Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 85

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 85

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

Having learned the trade of carpenter with his brothers, Eli W. and Philo, Henry A., in 1870, became a member of the firm of Gilbert Brothers, and remained in that connection until

Digitized by Google

418

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

1890, when he retired in favor of his son, William A. Since that date he has conducted a fire-in- surance and real-estate business at Bethel. In 1866 he was married at Bethel to Elenora Burr, daughter of John G. Burr, and they have one sons William A., a sketch of whom follows. H. A. Gilbert is a member and trustee of the M. E. Church at Bethel. In politics he is a Democrat, and has served as registrar of voters, as town treasurer and as justice of the peace. He has settled many estates. Mr. Gilbert was for six- teen years a member of the Connecticut National Guard, and was said by an old army officer to have had the best company in his brigade at the "Centennial " held in Philadelphia.

William A. Gilbert, son of Henry A., was born in Bethel, February 23, 1867, and received his education in part at the public schools of Bethel, in part at Bridgeport Business College. From his boyhood days he has been connected with Gilbert Bros., and up to 1890 he was book- keeper for the firm. In 1886 he fell from a building, owing to a window casing giving way, and was unconscious for four days, but a trip to Europe and extensive traveling restored him to health and strength. In 1890, his father having retired from the firm, William A. succeeded him, as already related.

In Hackensack, June 17, 1891, Mr. Gilbert was married to Helen Voorhees, daughter of John Voorhees, and one child, Muriel, was born to them December 11, 1894. Mr. Gilbert is a member and steward of the M. E. Church; is affiliated with Eureka Lodge, F. & A. M., at Bethel, of which he is senior warden; and with Eureka Chapter at Danbury. He is not active in politics.

H 'ORACE PURDY, of the well-known firm of Horace Purdy & Son, insurance agents at Danbury, has now been identified with that line of business longer than any other man in that city. He also enjoys the distinction of having enlisted at the very first call for soldiers to de- fend the Union after the attack on Fort Sumter, and nothing but serious injuries, incapacitating him from further service in the field, prevented him from continuing until the close of the war.

Mr. Purdy was born at Danbury, November 11, 1835, a son of Augustus and Nancy (Mills) Purdy. The father was a native of New York State, having first seen the light March 10, 1811, at Somers, Westchester county, near Purdy Station, and his death occurred March 9, 1885. The mother, who was born March 18, 1811, died February 24, 1881. There were seven children

in their family, viz .: Harriet, Abigail (deceased), Horace, John (deceased), William (deceased), George and Isabel.

Mr. Purdy's youth was spent in his native town, where he attended the common schools until he was fourteen. For some time after leaving school he worked on a farm, and then he learned the hatter's trade, which he followed until the long smouldering fires of secession and rebellion broke out, and he offered his services as a soldier. His company was the first to rendezvous at New Haven for the formation of the Ist Regi- ment Conn. V. I., and he subsequently took part in the disastrous engagement known as the battle of Bull Run. Lieut .- Col. Daniel Tyler, of this regiment, had been appointed a brigadier general previous to this battle, during which they were under the command of Lieut-Col. George S. Burnham. Mr. Purdy served through his term of enlistment, and, then, as has been said, his injuries compelled him to return to the paths of peace. He resumed his former occupation, and after two years went to New York City, where he was in business for a couple of years. In 1870 he established himself in Danbury in the insur- ance business, in which he has been successfully engaged for more than twenty-seven years.

Mr. Purdy has a pleasant home at No. 20 William street, Danbury, and his office is No. 18 adjoining, both lots being owned by him. He was married December 3, 1857, to Ann Augusta Gris- wold, daughter of Rev. E. E. Griswold and his wife, Nancy Webster. Rev. Mr. Griswold is a well-known minister of the Methodist Church, and for more than twenty years was a presiding elder. Mr. Purdy and his wife have had three children: (1) Edwin A. died in infancy; (2) George L., born in 1864, is now in business with his father; he married Miss Lilian Josephine Bilker, but they have no children; (3) Fannie G. married Herman Hirsch, of Danbury, and has two children: Lottie Augusta and Julia Evelyn. The family is connected with the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which Mr. and Mrs. Purdy are both active members. In politics, he is a steadfast Republican, but, while taking an active interest in party work, he is not a poli- tician in the ordinary meaning of that term.

J JOHN ANSON STANNIS, a veteran of the Civil war, is one of Danbury's most highly- esteemed citizens, and for twenty years has been the general agent at that place for the Adams Express Company.

Mr. Stannis is a native of the Empire State, having been born at Rochester, August 31, 1835.

Digitized by Google

414

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

His father, the late John Stannis, was born in 1788, and during the greater portion of his life resided at Hartford, Conn., where for some years he followed the trade of millwright, and later that of tinner. He was killed by a freight train at Meriden, Conn., in 1880, at the advanced age of ninety-two years. His wife, Elizabeth Craw- ford, was born in 1802, and died in 1869. Of their twelve children, three died in infancy, the others being: Mary L., J. Elizabeth, Harriet A., James W., Robert A., William H., Frederick A., John A. and Charles E.

Mr. Stannis, our subject, was educated in the public schools of Hartford, and on leaving the high school he was apprenticed to a carriage manufacturer in New Haven, Conn., where he re- mained three years. He then went to Vin- cennes, Ind., and entered the employ of the Adams Express Company, but while thus en- gaged, Fort Sumter was fired upon, and Mr. Stannis promptly responded to the call for sol- diers to defend the Union. On April 23, 1861, he enlisted as fourth sergeant in the " Old Post Guard," which was later incorporated in the 14th Ind. Inf. as Company B. In June, 1861, the regiment went to the front, crossing the Ohio river at Wheeling, W. Va., to join General Mc- Clellan's forces. During that year he took part in a number of skirmishes, and in the battles of Rich Mountain and Greenbrier. After spending part of the winter of 1861-62 at Cheat Mountain they had an engagement at Bloomery Gap un- der General Lander, and then swung round to Winchester to take part, under General Shields, in the first battle of Winchester (sometimes called the battle of Kernstown). From there they went up the Shenandoah Valley, skirmish- ing all the way; and later, after participating in the battle at Port Republic, Va., June 9, 1862, the regiment joined the Army of the Potomac at Harrison's Landing, June, 1862, and continued to share its fortunes until mustered out on June 30, 1864. Among the important battles in which they were engaged we mention Antietam, Chan- cellorsville, Bristow Station, Mine Run, Get- tysburg, Fredericksburg (where they stormed the heights), the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, and Cold Harbor (where they were ordered home). Mr. Stannis received a flesh wound at Gettys- burg, a part of his arm being torn off by a shell which burst almost in his face; and at Antietam he had some marvelous escapes, as five bullets went through his clothing without touching his skin. They each made two holes in his uniform as they passed on their way, and it seems almost a miracle that he.was not injured. In this en- gagement Company B had but nine men left out

of the thirty-two who went into the battle. Mr. Stannis did not go home with his regiment, hav- ing been detailed on special duty from Washing- ton, D. C., to Petersburg, Va. He received his final discharge at Indianapolis, Ind., June 30, 1864, with the rank of second lieutenant, to which he had been promoted after his first year of service.

On leaving the army Mr. Stannis went to his father's home, then located at Winsted, Conn., and on regaining his strength he again entered the employ of the Adams . Express Company. starting as messenger. He was soon appointed route agent, a position which he held twelve years, and in February, 1879, he took the posi- tion of general agent at Danbury.

In 1868 Mr. Stannis married Miss J. Eliza- beth Wakefield, daughter of Albert D. and Martha J. (Bradley) Wakefield, of Stafford Springs, Conn. The only child of this union died in infancy. Mr. Stannis and his wife are prominent socially, and he is a member of Union Lodge No. 40, F. and A. M .; Eureka Chapter No. 23, R. A. M .; Wooster Council No. 28, R. and S. M., in which he is treasurer; Crusader Commandery No. 10, K. T., of which he is treasurer; Nelson L. White Post No. 18, G. A. R., in which he is senior vice commander; En- campment No. 114, Union Veteran Legion, of which he is colonel; Progressive Lodge No. 18, I. O. O. F., of which he is treasurer; Paugussett Tribe No. 3, Improved Order of Red Men; and Danbury Lodge No. 2781, Knights of Honor. In the last named order he holds the rank of F. R., and he is a Past Grand Dictator of the State organization. In politics he is a stanch Repub- ilcan.

G EORGE P. BIDWELL belongs to a family that has long been connected with the agri- cultural interests of this State, and his great- grandfather, Abner Bidwell, was a farmer at Watertown. Norman A. Bidwell, the grand- father of our subject, was born at Watertown, but the greater portion of his life was spent at Oxford, this State. He married Miss Rebecca Steele, a daughter of Daniel Steele, and a de- scendant of Governor Bradford, of Connecticut. Three children were born of this union: George A .; Mary, deceased wife of Harry Brooks, a carpenter by trade; and Frederick, a musician residing in Meriden, Connecticut.

George A. Bidwell was born in Oxford in 1826, and is now a resident of Huntington. In early manhood he followed the machinist's trade at Waterbury and Meriden, but later he became

Digitized by Google

415

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

an engineer, and in 1864 he removed to the town of Huntington and purchased a farm which he has since conducted. For some years after com- ing to Huntington he also held the position of engineer in a factory at Derby. His estimable wife, Harriet (Phelps), who passed to the unseen life in June, 1893, was a native of Winchester, Conn., and was a daughter of Daniel Phelps, a well-known farmer. They were the parents of three children: (1) Helen R., who married Robert T. Lattin, a son of Lyman Lattin, of Huntington, and they now reside at Meriden where he is employed as superintendent of the Miller Manufacturing Company; (2) Abbie L., who married Frederick L. Loomis, a farmer near Winchester; and (3) George P.

George P. Bidwell was born April 5, 1853, in Waterbury, where he remained until he reach- ed the age of eleven years, his education being begun in the local schools. After his parents removed to Huntington he attended the district schools of that town for several years, and on leaving school he engaged in farming. In 1884 he settled upon his present homestead, where he has devoted his attention to the raising of general crops. He is a Democrat in politics, and as a citizen is held in high esteem.

On October 28, 1874, Mr. Bidwell married Miss Amanda M. Hubbell, of Huntington, and they have one son, Charles H., now attending school at Shelton. Mrs. Bidwell is descended from one of the pioneer families of Huntington, and her great-grandfather, John Hubbell, grand- father, Christopher Hubbell, and father, Charles Hubbell, all followed farming. Her mother, whose maiden name was Charlotte Shelton, was a daughter of William Shelton and his wife Lucy (Johnson), daughter of Ebenezer Johnson.

ISAAC WILCOX IVES. Few men have shown such originality in their pursuit of fort- une as has this well-known resident of Danbury. As a lumber dealer, manufacturer, real-estate dealer, and as a promoter of various important movements which are no less beneficial to the public than to himself, he has won a high place among the business men of the State, his opera- tions extending far beyond local limits, and yet his ability and sagacity are not to be wondered at, as they "run in the family."

George W. Ives, father of our subject, and Isaac Ives, his grandfather, members of the firm of Ives & White, were the first wholesale hatters in New York City, and later his father established the first savings bank in Danbury, furnishing all

supplies for the first three years, even the sta- tionery. George W. Ives was born in 1800, in New York City, and died in Danbury, December 26, 1864. His wife, Mrs. Sarah Hotchkiss (Wil- cox) Ives, was born in Clinton, Conn., in 1809, and died January 4, 1899, at the advanced age of ninety years. They had five children: Joseph Moss; Isaac W .; Sarah Amelia, wife of Judge Lyman D. Brewster, of Danbury; Elizabeth, who died in childhood; and George E., deceased.

Isaac W. Ives was born in Danbury, May 6, 1835, and was educated there, attending the public schools and the academy, and pursuing a special course under Prof. Benedict Starr. On leaving school at the age of seventeen he went to New York City, and was employed in a Wall street office until he was twenty-one, when he engaged in the lumber business in Danbury, oc- cupying the land between Ives street and the bridge on the south side of White street. After twenty-five years in this business, he became in- terested in the manufacture of hat cases by a new process of which he was the originator. He started three factories in Danbury and Bethel, under the title of the Danbury & Bethel Hat Case Company. The result of this undertaking was to reduce the price of hat cases in ninety days from forty dollars per thousand to twenty dollars, which price has been maintained till the present day, although the material and labor cost the same. Mr. Ives originated the idea of having the hat manufacturers combine together in a joint-stock company to do various parts of the business which are ordinarily done by differ- ent parties (at good profits) outside of the factory (many of which have made more than the man- ufacturers themselves), such as hat-cases and racks, paper boxes and rings, hat blocks and flanges, skyvers and leathers, printing tips, etc., all of which to be assembled and manufactured under one management, the manufacturers them- selves being joint owners and customers. This would yield an immense profit, and give them this benefit over other manufacturers in other hatting centers. Mr. Ives has the proud dis- tinction of originating and the satisfaction of living to see the realization of his invention materialized in the immense and thriving indus- try known under the name of the Clark Box Company, where all of the above named variety of materials are manufactured, owned by and run in the combined interests of the manufacturers of the town, it being the only one of the kind in the United States or in the world. The plant is an immense one with a four-story factory, four hundred feet long and proportionately wide, thoroughly fitted and equipped with every facil-

Digitized by Google

416

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

ity, with improved inventions and machinery for all of the various kinds of work, turning it out in large quantities. The business is. so systema- tised that it runs like one immense mass of mechanism, running on full time every day in the year. Mr. Ives built the Clark Box shop upon land which he originally paid $3,000 for, and his father-in-law, Lyman Keeler, a director in the Danbury Bank, and a man of large means and high standing in finance, said that if that was the way he (Mr Ives) "was going to fool away his money," he could not have any of his to throw away. The result of this purchase showed, however, the rare foresight and shrewd- ness of Mr. Ives, as in 1894 he sold the prop- erty to the consolidated railroad for eight thousand dollars !

In 1887 Mr. Ives went out of the hat-box manufacturing business, in which he was en- gaged five years, and since that time he has given his attention to the improvement of his real estate. In 1887 he laid out and built Keeler street and donated it to the city, the grading, curbing and sewering alone costing ten thousand dollars, and the land itself being worth thirty thousand dollars more. It is eight hun- dred feet long and is centrally located, being the main approach to the east end of the town. All the buildings on the street have been built by Mr. Ives, who has erected more buildings of various kinds for his own use than any other in- dividual in the city. He has been the largest borrower in the location, having carried an in- debtedness of nearly one-third of a million dol- lars for years. His name appears on the town records for those years oftener than any other man in Danbury, his name covering pages of the index. One notable real-estate deal was the transfer of a house, which he had built for himself, to Gen. U. S. Grant (then the trustee for the "General Rawlins Fund ") for the use of that General's widow. The price was $11,000, and Mr. Ives received from General Grant checks for the full amount. Mr. Ives purchased the first manufactured lumber that was ever shipped by rail from the mills in Michigan to any point east of the Ohio, his first order being forty car- loads. Previously all lumber had been shipped in the rough, or undressed, and transported by water on the lakes and canals. At that time there were neither steam-mills nor steam-drying kilns for making lumber in the various forms for use, whereas now it nearly all is "manufact- ured " and shipped almost entirely by rail. Since then there have been millions upon mil- lions invested in it. Mr. Ives was really the pioneer in shipping the first lumber (partly

"manufactured ") by rail from Michigan east of Ohio.

Mr. Ives is the originator and sole promoter of the proposed railroad link to connect Danbury at Goldens Bridge with the Harlem (which is the branch of an approach to New York City of the great New York Central), this point being on a direct ("bee") line to New York City. When the D. & N. road was built it was laid out with "tide water" as the object point (to obtain cheap but slow freight) instead of New York City direct. This was before steam had superseded water transportation, and now in its turn elec- tricity takes the place of steam, and mileage is more and more a consideration in effecting speed and frequency of communication. Danbury has always suffered (perhaps unknowingly) for the need of " up-to-date" (freight and passenger) trans- portation facilities, without which no business center can grow or even exist. It is solely and entirely dependent upon one single but great monopoly for all transportation facilities without any kind of completion.

The hatting industry has especial need of fre- quent and rapid transportation with New York City (even hourly as well as daily) which this proposed link only could furnish. All of the various supplies come directly from there, and most of the manufactured products go there. Promptness and quick delivery both ways are essential to the industry, and this is especially a peculiarly needed requirement of the business. By this proposed " Ives link " supplies of all kinds can be received (in answer to telephone calls) at different times during each day instead of requir- ing one, two, or even three days, under the pres- ent regime. It now remains to be seen what attitude the influential financial element of the town will assume, as it is largely in their power to help in its construction or (as before) its de- struction. If this important project to the city and community is consummated it will be another monument (as is Keeler street and the Clark Box industry) to the enterprise and public spirit ot its projector.

Mr. Ives married Miss Emily D. Keeler, daughter of Lyman and Maria (Forrester) Keeler, and a lady of rare qualities of mind and heart. She died in 1885, leaving one son, George For- rester, who married Miss Jennie Howes, a daugh- ter of Egbert Howes, of Howes' London Show.

0 LIVER D. MEAD, a prosperous agriculturist residing at Field Point. in the town of Greenwich, is one of most highly-respected citi- zens of the county, the sturdy virtues of his pi-

Digitized by Google

.. r

: . ..

-. :

RX. ....

Oliver D Mead

Digitized by Google

Digitized by

Google

417

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

oneer ancestry being well exemplified in his character and in his successful though quiet career.

Mr. Mead was born December 29, 1842, in the village of Greenwich, and is of the eighth generation in direct descent from John Mead (1), the noted pioneer [other authorities say William], the line of descent being traced through John, a son of the pioneer, Ebenezer (1), Ebenezer (2), Jared, Daniel S. (1), and DANIEL S. (2), the father of our subject. The latter is still living (1898) at the advanced age of eighty-seven, and is an honored resident of the town of Greenwich. His estimable wife, whose maiden name was Huldah Mead, died in 1882, and of their ten children six are deceased. Our subject, who is the fourth child and second son of this worthy couple, now manages his father's extensive prop- erty in addition to his own business.

During his youth Oliver D. Mead acquired a thorough knowledge of agricultural affairs through practical work upon the home farm, and his edu- cation was obtained in the schools of the town. His first teacher, Miss Rachel Weed, conducted a school on the lower floor of a building used as a carpenter shop, but after securing his elemen- tary training he attended the academy at Green- wich, then presided over by Philander Button, assisted by Miss Lyzetta Peck. Mr. Mead was married at the age of twenty-four to Miss Cor- nelia Scofield, daughter of William Scofield, a well-known resident of Greenwich. In 1882 he removed to his present homestead at Field Point. This place was then a portion of a large estate belonging to Oliver Mead, a relative, who was well advanced in life, and who made our subject one of his heirs in recognition of the latter's thoughtful and considerate care of him during his last years. Mr. Mead is a good manager, cau- tious and conservative, yet energetic in following a course once decided upon, and he attends strictly to the work at hand in a quiet and busi- ness-like way. His integrity is unquestioned, his word being "as good as his bond " anywhere, and he is justly regarded as one of the leading farmers of the county. He and his wife are members of the Congregational Church at Green- wich, and while he is not a politician he is a firm supporter of the principles and policy of the Republican party. Of his three children, the eld- est, Cora A., married A. R. Guy, of Brooklyn, N. Y., and Olive M. and Lydia S. are at home.

The late Oliver Mead was born in 1800 in the house now occupied by our subject, which was built in 1793. He resided there throughout his life, and he died there in 1887 at the age of eighty-seven years. He was much esteemed in 27

the community for his excellent qualities of character, and although he was not formally connected with any religious society, he gave liberally to any worthy cause, and at his death left a substantial sum of money to Church work in his locality. He was a son of Zophar Mead and grandson of Capt. Abram Mead, an officer in the Revolutionary army, who settled in the vicinity of Indian Harbor at an early date, and engaged in business as a potter. Captain Mead had several children, among whom were two sons, Isaac and Zophar, and for these he purchased two farms at Field Point. Some of the descend- ants of Isaac are living in this county, but none of the other children of the gallant Captain are now represented among the family. Zophar married Huldah Mead, and had children, only one of whom married. The homestead of our subject lies to the south of the other farm pur- chased by Captain Mead, is a valuable estate, and comprised of one hundred and fifty acres of of fertile land, peninsular in form, with over a mile of coast. It is noted for the beauty of its location, being situated in the most picturesque part of the township, and one of the most attract- ive features is the famous " Round Island," its breezes, shades and pleasant beaches free to all who come. The long slope toward the Sound affords charming views of rolling hills and spark- ling waters, and traveling inland a summit is reached, with Belle Haven in the valley below.

C ORNELIUS J. DE WITT, a prosperous farmer of the town of Wilton, was born in the town of Eastchester, Westchester Co., N. Y., June 10, 1856. Having secured his education in his native village he went to Newark, N. J., and there for a time engaged in the mercantile busi- ness, and later he followed farming in Wilton, Conn. While in Newark, N. J., he was a mem- ber of the fire department of the city. When the war of the Rebellion came on he enlisted as a drummer boy in Company D, Third New Jersey Militia, and retired as first lieutenant, having passed up through all the intermediate ranks in his company. Politically, he has always been a strong Democrat, but has never aspired to public office. He married Miss Margaret E. Kilty, who was born January 4, 1854, the marriage taking place July 5, 1881. Mrs. De Witt is a daughter of Peter and Mary (McCarthy) Kilty. The names with dates of birth of the children born to Mr. and Mrs. De Witt are as follows: Alice W., May 6, 1882; William A., January 17, 1884; Florence M., May 28, 1887, and Estella, May 7, 1889.

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

Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 85

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