Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 125

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

USA > Connecticut > Fairfield County > Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut > Part 125

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

J OSEPH H. KNAPP, a prominent mason builder of Stamford, Fairfield county, has long been regarded as one of the most en- terprising and public-spirited citizens of this pro- gressive place. He is a native of the town of Stamford, born june 9, 1851, on Strawberry Hill, where his father, William Henry Knapp. carried on farming. His grandparents, Jacob and Mary (Smith) Knapp, were residents of Stillwater, Stamford township.

William Henry Knapp was born in 1806 at Stillwater, and was reared to farm life on the home place. During his boyhood he attended the Roxbury school. On December 23, 1827, he was united in marriage to Miss Delia A. Bell, who was born October 17, 1809, daughter of Frederick and Hannah (Tryon) Bell, who was of English descent. Hannah Tryon was of the family of General Tryon, the English general of Revolutionary fame. The Bell family were among the earlier settlers of Stamford. Eight children were born to William H. and Delia A. Knapp, a brief record of whom is as follows: Charles W., born January 13. 1829, married Mary E. Kee, and lives in Stamford. Sarah E,, born August 25, 1831, was married November 4. [850, to Smith Broadway. Harriet J., born October 3, 1833, was married December 22. 1852, to Ira Seymour, who died January 28, 1858; on August 31, 1860, she married, for her second husband, Charles H. Conley. John H., born June 14, 1835, died January 2, 1851. Bet- sey A., born June 1, 1838, was married August 5, 1863, to Francis C. Lockwood. Charlotte F., born February 10, 1840, died September 29, 1841. Ellen M., born May 6, 1847, was mar- ried October 17, 1866, to James H. Brandt. Joseph H. was born June 9, 1851. The father of this family passed away October 30, 1866. At the age of eighteen he learned the shoemaker's

Digitized by Google

612

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

trade, after which he returned to farm life, which he followed a number of years. Leaving farming, he entered the cattle business, and dur- ing the last few years of his life was a building contractor. The Knapps are of German descent, their ancestors coming to this country from Saxe- Coburg in the seventeenth century. They are also patriots, having taken active part in all of the different wars from the Revolutionary down. Mr. Knapp was originally a Whig in political sentiment, later a Republican. Fraternally, he is a member of Rippowam Lodge, I. O. O. F.

Joseph H. Knapp passed his boyhood in the town of Stamford, where he attended the public schools and the private school kept by George B. Glendenning. At the age of seventeen he began to learn the trade of mason builder with his brother, Charles W., under whom he served a regular three-years' apprenticeship, after which he worked ten years as a journeyman in order to become thoroughly familiar with all the de- tails of the business. In 1881 he commenced taking contracts on his own account, and he has been thus engaged ever since, at the present time doing an extensive business in Stamford and vicinity. Mr. Knapp has always borne an un- tarnished reputation for integrity and fairness in all his dealings, and his contracts are always filled in a reliable and workmanlike manner which never fails to give satisfaction.

Mr. Knapp's business affairs have absorbed a great deal of his time and attention, but he has nevertheless found opportunity to serve his city in various capacities, and has been honored with election to different offices by his fellow citizens, all of which he has filled with credit to himself, displaying his ability and thorough fitness for public service. He was a member of the first common council of the city of Stamford, and was chairman of the committee on health and sewage; has been town assessor; was a member of the police committee in the city, and is at present. a member of the town board of relief. For seven years (from 1871 to 1878) he was a member of Company C, 4th Regiment Connecticut National Guard, and for seventeen years he played in the Stamford band, of which he served as president and secretary. Mr. Knapp has been no less act- ive in fraternal matters, being a member of Union Lodge No. 5, F. & A. M. (which he joined in July, 1877), Rittenhouse Chapter No. II. R. A. M., Washington Council No. 6; Puri- tan Lodge No. 43, I. O. O. F .; the O. U. A. M .; the Royal Arcanum, and the New England Order of Protection. In Union Lodge he held all the offices up to master, in which office he served three times; was high priest of Rittenhouse

Chapter, R. A. M .; was one of the charter mem- bers of Puritan Lodge; has been deputy of his district in the O. U. A. M., and of the N. E. O. P., was formerly an officer of the Order Ger- mania and Stamford Germania Lodge, Order of the World, and is also on associate member of Minor Post, G. A. R. Mr. Knapp is popular wherever he is known, and he has hosts of friends in Stamford, where he is highly esteemed. He is a pleasing and ready speaker, his services be- ing in great demand at fraternal gatherings. He also takes an active part in politics (being a Re- publican), and during political contests his voice is frequently heard in support of his party's prin- ciples.

On November 1, 1883, Mr. Knapp was mar- ried to Emma Jessup, daughter of Paris R. Jes- sup, formerly of Greenwich, this county, and they have had three children, born as follows: Mabel I., March 5, 1885; Paris R. J., March 10, 1887; and Ralph E., December 17, 1893.

FRANCIS C. RAYMOND, who for over a half . . century has farmed the tract of land at New Canaan, most. of it purchased from his father, is of the eighth generation of this branch of the Raymond family in America, where, as will be seen, they were among the earliest set- tlers. We here present the record of his an- cestors, on this side of the water:

I. Richard Raymond, from whom our subject is descended in direct line, lived at Salem, Mass .. during its early days. He was a mariner, and master of a craft of thirty-tons burden, the "Hopewell," in which he made voyages to Bar- badoes, in the West Indies. On October 20. 1662, he bought a house and land at Norwalk, Conn., whither he soon removed, from that port engaging in a coast trade with Dutch and Eng- lish settlers on Manhattan Island. In 1664 he settled in Saybrook, where he died in 1692 at the ripe old age of ninety years. He and his wife Judith were members of the First Church at Salem before 1636. Their family consisted of eight children: John, Bathsheba, Joshua, Lemuel, Hannah, Samuel, Richard and Daniel.

II. John Raymond was born before 1637. On December 10, 1664, at Norwalk, Conn., he married Mary. daughter of Thomas Betts, and they had three children: John, Samuel and Thomas.

III. John Raymond, born September 9, 1665, at Norwalk, Conn., died April 12, 1737. He was a prominent man there in his day, and his name is closely linked with the early history of the town. He was captain of the training band,

Digitized by Google

618

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

an important institution at that period. By oc- cupation he was a land surveyor. On March 7, 1690, he wedded Elizabeth, daughter of Samuel St. John, and ten children were born to them, namely: John, Mary, Elizabeth, Hannah, Lem- uel, Jabez, Asael, Elijah, Sarah and Zuriel.

IV. Lemuel Raymond was born January 7, 1702; at Norwalk, Conn., and in 1730 married Sarah Squire, who was a member of the Con- gregational Church at New Canaan, Fairfield Co., Conn., from 1752 to 1773. They became the parents of ten children, namely: Luke, Ebenezer, Lemuel, John, Hannah, Elizabeth, Sarah, Ellen, Ruth and Helen.

V. Luke Raymond was born in 1731 in Canaan Parish, Fairfield Co., Conn., and on May 8, 1765, married Lydia Betts, by whom he had a family of eleven children: Elinor, Nathan- iel, Timothy, Squire, Esther, Azor, Nathan, Nancy, Ellen, Luke and Sarah.

VI. Squire Raymond, grandfather of Fran- cis C. Raymond, was born in 1783, and made his home in New Canaan, where he followed his trade, that of carpenter. He married Sarah Seeley, and ten children were born to them, as follows: Horatio, Edson, Elbert (who married Mary Prior), Alanson, Jane (born in 1813, died in 1830), Samuel (born July 28, 1816), Sarah (Mrs. Henry Clock), Lorette (Mrs. Elijah Hickok), Antoinette (Mrs. Wilkie Batterson), and Amanda (Mrs. Jesse Smith). The father of this family died December 13, 1850, the mother in June, 1831. He was a member of the Epis- copal Church, while in politics he gave his sup- port to the Democratic party.

VII. Horatio Raymond was born April 7, 1799, in District No. 4, town of New Canaan, where he passed his entire life. He attended the district school in his youth, and in early life his father taught him the carpenter's trade, which he followed until April, 1842, when he abandoned it to take up farming. He purchased and settled on the farm now owned and operated by his son, Francis C., and devoted the remainder of his long life to agricultural pursuits. He passed away December 16, 1871, aged seventy-two years, eight months and nine days. He was married in Stamford, Conn., to Eliza Seeley. who was born June 21; 1799, and three children blessed their union, namely: Harriet E., de- ceased wile of William Dauchy; and Francis Cornelius and Frances Cornelia (twins), the lat- ter of whom is the widow of Sylvester H. Keeler, of Meriden, Ill. Mrs. Raymond was a member of the Episcopal Church. Politically, Mr. Ray- mond was a Republican.

VIII. Francis C. Raymond was born Octo- .

ber 13, 1823, in the town of Darien, Fairfield Co., Conn., and was reared in New Canaan. where he received his schooling?" He Commeficed to learn the trade of carriage trimmer, but he never finished his apprenticeship! deciding ih early life that farming was to be his chosen call- ing. He has always lived on the home place, which has been worked under his management for the past fifty-six years with most gratifying results. The place has been well kept up and cultivated under his watchful care, a fact that is evident in the numerous improvements made by him in the passing years.

On February 22, 1846, in New Canaati, Mr. Raymond was united in marriage with Hannah M. Wood, daughter of William' and Diantha (Smith) Wood, of Stanwich, Conn.,"who emi- grated to Ohio, in which State they were"pio- neers. Mr. and Mrs. F. C. Raymond have had two children: Howard A. and Alice, M. " The son is engaged in the real-estate business in New York City. He married (for his first wife) Liz- zie Silverthorn, who died leaving two children- Myrtie A., and Carrie D. (who married Edward D. Jardine; she died on Christmas Day, 1897): For his second wife he wedded Fannie A. Chap- in. Alice M. Raymond is the wife of Gardiner A. Hoyt, of New Canaan. Our subject attends the Congregational Church, with which his wife has been united since 1839. Like his father, he is a Republican in political sentiment, and though no seeker after political preferment, he has held several local offices, such as constable, tax col- lector, etc., to the satisfaction of his fellow townsmen.

E ZRA P. KNAPP. The Knapp family is' one of the oldest in Fairfield county, and its members in each generation have maintained high reputations for industry, thrift, and all that constitutes good citizenship. The subject of this sketch, a highly respected citizen of Danbury, has compiled and published a genealogy of the family from which we learn that while tradition points to the Province of Saxony in Germany as their original home, the authentic history begins in the county of Sussex, England, in the fifteenth century. The name was at first spelled with but one "P" and some branches of the family still hold to that custom. In 1540 one Roger R. Knapp so distinguished himself at a tournament held at Norfolk, England, that he was specially honored by Henry V, and was granted a coat of arms, of which a full description is to be found

... in the College of Heraldry in London.

In 1630 three brothers, William, Nichols and

Digitized by Google

614

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Rogers Knapp, came to America with a large colony of well-to-do farmers under the command of Winthrope and Saltansall. William, who was born in Sussex in 1570, settled in Watertown, Mass. He had seven children: William, Mary, Elizabeth, Ann, Judith, John and James, and they located at Taunton, Roxbury, Newtown, Boston and Spencer, Mass. Roger settled in New Haven, and later at Fairfield, Conn. His will mentions his wife, Elizabeth, and six children, Josiah, Lydia, John, Nathaniel, Eliza, and Mary, who located in this county. Nicholas made his home at Watertown, Mass., for a time, but in 1644 removed to Stamford, Conn., where he.died in April, 1670. His first wife, Elnor, died August 16, 1658, and in the following year he married a second wife, Unity. He had nine children, all by his first marriage. The first, Jonathan, died December 27, 1631, and in his will he mentions Timothy, Joshua, Caleb, Sarah, Ruth, Hannah, Moses and Lydia. The last two were born at Stamford, and all settled in this State, at Norwalk, Greenwich, Rye, Peekskill and Danbury. Caleb, the fourth son of Nicholas, was living in Stam- ford in 1670, and in his will, dated December 11, 1674, he mentions his wife, Hannah, and six children, Caleb, John, Moses, Samuel, Sarah and Hannah. Here there is a break in the records, and as a result of careful research it is believed that the branch to which our subject belongs is descended from John, the second son of Caleb and grandson of Nicholas.

Our subject's great-grandfather, John Knapp, who was probably the great-grandson of the an- cestor last mentioned, was born in 1738, and in 1759 married Ruth Gregory. He died in 1810, and was buried at Danbury in a cemetery at the north end of Main street. By. occupation he was a farmer and shoemaker, his homestead being located in the Pembroke District. He was an amiable, peace-loving man, and was con- scientiously opposed to the measures taken by the colonists to free themselves from the English yoke. As his sentiments did not please his neigh- bors he was obliged to leave his home for safety, and for a time he lived in a cave on Rattle Hill mountain, near Neversink pond, his wife supply- ing him with food by night. He had seven chil- dren: Samuel, born about 1760, married Mary Lindsley; Elizabeth, born 1765, married Ezra Nichols; Jehue, born November 17, 1767, mar- ried Lois Wood; Ruth, born about 1770, mar- ried Joshua B. Bearss; John is mentioned more fully below; Chloe, born about 1774, married Joseph Mansfield; Levi, born May 1, 1777, mar- ried Elizabeth Hamilton.

John Knapp, the next in the line of descent,

was born at the old homestead May 13, 1772. He followed farming and shoemaking, and about 1812 moved to Harpersfield, N. Y., to remain a few years, when he located permanently at Huntsburg, Ohio. His death occurred there July 11, 1850. He was married (first) in 1796 to Lucy Merwin, who died about 1827. In Feb- ruary, 1829, he married Albacinda Barnum, who was born May 12, 1790, in Southeast, Putnam Co., N. Y., and died October 2, 1867, in Hunts- burg, Ohio. By the first marriage there were eighteen children: Betsey, born August 18, 1797, died March 17, 1862; David, born January 27, 1800, died June 13, 1873; John, of whom men- tion is made farther on; Nathan, born February 1, 1803, supposed to be dead; Reuben, born April 15, 1805, died February, 1827; Philo, born May 21, 1806, died September, 1824; Polly, born September 5, 1807, died July 19, 1880; Hiram, born December 28, 1808, died October 15, 1883; Levi, born May 5, 1810, died January, 1838; Pamelia, born March 18, 1812, died February 5, 1892; Ruth, born June 1, 1813, now (1897) liv- ing; a son, who was born April 17, 1814, and died the same day; Lucy, born May 4, 1815, died November 23, 1887; Susan, born March 22, 1817, now living; Ezra, born September 10, 1818, died August 4, 1819; Ezra Russell, born September 14, 1820, now living; Eliza, born July 28, 1822, now living; and Lydia, born Septem- ber 8, 1826, died October 24, 1846. Four children came of the second marriage: Reuben B., born November 28, 1829, died April 16, 1865; Anna Maria, born November 15, 1831, died January 19, 1886; Lucinda A., born January 26, 1834, now living; and Laura M., born April 17, 1837, died January, 1843.

John Knapp, the father of our subject, was born November 6, 1801, in Danbury, in the part now known as Hayestown. He left Danbury with his parents in May, 1812, but returned in 1829 and remained, engaging in business as a carpenter. On December 18, 1823, he was mar- ried in Harpersfield, N. Y., to Miss Sally Hubbard, daughter of Michael and Anna (Brook) Hubbard. She was born April 10, 1804, and died Novem- ber 11, 1873, four years after his own death, which occurred November 1, 1869. Their chil- dren were : Philo Asahel, born December 31, 1824; Harmon, born January 14, 1828; Anna, born March 13, 1830, died April 29, 1880; John, born February 1, 1832; Ira Stevens, born May 2, 1834; Isaac Hubbard, born December 19, 1836, died January 11, 1838; Michael Fariday, born October 29, 1838, died August 14, 1863; Isaac Hubbard, born February 26, 1841, died January 28, 1882; Ezra Peck, born February 11, 1843,

Digitized by Google

615

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

now living; Abijah Odell, born September 16, 1844, died January 14, 1885; Sarah Elizabeth, born September 16, 1847, died January 2, 1863.

Ezra P. Knapp has resided at his native place, Danbury, all his life. He was educated in the public schools of Danbury, and at an early age began to learn the hatter's trade in the factory of E. A. Mallory & Sons, with whom he remained as a trusted employe until 1893, when he retired. He has a fine competence, a dwelling at No. 394 Main street, also owning the old Knapp home- stead at No. 386 Main street, Danbury, and eight other houses which he rents, about fifteen fami- lies occupying them. He is a man of much in- telligence and literary taste, and is highly es- teemed for his good qualities. In politics he is a Republican, but he keeps aloof from party strife.

On March 10, 1865, Mr. Knapp was married in South Durham, N. Y., to his first wife, Miss Malinda L. Olmstead, who died March 27, 1875. On November 2, 1875, he was married in Dan- bury to Miss Sarah Jane Meeker, who passed to the unseen life September 9, 1891. Mr. Knapp formed a third matrimonial union on April 6, 1892, this time with Miss Lillian L. Middlebrook, of Bridgeport, this county. By this marriage there are no children. By the first marriage there were three, none of whom are living : William Olmstead, born December 8, 1866, died December 22, 1887; Clifton Levi, born Novem- ber 28, 1868, died November 1, 1869; and Charles Æzra, born March 2, 1872, died Septem- ber 18, 1891. By the second union there were four children : Mary Eliza, born August 13, 1876; Clarence Peck, born June 6, 1878, died September 5, 1882; Arthur Fariday, born May 15, 1880; and Sarah Louise, born October 21, 1885.

F GBERT WILLIAMS GILBERT. The beautiful city of Danbury, Conn., is indebt- ed for many of its finest buildings to the artistic taste and practical skill of this well-known archi- tect. There is no branch of the builder's trade with which he is not familiar, as he began as a journeyman carpenter and later carried on an ex- tensive business as a contractor and builder until, from preparing plans for his own construction, he found his time filled with special work of the same kind for others.

Mr. Gilbert comes of good Colonial stock, but owing to the destruction of certain records by fire he cannot trace his genealogy on the paternal side farther than to his grandfather, Eliakim Gil- bert, who married Elizabeth Reed, daughter of Reed, a Revolutionary soldier, and for

some time a captive in the notorious British pris- on ship in New York harbor. Daniel Reed Gil- bert, our subject's father, was born September 8, 1796, in Newtown, Conn., and throughout his act- ive life followed carpentering as an occupation, his death occurring February 7, 1878. On Oc- tober 22, 1818, he married Belinda Williams, who was born in Sharon, Conn., June 11, 1797, and died February 27, 1882; she was the daugh- ter of Waite Williams, and granddaughter of Jehiel and Anna (Edwards) Williams. Daniel and Belinda Gilbert had seven children, all of whom lived to adult age: Julia A., born August 7, 1819, married Thomas Wing, of Massachu- setts, and removed to Michigan; John Reed, born March 1, 1821, married Mary J. Russ, and resides in Helena, Mont .; Amos H., born Novem- ber 16, 1822, married Zada Knibloe, and while residing in Livingston county, N. Y., was killed at Nunda. March 8, 1869, by a boiler explosion; Egbert W. is mentioned more fully below; Charles H., born May 30, 1832, who married Frances Williams, and resides in Chicago, at No. 7601 Union avenue, Englewood, is now cashier of the Union Rendering Company of Chicago, a stockyards firm with offices at No. 131 Exchange Building; Mary E., born January 21, 1835, mar- ried William H. Smith, of Avon, Hartford Co., Conn .; James I., born January 31, 1840, married Julia Cotterell, and made his home at Thomas- ton, Conn., where he died June 28, 1875.

The subject of our sketch was born March 12, 1830, in Sharon, Conn., whence, when he was about one year old, the family removed to Amenia, Dutchess Co., N. Y., where he obtained his education in the public schools. At fourteen he began work in a clock factory at Thomaston, Conn., but after a year or two he returned to Amenia to serve an apprenticeship in the car- penter's trade under his father. In 1851 he started out to seek work as a journeyman, and for four years he worked in Falls Village, Anso- nia, Bridgeport and Norwalk, Conn., spending about a year in each place. In 1855 he located permanently in Danbury, where after a couple of years he began in business for himself as a contractor and builder, and he is now the oldest in that line in the place. He soon displayed marked ability as an architect, and for thirty-five years that has been a leading feature of his work. In fact, for about eight years past he has devoted his attention almost exclusively to that line of work, his services being in constant de- mand.

On August 26, 1862, Mr. Gilbert enlisted as a private in Company B, 23rd Conn. V. I., un- der Capt. James H. Jenkins, and served until

Digitized by Google

616

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

honorably discharged on August 31, 1863. He took part in all the battles in which his regiment was engaged during that time, winning promo- tion to the rank of corporal.

Mr. Gilbert has a pleasant home at No. 45 Division street, Danbury, where he also has his office. He was married July 30, 1854, to his first wife, Miss Caroline L. Burr, of Ridgefield, Conn., a daughter of David B. and Abbie (Dib- ble) Burr. She died April 30, 1884, at the age of fifty-one, and in March, 1887, Mr. Gilbert formed a second matrimonial union, this time with Mrs. Lucy A. Renond née Cole, a daughter of Samuel and Deborah (Eggleston) Cole, of the town of Southeast, Putnam Co., N. Y. In one line of ancestry she is of Huguenot blood, and traces her descent from Alexander Ressigue, an early settler at Norwalk, Conn. Mr. Gilbert has had four children, all by the first marriage: Franklin E., born December 15, 1857, died of diphtheria on May 4, 1862; Chester, born Octo- ber 1, 1859, died May 7, 1862, also of diphtheria; Charles H., born September 15, 1865, resides in Newark, N. J. (he married Miss Kate McDer- mott, and has had three children-Charles J., born April 5, 1888; Egbert W., who died when five years old; and John, born March 18, 1891); Kate Hine, born May 12, 1868, married (first) Charles B. Comstock, who died, and she is now the wife of George E. Young, of Danbury. by whom she has had two daughters-Dorothy. born September 2, 1894, and Mary E., born Decem- ber 4, 1896.

On political issues, as on other matters, Mr. Gilbert is an independent thinker, and his vote is cast for the man and measures that he deems best. He has never sought or held office as his time has been occupied by business. Fraternally, he belongs to the G. A. R., the United Amer- ican Mechanics, and the Ancient Essenic Order.

HERNANDO CORTEZ OLMSTEAD, a lead- ing contractor and builder at Danbury, en- joys an enviable reputation in business circles for ability in his chosen line of work. As the son and former partner of that veteran builder, Frederick Sweet Olmstead, he had an excellent start in business life, but his own talent has proved equal to his opportunities.

Mr. Olmstead was born March 9, 1858, in Patterson, Putnam Co., N. Y., son of F. S. and Mary Jane (Bouton) Olmstead. The Olmstead family originated in England, and has been traced, as far as 1525, to one Thomas Olmstead, form whom the line descends-through James, . born about 1550; Richard, who was baptized in

1579; Richard (2), born in 1607; John, born in 1649; Daniel (1); Daniel (2); Ebenezer (1), who served in the Revolutionary army; Ebenezer (2), born August 8, 1770; Amzi R., our subject's grandfather, born July 18, 1797, and died Oc- tober 14, 1866-to Frederick Sweet Olmstead, our subject's father.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 125

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