Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 110

Author: H. H. Beers & Co.
Publication date: 1899
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1795

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line of physicians in the township of Huntington. Doctor Shelton has ably upheld the prestige of his name, and by his skill and talent has added new honors to those gained by his predecessors. While his attention is mainly given to his pro- fessional labors, he takes an influential part in local affairs, especially in those that relate to the educational advancement of the locality. For many years he has been an active member of the board of school visitors; from 1870 to 1888 he was president of the board of education in the town; was a trustee of the Plumb Memorial Library (at Shelton, Conn.) fund, with Mrs. D. W. Plumb, and was engaged in the erection of the new library building, and the presentation of it to the town of Huntington.

Also prominent in political circles, he, in No- vember, 1894, was elected to the General As- sembly, in which he served with credit to him- self and to the satisfaction of his constituency, taking his seat in January, 1895, and doing notable work as chairman of the committee on Public Health during the session. From 1885 to 1888 (three terms) he was a member of the board of burgesses of Shelton, and from 1890 to 1892 (three terms) he was warden of the bor- ough. Since 1889 he has been coroner-medi- cal examiner of his town, and since 1886 he has served as health officer of his borough. The office of registrar of vital statistics was filled by him for several years, but long since it was merged into that of the town clerk, who now performs the duty. His other positions include those of president of the board of park commis- sioners at Shelton since 1893; president of the Shelton Water Company, and director of the Shelton Savings Bank, both since 1893; also secretary and director of the Silver Plate Cutlery Company, since 1894. In 1891 the honorary degree of A. M. was conferred upon him by Yale University, and in 1894 he was elected president of the Yale Medical Alumni Association. He is a member of the American Medical Association; the Connecticut Medical Society; the Fairfield County Medical Society, of which he was presi- dent in 1889, and since 1892 he has been a mem- ber of the consulting board of the Bridgeport Hospital. He is also actively interested in fra- I ternal society work as a member of the I. O. O. F. and the F. & A. M.

On June 16, 1874, Doctor Shelton was mar- ried to Miss Emily Plumb Capel, who was born in Bridgeport, August 12, 1847, a niece of the late Hon. D. W. Plumb, of Shelton. No chil- dren blessed this union. Mrs. Shelton passed | from earth November 11, 1897.

As various members of the family have won

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distinction in their respective fields of effort, it will be interesting to note the lines of descent in other branches. The eldest of the seven sons of Daniel Shelton, the famous pioneer, was Joseph, who was born June 24, 1696, and passed his life at Long Hill, where he died August 10, 1782. aged eighty-six. He married Mary, daughter of Joseph Hollister, of Glastonbury, Conn., and had four daughters and two sons. Of the latter, Jos- eph died at the age of fourteen, and William, who was born July 26, 1739, made his home at Long Hill, where he died January 27, 1812, at the age of seventy-three. He was married October 1, 1764, to Susannah, daughter of Thomas Strong, of Brookhaven, L. l., a descendant of Elder John Strong, of the Dorchester Colony, Elder Brewster, of the "Mayflower," and Roger Ludlow, once deputy-governor of Massachusetts. Two daugh- ters and six sons were born of this marriage. Of the sons: Philo and Thomas died without issue. William, Jr., graduated at Yale in 1788, and be- came a physician in Huntington, as mentioned above; while two of his sons, William and James Hovey, also practiced medicine, the former at Stratford, and the latter in Huntington. Selah, a son of William, Sr., had eight daughters and two sons, of whom, George lived in Ohio and Missouri, and Alfred remained in Huntington, where his descendants now reside. George, a son of William, Sr., had two sons-Charles, who was for eight years a medical missionary in India, and George Wellington, who located in Birming- ham, Conn. Joseph, eldest son of William, Sr., was born August 27, 1765, and died at his resi- dence at Long Hill, September 1, 1848, aged eighty- three. He was married on November 24, 1791, to Charity, daughter of Stephen Lewis, of Stratford, three daughters and five sons being

G EORGE COMSTOCK. This gentleman is a representative of the fourth generation of the Comstock family that has been born at Wil- ton, Conn .. Strong Comstock, the great-grand-fa- ther having been the first, and his son, Samuel. was the father of James, our subject's father. Sam- uel Comstock was also the father of Mrs. Will- iam E. Raymond, of New Canaan, Connecticut. James Comstock was born and lived and died at Wilton. He was a prominent merchant

at that place, having a general merchandise store, and for a number of years was postmaster at North Wilton. He married Harriet Betts. a daughter of Andrews and Mary Weed (Hoyt) Betts, of Wilton. The following children came to bless the home of Mr. and Mrs. Comstock: (1) Strong, principal of the Balmforth avenue school at Danbury, Conn., married Martha At- wood, and has the following children: Leonard, who is a graduate of Yale College, class of 1895; Mary; Harriet, who is a graduate of Vassar Col- lege, class of 1897; Georgia; James and Alfred. Strong Comstock graduated from Yale in 1867. (2) George. (3) Andrews Betts, who died at the age of fourteen. (4) Marianna, who married John Johnson, of Boston, and has two children: Mable and Edith. (5) Isabel, who married Alfred Mckee, and has two children: Sidney and Isabel; and (6) William E., of Wilton.

George Comstock was born June 19, 1847, spent his youth at Wilton, and received his edu- cation in the district schools. As soon as he was old enough he went to work on a farm, and that work and clerking in a store occupied his time until he was twenty-two years of age. He then, unlike his immediate ancestors, decided to leave his native town and seek his fortune elsewhere. Accordingly he came to Bridgeport, and engaged in the retail grocery business on East Main street for two years. His early training had been such as to give him habits of industry and economy, and his previous experience in a store had taught him the general principles of business that are not learned in the text books or in the schools, but out in the actual contact with the business world. He was quite successful, and in 1871 he engaged in the same business with Isaac W. Smith on Barnum avenue; for two years he re- Morford & Trubee as traveling salesman, and in 1881 he became a partner of David Trubee & Co., extensively engaged in the wholesale gro- cery business.

born of this union, the youngest son, Edward | mained here, and in 1873 he joined the firm of Nelson Shelton, who is now deceased, becoming one of the leading business men of his section in his day. To his great energy and financial aid the creation of the Ousatonic water power was due, and for him was rightly named the bustling and successful borough of Shelton.

In 1871, in Bridgeport, Mr. Comstock was married to Miss Sarah Smith, daughter of Isaac W. and Julia (Thatcher) Smith, and the follow- ing children have been born to them: Mortimer Smith, who graduated from Yale in 1895, and Andrews Betts, who is now attending Yale Law School.

Mr. Comstock is one of those public-spirited I men, who cast aside their personal interests, and exert their every energy for the welfare of the community in which they live. He has repeat- I edly been called upon to represent his fellow townsmen in various ways. In 1886 he was a i member of the common council, and at the

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present time is the very efficient president of the board of health. Socially, he is an important factor; is a member of the Sea Side Club, and on the board of governors in that club. He is a member of the New York Produce Exchange. Religiously, Mr. and Mrs. Comstock are active workers in the South Congregational Church, in which he is a member of the Society's committee. In their delightfully home-like residence at No. 239 Park avenue, they delight to entertain their many friends, and the stranger here finds a wel- come that proves "Hospitality, the King."

R CHARLES TOUSEY. New England is one of the greatest manufacturing centers of the world, and on her factories necessarily does a great share of her wealth depend. These factories have been run oftentimes by several generations of one family, and this succession applies not only to owners, but also to the em- ployes. R. Charles Tousey, whose name ap- pears at the opening of this review, and who is one of the best known manufacturers in Trum- bull, was born in the Long Hill District, July 11, 1845, a son of Wheeler P. Tousey.

The Tousey family have long been residents of Fairfield county, and have occupied prom- inent and representative positions. Abel Tousey, the great-grandfather of our subject, was born in Newtown, Conn., March 4, 1756, followed farming all his life, and died June 7, 1825. He was twice married. His first wife was Miss Esther Glover, and they were married March 2, 1780. She died August 9, 1804, leaving chil- dren whose names and dates of birth are as fol- lows: John Glover, mentioned more fully below; Sarah Ann, November 19, 1783; Gradison Cur- tis, June 29, 1786; Marcia, October 4, 1789; Zerah, June 29, 1791; Philo, March 17, 1793; Minerva, January 10, 1800; and Esther Ann, December 10, 1802. On January 12, 1805, Mr. Tousey was married to Polly Blackman, and by her he had two children: Abel, born Decem- ber 18, 1805, and Fanny, born March 26, 1812.

John Glover Tousey was born in Newtown, Conn., November 11, 1781, and died February 18, 1820. He engaged in farming and teaching there all his life. He married Amarillis Hub- bell, and to them were born three children: David, who lived to be seventy-two years of age; ! Wheeler Peck; and Delia.

Wheeler Peck Tousey was born March 7, 1817. His early days were spent in Newtown, and he received such education as he could ob- tain in the schools of the vicinity. He learned carriage making in the Daniels Farms District,

near Trumbull, and later established a factory of his own in Long Hill. For a short time he worked in Bridgeport, also passed some months in the South, and during the Civil war he farmed in Tompkins county, N. Y. He was the first man to run a sewing machine at Long Hill, and in many ways has shown his love of advanced methods of work. The present factory of R. Charles Tousey, which was erected for the manufacture of carriages for the Southern trade, was bought by W. P. Tousey about 1866, and some three years later was begun in it the manu- facture of shirts and drawers. On October 10, 1842, Wheeler Peck Tousey was married to Miss Mary M. Turney, who was born June 25, 1821, a daughter of Elijah and Eunice (Thorp) Tur- ney, both natives of the town of Fairfield. Two children graced this union: R. Charles, and Lamora, born January 24, 1850, who married Joseph Hawley. The father died April 21, 1889, and his death caused much sorrow in the community where he was widely known. His pleasant way had made him many friends, and his employes found him not only a master but a friend.

R. Charles Tousey passed his boyhood and youth in Long Hill, receiving his education in part at the district school, in part at a private boarding school in Monroe. When quite young he entered his father's factory, and thoroughly learned the art of carriage making. When his father began the manufacture of shirts and drawers he entered into partnership with him. Since the death of the latter he has conducted the business for himself, has made many im- provements, and now employs about fifty hands. He has taken his father's place in the affections of the employes, and it is safe to say that there is no more popular man in the community.

On November 28, 1866, in Virgil, Cortland Co., N. Y., R. Charles Tousey was united in matrimony with Ellen E. Francis, a daughter of Richard and Caroline (Gager) Francis. Five children bless their union: (1) Rena Caroline, born October 5, 1869, was married November 12, 1889, to Harry A. House, of Bridgeport, now living at East Cowes, Isle of Wight, Eng- land. (2) Lora Alice, born June 5, 1871, was married November 23, 1892, to Dr. D. C. De- Wolfe, of Bridgeport, and has had two children -Sinclair Tousey, born March 25, 1894; and Frederick L., born July 27. 1897, and died March 10, 1898. (3) Frederick Wheeler, born May 4, 1872, married Violet Beach, and lives at East Cowes, Isle of Wight, England. They have one child, Harold Francis. (4) Anna May, I born February 11, 1876, died August 6, 1876.

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(5) Harry Glover, born May 16, 1877, married | and represented the town of Fairfield in the State Susan Edith Beach, daughter of John M. Beach, of Bridgeport.

While Mr. Tousey occupies a prominent place in the financial and commercial world at Trum- bull. his place in municipal affairs is no less im- portant. He has always recognized the duty he owed to his town and State, and while he has never in any way sought office, when such posi- tions have been offered, and even urged upon him, he has not evaded the duty. He has served his fellow townsmen as selectman and constable, and when Charles Crosby was sheriff he acted as his deputy. Fraternally, he is a thirty-second degree Freemason, member of the | Mystic Shrine, Knights Templar, and of the An- cient Order of United Workmen. Socially. he belongs to the Algonquin Club, and takes an act- ive part in its work. He is also the agent for the State Humane Society. Mrs. Tousey, as are her children, is a member of Grace Episco- pal Church at Long Hill.

ON. BENJAMIN F. BULKLEY, ex-repre- sentative of the State Legislature from Fair- field county, Conn., ex-editor and publisher of a newspaper, and a general mechanic of Southport, is descended from an old family of Fairfield county.

The first of the family in America came from England in about the year 1620. Joseph Bulk- ley, the great-grandfather of our subject, a na- tive of Fairfield, Conn., was a clock maker by trade, and many of his clocks are yet in existence. Benjamin Bulkley, the grandfather, was born and grew up in the town of Fairfield. He was a cab- inet maker by trade, and followed the business throughout life. He married Rebecca Davis, born in the same town, and the union was blessed with the following named children: Francis, fa- ther of our subject, who is referred to farther on; and Mary, who married Samuel Bunnell, of the | town of Westport. Benjamin Bulkley was a Re- publican in his political views, and in religious faith he was a Methodist, he and his wife being members of the M. E. Church. He died at Southport in 1872, and his wife in 1863.

| Legislature. In his political views he was a Democrat. In 1842 Mr. Bulkley married Miss Mary Nichols, a native of the town of Weston, and a daughter of Peter and Katie (Jennings) Nichols, the latter formerly of Easton; Peter Nichols was the son of Peter Nichols, of Easton. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Bulkley settled in Southport. They had three children, namely: Benjamin F .; Katie, who married Edward Nich- ols, a farmer .of Fairfield; and one that died in infancy. The father of these died in 1881; the mother is still living.

Benjamin F. Bulkley was born in Southport. Conn., December 6, 1846. He passed his early boyhood in his native place, and when sixteen years of age went to New York, where for five years he clerked in a notion store. He then went to Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and for a year was an auctioneer, after this experience returning to Southport, Conn., and starting the Southport Chronicle, the first newspaper ever published there up to that time. Its life, however, was short, and on its discontinuance the editor com- menced to learn the carriage maker's trade, and later the machinist's trade, becoming quite skill- ful as a mechanic: he now operates sawmills, and is chiefly occupied as a general mechanic. He is a man of intellect, quite practical in his ideas, and is one of the county's best citizens. In his political views he is a Democrat, and in 1889 he served the people of the town of Westport in the State Legislature. Socially he is a member of the I. O. O. F., and has held all of the offices in the local lodge; and of the Masonic Fraternity.

On October 28, 1868, Mr. Bulkley was mar- ried to Mary H. Jordan, of Poughkeepsie, N. Y .. and to them were born three children: Benjamin F., Jr., Mary and Grace H. The mother of these died June 15, 1878, and on August 4, 1881. the father was married to Eva C. Nelson, a native of Swedenholdt, Sweden. To the second union has been born one child, John N.

T HE LYON-SEELEYS. The Seeley family. although not numerically large, is remarka- I ble for its succession of military men of note Robert Seeley, the progenitor of the See-

Francis Bulkley was a native of the town of . dating from the earliest Colonial period. Lieut. Fairfield, born in 1819. He was reared in that : town, and at an early age began a sea-faring life, ! leys in this country, was the first marshal of which he followed for a time. Later he learned ' New Haven, and one of the founders of that the carriage-making trade, and still later followed . city, along with Governor Eaton and his band the livery business, having started the livery in I of coevals. Together with General Sedgwick. that section. He figured quite prominently in | Robert Seeley was placed in command of the the affairs of the town, being a man of good i combined military forces of the State of Con- judgment and intelligence, served as selectman, : necticut against a threatened invasion of the

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Bragaun F. Buckley

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Dutch. Among the descendants of Robert See- ley are the late Governor Seeley, of New Jersey; ex-Congressman Seelye, of Massachusetts; Presi- dent Seelye of Amherst College; Col. Aaron Platt Seeley and Calvin Seeley, of Palmyra, N. Y .; Coles and Abner Seeley, of Bridgeport, Conn .; Mrs. Carlos Warner, of Brooklyn; Hon. William E. Seeley, of Bridgeport; Herbert Barnum See- ley and Clinton Barnum Seeley, of New York and Bridgeport; Rev. C. W. de Lyon Nichols and Nathan Seeley, of New York, and several mem- bers of the Floyd-Jones family of Long Island.

Capt. Nathaniel Seeley. a distinguished Colo- nial hero, son of Robert Seeley, of New Haven, removed to Fairfield, Conn .. where he was made a freeman in 1657. He served as lieutenant in King Philip's war in 1675, and was killed at the head of his company in the Great Swamp fight, December 19. of that year. A grant of two hundred acres of land at Fairfield was made by the Colonial government to his widow the next year, in recognition of his military services. A year prior to his death, he had been appointed by the court to lay out the boundaries between Fairfield and Norwalk.

Of the nine children of Capt. Nathaniel Seeley, Lieut. Nathaniel Seeley, following the traditions of his father and grandfather, was a Colonial military officer; he married Hannah Odell, of the family which subsequently became included among the founders of Bridgeport. Of their four children, James Seeley married a Gregory, a member of another influential pio- neer family of Bridgeport. The Gregorys, who were of Boston descent, could trace their deriva- tion a generation or two back of their Massa- chusetts forefathers to a noble house of England. Ensign Nathan Seeley was a son of James Seeley and Sarah Gregory.

Two sons were born to Ensign Nathan Seeley-Seth and Lieut. Nathan Seeley, of the Revolution. Lieut. Nathan Seeley was at one time placed in command of the defenses of Bridgeport, and both he and his father, Ensign Nathan Seeley, are buried in the old Stratfield cemetery at Bridgeport, near the Brooklawn Coun- try Club. The Mary Silliman Chapter of Daugh- ters of the American Revolution is doing a noble work of restoration for this ancient and long-neg- lected graveyard, where lie entombed the found- ers of Bridgeport. Lieut. Nathan Seeley, like his grandfather. evinced a preference for the Colonial Gregory family by espousing one of its daughters. Among the lineal descendants of Lieut. Nathan Seeley, of the Revolution, and Deborah Gregory are Nathan Seeley, Herbert Barnum Seeley and Clinton Barnum Seeley, of New York; Col. Aaron

Platt Seeley and Calvin Seeley, of Palmyra, N. Y. ; Mrs. Carlos Warner, of Brooklyn; Mrs. Henry J. Smith nec Seeley, and Mrs. Frank Eno, of Ansonia, Conn .; John Seeley Adams, of Syracuse, N. Y .; Clarence Monson Harkness, of Rochester, N. Y .; Mrs. Lewis Bonnell Crane and Mrs. J. V. Single- ton. of New York; and Mrs. George Kneeland Nichols ncc Seeley, Coles and Abner Seeley, and Mrs. Walter Nichols nee Nichols, of Bridgeport. Lieut. Nathan Seeley invariably spelled his name Seelye, the same orthography being adhered to on his tombstone, and by his son Abner. Ex- Congressman Seelye, of Massachusetts, President Seelye, of Amherst College, and the Hon. Will- iam E. Seeley, of Bridgeport, are descendants of Seth Seeley, an uncle of Lieut. Nathan Seelye. Ex-Congressman and President Seelye's more immediate forefathers lived at Bethel, Connecticut.

Abner Seelye, a son of Lieut. Nathan Seelye and grandson of Ensign Nathan, was the founder of the branch known in Fairfield county as the Lyon-Seeleys, and married Sabria Lyon, the daughter of Zachariah Lyon, Esq., a wealthy and prominent resident of the town of Weston. Conn .. leaving an only child, the Rev. Monson Seeley, who in turn inter-married with the Lyon family. his wife. Eliza Maria Platt, being a daugh- ter of Aaron Platt and Polly Lyon. The Lyon- Seeleys are descended in a triple line from Rich- ard Lyon the I, of Fairfield, Conn. The Platts were scions of the distinguished Colonial Platt family of Huntington, Long Island, which held a Patent of landed estates both granted and confirmed by Sir Richard Nicholls, the first Eng- lish Governor of New York. Platt street, New York City, was named in honor of this family. which is at the present day connected with the Remsens and Wagstaffs, of New York and Long Island. Eliza Maria Platt and Rev. Monson Seeley were married by the Rev. Ashbel Bald- win, rector of old Christ Church, Stratford, and one of the first four Episcopal clergymen or- dained in America by Bishop Seabury at his first ordination. Eliza Maria Platt and her sister. Polly Lyon Platt, were beautiful women, the latter making an international alliance by her marriage to David Griffith, Esq., a younger son of the titled Griffith family of Wales.

Abner Seelye's second wife was Lucy Os- borne, of a highly connected Fairfield county. Conn., family related in its later generations to Governor Lane, of Ohio, and the noted Gris- wold family of Black Hall, Old Lyme, Conn. Rosalie Osborne, a relative of Mrs. Abner Seelye, and a daughter of Amos Osborne, one of the group of millionaire bankers of the Osbornes, married Albert Bierstadt, the celebrated land-

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scape painter. Rosalie Osborne Bierstadt was a famous beauty in New York, London and Paris, and moved with her talented husband in the highest court circles. The Lyon connections of the Seeleys had also formed a marital alliance with Mrs. Bierstadt's relatives, the Osbornes, in Connecticut. The Osborne-Seeleys, nearly all of whom were wealthy for their day and genera- tion, have always been remarked for their finan- cial sagacity, the Lyon-Seeleys for artistic tastes, handsome men and women, and fondness of dis- play and equipage-tendencies invariably traced back to their three lines of Lyon ancestors.

Rev. Monson Seeley, of Palmyra, N. Y., born in Monroe, Conn., the only son of Abner Seelye, Esq., by his first wife, Sabria Lyon, served as a ! September 27, 1867. he was honorably discharged boy in the war of 1812, and two of his sons, Col. Aaron Platt Seeley and Capt. Abner Seeley, fought with honors in the late Civil war. Ar- 1 mina Seeley, the eldest daughter, married George Kneeland Nichols, of Nichols. Sabria Seeley, another daughter, married the Rev. Dr. John De La Mater Adams, of Syracuse, N. Y., and Cal- vin Seeley, the eldest son, occupies "The Pil- lars," the large and stately Seeley Colonial man- sion at Palmyra, New York .- [C. W. DE LYON NICHOLS. ]

L YMAN M. TURNEY, a prominent resident of Bridgeport, has for many years held posi- tions of responsibility with the Wheeler & Wil- son Manufacturing Co., having risen through various grades to the post of superintendent. His long term of service with this firm is in itself a testimony of his worth, while an honorable record in the United States navy during the Civil war demonstrates his patriotism.

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Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 110

Author: H. H. Beers & Co. Publication date: 1899 Publisher: Number of Pages: 1795

Author: H. H. Beers & Co.
Publication date: 1899
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1795