Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 139

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 139

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In October, 1872, in New York, Mr. Wilson married Jannie McWilliams, a native of that city. and to them have come the following named children: Jennie E., Minnie E., Stella B., and Howard D., who died in childhood.

DA AVID S. WALKER, whose patriotism and loyalty to his country has never been ques- tioned, for during the dark days of the Rebellion he did his part nobly toward the preservation of the Union, is one of the leading farmer citizens of the town of Trumbull.

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Dance Hilson

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The Walker family, of which our subject is a worthy member, has been identified with Fair- field county from an early period, his great-grand- parents, Eliakim (born in 1738) and Susan (Shel- ton) Walker, having been residents of the town of Trumbull; where, in 1767, was born David Walker, the grandfather of David S.

David Walker, father of our subject, was born in the same locality in 1803, and became a farm- er and merchant there. By his wife, Eliza Edwards, he had a family of eight children, as follows: John O. lives in Bridgeport; Eliakim L., in Huntington; Elizabeth is the wife of William Mallett; Webster W. is a merchant in Bridge- port; Francis M. is deceased; David S. is our sub- ject; Charles H. is deceased; and Ida E. is the wife of John Turney. The father of these died in 1845, the mother in 1853; they were members of Grace Episcopal Church of Trumbull.

David S. Walker, our subject, was born March 24, 1837, in Long Hill District, town of Trumbull, where he received a liberal education. He has all his life, excepting during his service in the Union army, been engaged in farming, in which occupation he has met with well-merited success. In 1862 he enlisted in a Bridgeport company of light artillery, served three years, and was mustered out in New Haven, Connecti- cut.

In 1866 Mr. Walker was married in Monroe, Fairfield county, to Miss Julia Maria Seeley, and five children blessed their union: Caroline Eliza, David Alson (deceased), Frances M., Sherwood S. and Herbert E. The mother of these died in 1885.

Mr. Walker is a member of Grace Episcopal Church; socially he is affiliated with the F. & A. M. and with the Elias Howe, Jr., Post; G. A. R., of Bridgeport. He takes a deep and commend- able interest in everything calculated to advance the moral, educational or material interests of the community.

J TAMES E. REILLY. Few young men of this section are as well known in business circles as is the subject of this sketch, the leading newsdealer of Stamford, whose energy and thrift have already won for him a substantial success. While the management of his business interests occupies most of his time and attention, he does not neglect the duties of citizenship, and his fel- low-townsmen, recognizing his ability and public spirit, have recently chosen him to fill the re- sponsible post of auditor.

Mr. Reilly was born in Stamford May 3, 1870, and has always made his home there. His fa-

ther, James W. Reilly, was born in County Cavan, Ireland, coming to this country when three years old. His boyhood days were spent in the western part of New York State. Later he moved to New York City, and at the age of seventeen came to Stamford, where he has since resided. He is now connected with Searles' livery establishment. His moth- er, whose maiden name was Fox, belongs to a well-known family of Greenwich, Conn. She was born in County Meath, Ireland, and came to this country when very young.

Our subject's education was obtained in the schools of Stamford, later being supplemented with a course in the International Correspondence School of Scranton, Penn. At an early age he began to learn the hatter's trade in the shop of T. B. Smart, with whom he remained nine years. In October, 1896, he established a news-stand at a suitable location on Atlantic street, and later he removed to Cottage Place, where he now con- ducts an extensive business in that line, having the exclusive agency for the New York Evening Journal, and handling a large list of periodicals. To this he has also added a fine stock of cigars and tobacco, in which he commands a good trade.

In politics Mr. Reilly is a free-silver Demo- crat, and as his popularity with all classes makes him an available candidate for municipal office, he was elected in the spring of 1898 to his pres- ent position of city auditor. So far he has not joined the ranks of "the happy Benedicts," but he is popular socially, being an active member of the Bachelors' Club, Order of Red Men, Hay- makers, Rienzi Circle Companions of the Forest (a ladies' society), and Court P. H. Sheridan, For- esters of America.

CLAMUEL J. SHERMAN, one of the prominent agriculturists of the town of Danbury, was born on his present farm April 22, 1838, of the Sherman family whose names have been promi- nent in Colonial history, and whose genealogy is traced in the sketch of the Hon. Samuel Sher- man, of Brookfield, elsewhere in this volume.

Ornan Sherman, the father of our subject, was born in the town of Newtown, Fairfield county. December 10, 1792, and passed his child- hood on a farm. He married Clara Lake, of the same town, a daughter of a farmer there, and when Mr. Sherman was about thirty years of age he brought his wife and children to the farm in this town. They had a family of eleven children, two of whom were born in Newtown: Charles, a carpenter by trade, also carried on farming in

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this town, where he died; Fannie the wife of William Platt, of Newtown, Conn .; Sarah, the wife of A. L. Platt, of Waterbury, Conn .; Jane, who became the wife of L. L. Platt, of Newtown (both are now deceased); Phoebe, the wife W. D. Summers, of Newtown; Harriet, who died un- married; twins that died in infancy; Clara, who became the wife of William Hoy, of Newtown, and died at the age of nineteen; Samuel J., our subject; and Esther, who died in infancy. Mr. Sherman made farming his occupation until his death in 1862. In politics he was a stanch Dem- ocrat, and in his religious faith he adhered to the tenets of the Protestant Episcopal Church; his wife died in 1859.

The boyhood and youth of Samuel J. Sher- man were passed on the homestead with the us- ual routine of school and work, and with little time for play, as was the ordinary lot of the aver- age fariner's son in those days. At the age of seventeen his school days were over, and his act- ive work in farming began. All the apprentice- ship necessary for this work had been served long before, and he was capable of doing a man's full share of labor. When twenty-five years of age he began to learn the carpenter's trade, and has followed that in connection with agriculture. In his farm are fifty-four acres located in the town of Danbury, and four in Bethel, all devoted to general farming. In earlier times Mr. Sherman raised a large quantity of fine tobacco. The gen- eral appearance of the entire farm, the modern improvements, would indicate to the most casual observer that a progressive, thrifty farmer was in control there.

On November 26, 1861, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Samuel J. Sherman and Miss Caroline A. Benedict, who was born in 1842, and died September 5, 1873. Two children were born of this union: Philo B., who died August 5, 1896, and Charles A., a clerk, who married Isabel McArthur, and lives in Waterbury, Conn. For his second wife, Mr. Sherman, on September 22, 1875, married Sarah E. Wildman, a native of the town of Brookfield, who died February 7, 1879. On November 16, 1881, our subject was again married. this time to Mrs. Jane A. Lock- wood, a daughter of Hawley Olmstead, and the widow of Theodore Lockwood.

Hawley Olmstead, the father of Mrs. Sher- man, was born in the town of Wilton, this county, a son of Alfred Olmstead, of English descent. Mr. Olmstead married Miss M. Eliza- beth Sturges, and in their family of children were the following: Oscar, a farmer in Redding; Char- lotte, the wife of Henry Olmstead, of Norwalk; Mary E., the wife of Orange B. Plumb, of

Nichols, Conn .; Charles, deceased; Legrand, of Norwalk; William, deceased in youth; Georgiana, of Wilton; George B., deceased; Frank, a farmer in Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and Jane A. (Mrs. Sher- man). The father of this family died in July, 1877, and the mother died in April, 1861.

Theodore Lockwood, the former husband of Mrs. Sherman, was born in Weston, this county, a son of Isaac Lockwood, a farmer of that town. He married Jane A. Olmstead, and by her had two children: Minnie F., and Lena A., who married George Knapp, of New York, a son of Smith H. Knapp, a prominent real-estate agent of Danbury. Mr. Lockwood died January 20, 1879.

Mr. and Mrs. Sherman are prominent and highly respected citizens of the community, and take an active part in Church work, being mem- bers of the First Congregational Church. Oor subject was always a Democrat in political faith, but at the last national election cast his vote in support of William Mckinley. He has always been a worker in local affairs, and a generous advocate of all measures calculated to promote the general welfare.

D ANIEL LYON (deceased), who in his life- time was one of the leading agriculturists of the town of Greenwich, Fairfield county, and a member of an old Connecticut family from which came some of the best men and women of the county, was born May 28, 1798, on the family farm at East Port Chester.

Benjamin Lyon, his grandfather, was a native of Byram, Conn. Benjamin W. Lyon, father of our subject, was born in Byram, and married Phebe Merritt, of King Street, by whom he had children as follows: Benjamin Wollsey, James, Mary, Sally, Daniel, Thomas and Merritt. Mrs. Phebe (Merritt) Lyon died March 31, 1855, in her eighty-seventh year.

Daniel Lyon was reared on the farm where his birth occurred in a section long known as Byram Shore. His boyhood days were passed in a manner not unlike that of the ordinary farmer's son, working on the farm through the summers and attending school during the winter seasons. He received his primary education in the Byram District school, and on reaching man- hood married Miss Ann E. Davis, a native of the town of Greenwich, who was born December 16. 1798, daughter of Walter and Ruth (Ferris) Davis. They went to housekeeping at the Lyon homestead, and at that time where now are the elegant residences and beautiful lawns were waving fields of grain, with here and there tracts

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of timber that have long since given way to the onward march of progress. This marriage was blessed with thirteen children, of whom the fol- lewing are named: Caroline M. (Mrs. Sherman Smith), who is deceased, having passed away at Byram Shore; Amy M. (Mrs. Chauncey Rawson), of East Port Chester; Benjamin W., deceased in October, 1897, at East Port Chester; Thomas M., a resident of East Port Chester; Anna E. (the first wife of Chauncey Rawson), deceased; William H., deceased; Mary A., deceased; and Phoebe A. The father of these passed his long and useful life of a little less than eighty-eight years on the home place, which is beautifully located, overlooking the sound. His death oc- curred January 10, 1886. He was one of the good citizens of the community, a kind neighbor and a most estimable man. Politically, he was a Democrat, but not active in party affairs, never aspiring to office. His farm, as the years passed by and the country was developed, became valu- able, Byram Shore land being sought for residence property, and Mr. Lyon retired from active life some years before his death. His wife died August 26, 1840, and the remains of both rest in the cemetery on Byram Shore.

MISS PHOEBE A. LYON, the youngest daughter of Daniel and Ann E. (Davis) Lyon, resides on the old Lyon homestead, and is a most estimable lady. She was born and reared where she is now residing, and is a familiar figure to the com- munity for miles around. Her kind and affable manners have endeared her to many friends and acquaintances. She completed her education, after having attended the home schools, in a boarding school at New London, Conn., and is a lady of intelligence and refinement, as well as good business ability.

BRADLEY BURR MEEKER, senior member of the well-known firm of Meeker & Terry, owners of the West End Livery & Boarding Stables, on State street, Bridgeport, is not only a leading stock dealer of this section but is one of the most extensive agriculturists of Fairfield township. His large estate near Bridgeport af- fords an opportunity for operations on a wide scale, rivaling those of the great Western farms, and every meritorious, labor-saving device that can be obtained is brought into use to facilitate the work. He grows large crops of rye, and owns a threshing machine, while among the most notable .features of the place are his gristmill and sawmill, which, like all of his buildings, are fitted up with all the latest improvements in their line.

Mr. Meeker is connected by birth and mar- riage with some of the leading families of this county. Joseph Meeker, the grandfather of our subject, was a farmer at Westport, and Seth Meeker, our subject's father, was a lifelong resi- dent of Westport, where he followed farming as an occupation, beginning life poor and gaining a fair competence through his own industry in spite of occasional reverses. He was a large man, weighing more than 200 pounds, and his death occurred at the comparatively early age of sixty- five years, his remains being interred at Greens Farms. In politics he was a Republican, but he neither sought nor held office. He was married three times, his first wife, Abby Ruth (Gould), being a member of one of our oldest and most highly respected families. She died when our subject, the only child of the union, was but an infant. By the second marriage, to Eliza Good- ell, there were four children: Lewis, Lucius, Ed- gar, and Mary E. (now Mrs. Josiah Hawkins, of Southport). For his third wife Mr. Meeker married Margaret Perry, by whom he has no children.

Our subject was born May 23, 1843, at the old homestead in Westport, and bears the name of Judge Bradley Burr Meeker, of Minnesota, for whom Meeker county in that State is named. He (the Judge) was an uncle of our subject, and lived in Minnesota all his life. The latter was raised as a farmer boy, his education being ob- tained in the local schools, which, unfortunately, were not of a sort to command his approval even in boyhood. He remained at home until his marriage, in November, 1868, to Miss Mary E. Sherwood, daughter of Alva Sherwood (who died January 22, 1858, aged forty-eight years) and his wife, Eliza A. (Merchant) Sherwood, formerly well known residents of Stratfield, where the family has long been prominent. She was born December 7, 1840, at the present farm, which was the old Sherwood homestead, and at her father's death the farm was inherited by her and her brother, T. M. Sherwood; about 1880 Mr. and Mrs. Meeker bought the brother's interest, he go- ing to Bridgeport to engage in business. He speedily demonstrated his executive ability by his efficient management, and in addition to his work at the farm he engaged in cattle dealing and butchering, the latter business developing into a large wholesale trade for which he slaughtered many hundreds of cattle purchased in the vicin- ity. For twenty years he has also been asso- ciated with the William M. Terry Beef Company, and for some time he has dealt extensively in poultry, shipping from the West, where he makes frequent visits to superintend the killing and pack-

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ing. He has now been identified with the live- stock business for a quarter of a century, and has maintained the reputation of a fair and honest dealer, a fact which is much to his credit, and he is doubtless one of the best known business men of his town. In 1896 he and Benjamin Terry bought out the livery business of Henry Patchen, on State street, and they still conduct that busi- ness. Politically, he is a stanch Republican, but his business cares are too many and too urgent to permit him to do more for the cause then to cast his vote regularly. He is one of the successful men of Fairfield township, and he attributes his success to hard work and energy.

Two children brighten our subject's home : Alva Sherwood and Alice M. On October 8, 1897, his beloved wife passed to the unseen world, her burial taking place at Mountain Grove cemetery. Her mother, who continued to reside at the homestead during life, breathed her last on De- cember 12, 1897.

W ILLIAM BADGER COGSWELL, M. D., a prominent physician and surgeon of Stratford, is one of the leading citizens of that pleasant town, and outside of professional lines, as well as within, he is held in high esteem.

The Doctor comes of good old English stock, and his ancestors settled at an early day in New Hampshire. Dr. Joseph Cogswell, of Tamworth, N. H., his grandfather, was one of eight bro- thers, all of whom served in the Revolution with distinction, filling a term of service aggregating thirty-eight years-the longest rendered by any family in the country. These eight brothers all survived the war, and became eminent in pro- fessional and civil life.

Dr. William Cogswell's father. Rev. Elliott Colby Cogswell, was born at Tamworth, N. H., graduated at Dartmouth College, and entered the Congregational ministry, in which he served ably for nearly fifty years. He was principal of Coe's Academy, Northwood, N. H., for twenty years; was the author of several historical and genea- logical works, and in the great reforms of the last half-century he gave his influence by advice and example. He died in 1888, sincerely mourned by a large circle of friends and former pupils. His wife, who survives him, was Sophia Adams, of Gilmanton, N. H., a woman of great refinement and most interesting social qualities. Of their nine children, five are living: Mary U., wife of Prof. G. W. Bingham, principal of Pink- erton Academy, Derry, N. H .; Ellen N., widow of John Mead, of Brooklyn, N. Y .; Elizabeth G., wife of Charles H. Prescott, of Deerfield, N. H .;

William B., our subject; and Henry B., a physi- cian in Brooklyn, New York.

Dr. Cogswell attended Coe's Academy, at Northwood, N. H., and also studied at Den- mark Academy, Iowa, after which he entered Bellevue Medical College, New York City, from which he graduated in 1881. He located at Stratford, Conn., where he now has a large and lucrative practice. In 1898 he bought a large residence, in which are his offices, most conven- ient and attractive.

He is a member of the Connecticut Medical Association, the Fairfield County Medical Soci- ety, and the Bridgeport Medical Society. He is non-resident consulting physician for the Bridgeport Hospital. He is a member of several fraternal organizations, including St. John's Lodge No. 8, F. & A. M., and Oronoque Lodge No. 90, I. O. O. F., both of Stratford. He is much interested in local progress, and has been a member of the board of education for nine years, serving now as president. He is a member of the Congregational Church, and is an earnest supporter of every movement that has for its ob- ject the well-being of the community.

The Doctor married, in 1882, Harriet A. Sanborn, daughter of the late Hon. Henry F. Sanborn, of Epsom, N. H., and a sister of Hon. Walter H. Sanborn, of St. Paul, U. S. Circuit Judge. They have two children: Eliot Sanborn, and Marguerite Adams, who are in the Stratford Graded School.

A BRAM STORMS RIKER, a well-known citizen of Greenwich township, Fairfield Co., Conn., has lived retired in East Port Ches- ter for many years, building the elegant home which he now occupies in 1893. He is a native of New York City, born December 16, 1830, a son of John Jay and Eliza (Berrian) Riker, and grandson of James Riker, who was of Dutch ex- traction.

James Riker was a blacksmith by vocation, and he followed his trade in New York City at what is now the junction of West Broadway, Reed and Hudson streets, owning the site of Thurber's large grocery house. He amassed a comfortable competence during his active years, and passed his closing days in retirement, living to be over ninety years of age. Physically, he was a large man and powerfully built. He was twice married, and his second wife survived to the advanced age of eighty-four years; she, too, was unusually robust and healthy, was never sick a day, had not lost a tooth, and died in her chair. By his first union Mr. Riker was the fa-

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ther of four children: John Jay, Sophia, Ann and Susan. Of these Ann married a Mr. Herring, and lived in New Jersey. There were four chil- dren by the second marriage: William, James, Abigail and Elijah.

John Jay and Eliza (Berrian) Riker, parents of our subject, were both born in New York City. the former in 1800 in West Broadway. the latter in Hudson street, near the canal. The mother was of French descent. John Jay Riker learned the blacksmith's trade under his father, and fol- lowed it for a number of years, meeting with such success, however, that he was enabled to retire from active business at a comparatively early age and enjoy the means which he had ac- quired. He was over six feet tall, well built, and was quite an enthusiast in military mat- ters, to which he devoted much of his leisure. He was the father of twelve children, as fol- lows: John P., who succeeded his father in the blacksmith business, and died in New York City at the age of sixty years; James, de- ceased in New York, who in his day was an active politician and an officer in the State militia, in the affairs of which he was deeply in- terested; William, a retired druggist of Mt. Ver- non, N. Y. ; Elizabeth B., deceased wife of A. T. Brown, of East Port Chester, N. Y .; Catherine, Mrs. J. E. Howard, living in Fordham, N. Y .; John, a resident of New Jersey; Andrew J., who died in New Jersey; Louisa, Mrs. Alva Hotchkiss, who died in East Port Chester: Abram S. ; Albert, a druggist of Piermont, N. Y. ; and two sons, both named William, who died in infancy. The mother died at the age of forty-seven years, the father in 1857, in Reed street, New York City. In religious connection they were members of the Methodist Church. He was a Whig and Repub- lican in political sentiment, but he took no inter- est in party affairs beyond voting.

Abram Storms Riker received the advantages for education afforded by the public schools of the city of his birth, attending the Duaine street school. When fourteen years old he commenced to work with his brother-in-law, who was en- gaged in making gold pens, but he only remained with him a short time, and subsequently, for an- other brief period, he was employed at brush making. Shortly after leaving this he caught the "gold fever " which was then raging over the country, and joined a party bound for Cali- fornia, making the trip via New York and Gal- veston, Texas, whence they proceeded overland to their destination, only thirteen of the fifty- two original members of the party arriving at the gold diggings. Mr. Riker remained in the New Eldorado altogether for about five years, en-

gaged in mining and also in other occupations, for some time as an employe of the " Parker House," in San Francisco. From there he went to Stockton, where his brother John was follow- ing blacksmithing, and there began to " pack " to the mines, drifting into mining in this way, and continuing to dig for the yellow metal for about two years. In the meantime he made a trip to New York to buy wagons and other sup- plies, and was delayed in the East for a time by an attack of fever, but he returned to California after his recovery. He has made the trip over the Isthmus three times. Mr. Riker met with gratifying success in the gold fields, and since his return to the East he has lived a retired life, en- joying to the full the competence which he gained under such difficulties during his early years. After his marriage he took up his resi- dence in East Port Chester. and in 1893, as above stated, he erected the elegant and com- modious home, overlooking Byram river, which he now occupies. He finds much pleasure in reading and the light work around his home, and leads a life of enviable leisure and contentment. Mr. Riker was at one time an inveterate smoker. but he has abandoned the habit completely and has not used tobacco for thirty years.

On April 8. 1875. Mr. Riker was united in marriage, in Port Chester, to Miss Sarah E. Smith, who was born on Cherry Hill, in East Port Chester, daughter of Sherman and Caroline M. (Lyon) Smith. One child was born to this union. Sherman S., who died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Riker are highly respected by their fel- low citizens in and around East Port Chester, where they are well known. Mrs. Riker is a member of the Episcopal Church of Greenwich. Mr. Riker was originally a Whig in political faith, changing his allegiance to the Republican party on its formation, and he has remained loyal ever since; in local affairs, however, he supports the best men regardless of party lines. He cast his maiden vote, in California, for Zachary Tay- lor, and although he was not of age he thought he had a right to vote when Indians and " greas- ers " were taking the privilege, and acted accord- ingly.

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Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 139

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