Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 172

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

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Orin I. Backus obtained his education in the public schools of Danbury, and at the age of sev- enteen gave up his studies to take employment on a farm. In 1860 he went to Brooklyn to learn the hat-finishing trade, and was thus en- gaged when the Civil war broke out. On return- ing from the front he arrived in New York City July 17, 1865, and later came to Danbury, where he spent ten years working at his trade. He then purchased a farm of 140 acres in that vicin-

ity, and has since been occupied chiefly with its management. It is well adapted to general crops, and he also pays much attention to dairy work, keeping ten cows and owning and operat- ing a creamery. Although most men would think their time well filled with these interests, he finds time to take occasional contracts in road making and bridge building. He is a lover of public improvements and good roads, and at his own expense has made several improvements. He has been supervisor of road work in the west part of the town for twelve years, and is consid- ered one of the best road men in western Con- necticut. His services have been secured in a number of places in Bedford, Westchester Co., N. Y., and it was through his efforts that Backus avenue, one of the finest drives in the town, was constructed. At first he met with strong oppo- sition, but after five years he succeeded in getting a vote to have the road built, and in less than forty-eight hours he had a gang of men and teams at work on it. When completed, the public were so well pleased that they gave it the name of Backus avenue in honor of its builder.

On October 16, 1867, Mr. Backus married Miss Anna E. Wood, daughter of Harvey and Hannah (Dykeman) Wood, and to this union one son, Harvey Wood, was born May 3, 1874; he is a credit to his parents, being a most promising young man. At present he is a member of Com- pany G, Fourth Connecticut National Guard, and he endorses his father's political views, having cast his first Presidential vote for William McKin- ley. The family attend the M. E. Church, and Mr. Backus is a member of Union Lodge No. 40, F. & A. M., at Danbury; Nelson L. White Post No. 87, G. A. R., in which he is a past com- mander, and the Union Veteran Legion Encamp- ment No. 114, where he holds the rank of colo- nel; he was a delegate to the national encamp- ment at Buffalo in 1895, and at Washington, D. C., in 1896. He is also a member of Pahquio- que Council No. 9, O. U. A. M.

C HARLES BRADLEY KEELER, M. D., of New Canaan, is descended from one of the earliest families of New England, and his ancestors for generations have been well known in Fairfield county.

Ralph Keeler, the first of the family of whom we have record, was an active citizen of Norwalk, Conn., in the early days. His son, Samuel, was a soldier in the Indian war, and was in the " direful swamp fight " of 1680, receiving for his service twelve acres of land in the Clapboard Hills District of this county. Daniel

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Keeler the great-great-grandfather of our subject, was probably a son of that Samuel, and at an early date received land from his father in New Canaan parish. his home being south of John . Benedict's. He and his wife became members of the Congregational Church when it was first organized.

1794. in Canaan parish, Norwalk, and died July 6. 1855. He was a carriage manufacturer by occupation, carrying on a business in New Ca- naan, where he also owned what is now the . Birdsall House." He married Polly Hoyt, who survived him many years, dying April 26. 1872. and they had three children: Stephen E., who

Capt. Isaac Keeler, son of Daniel, was born ' is a resident of New Canaan; Sylvester H., living May 2, 1756, in Canaan parish, and died Janu- in Mendota, III .. and IsaacE., father of Dr. C. B. Keeler. ary 23. 1837. when in his eighty-first year. ; When the Revolutionary war broke out he be- Isaac E. Keeler was born September 8. 1826, in New Canaan, and spent his earlier came a member of the Fourth Company. 7th

Webb commanding, served at Winter Hill under Regiment, under Capt. Joseph Hoit, Col. Charles , life there, receiving his education in the district schools. He learned the trade of carriage- General Sullivan, was at Valley Forge during . maker with his father, and followed same suc- the memorable winter of 1777-78. and subse- . cessfully for a number of years; he made the quently took part in the battle of Monmouth. celebrated coach owned by .. Tom Thumb." In His military record is as follows: Commissioned . 1858 he became associated with the Wheeler & ensign in and Regiment (formation of 1777-80). Wilson Sewing Machine Company in Bridgeport, January 1, 1777; second heutenant, February 4. | Conn., and removed to that town, becoming one 1778; first lieutenant, August 1. 1779; quarter- , of its prominent citizens. He was a member of master in 1781. He was a government pensioner

I the Artillery company at Bridgeport, and during and was a member of the Cincinnati. After the I the Civil war was on home duty. Isaac E. war closed he commenced business life for Keeler was married February 14. 1852, to Jane himself, later removing to New York City, where ! Todd Porter, who was born February 17. 1830, he received the appointment of city marshal, and . daughter of Abijah and Rhoda Porter, of Bridge- he also served at one time as police justice in port. They reared a family of four children, of whom we give a brief record: Emma, born that city. He was afterward given a position in the custom house, which he retained until his | March 4. 1855, was married April 29. 1886, to death. During the war of 1812, when New York Roger H. Comstock, of Milford, Conn. George Eldridge, born September 30, 1861, is a farmer ! in the town of New Canaan; he was married City was in danger of being attacked by the British, he volunteered for three months' service in the Veteran Corps of Revolutionary soldiers | September 17. 1891, to Annie May Warner, to guard the arsenal, and was made an officer in i daughter of Frank Warner, of Wilton, Conn. the corps. He bravely attempted to discharge | Charles Bradley, born July 17, 1865. was mar- the duties which fell to his lot with his old-time i ried April 24. 1889, to Gertrude C., daughter of fidelity, but the labors and exposures of camp James A. Chidley, of Bridgeport. Benjamin | Hoyt, born December 3. 1867, was married 1 November 6, 1889, to Elizabeth Olmstead, and I makes his home in New Canaan. Isaac E. Keeler died on August 2, 1885, and Jane T. Keeler passed away January 25, 1895. They life proved too much for his years and enfeebled constitution, and he contracted a severe cold which developed into consumption, though he lived for many years afterward. Captain Keeler was married September 24. 1779, to Sarah St. . John, who was born May 11, 1755,' and died i were members of St. Paul's Episcopal Church at September 21, 1793, the mother of five children, | Bridgeport, of which Mr. Keeler was warden for viz .: Esther, born April 22, 1781; Naomi, Sep- I many years. He was a Republican in politics. tember 24, 1783; Isaac, July i9, 1786; Isaac, Charles Bradley Keeler lived in the city of I his birth, Bridgeport, during his earlier years, and I received a good education in the public schools. May 25, 1789; Sally, June 16. 1791. The father for his second wife married. on December 15, 1793, Catherine Tuttle, who was born Septem- . He was obliged to abandon his studies, however, ber 9, 1774. and died July 28, 1858. She had two children. Bradley, born September 26, 1794, and Edward E., born November 28, 1796. She , ing himself physically. In 1885 he entered the and her husband sleep their last sleep in the burial ground of the Church they were both mem- bers of.

on account of ill health, and went to Kansas, where he spent four years in the hope of better- Hahnemann Medical College of Chicago, from which he graduated in 1889, working his own way through. In April, 1889, he settled at New Canaan, where he has since made his home and

Bradley Keeler, son of Capt. Isaac and Cath- erine (Tuttle) Keeler, was born September 26, , practiced his profession with satisfactory success.

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He has gained the esteem and hearty good will of all his fellow-citizens, and is at present serving as health officer of the town and borough, as coroner's examiner for New Canaan, and as post surgeon; and is commodore of the Norwalk Yacht Club. Fraternally, he is an active and popular member of the l. O. O. F. and the F. & A. M., being connected with Harmony Lodge No. 67, New Canaan; Washington Chapter, Norwalk; Clinton Commandery No. 3, Nor- walk, and Pyramid Temple, Mystic Shrine, No. 9. Bridgeport. He also belongs to the State Homeopathic Society and to the American Insti- tute of Homeopathy. In religious connection he holds membership with the Congregational Church at New Canaan.

F D. HOTCHKISS. The name of Hotchkiss recalls to mind one of the noted characters of Colonial history. Deacon Gideon Hotchkiss, a hero of the French and Revolutionary wars. The family has also become distinguished through a long line of talented men who have made their way to the front in various lines of effort. es- pecially as inventors and practical scientists, and a high order of executive ability has characterized its members. The ancestral home of this race was in the County of Essex, England, and the name was originally Hotchkin or Hodgke. An extensive genealogical record has been published in which it is seen that the family is numerously represented in this State, notably in the vicinity of Waterbury. Deacon Gideon Hotchkiss, the common ancestor of the American branches of the family, resided at the site of the present town of Prospect, Conn. He was twice married, and had nineteen children, among whom was a son, Amos.

The subject of this sketch, the able and effi- cient superintendent of the Fairfield Rubber Company's plant, at Fairfield, is of the sixth generation in direct descent from Deacon Gideon Hotchkiss, the line being traced through Amos, Avery. Marvin and Burritt M. Hotchkiss, our subject's father. Burritt M. Hotchkiss was born and reared at Prospect, and enjoyed but limited educational privileges in the common schools of |

business constantly increasing in the meantime until over 700 men were employed. He was one of the pioneers in the rubber industry and his foresight, industry and good management enabled him to gain a handsome competence. He was a member of the Masonic Fraternity, and in poli- tics he was a Republican, but while he took a keen interest in the success of his party he never entered the political arena. In appearance he was commanding, being of tall frame and weigh- ing about 200 pounds, and he attained the ad- vanced age of seventy-one years, his death oc- curring at his home in Naugatuck. In early inanhood he married Miss Adaline M. Hall, a member of a prominent pioneer family of East Hartford. Conn., who died at the age of forty- five, the.remains of both being interred at Nau- gatuck. Their family consisted of three chil- dren: Robert E., now superintendent of the plant of the Liverpool Rubber Company, at Liverpool, England; F. D., our subject; and Ella, who married Edgar O. Whitney, and died in Meriden, Connecticut.

Our subject was born at Naugatuck, October 11, 1851, and after attending the local schools for a time he pursued a higher course of study at Wilbraham Methodist School at Wilbraham, Mass. On leaving that institution he at once found employment in the plant of the Goodyear Glove Company, and as his experience and knowl- edge of the business grew he was promoted from positions of minor responsibility and placed in charge of different departments, thus gaining a thorough practical training in all branches of the work. For some time he was superintendent of the calender department, but he resigned the position to be assistant superintendent of the American Rubber Company, at Cambridgeport. Mass. In August, 1888, he removed to Fairfield to take his present position with the Fairfield Rubber Company. He affiliates with the Repub- lican party, but beyond voting regularly he does not actively share in party work. In religious faith he is an Episcopalian, and he belongs to the I. O. O. F., Centennial Lodge No. 100, at Naugatuck.

In 1874 Mr. Hotchkiss married his first wife, Miss Amelia Perkins, daughter of Wales and the vicinity. Being obliged at an early age to | Maria (Clark) Perkins, prominent residents of seek a means of earning a livelihood, he entered Naugatuck. She died a few years later, and in 1887 he married Miss Nellie Welton, daughter of Frank L. and Augusta (Thayer) Welton, of Wa- the employ of the Goodyear Glove Company, at Naugatuck, who were then conducting a small business with seven workmen. His ability soon | terbury. By the first marriage there were two won recognition. and from a common laborer he | children: Charles S., and Addie Burr, a member rose to the position of superintendent, which he i of the D. A. R .; and by the second there were held for a number of years, and later became i three: Helen W. Welton, Frank W. Welton vice-president and advisory superintendent, the i and Frances Rosalba.

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C HARLES W. MANN. It is a pleasing com- 1 In 1884 he made his first appearance as a mentary on the educational system in Great | political speaker, and traveled over the State in Britain that the youthful minds are sufficiently . behalf of Grover Cleveland; his natural ability as well trained, at a very early age, to be able to i an orator, and his forcible and logical arguments. begin preparation for life work, in whatever pro- I contributed largely to the benefit of the Demo- fession might be chosen. We here present to ' cratic party, wherever he went. our readers a brief account of the life of one of A short time after his removal to Bridgeport. the English-born citizens of the county, Charles ; the position of city attorney of Meriden, his for- W. Mann. who was born at Halifax. England, May 8. 1855. one of the large family born to Joseph and Annis (Patchett) Mann. The others were: Elizabeth Ann (Mrs. Wigglesworth). of

i mer home, was offered him, and the Meriden papers made urgent appeals to secure his return i to that place; but he had formed attachments in | his new home. and decided to remain in Bridge- Halifax; Mary Emma (Mrs. Charlesworth). of | port. In 1893. when it was thought advisable Manchester, England; Sarah Eliza, wife of Frank I to establish a Consulate at Halifax, our subject was placed before the government for appoint- | ment by the United States Treasurer, Daniel N. Morgan, and endorsed by a petition containing { the signature of every prominent citizen in the bancroft. a grocer and butcher at Bridgeport; Charlotte Annis, wife of William G. Heath, for- merly general manager of the Daily News at Bridgeport; Joe Edwards, managing clerk for E. H. Hill & Son, solicitors, of Halifax; Harriet I city and in the State. He also received many Ameha and Frances Louisa, unmarried and resid- | flattering letters from Halifax business men urg- ing at Halifax: and John Clough Patchett, de- ceased.

Charles W. Mann was educated at Walter Clough Hall. Park Field House and Hipperholme Grammar School, all three of which are in the parish of Halifax. He had early evinced a hiking for study, and his powers of oratory were devel- oped at an early age. When but twelve years old he determined to become a lawyer, and at 1 fourteen entered a law office as a student, and | remained there until 1877. when, desiring a wider held for his labors, he came to this country, immediately entering the law office of Judge Wilbur F. Davis. of Meriden, Conn., remaining at this offre until May 21. 1878, when he was admitted to practice at the New Haven County

On September 8, 1879, Mr. Mann was united | in marriage with Miss Emma Amelia Woodward, 1 of Meriden, and a descendant of an old English I family. To this couple one son has been born - Arthur Woodward. now (1899) fourteen years of age; he is a great student, and has already de- veloped a great taste for debating, his delivery foretelling a wonderful career as a public speaker. bidding fair to rival that of his father. thus | adding but another illustration, "a worthy son | of a worthy sire.

Mr. and Mrs. Mann are members and active I workers in the South Congregational Church. Bar. He then opened an office for himself, and | Socially, Mr. Mann is a member of the Sea Side continued to practice with success until 1892. I Club; Ancient Order of Essenics; Order of Sons His rapid rise won for him the soubriquet of I of St. George. Pioneer Lodge No. 79, and

". Rising Star." Many offers had been made to | Grand Chief Washington of the State Brother- hood of the Union. He is very public spirited,

induce hun to locate at Bridgeport, but it was i not until May. 1892, that he decided to make i and liberal of his means or labor to all worthy the change. His career as a lawyer could hardly ; causes. Genial, charitable and honest, he wins be more remarkable. He came here an entire i and maintains the regard of all classes of people.

stranger, and within a few years his talents have placed him above many who have all the advan- tages of friends and inherited wealth. His prac- tice is a lucrative one, and he is considered one of Bridgeport s prominent attorneys. He is in great demand in court. where his fine, polished address, his command of language, his pure diction, make him a distinguished figure. He has never become so matter-of-fact as to be unmoved about

H TANFORD W. PLATT, of the well-known and prosperous firm of Platt & Ritch, of Bridgeport, is a native of Fairfield county, born in the town of Easton. December 8, 1847. a representative of the fourth generation of the Platt family in this vicinity.

Ebenezer Platt. the grandfather of our sub- the work entrusted to his care, and when piead- ' ject, was a son of William Platt, and was a teach- ing. his voice. earnest and clear in tone, carries : er of considerable note in Easton. He married at once to the hearers a conviction of the speaker's ! Anna Edwards, a native of the same town, and honesty, and wins over the minds of the jury. ! they became the parents of the following chil-

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ing him to seek the position, and they were | greatly disappointed when the idea of establish- I ing the Consulate at the place was abandoned.

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dren: Mary; William; Edward; Wakeman; Charles; Marietta; and Granville, all now de- ceased except the last named, who is now living in Stepney, this county. Edward, the third in the above mentioned family, was the father of our subject. and was born in Easton, where he followed his trades of shoemaker and painter. He married Susan Judd, a daughter of Lewis Judd, of Easton, to which union three children were born: Hanford W., our subject; Georgia, deceased; and Eugene, also deceased. The fa- ther died in 1854, and the mother married again, her second husband being Asa D. Pratt. by whom she has two children: Oliver T., of Bridgeport; and Fred, of Fairfield. The mother of Mrs. Pratt, Maria Judd, was ninety-eight years old in October, 1897.

Hanford W. Platt spent his youth in his na- tive village, and at Stepney, in both of which places he attended school. His educational training ended at the age of sixteen, when he came to Bridgeport, and entered the employ of William Platt, an uncle, as a clerk in the market at No. 89 State street. For nearly thirty years he has been in this one store. From 1876 to 1882, assisted by his brother Eugene. he ran the market on State street, and from 1882 to 1884 our subject had the one on Cannon street. In 1884 the firm of Platt & Ritch was formed, and they engaged in business at the same place where Mr. Platt's uncle had been before them.

In 1880, at New Canaan, Conn., Mr. Platt was married to Miss Charlotte A. Stevens, daugh- ter of Rufus W. Stevens, and Mr. Ritch married her sister. To Mr. and Mrs. Platt two children have been born: Harold Stevens, and Theodore Rufus. Socially, Mr. Platt is connected with Arcanum Lodge, I. O. O. F .; Red Men, Konka- potanah Tribe; and Woodmen of the World. He and his wife are both active in their interest in the Methodist Episcopal Church, and occupy an enviable position in the regard of their fel- lowmen.

EORGE E. WHITNEY, a civil engineer of broad experience and ability, and who for nearly a third of a century has been identified with the Stamford Water Works, of which he is the superintendent, is a native of Westchester county. N. Y .. born January 14, 1842, in the town of Somers.

George W. Whitney, his grandfather, a tan- ner and currier by trade and occupation, was a native of Norwalk, Conn. In later life, how- ever, he carried on farming operations at Venice, Cayuga Co., N. Y. He married Matilda Olm-

stead, and of their children, Edward P. Whitney (the father of George E.) was born in the town of Norwalk, Fairfield Co., Conn .. but passed his boyhood on his father's farm in Cayuga county, N. Y., and there attended the public schools of the neighborhood. He became a carriagemaker by trade, which he learned in Ridgefield, Conn., and followed the business in the town of Somers, Westchester Co., N. Y. Subsequently he moved to Stamford. and there followed his trade until the time of his death; he passed away, however, at Venice, N. Y. He was married in the town of Somers, Westchester Co., N. Y., to Harriet Ann Jackson, a daughter of Zolomon Jackson, who still survives and is a resident of Stamford. To this marriage were born children as follows: George E., Sarah M. and Ella M., all deceased excepting George E. The father of these served as a justice of the peace in Stamford. He was affiliated with Union Lodge No. 5, F. & A. M. He was a member of the Connecticut Legislature in 1856.

George E. Whitney was educated in Stam- ford, where he received the benefit of the public schools of the place. He also at- tended Claverack Academy, and was there prepared for the business of a marine engineer. Early in 1862 he entered the United States Navy as a marine engineer, and performed faithful serv- ice during four years of the Civil war, returning to his home with an honorable and highly credit- able war record. His first duty was performed on the U. S. steamer "Mohawk," on which he re- mained one year. At the close of this period he was transferred to the dispatch boat "Colum- bine," on which he remained three months. He was taken prisoner at Palatka, on the St. John's river, Fla., and was for five months confined in Rebel prisons; was taken first to Savannah, Ga., thence to Macon, Ga., thence to Charleston, S.C .. and thence to Libby Prison at Richmond, Va., being released from the latter by exchange in October, 1864. Owing to sickness, he was then furloughed until in December of that vear. Fol- lowing this he was placed on the "Chenango," in the South Atlantic service. Six months later he went aboard the "South Carolina," and was on her some six months, when he was honorably discharged from the service. On the close of the war he returned to Stamford, where he engaged in the pursuit of his chosen calling, that of civil engineering. He performed work all along the New Haven and Hartford railway, being in the company's employ three years. In 1870, he be- came the engineer of the Stamford Water Works. since which time he has been in the company's service, and has proven himself to be a most

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trusted and efficient public servant. He is and ' in this county upon a farm in the northern part has been for years superintendent in charge of of the town of Stratford. His education was obtained in the schools of Putney village, and at

the Stamford Works. He is a genial and affable gentleman, well-known and favorably throughout ' an early age he learned the paper-making trade. Fairfield county, where he is very popular. He is a member of Hobbie Post No. 23. G. A. R. : of the New England Society of Naval Engineers, and of U'mon Lodge No. 5. F. & A. M

This proving uncongenial, he became a sailor. but after four years he tired of that occupation and located in Bridgeport, where he then learned the mason's trade with Nelson Taylor. He has since been continuously engaged in that business and has filled many contracts for the erection of stone and brick buildings. especially in Bridge- port. He married Miss Emma St. John, a na- tive of New Canaan, this county, and a daughter of Benoni and Maria St. John. The only child New York Dental College, New York City. from ) of this union. Clayton K., is now employed in an which he was graduated; he is now a dentist in . office in Bridgeport. Politically, Mr. Blakeslee New York City. The mother died February 16, | is a Democrat, as was his father before him, 1980. and on April 30. 188 ;. the father was again

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Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 172

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