 
shortly afterward sailed for New York, where 
both he and his wife died of cholera in 1837. 
The}' were members of the Presbyterian 
Church, and people of genuine worth. Their 
family included five children: John A., an en- 
gineer, residing in New York City; William C. , 
subject of this review; Thomas, who carried on 
harness-making in Syracuse, N. Y., but is now 
deceased; Henry, also deceased, who was an 
engineer of New York, and ran on several 
river boats; and Elizabeth, deceased. 

Mr. Armstrong, whose name introduces 
this review, spent his boyhood days in his na- 
tive city, and is indebted to its public schools 
for his educational privileges. There he re- 
ceived his training as an engineer, working in 
the Novelty Iron Works for twelve years, and 
in the Cold Springs foundry for three years. 
He afterward became engineer on the steamer 
" Golden Gate," running between Panama and 
San Francisco, Cal., his service in that line 
covering a period of one year. He was then 
employed to construct the river passenger boat 
"Talca," for the government of Chili, and 
made his headquarters at Valparaiso in that 
country. He next went to Cuba, where he 
took charge of a sugar plantation, thus spend- 
ing the winter seasons for nine years. During 
this period he purchased machinery to the 
value of many thousand dollars in Newburg, 
N. Y. , and sent to the island of Cuba. His 
extensive travels gave him a knowledge of the 
regions which he visited, that any amount of 
reading could not have done, and he can re- 
late many interesting incidents concerning the 



646 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



places he ha« visited. He is a man of com- 
prehensive business powers, of ceaseless activ- 
ity and enterprise, and the success he has 
achieved is the merited reward of bis own 
labors. 

Mr. Armstrong has been twice married. 
He wedded Elizabeth Scott, a native of New- 
York, who lived only a few years. They had 
two children, but one died in infancy, and 
Emma is also now deceased. She was the 
wife of Frederick J. Fay, of Brooklyn, pay- 
teller for the Union Trust Company, of New 
York. In 1862 Mr. Armstrong married Hes- 
ter I. Seaman, a native of Pleasant Yalley, 
and a daughter of Egbert C. and Eliza (Van- 
Wagner) Seaman, the latter a native of Dutch- 
ess county. The father was a harnessmaker 
of Pleasant Valley. In 1863 Mr. and Mrs. 
Armstrong located in this place, and their home 
has been blessed with two daughters, Clara 
and Bessie, the former now the wife of Har- 
vey G. Ward, who is engaged in the practice 
of law in New York City, but resides in Ridge- 
wood, N. J. Bessie became the wife of 
George Rutherford, a music teacher and dealer 
in music, Poughkeepsie. 

Since locating in Pleasant Valley, Mr. .-\rm- 
strong has conducted a hotel, and his pleasant, 
genial and courteous manner, combined with 
honorable dealing, makes him a popular land- 
lord and his house a favorite with the travel- 
ing public. He is also a dealer in coal, and 
has an extensive trade among the citizens of 
Pleasant Valley. Public-spirited and progress- 
ive, he manifests a commendable interest in 
everything pertaining to the welfare of the 
community, and is found a liberal supporter 
of all enterprises calculated to prove of public 
benefit. He would be a valued addition to any 
community, and his fellow-townsmen hold him 
in high regard. 



CHARLES A. STEPHENS, one of the 
most enterprising business men of Miller- 
ton, Dutchess county, was born December 14, 
1 85 1, in Morrisania, then in Westchester 
county, but now a part of New York City. 
The family originated in Scotland, his grand- 
father, Thomas Stephens, having emigrated 
from that country in 1821, accompanied by 
his wife, Margaret Perkins, daughter of Thomas 
Perkins. He located in New York City, where 
he followed the trade of ship carpenter until 
his death, in 1S35; his wife died in 1827. 



They had three children — Thomas, who was 
drowned; John, our subject's father, and Mar- 
garet, who married H. Higgirvson, a builder. 

John Stephens was born in New York City 
August 6, 1822, and at an early age found 
employment in the Morrisania Railroad Car 
Shops. His unusual ability soon attracted the 
notice of the officials, and he was promoted to 
a position of responsibility; in 1859 was trans- 
ferred to Dover Plains and placed in charge of 
the car repairing department, where he re- 
mained until he retired from active business, 
in 1892. At that time the Harlem road ac- 
cepted his resignation with reluctance, not- 
withstanding his advanced age. He was a 
well-read man, a close observer and original 
thinker, and could have made a success of 
almost any enterprise. Although he has al- 
ways been a stanch Republican in principle, 
he has taken no part in political work. He is 
an active worker in the Masonic Lodge of 
Dover, and is a regular attendant of the Bap- 
tist Church. His first wife was Miss Anna 
Reed, daughter of James Reed, of New York 
City, who died at the age of twenty-seven, 
leaving three children: Thomas, born in 1849, 
died in 1869; Charles Anthony, our subject; 
and John George, born in June, 1856, is now 
the agent of the Harlem railroad at Fordham, 
and a dealer in electrical appliances for domes- 
tic use. In 1858 Mr. Stephens married, for 
his second wife. Miss Jane Reed. 

Charles A. Stephens attended the district 
schools near his home for some time, and later 
spent two or three years in the Dover Plains 
Academy. When he was about sixteen years 
old he became a clerk in B. F. Chapman's 
coal and lumber yard at Dover Plains, and in 
the following year went to Poughkeepsie, as 
clerk in the dry-goods store of \V. H. Broas. 
Here he worked for a year and a half, when, 
his health failing, he returned to Dover. 
While recuperating, he studied medicine with 
Dr. Berry, of Dover Plains, for two years, but 
decided that he would not follow the profes- 
sion. He had also gained a knowledge of 
telegraphy in the meantime, and in February, 
1873, was appointed agent of the Newburg, 
Dutchess & Connecticut railroad, at Fishkill, 
and in the spring of 1 874 took a similar position 
at Sylvan Lake. He lived at that place for 
thirteen years, and was postmaster under Pres- 
ident Arthur and, later, under President Harri- 
son. He was also engaged in the coal business 
there, and owned and operated a farm of fifty 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Ul 



acres for about ten years, while for some time 
he was a conductor on the Clove Branch rail- 
road. In 1887 he moved to Fordham, and 
bought an express business in New York City, 
which he sold after seven months. He then 
took a position as telegraph operator at White 
Plains, but after four months there he returned 
to his old situation at Sylvan Lake, where he 
remained until August, 1894, when he was 
transferred to Millerton. In addition to his 
work as station agent there, he is the repre- 
sentative of the New York Life Insurance 
Company, and since September, 1894, has 
been a member of the well-known firm of 
Landon & Stephens, the leading wholesale 
and retail coal dealers. 

Mr. Stephens is a firm believer in the prin- 
ciples of the Republican party, and in local 
affairs is an active and progressive worker, 
seeking always to secure the nomination and 
election of good men. He has taken great in- 
terest in educational matters also. He belongs 
to the Reformed Dutch Church at Hopewell, 
and is a member of and officer in Webatuck 
Lodge No. 480, F. & A. M. 

Mr. Stephens married Miss Helen E. West- 
cott, by whom he has had two children — 
George Westcott and Helen Anthony. Mrs. 
Stephens is a descendant of two of the oldest 
families of the town of Fishkill — the Westcotts 
and the Scofields. Her father, the late George 
W. Westcott, a son of Abram W. Westcott, 
a pioneer farmer, was a prominent man of that 
locality, the owner of a fine farm, devoted 
largely to fruit raising, and for some years a 
leading merchant at Glenham. His influence 
in local affairs and in the Democratic organiza- 
tion was marked, and he held the offices of 
supervisor and assessor for a number of years. 
He died in December, 1891, in his seventy- 
ninth year. He was twice married, first to 
Miss Helen Mills, by whom he had five chil- 
dren — George, Elbert, Matilda, Adaline, and 
Abram; and, second, to Miss Jane E. Storm, 
of Stormville. Two children were born of 
this union — John and .Helen — the latter of 
whom and her half-sister, Matilda, are now 
the only survivors of the family. 



OBERT MATTHEWS. This gentleman, 
who spent his early manhood in active 
business, mainly in agricultural pursuits, is 
now living retired at Wappingers Falls, 
Dutchess county. A native of that county, 



he was born in the town of Poughkeepsie, 
November I, 1825. His paternal great-grand- 
father was born in either Ireland or Scotland, 
and, on crossing the Atlantic to America, lo- 
cated in Dutchess county, where he carried on 
farming as a life work. When the colonists 
took up arms against the mother country, he 
joined the ranks of the Continental army, and 
was killed in battle. 

Samuel Matthews, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born in the town of Poughkeep- 
sie, September 25, 1756, there grew to man- 
hood, and followed the occupation of farming 
and carpentering. He married Mary Comp- 
ton, of Canada, and they became the parents 
of four children: John, who became a farmer 
in the town of Poughkeepsie; Robert, the 
father of our subject; Mary, who became the 
wife of Isaac A. Willsey, a farmer of Albany 
county, N. Y. ; and Jane, who died when 
young. The family were members of the Re- 
formed Dutch Church. 

Robert Matthews, Sr., was also born in 
the town of Poughkeepsie, on December 22, 
1788, and was there reared upon a farm. He 
was married to Jane Jaycox, who was born 
March 3. 1794, in the same town, and was a 
daughter of Benjamin and Gertrude Jaycox, 
the former a native of Dutchess county, and a 
farmer by occupation. Shortly after their 
marriage they located upon a farm in the town 
of Poughkeepsie, where they reared their chil- 
dren, six in number, namely: Samuel, who 
throughout life engaged in farming in that 
town; Maria, who married Harvey Van Dyne, 
a farmer of the same town; Jane Ann, the 
widow of Henry Willsey, of Albany county, 
N. Y.; Robert, of this review; Harriett, who 
married H. Ferdon, a farmer of Poughkeepsie; 
and John, who still carries on agricultural pur- 
suits in that town. The father's death oc- 
curred May 4, 1872, and the mother departed 
this life December 20, 1857. They were both 
earnest members of the Reformed Dutch 
Church, and in politics he was a Democrat. 

At the schools near the home farm our sub- 
ject received his education, and on reaching 
manhood was married December 20, 1865, to 
Olive Goodsell, a native of the town of Dover, 
Dutchess county, where the births of her par- 
ents, Elliott and Beulah (Thompson) Goodsell, 
also occurred. Isaac Goodsell, her paternal 
grandfather, came to this country from Man- 
chester, England, and on the maternal side 
also she is of English descent. Upon his mar- 



648 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



riage Mr. Matthews located upon a farm in 
Poughkeepsie town, which he operated until 
his removal to Wappingers Falls in 1874, 
since which time he has lived retired from 
active labor, enjoying the fruits of his former 
toil. He votes the straight Democratic ticket. 
Both himself and wife are prominent people 
of the community, and receive the warmest 
confidence and esteem of their fellow-citizens. 



LeGRAND graham, of Clinton Hollow, 
/ a miller by trade, and one of the most 

popular auctioneers in Dutchess county, was 
born in the town of Ghent, Columbia county. 
May 14, 1847. 

The late Mrgil B. Graham, our subject's 
father, was a native of Connecticut, born 
June 29, 1795. He was educated in Rhode 
Island, and when a young man came to Ghent, 
where he followed the trade of cradle and 
wagon making. He possessed a fine intellect, 
and was a great reader, taking especial inter- 
est in political science. He was a soldier in 
the war of 18 12. After his removal to Col- 
umbia county, he married Miss Elizabeth 
Miller, who was born in 1803, and died in 
1896, in the ninety-third year of her age, at 
the home of our subject, who is the youngest 
of her eleven children. The names of the 
others are: Charles H., Gertrude, Franklin, 
Abner, William, Sarah, Sylvester, Eliza, Jane 
and Almon. Of these only Gertrude, Frank- 
lin, and the two last named are now living. 

The early education of LeGrand Graham 
was acquired at Ghent, Columbia county, and 
at Clinton, Dutchess county. For some time 
he taught school, working on a farm during 
vacations, and for a year and a half he con- 
ducted a store at Clinton Hollow. In 1864 
he enlisted in the First New York Mounted 
Rifles, and his first battle was on September 
28, 1864, at Chapin's farm, Va. He was 
mustered out of service at Richmond, Va. , at 
the close of the war, and returned to Ghent, 
N. Y. In the spring of 1867 he came to 
Dutchess county, engaging in farming and 
merchandising, and in 1871 he began to oper- 
ate a gristmill and sawmill at Clinton Hollow, 
in a buildmg w-hich has stood for one hundred 
and fifty years. He is energetic and far- 
sighted, and has won a fine standing in busi- 
ness circles. He has been twice married, first, 
on June 26, 1873, to Miss Jane M. Latten, 
daughter of Adolphus D. Latten, of Clinton. 



She died January 19, 1878, leaving one daugh- 
ter. Bertha, and December 24, 1879, Mr. Gra- 
ham married Miss Ella Smith, daughter of 
Stephen H. Smith, of Clinton. Two children 
were born to this union; Frank and Florence. 
In politics Mr. Graham is a Republican, 
and ne takes an active share in local affairs, 
having been town clerk for five years in all, 
and at present is holding the office of excise 
commissioner of the town of Clinton. He is 
a member of the G. A. R. , Armstrong Lodge 
No. 104, at Rhinebeck, and of the F. & A. M., 
Warren Lodge No. 32, at Schultzville. 



ARTHUR R. TIEL, M. D., a prominent 
physician and surgeon, of Matteawan, 

N. Y. , whose abilities have received recogni- 
tion far beyond the limits of his own locality, 
was born October 14, 1S54, in Ashland, Greene 
county, where his family was located for some 
time. 

His great-grandfather, Jacob Tiel, settled 
in Rhinebeck with others from Holland. Later, 
his grandfather, Henry Tiel, moved to Greene 
county, and was there a resident for most of 
his life. His son, J. W. Tiel, the father of 
the subject of this sketch, was born in the 
same county, in 1S25. and remained there till 
of middle life, when he moved with his family 
to Newark, N. J. After living there for some 
time the family moved to Matteawan, where 
they were impelled owing to the hatting in- 
dustry, which was the trade of Mr. Tiel. A 
little later Mr. Tiel went into the grocery busi- 
ness in Newburgh, and at an early age, and for 
some time, Arthur acted as bookkeeper for his 
father. About this time he made up his mind 
to study medicine, and began this study in the 
office of Dr. William Jones, of Newburgh. 
In 187S he was graduated from the Eclectic 
Medical College, of the city of New York. 
Since that date he has followed his profession 
at Matteawan, and has built up a large and 
lucrative practice. He located at first on 
Main street, opposite the depot, and in 1885 
he established his office in his newlj--built 
residence, called " Beaconview, " situated on 
Tioronda avenue, in full sight of North Beacon. 

In 1880 Dr. Tiel was married to his first 
wife. Miss Ella F. R. Brown, daughter of 
William H. Brown, a respected citizen of 
Matteawan. She lived her married life only 
fourteen months, and in 1SS5 the Doctor mar- 
ried Miss Elizabeth H. Badeau, daughter of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



649 



Joseph N. Badeau. They have two children: 
Arthur David, born in 1887; and Helen Jose- 
phine, born in 1895. 

The Doctor and his wife are both greatly 
interested in various movements, social, relig- 
ious, educational and philanthropical, and have 
ably assisted many a worthy enterprise. We 
may note especially the Matteawan Public Li- 
brary, of which the Doctor is treasurer and sec- 
retary of the executive committee. They are 
active members of the M. E. Church, and the 
Doctor is recording steward, member of the 
official board and president of the Epworth 
League, while for eight years he was superin- 
tendent of the Sunday-school. He has always 
been a worker in the temperance cause, and 
for some years has been a leader in the Prohibi- 
tionparty in his locality, having beennominated 
for every important office in his town and dis- 
trict. Among his professional brethren he is 
also held in high esteem, and he is at present 
secretary of the Hudson River District Eclec- 
tic Medical Society; in 1894 was treasurer of 
the New York State Eclectic Medical Society, 
and last year was its president. He was re- 
cently elected by the State board of Regents as 
a member of the medical examining board, of 
which he is secretary. 



CHARLES A. CARE, a well-known resi- 
dent of Millerton, Dutchess county, was 
born October 15, 1846, in Reffroy, France; 
his family is one of the oldest in that part of 
the country. Claude Care, his grandfather, 
was a cooper by trade, and followed this occu- 
pation successfully during his entire life, 
accumulating a fair competence. He married 
Marie Ann Boulard, and they had five chil- 
dren: Marie, Jannette, Margarette, Marie Ann 
and Laurent. He died in France in 1861, 
and his wife in 1859. 

Laurent Care, our subject's father, was 
born May 19, 18 19, and came to America in 
1854. He married Justine Monory, and they 
had three children: Aderal, Charles A., and 
Clarice, who married Charles Pierson. Laurent 
Care was a sawyer by trade, but had been 
employed in France as a common laborer, in 
getting timber out and making charcoal, and 
other work of similar kind, and possessing 
good natural abilities and a laudable ambition, 
he determined, if possible, to better his con- 
dition. On coming to this country he located 
in the town of Beckett, Berkshire Co., Mass. 



His wife died August 28, 1862, and ten years 
later he accompanied his son Charles to Mil- 
lerton, where he died December 16, 1895. 
He had been somewhat active in politics in 
France, but while heartily in sympathy with 
the progress of his adopted country, he took 
no part in public life. 

The subject of our sketch attended the 
schools of his native land for a few years be- 
fore coming to America, but his education was 
mainly acquired in Berkshire county, Mass., 
at Beckett and Muddy Brook, near Stock- 
bridge. He received a good academic educa- 
tion, and has always been an intelligent reader, 
especially fond of history. After leaving 
school he assisted his father in the lumber 
business, until his enlistment, August 28, 1864, 
in Company G, Second Massachusetts Heavy 
Artillery. He served until the close of the 
war, being transferred, however, to Company 
A, 17th Mass. V. I. Among the engagements 
in which this gallant compatriot of La Fay- 
ette took part were the battles of Wises 
Forks, N. C., in March, 1865; Kingston and 
Goldsboro. On his return home in July, 1865, 
he engaged in the hotel business at Pittsfield, 
Mass., for four years. In April, 1872, he 
came to Millerton and opened a hotel in the 
brick block, but after four years there he went 
into the wood and coal business, which he car- 
ried on for three years. He then became a 
clerk in the " Amenia House," in Amenia, and 
a year later established his present business, 
in which he has been very successful. He 
married Phcebe Ann Loring, daughter of 
Chester O. Loring, a prominent citizen of 
Sheffield, Mass., and has had seven children: 
Charles A., Jr., deceased; Clarice; Florence; 
Mamie; Eugene, deceased; Frankie, deceased; 
and Fannie. 

In public affairs Mr. Care has taken an 
active and influential part, and has always 
worked for the welfare of the community. He 
was a Democrat until 1876, but since that 
time has given his support to the Republican 
party. He is now deputy sheriff under Jerry 
S. Pierce, and has been constable for some 
years; was elected collector for the town of 
Northeast by the largest majority given any 
candidate on the Republican ticket. He is a 
member of Webatuck Lodge No. 480, F. & 
A. M., of the Odd Fellows Lodge, No. 319, 
and of the Grand Army of the Republic, in 
which he now holds the rank of adjutant of 
Henry Gedley Post No. 617. 



650 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



CHARLES HAMILTON DAVIS. Jr.. a 
prominent and representative citizen of 
Ainenia. Dutchess county, was born in Wor- 
cester county. Mass.. March 8, 1840. a son of 
Charles H. and Lucinda (Mundell) Davis, who 
are the parents of four children, of whom our 
subject is the eldest. The others are: George 
H., who died in 1863; Ginery T., of Auburn- 
dale, Mass.; and Frank, who died in infancy. 
The father, also a native of Worcester county, 
Mass., was born in 18 10. and has there fol- 
lowed farming most of his life. He is still 
living, and enjoys the respect and esteem of 
all who know him. 

In the district schools of his native county 
our subject acquired his elementary education, 
and completed his literary course at the Barre 
Academy, in Barre, Mass., after which he 
taught school for several years in that State. 
In the spring of 1864, he entered the East- 
man Business College, at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., 
and on leaving that institution secured the po- 
sition of bookkeeper in the City National 
Bank of Poughkeepsie, where he remained for 
eight years. 

In 1872, Mr. Davis located in Amenia, 
where he has since served as assistant cashier 
and notary public in the First National Bank. 
During President Cleveland's first administra- 
tion, he was appointed national bank examiner 
for a term of four years, and for many years 
served as justice of the peace at Amenia, in 
fact holding the office as long as he would ac- 
cept of it. He is public-spirited and progress- 
ive, faithfully discharging every duty of citi- 
zenship, and has hosts of friends throughout 
the county. Politically, he is a stanch Demo- 
crat, and has been the nominee on his party's 
ticket for county treasurer of Dutchess county. 
Religiously, he holds membership with the Bap- 
tist Church at Amenia. 

While a resident of Poughkeepsie, Mr. 
Davis was united in marriage with Lucy E. 
Harrington, who died in that city. Later, in 
Worcester county, Mass., he wedded Miss 
Minnie R. Harrington, and they have one son, 
Robert S., born June 4, 1883. 



GEORGE SEDGWICK NORTON. The 
history of the American branch of the 
Norton family begins in the days of the Pilgrim 
Fathers with the emigration of three brothers 
of that name from the home of their ancestors, 
near the border line between England and Scot- 



land. They landed at Plymouth Rock, and 
while one son went farther west to locate at 
Whitehall, N. Y., two settled in Berkshire 
county, Mass., where their descendants have 
maintained a high reputation for ability and 
pniblic spirit. 

The subject of this sketch is descended 
from this Berkshire-county line, and his great- 
grandfather, Jonathan Norton, was among the 
distinguished citizens^of that locality in his 
day, owning between two and three thousand 
acres of land, and holding various positions of 
honor and usefulness. In 1790 he was com- 
missioned captain in the State militia by John 
Hancock, the immortal signer of the Declara- 
tion of Independence, who was at that time 
governor of Massachusetts. Jonathan Norton 
was a Whig in politics, and, with the excep- 
tion of one man who voted for George B. Mc- 
Clellan, his posterity at all times have sup- 
ported the Whig and Republican parties. He 
married, and had three sons — Jonathan L., 
Roderick J. and Lyman — and two or three 
daughters, all of whom married. 

Roderick J. Norton, our subject's grand- 
father, possessed great natural ability, and, 
like his father, was a man of prominence. His 
holdings in real estate were very extensive, and 
he followed farming all his life. In local poli- 
tics he was \evy active, holding at different 
times all the offices in his town and several in 
the county. He and the majority of his fam- 
ily were leading members of the Congrega- 
tional Church. His wife, Rhoda (Johnson), 
was a member of an old Granville, Mass., 
family, daughter of Charles and granddaughter 
of Timothy Johnson. They had seven chil- 
dren, of whom the first, Roderick J., died in 
childhood. Isaac was treasurer and clerk of 
the town of Otis, Berkshire county, for fifty- 
two years without being required to furnish a 
bond, and his term of service only ended at 
his death, when he was ninety-four years old. 
Elam was at one time sheriff of the county, 
and was trial justice for twenty-five years, and 
justice of the peace for seventy years, being 
elected at the age of twenty-one, and holding 
the office until his death, which occurred when 
he was ninety-one. Unlike the rest of the 
family, he was an Episcopalian. Harriet mar- 
ried Robert Hunter, of Berkshire county. Rod- 
erick Hyde is mentioned more fully below. 
Sedgwick died at twenty-one years of age. 
George was a harness maker of the town of 
Otis, Berkshire county, and lived to the age 



OOMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



651 



of seventy-seven years. Roderick J. Norton 
died in 1S48, and his wife in 1858. 

Roderick Hyde Norton, our subject's fa- 
ther, was born at the old home March 19, 
1S09, and was intended for the ministry; but 
on account of financial reverses his education 
was interrupted, and at twenty-one he began 
teaching, which occupation he followed suc- 
cessfully some forty years. His first school 
was at Claverack, Columbia Co., N. Y., where 
he met and married his first wife, Harriet 
Bierce, who was born in 180S in an old brick 
house on the post road between Ghent and 
Hudson. Her father, Bradford Bierce, was a 
prominent resident of the town. After two 
years in Claverack, Mr. Norton returned to 
his native place, and for many years taught at 
Otis, Mass., becoming known as one of the 
ablest teachers of that region. For twenty- 
five years he was chairman of the examining 
committee, was a selectman of the town for 
many years, and was a deacon in the Congre- 
gational Church. The last ten years of his 
life were spent at Egremont, Mass., in agricult- 
ural pursuits. His first wife died August 17, 
1 86 1, and he formed a second matrimonial 
alliance with Miss Dora Van Buren fa second 
cousin of President Van Buren), of Stockport, 
Columbia Co., N. Y. She departed this life 
in 18S2, and on October 12 of the following 
year he breathed his last. There was no off- 
spring by the last marriage, but his first wife 
bore him four children, of whom three grew to 
adult age. (i) Isaac F. was given good ad- 
vantages in his youth, and became wealthy. 
For some years he was a merchant at Egre- 
mont, Mass., but later traveled as a salesman. 
(2) Bradford B. followed mercantile pursuits 
for some years at Blandford, Mass., and East 
Winsted, Conn., afterward removing to Gold 
Hill, Nev., where he acquired great wealth, 
owning a large ranch and holding an interest 
in many valuable properties. He was treas- 
urer and secretary of eight different mining 
companies. He possessed great influence in 
political circles, and in 1880 was urged to ac- 
cept the nomination for governor. Against 
his own wish he undertook the campaign, and 
was defeated by but a very small majority. 
In the following -year his death occurred 
through overwork. 

(3) George S. Norton, the youngest son, 
was born at Otis, Mass., August 19, 1841, and 
his educational advantages were confined to 
three years and four months attendance at the 



district schools; but he has so thoroughly in- 
formed himself upon important topics of the day 
that these limitations would not be suspected. 
At the age of eleven he was put to work upon 
the farm, and practically placed in charge, and 
when he was fifteen he raised 500 bushels of 
potatoes and 100 of corn. In the fall of 1859 
he apprenticed himself to J. L. Fatro, of Win- 
sted, Conn., for two years, at $50 for the 
entire term, in order to learn the blacksmith's 
trade. Before the expiration of his term in 
had become proficient in the business, and he 
April, 1 86 1, he opened a shop in Egremont, 
Mass., where he spent one year. He then 
went to CoUinsville, Conn., and worked for 
Mr. Shook six months, forging plow standards, 
afterward returning home for a year. On re- 
suming his trade he went to Salisbury to work 
for Mr. Pratt; but after four months, ill health 
caused him to choose another occupation, and 
he went "on the road" selling a "Life of 
Lincoln. " Six months later he widened his 
field of operations, selling jewelry, silverware 
and cigars, in which he continued successfully 
until 1875. During the previous year he had 
bought the hotel at Pawling, known as "Trav- 
elers' Home," which he had been carrying on 
m connection with his other business, and on 
leaving the road he gave his attention to its 
management. For two years he conducted a 
jewelry store also. In 1880 he engaged in the 
business of shipping ice to New York City, and 
after the sale of the hotel to Frank Lee, in 
1 88 1, he carried on the retail ice business un- 
til 1896, when he sold out and began contract- 
ing to do various kinds of work, chiefly the 
transplanting of trees. In this he is remarka- 
bly successful, having moved shade trees which 
were fifty feet high and fifteen iches in diameter. 
On August 22, 1870, Mr. Norton was mar- 
ried to Miss Siche Doughty, daughter of Peter 
D. and Emma Doughty, prominent residents 
of Beekman, and he has a pleasant home in 
Pawling, his present residence, built in 1881, 
being one of the finest in the village. Aside 
from his business activities, in which his 
success has won for him a high reputation for 
good judgment, Mr. Norton is interested in all 
movements of public importance, and was 
among the leading promoters of the plans for 
the incorporation of the village and the con- 
struction of the water works. In politics he 
is active and influential, giving his support to 
the Republican party, and he has held all 
offices except those of supervisor and deputy 



(Jo-2 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



sheriff, and for eleven years he has been justice 
of the peace. Although often urged to become 
a candidate for supervisor, he has declined. 
For twenty-five years he has been chairman of 
the town committee, and for three years chair- 
man of the Assembly committee of the First 
District, and for a quarter of a century he has 
attended every Assembly convention but one, 
and most of the county conventions. He has 
been a member of the I. O. O. F. for twenty- 
one years, and is now an active worker in 
Lodge No. 1/3, Patterson. At one time he 
held the office of noble grand, and he has 
passed the chair fifteen times. 



DW. WILBUR, one of the able and ener- 
getic business men of Red Hook, Dutchess 
county, who have made that charming village 
a thriving commercial point, is descended from 
one of the oldest families of Dutchess county. 
His great-great-grandfather, Jeptha Wilbur, 
was one of the earliest settlers of the Nine Part- 
ners Patent in that county. He had a son Jep- 
tha (2), who had a son Samuel, born in March, 
1782, who married Elizabeth Hicks, whose 
birth occurred in 178C. Samuel Wilbur died 
at the age of forty-five, but his wife attained the 
ripe old age of ninety-five. They reared a fam- 
ily of five sons and three daughters, and three of 
the number are still living. One of the sons, 
Jeptha S. Wilbur, our subject's father, was born 
in the town of Pine Plains, October 29, 1818. 
He married Miss Mary J. Story, and made his 
home in his native township, where D. W. 
Wilbur was born January 18, 1857. The 
schools of that locality furnished our subject 
an opportunity for securing the rudiments of 
knowledge, and he afterward took a course of 
study in the De Garmo Institute, Rhinebeck. 
On his return home he assisted in the develop- 
ment and cultivation of the farm, until he 
reached the age of twenty-five, when he removed 
to Red Hook and entered into the coal and 
lumber business with his father-in-law, H. H. 
Conklin, under the firm name of H. H. Conk- 
lin & Co., which was continued until the death 
of the senior partner, August i, 1883. Since 
that time Mr. Wilbur has conducted the busi- 
ness as the sole owner. In addition to this, he 
is also engaged in the coal trade in Poughkeep- 
sie under the firm name of Wilbur Bros; is 
president of the Kaal Rock Chair Co. , of Pough- 
keepsie, and secretary and treasurer of the Red 
Hook Telephone Company. 



On November i", 1881, our subject was 
married to Miss Mary G. Conklin, a daughter of 
Henry H. and Ann Eliza (Gif!ord)Conkrm. Her 
birth occurred in Red Hook, April 7, 1S57, and 
she received her elementary schooling there, 
afterward supplementing it with a course in the 
De Garmo Institute, Rhinebeck. from which she 
was graduated in 1875. For several years 
prior to her marriage Mrs. Wilbur was a teacher 
in the public school of Red Hook, and was very 
successful in her professional work. Mr. and 
Mrs. Wilbur have no children. Their home is 
pleasantly located on South Broadway, Red 
Hook, where their many friends enjoy their 
hospitality. 

The Wilburs from the earliest in the line 
down to the present time have been enter- 
prising and industrious citizens, leaving a re- 
cord of which the coming generation may justly 
be proud. 



CLEMENT CARRINGTON GAINES, pres- 
ident of Eastman Business College, at 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess .county, and of the 
New York Business College, New York City, 
is one of the noted educators of the State, and 
indeed, we may say of the country, the high 
reputation of the institutions under his care 
bringing students from all parts of the Union, 
and also from foreign lands. 

He is a native of X'irginia, and enjoyed the 
best educational opportunities afforded by the 
schools of that State. After graduating from 
Hampden Sidney College, Virginia, he began 
his professional career at eighteen years of age 
as a teacher in the Fincastle (\'a.)High School, 
and his time during the next seven years was 
divided between teaching in Virginia and Ken- 
tucky, studying in a law office, and at the Uni- 
versity of \'irginia, with finally a business 
course in Eastman Business College. At both 
these institutions he was duly graduated, and 
in 1883 he went to Chicago, was admitted to 
the bar, and entered upon the practice of law. 
In the following year a position upon the Fac- 
ulty of Eastman Business College was offered 
him, and as the profession of teaching had al- 
ways seemed to him to be of the highest value 
and importance, he accepted. Since his mar- 
riage, in October, 1884, to the widow of H. G. 
Eastman, he has been the head of the institu- 
tion. Under his management the interests of 
the college have been ably cared for, the stan- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



653 



dard of scholarship having been raised in all 
departments, and the range of usefulness ex- 
tended. In 1895 there were students enrolled 
from thirty-eight States and Territories and 
eleven foreign countries, making a favorable 
comparison in point of wide-spread popularity 
in its special lines with that enjoyed by the 
most famous of institutions of the higher edu- 
cation in the country. Such a marked degree 
of success could not have been attained with- 
out an adequate cause, and this is found in 
the original and practical features of the East- 
man system; faithful and well-directed work 
in the class room; and the sincere and ener- 
getic efforts made to secure desirable employ- 
ment for every worthy pupil. In this feature 
of his work the e.xcellent character of instruc- 
tion offered is of great assistance, as business 
men in search of competent assistants have 
already proved beyond a doubt the worth of 
the practical training given in this school. 

In December, 1892, Mr. Gaines opened 
the New York Business College, at No. 81 
East 125th street, New York, N. Y. Less 
than a dozen students were in attendance at 
the start, but each succeeding year has more 
than doubled the enrollment, and in October, 
1895, there were so many applications that 
more space and an enlarged corps of teachers 
became necessary. Both day and night ses- 
sions are held, and students of either sex may 
enter at any time, selecting whatever branches 
they may prefer, both in the strictly business 
courses and in the line of general culture. 

Mr. Gaines is a descendant of several of 
the earliest Virginia families. One of his an- 
cestors was one of the first governors of the 
Colony ; two others were members of the House 
of Burgesses in Colonial times, representing 
Charlotte county, Virginia, who were among 
the supporters of Patrick Henry in his heroic 
efforts in the cause of independence. The 
family still own extensive plantations, and are 
prominent in their locality; but like the ma- 
jority of the Southern people they suffered 
financially from the Civil war. 

Although Mr. Gaines belongs to several 
clubs and organizations of a social and literary 
nature, he finds but little time for society, 
and his business cares have prevented him 
likewise from entering the political arena. He 
has, however, served as a member of the board 
of education of Poughkeepsie, and has been a 
member of the executive committee of the 
Board of Trade of that city; while his hearty 



co-operation and encouragement are always 
given to any movement which in his opinion 
will promote the public welfare. 



JOHN WILLIAMS, a leading hardware 
merchant of Dover Plains, Dutchess coun- 
~ ty, has been for many years prominently 
identified with the best interests of that town, 
and has encouraged by his active and efficient 
aid many of the most important progressive 
movements in his locality. He is of English 
birth, and on his mother's side is descended from 
an old Lancashire family. 

Robert Samulshaw, his great-grandfather, 
was born in that county in 1758, and after re- 
ceiving an education in the schools of his na- 
tive place learned the tailor's trade, which he 
followed throughout his later years. He also 
owned and cultivated a farm there. Among 
his eleven children was a son, William, our 
subject's grandfather, who learned the tailor's 
trade with his father, and after working at it 
in his native town for some time removed to 
Liverpool, England, and established a custom- 
tailoring business, which proved very success- 
ful. His wife's name is not known, but they 
also had eleven children. A daughter, Mary, 
our subject's mother, was born in Wigan, 
Lancashire, and was educated there. She 
married William Williams, a native of Llan- 
gollen, Wales, who at the time of their mar- 
riage owned a large bakery in Liverpool. 
Nine children were born to them: Robert, 
who died in his youth; William, who married 
Addie Delaverne; John, our subject; Jane 
(Mrs. John Lewis); Ellen (Mrs. Andrew John- 
ston); Mary, who married (first) George Rey- 
nolds, and (second) Mr. Scott; Elizabeth, the 
wife of William Frost; Susanna, who died at 
the age of nine years; and one that died in 
infancy. 

The subject of our sketch was born in 
Liverpool in 1836, received a good education 
in the schools of that city, and learned the art 
of brass finishing there. In 1858 he came to 
America, locating for a time in Amenia, Dutch- 
ess county, where he learned the tinsmith's 
trade. While there he married Miss Martha 
Harrocks, daughter of Robert and Ellen Frost 
Harrocks. She was born and reared in Bury, 
England, where her father was a well-known 
merchant. In 1872 Mr. Williams established 
his present hardware store and tinshop at 
Dover Plains, of which he has made a success 



654 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



from the first. His wife passed from earth in 
1891, leaving two daughters: HattieS.. the 
wife of Frank H. Brant, and Mary E., who is 
at home. 

The family is prominent, socially, and our 
subject's fine bass voice is highly appreciated 
among the best people of Dover Plains. He 
is a member of the Baptist Church, and in its 
choir makes worthy use of his musical gifts. 
He belongs to the Masonic Lodge, No. 666, 
of Dover Plains, and has always taken great 
interest in public affairs, local and national. 
Possessing the courage of his convictions, he 
is an outspoken Democrat, and he has been 
chosen by his fellow townsmen to several 
official positions. He was inspector of elections 
for a number of years, and on one occasion 
his honesty, courage, and persistence saved 
his party from being " counted out." 



JOHN DUTCHEK, one 01 the most trusted 
employes of the Harlem railroad, upon 
which he has run an engine for over twenty 
years, is an honored veteran of the Civil war, 
having been one of the first to join the forces 
for the defense of the Union, and one of the 
last to leave the service at the close of the 
struggle. He was born in Dover Plains, Dutch- 
ess county, July 16, 1841, and his parents, 
John and Catherine f Elliot) Dutcher, were 
both natives of the town of Dover, Dutchess 
county. On the maternal side he is of Eng- 
lish descent, his great-great-grandfather, Sam- 
uel Elliot, having been born in the city of I^on- 
don early in the eighteenth century. The Elli- 
ots of that day were engaged in commerce, 
owning a fieet of sailing vessels, and this an- 
cestor came to America as a young man, be- 
came a merchant and settled in Dutchess coun- 
ty, marrying, and rearing a family, among whom 
was a son, Samuel, our subject's great-grand- 
father. He was born in the town of Dover in 
1740, and spent his life there (juietly in agri- 
cultural pursuits. He married Catherine Gil- 
let, of Norwalk, Conn., and had six children: 
Richard, who never married; Jonathan, who 
died in infancy; Anna (Mrs. Morrey); Eliza- 
beth (Mrs. Neilson); Sarah (Mrs. Ward); and 
Samuel, our subject's grandfather, who was 
born and reared at the old homestead in the 
town of Dover, and followed farming. His 
wife was Miss Delia Dart, the daughter of a 
prominent farmer of Dover, and they had five 
children, all of whom lived to maturity and 



married: Enos married Miss Mary Brown; 
Charles, Miss Calista Chamberlain; Juda, 
Sherman Mallory; Samuel, Miss Gibbs; and 
Catherine (our subject's mother), who was born 
in 1817. Our subject's father, John Dutcher, 
was a son of Cornelius Dutcher, a leading agri- 
culturist of the town of Dover, and his wife 
Ruth. Of the seven children, all but one lived 
to adult age. (i) Ruth married John Proper, 
of Hudson, and has had four children: Samuel, 
who died when about twenty-four years of age; 
Alfred, who married Nellie Blood; Jennie, the 
wife of Walter Davis; and Frank, who married 
Elizabeth McGarry. (2) Amelia never mar- 
ried. (3) Mercy married John Cameron. (4) 
Jennie married William J. White, and has two 
children — Mary Ella and Catherine C. (5) 
John is the subject of this sketch. (6) Enos 
married (first) Estella Brewer, who died, leav- 
ing one daughter. Bertha, and he then formed 
a second matrimonial union, this time with 
Mrs. Sophia Sailor. (7) \'aness died at the 
age of four years. John Dutcher, the father, 
died in 1856. 

The subject of this sketch has spent the 
greater part of his life at his native place, re- 
ceiving his education there and later engaging 
in farming. After three years at that occupa- 
tion he enlisted, in August, 1861, in Company 
C, 72d N. Y. V. I., and took part in cam- 
paigns under McClellan, Halleck, Burnside, 
Grant and others. He was in the engage- 
ments at Williamsburg, and Yorktown, the 
second battle of Bull Run, the seven-days' 
fight at Richmond, and the retreat to Harrison 
Landing — in fact, his regiment was engaged in 
fighting all of the time. When Halleck took 
command the regiment was sent to Mine 
Run, then to Spottsylvania, then back to 
Chancellorsville, and participated in the bat- 
tles at Fredericksburg, under Burnsides, and at 
Spottsylvania C. H., under Grant. While at 
that place Mr. Dutcher was taken prisoner, 
and remained a prisoner of war five months, 
being confined the greater part of this time at 
Andersonville, Ga., and on his release rejoined 
the army. At the close of the war he was 
sent west as member of the 5th Regiment 
U. S. \'., and was mustered out at Fort 
Kearney, Kans. , in 1865. Fortunately he 
passed through all the dangers of those trying 
years without serious injury, having been 
wounded but once, and that slightly, by a 
piece of shell. He was promoted to the rank 
of sergeant. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL liECOIW. 



655 



On his return from the army Mr. Dutcher 
went to New York City to take a position on 
the police force, which he held five years. He 
then resigned and came back to his native 
place, entering the employ of the Harlem 
Railroad Company, with which he has now 
been connected about a quarter of a century, 
working first as brakeman and fireman, and 
since 1875 as engineer. He is now in charge 
of an engine on a passenger train, and stands 
high in the confidence of his employers and 
the public. He belongs to the Brotherhood 
of Locomotive Engineers, the Masonic Lodge 
of Dover, No. 666, and to the Independent Or- 
der of Good Templars, Dover Lodge. Al- 
though his tastes are domestic, and he appre- 
ciates the repose of home life, he has never 
married. 



GEORGE ROGER, the able and popular 
postmaster at Millerton, Dutchess county, 
and one of the most prominent of the younger 
men of the town, was born August 29, 1855, 
in Kirkmichael, Scotland, which has been the 
home of his family for many generations. His 
grandfather, William Roger, was a miller 
there, and was killed in a mill in the year 
1822, leaving his wife, Mary Hunter (who 
survived until 1862), and three children — 
Mary, Jane and David, our subject's father. 

David Roger was born in 18 10, and for 
about thirty years was a gardener in the em- 
ploy of the Ferguson family, being head gar- 
dener for sometime previous to his coming to 
America, in 1873. He married Janet Bone, 
daughter of Quintin Bone, of Paisley, and had 
eleven children: William and Quintin (both 
deceased); Janet (Mrs. William Allen); Mary 
(Mrs. Thomas Moore); Agnes (Mrs. John 
Dempey); John, a gardener at Spencer's Cor- 
ners; James and David (twins), the former of 
whom is the depot agent at Rosslyn Castle, 
Scotland, the latter being now a clerk in the 
Colonial Bank, at Dunedin, New Zealand; 
Robert, a gardener at Millerton; Marian, the 
wife of Freeman Traver;and George, the sub- 
ject of this sketch. After coming to this coun- 
try David Roger and his wife made their home 
with their sons, John and Robert, and he was 
was not regularly engaged in any work. He 
died in 1892, followed a year later by his wife. 
Both were devout Presbyterians, and their 
children all adhere to the same faith. 



George Roger received a good education 
in the schools of his native land, and taught 
as a pupil teacher for one year, but finding 
the occupation injurious to his health he en- 
gaged work in a railroad office for a short 
time. He accompanied his parents to this 
country, and his first employment here was as 
bookkeeper for C. S. Maltby, he and Mr. 
Manning entering his service in the same year, 
1873. Mr. Roger resigned after two years, 
but in 1880 returned to the firm, retaining his 
position until 1893. In 1894 he was appointed 
postmaster by President Cleveland for the 
term of four years, and his efficient management 
of the office has won the praise of all classes. 
He has also held the office of excise commis- 
sioner, and he is a prominent worker in the 
Democratic organization of his locality. It is 
not often that a stranger can so quickly gain 
the confidence of an entire community, but 
Mr. Roger's character and abilities are of a 
sort to command esteem. 

He was married, in 1882, to Miss Mary I. 

E. Ward, daughter of Alfred Ward, of Dur- 
ham, England, and they have five children: 
Isabel, Janet, Marion, David and Margaret. 
Mr. Roger attends the Presbyterian Church, 
and is a member of Webatuck Lodge No. 480, 

F. & A. M. (in which he has been master for 
two years), and of Poughkeepsie Chapter; he 
also belongs to Millerton Lodge No. 383, I. 
O. O. F., and is now noble grand in that 
body. 



C\AMPBELL N. HICKS, a well-known busi- 
' ness man of Red Hook, Dutchess county, 
and proprietor of a livery stable there, was 
born September 10, 1855, in the town of Stan- 
ford. His father, Eli Hicks, was a native of 
Clermont, Columbia county, married Miss 
Margaret A. Waters, of Binghamton, Broome 
county, and reared a family of nine children. 
The subject of our sketch received his educa- 
tion in Brooklyn, N. Y. , and after completing 
his course learned the butcher's trade. He 
then engaged in business for himself at Red 
Hook, in partnership with George Cramer, to 
whom he sold his interest two and a half years 
later. Since that time he has conducted a 
stage and livery business, and holds the con- 
tract for carrying the U. S. mail. 

On October 28, 1874, he was married to 
Miss Mary E. Hutton, a daughter of Jacob and 



650 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



Lydia Hutton, prominent residents of Red 
Hook. Two children were born of this union: 
Byron N., December 2, 1876, and Margaret 
B. , June 9, 1882. Mr. Hicks takes an active 
part in local affairs, and has been overseer of 
the poor for one term, and town clerk for two 
terms, discharging his duties with the faithful- 
ness which has characterised him in every line 
of effort. He is a member of the I. O. O. F., 
Christian Lodge No. 379, of Red Hook, in 
which he is past grand, and of Shiloh Encamp- 
ment No. 68, holding the office of chief pa- 
triarch. 



S.A.MLEL HOLMES BROWN, a promi- 
nent citizen of Poughkeepsie, and one of 
the leading members of the Dutchess County 
Bar, is a descendant of a well-known family 
which has been identified with this section for 
more than a century. 

Noah Brown, his great-grandfather, who 
was of Scotch ancestry, had his early home at 
Johnstown, N. Y. He married Lois Mills, 
September 20, 1783, the two starting upon 
their united career with but little capital ex- 
cept their health, their strong common sense 
and industrious habits. Not long after their 
marriage they moved to Dutchess county and 
settled upon a tract of land at or near the 
Square, about two miles northwest of .Amenia 
City, and there Mr. Brown conducted a farm, 
a hotel and a tannery. They prospered as 
they deserved, and in 1817 they purchased a 
fine farm two miles south of the site of the 
present village of Millerton, a part of what is 
known as the Edgar Clark farm. Mr. Brown's 
well-proved abilities were devoted mainly to 
his business affairs, and he never, in any sense, 
took a position which would call him from his 
family, yet he felt a keen interest in public 
affairs, and tilled several local offices with 
credit to himself and satisfaction to the pub- 
lic. After the towns of Amenia and Northeast 
were divided, he was elected, April i, 1823, 
to act as one of the first assessors of the latter. 
He served in the 6th Regular Dutchess County 
Militia, of Charlotte Precinct, under Col. Ros- 
vvell Hopkins and Capt. Waters. His death 
occurred May 1 1, 1841, when he was seventy- 
eight years old, and that of his wife October 
3, 1849, when she was aged eighty-si.\; their 
final resting place is in the family lot in Spen- 
cer's Corner burying yard, north of Millerton, 
N. Y They had si.x children, whose names 



with dates of birth and death are here given: 
Noan M., June, 1784 — June 22, 1822; Sam- 
uel, April 20, 17S5 — January 5, 1870; Sally, 
May 21, 1787 — February 13, 1876; Betsey, 
October 28, 1791 — May 19, 1888; George, 
February 16, 1794 — October 18, 1878; Har- 
riet, March 29, 1800 — June 24, 1876. 

Samuel Brown, our subject's grandfather, 
was a man of far more than the average ability 
and foresight, and while conducting several 
farms carried on successfully a number of busi- 
ness enterprises, including a tannery. Among 
some of the farms owned by him is what is 
known as the "Halstead farm ", near Mt. 
Riga Station, the "David Eggleston farm", 
situated between Millerton and Boston Cor- 
ners, the " Hopkins farm ", situated between 
Millerton and Salisbury, and the • ■ Rudd farm", 
at the head of Rudd pond. Although he was 
judiciously economical in his management of 
his private affairs, he was ready to respond 
liberally to any public need, and showed in 
many ways a hearty sympathy with the inter- 
est of his fellows. In 1S2S he was one of a 
building committee to erect the " New Baptist 
church " at Spencer's Corner, which was dedi- 
cated the following 3'ear, and was used until 
1866, when the congregation decided to estab- 
lish a place of worship at Millerton. Samuel 
Brown's wife, Sally (Clark), whom he wedded 
February 20, 1813, was a daughter of Ezra 
Clark, a prosperous farmer near Millerton, who 
came from Lisbon, Conn., about the time of 
the Revolution. She died July 18, 1859, aged 
seventy-one years, five months, nine days. 
Their children were as follows: Mary, born 
February 20, 181 5, died April 16, 1875; Milan, 
born July 22, 1816, now living; Milton, born 
September 26, 181 8, died April 9, 1881; and 
Douglas Clark, born July 23, 1822, died 
March 19, 1871. 

Milton Brown, our subject's father, became 
a successful agriculturist at the "Hopkins 
farm ", already referred to. He, in appear- 
ance, favored the mother's side of the family. 
In looks he reminded one much of Hon. Will- 
iam M. Evarts, and there is no question in the 
mind of any one who knew him well that he 
was a man of marked ability and business 
courage and capacity. He was not only a 
farmer, but branched out into other enter- 
prises. He had the full confidence of all who 
knew him, and his advice was sought by many. 
His careful methods brought him a competency 
for himself and family. For his first wife he 





b^l^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



657 



married Selina H. Wheeler, daughter of Milton 
Wheeler, a prosperous farmer. This marriage 
was blessed with one child, Mary E. , who was 
born July 14, 1845. Selina H. died March 30, 
1848. In September 14, 1864, Mary E. mar- 
ried William H. Hart, a dentist, who prac- 
ticed his profession at that time at Millerton, 
but afterward moved to Hudson, N. Y. , where 
she died March 30, 1868. She left her sur- 
viving one child, Clarence, who died July 29, 
1877. On November 21, 1849, Milton Brown 
married Miss Phcebe Holmes, daughter of 
Reuben Holmes, a prosperous farmer of Mt. 
Pleasant, near Millerton, N. Y. They had 
one son, Samuel Holmes. 

The subject of this sketch was born and 
reared on the •■ Hopkins farm ", helped in the 
farm work and attended the local schools dur- 
ing his early boyhood. As he grew older he 
was given better educational advantages at 
Amenia Seminary, Cazenovia Seminary, the 
Troy Business College and t'tie Albany State 
Normal School; but before entering the latter 
institution he clerked for a short period in a 
store at Millerton, and was employed as a 
bookkeeper in a wholesale tlourmill at Water- 
ford. N. Y. On leaving the Normal School, 
in 1876, he went to Newark, N. J., and taught 
for a year and a half in a business college, 
meantime preparing himself for the position 
of a court stenographer. That calling he fol- 
lowed successfully for some time; but in that 
as in all his other enterprises he was actuated 
by the hope of finally entering the legal pro- 
fession. His father had always discouraged 
the idea, hoping that he would settle down on 
the old homestead. In 1881 Mr. Brown be- 
gan the study of law with Hon. Milton A. 
Fowler, of Poughkeepsie, and September 14, 
1883, he was duly admitted to the bar. He 
immediately established himself in practice at 
Poughkeepsie, with a branch office at Miller- 
ton, and he soon attained prominence in his 
chosen work, much important litigation — civil 
and criminal — passing through his hands. 

Mr. Brown is an able business man, and 
has been engaged in several enterprises, nota- 
bly the Millerton National Bank, the stock of 
which he was one of the first to subscribe for, 
and of whose board of directors he was a mem- 
ber. Later he was made a director of the 
Farmers' and Manufacturers' National Bank of 
Poughkeepsie. He was also one of the organ- 
izers of the Hallock & Duryee Fertilizer Co., 
of Mattituck, L. I., and of several other cor- 

42 



porations. At his father's death, in 1881, he 
succeeded to the homestead, and he afterward 
acquired the "George R. Winchell farm" and 
the "John D. Kerley farm " adjoining. Until 
1890 he was extensively engaged in raising live 
stock, and dairying; but he has since disposed 
of all his farms, and now gives his entire time 
to his profession. 

On October 30, 1877, Mr. Brown married 
Clara Lefferts Duryee, daughter of John 
Wyckoff Duryee, and his wife, Elizabeth T. 
(Verity), who resided near Mattituck, L. I., 
and were formerly of New Utrecht, N. Y. ; 
both descended from old families of Long 
Island, the Duryees being descendants of the 
famous Huguenot family who arrived in this 
country in 1675. For some time after their 
marriage Mr. and Mrs. Brown lived at Newark, 
N. J., and on the homestead near Millerton; 
but in the fall of 1887, they, with Mr. Brown's 
mother, moved to Poughkeepsie, where they 
now reside. In politics, Mr. Brown is a Re- 
publican, and he has been a member of the 
board of supervisors of Dutchess county for 
several years. In 1893 he was the president 
of the Lincoln Republican League Club of 
Poughkeepsie. In 1894 he was the first choice 
of a large number of delegates to the Republi- 
can County Convention, for the office of Dis- 
trict Attorney of his county. In the fall of 
1896, the Republican party of the city of 
Poughkeepsie got into a bitter factional fight 
over local matter, and a strife between lead- 
ers. It was not only carried into primaries 
and conventions, but was also carried on up 
to and including election day. Mr. Brown 
devoted much time to this matter, and it is 
generally conceded that it was owing much to 
his efforts that the Republican city ticket was 
saved from defeat. He is also regarded as an 
able, instructive, interesting, and amusing 
political speaker, and he has done much for 
his party in that direction. 

In the summer of 1896, in company with 
his wife, he spent his vacation in traveling ex- 
tensively in Europe. His letters to the pub- 
lic press received much favorable comment, 
and showed him to be a keen observer and 
possessed of the rare faculty, as a writer, of 
being able to give a graphic idea of what he 
saw in a very few words — painting a picture 
with a very few lines. His genial manner, 
industry and strong common sense have sur- 
rounded him with many friends, clients and 
well wishers. 



658 



COMMEJ^ORATIVE BIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



JAMES FINCH, an entL-rprising and success- 
ful merchant of Millerton, Dutchess county, 
has shown in his conquest of unfavorable 
circumstances in early life all those admirable 
qualities of courage and perseverance which 
mark the self-made business man. 

Caleb t'lnch, ^grandfather of our subject, 
was descended from one of four brothers of 
the name, who came to America from England 
some time in the eighteenth century. He set- 
tled in the town of Ancram, Columbia Co., 
N. Y. , and followed blacksmithing there dur- 
ing the rest of his life. He was the father of 
six children, all of whom lived to adult age, 
namely: John, Ebenezer, James, Betsey (Mrs. 
Amos Bryan;, /\lma (Mrs. Ambrose Gray), and 
Laura (Mrs. William Van Alstine). 

James Finch, our subject's father, was 
born in the town of Ancram, Columbia county, 
on July 14, 1789, and after the death of their 
father, he and his brother, John, owned and 
farmed the old homestead together. Possessed 
of good natural ability, he held a prominent 
place in the commimity. He married Almira 
Card, who was born in Ancram on October 23, 
1791, the daughter of Stephen Card, who was 
of English origin. Si.x children were born of 
this marriage, as follows: Betsey, Septem- 
ber 27, 1812, married Eli Collins; ]?ryan, 
April 23, 1814, married Mary Thorne, daugh- 
ter of Richard Thorne, and settled in Tomp- 
kins county, where he died, leaving three chil- 
dren; Caleb, November 13, 18 16, located in 
Tompkins county, where he died in 1852; 
Sally, January 5, 18 19, married Smith Stew- 
art; Elisha, March 21, 1823, died at the age 
of fourteen; and James, our subject. The fa- 
ther of this family died in the latter part of 
1827, and his widow married William Tanner. 
She died July 6, 1844. 

The subject of our sketch was born at the 
old Finch homestead April 8, 1827, and at- 
tended the district schools at Pulver's Corners, 
receiving a good English education. He re- 
mained at home with his step-father until the 
age of twenty-two, being employed for one 
year, and then worked upon the farm of his 
brother-in-law, Eli Collins, for two years. In 
1853 he went to Uryden, N. Y. , and learned 
the details of the manufacture of fanning mills, 
working at the trade for two years and a half. 
Returning to Mr. Collins' farin, he worked there 
for a time, and later found employment in the 
Bryant Fanning Mill shop. In the fall of 1857 
he began clerking, first for Herman W. Pulver, 



at Pulver's Corners, and then for Harrison 
Jones, at Millerton, but his brother-in-law dy- 
ing in 1861, he was engaged for one year in 
looking after his sister's business interests. 
On March 28, 1863, he entered the general 
store of E. W. Simmons & Co., as clerk, the 
firm consisting of Mr. Simmons, J. M. Bene- 
dict and S. N. Jenks. He continued until 
1877, when the firm failed, and as he had not 
drawn his wages for some time, he took the 
business in payment. In spite of this some- 
what inauspicious beginning, he made a suc- 
cess of the venture, and has given the busi- 
ness a much larger scope than it formerly had, 
adding to the stock a large line of furniture. 
It is now one of the largest houses in its line 
in the northeastern part of the county. On 
Monday night, August 2, 1880, his store was 
broken open by three burglars, who bound and 
gagged Mr. Finch, and compelled him to go 
thus to his office and open his safe, from which 
they took about $1,300.00. This was an ex- 
perience which but few men could undergo 
with the courage and " pluck " shown by Mr. 
Finch. 

In politics he is a Republican, and has al- 
ways taken a great interest in the success of 
his party. He has been town clerk for two 
terms, and is one of the most earnest advo- 
cates of improvement in local affairs. 



ALENTINERICKES, one of the leading 
mechanics of Dutchess county, now en- 
gaged in blacksmithing at Millbrook, town of 
Washington, was born November 3, 1836, in 
Hegenheim, Germany, a son of Valentine, Sr., 
and Anna Mary (Carchj Rickes, both natives 
of Germany. 

Valentine Rickes, Sr. , was born in 1800, 
and spent his entire life in Germany, engaged 
in the hotel business, and also as owner of a 
bakery, when enjoying the privileges of a 
civilian; in times of trouble, however, he was 
a sharpshooter in the German army. He 
married Anna Mary Carch, one of the three 
children of Christian Carch, a native of Ger- 
many, born about 1766. To Mr and Mrs. 
Rickes, Sr. , were born twelve children — ten 
boys and two girls — who grew to maturity. 
Four of the ten boys were college graduates, 
and three of the ten came to America. The 
father of this family died in 1867; the mother 
is still living. 

Valentine Rickes, the subject proper of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



659 



this sketch, spent his boyhood in Germany, 
and until the age of fourteen attended the excel- 
lent public schools of that country. For two 
years he served an apprenticeship at the black- 
smith trade, under Peter Schryver, learning all 
the details and mastering the art of making 
horse shoes in the finest style. Having com- 
pleted his trade at the age of sixteen, he came 
to America, in company with his brother 
Frank, and settled in Connecticut, where for 
two years he followed his trade. In 1854 or 
'55, he removed to Mechanic, Dutchess coun- 
ty, and here for four years was heard the busy 
sound of his hammer and anvil. On February 
7, 1858, he was united in marriage with Miss 
Ellen Butler (an account of whose ancestry 
will be found in the sketch of her brother, Ed- 
mond Butler), a native of County Waterford, 
Ireland, born May 25, 1841. At the age of 
twelve years she was brought to this country 
by her mother, who returned to Ireland and 
there died, leaving her little daughter Ellen in 
the care of her brother Edmond. After at- 
tending the public schools of the town of 
Washington for a couple of years, she cared 
for herself until her marriage with Mr. Rickes, 
to whom she has been a devoted helpmeet. 
After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Rickes re- 
mained at Mechanic for a year, then for two 
years they resided at Rhinebeck, at the end of 
which time our subject temporarily laid aside 
the cares of business, and visited the old home 
in the Fatherland, where still resided his fa- 
ther, and several of his brothers and sisters. 
Truly a happy reunion after eleven years of 
absence. On his return from Germany, he 
and his wife again settled in Mechanic, re- 
maining three years, then coming to Millbrook, 
where he followed his trade for four years. 

At this time Mr. Rickes purchased 125 
acres of fine land in the town of Unionvale, 
and for seventeen years carried on farming; 
wearying of this, he again returned to Mill- 
brook, and for one year followed his trade, 
while his wife carried on the farm. They 
purchased a pleasant location in Millbrook, 
and erected a neat, Gothic house, also 
a commodious and well-arranged carriage 
house, and are now enjoying life on the fruits 
of their early toil. Mr. Rickes still carries on 
his business with the assistance of two men. 
To Mr. and Mrs. Rickes were born three chil- 
dren: (I) Edward, who for nine years has 
been in the employ of Swift & Co., at Kansas 
City, and is now their hog buyer; he married 



Miss Mamie Hopson, daughter of Dr. Hopson, 
of Kansas City. (2) Charles, who is now 
farming the old homestead in the town of 
Unionvale; he married Miss Mamie Cutler, of 
that town, and has one child — \'alentine. (3) 
Anna Mar\', the only daughter, who married 
Cassius M. Couch, of Poughquag, and has 
three children — Bessie, Edmond and Ellen 
Stack. 

Mr. Rickes was the first man to open busi- 
ness in what is now Millbrook. He purchased 
the ground on which the Catholic Church and 
parsonage now stands, and also the ground 
on which is located the present Catholic ceme- 
tery. The ground was bought for $600 per 
acre. On this he erected a large blacksmith, 
wagon and paint shop, and also the parsonage 
which is now occupied by Rev. Father Burns. 
The lumber used in these buildings was hauled 
by team from Poughkeepsie, and there was 
but one other building on the present site of 
Millbrook. Mr. Rickes has ever been one of 
the active, energetic men of the community, 
and is highl}- respected for his many manly 
qualities. In politics he is a Republican, and 
he is a member of the Roman Catholic 
Church. 



JOHN CAMPBELL. The family name of 
the subject of this sketch was identified for 

many years with some of the leading inter- 
ests of the town of Northeast, Dutchess coun- 
ty, and has become associated with the qualities 
which win success. The first American ances- 
tor came from Scotland at an early date, and 
enlisted and served in the Revolutionary war. 
Robert Campbell, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born in 1776, and settled in the town 
of Mt. Washington, Berkshire Co., Mass. He 
possessed excellent natural abilities and much 
• public spirit, and became quite prominent in 
local affairs. He died in 1853; his wife, Hul- 
dah Noble, departed this life in 1841. They 
had eight children: Harriet, Stanton A., Anna 
(wife of Sitnion Pollard), Robert, Almira (wife 
of William \'osburgh), Huldah (wife of Gilbert 
Race), John, and Susan (wife of Jason Lamson). 

John Campbell, Sr. , our subject's father, 
was born at the old home in Mt. Washington, 
June 5. 181 1, and his educational opportunities 
were limited to an irregular attendance at the 
schools of that time, as he was obliged to go 
to work at an early age. He was ambitious, 
however, and possessed more than ordinary 



660 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIWAL RECORD. 



ability and energy, and after a hard day's toil 
as a collier, or at chopping wood, he would 
spend his evenings in study. In this way he 
prepared himself for teaching, and in early 
manhood he followed this occupation success- 
fully for a number of winters. In 1849 he be- 
came superintendent of the works of the Salis- 
bury Iron Co., at Mt. Riga, Dutchess county, 
having acquired an interest in the business. 
He continued this work for nearly ten years, 
in the meantime securing the entire control of 
the stock, and in 1864 he sold the property 
for $42,500 to William H. Barnum, of Con- 
necticut, who was chairman of the National 
Democratic Committee at the time of Cleve- 
land's first election. In his later years Mr. 
Campbell engaged in manufacturing Salisbury 
pig iron, and farming. He was a man of re- 
markably keen perceptions and sound business 
judgment, and at his death, which occurred in 
1866, his estate was inventoried at $250,000, 
although only $180,000 was realized. In his 
early years he was a Whig, later a Republican, 
but he was never active in party work. He 
was prominent, however, in many public move- 
ments which had no partisan bias, helping dur- 
ing the war to raise the quota of men from his 
locality. In 1862 he was elected supervisor 
of the town of Northeast, without opposition, 
having been nominated by both parties. A 
shrewd judge of human nature, he easily made 
friends, whom his sterling qualities of character 
retained. He was a memljer of the Methodist 
Church, and was not a strict sectarian, being 
broad and liberal in his views. He was mar- 
ried June 27, 1835, at Pine Plains, to Miss 
Eliza Van Dusen, a descendant of an old Hol- 
land-Dutch family, and a daughter of James 
N. 'Van Dusen, a farmer of Taghkanic, Colum- 
bia county. He had eight children, whose 
names, with dates of birth, are as follows: 
Sarah J., born July i, 1836, died March 15, . 
1858; John, born February i, 1838; James 
May I, 1840; Wesley, June 20, 1842, died 
March 26. 1891; Eliza Ann, June 23, 1844, 
died February 15, 1877; Christina, March 27, 
1846; Mary Ellen, April 21, 1849; and Henry 
D., March 18, 1851. died December 6, 1875. 



CHARLES W. WRIGHT. Among the 
young and energetic business men of 
Dutchess county, none stands higher than 
the subject of this personal history, who is a 
well-known general merchant of Clinton Cor- 



ners. His birth occurred in the town of Stan- 
ford, Dutchess county, on March i, 1866, and 
he belongs to an old and honored family of 
the county — his grandfather, Isaac Wright, 
having been born in the same town. 

The father. James Harvey Wright, was 
born in that town in 18 19. where he attended 
the district schools, and was also a student in 
the Jacob Willets school, in the town of Wash- 
ington. In his native town he wedded Mary 
Ann Humphrey, a daughter of William D. 
Humphrey, and they became the parents of 
six children: John H.; Clara, wife of F. M. 
Talmadge. of Yonkers, N. Y. ; Isaac, de- 
ceased; Charles W. ; Ira; and Nettie, who 
died in infancy. The entire married life of 
the father has been passed upon his farm at 
Bangall, in the town of Stanford, for which 
he went greatlj' in debt, as on starting in life 
he had very little capital besides a pair of 
willing hands and a determination to make a 
success of his business undertakings. Since 
quite young he has been an active member of 
the Baptist Church, and is a sincere and 
earnest Christian. He has never taken any 
prominent part in political affairs, but does all 
in his power to promote the welfare of his 
town and county. 

The elementary education of Charles W. 
Wright was such as the common schools of 
Bangall afforded, and he later became a stu- 
dent in Sackett's private school, in the town of 
Stanford. When his school days were over 
he entered upon a business career as clerk in 
the general store of Mr. Knickerbocker, of 
Bangall, with whom he remained four years, 
after which he went to New York Citj', where 
he was employed for about two years in the 
butter and egg business. He then began 
business for himself, which he continued for 
four years. In the spring of 1892 he estab- 
lished his present store at Clinton Corners, 
where he carries a full and complete assort- 
ment of general merchandise, and now secures 
a liberal patronage. His stock is well select- 
ed, and he devotes his entire time to his busi- 
ness interests, and is meeting with a well- 
deserved success. 

On September 5, 1889, in the town of 
Stanford, Mr. Wright was married to Miss 
Delia Stewart, daughter of William Stewart, 
of that town, and to them have been born 
three children: Harold and Edith, twins, 
born August 22, 1890; and Ethel, born Au- 
gust 19. 1894. In his political views, Mr. 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



661 



Wright is a stalwart Democrat, and is now 
serving as postmaster in Clinton Corners, to 
which position he was appointed in the winter 
of 1892. 



EDWARD ODELL, a well-known miller of 
Smithlield, Dutchess county, where he 
has engaged in business for over thirty years, 
was born March 21, 18 19, in the town of 
Washington, Dutchess county, and belongs to 
a family that was long connected with the in- 
terests of that township. There his grand- 
father, John Odell, was also born, and worked 
at his trade of a hatter. In his family were 
si.x children, namely: William, John, Jacob, 
Samuel, Caroline and Betsey. 

Samuel Odell, father of our subject, was 
also a native of the town of Washington, and 
a hatter by trade. His political support was 
given the Republican party. He married Per- 
melia Marshall, of Salt Point, Dutchess county, 
and they became the parents of six children: 
Edward; Lewis, who was killed while gallantly 
serving in the Mexican war; William, of New 
Haven, Conn.; Bartlett, of Illinois; Sally 
Ann (deceased); and Elizabeth, who married 
John Dodge. 

The school days of our subject were passed 
in the towns of Washington and Dover, and 
at an early age he learned the carpenter's trade 
with Samuel Tompkins in the latter township, 
which occupation he then followed for a time. 
For forty years he made his home at Perry's 
Corners, town of Northeast, but since 1870 
has resided in Smithfield, at which time he 
purchased the grist and saw mill that he has 
since operated with good success. Although 
now seventy-six years of age, he has never 
worn glasses, and his eyesight seems better 
than it was at sixty. Ever fond of sport, he 
is still one of the best marksmen with the rifle 
in Dutchess county. His career has not been 
marked by startling incidents, but his life has 
been quietly and peacefully passed amidst the 
scenes of his youth, and he has gained the con- 
fidence and esteem of all with whom he has 
come in contact. Politically he is an adherent 
of the Republican party. At Rhinebeck, 
Dutchess county, Mr. Odell was married to 
Miss Mary Marquart, and they have two sons: 
John, of Smithfield, who married Ella Cook- 
ingham; and Frank, of Verbank, who married 
Lettie May Smith, and has one child, Ethel 
M. Odell. 



JAMES V. MEAD, a well-known brick manu- 
facturer of Low Point, Dutchess county, 
" is one of the prominent self-made men of 
the locality, having. begun his business career 
without a cent, and gained by his own efforts 
a fine fortune and limitless credit. • 

He is a native of the town of Cornwall, 
Orange Co. , N. Y. , where he first saw the light, 
May 12, 1832, and on both the paternal and 
maternal sides is of Dutch descent. Joseph 
Mead, his grandfather, was born in Holland, 
and Justice Mead, our subject's father, mar- 
ried Elizabeth Van Duser, whose father, Ben- 
jamin Van Duser, was of Holland stock. 
Justice Mead settled in Cornwall after his mar- 
riage, and followed the carpenter's trade, until 
his death at the age of forty, and he and his 
wife, who also died many years ago, were lead- 
ing members of the Methodist Church there. 
In politics, he was a Democrat. Our subject 
was the youngest of six children: Benjamin 
is a gardener in Cayuga county, N. Y. ; Eliza- 
beth married Sylvenius Cury, of Orange coun- 
ty; Sarah married Frederick Burton, who was 
a machinist at Newburg, N. Y. ; Justice is a 
farmer and brick manufacturer in Amenia; 
and Hiram died in childhood. 

Mr. Mead made his entrance into business 
life at the early age of thirteen years, when 
he left his home in Cornwall to learn the de- 
tails of the brick business at Haverstraw, N. 
Y. He proved himself so capable that, at 
twenty, he was placed in charge of a gang of 
men for the firm of Peck & Morris, and after 
two years in that position he became superin- 
tendent for Michael Archer, with whom he 
remained three years. He then went to Ver- 
planck's Point, N. Y., as foreman for Mr. 
Reed, and later worked for a short time for 
Francis Timony. Returning to Cornwall, he 
engaged in boating for a year, and then be- 
came foreman for Mr. Chambers, at New 
Windsor, Orange countj'. About 1865, Mr. 
Mead leased a brick yard at Dutchess Junc- 
tion, and in four years there he made $24,000. 
He sold his lease and purchased a farm near 
Fishkill, which he improved, building a fine 
residence and other structures. But farm life 
was too quiet for one of his active tempera- 
ment, and he resumed the business of brick- 
making, leasing from Thomas Aldrich the yards 
at Low Point, which he bought ten years la- 
ter. The property includes eighty-two acres, 
and the plant covers one acre. Mr. Mead 
turns out about 5,000,000 second-class brick 



062 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHIC'AL RECORD. 



per year, disposing of them mainlj' in New 
York City. His fortune is now estimated at 
$50,000, and his integrity and able manage- 
ment have won for him a high standing in 
business circles. 

On August 4, 1858. Mr. Mead was united 
in marriage with his first wife, Miss Mary A. 
Flood, a native of Orange county, who died 
March 14, 1884, leaving si.\ children: Hen- 
rietta married Mose Collier; Alvaretta is the 
wife of Jerome Walsh, a brick manufacturer; 
Harry C. is engaged in the same business at 
Low Point; James A. (the name given her at 
baptism), the third daughter, married Frank 
Collier; and Thomas A. and Sebastian are both 
engaged in brick manufacturing. In Decem- 
ber, 18S7, Mr. Mead formed a second matri- 
monial union, his present wife being Mary 
Knapp, a native of Putnam county. Three 
children were born of this marriage: I^alph, 
Mabel and James V. Mr. Mead has made a 
point of giving his children a strict business 
training. The family are members of the 
Methodist Church, and Mr. Mead takes a 
prominent part in all movements of public im- 
portance, giving his influence in political 
affairs to the Ivepublican party. 



BICHARD P. KETCHAM, prominent 
among the business men of Dutchess 

county for a quarter of a century, has been 
closely identified with the history of Dover 
Plains, while his name is inseparably connected 
with its financial records. The banking inter- 
ests are well represented in him, for since 1884 
he has been cashier of the Dover Plains Na- 
tional Bank. A man of keen discrimination 
and sound judgment, his e.xcellent manage- 
ment has brought to the concern with which 
he is connected a high degree of success. He 
is a native of Dutchess county, born at Pough- 
keepsie in 184S. 

Amos Piatt Ketcham, his paternal grand- 
father, was born at Huntington, Long Island, 
where his early education and training were re- 
ceived, and in his younger years he was en- 
gaged in agricultural pursuits. On September 
9, 181 1, he married .Miss Anna R. Piatt, who 
was born in Huntington, November 26, 1793, 
and they became the parents of five children: 
Esther, Alonzo, Zophar P., Andrew J. and 
Rebecca. 

Andrew J. Ketcham, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born in Poughkeepsie in 18 19. After 



his graduation he began his banking career by 
entering the Farmers and Manufacturers Bank 
of Poughkeepsie, and after serving there for 
some years as teller and bookkeeper he was 
called to Saugerties, Ulster Co., N. Y. , where 
he organized the first bank in that place, called 
the Ulster Bank. After placing that institu- 
tion on a sound financial basis, he started the 
Saugerties Bank in the same village, which is 
now a tiourishing institution. In 1865 he left 
Saugerties and came to Dover Plains, N. Y., 
as cashier of the Dover Plains National Bank, 
where he served for twenty years. From this 
position he resigned in 1885, and moved to 
Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , his native city. After 
his retirement from active work for one year 
he was called to the presidency of the Pough- 
keepsie Bank, in which capacit)' he served for 
two years, leaving the institution one of the 
soundest in the State. He is now living in re- 
tirement in the city of his birth and business 
successes. He was twice married, his first 
union being with Miss Sarah Anderson, daugh- 
ter of Capt. N. L. Anderson, of Rondout, Ul- 
ster Co., N. Y. , and to them were born six 
children: Andrew, Richard P., Annie, Gold- 
ing, John and Gaston. The mother of these 
children died in 1S74, and sometime afterward 
Mr. Ketcham married Miss Frances Cowles, of 
Stamford, Delaware Co., N. Y. , and to them 
has been born a son, Charles, who, after his 
graduation from the River View Military 
Academy, entered the First National Bank of 
Poughkeepsie, where he is now one of its best 
bookkeepers. 

Richard P. Ketcham, the subject proper of 
this review, was educated in the Claverack 
Military Academy, and after graduating from 
that institution became bookkeeper in the Im- 
porters and Traders Bank of New York City. 
In their employ he continued for some time, re- 
signing in order to accept his present position 
with the Dover Plains National Bank. Dur- 
ing his residence here he has attested his emi- 
nent and pronounced ability as a financier, and 
he is probably equally prominent in social life. 
In 1873 Mr. Ketcham married Mrs. Mary E. 
(Dutcher) Peters, widow of George H. Peters, 
of Pleasant \'alley, N. Y., daughter of Egbert 
and Maria Dutcher, of Dover Plains. One 
child graces this union, Grace Dutcher, who 
was born at Dover Plains, and was educated 
at Linden Hall, Poughkeepsie. 

The Dutcher family is of Holland origin, 
but for many generations its representatives 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



603 



have resided in Dutchess county, where 
Christopher Dutcher, the great-great-grand- 
father of Mrs. Ketcham was born September 
29, 1747. He acquired his education in the 
common schools of the county, and later de- 
voted his time to agricultural pursuits, his farm 
comprising what is now the village of Dover 
Plains. He married Mary Belding, who was 
born in 1751, and they had seven children, 
whose names and dates of birth are as follows: 
Christopher, 1768; Mary, 1769; Jane, 1770; 
Lawrence, 1773; Silas, 1776; Elizabeth, 1779; 
and Cornelius, 1789. 

Lawrence Dutcher, the fourth child of that 
family, was the great-grandfather of Mrs. 
Ketcham. He was born on the old homestead 
at Dover Plains, and was educated in the 
schools of the township. He succeeded to the 
farm of his father, which he conducted until 
his death. He was united in marriage with 
Miss Elizabeth Nase, in the same place, and 
they had two children: Belding, born August 
9, 1793; and Rachel, born in 1791. After the 
death of his wife he wedded Miss Mary \\'aldo, 
and they became the parents of eleven chil- 
dren, whose names and dates of birth were as 
follows: Rensselaer, 1795; Silas, 1797; T. 
Waldo, 1798; Cornelius N., 1802; Jerome, 
1S04; Elizabeth, 1S06; Hannah, 1809; Jane, 
1 8 1 1 ; Armelia, 1 8 1 3 ; Maria, 1 8 1 5 ; and Charles, 
1817. 

Belding Dutcher, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Ketcham, obtained a good education in the 
common schools, and remained upon the fam- 
ily homestead during his entire life. He took 
quite a prominent part in military affairs, and 
became major in the State militia. He was 
joined in wedlock with Miss Maria Hurd, and 
to them were born five children: Egbert, 
Allen H., Elizabeth J., William H. and 
Thomas N. 

Egbert Dutcher, the oldest of this family, 
was born at Dover Plains, Dutchess county, 
in 18 14, and was educated in the public schools 
of the neighborhood. After reaching manhood 
he became quite prominent in the Masonic 
Order. He was united in marriage with Miss 
Maria Soule, daughter of Henry and Abigail 
Soule, farming people of the town of Dover. 
Mr. Dutcher continued to live upon a part of 
the old homestead, where were born his two 
children: Mary E., the wife of our subject; 
and Walter E. , who was educated in the 
Cazenovia Seminary, at Cazenovia, kladison 
Co., N. Y. He became connected with the 



banking firm of Opdyke & Co., of New York, 
where he held the position of bookkeeper for 
three years, or until his death in 1874. 



N; ICHOLAS ALLEN, a prominent and in- 
^ fluential citizen of the village of Hibernia, 

town of Clinton, Dutchess county, was born 
in the town of W^ashington, that county, June 
14, [840. His father, William N. Allen, was 
a native of the town of Pleasant Valley, Dutch- 
ess county, born April 6, 1806, and died in 
1885, and was the second in order of birth in 
the family of four children born to Nicholas 
and Mary (Carpenter) Allen. Grandfather 
Allen was also born in Pleasant Valley town, 
about 1750, and died in i860; his wife died 
some three years before him. Many years of 
his life were passed in the operation of his 
farm, in his native town, and he also lived in 
the town of Washington on a farm which he 
owned there. He was one of the heroes of 
the Revolutionary war, and a consistent Chris- 
tian, a member of the Presbyterian Church. 

In the town of Pleasant \'alley, William 
N. Allen was united in marriage with Miss 
Helen Ketcham, a daughter of Israel Ketcham, 
who was born September 5, 1802, and they 
became the parents of five children: Ann 
Maria; Sarah, wife of Charles Smith; Nicholas; 
James Henry and John W. After his mar- 
riage the father removed to a farm in the town 
of Washington, near Hibernia, which he con- 
tinued to cultivate and improve during the 
rest of his life, his death occurring in 1885; 
his wife had passed away in 1S66. 

Nicholas .Allen, whose name introduces this 
sketch, acquired a substantial and practical 
education in the schools of the town of Wash- 
ington, one of his teachers being Judge Guern- 
sey, and was well fitted for his subsequent ca- 
reer. After completing his school life, he 
assisted his father in the management of the 
farm, and while still living upon the old home- 
stead his marriage with Mrs. Sarah (Ketcham) 
Justus took place, the ceremony being per- 
formed February 24, 1881, in the town of 
Clinton. She was born September 12, 1839, 
and is a daughter of Eli Ketcham, a miller by 
occupation, who first saw the light in the town 
of Pleasant Valley, March 14, 1809. He was 
married July 12, 1835, and two children were 
born to them. He died March 2, 1890, his 
wife on January 20, 1894. They were mem- 



664 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



bers of the Presbyterian Church at Pleasant 
Valley. Mrs. Allen's grandfather, Israel 
Ketchani, born about 1770, came from Long 
Island to Pleasant Valley, where his children 
were born. He married a Miss De Long, 
and died about 1844, his wife a few years 
later. By her first husband, Howard Justus, 
Mrs. Nicholas Allen had a daughter, Carrie, 
now the wife of Francis H. Harris, of New 
York. 

For one year after his marriage Mr. Allen 
continued upon the old homestead, and then 
removed to Clinton Corners, where a year 
later he bought his present comfortable resi- 
dence. For the past thirteen years he has en- 
gaged in farming in the town of Clinton, where 
he has served as pathmaster several terms, and 
is prominently connected with the upbuilding 
and development of the locality. The im- 
provements upon his property areola substan- 
tial character, and everything manifests the 
thrift and prosperity of an intelligent farmer. 
He and his wife are devoted and efificient mem- 
bers of the Reformed Church of Bloomvale.and 
his straight-forward, upright life has gained 
him many friends. 



c 



LINTON W. CLAPP, a substantial citizen 
/ of Wappingers Falls, Dutchess county, was 
born in that thriving village May 28, 1831. 

Tracing back the genealogy of the Clapp 
family, which name was at that time spelled 
Clapa, we find that Thomas, our subject's 
great-great-great-grandfather, was born in Wey- 
mouth, England, in 1597. He was a Puritan, 
and came to America July 24, 1633, settling 
at Dorchester, Mass. His eldest son, Thomas, 
was born March 15, 1639, at Weymouth. He 
settled at Dedham, Mass., and was the ances- 
tor of all theClappsof that locality. He mar- 
ried Abagail Clapp, and had three children: 
Increase, Samuel and Eleazer. 

Samuel, the great-grandfather of Clinton 
W., married Elizabeth F"isher, and reared a 
family of six children; Samuel, David, Jona- 
than, Elizabeth, Abiel and Eleazer. The lat- 
ter, who was the grandfather of our subject, 
married a widow, Mrs. Gushee, whose maiden 
name was Sylvia Forbes. They settled at U.\- 
bridge, Mass., where their three children were 
born. These were Abiel, born in 1785, and 
who became a merchant, living first in Rhode 
Island and later in Maine; Forbes, born 1787, 



and was a soap and candle manufacturer in 
New York City; Benjamin, father of our sub- 
ject. Eleazer Clapp, with a number of his rela- 
tives, took an active part in the Revolutionary 
war, and he was a member of the First Pro- 
vincial Congress, in 1774. 

Benjamin Clapp was reared to manhood in 
Massachusetts, and was the first person that 
put up and operated cotton machinery in Low- 
ell, Mass.; but at the close of the war of 1812 
he vvent to New York Citj- and learned the 
trade of a cabinet maker. Later he went into 
the manufacture of looking-glasses, and even 
after his removal to Wappingers Falls, in 1827, 
continued to carry on his business in New York. 
At Wappingers Falls he built a sawmill, in 
which he made mahogany veneerings, operat- 
ing this mill until 1844, although in the mean- 
time he had sold out his business in the city. 
In the latter year he started the Frankendale 
cotton factory, which was in operation for 
many years. He owned the principal water 
power and privileges at Wappingers Falls, 
which in 1865 he sold, together with the fac- 
tory, to the Garner Company, who are now 
conducting the extensive print works there, and 
are reputed to be worth eighty million dollars. 
After disposing of his property Mr. Clapp re- 
tired from active bnsiness. He was married 
November i, 1821, to Ruth Houghton, who 
was born at Milton, Mass., December 12, 1794. 
Her father, Jason H. Houghton, was also a 
native of Milton, and followed farming on a 
place which belonged in the family for over 
200 years. He had fourteen children, of which 
our subject's mother was the third in order of 
birth. The family came from England about 
1632. 

To Benjamin Clapp and his wife four chil- 
dren were born, of whom the following record 
is given: George H., born September 9, 1822, 
married Anna Beckwith, of Dutchess county, 
a daughter of Col. Nathaniel Beckwith, of 
Rhinebeck; George H. died October 11, 1877, 
leaving two children, Edward and Emma. 
Jason F. , born September 16, 1825, married 
Elizabeth Houghton, and died March 19, 1886. 
Three children were born to them, Ruth E., 
Arthur and Jason H. Warren B., born Sep- 
tember 13, 1827, married Elizabeth Ayre, and 
two children were born to them, George H. 
and Warren A. He was a Baptist minister, 
and died September 27, 1865. 

Clinton W. Clapp, the subject of this 
sketch, and the youngest of the family, lived 




^^^i(^U^^57H$^^^ji^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



665 



at home until fourteen years of age, when he 
went to New York City, entering the Univers- 
ity, and later the New York City Mechanical 
Institute, finishing his studies there when 
twenty-one years old. He then returned to 
Wappingers Falls, and worked at the carpen- 
ter's trade for seven 3'ears. Subsequently he 
turned his attention to fruit growing, but is 
now retired. Mr. Clapp has a great talent for 
mechanics, and is quite a genius in that line. 
He has built steamboats and various other 
things requiring a knowledge of mechanics, 
and in his delightful home was constructed a 
large pipe organ, which is run by a gas engine. 

On May 23, 1854, Mr. Clapp was married 
to Miss Catherine Samons, who was born in 
Orange county, of Dutch extraction. She bore 
him si.x children, and died January 13, 1871. 
These children were Benjamin F. , born Au- 
gust 27, 1855; George M., born June 13, 1858; 
Warren H., born December 27, 1859, and died 
March 15, 1880; Charles L., born October 28, 
1 862 ; Walter C. , April 30, 1 865 : Jason E. , June 
3, 1869. Mr. Clapp was again married October 
25, 1871, taking for his wife Miss Nettie 
Ecroyd, a native of England and a daughter of 
Henry and Margaret Ecroyd. No children 
were born of this marriage. Mrs. Clapp de- 
parted this life April 17, 1889. On July i, 
1890, Mr. Clapp was married to Miss Charlotte 
M. Crosier, who was born in Wappingers Falls, 
March 21, 1862. Her parents were Isaac and 
Mary (Cole) Crosier, the former of English 
and the latter of Dutch descent. Two chil- 
dren have come to our subject and his present 
wife: Irving, born May 14, 1891; and Rhoda 
M., born May 13, 1894, died December 30, 
1 896. 

Mr. Clapp was originally a Whig, becom- 
ing a Republican on the formation of that 
party. He has taken an active part in local 
politics, and has held a number of offices. He 
was twice elected assessor of the town of Wap- 
pinger; was for two years trustee of the village; 
for two terms was supervisor of the township, 
was justice of the peace for some time, and 
has recently been appointed again to the latter 
position. He has been president of the 
cemetery association, and is a director of the 
Grinnell Library Association. He is one of 
the leading citizens of Wappingers Falls, and 
is a public-spirited man who always has the 
best interests of his community at heart. He 
is popular with all classes, and no family is 
more highly esteemed. 



PEDRO SWEET, a leading merchant of 
Bull's Head, Dutchess county, and one of 
the well-known citizens of the town of Clinton, 
was born December 25, 1840, in Columbia 
county, where his ancestors on both sides had 
been residents for several generations. 

Maj. Rowland Sweet, his great-grandfather, 
a farmer by occupation, was one of the early 
settlers there, and his grandfather, Luke Sweet, 
also a farmer, passed his life there. Jerome 
Sweet, our subject's father, grew to manhood 
under the care of his grandfather, and received 
an excellent education in the schools of Co- 
lumbia county. He married Catherine Bath- 
rick, whose grandfather, Jacob Bathrick, was 
a pioneer settler of that locality, and lived 
there until the good old age of lOO 3'ears. He 
married Hannah Kilmer, and their son, Peter, 
born in the town of Ga-latin, Columbia coun- 
ty, married Maria Marks, and moved to Dutch- 
ess count}', settling upon a farm in the town of 
Milan. They had five children: Catherine, 
David (deceased), William (deceased), Eliza- 
beth, now living in New York City, and Fran- 
ces, who resides at Catskill. A few years 
after their marriage Jerome Sweet and his wife 
came to the town of Milan, where he bought a 
farm, which he cultivated until his death in 
1884. He was unusually well-informed, a 
Democrat in politics, and he was a self-made 
man in the fullest sense of the term. Mrs. 
Sweet still survives him, and is living at La- 
fayetteville. They reared a family of eight 
children: Pedro, Clement, Franklin, Egbert, 
Emily, William, Hattie and Mary, all still liv- 
ing but the youngest. 

The subject of our sketch was only a boy 
when his parents came to Dutchess county, 
and his education was obtained in the district 
schools of the town of Milan. His first em- 
ployment was on a farm at $3.00 a month. 
After working Morgan L. Traver's farm, in the 
town of Clinton, for three years, he engaged 
in the butcher business at CImton Hollow, and 
two years later he opened a general store 
there, which he conducted two years. He 
then went to Lafayette, and after clerking for 
Hiram Bentley for a year he bought him out, 
and continued the business three years. The 
}'ear following he spent in Cokertown, in the 
same business, and then, on March 21, 1883, 
he opened his present store at Bull's Head, 
where he carries a full line of general merchan- 
dise and runs a wqgon to supply his extensive 
country trade. He has been twice married, 



660 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



first to Miss Alice G. Green, daujjhter of Am- 
brose Green, of the town of Milan. Three 
children were born of this union: Annie (de- 
ceased). Melvin J. and Addie. Mr. Sweet's 
first wife died in 1879, and he has since mar- 
ried Miss Ella D. Denny, of the town of Milan, 
by whom he has a son named Grant Sweet. 

A stanch Republican in political faith, Mr. 
Sweet has taken an active part in local mat- 
ters wherever he has lived, and has been town 
clerk of Milan for two years, also a school 
trustee, and in the spring of 1894 he was 
elected supervisor of the town of Clinton, and 
is still serving as such, his term being from 
189410 189S. He is a member of the F. cS: A. 
M., Warren Lodge No. 32, at Schultzville, 
having joined January 18, 1894. 



WILLIAM H.\LL, a well-known resident 
of Dover Plains, Dutchess county, was 

born in 1823, in Unionvale, Dutchess county, 
where his family has been prominent for many 
years. Mr. Hall received his early education 
there, and in the town of Washington, later 
learning the carpenter's trade, which he fol- 
lowed for nearly forty-five years. He was 
also engaged at one time in mercantile busi- 
ness at Dover Furnace, and was postmaster 
there. A stanch Republican, he has alwa3^s 
taken great interest in politics, and has held 
several town offices, including those of com- 
missioner and collector. In 1S62 he enlisted 
in Company I, 150th N. Y. V. I., under Col. 
J. H. Ketcham, and took part in many im- 
portant engagements. His e.xperience at 
Gettysburg was especially striking, as his 
division was instrumental in saving the day. 
Other battles were those of Dallas, Resaca, 
Gulp's farm and Peach Tree Creek, and he 
also joined in Sherman's march to the sea. 
He was taken ill, and spent some time in a 
hospital; but he served until the close of the 
war. and was mustered out at Washington, D. 
C. In 1852 Mr. Hall married Miss Priscilla 
Cutter, a lady of excellent mental gifts and 
great force of character. Her parents, Calvin 
and Keziah Cutter, were prominent residents 
of the town of Dover. Four children were born 
of this union: Helen A., who died at the age 
of thirty years; Harriet A. , who died at twenty- 
five; Calvin, who resides in Dover Plains; and 
David, who died in infancy. 

Calvin Hall, the only survivor of this fam- 
ily of children, was born in Dover Plains, 



Dutchess county, March 12, 1857, and was 
educated in the schools of that place. He 
lost the use of his lower limbs through sick- 
ness, but about two years ago he established 
himself in business in his native place, and has 
met with well-deserved success. He and his 
mother bought the home in which they now 
reside. 

The Hall family was known in Rhode Is- 
land at an early date, and William Hall, our 
subject's grandfather, came from that State to 
Dutchess county to locate in Unionvale, where 
he purchased a farm and spent the greater 
portion of his life. He married Miss \'ale, of 
that town, and reared a familj'of nine children: 
John, Israel, William and Isaac are mentioned 
below; Gedding and Benjamin never married; 
Katie was the wife of Mr. Duncan; Ruth mar- 
ried Mr. Deyo; and Abbie married Isaac 
Titus. John Hall was a farmer bj- occupation, 
and married Miss Mary Waite, by whom he 
had children, as follows: Lavine (Mrs. Smith 
Titus), Kittie (Mrs. Haws), Rebecca. Helen 
(Mrs. Joe Benson), Ruth. Abbie. Phabe (who 
died at an early age), S. Emily, Pelina, Piatt, 
John J., and Fred D. Israel Hall was also a 
farmer. He married Miss Katie Albrow, and 
had children as follows: Leonard married 
(first) Miss Lawson, and (second) Miss Hurd; 
Draper married Miss Strong; Rutser married a 
lady of the same name; Richard married 
Miss Vale: Amy remained single; Mary be- 
came the wife of Mr. Townsend; Helen mar- 
ried (first) Mr. Bowdish, and (second) Mr. 
Northrup; Margaret never married, and Ann 
married Mr. Wheeler. A majority of the 
above are now living, at advanced ages and in 
different parts of the country. William Hall 
was a well-known teacher. He married Re- 
becca Waite, and had four children; Mary A., 
Joseph, George and \\'illiam H. 

Isaac Hall, our subject's father, was born 
at the old homestead at Unionvale in 1791, 
and was educated in that town, later engaging 
in farming. He married Miss Mary Rodgers, a 
daughter of William Rodgers, a leading farmer 
of the same locality, and his wife Eleanor. 
Eleven children were born of this marriage, of 
whom one died in infancy, (i) Abbie married 
Gilbert Rozell, and had nine children: Theo, 
Charles, DeWitt, Silas. Richard. Rhoda. Jane, 
Mary and Lillie. (2) Daniel E.. a carpenter 
by trade, married Jane Duncan, and has five 
children: Mary, Samuel, Esac, Kate, and 
Jane. (3) Cordelia, born in 18 iS, never mar- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



667 



ried. (4) William is the subject of this sketch. 
(5) Eleanor married Leonard Davis. (6j Ange- 
line married David Tallman. (7) Lewis mar- 
ried Sarah Southwick. (8) Hannah married 
Isaac Palmer. (9) Joseph married Mary J. 
Duncan. (10) Phoebe married Robert Butts. 



E>BENEZER H. STURGES. a wide-awake 
; and thorough-going business man of 

Dover, is a representative of the hardware 
trade of that place, and is also a tinsmith. He 
married Miss Adaline S. Cook, whose birth 
occurred at Saugerties, Ulster Co., N. Y., 
August I, 1845, 'I'ld they have become the 
parents of four children: (i) Edward H., 
born in Danbury, Conn., February 11, 1866, 
'secured his education in the schools of Dover, 
and is now employed as ticket agent on the 
New York Central & Hudson River railroad. 
He married Miss Jennie Benson, daughter of 
Joshua Benson, of Dover Plains, Dutchess 
county. (2) Theodore, born in Dover, No- 
vember 24, 1867, was there educated and 
learned the tin and hardware business; is now 
located at West Cornwall, Conn., in the tin 
and hardware business. He married Miss 
Helen L. Cartwright, of that place, and they 
now have two children, Lawrence C. and 
Gertrude C. (3) Ida S., born at Dover, Oc- 
tober 31,1 869, was the wife of Frank Hosmer, 
an employe of the Harlem Railroad Company 
at White Plains, and they had two children, 
Lillie M., who died in infancy; and Earl. 
Mrs. Hosmer departed this life July 14, 1894. 
(4j Lillie E., born at Dover, March 31, 1872, 
is the wife of Benjamin Hoag, son of Cornwell 
Hoag, of South Dover, Dutchess county, and 
now an employe in the condensed milk manu- 
factory at Brooklyn, N. Y. They have one 
child, Jerome E. 

Edward Cook, the paternal grandfather- of 
Mrs. Sturges, was a native of Somersetshire, 
England, where he received a common-school 
education, and there devoted his entire life to 
agricultural pursuits. He married Miss Ann 
Jones, and to them were born twelve children: 
Jane, Emma, William, Sylvester, Ann, James, 
Henry, Walter, Winter, Jessie, Solomon and 
Benjamin. 

Benjamin Cook, the last named, was the 
father of Mrs. Sturges. He was born in Som- 
erset, England, April 11, 1810, and his educa- 
tional privileges were such as the schools of 
his native country afforded. At the age of 



twenty years he crossed the Atlantic, locating 
first in Canada, but afterward made his home 
in Montgomery and Orange counties, N. Y., 
where he engaged in the butcher business and 
in farming. His political support was ever 
given the Republican party, but he never as- 
pired to public office. After coming to this 
country he was united in marriage with Miss 
Susan O. Booth, who was born at Hampton- 
burg, Orange Co., N. Y., September 9, 1813. 
Her grandfather, William Booth, was a native 
of the same county, where he followed farm- 
ing. He married Miss Lydia Booth, a cousin, 
and to them were born five children: George, 
who married a MissTuttle; Charles, who mar- 
ried Philadelphia Haines; Annie, who married 
David Haines; Mary, who remained single; 
and Sarah, who married William Conning. 
Charles Booth, the father of Mrs. Cook, was 
also born in Orange county, and was a farmer 
by occupation. He wedded Philadelphia 
Haines, a daughter of David and Temperance 
Haines, agriculturists of Orange county, and 
they became the parents of eight children: 
William, George and Temperance, who all 
died unmarried; Sarah, who first married a 
Mr. Vanansdoll, and after his death wedded a 
Mr. Do.xie; Charles, who wedded Mary E. 

; Jackson; Susan, who died in infancy; 

and Susan, the mother of Mrs. Sturges. 

Eight children blessed the union of Ben- 
jamin Cook and Susan O. Booth: (i) George 
E., born July 15, 1835, at Flatlands, Long 
Island, where h^ secured his education, en- 
gaged in the drug business at Port Jervis, N. 
Y. He married Miss Catharine Bloomer, and 
they had si.x children — Willie, who died when 
a babe; Ida; James; Nellie, wife of John Lit- 
tle; George and Eva. (2) Susan, born on 
Long Island, January 11, 1S37, was three 
times married, her first husband being Mr. 
Elliott, who survived his marriage onlj' six 
months. By her second husband, a Mr. 
White, she had two children — Annie and Lula. 
After his death she married Mr. Connor, and 
to them was born a daughter — Catharine V. 
(3) James A., born on Long Island, Septem- 
ber 20, 1838, was a hatter by trade; he wed- 
ded Miss Mary Morse, of Massachusetts, by 
whom he had one child — Helen L. (4) Mary 
Ellen, born at Hunter, Greene county, June 28, 
1841, never married. (5) Harvey H., born 
at Hunter, Greene county, June 20, 1843, was 
never married; he engaged in the hat business 
at Danbury, Conn. (6) Adaline S., wife of 



663 



COMifEMORATJVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



our subject, is the next in order of birth. <j) 
William H., born May 23, 1848, at Saugerties, 
wedded Marj* A. Parmer. '8( Annie E., born 
October 26, 1830. at Saugerties. first married 
Edward H. Abbott, and after his death wed- 
ded Seth Sturges. 



WILLIAM J. DEDRICK, a well-known 
and highly respected resident of Ame- 

nia Union, Dutchess county, was born at Cox- 
sackie, Greene Co., N. Y. . February 20, 1814, 
and is a son of John F. Dedrick, a native of 
the same county, while the birth of his pa- 
ternal grandfather occurred in Holland. The 
father prepared for the ministry of the Re- 
formed Dutch Church, of which he was a mem- 
ber, but. on account of an impediment in his 
speech, never engaged in preaching. He con- 
ducted a book siore at Co.xsackie throughout 
the greater part of his life. In politics he was 
a Federalist. He married Fannie Judson, 
whose death occurred November 7, 1S31. at 
the age of forty-si.x years, and he did not long 
survive her, dying August 22, 1832, at the age 
of fifty-two years. In their family were seven 
children, whose names and dates of birth are 
as follows: F. C, May 14. 1808: Jane A., 
October 25, 1809; Catherine, September 27, 
1811; William J.. February 20. 1814; T. S., 
March 6, 1818; Harriet, April i, 1820; and J. 
F., November 28, 1S27. 

At the age of twenty years our subject left 
Co.xsackie, going to Poughkeepsie, N.Y., where 
he began the study of dentistrj- with his brother- 
in-law. Dr. Buck, and continued to follow that 
profession until 1865, since which time he has 
engaged in handling pictures and frames. It 
was in 1841 that he removed to Amenia Union, 
where he has since resided. 

At Cornwall, Conn., in February, 1S48, 
Mr. Dedrick was united in marriage with Miss 
Mariette Bonney, daughter of Stephen and 
Anna ("Stone; Bonney. They have no chil- 
dren of their own. but adopted a daughter, 
Rosa Loper, who died in 1867, at the age of 
nineteen years. 

Since the time that Horace Greeley ran for 
the Presidency. Mr. Dedrick has been a corre- 
spondent of the Amenia Thins. He was first 
a Whig in politics, electioneering in the Will- 
iam H. Harrison campaign for three months, 
and since the organization of the Republican 
party has been one of its most earnest advo- 



cates, taking a prominent part in political 
affairs. On September 6, 1856, he received a 
license as local preacher in the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, in which service he has since 
engaged, and is the oldest living member of 
the Church of that denomination at Amenia 
Union. In all the walks of life he takes as 
his guide the precepts of the scriptures, and is 
foremost in any movement for the religious 
advancement of the community. He was the 
originator and a prominent helper of the Ame- 
nia Union Lyceum during the eleven years of 
its e.xistence, and for twenty-seven successive 
years he has been elected superintendent of 
the Methodist Episcopal Sunday-school. 



JON.-\THAN DICKINSON was born in Lin- 
colnshire, England, and educated in York- 
^ shire, from which county he came at an 
early age to the United States, and for a num- 
ber of years lived in Indiana, enduring all the 
rigors of pioneer life. 

Leaving Indiana, Mr. Dickinson removed 
to New York City and became a commercial 
traveler for English hardware, of which line of 
business he made a success, and followed it 
for twelve years. In 1863 he took up his 
abode in Norfolk, \'a., and was extensively 
engaged in furnishing the government with 
hardware, machinery, belting, building mate- 
rial, etc., by contract. At the close of the 
war he moved to Newark. N. J., where he 
carried on large manufacturing interests until 
the latter part of 1875. when he embarked in 
the real-estate business in Stanfordville, Dutch- 
ess Co., N. Y. In 1S77 he came to Pough- 
keepsie, where he has continued to deal in real 
estate to the present daj\ 

Notwithstanding the fact that the city and 
county have experienced some exceedingly de- 
pressing periods, Mr. Dickinson, by close ap- 
plication, continued to maintain such a steady 
business that he felt himself called upon to lo- 
cate where he now is — in the central portion 
of the city, and on the main street, where he 
would be easily accessible to his numerous pa- 
trons. He has successfully negotiated some of 
the largest transactions in real estate that 
have taken place for a number of years in 
Poughkeepsie. Mr. Dickinson believes that in 
a city of that size a man cannot deal in real 
estate, fire and life insurance, etc., and make 
a decided success of each; consequently he has 



X 




*^00^,^^ "^i 



*» 





^/l€^ 2/i^^C^H^.7t 



4cr7^: 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



669 



made the sale and exchange of real estate his 
specialty, to which fact his success in that line 
is probably due. [The foregoing is taken from 
the Souvenir Edition of T/u- Eag/c, issued in 
1889.] 

In 1856, in Westbury, L. I., Mr. Dickinson 
was united in marriage with Miss Anna Willis 
Smith, daughter of Samuel and Mary (Willis) 
Smith, one of the oldest families on Long 
Island. Thomas Willis, her grandfather, was 
a stanch Quaker, and at the division of the 
Hicksite and Regular Church, he was disowned 
by the body following Elias Hicks at Jericho, 
the home of Elias Hicks, and T. Willis, a 
minister, for over thirty years drove twice each 
week past the Jericho meeting-house, three 
miles farther to the Westbury meeting-house 
of Orthodox Friends, to worship. Thomas 
Willis was born and died on the farm that was 
deeded to his predecessors by the British 
Government. The English soldiers occupied 
the house during the Revolution, allowing the 
the family a few rooms, when they occupied 
Long Island. 

The Dickinson family originated in York- 
shire, England, and were all Quakers from 
the middle of the seventeenth century. At 
the rise of Quakerism in the time of George 
Fox, John Dickinson came to America, and 
for a time preached, traveling from North 
Carolina to New England, whence he started 
to return to England, but the vessel he was on 
was lost, and he was never heard from again. 
The old Dickinson homestead in Yorkshire, 
England (still standing) is built of stone, and 
over the door is a plate bearing the family 
name "John Dickinson, 1736." The house 
is now occupied by Simeon Dickinson, a cousin 
of Mr. Dickinson. The grandfather of our 
subject lived and died in England, in the same 
house wherein he was born; he was a weaver 
by trade. 

Jonathan Dickinson, father of our subject, 
and by occupation a merchant, in his native 
land married Alice Hunt, a lady of means and 
social standing in Lincolnshire, England. He 
died in 1840, at the age of fifty-three years, 
and after his death the widowed mother came 
to America, where she died in Indiana, in 1863, 
aged sixty- five years. She had thirteen chil- 
dren, of whom eight grew to maturity, and all 
came to America, our subject being the only 
one living in the East. 

To Mr. and Mrs. Dickinson have been 
born two children; Mary Alice, residing in 



Poughkeepsie, and Jonathan, Jr., a graduate 
of Haverford College, and is B. A. and M. A., 
now teaching in Oakwood Seminary, Union 
Springs, New York. 



ILO FOLLETT WINCHESTER, one 

_ of the self-made men and influential 
citizens of Amenia, Dutchess county, com- 
menced to " paddle his own canoe "' at an 
early age, and is now a well-to-do and success- 
ful merchant, whose property has been accu- 
mulated by his own perseverance and untiring 
labors. 

Mr. Winchester was born in the town of 
Amenia, October i, 1823, and is a grandson of 
Amariah Winchester, whose birth occurred at 
New London, Conn., February 13, 1753. 
The father of the latter was a native of Brook- 
line, Mass. The boyhood and youth of the 
grandfather were passed at New London, 
where he learned the hatter's trade, and on 
reaching man's estate he was married at Kent, 
Conn., to Mary Follett, who was born Decem- 
ber 4, 1759. and died June 9, 1832. In their 
family were seven children, all now deceased: 
Henry, Milo, David, Mary, Lucy, Myra and 
Betsy. During the Revolutionary war the 
grandfather was a faithful soldier of the Con- 
tinental army. It was in 1781 that he came 
to Dutchess county and purchased a farm at 
Hitchcocks Corners, in the town of Amenia, 
where his death occurred March 26, 1842. 
He engaged in the hatter's business until 1827, 
in connection with which he also carried on 
farming, and was one of the prominent men of 
the community. 

Milo Winchester, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Amenia, November 
30, 1788, and with his father learned the hat- 
ter's trade. On January 24, 18 10, he was 
married to Betsey Pray, who was born Octo- 
ber 7, 1791, and died January 13, 1872. In 
their family were five children, namely: Asa 
H., born October 26, 18 10, died May 29, 
1819; Julia M., born August 19, 1813, mar- 
ried Charles- Wattles; Joanna, born June 21, 
1816, married Seeley Brown, and died De- 
cember 28, 1866; Eliza, born December 23, 
1 8 19, married Amariah Hitchcock on Decem- 
ber 26, 1840, and died April 27, 1892: Abby, 
born December 22, 1821, first wedded L. P. 
Lockwood, and after his death Sidney Thomp- 
son, and died January 19, 1S58; and Milo F., 
of this sketch, is the youngest. In 1830 the 



C7(> 



COMMEMORATrVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



father removed to New York City, where he 
engaged in the grocery business until 1834, at 
which time he returned to Amenia Union, and 
bought a hotel, where he passed the remainder 
of his life, dying February 5, 1861. Frater- 
nally, he was connected with the Masonic 
Order at Amenia Union, and in politics was 
first a Whig and later a Republican. 

The boyhood and youth of Milo FoUett Win- 
chester were principally passed at Amenia 
Union, where he attended the district schools, 
and later pursued his studies in a select school 
on Seventh street, in New York City. He began 
his business life as a clerk in a store at Great 
Harrington, Mass., was next with Bowne cS: 
Trowbridge, of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., after 
which he clerked at Amenia Union, and subse- 
quently tilled similar positions at Dover Plains, 
IJutchess county, and at Kent, Conn. In 
April, 1847, he purchased the store of Judah 
Swift, at South Amenia, which he has since 
successfully conducted, and has also efficiently 
served as postmaster since 1849. I" the town 
of Washington, Dutchess county, on October 
13, 1847, Mr. Winchester was married to Miss 
Mary T. Nase, daughter of Henry I. Nase, of 
Amenia, and to them were born four children: 
Martha, who died in infancy ; -Henry Nase, 
who married Frances Sleight, a granddaughter 
of Peter K. Sleight (a prominent man of the 
town of Lagrange, Dutchess county), and they 
have two children — Milo F. and Henry F.; 
Frank, who died at the age of nine; and Syd- 
ney Thompson, who died at the age of twenty- 
eight. 

In politics Mr. Winchester is identified 
with the Republican party, giving his influence 
and vote to secure the passage of its measures 
and the election of its candidates, and sociall}' 
holds membership in Amenia Lodge No. 672, 
F. & A. M. He has won the respect and con- 
fidence of all with whom he has been associ- 
ated, either in business or in private life, and he 
is justly entitled to a position among the fore- 
most men of Dutchess county. From 1854 
until 1892 he capably served as justice of the 
peace, and for several terms has been super- 
visor of his town. 



GEORGE STEVENSON, a well-known 
citizen of Wappingers Falls, Dutchess 
county, was born in County Armagh, Ireland, 
February 16, 1839. 

John Stevenson, the father of our subject. 



was born near Fifeshire. Scotland, in 1798. 
He learned the business of making linen cloth, 
which he followed in his native land for many 
years. He was married to Elizabeth Duncan, 
who was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1800. 
Soon after his marriage, Mr. Stevenson went 
to Ireland, where he carried on his business, 
and where his family of children were born. 
Those now living are: Jane, Thomas, John, 
Mary, Sarah, Rachael, Margaret and George. 
John is employed in the print works in Wap- 
pingers Falls, and Thomas is a clerk in a store 
in the same place. On May 12, 1848, the 
father came to America, the family following 
him one jear later. He settled in Wappingers 
Falls, and found employment in the cotton 
mills there. His death took place in 1868, 
and that of his wife in 1862. They were mem- 
bers of the Presbyterian Church, and in his po- 
litical \iews Mr. Stevenson was in sympathy 
with the Republican party. 

The subject of this sketch was but seven 
years old when his parents came to this coun- 
try, and his entire life since that time has been 
spent at Wappingers Falls. He learned the 
trades of tinner and plumber when a young 
man, and. with the exception of five years 
when he was engaged in the grocery business, 
has carried on business in that line. Of late 
years he has added hardware of all kinds to 
his other departments, and has an extensive 
trade in the various implements and accessories 
used b\' plumbers, tinners and builders. He 
is a man of fine business ability, and has been 
successful in his enterprises. He is progress- 
ive in his ideas, and is a public-spirited citizen 
who stands high in the estimation of all who 
know him. He ii'. a strong Republican. 

In 1866 Mr. Stevenson was married to 
Sarah J. Barlow, a sister of James R. Barlow, 
whose sketch will be found elsewhere. They 
have two children, John and Fred. 



GEORGE VINCENT, a leading carpenter 
of the town of Dover, Dutchess county, 
was there born on October 3. 1859, and since 
laying aside his school books has always worked 
at his trade, in which he is quite proficient. 
Socially, he is connected with the Knights of 
Labor. He married Addie \'incent, a first 
cousin, who was born in Dover, in 1862, and 
they have become the parents of five children: 
Angle, born December 16, 1880; Joseph, born 
December 6, 1882; William, born June 25, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOaRAPHICAL RECORD. 



671 



1888; George, born November 2, 1891; and 
Naomi, born February 2, 1S94. 

Allen Vincent, the great-grandfather of both 
our subject and his wife, was born in the town 
of Dover. Dutchess county, and was there ed- 
ucated in the common schools, and followed 
farming on attaining man's estate. In his fam- 
ily were three children: Jonathan, the grand- 
father; Ann, who became the wife of Leonard 
Carey; and Leonard, who married Ann Carey. 

Jonathan Vincent was also born, reared 
and educated in the town of Dover, Dutchess 
county, and followed the occupation of farm- 
ing. He was married to Miss Martha Duncan, 
by whom he had seven children. 

(ij George, the eldest son in the Vincent 
family, was born in Dover, and followed the 
occupation of shoemaking. He first married 
Miss Amanda Cooley, by whom he had one 
daughter — Mary. For his second wife he 
chose Malissa Sterey, and they had four chil- 
dren, but all died in infancy. His third wife 
bore the maiden name of Miss Caroline Slo- 
cum, and to them was born a daughter — 
Georgiana. 

(2) William, the father of our subject, 
was the next. His birth occurred on Chest- 
nut Ridge, and in the common schools of the 
town of Dover, Dutchess county, he acquired 
his education. He learned the shoemaker's 
trade, at which he worked for twenty years, 
but in later life he devoted his time to agri- 
cultural pursuits. He was a strong Republic- 
an in politics, but cared nothing for political 
preferment. As a helpmeet on life's journey 
he chose Miss Martha Eggleston, daughter of 
David and Martha (Burhance) Eggleston, 
farming people of Dover Plains. They be- 
came the parents of six children, of whom 
our subject is the eldest. David J. died at 
the age of ten years. Jennie, born in the 
town of Dover, Dutchess county, August 29, 
1868, is the wife of John Hawley, a farmer of 
that town, and they have three children — 
Maude, Edgar and Lewis. Leon L. died at 
the age of twenty-six years. Hattie, born in 
Dover, Dutchess county, April 14, 1874, mar- 
ried William Humeston, a carpenter of Do- 
ver, and they have had three children — 
Jeffrey and two others, all of whom died in 
infancy. Ruth G., born in the town of Do- 
ver, Dutchess county, March i, 1877, is the 
wife of Fred De Garmo, a carpenter of Dover, 
by whom she has one child, Anna L. Pre- 
vious to her marriage with the father of our 



subject, Mrs. Vincent was the wife of Charles 
Coates, a brakeman on the Harlem railroad, 
and to them were born two children: Will- 
iam, who died at the age of seventeen years; 
and Emma, who married Edwin Carey, and 
has four children — Charles, Eva, Ernest and 
Millard. 

(3) Allen, the father of Mrs. George \'in- 
cent, is the third of the family. Like his 
brother, he also was born, educated, and fol- 
lowed farming in the town of Dover. On 
reaching manhood he was married to Miss 
Mary Stage, daughter of David and Mary A. 
(Colby) Stage, agriculturists of the town of 
Dover. Six children were born to them, as 
follows: Ida is the wife of John H. Ensign, and 
they have one child, John O. Addie, the wife 
of our subject, is next in order of birth. Martha 
married William Brown, a farmer in the town 
of Dover, and they have two children, Allen 
and Frank. Augusta is the wife of Fred Wil- 
cox, a farmer of Dover. Daisy is at home. 
Mary is the wife of Martin Wilcox, a farmer 
of Dover, and has three children, William, 
Julia and John. 

(4) Isaac, the fourth son of Jonathan and 
Martha (Duncan) Vincent, was born in the 
town of Dover, where, on reaching manhood, 
he engaged in farming. He first married Miss 
Jane A. Beers, by whom he had six children, 
only two of whom — Stephen and Hattie — 
lived, but Stephen also is now deceased. His 
second wife bore the maiden name of Imogene 
Butts. 

(5) Edgar, the fifth son, never married. 

(6) Eliza was twice married, her first union 
being with Harvey Wheeler, a farmer of Dover, 
and to them were born four children: Mary, 
who became the wife of Nicholas Edmonds; 
Phoebe, who remained single; William, who 
married Mary Sheldon; and Elizabeth, who 
married George Brown. After the death of 
her first husband Mrs. Wheeler became the 
wife of William Colby, and they had four 
children: Loretta, who married Frank Talla- 
day; George .A. ; Katie, who married Peter 
Chase; and Myron, who died at the age of 
twenty-five years. 

(7) Amanda was united in marriage with 
Oscar Wilcox, a laborer of Dover, and they 
had a family of eleven children: Lewis, who 
married Lydia Clarkson; Justina, who married 
Oscar Fiero; Mary, who wedded Arthur Som- 
mers; Martin, who married Mary Vincent; 
Nettie, who married George Tompkins; Lydia, 



07: 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



who married William Forbes; Dora, who mar- 
ried Earl Yale; Fred, who married Aufjusta 
Vincent; Oscar, who remained single; and 
Nellie and Amanda, who died in infancy. 



J EDGAR MOITH, M. D., of Fishkill, 
Dutchess county, has a record as a prac- 
titioner which does him honor, and has 
gained for him a reputation as one of the most 
talented and successful members of the med- 
ical fraternity in his section. He is a native 
of Fishkill, where he was born September 22, 
1855, and is of an e.xcellent German family. 
His father, August T. Moith, was born in 
the Fatherland, at Wiesbaden, Prussia, and 
came to America when a young man, locating 
at Fishkill without delay, and engaging in the 
drug business in a small way, in partnership 
with Cornelius Van \'liet. Two years later 
the firm was dissolved, Mr. Moith becoming 
sole proprietor, and he continued the business 
alone until his death, which occurred Novem- 
ber 15. 1S85. For some time he and Mr. 
Mapes were the only druggists between Fish- 
kill village and the river. Mr. Moith had ac- 
quired a knowledge of chemistry and surgery 
in his native land, and being naturally of a 
scientific turn of mind, he made many experi- 
ments, some of them producing valuable re- 
sults. He invented a process for making 
sponges elastic for beds, cushions, etc., and 
secured a patent, but it was literally stolen 
from him, and the fortune ($100,000) derived 
from the idea went to others. Another illus- 
tration of his skill was given in his analysis of 
a sample of oil obtained from a swamp near 
Fishkill. He proved that the oil was not in a 
crude state, but was doubtless a portion of the 
contents of a barrel of refined oil which had 
been emptied into the swamp in furtherance of 
a scheme to sell the property at a high figure. 
He married Miss Caroline Wade, a native of 
Blooming Grove, now known as Washington- 
ville. Orange Co., N. Y. She was a daughter 
of Colvin and Malinda (Moore) Wade, who 
were probably of English origin. Ten chil- 
dren were born of this union, our subject be- 
ing the eldest. (2) Theodore is now deputy 
sheriff at Fishkill; (3) Ferdinand is a dentist 
at the same place; (4) Bertha married Charles 
Schlagel, a druggist in New York City; (5) 
Emma is a student in the College of Pharmacy 
in New York; (6) Ivanhoe is a machinist at 
St. Louis; (7) Lenna died at the age of nine 



years; (8) Blanche married Jacob Schlagel, a 
mechanical designer in New York, and a 
brother of her sister Bertha's husband; the 
two last children died in infancy. 

Dr. Moith"s boyhood was spent in Fishkill, 
and as a clerk for his father he began at an 
early age to gather information concerning 
drugs which has been of great practical value 
to him. Greek and Latin were learned under 
the tuition of J. Hervey Cook, of Fishkill. In 
1876 he began a course of professional study 
at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, 
New York, and completed it in 1879, receiv- 
ing the degree of M. D. His class contained 
a number of men who have achieved promi- 
nence in the profession, and Dr. Moith's stand- 
ing among them is shown by the fact that he 
gained one of the few coveted positions open 
to graduates for practical experience, being 
appointed assistant physician of the out-door 
department of Bellevue Hospital. The knowl- 
edge there gained could hardly be equalled in 
many years of ordinary practice. In March, 
1879, he returned to Fishkill and engaged in 
professional work, and his success has been 
most gratifying. He has had 913 accouche- 
ments, twenty-eight cases of twins and two 
of triplets. He is president of medical staff 
of General Hospital, town of Fishkill. At 
present he is medical examiner of a number of 
life-insurance companies, including the North- 
western, the Mutual Reserve, National Life 
Insurance Company, Vermont, the Union 
Central, the Industrial Benefit, and the 
Metropolitan. Since 1894 he has been health 
officer of Fishkill Landing, and he is also physi- 
cian to the order of Foresters, all these duties, 
in addition to the claims of his private practice, 
making him one of the busiest of men. From 
1S83 to 1886, he held the office of coroner; 
but although he is a stanch Republican and 
influential, he is not a politician or an office 
seeker. Financially, the Doctor ranks among 
the substantial citizens of the town, and he 
owns nine houses with other valuable property. 
He is a stockholder of the First National 
Bank, Matteawan, N. Y. He is a friend to 
public improvements, and can always be de- 
pended upon to assist a worthy cause. On 
September 22, 1880, the Doctor was married 
to Miss Grace E. Collins, daughter of Gilbert 
and Susan Collins, of Carthage Landing, and 
a descendant of an old Dutchess county fam- 
ily. No children blessed this union. Social- 
ly, Dr. Moith is a Freemason, and he is also 




^ (S-, ^^7^ ^. 4>. 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



C7S 



an honorary member of the Tompkins Hose 
Co., in which for five years he served as an 
active member. 



CYRUS PERKINS, a resident of the town 
_' of Unionvale, is a well-known business 
man of Dutchess county, where he follows 
farming, and also the trade of a mason. He 
is an honored and representative citizen of the 
community, public-spirited and enterprising, 
and has the high regard of his fellow-men. 
He married Miss Sarah Barmore, who was 
born in the town of Lagrange, Dutchess county, 
in 1847, and there obtained her education in 
the public schoojs. They have a son, John 
E., who was born in 1881. 

Henry Barmore, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Perkins, was a native of Westchester county, 
N. Y. By his marriage with Bethany Car- 
penter, he had thirteen children: Clark C, 
Abigail, Stephen, Anor, Lydia, Annie, Susan, 
Henry, Philip, Mary, Sarah, Elizabeth and 
James. 

Clark Barmore was also born in Westches- 
ter county, and was united in marriage with 
Miss Mary C. Alley, daughter of James Alley. 
Their family consisted of nine children: 
Phcebe, who married Cromoline Patterson; 
Edward, who married Lucy Wanzer; Stephen, 
who died unmarried; Caroline, who married 
Andrew Wanzer; Eliza M., who died unmar- 
ried; Sarah, wife of Cyrus Perkins, whose 
name introduces this sketch; John, who mar- 
ried Josephine Phillips; Charles, who died un- 
married; and Mary Adelia, who became the 
wife of Gilbert Downing. 



GARRET DU BOIS, now living in the vil- 
_ lage of Fishkill, Dutchess county, is a 
worthy representative of a 'family who left 
France and Holland during religious persecu- 
tion, and sought homes here in the midst of the 
wilderness, where they would have to encoun- 
ter all dangers and privations incident to life 
in a new country, inhabited only by the savage 
red men and wild animals. This they did in or- 
der that they might worship God as their con- 
science dictated. The founder of the family in 
the New World was Jacques Du Bois, who was 
born in Leyden, Holland, and married Miss 
Pierronne Bentyn, of the same place. They 

reared a family of eight children: Marie (l), 
43 



Jacques, Marie (2), Jean, Anne, Jehan, Pierre 
and Christian. 

Pierre Du Bois came with the family to 
America in 1675, and located in Wiltwyck, 
Ulster Co., N. Y., but grew to manhood in 
Kingston, that county, where he married 
Jannetje Burhans, October 12, 1697. In 1707 
they came to Dutchess county, locating in the 
town of Fishkill, about three and a half miles 
east of the village of that name. Here he se- 
cured a tract of land, and lived with his family. 
His eldest son was born at Kingston, but the 
births of the others all occurred in Dutchess 
county. They were as follows: Petronella 
(i), Johannes (i), Jacobus, Christiaan, Jona- 
than, Peter, Abraham, Johannes (2), Helena, 
Elizabeth and Petronella (2). The fourth 
child, Christiaan Du Bois, married Nelltje 
Van Vliet, and they became the parents of 
three children: Jannetje, Elizabeth and Chris- 
tiaan. The last named was born June 13, 
1746, and was married in 1768 to Helena Van- 
Voorhis, by whom he had these children: 
Coert, Henry, Abraham, Garret, John, Eliza- 
beth, Catherine and Cornelius. 

Garret Du Bois, the fourth son, was the 
grandfather of our subject. He married Han- 
nah Cooper, and located upon a farm near 
Johnsville, now in the town of East Fishkill, 
where they reared their family of three chil- 
dren: Maria, who married Peter T. Montfort, 
father of Peter V. W. Montfort, of the town 
of Wappinger, Dutchess county; Eliza, who 
married Peter Fowler, a farmer of Orange 
county, N. Y., and Charles L. 

Charles L. Du Bois was born in 1799, on 
the home farm in the town of East Fishkill, 
where he grew to manhood, and married Cath- 
erine Hasbrouck, whose birth occurred in the 
same town in 1800. Her father, Tunis Has- 
brouck, belonged to the same family as those 
of the name in Ulster county, N. Y. Upon 
their marriage they lived upon the farm near 
Johnsville, where were born their four children: 
Jane E., who married Augustus Bartow, now 
a resident of Hackensack, N. J.; Mary, de- 
ceased wife of Isaac Sherwood, a farmer of 
the town of Fishkill; Garret, of this review, 
and Hasbrouck, a minister of a Reformed 
Dutch Church in New York City. Throughout 
life the father carried on farming, and died in 
January, 1878; the mother departed this life in 
1880. Both were sincere members of the Re- 
formed Dutch Church, and he was a Repub- 
lican in politics. 



074 



C V MAfESfOIiA TIVE B 100 11 A PUK A L UEVORD. 



Upon the home farm Garret Du Bois was 
born, September 27, 182S, and during his boy- 
hood attended the district schools in the neigh- 
borhood. He was, later, a student at Andover, 
Mass., and completed his education at College 
Hill, in Poughkeepsie. In September, i860, 
he was united in marriage with Mary Ida Van- 
Wyck, who was born in the village of ¥\s\\- 
kill, where the birth of her father, John C. 
Van Wyck, also occurred. He was a son of 
Cornelius Van Wyck, and a farmer and mer- 
chant by occupation. Upon their marriage 
Mr. and Mrs. Du Bois located upon their 
present farm, and there their three children 
were born: Charles, a farmer, who wedded 
Ethel Moore, of New York City; John V. W., 
now engaged in business in New York City; and 
Kate W. The wife and mother was called to 
her final rest May 28, 1873. 

Mr. Du Bois owns a valuable farm of 142 
acres, a part of which is devoted to fruit rais- 
ing, and he continued its cultivation and im- 
provement until the fall of 1893, since which 
time he has lived a quiet, retired life in the 
village of Fishkill. The family, which is one 
of prominence in the community, are mem- 
bers of the Reformed Church, of which our 
subject is serving as elder. His political sup- 
port is unswervingly given the Republican 
party. He holds an enviable position in the 
esteem of his fellow-citizens, to which he is 
justly entitled, for his pure and honorable life 
is above reproach. 



QRLIN B. ABEL. Jacob Abel, grandfather 
J of our subject, was born in the town of 
Unionvale, Dutchess county, where he passed 
his days in agricultural pursuits. He married 
Miss Margaret Uhl, by whom he had three 
children: William W., John M. and Mary. 

William W. Abel, father of our subject, 
•was born March 1, 18 14, in the town of 
Unionvale, and during his boyhood attended 
the Nine Partners School, after which he en- 
gaged in teaching for a time. Later he fol- 
lowed agricultural pursuits exclusively, be- 
coming one of the most extensive farmers in 
his town. He took quite an active interest in 
political matters, always voting with the Whig 
or Republican party, and held a number of 
township offices, including those of supervisor, 
justice of the peace and revenue collector. He 
wedded Miss Mary Jane Austin, daughter of 
Beriah and Sarah (Waite) Austin, and four 



children were born to them: OrlinB., Dwight, 
H. Clay and one whose name is not given. Of 
these, Dwight is fully spoken of elsewhere; H. 
Clay was born in the town of Unionvale, and 
received a good common-school education, 
after which he followed the profession of teach- 
ing. He is now engaged in mercantile busi- 
ness at Wappingers Falls, Dutchess county. 
Socially, he affiliates with the F. & A. M. He 
married Miss Maggie Traver, by whom he had 
two children; William C. and Melburn T. , 
and after her death he wedded Miss Mary 
Manning. 

Orlin B. Abel was born in the town of 
Unionvale, in 1845, was educated in the 
schools of Fayette, Iowa, taught school several 
terms, and is now carrying on farming in 
Unionvale. In politics he is a Republican, and 
has held some minor township offices. He 
was united in marriage December 27, 1865, 
with Miss Mary Alice Vincent, daughter of 
Jonathan G. \'incent, of the town of Union- 
vale, and to them were born two children: 
Ellanita L. , wife of Oscar Shaffer (they have 
one son — Harold F.), and Orlin Claude Lewis. 



JAMES HERRICK, a well-known stock- 
dealer and agriculturist, residing near La- 

fayetteville, Dutchess county, was born 
August 21, 1832, in the town of Milan, where 
his family has long held a prominent place in 
local affairs. 

The first American ancestor came at an 
early period from England, settling in New 
England, and our subject's great-grandfather, 
Ephraim Herrick, was born in Massachusetts, 
but settled in Dutchess county on arriving at 
manhood. His son, Ephraim Herrick (2), our 
subject's grandfather, was born in Amenia, 
and became a prominent farmer of the town of 
Milan. He married Anna Dixon, and their 
son, Ephraim Herrick (3), our subject's father, 
was born September 28, 1788. He settled 
upon a farm near his birthplace, and married 
Phtebe Albertson, daughter of John Albertson, 
a leading farmer of Hyde Park, and a descend- 
ant of an old Holland-Dutch family. They 
had eight children: (i) John A., a farmer in 
the town of Pine Plains, married Margaret 
Sherwood. (2) William, a farmer of Pleasant 
Valley, married (first) Elizabeth Brown, and 
after her decease wedded Mary Harris. (3) 
Walter, a prominent physician, married Helen 
Sherwood, and died January 13, 1895, aged 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



675 



seventj--four years. (4) Gurdon B., who was 
a farmer in the town of Milan, married (first) 
Fannie Bentiey, and after her death wedded 
Hiilda Cornelius, also now deceased; he died 
April 28, 1894, aged seventy-one years. (5) 
James, our subject, will be fully spoken of 
farther on. 16) Elizabeth married Isaac Sher- 
wood, and she is now a widow. (7) Susan 
died in infancy. (8) Caroline married Henry 
Butts, and is now a widow. The mother of 
tthis family died in 1835, ^^^ for his second 
wife Ephraim Herrick (3) married, October 
22, 1840, Mrs. Susan Ann Andrews, of Kin- 
derhook, Columbia county, and they had four 
children: (i) George, now of Danbury, Conn., 
married Kate Taylor. (2) Anna, wife of 
Ferderand Taylor, of Danbury, Conn. (3) 
Edward, farmer of Bull Head, N. Y. , married 
Emma Bentiey. (4) Ephraim, of Rhinecliff-on- 
Hudson, married Henrietta Hermance. The 
mother of this family died in 1895, aged nine- 
ty years. The father passed away in 1868; 
during the war of 1812 he was one of the sol- 
diers stationed at Brooklyn Navy Yard. 

The subject of our sketch passed his boy- 
hood at the homestead, and was educated in 
the district schools of that neighborhood and 
at Rhinebeck Seminary. On March 6, 1859, 
he married his first wife. Miss Jennette Cook- 
ingham, a descendant of one of the prominent 
families of the town of Milan, who died June 
2, i860, leaving one daughter, Mary Ida, who 
was married December 31, 1896, to Gurdon 
Ricket, a farmer of the town of Rhinebeck; 
our subject's second wife was Josephine Hape- 
man, a daughter of Andrew Hapeman, and 
granddaughter of John Hapeman, both in their 
day prominent farmers of the town of Milan. 
Her mother was Catherine Alendorf, a native 
of the same town, and a daughter of Henry 
Alendorf, who was born in the town of Red 
Hook. The Hapeman family is of German 
extraction, while the Alendorfs are of Holland 
stock. Mrs. Herrick's father died in the town 
of Milan, October 9, i860, but her mother is 
still living. They had nine daughters: Julia 
A., who married Alfred Coon, of Catskill Sta- 
tion, N. Y. ; Martha, the wife of Robert Leator, 
a farmer in the town of Red Hook; Josephine 
(Mrs. Herrick; ; Abby, the wife of John Phillips, 
of Ravenna, N. Y., a conductor on the W. S. 
R. R. ; Catherine E., who married P. Traver, 
a farmer in Red Hook, and died June 24, 
1879; Emily I., who died March 30, 1869; 
Luella, the wife of Sylvester Stall, a fruit 



grower in Columbia county; Ada, who died 
April 18, 1872; and Fannie, who is at home. 
After his second marriage Mr. Herrick set- 
tled upon his present farm, where two sons 
were added to the family: Thaddeus J., born 
July I. 1869, was married September 7, 1893, 
to Bertha Dederick, of Milan, and they have 
one daughter, Ethel; and Charles S., born 
September 4, 1875, still at home. From early 
years Mr. Herrick has been engaged in buying 
and selling live stock, and the care of his fine 
farm of 1 14 acres does not prevent him from 
carrying on this business largely, purchasing in 
the West to sell in the East. His family are 
prominent members of the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church, and take an active part in its 
work. In local affairs Mr. Herrick is influen- 
tial, being a valued adviser in the Democratic 
party, and he has been supervisor of his town 
for several terms. His son Thaddeus J. was 
appointed school commissioner of the Second 
District of Dutchess county, in 1892, and 
elected in 1893, served two years, and is now 
a coal dealer in Hyde Park, New York. 



^LADYSLAWA J. PRALATOWSKI, a 

well-known resident of Fishkill-on- 

Hudson, Dutchess county, has displayed abil- 
ity and energy while gaining a foothold in this 
new country for which he cannot be too highly 
praised, and has, in spite of all difficulties, 
made a place for himself in business life that 
could not readily be supplied. The facilities 
which his office affords to the intending tour- 
ist — whether he desires information, letters of 
credit, or tickets to any part of the known 
world — are many, and his acquaintance with 
European customs and legal formalities has 
smoothed the way for more than one perplexed 
client. 

He is a native of Pakaslaw, Province of 
Posen, Poland, and was born April 23, 1843, 
the son of Jacob and Marguerite (Van Kaust) 
Pralatowski, and grandson of Vincent and 
Marguerite (Wulerd) Pralatowski. His family 
was highly respected, and his father was a pro- 
fessor in a college at Posen. Our subject was 
the youngest of three sons, the names of the 
others being Ludwig and Leon. His mother 
died when he was but three days old, and at 
the age of twelve years he was left fatherless. 
He was educated in the schools of Lissa, Po- 
land, and at nineteen he came to America, 
landing in New York City November 6, 1862. 



670 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Although he was fitted by nature and educa- 
tion for other work, he went to Newburg, N. 
Y., and engaged in the first employment to be 
found, that of shoemaking. On December i, 
1862, he went to Matteawan to work for Mr. 
Budny, but after a few months he returned to 
Newburg, where he remained for some time, 
spending, however, a short period in Pough- 
keepsie. Later he moved from Newburg to 
New York City, and in the fall of 1865 he re- 
turned to Matteawan, where in the following 
year he opened a shop of his own. In 1868 
he transferred his business to Fishkill-on- Hud- 
son, and has since resided there. His present 
office was opened in October, 1890, and his 
business (which includes real estate and fire 
insurance, in addition to the other lines men- 
tioned above) has steadily developed as time 
has passed. 

On July 13, 1 87 1, he married Miss Mary 
E. Rowland, daughter of Thomas and Mary 
(Clark) Rowland, and has two daughters: 
Mary Marguerite and Anna Helena. His fam- 
ily are all members of the Roman Catholic 
Church, and he is an active worker in the 
Catholic Benevolent League. In politics he 
is a Democrat, and is interested in all progress- 
ive movements in his locality. From 1869 
to 1879 he was a member of Excelsior Engine 
Co. No. I, Fishkill Fire Department, and for 
ten years he has been a worker in the Inde- 
pendent Order of Good Templars. For ten 
years he belonged to Company H, 21st Regi- 
ment, Kew York National Guards, and for 
two and one-half years served as its captain. 
At present he represents a combination of 
business, such as is seldom handled by one in- 
dividual; his correspondence reaches more 
than 1,600 banks all over the world; he rep- 
resents all the steamship lines, at home and 
abroad; he prepares all kinds of legal docu- 
ments for foreign nations, and in foreign lan- 
guages; he procures passports from the U. S. 
Government — in fact, he does a combination 
of home and foreign work which is seldom 
found done by one man with the same success 
which he achieves. 



HI:NRY WORRALL, awell-known farmer 
of the town of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, was born on the farm where he now 
lives, near Poughkeepsie, October 22, 1844. 
Here he grew to manhood, attending the dis- 
trict schools, and, later, the Dutchess Countv 



Academy. After finishing his schooling he re- 
turned to the farm, where he has continued to 
reside. 

On April 27, 1885, Mr. Worrall was mar- 
ried to Miss Clementine Lawson, who was born 
in New York City, a daughter of Casper Law- 
son, a farmer of the town of Poughkeep- 
sie. One child, Donald L. , was born to our 
subject and his wife December 16, 1893. 
Mr. Worrall is a general farmer, and has 100 
acres of land on the Hackinac road. He is a • 
Democrat, has been clerk of election, and was 
elected assessor of the town of Poughkeepsie 
in 1886, holding the office for three years. He 
is a prominent young farmer, and stands high 
in the community. His wife is a member of 
the Reformed Church. 

George Worrall, father of our subject, was 
born in England February 26, 1S17, a son of 
William H. Worrall, who came to Poughkeep- 
sie in 1825, and bought property there. On 
this George was reared to the occupation of a 
farmer. He married Miss Jane E. \'an De- 
Berg, who was born in the old town of Pough- 
keepsie, near her present home, a daughter of 
Henry Van De Berg, a farmer, born in the 
town of Poughkeepsie, whose ancestors were 
of Holland stock. George Worrall's death oc- 
curred July 26, I SS9. For five years he rented 
his farm and lived in Poughkeepsie, and in 1869 
he built the residence which still remains in the 
family. Our subject was the only child born 
to Mr. and Mrs. Worrall. George Worrall 
was a Democrat, and at one time wps com- 
missioner of highways for several years. He 
was a worker in politics, and to a certain ex- 
tent controlled the politics of his town. He 
was a member of the Episcopal Church. 



LOUIS E. KAMPF, of Matteawan, Dutch- 
ess county, was born at Lenox, Mass., 

December 29. 1859, of French parentage. 

Stephen Kampf, his father, was born and 
reared in the old French province of Alsace 
(now a part of Germany), and his ancestors 
were for many generations connected with the 
hotel business there. Our subject's mother, 
Emily (Brielmann), was a native of the same 
locality, and a daughter of Conrad Brielmann, 
the famous soldier who accompanied Napoleon 
throughout the .Austrian campaign, and was 
with him in the Russian campaign, at Moscow, 
holding high rank in the service. Twenty-four 
wounds attested his courage and devotion, and 



COyrMEMORATirS BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



677 



as a reward for his gallantry he and his family 
were advanced to a prominent position in 
France, which his descendants still maintain. 
Stephen Kampf was employed, as a young 
man, in building the first railroad through 
Metz, and in 1852 he came to America, locat- 
ing at Lenox, Mass., as a skilled workman in 
a glass factory, the first in this country to en- 
gage in the manufacture of heavy glass. He 
was married to Miss Brielmann, at North Ad- 
ams, Mass., and about 1861 they settled in 
Glenham, where they still reside. They are 
Catholics in faith, and Mr. Kainpf, who early 
became a citizen of the United States, has al- 
ways taken a keen interest in everything per- 
taining to the welfare of his adopted country. 
Their union has been blessed with four chil- 
dren, three of whom are living, Louis E. being 
second in the order of birth. 

Our subject's early life was spent in Glen- 
ham, where he received his education, and 
later took his first lessons in the practical art 
of making a livelihood, w^orking for some time 
in the Glenham woolen mills. After learning 
the details of the business, he worked for 
many years in the Groveville mills, becoming 
foreman of the weaving department. In 1888 
he purchased his present propert)' at Mattea- 
wan, and in the following year erected the 
brick building where, in 1892, he established 
his saloon, one of the finest in the place. 

On February 2, 1885, Mr. Kampf married 
Miss Carrie Marchesseault, and their home is 
brightened by a little daughter, named Grace. 
Mrs. Kampf is a native of Montreal, Can- 
ada, where her grandfather, Simon Marches- 
seault, h. Frenchman by birth, settled upon 
coming to the New World, and her father, 
Simon Marchesseault, still resides there. Mr. 
Kampf is active in social life, and was one of 
the founders of the Matteawan Mannerchor. 
He is also a charter member of Court Beacon, 
Foresters of America. In politics he is a Re- 
publican, and actively supports his party, al- 
though he has never held nor sought political 
office. 



FRANK BURROUGHS, a wide-awake and 
skillful agriculturist of the town of East 
Fishkill, Dutchess county, was born January 
10, 1844, on the farm which is still his home, 
and is descended from John Burroughs, who 
landed at Salem, Mass., in 1637, and came to 
Long Island in 1654. He, with others, were 



the patentees of the township of Newtown, 
Long Island. In the third generation from 
him was Benjamin Burroughs, who settled in 
Dutchess county in 1748, and from Madame 
Brett obtained the deed for a tract of land, on 
which he reared his family. 

Joseph Burroughs, son of this Benjamin 
Burroughs, and grandfather of our subject, 
was born August 24, 1754, and in 1781 he 
wedded Mary Nelson. In 1793 they removed 
to the farm now owned and occupied by our 
subject, having purchased the land the year 
previous, and the house was erected by the 
grandfather in 1799. There both he and his 
wife died. In their family were nine children: 
Elizabeth, who married Cornelius Haight, a 
farmer of the town of East Fishkill; Reuben, 
a mechanic, who died unmarried at the age of 
twenty-eight years; George, a physician of Red 
Hook, Dutchess county, who died at the age 
of thirty-eight; Francis, a farmer of Columbia 
county, N. Y. ; Susan, who married Nathan 
Jones, a mechanic and farmer of the town of 
Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county; William, 
an agriculturist of Ohio, where his death oc- 
curred; Joseph, who died in Schenectady coun- 
ty, N. Y., where he was engaged in farming; 
Charles, the father of our subject; and Fairly, 
who died when young near Lake George, New 
York. 

Upon the homestead farm, where our sub- 
ject now lives, Charles Burroughs was born 
March 18, 1799, and throughout life he de- 
voted his attention to its care and cultivation, 
with good success, dying there December 8, 
1873. He married Alida Blatchley, whose 
death occurred May 8, 1887. She was a na- 
tive of Rensselaer county, N. Y., and a daugh- 
ter of Samuel Blatchley, who was of English 
lineage, and carried on agricultural pursuits, 
coming to Dutchess county from Connecticut. 
A family of four children were born to Charles 
Burroughs and his wife: Joseph, who was 
killed by the Indians in Arizona; Abraham, 
now a resident of San Francisco, Cal. ; George, 
who also makes his home in the Golden State; 
and Frank, of this review. 

The entire life of our subject has been 
passed at his present home, and he is success- 
fully engaged in general farming upon his 194- 
acre tract of valuable and productive land. 
He is progressive in his methods of carrj'ingon 
his work — in fact, is one of the model farmers 
of the community, the neat and thrifty appear- 
ance of his place indicating the careful and 



678 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



systematic manner in which it is cultivated. 
He is an intelligent, public-spirited citizen, and 
his neighbors have for him the highest regard. 
Politically, his ballot is cast in support of the 
men and measures of the Republican party. 



OLIVER S. BARNES, a well-known agri- 
culturist and real-estate owner of Dutch- 
ess and Putnam counties, resides near Gay- 
head, Dutchess county, and is one of the 
influential and progressive citizens of that 
locality. 

The Barnes family is of Scotch origin, and 
the ancestors of this branch were early settlers 
in Westchester county, N. Y., where our sub- 
ject's grandfather, Richard Barnes, and father, 
William Barnes, were born, the latter at 
White Plains, where he grew to manhood. 
He married Deborah Tompkins, daughter of 
James Tompkins, who was of Dutch descent, 
and a soldier in the Revolutionary war, and 
followed the occupation of a farmer. After 
their marriage William Barnes and wife went 
to the town of Kent, Putnam county, and set- 
tled upon a large tract of land, where they 
reared a family of children, as follows: Phcebe, 
Eliza B., and Mary A., deceased, who never 
married; Margaret, the wife of Louis Holmes, 
a farmer of the town of Pawling, Dutchess 
county; Hannah J., who married Thomas 
Townsend, a farmer in Putnam county; James, 
a shoemaker in Poughkeepsie; Oliver S., the 
subject of this biography ; Caroline, who mar- 
ried William Holmes, a- hay and feed mer- 
chant in New York City; and William H., a 
farmer at the old home in Putnam county. 
The father was a Republican in political faith 
during his last years, and like most of his fam- 
ily was a Methodist in his religious views, ably 
tilling the office of class leader for si.xty years, 
and in all things exemplifying his belief by 
honesty and upright dealing. His death oc- 
curred in 1 860, and his wife passed to her re- 
ward December 22, 1876. 

Oliver S. Barnes was born September 6, 
1828, and passed his early years at the old 
homestead. In 1851 he went to the town of 
Pawling. Dutchess county, and December 24, 
1855, he married Miss Mary E. Wilde, a lady 
of unusual mentai acumen and executive abili- 
ty. She was born in the town of East Fish- 
kill, Dutchess county, the daughter of James 
Wilde, and granddaughter of James William 
Wilde, an Englishman, who purchased 300 



acres of land at Fishkill Plains at an early 
period, and made his home there. Her mother, 
Caroline Hutchens, a native of the town of 
Fishkill, was a descendant of an old English 
family named Hudson, the spelling and pro- 
nunciation having changed as time elapsed, 
Henry Hudson, the discoverer of the Hudson 
river, being a direct ancestor. Members of her 
family took an active part in the Revolutionary 
war. 

After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Barnes 
fettled upon a farm in East Fishkill, and, in 
i860, they purchased their present farm of 135 
acres, near Gayhead, where they made many 
improvements. The property has been in the 
hands of some member of the Wilde family 
for I 50 years, and Mrs. Barnes, in whose name 
it stands, is active in its management, owing 
to her husband's deafness. They are general 
farmers, but give especial attention to the 
dairy business. They have had eleven chil- 
dren, of whom William C, James Eugene, 
Lewis, Francis Eugene and Florence E. died 
in infancy. Of the others, Howard O., dis- 
appeared and his present address is unknown; 
Richard is a farmer in the town of East Fish- 
kill, Dutchess county; Wilberforce is a farmer 
in Putnam county; Jane married Ernest Hill, 
a farmer in Putnam county; Cora is at home; 
and Ida, deceased, was formerly the wife of 
Daniel Jewell, a farmer in East Fishkill. 

Mr. Barnes has always taken an intelligent 
interest in the questions of the day, and in 
politics is a Republican. 



MICHAEL PELLS. The Pells family is 
originally of Holland stock, but the im- 
mediate ancestors of our subject have been 
residents of Dutchess county since an early 
day. His great-grandfather located on the 
old farm on the Hudson river, in the town of 
Poughkeepsie, near where the Hudson River 
State Hospital is now situated. 

On this farm John Pells was born May 12, 
175 1. He married Rachel Leroy, who was 
born September 25, 1761, and they reared 
five of their children. Of these, Deborah 
died unmarried; Michael was a farmer in the 
town of Poughkeepsie ; John followed the 
same occupation; Peter was a farmer in Hyde 
Park; and Simon J. The latter was born on 
the home farm, March 17, 1798, and married 
Phoebe Coe, a native of Ulster county, and 
the daughter of Abram Coe, whose ancestors 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



679 



also came from Holland. Shortly after his 
marriage, in 1826, Simon Pells purchased a 
farm near that of his father, and there his 
family of six children was reared. These 
were Rachel and Sarah, who both died unmar- 
ried; Celia F., who is single; Minerva, who 
died in childhood, as did also Sophia; and 
Michael. The father was originally a Whig, 
and later joined the ranks of the Republican 
party. He and his family, as were his parents 
before him, were members of the Reformed 
Dutch Church. He died in 1881, his wife 
having passed from earth in 1840. 

Michael Pells was the youngest of his fa- 
ther's children, and was born in the town of 
Poughkeepsie. near Arlington, April 11, 1834. 
In i860 he purchased the farm, on which he 
now resides, and which comprises 130 acres. 
Here he carries on general farming, in which 
he has been very successful. He is a Repub- 
lican, and a memberof the Presbyterian Church. 
Mr. Pells has never married. He is popular 
with all his acquaintances, and is a good citi- 
zen and a man of upright life. 



DAVID T. BARNES, one of the most pro- 
gressive and successful agriculturists of 

the town of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, 
resides upon a farm near Arlington, which has 
been in the possession of his family for four 
generations. The family name was originally 
Van Ness, and our subject's great-grandfather 
was one of three brothers of that name, who 
came from Holland at an early period, and 
located first on Long Island. Later they sep- 
arated, and the ancestor of Mr. Barnes settled 
upon the present farm, then a wilderness. 
He had several children, among them a son, 
William, our subject's grandfather, who was 
born on this estate March 5, 1738. He was 
a farmer all his life, and died November 13, 
1807, his wife, Katharine, surviving him until 
March 7, 18 12. They had eight children, as 
follows: Maria, born May 29, 1760, married 
William Van Derwater, a farmer in Hyde 
Park; Richard, born May 23, 1762, a farmer 
in Columbia county; Henry, born October 9, 
1764, a farmer near the old homestead; Cath- 
erine, born September 30, 1766; Hannah, 
born Januarj' 28, 1769, the wife of Joseph 
Piatt, a farmer of the town of Poughkeepsie; 
Barnekah, born July 28, 1772, who died at 
the age of seventeen; David, born October 29, 



1774, our subject's father; and Joshua, born 
July 13, 1777, a farmer near the old home. 

David Barnes was married, December 20, 
1806, to Ann Thorn, a lady of English de- 
scent, who was born in the town of Pough- 
keepsie, where her father, Joseph Thorn, born 
February 11, 1745, was a prominent farmer. 
Joseph Thorn married Sarah Kies, born No- 
vember 21, 1750, O. S., and reared a family 
of nine children; Stephen, born Decem- 
ber 9, 1773; Martha, March 3, 1776; Jos- 
eph, June 3, 1778; John, February 28, 
1780; Phcebe, April 13, 1782; Ann, May 
3, 1784; Richard, September 30, 1785; 
Mary, December 31, 1788; and Elizabeth, 
April 19, 1 79 1. Our subject's parents settled 
upon the old homestead, where they made ex- 
tensive improvements, and in 1822 they built 
the house, which has ever since been the fam- 
ily residence. They were members of the 
Presbyterian Church, to which William 
Barnes and his wife had also belonged. David 
Barnes was a Whig in politics, and an inliu- 
ential worker in local affairs, holding various 
minor officers. He died April 17, 1852, and 
his wife passed away fourteen years later — 
May 22, 1866. They had seven children: 
William, born October 10, 1807, died in infan- 
cy; Sarah, born January i, 18 10, married 
Peter R. Sleight, a farmer in the town of La- 
grange, and died October 20, 1829; Catherine, 
born April 3, 1812, was the second wife of 
Mr. Sleight, and died in February, 1894; Ann 
Elizabeth, born January 31, 1820, is the wid- 
ow of Alexander F. Wheeler, formerly a lead- 
ing attorney of Troy; Josephine, born April 
15, 1823, married Edmund Van Wyck, a 
farmer; David, who died in infancy; and Da- 
vid T., born June 29, 1S2S, the subject of this 
sketch. 

David T. Barnes has always lived at the 
homestead, a fine farm of about 180 acres, de- 
voted to general crops. He is one of the best 
managers in his locality, his estate being kept 
under the highest cultivation. On October 
12, 1857, he was married to Rhoda E. Titus, 
a native of Gallia Co., Ohio, born January 15, 
1S37, the daughter of Lewis Titus (a farmer) 
and his wife, Susan. Mrs. Barnes' ancestors 
were residents of Dutchess county in the early 
days, and her grandfather, John Titus, was 
born there. Four children were born of this 
marriage: Susie, who married William H. 
Allen, a farmer in the town of Clinton, and 
died December 20, 1883; Edwin S., who 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



ried Annie Mary Howard, a daughter of 
rman Howard, and a descendant of one 
the old families; Anna K., the wife of 
irles Howard, a son of Sherman Howard; 
Elizabeth, who died Februarj- 9. 1883. 
Barnes is a Republican in politics, and he 
his family contribute to the support of 
Presbyterian Church, and take a gener- 
interest in various philanthropic move- 
its. 



AI^WIX INKERS, senior member of the 

firm of Beers & Trafford, the well-known 
tractors and builders of Millerton, Dutchess 
nty. was born at Ancram Lead Mines, Co- 
bia Co., N. Y., June 5, 1858. 
Linas Beers, grandfather of our subject, 

a native of New Milford, Conn., and he 
his brother Nelson came together to Co- 
2, Columbia county, about the year 18 10. 
;on was married to Eliza McArthur, and 
as to Katherine McArthur, by whom he had 

children: Sarah, who married (first) 
luel Hagadorn, and (second) Mr. Livock; 
)rose; Nfartin, our ^subject's father; and 
ira, the wife of Backus Howland. Linas 
rs was a carpenter by trade. His death 
irred aboui the year 1841, when he was 
1 fifty years, his wife surviving him until 
■!, dying at the age of seventy-five years. 
Martin Beers was born at Copake, N. Y. , 
jeptember, 1831, and he also died at an 
Y age, passing awaj' July 2, 1861. He was 
ry intelligent, energetic man, and at the 
y age of seventeen had already' established 
5elf in business, and by his genial nature had 
ed a host of friends. Having learned the 
ir's trade in boyhood, he made that his 
1 occupation, and he was also engaged in 
:antile business at the Ancram Lead Mines, 
artnership with William H. Barton. He 

married, February 17, 1852, to Sarah 
ker, and had three sons: Alton, born IDe- 
ber 6, 1855, is chief telegraph operator 
train dispatcher on the Boston & Albany 
oad at Union depot, Worcester, Mass., 
has been in their emploj- for twenty-four 
s; Darwin, our subject, comes next; and 
;e M., born February 10, 1861, is in the 
ess business at Worcester. The widowed 
her of this little family subsequently, Janu- 
30, 1873, was married to Ambrose Beers 

first husband's brother), who was for 
y years the most prominent contractor and 



builder of Millerton. He died March 31,1 888, 
leaving a widow, and a son (William) by a 
former marriage, born 1861. She was born 
October 14, 1830, in Ancram township, Colum- 
bia Co., N. Y., a daughter of Stephen and 
Rhoda (Williams) Decker, both born at Co- 
pake — the father on June 6, 1795, the mother 
on January i, 1799. They were married Au- 
gust 30, 1818, and had children as follows: 
Louisa, born September 10, 18 19; Clara A., 
born April 23, 1821; Orville, born August 17, 
1825; Sarah, born October 14, 1830; Cor- 
nelia E., born August 8, 1834. The father 
died October 2, 1856; the mother on April 
17, 1881. 

Darwin Beers received his early education 
in the village of Millerton, attending the select 
schools taught by Rev. Mr. Ferguson, Charles 
Walsh, now editor of the Amenia Times, and 
Miss Carrie Knickerbocker. For four months 
in 1873 he was employed as a clerk by Eggle- 
ston Brothers, of Millerton, but during the 
following winter he again attended school. In 
the spring of 1S74 he began learning the car- 
penter trade with Ambrose Beers, and worked 
for him about five years, then managed the 
farm of his uncle, the late William H. Barton, 
for three years, being appointed in the mean- 
time to succeed him as street commissioner of 
the village of Millerton, for the term of three 
years. At the time that he assumed the duties 
of this office Mr. Beers was only twenty years 
old. After leaving the farm he returned to his 
trade and worked for his stepfather as a jour- 
neyman carpenter for three years, or until 
1885, in which year he formed a partnership 
with William Trafford, and engaged in the 
construction of buildings on contract. Their 
work has included architectural designing, and 
in this department the firm has won especial 
praise. Among the buildings erected by them 
are the $50,000 residence of Mrs. Frances 
Scoville, at Chapinville, Conn., and the ele- 
gant villa at I-iavine Hurst in Massachusetts, 
built for John Shepard, Jr., of Providence, 
R. L In Millerton the evidence of their artis- 
tic taste and skilled workmanship are numer- 
ous, including the " Barton House", the busi- 
ness blocks owned by C. F'. Hawley and the 
firm of Hotchkiss & Eggleston, besides many 
fine residences. Their business compares 
favorably in volume with that of any similar 
firm in this region outside of New York City. 
Since 1889 they have also dealt in lumber ex- 
tensively, having a commodious lumber yard. 









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COMMEMORA TITE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



681 



and they have employed from seventy-five to 
1 50 hands throughout the year. Messrs. Beers 
and Trafford devote their entire time to their 
contracts, which include mason work, carpen- 
tering, grading, painting, plumbing and intro- 
ducing all systems of heaters — in fact, every 
branch of the business. Mr. Beers has one of 
the finest family residences in Millerton, de- 
lightfully situated on Barton street. 

In 1884 Mr. Beers was married to Miss 
Addie Bond, who was born September 30, 
i860, at Newburg, daughter of Joseph and 
Sarah (Lozier) Bond, formerly prominent resi- 
dents of Newburg, N. Y., the former born in 
1838, the latter in 1835. They had two chil- 
dren, Mrs. Beers alone surviving. Harriet 
(Cromwell), Joseph Bond's mother, and a lin- 
eal descendant of Oliver Cromwell, died at the 
advanced age of eighty-four years. Two chil- 
dren have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Darwin 
Beers — Alton Bond and Warren Martin. 

In politics Mr. Beers is a Democrat, and 
while he is not what is termed a politician, he 
is deeply interested and active in and loyal to 
his party, but always true to his convictions of 
right. In matters of local importance he is 
public-spirited and progressive, having given 
his influence to many movements which tended 
to promote the common good. He is one of 
the members of the board of health, also a 
member of the fire department. Socially, he 
is a member of Webatuck Lodge No. 480, 
F. & A. M., of Millerton. Religiously, he is 
a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
of Millerton, of which he is a liberal supporter, 
a member of the choir, also one of the official 
board. 



WILLIAM TRAFFORD, a prominent 
contractor and builder of Millerton, 

member of the well-known firm of Beers & 
Trafford, was born December 31, 1852, in 
Copake, Columbia Co., N. Y. His family is 
of English origin, and is one of the oldest and 
most distinguished in Columbia count}'. His 
great-grandfather, Thomas Trafford, who was 
born in Copake in 1752, was one of the first 
two justices of the peace in Taghanick, Co- 
lumbia Co., N. Y., holding office in 1803, 
1804 and 1808. He married Elizabeth Elliot, 
and died in 18 17. William T. Trafford, our 
subject's grandfather, was born on the old 
family estate in Copake in 1783, and died in 
1866. He was a farmer and leading citizen 



of his time, serving as supervisor in 1837, and 
as justice of the peace in 1827, 1830, 1846, 
1847 and 1 85 1. He married Helen Snyder, 
and had seven children: Elizabeth, Milton, 
Hannah, Thomas, Homer, Robert Emmet and 
William. 

Milton Trafford, our subject's father, was 
born June 13, 181 3, and spent his entire life 
in Copake, where he followed the carpenter's 
trade. He married Louise Decker, who was 
born in Copake, September 10, 1S19, and died 
in 1878. He survived her fourteen years, dy- 
ing in 1893. Of their si.\ children our subject 
was the next to the youngest. The names of 
the others, with the dates of birth, etc., areas 
follows: Sarah, November 24, 1840, died 
March 24, 1843; Wesley, March 4, 1844, now 
living in New York City; Alice, February 5, 
1847, died October 18, 1866; Stephen D., 
March 13, 1849, a resident of Torrington, 
Conn.; and Marion, August 16, 1858, a resi- 
dent of Millerton. 

Our subject attended the schools of his na- 
tive town until he was about seventeen years 
old, obtaining a good academic education. In 
1870 he began to learn the carpenter's trade 
with his father, and worked with him eight 
years. In 1881 he came to Millerton and en- 
gaged in the work of contracting and building 
with his uncle, Ambrose Beers, and in 1885 
the present firm of Beers & Trafford was or- 
ganized. They are among the most successful 
and enterprising workers to be found in their 
line of business, and have built some of the 
finest structures in that vicinity. On June 18, 
1 89 1, Mr. Trafford married Miss Allie Eggles- 
ton, daughter of Stewart Eggleston, of Dutch- 
ess county. They have no children. 

Mr. Trafford is a progressive and public- 
spirited citizen, a leader in many of the most 
important measures for local improvement. 
He is a Republican, but has never taken an 
active part in political work. At present he is 
a trustee of the village of Millerton, and is 
chief of the E. H. Thompson Hose Company. 



D>ANIEL S. BARIGHT, one of the pro- 
_ ' gressive farmers of the town of Pough- 
keepsie, Dutchess county, was born in Pleas- 
ant Valley, March 25, 1838. He stayed on 
his father's farm during his boyhood and at- 
tended the district schools, the Quaker School 
m the town of Union Vale, the Dutchess Coun- 
ty Academy, and was for a short time at the 



C82 



COMMEMOBATJVE BIOORAPHJOAL HE CORD. 



Nine Partners Boardinj? School. After going 
through these schools he taught for three win- 
ters in the town of Poughkeepsie, and three 
winters in the town of Pleasant \'alley. 

Mr. Baright was married, October 2, 1861, 
to Miss Mary Wing, who was born in the town 
of Clinton, Dutchess county, the daughter of 
Alexander and Hannah Wing. Our subject 
and his wife located on their present farm in 
1862, and reared a family of four children, 
namely: Ann G. married a Mr. Sheldon, of 
Poughkeepsie; William is living in Minneap- 
olis, where he organized the "Order of the 
World," of that State, and where he is suc- 
cessfully engaged in the insurance business; 
Irving is in the insurance business in Nebraska; 
and Frederick is at home. Mr. Baright has a 
place of 1 16 acres, on which he carries on gen- 
eral farming. He is also engaged in the agri- 
cultural implement business, with headquarters 
at Poughkeepsie, and has represented the New 
York Life Insurance Company for over twenty 
years. In politics he is a Republican, and 
takes a lively interest in such matters, but, 
although frequently urged to do so, has never 
held office. He and his wife are members of 
the Methodist Church, in which he has always 
been greatly interested, and especially in the 
Sunday-school. He has been connected with 
the County Sunday-school organization for 
several years, and both he and his wife are 
devout Christians. 

Elijah Baright, the father of our subject, 
was born, March 30, 1802, in Pleasant Valley, 
where he grew to manhood and married Miss 
Amy D. Carpenter, whose birth took place in 
Stanford town, January 17, 1799. She was 
the daughter of Samuel Carpenter, a farmer. 
After their marriage our subject's parents set- 
tled on the old farm, and the following chil- 
dren were born to them: Samuel, born in 
1826, is a farmer in the town of Poughkeepsie; 
Ann Eliza died when twenty-one years old; 
Daniel S. is our subject; and Edwin was an 
insurance agent for many years in Pough- 
keepsie, but is now retired, and spends his 
summers at Ocean Grove and his winters at 
Poughkeepsie. Elijah Baright was a farmer 
by occupation, but was also a successful busi- 
ness man, and dealt largely in stocks in New 
York City. He was a Democrat up to 1856, 
when he became a Republican. He and his 
wife were Hicksite Quakers. His death oc- 
curred June 19, 1S73; that of his wife on De- 
cember 31, 1880. 



John Baright, the grandfather, was born 
in Poughkeepsie, of Holland ancestry. He 
married, and then settled on a farm in Pleasant 
Valley, where the following children were born 
to him and his wife: Augustus is a farmer in 
Batavia, N. Y. ; Sarah became the wife of John 
Stringham, a farmer in Michigan; and Susan 
married Daniel Stringham, a farmer in the 
town of Lagrange. John Baright remained 
on the farm all his life. The Barights were 
Quakers, and consequently did not take part 
in either the Revolutionary war or the war 
of 1812. 



JOHN G. SENCERBAUGH, now residing 
on a farm in the town of Fishkill, Dutch- 
ess county, was for over forty years con- 
nected with the Union Ferry Company, but is 
now retired from active labor, and in the en- 
joyment of all the comforts and many of the 
luxuries of life. He is a native of the town of 
East Fishkill, born June 19, 1818, and is a 
son of Simeon D. Sencerbaugh, whose birth 
occurred in the town of Beekman, Dutchess 
county. His mother, who bore the maiden 
name of Phcebe Washburn, was also born in 
Dutchess county. 

After their marriage, the parents of our 
subject located upon a farm in the town of 
East Fishkill, where they reared their family 
of nine children: Jane, who married Laben 
Rogers, a farmer of Beekman town; John G., 
subject of this review; Jarvis W., a farmer 
and business man of Minnesota, who repre- 
sented his district in the State Senate; 
Charles, who was a steamboat captain on the 
Mississippi; Mary, who wedded \\'illiam Phil- 
lips, of East Fishkill town, but both are now 
deceased; Catherine, who married Joel Sea- 
man, and died at Candor, in the western part 
of the State; Susan, who married A. A. 
Brush, a warden in the prison at Sing Sing, 
N. Y. ; Antoinette, who married William 
Humphrey, of the town of Pleasant Valley, 
Dutchess county; and Henry. The father 
was a farmer by occupation, and both himself 
and wife were consistent members of the Re- 
formed Dutch Church. 

John G. Sencerbaugh grew to manhood on 
the home farm, and was united in marriage 
with Catherine Lounsbury, a native of the 
town of East Fishkill, and a daughter of 
Joshua Lounsbury, also born in that town- 
ship. The birth of her grandfather, Isaac 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHWAL RECORD. 



683 



Lounsbury, occurred either in Dutchess coun- 
ty or in Putnam Co., N. Y. The family is of 
English origin. In the spring of 1848, with 
his wife, Mr. Sencerbaugh removed to Brook- 
lyn, where he became connected with the 
Union Ferry Co., which connection continued 
until he laid aside business cares in 1889, and 
he has since lived retired upon a farm in the 
town of East Fishkill, where he is surrounded 
by many warm friends. 

In the family were four children: (i) 
Carrie, married John V. Van Arsdale, who is 
a descendant of Baron Resolve Waldron, who 
came from Harlem, Holland, in 1666, and 
settled in New Harlem, N. Y. ; Mr. Van Ars- 
dale is a native of Bound Brook, N. J., where 
he was reared in his father's store. For thirty 
years he has made his home in Brooklyn, but 
now calls the Sencerbaugh farm, in the town 
of East Fishkill, his home. He is connected 
with the custom-house business, and every 
Monday goes into the city, returning again on 
Saturdays. (2) John died in infancy. (4) 
Emma became the vvife of William D. Bar- 
num, but died while yet young. (3) William 
P. ( the third in order of birth ) now manages 
the home farm of 125 acres, devoting his at- 
tention to general farming, and has made 
many valuable and useful improvements since 
locating thereon in 1889. Previous to coming 
to Dutchess county, he was a traveling sales- 
man foria lace-importing house, for a period of 
about ten years, but gave up that work on 
account of ill health. He is a firm Republic- 
an in politics, and though his residence here 
is of comparatively short duration, he has 
figured quite actively in political affairs. By 
all who know them, the family is held in the 
highest regard, and justly ranks among the 
best citizens of the community. 



I BUTLER ANDERSON, a prosperous 

\^^ agriculturist, residing near Brinckerhoff, 
Dutchess county, is one of the progressive citi- 
zens of that vicinity. His family has been 
identified with Dutchess county for several 
generations, and its various members have al- 
ways shown the qualities of character which 
tend to good citizenship. 

John Anderson, our subject's grandfather, 
a native of Dutchess county, married Ann 
Travis, and settled in the town of Fishkill 
(now East Fishkill), where a family of six 
children were born to them: Zilla, who mar- 



ried Lewis Wright, a farmer in the town of 
Lagrange; Susan, the wife of Abram Van- 
Vlack, a farmer in East Fishkill town; Polly, 
the wife of Moses Homan, a farmer in the 
same town; Elizabeth, who married Harvey 
Eighmy, as a farmer in the town of Beekman; 
Peter, who followed agriculture all his life in 
the town of East Fishkill; and John. 

John Anderson (2), our subject's father, 
was reared as a farmer boy, and married Miss 
Eliza M. Butler, daughter of Allen Butler, a 
well-known farmer, and lifelong resident of 
Dutchess county. His wife was Sarah Crouse, 
and they had two children: Egbert C, a re- 
tired business man of the city of Poughkeep- 
sie, and Eliza M.( our subject's mother). The 
young people settled upon the present home- 
stead, which they purchased over fifty years 
ago. Mr. Anderson was an influential man in 
local affairs, serving for nine years as com- 
missioner of his town, and in early 3'ears was 
a Democrat and afterward a Republican. He 
and his wife were leading members of the Re- 
formed Church at Hopewell, and he held the 
office of elder for many years previous to his 
death in 1890. His wife survives him with 
one son, our subject, and a daughter, Sarah 
A., who married T. G. Matthews, a flour mer- 
chant of New York City, and a real-estate owner 
and resident of Brooklyn. 

A. Butler Anderson was born August 15, 
1847, and spent his life mainly at the old farm. 
He attended the neighboring district schools in 
early boyhood, and then went to Poughkeep- 
sie, where he pursued his studies in a select 
school and the College Hill School. On his 
return home he assisted his lather, and in 
time assumed the management of the estate. 
On October 30, 1875, he was united in matri- 
mony with Susan H. Van Wyck, daughter of 
Henry Van Wyck, a farmer of the town of 
Wappinger, Dutchess county. Si.\ children 
were born of this union: John, Eliza Maria, 
Henry V. W., Annie L. , Sarah L. , and Eg- 
bert B., who are all at home. 

Mr. Anderson makes no specialities in his 
work as an agriculturist. The old homestead 
comprised 196 acres, and to this an adjoining 
tract of eighty-si.x acres has been added, making 
one of the best farms in the neighborhood. In 
politics he is a Republican, and he takes a gener- 
ous interest in all public improvements; he and 
his wife contribute to the support of the Re- 
formed Church at Hopewell, of which she 
is a member. 



084 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGUAPUICAL JiECOIiU. 



CHARLES UU BOIS ROGERS, a promi- 
nent young agriculturist of the town of 
Fishkill. Dutchess county, is the owner of a 
farm which has been in his family for four gen- 
erations. 

His ancestors of a still earlier period were 
well known among the pioneers of this State, 
the head of the American line being John 
Rogers, who came from Scotland, formerly 
from England (lineal descendant of John 
Rogers, who was burned at the stake at Smith- 
field in Queen Mary's reign), and located in 
Putnam county, N. Y. , where he kept the first 
road house, or hotel, opened between New 
York and Albany. It was in the woods among 
the Indians, ^near what is now called Garrison's 
Station on the Hudson River railroad. 

The great-great-grandparents of our subject 
were Benjamin and Elizabeth (Fowler) Rogers. 
His great-grandparents, Benjamin (2) and 
Elizabeth F. Rogers reared a family of ten 
children: John, William, Benjamin, Absalom, 
Elijah, Pattie, Hester, Betsey, Mary, and 
Sarah. Absalom Rogers, our subject's grand- 
father, married Maria Du Bois, and had 
six children: Emily Abraham D., Peter, 
William, Lewis, and Charles C. (our subject's 
father). 

Charles C. Rogers married Harriet L. Cook, 
and our subject was their only son. He was 
born March 17, 1867, at the old homestead 
near Fishkill \'illage, and his education was ob- 
tained in the district schools of the neighborhood 
and the Union Free School at Fishkill, with 
two years in Leslie's Academy in Poughkeepsie. 
He left school at the age of eighteen, and re- 
turned home, where he gradually assumed the 
management of the farm, relieving his father 
from the burden during his declining years, and 
caring for him until his death, which occurred 
May 30, 1892. The estate contains 100 acres, 
fifty acres lying on each side of the road laid 
out by Madame Brett from old Fishkill to 
Fishkill-on-Hudson. The trolley cars now 
pass the the door. Mr. Rogers makes a spe- 
cialty of dairying, keeping from twenty-five to 
thirty cows the year round. 

He has a pleasant home. His wife, whom 
he married December 9, 1 891, was formerly 
Grace A. Haight. a daughter of J. Cornelius 
Haight,the historian. They have three chil- 
dren: Lewis D., Bertha May, and Grace A. 
Both Mr. and Mrs. Rogers attend the Protestant 
Episcopal Church, and are heartily in sympathy 
with various lines of social, religious, and ed- 



ucational progress. Politically, Mr. Rogers is 
a Democrat, ami he is a member of Hudson 
River Lodge No. 57, K. of P. 



FRANK A. HOTCHKISS. a prominent 
merchant of Millerton, Dutchers county, 

and a representative of a family which has be- 
come widely famous for its inventive genius, 
was born August 27, 1S57, at Sharon \'alley, 
Connecticut. 

The family is of English origin, the first of 
the American branch being among the early 
settlers of New Haven, and during the Revo- 
lutionary war there were three generations in 
the service at the same time. Asahel Hotch- 
kiss, our subject's great-grandfather, resided 
at Prospect, now a part of New Haven, and 
there Asahel Hotchkiss. the grandfather of our 
subject, was born. He was a man of superior 
natural talent, successful in financial manage- 
ment, and also in the invention of various de- 
vices which he manufactured in a factory at 
Sharon \'alley, which at that day was consid- 
ered a large establishment. At first he was 
engaged in the manufacture of leather wallets, 
and, later, in game traps, curry combs, 
wrenches and other small articles of hardware. 
This factor}' was afterward moved to Bridge- 
port, where it is now carried on by a grandson 
of the founder. Asahel Hotchkiss was promi- 
nent in public affairs also, having great influ- 
ence in the Republican party. He served as a 
member of the Connecticut Legislature for two 
terms, and as State Senator for one term. 
He was an active member of the Congrega- 
tional Church. He married Althea Guernsey, 
and had ten children, of whom Dotha and 
Charles A. are yet living, (i) Andrew was a 
cripple, died in early manhood, but not before 
he invented the e.xplosive shell called theby 
Rebels "screamers" — a description of rifled 
cannon. (2) Benjamin B. was the inventor of 
the famous Hotchkiss gun. and of other impk?- 
ments of warfare, including a torpedo boat, 
and was well known in all parts of the world. 
He spent a fortune in perfecting his gun and 
placmg it upon the market, and was in actual 
want before its value was recognized; but later 
he realized a large fortune from it, and honors 
as well, being decorated with the cross of the 
Legion of Honor, and other orders. He was 
a man of remarkable executive ability, as well 
as inventive faculty, and at. one time he car- 
ried on the manufacture of his inventions in 




Qyyz-^^vi^^ "^ Pw^^^-^Ca^i.^ul/' 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



685 



Vienna, removing afterward to Paris. He re- 
tained his residence in New York, however, 
and his estate was settled here. (3) Frederick 
A., the father of our subject, is mentioned be- 
low. (4) Frankhn died at the age of sixteen 
years. (5) WiUiam died in childhood. (6) 
Sarah M. married George A. Kelsey. (7) 
Dotha married (first) Henry Finch, and (sec- 
ond) Hugh A. McKelvey, and now resides 
in Bridgeport, Conn. (8j Charles A. is a res- 
ident of Bridgeport, Conn. (9) Dwight was a 
lifelong invalid. (10) Abijah died in child- 
hood. 

Frederick A. Hotchkiss was born in Water- 
town, Conn., in 1829, and became a member 
of the firm of Hotchkiss Sons, being for some 
time superintendent of the factory at Bridge- 
port. He retired from active business in 1870, 
and passed his later years in more congenial 
pursuits. He was a well-read man, of quiet 
tastes, and not at all inclined to seek public 
honors, though he was a strong supporter of 
the Republican party, and took a generous in- 
terest in public affairs, local and national, but 
never held official position. He married Car- 
oline Parson, daughter of John Parson, a prom- 
inent resident of Sharon, Conn., and had four 
children, as follows: Mary married W. H. 
Hill, of Reading, Conn. ; Carrie L. died in 
early womanhood; Frank A. comes ne.xt; and 
Hattie F. was the wife of Sidney McKelvey, of 
Sparta, 111. Of these, Frank A., our subject, 
is the sole survivor. 

Frank A. Hotchkiss received his education 
mainly in the schools of Sharon, and attended 
the Eastman Business College, Poughkeepsie, 
one winter. On leaving school at the age of 
nineteen, he taught in the village of Sharon 
for two years, since when he has been engaged 
in mercantile pursuits. For about five years 
he was bookkeeper and salesman for Beech, 
Hawley & Co., but March 17, 1886, the firm 
being reorganized on account of the death of 
Mr. Beach, Mr. Hotchkiss and L. J. Eggles- 
ton bought an interest, the firm becoming 
Hotchkiss & Eggleston. They have been very 
successful, and in 1894 they removed from 
the old locality, w-here the "Millerton House" 
now stands, to their new building, which is 
one of the finest of the kind in the county. 
His well-proven business ability places Mr. 
Hotchkiss among the foremost of the younger 
men of his locality. He has been president of 
the Millerton National Bank for two years, a 
(act which speaks volumes for the esteem in 



which he is held in business circles. He is 
greatly interested in local improvements, and 
has been trustee and president of the village 
four terms; but while he is a firm believer in 
the principles of the Republican party, he 
does not take an active part in political work. 
In 1885 Mr. Hotchkiss was married to 
Miss Fannie H. Gillette, daughter of Edward 
F. Gillette, a leading merchant of Sharon, and 
they have si.x children: Mary F. , Frederick, 
Edward G., Benjamin B., Reed H. and An- 
drew Dwight. Mr. and Mrs. Hotchkiss are 
prominent members of the Presbyterian 
Church, in which he is an elder. 



OSEPH SUNDERLAND, a prominent resi- 
dent of Glenham, Dutchess county, was 
born May 25, 1839, at Darlington, England, 
and is descended in both paternal and maternal 
lines from ancestry who were engaged in agri- 
cultural pursuits. 

His father, John Sunderland, a native of 
Colne, Lancashire, England, was an excellent 
workman, and in addition to his farm work 
was often employed as a stone-mason and wall- 
builder. He married Nancy Binns, who was 
born at Hunsworth, Yorkshire, England, the 
eldest daughter of Joseph Binns, a farmer. 
The young couple made their home at Armley, 
Leeds, England, where they spent the remain- 
der of their lives, rearing to maturity five sons 
and one daughter. The father died October 
2, 1864; the mother on December 14, 1885; 
both passing away in full faith, having been 
devout members of the Primitive Methodist 
Church. Their children were: William, now 
residing at Devvsbury, England, was formerly 
a spinner by trade, but is now engaged in mer- 
cantile business; Joseph is mentioned more 
fully below; Mary married Thomas Jowitt, a 
brickmaker, at Wortley, Leeds, England; 
Samuel is a butcher and milk dealer at Wort- 
ley; Charles Henry, who was a press setter, 
died in January, 1S86, at the age of thirty- 
eight; John is a general merchant at Armley, 
England, and takes an infiuential part in re- 
ligious work, is a member of the Methodist 
Church, and has been superintendent of a 
large Sunday-school for the past eighteen 
years. 

Joseph Sunderland lived at home until he 
was sixteen years old, and by that time had 
gained a fair knowledge of the spinner's trade. 
In 1855 he joined the British army, and served 



68G 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



a year and a half, when he was honorably dis- 
charged on account of a reduction in the forces. 
Returning home, he began to work at his 
trade, which he followed until the age of twen- 
ty-four years, then crossed the ocean, in 1863, 
and for about three years lived at Ballardvale, 
Mass., where he learned the trade of file forg- 
ing. In 1866 he came to Matteawan, N. Y., 
and spent about two years at his trade before 
engaging in the saloon business, in which he 
continued from 1 868 until 1 876, when he moved 
to Glenham, N. Y., where he opened a saloon, 
which he still conducts. He is one of the 
leading dealers in his line, and for eight years 
has been president of the Liquor Dealers' 
Association of his Assembly District. In 1864 
Mr. Sunderland married Miss Emma, only 
surviving daughter of David Robertshaw, of 
Wortley, Leeds, England. She is the only 
ineniber of her family to come to America. 
Mr. and Mrs. Sunderland have one daughter 
living, Alice R., who is at home. Mr. Sunder- 
land is fond of reading and takes much inter- 
est in current events. In religion he inclines 
to the Episcopal Church, and in politics he is 
a Republican. His influence in local affairs is 
marked, and he has served three terms as 
deputy sheriff, under Sheriffs Vantassell, Bart- 
lett and Jerr\' S. Pearce, each term being for 
three years. 



WILLIAM \V. MARSHALL, an enter- 
prising fruit raiser and farmer, was 
born in the town of Pleasant \'alley, at Salt 
Lake Point, September 10, 1839. He began 
life on the farm, went to the district school, 
and spent two winters at the Claverack school. 
He then returned to his father's farm and worked 
for four years. 

In 1 86 1 Mr. Marshall married Miss Eliza- 
beth D. Wing, who was born in the town of 
Clinton, the daughter of Alexander Wing, a 
native of that town. After their marriage our 
subject and his wife lived for four years on the 
old farm, and then worked a farm at Clinton 
Corners for five years. Subsequently our sub- 
ject Game to the town of Poughkeepsie, and 
engaged in the retail milk business for three 
years; then rented the John L. Marshall farm, 
on which he worked for ten years. In 1884 
he bought a place, which consists of thirty-si.\ 
acres, three-fourths of a mile from Poughkeep- 
sie City, and has resided there ever since, mak- 
ing a specialty of raising small fruits of all 



kinds. He is a Democrat, and he and his 
wife attend the Orthodox Friends Church, to 
which they are contributors. He has a fine 
residence on his place, with all the necessary 
outbuildings. 

Isaac Marshall, father of our subject, was 
born in Pleasant \'alley. grew up on the Mar- 
shall homestead, and married Miss Eliza Law- 
rence, who was also a native of Pleasant \'al- 
ley. Robert Lawrence, her father, was a 
farmer in the same place, and came of En- 
glish stock. The parents of our subject set- 
tled on a farm in their native place, and there 
reared the following children: Elnathan G., a 
farmer in the town of Pleasant \'alley; Eliza- 
beth, who became the wife of Theron R. Mar- 
shall, a farmer of Pleasant \'alley; Augusta, 
who married Joseph Dot}', a farmer of the 
same place; Sarah, who married Parris Baker, 
a carpenter in Saratoga county, N. Y. ; Pa- 
melia, unmarried; Emily, who became the 
wife of Clarence \'an Wagner, a farmer in 
Pleasant \'alley; William W., our subject. 
Mr. Marshall died in 1890, and his wife in 
1888. He was a Democrat in politics, and 
was assessor in the town of Pleasant Valley. 
They were both members of the Baptist 
Church. 

John Marshall, grandfather of our subject, 
was also born in Pleasant \'alley, where he 
married and reared these children: Harris, a 
farmer in Dutchess county; Lewis was a 
farmer in the western part of the State; Oli- 
ver, who died young; Isaac, father of our sub- 
ject; John C, who was a farmer at Salt Point; 
and two daughters not named. 



WILLIAM BODDEN, one of the most 
_ prominent agriculturists of the town of 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, residing near 
Camelot. was born October 30, 181 3, at 
Kirkcudbright, Scotland, where his ancestors 
had made their home for many generations. 
His father, John Bodden, was born there 
June 27, 1789. He married Elizabeth Din- 
widdle, a native of Scotland, and had two 
children, of whom our subject was the eldest. 
The other, Elizabeth, married Gilbert Grieve, 
a farmer near the old home, and remained in 
Scotland. In 18 17 John Bodden came to 
America, and for some years resided in New 
York City (his business being that of a builder), 
later, on account of ill health, removing to the 
farm near Camelot, where he died May 2, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



687 



1874. He took a keen interest in all that 
concerned the community, was an active Re- 
publican, and while he was not a seeker after 
official position he served at one time as road 
commissioner. He and his wife were mem- 
bers of the Scotch Presbyterian Church. 

William Bodden attended the schools of 
his native place until he was sixteen years old, 
and after coming to New York City he attended 
there for some time. In 1830 he came to 
Dutchess county and settled upon his present 
farm of 130 acres, where he has since followed 
general agricultural pursuits. He gives es- 
pecial attention to the raising of fruit. On 
February 15, 1834, he was married to Miss 
Elizabeth Wilson, who was a native of his own 
town in Scotland, and of this union eleven 
children were born, a brief record of whom is 
as follows: John B., born August i, 1835, 
resides in Poughkeepsie; David, born January 
30, 1837, was a soldier in the Civil war, and, 
later, was a farmer in Missouri, but now re- 
sides in Poughkeepsie; Mary H., born Decem- 
ber 4, 1838, married William H. Van I\euren, 
a jeweler in the same city; Eliza, born March 
28, 1 84 1, and Washington, born August 6, 
1842, died in childhood; William B., born 
April 24, 1846, is a tinner and stove dealer at 
Lagrangeville; Thomas G., born August 6, 
1848, is a horticulturist in the town of Pough- 
keepsie; Robert, born March 16, 1850, is a 
druggist in Syracuse; Elizabeth, born April 7, 
1852, married John Grubb, a bookkeeper, re- 
siding in Poughkeepsie; James G., born May 
I, 1854, and Florence, born Februaryg, 1857, 
live at home. 

Mr. Bodden and his wife are leading mem- 
bers of the Methodist Church at Poughkeepsie. 
In politics he is a Republican, and he has been 
active in promoting various movements for the 
common good, notably those for educational 
advancement, and he has been school trustee 
for many years. For more than half a cen- 
tury he has identified himself with the best 
interests of the locality, and he holds the es- 
teem of the entire community. 



LEWaS H. WRIGHT, one of the wide- 
awake and progressive agriculturists of the 

town of East Fishkill, Dutchess county, was 
born there September 4, 1856, and on the pa- 
ternal side is of English origin. His great- 
grandfather, Thomas Wright, was a native of 



the same town, while the birth of his grand- 
father, Lewis Wright, occurred in 1800, in 
Lagrange town, Dutchess county. After the 
latter's marriage with Jane Vermilyea, also a 
native of Dutchess county, he located upon a 
farm in Lagrange town, where their two chil- 
dren were born — John G., the father of our 
subject; and Mary, who wedded John Wanzer, 
a farmer of the town of Beekman, Dutchess 
county. The wife and mother was a member 
of the Society of Friends. 

After the death of his first wife, the grand- 
father was again married, his second union be- 
ing with Zella Anderson, and they became the 
parents of four children: Thomas, who is a 
farmer of Lagrange town; Anderson, who died 
young; Susan, who married a Mr. Hall, of 
Unionvale town, Dutchess county; and Ann, 
who married Draper Hall, also of Unionvale. 
The grandfather carried on agricultural pur- 
suits throughout life, and died April 14, 1887, 
on the farm now owned by our subject in the 
town of Fishkill. Politically, he was a Demo- 
crat. 

John G. Wright, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Lagrange, May 31, 
1824, there grew to manhood, and February 
16, 1853, married Miss Ruanah Haight, who 
was born in Orange county, N. Y., in 1833, 
and is a daughter of Henry Haight, a native of 
Putnam county, this State. After their mar- 
riage the young couple located upon the farm 
in the town of East Fishkill. where Lewis H., 
their only child, was born, and remained there 
until 1 87 1. The mother's death occurred Oc- 
tober 4, 1889. 

Lewis H. Wright obtained his education in 
the district schools near his home, and on at- 
taining to man's estate was married January 
28, 1880, to Miss Henrietta Jackson, a native 
of the town of Washington, Dutchess county, 
where her father, Orry Jackson, was engaged 
in farming. The Jacksons are of Scotch stock. 
Two children grace this union: Runelia, born 
February 11, 1884; and John L., born April 
19, 1889. Mr. W'right began his domestic life 
upon his present farm at Fishkill Plains, which 
comprises 300 acres of valuable land, and he 
also owns another farm of 250 acres in the 
town of East Fishkill. He devotes his time 
and attention to general farming, raising every- 
thing adapted to the soil and climate of this 
section, and is one of the most enterprising 
and energetic agriculturists of the community. 
Both himself and father cast their ballots in 



688 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



support of the men and measures of the Demo- 
cratic party, and are most highly respected 
citizens. 



GEORGE LAMOKEE. a thorough, skillful 
farmer ami business man, is a representa- 
tive of the agricultural interests of the town of 
Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county, and has be- 
come one of the well-to-do citizens of the lo- 
cality, where he is recognized as an important 
factor in preserving the reputation of the town 
as one of the most highly cultivated and im- 
proved in Dutchess county. 

Our subject was born on Friday, December 
8, 1819, on the farm where he now resides. 
Three brothers of the Lamoree family were 
among those hardy pioneers who came to this 
State prior to the Revolution — about the year 
1772 — one locating in Orange count}', one in 
Albany county, and the other in Dutchess 
county, N. Y. , the latter being Isaac Lamoree, 
the grandfather of our subject. From King 
George of England he obtained a grant for 
fifty acres of land in the town of Pleasant Val- 
ley, and our subject has that grant in his pos- 
session. Isaac Lamoree had two sons: John, 
who spent his entire life at farming in the town 
of Hyde Park, Dutchess county; and Timothy, 
the father of our subject. 

Timothy Lamoree was born on the home- 
stead in Pleasant Valley, which later became 
his property, and there he brought his bride, 
formerly Hester \'an Wagner, who was born 
in the town of Clinton, Dutchess county, of 
Holland descent. To their union were born 
eight children: John, a miller of Salt Point, 
Pleasant X'alley; Sarah, who became the wife 
of Richard Tompkins, a farmer of Lagrange 
town, Dutchess county; Phcebe, who married 
Richard Allen, a farmer of Pleasant Valley 
town; Catherine, who became the wife of John 
H. Nelson, a farmer of Clinton town; Nancy, 
who married Piatt Van \'liet, a miller and 
merchant of Salt Point; Eliza, who became 
the wife of Jonathan Allie, an agriculturist; 
Mary, who wedded Benjamin Howell, also a 
farmer of Pleasant Valley town; and George, 
subject of this review. Upon the old farm the 
parents of this family both died. They were 
consistent and faithful members of the Presby- 
terian Church, and in politics the father was 
a stanch Whig. 

On reaching a sufficient age George Lam- 
oree became a pupil in the district school near 



his home, and later attended the New Paltz 
Academy which he left in the spring of 1S36, 
crossing the Hudson river on the ice on the 
second day of April. About this time young 
Lamoree joined a temperance society, a 
very unpopular and even despised thing 
in those days, and for several years served 
as its president. On starting out in life 
for himself he chose the occupation to which 
he had been reared, and his labors have 
been amply rewarded, so that he is now the 
possessor of 400 acres in the town of Union- 
vale, twenty acres in the city of Poughkeepsie, 
and about 140 acres in the home farm. He 
has made a specialty of hay-raising, and had 
the first portable hay press in the town of 
Pleasant Valley. Not only is his land well 
cultivated, but the buildings are all of a sub- 
stantial character, and the neat and thrifty ap- 
pearance of the place gives evidence of an en- 
terprising and industrious owner. Although 
now past the prime of life, he is still hale and 
hearty, and gives his attention to the improve- 
ment of his land. 

Mr. Lamoree was united in marriage with 
Jane M. Pells, a native of the town of Rhine- 
beck, where her father, Simon H. Pells, was 
also born, and followed farming. Her mother, 
who bore the maiden name of Amelia Van- 
Wagner, was born in Dutchess county, and 
was of Holland lineage. Mrs. Lamoree had 
one sister, Julia M., who became the wife of 
John W. Moore, a farmer of Rhinebeck town. 
Our subject and his wife were married in 1S46, 
and began their domestic life upon the farm 
which they still occupy. Four children were 
born to them: the eldest died in infancy; 
Franklin married Martha I\. Canover, and is 
a farmer of Pleasant Valley town; Emily J. 
married B. T. Alley, and after his death be- 
came the wife of Oscar J. Case, of Salt Point; 
Flora A., who is now the wife of Charles Bur- 
bank, a native of Orleans county. New York. 

Mr. Lamoree takes an active interest in 
political affairs, uniformly voting the straight 
Republican ticket. He has held a number of 
public offices, appearing first in 1855 asjustice 
of the peace of his town; ne.xt as supervisor 
for three years; and as sheriff of Dutchess 
county from 1864 to 1867, inclusive; also 
served as revenue collector of his district, the 
appointment being made by President Lincoln 
at the commencement of the Civil war, which 
incumbency he filled until 1864. Mr. Lamo- 
ree was one of the founders of the Poughkeep- 





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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



689 



sie City National Bank in i860, and has been a 
director thereof during its existence. Previous 
to the Civil war he served as brigade paymas- 
ter under Gen. Isaac I. Piatt. He is a public- 
spirited and progressive man, and is deserving 
of rank among the highly honored and repre- 
sentative pioneer citizens of Dutchess county. 
Age and honored position do not protect 
one from the criminal class, and this esteemed 
citizen has been subjected to more than the 
average man's share of experience with the 
" rufifian burglar." On the night of November 
12, 1896, two men entered his home through 
a small window in the basement, and carried off 
all the money, some $70.00, then in the house, 
together with as much clothing as could con- 
veniently be taken away. This was all done 
without awakening the household. One of the 
men had called the previous day at noon, and 
asked for something to eat. His suspicious 
actions convinced the family of his evil inten- 
tions, but robbery was not thought of. One 
month later, December 12, the same men 
called about midnight, and placing a ladder to 
the portico, climbed in at an upstairs window, 
and went through the house. They placed a 
revolver at Mr. Lamoree's head, and demand- 
ing perfect quiet at the peril of his life, they 
bound both him and his wife with cords, and 
then searched for their booty. They secured 
about $30.00, and a valuable gold watch, a 
gift from Mr. Lamoree's father. Our subject 
prevailed upon them to leave the watch, which 
they did upon his promise to pay $5.00, which 
promise he will keep. The two ruffians then 
ate heartily and drank cider, and in their ef- 
fort to get away they stole a horse from a 
neighbor, but were caught and arrested by 
Officer McCabe, indicted, tried, and then 
finally sentenced by Samuel K. Phillips to ten 
years in prison. 



ISAAC S. GENUNG, a thorough and sys- 
__ tematic farmer of the town of East Fishkill, 
Dutchess county, was born January 30, 1831, 
in what was then the town of Fishkill. but is 
now East Fishkiil, and' is a worthy represent- 
ative of one of the honored old families of the 
county, and was of French origin. 

Gabriel Genung, his grandfather, was born 
at Morristown, N. J., May 22, 1775, and in 
that State, July 10. 1799, was united in mar- 
riage with Nancy Brinckerhoff, whose birth 
also there occurred. Shortly after their mar- 



riage they came to Dutchess county, locating 
in the town of Fishkill, where the grandfather 
engaged in farming and in the tanning busi- 
ness. There they reared their three sons: 
Adrian, who became a merchant of Swartout- 
ville and Johnsville, Dutchess county; Joseph, 
the father of our subject; and Benjamin, who 
followed farming in Wayne county, N. Y. 
The mother of these children died September 
10, 1844, and the father on November 20, 
1857. He had a brother who faithfully served 
in the war of 1812. 

In the town of Fishkill, March 13, 1801. 
was born Joseph Genung, the father of our 
subject, and he soon became familiar with the 
duties that fall to the lot of the agriculturist 
upon the home farm. He was united in mar- 
riage with Mrs. Charlotte Remsen, a native of 
the town of Fishkill, and a daughter of Abra- 
ham Storm. They located upon the old home- 
stead farm, which the father continued to 
cultivate and improve until his death, June 6, 
1865; his wife passed away August 11, 1893. 
They were both members of the Reformed 
Church, and in politics he was an ardent Dem- 
ocrat. 

Our subject is the eldest in the family of 
ten children, the others being Sarah; Jane, 
who became the wife of Edgar Baldwin, but 
both are now deceased; John, a farmer of the 
town of East Fishkill; Polhemus, a broker and 
insurance man of New York City; Joseph, who 
is living retired in Poughkeepsie; Albert, an 
agriculturist of the town of East Fishkill; and 
William, who died at the age of twenty years. 

Upon the home farm of 155 acres of rich 
and arable land, Isaac S. Genung remained 
with his brother John and sister Sarah, and 
has there since carried on general farming. 
He is one of the substantial farmers of the 
township, having met with a well-deserved 
success in his chosen calling, and no man 
takes a keener interest in the prosperity of his 
native county, or is held in higher respect, 
than Mr. Genung. Politically, he affiliates 
with the Democratic party, which embodies 
his views on public questions of the day. 



J|OSEPH W. PHILLIPS. Among the en- 
terprising and influential citizens of the 
town of East Fishkill, Dutchess county, 
whose names are scattered through the pages 
of this volume none is more worthy of men- 
tion than the gentleman whose name intro- 



am 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHIC AL RECORD. 



duces this brief biographical notice. His 
grandfather, John PhiiUps, was a native of 
Holland, and on crossing the Atlantic to the 
New World, located upon a farm in the town 
of Fishkill (now Wappinger), Dutchess coun- 
ty, where he spent his remaining days. There 
he was married and reared a family of several 
children, among whom was Elias Phillips, the 
father of our subject. 

The last named was born May 3, 1792, in 
what was then the town of I'ishkill, but is 
now Wappinger. When he attained to man's 
estate, he was married to Miss Maria Wilde, 
and they became the parents of seven chil- 
dren: Elizabeth, now the widow of John C. 
Storm, a farmer of East Fishkill; Sarah, who 
married Benjamin Strang, a farmer of the 
same town, but both now deceased; John, a 
resident of Tompkins county, N. Y. ; William 
W., deceased, who also followed farming; 
Elias M., who carried on farming in Tompkins 
county, but is now deceased; Lumen B., an 
agriculturist of Tompkins county; and James 
D., a hardware merchant of Terre Haute, 
liid. The mother of these children died in 
1 83 1, and Elias Phillips was again married, 
his second union being with Elizabeth North- 
rup, a native of Putnam connty, N. Y., where 
her father, John Northrup, engaged in fann- 
ing. Our subject was the only child born of 
this union. During his entire life the father 
followed the occupation of farming exclusively, 
and died upon his farm April 30, 1879, while 
the mother departed this life October 14, 1890. 
He was a Republican in politics, and the family 
were Baptists in religious belief. 

Joseph W. Phillips was born in the town 
of East Fishkill May 8, 1835, and there his 
early life was passed amidst rural scenes upon 
the farm which his father had purchased in 
1833. On November 6, 1856, he was mar- 
ried to Miss Caroline Rogers, a daughter of 
Laban and Jane (Sincerbo.x) Rogers, and a 
native of the town of Beekman, Dutchess 
county, where her father was also born and 
engaged in farming throughout life. He was 
the son of John I'iogers, also a native of that 
town, and an agriculturist by occupation. 
Hezekiah Rogers, the father of the last named, 
was born in England, and with two brothers 
crossed the ocean to America, he becoming a 
resident of the town of Beekman, while tney 
settled on Long Island. Simeon D. Sincer- 
box, the maternal grandfather of Mrs. Phillips, 
was also a native of Dutchess county. 



Upon their marriage Mr. Phillips took his 
wife to a farm in the town of East Fishkill, 
which he continued to operate until he pur- 
chased his present place near the village of 
Gayhead. It contains about ten acres, and is 
known as the Dr. Sutton place; but he still 
owns his valuable farm of 200 acres, which he 
now rents. At first he was engaged in general 
farming, but later turned his attention more to 
the milk business. He is at present living a 
quiet, retired life in his beautiful home, where 
hospitality abounds, and is surrounded by all 
the comforts and many of the luxuries of life. 
He and his excellent wife contribute to the 
support of the Baptist Church at Beekman, 
and are numbered among the prominent and 
highly respected citizens of the community. 
Politically Mr. Phillips is identified with the 
Republican party. 



JOHN N. LA DUE, a prominent and enter- 
prising citizen of the town of East Fish- 
kill, Dutchess county, was born on the farm 
which is still his home, June 25, 1824. The 
family came from France during the Huguenot 
persecution, and in religious belief were Meth- 
odists in later years. William La Due, the 
grandfather of our subject, was born at Rye, 
Westchester Co., N. Y., March 30, 1759, and 
on reaching manhood was married to Miss 
Elizabeth Swartout, whose birth occurred No- 
vember 19, 1761. They began their domestic 
life upon the farm now owned by our subject, 
and there reared their children, who were as 
follows: William; Samuel, who was a farmer 
of the town of East Fishkill; Cornelius, an 
agriculturist of the town of Fishkill; Judah, 
who married William Coe, a farmer of the 
town of Unionvale; Jemima, who married Peter 
La Due, a farmer of East Fishkill; Elizabeth, 
who died in infancy; Sarah; Polly and Elizabeth. 
Upon a part of the original tract which his 
father had purchased in East Fishkill, William 
La Due, the father of our subject, was born 
October 30, 1 798, and was there reared. On 
September 20, 1820, he wedded MaryConk- 
lin, who was born in Westchester count}', 
N. Y., April II, 1797, and was a daughter 
of Jeremiah Conklin, a native of the same 
county, where in later life he followed farming. 
Five children were born to the parents of our 
subject: John N.; Elizabeth, who married 
John C. Greene, a farmer of Westchester 
county; Tamar, who resided in New York City, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



691 



but is now deceased; James, a resident of Cali- 
fornia; and William L. , an agriculturist of East 
Fishkill, Dutchess county. The father oper- 
ated the homestead farm until his death, which 
occurred October 26, 1875; in politics he was 
first a Whig, and later a Republican. His 
faithful wife died September 18, 1866. 

John N. La Due was reared upon the farm 
which is still his home, and there has spent his 
entire life, with the exception of fifteen years 
passed in New York City, when he was in- 
spector of customs, and he proved a most 
capable officer, being prompt and faithful in 
the discharge of his duties. He has a fine 
farm of 125 acres, and now makes a specialty 
of fruit culture, raising apples, peaches, etc. 

In 1850 Mr. La Due was married to Miss 
Mary Greene, who belongs to an old family of 
Westchester county, where her father, Israel 
Greene, carried on agricultural pursuits. Two 
children were born to them: Eugenie, who 
married Rev. Charles Knapp, A. M., an Epis- 
copal minister of Delaware county, N. Y., now 
deceased; and Israel, who died at the age of 
four years. Mr. La Due is a stanch Repub- 
lican in politics, is an intelligent, energetic 
man, highly spoken of by all his neighbors, 
and his life record is above reproach. 



AARON A. STOCKHOLM, a valued and 
esteemed agriculturist, of the town of 

East Fishkill, Dutchess county, was born 
there in October, 1824, and is a representative 
of one of the oldest and most highly respected 
families of the county. Upon a farm in that 
township his paternal grandfather reared his 
family of five children, who in order of birth 
were as follows: Abraham, who became a 
farmer of East Fishkill; Derrick, an attorney 
at law, who removed to Utica, N. Y. ; George, 
who went to Michigan, where his famil}- still 
reside; Gertrude, who married Thomas E. 
Flagler, a farmer of the town of East Fishkill; 
and Andrew, the father of our subject. 

The last named was also a native of the 
town of East Fishkill, where he grew to man- 
hood upon a farm. He married Miss Maria 
Weeks, who also belonged to an old family of 
Dutchess county, and was born in the town of 
East Fishkill, where her father, Chauncy 
Weeks, conducted a hotel. After their mar- 
riage they located upon a farm near Hopewell, 
where they reared their family of seven chil- 
dren, namely: Delia, who became the wife of 



James C. Emans, a farmer of East Fishkill; 
Mary G.; Aaron A.; Caroline, wife of Duryea 
Van Wyck, of the town of Wappinger, Dutch- 
ess county; Harriet, wife of J. A. Young, of 
Westchester county, N. Y.; Charles, a restaur- 
ant keeper, of Poughkeepsie; Theodocia, 
widow of James Place; and John, who died in 
the Union service during the Civil war. The 
father followed the vocations of farming and 
milling in the town of East Fishkill, and be- 
came an extensive land owner, having at one 
time about 600 acres. His political support 
was given the Democratic party. 



WILLIAM EDGAR BRINCKERHOFF, 
a well-known horticulturist of East 

Fishkill town, was there born July 24, 1820. 
His grandfather. Derrick Brinckerhoff, a. na- 
tive of Dutchess county, was descended from 
one of four brothers who came to this coun- 
try from Holland about two hundred and fifty 
years ago, and the family have mostly been 
members of the Reformed Dutch Church. 

After his marriage the grandfather located 
on a farm in the town of East Fishkill, where 
he spent the remainder of his life engaged in 
agricultural pursuits. In his family were nine 
children: John D. , the eldest, was the father 
of our subject; Abraham was a farmer of East 
Fishkill town; Isaac was a merchant of 
Brinckerhoff, Dutchess county, but in later 
life engaged in farming in the town of Fish- 
kill; William was a merchant of Peekskill, 
N. Y., where his death occurred; George was 
a farmer of Fishkill; Catherine married James 
B. Montrose, a farmer of East Fishkill town: 
Margaret wedded Charles Scofield, a farmer 
in the Highlands; Mary Ann married Darius 
Hustis, an agriculturist of the same place; and 
Helen married Absolam Serene, who was for 
a time a merchant at Hughsonville, Dutchess 
county, but later carried on farming in the 
West. She is still living. 

John D. Brinckerhoff, also a native of 
Fishkill town, was there reared upon a farm. 
He married Miss Caroline Hasbrook, who 
was born in the town of Fishkill, and was a 
daughter of Col. Benjamin Hasbrook, a prom- 
inent farmer, and a Mason, fraternally. Mr. 
and Mrs. Brinckerhoff began housekeeping 
upon a farm in East Fishkill town, where he 
died in 1863, and she passed away in 1885. 
His political support was given the Demo- 
cratic party. Five children were born to 



692 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



them: Benjamin H., now a resident of 
Ohio; WilUam E., subject of this sketch; 
Theodoric, a merchant on Staten Island, who 
died in 1896; Abraham, a resident of southern 
Cahfornia; and Susan, deceased wife of Will- 
iam B. Hazelton, a farmer of Mahopac Falls, 
New York. 

The boyhood and youth of our subject 
were quietly passed upon the home farm. His 
marriag;e to Miss Sarah \. Anderson was cel- 
ebrated in 1854. She is also a native of East 
Fishkill town, and a daughter of Peter Ander- 
son, who came to that town from New Eng- 
land and located upon a farm. Four children 
graced this union: Charles E. , who died 
aged about ten years; Carrie, wife of Henry 
J. Matthews, of Mount Kisco, N. Y. ; Eliza- 
beth, wife of Arthur Storm, a farmer of East 
Fishkill town; and Cornelia M., wife of 
George A. Member, a merchant of Fishkill 
Landing. 

Since his marriage Mr. Brinckerhoi? has 
lived upon his present farm of eighty acres, 
and besides general farming he gives special 
attention to fruit culture; being one of the 
most successful horticulturists of the com- 
munity. He and his estimable wife contrib- 
ute to the Reformed Church at Hopewell, 
and being a strong temperance man he always 
casts his ballot in support of the Prohibition 
party, which embodies his views on that ques- 
tion. He has always been identified with 
works of public improvement and progress, 
and is one of the representative and leading 
citizens of the community, where he has al- 
ways made his home, and where he is so 
widely and favorably known. 



MORGAN L. VAIL, a well-known dairy 
farmer of the town of East Fishkill, 
Dutchess county, is a native of Rensselaer Co., 
N. Y., born March 29, 1848, but belongs to a 
family that, was early established in Dutchess 
county, his great-grandfather having located 
upon a large tract of land in the town of Union- 
vale, where he reared a family of several chil- 
dren. 

Elias Vail, the grandfather of our subject, 
was one of the four sons, and was born on the 
farm in Unionvale, December 23, 1774. He 
married Hannah Duncan, who was born in 
1 78 1, and they began housekeeping on a part 
of the old homestead. In their family were 
thirteen children, namely: David D., born in 



1800, died in 1821; Isaac E. , born in 1802, 
died in 18 19; Simeon L. , born in 1804, was a 
farmer of Illinois, where his death occurred; 
Egbert B., born in 1806, was a resident of 
Poughkeepsie; Mary, born in 1808, wedded 
John Snedecor, a farmer; Phenner P., born in 
1 8 10, engaged in farming in Dutchess Co. , and 
in Vermont; Alexander H. is the father of our 
subject; Thomas S., born in 1813, died un- 
married, November 25, 1894; John D., born 
in 181 5, is a retired farmer, living in Chicago; 
Lavinia, born in 18 17, married Elias X. Haight, 
a farmer of the town of Washington, Dutchess 
county, and both are now deceased; Milan, 
born in 18 19, and Sarah, born in 1821, both 
died unmarried; and Elias D., born in 1823, 
is a farmer of the town of Unionvale. The 
grandfather always devoted his attention to 
agricultural pursuits, and both himself and wife 
died on the home farm in the town of Union- 
vale, in 1 85 1. 

Alexander H. Vail, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born on the old homestead, October 
4, i8ii, and there spent his boyhood days. 
He wedded Caroline Smith, who was born in 
18 1 2, in the town of Clinton, Dutchess county, 
and was a daughter of Maurice Smith, a tanner 
and currier by trade, whose birth occurred in 
the town of Fishkill in 1765. Her mother, 
who bore the maiden name of Margaret Streit, 
was born in Dutchess county in 1767. In their 
family were ten children, of whom Mrs. Vail 
was the youngest, the names and dates of birth 
of the others being as follows: Elizabeth, 
1788; Hannah, 1790; Abel, 1792; Mary, 1794; 
George, 1796; Jerusha, 1799; Morgan L., 
1801; Susan, 1804; and Margaret, 1806. Mau- 
rice Smith, the great-grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was an extensive landholder, owning a 
great deal of property where Poughkeepsie now 
stands, and served as sheriff of Dutchess county. 
The Smith family is of English descent, and at 
an early day took quite a prominent part in 
the affairs of Dutchess county, where many of 
its members still live. 

Upon their marriage, the parents of our 
subject lived for some time upon a farm in the 
town of Hyde Park, Dutchess county, later 
spending eighteen years in Rensselaer county, 
N. Y., while the following fourteen years were 
passed in the city of Poughkeepsie, after which 
they located upon the farm now owned by our 
subject, where the mother died in 1 8S0, and the 
father in i 882. In politics he was a Democrat. 
The parental household included four children: 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



693 



Cornelia P., born in 1840, died in 1S45; Albert 
H., born in 1842, practiced medicine in the 
West, and died in California in 1893; Morgan 
L. is next in order of birth; and Susan C. , 
born in 1850, died in 1856. 

Until sixteen years of age our subject re- 
mained in the county of his nativity, and then 
accompanied his parents to Poughkeepsie, 
where he completed his education, after which 
he clerked in the drug store of Wood & Titta- 
mer for three years. In 1880 he married Caro- 
line \'. Seaman, a native of Dutchess county, 
and a daughter of Jacob and Sarah (Rynus) 
Seaman, both born in the town of Pleasant 
\'alley, Dutchess county. Richard N. Seaman, 
her paternal grandfather, was of English ex- 
traction, and a farmer by occupation, while 
the Rynus family was of Dutch stock. Mr. 
and Mrs. \'ail at once located upon their 
present farm in East Fishkill town, and there 
their nine children were born, whose names 
and dates of birth are as follows: Morgan L. , 
Jr., 1 88 1 ; Alexander S., 1882; Philip Seaman, 
1883; Fanny, 1885; Caroline, 1S86; Emily, 
1888; Ruth, 1889; Elizabeth, 1891; and Har- 
old Huntington, 1895. Morgan and Alexan- 
der both died in infancy. 

Upon his farm of 165 acres, Mr. Vail is 
engaged in dairying, making a specialty of the 
sale of milk, and has been quite successful in 
this venture. He is an intelligent, public- 
spirited citizen, identifying himself with all 
matters which will promote the welfare of the 
community, is a Democrat in politics, and both 
himself and wife are faithful members of the 
Baptist Church at Beekman. 



iICHARD T. SWIFT, a well-known resi- 
dent of the town of Washington, Dutch- 
ess county, was engaged during the earlier 
years of his life in agricultural pursuits, but is 
now retired from active labor. He is a native 
of that town, where he was born September 
26, 18 1 7, and is the representative of an old 
American fainily, of English origin, that was 
founded in this country about 1640. His 
father, Zebulon Swift, was born at Springhill, 
near Sandwich, Mass., July 29, 1776, and 
there his grandfather, Abraham Swift, was also 
born. The latter was married in the Bay 
State, where he followed cabinet making, but 
later came to Dutchess county, N. Y. , locating 
on a farm near Millbrook, which he operated 
in connection with work at his trade. In his 



family were five children: Zebulon and his 
twin brother, Lemuel, who was a farmer of 
Washington town; Bariah, a machinist and in- 
ventor; Robert, who had large business in- 
terests at Millbrook, including a sawmill; and 
Deborah, who died unmarried. The family 
belonged to the Society of Friends. 

Zebulon Swift was only a boy when brought 
by his parents to this county, where he fol- 
lowed cabinet making and farming. He was 
married March 3, 1803, to Sarah Titus, a na- 
tive of Washington town, and of English de- 
scent. Her father engaged in blacksmithing 
and farming as a means of livelihood. B}' her 
marriage with Mr. Swift she became the 
mother of nine children, namely: Deborah, 
who died unmarried; Elizabeth, who became 
the wife of Joseph Bartlett, January i, 1828, 
and with her husband is now deceased; Will- 
iam, who was a farmer of Washington town, 
and has also passed away; Johanna and Phcebe, 
who both died unmarried; Richard T., subject 
of this sketch; Sarah, who also died unmarried; 
and Isaac, who operates a farm in the town 
of Washmgton. The father died August 16, 
1823, and the mother passed awaj- January 16, 
1870. 

Richard T. Swift was reared to the life of 
an agriculturist, which occupation he followed 
until his retirement, and he early became fa- 
miliar with the labors on a farm. On Septem- 
ber 12, 1839, he married Miss Hannah S. 
Deuel, who was born at Kinderhook, Columbia 
Co., N. Y., February 23, 18 17, and is de- 
scended from a French Huguenot family, who 
sought religious freedom in this country at an 
early day in its history. Her father, Silas 
Deuel, was a native of the town of Washing- 
ton, Dutchess county, where he married a Miss 
Davis, by whom he had only one child: Mrs. 
Swift. The entire married life of our subject 
and his wife was passed in the town of Wash- 
ington with the exception of three years spent 
on a farm in Dover town, Dutchess county. 
For the last fifteen years he has given up ac- 
tive labor, enjoying a well-earned rest. 

Three children graced the union of Mr. and 
Mrs. Swift, (i) Amelia M., born September 
9, 1840, was married December 19, 1866, to 
Albert Knapp, a farmer of the town of Stan- 
ford, Dutchess county. (2) James D., born 
March 20, 1842, married Verna M. Case, Oc- 
tober 12, 1867, and they had one son, Freder- 
ick W., now a tinsmith of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., 
who was born February 6, 1869, and married 



094 



COMME-VORATIVE BIOQBAPHKJAL UECORD. 



Charlotte Covil. Mrs. Verna M. Swift died 
February 3, 1873, and March 7, 1877, James 
D. Swift married Miss Emma E. Carson, of 
New York City, a daughter of John C. Carson, 
a native of Grenock, Scotland. They are the 
parents of four children: Jane \'erna, who 
was born October 30, 1878, and died July 9, 
1879; James Richard, born November 11, 
1881; Richard Carson, born May 21, 1885; 
and Minnie Grace, born March3i, 1890. For 
some time James D. Swift was a merchant of 
Millbrook, but is now employed at the carpen- 
ter's trade. (3) Gurdon, born November 4, 
1844, is the youngest child of the family, and 
is engaged in farming in the town of Washing- 
ton. 

On March 24, 1884, Mrs. Swift departed 
this life, leaving many friends, as well as a lov- 
ing family, to mourn her loss. The children 
are members of various Churches, but our sub- 
ject is an Orthodo.x Friend in religious belief, 
and stands high in the regard of his fellow citi- 
zens. In politics he is a firm supporter of the 
Republican party. 



JAMES L. PINCKNEY. The fertile lands 
of the town of Pawling, Dutchess county, 
have always afforded a tempting field for 
enterprise, and the subject of this sketch is 
one of the active and progressive men who 
have engaged successfully in agriculture and 
dairying in that town. He is a native of Put- 
nam county, born at Lake Mahopac (or Ger- 
man Flats) March i, 1855. He obtained a 
common-school education there, and at an 
early age engaged in farming on his own ac- 
count. In 1889 he married Miss Marie L. 
Hay, and their union being childless, they 
adopted a little girl October i,' 1S91, giving 
her the name of Mary Antoinette Pinckney. 
She was born on Washington's birthday, 
1885. 

Perry Pinckney, our subject's father, was 
born at Red Mills, Putnam county (now Ma- 
hopac Fallsj, and his early education was lim- 
ited to the district schools of that time and 
locality. For a number of years he followed 
the carpenter's trade, and later purchased a 
tract of land in the town of East Fishkill, 
Dutchess county, where he conducted a dairy 
farm during his remaining days. He married 
Miss Elizabeth Lockwood, daughter of David 
Lockwood, a well-known hotel keeper at Car- 
mel, Putnam county, and had si.\ children, of 



whom our subject was the youngest. All 
were born at the old home in Putnam county, 
and were educated in the public schools of the 
vicinity, (i) Lewis became a farmer of the 
town of Pawling, and has never married. (2) 
Sarah married Robert J. Lee, a farmer of the 
town of East Fishkill, and has had eleven chil- 
dren: Ella, who married Madison J. Horton, 
and has two daughters, Millie and May: Flor- 
ence, who married Isaac Horton, and has 
four children, Madison, Mary L. , and two 
others; Annie; Alice; William; Edith; Burton; 
Leona, who married, and has three children, 
Andrew, Hiram, and one whose name is not 
given; Edward L. , who died when about six- 
teen years of age; and Lula and Maude, the 
last named living with her aunt, Mrs. Sophia 
Tompkins, who is bringing her up. (3) Sophia 
married Walter Tompkins, a farmer of Put- 
nam county-, but they have no children. (4) 
Irene has never married. (5) Caroline mar- 
ried John E. Patterson, a farmer, and has 
three children: Edith, May E., and one 
whose name is not given. 

Mrs. Pinckney was born January 10, 1853, 
in New York City, and after attending the 
public schools there, she became an expert 
seamstress on shirts, vests and dresses, and 
afterward followed the business of dress-mak- 
ing for twenty years. Her father, Anthony 
Hay, was a native of Schwalbach, Germany, 
where he received his education. He spent 
some years in Paris, France, as a shoemaker, 
and he married a French lady. Mile. Marie 
Catherine Renaud, daughter of Daniel Renaud. 
The latter had twelve children — six sons and 
six daughters: Daniel, Jr., who died in 
France; Peter, now living in France; Fred- 
erick (deceased), who had two children — 
Frederick and Emma — and formerly lived in 
Brooklyn, N. Y. ; Henry, living in California; 
Eugene (deceased); Louis, who died in France; 
Marion, who died in France; Louise (de- 
ceased), formerly of Paterson, N. J.; Cath- 
erine (deceased), who was Mrs. Lalin, of 
Green Point, Long Island, N. Y. . and had 
thirteen children; Elizabeth, of France; Susan 
(now Mrs. Hilbert, of Green Point, N. Y.) has 
four children living — Fred, in California; Louis 
M., in New York City; Alfred, Jr., in Green 
Point; and Emily, in Tremont, N. Y. — and 
Marie Catherine, the mother of Mrs. Pinck- 
ney. Anthony Hay and wife came to New York 
City, where their two daughters were born: 
Mrs. Pinckney, the younger, January 10, 1853, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



695 



and Emma C, the elder, on January 15, 
185 1. The latter attended the city schools 
during girlhood, and afterward married Charles 
Schaefer, a carpenter of the same city. They 
had one son, Charles, who died when nearly 
two years old. Anthony Hay died July 5, 
1854. His widow is still living. 



JOHN H. ORTON, residing near Dover 
Plains, Dutchess county, is a leading dairy- 
man and agriculturist of that vicinity. He 
is a native of the town of Dover, born March 
5, 1844, and has passed his life there, attend- 
ing the public schools in boyhood and engag- 
ing in farming at an early age. In 1889 he 
purchased from Alice Wheeler his present 
farm, containing 125 acres of fine land, and 
his excellent management has made it one of 
the best of its kind in the township. Although 
he is not a politician in the strict sense of the 
term, he is a strong supporter of Democratic 
principles. In 1878 he married Miss Lucy J. 
Thorp, daughter of Bradford Thorp, a well- 
known resident of Lime Rock, Conn., and 
they had four children: Willard B. and a 
daughter (twins), born January 29, 1878, the 
latter living only three days, while the former 
who was a bright little boy, lacked but eleven 
days of being three years old when he, too, died; 
Oliver L. , born February 28, 1883; and Claude 
M., born April 11, 1888. 

Our subject's ancestors were early settlers 
in Connecticut, and his grandfather, William 
Orton, was a native of that State, and became 
a well-to-do farmer. He and his wife, Ruana, 
reared a family of four children: Sally, the 
wife of Harry Edmonds; James, who married 
Lydia Finch, and had five children; Harry, 
who never married; and Oliver L., our sub- 
ject's father, who was born in Connecticut, 
August 15, 1809. After acquiring a common- 
school education he learned the shoemaker's 
trade, but did not follow it long. He was a 
musician and a trooper in the days of the old 
militia. In politics he was a stanch Demo- 
crat. He married Miss Ruth B. Burton, and 
had six children, of whom our subject was the 
fifth in order of birth. The eldest, Mary A., 
was born February 2, 1834, and married James 
Orton (a relative), who was engaged in farm- 
ing near Patterson, Putnam Co., N. Y. ; they 
had one son, Charles, who died in 1888. (2) 
James W. Orton was born October 27, 1835, 
in the town of Dover, Dutchess county, and 



after leaving school followed farming for some 
time, but is now engaged in mercantile busi- 
ness at New Milford, Conn. He is a member 
of the Odd Fellows Lodge at Dover. His 
first wife. Miss Sarah Lee, died August 16, 
1865, and he is now married to Miss Maria 
Sherman. He has no living offspring, the two 
children of his first marriage, Charles and Ber- 
tha, having died in infancy. (3) Jetson Orton, 
who was born in Dover Plains, August 16, 
1839, is a farmer by occupation. He married 
Susan Wheeler, daughter of Alfred and 
Mary Wheeler, prominent farmers of Dover, 
and has three children: Lewis J., who mar- 
ried Sarah Brinck; Mary, the wife of Joseph 
Titus; and Burton R., who is at home. (4) 
Sallie R. Orton, was born in the town of 
Dover, May 14, 1841, and like the other mem- 
bers of the family received an education in the 
public schools near her home. She married 
Miles C. Bump, a carpenter of Amenia, and 
has two children — Thomas L. and Nettie M. 
(6) Martha J. Orton, the youngest of the fam- 
ily, born October 9, 1846, died of consump- 
tion at the age of twenty-one years. 

Mrs. Orton's grandfather, Hercules Westely 
Thorpe, was a native of Lime Rock, Conn., 
the old home of this family. He married Judith 
Lampson, and had five children: John, Brad- 
ford, Horace, Hiram, and Esther. Bradford 
Thorpe, Mrs. Orton's father, has always been 
a farmer at Lime Rock. He married Frances 
Winters, and had nineteen children, of whom 
fifteen are living, as well as both the parents. 
Edward married Ruth Jones; Mary, — Isaac 
Dinger; Minnie — William Dinger; Frank— Pollie 
Bishop ; Andrew — Sarah Chase ; Esther — Homer 
Brown; Fannie, Julia, and Sabelia never 
married; Lucy J. is the wife of our subject; 
William and Charles are not married; Rose is 
the wife of George Bishop; Estella married 
William Bishop; Hattie is not married; Birdie, 
Caroline, and John and Amelia are deceased. 



TTrERBERT J. CURTIS, a 



stalwart and 
^ sturdy representative of the noble yeo- 
manry who make up the agricultural popula- 
tion of Dutchess county, is a resident of the 
town of Red Hook, where he was born April 
II, 1858. His father. John Curtis, was the 
son of Le Grand Curtis, a member of the firm 
of Carroll & Curtis, furniture dealers and un- 
dertakers, of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county. 
The father wedded Jane C. Beaumont, and to 



69G 



COMilEMORATIVE BIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



them were born eight children: Le Grand B., 
bom November 3. 1S41. married Helen An- 
drews, and after her death wedded Mary Mas- 
sonneau; Edwin S., born August 28, 1843, "'^s 
united in marriage with Miss Emma French, 
daughter of John French, a professor at West 
Point, N. Y. ; L. Irene, born September 2, 
1845. is the wife of John A. Fraleigh, son of 
George Fraleigh; Florence, born in December, 
1847, Willis, born in November, 1849, a^d 
Grace, born October 2, 1852. all died in in- 
fancy; Herbert J. is the next in order of birth; 
and James C, born April 15, i860, also died 
in infancy. The father of this family departed 
this life in August. 1875. 

The maternal grandparents of our subject, 
Abraham and Martha (Carter) Beaumont, came 
to the United States from Onley, near Hud- 
dersiield, England, and located at Chester 
Creek, near Philadelphia, Penn. In their 
native land two children had come to bless 
their union: Jane C, mother of our subject, 
born April 15, 18 16; and Martha A., born 
February 18, 1818; after their location at 
Chester Creek the family circle was increased 
by the birth of another daughter, Eliza T. . 
born June 30, 1831. Being an expert machin- 
ist, the father soon secured work at Chester 
Creek, where he remained for four years, and 
then removed to Trenton, N. Y. , where he 
also found employment at his chosen trade. 
His wife died in this country in Febru.-'.ry, 1832, 
but his death occurred while on a visit to 
England in 1S43. 

On reaching a sufficient age Herbert J. 
Curtis entered the common schools of Red 
Hook, completing his studies in the De Garmo 
Institute, Rhinebeck, N. Y., which has since 
been transferred to Fishkill-on-Hudson. After 
leaving school he began his business career as 
a bookkeeper in his father's store, but now 
turns his attention to agricultural pursuits, 
conducting a tine farm just outside the village 
of Red Hook, which might well be termed a 
model farm, as it is supplied with all modern 
conveniences, good and substantial buildings, 
and the fields are under a high state of cultiva- 
tion. He also gives considerable attention to 
the raising of tine poultry, and has been quite 
successful in all his undertakings. 

On November 7, 1878, Mr. Curtis was 
united in marriage with Miss Angle B. Lasher, 
daughter of Nelson P. Lasher, who was a 
teacher in the public schools of Red Hook. 
Mrs. Curtis began her education in the public 



schools of that place, completing same at Clav- 
erack Institute. Claverack, N. Y. , and later 
engaged in teaching for some time with her 
father. By her marriage she has become the 
mother of four children: C. Leland; Minnie 
G. ; Carrol J., who died February 26, 1883; 
and Raymond J. The parents are widely and 
favorably known throughout the community, 
and hold a high position in social circles. 



JOHN A. TRAVER, one of the most pro- 
gressive and intelligent agriculturists of the 
town of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, was 
born January 27, 1834, on the farm upon 
which he now resides. 

It is not known exactly when the first of the 
American branch of thefamily crossed the ocean, 
but his ancestors were undoubtedly among the 
pioneer farmers of Sullivan county, as three 
brothers of the name came from there at a very 
early date, and purchased a large tract of land 
in the town of Clinton, Dutchess county, and 
afterward separated. 

David Traver, our subject's great-grand- 
father, had a son, Andrew D. Traver, born in 
Clinton town, who also followed farming, and 
about 1 818 moved to a farm in the town of 
Rhinebeck now occupied by Mr. Crandall. 
He was thrifty and successful, highly esteemed 
in the neighborhood, and was an active mem- 
ber of the Lutheran Church at Wurtemburg. 
He died at that place in his eighty-ninth year, 
and was buried there, as was also his wife, in 
her seventy-sixth year. They had three chil- 
dren: Maria (deceased), who married George 
Snyder; Michael, our subject's father; and 
Julia, the widow of H. D. Teal, deceased. 

Michael Traver was born October 10, 
1809, in the town of Clinton, but passed most 
of his life in Rhinebeck town. He had but 
limited educational advantages, but he has 
always kept himself well posted upon general 
topics, and is a constant and intelligent reader. 
In 1828 he married Eliza Teal, a descendant 
of one of the oldest and most prominent fam- 
ilies of the township, a daughter of John I. 
Teal. The young couple settled upon the 
present homestead near Rhinebeck where Mrs. 
Traver died July 6. 1895, in her eighty-fourth 
year. Michael Traver always displayed good 
judgment in business matters, and his success 
was based upon thrift and industry. In early 
times he was a Whig, and later a Republican, 
but in local affairs he always voted independ- 





^2'^-^— 



^ ■ d^^^t-r^<ydr;^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



697 



ently. He was never an office seeker, but at 
one time was assessor of his township. He 
united with the Wurtemburg Lutheran Church 
in his youth, and was one of the builders of 
the Lutheran church of Rhinebeck village, 
where for many years he was a leading offi- 
cial. He led a life of quiet and usefulness, 
which brought him the well-deserved regard of 
all who knew him. He passed to his final 
rest March i8, 1896, in his eighty-seventh 
year, one of those few who leave 

" no memorial, 
But a world made better by their lives." 

John A. Traver, the subject of our sketch, 
the only son of his parents, received a good 
English education in boyhood, attending first 
the district schools of the neighborhood, and 
later studying for three years in Rhinebeck 
Academy under Prof. Harper. His reading 
has been extended far beyond the ordinary 
limits, his attention being especially devoted 
to history. He has also read much in the 
line of his own business, of which he takes a 
scientific view. After leaving school he be- 
gan to relieve his father of his cares, and for 
the last twenty years the entire responsibility 
of the management of the farm of 130 acres 
has devolved upon him. His good judgment, 
integrity and public spirit have made him a 
leader in local affairs, and he has great in- 
fluence in town and county politics. He has 
always been a Republican, but has never 
sought office, although he has been elected to 
several positions — having been assessor of the 
township for many years, and supervisor four 
terms, 1892-93, in 1894 for two years, and in 
1896 for two years; he has also been chair- 
man of the committee on equalization of the 
county, and is a trustee of Rhinebeck Savings 
Bank. 

In 1855 Mr. Traver was married to Miss 
Elizabeth Ten Broeck, daughter of Samuel 
and Maria (Parks) Ten Broeck, and a descend- 
ant of one of the old families. They have 
four children: Eliza, (Mrs. William Wey); 
Charles, who assists his father upon the farm; 
Maria (Mrs. Frank Wey); and Jennie, who 
is at home. The children were educated in 
Rhinebeck Academy, the same school in which 
Mr. Traver completed his studies. Charles 
and Eliza paid especial attention to music, the 
former being a talented violinist, and the lat- 
ter a proficient on the piano. The family are 
leading members of the Lutheran Stone 



Church at Rhinebeck, and have always been 
prominent in the social life of the locality. 
The homestead of the family has been in their 
possession for nearly one hundred years. The 
family is also noted for its longevity; Andrew 
D. Traver being at the time of his decease, 
eighty-nine; Leah Traver, his wife, seventy- 
six; Michael Traver, eighty-seven; and Eliza 
Traver, eighty-four years. 



JAMES E. VAN KLEECK is the owner 
of a fine farm of sixty acres in the town of 

Pleasant \'alley, Dutchess county, where 
with progressive and improved methods he 
carries on agricultural pursuits, while the well- 
tilled fields yield to him a golden tribute in re- 
turn for the care and labor he bestows upon 
them. In the midst of these stand good 
buildings, substantial and well-kept, and the 
air of neatness and thrift which pervades the 
place indicates the careful supervision of the 
owner, who is justly regarded as one of the 
leading farmers of the neighborhood. 

Mr. Van Kleeck is a native of the town of 
Lagrange, Dutchess county, born November 
19, 1820. His father, Minard \'an Kleeck, 
was born in the city of Poughkeepsie, as was 
the grandfather, who also bore the name of 
Minard. The founder of the family in Amer- 
ica was likewise a Minard Van Kleeck, and 
was a native of Holland, whence he emigrated 
to America, living for some years on Long 
Island. He then took up his residence in 
Poughkeepsie, where he spent his remaining 
days. The grandfather of our subject was 
here reared and married. Through the Rev- 
olutionary war he served as one of the de- 
fenders of the colonies, and when the struggle 
was ended he returned to his home at Pough- 
keepsie. His family numbered three children: 
James, who died of yellow fever in New York 
City, where he was engaged in business as a 
candlemaker; Rachel, who became the wife 
of James Talmadge, a farmer of the town of 
Pleasant Valley; and Minard the father of our 
subject. 

The last named was reared in Poughkeep- 
sie, and when a young man worked for vari- 
ous farmers in the neighborhood. He mar- 
ried Helen Rugar, a native of Lagrange town, 
and a daughter of John Rugar, a farmer and 
carpenter, who belonged to an old Holland 
family. Mr. Van Kleeck removed with his 
bride to Lagrange town, and continued agri- 



698 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHJCAL RECORD. 



cultural pursuits throughout his life. In his 
political affiliations he was a Democrat. His 
death occurred in 1856; that of his wife in 
1845. Their children were as follows: Cor- 
delia, married Peter Youngs, a farmer of 
Dutchess county, and both are deceased; 
James E. is the ne.xt younger; John removed 
to the West, where his death occurred; Han- 
nah E. is the wife of Morris Demers, a coop- 
er, of Pennsylvania; Mary J. was married and 
removed to the West, since which time no 
news has been received of her; Helen became 
the wife of William Potts, formerly a farmer 
of Lagrange; Peter followed farming in La- 
grange town until his death; Minard and 
Rachel both died in early life. 

The subject proper of this review spent 
his boyhood days in the usual manner of 
farmer lads, his time being largely occupied 
by work on the old homestead, and to the 
pursuit to which he was reared he has always 
devoted his energies. He is ever an advocate 
of advancement, and ready to accept improved 
methods which his judgment countenances 
as practical. In his dealings he is strictly 
honorable, and his well-spent life commends 
him to the confidence and regard of all. 

Mr. \'an Kleeck was united in marriage 
with a daughter of David Rigar, and they re- 
sided on the old farm in Lagrange until 1869, 
when he sold his property there and came to 
his present farm. On July 4, 1895, he was 
called upon to mourn the loss of his wife, who 
was a most estimable lady. 



JULIUS O. ROWE, one of the most promi- 
nent agriculturists of the town of Milan, 

Dutchess county, was born September 7, 
1830, upon his present estate, which has been 
in the possession of his family for over 135 
years. 

Johannes Rowe, great-grandfather of our 
subject, and a German by birth, came in 1760 
with some of his brothers to Dutchess county, 
where he purchased 911 acres of land from 
Chancellor Robt. R. Livingston, and much of 
this land is still in the possession of the Rowe 
family. For this land he paid ^750, on 
which, in 1766, he built a stone house (still 
standing), and passed the remaining years of 
his life in the quiet calling of a farmer. Jo- 
hannes Rowe died in 1771, and was buried in 
the family ground across the road from the 
church which bears the family name. He 



was twice married, and by his first wife had 
six children, two daughters — Mary (Mrs. 
James Stewart), Catherine (Mrs. William Stew- 
art); and four sons — John, Sebastian, Philip 
and Mark; and by his second wife he had one 
daughter, Lydia — seven children in all. To 
each of these the father gave a farm in the 
town of Milan, and the boys all settled there 
and were prominent in the early history of the 
town; they built the Methodist church there, 
and were generous supporters of many local 
enterprises, from which that neighborhood 
still derives benefit. Philip had a son \\' illiam 
P. Rowe, who served as a soldier in the war 
of 1 8 12. 

Mark Rowe, our subject's grandfather, mar- 
ried Catherine Pitcher, and reared a family of 
four sons: John, a farmer in the town of Mi- 
lan, left no children; Garrett, a soldier in the 
war of 1812, was a farmer in Columbia coun- 
ty, and had six children, whose descendants 
still live there; William was a farmer in the 
town of Milan, and left several children; and 
Leonard Rowe. our subject's father, born at 
the present farm in 1801, became a farmer by 
occupation. He was married, in 1827, to 
Miss Eliza C. Reid, a native of the town of 
Milan. The Reids are of English origin, and 
the first American ancestors came at an early 
date, settling in New England. Peter Reid, 
Mrs. Rowe's grandfather, married Miss Thank- 
ful Beecher, of New Haven, Conn., and their 
son Ely was born in Connecticut, in early life 
coming to Dutchess county, where he met and 
married Miss Catherine Rowe, a native of 
the town of Milan (then Northeast). They 
settled in Rhinebeck-on-Hudson, where Ely 
Reid was a merchant for a number of years. 
After the marriage of our subject's parents, 
they settled at the old homestead, where they 
reared a' family of four children: Julius O., 
Edward, Horatio, and \'irginia A. 

Leonard Rowe was very mtluential in local 
affairs, a leader in the Democratic organiza- 
tion, and for many years a supervisor and jus- 
tice of the peace. Edward went to Minnesota 
in 1856, purchased a large tract of land on the 
Minnesota river where he improved a large 
farm, and resided there twenty-one years. His 
health failing, he rented his land and returned 
to Milan in 1887, where he died in 1889. 
Julius O. Rowe still resides with his brother 
and sister at Home Nest, the ancestral home 
of their parents, where in youth they received 
an academic education, fitting them for any 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



699 



vocation in life. They stand high in the es- 
teem of the people, among whom they live. 
In politics Julius O. is a Democrat, but has 
never sought nor could be induced to hold any 
official position. Horatio has ser\'ed satisfac- 
tory as supervisor for several terms. 



SHERMAN HOW.\RD, a promment agri- 
__ culturist and a dairyman of the town of 
Poughkeepsie, and a descendant of one of the 
oldest families of Dutchess county, was born 
in the town of Pawling, January 27, 1821. 
The family is of Irish origin, the first of the 
American line settling in Rhode Island at an 
early date. 

Edward Howard, the great-great-grand- 
father, a Quaker, came from Rhode Island to 
Dutchess county early in the seventeenth cen- 
tury, settling on Quaker Hill, in what is now 
the town of Pawling, when that locality was a 
primeval wilderness. He built a cabin near a 
spring of water, and he and his wife endured 
all th,e hardships and privations of pioneer life 
before they transformed their land into a pro- 
ductive farm. They had three children, V\z.: 
Cynthia (who married James Akin), Benjamin 
and Edward. 

Edward, our subject's great-grandfather, 
was born in the year 1730, married Phebe 
Hart, and reared a family of eleven children: 
Stephen, Edward, John, William, Thomas, 
Richard, Matthew, Phebe, Mary, Patience and 
Sarah. Phebe married Daniel Martin; Mary 
married Samuel Tripp; Sarah married Thomas 
Stephens; and Patience married John Howard, 
an officer in the British army, whom she mar- 
ried during the Revolutionary war. 

Stephen Howard, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born in 1760, was a tanner and 
shoemaker by trade, and also followed farm- 
ing at the old homestead. Like his ancestors, 
he adhered to the faith of the Quakers, as have 
the majority of his descendants. He married 
Theodocia Totten, of Westchester county, by 
whom he had six children: Robert, Peter, 
Thomas, James (who died in childhood), Phebe 
and Edward (our subject's father.) 

Edward Howard was born in 1785, and 
was a farmer in the town of Pawling, and in 
politics was a Democrat. He married Drusilla 
Sherman, a daughter of Abial Sherman, of 
Pawling, who was a soldier in the Revolution- 
ary war and a politician of note, serving as a 
member of the State Legislature in 18 17. 



Two children were born to this union: Matilda 
A., who married Hiram Haviland, who resided 
on Quaker Hill, in the town of Pawling; and 
Sherman, our subject. The mother, Drusilla 
Sherman Howard, died in 1857, and the father 
survived her until the year 1871. 

Sherman Howard grew to manhood at the 
old homestead, attending the schools of the 
neighborhood. His first venture into the world 
of business was as a clerk in a general store, 
where he remained two years. He then re- 
turned to the homestead. He was married in 
1853 to Sarah Dorland, daughter of Samuel 
and Sarah Dorland, of the town of Lagrange. 
Of the five children of this union only two 
lived to maturity, Anna M., the wife of Edwin 
S. Barnes, a farmer of Poughkeepsie township, 
and Charles, who is at home. Charles mar- 
ried Anna K. Barnes, and they have one son, 
Roger S. Howard. In 1869 Mr. Howard 
purchased his present farm of 100 acres near 
Arlington, where he is engaged in general 
farming and the milk business, to which he 
gives especial attention. He has made exten- 
sive improvements upon the estate, and it is 
now a fine and productive property. 

Mr. Howard was the first justice of the 
peace of the town of Pawling, and held such 
office from 1846 to 1850. In 1850 he was 
appointed deputy sheriff by Alonzo H. Morey, 
who was then sheriff of Dutchess county, and 
held such office three years. In 1854 and 
1856, Mr. Howard represented the town of 
Pawling in the board of supervisors, and held 
the office of postmaster of the town of Pough- 
keepsie, at Manchester Bridge, from the years 
1880 to 1892. Mr. Howard takes great in- 
terest in local affairs, notwithstanding his 
advanced age, and in politics is a Democrat. 



7C RVIS HAIGHT, agriculturist, of the town 
-tf^ of Fishkill, Dutchess county, residing 
near Johnsville, is engaged in dairying and 
horticulture. His estate lies upon both sides 
of the highway between Johnsville and Brinck- 
erhoff, and is bounded on the west by 
Charles D. Sherwood's farm, on the east by 
the farm of John Smith, on the north by Fish- 
kill creek, and on the south by the property of 
Henry Schluter. 

Arvis Haight was born at the old home in 
Phillipstown, August 9, 1849, and acquired his 
education in the district schools while working 
upon the farm and in the mill. In 1870 he 



100 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



left home and went to New York City, where 
he became a salesman in a conmiission house 
in Washington Market. There he remained 
nine years, and then moved to Dutchess coun- 
ty, and after a short residence in Fishkill vil- 
lage, he purchased, in iSSo, his present farm. 
It contains eighty acres of cultivated land, and 
twenty which are not cleared. From ten to 
fifteen cows are kept, and the fruit and veget- 
able crops are of various kinds. 

Mr. Haight married Miss Phcebe A. Hus- 
tis, by whom he has had three children: Bes- 
sie Beulah, Ralph, and Edna, who died at the 
age of eight years. Mrs. Haight's father was 
Caleb Hustis, son of William Hustis, the son 
of Caleb Hustis, and her mother was Eliza- 
beth Ann Haight, the daughter of James and 
Jemima (Budd) Haight, and granddaughter of 
Marion (Swims) Haight. 



E 



DWIN TRAVER, one of the most promi- 
Ja^' nent agriculturists of the town of Rhine- 
beck, Dutchess county, is a descendant of one 
of the earliest settlers of this region. Among 
the emigrants from Holland who located in 
Ulster county, in 1710, was Anna Maria Tre- 
ber, who had two sons between the ages of 
nine and fifteen, and from them the numerous 
Traver family in this vicinity have sprung. 
The first of the name to settle in the town of 
Rhinebeck, came about 171 5. 

Our subject's grandfather, Henry B. Tra- 
ver, was a native of Dutchess county, and 
probably of the town of Rhinebeck, where he 
was a prosperous farmer in later years. He 
married Miss Cookingham, and had seven chil- 
dren: Lewis, a farmer in Rhinebeck, who 
served as a soldier in the war of 1812; William, 
also a farmer in Rhinebeck; Eve, who mar- 
ried Gideon Traver, a farmer; Maria; Aaron, 
our subject's father; Moses, a farmer; and 
Gilbert, who is now a retired farmer in Rhine- 
beck. 

Aaron Traver was born at the old farm in 
1809. He married Christma Traver, a native 
of the town of Clinton, whose great-grandfa- 
ther, Bastian Traver, was born in Holland, and 
came to Dutchess county when a young man, 
locating in the town of I'ihinebeck. His son 
David had a son Samuel, born in Clinton town, 
in 1783, who was the father of Christina Tra- 
ver. After their marriage our subject's parents 
lived in Clinton town for some years, and 
then moved to the farm in Rhinebeck, now 



owned by our subject. They had eleven chil- 
dren: Darius, a farmer in Rhinebeck; Elbert, 
who died in 1S63, in defense of the Union; 
Nathaniel, now living in Arizona; Seth, who 
died in 1887; Edwin, our subject; Sarah, who 
died in 1886; Wesley B. , a farmer in Rhine- 
beck; Oscar and DeWitt, who died in youth; 
Mary, who died in 1891; and Emma C. , now 
living with our subject. The mother died in 
1882, and the father six jxars later. 

The subject of our sketch was born in the 
town of Clinton, November 15, 1844, and at 
six years of age he moved with his parents to 
his present home. His farm comprises 180 
acres of land, well adapted to general farming. 
F'or about six years in all, during his earlier 
years, he taught school, and he takes great in- 
terest in educational progress and in all the 
movements of the day, keeping well informed 
•on current measures. In politics he is a Dem- 
ocrat, and he contributes to the Lutheran 
Church, of which his forefathers were ad- 
herents. 



'TLLIAM P. ROE, a well-known dairy- 

man and agriculturist of the town of 

Fishkill. Dutchess county, residing near Brinck- 
erhoff, is one of the most enterprising workers 
in his chosen lines. 

John Roe, his father, was born June 28, 
1792, and followed the occupation of a farmer, 
settling upon a farm of about 100 acres in the 
town of W'appinger, Dutchess count}-. On 
April I, 1849, he married Mary Ann Phillips, 
who was born August 26, 1802, in Fishkill, 
Dutchess county. To their union one son was 
born — William P. Our subject's mother was 
a daughter of William I. Phillips (who was 
born March 14, 1767, and died July 9, 1839) 
and his wife, Elizabeth (who was born Decem- 
ber 3, 1774, and died March 14, 1854). The 
father of our subject died September 27, 1861; 
the mother passing away January 24, 1875. 

William P. Roe was born near Flushing, 
Long Island, January 29, 1847. Although not 
a native of Dutchess county, he come here at 
the age of two years with his father, and re- 
ceived his education in the district schools of 
the town of Fishkill, assisting in the meantime 
with the work at home. After leaving school 
he devoted his attention to the management of 
the farm, to which he succeeded at his father's 
death. On September 27, 1861, he married 
Miss Elizabeth De Long, daughter of James R. 





^■^> 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



701 



and Frances (Seaman) De Long, prominent 
residents of the town of Beekman. James R. 
De Long was the only brother of the Hon. 
Charles E. De Long, the most prominent law- 
yer on the Pacific coast, and who was ap- 
pointed, by President U. S. Grant, United 
States minister to Japan, which office he filled 
with great honor, his wife being the first Amer- 
ican lady introduced to the Mikado of Japan. 
In 1877 Mr. Roe sold his farm and moved to 
Brooklyn, where he opened a feed, l^our and 
grain store, which he carried on for one year; 
he then returned to Dutchess county, and 
worked for a year on the farm of his father-in- 
law. Since that time he has been continu- 
ously engaged in agriculture, spending four 
years on the estate of George Tabor, of Beek- 
man (Mrs. Roe's uncle); three years at Green- 
haven on the Peters farm; three years in the 
town of Unionvale, on the Peter H. Christie 
property; and for the past seven years at his 
present location — the farm of 300 acres owned 
by \\'. F. Wilson, of New York City. He is 
largel}' interested in dairying, keeping, on an 
average, about fifty cows, with many young 
cattle. 

In politics Mr. Roe is a Democrat, and in 
religion inclines to the Methodist Church, 
which he and his wife attend. They ha\'e had 
ten children: John Franklin, George Bert, 
Mary Helena, James Clifford, Charles, Bertha, 
Sarah Elizabeth, Edith May, Carrie Elizabeth 
and William P., all of whom are living, e.xcept 
Charles and Sarah Elizabeth, who died in 
childhood. 

Mrs. Roe's paternal great-grandparents 
were James and Sally I'Loseei De Long, and 
their son Egbert (her grandfather) married 
Sarah Crandall, daughter of Reed and Eliza- 
beth Crandall. On the maternal side her 
grandparents were David N. Seaman and his 
wife, Melissa Howard, who was a daughter of 
Edward Howard. This David N. Seaman was 
sheriff of Dutchess county, serving three years 
from 1847. 



THEODORE ANTHONY, a representa- 
tive agriculturist of the town of Fishkill, 
Dutchess county, resides one-half mile from 
Fishkill village, upon a farm which has been 
in the family for many years. He was born 
September 25, 1830, in the house which he 
now occupies, and has passed the greater por- 
tion of his life there. His education was be- 



gun in the public schools of Fishkill, and com- 
pleted in the old academy which has given so 
many of the clever sons of Dutchess county 
their intellectual training. On completing his 
course there he began his career as a farmer. 
Some years were spent at the homestead, and 
then he went to De Kalb county. 111., to im- 
prove some prairie land belonging to his father; 
but after four years he returned and resumed 
his work at the old home. In 1884 he pur- 
chased the place, which now contains si.xty- 
three acres, mainly devoted to general crops. 
He keeps from ten to twelve cows, and is very 
successful in his dairy work, and also raises 
some fine fruit of various kinds, his apple 
orchard being extensive and productive. The 
estate is bounded on the north and west by the 
lands of Sylvanus Haight, on the east by the 
old Albany and New York post road, and on 
the south by the property of Sebring Smith 
and Charles D. Rogers. 

On November 20, 1862, Mr. Anthony mar- 
ried Miss Mary T. Phillips, daughter of Isaac 
and Cornelia (Tappan) Phillips, and grand- 
daughter of John Phillips and his wife Hester 
(Van Voorhis). On the maternal side she was 
a granddaughter of Major Peter Tappan and 
his wife Annie (DeWitt), who was a daughter 
of Col. Charles DeWitt of Revolutionary fame, 
and Blandina (DuBois), his wife. Major 
Peter Tappan was a son of Christopher, who 
was a son of the Christopher Tappan, whose 
daughter Cornelia married Gov. George Clin- 
ton. Mrs. Anthony died November 15, 1884, 
leaving no children, and Mr. Anthony was 
married October 20, 1894, to her sister. Miss 
Cornelia V. Phillips, who lived but a short 
time, passing away December 18, 1894. Both 
were members of the Reformed Dutch Church, 
and were held in high esteem among their ac- 
quaintances. Mr. Anthony has also been a 
member of that Church for years, and at differ- 
ent times has held the office of deacon. Mr. 
Anthony is one of the leading workers in local 
affairs, and in the Republican organization, 
and has held the office of town auditor, 
and received the nominations of his party on 
various occasions as assessor, highway com- 
missioner and collector. 

The Anthony family is among the early 
comers to this State, and our subject's great- 
grandparents, Nicholas and Catherine (Daly) 
Anthony, were residents of New York City. 
Their son John, our subject's grandfather, mar- 
ried Elizabeth Van Wyck, daughter of William 



10-2 



COilMEMORATrVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



and Martha Carman Van Wjck. William An- 
thony, the father of our subject, was born Au- 
gust lo, 1798, and became a successful farmer 
at the present homestead, owning about 210 
acres of land. He was a prominent member 
of the Reformed Dutch Church for many years 
previous to his death, which occurred November 
16, 1879. His first wife. Miss Mary Wright, 
was a daughter of Enos and Mary (Woolen) 
Wright. She died June 20, 1836, leaving four 
children: John W., Theodore, Elizabeth (Mrs. 
Abraham G. Remsen, of Plainfield, N. J.), and 
Mary, who died at the age of thirty. By a 
second wife, Hannah Wright, a sister of the 
first, there were also four children: Cornelia, 
Sarah A. , Enos and Kate. 



JAMES .MADISON WOOD. It is a natural 
and praise-worthy interest in our common 

humanity that lends to biography its chief 
charm to the reader, and there is no life his- 
tory from which there may not be some lesson 
drawn to enlighten and direct the ine.xper- 
ienced, cheer the despondent, or renew the 
energy of the weary. Years spent in quiet 
usefulness may win honor for gray hairs as 
well as those which have been passed under 
the public eye, and while no one would de- 
tract from the merits of those who gain the 
world's applause, faithful attention to the ev- 
ery-day duties of life may also show ability and 
high purpose. 

Our subject's paternal grandparents, Jo- 
seph and Elizabeth (Light 1 Wood, were early 
settlers, and his father, Joseph I. Wood, was 
born September 16. 1783, dying April 2, 1861, 
after a life given mainly to agricultural pursuits. 
His wife, Rachel Finch, was a native of Croton 
Falls. Westchester county, born June 7, 1790, 
and her death occurred March 19, 1879. 
Our subject was the eldest of five children: the 
others being: Martha E., Isaac F., John H., 
and Harvey. 

James Madison Wood, who is one of the 
oldest and most esteemed residents of Mattea- 
wan, Dutchess county, was born in Johnsville, 
town of Fishkill, October i, 18 16. His edu- 
cation was received at the district school at 
Glenham for some years, and he then pursued 
the higher branches, including trigonometry 
and surveying, in a private school. On at- 
taining his majority he left the farm, and 
learned the machinist's trade, which he fol- 
lowed until 1 8fio, when he engaged in mercantile 



business, conducting a general store at Mattea- 
wan. In 1869 he disposed of this, and pur- 
chased a farm of 800 acres in Louisa county, 
V'a., where he remained five years, raising 
corn, wheat, oats, and tobacco. Selling this 
propert\- in 1S74, he returned to Matteawan 
and rented a gristmill, and froni that time un- 
til his retirement from business, in 1885, he 
was engaged in milling and in dealing in flour 
and feed. His sound judgment in business af- 
fairs gave him an influential place in local af- 
fairs; yet he has never sought public honors. 
He voted the Democratic ticket until 1859, 
but since that date he has been a Republican. 
He married Louisa Rothery, daughter of 
John and Mary (Ashforth: Rothery, who were 
both natives of England. Her great-grand- 
father (on the father's side) was Joseph Roth- 
erj-, and her grandfather, John Rothery, was 
the originator of the Rothery files, known all 
over the world. Her maternal grandparents 
were William Ashforth and his wife, Ann Clay, 
a native of Chesterfield, England, and a cousin 
of the famous American statesman, Henry 
Clay. Mr. and Mrs. Wood have had five 
children: Mary Ann, who married Moses 
Cortland Sanford, of New Jersey; John A.; 
Wilfred, who died in infancy; Ida, who died 
at the age of eleven; and Lelia, the wife of Al- 
bert Townsend, of Peekskill, N. Y. Mr. 
Wood has been a member of the I. O. O. F. for 
nearly fifty-two years, and is now one of the 
two surviving charter members of Evergreen 
Lodge. 



ILLIAM H. HAIGHT. In his chosen 
Ji'V specialties of dairying and horticulture, 
the subject of this sketch is regarded as one of 
the leaders in his vicinity, and his fine farm, 
within sight of the village of Fishkill, Dutchess 
county, is one of the best-managed places of 
its kind. 

For several generations the home of his 
family has been at Phillipstown, Putnam Co., 
N. Y., where his grandfather, Joshua Haight, 
was a farmer. Henry W. Haight, our sub- 
ject's father, was born there in 1809, and be- 
came a farmer and extensive dealer in ship 
timber. On November 7, 1829, he married 
Jane Mekeel, who was born in 1808, the daugh- 
ter of Stephen and Elizabeth (Bell) Mekeel, 
and of this union eight children were born: 
Sylvanus W., Mary E., Charles B. , Sarah 
Jane, John, Phrebe W. , William H. (our sub- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



703 



jectj, and Albert. The father died December 
20, 1872, and the mother passed away May 
15, 1886. 

W'ilHam H. Haight was born September 
27, 1844, and grew to manhood on the farm 
near PhilHpstown, attending the neighboring 
district schools in winter and assisting in the 
work at home at other seasons. At eighteen 
he left school and engaged in business, follow- 
ing the occupations of his father. He con- 
tinued to conduct the homestead until he was 
thirty years old, when he rented a farm for a 
few years, and later purchased his present 
property, which contains something over 100 
acres. He keeps thirty-five head of cattle, 
and sells an average of 200 quarts of milk per 
day the year round, while a goodl} portion of 
his estate is devoted to the raising of fine 
varieties of fruit. As a business man he holds 
a high reputation, and he is a stockholder in 
the National Bank at Matteawan. 

Mr. Haight has a pleasant home. His wife, 
whom he married February 12, 1881, and 
whose maiden name was Mary Nelson, is a 
daughter of Justus and Sarah (Nelson) Nelson. 
They attend the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
and are interested in all efforts for the advance- 
ment of morality. Their only son, Harry N. 
Haight, is a student in the Union School at 
Fishkill. Politically, Mr. Haight is a Repub- 
lican, but has not given much time to party 
work, especially of late years. While living 
at Phillipstown he held the office of commis- 
sioner of highways for three years. 



CASPER LAWSON, one of the most enter- 
prising and prosperous agriculturists of 
the town of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, 
was born at Barnegat, Dutchess Co., N. Y. , 
November 22, 1823. His ancestors came from 
Holland at an early period, and settled in 
Dutchess county. The great grandfather of 
our subject, William C. Lawson (who spelled 
his name '• Lansink "), wedded the first white 
girl born in Dutchess county. She was a Miss 
Eighmie, her Christian name being now un- 
known. The wedding created wide notice, 
and it is said that all the " whites " of Dutch- 
ess county attended — not very numerous in 
those days, though " Redmen " were plentiful. 
His grandfather, Matthew Lawson, was 
born in the town of Fishkill, and became in- 
terested in several lines of business there. 



aside from the management of his small farm. 
He married Eleanor Hoffman, a native of 
Dutchess county, and reared a family of seven 
children. His five sons were all engaged in 
boating and in the stone and lime business. 
Simeon married Mary Miller; Daniel married 
Rachel Weaver; Peter H. (our subject's father) 
married Kathline Westervelt; Matthew married 
Ann Budd; John M. never married; Elizabeth 
was the wife of Thomas Lawson, who was en- 
gaged in boating and in the lime business; and 
Maria was the wife of John Bower, a shoe- 
maker. 

Peter H. Lawson was born at Barnegat, in 
1793, and died there in 1828, his wife surviv- 
ing him six jears. She was the daughter of 
Caspaurus Westervelt, a native of Dutchess 
county, and a descendant of an old Holland- 
Dutch family. He owned and conducted a 
farm and gristmill, and was a prominent citizen 
of the town of Poughkeepsie. Peter Lawson 
was an honorable, upright man, whose repu- 
tation is a heritage of which his children may 
well be proud. He and his wife were devout 
members of the Reformed Dutch Church. 
They had seven children, two of whom died in 
infancy. Elizabeth married John Bishop (now 
deceased), then a mason and builder in New 
York City, and later a merchant and ferr}'- 
man at New Hamburg, where his widow re- 
sided until her death in February, 1896; Al- 
bert G., a boatman b}' occupation, is now liv- 
ing in Brooklyn; Kathline married Benjamin 
Dearin, a native of Dutchess county, who en- 
gaged in mercantile business in New York 
City; and Eleanor married Adam Graham, a 
native of Poughkeepsie, and a well-known 
merchant and hotel-keeper at New Hamburg; 
and Casper (or Caspaurus). 

The last named was a mere child when he 
lost his parents by death. He attended the 
schools of his native place until he was four- 
teen, when he began boating on the river, an 
occupation which he followed for many years. 
On December 15, 1S47, he married Miss Eliza 
Nichols, who was born at the present site of 
Passaic, N. J., December 12, 1820. Her 
father, John Nichols, was a school teacher, and 
was an active worker in the Democratic party 
in his locality. He and his wife, Ann Masters, 
were both natives of England. After his mar- 
riage Mr. Lawson moved to New York City 
and engaged in a mercantile enterprise with 
his brother-in-law, Benjamin Dearin, but soon 
resumed his former emploj-ment, which he 



104 



COM.VEMORATirE BIOGRAPUWAL RECORD. 



continued until 1868. He did an extensive 
business in the transportation of brick, having 
twenty-two boats under his control. His suc- 
cess reflects great credit upon him, as it was the 
result of his own exertions and thrifty manage- 
ment. Beginning at a salary of five dollars a 
month, he worked a long time before he man- 
aged to save enough money to buy a boat; but 
when this point was reached the purchase of 
others from time to time was more easily ac- 
complished. As an employer, he is noted for 
fair dealing. On June 12, 1868, he bought 
his present farm of i 13 acres near Arlington, 
where he has since been engaged in general 
farming. The estate is among the finest of 
that vicinity, and he has barns and other im- 
provements of a model kind, and an elegant 
and commodious dwelling house. Mrs. Law- 
son died January 17, 1893, deeply mourned 
by a large circle of friends. She and her hus- 
band were for many years prominent members 
of the Second Reformed Dutch Church of 
Poughkeepsie. Of their seven children six are 
still living: Edward W. is the superintendent 
of the Fort Lee Ferry, at New York; Casper 
N. has been a stone dealer and contractor at 
New York, and still resides there; Roberta (i) 
died in infancy; Clementine married Henry 
Warrall, a farmer near \'assar; Roberta (2) is 
at home; Welcome H. married Catherine Wat- 
kins, of Fort Lee, N. J. ; Watkins, a lawyer, 
is now studying at the farm on account of ill 
health; and Mary E. married Walter H. 
Bedell, a dentist of Poughkeepsie. Mr. Law- 
son has taken an active interest in local poli- 
tics, and is a leading Democrat; was appointed 
assessor in 1S69, was elected to the same office 
in 1870, and has served and is serving as 
supervisor, being elected in 1881, 1883, 1896 
and 1897. 



PETER AKIN SKIDMORE, who is well 
known throughout Dutchess county, of 

which he is a native, is numbered among its 
best citizens, both socially and financially, and 
is especially valued as a large-hearted, public- 
spirited citizen, whose enterprise and benevo- 
lence have contributed largely to the happiness 
and comfort of the people around him. His 
homestead is one of the most notable in the 
town of Beekman, for the thrift and comfort 
which surrounds it, and the evidence of enter- 
prise, taste and skill. 

Mr. Skidmore was born April 15, 1831, in 



the town of Beekman, receiving his education 
chiefly at the district schools of the neighbor- 
hood. On December 26, 1856, he married 
Miss Ruth Moore, daughter of Alfred and Char- 
lotte (Haverland) Moore, both born in 1806, 
in Dutchess county, where they were respect- 
able farmers. They had four children who 
lived to maturity: Lydia (now Mrs. Willetts), 
residing on Long Island; Ruth (Mrs. Skidmore); 
Susan, a maiden lady residing at the old home 
at Moores Mill, proprietress of the "Floral 
Home" boarding house; and Alfred H., mar- 
ried, and making his home at the old farm, 
running the mills. Alfred Moore, the father 
of these, was a son of Stephen Moore, who 
was also a native of Dutchess county, and op- 
erated the old Moore Mills, formerly known as 
the Oswego Mills. The family have been 
members of the Society of Friends for several 
generations back, and Mrs. Skidmore's father 
was a preacher in that sect. He died in 1879, 
the mother in 1892. Four children have 
blessed the union of our subject and his wife, 
viz.: Elizabeth (deceased); Alfred M. ; and 
Jesse and Susie (both deceased). Of these, 
Alfred M., the only survivor, was born Octo- 
ber 10, i860, and assists his father in the con- 
ducting of the farm. He is a Republican in 
politics, and has frequently been urged by his 
friends to run for oflice, but prefers to devote 
his time to agricultural pursuits. On the home 
farm are buried the parents of Benson J. Los- 
sing, the historian. 

An earnest Christian gentleman, our sub- 
ject is a member in good standing of the So- 
ciety of Friends, which organization is opposed 
to warfare; yet during the Civil war he was 
the first in his section to be drafted; he was 
rejected, however, on account of physical dis- 
ability. In politics he is a Republican, has 
ever taken a commendable interest in the wel- 
fare of his native county, and has capably 
filled several minor offices of his town, dis- 
charging his duties to the satisfaction of all. 
Socially, he is a charter member and treasurer 
of Sylvan Lodge, of the Grange, which was 
organized in the town of Beekman, in Decem- 
ber, 1896. 

Jesse Skidmore, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Unionvale, in 1796. 
By his marriage with Sarah Akin, daughter of 
Peter Akin, of the town of Pawling, in this 
county, he had four children: Peter Akin, 
Elizabeth, Abigail and Andrew. The daugh- 
ters died in early life; Andrew is now living 




m*. 



i^^cA^ ^ ^/UcA^£^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ro5 



on a farm in Beekman, near the homestead, 
and has no children. The father engaged in 
farming on the farm now owned by his son, 
Peter Akin, until advanced in life, when he re- 
moved to Poughkeepsie, where he died in 1862. 
He was a lifelong member of the Society of 
Friends, as were his ancestors. 

Andrew Skidmore, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born on the Skidmore homestead, in 
the town of Union vale, in 1797, and died in 
1852. He was a man of great physique, 
weighing over 2S0 pounds. He married Eliza- 
beth Clapp, and they had four children: Jesse, 
the father of Peter Akin Skidmore; James, 
who left no family; Andrew A., and Judith. 
The descendants of Andrew A. are James W. 
Skidmore, and Jane, who married Cromoling 
Dean, all now living in the town of Lagrange. 
Judith married Gideon Downing, and has one 
daughter living, but no descendants known. 

Andrew Skidmore, the great-grandfather of 
our subject, whose ancestry came from Hol- 
land, was born at Great Xeck, Long Island, in 
1748, and died in 18 16. Of his family, of 
which we have record: Had a bachelor brother 
murdered by a servant; he kept a large stable 
of running horses at Great Neck, Long Island. 
Had two sisters: Alary, married to Benjamin 
Everett, and Phcebe, married to John Colder. 
Many of the Skidmore family now living on 
Long Island are descendants of this family. 
Andrew Skidmore, the great-grandfather, 
moved to the town of Unionvale, Dutchess 
Co., N. Y. , in the year 171 5," purchased a 
large tract of land, through which runs the 
Clove creek. On this stream he built a grist- 
mill, sawmill, and woolen-mill, these being 
the first mills in this section; the gristmill is 
now standing, and known as the "Skidmore 
Mill." The tract of land is now on£ of the 
best in the Clove Valley. Mr. Skidmore mar- 
ried Judith Rogers, who was born in 1746, 
and died in 1826, and by this marriage had 
two sons and three daughters: Andrew, James, 
Mary, Phcebe and Abby. 

James Skidmore married Elizabeth Rogers, 

and they had three sons and two daughters: 

Andrew J., Zophar R., Harvey, Elizabeth 

and Phoebe. All but Zophar R. and Harvey 

moved to the State of Maryland. Harvey 

moved to New Jersey; Zophar R. married 

Maria Hughes, of Staatsburgh, and lived 

(until his death in 1S88) on the Skidmore 

homestead in the Clove Valley; they had two 

children: James H., and Mary, who married 
45 



Charles E. Rogers, who now owns the Skid- 
more homestead. 

Mary Skidmore married John Rogers, and 
resided near Sylvan Lake, town of Beekman; 
they had four sons and five daughters: Laban, 
Stephen, James, Gilbert, Hannah, Judith, 
Phebe, Maria and Ruth. Judith, who married 
Samuel A. Doughty, is the only one living. 
Phcebe married Nichols Haight, lived and died 
near Coffins Summit. The only descendant 
living is Sherman Haight, of Mabbettsville, 
Dutchess Co., N. Y. Abby married Richard 
Betts, of Saratoga county; no record of de- 
scendants. 



WILLIAM H. JAYCOX, a leading and 
progressive farmer of the town of East 

Fishkill, Dutchess county, is a native of Put- 
nam county, N. Y. , born in the town of Phil- 
lipstown, October 6, 1843, and is of Holland 
lineage. His great-grandfather, Isaiah Jay- 
co.\, was also a native of Putnam county, 
while his grandfather, Thomas Jayco.x, was 
born in the town of Phillipstown. There the 
latter was reared on a farm, and spent his en- 
tire life engaged in agricultural pursuits. In 
his family were five children: David, who 
was a liveryman at Matteawan, Dutchess 
county; James E., a farmer of North High- 
lands, Putnam county; Caroline, who married 
James Horton, a farmer of Phillipstown; Jer- 
emiah, the father of our subject; and William, 
also a farmer of Phillipstown, Putnam county. 
In that town Jeremiah Jaycox was born in 
1817, and on attaining to man's estate mar- 
ried Levina Tompkins, whose birth occurred 
at Putnam Valley, Putnam county, — her fath- 
er, Ananias Tompkins, being also a native of 
that county. On their marriage, Mr. and 
Mrs. Jaycox located upon a farm there, but 
after a residence of seven years they came to 
Dutchess county, passing their remaining days 
in the town of Fishkill, the father clying Oc- 
tober 15, 1888, and the mother on March 4, 
1894. His vote was ever cast in support of 
the Democratic party. In the familj' were 
two children: William H., subject of this 
review; and Frances, who married William 
Dalrymple, a farmer of the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county. 

At an early age William H. Jaycox accom- 
panied his parents to Dutchess county, where he 
has since remained, and now devotes his time 
and attention to the development and im- 



700 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



provement of his excellent farms in the town 
of East F"ishkill, which comprise 400 acres of 
rich and arable land, well adapted to mixed . 
farming. On October 4. 1871. he married 
Miss Libbie Anderson, who was bom upon the 
farm which is still her home, and there her 
father. Peter Anderson, was also born, in 1807. 
He married Sarah Van Dewater. The An- 
derson family was early established in this 
countrj', and was founded in Dutchess county 
by John Anderson { the grandfather of Mrs. 
Jaycox), who was a native of Putnam county, 
N. Y.. and in 1793 purchased of Peter H. 
Schenck, the farm in the town of East Fish- 
kill. Dutchess county, upon which our subject 
still resides, and which at that time contained 
265 acres. To Mr. and ^^rs. Peter Anderson 
were born five children: Amanda, married to 
William B. Roe, a farmer of East Fishkill; 
^^yers, a farmer, who died September 13, ! 
1872; Sarah A., married to William E. Brinck- 
erhoff, of East Fishkill: John P.. an agricult- 
urist of the town of Washington. Dutchess 
county; and Libbie, wife of our subject. 

Upon their marriage ^fr. and Mrs. Jaycox 
began housekeeping upon their present farm, 
and they have become the parents of three 
children, all at home, namely: George A.. 
Charles W. and Howard. The entire family 
contribute to the support of the Johnsville 
Methodist Episcopal Church, and hold a 
prominent place in the social world. They 
are the center of a circle of friends who honor 
and esteem them for their many virtues and 
genuine worth, ^tr. Jajxox is identified 
with the Democratic party, is public-spirited 
and enterprising, and aids in ever)- possible 
way in promoting the interests of his town 
and county. 



EMMER J. HAIGHT. Among the young 
and energetic farmers of Dutchess county, 

as well as among those who have been success- 
ful in their efforts thus far, is the subject of 
this personal historj. His entire life has been 
passed in the town of Stanford, where he was 
born October 20, 1873, and there devotes his 
time and attention to farming. 

His father, John Haight. was also a native 
of the town of Stanford, and was a son of 
Leonard Haight, who lived all his life in that 
town, where he was engaged in agricultural 
pursuits. The latter was a stalwart Democrat 
in politics, and one of the prominent men of 



the community. He married Miss Phcebe Grif- 
fin, of the town of Clinton, Dutchess county, 
and to them were born five children: Margaret, 
George, Hannah. John and James B. The 
education of John Haight was such as the dis- 
trict schools of the times afforded, and he early 
became inured to the arduous duties that 
fall to the lot of an agriculturist. He never 
left the old homestead, which he operated up 
to the time of his death, which occurred Sep- 
tember 6, 1885. He was one of the highly re- 
spected citizens of the community, and one of 
the earnest supporters of the Democratic party, 
with which he always affiliated. 

In the town of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess 
county, John Haight was married to Nfiss Syl- 
via A. Foster, daughter of John Foster, and 
to them were born two sons: Walter, who 
married Lenora Husted. by whom he has two 
daughters, Eva and Ruby: and Emmer J., sub- 
ject of this sketch, who wedded Anita Dorland, 
and thev have one child, Ruth Anna. 



GEORGE I. \'.\IL, a prominent dairyman 
and agriculturist of Unionvale, Dutchess 
county, has earned a place among the success- 
ful workers in his lines of business. He was 
born at \'erbank, Dutchess county. May 23, 
1843, ^"d received his education in the schools 
of his native town and at ^^echanicsvilIe, N. Y. 
He learned the carpenter's trade, but. finding 
that less to his taste than agriculture, he turned 
to the latter pursuit, and has followed it profit- 
ablj- for many years, making a specialty of 
dairying. Careful attention to business does 
not prevent him, however, from taking an 
active part in local affairs, and he has served 
in a number of public offices, including that of 
assessor. He married Miss Phcebe Noxon. 
who was born November 24, 1848, in the town 
of Unionvale. Her ancestors were pioneer 
settlers in that town, and a record of the three 
preceding generations is given below. Mrs. 
Vail was educated in the common schools near 
her home, and at Oswego village. The house 
of our subject and his wife is brightened by 
three children: Henry, born May 10, 1S78; 
Hettie, born March i, 18S1; and John, born 
May 20, 1883. 

Mr. Vails ancestors became identified with 
Unionvale, Dutchess county, at an early peri- 
od, and his grandfather, Moses \'ail, and 
father, John Vail, were born there, the latter 
in November, 1800, at Verbank. After avail- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



707 



ing himself of such educational opportunities 
as the locality afforded, he engaged in farming 
at an early age. He was a man of enterprise, 
an able manager, and he conducted a woolen 
mill at Verbank at one time, and also engaged 
in mercantile business. His wife was Eliza- 
beth Vincent, daughter of Absalom Vincent, 
and they had ten children, of whom our sub- 
ject was the youngest: (i) Sarah, born Feb- 
ruary 8, 1828, married Jacob Baker, a black- 
smith of Freedom Plains. (2) Matilda, born 
September 14, 1829, married Dewitt C. Noxon, 
a farmer and storekeeper, who served gallantly 
in the Civil war; they had two children — Emma 
(Mrs. John Duncan) and Ada. (3) Loretta, 
born April 4, 1831, remained unmarried. (4) 
Samuel, born July 4, 1832, is a carpenter by 
trade; he married Miss Ann Northrop, and has 
four children — Libbie (Mrs. Leonard Secordj, 
Charles (who married Carrie Cass), William 
and Abbie. (5) Mary, born October 13, 1834, 
married Simon Losee, and has two children — 
Lizzie and \\'esley. (6) Martha, born January 
14, 1S36, was educated in Amenia Seminary, 
and became a successful teacher. (7) Rebecca, 
born October i, 1837, married Richard Hall, 
a farmer of Beekman, and they have four chil- 
dren — Everett (who married Cora Cypher), 
Libbie (deceased), Herbert (who married Jen- 
nie Chatterton'). and Minnie ( Mrs. Arthur 
Holmes). (Si Stephen, born February 23, 
1839, is engaged in carpentering, and has re- 
mained unmarried. (9) James, born February 
22, 1 84 1, is a blacksmith; he married Mary 
Benjamin, and has one child — Sarah — who 
married Richard Case, and has one daughter — 
Helen. 

Mrs. George Vail's great-grandfather, Gil- 
bert Noxon, was born in Dutchess county, N. 
Y., was educated there and engaged in farm- 
ing. He married Miss Jane Phillips, and had 
eight children: Egbert, who married Claricy 
Patterson; Elisha, Mrs. Vail's grandfather; 
Abram, who married Jane Cornell; Daniel, 
who married, first, Charlotte Snedeker, and, 
second. Nancy Townsend; Catherine, Mrs. 
John Dean; Ann, Mrs. Edward Dutcher; Gil- 
bert, who married Sallie Townsend; and 
James. 

Elisha Noxon was born in the town of 
Unionvale, and afterattendingthe local schools 
in boyhood became a farmer. He married 
Miss Phcebe Van Benschcten, daughter of 
Henry \'an Benschoten, and his wife Mary 
Jackson, whose parents were Richard and 



Mary (Ingraham) Jackson. Mr. and Mrs. 
Noxon had two children: (i) Jane, who mar- 
ried John H. Robinson, and had three chil- 
dren — Phcebe, Mrs. John Dorian; Abram, who 
married Mary Townsend, and Mavill, who 
married Minnie Allen. (2) Henry Noxon, 
father of Mrs. Vail, was born in the town of 
Beekman, Dutchess county, December 15, 
1825, and was educated in the common schools 
of that town. He engaged in farming, and 
married Miss Hettie Barlow, daughter of Elisha 
and Charlotte (Palmer) Barlow. Of their 
three children Mrs. Vail was the eldest. Of 
the others, (i) Mary married Eugene Storm, 
and had one child, Winnefred, who is at 
home. (2) Elisha Noxon died at an early age. 

The Van Benschoten familj' has an inter- 
esting history, and Dominie Elias \'an Ben- 
schoten was the first Reformed Dutch minister 
at Schagticoke more than half a century be- 
fore Troy, N. Y., was founded. "Tunis, the 
father of Dominie Van Benschooten, came 
from Holland with the earliest settlers of the 
country, and purchased land at Esopus on the 
Hudson river. Subsequently, with his wife 
and one child, he removed to what was then a 
wilderness, purchased a large tract of land, 
and made a settlement in the town of Fish- 
kill, between the village of that name and the 
city of Poughkeepsie, near what is known as 
New Hackensack, in the county of Dutchess. 
Here he had four sons — Tunis, Matthew, Jacob 
and Elias — and, we believe, two or more 
daughters. The eldest son sailed for Europe, 
but as the vessel in which he sailed was never 
heard from, it is supposed it was seized by the 
pirates, and he and the other passengers, 
together with the officers and crew, were put 
to death. When the old gentleman died he 
was buried in the family vault on the home- 
stead farm. His remains, with those of other 
members of the family, have since been disin- 
terred and buried in the graveyard of the old 
Dutch church at Hackensack, beneath a costly 
monument. 

" Matthew and Jacob remained upon, and in 
co-partnership cultivated, the farm. Elias 
became a Reformed Dutch Church minister, 
and the daughters married. The following 
amusing story is told of the Dominie. On 
one occasion, while at Schaghticoke, he was 
waited on by a Dutch swain, who wished to 
secure his services at a wedding. In the in- 
terval between the call and the time appointed 
for the ceremomy, a severe storm arose, and 



708 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



the stream became fearfully swollen, so that 
when the weather cleared and the parties to be 
married arrived, it was impossible for them to 
get across the stream. Here was a dilemma. 
The Dominie was on one side, the anxious 
couple on the other; neither could cross. 
'Stop!' cried the Dominie. 'Stand vere 
you be, and I will make you man and wife.' 
The happ3' couple, thus united in the bonds of 
matrimony, when the service was over turned 
to leave. Here was another dilemma, which 
cast a cloud of deep anxiety over the tranquil 
features of the good old man. ' Stop, den, 
mj' young friends, von moment, if you please. 
You can leave der guilder at the first house 
below. Tell them it is Dominie Van Ben- 
schooten's marriage fee, and I vill call and 
get it."' 



FRANKLIN GERMOND is the proprietor 
of a good farm in the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess count}', successful as a tiller of the 
soil, and prominently identified with local 
affairs. He was born in that town, April 3, 
1846, and is now in the prime of life, and, as 
the result of good habits, is amply fitted for 
the duties that lie before him. 

Silas Germond, his paternal grandfather, 
engaged in farming in the towns of Stanford 
and Pine Plains, and also at one time con- 
ducted a store at Attlebury. He was joined 
in wedlock with Charlotte Knapp Green, by 
whom he had three children: Hunting, the 
father of our subject; Silas K. ; and Mary Ann, 
now deceased. 

In the town of Stanford, Hunting Ger- 
mond was born in 1821. He there attended 
the district schools, .and was, later, a student in 
a school at Red Hook, Dutchess county. In 
his native town he married Miss Emily Ann 
Adsit, a daughter of Warren Adsit, and to 
them were born four children, namely: Ger- 
trude, widow of Elbert Munsell; Franklin, of 
this sketch; Frederick, and Guy. The father 
resided for some time upon a farm near Stiss- 
ing, :;nd then purchased another farm in the 
same locality, but the later years of his life 
were passed near Willow Brook. Besides en- 
gaging in agricultural pursuits, he was also a 
dealer in cattle. He used his right of fran- 
chise in support of the men and measures of 
the Democratic party. 

After pursuing his studies for some time in 
the district schools of the town of Stanford, 



Franklin Germond entered the village schools 
of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, where he 
completed his education. On reaching his 
majority he started out in life for himself as a 
clerk in the store of James Husffed, of Pough- 
keepsie, and after leaving his employ worked 
upon a farm at Mclntyre, Dutchess county, 
for a year. After a year then passed at home, 
he went to Toledo, Ohio, where he was em- 
ployed as shipping clerk in a wholesale house, 
and also sold goods on the road for the same 
firm for two years and a half. Returning to 
Stanford in the spring of 1877, he remained 
upon the old homestead for four j'ears; but in 
1 88 1 he purchased his present farm in the same 
town, where he has since resided. He is quite 
an extensive farmer and stock dealer, and well 
deserves the success which has come to him. 
In 1876, at Litchfield, Litchfield Co., 
Conn., Mr. Germond was married to Miss 
Alice Bissell, daughter of Henry Bissell, and to 
them have been born four children: Henry 
Bissell, Jam'es Husted, Gertrude C. and Paul 
Franklin. In politics Mr. Germond is identi- 
fied with the Democratic party, which he 
always supports by his ballot, and is now serv- 
ing his third term as assessor of his town. He 
is an honored and respected citizen who con- 
tributes his full quota toward the enterprises 
having for their object the general welfare of 
the community. 



JAMES BARMORE, a leading and repre- 
sentative farmer of the town of Unionvale, 
belongs to a well-known family of Dutchess 
county. His grandfather, Nathaniel Barmore, 
who also carried on agricultural pursuits, by 
his marriage with Miss Abigail Wall had a 
family of seven children, namely: Henry, 
the father of our subject; John; James; Meade; 
Abram; Betsy; and Eliza, who married Ward 
Hunter. 

Henry Barmore was born in the town of 
Port Chester, Westchester Co., N. Y., No- 
vember 17, 1783, was there educated in the 
common schools, and learned the carpenter's 
trade, at which he worked for some time. 
Later he turned his attention to farming. In 
religious belief, he was a F'riend. He mar- 
ried Miss Bethany Carpenter, who was born 
March 10, 1787, and was the daughter of Zeno 
and Lydia (Clark) Carpenter. The thirteen 
children born to them were as follows: 

(i) Clark was born in W'estchester county, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



709 



May 25, 1806, and after completing his edu- 
cation engaged in farming. He wedded Miss 
Wary Alley, by whom he had nine children: 
Phrebe married C. Patterson; Edward married 
Lucy Wanzer, and thej' had three children — 
Clark (who married Gertie Tripp) ; Mary E. ; 
and Emma (who married Charles Huestis); 
Stephen died when young; Caroline married 
Andrew Wanzer ; Eliza remained single : 
Sarah married Cyrus Perkins, and they had 
one child — JohnE.; John married Josephine 
Phillips; Charles died when young; Delia mar- 
ried Gilbert Downing, and had one son — 
Charles. 

(2) Anor Barmore was born in Westches- 
ter county, July 11, 1807, and married Jasper 
Burtch, a farmer, but had no children. 

(3) Stephen, born August 25, 1808, mar- 
ried Miss Caroline Williams, and they became 
the parents of two sons — William and James 
S., both of whom died young. 

(4) Lydia Barmore was born October i, 
1809, and married David Stringham, an agri- 
culturist, by whom she had five children: (i) 
Henry married Caturah Gardner, and they 
had one daughter — Ida C. ; after the death of 
his first wife he married Catherine Briggs. 12) 
Thomas wedded Mary H. Adams. (3) Isaac 
married Lucinda Lj'on, and had two daugh- 
ters — Emma, who married Theron Briggs, 
has two children — Clara and Arthur; and Mary 
E. , who married Edwin Lloyd. (4) John 
married Ann E. Barnes, and has five children 
— Henry D., who is married and has three 
sons; Irene, who married William Mudge, and 
had one child; Irving, who married Eleanor 
Deyo; Eugene; and Norris. (5) James, twin 
brother of John, married Gertrude Van Curen, 
and has three children — Willis, Norman (who 
married Gertrude Marshall), and Ernest. 

(5) Annie Barmore was born January 14, 
181 1, and was united in marriage with Abram 
Quinby, a farmer. 

(6) Sarah Barmore was born January 26, 
1814, and became the wife of Underbill Quin- 
by, an agriculturist, but they had no children. 

(7) Abigail Barmore, born April 28, 181 5, 
died when young. 

(8) Mary Barmore was born August 27, 
1816, and married Shadrach Ricketson, a 
farmer, by whom she had two children: Annie 
wedded William Barker, and they had two 
children — Shadrach and Mary F. ; Susan first 
married Theodore Tappen, and they had one 
daughter — Mary, who wedded Ira Gilmore. 



After the death of her first husband, Susan 
married John Anderson. 

(9) Susan Barmore was born in the town 
of Unionvale, Dutchess county, December 11, 
1818, was there educated, and married Egbert 
Vale, a farmer of that town; they had three 
children: Sarah E. married Theodore W}'- 
gant, and had one daughter, Jennie, who be- 
came the wife of Thomas Drake, and has one 
child — Wesley J.; Charles P. married Allie 
Dorland, and has three children — Willard 
(who married Lillie Pendley), Susan, and 
Harold; Henry J. married Maggie Williamson, 
and has two children — Henrietta and John E. 

(10) Henry Barmore was born January i, 
1820, and married Miss Ruth Spencer. Their 
only child, Minnie, married Thomas Fox, and 
has one child — Minnie. 

(11) Philip Barmore was born Februar}- 18, 
1822, and married Miss Hannah Gardner; 
they had two children: Maria married Victor 
Cornwell, by whom she had two children — 
Ruth and Frank — and after the death of her 
first husband married Giles Burgess, by whom 
she had a son — Philip. Henrj- married Rose- 
lina Griffith, and had seven children — James, 
Pearl, Edith, Willis, Henry, Beulah. and Willa 
Rose, two of whom are deceased. 

( 12) Elizabeth Barmore was born Septem- 
ber 23, 1823, and never married. 

(13) James Barmore, whose name intro- 
duces this sketch, is the youngest of the family. 
He was born February 27, 1829, in the town 
of Unionvale, was educated in the common 
schools of the locality, and has alwa3's followed 
the occupation of farming. He is a member 
of the Society of Friends, is a straightforward, 
reliable citizen, and is held in the highest es- 
teem. On reaching manhood he was united 
in marriage with Miss Abiah Gardner, a daugh- 
ter of Lewis Gardner, a farmer of the town of 
Beeknian, Dutchess county. She died March 
26, 1865, and he afterward wedded her sister, 
Miss Mary Gardner. He has had no children 
by either marriage. 

Resolved Gardner, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Barmore, engaged in farming throughout life. 
He married Miss Abiah Sweet, and to them 
were born eight children: Joshua; Lewis, the 
father of Mrs. Barmore; Isaac and Resolved, 
who never married; Seneca; Delwin, who never 
married; Ann G. ; and Herman. 

The eldest son, Joshua Gardner, married 
Jane Doughty, and had four children: (i) Mary 
A. wedded Samuel Adams, and had four chil- 



710 



COMMEMOBATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



dren — Mary H. (who married Thomas String- 
ham), Lottie (who married Edward Young, and 
has four children — Mrs. Emma Haight, David, 
Charles and Mabel), Amelia (who died when 
young), and George (who married Alice Gard- 
ner, and has five children — Lena, Blanche, 
Samuel, Raymond and Mary H.j. (2j Char- 
lotte married Edwin Cabry, and has two chil- 
dren — Frank, and Lavina (wife of Benjamin 
Sutton). (3) Eliza married David Hoag, and 
has three children — David, Eva and Angenett. 
(4) Thomas wedded Mariette Thomas, and has 
three children — Florence, Frances, and Etta. 
Lewis Gardner, the father of Mrs. Bar- 
more, was born in the town of Beekman, 
Dutchess county, June 9, 1791; obtained his 
education in the common schools, and learned 
the tailor's trade, at which he worked most of 
his life, but also carried on farming. He mar- 
ried Sarah Tifft, and to them were born thir- 
teen children, of whom the eldest four never 
married, (i) Catherine S. was born April 20, 
181 8. (2) Elizabeth C. was born October 14, 
'819. (3) Rhoda C. was born July 22, 1821. 

(4) Ruth S. was born September i, 1S23. 

(5) Hannah, born December 8, 1824, married 
Philip Barmore, a farmer. (6) Seneca L. , born 
June 24, 1827, remained single. (7) Abiah, 
born June 6, 1829, was the first wife of our 
subject. (8) Nathaniel, born August 17, 1831, 
was three times married, his first wife being 
Leah Lynch, by whom he had two children — 
Sarah E. and George L. ; after her death he 
married Miss Kate Wood, and to them was 
born a child that died in infancy; his third wife 
bore the maiden name of Sarah E. Sutton. 
(9) EInathan, born March 16, 1833, married 
Hannah Lynch, and had four children — Hattie 
(who married Robert Fisher, and had one son, 
Robert), Sarah (who married William Pierce, 
and has one child, Harry), l^enjamin (who 
died in infancy), and Mary E. (who married 
William Brooks, and has two children, Arthur 
and Mary M.). (10) Caturah, born Novem- 
ber 28, 1834, married Henry Stringham, a 
nephew of our subject, by whom she had a 
daughter, Ida C. (11) Mary, born September 
24, 1836, is the wife of our subject. (12) Ma- 
tilda, born May 27, 1841, died in infancy. 
(13) Henry, born August i, 1843, married 
Cornelia Cornell, and has one son, Lewis, who 
married Minnie Totersman, and they have one 
son, Harry. 

Seneca Gardner, the fifth child of Resolved 
and Abiah (Sweet) Gardner, married Sarah J. 



Rockfeller, and to them were born ten children: 
Julia never married; William; Charles married 
a Miss Dodge, and after her death he married 
Sarah A. Brown, by whom he had five children: 
Julia, Annie, Isaac, Charles and John; Emma 
never married; Jane married Lewis Cooper; 
Alice married George Adams; Del win married 
Frances Cooper, and had two children — Ida 
and John; Isaac remained single; John married 
Emma Ludington, and had one daughter — 
Nina; 'and Ann married Fred Benjamin, and 
they have three children — Fred, Gardner and 
Isaac. 

Ann G. Gardner, the seventh child of Re- 
solved and Abiah (Sweet) Gardner, married 
David Adams, and they had one son — James, 
who married Samantha Newett. 

Herman Gardner, the youngest of the 
family, married Eliza Brown, and they had five 
children — John, Resolved, Daniel, Lydia and 
Deborah. 



-OHN P. ANDERSON is a representative 
citizen and substantial farmer of the town 
of Washington, Dutchess county, where he 
has now made his home since 1865, when he 
located upon his present farm of 165 acres of 
rich and fertile land. He is one of those men 
who thoroughly understand the business he is 
pursuing, and is meeting with a well-deserved 
success. He is the architect of his own for- 
tune, having started in life with but little capi- 
tal beyond his own industry and a laudable am- 
bition to rise in the world. 

Mr. Anderson was born at East Fishkill, 
Dutchess county, November 23, 1835, and be- 
longs to a family whose ancestors came from 
Holland at a very early period in the history 
of this country. In religious belief they are 
mostly Methodists. His grandfather, John An- 
derson, was also born at East Fishkill, where 
after his marriage he located on a farm and 
reared his si.x children: Susan, who married 
Abram Van Vlack, a farmer of East Fishkill; 
Zillah, wife of Louis Wright, a farmer of the 
town of Lagrange, Dutchess county; Elizabeth, 
who wedded Harvey Eighmie, an agriculturist 
of the town of Beekman, Dutchess county; 
Polly, wife of John Homan, also a farmer of 
Beekman; Peter, the father of our subject; 
and John, a farmer of East Fishkill. In that 
town the grandfather spent his remaining days. 
There Peter Anderson, the father of our 
subject, was born March 21, 1807, and on 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



711 



reaching maturity married Sarah Van De- 
Water, whose birth occurred in the town of 
Fishkill, July 25, 1808. Her family was also 
of Holland origin, and her father was a fruit 
grower of the town of Fishkill. She was the 
second in his family of four children, the others 
being Myers, a farmer of that locality; Phoebe, 
wife of Nelson Lounsbury, also an agriculturist; 
and Susan, wife of Stephen Scofield, a resident 
of Poughkeepsie, N. Y. On their farm in East 
Fishkill five children were born to Mr. and 
Mrs. Peter Anderson, namely: Amanda, wife 
of William B. Roe, a farmer; Myers, who en- 
gaged in agricultural pursuits in both the town 
of Beekman and East Fishkill, and died Sep- 
tember 12, 1872; Sarah, wife of William E. 
Brinkerhof?, who is engaged in the nursery 
business; John P., of this sketch; and Eliza- 
beth, wife of William H. Jaycox, a farmer of 
East Fishkill. The father, who was an ear- 
nest Democrat in politics, died in 1890; his 
wife had departed this life in 1882. 

In the usual manner of farmer-lads, our sub- 
ject spent his childhood, and on reaching his 
majority went to New York City, where he en- 
gaged in the wholesale liquor business on 
Fifty-first street and Ninth avenue for about 
six years. In 1865, however, we find him in 
the town of Washington, Dutchess county, 
where he purchased his present farm. 

On November 15, 1859, Mr. Anderson was 
married to Miss Hannah M. White, a native 
of Dutchess county, N. Y. , and a daughter of 
Alfred and Eliza (Brownell) White, farming 
people of that county. The founders of the 
family came from England, and her paternal 
grandfather, Charles White, was a leading 
farmer of Greene and Dutchess counties. Her 
parents later came to the town of Fishkill, 
Dutchess county, where they reared their fam- 
ily of four children: Deborah, wife of Myers 
Anderson, a brother of our subject; Hannah 
M. ; and Charles L. and William, both de- 
ceased. The father's death occurred April 3, 
1880, and his wife, who survived him some 
years, died January 7, 1892. 

Four children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Anderson: Alfred P., who died at the age of 
four years; William R., who is married and 
has been commissioner of schools for six years; 
Alfred J., a resident of the town of W'ashing- 
ton; and Eliza W., wife of Leonard Davis, a 
farmer. The parents are both consistent and 
faithful members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, and in politics Mr. Anderson affiliates 



with the Democratic party. He is quite prom- 
inent in public affairs and has been elected 
supervisor of his town, which office he held for 
two terms, and has also been road commis- 
sioner. 



SANFORD JARVIS BARTLETT is a 
worthy representative of the farming in- 
terests of the town of Amenia, Dutchess 
county, and in all of life's relations has been 
known as an honorable, straightforward man. 
He v/as born December 29, 1842, on the old 
family homestead, where he still resides, and 
comes from a family that has taken an active 
part in promoting the welfare and upbuilding 
of the county. 

The first of the family to locate within the 
borders of Dutchess county was Daniel C. 
Bartlett, the great-grandfather of our subject. 
He was born at Redding, Conn., and was the 
son of Rev. Nathaniel Bartlett, a Congrega- 
tional minister, who located at Redding, May 
23, 1753. and died January 10, 1810, at the 
age of eighty-three years. He had three 
daughters, Anna, Eunice and Lucretia. When 
the colonies took up arms against the mother 
country. Rev. Bartlett gave Daniel his sword 
on the Sabbath day with the instruction to 
fight for the freedom of his native land. He 
was with Montgomery at the battle of Quebec, 
and was at the capture of Fort St. John in 
November, 1775, and witnessed the burning 
of Danbury, Conn., in 1777. In 1803 he 
bought of Joel Gillett the farm in the town of 
Amenia, which now belongs to our subject. 
In his family were five children; William, 
Collins, Mrs. John Barker, Mrs. Thomas 
Paine and Mrs. William Paine. Sanford J. 
Bartlett has in his possession the gun bearing 
the initials of his great-grandfather, Daniel C. 
Bartlett, and which the latter probably carried 
and used during the Revolutionary struggle. 
He also has the original pictures of his great- 
great-grandparents, Rev. Nathaniel Bartlett 
and wife. 

William Bartlett, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born February 13, 1781, and 
spent most of his life engaged in farming in 
the town of Amenia. On November 12, 1804, 
he married Miss Clarissa Sanford, who was 
born February 23, 1786, and died August 12, 
1838. His death occurred December 10, 
1 82 1. In their family were three children: 
William S., the father of our subject; Henry 



712 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPIIICAL RECORD. 



E., who was born August ii, 1813, and died 
December 27, 1832; and Clarissa Wade, who 
died May 11, 1863. at the age of {ortj--t\vo 
years. 

William S. Bartlett, the father, was born 
in the town of Amenia, January 23, 1809, and 
was united in marriage October 13, 1830, with 
Miss Jane E. Reynolds, who was born on 
Christinas Day, 181 2, and was the daughter of 
Jonathan P. Reynolds. Her death occurred 
June I, 1 88 1, and on the 6th of the following 
November the father also passed away. Their 
four children were: Jonathan R. , born July 
15, I S3 1, married Octobers, 1863, to Hannah 
L. Grant, and died September 8, 1872; Ade- 
laide Amelia, born January 10, 1836, died 
April 27, 1838; William H., born February 14, 
1839, married October 5, 1863, to I^avina 
Culver, and is now a prominent resident of 
Amenia; and Sanford J. 

The early life of our subject was passed in 
the usual manner of farmer boys, and, after 
attending the district schools for some time, he 
completed his literary training in the Amenia 
Seminary. Since laying aside his te.xt books, 
he has devoted -his time and attention to agri- 
cultural pursuits, operating the old family 
homestead in the town of Amenia. 

AtHridport, Vt., March 12, 1873, Sanford 
J. I^artlett married Mary \J\z7.\e. Hill, daughter 
of David Edgar Hill, and they are the parents 
of two children: \\'illiam Edgar, born Febru- 
ary 14, 1874; and Sanford J., born August 14, 
1876. In his political views, Mr. Bartlett is a 
Republican, but takes no active part in public 
affairs, aside from performing his duties of cit- 
izenship. 



CHARLES H. TRH^P, M. D., a well-known 
physician and surgeon of Clinton Corners, 
Dutchess county, has been engaged in the 
practice of his profession there during the past 
twelve years, meeting with remarkable success. 
The Doctor was born in the town of Wash- 
ington, Dutchess county, on Christmas Day, 
1855. His paternal grandfather, John S. 
Tripp, also a nati_ve of Washington town, by 
his marriage with Sarah Deuel had two sons: 
Seneca, the father of our subject; and Isaac. 
His second union was with Sarah Haight, and 
by her he had a son: Egbert. The grandfa- 
ther spent his entire life in farming in the town 
of Washington, and was very successful in his 
operations, so that at the time of his death the 



value of the property to be divided among his 
sons amounted to about $12,000. The family, 
which was of English ancestry, made its first 
settlement on Nantucket Island, whence the 
descendants came to Dutchess county. 

Seneca Tripp was born February 15, 1802, 
in the town of Washington, Dutchess county, 
where he received a fair education and was 
given a good start in life. He was first mar- 
ried in that town, October 25, 1821, to Miss 
Annie Pratt, who died November 15, 1838, 
and to them were born four children: Milo, 
deceased; John; and Stephen and Sarah Jane, 
both deceased. For his second wife Mr. Tripp 
wedded, October 7, 1839, Mary Louisa Sweet, 
who was born February i, 1813, also in Wash- 
ington town. They became the parents of six 
children, namely: Annie S., who was born 
October 4, 1841, and died Septembers, 1848; 
Silas D., born November 11, 1S43; Delia L., 
who was born April 4, 1846, and died Septem- 
ber 19, 1 851; Lydia Anna, who was born Oc- 
tober 27, 1850, and also died September 19, 
1851; Samuel Mott, born October 22, 1852; 
and Charles Henry, the subject of this review. 
The father continued to carry on agricultural 
pursuits in the town of Washington, until his 
death, which occurred December 23, 1876; his 
wife died in December, 1890. By birth he 
was a Quaker, his parents having belonged to 
that Society; he was an active politician, but 
held no office, preferring to devote his time to 
his business. 

The primary education of our subject was 
begun in the district schools of the town of 
Washington, and he later took up Greek and 
Latin under private instruction, in order to pre- 
pare himself for the study of medicine, being 
ably assisted in his Latin studies by his mother. 
In 1678 he entered Bellevue Hospital Medical 
College, New York City, where he was gradu- 
ated March 15, 1881, and immediately began 
practice at Millbrook, town of Washington, 
Dutchess county. In February, 1 884, he estab- 
lished an office at Clinton Corners, where he 
has since prosecuted his profession, and has 
secured a large and lucrative practice. Before 
entering the college in New York, he had tak- 
en up the study of medicine with Dr. John S. 
Thorne, of Millbrook. He holds a certificate 
of instruction in operative surgery and surgical 
dressing under Joseph D. Bryant, now surgeon- 
general of the State. 

On June 28, 1881, Dr. Tripp was married 
to Miss Carrie E. Cunningham, a native of 






v^^^^"^-^;^^ ^^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



713 



Vermont, and four children were the result 
of this union: Louis C. , born March 22, 18S4, 
and died August 29 following; Clayton S., 
who was born April 15, and died March 2, 
1S88; Mabel A., born April 13, 1889; and 
Charles S., born March 21, 1894. 

Mrs. Tripp was born July 4, 1866, in 
Plainfield, Vt., a daughter of Lewis H. and 
Clarinda D. (Kidder) Cunningham, the latter 
of whom was born in 1825, in Marshfield, Vt. , 
and died July, 1883. The father was born 
February 8, 1822, in Rockingham town, Wind- 
ham Co., Vt., and followed the business of 
contracting and building. They had a family 
of eight children, six of whom are yet living: 
Clara, Fred, Nettie, Samuel, Josephine, and 
Carrie E. 

Dr. Tripp holds membership with the 
Alumni Association of Bellevue Hospital, and 
belongs to the Dutchess County Medical So- 
ciety, the American Medical Association, and 
to the Royal Arcanum, of Poughkeepsie, N. 
Y. He has been very successful in his prac- 
tice, and for three years served as health officer 
for the town of Clinton; is examining surgeon 
for the New York Life and Mutual Benefit 
Life Insurance Companies. He is a member 
of the Episcopal Church at Millbrook, and he 
and his estimable wife are popular in society, 
being numbered among the intelligent and re- 
fined people of their community. 



/^ EORGE B. KINNEY is one of the old- 
\^ est and most highly respected agricultur- 
ists of the town of Stanford, Dutchess county. 
Tracing the ancestral line of our subject, reach- 
ing two hundred and seventy years or more into 
the past, we are able, in the light of reliable 
records, to follow Henry Kinne, born in 1624, 
from Holland to Salem, Mass., where he loca- 
ted on a farm in 165 1. It is believed that he 
was born in Norfolk, England, where his fa- 
ther, Sir Thomas Kinne. lived, having been 
knighted by the government for some signal 
service rendered, and that following the tide 
of emigration through Holland, where they 
sought greater religious liberty, but found less 
than the fullest freedom, Henry came to Sa- 
lem at about the age of thirty years. He was a 
prosperous farmer, and was employed to some 
extent in ecclesiastical work. His children 
were eight in number — three sons and five 
daughters. 

The second son, Thomas Kinne, from whom 



our subject is descended, was born January i, 
1656, and May 23, 1677, was united in mar- 
riage with Elizabeth Knight, by whom he had 
four sons. He died in 16S7. 

Thomas Kinne, the eldest son of the above 
couple, was born July 27, 167S, and in 1715, 
at the age of thirty-seven j-ears, removed to 
Preston (now Griswold), Conn., where he 
died in 1756. There his grave-stone now 
stands on the banks of ,the Pachang river. 
He married Martha Peabody^who died Octo- 
ber 25, 1747, and they became the parents of 
sixteen children — ten sons and six daughters. 

Stephen Kinne, the third of this family, was 
born at Griswold, Conn., and January 29, 
1730, married Priscilla Herrick, by whom he 
has six children, namely: Stephen, born De- 
cember 18, 1732; Tesse, born May 25, 1735; 
Roswell, born May 4, 1737; Nathaniel, born 
April 26, 1739; Anna, born June 7, 1741; and 
Didymus, born August 7, 1743. The father 
of these children was the first of the Kinne 
family to come to Dutchess county, N. Y. , 
where in 1740 he located in the northwestern 
part of the town of Amenia. 

The next in direct line to our subject is 
Roswell Kinne, who was born at Griswold, 
Conn., but at an early age accompanied his 
father to the town of Amenia, where he re- 
sided up to the time of his death, August 22, 
181 2. He was a prominent citizen of the 
locality and served as captain of the militia. 
He married Miss Annie Burton, who was born 
August 7, 1739. They were the parents of 
two children: Roswell and Henry. 

Roswell Kinney, Jr., was the father of our 
subject. He was born in the town of Amenia, 
September 30, 1776, and was united in mar- 
riage v/ith Jerusha Rust, who was born in 
1788; to them were born the following chil- 
dren: Albert, Eliza, Tryphenia, George B., 
Henry and Edwin. All are now deceased with 
the exception of our subject. The father was 
killed by runaway oxen, August 28, 1821. He 
was a strict Presbyterian in religious belief, and 
would not work after sundown on Saturday 
nights. His entire life was devoted to farm- 
ing in his native town. After his death his 
widow became the wife of Daniel Lorin, and 
to them were born four children, all now de- 
ceased, namely: Harriet, Mary, William and 
Charles. 

The birth of George B. Kinney, subject of 
this review, occurred in the town of Amenia, 
March 26, 1816, and there his school days 



714 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPHIVAL BECOBD. 



were passed. He remained upon the old 
homestead until his marriage, which was cele- 
brated in the town of Stanford, Dutchess 
county, October 29, 1840, Miss Eima M. 
Tripp becoming his wife. She was the daugh- 
ter of Howard and Phebe Tripp, and died in 
1867, at the age of fifty years. By their 
union were born three children: Elma T. ; 
Howard T., and George H. The eldest son, 
Howard T. , married Minnie Putnam, and has 
two children, Laura and Roswell. 

Since iS4oi(^lr. Kinney has resided upon 
his present tine farm in the town of Stanford, 
and in the community where he has so long 
made his home he has gained many warm 
friends. He is entitled to the esteem and con- 
fidence of his fellow-citizens, which he cer- 
tainly possesses in a high degree. His first 
vote was cast for the Whig party, but since its 
organization has been a stanch Republican. 
Religiously, he is a member in good standing 
of the Presbyterian Church. 



FRANKLIN COLES TOMPKINS. The 
subject of this history is one of the prom- 
inent citizens of the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, and the owner and proprie- 
tor of a fruit farm. He is a native of New 
York, born in the town of Scarsdale, West- 
chester county, October 5, 1827, and is a son 
of Coles Tompkins, whose birth occurred in 
Mamaroneck town, that county, in October, 
1800. His paternal grandfather, Noah Tomp- 
kins, was also a native of Westchester county, 
where his father, Elijah Tompkins, who was 
from New England, had located at a very 
early day. The family was founded in this 
country by three brothers, who came from 
Wales and made their homes either in Massa- 
chusetts or Connecticut. 

By trade the grandfather of our subject 
was a blacksmith, but his later life was de- 
voted to fruit raising in Westchester county, 
where his death occurred. By his marriage 
with Rachel Coles, a native of Long Island, 
he became the father of six children, namely: 
Samuel, who followed farming and died in Il- 
linois; Elijah, an agriculturist of Westchester 
county; Joseph, also a farmer of Illinois; Han- 
nah C, who died unmarried; Coles, the fa- 
ther of our subject; and Noah, a carpenter of 
New York City. In religious belief the family 
were Friends. 

In early life Coles Tompkins learned the 



tanner's and currier's business, which he fol- 
lowed for many years in this State, but finally 
removed to Illinois, where he passed away. 
He married Phcebe Underbill, a native of the 
town of Clinton, Dutchess county, and a 
daughter of James Underbill, who engaged in 
blacksmithing in the town of Clinton. They 
began housekeeping in Westchester county. 
Only one child was born to them: Franklin 
Coles, subject of this review, who was- only 
two years old when his mother died. The 
Underbill family was of English origin, and at 
an early period became identified with the his- 
tory of the New World. One of the first of 
its members, of which any record appears, is 
Captain John Underbill, who took a leading 
and prominent part in religious, political and 
military affairs. He had come to America 
with Governor Winthrop, arriving at Boston 
harbor May 18, 1630, in the vessel "John 
and Mary," which he commanded, and which 
was named in honor of his father and mother. 
He espoused the cause of Roger Williams, and 
participated in many engagements against the 
hostile Indians of that day. He established 
the first military company at Boston. In 
1667 he bought from the Indians a tract of 
land at Matinecock, town of Oyster Bay, 
Queens county. Long Island, where he died in 
1667, and was buried on the tract. 

The childhood of our subject was passed 
in Westchester county, and most of his educa- 
tion was acquired in the Old Nine Partners 
School, in the town of Washington, Dutchess 
county. At the age of seventeen, however, 
he laid aside his text books and began learning 
the carriage maker's trade at Washington Post 
Ofifice, which business he followed until 1862, 
and for nine years there engaged in mercantile 
pursuits. For three years he owned and coff- 
ducted a fruit farm of 166 acres in Unionvale, 
then returned to that village, now known as 
South Millbrook, and there purchased the 
Wintinghain property, that comprises twenty 
acres of rich land. 

On October 31, 1S50, Mr. Tompkins was 
united in marriage with Miss Ann Eliza Hues- 
tis, a native of the town of Dover, Dutchess 
county, and a daughter of Moses S. and Ann 
Eliza (Woolley) Huestis, both of English lin- 
eage. Her maternal great-grandfather, Jehu 
Woolley, was one of the first settlers in Dutch- 
ess county, arriving there when onlj' a foot- 
path led to Poughkeepsie. His son, Vaniah 
Woolley, the grandfather of Mrs. Tompkins, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



715 



became a prominent merchant and farmer of 
the town of Washington, and represented his 
district in the Assembly. 

Six children were born to oijr subject and 
his worthy wife, who in order of birth are as 
follows: Mary J., wife of Alfred Seeley, now 
of Brooklyn, N. Y., but formerly of Washing- 
ton town; Hannah C. , wife of Clark A. 
Haight, a farmer of Washington town; Phcebe 
K., who died at the age of seven years; F. 
Walton, who married Mary Parker Dunsher, 
of New York City, and lives near Newark, N. 
J.; Clara M., at home; and Willard H., an 
agriculturist of Unionvale, who married Ruth 
Estelle Hawkins, of Oswego, New York. 

Mr. Tompkins is considered a representa- 
tive man of the town of Washington; he has a 
fine character; his motives are governed by 
elevated tastes and aims, and he stands well 
with his fellowmen. He is frank and open in 
the e.xpression of his opinions, and in politics 
he is a sound Democrat. He has held numer- 
ous local offices of honor and trust, including 
those of town clerk and justice of the peace. 



JOHN D. TEAL is pleasantly located upon 
a farm of io8 acres in the town of Red 
Hook, Dutchess county, on what is known 
as the "inside road", which runs from the 
Stone church to Rock City. The improve- 
ments which we see to-day have been effected 
by his industry and good management, and he 
has brought the soil to a- fine state of cultiva- 
tion. The farm buildings are neat and sub- 
stantial, and, with their surroundings, present 
the picture of the complete country home, 
where peace and plenty abound. 

David Teal, the grandfather of our subject, 
whose ancestors came to this country from 
Palatinate, Germany, was a native of Ulster 
county, N. Y. He received a common-school 
education, and began life as a farmer, which 
occupation he followed up to the time of his 
death. Early in life he married Miss Rebecca 
Sipperly, and soon after they became residents 
of the town of Red Hook, Dutchess county, 
where their only child, Jacob Teal, was born 
in 1804. He was the father of our subject. 
His education was such as the district schools 
of the locality afforded and he early learned 
the trades of blacksmithing and vvagonmaking, 
at which he worked more or less all through 
his life. He also engaged in teaching school 



for a few years. In the early training days he 
commanded a company. For his second wife 
he married Miss Anna Maria Teal, daughter of 
John I. Teal, of the town of Rhinebeck, 
Dutchess county, who, though bearing the 
same name, was no relative. Two children 
were born to them: Mary C. , who became 
the wife of William Moul, of the town of Red 
Hook, where he is successfully engaged in 
farming; and John D., subject of this sketch. 

Our subject's birth occurred in the town of 
Red Hook, where he entered the common 
schools, and, on completing his education, he 
succeeded his father, who was otherwise en- 
gaged, to the management of the farm, and 
thus began life for himself as an agriculturist. 
In 1867 Mr. Teal was married to Miss Mary 
Rossman. They are the parents of three chil- 
dren, all born on the old homestead. Frank 
L. , who was educated at the Hartwick Semi- 
nary, and, after his graduation from that insti- 
tution in 1890, served on the force of civil 
engineers engaged in the construction of the 
Broadway Cable road in New York City, at 
the completion of which he engaged in teach- 
ing and land surveying, holding the position of 
teacher in the public schools of Germantown 
for two years. He then became principal of 
the North Germantown Union School, which 
position he resigned after two years to enter 
upon a course of studies at St. Stephens Col- 
lege. Agnes received a thorough training in 
music, and is now a teacher of that art. She 
is also organist of the Stone Church in the 
town of Rhinebeck located near the town line 
of Red Hook. Eve Alice completes the family. 

John G. Rossman, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Teal, was born in Livingston, Columbia Co., 
N. Y. , was there educated, and followed the 
vocation of a farmer throughout life. He 
married Miss Catherine Best, daughter of Rev. 
Lewis Best, a Christian minister of Livingston. 
Their family consisted of ten children: Susan 
married Reuben Lapham; George married 
Johanna Weisman; Jacob was the father of 
Mrs. Teal; Margaret married Henry Van- 
Etten; Eve married Samuel Lape; Mary mar- 
ried Edward Stickle; Ann married Samuel 
Shutts; William married Lucy Cunningham, of 
Georgia; James remained single; and Edward 
died in infancy. 

Jacob Rossman was also a native of Liv- 
ingston, Columbia county, where he received 
a good common-school education, and be- 
came an agriculturist. He wedded Miss Eve 



716 



COMMEilORATIVE BIOGliAPUICAL UECORI). 



Patrie, by whom he had two children: Mer- 
vin J., who married Mary Gardner; and Mary, 
the estimable wife of our subject. Her ma- 
ternal grandfather, Christian Patrie, who was 
also a farmer, married Mary Pinder, daughter 
of Edward Pinder, second son of Lord Pinder, 
London. England, and to them were born ten 
children: Pamilla married Dr. William Jones; 
Rachel married Rensselaer Livingston; Alex- 
ander married Clarissa Bennaham; Rufus mar- 
ried Jane Stickle; Eve was the mother of Mrs. 
Teal; Susan married Samuel Pender; Mary 
died at the age of twenty-five years; Edward 
married Margaret Potts; Seth married Mary 
Patrie, a cousin; and Fannie married Jacob 
Miller. 



THOMAS WRIGHT, one of the well-to-do 
and intluential citizens of the town of 
Lagrange, is now occupying a valuable farm 
that is conspicuous for the manner in which it 
has been improved and cultivated, and gives 
every evidence of being the homestead of one 
of the most enterprising men of Dutchess 
county. 

The Wright family is of English origin, and 
was founded in this country first on Long 
Island. Thomas Wright, the grandfather of 
our subject, and one of the early residents of 
the town of East Fishkill, Dutchess county, 
had a family of eight children, all now de- 
ceased. As he was in somewhat limited cir- 
cumstances, his son, Lewis, the father of our 
subject, was given but an ordinary education, 
and he started out in life as a poor boy. He 
was born in the town of East Fishkill, March 
22, 1800, and in his twentieth year first be- 
came a resident of the town of Lagrange, lo- 
cating upon the farm now occupied by our 
subject, which he operated for some time be- 
fore he was able to purchase it. Upon that 
place he spent his remaining days. 

On November 3, 1820, Lewis Wright was 
married to Maria \'ermilyea, who was born 
September 26, 1801, and died December 31, 
1827, and they became the parents of three 
children: Mary, born July 24, 1821, died in 
June, 1894; John G., born May 31, 1824; and 
Abraham, born in December, 1826, and died 
October 18, 1828. Mr. Wright was again 
married, this time on November 13, 1828, to 
Miss Zillah Anderson, who was born February 
24, 1799, and was the daughter of John Ander- 
son. Four children came to this union: Ann 



Elizabeth, born August 24, 1830, married 
Draper Hall, of Poughkeepsie, N. Y. ; Thomas, 
subject of this sketch; Susan Jane, born De- 
cember 25, 18^4, married Rutsen Hall, of the 
town of Unionvale, Dutchess county; and An- 
derson, born May i, 1838, died May 10, 1867. 
The mother of these children departed this 
life in November, 1885. 

Thomas Wright, whose name introduces 
these lines, was born February 26, 1833, on 
the farm which is now his home, in the town 
of Lagrange. His education was acquired in 
the district school, and at a private school of 
the neighborhood. On April 20, 1859, he was 
married to Miss Phcebe Rogers, who was born 
October 18, 1840, a daughter of Laban Rog- 
ers, of the town of Beekman, Dutchess coun- 
ty. To this worthy couple were born fourteen 
children, whose names and dates of birth are 
as follows: Charles L., January 21, 1.860; 
Homer A., June 19, 1862; Carrie R.. July 31, 
1864; Susan A., August 21, 1866; Jennie, 
October 3, 1868; Mary E., May 12, 1871; 
Lewis T., March 12, 1873; Alice Z., October 
27, 1874; John R., October 11, 1876; Ru6m- 
ma, September 2, 1S78; Arthur, October 23, 
1880; Augusta M., March 21, 1883; and Jo- 
sephine and Pauline (twins), August 10, 1885. 
Of these, Josephine died July 22, 1886. Mrs. 
Wright's father was born in the town of Beek- 
man, in 1805, married Jane Sincerbox, of 
East Fishkill, by whom he had five children — 
two sons and three daughters, of whom, one 
son and daughter are now deceased. The 
mother died in 1SS41 the father in 1886. 

In 1859, Mr. Wright became a resident of 
the town of Beekman, where he remained until 
1879, when he removed to the old Vermilyea 
homestead in the town of Lagrange, which he 
operated for ten years, when he returned to the 
farm where his early life was passed, and has 
there continued to make his home. He is now 
the owner of three fine farms in the town of 
Lagrange, and another in Beekman, aggrega- 
ting 750 acres of as good land as is to be 
found anywhere in the county. While living 
in Beekman, he was elected justice of the 
peace, but declined to qualify. A stanch 
Democrat in politics, he is recognized as an 
honorable, upright man, the encourager of 
educational institutions, and during his younger 
years served as school commissioner in the 
town of Lagrange. The career of Mr. 
Wright has ever been such as to warrant the 
trust and confidence of those with whom he 




^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



"17 



has come in contact, for he has ever con- 
ducted all transactions on the strictest princi- 
ples of honor and integrity. 



GEORGE W. HOWELL, a leading and in- 
fluential member of the agricultural com- 
munity of the town of Pleasant Valley, Dutch- 
ess county, resides upon his fine farm of 197 
acres. Besides the regular duties pertaining 
to the cultivation of the soil, he also deals quite 
extensively in stock, which he buys and ships 
to the city. 

Mr. Howell is a native of Dutchess county, 
having been born at Salt Point, November 12, 
1849, and he is a son of Benjamin Howell, at 
one time also a prominent farmer of the town 
of Pleasant Valley. He received his education 
in the common schools of the neighborhood, 
and lent his assistance to his father in carrying 
on the farm. On attaining his majority he 
became postal clerk on the Poughkeepsie & 
Eastern railroad, which position he filled some 
fourteen years. In 1 87S he married Miss Adelia 
Hicks, who was born in the town of Washing- 
ton, Dutchess county, where her father, Fred- 
erick Hicks, carried on farming. She died 
June 20, 1 886, leaving two children: Mabel 
and Grace. 

In 1S80 Mr. Howell purchased his present 
farm, and has since resided there. In politics 
he is a straight and stanch adherent of the 
principles formulated in the platform of the 
Republican party, and in the exercise of his 
elective franchise invariably supports the can- 
didates offered by that organization. During 
President Harrison's administration he served 
for four years as postmaster of Washington 
Hollow. He is a public-spirited man, aiding 
in all kinds of improvements for the good of 
the community, and is especially active in pro- 
moting educational interests. Socially, he be- 
longs to the Masonic fraternity, and he merits 
and receives the warmest confidence of his 
fellow-citizens. 



ELIAS W. BERRY, a prosperous farmer 
of the town of Lagrange, Dutchess county, 

was born in the town of Hyde Park, Dutchess 
county, August 6, 1854. His parents were 
Lebbens Howe and Wilhelmina (Westervelt) 
Berry, the latter being a daughter of Elias and 
Ruth Westervelt. 

Nicholas N. Berry, the paternal grandfather 



of our subject, was born in 1792, in East Fish- 
kill, N. Y. , ar..d settled in the town of Pough- 
keepsie when a \'oung man. He was twice 
married, his first wife being Miss Ida Vanalts, 
a native of Fishkill, N. Y., who bore him two 
children: Lettie Ann and William, both of 
whom are now deceased. B)' his second wife, 
whose maiden name was Ida Howe, he had 
four children, namely: Lebbens H. and John 
P. (both deceased), the latter of whom was 
superintendent of the Street railroad in Eliza- 
beth City; Tunis, a lesident of Elizabeth, N. 
J., was supervisor of the town of Poughkeep- 
sie; and Sarah, who married Tunis Conklin, 
and lives at Hyde Park. The family were all 
Presbyterians in their religious belief. 

Lebbens H. Berry, the father of our sub- 
ject, was a school teacher in his younger days, 
but most of his life was spent in farming. He 
lived for a year on the plank road, and for ten 
years farmed on the land now occupied by the 
State Asylum buildings. He sold this property, 
and for a year resided in Hyde Park, subse- 
quently going to the town of Clinton, where 
he remained four j-ears. In 1865 he took up 
his residence in the town of Lagrange, where 
he spent the rest of his life, his death occurring 
in 1887. His wife survived him until 1891. 
He was a stanch Democrat in his political 
views, and held several minor town offices, 
being commissioner of highways in the town 
of Poughkeepsie, and collector at various times. 
He was a man of considerable business ability, 
and during his life accumulated a comfortable 
fortune. The children born to himself and 
wife were: William, residing in Danbury, 
Conn. ; Henry, living at Roselle, N. J. : Sarah 
W. ; Lettie Ann, who married Shryver Tomp- 
kins, of Lagrange; Elias Westervelt, the sub- 
ject of this sketch; Lebbens H., living in La- 
grange; Mary Frances, wife of the Rev. Edwin 
C. Bennett, of Buffalo, N. Y.; Seymour, resid- 
ing in Roselle, N. J. ; and Ida Ruth. 

Elias W. Berry obtained his education in the 
district school at Freedom Plains, and lived on 
the home farm in Lagrange with his parents, 
until the death of his mother in 1891. On 
March 9, 1892, he was married to Mrs. Louisa 
Seaman Brill, a daughter of Jacob and Clara 
Seaman. Mrs. Berry has three children by 
her first marriage: Richard, Clara and Fred- 
erick. After his marriage Mr. Berry purchased 
the J. R. Flagler farm near Overlook, in the 
town of Lagrange, which consists of ninety 
acres of fine land. Here he carries on general 



718 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



farming, in which he has been quite successful. 
He is a hard worker, thrifty and energetic, and 
is highly respected by all his acquaintances. 
He is a Democrat in politics, has been justice 
of the peace two terms, and also one of the 
inspectors of election. 



JOSEPH B. ROZELL, a very prominent 
and energetic farmer of the town of Union- 
vale, Dutchess county, was there born April 
-9. '859, and secured his education in the 
schools near his home. His paternal grand- 
father, Henry Rozell, was a native of Tarry- 
town, N. Y., where he attended school, but 
early in life removed to Chestnut Ridge, 
Dutchess county, where he followed agricult- 
ural pursuits. He wedded Miss Eleanor 
Cypher, and to them were born the following 
children: Thomas, who married Jennie Strait; 
Elizabeth married Caleb Oakley; John, who 
married Miss Black; Samuel, who married 
Rhoda Rozell; Gilbert, who married Eliza 
Shear; Henry, who married Catharine Holmes; 
William, who died in infancy; William, who 
married Julia Burnett; Alexander, the father 
of our subject; Jacob, who married Jane 
Austin; Matilda, who married Dewitt Connor; 
Annie, who married Harvey Simeon; Egbert, 
who married Priscilla Cooper; and Maria, 
who married I'^obert Hicks. 

Alexander Rozell was born at Chestnut 
Ridge in 1808, and in the common schools of 
Dutchess county acquired his education. He 
learned the shoemaker's trade, at which he 
worked for fourteen years, and then devoted 
his time and attention to farming, until life's 
labors were ended. He was a progressive and 
public-spirited citizen, and enjoyed the respect 
and confidence of all who knew him. 

On January 31, 1854, was celebrated the 
marriage of Alexander Rozell and Miss Sarah 
Frances Potter, a daughter of George and 
Hannah ( Baker) Potter, farming people of 
Nantucket. Four children blessed this union, 
of whom our subject is third in order of birth: 
George, born December 8, 1854, in the town 
of Unionvale, received a common-school edu- 
cation, and learned the carpenter's trade, at 
which he is now employed. He married Miss 
Anna M. Syncerbaux, w^ho was born January 
30, i860. Annie was born July 25, 1856, in 
Unionvale town, and married Jesse Oakley, 
an agriculturist, by whom she has one child. 



Alexander, born in 1890. Ella H., born No- 
vember 4, i860, is the wife of William E. 
Ferris, a shoemaker of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., 
and they have one son, William H., who was 
born October 2, 1895. 

George Potter, the maternal grandfather 
of our subject, was born October 20, 1786, 
and in September, 18 12, married Miss Han- 
nah Baker, whose birth occurred August i, 
1790. They became the parents of five chil- 
dren, whose names and dates of birth are as 
follows: Joseph, August 7, 18 13; Anthony, 
April 6, 181 5; William B., March 12, 18 17; 
Sarah F., December 27, 1819; and Milton, 
April 23, 1 82 1. 



MRS. MAY LOSEE DUTCHER, of Do- 
__ _ ver Plains, is descended from well-known 
families of Dutchess county. Her paternal 
grandfather. William Losee, a lifelong farmer, 
was a native of Syracuse, N. Y. , and received 
his education in the schools of that place. 
He married Miss Mary Watterman, of the 
same place, and they became the parents of 
twelve children, namely: Harris married Ra- 
chel I^utts; William married Anna Carbardt; 
John married Phcebe \'eiley; Henry married 
Mertha Lake; Joseph married Harriet Han- 
neston; George was the father of Mrs. Dutch- 
er; Julia married J. Cooper; Delia remained 
unmarried; Caroline married Hicks Hustes; 
Adelaide married Seneca White ; Catherine 
married Vincent Tripp; and Mary married 
Egbert Butler. 

George Losee, a member of the above fam- 
ily, was born at Dover Plains, Februarj- 14, 
1817, and in the schools of that village 
acquired his education. I^ike his father, he 
also followed agricultural pursuits. He mar- 
ried Miss Anna Sherman, daughter of Darius 
and Myra (Tabor) Sherman, who were resi- 
dents of the town of Dover, where her father 
died July 25, 1858. His father was born De- 
cember I, 1757, and died May 25, 1847, 'i 
the town of Pawling, Dutchess count}', where 
for many years he had engaged in farming. 
He was united in marriage with Abigail Pierce, 
who was born in 1767 and died in 1818. They 
became the parents of ten children, whose 
names and dates of birth are as follows: Oli- 
ver, May 27, 1787; Chloe, November 27, 
178S; Isaac, June 15. 1791; Henry, July 17, 
1793; Daniel, October, 1795; Stephen, April, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



719 



179S; Darius, November 7, 1800; Sylvia, De- 
cember 6, 1802; Lydia, April 16, 1805; and 
Olive, May 1 1, 1807. 

To the parents of Mrs. Dutcher were born 
six children: Ella, who became the wife of 
Frank Secor; May, of this review ; George, 
who wedded Mary Hutchinson ; William; 
Daisy, who married Charles Wyman; and 
Joseph. Of this family. May was born in the 
town of Dover, Dutchess county, and during 
her girlhood attended the common schools 
of the neighborhood, where she acquired an 
excellent education. She married George 
Dutcher. She has many friends throughout 
the county, and is loved and respected by all 
who know her. 



JARVIS C. ROBINSON. Dutchess county 
has many well-to-do and successful farmers, 
men who have accumulated what they have 
of this world's goods through individual effort. 
Among this class the name of the subject of 
this notice is entitled to a place. He is resid- 
ing upon his fine farm in the town of Stanford, 
where he is industriously engaged in the prose- 
cution of his noble calling, and is meeting with 
far more than ordinary success. 

Anativeof Dutchess county, the birth of Mr. 
Robinson took place in the town of Fishkill, 
September 25, 1827, but since the early age of 
seven jears he has been a resident of the town 
of Stanford, and there his education was ob- 
tained in the district schools. As a young 
man he worked as a farm hand, and at the age 
of nineteen began work for Mrs. Canfield upon 
the farm which he now owns. At her death 
he purchased the place, the improvement and 
cultivation of which he has since continued 
with remarkable success. On August 20, 1856, 
he was married in the town of Stanford to Miss 
Mary E. Mosher, daughter of Allen Mosher, 
and to them were born the following children: 
Fremont (now deceased); Homer E., of whom 
special mention will presently be made; Leo- 
netta, who married Emerson Gregory, by 
whom she has two children — Jennie and Ma- 
bel; Tamma, who married Newton J. Barlow, 
of the town of Stanford, by whom she has a 
daughter — May; Allen, who married Nellie 
Northrup, by whom he has two children — 
Clifton and Clara; and Edward and Amy Alida 
(both deceased). The mother of these chil- 
dren, who was a faithful member of the Bap- 



tist Church, died May 6, 1877, mourned by 
many warm friends. 

Politically Mr. Robinson was first a Whig, 
later a Republican, and has efficiently served 
in the offices of inspector and town auditor. 
He is a self-made man in the truest sense of 
the term, and in the various relations of life 
has maintained a character and standing that 
have impressed all with his sincere and manly 
purpose to do by others as he would have oth- 
ers do by him. 

Homer E. Robinson, the eldest living son 
of our subject, spent his boyhood days upon 
the home farm, aiding in its work and attend- 
ing the district schools of the neighborhood. 
At the age of twenty-two years he removed to 
the town of Milan, where for seven years he 
operated the farm of John Wilson, but since 
that time has resided upon the old homestead. 
Like his father, he votes the straight Repub- 
lican ticket, and socially is a member of Pough- 
keepsie Lodge No. 43, K. of P. He married 
Miss Emma Hicks, daughter of Gilbert Hicks, 
and two children have been born to them: 
Edward and I. Leslie. 



T HERON CUTLER, an extensive farmer 
of Dutchess county, was born in the town 

of Washington, April 10, 1821, and is the son 
of Stephen and Sally (Fitch) Cutler. 

Stephen Cutler, the father of our subject, 
was born in Dutchess county, in 1783, a son 
of Stephen and Amy (Lesterj Cutler. He 
grew up on a farm, and on reaching man's es- 
tate married Miss Sally Fitch, a native of Nor- 
walk. Conn. They settled on the old home 
farm, and reared a family of eight children, 
namely: Amy, deceased; Philo F. was a 
farmer in western New York; Rachel, deceased; 
Stephen, deceased, married Miss Louisa Will- 
iams, and followed farming in the town of 
Washington; Lorenzo, deceased, married Miss 
Hannah Brown; Theron, our subject; Ben- 
jamin A., deceased; and Mordecai L. is a re- 
tired resident of Washington. Mr. Cutler re- 
mained on the farm all his life, and politically 
supported the Whig party; he died in 1858; 
his wife had preceded him, dying in 1853. 
Stephen Cutler, the grandfather of our subject, 
was raised in Dutchess county, where he mar- 
ried Amy Lester; he was a son of Jonathan 
Cutler, a native of Rhode Island, who came to 
Dutchess county at an early day. 

Our subject spent his boyhood on the home 



J-2() 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



farm and on October 28, iiSsj, was married to 
Miss Amelia Mitchell, a native of the town of 
Wasliington, and a daughter of Josiah and Jane 
Ann (Elsbree) Mitchell. After their marriage 
Mr. and Mrs. Cutler came to their present 
home, where he carries on general farming on 
his 220 acres of excellent land. Three children 
were born to this couple: Dwight, who died in 
1869; Olin, whose death occurred in 1891; 
and Franz S., who is unmarried and lives at 
home. 

In politics Mr. Cutler is a Republican, and 
religiously he and his wife attend the Episcopal 
Church. ' He is one of the progressive and sub- 
stantial farmers of his county. 

Josiah Mitchell, father of Mrs. Cutler, was 
born in Nantucket in 1807, the son of Ben- 
jamin and Eunice (Barney) Mitchell, and came 
to Dutchess county in 1S09, where he after- 
ward made his home and followed the occupa- 
tion of farming. Benjamin Mitchell was of 
Scotch extraction, born on Nantucket; he was 
a relative of the late Maria Mitchell, the famous 
astronomer of Vassar College. Mrs. Cutler's 
maternal grandparents were from Rhode Island. 



FRANK P. LASHER. In the busy com- 
munity located in the thriving little vil- 
lage of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county, we 
find several energetic and thoroughgoing busi- 
ness men, who have attained success through 
their own tact, good judgment and persever- 
ance. Among the number is the gentleman 
whose name introduces this biographical no- 
tice, and who at the present time is a repre- 
sentative of the hardware trade of the place. 
He deals in stoves, tinware, crockery, glass- 
ware and all kinds of house furnishing goods, 
slate and metal roofing, hot-water and steam- 
heating apparatus, and, as a member of the 
Dutchess County Artesian Well & Wind Mill 
Co., he deals in tanks, pumps and pipes, also 
well supplies. 

Mr. Lasher was born in the town of Stan- 
ford, Dutchess county, July 20, 1852. His 
father, John Lasher, is a native of Columbia 
county, N. Y. , and one of the four children of 
Hannah and Samuel Lasher, farming people of 
that county, ''where their deaths occurred. 
Their ancestors were originally from Holland. 
The children were Edward, who was the pro- 
prietor of several hotels in Hudson, N. Y., and 
Millerton, Dutchess county; John; Sobrina, 
widow of Caleb Woolcut, who was a farmer of 



Columbia county; and Elmira, who married 
and removed west. 

In his native county, John Lasher was 
united in marriage with Sarah Bates, who was 
born in the town of Washington, Dutchess 
county, and they began housekeeping upon a 
farm in Stanford town, where their ten chil- 
dren were born as follows: Alice, who died 
young; Florence, wife of Lewis Earl, a farmer 
of Stanford town; Frank P., of this sketch; 
Samuel J., an agriculturist, who removed to 
California about twenty years ago; George B., 
a liveryman of Bangall, Dutchess county; 
Isaac C. , who was a tin and copper smith of 
Pleasant Valley, and died in 1888; Dora, who 
died while young; Ida; Allie. wife of Norman 
Irish, of New York City, and one who died in 
infancy. The mother of these is deceased; the 
father has always engaged in farming and con- 
tracting, and in politics is an ardent Democrat. 

Until eighteen years of age Frank P. 
Lasher remained upon the home farm, assist- 
ing in its cultivation and improvement, and his 
education was such as the district schools of 
the neighborhood afforded. He bought his 
time of his father, paying him $200 for the 
same, and then started out to fight life's bat- 
tles unaided and empty-handed; and so well 
did he succeed that by the time he was twenty- 
one years old he had saved $500. Going first 
to Bangall, he began learning the tinning and 
plumbing trade with John June, with whom he 
remained for about two and one-half years, 
spending the following three months at Pough- 
keepsie. In 1871 he came to Pleasant Valley 
and engaged in the tin and plumbing business 
with Henry Sacket, under the name of Lasher 
& Sacket, the connection continuing for three 
years, when our subject bought out his part- 
ner. He has since been alone, and has built 
up an extensive business. He is known all 
over the county as one of its leading business 
men, and the success he has achieved is well 
merited. 

In 1873 Mr. Lasher married Miss Jennie 
Rogers, who was born in the town of Pleasant 
Valley, and they became the parents of three 
children: Willis C, Charles and Sadie. The 
mother departed this life in 1883, and in 18S4 
Mr. Lasher wedded Miss Mary Miller, a native 
of Columbia county, N. Y., and a daughter of 
Allen Miller, a blacksmith by trade. In poli- 
tics Mr. Lasher strongly adheres to the doc- 
trines of the Republican party, but is no poli- 
tician, and both he and his wife attend the 




y^^i^^-'^i^v^ " 





)a^ 



.^/C^-- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



721 



Presbyterian Church. By all he is held in the 
highest respect, and in the estimation of his 
fellow citizens he is one of the representative 
men of Pleasant Valley. 



JULIUS M. MOUL is a worthy representa- 
tive of the agricultural interests of the town 
of Red Hook, Dutchess county, where his 
ancestors located at an early day, and is en- 
gaged in the operation of the homestead farm, 
comprising io8 acres of fine land situated just 
off the post road and about one mile from the 
village of Red Hook. The old house still 
stands as it was in the earlier days, and is sur- 
rounded by good and substantial outbuildings 
for the accommodation of stock. Among his 
possessions our subject has an old German 
Bible printed in 1736, being now one hundred 
and sixty years old. 

On that farm, June 11, 1782, was born 
John Moul, the grandfather of our subject, and 
in the common schools of the village of Red 
Hook he obtained his education. As soon as 
old enough, however, he began to assist in the 
labors of the farm and made the vocation of 
farming his life work. On May 3, 1812, he 
married Miss Elizabeth Ryfenburgh, of Red 
Hook, who was born March 15, 1790, and 
they became the parents of three children: 
Jacob M., who was born February 7, 18 13, 
and died May 13, 1S40; William, born July 17, 
1 821; and Frederick, born August i, 1829. 
These children were all born in the town of 
Red Hook, and received common-school educa- 
tions. 

On leaving school William Moul, the father 
of our subject, conducted his father's farm, 
and on August 29, 1849, was married, the 
lady of his choice being Miss Mary Teal, 
daughter of Jacob Teal, a farmer of Red 
Hook, and four children blessed their union: 
John Jacob, born September 8, 1852; Julius 
Martin, of this review; an infant son, who was 
born December 25, 1856, and died unnamed; 
and Elizabeth, born July 19, 1858. The 
mother of these children died December 8, 
1865, at the age of thirty-si.x years. After 
three years Mr. Moul was again married, 
August 25, 1868, his second wife being Miss 
Rosanna Waldorf, daughter of W'illiam Wal- 
dorf, a farmer of the town of Red Hook. 

Our subject was born December 7, 1853, 
at the old home in Red Hook, and, on com- 
pleting his education in the common schools of 

46 



the locality, like his ancestors chose the life 
of a farmer, continuing the cultivation of the 
home place. He is a conscientious, earnest, 
Christian gentleman, a member of the Luth- 
eran Church of Red Hook, and stands to-day 
one of the respected and highly-esteemed citi- 
zens of the community. His friends are 
legion, and his genial courtesy is calculated to 
win confidence, wfiich his sterling integrity 
and unquestioned candor serve to maintain. 
On October 3, 1876, Mr. Moul was mar- 
ried to Miss Emma Saulpaugh, who was born 
in Madalin, town of Red Hook, March 18, 
1859, and two children grace their union: 
Franklin W., born January 18, 1878; and 
Louis, born February 6, 1879. Mrs. Moul 
was educated in the schools of Madalin. Her 
father, Louis Saulpaugh, is one of the well-to- 
do farmers of that locality, and for two terms 
served as supervisor for the town of Red 
Hook. In his family were eight children, 
namely: Philip, born August 27, 1851; Har- 
mon, born September 3, 1852; Anna, who was 
born May 3, 1854, and died August 24, follow- 
ing; George, born November 30, 1855; Anna 
and Emma, twins, born March 18, 1859; 
F"ranklin, born July 12, 1862; and Sarah, 
born January 8, 1870. Anna, the twin sister 
of Mrs. Moul, died in infancy. 



Douglass 
Douglass 



E\DWARD LEE CLARK, one of the most 
'I prominent agriculturists of the town of 

Northeast, Dutchess county, is a native of that 
county, born July 26, 1861, on the old Lee 
farm, the homestead of his mother's family, 
about one mile below Northeast Centre. His 
great-grandfather, Amos Clark, was a resident 
of Plainfield, Conn.; his grandfather, 
Clark, of Northeast; and his father, 
Clark, Jr., born in 1832, is still living at 
Northeast. He married Mary Lee, daughter 
of Daniel Lee, a wealthy farmer, and lived at 
the Lee homestead for thirty years, when he 
sold it to his son Edward. He has always 
been a stanch Republican, and he and his wife 
are leading members of the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church. They have had three children: 
Elizabeth, who married Rev. W. R. Moore, of 
Poughkeepsie; Edward Lee, our subject, and 
Douglass, who died in childhood. 

Mr. Clark was educated in his native place, 
attending the select school taught by Miss Car- 
rie Knickerbocker, and later the seminary at 
Amenia, where he studied two years and a 



roo 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



half, acquiring a good English education. At 
sixteen he returned home, and in 1883 bought 
the old homestead, consisting of ninety acres. 
Three years later he purchased the Harry 
Clark farm, near Millerton, containing 258 
acres, and moved upon it. This is one of the 
best farms in the town of Northeast, and for 
the last nine years Mr. Clark has devoted it 
chiefly to the dairy business, of which he has 
made a great success. In 1892 he sold the 
Lee farm to Sylvester Schook. Mr. Clark mar- 
ried Miss Emma G. Case, daughter of George 
Case, and a member of one of the oldest fam- 
ilies of Pine Plains. They have five children: 
Edna. Harry D., Hazel, George C. and Ed- 
ward Lee, Jr. 

In public affairs, Mr. Clark is active, en- 
dorsing and assisting every progressive move- 
ment, and although he is still a young man his 
early success in business has given him a wider 
influence than is often exercised by one of his 
years. He has been a school trustee for seven 
years. While giving but little attention to 
strictly political work, he is a stanch supporter 
of the principles of the Republican party. 



HENRY S. MOREHOUSE, a representa- 
tive farmer and leading citizen of Dutch- 
ess county, was born at his present resi- 
dence in the town of Amenia, October 27, 
1 86 1. Upon this farm his grandfather, Will- 
iam Morehouse, a native of New Preston, 
Conn. , located at an early day, and there en- 
gaged in farming. He married Julia Stone, by 
whom he had four children: Julius S., Chaun- 
cey W. and Orinda, all deceased; and Jane, 
wife of B. R. Tenney, of Poughkeepsie, New 
York. 

Julius S. Morehouse, the father of our 
subject, was also born on the old homestead, 
in the eastern part of the town of Amenia, in 
1814, and there his death occurred, June 26, 
1885. Like most farmer boys, his early edu- 
cation was received in the district schools, and 
he later attended a select school at Sharon, 
Conn. In connection with his father, he 
erected a brick mill at Leedsville, which he 
operated for ten years, and still owned at the 
time of his death. At Redding, Conn., he 
married Miss Elizabeth Dennison, who was 
the daughter of James Dennison, and died 
February 14, 1895. To them were born 
seven children: Julia R., now the wife of C. 
M. Prindle, of Sharon, Conn.; Albina, wife of 



G. William Van Rensselaer, of New York 
City; James, of Sharon, Conn.; Joseph J., of 
Chapinville, Conn., who married Minnie Burch- 
ard, of Danbury, Conn. ; Anna E. ; Henrj' Steb- 
bins, of this review; and Lillias J., wife of E. 
B. St. John, of Sharon, Conn. The father 
spent the later years of his life engaged in 
farming in the town of Amenia, and also dealt 
some in railroad bonds, etc. He was an ear- 
nest Christian gentleman, a member and found- 
er of the P'piscopal Church at Sharon, Conn., 
while politically he was a lifelong Democrat. 

The present residence of our subject was 
erected by James Bogardus in 1781, and was 
rebuilt by Julius S. Morehouse in 1871. There 
Henry S. has spent his entire life. He at- 
tended the common schools of Leedsville, was 
later a student in the Amenia Seminary, and 
completed his education at Brown's Business 
College at Jersey City, N. J. In 1881 he be- 
gan the management and cultivation of the 
farm for his father, and continued to work it 
on shares until his mother's death, when he 
purchased the interests of the other heirs. 

Mr. Morehouse was married January 17, 
1893, at Northfield, Conn., the lady of his 
choice being Miss Bertha L. Humphreville, 
daughter of Garner and Martha A. (Tuttle) 
Humphreville, and by their union they have 
two children: Julius Stanley, born Novem- 
ber 19, 1894; and Ethel M., born March 2, 
1896. Fraternally, Mr. Morehouse is iden- 
tified with Amenia Lodge No. 672, F. & A. 
M., and the Grange at Amenia Union, of 
which he has twice served as master. He is 
also a member of the Episcopal Church of 
Sharon, Conn. By the men of his county he 
is ranked as a skilled farmer and a praise- 
worthy citizen, and is creditably filling his 
niche in advancing the welfare and prosperity 
of the town of Amenia. 



PHCENIX N. DEUEL, well known through- 
out the town of Pine Plains and vicinity, 

is one of the intelligent and capable business 
men and representative farmers. He was born 
April 23, J 830, in that township, upon the old 
Deuel homestead, which he now owns. The 
family is of French descent, and the first to 
come to the New World located on Long 
Island at an earlj' date. Later some of its 
members came to Dutchess county, making 
their home in the neighborhood of where our 
subject now resides. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



723 



Jonathan Deuel, his ^grandfather, was a na- 
tive of Dutchess county, born in the town of 
Stanford, and became one of the extensive 
farmers, large land owners and leading men of 
the community. By his marriage with Miss 
Rachel Denton he had seven children, namely: 
Samuel, Silas, Newton, Jay, Catherine, Rachel 
and Mary. 

Samuel Deuel, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Stanford, Dutchess 
county, where he was reared to agricultural 
pursuits, and in starting out in life he began 
farming upon the old Deuel homestead, one- 
half mile from Bethel. He inherited a small 
amount from his father, but he accumulated 
most of his property through his own efforts, 
being very successful in his business undertak- 
ings, and was the owner of 400 acres of val- 
uable land. As a business man he was keen 
and shrewd, and was possessed of excellent 
judgment. In early daj's he was personally 
identified with public interests, prominent in 
political circles, being an ardent Democrat, 
and served as assessor and supervisor. He 
was united in marriage with Catherine Bockee, 
daughter of Jacob Bockee, of the town of Pine 
Plains, and to them were born four children: 
Jacob, who was a lawyer of Stockbridge, Wis., 
and died while serving in the Union army dur- 
ing the Civil war; Mary, who is now deceased; 
Phoenix N., subject of this review; and Silas, 
who lives upon the old homestead. 

After attending the district schools for a 
time our subject entered the Norwich Academy 
and Boarding School at Warren, Litchfield 
Co., Conn., where he completed his literary 
training at the age of twenty-one. He has 
always been a great reader, and keeps well in- 
formed on current events. After leaving the 
school room he engaged in farming upon the 
old homestead until 1870, when he purchased 
the Gray farm, consisting of 120 acres. It has 
now been merged into the homestead farm, so 
that Mr. Deuel has now one of the finest places 
in the township, comprising 400 acres. Be- 
sides general farming, he also deals in hay and 
straw, and in his undertakings has been re- 
markably successful. He was married to Miss 
Margaret Amelia Covey, daughter of Lyman 
Covey, of St. Lawrence county, N. Y. , and 
they have become the parents of four children: 
Sara S. ; Samuel, married March 25, 1891, to 
Nellie Dusenberre; Kathryn E., who is attend- 
ing the Lyndon Hall; and Penelope, at home. 
Politically Mr. Deuel is a Democrat, and 



has taken quite an active part in local affairs. 
He has served as supervisor and assessor of 
his township, and as justice of the peace. 
Educational matters always find in him an 
earnest supporter, and since its beginning he 
has served as one of the trustees of Seymour 
Smith Academy. Conscientious, earnest Chris- 
tians, he and his wife are faithful members 
of the Presbyterian Church of Pine Plains, in 
which Mr. Deuel is serving as president of the 
board of trustees. 



BRAM A. DENTON, a prominent dairy- 
man and agriculturist residing near South 
Dover, Dutchess county, was born in the town 
of Dover, December 8, 1838. 

Mr. Denton's ancestors settled in Dutchess 
county in the latter part of the eighteenth cen- 
tury, and his father, Abraham H. Denton, was 
born in the town of Beekman in 1798. He 
received a good education for that day, and 
taught schools successfully for some years pre- 
vious to his marriage. Politically, he was a 
Democrat, but he never sought or held official 
position. His wife was Miss Betsey Allen, 
born in 1797, the daughter of Charles and 
Martha Allen, well-to-do residents of the town 
of Pawling, who assisted the young couple to 
obtain a farm of their own in that locality. In 
1830 this property was exchanged for one in 
South Dover, belonging to an uncle, Sanford 
Hoag. Here they made their home through- 
out the later years. Our subject was the 
youngest of seven children: (i) Jeremiah was 
born in 1826, at Pawling, and is now a resi- 
dent of that town. He married Louisa Ferris, 
and has two sons — Charles, who married Car- 
rie Wooden, and Frank, who married Grace 
Sheldon. (2) Martha, born in 1829, died in 
infancy. (3) Charles, born 1831, first married 
Emeline Aiken, and, second, Mrs. Elizabeth 
McMahon. (4) Maria, 1833, married Theron 
M. Green, and had three sons — Merrick, Sew- 
ard, and Abraham (who died in infancy). (5) 
Mahala, 1835, married W. J. Buckingham. 
(6) Martha (2), 1S37, married Hiram S. Sher- 
man, and has six children — Adelle, Eli, 
Charles, Jerry, Bessie and Allen. 

Mr. Denton was educated in the common 
schools of his native town, and in early man- 
hood engaged in farming. He found a part- 
ner for life's joys and sorrows in Miss Anna A. 
Preston, daughter of Myron and Sarah Pres- 
ton, wealthy landholders in the town of Dover. 



r24 



CO.VVK.VORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



They gave to their .daughter a farm of 200 
acres, upon which the young couple made their 
home. They now have about 258 acres in 
use as a dairy farm besides a large amount of 
woodland. Their only child, Ida P. Denton, 
born in 1864, married Elihu Hoag, of Dover, 
and have had four children: Gertrude, born 
February 23, 1S87; Edith, February 24, 1889; 
Ida, August 17, 1892, and Annie, June 13, 1895. 



TpRANK DOUGLASS BROWN, a young, 
^ enterprising and successful agriculturist of 
the town of Northeast, Dutchess county, was 
born September 14, 1867, upon the old family 
homestead near Millerton, where he now re- 
sides. His ancestors were early settlers of that 
locality, his grandfather, Samuel Brown, hav- 
ing been the owner of the same farm. Noah 
Brown, the great-grandfather, married Lois 
Mills, September 20, 1783, but the history of 
the family cannot be traced further back. 

Douglass Brown, our subject's father, was 
born near Millerton, July 3, 1822, and followed 
farming during the greater part of his life, hav- 
ing bought of his father 248 acres of land. He 
was also engaged in speculating in stock, and 
by the time of his death had accunmlated a fair 
fortune. He had fine mental ability, and was 
a well-read man, domestic in his tastes, and 
highly esteemed in the communit\'. In politics 
he adhered to the Republican party, and he 
was a prominent member of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, of Millerton. His wife was 
Sarah Holmes, daughter of Reuben Holmes, a 
leading citizen of Winchell Mountain (now Mt. 
Pleasant), and they had three children, of whom 
our subject is the youngest. Martha, born 
April 19, 1855, married C. F. Hawley, of Mil- 
lerton; Birdella H., born March 2, 1863, is 
now the wife of Olin E. Gibbs, of Ore Hill, 
Connecticut. 

Our subject received a good academic edu- 
cation, attending first the district schools of his 
neighborhood, and later the Millerton High 
School, afterward spending two years atWil- 
braham, Mass., and one at Lakeville, Conn. 
At the age of seventeen he left school, and has 
since been engaged in the management of the 
estate, and conducting an ice business which 
he established, and in which he has an exten- 
sive trade in Millerton and surrounding vil- 
lages. On -March 5. 1S90, he married Miss 
Fannie A. Neville, daughter of William and 
Julia (\'osburgh) Neville, well-known residents 



of Boston Corners, and they have four chil- 
dren: Howard D., born December 21, 1890; 
Mabel C, born May 7, 1892; Marguerite L., 
born March 19, 1894; and Lois Mills, born 
November 13, 1895. The mother of these 
was born September 16, 1867, in Columbia 
county, N. Y. , receiving her education at Bos- 
ton Corners, and for a time was a teacher in 
Dutchess county. Her father and mother are 
still living. Her grandfather, Chauncey Vos- 
burgh, who was .also a native of Columbia 
county, born about 1800, married Miss Fannie 
Bissell, a native of Winchell Mountain, born 
about 1790, and they had three children: 
George E., Julia F. and Carrie L., all yet 
living. 

Politically our subject is a Republican, and 
takes a keen interest in local politics; but he is 
not an office seeker, and has withdrawn his 
name several times when his nomination has 
been urged. In all questions of local improve- 
ment he has shown much public spirit, being 
always on the side of progress. Like all the 
members of his family he attends the Method- 
ist Church, and is a generous supporter of its 
varied activities. 



NATHAN CASE SACKETT. While "the 
race is not always to the swift, nor the 
battle to the strong," the invariable law of 
destiny accords to tireless energy, industry and 
ability a successful career. The truth of this 
assertion is abundantl\- verified in the life of 
our subject, who is one of the prosperous 
farmers of the town of Stanford, Dutchess 
county. 

His birth took place January 5, 1835, in 
that town, where the family had long resided. 
There his grandfather, Samuel Sackett, car- 
ried on farming, and reared to maturity a 
famil}' of nine children, namely: Orville, 
Aaron, Clara, Ann, Jeannette, Samuel H., 
Harry, Lucinda and Polly. He was a Baptist 
in religious views, and in politics was identi- 
fied with the Democratic party. 

Samuel H. Sackett, the father of our sub- 
ject, was also a native of the town of Stanford, 
where he was reared and educated, and on at- 
taining manhood married Amy Case, daughter 
of Nathan Case, of the town of Milan, Dutch- 
ess county. Seven children blessed this union: 
Nathan C. ; Jane, deceased wife of L. Fraden- 
burg; Sarah, wife of Sanford Adams, of the 
town of Stanford; .Amy Ann; Phebe, who died 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in infancy; Marj' D., wife of Samuel Wheeler, 
deceased; and Johanna, wife of Cortland Rob- 
inson, of Hyde Park, Dutchess county. The 
father continued to follow farming in the town 
of Stanford until his death, in 1880, and his 
wife, who preceded him to the other world, 
died in 1875. They were members of the 
Baptist Church, and he was an earnest sup- 
porter of the Democratic party. 

Like most farmer lads, Nathan C. Sackett 
spent the days of his childhood and youth at- 
tending the district schools and assisting in the 
labors of the farm, and remained under the pa- 
rental roof until twenty-six years of age. He 
was then married to Miss Deborah Ann Morey, 
daughter of Isaac Morey, and sister of L. L. 
Morey. 

Mr. Sackett operated a farm in the eastern 
part of the town for a year, and the year pre- 
vious he had resided in the western part of the 
same town. He was then for twenty-one 
years with Gilbert Cooper, and on leaving that 
gentleman came to his present farm of 200 
acres of rich and arable land, where he has 
now made his home for fifteen years. Essen- 
tially he is a self-made man, his entire posses- 
sions being the result of his own unaided 
efforts. Politically, he is a stanch Democrat; 
religiously, he and his wife are consistent mem- 
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church; so- 
cially, he holds membership with the Grange. 



WILLIAM E. TRAVER, a prominent 
agriculturist in the town of Rhinebeck, 

Dutchess county, was born September 7, 1842, 
upon the farm which he now owns. 

His ancestors have been farmers in that 
town for several generations, his grandfather, 
John P. Traver, being a native and lifelong 
resident. John H. Traver, our subject's 
father, was born there in 18 18, and grew to 
manhood at the old homestead. In politics he 
was a Republican, but took no active share in 
party work. He married Mary Pultz, who was 
also born at the old homestead, and was the 
only child of the late Frederick I. Pultz, a 
well-known citizen of Rhinebeck. After their 
marriage, our subject's parents continued to 
reside on the old farm, where they died, the 
father on February 14, 1891, and the mother 
on May 13, of the same year. Of their two 
children, the eldest, Jane E. , married John F. 
Cookingham, a farmer of Rhinebeck, and died 
in March, 1886. 



William E. Traver, our subject, has always 
lived at the homestead. He was married 
January 6, 1875, to Isie Traver, born May 19, 
1 85 1, in the town of Clinton, where her grand- 
father, Jacob D. Traver, was a leading farmer. 
Her father, Morgan L. Traver, was born there 
October 19, 1813, and still lives at the same 
place; he was a farmer, merchant and school- 
teacher, and married Phcebe S. Schultz, who 
was born in the same town in April, 18 12, a 
daughter of Jacob Schultz. Mrs. William. E. 
Traver received her education in the well- 
known De Garmo Institute of Rhinebeck. Our 
subject and his wife contribute to the support 
of the Lutheran Church, and are always ready 
to promote any worthy cause. They have one 
son — Clarence, born May 2, 1876, who was 
graduated from the military school at Clave- 
rack, Columbia Co., New York, in June, 1896; 
he is an accomplished musician on both cornet 
and drum. 

Mr. Traver is one of the most intelligent 
and progressive farmers in his vicinity, and his 
116 acres, which he devotes to general farm- 
ing, give proof of the wisdom of his manage- 
ment. In politics he is a Republican, and his 
influence in local affairs is always given on the 
side of improvement. 



^ILLIAM E. DALRYMPLE. Among 
V^ the young men of Dutchess county 
who have selected agriculture as their vocation 
in life, and judging from their present indica- 
tions are bound to succeed in their chosen call- 
ing, is the subject of this personal review, who 
is a resident of the town of Stanford, his farm 
being pleasantly located near Bangall. 

Mr. Dalrymple first opened his eyes to the 
light of day March 21, 1861, at the home of 
his parents at Lake Mohonk, Ulster Co., N. Y. 
For a number of years his father, John Dal- 
rymple, engaged in general farming near New 
Paltz, Ulster county, and later located on a 
fruit farm near Highland, N. Y. However, he 
is now living at Wappingers Falls, Dutchess 
county, where he is running the engine for the 
Episcopal Church. In politics he casts his 
votes for the candidates of the Democratic 
party, and religiously is a faithful member of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was 
united in marriage with Sarah M. Lee, a na- 
tive of East Fishkill, Dutchess county, and to 
them were born six children: William E. , of 
this review; Frank, deceased; John; George, 



726 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



deceased; Clarence; Myrtle, deceased; and 
Reginald. 

The education of our subject was such as 
the schools of New Paltz and Highland af- 
forded, but his privileges in this direction were 
very meagre, as at the age of twelve years he 
started out in life for himself, being hrst em- 
ployed on a farm in Orange county, N. Y. , 
and later at East Fishkill, Dutchess Co. For 
several years he worked in this way, but a few 
years after his marriage removed to his pres- 
ent farm, and, although still young, he is one of 
the representative men of the town of Stan- 
ford, occupying a high place in the estimation 
of his fellow citizens. 

In 1880 Mr. Dalrymple was married to 
Miss Frances C. Jayco.x, daughter of Jere- 
miah Jaycox, and to them was born a son, 
George A., who died in infancy. Our subject 
is strong in his faith in the principles of the 
Republican party, and never falters in his al- 
legiance to that organization, but, although 
interested in a great degree in all local cam- 
paigns, has no desires for the troubles, respon- 
sibilities and disquieting influences of political 
life. 



HIR.-\M T. BEECHER, one of the most 
genial and whole-souled men of Dutchess 

county, is engaged in general farming in the 
town of Pleasant Valley, and also devotes a 
great deal of attention to the work of the min- 
istry. He belongs to a family that is of Eng- 
lish descent, was born at Northampton, then 
a part of Montgomery {now Fulton) county, 
N. Y., September 27, 1822, and is a son of 
Leman Beecher, whose birth occurred in 
Sharon, Conn., February 12, 1793; his grand- 
father, Abraham Beecher, was also a native of 
Litchfield county, Connecticut. 

After his marriage with Lydia Day Fuller, 
Abraham Beecher located upon a farm in his 
native State, where he reared his family of 
nine children, of whom Leman was the eldest. 
He was followed by Abraham and Truman, 
both agriculturists of Illinois; Chauncey, a 
farmer of Northampton, N. Y., where his death 
occurred; Jesse, a farmer of Kansas; Lydia, 
wife of John Sprague, who carries on a farm 
in Northampton, N. Y. ; Desire, wife of James 
Robinson, afarmerof Northampton; Laura, wife 
of Dr. Marvin, of Northampton, who served as 
a surgeon during the Civil war; and Elizabeth, 
wife of Godfrey Shew, a farmer of Jefferson 



county, N. Y. The parents of this family 
were Presbyterians in religious belief, and the 
father all his life followed agricultural pursuits. 

The childhood and youth of Leman Bee- 
cher were passed under the parental roof, and 
on reaching man's estate he married Katherine 
Shew, who was born in Northampton, N. Y., 
May 4, 1794, and was a daughter of Jacob 
and Hannah Shew, the former a farmer, born 
April 15, 1763, of Holland e.xtraction. After 
their marriage the parents removed to a farm 
near Northampton, where three of their chil- 
dren were born, but the family circle was in- 
creased by the birth of si.x others after their 
removal to a farm in Kent, Conn. They were 
as follows: Catherine, born September 26, 
1820, first became the wife of Jesse Fuller, a 
farmer, of Kent, Conn., later wedded S. Slade, 
a farmer and real-estate and insurance agent, 
and now makes her home in Albany, N. Y. ; 
Hiram T. is next in order of birth; James F. , 
born August 30, 1824, is a farmer of North- 
ampton, Fulton Co., N. Y. ; Leman, born De- 
cember 23, 1826, was a merchant, and died 
August 24, 1863; Hannah E., born April 5, 
1829, is the wife of David B. Giddings, a 
farmer of Connecticut; Lydia D., born March 
9, 1832, married John G. Fenn, an agricult- 
urist of the town of Washington. Litchfield 
Co., Conn.; Abraham P., born January 16, 
1834, is a photographer, of Wilmington, Del.; 
Emily D., born July 23, 1S36, is the wife of 
Henry J. Ufford, a saddle maker of Newark, 
N. J.; and Jacob S., born February 13, 1839, 
is also a photographer, of Wilmington, Del. 
The parents were both members of the Con- 
gregational Church, and in Kent, Conn., the 
father followed farming and merchandising. 
His political affiliations were with the Whig 
party. His death occurred in the town of 
Washington, Dutchess county, October 17, 
1848; his wife died August 14, 1879. 

Hiram T. Beecher was reared to rural life 
on the farm in Kent, Conn., and after attend- 
ing the academies in that place and at Sharon, 
Conn., entered a law office where he studied 
for some time. F"or three years he was then 
employed as clerk in a general store in Kent, 
and the following year was engaged in farm- 
ing in the town of Northeast, Dutchess county. 
In 1846, in connection with a brother, he 
operated a farm in the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, which he continued to culti- 
vate until April, 1867, when he purchased his 
present farm of ninety-three acres. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



727 



On December 20, 1848, Mr. Beecher was 
married to Miss Mary White, who was born 
in the town of Washington, Dutchess county, 
December 25, 1822, and is a sister of Mrs. 
Hannah Brings and of Mrs. Catherine Kinney. 
Mr. and Mrs. Beecher are widely and favorably 
known throughout the county, and their circle 
of friends is only limited by their circle of ac- 
quaintances. For many years he has preached 
nearly every Sunday at various places in the 
county, and wasthe first to hold Sunday serv 
ice at the county alms house, where he preached 
for about eleven years. He has officiated at 
many funerals and Church gatherings of all 
kinds, and his influence for good is widely felt. 

Abraham Beecher, the great-grandfather of 
our subject, was a native of Connecticut. He 
married Desire Tolls, and they had a family of 
nine children, two of whom are yet living, and 
Abraham, the grandfather of Hiram T., was 
one of the oldest in the family. 



m ZARIAH CORNWELL is the proprietor 

£fk^ of a good farm located pleasantly in the 
town of Beekman, Dutchess county, and to its 
cultivation and fmprovement of which he has 
devoted his time for a period of over forty- four 
years, and now has one of the most highly 
productive places in the locality. He pur- 
chased his land of the Vandeburgs, and since 
it came into his possession has labored unceas- 
ingly to make it the valuable farm which we 
to-day find it. 

The early home of Mr. Cornwell was also 
in the town of Beekman, his birth having there 
occurred May 19, 181 5, and he is a son of 
Thomas Cornwell, who was there born in 
1778, and died in 1856. James Cornwell, 
the grandfather, was born on Long Island, 
but was brought to the town of Beekman 
by his father when only two years old. 
The latter, who bore the name of Richard 
Cornwell, obtained his farm from Henry Beek- 
man, the deed for which is still in the posses- 
sion of our subject, and is dated 1728. He 
became one of the pioneer settlers of this re- 
gion, and cleared his land of all those obstruc- 
tions usually encountered by the pioneer 
farmer. Upon that farm almost the entire life 
of James Cornwell was passed. He married 
Rachel Dennis, a native of the town of Beek- 
man, and they became the parents of five chil- 
dren: Richard, Thomas, James, Letitia and 
Phebe. 



Thomas Cornwell was reared on this farm, 
attending the district schools of the neighbor- 
hood, and on reaching years of maturity re- 
ceived a portion of the old home farm, where 
his death occurred. He married Miss Annie 
Crandall, daughter of Azariah Crandall, and 
by their marriage seven children were born, 
namely: Amanda, who died in the winter of 
1896, at the age of eighty-five years; Harvey, 
deceased; Azariah, of this review; Rachel, de- 
ceased; Sarah, of Chicago; Olive, wife of 
Elnathan Miller; and Richard, deceased. The 
mother of these children, who has also passed 
away, was an earnest Christian woman, a 
member of the Baptist Church. 

The education of our subject was acquired 
in the Gardner Hollow district school, and he 
remained under the parental roof until his 
marriage, which was celebrated in the town of 
Beekman on May 22, 1844, Miss Delia N. 
Peters, adopted daughter of James Peters, be-' 
coming his wife. The first vote of Mr. Corn- 
well was in support of the Whig party, and he 
is now identified with the Republican party, 
whose principles he most firmly advocates. In 
religious belief he is a Baptist, with which 
Church he has been connected for many years, 
and he is one of the most reliable and consci- 
entious men of the community. For sixteen 
years he served as commissioner of highways, 
filling that office to the satisfaction of all con- 
cerned, and the bridges which he constructed 
after the freshet of 1857 are still standing and 
in general use. 



J 



OHN HENRY FINK. Among the enter- 
prising and wide-awake citizens of Ame- 
nia, Dutchess county, whose place of 
birth was the far-away German Fatherland, 
and who are rapidly progressing toward that 
financial condition so much coveted by all, is 
the subject of this personal history. He was 
born in Bavaria on the Rhine, November 25, 
1843, and is a son of John H. Fink, a stone 
mason by trade, who died when John Henry 
was between two and three years old. 

In his native land our subject received his 
education, and learned the shoemaker's trade 
at Edenkoeben, the place of his birth, com- 
pleting his three-years' apprenticeship at the 
age of seventeen years. He then traveled for 
a few years in France, Prussia, and other 
parts of the German Empire, and in 1866 
sailed for America. He first located in Ham- 



728 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



ilton street, Brooklyn, N. Y., remaining there 
and in the vicinity for two years, and since 
1868 has been a resident of Amenia. For five 
years he worked at his trade where the bicy- 
cle repair shop now stands, and then re- 
moved to a biiiidinj::; where he conducted busi- 
ness until 1880, at which time he came to his 
present store. He is now the owner of the 
buildings running from his corner store down 
past and including the old Methodist Episco- 
pal Church, with the exception of one. He 
manufactures and carries a full line of boots 
and shoes, and also handles cigars, tobacco, 
toys, etc. 

Mr. Fink is a self-made man, having ac- 
quired all his property through his own enter- 
prise, perseverance and untiring labor, sec- 
onded by a strong determination to succeed. 
He is a man of genuine worth, enjo3'ing the 
respect and confidence of his neighbors, and 
since casting his first vote, after his arrival in 
Amenia, he has used his right of franchise in 
support of the men and measures of the Re- 
publican party. 

In the fall of 1869, at .Amenia, Mr. Fink 
wedded Mary Leubsdorph, who died August 
22, 1870. In that village he was again mar- 
ried, his second union being with Katherine 
Pfahl, and they have two sons: — J. Henry and 
George, who compose the firm of Fink Broth- 
ers, now engaged in the butcher business. On 
January 28, 1895, they bought out the busi- 
ness formerly conducted by Joseph Field. 
The elder son is now connected with Amenia 
Lodge No. 672, F. & A. M. 



JOSEPH D. COLEMAN, a prominent agri- 
culturist and produce dealer of Stanford- 
ville, Dutchess county, was born July 14, 
1820, in the town of Stanford. His family 
have long been firm adherents of the Quaker 
faith, and in early times suffered the persecu- 
tions common to its followers. His great- 
grandfather Coleman came from England, 
and settled on Nantucket Island early in the 
eighteenth century. His grandfather, Jethro 
Coleman, was born there, but came to Dutch- 
ess county previous to the Revolutionary war, 
and settled on a farm about two miles south- 
east of Stanfordville. He was twice married; 
his first wife died leaving a daughter of the 
same name, since deceased. His second wife 
was Deborah Russell, by whom he had four 



children: Benjamin, Joseph R., .Annie and 
Lydia. 

Benjamin Coleman, our subject's father, 
spent his life in the same locality, attending 
the district schools in his youth, and succeed- 
ing to the old homestead in later years. He 
married Sara Dean, daughter of Jonathan 
Dean, a well-known resident of Pleasant Val- 
ley. Si.x children were born of this union: 
William, Mary, Joseph D., Edward, George, 
and Robert, of whom the only survivors are 
our subject, and George, now a resident of 
Kansas. 

Joseph D. Coleman received his early edu- 
cation in the district schools near his home 
and in the Nine Partners Boarding School in 
the town of Washington. He was married in 
1847, to Miss Anna Carpenter, also a descend- 
ant of a highly-esteemed Quaker family. Her 
grandfather, Samuel Carpenter, was born in 
Dutchess county, April 22, 1763, and spent 
the greater part of his life farming in the town 
of Stanford, where he died November 5, 1844. 
He married Susanna Carpenter, with whom 
he spent fifty years and nine months (lacking 
two days) of happy wedded life. They had 
eight children, whose names with dates of 
birth are as follows: Israel, June 2, 1783; Anne, 
September 24, 1788; Samuel, October 4, 1790; 
George, March 6. 1792; Isaac, December 16, 
1794; Elias, November 27, 1796; Amy, Janu- 
ary 17, 1799, and Daniel S., October 13, 
1800. The last named, Mrs. Coleman's fa- 
ther, was born and educated in Westchester 
county, and in early manhood came to the 
town of Stanford, and engaged in agriculture, 
first at the home farm, but later at the present 
home of our subject, where he died October 24, 
1873. He married Phcebe Hull, daughter of 
Henry Hull, a well-known resident of that lo- 
cality. She was born November 24, 1803, 
and died May 21. 1856. Four children were 
born of this marriage: Henry Hull, May 16, 
1825; Sarah, June 22, 1827, who died in child- 
hood; Anna (Mrs. Coleman), January 3, 1829, 
and Caroline, born August 10, 1836, died June 

7. 1843- 

Mr. Coleman took his bride to the old 
homestead on his marriage in 1847, but ten 
years later he sold the place and moved to the 
farm at Stanfordville, where he built his pres- 
ent residence. His wife died November 24, 
1890, leaving one daughter, Cora E., who 
married Isaac S. Traviss. and has two chil- 
dren — F"lorence and J. Coleman Traviss. Our 





\ JTt^-^r-^^ 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



729 



subject's integrity, enterprise, and fine discre- 
tion in business matters give him a high stand- 
ing in the community. For many years he 
has dealt extensively in hay and straw, in ad- 
dition to his management of his estate. He is, 
like his forefathers, a Hicksite Quaker. Since 
the organization of the Prohibition party he 
has voted their ticket, being at first one of two 
voters in the township. He has never sought 
or held public office. 



LBERT AND FRANKLIN CLINE. 
Among the enterprising and prosperous 
farmers of the township of Amenia, Dutch- 
ess county, who thoroughly understand the 
vocation which they follow, and are there- 
fore enabled to carry on their chosen occupa- 
tion with profit to themselves, are the brothers 
whose names introduce this sketch. They are 
now actively engaged in agricultural pursuits 
and the milk business in the township which 
has always been their home, and where they 
are both widely and favorably known. 

The founder of the family in this country 
was Peter Klein, a native of Germany, who 
left the Fatherland about 1752 or 1753, and on 
reaching the shores of the New World first 
located at Rhinebeck, Dutchess Co., N. Y., 
but in 1760 removed to the farm now known 
as the E. E. Cline place, in the town of 
Amenia, between South Amenia and Amenia 
Union. He was a " redemptioner, " serving 
his time for his passage to this country. 

He left one son, John Cline, who was born 
at Rhinebeck in 1756, and died in the town of 
Amenia in 1845. There he acquired his educa- 
tion and on the home farm where he was 
reared he spent his entire life, engaged in 
farming. He married Lucy Phillips, and they 
became the parents of nine children, whose 
names and dates of birth are as follows: 
Betsey, September 25, 1784; Peter, February 
20, 1787; Allen, December 9, 1788; Philo, 
November 6, 1791; Asenath, October 26, 
1793; Clarissa, January 12, 1796; Ebenezer 
H., April I, 1798; Polly, April 26, 1801; and 
Julia B. , March 30, 1S03. Of this family, 
Asenath lived to an advanced age, dying April 
I, 1891. 

I^hilo Cline, the fourth in order of birth, 
is the father of our subjects. Upon the old 
home farm in the town of Amenia he was 
reared, attending the district schools of the 
neighborhood, and completing his education 



in a select school at Sharon, Conn. Owing to 
an accident which injured his foot in his 
younger days, he was unable to do active farm 
work, and about 1824 erected the store build- 
ing at South Amenia now occupied by M. F. 
Winchester, where he engaged in the mercan- 
tile business until 1838, when he sold out. In 
1840 he purchased the farm which is still 
occupied by his son Franklin, and there lived 
up to the time of his death, which occurred 
December 26, 1864. In his daily life and 
action he was ever genial and affable, winning 
many friends and the respect of all. In 
politics he was first a Whig and later a Repub- 
lican, and efficiently served as supervisor of 
his town. In the town of Amenia in February, 
1827, he married Miss Harriet Swift, daugh- 
ter of Moses Swift, who died April 9, 1838, at 
the age of seventy-three years. Mrs. Cline 
was ijorn September 24, 1796, and departed 
this life April 11, 1861. The only children 
born of this union were our subjects. 

Albert Cline was born on the home farm 
in the town of Amenia, Dutchess county, March 
3, 1828, and after finishing his education in 
the district schools and the Amenia Seminary, 
for one year was employed as clerk in the store 
of Judah Swift, at South Amenia. After his 
marriage, in connection with his brother, they 
engaged in milling until the spring of 1866, at 
which time he bought his present farm and 
residence, where he has since turned his atten- 
tion to farming and the milk business. 

On September 15, 1852, in Amenia, Albert 
Cline was united in marriage with Eliza S. 
Reed, who was the adopted daughter of Philo 
Reed, and died January 18, 1872, at the age 
of forty-one years. Four children graced this 
union, namely: (i) Hattie A., born June 13, 
1854, is the wife of Franklin Baylis, of Syra- 
cuse, N. Y. , and they had si.\ children — Albert 
C, Walter F., Eliza G., Clara R., Helen S., 
and Freddie, who died in infancy. (2) Philo 
R. , born December 7, 1S55, married Grace 
Collins, by whom he has one son — Albert C. , 
born September 12, 1892, and they make their 
home at Millerton, N. Y. (3) Charles A., 
born November 22, 1857, married Fay Sher- 
man, daughter of S. W. Sherman, by whom 
he has a son — Charles S., born December 22, 
1891, and they also live at Millerton. (4) 
Maria E., born September i, i860, is the wife 
of Walter A. Sherman, and they have five 
children — Agnes, Walter, Helen, May and 
Howland. Mr. Cline was again married at 



730 



COMMEMORATIVB BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Amenia, October 30, 1873, his second union 
being with S. Rebecca Willson, daughter of 
Samuel T. and Emeline (Sornborgen Willson. 
A native of Dutchess county, her father was 
born at Smithfield, October 3, 1803, and died 
December 3, 1889. 

The first vote of Albert Cline was cast in 
support of the Whig party, but since the organ- 
ization of the party he has been a stalwart 
Republican, and in 1885 and 1886 served as 
supervisor of the town of Amenia. Socially, 
he is connected with Amenia Lodge, No. 672, 
F. & A. M. His estimable wife is a member 
of the Presbyterian Church at South Amenia. 

Franklin Cline was born July 17, 1831, and 
also spent his boyhood days in the town of 
Amenia. His primary education was obtained 
in the district schools, and in 1848 was a stu- 
dent in the Nine Partners Boarding School. 
He has always turned his attention to agri- 
cultural pursuits, and, beside his general farm 
work, is also successfully engaged in the milk 
business. In the town of Stanford, Dutchess 
county, on October i, 1856, he married Lydia 
A. Sackett, daughter of John Thompson Sack- 
ett, and they became the parents of two chil- 
dren: Guernsey Sackett, born April 30, 1858; 
and Maria L., who was born December 16, 
1 86 1, and is now the wife of Frank M. Buck, 
an attorney at law of Mount Vernon, N. Y., 
by whom she has two children — Franklin Cline 
and Helen H. Like the other members of the 
family, Mr. Cline has been a lifelong Repub- 
lican, and he has ably served as assessor of 
his town. 

As representative farmers of the town of 
Amenia, the entire lives of the Cline brothers 
have been of unusual activity and industry, 
and they well deserve the high regard in which 
they are held by their fellow citizens. 



BOBERT MORRIS THOMAS, a leading 
and influential farmer of the town of 

Pine Plains, Dutchess county, was born Octo- 
ber 23, 1848, just across the creek from where 
he now resides, on the old Thomas homestead, 
and is a worthy representative of prominent 
Colonial families. On that farm his father, 
Hiram Thomas, was born in 1804. W'hen but 
an infant, the grandfather, Edward Thomas, 
was brought to Pine Plains by his mother, and 
he became one of the successful farmers and 
leadmg men of the community. He married 
Anna Landon, a daughter of Jonathan and 



Isabella (Graham) Landon, and to them were 
born seven children: Arabella (who married 
Simeon Culver), Walter, Samuel, John, Rich- 
ard, Hiram and Mary. 

The founder of the Landon family in 
America was Nathan Landon, who was born 
in Herefordshire, England, near Wales, and 
sometime prior to November 20, 1668, lo- 
cated at Southold, Suffolk Co., N. Y., 
where he died March 9, 1718, and his 
wife, Mary, in 1701. They had three sons: 
Nathan, James and Samuel. The last named 
became quite prominent, serving as justice of 
the peace from 1764 until 1775, was judge of 
common pleas for his county, and wielded a 
strong influence in courts and conventions. 
He was born May 20, 1699. married May 26, 
1 72 1, Bethia Tuthill, by whom he had six sons 
and four daughters; he died January 21, 1782, 
probably at Guilford, Conn., where many Long 
Islanders had taken refuge during the Revolu- 
tion. His wife, Bethia^ Tuthill (Henry, ' John,' 
Henry'), belonged to the Tuthill family of 
Sandringham, county of Norfolk, England (she 
was a descendant of Wm. Kinge, of Salem, 
Mass., of William Wells, Gent., and of Bar- 
nabas Horton, of Southold). Their youngest 
son was Jonathan, born at Southold October 
30, 1743; he died at Northeast, Dutchess 
county, in 1815. He was a stanch patriot 
during the Revolutionary war, dividing his 
time between civil and military service. He 
was a member of the Provincial Convention 
of New York in 1775-76-77; member of the 
Council of Safety, 1777-78; State Senator, 
1777-1779; major of Dutchess County Militia 
in 1775, and lieutenant-colonel in 1778 under 
his brother-in-law. Col. Morris Graham. He 
was, likely, Dutchess county clerk for some 
years. ["Southold Town Records;" "New 
York Civil List;" "Archives of the State of 
New York;" Revolution: "Journal of the 
Provincial Convention," and "J. H. Smith's 
Dutchess Co. His."] 

The Graham family trace their ancestry 
back to James Graham, Marquis of Montrose, 
who was born in 161 2, and died in Edinburgh, 
Scotland, in 1650. His son, John Graham, 
was the father of James Graham, who came to 
the New World about 1700, was Attorney 
General of the Province of New York, and 
died January 21, 1701. His children were 
Augustine, May, Sarah, Margaret, John and 
Isabella, the latter of whom married Hon. 
Lewis Morris, the first Provincial Governor of 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



731 



New Jersey, and they had a daughter, Ara- 
bella. The next in direct line is Augus- 
tine Graham, and his son, James, married 
his cousin, Arabella Morris, by whom he had 
the following children: James, Augustine, 
Lewis, Charles, Morris, John, Arabella and 
Isabella. James was killed by a fall; John, 
the youngest brother, served as a scout under 
Gen. Washington in Westchester county. The 
others were all active in the service of their 
native land: Augustine was a lieutenant; 
Charles was a captain and a member of the So- 
ciety of the Cincinnati; Lewis and Morris were 
both colonels and both members of the Pro- 
vincial Convention — Lewis from Westchester 
county, Morris from Dutchess. [Year Book 
of the " Society of the Cincinnati;" "Dutchess 
County History;" " Bolton's Westchester His- 
tory;" "Journal of the New York Provincial 
Convention."] 

The second son, Augustine, was the father 
of James Graham, who married Elizabeth 
Thompson, a daughter of Judge Jesse Thomp- 
son, and their daughter, Julia, married George 
Coventry. Isabella, the daughter of James 
and Arabella (Morris) Graham, married Jona- 
than Landon, their marriage license being 
issued December ii, 1771, and to them were 
born five children: (i) Richard, born in 
1772. (2) Arabella, born in 1773, married, 
about 1789, Amos^ Ketchum (Joseph,^ Na- 
thaniel,- Joseph 1), by whom she had sev- 
en children; she died in 1803, in Saratoga 
county. (3) Mary, born July 3, 1775, married 
John Church, and died May 30, 1850. (4) 
Anna, born in 1771, was the wife of Edward 
Thomas, the grandfather of the subject of our 
sketch; she died in 183S, aged si.xtj'-seven 
years. (5) Rebecca, born March 15, 1783, died 
November 19, 1844. ["Partial Record of 
the Landons of Southold," in N. Y. Gen. and 
Biog. Record, Jan., 1897.] 

The grandfather of Mrs. Isabella Landon, 
Augustine Graham, was surveyor general, and 
held a major's commission under the Crown in 
1700 in W'estchester county, and a colonel's 
commission in Richmond county in 1715 [See 
" Bolton's Westchester Co. Hist."; "Colonial 
MSS. of the State of New York".] He was a 
patentee in the Great Nine Partners Patent of 
1697, and also a patentee in the Little Nine 
Partners of 1706. His death occurred Octo- 
ber 18, 1 719. Morris Graham built the first 
house in the village of Pine Plains, now owned 
by Isaiah Dibble, and Jonathan Landon built 



the house on the hill in the rear of the home 
of our subject. The farm owned by Augustine 
Graham has always been transmitted by will, 
as it has never passed out of the family. 

Hiram Thomas, the father of our subject, 
was united in marriage with Catherine Coven- 
try, of Deertield, Oneida Co., N. Y. , a daugh- 
ter of Dr. Alexander Coventry, and they be- 
came the parents of five children: Julia, wife 
of Dr. Lewis D. Hodgekins, of Ellsworth, 
Maine; Jane, wife of John Veile, of Ancram, 
N. Y.; Charles, of Pine Plains; Robert M., 
whose name introduces this sketch; and Alice 
L. The father followed farming, but was 
principally engaged in iron manufacturing, be- 
ing part owner of the Ancram Iron Works, 
and was also interested in the milling business. 
He died in 1880, at the age of seventy-six 
years. 

The entire life of Robert M. Thomas has 
been passed in rural pursuits in the town of 
Pine Plains, and from the neat and thrifty ap- 
pearance of his place the passerby knows the 
owner and manager to be a man of enterprise 
and progressive ideas. In politics he is a 
strong advocate of the principles promulgated 
by the Prohibition party, but formerly was a 
Republican, and has served his fellow citizens 
as assessor. He is actively identified with all 
plans for the social and moral elevation of the 
community, and has the respect and confidence 
of all who kno^v him. 



E*\DWIN KNICKERBOCKER, one of the 
^ most prominent agriculturists of the town 

of Stanford, Dutchess county, and a leader in 
local politics, is a descendant of some of the 
early settlers of this region, the family having 
come originall}' from Holland. 

For several generations the homestead of 
the family has been at Pine Plains, Dutchess 
county, and here our subject's grandfather, 
Hugh Knickerbocker, was born, and here he 
followed farming for many years, moving later 
to Northeast. He married a Miss Stickle, and 
reared a family of six children: Peter, \'alen- 
tine, John, Nancy, Hugh and William, none of 
whom are now living. Hugh Knickerbocker 
(2), our subject's father, was born in 1801, and 
passed his early life at Pine Plains, attending 
the district schools of the neighborhood, later 
engaging in farming there and at Northeast, 
and in the town of Stanford, leading the quiet 
life of a farmer. For many years he was a 



COMMEIIORATIVE BIOORAPHTCAL RECORD. 



member of the New York State Militia. Dur- 
ing his residence in Northeast he united with 
the Baptist Church, of which he remained a 
consistent member until his death in 1882. 
He married (first) Miss Mary Payne, of North- 
east, and had four children: William, Theron, 
and Henry, all three residents of the town of 
Stanford, and Niles (deceased). The mother 
of these died about 1850, and for his second 
wife Mr. Knickerbocker married Miss Elizabeth 
Smith, born in 181 ", a daughter of John 
Smith, a well-known citizen of New Jersey. 
Four children were born of this union: Edwin, 
Jennie, Fannie (who married Edward Loomis, 
of Pittsfield, Mass.), and McClellan. 

Edwin Knickerbocker, the subject of our 
sketch, was born in Stanford, October 17, 
1854, and received his early education in the 
public schools of New York. When a young 
man he taught successfully in the towns of 
Stanford, Clinton, Milan and Washington, 
and then engaged in farming upon land bought 
of his father. His educational opportunities 
were good, and he has improved upon them 
by private reading until he has acquired a 
wide range of information, and his sterling 
qualities of character and sound judgment give 
him great influence in the community. A lead- 
ing worker in the Democratic party in his 
locality, he in 1881 was elected justice of the 
peace, and held the ofBce eleven years, serv- 
ing in the meantime for four years as justice of 
sessions in the county court. In the spring of 
1893 he was elected supervisor of the town of 
Stanford, in 1894 was re-elected for two years, 
and again in 1896 for two years. On June 5, 
1889, he was married to Miss Jennie Hooker, 
daughter of William and Sarah (Cutler) 
Hooker, well-known residents of the town of 
Dover, and has had four children: Jay, Asa, 
Elfie, and Sarah. A progressive farmer, he is 
a member of the Grange, in which he holds the 
office of master, and he is also affiliated with 
the K. of P. 



GILBERT COOPER, one of the leading 
and representative citizens of the town of 
Stanford, Dutchess county, was born in Fish- 
kill mow Wappinger) town. Dutchess county, 
March 23. 1820. His paternal grandfather, 
Obediah Cooper, who was of English origin, 
engaged in farming in Wappinger town, where 
he also followed the trades of a wheelwright 
and wagonmaker. He married Miss Maria 



\'an Benschoter. and by her had five children: 
William M., Ellas, Nancy, Sarah and Tunis. 

Tunis Cooper, the father of our subject, 
was also a native of the town of Wappinger, 
his birth occurring there June 25, 1787, and 
he wedded Mary Budd. a daughter of Under- 
bill Budd, of the same town. She was born 
April 22, 1793, and died April 10, 1825. They 
became the parents of the following children: 
Fletcher, born December 14, 1817, died May 
12, 1884; Gilbert, whose name introduces this 
sketch, is the next in order of birth; Maria, 
born October 2, 1821. became the wife of John 
W. Sleight, of Lagrange town, Dutchess coun- 
ty, and was killed by a cannon ball at Nicar- 
agua, Central America, April 15. 1857; John 
was born July 12, 1S23; William, born April 
2, 1825, enlisted in an Illinois regiment during 
the Civil war, served throughout that struggle 
as hospital steward, and died July 7, 186S. 
After the death of his first wife Tunis Cooper 
married Maria Myers, who was born Decem- 
ber 17. 1804, and died February 9. 1874. 
Five children graced this union: Matthew, 
born November 5, 1S28, died September 29, 
1850; Amanda, born May 13, 1831, married 
Benjamin Pugsley, of Alamosa, Colo.; Susan, 
born March 3, 1836, became the wife of Louis 
Umlauf, and died August 15, 1873; Martin 
Luther, born February 23, 1833, died January 
25, 1873; and Mary, born June 18, 1841, is the 
wife of William Pugsley. of Wappinger town. 

After his marriage Tunis Cooper purchased 
the farm next his father's, and continued to 
live there until 1865, when he removed to the 
village of Wappingers Falls, where he re- 
mained for a couple of years. He next pur- 
chased a place between that city and Pough- 
keepsie, where he resided until his death, Octo- 
ber 31, 1868. He had been drafted for the 
war of 1812, but hostilities ceased before he 
was called into action. On attaining his ma- 
jority he supported the Democratic party, but 
after the nomination of President Lincoln, he 
became a stanch Republican, though he never 
cared for political preferment. He served as 
trustee ami president of .Amenia Seminary; was 
one of the leading members of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church in the town of Wappinger, 
with which he was officially connected, and 
was alwajs faithful in the performance of his 
duties in both public and private life. 

During his boyhood and youth Gilbert 
Cooper attended the district schools of the 
town of Wappinger, and in 1842 left the place 



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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



im 



of his nativity, locating at that time upon his 
present farm; but he was often with his father 
before the latter's death, caring for him and 
assisting him in his business. For many years 
he has rented his farm on shares. His poht- 
ical support is given the Democratic party, and 
he has served as assessor of the town of Stan- 
ford, also as trustee of Amenia Seminary, and 
was a member of the executive committee of 
that institution. He has been prominently 
identified with the upbuilding and welfare of 
the community, and his circle of friends 
throughout the county is very wide. 

John Cooper, the brother of our subject, 
received his primary education in the district 
schools of the town of Wappinger, after which 
he attended the Amenia Seminary. In 1844 
he removed to Kendall county. 111., where for 
forty years he engaged in farming, but is now 
living with his brother Gilbert in Stanford 
town, Dutchess county. He was first married 
in the town of Lagrange, Dutchess county, to 
Rachel R. Sleight, who died at the end of a 
year. In Kendall county. 111., he was again 
married, this time to Eliza Van Kleeck, a 
native of Fishkill town, Dutchess county, who 
died in Iowa. They became the parents of 
six children: Tunis, now in Minnesota; James 
Fenimore, of South Dakota; Gilbert B., of 
Minnesota; Nellie, wife of Frank Jasinsky; 
Walter, of Iowa; and Edna, of Stissing, town 
pf Stanford, Dutchess county. 



HIRAM A. PULTZ, one of the leading 
agriculturists of the town of Rhinebeck, 

Dutchess county, was born December 25, 1 82 1 , 
upon the estate adjoining the one on which he 
now resides. 

His grandfather, David Pultz, purchased 
the property in the early part of the eighteenth 
century. He married Miss Tipple, and had 
nine children: Michael, a farmer and carpen- 
ter; Adam, a farmer in Columbia county; 
Henry, a farmer; Andrew, our subject's father; 
David, a merchant and farmer; Leah, who 
married Andrew D. Traver, a farmer; Margaret, 
who married Fred Dedrick; Christina, who 
married Philip Traver; and Maria, who married 
Jacob Pells, a farmer in Rhinebeck. David 
Pultz and his wife lived at the old farm to an 
advanced age, and for many years were mem- 
bers of the Lutheran Church at Wurtemburg. 

Andrew Pultz, our subject's father, was 
born May 18, 1792, and always engaged in 



agriculture. He married Rebecca Cooking- 
ham, born January 9, 1798, a daughter of 
Frederick Cookingham, who came from Hol- 
land in early manhood and located upon a farm 
in Rhinebeck. They had two children, of whom 
our subject was the younger. Ephraim W., 
now deceased, was a farmer in Rhinebeck. 
Andrew Pultz died April 12, 1859, and his wife 
September 18, 1883. In politics he was a 
Whig. 

Hiram A. Pultz has always lived near the 
old homestead. His present wife was Miss 
Annette Pultz, a native of the town of Rhine- 
beck, where her father, Jacob I. Pultz, was 
for some years a wagonmaker and farmer. 
Two children were born of this union: Anna 
and Minnie (deceased). Mr. Pultz raises gen- 
eral crops, and has done much to improve the 
homestead, building a beautiful residence about 
thirteen years ago. In politics he is a Re- 
publican, and has served as assessor of the 
township. 

Jacob I. Pultz, father of Mrs. Hiram A. 
Pultz, died recently at the patriarchal age of 
ninety-two years, having been born in Rhine- 
beck in 1805, a son of John Pultz, a prominent 
farmer, and a member of one of the oldest 
families in the town. Jacob I. was a farmer 
in Rhinebeck until 1856, when he removed to 
a large farm on the Salt Point road, and in 
1859 took up his residence in Arlington, where 
he passed the rest of his days. He was a man 
of fine literary tastes, and also an excellent 
musician, and was a member of the band that 
welcomed La Fayette to Poughkeepsie, on the 
occasion of that general's visit there in the 
early part of this century. In politics Mr. 
Pultz was, in later life, a strong Republican, 
and served in Rhinebeck as assessor and in 
Arlington as justice of the peace. He is sur- 
vived by a widow and two daughters — An- 
nette (Mrs. H. A. Pultz) and Mary, the latter 
residing at Arlington. 



HOMAS BUTTS, an agriculturist of en- 
ergy and ability, owns the old family 
homestead in the town of Amenia, where the 
founder of the family, Thomas Butts, located 
160 years ago. He was one of three broth- 
ers, who came to the New World from England, 
and established the family in Dutchess county, 
where most of his descendants have since made 
their home. 

Richard Butts, the grandfather of our sub- 



734 



COMMEMORATIVE DIOORAPHIC'AL RECORD. 



ject, was born in Washington town, and was 
the son of Thomas Butts. By trade he was 
a cooper, and lived to the advanced age of 
ninety years. He married Susan Edmunds, 
by whom he had nine children: James and 
Jackson, deceased; Richard S. ; George; Rachel, 
Charlotte and Lois, all three deceased; Han- 
nah, who became the wife of Casper Wester- 
velt. and is now deceased; and Mary Ann, wife 
of Barlow White, of Tower Hill. 

Richard S. Butts, the father of our subject, 
is also a native of the town of Anienia, and 
spent his boyhood days on Chestnut Ridge in 
the town of Washington, Dutchess county, 
where he attended the district schocl. He 
was married in the town of Gallatin, Colum- 
bia Co., N. Y. , to Miss Eleanor Finkle, 
daughter of George and Mary (Kilmer) Finkle, 
and they became the parents of seven children: 
George and Robert, both of the town of Amenia; 
Thomas, subject of this sketch; Susan, wife of 
John Hunter; Phebe, wife of Seneca Miller, of 
Poughkeepsie, N. Y. ; Elizabeth; and Lottie, 
wife of Millard Coons, of Claverack, New York. 

After his marriage, Richard S. Butts pur- 
chased a sawmill near Ancram, Columbia Co., 
N. Y. , which he conducted for many years, and 
then moved into the village, where he engaged 
in the butcher business. In 1863 he went to 
Hudson, N. Y., where he followed the same 
line of trade for three years, and. returning to 
Ancram, he there continued to reside until 
1895. Now, at the ripe old age of eighty-four 
years, he finds a pleasant home with our sub- 
ject. He has been a lifelong Democrat, and 
has been called upon to fill the positions of 
justice of the peace and poormaster in An- 
cram. Socially, he is connected with the In- 
dependent Order of Odd Fellows at Copake, 
New York. 

At Ancram, Columbia county, Thomas 
Butts was born, May 15, 1847, and in the pub- 
lic schools of that locality was educated. Un- 
der the able instruction of his father, he early 
became familiar with the milling and butcher 
business, and in 1865 left home, going to 
work for neighboring farmers. Later he fol- 
lowed the same occupation in the town of 
Amenia, Dutchess county, for one year, being 
employed by his uncle, Jackson Butts, and for 
two years by Dr. William H. Tanner, but was 
subsequently with the latter gentleman for ten 
years. After the first two years passed upon 
his farm, Mr. Butts was for a time engaged in 
teaming in the village of Rhinebeck, Dutchess 



county, on the Connecticut & Hartford rail- 
road, after which he returned to Dr. Tanner. 
On leaving that gentleman, he rented a farm 
for one year on Skiff Mountain, and for the 
following two years lived upon the farm now 
occupied by W. A. Sherman. He was next 
employed by John R. Thompson, engaged in 
drilling artesian wells. For the past fifteen 
years he has been superintendent of the D. H. 
Sherman farm, renting it for six years, the 
last year of which he had under his manage- 
ment 1000 acres of land. He is a model 
farmer, thoroughly understanding his business, 
and has met with excellent success in his 
chosen calling. He still owns the farm upon 
which his grandfather lived. 

In the town of Amenia, in 1867, was cele- 
brated the marriage of Mr. Butts and Miss 
Sarah E. Wheeler, daughter of Seth Wheeler, 
and to them were born three sons: Willis 
R., Edward and Charles. Willis R. married 
Florence Wheeler, and they now have three 
children: Ethel, Thomas and George. Mr. 
Butts is a stanch adherent to the principles of 
the Republican party in his politics, and sup- 
ports the candidates offered by that organiza- 
tion on all occassions. He is a most pleasant, 
agreeable gentleman, who easily wins friends, 
and has the happy faculty of retaining them. 
He is kind, unaffected and approachable, and 
every one receives his courteous attention. 



ANTHONY H. BARTON is the owner of 
a fine farm of 200 acres, pleasantly lo- 
cated in the town of Pine Plains, Dutchess 
county, which he has been operating success- 
fully since 1864. He has been the architect of 
his own fortune, and has never been afraid of 
putting his shoulder to the wheel whenever 
necessary. His land has been brought to a 
high state of cultivation, largely by the labor 
of his own hands, and he is the possessor of 
good farm buildings, to which each }-ear he 
adds something to enhance the beauty and 
value of his property. He takes great delight 
in landscape gardening, and his place is, there- 
fore, one of the most beautiful to be found in 
the town of Pine Plains. 

Mr. Barton was born in Columbia county, 
N. Y., July 4, 1836, and is a son of George 
W. Barton. His educational privileges were 
quite good, and on leaving school at the age 
of seventeen years he aided his father in 
the operation of the home farm until his mar- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



735 



riage. In 1858 he wedded Emily M. Sackett, 
daughter of Allen Sackett, of the town of 
Stanford, and to them were born five children: 
Sarah E., born March 18, 1859, married Sep- 
tember 13, 1877, to Albert Keller, of Stanford, 
N. Y. (they have one son, Herbert); one that 
died in infancy; Frank (proprietor of the 
" Stissing House" at Pine Plains), born March 
23, 1864, married December 4, 1883, to Myra 
Rosa, of Ulster county (no children); Cora R. , 
born July 18, 1862, married April 25, 1889, to 
Willis Wright, of Syracuse (they have two 
children, Herbert and Howard); and Fred, 
who was born on the present farm of our sub- 
ject November 13, 1865, married February 28, 
1883, to Lizzie Moore, of the town of Milan 
(has one child, Roy), and is engaged in car- 
pentering and painting in the village of Pine 
Plains. The mother of these children died in 
1876, and Mr. Barton was afterward married 
to Isophime Wilkinson, daughter of Sidney T. 
Wilkinson, of Hammerton, New York. 

A year after his first marriage Mr. Barton 
rented the farm now owned by Mrs. Eban 
Husted, but at the end of a year he removed 
to the Dr. Barton farm, in the town of Stan- 
ford, owned by his father, and besides its 
cultivation he also gave considerable attention 
to stock dealing. He next lived upon the farm 
owned by his father at Boston Corners, from 
which he removed to the Joshua Culver place, 
near Carman's Mills. After residing there for 
about a year, Mr. Barton purchased for $15,- 
000 the farm of 200 acres which he now 
occupies. About ten years after locating upon 
his present farm he began speculating in stock, 
grain, hay, straw and other farm produce, in 
which he was quite successful. For a quarter 
of a century he was also engaged in auction- 
eering, and does most of the business along 
that line throughout his section of the county. 
In his first venture in farming at Boston Cor- 
ners, Columbia county, he had no capital; but 
buying cows on credit and selling them again, 
secured his first start in life. In his early 
experience with his father, who was exceed- 
ingly economical, he learned the value of a 
dollar, which came to be worth thousands to 
him later, and he has always been an able 
financier. 

Mr. Barton has always taken an active 
part in local politics, and is a strong supporter 
of the Democratic party, has served as high- 
way commissioner twelve years, assessor two 
years, and overseer of the poor for about one 



year. Public-spirited and enterprising, he has 
taken a foremost part in the upbuilding and 
advancement of his locality. Socially, he is 
prominently identified with Stissing Lodge No. 
615, F. & A. M., and in religious belief is a 
Presbyterian, while Mrs. Barton is a Methodist. 
George W. Barton, father of our subject, 
born in the town of Stanford, Dutchess county. 
May 14, 1795, died September 17, 1872. He 
was a very peculiar man; was never known to 
have but one suit of clothes at a time, which 
he wore every day of the week, including Sun- 
days. He did his own hair-cutting (with a 
jack-knife) and shaving (without any mirror), 
and yet hardly a day passed but what he had 
from three to five dollars in his pocket. His 
wife, Elizabeth (Hoffman), born May 28, 1800, 
died August 26, 1879. They had nine chil- 
dren, to wit: Mariette, born March i, 1824, 
married Warden Hoysradt, and died Septem- 
ber 12, 1873 (^no surviving children); William 
H., born August 25, 1825, married Cornelia 
Decker, and died January 24, 1879 (no chil- 
dren); George W., Jr., born May 19, 1827, 
married (first) Julia Collins (two children), and 
wedded (second) Mary French (no children); 
Catherine, born December 15, 1829, married 
William McArthur (no surviving children); 
Rachel, born December 16, 1831, married 
James Collins (one child); Leonard, born De- 
cember 14, 1834, married Henrietta Pulver 
(three children); Anthony H., the subject 
proper of this sketch; Artemus S., born Octo- 
ber 30, 1838, married (first) Mariette Rocka- 
feller (no children), and wedded (second) Jane 
Tripp (two children); and Fred, born May 24, 
1 84 1, married (first) Elizabeth Hoysradt (^six 
children), and wedded (second) Zadie Tripp 
(no children). 



EUBEN J. ROBINSON. Among the ac- 
fc, tive farmers of the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county, the gentleman whose name 
stands at the beginning of this sketch holds a 
prominent place. He is a native of the coun- 
ty, born in the town of Clinton, July 5, 1854. 
His paternal grandfather, John Robinson, was 
born in the town of Milan, same county, Jan- 
uary 31, 1794, and was the son of John Rob- 
inson, who emigrated from Ireland to the New 
World, becoming a resident of Dutchess coun- 
ty. On June 15, 181 5, John Robinson, Jr., 
married Submity Horton, who died June i, 
18 1 8, leaving a son, who was born February 



730 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



22, 1817, and died June 25, 1867. Mr. Rob- 
inson again married on January 22, 1820, his 
second union being with Esther Ellison, who 
was born March 22, 1793, and died October 
22, 1863. They became the parents of five 
children, namely: Simmons, born July 16, 
1S22, is the father of our subject; Eliza Ann, 
born June 7, 1824, died October 17, 1866; 
Nancy, born August 14, 1826, married John J. 
Conklin, of Leonard, Tex. ; John, born March 
7, 1829, died April 6, 1885; and Smith, born 
March 15, 1831, died December 18, 1833. 
The father of this family was educated in his 
native town and learned the trade of a tanner, 
which he followed in Stanfordsville until his 
death, October 26, 1846. 

The birth of Simmons Robinson occurred 
in the town of Stanford, and in the schools of 
Stanfordville he acquired his education. He 
began life lor himself at an early age, working 
for farmers in the neighborhood, and in 185 i 
was able to purchase a farm in the town of 
Clinton, where he lived for eleven years. In 
1865, he purchased a farm in Stanford, Bear 
Market-four-corners, and resided there until 
in 1 88 1, when he deeded this farm to his son, 
Reuben J., and moved to a small farm adjoin- 
ing, that had been purchased by his wife. 

On August 31, 1845, he was married to Jane 
Husted, who was born February 13, 1824, the 
daughter of Reuben Husted. Three children 
were born of this union: Courtland, born 
June 26, 1846, has been a teacher, but is now 
engaged in farming in Hyde Park township, 
Dutchess county, and in politics is a Prohibi- 
tionist; Lavina M., born July 29, 1848, died 
January 18, 1852; and Reuben J. is the young- 
est. The mother was called to her final rest 
on July 30, 1895. Since her death the father 
returned to his old home, and now lives with 
our subject. He has always been quite suc- 
cessful in his business ventures, was a faithful 
member of the Christian Church, and politic- 
ally, was first a \\'hig, and is now a firm sup- 
porter of the Republican party. 

During his boyhood and youth our subject 
attended the district schools of the towns of 
Clinton and Stanford, and spent his entire life 
upon the old homestead, with the exception of 
one year passed at Pleasant Plains in the town 
of Hyde Park, Dutchess county. Besides gen- 
eral farming he was engaged in the milk busi- 
ness. On July 4, 1875, Mr. Robinson was 
married to Miss Carrie L. Moon, daughter of 
Franklin Moon, of Saratoga county, N. Y. 



Our subject's career as a farmer has been char- 
acterized b\' keen judgment, shrewd common 
sense and good business habits, and as a man 
he stands deservedly high in the regard of his 
fellow-citizens. 



HORACE RENNIE POWELL, M. D., one 
of the most prominent physicians in the 

city of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was 
born February 16, i860, at Coeymans, Albany 
Co., New York. 

His family is of Welsh origin, three broth- 
ers having come from Wales to this country 
about 1 760, one of whom located in V' irginia, one 
on Long Island and one in Westchester county, 
N. Y. Many descendants of the latter moved 
to Albany and Greene counties, and among 
these were the direct ancestors of our subject. 
His great-grandfather, John T. Powell, was a 
native of Coeymans, where he passed his life 
engaged in farming. Like all of this family, 
he was a Quaker in religious faith, and by his 
quiet, consistent life he won the high esteem 
of all who knew him. He married Anna Hal- 
sted, and had three children: James H. ; 
Joshua, now living at the age of eighty years; 
and Phrebe Ann, who died in 1892, aged forty. 
John T. Powell died in 1857, aged sixty-five, 
and his wife in 1861, at the age of sixty-four. 

James H. Powell, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born in 181 1, and died in 1891; he 
was a captain on a line of freight boats on the 
Hudson between Coxsackie and New York, 
owned by Reed & Powell, produce dealers. 
This occupation he followed until old age un- 
fitted him for labor, becoming well known 
along the river, where his warm heart and con- 
stant effort to promote the happiness of others 
won him universal friendship. He also owned 
and conducted a farm at Coeymans, and took 
an influential part there in local affairs, being 
one of the leading Democratic managers in Al- 
bany county. He was not an office seeker, 
and held few official positions, but was for 
two years — -1875 and 1876 — supervisor of his 
township. He married Sally Ann Kelley, 
who was born in 181 2, and died in 1S84, a 
daughter of Sylvanus and Mary (Dodge) Kel- 
ley, both of whom were natives of England. 
Sylvanus Kelley died in 1862, his wife surviv- 
ing him six years. James H. Powell and his 
wife had six children: John S. ; Jefferson, a 
resident of Coeymans; Ambrose and Henry 
(both now deceased); Mary (Mrs. Garret C. 




<^(ju5rc^ J rvMsA ^, ^<-i^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



737 



Huyck, of Minneapolis, Minn.); and Alexan- 
der, a resident of Manchester, New Hampshire. 

John S. Powell, father of our subject, was 
born at Coeymans, N. Y., January ii, 1835, 
and was educated at the Albany State Normal 
School. For twenty-five years he followed 
the occupation of teaching with great success, 
achieving high reputation throughout the State 
both as a disciplinarian and as an instructor. 
After teaching a few j'ears at his native place 
and in Freehold, Greene county, he became 
principal of the academy at Nassau, Rensselaer 
county, and during the last eight years of his 
professional work he was principal of the 
Union Free School at " Bath-on-the-Hudson. " 
He was a Democrat in early life, afterward a 
Republican, and was at one time clerk of the 
town of Coeymans. In his later years he en- 
gaged in the school, church and opera house 
furniture business. 

In 1857 John S. Powell was married to 
Rachel A. Powell, a descendant of the Long 
Island branch of the family. Her grandfather, 
Thomas T. Powell, who died in 1862, at the 
age of ninety-one years, kept an old-fashioned 
inn at Westerlo, Albany county. His mother 
was a Titus, and his wife was Mary Ann 
Greene, who died in 1861 at the age of eighty- 
six years; she was of Welsh blood, and a direct 
descendant of Gen. Nathaniel Greene. Six 
children were born to Thomas Powell and his 
wife: Ezekiel died in 1882 at the age of 
seventy-five; Joseph D. died at sixty; Orrin at 
fifty -five; Jesse D. at thirty; Harriet at fifty- 
five; and Mary Ann at fifty. 
, Ezekiel Powell, the maternal grandfather 
of our subject, married Prudence Halsted, who 
died in 1884, aged seventy-two years. She 
was one of the ten children of Stephen and 
Eve (Decker) Halsted, both of whom were 
natives of Germantown, Dutchess county. He 
died in 1835 aged fifty-five, his wife passing 
away in 1867. Of their children all but 
three lived in Illinois. Thomas died there at 
the age of eighty; Bartow at fifty; Stephen D. 
at forty-five; Samuel at sixty; John now lives 
there at eighty years of age; Betsey Ann died 
there at forty-five; Mary Ann is living there at 
seventy-five. Of those who remained in New 
York, besides Prudence, there were Sally 
Maria (Mrs. Blossom), who is living in Wes- 
terlo, at the age of sixty-two; and Marilla, 
who died at South Westerlo when aged twenty- 
four. 

From the foregoing it will be seen that at 
47 



the time of the birth of Dr. Powell (in i860) 
he was blessed with six living grandmothers 
and four grandfathers. He was the only child 
of his parents, and they lived to rejoice in his 
success, his father dying in 1895, his mother 
now residing with him. Our subject attended 
the public schools of his native place while 
his father was teaching there, and at the age 
of sixteen entered the Albany Normal School, 
where he took the two-years' course, graduat- 
ing with the valedictory honors in 1878. For 
a short time he conducted a drug store at 
" Bath-on-the-Hudson", and disposing of it he 
matriculated in the fall of 1878 at the Albany 
Medical College under Dr. E. T. Rulison mow 
of Buffalo, N. Y.), the late Dr. Norman L. 
Snow,- of Albany, curator of the college, and 
Prof. Albert V'an Der Veer, as preceptors. He 
was graduated in 1882, being again awarded 
the honor of delivering the valedictory address. 
In the spring of that year he located at Housa- 
tonic, Mass. ; but in the fall he moved to 
Poughkeepsie and commenced practice at No. 
4 Garden street. Fortune did not at first 
smile upon him, but his fine abilities and train- 
ing gradually won recognition, so that at 
the end of three years he had a fair practice, 
and now has one of the best in the city. He 
keeps well abreast of the advances of his pro- 
fession, his retentive memory being a great 
advantage to him, and is very successful as a 
general practitioner. 

In 1883 Dr. Powell married Idell H. 
Champlin, daughter of Charles Champlin, and 
has two children, Robert Carlisle and Vera 
Terry. Possessing a genial nature, the Doctor 
is a leading spirit in local affairs. He takes an 
ardent interest in the success of the Republic- 
an party; was health officer of the city under 
Mayor Ellsworth, and is now a member of the 
Board of Education. He belongs to Pough- 
keepsie Bicycle Club, the K. of P., Triumph 
Lodge No. 165, and to the Masonic fraternity, 
Triune Lodge No. 782, being the first man to 
be admitted to that order at a regular com- 
munication of the lodge in the new Masonic 
Temple. Among his professional brethren he 
holds a high rank, and is a member of the 
Dutchess County Medical Society, has been 
president of the Clinical Society of Poughkeep- 
sie, and in 1892 was president of the Alumni 
Association of the Albany Medical College. 
He is U. S. Pension Examining Surgeon; is 
surgeon of the Nineteenth Separate Company, 
Third Brigade, New York; has been Police 



738 



COMMEMORATIVE BJOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



Surgeon, and is now County Physician. He 
is also a member of the Board of Trade, and 
of the Retail Merchants Association of the City 
of Poughkeepsie; is a member of Davy Crock- 
ett Hook and Ladder Company No. i, being 
ex-president thereof, and at the present time is 
president of the board of trustees. 



JAMES A. MARSHALL. One does not 
have to pursue his investigations far into 
the annals of Dutchess county before he 
finds that the name of this gentleman is con- 
spicuous on the pages of its history. His life 
is distinctive from the fact that he is one of 
the oldest native sons of the county, and a rep- 
resentative of one of its most honored pioneer 
families. In Pleasant Valley, April 26, 18 19, 
he first opened his eyes to the light of day, 
and his father, Henry S. Marshall, was born 
in the same town. May 5, 1793. The grand- 
father, James Marshall, was born in the same 
locality, March 5, 1765. The great-grand- 
father, John Marshall, was one of the seven 
sons of the founder of the family in America, 
who came to this country from his native Eng- 
land. 

James Marshall, the grandfather of our 
subject, married Catherine Van Vorehis, and 
located on a farm in the town of Pleasant Val- 
ley, where they reared children as follows: 
John, who was a merchant and school-teacher; 
Henry S., father of our subject; Stephen, a 
printer by trade, took charge of the State 
prison in later life; George, who lived in vari- 
ous localities in Dutchess county; Elizabeth, 
wife of William Welling, a farmer; Sally, wife 
of William Allen, a farmer; Catherine, wife of 
George Ham, an agriculturist; Elsie, wife of 
Lansing Thorne, who followed the same pur- 
suit; and Julia, wife of Isaac Newcomb, who 
died in a Rebel prison during the Civil war. 

Henry S. Marshall in his early life learned 
the trade of a bookbinder. He married Sarah 
Allen, a native of the town of Pleasant Valley, 
and a daughter of Jcihn I. and Esther Allen, 
whose family numbered twelve children. Her 
father was an agriculturist, and was of English 
lineage. Mr. and Mrs. Marshall began house- 
keeping on a farm in Pleasant Valley town, 
where they spent their remaining days, their 
friends and neighbors holding them in the 
highest esteem for many excellencies of char- 
acter. Consistent members of the Presbyte- 
rian Church, Mr. Marshall served for many 



years as deacon. In politics he was a \\'hig. 
In the family were four children: Catherine 
E., deceased; James A.; Eliza and Isaac, who 
have also passed away. 

The respected subject of this review, James 
A. Marshall, lived with his parents through the 
days of his boyhood and youth, and early be- 
came familiar with the duties of farm life. On 
leaving home he married Cordelia Conover, a 
native of the town of Poughkeepsie, and a 
daughter of Jacob Conover, an enterprising 
farmer, born in Dutchess county, and descended 
from an old Holland family. The marriage of 
Mr. and Mrs. Marshall, which was celebrated 
October 27, 1843, was blessed with four chil- 
dren: Sarah E., wife of Bartlett Devine, a 
farmer of Pleasant Valley town; Isaac, a farmer 
of Olive town, Ulster county; Henry J., who 
operates land near the old homestead; and 
Nellie, wife of Harvey Halsted, a farmer of 
the town of Pleasant Valley. 

Mr. Marshall has made farming his life 
work. Having resided at various places in the 
county, he removed in 1886 to his present 
home in the town of Pleasant Valley, where 
he has since lived retired, enjoying the compe- 
tence that has come to him as the reward of 
his earnest and able labors in former years. 
In September, 1895, he was called upon to 
mourn the loss of his loved wife, with whom 
he had traveled life's journey for more than 
half a centur\-, but he lives in the hope of a 
blessed reunion in the land where sorrow and 
death are no more. His religious connection 
is with the Presbyterian Church, and his po- 
litical association with the Republican party, 
by which he was elected road commissioner 
and assessor. His life is not marked by any 
events of exciting or thrilling interest, but his 
is the honorable career of a man who has al- 
ways faithfully performed his duties to the 
best of his ability, and with promptness and 
fidelity discharged every trust reposed in him. 



E^LIPHAZ DELAMATER, a well-known 
_^ farmer of the town of Lagrange, Dutch- 
ess county, was born in the town of Esopus, 
Ulster Co., N. Y., March 21, 1842. The 
great-great-grandfather on the paternal side 
came to this State from Holland at an early 
day, and settled in Esopus. His son John was 
born there, and the latter's son John was born 
at Esopus, August 4, 1779, and died Septem- 
ber 18, 1858. 



COMMEMORATIVE BLOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



739 



This John Delamater, the grandfather of 
our subject, was married September 13, 1806, 
to Fanny Decker, who was born August 24, 
1780, and died March 6, 185S. Their children 
were as follows: Catherine, born August 7, 
1807; Jacob, September 25, 18 10; John (father 
of our subject), November 26, 18 12; Peter, 
May 24, 1817; Eliza, July 27, 1823. The 
father of this family was a miller by trade, and 
followed that occupation for a number of 
years. He owned a mill which he subse- 
quently sold, and and in connection with his 
father purchased a farm. He was a prominent 
man in his community, and had the confidence 
of the public. He was made the trustee of 
many estates, and managed all his affairs with 
discretion and good judgment. He was a 
member of the Reformed Dutch Church, and 
helped to build the edifice, and was one of its 
most liberal supporters. For four years before 
his death he was afflicted with blindness, 
which he bore with fortitude and uncomplain- 
ing patience. 

John Delamater, father of our subject, was 
reared in the town of Esopus, Ulster count}-, 
on his father's farm, and attended the district 
schools of that locality. He carried on farm- 
ing there until 1865, when he sold out and re- 
moved to Lagrange town, Dutchess county, 
buying the farm on which our subject now re- 
sides. Here he made his home until the time 
of his death, which took place April 27, 1891. 
He was married in Esopus, June 8, 1833, to 
Sarah Terpening, who was there born Decem- 
ber 5, 181 3. Their children were Israel \'an- 
Keuren, born November i, 1835, and died May 
6, 1868; and Eliphaz, the subject of this re- 
view. John Delamater was a member of the 
Reformed Church, and was highway commis- 
sioner in the town of Esopus. He was a man 
of fine character, and was universally re- 
spected. 

Our subject spent his boyhood days in 
Esopus, where he attended the district schools. 
When twenty-three years old he came with his 
parents to Lagrange township, and has resided 
there for the past thirty years, being engaged 
in farming. He was married October 25, 
18S2, to Anna M., daughter of Philip Schuyler 
Andrews, and their family consists of the fol- 
lowing children: John and Emott (twins), 
Harold, Mildred, Wilfred and Cornelia. 

Mr. Delamater is a member of the Re- 
formed Church at New Hackensack, and in 
politics is in sympathy with the Republican 



party, although he takes no active part in 
public affairs, and has never been an aspirant 
for office. He is a quiet, unostentatious man, 
and is highly respected by all who know him. 



GILBERT E. VAN WAGNER, one of the 
_ representative farmers of the town of 
Pleasant Valley, is a native of Dutchess coun- 
ty, born in Hyde Park, January 3, 1838. The 
kingdom of Holland, which has given to the 
world one of the hardiest races of people, 
sheltered the ancestors of our subject, but for 
many generations they have made their home 
in the county. The grandfather, Gilbert Van- 
W^agner, was born in the town of Pleasant 
Valley, and was a son of Evert Van Wagner, 
who carried on farming there. The former 
wedded Catherine Schriver, also a native of 
Dutchess county, and located upon a farm in 
Hyde Park, where their seven children were 
born, namely: Hannah first married a cous- 
in by the name of Van Wagner, a farmer 
by occupation, and after his death became 
the wife of a Mr. Butts, a resident of the 
western part of the State; Helen married 
Charles J. Todd, a farmer of Hyde Park; 
Mary was the wife of Jacob Tillottson, a 
wagon maker and farmer of Hyde Park; John, 
who wedded Lettie Humphrey, also engaged 
in farming in Dutchess county; Isaac married 
Jennett Beech, and carried on agricultural 
pursuits in the town of Clinton, Dutchess 
county; Evert G. is the father of our subject; 
and James, a farmer, married Ann Beech. 

In Hyde Park Evert G. Van Wagner was 
born, and on reaching man's estate he married 
Sarah Humphrey, who was born in the town 
of Beekman, Dutchess county, a daughter of 
John Humphrey, who carried on farming 
there. Her mother, who bore the maiden 
name of Jane Bregraw, was a native of New- 
town, Long Island, and by her marriage had 
six children, of whom Sarah was the eldest. 
She was followed by Phcebe, wife of George 
H. Traver, a retired farmer of Saratoga, N. 
Y. ; Elizabeth, wife of Harris McFarland, a 
farmer of the town of Pleasant Valley; Ellen, 
wife of George Bates, also an agriculturist of 
Pleasant Valley town; and Thomas, who mar- 
ried Ellen Skidmore. After his marriage 
the father of our subject took his bride to his 
farm in Hyde Park town. They became the 
parents of children as follows: George, who 
died at the age of twenty-two years; John, 



740 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPBWAL RECORD. 



who wedded Mary Mosher; Abram, who mar- 
ried Sophia Wagner; Andrew, who married 
Cordelia Wagner; Gilbert, of this review; 
and Kate. The sons all followed in the foot- 
steps of their father — engaging in agricultural 
pursuits as a life work. The parents were 
both faithful members of the Reformed 
Church, and in politics Mr. Van Wagner was 
a Republican. His death occurred July 3, 
1884, that of his wife on January 4, 1867. 

Gilbert E. Van Wagner received his edu- 
cation in the excellent schools of Dutchess 
county, where under the able direction of his 
father he soon became familiar with the duties 
that fall to the lot of an agriculturist. On De- 
cember 24, 1862, he was united m marriage 
with Miss Sarah Ann Barnes, a native of the 
town of Clinton, Dutchess county, and a 
daughter of Edwin and Laura Ann (Van Der- 
burgh) Barnes, also natives of Clinton town, 
the former born in 1817, and the latter on 
April 18, 1818. By trade the father was a 
machinist, and both he and his wife were Pres- 
byterians in religious belief. He died April 3, 
1842, his wife passing away February 14, 
1874. Their only child was Mrs. Van Wag- 
ner. Her paternal grandfather was Samuel 
Barnes, and her maternal grandfather was 
John Van Derburgh, a farmer of Clinton town, 
and a son of Henry Van Derburgh, also an 
agriculturist of that township, and an officer in 
the Revolutionary war. 

Mr. and Mrs. Van Wagner began their do- 
mestic life upon their present farm of 149 acres, 
which has been in the possession of some 
member of her family since the year 1800. 
Three children bless their union: Evert H., 
who married Ida J. Traver, and engages in 
farming; Laura Ann; and George E. B., who 
married Etta M. Young, and lives in Hyde 
Park. The parents contribute liberally to the 
support of the Baptist Church, and Mrs. Van- 
W'agner takes an active part in its affairs. 
They are highly respected throughout the com- 
munity in which they live, and he is numbered 
among the most progressive and enterprising 
citizens of the township. He devotes his en- 
tire time and attention to general farming, in 
which he is meeting with a well-deserved suc- 
cess, and. though not very active in politics, 
usually votes for the candidates offered by the 
Republican party. 

John Van Derburgh, the maternal grand- 
father of Mrs. Van Wagner, married Ann 
Mott, a daughter of Ebenezer Mott, who 



was appointed lieutenant of the Fifth New 
York Regiment, December 22, 1779. and 
valiantly aided the Colonies in their struggle 
for independence. He had been commissioned 
second-lieutenant by John Hancock on the 21st 
of November, 1776, and was appointed by 
John Jay as ensign of the same regiment in 
June, 1779. At West Point he was taken 
prisoner, and being placed on board an old 
battle ship was taken to New York City and 
incarcerated in the old sugar house. He be- 
came very prominent in public affairs, and 
served as a member of the General Assembly 
from 1792 to 1793, and from 1798 to iSoi. 
On March i, 1781, he was married at Rhine- 
beck, Dutchess county, to Mary Van Vlack, a 
daughter of Jacob and Ann (Stoutenburgh) 
Van Vlack, and to them were born the follow- 
ing children: Jacob E., who married Mar- 
garet Stoutenburgh; James, who died unmar- 
ried; Ann, who became the wife of John Van- 
Derburgh; Mrs. Sallie Sammis; Maria, Cather- 
ine and Ebenezer, who all died unmarried; 
and John, who wedded Maria Culver. 

Mrs. Van Wagner can trace a relationship 
back to Anneke Jans, the owner of the prop- 
erty in New York City, where Trinity Church 
now stands, which is worth many millions of 
dollars. Her daughter, Sarah, married Hans 
Kiersterd on the 29th of June, 1642, and their 
daughter, Rachel, became the wife of William 
Teller, whose daughter, Margaret, married 
Jacob Stoutenburgh. Their daughter, Ann, 
was the wife of Jacob Van Vlack, and to them 
was born a daughter, Mary, who wedded Eb- 
enezer Mott in 1 78 I. Their daughter, Ann, 
was united in marriage with John \'an Der- 
burgh, March i, 18 12, and to them was born a 
daughter, Laura, who, on the 15th 'of June, 
1 84 1, wedded Edwin Barnes, the father of 
Mrs. Van Wagner. 



RIGHT H. ODELL, a prominent and 
representative agriculturist of the town 
of Beekman, Dutchess county, was born in 
the town of Unionvale, same county, June 17, 
i860, and is a son of Luman B. Odell, also a 
native of that town. The latter was educated 
in the district schools, and remained upon the 
home farm until attaining his majorit)'. In 
his native township he married Mary Abel, by 
whom he had three children: Daniel, of Okla- 
homa, Okla. ; Wright B. ; and Flora M., wife 
of Charles Brill, Jr. After residing upon the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



741 



Abel farm for a time, Mr. Odell removed to 
Arthursburg, where he engaged in clerking for 
about two years, and then removed to a farm 
in the town of Fishkill, where he passed the 
remainder of his life. He was killed while 
helping to raise a barn for a neighbor in that 
town, in 1876. His career was one of honor 
and respectability, and won for him the high 
regard of all who knew him. He was a con- 
sistent member of the Christian Church in 
Unionvale town, and a stalwart Republican in 
politics. 

The earl}' school days of Wright B. Odell 
were spent at Arthursburg, in the town of La- 
grange, Dutchess county, and at Poughquag. 
In 1 880 the family removed to the present 
residence of our subject in the town of Beek- 
rnan, and two years later Mr. Odell assumed 
control of toe farm, which comprises 200 acres 
of rich and arable land, and which he has 
placed under a high state of cultivation. He 
is a most successful and enterprising farmer. 

In Chicago, November 25, 1892, was cele- 
brated the marriage of Mr. Odell and Miss 
Inez A. Brill, a daughter of George Brill, a 
native of the town of Beekman, Dutchess 
county, and they have one daughter, Mary 
Frances. Mr. Odell supports the principles of 
the Republican party by his ballot, and he is 
deeply interested in the welfare and advance- 
ment of his native county. He and his wife 
are widely and favorably known in their local- 
ity, and their home is a favorite circle for 
many friends. 



JOHN H. COX, a valued and esteemed agri- 
culturist of the town of Stanford, Dutchess 

county, has his residence upon a farm of 
most superior land, which is under excellent 
culture and improvement. The buildings upon 
the place are of a neat and substantial charac- 
ter, and betoken thrift and prosperity. He is 
meeting with well-merited success in his farm- 
ing operations. 

Mr. Cox is a native of New York City, and 
traces his ancestry back to Isaac Cox, who was 
born in 1735, and in Kent county, Del., April 
7, 1763, was united in marriage with Susanna 
Hanson. He died December 28, 1773, at the 
age of thirty-eight years. His son, Isaac, was 
the grandfather of our subject. He was born 
at Baltimore, Md., November 10, 1768, and 
on reaching manhood he there worked at the 
hatter's trade; but most of his life was passed in 



Pennsylvania. By his marriage with Sarah 
Hanson he had five children: Eliza, Samuel 
Daniel, Mary, Henry R. and Rachel. 

Henry R. Cox, the father of our subject, 
was born in 1809, upon a farm in Lycoming 
county, Penn., where he spent his boyhood 
days. When a young man he went to New 
York City, where he became a dry-goods mer- 
chant on Greenwich street, and there engaged 
in business until his death, which occurred May 
I, I 85 I. He wedded Mary Middlemus, and to 
them were born three children: Joseph M., 
Henry R. and Eliza H. For his second wife 
he chose Miss Susan Lake, a native of Lycom- 
ing county, Penn., who died in 1857, and they 
became the parents of two children: John H. 
and Samuel H. After the father's death the 
family removed to the town of Stanford, Dutch- 
ess county. 

As boys, John H. Cox, of thi.s review, and 
his brother, Samuel H., lived with their uncle, 
John Hunn, in Stanford township, and received 
such educational advantages as the district 
schools of the neighborhood afforded, though 
the brother had also attended the public 
schools of New York City. On February 11, 
1885, in the town of Stanford, our subject was 
united in marriage with Eliza H. Striker, a 
descendant of one of the early settlers of Man- 
hattan Island. Two children bless this union: 
Ella, born February 19. 1887; and Eliza, born 
February 18, 1893. For a year after his mar- 
riage, Mr. Cox remained upon the Hunn farm, 
and then for a few months was a resident of 
Bangall, Dutchess county. Since that time he 
has made his home upon his present farm on 
the west side of Hunn's lake. He learned the 
trade of a machinist in the Roger's axle fac- 
tory, at Stanfordville, but has always followed 
farming as a means of livelihood. Success has 
waited upon the efforts of this gentleman in all 
his efforts, and the general verdict is that he 
has well deserved it. Labor and persever- 
ance, coupled with economy and frugality, are 
bound to win in the long run, and these virtues 
he possesses to a large extent. Politically, he 
votes the straight Republican ticket, and has 
served as assessor of his township, while, 
socially, he holds membership with the Knights 
of Pythias. 

Samuel H. Cox has lived with our subject 
since the latter's marriage, and has devoted 
most of his time to agricultural pursuits and to 
the cattle trade. He has served as census- 
taker in his township. The brothers are 



742 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUJCAL RECORD. 



esteemed and valued members of the com- 
munity, and possess the entire confidence and 
regard of their neighbors. 

John Hunn, the uncle with whom they 
lived in boyhood, was born near Dover, Del., 
September 9. 1785, and was the son of John 
and Susanna Hunn. He was married in New 
York City, May 9, 18 16, to Sarah S. Willis, and 
after her death wedded Eliza Co.\, February 
8, 1837. By trade he was a tanner and cur- 
rier, and for several years conducted a leather 
store in Nesv York City, but in 1851 removed 
to the town of Stanford, Dutchess county, 
where he made his home until his death, which 
occurred December 5, 1867. He was a mem- 
ber of the Society of Friends, and was an 
earnest Christian gentleman. 



AI'IREN REYNOLDS. The subject of 
this sketch, who is a man of more than 
ordinary intelligence and business capacity, 
owns two fine farms in the town of Washing- 
ton, Dutchess county, which aggregate about 
400 acres, and is promment among the agri- 
cultural interests of the county, contributing 
largely to its reputation by making his places 
two of the most desirable homesteads within 
its borders. Admired and esteemed by his 
friends and neighbors, he enjoys, as he de- 
serves, a generous portion of this world's goods. 

Mr. Reynolds was born in Chatham, Co- 
lumbia Co., N. Y. , September 19, 1821, and 
is a son of Titus S. Reynolds, whose birth oc- 
curred in the same place January 9, 1790. Of 
that county his grandfather, Solomon Reynolds, 
was one of the leading agriculturists. The 
family were members of the Society of Friends. 

Titus S. Reynolds was united in marriage 
with Hannah Hrockway, a native of Columbia 
county, born March 12, 1794, and they began 
their domestic life in Chatham, where the 
father followed farming. His political views 
were in accordance with those held by the Re- 
publican party, and religiously he was a Hicks- 
ite Quaker. He passed away April 11, 1862, 
and his wife on August 3, 1881. Their family 
circle included twelve children: Horace, born 
August II, 1S14, died at the age of sixteen 
years; Lester A., born February 16, 18 16, is 
living retired in Iowa; Sylvester (twin brother 
of Lester) followed blacksmithing and farming, 
and died in 1890; Elias B., born September 
14, 1 8 18, was a drover, and died May 24, 
1880; Mary A., born March 23, 1820, became 



the wife of John Goodenough, a wheelwright 
by trade, and died in 1889; \\'arren, of this 
review, is the ne.xt in order of birth; Deborah 
J., born February 5, 1S23. married Erastus 
Jones, a farmer of Columbia county, and died 
in 1887; Isaac B., born November 26, 1824. 
died in infancy; Laura B. (twin sister of Isaac), 
married a Mr. Brown, and died in 1879; Julina, 
born October 23, 1828, became the wife of 
George Williams, a farmer, and died in 1887; 
Freeman, born April 16, 1831, is an agricult- 
urist of Orleans county, \'t.; and .\lida, born 
May 5, 1833, was the wife of H. W. Williams, 
a farmer of Columbia county, and died August 
27, 1864. 

Our subject was reared on a farm, and re- 
ceived his first lesson in agriculture from his 
father, who was a practical, capable farmer. 
He was married, October 2, 1843. to Hannah 
Carpenter, who was born in Hudson, N. Y. , 
May 12, 1822, and died in Wayne county, this 
State, May 24, 1852. Four children graced 
this union: Lydia J., born October 12, 1844, 
died in infancy; Francelia, born July 2, 1846, 
married William Jones, of Chicago, 111., and 
later became the wife of George K. Jones, of 
the same city; Jason C, born March 13, 1849, 
is employed in the Adams Express office in 
New York City; and Alvah B. , born April 28, 
1857, is a milkman of Poughkeepsie, N. Y. 
On September 19. 1859, Mr. Reynolds was 
again married, his second union being with 
MaryMorey, who was born F"ebruary 20, 18 19, 
and died December 7, 18S1. 

On September 19, 18S3, Mr. Reynolds was 
married to Mrs. H. C. Hunt, a native of Ber- 
lin, Vt., who bore the maiden name of Cor- 
nelia Bosworth. Her father, Jonathan Bos- 
worth, was born January 21, 1787, in Lebanon, 
N. H., and was a son of Nathaniel Bosworth, 
a Revolutionary hero, and the grandson of 
Jonathan Bosworth, who came from England 
and founded the family in this country. All 
his life the father of Mrs. Reynolds engaged 
in the manufacture of hoes. By his marriage, 
on July 2, 1811, with Lovisa Vilona Darling, 
who was born November 9, 1791, he had thir- 
teen children, namely: Lovisa V., Mary L., 
Elisha D., Jonathan E.(i), Sarah D., Jona- 
than E.(2), Tryphena N., Samuel H. O., Anna 
M., Lucy D.. David B., Joseph S., and Han- 
nah C. The father died April 7, 1879, and 
the mother passed away August 13, 1S72. 

Since i860 Mr. Reynolds has resided in 
Dutchess county, where he is successfully en- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHIGAL RECORD. 



743 



gaged in general farming, and is one of the 
most progressive citizens in the community, 
always identifying himself with all matters for 
the public welfare. His political support has 
ever been given the Republican party, and he 
is a member of the Society of Friends, while 
Mrs. Reynolds is a member of the Presbyterian 
Church of Amenia. 



JAMES H. LOVELACE. Among the lead- 
ing and representative agriculturists of the 
town of Clinton, Dutchess county, stalwart 
and sturdy tillers of the soil, there is none who 
stands a more prominent figure than the gen- 
tleman of whom this notice is written. He 
made his appearance upon the stage of Hfe 
March 26, 1845, in the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, at the home of his parents, 
William and Mary (Bates) Lovelace. His 
paternal grandfather, Peleg Lovelace, was one 
of the early residents of Putnam county, N. 
Y., but his last days were spent in the town of 
Stanford, Dutchess county. He reared to 
manhood and womanhood a family of ten 
children — seven sons and three daughters. 

William Lovelace was born in the year 
1812, in Putnam county, where his boyhood 
days were passed, and during his youth he 
learned the carpenter's trade, but did not long 
follow that occupation, as he soon began farm- 
ing in the town of Stanford, Dutchess county, 
remaining there several years. Ten years 
were afterward spent in the town of Washing- 
ton, at the expiration of which time he re- 
turned to Stanford, where he carried on agri- 
cultural pursuits for thirteen years. He next 
located upon a farm on Chestnut Ridge, in the 
town of Dover, which he still owns, but is now 
living retired in Millbrook, town of Washing- 
ton. Although he started out in life with 
nothing, he has by energy and perseverance 
become a very successful man. He is a stanch 
adherent of the Democratic party, but has 
never cared for political preferment, and is a 
consistent member of the Baptist Church. On 
November 14, 1835, '" the town of Washing- 
ton, he led to the marriage altar Miss Mary 
Bates, a daughter of Joseph Bates, and four 
children blessed their union: Francis, de- 
ceased; James H.; Richard, of the town of 
Dover; and Asa, of Millbrook. 

Our subject accompanied his parents on 
their various removals during his younger 
years, and in the public schools of the local- 



ities obtained a fair education. For ten years 
he engaged in agricultural pursuits on Chest- 
nut Ridge, in the town of Dover, remaining 
upon his father's farm until 1887, when he re- 
moved to the Tonsey farm near Clinton Cor- 
ners, which he operated until the spring of 
1890. He then purchased his present farm in 
the town of Clinton. 

Mr. Lovelace was married in the town of 
Stanford, March 2, 1870, to Maria E. Wood, 
daughter of Talmage and Lydia (Mosher) 
Wood. Previous to the Civil war her father 
had been a resident of that town, but during 
that struggle enlisted in the isoth N. Y. V. L, 
under Gen. A. B. Smith, and while serving 
with that command was killed at the battle of 
Gettysburg. Two children were born to our 
subject and his wife: Alva Wood, and Will- 
iam R. , but the latter died in infancy. Mr. 
Lovelace attends the Christian Church at 
Stanfordville, is an upright, honorable gentle- 
man, who wins friends wherever he goes, and 
by all who know him he is held in the highest 
regard. 



CHARLES H. GRIFFEN. Prominent 
_' among the more intelligent, active and 
enterprising citizens of the town of Clinton, 
Dutchess county, is the young man whose 
name mtroduces this biography. His reputa- 
tion for integrity and industry is second to none 
in the county, and he is a man devoted to 
farming and fine stock. He was born on the 
farm which is still his home, May 27, 1868, 
and since the early age of fifteen years has 
had the entire management of the place, which 
attests his progressive spirit, energy and perse- 
verance. 

William D. Griffen, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born at White Plains, Westchester 
Co., N. Y. , and at the age of ten years ac- 
companied the family on their removal to 
Dutchess county. He attended the Nine Part- 
ners Boarding School in the town of Wash- 
ington, and later became a student in a school 
at Westtown, Penn. He remained upon the 
home farm until 1857, when he and his brother 
Jacob purchased the farm now owned by our 
subject. This they operated together until 
1875, when the brother returned to the old 
homestead in the town of Clinton, but the 
father continued its cultivation up to his death 
in 1877. 

On February i, 1865, in the Friends Church 



714 



COMMEMORATTVK BTOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



of Standfordville, N. Y.. William D. Griffen 
was married to Phoebe Jane Haight, daughter 
of Zebiilon Haight, of the tosvn of Clinton, 
and three children blessed their union: Daniel, 
of Millbrook, Dutchess county, who was born 
in December, 1865, and by his marriage with 
Esther A. Purdy has two children — Ira and 
William; Charles Haight, of this review; and 
Mary G., wife of F. E. Birdsall, of the town 
of Clinton. The parents were both sincere and 
faithful members of the Society of Friends, 
and the political support of the father was 
given the Republican party, whose principles 
he stanchly advocated. He was always a pro- 
gressive, upright citizen, respected by all his 
neighbors and friends. His father had given 
him a good start in life, and as he had made 
the most of his opportunities he secured a 
comfortable competence. His wife survived 
him for some years, and was called to her 
final rest in 1891. 

On reaching a sufficient age, Charles H. 
Griffen entered the district schools of the 
town of Clinton, later attended Hoags Board- 
ing School at the head of Upton Lake, was 
then a student in a private school kept by 
Miss Tousey, near Clinton Corners, and fur- 
ther continued his studies at Westtown, Penn. 
His education, however, was completed in the 
Leslie School, on Academy street, in Pough- 
keepsie, N. Y. On laying aside his text books 
he entered upon the more difficult lessons of 
life, and his time is now fully occupied with 
the labors and duties which fall to the lot of 
the agriculturist. He is identified with the 
Republican party, and his religious connection 
is with the Society of Friends. 



RICHARD L. VALENTINE, a leading 
undertaker of Millerton, Dutchess coun- 
ty, was born December 9, 1851, in Nassau, 
Rensselaer Co., N. Y. His family is one of 
the oldest of that locality, his ancestors having 
settled there during the Colonial period. They 
came from England, but it is probable that the 
family originated in France. His great- grand- 
father, John Valentine, was born February 28, 
I 76 1, and was married December 29, 1791, to 
Amy Brockway, who was born January 30, 
1770, and they had nine children, whose names 
and dates of birth are as follows: Lucy, Sep- 
tember 12, 1792; William, March 30. 1794; 
Richard, November 11, 1795; Abraham, July 
6, 1797; Isaac, August 19, 1799; Jacob, April 



19, 1801; Jerusha, April 21, 1806; Elizabeth, 
April 25, 1808; and Eunice, June i, 1810. 

Richard \'alentine, the grandfather of our 
subject, was a farmer by occupation, and pos- 
sessed limited means. He was quiet and re- 
tiring in disposition, extremely kind-hearted, 
and was highly esteemed for his many admira- 
ble traits of character. April 3, 181 1, he mar- 
ried Anna Hoag, a native of the same county 
as himself, and had thirteen children: Anna, 
born August 31, 18 16, died February 24. 184 1; 
Permelia, born February 15, 18 18; William 
H., born September 11, 1819, died March i, 
1S20; Hiram B., born January 21, 1 821; James 
A., born October 3, 1822, died March 4, 1855; 
Jerusha Jane, born June 18, 1824; Lorenzo, 
born P'ebruary 16, 1826, died July 21, 1881; 
Phcebe A., born February 19, 1828; Charles 
F., born April 22, 1830, died August 29, 1S78; 
John W., born August 5, 1832, died March 5, 
1854; Alfred, born July 31, 1834, died August 
27, 1835; Henry, born July 24, 1837, died 
November 28, 1837; and Sylvester, born De- 
cember 8, 1838, died May 2, 1839. 

Lorenzo Valentine, our subject's father, 
was a farm laborer, and, except for five or six 
years passed in Columbia count}', his life was 
spent in his native place. Although he was 
not blessed with much of this world's goods, 
he was a good citizen, a kind and affectionate 
husband and father, and his upright and con- 
sistent conduct gained him the respect of all 
who knew him. He married Amanda Her- 
mance, a descendant of a well-known Colum- 
bia county family and the daughter of John R. 
and Elizabeth i Haightman) Hermance. Four 
children came of this union: Anna, born Au- 
gust 30, 1850, who married Willis Clark, of 
Nassau; Richard L. (our subject), born De- 
cember 9, 1 851; Frank, born April 20, i860, 
died July 30, 1861; and Edwin E., born Au- 
gust 3, 1862, now residing near Brainard Sta- 
tion, Rensselaer Co., N. Y. The father died 
July 21, 1 881; the mother is now living in 
Berlin, New York. 

Our subject's educational opportunities 
were limited in his youth to a few years' at- 
tendance at the district school. When he was 
ten years old he began working in a cotton 
factory at Stuyvesant Falls, and after two years 
there he went to \'alatie with his father, and 
worked in a cotton factory there some four 
years. In his eighteenth year he began to 
learn the trade of wagon making, serving a 
three-years' apprenticeship with his uncle, Gil- 





L ^> /iL C^C-I 



(^ C\ ( ^X-^^^ »- AVi^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



745 



bert Hermance, at Nassau. He then went to 
Mill River, Mass., where he worked as a jour- 
neyman for eight months, and in 1873 came 
to Millerton, and for one and one-half years 
worked at the trade for John Scutt. On March 
20, 1875, he bought Andrew Fish's undertak- 
ing business, w-hich he has since conducted, 
developing and enlarging it until he is now at 
the head of the principal establishment in that 
line in Millerton, and one of the most exten- 
sive in the county. 

Although Mr. \'alentine's business success 
has been won by his own hard work, he has 
found time to assist in public affairs, as every 
good citizen should. He votes the Republican 
ticket, has been corporation trustee for four 
years, and he is prominent in the various phil- 
anthropic enterprises of the Methodist Episco- 
pal Church, of which he has been a member 
for twenty-six years, and is now a leading offi- 
cial. He belongs also to the Royal Arcanum, 
Poughkeepsie Council. 

Mr. \'alentine has been twice married, first 
time September 16, 1S74, to Miss Libbie J. 
Kipp, who was born July 21, 1849, ^ daughter 
of George and Jane M. (Levy) Kipp, the latter 
of whom was born in Gallatin, N. Y., and died 
November 2, 1886, aged sixty-three years. 

Mr. Kipp was born at Red Hook, N. Y. , 
was a farmer in the town of Northeast for 
fifty years, and is now retired. He is a typi- 
cal self-made man, having begun life a poor 
boy, but by the aid of his faithful wife became 
well-to-do. He is one of the township's best 
men, and is highly esteemed by his many 
friends. His second wife i for he w-as twice 
married; was Mrs. Washington Hubbell. To 
our subject and wife were born three children, 
to wit: George L. , born January 17, 1876; 
Willard J., born August 8, 1880; and Henry, 
born December 2, 1892. The mother of these 
died January 7, 1893, and for his second wife 
Mr. Valentine married Miss Jennie V. K. 
Oliver, a lady of English descent, born July 
31, 1865. By this union there was one child, 
Frank, who died in infancy. 

Mrs. Valentine's great-grandfather, Will- 
iam Oliver, married Elizabeth Seech, and 
reared a family of eleven children: William, 
Richard, James, Elizabeth, Jane, John, Ann, 
Jacob, Benjamin, Joseph and Sarah. Of 
these, Joseph (Mrs. \'alentine's grandfather) 
was born August 22, 1779, at Parish of Horn 
Church, County of Essex, England, and in 
early life came to America, locating near Cats- 



kill, Greene Co., N. Y., where he died July 
20, 1869. He was a paper maker by trade. 
By his wife, Sarah (Thornton), he had seven 
children, named respectively: Mary, Sarah, 
William, Jane, Elizabeth, Abigail and Cynthia. 
William Oliver (Mrs. \'alentine's father) was 
born October 4, 18 16, and followed wagon- 
making at Catskill, N. Y. He married Anna 
M. Jennings, who was born February 11, 
1828, in Fairfield, Fairfield Co., Conn., and 
they had a family of four children: William 
C, born April 5, 1849, is a minister in the M. 
E. Church, at Hunter, N. Y. ; Frank, born 
April 1 , 1852, is in business at Catskill, N. Y. ; 
Mary, born January 18, 1862, died in child- 
hood; Jennie V. I\., wife of our subject, being 
the youngest. 



ALFRED S. WfLEY. one of the well-to- 
do and prosperous farmers of the town 

of Clinton, Dutchess county, residing near Clin- 
ton Corners, is one of those men who thor- 
oughly understands the business which he is 
pursuing, and by following that vocation has 
secured a competence. He is the architect of 
his own fortune, having started in life with but 
little capital beyond his own industry and 
laudable ambition to rise in the world. 

Mr. Wiley is a native of Dutchess county, 
born near Schultzville, in the town of Clinton, 
April 14, 1829, in which town were married 
his parents, Samuel and Elizabeth (Green) 
Wiley, who were also born in Dutchess 
county, and the latter was the daughter of 
Tobias Green. In their family were the fol- 
lowing children: Emily, deceased wife of 
Henry Barnes; Chancellor, who has also 
passed away; Annie, deceased wife of Mark 
Wilber; Harriet, who first wedded Griffin Sny- 
der, and, after his death. Charles Moon ; Alexan- 
der and Martin Luther, who have both de- 
parted this life; Alfred S., of this review; and 
Mary, wife of Nelson Sleight. After the death 
of his first wife Mr. Wiley married Mrs. Eliza 
Wing. All his life the father engaged in agri- 
cultural pursuits in the town of Clinton with 
the exception of fourteen years spent in the 
town of Milan. He was a sincere and faithful 
member of the Milan Christian Church, and 
died at the ripe old age of eighty-six years. 

Alfred Wiley received his education in the 
common schools of the towns of Clinton and 
Milan, and was given the training necessary to 
a successful pursuit of agriculture upon his 



746 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPBWAL UECOliD. 



father's farm, remaining at home engaged in 
helping to carry on the labors upon the old 
homestead until he had attained the age of 
seventeen. For one year he then lived in the 
town of Unionvale with his brother, after 
which he returned to the town of Clinton, and 
made his home with his brother-in-law, Mark 
Wilber, for the following two years. His 
father having again married, he then returned 
to the parental roof, where the next two years 
were passed. 

Thinking it was about time that he should 
establish a home of his own, and surround his 
domestic hearth with family ties, Mr. Wiley 
married March 5, 1851, in the town of Clin- 
ton, Mary A. Pultz, a daughter of Jacob G. 
Pultz, who was born in the town of Rhine- 
beck, Dutchess county. By this union four 
children were born, namely: Carlinda, de- 
ceased, was the wife of John Budd, by whom 
she had one son — William; Ida is the wife of 
Monroe S. Eckert; Emma F. married Robert 
Lawrence, who resides near Salt Point, Dutch- 
ess Co., N. Y. (they have two daughters. — Alice 
and Maud); and Frank W^iley died at the age 
of five years. 

I*"or the first year after his marriage, Mr. 
Wiley worked on the farm of Mark Wilber, 
after which he purchased land near Clinton 
Hollow, operating the same for three years, 
and on disposing of that tract bought another 
farm about a mile east of Clinton Hollow, 
where he remained for five years. On selling 
that place he purchased the Clinton Corners 
store, which he ran for a couple of years, and 
then bought a farm a mile and a half northeast 
of Clinton Hollow. After residing upon that 
track for about eight years, he sold soon after 
the close of the Civil war, and has since made 
his home upon his present farm near Clinton 
Corners. There he has erected a fine resi- 
dence, which he now occupies, and the present 
highly cultivated state of his land has been 
brought about by the e.xercise of great industry, 
perseverance and excellent management. His 
improvements are of a substantial character, 
and everything about the place denotes pros- 
perity and thrift. Though not an office seeker 
in any sense of the word, Mr. Wiley served 
for eight consecutive years as justice of the 
peace, being elected on the Democratic ticket, 
which he always supports. He has been quite 
prominently identified with the interests of the 
conmiunity in which he lives, and bears a high 
character for sterling integrity and genuine 



worth. Mrs. Wiley is a member in good stand- 
ing of the Christian Church at Schultzville. 
William Budd, our subject's grandson, was 
married December 19, 1894, to Belle Stewart, 
of the town of Clinton. He now operates his 
grandfather's farm, the latter having retired 
from active work. 



[i ATHAN FELLER. As a representative 
of the agricultural class, and one who has 
met with good success in his independent call- 
ing, we take pleasure in giving a brief sketch 
of the gentleman whose name appears at the 
beginning of this notice. He is pleasantly lo- 
cated upon a farm of seventy-eight acres in 
the town of Red Hook, which he purchased of 
Bartholomew Gray in i 894. It is well stocked 
and supplied with everything found upon a 
model farm of the nineteenth century. His 
birth occurred in Red Hook on August 15, 
1840, and in the common schools of the com- 
munity he acquired his education. He early 
became inured to the arduous duties of farm 
life, and his training along that line was under 
the able instruction of his father, Philip Fel- 
ler, a prosperous farmer of Red Hook. 

On January 3, 1866, was celebrated the 
marriage of Mr. Feller and Miss Emma Mar- 
tin, who was born April 12, 1847, and is the 
daughter of Col. Claudius G. Martin. Her 
father received his title while serving in the 
1 1 ith New York Artillery. He was also a na- 
tive of the town of Red Hook, born February 
19, 1799. and was educated in the common 
schools near his home. He learned the trade 
of blacksmithing with Fred Barringer, but did 
not follow that pursuit. He turned his atten- 
tion to farming, taking the old Martin home- 
stead on the Post road, which had been the 
historic residence of the family since the Rev- 
olutionary war, and there he died March 17, 
1875. 

Col. Martin was twice married, his first 
union being with Miss Julia Ring, daughter of 
Mr. Ring, of the town of Rhinebeck, Dutchess 
county, and to them were born two children, 
but one died in infancy. John G. was born 
January 28, 1828. After the death of his first 
wife, he remained single for about ten years, 
when he wedded Miss Sarah Webster, daugh- 
ter of Harry Webster, a shoemaker of Red 
Hook, June 10. 1835. 

Nine children graced the second union: 
Claudius R. , born July 28, 1836. was married 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



747 



May 27, 1863. to Esther A. Stall, daughter of 
John Stall, of Clermont, Columbia county; 
Julia F. , born May 13. 1S38, became the wife 
of David V. Traver. of Rhinebeck, Dutchess 
county, January i, 1861; Lucy M., born Ma}' 
22, 1840, married Alonzo Wood, of Pough- 
keepsie, November 19, 1862; Clarence W., 
born September 8, 1842, was educated in the 
common schools, and learned the trade of a 
cooper, at which he worked for a time, but 
afterward was employed on a steamer on the 
Hudson until 1892, when he returned home 
and is now living retired; Aurelia W., born 
January 4, 1845, married William H. Dedrick, 
of Rhinebeck, December 25, 1866; Emma, 
wife of Nathan Feller, is next in order of birth; 
Isabella, born October 6, 1849, died March 
25, 1852; Henry A., bori: April 30, 1852, was 
united in marriage with Elizabeth M. Traver, 
daughter of Nelson Traver, of Rhinebeck, Jan- 
uary I, 1880; and Frank, born November 29, 
1855, died April 2, 1861. The entire family 
were born on the old Martin homestead on the 
Post road. The house is still standing, and is 
now occupied by Sarena Martin, niece of Ed- 
ward Martin, deceased. 

To Mr. Feller and his estimable wife was 
born a daughter — Isabella M., whose birth oc- 
curred September 22, 1871. She was married 
June 20, 1895, to William R. Carroll, son of 
Andrew J. Carroll, of Rock City, Dutchess 
county. Mr. Feller and his wife are worthy 
members of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, at 
Red Hook, and endeavor to carry out in their 
lives its moral teachings. They are straight- 
forward and reliable, industrious, energetic and 
progressive, and are highly esteemed and re- 
spected by all who know them. Their daugh- 
ter, Mrs. Carroll, and her husband are both 
also members of St. Paul's Lutheran Church 
at Red Hook. 



HENRY MYGATT, who is one of the 
prominent agriculturists of the town of 
Amenia, Dutchess county, has spent almost 
his entire life in that township, his birth hav- 
ing occurred on his father's farm near Sharon 
Station, August i, 1846. As a man of in- 
flence, public-spirited and liberal, this brief 
record of*his history will be more than ordi- 
narily interesting to those who are identified 
in any way with the interests of Dutchess 
county. 

Thomas Mygatt, his grandfather, came 



from New Fairchild, Conn., in 1772, and 
purchased land near Sharon Station, in .\menia 
town. He was a descendant in the si.xth gen- 
eration of Deacon Joseph Mygatt, one of that 
company of Puritans who landed on the 
shores of New England in 1633, and three 
years later went with Rev. Mr. Hooker to 
start a settlement at Hartford, Conn. He 
became a wise counsellor in that new Com- 
monwealth. The father of Thomas was a 
citizen of Danbury, Conn., and was distin- 
guished for his enterprise and thrift. After 
coming to Dutchess county, Thomas Mygatt 
married Miss Annie Watrous, a native of the 
town of Amenia, by whom he had two sons, 
Ambrose and Abram. As a life occupation he 
followed agricultural pursuits. 

In Amenia town, in 181 i, Abram Mygatt, 
the father of our subject, was born, and he was 
educated in the district sChools near his home. 
He was united in marriage with Miss Louisa 
Rundall, a daughter of Jacob Rundall, and to 
them were born four children: Julia, wife of 
Dr. I. N. Mead; Anna; Henry; and Laura, 
wife of H. B. Murdock. The father carried 
on farming near Sharon Station until 185 1, 
when he removed to the present residence of 
our subject, and there lived until 1869. The 
remainder of his life was passed in the village 
of Amenia, where he passed away in 1S92. 
In politics he was identified with the Demo- 
cratic party, and religiously was one of the 
active members of the Presbyterian Church at 
Amenia, being a liberal contributor when the 
house of worship was erected. 

The boyhood and youth of our subject 
were passed in much the usual manner of 
farmer lads, his home being at his present 
residence, while his primary education was 
obtained in the district schools of the neigh- 
borhood. Later, for four or five years, he at- 
tended the Amenia Seminary, and then spent 
one year at the Poughkeepsie Military Insti- 
tute. On October 30, 186S, Mr. Mygatt mar- 
ried Miss Alice M. Frost, of Connersville, 
Ind., and they have two daughters, Louisa 
and Laura, twins. 

In October, 1876, our subject removed to 
Connersville, where he engaged in farming 
until April, 1886, when he returned to the old 
home farm in the town of Amenia, and there 
has since resided. For six years he accepta- 
bly served as assessor of his township, being 
elected on the Democratic ticket, which 
party he always supports. 



748 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



DAVID V. MOOKE. one of the reliable 
and progressive joung business men of the 

town of Beekman, Dutchess county, is success- 
fully engaged in general merchandising at 
Clove Valley. A native of Dutchess county, 
he was born in the town of Unionvale, August 
4, 1869. The Moore family, to which our 
subject belongs, came to this country from 
County Antrim, Ireland, and they derived their 
name from living on or near a boggy lieath. 
The first to locate on the Emerald Isle came 
from Maernen, and from Thomas de Moore, 
who went to the British Isles in 1066, the year 
of the Conquest, are descended the Earls of 
Mount Cashel and Drogheda. In this country 
the family have principally belonged to the 
Society of Friends. 

Our subject traces his ancestry back to 
William Moore, who was born on Long Island, 
and there engaged m farming throughout life. 
His son, Andrew Moore, was also there born, 
but when a young man became a resident of 
Dutchess county, and was a farmer and miller 
by occupation. He married Miss Elizabeth 
Dorland, who was born at Hempstead, Long 
Island, in May, 1740. Her father, Samuel 
Dorland, was a native of the same place, and 
the son of Lamerest Dorland, who came from 
Holland to America in i$63 on the vessel 
named the ' ' Spotted Cow. " To Andrew Moore 
and wife were born'ten children, namely: An- 
nie, who first married a Mr. Merritt, and after 
his death wedded Isaac Thorn, of the town of 
Washington, Dutchess county, and died in 1838; 
M^ry, who wedded Daniel Haight, and died 
in 1887; Williaui, who married Mary Oakley, 
and died in 1849; Samuel, who married Eliza- 
beth Pitcher, and died m 1885; Stephen, from 
whom our subject is descended; Gilbert, who 
died in infancy; Elizabeth, who married James 
Ellison, and died in 1824; Arletty, who mar- 
ried Jonathan Holmes, and died in 1814; Al- 
len, who married a Miss Underbill, and after 
her death wedded Eliza Wooley, and died in 
1826; and Andrew, who married Sarah Oak- 
ley, and died in 1885. 

Stephen Moore, the great-grandfather of 
our subject, was born at Verbank, the town of 
Lagrange, Dutchess county, and on reaching 
manhood wedded Miss Ruth Clark, whose 
birth occurred near New Bedford, Mass. Her 
people were also members of the Society of 
Friends, and her grandfather, Lawrence Clark, 
was a native of England. Her father, Jona- 
than Clark, was born in Rhode Island, and 



came to Dutchess county witn his family when 
a young man, where he engaged in farming. 
For fifteen years after his marriage, Stephen 
Moore lived at \'erbank, and later removed 
to Moores Mill, where he conducted the 
milling business, and which place was named 
in his honor. In his family were twelve chil- 
dren, as follows: (i) Anpa married Jesse 
Congdon, a farmer of Lagrange 'town. (2j 
Stephen went to Alabama, where he engaged 
in the practice of medicine, and there died; he 
married Emily Brooks, a native of that State. 

(3) Elizabeth married John Thorn, a farmer of 
the town of Washington, Dutchess county. 

(4) Alfred, who was a farmer and miller of 
Unionvale town, married Charlotte Haviland. 
(5; Philip was the grandfather of our subject. 
(6) Susan married Dr. Willet Dorland, of Can- 
ada. (7) Lydia married \\'illiam Akin, a 
farmer of Pawling town, Dutchess county. (8) 
W^illiatn was an agriculturist, and died unmar- 
ried. (9) Jonathan, a farmer of Lagrange 
town, married Jane Underbill, (lo) Ruth 
married Joseph Flagler, (ii) Content mar- 
ried William Osborn, a farmer of Pawling 
town. (1 2) Mary is single. The father of 
these children died June 9, 1851, the mother 
on December 16, 1868. He was a devout 
Christian, and left behind him wealth and a 
good name. 

Ruth Moore, of the above family, was 
born at Moores Mill, and in April, 1835, 
married Joseph Flagler, who was born in La- 
grange town in 1803. and was the son of Paul 
Flagler, a native of the same town. Joseph 
grew to manhood on the home farm there, and 
in that town carried on agricultural pursuits 
until 1865, when with his wife he removed to 
Poughkeepsie, where he lived retired until his 
death, February 13, 18S1. He was one of 
the first directors of the First National Bank 
of that city, and was a Republican in politics. 
He was an honorable, upright man and sin- 
cere Christian, an elder in the Church with 
which he was connected. His faithful wife 
still survives him. 

Philip Moore, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born in the town of Unionvale, and 
was there reared upon a farm. He married 
Sally A. Losee, a native of Washington town, 
where her father. Samuel Losee, carried on 
farming. Her people were of Holland origin. 
After their marriage they located upon a farm 
in Uniftnvale town, where they reared their 
family of six children — Maria L.. who married 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



749 



Joseph Wicks, a farmer of Lagrange town; 
Anna, who married Smith G. Levings, a farm- 
er of Rensselaer county, N. Y.; Stephen, father 
of our subject; Samuel, who is a miller by 
trade; Henry C, who was a farmer, but is 
now deceased; and William, an agriculturist 
of Moores Mill. The grandfather carried on 
farming during his entire life, dying in 1892. 
He was a Republican in politics, and an or- 
thodox Quaker in religious belief. His wife 
is still living. 

Stephen Moore, the father of our subject, 
was born in the village of Oswego, in the town 
of Unionvale, October 6, 1839, and there ac- 
quired his elementary education. He later 
attended school in Poughkeepsie, and after 
finishing his education returned to the home 
farm. In 1869 he was united in marriage 
with Miss Martha A. Vincent, a daughter of 
David D. Vincent, who was supervisor of the 
town of Unionvale for thirteen years. Our 
subject was the only child born of this union, 
and was only four years old when his mother 
died. His father was again married, this 
time in 1884, to Florence E. Latten, who 
died, leaving one son, Oscar, whose death oc- 
curred in 1889. In 1890 Stephen Moore 
wedded Nellie F. Taber, daughter of William 
F. Taber, a farmer of Pawling town, and they 
have two children: Louella P. T. and Elma 
H. Upon the old home farm in Unionvale 
town the father continued to reside until 1891, 
when he removed to his present farm in East 
Fishkill town, comprising 320 acres of good 
land. For seventeen years he served as road 
commissioner of the former township, and he is 
an ardent Republican in politics 

David D. Vincent, the 
father of our subject, was a native of the town 
of Dover, Dutchess county, and the son of 
Isaac and Martha (Duncan) Vincent, the for- 
mer a merchant on Chestnut Ridge in that 
town. When a young man David went to the 
Clove in the town of Unionvale, where for over 
forty years he eng-aged in merchandising, and 
there spent his last days. By his marriage 
with Phcebe Preston he had three children, 
namely: (i) Isaac married Mary Albro, by 
whom he had three children — Phebe, David D. 
and Martha Louise; (2) Martha A. was the 
mother of our subject; and (3) Obed married 
Ella Vincent, by whom he had a daughter. 
Hazel. The three children are all now de- 
ceased. 

When thirteen years of age, David V. 



maternal grand- 



Moore, whose name introduces this sketch, 
went to live with his grandfather, David D. 
Vincent, in the town of Unionvale, and at the 
age of eighteen years assumed the management 
of a farm in the town of Beekman, which is 
owned by himself and Mrs. Margaret Galla- 
gher. In February, 1894, he began general 
merchandising at Clove Valley, in Beekman 
town, where he has since successfully conducted 
business and erected his present store building. 
He is a wide-awake, energetic business man, 
who deals squarely and liberally with his pa- 
trons, and merits the confidence of the com- 
munity. 

On December 2, 1891, Mr. Moore was 
married to Miss Minnie Vincent, daughter of 
Edwin Vincent, and they have two interesting 
children: Edna and Vincent. Mr. Moore has 
always been a stanch Republican, was elected 
supervisor of Beekman town in the spring of 
1892, which position he filled for two success- 
ive terms, and in the spring of 1896 was again 
elected. In September, 1S95, he was also ap- 
pointed assistant postmaster of Clove Valley. 
He is a popular and influential citizen, and has 
many warm friends throughout the community. 



ALTER B. THOMAS is a leading 
_V_yi_ farmer of the town of Amenia, Dutch- 
ess county, having resided upon his present 
place since i860. Go into any village, town 
or city in this great country of ours, seek out 
the men who are the leaders in spirit, thought 
and action, learn the history of their lives and 
you will find that nearly all of them are self- 
made men, who have risen by their efforts to 
positions of prominence and prosperity. This 
fact illustrates most aptly one of the salient 
features of our American civilization. There is 
an opportunity offered here under our emblem 
of liberty for every human being to work out and 
develop the best there is in him. To this class 
of self-made men belongs Mr. Thomas. 

He traces his ancestry back to John 
Thomas, who was born April 10, 1725, and 
December 22, 1746, married Sarah Gifford, 
who was born April 12, 1720. In their family 
were seven children, whose names and dates of 
birth are as follows: Mehitable, October i, 
1747; Charles, November 25, 1749; John, 
June 20, 175 I ; Sarah, May 15, 1753; Martha, 
March 19, 1755; Elizabeth, June 2, 1757; and 
Stephen, March 28, 1759. 

Charles Thomas, the grandfather of our 



75(» 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUWAL RECORD. 



subject, was married December 5, 1770, to 
Elizabeth Lake, who was born October 15, 
1750, and died April 14, 1837. His death 
occurred January 26, 1824. He was a devout 
Christian, a faithful member of the Society of 
Friends. His family consisted of the following 
children: Phebe, born August 26, 1771; 
James L., born February 8, 1773; Elizabeth 
and Sarah, twins, born May 26, 1775, and the 
latter of whom died October 26, 1826; Anna, 
born March 24, 1778, and died April 20, 1820; 
Rebecca, born April 19, 1780; Mary, born 
July 22, 1782, and died April 21, 1827; Mar- 
garet, born April 15, 1785, and died Septem- 
ber 29, 1785; Catherine, born September 22, 
1786; Charles B., born May 2, 1789; and Jane, 
born January 11, 1792, and died September 
20, 1801. 

Charles B. Thomas, the father of our sub- 
ject, was a native of the town of Unionvale, 
Dutchess county, and for a companion and 
helpmeet on life's journey chose Miss Mary 
Ingraham, who was born March 6, 1791. 
Their wedding was celebrated November 13, 
1 81 3, and they became the parents of six chil- 
dren: Jane Ann, born October 22, 1814, died 
January i, 1891; John, born April 5, 18 17, 
died September 19, 1833; Walter B. , next in 
order of birth; Phebe D., born August i, 1821, 
married Smith Doughty; Daniel L. , born Octo- 
ber 23, 1823, died Nfarch 29, 1892; and Sarah 
Maria, born October 28, 1826, died June 14, 
1 85 1. The father was educated in the com- 
mon schools of Unionvale town, and there 
engaged in farming. By birthright he belonged 
to the Society of Friends, and was a highly 
respected and honored citizen of the com- 
munity where he made his home. He departed 
this life February 5, 1861, and the mother of 
our subject had long preceded him to the other 
world, dying July 15, 1833. 

Walter B. Thomas was born in Unionvale 
town, March 6, 18 19, and received such an 
education as the district schools of the neigh- 
borhood afforded. At the age of seventeen 
years he left the parental roof and began work- 
ing in a stone quarry at Verbank, Dutchess 
county, receiving the munificent salary of six 
cents per day and board, while he was com- 
pelled to sleep in a wagon house. The follow- 
ing spring he went to Poughkeepsie, where he 
was employed by Henry K. Free upon the 
"Exchange Hotel", which was then being 
built, and with that gentleman learned the 
carpenter's trade, which he subsequently fol- 



lowed at Verbank for two years. After re- 
maining a year and a half at Salt Point, 
Dutchess county, he removed to Bangall, 
where he worked at his trade for two years, 
and in 1844 came to Amenia, there engaging 
in wagon-making in partnership with his brother 
Daniel. He followed that business until his 
removal to his present place, and, in connec- 
tion with its operation, still carried on wagon- 
making for a time. He enjoyed a liberal 
patronage in that line, and in his agricultural 
pursuits has also met with a well-deserved 
success. In early life he supported the Whig 
party, but since its dissolution has been a stal- 
wart Republican, and is one of the highly es- 
teemed and valued citizens of Amenia town. 

In the town of Pleasant \'alley, Dutchess 
county, January 21, 1843, Mr. Thomas was 
united in marriage with Jane Ann McFarlin, 
daughter of Abram McFarlin, and they had 
four children: Ann Eliza, born August 24, 
1845, married Morgan C. W'hite, and they 
have one son, Herkimer; Charles B., born May 
20, 1847, died August 5, 1851; John D. , born 
June 1 1, 1850, married Carrie Tabor, by whom 
he has three children, Walter J., Dudley and 
Chester; and Henry J., born September 9, 
1854, wedded Mary Fields. The wife and 
mother passed away October 20, 1872, and at 
Amenia, January 18, 1882, Mr. Thomas was 
again married, his second wife being Jane E. 
Wheeler, daughter of Gilbert Noxon, of La- 
grange, Dutchess count}'. 



CHARLES TOWNSEND,' a prominent 
young agriculturist of the town of Pawling, 
Dutchess county, is one of the most progress- 
ive and successful men of that locality. His 
ability in his chosen calling is not to be won- 
dered at, in view of the fact that many pre- 
vious generations have followed it with marked 
success. The old home of the family is in 
the town of Kent, Putnam countj-, where a 
large tract of land, on what has long been 
known as Townsend Ridge, was acquired by 
an early ancestor, and has ever since been in 
the possession of his descendants. 

Samuel Townsend, our subject's great- 
grandfather, resided there, and his son War- 
ren, our subject's grandfather, who was born 
in 1800, was one of the most intluential men 
of the locality, holding the office of justice of 
the peace for many years. He married Betsey 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



751 



Caldwell, and had seven children: John, our 
subject's father; Edgar, who lives at Patterson, 
Putnam county; Marietta, the wife of George 
Hughson; Charlotte, who married Coleman 
Hughson; Thomas and Keeler, both deceased; 
and Eli, who resides at Carmel, Putnam 
county. 

John Townsend was born in 1824, at 
Townsend Ridge, and inherited a farm of 100 
acres, where he lived until 1867, when he 
moved to Dutchess county, and bought from 
William Pearce 230 acres of land about half a 
mile north of the village of Pawling. He 
made of this one of the best farms of the town, 
displaying marked ability as a manager, and 
he made his home there until 1883, when he 
sold the property to John B. Dutcher. In 
1888 he moved to Bound Brook, N. J., and 
purchased an estate, where he is now success- 
fully engaged in general farming. He is a 
man of much public spirit, a member of the 
Baptist Church, and a Republican in politics, 
being one of the chief advisers of the party in 
his locality. He is not a seeker after official 
honors, but has been town auditor and assessor 
for a number of terms. His first wife, our 
subject's mother, was Anna Maria Ludington 
(daughter of Frederic Ludington), by whom he 
had four children: Fred, a resident of Dan- 
bur}-. Conn. ; Harriet, the wife of DeWitt 
Burr; Charles, our subject; and Warren, who 
died in infancy. By his second wife, Sarah 
E. Dykeman, he has had two children: Fan- 
nie, the wife of James E. Baldwin; and George 
H. , who is at home. 

Charles Townsend was born at the old 
homestead November 20, 1857, and. after 
attending the public schools of his native place 
for some time, spent three years at Wilbraham 
.■\cademy. and one winter at the Eastman Busi- 
ness College, Poughkeepsie. Of these advan- 
tages he has made good use, and his later read- 
ing has kept him well posted upon all topics of 
general interest. His first venture into the 
world of business was as a clerk in the dry- 
goods house of Lord & Taylor, on Grand street. 
New York, and after one year in that capacity 
he was promoted to the office of cashier. He 
spent nearly three years with this firm, and 
then engaged in the milk business, but in 1880 
he left the city to follow the free and inde- 
pendent life of a farmer, purchasing of Albert 
Corbin the property near Pawling, Dutchess 
county, known as the Stockholm farm. It 
contains 140 acres, and, under Mr. Townsend's 



skillful management, is one of the best farms 
in the town. 

He was married in November, 1880, to 
Mary E. Sherwood, daughter of Stephen P. 
Sherwood, and a descendant of the Stark 
family, famous for patriotism and valor in 
Revolutionary times. Three children were 
born to them: Carrie L. ; Anna B., deceased; 
and Edith A. Mr. Townsend and his familj' 
attend the Baptist Church, and he is prominent 
in local affairs, being pronounced in his views 
and courageous in expression, traits which 
characterized his ancestors before him. His 
well-proved ability and public spirit have 
gained him the confidence of his neighbors, 
and he has been elected assessor on the Repub- 
lican ticket for the last seven years. He is 
now justice of the peace and president of the 
village board of health. 



ERMAN PULVER, one of the active, 
^%^ prominent and most enterprising citizens 
of the town of Pine Plains, is there engaged in 
general farming and carpentering. He was 
born in Columbia county, N. Y., June 4, 
1833, and is of Holland descent. The place 
which he now occupies has been in the family 
for many years, and Pulvers Corners was also 
named in honor of its members. 

William W. Pulver, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born at Pulvers Corners, Dutchess 
county, August 18, 1773, and lived for many 
years upon the farm now occupied by Mrs. 
Carskaden, in the town of Ancram, Columbia 
county, but his last days were passed at Pul- 
vers Corners, where he departed this life March 
22, 1 86 1. As an agriculturist he was very 
successful, and though he began with nothing, 
at his death was worth about $100,000. By 
his marriage with Christiana Millions, who was 
born May 18, 1780, he had eleven children, 
whose names and dates of birth are as follows 
John, 1801; W'illiam, 1804; Henry, 1806 
Catherine, 1S08; Polly, 18 10; Jacob, 181 2 
Levi, 1814; Peter, 1816; Anthony, 1818 
Esther, 1821 ; and Harman W. , 1824. These 
children lived in the vicinity of Pulvers Cor- 
ners. Their mother died May 28, 1872, aged 
ninety-two years. 

John Pulver, the father of our subject, was 
born in Columbia county, N. Y. , November 
10, 1 801, and although his school privileges 
were limited he became a well-informed man 



(0^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



as he was ever a great reader. By occupation 
he was a farmer, and followed that pursuit near 
Ancram, N. Y., for some time, and then for 
seven years engaged in the cultivation of a 
farm three-quarters of a mile from Ancram 
Lead Mines. He next removed to what is 
known as the Brookside farm, which is one of 
the oldest places in the locality, there having 
been at one time an English church, a grist- 
mill, tannery and fulling-mill upon the land, 
and also at three different times blacksmith 
shops had been located there. It was in 1847 
that he purchased that farm, which then con- 
sisted of 357.V acres; he added to it until it now 
comprises 368 acres of the best farming land 
to be found in the locality. He was an able 
man, of good business ability and sound judg- 
ment, careful and cautious in his dealings, very 
temperate in his habits, and was held in the 
highest regard by his fellow-citizens. Though 
not particularly active in politics, he was a 
stanch supporter of the Republican party, and 
for over fifty years he was a faithful member of 
the Baptist Church. He was twice married, 
his first union, March 31, 1831, being with 
Emma Curtis, who was born in Columbia 
county, August i, 1807, and died April 11, 
1837. To them were born two children: 
Herman, of this review; and Emma, who was 
born November 25, 1836. On November 5, 
1840, Mr. Pulver wedded Caroline Thompson, 
who was born October 27, 18 16. After a long 
and useful life he was called to his final rest 
January 20, 1891, at the advanced age of 
ninety years. 

After pursuing his studies for a time in the 
district schools, Herman Pulver was for a few 
months a student at Collinsville, Conn., and 
completed his education at Saugerties, just 
across the river in Ulster count}', where he re- 
mained for five months. Since laying aside 
his te.xt books he has devoted his time and at- 
tention to the cultivation of the old homestead, 
in which he has been quite successful, and has 
worked at the carpenter's trade. Being of a 
mechanical turn of mind, he is able to do al- 
most any kind of labor along that line. 

On November 19, 1868, Mr. Pulver was 
united in marriage with Miss Carrie E. Thomp- 
son, who was born in Birmingham, Conn., 
July 21, 1848, and they have become the par- 
ents of four children: John Duncan, who was 
born October 15, 1869, and is now a carpenter 
by trade; and Elbertine M., born Deceiiiber i, 
1871; Emma B., born July 23, 1877; and 



Charles Herbert, born March 4, 1881, all at 
home. 

In the exercise of his elective franchise, Mr. 
Pulver generally supports the men and meas- 
ures of the Republican party, but has never 
taken an active part in political affairs. He is 
public-spirited and enterprising, aiding in 
everything for the welfare and advancement of 
his town and county, and his honor and integ- 
rity are unimpeachable. A true and sincere 
Christian, he is a faithful member of the Bap- 
tist Church. 



E^DMOND BUTLER, a farmer and breeder 
of blooded stock, is a native of Ireland, 
born in County Waterford, August 15, 1832, a 
son of Edmond and Ellen (Stack) Butler, both 
also natives of the Emerald Isle. 

Edmond Butler, Sr., the father of our sub- 
ject, was the youngest in the family of seven 
children born to John and Mary fWhalen) 
Butler, the others being: Mary, who married 
a Mr. Welch, a farmer in Ireland; Abigail, 
who married John Ormond, a farmer in Ohio; 
Hanorah, who became the wife of Peter Mc- 
Graft, a school teacher, and, later, foreman of 
a farm; Kate, who died unmarried; Bridget, 
who married John O'Neal, a farmer in Ireland; 
and Margaret, who became the wife of Edmund 
Langley, of Ireland. Edmond Butler, Sr. , 
followed the occupation of a farmer. By his 
marriage with Ellen, daughter of John and 
Margaret (Foley) Stack, he became the father 
of seven children, of whom the following record 
is given: Margaret married John Maroney, 
formerlj' a farmer in Unionvale, now deceased; 
Mary became the wife of Dennis Flynn, a 
resident of St. Joseph, Mo. ; Bridget married 
Nathan Conklin, a farmer; Ellen married 
Valentine Rickes, a blacksmith in Millbrook; 
John is a farmer in Ireland; Thomas farms in 
the town of Washington; and Edmond is our 
subject. The father of this family died in 
Ireland in 1844, and the mother survived him 
until 1863. They were faithful and consistent 
members of the Roman Catholic Church. 

John Stack, the maternal grandfather of 
our subject, was a noted horseman. In his 
family were children, as follows: Thomas, 
Morris, John (who was one of the finest riders 
in Ireland), Richard, William, Bridget, Mar- 
garet, Ellen, Catherine, and Mary. 

Edmond Butler, the subject proper of this 
sketch, spent his early days in Ireland, and at 




G^d^^i^^^/ ,^^,u2&A^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



753 



the age of eighteen (in 1S50) he took passage 
in the " Martha J. Ward," for the New World. 
On his arrival he went to live with the family 
of Nicholas Haight, in the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, remaining with them until 
Mr. Haight's death, January 15, 1856, and 
shortly afterward the son, James Haight, made 
our subject promise to remain with the widowed 
mother and her two daughters, Sallie and 
Louisa, until their death, and also asked them 
to remember Mr. Butler for his kindness to the 
f; mily. James Haight died October 12, 1859; 
tie widowed mother on December 25. 1864; 
Louisa on March 5, 1875, and Sallie on April 
I, 1 89 1. The sisters, Sallie and Louisa, re- 
warded Mr. Butler for his kindness and long 
faithfulness to the family by leaving him the 
homestead and considerable other property. 
He had only one settlement with the family, 
and that was in 1865, shortly before his mar- 
riage; and when that event took place he 
brought his bride to live on the Haight 
family homestead, where they reared their 
large family, and which they now own and 
occupy. 

On October 8, 1865, Mr. Butler was mar- 
ried to Miss Ellen Cullinan, also a native of 
County Waterford, Ireland, and a daughter of 
Michael Cullinan, a farmer in that country. 
Mr. and Mrs. Butler began their married life 
on the present homestead, where the following 
children were born: James H., July 18, 1866; 
John M.. September 6, 1868; Thomas E., 
April 10, 1871; Sally H., June 24, 1873, who 
graduated with honors from the Eastman 
Business College, Poughkeepsie, in 1891, and 
is now bookkeeper for James Converse; Ed- 
mond, Jr., January 29, 1876; William C, 
August 22, 1878; Louisa H., February ig, 
1883; all of whom are single. 

At one time Mr. Butler was the owner of 
about 900 acres of land, and now owns about 
500 acres, but farms about 1,000 acres. He 
has been a general farmer, and has given much 
attention to the breeding of blooded stock. 
He has sold a great many fine horses to prom- 
inent people, and at present has about thirty- 
one head on his place. He is very fond of 
nice stock, especially horses, of which he is an 
extensive breeder, and owns "Benjamin Har- 
rison," one of the promising stallions of the 
county. Besides his own work he manages 
the farm of James Converse, a wealthy farmer, 
who has always about twenty-five head of 
horses on the place. In politics Mr. Butler is 

48 



a Republican, and he and his family are Cath- 
olics. Although coming to America without 
money, he has, by perseverance and hard 
work, attained the position of one of the 
wealthy citizens of his township. He is a pro- 
gressive and representative citizen, and takes 
an active interest in all public matters. 



EWRITT CONOVER occupies a place in 
/ the esteem of his fellow townsmen which 

is a tribute to that genuine worth and true 
nobleness of character which are universally 
recognized and honored. Enterprise and in- 
dustry are numbered among his marked char- 
acteristics, and he has been an important fac- 
tor in advancing the general welfare and secur- 
ing the material development of the town of 
Pleasant Valley. 

Mr. Conover was born October 10, 1847, 
in the town of Pleasant Valley. His father, 
Peter Conover, was a native of the town of 
Poughkeepsie, and the grandfather, Jacob 
Conover, was a progressive farmer of Dutchess 
county. He married Miss Van Kleeck, and 
took up his abode on a farm in Poughkeepsie 
town, where they reared a family of five chil- 
dren, namely: Peter, whose sketch follows; 
Abram, an agriculturist of the town of Hyde 
Park; Adrian, a farmer of the town of Pleasant 
Valley; Barbara A., wife of Merritt A. Mar- 
shall, a farmer who is now living in Pleasant 
Valley; and Catherine, wife of Zachariah Van- 
Wagner, who devotes his energies to agricultural 
pursuits in this neighborhood. To the same call- 
ing the grandfather of our subject devoted his 
life, and spent his last days in Pleasant Val- 
ley. During the Revolutionary war he was a 
captain in the home guards. 

Peter Conover spent his youth in the usual 
manner of farmer lads, and after entering upon 
his business career he chose, as a companion 
and helpmeet on life's journey. Miss Sarah Van- 
Wagner, who was born in the town of Pleas- 
ant Valley, and, like her husband, was of Hol- 
land lineage. They established their home 
upon the farm where our subject now resides, 
and their union was blessed with five children: 
Evritt; Martha, wife of Frank Lamoree, who 
operates a tract of land in the valley; Abram, 
a farmer of the town of Clinton; Emily, wife 
of Edwin Husted, a resident of the village of 
Pleasant Valley; and Nellie, wife of Frank 
Knapp, a farmer of Clinton town. The par- 
ents have both passed away, leaving many 



VOMMEWORATIVB BIOORAPUICAL KEVOHJ). 



warm friends to mourn their loss. They were 
consistent members of the Presbyterian Church, 
and Mr. Conover was a Republican in his po- 
litical belief. 

Evritt Conover, whose name introduces 
this review, early became familiar with all the 
duties of farm life, for at an early age he per- 
formed his quota of the work on the old home- 
stead. He obtained his education in the dis- 
trict schools, and then entered upon the more 
responsible duties that come to one on laying 
aside te.\t-books and commencing a business 
career. He is to-day the owner of lOo acres 
of cultivable land, conveniently situated about 
seven miles from Poughkeepsie, and carries on 
general farming. He has a beautiful home 
and substantial outbuildings, which are sur- 
rounded by fields of waving grain, and are 
supplemented by all the conveniences and ac- 
cessories of a model farm of the nineteenth 
century. 

In February, 1878, Evritt Conover was 
married to Miss Allie Walters, who was born 
in Cairo, town of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess 
Co., N. Y., a daughter of Edward Walters, a 
farmer, merchant and miller. They now have 
four children: Ethelyn, Rose, Robert and Har- 
old. The parents attend the Presbyterian 
Church, and hold an enviable position in social 
circles where true worth and intelligence are 
received as the passports into good society. 
Mr. Conover is a Republican in political belief, 
and is deeply and actively interested in those 
affairs which pertain to the public welfare. 



GEORGE S. HALSTED. The subject of 
this personal narration is one of the suc- 
cessful and progressive farmers resident within 
the borders of the town of Hyde Park, and 
may be termed one of the representative men 
of his section, where he is engaged in general 
farming. He has made his special field of in- 
dustry a success, and is highly esteemed and 
respected by those who know him best. He 
was born at Crum Elbow, in Hyde Park town, 
September 14, 1853, and belongs to a family 
that for several generations has been identified 
with the history of Dutchess county. 

David Halsted, his great-grandfather, was 
one of the earliest settlers of the town of Beek- 
man, where from the primeval forest he de- 
veloped a farm ar>d reared his family. He 
belonged to the Society of Friends. He mar- 
ried, and became the father of seven children: 



Stephen, Samuel, David, Jerusha, Prudence, 
Phebe and Eunice. 

David H. Halsted, the grandfather, was 
born in the town of Beekman, where he spent 
his boyhood days, and there owned two farms. 
He married Miss Letitia Haviland, daughter 
of Thomas Haviland, of Pawling, Dutchess 
county, and the following children were born 
to them: Thomas, Amy, Moses and Eliza- 
beth, all deceased; David S. , father of our 
subject; and Letitia, wife of Isaac Hewlett. 
In 1832, the father of this family removed to 
the town of Clinton, Dutchess county, where 
he died two years later. In religious belief he 
was a Friend. 

The birth of David Sands Halsted, the 
father of our subject, occurred in the town of 
Beekman, March 28, 1819, and he obtained 
his education in the schools of the neighbor- 
hood. He accompanied the family to Clinton 
town, and remained upon the home farm a few 
years after his father's death. In his twentieth 
year he purchased a farm in the town of Hyde 
Park, on which he located after his marriage, 
September 9, 1846, with Caroline W. Hew- 
lett, who was born in that town, November 14, 
1830, and died May 15, 1866, in the town of 
Lagrange, same county. Two children graced 
their union: William D., born August 5, 1848, 
and George S., of this review. In the town 
of Pleasant Valley he was again married, June 
10, 1868, his second union being with Mar- 
garet J. Allen Marshall, who was there born 
March 6, 1832. He engaged in farming in 
Hyde Park from 1839 until 1859, during which 
time he was elected inspector of elections for 
the town on the Democratic ticket. Since the 
latter year, however, he has made his home in 
the town of Lagrange, where he has filled the 
same position. On starting out in life he re- 
ceived about $1,500, and being very successful 
in his business undertakings has been able to 
assist his children. He has always attended 
the Friends Church at Poughkeepsie, and is a 
gentleman worthy the commendation of all. 

For four years George S. Halsted attended 
the Dutchess County Academy, under Stewart 
Pelham, after \vhich he pursued his studies for 
two years in the Cary Academy, but completed 
his education with Mr. Pelham, finishing the 
entire course in 1872. On leaving school he 
took up farming, and for many years worked 
for his father, but in 18S0 purchased the old 
Sidney Livingston farm, removing upon the 
place in the spring of that year. It comprises 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



Too 



sixty-five acres of rich and arable land, which 
he has converted into one of the best farms 
of the town. In 1880 Mr. Halsted was mar- 
ried to Miss Esther E. Dickinson, of West- 
chester county, N. Y. , daughter of Henry 
Dickinson, and they have become the parents 
of three children: Ruth, Caroline W., and 
George D. 

Politically, Mr. Halsted affiliates with the 
Democratic party, and he is ranked as a man of 
ability and enterprise, on account of which he 
holds a good position among the people of the 
community. In 1884 he was elected justice 
of the peace to fill a vacancy, and in 1888 and 
1892 re-elected to the same office. He has 
also been school trustee and assessor of his 
district, and has done much toward getting the 
postal facilities improved in his section. He 
is prominently identified with the Dutchess 
County Farmers Club, and is a charter mem- 
ber and one of the directors of the Farmers 
Town Co-operative Insurance Company of 
Hj'de Park, while religiously he belongs to the 
Hicksite Branch of the Society of Friends, at- 
tending meeting at Crum Elbow. 



JAMES BLAIR. Among the most success- 
ful horticulturists, or gardeners, in this 
country, there are few that are the peers of 
the representatives of the Scotch-Irish race. 
In the village of Grange, County TjTone, Ire- 
land, our subject's birth occurred January 29, 
1853, and he is a son of David Blair, who was 
born in Ayrshire, Scotland, in 1804. His 
grandfather, Robert Blair, was also a native 
and farmer of the latter country, belonged to 
one of its oldest families. 

For twenty-five years the father followed 
teaching at Cloughhag, County Derry, Ireland, 
and continued to follow that profession until 
seventy-five years of age. He was a man of 
more than ordinary ability, highly educated, 
and proved a competent instructor. He was 
a particularly fine mathematician, and was one 
of the representative men of the locality in 
which he lived. He married Agnes, daughter 
of James Foster, who was born in Ireland, but 
was of Scotch descent. The parental house- 
hold included five children: Robert, a gar- 
dener, who died in 1889; James, of this sketch; 
David, who is connected with a boot and shoe 
house in Ireland; Margaret, who died at the 
age of six years; and William, who died in 



1889. In 1889 the father was called to his 
final rest, but the mother still makes her 
home in Ireland. 

Under his father's instruction, Mr. Blair, 
of this review, received a good education, and 
on leaving school at the age of seventeen had 
charge of his father's farm for a year. Dur- 
ing the following four years he served an 
apprenticeship at gardening at Killymoon Cas- 
tle, and then began as a journeyman with 
Dickson & Co., of Edinburgh, Scotland, with 
whom he remained a year. Sixteen months 
were then passed on the estate of Lord Lam- 
ington, in Lanarkshire, Scotland, and the fol- 
lowing six months he was again with Dickson 
& Co. Going to Calendar Park, near Fal- 
kirk, in Stirlingshire, owned by William Forbes, 
he remained there a year, after which for a 
year and a half he worked for Earl Grey, at 
Howick Hall, in Northumberland. For six 
years and a half he was then foreman for Lord 
Belper, of Kingston Hall, in Nottinghamshire, 
and on leaving his service returned to Ireland 
for a short time, later gaining his experience in 
fruit culture in Selkirk, Scotland, at The Tweed 
Vineyard, where he remained two years. 

In the year 1887, Mr. Blair determined to 
try his fortune in America, and coming to Paw- 
tucket, R. I., he there served as head gardener 
for Mr. Sales for about a year; but, owing to 
the death of two brothers and his father, 
returned to Ireland. In 1889, however, he 
came again to the New World, this time locat- 
ing at Yonkers, N. Y. , where he was head 
gardener for Mrs. Lillenthal, at Belvour Park. 
It was in 1890 that he came to Staatsburg, 
and he has since been head gardener for Ogden 
Mills, giving the best of satisfaction. 

In 1889 Mr. Blair was married to Miss 
Eliza Lloyd, of Shropshire, England, and they 
have four children: David Edward, Agnes 
Margaret, William James and Hilda Eliza. 
Our subject belongs to St. Margaret's Episco- 
pal Church. He has the respect and confi- 
dence of all who know him, and January 2, 
1895, was elected first president of the Dutch- 
ess County Horticultural Society.- 



ILLIAM HERRICK, an old-time agri- 
culturist of large experience, is now 
numbered among the most enterprising and 
prosperous farmers of the town of Pleasant 
Valley, Dutchess county, by whose people he 



756 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



is held in that reverence and respect tacitly 
accorded those v%hose lives have been distin- 
guished by integrity and usefulness. 

The Herricks under consideration come of 
a prominent family of England, and the 
descent of our subject is traced as follows: 
Sir William Herrick, of Beau Manor Park, 
Leicestershire, England; Henry; Ephraim; 
Samuel; Stephen; Elijah, who was a captain 
in the Revolutionary war; Ephraim (our sub- 
ject's grandfather), who was born at Amenia. 
Dutchess county, married Anna Dixon, and 
located in the town of Milan, where he estab- 
lished a Church; Ephraim. oursubject's father; 
and William (our subject t. The first of the 
family to come from England to America 
located at Beverly Farms, Massachusetts. 

Ephraim Herrick, father of William, was 
born and reared on his father's farin in the 
town of Milan, Dutchess county. He married 
Phoebe Albertson, a native of the town of Hyde 
Park, Dutchess county, where his father, John 
Albertson, a Hollander by descent, was a 
farmer. After their marriage Ephraim Her- 
rick and his young wife located upon a farm in 
the town of Milan, where children as follows 
were born to them: John is a farmer in the 
town of Pine Plains, Dutchesscounty; William 
is the next in order of birth; Walter was 
a practicing physician, and died January 13, 
1895; Gurdon, who was an agriculturist in the 
town of Milan, died April 28, 1894; James is a 
speculator of that town; Elizabeth is the widow 
of Isaac Sherwood, at one time a grocer of 
the village of Rhinebeck; Susan died in infancy; 
and Caroline married Henry Butts, a farmer 
of the town of Stanford, Dutchess county. 
The mother of these died, and four years later, 
about 1835, Ephraim Herrick married Susan 
Ann Andrews, by which union there were four 
children: Anna, George, Edward and Ephraim. 
The father continued to follow the occupation 
of farming until his death, in 1867. He was 
a faithful member of Christ's Church; politic- 
ally he affiliated with the Democratic party, 
and served as supervisor of his town, and county 
superintendent of the poor. 

William Herrick, the subject proper of this 
sketch, was born September 28, 1818, in the 
town of Milan, Dutchess countv. and was 
reared to manhood on the home farm, where 
at an early age he became familiar with agri- 
cultural pursuits. In 1841 he married Eliza- 
beth Brown, who was born in the town of 
Washington, Dutchess county, a daughter of 



Charles Brown, a native of Pawling, same 
county, and a farmer and wagon maker by oc- 
cupation. They began their domestic life 
upon his father's place, whence at the end of 
five years they removed to the present farm of 
our subject, where he has now resided for over 
half a century. Four children blessed that 
union: (i) Charles B., in his day a prominent 
lawyer of Poughkeepsie, married Ada Van- 
Benschoten, and died July 29, i896;they had 
no children. (2i Phcebe A. married Albert P. 
Smith, a miller of Salt Point, Dutchesscounty 
(now deceased), and they had one son, Eugene 
Herrick Smith, who is in business in New 
York. (31 Sarah is a school teacher in Penn- 
sylvania. (4) Marshall, one of the leading 
furniture dealers of Poughkeepsie, married 
Julia Allen, and they have one son, Harold 
Allen Herrick. The mother of this family 
died in i860, and October 26, 1865, William 
Herrick married Mary Harris, a daughter of 
Col. Israel Harris, of the town of Pine Plains, 
Dutchess county, to which union has been 
born a daughter, Mary Elizabeth. 

Mr. Herrick has an excellent farm of 190 
acres, which he has placed under a high state 
of cultivation, and for many years has followed 
general farming, including the raising of 
blooded cattle, in which he makes a specialty 
of Jersey cows, having at present a fine herd 
of some thirty head of this breed. He also 
sells cream to the Co-operative Creamery. 
By industry and good management he has 
made his farm one of the most highly culti- 
vated and improved in the locality. 

Mr. Herrick is not a member of any 
Church, but has been interested in the one at 
Salt Point, N. Y. He is prominently identi- 
fied with the Democratic party, has ably 
served as justice of the peace, and as assessor 
and supervisor of his town. Surrounded by 
loving kindred and friends, he is now nearing 
the last milestone that marks the end of life's 
journey. His record has been an honorable 
one, his years have been fruitful with deeds of 
usefulness and kindness, with malice toward 
none and friendliness toward all who have come 
under his influence, and he has gained the re- 
spect and honor of the whole community. 



BENJAMIN K. WHITE. Among the agri- 
culturists of Dutchess county who have 
attained success through their own persever- 
; ance, enterprise and good management, is the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



757 



gentleman whose name is here given. He is 
now engaged in general farming in the town of 
Stanford, and is complete master of the calling 
which he is following. His sterling integrity 
and honorable, upright manhood full}' entitle 
him to the position which he holds in the esti- 
mation of the people of the community. 

Mr. White is a native of Dutchess county, 
born October 3, 1859, near the village of Beek- 
man, in the town of Beekman, and is a son of 
Leonard and Mary (Wright) White, who died 
when our subject was but an infant, the mother 
in 1859, and the father the year following. 
They were earnest members of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, and the father followed the 
occupation of farming in the town of Beekman 
up to the time of his death. Our subject was 
taken by Dr. D. A. Knapp, of North Clove, in 
the town of Unionvale, Dutchess county, with 
whom he continued to live until reaching his 
majority, and attended school at that place. 
At the age of twenty-one he went to Fremont 
county, Iowa, and later took up 160 acres of 
land at Beatrice, Neb. On disposing of this 
he went to St. Louis, where he was employed 
in the stockyards with his brother Thomas for 
two years and a half, when, being taken ill, he 
returned to Dutchess county, and operated a 
farm in the town of Unionvale for a year. He 
then purchased his present place, to the culti- 
vation and improvement of which he devotes 
his time and attention, and during the twelve 
years of his Residence there has made it one of 
the most highly productive farms in the lo- 
cality. 

On January 13, 1880, Mr. White was mar- 
ried to Miss Frances M. Traver, daughter of 
Philo and Mary Traver, and a son — Frederick 
— was born to them August 2, 1890. They 
are devoted to the interests of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church, of which they are members. 
In his political views Mr. White coincides with 
the principles of the Republican party, but 
takes no active part in politics, preferring to 
give his time to his business affairs, and has 
never accepted office. 



ALBERT J. BUDD is a reliable and in- 
telligent farmer of the town of Pleasant 

Valley, where his birth occurred August 16, 
1830. His father, James Budd, was one of 
the twelve children of John Budd, and our sub- 
ject is the youngest in a family of twelve. One 



of his brothers, Joseph, is the father of James 
H. Budd, the Governor of California, while 
another brother, Joel Budd, is a prominent 
resident of Hyde Park. The primary educa- 
tion of our subject was obtained in the district 
schools, and he later pursued his studies for 
some time in Amenia Seminary, also at Rhine- 
beck and Amsterdam, N. Y. After leaving 
the school room he turned his attention to 
agricultural pursuits. 

On October 16, 1853, Mr. Budd was united 
in marriage with Miss Kate S. Stoutenburgh, 
who was born in the town of Pleasant Valley, 
in 1837, and is the eldest child of Tobias and 
Maria (Albertson) Stoutenburgh, the former 
born in the town of Hyde Park January 29, 
1806, and the latter in the town of Pleasant 
Valley, July 18, 1809. Her sister, Mary, is 
the wife of Dr. Merritt Dutcher, a practicing 
physician of Owego, N. Y. Religiously, her 
father was a Baptist, and his political support 
was formerly given to the Whig party, he later 
becoming a stanch Republican. Her grand- 
father, Isaac Stoutenburgh, was the son of Will- 
iam Stoutenburgh, one of the Nine Partners 
who came to this country and took up a large 
tract of land, thus becoming one of the earliest 
settlers of this locality. 

After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Budd 
began their domestic life upon their present 
farm, and their household was brightened by 
the presence of eight children: James T., a 
farmer of Pleasant Valley town; Frederick, 
who was a lawyer and farmer, and died in 
Pleasant Valley; Caroline, wife of Oliver 
Wood, also a farmer of the same township; 
Lillian, deceased wife of Byron Conklin, an 
agriculturist; Isaac A., a farmer of Clinton 
town, Dutchess county; Mary A., wife of 
David S. Van De Water, a farmer of Pough- 
keepsie town; Walter, an agriculturist of 
Pleasant Valley town; and Willard, who died 
in infancy. Mr. Budd has been successful in 
his life work, and owns a fine farm of 108 
acres, where, in connection with general farm- 
ing, he makes a specialty of the manufacture of 
butter. He is progressive in his methods, and 
on his place are seen all the conveniences and 
accessories of a model farm of the nineteenth 
century. His political views are in accordance 
with those of the Republican party, and he 
has served as justice of the peace. To the 
Baptist Church he and his wife contribute lib- 
erally, and they enjoy the esteem of the entire 
neighborhood. 



758 



COMifEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



JOHN A. MONFORT. The fine farm owned 
by this gentleman, in the town of Lagrange, 
Dutchess county, is a standing monument 
to his industry, perseverance and good man- 
agement. He comes under the category of 
self-made men, having been thrown upon his 
own resources early in life, and has succeeded 
only by the exercise of his steady, plodding 
labors, both mental and physical. At the 
present time he is one of the prominent repre- 
sentatives of the agricultural interests of Dutch- 
ess county. 

Our subject was born April 6, 1818, and his 
boyhood days were passed in the town of Beek- 
man, Dutchess county, where he attended 
school. He remained upon the home farm until 
his father's death, when, at the age of seventeen 
years, he was obliged to start out in life for 
himself. Removing to the town of Lagrange, 
he there worked for S. L. Lockvvood until he 
was twenty-two. On October 6, 1841, he was 
married to Miss Julia Ann Phillips, who was 
born August 6, 1824, daughter of Thomas H. 
Phillips, of the town of Lagrange, and one 
child graced their union, Mary Louisa, born 
February 11, 1845, who, on October 10, 1866, 
was united in marriage with Frederick L 
Knapp, by whom she had two children: John 
M. and Effie Beatrice; but she was called from 
this life June 9, 1876. 

After his marriage Mr. Monfort operated a 
farm in the town of I^agrange for a year, after 
which he followed the same pursuit in Fishkill 
town, Dutchess county, for six years. For 
nine years he was then engaged in farming in 
the southern part of Lagrange town, and on 
the expiration of that time came to this present 
farm, which he cultivated for ten years, but 
the following five years were passed in Pough- 
keepsie, after which he returned to his farm in 
Lagrange town, where he has resided since 
1874. On October 6, 1891, Mr. Monfort and 
his faithful wife celebrated their golden wed- 
ding, having traveled life's journey together 
for fifty years, sharing with each other its joys 
and sorrows, its adversity and prosperity. 
They are now well advanced in years, and 
have reason to feel that their lives have not 
been spent in vain. They have endeavored to 
exercise the kindly spirit of charity and benev- 
olence, to do good as they have opportunity, 
and proved the friends and sympathizers of 
those less fortunate. 

Henry A. Monfort, father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Fishkill, June 25, 



1778. On December 2, i8or, he married 
Miss Maria Phillips, who was born November 
27, 1780, and they became the parents of six 
children: Susan, Eliza, Albert H., Aletty 
Maria, Jane and John Angevine. 

Thomas H. Phillips, the father of Mrs. 
Monfort, was a native of Dutchess county, 
born in the town of Fishkill, February 4, 1794. 
He married Miss Rachel Brower, who was 
born January 7, 1794, and they became the 
parents of five. children: Mary Ellen, who died 
March 25, 1836; Cornelius; Julia \m\; and 
Sylvanius and Susan E. , who live on Smith 
street, Poughkeepsie. 



HORACE JENKS, a prominent agricult- 
urist of the town of Northeast, Dutchess 
county, is of English descent on both sides of 
the family. His paternal grandfather, William 
Jenks, was born October 5, 1775, and was for 
some time an iron manufacturer on Staten 
Island. He came to Dutchess county in 1795, 
and located at Leedsville, where he became 
interested in the flax business, supplying that 
material in large quantities to the North Fac- 
tory. He was married November 3, 1795, to 
Sarah Mygatt. They died within a year of 
each other, Mr. Jenks, May 18, 1824, and his 
wife, February 14, 1825. They had nine 
children, whose names with dates of birth are 
as follows: George, June 24, 1798; Myra, 
September 29, 1800; Miles, Ju'ly 30, 1802; 
William, February 29, 1804; Luther Pardee, 
May 30, 1806; Sally Ann, November iS, 1809; 
Thomas M., November 30, 181 1; Edward, 
March 29, 1814; and Eli Starr, April 22, 1816. 
Miles Jenks, our subject's father, was a man 
of great energy, and, although he died in early 
life, he had given evidence of unusual ability. 
He engaged in the hotel business and in black- 
smithing at Leedsville, and during the summers 
he also bought and butchered stock. In i S29 he 
went to Michigan, where he remained for a 
year, purchasing, while there, 1,000 acres of 
land in Oakland county. He died September 
18, 1836. His wife, formerly Betsey Conklin, 
to whom he was married January i, 1824, 
survived him until September 30, 1853. Of 
their four children our subject is the only one 
now living. William H. , born October 26, 1 824, 
was a painter in the town of Northeast, where 
he died August 22, 1893; Selah N., born Sep- 
tember 7, 1829, died January 7, 1893; he was 
a merchant in the village of Millerton, and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



759 



also a musician and bandmaster, teaching 
music throughout the neighboring towns and 
villages. Mary Jane, born August 14, 1833, 
died August 19, 1884; she married Myron 
Pitcher, who survived her nine years, dying 
November 2, 1893. 

The subject of our sketch, the second son, 
was born December 30, 1826, attended the 
public schools of Amenia during early boy- 
hood, but did not receive much schooling after 
the age of nine years. After his father's death 
he lived for one year with his uncle, Horace 
Conklin, on the farm once owned by the late 
Ezra Clark, and now owned by Leonard Bar- 
ton. The next two years he spent with Hiram 
Wheeler, and in 1838 he accompanied his un- 
cle, Horace Conklin, to Binghamton, Broome 
Co., N. Y., where he remained four years. 
In 1842 he came back to his native county, in 
charge of a drove of cattle, belonging to his 
uncle, and began to work for Lawrence and 
Milton Wheeler on their farm in the town of 
Northeast, and later he apprenticed himself to 
Daniel Piatt, a well-known mason, for two 
years, at three shillings per day. 

On completing his term he formed a part- 
nership with Mr. Piatt, which lasted five 
years, their work extending to different por- 
tions of the towns of Amenia and Northeast. 
For about seven years after the dissolution of 
their partnership Mr. Jenks carried on his 
trade alone, and in the spring of 1856 he went 
to Davenport, Iowa, and then to Henry Co., 
111., where he engaged in buying and herding 
cattle for a short time. Later he went to Pon- 
tiac, Mich., and worked at his trade, but in 
1857 he returned to Dutchess county. Until 
1864 he was a successful drover, buying his 
own cattle in Vermont and central New York, 
and selling to the farmers in Northeast and 
vicinity. He then entered the employ of C. 
S. Maltby, as wood and coal agent, supplying 
the Phoenix and Millerton iron furnaces. This 
responsible position he held for twenty-one 
years; but since his retirement he has been en- 
gaged in farming in a small way. He is a 
man of sound business judgment, noted for 
his shrewdness and caution, and his advice is 
valued in financial circles. For the past three 
years he has been a director of the Millerton 
National Bank. 

On March 3, 1880, Mr. Jenks was married 
to Miss Jennie Lord, a descendant of one of 
the old families of the town of Northeast, and 
a daughter of Newman and Malinda (Hise- 



rodt) Lord, prominent residents of Spencers 
Corners. They have one son. Miles Lord 
Jenks, born May 14, 1883. Newman Lord 
was born November 12, 1808, in the town of 
Northeast, Dutchess county, and his wife, Ma- 
linda (Hiserodt), on January 28, 182S. They 
were married September [7, 1855, ^"^1 had 
four daughters, Mrs. Jenks being the only one 
who grew to womanhood. She was born 
August 7, 1856. The father passed from 
earth June 19, 1894; the mother is yet living. 
Mr. Lord's father, Ethan Lord, by occupa- 
tions a painterand a farmer, as was also the son, 
was born July 14, 1776, in Connecticut, and 
died July 4, 1866. He married Ruth Dakin, 
and they had four children: Jenette, New- 
man, Cornelia and Olivia, all now deceased. 
Ruth Dakin, wife of Ethan Lord, was born 
September 8, 1785, and died January 10, 
1852; she was a daughter of Simon Dakin, 
and a granddaughter of Elder Simon Dakin, 
the first stationed Baptist minister of this 
place. He was born January 27, 1721, and 
died September 19, 1803. Simon Dakin, Jr., 
was born September 16, 1757, and died July 
12, 1830. 

In public affairs our subject has always 
shown a generous interest on the side of prog- 
ress. Politically he is a Republican, but has 
not taken an active share in the work of the 
party. He is affiliated with the Masonic fra- 
ternity, and has been a member of the Order 
of American Mechanics. 



JACOB S. TOWNSEND, a well-known resi- 
dent of the town of Unionvale, Dutchess 
~ county, is one of the successful agricultur- 
ists of that locality. 

Mr. Townsend's ancestors were early set- 
tlers in Arthursburg, Dutchess county, and his 
grandfather, Tredwell Townsend, was born 
there January 9, 1780, and became a promi- 
nent farmer. His educational opportunities 
were limited to an attendance at the local 
schools, but he was a man of intelligence, tak- 
ing much interest in public questions. In poli- 
tics he was a Democrat, and represented his 
town on the board of supervisors several terms. 
He married Miss Anna Dorland, who was born 
August 31, 1782. They had nine children, 
whose names, with dates of birth, are as fol- 
lows: Zachariah F. , April i, 1802; John, Sep- 
tember 12, 1803; Edgar, December 14, 1805; 
Enoch, October 17, 1807; Samuel, August 18, 



760 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPniCAL RECORD. 



1811; Gilbert, May 6, 181 5; Gilbert D., March 
15,1817; Mary, July 27, 1819; and Catharine, 
July 13, 1821. 

Edgar Towiisend, father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Lagrange, Dutchess 
county, and was educated there at the com- 
mon schools. He taught school for some time 
in early manhood, and later he engaged in 
farming. He married Miss Eurana Jolly, and 
their children were as follows: Jacob S., born 
November 10, 1834; Mary E., May 22, 1836; 
and Catharine A., March 11, 1838. 

Jacob S. Townsend, our subject, was born 
and educated in Seneca county, N. Y. In early 
life he learned the blacksmith trade, at which 
he worked a few years, engaging later in agri- 
culture. He is a Democrat in politics, but 
never held any important town office. He 
married Miss Cordelia Washburn, daughter of 
Daniel Washburn, a prosperous farmer of 
Unionvale, and his wife, Sarah Morey. Mr. 
Townsend's home has been brightened by three 
daughters: (i) Mary, born December 21, i860, 
is at home. (2) Sarah was born February 5, 
1863, in Lagrangeville, Dutchess county, and 
was educated there. She married George W. 
Gibney, a tinsmith of Pawling, and they have 
three children— Willie T., born July 8, 1888; 
Ethel M., born March 8, 1894; and Florence 
A., born February 18, 1896. (3) Carrie Town- 
send was born January 2, 1865, in Lagrange- 
ville, Dutchess county, and was educated in 
the local schools. She married Walter Ells- 
worth, an employe of the N. Y. C. R. R. They 
have had one child, Arthur, who was born 
October 3, 1891, and died February 21, 1893. 



GEORGE R. SHAW. The subject of this 
sketch, one of the prosperous agriculturists 
of this section, has lived a long and active life, 
been more than ordinarily successful in his 
chosen vocation, and reared in intelligence and 
comfort a large family. He is a native of 
Dutchess county, being born January 24, 1822, 
on the farm at that time belonging to his father, 
in the southern part of what is now the town 
of East Fishkill. He was the elder of two 
sons of Enoch and Catherine (Reed) Shaw. 
The younger son, the Rev. William W. Shaw, 
is a clergyman of the Methodist Church, and 
is the pastor of the Church at Spencertown, 
Columbia county. Mr. Shaw resided with his 
father until grown to man's estate. The home 
farm was of about one hundred acres, and. 



after the death of the father, was divided be- 
tween the two sons. Mr. Shaw continued for 
a time upon the old place, working his portion 
in connection with other land adjoining, but, 
later, the farm was sold, and he resided in other 
neighborhoods, working different farms, until 
during the "seventies," he purchased a farm 
near Washingtonville, Orange county, contain- 
ing over two hundred acres. Here the family 
resided for a few years, until 1882, when he 
sold the property, and the present home was 
purchased. This farm is one of the historic 
ones of this historic town. It is situated on 
the old "Post Road" laid out by Lord Low- 
den in 1753, leading from New York to Albany, 
and is a half mile north of the gateway of the 
Highlands, known as Wiccopee Pass. The 
farm is a portion of a tract of 959 acres pur- 
chased by Cornelius Van Wyck, of Hempstead, 
Long Island, of Catherine Brett in 1733. The 
farm was in the possession of his descendants 
for nearly 150 years. The farm was divided 
shortly after the Revolution, and the portion 
now owned by Mr. Shaw, comprising 2\\\ 
acres, of which 160 are under cultivation, fell 
to Cornelius C. \'an Wyck, grandson of the 
original settler, who built the present mansion. 
Tradition says that previous to that time a 
small house had occupied nearly the same site, 
a part of that structure forming the kitchen 
wing of the present edifice. The original Van- 
Wyck house stands a few rods toward the 
south. This dwelling has been made famous- 
by history and romance. It is the "Wharton 
House" of Cooper's "Spy." It was for two 
years during the Revolution the residence of 
John Jay, the chairman of the Committee of 
Safety, and was at various times occupied by 
the officers who commanded that considerable 
part of the American forces which for several 
years was stationed in this neighborhood to 
guard this pass through the mountains. All 
about these houses was the camp. The sol- 
diers' barracks stood behind the site of the 
house now occupied by the Shaw family, and 
frequently have been found relics of their oc- 
cupancy, in the shape of corroded bullets, 
pieces of shells, bayonets and other imple- 
ments of war. The enlarged house was par- 
tially built with timbers taken from these bar- 
racks. 

Mr. Shaw has been twice married. His 
first wife was Amy Maria Rickey, daughter of 
Peter and Elizabeth (Horton) Rickey. She 
died leaving five children. Ward is a farmer 




'f^MLu^ 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



761 



in Illinois; Catherine Elizabeth is married and 
lives in Orange county; Julia, married, lives 
in the town of Wappinger; Sarah G. and 
Georgiana reside in New York City. Mr. Shaw 
remarried, his second wife being Susan Jane 
Wilcox, daughter of George and Tamar (Ste- 
vens) Wilcox, of Putnam county. By this 
marriage there were eleven children, two of 
whom died in infancy. William G. is the 
manager of the Elmira Glass Works; Irving is 
a farmer in Illinois; Amy is a teacher in the 
academic department of the Fishkill Union 
School; two sons, George R. , Jr., and John, 
are engaged in brick manufacturing; Frank, a 
graduate of the Brooklyn Polytechnic School, 
is attending Harvard University, while Nellie 
B. and Luella are teaching in district schools 
near their home. 

There was one other son, Adelbert. born in 
1870, who met a sad and tragic death at the 
age of twenty. He was a youth of rare intel- 
lectual promise. After studying the ordinary 
branches at the common schools, he decided 
to fit himself for the legal profession. For a 
time he was a student in the law office of J. 
Hervej' Cook, of Fishkill Landing; later, from 
.1888 to 1890, he attended the Genesee Wes- 
leyan Seminary, at Lima, N. Y., graduating 
with the highest honors of his class. In 1890 
he entered Harvard University. He was 
blessed with a quick mind, and was a patient, 
laborious student. More than that, he was 
a natural athlete, large and of excellent 
physique. The leaders of athletics of the 
college demanded his services. He was put 
on the football team, and was one of the 
best men on the eleven. Later he was 
urged to join the "Varsity Crew", then 
training at the oars in hopes of defeating Yale. 
As an oarsman he promised to be the strongest 
of all. On April 6, 1891, he was practicing in 
a single boat. He passed under the Western 
avenue bridge, when, from some unaccountable 
reason, his boat capsized, and, though an ex- 
pert swimmer, and scarcely fifty feet from 
shore, he sank and drowned almost instantly. 
The next day his remains were brought home 
for burial. During the time of the funeral 
services at his home, memorial services were 
held in the chapel of Harvard College. All 
college work was suspended, and the professors 
and students in large numbers attended the 
obsequies, which were conducted by the Rev. 
Phillip Brooks, who offered prayer, while the 
discourse was delivered by the Rev. Frank G. 



Peabody, who spoke of the virtues and relig- 
ious character of the deceased. To his family 
his mysterious and untimely death was a shock 
from which none have even yet fully recovered. 
To the parents, but to the children more espe- 
cially, it was the first break in the family chain. 
Mr. Shaw has nearly all his life been a 
prominent and enthusiastic member of the 
Methodist Church, and for years he has 
been a licensed local preacher of the denomi- 
nation. Mrs. Shaw and many of the chil- 
dren are also members of that Church. 
The subject of this sketch has never taken a 
great interest in public affairs of a political 
nature, has never held any public office, 
but, as an individual, has had the courage of 
his convictions, and labored for the benefit of 
his country as he saw the right. For the past 
few years he has voted and worked with the 
Prohibitionists. After a long life of agricult- 
ural labor, he still takes an interest in his farm 
work, favors advanced ideas, but devotes his 
energies along well-tried lines, general farming 
and dairying, keeping from twenty to thirty 
cows. He is possessed of much general in- 
formation, is a good business man, an agreeable 
acquaintance, and a warm and abiding friend. 



S\AMUEL HASTINGS, though not a native 
') of this country, has lived in the United 

States nearly all his life, coming here at the 
age of twelve years. He was born in Dover, 
County of Kent, England, on the paternal side 
of English origin, and on the maternal side of 
Scotch-Irish descent. His mother belonged 
to an old Scotch-Irish family of the name of 
Tomb, who were engaged in the manufacture 
of Irish linen, near Belfast, Ireland, before the 
days of machinery. The father, who was an 
officer in the British army, died while stationed 
in the West Indies, in 1835. 

The education of our subject was com- 
menced in his native land, and on reaching 
the shores of the New World he completed his 
literary training. For a time he took up the 
study of law, then that of medicine, from 
which he drifted into the study of chemistry 
and pharmacy, graduating in those sciences at 
the College of Pharmacy in Philadelphia, 
Penn., with the class of 1849. For twenty 
years he conducted a large drug business in 
the city of New Orleans, and on the termi- 
nation of the Civil war left the South, but still 



7Gi 



COMMEMOHATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



holds interests in that city, which he occasion- 
ally visits on business. 

In Dutchess county, N. Y., Mr. Hastings 
was united in marriage with Miss Eliza J., 
daughter of the late J. Hastings, and in this 
county has made his home for over twenty- 
seven years, during which time he has taken 
much interest in the affairs of his adopted 
county and State. Though a Democrat in 
politics, he has no ambition for political pre- 
ferment, and has held no public ofifice. His 
religious affiliation is with the Episcopal 
Church. The elegant place of Mr. Hastings is 
known as " Fairview," and comprises 825 
acres. He superintends the cultivation of this 
property, employing much labor, thus further- 
ing the material interests of the surrounding 
section and the county at large. In his family 
are si.\ children, — two sons and four daughters. 
The view from his place is most extended and 
beautiful, indeed is one of the finest in the 
county; there a grand panorama is spread out 
before the vision — the Catskill mountains can 
be seen, commencing at the site of the old 
" Mountain House," and extending far south- 
ward, the coloring of this delightful scene 
changing as the seasons come and go, from the 
rich green of the springtime to the brilliant 
gold and red of autumn, the whole is like a 
series of beautiful pictures hung up before the 
beholder. This charming spot not only glad- 
dens the eye, but is one of the inost healthful, 
well watered with springs, and altogether is 
one of the most highly favored locations in the 
county. 



BALPH A. BARTHOLOMEW. Among 
the leading and inHuential farmers of the 

town of Pleasant Valley, who thoroughly un- 
derstand their business, and pursue the voca- 
tion of their chosen calling in a methodical 
and workmanlike manner, is the subject of 
this biography. In reviewing his genealogical 
record we find his lineage tracing back to the 
Colonial history of the nation, and to that 
period which marked the inception of the 
grandest republic the world has ever known. 
Through such sources have we attained the 
true .American type, and along this line must 
our investigations proceed if we would learn of 
the steadfast, unyielding elements which con- 
stitute the basis upon which has been reared 
the lofty and magnificient superstructure of 
an enlightened and favored commonwealth. 



Among the early emigrants from England, who 
located in New England, was the Bartholomew 
family, whose descendants are now very nu- 
merous throughout the Eastern States. 

John Bartholomew, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born in Kensington, Conn., but 
was reared in Litchfield county, that State, 
where, after his marriage with Lydia Brooks, 
he located upon a farm. Three children were 
born to them: Lynus, who died at the age of 
two years; Lydia S., who became the wife of 
P. B. Butler, a wheelwright of Burlington, 
Hartford Co., Conn.; and John B., the father 
of our subject. The grandfather followed 
farming exclusively, and valiantly aided the 
Colonies in their struggle for independence. 
His death occurred in 18 17, that of his wife in 
1854. P-arly in life thej' were Presbyterians, 
but later they joined the Congregational 
Church. 

John H. Bartholomew was born October 
'3- '793- in Harvvinton, Litchfield Co., Conn., 
and he married Eunice Harrison, who was born 
at Branford, New Haven Co., Conn., June 
19, 1 801, a daughter of Augustus Harrison, 
also a native of New Haven county, and a 
farmer by occupation. The Harrisons also 
came from England. To the old family home- 
stead Mr. Bartholomew took his bride, and 
their four children were there born. Ralph, 
the eldest, died at the age of twelve years; 
George, a wholesale and retail jeweler, died 
June 10, 1893; Harriet became the wife of 
John W. Lattin, a native of Dutchess county, 
N. Y. , and a retired farmer. He was killed 
by the cars September 23, 1890, and his widow 
now makes her home in the town of Pleasant 
Valley. Ralph A. is the youngest of the fam- 
ily. Upon his farm in Litchfield county. 
Conn., the father died February 10, 1S59; the 
mother died May i, 1896, at the patriarchal 
age of about ninety-four years. In religious 
belief they were Congregationalists, and in 
politics he supported the Democratic party. 

Ralph A. Bartholomew was born in the 
town of Harvvinton, Litchfield Co., Conn., 
April 3, 1837, and grew to manhood upon the 
old ancestral farm, contributing his quota to 
carrying on the work of the place. At the age 
of nineteen he started out as a traveling sales- 
man; but at the end of four years he returned to 
the old farm, which he sold in 1867, and the 
following year bought his present place in the 
town of Pleasant \'alley, Dutchess county. 
He now has ninety-seven acres of fertile and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD. 



im 



productive land, pleasantly situated about six 
miles from the city of Poughkeepsie. It is 
highly cultivated, and well improved with fine 
large buildings and good fences, and is one of 
the most beautiful places in the locality. 

In his political views, Mr. Bartholomew 
strongly adheres to the principles of the Dem- 
ocratic party. He is one of the active and 
progressive men of the county, taking great 
interest m all matters calculated to enhance 
its value, or to benefit his fellowmen, and has 
the respect and confidence of all with whom 
he comes in contact. 



ENJAMIN VAN WAGNER is one of the 
3LJ t. enterprising, energetic and industrious 
agriculturists of the town of Pleasant Valley, 
and is a worthy representative of an honored 
old family of his section. 

The founder of the family in this country 
was Nicholas Van Wagner, who came from 
Holland and located in the town of Pleasant 
Valley, Dutchess county, where his descend- 
ants now live. His son, Evritt Van Wagner, 
was born on the farm which our subject now 
owns, where the birth of his son, Benjamin, 
also occurred. The latter was the grandfather 
of our subject, and by his marriage with Eliza- 
beth Dyer had several children, si.\ of whom 
grew to maturity, namely: David, a machin- 
ist and carpenter, of Hyde Park; Underbill, 
who became a speculator in California; Sylves- 
ter, who was a landlord in Pleasant \'alley 
town; James, who was killed in amine in Cal- 
ifornia; Abraham, the fatner of our subject; 
and Hannah, wife of Lewis Haight, a farmer 
of the town of Washington, Dutchess county. 
They are all now deceased except Hannah. 

On the old family homestead Abraham 
Van Wagner was born in August, 1816, and 
on reaching manhood he married Maria West- 
ervelt, a native of the town of Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, and a daughter of Cornelius 
Westervelt, a blacksmith by trade. For a 
time after their marriage they lived upon 
another farm in Pleasant Valley town, but 
later returned to the home where Mr. Van- 
W'agner's childhood was passed. In their 
family were five children: Emeline, widow of 
John W. Lattin, who followed farming; Elma, 
wife of J. Edward Clapp, a farmer of Pleasant 
Valley town; William, a farmer of Clinton 
town, Dutchess county: and Benjamin and 
Elizabeth, twins. The last named died in in- 



fancy. The parents were both members of 
the Presbyterian Church, and in politics the 
father was a Democrat, and served as commis- 
sioner many years. He was called from this 
life in June, 1885; his estimable wife still 
survives him. 

On December iS, 1843, Benjamin Van- 
Wagner, the subject of this review, was born 
in the town of Pleasant Valley, and when only 
a year old was taken by his parents 'to the 
family homestead, where he was reared in the 
usual manner of farmer boys. In 1870 he was 
united in marriage with Miss Emily B. Wood, 
a native of Hyde Park, and a daughter of Har- 
vey Wood, and to them was born a son, Mil- 
lard. The mother died in 1877, and in 1880 
Mr. Van Wagner wedded her sister. Miss Jose- 
phine Wood. Three children graced this 
union: Harry, Frank and Ernest, but the 
last named died in 1888. Our subject is the 
owner of 106 acres of valuable land, highly 
cultivated and improved with good and sub- 
stantial farm buildings. He is an intelligent, 
wide-awake farmer, enterprising and progress- 
ive, always giving his support to any measure 
for the benefit of the community. He is iden- 
tified with the Democratic party, and his wife 
is a consistent member of the Methodist 
Church. 



LUZERNE DUTCHERis a prominent and 
and very highly esteemed citizen of the 

town of Dover, Dutchess county, and is a de- 
scendant of the well-known Holland-Dutch 
family of that name. 

Samuel Waldo Dutcher was a native of the 
town of Washington, and grew to manhood 
there, engaging in the tanner's trade, which he 
carried on for many years. He married Miss 
Maria Edmonds, and had three children: 
Lawrence, Luzerne and Catherine. The elder 
son, Lawrence, has always been prominent in 
local affairs, and is a member of several fra- 
ternal orders, theF. &A. M.,the I. O. O. F. . 
and the K. of P. He married (first) Miss 
Eliza McTurk, (second) Miss Catherine Dutch- 
er, and (third) Miss Mary Quimby. 

Luzerne Dutcher, our subject, was born in 
1824, and after acquiring a common-school 
education learned the details of the tanner's 
trade, which he followed throughout his active 
business life. About twenty years ago he pur- 
chased a fine farm near South Dover, Dutch- 
ess county, where he now resides, having re- 



rG4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGliAPUKAL liECOHD. 



tired from business a few years ago. He mar- 
ried Miss Harriet Soule, daughter of Lansing 
Soule, a leading farmer of the town of Dover, 
Dutchess county. They have had four chil- 
dren: Mary F., who died in infancy; Charles 
E.; Mary F. (2), who also died in infancy; 
and Elmer W. 

Charles E. was born in Warwick, Orange 
Co., N. Y. , and was educated there. He first 
engaged in farming, later was in the cattle 
business in Chicago, and in the stock yards at 
Des Moines. At present he is a mason in Chi- 
cago. He married Miss Carrie Sterling, daugh- 
ter of John and Emeline Sterling, and has one 
son, Monroe. 

Elmer W. was born at Highland Mills, 
Orange Co., N. Y., in 1863, and attended 
school in Poughkeepsie during his boyhood. 
He is very successful as a farmer, and takes 
much interest in local affairs and in the work 
of the Masonic order, being a member of Dover 
Plains Lodge No. 666. In 1893 he was united 
in matrimony with Miss Hattie Dutcher. daugh- 
ter of V'anness Dutcher, of Dover. They have 
one daughter, Mabel. 



FREDERICK AUGUSTUS FAUST, M. D. , 
one of the ablest and most successful phy- 
sicians of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, is a 
native of that city, born March 24, 1865. 

Dr. John Faust, our subject's father, who 
is a prominent veterinary surgeon of Pough- 
keepsie, was born July 19, 1835, in Hessen- 
Cassel, Germany, which place has been the 
home of his ancestors for many generations, 
and there his grandfather, Barhold Faust, and 
his father, Conrad Faust, were also born, the 
latter in 1807. Dr. John Faust acquired a 
good education in his native place, and while 
pursuing his studies he decided to come to 
America, where he could obtain better oppor- 
tunities. Landing in New York City, he soon 
after began to learn the cooper's trade, which 
he followed there until 1859, when he and his 
brothers went to Poughkeepsie. In i860 they 
entered into business there under the firm 
name of John Faust & Bros. The Doctor was 
an active worker in this enterprise until 1865, 
when he becatne a silent partner, continuing 
until 1875, when the partnership was dissolved. 
In 1 88 1 the Doctor went before the examining 
board of the New York \'eterinary Society, 
and passed the examination, receiving the de- 
gree of V. S. He is one of the most careful 



of the veterinary surgeons of Dutchess county, 
and has done much to elevate the profession 
by his scientific researches. In 1854 he mar- 
ried Miss Maria Frietag, also a native of Hes- 
sen-Cassel, and has six children: Louis, a 
physician at Schenectady; Frederick Augustus, 
our subject; Otto, a veterinary surgeon in 
Poughkeepsie; William P., a physician in 
Schenectady; Mary, the wife of F. C. Krue- 
ger, of that place; and Christina H., who is 
at home. 

Frederick A. Faust, our subject, after com- 
pleting the. high-school course at the age of six- 
teen, spent two jears in the preliminary study 
of medicine with his brother. Dr. Louis Faust, 
of Schenectady, as preceptor. He matricu- 
lated at the New York Homeopathic College 
in the fall of 1883, and took the full general 
course, graduating April 15, 1SS6, passing his 
vacations also in studying with his brother. 
With this thorough preparation he began his 
professional career, and on May 4, 1886, he 
took charge of an established practice at Berne, 
Albany county; but a year later he disposed of 
it to locate in Poughkeepsie, where he opened an 
office alone on Garden street. He has been very 
successful in his practice at his native place, 
and after four years in his first office and three 
at No. 60 Market street, he purchased the 
property on the northwest corner of Cannon 
and Liberty streets, to which he removed 
March 31, 1894. He is a reader, and keeps 
well-informed upon all the lines of progress in 
his ever-advancing profession. His clients are 
among the best in the city, and his success in 
the past forms ground for firm belief in his 
future. 

In local affairs the Doctor has always 
taken the side of progress and improvement. 
Although he adheres to the principles of the 
Republican party, he has never taken any ac- 
tive share in politics. On January i, 1897, 
he was appointed, by Mayor Hull, a member 
of the city board of health, which position he 
is still holding. He is a member of the Ger- 
man Methodist Church, and takes great in- 
terest in its various enterprises for the welfare 
of the communit}'. Socially, he belongs to the 
F. & A. M., Triune Lodge, the Poughkeepsie 
Chapter and Commandery, and to the Amrita 
Club. In professional circles he is a leading 
spirit among the younger element; has twice 
been vice-president of the Dutchess County 
Homeopathic Medical Society, and is a prom- 
inent member of the New York State Homeo- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



765 



pathic Society. In the summer of 1896 he 
spent some six months in Europe, studying at 
the hospitals of Berlin, specially the diseases 
of children, and internal diseases, and his 
knowledge of the German language, which he 
reads and speaks fluently, enabled him to make 
rapid progress in his studies. He also im- 
proved the opportunity by making a tour 
through Germany, Switzerland and Italy. 



JOHN H. PARMELE. There are found in 
every community men who are the leaders 
in public affairs, who are the promoters of 
all interests that have for their object the pub- 
lic good, and on whom the welfare of the local- 
ity depends. Of this class of citizens our sub- 
ject is a worthy representative, and Dutchess 
county may well be proud to claim him among 
her native sons. 

Mr. Parmele was born on the farm which 
is still his home, in the town of Pleasant Val- 
ley, February 14, 1846, and is a representa- 
tive of one of the early families of New Eng- 
land, descended from English ancestry. His 
grandfather, Joseph Parmele, who was born in 
Connecticut, August 15, 1776, married Lavi- 
na Westervelt, a native of Dutchess county, 
N. Y., and they located on the old family 
homestead south of Poughkeepsie. Eight 
children were born to them, as follows: Rich- 
ard, who was born June 21, 1802, was a farmer 
and merchant, and died in Poughkeepsie ; John, 
born February 14, 1804, died at the age of 
twenty-one; Catherine, born January 13, 1806, 
became the wife of William H. Calkin; Cor- 
nelius, born April 29, 1808, died on the old 
homestead; Sarah Ann," born November 25, 
1809, died unmarried; William was the father 
of our subject; Elias, born February 13, 181 5, 
was a farmer of Tompkins county, N. Y. ; 
and Elizabeth, born May 20, 1821, died in in- 
fancy. The grandfather made farming his life- 
work, and died August 30, 1842, while his wife 
passed away March 28, 1847. They were 
members of the Reformed Church of Pough- 
keepsie. 

William Parmele, father of subject, was 
born on the old family homestead in the town 
of Poughkeepsie, March 2, 1812, and was 
there reared to manhood. On November 23, 
1842, he wedded Elizabeth Seaman, who was 
born in the town of Hyde Park, January 27, 
I 8 19, a daughter of William Seaman, a farm- 
er. They began their domestic life on the 



farm where our subject now resides, and reared 
a family of four children: Lavina, born Janu- 
ary 2, 1844, wife of John C. Wood, who was 
a farmer of Hyde Park town; John H., sub- 
ject of this review; Mary, who was born Oc- 
tober 12, 1848, and is the deceased wife of Ed- 
gar A. Briggs, of Poughkeepsi-e; and Maria L. , 
who was born July 26, 1854, and died in early 
life. The father of this family always devoted 
his energies to agricultural pursuits. His po- 
litical support was given the Democracy, and 
he and his wife held membership with the Pres- 
byterian Church. He passed away February 
13, 1876, she on November 11, 1892. 

John H. Parmele remained in his parent's 
home until about seventeen years of age, when 
he became a student in Claverack Institute, 
supplementing his primary education by a 
thorough course of study there. When he laid 
aside his text-books, he returned to the farm, 
and has since been actively interested in its 
improvement and cultivation. He now owns 
and operates 103 acres of rich land, pleasantly 
situated five miles from Poughkeepsie, and his 
well-directed efforts bring him a good return. 

On November 20, 1878, Mr. Parmele mar- 
ried Miss Mary A. Lyon, daughter of George 
Lyon, a farmer of this locality. Eight chil- 
dren have been born to them, their names and 
dates of birth being as follows: Mary L., 
March 10, 1880; Joseph L., August 31, 1881; 
Fred, September 21, 1885; Elizabeth, Septem- 
ber 2, 1887; George, May 19, 1889; William 
J., March 7, 1891; Ruth, February 6, 1894; 
and Ernest, July 20, 1896 (he died April 21, 
1897). 

The parents are identified with the Pres- 
byterian Church of Pleasant Valley, and are 
people of prominence in the community, hold- 
ing an enviable position in social circles. His 
political support isgiven the Democratic party, 
but he has had neither time nor inclination for 
public office, preferring to devote his best ef- 
forts to his farm work, and to the faithful dis- 
charge of his duties of citizenship. 



T HERON R. MARSHALL. Among the 
leading farmers of the town of Pleasant 
Valley, Dutchess county, there is none better 
known in its history than the individual whose 
name is here recorded. 

Here his birth occurred April 20, 1831, and 
in the same house his father, Israel Marshall, 
was born in August 14, 1796, but the farm then 



7GG 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



comprised a part of the town of Clinton. The 
^grandfather, Zacheus Marshall, was a native 
of Connecticut, born at Horseneck, February 
5, 1746, and was of English descent. On De- 
cember 14, 1764, he married Anna Totten, 
who was born October 20, 1747, and they be- 
came the parents of the following children: 
Hannah, born October 5, 1768, became the 
wife of a Mr. Stoughtenburgh, of Pleasant 
Valley town; Reuben, born June 14, 1770, was a 
resident of Hyde Park; David, born May 2, 
1773, died while young; Totten, born July 7, 
1775, was a farmer of Greene county, N. Y. ; 
Daniel, born February 15, 1778; and Solomon, 
born January 2, 1783, died in childhood; and 
Phcebe, born October 25, 1787. For his 
second wife, Zacheus Marshall wedded Susan- 
na Dean (the grandmother of our subject). 
She was born in Dutchess county, July 11, 
1756, and was a daughter of Stephen Dean, 
whose ancestors were English. Her marriage 
with Mr. Marshall was celebrated December 
25, 1789, and she became the mother of three 
sons: Stephen D., born October 27, 1790, 
was a farmer of Pleasant Valley town, and 
died in Hyde Park; Henry S., born August 3, 
1792, was a farmer of Hyde Park; and Israel 
was the father of our subject. On April 24, 
1806, Zacheus Marshall was married to Jane 
Quinby, who was born June 27, 1765, and May 
2, 1809, was born their son, Isaac P., who was 
was a farmer of Pleasant \'alley town, and be- 
came a prominent politician. The grandfather 
was a carpenter by trade, and also carried on 
farming. 

Upon the old home farm Israel Marshall 
grew to manhood, and on May 26, 1825, he 
was joined in wedlock with Anna Gifford, 
whose birth occurred in the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county, March 23, 1799. Her fa- 
ther, John Gifford, was also a native of Stan- 
ford town, where he engaged in farming. 
After their marriage, the parents of our subject 
located upon the old farm, where they reared 
their two children: Susan A., who was born 
December 11, 1827, and died September 26, 
1842; and Theron R. The father gave his 
exclusive attention to agricultural pursuits, was 
a Democrat in politics, and died in the faith of 
the Friends Church, July 13, 1873. His wife, 
who was also a member of that denomination, 
died October 25, 1883. 

Our subject was reared to the life of a 
farmer, and received from his parents many a 
lesson in thrift and honesty, which have been 



his guiding principles through life. On Octo- 
ber 31, 1855, he was married to Elizabeth 
Marshall, a granddaughter of John Marshall. 
She was born in the town of Stanford March 
7, 1836. Her father, Isaac Marshall, who was 
born in Pleasant \'alley town, January 22, 
1816, wedded Eliza A. Lawrence, who was 
born in that town F'ebruary 12, 1814. They 
became the parents of seven children: Eliza- 
beth, wife of our subject; Augusta, wife of 
Joseph Doty, a farmer of Pleasant \'alley town; 
William W., who resides in Poughkeepsie 
town; Sarah K., wife of Parris Baker, a farmer 
and carpenter; Permelia; Ellathan G., who 
operates the old homestead; and Emily J., 
wife of Clarence Van Wagner, a farmer of 
Pleasant Valley town. 

Theron R. Marshall, the subject proper of 
this review, began his domestic life on the old 
homestead where he lived until 1892, when he 
removed to his present farm, comprising forty- 
five acres; but he still owns the other place, 
whose boundaries contain 1 20 acres of rich 
and productive land. He is a thorough Demo- 
crat in politics, has served his fellow towns- 
men as assessor, was justice of the peace from 
1 89 1 until 1895, and represented his town on 
the board of supervisors in 1883, 1884 and 
1888. He is highly respected throughout the 
community, having the confidence of all with 
whom he comes in contact, and himself and 
wife are earnest members of the Friends 
Church. To them were born three children: 
Israel D., an agriculturist of Pleasant \'alley 
town, who was born August 3, 1857, and mar- 
ried Carrie D. Van De Water; Susan A., who 
was born December 15, 1858, and died Sep- 
tember 10, i860; and 'Robert L.,also a farmer 
of Pleasant Valley, who was born August 13, 
i860, and wedded Elizabeth W. Conklin. 



ILLIAM S. BECKWITH. There are 
few men more worthy of representation 
in a work of this kind than the subject of this 
biographj', who has passed his entire life upon 
the comfortable homestead where he still re- 
sides. It is one of the best farms in the town 
of Red Hook, comprising as it does 144 acres 
of rich and fertile land, where he is success- 
fully engaged in general farming. 

Our subject can trace his ancestry on his 
father's side to the founder of the family in 
the New World, who belonged to a promi- 
nent family of England dating from the tenth 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



767 



century, and on coming from that country 
to America located at Hartford, Conn., in 
1639. His descendant in the fifth generation, 
Sylvanus Beckwith, our subject's grandfather, 
was born in the town of Lyme, Conn., May 
22, 1742. He married Amy Sutherland, born 
in this countr3' in i 743, and who was of Scotch 
extraction. They located upon a farm in the 
town of Stanford, and all through the Revolu- 
tionary war he valiantly aided the colonies in 
their struggle for independence, serving as a 
soldier in the Continental army. He was called 
from this life May 30, 1839. 

Nathan Beckwith, father of our subject, 
was born September 15, 1778, in the town of 
Stanford. He married Betsie Gale, a native 
of Amenia, Dutchess county, and a daughter 
of Josiah Gale, who came to Dutchess county 
from Connecticut. The Gale family is of 
English origin, and one of its members, George 
W. Gale, was the founder of the city of Gales- 
burg, 111. In 1807 Mr. Beckwith located upon 
a farm in the town of Red Hook (at that time 
a part of the town of Rhinebeck), where he con- 
tinued to make his home until his death, March 
4, 1865. His political support was given to 
the Democratic party, and he served his fellow 
citizens as supervisor of the township for many 
years; he served in the war of 1812 as lieuten- 
ant, being stationed at Brooklyn Heights, and 
for services in that war received a grant of 
land in Herkimer county, N. Y.; was commis- 
sioned as colonel of cavalry by Gov. Tompkins 
in 1820. On the occasion of the visit of Gen. 
LaFaj'ette to Dutchess county, in 1824, Mr. 
Beckwith was marshal of the day. He was a 
classmate of President Martin Van Buren at 
Kinderhook Academy, and graduated as civil 
engineer. With Prof. Joseph Henry he sur- 
veyed a State road from Hudson river to Lake 
Erie, afterward adopted as the route of the 
Erie railway. He was a life member of the 
American Bible Society, also the Foreign 
Bible Society, and helped to organize the First 
Baptist Church of Red Hook. Mrs. Betsey 
Gale Beckwith in practical life maintained the 
religious fervor and. devotion to Christian prin- 
ciples which characterized her Puritan fore- 
fathers, and was a blessing to her family and 
neighborhood, ministering to the spiritual and 
temporal wants of the afflicted until her death 
in 183S. 

To Nathan and Betsey Beckwith were born 
four sons and three daughters. The eldest 
son, josiah Gale, graduated from Union Col- 



lege, studied medicine and settled at Litch- 
field, Conn, where he became eminent in his 
profession. He was president of the State 
Medical Society, a delegate to the National 
Medical Convention, and appointed by the 
State to the board of medical examiners of 
the insane at the asylum at Hartford. He 
was elected several times to the State Legisla- 
ture, and once nominated Governor. In 1831 
he married Jane M. Seymour, a cousin of 
Governor Horatio Seymour, of New York, and 
died at Litchfield March 4, 1871. 

The fourth son, William S. Beckwith, our 
subject, was born January 14, 1820, on his 
present farm in the town of Red Hook. He 
attended the district schools of the neighbor- 
hood until eleven years of age, when he was 
compelled to give up study and turn his entire 
attention to agriculture, at the same time tak- 
ing a few winter terms study in the Red Hook 
Academy. He is a very intelligent man, most 
of his knowledge being acquired by study at 
night, and otherwise, and is well posted on the 
current events of the day. On March 29, 
1848, he was married to Miss Ann M. Collyer, 
a native of Sing Sing, N. Y., and si.x children 
blessed their union: Alice M.; Thomas C. ; 
William, who makes his home in California; 
Amy, who married Armand De Potter; Leila, 
wife of Abram Havens, a lawyer of New York 
City; and George, who died at Pella, Iowa. 
Mr. Beckwith is a stanch Democrat, and has 
occupied various positions in his town, includ- 
ing that of poormaster, assessor many years, 
and supervisor of the town of Red Hook in 
1884. 



JEREMIAH MEAD, a leading dairyman of 
the town of Pawling, Dutchess county, 
^ noted for his successful management of large 
agricultural interests, is a descendant of one 
of the oldest families of Putnam county, N. Y. 
His ancestors came from England four or five 
generations ago, and made their home on what 
was then a frontier line in the town of Kent, 
Putnam county, where their descendants have 
been prominent in different lines of life. Jere- 
miah Mead, our subject's grandfather, had so 
strong a liking for the free life of a pioneer 
that he left his fine farm of 300 acres, in 1845, 
to go with his familj' to the vicinity of Fond 
du Lac, Wis., then a wilderness, where he en- 
tered a large tract of land, upon which he 
passed his remaining years, dying in 1S88, at 



768 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



the age of ninety years. His wife was Sarah 
Bawett, a member of another old family living 
near Lake Mahopac. They had seven chil- 
dren: Major, Milan, Morris, Mrs. Mahala 
Metcalf, Moses, Minerva (who married James 
Huyatt), and Marrilla (who married Henry 
Merrick). Major had several sons who are 
now occupying prominent positions in Wis- 
consin. 

Morris Mead (our subject's father), who 
was born in 1817, was the only one of the 
family to remain in Putnam county, and there 
passed his entire life, following farming as an 
occupation. He possessed the characteristic 
good sense of the Mead family, and was highly 
esteemed in the neighborhood. He was a lead- 
ing Baptist, helping to found their Church in 
his vicinity, and holding the office of deacon 
for many years. He married Sarah Hyatt, 
daughter of James Hyatt, a well-known resi- 
dent of Putnam county. His death occurred 
in 1853; that of his wife in 1890. Of their 
seven children only three are living. Cather- 
ine died in childhood; Marilda is the wife of 
Eli Smalley, resides in Fishkill, and has one 
son, Charles, who is now an attorney. Peter 
and Sarah Ophelia died in childhood; Jere- 
miah is the subject of this sketch; Jennie died 
in 1 876 ; and Roselle lives in the town of Dover. 

Jeremiah Mead was born at the old home- 
stead in Putnam county, May 9, 1843, and re- 
ceived his education in the district schools of 
that locality. Being left fatherless at the age 
of ten years, he was obliged to take up the 
serious business of life while still a boy in 
years. At thirteen he left home to work upon a 
farm, for which he received during his first year 
$15 and his winter's schooling. For a number 
of years he continued to work for wages for 
eight months, and attending school during the 
winter. When he was twenty-four he returned 
home and worked the farm for two years, and 
then sold his interest to his brother. In 1869 
he took the old Deacon Campbell homestead 
on shares, and has now conducted it for twenty- 
seven years, adding land from time to time 
until he has 400 acres under his control. He 
makes a specialty of dairying, and is very suc- 
cessful in that line. He owns a farm of 250 
acres near Danbury, Conn., where he keeps 
fifty cows and other stock. 

The Mead family has always taken a pa- 
triotic stand upon public questions, and from 
the grandfather down they became ardent sup- 
porters of the Republican party upon its forma- 



tion. Mr. Mead has been active in local poli- 
tics, and was supervisor in 1891, 1892 and 
1893, serving as chairman of the committee 
on equalization of taxes. He was also com- 
missioner of highways for two years. He is a 
ready helper in every worthy cause, and be- 
longs to the Baptist Church. 

In 1866 our subject married Miss Amanda 
Light, daughter of Putnam Light, who was 
born in Genesee county, N. Y., April 11, 18 12, 
in which same year his mother died, and he 
was then reared by his uncle, Samuel Hawk- 
ins. He attended the public schools, and then 
worked on a farm. In 1839 he married Miss 
E. M. Smith, and they had four children, viz. : 
Cordelia, who lives with .Mrs. Mead: Amanda 
(Mrs. Mead); Edgar D., farming the old home- 
stead in Putnam county; and Ellen M., wife 
of James H. Cole, residing in Danbury; The 
mother of these died August 20, 1853, and in 
November, 1854, Mr. Light married Miss A. 
J. Light, by whom he had three children: 
Henry C, who died in infancy; Emma C. and 
Willis E., both following teaching, the latter 
being a graduate of Eastman Business Col- 
lege. Mr. Light died March 7, 1888, in full 
membership with the Baptist Church. In poli- 
tics he was a Democrat, and he served as as- 
sessor three terms. He was a self-made man, 
and accumulated a comfortable competence, 
was well liked and generally respected. 



WILLIAM H. HAIGHT, proprietor of 
Haight's Sale and Transient Stables, 

Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was born No- 
vember 30, 1839, in the town of New Paltz, 
Ulster Co., N. Y. , and there passed his boy- 
hood days, attending the Butterville district 
school and New Paltz Academy. Later, for 
two terms, he studied at the Nine Partners 
(Quaker) School, near Millbrook, Dutchess 
county, receiving, in all, a good education. 

Mr. Haight remained on his father's farm 
until of age, at which time ha commenced the 
droving of cattle and sheep, purchasing in 
Canada and throughout the Western States, 
and finding his markets in all the larger cen- 
ters of this country, as well as selling many 
" store cattle " in the Hudson river counties. 
In 1878-79, during the great Leadville (Colo.) 
silver excitement, he sold horses, mules and 
cattle in Denver and Leadville. In 1880 he 
took up his residence in Chicago, 111., and 
engaged in the manufacture of tinware and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPmCAL RECORD. 



769 



tinware machinery, owning some patents that 
caused a revolution in the manufacture of tin- 
ware, which machines are successfully used to 
the present day. In this industry he employed 
from seventy to lOO men and at the same time 
he owned a membership on the Chicago Board 
of Trade, in which his deals proved highly sat- 
isfactory to both himself and others. 

At the end of two years Mr. Haight re- 
turned east, and, in 1882, opened his present 
boarding and sale stables in Poughkeepsie, in 
which he has met with well-merited success, 
at this writing owning the largest establishment 
of the kind in the city. He also owns a 275- 
acre farm near the corporation line, with a 
brickyard attached, all of which are running 
successfully under his personal supervision. 

Our subject was brought up under the influ- 
ence and in the strict lines of the Hicksite- 
Quaker faith, which has had its influence in 
governing all the turning points of his life; 
never seeking public office or becoming a mem- 
ber of any secret society; never feeling at home 
in any Church that was not governed by the 
Hicksite rule — "Do unto others as you would 
be done by" — inspiration, he says, is the only 
true teacher, and should govern all faith. 
"Owe no man, and love one another," is the 
watchword in all his business relations. 

When a very young man Mr. Haight was 
married, which marriage, not proving a happy 
one, was divorced. He then wedded Elma 
(daughter of Isaac G. Sands), whose death, 
after ten years of uninterrupted happiness, 
caused much the greatest sorrow of his life. 
One child, Meda, was born to them, June 7, 
1884. 

John N. Haight, our subject's father, was 
born in Stanford, Dutchess Co., N. Y., where 
he lived until fourteen years of age. His par- 
ents, Amos and Eunice (Northrop) Haight, of 
Amenia, N. Y. , dying when he was fourteen 
years of age, John N. Haight apprenticed him- 
self to Rowland De Garmo, at New Paltz, 
Ulster county, in order to learn the tanner's 
and currier's trade. At the age of twenty- 
seven he married Mary, daughter of Rowland 
(his employer) and Phebe De Garmo, and, be- 
sides our subject, they had two daughters, 
Eliza and Mary, who married and settled in 
Orange county, N. Y. At the age of twenty- 
one William H. Haight found his parents in 
straightened circumstances, but by diligence 
and economy he placed them and his sisters 
beyond want, and then commenced the battle 
49 



of life for himself. Recently, when asked how 
hard times affected him, his answer was that 
only those who spend their money before they 
earn it cry about " hard times." 



C>HARLES G. CUTLER. The ancestors 
Jl of the Cutler family were among the early 
settlers of the town of Dover, Dutchess coun- 
ty, and the grandfather of the subject of this 
sketch, William Cutler, was born there in 
1760. That locality was then a wilderness, 
and his youth was spent amid the scenes of 
pioneer life, in which he took an active part. 
He traced his ancestry back to one of three 
brothers — James, Otis and John Cutler — who 
came over in the "Mayflower." William 
Cutler lived to a good old age, dying in 1842. 
He married Elizabeth Gifford, of Pawling, 
Dutchess county, and had nine children, (i) 
Bigelow, a farmer near Jamestown, N. Y. , 
married Miss Dennis, and had four children — 
William, Thursa (Mrs. Johnson), Eliza and 
Nanc}'. (2) Abigail married Thomas Tomp- 
kins, a farmer of the town of Dover, and had 
two sons — Enoch, who married Tabitha Hum- 
phrey, and William H., who married Abbie 
Humphrey. (3) Thomas C. married, and was 
the father of five children, all now deceased 
excepting George, who is a physician in Cali- 
fornia. (4) Calvin C. is mentioned below. 
(5) Robie married Isaac Northrup, a farmer at 
Copake, N. Y., and had two children — Will- 
iam and Ella. (6) Thurza died at the age of 
twenty-seven. (7) Mahala did not marry. 
(8) William S., the father of our subject, was 
born in 1805 at the old homestead in- Dover, 
where he received his education. He followed 
farming from an early age, and was a promi- 
nent man in that locality ; he supported the 
Democratic party, and held a number of town- 
ship offices, including that of assessor. In 
1858 he married Miss Irene H. Brush, daugh- 
ter of Amos Brush, a well-known farmer of 
New Fairfield, Conn. They had three chil- 
dren: William B., Charles G. and Hattie. 
William was born in 1859, and after complet- 
ing his education at Wilbraham, Mass., en- 
gaged in mercantile business at Dover Furnace, 
where he also holds the position of station 
agent. He is a member of the F. & A. M., 
Lodge No. 666, of Dover. He married Miss 
Marie Sparks, of Poughkeepsie, but they have 
no living children. Hattie, the youngest of 



770 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHTCAL RECORD. 



the trio, was born in 1869, and was educated 
at Wilbrahain, Mass. ; she married Otis Ar- 
nold, a hotel keeper, who conducted the rail- 
road restaurant at Pawling for a number of 
years. They have one daughter, Marjorie. 
William S., the father, died May 26, 1888. 

Charles G. Cutler, the subject proper of 
this sketch, was born November 2, i86i,and 
was educated in the schools of the town of 
Dover, and of Wilbraham, Mass. He is a 
leading farmer in that town, and active in local 
affairs, holding public office at different times. 
He belongs to the Masonic order, Dover Lodge 
No. 666, and at present is senior warden. He 
married Miss Nellie Stevens, daughter of 
Thomas A. Stevens, a prominent farmer of 
Dover, and they have two children, Howard 
S., born in 1888, and Irene H., born in 1893. 

Calvin Cutler, the son of William and Eliz- 
abeth fGifford) Cutler, was born in 1797, and 
enjoyed the usual educational advantages of a 
country boy in those days. He engaged in 
farming in Dover, purchasing an estate which 
is now owned by his son, Frank. His wife, 
Keziah Varney, was the daughter of John Var- 
ney, one of the well-to-do farmers of that 
neighborhood. They had eight children, of 
whom the first, John, and the last, Jerome, 
died in infancy. The others are: Eleazer 
and Elihu (twins), born in 1825; Priscilla, 
1827; Mary, 1828; Sarah, 1830; and Frank 
M. Eleazer Cutler was married in 1853 to 
Amaranth Egglcston, of Dover l^lains, who 
was born in 182S. They have three children. 

Frank Cutler was born in 1832 at the old 
farm, and after attending the common schools 
for some years completed his studies at a 
boarding school in Connecticut. He learned 
the carpenter's trade, which he followed for 
more than twenty years; but after the purchase 
of the present homestead he took charge of it. 
An active worker in public affairs, he has held 
several town offices, including that of collector, 
and he belongs to Dover Plains Lodge No. 
666, F. & A. M., in which he was trustee for 
many years. He married Elizabeth Carey, a 
daughter of Jeremiah Carey, a prosperous farm- 
er of Connecticut, and has had three children: 
(i) George, who was born in 1865, was educated 
at Dover Plains Academy, and taught in Dover 
for some time. He has now been employed 
in the New York post office for ten years. 
Like his father, he is a Mason, and belongs to 
the Royal Arcanum. He married Miss Bertha 
Dutcher, daughter of J. \'an Ness Dutcher, a 



well-known agriculturist of Dover, and his 
wife Harriet, and they have one child, Iithel. 
(2) John was born in 1868, and also taught 
school for a time, but since 1890 he has been 
in the U. S. mail service on the N. Y. C. & H. 
K. K. , from New York to Syracuse. He belongs 
to Dover Plains Lodge No. 665, F. & A. M. 
He married Miss Sarah Dutcher, daughter of 
one of the leading farmers of his native town, 
John I. Dutcher, and his wife, Ada C. (3) 
Fred, the youngest son, was born in 1872, and 
was given the same educational advantages 
that his brothers had. Since his graduation he 
has been engaged in farming w'ith his father. 
He married Miss Mary Northrup, daughter of 
Edwin R. and Mary Northrup, who are prom- 
inent residents of the same township. 

Mrs. Frank N. Cutler is a member of an 
old Connecticut family, and her grandfather, 
Jeremiah Carey, was a prosperous agriculturist 
of Fairfield county. He and his wife, Eunice 
Odell, had eight children: James is the eldest; 
Eliasisan inventor; Robert died at an earlyage; 
Lockwood; Lucretia (Mrs. Robert Chestnut); 
Artemisia (Mrs. David Waldroni; Sarah (Mrs. 
Orin Benson), and Jeremiah (^Mrs. Cutler's fa- 
ther). Hewasbornand reared in Fairfield coun- 
ty, Conn, .engaged in farming there, and married 
Miss Salina Hunter, daughter of a well-known 
farmer of the same locality, Joseph Hunter, 
and his wife, Sylvia. Mrs. Cutler was the 
second in a family of six children. The eld- 
est, Julia, married (first) Charles Hinman, and 
(second) Fred Bergman. She has two sons. 
Leman Hinman and Frank Bergman. The 
third daughter, Orvilla, married Henry Ebert, 
and has five children: Henry, Will, Saline. 
Charles and Walter. Sarah J. Carey married 
Stephen R. Scott, and had si.\ children: 
.■\lida (Mrs. Oscar Smith); Abraham, who mar- 
ried Mina Decker; George, who married Abbie 
Decker; Lillie (Mrs. William Decker); Carrie 
(Mrs. Robert Holly), and Gertie, who is not 
married. George Carey married Mary Trainor, 
and has four children — William, Charles. Min- 
nie, the wife of Harry Dougherty, and Blanche. 
Silas S. Carey married Laura Conklin, and has 
three sons: Frank, who married Laura Mott; 
Fred, who married Edith Wheeler, and Clay- 
ton, who is unmarried. 

The Inrush family, to which the mother of 
our subject belonged, counts among its mem- 
bers many who have attained distinction in 
various walks of life. Amos Brush, the great- 
grandfather of our subject, was a soldier in the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



Ill 



Revolutionary army. He was born in Fair- 
field county, Conn., and had his home there 
all his life. He married Miss Hannah Bearss, 
and had eight children: Ezra, who married 
Betsey Bearss; Amos, Mrs. Cutler's father; 
Amy, the wife of Dr. Isaac Knapp; Hannah 
(Mrs. Smith); Esther (Mrs. Amos Chapman); 
Ada, the wife of Mr. Bailey, a Revolutionary 
soldier; Mary, who died at the age of twenty, 
and Eli, who married Rilla Davis. 

Amos Brush, Jr., was born in New Fairfield, 
Conn., in 1798, and, after obtaining an educa- 
tion in the local schools, he engaged in farm- 
ing. He married Miss Aurilla Barnum, daugh- 
ter of Ephraim and Sarah ^Seeleyi Barnum, 
of Bethel, Conn., and had seven children: (i ) 
Eliza married Daniel Duncan, and has had si.x 
children: Austin, Alex, Theo, William, Irene 
and John, of whom only Theo and William 
are now living. (2) George never married. 

(3) Austin married H. Lucetta Rogers, and has 
three children: Edward, William and Ella. 

(4) William is mentioned below. (5) Irene 
was the mother of our subject. (6) Augustus 
was prominent in public life, and was State 
school commissioner for six years; member of 
the Assembly from Dutchess county two terms; 
agent for the United States Treasury for some 
time; an employe of the New York Custom 
House for twelve years, and from 1880 to 1891 
was warden of Sing Sing prison. He married 
Susan Senserbaugh, and had five children: 
George, Alice, Irene, Augusta and Fred. (7) 
Harriet married Cornelius Hill, and had three 
children: Irene. Ernest and George. 

(4) Rev. William Brush, D. D., Mrs. Cut- 
ler's brother, was born in New Fairfield, Conn., 
February 19, 1827, and died in Englewood, 
Chicago, 111., April 29, 1895, having but a few 
weeks before passed the sixty-eighth milestone 
in his life's journey. It is to the circumstances, 
associations and surroundings of his early life 
that we must look for the elements that pro- 
duced his strong character. Born and reared 
as he was among the rocks and hills, the looms 
and spindles of New England, we find in him 
the qualities of energy, industry, self-denial 
and perseverance. Puritan blood flowed in 
his veins, and loyal patriotism fired his soul. 
In his student days he sacrified the ordinary 
pleasures and even conveniences of life that 
he might furnish his mind with higher and 
nobler attainments. True to his youthful am- 
bition, by dint of earnest toil and hard study 
he returned at the early age of twenty to knock 



at the door of Yale College for admission to 
the sophomore class. In the three remaining 
years he completed the full classical course 
with high rank in scholarship. In October, 
1850, following his graduation, he was married 
to Electa J. Brush, the trusted and beloved 
companion of his after years. They had three 
children: Frank, a minister; Darley, a banker, 
and Hattie, who married Dr. O. E. Murray. 
Dr. Brush's active work in the ministry began, 
in 1 85 1, in the New York Conference, of which 
he was a member, and served successful pas- 
torates until 1858, when he took a transfer to 
the Upper Iowa Conference, and was appointed 
pastor of the M. E. Church at Dyersville. In 
i860 he was called to the presidency of Upper 
Iowa University, at Fayette, Iowa, which po- 
sition he held for nine successive years. En- 
tering again upon the active work of the min- 
istry, he served a four-years' term as presiding 
elder of the Charles City district. In 1873, 
finding the rigor of the northern winter too 
severe for his wife's health, he decided to 
move south, and became presiding elder of the 
Austin, Tex., district. From the result of his 
eight-years' labor in this field the Austin Con- 
ference was formed. In 1881 he removed 
north, and filled appointments again as pastor 
of the churches at Maquoketa and Vinton, 
Iowa. In 1885 he removed to Dakota, and 
became one of the founders and first president 
of Dakota University, which position he occu- 
pied for six years, or until his appointment in 

1 89 1, by President Harrison, as U. S. Consul 
to Messina, Italy. 

On his return from his foreign mission in 

1892, he was elected chancellor of the Univer- 
sity of the Northwest, at Sioux City, Iowa, 
where he labored until a few months previous 
to his death. He assisted in laying the foun- 
dation of three colleges in the West, and when 
the history of these institutions are written 
fifty years hence, such men as Dr. Brush will 
receive due credit for the sacrifices made in 
their behalf. The Churches and the cause of 
education are indebted to him for forty-four 
long years of eminent and efficient service, 
eighteen years as college president and twenty- 
six years in the ministry, during which time 
his name has been associated with many im- 
portant issues and undertakings. On several 
occasions he acted as chaplain of the House of 
Representatives in Washington, D. C. , and 
officiated in the same capacity at the National 
Republican Convention in 1892. Five times 



n: 



COMMEMORATIVE JHOORAPBICAL JiECORD. 



was he elected delegate to the General Con- 
ference of the M. E. Church, and once re- 
ceived a large vote for the office of bishop. 



JfUSTUS P. REYNOLDS, a leading and 
progressive citizen of the town of Anienia, 
Dutchess county, was there born on what 
is now known as the J. O. Peters place, Jan- 
uary 24, 1833, and belongs to a family that 
was established in this country soon after the 
landing of the pilgrims at Plymouth Rock. 
The first to arrive in the New World was I^ob- 
ert Reynolds, a native of England, who was 
living in Watertown, Mass., in 1634, and later 
became a resident of Boston. His son, Na- 
thaniel Reynolds, was born in that State, and 
in 1680 emigrated to Bristol, R. I., becoming 
one of its first settlers. He had previously 
married Priscilla Brackett, and their son Jos- 
eph was born in Massachusetts, December 20, 
1676, and died January 16, 1759. The latter 
wedded Phcebe Leonard, and among their 
children was Joseph I^eynolds, who was born 
in Rhode Island, November 15, 1719, and died 
September 14, 17S9. He married Lydia 
Greenwood. 

Joseph Reynolds was a prominent patriot 
during the Revolutionary war. Gen. LaFayette 
stayed at his house during the occupancy of 
the town of Bristol. Later, when the British 
took the place, Mr. Reynolds and his servant 
were taken prisoners and confined in a prison- 
ship in the harbor. He suffered great priva- 
tions in that vermin-infested ship, but was 
finally exchanged for a British officer. Gen. 
LaFayette visited him on his return to America 
in 1S24. The house in which he was enter- 
tained was built (according to the history of 
the town) about the year 1700, and is still 
standing in a fine state of preservation, and is 
owned and occupied by one of his descendants. 
The room in which Gen. LaFayette slept is 
preserved in its original state. 

George Reynolds, the son of Joseph and 
Lydia (Greenwood) Reynolds, was the grand- 
father of our subject. He was born at Bristol, 
R. I., November 7, 1756, and at that place 
was united in marriage with Abigail Peck, by 
whom he had five children: Jonathan P., 
Lydia, George, Joseph, and Abigail, who mar- 
ried Philo I'leed. In 1794 the grandfather 
came to the town of Amenia, Dutchess county, 
locating upon a farm near the village of 
Amenia, where he engaged in agricultural 



pursuits until his death, which occurred in 
April, 1808. 

George Reynolds, the father of our subject, 
was also a native of Bristol, R. I. , born No- 
vember 15, 1788, received a district school 
education, and remained under the parental 
roof for some years. At Amenia was celebrated 
his marriage. May 26, 1S19, with Miss Abigail 
Pennoyer, daughter of Jonathan Pennoyer, and 
to them were born four children, namely: 
George Greenwood, born February 7, 1821, is 
an ex-judge of Brooklyn, N. Y. ; Caroline, born 
January 23, 1826, died March 28, 1829; Mary, 
born May 18, 1830, became the wife of George 
Kirby, and died October i 5, 1S74; Justus Pow- 
ers, subject of this sketch, completes the family. 
.\fter his marriage the father bought the Peters 
farm, north of Amenia village, where he lived 
until 1834, when he purchased the E. J. Pres- 
ton place, south of Amenia, there dying Jan- 
uary 31, 1873, in the faith of the Methodist 
Episcopal Church. His political support was 
first given the Whig and, later, the Republican 
party, and he acceptably served as assessor of 
his town. He was a straightforward, honor- 
able man, who had the confidence and esteem 
of all who knew him. 

Justus P. Reynolds spent his boyhood days 
in the town of Amenia, and acquired his edu- 
cation in the district schools and the Amenia 
Seminary. In i860 he purchased the Jordan 
farm, near South Amenia, where he made his 
home, until removing to his present place near 
the same village in 1869. He has continued 
to follow the occupation to which he was 
reared, with results that are satisfactory; the 
reward of well-directed labors. 

In the town of Amenia, January 31, 1863, 
Mr. Reynolds led to the marriage altar Miss 
Nancy Barlow, daughter of Elisha Barlow, 
and to them were born six children: George, 
who married Clarabel Williams, daughter of 
William Williams, and has two children, How- 
ard B. and Edward D. ; Abbie L. ; Lucy B., 
wife of John T. Sackett, of Brooklyn, N. Y., 
by whom she has one daughter, Justine R. ; Ed- 
ward G. ; Francis B. ; and Bertha May, de- 
ceased. Mr. Reynolds affiliated with Sheko- 
meko Lodge, when it was at Mabbettsville, 
Dutchess county. In politics he is independ- 
ent, voting for the man whom he thinks best 
([ualified to fill the office, regardless of party 
ties, but favors Democratic principles. He takes 
a commendable interest in the prosperity and 
advancement of his native county. 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



773 



WILLIAM B. ROE (deceased) was born 
at New Hackensack, Dutchess county, 

October 17, 18 19, and was of English ex- 
traction. His father, William Roe, whose 
birth occurred June 26, 1790, was married in 
1812 to Miss Abby Blatchley, who was born 
in Connecticut December 27, 1788, and they 
located upon a farm in New Hackensack, 
where their four children were born, namely: 
Joseph B., who died in infancy; William B. ; 
John B., who became a merchant of Mary- 
land; and Sarah, who married Gilbert Has- 
brouck, a farmer of Michigan. The family 
were members of the Episcopal Church. 

Upon the farm where his widow now 
resides, William B. Roe passed his boyhood 
and youth in much the usual manner of farmer 
lads, and on November 11, 1846, married 
Miss Amanda Anderson, who was born in the 
town of East Fishkill, on the farm known as 
" Locust Dale, " which was also the birthplace 
of her father, Peter Anderson. Si.x children 
were born to our subject and his wife: Abby 
B., who died May 19, 1852; Sarah E.; Annie 
L. ; Ella K., who died October 25, 1862; Will- 
iam A., who died August 21, 1865; and Win- 
ifred A. 

At his childhood home, Mr. Roe continued 
to live until his earthly career was ended June 
2, 1873, when he passed to his reward. In 
connection with general farming he also dealt 
e.xtensively in stock of all kinds, buying and 
selling horses, cattle, etc., and did a profitable 
business along that line up to the time of his 
death. His ballot was always cast in support 
of the men and measures of the Democratic 
party, and he took a commendable interest in 
public affairs. \N'ith his estimable wife, he 
held membership in the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, and faithfully followed its teachings. 
In all the relations of life he was honorable and 
upright, never seeking to take advantage of 
others, and enjoyed the confidence and respect 
of all with whom he came in contact. He 
left a comfortable property, including a farm 
of 225 acres, on which his wife and daughters 
reside. They are intelligent and highly cul- 
tured ladies, and have many friends through- 
out the community. 



EDWIN L. BUSHNELL, a prominent citi- 
! zen of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, 

the inventor of the Bushnell spring bed, and 
founder of the Bushnell Manufacturing Com- 



pany, was born March 8, 1822, in Stanford, 
Dutchess county. 

His family is of English origin, and he 
traces his lineage to one of three brothers who 
came from Saybrook, England, at an early 
date, the Bushnells of New Haven, Conn., 
and of Ohio, being also their descendants. 
Alvah Bushnell, our subject's father, was born 
in Litchfield county. Conn., in 1796, and in 
1817 came to Dutchess county, and engaged 
in mercantile business; but after two years in 
Stanfordville and two in Bangall, he gave up 
that occupation to conduct a hotel at Pulver's 
Corners, remaining there three years. He 
then bought the property known as the Solon 
Lapham farm, where he passed the remainder 
of his days as a successful farmer. He mar- 
ried Mr. Lapham 's daughter, Melinda, and had 
three children, Julia, Edwin L. , and Tamma 
Josephine. He was an active worker in the 
Republican party, also in all local movements 
of importance, and was a regular attendant of 
the Baptist Church at Bangall. His death 
occurred November 16, 1865 ; his wife died 
October 28, 1861. 

Edwin L. Bushnell, our subject, attended 
the district schools of his vicinity in boyhood, 
and then studied for one winter at Amenia 
Seminary. At seventeen he was obliged to 
leave school, but he has always been an ex- 
tensive reader; and is an unusually well-in- 
formed man. He remained at home until the 
age of twenty-three, when he left the farm on 
account of ill health and entered the Pough- 
keepsie Iron Co., of which he was one of the 
three first stockholders on the organization of 
the company, October 31, 1848. This com- 
pany owned the first anthracite furnace built 
east of the Alleghanies, and Mr. Bushnell 
personally supervised its construction. In 
1850 he retired to take the business manage- 
ment of the American R. R. Chair Co., and in 
their interest he spent the winter of 1851-52 
in Columbus, Ohio, and four months of 1852 
in Montreal, Canada. His mother's failing 
health caused him to sever his relations with 
this company, and return to Poughkeepsie. 
In 1852 he undertook the selling of patents, 
and visited Bangor, Maine, and Portsmouth, 
N. H., with a patent window-blind hinge. He 
had been for some time engaged in perfecting 
the invention, of which he has since made such 
a distinguished success; but like most in- 
ventors he was obliged to follow occupations 
which were less congenial, though more re- 



774 



OOMMEMOnATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



munerative, than fashioninj; models. A brief 
venture in the real-estate business in Boston 
was followed by a few months in the lumber 
trade with an uncle in New York City; but in 
the fall of 1853 this business was closed out, 
and Mr. Bushnell became connected with the 
Lord's Prayer Association in the same city. 
The winter of 1853-54 he spent in Richmond, 
Va. , selling machinery. In the spring of 1855 
he married Miss Sarah Jane Sherman, of Cam- 
bridge, Washington county, N. Y., and settled 
upon the old homestead farm. Three chil- 
dren were born of this uniorf: Jennie, now at 
home; James S., a resident of Seattle, Wash.; 
and Edwin M., the treasurer and general man- 
ager of the Bushnell Manufacturing Co., at 
Easton, Pennsylvania. 

In i860 Mr. Bushnell went to New Pres- 
ton, Conn., and engaged in a mercantile busi- 
ness; he contributed largely to the support of 
families whose fathers were in the army dur- 
ing the Rebellion. In the fall of 1865 he sold 
his business in New Preston, and returned to 
Poughkeepsie, where in the spring of 1S66 he 
purchased the house in which he still resides. 
He began the manufacture of scythe riffles, and 
patented a mowing-machine sharpener, which 
he sold in 1869, when he commenced manu- 
facturing his own invention, making a spring 
bed with four eyes in each end of the springs. 
This has met with great success, and in 1880 
he adapted the idea to car seats, berths and 
backs, and was awarded the only medal on 
that line of goods at the National Exposition 
of Railway Appliances at Chicago in 1883. 
Though various parties infringed his patents 
and kept him seven and one-half years de- 
fending his rights in the United States Courts, 
he secured the patronage of the Wagner & 
Pullman Palace Car Co. His goods have been 
largely adopted by ail the leading railroads 
and car-builders throughout the country, with 
several new patents for improvements, and, on 
tools and machinery for manufacturing, they 
take the lead. In 1893 Mr. Bushnell removed 
his factory from Poughkeepsie to Easton, 
Pcnn., where there is a fine plant employing 
a large number of men. This firm furnished 
the seats for the new "Defender," also the 
" Black Daimon Train," the finest train in 
the world. He built the first skylight in 
Poughkeepsie, for taking pictures. 

Mr. Bushnell is a man of great natural 
ability and energy, and notwithstanding his 
years is mentally active, his memory being re- 



markable. He has always taken an interest 
in the success of the Republican party, but 
has always refused to accept office. He 
served out his time with the Davy Crockett 
Hook & Ladder Company. He attends the 
Second Reformed Church, to which he is a 
liberal giver. 



ISAAC B. GILDERSLEVE (deceased), who 
was one of the highly respected and hon- 
ored citizens of the town of East t'lshkill, 
Dutchess county, was born in Scipio, Cayuga 
Co., N. Y., April 5, 1823, of Holland descent. 
His father, Solomon Gildersleve, was a native 
of the town of Fishkill, Dutchess county, but 
after his marriage with Margaret Wiltsie lo- 
cated upon a farm in Cayuga county, where 
their five children were born: Annis, who 
married Thomas Ketchum, of the town of East 
Fishkill, but both died in Indiana; Eliza, who 
first married James Deleree, and alter his death 
wedded Elias Tompkins, and they lived at 
Cold Spring, N. Y. ; Emma, who became the 
wife of a Mr. Bronson, and lived at Port 
Chester, N. Y. ; Ann; and Isaac B. 

Our subject when a young man came to 
the town of East Fishkill, where he engaged 
in teaming, hauling hoop poles to Poughkeep- 
sie, but about 1842 went to Missouri, and was 
on the Mississippi until 1865, working his way 
upward from a deck hand until he was owner 
of a steamboat, which carried both freight and 
passengers. In 1S65 he began the hotel busi- 
ness in St. Louis, which he continued for five 
years, and on the expiration of that time re- 
turned to Dutchess county, purchasing the 
farm now owned and occupied by his daugh- 
ter, Rita A. 

Mr. Gildersleve was married in 1865, to 
Miss Charlotte A. Miller, a native of Berwick, 
Columbia Co., Penn., and a daughter of Jacob 
Miller. Five children were born to them, all 
of whom died in infancy with the exception of 
Rita A., and the mother departed this life 
September 24, 1887, while the father's death 
occurred on the home farm February 25, 1890. 

The farm is a most beautiful place, on 
which Mr. Gildersleve made many improve- 
ments and erected excellent buildings. It 
comprises 146 acres of valuable land, on which 
he carried on general farming, but his daugh- 
ter, who now has the management, makes a 
specialty of milk. 

In the career of this gentleman we find an 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



lib 



excellent example for young men just embark- 
ing in the field of active life, of what may be 
accomplished by a man beginning poor, but 
honest, prudent and industrious. He was en- 
tirely self-made, and left behind him an excel- 
lent property, as well as a good name. He 
was a Democrat in politics, and was one of 
the prominent and esteemed citizens of the 
community. His estimable wife held member- 
ship in the Episcopal Church. 



ONCURE BARTOW was called from 
'" earth in the midst of his usefulness, dying 
on the 19th of April, 1881. He was a leading 
and honored citizen of the town of East Fish- 
kill, Dutchess county, where he devoted his 
energies to the care and cultivation of the farm, 
and was also connected with the Dutchess 
County Insurance Company, of Poughkeepsie. 

The Bartow family is of French e.Ktraction, 
and was established in Dutchess county at a 
very early day. Religiously, its members were 
mostly connected with the Episcopal Church. 
William A. Bartow, the father of our subject, 
was a native of the town of East Fishkill, and 
a farmer by occupation. The mother bore 
the maiden name of Jane Hasbrouck. 

Moncure Bartow was the seventh son in a 
family of twelve children, and was reared upon 
the old home farm, where he continued to en- 
gage in agricultural pursuits until his marriage, 
in 1867, to Miss Elizabeth D. Brinckerhoff. 
They began their domestic life upon the farm 
where she still resides, and there their two 
children — Jane D. and Moncure — were born. 
The parents contributed to the support of the 
Reformed Church, and in politics Mr. Bartow 
was a decided Democrat, but would never ac- 
cept public office. His upright, honorable life 
won him the confidence and esteem of his 
neighbors, and he was classed among the most 
respected representative citizens of East Fish- 
kill town. 

Mrs. Bartow, a most excellent lady, was 
born in the house which is still her home, and 
is the only child of Abraham and Betsey 
(Delavan) Brinckerhoff, the former born on 
the farm in the town of East Fishkill (where 
his daughter now resides), October 6, 1798, 
and the latter at North Salem, Westchester 
Co., N. Y., January 11, 1799. The Brincker- 
hoff family is of Holland origin, and was 
founded in America in 1638. The first to lo- 
cate here was Joris Dericksen Brinckerhoff, 



who married Susanah Dubbles, and from him 
in direct line to the father of Mrs. Bartow were 
Abraham Jorisen (married to Altia Stryker), 
Derick (married to Altia Cowenhoven), Abra- 
ham (married to Femmetia Remsen), John A. 
(married to Elizabeth Brinckerhoff), and Derick 
(who married Margaret Brett). The Delavan 
family was of French extraction, and Mrs. 
Bartow's maternal grandfather, John Delavan, 
was born February 11, 1744, and became a 
prominent farmer of Westchester county. He 
married Martha Keeler, whose birth occurred 
at Ridgefield, Conn., August 28, 1757, and 
they became the parents of five children, as 
follows: Jane, born in 1789, died in 1865; 
Chauncy, born in 1790, died in 1863; Benja- 
min, born in 1792, died in 1827; Catherine, 
born in 1797, died in 1867; and Betsey, the 
mother of Mrs. Bartow, was the youngest. 
The father of these children died January 8, 
1S34, the mother on March 10, 1843. After 
their marriage, Abraham l^rinckerhoff and his 
wife located upon the farm where Mrs. Bar- 
tow yet lives, and there the former died Jan- 
uary 5, 1874, and the latter on September 29, 
1878. They were prominent members of the 
community, and had the respect of all who 
knew them. In early life Mr. Brinckerhoff 
was a Democrat, but later supported the Re- 
publican party. 



HIRAM CLARK (deceased). The family 
name of the subject of this sketch has 
long been held in high esteem in Dutchess 
county, and he proved himself to be a worthy 
representative, displaying in a high degree the 
keen business judgment and high sense of 
honor which have characterized the race. Re- 
motely he was of English descent, the head of 
the American branch being Thomas Clark, 
who was one of the "Mayflower" pilgrims. 
The first of the family to come to Dutchess 
county was our subject's grandfather, Ezra 
Clark, an energetic, thrifty and prosperous 
farmer, who was born at Plainfield, Conn., in 
1748. He came to Dutchess county about 
1795, and his first purchase was a farm of 200 
acres, adjoining what is now our subject's es- 
tate, he later buying the farm now owned by 
Leonard Barton, where he passed his later 
years, and died in 1834. He was married in 
Connecticut to Mary Douglas, who died in 
1837. They had ten children: Douglas; Moses; 
Ezra; Elijah, a farmer in Amenia: Sarah, who 



776 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



married Samuel Brown; Lidia, who married 
Jeremiah Conkhn ; Patty (Mrs. Conklin i ; Aphia, 
married to George Brown; and Ohve, married 
to Jacob Dakin. 

The two elder sons remained in the town 
of Northeast, and became prominent in local 
affairs — business, political and social. Doug- 
las Clark, our subject's father, was born in 
Plainfield, Conn., July 12, 1774, but spent the 
greater part of his life on the present Clark 
farm, near Millerton, Dutchess countj-, con- 
sisting of 400 acres, which he purchased in 
1 8 16 from a Mr. Spencer, for whom Spencer's 
Corners was named. He owned two other 
estates also, comprising in all about 800 acres. 
He possessed rare business judgment, and was 
greatly esteemed throughout the community, 
being often called upon to assist in the settle- 
ment of estates. In 1829, 1830 and 1831 he 
was supervisor, and for a number of years was 
commissioner of highways and justice of the 
peace. He was twice married, (first) to Sarah 
Collins, and (second) to Elizabeth Wiggins, a 
lady of English descent, daughter of Arthur 
and Mary Wiggins, of the town of Northeast. 
He had eight children, as follows: Of the 
first family were — Olive, born in 1797, who 
died at the age of twenty-seven; Sarah (Mrs. 
Alex. Trowbridge), born in 1798; Perry, born 
in 1800; Harry, born in 1808; Emeline (Mrs. 
B. H. Wheeler, of Amenia), born in 18 16; and 
Caroline (Mrs. Caleb Barrett), born in 18—. 
The second family were: Hiram, born June 
I, 1824; and Douglas, born in February, 1832. 

Hiram Clark succeeded at his father's death 
to a portion of the estate, and followed farm- 
ing. He was a well-informed man, having re- 
ceived a good English education in his boyhood 
at Amenia Seminary and at Kinderhook, to 
which he constantly added by reading and ob- 
servation. An able and entertaining business 
man, in the management of his farm he was 
thoroughly successful. He made many im- 
provements, remodeling the house, which was 
built about 1829, the lumber being brought 
from Albany. It is now one of the finest farm 
houses in the town. He "was engaged for 
some years in the breeding of fine horses. 
Among other business enterprises in which he 
was interested was the founding of the Miller- 
ton National Bank, in which he was one of the 
original stockholders. Although he took a keen 
interest in public affairs, and was an ardent 
Republican in politics, he never sought or held 
office, being quite content to use his influence 



quietly. He was an earnest Christian, and 
a regular attendant at the Congregational 
Church, but later became an adherent of the 
Presbyterian Church, and often held official 
positions in those societies. On November 17, 
1847, he married Mary Richter, daughter ot 
John W. and Hannah (Harris) Richter, well- 
known farming people of near Pine Plains. 
Four children were born to them: Henry, June 
28, 1850; John W., December 17, 1854; and 
two who died in infancy. The father was 
called from earth December 6, 1890; the 
mother still resides on the old homestead. 

The two surviving sons of this estimable 
couple inherited the old farm of 400 acres 
first acquired by their grandfather, where they 
now conduct an extensive dairy business. They 
are successful managers, and hold a prominent 
place among the younger men of their town. 
Henky Clark was educated at Amenia Semi- 
nary and at New Marlboro, Mass. He is a 
Democrat in politics, was assessor from 1890 
to 1893, ^rid for two years past he has been a 
director of the Millerton National Bank. On 
January 1 1, 1882, John W. Clark was married 
to Harriet J. Weed, of Torrington, Conn., and 
has one daughter, Harriet Emma Clark. 



WILLIAM H. DIAMOND, the well- 
known proprietor of the Beverick 

Bottling Vaults, at the corner of Main and 
Clover streets, Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, 
is one of the most enterprising business men of 
that city. 

His family is of Irish origin, the old home 
of his ancestors being located at Belfast, 
where his grandfather, James D. Diamond, 
followed the trade of a mason. He had five 
sons, all of whom came to America. John 
died in Dutchess county; Hugh was our sub- 
ject's father; Charles H. was a saloon keeper 
in Poughkeepsie, and was noted for his gener- 
osity; Patrick, a shipbuilder by trade, enlisted 
in the army during the Civil war, and rose to 
the rank of acting major; William was a la- 
boring man; James enlisted in the army in 
1863, and was one of the "missing." 

Hugh Diamond came to Poughkeepsie in 
1849, ^"d engaged in the manufacture and sale 
of boots and shoes at the corner of Dutchess 
avenue and Albany street, gaining the reputa- 
tion of being an excellent workman and good 
business manager. Although he was not lib- 
erally educated, he had good natural ability 





%. 





yC^(ZyC<.Cjrtl^ , 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



m 



and sound judgment, and was highly esteemed. 
In his later years he went into the wholesale 
ale business, in which he was engaged at the 
time of his death, which occurred in 1875. A 
Democrat in principle, he was interested in 
the success of the party, but was no politician. 
He was one of the earliest members of St. 
Peter's Catholic Church, and for some years 
was captain of two military companies of the 
city — the Poughkeepsie Grenadiers and the 
Jackson Republican Guards. In 1859 he mar- 
ried Miss Jane Reynolds, daughter of Thomas 
Reynolds, a native of Kilrea, County Derry, 
Ireland, and had seven children: James (de- 
ceased); William Henry, our subject; Margaret 
Ellen, who is at home; James, a resident of 
Poughkeepsie; Sarah Jane (deceased); Mary 
Jane (deceased); and Sarah, an invalid, at 
home. Three of the family died before reach- 
ing adult age. 

W. H. Diamond was born October 24, 
1852, at No. 45 Dutchess avenue, Pough- 
keepsie, and was educated in that city, attend- 
ing St. Peter's parochial school in Mill street, 
from the age of seven years until he was thir- 
teen, when he entered the public school at the 
corner of Mill and Bridge streets, against the 
strenuous opposition of the priest and the fam- 
ily, with the exception of his father. Notwith- 
standing threats and hindrances, he prevailed, 
and attended there for about three years. At 
fifteen he began to learn the trade of brick- 
layer and plasterer with William Harlow, of 
Poughkeepsie, who was then building the print 
works at Haverstraw. So capable was the 
young apprentice that he was soon made time- 
keeper and paymaster, having at times 150 
bricklayers, and from seventy-five to one hun- 
dred other laborers to keep accounts for, and 
handling hundreds of thousands of dollars 
without the loss of a cent. Later he went to 
New York City with his employer, and worked 
on the post of^ce, the Jefferson market police 
station, the Garner warehouse at the corner of 
Jay and Hudson streets, and other large build- 
ings. After three or four years there he re- 
turned to Poughkeepsie, and worked on the 
asylum for William Sayer. In 1881 he started 
in the business of wholesaling ale, handling the 
goods of T. D. Coleman, of Albany, and Ken- 
nedy & Murphy, of Troy. On April i, 1884, 
he rented the property at the corner of Main 
and Clover streets, and established his pres- 
ent business, which includes the bottling of 
lager beer and a wholesale business in ale. He 

50 



has built up a large trade, one of the best in 
that line, extending throughout the county and 
for some distance up and down the river, and 
he makes a specialty of handling the best 
goods, the Anheuser Busch and Ballentine 
Lager, and several brands of fine ale. His 
property on North Clover street, the John Vail 
place, is one of the finest in the city. The 
secret of his success may be found in his close 
attention to business, and fair dealing with 
customers. 

On September 7, 1884, he married Miss 
Catherine Hillery, of Poughkeepsie. They 
have no children. Mrs. Diamond's parents 
were natives of Ireland, and her father died 
there in 1862; her mother died in Poughkeep- 
sie in 1879. Mr. Diamond has always been 
interested in public affairs. On State and 
National issues he is a Democrat, but in local 
politics he votes independently. He belongs 
to Triumph Lodge, K. of P. , the Young Amer- 
ica Hose Co., the Poughkeepsie Zither Club, 
and is a leading member of St. Peter's Catho- 
lic Church. 



^/TLLIAM J. CARPENTER, a retired 
merchant of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, was born in New York City, December 
10, 1828, a son of Emory and Jane Ann ( Du- 
Bois) Carpenter. [A geneaological sketch of 
the Carpenter family will be found in the 
biography of J. Du Bois Carpenter elsewhere.] 
Our subject attended school in an old stone 
school house until he was fifteen years old, and 
then came to Poughkeepsie, where he went to 
the Smith Institute for a year, at the end of 
that time entering his uncle's store at No. 271 
Main street, as clerk, the firm name being L. 
& J. G. Carpenter, grocers. There Mr. Car- 
penter clerked until the spring of 1849, when 
he joined a company going to California. 
They went via Cape Horn, and consumed five 
and one-half months in making the trip. In 
the spring of 1850 Mr. Carpenter returned to 
Poughkeepsie, and went into the grocery store 
of his uncle at No. 320 Main street, where he 
remained some three years, and then he and 
his brother, J. Du Bois, took the business and 
conducted it under the name of Carpenter & 
Bro. After eight years they sold out and en- 
gaged in the boating business, running a boat 
from New Paltz Landing to New York City. 
This they continued for one year, and then, in 
1863, our subject again went into partnership 



778 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



with his brother (J. Uu Bois) at the corner of 
Academy and Main streets, remaining there, 
under the firm name of Carpenter & Bro., until 

1887, when our subject bought a beautiful 
home on Southeast avenue, and is now living 
a retired life. 

On September 5, 1854, Mr. Carpenter was 
united in marriage with Miss Sarah E. Boerum, 
a native of Poughkeepsie and a daughter of 
David Boerum, the first merchant tailor who 
did business in Poughkeepsie. Four children 
came of this union: Amelia, born June 4, 1855, 
died June i, 1863; I'^red White, a ilruggist in 
New York City, born February 16, 1857; Jen- 
nie Boerum, born February 4, 1863, married 
Myron H. I^arlow, a furniture dealer of Pough- 
keepsie; and Hattie W., born April 13, 1872, is 
unmarried. Of these, Fred W. married Malvina 
Finch June 3, 1885, and they have three chil- 
dren: William P"rederick, Gerald Finch and 
Margaret. Jennie B. was married, March i, 

1888, to Myron H. Barlow. Mrs. Sarah E. 
Carpenter died April 18, 1875, and for his sec- 
ond wife our subject married, September 26, 
1876, Miss Jane E. Flagler, who was born in 
the town of Pleasant Valley, a daughter of 
Isaac Flagler. No children have been born of 
this marriage. In politics Mr. Carpenter is a 
Republican, having previously been a Whig. 
He and his wife have been connected with the 
First Congregational Church for twenty-five 
years, and he has been identified with the busi- 
ness interests of Poughkeepsie for half a cen- 
tury. He is enterprising, progressive and highly 
esteemed by his fellow citizens. In September, 
1895, he was stricken with paralysis, and is 
now (1897) in very feeble health and mostly 
confined to the house. 



DW. ROGERS (deceased) was an euter- 
' prising and reliable agriculturist of the 
town of East Fishkill. These qualities, in 
connection with his natural industry and per- 
severance, made him, wherever known, an ob- 
ject of uniform regard. His birth occurred on 
July I 5, 1852, on the farm in the town of East 
Fishkill, where his widow still resides, and 
where his great-grandfather, Micah Rogers, lo- 
cated in 1762, at that time purchasing 100 
acres. On coming from Holland, the latter 
made his first home in the town of Beekman, 
but the greater part of his life was spent upon 
that farm, where his death occurred. The 
grandfather of our subject, who also bore 



the name of Micah Rogers, was there born, 
and throughout life engaged in farming. He 
wedded Margaret Workman, by whom he had 
three sons: James W., who was a farmer of 
this county; Alexander, who carried on agri- 
cultural pursuits in the town of East Fishkill; 
and Charles H., the father of our subject. 

Upon the old homestead in East Fishkill 
town, April 9, 1822, Charles H. Rogers was 
born, grew to manhood, and as a companion 
on life's journey chose Sarah J. Parmalee. They 
began their domestic life upon that farm, and 
there spent their remaining days, the father 
dying April 16, 1876, and the mother on March 
I, 1872. They were sincere and earnest 
Christians, members of the Reformed Dutch 
Church. Four children were born to them: 
Margaret, deceased; D. W., of this sketch; 
Mary P.. deceased; and Herbert, a resident of 
the town of East Fishkill. 

The subject of this review was reared in 
the usual manner of farmer boys, and in early 
life learned the blacksmith's trade; but owing 
to his father's ill health, he gave up that pursuit 
and returned to the home farm, to the cultiva- 
tion and improvement of which he ever after- 
ward devoted his attention. 

On March 22, 1877, was celebrated the 
marriage of Mr. Rogers and Miss Mary L. 
Van Nostrand, who was born in the town of 
Hyde Park, Dutchess county, but came to 
East Fishkill when quite young. The only 
child born of their union, Charles H., died in 
infancy. The parents of Mrs. Rogers, Joseph 
H. and Mary E. (Berry) Van Nostrand. were 
both natives of East Fishkill town, and in 
their family were two children, the son being 
Fkancis S., a postal clerk on the Hudson 
River railroad. The father, who was a wagon- 
\ maker by trade, died P^ebruary 29, 1884, 
while the mother departed this life April 23, 
1868. The former was the only child of 
George and Levina (Gildersleeve) Van Nos- 
trand. The grandfather of Mrs. Rogers was 
also a wagon-maker, and a native of East 
Fishkill. There her great-grandfather, Joseph 
Van Nostrand, was born, and, after his mar- 
riage with Elizabeth Mead, located upon a 
farm, where he reared his si.x children — George, 
Phoebe A., Helen M., James, Sarah, and Cath- 
erine. The father of Joseph, Sr., was George 
\'an Nostrand, who came from Holland to the 
New World, and located in the town of East 
Fishkill, Dutchess county, at a very early peri- 
od in its history. His wife bore the maiden 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



779 



name of Hiltje Borland. On the maternal 
side, Mrs. Rogers is also of Holland origin. 
Her grandfather, P'rancis Berry, was a native 
of East Fishkill, where throughout his active 
life he followed farming, as did also his fa- 
ther, Nicholas Berry. The former wedded 
Marv Ketcham, of the same township. 

Mr. Rogers continued the operation of the 
old homestead farm up to the time of his 
death, which occurred March 24, 1880, and 
his widow has since had its management. It 
is an excellent place of 152 acres, which in- 
cludes the original tract of one hundred acres. 
Politically, Mr. Rogers was a Democrat, while 
religiously he belonged to the Reformed Dutch 
Church, of which his widow is also a consistent 
member. He contributed his full quota toward 
enterprises having for their object the general 
welfare of the community, and was one of its 
most highly respected citizens. His widow 
also has the love and confidence of those 
who know her. 



TTl^AVID B. WARD, M. D., a prominent 
J^ physician of Poughkeepsie, and one of 
the most able and progressive members of his 
profession, was born in Pleasant Valley, 
Dutchess county, March 13, 1853, the son of 
Alson Ward, now a resident at No. 254 Church 
street, Poughkeepsie. 

Dr. Ward possesses unusual natural quali- 
fications for his chosen calling, and his abilities 
were developed by thorough intellectual train- 
ing in youth. He prepared for college at 
Riverview Military Academy, and after three 
years at Dartmouth College, where he com- 
pleted the junior year, he entered Hamilton 
College, and was graduated from the classical 
course in 1873 with the degree of A. B. With 
Dr. Parker, of Poughkeepsie, as preceptor, he 
then began the study of medicine, and a year 
later became a student in the College of Phy- 
sicians and Surgeons in New York City, com- 
pleting his studies with the class of 1876. On 
graduating, in due course of time, he engaged 
in practice in Wheeling, W. Va. , and remained 
three years; but in 1879 he moved to Pough- 
keepsie, where he has built up an extensive 
general practice. He has the true scientific 
spirit, and keeps fully informed on every ad- 
vance in professional research, being himself 
an original investigator. His work in micros- 
copy is especially worthy of note; he holds a high 
rank in the profession not only with the pub- 



lic but among his medical brethren, and he is 
a leading member of the Dutchess County 
Medical Society, and of the city board of 
health. 

The Doctor is a believer in the principles 
of the Republican party, but has never taken 
an active interest in political affairs. He was 
City Physician from 1880 to 1888, and has 
given his influence at all times to measures for 
sanitary improvement. He belongs to the 
Amrita Club, and to the I. O. O. F., Fall- 
kill Lodge. He has never married. 



GHARLES C. MORE, a retired merchant 
and real-estate dealer, was born in the 
town of Blenheim, Schoharie Co., N. Y., Sep- 
tember 19, 1828. The name of More first 
appears about the third century in the north- 
ern part of Ireland, and has been variously 
spelled Moore, Moir, Moor and More, but the 
last is the proper spelling, Carber Riabha More 
being the Father of the first chieftains and 
Kings of Scotland. The Mores probably came 
first from Norway or Sweden, in Scandinavia. 
They were Presbyterians and, later. Re- 
formers. 

John More, the great-grandfather of our 
subject, came to this country and located in 
Delaware county, N. Y. , where he followed 
the occupation of farming until the breaking 
out of the Revolutionary war, in which he en- 
listed and served. After its close he returned 
to his farm. He was an educated man, taught 
school gratuitously, was justice of the peace, 
legal adviser, and drew up many legal docu- 
ments that are still in existence. He married 
Betty Taylor, daughter of Robert Taylor and 
Jean Innis. Robert More, the grandfather, 
was born at Rothiemurchus, Inverness-shire, 
Scotland, July 8, 1772, and followed agricult- 
ure exclusively. He married Susanna, a 
daughter of David Fellows, and they reared a 
family of nine children. Two of Robert's 
brothers, John T. and Jonas, were members 
of the New York State Legislature. 

Alexander More, father of our subject, was 
the fourth child, and was born at Roxbury, 
Delaware Co., N. Y. , September 14, 1799. 
He grew up on a farm, and was the first man 
to introduce the method of manufacturing but- 
ter in Delaware county. He dealt largely in 
that commodity, buying and selling it in New 
York City, retiring after several years of suc- 
cessful business. He married Miss Sarah 



780 



COMMEMORATIVM liTOORAPIIICAL RECORD. 



Church, who was born at Salem, Washington 
Co., N. Y. , January 8, 1802, and they moved 
to Rondout, where he died September 16, 
1872, and his wife on April 9, 1862. Alexander 
was a Democrat in politics, was elected super- 
visor of his town, and was ensign in the State 
militia. 

Charles C. More, our subject, lived in 
Schoharie county but a short time, being 
moved, at the age of three years, to Ro.xbury, 
where he grew up and attended the schools 
and academy. In 1850 he went to Rondout 
(now Kingston), where he engaged in general 
merchandising. After selling his interests there 
he went to Moline, 111., where he stayed for a 
few years, manufacturing lumber. In 1876 
Mr. More came to Poughkeepsie, where he has 
since resided. He is owner of many large 
farms, and, as he says, " runs them by proxy." 

On June 13, 1850, Mr. More married Miss 
Sarah C. LaFevre, who was born at Roxbury, 
Delaware county, March 4, 1828, and is a 
daughter of Daniel and Henrietta LaFevre, 
the former of whom was a tanner by occupa- 
tion, and descended from persecuted Hugue- 
nots, of France, who came to America and 
settled in Kingston, N. Y. Mr. More is a 
Republican, but has never held office. He is 
a member of the Masonic Fraternity, and with 
his wife belongs to the Reformed Church, to 
which he is a liberal contributor. He is a 
IMiblic-spirited man, and believes in the educa- 
tion of the masses. 

Ira C. Church, father of Mrs. Alexander 
More, was born in Massachusetts, and was a 
manufacturer of edge tools in Washington and 
Delaware counties. He married Miss Abigail 
Burnham, and reared a family of several chil- 
dren, Mrs. More being the only daughter. The 
Church family is of English extraction. 



WILLIAM ANTHONY WHITE, super- 
intendent of the Lee estate, in the 

town of Hyde Park, Dutchess county, was 
born at St. Heliers, in the island of Jersey 
( Channel Islands), May 29, 1840, and on the 
paternal side is of French descent, while the 
maternal ancestry were English. His grand- 
father, Charles Henry White, belonged to one 
of the old families of Jersey. He was a 
" warrant officer " in the English navy, and 
head sailmaker on a man-of-war. 

Henry Charles White, the father of our 
subject, was also born in Jersey, served as 



gardener for Lord Normandy over ten years; 
later served as gardener thirty years for Alfred 
George, Esq., Downside, near Bristol, Eng- 
land; he wedded Mary Barrett, daughter of 
Rev. Robert Barrett, a clergyman of the 
Church of England at Withycombe, a small 
hamlet in Dorsetshire, England. Four chil- 
dren came to bless this union: Aramanta, 
wife of Robert Smith, carpenter and builder, 
Westbury-on-Trym, England; Henry, who 
was a commissioned officer in the English 
navy, and was killed at the age of twenty- 
two years; William A. is the next in order of 
birth; and Charles Henry, who was born 
after his brother was killed, learned the trade 
of a marble mason in Bristol, England, but 
worked as a boss farmer in England and 
America, and died February 22, 1896. The 
father departed this life on February 13, 
1879; the mother, Mary ( Barrett ) White, de- 
parted this life December 30, 1883. 

William A. White learned the profession 
of gardener and florist in England, and be- 
came gardener for Walter Daubney, Esq. , 
Cote House, Durham Down, near Bristol, 
England, with whom he remained three years, 
and during the following two and one-half 
years he tilled the same position with Richard 
Bassett, Esq., of Bonveston, South Wales, 
who was commissioner of public works and 
railroads. Removing to Exeter, Devonshire, 
England, Mr. White was employed as head 
gardener by William Cuthbertson, J. P., 
over three years. 

In February, 1871, he arrived in America, 
and coming to Staatsburgh, Dutchess county, 
June 8, the same year, was appointed gardener 
and superintendent of the estate of the late 
Lawrence Lee, since which time he has filled 
that position to the satisfaction of all concerned. 
He is also present owner of the Staatsburgh 
Greenhouses, and with his son, Samuel Will- 
iam White, is engaged in the culture of the vio- 
lets, carnations, etc. The plant consists of 
four houses, 2o6x 20; one large connecting 
house 30x130; propagating house; and large 
boiler house fitted with two large cylinder boil- 
ers. The houses are fitted with hot-water 
heating, patented by William \. White, who 
is also invenior of and patentee of the Acme Hot 
Water Boilers used on the estates of Archibald 
Rogers andOgden Mills, Esquires, and a num- 
ber of other large estates. William A. White 
is also the inventor of White's Garden Trellis, 
and a number of other useful appliances; also 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



781 



inventor of an automatic hot-water car-heater, 
burglar-proof letter-box, etc. He has written 
many able articles for horticultural papers, 
and thoroughly understands his work in all de- 
partments. 

Mr. White was married in November, 1861, 
to Hester Millard, daughter of Samuel Millard, 
of Hutton, near Weston-super-Mare, Somerset- 
shire, England, and they have two children: 
Edith Annie, wife of Jacob Anderson, of Frank- 
lin, La., and Samuel William, who wedded 
Ada Johnson, granddaughter of the late John 
Bold, of Vineland, N. J., and is now superin- 
tending the Staatsburgh Greenhouses with his 
father. 

Politically, Mr. White is an ardent Demo- 
crat; socially, he is a member of Rhinebeck 
Lodge No. 432, F. & A. M. He is a man of 
great perseverance and industry, and has suc- 
ceeded in accumulating some property in Vine- 
land, N. J., and at Staatsburgh, N. Y. His 
family attend the Episcopal Church. 



7R DAM A. STREVEK, proprietor of one of 
^^^ the best fanhs of the town of Pine Plains, 
Dutchess county, comprising 235 acres of im- 
proved land, is numbered among the honored 
residents and most substantial agriculturists of 
Dutchess county. He has been particularly 
wise in his investments, and possesses excel- 
lent business capacity, making the most of his 
opportunities. He is one of the most public- 
spirited and progressive of men, giving his aid 
to all worthy enterprises for the benefit of his 
town and county. 

Sylvester Strever, the father of our subject, 
was born in 1822, in the town of Ancram, 
Columbia county, N. Y. , and was but a boy 
when brought to the town of Pine Plains, 
Dutchess county. He has always engaged in 
farming, operating his father's place until he 
had reached the age of twenty-eight; but for 
forty-three years he has made his home upon 
a farm of 175 acres at Mt. I'ioss. He has 
been more prosperous in his undertakings than 
the majority of his neighbors, and has ac- 
cumulated a handsome property, owning an- 
other farm in addition to the one on which he 
lives. He is a man of the strictest integrity, 
was a member of the Reformed Dutch Church 
at Gallatin, Columbia county, and has always 
been very active in Church matters. Politic- 
ally he affiliates with the Democratic party. 



Mr. Strever was united in marriage with 
Phcebe Sheldon, and after her death wedded 
Matilda Sheldon, who died in August, 1895. 
He became the father of eight children, name- 
ly: Clarissa, now the widow of the late Dr. 
C. E. Cole; Adam A.; Samuel J.; Monrpe, a 
merchant of New York City; Sheldon P., who 
is located in the southern part of the town of 
Pine Plains; Lewis, who conducts a store for 
John Rudd; and Grant and Frank at home. 

Our subject received a good education in 
the district schools at Mt. Ross, and for one 
year, after laying aside his text-books, aided 
his father in the labor on the home farm. For 
four years he then engaged in the cultivation 
of his grandmother's farm for his father, and 
for the following two years operated it on his 
own account. The next year was passed upon 
his father's farm, after which he went to Illi- 
nois, where he remained some six months. 
On his return he purchased the Nancy Smith 
farm, which he conducted four years, and at 
the end of that time bought the old Hiserodt 
homestead, where he has now lived for eleven 
years. On March 18, 1880, he married Miss 
Esther M. Hiserodt. They attend the Pres- 
byterian Church, and in politics Mr. Strever 
is identified vith the Democratic party. He 
has capably filled several local offices, includ- 
ing that of assessor, in which he served six 
years. 

The first of the Hiserodt family to locate 
in Dutchess county was John Hiserodt. His 
son, Hendrick Hiserodt, was the father of 
Henry I. Hiserodt, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Strever. Henry I. was one of the leading citi- 
zens and wealthy farmers of the county, own- 
ing at one time about 800 acres. He married 
Miss Esther Steckles, by whom he had four 
children — three sons and one daughter: Bry- 
ant H., father of Mrs. Strever; Harmon; 
Ward, a prominent citizen of New York City; 
and Esther. After the death of his first wife 
he wedded Rebecca Schultz, and to them were 
born the following children: Jane, Caroline, 
Francis, Christopher, Albert, Sanford and 
Backus. Bryant H. Hiserodt was born July 
13, I 8 14, in the house in which Mr. and Mrs. 
Strever now occupy, and with the exception 
of two years he made his home there during 
his entire life. He was joined in wedlock 
with Lavinia C. Hoffman, daughter of Henry 
Hoffman, and they became the parents of two 
children: Henry Hoffman, of Millerton, N. Y. ; 
and Esther M., wife of our subject. On June 



782 



COMMEMORATIVE lilOGIiAI'lUCAL RECOUD. 



I, 1856, the father was called to his final 
rest, and January 2, 1.S94, the mother followed 
him to the unknown land. 



WILLET J. MARSHALL is an enter- 
prising, wide-awake young business 

man of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, where, 
on Garden street, he is successfully conducting 
a meat market. His birthplace was Middle- 
town, Orange Co., N. Y. , where, on Decem- 
ber 16, 1 87 1, he first opened his eyes to the 
light. His father, David Marshall, was a na- 
tive of Dutchess county, his parents, Hiram 
and Hannah (Haight> Marshall, there living 
upon a farm, and was the youngest in their 
family of seven children, the others being 
Susan, who married William Finch, an under- 
taker of Hyde Park, N. Y. ; Mary C, wife of 
John Van Derwater, a farmer of East Park, 
Dutchess county; Jane, who wedded Jacob De- 
Groff, an agriculturist of Wappingers Falls, 
Dutchess county; Ederette, wife of Jerome 
Myers, a mason of Hyde Park; Wiiiet, a dealer 
in smoked meats at Newburgh, Orange county, 
and Henry, a butcher of that place, and the 
senior member of the firm of Henry Marshall 
& Sons. The Marshall family is of English 
ancestry, and Quakers in religious belief. The 
grandfather continued his farming operations 
until his death, and was one of the highly-es- 
teemed citizens of the county. His wife, who 
is still living, has now reached the age of 
eighty-six years. 

The early life of David Marshall was 
passed upon a farm in . Dutchess county, and 
on reaching man's estate he was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Mary V. Briggs, a native of 
the same county, and a daughter of William 
Briggs, also of English descent. To this 
worthy couple were born two children — Han- 
nah, deceased wife of J. M. Osborn, and Wii- 
iet J., of this sketch. The parents located at 
Middletown, N. Y. , where the father carried 
on the butcher's business for some time, and 
then went to Denver, Colo., where he was 
similarly employed. Returning to New York, 
he became owner of three markets in Yonkers, 
and on disposing of the same bought a farm in 
Hyde Park township, Dutchess county, to the 
cultivation of which he has devoted his time 
for three years. Finally he removed to 
Poughkeepsie, where he engaged in the butch- 
ering business until 1895, since which time he 
has lived retired, enjoying the fruits of his for- 



mer toil. He and his wife are members of 
the Episcopal Church, and their circle of friends 
is only limited by their circle of acquaintances. 
Willet J. Marshall was quite small when his 
parents removed to Denver, and most of his 
boyhood was passed at Poughkeepsie, where 
he attended the Warring Military School, and 
later served six years as bookkeeper and cashier 
in his father's market. Going to New York 
City, in 1892, he formed a partnership with 
W. H. Baker in the commission business at 
No. 337 Washington street; but at the end of 
a year he returned to Poughkeepsie, where he 
has since conducted his present market. An 
important event in his life was his marriage 
with Miss Julia A. Rooney, which was cele- 
brated in 1889. She is a native of England, 
and a daughter of John Rooney, a cabinet 
maker. Three children grace this union — 
David B., Mary C. and John R. Politically, 
Mr. Marshall affiliates with the Republican 
party, giving full adherence to the principles 
and doctrines of its platforms, and is a sup- 
porter of all interests intended to benefit the 
city in which he resides. 



JOHN SCHWARTZ. Among the prom- 
inent citizens of German birth in the city 

of Poughkeepsie, none holds a higher place 
in the estimation of the community than the 
gentleman whose name introduces this sketch. 
He is extensively engaged in the tobacco bus- 
iness, and has an enviable reputation for integ- 
rity and fair dealing, as well as for thrift and 
enterprise. 

Mr. Schwartz was born in Bavaria, Ger- 
many, September 9, 1839. His father, John 
Schwartz, died when our subject was a small 
child, and when he was ten years of age he 
came with his mother to America, landing at 
New York City, where the mother had a mar- 
ried sister living, and here they lived for one 
year. In January, 1850, the entire family 
came to Poughkeepsie. and he entered school 
for a short time. He soon became an appren- 
tice to learn the cigar business with George 
M. Welker, with whom he remained six or 
seven years, and on May i, 1864, went into 
the tobacco business for himself at No. 315 
Main street. He made a success of this enter- 
prise, and in 1879 he purchased the store at 
No. 313 Main street, where he has carried on 
his business ever since. Although having 
some retail trade, he is principally engaged in 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPffWAL RECORD. 



783 



wholesaling, and ships his ^^oods lo all points 
in New York as well as to many other States. 
His business is the largest of its kind in the 
county. 

On May 6, iS6o, Mr. Schwartz was mar- 
ried to Miss Matilda W. Bayer, a native of 
Troy, N. Y. , whose father, Joseph Bayer, was 
born in Germany, but subsequently came to 
America. Of this union four sons have been 
born: Frank J., Charles G., Edward T. and 
Albert E. Frank is a druggist in Poughkeep- 
sie, and the other sons are in business with 
their father, having been admitted to partner- 
ship in February, 1889. All are intelligent, en- 
terprising young men. 

Mr. Schwartz is a Republican, but has 
never taken an active interest in political 
affairs, and in local elections supports the 
best men irrespective of party. He has been 
very successful financially, the result of his 
own exertions, as he began life a poor boy and 
has steadily worked his way up to his present 
position as one of the leading business men of 
Poughkeepsie. 



CHARLES HOAG SMITH, who was called 
from this earth in the midst of his useful- 
ness, was a native of Dutchess county, born in 
the town of Stanford, April i, 181C, and is re- 
membered by the people of this section as one 
of its most worthy and influential citizens. 
His grandfather, Stephen Smith, was an early 
settler of the town of Clinton, Dutchess coun- 
ty, and by occupation he was a farmer. In his 
family were six children, namely: Rufus; 
David; Daniel; Harris; Martin; and Abbie, 
who became the wife of Solomon Frost. 

Harris Smith, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Clinton, but 
spent the greater portion of his life in the 
town of Stanford. In 1855 he removed to 
Washington town, and the following year pur- 
chased the farm on which his son Henry and 
daughter Julia A. now reside. As a farmer 
he was quite successful, and was a prominent 
and representative citizen. He married Anna 
Hoag, by whom he had five children: Charles 
H. and Stephen (twinsi, Henry Hoag, Jacob 
and Julia. 

Mrs. Smith was the daughter of Charles 
Hoag. Her paternal grandparents were John 
and Mercy Hoag, the former born October 5, 
1734, and the latter March 16, 1735. They 
were married February 22, 1759, and became 



the parents of nine children, whose names and 
dates of birth are as follows: James H., Jan- 
uary 10, 1760; Abel H., December 12, 1761; 
Philip H., December 6, 1764; Lucy, March 
17, 1767; Amy H., July 2, 1769; Charles H., 
December 25, i77i;RuthH., April 22, 1775; 
Tripp H., March 26, 1778; and Mary H., May 
23, 1782. The mother of this family died in 
1807, at the age of sixty- nine years, and the 
father October 4, 181 i . 

On November 21, 1793, Charles Hoag was 
married to Betsey Denton, who was born April 
5, 1772, and to them were born eight children, 
whose names and dates of birth are as follows: 
Anna Hoag, October 2, 1794; John H., Sep- 
tember 27, 1797; James, February 14, 1799; 
Henry, May 3, 1801; Phcebe, August 13, 1805; 
Ezra, December 11, 1807; Benjamin, Novem- 
ber 23, 1810; Deborah H., October 18. 1812; 
and Mary, February 25, 1815. The father of 
this family was a highly educated man, and 
for many years was principal of the Nine 
Partners Boarding School, in the town of 
Washington, later moving to the town of Pine 
Plains, and conducted a private school at 
Bethel. 

Mr. Smith, whose name introduces this 
sketch, was an agriculturist, and spent most of 
his life upon a farm in about the center of the 
town of Stanford. He was a good, substan- 
tial citizen, who took a warm interest in enter- 
prises calculated to build up his town, was a 
man of sound judgment, and his untimely 
death, at the age of thirty-eight years, was 
deeply mourned throughout the community. 
In 1840 he was married to Miss Jane A. Peck, 
who was born November 6, 1819, and they 
became the parents of two children: Albert, 
born in 1841, was a patriotic young man, and 
was one of the first in the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, to enlist in the Union army 
during the Rebellion, becoming a member of 
the 44th N. Y. V. I. He died December 6, 
1862, of typhoid pneumonia, while in the 
service; Frances, born in 1843, is at home. 

Henry Peck, the father of Mrs. Smith, was 
born April 2, 1791, and the early part of his 
life was passed in the town of Milan, but he 
later became a resident of the town of Stan- 
ford. By occupation he was both a farmer 
and merchant. He was the son of Loring 
Peck, who was born January 19, 1744, and 
made his home at Bristol, R. I. He was a 
zealous patriot and became a colonel in the 
Continental army in the war of the Revolution. 



784 



COMMEMORAriVE BIOURAPIIIVAL RECORD. 



For many years he later served as a member 
of the State Legislature. He was a son of 
Jonathan Peck, who was born at Bristol, R. I., 
September I2, 1698, and his father, who also 
bore the name of Jonathan, was born Novem- 
ber 5, 1666. The latter was a son of Nicholas 
Peck, who was born April 9, 1630. 

The family of which Mrs. Smith is a mem- 
ber numbered five children, four of whom 
grew to adult age, namely; George, born 
April 8, 1813, was one of the leading and suc- 
cessful medical practitioners of the town of 
Stanford; Richard, born May 5, 1815, was a 
prominent attorney at law of Pine Plains for 
forty years; Jane A., born November G, 18 19, 
is the widow of our subject; and Alfred, born 
January i, 1822, died in the West. 



OKVILI^l-2 L. DAVIS, one of the most suc- 
cessful agriculturists of the town of Clin- 
ton, Dutchess county, is also among the best 
known, his pleasant home near Clinton Hol- 
low being a favorite resort for summer tourists 
who wish to enjoy the charms of a genuine 
coimtry life. He is a native of the town of 
Washington, where he attended the district 
school at Shady Dell, and early became familiar 
with the details of farm work from the thor- 
ough, but not always pleasant, teachings of 
experience. 

Seth I^awton, our subject's grandfather, 
was born in Rhode Island, in 1782, and when 
a lad of ten summers was brought to Dutchess 
county, where he passed the rest of his life, 
dying at an advanced age, in 1869. Henry D. 
Davis, father of Orviile L., was born in Kinder- 
hook, Columbia county, December 25, 1798, 
and was married, November 27, 1826, to [ane 
Ann Lawton, daughter of Seth Lawton, of the 
town of Washington. After engaging in shoe- 
making and farming in Columbia county he 
came to Washington town for a time; but, in 
1836, he moved to F"ort Madison, Iowa, where 
he died, September 22, 1838, when our sub- 
ject was eight years old. The widowed mother 
then returned to her old home in the town of 
Washington, with her family, whose names 
with dates of birth are as follows: Esther, 
August 25, 1828; Orviile L., November 5, 
1830; Betsey, February 25, 1833, died August 
5, 183S; William, February 10, 1835, died 
March 6, 1868; and Seth, April 21, 1837, died 
September 21, 1838. The mother, who was 



born May i, 1809, survived her husband many 
years, dying May 11, 1886. 

Our subject, who has always been a farmer, 
worked upon his grandfather's estate until after 
he was of age, and later cultivated his inherit- 
ance of 116 acres. He served in the army 
some eighteen months during the Civil war, in 
Company B, 128th N. Y. \. I. On March 24, 
1 87 5, he was married, in the town of Wash- 
ington, to Maria Eighmey, daughter of James 
Eighmey, a lifelong resident of the town of 
Unionvale. He and his wife, Mary Ann Jus- 
tus, had three daughters: Jane ("now Mrs. 
Jacob Cainbrani, of Stanford; Maria (Mrs. 
Davis); and Anna Eliza (Mrs. James Cambran), 
of Milan. After his marriage Mr. Davis moved 
into a house which he had built upon his es- 
tate, where he lived until the spring of 1887, 
when he sold the property and purchased his 
present fine farm in the town of Clinton. Here 
a limited number of sumn>er visitors — about 
twenty in nun)ber — are entertained each year, 
the attractions of the place always bringing all 
that can be accommodated. 

Mr. Davis is a Democrat in political faith; 
in religion he and his wife are prominent mem- 
bers of the Christian Chtnch at Schultzville, 
and are interested in all movements tending to 
the welfare of the community. They have one 
son, Henry Thorne Davis. 



OlSERT LIVINGSTON MASSONNEAU, 
president of the First National Bank of 
Red Hook, Dutchess county, is a worthy rep- 
resentative of an ancestry which has long been 
prominent in the history of this region. His 
grandfather, Claudius Germain Massonneau, a 
native of Angouleme, France, left that country 
at the outbreak of the Revolution, with his 
twin brother Pierre, both being then in early 
manhood. They went to San Domingo, but 
upon the insurrection of the negroes of that 
island, abandoned their plantation and lied to 
the United States. After a short stay in New 
York City they settled, in 1790, in Red Hook, 
engaging in mercajitile enterprise. He mar- 
ried Catherine Gertrude Livingston de Rrissac, 
daughter of Robert Gilbert Livingston, and 
widow of M. de Brissac. They had three 
children: Robert Claudius, Edward and 
Catherine. 

Robert C. Massonneau, the father of our 
subject, was born May 3, 1797, in Red Hook, 
and after enjoying such educational advan- 




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0^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHICAL RECORD 



785 



tages as the schools of Red Hook then afforded, 
was sent to the Claverack Academy. At the 
age of sixteen he began to assist his father in 
the village store, and soon after had control of 
the whole business, his father retiring to his 
farm, where he spent the remainder of his life, 
dying in 1846, in the seventy-seventh year of 
his age. Robert C. added to his mercantile 
work the manufacture of cigars and tobacco, 
which venture proved highly successful from 
its inception. He married, in 1824, Miss 
Elizabeth Waldorf, daughter of John Waldorf, 
a leading citizen of Red Hook, and reared a 
family of children whose names are as follows: 
Robert Livingston (our subject), born October 
3, 1825; Catherine Elizabeth (now widow of 
David Sparks) ; Peter Neilson ; Charles Waldorf ; 
Edward Francis; and Mary Alice (now Mrs. 
LeGrand B. Curtis). 

Robert L. Massonneau attended the schools 
of his native place, entering while young his 
father's store as clerk, serving in that capacity 
a number of years. On October 27, 1859, he 
married Emma Clark Strobel, who was born 
December 19, 1859, in New York City. She 
was a daughter of Rev. William D. Strobel, 
D. D., at that time paster of St. Paul's 
Lutheran Church of Red Hook. Five chil- 
dren were born of this union: Robert Living- 
ston, Jr.; William Strobel; Edward Philip; 
Eliza Franklin and Emma Engs. In 1852 
our subject engaged in the tobacco business, 
established by his father, continuing therein 
until 1S67, when he sold out his interest. His 
trained business talent and sound judgment 
have made him a recognized force in business 
circles. On the organization of the First 
National Bank of Red Hook, in 1865, he was 
chosen director and afterward vice-president. 
On the death of the president, William Cham- 
berlain, he was elected to that position, which 
he has since tilled with distinguished ability. 
In his political preferences he was originally a 
Democrat, but since the formation of the 
party has been a Republican. 

Mrs. Massonneau, wife of our subject, was 
born in New York City, where her father at 
the time was pastor of St. James Lutheran 
Church. He was born May 17, 1808, at 
Charleston, S. C. , and married Abby Anna 
Engs, who was born in New York City Sep- 
tember 17, 1 81 5. They had seven children, 
four of whom are yet living, Mrs. Massoneau 
being the third in order of birth. Her father 
died December 6, 18S4, in Rhinebeck, N. Y. , 

51 



and, with his wife and three children, is buried 
in the cemetery at Red Hook. John Strobel, 
great-grandfather of Mrs. Massonneau, owned 
a large tannery in Charleston, S. C, about 
the middle of the eighteenth century, serving 
in the war of the Revolution as a captain in 
the " German Fusileers, " the famed regiment 
of South Carolina. Her great-grandfather, 
Col. Jonas Beard, served also in the Revolution. 



ffERITT HUMESTON, a prominent busi- 

ness man of Dover Plains, Dutchess 

county, the senior member of the firm of 
Humeston & Barrett, belongs to a family 
which has been engaged in the manufacture of 
wagons in Dutchess county for three genera- 
tions. His grandfather, Eli Humeston, was 
born in Waterbury, Conn., in 1795, and after 
securing an education in the local schools, be- 
came a wagonmaker and millwright, and fol- 
lowed those trades throughout his active life. 
After his removal to Dover he constructed the 
first milling plant ever built there. He mar- 
ried, and had the following children: George 
E., our subject's father; James, who married 
(first) Miss Perry, and (second) Miss Lydia 
Underbill; Joseph, who married Miss Vandu- 
sen; Hannah, the wife of Jacob Palmer; 
Harriet, who married George Basset; and Ed- 
ward, who is mentioned below. 

George E. Humeston was born in Dutch- 
ess county in 1806, and learned the trade of 
his father during his early years. Later he 
engaged in it on his own account, and a few 
years before his death he established a shop at 
Dover Plains. His wife was Elizabeth Wel- 
ler, daughter of Jonathan Weller, a prominent 
citizen of the town of Dover, and they had ten 
children: Catherine, Mrs. Thomas F. Wat- 
son; George, who died at the age of twenty- 
two; John, who married Ann Eliza Stage; 
William, who married ( first 1 Elizabeth Vincent, 
and (second) Harriet Vincent; David L., who 
married Lavina Howard; Meritt, our subject; 
Charles, who married Abbie Dennis; Harriet 
and Sarah, who died in infancy, and one 
whose stay upon earth was so brief that no 
name was bestowed. 

Meritt Humeston was born in 1842 in the 
town of Unionvale, Dutchess county, and was 
educated in Dover Plains. At the age of fif- 
teen he began to work at the blacksmith's 
trade, and continued until 1862, when he en- 
listed at Hudson, in Company B, 128th N. Y. 



786 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



\. I. His first battle was at Port Hudson, on 
the Mississippi, Maj- 27, 1S63, and among 
other important engagements in which he took 
part were those of Winchester, Va., Fisher's 
Hill, Va. , Cedar Creek and Cane River Bluff. 
His regiment was mustered out of the United 
States service at Savannah, July 15, 1865, 
and ten days later was discharged from the 
State service at Albany. On returning home 
Mr. Humeston established himself in business 
in the town of Beekman, Dutchess county, 
and later spent four years at his trade in 
Breenhaven, four in Stormville, and two in 
Hopewell, and in 1887 he opened the black- 
smith and wagon shop at Dover Plains, which 
he has ever since conducted in partnership 
with John R. Barrett, under the firm name of 
Humeston & Barrett. With his war record it 
■will readily be inferred that Mr. Humeston is 
interested in the G. A. R. ; he formerly be- 
longed to Ketcham Post No. 661, and is now 
a member of C. S. Cowles Post No. 540, of 
Dover Plains. He has taken an active part in 
local politics, serving as constable in the town 
of Beekman, and as overseer of the poor in 
the town of Dover. On September 16, 1865, 
he was married to Miss Sarah Lee, a native of 
Fishkill, born in 1841, and they have had four 
children: Annie, Mrs. Ellsworth Shultis; Har- 
riet, who died in infancy; and Charles and 
George, who are at home. Mr. and Mrs. 
Shultis have three children: George, born in 
1 888; I'rederick, in 1889, and Maude, in 1892. 
Mrs. Humeston's ancestors were early 
settlers in the town of Fishkill, Dutchess 
county. Her grandfather, Jonathan Lee, was 
born there, and, after profiting by the ad- 
vantages afforded by the district schools, he 
engaged in wagon making. He married Miss 
Mary Ann Slocum, and had twelve chil- 
dren, all of whom lived to adult age. Their 
names, with those of their respective partners 
in marriage, are as follows: Harry, married 
Amelia Griffin; Harriet, James Smith; Abra- 
ham, Maria Layne; Martin, Sallie Briggs; 
George, Mary A. Howe; Alonzo, Zillie Brewer; 
Eliza, James Howe; Harvey, Marie Van- 
Haultz; Lucretia, John Brewer; William, 
Phctbe J. Ferris; Charles, Jane Traverse, and 
Ashel, Nancy Brown. Ashel Lee, Mrs. Hume- 
ston's father, was born at Harpersfield, in 
1806, and attended the common schools there. 
He learned the shoemaker's trade but followed 
farming as an occupation. His wife was a 
daughter of Samuel Brown. They had four 



children: James, who married Catherine 
Dingee; Mary Ann, who died in infancy; Sarah 
J., Mrs. Humeston; and Montraville, who was 
born in 1844, and died in Texas during the war 
while in the service of the government. 

Edward Humeston, son of Eli, was born in 
1767, in the town of Washington, Dutchess 
county, and was educated there. He learned 
the trade of wagon making, and worked at that 
during his active life. fn local affairs he was 
quite prominent, holding some minor town of- 
fices. He married Miss Elizabeth Weller, 
daughter of Jonathan Weller, a farmer of 
Amenia, and had eleven children: Catherine, 
Mrs. Thomas F. Watts; George, who is not 
married; John, who married Miss Stage; Will- 
iam, who married Elizabeth Austin; David L., 
who married Levina Howard; Sarah A., who 
died young; Merritt, who married Sarah Lee; 
Charles, mentioned below; Harriet, who died in 
childhood; Henry, who was twice married, first 
to a Miss Rodgers, and, second, to a Miss Stev- 
ens; and one child died in infancy unnamed. 

Charles Humeston was born in the town 
of Unionvale, Dutchess county, in 1844, and 
was educated in Dover Plains. He learned 
the shoemaker's trade in 1S58, and worked at 
that a short time; then, in 1859, began work- 
ing at the carriage-making trade, continuing 
until 1862. In the latter year he enlisted in 
Company B, 128th N. Y. V. I. as a private, 
but was mustered in as a sergeant, and held 
that commission throughout the war. He was 
under the command of Col. David S. Cowles, 
and was with him in many engagements, among 
which were the following: Port Hudson, La., 
May 27, 1S63, and June 14, 1863; .\lexandria. 
Cane River, Monett Bluff, and Marksville, La.; 
Berry ville, Va. , September 3, 1864; Winches- 
ter, September 19, 1864; Fisher's Hill, Sep- 
tember 21, 1864; Mount Jackson, September 
23, 1864, and Cedar Creek, October 19, 1S64. 
His command participated in two other minor 
skirmishes, under Gen. N. P. Banks. At one 
time it served with Gen. Phil Sheridan. This 
regiment was mustered out of the United 
States service at Savannah, Ga., July 12, 1865, 
and from the State service at Albany July 26, 
1865. In 1870 Mr. Humeston married Miss 
Abbie Dennis, and had seven children: Mary 
E. , Mrs. Frank Talladay; Emma, Mrs. Pat- 
rick Kelley; and Joseph, George, Frederick, 
Bessie and John, who are not married. Mrs. 
Humeston is a descendant of an old family of 
the town of Dover, and her grandfather. Solo- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



7S7 



mon Dennis, was born there and passed his 
life in that locality, following agricultural pur- 
suits. He married, and had five children : 
Thomas, Joseph, Henry, one sister (name not 
known), and Reuben, Mrs. Humeston's father, 
who was born in the town of Dover and edu- 
cated in the common schools of that vicinity. 
He was engaged as a farmer throughout his 
active years. His wife, Miss Mary Ann Lane, 
was a daughter of Daniel Lane, of Balls- 
bridge, Conn. The}' had the following chil- 
dren: Almira, Mrs. Oliver Potter; Solomon, 
who married Abbie Cooper; Sarah, Mrs. David 
Squires; Pollie, Mrs. Albert Flagler; Mary, 
Mrs. Henry White; Daniel, who is not mar- 
ried; Amy, Mrs. Charles Millard; Reuben, 
who has not married; Abbie, Mrs. Humeston; 
Joseph, who married Rebecca Mullen; George, 
who married Lena Bauer, and one who died in 
infancv. 



BENJAMIN H. RUSSELL has for more 
than half a century resided in the town of 
Pleasant Valley, and to-day is living retired, 
enjoying the fruits of a well-spent life. He 
was born in the town of Fishkill, December 
24, 1 8 16, and is a son of William Russell, a 
native of Putnam county, N. Y. The grand- 
father, John Russell, was also a native of that 
county, and was descended from English an- 
cestr}'. Upon his marriage he located upon a 
farm in Putnam county and reared a family of 
five children, namely: Abijah, Lee, Robert 
and David, all of whom became farmers of that 
locality, and William, father of our subject. 
The agricultural pursuits of the grandfather 
were interrupted by his service in the Revolu- 
tionary war, for when the Colonies attempted 
to obtain release from the yoke of British op- 
pression, he joined the Colonial troops and 
valiantly aided in that struggle for independ- 
ence. The religious views of the family have 
generally been in accordance with the doctrine 
of the Baptist Church. 

Willi?\m Russell was reared on the old fam- 
ily homestead, and as a companion and help- 
meet on life's journey chose Theodosia Town- 
send, also a native of Putnam county, and a 
daughter of Elijah Townsend, who in that lo- 
cality followed farming. He was descended 
from English ancestry, but when the war of 
the Revolution broke out he manifested his 
loyalty to the Colonies by his opposition to the 



mother country, and in the service rose to the 
rank of general. 

Shortly after their marriage, William Rus- 
sell and his wife located on a farm in the town 
of Fishkill, where they spent their remaining 
days. They were Baptists in religious belief, 
and in his political proclivities Mr. Russell was 
a Republican. They had eight children: 
James, who was a farmer of the town of Fish- 
kill; Anna, deceased; Austin and John, who 
were also farmers of Fishkill; Elijah, who car- 
ried on that pursuit in Dutchess county for 
some years, and is now living at Matteawan; 
William, deceased, who was a farmer of the 
town of Fishkill; and Elizabeth, who was mar- 
ried, and lived in the town of Dover, and both 
she and her husband are now dead. 

Our subject was si.xth in order of birth, and 
he spent his boyhood days on the parental 
farmstead, aiding in the labors of the field 
through the summer months, while his winters 
were mostly spent in attendance in the district 
schools of the neighborhood. On attaining his 
majority he began working as a farm hand for 
others, and later he became owner of a farm of 
his own, which he cultivated for many years. 
He still owns 1 50 acres of rich and arable land, 
and also had ninety acres which he gave to his 
son. He placed upon his farm many excellent 
improvements in the shape of buildings and 
machinery, and transformed his land into pro- 
ductive fields. 

When twenty-eight years of age, Mr. Rus- 
sell was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth, 
a daughter of Everett De Groff. She was born 
on the farm Mr. Russell now occupies, and here 
died about 1836. Our subject afterward mar- 
ried Hester J. De Groff, a relative of his first 
wife, and by this union were born four children: 
Everett, a farmer of Pleasant Valley town; 
John J. and James, both deceased; and Ben- 
jamin, who is also a farmer of that locality. 
The mother having passed away, Mr. Russell 
was again married, Miss Helen Stoutenburg 
becoming his wife. She is a native of Hyde 
Park, Dutchess county, and a daughter of 
William Stoutenburg, a farmer of H3'de Park. 
They have one son, Harry A., who is still at 
home. 

Mr. Russell formerly gave his political sup- 
port to the Democracy, but now votes with 
the Republican party. He has served as 
trustee of the schools, and is deeply interested 
in the cause of education, and in all matters 
pertaining to the general welfare. He is a 



788 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



member of the Presbyterian Church, in which 
he is serving as elder, and is a most venerable 
and highly-respected old man, having the re- 
gard of all who know him. 



GEORGE H. BRIGGS, the genial and en- 
terprising partner of CharlesA. Shurter, 
is a member of the firm of Shurter & Briggs, 
hardware dealers of Poughkeepsie. IJutchess 
county, where our subject was born May 23, 
1842. His father, George G. Briggs, was a 
native of England, and was one of the three 
children of Isaac Briggs, a tailor of that coun- 
try, his two sisters being Mar}', who married 
Benjamin Briggs, a hardware merchant of 
Poughkeepsie, and Sarah. The grandfather 
came from England to America when his son 
was about thirteen years of age, and located 
in Poughkeepsie, where he carried on the 
tailoring business until his death. He was a 
straightforward, upright man, and a faithful 
member of the Baptist Church. 

George G. Briggs, the father of our sub- 
ject, also learned the tailor's trade, which he 
has made his lifework, and is one of the most 
highly respected citizens of Poughkeepsie, 
where he has made his home since crossing the 
Atlantic. He was married to Miss Mary Kipp, 
a native of Poughkeepsie, and to them were 
born nine children, but three died in infancy. 
The others are George H., of this review; 
John, who is working in the store of our sub- 
ject; Albert, also a resident of Poughkeepsie; 
William, who is employed in the rolling mills; 
Mary, wife of George Marshall, a carriage 
maker of Danbury, Conn. ; and Kate, wife of 
Charles Wilson, of Poughkeepsie. The father 
gives his political support to the Republican 
party, whose principles he earnestly advocates. 

On completing his education in the city 
schools of Poughkeepsie, George H. Briggs 
entered the hardware store of his uncle, at the 
age of si.xteen. to learn the tinner's trade, and 
served an apprenticeship of about hve years. 
He then worked in the store until, in connec- 
tion with Mr. Shurter, he purchased the busi- 
ness. They are conducting a very large and 
prosperous business, and the credit of the hrm 
stands high in financial circles. 

In 1S64 Mr. Briggs married Miss Georgia 
Macall, who was born in Ireland, but came 
with her parents to this country when quite 
young. She was the daughter of Edward 
Macall, a gardener by occupation, and by her 



marriage she became the mother of one son, 
Edward T. ,who wedded MissDeavens, and now 
clerks for his father. Mrs. Briggs was called 
to her final rest in 1893. In September, 1894, 
our subject was again married, his second 
union being with Hattie Williams, a native of 
Newburgh, New York. 

In politics, Mr. Briggs favors the Demo- 
cratic party with his cordial support, was 
elected alderman of the Fourth ward, of 
Poughkeepsie, in November, 1892, and is now 
satisfactorily serving his secondterm. Socially, 
he is a member of the Odd Fellows Society, 
and the Order of American Firemen. He is a 
public-spirited, enterprising man, taking an 
active part in everything that tends toward the 
promotion of the welfare of the city or county, 
and is held in the highest regard by all who 
know him. 



CHARLES N. STOWE, who was called 
' from this life February 4, 1893, when in 
the prime of life, was one of the leading and 
representative farmers of the town of Beek- 
man. His grandfather, Eliachim Stowe, was 
a native of Ohio, whence in early life he came 
to Dutchess county, his last days being passed 
in retirement in the town of Dover. There he 
married Deborah Ma.xim, and they had a family 
of three children: Vivant, Levi and James. 

The last named was the father of our sub- 
ject. He was born in the town of Dover, De- 
cember 16, 1817, and was a first cousin to the 
husband of Harriet Beecher Stowe. There 
his boyhood was passed, and his education was 
received in the district schools of the locality. 
He continued to engage in agricultural pur- 
suits in the town of Dover until the last year 
of his life, which was passed in the towns of 
Beekman and Unionvale. In religious belief 
he was a Methodist. In the town of Dover, he 
married Susan Schemerhorn, and they became 
the parents of four children: Lois, who mar- 
ried Nelson Cook, of the town of Unionvale; 
Lodema, wife of Charles Whitney, of Scars- 
dale, N. Y. ; Charles N., of this sketch; and 
Mary, widow of Lewis Burton. 

Charles N. Stowe was born in the town of 
Dover, February 14, 1846, and spent his 
school days in that township, in Kent, Conn., 
and in the town of Unionvale, Dutchess 
county. Until attaining his majority he re- 
mained with his father, and was married in 
Unionvale to Miss Phebe Emigh, an adopted 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHWAL RECORD. 



789 



daughter of Henry Emigh. Four children 
graced their union: Susan R., who married 
Andrew G. Pray, of the town of Beekman, by 
by whom she has two daughters — Mary and 
Margaret; James H. ; \'incent E. and Will- 
iam C. 

After his marriage, Mr. Stowe removed to 
the town of Beekman, where he engaged in 
farming up to the time of his death; he served 
as assessor there for four years. His political 
support was ever given the Republican party, 
and socially, he affiliated with Shekomeko 
Lodge, F. & A. M. His influence was great 
and always for the good; while his sympathy, 
his benevolence, his kindly greetings, will long 
be remembered. His duties were performed 
with the greatest care, and throughout life his 
personal honor and integrity were without 
blemish. 



GILBERT TABOR, one of the most prom- 
_ inent agriculturists of the town of Dover, 
Dutchess county, is connected by descent or 
marriage with some of the leading families of 
that locality. He is a native of the town, and has 
passed his life there, acquiring his education 
in the public schools, and, later, engaging in 
agriculture. His present farm, near Dover 
Furnace, contains about two hundred acres of 
fine land, and was purchased in 1881 from H. 
W. Preston. Mr. Tabor's able management 
has made it one of the best farms of the 
neighborhood. He is a leading worker in the 
local Republican organization, and has held 
several official positions of the town. 

In 1863, he married Miss Nora Hoag, 
daughter of Philip Hoag, a well-known farmer 
of South Dover, and his wife, Mary Hoag. 
Four children were born of this union: George, 
July 2, 1865, was married in 1894 to Miss 
Mary Stevens, daughter of Hiram Stevens, of 
South Dover; William F., December 26, 1867, 
Wright P., July 2, 1871, and Mary H., June 
I, 1876, are at home. 

The Tabor family has been prominently 
identified with the town of Dover for several 
generations and our subject's great-grandfa- 
ther. Job Tabor, came from Rhode Island to 
that locality at an early period to engage in 
farming. He married, and had the following 
children: Noah, who married Miss Carpenter; 
Thomas, who married Fallie Belding; John, 
our subject's grandfather; and the wife of 
Joseph Belding. |ohn Tabor was born at 



Chestnut Ridge in 1778, was educated at 
Dover Plains, and became a farmer by occu- 
pation. His wife, Jane Belding, was a daugh- 
ter of Silas and Dorcas Belding, her father 
being a well-to-do farmer of Dover. John 
and Jane Tabor had six children: Oscar, 
Charles, William, Emeline, Maria and Ann. 

Oscar Tabor, our subject's father, was born 
in the town of Amenia, Dutchess county, Au- 
gust 4, 1809, and completed his education in 
Poughkeepsie. After his graduation he taught 
school in Dutchess county for a short time, and 
then engaged in farming and stock dealing, in 
which he was rewarded with success. He was 
an influential Republican, and held a number 
of township offices, including that of assessor. 
In religious faith he was a devout Baptist, and 
he was an active worker in the Dover Plains 
Church. On March 3, 1836, he married 
his first wife. Miss Hannah Preston, daughter 
of John and Amy Preston. Her father was a 
well-known farmer and hotelkeeper at Dover 
Plains. She died June 18, 1862, aged forty- 
four years, and in 1863 Mr. Tabor married a 
second wife, Mrs. Martha Giddings, lu'c Mer- 
win, who had one son by a former marriage. 
By Mr. Tabor's first marriage there were four 
children: Mary E., Gilbert, Myron and Amy 
J., all of whom lived to adult age, and of the 
second, one child was born who died in in- 
fancy. Mary E. was born in the town of 
Dover, December 30, 1836, and married Or- 
ville Sheldon, a merchant in Dover, and a son 
of Egbert Sheldon, a cattle dealer. She died 
October 19, 1861, leaving no children. Myron, 
who was born in October 9, 1850, is a well- 
known farmer in the town of Dover; Amy J. 
was born March 27, 1852, and married Gerry 
Dennis, a conductor on the Harlem R. R.,who 
has since moved to the West. She died Au- 
gust 12, 1889, and left one son, Fred Dennis. 
Oscar Tabor had one child by his second mar- 
riage, but it died in infancy. 

William Tabor, second son of John Tabor, 
was born in Dover, Dutchess county, in 1820, 
and was educated in the common schools. He 
engaged in farming, and was also a great trav- 
eler. He married Miss Ann Eliza Chapman, 
and had eleven children: John and Louisa 
never married; Jennie died young; Florence 
married Frank Van Auken; Frank and Harriet 
did not marry; Mary is the wife of Everet 
Travers; William died at an early age; Harry 
and Haddie (twins) died in infancy; and Jennie 
(2'i married Mr. Sepring. 



790 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Charles Tabor, third child of John Tabor, 
was born in Dover, 1817, and after attending 
the common schools of the town during boy- 
hood he engaged in farming. He married Miss 
Caroline Vincent, daughter of Absolom and 
Abigail (Duncan) Vincent, farmers of Dover. 
Charles Tabor and wife had ten children: Mary 
married Josiah Elting, a merchant, formerly of 
Poughkeepsie, now of Mt. Kisco, and they have 
one son, Charles, unmarried, who is in the feed 
business in Colorado; Helen married Charles 
Brower, an electrician of Boston, but has no 
children; Jennie died at the age of seventeen 
years; Emma, at the age of thirty-two; Maria, 
at thirty; Ida, who married Rev. Edwin Rusk, 
died at twenty-eight; Carrie, Charles and A. 
Vincent are not married; and Harry died in 
infancy. 

Ann Tabor, fourth child of John Tabor, 
never married; Emeline, fifth child of John 
Tabor, married Harvey Preston, a farmer 
of Dover; they had two children — Charles 
Preston, who married Annett Sherman, and 
John, who married Augusta Marcy, and had one 
child — Fannie, now Mrs. Lines. Maria, sixth 
child of John Tabor, did not marry. 



MYRON P. TABOR, an enterprising and 
successful agriculturist residing near 
Dover Plains, Dutchess county, is a member 
of one of our old and highly-esteemed families. 
His grandfather, John Tabor, and father, Os- 
car Tabor, were both well-known residents of 
Dutchess county, the latter being especially 
active and influential in public affairs. The 
accompanying biographj' of Gilbert Tabor, our 
subject's brother, gives an interesting history 
of the family. 

Myron Tabor was born October 9, 1S50, 
and has always made his home in the town of 
Dover. He married Miss Sarah Elizabeth 
White, a lady of unusual mental endowments, 
by whom he has had two children: Cora E., 
born in US78, and Harry M., born in 1885. 
Mrs. Tabor, who is a descendant of old pioneer 
stock, was born in the town of Lagrange in 
1856 and was educated in that locality. Her 
grandfather, Henry White, was a native of 
Unionvale, where he became a prominent 
farmer. He married Miss Sarah Doolittle and 
had six children: (i) Egbert married Irene 
Losee, and had four children: Emeline, Mrs. 
Walter Smith; Sarah, who never married; 
Harrison, who married Addie Lee, and Mary, 



Mrs. Richmond Fort. (2) Henry married 
Catherine McCord, and had three children: 
William, Leander and Mary. (3) Charles, 
Mrs. Tabor's father, is mentioned below. (4) 
Esther married Nicholas Baker, and had five 
children: Abbie J., the wife of William Cronk; 
Levina, who married first James Scott, and 
second James Cronk; Nicholas, who married 
Elizabeth Allen; Sarah, the wife of .\lbert 
Cole, and \\'illiam. (5) Jane married Israel 
F. Duncan, and had three children: George; 
Egbert, who married Annie Houghteling, and 
Charles. (6) Lizzie married Mr. \'an Cott. but 
had no children. 

Charles White was born in the town of 
Unionvale in 1834, was educated in the schools 
there, and became a farmer by occupation. 
His wife was Miss Caroline Van Wyck, daugh- 
ter of a well-known farmer of Dover, Robert 
S. Van Wyck, and his wife, Caroline. Four 
children were born to Mr. and Mrs. White, of 
whom Mrs. Tabor was the second in order of 
birth. Nettie, the eldest, was born in Union- 
vale in 1854. She married Edwin Velie, a 
farmer of the town of Lagrange, and has two 
children — Carrie and Frederick. Hattie, the 
third daughter, was born in 1S59, and is now 
the wife of Elmer Preston, the proprietor of a 
hotel at Dover Plains; they have one son- — 
John C. Preston. Wellington White, the 
youngest child and only son, was born in the 
town of Washington in 1862, and is engaged 
in business as a stock speculator in the town 
of Fishkill. He married Miss Sarah Vollmer, 
and their only child died in infancy. 



JAMES CARROLL, a successful business 
man of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, is 
one of the most progressive and public- 
spirited citizens of that thriving municipality. 

He was a native of County Louth, Ireland, 
and a son of Michael C. Carroll, who was born 
in that county in 1816, and was one of three 
brothers, namely: Michael, our subject's fa- 
ther; James, who enlisted in the English army 
at sixteen years of age, and went to the West 
Indies, where he was employed as a horse- 
shoer and farrier; and Luke. 

Michael C. Carroll learned the blacksmith's 
trade in his youth, and in about 1835 came to 
America, locating first in New York City, where 
he was employed in the Alum Works for some 
years. Later he went to Flushing, L. I. , and 
then to South Brooklyn, carrying on the black- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



rni 



smith, wheelwright and wagon-manufacturing 
business, making many milk wagons. He was 
a first-class mechanic, and also possessed 
marked skill as a horse doctor. 

He married Margaret Savage, who was also 
a native of County Louth, Ireland, and to 
their union w-ere born ten children, viz. : 
Mary, deceased; James, our subject; Thomas, 
a master mechanic, who met his death from an 
accident in the Roche Iron Works; Luke, a 
machinist in New York City; Mary Ann, the 
wife of Joseph Crolley, of Wappingers Falls; 
Mike, deceased; Mike (2), a machinist, who 
joined the United States Navy, and died in 
South America, in 1857, from an accidental 
injury. In politics he was a Democrat. The 
father of this family died in 1851. 

James Carroll, our subject, was born in 
the Emerald Isle in 1835, and as his parents 
came to America in the same year, his educa- 
tion was obtained in this country. He at- 
tended the Bishops' Church School in Brook- 
lyn, the School of the Nativity in Concord, 
and later the public schools, making good use 
of his advantages. As he was always fond of 
reading he has gained much additional knowl- 
edge since he left school, at the age of eight- 
een, by private study, and can hold his own 
in an argument on the questions of the day. 
During boyhood he worked for a short time in 
a factory at the corner of Elizabeth and Mott 
streets. New York City, for $3. 50 per week, 
and later sold fluid light for Mr. Conklin. He 
then served a full apprenticeship of five years 
in the iron moulder's trade at a shop on Third 
avenue, where he continued to work for two 
years after the completion of his term. On 
leaving this place he worked on Water street, 
near Huckster, and then with the McCulloms 
on Elder street, between Canal, Hester and 
Eldridge streets. Here he spent fifteen years, 
being foreman during the last few years. In 
September, 1865, he came to Poughkeepsie 
and entered the employ of Thompson and part- 
ner. At the end of two weeks he was called 
to the office and made foreman of the shop. 
He worked for this firm and their successors, 
Dudlej' & Thompson, and Dudley (S: Bollard, 
until 1879, at $4.00 per day, having from 
twenty-two to twenty-eight men under his 
charge. He left this business reluctantly, and, 
as he had some funds to invest, he' at once 
engaged in the butcher's business in Union 
Square. Later he sold out that establishment 
and located at his present place of business, 



which he remodeled and improved. For 
about seventeen years he has enjoyed an ex- 
tensive patronage, and is regarded as a sub- 
stantial business mah. 

.In 1864 he was married to Miss Ann Eliza 
Belton, a daughter of William Belton, whose 
family is one of the oldest in the citv. To 
them were born the following named children: 
Mary married a- Mr. Clark, of Orange, N. J.; 
Margareti is a professional nurse at Honolulu, 
having completed a course in the Post-Gradu- 
ate School of New York; Eleanor is at home; 
Annie married John Blynn, of Wassaic; Grace 
is a trained nurse from the Post-Graduate 
School: Jennie B. ; William Thomas, a gradu- 
ate of Eastman Business College, of Pough- 
keepsie, is employed in a dry-goods house in 
New York; James is in school with a view to 
studying law; Robert is a graduate of East- 
man Business College; and Thomas is at home. 

Politically, Mr. Carroll is a Democrat on 
State and National issues, and he takes great 
interest in the welfare of the part3^ He is 
active and influential in local politics, having 
served in 1873-74-75 on the Waterworks 
board, and in 1893 and 1894 as alderman from 
the Third ward. While on the board of alder- 
men he was chairman of the committee on 
streets. His well-proven integrity, no less 
than his ability, has been the source of his 
popularity. He is a member of the Order of 
Good Fellows, of the Queen City. 



BR. JOHN FAUST, a prominent veteri- 
nary surgeon of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, is widely recognized as an authority 
upon the nature and treatment of the diseases 
of that noble animal, the horse. He is a na- 
tive of Hessen-Cassel, Germany, which has 
been the home of the family for many genera- 
tions, and there his grandfather, Barhold Faust, 
and his father Conrad Faust, were also born, 
the latter in 1807. 

Dr. Faust was born July 19, 1835, and 
while acquiring a good education in the schools 
of his native place he began to consider. the 
vital question of self-support. He decided to 
come to America, where, to use his own phrase, 
he could "secure a bigger piece of bread." or 
in other words better opportunities. On Au- 
gust 12, 1852, he landed in New York City, 
and soon after began to learn the cooper's 
trade, which he followed there until 1859, when 
he and his brothers, Tobias and Otto, went to 



792 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



Poughkeepsie. In i860 they started in busi- 
ness there under the firm name of John Faust 
& Bros. The Doctor was an active worker in 
this enterprise until 1865, when he became a 
silent partner, so continuing until 1875, when 
the partnership was dissolved. 

In 1 88 1, our subject went before the e.\- 
amining board of the New York Veterinary 
Society, and passed the examination, receiving 
the degree of V. S. He is one of the most 
careful and studious of the veterinary surgeons 
of his county, and has done much to elevate 
the profession by his scientific researches. A 
number of valuable treatises give evidence of 
his learning and ability, among them an essay on 
Hernia read before the N. Y. State N'eterinary 
Society; one on the History of Contagious and 
Infectious Diseases, Ancient, Medieval, and 
Modern; and one read in 1894 on the Practical 
part on Tuberculosis. He also prepared an 
article on the Darwinian Theory for the "Medi- 
cal Record " in repl}' to Prof. Bolenhomer, of 
New York. At present the Doctor is writing a 
work on Homeopathic Practice on Domestic 
Animals. He is a leading member of the 
U. S. Veterinary Medical Society, and has for 
two years been the cattle inspector for tuber- 
culosis in this State. He was credited in 1886 
with being the first to vaccinate successfully 
against Anthrax fever, that treatment provid- 
ing the only means now known for arresting 
the disease. He has a large practice, and is 
frequently called in consultation in important 
difficult cases. In 1854 Dr. Faust married 
Miss Maria Frietag, also a native of Hessen- 
Cassel, Germany, and has six children: Louis, 
a physician at Schenectady; Frederick A., a 
physician in Poughkeepsie; Otto, a veterinary 
surgeon in the same city; William P., a physi- 
cian in Schenectady; Mary, the wife of F. C. 
Krueger, of that place; and Christina H., who 
is at home. The Doctor is a Republican in 
principle and a public-spirited citizen, but takes 
no part in political wire pulling. He is a 
member of the K. of P., and is one of the 
most prominent supporters of the German 
Methodist Episcopal Church, in which he has 
been Sunday-school superintendent for several 
years, and a steward since 1859. 



THOMAS EMERSON, head gardener for 
William Densmore, of the town of Hyde 
Park, Dutchess county, is a native of Scot- 
land, born at Thornhill, December 25, 1842, a 



son of William Emerson, who was also born 
in that village, in 181 1, a son of Thomas and 
Janet Emerson. 

Thomas Emerson, the grandfather of our 
subject, belonged to one of the old and highly 
respected families of southwestern Scotland. 
For many years he served in the British army, 
being one of the veterans of Waterloo, and 
after leaving the service he lived in retirement. 
In his family were five children: \\'illiam, the 
father of our subject; Robert, who lived in 
Scotland until i860; John, a resident of Glas- 
gow; George, superintendent of an estate in 
Dumfriesshire; and Elizabeth, who married a 
Mr. Hope, and lived in Edinburgh ("Auld 
Reekie"), Scotland. 

By occupation the lather of our subject 
was a gardener, was engaged in the Stirling 
nurseries for man}' years, and was also em- 
ployed bv the Montgomery family. Though 
he was a general gardener, he gave a great 
deal of attention to the culture of grapes. He 
was an honest, trustworthy and reliable man. 
In 1832, at the age of twenty-one years, he 
married Isabella McQueen, who was born in 
1 8 12, and was of Scotch descent on the pa- 
ternal side, while her mother belonged to an 
old Scotch family. Seven chiUdren blessed 
this union: Elizabeth, living in Edinburgh, 
Scotland; Mary, in Glasgow; Thomas; Janet, 
also in Edinburgh; David, a blacksmith, in 
Birkenhead, England; Johann, in Ayrshire, 
Scotland; and William, who died at the age 
of three years. The father passed away in 
1880, at the age of sixty-nine years, and the 
mother in March, 1893. 

The education of Thomas Emerson was be- 
gun in the common school near his boyhood 
home, and completed at a night school. He 
has ever been a great reader, making a special 
study of his " profession." as gardening is called 
in his native land. He began to learn that 
occupation in Scotland at the age of sixteen 
years, at a place called Blair Drummond, 
where he served a three-years' apprenticeship. 
He then went to Dumfries, and was in the nur- 
series there some six months, afterward, for a 
year and a-half, being employed by Sir William 
Jardine. For the same length of time he was 
at Eglinton Castle, owned by the Earl of Eg- 
linton, and from there went to Rozell, Ayrshire, 
being within a stone's throw of the cottage of 
Robert Burns, the poet, for a year. After six 
months passed at the Williams nursery in Lon- 
don, he secured a position at Hythe, in Kent, 




yz^f^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



793 



England, the place of Henry B. Mackeson, 
which he laid out, and continued in charge of 
for five years. He then returned to Scotland, 
but in 1870 came to the New World, locating 
at first in Philadelphia, where he remained for 
a month. On April 18, of that year, he ar- 
rived in the town of Hyde Park, Dutchess 
county, and became assistant gardener on Mr. 
Dinsmore's place, under A. L. Black, who, the 
following year, went to Philadelphia. Our 
subject succeeded to his position, which he has 
since most efficiently filled. The place con- 
tains one of the finest collections of plants to 
be found in the State, of which he has com- 
plete charge. 

Mr. Emerson has been remarkably success- 
ful in his chosen calling, and in his present en- 
gageme'nt has seventeen men under his charge, 
during the summer months, while in the winter 
there are eleven. He is a prominent member 
of the Society of American Florists, the Florist 
Club of New York City, and the F"ree Gar- 
deners. In his political views he is an ardent 
Republican, giving his earnest support to the 
party, and is one of the leading representative 
citizens of the town of Hyde Park. In relig- 
ious faith he is a consistent member of the 
Presbyterian Church. 



PERRY WHEELER, a worthy member of 
the agricultural community of the town 

of Dover, Dutchess county, is the grandson of 
John B. Wheeler, whose birth occurred there. 
In the common schools of the locality the 
grandfather received what was considered at 
that day a very good education, and at an 
early age turned his attention to farming. He 
owned and controlled a large tract of land in 
the southern portion of Dover town, on which 
he continued to make his home, and there 
reared his family. He married Miss Ruth 
Sampson, and had five children: Sebastian, 
John, Henry, Belding and Katie. 

Henry Wheeler, the father of our subject, 
was also a native of the town of Dover, Dutch- 
ess county, and after securing a common-school 
education, successfully engaged in farming 
throughout his entire life, accumulating by 
that means considerable wealth. He married 
Miss Catherine Wing, a daughter of Tb.omas 
Wing, and his wife, Hannah White, who were 
the parents of three children: Amy, Ratio 
and Hannah. Her father, who was one of 
the Revolutionary heroes, was born in the 



town of Dover, where during manhood he 
engaged in agricultural pursuits. To the par- 
ents of our subject were born nine children, 
namel}': Harvey, Thomas and John, all de- 
ceased; Shandanette; Bailey; Perry; Amy, 
who married Lathic Brown; Hannah; and 
Mariette. To the marriage of Lathic Brown 
and wife was born a son, Ale.xander (who 
married Ethel Wheeler, an adopted daughter 
of Perry Wheeler), who was a policeman in 
New York City for sixteen years. His death 
occurred at South Dover in 1873. Lathic 
Brown was born in Onondaga county, N. Y., 
and his death occurred in 1866 in the City of 
New York. He was a farmer by occupation. 

Mr. Wheeler, whose name introduces this 
review, was born in Dover town, May 29, 18 19, 
and after completing his education started out 
in life as a farmer, but he later learned the 
wheelwright's trade, at which he worked for 
eight years. Owing to ill health, he again 
took up the occupation of farming, which he 
has since continued. Since its organization he 
has been identified with the Republican party, 
and has acceptably served in several township 
offices, including those of assessor and commis- 
sioner. His life has been manly, his actions 
sincere, his manner unaffected, and his exam- 
ple is well worthy of emulation. 

Mr. Wheeler was united in marriage with 
Miss Ann Ross, a daughter of Zebulon and 
Rhoda Ross, of the town of Dover, Dutchess 
county, and to this worthy couple were born 
two children : Catharine, who was born in 
1850, educated in Dutchess county, and is now 
the wife of Charles Hawes, a farmer of Sher- 
man, Conn.; and George R., who died at the 
age of three years. After a long and happy 
married life, the wife and mother was called to 
her final rest in 1895. 

John Ross, the grandfather of Mrs. Wheel- 
er, was born in Dover town, Dutchess county, 
where he followed farming and married Miss 
Hannah White. In their family were six chil- 
dren : Fannie; Mrs. Eliza Prentice; Mrs. 
Sallie Butts; William; one whose name is not 
given; and Zebulon, the father of Mrs. W'heeler. 

Zebulon Ross, an agriculturist, was also 
born, reared, educated and married in the town 
of Dover, Dutchess county. Miss Rhoda Wing 
becoming his wife. Mrs. Wheeler was one of 
their five children, the others being as follows: 
John wedded Mary Stark, of Pawling, Dutchess 
county, by whom he had six children: Katie, 
Addie, Rhoda, Theodore, Charles and Will- 



ro4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPUICAL RECORD. 



iam. George, who married Miss Marietta 
Wheeler, had no children. Theodore was 
united in marriage with Miss Sarah A. Ar- 
nold, and they, too, had no family. Eliza be- 
came the wife of Harvey Buckingham, of 
Northville, Conn., and to them were born 
three children, namely: (i) Theodore first 
married Eliza Whitley, and their one child 
died in infancy. For his second wife he chose 
Phoebe Rennis, by whom he had four children: 
Estelle, May, Herman and Frederick. His 
third wife bore the maiden name of Annie 
Martin. (2) Herman was killed while valiantly 
serving in the Union army during the Civil 
war. (3) Ann Eliza married Orville Sheldon, 
who died in May, 1896, a son of Egbert Shel- 
don, and they had no children. 



rjRS. RHODA L. SHERMAN, a most 
JKH, estimable lady, whose home is in the 
town of Unionvale, belongs to a family that 
has been prominently identified with the inter- 
ests of Dutchess county from an early period 
in its history. Hei» paternal grandfather, 
Hiram Rozell, was a native of the town of 
Dover, Dutchess county, received his educa- 
tion in its common schools, and engaged in 
farming during his active business career. By 
his marriage with Miss Catharine Buck he had 
three children: Martin, Hiram and Peter. 
After the death of his first wife he again mar- 
ried, and to the marriage were born the follow- 
ing children: Henry; James, who married a 
Miss Wight; Beekman, who married a Miss 
Morey; Albro, who married a Miss Rozell; 
Mrs. Catharine Leroy; Mrs. Helen Van Vleck; 
Mrs. Mevilie Hewett; Mrs. Mary Whitehead; 
Mrs. Phoebe Dennis; and Mrs. Cordelia Reed. 

Martin Rozell, the father of Mrs. Sherman, 
was born in the town of Dover, in 1793, at- 
tended the public schools of the locality, and 
engaged in farming as a lifework. He was 
united in marriage with Miss Deborah Cypher, 
an agriculturist of Beekman town, Dutchess 
county. 

Twelve children blessed their union, name- 
ly: (i) Peter, born in 1818, married Phcebe 
Giles, by whom he had five children — Allison, 
Phoebe, Amelia, Deborah and Iila. (2) Thomas, 
born in 18 19, married Sarah J. Cypher, by 
whom he had one daughter — Harriet. (3) 
Elizabeth, born in 1823, married James Wes- 
ley, and they had one son, George, now de- 
ceased. (4) Jane A., born in 1821, married 



Ephraim Hewett, by whom she had six chil- 
dren — Sarah, Cecelia, William, Edward, Emma 
and Obe. (5) Maria, born in 1825, married 
John Doan, and has three children — Samuel, 
Lewis and Frank. (6) Smith, born in 1827, 
married Ellen Ball, by whom he has five chil- 
dren — Charles, Etta, Edith, Ella and Willie. 
(7) Rhoda L. is next in order of birth. (8) 
Drusilla, born in 1833, married John Flagler, 
and has three daughters — Carrie, Arcelia and 
Alda. (9) 'Wicks, born in 1831, wedded Miss 
Maria J. Brooks, by whom he had three chil- 
dren — Edward, Charles and Carrie, and after 
the death of his first wife he married Mary E. 
Clark, by whom he had a daughter — Annie. 
(10) David, born in 1836, married Phoebe 
Lake, and they had two children — Mamie and 
Remsen. (11) Caroline, born in 1839, mar- 
ried Theodore Cypher, and they have a daugh- 
ter — Cora. (12) Cecelia, born in 1842, died 
when young. 

Mrs. Rhoda L. (Rozell) Sherman is a na- 
tive of Dutchess county, born in the town of 
Lagrange, in 1829, and pursued her studies in 
the schools near her home. On reaching woman- 
hood she was united in marriage with Samuel 
Rozell, a farmer of Unionvale town, who died 
in 1869, at the age of seventy-three years. 
Later she became the wife of Isaac W. Sher- 
man, who was by occupation a painter and 
farmer, and whose death occurred in 1889. 
Mrs. Sherman enjoys the respect of all who 
know her, and her many virtues and loving 
disposition have gained her many warm friends 
in the community where she has so long made 
her home. 



JAMES H. RUSSELL, a prosperous and 
honored citizen of the town of Beekman, 

Dutchess county, successfully engaged in 
agricultural pursuits, started out in life .poor in 
everything but pluck and indomitable will 
power, and is now one of the well-to-do farm- 
ers of the community. 

John Russell, his great-grandfather, in an 
early day came, along with two of his brothers, 
from England to this country, one of the three 
settling in Dutchess county, one in Massachu- 
setts, and the other, John, in Orange county, 
N. Y. The last named was twice married, 
and by his first wife had five sons, one named 
William (the grandfather of our subject), and 
three daughters; by his second wife he had but 
one child, a son. John Russell moved from 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



795 



Orange county to Phillipstown, Putnam county, 
where he passed the rest of his days. He was 
a lifelong farmer, and during the Revolution- 
ary war served as major-general. 

William Russell, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was born in the town of Fishkill, Dutch- 
ess county, where he passed his entire life in 
agricultural pursuits. He was thrice married, 
the names of his wives being Theodosia Town- 
send, Amy Cronk and Helen Champlain, re- 
spectively, the first of whom was the grand- 
mother of James H. William Russell had 
ten children in all, as follows: Bradford, 
James, Annie, Austin and John, all five de- 
ceased; Elijah, father of our subject; William, 
deceased; Benjamin; Betsey, deceased; and a 
daughter who died while young. 

Elijah Russell was born in the town of 
Fishkill, June 12, 1813, and attended the dis- 
trict schools of the neighborhood. He re- 
mained at home until his marriage with Miss 
Margaret Wright, daughter of I.saac Wright. 
Her death occurred June 20, 1892, and she 
was mourned by many warm friends as well as 
by her immediate family. The family circle 
included five children: Ann Jeanette, wife of 
Gilbert Southard, of the town of Stanford, 
Dutchess county; George Isaac, who makes 
his home in Matteawan, N. Y., but is a keeper 
in the prison at Sing Sing; Alphonza, who 
married D. W. Haight, of the town of East 
Fishkill, Dutchess county; James H., subject 
of this sketch; and Maria Amelia, wife of Will- 
iam Wolcott, of Matteawan. The father has 
always engaged in farming upon many places 
in Dutchess county. After his marriage he 
located in the town of Lagrange, whence he 
removed to the town of Poughkeepsie, and 
later was a resident of Peekskill, N. Y. ; then 
lived in the town of Stanford, Dutchess county, 
and now makes his home with his daughter, 
Mrs. Haight, in the town of East Fishkill. 
Until recently he had always supported the 
Democratic party, but is now a stalwart Pro- 
hibitionist on account of his views on the tem- 
perance question. He has never aspired to 
public ofifice, but faithfully discharges his du- 
ties of citizenship. When young he united 
with the Methodist Episcopal Church, and 
has since been one of its active and faithful 
members. 

In the town of Fishkill, Dutchess county, 
James H. Russell, the subject proper of these 
lines, was born June 7, 1845, ^nd his school 
days were there passed. His educational 



privileges, however, were quite limited, a fact 
which he has always deeply regretted. On 
leaving home at the age of twenty years, he 
entered the drug store of Van Valkenburg & 
Brown, of Poughkeepsie, where he engaged in 
clerking for a year; then, with his father and 
brother bought out the Denton restaurant, at 
No. 270 Main street, in that city, which they 
remodeled and conducted for a year. On 
selling out he engaged in the fire-insurance 
business for two years, representing the Loril- 
lard Company, of New York City, being lo- 
cated at Arthursburg, N. Y. He was next 
employed on the farm of J. W. Van Tassell for 
a year, and during the following four years 
operated land for W. S. Verplanck; removing 
to the town of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess 
county, he rented E. H. Clark's farm for two 
years, whence he went to the farm of Benson 
J. Lossing, the historian, on Chestnut Ridge, 
in the town of Dover, which he worked on 
shares for three years, and rented during the 
following six years. In 1886 he purchased a 
255-acre farm of W. E. Haxtun, in the town 
of Beekman, on which he has since resided, 
and which he has placed under a high state of 
cultivation. He is ranked among the most 
progressive agriculturists of the county, and 
he thoroughly understands his business in all 
its departments. 

In 1864, in the town of East Fishkill, Mr. 
Russell was married to Miss Hester A. Haight, 
daughter of Henry Haight, and two children 
were born to them, the elder being Walter G., 
now in the grocery business in New York City. 
He married Lillian Greenthall, by whom he 
has three sons — James H., Vincent L. , and 
Percy (deceased). 

Mr. Russell has ever taken a prominent 
part in public affairs, casting his ballot in sup- 
port of the Democratic party, and on that 
ticket was elected superintendent of the county 
poor in the fall of 1883, and again in the fall 
of 1886, serving altogether six years. For 
two terms he was commissioner of highways 
in the town of Dover, and in the town of 
Beekman has been supervisor one term, and 
also commissioner of highways one term. 
Twice he has been the nominee of his party 
for the Assembly, and came within eighteen 
votes of being elected in a district which has 
usually 1,800 majority for the Republicans, 
which fact plainly indicates his popularity and 
the confidence reposed in him. In all the 
various relations of life, Mr. Russell has been 



roc 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



true and faithful in every trust, and justly 
merits the high regard in which he is held. 
He is a member of the F. & A. M., Lodge No. 
458, Shekomeko, Dutchess dounty, and also a 
charter member and master of Sylvan Grange, 
of the town of Beekman, organized in Decem- 
ber, 1896. 



JOHN GEORGE BODENSTEIN. Among 
the valued German-born citizens of Staats- 

burg, Dutchess county, stands prominent 
in progressiveness, industry and popularity, 
this gentleman. He was born in Hessen-Cas- 
sel, Germany, June 20, 1850, a son of John 
H. and Dorothea (Boerner)Bodenstein, natives 
of the same place. 

By trade the father was a blacksmith, 
which occupation he continued to follow after 
coming to America in 1S58, first locating at 
Rockland Lake. Rockland Co ., N. Y. , where he 
remained until 1863, when he removed to Pier- 
mont, X. Y. There he worked at his trade for 
one year, spending the followingseven months 
as a journeyman in Jersey City, N. J. In 1864 
he came to Staatsburg, where for three years 
he worked for the Eagle Ice Company, and at 
Athens, N. Y., he was employed by the same 
company until 1868. In Staatsburg he then 
opened a shop for the manufacture of ice tools 
and general blacksmithing, which business he 
continued up to his death in 1875. He was 
very successful, and made many improvements 
in ice tools, though he took out no patents. 
Among the many implements manufactured by 
him were ice plows. In his family were seven 
children, all yet living, namely: Eliza Cather- 
ine, John George, Henry, Frederick, Sophia, 
Amelia and Charles. The mother died No- 
vember 25, 1 89 1. 

For four years prior to coming to this 
country our subject attended school in the 
Fatherland, and completed his literary educa- 
tion by two years and a half attendance at the 
common schools at Rockland Lake and Pier- 
mont. Although his privileges in that direction 
were somewhat meager, he has by subsequent 
reading become a well-informed man. With 
his father he learned the blacksmith's trade, 
and from 1866 to 1868 worked as a journey- 
man in Newburg, Fishkill Plains and Kingston, 
N. Y. In 1868 he started a shop for his father 
on the site where his brother Henry now car- 
ries on business, and although he owned no 
interest in the shop had full control until two 



years after his father's death. He and his 
brother Henry then formed a partnership, and 
under the style of J. G. & H. Bodenstein en- 
gaged in the manufacture of ice tools until 
March 22, 1890, when the partnership was 
dissolved. Our subject then established his 
present shop, where he does a great deal of 
forging for the Poughkeepsie foundries, and 
has furnished all the iron work for the Ogden 
Mills summer residence, which required nearly 
a hundred tons of iron and steel. However, 
the manufacture of ice tools is still his main 
business, in which he has a large trade, ex- 
tending all over the country, from Maine to 
the Pacific. He is essentially a self-made 
man, having been the architect of his own for- 
tune, and is deserving of the highest commen- 
dation. 

In 1873 Mr. Bodenstein was united in 
marriage with Louisa Hess, of Staatsburg, 
a daughter of John George Hess, and to 
them have been born two sons: Fred, who is 
associated with his father in business; and 
John George. Mr. Bodenstein is an ardent 
supporter of Republican principles, though he 
takes no \ery active interest in politics; socially, 
he is identified with the F. & A. M. at Rhine- 
beck. He is a member of the Episcopal 
Church at Staatsburg, of which he has been 
vestryman since its incorporation; has been 
school trustee for many j'ears, and a member 
of the Staatsburg fire department. He is a 
member and one of the organizers of the 
Staatsburg Gun Club, and is a noted crack- 
shot, having captured many money prizes, 
and borne away the first prize medal from Al- 
bany, put up by the Third Brigade of the Na- 
tional Guard of the State of New York, in a 
two-days' "shoot," making a score of 48 out 
of a possible 50, with military arm, off-hand 
at 200 yards, Creedmore targets. The com- 
petition was one of the sharpest. Mr. Boden- 
stein's honor and integrity are unimpeachable, 
his word being considered as good as his bond. 



WILLIS HAVILAND CASE. The name 
of this lamented citizen of the town of 

Clinton, who passed to his rest on Sunday, 
February 12, 1893, is remembered as that of 
one of the most prominent and energetic men 
of the community, one who assisted greatly in 
its development and prosperit}'. Besides gen- 
eral farming he also devoted considerable time 
to the practice of veterinary surgery, and on 





'<i^^^<?^<^^S^^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



79T 



the day of his death all of the family, with the 
exception of himself and wife, had gone to 
Church. Feeling ill, he took what he sup- 
posed to be some medicine, but which the in- 
stant afterward he knew to be some aconite 
he had prepared for a sick horse, and he died 
soon afterward. No man is more worthy of 
representation in a work of this kind, and there 
is none whose name is held is more general re- 
membrance. 

The early home of Mr. Case was in the 
town of Milan, Dutchess county, where he was 
born September 12, 1829, to Ephraim and 
Mary (Haviland) Case, who were farming peo- 
ple of that township, where the birth of the 
father also occurred. The paternal grand- 
father, Nathan Case, who was a minister in 
the Society of Friends, married a Miss Hicks. 
The boyhood days of our subject were spent 
in the place of his nativity, where he also re- 
ceived his educational advantages in the dis- 
trict schools. 

At the age of twenty-six years Mr. Case 
was united in marriage with Phoebe Collins, 
widow of Mr. Ackerman, of the town of Union- 
vale, Dutchess county, and to them were born 
two children: Oscar J., and Olive Augusta, 
wife of George N. Bowman. For his second 
wife he wedded Hannah M. Wiley, and their 
wedding was celebrated in the town of Clin- 
ton, January 23, 1867. One son graced this 
union: Homer, who married Florence E. Vail, 
daughter of Israel Vail, of the town of Union- 
vale. Mrs. Case is the fifth in the family of 
eight children born to John and Sarah (Allen) 
Wiley, the former a native of the town of 
Clinton, the latter of the town of Pleasant 
Valley, Dutchess county. In order of birth 
the children are as follows: Ensign (deceased); 
Allen; Reuben, who was killed at the battle of 
Petersburg during the Civil war; Mary J., wife 
of Burtis Hicks; Hannah M.; Martin W. ; and 
William A. and Adeline (both deceased). 
The father always carried on farming in the 
town of Clinton, where he died at the age of 
forty-six years; he was also a grain and cattle 
dealer. His parents were Reuben and Drusilla 
(Covill) Wiley, who always made their home 
in the same township. 

By birthright Mr. Case was a member of 
the Society of Friends. He was a man uni- 
versally respected, one whose word was con- 
sidered as good as his bond, and on his death 
the county lost one of its most honored and 
useful citizens. Mrs. Case proved herself full 



worthy as the companion and helpmeet of this 
excellent man, and is a lady greatly esteemed 
in the community in which she lives. 



TIMOTHY GARRICK KELLY. Accord- 
ing to tradition, the Kelly family had its 

origin in Spain, and emigrated to Ireland at a 
very early period, the branch of which our sub- 
ject is a descendant making its home for many 
generations m County Galway. 

His grandfather, Patrick Kelly, and father, 
Michael Kelly, were both natives of that county. 
The latter was born in 1803, received a good 
practical education in the schools of his neigh- 
borhood, and after his marriage to his first 
wife, a Miss Egan, came to America. For 
some time he lived in Brooklyn, and then went 
to Albany, but about 1835 he settled in Pough- 
keepsie. He had learned the carpenter's trade, 
but never followed it, being engaged in the gro- 
cery business both in Albany and Poughkeep- 
sie, where he located first at the corner of Jef- 
ferson and Church streets, and later at the 
corner of Church and South Bridge streets. 
He was a man of fine natural ability, a great 
reader, and a good judge of men and affairs, 
and was associated in his time with the best 
men in the city. Aside from his mercantile 
business he was interested in banking and in 
real estate, of which he owned a large amount 
in the Second ward. He gave the land for the 
opening of Church street. In politics he was 
always a strong Democrat, and, although he 
was never an office-holder, he was quite influ- 
ential in party affairs. He was one of the 
original promoters of St. Peter's Catholic 
Church, the first meeting of the congregation 
being held at his house. To the end of his 
life he was regarded as a leader and counselor 
by the men of his faith. Thoroughly loyal to 
his adopted city, he was the means of bringing 
many of his people here. On the death of his 
first wife, who left four children, namely: John, 
born in 1830, was educated at Fordham Col- 
lege, New York, was ordained a priest, and at 
the time of his death, in 1891, was Dean and 
Vicar General of the Trenton Diocese ; Barnard ; 
Mary, now Mrs. Jacob Kuhn, of New York City; 
and Annie, who died at the age of eighteen. 
Mr. Kelly's second wife was Miss Mary Gar- 
rick, a native of Ireland and a daughter of 
Timothy Garrick, who was a resident of New 
York City in later years. Of the three chil- 
dren of the second marriage, Timothv G., our 



798 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPUICAL RECORD. 



subject, is the eldest; Catherine died in iS8i 
at the age of t\vent)--six-; and Eliza Regina is 
still living. The father died in 1861, and the 
mother survived him twenty-seven years, dying 
in 1888. 

Timothy G. Kelly was born February 16, 
1852, in Poughkeepsie, and attended Dutchess 
County Academy in boyhood, until Prof. Mc- 
George left that institution. He then spent 
one year at Riverview Seminary. As he was 
naturally a good student he made fine progress, 
but at sixteen his school days ended. He was 
only nine years old when his father died, and 
as the clerk, upon whom entire reliance had 
been placed, was stricken with paralysis not 
long afterward, he was obliged to make him- 
self useful in the store. As he grew older he 
assumed the management of the business, to 
which he finally succeeded, and he has displa3'ed 
the characteristic business facultj' of the family 
in his successful career. The store is of the 
old-fashioned sort, with a bar in the rear. 

In September, 1874, he married Miss Mary 
Cunningham, daughter of Patrick and Cath- 
erine Cunningham, formerly of Beekman, and 
they have four children: Mary, John, Frank 
and Paul. Mr. Kelly has always been a 
Democrat, and in 1873 and '74, although hav- 
ing only just attained his majority, served as 
alderman. He takes great interest in the 
success of his party and in public affairs gen- 
erally. He belongs to St. Mary's Roman 
Catholic Church, of which he is a trustee, and 
he is also a member of the Benevolent Pro- 
tective Order of Flks. 



HOWARD C. MILLARD, a prominent 
business man of New Hamburg, Dutch- 
ess county, and a member of the well-known 
firm of Millard Lumber Co., was born in that 
town December 17, 1846. 

His family is of French descent, and his 
ancestors were early settlers at Cornwall, 
Conn., where his grandfather, Charles Millard, 
was born in 1763. The latter settled in Marl- 
boro, Ulster county, where he was engaged in 
the lumber business until 1824, when he 
moved to New Hamburg and opened a lumber 
yard. He manufactured his lumber from the 
raw material, and had an extensive trade for 
that early day, the distance from our own 
times being more easily realized when the fact 
is recalled that he witnessed the trial of Robert 
• Fulton's steamer on the Hudson in 1807. He 



was prominent in local affairs, and a leading 
member of the Presbyterian Church. On 
June 17, 1816, his first wife, Lydia Pride, a 
native of Poughkeepsie, died leaving seven 
children, and October 22, 1818, he married 
Sarah Miller, by whom he had two children. 
His own death occurred April 30, 1827. Of 
the first family the eldest son (ly, John, born 
May 21, 17S9, became a merchant and specu- 
lator in Brooklyn. (2) Charles, born in 1792, 
located in New Orleans, where he acquired a 
large fortune; he was a man of unusual energy 
and business ability, and took a prominent 
part in affairs in his adopted city. (3) James, 
born in 1795, was a wholesale dealer in lumber 
and coal at Catskill. (4) Cornelia, born in 
1797, married Hezekiah Purdy, of Marlboro. 
(5) W^illiam, born in iSoo, settled in Galena, 
111., and became a leading business man there, 
holding the office of postmaster at one time; 
his later j-ears were spent in traveling in 
Europe and America, and he died while in 
Jacksonville, Fla. (6) Walter, our subject's 
father, is mentioned below. (7) Catherine, 
born in 1803, married Elem Dunbar, then of 
Poughkeepsie and later of Cortland county. 
The children of the second family were Mar- 
garet G. and Franklin. 

Walter Millard was born in Marlboro in 
1802, and remained there until the removal of 
the family to New Hamburg. Until 1834 he 
was engaged in the lumber business exclusively; 
but at that time he became interested in freight- 
ing, and built the barge "Lexington," which 
ran between New York and New Hamburg. 
In 1S44 he purchased the steamboat " Splen- 
did," which carried freight from New Ham- 
burg to Marlboro. About 1855 he disposed 
of this line of business to give attention to 
dealing in lumber and coal, which he contin- 
ued until his death, August 20, 1880, building 
up an immense trade with large contractors. 
He was a man of remarkable business acumen, 
and possessed the energy and enterprise to 
carry his projects to completion. A strict 
Presbyterian in religious faith, his life was 
marked by integritj' and fair dealing. In pol- 
itics, he was in early vears a Whig, and later a 
Democrat. He was married November 14, 
1834, to Martha Hyer Bull, a native of New 
York City, who died June 14, 1896. Her fa- 
ther, William Bull," who was of English birth, 
was a well-known saddle and harness dealer in 
New York, and was the first to import collars 
from England. To Walter Millard and his 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



im 



wife were born children as follows: Sarah, 
William B.. Walter P.. Edward J., Fenwick 
T., Howard C. and Charles. 

Howard C. Millard, the subject proper of 
this review, was educated in the schools of 
Poughkeepsie and Fairfield, N. Y., and on re- 
turning home he began his business career as a 
dealer in cement pipe. He followed this until 
the death of his father, in 1880, when he ac- 
quired an interest in the lumber and coal busi- 
ness. The Millard Lumber Co. is one of the 
most substantial firms of this region, manu- 
facturing and dealing both at wholesale and 
retail, and commanding an immense trade. 
The brothers are prominently identified with 
the leading interests of their locality, and How- 
ard C. Millard has taken generous pride in as- 
sisting every movement tending to promote 
the public welfare. 

On September 20, 1870, Mr. Millard mar- 
ried Miss Catherine Jane LeRoy, daughter of 
Jacob and Angeline LeRoy, of New Hamburg. 
The LeRoys are of French Huguenot descent, 
and are among the oldest and most highly-re- 
spected families of Dutchess county. Two 
children were born of this union: Jacob L. 
and Ivatie, both at home. Mr. Millard and his 
wife are leading members of the Presbyterian 
Church, of which he is a trustee. In politics 
he is known as a Democrat, but he is a believer 
in Protection. He has taken great interest in 
the work of the Masonic order, and he and his 
son Jacob are both members of the Wappinger 
Falls Lodge No. 671. 



OSEPH L VAIL, a leading mason and con- 
tractor, of Poughkeepsie, is a native of 
Dutchess county, born in the town of Fish- 
kill, September 20, 1835. His father, Joseph 
Vail, Sr., was also born in that township, 
July 27, 1803, and was a son of Isaac and De- 
borah Vail, farming people of that locality, 
where they reared their family of seven chil- 
dren — four sons and three daughters. The 
sons were: Abram, who engaged in agricult- 
ural pursuits in the town of Fishkill; Joseph, 
the father of our subject; William, a farmer, 
who is still living at the age of ninety' years; 
and Piatt, who followed the same occupation. 
The grandfather, whose ancestors were from 
Holland, was a native of Dutchess county, and 
died upon the old homestead farm in the town 
of Fishkill, where his wife also departed this 



life. They were earnest and sincere members 
of the Presb\terian Church. 

On that farm the father of our subject grew 
to manhood, and married Mrs. Sarah N. 
(Simmons) Waterhouse, a native of Coxsackie, 
Greene Co., N. Y., whose father, Isaac Sim- 
mons, was born in 1786, of English lineage, 
and was a boatman by occupation. After 
their marriage the parents located upon a farm 
in the town of Fishkill, where their ten chil- 
dren were born: Stephen S., born October 
27, 1830, operates the old homestead farm; 
Elizabeth A., born July 29, 1832, wedded 
W'illiam Abel, a farmer of Illinois; Isaac S., 
born September 20, 1835, is a commercial 
traveler; Joseph I., the subject of this review, 
is the twin brother of Isaac; Sarah J., born 
May 6, 1838, is the wife of George Cornell, a 
farmer of Virginia; Mary L. , born July 29, 
1840, is the wife of Walter \'an Namberg, a 
farmer of the town of Poughkeepsie; Harriet 
M., born June 25, 1842, married George 
Sprague, a farmer of Ohio; Deborah, born 
March i, 1844, is the wife of Nicholas Chati- 
ton, an agriculturist; Malissa, born March 23, 
1846, is the wife of Ira Van Kleeck, a farmer 
of Orange county, N. Y. ; and \Mllett, born 
July II, 1848, is engaged in merchandising at 
Florida, Orange county. The father carried 
on farming up to his death, which occurred 
September 20, 1877; the mother passed away 
March i, 1882. They held membership with 
the Presbyterian Church, and in politics he 
was an ardent Republican. 

Joseph I. Vail passed his early life upon 
the farm, aiding in its cultivation as soon as 
old enough, and acquired his education in the 
district schools. At the age of eighteen he 
came to Poughkeepsie, where. he served an ap- 
prenticeship to the mason's trade with Isaac 
Broas, and about i860 began contracting in 
that line for himself, since which time he has 
erected almost half of the buildings put up in 
the city. From a mere hamlet he has watched 
the growth of Poughkeepsie, and during his 
long residence here has been one of the im- 
portant factors in its progress and upbuilding. 

On January 11, 1866, Mr. Vail was united 
in marriage with Miss Susan A. Sloane. a na- 
tive of Poughkeepsie. Her father, James 
Sloane, was born in Ireland, and wedded Han- 
nah Davidson, also of Irish e.xtraction. To 
them were born seven children: Thomas D. 
(I) and William J., who died while young; 
Thomas D. (2), who became a merchant of 



800 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



New York City; William J., who died in child- 
hood; Mary J., who wedded Archie Hawioe, a 
sea captain on the Pacific coast: Susan A., the 
honored wife of our subject; and Margaret D., 
who married James E. Kirk, a railroad man. 

Mr. Vail is a Republican in his political 
convictions, and is one of the broad-minded 
business men of the city, whose prosperity can- 
not be attributed to a combination of lucky 
circumstances, but who has risen from energy, 
enterprise, integrity and intellectual effort well 
directed. His business has ever been con- 
ducted on the strictest principles of honesty. 
He and his wife hold a high position in the es- 
teem of their fellow citizens, and they give 
their support to the Second Reformed Church 
of Poughkeepsie. 



MORRIS BAKER, for many years a well- 
_ _ known citizen of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, was born in Bamberg, Bavaria, Ger- 
many, in 1842, and came to America with his 
parents in 1844. 

Heyman Baker, the father of our subject, 
was a native of Exin, Germany, born in the 
year 181 5. He was a merchant tailor by oc- 
cupation, and after coming to this country 
first located in New York City, later coming 
to Poughkeepsie. In addition to his custom 
work, Mr. Baker was interested in manufac- 
turing goods for the California and Mexico 
trade, making the fanciful and highly-colored 
fabrics which the people of the latter country, 
especially, use so profusely. This was in 
1849; some time later he established a factory 
in Poughkeepsie, which he carried on for about 
eight years, and after giving up this line of 
trade he continued in the clothing business 
until his death, in 1866. Mr. Baker was well 
known in commercial circles, where he held a 
high reputation for integrity and straightfor- 
ward methods of dealing, and was very suc- 
cessful in his enterprises. He was a worthy 
citizen, highly esteemed by all who knew him. 
He was a charter member of the Masonic or- 
der, and of the Odd Fellows. Mr. Baker was 
married to Caroline Gillett, a native of Bam- 
berg, Germany, and two children were born 
to them, one of whom died when nine months 
old. The father passed from earth in 1866, 
and the mother in February, 1891. 

Morris Baker had good advantages for an 

ducation, first attending the primary school 

held in the old Bond street school house, in 



the Sixth ward, New York City. From there 
he went to a private school taught by Miss 
Filkins, and then to a grammar school under 
A. Underbill, finishing his education at the 
Poughkeepsie Academy. He has always been 
a reader, and is a well-informed man. After 
leaving school he went into business with his 
father, and after the latter's death carried on 
the establishment until the winter of 1867-68, 
when he took up the business of an auctioneer, 
in which he has been engaged until the present 
time. This occupation carries him all over 
the county, and he has become not only well 
known, but is considered one of the best in 
that line. His sales comprise real estate, chat- 
tels and other property, and he has been re- 
markably successful in n.aking large sales of 
lands and personal property. He is popular 
with all classes, and is a public-spirited and 
enterprising citizen. In 1865 Mr. Baker was 
married to Miss Marie Boyd, of Plainfield, N. 
J., and seven children have blessed their union, 
namely: Rebecca, the wife of Walter Todd, 
of Poughkeepsie; Ettie, at home; Henry, a 
cigar manufacturer at \\'appingers Falls; So- 
phia, employed in the silk works at Matteawan; 
Albert, a commercial traveler; and Belle and 
Pauline, at home. 

In politics Mr. Baker believes in the prin- 
ciples of the Democratic party, but has never 
taken an active part in public affairs. He is a 
member of the Jewish Synagogue, and of the 
Royal Good Fellows. 



SAMUEL J. TANNER. Among the active 
farmers and stock-raisers in the town of 
Pine Plains, Dutchess county, this gentleman 
holds prominent place. He belongs to one of 
the pioneer families of the county, his great- 
grandfather having been one of the early set- 
tlers of the town of Dover. He was a native 
of England, and while serving in the British 
army he was captured by the Spaniards and 
would have starved to death had it not been 
for the Spanish women. 

The grandfather of our subject, Samuel 
Tanner, was born in the town of Dover, but 
early located on the old Tanner farm, east of 
the village of Pine Plains, and became a lead- 
ing and influential man. He wedded Mary 
Mcintosh, and to them were born fourteen 
children: William, John, Alex, Reuben, Mor- 
ris, Anthony, Henry, James, Samuel, Margaret, 
Eliza, Myra, Clarissa, and Mary Magdalene, 




C^^^^2<^^^>oe^ ^- (5^«^ 



^^7^CC^l_ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



801 



most of whom resided in Columbia county, 
New York. 

Samuel S. Tanner, father of our subject, 
succeeded to the old homestead in the town of 
Pine Plains, and by the careful management 
of his business affairs accumulated a comforta- 
ble property, having in the neighborhood of 
450 acres of land, comprising one of the best 
farms in the town. He was a man of good 
natural ability, strong and rugged, of sound 
judgment and well informed for his time. His 
fortune was the result of his own diligence and 
enterprise, and his upright, honorable life won 
the high regard of all. For his first wife he 
wedded Fannie Streaver, and after her death 
was united in marriage with Miss Mary Betsy 
Lown, by whom he had four children: Will- 
iam; Fannie, wife of Henry Palmer; Mary, 
wife of John Head; and Samuel J., subject of 
this sketch. His third union was with Julia 
Sheldon, and to them were born three chil- 
dren: Elizabeth, wife of Samuel Titus; George, 
of Pine Plains; and Julia. The father voted 
the Democratic ticket, though never particu- 
larly active in political matters, and was often 
urged to take office, but declining the honor he 
only served as assessor one term. In religious 
faith his support was given to the Presbyterian 
Church, which he attended. He was called 
from this earth February 7, 1891, at the ripe 
age of eighty-si.x years. 

Our subject was born in 1845, on the old 
homestead in the town of Pine Plains, and re- 
ceived a fair education in the district schools 
of the locality, which education in later years 
he improved by reading and observation. He 
always remained upon the old homestead, aid- 
ing in its operation, and successfully managed 
the same for several years. After the death of 
his father he purchased the interest of the other 
heirs, and his career as a farmer and stock- 
raiser has been characterized by keen judg- 
ment, shrewd common sense and good business 
habits. He raises cattle, sheep and hogs, and 
is a careful, conservative business man and 
substantial farmer, owning 450 acres of valu- 
able and productive land. 

On November 28, 1894, Mr. Tanner was 
united in marriage with Fannie E. Van Aken, 
who was born April 22, i860, in Ulster coun- 
ty, N. Y. , daughter of Solomon and Catherine 
Ann (Atkins) Van Aken, highly respectable 
farming people of the town of Esopus, Ulster 
county. The father died in 1879, aged fifty- 
five years; the mother in 1891, aged sixty-six 

52 



years. They are the parents of eight children, 
three of whom are yet living. To the mar- 
riage of Mr. and Mrs. Tanner has come one 
child: Charles S., born November 8, 1895. 
They are also caring for the orphan son of 
Mrs. Tanner's sister, Aurelia (Mrs. William 
Swartout), who died September 15, 1890. 
Our subject is strictly temperate in every sense 
of the word, thus following in the footsteps of 
his father, and is a liberal contributor to the 
Presbyterian Church. In politics he is a Dem- 
ocrat, but cares nothing for political prefer- 
ment, desiring rather to devote his time and 
attention to his business interests. 



NATHANIEL SMITH, a prominent mer- 
chant of Low Point, Dutchess county, 

has been for many years the postmaster at that 
place, and his able administration of the affairs 
of the office has served to confirm his popular- 
ity and influence in that locality. He is a na- 
tive of Dutchess county, born in New Hacken- 
sack, September 18, 1840. His father, Na- 
thaniel Smith, was of English descent, and 
was born on Long Island in 1777. He mar- 
ried Eustacia Weeks, a native of Westchester 
county, and settled in New York City, where 
he followed the carpenter's trade for some 
years, the old Trinity church being among the 
most important structures which he helped to 
build. In 1832 he moved to New Hacken- 
sack, and continued his trade until his death 
in 1850, his wife surviving only six years. Po- 
litically he was a Democrat, and he and Mrs. 
Smith were both consistent members of the 
Reformed Church. Of their five children, 
some of whom were born in New York City, 
our subject is the only one now living. Will- 
iam was a carpenter, and spent most of his 
life in New York City; Susan married Oliver 
Van Dyne; Ann married Abram Stoutenburgh, 
a farmer in western New York, and Maria was 
the wife of Samuel Van Forte, a shoemaker. 
The subject of our sketch spent his school 
days mainly in Pittsford, N. Y., where he en- 
joyed the ordinary educational advantages of 
the time. His first entrance into mercantile 
life was as a clerk at New Hamburg and Hyde 
Park, but in 1856 he became station agent at 
Low Point, then known as Carthage Landing. 
After four years there he was transferred to 
Dutchess Junction, and later to Fishkill Land- 
ing, where he remained until 1871, when he 
again turned to the mercantile life, opening a 



802 



co^T^fEMOli^ tive biooraphwal recoed. 



grocer}' at Low Point. His success in this 
venture soon warranted the enhirgement of his 
stock, and he now conducts a general store, 
with a good trade. In i 86.S he was appointed 
postmaster, and has held the office without 
interruption since that time, with satisfaction 
to all concerned. Politically Mr. Smith is a 
Republican, and, as one of the substantial and 
progressive citizens of the town, he takes a 
leading part in local affairs. 

In 1864 our subject was united in matri- 
mony with Miss Maria DcGroot, a lady of 
French descent, but a native of New Ham- 
burg. One daughter blessed this union, Es- 
telle. who married George Terwilliger, of 
Wappingers P'alls. 



GEORGE W. DUTCH ER. The Dutcher 
family has held a prominent position in 
this section for many years, various members 
taking an influential part in business and po- 
litical life. The different branches of the fam- 
ily trace their descent from one or another of 
six or seven brothers who came from Holland 
to America in the latter part of the eighteenth 
century and located on Long Island, where 
some of them remained. Derrick Dutcher, 
our subject's grandfather, came from Long 
Island to Dutchess county, and settled upon a 
farm in the town of Dover. He married Miss 
Edith Chapman, daughter of William Chap- 
man, and reared a family of eight children: 
Israel, the eldest; Ransom, who never married; 
Wilbur, who married Mary Hoag; Luther, our 
subject's father; Amy. who was twice married, 
hersecond husbandbeingDaniel White; Esther, 
Mrs. Ellis Benson; Elizabeth, Mrs. E. B. Som- 
mers; and Ann, Mrs. Willis Benson. Derrick 
Dutcher and wife are dead, his wife dying in 
1 86 1, aged eighty-three years. 

Luther Dutcher was born in the town of 
Dover in 1806, and received his education in 
the common schools there. He learned the 
wheelwright's trade, becoming an expert fin- 
isher and polisher, and later engaged in the 
iron business at TDover F"urnace, being one of 
the founders of that industry there. Later he 
became connected with the Novelty Iron 
Works, located at the foot of Twelfth street, 
in New York City. On retiring from this busi- 
ness he followed farming for three or four 
years, and then resumed his former business 
at Napanoch, Ulster county, remaining two 
years. He then moved to Poughkeepsie, 



where he occupied the residence at 471 Main 
street, the present location of the Electric 
Light Company. From that place he moved 
to Dover Plains, and spent two years in the 
business of carriage manufacturing. He was 
a very benevolent man, a leader in many pub- 
lic movements, and took an active part in the 
work of the Masonic fraternity and in military 
affairs, serving as captain in the old militia. 
An ardent Democrat, he was a popular candi- 
date of his party, and held a number of town- 
ship offlces, including that of justice of the 
peace. In 1892 he was elected to the State 
Assembly, defeating John B. Dutcher, who 
had been confident of success. He married 
Miss ^delia A. Geddings, who was born in 
1S09, the daughter of Buell and Sarah Ged- 
dings, well-known residents of the town of 
Dover. Of the four children of this union, 
the eldest, Hiram W., born in 1834, was a 
farmer. He never married. Gilbert J., born 
in 1835, was in the employ of the government. 
He married Miss Mary Watson, of Ulster 
county, in 1863, and had one child, who died 
at the age of six inonths. The third son is 
the subject of this memoir, and the fourth, 
William G., was born in 1848, and after re- 
ceiving an education in the seminaries of that 
locality, entered the service of the Harlem 
railroad as conductor, and was regarded for 
many years as one of their best and most 
trustworthy employes. He married Miss Kate 
S. Swords, daughter of Henry Swords, of 
Pawling, and had two children: Sarah and 
Adelia, both of whom died in infancy. 

George W. Dutcher was born August 27, 
1839, and was educated in the academies at 
Amenia and Fort Plain. After graduating, he 
learned the trade of a carpenter and joiner, 
which he followed for twenty-five years. He 
was engaged to some extent in the undertak- 
ing business during that time, and in 1888 he 
opened such an establishment at Wing's Sta- 
tion, where he makes a specialty of that line 
of work, in which he is a leader, and carries a 
large stock of inaterials, having about $2,000 
invested. He owns a farm of fifty-two acres 
in that vicinity. His first wife was Miss Net- 
tie Hill, daughter of Thomas Hill, a well- 
known resident of the town of Olive, Ulster 
county, and of this marriage three children 
were born: (i) Frederick died when six 
months old. (2) Eva is the wife of George 
A. Trowbridge, and has two children, William 
L. and Nettie; and (3) Luther T. died at the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHIOAL RECORD. 



803 



age of fifteen years. The mother of this fam- 
ily died March 5, 1878, and Mr. Dutcher mar- 
ried Miss Sarah A. Webb, daughter of a prom- 
inent commission merchant of Wing's Station, 
Alexander Webb, who was born in Pawling, 
September 5, 1813, and after receiving his 
education there learned the miller's trade. He 
spent some years in that business at Roches- 
ter before settling at Wing's Station. He 
married Miss Elizabeth Lane, of Unionvale, 
and had two children: Sarah (Mrs. Dutcher), 
and Mary J., who married William S. Jones, 
and has two children: Nellie E. and Annie M. 

On his mother's side Mr. Dutcher is de- 
scended from the well-known Geddings fam- 
ily. His grandfather, Buell Geddings, was a 
native of the town of Sherman, Dutchess coun- 
ty, where he was educated and learned the 
trade of a wagonmaker, at which he worked 
during the greater part of his life. His last 
years were passed upon a farm in the town of 
Dover. He married Miss Sarah Reasoner, 
and has five children: (i) Noble married 
Harriet Cox, of Crum Elbow, and had three 
children: Theo F., Nina and Frank. (2) 
Adelia married Luther S. Dutcher. (3) Jack- 
son married Debora Hoag, and had four chil- 
dren: John H., who married Maria Oliver; 
George W. , who married Jennie Villinger; 
Myra, Mrs. James Reynolds; and Andrew, 
who is not married. (4) Martin married Mary 
J. Hoag. (5) William is not married. 

In politics Mr. Dutcher has always been a 
stanch Democrat, and has held a number of 
offices. He has been inspectof of elections in 
his district for nineteen years, school trustee 
for the same length of time, and is now serving 
his sixteenth term as justice of the peace. 



THEODORE S. HORTON is proprietor 
of one of the most noticeable homesteads 

in the town of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess 
county, pleasantly situated about eight miles 
from Poughkeepsie. His pleasant residence is 
flanked by a good barn and the various other 
outbuildings required by the progressive agri- 
culturist. As a tiller of the soil he is thorough 
and skillful, and has been uniformly fortunate 
in his investments. 

Mr. Horton spent his boyhood days in the 
town of Esopus, Ulster county, where his 
birth took place August 19, 1848, at the home 
of his parents, John and Phcebe (Stoutenburgh) 
Horton, both natives of Ulster county. His 



paternal grandfather, David Horton, was a 
farmer of that county, where he was married 
and spent his remaining days. The Stouten- 
burghs were of Holland descent, formerly 
bearing the name of Van Stoutenburgh. The 
maternal grandfather, Herman Stoutenburgh, 
was also an agriculturist of Ulster county. 
After their marriage the parents of our subject 
located on a farm in the town of Esopus, 
where they reared their two children: Elizabeth 
and Theodore S. Besides his farming opera- 
tions the father also conducted a grist and saw 
mill. His political support was given the Re- 
publican party, while he and his wife attended 
the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was 
called from this life in 1855, and his wife, who 
survived him for many years, died January 
13, 1895. 

The early days of Theodore S. Horton 
were spent upon the farm where his birth oc- 
curred; but at the age of eight years he came 
to the town of Pleasant Valley, to live with 
his grandfather, and here obtained a fair edu- 
cation. In 1866 he went to Poughkeepsie 
town, Dutchess county, where he lived on the 
farm of his uncle, David Stoutenburgh, and 
there followed farming. 

On November 6, 1873, was consummated 
the marriage of Mr. Horton and Miss Jennie 
Underwood, who was born on the farm where 
she now resides, and is a daughter of Gerald 
Underwood, also a native of the town of Pleas- 
ant Valley, and of Holland lineage. To them 
have been born three children, all at home, 
namely: G. Kendel, Lispnard S. and Flavins. 
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Horton con- 
tinued to live on a farm in the town of Pough- 
keepsie until the spring of 1891, when they 
removed to their present fine farm of 188 acres 
of rich and fertile land. He is a progressive 
and enterprising farmer, public-spirited to a 
high degree, and an ardent supporter of the 
Democratic party. Both he and his wife at- 
tend the Baptist Church, to which they are 
liberal contributors. They hold a high posi- 
tion in the social circles of the communitv. 



OHN W. LINK is one of the most promi- 
nent among the energetic and successful 
farmers of the town of Clinton, Dutchess 
county. His life history clearly illustrates 
what may be attained by faith and continued 
effort in carrying out an honest purpose. In- 
tegrity, activity and energy have been the 



804 



COMMEMOIiATIyE BIUQRAPHWAL RE CORD. 



crowning points of his success, and have en- 
abled him to accumulate all that he now pos- 
sesses. 

William Link, his father, was born about 
1798 in the town of Milan, Dutchess county, 
of which locality the grandparents, Philip and 
(Cookingham) Link, were early resi- 
dents and farming people. William was the 
second in their family of seven children, and 
in the common schools of the neighborhood 
received his education. On attaining manhood 
he was married, in the town of Milan, to Eliz- 
abeth Pells, a daughter of John Pells, and to 
them were born si.x children: John W. , the 
subject of this review; Eliza Ann (deceased); 
Jeremiah ;Henry (deceased) ; Helen and Charles. 
For some time after his marriage the father 
worked by the day, but later engaged in farm- 
ing on his own account, and from no source 
whatever did he ever receive financial assist- 
ance. 

In the town of Milan, December 11, 1S17, 
John W. Link was born, and he there attended 
school. On starting out in life for himself he 
first worked as a farm hand, later learning the 
carpenter's trade, at which he was employed 
some twenty-five years. His first purchase of 
land comprised a farm in his native township, 
which he operated for twelve years; but in 
1864 he bought his present farm in the town 
of Clinton, to the improvement and cultivation 
of which he lias since devoted his time and at- 
tention with remarkable success. 

In Albany, N. Y., November 13, 1851, 
Mr. Link was united in marriage with Miss 
Sarah Hicks, who was born June 20, 1823, in 
the town of Milan, Dutchess county. Her 
father, David Hicks, was born in the town of 
Pine Plains, in 1797, and in the town of Clin- 
ton he was married in the Quaker faith to Miss 
Mary Gildersleeve, who was born in that town- 
ship in 1798. He died in 18S4, she in 1889, 
and they were the parents of nine children, 
Mrs. Link being third in the family and eldest 
of those yet living. Benjamin Hicks, grand- 
father of Mrs. Link, born in 175 i, became an 
early settler of Dutchess count}'. He married 
Deborah Doty, and to them were born eight 
children, all now deceased. The family were 
Quakers in religious belief. Mr. and Mrs. 
Link rank among the oldest living pioneers of 
Dutchess county, the family having been con- 
nected therewith about 200 years, and they 
command the respect and esteem of all with 
whom they come in contact. Mr. Link has 



been a lifelong Democrat, and has served as 
road master in the town of Clinton. At all 
times he has taken an active interest in the 
welfare and prosperity of his town and county. 



GEORGE F. PHESAY, a leading watch- 
maker and jeweler of Matteawan, Dutch- 
ess county, and one of the most enterprising 
of the young business men of that place, is 
the proprietor of an establishment which com- 
pares favorably for equipment and variety of 
stock with any of its kind along the Hudson 
river. His success is the more worth}' of note 
because it is founded upon his own efforts, and 
his term of apprenticeship was served at the 
same place which he now occupies as owner. 

His parents, John and Ellen (Rhine 1 Phe- 
say, were both born in England, his father at 
Kidderminster, his mother in London. On 
coming to America in 1S56, his father, who 
was a gardener by occupation, located first at 
Matteawan and except for some years at Troy, 
N. Y., the greater portion of his time was 
spent there. Our subject was one of eight 
children, of whom two died in childhood. The 
survivors are Carrie Emma (Mrs. Albert 
Yates), John K. , James K., Ellen Nora, 
George F. and Mary Elizabeth (Mrs. Fred- 
eiick Way). 

George F. Phesay was born at Lansing- 
burg, N. Y., September 13, 1864, and was 
educated in the public schools of Matteawan, 
his parents having returned from Troy when 
he was about five years old. After leaving 
school he entered the employ of Capt. Fair- 
banks of the steamer "Martin," plying between 
Newburg and Albany, and took charge of his 
conservatories, the fine collection of orchids 
being his especial care. He remained there 
about a year, and then spent a few^ months in 
the Matteawan Manufacturing Company's 
works, but finally found thoroughly congenial 
employment in the jewelry store of the late 
A. Townsend, where he learned the business 
in all its branches. After the death of Mr. 
Townsend in 1894, Mr. Phesay remained in 
charge of the store for a time, and in Novem- 
ber of that year he bought the fixtures from 
the heirs and started in business on his own 
account at the same location, opening on De- 
cember I, 1894, with an entirely new stock, 
his choice selection displaying artistic taste as 
well as sound business judgment. 

Mr. Phesay married Miss Louise Ticehurst,. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



805 



daughter of Charles and Elizabeth (Tomlins) 
Ticehurst, prominent residents of Matteawan, 
and has two sons, Charles Frederick and 
George Simms Phesay. He and his wife at- 
tend the Episcopal Church, and are among the 
leaders in the various social and charitable 
activities of the Church. In politics Mr. Phe- 
say is a Republican, and he is a member of 
Hudson River Lodge No. 57, of the fraternal 
order of Knights of Pythias. 



EvGBERT DOTY. We are now permitted 
'I to touch brietl)' upon the life history of 

one who has retained a personal association 
with the affairs of Dutchess county since hi? 
infancy, and one whose ancestral line traces 
back to the Colonial period. His life has 
been one of honest and earnest endeavor, and 
due success has not been denied him. He is 
a native son of the county, his birth having 
occurred in the town of Pleasant Valley, Jan- 
uar}' 23, 1827; but his entire married life has 
been passed in the town of Clinton, where he 
owns a valuable farm, highly cultivated and 
well improved, with all the accessories to be 
found upon a model farm of the nineteenth 
century. 

Samuel Doty, father of our subject, was 
also born in the town of Pleasant Valley, and 
was a son of Stephen Doty, an early resident 
of that locality. On reaching maturity Sam- 
uel was married in the town of Hyde Park, 
Dutchess county, to Elizabeth Briggs, and 
eight children were born to them, in order of 
birth as follows: George, Henry and Martha 
(all deceased); Stephen, of Brooklyn, N. Y. ; 
Egbert, of this sketch; Joseph, of the town of 
Pleasant Valley; Mary, wife of Paul Flagler; 
and Hiram (deceased). In his native town- 
ship the father continued to follow farming 
until his death, which occurred in 1872; his 
wife died in 1845. He was a self-made man, 
who by sheer force of will and untiring effort 
worked his way upward until he has secured a 
comfortable competence. 

Egbert Doty grew up on the home farm, 
receiving his primary education in the district 
schools, and later was a student in the Amenia 
Academy. On Novenber 19, 1856, he was 
united in marriage, in the town of Hyde Park, 
with Mary B. \\'ood, a daughter of George R. 
Wood, and was called to her final rest March 
24, 1892, leaving a loving husband and two 
children, besides innumerable friends, to 



mourn their loss. The daughter, Josephine 
W., is the wife of Abram J. Conover. The 
son, Norman J., acquired his education in the 
public school of the town of Clinton, and the 
Poughkeepsie Military Institute. He still re- 
mains upon the home farm with his father, 
and on November 5, 1S91, in Clinton town, 
he wedded Carrie M. Hicks, a daughter of 
George S. and Emma (Foster) Hicks. They 
have a son, Foster W., born August 24, 1893. 
A man of unswerving integrity and honor, 
one who has a perfect appreciation of the 
higher ethics of life, Mr. Doty has gained and 
retained the confidence and respect of his fel- 
low men, and is distinctively one of the lead- 
ing citizens of the town of Clinton, with whose 
interests he has always been identified. 



FRANK P. MEAD. Among the wide-awake 
young farmers of the town of Amenia, 

Dutchess count}', there is probably none more 
energetic and reliable than the gentleman 
whose name begins this sketch. He has made 
many valuable and useful improvements upon 
his place, and has the land under a high state 
of cultivation. 

John Franklin Mead, father of our subject, 
was a native of the town of Amenia, born 
March 16, 1836, and died there on the home- 
stead farm, September i, 1890. His boyhood 
days were there passed, much in the usual 
manner of farmer lads, and he attended the 
district schools and the Amenia Seminary, 
acquiring a good practical education. His 
life was devoted to the pursuit to which he was 
reared, and he also served as director of the 
First National Bank of Amenia, and president 
of the Amenia and Sharon Land Co., of North 
Dakota. He was numbered among the pub- 
lic-spirited men of the county, and was one of 
the most interested in its development and 
progress. A conscientious Christian, he was a 
member of the Baptist Church of Amenia, in 
which he served as deacon; politicall\- he was 
a Republican, and for one term filled the office 
of supervisor of his township. In the town of 
Amenia he married Mary Mygatt, daughter of 
Ambrose Mygatt, and three children blessed 
their union : Emma, now the wife of Jacob 
Peters, of Amenia; Edward, of the same place, 
and Frank Presson, of this review. 

The birth of our subject occurred in the 
town of Amenia, December 13, 1869, and on 
reaching a sufficient age he attended school at 



806 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPniOAL RECORD 



Perrj's Corners, in Northeast, was later a 
student in the Amenia Seminary and the Keed 
school at Lakeville, Conn., and completed his 
education at the Housatonic Valley Institute 
at Cornwall, Conn. On December 15, 1892, 
in Amenia town, he was united in marriaj^e 
with Miss Laura Belle Bartram, only daughter 
of Barney and Laura G. (Culver) Bartram. 
He has always turned his attention to agricult- 
ural pursuits, and is now operating the old 
Bartram farm. 

Barney Bartram was born at Redding, 
Conn., in i8o8, and was a cattle broker in New 
York City the greater part of his business life. , 
In 1867 he came to Amenia, where he built 
the present residence of our subject, and 
resided there during the summer months, but 
the winter seasons he still spent in New York. 
At Pine Plains, Dutchess county, he married 
Miss Laura G. Culver, who survived him some 
time, dying in 1887, while his death occurred 
in 1S78. In religious belief he was a Method- 
ist, and he was a most highly esteemed and 
honored citizen. 



THEODORE WHEELER, a prosperous 
_ agriculturist, residing near South Dover, 
Dutchess county, is one of the sub.stantial citi- 
zens of the town of Dover. 

His father, Thomas Wheeler, was a well- 
known drover and farmer, residing near \\ ing 
Station, and owned about 1,000 acres of fine 
land. He was born in Dover in 18 14, and in 
1837 was married to Rhoda Ann Oney, of Ot- 
sego county, who was born in 18 12. They 
had three sons: Theodore, Obed and William. 

Theodore Wheeler was born in 1837 at the 
old homestead in Dover, and, in 1858, he was 
united in matrimony with Miss Jane A. Chap- 
man. The}- have one sen, Thomas S. Wheeler, 
who was born in Dover, May 22, 1862, and 
was educated at Peekskill, N. Y. Since his 
graduation he has been engaged in business in 
New York City as a broker, and he is a mem- 
ber of the Produce Exchange of that place. 
He married Miss Addie Mayer, daughter of 
Gilford Mayer, a well-known insurance agent 
of Plainfield, N. J., and his wife, Ophelia. 
Mrs. Jane A. Wheeler, was born in Dover, 
March 16, 1837, and was educated in the local 
schools. She is a lady of unusual ability and 
force of character, and is descended from an 
old Connecticut family. Her grandfather, 
John Chapman, was born and educated in 



that State, whence he came to the town of 
Dover. He and his wife, Catherine (Briggs), 
reared a family of four children: Henry, 
Richard, Ann (now Mrs. Bishop) and Sarah 
A. (now Mrs. Henry Fierol. 

Richard Chapman, Mrs. Wheeler's father, 
was a native of the town of Dover, born in 
1 8 10. He was carefully educated, and as he 
possessed mechanical ability of a high order 
he decided to learn the carpenter's trade, which 
he followed until he was forty years old. He 
then moved to Pawling, Dutchess county, and 
engaged in the restaurant business. No desire 
for political distinction was ever manifested by 
him, but he ardently believed in the principles 
of the Democratic party, and never failed to 
support them as occasion permitted. He mar- 
ried Miss Sarah Wheeler, daughter of Sebas- 
tian Wheeler, a prosperous farmer, and his 
wife, Phcebe (Wing). The five children of 
Richard and Sarah Chapman were: Francis, 
Jane A., Sarah L. , Perry M. and Emma M. 
Of these, (i) Francis, born July 11, 1835, 
was educated in the schools of his native town, 
and then engaged in the mercantile business in 
Pawling. After some years he went to New 
York City as a booi-keeper, and died there. 
His wife was Miss Jennie M. Bishop, daughter 
of Rev. Bishop. They had no children. (3) 
Sarah L. , born May 14, 1839, married Will- 
iam B. Ross, a merchant of the town of Dover, 
and they have three children: William J., 
Charles (who married Miss Ida Woodman) 
and George W. (4) Perry M., born March 
27, 1 84 1, engaged in the restaurant business 
with his father, after he had completed his 
course of study in the local schools. During 
the Civil war he served as a soldier in defense 
of the Union cause. He married Miss Ann 
Thomas, daughter of Charles Thomas, a well- 
known farmer and blacksmith of Dover. Five 
children were born of this union: Cora T. (now 
Mrs. George Daniels), Albert, Ross, Fred and 
Emma. (5) Emma M. married George W. 
Chase, cashier of the Pawling Bank, and they 
have had two children: Nellie T. and George. 



CLARENCE E. YOUNG. The subject of 
this sketch was born in Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, August 14, 1851, and is the 
son of Edward H. and Phoebe (Frost) Young, 
the former of whom was born in the town of 
Milton, Ulster county, and the latter in Dutch- 
ess county. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



807 



Our subject spent his boyhood on the farm 
and attending the public schools and the Dutch- 
ess County Academy. After tinishmg his ed- 
ucation he worked on the farm, where he is at 
present occupied in the business of gardener 
and florist. He was married in 1876 to Miss 
Rebecca U. Underbill, who was born in Queens 
county, L. I. Her father, Jacob Underbill, 
was a farmer, and came of Irish ancestors. 
Two children have been born to our subject and 
wife: Edith M. and Blanch. Mr. Young 
has a farm just outside the city limits, where he 
raises vegetables, garden supplies and flowers. 
He has a fine residence on the place. He is a 
progressive citizen, a Prohibitionist, and, with 
his wife, is a member of the Reformed Church. 

Edward H. Young grew up in Ulster county 
and married Miss Frost, who was the daughter 
of James Frost, a farmer. They lived for some 
time in Ulster county, and then moved to Pough- 
keepsie and purchased their farm in 1S50, on 
which their present house was built in 1S51. 
Four children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Young: Annie, who married William M. Du- 
Bois, a farmer of Charles county, Maryland; 
Phoebe, unmarried; Hannah, who died in 1885; 
and Clarence E. , our subject. Mr. Young 
died in 1878, and his wife in 1S87. He was 
a Republican. 

Edward Young, grandfather of our subject, 
was also born in Ulster county. He married 
a Miss Cromwell, and they reared the following 
children: John, a farmer in Ulster county, now 
deceased; David was a farmer in Pleasant 
Valley, and is now deceased; Alexander is a 
farmer in Orange county; William is on a farm 
in the town of Marlborough, Ulster Co., New 
York. 



JrrOHN R. BARRETT, the junior member of 
Ij the well-known firm of Huineston & Bar- 
rett, leading blacksmiths and wagon makers 
of Dover Plains, Dutchess county, is one of the 
prominent young business men of that village. 
He is a native of the place, born in 1865, and 
after acquiring his education in the public 
schools he learned the blacksmith's trade of 
William Barhite, of Amenia. In 1878 he es- 
tablished his present shop at Dover Plains in 
partnership with Meritt Humeston, and his 
success in this enterprise has given him excel- 
lent standing in financial circles. 

His family is of Irish origin, the home of 
his ancestors being at Doneraile, County Cork, 



Ireland. James Barrett, his grandfather, was 
born and educated there and became a farmer by 
occupation. He married Margaret Mahoney and 
had five children, of whom the youngest died in 
infancy. The others were: James and Mary, 
who never married; Ellen, Mrs. James Cullen, 
and Richard, our subject's father, who, after 
attending the schools of Doneraile until the 
age of fourteen, came to America and settled, 
in 1851, at Dover Plains. For a number of 
years he was employed by the Belding estate, 
and then he went to New York City and en- 
gaged in the mercantile business for one year, 
and, on returning to the town of Dover, fol- 
lowed farming during his later years, with J. 
K. Mabbet. He always took an intelligent 
interest in public questions, but was not act- 
ively engaged in politics. He and his wife, 
Mary Gorings, reared a family of seven chil- 
dren: Maggie, Mrs. William Donovan; Ellen, 
Mrs. William Burns; Mary, Mrs. Thomas 
Whalen; James, who married Delia Murray; 
John, our subject; George, who married Nellie 
Dahoney; and Richard, who married Annie 
Donley. 

The subject of our sketch found a worthy 
helpmeet in Miss Anna Quinlan, a lady of Irish 
descent, and their home is brightened by three 
children: Frank, born December 21, 1885; 
Arthur, September 22, 1890; and Gertrude, 
October 6, 1892. Mrs. Barrett's father, Martin 
Quinlan, was a native of Ireland, but came to 
America in boyhood with his parents, who 
located upon a farm in town of Unionvale, 
Dutchess Co. He attended the schools of that 
locality for some time, and in early manhood 
purchased a farm near Burbank, where he still 
resides. He married Miss Mary McLaughlin, 
who was also born in the Emerald Isle, and 
they have eleven children: William, who mar- 
ried Sarah Quinlan; Maggie, Mrs. Thomas 
Mullen; Daniel, who married Annie Donley; 
Martin, Charles, Terrance, Ella and Hattie, 
who are not married; Delia, the wife of John 
McKenna; George, unmarried; and Annie, now 
Mrs. Barrett. 



LEXANDER BISHOP, Jr., a prominent 
agriculturist of- the town of Wappinger, 
Dutchess county, residing near New Hacken- 
sack, is one of the most highly respected citi- 
zens of that locality, a long life of quiet, unob- 
trusive usefulness having gained him the esteem 
of a large circle of acquaintances. 



808 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



His family is among the oldest in Dutchess 
county. His great-grandfather, an English- 
man by birth, was a pioneer farmer in the town 
of Fishkill, where Caleb Bishop, our subject's 
father, was born. By occupation he was a 
farmer and lime burner. He married Hannah 
Phillips, and settled on a farm in the town of 
Poughkeepsie, where they reared a family of 
nine children. 

Gabriel Bishop, their fourth child, grew to 
manhood at the old homestead and engaged in 
the business of boating for some years. Polit- 
ically he was a Democrat. He married Hester 
Yates, a native of the same town, and daugh- 
ter of John Yates, a well-known hotel-keeper. 
Her grandfather came to Dutchess county from 
Ireland. After his marriage Gabriel Bishop 
settled in his native town, and of his nine chil- 
dren the majority located upon farms in Dutch- 
ess county. The eldest, William, was a boat- 
man on the Hudson; Jackson was a farmer in 
his native town; John, Alexander, Samuel and 
Caleb all engaged in farming; Mary Ann mar- 
ried Joseph Randolph, a jeweler; Catherine 
married Charles Deering, a farmer; and Hester 
never married. The family has always been 
identified with the Kefornied Dutch Church, 
and various members have taken an active 
part in local affairs. 

Alexander Bishop was born February 4, 
1820, and lived at the old farm until he was 
twenty-four years of age, when he married Miss 
Jane Kirklan, the daughter of a farmer of 
Greene county, N. Y. , who died when she was 
a mere infant. She was adopted and reared 
by the Rev. Van Cleef. The young couple 
made their first home upon a farm in the town 
of Lagrange, but in 1 876 they moved to their 
present property, a fine farm of i 10 acres de- 
voted to mixed crops. Mrs. Bishop died in 
1886, leaving a family of four children: Alex- 
ander, Jr., assists his father in the manage- 
ment of the farm, and is one of the influential 
young men of that vicinity, holding the office 
of commissioner of highways; Cornelius Van- 
Cleef is an undertaker in Wappinger Falls; 
Gertrude and Nellie are at home. Mr. Bishop 
has always been an interested student of public 
questions, and in politics is a Democrat. 



her 8, 1867, in Bucks county, Penn., where 
his parents, who were both natives of that lo- 
cality, now reside. 

William Heaney, his father, has been en- 
gaged in agriculture, and in boating on the 
canal for many years, and is well known in 
that section. In politics he is a Democrat, 
and he and his wife. Emily (Buck), are devout 
members of the Roman Catholic Church. They 
had five children: Henry, a canal man in 
Pennsylvania; Isaac, a blacksmith and butcher 
by trade; John, who met his death at the age 
of twenty-seven in a street-car fire at Tren- 
ton, N. J.; Charles S., our subject; and Anna, 
wife of George Mich, a boatman, in Bucks 
county, Pennsylvania. 

Charles S. Heaney spent the first sixteen 
years of his life at home, and then began work 
upon the canal, contributing his wages, until 
he was twenty-one, toward the support of the 
family. On attaining his majority he went to 
New York City, and for some time ran a barge 
for the Montrose Brick Co., but since Decem- 
ber, 1 89 1, he has been engaged in the hotel 
business at Fishkill Landing, and has also 
been interested in the wholesale beer trade as 
agent for Quinn & Nolan, of Albany, N. Y. 
On July 29, 1896, he added to these lines of 
enterprise a cafe in the Opera House block at 
Fishkill, his business sagacity being supported 
by an apparently limitless energy. 

On January 4, 1892, he was married to 
Miss Mary Quirk, daughter of Michael Quirk, 
a well-known resident of Fishkill Landing, 
who is of Irish descent. Two children, Lil- 
lian and Ellen, bless this union. In his 
political views Mr. Heaney is not hampered by 
partisan ties, and his vote is cast according to 
the requirements of the times. He is a promi- 
nent member of the Church of St. John The 
Evangelist (Roman Catholic), at Fishkill 
Landing, and is identified with the Catholic 
Benevolent League and Catholic Order of 
Foresters. 



CHARLES S. HEANEY, the enterprising 
_ proprietor of the "Oak Hotel and Cafe" 
at Fishkill Landing, and of another popular 
caf(5 on Main street, Fishkill, was born Septem- 



LIVER KEES SMITH. This gentleman 
is generally known as one of the substan- 
tial farmers of the town of Stanford, Dutchess 
county, but he now leases his land, and de- 
votes his time and attention to the fire-insur- 
ance business, having represented the Conti- 
nental Company for about ten years. He was 
' eminently successful as a tiller of the soil, and 
I is a man of keen intellect, sound judgment 




-^ 








^r- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



809 



and business ability. His early home was at 
Bear Market, in the town of Stanford, Dutch- 
ess county, where his birth took place July i, 
1834. 

The paternal grandfather of our subject, 
Stephen R. Smith, was born about 176S, in 
Rhode Island, where he married Miss Rhoda 
Harris. On leaving his native State he came 
to Dutchess county on horseback, his wife and 
three children accompanying him, locating first 
in the town of Stanford, where he followed the 
occupation of a farmer, later becoming a 
resident of the town of Clinton. He held 
membership with the Society of Friends. In 
his family of nine children, Rufus Smith, the 
father of our subject, was next to the young- 
est, and was born in the town of Stanford, 
June 8, 1805. In the schools of that town- 
ship and at Clinton Corners he received his 
education, and he continued to remain on the 
old homestead farm for two j'ears after his 
marriage. On December 3, 1828, in the town 
of Washington, Dutchess county, Mr. Smith 
married Elizabeth Thorne, who was born De- 
cember 19, 1S08, and they became the parents 
of three children, namely: (i) Cynthia T. , 
who married Thomas I. Wing, and they have 
two daughters — Annie and Carrie. (2) Caro- 
line, who married Welcome Johnson, of Min- 
neapolis, Minn., and they have three children 
— Frank (who is married, and has two daugh- 
ters, Marie and Elizabeth); Elizabeth and 
George S. (3) Oliver K., subject of this 
sketch. The entire business career of the 
father was spent in farming in the town of 
Stanford, where he served as supervisor about 
1847, and there his death occurred January 8, 
1 88 1. He was a member of the Friends 
Church. The mother of our subject is a daugh- 
ter of Stephen and Sarah (Thornj Thorne, 
while her paternal and maternal grandfathers 
bore the name of Joseph Thorne and Joseph 
Thorn, respectively, although the former was 
of French and the latter was of English ori- 
gin. Joseph Thorne was born in 1745, and 
married Sarah Kees; Joseph Thorn was born 
in 1749. The entire life of Stephen Thorne 
was passed in the town of Washington, where 
he was married, and where were born to him 
five children: Anne K.. Cynthia, Elizabeth, 
Hannah and Joseph. 

Oliver K. Smith, the subject proper of these 
lines, acquired his education in part at a school 
at New Milford, Conn., m part at the Nine Part- 
ners Boarding School, in the town of Washing- 



ton, and became familiar with the various 
phases of farm life under the capable instruc- 
tion of his father. He remained under the pa-' 
rental roof until his marriage, when he re- 
moved to his present residence in the town of 
Stanford. On September 24, 1863, in the 
town of Pleasant Valley, Mr. Smith was mar- 
ried to Miss Hannah P. Halstead, a daughter 
of Joseph G. Halstead, of Clinton town, and 
to them were born three children: Lizzie, 
wife of Harry Decker, of New York City, by 
whom she has one child — Elaine; and Thorne 
and Florence, both deceased. 

Mr. Smith is a progressive man, pre-emi- 
nently public-spirited, and all that pertains to 
the public welfare receives his hearty endorse- 
ment. For three terms he served as assessor 
of his township, being elected on the Repub- 
lican ticket, and by the Democratic party was 
elected supervisor, filling that position for one 
term. He is emphaticall}' a man of enter- 
prise, positive character, indomitable energy, 
strict integrity and liberal views, thoroughly 
identified with the prosperity and welfare of 
his town and county. He is a stanch and 
loyal friend, fond of good fellowship, and de- 
voted to those who have his confidence. 



Jjt LBERT R. BRYANT, a prominent young 
M^:_ business man of Matteawan, Dutchess 
county, is a descendant of an old English fam- 
ily long established at Bristol, England, where 
many of his ancestors were connected with the 
business of hat manufacturing. 

His great-grandfather, Richard Bryant, 
and grandfather, Jonathan Bryant, were thus en- 
gaged throughout their manhood, and his father, 
the late George Bryant, who was born in Bris- 
tol, learned the same trade there, and on coming 
to America, at the age of eighteen, continued it 
for many years. He located first at Newark, 
N. J., where he met and married Miss Eliza- 
beth Simmonds, a native of England, whose 
father, John Simmonds, brought his family to 
the United States during her youth and settled 
at Bloomfield, N. J. The early years of their 
wedded life were spent in Newark, but later 
they removed to Yonkers, N. Y. , and finally 
to Matteawan, where Mr. George Bryant fol- 
lowed the hotel business for about seventeen 
years. He was a man who took a generous 
interest in ever3'thing that pertained to the 
welfare of his adopted country, and in politics 
was a stanch Republican. He and his wife 



810 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



were members of the M. E. Church. She 
passed to the unseen life in 1871, and his death 
occurred March 11, 1888. They had five 
children: George H., who is now in the Ma- 
rine Hospital at Stapleton, L. I. ; John Ed- 
ward, a hatter by occupation ; Lucy, now Mrs. 
Newton Quick, of Yonkers; Albert, our subject, 
and Robert, who died at the age of five years. 

Albert R. Bryant was born at Yonkers, N. 
Y., July 7, 1862, and was about five years old 
when his parents removed to Matteawan. He 
attended school at that place for a time, and 
then entered a private school in New York 
City, where he remained about twelve years. 
On completing his course he returned to Mat- 
teawan and learned the hatter's trade, which 
may be said to be hereditary in his family, 
preferring the hotel business, in which he was 
engaged for nine years at the corner of Water 
and Fountain streets. In March, 1888, he 
opened a saloon at the same site, and has ever 
since conducted it. He has gained the friend- 
ship of many people, and is also successful 
financially, owning a large amount of valuable 
real estate at Matteawan, including the "Com- 
mercial House." 

In 1 88 1, Mr. Bryant was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Margaret Forsyth, a native of 
Orange county, N. Y., and a daughter of 
Joseph Forsyth, a well-known resident of that 
localit}'. Two children were born of this 
union: Edna E. --.nd George A. Mr. Bryant 
is an ardent advocate of Republican principles, 
and socially is connected with various organi- 
zations, being an active member of the B. P. 
O. E., the Foresters of America, and the 
Beacon Hose Co., of which he was foreman 
for three years and is now chief engineer. 



'AMES B. TRIPP, the able manager of an 
extensive stock farm at Dover Plains, 
Dutchess county, is considered an author- 
ity upon all questions relating to the training 
and care of that noble animal, the horse. His 
e.Nperience as foreman of large stock farms at 
Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and Danbury, Conn., 
has admirably fitted him for his present re- 
sponsible position with H. N. Bain, of Dover 
Plains. 

Mr. Tripp is a descendant of one of our old 
families, his grandfather, John Tripp, having 
been a native of Dutchess county. He became 
a farmer by occupation and for many years 
lived at Ancram, Columbia county. His wife 



was Cynthia Adzit, of Bangall, Dutchess coun- 
ty, and they reared a family of nine children: 
Daniel I. married (first) Dameris Myers, and 
(second) Mrs. Adaline Sharp; David K. ; Elisha 
married Miss West; Benjamin, Miss Shultz; 
Mariette, Henry Reefer; Anthony. Rebecca 
Reefer; Rachel, Myron Hamblin; Loretta, 
Henry Dayton; and James, our subject's fa- 
ther, chose for his life partner Emma Card, 
daughter of Esson and Lottie f Wetherill) Card, 
of Ancram. He was engaged in farming in 
that vicinity all his life, and died there January 
14, 1896. Of his six children our subject is 
the eldest. The others are: Cynthia, Mrs. 
James R. Paine; Mary R., Mrs. George Mitch- 
ell; Emma L. , Mrs. Marks Senigo; Sarah, 
Mrs. Howard Thompson; and Myra, Mrs. 
Harry Dewsnap. 

The subject of our sketch was born in An- 
cram in 1854, and for some time after leaving 
school was engaged in farming, but in early 
manhood acquired a high reputation in his 
present calling. He has always been a Dem- 
ocrat in politics, and takes an intelligent in- 
terest in public affairs. On November 3, 
1886, he was married to Miss Ella Van Steen- 
bergh, a lady of 'fine mental ability and cult- 
ure, who previous to her marriage was a suc- 
cessful teacher at Millerton and in Columbia 
county. She was born in Amenia in 1867, 
and was educated by her father, George Steen- 
burg'n, a well-known resident of that place. 
Her ancestors were among the early settlers 
in that vicinity, and her grandfather, Henry 
Van Steenbergh, was born and reared there, 
and became a prominent farmer. He married 
Miss Anna Blass, of the same town, and had 
eight children, whose names, with those of 
their partners in matrimony, are as follows: 
Philip, Sarah Hunt; Ezra, Nellie Berrian; 
John, Harriet Green; George, Mary Rowe; 
Hampton, Hattie Melloy; Gernsey, Mary 
Drake; Emmett, Phcebe Odell; and Coralie, 
Henry Pitcher. George Van Steenbergh grew 
to manhood at the old farm, and was gradu- 
ated from the Amenia Seminary. He learned 
the carpenter's trade, but, finding teaching 
more to his liking, he followed that calling 
nineteen years. In politics he was a steadfast 
Democrat, and never lacked the courage to 
express his convictions upon any subject. 
Mrs. Tripp is the only living child, two sons 
having died, Walter in infancy, and Hubert at 
the age of nineteen. Her mother, Mrs. Mary 
Rowe, was a direct descendant of the Moravian 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



811 



missionaries of that name who came to this 
countrj' to instruct the Indians in the Christian 
faith. Orville Rowe, one of Mary Rowe's an- 
cestors, was a prominent farmer of White 
Plains, Dutchess county, and his wife was 
Miss EHzabeth Pitcher, of Johnson's Corners. 



CHARLES E. BOYCE, a prominent resi- 
dent of the town of Dover, Dutchess 
county, at present holding the office of consta- 
ble, is the proprietor of a popular meat market 
in Dover Plains. He is a native of the town 
of Stanford, Dutchess county, where several 
generations of his family have made their 
home. His grandfather, Jacob Boyce, was 
born and educated there, and spent his life in 
agricultural pursuits. He married Miss Holmes, 
and reared a family of nine children: Marga- 
ret, Mrs. Henry Van Dewater; Sarah A., Mrs. 
Alfred Van Dewater; Olive, Mrs. Levi Ambler; 
Eliza and Nargette, who never married; Amy, 
Mrs. Drury; Edwin, our subject's father; Isaac, 
who married Miss Allen; and Levi, who mar- 
ried Catherine Ambler. 

Edwin Boyce was born at the old home- 
stead in the town of Stanford, September 19, 
18 12, and died May 13, 1861. He was edu- 
cated in the district schools of that locality, 
and afterward engaged in farming. He was 
married to Miss Sabrina Betts, who was born 
in 1820, and of this union four children were 
born: James H., Henrietta, Charles E. and 
Mary F. 

The subject of our sketch enjoyed the usual 
educational privileges of a farmer's boy, later 
learned the butcher's trade, and also worked 
at carpentering for some time. Since his re- 
moval to Dover Plains he has conducted a 
meat market with gratifying success, and has 
taken an active part in local affairs. His part- 
ner in life's journey is Kate Titus, daughter of 
Alexander Titus, and they have had three chil- 
dren: Ethel May, born January i, 1882; 
Alice Titus, born April 8, 1888, and Eugene 
Holmes, born May 15, 1890. 

The Titus family has been prominent in 
the town of Washington, Dutchess county, for 
many years, and Mrs. Boyce's grandfather, 
Jackson Titus, was born and educated there, 
and later became a prosperous miller. He 
and his wife, Hannah Conklin, reared a family 
of four children: Ale.xander, Mrs. Boyce's fa- 
ther; Stephen, who married (first) Harriet Bur- 



lingame, and (second) Mary Burlingame; Mott, 
who never married; and Ruth Amelia, Mrs. Jo- 
seph Titus. Alexander Titus was born in 
1 82 1, and received his early education in the 
district schools of Washington town. He en- 
gaged in the milling business for a time, but 
the greater part of his life was spent in farm- 
ing. He married Letitia Strang, daughter of 
Henry and Catherine (Adriance) Strang, and 
had six children: Kate, Mrs. Boyce; Edward, 
who married Josephine Stansbury; Anna, Mrs. 
Charles Rich; Eleanor, the wife of Charles 
Gilbert; Stephen, who married Estella Out- 
house; and Lillian, the wife of Charles Lewis. 
Mr. Titus was a prominent Republican, and 
held all the important offices in his town at 
different times, from supervisor down. He 
was also an active member of the order of Odd 
Fellows. 



JrrOHN B. WALDO is the owner of one of 
I' the finest fruit farms in East Fishkill town, 
~ Dutchess county. Around his handsome 
residence the grounds are beautifully laid out, 
and altogether it presents a most attractive 
picture. He was born upon this place at 
Johnsville, on June 2, 1846. It comprises 
175 acres of rich land, and was the last farm 
to be parted with or left by the Indians, and 
was used by them also as a burying ground. 
A part of an old Indian orchard, which at one 
time was four miles long, is still standing, and 
when the father of our subject was a boy a 
party of Indians returned here from the West 
and camped on the farm near the mountains 
for the purpose of viewing their former home. 
Charles Waldo, the grandfather of our 
subject, was a native of Windham, Conn., 
and after his marriage with Elizabeth Besley 
located in the town of East Fishkill, Dutchess 
county, but the latter part of his life was 
passed in the West, where his death occurred. 
By profession he was a physician and surgeon. 
William B. Waldo, the father of our sub- 
ject, was an only child, and was born at 
Brinckerhoff, in Fishkill town. May 5, 1805. 
He grew to manhood on the farm now owned 
by our subject, and was a graduate of Union 
College, at Newburg, N. Y. He studied law, 
was admitted to the bar at Poughkeepsie, and 
began practice at Brooklyn, but <nving to ill 
health he gave up his profession, returning to 
the farm in the spring of 1838, where he con- 
tinued to reside up to the time of his death, on 



812 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



June 14, 1867. He took an active interest in 
the success and welfare of the Whig party, 
which he always supported by his ballot, and 
was a most influential and prominent citizen 
of the community. 

The mother of our subject, who bore the 
maiden name of Jane Ann Bruce, is a native 
of New York City, and is still living. Her 
father, John M. Bruce, was a prominent mer- 
chant of that place, and was among the first 
to import tin and sheet iron in Dutchess coun- 
ty. The Bruce famil}' principally were mem- 
bers of the Baptist Church, while the Waldos 
were Presbyterians. Only two children were 
born to the parents of our subject, his sister 
being Elizabeth, who married Rev. G. T. 
Woodhull, now professor of languages in Lin- 
coln University, Pennsylvania. 

The boyhood of John B. Waldo was spent 
upon his present farm, and, after attending the 
local schools, he became a student in an 
academy at Newburgh, N. Y. On the death 
of his father, however, he returned home, and 
has since had charge of the farm, where he 
now devotes special attention to fruit culture, 
raising grapes, apples, peaches, etc., with 
most gratifying results, which fact shows that 
he thoroughly understands his business. 

On January 14, 1S72, was celebrated the 
marriage of Mr. Waldo and Miss Helen Brett, 
whose birth occurred at Johnsville. Her 
father, James Brett, and her grandfather, 
Robert Rombout Brett, were also natives of 
the town of East Fishkill, and farmers by oc- 
cupation. They were descended from the old 
patentee. Madam Brett. Nine children were 
born to Mr. and Mrs. Waldo: Jane Ann, who 
was born October 30, 1873, and died Decem- 
ber 14 following; an infant, who died un- 
named; William B., who was born November 
23, i<S74, ^nd has been an engineer on the 
Long Island railroad since sixteen years of 
age; Lewis H., who was born March 5, 1877, 
and is at this writing at home; James B., who 
was born April 21, 1878, and died May 30, 
1893; John M., who was born May 3, 1879, 
and has just graduated from the Albany Busi- 
ness College; Oliver W., born May 20, 1880; 
Elizabeth W., born January i. 1882, and 
Helen A., born January 27, 1883. The wife 
and mother was called to her final rest Octo- 
ber II, 1890. Politically, Mr. Waldo is a 
Republican, and does all in his power to pro- 
mote the welfare and prosperity of his native 
town and county. 



'{f\\AA.\M W. BAKER, a prominent agri- 

culturist and business man of Clinton 

Hollow, Dutchess county, and a veteran of the 
Civil war, was born September 25. 1843, in 
Poughkeepsie, New York. 

His family has long been well known in the 
county. His grandfather, Jesse Baker, was 
born in the town of Beekman, N. Y. , in 1778, 
and died in Lagrange, N. Y., January 22, 
1849, having passed his life in agricultural 
pursuits. He was an elder of the Presbyterian 
Church of Freedom Plains, and held an influ- 
ential position in the community. He married 
Sarah Morgan, and reared a family of six 
children, all now deceased, giving to all of 
them good educations. Their names are: 
Thomas D., Abram, Susan, Maria, Catherine 
and John M. • 

The youngest son, our subject's father, was 
born in the town of Beekman, November 16, 
181 5. His boyhood was spent in the town of 
Lagrange, where he attended schools, and in 
early manhood he engaged in the grocery 
business in Poughkeepsie, at the corner of 
Main and South Hamilton streets. Later 
he followed the carpenter's trade in the town 
of Lagrange. He was married July 17, 1839, 
at No. 97 Orchard street. New York, by Rev. 
S. I3enedict, to Eunice M. Wolvern, and by 
this union there were two sons: Jesse I. and 
William W. Of these, Jesse L, born March 
20, 1 84 1, attended the schools of Lagrange in 
early life, and learned the blacksmith's trade. 
On August 19, 1862, he enlisted in Company 
L 128th N. Y. V. L. and died February 4, 
1863, at Camp Chalmette, Louisiana. 

William W. Baker, our subject, grew to 
manhood in Lagrange, enjoying the ordinary 
life of the country boy, and making the most 
of the advantages offered by the district 
schools. At the age of eighteen he enlisted on 
the same day with his brother, and in the same 
company, the regiment being assigned first to 
the Department of the Gulf, and later to the 
forces in the Shenandoah Valley. He served 
throughout the war, fortunately escaping his 
brother's sad fate, and after being mustered 
out, June 7, 1865, he returned home. He 
worked at the painter's trade for two years in 
Lagrange, also for four years in the town of 
Clinton, later engaging in agriculture near 
Clinton Hollow, buying a farm after working 
it on shares for two years. His progressive 
ideas and energetic management have brought 
him marked success, and he now owns two 








^ 






COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



813 



good farms in that vicinity. In 1875 he en- 
gaged in pork packing in a small way, and has 
increased the business until he now enjoys an 
extensive trade. 

On September 12, 1865, Mr. Baker was 
married at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , by Rev. Sum- 
ner Mandeville, to ^Iiss Carrie S. Baker, who 
was born September 26, 1846, a daughter of 
Thomas D. Baker, our subject's uncle. Two 
children came of this union: Jesse A., born in 
1866, married Miss Ida Wooley, and has three 
children — George W., William and Viola; 
and Orrie J., born in 1868, now a farmer, mar- 
ried Vernie J. Cookingham, and has two chil- 
dren — Carrie E. and Olive J. In politics Mr. 
Baker is a Republican, and he and his wife are 
members of the Christian Church at Schultz- 
vilie. New York. 



LEWIS H. CHASE, an enterprising busi- 
ness man of Matteawan, Dutchess coun- 
ty, is the proprietor of a popular meat market, 
and is also successfully engaged in the ice 
trade, his custom extending through Mattea- 
wan, Fishkill, Fishkill Landing and Fishkill 
Village. He was born March i, 1854, in 
Westchester county, N. Y., and is of English 
descent in both paternal and maternal lines. 
His paternal grandparents settled in Putnam 
county shortly after their marriage, and reared 
eight children: John and Wright are farmers 
in Kansas; James is a laborer in Ulster county, 
N. Y. ; Robert is mentioned more fully below; 
Fred, deceased, was a laborer; Adella is mar- 
ried to Philip Van Buren, a livery man at 
Waldon, Orange Co., N. Y. ; William is a 
farmer in Ulster county ; and Elijah went West, 
and nothing is now known of him. 

Robert Chase, the father of our subject, 
first saw the light at the old home in Putnam 
county, and in early life engaged in farming. 
Since the war, however, he has been in the rub- 
ber hose and belt factory. He is a highly es- 
teemed citizen. His wife, Phcebe J. Ellis, 
who is also a native of Putnam county, is a 
daughter of Abraham Ellis, a well-known agri- 
culturist. Robert Chase is a Republican in 
politics, and he and his wife are leading mem- 
bers of the Baptist Church. Of their five chil- 
dren our subject is the youngest. Caroline 
married Lewis Glover, of Connecticut; Cather- 
ine, who was married to Theodore Post, of Put- 
nam county; Laura is the wife of Charles Ives, 



of Matteawan; and Hattie married Clark Mac- 
key, of the same place. 

Lewis H. Chase had the advantage of 
country life in his youth, remaining upon a 
farm until he was abcrut twenty-five years old. 
In 1880 he went to Matteawan to engage in 
business, forming a partnership with Abram 
Biker in a meat market. Two years later the 
firm was dissolved, and Mr. Chase purchased 
his present market on Main street, Matteawan, 
where he has built up a fine trade. His ice 
business was added in 1890, and both, under 
his able management, are constantly increas- 
ing. He has a pleasant home in Matteawan. 
His wife, formerly Miss Hattie Bogardus, to 
whom he was married in 1882, is a daughter 
of Oliver Bogardus, a well-known citizen ot 
Fishkill Village, and a descendant of one of 
the old Holland-Dutch families. Nine chil- 
dren have blessed their union: May, Etta, 
Arthur, Ralph, Walter, Robert, Lewis, Row- 
land and Mildred. Public affairs receive from 
Mr. Chase the intelligent attention which it is 
the duty of every good citizen to give. He is 
a Republican in his political views, and in local 
matters he is always to be found on the side of 
progress. Fraternally, he is a member of the 
I. O. O. F., the Order of American Mechan- 
ics, and the Order of Red Men. 



NATHANIEL PARKER. The excellent 
farm of 175 acres in the town of Dover, 

belonging to our subject, is conspicuous for the 
manner in which it has been improved and 
cultivated, and is evidently the homestead of 
one of the most enterprising men of Dutchess 
county. He is a native of New York, born in 
18 18, in the town of Kent, Putnam county, 
where his grandfather, Nathaniel Parker, whose 
birth occurred in Connecticut, had located 
when a young man, there owning a good farm. 
The latter wedded Miss Mary Rhodes, a daugh- 
ter of John Rhodes, a farmer of Peekskill, 
Putnam county, and in their family were three 
sons: John, the father of our subject; Nathan- 
iel, who remained single; and Piatt, who mar- 
ried Rhoda Post, but had no children. 

John Parker was born and educated in Kent 
town, Putnam county, where he later followed 
farming, and in the war of 181 2 served as a 
private. He married Miss Elsie Lee, daughter 
of Joseph and Abigail (Emmons) Lee, agri- 
culturists of Dutchess county, and to them 



814 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



were born eleven children, three of whom died 
in infancy, the others being as follows: (i) 
Rhodes married Miss Adaline Foley, by whom 
he had two children — John P. and Orphey. 
(2) William married Ehza Russell, and had 
three children — Isaac, John and Alpheus. (3) 
Nathaniel is next in order of birth. (4) Mary 
married Aaron Wright, and to them were born 
three children — John, Eli and Rodin. (5) 
Abigail married Joseph Fisher, and their chil- 
dren were accidentally killed. (6) Phcebe A. 
married George Fisher, and has four children — 
William H., Nathaniel, and two daughters 
whose names are unknown. (7) Sarah be- 
came the wife of Leroy Hewitt, and reared a 
family. (8) Clarinda married Augustus Lee. 

The education of our subject was such as 
the district schools of his native town afforded. 
During his younger years he learned the car- 
penter's trade, which he continued to follow 
for twenty years, and then for about eight 
years operated land in the town of Kent, Put- 
nam county, where he owned three different 
farms. On the expiration of that time he came 
to Dutchess county and purchased the Levans 
farm in the town of Dover, where he still con- 
tinues to make his home and successfully en- 
gages in its cultivation. He is a prominent and 
influential citizen of genuine worth and sterling 
integrity. In politics he is an uncompromising 
Republican, but has never aspired to official 
position. 

Mr. Parker was united in marriage with 
Miss Hulda Patrick, daughter of Jehial and Lu- 
cinda (Finch) Patrick, and they now have one 
son, Jehial, whose birth occurred in the town 
of Kent, Putnam county, but his education was 
secured in Dover town, Dutchess county. He 
is now successfully following the teacher's pro- 
fession. He was married to Miss Amy Russell, 
and to them has been born one child — Wilbur. 

John Patrick, the grandfather of Mrs. Par- 
kei, was a native of Putnam county, where he 
carried on farming, and by his marriage with 
Jemima Tyler had eight children: Bathia, 
Rhoda, Hannah, Hulda, Betsy, Jehial, David 
and John. Jehial Patrick, her father, was also 
born, reared and educated in Putnam county, 
and as a life work also turned his attention to 
agricultural pursuits. He married- Miss Lu- 
cinda Finch, a native of Connecticut, and they 
became the parents of seven children: Lewis, 
who remained single; Sarah, who married Niles 
Sturdevant; Hulda, the estimable wife of our 
subject; Samantha, who married Samuel Ros- 



co; Jemima, who never married; P'inch. who 
died in infancy; and Einmorett, who became 
the wife of Amos Merritt. 



ALBERT S. EMANS, one of the wide- 
awake and progressive business men of 

the town of East Fishkill, Dutchess county, is 
profitably conducting a good general store at 
Gayhead. He was born at that place, Janu- 
ary 30, 1854, and is the son of John S. Emans. 
His boyhood was there passed upon the home 
farm, and at an early age he became station 
agent at Hopewell Junction, Dutchess county, 
for the Newburgh, Dutchess & Connecticut 
railroad, holding that position for about a year. 
For a short time he was then with the New 
York & Erie railroad at Newburgh, and was 
later employed on a steamer for a few months, 
running between Newburgh and Nyack, New 
York. ' 

Subsequently Mr. Emans became interested 
with his father in farming, which they contin- 
ued up to the time of the hitter's death, when 
our subject began dealing in agricultural im- 
plements. These he still sells in connection 
with other general merchandise, including gro- 
ceries, dry goods, boots and shoes, wagons, 
harness, etc. His strict attention to his busi- 
ness interests and his unswerving integrity have 
aided him in securing the liberal patronage 
which he now receives, and he is ranked among 
the most reliable and straightforward business 
men in Dutchess county. 

On March 4, 1880, Mr. Emans was united 
in marriage with Miss Laura T. Thomas, who 
was born in the village of Fishkill, and is a 
graduate of the State Normal School at Al- 
bany, N. Y. Her father, E. V. B. Thomas, 
who was of Scotch extraction, was a leading 
carriage manufacturer of Fishkill. Two chil- 
dren have come to bless their union: Blanche 
A., born March 4, 1880; and Albert S., born 
October 2, 1889. 

Mr. and Mrs. Emans began their domestic 
life upon the farm, but in 1891 he purchased 
their present home, and also his good store 
property at Gayhead. In religious affairs they 
take an active interest, being consistent mem- 
bers of the Reformed Dutch Church, and he 
has served as treasurer of the Hopewell Y. M. 
C. A., and was one of the three members of 
the building committee. In politics he is an 
earnest Democrat, for three terms has been 
collector of the town of East Fishkill, was 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



815 



town clerk five years, and for the same length 
of time was notary public, while since 1891 he 
has served as postmaster. He takes an active 
interest in all social affairs, being a prominent 
member of local clubs and like organizations, 
and is one of the valued citizens cjf the com- 
munity where he is so widely and favorably 
known. 



I BRAHAM A. BOGARDUS, a substantial 
_^ ^__ and reliable agriculturist of the town of 
East Fishkill, Dutchess county, was born at 
Johnsville, in the same town, April 26, 1830, 
and on the paternal side comes of good old 
Holland ancestry. The birth of his grand- 
father, Cornelius Bogardus, occurred at what 
was then called Stonykiln, in Fishkill town, 
and throughout life he followed agricultural 
pursuits. He married Miss Elizabeth Roe, by 
whom he had four children: Cornelius, who 
became a car man in New York City; James, a 
farmer of East Fishkill town; William, a minister 
of the Reformed Dutch Church, and Elias, the 
father of our subject. 

The last named was born in the town of 
Fishkill August 16, 1784, was reared upon a 
farm, and in early life learned the carpenter's 
trade, which he always followed. He was 
married May 3, 181 5, to Miss Hannah Mont- 
fort, whose birth took place at Johnsville Oc- 
tober 25. 1 791. Her family were of French 
extraction. Her father, Adrian Montfort, was 
born at Fishkill Plains, in Fishkill town, Sep- 
tember 6, 1755, and was the son of John Mont- 
fort, a native of the same town. Upon their 
marriage, Elias Bogardus and his wife located 
on a farm in the town of Fishkill, where they 
reared their six children: Adrian, who has 
always followed carpentering in that vicinity; 
fohn C, who was a harness-maker of New 
York City, and died there May 9, 1884; Lettie 
E. , who married Henry Burroughs, a farmer 
of the town of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county; 
Susan A.; Abraham A.; and Mary J., wife of 
Aaron Woodruff, a traveling salesman of New 
York City. Before his marriage the father 
worked at the carpenter's trade in New York, 
but subsequently followed that occupation at 
Johnsville and Fishkill, Dutchess county. He 
voted the Democratic ticket, and both himself 
and wife were sincere and faithful members of 
the Reformed Dutch Church. She was called 
from this life November 9, 1839, and he passed 
away August 28, 1853. 



Upon the larm at Johnsville, Abraham A. 
Bogardus passed his childhood, early becoming 
familiar with the duties that fall to the lot of 
the agriculturist, and, in 1862, he and his 
brother Adrian purchased their present place, 
which was known as the ' ' Horton farm." It 
comprises 178 acres of fertile land, and to its 
cultivation and improvement our subject has 
devoted his time with results so satisfactory 
that to-day he is one of the prosperous farmers 
of the community. In political belief he is an 
unswerving Democrat, and for thirty-three 
years he capably filled the office of commis- 
sioner of highways. By the exercise of integ- 
rity, industry and intelligence, he has become 
a substantial and honored citizen, one who 
stands high in the estimation of his fellow men. 
In religious faith the family hold membership 
with the Reformed Dutch Church. 



.TOHN F. JEWELL, a prominent agricult- 
urist of the town of Clinton, Dutchess 
county, is a self-made man who learned in 
early years the difficult art of making farming 
pay, and has throughout his long life been 
putting his knowledge into successful practice. 
He was born April 15, 18 16, in the town of 
Poughkeepsie, and his family has long been 
known in the county, his grandfather, Harmon 
Jewell, being an early resident. The last 
named had three sons: George, Johi^ and 
Henry. 

Henry Jewell, our subject's father, lived 
to the age of ninety-six years. He was a life- 
long resident of the county, and farmed for 
many years in the towns of Poughkeepsie and 
Lagrange. He was a man of excellent habits, 
and a member of the Reformed Dutch Church. 
In politics he was in early days a Democrat, 
but later a Republican, and he took an active 
interest at times in local affairs, serving as 
constable for many years. He married Bet- 
sey Van Kleeck, and had eight children: (i) 
Bernard; (2) Maria (Mrs. Richard Grant); 
(3) Martha (Mrs. Jacob Nelson); (4) Cathar- 
ine, who married (first) Casper Dusenberry, 
and (second) John McNeal; (5) Gertrude; 
(6) Eliza (Mrs. Harvey Grant); (7) Henry 
E., a resident of Newburg, and married to 
Rachel Lewis; and (8) John F., our subject. 
Of this family the first and the two youngest 
are the only survivors. 

Our subject moved to the town of Lagrange 
in boyhood, and his school days were spent near 



816 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Lagrange. At an early age he began working for 
farmers in that vicinity, and on attaining his 
majority he went to the town of Olive, Ulster 
county, and followed the same employment 
for four years. He then took a farm on shares, 
and later bought one in the town of Rosen- 
dale, where he lived eleven years. Returning 
to Poughkeepsie he spent a year, and in Sep- 
tember, 1 868, he purchased his present farm 
near Rowland, where he has resided since 
March, 1869. He started out in life without 
help from his relatives, and his accumulations 
are the result of hard work and wise manage- 
ment. As a speculator he displays unusual 
judgment, and he has dealt profitably in cat- 
tle and horses for many years. 

Mr. Jewell was married, January 18, 1838, 
to Miss Ann Eliza Merrihew, who was born 
December 11, 18 16, in the town of Olive, 
Ulster county, a daughter of Stephen and 
Rebecca (Krum) Merrihew, well-known farm- 
ers of that locality. Two children came of. 
this union: (n Martha, born October 6, 
1839, married Abram Hill, of Newburg, and 
has two children — Willet and Mary (Mrs. 
Samuel Brown). (2) Andrew, born April 2, 
1843, is the proprietor of a livery and board- 
ing stable on Main street, Poughkeepsie. He 
married Aurelia Cookingham. In politics our 
subject is a Democrat, and has been from his 
first vote. He is progressive in his ideas, 
always ready to help forward any worthy 
movement, and he contributes to several 
Churches in his neighborhood. 



WILLIAM HALL HART, an e.xtensive 
fruit grower and farmer in the town of 

Lagrange, Dutchess county, was born there 
March 3, 1853. He attended the private 
schools of Poughkeepsie, and later went to 
Dartmouth College, where he was graduated 
in 1875, taking the degree of A. B. Return- 
ing to Lagrange, he has since given his atten- 
tion to his farm. He has a fine orchard, and 
makes a specialty of growing apples. 

Benjamin Hall Hart, father of our subject, 
was born in Hempstead, L. I., February 13, 
181 1, and attended school at Richmond, Va. 
Later he went to sea on account of his health, 
acting as mate on the Liverpool line for six 
years. In 1836 he was married at Hempstead 
to Miss Elizabeth Nichols, and the following 
children were born to them: (i) Mary Amelia. 
(2) Edmund Hall married Isabella M. How- 



land; they live at Federal Point, Fla., and 
have had four children — Theodora, Adelia, 
Lucy Eleanor and Amy, the last named hav- 
ing died. (31 Walter Nichols married Cor- 
nelia D. Storm, and lived at Federal Point, 
Fla.; their children are Mary Louisa, Cornelia 
Brinckerhoff and Abram Percival; \V. X. Hart 
died in 1884. (4) Ambrose Burnham, who 
lives at Lake City, Fla. (Walter and Ambrose 
each served three years in the Union army, 
and each was honorably promoted). (5) Lou- 
isa Abigail married Edwin S. Hubbard, of Fed- 
eral Point, Fla., and had two children — Edith 
Louisa and Ervin Stuart. (6) Elizabeth Emily. 
(7) William Hall. In 1839 the father of this 
family moved to the town of Lagrange, where 
he spent the remainder of his days farming, 
e.xcept that he visited California twice, in 1849 
and 1850, and spent the winters after 1867 at 
his orange grove in Florida. He died in 1875, 
a member of the Episcopal Church, a stanch 
Republican, and an active and respected citi- 
zen. 

Seth Hart, grandfather of William H., was 
born June 21, 1763, at Kensington, Conn., 
was educated at Yale College, where he was 
graduated in 1784, after which he studied med- 
icine, and for a time practiced as a physician. 
He went in that capacity with the surveying 
party that laid out the city of Cleveland, Ohio. 
Desiring to become a clergyman of the Epis- 
copal Church, he studied to that end, and in 

1 79 1 was admitted to the order of deacons, in 

1792 to the order of priests by Bishop Sea- 
bury. He became rector, consecutively, of 
St. John's Church, Waterbury; St. Paul's, 
Wallingford, Conn. ; and for twenty-eight years 
of St. George's, Hempstead, L. I., at which 
latter place he also kept a private school. He 
died there March 16, 1832, and his wife, who 
in her maidenhood was Ruth Hall, daughter of 
Hon. Benjamin Hall, of Cheshire, Conn., 
passed away November 3, 1841. They were 
the parents of the following children: (i) Will- 
iam Henry, born January 5, 1790, married 
(first) Lydia Hubbard Moore, of New York, 
and (second) Maria Graham, of Shawangunk, 
N. Y. ; he died July 28, 1852. (2) Ambrose 
Gustavus, born October 13, 1792, died Octo- 
ber 15, 1816. (3) Hannah Burnham, born 
July 16, 1797, died in September, 1798. (4) 
Henry William, born October 26, 1799, died 
January 9, 18 13. (5) Elizabeth Anne, born 
May 9, 1809, died December 24, 1840, mar- 
ried William J. Clowes, of Hempstead, L. I., 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



817 



and their daughter, Caroline Morgan, makes 
her home with our subject (she is well known 
as an artist of much talent, and has made 
painting her life work). (6) Benjamin Hall. 
(7) Edmund Hall, born August 7, 1813, died 
August 22, 1838. 

Matthew Hart, the great-grandfather of 
our subject, was born in Kensington, Conn., 
January 23, 1737, and was married November 
15' '759. to Miss Elizabeth Hopkins. He 
died in 181 1. The following children were 
born to him and his wife: ^fatthew, Seth, 
Sarah, Elizabeth (who married Dr. James Per- 
cival, by whom she was mother of James G. 
Percival, the poet), and Oliver. 

Matthew Hart, Sr., great-great-grandfather, 
was born in 1690 at Farmington, Conn., and 
was married January 10, 1725, to Miss Sarah 
Hooker. He died October 30, 1736. Five 
children were born: Ruth, Mary, Lois, Oliver 
and Matthew. 

Capt. John Hart, the great-great-great- 
grandfather, was born at Farmington about 
the year 1655. He married Miss Mary Moore. 
He belonged to the Farmington train-band, of 
which he became lieutenant and captain, be- 
sides holding other important offices in the 
community. He died November 11, 1714, 
and Mrs. Hart on September 19, 1738. Their 
children were John, Isaac, Sarah, Matthew, 
Samuel, Nathaniel and Mary. 

John Hart, great-great-great-great-grand- 
father, was born in Braintree, England. He 
came to America and located at Farmington, 
Conn., where one night in 1666 his house was 
set on fire by the Indians and he and all his 
family, with the e.xception of the eldest son, 
John, who, but eleven years old, was away 
from home caring for stock on an outlying 
farm, were burned to death. 

Deacon Stephen Hart was born in 1605 in 
Braintree, England, and married (2) Margaret, 
the widow of Arthur Smith. About 1632 he was 
oneof thefifty-foursettlers of Cambridge, Mass. , 
and was one of the original proprietors of Hart- 
ford, Conn., in 1635, it being a tradition that 
the name of Hartford originated from a ford 
in the Connecticut river which he discovered 
and used, and which was called Hart's ford. 
He was one of the leading settlers of Farm- 
ington, about 1640, where he died in 1683. 
He was a man of great force and influence in 
public affairs. Si.\ children were bornto him and 
his first wife: (i) Sarah, married November 

20, 1644, to Thomas Porter; (21 Mary, mar- 
53 



ried (first) to John Lee. (second) to Jedediah 
Strong; (3) John; (4) Steven; (5) Mehitabel, 
married to John Cole; and (61 Thomas, born 
in 1643, married to Ruth Hawkins. 



ISAAC BRYAN (deceased). Among the en- 
_ terprising and prosperous agriculturists of 
the town of Northeast, Dutchess county, the 
subject of this sketch held a prominent place, 
maintaining in his day the reputation for en- 
ergy and sound judgment which his father and 
grandfather had established at an earlier time. 
The familj' is of English origin, and the 
earlier generations were residents of Newtown, 
Conn., where our subject's great-grandfather, 
Alexander Bryan, was born. A family record 
exists which was written by him in 1759. Ezra 
Bryan, our subject's grandfather, was born at 
Newtown, November 30, 1740, and was the 
first of the family to come to Dutchess count}-. 
He became the owner of a large tract of land 
in the Nine Partners territory, which since his 
death has been divided into several good-sized 
farms. He was a cabinet maker by trade, and 
engaged for a time in the manufacture of cof- 
fins, but later invented a fanning-mill, which 
he manufactured on quite a large scale at the 
old farm, employing three or four men. As 
may be inferred, he was a man of much tal- 
ent, noted for his practical business abilitv. 
He was a Quaker in religion, and his death 
occurred while on his way to meeting, July 9, 
1825. He was married May 21, 1761, at 
Newtown, Conn., by David Judson, minister, 
to Sarah Beck, who was born April 12, 1738, 
and died November 19, 1829, and their re- 
mains now rest in the family burial lot at 
Shekomeko. They had six children, whose 
names with dates of birth and death are as 
follows: Alexander, March 23, 1762 — Decem- 
ber 14, 1 781; Eliza, September 13, 1764 — 
October 9, 1842; David, July 18, 1767 — June 
30, 1848; Isaac, July 4, 1772— July 30, 1776; 
Isaac, August 18, 1776 — June 25, 1854; and 
Amos, January 31, 1779 — April 12, 1863. 

Amos Bryan, our subject's father, succeed- 
ed to his father's business, and carried on the 
manufacture of fanning-mills, at the same time 
operating a large farm, having inherited the 
old homestead and bought in other portions of 
the estate. He was successful in business and 
prominent in public affairs, and his integrity 
and ability won for him the entire confidence 
of the community. He helped to settle a 



818 



COMMEilORATIVE BWORAPUIC'AL RECORD. 



number of estates, was a justice of the peace 
for many years, and in 1840 was a member of 
the State Assembly. He died April 12, 1863, 
followed on the 24th of the next month by his 
wife, formerly Betsey Finch, of Ancram, to 
whom he was married October i, 1804. Nine 
children were born of their union, whose names 
with dates of birth and death are here given: 
Laura, October 5, iSos^May 20, 1831; 
Ward, April 12, 1807 — December 14, 1863; 
Eliza (Mrs. Henry Sisson), March 16, 18 10 — 
September 3, 1884; Ezra, March 4. 1812 — 
March 22, 1876; Isaac, .August 25, 1815 — Sep- 
tember 14, 1885; James, November 27, 1817 
— March 16, 1839; David, September 22, 
1 819 — now living; Mary (Mrs. James Carman), 
December 9, 1822 — November i, 1853; and 
Sarah (Mrs. James E. Mott), April 10, 1825 — 
April 15, 1872. 

Isaac Bryan was educated at Warren, 
Conn., and at Peekskil'1-on-the-Hudson, re- 
ceiving a good education for the time, and was 
throughout life an intelligent reader on general 
topics. He engaged in farming at the old 
homestead, but in i860 bought the farm near 
Shekomeko where his family now reside. It 
consists of 240 acres of fine land, and is said 
to be one of the best farms in the town of 
Northeast. He possessed excellent business 
judgment, and accumulated a large property. 
He was a public-spirited man, but although he 
was a stanch Republican and greatly interested 
in the success of his party, he was no office 
seeker, the only position ever held by him be- 
ing that of commissioner of highways. He 
had been reared a Quaker, but in later years 
he attended the Pine Plains Presbyterian 
Church. In 1861 he married Miss Mary Hoff- 
man, daughter of Henry Hoffman, a well- 
known citizen of Pine Plains. Two children 
were born to this union: Ward, November 
II, 1863, and Edward, September 4, 1866, 
who conduct the farm. Edward received a 
good English education at the Pine Plains 
Academy, and at twenty returned to the farm. 
In 1 895 he was married to Miss Angle Smith. 



JG. DAWSON, M. D., of Matteawan. The 
Dawson family originated in England, and 
the first to come to the New World was 
William Dawson, who, with his wife, Isabella, 
crossed the Atlantic about 1760. According to 
family tradition they were p-riends or Quakers, 
and fled from their native land in order to es- 



cape the persecution to which the followers of 
that faith were then subjected. They settled 
in Caroline county, Maryland, and being iso- 
lated from the P'riends, they imited with a new 
society called " Nicholites, " after its founder 
and head, Joseph Nichols, of Kent county, 
Delaware. This sect was spreading rapidly 
in eastern Maryland about the time of their 
coming, but by the end of the century it had 
merged into the Society of Eriends. William 
and Isabella Dawson reared a family of eleven 
children: John, Elizabeth, William, Mar- 
garet, Jonas, Edward, Elijah, Elisha, Shad- 
rach, Frederick and Joseph. 

Elijah Dawson, the great-grandfather of 
the gentleman whose name opens this biog- 
raphy, was born in Caroline county, Mary- 
land, March 9, 1764. He married Catherine 
Broadway, daughter of Robert and Sarah 
(Russum) Broadway, and made his home near 
Sandtown, Kent count}', Delaware, where he 
died leaving two children — Greenbury and 
Sarah. 

Greenbury Dawson, the grandfather of our 
subject, was a native of Kent county. Dela- 
ware, born in April, 1785, and engaged in 
farming in the same county, near Camden. 
In religious faith he was a Friend. His death 
occurred April 6, 1847, and his wife, Mary 
Smith, daughter of Major Thomas Smith, died 
March 12, 1846. They had six children: 
Catherine, William, Thomas, Willard H., 
Mary S. and Ezekiel. None are now living 
except the last named, who is a prominent 
physician at Baltimore, Maryland. 

William Dawson, our subject's father, was 
born June 24, 18 17, near Camden, Delaware, 
and became one of the most successful agri- 
culturists in that region, accumulating a hand- 
some competence. He possessed unusual 
force of character, and was a leader in local 
affairs, and in the Whig party. On December 
29, 1840, he married Elizabeth G. Britting- 
ham, whose father, a prosperous farmer, came 
from England about 181 5, and settled in Kent 
county, Delaware. William Dawson estab- 
lished his home near Smyrna, Delaware, 
where he died, September 30, 1854, but his 
widow still resides there. Of their eight chil- 
dren our subject was the youngest. Ann M. 
and Sarah died in infancy; Thomas G. is a 
dentist in California; Mary J. married Dr. 
John M. Smith, of Chcswold, Del.; Margarette 
married John M. Bishop, a farmer of the same 
locality; William H. is an agriculturist in 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



819 



Maryland, and Ezekiel is a manufacturer of 
butter, at Newark, Delaware. 

With this introduction we may the better 
trace the history of our subject, who is a 
worthy representative of an ancestry noted for 
ability and high character. During his boy- 
hood Dr. Dawson lived at the old farm near 
Smyrna, Del., attending the local schools, 
with one year in the Classical Academy at 
Smyrna. In 1872 he entered the State 
Normal School at Millersville, Penn. , and on 
completing his course in 1875, he engaged in 
teaching in the country districts. Deciding 
upon the medical profession as a lifework, he 
began his preparation in 1877, at Smyrna, 
and in the following year he was enrolled as a 
student in the Hahnemann Medical College at 
Chicago, from which he was graduated in 
1880. Locating at Milford, Del., he practiced 
successfully until 1892, when, realizing the 
necessit}' for change and rest, he went to New 
York City for a time. In February, 1892, he 
settled at Matteawan, where he speedily won a 
high place in the esteem of the people, both 
as a citizen and a practitioner. He has never 
joined the ranks of the happy Benedicts. In 
all public questions he takes an intelligence 
interest, and he is active in local affairs. Po- 
litically he is a Republican, and he is now 
serving as health officer of the town of Fish- 
kill. For some time past he has been a mem- 
ber of the Masonic order, and he is also an 
active worker in the American Institute of 
Homeopath}'. 



JLSOX OSTRANDER, one of the oldest 
L and most highly respected citizens of 

Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, is a repre- 
sentative of a family which has long been 
prominent in this region. 

The ancestors of our subject who first 
represented this branch of the family in Amer- 
ica was Pieter Pieterson Ostrander, who left 
Amsterdam, Holland, on the ship " Spotted 
Cow," April 16, 1660. Landing in June fol- 
lowing, he settled at Kingston, N. Y., where, 
on January 19, 1679, he was married to Re- 
becca Traphagen. Their son, Arend, who 
was baptized at Hurley, N. Y., October 5, 
1684, married Gertrude Massen Van Bloomen- 
dahl, daughter of Maas Van Bloomendahl. 
Maas Ostrander, a son of Arend, was baptized 
at .Albany, N. Y., April 11, 17 14, married 
Jennetje Swartwout, and their son Cornelius, 



who became the grandfather of our subject, 
was born July 22, 1742; he married, April 25, 
1764, Mary Luyster Brinkerhoff. Their son 
Cornelius, our subject's father, was born at 
Fishkill, May 22, 1775, and was reared at the 
old farm, attending school in the neighborhood 
during boyhood. He learned the shoemaker's 
trade, and followed it for some years, going 
from one farm to another in winter and making 
shoes. His later years were spent upon his 
farm; he died January 17, 1853. He married 
Mary Way, and had eight children, of whom 
only two are now living: Alson, the subject 
of this sketch; and Melinda, who married 
James E. Smith, of Fishkill. 

Alson Ostrander was born at Fishkill March 
9, 18 1 8, and spent his boyhood there attend- 
ing the public schools near his home. At the 
age of fifteen he went to New York City, and 
found employment as a clerk in the grocery 
store of N. D. Hurder. In 1838 he returned 
home, and remained with his father (who then 
lived near Freedom Plains) until 1840, when 
he went to Genesee county, making the jour- 
ney with a horse and wagon. There he 
worked on his brother's farm for three years, 
and October i, 1844, he came to Pough- 
keepsie, where he has since resided. Until 
1847 he was with Slocum, Jilson & Co., in 
their pin factory, the ruins of which still stand 
on Bayeau street. Mr. Ostrander left this 
employment to become assistant postmaster 
at Poughkeepsie for Egbert B. Kelley, with 
whom he remained three years, and so well 
and faithfully did he discharge his duties that 
the two succeeding postmasters found him in- 
dispensable. He was next employed in the 
county clerk's office during the term of George 
H. Tompkins, and in 18C0 he became con- 
nected with the firm of William W. and James 
Reynolds, Jr. (now Reynolds & Cramer), with 
whom he remained twenty-eight years, when 
he retired from active business. He is a 
man of quiet tastes and reserved manners; 
but while he has never sought prominence, he 
has more than once taken an influential part 
in advancing measures which he believed to be 
beneficial to the public. He is an ardent 
friend to the temperance cause; has voted the 
Prohibition ticket ever since the organization 
of the party, and is now the senior resident 
member of the Sons of Temperance. His 
connection with that body dates back to 1846 
when he became a member of Howard Divi- 
sion No. 45, and when that society gave up its 



820 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



charter, Mr. Ostrander, with William Schrum, 
Judson D. Case, Richard Brittain, Lazarus V. 
]jrinck, Thomas Piatt, John M. Cable, Isaac 
Butler, Dennis C. ("lemishire, and James 
Brewer, took their cards and joined Pough- 
keepsie Division No. 9, which was instituted 
August 4, 1843. 

On June 3, 1841, Mr. Ostrander was mar- 
ried in Genesee county to Miss Harriet Arnold, 
who died leaving one son, Alson B., born 
February 2, 1846, at Poughkeepsie, who was 
a soldier in the Civil war and is now a resident 
of New York City. He was married at ]5er- 
gen, N. v., to Hettie Gifford. Mr. Alson 
Ostrander was again married, this time at 
Leon, N. Y., February 7, 1854, to Miss 
Frances E. Evarts, who was born February 
14, 1825, a daughter of Rev. Renaldo M. and 
Eliza (Morley) Evarts. Two sons (twins) 
were born of this union at Poughkeepsie, Feb- 
ruary 7, 1863 — James Henry and Charles 
Melville, both of whom are successfully estab- 
lished in life, the latter being now in the in- 
surance business at Omaha, Nebraska. 

James Henkv Ostrander has chosen to 
remain in his native city, where he now con- 
ducts an extensive undertaking and embalm- 
ing business. His early education was ob- 
tained in the public schools of Poughkeepsie, 
and on leaving the high school he entered the 
telegraph office as messenger, and later was 
employed as salesman for a New York firm, 
and then began to learn the undertaking busi- 
ness with Stephen Merritts, with whom he 
worked three years. In 188S he returned 
to Poughkeepsie where he had already won a 
high standing in business circles. He was 
married there June 5, 1888, to Miss Lavinia 
S. Cluett (born November 28, 1864), daughter 
of George W. and Lavinia Cluett, and has 
one son, Cornelius, born January 11, 1892. 
He is a member of Poughkeepsie Lodge No. 
268, Chapter No. 172, King Solomon Council 
No. 31, Commandery No. 43, Mecca Temple 
A. A." O. N. M. S. 



BOYD FAMILY, THE, which has been 
prominent in this section for several gen- 
erations, originated in Scotland, and the head 
of this branch was among the " Scotch Seced- 
ers " who went to the North of Ireland about 
the year 1700 to avoid the religious persecu- 
tions of the time in his native land. He set- 
tled in County Down, but the e.xact locality 



cannot now be ascertained. The coat of arms 
found in the possession of some of his descend- 
ants is the same as that of the Kilmarnock 
Boyd, and without doubt if the record had 
been kept all could trace their lineage to the 
same source in Scotland. The name of this 
ancestor is not known, but his family, as far as 
can be learned, consisted of five children: 
Samuel, Robert, James, Nathaniel and Mary. 

Samuel Boyd came to New York Cit}' early 
in the eighteenth century, and finding this 
country a haven of rest from the hardships and 
religious wars of the Old World, he assisted 
his brothers and sisters to come. They re- 
mained but a short time in New York City, 
and most of them made their permanent home 
at New Windsor, Orange Co., N. Y. With 
the exception of Samuel the brothers were all 
married and had large families, which shows 
that they were well advanced in years. Na- 
thaniel Boyd was born in County Down, Ire- 
land. He married (first) Margaret Beck, (sec- 
ond) Martha Monsel, but whether the last 
marriage took place in Ireland or America 
there is now no means of knowing, and (third) 
Jane Johnston. He settled in Little Britain, 
Orange county, where he passed the remainder 
of his days. There were seven children bj' the 
first marriage, and nine by the second. 

John Boyd, his first son by the first mar- 
riage, was born in ("ounty Down, March 24, 
1746, and came to America with his parents at 
the age of eight years, and removed to Amenia, 
Dutchess county, from his home in Orange 
county, about 1769. On August 10, 1769, he 
married Elizabeth Winager, who was born 
April 3, 1754, and was a daughter of Conrad 
Winager, an extensive landholder of Dutchess 
county, and nnlde his home at Amenia where he 
followed the tailor's trade. As he is said to 
have owned a large tract of land there at the 
time of his death, on August 29, 181 7, he 
probably received a portion of his father-in- 
law's estate. His wife died October 5, 1820. 
He was known as Capt. John Boyd, and his 
name appears among 300 others on the • ' Roll 
of Honor " during the Revolutionary war. 
The records of the State of New York show 
him first as a lieutenant in Capt. Colby Cham- 
berlain's company in the 6th Dutchess County 
Regiment, March 20, 1778, and later as a 
captain in the 5th Dutchess County Regiment 
under Col. William Huinpihrey. Capt. Boyd's 
name is on the records of the old Presb3'terian 
Church at Amenia, and he was connected with 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



821 



the Society during the building of the church 
edifice in 1796. He was a man highly es- 
teemed and trusted by his fellow-citizens. In 
his time people did not know the meaning of 
bills, checks and drafts, and they learned by 
sad experience the vvorthlessness of Conti- 
nental bills. Capt. Reed at one time when 
making a large purchase of wheat requested his 
neighbor, Lieut. John Boyd, to bring from 
Poughkeepsie a certain bag of silver money. 
Mr. Boyd brought it on horseback on the 
pommel of his saddle, and when he rode up to 
the store an attendant lifted it down, not with- 
out some exertion, and carried it in. His 
family consisted of eleven children, most of 
whom died in early life. The two who sur- 
vived and settled in Amenia were Samuel, who 
married Sarah, daughter of Judge Ephraim 
Payne, and Gilbert, who married Abigail 
Chamberlain; none of their descendants are 
now living in Dutchess county. The youngest 
son, David Boyd, for forty-six years known 
as a prominent tanner, was born in Amenia, 
N. Y. , May 21, 1795, and remained in his 
native place, with the exception of a few years 
of his childhood passed in Little Britain, until 
he was seventeen years of age. He had the 
usual advantages offered by the common 
schools of the day, of which he was a regular at- 
tendant until he reached the age of seventeen. 
He left home in the year 18 12 determined to 
acquaint himself with some branch of industry 
in which he might become self-supporting. 
His brother James was already engaged in the 
tanning business in Brooklyn, N. Y. , and thither 
David directed his steps and apprenticed him- 
self to learn the trade. The custom of drinking 
which was then so common in all classes of so- 
ciety, especially in the cities, was new to young 
Boyd, and being surrounded with temptation 
it was not long before he determined to return 
to his quiet country home. His parents, 
having a just appreciation of his motives, ap- 
proved of his resolution to look in another di- 
rection for a chance to fit himself for the tan- 
ner's trade. While visiting some relatives in 
Poughkeepsie, he was introduced to Mr. John 
Gary, a practical tan* er of that place, who had 
a tan-yard on Washington street, near the 
corner of Main, in what is now the center of 
the city. No vestige of it remains to-day. 
With Mr. Gary he resumed his labors, ac- 
quiring a thorough knov;ledge of the trade, 
and remained with him several years until 
after Mr. Gary removed his business to Troy, 



N. Y. During this time his home was with 
his employer's family, where he met Mr. 
Gary's sister-in-law, Rhoba Pettis, who was 
born June i, 1792, at Foster, R. L, and died 
February 12, 1836. They were married in 
Troy, April 27, 1817, and having now a family 
to provide for, Mr. Boyd was desirous to 
commence business for himself, and he re- 
turned to Poughkeepsie to run the same yard 
where he had learned the trade a few years 
previous. In 1821 he opened a leather 
store on Main street, in the building now 
owned by John J. Bahret, the clothier, and 
lately occupied by him. Here he retailed all 
kinds of leather, employing his leisure in finish- 
ing such stock as he could purchase in the 
rough from country tanners. He soon deter- 
mined to make a more permanent arrange- 
ment for carrying on business, and for that pur- 
pose built himself a store and tannery, at 
No. 360 Main street, where he tanned 
most of the hides, calf and sheep skins, 
bought by him in the Poughkeepsie mar- 
ket, besides finishing calf and kipskins, 
picked up in New York while purchasing his 
stock of sole leather. He followed this busi- 
ness during the remainder of his life, his indus- 
try and integrity being rewarded by the acqui- 
sition of a considerable property. He lived 
during the most of this time where South- 
wick's place of business now stands; later he 
removed to the corner of Cannon and Hamil- 
ton streets, where he died May 10, 1851. 

A just appreciation of the probable growth 
of the city induced him to purchase at differ- 
ent times several acres of land in the suburbs 
of the town which he disposed of at such times 
as he found opportunities for making profitable 
sales, and he realized from these investments 
all and even more than he had at first antici- 
pated. He built a more extensive tannery, at 
the place known as the Red Mills. Years of 
trial followed those of prosperity, and the 
financial crisis of '36 and '37 was a season of 
heavy losses for him, but it was always a mat- 
ter of honest satisfaction to Mr, Boyd that he 
had been able to meet his indebtedness paying 
one hundred cents on the dollar in every case. 
It was his maxim during life to live hon- 
estly, and deal justly with all men. He 
continued in active business until the years of 
his death, enjoying the regular routine of a 
busy life and the intercourses of those with 
whom he had so long been associated. He 
was a director in the Bank of Poughkeepsie for 



822 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



many years. In religion he was a Presbyte- 
rian, and he aided in the building of the church, 
and was one of the substantial members and 
trustees. He was a member of " Old Protec- 
tion No. i" Fire Engine Company in the year 
1 82 1. 

By his first wife he had three children, 
Mary Eliza, who married Abram Wiltsie; John 
Gary, and Julia who married Alson Ward. 
His second wife was Clarissa Lewis, who died 
.April II, 1856, leaving no children. Accord- 
ing to his desire he was succeeded in business 
by his son and son-in-law, under the firm name 
of Boyd & \\'iltsie, his plans for the future 
being well-known to them. 

John G. Boyd, the only son of David Boyd, 
was born February 12, 1825, at the place now 
known as No. 16 Washington street, Pough- 
keepsie. As a young man he became engaged 
with his father in business, beginning as an ap- 
prentice. He had good advantages in youth, 
and was given a fine business education. At 
eleven years of age he was sent to Dover to 
study with Mr. Jeliffe, and later he attended 
Fay's school at New Paltz. After leaving 
school he went into the tannery with a view 
of becoming acquainted with the trade, his 
time being divided between store and tan- 
nery. He succeeded to a share in the bus- 
iness in his twenty-eighth year, at his fa- 
ther's death. In the same year he married 
Phebe E. Trowbridge, daughter of Stephen 
B. Trowbridge and Eliza Conklin. The firm 
of Boyd & Wiltsie continued in business twen- 
ty-five years, and the real-estate interest was 
continued even after that time. The old en- 
terprise is still carried on by Messrs. Dick & 
Dobb, Mr. Dick having been an employe for 
many years. Previous to May, 1853, he was 
a member of Howard Hose Company, No. 2. 
For twenty-nine years Mr. Boyd was trustee 
of the Presbyterian Church, and was always 
ready to do his duty. He was connected with 
the Poughkeepsie National Bank for twen- 
ty-two years, having held the office of vice- 
president for some time, and that of president 
for two years, until compelled by failing health 
to decline a re-election. He was a member 
of the Water board, and trustee of Pough- 
keepsie Rural Cemetery for many years pre- 
vious to his death, which occurred April 6, 
1886. There are not many to be found 
through the conflicts of an active business life 
who have gained and retained to the last the 
friendship and respect of all with whom they 



have come in contact. Mr. Boyd, from his 
natural benevolence of disposition, accom- 
plished this in a remarkable degree without 
effort. A born gentleman, it was easy for him 
to make and retain friendship. His kindly 
nature was free from restraint in all his inter- 
course with men, and he left upon all the 
impression of inherent modesty and true 
affection, excellent purpose, broad views 
and sound judgment. He sought to cul- 
tivate the good feeling of others. He loved 
the bright and beautiful side of life and would 
fain have others share his joyous disposition. 
Enemies he had none, for his gentle ways for- 
bade their creation. He had three children — 
Nathan T. , Henry S., who died in infancy, 
and Frederick J. 

N.\TH.'\x T. Bovu was born April 17, 1856, 
in his grandfather's house on Mill street. He 
was educated in Poughkeepsie, his first teacher 
being Mrs. Herrick, and later he attended the 
old Quaker School, Riverview Academy, and 
Bishop's Select School. In 1875 he went into 
the First National Bank as bookkeeper, under 
Zebulon Rudd as cashier. After two and a 
half years there, he took a position as book- 
keeper in the store of Trowbridge & Co., re- 
mained about three years, when he took an 
interest with George Dick in the old leather 
store. Later he sold out his share to Mr. 
Dobbs, and went to Illinois where he was in- 
terested in the Illinois Central R. R. for two 
and a-half years. He came back, practically 
at the request of Trowbridge & Co., and took 
his former place in that firm, continuing as 
clerk until the partnership was dissolved Feb- 
ruary I, 1888. The firm then became Kirby, 
Du Bois & Boyd, and continued until February 
I. 1895, when Mr. Boyd retired. Since that 
time he has been engaged in business in New 
York Cit}'. In 1884 he became a member of 
Phceni.x Hose Company No. i, and continued 
until October 21, 1889, serving as treasurer for 
the full term of five years. He was married on 
October 24, 1889. to Miss.\nice M. \\'hite, only 
daughter of Charles D. White and Mary A. 
Haynes, of Brinckerhoff^New York. 

Frederick |. Boyd was born March 18, 
1868, and was educated at Bisbee's Military 
School, and at the Eastman Business College. 
In 1888 he took a position as clerk in the office 
of Adriance Piatt & Co., remaining about three 
years, and then went to New York City with 
the Consolidated Kansas City Smelting & Re- 
fining Company. He was with them for some 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



823 



time, and then was sent to St. Louis as its man- 
ager. He is now the agent and manager of 
the International Metal Company, at St. Louis. 
In 1889 he joined the 15th Separate Company 
under Capt. B. Myers, and received his dis- 
charge from the State of New York November 
3, 1894, having filled the office of sergeant be- 
fore resigning. 



MRS. HANNAH DOUGHTY (deceased), 
late a resident of Webatuck, town of 

Dover, Dutchess county, was a scion of an ex- 
cellent old family who have wisely preserved 
their record through several generations. They 
became residents of Dartmouth, Mass., in 
1632. 

Philip Sherman (son of Samuel, a son of 
Henry, whose father Henry is the first we have 
of this name, and is mentioned as a clothier of 
Dedham, England), was born February 10, 
1610, at Dedham, England. He came to this 
country about the year 1632, and became the 
first Secretary of the State of Rhode Island. 
He was one of the leading men of his day. 
Many of his descendants settled in Dartmouth, 
Mass., one, whose name was Michael, was 
born there in 17 19; he married Deborah Briggs 
July 29, 1740, and they settled in Dutchess 
county, N. Y. , in the spring of 1742. They 
had several children, among whom was Jere- 
miah, born March 29, 1743, and died March 
4, 1 8 12. He married Elizabeth Mosher, by 
whom he had nine children. Among them was 
John, the father of the subject of this sketch. 
Most of the ancestors of Mrs. Hannah Doughty 
were members of the Society of Friends. 

John Sherman, her father, was born May 
17. '7831 and acquired a good common-school 
education in the town of Washington, where 
he also learned the trade of saddle and harness 
making, which he continued to follow through 
the greater part of his life. He was one of the 
prominent Democrats of the locality, and for 
a number of years held town offices, giving the 
best of satisfaction. 

On February 23, 1806, John Sherman was 
married to Mary Briggs, daughter of Edward 
and Anna Briggs, prosperous farming people 
of the town of Pawling, Dutchess county. 
Eight children came to this union: (i) Eliza- 
beth, born April 3, 1807, never married. (2) 
Almaron, born September 28, 1808, was a tan- 
ner by trade, and in 1828 married Jane A. 
Donley, of Newburgh, N. Y., by whom he had 



si.\ children — Evelyn, Mary, John, Andrew, 
Eliza A. and Albert. (3) Adaline, born Sep- 
tember 30, 1 8 10, never married. (4) De- 
borah, born December 17, 181 1, also remained 
single. (5) Catharine, born December 13, 
1813, was married, in 1833, to Ichabod Pros- 
ser, and now lives at Hampton, Neb. (6) 
Phoebe, born November 30, 18 15, became the 
wife of Damon Whaley, a wagon maker of 
Pawling, Dutchess county, and to them were 
born four children — Sherman, who remained 
single; George, who married Jane Ross; Fran- 
ces, who married William Shaw, and after his 
death wedded Henry Lenney; and Franklin. 
(7) Albert, born July 3, 1817, was a tanner by 
trade, and was married September 23, 1837, 
to Miss Phcebe Rider, by whom he had five 
children — John, a tanner, who wedded Mary 
Smith: Mary, who became the wife of Rev. 
Henry Hayter; Albert; Addie, who married 
Frank Finger; and William, who never mar- 
ried. (8) Hannah was the youngest of the 
family. 

Mrs. Doughty was born in the town of 
Dover, January 27, 1826, and died June 30, 
1896; she received her primary education in 
the public schools, supplementing same with a 
course in the Friends School of Washington 
town, where she graduated at the age of six- 
teen years. Four years later she was united 
in marriage with Daniel Doughty, a mechanic 
of the town of Washington, who died in 1852. 
He was a son of Stephen and Mary (Ellis) 
Doughty, the former of whom was a native of 
Washington town, and a wagon maker by 
trade. In their family were five children: Ira, 
who married Zillah Doughty; Maria; Mrs. 
Sarah Smedes; Daniel; and George. For over 
forty years Mrs. Doughty was successfully en- 
gaged in teaching. She merited and received 
the esteem of the whole community, and was 
much beloved by every one with whom she 
came in contact. 



D>AVID C. DRISLANE, one of the ener- 
' getic and influential citizens of Pough- 

keepsie, Dutchess county, is now engaged in 
the wholesale and retail grocery and liquor 
business, in which he is meeting with a well- 
deserved success, and owns the substantial 
brick block which he occupies. He was born 
June 7, 1857, at Tarrytown, Westchester 
county, New York. 

Cornelius Drislane, father of our subject, 



824 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



is a native of County Cork, Ireland, where 
his childhood and youth were passed, nd he 
there learned the business of florist. When 
a younf( man he came to America, making his 
first location at Manhattan, N. Y. , where he 
followed his occupation and married Catherine 
Cummings, who was also born in County 
Cork. After remaining at Manhattan a short 
time, they removed to Tarrytown, N. Y., 
where for a time he continued his calling, and 
on leaving that place he became gardener for 
John Jacob Astor, in Ulster county, N. Y. , 
near West Park, by whom he was employed 
some fifteen years. He then purchased a farm 
in Orange county, N. Y., which he operated 
for ten years, at the expiration of which time 
he returned 'to Tarrytown, where he still 
makes his home. He is a stalwart Democrat 
in politics, and for the past ten years has been 
trustee of Tarrytown; in religious faith he is a 
Roman Catholic. His wife, who held mem- 
bership with the same denomination, died in 
1892. They were the parents of nine chil- 
dren, namely: William E. is a groceryman 
of Albany, N. Y. ; Lena (deceased) was the 
wife of Robert Ludford, who conducted a gro- 
cery store at Sing Sing, N. Y. ; Lizzie married 
James Quinn, of Tarrytown; David C. is next 
in order of birth; Kate is the wife of William 
Fallon, of Tarrytown; Frank died while young; 
Mary is the wife of George Yerks, an under- 
taker of Tarrytown; John died in infancy; and 
Cornelius is a groceryman of Tarrytown. 

At the age of two years David C. Drislane 
accompanied his parents to the town of 
Esopus, Ulster county, where the following 
fifteen years of his life were passed mostly in 
attendance at the district schools of the neigh- 
borhood. After their removal to Orange 
county, he continued his studies for some 
time, and for about eight years assisted in the 
cultivation of the farm. On leaving home he 
went to Newburg, N. Y., where he entered the 
grocery store of his brother, William E. , with 
whom he remained for about a year and a half, 
when he went to Tarrytown, being there em- 
ployed by a brother for three years. He then 
went to Sing Sing, and formed a partnership 
with Robert I^ynford in the grocery business, 
under the firm name of Drislane & Lynford, 
which connection was continued for a year and 
a half. Going to Peekskill, N. Y. , he and his 
brother, William E., carried on a grocery 
store under the style of Drislane Brothers, and 
in 1882 they also started another store in the 



same line at No. 249 Main street, Poughkeep- 
sie, owning at the same time an establishment 
at Albany. This partnership lasted until 1887, 
when it was dissolved, our subject taking the 
store at Poughkeepsie, and his brother the one 
at Albany; the one at Peekskill had previously 
been sold. 

In 1885 David C. Drislane was married to 
Miss Matilda M. Gregg, who was born in 
Poughkeepsie, a daughter of William Gregg, 
a contractor. In politics our subject is a rad- 
ical Democrat, and in religion a member of 
the Roman Catholic Church. In 1889 he 
purchased his pleasant residence at No. 211 
Mill street, and a year later bought his store 
building. His fair dealing and systematic 
methods of doing business have won him the 
confidence and respect of all with whom he 
has had occasion to transact business. His 
property has been acquired through the exer- 
cise of sound judgment, good business talents 
and industry. 



JOHN M. JULIAN, M. D., an eminent phy- 
sician and surgeon, of the town of Pleasant 
Valley, Dutchess county, is a native of 
New Jersey, born at Hoboken, April 25, 1854. 
He traces his ancestry to John M. JuHan (his 
great-grandfather ), a native of France, who 
spent his entire life there engaged in the silk 
business, an occupation that was followed by 
many of the family. 

John Marius Julian, the grandfather of our 
subject, was born at Avignon, France, in 1766, 
and by profession was a physician. He was 
with Napoleon Bonaparte all through his vari- 
ous wars, and was a member of the "grand 
old guard." being six feet, seven inches in 
height; was at Moscow, Russia, also on " the 
fatal field of Waterloo," and was wounded 
several times — in fact his military career was a 
brilliant one. At its close he came to America, 
locating in New Jersey, where his death oc- 
curred in 1864, when he had reached the patri- 
archal age of ninety-eight years; he had mar- 
ried Maria I^rancisco Eunri, by whom he had 
fourteen children: Maria, Francisco, Cecelia, 
Matilda, Antoinette, Adrian, Jenia, John M., 
Thomas. Felis, and four who died in infancy. 
All have now passed away with the exception 
of Adrian, who, like most of his ancestors, is 
following the silk business. 

At Avignon, France, February 13, 181 1, 
was born John M. Julian, Sr. , the father of 





^^-^^ 



-^^/c^f^^"^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEWAL RECORD. 



825 



our subject. In the common schools of his 
native land he obtained his literary education, 
and with his father began the study of medi- 
cine. He was the only child of the family to 
come to the New World, arriving in 1828, and 
making his home in New Jersey. Entering the 
College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York 
City, he graduated from that institution with 
the class of '31, and became a member of the 
Medical Society of the city and county of New 
York, also of the State Medical Society of New 
Jersey. Shortly after his graduation he en- 
tered a hospital in New York City, securing 
much practical knowledge in his profession, 
and in 1838 he settled at Hoboken, N. J., 
where he successfully engaged in practice up to 
his death. January i, 1879. His wife, Cor- 
nelia A. (Mount) was born in New York City, 
November 22, 181 5, and was a daughter of 
John D. P. Mount, also a native of that city, 
where he was engaged in the banking business. 
The Mount family was originally from Holland, 
as were also the maternal ancestors of Mrs. 
Julian, though her mother, who bore the 
maiden name of Christian Stagg, was born in 
America. In the large family of fourteen 
children born to the parents of our subject 
only three reached adult age, namely: Mary 
B., wife of Stephen E. Brown, a lawyer of 
New York City; John M. ; and Claude E., a 
dentist and farmer of Flemington, N. J. In 
religious belief the members of the family have 
either been Catholics or Episcopalians, and in 
politics the father was a stalwart Republican. 
His widow, who is still living, has now reached 
the age of eighty years. 

The boyhood days of our subject were 
passed at Hoboken. N. J., where he attended 
the city schools and the gymnasium. At the 
age of fifteen he was sent to Paris, France, to 
the Polytechnic Institute, where he remained 
for two years and a half, and then began the 
study of medicine in that city, graduating in 
1870. On the breaking out of the Franco- 
Prussian war, the Doctor served as orderly in 
the hospital corps of the 105th Regiment of 
the line for three years, during which time he 
traveled over a great deal of Europe, and 
gained much valuable experience in his chosen 
profession, and was honorably discharged in 
October, 1873. He then took a course of lect- 
ures at Heidelberg, Germany, while the re- 
mainder of the year was spent at Bonn, Prus- 
sia, and the ne.xt year at Zurich, all of which 
time he spent in the study of medicine, while 



the following two years were spent in visiting 
many hospitals of the Old World. In Decem- 
ber, 1875, he returned to the United States, 
and for a time practiced at Hoboken, N. J.; 
but in 1877 he went to Brooklyn, N. Y. , en- 
tering the out-door department of the Long 
Island College Hospital, where he graduated. 
On January 31, 1880, Dr. John M. Julian 
was married to Miss Katie A. Powderly, a na- 
tive of Dublin, Ireland, and on the 7th of the 
following October, they located at Moores 
Mill, Dutchess county, where he continued 
practice until 1892, in which year he came to 
Pleasant Valley. Politically, the Doctor has 
always been a Republican; socially he is a 
member of the F. & .\. M. Asa physician he 
enjoys the honor of being the peer of any in 
the county. His life has been characterized 
by energy, perseverance and labcr, and to 
these principles his success is due. He is prom- 
inently identified with the Dutchess County 
Medical Association, and with the New York 
State Medical Association. 



STORM H. CONKLIN for a number of 
) years has been prominently identified with 

the business interests of Poughkeepsie. From 
1891 to January i. 1894, he was connected 
with John Leeming in the undertaking busi- 
ness, and since has been associated in the 
same line with Frank B. Van Dyne. 

For one hundre4 and f^fty years the Conk- 
lin family have been residents of Dutchess 
county, living upon a farm at Van Wagners, 
in the town of Hyde Park, where the father of 
our subject, William Conklin, was born Janu- 
ary 2, 1800. He was a son of John and 
Susan (Storm) Conklin, farming people. The 
grandfather was born on August 15, 1762, and 
his death occurred February 3, 1803. In 
Poughkeepsie was celebrated the marriage of 
William Conklin and Maria Mott, and they 
became the parents of two sons, John, and 
Storm H., of this review. The father was 
reared to agricultural pursuits, but later learned 
the hatter's business with Tunis Van Kleeck, 
of Poughkeepsie, and carried on the manufac- 
ture of hats at Lyons and Geneva, N. Y. He 
died at Bridgeport, Conn., in 1837. 

The birth of Storm H. Conklin occurred at 
Sharon, Conn., September 17, 1833, but was 
only five years of age when brought to Pough- 
keepsie, where he began his education and at- 
tended the Lancaster and Cornish schools. 



826 



GOMMEMORAnVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



During his early life he was apprenticed to J. 
P. Xelson to learn the cabinetmaker's trade, 
and remained with that gentleman about 
twenty-eight years. He was also employed in 
the same business with Nelson, Seward & Mc- 
Gregor and Charles F. McGregor. However, 
since 1891 he has engaged in his present busi- 
ness, being an undertaker and funeral director. 
For twenty years he has engaged in undertak- 
ing, so that he thoroughly understands his 
business in ail its details. 

In 1850 Mr. Conklin joined the Phoenix 
Hose Company, with which he has since been 
prominently connected, serving as its secretary 
and representati\e in the Board of the Associ- 
ated Fire Department for twenty-si.\ years. 
He is to-day the oldest active member on 
Phcenix's roll. He has served on about all the 
important committees that have had the wel- 
fare of the company at heart, and Phcenix 
takes great pleasure in claiming him as a mem- 
ber to-day. For twenty-eight years he has 
been an active member of the Independent 
Order of Odd Fellows at Poughkeepsie, being 
the treasurer of the lodge for thirteen years. 
He is a stanch supporter of the men and meas- 
ures of the Democratic party, and has served 
as supervisor from the Fifth ward, and police 
commissioner under Mayor Ellsworth. His 
success in life is attributable to his own in- 
domitable energy, and the close and assiduous 
attention he has paid to the minute portions 
of his affairs. 



m LBERT F. BOOTH, a prominent resi- 
.^^ dent of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, 
and a well-known dealer in tea, coffee and 
spices, is one of the substantial self-made men 
of that city. Like many other successful busi- 
ness men he comes of an ancestry which had 
been for several generations devoted to agri- 
cultural pursuits. 

His grandfather, Daniel Booth, a farmer, 
was an early settler near Mooresville, Dela- 
ware Co., N. Y. John H. Booth, our sub- 
ject's father, was born and reared at the home- 
stead there, attending the district schools of 
the neighborhood. In early manhood he lo- 
cated on Green Island, between Albany and 
Troy, where he was engaged in gardening for 
many years. His later years were spent upon 
a farm near Albany, where he died in 18S0. 
He was married in Watervliet, N. Y. , to Miss 
Sarah Bigelow, who survives him and is hale 



and hearty at the age of seventy-eight. They 
were leading members of the First Reformed 
Church at Bethlehem. Six children were born 
to them: Oscar, Albert F., Edward Tdeceased), 
Andrew (now living at the old homestead), 
Emma and Theresa. 

Albert F. Booth first saw the light Feb- 
ruary 21, 1 84 1, on Green Island, where he 
spent his boyhood, attending the schools of 
Bethlehem. At the age of eighteen he went 
to New York City and clerked in a store for 
two years, returning afterward to his father's 
farm. In F'ebruary, 1861, when he was 
twenty years old, he was married to Miss 
Sarah Bender, a daughter of Wendel Bender, 
a well-known citizen of Bethlehem. He pur- 
chased a farm for $8,000, for which he went 
in debt, and in four years he cleared off the 
obligation from the proceeds of the farm and 
the increase in value of the land. His health 
having become impaired he sold the farm, and 
for two years did no business except looking 
after his interest in a tea business, toward 
which he had advanced some mone}-. In 
1865 he took charge of a tea store in Albany 
(or Mr. Cunningham, of Troy, becoming well- 
posted in the details of its management, and 
when the store was sold a year and a half 
later he determined to establish a similar 
enterprise for himself. In 1867 he came to 
Poughkeepsie, and through the influence of 
Robert Slee, located at No. 270 Main street, 
where he opened the first tea, coffee and spice 
store in the city. In 1872 he moved to his 
present store at No. 36S Main street, and for 
twenty-five years has enjoyed an extensive 
patronage. He conducts the business on a 
"cash" principle, and his able management 
has brought him well-deserved success. 

Mr. and Mrs. Booth have had two children: 
(i) Wendell, who married a daughter of J. S. 
Vandorn, and is now in the advertising com- 
mission business with his father-in-law; and (2) 
Satie, who died October 8, 1885, at the age of 
twenty-one years. In politics Mr. Booth is a 
stanch Republican, having cast his first vote 
for Abraham Lincoln; socially he is a mem- 
ber of the Masonic fraternity. Triune Lodge. 



/GEORGE DARIN, one of the most promi- 
\^ nent agriculturists and real-estate holders 
of the town of Northeast, Dutchess county, 
was born February 13, 1817, at Mount Riga 
(Harlem R. R. Station), town of Northeast. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



827 



The Dakins have been among the leading 
famihes of that vicinity for several generations, 
and are related b}' marriage to a number of 
other old families. George Dakin, our sub- 
ject's grandfather, owned a large farm at the 
site of the village of Mt. Riga, west of the 
depot. He had three children: Jacob, our 
subject's father, born in 1775; Hannah (Mrs. 
John Culver), and Charity (Mrs. Driggs). 

Jacob Dakin inherited this farm and set- 
tled there, and afterward increased his poses- 
sions until he was the largest land holder in that 
locality. His first purchase was the Haywood 
farm, where the family now lives, and later by 
buying the Lucas Hotchkiss property, fore- 
closing on the Simon Dakin farm where the 
Maltby iron mine is, and buying the Birch and 
the Tankery farms, he acquired in all over 
1,800 acres. He was a man of unusual ability 
and wide information, an independent thinker 
and a strong believer in the doctrines of the 
Universalist Church. In politics he was a 
Whig, and took an active and influential part 
in local affairs. He married Miss Olive Clark, 
a descendant of one of the oldest families, and 
daughter of Elijah Clark. He died July 9, 
1836, followed four years later by his wife. 
They had eleven children: Harriet, Orville, 
Joshua, Maria, Mary Ann, Myron, De Witt C, 
Emeline, George, Cornelia and Caroline. 

George Dakin has always lived upon his 
present farm, having inherited 200 acres from 
his father. He has, however, added to this 
I nucleus until he owns 520 acres, and he is 
known as one of the most enterprising and 
successful managers. He was married Sep- 
tember 22, 1847, to Eliza M. Kelsey, daugh- 
ter of William Kelsey, a well-known resident 
of Salisbury, Conn., and a representative of 
one of the leading families there. Six children 
were born of this union, whose names and dates 
of birth are as follows: \Mlliam, July 23, 
1848; George, January 18, 1850, deceased, 
who married Fannie Bishop; Julia, December 
18, 1852, the wife of Alexander Griffin; John 
D., May i, 1856; Carrie D., May 21, 1861, 
the wife of Oliver Burr; and Jennie, January 
18, 1867, the wife of Peter McGill, whose 
farm adjoins the homestead on the north. 

William Dakin, the eldest son, is now 
conducting the entire tract of 520 acres, hav- 
ing assumed the responsibility on his own ac- 
count about fifteen years ago. Previous to 
that he had spent ten years in clerking in a 
store at Mt. Riga, five for his father and five 



for W. B. Gray. He has been very success- 
ful in his management of the farm, which is 
next to the largest in the town. He married 
Miss Jennie Pulver, daughter of Jacob Pulver, 
but has no children. Although he has never 
cared for office, he is at times active in the 
local work of the Republican party. He and 
his wife attend the Methodist Church at Mill- 
erton, and he has taken a generous interest in 
many important movements for the good of 
the community. 



T HERON H. CALDWELL. At the time 
of the French Crusade, the great-grand- 
father of our subject was driven out of France 
on account of his religious views, and went to 
the north of Ireland, where he was married. 
Later he came to America. The grandfather 
was among the first settlers of Poughkeepsie, 
where he worked as a chair maker for many 
years. 

There the father of our subject, George B. 
Caldwell, was born, and in the common 
schools he received his education. He learned 
the tailor's trade with George Mead, and be- 
came the first merchant tailor in the city who 
kept cloth on hand. His store was located at 
No. 289 Main street, where he conducted busi- 
ness many years, and in i860 moved to the 
store now occupied by J. B. Flagler. There 
he engaged in the jewelry business with his 
son, Edward O., who had learned the trade 
with Van Keuren Brothers. In Poughkeepsie 
Mr. Caldwell led to the marriage altar Miss 
Eliza M. Coffin, daughter of Robert Coffin, 
Esq., and both were called from this earth in 
1 886. In their family were five children, 
namely: Helen, deceased; Edward O.; Fred- 
erick, deceased; Theron H. ; and Malcolm, de- 
ceased. The father served as internal reve- 
nue collector, and took quite an active part in 
political affairs, first voting with the Whig 
and later with the Republican party, but he 
would never accept public office. He was cap- 
tain of the Davy Crockett Hook & Ladder 
Compan}', belonged to the Masonic Order, and 
was a member of the Episcopal Church. 
Physically he was well developed, and was 
known as the straightest built man in the city. 

Thereon H. Caldwell first opened his eyes 
to the light of day April 24, 1854, at Pough- 
keepsie, in the same house on Main street 
which is still his home. Like most boys he 
spent his childhood in attending school and 



828 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



engaging in youthful sports. After pursuing 
his studies for a short time in the public 
schools, he entered a boarding school at Fish- 
kill, N. v., and later was a student in the 
Friends Boarding School at Oswego, N. Y. 
On laying aside his text books, he worked 
for two years in a carriage shop at Amenia, 
and the following year was spent at the 
same occupation at Pleasant \'alley, Dutch- 
ess county. He next clerked in a grocery 
and feed store at New Haven, Conn., after 
which he returned to Poughkeepsic and learned 
the printer's trade with Piatt & Piatt, for 
whom he worked for five years. The follow- 
ing two years he conducted a printing office 
for George D. Eighmie, and then opened one 
for himself at No. 363 Main street in 1862. 
Two years later, however, he went to Pitts- 
burg, Penn., where for the same length of 
time he filled different positions on the 
Western Division of the Pennsylvania railroad. 

In 1866 Mr. Caldwell returned to Pough- 
keepsic, and again engaged in the printing 
business, being first located at No. 5 Academy 
street, but later removed to No. 16, where he 
increased his plant. He formed a partnership 
with A. H. Hasbrouck, now foreman for A. V. 
Haight, and the present firm is composed of 
our subject and William G. Hansman. For a 
year and a half they have published T/w Search 
Light, and also have a large trade in the job 
department, and are now working on a contract 
for the Imperial Pattern Company. Their 
work is all first-class, giving general satisfac- 
tion, and they are doing an extensive business. 

Mr. Caldwell was married in Poughkeepsic 
to Annie M. Bolton, daughter of John Bolton, 
and she died in 1886, leaving three children: 
Eleanor, Albert and Edna. Mr. Caldwell was 
again married at Hyde Park, Dutchess county, 
his second union being with Alice Kelley, 
daughter of George Kelley. Politically, Mr. 
Caldwell affiliates with the Republican party, 
is a member of the O. H. Booth and Veteran 
Fire Companies, and religiously he is an Epis- 
copalian. Courteous, genial, well informed, 
alert and enterprising, he stands to-day one of 
the leading representative men of Poughkeep- 
sic — a man who is a power in his community. 



HON. JOSIAH SUTHERLAND wasarep- 
resentative of that rare element in mod- 
ern life, which, although an invaluable part of 
it, yet rests upon a basis of something ideal 



and philosophical. In a worldly sense he cer- 
tainly made h^s mark, becoming one of the 
foremost lawyers and prominent judges of New 
York City. Whenever he came in contact 
with men of note, not only was he valued as 
an equal of practical strength and resources, 
but also as one whose integrity was beyond 
question. 

The Judge was born in the village of Ban- 
gall, Dutchess county, June 12, 1806, and was 
the son of Josiah and Abigal (Duncan) Suther- 
land, who were the parents of six children, all 
now deceased: Walter, Sarah, Mary, Han- 
nah, Josiah and Birch. The father was a na- 
tive of the town of Stanford, where his father 
had located at an early day on coming from 
Scotland — his native land — to America. In 
that town the son carried on farming until his 
death. He had served as colonel in the war of 
I 81 2, was a strong Democrat in politics, and a 
Baptist in religious belief. 

The boyhood days of Judge Sutherland 
were passed at Bangall, and he prepared for 
college in New York City under the guidance 
of Judge Parker's father. After his graduation 
from Union College in 1826, he studied law 
for a year in the office of Samuel G. Hunting- 
ton, at W'aterford, Saratoga Co., N. Y., but 
finished his studies in the office of Bushnell & 
Stebbins, at Hudson, Columbia Co., N. Y. 
Shortly after his admission to the bar in 1829, 
he went to South Carolina on account of ill 
health, and there remained for a year. Re- 
turning north, he entered into partnership, at 
Johnstown, N. Y., with Robert H. Morris, a 
former mayor and recorder of New York City. 

In 1 83 I Mr. Sutherland was appointed dis- 
trict attorney of Columbia county, which office 
he continued to fill for about fifteen years, 
and in 1856 he was elected to Congress to 
represent the Thirty-second Congressional 
District, having run against Judge Coles. In 
1838 he had removed to Hudson City, N. Y. , 
where he occupied the office of the late Am- 
brose L. Jordan, who had removed to New 
York City, where in the spring of 1851 Mr. 
Sutherland also located, there forming a part- 
nership with Judge Morrell. He was elected 
judge of the supreme court in 1857 to fill a 
vacancy caused by the death of Judge Whit- 
ing, and held that position for six years. On 
the resignation of Charles O'Connor from the 
office of United States District Attorney, he 
was tendered that position by President Bu- 
chanan, but declined it. In the fall of 1863, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



829 



he was re-elected to the supreme court without 
opposition, and continued to fill the position 
on the bench for the full term of seven years. 

By an act of the Legislature, the Judge 
was appointed one of the three commissioners 
to decide a certam claim against the City of 
New York, and though millions of dollars were 
involved, so impartial were all his decisions, 
that all parties felt satisfied with their correct- 
ness. In 1872 he was elected city judge of 
New York. He retired from the bench on the 
1st of January, 1879, carrying with him not 
only the respect of the entire legal fraternity, 
but an enviable reputation as a jurist. One 
of the most extraordinary events was the meet- 
ing of the New York bench and bar to express 
their regret at the retirement of the Hon. 
Josiah Sutherland from the bench, which he 
had occupied with distinguished rectitude and 
simplicity of character for over twenty years 
of a busy and honored life. Few men have 
lived to experience such a vocation as this 
from the most critical and scrutinizing of pro- 
fessional and judicial contemporaries. 

That a man born and bred in country life 
could go to New York City when there was on 
his arrival, already in existence, strongly in- 
trenched, a ring of corrupt political tricksters, 
surrounded by an outer ring of a corrupt and 
powerful system almost irresistible, and win 
and occupy one of the highest seats of justice, 
was a credit to the better sense and intelligence 
of the people. That a judge could in all these 
years sit in calm rectitude and severe and in- 
flexible justice when almost all else was cor- 
rupt and partial, is a wonder in our day. The 
honor of Judge Sutherland was never assailed. 
Enemies may have ridiculed him, and even 
friends criticised his ways, but no man ever 
hinted at anything dishonorable or unjust in 
his character as a man or judge. The consti- 
tutional limit of seventy years, as the end of 
judicial service, cut him off, as it did Spencer 
and Chancellor Kent, in the full maturity of in- 
tellectual capacity, at the threshold of the 
beauties of an honorable and venerable old 
age, but we can still point to his record with 
pride. From the time of his retirement from 
the bench until his death he resided in New 
York City. He died May 25, 1887. 

At Johnstown, N. Y., was celebrated the 
marriage of Judge Sutherland and Miss Jane, 
youngest daughter of Dr. John McClellan. 
She was born in the Manor of Livingston, 
February 22, 181 i, and died February 22, 



1876. To them were born fourteen children, 
of whom two are now living — Robert and Mrs. 
Sarah A. Eddy. 

The birth of Robert Sutherland occurred 
at Hudson, Columbia Co., N. Y., March 11, 
1S38, and there his early school days were 
passed. He attended the Naval Academy at 
Annapolis, Md., and when the Civil war broke 
out he was appointed by President Lincoln to 
the position of 1st Lieutenant, i8th U. S. L, 
in which he served for three years, when he 
was discharged on account of physical disa- 
bility. In New York City in 1866, he was 
united in marriage with Miss Lucy A. Mills, a 
native of Ireland, and to them were born four 
daughters: Jane Douglas, who is now the wife 
of Rev. D. S. Hamilton, rector of St. Paul's 
Church, atPaterson, N. J. ; Florence, deceased; 
Sarah E. and Blanche. For the past twenty 
years Mr. Sutherland has lived retired in the 
town of Stanford, Dutchess county, where he 
is surrounded by a host of warm friends and 
acquaintances. 



fFILLIAM H. TANNER, M. D., a 
V;'|t worthy representative of the farming 
interests of the town of Amenia, Dutchess 
county, is a native of same, born September 
12, 1836. The family had long been estab- 
lished there, his great-grandfather, James 
Tanner, being one of its earliest residents. 

William Tanner, the grandfather, was born 
in the town of Dover, January 9, 1786, was 
brought up on a farm, and received the edu- 
cation afforded by the district schools. He 
was an agriculturist, and spent the latter part 
of his life in the town of Amenia, where he 
died in 1856. In religious belief he was a 
Baptist. He was married March 13, 1806, 
to Mary Uhl, who was born December 29, 
1786, and they became the parents of three 
children: James U., the father of our sub- 
ject; Mary Eighmy, who was born May 4, 
1814, and wedded Abram White; and Cath- 
erine E., who was born May 8, 1824, and 
married Swift Nase. 

James Uhl Tanner, also a native of the 
town of Dover, was born April 22, 1807, there 
secured his elementary education, and con- 
tinued his studies at the Nine Partners Board- 
ing School, in the town of Washington, Dutch- 
ess county. He was married December 4, 
183 1, to Miss Rhoda Ann Hubbell. who was 
born May 31, 1814, and was a daughter of 



830 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



Cushnian and Tamma Hubbell. Their family 
consisted of three children: James H., born 
November 25, 1835, died February 10, 1837; 
William H., of this sketch; and Annie Maria, 
who was born August 5, 1842, and married 
S. H. Hedges. About 1840 the father re- 
moved to the town of Amenia, building the 
present residence of our subject, and there en- 
gaged in farming up to his death, which oc- 
curred July 28, 1886. He was one of the 
most wide-awake and progressive farmers of 
the locality, and met with a well-deserved suc- 
cess in his vocation. In early life he was 
identified with the Whi;,' party, and later was 
a Republican. His strict integrity and kindly 
nature endeared him to all his associates, and 
for many years his hospitable home was a 
place dear to many, both young and old, by 
reason of the kindly welcome extended to 
them by him and his faithful helpmeet. He 
lived upon the farm, where he died, for over 
fifty years. 

The early life of Ur. Tanner was spent 
after the manner of most farmers' sons, com- 
paratively uneventful, and after attending the 
district schools for a time, he pursued his stud- 
ies at the Amenia Seminary, at the Loweville 
Academy, in Lewis county, N. Y., at the Sus- 
quehanna Seminary, in I^inghamton, N. Y. , 
and at the O.xford Academy, of Chenango 
county, this State. He then entered the medi- 
cal departtiicnt of the University of New York, 
where he graduated in i860. After Fort 
Sumter was fired upon, the Doctor laid aside 
personal interest, and in 1861 joined the 47th 
N. Y. V. I., as assistant-surgeon. In the fol- 
lowing year he was promoted surgeon, and 
served with the rank of major of cavalry until 
hostilities ceased, when he was honorably dis- 
charged and returned home. 

On April 26, 1866, Dr. Tanner was mar- 
ried to Miss Achsa York, of Chenango county, 
N. Y. , and thej' became the parents of three 
children, as follows: (i) James E., of Cole- 
man Station, Dutchess county, born December 
8, 1868, was married June 20, 18S9, to Emma 
Gridley Lewis, and they have three children: 
Lewis W., born May 19, 1890; Margaret, born 
October 16, 1892; and Frederick, born Octo- 
ber 29, 1895. (2) Frederick, born January 
24, [871, died June 14, 1875. (3) Mary 
Mabel, born January i, 1874, was married 
December 27, 1890, to Louis M. Allerton, and 
they have one son, James K. , born November 
5. 1892. 



I 



After his marriage. Dr. Tanner removed to 
Louisiana, where for two years he engaged in 
cotton raising, but in 1868 returned to the 
home farm, which he has since operated with 
good success. He is also engaged in the milk 
business, which he finds to be a profitable 
source of income. Fraternally he is connected 
with Shekomeko Lodge No. 458, F. & A. M., 
at Washington Hollow, Dutchess county. A 
man of strong individuality, whose influence 
has been directed toward the good, the true 
and the beautiful, this honored veteran of the 
Civil war well merits representation in this 
volume. 



ING J. MARTIN and JAMES H. 
_i\L MARTIN. The head of the Martin 
family which has been prominently identified 
with the history of the town of Dover, Dutch- 
ess county, for many years, was Agrippa Mar- 
tin, who came from England when a young 
man, and became one of the early settlers of 
Dover. His son James was a farmer by occu- 
pation and an adherent of the Quaker faith. 
He married Sarah Kelley, daughter of Samuel 
Kelley, of Poughkeepsie, a seafaring man, and 
had four children: Wing, mentioned below; 
John, who never married; Phrebe A. (Mrs. 
Joseph Haviland), and Ruth A. (Mrs. Samuel 
Hallack). 

Wing Martin was born in 1798, and on at- 
taining manhood's estate engaged in farming 
and in brick manufacturing. He possessed 
decided mechanical ability, and was an excel- 
lent business man, his enterprises meeting with 
success. Some of the oldest houses in the 
town of Dover were built of brick from his 
kiln. In politics he was a Republican, and in 
religion a Quaker. His first wife was Hannah 
Whitley, and his second was her sister Eliza- 
beth, both daughters of Joseph Whitley. 
Three children were born of the first marriage: 
John J., James H., and Ann E., who died at 
the age of eighteen. 

John J. Martin was born in 1824, and re- 
ceived his education in the schools of his na- 
tive town. Until he was twenty-eight years 
old he assisted his father, and he then became 
the owner of a part of the farm which has been 
in the possession of the family since 1776. He 
cared nothing for politics, preferring a quiet 
life. He married Miss Lydia Haviland, daugh- 
ter of Isaac Haviland, and had one son — WiNG 
J. M.\RTiN, who was born at the old home- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPUICAL RECORD. 



831 



stead May 20, 1850, was educated at the acad- 
emies in that vicinity, and then engaged in 
farming. He has been twice married, first in 
1 87 1, to Miss Sarah E. Tabor, daughter of a 
well-known farmer of Dover, John Tabor, and 
his wife, Cordelia Ross. Three children were 
born of this union: Anne T. , born in 1871; 
Sarah E. , born in 1875; and Mary D., who 
died in infancy. Mr. Martin's wife died in 
1875, ^nd in 1884 he married Miss Catherine 
C. Corey, daughter of Charles and Elizabeth 
Corey, prominent residents of Port Jervis, 
Pennsylvania. Both daughters are at home. 
They are accomplished young ladies; Anne T. 
was for a time in attendance at a school in 
Brooklyn, and one at Stanford, and Sarah E. 
was for a time at the same school at the latter 
place. Their main education, however, was 
received at home under a governess. 

After his marriage, in 1871, Mr. Martin 
settled on the farm on which he now resides, 
which is a fine tract of 108 acres. In 1895 he 
erected here a fine house, and has a modern 
home. The main part of the old house was 
one of the oldest houses built in the locality, 
being upward of one hundred and seventy-five 
years old. In addition to the farm on which 
he resides, Mr. ^\ ing Martin is the possessor 
of another farm comprising 234 acres located 
three miles south of his present home. In ad- 
dition to general farming, Mr. Martin carries 
on a dairy business, keeping fifty cows. In 
politics he is a Republican. 

Isaac Haviland, the father of Mrs. John J. 
Martin, was a prosperous farmer of the town 
of Pawling. He married Miss Lydia \\'eever, 
and had nine children: (i) Joseph was married 
four times, first to Hannah Martin, by whom 
he had one son — James M., deceased; his sec- 
ond wife was Sarah G. Griffin, and they had 
one daughter, Mary, who married the late Noal 
Tompkins, and has two children; by the third 
wife, Lydia Oakley, and by the fourth, Lydia 
Haviland, there were no offspring. (2) Dan- 
iel married Lillias Akin, and seven children 
were born — Lydia, Lillie, Lillias, Joseph, Jon- 
athan (who married Angeline Hungerford), 
Daniel J. , and Abigail (the wife of Philip Hav- 
ilandj. (3) Isaac married Maria Swift, but 
had no children. (4) Jacob married Elizabeth 
Shove, and had one daughter — Minnie, now 
Mrs. Morris. (5) Abraham married Ann Bow- 
dish, and had one child — Nellie, who married 
William Well. (6) Alexander married Judith 
Griffin, and had two children — Phcebe, now 



Mrs. Elmer Gildersleeve, and Lydia, who died 
in youth. (7) Lydia married John J. Martin. 
(8) Charlotte married Alfred Moore. (9) Sarah 
never married. Charlotte Moore had four 
children: Lydia married Daniel Willits, and 
has three children — Lottie, Hannah and Amy; 
Ruth married Peter A. Skidmore, and has had 
four children — Libbie, Susie, Jessie and Alfred, 
of whom, the last named is the only one living; 
Susan is at home; Alfred H. married Phcebe 
Willits, and has had three children — Herman, 
Willits and Daniel. 

Joseph Whitley, the father-in-law of W'ing 
Martin, was a native of the town of Dover, 
and became a prominent farmer there. He 
owned a number of slaves, whom he freed, but 
they refused to leave the place, and he volun- 
tarily paid them wages. He married, and had 
five children: Phcebe, who died at an early 
age; Hiram, who married Mary Preston; Eliza- 
beth and Hannah, mentioned above; and Jo- 
seph J., who married Jane Ross. 

James H. Martin, the second son of Wing 
Martin, was born in 1833, and was educated in 
Amenia Seminary, and at Gaylordsville. After 
graduation he engaged in farming with his fa- 
ther, and is now the owner of a fine farm of 
124 acres, and 2,000 acres of timber land. 
He also owns a house and ten lots in Oakland, 
Cal. He married Miss Sarah H. Stevens, 
daughter of David W. Stevens, a leading 
farmer of the town of Dover, and a deacon in 
the Baptist Church. They have two children: 
(i) Eugene H., born in 1857, was educated at 
Grand Rapids, Mich., and Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , 
and is now a prosperous farmer. He married 
Miss Jennie Jones, daughter of John C. and 
Mary E. (Murton) Jones, of Port Washington, 
N. Y. Her father is a successful music teacher. 
They have four children: Bessie A., born in 
1885; Jennie S., 1887; James B., 1890, and 
Franklin E. , 1893. (2) Annie Martin was 
born in 1859, and, like her brother, was edu- 
cated at Grand Rapids and at Poughkeepsie. 
She married Theo Buckingham, a merchant of 
Dover, and son of Harvey and Eliza (Ross) 
Buckingham. They have no children. 

Mrs. James H. Martin is a member of the 
well-known Stevens family cf the town of 
Dover. Her grandfather, Thomas Stevens, 
kept an inn at South Dover in the early days. 
He married Sarah Howard, and had seven 
children: Samuel was married three times; 
Edward married Amanda Hunt; \\'illiam mar- 
ried Hannah Hunt; Phcebe was the wife of a 



832 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



Mr. Holloway; Sallie died at the age of seven- 
teen; Thomas did not marry; and David, who 
was born in Dover in 1798 and became a 
farmer there, married (first) Miss Nancy Ged- 
dings, and (second) Mrs. Lydia A. Camp. His 
first wife was a daughter of Hon. Gamaliel 
Geddings, a prominent farmer of Dover, and 
his wife, Eunice Barns. There were seven 
children by the first marriage: Orin, who 
married Ann Wheeler; Eliza, Mrs. Alice Ged- 
dings; Baldwin, who married Julia Dutcher; 
Hiram (i), who died in childhood; Mary, Mrs. 
Emery Cole; Sarah H., Mrs. Martin; and 
Hiram (2), who married Ann E. Camp. 



URIAH TEATOR, who in his lifetime was 
one of the most prominent agriculturists 
of the town of Milan, Dutchess county, resid- 
ing near Cokertown, was a native of that town, 
born March 26, 1825. 

The first of the name in this countrj' came 
from Holland, and passed some years in Dutch- 
ess county, settling later in Columbia county, 
where Philip Teator, our subject's grandfather, 
was probably born. He spent the most of his 
life there, following farming, but died in 
Dutchess county. He married Miss Friese, 
and reared a family of six children, of whom 
our subject's father was the eldest; Frederick 
J. and Robert were farmers in Wayne county, 
N. Y. ; Catherine married Zachariah Pulver, a 
farmer in Columbia county; Maria married 
Philip Coon, a shoemaker in Milan. Of this 
family the only survivors are the two younger 
daughters. 

Jacob P. Teator, our subject's father, was 
born in the town of Gallatin, Columbia coun- 
ty, and grew tf) manhood at the old farm 
there, learning the shoemaker's trade. For 
many years he was a farmer in Dutchess coun- 
ty', and died upon a farm in the town of Red 
Hook, where he had been one of the leading 
men in local affairs, commissioner of highways, 
and an active supporter of the Democratic 
party. His wife was Catherine Plass, a de- 
scendant of an old Holland family, and daugh- 
ter of Philip Plass, a well-known farmer of the 
town of I\ed Hook. Their first home was on 
a farm in the town of Milan, where they reared 
a family of seven children, our subject being 
the eldest; Margaret A. is the widow of Philip 
I^. Boice, formerly a farmer; John N. is a car- 
penter in the town of Red Hook; Mary is the 
widow of Nicholas Holsapple, a farmer in the 



town of Milan; Robert is a farmer in Red 
Hook; Catherine is unmarried; and P'reeman 
is a farmer in the town of Red Hook. 

Mr. Teator enjoyed the usual advantages of 
a country boy, and attended the district 
schools of Milan and Red Hook. In 1853 he 
married Miss Emeline Boice, a descendant of 
another Holland family, and daughter of Sim- 
eon Boice, a leading farmer of Red Hook. 
For two years after their marriage the young 
couple lived upon a farm in the same locality, 
but for forty years thereafter they resided upon 
the present farm of 312 acres, which is de- 
voted to general farming, and is one of the 
finest estates in the vicinity. Eight children 
were born to them: Oliver is a farmer in the 
town of Red Hook; Douglas A. and Frederick 
J. are farmers in the town of Milan; Warren is 
employed in a factory in Columbia county; 
John S. is at home; Mary A. married Sylvanus 
Coon; Kate is the wife of Stewart Teator; and 
Esther married Sylvester Palmeteer. The 
Teator family have been connected with the 
Lutheran Church for generations, and the 
present representatives are among its most 
active supporters in this locality. 

Politically Mr. Teator was a Democrat and 
an influential one. He served as justice of the 
peace for twelve years; in 1878 was elected 
township supervisor, and a vacancy occurring 
in 1885, he was appointed to the same office, 
for which his well-proved ability so well fitted 
him that he was re-elected for each succeeding 
term afterward. He died June 27, 1896, and 
was buried in the Lutheran cemetery at Red 
Hook. 



LESLIE A. SUTTON, M. D. , a leading 
young physician and surgeon of the town 
of East Fishkill, Dutchess county, was born 
June 10, 1866, upon the farm at Louisville, 
St. Lawrence Co., N. Y., where his grandfa- 
ther, Benjamin Sutton, had located when a 
young man, the locality at that time being an 
unbroken wilderness. The latter was a native 
of England, and on landing in this country at 
once went to St. Lawrence county, where the 
remainder of his life was passed in clearing, 
developing and improving his farm, which was 
covered with a dense forest. 

By his marriage with Miss Sarah Brunt, 
Benjamin Sutton had a family of seven chil- 
dren, as follows: (i) Henry is a fruit farmer 
of Minneapolis, Kans. (2) George L. received 




V — ^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPEICAL RECORD. 



833 



his education atCastleton, \'t., after which he 
entered the College of Physicians and Surgeon, 
New York City, where he graduated in i860, 
and was then a surgeon in the army for four 
years; on leaving the service he came to the 
town of East Fishkill. Dutchess county, where 
he engaged in the practice of medicine up to 
his death, in the spring of 1889. (3) Benjamin 
was a farmer and drover in Louisville, St. 
Lawrence county. (4) William was a promi- 
nent lawyer of Kansas City, Mo., where his 
death occurred; he faithfully served through- 
out the Civil war, and filled many official posi- 
tions, including that of circuit judge. (5) 
Franklin J. (the father of our subject) was 
next in order of birth. (6) Sarah married Dan- 
iel Smith, a carpenter and ship-builder. (7) 
Webster laid down his life on the altar of his 
country during the war of the Rebellion. 

Upon the old homestead Franklin J. Sutton 
was born, and was engaged in its operation 
until thirty-eight years of age, when he turned 
his attention to the cream and milk business, 
having five creameries, and doing an extensive 
business, which proved very profitable. fn 
politics he was an ardent Republican. He 
married Miss Clarissa Shoen, also a native of 
Louisville, St. Lawrence county, and the 
daughter of Sheppard Shoen, who was born in 
Scotland, and was there married. To this 
union were born eight children, as follows: 
Franklin J., a farmer in St. Lawrence county; 
Guy'H., who is engaged in mining in Colorado; 
Sarah P., who became the wife of Rolf Wells, 
a fruit grower of California, and died in Feb- 
ruary, 1884; Lillian E., the wife of Herbert 
Bell, a carpenter and builder of Louisville, N. 
Y. ; Leslie A., our subject; George L. , a farm- 
er in Louisville, N. Y. ; Elizabeth, wife of 
Nelson Tucker, a carpenter and builder; and 
Jennie, widow of Anson Wager, who was a 
merchant of Louisville. The mother of this 
family is still living. The father passed from 
earth in 1884. 

Dr. Sutton spent his boyhood upon the 
home farm, attending the district schools until 
fifteen years of age, at which time he entered 
the Massena Academy, where he graduated 
with the class of 1883. The following two 
years were passed at the Ogdensburg Free 
Academy, and in April, 1886, he began the 
study of medicine with his uncle. Dr. George 
L. Sutton, in the town of East Fishkill, Dutch- 
ess county. In the fall of that year he became 

a student in the College of Physicians and 

54 



Surgeons, New York City, but after a year he 
entered the medical department of the Uni- 
versity of the City of New York, graduating 
March 4, 1889. After receiving his degree he 
came to East Fishkill town, where he has since 
been successfully engaged in practice. 

On March 26, 1890, Dr. Sutton was mar- 
ried to Miss Lillian E. Emans, a sister of Storm 
Emans, and they have one child, Leslie Emans, 
who was born May i. 1893. The Doctor stands 
in the front rank of the medical fraternity of 
Dutchess county, is one of the examining sur- 
geons of the United States Pension Office, and 
for six years has been health officer of East 
Fishkill town. In social as well as in profes- 
sional circles he stands high, and he has many 
friends throughout the community. Like his 
father, his ballot is cast in support of the prin- 
ciples of the Republican party. 



AL\'A SHELLEY, a wealthy and public- 
spirited citizen, whose beautiful estate 

near Rock City, Dutchess county, is one of the 
finest in that vicinity, was born in the town of 
Milan, Dutchess county, March 27, 1852. 

His family originated in Holland, his great- 
great-grandfather having come from that coun- 
try in Colonial times. His great-grandfather, 
Samuel Shelley, was born in America and was 
an early settler in Westchester county, where 
his descendants have since held a prominent 
place. His son, Joseph Shelley, our subject's 
grandfather, although a Quaker in faith, served 
as a soldier in the Revolutionary war. Most 
of his life was spent in W^estchester county, 
where he followed the shoemaker's trade, but 
he died in Columbia county. He married Miss 
Cole, by whom he had five children: Sarah, 
who married a farmer in Columbia county; 
Louisa, the wife of a carpenter in the same 
county; Benjamin, our subject's father; Henry, 
who was a soldier in the Civil war, and is now 
a farmer in Kansas; and John W., who lost 
his life in defense of the Union. 

Benjamin Shelley w-as born at the old 
homestead in Westchester county in 1834, but 
in early manhood came to Dutchess county 
and married Miss Phoebe Ireland, daughter of 
Isaac Ireland, a well-known farmer of the town 
of Clinton. Her ancestors were also from 
Holland originally. After their marriage they 
settled upon a farm in the town of Milan, 
where they passed the remainder of their lives 
exemplifying in their daily conduct the simple 



834 



COV}rE}fORATn'E DIOGRAPnWAL RECORD. 



faith of the Quakers, but not uniting with any 
Church. Mr. Shelley was a firm supporter of 
the principles of the Republican party, but 
was not interested in partisan work. He died 
March lO, 1893, his wife passing away in 1855. 
They had three sons: Isaac, George and Alva, 
all of whom settled upon farms in the town of 
Milan, and two daughters — Phcebe and Arme- 
na, who died in childhood. 

The subject of ,this sketch was educated in 
the district schools near his father's home, and 
has always been identified with the interests of 
his native town. He lives upon a farm of 270 
acres situated some three miles from Rock 
City, and has built there the finest dwelling 
house to be found in Milan township. His 
holdings in real estate are extensive in Dutch- 
ess county and elsewhere; in fact, he does not 
know e.xactly hovv much he does own, but esti- 
mates it roughly at "about i 500 acres." His 
fortune is largely invested in mortgages and 
similar securities, and he ranks as the wealthi- 
est man in the town. He is one of the promi- 
nent I^epublicans of his locality, and is a gen- 
erous contributor to every measure for local 
improvement and to religious and philanthropic 
movements, giving freely to all of the Churches 
of the neighborhood. 

On March 13, 1887, Mr. Shelley married 
Miss Eliza Carroll, a native of Dutchess coun- 
ty, born March 30, 1870, and a daughter of 
Michael and Adelia Carroll, the former of 
whom is now deceased, the latter making her 
home with Mr. and Mrs. Shelley. Three chil- 
dren have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Shelley: 
Alva, Phcebe A. and Ruth. 

The grandfather of Mrs. Shelley is a large 
landowner in the town of Amenia, Dutchess 
county. The Carroll family is of Irish ex- 
traction. 



JAMES O. PINGRY, M. D., a well-known 
and prominent physician of Millbrook, 
Dutchess county, was born in the village of 
Fishkill, July 21, 1843. The family is of En- 
glish descent, and the Doctor traces his ancestry 
back for seven generations, as follows: John 
F., his father, born in Newburyport, Mass., 
September 26, 18 18. John, his father, was 
probably born in the same place. Then came 
Francis, Job, Aaron and Moses; the Doctor 
makes the seventh. 

The grandfather of our subject, John Pin- 
gry, was a shoemaker by trade, and came from 



Massachusetts to P"ishkill, where he died. He 
was a consistent member of the Presbyterian 
Church. He married Miss Little, and had a 
family of four children: John F. ; Julia M., 
who died unmarried; Mary E., the wife of 
Richard Coffin; and Margaret A., who married 
the Rev. Charles M. Oakley. 

[ohn F. Pingry grew to manhood in New- 
buryport, Mass., and was a graduate of Dart- 
mouth College, and also of the Union Theo- 
logical Seminary of New York. He married 
Caroline, daughter of James Oakley, and a 
native of New York City. Her family was of 
English descent. After marriage the young 
couple settled at Fishkill village, where Mr. 
Pingry preached for four years. In 1846 he 
established a school in that place which he 
superintended until 1853, when he removed to 
Newark, N. J., where he was pastor of a 
church for seven years, and also carried on a 
school. He then removed to Elizabeth, N. J., 
where he taught until his death, February 16, 
1894. His wife passed away October 4, 1856. 
Their children were five in number: James 
O., the subject of this sketch; John, who 
resides with his brother James; Frank K. is a 
civil engineer, and lives in Elizabeth, N. J.; 
Julia married Charles M. Schott, Jr. ; and 
Mary E. 

John F. Pingry was a prominent factor in 
the history of Dutchess county. He had as 
many as one hundred students under his in- 
struction at one time, and these included many 
who became influential citizens of the county. 
He was a man of fine tastes, high principles, 
and consistent life, and was greatly respected 
and esteemed in the different communities in 
which he lived. He was a Presbyterian in his 
religious faith, and politically affiliated with the 
Republicans. 

James O. Pingry was ten years old when 
his parents removed from Fishkill to Newark, 
and eighteen when they went to Elizabeth. 
He was graduated from the University of New 
York in the Class of '62, and then entered the 
College of Physicians and Surgeons, receiving 
his diploma from that institution in 1868. He 
practiced in Bellevue Hospital in New York 
City, until November i, 1870, at which date 
he took up his residence in Millbrook, Dutch- 
ess county, where he has since made his home. 

Dr. Pingry was married June 28, 1876, at 
Millbrook, to Ida L., daughter of R. G. Coffin, 
whose biography appears elsewhere in this 
volume, and ten children have been born to 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



885 



them, eight of whom are hving, namely: JuHa, 
Lizzie. CaroHne, John, Clarence, Van Wage- 
nen, James O , Jr., and Robert. The Doctor 
is a Republican, and has been a member of the 
school board for about four years. Socially 
he is a member of the Dutchess County Medi- 
cal Society, and of the Society of the Alumni of 
Bellevue Hospital; he also belongs to the Mill- 
brook Club of Millbrook, and takes an active 
interest in all matters pertaining to the welfare 
of the community. He is progressive and lib- 
eral in his views, and his opinions have weight 
with his fellow citizens. As a physician he 
ranks among the best, and his large practice 
testifies to the confidence felt in his knowledge 
and skill. He owns a handsome residence 
where he and his estimable wife dispense a 
most genial hospitality to their large circle of 
friends. 



J 



TOHN S. WING. This gentleman is ac- 
,i credited with the ownership of one of the 
best farms in the town of Washington, 
Dutchess county, comprising 165 acres of rich 
and arable land, and he is numbered among 
the most progressive and industrious agri- 
culturists of the localit)^ His farm buildings 
and machinery are in keeping with the neat 
and thrifty appearance of his place. He was 
born in Washington town, June 9. 1857, 
and is a son of Thurston Wing, a native of the 
town of Dover, Dutchess county. His pa- 
ternal grandfather, Jason Wing, a native of 
Holland, after his marriage located in the 
town of Dover, where he reared his famil}'. 

On reaching manhood the father of our 
subject was united in marriage with Ann 
Tripp, a native of Washington town, where 
her father was engaged in agricultural pur- 
suits. On a farm in the same town the young 
couple began their domestic life, and there 
were born to them si.x children, namely: 
Charles, deceased, was a farmer of the town 
of Washington, where he wedded Mary 
Maroney; Thurston J. married Hattie Cutter, 
and operates a farm in Dover town; Elias 
makes his home in Washington town; Mary 
T. is the wife of Joseph Talmadge, a farmer 
of the town of Lagrange; John S. is ne.xt in 
order of birth; and George died in infancy. 
In politics the father of these was a stanch 
Democrat, and was called from this life in 1875. 
while his wife, who preceded him to the other 
world, died in 1869. 



The boyhood of our subject was spent 
upon the old home farm, assisting in its culti- 
vation and improvement during the summer 
months, while in the winter season he at- 
tended the common schools of the locality. 
The lady who now shares his name and fortune 
was in her maidenhood Miss Maggie Learey, a 
native of the Emerald Isle, and a daughter of 
John Learey, a farmer of that country. After 
their marriage Mr. Wing and his bride lived 
for two years and eight months at Verbank, 
Dutchess county, and in 1890 removed to his 
present farm. Three children have been born 
to tliem: George W., Lucy H. and Anna. 

Besides general farming, Mr. Wing is also 
engaged in the milk business, and sells that 
product quite e.xtensively to the Wassaic 
Condensar}'. He is an earnest supporter of 
Democratic principles; is public spirited and 
progressive, and contributes his share to im- 
provements of various kinds in the community. 



J [JAMES V. BENSON. The splendid farm 
I owned by this gentleman in the town of 
— Dover, Dutchess county, is a standing 
monument to his industry, perseverance and 
good management. It is pleasantly situated 
on one of the picturesque hills near the village 
of Dover Plains, and invariably attracts the 
eyes as being under the supervision of a 
thorough and skillful agriculturist, and a man 
of otherwise good business qualifications. 

His grandfather, Samuel Benson, was a 
native of the town of Dover, Dutchess coun- 
ty, where he received a good common-school 
education, and always followed the occupation 
of farming there. He was there married, and 
became the father of six children: Phila, who 
wedded Preserved Cooper; Jemima; Paltire; 
Joshua, who married Amanda Hopkins; Sam- 
uel and John. 

Samuel Benson. Jr.. the father of our sub- 
ject, was also born in the town of Dover, and 
like his ancestors had a common-school educa- 
tion and followed farming throughout his life. 
He wedded Miss Sallie Knapp, of Danbury, 
Conn., and in their family were the following 
children: Joseph married Helen Hall; Samuel 
married Ruth Wheeler; John married Marga- 
ret Irish; James V. ; Joshua married Susan 
Tappin; Darius married Polly J. Dutcher; 
Charles died at the age of eighteen years; 
Ebenezer married Emily Deuel; Sallie J. 
married Elias Irish; Ada married John D. 



830 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Dutcher; and Harriet married Nan Ness 
Dutcher. 

The birth of Mr. Benson, whose name in- 
troduces this record, occurred in the town of 
Dover. Dutchess county, April 20, 1823, and 
in the village of Dover Plains he received a 
good common-school education. After his 
graduation he took up the pursuit of farming, 
to which he had been reared, and has since 
given most of his time and attention to that 
occupation. He is a man of more than ordi- 
nary business ability, and is at present one of 
the stockholders and directors of the Dover 
Plains National Bank. He has always taken 
a deep interest in political affairs, favoring the 
Democratic party with his support, but has 
never aspired lo public office, perferring the 
quiet life which he has always led, though he 
has often been urged to accept official posi- 
tions. He is an earnest Christian gentleman, 
having the respect and confidence of all who 
know him. 

Mr. Benson has been twice married, his 
first union being with Miss Mariette Hufcut, 
daughter of John and Mary Hufcut, who were 
prosperous farmers of Denmark, Lewis Co., 
N. Y. They became the parents of seven 
children: Clark H., who married Nina Oxley; 
George V., who wedded Carrie Fry; Martha 
A., who died at the age of si.xteen years; Mary, 
who became the wife of James Bird; Carrie 
and Sarah, who died in infancy; and Hattie. j 
In 1872, the mother of these children died, 
and two years later Mr. Benson married a sis- 
ter of his former wife. Miss Caroline Hufcut, 
by whom he has one son, Horatio S., who was 
born December 24, 1874, and since complet- 
ing his education in Dover Plains, has en- 
gaged in teaching school in one of the district 
schools of the town of Dover, Dutchess county. 

The family to which Mrs. Benson belongs 
have also been prominent agriculturists of 
Dutchess county. Her grandfather. George 
Hufcut, was a native of Dover town, and re- 
ceived his education in the school of Dover 
Plains, where he also studied law. He prac- 
ticed to some extent in connection with farm- 
ing, but gave most of his time to the latter pur- 
suit. He married Miss Hannah Benson, of 
Dover Plains, and to them were born the fol- 
lowing children: Martha married William 
Howard; John B. was the second in order of 
birth; George B. married Sallie Dennis; Obed 
was also married: Shedrish married Susan 
T;i['ptncy; Henry first married a Miss Dixon, 



and, after her death, Eliza Wheeler; William 
married Pattie Preston; Perry married Sarah 
Schammerhorn; Jane married Aaron Benson; 
Caroline first married Myron Knickerbocker, 
and, for her second husband, Samuel Edward; 
and Betsj' married Andrew Pitcher. 

John B. Hufcut, the father of Mrs. Ben- 
son, was a native of the town of Dover, Dutch- 
ess county, where he attended school, and like 
his father, followed the occupation of farm- 
ing. In early life he married Miss Mary Simp- 
son, daughter of Ambrose and Elizabeth 
Simpson, prosperous farmers of Dover Plains, 
and to them were born seven children: .Am- 
brose, who married Lurinna W^ilson; Henry, 
who married Elizabeth Butterworth; George, 
who wedded Melvina Barnum; Delia, who be- 
came the wife of Samuel Worm; Martha, who 
remained single; Mariette. the first wife of our 
subject; and Caroline, the present Mrs. Ben- 
son. 



SAMUEL P. TEN BROECK, a prominent 
' agriculturist of the town of Wappinger, 
Dutchess county, and a descendant of one of 
the oldest and most distinguished families of 
that locality, was born March 20, 1S39, in the 
town of Livingston, Columbia county, N. Y. 
His father, the late Samuel Ten Broeck, was 
also a native of Columbia county, and passed 
his early years there, removing to the town of 
Rhinebeck, Dutchess count}', when the sub- 
ject of this sketch was only six years old. 

Mr. Ten Broeck has spent most of his 
years in Dutchess county. On October 25, 
1876, he was united in marriage with Miss 
Adeline Montfort, and settled upon the farm 
near New Hackensack where she was born. 
Her family has been prominent in this region 
for several generations, her ancestors being 
among the earliest settlers. Her grandfather 
was a leading farmer in the town of Fishkill. 
and her father, the late John Montfort, fol- 
lowed the same pursuit. He married Miss 
Martha Emmons, a member of another well- 
known family and daughter of Cornelius Em- 
mons, a prosperous agriculturist of the same 
localit}-. They established their home at the 
farm now occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Ten- 
Broeck, and reared a family of four children: 
Catherine, deceased; Adeline. Mrs. Ten Broeck; 
Gertrude, now residing in Chicago; and John 
Jacob, deceased. Mr. Montfort was never 
active in political life, but he was a supporter 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD'. 



8B7 



of the principles of the Democratic party, and 
was influential in local movements of various 
kinds. 

Our subject has resided at this farm since 
1877, and is considered one of the successful 
farmers of the vicinity. He has no specialty, 
his 1 14 acres being devoted to f^^eneral crops. 
Mrs. Ten Broeck is an Episcopalian, but they 
attend the Reformed Church. Their four 
children — Catherine, Samuel M., Charles and 
Walter L. — are all at home. In politics, Mr. 
Ten Broeck, like his ancestors before him, ad- 
heres to the Democratic faith. 



C^\OLLINS SHELDON, a leading lawyer of 
_^' Millerton, and an ex-surrogate of Dutchess 
county, was born July 26, 1839, in Copake, 
Columbia Co., N. Y. The Sheldon family is 
of English origin, but on the maternal side the 
ancestr}' is Irish. Agrippa Sheldon, our sub- 
ject's great-grandfather, was born in South 
Dover, Dutchess county, and was a blacksmith 
there for many years. 

Gideon Sheldon, our subject's grandfather, 
was born at South Dover, and lived there un- 
til he was about twenty-five years old, when 
he moved to Copake, and purchased a farm of 
200 acres on which he spent the remainder of 
his life. He was a man of note in that local- 
ity, a ^Vhig in politics, and for a number of 
years was a justice of the peace. He died in 
1835, his wife, Lydia Lake, surviving him un- 
til 1850. They had nine children: Henry; 
Isaiah; Eliza, wife of Thomas Trafford; Daniel; 
Emma, wife of Jacob Vosburgh; James; and 
three who died in childhood. 

Henry Sheldon, the father of our subject, 
was born at the old homestead in South Dover, 
July 23, 18 1 2, but his life was passed mainly at 
Copake. He inherited his father's farm, and 
was largely engaged in cattle raising, being 
noted for his ex'cellent judgment in this line. 
He was a man of fine natural ability, possess- 
ing an unusually good memory, and his strong 
and positive nature made him a leader in the 
community. In early life he was a \\'hig, and 
later a Republican, but he never sought political 
position for himself. He was greatly interested 
in educational wofk and in the temperance 
movement, taking advanced ground in both, 
and he was an active and generous supporter of 
the Methodist Church. He married Selina 
Cook, daughter of Lot Cook, a well-known 
citizen of Amenia. His death occurred in De- 



cember, 1865, his wife surviving him until 
1892. Of their nine children all were care- 
fully educated to fill honorable positions in life. 
They are: Eveline, living at Brooklyn; Col- 
lins; Wilson, a farmer at Hillsdale, N. Y. ; 
Allen, a farmer and speculator at the same 
place; Miranda, who married Chester Dayton, 
of Northampton, Mass.; Otis, a farmer of 
Copake; Franklin, living at Glens Falls, N. Y. ; 
Frances, living at Northampton; and George, 
a resident of New Briton, Connecticut. 

Collins Sheldon attended the public schools 
of Copake for some years, and in i860 was a 
student at the Hudson River Institute at 
Claverack. He then took the regular course 
in the Albany Law School, graduating May 
23, 1862, and after some months of preparatory 
work in the office of Maynard, Wright & 
Moore, he went to Millerton and opened an 
office of his own, February 23, 1863. Since 
that time he has been successfully engaged in 
practice, making no specialty of any particular 
branch, although his business consists mainly 
of the settlement of estates, in which he has 
gained a high reputation. In 1864 he was 
elected clerk of the town of Northeast, and in 
the fall of 1877 was chosen surrogate of 
Dutchess county, taking office January i, 1878, 
and serving for six years with entire satisfac- 
tion to the public. He was offered a re- 
nomination, but declined it. He has taken a 
leading part in various local movements, es- 
pecially those which relate to educational 
affairs, and was a town trustee at the time of 
the building of the Union Free School house, 
and was a trustee of Millerton Academy. 
Possessing keen perceptions and strong con- 
victions, he is a forcible and pungent speaker, 
and a most positive man. 

In June, 1867, Mr. Sheldon was married 
to Miss Maria Pulver, daughter of Henry Pul- 
ver, a prominent resident of Stanford, and has 
two children — Harriet, who is at home, and is 
a graduate of Mrs. Gynn's Seminary in Pough- 
keepsie, and Wallace A., a graduate of the 
Albany Law School, who is now in practice 
with his father, under the firm name of C. & 
W. A. Sheldon. 



EDWARD JEFFERSON HALL, M. D., 
; of Moores Mill, Dutchess county, a rising 

young physician whose abilities are already 
winning recognition, is a descendant of an old 
English family, being of the seventh genera- 



838 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOUAPHICAL RECORD. 



tion in the direct line from Col. Harry Hall, 
who came from England about 1690, and set- 
tled in Connecticut. By his activity during 
Queen Anne's War he gained the name of 
" Harry, the Indian Killer," and is so men- 
tioned in history His son, Ichabod Hall, 
settled in Enfield. Conn., and was married 
May 31, 1730, to Lois Kibbie, of that place. 
Their son, Ebenezer Hall, moved to Massa- 
chusetts, and died there in 18 17. His son. 
Gen. Isaac Hall, married Vashti Johnson, of 
New Marlboro, Mass., and moved to Pompey, 
N. Y. , in 1797. Their son, Johnson Hall, was 
born at Sheffield, Mass., January 6, 1794, and 
became a hardware merchant at Syracuse, 
N. Y., where he died October 27, 1870. He 
was known as Judge Hall. He was married 
in 1 8 16 to Polly Andrews, and their son, John- 
son LaFayette Hall, our subject's father, was 
born at La Fayette, N. Y., September 16, 
1825. He obtained a district-school educa- 
tion, and then went into the hardware business 
with his father, but later engaged in forwarding 
freight on the canal, owning a fleet of boats 
at Oswego. He is now an expert accountant 
at Syracuse. On August 22, 1848, he was 
married in that city to Marcelia Wood, daugh- 
ter of Noah and Pauline (Holmes) Wood. 
Her father was a well-known business man at 
Buffalo and Chicago. Mrs. Hall died Decem- 
ber 6, 1890, leaving three children, viz.: (i) 
Florence Elizabeth, born June 4, 1849, mar- 
ried Henry Cory, of New York City, and has 
one daughter — Florence Pauline. (2) Irene 
Virginia, born April 17, 1853, married John 
Clark Howe, of St. Louis, and has one child — 
Guy La Fayette. 

E. J. Hall, the third and youngest member 
of this familj', wasborn at Oswego, N.Y. , March 
6, 1855, and after attending the public schools 
of that city for some years he studied at St. 
John's Military School in Manlius, N. Y. He 
then entered the business world, spending five 
years with the St. Paul's Harvester Works at 
St. Paul, Minn., si.x years in a drug store at 
Syracuse, and twelve years in a hardware store 
at Si. Louis, Mo. During this time the desire 
to follow his present profession became too 
strong to be overcome by his unpromising cir- 
cumstances, and he began his preparation by 
private study. Three years of reading fitted 
him to undertake practical work in anatomy 
with profit, and he spent two years in dissect- 
ing at night at St. Louis Medical College. To 
this preliminary work he added three full 



years of study at the Homeopathic College of 
Missouri, graduating in the spring of 1894. 
April 17, 1895, he passed the Regent's e.xami- 
nation in this State, and December 16, 1895, he 
located at Moores Mill, purchasing the prac- 
tice of Dr. Warren C. McFarland. He is the 
fourth physician to occupy his present residence 
in Moores Mill. 

Dr. Hall was married at St. Louis to Miss 
Ellen Frances Cooper, daughter of the late 
William Fenimore Cooper, who was formerly 
a w'ell- known hosier at Watertown, N. Y., and 
a member of the Masonic fraternity. He en- 
listed in the' looth N. Y. V. I., and lost his 
life in the Union cause. 



J HYATT LYKE, D. D. S., a leading den- 
tist of the town of Millerton, Dutchess 
^ county, was born September 9, 1864, in 
Copake, Columbia Co., N. Y. He is a son of 
John Lyke, now a prominent resident of Pough- 
keepsie. who retired from business some years 
ago, and his academic education was obtained 
there, with the exception of two years at Wil- 
bur, Mass. During the last year of his course 
in the Poughkeepsie high school he left, only 
a month or two before the graduation day, to 
begin the study of dentistry in the office of Dr. 
Mills, and, after seven months of preparation, 
he entered the New York College of Dentistry. 
After one year there he went to the Philadel- 
phia Dental College, where he also remained 
a year and was graduated, the youngest mem- 
ber of the class. 

Immediately after his graduation he began 
the practice of his profession at Pine Plains, 
succeeding Dr. Seaman. He remained there 
several years, and enjoyed a lucrative practice; 
but seeing an opportunity for more rapid ad- 
vancement and a larger business, he moved to 
Millerton, in May, 1891, taking the practice 
of Dr. C. I. Bailey. He has been more than 
ordinarily successful, his practice including 
many of the best people of Millerton and vicin- 
ity, and extending for some distance up and 
down the Harlem railroad. He was married 
in 1889 to Miss Georgia Rowe, daughter of 
Clinton Rowe, a well-known resident of Pine 
Plains, and has had two children — Clinton and 
Stewart. 

While he is an earnest advocate of local im- 
provement, and a stanch believer in the princi- 
ples of the Republican party, the Doctor has 
never taken an active part in public affairs. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHWAL RECORD. 



839 



He is much interested in the breeding of the 
English greyhound, and owns two famous speci- 
mens — "Southern Rhymes " and " Bestwood 
Daisy. " The former has won ten first prizes 
in England and seven in this country — three 
in the challenge class and four in the open 
class. He has defeated the " Gem of the Sea- 
son," owned in Toronto, Canada, the winner 
of 1/5 first prizes, and without doubt is the 
best of his breed to-day in America. "Best- 
wood Daisy" is the winner of fifty-one first 
premiums in this country and is the best of 
three well-known dogs, "Southern Beauty" 
and " Spinaway " being the other members of 
the trio. 



HENRY M. SWIFT, a highly esteemed 
resident of the town of Unionvale, Dutch- 
ess county, residing near Verbank, is a man 
of liberal education who, preferring a country 
life to the more exciting scenes of a profes- 
sional career, has devoted his time to agricult- 
ural pursuits. 

He is a descendant of William Swift, a na- 
tive of the County of Essex, England, who 
came to Boston during the immigration of 1630- 
163 I. On his arrival in Massachusetts, he lo- 
cated at Watertown, but he sold his posses- 
sions there in 1637, and removed to Sandwich, 
Mass., on the Cape, purchasing the largest 
farm in that vicinity, which is still in the pos- 
session of his lineal descendants. He had three 
children: William (2), Hannah and Esther. 
William Swift (2) was born in England, and 
came to this country with his father. He 
married, and became the father of eleven chil- 
dren: Hannah, William, Jireh, Josiah, Tem- 
perance, Esther, Dinah, Ephraim, Samuel, 
Ruth and Mary. Ephraim was born at the 
old homestead in Sandwich, Mass., June 6, 
1656, and became a carpenter and cooper by 
occupation. He died in January, 1742. Their 
seven children were: Elizabeth, Joham, Sam- 
uel, Ephraim, Sarah, Hannah and Moses. 
Samuel Swift was born at Sandwich April 9, 
1686, and died in December, 1757. By trade 
he was a carpenter and blacksmith. He was 
married December 24, 1712, at Falmouth, 
Mass., to Miss Ruth Hatch and they reared a 
family of nine children: Ephraim, Manassa, 
Judah, Reuben, Moses, Mary, Joanna, Joan 
and Lydia. Judah Swift, the great-grand- 
father of our subject, was born September 3, 
1 7 16, at the old home on Cape Cod, and in 



1769 came to Dutchess county, with his wife, 
Elizabeth Morton, of Falmouth, Mass., to 
whom he was wedded December 14, 1738. 
They were accompanied by their children, and 
made the journey with an ox-team. Mr. 
Swift settled in the town of Amenia, purchas- 
ing first the property now known as the Bar- 
low farm, but later he exchanged it for a larg- 
er tract, now owned by N. W. Smith. At the 
time of his death, January 17, 1807, he was 
one of the most extensive land holders of 
Dutchess county, owning 1800 acres. In poli- 
tics he was a Tory. His wife died in 1802 at 
the age of eighty-two. They had eight chil- 
dren: Lois, Samuel, Nathaniel, Moses, Re- 
becca, Seth, Elizabeth and Moses (2). 

Samuel Swift went west, and bought the 
land where the city of Auburn, N. Y., now 
stands. Elizabeth married (first) Sam Jarvis, 
and (second) a Mr. Hawkins. Seth Swift, our 
subject's grandfather, was born at Falmouth, 
Mass., March 16, 1757, and on arriving at 
manhood's estate he engaged in farming upon 
a portion of his father's property. In 1782 he 
married Mary Wells, by whom he had six 
children: Henry, who married Rebecca War- 
ner; Moses, who married Hannah Payne; E. 
Morton, our subject's father; Thomas, who 
married Emma Gront; Ann, the wife of William 
T. Hobson; and Maria, Mrs. Allen Cline. 

E. Morton Swift, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Amenia, in 1790, and 
after acquiring a common-school education in 
the local schools studied law. engaging in the 
practice of the profession at Poughkeepsie and 
Dover Plains. He married Miss Belinda Bar- 
low, daughter of Thomas Barlow, a well-known 
farmer of Amenia. Our subject was the eldest 
of seven children, the names of the others with 
datesof birth being as follows: Ann, December 
18, 1814; Rebecca, February 28, 1818; Maria, 
July 4, 1820;. Harriet, November 13, 1822; 
Amie, December 13. 1825; and Mary, August 
25, 1829. The father passed to his eternal 
rest May 10, 1859, at the age of sixty-nine. 

Capt. Swift first saw the light July 17, 
1 8 10, at the old farm in Amenia. His literary 
education was completed by a course at Union 
College, Schenectady, N. Y., and he then 
studied law, but he never practiced his pro- 
fession. He is one of the prosperous agri- 
culturists of his locality, and is prominent in 
local affairs. Although he has not aspired to 
ofiice for himself, he has always been influen- 
tial in political movements in his section, as is 



840 



COMMEMORATTVl': BIOGRAPHICAL RhJCORD. 



well shown by the historj- of the nomination of 
Kiilian Miller for Congress. During the Civil 
war our subject was appointed on the staff of 
General Clark, the Commissary General of the 
Army of the Potomac, with the rank of Cav- 
alry Captain, and he still has in his possession 
the original commission signed by Edwin M. 
Stanton and President Abraham Lincoln. 
Capt. Swift enlisted April 14, 1862, and 
served until 1864. He reported for his first 
duty at the White House. He participated in 
many engagements, and his reminiscences of 
the war are very interesting. At the time of 
the battle of Fair Oaks he was at the White 
House, where he met Gen. Clark, and was 
ordered to the scene of battle, and after 
remaining there one week he joined the forces 
on the Potomac. 

In 1834 Capt. Swift was married to Miss 
Sarah Cofifin, daughter of I'fobert and Magda- 
line (Bently) Coffin, and they have had six 
children: (i) Belinda, born January 22, 1836, 
died in infancy. (2) Robert, born June 16, 
1S37, was educated in the common schools of 
Amenia township, and is now a trusted employe 
of the Harlem R. R. He married Miss Mag- 
gie Elliot, and has two children: Samuel E. 
and Sarah. (4) Morton, born April 14, 1840, 
received a comrnon-school education, and is 
now engaged in the postal service. He mar- 
ried Miss Francesca Cooke, and has three 
children: Lucy. Belinda and Harriet. (4) 
Henry and (^5) Jane have never married. 



TARVEY J. FRENCH, a prominent and 
JfA successful merchant tailor of Poughkeep- 
sie, Dutchess county, is a native of New York 
State, born in the city of Albany, August 
12, 1862. 

The family of which our subject is a mem- 
ber is of English origin, and his grandfather, 
Samuel French, was a merchant tailor in Lon- 
don. England, during the early part of the 
present century, and died there. He had but 
one child, Samuel (the father of our subjectl, 
who was born in 1825, learned of his father 
the trade of tailor in the Mother Country, and 
in 1857 came to the United States, settling in 
Albany, N. Y., where he commenced business 
as a merchant tailor, continuing in that line 
some thirty-five years, or until 1892, when he 
retired from active work, and now makes his 
home in Syracuse, N. Y. In England he had 
married Miss Ann Barnett, who survives him, 



and nine children (all living) were born of this 
union, to wit: Samuel H., a merchant tailor 
in Albany, N. Y. ; Kate, the wife of Dr. W. 
H. Todd, of Dobbs Ferry, N. Y. ; Annie, wife 
of George Barnhart, of Columbus, Ohio; Mabel, 
the wife of Fred L. Geer, a well-known mer- 
chant of Albany; Harvey J-, our subject; Har- 
riet, the wife of T. Rockwood Cutler, a prom- 
inent architect in New York City; Grace, the 
wife of Frederick Hemming, a merchant of 
Syracuse, N. Y. ; Bertha, at home; and Clar- 
ence, living in Syracuse. 

Harvey J. French, whose name introduces 
this sketch, passed his boyhood in Albany, at 
the public schools of which city he received his 
primary education, later attending All Saints 
Cathedral school, an institution conducted un- 
der the auspices of the Episcopal Church, and 
presided over by Bishop Doane. From that 
school Mr. French was graduated, and he then 
entered his father's place of business as an ap- 
prentice to the tailoring trade, making him- 
self a thorough master of the business, espe- 
cially in the cutting department. Later he 
graduated from a "cutting school" in New 
York City, and then opened out a tailoring es- 
tablishment in Albany, N. Y., which he con- 
ducted some six years; but owing to impaired 
health was compelled to abandon work and 
recuperate for a year. His health being re- 
established, he took charge of the custom de- 
partinent of Julius Saul's tailoring business in 
Troy, N. Y., the largest of the kind in that 
city. 

In March. 1892, Mr. French came to 
Poughkeepsie, where he accepted the position 
of cutter for Peter B. Hayt & Co.. which he 
filled two years, at the end of that time resign- 
ing to engage in a similar capacity with M. 
Swartz. In the winter of 1895 he commenced 
his present successfully-conducted business on 
the corner of Main and Garden streets, and in 
the face of strong competition has advanced 
rapidly to the position of one of the leading 
merchant tailors of the city. He employs 
only skilled workmen, which fact, together 
with his genial good nature and painstaking 
methods, as well as determination to please 
his patrons at whatever cost of time and 
trouble, have secured for him, and retain, a 
liberal portionof the best business of thecounty. 
In Albany, New York, in June, 1883, Mr. 
French was united in marriage with Miss May 
W. Nichols, daughter of Charles C. Nichols, a 
prominent architect of that city, and to them 



VOMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



841 



have been born three children : Clifford, 
Harold, and Harvey, Jr. While a resident of 
Albany our subject was a member of Company 
A, N. G. N. Y., Albany Zouave Cadets. After a 
service of six years Mr. French applied for and 
received an honorable discharge; he then joined 
the Old Guard of Company A, a leading social 
organisation of that city, which numbers 
among its members nearly all the prominent 
professional and business men of the city. In 
Poughkeepsie he is a member of Armor Lodge, 
K. of P., of the Booth Hose Co., and of the 
Century Bicycle Club. He was once elected 
lieutenant of the Nineteenth Separate Com- 
pany, N. Y. S. N. G., but declined to accept 
the honor. In religious faith he and his wife 
are members of Christ Episcopal Church, of 
Poughkeepsie. 



IrRVING DEYO LE ROY, M. D., a prom- 
_\ inent physician and surgeon of Pleasant 
Valley, Dutchess county, by his devotion to 
his work, and the careful study and diagnosis 
of the various diseases that have come under 
his observation, has been unusually success- 
ful, and has gained an enviable reputation as 
a skilled practitioner. He belongs to a family 
long prominently connected with the hi?tory 
of Dutchess county, although his birth occurred 
at Highland, Ulster Co., N. Y., on April i8, 

1859. 

The founder of the family in this country 
was Frans LeRoy, who was of French Hugue- 
not descent, the family having emigrated from 
France with the Huguenots, and taken up 
their abode in Canada. Frans settled at 
Kingston, N. Y. , about the year 1700. John 
S., a descendant of Frans, settled in the town 
of Fishkill, Dutchess county. One of his sons, 
Levi, established the town of LeRoy in the 
western part of the State, and Simeon became 
a resident of Canada, while John I. established 
LeRoys Mills in Dutchess county. 

The last named, who was a great-grand- 
father of our subject, was born in the town of 
Fishkill, Dutchess county, and by his marriage 
with Hannah Westervelt, of Holland origin, 
he became the father of twelve children, 
among whom was Joseph LeRoy. He was 
born in Fishkill, N. Y. , in iSoi, and was 
united in marriage with Miss Clarissa Traver, 
also a native of Dutchess county. They be- 
gan their domestic life upon a farm in the 
town of Clinton, where were born their six 



children; one of whom, Abram, was the father 
of our subject. Upon their farm in the town 
of Clinton the grandparents spent their remain- 
ing days, faithful and consistent members of 
the Presbyterian Church. 

Abram Leroy, the father of our subject, 
was born August 20, 1829, in the town of 
Clinton, Dutchess county, where he grew to 
manhood and married Miss Cornelia Cooking- 
ham, who was born there in 1831, a descend- 
ant of Daniel Cookingham, a native of Hol- 
land, who on crossing the Atlantic took up a 
tract of land in the town of Clinton, Dutchess 
county, on which his son Michael and grand- 
son Daniel were born, the last being the father 
of Mrs. LeRoy. After their marriage the par- 
ents of our subject located at Highland, Ulster 
county, where the father engaged in farming 
and milling for about ten years, when they re- 
turned to LeRoys Mills. Besides the opera- 
tion of the mill, Abram LeRoy also dealt in 
grain, following those pursuits until his death, 
August 3, 1870. In religious faith he held 
membership with the Presbyterian Church, and 
his political support was unswervingly given 
the Republican party. His widow is also a 
member of the Presbyterian Church. 

Irving D. Leroy, whose name introduces 
this sketch, was the only child of his parents, 
who took him to LeRoys Mills when six years 
of age. After pursuing his studies for some 
time in the district schools of the locality, at 
the Poughkeepsie high school and the public 
schools of Lansing, Mich., he entered the 
Hungerford Collegiate Institute at Adams, N. 
Y., taking the regular college course and grad- 
uating with the class of '■j6. He was next a 
student in the Eastman Business College at 
Poughkeepsie, and after his graduation there, 
in 1878, he became bookkeeper and cashier 
for Dobbs & Herrick, of that city, remaining 
with them for a short time. In 1S80 he be- 
gan the study of medicine in the office of Dr. 
H. L. Cookingham, of Red Hook, Dutchess 
county, where he remained for a year, and 
then entered the Albany Medical College, 
graduating March 9, 1883. The following 
winter he took a post-graduate course in the 
New York Polyclinic, being at the time estab- 
lished in practice at Poughkeepsie. He was 
also a student of Drs. S. B. Ward, of Albany, 
N. Y. , and James R. Learning, of New York 
City. Since 1884 he has followed his chosen 
profession in Pleasant Valley, and has built up 
a large and lucrative practice. During the 



842 



COMMEMORAFIVE BIOQRAPmCAL RECORD. 



years 1870-71 the Doctor, then a student, 
traveled quite extensively through the Western 
States. 

On April 7, 1SS6, Dr. LeRoy was married 
to Miss Jennie Duncan (a lady of Scotch ex- 
traction), born in Pleasant Valley, Dutchess 
county, as was also her father, John B. Dun- 
can, a merchant of that village. The Doctor 
and his wife are active workers in the Presbj'- 
terian Church, and he is now serving as one of 
its elders. Dr. LeRoy is a member of the 
Dutchess County Medical Society, a founder 
of the New York State Medical Association, 
and a permanent member of the American 
Medical Association. He is at present, and has 
been for many years, health officer of his dis- 
trict, and is one of the most progressive phy- 
sicians of the county, standing deservedly high 
among his professional brethren. In politics 
he is a hearty supporter of the Republican 
party. 



cember 3. 1888, was graduated from the East- 
man Business College. For one year thereafter 
he studied law with J. S. Van Cleef, and then 
entered the office of C. W. H. Arnold, with 
whom he remained two years. On being 
admitted to the bar in 1892, he at once began 
practice, opening an office at No. 54 Market 
street. He makes a specialty of realty law 
and probate practice, and his ability and in- 
dustry make his services valuable. In argu- 
ment he is logical and eloquent, and his words 
always carry weight with judge and jury, sel- 
dom failing to result in victory. 

Mr. Lee has a large circle of warm personal 
friends, the regard of the entire legal profes- 
sion, and has won the respect of all with 
whom business or social relations have brought 
him in contact. In November, 1896, he was 
elected to the office of justice of the peace, on 
the Republican ticket. 



PALVERSON LEE. Foughkeepsie.Dutch- 
__ ess county, numbers this able young law- 
yer among her native sons, as he first saw 
the light in that city on the 8th of August, 
1870. His father, Lewis Alverson, was born 
there in 1843, ■'"d was a son of Samuel 
and Caroline E. Alverson, the former a 
native of Connecticut. Lewis was the eldest 
in a family of four children, the others being: 
Mrs. Josephine Woodworth; Mrs. Ellen Smith 
(deceased); and Samuel, who enlisted during 
the Civil war in the 128th N. Y. V. I., and 
died in a hospital in Louisiana. .T+ie father of 
our subject obtained his education in the pub- 
lic schools of Poughkeepsie, where he also 
learned the machinist's trade, and on reach- 
ing man's estate was united in marriage with 
MaryE. Lee, a daughter of Bezaleel Lee. He 
departed this life in 1872, his wife surviving 
him about a year. 

Thus at the age of three years our sub- 
ject was left an orphan, and his little baby 
sister died at the age of six months. After 
the death of his mother Per Lee Alverson was 
taken to the home of his uncle and aunt, Mr. 
and Mrs. Ogden Lee, who still make their 
home in Poughkeepsie. where they are held in 
the highest esteem. By trade the uncle is a 
carpenter, but is now county canvasser for the 
Poughkeepsie Daily Eag/c. 

During his childhood our subject attended 
the public schools of Poughkeepsie, and De- 



WILLIAM J. BEARDSLEY, a leading 
architect of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 

county, and one of the most promising j'oung 
business men of that locality, is of English de- 
scent. His ancestors were early settlers in 
Connecticut, and his grandfather, William E. 
Beardsley, was the first of the family to locate 
in Dutchess county. He conducted a sash and 
blind factory at the Upper Landing, in Pough- 
keepsie, and at the time of his death resided 
upon a farm on the inside road near Morgan 
Lake. He had a family of seven children, to 
wit: William J. (our subject's father), .Abbott, 
Martha (now Mrs. Stephen Wilkinson), Han- 
nah (now Mrs. Eli Ranson), Mary, Ophelia 
Fanny, and Miranda. In politics he was a 
Republican, in religion a Congregationalism 
He died at the age of eighty-seven years. 

William J. Beardsley, our subject's father, 
succeeded to his father's business in Pough- 
keepsie, and conducted it at the same place 
until 1887, when he built a factory on the cor- 
ner of Main and Harris streets, where he car- 
ried on a large milling business successfully 
until his death, which occurred July 2, 1887. 
He was a Republican in politics, and a mem- 
I ber of the M. E. Church. He married Miss 
Louise McLean, a lady of Scotch descent, 
daughter of Samuel McLean, a well-known 
resident of Poughkeepsie, who conducted a 
store and, later, a commission business in that 
city. Three sons were born of this union: 
Charles, William J., and Ralph (deceased). 





A-.^^.'-V'V^y 




COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



548 



On the death of the father the business was 
continued by his son Charles until February 
14. I 89 1, when the property was destroyed by 
fire. Since that time Charles Beardsley has 
been in the employ of the government as a rail-. 
way mail clerk. 

William J. Beardsley, our subject, fol- 
lowed his father's occupation, and made him- 
self thoroughly acquainted with all branches 
of interior building work, until his father's 
death, when he discontinued the sash and 
blind business, and proceeded with architect- 
ural work, for which he had a natural talent. 
He had had practical instruction and e.xperi- 
ence in the art of building in different places 
throughout the country, and, being thus 
thoroughl}' versed and schooled in architecture, 
decided to locate in Poughkeepsie for the 
practice of that profession. He has one of 
the largest architectural offices in the cit}', lo- 
cated at No. 42 Market street, and equipped 
with all necessary devices, together with a 
corps of competent assistants. 

Up to the present time Mr. Beardsley has 
shown great talent in his chosen calling, hav- 
ing built many of the fine residences through- 
out the counties of Dutchess and Ulster, and 
throughout the Hudson River \' alley — some of 
the best people in the above named counties 
being among his clients. Mr. Beardsley is 
prominent in the fire department of Pough- 
keepsie as a member of the Crockett Hook 
and Ladder Co., and he also affiliates with 
the Knights of Pythias, Uniform Rank, and 
and of the Masonic Fraternity. 



JAMES E. BALDWIN, a prominent agri- 
culturist of the towm of Pawling, Dutchess 
county, is well-known as a business man, 
having spent a number of years as a success- 
ful speculator previous to settling down to his 
present calling. He was born July 13. 1829, 
in the town of Patterson, Putnam Co., N. Y., 
and his early education was acquired in the 
schools of that town. He made his entrance 
into the business arena as a speculator at an 
early age, and after a time went to New York 
City, where his abilities had wider scope. In 
1874 he purchased the farm in the town of 
Pawling, where he has since made his home. 
On November 5, 1884, he married Miss Fan- 
nie Townsend, who was born in the town of 
Kent, Putnam county, in 1865, but was edu- 
cated in Pawling. To this union, one child, 



\ 



Susie, was born November 27, 1885. Mrs. 
Baldwin's father, John Townsend, was born in 
1S24, in the town of Kent, Putnam county, 
and passed his early life there. He married 
(first) Anna M. Luddington, and (second) 
Sarah Dykeman (Mrs. Baldwin's mother), who 
was born in Patterson, Putnam county, in 
1827. Both parents are now living at Bound- 
brook, New Jersey. * 

Mr. Baldwin's great-grandfather, James"' 
Baldwin, was born in Cbi^hire, England, ih^ 
1700, 6l parents who traced their ancestry to 
old English stock. He came to America in 
1730, and settled in Carmel. Putnam Co., 
N. Y. , where he acquired a large farm and 
passed the remainder of his days engaged in 
agriculture and dealing in cattle. Successful 
as he was in the management of his private 
business, he was an active and able worker in 
public affairs, and at one time held the office 
of judge of Westchester county. His wife. 
Hannah Golden, of Goldens Bridge, N. Y., 
died in 1802, and he followed her two years 
later. They had eleven children, whose nameSjr 
with dates of birth are here given: James," 
1734; Ephraim, 1736; Phoebe, 1738; Elisha, 
1740; Pearce, 1742; Daniel, 1744; Catherine, 
1746; Elizabeth jy748; Henry, 1750; Hannah, 
1752; and Jame3;^i76o. The members of the 
Baldwin family, with but few exceptions, have 
been Whigs, and in later times Republicans, 
and although in the old days they adhered to 
the Baptist faith, seme of this generation are 
Congregationalists. ^-j, 

James Baldwin, our subject's grandfather, 
was born in Carmel, N, Y., and aftei enjoying 
such educational opportunities as that locality 
afforded in those days he engaged in farming, 
having inherited Starr Ridge farm, a portion of 
his father's property. Although he was deeply 
interested in political questions, he never sought 
or held office. He married Miss Susan Vail, 
who was born in 1764, in the town of Carmel, 
a daughter of Aaron Vail. Twelve children 
were born to them: Daniel, Fannie, Henry, 
Polly, Aaron, James, Dorcas, Betsy, Nathan 
Cole, Susan, Hannah Jane and Hannah N. 
The father died in 1827, the mother surviving 
him four years. The grandfather's descend- 
ants are numerous: 

(i) Daniel, who was born at the old home 
February 4, 1782, and became a well-to-do 
farmer of the same locality, married Miss Field, 
and had four children, namely: Henry F., a 
farmer, married Jane Dykeman, and had one 



•J-^ 



844 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOGRAPmC'AL BECORV. 



child — Mrs. Mary Huston, who has one son, 
Henry Huston, not married. (2) Perry mar- 
ried Eliza Nickerson, and had no children. (3) 
Laura married Isaac Haviiand, and had three 
sons: Baldwin, who died many years since; 
Comfort Haviiand, living in Ohio; and Will- 
iam, who married Miss Rogers. (4) Phcebe 
marriefl Lansing Rodgers, and reared a large 
family. 

(H) Fannie, born March 2, 17S4, married 
Peter Dykeman, and had five children: (i) 
James B., born in i 82 i , married Annie Mabe, 
and had eight children — Nellie, wife of Charles 
Travers; Willard, who married Jessie Kelley; 
Annie B., wife of Charles Nichols; James, who 
died young; Frank, who is now married; Mary 
A., wife of Sam Cornish; Peter, unmarried; 
and James H., who died at an early age. (2) 
Nathan C, born in 1823, married I^uth Mabe, 
and has one son, Alex, who married Antoin- 
ette learns, and has two sons — Nathan B., who 
married Miss Bloomer; and Henrv, still single. 
(3) Susan, born in 1820, married J. Patrick, 
and has had four children — Mary and Sarah, 
at home; Fannie, who died in childhood; and 
Charles, who married Bessie Utter, and has 
one daughter, Susie. (4) Ruth, born in 1825, 
died at an early age. (5) Sarah, born in 1825, 
married John Townsend (Mrs. Baldwin's fa- 
ther), who had by his first marriage to Anna 
M. Luddington, four children — Fred, who 
married Lillie Hopkins; Hattie, wife of De- 
witt Burr; Charles, who married Mary Sher- 
wood; and Warren, who died in infancy. By 
the second union there were two children — 
Mrs. Baldwin, and her brother, George H., 
unmarried. 

(Ill) Henry Baldwin, our subject's father, 
was born September 21, 1787, at the home- 
stead, to which he succeeded at his father's 
death. His early education was obtained in 
the common schools of the neighborhood, and 
and to this he added greatly by extensive 
travel in later years. Among other trips taken 
was one to New Orleans, made before the 
days of railroads and steamboats, and the 
greater part of the journey was made on foot. 
He married Miss Pollie Smith, a daughter of 
Edward and Abbie (Northrup) Smith. Her 
father was a well-known farmer of Putnam 
county, and a man who was prominent in 
public life, serving as county judge and for 
two terms as a member of the State Legisla- 
ture. Seven children were born of this mar- 
riage, their names, dates of birth, etc., being 



given: (i) Susan E. (March 17, 1823) mar- 
ried Isaac Akin, but had no children. (2) 
Hannah (May, 1826) married James M. Bald- 
win, and had four children — Burdette, Elisha, 
-Bell and Jodia. (3) James E. (July 13, 1829) 
is the subject proper of this sketch. (4* Eliz- 
abeth (June, 1832J married Elijah Budd, but 
had no children. (5) Henry C. ( 1834), a farmer, 
married Phoebe I. Homan, and had four chil- 
dren — Jerome V. and Herbert, who are not 
married; Edward S., who married Sarah 
Beecher; and Mary, who is at home. (6) 
Josephine (March, 1838) married Alex Homan, 
and had three children — Charles, who married: 
and Henry and Clara, who are single. (7) 
Sarah J. (June, 1843) married Isaac ."Xkin, 
but has no children. 

(IV) Pollie, born December 23, 1798, was 
married in 18 12 to James Townsend, and had 
eleven children — Aaron, 181 3; Caroline, 181 5; 
Fannie, 1S18; Henry, 1820; Betsey, 1822; 
Susan and Elizabeth, twins, 1824, who lived 
less than one year; Sarah, 1826; Mary, 1830; 
Jane, 1832; and James, 1835. 

(V) Aaron, born January 13. 1791, was 
killed in the war of 18 12 (he never married). 

(VI) James, born April 4, 1793, married 
Cornelia Luddington, and had seven children. 

(VII) Dorcas, born December 28, 1795, 
was married in 1839, to Peter Whitney, but 
had no children. 

(VIII) Betsey, born February 11, 1798, 
married Allen Light, born in 1805, and had 
five children — Mary D., March 22, 1834; Fan- 
nie E., 1835, who married Charles Barber, 
the eldest of twenty-one children of one father 
and mother; Flora E., 1837, wife of William 
Pugsley; Susan E., 1839, wife of Loren Wil- 
cox; and Allen D., August, 1841. 

(IX) Nathan Cole spent his boyhood at 
Starr Ridge farm, where he was born May 27, 
1800. He engaged in, farming in the town of 
Kent, Putnam county, owning about 300 acres 
of land; but while he was recognized as a 
leading agriculturist, he was not especially 
prominent in political affairs, and, preferring 
to exert his influence as a citizen in a quiet 
way, he refused all invitations to run for office. 
Strong and athletic, physically, and gifted with 
an active mind, and the retentive memory for 
which his family is noted, he held an influen- 
tial position in the community. His re:uling 
was extensive, his knowledge of the Scriptures 
being unusually thorough, and he was a Bap- 
tist in religious faith. He married Eliza, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGBAPHICAL RECORD. 



845 



daughter of John Smith, of the town of Kent, 
Putnam county, and had five children, (i) 
Sarah Ann, December 23, 1826, died at the 
age of thirteen. (2) Peter W. is mentioned 
more fully below. (3) L. Nathan, February 
II, 1838, fell from a wall when he was five 
years old, dislodging a stone which fell upon 
him and killed him. (4) William R., May 24, 
1 84 1, a farmer and a lawyer at Boundbrook, 
N. J., married Hattie Young. (5) Dorcas 
Elivia, March 2, 1843, died at si.\ years of age. 

(X) Susan, born December 29, 1802, mar- 
ried David Russell, and had four children — 
Baldwin married Miss Smith; Robert married 
Miss Holmes; Louisa, wife of Caleb Smallcy; 
and Henry, unmarried. 

(XI) Hannah Jane, born in 1804, died in 
1806. 

(Xn) Hannah N., born April 11, 1S07, 
married Jacob Sunderland, who was murdered. 

Peter W. B.^ldwin, son of Nathan C. 
Baldwin, was born in the town of Kent, Put- 
nam county, May 13, 1830, and on attaining 
to manhood's estate he engaged in agriculture, 
later in cattle dealing, which he has now fol- 
lowed successfully for about twenty years, his 
speciality being the buying of milch cows for 
the local trade. Until i860 he lived in his 
native township, and he then moved to Nor- 
wich, Chenango Co., N. Y. , where he spent 
ten years. In 1870 he purchased the Aiken 
Taber farm of 307 acres in the town of Pawl- 
ing, now one of the best estates in Dutchess 
county. He makes a specialty of dairying, 
and raises Holstein stock exclusively, his herd 
of ninety-three being the largest in the locality. 
He also keeps eight horses. Fond of reading, 
he is well posted upon the questions of the 
day, and as he is of an analytical turn of mind 
he does his own thinking. He is not an office 
holder, but takes keen interest in the political 
contests of the time, supporting Republican 
principles. He is a member of the Baptist 
Church of Towners. In 1854 he married 
Miss Nancy Wells, daughter of Jonathan 
Wells, a leading citizen of Norwich, N. Y. , 
and a prominent Republican. Two children 
were born of this union: Lucy E. and Wells 
N., both of whom are at home. 



lEUBEN VINCENT (deceased) was long 
^X connected with the farming and industrial 
interests of the town of Unionvale, Dutchess 
county, there operating the old homestead 



farm from 1802 up to the time of his death, 
and also conducting a blacksmith shop. He 
was born in what was then the town of Beek- 
man, but is now Unionvale, on August 15, 
1768, and in its common schools received his 
education. He was a valued and reliable citi- 
zen, one who had the confidence and respect 
of all with whom he came in contact. 

His grandfather, Michael Vincent, was a 
native of W'estchester county, N. Y. , where 
he was reared and educated, and as a life work 
chose the vocation of farming. In his family 
were five sons, namely: Michael, Levi, Leon- 
ard, Richard and Philip. 

Levi Vincent, the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Unionvale, Dutchess 
county, and here obtained his education, and 
later followed farming. He married Miss 
Sarah Ho.xie, and to them were born seven 
children: Reuben, whose name introduces this 
review; Levi, who married Evaline Snivens; 
Samuel; Elizabeth, who became the wife of 
Samuel Carey; Mrs. Annie Jennings; Hannah 
and Tabitha. 

Reuben Vincent was united in marriage 
with Miss Deborah Bowerman, daughter of 
Ichabod and Jane (Richmond) Bowerman, who 
were the parents of twelve children, whose 
names and datesof birth areas follows: Thomas, 
May 22, 1758; Lydia, January 15. 1762; 
Phebe, September 9, 1763; Mary, June 30, 
1765; Ichabod, September 2, 1767; Jonathan, 
August 10, 1769; Deborah, January 8, 1771; 
Stephen, October 22, 1773; Gideon, June 29, 
1775; Israel, August 21, 1777; Judah, July 16, 
1779; and Nancy, November 27, 1780. The 
oldest of these children — Thomas Bowerman — 
married Sarah Vincent, a sister of our subject. 

Twelve children also blessed the union of 
Mr. and Mrs. Vincent, namely: (1) Pauline, 
born August 22, 1791, married George Darling, 
a tanner and currier, of Connecticut, and they 
had three children — Jane; Phcebe A.; and 
Deborah, deceased. (2) Elizabeth, born July 
9, 1793, married Stewart Christy, a farmer, 
and they had five children — Reuben; William; 
John; Gideon, who wedded Mary Cunningham; 
and Mrs. Jane Burlingham. (3) Hoxie, born 
March 24, 1795, married Abigail Stone, and 
they had five children — Reuben, Mrs. Antoin- 
ette Sheldon, Philo. John and Henry. (4) 
Jane was born February 24, 1797. (5) Levi, 
born February 16, 1799, wedded Miss Mary 
Vale, and had nine children — Phoebe; Isaac; 
Deborah; Gideon, who married Ophelia Lodre; 



846 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD 



Levina; Piatt; Albert; Chester; and Mary J. 
Georjj;e Vincent, the son of Gideon and Ophelia 
(Lodre) Vincent, married Miss Ella Matteson, 
by whom he has a daughter, Edna, born in 
1883. (6) Gideon was born December 13, 
1800. (7) Lydia was born November 12, 
1802. (8) Mary, born May 25, 1805, wedded 
Cyrus Perkins, and had six children — Charles, 
Delila, Jane, Elizabeth, and Hoxie and Edwin, 
both of whom died in infancy. (9) Margaret, 
born May 3, 1807, married Seth Barmore, 
and had three children — Deborah, Elizabeth 
and Abigail. (10) Piatt was born February 
8, 1809. (11) Phebe A. was born February 
28, 181 1. (12) Thomas, born January 11, 
I 817, died at the age of two years. 



SMITH D. HARRIS. Like many other 
residents within the bounds of Dutchess 
county, who started out in life with naught save 
an abundance of determination and an inde- 
fatigable industry, combined with a strong and 
healthy constitution, and who have succeeded 
through their own deligence, energy and econ- 
omy, is to be classified the gentleman whose 
name here appears. 

Smith Harris, father of our subject, was 
born in Poughkeepsie, N. Y., where for many 
years he conducted a grocery business, the lat- 
ter part of his life, however, being devoted to 
shoemaking. As an unswerving Democrat, he 
was very active in political matters, while in 
social life he was a member of the Masonic 
fraternity. In New York City he married Miss 
Eliza Mealy, and they both departed this life 
in 1879. 

Smith D. Harris, our subject, was born 
August 8, 1841, on Pine street, Poughkeepsie, 
N. Y., the schools of which city he attended 
until he was sixteen years of age. Being now 
prepared for life work, he set out for the town 
of Stanford, Dutchess county, where he se- 
cured employment on the farm of Paul Upton, 
and continued thereon some sixteen years, 
having the entire management of the place 
after his employer's death. In 1873, at 
Schultzville, in the town of Clinton, Mr. Har- 
ris wedded Mary H. Doughty, a daughter of 
Oliver Doughty, and three children bless their 
union: Mrs. Leonora Murch, Paul D. and 
Laura. The mother of these died July 28, 
1896. 

After their marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Harris 
located upon their present farm in the town of 



Clinton, known as "The Maples", and have 
since made that place their home. After rent- 
ing the land for one year, Mr. Harris purchased 
the same for $7,000, giving his personal note 
for it, and went steadily to work to clear it 
from all encumbrance. He has not only paid 
off the amount, but has another fine farm in 
the town of Stanford, known as " Lake Side." 
The improvements upon the places are of a 
neat and substantival character, and bear wit- 
ness to the fact that the owner thoroughly 
understands his business, and that he is indus- 
trious and enterprising. He is an earnest. 
Christian gentleman, a faithful member of the 
Friends Church, and an active worker in the 
Endeavor Society. He uses his right of fran- 
chise in support of the men and measures of 
the Prohibition party; is an earnest advocate 
of moral reform and the utter overthrow of the 
liquor traffic, which he considers the chief bar- 
rier to the advancement of Church work. 



ILLIAM W. HAXTUN. The subject of 
this sketch is t)ne of the leading citizens 
of the town of Beekman, Dutchess county, 
where he is successfully engaged in agricultural 
pursuits, and where his birth occurred on March 
19, 1829. His great-grandfather, who was a 
resident of Greene county, N. Y. , was killed 
by the Indians, being attacked while repairing 
the roof of his mill. The rest of the family, 
with the exception of one son, then removed 
to the town of Beekman, Dutchess county, 
where they were numbered among the early 
settlers. They located in the eastern part of 
the town, where they at first leased land of the 
Beekmans, but later purchased property. The 
great-grandmother was buried there. 

Jeremiah Haxtun, the grandfather of our 
subject, was a native of Greene county, and 
after the death of his father became the main- 
stay of the family. In the town of Pawling, 
Dutchess county, was celebrated his marriage 
with Rhoda Akin, a native of that town, and 
they began their domestic life upon a farm a 
mile east of Gardner Hollow in the town of 
Beekman, where they were living at the time 
of the Revolutionary war. Their family in- 
cluded the following children: Benjamin, 
William, Louisa, Emily and Rhoda. 

The birth of Benjamin Haxtun, the father 
of our subject, occurred in the town of Beek- 
man, where his father always carried on farm- 
ing, and there his boyhood days were passed in 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



S4T 



assisting in the work of the farm, and in at- 
tending the district schools. He was married 
in that town to Almira Vanderburg, daughter 
of Colonel \'anderburg, and after her death he 
was united in marriage with Sarah Wooley, 
daughter of William and granddaughter of 
Joseph Woolej'. Two children graced the sec- 
ond union — William W., of this review; and 
Almira, who died in infancy. The father al- 
ways continued to reside upon the old home 
farm at Gardner Hollow, there dying in Octo- 
ber, 1857, at the age of eighty years, while his 
wife passed away in 1870. An influential and 
popular man, he represented his district for 
two terms in the Genera! Assembly. 

After the usual manner of farmer boys, 
William W. Haxtun spent his early life at 
Gardner Hollow, in the town of Beekman, and 
received his primary education in the district 
schools. Later, for four years and one term, 
he attended the old Amenia Seminary, after 
which he was a student in the Dutchess Coun- 
ty Academy on South Hamilton street, Pough- 
keepsie, but on account of ill health was 
obliged to give up his studies and return home. 
In the town of Beekman he wedded Miss 
Maria De Long, whose birth occurred there, 
and the}' have become the parents of two chil- 
dren — Benjamin, now of Stormville, Dutchess 
county, who married Dorothea Storm, by 
whom he has a daughter, Maria; and Will- 
iam, Jr. 

In 1873 Mr. Haxtun left the old home- 
stead, and for the past fifteen years has re- 
sided near Green Haven, in Beekman town, 
where he is engaged in farming. He is very 
fond of travel, and has visited many points of 
interest in the West. In politics he is a stanch 
Republican, and has taken a prominent part 
in public affairs, representing Beekman on the 
board of supervisors for two terms. For three 
years he was president of the Dutchess County 
Agricultural Society, treasurer for seven years, 
and had charge of the ladies hall for four 
3'ears. 



BENJAMIN HOWELL (deceased). Among 
_' the representatives of the Pine Tree 

State, who traveling westward have estab- 
lished homes in Dutchess county, N. Y. , none 
are more worthy of mention in a work of this 
character, devoted to the biographies of the best 
citizens, than the gentleman whose name in- 
troduces this review. He was born in Portland, 



Maine, May 29, 181 8, and was a son of Ben- 
jamin Howell, whose birth occurred in 1784, 
on Cape Elizabeth, which now forms a part of 
the city of Portland. The grandfather, Isaac 
Howell, was a native of the same place, and 
was descended from English ancestors, who, on 
crossing the Atlantic to America, took up their 
residence in Portland. There he was reared, 
and for many years was identified with the 
business interests of the city as a clothmg mer- 
chant. \\'hen the colonists, no longer able to 
bear the tyrannical oppression of the mother 
country, fought for independence, he was 
numbered among the valiant troops that fol- 
lowed the leadership of George Washington. 
All his life was passed in Portland, and both he 
and his wife were connected with the Baptist 
Church of that city. They became the par- 
ents of four children: John, who was a grocer 
of Portland, Maine; George, who followed the 
sea; Benjamin; and a daughter of whom no 
specific record can be found. 

Benjamin Howell was reared in Portland, 
learned the carpenter's trade, and was the ar- 
chitect and builder of his own home. He 
married Rebecca Dyer, a native of that city, 
and a daughter of Nathaniel Dyer, and after 
his marriage established a home in Portland, 
while as a means of livelihood he followed the 
sea. He died of yellow fever in the West 
Indies in 182S, and his wife passed awaj' in 
February, 1835. They had six children: 
Emily, who died unmarried; Harriet, who be- 
came the wife of Joseph Russell, a carriage 
maker; Rebecca, who married Samuel Chester, 
a clothier; Mary, who died unmarried; John, 
who became a minister of Christ Church; and 
Benjamin. 

The subject of this review spent his early 
boyhood in the city of his birth, and at the age 
of fifteen started out in life for himself, eoins: 
to New York City, where he engaged in the 
milk business, which he followed for ten \ears. 
In 1845 he wedded Mary Lamoree, who was 
born in Dutchess county, and is a sister of 
George Lamoree. In the spring of 1845 they 
removed to the farm on which Mr. Howell 
ever afterward made his home. They had five 
children: Harrison, who died at the age of 
three j'ears; Walter, who died at the age 
of nine years; George W., a farmer of Pleas- 
ant Valley town; Augustus C, an agricultur- 
ist; and Emily C. , wife of James T. Budd, who 
is a farmer of Pleasant \'alle\' town. The 
mother of this family was called to the home 



848 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



beyond in April, 1888, and many friends 
mourned the loss of her whom they had so 
deeply respected. The father has died during 
the preparation of this book. 

Mr. Howell gave his attention to agricult- 
ural pursuits after coming to Dutchess county, 
and was at the time of his death the owner of 
loi acres of valuable land, which is highly cul- 
tivated and improved. He never held office, 
but faithfully performed his duties of citizen- 
ship, and was one of the supporters of the Bap- 
tist Church. He was a self-made man, starting 
out in life empty-handed, and steadily worked 
his way upward, overcoming all obstacles and 
difficulties that barred his progress to success. 



CAPTAIN JOHN H. BRINCKERHOFF, 
one of the best-known men along the Hud- 
son river, was born in the town of Fishkill, 
Dutchess county, November 24, 1827, a son 
of Henry I. and Freelove (Serene) Brincker- 
hof?, who were both also born in the town of 
Fishkill. The father, who followed agricult- 
ural pursuits, died July 4, 1852, the mother 
passing away December 26, 1891, at the ad- 
vanced age of ninety-five years. They were 
the parents of eight children, three of whom 
are yet living: Abram, John H. and Eliza. 

When our subject was eleven years old his 
parents moved to Esopus, Ulster county, 
where he spent the rest of his boyhood days, 
attending the common schools. At the age of 
twenty years, on account of the failing health 
of his father, the management of the farm de- 
volved upon our subject, and he remained 
there until he was twenty-four years old, at 
which time he was married at Esopus to Miss 
Angeline Terpenning, who was born there in 
1 83 1, and died in 1880, leaving no issue. 
After marriage he moved to Highland, Ulster 
county, and bought some property, including a 
mill at Esopus, which he operated for some 
time, at the same time carrying on factories at 
Highland and Pine Bush, Orange county. 
After continuing in the milling business some 
twenty years he bought the "J. C. Doughty," 
a ferry boat plying between Highland and 
Poughkeepsie, of which he was captain for 
four years. In 1883 he bought, from Thomas 
Cornell, the "Mary Powell," the fastest pas- 
senger steamer on the river in those days, and 
later he sold an interest in this vessel to Capt. 
Anderson and Capt. Wicks. In 1878 Capt. 
Brinckerhoff purchased the interests of Thomas 



Doughty, Augustus Doughty and Capt. I. E. 
Wicks in the Poughkeepsie Transportation 
Co., in 1888 buying the interest of Homer 
Ramsdell, in same company, and becoming 
president of the company, which at that time 
owned the steamers "John L. Hasbrouck " 
and "Andrew Harda," which latter our sub- 
ject rebuilt, renaming her the "P. D. Le- 
fever. " By 1888 the Captain had also built 
the river boats: "Gracie," "Gypsy" and 
"Queen City," and also the ferry "J. H. 
Brinckerhoff." He has accomplished a great 
deal for the transportation facilities of Pough- 
keepsie, doing all his freighting business there. 
By purchase he has become the owner of the 
entire doqkage on the west side of the river, 
between Lewisburg and Highland, also much 
dockage on the east side of the river, and 
altogether he is a large owner .of property at 
various places. 

From its earliest inception the Captain has 
taken a lively interest in the Poughkeepsie 
Electric Light & Power Co., and is the heaviest 
stockholder in same; is also a stockholder in, 
and treasurer of, the Delamater Carriage Co., 
at Poughkeepsie. His comfortable home on 
Hamilton street, Poughkeepsie, he has rebuilt 
and much improved and beautified. Capt. 
Brinckerhoff is a member of Trinity Methodist 
Episcopal Church. 



IRA E. WILBUR, a well-known and hon- 
ored citizen of Amenia, Dutchess county, 

has here spent almost his entire life. His 
grandfather, David Wilbur, who was born in 
Rhode Island in 1770, was brought to Amenia 
the following year, and throughout life he there 
followed the trade of a tanner, dying in 1852. 
Rutledge Wilbur, the father of our subject, 
is a native of Dutchess county, born at South 
Dover, on August 29. 1809, and there acquired 
his education in the district schools. For a 
time he made his home in Sharon, Conn., but 
about 1834 came to Amenia, and six years 
later was appointed superintendent of contract 
work in Capt. W'eed's, Palmer's and Gridley's 
mines, with which he was connected for about 
fifty years. Politically he is a pronounced 
Republican. In 1833 he was united in mar- 
riage with Miss Betsey A. \^'hite, whose death 
occurred November 2, 1879, and to them were 
born six children: Albert B., born in 1834, 
ex-superintendent of the schools of Middletown, 
N. Y. ; Electa C, deceased; Sarah B., born in 





w^^ 




COMMEMOnATIVE BIOORAPEWAL RECORD. 



1840; Charles R., deceased; and Ira E and 
IdaE twins, the latter being now deceased. 
Ihe educational advantages afforded our 
subject were those of the public schools and 
the Anienia Seminary. Later, for the loufr 
period of twenty-two years and three months 
he was secretary of the Barnum-Richardson 
Mining Company or the Amenia Mining Com- 
pany, since which time he has been variously 
employed, being in the carpet business "at 
Brooklyn and the publishing business at Chi- 
cago Subsequently he purchased land in 
I'lorida, 230 miles south of Jacksonville, where 
he engaged in raising oranges and lemons 
and also pineapples. He holds a patent on 
the Berkshire cough syrup, which he manu- 
factured at Amenia. 

In that village Mr. Wilbur led to the mar- 
riage altar Mrs. Anna (Wickes) Wakeman, 
widow of James M. Wakeman, by whom she 
has one son— Raymond; and by her marriajje 
with our subject she is the mother of a daughter 
—Bessie. The family is greatly esteemed in the 
community, as representing the . best type of 
Its moral and social element. Mr Wilbur is 
prominently identified with the Masonic fra- 
ternity, has been a member of Amenia Lodge 
^o. 672, F. & A. M., since 1869, in which for 
SIX years he served as master, and is also con- 
nected with the chapter and commandery at 
Poughkeepsie, New York. 



849 



CTOUTENBURGH.-The ancestor of this 
\J,> family, the first of the name in this coun- 
try, was Pieter Stoutenburgh, who settled in 
New Amsterdam." The date of his arrival 
does not appear, but it was probably before 
1649. He was a schoolmaster, and therefore 
a man of education; and his family was of 
good standing, as indicated by their marriage 
connections and the offices they held in the 
city and colony. He had a house and a large 
garden on the east side of Broadway just 
north of Wall street, as mentioned on old rec- 
ords and shown on the early maps. He mar- 
ried 25 July, 1649, Aefje (Eve) Van Tienhoven 
(a near relative, perhaps sister, of Cornells 
Van Tienhoven, the secretary and treasurer of 
the Colony), by whom he had nine children 
By a note on the list of members of the Dutch 
Church It appears that Pieter Stoutenburgh 



"Obyt den 9 Mart. 169S-9," aged eighty-six 
years. ^ ^ 

Tobias Stoutenburgh, the si.xth child of 
Peter, was baptized i8th January, 1660 his 
sponsor being Judith Stuyvesant. He lived 
all his life in New York, where he married 2 
July, 1684, Anneke (or Anna) Van Rollegom 
who was baptized 15 July, 1665, daughter of 
If "n -^"T'^^" ^^" Rollegom, from Haerlem, 
Holland. She was one of a large family; but 
when her brother. Jacobus, died intestate his 
three sisters, Mary, Anna and Gertrude, were 
his only heirs, to be referred to later as he left 
estates in Dutchess county. Tobias and Anna 
had twelve children, all baptized in the Dutch 
Church, New York, and several left descend- 
ants; but only the line of Jacobus, the si.xth 
child, will be followed in this account The 
codicil to the will of Tobias Stoutenburgh is 
dated 29 December, 171 5, and it was proved 
IS January, 17 16. His widow survived him 
many years. 

Jacobus Stoutenburgh, the sixth child of 
lobias and Anna, was baptized 7 June 1696 
his sponsors being Jacobus Van Rollegom and 
Jannetje Van Feurden, wife of Evert Byvanck 
He married in New York 25 May, 1717 Mar- 
garet, daughter of William Teller, of feller's 
Point, Westchester county, and Rachel Kier- 
stede; the latter being a daughter of Dr Hans 
Kierstede by Sarah, daughter of Rollof Jansen 
and the celebrated Anneke Jans. The por- 
traits of Jacobus and Margaret were painted by 
a good artist, about the time of their marriage 
They are on "panel," and are now treasured 
by their descendant, Mrs. Eugene Wells (Mary 
Teller), of Rhinebeck. Jacobus and Margaret 
had nine children: Tobias, baptized. New 
York, 12 February, 171 8, married Catharine 
Van VIeck; Rachel, baptized. New York 16 
March, 1720, died young; William, baptized 
New York, 3 June, 1722, married Maria Van- 
Vleck; Anna, baptized. New York 11 Novem- 
ber. 1724, married James Van Vleck; Jacobus 
married Josina Teller; John, baptized, Philips- 
burg, 29 March, 1729, marrie*i Catharine 
leller; Peter married Rachel Van Steenburgh • 
Margaret, baptized, Philipsburg, 14 April' 
1734. married John Teller; Luke, baptized' 
Philhpsburg, 5 June, 1736, married (first) Ra- 
chel Teller, and (second) Mary (^•an Vleck) 
Minthorne. 

From the above it will be seen that Jaco- 
bus removed, sometime after his marriage to 
the Manor of Philipsburg, Westchester county 



850 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



near his wife's relatives. In a deed, as late as 
1741, he is called of that place "shopkeeper," 
and he must have been successful in that call- 
ing. In a deed of 1742, he is called "of the 
count}' of Dutchess," and that is doubtless the 
date of his removal. What led to this change 
of residence may now be briefly stated: The 
celebrated " Nine Partners Patent," in Dutch- 
ess county, was granted 27 May, 1697, to Col. 
Caleb Heathcote, Augustine Graham, James 
Emmot, Col. Henry Filkin, David Jamison, 
Hendrick Ten Eyck, John Aertson, William 
Creed and Jarvis Marshall. Nearly all these 
men held some office, high or low, in the col- 
ony. By the Civil List of the Province of New 
York, it appears that in 1693 Jarvis Marshall 
was " Doorkeeper and Messenger of ye Coun- 
cil," at a salary of ^30 a year. This grant 
was an extensive one, now including the 
greater part of seven townships. In 1699 sur- 
veys were made, and the lands divided among 
the partners, or then owners. That part of 
the patent bounded on the west by the Hudson 
river was divided into ' ' the Nine Water Lots. " 
These lots varied from thirty to thirty-two 
chains in width, and ran back about four and 
a half miles " into the woods. " Lot No. 9, at . 
the north end, fell to Jarvis Marshall, who 
also had " Great Lots" Nos. i, 15, 24, and 35, 
in the interior. He had already sold one-half 
his interest in the patent to Jacobus Van Roll- 
egom, and, in 1700, he sold the other half to 
John Crooke, of New York, merchant. Van- 
Rollegom died before 1722, intestate, as before 
stated, and his estate fell to his three sisters: 
Mary, wife of Henry Kermer (or Carmer), 
Anne Stoutenburgh, widow, and Gertrude, 
widow of Bartholomew Le Rou.x. The latter 
was mother of Charles Le Roux, goldsmith, in 
New York, whose name so often appears as 
one of the attorneys for the proprietors of the 
Nine Partners Patent. 

By a deed, 25 August, 1722, Anne Stouten- 
burgh sold her interest to her .son Jacobus, for 
£6^. Subsequently, by a number of convey- 
ances, Jacob^is Stoutenburgh seems, by 1743, 
to have become the owner of all, or nearly all, 
the share that fell to Jarvis Marshall. It was 
twenty years from the date of his first pur- 
chase before Jacobus Stoutenburgh removed 
to what is now the town of Hyde Park; as in 
1 74 1 he was still " of Philipsburgh. " His first 
house, probably the one named in old abstracts 
of title as "built in 1723," was of stone and 
logs, and stood a short distance south of the 



present village, near a spring, where some re- 
mains of it are still to be seen. It is probably 
that it was built for the use of the men who 
cleared the land, and for his occasional stop- 
ping place. The wood cut doubtless found 
a ready market in New York, when coal was 
yet unknown; and some years would naturallj' 
be spent in thus clearing the land. Very likely 
he did not remove his family until he built the 
stone mansion which stood until 1864, west of 
the post road, near the "Lower Corners." 
It was a fine house for that day, the rooms 
being spacious, and the paneling and wood- 
work handsomely finished. 

During the remainder of his lifetime he 
was engaged in disposing of a part of his lands, 
and in settling his children on homestead 
farms; and he also deeded to them other lands. 
He was called upon to take some part in pub- 
lic affairs, and was for some time County 
Judge. In the deed to his son, Luke, he re- 
serves the well-known "Stoutenburgh Bury- 
ing-ground " as a burial place for his familj', 
forever. The will of Jacobus Stoutenburgh is 
dated 24 January, 1770, and it was proved 19 
December, 1772. He gives his eldest son 
Tobias, "besides what I have given him,";^ 25, 
and a silver teapot. As he has given his daugh- 
ter Annatje a silver teapot of the value of £ 1 4, 
he gives " one now in my family " to Margaret, 
and orders one for each of the five younger 
sons; desiring if any of his children should die 
leaving a daughter Margaret, such teapot 
should descend to her. His wife, Margaret, 
is to enjoy ail his estate, rents, etc., for life, 
with remainder to the seven younger children. 
This will is recorded in' New York. 

The account which follows, of his descend- 
ants, is founded on a "Family Tree," and 
papers now in the possession of Dr. James L. 
Prichard, with the assistance of Church records 
where available. It is believed to be correct, 
as far as it goes; but the order of births in 
some families, where dates are wanting, is un- 
certain; and there maybe omissions, for which 
the "tree" must be held responsible. 

Tobias Stoutenburgh, son of Jacobus, mar- 
ried in New York. 6 July, 1745, Catharine, 
daughter of Abraham Van Vleck, and Maria 
Kip, baptized in New York, 30 November, 
1 7 18. To him his father gave a farm lying on 
the river front of the Ninth Water Lot. It is 
probable that the large house that stood until 
about i860, opposite the present railway sta- 
tion, was his residence. This house was oc- 



VOifMEMOBATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



851 



cupied at the beginning of this century by his 
son-in-law, Richard De Cantillon, who carried 
on here a mercantile and shipping business; 
sending cargoes as far as the West Indies, to 
be exchanged for sugar, molasses and rum. 
Few particulars of this eldest son seem to have 
come down to this day. Children: Margaret, 
baptized. New York, 30 March, 1746; married 
Jacob Schryver, and had Jane, and Sarah, who 
married her cousin, Tobias S. De Cantillon. 
Abraham, who left two children, Tobias and 
Mary. Mary married in 1770 Richard De- 
Cantillon, and had Tobias. S. (married Sarah 
Schryver), Richard, Catherine (married Patrick 
B. Collins), and Maria (married Capt. Hum- 
phrey Wood). Jacobus T. , who died after 
1 807. Tobias Stoutenburgh was commissioned 
colonel of the 4th Regiment, Dutchess county, 
17 October, 1775. 

William Stoutenburgh, a son of Jacobus, 
received from his father a homestead farm of 
large extent, lying on both sides of the Creek 
road, and taking in the whole breadth of the 
Ninth Water Lot. On this he built a large stone 
house, which isstill standing, and in a good state 
of preservation, a short distance south of Union 
Corners, with the date, 1765, cut in a stone 
in the front. He married in New York, 5 
July, 1753, Maria, daughter of Abraham Van- 
Vleck and Maria Kip; baptized in New York, 
25 July, 1725. Children: James, who died 
in 1807, married three times; Abraham W. , 
married Margaret Van Vleck; William W. , 
died 1829, married Elizabeth Conklin; Tobias 
W^., married Mary Hill; Mary W., married 
Harmon \'an Benschoten, and had Mary, 
born 25 October, 1789, and Catharine, bap- 
tized 3 December, 1797; John W. , baptized, 
Poughkeepsie, 22 September, 1765; Isaac, 
born 17 December, 1767, married Elsie Schry- 
ver; Henry, born 22 June, 1770, died early. 

James Stoutenburgh, son of William, owned 
a farm on a road now closed, northeast of 
Union Corners. He was married three times, 
first 31 December, 1782, to Mary Moss; and 
had: Polly, married James Culver. Mar- 
garet. He married a second, 30 December, 
1790, Hannah Marshall, and had Richard, 
born 9 July, 1791 (married, and' had Richard 
and John T. B.); Hannah ("Nancy"), born 
23 August, 1792; Herman; Marshall, died in 
Poughkeepsie, 19 August, 1849, aged fifty- 
seven, leaving children. He married (third) 
Comfort Bell, by whom he had one child, Eliza- 
beth, married John Hendricks. In his will, 19 



May, proved 25 June, 1807, he names wife 
Comfort, and all the above children. "The 
widow Comfort Stoutenburgh" survived her 
husband many years, residing on the home- 
stead. 

Abraham W. Stoutenburgh, son of William, 
married Margaret, daughterof James Van Vleck 
and Anna Stoutenburgh. Children: James; 
Margaret, married Tunis, son of William W. 
Stoutenburgh; William, born 23 March, 1783; 
Ann; Harmon; Elizabeth, born 7 March, 1789; 
Catharine, Maria, born 5 September, 1790; 
Abraham, born 25 August, 1791; Mary, born 
10 December, 1797. Abraham W. Stouten- 
burgh lived in the town of Clinton. On May 
I, 1795, Ebenezer Mott, of Stanford, and 
Mary, his wife, conveyed 21 1 acres in Clinton 
to Abraham Stoutenburgh, of Clinton, and Mar- 
garet, his wife, " it being the homestead farm 
their mother, Ann Van Vleck, possessed and 
resided on at the time of her decease." 

William W. Stoutenburgh, son of William, 
died 19 August, 1829, aged seventy years. He 
had from his father a farm and mills a mile 
east of Union Corners. He married 28 Janu- 
ary, 1783, Elizabeth, daughter of Isaac Conk- 
lin and Catalyntje Van Benschoten, born 14 
May, 1766, died 7 November, 1835. Children: 
William W. , Jr., married Maria De Groff, and 
left a family. Isaac, born 12 February, 1786, 
not married. Catalyntje, born 22 December, 
1789. Maria, born 9 January, 1792, died 28 
May, 1884, aged ninety-two, married John E. 
De Groff, who died 20 September, 1846, aged 
fifty-nine. Jacob Van Benschoten, born 25 
June, 1794, died 18 May, 1879, married Hes- 
ter Travis, who died 14 May, 1883, aged 
eighty-five. Tunis married Margaret, daugh- 
ter, of Abraham W. Stoutenburgh. Sarah, 
born 13 May, 1798, married — Mosher, and re- 
moved to " the West," died in fall of 1848. 
Susan C. , born 29 May, 1800, died 23 June, 
1889, married John A. De Groff, who died 2 
February, 1876, in his eighty-first year. Ann 
Eliza, born 1804, died 29 November, 1822, 
aged eighteen years, three months. Henry, 
killed in 1841, by beii;g thrown from a wagon; 
not married. Elias Van Benschoten, born 
14 March, 1810; married 11 March, 1835, 
Huldah Swartwout. 

Tobias W. Stoutenburgh, son of William, 
had the north part of the homestead of his 
father, 121 acres, at Union Corners, and other 
lands. In 1820 he advertised this property for 
sale. He sold not long after and removed. 



852 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



with a part of his family, to Phelps, Ontario 
Co., N. Y. He married Mary Hill. Children: 
Barbara, born 29 June, 1792. married James 
Hall, of Stanford. George, of New York, 
married three times. William, of New York, 
married and left a family. Mary Van Vleck 
(•'Maria"), born 4 November, 1797, never 
married. Abraham, removed to Texas, never 
married. JohnT. , born 21 September, 1799, 
married Mary Van Wagner, 3 December, 
1823. Sarah, born 19 September, i So i, mar- 
ried Peter Reese. Isaac married Miss Reese. 
Jane married Benjamin Prichard, son of James 
Prichard. Cornelia Mott removed to Phelps, 
Ontario county, had si.x children. Eliphalet, 
born 15 October, 181 1 (living, 1897), of 
Phelps. Ontario Co., N. Y. . married Clemen- 
tine Knapp, and has a family. 

Isaac Stoutenburgh, son of William, was 
born 17 December, 1767, and baptized at 
Poughkeepsie 14 February, 176S; his sponsors 
being Johannes Eman and Catharina \'an Deu- 
sen, widow of his uncle Isaac Van Vleck. He 
inherited the homestead of his father, with the 
stone house before mentioned. He was a 
prominent man in his day, in town and Church 
affairs. He died i November, 1859, aged 
ninety-two. He married 29 September, 1791, 
Elsie, daughter of John P. Schryver and Elea- 
nor Van Benschoten, baptized at Rhinebeck, 
15 August, 1773, died 6 July, 1845, aged 
seventy-two. Children: \\'iiliam I., born 5 
September, 1792, died 21 September, 1859, 
unmarried. John Schryver, born 7 November, 
1794, died 15 March, 1874, married Maria, 
daughter of John Albertson, who died 22 Sep- 
tember, 1865, in her sixty-fifth year, and had 
John Albert, counsellor at law, of Hyde Park 
and New York, born 6 September, 1820, died 
II April, 1887; James De Cantillon, counsel- 
lor at law (now of Washington, D. C); Susan 
Caroline, died 1864, aged thirty-five, married 
Col. Orrin Travis; Willet E. (now of Wash- 
ington); Walter H. (also of W'ashington); 
Isaac, died 1841, aged three years; and Mary, 
married Abram Hyatt, of Sing Sing. Cathar- 
ine De Cantillon, born 25 May, 1797, died 13 
May, 1858, unmarried. Richard De Cantillon 
(twin), born 25 May, 1797, died 24 May, 1875, 
married ( first) Eliza Sophia Sleight, of Fishkill, 
and (second) Eliza, daughter of Alexander Mc- 
Clellan. By the latter he had Isaac, of San 
Francisco, deceased; George Washington, of 
Chicago, died 1884; and Catharine Eliza, who 
married Edgar Van Kleeck, of Poughkeepsie. 



R. D. C. Stoutenburgh was long a merchant in 
Poughkeepsie. Eleanor, born 20 December, 
1800, died 25 September, 1876: married Rich- 
ard Lewis Prichard, son of James Prichard, and 
Cornelia Mott, born i August, 1804, died 22, 
November, 1882. His commission as captain 
in the 84th Regiment was signed by Gov. 
Marcy, 5 August, 1S37. Richard L. and 
Eleanor Prichard had three children: Isaac De- 
Cantillon Prichard, late one of the Associate 
Judges of Dutchess county, who died 9 Feb- 
ruary, 1894; James L. Prichard, M. D. , of 
Hyde Park, and Elsie Cornelia Prichard. 
James C. died 20 June, 1815, aged thirteen. 
Tobias I., born 29 January, 1806, died 25 Oc- 
tober, 1888; married Maria, daughter of Isaac 
Albertson, and settled in the town of Pleasant 
V' alley. Children: Sarah C. married Albert 
J. Budd, and Mary married Dr. Merritt 
Dutcher, of Owego, N. Y. Mary Elsie, born 

17 July, 1S09, died i6January, 1833; married 
Jacob T. Sleight. Henry Cuyler, born i Au- 
gust, 1812, living 1897, of Poughkeepsie; mar- 
ried Amelia, sister of Col. Orrin Travis, and 
has Mary, Edward, Walter, Juliet, Anne and 
Henry. Caroline, born 23 June, 1815, died 
20 June, 1829, aged fourteen. William I., 
son of Isaac Stoutenburgh, served in the war 
of 18 1 2, being then about twenty years of 
age. For his services he had a pension, in 
later years, and a grant of land. A home- 
made blanket with the date " 18 12 " woven in 
it, and which he had with him at Harlem 
Heights, is still preserved by a niece. 

Aima Stoutenburgh, daughter of Jacobus, 
married June, 1755, Jacobus (Jamesi \'an- 
\'leck, son of Abraham Van Vleck, of New 
York, and Maria Kip, baptized in New York 

18 September, 1720. She inherited lands in 
the town of Clinton, near her brother Peter, 
and died there before 1795, leaving two chil- 
dren, viz.: Mary, wife of Ebenezer Mott, of 
Stanford, Margaret, wife of Abraham, son of 
the first William Stoutenburgh. The husband 
of Anna died before 1772. " Ebenezer Mott, 
Esq." died January 9, 181 3, aged sixtj'-tvvo. 
Mary, his wife, died December 2, 1840, aged 
eighty-two. 

Jacobus Stoutenburgh, Jr., son of Jacobus, 
married 23 June, 1764. Josina, daughter of 
John Teller, of Teller's Point, and Aeltje 
(.\lida) \'ermil\'e. He lived in the stone house 
at the Lower Corners, which he inherited, to- 
gether with a considerable farm adjoining. 
.■\t the close of the Revolution he purchased 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



853 



( 



the confiscated estate of Christian Bergh, 
which joined his own on the south, and which 
Mr. Bergh had intended for the portion of his 
daughter, Maria Barbara, wife of Martin Dob, 
who built the stone house, still standing, east 
of the road. Children: James I. (Captain), 
born February i, 1767, married (first) 3 
March, 1793, Catharine E., daughter of Rich- 
ard Snediker, of Spacken Kill, in the town of 
Poughkeepsie, who died 4 August, 181 5, aged 
forty; and (second), 15 April, 1824, Sarah 
Patchen. He inherited part of the late Bergh 
estate, and built the first part of the house 
afterward the residence of the late Daniel S. 
Miller; but soon sold the property. He was 
an active man, and made manj- changes during 
his life. Alida, born 19 April, 1769; married, 
first, 13 October, 1794, Dr. Hiram Walker 
(who settled at Hyde Park, but died early), 
and, second, Walton Street, of Coxsackie. 
Margaret, born 26 December, 1771; married, 
first, John L.,son of Luke Stoutenburgh, and, 
second, John I. Teller, son of John Teller and 
Margaret Stoutenburgh. John I., baptized 24 
May, 1774, died 18 March, 1822; married 
Sarah Griffin, of Lyme, Conn., and had 
Margaret, born 1797, died 6 March, 1802, and 
Sarah Catharine, born 8 February, 1807, 
died 14 March, 1888; married William B. 
Piatt, of Rhinebeck. The homestead of John 
I. Stoutenburgh was on the east side of the 
road, at the Lower Corners, on the property 
now owned by Mrs. Calista Jones. The house 
stood until after 1850. Luke I., born 28 Jan- 
uary, 1779; married Elizabeth Catharine, 
daughter of Anthony A. Hoffman and Eliza- 
beth Snediker, and niece of his brother James' 
wife. They had, Josina, married Storm 
Truesdell, of^Co.xsackie; Walton Street, of 
Coxsackie, who died about 1872; Edgar, died 
29 July, 181 1, aged one year four months; 
Richard Anthony, born August, 18 16, and 
Cortland Augustus, born January, 1820. 
Luke I. Stoutenburgh lived in the house late 
the residence of his father. In later years this 
became the property of John I. Teller; and 
after having had several owners, and a long 
list of tenants, was finally destroyed by an in- 
cendiarj' fire, on the night of August 6, 1864. 
Then for some years it formed a picturesque 
ruin. 

John Stoutenburgh, son of the first Ja- 
cobus, married by license dated 25 November, 
'773' Catharine, daughter of John Teller 
and Aeltje Vermilye, who died 27 August, 



1805, in her seven-sixth year. They had no 
children. He had from his father, besides 
other property, valuable mill privileges on 
Crumelbow creek. He was one of the chief 
founders of the Reformed Dutch Church of 
Hyde Park, and one of its first officers. He 
died at Hyde Park, 21 February, 1808, in his 
seventy-ninth year. In his will, dated 3 Jan- 
uary, 1807, after directing a wall five feet 
high to be built around the family burying 
ground (it still stands), and freeing his slaves, 
to whom he gave legacies, he distributed a 
considerable estate among his heirs, who were 
his surviving sister, Margaret Teller, and his 
nephews and nieces. 

Peter Stoutenburgh, son of the first 
Jacobus, was settled on a tract of land (it is 
said 1,600 acres) in "Great Lot No. i," in 
the northwestern part of the town of Clinton. 
He married Rachel Van Steenburgh. Chil- 
dren: James P., married and had John, 
James P., Jr. , Joseph, Mar}-, Rachel, Margaret 
and Sarah. Tobias P., baptized, Pough- 
keepsie, 17 November, 1765. William P., 
married 5 June, 1803, Elizabeth, daughter of 
Maj. John Pawling, and had Alfred and Julia. 
Peter P., who married and had William T., 
Peter P., Margaret. Maria Affie, Catharine 
and Sarah. Luke P. Benjamin. Rachel P. 

Margaret married ■ Row, and had Mark, 

Catharine, Margaret, Rachel, and " W. P. 
Row," who married Rachel, daughter of 
James L. Stoutenburgh. John, born 22 Oc- 
tober, 1768, baptized, Poughkeepsie. 

Margaret Stoutenburgh, daughter of the 
first Jacobus, married 8 October, 1764. John 
Teller, born 1741, son of John Teller and 
Aeltje Vermilye. Children, all baptized at 
Poughkeepsie: John I., born 16 November, 
1765, married Margaret, daughter of Jacobus 
Stoutenburgh, Jr., and widow of John L. 
Stoutenburgh; had a son, the late William 
Teller, of Rhinebeck, father of Mrs. Eugene 
Wells. James, born 2 July, 1768, married, 
and had John, Morris and Margaret. Tobias, 
born 27 January, 1772, died 19 October, 

1854, of Red Hook; married Paulina , 

and had B. Franklin, Monroe and Margaret. 
\\'illiam, born 29 December, 1775, married, 
and had Jacobus and Tobias. Most of the 
family of John Teller and Aeltje Vermil3'e 
came early to what is now the town of Hyde 
Park. Their chief residence was at ' ' Teller's 
Hill," on the "Fourth Water Lot," where 
the large mansion of the family stood until 



854 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



1830. Of the brothers, James died without 
issue; Luke left a large family, and John mar- 
ried as above stated; while Dr. Abraham 
Teller, who died in 1803, aged fifty-nine, was, 
perhaps, about the earliest settled physician 
in the neighborhood. 

Luke Stoutenburgh, youngest son of the first 
Jacobus, married, first, 2 August, 1762, Rachel, 
daughter ol John Teller and Aeltje Vermilye, 
by whom he had eight children. He married, 
second, 24 November, 1782, Mary Van Vleck, 
widow of Henry Minthorne, who survived him. 
To Luke he gave that portion of his estate 
lying between the lands given to Tobias and 
William; the creek bounding it on the north, 
while on the south were the lands of Jacobus, 
Jr. An abstract of title says this deed of gift 
was made in 1 758, and confirmed by will. Luke 
died before 1789, and in 1791 his farm was 
divided by commissioners into forty-two lots, 
and apportioned among the heirs; two lots, 
comprising the mansion and its environs, being 
left undivided. It was this division, and the 
establishment of a Church that decided the site 
of the village, now Hyde Park; some of the 
smaller lots being soon disposed of. Luke 
lived in the stone house built by him, or his 
father, on the brow of the hill at the end of an 
avenue of cherry trees leading from the Post 
road. Some say Jacobus, himself, lived in 
this house in his later years. The avenue 
became a thoroughfare to the "Upper", or 
"DeCantillon's I^anding;" the road curving 
around the north side of the house and thence 
down the hill; and in 1791 lots were laid out 
along it. It is now known as Market street. 
The house was fully equal to the one at the 
Lower Corners, and perhaps a little larger. It 
was visible from the river, and in 1777 the 
British vessels, passing up to burn Kingston, 
fired on it. Several cannon balls were after- 
ward found, and are still preserved in the 
town. In 1872 this house, long in a neglected 
condition, was taken flown in order to straighten 
the road. 

Luke Stoutenburgh and Rachel Teller had: 
James L. , died 16 December, 1831, aged si.xty- 
seven years, eight months, nineteen days; mar- 
ried Sarah Morris, who died 15 March, 1S46, 
aged seventy-one years, nine months, eleven 
days. John L. , baptized i February, 1767, 
died I December, 1794; married Margaret, 
daughter of Jacobus Stoutenburgh, Jr.; had 
one child, John, died 15 September, 1797, 
aged three years; and his widow married John 



I. Teller. Luke L., born 28 January, 1770; 
never married. Tobias L. , born 2 September, 
1772; died March 27, 1846; married Esther 
Rogers. William L. , born 10 September, 
1775, died in Brooklyn 22 January, 1864; 
married Mary Juliet Dutton. Peter L. , born 

, married Pamela , removed to New 

York. Margaret, born 27 February, 1779, 
died 28 August, 1835, married 18 January, 

1797, Richard Teller, son of Luke Teller, and 
Sarah Snediker, born 28 July, 1775; and had 
Catharine, Eleanor and Margaret, all died un- 
married, and the late Col. Richard Teller (born 
1822) of New York. Eleanor married Samuel 
Van Vleck, of Pittston, Rensselaer, Co., N. Y., 
and had Mary and Catharine. 

James L. Stoutenburgh, son of Luke, 
owned the farm lying north of the road, and 
next east ol Union Corners. He and his wife, 
Sarah Morris, had eleven children, as follows 
(Bible record): Catharine, born 2 December, 
1793. Rachel I., born 29 May, 1796; married 
W. P. Row. Margaret I., born 28 April, 

1798. John, born 29 April, 1800. died 15 
December 1800. Eleanor C, born 21 Feb- 
ruary, 1802. William I., born 12 June. 1804. 
Tobias M., born 2 August, 1806, died in 
Poughkeepsie, 23 October, 1884, married 
(first) Mary L. Van Wagner, who died 20 Au- 
gust, 1845, aged thirty-five; and (second) 
Serena Velie, who survived him. He had a 
large collection of family documents, parch- 
ments and papers, which he left to a nephew, 
son of the Rev. Luke. Sarah Mary Juliet, 
born 14 August, 1808. Richard T. , born 21 
December, 18 10. James, born 18 October, 
181 2; died young. Luke, born 29 December, 
1815; the Rev. Luke I. Stoutenburgh, of 
Schooley's Mountain, N. J., who died in Wash- 
ton, D. C, 13 March, 1891, leaving a family. 

Tobias L. Stoutenburgh, son of Luke, be- 
came the owner of the homestead of his fa- 
ther, and lived there until his removal to New 
York. He represented his district in the Leg- 
islature, in 1807-8. In 1S13 he built the first 
store in the village, on the corner of Albany 
and Market streets, and conducted business 
there, as a merchant, for several j'ears. About 
1830 he removed to New York, where he be- 
came a "public weigher and measurer," and 
continued to reside there, until his death. He 
married 28 November, 18 12, Esther, daughter 
of Capt. Jeremiah Rogers and Mary Jones. 
Capt. Rogers [for whose ancestry refer to the 
N. Y. Genealogical and Biographical Record, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



855 



1 884-1 885] owned the estate, on the Post road, 
next south of Teller's Hill, where he died in 
1 8 10, and is buried, with several of his family, 
on the place. Mrs. Esther Stoutenburgh died 
in New York 28 July, 1842, aged si.xty-two. 
Children: Elizabeth, born 20 November, 
181 3, died II August, 1893; married 8 Febru- 
ary, 1837, Richard Aurelius Tebault, of South 
Carolina, and had two children, who died young. 
Mary, born 9 April, 1815, died i June, 1865; 
not married. Edmund Jones married Mary 
Lowry, who died 16 December, 1847, aged 
thirty; no surviving issue. Margaret died 9 
September, [844, aged twenty-six; married 
Thomas Rudd I^owry, of New York. Cornelia 
Jones, born 6 April, 182 1, died 9 July, 1848; 
married J. Warren Rogers. 

William L. Stoutenburgh, son of Luke, 
lived many j'ears on the Post road, just north 
of the village, and near the Stoutenburgh bury- 
ing ground; but removed to New York, and 
engaged in business. He married i i October, 
1807, ^tary Juliet, daughter of Capt. Titus 
Button, a soldier of the Revolution. She died 
on Staten Island, 24 November, 1861. Chil- 
dren: William Tobias, died in New York, 28 
October, 1884, aged seventy-three, leaving 
four children. He was twice married. Mary 
Elizabeth died i June, 1891, aged seventy- 
nine; married Rev. Robert A. Quin (of the Re- 
formed Dutch Church), chaplain of the Sail- 
ors' Snug Harbor, Staten Island, and had a 
family. Peter Augustus, M. D., settled at 
Oyster Bay, L. I. ; he died of blood poisoning, 
caught from a sick horse. Thomas DeWitt, 
born 23 March, 1818, died 12 November, 1855. 
Anna, born 23 February, 1820, died 29 March, 
1845; married Edwin Sturges. Richard Tel- 
ler, born 20 May, 1822; married . Ferdi- 
nand Vanderveer, baptized 27 March, 1824. 
Martha Catharine, baptized 30 March, 1826, 
died 10 October, 1844. 

Peter L. Stoutenburgh, son of Luke, had, 
by Pamela, his wife: Wright, Joseph, Mary, 
Sarah, David, Jacob, Samuel and James. 



?ARTIN W. PAINE, a leading business 
X?:A man of Millerton, Dutchess county, the 
proprietor of the well-known feed store and of 
the Benedict Mills, was born in the same lo- 
cality June 12, '1841, in the house now occu- 
pied by Mr. Hotchkiss. His father, Piatt A. 
Paine, was one of the most prominenj, citizens 



of the town of Northeast, and a farmer by 
occupation. 

Mr. Paine's early life was that of the aver- 
age country boy, his time being spent in the 
healthful exercise of "doing up the chores," 
and in attending the district schools of Spen- 
cers Corners and Millerton. After leaving 
school he remained with his father for a year, 
and then engaged in farming on his own ac- 
count, spending four years near Boston Cor- 
ners and five on the Paine farm, just below 
the old family homestead. In 1870 he pur- 
chased the Benedict Mills, which he has ever 
since conducted, together with a small farm 
adjoining them. He has done a large custom 
business in milling, and dealt extensively in 
flour, and in 1893 opened a flour and feed 
store in Millerton, which is the principal estab- 
lishment of the kind in that vicinity. His en- 
prises have all been successful, and he has ac- 
cumulated a tine property. 

Notwithstanding the close attention re- 
quired by his business, Mr. Paine has found 
time for reading, and is well informed upon 
the questions of the day. Politically, he is a 
strong Republican, but he does not take an • 
active share in party work, although in many 
progressive movements in his neighborhood he 
has been among the chief promoters. He 
married Miss Emily Eggleston, daughter of 
Nicholas D. Eggleston, and both are promi- 
nent members of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church. They have had three children: Berk- 
ley, a resident of Buchanan, Va. ; Grace A., 
who married D. C. Dakin, of Millerton; and 
Fred L. , an enterprising young blacksmith in 
Millerton. 



I RAM GEDDINGS STEVENS (de- 
ceased). The subject of this memoir, 
formerly a prominent agriculturist of the town 
of Dover, Dutchess county, was a worthy rep- 
resentative of two of the oldest and best-known 
families. 

His father, the late Hon. David W. 
Stevens, was a man of fine ability and wide 
influence. His first wife, our subject's mother, 
was Nancy A. Geddings, daughter of Hon. 
Gamaliel B. Geddings, of Sherman, Conn., 
and for some years after their marriage he re- 
sided at her father's farm there, taking mean- 
time a leading part in local affairs. In 1846 
he represented that district in the Legislature 
of Connecticut. Later he moved to a farm in 



856 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



South Dover, Dutchess county, and identified 
himself with the best interests of that locahty, 
helping in many public movements, and espe- 
cially in the work of building up the Bap- 
tist Church of South Dover. Mrs. Nancy 
Stevens died at Palmyra, Ohio, March i8, 
1858, and April 18, i860, he married Mrs 
Lydia Ann Camp, a lady of exemplary Chris- 
tian character, the widow of the late William 
T. Camp, and daughter of Jonathan and Philo- 
mela Geddings. She survives him and resides 
in South Dover, where his death occurred No- 
vember 16, 1868. There were the following 
children by the first marriage, whose dates of 
birth are given: Orrin, 1821, who married 
Phcjebe A. Wheeler; Eunice, 1823, Mrs. Jona- 
than A. Geddings; Hiram, 1826, who died in 
1833; Gamaliel, 1829, who married Julia 
Dutcher; Frances, 1832, Mrs. Emery Cole; 
Sarah, 1834, Mrs. James H. Martin; Hiram 
G., May 29, 1839, the subject of this sketch. 

The Geddings family is well known in dif- 
ferent parts of the United States, its members 
playing an honorable and often a distinguished 
part in their various lines of life. Hon. Gam- 
aliel Baldwin Geddings, our subject's maternal 
grandfather, was born at Sherman, Conn., Oc- 
tober 6, 1766. He was an extensive land 
holder in the Geddings district, and possessed 
great political infiuence, serving as constable 
and justice of the peace for about twenty years, 
and as a member of the Legislature in 1805, 
1 812 and 181 3. On November 24, 1790, he 
married Miss Tabitha Eunice Barnes, daugh- 
ter of Stephen and Ann (Phinney) Barnes. 
They had five children: Harriet, born Sep- 
tember 9, 1791, died in Palmyra, Ohio, March 
8, 18.76; Solomon, born October 5, 1793, died 
in 1838; Hiram, born September 14, 1795, 
married Miss Rebecca Geddings; Nancy A., 
born May 30, 1 798, was the mother of our 
subject; and Sally M., born February 23, 1800, 
married David W. Stevens. Gamaliel B. Ged- 
dings removed to F'ahnyra, Ohio, in 1845, and 
died there at an advanced age. 

Mr. Stevens was born at the old homestead 
in South Dover, and in his youth received an 
excellent education. He was married March 
3. 1863, to Miss Ann Elizabeth Camp, daugh- 
ter of William T. and Lydia A. (Geddings) 
Camp, and settled upon a farm near Wings 
Station, where he lived a peaceful and happy 
life until death called him February 21, 1893. 
Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Stevens: Florence Bell, July 26, 1S64; 



Thomas How.^rd, January 9, 1873, and Nan- 
nie Maj', November 19, 1874, now the wife of 
George Tabor, of South Dover. The elder 
daughter. Florence, died May 25, 1871, at the 
age of seven, and her death was deeply felt by 
the entire family, but especially by her father, 
who was led by it to seek consolation in com- 
munion with the only Friend who can bring 
lasting peace to the afflicted, and although he 
never made a public profession of faith he be- 
came a consistent follower of Christ, and took 
the Golden Rule for the law of his life. His 
stern integrity, which commanded the respect 
of all who knew him, was combined with a 
kindly sympathy for others that won the 
affectionate regard of his more intimate ac- 
quaintances, and his death was mourned 
throughout the community. His son, Thomas 
H. Stevens, is one of the most intelligent 
young men of South Dover, and is already 
noted for possessing the admirable character- 
istics of his ancestry. 



SVMITH J. SACKETT is one of the most 
, \) prosperous and successful farmers of the 
town of Stanford, Dutchess county, owning 
300 acres of valuable land there. He is num- 
bered among the self-made men of the county, 
his accumulations being the result of his own 
industry, obtained by self-denial and economy, 
and the exercise of a naturally good judgment, 
both in regard to agricultural pursuits and 
business matters. Stanford town has always 
been the field of his operations, and the cen- 
ter of his hopes and interests, for since his 
birth, which occurred March 19, 1844. he has 
there made his home. 

His father, Leonard Sackett, was born in 
the town of Stanford, September 7, 1797. In 
the schools of the neighborhood of his boy- 
hood home he obtained his education, and he 
remained upon the home farm until his mar- 
riage. He married Ruth Gildersleeve, a na- 
tive of the town of Clinton, Dutchess county, 
and they had the following children: Joel, 
born June 29, 1828, is now deceased; Cor- 
delia, born April 28, 1830, is the wife of Elias 
Thompson, of Pine Plains, Dutchess county; 
Eunice was born March 8, 1832; Jane Eliza- 
beth, born August 10, 1834, has passed away; 
Hiram L. was born August 15, 1837; Emily, 
born August 13. 1839, is the' wife of Theron 
Knickerbocker; Sarah M., born February 17, 
1842, is also deceased; Smith J. is next in or- 




^■U^J ^a-o^-^^ 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPHICAL RECORD. 



857 



der of birth, and Henry, born in December, 
1847, has departed this life. The father's 
death occurred May 17, 1866, that of the mother 
on July 25, 1878. Most of their married life 
was passed on a farm near Stissing, Dutchess 
county, which Mr. Sackett operated. With 
the Baptist Church of Bangall they held mem- 
bership, and in his political views the father 
was first a \\ hig, later a Republican. 

The education of Smith J. Sackett was 
such as the district schools of the town of 
Stanford afforded, and on reaching his major- 
ity he left his parental roof, starting out in life 
with no capital. For some time he operated 
farms on shares, but in 1880, in connec- 
tion with his brother Henry, he purchased 
his present farm, and the following year bought 
another. With him, his brother Hiram and 
sister Eunice find a pleasant home. 

Mr. Sackett has never taken an active part 
in politics, although keeping himself well in- 
formed on matters of general interest, and uni- 
formly votes the straight Republican ticket. 
To enterprises calculated for the general wel- 
fare of the people around him he has ever 
been a cheerful and liberal contributor. 



SAMUEL LYNCH. This capitalist is living 
,^) at his ease in Pleasant Valley village, 
Dutchess county, his only occupation being 
the care of the property he in his younger days 
accumulated by untiring industry and judicious 
economy. 

Mr. Lynch was born September 18, 1823, 
in the town of Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county, 
and is a son of William and Elizabeth (Camp- 
bell) Lynch, both natives of Ireland," where 
they married. On leaving the Emerald Isle 
they sailed for Nova Scotia, where the father 
was engaged in the lumber business for about a 
year, and then removed to Long Island, there 
following farming during the next three years. 
Removing thence to Dutchess county, he be- 
came a resident of the town of Pleasant \'al- 
ley, where during the remainder of his life he 
devoted his attention to agricultural pursuits. 
He died about 1880, his wife several years be- 
fore. They were earnest and consistent mem- 
bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and 
in his political affiliations Mr Lynch was a 
stanch Whig and Republican. They had the 
following children: Martha married Henry 
Phillips, a tanner of Dutchess county; Samuel 
comes ne.xt; Betsy Jane became the wife of 



Silas W^ard, a shoemaker; Leah married a 
Mr. Gardiner, a merchant; Margaret wedded 
Ebenezer Whitney, a carpenter; Harriet mar- 
ried John Delany, a car conductor; Hanna be- 
came the wife of a Mr. Gardiner, a milkman; 
Alexander went to California when young, and 
nothing is known of him; and George was a 
carpenter and wheelwright. 

The subject of this memoir received the 
education common to farmer's sons, his boy- 
hood being passed in the town of Pleasant 
Valley, but after his school days were over he 
went to Unionvale, where he learned the car- 
penter's trade with Joseph Wait, by whom he 
was employed for about six years. He then 
began business for himself in the town of 
Pleasant Valley, but in 1849 went to New 
York City, where for forty years he was 
engaged in contracting and building with good 
success, erecting many houses in that city. 
On laying aside business cares he returned to 
Pleasant Valley, where, since 1889, he has 
lived retired, having accumulated sufficiently 
of this world's goods to enable him to pass his 
remaining days in ease, surrounded by the 
comforts of life, and enjoying the respect and 
confidence of his fellow men in the highest 
degree. 

In 1852 Mr. Lynch was married to Miss 
Anna M. Wyles, who was born and reared in 
Philadelphia, Penn., and is a daughter of 
Joseph Shaw Wyles. Four children blessed 
this union: Clara; Anna, wife of George E. 
Stuart, of New York City; Frank, a resident of 
Brooklyn, N. Y.; and Emma. Mr. Lynch is 
a true-hearted man, an earnest believer in the 
doctrines of Christianity, and both he and his 
wife are faithful members of the Presbyterian 
Church. Politically he is a stanch Republican, 
and in 1895 was elected supervisor, serving one 
year. He is a public-spirited, enterprising 
man, and in all matters tending to benefit the 
people of his community, morally, socially or 
financially, he has ever been an earnest and 
cheerful worker. 



ARCUS D. MARCY, a prominent resi- 
dent of Dover Plains, Dutchess county, 
who was for many years a valued employe on 
the Harlem railroad, was born March 29, 
1848, in the town of Dover, Dutchess county. 
He took advantage of the educational oppor- 
tunities afforded by the schools of his native 
place, and in early manhood entered the serv- 



858 



COMMEMORAnVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



ice of the railroad company, and remained 
twenty-five years working first as a brakeman 
and afterward as a conductor. In the latter po- 
sition he was unusually successful, a fact which 1 
speaks well for his tact, and intelligence. | 
Realizing the value of a clear brain, he is a | 
firm opponent of intemperance, and for fifteen 
years he has been a member of the order of 
Good Templars. He married Miss Hattie 
A. Fero, daughter of John and Adelaide Fero, 
and has one daughter, Bertha, born in 1886. 

His ancestors have been agriculturists in 
the town of Dover, Dutchess county, for sev- 
eral generations. His grandfather, Moses 
Marcy, was a native of the town, and followed 
(arming all his life. He and his wife, Susan 
Cutler, reared a family of eight children: 
Rogers went to Michigan, made a home in the 
forest, and became well-to-do; George; Robey 
married Fred Summers; Abbie married Brigg 
Tanner; Hannah was the wife of Seneca 
White; Lucretia never married; Moses married 
Fannie Addis; and Mary married Orisey Wol- 
sey, and had one son, Moses Wolsey. 

Moses Marcy, our subject's father, was a 
native of Dover Plains, where he was educated 
and later engaged in farming and in the butch- 
er's trade. His wife, Fannie Addis, was a na- 
tive of New Preston, Conn. They had seven 
children": Oliver W., who married Alvira 
Halleck; Griffin C, who married jane Sher- 
wood; Andrew A., who never married; Gar- 
wood G., who married Caroline Summers; Al- 
vinB. , who married first, Emma Lee; Mar- 
cus D., our subject; and Samantha A., the 
wife of John Bristow. 

Mrs. Marcy's ancestors on both sides were 
early settlers in Dutchess county. A great- 
great-grandfather, Israel Chapman, was a 
farmer in the town of Dover, where he and 
his wife Esther reared a family of three chil- 
dren: (i) John; (2) William, who married 
Rachel Cherrjtree; and (3) Nathan. John 
Chapman, Mrs. Marcy's great-grandfather, 
was a lifelong resident of the town of Dover, 
where he followed the shoemaker's trade. He 
married Catherine Briggs, of Connecticut, and 
had four children: Ann, Mrs. Bishop Smith; 
Sallie A., Mrs. 'William H. Fero; Harry, who 
married Pollie Gregory; and Richard, who mar- 
ried Sarah Wheeler. Sallie A., Mrs. Marcy's 
grandmother, was born in South Dover, in 
1807, and married Mr. Fero, November 8, 
1827. He was a farmer in Dover town, and 
a son of Jacob Fero, a well-to-do farmer of 



Columbia county. Five children were born of 
this union: Hattie, Mrs. Jerry Waldron; 
Oscar, who married (first) Mary Anson, and 
(second) Christina Wilcox; John, Mrs. Marcy's 
father; Akin, whose wife's name is not known; 
and William, who died in infancy. John Fero 
was born in South Dover in 1838, and in early 
manhood engaged in farming, but later was 
employed for twenty years as a conductor on 
the Harlem railroad. He now lives a retired 
life. He and his brother Oscar both enlisted 
at Poughkeepsie during the Civil war in Com- 
pany E, 150th N. Y. V. I. Although he takes 
an active interest in public affairs he has never 
aspired to office. He belongs to the Masonic 
Lodge No. 666, of Dover, and also to the or- 
der of Good Templars Lodge No. 433. He 
married Miss Adelaide Leonard, and had four 
children: (i) Jennie, born in 1859, married 
Edward Davis, and has had three children: 
May, born in 1886; Bessie, in 1890; and John, 
who died in infancy. (2) Hattie, born in 1862, 
wife of our subject. (3) William, mentioned be- 
low. (4) Ida. born in 1869. died in infancy. 

Mrs. John Fero, Mrs. Marcy's mother, is 
of English descent, her grandparents, Enoch 
and Elsie Leonard, cousins, having come from 
the mother country to settle in Dutchess coun- 
ty. Her grandfather was a soldier in the war 
of 1812. Their three children were: Joshua; 
William, who never married; and Maria, Mrs. 
Joseph Worden. Joshua Leonard, Mrs. Fero's 
father, was born in Dutchess county in i8io, 
and after attendmg the schools of that time, 
engaged in farming in the town of Pawling. 
In 1862 he enlisted in Company E, 150th 
N. Y. \'. I., and died in the service in 1864. 
His wife was Miss Eliza Olivet, daughter of 
James Olivet, a prominent farmer of Pawling 
town, and his wife Mary. Three children 
were born to them: Mary Ann. who died in 
infancy; William; and Adelaide. Mrs. Fero. 

William Fero. the third child and first son 
of John and Adelaide Fero, was born in 1865, 
and is now an engineer on the Harlem railroad. 
He married Minnie Rider, by whom he has 
had four children: Addie, born in 1875, died 
young; Ida, born in 1885; John, born in i8go; 
and 'VVilliam, in 1893. Mrs. William Fero is 
a descendant of one of the old families of 
Bangail, and her grandfather, Thompson Rider, 
was a native of that place. He was a carpen- 
ter by trade, and was an active member of the 
Masonic Lodge of Bangail. His first wife, 
Sarah Bailey, was a daughter of Joseph Bailey, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



859 



a well-known resident of that village, and his 
second wife was a Miss Davis. There were 
five children by the first marriage, (i) Emma 
married George Tompkins, a carpenter, and 
had six children: Annie, George, Jennie, and 
three others whose names are not known. 
(2) Landon died in the' army. (3) David, a 
carpenter by trade, married Miss Eliza Piatt, 
and had one son, Harry. (4) Legrand died at 
the age of twenty-two. Albert, Mrs. Fero's 
father, was born at Bangall, in 1843, and 
after receiving a common-school education in 
his native \'illage, he learned the carpenter's 
trade, which he followed for many years. He 
is a member of the Masonic fraternity. His 
wife, Sarah Sackett, was a daughter of George 
and Rachel Sackett, and her father was a 
leading farmer in the town of Washington. 
Eleven children were born of this union: 
Emma married Harry Hardstay, and has had 
four children; Anna is at home; Lillie married 
George Coolman, and has had one daughter, 
Anna; Agnes is not married; Minnie married 
Mr. Fero; Josie died in infancy; and Bert, 
Charles, John, William and Albert are not 
married. 



■ARTHA T. WING. Among the suc- 
cessful agriculturists of the town of 
Pawling, Dutchess county. Miss Martha Wing 
is noted for her scientific and progressive 
management. A constant reader of agri- 
cultural journals, as well as general literature, 
she keeps well informed on the latest and best 
methods in all branches of her work, and her 
farm shows the results of her practical in- 
vestigations. She is especially interested in 
horticulture. 

The Wing family has long been prominent 
in the town of Pawling. Jedediah Wing, 
Miss Wing's great-great-grandfather, came 
from Rhode Island at an early period and set- 
tled upon a farm north of Quaker Hill. He 
was a man of quiet tastes and a leading mem- 
ber of the Society of Friends. Their son, 
Elihu, Miss Wing's great-grandfather, was 
a millwright by trade, and lived upon a farm 
east of the old Friends meeting house. He 
and his wife, Keziah Wing, reared a family of 
eight children: Abigail, Sybil, Phoebe, Eliza- 
beth, Sarah, Lydia, Keziah and Abram. 

Abram Wing was only seven years of age 
when his father died. He became a farmer, 
locating about one-half mile south of the pres- 



ent homestead, and was very successful, own- 
ing about 500 acres of land at the time of his 
death. He was prominent in local affairs, al- 
though not especially active, and was always 
interested in religious progress. He married 
Rose Irish, who was born July 4, 1789, and 
had four sons: Elihu, born August 20, 1806; 
Charles, April 6. 1808; Daniel, September 23, 
1809; and David I., March 22, 181 i. Abram 
Wing died in 1846, but his widow survived him 
many years, passing to her rest in 1888. Of 
the sons, Elihu and Daniel spent their lives at 
the old home farm. They never married. 
Charles married Eliza Deuel, and had three 
children: Sarah H., Abram D. and Elihu S. 
David I., Miss Wing's father, lived at the 
old home until his marriage to Mar}' Irish, 
daughter of David Irish, when he settled upon 
the present homestead, which contains 120 
acres. Thrifty and successful in business, he 
was also active as a citizen and as a member 
of the Friends Society. Like the majority of 
his family, he was a Republican and took much 
interest in the success of his party. He died 
November 27, 1888, and his wife followed him 
September 25, 1893. They had four children: 
Elizabeth, the wife of Edward Rider, of Peach 
Pond; Martha T. , our subject; Phcebe, who 
married Edward Henry Wilco.x, of Pawling; 
and Carrie, who died in 1894. 



ROBERT CASS, a prominent educator, 
^Ot whose professional work has covered a 
period of over a quarter of a century, is a 
leading resident of the town of Pawling, Dutch- 
ess county. A inan of fine culture and liter- 
ar)' ability, he has found time aside from the 
exacting duties of the school room to use his 
pen effectively, and as a correspondent of the 
Avicrican Agricnlturisl , the Poughkeepsie 
Eagle, the New Milford Gazette, and other 
papers, he has dorte valuable work. He comes 
of a brainy, energetic family. His grandfather, 
Richard Cass, was one of four brothers who 
came from the central part of Scotland and 
settled in different parts of the United States: 
one in Ohio, two in Illinois, and one in Mich- 
igan, the latter being the father of Gen. Lewis 
Cass, so well known in military and political 
affairs. 

Allen Cass, our subject's father, was born 
in 1806, near Xenia, Ohio, and in early man- 
hood engaged in his father's occupation of 
farming, at Danville, 111., where he owned 



860 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL UECORI). 



200 acres of land. He was influential in local 
affairs, and a personal friend of Abraham 
Lincoln, and more than once was a juror 
where Lincoln was conductinjj cases at the 
bar. Politically, he was a Whig until the or- 
ganization of the Republican party, to which 
he at once gave his allegiance. He was a 
leading member of the Methodist Church. He 
married Miss Martha Payton, a descendant of 
one of the first families of \'irginia, whose fa- 
ther, Valentine Payton, was a pioneer settler at 
Danville. Eleven children were born to them: 
William Henry, John Milton, Elisha, Alpheus, 
Charles, Willis Allen, Robert, Mary Frances, 
Lucy, Margaret and Caroline. 

The subject of this sketch was born at 
Danville, 111., April 23, 1845, and was edu- 
cated mainly in the high school at Homer, 111., 
under H. A. Coffeen, now a member of Con- 
gress from Colorado. After leaving school he 
engaged in teaching, following the profession 
successfully in the school at Sherman, Conn., 
the Farinont school at Danville, 111., and in 
the schools at Pawling. Dutchess Co. N. Y. 
He is actively interested in all that tends to 
promote the welfare of the community, and 
takes a leading part in Church work, having 
served as Sunday-school superintendent for 
twenty years. 

Mr. Cass married a member of one of the 
most highl}' respected families of this section, 
Miss Emma G. Chamberlain, and has two 
daughters, Carrie Belle and Lillie May. 

George H. Chamberlain, the father of Mrs. 
Cass, was born in 1820, in Kent. Conn., 
where his ancestors had made their home for 
several generations. His father, Harvey 
Chamberlain, and grandfather Chamberlain, 
were farmers there. Harvey Chamberlain 
was extremely popular, and held various offices 
in his town, including that of selectman. In 
his political afflliations he was a Democrat. 
He died in 18 — , and his wife, whose maiden 
name was Polly Morgan, passed away in her 
fifty-third year. They had six children: 
George H. ; John, deceased; Helen, wife of 
Daniel Vincent; Flora (Mrs. Sterling, of Sha- 
ron, Conn.); Mary, wife of Smith Stewart, of 
Kent, Conn. ; and Emeline (Mrs. Frederick 
Bull). 

George H. Chamberlain was educated in 
the district school near his birth place and in 
a select school at Milton, Conn. Possessing 
more than average mental ability, he made 
good use of these opportunities, and in later 



years kept well abreast with the times by his 
reading. He taught for three or four seasons 
after leaving school, but engaged in farming 
after his marriage, in 1843, to Miss Mary 
Ann Tompkins, daughter of Benjamin Tomp- 
a leading citizen of Kent, Conn. Their 
first home was on' a farm about a mile 
below the old homestead, but after four years 
he purchased another piece of land in the 
same neighborhood, where they spent about 
five years. He then sold that farm, and in 
1857 moved to a tract of land which he had 
previously bought near Cerro Gordo, 111. ; but 
two )ears later he returned to his native State, 
and lived for two years at Xew Milford. In 
1 869 he purchased the Sherman Howard farm, 
in the town of Pawling, Dutchess county, 
containing 125 acres, where he passed the re- 
mainder of his days. He had excellent judg- 
ment, and was successful in business and intiu- 
■ential as a citizen, although he invariably de- 
clined to become a candidate for office when 
urged to do so by his fellow workers in the 
Democratic party. 

Mrs. Cass was the only child of her parents. 
Her mother's family, which like the Chamber- 
lains, was of English origin, was prominent in 
East Kent, Conn., from early times. Her 
maternal great-grandfather, Philip Tompkins, 
was a cooper by trade, and her grandfather, 
Benjamin Tompkins, was an extensive agri- 
culturist, and a man of note in local politics. 
He married Ophelia Blakesley, and had six 
children: Augustus E. ; Mary Ann; Emeline 
fMrs. Luke Putnam); Laura (Mrs. Peter 
Kiley); Martha, who married Rufus Lovell, of 
Washington, Conn.; and Eber W. Of this 
family onl}' one is now living. 



If LEXANDER R. BECKER, a prominent 
^^_ contractor and agriculturist of the town 
of Red Hook, Dulchess county, is a native of 
the county, born at Rock City September 13, 
1828. His father. Christian Becker, was born 
in the town of Red Hook October 16, 1800, 
and there received a common-school education. 
He learned the trade of blacksmithing, at 
which he worked in connection with farming. 
In Red Hook, on November 14, 1824, was 
celebrated his marriage with Miss Elizabeth 
Near, who was born June 22, 1802, and they 
became the parents of four children, namely: 
Mary A., who became the wife of Myron A. 
Badgley; Juliet, who married John T. Stall; 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



861 



William H., who married Catherine Sagendorf; 
and Alexander R., of this review. 

In the place of his nativity our subject at- 
tended the public schools, where he acquired 
a fair education, and after lea\ing school he 
learned the trade of a blacksmith with his fa- 
ther; but as this was not to his taste, he went 
to Elizaville, N. Y. , where he for a time en- 



gaged 



merchandising. 



Disposing of his 



business there, he next conducted a store in 
New York City. He was also engaged in the 
brewing business at Brooklyn, under the firm 
name of Becker & Foster, and for some time 
ran a brewery at Albany, N. Y. He was next 
employed as freight agent for a line of steam- 
ers on the Hudson, and later turned his atten- 
tion to contracting in New York City. Since 
returning to Dutchess county he has made his 
home in the town of Red Hook, where he suc- 
cessfully carries on contracting and farming. 
He wins the respect and confidence of all with 
whom he comes in contact, and occupies a 
leading position among the influential citizens 
of the community. 

Mr. Becker was united in marriage with 
Miss Celinda Mull, a daughter of Captain Mull, 
a hay merchant of New York City, who is a 
member of the firm of Mull & Lawton. In 
1S93 Mr. Becker was called to mourn the loss 
of his estimable wife. 

Mary Ann Becker, thesisterof our subject, 
was born at Rock City, August 30, 1831, was 
there educated and married Myron A. Badgley, 
son of Squire and Hannah (Wing) Badgley. 
By occupation Myron Badgley was a farmer. 
He was three times married, his first union 
being with Miss Elizabeth Near. He next 
wedded Miss Becker, by whom he had one 
daughter — Minnie L. For his third wife he 
chose Miss Sarah Haines, and to them was 
born a daughter — Lizzie E., whose birth oc- 
curred October 28, 1868. She is now the wife 
of Willard E. Link, and they have two chil- 
dren — Ethel and Roy C. 

Minnie L. Badgley, the niece of our sub- 
ject, was born June 15, 1863, in the town of 
Milan, Dutchess county, attended the schools 
of the locality, and was united in marriage 
with William Augustus Lown, who was born 
at Madalin, Dutchess count}', November 9, 
1863, and is the son of Richard and Hannah 
(Grunther) Lown, of Barryto.vn, N. Y. Their 
marriage was celebrated Jime 27, 1886, and 
previous to that time Mr. Lown had followed 
the trade of a mason for several years, but is 



now engaged in farming in the town of Red 
Hook. Mr. and Mrs. Lown have become the 
parents of three children: Alexander R., born 
April 10, 1887; Florence, who was born May 
25, i89[, and died in infancy; and Bertram E., 
born December 19, 1894. 



JOHN W. HOFFMAN (deceased) was for 
many years prominently connected with 

the history of Dutchess county. His birth 
occurred in the town of Red Hook, March 10, 
1826, where the family is numbered among 
the very oldest and most substantial in the 
localit}', being among the pioneers. His 
father, George C. Hoffman, was a farmer and 
butcher of Red Hook. On June 7, 1807, he 
was united in marriage with Lydia Beekman, 
and after her death wedded Maria Waldorf. 
By the second union were born twelve chil- 
dren: Gitty Elizabeth, born January 15, 
1809; Rebecca M., born February 25, 18 12; 
Helen S., born Januar}- 23, 18 14; Sarah A., 
born May 7, 18 17; Lydia C, born April 6, 
18 19; Benjamin B., born March 15, 1821; 
Margarie L., born April 4, 1823; John W. , of 
this review; George L. , born September 11, 
1829; Edward M., born January 5, 1831; 
J. Robert, born August 9, 1833; and Regina E. 

The boyhood days of our subject were 
spent mostly after the manner of farmers' 
sons, and when he had attained a sufficient 
age he entered the public schools of Red 
Hook, where his education was acquired. 
When he had arrived at years of maturity he 
was united in marriage with Lydia S. Man- 
ning, daughter of John and Margaret (Raffen- 
burgh) Manning. After the death of Mr. Man- 
ning, her mother was again married, becoming 
the wife of Thomas Welsh, who died Septem- 
ter 31, 1841. In her family were nine chil- 
dren: J. Manning, born in 1781; Margaret, 
born July 10, 1788; Elizabeth J., born Octo- 
ber 27, 1805; Sarah R., born October 14, 
1807; Sophia, born February 21, 181 1; Mary 
M., born October 9, 181 3; John A., born May 
7, 1822; Martin H., born June 18, 1827; and 
Lydia S., born February 18, 1830. 

The maternal grandmother of Mrs. Hoff- 
man, who bore the maiden name of Jennie 
McGregor, was a native of Scotland, and while 
quite young, in 1773, came to the United 
States. Having the welfare of the people at 
heart, she joined the force of nurses who were 
at that time caring for the wounded soldiers of 



862 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD 



the Revolutionary war, and while serving in 
that capacit}- she met and fell in love with a 
handsome lieutenant who was wounded and 
brought to the hospital for treatment. The 
name of this ofificer was Peter Raffenburgh, 
who was born June 17, 1746. They were af- 
terward married and became the parents of 
five children, among whom was Margaret, the 
mother of Mrs. Hoffman. 

In early life Mr. Hoffman spent most of his 
time in freighting on the Hudson, where he 
owned two steamers — the " R. Donaldson " and 
the "Clifton" — which he commanded. During 
the Civil war the United States Government 
wanted the R. " Donaldson " to fit out as a war 
vessel. The purchase being completed, he was 
on his way to New York City to make the nec- 
essary transfer, when he received word that 
the steamer had run ashore in a fog, and was 
burned. The financial loss was very heavy. 
He then turned his attention to the hotel busi- 
ness at Barrytown, Dutchess county, which 
proved very successful. He also engaged in 
the manufacture of tobacco at Red Hook for 
some time. 

Eleven children graced the union of Mr. 
and Mrs. Hoffman, namely: Orison G., born 
October 25, 1854; Elizabeth H., born October 
2, 1856; William M. , born May 31, 1858; 
Allen H., born January 19, 1861; George E., 
born January 14, 1863; Horace A., born Oc- 
tober 23, 1864; C. Otis and Otto, twins, born 
November 14, 1866; Robert M., born June 29, 
1868; Maggie J., born May 5, 1872; and Hat- 
tie C, born August 27, 1873. The youngest 
son, Robert M. Hoffman, was born in Red 
Hook, and in 1881 entered the De Garmo In- 
stitute of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, which 
school has since been removed to Fishkill-on- 
Hudson. He later attended the Holbrook 
Military Academy at Sing Sing, N. Y., and in 
1888, JDecame a student at Yale College, from 
which he was graduated with the class of 1891. 
After his graduation he went to Chicago, 111., 
where for a few years he practiced mechanical 
engineering. 

On December 26, 1883, the earthh' career 
of Mr. Hoffman was ended, his death being 
deeply regretted by many warm friends as well 
as his sorrowing family. His personal integ- 
rity both in public and private life, was of the 
highest order, and both he and his estimable 
wife enjoyed the friendship and acquaintance 
of a large number of the best people of Red 
Hook and vicinity. 



ARTHUR H. BOLLES. Although the 
subject of this sketch has resided at 
Pawling, Dutchess county, but a few years, he 
has won an enviable position in business cir- 
cles, the trade of his marble and stone cut- 
ting establishment extending beyond the limits 
of his immediate locality into Putnam county, 
N. Y. , and Fairfield and Litchfield counties, 
Conn. He is a native of the last-named coun- 
ty, having first seen the light at New Preston, 
November 11, 1857, and two previous genera- 
tions have been prominent there in the same 
line of business. His grandfather, Reuben 
Bolles, was born in Colebrook, Conn., in 1790, 
but about 1813 went to New Preston and 
learned the trade of engraving marble and 
granite, which he followed for sixty years, or 
until his death, February i, 1874. He be- 
came one of the principal marble dealers of 
that region, owning a quarry of what is known 
as New Preston marble, much in demand 
for cemeteries. A man of great energy, his 
activities were not confined to the manage- 
ment of his business, as he took an active 
share in the work of the Democratic part}', and 
held numerous official positions. In religious 
faith he was a Congregationalist. He married 
a native of New Preston, Miss Amanda Meeker, 
and had seven children, four sons — George \Y., 
Noble, Henry N. and Andrew J., all of whom 
engaged in the stone and marble trade — and 
three daughters — Caroline, who married Will- 
iam Dowler; Maria, the wife of Henry Peck; 
and Jeanette, who married Julius A. Glover, 
of New Preston. 

Henry M. Bolles, our subject's father, was 
born at New Preston, in 1825, and since 1843 
has carried on at the same place his extensi\-e 
marble works, now the only establishment of 
the kind in the neighborhood. His trade 
covers a radius of forty or fifty miles, and he is 
one of the substantial business men of the town. 
He is an active member of the Congregational 
Church, and in politics has always been in- 
fluential as a Democrat, holding the office of 
assessor and justice of the peace for many 
years. His partner in life was Miss Sophia 
Kinney, daughter of Gilbert Kinney, a well- 
known resident of New Preston, and they 
have had three children, of whom, our subject, 
the youngest, is the only survivor. Edward 
H. died in infancy, and William in his bo}'- 
hood. 

Arthur H. Bolles was educated in the Con- 
necticut Literary Institute at Suffield, where 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



SGy 



he received excellent training with the view of 
pursuing; a more advanced course; but at the age 
of nineteen he left school to engage in busi- 
ness. His first employment was as a travel- 
ing salesman, and in this work he was very 
successful, handling some large contracts in 
various localities, and superintending their 
completion. After eight years with his father, 
he spent six years with firms in Springfield and 
Hartford and then returned to New Preston, 
where he remained two years. In 1891 he 
went to Pawling, purchasing the business 
formerly owned by George W. Turner. This 
was an old and well-known enterprise, estab- 
lished about thirty-five years ago, and Mr. 
Bolles has enlarged the plant and increased 
his trade greatly. He makes a specialty of 
granite work. Like all of his family, he is 
public-spirited and loyal to the best interests 
of his town; he attends the Baptist Church, 
and takes a generous interest in all pro- 
gressive movements. In politics he is a Dem- 
ocrat, but has not sought office or taken a 
prominent part in political strife. 

Mr. Bolles was united in matrimony with 
Miss Christina Richards, daughter of James 
Richards, of London, England, but no chil- 
dren have blessed their union. 



ISAAC VERMILYEA BILLINGS (de- 
ceased). In the intensified energy of the 

successful man fighting the every-day battle of 
existence there is but little to attract the idle 
observer, but to the mind fully awake to the 
realities of life and their meaning, there are 
noble lessons to be learned from the history of 
a man who without other aid than a clear 
head, a strong arm, and a true heart, conquers 
adversity, and while securing an honorable 
competency leaves to his family the priceless 
memory of a good name. 

The subject of this memoir, formerly a 
prominent resident of Billings, Dutchess coun- 
ty, was a grandson of one of the earliest set- 
tlers of the town of Lagrange — John BilHngs, 
who was a tanner and shoemaker by trade in 
early life, and later became well known as an 
auctioneer. He was a Whig in politics, and a 
member of the M. E. Church at Lagrangeville. 
His wife, Rachel Jay, was a native of Hud- 
son, N. Y., and they had four children: Isaac, 
who lived in Lagrange; Daniel, our subject's 
father; Rachel (Mrs. Thurston), and Fannie 
(Mrs. Paul Durando). 



Daniel Billings resided during his entire life 
in the town of Lagrange, receiving his educa- 
tion in the district schools and, later, followed 
the occupation of farming. He became a Re- 
publican in politics when the war issues caused 
the formation of new party lines. He married 
Elizabeth Vermilyea, and had four children, of 
whom the subject of our sketch was the eld- 
est: (2) Sarah Ann married Hubbard Col- 
well, and died leaving three children — Chaun- 
cey P., Elizabeth and Elvena. (3) John D. 
is now deceased. (4) Catherine (deceased) 
was formerly the wife of Samuel Colwell. 

The late Isaac V. Billings was born Sep- 
tember 28, 18 16, in the town of Lagrange, and 
spent his boyhood at the old farm attending 
the district schools and assisting in the work 
at home. He learned the shoemaker's trade 
with Edgar Hawkins, at Oswego Village, 
Dutchess county, and followed it at Billings 
during the most of his life. In early life he 
was a Democrat in politics; but the temperance 
reform seemed to him one of the vital issues 
of the day, and he became one of the first 
Prohibitionists in his town. He was a sup- 
porter of the M. E. Church at Lagrangeville 
for many years previous to his death, which 
occurred April 19, 1825. On October 30, 
i860, he was married at Billings to Miss Susan 
Storm, who survives him. No children were 
born of their union. 

Mrs. Billings is a member of one of the 
oldest and most substantial families. Her 
great-grandfather, Derrick Storm, was a na- 
tive of the town of Fishkill, and became a 
farmer in Pleasant Valley, where his son Peter, 
Mrs. Billings' grandfather, was born and passed 
his entire life, engaging in agriculture as an oc- 
cupation. He married Catalina Van Dj-ck, 
and had six children: John P., who married 
Miss Mott; Margaret (Mrs. Peter Le'Roy), 
Lena. James, Polly, and Francis, none of 
whom are now living. James Storm, the fa- 
ther of Mrs. Billings, was born at the home- 
stead in Pleasant Valley, and grew to manhood 
there. He married Miss Johanna Van Voor- 
hees, daughter of John Van Voorhees, a lead- 
ing resident of Pleasant Valley, and for four 
years after his marriage he lived upon a farm 
in that locality. He then sold his property' 
and moved to Alburg, Grand Isle Co., Vt. , 
where he followed agricultural pursuits for 
many years; but his last years were spent in 
his native county, in the town of Lagrange. 
He was a Whig in politics, and he and his wife 



864 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



were Presbyterians in religious faith. They 
had nine children, of whom Mrs. Billings was 
the youngest: (i) Caroline (deceased) mar- 
ried Benjamin Marvin, and had three children 
— Albert, Sarah E. and Mary E. (2) John 
(deceased) married Mary E. Conger. (3) 
Peter (deceased) married Lucinda Palmer, and 
had two children — Solon and Caroline. (4) 
Henry (deceased) married Abigail Smith, and 
had five children — James, Mary Jane, Helen 
(deceased), Henry and Minerva. (5) Cather- 
ine has never married. (6) James, Jr. , a res- 
ident of Stockbridge, Wis., married Emily 
Prentiss, and has three children — Helen, David 
H. and Frederick P. (7) Helen (deceased) 
never married. (8) David (deceased) mar- 
ried Jennie Dates. 



\LBERT CARTER SMITH (deceased). 
J^ Among those who have been prominently 
identified with the agricultural interests of 
the town of Amenia, Dutchess county, and 
whose perseverance and industry gained for 
him not only a foothold in the world, but made 
him one of the largest land holders in the lo- 
cality, was the subject of this review. He be- 
longs to that class of men peculiar to this Re- 
public — the self-made men — and his property 
was due not to any lucky speculation, to any 
inheritance, or to any gift, but to his own con- 
tinual struggles, and his indomitable pluck un- 
der adversity. 

Phineas Smith, his grandfather, was a lead- 
ing physician and resident of Litchfield county. 
Conn., where his death occurred at the age of 
forty years. He married Miss Clemens, and to 
them were born four children, all now de- 
ceased: Whiting, Eleazer, Lorentz and 
Phineas. 

Lorentz, the father of our subject, was 
born at Mt. Tom, Litchfield Co., Conn., June 
29, 1789, and in the schools of that county 
received his education. As a young man he 
worked in a woolen-mill, which is still stand- 
ing on the old home farm, becoming a weaver 
and spinner, and at the age of thirty j'ears 
went to Livingston Manor, Columbia Co., N. 
Y. , where he engaged in that business until 
1826, at which time he returned to the town of 
Amenia, having purchased the place contain- 
ing the mill in which he had worked in his 
younger days. His return dated from Febru- 
ary 22, 1826, and until 1S40 he manufactured 
woolen cloth and flannels. He also conducted 



his farm of 100 acres until his death, July 18, 
1864. At Amenia he had married Miss Sally 
Fields, a daughter of Jesse Fields, a carpen- 
ter and builder. Four children graced this 
union: (i) Albert Carter, of this sketch; (2) 
George C, of the town of Stanford, Dutchess 
county, who first married Charity Miller, by 
whom he had four children — Hewitt, Mary, 
Lawrence and Carrie — and for his second wife 
he wedded Nellie Haynes, and by this union 
has one son — George. (3) Louisa, who is the 
widow of Nathaniel Hewitt (he died December 
II, 1865), by whom she had four children — 
Mary, wife of Mr. Colburn; Albertina, wife of 
Herbert Fowler; and Emma and Sarah, both 
deceased in infancy. Mrs. Hewitt resides on 
the home farm, where she was born in 1829; 
and (4) Julia Ann, who died at the age of two 
years. The mother of this family died in 1848. 

Albert Carter Smith was born at Livingston 
Manor, Columbia county, April 4, 1820, but 
his early life was passed mainly in the town of 
Amenia, where he attended the district schools, 
and was employed in the woolen-mill of his 
father as long as it was conducted. Ever an 
industrious, energetic man, he steadily in- 
creased his estate until he became the owner 
of one thousand acres of valuable land in 
Amenia, Stanford and Washington town, all 
of which property was acquired after he had 
attained his fortieth year. 

Politically Mr. Smith was an adherent of 
Jeffersonian Democracy, but cared nothing for 
public office. He stood in his mature years — 
a strong man- — strong in the consciousness of 
a well-spent life, strong to plan and perform, 
strong in his credit and in his good name, and 
for the younger generation a worthy e.xample 
to imitate, as illustrating that success in life 
that may be attained by industry and persever- 
ance. His death occurred October 5, 1896. 



IRVING FRALEIGH. The subject of this 
_ biography is one of the honored sons of 
Dutchess county, and a prominent resident of 
the town of Red Hook, where his birth took 
place February 4, 1837. He began life with 
a definite purpose in view, worked faithfully, 
honestlj', and with a will for its accomplish- 
ment, and has now gained a comfortable com- 
petence. 

Our subject is descended from Putnam and 
Elizabeth (Felder) Fraleigh, whose name ap- 
pears in the records of the German Reformed 




ALBERT C. SMITH. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



865 



Church for the first time July 9, 1 780, when 
their son Johannes was baptized. The names, 
and dates of the baptism, of three of their 
other children are as follows: Elizabeth, April 
12, 1782; George, September 3, 1784; and 
Phillippus, December 3, 1786. They also 
had another son and daughter, Peter and Han- 
nah. 

The primary education of our subject was 
obtained in the district schools of the town of 
Red Hook, and the knowledge there acquired 
was supplemented by a course in the Hartvvick 
Seminary. After completing his studies there 
he followed farming until twenty-si.x years of 
age, when he engaged in freighting between 
Barrytown and New York City, under the firm 
name of P. L. Tyler & Co., which, later, was 
dissolved, and the firm of Carnwright & 
Fraleigh was organized. The name was 
changed to Carnwright, Fraleigh & Company; 
but the firm subsequently assumed the former 
style, which they retained as long as the busi- 
ness was conducted. Mr. Fraleigh was also 
engaged in the milling business with a Mr. 
Curtis under the firm style of Curtis & Fra- 
leigh, which connection was continued some 
six years, or until the death of Mr. Curtis. 
Our subject then purchased the latter's inter- 
est, and for two years conducted the Oriole 
Mills at Rock City, after which he bought of 
Charles White a one-half interest in the Red 
Hook Mills, which, together with the Oriole 
mills, were conducted under the firm name of 
Irving, Fraleigh & Co., Sheridan Shook own- 
ing an interest. They now operate both mills, 
which they have greatly enlarged and im- 
proved, and are also engaged in the distillery 
business. Mr. Fraleigh conducts a fine stock 
farm situated a short distance from the village 
of Red Hook, which is one of the model farms 
of the county and a source of great pleasure 
and pride to him. He is a thorough business 
man, upright and honorable in all his dealings, 
and well deserves the success that has come to 
him. 

On December 9, 1S62, Mr. Fraleigh was 
married to Miss A. I. Cookingham, daughter 
of Andrew Cookingham, of the town of Rhine- 
beck, Dutchess county, and two children have 
been born to them: Sheridan, born Novem- 
ber II, 1868, died July 24, 1876, and Irving, 
born October 17, 1877. In politics Mr. Fra- 
leigh is a Democrat. 

Peter H. Fraleigh, father of our subject, 
was born September 2, 181 3, in the town of 

56 



Red Hook, and January 28, 1835, he married 
Miss Lydia C. Shook, who was born July 31, 
1815, and died August 5, 1885. Our subject 
is their only child. The father was called 
from earth February 10, 1893. He had been 
a lifelong agriculturist, and the farm upon 
which he passed his entire married life is now 
owned by his son. 



r/ ILLIAM CARROLL, a leading business 
man of Rhinebeck. a manufacturer of 
furniture and the proprietor of the oldest un- 
dertaking establishment in Dutchess county, 
was born in Rochester, N. Y., August 25, 1821. 

John Carroll, his father, married Mary 
Hauver, of Dutchess county, and had three 
children: Christian Hauver, Mary Hauver, 
and William, of whom, the two sons lived to 
adult age. The father died in Ulster county 
when our subject was an infant, and the 
mother removed to Dutchess county, and lived 
for some years in the town of Cinton, near the 
slate quafry. Here our subject attended the 
district school until the age of twelve years, 
when his mother removed to Rhinebeck. After 
four years in the schools there, he began clerk- 
ing for Quick & Traver, and at nineteen went 
to Poughkeepsie to learn the cabinetmaker's 
trade with John De Pue. He remained in that 
city four or five years, working for Taylor & 
Nelson after his apprenticeship ended, and 
then returned to Rhinebeck. September i, 
1844, he opened a cabinet-making shop two 
doors below his present location, but after the 
fire of 1862, he bought a lot and erected the 
three-story brick building which he has occu- 
pied since that time. As his business de- 
veloped, undertaking and the manufacture of 
furniture became leading features, and in the 
former line he is now the oldest worker in the 
county. He has probably buried more people 
than any two of his fellow craftsmen. His 
store is one of the most complete in northern 
Dutchess county. A careful, conservative 
manager, Mr. Carroll's enterprises have always 
been successful, and his advice is valued in busi- 
ness circles and in local affairs. He was one 
of the incorporators of the Rhinebeck Savings 
Bank, and has always been a trustee in that 
institution. 

In 1845, Mr. Carroll married Miss Olevia 
Van Tassell, a descendant of one of the old 
families of the town of P'ishkill, born March 
27, 1829, and has had five children, of whom, 



866 



COMMEMOBATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



three are living: (i) Henry died at the age of 
twenty-three; (2) Arthur died in infancy; (3) 
Julia married Dr. Banker, of Elizabeth, N. J.; 
(4) William R., now in partnership with his 
father, married Amelia Davis, of Stone I\idge, 
Ulster county, and has three children — Grace, 
William H. and Jessie; and (5) Harriet is the 
widow of the late Dr. Allen, of Columbus, Ohio. 
Although he is a firm believer in Ivepublic- 
an principles Mr. Carroll is an independent 
voter in local politics. He has never sought 
office, his attention being devoted to his busi- 
ness, but he has served as trustee of the vil- 
lage, and is always ready to forward any 
measure for local inprovement. He and his 
wife are leading members of the M.E. Church, 
with which he united fifty-five years ago, and 
has been for most of that time an official. - He 
is also a member of the F. & A. M. 



WILLIAM A. TRIPP, the well-known 
forwarding and freighting merchant, 

of Rhinebeck, successor to the old New York 
State Co., established *in 181 2, is descended 
from one of the pioneer families of Dutchess 
county, his ancestors having come from Eng- 
land at an early period. His grandfather, 
Timothy Tripp, was born in Dutchess coun- 
ty, but moved to Otsego county in his later 
years, and engaged in farming there during the 
remainder of his life. He married Miss White, 
and reared a family of seven children: John, 
Alfred, Silas, William, Eunice, Hannah and 
Ruby, and b}' a second wife he had another 
son, Briggs. 

Alfred Tripp, our subject's father, was 
born in 1807, on the present site of Millbrook 
station, in the town of Washington, and about 
1840 engaged in a general merchandise busi- 
ness at Oak Hill, Greene county, which he 
carried on until a short time before his death. 
He was also a stockholder in one of the found- 
ries at that place, and was one of the leading 
business men of the locality. His first wife 
was a Miss Hopson, by whom he had one 
daughter — Mary Ellen, and his second wife was 
Maria Utter, daughter of James Utter, a prom- 
inent resident of Oak Hill. Eleven children 
were born of this union: Elizabeth (deceased); 
Alice (deceased); James, captain of the barge 
" Enterprise " and a resident of Schultzville; 
Amanda (deceased); Delia (deceased); W'ill- 
iam A., our subject; Helen, who lives at Oak 



Hill; Edward (deceased); and Isaac, Hattie 
and Carrie, who are all living at Oak Hill. 

Mr. Tripp first saw the light May 18, 185 1, 
and received his education in the district and 
select schools of his native town. His advan- 
tages in this respect were quite good; he has 
since been a constant reader, and his informa- 
tion is varied and extensive. At nineteen he 
entered his father's store as clerk, and re- 
mained two years, and April i, 1872, came to 
Rhinebeck as clerk for Capt. J. H. Baldwin, 
who then owned the freighting and commis- 
sion business which had been founded by the 
New York State Company si.xty years before, 
and continued without interruption. Capt. 
Baldwin sold it in 1875 to the Cornell Steam- 
boat Co., who disposed of it March i, 1876, 
to Hoffman & Pitcher. This firm continued 
the business until March i, 18S4, when it was 
purchased by Hoffman, Tripp & Co. On 
April I, 1895, Mr. Tripp bought out his part- 
ners, and has since been the sole proprietor of 
the business, and the barge "Enterprise." 
He is also engaged in the coal business and has, 
perhaps, the largest aggregate trade in that 
locality. In all his enterprises Mr. Tripp has 
displayed e.xcellent judgment, and he is re- 
garded as one of the most reliable young busi- 
ness men of the town. 

In politics he is a strong Republican, as 
was his father before him, and he has been a 
leading worker in local politics, serving as a 
member of the Republican County Committee 
for several years, and he has served also on the 
Town Committee. He was at one time the 
party candidate for supervisor. He belongs to 
the F. & A. M., and is master of the Rhine- 
beck Lodge No. 432, and he holds the office of 
master of finance in the K. of P., Rhinebeck 
Lodge No. 345. 



MICHAEL A. MULDOWNEY. Every- 
_ where in our land are men who have 
worked their own way from humble beginnings 
to leadership in commerce, the great product- 
ive industries, the management of financial 
affairs, and in controlling the veins and ar- 
teries of the traffic and exchanges of the 
country. It is one of the glories of our nation 
that it is so. Prominent among the self-made 
men of Poughkeepsie is the subject of this 
sketch. 

Mr. Muldowney was born at Madison, 
Morris Co., N. J., September 15, 1850. His 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOSAPHICAL RECORD. 



867 



father, Edward Muldowney, was a native of 
Ireland, and came to America when about 
twenty-six years old, locating on a farm in 
New Jersey. He was married to Anna Tier- 
ney, also a native of the Emerald Isle, and 
they began their domestic life upon a farm, 
where their six children were born: Michael, 
of this review; Mary, widow of Frederick Mil- 
ler, an engineer, who was killed on the rail- 
road; Martin, who located in the West; Ed- 
ward, a resident of New York City; John, who 
died in infancy; and Joseph, who is engaged 
in the grocery business in Albany, N. Y. The 
father always engaged in agricultural pursuits, 
and died in Poughkeepsie. His political sup- 
port was given the Democratic party, and he 
and his wife were devout members of the Ro- 
man Catholic Church. Her death occurred 
in New York City. 

The early life of our subject was passed 
at Madison, N. J., until thirteen years of age, 
during which time he attended the public 
schools, and then went to New York City, 
where he secured the position of check clerk in 
the "Hoffman House," remaining there for 
three years. Going to Newark, N. J., he 
learned the carpenter's trade with Reeve, 
Howard & Battin, at No. 8 Walnut street. At 
the end of three years, however, he returned 
to New York City, where he followed that occu- 
pation in various shops until coming to Pough- 
keepsie in 1876. Entering into the grocery 
business with his brother Joseph, at No. 54 
Union street, that partnership was continued 
for five years, when our subject assumed com- 
plete charge. In the winter of 1885-6 he 
erected his present brick block at the corner 
of Union and John streets, Nos. 47 and 49 John 
street, and 50 Union street. After its comple- 
tion he there removed his stock of groceries, 
and now does a large and paying retail busi- 
ness; he also resides in the building. 

On November 8, 1871, Mr. Muldowney was 
married to Miss Mary E. Driscoll, a native of 
New York City, and a daughter of John Dris- 
coll, a sailor, who was born in Ireland. Their 
family circle now includes ten children; one 
died in infancy. The others are all at home, 
namely: Mary, Joseph, Edward, Jennie, 
John, Frank, Hugh, Winnie, Rosamond and 
William. 

Following in the footsteps of his father, Mr. 
Muldowney casts his ballot in support cf the 
Democratic party, and has been twice elected 
alderman of the Second ward of Poughkeepsie, 



the last time in 1892, being president of the 
council that term. He has been quite success- 
ful in his business undertakings, and is now a 
member of the Board of Trade and the Busi- 
ness Men's Association. He is one of the most 
public-spirited and progressive men of the cit}', 
and he and his wife are faithful members of the 
Roman Catholic Church. 



GILBERT FOWLER, one of the most 
_^ prominent and prosperous agriculturists 
of the town of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, 
was born October 15, 1840, in the town of 
Clinton, where at least three previous genera- 
tions of the family had lived. 

His first American ancestor came from 
England at an early date, and his grandfather, 
Gilbert Fowler, was born in Dutchess county, 
and became a farmer in the town of Clinton, 
but later in life he moved to Illinois, where 
his death occurred. He married Miss Powell, 
a native of Clinton, and reared a family of 
seven children: Gilbert, our subject's father; 
Weeden, a merchant and truckman in New 
York City; James, a cooper in the town of 
Hyde Park; Amond, a resident of New York 
City; Derinda, who married Dr. Braidj', of 
Little Rock, 111.; Anna, who married Jesse 
Braidy, of Illinois; and Mary, the- wife of 
Henry Abbey, a wagon maker in Little Rock. 

Gilbert Fowler (2), the father of our sub- 
ject, grew to manhood in the town of Clin- 
ton, and married Hannah Frost, a lady of 
English descent, and a daughter of William 
Frost, a well-known farmer there. Shortly 
after his marriage he took his young wife to 
New York City and engaged in the trucking 
business, but he did not live long, his death 
occurring before the birth of our subject. His 
wife survived him many years; dying in 1894. 

The subject of our sketch was reared in 
the town of Clinton, and October 31, 1867, 
he was united in marriage with Amanda De- 
Wint, a descendant of one of the early French 
settlers, and daughter of George De Wint, a 
leading farmer of Rhinebeck. The first year 
after his marriage they went to Illinois, where 
Mr. Fowler farmed for a year; but in 1868 he 
returned, and has since been contented with 
the fertile fields and picturesque scenes of his 
native county. He first purchased a farm of 
118 acres, where he lived until 1889, when he 
bought the Pultz farm of 103 acres near Rhine- 



868 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



beck, all of which he devotes to general farm- 
ing. Mrs. Fowler died July 23, 1892, leaving 
four children bereft of her loving care: Emory, 
Jesse, Gilbert and Edna Mae, all of whom are 
at home. Two others had died in infancy. 
Mr. Fowler's ancestors on both sides were 
Quakers in faith, but he and his lamented wife 
had united with the Lutheran Church. 

In politics our subject is a Republican, and 
while he is no politician he takes an influential 
part in local affairs, befriending every progress- 
ive movement. 



PETER M. CORNELL. The subject of 
this sketch was born on his present home- 
stead in the town of Lagrange, Dutchess 
count}", November 20, 181 5, and is the son of 
Isaac and Elizabeth (Hoffman) Cornell. 

Isaac Cornell was born at Bushwick, Long 
Island, and at the age of three years was 
brought by his parents to Lagrange. Here he 
grew to manhood, receiving his education in 
the district schools. He was married to Miss 
Hoffman, who was a native of the town of 
Poughkeepsie, and the following children were 
born: Peter M., our subject; William A., 
Margaret, Mar\", and Elizabeth, all deceased; 
Isabella; and Frederick, living iii Kansas. Mr. 
Cornell died in Lagrange in 1875, and his wife 
in 1878. 

Peter Cornell, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, wasone of the earliest settlers of the town of 
Lagrange. He married Miss Marcia Messarole, 
and to them were born the following children: 
Cornelius, Margaret, Eliza, Jane, Sarah and 
Isaac, all of whom are deceased. Mr. Cornell 
was of French ancestors, who were exiled from 
France at the revocation of the Edict of 
Nantes. They went to Bavaria, and from there 
came to America. Mr. Cornell died on his 
farm in Lagrange. 

Peter M. Cornell, our subject, remained 
on the old homestead in Lagrange with his 
father, and in his youth went to the district 
schools. He has devoted all his time to farm.- 
ing. At one time he was justice of the peace 
of Lagrange. He has never married. 

William A., brother of our subject, married 
Miss Helen Wickoff, and had four children: 
Isaac, \\'illiam, Elizabeth, and Jacob W. 
Frederick, another brother, married Miss Alice 
Barnes, and three children were born to them: 
Edward, Ann, and Peter M. 



ROBERT HUTCHISON, one of the repre- 
sentative farmers of Lagrange, was born 

in Perthshire, Scotland, July 24, 1857, and 
remained there during his boyhood, receiving 
his education in the parish schools. He served 
a three-years' apprenticeship at the carpenter's 
trade in Enochdhu, Scotland, and then worked 
in Glasgow for four years, and at Newcastle- 
upon-Tyne for three and a half years. 

In 1882 our subject emigrated to America 
and located in New York City, where he fol- 
lowed his trade for nine years. In 1891 he 
moved to the town of Lagrange and bought his 
present farm, on which he has since lived. He 
was married in New York City May 11, 1887, 
to Miss Maggie J. Forbes, a native of Wap- 
pingers Falls. Mr. Hutchison owes his pres- 
ent prosperous condition to his own enterprise 
and energy. He is a Republican in politics, 
and a member of the Reformed Dutch Church 
at New Hackensack. 

Robert Hutchison, father of our subject, 
was born in Fifeshire, Scotland, where he is 
still living on the farm, pursuing the occupa- 
tion he has alwaj's followed. He married Miss 
Jeannette Petrie, by whom he had three chil- 
dren, namely: Elsie, Robert and George. 
James Hutchison, our subject's grandfather, 



was born 
farming. 



in Fifeshire also, where he followed 



JOHN SELLECK LANDON, one of the sub- 
stantial farmers of Dutchess county, was 

born in the town of Lagrange, Dutchess 
county, April 25, 1843. As a boy he attended 
the district schools of his native town and, later, 
the Irving Institute at Tarrytown, N. Y. , and 
Bisbee's school at Poughkeepsie. He remained 
upon the farm with his father until his mar- 
riage, in Poughkeepsie, to Miss Jane Ken- 
worthy, a daughter of Richard Kenworthy. 
Of this union one child was born, Edith, now 
the wife of John Townsend. 

Mr. Landon farmed for seven years after 
his marriage, and then followed the milling 
business at Manchester Bridge, Lagrange town, 
for nine years. In 1890 he bought his present 
farm, to which he has since devoted his time 
and attention. He is a member of the Farm- 
ers Alliance, is a stanch Democrat, and has 
held the office of town auditor for several years. 

James H. Landon, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born in the town of Poughkeepsie, 
June 23, 1 8 14. He attended school there and. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



869 



later, in Lagrange, and at the Willets Boarding 
School in the town of Washington. He re- 
mained on the farm with his father until the 
death of the latter, and has lived at his pres- 
ent residence for thirtj'-seven years. He was 
married January 19, 1842, to Jane A., daugh- 
ter of Reuben Tanner. Of this union the fol- 
lowing children were born: John Selleck, our 
subject; Mary T., born Februarj' 5, 1848, 
married Galen Overocker, and they had two 
children, Daniel W. , born August 13, 1883, 
and Mary, born October 23, 1884. Mrs. 
Overocker died November 8, 1884. Mr. Lan- 
don was assessor of the town of Lagrange for 
many years, and also held the office of town 
auditor, being elected on the Democratic 
ticket. Mr. and ^frs. Landon celebrated their 
golden wedding January 19, 1892, and are as 
bright and lively as man}^ people twenty years 
younger. 

Joel Landon, the grandfather of John Sel- 
leck, was a native of Connecticut, born July 
22, 1 77 1, married Deborah Selleck (born Oc- 
tober 3, 1773), May 30, 1 81 2, and their chil- 
dren were: John S., born March 30, 1813, 
died December 16, 1837; and James H., men- 
tioned above. Joel Landon died August 23, 
1839, and his wife, Deborah, October 10, 1871. 



WILLIAM J. WELLING, a substantial 
farmer of the town of Washington, 

Dutchess county, was born in that locality, 
March 22, 1833. The first person bearing the 
name of \\^elling in this country came from 
Wales and settled in Dutchess county. From 
him descended Thomas, the great-grandfather 
of our subject, who was born probably in 
Pleasant \'alley. 

William, his son, was also born there, and 
his son, James M., the father of our subject, 
was born in the town of Clinton, January 19, 
1807. Thomas \^'elling married a Miss Ger- 
mond, and they settled in what was then a 
wilderness, where five children were born to 
them. Of these, William married Elizabeth 
Marshall, and settled on a farm. Two chil- 
dren were born to them — James M. and Caro- 
line C. The latter married William C. Smith, 
a farmer in the town of Northeast, and is now 
deceased. William \\'elling was a stanch 
T)emocrat. 

James M. was reared on a farm, and mar- 
ried Susan Vail. She was born in Unionvale, 
and was the daughter of Joseph and Mary 



Vail, the former a farmer and a son of Israel 
\'ail. The \'ails are among the oldest fami- 
lies in Dutchess county. For some time after 
his marriage our subject's father ran on the 
Hudson river as captain of the steamer " Ga- 
zelle," and subsequently for several years was 
a stock salesman in New York City. Later in 
life he spent his time upon his farm, where he 
died July 31, 1882. His wife died September 
23, 1886. He was a Democrat and held the 
office of justice of the peace for some 3'ears. 
In their religious belief the family have all 
been Presbyterians. To James M. Welling 
and his wife four children were born, namely: 
Caroline C, who married Mark H. Wheeler, 
a farmer in Lagrange; William J., our subject; 
Edgar P.. who died in the Civil war; and 
Frances E., deceased. 

When our subject was nine years old he 
went with his parents to Poughkeepsie, where 
the}' made their home while the father was 
engaged in steamboating. There he attended 
the city schools for some years, and in 1846, 
the family went back to their farm in the town 
of Washington. William completed his edu- 
cation in the Richmondville school in Scho- 
harie county, N. Y., and for a while taught 
school in the neighborhood of his old home. 
He then took up farming, at which he has been 
engaged ever since. He owns a tine place of 
200 acres which is highly cultivated, and car- 
ries on general farming, in which he has been 
very successful. Although a man of agreeable 
manners and excellent character, and standing 
high in his community, Mr. Welling has never 
married. He is a Republican and a strong 
temperance advocate, and does all in his 
power for the good of his fellow-men. 



ILES K. LEWIS. There can be found 
no biographies more interesting to read 
than those of the industrious and enterprising, 
who have risen from a state of comparative 
poverty to a position of affluence. Prominent 
among the men of Dutchess county who have 
thus laboriously toiled onward and upward, 
is the individual of whom this sketch is written. 
He is now a successful business man of ^^'as- 
saic, where for over thirty j-ears he has con- 
ducted a general store. 

Mr. Lewis was born at Sharon, Conn., 
August 15, 1842, and traces his ancestry back 
to Benjamin Lewis, who came from England 
with two brothers and located at Wallingford, 



870 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



Conn., being one of forty families who laid 
out that town. His name appears on the 
Congregational Church records in 1677. He 

married Miss Hannah , and their son 

James wedded a Miss Judson, by whom he had 
four children — James, John, David and Eph- 
raim, the eldest of whom married a Miss Sher- 
man, and their son Ephraim was the father of 
Birdseye, the great-grandfather of our subject. 

Birdseye Lewis was born at Huntington, 
Conn., February 20, 1750, and died Novem- 
ber 27, 1822. On November 11, 1773, he 
married Miss Jerusha Thompson, whose death 
occurred June 8, 1821. Their son, Cyrus 
Lewis, the grandfather of our subject, was 
born at Trumbull, Conn., November 15, 1778, 
and on November 28, 1809, wedded Alice 
Hawley, who was born October 29, 1793, and 
died May 26, 1861. He departed this life 
August 25, 1 86 1. 

Miles B. Lewis, the father, was also a 
native of Trumbull, Conn., where he secured 
his education in the district schools, and served 
an apprenticeship to the blacksmith's trade, 
which he followed some forty years at Sharon, 
Conn. At Milford, in that State, he was 
united in marriage with Miss Maria Kelsey, 
daughter of Horace Kelsey, and they became 
the parents of four children, namely: William 
S., of Chicago, 111.; Miles Kelsey, of this 
sketch; Eliza (deceased); and Charles, of Car- 
pentersville. III. The parents were good 
Christian people, very earnest workers in the 
Methodist Church, and were held in the highest 
regard. The father's death occurred in April, 
1892; the widowed mother now finds a pleas- 
ant home with our subject. 

Miles K. Lewis passed his boyhood at 
Sharon, Conn., attending the public schools, 
and at the age of fifteen years left the parental 
roof, coming to Amenia, Dutchess county, 
where he clerked for George Conklin in a gen- 
eral merchandise store until the spring of 1 862. 
He was then in the employ of Seward, Vail & 
Haight, merchant tailors, as bookkeeper and 
cashier. 

Filled with patriotic ardor, Mr. Lewis en- 
listed, in September, 1862, in Company A, 
150th N. Y. v. I., and was a member of the 
regimental band until mustered out at Pough- 
keepsie, in June, 1865. Returning to Dutch- 
ess county, he was engaged in clerking in Dover 
until January, 1866, when he opened his pres- 
ent general store at Wassaic. In 1894 he ad- 
mitted J. G. Doyle to a partnership in the 



business. For fifteen years he was also con- 
nected with the New York Condensed Milk 
Factory at Wassaic as bookkeeper and super- 
intendent, and was administrator of the Grid- 
ley estate for seven years. In all his dealing 
he is straightforward and honorable, and is 
justly entitled to the high regard in which he 
is held by all. 

At Amenia, on October 24, 1867, Mr. Lewis 
wedded Miss Julia C. Reed, daughter of Les- 
ter and Margaret Reed, and to them have been 
born four children: Emma Gridley, who mar- 
ried E. J. Tanner, and has three children — 
Lewis, Margaret and Frederick; Nina, wife of 
Albert Hicks, of Wassaic; Alice and Roland. 
Socially, Mr. Lewis affiliates with Dover Plains 
Lodge No. 666, F. & A. M., of which he be- 
came a member in 1867; and of J. M. Gregory 
Post, G. A. R., of Sharon, Conn. He is a 
member of the choir of the Presbyterian 
Church at Amenia, as he takes great delight in 
music; in politics he is an ardent Republican. 



»OBERT H. TITUS, one of the substan- 
tial farmers of Dutchess county, was 
born in the town of Lagrange, August 5, 1835. 
He spent his boyhood in the place of his birth, 
and attended the public schools and the Nine 
Partners Boarding School, in the town of 
Washington. 

At the early age of ten years he went to 
work in his father's woolen-factory, and after 
the latter's death he continued the business 
with his brothers until 1891, when he sold out 
his interest to his brother Henry, and has 
since devoted his time to farming. He was 
married in 1864 to Miss Frances Sweet, a 
daughter of Nehemiah and Millie Sweet, of 
Poughkeepsie. Of this marriage were born 
the following children: Mary Annette, Fran- 
ces Adele, Helen Lossing and Warner Hatch. 
Mr. Titus built his present beautiful residence 
in the spring of 1S64. 

Elias Titus, father of our subject, was born 
in the town of Washington, where he received 
his education. He was married in the town 
of Pine Plains to Miss Mary A. Hoag, a daugh- 
ter of Robert Hoag, a farmer of that town, and 
the following children were born: Frances mar- 
ried James E. Sleight, and four children were 
born (both parents are deceased) ; Robert Hoag,' 
our subject; Richard, deceased; Henry lives in 
Poughkeepsie; Sarah resides in Lagrange; 
Caroline Alida. Mr. Titus was living at La- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



871 



grange at the time of his marriage, where he 
was running the woolen-factory with his father 
and brothers. He continued in that business 
from 1S28 until the time of his death in 1881. 
In the early days the goods were shipped by 
boat in summer and overland in winter. As a 
business man he kept out of politics, and was 
a member of the Quaker Church. His wife 
died in 1838 or 1840. 

John Titus, the grandfather, was born in 
the town of Washington. He was married 
three times, the grandmother of our subject 
being his third wife. He was known as 
" Squire Titus," and ran a factory for the man- 
ufacture of woolen cloth. 

The great-grandfather of our subject was 
one of the early settlers of the town of Wash- 
ington. The family came from Long Island. 



JOHN R. THOMPSON. Success in any line 
of occupation, in any avenue of business, 
is not a matter of spontaneity, but is the 
legitimate offspring of subjective effort in the 
proper utilization of the means at hand, the 
improvement of opportunity and the exercise 
of the highest function made possible by the 
specific ability in any case. In view of this 
condition, the study of biography becomes val- 
uable, and its lessons of practical use. Mr. 
Thompson to-day stands at the head of several 
important enterprises, and is one of the most 
enterprising and successful business men of 
Dutchess county, making his home in Amenia. 
In the town of Amenia, our subject was 
born July 8, 1851, and he is a son of Robert 
R. and Catherine (Sanford) Thompson, the 
latter of whom died in 1892. His father was 
born in the town of Stanford, Dutchess county, 
December 15, 181 5, a son of James, Thomp- 
son and a grandson of Elias Thompson, also 
residents of Dutchess county. For forty years 
the father has been engaged in the insur- 
ance business at Smithiield, and he is a highly 
respected citizen. Our subject is the third in 
a family of four children, the others being: 
Ellen C, wife of William J. Clanney, of 
Amenia; George (deceased); and Edward B., 
who is engaged in the poultry business in the 
town of Amenia. 

The early life of John R. Thompson was 
passed upon a farm at Smithfield, and in at- 
tending the district schools of the neighbor- 
hood. On leaving the parental roof in 1874 
he took charge of a general store at Sheko- 



meko, Dutchess county, and was also operator, 
station agent and postmaster for a year. He 
then engaged in the insurance business with 
his father at Smithfield, town of Amenia, for 
some seven years, on the e.xpiration of which 
time he there turned- his attention to agricult- 
ural pursuits, and also owned a large farm in 
Nebraska, but never resided thereon. While 
purchasing a windmill for the latter place, he 
became interested in the windmill business, and 
since that time has engaged in selling those 
machines all through the State; he also erected 
the largest windmill plant in the world, located 
at Chatham, Columbia Co., New York. 

Until 1885 Mr. Thompson continued to en- 
gage in agricultural pursuits at Smithfield, and 
then removed to the village of Amenia, where 
he has since resided. Together with B. H. 
Fry, Charles Walsh, A. M. Card, of Sharon, 
Conn. , and M. K. Lewis, of Wassaic, he as- 
sisted in the incorporation of the Amenia 
Water Co. , in 1881, and, with Mr. Lewis, also 
owns the Wassiac water works, being now the 
efficient superintendent of both water works, 
as well as the one at Pine Plains. In 1885 he 
entered the steam-heating business, and, in 
advancing hi.s individual prosperity, he has 
materially promoted the welfare of his county 
and State. 

In the town of Amenia, October 1 1, 1877, 
Mr. Thompson was married to Miss Mary F. 
Bertine, daughter of Robert Bertine, of 
Amenia, and they have three children: Katie, 
John R. and Annie Frances. For over twenty 
years Mr. Thompson has been prominently 
identified with Amenia Lodge No. 672, F. & 
A. M., and he also holds membership in the 
Royal Arcanum at Wassaic. Like his father, 
he is an ardent Democrat, and is one of the 
leading and representative citizens of the com- 
munity. 



DE WITT C. AYRES, a progressive and 
' successful young agriculturist of the town 

of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, was born 
February 12, i860, in Clinton Hollow. 

His grandfather Ayres came from England 
and located upon a farm in Dutchess county, 
where he spent his remaining years. Jo- 
seph Ayres, our subject's father, was born 
in Oxford, England, and was nineteen years 
old when he accompanied his parents to this 
country. He married Margaret Marquet, a 
native of the town of Rhinebeck, and located 



872 



COMMEMORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



in Clinton Hollow, where he followed the 
butcher's trade for some years. In 1879 he 
moved to the farm which is now owned by our 
subject, and here he carried on his trade in 
connection with farming. His wife died in 
187S, and ten years later he, too, departed 
this life. They had four children: Charles, 
who died in 1888; Ue Witt C, our subject; 
George D., a farmer in Rhinebeck, and one 
who "died in infancy. 

De Witt Ayres was trained in youth to the 
habits of industry upon which his success is 
based, and for a short time he followed the 
butcher's trade successfully. On November 
2, 1882, he married Miss Lelia Mills, a lady 
of English descent, the daughter of William 
Mills, a well-known blacksmith of Red Hook. 
After their marriage they settled upon the 
farm near I'ihinebeck, where they have since 
remained. They have two children, Elsie 
and Ruth. 

Mr. Ayres devotes his one hundred acres 
of land to general farming, and is regarded as 
one of the most enterprising and judicious of 
the young men of his locality. In politics he 
follows the faith of his father and is a stanch 
Republican. 



JOHN H. BOICE, one of the active, prom- 
inent and most enterprising citizens of 

Dutchess county, is at present engaged in 
general farming and fruit growing in the town 
of Red Hook. His birth occurred June 16, 
1850, on a farm in Milan town, Dutchess 
county, where his father, William Boice, and 
his grandfather, Henry I. Boice, were also 
born. The latter was a son of John Boice, 
who was of Holland origin, and is supposed to 
have been born in this country. After his 
marriage with Miss Lown, Henry I. Boice be- 
gan his domestic life upon the old family 
homestead, where his three children were born, 
one son and two daughters; but William was 
the only one svho reached years of maturity. 
To the cultivation of that farm the grandfather 
gave his time and attention up to his death. 

On reaching manhood the father of our 
subject was united in marriage with Catherine 
C. Pultz, a native of the town of Rhinebeck, 
Dutchess county, and a daughter of David 
Pultz, a farmer, who was of Holland lineage. 
On the old homestead in Milan town, they be- 
gan house-keeping, and there remained until 
1869, when the father purchased the farm on 



which our subject now resides, there continu- 
ing to make his home until his death in 1881, 
while his wife also died there on July 12, 1895. 
He was identified with the Republican party. 
The family circle included three children — 
Elmer A. , a retired farmer, who now makes his 
home in the village of Red Hook; Ida C, wife 
of Henry Finger, an agriculturist of Columbia 
county, N. Y. ; and John H. 

John H. Boice, of this review, obtained his 
elementary education in the district schools 
near his home, but completed his literary 
training at Rhinebeck, and was a resident of 
the town of Milan until nineteen years of age. 
Being reared a farmer's boy, he has followed 
this vocation through life, and since 1869 has 
lived upon his present farm, where in 1882 he 
erected a beautiful residence. He has 109 
acres of fertile and productive land, where he 
has been engaged in general farming, though 
he makes a specialty of fruit raising. He is a 
progressive, scientific farmer, who thoroughly 
understands his business, and thus secures the 
best results from his labors. 

On May 8, 1S72, Mr. Boice was married to 
Miss Mary E. Hoffman, a daughter of Theo- 
dore Hoffman, and sister of T. A. Hoffman, 
the present county clerk of Dutchess county. 
They have one child, William H., who was' 
born March 22, 1874. They are surrounded 
by many warm friends, whom they delight to 
entertain, and have the esteem and confidence 
of all who know them. Politically, Mr. Boice 
affiliates with the Republican party, and main- 
tains his principles in this regard with the same 
steadfastness which has characterized him in all 
the relations of life. 



IRVINQ HAPEMAN, a reliable and intelli- 
__ gent young agriculturist of the town of Red 
Hook, Dutchess county, is the owner of a fine 
farm of eighty-seven acres of highly productive 
and fertile land, which he has by industry and 
good management, with its attendant hard 
labor, brought to a high state of cultivation, 
and his stock are of the best grades. His up- 
rightness, integrity and public-spiritedness 
have won him the confidence and esteem of his 
neighbors, and he is classed among the most 
respected representative citizens of the com- 
munity. 

Philip Hapeman, his grandfather, was a 
native of the town of Red Hook, where he 
conducted a farm throughout life, and by his 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



873 



marriage with Catherine Phillips had six chil- 
dren, of whom Nicholas Hapeman, the father 
of our subject, was one. His birth also oc- 
curred in the town of Red Hook, where he re- 
ceived a common-school education, and like 
his father he also turned his attention to ag- 
ricultural pursuits. He married Miss Lucy N. 
Straut, daughter of Anthony Straut, by whom 
he had four children: Estella, wife of Will- 
ard Rowe; Jerleau; Irving and Mary. 

In 1890 was celebrated the marriage of 
Irving Hapeman and Miss Cordelia A. Stevens, 
who was born in Claverack, N. Y., and was 
there educated. Her paternal grandfather, 
William Stevens, was a native of Hollowville, 
Columbia Co., N. Y, and while serving in the 
war of 1 812 was killed. He married Cather- 
ine Stickle, and to them were born two chil- 
dren — William A. and Jane E. The former 
was also born in Hollowville, Columbia coun- 
ty, and after completing his education in the 
common schools he worked upon a farm until 
the breaking out of the Rebellion in 1861, 
when he joined the Union forces, though at 
that time only sixteen years old. All through 
that struggle he served as a private, and at its 
close received an honorable discharge. After 
his return home, Mr. Stevens was united in 
marriage with Miss Hannah Elizabeth Mor- 
rison, daughter of William E. and Samantha 
Morrison, and they now have a family of nine 
children: Cordelia A., William A., Annie A., 
Fannie A., Henry A., Charles A., Herbert A., 
Frank A. and Milo A. The father, who is an 
agriculturist, is now engaged in the cultivation 
of land in Claverack, Columbia county. 



IfSAAC P. CONKLIN, one of the wealthy 
^ farmers of the town of Washington, Dutch- 
ess county, was born in Chestnut Ridge in that 
town, April i, 1820. The Conklin family is 
of Scotch descent, and many of its members 
are old residents of Dutchess county. 

Charles Conklin, great-grandfather of Isaac 
P., was a Quaker preacher and lived in West- 
chester county, where his son Timothy was 
born. The latter married Mary Tamer, a na- 
tive of the same county, and settled in Wash- 
ington town, Dutchess county, where thirteen 
children were born, of whom the following 
record is given: David was a miller in Little 
Rest, town of Washington; Hiram was a sea- 
faring man; Timothy was a farmer in West- 
chester county; Tristam (deceased) farmed for 



a while in the town of Washington, but later 
went to New York City, finally to Westches- 
ter county; James was a farmer in Westchester 
county; Merritt was a physician in Washington 
town; Nathaniel was father of subject; Charles 
died in infancy; Hannah married a Mr. Titus, 
and they removed to New York City and after- 
Wc-.rd to Ohio, where they died; Ruth and 
Sarah died unmarried; two others died in 
childhood. 

Nathaniel Conklin was born in the town of 
Washington, and there spent his entire life. 
He was a Republican in his political views, 
and served as a justice of the peace and in 
other local of^cial positions. He died in 1887. 
He married Susan Edmunds, a native of the 
town of Dover, daughter of Canada Edmunds, 
a farmer, whose family were of old Holland 
stock. The young couple located on Chestnut 
Ridge, where they carried on farming and 
reared a family of nine children. These were: 
Benjamin is a farmer in Washington town; 
Tamer married George Sullivan, a farmer also 
of that town; Timothy was a farmer in the 
town of Washington; Phcebe married Mosher 
Sherman, a miller in Little Rest; Isaac P.; El- 
mira married Uriah Simmons, a farmer in 
Stanford; Nathaniel went to Dakota and car- 
ried on farming there; Hannah is unmarried; 
Sarah is the wife of Andrew P. Hammond, a 
farmer in Washington town. 

Isaac P. Conklin worked at Denning for 
several years after arriving at manhood, and 
then began buying and selling farm and other 
property, in which business he has made good 
profits and has become a wealthy man. He is 
full of enterprise, possesses keen judgment and 
great sagacity, and has carved his own way to 
success. Although arrived at an age when 
most men give over active life, he shows no 
signs of relaxing his efforts, and keeps abreast 
of the times with a vigor and interest which a 
younger man might envy. He is genial in his 
nature, a good conversationalist and very com- 
panionable, drawing about him -a large circle 
of friends who appreciate his many good qual- 
ities. 

In February, i860, Mr. Conklin was united 
in marriage with Fannie J., daughter of David 
Winans, and a native of the town of Stanford. 
Five children have been born to them, of whom, 
George and Nathan, the eldest two, died in 
childhood; the others are: Susan, who mar- 
ried \'irgil Winans; Augusta (deceased) and 
Jennie. Mr. Conklin owns a fine farm of 336 



874 



COiiyiEJIORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



acres in the town of Amenia, Dutchess county. 
In politics he is a Republican, but he has never 
been an office-seeker. 



E^D\VARD COUSE. One of the active, 
4 prominent and enterprising citizens of 

the town of Red Hook, is the gentleman 
whose name introduces this sketch, who is at 
present engaged in general farming and fruit 
raising. He made his first appearance upon 
the stage of life beneath the roof of his par- 
ents, Jacob and Susan (Robisoni Couse, in the 
town of Milan, Dutchess county. 

His paternal grandfather, Henry J. Couse, 
was a prominent farmer in the town of Milan, 
and there married Miss Sarah Lynn, by whom 
he had seven children, namel}': Hannah, who 
became the wife of a Mr. Wolcott; Betsy, who 
married Peter Stickle; Mary; Jacob, the father 
of our subject; Henry, who wedded Kittie 
Near; John, who married Miss Kilmer, and Ed- 
ward. To the parents of our subject were 
born six children: Sarena first became the 
wife of John Teator, and after his death 
married Charles Miller; Henry wedded Rachel 
Hood; Elizabeth married John Haines; Charles; 
Sarah was united in marriage with Emery 
Coon; and Edward completes the family. 

Upon his father's farm our subject was 
reared and early taught those habits of industry 
which have had such an important bearing 
upon his entire life. He obtained his educa- 
tion in the district school, in the meantime as- 
sisting his father in such work as his age and 
strength would permit. He became interested 
in agricultural pursuits, and now operates a 
fine farm of 123 acres of land, which he pur- 
chased in 1S89, it being then known as the 
Benner farm. He makes a specialty of fruit 
raising, and has been quite successful. He has 
made good use of his opportunities, has pros- 
pered from year to year, has conducted all 
business matters carefully and capably, and in 
all his acts displays an aptitude for success- 
ful management. 

Mr. Couse was united in marriage with 
Miss Kittie Feller, daughter of Henry A. and 
Catherine (Snyder) Feller, who were farming 
people of the town of Milan, and the parents 
of the following children: Alice, wife of 
Wriget Kilmer; Mary, wife of Charles False; 
Sylvester, who married Grace Levenworth; 
Seward; Hattie, wife of Henrv Burns; Kittie; 



Henry, who married Annie Bathrick; and 
Annie, wife of John Smith. The maternal 
grandfather of Mrs. Couse, Philip Snyder, was 
the onlj' child of Isaac and Catherine Snyder. 
He was joined in wedlock with Miss Christina 
Near, of the town of Red Hook, and they be- 
came the parents of two daughters — Catherine, 
the mother of Mrs. Couse; and Elizabeth, who 
married Isaac Fulton. 



JOSEPH B.\TES, a general farmer and ex- 
stock-dealer, was born in the town of 

Washington, Dutchess county, July 11, 
1822. His father, Joseph Bates, was born in 
Nantucket, R. I. , and moved to Dutchess 
county, where he married Miss Lydia Dicker- 
son, who was a native of North Salem, Mass. 
They settled on a farm in the town of Wash- 
ington, and reared a family of twelve children, 
five of whom died in infancy. The others 
were: Joseph, our subject; George, a farmer 
in Missouri; John, a farmer of this town atone 
time, is deceased; Stephen died in 1894; 
Henry was a farmer in Saginaw, Mich., where 
he died; Mary married William Lovelace, a 
farmer in the town of Dover; Ruth became the 
wife of Isaac Lovelace, a mason by trade. 
Mr. Bates farmed all his life, and died about 
1863. Politically he was a Democrat. His 
wife died about 1879. 

John Bates, grandfather of our subject, 
was born in Rhode Island. He married a Miss 
Hill, and they reared a family of twelve chil- 
dren. 

Joseph Bates, the subject of this sketch, 
grew to manhood in the town of Washington, 
worked by the day for various farmers, saved 
his money and gradually invested it in land, 
until to-day he has one of the largest farms in 
the town. In 1844 he married Miss Sarah 
Smith, a native of the town of Washington, 
and a daughter of Joseph Smith, who was a 
farmer of that town. He married Miss Susan 
Marshall. In 1852 Mr. Bates bought his pres- 
ent farrri, on which they have reared their two 
children: Charles, who married Louise Ruger, 
and lives with his parents; Josephine, who be- 
came the wife of Townsend Coles, a farmer in 
Lagrange, where she died in April, 1881. Mr. 
Bates has a laree farm of 300 or 400 acres, 
which is planted principally in potatoes, he be- 
ing the largest producer of that vegetable in 
Dutchess county. He also formerly bought 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



875 



and sold stock. He is a Democrat, and a self- 
made man, and has acquired his money by hard 
work and good management. He enjoys the 
esteem of all who know him. 



JUDSON A. DENTON, a representative 
farmer of the town of Beekman, Dutchess 
county, is actively engaged in his profitable 
occupation on his homestead, where he has re- 
sided since the spring of 1888, and where his 
energetic labors have met with due reward. 
His childhood was also spent upon the same 
farm, his birth taking place at his present resi- 
dence February 8, 1853. His grandfather, 
Solomon Denton, was the founder of the fam- 
ily in this country, and for many years followed 
agricultural pursuits in the town of Pawling, 
Dutchess county. His wife lived to the ad- 
vanced age of ninety-three years. 

Amos Denton, the father of our subject, 
was born in Pawling town, October 13, 1808, 
and there spent his boyhood days attending 
the district schools. He remained upon the 
home farm until thirty years of age, when he 
wedded Mary Seaman, daughter of Sutton 
Seaman, and then removed to the town of 
East Fishkill, where he conducted a general 
store for two years. On selling out, he went 
west to hunt up a location, but finally decided 
to remain in his native county, purchasing the 
old Benjamin Smith farm in Beekman town, 
upon which he made his home up to the time 
of his death, which occurred November 13, 
1887. His wife departed this life in the 
spring of 1885. Seven children were born to 
them: Edgar, who is superintendent of a 
division of the stock yards of Chicago; Emily 
F. , who is the widow of Leonard Townsend, 
and is now a resident of Unionvale town; 
Amelia, deceased wife of Jonathan Spencer; 
Judson Amos, of this sketch; Frederick S., of 
Staten Island; Weston Eugene, of New York 
City; and Sarah M.. who died in infancy. In 
political sentiment the father was first a Whig, 
and later a supporter of the Republican party, 
while religously he was a devout member of 
the Baptist Church at Beekman, for many 
years serving as a deacon. He was a highly 
respected citizen, and for over twenty years he 
efficiently filled the office of justice of the peace. 
The education of our subject was such as 
the district schools of the town of Beekman 
afforded, and at the age of thirteen years he be- 
gan working as a farm hand for neighbors. 



being employed in this way for four seasons. 
When seventeen years of age he was united in 
marriage with Miss Alice M. Wiley, daughter 
of George Wiley, and they became the parents 
of four children: George W. . who died in in- 
fancy; Gertrude L. ; Eliza A., who married 
Austin Bierce. Jr. ; and George Weston. The 
wife and mother was called to her final rest 
on August 24. 1880. In 1882. Mr. Denton 
was married in the town of Unionvale, the 
ladv of his choice being Miss Ella F. Bierce. 
daughter of Austin Bierce. and to them was 
born a daughter — Louie J., who died in in- 
fancy. 

After his first marriage, Mr. Denton oper- 
ated a farm on shares, and also engaged in 
teaming for the furnace company. For five 
or six 3'ears he engaged in butchering, and for 
the same length of time lived upon a farm in 
Unionvale town; but in the spring of 1888 he 
purchased his present fine farm in Beekman 
town, to the cultivation and improvement of 
which he has since devoted his attention. In 
the fall of 1895 he also engaged in the coal 
business in the same town. He is a stalwart 
Republican in politics, and since the spring of 
1889 has acceptably served as justice of the 
peace. He is an honorable, upright citizen, 
who gains and retains the confidence and es- 
teem of those with whom he comes in contact. 



JOHN C. BARRINGER, a leading agricult- 
urist of the town of Rhinebeck, Dutchess 
- county, is a direct descendant of the pio- 
neer who, according to tradition, suggested 
the name for that town. 

Our subject's great-grandfather Barringer 
came to that vicinity from Germany in com- 
pany with Col. Beekman, and the story goes 
that as they were talking about naming the 
tow^n Mr. Barringer said: •' Colonel, you name 
it; or, since we both came from the Rhine and 
your name is Beekman, call it Rhinebeekman, 
or Rhinebeck." George Barringer, our sub- 
ject's grandfather, was a lifelong resident of 
the town. He married Miss Ackert, and had 
two children — Julia, who married Stephen 
Champlain, of Kingston, and Ephraim, our 
subject's father. By a second wife he had 
four children: Catherine, Maria, Elizabeth, and 
Elias, who married Miss Shoemaker and set- 
tled on a farm near the village of Rhinebeck. 
They had three children: Jeremiah. Mary and 
Elizabeth. 



876 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Ephraim Barringer grew to manhood at 
the old homestead, and married AHce F. Cham- 
plain, who was born in Hudson, N. Y. , Sep- 
tember 2 1, 1 82 I, but came here with her par- 
ents when only one year old. Her lather, 
Joseph Champlain, was a native of Connecti- 
cut. After his marriage Ephraim Barringer 
bought the family estate, which he farmed 
during the remainder of his life. Five children 
were born to him and his wife: Florence, who 
married Rev. Keyser, a Methodist minister in 
Westchester county; Catherine; Frances; John 
C, our subject; and Martha P., who died 
February 3, 1S72. The mother of this family 
is dead, and of the father's death we take the 
following account from the Eciglc, under date 
of January 20, 1892: "Ephraim Barringer 
died at his home in Rhinebeck on Saturday, 
January 2, 1892. He was born there October 
12, 181 1, on a place obtained by his grand- 
father from the English King. Mr. Barringer 
belonged to one of the oldest families in Rhine- 
beck, his grandfather and Col. Beekman hav- 
ing named the town." 

John C. Barringer was born September i, 
1856, and has always lived upon the old farm. 
Under a survey made in 1834 the portion now 
in his possession contained eighty-eight and a 
half acres, but it is certain that it contains 
more than that. He is a general farmer, and 
is considered one of the most progressive and 
successful managers in the neighborhood. 

On March 18, 1882, he married Miss Rosa 
De Wint, a daughter of George De Wint, a 
well-known resident of Rhinebeck. They have 
no children. The Barringers have always been 
Lutherans, but our subject and his wife now 
contribute to the M. E. Church. In politics 
he is a Republican, as was his father also in 
later years, and although he is no office-seeker, 
there are few among the younger men in the 
vicinity who have more influence than John C. 
Barringer. 



BOBERT HURD. Among the enterpris- 
ing and prosperous young business men 

of the town of Pawling, Dutchess county, the 
well-known commission merchant and cattle 
dealer whose name introduces this sketch may 
well be regarded as a leader. His shrewd 
judgment and untiring energy have already won 
him wide recognition in business circles. 

He was born October 5, 1869, on the Hurd 
homestead, formerly the Campbell homestead. 



in Pawling town, and is related to several of 
the oldest families. On the paternal side, his 
great-grandfather Hurd came from Scotland 
at an early period to settl'e in the town of 
Pawling, where he followed agriculture, as did 
also his son, Benjamin D. Hurd, our subject's 
grandfather, who was born in that town. 
Hurd's Corners was named in honor of the 
family, and Benjamin Hurd was a prominent 
man of that locality, a leading supporter of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church and of the 
Whig party. He was not, however, an office- 
seeker, although he was justice of the peace 
for many years. Both he and his wife, Mary 
Campbell, are dead. She was a daughter of 
Jeremiah Campbell, who was prominent in his 
time in religious and civil affairs in Dutchess 
county, and her grandfather Campbell was an 
officer in charge of the British forces at the 
battle of White Plains, where he met his 
death. Of the seven children of this marriage 
all lived to adult age: Harriet married Leon- 
ard Hall, of Po'quag; \\'illiam T. was a mer- 
chant for many years at Hurd's Corners, and 
died there; Archibald never engaged in busi- 
ness, as he was not strong, and his death 
occurred in Cuba; Edgar I. is mentioned below; 
Mary, deceased, married Thomas Brill, of 
Po'quag; Stacia married Groe Dodge, of Pawl- 
ing; and Julia G. married James Longhead, of 
the same place. 

Edgar I. Hurd, our subject's father, was 
born at Hurd's Corners, and in early manhood 
engaged in mercantile business in Pawling. 
Later he purchased the old Campbell home- 
stead and settled here at farming, establishing 
at the same time a commission business in all 
kinds of country produce, which he has con- 
ducted successfully for forty years. His goods 
are shipped to New York City, and he has sold 
large quantities on the present site of the 
Grand Central Depot and Madison Garden. 
He is accounted a shrewd business man, and 
his property has been accumulated through his 
own good management. He and his family 
are Episcopalians in religion, and, politically, 
he is a Democrat, but has not been very active 
in party work, although he has held most of 
the minor offices in the town and has served as 
supervisor and highway commissioner. He 
married Caroline A. Howard, a descendant of 
one of the old families of the county, and a 
daughter of James Howard, of Pawling. Five 
children were born of this union — James; 
William, deceased; Jay; Robert; and Lucy, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



871 



who married Dr. Arthur Degaris, a leading 
dentist of Millbrook, N. Y. The three surviv- 
ing sons are all at home and engaged in busi- 
ness with their father, a partnership having 
been formed in 1889. 

Robert Hurd was educated in the district 
school near his home and in the select schools 
of Dover and Pawling. His remarkable busi- 
ness abilities were displa3'ed at an early age, 
and at fifteen he went into partnership with 
Mr. Smith in the cattle business, and going to 
western New York they bought 225 head, 
which they drove east, selling along the route 
and closing out the lot at Pawling. This busi- 
ness he has continued ever since, buying in 
Buffalo to supply the demand in his vicinity 
for milch cows. In addition to his work in 
this line he is active in the business of the 
firm. His success in his various enterprises 
may be attributed to a rare combination of 
conservatism in judgment and energy m action. 
These characteristics are shown also in public 
affairs, making him a valued worker in the 
Democratic party. He has been a delegate to 
many State, county and district conventions, 
and in 1896 he was elected commissioner of 
highways, being the only successful candidate 
on his ticket that year. That his excellent 
business judgment is appreciated may be still 
farther seen by his appointment, by Judge Bar- 
nard in 1895, ^s receiver for the Akindole es- 
tate, and his friends may well feel justi^ed in 
their high hopes for his future. 



PATRICK WHALEN, a prominent resident 
of Dover Plains, Dutchess county, has 

been for many years a successful stock dealer, 
but is now enjoying a well-earned leisure at his 
beautiful home in the mountains. It is situ- 
ated in a picturesque ravine on the spot known 
as the Stone Church, from its resemblance to a 
church door, a point greatly admired by tour- 
ists and often visited by picnic parties from the 
surrounding country. 

Mr. Whalen isof Irish birth, and his family 
has long held a leading place in County Lim- 
erick, Ireland. Hisgrandfather, John Whalen, 
was a well-educated man, and a farmer by oc- 
cupation. He married Catherine Burk, and 
had seven children: Jeremiah, our subject's 
father; Johanna, the wife of Edward Quinn; 
Patrick, who married Mary O'Donnel; Cather- 
ine, the wife of Dennis O'Brien; John, who 
never married; Bridget, Mrs. William Shee- 



han; and Maggie, who died at the age of nine- 
teen. 

Jeremiah Whalen was born in 1792, and re- 
ceived an excellent education in his youth. 
He became a well-known agitator for the lib- 
eration of his native land from the British yoke, 
being a valued co-worker with Daniel O'Con- 
nell, and serving two terms as a member of 
Parliament. For some years he was engaged 
in farming in Ireland, and also took contracts 
for the working of the highways, subletting 
them and keeping a number of men constantly 
employed. He married Miss Catherine Heffer- 
aman, daughter of John Hefferaman, a farmer 
in County Limerick, and had twelve children: 
Catherine died at the age of three; Mary; John, 
born in 1827, married Mary Manixe; Patrick, 
subject of this sketch; Jeremiah D. married 
Bridget Grace; Dennis married (first) Hanora 
Morone, and (second) Delia Hogan; Michael 
died at the age of twelve; W'illiani married 
Ellen McCoid; James married Johanna Morris- 
see; Thomas died at five years of age, and 
Stephen and David died in early childhood. 
All of these children were born at the old 
homestead in County Limerick, and in 1847 
the family came to America, settling first in 
New York City, and later upon a farm in Dutch- 
ess county, near Dover Plains. 

Our subject was born in 1830, and was 
given the best educational opportunities that 
his native parish afforded. On his arrival in 
this country he found employment upon the 
Harlem railroad, which had then been recently 
surveyed, receiving five shillings per day for his 
work, and paying three shillings per day for 
board. He remembers well the first train 
which passed over the road. After a year and 
a half at this work he engaged in farm labor 
with a farmer in Dover, and later became a 
stock dealer. In this business he was very- 
successful, his trade extending over several 
States, and he bought and sold some of the 
finest cattle ever shipped from Do\er. At one 
time he owned a farm of 235 acres in that 
town, but he disposed of it, and his present 
farm contains only seventy-five acres. He has 
taken an active interest in politics, has been 
assessor for five years, and has held other 
town offices including that of road commis- 
sioner. As a devout Catholic he did much to 
establish that Church in Dover Plains, and in 
1858 subscribed $50.00 toward the building of 
their edifice. He was married in 1857 to Miss 
Selina Deviney, and has had four children, of 



878 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD 



whom two are living: (i) Catherine A., born 
in 1S62, is at home. (2) William D., born in 

1863, died in infancy. (3) Thomas, born in 

1864, married Miss Mamie Doyle, and has one 
child — Selina, born June 16, 1893. (4) Jere- 
miah, born in 1866, died in infancy. Mrs. 
Whalen is a native of ^^'alworth, County Lon- 
donderry, Ireland, and was born in 1835. 
She received her education at her native place, 
and in 1851 came to Dover Plains, where she 
met and married our subject. Her grandfa- 
ther, Thomas Deviney. was born in Glasgow, 
Scotland, where he was for many years a well- 
known machinist. He married Miss Jennie 
Livingston, by whom he had five children: 
Jennie, who married John Berrisford, Mar- 
garet, Sarah, Thomas, who married Ann Craig, 
and William, Mrs. Whalen's father, who was 
born in County Londonderry, Ireland. He 
was a cattle buyer by occupation, and was 
quite prominent in Masonic circles, being a 
Master Mason. His first wife was Miss Mary 
Malia, daughter of John and Mollie Malia, of 
Walworth, Ireland, and his second was Miss 
Hannah McCornica. Seven children were 
born of the first marriage: Jennie, Eliza and Isa- 
bella, whose husbands' names are not known; 
Mary, who married (first) David Begley, 
and (second) \\'illiam Bleekley; Selina, Mrs. 
Whalen; William, who married Elizabeth Mc- 
Golrich; and Da\id, who married Martha 
Scott. There were two children by the second 
marriage: Thomas, who married Martha 
Shaw, and Margaret, the wife of Mr. McNari- 
land. 



OSBORN ROBINSON, a general farmer 
and dealer in dairy products, was born in 
Putnam county, N. Y. , December 3, 1820. 
He grew up in the town of Stanford, Dutchess 
county, where in i 848, he was married to Miss 
Wealthy Mott, who, too, was born in the town 
of Stanford. Her father, Jonathan Mott, was 
also a native of Stanford, and married Miss Ar- 
menia Walters, whose birth took place in the 
town of Milan. These children were born to 
Mr. and .Mrs. Mott: Benjamin, Nelson, Sarah, 
Betsy A., and Armenia. 

Mr. Robinson worked on various farms in 
Washington town, and in 1871 bought the 
farm on which he now resides. The following 
children were born to our subject and his wife: 
Martha, who married Milo Dickerman, a milk 
dealer of Chicago; Stephen is on the home 



place; George married Miss Kitty Reynoldson 
and lives in Chicago; Phctbeisat home; John 
works on the farm; Carrie became the wife of 
Edward D. Smith. Our subject has a farm 
of 320 acres, and owns forty-si.\ head of cattle, 
fifty-one sheep and nine horses. He deals 
extensively in milk and has a model dairy, 
with all the modern improvements. He is a 
Republican and has held, among other offices 
of the town, that of postmaster. He is a 
well-known farmer in the communit}', and is 
respected by all with whom he comes in con- 
tact. 

Stephen Robinson, father of our subject, 
was a native of Putnam county, where he 
grew to manhood. He married Miss Hattie 
Kelley, who was born in Putnam county, and 
who was a daughter of Seth Kelley. Mr. 
Robinson and his wife located on a farm in 
Putnam county, and the following children 
were born to them: Chapel, a farmer in Stan- 
ford; Kelley, a retired citizen of Stanford; 
Osborn is our subject; Ennis, who was a farmer 
of Stanford, died about the year 1870; Jarvis, 
a farmer; Robert, a farmer in the town of 
Poughkeepsie; William, following the same 
occupation in Stanford; Nathaniel, deceased; 
Emily married Walter Winans, a farmer in 
Amenia, and is deceased; Zilla became the 
wife of Charles Barrett, who is deceased; Ada 
married Henry Thompson, who was a farmer 
in the town of Stanford; Priscilla (unmarried); 
Catherme, the wife of Isaac Sincerbox, a farmer 
of Sharon, Conn. Mr. Robinson was a Whig 
and later a Republican. He was a member 
of the Baptist Church. His death occurred 
in 1870. 

Chapel Robinson, the grandfather, was 
born in Putnam county, where he married, 
settled on a farm and reared a large family of 
children. 



ILLIAM H. ALLEN, a wide-awake 

and industrious farmer of the town of 

Clinton, Dutchess county, was born upon the 
old family homestead in that township, No- 
vember 27, 1856. The town of Pleasant Val- 
ley, Dutchess county, was the birthplace of 
the grandfather of our subject, William Henry 
Allen, who served as captain of the State mili- 
tia, and in later life engaged in the cultivation 
and improvement of a farm in the town of 
Clinton. He married Sarah Marshall, and to 
them were born five children, all of whom have 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



879 



now passed away, namely: William Henry, 
Catherine, Julia, Henry and James D. 

The last-named, who was the father of our 
subject, was born in the town of Clinton in 
iSio, and on reaching manhood wedded Mary 
Clapp, daughter of James Clapp, the ceremony 
being performed in the town of Pleasant Val- 
ley. Their family circle included four chil- 
dren: Julia, wife of Marshall Herrick; Will- 
iam H.; Mary Emily, wife of Elmer Van- 
Vliet, of Hudson, N. Y. ; and James C. The 
father continued to operate the old family 
homestead until his death; politically, he was 
one of the warmest adherents of the Republic- 
an party. 

William H. Allen grew to man's estate 
upon his father's farm in the town of Clinton, 
attending the school of the neighborhood, and 
supplemented the knowledge thus acquired by 
a course in the Poughkeepsie Military Institute. 
When his schools days were over he continued 
to follow the pursuit to which he had been 
reared, and for four years after his marriage 
had the care and management of the old home- 
stead. He then removed to his present farm, 
whose neat and thrifty appearance indicates 
his progressive spirit and industrious habits. 

In the town of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, Mr. Allen married Susan Barnes, a 
daughter of David Barnes, and to them was 
born a daughter, Annette E. For his second 
wife he wedded in the town of Pleasant Valley, 
Miss Cora A. Van De Water, a daughter of 
William Van De Water. Two children bless 
their union: James Henry, born February 6, 
1S93; and William Marshall, born January 3, 

Mr. Allen uses his elective franchise in sup- 
port of the men and measures of the Republic- 
an party, but takes no very active part in po- 
litical affairs. His energy and industry are 
proverbial, and he is numbered among the men 
who have been instrumental in promoting the 
progress and prosperity of his town and county. 



E.PHRAIM HERRICK, the genial and pop- 
' ular proprietor of "The Rhinebeck," one 

of the best and most pleasant hotels along the 
Hudson, was born May 17, 1848, on the old 
family homestead in the town of Milan, Dutch- 
ess county, a son of Ephraim Herrick. His 
primar\' education was received in the district 
schools, and he later pursued his studies in the 



Rhinebeck Academy, thus obtaining a practical 
education, which well fitted him for the duties 
of life. After la3'ing aside his text books he 
operated the home farm until the death of his 
father, which occurred in 1S68, having charge 
of that place for twenty-four years, as he con- 
tinued its cultivation for some time later. 

For twelve years Mr. Herrick then super- 
intended the Dutchess County Gold farm, 
owned by Dr. Martin G. Freligh, which was 
sold during that time for a large sum. In the 
fall of 1888 he purchased his present hotel at 
Rhinecliff, which he has conducted very suc- 
cessfully since, and the place well merits the 
liberal patronage accorded it. The house is 
well fitted up, is convenient and comfortable, 
and the cuisine is unexceptionable. 

In 1872 our subject was joined in wedlock 
with Henrietta Hermance, daughter of Joseph 
Hermance, of Salt Point, in the town of Clin- 
ton, Dutchess county. Our subject is a stanch 
adherent of the principles formulated by the 
Democratic party, and is one of the most pro- 
gressive and public-spirited men of the com- 
munity, where he is widely and favorably 
known. 



lAILEY WHEELER, a well-known and 

) prominent citizen of the town of Dover, 
belongs to a family that has long been con- 
nected with the history of Dutchess county. 
He is the son of Henry, and grandson of John 
B. Wheeler, an account of whom is given in 
the sketch of Perry Wheeler. 

The birth of our subject occurred May 3, 
1825, in the town of Dover, and his education 
was received at South Dover. After leaving 
school, he engaged in farming for about forty 
years, and then turned his attention to specu- 
lating in tobacco, cattle and stock generally, 
with good success. Although he takes no 
active part in political affairs, his ballot is al- 
ways cast in support of the principles of the 
Republican party, and he ever faithfully dis- 
charges his duties of citizenship. 

In i860 was celebrated the marriage of 
Mr. Wheeler and Miss Juliet Hungerford, 
daughter of Delazon and Hannah Hungerford, 
of Connecticut, and two children came to 
bless their union, a son and daughter. George 
B., the former, was born in Dover township, 
in 1866, and obtained an excellent education 
in Eastman Business College, and in 1887 at 
Fort Edward. The six months following his 



880 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



graduation were spent in California, and on his 
return to the East he was for two j'ears em- 
ployed in the ' ' Pla^a Hotel " of New York City. 
He was then offered the position of teller in the 
Plaza Bank of that city, where he is now located. 
The daughter, Nellie A. , was born in the town 
of Dover, in 1869, and attended school at 
Poughkeepsie. She is now the wife of William 
S. McKean, a wholesale confectioner of Al- 
toona, Penn., and has one child, William 
Wheeler, born April 2, 1894. 

Thomas Hungerford, the maternal grand- 
father of Mrs. Wheeler, was a native of Con- 
necticut, and by his marriage with Miss Diana 
Hungerford was the father of six children. 
( I) Harriet married George Shove, by whom 
she has three children; Eliza, Henry and Ed- 
ward. (2) Edwin married Susan Geddings, 
and had five children: Afartin, who married 
Julia Jackson; Phcebe, who married Charles 
Hine; George, who married Emily Babcock; 
Lewis, who married Elizabeth Treat; and 
Anna, who married John Duncan. (3) Emily 
married Carlisle Smith, and was the mother 
of four children: Clark; Susan, wife of Asa 
Camp; Harriet, who died in infancy; and 
Oliver. (4; Thomas married Rachel Smith, 
and they had six children: Mills, who was 
three times married, his first wife being Allie 
Hendricks, his second a Miss Cable, and the 
third Mary Stewart; Sophia, who married 
Edward Teedwell; Ophelia, who married Dan- 
iel Mallory; Jay, who married Sarah Hoag; 
Neilson, who married Lucy Durfey; and Allen, 
who died unmarried. (5) Orin married 
Wealthy White, and had two children: Fran- 
cis and Charles. (6) Hannah is the mother 
of Mrs. Wheeler. 

Hannah Hungerford was born in Connecti- 
cut, and married Delazon Hungerford, a farmer, 
who though bearing the same name was. no 
relative. They became the parents of seven 
children, (i) Angeline, born in 1832, married 
Jonathan Haviland, and has four children: 
Elsie, wife of Abram Henley; Lillian; Lottie, 
wife of George Rice; and Walter. (2) Watson, 
born in 1833, died in infancy. (3) Juliet, born 
in 1838, is the wife of our subject. (4) Sarah, 
born in 1841, married George W. Squires, and 
has four children: Robert, who married 
Jennie Stevens; Lewis, Walter and Bell. ^5) 
Beach, born in 1844, married Fannie Hoag, 
and has three children: Nettie, wife of Frank 
Cable; May and Eva. (6) Mary, born in 
1S48, wedded Lafayette Joyce, and has one 



son, Howard, [j) Frederick, born in 1852, 
married Lucinda Sprague, and has three chil- 
dren: Ward. Bessie and Grace. 



DE WITT C. KETTERER, the well- 
known proprietor of the " Ketterer Hotel ' * 
at Pine Plains, Dutchess county, was born 
March 7, 1858, in the town of Milan. 

The family originated in Baden, Germany, 
where his grandfather, F. Ivetterer, passed his 
entire life. Of his two sons, Charles, our sub- 
ject's father, was the first of the family to 
come to America. Charles Ketterer was born 
January 3. 1828, and received a good educa- 
tion in the schools of his native land, where a 
strict compulsory system prevails, and after- 
ward learned and followed the weaver's trade. 
In 1853 he emigrated to this country, locating 
first at Milan, in Dutchess county, and later in 
the town of Clinton. He married Margaretha 
Dorothy Mindline, also a native of Germany, 
who came to Dutchess county in the same 
year on account of ill health. Being thrifty 
and energetic, Charles Ketterer made rapid 
progress in business, and before the breaking 
out of the war had bought a farm in the town 
of Clinton. In 1862 he enlisted in the 128th 
N. Y. 'V. I., and served as a private until the 
Rebellion ended, taking part in the Red River 
campaign and in the operations in the Shenan- 
doah Valley, and although he was in all the 
principal engagements in which his regiment 
participated he was not injured in any way. 
On his return home in 1865, he removed to 
Pine Plains and opened a barber shop, the 
first in the town, having learned the business 
by shaving his comrades in the army and tak- 
ing a one month's course of instruction in New 
York City. For seven years he followed this 
trade successfully at various locations in the 
town, and, in 1872, exchanged the business for 
the hotel now owned by his heirs. He owned 
this property until his death which occurred 
December 28, 1888. He was the first to in- 
troduce beer into the village, ale having been 
the only drink known previously. A self-made 
man and a hard worker, he was also generous, 
and public-spirited, showing a hearty interest 
in the impro\ement of the village. He was an 
enthusiastic Republican, and one of the lead- 
ing members of the Lutheran Church, with 
which he had been connected from early child- 
hood. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



881 



De Witt C. Ketterer was the only child of 
his parents, and after attending the district 
school at Pine Plains until the age of fourteen 
he took charge of his father's barber-shop on 
his own responsibility. He possesses good 
natural abilities, and with due preparation 
would have been successful in almost any 
undertaking. His early limitations in educa- 
tion have been largely made good by an exten- 
sive course of reading upon general subjects. 
After following the barber's trade for seven 
years he and his father, in 1879, exchanged 
work, and he took the hotel which he has now 
conducted for seventeen years, making exten- 
sive improvements and keeping well in ad- 
vance of any competitors. He is prominent 
in local affairs, an earnest advocate of progress- 
ive movements, and in politics he is an Inde- 
pendent. On January 6, 1891, he married 
Miss Jennie M. Boice, daughter of John Boice, 
of Ancram, Columbia county, New York. 



JAMES NEWMAN. In this free land of ours 
many of the inhabitants are of foreign 
~ birth, who have come here for the purpose 
of securing homes, and these valuable addi- 
tions to the native population have, by their 
industry, economy and honest methods, be- 
come essential factors in the growth and pros- 
perity of the countr}'. They furnish not only 
needed workmen, skilled and unskilled, but 
enterprising merchants, manufacturers, artists 
and apt dealers upon our marts of trade. 

Mr. Newman is a native of Germany, born 
in New Bavaria, July 23, 1845. His father, 
George M. Newman, was a hotel keeper and 
groceryman at Herxheim by Landau, in the 
Rhine Pfaltz, and in 1854 came to America, 
where he died two years later. He was a 
man of wealth, had traveled extensively in 
France, and had also visited Africa. By 
his marriage ^i^ith Vermika Seither, who died 
in Bavaria, he had four children: Frederick, 
James, Caroline and George, all now deceased 
with the exception of our subject. 

At the age of fifteen years James New- 
man left his native land, crossing the At- 
lantic to America to hunt up his brothers, 
one of whom he found in New York City, 
and the other in St. Louis. At the former 
place he bound himself out to learn cigar 
making with John Paul Ohrt, at No. 113 
West Broadway, where he remained about 
one year. When the war broke out he 
57 



enlisted in the Anderson Zouaves, but was 
prevented from going to the front by Mr. 
Ohrt, as he was not yet of age. He then ran 
away, coming to the town of Stanford, Dutchess 
county, where he soon afterward enlisted in 
the 150th N. Y. V. I., under Capt. Gilder- 
sleeve, and was with that regiment until mus- 
tered out at Poughkeepsie in 1865. He now 
holds membership with John M. Gregory Post 
No. 59, G. A. R. , Department of Connecticut, 
of which he has served as commander, and 
also belongs to the Officers Association of the 
150th Regiment, at Poughkeepsie. as he had 
attained the rank of corporal. 

After gallantly aiding his adopted country 
in her struggle to preserve the Union until he 
saw the flag once more float over a united 
nation, Mr. Newman came to .\menia, living 
with Henry Tripp, his former employer, for a 
year, after which he worked for A. B. Rice 
for the same length of time, and subsequently 
was employed at the ' ' Amenia House " by 
Morgan Tripp for a year. Since that time he 
has successfully engaged in the cigar business 
for himself at Amenia, and is at the head of a 
large and constantly increasing trade. 

At Poughkeepsie, December 20. 1868, .Mr. 
Newman was married to Miss Margaret E. 
Gaul, a native of New York City, and a daugh- 
ter of John Gaul, a blacksmith of Amenia. 
They have four children: Charles H., who 
married Carrie Why land; Carrie E. ; Mary; and 
James Arthur. In his political views, Mr. 
Newman is a Republican; socially he is a 
member of Amenia Lodge No. 672, F. & 
A. M. 



DAVID HANNA. Quite a number of the 
leading and prominent citizens of Dutch- 
ess county are of alien birth, and have trans- 
ported to this land of plenty the thrifty habits 
of their native country. Among these there 
are none better known, or more widely re- 
spected, than the gentleman whose name ap- 
pears at the beginning of this sketch. 

Our subject was a native of Mayhaland, 
County Londonderry, Ireland, where his 
father, Samuel Hanna, was also born, reared 
and educated. The latter was a farmer, but 
also engaged in the operation of a flax and 
grist mill at that place. He was united in 
marriage with Matilda Fargerson, and to them 
were born thirteen children, namely: Jane, 
who became the wife of James Sergent; 



882 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Thninas, who iiiarriod Margaret Hutchinson; 
James and John, who died in infancy; Isabella, 
who became the wife of James Hutchinson; 
Nancy, who married William Hanna; John 
(2), who remained single; Robert, who wedded 
Matilda Dixon; Eli/a, who died in girlhood; 
Peggy, who died in infancy: David, who mar- 
ried Eliza Hutchinson; Sarah, who married a 
Mr. Livingston; and Alex. 

During his boyhood and youth David 
Hanna attended the schools of his native land, 
and assisted his father in the work of the mills. 
On March 15, 1852, was celebrated his mar- 
riage with Miss Eliza Hutchinson, a daughter 
of Samuel and Abella (Greer) Hutchinson, 
who lived upon a farm in County London- 
derry. Her father was one of the seven chil- 
dren born to Robert and Nancy (Patterson) 
Hutchinson, who were also agriculturists of the 
same locality, the others being John, William, 
James, Bettie, Alex and Thomas. 

In 1852, Mr. Hanna, with his bride, sailed 
from the Emerald Isle for the New World, 
and made their first location at Paterson, 
N. j., where they remained for some time. 
On leaving that city, they went to New York, 
and for forty-three years our subject was in 
the employ of the Harlem railroad, being tire- 
man for seven years and five months, and was 
then given a position as watchman, which he 
held until his resignation a short time ago, 
owing to his age. His long continued service 
well indicates his faithful discharge of duty, 
and the implicit confidence which his employ- 
ers placed in him. 

Mr. and Mrs. Hanna became the parents 
of seven children, of whom, Arabella is the 
eldest. Samuel, who is a conductor on the 
Harlem railroad, married Minnie McLassen, 
and they have one child, Herbert J. Matilda 
is now deceased. John married Miss Ada 
Preston, by whom he has one daughter, Julia; 
he is a prominent Republican, and in 1894 
was elected a member of the General Assem- 
bly, and has also filled the position of super- 
visor of Poughkeepsic for three terms. David 
wedded Mary Hutchinson, and is also a con- 
ductor on the Harlem railroad. Dorly is now 
deceased. Lizzie A. completes the family. 



OHN D. BARNUM, now living retired at 
Amenia Union, Dutchess county, was for 
many years one of the most energetic and 
wide-awake business men of Dutchess county. 



where his entire life has been passed, his birth 
having occurred August 7, 1834, at South 
Amenia, in the house now owned by Franklin 
Cline. 

Andrew Barnum, his father, was born at 
Danbury, Conn., January 3', 1790, and was 
the son of Daniel Barnum, a chairmaker of 
Bethel, Conn. Here Andrew attended school. 
On reaching years of maturity he engaged in 
farming and lime-burning at Ridgetield, that 
State. He married Miss Sally Chapman, who 
was born at Redding, Conn., February 8, 1792, 
a daughter of Phineas Chapman, and died in 
July, 1852. Eight children were born of this 
union, whose names and dates of birth are as 
follows: Milo, F"ebruary 29, 18 16; Joshua, 
September 15, 181 8; Daniel, September 27, 
1820; Lucinda, September 2, 1823; Sarah, 
November 28, 1825; Mary, July 3, 1828; An- 
drew, August 27, 1829; and John D., August 
7, 1834. All are now deceased with the ex- 
ception of our subject, and Mary, the wife of 
Daniel Sharpsteen, of Battle Creek, Michigan. 

In 1830 the father removed to the town of 
Amenia, purchasing the place at South Amenia 
now occupied by Franklin Cline, and there 
conducted a flouring-mill. In 1839 he sold to 
Philo Cline, giving possession the following 
year, and then went to Cortland county, N. 
Y. , where he purchased a farm of 300 acres, 
which he continued to cultivate for ten years. 
On the expiration of that period he returned 
to Amenia Union, and there lived retired until 
his death, which occurred December 31, 1869. 
He was again married, his second union being 
December 8, 1852, with Mrs. Eliza Stevens, 
who was born April 12, 1801, and died April 
10, 1870. In politics he was first a Whig, 
later a Republican. 

The early education of our subject was ob- 
tained in Cortlandville Academy, and at the 
age of sixteen years he started out in life for 
himself, being engaged in the l^mp business 
with his brother at Danboro, Penn., for two 
years. The following summer he spent at Lit- 
tle York, Cortland Co., N. Y. , while the win- 
ter was passed by him in the village of Cort- 
land. He was then employed in selling tin 
for Cicero Beach, of Kent, Conn., for a year. 

Subsequently, Mr. Barnum, with his brother 
Andrew, established the firm of ISarnum & 
Co., and engaged in the stationery business, 
traveling by wagon with paper supplies, and 
gathering material forthe manufacture of paper. 
This they continued from 1853 until the death 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



883 



of Andrew in 1865, after which our subject 
conducted the business alone until 1885, run- 
ning five peddling wagons on the road as far 
east as Hartford, Conn., west to Oneonta, 
N. Y., north to Utica, N. Y. , and south to 
Bridgeport, Conn. He was also engaged in the 
manufacture of cigars at Amenia Union, which 
he sold to the retail trade from his wagons, 
a business he continued to carry on after he 
had stopped the paper trade. Later he went 
on the road for Morgan L. Potts, to whom he 
had sold out, and while thus employed he, in 
1 89 1, contracted gangrene, wjiich grew rapidly 
worse, and resulted in his losing both legs. 
Since that time he has necessarily led a retired 
life. 

Mr. Barnum was first married September 
I, 1857, to Anna J. Stevens, who was born 
October 12, 1840, and was the daughter of 
his stepmother. She died September 18, 1866, 
leaving one son, William S. , now of Tarry- 
town, N. Y., who was born November 23, 1859, 
and married Caroline Andrews. At Livingston 
Manor, N. Y.. September 2, 1868, Mr. Bar- 
num was again married, this time to Harriet 
Ann Potts, who was born August 11, 1833, 
and they have two children: J. Edmund, who 
was born November 20, 1869, and is now with 
the Wagner Palace Car Co., in New York 
City, and John Dibble, Jr., born July 21, 1871. 
In political sentiment, Mr. Barnum has always 
been an ardent Republican, and he is devoted 
to the best interests of his town and county, 
being numbered among the most public-spirited 
and progressive citizens of the community. 



FRANK E. BURNETT, one of the leading 
_ business men of Red Hook, Dutchess 
county, the senior member of the firm of Bur- 
nett Bros., is a descendant of a family which 
has long been prominent in that place. 

His father, Stephen R. Burnett, was born 
there in the year 1829, and from that time to 
the present has had his residence there. Early 
in life he learned the carpenter's trade, and fol- 
lowed it successfully for some years, and in 
1865 he engaged in the furniture and under- 
taking business, conducting it with increasing 
trade and protit until 1886, when he transferred 
it to his two sons. He is a man who stands 
high in the esteem of the community, and al- 
though he has never sought public office he 
wields an influence in a quiet way in every pro- 
gressive movement. He was a charter mem- 



ber of Christian Lodge No. 379, L O. O. F., 
organized January 28, 1874, and he is now a 
Past Grand of the Lodge and Past Deputy 
Grand Master of the District of Dutchess. He 
was married in 1853 to Miss Sarah Eighmy, a 
daughter of George Eighmy, a prominent resi- 
dent of Rhinebeck. The two children of this j 
union are Frank E., our subject, born April 
27, 1855, and William E., born March 12, 
i860. Both were educated in the common 
schools of their native place, and after com- 
pleting the course Frank E. Burnett entered 
the employ of his father and learned the de- 
tails of the business. The younger brother en- 
gaged in mercantile business for different 
parties until the time of the father's retirement 
from active life. Under the able management 
of the two the firm has maintained its prestige, 
and its growing business gives evidence of their 
energy and judgment. 

On October 30, 1S79, Frank E. Bur- 
nett married Miss Estella C. Lasher, a daugh- 
ter of Jacob Lasher, a well-known citizen of 
Madalin. William E. Burnett is also married, 
his wife being formerly Miss Ella Hermance, a 
daughter of Edward Hermance, of Red Hook. 
Neither couple have had any children. 

Our subject takes an active part in local 
affairs, giving his influence to all movements 
which promise to aid the community. At the 
age of twenty-one, he became a member of the 
L O. O. F., Christian Lodge No. 379, and is 
a Past Grand and Past District Deputy Grand 
Master of the order. He is also one of the 
charter members of Shiloh Encampment No. 
68, and has the distinction of being Past Chief 
Patriarch, and was District Deputy Grand Pa- 
triarch for the year 1896. 



FRANK E. BIRDSALL, one of the reliable 
and progressive young farmers and rep- 
resentative men of the town of Clinton, Dutch- 
ess county, is actively engaged in general 
farming upon the place which he purchased in 
the spring of 1895. A native of Dutchess 
county, he was born August 6, 1867, in the 
town where he still resides. 

On coming to America the founders of the 
family first located in \\'estchester county, N. 
Y., whence they removed to Orange county, 
where Solomon Birdsall, the grandfather of 
our subject, located on a farm granted by 
King George of England to Mr. Lepton, from 
whom the great-grandfather purchased it. 



884 



COMMEyrORA TIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



There Solomon spent his entire life in agri- 
cultural pursuits, and was a faithful member 
of the Society of Friends. He was married in 
Ulster county, N. Y., to Phctbe Young, and 
to them were born seven children, Abram Y. 
Birdsall, the father of our subject, being third 
in order of birth. He was born March 19, 
18 — , at Leptondale, Orange Co., and there 
on a farm his boyhood days were passed. 
After attending the district schools for a time 
he entered Union Springs Boarding School in 
New York State, and was then a student in the 
Friends Boarding School at Providence, R. I. 
After graduating from the Eastman Business 
College, Poughkeepsie, N. Y., he secured a 
position as bookkeeper in New York City, and 
later was a commission merchant. For fifteen 
years he carried on the feed business, but is 
now living upon a farm in the town of Wash- 
ington, Dutchess county, and devotes his time 
to its cultivation. 

In that township he married Elizabeth 
Haight, a daughter of Lewis Haight, and tsvo 
children graced their union: Frank E. and 
Gertrude. The parents both hold member- 
ship with the Friends Church, and the father 
always casts his ballot with the Republican 
party. 

The childhood of Frank E. Birdsall was 
spent in Brooklyn, N. Y. , until he was seven 
years of age, when he accompanied his par- 
ents to Orange county, where the following 
si.xteen years were passed. He secured an 
excellent education in the district schools, at 
the Union Springs Boarding School, and com- 
pleted his literary training with an academic 
course in the New Paltz Normal. For four 
years he remained upon his father's farm at 
Millbrook, Dutchess county, thus becoming 
familiar with farm life in all its details. His 
practical knowledge of agriculture, combined 
with his sound judgment and good business 
ability, no doubt wins him success in his chosen 
calling, and we predict for him a brilliant 
future. 

On October 16, 1894, in the town of Clin- 
ton, Mr. Birdsall was united in marriage to 
Miss Mary G. Griffen, daughter of William D. 
Griffen. In his political affiliations he is an 
infle.xible adherent of the doctrinesand prin- 
ciples of the Republican party, and he is an 
earnest member of the Friends Church. He 
enjoys the esteem and confidence of his neigh- 
bors, and, with his excellent wife, is a valued 
addition to the society of the township. 



WILLIAM J. BROOKS, one of the promi- 
nent and reliable business men of Hi- 

bernia, Dutchess county, was born in Ancram, 
Columbia Co., N. Y., August 19, 1861. His 
father, who was born in England, in 1831, 
bore the name of Henry Brooks, and was the 
youngest of the six children that comprised the 
family of John and Mary (Ross) Brooks, the 
former also a native of England, and the latter 
the daughter of Alexander Ross, of Pough- 
keepsie. 

When Henry Brooks was about eight years 
of age, his father brought the family to Amer- 
ica and lo.cated in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , where 
he established himself in business. After com- 
pleting his education in the schools of that city, 
Henry Brooks took up farming, and was also 
employed as watchman at the Livingston 
Rolling Mill in Poughkeepsie, in 1870. At 
Millbrook, Dutchess county, he was united in 
marriage with Rachel Butts, a daughter of 
James Butts, and five children were born to 
them: Lydia, who was born August 19, 1856, 
and is the wife of Jay White, of Wassaic, 
N. Y. ; William J. comes next; /\my, wife of 
George Siegler, of Ancram, N. Y. ; Fred; Susie, 
wife of Thomas McCarthy; and Eddie. For 
many years the father has now made his home 
at Ancram, Columbia county, where he is en- 
gaged in agricultural pursuits. His religious 
views are those of the Methodist Church, and 
in politics he is a stanch Republican. 

The education of our subject was obtained 
in the schools of Ancram and Poughkeepsie, 
and on laying aside his text books to take up 
the more arduous duties of life, he was first en- 
gaged either in farming on the old homestead 
or being employed by others. In 1890, how- 
ever, he came to Hibernia, Dutchess county, 
where he purchased land and erected his pres- 
ent house and store. He at once began the 
coal and livery business, but February, i, 1895, 
he opened his general store, where he carries a 
complete assortment of general merchandise 
such as can be found in a first-class store of the 
kind. He is a wide-awake, energetic business 
man, honorable in all his dealings, thus win- 
ning the confidence and esteem of all with 
whom he comes in contact, either in a business 
or social way. 

On June 12, 1889, in Troy, N. Y., Mr. 
Brooks married Miss Cora B. Duncan, daugh- 
ter of Cyrus Duncan, of the town of Washing- 
ton, Dutchess county, and to them was born a 
son, Henry. Mr. Brooks is a warm advocate 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



885 



of Republican principles, although h^^ has very 
little time to devote to politics, and he is a 
consistent member of the ^fethodist Episcopal 
Church. 



JAMES REYNOLDS. Among Poughkeep- 
"sie's most active and progressive business 

men of to-day is the subject of this brief 
review, whose successful career of twenty-five 
years in business in that city has been such as 
to recommend him for the presidencj' of one of 
the leading and substantial business interests of 
Poughkeepsie — James Reynolds ElevatorCom- 
pany. 

Mr. Reynolds was born at Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, June 7, 1858. He attended 
school in his native city, and in 1873 was 
graduatQ,d from Riverview Military Academ}'. 
After his graduation he at once began his busi- 
ness career as a clerk in the wholesale grain 
and feed store of Reynolds & Co., which was 
located oposite the depot of the Hudson River 
railroad. He remained with this firm thirteen 
years, then purchased a retail business in the 
same line, the location of which was in Union 
street. Under the judicious management and 
popularity of Mr. Reynolds the business in- 
creased so that more room was required, and 
in November, 1S88, he purchased the Parker 
mill and the surrounding property, and con- 
verted the mill into a complete grain elevator. 
Large and commodious warehouses were 
erected in connection with the elevator, and 
largely increased switching facilities added; and 
also another retail store opened on Main street. 
This business so increased that in February, 
1896, it was incorporated under the name 
of James Rejmolds Elevator Company, and 
has so continued to the present, our subject 
being the president of the company. The other 
officers are: George E. Cramer, of Reynolds 
& Cramer, vice-president, and Willard C. Vail, 
secretary. The main office, elevator and 
warehouse are on the corner of North and 
Garden streets, and the retail stores at Nos. 
226 and 22S Union street, and No. 17 Cath- 
erine street. The company does an extensive 
business in flour, feed, grain, hay, straw, salt 
and fertilizers; also in poultry, kennel and bee- 
keepers' supplies. 

Mr. Reynolds is not only one of the sub- 
stantial business men of Poughkeepsie, but one 
of the popular and esteemed citizens. 



ILLIAM B. DINSMORE (deceased). 
The first ancestor of the Dinsmore 
family of whom we have any record was John 
Dinsmoor, who went from Scotland to Ireland 
in the seventeenth century, having run away 
from home at the age of seventeen because 
his father had compelled him, as the second 
son, to hold the stirrup while his elder brother 
mounted a horse. Unwilling to submit to 
such an indignity, he sought a new home 
in County Antrim, Ireland, where he lived 
to the age of ninety-nine years, and was dis- 
tinguished for his piety. His son John (2) 
married, and had two children, Robert, born in 
1692, and Elizabeth. 

America was then receiving many emi- 
grants of the hardy Scotch-Irish race, and 
leaving his little family, John Dinsmoor sailed 
across the Atlantic, landing at a fort at the 
islands known as " the Gorges," off the coast 
of Maine. There he began to build a house, 
but while shingling it he was captured by the 
Indians. By making himself useful to the 
chief he gained his favor; but the other mem- 
bers of the tribe were not so well disposed, 
and one day, in the absence of the chief, the 
captive was accused of holding a conference 
with some Englishmen on the coast, and was 
condemned to die by fire. He had already 
been bound to a tree, and the brush was piled 
about him, when his friend, the chief, returned 
and commanded his torturers to cease their 
preparations until an investigation of the 
charge could be made, as he' said there would 
certainly be tracks found in the sand if the 
alleged conference had been held upon the 
shore. None were discovered by a careful 
search, and Dinsmoor was accordingly released. 
Later the tribe left that part of the country, 
and on coming to a stream which crossed their 
line of march the chief entered his canoe; but 
as Dinsmore was about to push it off and step 
into the stern the chief told him that he must 
go no further. John pleaded that the Indians 
would kill him if he lost the chief's protection, 
but the latter said: "No, \'ou much honest 
man, John. You walk to Boston," and giv- 
ing him some nuts an>i bear's grease he told 
him where he could conceal himself in a cave 
until the rest of the Indians had crossed the 
river. His parting words were: "Indian 
and French have all this country. You walk 
to Boston, take English canoe and walk to 
your own country: you much honest man, 
John." Dinsmoor found the cave, and waited 



886 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



there for three days watchinfj tribe after tribe 
pass until all were gone. He then started to 
make his way to "the Gorges," but nearly 
perished from hunger, and would have suc- 
cumbed had it not been for some cranberries 
which he found in a swamp. He reached the 
fort in safety, and then took passage by sea to 
Boston. From there he went to Rockingham 
county, N. H., where a colony of Scotch- 
Irish had settled in Nutfield township, now 
Derry. Here he found old friends from 
Londonderry, Ireland, and either through 
sympathy for his sufferings, or as an induce- 
ment for him to stay there, the proprietors of 
the settlement deeded to him and his heirs 
si.xty acres of land in Jee. As he was a mason 
by trade, he built a stone house for himself and 
sent for his family. After their arrival in 
1730 he divided the farm between the two 
children, both of whom were married and had 
families, and he and his wife lived in the stone 
house with his son-in-law. This house was 
a noted point between Derry and Windham, 
and until recently the location of the front 
door stone was marked by an early apple tree 
in the garden of P. D. Scott, generally known 
as the Hopkins place. John Dinsmoor, or 
"Daddy Dinsmoor," as he was called, died in 
1741. 

His son Robert brought to America his 
wife, Margaret Orr, and four children, and 
lived upon what is now known as the Barnet 
field, the westerly field south of the brook 
near the Scott house, and by the railroad. It 
is near or was a part of the land given to John 
Dinsmoor. The house stood on the top of 
the hill a few rods west of an old cellar, about 
fifteen rods north of the railroad, and some 
forty rods west of the old highway, now dis- 
continued. Soon after the death of his father 
he moved to a farm in Windham, N. H., 
which has ever since been in the possession of 
some of his descendants, and is now the resi- 
dence of Edwin O. Dinsmoor. The dwelling 
house is on or near the site selected by Robert 
on a fine swell of land, and commands a wide 
view to the east and south. The town records 
of Windham show that he was prominent in 
local affairs. He was one of three commis- 
sioners appointed to organize the town, March 
8, 1742, and was elected a selectman on that 
daj'. The next year he served on the com- 
mittee on lawsuits, formed presumably to pro- 
tect the actual settlers from claims made by 
patentees of the Crown. In 1744-45-46-47 



and 50 he was moderator at the annual town 
meetings, which as is well said in the " History 
of Windham, N. Y.," from which these histo- 
rical facts have been taken, " not only indi- 
cates his urbanity of manners, his knowledge 
of parliamentary law and his tact in governing 
men, but also the esteem of his fellow citi- 
zens." He died of fever and ague October 
14, 1751, at the age of fifty-nine years. His 
widow survived him until June 2, 1752. Of 
their four sons, Samuel died November 12, 
1753, aged twenty. The estate was divided 
by lot among the other three, John, the eldest, 
drawing the land north of the homestead, 
comprising the farms lately occupied by John 
and Daniel Kelly. Robert, the second son, 
drew the homestead, and William, the west 
portion lying south and west of "Jenny's 
Hill " and extending to Cobbett's pond. 

John Dinsmoor married Martha, .daughter 
of Justice James McKeen, of Londonderry, 
and passed his life at Windham, where he held 
many prominent official positions, having been 
town clerk, moderator of the town meeting, se- 
lectman, justice of peace, delegate to the Pro- 
vincial Congress at Exeter in 1775, ^"^ elder in 
the Presbyterian Church. He had thirteen 
children, of whom, the youngest, William, was 
born at Windham in 1767. As a young man 
of twenty years he went to Charlestown, 
Mass., and engaged in mercantile business. 
He wedded Catherine H., daughter of Gavin 
Brown, an Englishman, who resided in State 
street, Boston, on the north side, at the point 
now occupied by the Merchants Bank. At 
the time of the Boston Massacre the family, 
hearing the firing in the streets, fied from the 
house and did not return for two days, when, 
to their surprise they found it just as they had 
left it, which speaks well for the honesty of 
the citizens of that town. Mrs. Dinsmoor 
died at Boston in 1830, and her husband fol- 
lowed her six years later. They had three 
children: Catherine, born in 1805, died in 
1857, who married Charles E. Bowers, of the 
Adams Express Co.; Eliza, born in 1807, 
died in 1827; and W'illiam B. 

The late William B. Dinsinore was born 
in Boston in 18 10, and was sent in boyhood to 
Pinkerton Academy, at Derry, N. H. After 
completing his course there he returned home, 
but his father discovered, on testing his ac- 
quirements, that he was a very poor penman, 
and knowing the importance of a good hand- 
writing to a business man he selected a good 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



887 



teacher of penmanship, with whom the young 
man gained unusual proficiency in the art. In 
this painstaking attention to detail on the part 
of both father and son may be found the 
secret of their success, and the quality was 
constantly shown in \\'illiam B. Dinsmore's 
work in the Adams Express Company, to 
which the best part of his life was given. It 
would not be possible to give the history of 
one without outlining that of the other, so 
closely are they identified. In 1840 when 
Mr. Alvin Adams, of Boston, established an 
express business over the Norwich line from 
Boston to New York, Mr. Dinsmore was em- 
ployed as bookkeeper, and soon afterward a 
partnership was formed between them under 
the name of Adams & Co. Mr. Dinsmore 
went to New York to look after the firm's in- 
terest, and his innate conservatism and caution 
is evidenced by his statement to his host at 
the " United States '" hotel, that he was by no 
means sure of the success of the enterprise. 
In 1842 and 1843 the amount of business jus- 
tified an extension of the company's lines, and 
Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington and 
Pittsburg were included in the service, and 
other parties entered the company as proprie- 
tors. In a few 3'ears they covered every rail- 
way in the Southern States, and had made 
rapid progress in the West, and July 1, 1854, 
the Adams Express Co., a joint-stock associa- 
tion, was organized with Mr. Adams as presi- 
dent, and Mr. Dinsmore as treasurer, the 
headquarters being located at New York. 
The business continued to prosper; but a few 
years later the difficulties between the North 
and South made it necessar\' to sell the South- 
ern lines to the stockholders in that section. 
When the disagreements culminated in war, 
the Adams Express Company rose to the oc- 
casion, and their agents accompanied the 
Union armies, establishing their offices wher- 
ever the tents were pitched, thus giving the 
soldiers an opportunity to send or receive 
money or packages. Over five millions of 
money parcels were forwarded from the sol- 
diers to their families or friends without the 
loss of a dollar. The agents were so active 
and zealous in the discharge of their duties 
that they often transgressed military rules; 
and it is said that at the surrender of Vicks- 
burg the Adams Express agent, in his desire 
to secure a good location, rushed forward to 
an unoccupied house, and was about to raise 
the company's flag, when Gen. Grant rode up 



and said in his quiet way, and with a charac- 
teristic twinkle of the eye, " Will you do me 
the favor to allow me to hoist my flag first.'" 

The Adams Express Company now tra- 
verses 72,162 miles of railway, and has agen- 
cies at all places on the various lines, and as 
the authorized agent of the United States 
Treasury it has safely transported thousands of 
millions of its treasures and securities. In 
1856 Mr. Dinsmore became president of the 
company, and for many years he remained at 
his post in New York City, never permitting 
himself to engage in any enterprise whicli 
would divert his attention from the company's 
interests; and this devotion was an acknowl- 
edged factor in the rapid growth of the busi- 
ness. His sound, conservative judgment led 
him to firmly oppose any precarious invest- 
ments, and carried the company through the 
financial storms of thirty years with less loss 
than has been sustained under the same con- 
ditions by any other large corporation. His 
integrity was unquestioned, and united with 
his force of character, wealth and ability, 
placed him among the leading business men of 
the time. His death was widely deplored. 

On October 19, 1S42, Mr. Dinsmore was 
married to Miss Augusta M. Snow, of Brews- 
ter, Mass., and had two sons: William B., Jr., 
born in 1844, and Clarence Gray, born in 
1847. In ordinary conversation he was some- 
what reserved in manner, but among friends 
he was always frank, and genial, and his re- 
marks overflowed with "mother wit." As a 
correspondent he was noted for charm of 
style and inexhaustible humor. His beautiful 
country seat on the Hudson, at Staatsburg, 
was the scene of unbounded hospitality, for 
although naturally economical he always lived 
in accordance with his circumstances, and 
made wise use of his wealth instead of hoard- 
ing it unduly. He had a generous heart, and 
his assistance was freely given to many an un- 
fortunate, although his quiet benefactions were 
never heralded to the world. 



HARLESEDWARDFREDERICK 
SCHUBERT, a wealthy retired manufac- 
turer residing at Glenham, Dutchess county, 
has held for many years a leading place among 
the modern artists in tapestries, and to his fine 
taste and rare executive ability much credit is 
due for the advance of this branch of art in 



888 



COMMEMORATTVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



different manufacturing centers both in Europe 
and America. 

Mr. Schubert was born in BerHn, Germany, 
Januarj' 30, 1817, the only child of Charles 
and Dorothea (Fisher) Schubert. The father 
was the proprietor of a livery stable there, and 
also ran a line of stages. During the reign of 
Frederick William he was drafted in the Prus- 
sian army, and served some forty months un- 
der Blucher, and on June 18, 1815, at the 
battle of Waterloo, he was struck in the fore- 
head by a spent shot, in consequence of which 
he became blind shortly afterward. 

Charles E. F. Schubert, our subject, re- 
ceived his early education in the public schools 
of Berlin, and in 1830 entered the Academy of 
Fine Arts under Prof. Schadouw, remaining 
four years, and graduating in 1834. He then 
entered the factory of I^ouis Fonobert &Track- 
ner, India rubber manufacturers, as a designer, 
and remained with them in that capacity, and 
also as a manager, for seven years. During 
this time Mr. Truckner, the junior member of 
the firm, invented the Mosaic tapestry, and in 
1 84 1 sold the patent and machinery to a 
French firm, Louis Vaison & Porait, and the 
plant was removed to Paris, Mr. Schubert be- 
ing appointed as foreman and designer. He 
continued in their employ until 1847, when the 
breaking out of the revolution in February, 
1848, brought the industry to a standstill, 
which they never afterward resumed. In con- 
sequence Mr. Schubert found nimself in the 
market for employment, and was engaged by 
Recillard Roussel & Clioquil, one of the then 
largest carpet-manufacturing firms in France, 
at Tourcoing, Department du Nord, on the 
borders of Belgium. Here he remained from 
1847 to 1 85 1, and then accepted a situation 
with the firm of JohnCrossley & Son, Halifax, 
Yorkshire, England, where he remained as 
chief designer in the tapestry and Brussels 
department from 1S51 until 1870. In 1855 
he had the honor to represent his firm at the 
Universal Exposition held at Paris, and ob- 
tained the second prize, a silver medal, as a 
colorist and designer, which medal is still in 
his possession; on one side is a bust of Napo- 
leon III, and on the other are the coats of arms 
of all nations competing at the Exposition. 
This firm of John Crossley & Son went into 
the manufacturing of mosaic tapestry, in con- 
nection with their other manufacturing, after 
Mr. Schubert became their manager, as he 
alone understood the manufacture of this par- 



ticular branch. One of the directors of this 
company, by name John Leach, gave in his 
will a great collection of these mosaics (which 
had been manufactured under the supervision 
of Mr. Schubert) to the museum at Clare Hall 
in Halifax, England, where they are still on 
e.xhibition to the public. 

Prior to 1870 the well-known carpet manu- 
facturer, Michael Protzen & Son, of Berlin, 
Prussia, had bought their printed yarns at J. 
Crossley & Sons; but during that year, they 
decided to print their own carpet yarns, and 
secured the services of Mr. Schubert as their 
superintendent and general manager. Conse- 
queiitl)', he again removed to Berlin, and from 
that time date the first printed yarns manu- 
factured in Prussia. Mr. Schubert remained 
with this mill three years, filling his term of 
contract, and then proceeded to Kiddermins- 
ter, Worcestershire, England, under a three- 
years' contract with John Brinton & Co., as 
superintendent, to establish a tapestry de- 
partment. In 1876, when his. engagement 
with the latter firm came to a close, he re- 
ceived a proposal from the agent of A. T. 
Stewart, of New York, to superintend their 
carpet department at their mills in Glenham, 
Dutchess Co., N. Y. He accepted the propo- 
sition and conducted the department with 
marked success until the year 1889, covering 
a period of fifteen years, when he resigned. 
In 1890 Mr. Schubert began on his own ac- 
count to manufacture mosaic tapestry, mats, 
labels and banners, and followed the business 
for the three years, when owing to the de- 
pressed financial state of the country he fore- 
saw that he was not warranted in continuing, 
and accordingly he closed his factory. In 
politics he is an Independent. 

In 1843 our subject was married to an old 
schoolmate of his. Miss Wilhelmina Berner, 
whose father was a soldier in the Prussian 
army, and who was in the siege before Paris 
in 1 8 14, also in Waterloo with Blucher in 
1 81 5. They were wedded in Paris in the 
Protestant Chapel. Mr. and Mrs. Schubert 
have had ten children, three of whom died in 
childhood, the remaining seven being as fol- 
lows: (i) Charles Eugene, a merchant in 
Manchester, England, married Emma Tank- 
ard, and has one child — May. (2) Emil 
Heliodore, who is a designer and lives at Mat- 
teawan, married Mary Ann Bingley, daughter 
of Richard Bingley, of Leeds, Yorkshire, 
England; they have two children — Edith and 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



889- 



Ethel. (3) Ernest Walter is in the hotel 
business at Poughkeepsie. (41 William Albert 
is with his brother in Poughkeepsie. (5) Kate 
Louisa lives at home. (6) Louis Hector is a 
clergyman of the Episcopal Church, University 
Chapel. Chapel Hill. N. C. (7) Edith Jane 
married Edward A. Underbill, of Glenham. 
In their religious belief the family are Epis- 
copalians. 

In 1889, after Mr. Schubert resigned the 
superintendency of the carpet mill of A. T. 
Stewart & Co. , he felt a desire to visit the 
scenes of his former activities in Europe. In 
company with his daughter, Edith Jane (then 
unmarried), he left New York July 4, 1889, on 
one of the Cunard steamers, and arrived in 
Liverpool after a voyage of nine days. They 
immediately went from there to Manchester, 
where they remained with his son for a fort- 
night, from there visiting Leeds, Bradford, 
Blackpool. Brixton and Matlock, the famous 
watering place in Derbyshire; from Manchester 
they went to London, and from London to 
Calais, France, and thence toTourcoing, where 
the}- remained a few days before going to Paris, 
at which city they attended the World's Fair, 
and then visited other points of interest in 
France. After a sojourn of three months, 
they returned by way of London and Liver- 
pool, taking passage via the Cunard Line again 
to New York. Although Mr. Schubert is in 
his eightieth year, he is still hale and hearty, 
possessing a clear mind and steady hand. His 
favorite pastime is making designs for industrial 
purposes, being solicited by carpet manufac- 
turers in different parts of the country for his 
handiwork. He is a man of unusual vigor for 
his years. 

WALTER A. SHERMAN, one of the 
prosperous and enterprising agricultur- 
ists of the town of Amenia, Dutchess county, 
was born on the old homestead at Amenia 
Union, May 27, 1861, and can trace his ances- 
try back to Henry Sherman, who died in Eng- 
land in 15S9. Of his five children, Henry, 
the eldest, removed from the count}' of Suf- 
folk to Dedham, in the county of Essex, Eng- 
land, where his death occurred in 1610. He 
married Susan Hills, and of their twelve chil- 
dren, Samuel, the second, was born in 1537, 
and died at Dedham, in 161 5. 

Hon. Philip Sherman, the youngest of the 
seven children of Samuel, was born at Ded- 
ham, February 5, 1610, and in 1634 he emi- 



grated to Roxbury, Mass., being the founder 
of the family in this country. With Roger 
Williams and others, he helped to purchase 
Rhode Island, March 24, 1638, and when the 
government was established July i, 1639, Mr. 
Coddington became governor, with Philip Sher- 
man as secretary. His death occurred at 
Portsmouth, R. I., in 1687. By his marriage 
with Miss Sarah Odding, he had thirteen chil- 
dren, John being the eighth in the order of 
birth. 

John Sherman was born at Portsmouth, 
R. I., in 1644, and by occupation was a black- 
smith and farmer, living on land inherited 
from his father at South Dartmouth, Mass., 
where he died in 1734. He wedded Sarah 
Spooner, and to them were born eight children. 
Philip Sherman, the eldest, followed farming 
upon the old homestead at Dartmouth, Mass., 
and there his death occurred in 1740. His 
son, Jabez Sherman, born October 3, 1704, 
at one time served as lieutenant in the 
navy of Great Britain, but most of his life 
was passed at South Dartmouth, where he 
died in 1774. Of his eleven children. Benja- 
min Sherman, the fifth, was born February 3, 
1736, at Dartmouth, and during his boyhood 
attended the common schools. He was the 
first of the family to come to Dutchess county, 
N. Y. , arriving at Pawling in 1764, where he 
worked at the carpenter's trade, building the 
Hicksite meeting house. He then returned to 
Dartmouth, Mass., for his wife, who bore the 
maiden name of Deborah Dilnoe, and he later 
engaged in farming and wagon making at Pawl- 
ing, where he died in 1805. In his family of 
eleven children, Shadrach Sherman was the 
seventh in order of birth. He was born at 
Dover Plains, Dutchess county, in 1769, and 
by occupation was a farmer and drover. He 
became quite a prominent and influential man 
of the county, serving as a member of the 
General Assembly in 181 1. His death oc- 
curred December 11, 1812. He married Dia- 
dama Howland, and. they became the parents 
of eight children: Amy. David, Howland, Al- 
fred, Benjamin E., Richard H., Walter and 
Shadrach. 

Walter Sherman, the next to the youngest 
in the above named family, was the grand- 
father of our subject. He was born February 
21, 1806, at Dover Plains, and there remained 
until he was eighteen years of age, when he 
removed to Amenia Union, where he carried 
on merchandising for some time, and also en- 



890 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPUICAL RECORD. 



gaged in farming and stock dealing. He was 
very successful in his undertakings, becoming 
quite well-to-do, and his property was all the 
result of his own unaided efforts. He took an 
active part in political affairs, in early life sup- 
porting the Whig party, later becoming an 
ardent Republican, and he served as a member 
of the General Assembly in 1845 and 1847. 
He departed this life March 11, 1880. At 
Amenia, August 31, 1834, he married Miss 
Cornelia Allerton, and to them three children 
were born: Mary, who was born June 8, 1835, 
and died December 29, 1868; David H., the 
father of our subject; and Samuel \\'., born 
September 20, 1844. 

David H. Sherman was born on the old 
homestead at Amenia Union, June 25, 1837, 
began his education in the district schools of 
the neighborhood, and completed his literary 
training at the old Nine Partners Boarding 
School, in the town of Washington, Dutchess 
county. Subsequently he went to Newark, N. 
Y. , where he engaged in clerking for a time, 
and was there united in marriage with Miss 
Cecelia Mayer, by whom he has five children: 
Walter Alfred, whose name opens this sketch, 
being the fourth in the order of birth. Re- 
turning to Amenia, the father here engaged in 
farming, but later removed to Jersey City, N. 
J., in the interests of the Central Stock Yard 
and Transit Co., of which he is treasurer and 
general manager. Like his father, he also 
supports the Republican party. 

Walter A. Sherman spent his boyhood days 
in Amenia Union, attending the schools of 
Amenia, later supplementing the knowledge 
there acquired by a course in a private school 
in New York City. He has always been con- 
nected with his father in business, and now 
has charge of one of the finest farms in his sec- 
tion of Dutchess county, located in the town 
of Amenia. At South Amenia, he was married 
September 27, 1882, to Miss Maria E. Cline, 
daughter of Albert Cline, and five children 
grace their union: Agnes C, Walter C, Helen 
M., May N. and Howland N. 

Since casting his first vote, Mr. Sherman 
has always taken an active interest in political 
affairs, supporting the principles of the Repub- 
lican party, and for two terms he has been 
called upon to service as supervisor of his town- 
ship. Socially, he is connected with Amenia 
Lodge No. 672, F. cS: A. M. He is of a genial 
disposition and affable manners, and is a keen 
and sagacious business man. 



CLINTON J. ROCKEFELLER. Among 
the active farmers and stock dealers of 
the town of Red Hook, Dutchess county, the 
gentleman whose name stands at the begin- 
ning of this sketch holds a prominent place. 
His birthplace was in the town of German- 
town, Columbia Co., N. Y., and the date 
thereof October i, 1839. He is of Holland 
lineage, and for many generations the family 
have resided in Columbia county, where the 
grandfather, Philip S. Rockefeller, was born, 
and in that county the birth of the father, 
Philip P. Rockefeller, occurred. In his native 
county the latter grew to manhood and mar- 
ried Catherine Elmondorf, who was born in 
Albany county, N. Y. , and was a daughter of 
Jacob Elmondorf, who was also of Holland 
descent. Mr. Rockefeller took his bride to 
his home in Columbia county, where they 
reared their four children: Edmond, who 
died at Rochester, N. Y. ; Harmond, who held 
official positions under President Lincoln, and 
is now a prominent resident of Texas; Clinton 
J., of this review, and Anna, who is married 
and makes her home in Columbia county. On 
his farm there the father died about 1841, and 
his wife survived him until 1874, when she, 
too, was called to her final rest. He affiliated 
with the Whig party. 

The early days of our subject were spent 
upon the home farm, which he assisted in op- 
erating, and attended the district schools of 
the neighborhood. He completed his educa- 
tion, however, under the direction of General 
De Peyster, and on laying aside his books 
worked as a printer for two years in .-Mbany, 
N. Y. Later he carried on a photograph gal- 
lery in New York, but in 1861 he came to 
the town of Red Hook, Dutchess county, and 
located upon the farm where he has since re- 
sided. Besides general farming he also turns 
his attention to buying and selling live stock, 
which he ships to New York City, and finds 
this a profitable source of income. He also 
ships fruit to European markets. 

In 1 87 1 Mr. Rockefeller was married, the 
lady of his choice being Catherine Dederick, of 
Dutchess county, a daughter of John Dederick, 
who is engaged in farming. To them were 
born three children: Carrie; Romer, who is 
married, and is engaged in agricultural pursuits 
in Red Hook township, and one child that died 
at the age of thirteen years. 

Mr. Rockefeller is one of the leading and 
influential Republicans of the town whose 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



891 



opinions are invariably held in respect, and in 
1888 he was first elected supervisor of Red 
Hook. With the exception of two years, 
when he withdrew his name, he has since 
filled that position with credit to himself and 
to the satisfaction of his constituents. He is 
a man of sound judgment, upright and honor- 
able in all his dealings, and has the well wishes 
of all. 



'ALTER G. STORM, a farmer of the 
£/|t town of East Fishkill, and one of the 
representative citizens of Dutchess county, 
comes from one of its oldest and most highly 
respected families. He first opened his eyes 
to the light in that town, April 8, 1854, and 
there his grandfather, Garret Storm, was also 
born, and upon a farm reared his family of six 
children, namely: John P., the father of our 
subject; Isaac, who was an agriculturalist of 
East Fishkill town; Garret, a coal dealer of 
Matteawan, Dutchess county; Eliza, who mar- 
ried John S. Emans; Catherine, who married 
Edmund Luyster, a farmer and cattle dealer 
of East Fishkill town, who is now deceased; 
and Charles T., who was a merchant of Pough- 
keepsie. Throughout his life the grandfather 
always followed the occupation of farming. 

John P. Storm was born in East Fishkill 
township, January i, 1826, there grew to man- 
hood and married Miss Sarah R. Hasbrouck, 
a native of the same place, and the daughter 
of Francis Hasbrouck, who was a merchant of 
East Fishkill. Upon their marriage they lo- 
cated upon a farm in their native township, 
where their two children were born — Walter 
G., of this sketch; and Jennie E., now the 
wife of Du Bois Bartow, a farmer of East Fish- 
kill township. The father is still living, and is 
engaged in the operation of his land. His po- 
litical support is ever given the men and meas- 
ures of the Democratic party. 

On the home farm in the town of East 
Fishkill, Mr. Storm, whose name introduces 
this review, remained until he reached ma- 
turity, and in 1887 he was married, the lady of 
his choice being Miss Bessie C. Cooper, who 
was born in Putnam county, N. Y., but was 
reared at Matteawan, Dutchess county. Her 
father, James Cooper, was a hatter by trade. 
Two children grace their union — John C. and 
W. Bartow. 

With his bride, Mr. Storm migrated to 
North Dakota, where for six years they resided 



upon a farm; but in 1892 they returned east, 
and have since been residents of East Fishkill 
town. Their fine farm of lOO acres is highly 
cultivated and improved, and to general farm- 
ing Mr. Storm devotes his time and attention 
exclusively. They are true Christians, mem- 
bers of the Reformed Church, and in politics 
he is an earnest supporter of the Democratic 
party. An energetic and reliable citizen, he 
has fully established himself in the confidence 
and esteem of the people, and is ready to se- 
spond to calls made upon him to promote the 
interests of his town and county. 



THOMAS J. CUNNINGHAM. But few 
young men have as enviable a reputa- 
tion for enterprise and business acumen as the 
subject of this biography, a prosperous pro- 
duce dealer at Matteawan, Dutchess county. 
He was born October 9, 1866, at Peekskill, 
Westchester county, N. Y., and is a descend- 
ant of a Scotch family that located in West- 
chester county at an early day. 

His grandfather Cunningham was a farmer 
there, and the late Edward H. Cunningham, 
our subject's father, was born there and passed 
his life in the same locality, engaged in the 
business of stove molding. He was an expert 
in his line, and for many years was superin- 
tendent of the Peekskill Stove Company. In 
later life he retired to a farm to end his days in 
the peaceful occupation of agriculture, his 
death occurring in 1886. His wife. Miss 
Phcebe A. Sutton, a member of one of the old 
pioneer families of Westchester county, died 
in 1870. She was born in Peekskill, where her 
father, a gas manufacturer, was a leading citi- 
zen. Our subject was the youngest in a fam- 
ily of nine children, the others being: Letitia, 
deceased; John, a resident of Peekskill; Louisa, 
Mrs. Charles H. Hall, of Croton Landing; 
James, who resides in New York City; Ada, 
lately deceased, was the wife of Frank Norton, 
of Croton Landing: Dirlin, the sixth in order 
of birth; George, a resident of Arkansas City, 
Kans. ; and Fannie, deceased. Both parents 
were devout and consistent members of the 
M. E. Church, and were held in high esteem 
among their associates. 

The early life of our subject was spent in 
his native town, his education being mainly 
acquired in the local schools. In 1884 he 
went to Matteawan and after a short course of 
study in the schools there, engaged in business 



892 



COMMEMORAFIVE BIOORAPHJCAL RECORD. 



at the corner of Fountain and Leonard streets 
as a wholesale and retail dealer in flour, feed, 
grain, baled hay, straw, and similar commod- 
ities. Starting practicallj' without capital of 
his own, he has made his wa\' to success, and is 
recognized as one of the leading business men 
of the town. His present extensive trade is 
still on the increase, and he devotes his atten- 
tion to it, paying but little heed to politics. 
On June 3, 1896, he was married to Aliss Jen- 
nie McCallin, an attractive young lady, the 
daughter of F. McCallin, a well-known citizen 
of Fishkill Landing. 



WILLT.-\.M J. WOOD, a prominent mason 
of Dover Plains, Dutchess county, 

whose skillful work in his chosen calling has 
given him more than a local reputation, is one 
of the rising young business men of that place. 

His family originated in Scotland, where 
his grandfather, Thomas Wood, was born and 
educated. He came to America in early man- 
hood and settled in Dutchess county, and he 
and his wife. Amy Elliot, reared a family of 
three children: John, who married (first) Miss 
Carlo, and (second) Miss I^ottie Thomas; Lettie, 
who married Amos Jenkins; and William, our 
subject's father, who was born in 1832, and 
received a common-school education in the 
town of Dover. He then learned the shoe- 
maker's trade, which he followed for man}' 
year. He was also interested in quarrying in 
the same town, and as an energetic business 
man took an influential part in local affairs. 
His first wife was Miss Helen Birch, daughter 
of Ethel and Gettie (Knickerbocker) Birch. 
Of the two children of this marriage our sub- 
ject was the younger. The elder, Lettie D., 
born in 1861, died at the age of twenty. Mrs. 
Wood died in 1869, and our subject's father 
formed a second matrimonial union, this time 
with Mrs. Mary Allen, who died in 1890, 
leaving no children. 

William J. Wood was born in 1863, and 
was educated in the public schools of his native 
town of Dover. He learned the mason's 
trade, and has now been successfully engaged 
in it for seven years, his business extending to 
all the neighboring towns. Politically he has 
always favored the Republican party, but he 
has not been an aspirant for public office. In 
1883 he married Miss Emma Brown, and they 
have had two children: Lettia A., born in 
1888, and David B., born in 1891. 



Mrs. Wood's father, George H. Brown, 
was born and reared in Dover Plains, and after- 
ward became a prominent farmer of that vi- 
cinity. In 1 86 1 he enlisted at Poughkeepsie 
in the 150th N. Y. \'. I., and served through- 
out the war, taking part in many important 
battles and gaining a commission. He mar- 
ried Rachel Ostrander, and had nine children: 
Maggie, who married Egbert Morey, and has 
one child — Mabel; (2) Williani, who married 
Martha Vincent, and has two children — Allen 
and Frank; (3) Emma, Mrs. Wood; (4) Lo- 
theria, who married William Dennis, and has 
three children — Hazel, Louis, and one whose 
name is not given; (5) Elizabeth, who married 
George Root, and has one child — Nellie. The 
four remaining children, Charles, George, My- 
ron and John, are not married. Rachel 
Ostrander, Mrs. Wood's mother, was born and 
educated in Amenia. Her father, Jacob Os- 
trander, was a native of the town of Milan, and 
received his education there, engaging after- 
ward in agriculture. He married, and reared a 
family of children, of whom Mrs. Wood's 
mother was the youngest. The others are: 
James; Mary, Mrs. Adam Waldron; Lottie, 
.Mrs. Royal Halleck; Carrie, Mrs. George 
Murph)-; Kittie, and Amy. 



THOMAS G. ALDRIDGE, of the firm of 
Aldridge & Covert, leading merchants at 
Dutchess Junction, Dutchess county, is one of 
the self-made business men, whose ability and 
enterprise have done so much to build up the 
trade of their respective communities. 

His grandfather, Daniel Aldridge, a man 
highly esteemed in his day, married Jane Ed- 
wards, and had four children: (1) Thomas, 
who married, and had eight children — Benja- 
min, William H., Thomas, Jr., Aaron E. , 
Theresa J., Alfraetta, George I^. and Ger- 
trude. (2) William, our subject's father. (3) 
Edward. (4) Ella. 

William Aldridge was a native of Orange 
county; he married Jeannette Simpson, by 
whom he had seven children: Edward L. 
(deceased), Lemuel E., Ella A., Jennie (de- 
ceased), Thomas G., Charles and William S. 
During the Civil war Mr. Aldridge enlisted in 
the United States service for three years. Be- 
fore he left Albany on his way to the front his 
wife died, leaving the little family bereft of the 
care of both parents. \\. the expiration of his 
first term the father re-enlisted, and served un- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



893 



til the close of the war, when he returned 
home and resumed his business of brick-mak- 
ing, in which he was very successful, being a 
thorough master of all branches of the trade. 
He died in Kansas City, Mo., in 1878. 

Thomas G. Aldridge was born December 
12, 1853, at Dutchess Junction, N. Y. , and 
has made his own way in life from the time of 
his mother's death, when he was only twelve 
years old. He secured employment upon a 
schooner which was engaged in the brick car- 
rying trade between Dutchess Junction and 
New York City. After three years at this' 
work he made a practical study of steam en- 
gineering, and at eighteen was put in charge 
of a brick plant at Dutchess Junction. He 
held this position until 1892, when he formed 
his present partnership and engaged in the gro- 
cery and meat business, of which he has made 
a success. On December 8, 1S80, he married 
Miss Alida Covert, daughter of Nathaniel and 
Catherine (Jones) Covert; their only child died 
in infancy. 

Mr. Aldridge is not a politician in the strict 
sense of the word, but he takes a patriotic in- 
terest in public affairs, and is an earnest sup- 
porter of the principles of the Republican 
party. 



EVAN BRYANT, of Bryant Bros., proprie- 
; tors of the "Standard House," Fishkill, 

Dutchess county, is one of the most enterpris- 
ing young business men of that vicinity. He 
is of English descent, the old home of his 
family being in Gloucestershire, England, 
where his great-grandfather, Richard Bryant, 
and his grandfather, Jonathan Bryant, were 
born and spent their lives in the hatter's busi- 
ness. His father, Samuel Bryant, was also 
born in England, and previous to coming to 
America in 1S55, learned the same trade. He 
is now a resident of Matteavvan. 

Evan Bryant was born in Brewster, Put- 
nam county, July 14, 1863, and was but two 
years old when his parents moved to Matte- 
awan, where he grew to manhood, attending 
the public schools. He also acquired a knowl- 
edge of the hatter's trade, and for fourteen 
years followed it there and in different places 
in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Canada. 
On November 13, 1S94, he established his 
present hotel and saloon business at Fishkill, 
in partnership with his brother Edward. 
Neither is married. They take great interest 



in public questions, and while they are stead- 
fast supporters of the Republican party so far 
as national issues are concerned, Mr. Bryant 
is not bound by partisan ties in local affairs, 
voting for men and measures which, in his 
judgment, will advance the best interests of 
the community. 



EORGE S. AUCOCK is one of the repre- 
iL^' sentative and prominent merchants of Red 
Hook, Dutchess county, N. Y., where his 
birth occurred in 1862. His educational priv- 
ileges were quite good, he having been able to 
attend the De Garmo Institute, Rhinebeck, N. 
Y. In 1889 he established his present general 
store in the village of Red Hook, which sprang 
at once into public favor, and he is now at the 
head of a large and constantly increasing busi- 
ness. In 1886 he was united in marriage with 
Miss Mary Vosburgh, a daughter of WardWs- 
burgh, one of the leading farmers of the town 
of Ancram, Columbia county, N. Y. , and 
they have become the parents of one child, 
Bessie, born in 1888. 

Robert Stephenson, the great-grandfather 
of our subject, was born in Snaith. Yorkshire, 
England, where he was educated, and when 
quite a young man began dealing in live stock. 
Later, in connection with this, he also en- 
gaged in the butcher's business at ihat place. 
He wedded Miss Watson, of Scotland, and to 
them were born five children: William, who 
for his second wife married a Miss Collins; 
Sarah, Mrs. Anna Oxenforth; Jane; and Eliza, 
who became the wife of Charles Bean. The 
second child, Sarah Stephenson, was born in 
1804, at Snaith, of which place the other 
children were also natives, and in the common 
schools there she received her education. She 
married William Aucock, a son of Jonathan 
Aucock, of Snaith, Yorkshire. At that place 
the son engaged in carpentering most of his 
life, and was a prominent member of the Inde- 
pendent Order of Odd Fellows in his native 
land. Eleven children were born to William 
Aucock and his worthy wife, namely, Eliza- 
beth, who became the wife of Henry Siberan; 
Christina, who wedded Jeremiah Needham; 
Jonathan, who married Ann Morgan; John and 
Robert, who died in infancy; William, the 
father of our subject; Robert, who married 
Catherine Martin; Eleanor, who became the 
wife of Joseph Green; Sarah, who, after the 
death of her first husband, Thomas Hanpson, 



894 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



became the wife of a Mr. Jones; and George 
and Jofin. who were also married. The mother 
of these children died in England in 1881. 

The father of our subject was born in 
Snaith in 1S31, and after completing his edu- 
cation in the public schools he learned the art 
of fancy gardening and plant culture on the es- 
tates of the Campbells, in Sheffield, England, 
where he was employed for some time. Like 
his ancestors, he became a member of the Odd 
Fellows Society of his native place, and stood 
quite high in the order. In 1855 he emigrated 
to the United States, making his first location 
on Hunters Island, where he remained for 
about two months, and then went to Toronto, 
Canada. At the end of ten months, however, 
he returned to the States, locating this time at 
Annandalc, Dutchess county, where the follow- 
ing two years w ere passed. After a year spent 
at Newark, N. J., he came again to Dutchess 
county, and has now made his home in the 
town of Red Hook for thirty-seven years, be- 
ing employed there on the estate of the Tymp- 
sons. He was joined in wedlock with Miss 
Eliza Cooper, daughter of Robert and Anna 
Cooper, of New York City. They became the 
parents of four children: Mary, born in 1859; 
George S., of this sketch; Sarah, born in 1865, 
and William C. , born in 1868. The third 
child of this family, Sarah, is now the wife of 
Charles Burnea, son of Charles E. and .Mary 
Burnea, of Philadelphia, where the son is en- 
gaged as a decorator and designer. Two 
children grace this union — Marie Gerard, born 
in 1 89 1, and William A., born in 1894. 

On his mother's side, our subject is also 
descended from English ancestry, his great- 
grandfather, Robert Cooper, being born in 
England, and there married. In his family 
were the following children: Joseph, James, 
Robert, Mary, Eliza, Sarah, Betsy and Nancy. 
Of these, Robert Cooper, Jr. , was born in 
Manchester, England, whence he removed to 
the North of Ireland, and there engaged in 
farming. He was married to Miss Anna More- 
head, a daughter of John Morehead, of En- 
gland, and to them were born the following 
children: Mattie, who was three times mar- 
ried, her first husband being James Lawrence, 
the second, Claudius Dord, and the third Rob- 
ert Dunlap; James, who wedded Mary Liddle; 
Joseph, who married a Miss Cooper; Robert, 
who remained single; Mary, who became the 
wife of Pierson Hyde; and Eliza, the mother 
of our subject. 



CHARLES REDA\'ATS. proprietor of a 
_, boarding and training stable at Green 
Haven, was born in the town of Beekman, 
March 29, 1833, and is the son of John J. 
Redavats, a native of Italy, who left home at 
the age of eighteen years, coming to America, 
where he enlisted in the United States navy. 
For a number of years he was on a man-of- 
war, and after leaving the service came to 
Beekman town, Dutchess county, locating at 
Green Haven, where he followed the carpen- 
ter's trade for the remainder of his life. Here 
he married Miss Ann Clarkson, a daughter of 
Charles Clarkson, and to them were born four 
children: Mary Jane, who wedded Aldest 
Terwilliger, but both are now deceased; 
George, deceased; Charles, of this sketch; and 
Joseph, of Danbury, Conn. The father was 
first a Whig in politics, but joined the Repub- 
lican party on its organization, with which he 
continued to affiliate up to the time of his 
death, which occurred when he was si.xty 
years of age. His wife departed this life at the 
age of sixty-five years. 

The boyhood days of our subject were 
passed at Green Haven, he living with W. B. 
Sheldon for seven years in order to pa}- for 
two acres of land on which his father had 
erected a house, and later worked for George 
B. Foote for five years. In the town of Beek- 
man, he was married to Miss Mary Jane Grif- 
fen, and they became the parents of six chil- 
dren, as follows: \\'illiam, who was a con- 
ductor on a construction train on the New 
England railroad, was killed by accident; 
Theodore died at the age of five years; Charles 
died at the age of two years; Clara is the wife 
of William E. Williams, by whom she has two 
children, Charles and Leland; Frank is in the 
office of the Old Colony Line railroad, at Bos- 
ton, Mass. ; and Jennie. 

For six years after his marriage, Mr. Re- 
davats made his home near Rahway, N. J., be- 
ing superintendent of the farm and stable of 
George F. Fellows, and then returned to 
Beekman township, where he engaged in the 
horse business at the stock farm belonging to 
Merritt & Allerton for four years. After their 
failure he remained with their successors for 
one year, and then purchased his present 
place and went into business for himself. He 
conducts a good boarding and training stable, 
and is now at the head of a large and con- 
stantly increasing business. Like his father 
was, he is an ardent Republican in politics, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



895 



and takes an active interest in the success of 
his part)'. He is numbered among the best 
citizens of the community, and is a wide- 
awake, energetic business man and the archi- 
tect of his own fortune. 



CRAWFORD C. MacNEIL, of Matteawan, 
^ a leading wholesale and retail dealer in 
confectioner}' and ice cream, and proprietor of 
a popular restaurant on Union street, is a 
descendant of the famous Scottish Clan Mac- 
Neil, one of his ancestors in the direct line 
being Sir John MacNeil. 

Crawford C. MacXeil was born at Red 
Hook, Dutchess count}'. May 30, 1844, the 
son of Hector and Jane i Craig) MacNeil. 
They had nine children: Jane, John, Kate, 
Agnes, Crawford C, Serena, Hector, Robert 
and Charles. 

Our subject was educated in the public 
schools near his early home, and on the re- 
moval of the family to Poughkeepsie in 1850, 
he entered the employ of Smith Bros., con- 
fectioners and caterers, remaining until 1873, 
when he opened a similar establishment of his 
own. He was burned out during the first 
year, and in the spring of 1874 he removed to 
Matteawan and again started in business, this 
time in a small way. As success rewarded his 
efforts, he gradually enlarged and improved his 
establishment until it is now one of the most 
complete of its kind in the county. Mr. Mac- 
Neil has an inventive turn of mind, and is the 
originator of that far-famed drink, ice-cream 
soda water. He introduced it to the public 
while he was with the Smith Bros, and the 
beverage soon became a favorite in all parts 
of the country. He has also originated a 
number of new popular styles of candy, in- 
cluding the American mixed candy, for which 
there has been a large demand. His present 
prosperity is well deserved as it is based upon 
his own industry and judicious management. 

Mr. MacNeil married Miss Alice Trow, 
daughter of William and Jane Trow, of Pough- 
keepsie, and they have one son. They are 
prominent members of the Presbyterian Church 
of Matteawan, and take a ger.erous interest in 
all progressive movements in the locality. 
Although he is a Republican in principle, Mr. 
MacNeil has never taken an)' part in political 
work or aspired to office. He is active in 
many non-political enterprises, however, and 
is a member of Poughkeepsie Lodge No. 266, 



F. & A. M., of Hudson River Lodge, K. of 
P., and of the Nineteenth Separate Company 
of Poughkeepsie, in which he won an elegant 
gold medal presented by the State for long 
and faithful service, the records placing him 
twentieth in rank among 13,000 men. He has 
also been a member of the National Guard for 
thirty-four years, and was in the volunteer 
service during the Civil war. 



ILLIAM C. CRAMER. The subject 
^}L of this personal history is a resident of 
the town of Red Hook, Dutchess county, 
where he is successfully carrying on a boot and 
shoe store, and is well esteemed as a man of 
industry and enterprise, besides being a worthy 
citizen and having to his credit an unblemished 
war record. He was born in the town of Red 
Hook, May 1 1, 1844, and is a son of Henry A. 
and Catherine (W'aldorf) Cramer, who were 
the parents of five children, the others being: 
Balinda, John V. R. , George H. and James. 
The father was a son of George Cramer, and 
was a prosperous farmer and carpenter of Red 
Hook. 

The maternal grandfather of our subject, 
John Waldorf, was born and educated in Red 
Hook town, where he later followed the occu- 
pation of a farmer, owning and conducting the 
large and well-stocked farm which had be- 
longed to his father, who had erected the coni- 
modious and substantial stone house that is still 
standing. The place comprised 500 acres of 
valuable land, and thereon John W' aldorf reared 
his family of seven children, namely: David, 
Christopher, John, William, Catherine, Maria 
and Betsey. In that old house Mrs. Cramer 
was born and spent her early girlhood, being 
educated at the schools of the neighborhood. 
In his boyhood William C. Cramer also 
drew his education from the common schools 
of the town of Red Hook, and on laying aside 
his text books assisted in the cultivation and 
improvement of the home farm until the break- 
ing out of the Civil war in 1S61, when he en- 
listed in the 91st N. Y. V. I., and remained in 
the service until after the surrender of Gen. 
Lee at Appomatox. He participated in vari- 
ous engagements, and signalized himself by 
bravery and fidelity to duty, receiving the ap- 
proval of his officers and the warm friendship 
of his comrades. After the close of the war he 
went to the oil fields of Pennsylvania, where he 
remained for some time, and then conducted a 



896 



VOMMEilORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



general trucking business in New York City for 
a while. After disposing of that, however, he 
returned to Red Hook. 

On .August 28, 1868, was celebrated the 
marriage of Mr. Cramer and Miss Isabella D. 
Barringer, daughter of Robert Barringer, of 
Red Hook, and to them was born a daughter, 
Ida L., who died at the age of six years. 
After his marriage, our subject learned the 
cooper's trade, at which he worked until 1888, 
when he established his present boot and shoe 
business at Red Hook, and this venture has 
proved very successful. 

Mr. Cramer is cjuite prominently identified 
with the Odd Fellows Society, belonging to 
Christian Lodge, in which he has served as 
past grand and passed through all the chairs; 
is also a member of Ja^ar Encampment, of 
Rhinebeck. Dutchess county; and the Odd 
Fellows Mutual Jienefit Association. He now 
affiliates with .-Vrmstrong Post, G. A. R., of 
Rhinebeck, but was formerly a member of 
Ward B. Bennett Post, of Tarrytown, West- 
chester Co. , N. Y. He is a public-spirited, 
progressive man, and takes an active interest 
in the welfare of his town and county. 



I ENRY D. CYPHER, who is engaged in 
general farming at Poughquag, town of 
Beekman, Dutchess county, is looked upon as 
a useful and honorable citizen, who has the 
best interests of the county at heart, and does 
all in his power to advance its welfare. Of 
Holland ancestry, his birth occurred at Pough- 
quag, December 18, 1836, and there almost 
his entire life has been passed. 

Thomas Cypher, his grandfather, was a 
native of Westchester county, and when a 
young man came to Beekman town, locating 
on Clapp Hill, where he engaged in farming 
on rented land. His political support was 
given the Whig party. He wedded Mary 
Hillaker, by whom he had seven children, all 
now deceased: John, Deborah, Thomas, 
David, William, Mary and one daughter, who 
died in childhood. 

On Clapp Hill, William Cypher, the father 
of our subject, was born in 1806, and in the 
common schools of Beekman town he secured 
his education. When he had reached matur- 
ity he was united in marriage with Emily 
Armstrong, a native of Connecticut, after 
which he purchased a small farm at Pough- 
quag, which he operated for one j'ear, and 



then removed to the town of Pawling, Dutch- 
ess county, where he followed the same occu- 
pation until called from this life February 2, 
1849. Like his father he was a Whig in 
politics. In his family were these children: 
Henry D., of this sketch; George and Elisha, 
deceased; and two sons, who died in infancy. 

The early school days of Henry D. Cypher 
were passed at Poughquag, and after the death 
of his father he, with the other members of the 
family, returned to that place, being at the 
time thirteen years of age. In 1851 he began 
clerking for James A. Vanderburg, at Pough- 
quag, which position he held for one year, and 
in 1853 went to New York City, where he was 
employed in a grocery store for the same 
length of time. Returning to his native place, 
he learned the carpenter's trade with Henry 
Armstrong, which he followed for eight years. 

In the town of Beekman, July i, 1S63, 
was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Cypher 
and Miss Maria Noxon, daughter of Elmer R. 
Noxon, and they became the parents of four 
children: Lavert, of Brooklyn, who married 
Mr. Devine, by whom she has one daughter; 
George; Emily, wife of Fred Coleman, of 
Dover town, Dutchess county, by whom she 
has two children — Delmer Clayton and Ann 
Dutcher; and Robert. 

Until 1 87 1 Mr. Cypher carried on agricult- 
ural pursuits in the western part of the town 
of Beekman, after which he removed to his 
present farm at Poughquag, which was cleared 
by Mrs. Cypher's great-grandfather Noxon, 
and has since devoted his attention to its culti- 
vation and improvement. His ballot is cast in 
support of the men and measures of the Re- 
publican party. He has been assessor of his 
town, and is still acceptably filling the offices 
of commissioner of highways and justice of 
the peace. His career has been one of the 
strictest integrity and honor. 



CHARLES F. WANZER, a wealthy busi- 
ness man of Matteawan, Dutchess county, 
and the proprietor of one of the oldest grocer- 
ies in that town, was born January 29, 1828, 
on the "Wheelocke Farm" near Garrison, 
Putnam Co. , N. Y. His grandfather, .Abraham 
Wanzer, married Lydia Beers, and their son, 
Floyd, our subject's father, was a well-known 
farmer of Putnam county. He married Jane 
Foster, daughter of Joseph Foster, a soldier of 
the Revolutionary war, and had five children, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



897 



of whom the first two died in infancy. The 
others are Charles F., EHzabeth and Cohsta 
Jane. 

Charles F. Wanzer attended the district 
schools near his home during boyhood, and 
spent much of his time in working upon his 
father's farm. At the age of twenty-one he 
left home to make his own way in the world, 
and coming to Matteawan he worked for sev- 
eral years at various employments, as oppor- 
tunity favored him. In 1854 he became a 
clerk in the grocery store then belonging to 
Jacob Palmer, and after the death of the latter 
in 1856 he conducted the business for his widow 
for one year. He then purchased the store, 
and for thirty-eight years has continued the 
business at the old location. His success is a 
result of untiring industry, and although he is 
an ardent Republican, he has invariably de- 
clined when urged to accept nomination for 
office, because he could not see his way clear 
to attend to his own affairs and at the same 
time meet satisfactorily the demands which 
official position would bring. He is interested 
in various lines of business, having a large 
amount of money invested in real estate in the 
village, and he has been for many years a 
member of the Board of Trade and the Mer- 
chants Protective Association. He is also a 
stockholder in the First National Bank of 
Fishkill Landing. Being an enthusiastic hunter, 
Mr. Wanzer spends considerable time during 
the duck-shooting season in hunting this most 
palatable fowl. He is an unerring marksman, 
and woe betide the unlucky bird upon which 
he sets his "weather eye," for its doom is 
sealed. 



BOBERT JOHNSTON. Among the most 
\ prominent of the early residents of Lake 

Mahopac, Putnam county, was Robert John- 
ston, the grandfather of the subject of this 
sketch. He came to this country from Ireland 
in early manhood, and engaged in mercantile 
business, first in New York City, and later in 
Putnam county, where he became a leader in 
political as well as in commercial circles. He 
was an influential Democrat, and served as 
county judge, member of the State Senate, 
and member of the Council of Appointment 
and Revision. He was married after coming 
to the United States, and reared a family of 
six children: One son, William H. Johnston 
(our subject's father), and five daughters, one 



of whom became the grandmother of Chaun- 
cey M. Depew. 

William H. Johnston followed farming and 
spent his life at Lake Mahopac, his native 
place. Like his father, he was an active and 
influential worker in the Democratic party, 
and he held the offices of sheriff and surrogate 
of Putnam county. His death occurred in 
1828, but his wife, Susan Van Wyck, lived to 
the age of ninety-eight years, passing to her 
eternal reward in 1885; she was born in the 
town of .East Fishkill, Dutchess county, in the 
house now occupied by our subject, the old 
home of her family. Her grandfather, Will- 
iam Van Wyck, a native of Dutchess county, 
was a farmer there. He had four sons: Will- 
iam, a politician of note, and a Congressman 
from his district, was a farmer by occupation, 
first in his native place and later in Virginia; 
Theodorus is mentioned below; Samuel was a 
lawyer in New York City; and John followed 
farming near the old home. Theodorus Van- 
Wyck (Mrs. Johnston's father) married Miss 
Young, of Westchester county, N. Y., and 
settled at the homestead, where they reared a 
family of six children: Two sons — Theodorus 
and William — who both followed agriculture 
in their native town, and four daughters — Mar- 
tha, Susan, Sarah -and Ann. 

Robert Johnston, our subject, was born at 
Lake Mahopac, November 24, 1824, the second 
of the three children of his parents, and is 
now the only surviving member of the family. 
The eldest, Sarah, never married, and the 
youngest died in infancy. When Robert was 
five years old he came to his mother's old 
home, and has lived there ever since. He 
owns an estate of about 300 acres, and is en- 
gaged in general farming, also giving consider- 
able attention to horticulture. An intelligent, 
progressive man, he is highly esteemed among 
his neighbors. In politics he was originally a 
Whig, voting for Henrj' Clay, and on the or- 
ganization of the Republican party he gave it 
his allegiance. 



^\DWARD L. RYMPH, a retired farmer 
and fruit raiser of Poughkeepsie, Dutch- 
ess county, was born in the town of Hyde 
Park, Dutchess county, March 29, 1831. 

James Rymph, grandfather of our subject, 
was born in Holland, came to America when 
a young man and settled on a farm in Hyde 
Park, where he built his own house in the wil- 



58 



!S08 



COMMEMORATIVE lilOOItAPEICAL RECOIW. 



derncss, married, and reared a family of sev- 
eral children. John Rymph, one of these, 
was reared on the farm, and boated on the 
Hudson river. He was united in marriage 
with Miss Wynche Hasbrouck, who was born 
in Ulster county, in the town of New Paltz, 
October 2 1, 1787. They were married Feb- 
ruary 1 1, 1S08. She was a descendant of the 
old Hasbrouck family of New Paltz. Mr. and 
Mrs. Rymph settled down on the farm, and 
the following children were born to them: 
Mariah, born November 4, 1808,. married 
Abram S. Du Bois, a farmer in the town of 
Lloyd, Ulster county; James, born May 28, 
1 8 10, was a farmer in Dutchess county; Mar- 
garet, born May 28, 1812, married Benjamin 
L. Hasbrouck, a farmer of Ulster county; 
Sarah, born October i, 18 14, married Joseph 
Chambers, of Ulster county; William H., born 
October 4, 1816, was a farmer in the town of 
Clinton;. Rachel B., born April 12, 18 19, mar- 
ried John \'. Schryver, a farmer of Hyde Park; 
John, Jr., born June 19, 1822, was a farmer; 
George, born April 7, 1824, followed farming 
in Ulster county; David H., born July 22, 
1827, is still living, unmarried; Susan A., born 
September 20, 1829, died unmarried; Edward 
L. is our subject. Mr. and Mrs. Rymph were 
members of the Reformed Church. He died 
on the old farm. 

Edward L. Rymph remained on the old 
homestead during his early life, and attended 
the district schools. In i860 he married Miss 
Jane E. Palmer, who was born in Clintondale, 
Ulster county. She was a daughter of Harvey 
Palmer, a farmer and merchant of the same 
place, who came of English ancestors. Three 
children were born to our subject and his wife: 
Henry L. and Edwin H. (twins), and Marj' E. 
Henry L. married Miss Smalley, and is farm- 
ing in Poughkeepsie; Edwin H. died in infancy; 
Mary E. married Carl C. Todd, a farmer in 
the town of Hyde Park. Shortly after his 
marriage our subject went to Poughkeepsie, 
where he engaged in the photograph business 
for some time. Mrs. Rymph died March 24, 
1864, and our subject went to the South and 
was with the construction corps in the Civil 
war, building bridges, etc., for one year. He 
then returned and bought a farm in New Paltz, 
on which he lived for two years, and then sold 
it. Coniing to Dutchess county, he lived in 
Poughkeepsie for a year, later moving to Hyde 
Park and residing there for four years. In the 
spring of 1875 ^Ir. Rymph came to Pough- 



keepsie again, erected three fine buildings and 
has since resided here. 

On October 24, 1866, our subject married 
Miss Martha A. Roosa, who was born in the 
town of Rochester, Ulster county, January 9, 
1838. Her first husband was George Kelder, 
by whom she had one child, Simon J., who 
married Miss Jennie Sutton, of Newburgh. 
Jacob B. Roosa, Mrs. Rymph's father, was 
born in Rochester, April 27, 18 10, and was 
married to Miss Nancy Anderson, of the same 
place. Two children were born to them: 
Elizabeth, November 27, 1831, married James 
J. Shurter, a farmer in Rochester; and Martha 
A., the wife of our subject. Mr. Roosa was a 
Democrat, and he and his wife were members 
of the Methodist Church. He died in 1S74, 
his wife in 1844. Simon Roosa, the grand- 
father, was born on the homestead in Roches- 
ter, and followed farming. He was in the war 
of 181 2. The great-grandfather, Jacob Roosa, 
was the original settler on the farm in Roches- 
ter. He came of Holland stock. James An- 
derson, the maternal grandfather of Mrs. 
Rymph, was a farmer in Rochester, and mar- 
ried Miss Martha Merrit, of Marlborough. 
The Andersons were of English ancestry. 

Our subject and his second wife had one 
child, William, born February 18, 1876, and 
died in April, 1876. Mr. Rymph has a farm 
of sixtj'-five acres on which he formerly raised 
fruit, but he is now living a retired life. In 
politics he is afifiliated with the Republican 
party. He and his wife both attend the Meth- 
odist Church. Mr. Rymph is an energetic 
citizen, and has identified himself with manj' 
progressive movements. 



e; 



'\DWARD ENGLEHARDT. The subject 



4 of this sketch was born in the city of 
Poughkeepsie. Dutchess county, December 16, 
1 86 1. He attended school for a time at Lex- 
ington, Greene county, and at the Eastman 
Night School, but his opportunities were lim- 
ited, and most of his education was acquired by 
private study. He has always been a constant 
reader and is a well-informed young man. 

Our subject's first employment was with 
Alexander Ross at the age of thirteen years. 
One daj' when coming through the railroad 
yards he was run over and lost his right leg. 
Upon his recovery he again worked for Mr. 
Ross, remaining with him until nineteen years 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOHAPHICAL RECORD. 



899 



old. He then secured the position of flagman 
on the Hudson River railroad, which he re- 
tained for five months, and then went to work 
at Poughkeepsie making boxes. He kept at 
that for a year, and then learned the coopering 
trade, working for Atto Faust, for whom he 
worked as a journeymen until 1885. He next 
went into the saloon business for a year, but 
returned to his trade and was employed by 
James Buckhurst until 1891, when he went to 
Sing Sing as a keeper, being appointed to that 
position by Governor Flower. He resigned 
July 22, 1892, and came to Poughkeepsie and 
again worked for Mr. Buckhurst. In the fall 
of 1893 he was elected supervisor of the First 
ward for two years. He was chairman of the 
printer's committee, member of the committee 
on coroners and accounts and on committee 
on public institutions in the session of 1894. 
He held other positions of trust and responsi- 
bility. He was janitor of the board of sup- 
plies for one session, and has filled the office of 
county sealer for two successive terms. He 
has taken an active part in politics, and is a 
leader among the people of his v,'ard. 

In March, 1880, Mr. Englehardt was mar- 
ried to Miss Rosanna Kirby, of Poughkeepsie, 
and the following children were born to them: 
Carrie died at the age of three years; Lucy, 
Elizabeth, George, Augusta, Gertrude, Ed- 
mond. Our subject is a member of the Cath- 
olic Benevolent Legion and, with his wife, is a 
member of the Roman Catholic Church. 

Christian Englehardt, father of our subject, 
was born in Denmark in 18 14, and came to 
America and engaged for a time in the 
cooper business in New York City, then went 
to Albany. He came to Poughkeepsie upward 
of fifty years ago, and worked as journeyman 
cooper for Sleight & Paulding, who started 
their shop in 1847, and with whom he has 
been ever since. He was married in Germany, 
and the following children were born to them: 
Charles, living in Elizabeth, N. J. ; Martha, 
who became the wife of Mathew Benhordt, of 
Poughkeepsie; Henry lives in Prattsville; Mary 
married Jacob Benhordt; Christian resides in 
Poughkeepsie; Elizabeth is the wife of Charles 
Adams, of Poughkeepsie; Alma married John 
Decker, and lives in Poughkeepsie; William, 
who lives in Poughkeepsie; Abram; George, de- 
ceased; and Edward. Christian Englehardt is 
one of the oldest citizens of Poughkeepsie. He 
is a Democrat, and a member of the German 
Lutheran Church. 



ACOB SCHRAUTH, a retired merchant of 
Poughkeepsie and one of its most popular 
German citizens, was born at Kreuznach, 
in the Rhine Province, April 18, 1834, a son 
of John and Margaret (Wcyell) Schrauth, the 
former of whom was also born in Kreuznach, 
the latter in Waluff on the Rhine, Prussia. 

John Schrauth, the grandfather of our sub- 
ject, was a hotel-keeper at Kreuznach, of 
which f)lace he was a native. He married, 
and to the union was born a large family of 
children. Their son, John, father of our sub- 
ject, was also a hotel-keeper, and in connec- 
tion with it followed the occupation of a farm- 
er. In 1 8 16, for his second wife, he married, 
Margaret Wcyell, and they became the parents 
of eight children, as follows: Jacob, Laura, 
Kate, Minnie, Julia, Louis, Eliza and Benia. 
Of these, Louis is a resident of Boston, and 
Eliza is the widow of Conrad Lcmbke, former- 
ly a saloon-keeper in Highland. Our subject's 
parents spent their entire lives in their native 
land, where the father died in 1S75 and the 
mother in 1885. They were members of the 
Lutheran Church. 

Jacob Schrauth lived in his native town 
until twenty years of age, during which time 
he learned the cooper's trade. In 1854 he 
came to America, landing in New York City 
where he remained three years, and there 
learned the trade of a baker. In 1857 he 
came to Poughkeepsie, and for six years was 
employed as a baker by Robert High, the three 
following years working for P. S. Rowlands- 
In 1866 Mr. Schrauth went into business for 
himself, renting a building at No. 153 Main 
street. In the following two years he made 
many improvements in the place and expanded 
his business by the introduction of ice-cream, 
confectionery, etc. , carrying on two stores 
with all modern improvements, doing, in fact, 
an extensive trade. On May i, 1897, his 
sons Edward L. and William H. purchased 
the business of their father, forming a co-part- 
nership under the name of J. Schrauth's Sons. 
Pieing brought up under their father's careful 
training, they are well fitted to succeed him, 
and a successful future is predicted for them, 
especially if they follow in the footsteps of 
their predecessor, who is known to be an en- 
terprising, progressive man, keeping abreast 
of the times,thoroughly understanding his busi- 
ness, courteous and obliging, and not only se- 
' curing the best class of customers, but know- 
I ing how to retain them. 



000 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



In i860 Jacob Schraiith was married to 
Miss Kate Schneider, who was born at Kaiser- 
slautern, Bavaria, Germany, and seven chil- 
dren have blessed this union: Charles, en- 
gaged in the confectionery business at Union- 
hill, N. v.; one who died in infancy; Minnie, 
who married William H. Frank, a brewer at 
Poughkeepsie; Edward L. , of the firm of J. 
Schrauth's Sons; Kate, married to William 
La Paugh, of the firm of La Paugh & Son, in 
Poughkeepsie; William H., of the firm of J. 
Schrauth's Sons, and Cora, at home. Charles 
married Barbara Seifts, an orphan, and they 
had three children — Charles, Katie and Louis; 
Edward L. married Josephine C. Beigle, 
daughter of the late Leonard Beigle; W'illiam 
H. wedded Matilda Seeholtzer, daughter of 
Berthold Seeholtzer, and they have one child 
— Edna. Edward L. and William H. are 
both members of Fallkill Lodge No. 297, I. O. 
O. P., and the former is also identified with 
the Phcenix Hose Co., Poughkeepsie. 

Our subject and his amiable wife are con- 
sistent members of the German Lutheran 
Church, in the work of which they are always 
ready to assist. In his political views he is a 
Republican, and for two years was a member 
of the board of water works of Poughkeepsie. 
Like most Germans, he is a lover of music, 
and for twelve years was president of the Ger- 
man Singing Society. He is a member of 
Adler Lodge No. 388, I. O. O. F. 



DAVIU V. HAGGERTY, the leading florist 
' of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was 

born in that city August 3, 1867, and although 
still a young man has shown more than average 
business ability, which has enabled him to 
push forward the enterprise begun by his 
father to a wonderful degree of success. 

The Haggerty family is of Irish descent. 
The father of our subject, James Haggerty, 
was born in Brooksborough, Ireland. His 
father was a native of that place also, where 
he carried on farming or gardening. He had 
a family of si.\ children, as follows: James; 
William, a farmer in Rhinebeck; Thomas, a 
florist in New York City; Jennie and Sarah, 
deceased; Mary, living in New York City. 
The family came to the United States and set- 
tled in Rhinebeck, where the father died. 

James Haggerty had but meagre advan- 
tages for an education in his native country, 
but after coming to America he improved every 



opportunity to store his mind with useful 
knowledge. He was naturally gifted with a 
fine intellect, and was a great reader of all 
kinds of literature, but more especially of such 
as bore upon the vocation he adopted, that of 
a florist. During his life he kept well-posted 
on all topics relating to this branch of garden- 
ing, and was among the most progressive men 
in his business. 

Air. Haggerty's first employment was on 
the Ellerslie farm, which is now owned by- 
Governor Morton, where he worked for Mr. 
James. He then went to Newburgh and was 
in the emplo}' of Mr. Bridgman, who subse- 
quently placed him in his large florist estab- 
lishment in New York City. There he remained 
until removing to Poughkeepsie and going 
into business for himself. He first built a 
small greenhouse just south of the old reser- 
voir on South Clinton street, which was the 
first of the kind in the city. From there he 
moved to No. 181 Main street, where he built 
a greenhouse and also carried on a seed store, 
then bought the property at No. 381 on the 
same street, and erected the large and commo- 
dious building which he afterward occupied. 
In 1867 he bought the T. H. Leggett property 
of ten acres near Poughkeepsie, to which he 
added from time to time until it comprised 
thirty acres. On this he built an extensive 
greenhouse covering two acres, the largest 
probably in the county, and here carried on a 
most flourishing business until his death, which 
event took place December 17, 1881. He was 
a man of great energy and unflagging industry. 
He was successful in almost everything he at- 
tempted, and accumulated a comfortable for- 
tune. In his political views he was a Repub- 
lican, but never took an active interest in public 
affairs other than that which every good citizen 
should. Both he and his wife belonged to the 
Methodist Church, and were members of the 
choir. He was for many years one of the most 
prominent members of the New York Horti- 
cultural Society, and served one term as its 
president. In all the relations of life he was 
generous, kind and helpful, and stood high both 
among his associates in business and in social 
circles. He was married to Miss Rebecca Vail 
Hyde, daughter of Liberty Hyde, of Pleasant 
Valley. Five children were born of this union; 
William, deceased; John, David Vail, Susanna 
and Margaret. 

David V. Haggerty obtained his education 
in the Poughkeepsie schools, and thin went to 



UOMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



901 



Washington, Conn. , where he studied the 
florist's business. He left school in 1885 in 
the last year of his course, and the following 
year took charge of the property for his mother 
until he became of age in 1889, when he and 
his brother John bought the entire property 
with the exception of his mother's interest, she 
remaining a member of the firm, which is 
known as R. \\ Haggerty & Sons. Our sub- 
ject has taken the active management of the 
business, which has steadily increased. He has 
become one of the largest producers in the 
county, and the greenhouses are the largest in 
the State. He has inherited much of his fa- 
ther's abilit}' and persistence, and is fully as 
progressive and interested in his work. He 
keeps abreast of the times in all discoveries 
and experiments in his line, and by his fair 
methods of dealing and courteous manners to 
all has drawn about him a large number of 
steady customers as well as many personal 
friends. Like his father was, he is a Repub- 
lican and a Methodist, and is prominent in both 
these organizations. He is a member of the 
order of St. John, and for eight or nine years 
has been a member of the Davy Crockett Hook 
and Ladder Company. In 1889, he was mar- 
ried to Miss Isabella, daughter of Frank Rob- 
son, and three children have been born to 
them: Gladys, James Donald and John 
Francis. 



t BRAM V. V. HAIGHT. the able secre- 
^ tary of the Poughkeepsie Transportation 
Co. , and one of the leading citizens of the county 
seat (Dutchess county), was born August 24, 
1842, in the town of Fishkill, Dutchess county, 
on an estate which had been in the possession 
of his family for many years. His ancestors 
came from Connecticut at an early period, 
locating in the town of Fishkill, where his 
grandfather, Joseph Haight, was a prominent 
farmer. He married Hannah Dudley, a mem- 
ber of an old and highly esteemed family of 
that vicinity, and had four children: Eliza- 
beth, who married Henry Van Voorhis; Min- 
erva, who married Thomas Burrows; Corne- 
lius J., our subject's father; and Hannah, the 
wife of Peter Burchen, who was for some time 
the principal of Dutchess County Academy. 

Cornelius J. Haight was born June 22, 
18 1 7, at the old homestead, five miles from 
the village of Fishkill, and lived there until he 
was thirty-three years old, when he went to 



Buffalo and engaged in the commission busi- 
ness on the dock, dealing in flour, grain and 
other commodities, his firm being known as 
Ward & Haight. In 1857 he returned to 
Poughkeepsie and engaged in the wholesale 
flour trade, continuing in same line for several 
years. Later he took charge of the interests 
of the Manhattan Iron Co., first in Pawling 
and then at Sharon Station, in which latter 
place he remained until his retirement from 
active business in 18S3. Since that time he 
has made his home in Poughkeepsie. He is a 
well-read man, notwithstanding the cares and 
distractions of his years of successful business 
life. He is a leading member of the First Re- 
formed Church, and is held in high regard 
among all classes for his sterling character- 
istics. Politically he is a Democrat, and his 
active interest in party affairs has caused him 
to be chosen to public office at different times. 
He married Elizabeth Van Vorhis, a descend- 
ant of a pioneer family of the town of Fish- 
kill, and a daughter of Abram Van Vorhis, a 
leading resident there. They had five sons: 
Henry E., who resides at Sharon; Abram V.V., 
our subject; Joseph F., assistant cashier of the 
Pawling Bank; Lewis, who died at the age of 
two years; and Edward S., the assistant post- 
master at Poughkeepsie, and who for two years 
previous to receiving that appointment was 
city treasurer. 

Abram V. V. Haight received hisearly edu- 
cation in the schools of his native district, 
graduating in 1856 from school No. 10. When 
he was examined for admission to the high 
school, only twenty-seven out of a class of 
fifty passed the examination. He possesses 
fine natural abilities, and has kept well-in- 
formed upon a wide range of subjects. His 
first employment was with his father in Pough- 
keepsie, but at the age of twenty he went to 
New York City, where for over a year he was 
clerk in a commission house. In 1863 he en- 
listed in the U. S. Navy, and served "before 
the mast " until the close of the war. Return- 
ing to Poughkeepsie, he was employed as a 
clerk for seven years by Carpenter & Bro., 
and for one year was clerk of the "Morgan 
House." In'1871 he engaged in the freighting 
business with Doughty, Cornell & Co., at the 
Upper Dock, but on the consolidation of the 
Upper and Main street docks in 1874, he 
took the position of head bookkeeper for the 
Poughkeepsie Transportation Co. In 1880 he 
was elected secretary of the company, in which 



902 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



he had become a shareholder, and has dis- 
charged his duties with energy and judgment, 
his success winning for him a high standing 
among the business men of the city. 

On December i, 1875, Mr. Haight married 
Miss Ida T. Paulding, a daughter of William 
Cooper, formerly a leading cooper of Pough- 
keepsie. Three sons were born of this union: 
Burton C. , who died at eighteen years of age; 
Harry Lown, and Abraham Van Vorhis, Jr. 
Mr. and Mrs. Haight attend the First Re- 
formed Church, and contribute to the support 
of various worthy movements in the commu- 
nity. On State and National issues Mr. 
Haight votes the Republican ticket, but in 
local affairs he gives his influence and his bal- 
lot to the best man. He served as police 
commissioner under Mayor Rowley, and has 
been urged to accept the nomination for mayor 
on two different occasions. Socially, he be- 
longs to the V'eteran Firemen's Association 
and to the F. & A. M., Poughkeepsie Lodge 
No. 266. 



SELWYN A. RUSSELL. M. D. This 
well-known and popular physician was 
born in Jay, Essex Co., N. Y., February 12, 
1851, and attended the district and private 
schools of that town. In 1874 he went to 
Albany and began the study of medicine, 
graduating with the class of 1877. 

After graduating Dr. Russell was ap- 
pointed resident physician of the Albany Hos- 
pital, and remained there until 1879, when he 
accepted a position on the medical staff at the 
State Hospital at Utica, holding that position 
until 1883, at which time he resigned and 
went to Europe for the purpose of completing 
his medical education. He spent one winter 
in London and one in Vienna, where he had 
a great deal of practical e.xperience. He re- 
mained in Vienna until the spring of 1S84, and 
then returned to Albany and began the prac- 
tice of medicine there in partnership with 
Samuel B. Ward, a prominent physician, with 
whom he practiced until 1888, when our sub- 
ject, in connection with his medical work, 
made a tour of the world, sailing from New 
York in February, around Cape Horn, arriv- 
ing at San Francisco in June. Thence he 
went to China and Japan, returning to Albany 
in 1889. 

On April 25, 1889, Dr. Russell was united 
in marriage with Miss Lucy H. Harris, a daugh- 



ter of the Hon. Hamilton Harris, the promi- 
nent politician and lawyer. After his marriage, 
the Doctor continued his practice in Albany 
until 1891, when he accepted a position in the 
Hudson River State Hospital at Pough- 
keepsie, where he remained until April, 1894, 
at which time he resigned on account of ill 
health, and has since been occupied with a 
general practice. Previous to his trip around 
the world Dr. Russell was the attending phy- 
sician of St. Peter's Hospital, and an in- 
structor in physical diagnosis in the Albany 
Medical College. Dr. and Mrs. Russell have 
two children, Selwyn, born in 1890, and 
Hamilton H., born in 1893. Fraternally our 
subject is a Mason. 

G. B. Russell, father of our subject, was 
born in Essex county, January 2, 1822, and 
grew to manhood on the old home place. 
He married Miss Charlotte Fisher, whose 
birth took place in Beekmantown, Clinton Co., 
N. Y., October 11, 1821. .After their mar- 
riage the couple settled on a farm in Essex 
county, and the following children were born 
to them: Marcus, who is a resident of Balti- 
more and a manufacturer of iron ware; Selwyn, 
our subject; Lottie became the wife of Frank 
Bruce, of Jay, who was a painter, and she 
died in 1880; John is a school teacher at Spar- 
tanburg, S. C. In early life Mr. Russell was a 
farmer and later became an iron maker at Jay. 
He was a Republican and a member of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church, in which he took 
an active part. He died in 1883. Mrs. Rus- 
sell died in 1867. 

Sidney Russell, the grandfather, was also 
born in Essex county, where he grew up and 
was married. They had a family of eight 
children. He remained on his farm in Essex 
county, where his death occurred. Dr. Rus- 
sell's maternal grandfather was a farmer. 
Both sides of the family were of English de- 
scent. 



ORATIO N. BAIN, the well-known and 
popular hotel proprietor in Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess count}', was born in Chatham, Colum- 
bia Co., N. Y., December 20, 1857, where he 
lived until he was seven years old. He first 
went to school at Palmyra, N. Y. , then at 
Brewster, X. Y., later at Dover Plains, Dutch- 
ess county, and for a time at the Connecticut 
Literary Institute, Suffield, Conn., and then to 
a select school. 



COMMEMOBATIVE BIOOBAPIIICAL RECORD. 



90S 



Upon finishing his education Mr. Bain re- 
mained at home until the death of his parents, 
after which he continued his father's hotel 
business until the lease expired of the " Pough- 
keepsie Hotel." In 1884 he leased the "Nel- 
son House," a fine, large, brick building, capa- 
ble of accommodating about two hundred peo- 
ple, and considered the best hotel in Pough- 
keepsie. In connection with the "Nelson 
House" Mr. Bain has a half-interest in the 
" Palatine Hotel" at Newburg, N. Y., which 
is considered the finest hotel on the Hudson, 
and which will accommodate some two hun- 
dred and twenty-five guests. His eldest 
brother, Francis N. Bain, is connected with 
him at the " Palatine" under the firm name of 
H. N. Bain & Co. Besides his interest in the 
two most popular hotels of the Hudson Valley, 
Mr. Bain is largely engaged in farming and 
stock raising, having two farms in the eastern 
part of the county, where he is successfully 
breeding high-class road and carriage horses, 
having exhibited his young stock at the Na- 
tional Horse Show at Madison Square Garden 
for three years past with marked success. 

Mr. Bain was united in marriage July 20, 
1882, with Miss Carrie Belding, who is a na- 
tive of Dover Plains, a daughter of David L. 
Belding, a farmer and stock dealer, and for 
several years president of the Dover Plains 
Bank. Our subject is a Republican, and a 
public-spirited man. He is a member of the 
F. & A. M., and of the Amrita Club, of Pough- 
keepsie. 

Milton Bain (the father of our subject), who 
was born in Columbia county, married Miss 
Charlotte N. Nash, also a native of Columbia 
county. After their marriage they located at 
Chatham, where three children were born to 
them: Francis N., now one of the proprietors 
of the "Palatine Hotel," atNewburgh; Hora- 
tio, our subject; and F. R., a real-estate dealer 
in Poughkeepsie. Milton Bain was landlord 
of the " Stanvvix Hall Hotel." at Chatham, for 
twelve or fourteen years, and sold out to take 
charge of a hotel in Palmyra, Wayne Co., N. 
Y.. later going to Brewster, N. Y., where he 
conducted the "Brewster House," and then to 
Dover Plains, continuing in the same business, 
at the " Dover Plains Hotel" for about twelve 
years. In 1878 Mr. Bain came to Poughkeep- 
sie and became proprietor of the " Poughkeep- 
sie Hotel," which he carried on until his death, 
in 18S0; his wife had passed away one year 
previously. In politics Mr. Bain was a Repub- 



lican, and at one time held the office of assessor 
of the county, and of deputy sheriff. The 
Bain family is of Scotch descent. 

Alfred Nash, the maternal grandfather of 
our subject, was a native of Columbia county, 
where he practiced law. His father, Francis 
Nash, was a farmer in Columbia county. 



^11 ELSON DENTON. The branch of the 
Denton family of which the subject of 
this biography is a worthy representative, has 
been prominent in the vicinity of W'haley 
Pond, Dutchess county, for several genera- 
tions. The first of the name to locate there 
was his great-grandfather, Solomon Denton, 
who came from Nova Scotia at a very early 
period. The tract of 365 acres which he ac- 
quired has never been alienated from the fam- 
ily, and in its entirety is now in the possession 
of George F. Denton, a brother of our sub- 
ject. Solomon Denton's son, Solomon, and 
grandson, Solomon B., our subject's father, 
each in turn cultivated this estate, and were 
among the leading farmers of the locality. 
The members of this family have never taken 
a very active part in public affairs, although 
they have been interested in the questions of 
their time and have been regular voters, being 
Whigs in the early days and Republicans since 
the war issues arose. In their business man- 
agement they were all thrifty and successful, 
and they have been active in religious work as 
members of the Second Baptist Church of 
Pawling. 

Solomon the second, grandfather of our sub- 
ject, and wife had six children, namely: Sam- 
uel, Amos, Josiah, Pattie (Mrs. Wright), Abram 
and Solomon B. Solomon B. Denton died 
September 20, 1885, at the age of seventy-five 
years, eight months and nine days. He was a 
deacon in the Baptist Church for about forty 
years, and no man in that vicinity was more 
highly esteemed. His wife was Harriet Lud- 
dington, a daughter of Frederick Luddington, 
a leading citizen of Ludingtonville, Putnam 
Co., N. Y. Six children were born to them, 
of whom our subject is the eldest. The 
others were: Augustus, now deceased; George, 
a hatter at Danbury, Conn. ; Cecelia, who mar- 
ried Theodore Purdy, a carpenter of the same 
place; Emma, the wife of William F. Purdy, 
an engineer of East Orange, N. J. ; and Carrie, 

who died at the age of four years. 
' Nelson Denton was born at the old home- 



9()4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPniCAL RECORD. 



stead near Whaley Pond, May 26, 1845, ^nd 
was educated in the schools of district No. 9, 
Pawling town, and in the old Poughkeepsie 
Academ\". After completing his studies he en- 
gaged in mercantile business at Ludington- 
ville in 1864, forming a partnership with 
Joshua Griffith under the firm name of Denton 
& Griffith. They continued some time, when 
Mr. Denton sold his interest and bought a 
feed mill at Ludingtonville, which he con- 
ducted for three years. Disposing of this he 
followed agricultural pursuits for two years in 
Putnam county, N. Y., with his father-in-law, 
James Robinson, but later went to Danbury 
and was with H. A. Addis & Son for a year 
and a half. He then purchased a store at 
Perksvilie, Dutchess county, and after three 
years rented another store where he spent 
two years; but in 1887 he erected his present 
convenient store building, where he has a trade 
in general merchandise such as is enjoyed by 
few country stores in southeastern Dutchess 
county. As a business man he has been very 
successful, and is one of the principal property' 
holders in that section. 

On August 3, 1 87 1, Mr. Denton was united 
in marriage with Miss Albertine Robinson, 
who was born September 2. 1853, the daugh- 
ter of a prominent farmer of Putnam county. 
They have had two children — Frederick S , 
born March 11, 1872; and Grace L. , born 
December 27, 1882, both of whom are at 
home. 

In politics, Mr. Denton is a Republican, 
but he has not given much attention to party 
work. He is public-spirited, however, thor- 
oughly loyal to the best interests of his locality, 
and he is a leading member of the Baptist 
Church at Ludingtonville. 



pARTIN LASHER, proprietor of a first- 
i^X. class hotel pleasantly situated at Upper 
Red Hook, Dutchess count}-, is a man of much 
experience and a good knowledge of business, 
and is conducting his present enterprise with 
marked success, winning popularity as a host 
who understands well how to cater to the 
wants of the public. 

Mr. Lasher was born in 1822, at Cler- 
mont, Columbia Co., N. Y. , where the birth 
of his father, Jonas Lasher, also occurred. 
There the latter was educated and followed the 
occupation of farming. He wedded Miss Bar- 
bara Sagendorph, and to them were born nine 



children: George, who married a Miss Bar- 
ringer; Margaret, wife of Stephen Lasher; 
Mary, wife of Peter Fraleigh; Henry, who 
wedded Miss Proper; Helen, wife of Edward 
Coon; Martin, of this sketch; Augustus; Cath- 
erine, wife of John Morgan; and John. 

In the common schools of Clermont, Mar- 
tin Lasher acquired a practical education, 
which would tit him for the responsible duties 
of life, and began his business career as a 
farmer, following that occupation until 1850, 
when he opened a hotel at Red Hook, Dutch- 
ess county, which he continued to carry on 
until 1873. At that time he came to Upper 
Red Hook, where he purchased the buildings 
in which he now conducts a hotel with good 
success. He is a good citizen, an obliging 
landlord, and has the respect of all with whom 
he comes in contact. 

Mr. Lasher was united in marriage with 
Miss Mar}' Proper, daughter of Jonas and 
Eliza (Ten Broeck) Proper, and four children 
bless their union: Fannie, Lida, Maggie and 
Grace. Mrs. Lasher's parents were also natives 
of Columbia county, where the father followed 
farming. In their family were seven children, 
namely: Leonard, who wedded a Miss Hoff- 
man; Mary, honored wife of our subject; 
Samuel, Edward, Philip and Walter, all of 
whom died at an early age; and Sarah, who 
became the wife of a Mr. Miller. 



NSON A. PLASS, an enterprising and 
successful business man of Red Hook, 
Dutchess county, and the proprietor of a well- 
known meat market there, was born in Cler- 
mont, Columbia county, in 1850. 

Philip H. Plass, his father, was born and 
reared in the same locality, engaging in farm- 
ing as he grew to manhood. Later he became 
the captain of a barge on the Hudson river, 
and followed boating for many years. He 
married Miss Catherine Stall, a daughter of 
William Stall, a prominent resident of Cler- 
mont, and reared a family of five children: 
William, Anson, Hermon, Mary E. and 
Elizabeth. 

Our subject received his early education in 
the schools of his native place, and for a time 
was a farmer, and then followed his father's 
example and engaged in boating upon the 
Hudson. At the age of twenty-six years he 
learned the butcher's trade with Peter Rifen- 
burgh, of Madalin, and started in business for 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



905 



himself at Clermont, continuing successfullj' for 
a number of years. Later he moved to Red 
Hook, and established a first-class business 
there, his ability and energy gaining for him 
the esteem of all classes. In 1874 he was 
united in marriage with Miss Hannah C. Rifen- 
burgh, a well-known resident of Clermont. 
Seven children were born of this union: Mary 
E., Fannie, Maud, Ina, Wilbur, Homer, and 
Foster. 



'^UGENE FOX is numbered among the 
prominent and progressive young men of 
the town of Dover, Dutchess county. He 
was united in marriage with Miss Ellen Benson, 
who was born in 1S79, and belongs to a family 
whose identification with the interests of Dutch- 
ess county dates back several generations. 
Her great-great-grandfather, Jacob Benson, 
was born in Amenia, where he was reared and 
educated, and as a life work followed farming. 
He married Miss Lydia Thompson, and they 
had six children: Benjamin, who for his sec- 
ond wife, married Deborah Mackam; David, 
the great-grandfather of Mrs. Fo.x; Jacob, who 
married Martha Smith; Lydia, who married 
Daniel Darling ; Susan, who married John 
Benson ; and Hannah, who married Peter 
Hunt. 

David Benson, an agriculturist, was also 
born at Amenia, and wedded Miss Susan 
Sprague, of Vermont. To them were born 
seven children; Jefferson; Joseph; Lansing. 
who married Rachel Patchin ; William and 
Jacob, who remained single; David, who mar- 
ried Julia Cook; and Mary, who wedded Eg- 
bert Watts. Jefferson, the oldest son, was 
born, reared and educated in Amenia, Dutch- 
ess county, and turned his attention to agri- 
cultural pursuits. By his marriage with Miss 
Fannie Glenn, he had five children: Jacob, 
who married Ruth White; Manassa, who never 
married; Eliza, who became the wife of Charles 
Davis; Phcebe, who married Phil Watts; and 
Sylvia, who remained single. 

Joseph Benson, the second son, was the 
grandfather of Mrs. Fox. He was also a na- 
tive of Amenia, and after his common-school 
education was completed followed the pursuit 
to which he had been reared — that of farm- 
ing. He married Miss Helen Gillet, daugh- 
ter of Richard and Mercy Gillet, agricultur- 
ists of the town of Dover. Five children 
graced this union, (i) Silas and (2) Charles 



never married. (3) Susan, who was born and 
educated in Amenia, married Albert Watts, a 
mason of Dover, and they have five children: 
Frances, who married Frank Silver, and has 
four children, Walter, Mary, Ethel and Mabel; 
Ellen, who married Shed Bates, and has three 
children, Carrie, Ellen and Wealthy; Carrie, 
who married Piatt Reynolds and has two 
children, Charles and Fred; Annie, who is 
single; and Charles, who married Miss P'ord, 
and has one child, Mary. (4) Eleanor, who 
was also born and educated at Amenia, mar- 
ried Edwin Nightingale, a stone cutter of Mas- 
sachusetts, and they have three children: John, 
who married Sadie Bates; Walter; and Helen. 
(5) Edwin, the father of Mrs. Fox, completes 
the family. 

Edwin Benson was born in Amenia, in 
1840, and obtained a common-school educa- 
tion there. When a young man he entered 
the employ of the Harlem railroad, with which 
he has been connected the greater part of his 
life. He is a prominent citizen, and has held a 
number of minor offices. He was married to 
Miss Adaline Powers, and the\' became the 
parents of two children: David, who was born 
in 1862, and married Henrietta Benson, by 
whom he has one son, Herbert; and Ellen, the 
wife of Eugene Fox. 

John Powers, the grandfather of Mrs. Ed- 
win Benson, and son of Joseph Powers, was a 
farmer of the town of Amenia, Dutchess coun- 
ty. By his marriage with Miss Clara Smith, 
he had one son, Gaylord, who was born and 
educated in the town of Amenia, where he also 
followed farming throughout life. He married 
Miss Abigail Watts, a daughter of David Watts, 
also an agriculturist of Amenia tov.-n, and seven 
children were born to them, (i) William, a 
native of Amenia, learned the machinist's trade, 
at which he worked for a number of years. 
He married Miss Delia Gordon. (2) Charles, 
a farmer, wedded Miss Mary Storms, and they 
had six children — Gusta, who married Ben- 
jamin Milton; Irving; Edwin; Flora; William 
and Arthur. (3) George never married. (4) 
John married Miss Josephine Vice, and to them 
was born a daughter — Sylvia. (5) Emma 
married Edwin Davis, a machinist of Pennsyl- 
vania, and they had seven children — Edward; 
Edna, who married Albert Norton, and has two 
children, Mabel and Sarah; Ella; Carrie; 
Frank; Lillie and Chester. (6) Mary wedded 
James Wheeler, a farmer and carpenter, and to 
them were born three children, who died when 



906 



C'OM.VE.VOIiAriVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



young — C. Edwin, William and John. (7) 
Adaline, the mother of Mrs. Fox, completes 
the family. 



JOHN MITCHELL, the well-known black- 
smith and manufacturer of carriages and 
wagons, at Fishkill village, Dutchess 
county, is one of the most respected and in- 
fluential residents of that place, his public 
spirit and efficiency as a citizen being no less 
marked than his ability in business. He was 
born October 29, 1S21, in New York City, 
where he received his education in the public 
schools. In 1840 he came to Dutchess 
county and learned the blacksmith's trade, 
and later opened a shop at Fishkill which he 
conducted for several years. In 1844 he mar- 
ried Miss Elizabeth Webb, daughter of Henry 
Webb, a prominent resident of Fishkill, and 
established his home there. On the breaking 
out of the "Gold Fever," in 1849, he went 
to California to seek his fortune, and made a 
large amount of money in a short time. At 
first he worked at his trade for $12 per day, 
but soon went into business for himself and 
cleared on the average $50 daily for months. 
Sickness compelled him to return home in 
1 85 1, and he then purchased the property 
which he has since occupied as a wagon and 
blacksmith shop. 

His high character and reputation for good 
judgment have given him the confidence of his 
fellow citizens to a gratifying degree. In poli- 
tics he is a Democrat, and he has held several 
township offices, including those of commis- 
sioner, town clerk for eight years, collector 
for two years, and member of the Board of 
E.xcise for eighteen years. He has served on 
the Board of Education for thirty years. In 1890 
Mrs. Mitchell died of pneumonia, after nearly 
half a century of wedded life. Of their seven 
children, the first two, Emerett and Mary 
Frances, are deceased. The survivors are 
Frederick, Walter, Laura, Bertha and John, 
Jr. The family has always been identified 
with the Reformed Dutch Church of Fishkill, 
and various members have taken active part 
in helpful movements in the community. 



MI>:s. MARGARET TOFFEY CRAFT. 
The homestead of the Toffey family on 
Quaker Hill, near the famous " Mizzentop 
Hotel," is one of the beautiful country estates 



for which Dutchess county is noted, being 
situated in one of the most picturesque spots 
in this favored locality. John Toffey, the 
grandfather of our subject, Mrs. Craft, was 
the first of the name to occupy the farm, his 
last years being spent there in agricultural 
pursuits. He was a native of Long Island 
and received his education there, but in early 
manhood settled in Putnam county, N. Y. , 
where he was engaged in the manufacture of 
hats for many years. He was married there 
to Miss Fowler, who died a few years later, 
leaving no children. His second wife was 
Miss Abigail Aiken, and to them five chil- 
dren were born, of whom the youngest was 
Daniel, Mrs. Craft's father. Of the others, 
Hewlit married ffirst) Miss Howland, and (sec- 
ond) Miss Scofield; Aiken married Ann Aiken; 
John married Esther Aiken; and George mar- 
ried Catherine Vandeburgh. 

Hon. Daniel Toffey was born at the home- 
stead and attended the common schools of the 
town of Pawling during his boyhood. He began 
farming at an early age, and later became a 
speculator in cattle for the New York City 
markets. In local politics his influence was 
marked, first as a Whig and afterward as a 
Republican, and he held numerous town offices, 
and served one term in the State Legislature. 
He married Miss Betsy Hollaway, daughter of 
Joseph and Olive (Aiken) Hollaway, her father 
being one of the prominent farmers of Hurd's 
Corners, Dutchess county. 

Mrs. Craft was the eldest of a family of six 
children. Born in 18 10, she was reared at the 
old home, enjoying the educational opportuni- 
ties afforded by the neighboring schools. She 
married James Craft, a prominent merchant of 
Pawling, Dutchess county, and in their family 
are three children: Mary, born in 1834, is at 
home; Lydia, born in 1836, married Dr. 
Charles Taylor; and Anna, born in 1839, is 
the wife of Aiken Thomas. 

Of the younger children of Daniel Toffey 
(2), George, born in i8ii, became a well- 
known farmer and speculator. He and his 
wife, formerly Miss Mary Cook, reared a fam- 
ily of five children, all of whom married, as 
follows: Daniel — Miss Adaline Wilson; George 
— Miss Bessie Rodger; John — Miss Elizabeth 
Sip; William — Miss Emma Sip; and Mary — 
William B. Wheeler. (3) Ransom, born in 18 — , 
and (4) Elizabeth, born in 18 — , both deceased, 
were never married. (5) Olive, born in 1826, 
at the old homestead, was educated in Pough- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL REGORV. 



907 



keepsie. She married John L. Worden, then 
a midshipman in the United States navy, who 
rose by frequent promotions from that humble 
position to the rant: of admiral, and distin- 
guished himself during the Civil war by his 
ability and courage. He was born in 1818, at 
Sing Sing, and is now on the retired list with 
full pay, but unfortunately, through old age 
and over-anxiety, he has lost his mental bal- 
ance. He is the only surviving admiral of all 
the gallant group that served so nobly in the 
Civil war. Two sons and two daughters were 
born to him. The eldest, John LorimerWor- 
den, Jr., was born in Washington, D. C, and 
was educated at West Point, receiving a com- 
mission as lieutenant, and was in command of 
troops at Sackett's Harbor, where his death 
occurred. He married Miss Annie Edison, 
but left no children. Daniel T. Worden was 
born and educated in New York City, and is 
now engaged in business there as a broker. 
He married Miss Emily Neilson, of Philadel- 
phia, and has one daughter, Florence. Of 
Admiral Worden 's daughters, Grace is at 
home, and Olivia married Lieut. Theron Bus- 
by, of the United States navy, a Southerner by 
birth, and has four children: Daniel, Gaston, 
Olive and Grace. (6) Daniel Toffey, Jr., Mrs. 
Craft's youngest brother, was born on Quaker 
Hill, in 1828, and after completing his studies 
in the local schools engaged in mercantile 
business in New York City. He married Miss 
Annie Robinson, and has no children. 



JOHN J. SPAULDING. a leading agricultur- 
ist of the town of Pawling, Dutchess coun- 
-- ty, residing near Quaker Hill, is a man 
whose quiet influence had always tended to 
promote the progress of that locality. Born 
in that town in 1837, and educated in the com- 
mon schools there, he has chosen to make it 
his permanent home, and has been engaged in 
his present calling since early manhood. He 
married Miss Phcebe J. Light, and has had 
three children: Henry, born in 1881, and 
Warren, born in 1889, are at home; and an 
only daughter, Agnes, born in 1886, died at an 
early age. 

The Spaulding family has been identified 
with Dutchess county for several generations. 
Abram Spaulding, our subject's grandfather, 
was born and reared in the town of Dover, and 
later engaged in farming there. He and his 
wife, Elizabeth, reared a family of five children: 



Uriah, who never married; John, our subject's 
father; Sallie, wife of Sanford Hoag; Lydia, 
wife of Warren Kerry; and Ann, who remained 
single. 

John Spaulding first saw the light at the 
old homestead in the town of Dover, and after 
enjoying the usual educational privileges of a 
country boy, he made farming his occupation. 
He married Miss Marilla Elsworth, daughter 
of Piatt Elsworth, and had thirteen children: 
George, who is not married ; Jane, wife of James 
Evans; John ]. , oursubject; Frank, who married 
Minerva Beers; Harrison, who married Lizzie 
Donehew; Abram, who died in childhood; Will- 
iam, who married Mary Miller; Nathaniel, who 
married Helen Osborne; Uriah, unmarried; 
Mary A., wife of Albert Redney; Sarah, deceas- 
ed; Warren, who is single; and Myron, who 
married Juliette Light. 

Mrs. Spaulding's paternal grandfather, John 
Light, was a native of Putnam county, N. Y. , 
and was educated there, following afterward 
the business of farming. He married, and had 
three children: Mosman; Henry, who married 
Jane Ferris; and Jeremiah. Mosman Light, 
Mrs. Spaulding's father, was born in the town 
of Kent, Putnam county, and received his ed- 
ucation in the common schools of the town. 
He also engaged in agricultural pursuits. He 
married Miss Sallie Ferris, daughter of John 
Ferris, a well-known farmer of Putnam county, 
and his wife, Phcebe. Eight children were 
born to this marriage: William, who married 
Mary J. Russell; John, who married Emily 
Smalley; Susan, wife of Enos Adams; Joseph, 
who married Phcebe Lee; Lansing, unmarried; 
Mrs. Phoebe Spaulding; George, deceased, 
who never married; and Charles, who married 
Laura Roscoe. 



ILLIAM B. HUTTON, a well-known 
U business man of Red Hook, Dutchess 
county, is a native of that town, his ancestors 
having been for many years engaged there in 
mercantile pursuits. 

The late Jacob R. Hutton, his grandfather, 
was born there in 18 16, and early in life be- 
came a merchant, dealing in general merchan- 
dise, boots and shoes and similar commodities, 
his store being located on East Market street. 
He continued the business until 1876, when he 
moved to Poughkeepsie and entered the employ 
of Howes & Co., manufacturers of shoes. He 
remained with them in a position of trust until 



90S 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



his death, in 1890, after an exemplarj- and re- 
ligious life of seventy-eight years. He was 
married at the age of eighteen to Miss Lydia 
C. HoiTman. of Red Hook, and reared a fam- 
ily of four children: William E. , our sub- 
ject's father; Nicholas R., who was married in 
1865, to Miss Mary Hobbs; Fannie E., who 

married John , of Red Hook, in 1863; 

and Elizabeth H., who married Campbell B. 
Hicks in 1875. 

William E. Hutton was born March 12, 
1 84 1, and after graduating from the Upper I 
Red Hook Academy he entered his father's 
store as a clerk, and soon became a partner. 
On the dissolution of the partnership, in 1876, 
he established a general drug business at the 
same location, and conducted it until 1892, 
when he disposed of it to Claude E. Hicks, 
who sold it to Walter Van Steenburgh, the 
present proprietor. He married Miss Emeline 
C. Dunham, of Catskill, X. Y.. in March, 1864, 
and has had six children: \\illiam B., born 
September 26, 1866; Grace M., September 27, 
1869; Frank B., September 29, 1872; Emma, 
October 4, 1874; Mary, in January, 1876; and 
J. H., in January, 1876. The two younger 
daughters, Emma and Mary, died in infancy. 

William B. Hutton, the subject proper of 
this sketch, attended the Upper Red Hook 
Academy for some time, and then entered St. 
Stephen's College at Annandale, graduating 
from the classical course in 1888. In 1890 

he was graduated from the Medical 

College at Albany, and soon afterentered his 
father's drug store as prescription clerk, re- 
maining until the disposal of the business, in 
1892. Since that time he has been engaged 
in the stationery and news business, with a 
constantly growing trade. He was married 
March 23, 1890, to Miss Ida Yager, of Sauger- 
ties, their union being blessed with one child, 
Anna C. Hutton. A quiet gentleman, of schol- 
arly tastes, Mr. Hutlon holds the friendship of 
an exclusive circle of intimates, and the esteem 
of the entire community. 



jOHN O. WIXOM, of the well-known firm 
of W^ixom & Townsend, of Matteawan, 
Dutchess county, is one of the substantial 
young business men of that town. He is a de- 
scendant of one of the old families of Putnam 
county, N. Y. , and was born there in the town 
of Kent, November 2, 1862. His great-grand- 
father was Elijah Wixom, whose son Eli- 



jah (2) married Hannah Robinson. Their 
son, Ctiarles, our subject's father, was a farm- 
er by occupation. He married Miriam Bar- 
rett, a daughter of Knowlton and Fanetta 
(Hazleton) Barrett, and had seven children, 
two of whom died in infancy. The others are 
Elijah K., Edwin C. , Russell B., John O. and 
Cynthia F". The father is dead, but the moth- 
er is still living. 

John O. Wixom attended the public schools 
near his home during his boyhood, and worked 
in the meantime upon the farm. At the age 
of sixteen he began his business career as a 
clerk in R. R. Meade's general store at Pecks- 
ville, Dutchess county, and after a year and a 
half there he entered the employ of S. G. & J. 
T. Smith, of Fishkill and Matteawan, and re- 
mained with them for eleven years. January 
I, 1890, he purchased the interest of P. D. 
Holmes in the grocery firm of Holmes & Town- 
send, forming the present partnership. They 
carried a full line of groceries, and in the lat- 
ter part of 1895 they added to this a well- 
stocked meat market, their expanding trade 
fully justifying them in the venture. The 
business interests of Mr. Wixom have occu- 
pied his attention too closely for him to take 
an active part in public affairs, but he is thor- 
oughly loyal to his town, and is an ardent sup- 
porter of the principles of the Republican 
party. He married Miss Jennie Haight, daugh- 
ter of Theodorus Haight, a well-known farmer, 
and his wife, Deborah Lockwood, and they 
have one daughter, Ruth A. They are lead- 
ing members of the M. E. "Church at Mattea- 
wan, and take a generous interest in its work. 
Mr. Wixom is also a member of Beacon Lodge 
No. 283. F. & A. M. 



OHN L. WHITE, the well-known florist 
of Pawling, Dutchess count}', is one of the 
most enterprising business men, and, be- 
ginning his career as a general farmer, he has 
developed a profitable and pleasing specialty. 
He was born in 1834, in Glenham, Dutchess 
county, and passed his youth there, his edu- 
cation being acquired in the public schools. 
He married Miss Lucy A. Turner, daughter 
of Stephen Turner, a leading agriculturist 
of the town of Pawling, and his wife, Sarah 
Eastwood. Of the three children of this 
union, the first two, Sarah and Ezra, de- 
ceased, never married. George the onlj' 
surviving son, is the proprietfcr of a printing 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPEICAL BE COMB. 



909 



office at Pawling. He is a member of Patter- 
son Lodge No. 173, I. O. O. F., and now holds 
the office of secretary. His wife, formerly 
Miss Alpha Mosier, is a daughter of Milton and 
Mary (Brown) Mosier, well-known farmers of 
the town of Pawling, and has one son, Clif- 
ton J. 

The great-grandfather of our subject, Jos- 
eph White, was born and reared at Johnsville, 
N. Y., and became a farmer by occupation. 
He and his wife, Sarah, had several children, 
among whom was a son, Philip, our subject's 
grandfather, who was born in Dutchess coun- 
ty, and passed his life here, engaging in the 
business of clock making and in agriculture, 
which he followed for many years. He was 
a member of the Masonic fraternity. He mar- 
ried, and reared a family of six children: 
Amsey, who married Miss West; Joseph; John, 
who married Polly Werden; Eli, our subject's 
father; Warren, who married Polly Turner; 
and Lucy A., deceased, who never married. 

Eli White was a native of the town of 
Pawling, and the schools of that locality af- 
forded him his only educational advantages. 
He became a painter by occupation. His wife 
was Miss Elizabeth Canif Hagaman, daughter 
of David Canif, and they had three children, 
of whom our subject was the youngest. Emma 
never married, and Cornelia married Kent 
Henyon, and had five children — Leona, who 
is now married; Coleman, who married Annie 
Merritt; William, who married Hattie Loeucs; 
Chester and Grace, unmarried. 

Mrs. White is descended from a patriotic 
family, her father having served in the war of 
1812, and her grandfather, Stephen Turner, 
in the Revolutionary war. The latter followed 
agriculture as an occupation. He and his 
wife, Amie, reared a family of six children: 
John; Caleb, who never married; Stephen, 
Mrs. White's father; Sarah, wife of Elijah 
Eastwood; Rhoda, wife of James Eastwood; 
and Maria, wife of Robert Brockway. 

Stephen Turner was born in 1793. in the 
town of Pawling, Dutchess county, and grew 
to manhood there. His gallant service in the 
war of 181 2 entitled him to a pension, and he 
also drew 160 acres of land which he cultivated 
in his later years. He married Miss Sarah 
Eastwood, daughter of George and Rachel 
Eastwood. Her father was a well-known 
school teacher. Mrs. White was one of eleven 
children, who all married as follows: Alexan- 
der — Miss Margaret Brent; Caleb — Miss Cath- 



erine Morse; Lyman — Miss Pattie Daiken; 
Lydia — John \\'erdon ; Henry — Miss Cath- 
erine Lent; Ferman — Miss Charlotte Turner; 
Robert — Miss Charlotte Fairchild; Peter — 
Miss Eliza BuUard; Lucy A. — John White; 
Emma J. — Gilbert Bullard; and Bennett — Miss 
Ann Eliza \\'ashburn. 



GEORGE FRANIvLIN LEE, the genial 
_ and enterprising proprietor of the "Lee 
House, " at Pawling, Dutchess county, has 
made that well-known hotel one of the best 
houses of its class in that locality. Energetic 
in action and sound in business judgment, his 
success is a natural result of his practical and 
effective management. 

His family is of English origin, and several 
generations have made their home in Litchfield 
county. Conn., where George Lee, our sub- 
ject's grandfather, was born. He passed his 
life there as a farmer. To him and his wife 
were born six children: Ward, the eldest; 
Jane, who married George Ferris and moved 
to Wisconsin; Sarah, wife of Charles Travis, 
of Yates county, N. Y. ; Louisa, wife of George 
Travis, of Penn Yan, N. Y. ; Emma, wife of 
George Wickam, of Havana, Schuyler Co., 
N. Y. ; and Egbert, our subject's father, who was 
born at the old home, in Litchfield county, Conn. 
Egbert learned the blacksmith's trade, and, 
coming to Dutchess county in early manhood, 
followed that business in the town of Dover, 
and later in Clang Hollow, town of Unionvale, 
where he located about 1852. In 1865 he re- 
turned to Dover and worked for three years, 
and in 1874 gave up his trade to go into the 
hotel business at the old " Fowler House," in 
Hyde Park, in partnership with our subject. 
He remairied there two years, and then moved 
to Poughkeepsie and bought a saloon and liv- 
ery stable, which he sold two years later, 
when he moved to Pawling to spend his re- 
maining years, his death occurring there about 
1 88 1. He was a Democrat, and took a great 
interest in local politics, serving as supervisor 
and collector in the town of Dover, and as col- 
lector in the town of Unionvale. A man of 
generous disposition and much public spirit, 
he had many friends, while in business circles 
he was regarded as a shrewd and successful 
manager of his varied enterprises, and he cer- 
tainly was one of the best blacksmiths in the 
county. During the war he worked in the 
South on a Mississippi river boat, for a man 



010 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD 



named Bostvvick. He married Abbie Jane 
Cary, and seven children were born to the 
union: Egbert M., a blacksmith, formerly of 
the town of Amenia, later of Waterbury, Conn. ; 
George F. , our subject; Janie, who married 
(first) \\'iiliain Wright, (second) Charles V'iliin- 
ger, and (thirdj George Geddings, who is in the 
United States mail service; Sarah Ann, de- 
ceased, formerly the wife of Myron Wickam; 
Maryette, deceased, who married William R. 
Lee; Martha; and Perry, a painter, of Amenia. 
The Carey family have been residents of Litch- 
field countj', Conn., for many j'ears. 

George F. Lee was born in the town of 
Dover, December 19, 1848, and his education 
was mainly acquired in the district schools of 
Unionvale, wfiich he attended until he was 
about eighteen years old. He had learned the 
blacksmith's trade in the meantime, and after 
leaving school conducted a shop on Chestnut 
Ridge for two years, when he sold out and 
went to Dover Plains to work at the trade with 
Matthew Borden. A year later he entered the 
employ of Milton Bain, then the proprietor of 
the " Dover House," and, after one year with 
him, he spent about a year and a half as clerk for 
Jud Landing, just across the street. The next 
three years he spent at Falls Village, Conn., 
as clerk for E;^ra Dudley, and Mr. Lee then 
purchased a saloon and put in billiard tables, 
the first that had ever been brought to the 
town. He remained there some time, boarding 
with Mr. Dudley, and then sold the business 
and went to Hyde Park, where he rented the 
old "Fowler House" of J. T. Stoughtenburgh, 
and conducted it for three years, his father be- 
ing a partner for a time, as has been stated. 
On selling out this business to J. W. Hinkley, 
of the A'czus, Mr. Lee went to Poughkeepsie, 
and for one year ran a restaurant, under the 
old "Poughkeepsie House," and a livery 
stable, in the rear, but in 1878 he sold these 
enterprises and moved to Pawling. There he 
rented a bar room of George Norton, which 
he conducted for three years, and then he 
bought the "Travelers' House" and spent eight 
j-ears in managing it, with Henry Wheeler as 
partner for one year, and H. C. Brooks for 
another. During this time ^^r. Lee had es- 
tablished the first bottling works ever opened 
in Pawling, and when the building was burned 
in 1 889 he determined to erect a hotel upon the 
same site, and accordingly the "Lee House" 
was completed in the following year. With 
the exception of one year when the hotel was 



rented to Mr. Gardner, he has managed it 
himself, meeting with marked success. 

Politically, Mr. Lee has always been a 
Democrat, and gives active support to the 
party in his locality. He has been a member 
of the county committee for five years, and 
has held the office of school trustee for three 
years. In 1890 he was elected supervisor 
for one term, and in 1893 was chosen, for a 
term, highway commissioner. In local affairs 
of a non-political sort he is active also, and he 
belongs to Patterson Lodge No. 173, I.O.O.F. , 
of Pawling. He has a pleasant home in 
Pawling, his family not residing in the hotel. 
His wife, to whom he was married in 1873, 
was formerly Miss Mary A. Beden, whose 
father, Henry Beden, was a well-known citi- 
zen of Falls Village, Conn. Two sons were 
born of this union — Henry A. and Philo B. 



PHILIP H. STICKLE. The subject of 
this sketch has been for some years prom- 
inent among the farmers of Dutchess county, 
having a fine estate pleasantly located in the 
town of Red Hook, it being one of the best- 
appointed homesteads in the locality, and on 
account of his strict integrity and high charac- 
ter, he is numbered among its most valued 
citizens. 

John F. Stickle, his paternal grandfather, 
was a native of Red Hook town, where he was 
engaged in farming during his manhood, and 
he there married Hannah Fraleigh. Theirson, 
Peter Stickle, was the father of our subject. 
He was also born in Red Hook town, where on 
reaching a sufficient age he attended the dis- 
trict schools, and as a means of livelihood he 
followed farming. By his marriage with Miss 
Sarah Feller, he had two sons: John W. , who 
married a Mrs. Shook; and Philip H., of this 
review. 

Our subject was born upon the old Stickle 
homestead in the town of Red Hook, which 
has now been in the possession of the family 
for over a century and a half. His school daj's 
being over, he took up the occupation which 
his ancestors had followed, and now owns the 
old farm, which comprises 250 acres of valu- 
able land. Although a general farmer, he 
makes a specialty of fruit culture, having upon 
his place fine varieties of peaches, grapes, ap- 
ples, currants, etc. 

As a companion and helpmeet on life's jour- 
ney, Afr. Stickle chose Miss Nellie R. Ring, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPEICAL RECORD. 



911 



and by their marriage they have two children: 
Alva K., born July 5, 186S; and Frank W., 
born March, 1873. Moses Ring, Mrs. Stickle's 
father, was a son of George and Elizabeth 
Ring, the latter of New York City, and in his 
family were six children, namely: Elizabeth, 
who became the wife of George Fellows; Nel- 
lie R., the wife of our subject; Eugene, who 
first wedded Sarah Hunt, and, after her death, 
Emma Hunt; Alonzo, who married Balinda 
Cramer; John, who married Lizzie I'J.eins- 
burgh, and, after her death, Mary Dolle; and 
George Lewis. 

Mr. Stickle takes quite an active interest in 
politics, believing in the principles of the Dem- 
ocratic party, and to these gives his honest 
support. He has been quite prominent in local 
affairs, officiating as supervisor of Red Hook 
town, and as excise commissioner. Socially, 
he is connected with the Independent Order of 
Odd Fellows, and religiously holds member- 
ship with the Lutheran Church. His industry 
and enterprise have secured for him an envia- 
ble position among the progressive and well- 
to-do farmers of the town of Red Hook. 



JOHN W. BUTTS, one of the most promi- 
nent and successful business men of the 
town of Stanford, Dutchess county, was 
born Maj' 19, 1835, upon the farm where he 
now resides, which has been for several gener- 
ations the home of the Butts famil}-. 

William Butts, our subject's father, was 
born in Stanford, November 15, 1808, a son 
of Moses Butts, and died there May 28, 1882, 
having been engaged all his life in farming. 
He attended the Christian Church, and was an 
exemplary citizen, holding the high regard of. 
all who knew him. He belonged to the Ma- 
sonic order, and was buried with their impres- 
sive ritual. In politics he was 'a Democrat. 
On June 3, 1831, he was married to his first 
wife. Miss Eliza J. Truesdale, and their chil- 
dren were: William, born March 4, 1832, now 
a resident of Valley Falls, Kans. ; John W. , our 
subject; Walter D., born July 19, 1839, mar- 
ried Catherine Humphrey, and died on Octo- 
ber 22, 1870, followed August 16, next year, 
by his wife; and Eliza Jane, born July 19, 
1839, died September 28, 1839. On January 
23, 1840, Mr. Butts married for his second 
wife Miss Deborah Case, a daughter of Nathan 
Case. She was born December 21, 1802, and 
died February 6, 1892. 



John \V. Butts, our subject, attended a 
district school near Cold Spring during boy- 
hood, and laid the foundation for a good prac- 
tical education which his native ability and 
habits of observation have enabled him to ac- 
quire. He has always lived upon the old 
homestead, having assisted his father until the 
latter's death. March 21, 1861, he was mar- 
ried to Miss Tamma Humphrey, a descendant 
of one of the old families of the town of Stan- 
ford, her great-grandfather Humphrey having 
settled there in the eighteenth century. Her 
grandfather, James Humphrey, a farmer there, 
married Abigail Canfield, and had eight chil- 
dren: Nathan, John, Henry, William, Asahel, 
Ira, Dama and Tamma, of whom, Ira is now 
the only survivor. William Humphrey, Mrs. 
Butt's father, was born in 1804, and died in 
1882. He was a shoemaker by trade, but in 
later years followed farming in Stanford until 
his retirement from active business, when he 
moved to Bangall. He married Eliza Johnson, 
of New Paltz, a descendant of one of the early 
Huguenot settlers of Ulster county, and had 
three children: Charles H., a merchant of 
Bangall; Abbie J., Mrs. Walter Adsit; and 
Tamma, Mrs. Butts. Three children were 
born to our subject and his wife: (i) Ella 
Jane, July 17, 1862, was married June i, 
1887, to Elmer G. Story, of Bay Side, L. I. 
(now in the Custom House in New York City), 
and has two children — Ethel B. and Ernest D. 
(2) Mary, February 24, 1864, was married 
December 16, 1891, to Lincoln Husted, of 
Stanford, and has one child, Lee J. (3) Will- 
iam H., July 21, 1868, now a farmer near the 
homestead, was married December 7, 1892, 
to Adelaide Deyo, and has one son, John 
W.. Jr. 

The farm belonging to Mr. Butts is one of 
the largest in the county, comprising 350 acres 
of choice land, which is kept in fine order 
under his energetic and judicious management. 
Within the past few years he has erected a 
handsome mansion and farm buildings of mod- 
ern plan. For twenty years he has been ex- 
tensively engaged in the commission and 
freighting business, dealing in farm produce. 
His known responsibility and high reputation 
for fair dealing have brought him a large 
patronage, the greater part of the produce of 
the town being handled by him, as the farm- 
ers prefer to sell to him rather than to 
strangers there or in New York. In politics 
he is a Democrat, and he takes an active and 



912 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



influential part in all local affairs. He has 
been commissioner of higfivvays, town super- 
visor for three terms, and for the last twenty- 
three years he has been postmaster at Mc- 
Intyre. 



riLLIAM DOLAN, an energetic and ef- 
M|t ficient einploye of the Harlem Division, 
New York Central & Hudson River R. R., 
was born September 19, 1862, in the town of 
Amenia, Dutchess county, and received his 
education in the schools of that locality. His 
father, John Dolan, is a prominent agricultur- 
ist there, and until the age of twenty-nine our 
subject worked upon the farm, but in i8gi he 
entered the service of the railroad company as 
brakeman, and still holds that position. In 
1891 he was married to Miss Bridget Callnan, 
daughter of Michael and Bridget Callnan, of 
Carconlish, County Limerick, Ireland, and they 
have a pleasant home in Dover Plains, bright- 
ened by the merry voices of three children: 
William A., born in 1891; Rebecca, in 1893; 
and John E., in 1895. 

The Dolan family is of Irish origin, the old 
home being in County Roscommon. Thomas 
Dolan, our subject's grandfather, was a life- 
long resident there, and was engaged in farm- 
ing for many years. He and his wife had five 
children: Thomas, who married Bridget Car- 
rol; John, our subject's father; and three 
daughters, Bridget, Anna and Mary, who never 
married. John Dolan was born in 18 12, and 
received a good education in the schools of his 
native county. He assisted his father, learn- 
ing the details of farm work, and on attaining 
his majority in 1833, came to America in search 
of wider opportunities. About a year after his 
arrival he settled in South Amenia, Dutchess 
county, and purchased the farm where he now 
resides at the good old age of eighty-four. He 
married Miss Rebecca Kelley, a native of 
County Roscommon, Ireland, and daughter of 
Charles and Anna Kelley. Eleven children 
were born of this n-.arriage: Thomas, who 
died in Memphis, Tenn. ; John, who married 
Maggie Lary; Charles, who married Ellen 
Powers; James, who married Kate Kelley; 
W^illiam, our subject; Edward, unmarried; 
Maggie, who died at the age of thirty years; 
Rebecca, living at home; Eliza, who died in 
infancy; Annie, the wife of Lawrence Dahoney; 
and Eliza (2) who is at home. 

Mrs. Dolan's father, Michael Callnan, was 



a farmer at Carconlish, Ireland, where the an- 
cestors of her mother, Bridget Murnan, also 
had their home. Cue Murnan, her grand- 
father, was born and educated there, and 
was a laborer during the greater part of his 
life. His wife's name is unknown, but their 
seven children were: Cue, who married Miss 
Geary; Patrick; John; Margaret, who mar- 
ried a Mr. Geary; Mary, Mrs. Pat Roach; 
Kate, Mrs. Michael Welch; and Bridget, Mrs. 
Dolan's mother. Michael and Bridget Call- 
nan had five children, of whom, Mrs. Dolan 
was the youngest. The others are Michael, 
who married Johanna Shine; John, who is not 
married; Kate, Mrs. Thomas Kelley; and Mary, 
Mrs. John Welch. 



GEORGE PEATTIE, an enterprising and 
_ prosperous business citizen of Fishkill-on- 
Hudson, Dutchess county, is a member of the 
well-known firm of Peattie Brothers, who are 
manufacturers of sleighs and carriages, deal- 
ers in harness and fittings, proprietors of an 
extensive livery stable, and large holders of 
real estate. It would be difficult to find a 
firm which has covered so varied a field of 
effort with such uniform success. He was 
born in New York City June 11, 1852. His 
father (the late George Peattie) was born in 
1 8 14 at St. Andrews, Fifeshire, Scotland, and 
at one tmie owned the land on the corner of 
West Broadway and Hudson street. New 
York City, now occupied by H. K. Thurber & 
Co., and carried on the blacksmith's trade 
there. Later he moved to Cold Spring. N. Y., 
and in October, 1855, he came to F"ishkill-on- 
Hudson. He met his death June 22, 1881, 
at the Hudson River Depot, in New York City, 
a trunk falling upon him. His wife was a lady 
of Irish blood. Miss Ann McCormick, by whom 
he had six children: James, William H., 
George, Charles, Robert and Margaret A. 

After acquiring a good English education in 
in the schools of Fishkill, the subject of this 
sketch, at the age of seventeen, went to New 
York City, and spent three years with N. H. 
Gray, of No. 27 Wooster street, learning the 
wagon and sleighmaker's trade, and then went 
to Yorkville and worked two years with W. H. 
Dunns, a manufacturer of coach bodies. In 
1 87 1 he and his brothers, James and William, 
built a wagon and sleigh factory in Fishkill, at 
the corner of Main and Cedar streets, and two 
years later added to it the livery business. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



913. 



Both enterprises were carried on successfully 
until February 8, 1895, when the entire plant 
was destroyed by fire. Nothing daunted, the 
firm resumed business in a shed at their pres- 
ent location, and proceeded to build their 
handsome new repository and livery stable, 
covering 100x150 feet of space. They have 
also been extensively engaged in the building 
of houses and business blocks, and have done 
much to improve and develop the town. Since 
1875 they have erected forty-one detached 
dwelling houses, which they rent, and in 1892 
they built the Peattie Block, a brick structure 
three stories high, containing eight flats and 
three stores, all fitted up according to modern 
ideas of comfort and convenience. On Sep- 
tember I, 1894, they opened to the public the 
Academy of ^fusic. another large building 
costing $35,000, which is managed by Clark & 
Peattie. The latter is William Peattie, who, 
in addition to his care of the interests of the 
firm, is a director in one of the banks, and for 
fifteen years past has been auditor of the town. 
The subject of this sketch is prominent in 
local affairs, and a valued adviser in the Dem- 
ocratic party. In the spring of 1894 he was 
a candidate for the office of president of the 
village, but was defeated by a small majority, 
and for the past year he has been a member 
of the board of education. Mr. Peattie mar- 
ried Miss Bridget Meeley, daughter of Patrick 
Meeley, and has had ten children: Mary, 
Charles, Lauretta, Edward, Maggie, Hugh, 
Celia, Lenna, Ruth, and Alice, of whom, all 
but Lenna and Ruth are living. The family 
are leading members of St. Joseph's Roman 
Catholic Church. Mr. Peattie belongs to the 
Order of Foresters and to the Catholic Benev- 
olent League. 



RNOUT CANNON (deceased). To the 
b^ artistic taste and faithful workmanship 
of the late Arnout Cannon, a prominent con- 
tractor and builder of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, the "Queen City of the Hudson" 
owes many of her most notable structures. 
During the forty-si.\ years of his active busi- 
ness life there, he erected public buildings and 
private residences which will long remain as 
monuments of his skill, among which may be 
specially mentioned the Home for the Friend- 
less. 

Mr. Cannon was born July 13, 1805, in 
New York City, and there learned the trade of 
59 



a mechanic. In 1836 he came to Poughkeep- 
sie and engaged in the building business, in 
which he continued until his death, September 
12, 1882. He was a member of the Masonic 
fraternity, Lodge No. 266, Poughkeepsie, and 
held a leading place in many of the progressive 
movements of the day in his locality. In New 
York City he was married to Miss Naomi Chil- 
son, a native of Orange county, N. Y. , born 
June 1 1, 1812, and eight children came of this 
union: Hester (deceased); George W. , a re- 
tired business man of Poughkeepsie; Charles 
H., a well-known carpenter there; Arnout, Jr., 
our subject; William H., a resident of Chi- 
cago; Maria, widow of James Gifford; Corne- 
lius L. , a leading contractor and builder of 
Poughkeepsie; and Emma Kate, the wife of 
Charles E. Schon. The mother of this fam- 
ily is still living in Poughkeepsie. 

Arnout Cannon, Jr., was born August 3, 
1839, in the city of Poughkeepsie, and after 
acquiring an education in the public schools 
and the Dutchess County Academy, he at the 
age of fifteen began to learn his father's trade, 
spending four years with him. He then went 
to New York City, where for two years he 
was in the office of Frederick Diaper, studying 
architecture; in the spring of 1862 he returned 
to his native place and established himself in 
business as an architect in an office at the 
corner of Main and Catherine streets. In 
August of the same year he enlisted in the 
128th N. Y. V. I. and served in that regiment 
until after the siege of Port Hudson; he also 
took part in the siege of Mobile. He was 
usually assigned to duty as an engineer, and 
among other works on which he was engaged 
was the dam on the Red river. In 1863 he 
was transferred to the command of some 
colored troops who fought so nobly in that 
campaign, and became second lieutenant, first 
lieutenant, captain, and lieut'enant-colonel of 
the gallant Ninety-seventh U. S. Col. Inf. 
On receiving his discharge in April, 1865, he 
returned to resume work as an architect, and 
has been in active business ever since. In 

1893 Walter Scofield became his partner; in 

1894 Percival Lloyd entered the firm, and 
since Mr. Scofield's retirement in April, 1895, 
the firm has been known as Cannon & Lloyd. 
Mr. Cannon is in the front rank in his profes- 
sion, and has executed with marked ability 
some very important commissions. Among 
his largest buildings are the Vassar Brothers' 
Home for Aged Men, the Vassar Brothers' 



914 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



Institute, the Vassar Brothers' Library, the 
Masonic Temple, and the Nelson House 
Annex. 

In February, 1862, Mr. Cannon was mar- 
ried to Miss Ann E. Davis, who died leaving 
three children: Ida Frances, Howard and 
Grace. In 1879 he was married to Miss Emily 
J. Pelton, by whom he has one son, Pelton. 
With his war record it may be supposed that 
Mr. Cannon is an enthusiastic G. A. R. man. 
He belongs to D. B. Sleight Post, Poughkeep- 
sie, and to the military order of the Loyal 
Legion. He is also a member of the I. O. 
O. F. , Fallkill Lodge, and Poughkeepsie Lodge 
No. 266, F. & A. M. 



JOSEPH H. MULCOX, the well-known con- 
tractor and builder, holds a leading place 
among the enterprising and prominent men 
of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, materially 
aiding the developm.ent and progress of the 
municipality. He is a native of that city, hav- 
ing been born there July 17, 1834, and he is a 
son of Joseph Mulco.x, who was born in the 
town of Fishkill, Dutchess county, December 
i6, 1802. 

Benjamin Mulcox, the grandfather of (jur 
subject, was a native of Yorkshire. England, 
and after coming to this country was for many 
years engaged in farming and cheese making 
in Dutchess county, N. Y. In his family were 
two sons, Benjamin and Joseph. By occupa- 
tion the latter was a truckman of Poughkeep- 
sie, and in politics he was an ardent Republic- 
an. He married Miss Cornelia Kipp, who 
was born in Dutchess count}", of Holland line- 
age, and was a daughter of Jacob Kipp, an 
agriculturist. She departed this life in 1892, 
and January 3, 1893, her husband was also 
called to his long home. 

Joseph H. Mulcox, whose name introduces 
this sketch, is the third in order of birth in the 
family of nine children born to Joseph and 
Cornelia Mulcox, the others being as follows: 
Theodore, formerly an extensive contractor 
and builder of Poughkeepsie, died in 1880; 
Mathias was a carpenter, member of the firm 
of Mulcox Brothers of that city; George, who 
was a commission merchant of New York, died 
in 1893; Sylvester is a policeman of Jersej' 
City, N. J. ; Frederick is a carpenter of 
Poughkeepsie; Benjamin died in infancy; Ceiia 
A. is married, and lives in Poughkeepsie; and 
Mary E. died in 1859 at the age of twenty- 



four years. Our subject spent his boyhood 
days in Poughkeepsie midst play, v.ork and 
study, and March i, 1853, began learning the 
carpenter's trade with James S. Post, for whom 
he worked seventeen years. He then formed 
a partnership with his brothers under the 
name of Mulcox Brothers, this connection last- 
ing five years, since when our subject has en- 
gaged in contracting for himself, and has 
erected many fine dwelling houses. He spec- 
ulates in real estate to a considerable extent, 
erecting buildings for himself which he sells to 
advantage. 

In 1858, Mr. Mulcox was married to Miss 
Rachel Van Kureon, who was born at Came- 
lot, Dutchess county, daughter of Mathew and 
Margaret Van Kureon, the former of whom, 
who was of Holland extraction, was engaged 
in the boating business. One child, Frank, 
deceased in infancy, was born of our subject 
and his wife. Politically Mr. Mulcox affiliates 
with the Republican party, giving full adher- 
ence to the principles and doctrines of its plat- 
forms. He is public-spirited and enterprising, 
taking an active interest in the welfare and ad- 
vancement of his native city and county, and 
is prominently identified with their improve- 
ment. 



flLLIAM H. S. BRINKERHOFF, a 



well-known builder and contractor of 

Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was born in 
December, 1861, at Bedford, Ohio, and is the 
son of Benjamin F. Brinkerhoff, who was a 
native of Poughkeepsie. 

Benjamin F. Brinkerhof? was a mason by 
trade, which calling he followed in various 
places, being at different times a resident of 
Newburg, Kingston and Poughkeepsie, in this 
State, and in other cities in Massachusetts and 
Ohio. He is now engaged as an agent for 
William B. King, in introducing a patent 
plastering, and has been fairly successful in 
business matters. He was married to Miss 
Sarah E. , a daughter of Eli Sutcliff, a well- 
known grocer of Poughkeepsie, and four chil- 
dren have been born to them: William H. S. ; 
John S., living in Staten Island; Eli (de- 
ceased); and Herbert D., also living in Staten 
Island. The father is a stanch Republican 
and an active worker in his party. He be- 
longs to the Knights of Pythias and the Ma- 
sonic order. 

William H. S. Brinkerhoff obtained the 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



915 



most of his education at Lowell, Mass., where 
he attended school until sixteen years of age. 
Soon afterward he learned the trade of a car- 
penter with Arnout Cannon, and for some two 
years was employed in sash and door making, 
learning all branches of that business. In 1888 
Mr. Brinkerhoff began business for himself, hav- 
ing for a short time a partner. He now conducts 
the business alone, and employs from three to 
eight men, and finds plenty to do, his reputa- 
tion as a skillful, reliable workman, and a man 
who is honest and upright in his dealings, be- 
ting well-established in the community. He is 
self-made, well posted on all topics of the day, 
and by his industry and energy is on the high 
road to financial success. 

On December 6, 1883, Mr. Brinkerhoff 
was married to Miss Isabella, daughter of John 
Bodden. She died November 11, 1892, leav- 
ing one child, Roy W. Mr. Brinkerhoff's sec- 
ond marriage took place December 25, 1894, 
when he was united to Miss Mary Bigel, of 
Poughkeepsie. In politics Mr. Brinkerhoff is 
an ardent Republican; socially he belongs to 
Triumph Lodge, K. of P., at Poughkeepsie. 
He attends the Episcopal Church, to which he 
is a liberal contributor, and as a citizen is 
public-spirited and progressive. He is the 
youngest builder and contractor in the city, 
and has shown great business ability. Mr. 
Brinkerhoff is much interested in military mat- 
ters, and for twelve years has been a member 
of the Nineteenth Separate Company, in 
which for nine years he was a non-commis- 
sioned officer, going in as a private and rising 
to the rank of quartermaster sergeant. 



FRANKLIN S. EASTMEAD, senior mem- 
_ ber of the firm of Eastmead Bros., lead- 
ing tobacconists of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., is one 
of the best-known residents of that city, his 
interest in social, religious, educational and 
political affairs making him an active worker 
in many organizations. He is a native of 
Poughkeepsie, born M.iy 21, 1856, and is of 
English descent, the ancient home of his fam- 
ily being at Wotton-Under-Edge, a suburb of 
London, England. 

His paternal grandparents were born at 
that place, and spent many years of their mar- 
ried life there, later coming to America, and 
settling at Poughkeepsie, where the grandfa- 
ther, Thomas Eastmead, followed the mason's 
trade. He built the print works at Wappingers 



Falls, and the old edifice known as Christ's 
church, in Poughkeepsie, which occupied the 
present site of the State Armory at the corner 
of Market and Church streets. The family 
had always been members of the Church of 
England, and after coming to this country he 
adhered to the Episcopal Church. He had 
five sons, all of whom were born in England 
and accompanied him to America: James died 
in early manhood in New York City, and was 
buried at Poughkeepsie; Charles is mentioned 
more fully farther on; Horatio was an engraver 
and lithographer in New York City, and died 
there; John was a musician and composer of 
sacred music; and Joseph was a mason in New 
York City. 

Charles Eastmead, the father of our sub- 
ject, was about thirty years old when he came 
to America. Although he learned the mason's 
trade in the old country he did not follow it 
here, but engaged in the boot and shoe busi- 
ness on Main street, Poughkeepsie. Being 
burned out at that location, he moved his 
business up town where he carried it on suc- 
cessfully for many years, making a specialty 
of handling the Burt shoes. Disposing of his 
establishment, he spent a year in England, 
and on his return to Poughkeepsie in 186C 
engaged in the tobacco and tea business at the 
corner of Main and Washington streets, where 
Eastmead Bros, now conduct their business. 
As a stanch Republican, he was active in the 
service of his party, and was once elected 
from the Third ward to the board of aldermen. 
He was an exempt member of the Cataract 
Fire Company. His death occurred in 1882; 
his wife, formerly Miss Jeannette B. Smith, 
survives him. She was born in Pittenweem, 
Fifenshire, Scotland, and is a sister of Will- 
iam W. Smith, of Smith Bros. Our subject 
is the eldest of five children, the others being: 
Florin (deceased), who married F'rank L. 
Scotield ; Elmer E., head bookkeeper for 
Adriance Piatt & Co.. Mower and Reaper 
Works; Charles M.,in partnership with our 
subject; and Annie M., who died in infancy. 

Franklin S. Eastmead has always had his 
residence in the city of his birth, and after 
learning the details of the drug business with 
Brown, Doty & Co., he became a prescription 
clerk, following the occupation fourteen years, 
first with Charles S. Bowne, and later with 
Mr. Doty. On the death of his father he en- 
gaged in his present business under the firm 
name of Franklin S. Eastmead & Co., the 



916 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



name of Eastmead Bros, having been adopted 
in 1892. In 1S85 Mr. Eastman married Miss 
Annie L. Gillen, a lady of Scotch-Irish descent, 
and a daughter of Joseph Gillen, a well-known 
citizen of Poughkeepsie. They have two chil- 
dren: Ha^el Belie and Herbert .\ndrew. Po- 
litically Mr. Eastman is a Republican, and he 
belongs to the following organizations: The 
R. A., No. 391; the I. O. O. F., Fallkill Lodge, 
in which he is past grand; Siloam Encamp- 
ment No. 36, and Canton Dilks No. 19, of 
which he is now past captain. He is first 
lieutenant of the 1 5th Separate Co. ; lieutenant 
of Poughkeepsie Bicycle Club; active e.xempt 
member of Davy Crockett Hook & Ladder 
F'ire Company; honorary member of the 
Young America Hose Company, No. 6; and a 
member of the Apokeepsing Boat Club, the 
League of American Wheelmen, and the Cen- 
tury Road Club of America. He also repre- 
sents the Sixth ward in the common coi'.ncil of 
the city. 



HENRY CLIFFORD, an honored and es- 
teemed citizen of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess 
county, passed to his rest February 3, 1893. 
He was a native of England, born at Bristol, 
December i i, 1840, and was the son of James 
and Sarah (Wolfe) Clifford, in whose family 
were three children: Henry, Joseph and 
Sarah, all now deceased. The birth of the 
father also occurred at Bristol, and when our 
subject was ten years of age he brought his 
family to America, locating at Poughkeepsie, 
where he worked at his trade of black.smithing 
until his removal to Vermont. There he spent 
his remaining days. 

The early education of Henry Clifford was 
secured in the schools of Poughkeepsie, where, 
later, he engaged as a stationary engineer, for 
thirteen years being employed by the city water 
works. While fixing some steam pipes at the 
Hudson River State Hospital he was injured 
by falling from a step-ladder, which caused his 
death a week later. His death was widely 
and deeply mourned, for he had the respect of 
all with whom he came in contact. In poli- 
tics he was an earnest supporter of the Repub- 
lican party; socially he was identified with the 
Masonic order; religiously he was a faithful 
member of St. Paul's Episcopal Church. 

In the city of Poughkeepsie, on May 20, 
1869. Mr. Clifford was married to Miss Annie 
Mellor, also a native of England, and to them 



were born two children: Jennie Clarkson, now 
the wife of Harry M. Rupley; and Harry Wolfe 
(deceased). Mrs. Clifford's father,. William 
Mellor, was born in Yorkshire, England, in 
which country he married Ellen Hanson, by 
whom he had four children: .Annie C. ; Han- 
son, superintendent of the freight depot of the 
Hudson River railroad at Poughkeepsie; Jen- 
nie; and Ellen (deceased). For forty-five years 
the father has been a resident of Poughkeep- 
sie, where he has always engaged in general 
labor. 



JOSEPH THEODORE LAMB, M. D., a 
prominent and leading physician and sur- 
geon of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, 
was born in New York City, July 9, 1834, and 
is of Irish descent. 

John Lamb, his paternal grandfather, was 
a merchant in Ireland, where he spent his en- 
tire life. In 1798, in County Monaghan, Ire- 
land. Francis Lamb, the father of our subject, 
was born, and in 1814 he came to America, 
arriving at New York, securing on the day he 
landed employment in a shoe factory in that 
city. Later he engaged quite extensively in 
the grocery business, so that his last days were 
spent in retirement, and he left his family a 
handsome property. In course of time he sent 
for his mother, brothers and sisters — seven in 
number — who joined him in New York City. 
At the age of twenty-one years he was there 
married to Ann Quin, and to them were born 
fourteen children, six of whom are still living. 
The father died in October, 1861. He and his 
family were devout members of the Roman 
Catholic Church. 

The early education of our subject was ob- 
tained in the private classical institute of John 
Young, in New York City, and he completed 
his literary studies with the French Pensionate, 
an academy conducted by the Christian Broth- 
ers. He then taught for' a time in the Jesuit 
College in Sixteenth street. New York, and in 
that city studied medicine with Dr. Bedford for 
three years. Entering Bellevue Hospital he 
attended three courses of lectures there, was 
graduated in 1867, and at once began the 
practice of his profession in New York City. 
His business so rapidly increased, and he de-- 
voted himself so untiringly to his work, that he 
became broken down in health, and was forced 
to leave the city. Removing to Hudson. N. 
Y. , he continued practicing thereuntil 1880, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



917 



when he came to Poughkeepsie, where he es- 
tablished an office, and has secured a hberal pat- 
ronage; he is now serving as ahns-house phj'si- 
cian. The Doctor holds membership with the 
Alumni Association of Bellevue Hospital, and 
the Dutchess County Medical Society. He is 
a close and thorough student, and his investi- 
gations into the science of medicine, and his 
skillful application of the knowledge he has 
thereby obtained, have won him a place in the 
foremost ranks of the medical fraternity. 

In New York City, Dr. Lamb was united 
in marriage with Catherine Gibney, and to 
them were born five children, as follows; 
Francis, a member of the Jesuit Order, of 
Woodstock, Md. ; James A., an attorney in 
New York City; Charles \'., also a member of 
the Jesuit Order, located at Grand Coteau, 
La.; Mary; and Edward, a graduate of St. 
John's College. The family are all members 
of the Roman Catholic Church, and in politics 
the Doctor is an ardent Democrat. 



ISAAC S. HEWLETT, a representative 
farmer residing in the town of Pleasant 

Valley, is a man whose sound common sense 
and vigorous, able management of his affairs 
have been important factors in leading him to 
success, and with his undoubted integrity have 
given him an honorable position among his 
fellqwmen. He is a native of Dutchess coun- 
ty, born in the town of Hyde Park, November 
27, 1822. 

His paternal grandfather was born in Hol- 
land, and after coming to the New World was 
married and located on a farm in Westchester 
county, N. Y., where he reared a family of 
several children, among whom was Samuel 
Hewlett, the father of our subject. The lat- 
ter's birth occurred in Westchester county, 
where he married Charlotte Kipp, and for some 
time operated a farm there. At length he de- 
cided to come to Dutchess county, and his 
wife made the trip on horseback, carrying her 
baby in her arms. They first located orf a 
farm in the town of Pleasant Valley, in the 
midst of the wilderness, but later removed to 
the town of Hyde Park, where the father car- 
ried on farming until his death in 1825. The 
mother passed away in 1866. In the family 
were ten children, namely: William, a farmer 
of Hyde Park town, who died at Poughkeepsie; 
Elizabeth, widow of Johnson Baker, a farmer 
of the town of Hyde Park; Hiram, deceased. 



who was also an agriculturist of the same 
town; Phcebe, who is the widow of Stephen 
D. Briggs, a farmer of the town of Pleasant 
Valley, and now makes her home in Hyde 
Park; Hannah, who became the wife of George 
Holmes, a farmer of Pleasant Valley town, but 
both are now deceased; James, deceased, who 
was a farmer of Hyde Park; Caleb C. , de- 
ceased, who carried on agricultural pursuits in 
the West; Zyprah, who became the wife of 
Isaac Wood, a farmer, merchant and railroad 
man, and both are now deceased; John K., de- 
ceased, who engaged in merchandising in Hyde 
Park; and Isaac S., of this sketch. 

The last-named spent his boyhood days in 
Hyde Park, and when large enough began 
working for neighboring farmers. He grew to 
be an active, ambitious young man, and early 
established a home of his own. He was mar- 
ried in 1845 to Letitia Halstead, a native of 
the town of Beekman, Dutchess county, and a 
daughter of David Halstead, an agriculturist. 
After their marriage they lived for about eight 
years on a farm in the town of Hyde Park, 
which Mr. Hewlett then sold, and in 1854 lo- 
cated on his present fine farm of 105 acres. 
Two children were born to them, namely: 
Samuel D. , a farmer of Pleasant Valley town; 
and W. Irwin, who for several years operated 
a farm, but is now engaged in the milk business 
in Poughkeepsie. 

To general farming Mr. Hewlett now de- 
votes his attention, and the well-cultivated 
fields indicate to the passerby the thrift and 
enterprise of the owner, who is numbered 
among the most progressive agriculturists of 
the locality. His first ballot was cast for the 
Whig party, but since its organization he 
has been a stalwart Republican, and always 
takes an active part in politics. Mrs. Hewlett 
is a Hicksite Quaker, and her husband, though 
not a member, gives liberally toward the sup- 
port of the Church. 



1; 



MI-RV COLE, a prominent business man 
of the town of Pawling, Dutchess county, 
is the founder of the village at Coles Mills, 
and the proprietor of the manufacturing estab- 
lishments there. A man of great energ}' and 
fine mechanical ability, he has been unusually 
successful in the varied business enterprises, 
and has contributed largely to the develop- 
ment of that locality. 

He is of English descent on the paternal 



918 



COMMEMOnATIVE BIOGRAPUWAL HE CORD. 



side, and was born April 19, 181 i, in the town 
of Wilton, Fairfield Co.. Conn. His great- 
grandfather, Ale.xander Cole, was a soldier of 
the Revolutionary war, and was with Wash- 
ington at the time New York was taken by the 
British forces. His grandfather, ThomasCole, 
was a lifelong resident of Wilton, where he 
owned a farm and sawmill, and took a leading 
part in local affairs. He was probably a Pres- 
byterian in religious faith. He and his wife, 
whose maiden name was Riggs, are dead. 
They reared a family of seven children, whose 
names with dates of birth are as follows: 
Thomas, October 22, 1780, was a farmer 
at the old homestead; Ira. February 10, 1782, 
lived near Binghamton, N. Y. ; Timothy, Au- 
gust 28, 1784; Sally, February 9, 1788, mar- 
ried David Nichols; Curtis. May 10, 1790, 
lived in Stepney, Fairfield Co., Conn.; Sam- 
uel, October 22, 1791, was a resident of Wil- 
t(5n; and Sherman, June 4, 1804, lived at 
Norwalk, Conn., and had a large family of 
children, several of whom became prominent 
in different lines of effort. Timothy Cole, our 
subject's father, was a farmer and wagon 
maker by occupation. He married Eliza 
Sterling, a daughter of Thaddeus Sterling, 
a leading resident of Wilton, and soon after- 
ward removed to Southeast, Putnam coun- 
ty, where he carried on his trade success- 
fully, employing his brothers in his shop. 
He and his wife attended the services of 
the Presbyterian Church, of which our sub- 
ject is also an adherent, and they were highly 
esteemed in the neighborhood. Of their nine 
children the subject of this sketch is the eld- 
est, the names of the others being as fol- 
lows: George, born in 181 3, was a wagon 
maker; Mary, 1815. died at the age of twenty; 
Sally, 1 81 7, was the second wife of Warren 
Collainour, of Saratoga, N. Y. ; Jane, 1819, 
married C'harles Marsh, and died in Rockford, 
III.; Eliza Ann, 1821, was the first wife of 
Warren Collamour; Minerva died in childhood; 
Angelina is still living; and Edwin is a resi- 
dent of Chestnut Ridge. 

Our subject's early education was limited 
to an attendance at the district schools near 
his home, and to one jear in a select school. 
He began to learn the wagon maker's trade 
with his father when very young, and worked 
for him until the age of twenty-one. He 
then started in business for himself at Amenia, 
taking the shop of John A. Allen on shares, 
the profits being equally divided. He did all 



branches of the work except ironing the 
wagons, and soon built up a fine trade, em- 
ploying two or three men after the first year. 
His work being of the most substantial and 
satisfactorj' kind, it acquired a high reputation 
during the eleven years of his stay at Amenia, 
his trade extending to Poughkeepsie. In Sep- 
tember, 1842, he moved to Pawling, and built 
the gristmill and wagon shop at Coles Mills, 
and established his present extensive business, 
which affords employment to about fifteen 
men. He built all the houses at Coles Mills, 
including the "Chapman House," and still 
owns three or four of them. He ran a placer 
mill for some time, and indeed has been en- 
gaged in a number of business ventures, in 
which he has been uniformly successful, and 
his eighty-five years do not seem to diminish 
his spirit of enterprise. Politically he has 
always been a Republican, and in local affairs 
is a steadfast friend to progress. 

On May 10, 1S41, Mr. Cole was united in 
the bonds of matrimony with Mary Ann Sut- 
ton, who was born March 11, 1819, the daugh- 
ter of Gabriel Sutton. Four children were 
born to them, whose names with dates of birth 
areas follows: George E., December. 1843, 
is a successful business man of Bethel, Conn. ; 
Francis Eugene, September 19, 1848, is in 
partnership with his father, and is married to 
Helen Wanzer; Edward Charles, July 20, 
1850, is a traveling salesman for a carriage 
firm of Buffalo, N. Y. ; and Mary Eliza, May 
I, 1856, married (first) August Penley, and 
I second) Myron Andrews. The mother of this 
family died June 23, 1856, and Mr. Cole subse- 
quently was married to Mary Frances Stevens, 
a member of one of the oldest families of 
South Dover. They have three children: Al- 
bert Stevens, born May 21, 1863, is a carriage 
maker by trade; William Wallace, September 
15, 1864, is a traveling salesman for a mil- 
linery firm in St. Louis; and Elida Belle, Jan- 
uary 27, 1870, is at home. 

Mrs. Cole's father, David \\'. Stevens, was 
one of the most prominent men of South 
Dover, a leading farmer and one of the foun- 
ders and chief supporters of the Baptist Church. 
He was active in political affairs also, and 
served one term as a member of the State As- 
sembly. He married Nancy A. Giddings, a 
daughter of Gamaliel Giddings, and a cousin 
of Joshua R. Giddings, who was for many 
years United States Senator from Ohio. Seven 
children were born to them, their names with 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



919 



dates o{ birth being as follows: Orrin S., May 
4, 1 82 1, is a prominent resident of Ravenna, 
Ohio; Emma EUza, March 30, 1823, married 
Allen Giddings. of Grand Rapids, Mich.; 
Hiram G., April 9, 1826, was killed by a 
horse August 8, 1833; Gamaliel B., March 13, 
1829; Mary Frances, April 3, 1832; Sarah H. , 
November 12, 1834, married James Moolen, 
of South Dover; and Hiram G., May 29, 1839, 
died in South Dover. 



^\*'IRTUS H. CORNELIUS, an enterpris- 
/ ;ng and prosperous agriculturist of the 
town of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, was 
born January 5, 1853, in the town of Milan, 
where his ancestors have been farmers for 
several generations, the family having come 
originally from Holland. 

His grandfather was born at the old home- 
stead in Milan, and married a Miss Cooking- 
ham, also a native of that town. They had 
the following children: Jephthah, our sub- 
ject's father; Alfred, a farmer in the town of 
Stanford; Peter, a farmer; Owen, a farmer in 
Iowa; Emily, a resident of Stanford, who 
married (first) Nelson Almendorf, and ("second) 
David Nicholas (both now deceased); Mary B., 
who married ( first 1 Ambrose Smith, and (second) 
Jacob Fowler, of Clinton Corners; Phoebe L. , 
the wife of Elbert Fowler, a farmer; and 
Thirzah R., the wife of George Marshall, also 
a farmer. 

Jephthah Cornelius, the father of our sub- 
ject, was born in 1829. He married Eliza 
Ann Haines, a daughter of William Haines, a 
prominent farmer of Milan, and reared a family 
of six children, of whom our subject is the 
eldest. Alva N. is a farmer in Otsego county; 
Lavilla is a physician in Hyde Park; Clark J. 
is a farmer in Schoharie county; and Milton W. 
and Emma are at home. The mother of this 
family died October i, 1886, but the father 
still survives, remaining on the old farm 
in Milan. He is a Republican, and while he 
has never been a party worker, he has always 
taken a keen interest in political questions. 

The subject of this sketch was reared in 
the town of Milan, and December 18, 1878, 
at the age of twenty-six, he married Eudora 
Boise, a descendant of one of the old Dutch 
families of that locality. Her great-grand- 
father, John I. Boise, her grandfather, Henry 
I. Boise, and her father, George A. Boise, 
were all farmers there. For a year after their 



marriage Mr. Cornelius and his wife lived on a 
farm in their native tovyn. and then they 
moved to the town of Rhinebeck. They lived 
for eight years on their first farm there, and in 
1886 moved to their present home near Rhine- 
beck. They have had five children: Harry, 
Vernie, Raymond, and two who died in in- 
fancy. 

Mr. Cornelius is one of the representative 
farmers of his vicinity, conducting his seventy- 
three acres, which are devoted to general 
farming, in a model manner. Politically, he 
is a Republican, and takes a generous interest 
in all matters of public concern. He and his 
wife contribute to the support of the Christian 
Church. 



CHRISTIAN ALLENDORF (deceased) had 
long been identified with the interests of 
the town of Red Hook, Dutchess countj', where 
he was born June 16, 18 19, and where he had 
spent his entire life. His father. Christian 
AUendorf, Sr. . who was a native of Germany, 
on crossing the Atlantic to this country, came 
direct to Dutchess county, N. Y. , where he 
worked at the carpenter's trade for a number 
of years, but spent the remainder of his life 
upon a farm which he owned in the town of 
Red Hook. He was twice married, his first 
union being with a Miss Fraleigh, by whom he 
had four children: Philip, who married Eliza- 
beth Stickle; Henry C, who married a Miss 
Fraleigh; William, who married Miss Stickle; 
and Maria, who became the wife of Daniel 
Paults. After the death of his first wife the 
father wedded Miss Margaret Cole, and to them 
were born two children: Elizabeth, who mar- 
ried Daniel C. Perine; and Christian, of this 
review. 

Christian AUendorf developed into man- 
hood amid the scenes of his native town, re- 
ceiving his education in the district schools of 
the neighborhood. He had quite an eventful 
life. For many years he was engaged in the 
mercantile business at Upper Red Hook, and 
filled many public offices in the town. For 
some time before his death he had a contract 
for carrying the United States mail from the 
depot to the post office at Upper Red Hook, a 
distance of about three miles, and. although 
he was seventy-seven years old at the time, he 
attended to the business with promptness and 
dispatch. He had the respect of all, both 
young and old, rich and poor, and in his de- 



mo 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUICAL RECORD. 



dining days he enjoyed the reward of a well- 
ordered hfe, in which he had been faithful to 
the trusts reposed in him. 

On reaching manhood Mr. AUendorf was 
united in marriage with Miss Ellen Lown, and 
five children were born of this union: Eliza- 
beth, wife of Philip AUendorf; Eugene, who 
married Anna Smith; John; Caroline; and 
one who died in infancy. For his second wife 
our subject married Mrs. Permelia Wheeler, 
widow of Samuel Wheeler. Her father, Philip 
Feller, was a prominent farmer of Columbia 
county, N. Y. He was three times married, 
his first wife being Hannah Hapeman, his sec- 
ond Catherine Miller, and the third Mary 
Ringsdorf, the mother of Mrs. AUendorf, who 
was a native of Columbia county. Eight chil- 
dren were born of the third union, namely: 
Mary became the wife of Randall Judd; Lu- 
cinda wedded Ephraim Wheeler; Philip mar- 
ried Cornelia Pulver; Andrew married (first) 
Mary Hayner, (second) Catherine Allen, and 
his third wife is unknown; Marilla became 
the wife of John Stearns; William married 
Susan Allen, and, after her death, Miss Groves; 
Permelia became the wife of our subject; and 
John remained single. 

The maternal grandfather of Mrs. AUen- 
dorf, John Ringsdorf, was a native of the Fa- 
therland, and on emigrating to the New World 
located in Columbia county, N. Y., where he 
married Miss Mary Lasher, and to them were 
born six children: Mary, the mother of Mrs. 
AUendorf; Catherine, who married Jeremiah 
Cronk; Christiana, who wedded John Finger; 
Elizabeth, who became the wife of Baltis 
Wheeler; Andrew, who never married; and 
Simon (or Simeon), who married Elizabeth 
Coon. 



D|R. CHAS. H. PERKINS. The subject 
' of this sketch, one of the successful 

young business men of Dutchess county, was 
born in the town of Poughkeepsie, said coun- 
ty, April 27, 1865, and is one of a family of 
five children born to Ale.xander W. and Elsie 
A. (Kay) Perkins, whose homestead was situ- 
ated on the old Post road, about three miles 
south of Poughkeepsie. Their five children 
were as follows: Amelia, wife of Joseph 
Doughty, of Salt Point, Dutchess county; Ed- 
ward E., of whom sketch is elsewhere in this 
volume; Charles H., our subject; Warren J., 
residing in Brooklyn, N. Y. , and Lena E. The 



mother of these children died some years ago, 
and the father, having left the old homestead, 
makes his home in Brooklyn, New York. 

Charles H., our subject, spent his boyhood 
on the old farm and attended the common school 
at the old Spackenkill school house in the neigh- 
borhood, and then for four years was a pupil in 
Poughkeepsie at the old Pelham Institute and 
Poughkeepsie Military Academy. In 1 882 he be- 
came an apprentice, with the then well-known 
jewelry firm of Myers & Marble, of Poughkeep- 
sie, to learn the trade of watch making, and 
after three years of careful application with 
them, in which he mastered the business, he 
became the general watchmaker and engraver 
for the firm of Quintard Bros., in the same 
city, and continued in said capacity for three 
years. While with them he was offered, by 
the Non-Magnetic Watch Co. of America, a 
position as their traveling expert and demon- 
strator, his business being to introduce their 
non-magnetic watch throughout the United 
States. He traveled throughout the Union 
showing and explaining the watch for about a 
year, when he was offered the position of 
chief time inspector for the Chicago & North- 
western railroad and the Chicago, Rock Island 
& Pacific railroad. His duties were to in- 
spect and superintend changes each month on 
all the railroad watches and clocks, thus 
traveling over both roads. This position he 
filled for two years, giving eminent satisfaction 
to the managers of both roads. While thus 
employed he become an intimate friend of Gen- 
eral Superintendent Tyler of the Chicago & 
Northwestern railroad, and with him pur- 
chased some real estate at Montrose, a subur- 
ban town of Chicago, on the Chicago & North- 
western, railroad. The then approaching 
World's Fair in Chicago rapidly increased the 
value of suburban property, and by the sale of 
his recent purchases Dr. Perkins made valu- 
able profits. Just previous to this he had as- 
sociated himself, as partner, with C. S. Durfee 
& Co., jewelers at Davenport, Iowa, and thus 
continued three years. At the end of this 
time, owing to close application to his work at 
the bench, his eyes began failing, and on the 
advice of his physician he entered the Chicago 
Ophthalmic Hospital for treatment. While 
here he became deeply interested in the study 
of optics and the optical profession, and selling 
his jewelry business he at once took up the 
study of the eye, ear and throat at said hos- 
pital, and was graduated therefrom in 1892. 



COMMEMOEATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



921 



After finishing his studies he was united in 
marriage with Miss Lydia Stark Day, daughter 
of John and Katherine M. (Stark) Day, of 
Tunkhannock, Penn., whom he had met while 
she was a student at Vassar College. Mrs. 
Perkins is a direct descendant from old Gen. 
Stark of Revolutionary fame, and her grand- 
father, Samuel Stark, of Tunkhannock, was 
one of the most prominent and wealthy citi- 
zens of Wyoming county. 

After his marriage Dr. Perkins came back 
to Dutchess county, and forming a partnership 
with his half brother, J. A. Perkins, opened a 
jewelry and optical business at 292J Main 
street, paying especial attention to the optical 
branch of the business. Their business rapidly 
increasing necessitated larger quarters, and the 
same year (1892) they removed to their com- 
modious store at 322 Main street, where under 
the name of Perkins & Company their business 
has since been conducted. As general jewel- 
ers and manufacturing opticians their business 
ranks among the foremost in the county, and 
their fully equipped plant for grinding compli- 
cated lenses is, without doubt, the finest along 
the Hudson river; the skill evinced in this 
line of work has caused that branch oi the 
business to grow to such an extent that up to 
1896 they had examined the eyes and fitted 
glasses for over ten thousand people. Among 
the cases that have come to him for examination 
and treatment have been many that others had 
pronounced hopeless, and that yet owing to his 
skill have been either entirely cured or greatly re- 
lieved. Cases of epilepsy have been cured by the 
careful and proper fitting of glasses. In con- 
nection with his study of optics Dr. Perkins 
began the stud}' of general medicine, and for 
several years devoted his leisure moments to 
advancing himself in that science, and by the 
advice of some of his medical friends he took 
the requisite examination at a medical college, 
passing with a grade of ninety percent., being 
considerably above the average, and securing 
the degree of Doctor of Medicine. He has 
since become a registered M. D. in several 
States. But not for a moment has Dr. Perkins 
relinquished his study of optometry, but in- 
stead has been greatly aided therein by his 
added knowledge of the human system, and to 
still further perfect himself in this branch he 
frequently attends the New York Opthalmic 
Hospital, and assists in operations there. Dr. 
Perkins has also prepared and placed on the 
market a wash for sore and inflamed eyes, 



known as " Dr. Perkins' Antiseptic Eyewater," 
which is wonderfully effective in the cure of 
Catarrhal Conjunctivitis, commonly known as 
" Pink Eye." 

Dr. Perkins is a member of the Royal Ar- 
canum, and is vice-chancellor of Triumph 
Lodge, K. of P., of Poughkeepsie, besides 
belonging to several optical and medical socie- 
ties. Dr. Perkins and his estimable wife oc- 
cupy a prominent place in Poughkeepsie 's 
social circle, and at their modern and commo- 
dious home, which they have purchased on 
South Hamilton street, they are always pleased 
to entertain their many friends. 



ROOKS VERMILYEA, a most highly re- 
spected citizen of the town of Unionvale, 
is numbered among the elderly residents of the 
community, and is held in that reverence and 
esteem which is accorded those whose lives 
have been characterized by integrity and use- 
fulness. A native of Dutchess county, he was 
born in the town of Beekman, in 181 1, and 
has here passed his entire life. 

His father, Isaac G. Vermilyea, was born 
in what was then Beektnan town, but is now 
Lagrange, in July, 1768, and after the comple- 
tion of his education engaged in agricultural 

pursuits. He married Miss Catherine , 

whose birth occurred on the 4th of July, 1 776 — 
the day so dear to the hearts of the American 
people, when they announced to the world 
their independence. 

Nine children were born to the parents of 
our subject: (i) Elizabeth, born October 23, 
1794, married Daniel Billings, a shoemaker, 
and they had four children— Isaac, John, Sarah 
and Catherine. (2) Jane, born March 2, 1796, 
married Alex Homan, a farmer, and they had 
two children — Alexander and Phtebe. (3) 
Peter, born September 25, 1797, in the town 
of Beekman, followed farming as a life work, 
and married Miss Van Nostran, by whom 
he liad two sons — George and John. (4) 
Maria, born April 7, 1799, married Enoch G. 
Dorland, a farmer, and they had four children 
— Gilbert, Catherine, Vermilyea and Samuel. 
(5) Gerardus, born in the town of Beekman, 
January 26, iSoi, engaged in farming, but was 
a shoemaker by trade; he married Miss V'an- 
Nostran, by whom he had eight children — 
Cromwell, Isaac, Oscar, Walter, Calle (who 
married Irving Vermilyea), Jane, Minnie and 
Catherine. The father of these children is 



922 



COMMEMORATIVE BWQhAFUICAL RECORD. 



still living in Lagrange town, Dutchess county, 
at the advanced age of ninety-five years, and 
is quite active. (6) John K., born September 
i6, 1802. was educated at both Williams and 
Yale Colleges, later studied medicine and en- 
gaged in its practice in the town ot East Fish- 
kill, near Hopewell Junction. He had four 
children by his first wife — Dupertrain, Gerar- 
dus, Anna R. and Lucy. (7) Caroline, born 
January 29, 1804, died when young. (8) 
Brooks, of this sketch, was born February 27, 
181 1. (9) Valentine, born April 4, 1818, at- 
tended the New York Medical College, and, 
after his graduation, engaged in practice in 
Illinois. He married a Miss Davis. 

The primary education of Brooks Vermil- 
yea was obtained in the district schools near 
his early home, and he was, later, a student in 
a boarding school. By trade he is a weaver, 
at which he worked for a time, but his atten- 
tion has been principally given to agricultural 
pursuits. On attaining to man's estate he was 
united in marriage with Miss Charity Shear, 
whose death occurred in 1851; she left three 
children, all of whom were born, reared and 
educated in Lagrange town, Duichess county: 
(i) Addison, born in 1 841, follows farming. (2) 
Irving, born in 1843, engaged in the sam.e pur- 
suit at Low Point. He married Callie Vermil- 
yea, a cousin, and they have one son, Horatio 
S. (3) Abrarn, born in 1848. also carries on 
farming. After the death of his first wife. 
Brooks Vermilyea was again married, his 
second union being with Miss Lydia A. Donald- 
son, who was born August 19, 1827, and died 
in 1893. 



WILLIAM T. PHILLIPS, one of the suc- 
cessful agriculturists of this section, 

owning a large farm near Red Hook, Dutchess 
county, is descended from a family which is 
noted for those practical qualities of thrift and 
industry which distinguish the tillers of the soil. 
His grandfather, Jacob Phillips, was a 
farmer in Columbia county in his early man- 
hood, but shortly after his marriage he and his 
wife moved to Dutchess county and settled 
upon a farm there. Their son, Theodore 
Phillips, our subject's father, was born in Co- 
lumbia county, September 25, 1845, ^^^ was 
only one year old when he was brought to 
Dutchess county, where he passed his life. He 
became a prosperous agriculturist, raising grain, 
hay, and livestock, and in 1878 he purchased 



from Gilbert Fraleigh a farm containing 22S 
acres of fine land, well-stocked, which his en- 
ergy and enterprise enabled him to improve 
greatly. Politically he was an ardent believer 
in the principles of the Democratic party. 

He was married (first) to Rachel Link, and 
(second) to Matilda Coon, daughter of William 
Coon, a farmer of the town of Milan. Two 
children were born to the second union: Will- 
iam T. and Merrick. The mother of these 
passed to her eternal rest in 1885; the fa- 
ther survived her ten years, breathing his last 
in 1895. 

William T. Phillips was born in the town 
of Milan, Dutchess county, and recei\ed excel- 
lent educational advantages in youth, attending 
Hartwick Seminary. He was initiated into the 
details of farm work under his father's able 
guidance, and remained at the homestead, to 
which he succeeded in 1895. He married Miss 
Edna Case, daughter of Socatell Case, a well- 
known farmer of the town of Milan, Dutchess 
county. They have no children. 



E\DGAR VINCENT, formerly the popu- 
'I lar proprietor of the "Vincent House," 

Madalin, belongs to one of the ver\' oldest 
families of Dutchess county. He was born in 
the town of \\'ashington, April 19, 1832. and 
there the birth of his father, Moriort\' \'incent, 
also occurred. The latter married Phoebe 
Fowler, of Columbia county, N. Y. , after 
which they located upon a farm in Washing- 
ton town, where their entire married life was 
passed. Their household included ten chil- 
dren: Ruth, wife of Dr. Holden; Israel, a re- 
tired farmer living at Morse, 111.; Washington, 
George and Franklin, all now deceased; Theo- 
dore, a school teacher, of New Jersey; Edgar, 
of this sketch; Moriorty, deceased; Philo, a 
carriage manufacturer, of Danbury, Conn. ; and 
Benjamin, who died while young. The father, 
who was an ardent Republican in politics, 
served as supervisor of the town of Washing- 
ton, and was one of the successful farmers and 
stock raisers of the locality. 

The childhood and youth of our subject 
was passed in the usual manner of farmer lads, 
and he remained upon the home farm until 
thirty-eight years of age. In 1870 he removed 
to Annandale, Dutchess county, where for two 
years he carried on a grocery store and hotel. 
For nine years he then kept a saloon at Barry- 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPmCAL RECORD. 



923 



town, after which he went to Tivoh, there pur- 
chasing the " Farmers Hotel," which he con- 
ducted for ten years and which he still owns. 
On the expiration of that time, however, he 
bought the hotel at Madalin, which is now 
known as the " Vincent House," which he 
has since sold. The interests and comforts of 
his guests were always carefully looked after, 
and he is one of the best-known business men 
in the northern part of the county. 

In 1875 was celebrated the marriage of 
Mr. Vincent and Miss Estella Sagendorf, who 
was born in the town of Red Hook, where her 
father, Robert Sagendorf, engaged in farming, 
and they now have three children: Lula, 
George and Hazel. Although Mr. Vincent is 
a strong Republican in politics, he prefers to 
vote independently at local elections, support- 
ing the man whom he thinks best able to fill 
the position. His personal integrity, both in 
public and private life, is of the highest order, 
and he has the respect of all with whom he 
comes in contact. 



E 



EDMUND DE WITTMULFORD, a prom- 



inent resident of Hopewell Junction, and 
one of Dutchess county's most intelligent and 
progressive citizens, is descended from a fam- 
ily which has long been identified with the 
development of this section. 

He is a great-great-grandson of Capt. David 
Mulford, who came from Long Island in 1776, 
and purchased a tract of land at Staatsburg. 
He left a large family. One son, Job, re- 
mained on the farm, and died and was buried 
there with his father. He left one son, David, 
and one daughter, Margaret, who married Dr. 
Hunting Sherrill. David married Margaret 
Van Hoevenberg, and left ten children. His 
eldest son, David Henry, remained on part of 
the original farm purchased by Capt. David 
Mulford, and died there, and was buried in 
Poughkeepsie cemetery. He was the founder 
of Staatsburg, and when the Hudson River 
railroad was built he gave the land for the sta- 
tion, and built the first store and hotel. He 
opened the road and built the docks and st jre- 
houses at both Staatsburg and Hyde Park, and 
was among the first to build ice-houses, and 
gather ice from the river. 

Possessing an unusually able and active 
intellect, he was influential in varied lines of 
effort, and was several times elected supervisor 
of the town of Hyde Park, and twice to the 



Assembly. His first wife, Caroline Balding 
(Van Wagner), died leaving two sons, Edmund 
De Witt and Francis Henry. He afterward 
married C3nthia Van Benschoteij, by whom he 
had one daughter, Harriet Vand'erbilt. 



SAMUEL K. RUPLEY, the well-known su- 
perintendent of the Western Union Tele- 
graph Co., and Hudson River Co., at Pough- 
keepsie, Dutchess county, was born in the city 
of Lancaster, Penn., July 17, 1S43. 

After going through the public schools of 
Lancaster, our subject learned telegraphy in 
the ofifice of the National Ohio Telegraph Co. 
At the age of fifteen years he came to Pough- 
keepsie and was employed as operator at the 
depot of the Hudson River Co., and remained 
with same until 1862, when he joined Co. F, 
150th N. Y. S. W I., and was appomted Col. 
Ketcham's orderl)-. In 1863 he was detailed 
as operator in the United States military serv- 
ice, where he remained until July, 1865, when 
he was mustered out. He was connected with 
the Second Army Corps, headquarters with 
the Army of the Potomac. After the war Mr. 
Rupley returned to Poughkeepsie and was ap- 
pointed manager of the Hudson River R. R. 
Telegraph Co., and also took charge of the 
Western Union Telegraph ofifice in the city of 
Poughkeepsie. In i 890 he was made superin- 
tendent of the New York Central and Hudson 
River Telegraph offices, whose wires run from 
New York City to Buffalo. He also has 
charge of the Western Union interests of the 
P. R. & N. E., Newburgh, Dutchess & Co- 
lumbia, and Poughkeepsie & Eastern railways. 
In 1882 the Poughkeepsie Telephone Co. was 
organized by Mr. Piatt, H. Innis, N. Taylor, 
Henry Frost and Mr. Rupley. It was finally 
merged into the Hudson River Telephone Co., 
and our subject is manager of its interests in 
Poughkeepsie. 

Mr. Rupley was married in that city Au- 
gust 30, 1865, to Miss Jane E. Shurter, a 
daughter of Isaac H. Shurter, and the follow- 
ing children were born: Harry Mortimer inar- 
ried Jennie Clifford, and they have one child- 
Clifford; Mary C. married Albert E. Schwartz, _ 
and they have one child — John R. ; Grace died 
in the spring of 1895; and Howard R. Mr. 
Rupley is a Republican, and was commissioner 
of the city alms house for twelve years. He is 
a member of the Poughkeepsie Commander}' of 



9l>4 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



the Masonic order, and of the Royal Arcanum. 
He is a member of the Church of the Holy 
Comforter, in which he is a trustee. 

The father of our subject, Samuel Kupley, 
was born in Lancaster, Penn., where he at- 
tended school. He was one of the early engi- 
neers of the Pennsylvania Central R. R. His 
wife was a Miss Mary Martha Kendig, who 
died in June, 1892. He died in 1S56. Two 
of their seven children besides our subject are 
now li\ing. Rev. E. E. Rupley, of Esprey, 
Penn., and Nellie M. Rupley, of Lancaster. 
Penn. The grandfather of our subject was also 
born in Lancaster, and was of English and 
German ancestry. 



WILLIAM E. TRAVER, the genial and 
popular proprietor of the " Traver 

House," at New Hamburg, Dutchess county, 
was born in the town of Hyde Park, March 31, 
1864. 

The family, originally from Holland, is one 
of the oldest in Dutchess county. William 
Traver, our subject's grandfather, was born in 
this country, probably in the town of Union- 
vale, and became an influential and prosperous 
citizen. He was a farmer, and was also en- 
gaged in speculating, and took an active and 
generous interest in the Methodist Church of 
his locality. His son, James L. Traver, our 
subject's father, was born in the town of Pleas- 
ant Valley in 1834, and still resides upon his 
farm in Hyde Park. He married Miss Phoebe 
Jane Laird, a lady of Scotch descent, and 
daughter of John and Sarah (Leak) Laird. Her 
father was at one time a teamster in Pleasant 
Valley, and, later, a farmer in Hyde Park. The 
Lairds and the Travers are all Democrats in 
politics, and are among the most progressive 
and public-spirited membersof the communitj'. 

William E. Traver is the elder of two chil- 
dren, his brother Irving being still at home. 
After a boyhood spent upon the farm, Mr. Tra- 
ver, at the age of twentj'-one, was appointed 
jailer under C. W. Belding. and served in that 
capacity for three years. In 1889 he engaged 
in the laundry business at No. 14 Washington 
street, Poughkeepsie, and after nearly two 
^ years there he purchased the "Perrine House, " 
at New Hamburg, which he has since con- 
ducted as the " Traver House," his active and 
business-like management bringing him a grati- 
fying degree of success. 

On June 17, 1890, he was married to Miss 



Evadna Robman, a native of New York City, 
and a daughter of Thomson Robman. This 
family is of English origin. Mr. Traver is a 
Democrat in political faith, but has never 
sought official preferment. He is a member 
of the B. P. O. Elks, Poughkeepsie Lodge 
No. 275. 



^HOMAS W\ JAYCOX (deceased;. The 
JL subject of this sketch was born in the 
town of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county. De- 
cember 17, 1826, and was the son of Chris- 
topher Jayco.x. 

Our subject was reared upon the farm of 
his father, and on December 17, 1S50. he was 
married to Miss Sarah M. Rose, who was born 
in Hyde Paric. She is the daughter of Abram 
Rose, and lived in Hyde Park until sixteen 
years old, when her parents bought a farm 
in the town of Clinton, where she resided until 
her marriage. Mr. Rose was born in Ulster 
county. September 12, 1802, and married Miss 
Eliza Van Wagener, who was born in the 
same county, February 20. 1805, a daughter 
of Minard Van Wagener, also a native of Ul- 
ster county. They reared the following chil- 
dren: Lewis H.. a school teacher, who was 
a colonel in the Civil war, and died in Louisi- 
ana in 1865; John M. was a moulder by 
trade; during the gold fever he went to Cali- 
fornia, and nothing more was heard of him; 
William G., and George H.. twins (the former 
died in infancy. George lives in Waterbury. 
Conn.); Sarah M., Mrs. Jaycox; Daniel V. W. 
died young; Innis E. lives in Oregon. The 
grandfather of Mrs. Jaycox was nained John, 
and was of Holland descent. 

Mr. and Mrs. Jaycox settled on the old 
homestead after their marriage, where they 
lived until 1859, when he bought the present 
farm, and resided there until his death, which 
took place December 21, 1887. Five chil- 
dren were born to our subject and his wife, 
namely: Thomas W. is a civil engineer in 
Leadville, Colo.; Mary R. died April 30. 1S60; 
Clinton is on the home farm; Anna E. mar- 
ried I. T. N. Harcourt, a grocer in Wapping- 
ers Falls; Cora I. became the wife of Elmore 
L. Pryor, an engraver at Wappingers Falls. 
Mr. Jaycox had 100 acres, on which he did 
general farming. He was a Republican and a 
prominent man in politics, and held the offices 
of Internal Revenue collector, and supervisor 
for two terms. He was a progressive citizen 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPUICAL RECORD. 



925 



and took an active part in public affairs, hold- 
ing at one time the office of president and 
treasurer of the Dutchess County Agricultural 
Society. 

Christopher Jaycox was born in Pough- 
keepsie, where he married Miss Antoinette 
Van Dyne and settled on a farm in Poughkeepsie 
town, where the following children were born: 
James W. is a farmer and boatman; Hannah J. 
married William Luckey, a hotel keeper in 
Wappingers Falls; Thomas W. is our subject; 
Eliphalet is living retired at Sandwich, 111. ; 
Mary G. died young. 

Thomas W. Jayco.x, the grandfather of 
our subject, was born in Holland. He was 
one of three brothers who came to America 
and settled in Dutchess county. One of the 
boys died, and another disappeared. 



J A. PERKINS, of the well-known firm of 
Perkins & Co., jewelers and opticians, 
Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county, was born 
in that county, November 4, 1841, a son of 
Alexander W. and Rebecca M. ( Akerley) Per- 
kins. 

His early life was passed on a farm with 
the usual advantages in the way of schools and 
work. He acquired his education in the com- 
mon schools of his native town, and supple- 
mented the knowledge there obtained by at- 
tendance at the Dutchess County Academy, in 
Poughkeepsie. After leaving school he en- 
tered the arena of business by accepting a po- 
sition as clerk in a store. For five years he 
was connected with the freight depot of the 
New York Central railroad, and, later, he en- 
tered the employ of the Poughkeepsie &. East- 
ern railroad, with which he remained two 
years as general passenger agent, after which 
he was made superintendent and general man- 
ager. In this capacity, through all the changes 
and vicissitudes of the road, he served for 
eighteen years, his long term of service being 
the best of all testimonials for the faithful dis- 
charge of his duties. In i8gi he resigned, 
and for a short time engaged in the ice busi- 
ness with his brother, Stephen A., in which he 
was very successful; but he now entered a co- 
partnership with his brother, Charles H. Per- 
kins, in the general jewelry business, and the 
manufacturing of optical supplies. They 
have met with success far beyond all ex- 
pectations, and have rapidly advanced to the 
front rank. The pleasant reception given their 



customers at their modern store at No. 322 
Main street, Poughkeepsie, has secured them 
an extensive and lucrative trade amcng the 
wealthiest citizens along the Hudson river. 
Careful attention to the filling of orders, and 
the superior work given, has brought its reward 
in the satisfaction to and the good will of the 
public. 

In 1865 Mr. Perkins was united in mar- 
riage with Anna A. Morey, a daughter of 
George and Rachel Morey, of Poughkeepsie. 
They have become the parents of two children: 
Fred V., of Chicago, and Grace T. , wife of 
Edward Quintard, of Poughkeepsie. Socially, 
our subject and his wife occupy an enviable 
position, and in their charming home their 
friends ever find a hospitable welcome. Mr. 
Perkins is a member of the Masonic fraternity, 
of Triune Lodge, Poughkeepsie. As a pub- 
lic-spirited, progressive citizen, he is the peer 
of any man in the county. 



OBERT SANDERS. The subject of 
this sketch is a native of Poughkeepsie, 
Dutchess county, born April 3, 1847. He 
went to the city schools, and later attended the 
Dutchess County Academy. 

On July 22, 1862, at the age of fifteen 
years, Mr. Sanders enlisted in Company D, 
128th N. Y. V. I., with which he remained all 
through the war. He was wounded while 
serving in the Shenandoah \'alley. In 1865 
he was honorably discharged and returned to 
Poughkeepsie and finished his educati'^n, after 
which he went into the trucking business, in 
which he continued twenty-one years. In con- 
nection with this occupation he also for a time 
engaged in scalping railroad tickets. He re- 
mained in business until rheumatism com- 
pelled him to give it up, and, since 1887, he 
has lived retired from active life. 

In 1867 the subject of this sketch was 
married to Miss Amelia Elsworth, who was 
born in the town of Pawling, Dutchess 
county. Her parents were Buhl and Sarah 
Elsworth, farmers, who came of Holland an- 
cestors. One daughter, Sarah E., was born 
to Mr. and Mrs. Sanders, and died at the age 
of two years. In politics Mr. Sanders is a 
Republican, and he is a member of the G. A. 
R. and of the K. of P. He and his wife at- 
tend the Baptist Church to the support of 
which he is a liberal contributor. Mr. Sand- 
ers owns considerable real estate, having five 



926 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



houses and lots on Washington street, and 
store property on Main street in Pou^jhkeepsie, 
and also 140 acres of land in Florida, on 
which there is a well-cultivated orange grove. 
He is a self-made man, and has achieved suc- 
cess by hard work and perseverance. 

Simon Sanders, the father of our subject, 
was born in Ireland, where he learned the 
stone mason's trade, which he followed after 
coming to America. He married, in Canada, 
Miss Mary Marian, also a native of Ireland, 
and they came to Poughkeepsie where Mr. 
Sanders followed his trade. The following 
children were born to them: James, a machin- 
ist, who was an engineer for the Standard Oil 
Company in New Orleans, where he died; 
John, who was captain of the police in New 
York City, where he died in 1889; Robert, 
our subject; and Simon, who is a blacksmith 
in New. Jersey. The father of these died 
about 1852, and the mother departed this life 
in 1885. 



JfOHN M. BORLAND is one of the ablest 
lawyers practicing at the Poughkeepsie bar, 
" being possessed of a mind which enables 
him to at once discover, the points in a case. 
A man of sound judgment, he manages his 
cases with masterly skill and tact. He is a 
logical reasoner, and has a ready command of 
the English language. He claims Matteawan, 
Dutchess county, as his native city, the date 
of his birth being June 30, 1846. 

Mr. Borland remained in Matteawan, at- 
tending school until twelve years of age, at 
which time he accompanied his parents to 
Poughkeepsie, where he pursued his studies 
in the high school and the Dutchess County 
Academy, completing his education at the 
Eastman Business College, where he graduat- 
ed in the class of '66. He was then employed 
for two years in the surrogate's office, after 
which he was engaged in the livery business 
until 1870, when he entered the law office of 
Dorland & Williams, with whom ne remained 
for about two years. On the expiration of 
that time he again held a position in the sur- 
rogate's office, where he was employed until 
January i, 1877. In September, 1878, he was 
admitted to the bar, and has since successfully 
practiced law in Poughkeepsie. 

On September 5, 1875, Mr. Dorland was 
married to Miss Phcebe J. Robinson, a native 
of Fishkill, and a daughter of John H. and Jane 



Robinson, the former of whom was of Irish 
e.xtraction, and by occupation a general farmer. 
In religious belief our subject and his wife are 
Methodists and are identified with the Meth- 
odist Episcopal Church. Politically, Mr. Dor- 
land votes the straight Republican ticket. His 
powers as an advocate have been demonstrated 
by his success on many occasions; he is an able 
lawyer of large and varied experience in all the 
courts. Thoroughness characterizes all his 
efforts, and he conducts his business with a 
strict regard to a high standard of professional 
ethics. 



WILLIAM HENRY WHITE. The fam- 
ily to which the subject of this sketch 

belongs is one of the oldest in the town of 
Pawling, Dutchess county, his great-great- 
grandfather, Joseph White, having settled in 
the southwestern part of the town before the 
Revolutionary war, upon a tract of land which 
he cleared and cultivated. This land has ever 
since been in the possession of the descend- 
ants, and is now owned by Warren White. 
Joshua, son of Joseph White, was a prominent 
resident of Pawling- town, holding various 
offices, including that of supervisor, and he 
for many years was a justice of the peace. 
Sewell, another son of Joseph White, and our 
subject's great-grandfather, was born there in 
1 78 1, and, as did his father, he followed agri- 
culture throughout his life. He died in 1859, 
and his remains are buried at Ludingtonville. 
He married Sallie Lounsbury, and had seven 
children, of whom John B., the grandfather of 
our subject, was the eldest. (2) Eli lived and 
died in the town of Pawling; (3) Joseph R. 
moved to Pennsylvania, where he made his 
permanent home; (4) Amzy' lived at Bluffton, 
Wells Co., Ind. ; (5) Warren occupies the old 
homestead; and (6) Lucy died at the age of 
twelve years. In politics the male members 
of the family have always been Whigs and Re- 
publicans; and in their religious views they 
have inclined toward the Methodist form of 
worship. 

John B. White was born at the old farm in 
1809, and although his educational advantages 
were not of the best, his fine natural ability 
made up for that to a great e.xtent, and his 
judgment, in business affairs and other matters, 
was much sought by his associates. His farm 
was not large, but he was regarded as an e.x- 
cellent manager. Political office had no charms 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



927 



for him, althoug;h his high standing in the com- 
munity would have insured his success as a 
candidate. He married Mary P. Worden, a 
daughter of Dr. Stephen Worden, a leading 
physician of his day in that locality. Of their 
eight children our subject's father, Sewell 
White, was the eldest. (2J Stephen died in 
1886; (3) Sarah Ann married Timothy Flan- 
nelly; (4) Elizabeth married Russell Ballard; 
(5) Joshua left home, and his present location 
is not known (he probably died in Anderson- 
ville prison during the Civil warj; (6) Abigail 
married \^'illiam Peck; (7) Maria married 
George Ballard; and (8) Esther became the 
wife of Samuel Humphrey. The father died 
in 1888, in his eightieth year, the mother sur- 
viving him only two years. 

Sewell White was born September 2, 1834, 
at the old home farm, and he was given fair 
educational advantages in the district schools at 
Reynoldsville, although, with his mental gifts, 
he could have done justice to better opportu- 
nities. His later reading has been extensive 
and thorough, thus making good many early 
limitations. At the age of seventeen he was 
apprenticed to C. H. DeGraff, of Patterson, 
N. Y. , to learn the blacksmith's trade, and 
after three years there, he worked two and a 
half years for Matthew Worden, of Dover 
Plains. He then entered the service of the 
Harlem Railroad Co., spending twelve years 
in the repair shops at Dover Plains, with the 
exception of two years as conductor of a 
freight train. After severing his connection 
with the railroad he engaged in blacksmithing 
on his own account, opening a shop in Pawling 
about 1870, and he followed the trade at dif- 
ferent locations in the town until 1888, when 
the firm of W'hite & Ragan was formed, and 
their present successful business as wagon 
makers and blackstniths was established. Their 
new shop, which was built in 1892, is one of 
the largest in that part of the county, and 
their trade extends through a large territory. 
Mr. White is a member of the M. E. Church, 
and has always shown much public spirit. He 
takes an active interest in the success of the 
Democratic party, and has been town sealer, 
town clerk, road commissioner and justice of 
the peace. As a self-made man, his reputa- 
tion in the business world is an enviable one, 
while his able discharge of every duty as a 
public official has been no less creditable to 
him. He married Miss Nancy Amy, daughter 
of Gilbert Amy, a leading citizen of Union- 



vale, and had three children: (i) William 
Henry; (2) Sarah, who married George T. 
Chapman, of Pawling, and has four children — 
Mary, Cordelia, Grace and George; and (3) 
Cora, who is at home. 

William Henry White, one of the success- 
ful business men of Pawling, holds the respon- 
sible position of assistant purchasing agent for 
the N. Y. & N. H. R. R. He was born at 
Dover Plains, N. Y. , September 20, 1855; 
educated at the private school of George N. 
Perry, and at the public schools. He learned 
the blacksmith's trade with his father, and after 
serving his time he took up the business of 
telegraphing; was in the employ of the Housa- 
tonic Railroad Co. at New Milford, for a period 
of eight years as agent and telegrapher, be- 
coming during this time a shorthand writer and 
machine operator. In 1885 he was appointed 
trainmaster of the Housatonic railroad, which 
position he resigned in 1S87 to accept his pres- 
ent one. 

Our subject married Mary Augusta Senior, 
daughter of Joseph D. Senior and Adelia E. 
Wright, and their children are: Grace Dale, 
Clifford Sewell, Daisy Edith, Jessie Bishop 
and Ruth Marion. Joseph Dale Senior was 
born in Danbury in 1830, son of William 
Senior, who came from Dorsetshire, England, 
in 1830. The family of Adelia E. Wright 
(Mrs. White's mother) is connected with the 
early history of New England, originating (to 
present knowledge) with John Shaw and his 
wife Martha (Ivnowles), 1744, different mem- 
bers having been of the towns of Washington, 
Kent, Hartford, Haddam, New Milford, and 
Danbury, Conn. The family is connected with 
the old Beecher and Ward families of Litch- 
field countv, Connecticut. 



JrAMES B. HAIGHT, a prominent agricult- 
\ urist and miller of Bangall, Dutchess coun- 
- ty, was born July 23, 1837, in the town of 
Stanford. His family has for many years held 
a leading place in that vicinity. His ancestral 
history is given in the biography of James 
Haight. 

The late Leonard Haight, our subject's fa- 
ther, passed his life in the town of Stanford, 
attending its schools in youth, and, later, en- 
gaging in farming. He was a Democrat in 
politics, but was not active in party work. He 
married Miss Phoebe Griffin, and had six chil- 
dren, of whom our subject is the joungest. 



928 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHWAL RECORD. 



Of the others — Marfjaret. George, Hannah, 
John and W'ilham — the only survivor is Han- 
nah, who is now Mrs. Simon Losee. 

James B. Haight was reared upon a farm, 
enjoying the educational advantages of the 
neighboring schools. At the age of thirty-five 
he left the farm to engage in milling at Ban- 
gall, where he has since resided. He owns 
and operates grist, saw and cider mills, and 
also manages the old homestead. Possessing 
unusual business ability and energy, which will 
push to a successful termination anj' undertak- 
ing, he stands high in the esteem of his asso- 
ciates. He married Miss Susan Hart, a daugh- 
ter of K. Hart, one of Stanford's leading resi- 
dents, and has two children — William J., and 
Pbccbe, now the wife of Charles Hicks. In 
politics Mr. Haight is a Democrat. 



FREDERICK C. WHITE, a well-known 
_ citizen of Pawling, Dutchess county, now 
in the employ of the Harlem Railroad Co., is 
one of those men whose quiet and constant at- 
tention to the ' ' duty which lies nearest " makes 
their lives pass without extraordinary incident. 
For some years he followed the carpenter's 
trade in Canaan, Columbia Co., N. Y., pre- 
vious to entering upon his present business. 
He married Miss Cornelia Brusie Traver, who 
was born and reared in the town of Northeast, 
Dutchess county, receiving her education in 
the common schools there. Of their two chil- 
dren, the elder, Wilbur White, was born in 
1858, at Sharon. Conn., and, after securing 
his education in the schools of that town, 
learned the business of painting and paper 
hanging. He and his wife, formerly Miss Kate 
Northrup, have one child, Raymond, born in 
1 88 1. Estella White, our subject's younger 
child, was born in 1863, in Millerton, N. Y., 
where she attended school. She married Fred 
Fletcher, a painter at Patterson, N. Y. , and 
has three children: Harold, born in 1886; 
Clarence, born in 1889; and Leon, born in 
1896. 

Mrs. Cornelia B. White's ancestors were 
early residents at Ancram, Columbia Co., N. 
Y., where her grandfather, Charles Traver, 
was born. His education was obtained in the 
local schools, and later he engaged in agricult- 
ure there, passing his life in that pursuit. He 
was a private soldier in the war of 181 2. A 
family of si.\ children was born to him and his 
wife Eli;^abeth, all of whom lived to adult age 



and married as follows: Hiram — Eliza Brusie; 
John — Salina Summers; Freeman — Sarah Col- 
by; James — Betsy Race; Elizabeth — William 
Cannam; and Polly — Ebenezer Guernsey. 

Hiram Traver, Mrs. White's father, was 
born in Ancram in 1805, and the common 
schools of that town furnished him his educa- 
tional opportunities. Engaging in early man- 
hood in farming, he followed that occupation 
all his life, and, for twenty years, he also car- 
ried the mail from Sharon to Cornwall, Conn., 
and from Poughkeepsie to New Paltz, N. Y. 
His wife was a daughter of Nicholas and Lo- 
retta (Egleston) Brusie, her father being the 
well-known wagon maker of Boston Corners, 
N. Y. Mrs. White was born in 1838, the sec- 
ond of a family of four children — Charles, Cor- 
nelia, Mary and Alva. The eldest, Charles, 
was born in 1836, in Sharon, Conn., studied 
in the public schools there, and learned the 
carpenter's trade, which he followed the greater 
part of his life. Shortly after the breaking out 
of the Civil war he enlisted in the 19th 2d C. 
V. H. A., as a corporal, and served through- 
out the war with honor, being mustered out, in 
1865, as a lieutenant. He received a wound 
in the battle of the Wilderness. He married 
Miss Susan Kellog, and has had four children: 
Julia, wife of Eugene Halleck; Frederick, who 
married Paulina Halleck; Fannie, wife of John 
Piatt; and William, who is not married. Of 
the two younger children of Mr. and Mrs. Hi- 
ram Traver, Mary Brusie was born in 1840, at 
Dover Furnace, married Sanford Palmer, and 
had two children: (i) Emma, who married 
William Root, and has three children — Maj', 
Claude and Bertha; (2) Dora, who married 
Fred Calkins, and has four children — Charles, 
Emma, Eugene and LeRoy. Alva Brusie 
Traver was born in 1855, at Sharon, Conn., 
and, after attending the pujjlic schools there 
for some years, studied music, and is now a 
professor in that art at Central Valley, Orange 
Co., N. Y. He married Miss Adelaide Strick- 
land, and has had two children — Levern and 
Carl, both at home. 



.«> BEL SMITH, one of the substantial agri- 
culturists of the town of Pawling, Dutch- 
ess county, is a descendant of an old and pa- 
triotic family of Westchester county, N. Y. 
His grandfather, Richard Smith, was born in 
North Castle, and followed agriculture there. 
He did good service in the Revolutionary war. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



929 



and, as the locality in which he lived was the 
scene of much disturbance, many memories 
of that trying period are connected with his 
farm. On one occasion a man was shot in his 
house, and the blood stains can still be seen 
upon the floor. He and his wife, Elizabeth 
Miller, reared a family of seven children: 
Jacob, Richard, Isaac, Benjamin, Sophia, Het- 
tie and Phoebe. 

Jacob Smith, our subject's father, was born 
and educated at North Castle, and he gave evi- 
dence of his patriotism, by serving as a soldier 
in the war of 1812. By occupation he was a 
farmer and shoemaker. He married Miss 
Betsy Carpenter, and had ten children, of 
whom our subject was the youngest. The 
others all lived to adult age, and married as 
follows: Ruth — Hiram Lewis; Esther A. — 
Merritt Saris; Abigail — Chauncy Hall; Morris 
C. — Charlotte Foster; Mary — William Wright; 
Deborah L. — John Griffin; Richard — Mary 
Peck; Sarah S. — Griffin Hunter; and Eleanor 
— Edward Simmonds. 

Our subject was born March 5, 1831; he 
was reared at the old homestead at North Cas- 
tle, and attended the public schools of that 
town. He learned the blacksmith's trade, and 
followed it there for several years, but, in i860, 
he moved to the town of Pawling, and he has 
since devoted his attention to farming. He 
married Miss Ann Maria Odell, and has had 
five children: (i) Benson was born at Mount 
Pleasant, Westchester county, in 1854, and, 
after receiving a common-school education, en- 
gaged in farming, but later became interested 
in shirt manufacturing. He and his wife, for- 
merly Miss M. Frances Reynolds, have four 
children — Herbert; Belle (Mrs. Watson Bal- 
lard); Lilly M., and Wilby; of these, the first 
and the last two are not married. (2) Elnora, 
born in 1856, married Casper Davis, a wheel- 
wright, of Connecticut, and has five children 
— Maude, Delia, Edna, Abel and Casper, all 
at home. (3) Lemuel, born in i860, married 
Miss Alice Carrey, but has no children. (4) 
Ida, born in 1863, is at home. (5) Grace, 
born in 1870, married Riley Peck, and has 
three children — Arthur, Everett L. and Odell. 

The wife of our subject is also descended 
from a well-known Westchester family. Her 
grandfather, Benjamin Odell, was born there, 
and lived and died there, following in his 
mature years the occupations of farming and 
blacksmithing. He married, and had seven 
children: Jacob, Isaac, Benjamin, Clinton, 

60 



Rosette, Mary and Lackey. Jacob Odell, 
Mrs. Smith's father, was also a native of 
Westchester county, and on completing his 
common-school course there engaged in farm- 
ing and blacksmithing at Mount Pleasant. He 
married (first) Miss Taner, and (second) Miss 
Jane Lint, daughter of Peter and Maria Lint. 
Seven children were born of the second union: 
Abram married Esther Angevine; Peter mar- 
ried Lutetia Yearkes; William married Charity 
Nodine; Jackson married Mary Buckhaupt; 
Julia A. is not married; Ann Maria is now 
Mrs. Smith; and Ijenjamin married Martha 
Whitney. 



GEORGE J. LEE, a prosperous farmer of 
the town of Unionvale, Dutchess county, 
is a representative of the well-known Lee 
family, who long made their home in the town 
of Washington, Dutchess county. His grand- 
father, Samuel Lee, was there born, reared 
and educated. He learned the trade of a 
mason, which he followed throughout life, and 
was an expert workman. In Unionvale there is 
a house still standing, now over one hundred 
years old, which was erected by him. He 
married Miss Pattie Haight, by whom he had 
nine children: John, the father of our subject; 
Frederick, who wedded Margaret Crouse; 
James; Joseph; Herman; Moses; Isaac, who 
married Mary Lee; George; and Phoebe A., 
who became the wife of Talmadge Sutherland. 
The birth of John Lee occurred in the 
town of Washington, in 1805. He received a 
common-school education, and learned the 
carpenter's trade. Many of the finest resi- 
dences of Dutchess county are the work of 
his hands. His vote was cast in support of 
the principles of the Whig party, but he cared 
nothing for political preferment. He married 
Miss Ann Wilbur, daughter of Enoch Wilbur, 
a farmer of Washington town, and they be- 
came the parents of four children, namely: 
(I) Enoch H., who after the completion of his 
education, 'engaged in painting in Washington 
town. On the breaking out of the war of the 
Rebellion he enlisted in the 44th N. Y. V. I., 
and was, later, transferred to the 146th regi- 
ment; he was killed in the last battle of the 
war, at the time of Lee's surrender. (2) 
Brownell W. , the second son, learned the 
wheelwright's trade, at which he has since 
been employed, having a shop at Arlington, 



930 



COMMEMORA TIVE niOaRAPnWAL RECORD. 



N. Y. He also served in the Civil war, be- 
coming a member of the 6ist N. Y. V. I., and 
on his re-enlistment joined the 66th New York 
Cavalry, with which he served until hostilities 
had ceased, when he was mustered out with 
the rank of sergeant. At one time he was 
confined in Libby prison and endured all the 
privations and hardships of army life. He 
married Miss Jane Owen, by whom he has 
ten children — George; Ida, wife of Clinton 
Kerry; Eva; Harvey; Weston; John; Mabel; 
Oneta; Myron; and Louis, who died in infancy. 
(3) Our subject is next in order of birth. (4) 
Elizabeth, the only daughter, died at the age 
of five years. 

George J. Lee, of this review, was born in 
the town of Washington, in 1847, and there 
obtained a common-school education. In early 
life he learned the blacksmith's trade, which he 
followed only to a limited extent, giving his at- 
tention principally to his farming interests. 
In 1896 he purchased the Caroline Congdon 
farm in Unionvale town, which comprises 223 
acres of fine land, and is now engaged in its 
cultivation and improvement. He is an enter- 
prising and progressive agriculturist, thoroughly 
understanding his business, and well deserves 
the success which has come to him. He is a 
valued citizen of the community, one who has 
the esteem and confidence of those with whom 
he comes in contact. 

In 1875 Mr. Lee was married to Miss Car- 
rie Jones, whose birth occurred in the town of 
Clinton, Dutchess county, June 6, 1854, and 
whose education was obtained in Broome 
county, N. Y. They have an interesting fam- 
ily of three children: Enoch J., born Janu- 
ary 19, 1880; Estella, born June 28, 1883, 
and Minnie A., born August 21, 1892. 

The paternal great-grandfather of Mrs. Lee 
spent his entire life in Columbia county, N. Y., 
and reared his six children, namely: Hugh; 
Mary; Margaret; John; Thomas, who married 
Jane Allen; and William, who married Abigail. 
Hugh Jones, the eldest of the children, and 
the grandfather of Mrs. Lee, was a native of 
Columbia county, and throughout kfe followed 
the occupation of farming. He was united in 
marriage with Miss Matilda Burrows, a daugh- 
ter of Benjamin Burrows, and to them were 
born children as follows: 

(i) Sarah M. Jones was born in Columbia 
county in 1829, but was educated in Dutchess 
county, where her parents had removed when 
she was quite young. She became the wife of 



George Morey, a native of the town of Clin- 
ton, Dutchess county. However, most of his 
life was devoted to farming in Washington 
town. He was the son of Joseph Morey, who 
was born and reared in the town of Clinton, 
and was also a farmer by occupation. By his 
marriage with Miss Mary Winslow, Joseph 
Morey had six children: Benjamin, who mar- 
ried Jane Burhans; Edmond, who died when 
young; George; Jane A. ; Margaret; and Eliz- 
abeth. The eldest daughter, Jane A., mar- 
ried Robert Buck, and they have two children: 
Elizabeth, who married Godfrey Wolven, and 
they have two children: Lottie, wife of Paul 
Burger, and Annie; and George, the only son 
of Mrs. Jane Buck. Three children were born 
to George and Sarah M. (Jones) Morey, as fol- 
lows: (a) Robert, who was born and educated in 
Washington town, and during his youth learned 
the blacksmith trade, at which he has since 
worked. For his first wife he married Delia 
Bishop, and they had one child, Georgiana, 
who wedded Amos Thorn, a carpenter, and to 
them has been born a son, Harry After the 
death of his first wife, Robert Morey was joined 
in wedlock with Minnie Clement, and they 
have two children: Oakley and AUerton. (b) 
Egbert Morey was also born, reared and edu- 
cated in Washington town, and follows the 
pursuit of blacksmithing. He married Ella 
Travis, and they have one son, Chester, (c) 
Annie Morey, the only daughter, died at the 
age of eight years. The family are widely and 
favorably known throughout the community 
where they make their homes, and have the re- 
gard of all who know them. 

(2) Darius was a native of Columbia county, 
N. Y., and a carpenter by trade. He married 
Miss Jane Gallagher, and had four chddren: 
Ida; Charles; Mrs. Viola Horn; and Elry. 

(3) Michael Jones is the father of Mrs.. Lee. 
He was born in Columbia county, but acquired 
his education in the common schools of Dutch- 
ess county, and throughout life has been em- 
ployed at the mason's trade. He wedded Miss 
Adaline Gildersleeve, daughter of Alfred Gilder- 
sleeve, a farmer of the town of Pleasant Val- 
ley, Dutchess county, and they became the 
parents of the following children: Lemuel, a 
machinist of Oneonta, N. Y., who is married 
and has three children, Lillie, Dora and Effie; 
Carrie, the wife of our subject; Emma, wife 
of Augustus West (an employe on the Albany 
& Susquehanna railroad), by whom she has 
two sons — Herbert and Harry; George; Hugh; 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPUWAL llECORD. 



931 



Paul; John; Laura; Harry; and one who died 
at the age of two years. 

(4) David Jones, a native of Columbia 
county, carried on farming. He married Het- 
tie Davis, and in their family were five chil- 
dren: Annie, who married Irving Jones; Mary, 
who wedded Byron Robinson; Dora; Alfrette, 
who married Wilham Robinson; and Alice, 
who became the wife of Arthur Haight. 

(5J Diana Jones married Cornelius Morris, 
and had two children: William, who married 
Annie Shaw; and Annie, who married William 
Martin. (6) Elizabeth married Walter Stew- 
art, and had three children: Mrs. Mary Hop- 
kins; Harry; and Zadie. (7) Lydia married 
Orlando Monroe, and had three children: 
Frank O.; Elizabeth, who married Hiram 
Tripp; and Clark, who married a Miss Hor- 
ton. (8) Josiah Jones, an agriculturist, mar- 
ried Elizabeth Horn, and has one son, Will- 
iam. (9) Mary Jones wedded William Cham- 
berlain, and had two children: Willis and 
Hugh. (10) Alonzo Jones died when young. 
(11) Louisa Jones married Henry Briggs, by 
whom she had one child, Orlando. (12) 
Rodger T. Jones, the youngest of the family, 
married Diana Davis, and they have two chil- 
dren: Judson and Eva. 



GEORGE INNIS, a son of Aaron Innis, 
mention of whom is made in the sketch 
of a son, Aaron, elsewhere in this volume, 
where will also be found the ancestral history 
of the family, is a representative manufacturer 
of Dutchess county, born in Poughkeepsie, 
where his early life was spent and where he 
received his education. 

In 1842 our subject became associated 
with Gifford & Sherman in the dye-wood 
business, in which he has continued ever since. 
That year the style of the firm became Gifford, 
Sherman & Innis, and so continued until the 
death of Mr. Sherman in 1858; the firm name 
stood as formerly until 1884, when it was Innis 
& Co. Our subject has been one of the lead- 
ers in all matters relating to public improve- 
ment, and among other projects he contributed 
a large sum of money for the construction of 
the Poughkeepsie & Eastern R. R., which he 
was instrumental in getting through Pough- 
keepsie. Mr. Innis was elected president of 
the old village of Poughkeepsie in the " 5©'s," 
was mayor of the city for three terms of two 
years each, during the Civil war, and has held 



the office of village trustee and supervisor. 
He has always been a stanch Repuljlican in 
politics, and was a Presidential elector at the 
first election of General Grant. Religiously 
he is a member of the First Reformed Church, 
to which he is a liberal contributor. In 1855 
he was married in New Paltz, Ulster county, 
to Anna Bevier, daughter of Levi Hasbrouck, 
and two children were born to them: (i) 
Martha, who married William H. Young, a 
lawyer in New York City, living on Prof. S. F. 
B. Morse's place; they have two children — 
Annette Innis, and Innis. (2) Hasbrouck, of 
the firm of Innis & Co. Our subject is a com- 
petent business man, social in nature and well- 
liked by everyone. 



JOHN McGLASSON, the able superintend- 
ent of the Poughkeepsie (Dutchess county) 

Rural Cemetery, has made that place one 
of the most admirably managed burial grounds 
to be found along the Hudson river, his suc- 
cess fully justifying the confidence reposed in 
him by the officers of the association. 

The ancient home of his family was in 
Dumfriesshire, Scotland. His grandfather Mc- 
Glasson was a native of that locality, and fol- 
lowed the business of quarrying, in which he 
lost his life. He and his wife, Elizabeth Elliott, 
had three children: Robert, our subject's fa- 
ther; Jane, who married Jacob Read, of An- 
nan, and Jessie, who married Mr. Wilkinson. 

Robert McGlasson was born in July, 18 18, 
and was a mere boy when his father's death 
occurred. He became a miller by occupation, 
and in 1848 came to the United States, lo- 
cating first in Stanford, Conn., where he was 
foreman of the spice mills for some time. 
Later he moved to the town of Lewisboro, 
Westchester Co. , N. Y. , and spent six or seven 
years conducting a flourmill, but about 1857 
he disposed of this business and removed to 
Dover, Dutchess county, where he ran the 
Hancut Mills on shares for many years. With 
the exception of two or three years at Little 
Rest, the remainder of his life was passed there. 
Possessing good natural abilities, he was suc- 
cessful in business, and was regarded as one of 
the substantial citizens of the town. He was 
a Presbyterian in religion, and in politics was 
a Democrat, voting for Pierce, but later was a 
Republican, though liberal in his views. His 
wife was Mary Irving, daughter of John and 



932 



UOMMEMOUATIVE BIOGUAPHIC'AL liEVOUD 



Jeannette (Thompson) Irving, and they had 
six children, viz.: Jeannette T., who married 
S. B. Shaw, a farmer of Fairfax Court House, 
Va. ; John, our subject; Thomas Irving, now 
the owner of an undertaking establishment 
and paint shop in Matteawan; Elizabeth Elliott, 
the wife of Robert J. Shadbolt, a lawyer of 
lirooklyn, N. Y. ; Robert A., a railway con- 
ductor, residing in Harlem; and Minerva I., 
the wife of Samuel R. Hanna. 

John McGlasson was born September i, 
1843, at the old home. The family settled in 
Dutchess county during his boyhood, and his 
education was obtained mainly in the district 
schools of Dover Plains before the age of fif- 
teen years, although after he was twenty-one 
he attended night school in New York City, 
at Cooper Union and in the grammar schools. 
While his early advantages were not as liberal 
as might have been desired, he has done much 
to offset this by reading and private study, and 
is well-posted upon current topics. At the 
age of fourteen he left home and spent two 
years working for the father of W. T. 
Ketchani, and two summers with the father of 
George W. Perry. He began to learn the 
marble-cutter's trade, when he was seventeen, 
serving an apprenticeship of four years with 
Charles Smith, and then worked for him two 
and a half years longer. He went to New 
York and remained seven years, and in 1870, 
he established a marble yard at Pawling, and 
continued it until 1882, when he went to 
Poughkeepsie as foreman for Richard Gra- 
ham. He worked seven years for him, and 
one year for Mrs. Graham. In December, 
1889, he was appointed to his present respon- 
sible position, being one of twenty-eight appli- 
cants. He is now one of the leading workers 
in his line, and his management of the 
grounds with the force of from twenty to 
twenty-four men is beyond criticism. 

He was married to Miss OUivia Hurd, 
daughter of William and Laura Hurd, of 
Pawling. Her father was formerly a well- 
known merchant at Hurd's Corners. P"our 
children were born of this union : Minnie 
Reed, Maud Campbell, Mable Irving and Will- 
iam T., all of whom are at home. 

Mr. McGlasson sympathizes with the Dem- 
ocratic party in national issues, but is inclined 
to be independent in local politics. He at- 
tends the M. E. Church and contributes to its 
support, and to the advancement of other 
worthy causes, and he is a member of Triune 



Lodge, F. & A. M., Poughkeepsie Chapter 
No. 173, Poughkeepsie Commandery No. 43 
and to the Royal Arcanum. 



JOHN LYKE is now retired from the active 
labors of life, and occupies a comfortable 
home in Poughkeepsie, Dutchess county. 
He is a native of the vicinity of Johnstown, Co- 
lumbia Co., N. Y. , where his father, George 
Lyke, was born. There the latter spent his 
boyhood days, and on reaching maturity was 
united in marriage with Anna Scofield, by 
whom he had two children, Margaret and 
John, but the sister and parents of our subject 
are all now deceased. The father was a farmer 
of Columbia county, and was the son of John 
Lyke, who was of German ancestry, and one 
of the first settlers of that county where he 
carried on agricultural pursuits. 

Our subject spent his early years near 
Johnstown, N. Y., in the usual manner of 
farmer lads, until fourteen, when he went to 
Copake and completed his education. From 
the age of twelve years until he reached his 
majority he worked as a farm hand, but at 
that time entered a store at Ancram, where he 
clerked for a year and a half. He next se- 
cured a position in a store at Sheffield, N. Y., 
and later was employed in a hotel at New 
York City. He then began the show business 
with G. F. Bailey & Co., and afterward was 
with Van Ambergh & Co. for sixteen years, 
during which time he purchased an interest in 
the firm. On selling out he traveled for a few 
years with the London Show, and has visited 
nearly every town of any size east of the Mis- 
sissippi river. 

On giving up that life, Mr. Lyke returned 
to Copake, N. Y., where he lived retired un- 
til coming to Poughkeepsie in 1882, in order 
to educate his sons. At the former place he 
was married in 1 861, to Sarah Sweet, a 
daughter of Rowland Sweet, and their family 
includes three sons: J. Hyatt, a dentist of 
Millerton, N. Y. , wedded Georgiana Rowe, 
and has two children, Clinton and Stewart; 
Fred S., a stenographer, married Hattie Will- 
iams, by whom he has a son, Fred; and John 
J. belongs to the hospital corps of the United 
States Army and is stationed at Washington. 
For about fourteen years our subject has made 
his home in Poughkeepsie, during which time 
he has gained many warm friends and is held 
in the highest regard by all who know him. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOOBAPHWAL RECORD. 



983 



He was identified with the Masonic fraternity 
in New York City, belonging to Polar Star 
Lodge; he is now a faithful member of Trin- 
ity Methodist Episcopal Church of Pough- 
keepsie. 



CHARLES E. VAN KLEECK, a prosperous 
Jj farmer and representative citizen of Pough- 
keepsie, was born in the town of Beekman, 
Dutchess county, January 14, 1843. He 
worked on his father's farm and attended school 
during his youth. 

On November 17, 1869, he was married to 
Miss Kate B. Rogers, who was born in the 
town of Beekman August 4, 1842, and they 
settled on a farm in the town of Wappinger, 
where they remained for three years, and in 
1873 moved to Poughkeepsie. After living 
here a year they moved to their present farm, 
where they have reared their two children, 
Mary E. and Robert M. Mr. Van Ivleeck has 
a farm of eighty-seven acres in the town of 
Fishkill, and twenty acres in Poughkeepsie. 
He is a Republican, a public-spirited citizen, 
and, with his wife, is a member of the Presby- 
terian Church. 

James W. Rogers, the father of Mrs. Van- 
Kleeck, was born in the town of Beekman, 
where he married Miss Mary Besley, a native 
of Fishkill, and there were born to them the 
following children: Helen A., John A., Mar- 
garet, K.ate B., Charlotte, Phcebe, Mary E. , 
Walter, Henry, George and James. John 
A. and Walter are farmers in Dutchess county. 
The others, with the exception of our subject's 
wife, are deceased. Mr. Rogers died January 
29, 1884, and his wife November 22, 1888. 
Micah Rogers, the grandfather, was also born in 
Beekman. 

Robert M. Van Kieeck, the father of our 
subject, was born in the city of Poughkeepsie 
August 10, 1804. He grew up there, and in 
early life learned the harness and saddle mak- 
ing business of David B. Lent. He married 
Hannah Rogers, the daughter of John Rogers, 
a farmer in the town of Beekman. After their 
marriage, the parents of our subject located 
in Beekmanville, where he carried on the busi- 
ness of making harness, trunks, saddles, etc. 
One child, our subject, was born to Mr. and 
Mrs. Van Kieeck. In 1843 they bought a 
farm in Fishkill, to which they moved and car- 
ried on farming until his death, which occurred 
October 4, 1872, his wife dying November 19, 



1874. He was a Republican, and both were 
members of Christ Church. The Rogers 
family was of English ancestry. Hezekiah, 
the grandfather, was a tanner and currier in 
the town of Beekman. John, the father of 
Mrs. Van Kieeck, married Mary Skidmore, 
a native of Beekman, where they settled and 
reared the following family: Phcebe, Ruth, 
Stephen, Laban, James, Judith, Gilbert, 
Mariah and Hannah. 

John M. Van Kieeck, the paternal grand- 
father of our subject, was born in Poughkeep- 
sie September 15, 1776. His father, Myndert 
Van Kieeck, was born in Dutchess county, 
and died there December 17, 1799. He was 
a direct descendant of Baltus Van Kieeck, 
who came from Holland. John M. married 
Miss Eliza Noxon, the daughter of Bartholo- 
mew Noxon, a physician, for whom Noxon 
street was named. John settled in Pough- 
keepsie, where he carried on a general store 
on the corner of Main and Academy streets. 
He also did a shipping business between Pough- 
keepsie and New York City. He was the 
father of these children: Robert M., father 
of our subject; George M., a dry-goods mer- 
chant of Poughkeepsie; Edgar M. was in early 
life a merchant in Poughkeepsie, and later re- 
tired; Hester F. died unmarried. The old 
folks were members of Christ Church. 



D^AVID F. PHILLIPS, one of the ener- 
_ ' getic and progressive farmers of the town 
of Red Hook, Dutchess county, where he has 
resided since 1861, is now devoting his atten- 
tion to the improvement and cultivation of his 
land with most excellent results. He is hon- 
ored and respected by the entire community, 
who look upon him as one of the most wide- 
awake farmers and model citizens. 

The maternal grandfather of our subject, 
David V. Feller, was a native of Columbia 
county, where his education was obtained in 
the common schools, and hethere followed the 
vocation of farming throughout life. By his 
marriage with Miss Elizabeth Mink, of the 
same county, he had six children: William, 
Ezra, Lena, Helen. Jane and Emma Eliza. 
The last named, Emma Eliza, was born and 
educated in Pleasant Vale, Columbia county, 
and became the wife of Abraham Henry Phil- 
lips, a native of Columbia county, N. Y., 
where he was educated in the common schools 



034 



COMMEMUBATIVE BIOOIIAPUICAL RECORD. 



and followed the occupation of farming. By 
this union were born seven children, namely: 
Romelia married Rennselaer Moore; David F. 
is next in the order of birth; William H. 
wedded Mary McClure; Martha is unmarried; 
George A. married Daisy M. De F"orest; 
Elizabeth became the wife of William Wol- 
cott; and Alice died at the age of four years. 
The brothers and sisters of Abraham Henry 
Phillips, father of our subject, were: Anthony, 
who married Catherine Lasher; Nicholas, who 
married Catherine Feller; Jacob, who also 
wedded a Miss Feller; John, who married 
Elmira Decker; Catherine, who became the 
wife of Edward Teator; and Elizabeth, who 
married Philip Hapeman. 

Mr. Phillips, of this review, is also a native 
of Columbia county, his birth having occurred 
in 1845. but when quite young his parents re- 
moved west, locating in Michigan, where he 
attended the public schools and there acquired 
a fair education. He followed agricultural 
pursuits in that State until 1861, when he 
returned east, and has since made his home in 
the town of Red Hook, Dutchess county. In 
1S79, he married Mrs. Lottie De Forest, 
widow of Harry C. De Forest, by whom she 
had three children: Augustus R. , born in 
1852; Daisy M., born in 1868; and Wallace, 
born in 1876. Our subject and his wife have 
one daughter — Ruby L. , born September 6, 
1880. 

The paternal grandfather of Mrs. Phillips, 
William Carter, married Miss Charlotte Ear- 
ner, daughter of Douglass and Elizabeth 
Earner, of New Brunswick, and to them were 
born two children: William, the father of 
Mrs. Phillips; and Elizabeth, who became the 
wife of Samuel Montgomery. William Carter, 
Jr., was born and educated in New Brunswick, 
where he later engaged in the manufacture of 
cigars. He married Miss Maria B. White- 
man, and to them were born three daughters: 
Julia W. , wife of James H. Cortelyou; Josie, 
wife of John" P. Shafer, of Red Hook; and 
Lottie, wife of our subject. Her maternal 
grandfather, John P. Whiteman, was a prom- 
inent farmer of the town of Red Hook, Dutch- 
ess county, anil there married Miss Annie 
Shook, daughter of John Shook, of the same 
town. By this union seven children were 
born, of whom, the mother of Mrs. Phillips 
was the eldest. She was followed by Eliza 
A., who became the wife of Robert Leete; 
Jane L., who married John Lambert; Sarah 



M., who svedded George Deipignac; Sophia 
F. ; Aaron W.; and John, who died at an 
early age. 



FRANK TEATS, one of the reliable and 
progressive young men of Red Hook, 
Dutchess county, is connected with the firm of 
Curtis & Benner, hardware merchants. He is 
a son of Electrice Teats, a prosperous farmer 
of the town of Red Hook, where our subject 
received his literary education. He is a nat- 
ural musician, the master of many different 
kinds of instruments, and is also quite a vocal- 
ist, being at the present time a member of the 
choir of the Methodist Church of Red Hook. 
On April 16, 1894, he was united in marriage 
with Miss Anna Traver, also a native of Red 
Hook, where she obtained a good education, 
and one child, Elmer, blesses this union. 

Edgar Traver, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Teats, born in Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, 
March 20, 1829, was educated in the district 
schools of the neighborhood, and received his 
early training as a farmer at that place. He 
continued to follow that vocation, in connec- 
tion with stock raising, throughout life, and 
was quite a prominent man in the community, 
serving as assessor and supervisor of Red Hook 
town for many years. He was twice married, 
his first union being with Anna M. Snyder, 
and for his second wife he married Catherine 
Benedict. He became the father of two sons: 
Arthur and Ransom. The former's birth oc- 
curred at Rhinebeck, January 12, 1851, and, 
after completing his studies in the common 
schools of the locality, he took up the occupa- 
tion of farming, and now conducts the old Tra- 
ver farm at Red Hook. He occupies the old 
homestead of his father, a substantial brick 
structure, over one hundred and fifty years old. 
He married Miss Martha \\'estfall, whose father 
was a native of Canada, and to them have 
been born three children: Mabel, born June 
20, 1884; Edna, born April 26, 18S6; and 
Edgar, born February i, 1887. 

Ransom Traver, the father of Mrs. Teats, 
was born at Rhinebeck, September 21, 1852, 
and his education was such as the common 
schools of the locality afforded. On starting 
out in life for himself he learned the drug 
business in the village of Rhinebeck, which he 
there followed for a few years, and then estab- 
lished a drug store at Red Hook, conducting 
the same very successfully for many years. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOQRAPnWAL RECORD. 



935 



On disposing of his business there he removed 
to Watertown, N. Y., where he now resides. 
The lady who now shares his name and for- 
tunes was in her maidenhood Miss Edith Hoff- 
man, daughter of B. B. Hoffman, vice-presi- 
dent of the National Bank of Red Hook. They 
are the parents of four children, namely: Will- 
iam, born December 28, 1870; Herbert, born 
June 2, 1872; Addie, born March 26, 1875; 
and Anna, born September 15, 1876. 



MYRON BARLOW (deceased) is remem- 
_ bered by the people of the town of 

Unionvale as a most valued and highly re- 
spected citizen. A native of Dutchess county, 
he was born in the town of Stanford in 1808, 
and was the son of Braman and Mary (Engla- 
sol) Barlow. Thonias Barlow, his paternal 
grandfather, passed his entire life in Dutchess 
county, following the occupation of farming 
during his mature years. He married a Miss 
I-5raman, and to them were born two sons — 
Braman and James. 

The birth of Braman Barlow occurred in 
Stanford township, and in the common schools 
he secured his education. Like his father, he 
engaged \n agricultural pursuits, and he died 
on his farm in the town of Stanford. In his 
family were four children: James never mar- 
ried; Cyrus, who was a member of the Masonic 
order, married Minerva Welling, and had three 
children — Myron, who married John Crokite; 
Caroline, who married Benjamin Palmer; and 
Frances, who married Dr. Thorn. Myron, 
of this review, is next in order of birth. Maria 
became the wife of James Germain, and had 
nine children — Edward; Talmadge; Cyrus, who 
married Viola Hicks; Mary; Sarah; Elizabeth; 
Frances, who married William Creede; Nettie, 
who married Robert Halstead; and Julia, who 
married Isaac Wlnance. 

The educational privileges of our subject 
were such as the public schools of Stanford 
afforded at an early day, and as a life work he 
also followed the vocation of farming, to which 
he had been reared, and with which he was 
familiar. He was a straightforward, reliable 
man, courteous, genial, alert and enterprising, 
and his actions during life were such as to dis- 
tinctively entitle him to a place in a publica- 
tion of this character. Socially he affiliated 
with the Masonic fraternity. 

Mr. Barlow was united in marriage with 
Miss Martha Van Vlack, who was born in 



Pleasant Valley township, Dutchess county, in 
1834, and there received a good common- 
school education. Seven children blessed their 
union, namely: (1) Emerson is by profession 
a dentist, but is also engaged in the brokerage 
business in Poughkeepsie and Kingston, N. Y. 
He married Eugenie Du Bois, and they have, 
one daughter, Susie. Like his father he is 
identified with the Masonic order. (2) Alfred 
is a buyer of stock for the Union Stock Yards 
of Chicago, 111. (3; Myron married Miss Jennie 
Carpenter, and is now engaged in the furniture 
business in Poughkeepsie. (4) Alice married 
Frederick Hall, a carpenter of Patterson, Put- 
nam Co., N. Y. , and they have three children, 
Anna, Myron and Clayton. (5) Jennie is follow- 
ing the profession of teaching in Lagrange 
town, Dutchess county. (6) George turns his at- 
tention to agricultural pursuits. (7) Etta, who 
completes the family, is a teacher of New 
Hamburg, Dutchess county. With the ex- 
ception of the two youngest children, whose 
births occurred in the town of Unionvale, all 
were born in Stanford town. They were pro- 
vided with good educational privileges, and 
have become intelligent and useful citizens of 
the various communities where they make 
their homes. 

Andrew Van Vlack, the grandfather of Mrs. 
Barlow, was a native of Dutchess county, and 
a farmer by occupation. By his marriage with 
Catherine Jewell he had seven children: Al- 
fred, the father of Mrs. Barlow; Abraham, 
who married Phoebe Devine; Cornelia, who 
married John Stewart ; Martha, who married 
Cornelius Ingraham; Eliza, who married 
Nicholas McMann; Catherine, who married 
Jonathan Devine; and Reuben, who married 
Catherine Johnson. 

Alfred Van Vlack was born in 1814, in the 
town of Pleasant Valley, where he was edu- 
cated and learned the milling business, which 
he successfully followed throughout life, pur- 
chasing and conducting a mill in Unionvale 
town. He was a stalwart Democrat in poli- 
tics and quite an active politician, but never 
cared for the honors or emoluments of public 
office, while socially he was connected with 
the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He 
was joined in wedlock with Miss Mary Foster, 
daughter of Martha (Welling) Foster. P"ive 
children were born of this union, as follows: 
Amelia married Lewis Ward, by whom she 
had a daughter — Minnie. Martha is the sec- 
ond of the family. Jennie married Henry 



936 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



Burton, and has two children — Estella, now 
the wife of Edward \'an Keiiren; and Lewis, 
who married Hattie Duncan. Mary wedded 
Benjamin Van Wyck. Louisa died in infancy. 



GEORGE NAGENGAST was born in Pough- 
keepsie, Dutchess county, June lo, 1852, 
and has already resided in that city forty-five 
years. His father, Charles Nagengast, was 
born in Bavaria, Germany, in 1825, and came 
to America in 1840. He first settled at 
Honesdale, Penn., from there went to Albany 
and soon after found his way to Poughkeepsie. 

Charles Nagengast was a teamster by oc- 
cupation, hauling ore for the blasting furnaces 
where he was also foreman for many years. 
In the later years of his life he was in the 
saloon business. He married Mary Hanline, 
and they had children as follows: George; 
Caroline married Lindsley Downer; Charles is 
in business in Poughkeepsie; Elizabeth Louisa 
married Frederick Bart; John Schwartz. The 
mother of this family was a woman of strong 
character and a large fund of common sense. 
She died June 18, 1873, the father surviving 
her until 1889. 

George Nagengast had but a limited educa- 
tion as he was only about eleven years old 
when he went to work in the cigar shop of 
Joseph Bayard, which a week afterward 
changed owners, John Schwartz taking pos- 
session of the business. He remained in this 
connection for nineteen years, lacking one 
month, and until March 25, 1881, when he 
went into the butchering business. In this, 
however, he remained only a few weeks, and 
then again took up the work of his trade, this 
time with Stephen Stafford. He afterward 
ran a factory for Eastmead cS: Lewis, and on 
October 2, 1881, he began keeping hotel in 
what is now the " Hudson Kiver House." He 
remodeled the building, and conducted the 
business for six years and eleven months. 
Later he bought out the store of Mrs. Conger 
at 435 Main street, and ran it for a little over five 
years. On November i, 1894, he purchased 
his present stand, and has since been car- 
rying on a prosperous business. He is a care- 
ful, conservative man in financial matters, and 
has invested his money in real estate, owning 
some valuable property in Poughkeepsie. Mr. 
Nagengast was married November 2, 1878, 
to Miss Caroline, daughter of William and 
Adeline (Martin) Swartout, and two children 



have been born to them: Arminta and Lillie 
May. 

Mr. Nagengast is a Republican, but has 
, never been very active in political affairs. He 
does not belong to any fraternities, but joined 
the Niagara Company, No. 2, when eighteen 
years old, four years later joining the O. H. 
Booth Company, but returning after eight 
years to his first company, of which he is now 
treasurer. He is a public-spirited citizen, 
and is always ready to assist in all worthy 
enterprises. 



ELENNIS WHALEN. a well-known retired 
'J agriculturist of the town of Dover, Dutch- 
ess county, now residing at Dover Plains, was 
born in 1835 in the parish of Kilteely, County 
Limerick, Ireland. His family has been prom- 
inent there for many generations, and his 
father, the late Jeremiah Whalen, was one of 
the leaders of his day in the struggle for the 
liberty of his country, and was twice elected to 
Parliament. In 1851 the family immigrated 
to the United States and settled at Dover 
Plains. Patrick Whalen, one of our subject's 
brothers, resides there, and his biography con- 
tains a history of this highly esteemed family. 

Mr. Whalen attended the schools of his 
native parish in boyhood, but on coming to 
this country he at once sought employment. 
The Harlem railroad was then in process of 
constructionr and for some time he worked 
upon it. He then spent ten years on a farm, 
and in 1869 he bought a farm of 157 acres at 
what is known as lllert Hills, and cultivated 
this while working at times for the railroad 
company. In 1873 he was appointed baggage 
master and switch man at Dover Plains, and 
held those positions until 1894, when an acci- 
dent disabled him for active business, although 
he is not at present confined to his bed. He 
sold his farm in 1893 to S. R. Hanna, and 
took a pleasure trip to the old country, visit- 
ing all parts of the Emerald Isle and gathering 
a marvelous fund of information. 

In 1858 Mr. Whalen married his first wife, 
Hanora Marona, by whom he had three chil- 
dren: Mary E., born in 1859; Catherine F. 
in i860; and Sebastian F. in 1866. His first 
wife died August 11, 1891, and Mr. Whalen 
married Miss Delia F. Hogan, a native of 
County Limerick, Ireland. Her father, Will- 
iam Hogan, was a gardener by trade, and was 
one of five children, the others being John, 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



937 



Dennis, Mary (Mrs. James Rahilly), and Cath- 
erine. He married Margaret Lynch, who was 
also a member of a family of five. James 
Lynch married Bridget Sherye; Patrick mar- 
ried Ellen Sherye; Catherine was the wife of 
William Murphy; and Mary married James 
Ryan. Mrs. Whaien was the youngest of the 
five children of William and Margaret Hogan. 
Mary married John O'Shea; Catherine is at 
home; Margaret died at the age of thirteen; 
and Patrick is at home. 



'ENRY BOLENBAKER. There is prob- 
ably not a finer farm in all its appoint- 
ments in the town of Red Hook than the one 
owned by the subject of this history, who is 
still a young man, and of whom, on account of 
his enterprise and industry, great things are 
expected in the future. The residence is in 
keeping with the taste and means of the pro- 
prietor, and the whole place forms a picture 
which invariably attracts the admiration of 
the passing traveler. 

Peter P. Bolenbaker, the father of our 
subject, is one of the prosperous farmers of 
Red Hook town, and on reaching man's estate 
he was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth 
Traver, who is one of the nine children of 
Henry H. Traver and wife, also agriculturists. 
This worthy couple became the parents of 
five children, namely: Daniel, who died in in- 
fancy; Martha, who became the wife of The- 
odore Traver; Sarah, who remained single; 
Henry J., of this review; and I^uella C. , who 
also remained single. 

In 1886 Mr. Bolenbaker, whose ^ame in- 
troduces this notice, was married to Miss 
Emma E. Fraleigh, a native of the town of 
Clermont, Columbia Co., N. Y., where she 
was educated in the common schools. One 
child blesses this union — Roger Fraleigh. 

Peter P. Fraleigh, the father of Mrs. Bol- 
enbaker, was born in the town of Clermont, 
Columbia county, and in the district schools 
of the neighborhood he obtained his educa- 
tion. As a lifework he also followed farming. 
Early in life he was joined in wedlock with 
Miss Mary Lasher, daughter of Jonas Lasher, 
of Clermont town, and to them were born the 
following children: Peter F. married Jennie 
Saulpaugh; Jonas L. married Margaret Gard- 
ner; Helen married Montgomery Finger; Will- 
iam H. married Addie Van Horn; Barbara mar- 

61 



ried Charles Moore; Margaret married Willis 
Hermance; Emma E. is next in order of birth; 
Edward W. married Kittie Francis; and Mar- 
tin and Mary both died in infancy. 



fILLIAM AUGUSTUS MOSHER, a 
prominent agriculturist of the town of 
Fishkill, Dutchess county, is well known along 
the Hudson, having spent many years in the 
transportation business before settling down to 
the quieter life of a tiller of the soil. 

His family is of English origin, and his 
great-grandfather, W^illiam Mosher, crossed 
the Atlantic as a soldier in the British army 
during the Revolutionary war, but on landing 
he deserted and joined the forces under Gen. 
Washington, serving as a captain throughout 
the struggle. His son, Amos, married Jane 
Rhinehart, and their son Miles, our subject's 
father, was born at Breakneck, Dutchess coun- 
t}', and became a boatman on the Hudson, 
being engaged in carrying brick between Fish- 
kill Landing and New York City, until his 
death. He married Louisa Smith, a native of 
Dutchess county, daughterof Elijah and Mar- 
garet Smith, and is still living. Of their eight 
children, the youngest, Frances, died in child- 
hood, and the others are: William Augustus, 
Amos, Margaret Jane, Annie, Ida, Henry and 
Charles. 

W^illiam A. Mosher was born at Burnsville, 
Dutchess county, in 1841, and, after acquiring 
a common-school education, left home to take 
a place on a boat with Capt. \'irgil Coleman, 
who carried coal from Rondout to Fishkill 
Landing. He remained with him two years, 
then spent three seasons on a brick boat run- 
ding from Fishkill Landing to New York City, 
passing the winters at home. In 1861 he 
went to Long Island and worked on a farm for 
his uncle, Charles Mosher. and on returning 
spent four months as fireman on the steamer 
" Rip Van W' inkle. " In 1862 he served on 
the government transport, "Gen. Meigs, " for 
several months, carrying troops and provisions 
for the army between New York City and 
southern ports; he also enlisted in Company 
E, 19th N. Y. S. M., and was sent to Balti- 
more, Fort Delaware and Havre de Grace, 
receiving his discharge at Newburgh, N. Y. , on 
the e.xpiration of his term of enlistment — one 
hundred days. He then went on a canal boat 
with Capt. Daniel Howell, and on leaving him 



938 



COMMEMORATIVE BTOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



worked in the Fishkill Landing Machine Shop 
for a year, when he took another place upon a 
government transport running from St. Louis 
to Du\';ili's Bluff, Memphis, Cairo and New 
Orleans. He was on this boat at Du V'all's 
Bluff when the news of Lincoln's assassination 
reached him. On his return home he was 
married to Miss Hannah Hickman, daughter 
of William and Martha ( Purdyj Hickman, and 
granddaughter of Michael and Rachel Hick- 
man. On the maternal side, her grandparents 
were Francis and Mary (Shaw) Purdy. Six 
children were born of this union: Amos, Ida, 
George, Matthew, Nettie and Blanche. 

After his marriage Mr. Mosher worked for 
two years in the Fishkill Landing Machine 
Shops as a blacksmith and machinist, and two 
years on the Newburgh and Fishkill ferry as 
fireman, and then went to Kansas and spent 
five years in farming. On returning to the 
East he worked on the construction of the 
N. Y. & N. E. R. R., aboard a mud scow, 
and, while thus employed, saved from drown- 
ing two men, named John Cook and a Mr. 
Mitchell. His next employment was on the 
ferryboats "City of Newburgh" and " Fish- 
kill-on-the-Hudson," as engineer, but after 
three years he gave up this work to take charge 
of the brickyard of William H. Aldrich, where 
he remained six years. He then purchased 
his present farm of 270 acres, which is bounded 
by the lands of William H. Cary, George Ire- 
land, Alfred Miller, James Daniels and Reuben 
Knapp. His main crops are hay and grain, 
but he gives considerable attention to horti- 
culture, having many grape vines and a num- 
ber of apple and peach trees, with other fruits. 
Part of his land is as yet uncleared, and he 
sells a large amount of wood and hewn timber. 
His son George assists in the management of 
this estate. In politics Mr. Mosher is a Re- 
publican, and he is a member of the G. A. R. 



^\UGENE WELLS, one of the leading citi- 



Ijj zens of Rhinebeck, Dutchess county, now 
living in retirement amid the charming sur- 
roundings of that picturesque locality, was born 
at Hudson, Columbia Co., N. Y. , January 17, 
1839. 

Isaac Wells, the grandfather of our subject, 
was born in 1770, and among his family of 
children was Richard I. Wells, Eugene's father, 
who was born at Co.xsackie, Greene Co., N. Y. , 
September 25, 1795. Richard I. Wells was a 



prominent lawyer of New York City, a mem- 
ber of the well-known firm of Wells & Bush- 
nell, and was a man of great mental ability 
and sound judgment. From his office were grad- 
uated some students who afterward achieved 
distinction at the bar. In early years he was 
a Whig and later a Republican, but he was never 
active in politics. He was an intimate friend 
of Stephen A. Douglas, and was prominently 
identified with the landed interests of Chicago, 
111., owning at one time a large amount of real 
estate there. Wells street in Chicago was 
named in his honor. On September 28, 1819, 
he was married to Ann Maria Olcott, daugh- 
ter of Josiah Olcott, a prominent citizen 
of Hudson, and had ten children: Anna, the 
widow of Claudius L. Monell, who was, at the 
time of his death, chief justice of the Superior 
Court of the City of New York; Mary, who 
married Charles Roome, president of the Con- 
solidated Gas Co., of New York; Caroline 
(deceased); John H. (deceased); Richard (de- 
ceased) ; Ophelia, who married Rev. Henry Dar- 
ling, late president of Hamilton College; Fred- 
erick J., who died in infancy; Thomas O., a 
resident of New York City; Frances M. (de- 
ceased), formerly the wife of Isaac M. Collins, 
of Hudson, who is now the surrogate of Colum- 
bia count}'; and Eugene, our subject. After 
many years of successful practice, Mr. Wells, 
in 1S37, retired to Hudson, where he passed 
his declining years. His death occurred there 
March 1 1, 1863. He and his wife were always 
leaders in the various philanthropic movements 
of the Church. 

The subject of this sketch made choice of 
the medical profession, and studied for two 
years with the late Dr. H. B. Sands, of New 
York City, but was compelled to abandon his 
books on account of what is called double 
astigmatism. Since 1865 he has resided at 
Rhinebeck, where he has identified himself 
with the best interests of the community, and 
has won the esteem of all classes. He has 
been a director of the First National Bank for 
many years, and has held the office of president 
of the village. 

On May 31, 1865, he married Miss Mary 
Thorn Teller, daughter of William T. and 
Eliza Thorn Teller and granddaughter of Will- 
iam Teller. They have one daughter — Caroline 
Thorn Wells. Mr. and Mrs. Wells attend the 
Reformed Church at Rhinebeck, and have 
always been among the leaders in the most 
exclusive social circles of that town. 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOORAPBICAL RECORD. 



939 



FRANK TALLADAY, the well-known host 
of the "Talladay House," at Dover 

Plains, Dutchess county, is one of the leading 
citizens of that pleasant village. 

His family has been identified with the 
town of Dover for many years, and his father, 
Neilson Talladay, was a native of the town, 
and, on finishing his education in the local 
schools, he engaged in business as a carpenter, 
following that trade throughout his active life. 
He was a soldier in the Civil war in Company 
E, 150th N. Y. V. I., and took part in many 
important engagements. For some time he 
served as hospital steward at Baltimore, Md. 
He married Miss Elizabeth Colby, daughter of 
a leading farmer of the town of Dover, and had 
five children, of whom our subject was the 
youngest. The others are: Phoebe (who has 
not married); Janette (Mrs. C. F. Segelken); 
Mary (Mrs. John H. Smith); and Elizabeth 
(Mrs. Archilas Birch). 

Frank Talladay was born April i, 1859, in 
Dover Plains, Dutchess county. He was edu- 
cated in the schools of that village, and on 
completing his course of study, he engaged in 
business as a butcher at Brooklyn, N. Y. 
After four years in this enterprise, he moved to 
Naugatuck, Conn., where he was for some 
time connected with a rubber manufacturing 
concern. Later he was engaged in mercantile 
business at Dover, and in 1893 he rented the 
hotel now known as the '' Talladay House" at 
Dover Plains, which he has since conducted in 
a manner to gain and keep the patronage of 
the public. In 1889 he married Miss Mary 
Humeston, daughter of Charles and Abbie 
Humeston, of Dover Plains, and they have one 
child — Frank W., born in February, 1895. 

Mr. Talladay is a member of the Sons of 
Veterans, of Dover, and he has always taken 
great interest in politics, identifying himself 
with the Republican party. He has held sev- 
eral public offices. In 1891, he was elected 
constable of Dover town, and served three 
terms. 



GRIFFIN COOKINGHAM, one of the 
leaders among the substantial and pros- 
perous agriculturists of the town of Rhinebeck, 
Dutchess county, was born May 6, 1835, upon 
the estate where he now resides, and which 
has been in the possession of his family since 
the days of his grandfather, Frederick Cook- 
ingham, who was born, probably, in Germany, 



but settled in Rhinebeck when a young man. 
He married and reared a family of seven chil- 
dren: John F. , a farmer in the town of Hyde 
Park; Andrew, a farmer in Rhinebeck; Will- 
iam, our subject's father; Rebecca, who mar- 
ried Andrew Pultz, a farmer of Rhinebeck; 
Omie, who married Frederick Pultz, a farmer 
in Columbia county; Rennie, the wife of David 
Marquet, a farmer in the town of Rhinebeck; 
and a daughter who married Michael Pultz, 
who was also a farmer there. 

William Cookingham, our subject's father, 
was born in 1802, and always lived at the old 
farm, coming into possession of a portion of 
it on the death of his parents. He married 
Catherine Traver, daughter of Solomon Traver, 
a farmer in the same locality, and had children 
as follows: Elizabeth (deceased); Emeline, a 
widow; Julia, who never married; Frederick, a 
retired farmer of Rhinebeck; Griffin, our sub- 
ject; Henry, a resident of Hyde Park; Charles, 
who lives in Rhinebeck; and James (deceased). 
The parents of this family are both deceased, 
the father dying in 1875. Both were devout 
members of the Lutheran Church. 

Our subject grew to manhood at the old 
homestead, and in 1856 was married to 
Eleanor Westfall, a native of Nassau, Rens- 
selaer Co., N. Y. , and daughter of Jacob West- 
fall, a farmer, who in his later years moved to 
Dutchess county. For some years after his 
marriage Mr. Cookingham and his wife lived 
on a farm near his birthplace, but in 1877 
he returned to the old homestead as owner of 
182 acres, a fine farm which he devotes to 
general crops. He and his wife united with 
the Reformed Church many years ago, and 
were among its leading members. Mrs. Cook- 
ingham died April 17, 1894, leaving two chil- 
dren: Edward, now a farmer, and married to 
Maria Schultz; and Eleanor, who is at home. 
The first two children died — Rachel in child- 
hood and William J. in 1892. In politics Mr. 
Cookingham, like his father in later years, 
supports the Republican party. He is one of 
the active workers in all local improvements, 
being especially interested in educational af- 
fairs, and has served as school trustee for thir- 
teen years. 



i'OHN McKEVITT, an energetic and indus- 
trious farmer of the town of Unionvale, 
Dutchess county, was born in County Louth, 
Ireland, and is the grandson of Patrick Mc- 
Kevitt, also a native of the Emerald Isle, and 



940 



COMMEMORA FIVE BIOORAPHICAL RECORD. 



a farmer and weaver by occupation. He 
wedded Miss Mary Cunningham, and to them 
were born seven children: Thomas, who mar- 
ried a Miss Leonard; Brien, who studied for 
the priesthood and had charge of a parish in 
his native land; Hugh, the father of our sub- 
ject; Henry, who died when young; Owen, 
who died unmarried; Mrs. Mary Duf^ey; and 
Mrs. Catharine Myers. 

The birth of Hugh McKevitt also occurred 
in County Louth, Ireland, and there he was 
educated and engaged in weaving and farming. 
He married Miss Ann Riley, a daughter of 
John and Mary (Cassidy) Riley, farming people 
of that country, and they became the parents 
of seven children, as follows: (i) Patrick spent 
his entire life on the Emerald Isle, where he 
followed farming and droving. By his mar- 
riage with Ann McBride, he had eight children 
— Mary, Hugh, John, Patrick (deceased), 
Peter, Catherine, Alice (deceased) and O'Brien. 
(2) Brien remained single, conducting a bakery 
in Ireland. (3) Henry came to the United 
States in 1852, locating in New York City, 
where he engaged in the liquor business. He 
married Miss Rose McLaughlin, and they have 
seven children — Hugh, Joseph, Annie, Henry, 
Rose, Mary and John. (4) Mary became the 
wife of James McCarty. (5) John, of this 
sketch, is next in order of birth. (6) Cather- 
ine married Thomas McDermott, and has four 
children — Annie, Hugh, Mary and William. 
(■J) Alice married a Mr. Mooney, and has two 
children — William and Mary. 

John McKevitt, the subject proper of this 
sketch, acquired his education in the place of 
his nativity, and there followed farming until 
coming to the New World in 1854, at which 
time he located on Long Island; after a year 
passed there he came to Dutchess county, 
where he has since resided. He is a valued 
and esteemed citizen of the community, and a 
credit to the land that gave him birth. He 
uses his right of franchise in support of the 
men and measures of the Democratic party, 
but he has never aspired to public office. 

Mr. McKevitt was united in marriage with 
Miss Catherine Newman, a daughter of Thomas 
and Mary (Carrey) Newman, farming people 
of West Meath, Ireland. Of their union have 
been born four children, namely: Thomas J., 
Annie, Mary R. and Catherine. The family is 
one of prominence, holding a high position in 
the social circles of the locality where they 
make their homes. 



Mrm good family, which was of English origin, 
but for several generations has been located in 
Connecticut. His grandfather, AbnerHinman, 
was born at Southbury, New Haven countj', 
and passed his life there upon a farm, where 
he and his wife reared to adult age a family of 
seven children: (i) Esther married Johnson 
Tuttle, a farmer in Southbury, who died in 
1876. (2) Sidney went to Ithaca, N. Y., and 
later to the vicinity of Detroit, Mich., where 
he settled in what was then an unbroken wil- 
derness, and at his death, in 1880, he was a 
prosperous agriculturist. (3) Preston, who is 
not married, followed shoemaking at South- 
bury, later in Oxford, his present home. (4) 
Gennett married Smith Hine, of Bridgeport, 
and both are now deceased. (5) Polly mar- 
ried Smith Downe, a carpenter, and both are 
deceased. (6) Horace is mentioned more fully 
below. (7) Roswell (deceased) was a mechanic. 

Horace Hinman, our subject's father, who 
is now living in retirement, was born in South- 
bury, Conn., and married a native of that 
place, Mary Hughes, a lady of Scotch descent. 
They first settled in Southbury and later in 
Oxford, Conn., Mr. Hinman following the shoe- 
maker's trade. He is a Democrat in politics, 
and he and his wife are both consistent mem- 
bers of the M. E. Church. They had four 
children as follows: (i) Sarah married H. B. 
Folly, a wholesale merchant of Danbury, 
Conn. ; (2) Fannie and (3) Delia are deceased ^ 
and (4) Winfield B. 

We will now return to the subject proper 
of this sketch, who was born at Oxford. Conn., 
October 30, 1863. He attended school there 
for some years, but as has been said he began 
at twelve to support himself by his own labor. 
At sixteen he left home to work on a farm at 
Newtown, Conn., where he spent two years. 
He then went to Southbury, where he was 
similarly employed for three years, and also 
rented a farm of 300 acres which he conducted 
for a time. Two years upon a rented farm 
near Liverpool, N. Y. , followed, after which 
he went to Syracuse, N. Y., as shipping clerk 
for the Butler Manfg. Co. After one year 
there he spent a short time in Philadelphia, 
before going to Danbury, Conn., to take 
charge of a wholesale provision store, which, 
he managed successfully for three years. There 
he learned all the details of the business, and 
having at last found a congenial pursuit which 
promised good financial returns he has since 



COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 



941 



continued it. In January, 1891, he became 
manager of a retail produce business at Matte- 
awan, which he purchased at the end of three 
months. His success was extraordinary. Be- 
ginning with a cash capital of $26 he increased 
his trade until he had three stores — one on 
Main street, Matteawan; one at Fishkill Land- 
ing, and one at Cold Spring; employing in all 
nine men. The business included a retail 
grocery and meat trade with a wholesale trade 
in sausages. 

On April 4, 1883, Mr. Hinman was married 
to Miss Lizzie Loomis, daughter of K. H. 
Loomis, of Syracuse, N. Y., and three chil- 
dren have blessed their home: Harlow; and 
two who died in infancy. Mr. Hinman has 
been interested in public affairs, local and Na- 
tional. In politics he is a Republican, and as 
a member of the Presbyterian Church he takes 
a helpful part in religious and philanthropic 
effort. He is also a member of the K. of P. 



MICHOLAS VAN WAGNER, farmer, 
post office Billings, Dutchess county. 

New York. 



WILLIAM H. FIERO, a most reliable 
and faithful engineer on the Harlem 

railroad, whose fidelity to every duty has com- 
mended him most highly to his employers, is 
a resident of the town of Dover, Dutchess 
county. He was born in the town of Union- 
vale, Dutchess county, March 24, 1865. 

William H. Fiero, his grandfather, was a 
native of Columbia Co., N. Y., born August 1, 
1808, and on November 8, 1827, married Sal- 
lie Ann Chapman, a daughter of John and 
Katherine Chapman, born September 5, 1807, 
at Dover, Dutchess Co., N. Y, Their chil- 
dren were: Jonathan A., bowi August 3, 



1833; Oscar, born August 21, 1836; John, 
born July 9, 1838; Hattie A., born April 28, 
1 84 1, died December 25, 1871; and William 
H., born April 7, 1846, died May 9, of the 
same year. 

John Fiero, the father of our subject, an 
undertaker by occupation, is a native of Dover, 
Dutchess county, and, on growing to man- 
hood, he was married to Adelaide F. Leon- 
ard, a native of the town of Pawling, Dutchess 
county, born April 28, 1841, and the marriage 
was blessed by the following children: (i) 
Jennie S., born November 5, 1859, in the 
town of Union, Penn., married in August, 1882, 
Edward Davis, of Danbury, Conn. , and their 
children are — Ida May, born March 6, 1886; 
Bessie F., born February 26, 1890; and John, 
born June 26, 1893, died on December 6, 
1895, in Albany, N. Y. Of these children, 
Ida May and Bessie F. were born at Danbury, 
Conn., and John in New York City. The 
mother of these died at Dover, July 9, 1895. 
(2) Hattie A., born July 7, 1862, in the town 
of Amenia, Dutchess county, married March 
29, 1882, Marcus D. Marcy, and they have 
one child. Bertha F., born July 29, 1885, at 
Dover, Dutchess county. (3) William H., 
our subject. (4) Ida A., born January 24, 
1869, in the town of Dover, died May 4, 1870, 
in the town of Amenia. 

Our subject's marriage to Miss Minnie 
Rider, who was born at Bangall, Dutchess 
county, March 8, 1863, was blessed with the 
following children: Ida A., born June 3, 
1884; Addie. born May 20, 1885, died March 
12, 1894; John, born November 24, 1889; and 
William S., born January 14, 1893. The 
father of these is one of the progressive and 
enterprising citizens of Dutchess county, and 
the several members of the family possess 
qualities that endear them to a large circle of 
friends. 



Kif \iif VM 



^^ 



<j>^ 






'i^ 



'v^A- 



INDEX. 



PAGE I 

Abel, Dwight 499 | 

Abel, Mrs. Esther O 400 

Abel, John U 400 i 

Abel. Orlin B 674 

Abel, William W 499 

Ackerman Family 53J) 

Ackerman, Jacob S 533 

Ackert, David E 128 

Ackert, Dr. W. E 257 

Adriance Families 115,253, 361 

Adriance, John E 116 



Adriance, John P 115 

Adriance, Peter 297 

Adriance, William 253 

Akin, Albert J 322 

Akin Families 66, 322, 371, 373 

Akin, Miss Mary J 372 

Albro Family 416 

Albro, William C 415 

Alden Family 291 

Alden, HenryA 290 

Alden, Mary M 292 

Aldridge, Thomas G 892 

Allen, Nicholas 663 

Allen, William H 878 

AUendorf , Alfred 331 

Allendorf, C 919 

AUendorf, Mrs. Catherine A 332 

Ailing, J. Sackett 458 

Allison Family 487 

Allison, Henry E,, M. D 228 

Ambler Families 3:30, 399 

Ambler, John P 399 

Ambler, Samuel H 330 

Anderson, A. Butler 683 

Anderson Family 683 

Anderson, John P 710 i 

Ander. n. Peter 710 

Andrews, Mrs. A. B 248 

Andrews, Charles C 458 

Angell, George H 643 

Angell, Milton H., M. D 207 

Anthony Family 701 

Anthony, Theodore 701 

Armstrong, William C 645 

Arnold, Charles W. H 62 

Arras. Charles W 133 

Arras, Mrs. Emma A 133 

Atwater, Edward S 59 

Atwater Family.. .' 59 

Atwater, John P., M. D 59 

Aucock, George S 893 

Justin Family 490 

Ayres, DeWitt C, 871 

Badeau, W. H 177 

Badgley Family 414 

Badgley, William E 414 

Bahret, Jacob 397 

Bahret, John J 397 

Bain, Ferdinand R 116 



PAGE 

Bain, Horatio N 902 

Baker, Benjamin N., M. D 236 

Baker, Charles E 574 

Baker Families 574, 812 

Baker, Lewis 107 

Baker, Lewis, Jr 108 

Baker, Morris 800 

Baker, William 565 

Baker, William W 812 

Baldwin Family 843 

Baldwin, James E 843 

Baldwin, Peter W 845 

Barculo, Judge Seward 7 

Baright, Daniel S 681 

Baright, Elijah 682 

Baright, Samuel C 286 

Barker. Henry M 623 

Barlow, James R 627 

Barlow, Mrs. Martha 935 

Barlow, Myron / 935 

Barmore, Clark C 521 

Barmore, Edward 521 

Barmore Family 708 

Barmore, James 708 

Barnard, Hon. Joseph F 1 

Barnes. David T 679 

Barnes, Edwin, M. D 568 

Barnes Families 568 679 

Barnes, Mrs. Mary E 678 

Barnes, Oliver S 678 

Barnes, Oliver Wetdon 305 

Barnuni, Andrew 882 

Barnum, John D , 882 

Barrett Family 525 

Barrett, E. Lathrop 487 

Barrett, John R 807 

Barrett, Oliver 525 

Barringer, John C 875 

Bartholomew, Ralph A 762 

Bartlett Family 711 

Bartlett, Sanford J. 711 

Bartlett, William H 639 

Barton, Anthony H 734 

Barton, Artemas S 539 

Barton Families 539, 592 

Barton, Lewis B 592 

Bartow, Elizabeth D 775 

Bartow, Moncure 775 

Bates, Joseph 874 

j Baumann, Chas. G 266 

' Bayley, Guy C, M. D 126 

I Beardslev, William J 842 

Becker, Alex. R 860 

Beckwith, Nathan 767 

Beckwith, William S 766 

Bedell, William 284 

Bedford, Edward H 311 

Bedford Family 311 

Bedford, John Bevier 312 

Beecher, Hiram T 726 

Beers, Darwin 680 



PAGE 

Belding, George T 361 

Belding, Mrs. George T 361 

Benedict, Julius 396 

Benson Families 835, 905 

Benson, Franklin De Peyster. . . 524 

Benson, James V 835 

Benson, Joseph H 524 

Benson, Joshua 247 

Benson, Zadie J 247 

Berry, Elias W 717 

Berry Family 717 

Bevier Family 312 

Bevier, Henry B 275 

Billings, Isaac V 863 

Billings, Mrs. Susan 863 

Bird Family 468 

Bird, J. Sterling, M. D 70 

Bird, -Mrs. Ruhamer W. P 468 

Bird, Virgil 468 

Birdsall, Frank E 883 

Bisbee Family 28 

Bisbee, Joseph B 29 

Bisbee, Otis 28 

Bishop, -Alexander, Jr 807 

Bishop Family 391 

Bishop, Noah L 433 

Blair, James 755 

Bliss Families 85, 189 

Bliss, William A., M. D 85 

Bodden, William 686 

Bodenstein, Henry 645 

Bodenstein, John G 796 

Bogardus, Abraham A 815 

Bogle, William 191 

Boice, JohnH 872 

Boice, Nelson L 176 

Bolenbaker, Henry 937 

Bolin, Gains C 116 

Bolles, Arthur H 862 

Bonney, Hon. Alfred 26 

Bonney Family 26 

Bontecou Family 264 

Bontecou, George H 264 

Booth, Albert F 826 . 

Booth, Oliver H 44 

Booth, William F^ 45 

Borden, Perry. ..'. .■ 637 

Bostwick Family 290 

Bostwick, Frederic 495 

Bostwick, William 289 

Bowne, Charles E 80 

Bowne, Frederick 81 

Boyce, Charles E 811 

Boyd Family 820 

Boyd, Nathan T 822 

Braman, Edward 406 

Braman F"amily 406 

Braman, H. V. V 407 

Brett, Abraham 599 

Brett, Albert V ^99 

Brett Family 334 



V 



944 



INDEX. 



PAGE 

Brett, Harvey 334 

Brevoorl, Benjamin H 178 

Brevoort, Thomas J 178 

Brewster Family 427 

Brewster, William A 427 

BrigRS, Anthony 192 

Briggs, Davis W 193 

Briggs, George G 788 

Briggs, George H 788 

Briggs, Mrs. Hannah 192 

Briggs, Hiram H 541 

Briggs, Homer E .... 193 

Briggs, Stephen D 541 

Brill, Aiken T 219 

Brinckerhoff, Capt. John H 848 

Brinckerhoff, William E 691 

Brinkerhoff, William H. S 914 

Brooks, John J 123 

Brooks, Mrs. J.J 124 

Brooks, Norman J 124 

Brooks, William J ^, 884 

Brown, Douglass. .' .... 724 

Brown, Edwm 465 

Brown Family 666 

Brown, Frank D 724 

Brown, George 575 

Brown, Samuel Holmes 656 

Brown, Samuel H., M. D 245 

Brown, Sebastian 465 

Brown, William J 175 

Brundage, Alton 56 

I'.rundage, Capt. Charles W 56 

Brush Family 770 

Bryan, David 496 

Bryan Families 496,817 

Bryan, Isaac 817 

Bryan, Mrs. Mary 818 

Bryant, Albert R 809 

Bryant, Evan 893 

Bryant, Samuel 547 

Buckingham, Charles H 393 

Buckmgham Family ;y93 

Buckley Family 460 

Buckley, Miles 460 

nBudd, Albert J 757 

Budd Families 273, 529 

Budd, Joel N 529 

Budd. Mrs. Mary J 530 

Budd, Underhill 272 

Budd, William \) 420 

Bullis, J. N 445 

Burgess, James D 285 

Burhans, Peter 195 

Burnett, Frank E 883 

Burnett. Stephen R 883 

Burroughs Family. . . 677 

Burroughs, Frank 677 

Bushnell, Edwin L 773 

Butler. Edmond 752 

Butler Family 505 

Butler, Robert D 505 

Butts, Allison 83 

Butis Familv 8;^ 

Butts, John'W 911 

Butts. Richard S 734 

Butts. Thomas 733 

Caldwell, Theron H 827 

Campbell, Mrs. Emeline C 537 

Campbell, Henry L ,5,36 

Campbell, John 659 

Cannon, Arnout 913 

Cannon, Arnout, Jr 913 

Cannon, Cornelius L 218 

Cannon, George W 258 



PAGE 

Card, Colvin 35 

Card, Edson 544 

Card, Silas E 544 

Care, Charles A 649 

! Carey Family 770 

j Carey, William J 623 

Carman, Leonard L 395 

Carman, Lewis 395 

Carpenter Families 21, 210 

Carpenter, Hon. Isaac S 21 

Carpenter, J. Du Bois 211 

Carpenter, William J 777 

Carroll, James 790 

Carroll, William 865 

Cary, Mary 406 

Cary, Richard B 405 

Case, Mrs. Hannah M 797 

Case, Willis Haviland 796 

Cashin, ^L■ltthew J 514 

Cass, Robert 859 

Chaffee Family 171 

Chaffee, James Stuart 171 

Chapman Family 118 

"Chapman, George B., M. D 117 

Chapman, George T 513 

Chapman, Hiram W 513 

Chapman, Mrs. Jane M 391 

Chase, Mrs. Augusta H 342 

Chase, Enos J 342 

Chase Family 89 

Chase, George W 89 

Chase, Lewis H 813 

Chatterton, Henrv 534 

Clapp, Clinton W'. 664 

Clapp Family >-. 664 

Clark, Carrie D 567 

Clark, Edgar 567 



PAGE 

Colwell, Frank W 543 

Conklin, Mrs. Elizabeth 227_ 

Conklin Families 825,873 y 

Conklin, George W 227, 

Conklin, Isaac P 873_ 

Conklin, John H 532- 

Conklin, J. Mulford 531- 

Conklin, Storm H 825— 

Conklin, William J., M. D Ill 

Conover, Evritt 753 

Conover, Peter 753 

Conroy, Rev. Edward J 328 

Cook Families 101, 667 

Cook, James Hervey 101 

Cookingham, Griffin 939 

Cooper, Gilbert 732 

Cooper, John 733 

Cooper, Tunis 732 

Corbin, Albert W 452 

Corbin, Asa B 376 

Corbin Family 452 

Corbin, .Mrs. 1 487 

Corbin, Isaac 487 

Corcoran, John 310 

Cornelius, Virtus H 919 

Cornell, Adrian M 415 

Cornell, Isaac M., M. D 229 

Cornell, Peter M 868 

Cornwell, Azariah. ... 727 

Cornwell, Frederick J 459 

Cossum, Charles F 46 

Cotter, John 98 

Cotter, John H., M. D 98 

Couse, Edward 874 

Cowl, James 616 

Cowl, Orlando J 616 

Cox, John H 741 



Clark, Edward Lee 721 I Craft, Eugene S 214 

Clark, Elizabeth 567 ! Craft, Mrs. Margaret 906 

Clark Families 567, 775|Craig Familv 432 

Craig, Ruf us' S 432 

Cramer Family^ 141,200 

Cramer, George E 200 



Clark, Henry 776 

Clark, Hiram 775 

Clark, John W... 776 

Clifford, Mrs. Annie 916 | Cramer, George H 450 



Clifford, Henry 916 

Cline, Albert 729 

Cline, Charles A 494 

Cline Family 729 

Cline, Franklin 729 

Codding, George H., M. D 142 

Cofifin Family 193 

Coffin, Hezekiah R 92 

Coffin, Robert 92 

Coffin. Robert G 124 

Coffin, Tristram 193 

Coffin, Valentine 194 

Cole, Judgf Andrew 380 

Cole, Charles N 611 

Cole. David 210 

Cole, Mrs. David 210 

Cole, Emery 917 

Cole, Mortimer B 611 

Coleman, Antasa D 325 

Coleman, Mrs. Elizabeth 325 

Coleman, Joseph D 728 

Collier Family 581 

Collin, Eli H ;»7 

Collingwood. James 138 

Collingwood, Mrs. Mary E 138 

Collins Fiamilies 63.7, 572 

Collins, Rev. Joshua 422 

Collins, Martin W 572 i Davies, William Augustus 95 

Colwell, Charles M 388 Davis, Charles 235 

Colwell, David E 542 l Davis, Charles H., Jr 650 

Colwell Family 388 ' Davis, John 236 



Cramer, William C 895 

Crapser, Abram B 397 

Crapser Famdy 397 

Crary Familv .": 54 

Crarv, Rev. Robert F., D. D . . . . 54 

Cronk Family 501 

Cronk, George W' 5yi 

Cronk, Sarah E.(Mrs. Fiirshay)" . 502 

Crummey, Edward 138 

Crummey, Safford A 139 

Cruse, Thomas K., M . D 403 

Culver, Ambrose M 579 

Culver Families 579, 586, 590 

Culver, Walter B 590 

Cunley, Court B 377 

Cunningham, Thomas J 891, 

Curtis, Herbert J 695 

Cutler, Charles G 769 

Cutler Family 769 

Cutler, theron 719 

Cypher, Henry D 896 

Dakin. George 8i.5 

Dakin. William 827 

Dalrymple. William E 725 

Dana F'amily 351 

Davies Family 95 



INDEX. 



945 



PAGE 

Davis, Orville L 784 

Davis, VViUardH 198 

Davis, William L 198 

Dawson Family 818 

Dawson, J. G.,M. D 818 

Dean Family 566 

Dean, James E 288 

Dean, Willis 566 

Dedrick, William J 668 

De Garmo, David S 114 

De Garmo, James M 636 

De Garmo, Smith L 114 

De Lacey Family 119 

De Lacey, William L 119 

Delamater, Eliphaz 738 

Dennis Families 447 

Denton, Abram A 723 

Denton, Amos 875 

Denton Families 723, 903 

Denton, J udson A 875 

Denton, Nelson 903 

De Peyster, Gen. J. Watts 144 

Deuel Family 722 

Deuel, Isaac N 428 

Deuel, Phoenix N 722 

Deuel, Stephen T 428 

Devine Family 464 

Devine, Wright 464 

Diamond, Hugh 776 

Diamond, William H 776 

Dibble, Warren S 596 

Dickhaut, Rev. Benjamin E 42. 

Dickinson, Jonathan 668 

Dinsmore, C. Gray 887 

Dinsmore, William B 885 

Dodge, Mrs. Anna E 453 

Dolan, William 912 

Donald, Mrs. Jessie F 14 

Donald, John 14 

Dorland, Cyrenus P 99 

Dorland Family -99 



Dorland, John M 92e-Flint Family. 

Doty.A. M 309 " 

Doty.Egbert 805 

Doughty. Charles 321 

Doughty Family 321 

Doughty, George T 199 

Doughty, Mrs. Hannah 823 

Doughty, Mrs. Mary E 321 

Doughty, Miss Phebe J 199 

Doyle, John G 642 

Draper, George W 460 

Draper,JohnH 460 

Drislane, David C 823 

Du Bois Families 129, 607, 673 

Du Bois, Garret 673 

Du Bois, John C 607 

, Dudley, Alexander H 559 

, Dudley Families 97, 559 

Dudley, James H 97 

Du Moncl, Edward B 39 

Du Mond Family 39 

Duncan, Charles H 612 

Duncan Family 296 

Duncan, John B 612 

Duncan, John G 296 

Dutcher, Allen H 626 

Dutcher Families . 19,23,626,654,662,802 



PAGE 

Dutcher, Mrs. May Losee 718 

Dutcher, Mrs. Sarah A 226 

Eastman, Hon. Harvey G., LL.D 12 

Eastmead, Franklin S 915 

Eaton, Lewis F 605 

Edmond, Frank M 558 

Elsworth, Edward 43 

Elting, Capt. Luther 218 

Emans, Albert S 814 

Emans Family 31 

Emans, Hon. Storm 31 

Embley, Thomas W., M. D 237 

Emerson, Thomas '. )2 

Englehardt, Edward 898 

English, Dr. James R 4 1 

Eno Family i)4 

Eno, Frank 94 

Ensign Family 485 

Ensign, John H 485 

EsseTstyn, George 57 

Faust, Frederick A., M. D 764 

Faust, Dr. John 791 

Feierabend, Louis 327 

Feller, Nathan 746 

Fendel, Martin 393 

Feroe Family 481 

Feroe, George 481 

Feroe, Jacob H.. . . 628 

Ferris, Elmore /i. 613 

Ferris Families 66, 374, 613 

Field, Joseph 223 

Field, Mrs. T. R 223 

Fiero, William H 941 

Finch, James 658 

Fink, Job .iH 727 

Flannery, John 596 

Fletcher, Char.es L., M. D 402 

Fletcher Family 402 

Flint. Charles A -(•''") 



'41 
!4T 



Foote, George Benton, .Sr . 
Foote, Mrs. Mary F. . . 

Forster, Robert 

Forster. Mrs. Robert .. 

Fowler, Benjamin M iW 

Fowler, Charles E 38-' 

Fowler, Gilbert 867 

Fox, Eugene 905 

Fraleigh, Geo. W 486 

Fraleigh, Irving 864 

Fraleigh, John A 486 

Fredrick Family 536 

Fredrick, John B 535 



French. Harvey J. 

Frost, Joseph G 

Fry, Benjamin H.. . 
Funk, Peter W. . . . 



802 

19 

654 

23 

503 

Dutcher, 'Joshua 503 

Dutcher, Luzerne 763 



•iO 

451 
197 



Dutcher, George W. 

Dutcher, James E 

Dutcher, John 

Dutcher. Hon. John B. 
Dutcher. J. Van Ness. 



Gaines. Clement C 652 

Gallup, C.H 249 

Gardner Family 709 

Gardner, Charles C 446 

Garratt, Jonathan M ^43 

Genung, Adrian •V) 

Genung, Isaac S '"^ 

Genung, Lewis W 

Germond, Mrs. Ella 

Germond Family, .—r' 

Germond, Franklin 

Germond. Isaac 

Gerow, Elizabeth H., M. D 

G ddings, George W ;. 

Ciddings, Jackson ' 



PAGE 

Giddings, John H 538 

Gidley Family 507 

Gilbert, Burton 87 

Gilbert, Mrs. Thaiia M 88 

Gildersleeve, Elmer D 104 

Gildersleeve Family /. 104 

Gildersleeve, Col. Henry A 106 

Gildersleve, Isaac B 774 

Gildersleve, Rita A 774 

Godinez, Jose Manuel 21.'j 

Gollenbeck, John 49( 

Goodell, James F., M. D 9;: 

Goring, Hon. Edward M . . ; . . . . 552 

Goring, John M 63ii 

Goring, Thomson E 55:- 

Graham Family 73i» 

Graham, Le Grand 648 

Gray, Hon. Augustus B 204 

Greene, Robert M 451 

Gregory Fami ly 516 

Griffen, Charles H 743 

Griffen, Cornelius W 593 

Griffen, Jacob 60)^ - 

Griffen, Timothy S 59"i 

Griggs, James C 5'' 

Guernsey, Judge D. W 8 i 

Guernsey Family 19" 

Guernsey, Stephen G '^ 

Hackett, John 

Hadden Family 

Hadden. James M 

Haggerty, David V n,.': 

Haight, Abram V. V.. . 901 

Haight, Andreas V 303 

Haight, Arvis 699 

Haight, Dr. Ch jrles 52- 

Haiirht, Clenrjent 575 

Haight, Cornelius J 901 

Haight, Emily R 320 

Haight, Enimf- J 706 

Haight Families 369, 5^ 'I 

Haight. Frances 9~'^ 

Haight. Franklin L 3^'G 

Haight, Henry W 702 

Haight. Isaac 57' 

Haight. Isaac. Jr 32'_ 

Haight, James B 927 

Haight, James H 510 

Haight, J. Cornelius 3»5!' 

Haight, J. Haviland 5'JJ 

Haight, Sherman N 316 

Haight, Wm. H. (Poughkeepsie). 7t'S 

Haight, Wm. H. (Fishkill) 702 

Haines Family 587 

Hall, Alfred E 4*4 

Ha'l, Alfred P 523 

Hall, Edward J., M. D §3. 

Hali Families 522, 6W 

Hall, Israel 50« 

Hall, John J 52V 

Hali, Leonard D 5>^ 

Hall, Piatt V ^ 

Hall, Mrs. Priscilla oSb 

Hall, William o^J 

Halsted, George S ';^ 

Halsted, Mrs. Julia »} 

Halsted, Nehemiah ^ 

Ham, Eugene 58-} 

Ham Family. o^r 

Hammond, Benjam-n 5*" 

Hainni !id Family **^ 

'lanmiond, Jol.n L 4^. 

'Janna, David o^i 

' mna Family ^ 



946 



INDEX. 



PAGE 

Hanna, Hon. John A 25 

Hapeman, Irving 872 

Harcourt, Joseph D 359 

Harcourt, Mrs. Mary E 359 

Harris Family 510 

Harris, Smith D 846 

Hart Family 816 

Hart, William H 816 

Hasbrook, Charles F 171 

Haskin, Albert R 37 

Haskins. Alex 496 

Haskins, John M 496 

Hastings, Samuel 761 

Haubennestel, Maj. William 214 

Haupt, John 263 

I'avens, Edward E 557 

Havens, William E 545 

Haviland, Barclay 96 

Haviland, Isaac 113 

Haviland, Mrs. Maria Ann 114 

Hawlev, Cyrus F 609 

Haxtun, William W 846 

Hayes, Mrs. Ann A 431 

Hayt, Peter li 243 

" ney, Charles S 808 

•rd, Newton 304 

I,ewis D 375 

!rs. Mary 376 

• Family 224 

J, Martin 224 

K>, Allan B 90 

ric.'<'. Edmund L 234 

.iricks, Mag<l.ik"-A 234 

ilcrnck. Cha.'-lesH 143 

Herrick, Ephr;u'.ii ■■ 879 

Herrick Families.. . 674,756 

Herrick, Fiarik .. • ■ **^ 

Herrick, James 674 

Herrick, John A j'J- 

IKfrrick, Alarshall 

Herrick, Timothy 

Herrick, William 

Hewlett, Isaac S <i . 

H.cks, Campbell N 65:. 

H'cks. Edward S ' " 

H'cks Family i . 

Hicks, Samuel S t-.^ 

Hicks, Willard W 43b 

H ignell, James H 545 

Hinman, Wintield B.. 940 

Hiserodt Family 781 

iioag, Arabella 361 

Hoag, Arthur F., M. D 2*,* 

HoHg, Charles W 520 

Hoag Family 520 

Hoag, Mrs. Laura B 520 

Hoag, Philip 364 

Hoag, William P 22<' 

Hochstadter, Ernest !'j2 

Hoffman Family 671 

Huffman, Frank 269 

Hofi.Tian, Henry 571 

Hoffm.-n. John W '■' 

Hoffman, Mrs. Lydia 

H jffman, Mrs. >Iary A 

Hoffman, N'l-.holas 

Hoffman, Theodore A 

Holdridge, Augustus 

Holdridge Family 

Holmes, Oilman D 

Holmes, Henry A 

Holmes, Wheeler C 

Holmes, William C 

Hopkins, Benjamin 

Hopkins, Charles A ' ' 



PAGE 

Hopkins Families 69, 110 I 

Hopkins, John 483 I 

Hopkins, William H., M. D 483 | 

Horton, Richard C 562 | 

Horton, Theodore S 803 I 

Hotchkiss Family 684 } 

Hotchkiss, Frank A 684 ' 

Howard, Beverly W 493 

Howard Families 517, 699 [ 

Howaid, John D 517! 

Howard, Sherman * 699 j 

Howard, Silas 502 

Howell, Benjamin 847 

Howell, Eugene N 489 [ 

Howell, Frank 262' 

Howell, George W 717 I 

Howland, Anna C, M. D 131 1 

Hiifcut Family 179 ( 

Hufcut, George 441 ; 

H uf cut, Horace D 179 

Hufcut, Mrs. Jennie 441 

Hughes Family 618 

Hughes, George 576 

Hughes, Miles 618 

Hull, Walter C 109 

Humeston Families 436, 786 

Humeston, Geo. E 785 

I Humeston, John J 435 



Humeston, "Merritt 785 

j Humphrey, Abram S 299 

I Humphrey Family 299 

I Humphrey, John V 3Ii" 

I H ungerford, Abner G 444 

i H ungerford, Robert J 630 

I Huntington, George, M. U: 139 

Hupfel.AdolphG 564 

Hurd Family >■ 876 

Kurd, Robert 876 

Husted, Dewitt C 642 



H, -Ml d 



, C c; -Tge L . 
, Jacksoi . . . 

'-"amilv 

Menr>: H... 
.so'i, Robert. 



482 

482 

58 

58 

868 

i.WilUiamB 907 

.f,.aiiam, George W 61 

ngral.'arii, Thomas 61 

nn >;, Aaron 88 

nnis Family 88 

nnis, George 931 

re;and, Mrs. Fi-pira A 418 

reland, Sieph 11 it 417 

rish, .\brahaif '.v 387 

rish Family 303 

706 
924 
924 
706 
758 
815 
43 

.Mary Adams 368 

L-rt 897 

^hus D 509 

lam B 509 

Arin 194 

-irgeB 194 

omas S 651 

nM., M. D 824 




.ouis E 676 

Simon J 268 

•.amily VP" 



PAGE 

Kelly, Rev. Terrence F 324 

Kelly, Timothy G 797 

Kelsey, Rev. Edward D 189 

Kerley, James 514 

Kerley, James R 514 

Ketcham, Andrew J 18 

Ketcham Family 18 

Ketcham, George W 419 

Ketcham, Hon. John H 64 

Ketcham, John M 419 

Ketcham, Mrs. Mary E 662 

Ketcham, Richard P 662 

Ketterer, Charles 880 

Ketterer, DeWitt C 880 

Kidder, George W 280 

Kimlin, Mrs. Mary 199 

Kimlin, William R 198 

Kinney Family 713 

Kinney, George B 713 

Kirby, Clark 221 

Kirby, Frances 221 

Kirchner, Charles 317 

Klady, .Mrs. Lena 628 

Klady, Philip 528 

Kline, Mrs. Joseph 641 

Kline, Joseph 641 

Knapp, DavidA., M. D 121 

Knapp Families 121, 467 

Knickerbocker, Edwin 731 

Knickerbocker, Henry 566 

Knickerbocker, Henry B 666 

Koch, August 279 

La Due Family 690 

La Due, John N 690 

Lamb, Joseph T., M. D 916 

Lambert, Addie H 419 

Lambert, John H 418 

Lamoree Family 688 

Lamoree, George 688 

Landon, Edmund N 644 

Landon Family 730 

Landon, John S 868 

Lane, Charles E., M. D 184 

Lansing Family 34 

Lansing, W'ellington C 34 

Lasher, Almira fl 261 

Lasher, Frank P 720 

Lasher, Martin 904 

Lasher, Warren P 260 

Latson, Frank, D. D. S 255 

Latson, Henry 255 

Lawson, Casper 703 

Lawson Family 703 

Lawson, Robert P 598 

Leach, Alonzo M 377 

Leach Family 372 

Leach, LiUius C 373 

Leach, Martm 373 

Lee, P. Alverson 842 

Lee, Darius 230 

Lee, George F 909r 

Lee, George J 929 

Lee, Mrs. Mary 442 

Lee, Ward 443 

Lee, William Morgan 230 

Leith, Col. Samuel, Sr. 348 

Le Roy Family 841 

Le Roy, Irving D., M. D 841 

Lewis, Miles K 869 

Link, John W... 803 

I Livingston Family 144 

Lorkwood, George 366 

\ vfelace, James H 743 

'own, Frank B 592 



INDEX. 



947 



PAGE 

Luckey, Charles P 36 

I.uckey Family 36 

Lumb, Charles L 252 

Lumb, George W 262 

Lyke, J. Hyatt, D. D. S 838 

Lyke, John 932 

Lynch, James 251 

Lynch, M.J 278 

Lynch, Samuel 857 

Lyon, Asahel A 602 

Lyon, Asahel D 602 

Lyon, Leonard 586 

McCarty Family 47 

McCarty, James C 47 

McGlasson, John 931 

McGlasson, Robert 931 

McGrath. Rev. John J 3.52 

McKevitt, John 939 

McWhinnie, Thomas 170 

MacNeil, Crawford C 895 

Mabie, Hiram 641 

Mahony, Rev. Dr. Cornelius V. . 257 

Manning, Edward B 366 

Manning Family 366 

Mansfield, Samuel 38 

Marcy Family 858 

Marcy, Marcus D 867 

Marill, Joaquim, M. D 75 

Marquet, John F 242 

Marshall Families 585, 738, 766 

Marshall, Henry S 485 

Marshall, James A 738 

Marshall, John A 585 

Marshall, Theron R 765 

Marshall, William W 686 

Marshall, Willet J 782 

Martin, Hon. Augustus 390 

Martin, Col. Claudius G 746 

Martin, Elizabeth B lyl 

Martin Family 390 

Martin Family, Joseph . . .... 190 

Martin, James H 

Martin, Jos-^pn , 

Martir. Miss Sc'-en:i. . -iVi 

Martin . Win? j .... »'^\ 

^!.•' . 784 

229 

647 

V 422 

...K P 805 

M ,d, Dr. Isaac N 422 

Mead, James V 661 

Mead, Jeremiah 767 

Mead, Morris 768 

Mer'itt, Douglas 620 

Mervin. Mrs. E. M. C 346 

Mervin, William J ;i45 

Milhrd, Miss H. D 242 

MilUrd, Howard C 798 

Millard. John 242 

Milla-d, Miss L. D 242 

Millad, William B 168 

Mille Bros 404 

Mille, George N., M. D 223 

Millet Peter 267 

Millet Philip 405 

Millet Valentine M 405 

Mitchll, John 906 

Moith.August T 672 

Moiih.i. Edgar, M. D 672 

Monahn, Margaret B 448 

MonaVjn, Thomas 448 

Monfoi, John A 758 

MonksDaniel H 559 



PAGE 

Montfort, Peter V. W 441 

I Moore, Alfred H 612 

I Moore, David V 748 

^^loore Families 748 

Moore, Mrs. William R 166 

Moore, William R 166 

More, Charles C 779 

Morehouse, Henry S 722 

Morehouse, Julius S 722 

Morey, Edmond A 669 

Morey Families 483, 569 

Morey, Leonard L 482 

Morey, Mrs. Sarah 930 

Morgan, Charles I! 454 

Morgan Family 455 

Morgan, George 132 



Morgan, Julia A. 

Morton Family 

Morton, Hon. Levi P. 



132 

10 

9 

Mosher, William A . ; 937 

Mott, Morgan L 326 

Mott, Morgan L., Jr 327 

Moul Family 721 

.Moul, Julius M 721 

Mulcox, Joseph H 914 

Muldownev, Michael A 866 

Mulford. Edmund D 923 

Munger, Capt. James E 100 

Myer, Polhemus W 670 

Myers Family 610 

Myers, John Francis 610 

Mygatt Family 747 

Mygatt, Henry 747 

Nagengast, George 936 

Nelson, Mrs. Corn .ij M 41 

Nelson, Homer AugU';A;s 8 

Nelson, Mrs. Jeannette 401 

' Nelson, John P 40 

N (-lion. Col. Joseph 41 

..-Ison, Sarah C 353 

\ilson, Thomas Henry 353 

'.man, James 881 

: ls,ThomasG 600 

:\ )!.'.:., R€v. James, D. D 238 

.^Norton Family 660 

Norton, George S 660 

Noxon Family 707 

Noxon, Mrs. Matilda V 426 

O'Brien, Thomas 583 

Odell, Casper L 81 

j Odell, Edward 661 

I Odell Families 29, 81 

j Odell, Joseph E., M. A 29 

! Odell, Samuel D 670 

1 Odell, Wright B 740 

I O'Farrell, John V 6a5 

Orton, John H 696 

Ostrander, Alson 819 

I Ostrander Family 819 

• Ostrander, James H 820 

lOtis, JohnC, M. D 79 

; Owen, George W 292 

*"Paine Family 624 

I Paine, James Russell 624 

j Paine, Martin W 855 

Paine, Piatt N 625 

I Palmer, Abiah W 401 

' Parker, Edward Hazen 32 

I Parker, Nathaniel 813 

j Parker, William H 617 

I Parks, George E 477 

' Parmele, John H 765 



PAGE 

Parmele, William 766 

Parmenter, Emil 551 

Pawling Family gg 

Payne, George C 518 

Payne, Samuel 518 

Peacock, Arthur S 629 

Pearce, Benoni 34 

Pearce Family 6!^ 

Pearce, Henry, M. D 63 

Pearce, leremiah S 34 

•Pease, \lrs. Cornelia 239 

Pease, Edwin R 2-39 

Peattie Bros 912 

Peattie, George 912 

Peet Family .342 

Pells, .Michael 678 

Pendleton Family 205 

Perkins, Dr. Charles H 920 

Perkins, Cyrus 67!' 

Perkins, Ed ward E 620 

Perkins, J. A 925 

Perkins, M rs. Sarah 673 

Perkins, Stephen A 329 

Petillon, Ludwig 136 

Phesay . George F 804 

Phillips, David F 933 

Phillips, Joseph W 689 

Phillips, Hon. Samuel K 196 

Phillips, William T 922 

Pierce, Isaac 563 

Pierce, Leonard V 663 

Pilgrim, Charles W., M. D 181 

Pinckney, James L 694 

Pinckney, Lewis 266 

Pinckney, Perry 694 

Pingry Family 834 

Pingry, James O., M. D 834 

Plass, Anson A 904 

Piatt, Edmund P 78 

Piatt, Isaac 76 

Piatt, Hon. John 1 77 

Piatt, William B 367 

Platto, William 38:i 

Porteous Family 122 

Porteous, James G., M. D 122 

Poucher, J. Wilson, M. D -JOO 

Powell Family _ 7!ii:_ 

Powell, Horace R.,M.D.'^.T. . 7tV 

Powers, John 90.'. 

Pralatowski, Wladyslawa J 676 

Pratt, John .\I 606 

Pratt, Peter ef'j 

Prav Family 516 

Pray, Hamilton M5 

Preston, Ebenezer A 6;'] 

Preston, Ebenezer J 631 

Preston Family 26 

Prichard, James L., M. D 852 

Pultz Family 73» 

Pultz, Hiram A 7;1? 

Pultz, M.T., M. D 2'* 

Pulver Families 468, 502 7.}1 

Pulver, Herman 7^' 

Pulver,JohnW ■• 502 

Putnam Family "^ 

Putnam, John W 504 

Pye, Mrs. Amelia S 2^5 

Pye, Francis B 296 

Rapalje Family '■'" 

Rapalje, Lawrence C 125 

Raub, Mrs. E. S 141 

Record Family 429 

Record, William 429 

Redavats, Charles 8iM 



V)48 



INDEX. 



PAGE 

Redman, Juhn 440 

Reud Family tl(iO 

Rtud, Thomas :W0 

Rf> nolds Families 108, "'> 



Reynolds 
Reynolds, 



, Jail 
, Jus 



ames t!85 

Justus P 772 

Reynolds, Warren 742 

Reynolds, William T 108 

Rickes, \'alentine 658 

Rider, Albert L 445 

Rider, John P 164 

Rikert Family 640 

Rikert, K. Raymond 640 

Roberts, Charles H ;«0 I Sencerbaugh, John G.. . . 

Kobinson, Chappell 476 Sencerbaugh, W. P 

Robinson, Dr. Francis M 247 " 



PAGE I VKCr 

Schryver. John T 431 ; Smith, Oliver Kees 'sos 

bchryver, Matthew V. B 431 ; Smith, Silas G... s54 

Schubert, Charles E. F «87 | Smith, W. Wallace li 

Schultz, John R 515 1 Snvder, Burton A..." 259 

Schwartz, John 782 , Snyder, Mrs. Gertrude H'..'. '.." 260 

Scoheld t amily 526 I Spaight, ;^ohn W ] n^^ 

^^.^g j^^_^^lj j^^^^ ^ ••••■ ^^ 

'"° Spross, Elias 588 



Robinson, Jarvis C 719 

Robinson, Osborn 878 

Robinson, Reuben J 735 

Robinson, .Stephen 476 

Rockefeller, Clinton J 890 

Rockwell. Arthur V 436 

Rockwell, Ralph 436 

Roe, Mrs. Amanda A 773 

•Koe, John 700 

HRoe, VVilliam B 773 

Roe, Wdliam P 700 

Roger, George 655 

Rogers,'"harlesD 6)^4 

Rogers, I). V.'. 778 

Rogers, Mrs. .Margur^t 475^' 

Rogers, Patrick . .... Alb 

Rogers, Philip Clayton .'.'. ! . 204 

Roosevelt Family K:^ 

Roosevelt, James 6; 

Rosa, Frederic L 4?i 

Rosa, Hyman B 4o,' 

Ifloss, Duncan 444 



Scolield, Miles, 

Scoheld, Stephen 279 

Scutt, John 276 

Seaman. Thomas H 393 

Segelken, Charles Y 421 

Seger, Charles E., M. D 53 

Seger Family 53 

- 682 

683 

I Seward, Hon. James A 347 

Seward, .Mrs. Mary B 348 

Sexton Family 408 

Shaw, George R . 760 

Sheafif, Edmund H 549 

Shear, .Mrs. Catherine L 504 

Shear, John Cornell 603 

Sheedy, Daniel M., M. D 131 

Sheldon, Mrs. Augusta B 385 

Sheldon, Collins 837 



Squires Family 219 

Stephens, Charles A 646 

Stephens, John 646 

Stevens, H iram G 855 

Stevens, Thomas H 856 

Steveoson, George 670 

Stickle, Philip H 9lo 

Stockholm, Aaron A 691 

Stockliolm, .A. B 173 

Storm, .Mrs. Carrie ;i45 

Storm, Charles A 320 

Storm, Mrs. Charles A 321 

Storm Families 135, 295, 4.56 

Storm, George 344 

Storm, Joseph H \M 

Storm, Thomas I 295 

Storm, Walter G 891 

Storm, William J 4.56 

Storm, Wilson B ,542 



Sheldon Families 244, 837 

Sheldon, Jeremiah 248 

5K'*^""' •y,'.',''""' " -^ i -Stoutenburgh Family 849 

Sheldon, Wilson B 244 , Stowe, Charles N. . . 788 

Sh.lley, Alva 8=33 j Stowe, Mrs. C. X .'. 788 

■"'"'. Charles 3.56 Straight Family 341 

' - ' - ,.823,889'- - ^ 



xSIi 



•vA. 



356 
794 
889 
216 



Streit, 
Streit, 



il>' 

Lewis F 140 

M rs. Rebecca M 141 



Koss P'amil 

Ross, Mrs. '. 

Round, C- ' 

Rowt i 
1? „., , 



-la- H. 



793 j Shook , - , . 1 . , , 
444 I Shook, Wiiii:i:i, \ 
176 Shurter, Charles H. 
698|Sickley, JohnC... 

698 I Sievers, George 

437 I Simmons, Charles A. 



Strever, Adam A 781 

Strever Families 572,580 

Strever, Frederick H ;. 580 

Strever, Rachel T 581 

--!• -'lel, Mrs. Christina 402 

Wendel 402 



\^ iltpr D. O. K., M. D.. 



H. 



437 
271 
718 
172 



"ly 

. , Joseph B 

<id Family ^ ,^ 

Kudd, Zebuion \ \\ 172 

Kundall, David .".'' 638 

Rundall Family 637 

'■^undall, Henry \\ 638 

} upley, Samuel K '. 923 

J iissell, Benjamin H 787 

Ruisell Families 787 794 

Fussfll, James H '794 

Russell, Selwyn A., M. D ^y2 

Fymph. Edward L '.'.'.' 897 

Rymph Family 49O 

B ymph, George W '. 490 

Sukett, Nathan C 724 

^ "Ck -tt, .Samuel H 724 

Sackei-, Smith 1 856 

Sadlier, }-,mes Edgar, M. D 315 

S.mdcrs, K-ibert 926 

s,mfordFai,iiy.';;::v.v.v;!;;;; 241 

.S.intord, Robi-t 240 

S.irgent Family . . 5(14 

Sargent, Wimlrop. .'.■.■.■.■. '.\\\\\ 663 

achafer, Louis. » 478 

Schlegel, George '. I ' 1. . ... 297 

Schlude, George _ _ _ 298 

Srhouten, Richar.l A ..'....' 615 



336 
;«7 
705 



Schrauth, Jacob ' " 899 



I Simmons, Edward W 

I Simmons Family 

Simmons, James B., D. D . . 

Skidmore Family 

Skidniore, Peter A 704 

Slee, Samuel 283 

Sleight, Alexander W 607 

Sleight, Benjamin .A 294 

Sleight Family 607 

Slocum, Charles H 464 , S 

Slocuni, Hiram 454 

Smith, Abel 928 

Smith, Albert C 864 

Smith, Gen. Alfred B 16 

Smith, Andrew C 506 

Smith, C-iffsIis M. C 166 

Smith. (!,rjcs E 629 

Smit[i ' .larles Hoag 783 

SmiL.i, Edward M .500 

*mith Families 281, .500, 621 

Smith, Frances 78;j 

Smith, George C 595 

Smith, George W 629 

Smith, John H., Jr 621 

Smith, JohnT 354 

Smith, Lewis 521 

Smith, M. J 'W 18 

Smith, Myron 281 

Smith, Nathan 468 

Smith, Nathan W 492' 



Slii.1 1 r 1 
Sutheri,; 



62 
584 
667 
685 
312 
?A2 



1 Smith, Nathaniel 



801 



Hon. ]\><' 

F«)ben. ' 

Sutton, Eawin 

Sutton, Leslie A., M. D.. . 

Sutton, Mary D j,,, 

Sweet, Pedro. gfij 

Swift Families 46:' ^ '■'* 

Swift, George H 40J 

ift, Henry M 839 

Swift, Isaac 498 

Swift, Jan:es D 693 

Swift, James H 217 

Swift, Jane ,S40 

Swift, Jf)hn M 217 

Swift, R.chard T K93 

Taber Families 2(i8, 212 

Taber, George K 212 

Taber, Thomas 112 

Taber, Walter F' 112 

Taber, William H 208 

Tabor Family 789 

Tabor, Gilbert 789 

Taboi, Myron P 790 

Talbd, Benjamin M ,549 

Tallf Jay, Frank 939 

Talhian Family. 48 

Tallman, John F 51 

Talman, Hon. John P. H 48 

Tar ner, Samuel J 800 

Tanner, William H., M. D 829 



ryDEx. 



949 



PACE 

Taylor, Mrs. Catherine E lt'7 

Taylor, Henry J '■''''■' 

Tavlor, H. Pauline '7 

Teal, John D 'V, 

Teator, Uriah *' '- 

Teats, Frank 

Teats, Mrs. Frank • 

Ten Broeck Family '" 

Ten Broeck, Capt. Samuel ■joI 

Ten Broeck, Samuel P 8Sj 

Ten Broeck, Walter L 560 

Terwilliger Family 550 



PAGE 

I 'na.jrhill, Anthony, M. D 46 

1 n<l"rhill, Edward A 543 

L'ii'lc;rhill, George 46 

Underbill, Dr. Joshua B 46 



1 \aii, Edwin G 610 

■ \ dil Families 425, 692, 706 

• \ail. George 1 706 

1 \ ill 1. Joseph 1 799 

Vail, Morgan L 692 

Vail, J. Watson 376 

Vail, Willard C 314 

Terwilliger, Silas 560 i Valentine Family 744 

Tetamore Family 222 I Valentine, Richard L 744 

Tetainore, Frank L. R., M. D . . '222 [ \an Benschoten Family 707 

Thomas Family 749 K\an Benschoten, Henry 518 

Thomas, Robert M 730-; \'an Benschoten, Mrs. Mary J .. . 518 

Thomas, Walter B.. 749+ Van Cleef Family 15 

Thompson, Mrs. Caroline B 21 i \'an Cleef, James S 15 

Thompson, Hon. Edward H :'32 Yun Cott, Samuel 379 

Thompson Family 3o2 | \'an Ue Bogart, Daniel 694 

Thompson, Hon. John 20 i Van De Bogart Family 594 

Thompson, John R 871 I Van De Burgh, Hexto'n 346 

Thompson, Robert R 206 

Thomson, William 261 

Tiedje, Henry 294 

Tiel, ,\rthur R., M. D 648 

Tiel Family 648 

Tiemeyer, John H 554 



Vanderburgh, Edgar M 424 

Vauderburgh Family 424 

Vander Burgh, Col. James 65 

Van De Water, George 691 



V'an De Water, William. 
Van Dyne, Frank B. 



iv, Francis 597 ! Van Etten, Cornelius S., M. D.. . 



ieveland H 426 

amilies 42^5, 512 ] 

■ Irs. Harriet 

; ichard 

i . i;^, lUibert H ^'i' 

Titua, Willet 512 i 

Tobey, Arthur G 600 

Toffey Family. fW. 

Toffey, John 1 

Tompkins, E. Lakin. . 

Tonipkirs Farrilif« I 

Tompk 



Van Etten Family 
VanGieson,Rev. Acmon P.,D. D. 

\ ,111 Gieson Familv 

\'a;i Kleeck, Baltu's B 

Van Kleeck, Charles E 

Van Kleeck, Charles S 277 

\'aii Kleeck, Cornelia 287 

V 



590 
388 
604 
604 
60 
60 
389 
933 



Tompk 

Toi-;-' 

Top ■ 

Tui. 

T.I' 

T. 

T 



in Kleeck Family 277 

in Kleeck, Frank 38? 

.•'11 Kleeck, James E j!'" 

I win Kleeck, John H •• 346 

' 'i .in Kleeck, Leonard B. . 287 

■ ' in Mostrand, Francis S ii8 

■■ Tassell, John I o2rj 

Tassell, J. Vv'esley 527 

\liet,Bt"Son 411 

(50 i \ an \'liet-Family 408 

7.''<9 ' \' • .'oorhees Family 378 

Vagner, Benjamin 763 

Wagner, Mrs. Cornelia B.. . 258 

.'!■ \ r. \Vagner, Egbert 258 

les 696,700 ;i:5 \a-i Wagner Family 739 1 

i,ert L 440 han Wagner, Gilbert E 739; 



i.arles.. 



.iiiir 
.U, Jacol 



'.jhnA 6% 

Mrs. Mary J 439 

William E. (Rhinebeck;. Ti.'i 
William '£. vVew Hani- 



;',. F 

Alfred N 

Mrs. Carrie E. B. 
Charles H., M. D 

D. C, M. D 

Families 430, 6^ 

lames B J>10 



924 

55.'i 

69 

69 

71'"! 



Leonard 1 641 iVan Wyck, James 392 



■ i.,ip, 
i ,pp 

- 'ipp: 

fripp, Smiten \ incent. 

Tripp, William A 

Tripp, William S 

Trowbridge Family 

Trowbridge, George A 

Trowbridge. John 

Trowbridge, N. Conklin... 
Trowbridge, Ste)ihen B.. . . 
Tuthill, Robert K..M.D... 



V in Wagner, Millard 763 

\;'ri Wagner, Nicholas 941 

Van Wey, Alfred 478 

\"<.n Wey. Mrs. Alfred 478 

\'<ti; Wyck, Benjamin W 556 

\aii Wvck, Charles J 466 

\'.v.\ Wyck, Cornelius R 382 

\ .in Wyck, David Barnes 319 

^ I' Wyck, Duryee 534 

Wyck Families 

318, 466,529,532,556 

\ <;n Wyck, Henry D 232 



118 

;»2 

118 
.528 
532 
392 
IM 

Mrs. Isabel 231 

Richard A., M.D 231 



Wvck, Jiihn. 

.\yck. Sirs. Phccbe C. 

.Vyck, Mrs. Sarah. . . . 

'.Vvck, Stephen C 

Wyck, T. De Witt... 

Wyck, Theodorus 

. n, Isaac L 
ok 



PAGE 

Velie Family 440 

Vermilyea, Addison 922 

Vermilyea, Brooks 921 

Ver Planck Family 128 

Ver Planck, Robert N 128 

Verplanck, Mrs. Samuel 387 

Vincent, Edgar (Madalin) 922 

Vincent, Edgar (deceased) 300 

V'incent Family 671 

V'incent, George 670 

X'incent, Isaac, Sr 300- 

Vincent, Mrs. M. Ella 261 

Vincent, Obed W 261 

Vincent, Phebe A 846 

Vincent, Reuben 845 

Wait, John G 368 

Waite, James E 270 

Waite, Joseph 270 

Walcott Family 112 

Waldo, John B 811 

Waller, Mrs. E 246 

Waller, Homer 245 

Walsh, Charles •" 

Wanzer, Charles F ^," 

Wanzer p'amily iiOl 

Wanzer, Jedediah I ■'•(■\ 

Ward, David B., M. D 77> 

Ward Family « 

Warhurst, George, Sr "^ 

Washburn, Daniel '-iC 

Washburn Family • • ■ 136 

Watkins, Mrs. Mary M. 358 

Watts Family 145 

Weeks Familv 24 

Weeks, Mr- Harriets 25 

Weeks /ames Henry 24 

We'^'ing. William J 869 

•.vellman Family 185 

Wellman, George M., M. D 185 

Wells, Eugene 938 

Weston, Rev. John B., D. D. . . . 416 

Weston. Weldon F eas 

Weston, Wilbur H 634 

Whalen, Dennis 936 

Whalen, Patrick 877 

Wheaton, Mrs. Caroline T 6 

Wheaton, Judge Charles 4 

Wheaton, Homer 5 

Wheeler, Bailey 879 

Wheeler, Corydon 323 

Wheeler, Mrs. Charlotte P 74 

Wheeler Famjly 7' • 

Wheeler, Rev. Francis B., D. D. 73 

Wheeler, Henry. 793 . 

Wheeler, Mulford 269 

Wheeler, Obed SUv 

Wheeler, Perry 793 

Wheeler, Theodore 806 

White, Benjamin K 756 

White Family 201 

White, Frederick C 928 

White, Henry D., M. D 209 

White, Howell, M.D 201 

White, John B 926 

White, John L 908 

White, William A 780' 

White, William H 926 

Whitehouse, I.0 4RS 

Wilber Famitv •^'■ 

Wilbur. D.W'. 6.V 

Wilbur Families 489, 6.- _ 

Wilbur, Frank B 4f- 

Wilbur, IraE 84.'^ 

Wilev, Alfred S 745 



.»50 



INDEX. 



.... „ , PAGE 

\\ iliy, Reubfn 225 

^Vilkinson, Col. Robert F.. .... 180 

VVilliams.GL'orgeH., M. D 183 

Williams, Gforge H ' 14 

Williams, Janu-s L \\\ 45 

Williams, John 653 

Williamson. Phebe T., M. D 287 

Willson Kamilies 434, 532 

\\ illson, George T 434 

Willson, IsraefR 582 

Wilson, John P., M. D ! 182 

VViltsc, Alonzo S 598 

Winans Family 

Winans, Joel S .,. 

Winans, Walter H 



602 

602 

,,,. ,.. ,, ,- 604 

Winans, Virgil G 4fjl 

Winchester, Milo F.. ggg 



Wing, Ebbe P 



340 



<•» ing, tmery 217 



,,,■ T, ., P.M5K 

I Wing Family .,, 

Wing, John S \\\ 

j Wing, Jackson S ..'.'.' 

Wing, .Martha T... 

jWing, Obed 

jWing, PhttbeA ;"' 

Wing, .Sheldon ;-!.( 

Wixom, John O <«; • 

VVolcott, Charles M . . . ......' 'isij 

Wood, Capt. Isaac H .32K 

Wood, James M \\ \\ 7(/> 

Wood, Lewis E 126 

Wood, William J KSrj 

Woodin, Daniel T 5ftj 

Woodin, Egbert !......!.. 4S1 

VVofjdin, Mrs. Mary J "..', \ 5yi 

Woodin, Solomon ,\ 482 

Wormsley, Frederick 311 



PACK 

" ■ '■ "^'"0- 6TK 

Abram 2,%5 

Charles W ' " gj^ 

i'a""'y- '.'.'. 716 

'"3CW 4}« 

J^'"*^5 H 498 

"hn.G. 687 

- I.ewis H gg- 

VVni,-!! Thomas 71g 

Wyii.oj Family. .. . yo 

Wymbs, Luke D '.!!!!!!!'.;". 39 

SH. J 4;y 

>, Mrs. Maiy J 479 

■•'.^ Clarence E '" gog 

Young, Henry L ;; 225 

Young. .Louis gin 

Young, Mrs. Louis ggo 







^ ~ "V. V 

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