Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 43

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 43

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David Hurlbutt was born November 19, 1801, at Wilton, on Vion Hill. He learned the hatter's trade, and coming to Ridgefield followed same here for a number of years, until he took up the butcher business, which was the principal occu- pation of his active life. It was established prior to 1841, and continued by David Hurlbutt until his death, in 1858. He had a large number of apprentices, and under his able management the business was a flourishing financial success, the income therefrom placing him in comfortable circumstances. On February 6, 1823, Mr. Hurl- butt married Julia Maria Higgins, daughter of Michael D. Higgins, of New York City, and five children blessed this union, namely: Sereno S., Hester Ann, John D., Sarah Maria and Aaron Gregory Higgins. Of these, Hester Ann. born November 8, 1829, was married June 7, 1855, to John W. Rockwell, of Ridgefield, and died De- cember 5, 1861; John D., born August 8, 1832, married Margaret Olmstead, of Ridgefield, and died February 11, 1866; Sarah Maria, born May 30. 1835, was married November 1, 1855, to Isaac D. Sproull; Aaron G. H., born May 21, 1841, died July 17, 1878. The Hurlbutt resi- dence was erected in 1841.

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Michael D. Higgins, father of Mrs. David Hurlbutt, was in his day a well-known merchant of New York City, highly respected for his integ- rity of purpose and many sterling qualities. He married Sarah Stuart, daughter of Isaac and Olive Stuart, of Wilton, Conn., who were born September 7. 1749, and October 7. 1749. re- spectively. A brief record of their children is as follows: (1) Betsy was born July 9, 1771. (2) Alice, born in November, 1772, died in Septem- ber, 1778. (3) James, born in 1775, died in 1776. (4) Martha, born December 24, 1776, died March 26, 1811. (5) Moses, born March 26, 1780, died January 4, 1852, was one of the leading educators of his day in New England, and was for many years professor of theology in Andover Seminary; he married a Miss Clark, of Danbury, and they had a family of eight chil- dren-Isaac, James, Mary, Abbie, Elizabeth, Sarah, Moses and Mary. Austin Phelps mar- ried two of the daughters of this family, and the daughter of one of these was Elizabeth Stuart Phelps, the writer. (6) Sarah, born in 1781, died April 6, 1805; she married Michael D. Higgins.

Sereno S. Hurlbutt received his early educa- tion in the district schools of his birthplace, and completed it in the private school conducted by Samuel Sidney St. John and Hugh S. Banks, the latter of whom was a brother-in-law of Lewis H. Bailey, of Ridgefield. When he was about sixteen years old his school life ended, and at the age of seventeen he commenced to learn the car- penter's trade, as apprentice to Albin Jennings, with whom he remained until he reached his ma- jority. He then worked one year as journeyman at his trade, and divided the year following between carpentering and farm work, at the end of that time entering the firm of Brush, Olmstead & Co., as partner in the business. This co-part- nership lasted for five and one-half years, until Mr. Hurlbutt, being dissatisfied, withdrew from the concern and for a time engaged in various lines of business on his own account. In Ridge- field, finally, he found employment with his brother-in-law as clerk in the candle-stick busi- ness, shipping candle-sticks, and continued with him some three years. His father dying at this time, Mr. Hurlbutt and his brother found them- selves with the butchering business above men- tioned on their hands, and to this our subject devoted the remainder of his active life, giving it his principal time and attention for a period of over twenty-five years, until his practical retire- ment in 1883. It was located at the corner of Main and Market streets, and was the principal busi- ness in that line in Ridgefield, Mr. Hurlbutt

being no less successful than his father before him. During those years he had a partner at times, but he was always the head of the con- cern, and displayed considerable business ability in the management of his affairs. During 1865 he was engaged in the carpentering business at Bridgeport, Conn. Since 1883 he has not given his attention to any line in particular.

In political sentiment Mr. Hurlbutt was orig- inally a Whig, becoming a Republican on the organization of the party, for whose welfare he has since been an earnest worker, especially in his own community. He was elected tax col- lector in 1872, and continued in the office for three consecutive terms ; in 1879 he was elected representative to the State Legislature from the Eleventh district ; since 1885 he has annually been elected to the office of collector, and he has also served as constable for many years. His re-elections speak louder in his praise than any mere words, and it is safe to say that a more public spirited, upright, faithful and capable offi- cial could hardly be found within the limits of Fairfield county. Fraternally, he affiliates with Jerusalem Lodge No. 29, F. & A. M., of Ridge- field, and with Pilgrim Lodge No. 46, I. O. O. F., Ridgefield, in which he is especially promi- nent, having passed all the chairs ; he and Lewis H. Bailey are the only charter members of Pil- grim Lodge now living.

Mr. Hurlbutt was married April 3, 1855, to Miss Julia Keeler, daughter of Silas Keeler, of Belden's Hill, Wilton, and, of their three children, David died in infancy ; the living are Julia M., and Frank Stuart, who married Annie Dunker- ton, of Waterloo, N. Y., and has one daughter, Hester Elizabeth. The family attend the M. E. Church, of which Mr. Hurlbutt is a trustee, hav- ing held that office a number of years.

Silas Keeler, above mentioned, was a son of Seth Keeler, who married a Mrs. James and had two children, Hannah and Silas. Hannah mar- ried General Guire, of Norwalk; Silas married Mary Gray, of Westport, Poplar Plains, and had seven children, viz .: Frank, who is dead ; Catherine, deceased wife of Judge R. S. Pickett, of New Haven; Susan A., unmarried; John G., living in Oneida, Kans .; Morris, who lives in Kan- sas; George S., living in Medford, Mass .; and Hannah M., of Redding, Connecticut.

T ALCOTT BARLOW (deceased), late of Bridgeport. Few of the residents of that city have passed as many years in active busi- ness as did this deeply lamented gentleman, who, beginning his career as a bread-winner

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when eight years old, was still "in harness " till within a few years of his decease, which oc- curred October 21, 1898, when in his seventy- fourth year.

Mr. Barlow was a native of Connecticut, born May 3, 1825, in the town of Westport, Fairfield county, a son of Samuel and Eunice {Mills) Barlow, of Westport, the former of whom was a shoemaker in that town, well-known and much respected.

Our subject's youth was spent in Westport, and at the age of eight years he began working for farmers in that locality. At fifteen he was apprenticed to a carpenter, and after serving a term of five years he was employed by Peter Norman, a contractor, with whom he remained five years. Coming to Bridgeport when a young man, he engaged in the carpentering and building business with the late Wakeman W. Wells, who was county jailer for many years. This part- nership was known as the firm of Wells & Bar- low, but it did not continue for a very long time, and after its dissolution Mr. Barlow carried on the business until a few years ago, when he re- tired.

In 1846 our subject married Miss Emeline Gray, of Danbury, Conn., who died in the year 1893, leaving five children, all yet living: George F., who was in business with his father. and now succeeds him; Charles H., a plumber in Bridgeport; Albert T., a resident of Waterbury, Conn .; and Amanda F. and Linnie, both at home. Socially, the family is held in high es- teem. Mr. Barlow was a member of Arcanum Lodge, I. O. O. F., at Bridgeport. While he was not ambitious for official honors, he always took keen interest in public questions, and throughout his life was an ardent supporter of the Democratic party.

A RTHUR ALMON HOLMES, M. D., of Bridgeport, has won a high reputation as a physician and surgeon, his skill in the latter branch of professional work being demonstrated by a number of difficult operations successfully performed. At the beginning of his career he had exceptional opportunities for gaining a prac- tical knowledge of surgery, as he served for a time on the medical staff of the United States army in responsible positions.

Doctor Holmes is of Scotch descent in the paternal line, but his ancestors came to America at an early period, and his great-grandfather, John A. Holmes, is supposed to have been present at the battle of Bunker Hill. This worthy patriot was a manufacturer of linen wheels, and resided

at Londonderry, Mass. (now New Hampshire). Jonathan Holmes, the Doctor's grandfather, was born at Londonderry, but for many years pre- vious to his death made his home in Canaan, Maine. In early life he was engaged in the manufacture of linen wheels, but later he de- voted his attention to the furniture business.

William E. Holmes, the father of our subject, was born at Reedfield, Maine, November 16, 1804, and became a farmer by occupation, al- though in winter he was engaged in the manu- facture of furniture. He died February 8, 1892, in Gardiner, Maine, aged eighty-eight years. His wife, Lydia P. (Wyman), who was of Eng- lish ancestry, was born at Lakeside, Maine, a daughter of David Wyman, a well-known hotel keeper; she died January 8, 1892. They had two children, our subject being the younger. William L., eight years the elder, entered the Union army as a member of the First Maine Heavy Artillery, and lost a leg in the battle of the Wilderness, his death resulting therefrom.

Doctor Holmes was born February 13, 1839, at Athens, Maine, and his literary education was chiefly obtained at Somerset Academy, in that town, and at Titcomb Academy, in Belgrade, Maine. He taught school for fourteen terms, and then having decided to enter the medical profession he began his preparatory course with Dr. James S. Tobey, of Athens. He attended two terms of lectures at Bowdoin Medical Col- lege, Brunswick, Maine, but completed his course in the medical department of Harvard University, graduating early in 1865, when he passed an ex- amination before the State board and received an appointment as assistant surgeon of the 15th Maine V. I. After Lee's surrender the regiment was ordered to Washington to participate in the Grand Review, and later was sent to Savannah, Ga., and then to Georgetown, S. C., to preserve order during the reconstruction period. While at Georgetown, S. C., the Doctor was appointed chief medical officer of the Eastern district of South Carolina, and for three months he had charge of the Post Hospital, containing at one time 300 sick men. In November, 1865, he was ordered to Chester, S. C., where he had charge of the medical service of his regiment, and on July 17, 1866, he was mustered out in New York City. Returning to Maine, he engaged in prac- tice at Belgrade, where he remained seven years, during a portion of which time he was superinten- dent of the city schools. Since August, 1873, he has been in active practice in Bridgeport, where he met with success from the start. He is med- ical examiner of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Co., also advisory physician of the Preferred

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Life Insurance Co. of New York, and is identi- fied with the State and County Medical Societies, and the Bridgeport Medical Association, of which he is a charter member and was president in 1889. Politically, he is a Republican, but he does not take an active part in the work of the organization, his professional work occupying his time.

On March 24, 1864. Doctor Holmes was married to Miss Myra N. Shattuck, daughter of Luther Shattuck, a well-known resident of Corn- ville, Maine, and three children have blessed the union: Miss Ina Z .; Arthur A., who died in 1877; and Miss Florence A. The daughters are both living.

CHARLES W. MURPHY, of Danbury. The Fairfield County Bar has always been noted for the high character and attainments of its members, and to have achieved prominence in such a goodly company is, of itself, a notable dis- tinction. The subject of this sketch entered upon his professional career in 1892, and in a remark- ably brief period established a fine practice, his ripe judgment and wide knowledge of men and affairs, developed by his previous experience as a successful business man, having secured for him prompt recognition in his new field of work.

Mr. Murphy was born and reared in Dan- bury, and the schools of that place afforded him his earlier education. On completing a four- years' course in the high school, he took a posi- tion as a clerk in a store, where he remained one year, and during the year following he taught school in the Mill Plain and Ridgefield districts. He then entered the employ of D. W. Meeker as bookkeeper, and also superintended one portion of his hat factory. Four years there gave Mr. Murphy practical knowledge of the hat business, and at the same time he also gave some atten- tion to the study of law, reading for two years under the direction of the late William F. Tay- lor. At twenty-three he formed a partnership with Philander Brotherton, under the firm name of C. W. Murphy & Co., and began the manu- facture of men's stiff hats. They built the factory which stands back of the present " Turner House," and continued in business together for six years, enjoying a fine trade, their output averaging seventy-two dozen hats per day, and employing over one hundred hands. Mr. Murphy sold out his interest to his partner, but a few months later purchased the entire business, and after conduct- ing it for a time he sold it to its present owner, Mr. Delohery. While Mr. Murphy was in this line of business he served for a number of years

as secretary of the Danbury Hat Manufacturers' Association, and his native capacity for leadership was seen in his relations with the hat manufactur- ers of the United States, at the time of the organi- zation of their permanent association, he being the one who made the motion to that effect. He was secretary of the Committee of Seventeen who drafted the constitution and by-laws, and was the first secretary of the association, the first president being Robert Dunlap, the maker of the celebrated Dunlap hat. After disposing of his factory and business Mr. Murphy served two years as assist- ant superintendent of the Danbury water works, and collector of water rents, the city having just been incorporated. Later he was appointed by the common council as superintendent of the water works to fill a vacancy, but did not qualify for the office. By this time he had found his true sphere of action, and resuming the study of law was admitted in 1892. He began to practice with Arthur H. Averill (a son of Lieut .- Gov. Averill), then prosecuting attorney for the city of Danbury, but since his death in 1894 Mr. Murphy has carried on an independent practice, his office being located at No. 248 Main street, over the Danbury National Bank office. A number of important cases have been intrusted to him, and so far he has never lost one brought for the plaintiff by him before the common pleas or su- perior courts. In association with Mr. McMahon, of New Milford, he represented the plaintiff Mor- gan, in the sewer suits against the city of Dan- bury, in which they secured the broadest injunc- tion of its kind ever granted in the United States. The city was represented by seven lawyers- Brewster & Davis, Tweedy, Scott & Whittlesey, J. T. Cuff and State's Attorney Samuel Fessen- den, ex-speaker of the House of Representatives. The witnesses for the city were also men of note, including Rudolph Herring, sanitary engineer of New York City; Prof. Herbert E. Smith, chemist of Yale College; Dr. Cyrus W. Edson, of the New York State Board of Health: Dr. Martin, of the New York City Board of Health, and A. B. Hill, city engineer of New Haven, Conn. The decis- ion won at such odds was sustained by the su- preme court, and Mr. Murphy is now conducting a similar case against the city of Waterbury. Another important suit which he carried to a suc- cessful conclusion was that of the Cigar Makers Union, by which they secured an injunction against certain local dealers to prevent their use of counterfeit union labels; Mr. Murphy also men- tions the libel suit of Dougherty vs. Swift, pro- prietor of the Waterbury Herald, in which his client, the plaintiff, recovered a large sum in dam- ages. Mr. Murphy is a Democrat in political

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faith, and during Cleveland's first campaign he was secretary of the town committee. He was a candidate for the Legislature in 1886, but was de- i feated by twenty-five votes. Several local offices have been filled most acceptably by him, and for several years he served as school committee and justice of the peace. In affairs of a non-political nature he is also active. and at the present time he is secretary of the Wooster Hose Company. Socially, he is a member of the Royal Arcanum, having been one of the organizers of his lodge, of which he served as the first secretary.

Mr. Murphy was married to Miss Bina Hod- kins, daughter of John and Sarah (Austin) Hod- kins, and they reside in a pleasant home at No. 66 Town Hill avenue, Danbury. They attend the Second Congregational Church, of which Mrs. Murphy is a member. She is highly accom- plished, possessing unusual musical gifts, and has been chorister of the Congregational Sunday- school.

Mr. Murphy's father. William J. Murphy, married Miss Eugenia E. Shelton, a native of Providence, R. I., born February 20, 1829, and our subject was the eldest of their three children; Mary Josephine died in childhood, and Imogene is now the wife of Arthur Wildman, of Danbury. The Shelton family has been identi- fied with Rhode Island from an early period. and is connected with others of note. Through one line Mrs. Murphy's mother is descended from the Rutenberg family. her ancestors of that name emigrating from Germany about the close of the seventeenth century. In 1723 the name was written Ruttenburg; in 1754. Ruttinbourg; in 1767, Ruttenbourg; 1787. Ruttinber; in 1800, Rutenbor, and since then has been usually spelled Rutenbur or Ruttenber. The first of the line of whom we have a definite account is David Rut- enberg, who was born at Providence in 16-, and died there May 16, 1754. His children were: Ruth, born 1723; David, born 1725; Anna, born 17 -; Amy, born 17 -; Daniel Rutenberg, born in Providence, R. I., May. 1730, died May. 1776, aged forty-six years (he married Innocent Healy, of Dighton, Mass., who was born of French par- entage in August, 1737, and died May, 1810, leaving seven children-Betsey, born May 12, 1757, married John Shaw, and died June 15, 1830, in her seventy-fourth year; Sarah, born February 14. 1760, probably died unmarried; David, born December 24, 1763, married Polly Tripe, of Providence, R. I. (he was the captain and owner of a vessel engaged in the slave trade, a very popular business in the New England States in those days, and conducted under the authority of the Federal flag. On his last voyage

he left the coast of Africa with a cargo of seven hundred negroes, and was never heard from afterward; he had no children. His widow mar- ried William P. R. Benson, of Providence, R. 1.); Zilpha, born March 22, 1765, died about 1831 (she was the second wife of Benjamin Whipple, for many years a justice of the peace in Johnson, R. I.); Jencks, born August 25, 1767, died in 1853 (he married Betsey Carpenter, of Providence, R. I.): Rhoda, born August 11, 176-, married (first) General Walbridge. of Bennington, Vt., and (second) Randal James, also of Bennington; Daniel, born September 19, 1772. died in Provi- dence, R. I., June 18, 1850, in his seventy-sixth year. He was a hatter by trade and always re- sided in Providence; he married Polly, daughter of John Richmond, of Dighton, Mass. (she was born February 9, 1770, and died July 30, 1847, in her seventy-first year; their children were-Mary, born February 3, 1800, died in South Coventry, Conn .. December 28, 1852. She married Charles P. Shelton, born in Boston. Mass., September 10, 1801, died in South Coventry, March 3, 1855. They had four children-Polly, who died young; Eugenia E., our subject's mother; Anna Joseph- ine, born December 29, 1832; Daniel Ruten- bur, born September 5, 1839); Eliza A., born April 7, 1806, married Sterry Kelley, and resided in Providence, R. I .; Margaret Lee, born Novem- ber 8, 1809, died in 18 -. The Richmond family of which Polly Richmond, the wife of Daniel Rutenberg, was a member traced their descent from England at an early date, and in 1638 were among the first purchasers of the town of Taun- ton, Mass. Rev. J. B. Walker, of Holyoke, Mass., who was engaged in preparing a history of this family, expressed the conviction that the lineage of John can be satisfactorily traced to the Duke of Richmond, but of this there are no data.

W TILLIAM O. SEYMOUR was born in the village of Ridgefield, Fairfield Co., Conn., where he passed the greater part of his life. He is a son of William Welles and Harriet (Betts) Seymour, the former of whom was born in 1803.

Our subject received his elementary education at the district school, after which he attended, in 1854-55, Amenia (N. Y.) Seminary, taking an elective course, one of his schoolmates being the present Bishop Cyrenus D. Foss. His school days ended, Mr. Seymour took up the profes- sion of teacher, first for a time in the district schools in the vicinity of Ridgefield, then for twelve years, or until the spring of 1869, conducted, as proprietor and principal, a private boarding

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and day school for boys, in Ridgefield, which had an average attendance of some thirty-five or forty pupils, and proved highly successful. In closing this school in 1869, Mr. Seymour com- menced the profession of civil engineer, which he has followed with eminent success ever since. He had previously taught the theory of civil en- gineering in school, and it was on account of im- paired health that he decided to make it his future life work. He began the practice of en- gineering in the position of rodman, and ad- vanced rapidly from one position to another un- til four years thereafter he became chief engineer of the New York, New Haven & Hartford rail- road, at that time the principal railroad corpo- ration in New England, the date of his appoint- ment being July 22, 1873, and his service ter- minating November 28, 1881. At that time he was chosen chief engineer of the Boston, Hoosac Tunnel & Western railroad, with which road he remained for one year, and then for four and one-half years thereafter he was chief engineer of the location and construction work of the Wis- consin Central railroad. During his connec- tion with this company he located and con- structed 104 miles of railroad from Chippewa Falls. Wis., to St. Paul, Minn., crossing the St. Croix river with an iron bridge, consisting of ten spans, each 160 feet in length, which was built under his direction. After this line was completed and ready for operation, he located and constructed 124 miles of railroad from Schleisingerville, Wis., to Chicago, Illinois.

In July, 1887. Mr. Seymour was appointed, by Governor Phineas C. Lounsbury, one of the three railroad commissioners of the State of Con- necticut, which position he is at present filling, serving his third term of four years each, having been recently re-appointed for a fourth term. He is also chairman ex officio of the State Board of Engineers which has charge of the construc- tion and inspection of dams. In 1892 he was elected probate judge for the district of Ridge- field, and is still filling that position with char- acteristic skill and ability. During the years 1867-68 he served in the State Legislature, hav- ing been elected on the Republican ticket. He is a member of the F. & A. M., Jerusalem Lodge No. 48, of Ridgefield, while in religious faith he and his family have been prominently identified with the Congregational Church of Ridgefield for years.

On October 31, 1855, Mr. Seymour was mar- ried to Rebecca Sproull, daughter of Col. Thomas Sproull, of Warwick. Orange Co., N. Y., and they have two children: (1) Mary C., born April 27, 1858, married David L. Jones, of Ridgefield,

Conn., and has two children-Christie Law Jones, born April 21, 1882, and Helen Wallace, born August 22. 1892; and (2) Augusta D., born November 3. 1863, married Howard D. Smith, formerly of S. Norwalk, Conn., and has two chil- dren-Walter Seymour. born May 1, 1891, and James Quintard, born April 20, 1892.

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Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 43

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