Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 53

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 53

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Mr. Mead is a stanch Republican in political belief, but he likes to see the best man elected, especially in local office, and, while not a poli- tician in the ordinary sense of the word, is will- ing to assist to that end. Personally he is not an office seeker, but he has served his township in various capacities, and has been a member of the school committee of Clapboard Ridge Dis- trict. It was mainly through his efforts that that district secured its present school house, and he served on the building committee during its erection. Mr. and Mrs. Mead have two chil- dren living: Clara B., who is attending school; and Chester R .; Edith H., Seguine L., Henry S. and Grace M. died in childhood.

W ILLIAM GREGORY. One of the oldest homesteads of the town of Norwalk is that of the Gregory family, as it has been handed ·down from one generation to another since pio- neer times. At the time that John Gregory, the great-grandfather of the respected citizen whose name opens this sketch, came from England and settled upon the homestead, the land was in a primitive condition, footpaths here and there through the wilderness being the only sign of human life. He engaged in farming in true pio- neer style, building a home and helping to de- velop the locality by cutting roads in various di- rections. He married and reared a family of children, among whom was a son, Denton, the grandfather of our subject. Denton Gregory was born at the old home, and passed his life there in agricultural pursuits except for a period spent as a soldier in the Revolutionary army. His remains now rest in an old burial ground near the homestead, together with those of his wife, Elizabeth (Sherwood), of Jamaica, Long Island. They had seven children, viz .: John, Samuel, Josiah, Elizabeth, Mary, Clemens and Denton, none of whom are now living. All settled within two miles of their early home except Mary, who married Samuel Sterling and removed to the West.

Denton Gregory, Jr., our subject's father, was born at the homestead, and continued to re- side there throughout his life. For some time he conducted a hat factory on the farm, but later he devoted his attention entirely to agricultural work. He took much interest in the questions of his day, and was a Democrat in political faith. His death occurred there August 9, 1844. His wife, whose maiden name was Polly Jelliff, was born in the town of Norwalk, a daughter of Will- iam Jelliff, a merchant and farmer residing near the Gregory homestead. Our subject was the

youngest of six children, of whom an account is given as follows: Lewis, born April 12, 1804, and who became a hatter in Wilton, this county. was accidentally killed by the cars some years ago. Lura, born December 1, 1806, married David S. Hubbell, a contractor and builder of Westport, this county. Gould, born December 28, 1811, was a carpenter in Westport. Rachel, born March 28, 1813, married James Hyatt, a hatter of Wilton. Elizabeth, born October 14, 1823. married Nicholas Banks, a farmer in the town of Weston, this county.

William Gregory, our subject, was born April 12, 1824, at the homestead which he now oc- cupies and cultivates. When he was seventeen years of age he left the parental roof in order to serve an apprenticeship to the carpenter's trade with his brother in Westport, and on becoming proficient in the work he returned home, where he followed the trade of contractor and builder some forty years. At present he is engaged in farming exclusively, and his attractive little farm near the village of Cranbury shows the results of many years of affectionate care that it has re- ceived from him and his ancestors. In politics he is a steadfast Republican, and he and his fam- ily are identified with the Methodist Church, in which he has been a leading worker for years. His wife, who passed to the unseen life April 3, 1897, was formerly Miss Louisa Betts. She was a member of a well-known family of this county, and was born in Norwalk, where her father, William Betts, was engaged in business as a shoe- maker. Of the eight children born to our sub- ject and his estimable wife, the eldest, Franklin, born April 28, 1848, is a carpenter and builder in Norwalk; James L., born March 3, 1850, is the foreman of a large factory in Brooklyn, N. Y .; Eudora, born December 12, 1852, married John B. Gregory, a carpenter, and died Sep- tember 8, 1890; Ernest, born June 17, 1855, fol- lowed the trade of wagon-builder until his death, which occurred January 4, 1877; an infant, born March 1, 1859, died unnamed; Carrie L., born December 17, 1861, married William N. Craw, of South Norwalk, and died March 29. 1874; William T., born May 6, 1864, is a carpenter and resides at home; and Edgar, born August 6. 1867, became a shoe cutter by trade, but died February 4, 1888, in early manhood.

E' ALIJAH N. FILLOW (deceased), who in his lifetime was a prominent resident of Bethel, made his own way to success, having started in life without other capital than what his abilities and energy represented. By close attention to

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business, and a careful investment of his savings, he secured a comfortable competence, while at the same time he gained a high standing as a citizen.

Mr. Fillow was a native of this county, hav- ing been born at Westport, August 14, 1827. When he was seven years old the family removed to the town of Redding, and here he obtained a district-school education. He was reared to farm work by his father; but desiring to enter business life he went to Bethel at the age of fif- teen, and began to learn the hatter's trade with Orrin Benedict, with whom he remained several years. In 1850 he formed the partnership known as Farnham & Fillow, and engaged in the manu- facture of soft hats, continuing same until the Civil war broke out. The firm then went out of business, and Mr. Fillow conducted a livery stable until 1873, being also interested during this time in dealing in horses. In 1886 he suc- ceeded Col. George S. Crofut in the coal and truck business at Bethel, which he carried on successfully up to his death.

Mr. Fillow was married in Bethel to Miss Emily Bassett, who died some years ago, and he afterward wedded Miss Martha Walker, of Bethel. He had two children, both by his first marriage: Frank L., who is now employed as foreman by Durant & Andrews, of Bethel. and Emily Alice, the wife of Edward Pelton, of Nor- walk. Socially, Mr. Fillow was identified with Eureka Chapter No. 83, F. & A. M., and he justly held the esteem of a large circle of friends. Mr. Fillow died May 3, 1899, after an illness of two months, and was deeply mourned, being greatly beloved by all who knew him.

G HOPKINS FERRIS. There is no citizen in Sound Beach who stands higher in the esteem and respect of his fellow men than Mr. Ferris, who since 1890 has been living retired in that town, spending his days in peaceful enjoy- ment and laudable efforts to improve the com- munity. He is a native of Fairfield county, Conn., born August 21, 1831, in Riverside, and is a son of Deacon Samuel Ferris and grandson of Samuel Ferris, both of whom were well- known men in their respective generations. Samuel has been a family name for generations, and the Ferrises are of old New England stock. Samuel Ferris, grandfather of the gentleman whose name introduces these lines, was a pros- perous merchant, owning the old mill at Mianus, this county, and vessels which plied between that town and New York City, carrying the product of the mill to the store which he con-

ducted there. He had three children: Samuel. Peter and Deborah, of whom, Peter was a prom- inent citizen of Greenwich township, which he represented in the State Legislature. Deborah married Gen. Gilbert Hopkins, who was an offi- cer in the war of 1812, and a prominent merchant and public man of New York City, where he served at one time as president of the board of aldermen; he was grand marshal of the day at the celebration of the completion of the Croton Water Works; he is buried at Sound Beach, and his monmuent was the first in the Congregational cemetery there.

Deacon Samuel Ferris, also known as Cap- tain Ferris, was born in New York, and from his boyhood was familiar with the boat business, working in his father's employ. He finally be- came the owner of a packet which plied be- tween New York City and Mianus, and later, at different times, he owned the "Greyhound," the "Atlantic" and the " Isabella." He mar- ried Isabella Whiting. who was born at River- side, and was a granddaughter of Dr. Whiting, of Revolutionary fame, and they passed the greater part of their wedded life at Sound Beach, where Mr. Ferris passed away, at the age of seventy- one years. His widow died June, 1898, at the advanced age of ninety-four. Eight children blessed their union, viz .: Adeline, Mrs. Kim- berly Ferris, of Sound Beach; G. H .; Edwin, who is engaged in business in New York City and resides in Mt. Clair, N. J .; Samuel. of Brooklyn; Phobe, unmarried, who lives with her brother, G. H .; Franklin, of Mt. Clair, N. J .; Sherwood, living in Lakewood, N. Y .; and Mur- ray W., of Orange. N. J. Deacon Samuel Ferris was originally a Democrat in political faith, but at the time of the Slavery agitation he became a stanch Abolitionist, fearless in the defense of his principles, and he finally joined the ranks of the Republican party. In religious connec- tion he was a Congregationalist, being one of the most prominent and active members of the First Congregational Church of Sound Beach, in whose affairs he took a deep inter- est, and he was an office holder, serving as deacon for thirty years prior to his decease. and also in other capacities.

G. H. Ferris received his education in the district schools of his boyhood where John W. Hendrie and Mr. Hawes were among his early teachers, and in Greenwich Academy, where he studied for five years under the able instruction of Prof. Philander Button. When eighteen he was just about ready to enter Yale, but lack of means and various responsibilities led him to change his plans, so he went to Brooklyn and

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entered the navy yard to learn the trade of ship carpenter. There he remained three years as an apprentice, working at first for $2.50 per week and receiving an increased salary as he became proficient, and then continued in the same employ for a year after completing his trade, after which he began business for himself. He ; hung out his first " shingle " at the foot of Mont- gomery street, beginning as a ship repairer, and one year later built a floating dry-dock located at the foot of Bridge street, whence he finally re- moved his business to the Erie Basin, in Brook- lyn, where he engaged in shipbuilding as well as repairing. Mr. Ferris had no capital to com- mence with, but he had a good stock of energy and self-confidence, and he prospered from the start, increasing his business from year to year, and he continued as a shipbuilder and repairer until 1876, when he abandoned that branch and took up river and harbor work. buying an outfit of dredges, etc. In this line he engaged until 1888, being extensively employed with contracts in various harbors all along the Atlantic coast, and subsequently organized a stock company for this work, his interest in which he sold out, abandoning active business life in 1890. Dur- ing his experience in river and harbor work he was superintendent for J. E. Simpson, of New York, in building large dry-docks. such as the one for the Newport News Transportation Co. at Newport News, Va .; and he also directed the work on the Government dock at League Island. Philadelphia. Mr. Ferris was active in the busi- ness world for forty long years, and he has since lived retired in the pleasant town of Sound Beach, occasionally doing a little work in the insurance line, but engaging in no arduous exer- tion of any kind. He still has an interest in the H. P. Smith Publishing Co. of New York City.

In 1855 Mr. Ferris was united in marriage with Miss Mary Knight, a native of New York, who died in 1870 and is buried in Sound Beach. She was the mother of six children, viz .: Edwin W., of Brooklyn, who is in the employ of the Lehigh Valley Railway Company; Mary 1., wife of Prof. Archibald Daniels, of Burlington (Vt.) University; Helen, wife of Dr. Harry B. Ferris, professor of anatomy at Yale; Lincoln G., who died at the age of thirty-three, in Brooklyn; Warren K., who is in the ordnance department. at Washington, D. C .; and Jessie R., now Mrs. Richard S. Kirby, of Port Chester, N. Y. Mr. Ferris comfortable home at Sound Beach was erected under his own supervision. A zealous member of the Congregational Church, he has taken great interest in Church and benevolent enterprises in Sound Beach since his removal

there, and he was a liberal contributor to the new First Congregational Church erected there, which . cost $21,500. He was active in carrying the work to completion, and since 1892 he has served as deacon, and member of the board of trustee, of that Church, in whose welfare he is deeply con- cerned. Mr. Ferris cast his first Presidential vote for John C. Fremont, and he has always been a regular voter and an interested observer of public affairs. He is active in school matters in Greenwich township, and at present is serving as justice of the peace here.

N ATHANIEL B. HILL. The Hill family is one of the oldest in Fairfield township, and has furnished to this section some of its ablest and most valued citizens. The first to come to America was William Hill, an English- man, who landed in Boston, June 5, 1632, from the ship .. William and Frances." On Novem- ber 2, 1635, he had land granted to him at Dor- chester, Mass., but later he removed from that place to Windsor, Conn., and he finally made his home at Fairfield, his death occurring there in 1650. He was a man of influence in the lit- I tle colony, and became the first clerk of Fair- field township. He and his wife Sarah had six children: Sarah, William, Joseph, Ignatius, James and Elizabeth.

II. William Hill, the next in the line of de- scent in which we are now interested. died De- cember 19. 1684. His wife's name was Eliza- beth -- -. and among their children was a son William.

III. William Hill, son of William ]I. died in 1728. leaving a family. among whom was a son William, known as Deacon William.

IV. Deacon William Hill died in 1739. He and his wife Sarah reared a family of chil- dren. their son Joseph being the next in the line of descent.

V. Joseph Hill was born April 1, 1699, and died March 6, 1797. He married Abigail Dimon, and among their children was a son Moses, the great-grandfather of the well-known citizen whose name opens this sketch.

VI. Moses Hill was born January 11, 1748, and died October 13, 1779. His wife, Esther (Burr), was a daughter of Ebenezer Burr. Three children were born of this union: William, Abi- gail and Esther.

VII. William Hill, the grandfather of our subject, was born April 30, 1774, and died July 6, 1808; his wife, Betsey (Barlow), who was niece of the poet, Joel Barlow, Esq., and who was born August 3, 1778, died September 9.

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Nathaniel B Hill

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1864. They had the following children: Brad- ley, born September 9, 1798, died in the town of Redding, where he was engaged in farming for many years; Abigail, born November 23, 1800, died at an early age; Horace, our subject's father, is mentioned below; Burr, born Decem- ber 23. 1804. died January 29, 1810; and Will- iam, born October 6, 1807, died September 6, 1815.

VIII. Horace Hill was born December 5. 1802, in Buckley's District in the town of Fair- field, and died March 9, 1877. his remains being interred in the old Greenfield cemetery. He taught school for many years, and was also en- gaged in farming and milling. Although he be- gan his career without special advantages, he acquired a handsome competence. He was six feet in height and well proportioned, and not- withstanding his many years of energetic indus- try he enjoyed excellent health until a year previous to his death. While he was not an office seeker, he took an intelligent interest in political questions, voting regularly first with the Whigs and later with the Republicans. In re- ligion he inclined to the Congregational faith, and although not a member of that Church he attended its services frequently. On January 7, 1830, he married Miss Eleanor Lyon (born Feb- ruary 27, 1806, died February 27, 1842 ). a daughter of Eliphalet and Mary (Perry) Lyon. and a member of one of the old families of this section. On September 27, 1843, for his sec- ond wife, he married Miss Almira Ogden, who was born November 10, 1808. By the first union there were four children: Mary J., born February 28, 1831, died December 27, 1850, unmarried; Nathaniel B., our subject; Eliphalet R., born Ooctober 16, 1833, died December 13, 1853; and William B., born March 23, 1837, who is now a farmer in Fairfield township. The only child of the second marriage, Betsey A., born September 17, 1847, died April 7, 1851.

IX. Nathaniel Barlow Hill was born Sep- tember 24, 1832, at the old homestead in Fair- field township. and his education was begun in the local schools, his father being his first teacher. Another instructor whom he especially remem- bers was Minot Banks, and after completing the course offered in the home school he studied for one winter under Zalmon Wakeman, who conducted a select school at Greenfield Hill. When seventeen years old he began to learn the miller's trade with his father, and spent three years in that business. In the spring of 1853 he sailed from New York with two comrades, Will- iam Sherwood and Edgar A. Pennoyer, on the full-rigged ship " Florida," making a voyage to

Australia, via the Cape of Good Hope, and after nineteen weeks landing at Port Phillip, Mel- bourne. For more than three years he was engaged in mining in Australia, and on his return he sailed first for London in the full-rigged ship " Blackwall," by way of Cape Horn, stopping en route at Pernambuco, South America. From London he sailed for New York in the full-rigged ship " Southampton," thus completing a journey around the world, and soon after landing he made a trip through the Western States, pros- pecting for a congenial location. While in Illi- nois he was taken ill, compelling him to return home. and as his father was having the mill re- paired our subject resumed his work there. On December 17, 1856, as he was putting some corn in the hopper, a connecting pin in the shafting caught his trousers, irresistibly drawing him with- in its power, and he was thrown round and round by the action of the shaft. His limbs were badly injured. and his recovery seemed almost a miracle: but having a powerful constitu- tion, together with the best surgical skill obtain- able. he was able to walk without crutches after more than two years of suffering.

On November 27, 1862, Mr. Hill married Miss Mary E. Morehouse, who was born June 5. 1844. next to the youngest in the family of five children of Deacon William B. and Mary (Lyon) Morehouse. Her father was an extensive agri- culturist of Fairfield township, and was held in high esteem in that locality. Mrs. Hill, who has been a most excellent helpmeet, was edu- cated in the Burr district school in Fairfield township, and in the academy on Greenfield Hill. Our subject purchased his present home- stead before his marriage, and has since resided there, his handsome dwelling house having been built by him in 1882. Of his five children, the eldest, William B., born September 22, 1863, was graduated from Yale College in 1886, and was already winning a fine reputation as a teacher and civil engineer, when death, in June, 1898, cut short a promising career. Horace E. is a resident of Bridgeport. Joseph is a farmer in Easton township. Wakeman B. is at home. Charles L., who graduated from Yale College in 1895, when less than twenty-two years old, and in 1897 from the Yale Law School, is now an attorney at Bridgeport.

Deacon Hill has always taken keen interest in politics, being one of the active Republicans of his locality, and he has served as justice of the peace and registrar. For many years he has been a leading member of the Congregational Church at Greenfield Hill, having held the office of senior deacon some thirty years. At various

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times he served as superintendent of the Sunday- school, making eighteen years in all, and since his resignation his son Charles L. has held the position. The family is prominent socially, and Mr. and Mrs. Hill are both greatly respected among their associates. Although he has gained a goodly share of this world's wealth, he has been thoroughly honorable in his dealings, and his word is considered as good as his bond.

ON. SAMUEL FESSENDEN. Few fam- ilies, even of the sturdy New England stock, have produced so many talented men as has the Fessenden family of Maine, of which this distinguished citizen of Stamford is a mem- ber. The late William Pitt Fessenden, an un- cle of our subject, gained an honorable place in history by his able and patriotic service as a statesman during the Civil war, and the trying period of reconstruction which followed, and an- other uncle, Hon. Thomas A. D. Fessenden, and Hon. Samuel C. Fessenden, our subject's father, both now deceased, represented Maine in the 37th Congress. Mr. Fessenden has more than maintained the enviable celebrity attaching to his name, but while he also has become widely known in the field of national politics as an or- ganizer and leader of rare sagacity and energy, his most cherished triumphs have been won in the arena of his chosen profession of law. Here his keen, logical mind finds congenial ground, and with his unusual gifts as an orator it is not strange that he should have won and maintained a foremost place in the ranks of American law- yers, especially as he possesses the unanalyzed but unquestioned power which accompanies a magnetic personality and a genial tempera- ment.

Rev. Samuel C. Fessenden, the father of our subject, was born March 7, 1815, in New Glou- cester, Maine, and after graduating in 1834 from Bowdoin College entered the theological semi- nary at Bangor, where he prepared for the min- istry, completing his course in 1837. For some time he was pastor of the Congregational Church at Rockland, Maine, and in 1856 he became edi- tor of The Mainc Evangelist. Later he entered the legal profession, and soon afterward was ap- pointed judge of the municipal court at Rock- land. From 1864 to 1867 he was examiner-in chief at the United States Patent Office, and on retiring from that position he located at Stam- ford, where he resided until his death on April 18, 1882. His service in the 37th Congress has been mentioned. and among other important posts which he filled with ability and credit was

that of consul at St. Johns, N. B .. his appoint- ment having been made by President Garfield.

The subject of this sketch was born April 12, 1847, at Rockland, Maine, and the opening of the Civil war found him a student in the academy at Lewiston, Maine. He had planned to take a collegiate course, but as the dark days of the war drew on he relinquished the hope, and as a well- grown boy of sixteen he entered the army. enlist- ing as a private in the Seventh Maine Battery. He served under Gen. Grant in that fierce yet glorious campaign which was made memorable by the battles of the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Cold Harbor and Petersburg. and on recom- mendation from the General was appointed by President Lincoln as first lieutenant, and after- ward as captain in the Second United States In- fantry. As he preferred artillery service the young soldier declined promotion in the regular army, but accepted a commission in the First Maine Battery, and later he was appointed on the staff of Gen. A. P. Howe, where he served until the close of the war. On his return to the paths of peace he applied himself with character- istic energy and persistence to the study of law, and on March 4. 1869, was graduated from the Harvard Law School. His family having re- moved to Stamford, he was admitted to the Bar in Fairfield county, and began practice at Stam- ford as a member of a firm in which the senior partners were the late Joshua B. Ferris and Calvin G. Child. Upon the retirement of Mr. Child to form a partnership with N. R. Hart the firm became Ferris & Fessenden, continuing until the retirement of Mr. Ferris from all active pro- fessional labor. The firm was then reorganized under the name of Fessenden & Carter, and has later been known as Fessenden, Carter & Cum- mings. Mr. Fessenden's eminent ability as a law- yer, demonstrated in many important cases which he has brought to a successful issue, has added lustre to the fame of the Fairfield County Bar, and his work as State's Attorney has been nota- bly effective.

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Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 53

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