Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 88

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 88

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as solicitor-general of Scotland, was also a mem- ber of this fine old family.

The paternal grandparents of our subject were William and Elizabeth Skene, who resided in Aberdeen, Scotland, and John Skene, our sub- ject's father, was born at the old home there. He became a horticulturist, making that science a lifelong study. His wife, Anna (Dolby), was a native of Lincolnshire, England. Their union was blessed with the following children: Eliza- beth; William, a clergyman of the Episcopal Church, who died in 1871; Mary, who married George W. Wilbur, president of the Wilbur Shirt and Collar Company, at Troy, N. Y .; George, a Methodist minister, now preaching at Cambridge, Mass., at the old Harvard Methodist Episcopal Church; Anna, who died at Troy in 1883; John Dolby, our subject; and Charles, an inventor and mechanic, who has charge of a malleable iron manufactory in Chicago.

The subject of our sketch was born October 16, 1849, in Lincolnshire, England, but was edu- cated in this country, attending the public schools of Troy, N. Y., for a time, and completing his preparation for college with private tutors. His theological studies were pursued under the direc- tion of Rev. Dr. J. I. Tucker, then rector of the Church of the Holy Cross at Troy, and Rev. Dr. Nichols of St. Mark's Church, Hoosic Falls, N. Y. Mr. Skene was ordained deacon in the latter Church at the Feast of the Epiphany, 1877, and on St. Peter's day, 1878, was advanced to the priesthood. He remained as assistant to Doctor Nichols until May, 1881, when he was sent by the Bishop of Albany to Gouverneur, N. Y., to take charge of that parish, where he spent a year and a half. The Bishop next sent him to Ilion, N. Y., and after three years he was trans- ferred to Asbury Park, N. J., where he remained until 1889. His next incumbency was St. Paul's Church at Brooklyn, N. Y., and this he held until December 1, 1894, when he went to Danbury to assume his present pastorate.

He has always taken a great interest in polit- ical matters, as well as in all other questions of the day, and is a stanch Republican. Though he has never been active as a partisan, he some- times preaches a patriotic sermon, as he believes it to be a pastor's duty and privilege to make practical application of truth to solve the prob- lems of life. Fraternally, he is a member of the Masonic Fraternity.

In 1879 Rev. J. D. Skene was married in Hoosic Falls to Miss Ellen A. Calhoun, daughter of John C. Calhoun, a native of Elmira, N. Y., who was connected with the New York Central railroad for years. Her mother, whose maiden

name was Harriet Breeze, was a member of an old Holland family which has long been identi- fied with Bennington, Vt. Mr. and Mrs. Skene have three children: John Calhoun, George Matthew and Malcolm Stanley.

J AMES R. MEAD, town clerk of Greenwich township, Fairfield county, is an able and popular official, and enjoys the distinction of having held his position longer than any other incumbent. Always courteous and obliging, his discharge of his duties is in every way satisfac- tory to the public, and his supporters are to be found in both political parties. His abilities are recognized far beyond local limits, and he has for some time held the office of president in the State Association of Town Clerks. . He is a member of one of the oldest and most influential families, being a descendant of John [other au- thorities say William] Mead, the noted pioneer, who came from England to America in 1642 [other authorities say 1635], and settled at Sound Beach in 1660.

Mr. Mead, our subject, is the youngest son of Benjamin C. and Mary E. (Ritch) Mead, well- known residents of Greenwich, and a brother of Hon. Benjamin P. Mead, of New Canaan, whose biography appears elsewhere. The birth of our subject occurred August 28, 1860, at the old homestead in Greenwich, and his early educa- tion was obtained at the Greenwich Academy, then conducted by Professor Webster. On leav- ing that institution he read law with Col. H. W. R. Hoyt, one of the leading lawyers of the State, and after his admission to the Bar, in 1882, he practiced for three years with his preceptor. He then opened an office of his own, established a flourishing independent practice, and a year later, in 1886, he was chosen town clerk, which office he has held continuously ever since. He also practices law in connection with the duties of his clerkship. Mr. Mead is interested in various business enterprises, including the Greenwich Savings Bank, of which he is a director; the Rippowam Woolen Mills, being a director, sec- retary and treasurer; is secretary of the Putnam Cemetery Association, and director of the New Canaan Water Company. He is also burgess of the borough of Greenwich; has held the office of assistant prosecuting attorney of the borough court of Greenwich for the past ten years, and has recently been appointed deputy judge of the same court. Mr. Mead is most unassuming in manner, notwithstanding his success in life, and his generosity and public spirit are shown in his ready patronage of any movement designed to

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James Wead

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promote the welfare of the community. His integrity has never been questioned, and few men enjoy in such a high degree the confidence of their fellow citizens. In politics he is a Re- publican, and for years he has served the party with the same ability and shrewdness which have characterized his conduct of his private affairs.

In November, 1888, Mr. Mead was married in Brooklyn, N. Y., to Miss Elizabeth M. Stone, daughter of Thomas Stone, a prominent con- tractor and builder of that city, and a member of a well-known family. The only child of this union, James R., Jr., was born July 1, 1894, and died September 12, 1895. Mr. Mead owns a fine residence at Greenwich. Fraternally he is identified with various organizations, and is a charter member of the O. U. A. M., in which he was one of the first office holders.

W ILLIAM BEERS PRINDLE. This ven- erable and esteemed resident of New- town, who has for many years been identified with the best interests of the locality in which he has so long lived, was born May 1, 1815, at Newtown Center, and is of Scotch descent on the paternal side.

Cyrus Prindle, the grandfather of our subject, resided at Canaan, Westchester Co., N. Y., and he and his wife, Polly (Beers), reared a family of three children, viz .: Louis Beers, our subject's father; Charles W., who made his home at Pine Plains, Dutchess Co., N. Y .; and Polly Ann, who remained single.

Louis Beers Prindle was born February 2, 1783, in Newtown, and in early manhood en- gaged in business there as a cabinet and wagon maker. Removing to the site of Johnson's mill, he there for some time conducted a gristmill and wagon shop, and later engaged in undertaking, which business has since his death been continued by his son and grandson, making three genera- tions of the family to follow that line of business in the same place. Louis B. Prindle was a man of good natural abilities, and successful in gain- ing a high reputation in the community, both as a business man and as a citizen, but he was never especially interested in political affairs. He died December 19, 1850. His wife, Betsey (Ferris), who passed away September 21, 1856, was a daughter of Nathan Ferris, of Newtown; her grandfather Ferris is supposed to have been a native of Scotland. Five children were born to this marriage, to wit: (1) Albert S., born Au- gust 20, 1810, married Polly J. Thirk, and made his home in Newtown; (2) Maria, born February 28, 1813, married Daniel Pickett, of Bethel, and |

both are now deceased; (3) William Beers, our subject, is mentioned more fully below; (4) Angeline, born August 23, 1817, died January 12, 1894, married (first) Czar Plumb, (second) Homer Hayes, (third) Harson Twitchell, and (fourth) C. C. Warner; and (5) Mary, born Feb- ruary 23, 1820, married S. W. Trowbridge, of Waterbury, Conn., at one time a bookkeeper by occupation.

William Beers Prindle began at an early age to assist his father, thus securing a thorough knowledge of wagon making, and also of the un- dertaking business, as until the latter's death he was associated with him in both lines of work; from 1850 to 1866, however, he continued the manufacture of wagons exclusively. In the lat- ter year he removed to his present place of busi- ness and then resumed undertaking, making that a specialty until his retirement from business in 1890. In all he was engaged in undertaking for more than fifty years, and for some time he was the only one in Newtown in that line. As a result of industry and good management he met with substantial success, and he has always been regarded as an upright and worthy citizen. In politics he has not taken an active part, though for one year (some time ago) he held the office of constable. He and his family are identified with Trinity Episcopal Church, in which he has been an official for many years. On January 9, 1852, Mr. Prindle married Miss Maria Shepard, by whom he has had one son, William H., who is mentioned more fully below. Mrs. Prindle passed from earth October 1, 1897, aged seventy- six years, and was interred in Newtown ceme- tery. She was one of the oldest communicants of Trinity Church, Newtown, and was esteemed and beloved for her fervent piety, and her many virtues which adorned the faith she professed.

The SHEPARD FAMILY is well known in this county, and Abraham Shepard, the grandfather of Mrs. Prindle, was a prosperous farmer in the Head of the Meadow District, town of Newtown. He was born in 1744, and September 9, 1769, married Rhoda Ferris, by whom he had the fol- lowing named children: Betty, born in Septem- ber, 1770, baptized November 11, 1770; Truman, born September 11, 1772, died June 23, 1799; Lazarus, born October 5, 1774; Nathan, born May 3, 1777; Samuel, born July 10, 1779; Sue- ton, Mrs. Prindle's father; Mabel, born April 14, 1784; Abram Ferris, born March 12, 1789, who married Abby Lake; and Rufus, born February 24, 1792.

Sueton Shepard was born October 5, 1781, at the old homestead in the Head of the Meadow District which had been occupied by his father

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and grandfather, and which he himself owned and cultivated in later years. On November 26, 1806, he married Dymah Ann Hurd, a daughter of Oliver C. Hurd, who is mentioned farther on. A large family was born of this union, whose names, with dates of birth, etc., are as follows: Harriet, February 9, 1808, died November 16, 1817; Mary, November 15, 1809, married No- vember 25, 1830, Lyman Smith, and died in 1891 ; Elizabeth Jane, December 23, 1811, married January 6, 1831, Demmon Blackman, and died in December, 1855; Delia, February 14, 1814, married November 25, 1832, Benjamin White; Lazarus Clarke, June 2, 1816, married May 7, 1837, Emily Strong; Juliette, November 27, 1818, died July 25, 1834; Maria, March 9, 1821; Sam- uel Ferris, March 14, 1823, married September 22, 1848, Sarah Maria Weed; Grand, October 30, 1825, died October 8, 1826. The mother of this family passed away April 14, 1850, and the father on April 12, 1863, at the age of eighty-one.

Oliver C. Hurd, the maternal grandfather of Mrs. Prindle, was born November 2, 1765, a son of Theophilus and Johanna Hurd, the former of whom died in 1812, and the latter on July 4, 1799. On April 24, 1786, he married Keziah Botsford, who died January 15, 1817, and his own death occurred March 28, 1855. They had five children, viz .: Dymah Ann, born April 25, 1787; Roswell Botsford, born May 8, 1792, died August 15, 1793; Jerusha, born April 9, 1797, married Joseph Taylor; Emma, born August 25, 1802, died August 26, 1825; and Sally, born April 21, 1805, married Stephen Peck, and died July 12, 1835.

WILLIAM HURD PRINDLE was born May 30, 1854, in the town of Newtown, and was educated in the public schools and academy, the teachers who had most influence upon his early life being Beach Hill and Miss Fannie Marble. His school days ended when he was about seventeen years old, and when eighteen he was apprenticed to Charles H. Gay, of Newtown, to learn the busi- ness of carriage-making. After three years spent with him, he in 1880 went to Mile Hill to work for Daniel G. Beers, who made a specialty of the manufacture of canopy tops, and he is still with him, doing the painting and iron work in the establishment; since 1890 he has also con- ducted the undertaking business formerly carried on by his father. In this latter enterprise he has a partner, L. C. Morris, and they have a large custom, including all the Protestant portion of the community. In politics Mr. Prindle is a Republican, and although he is too much occu- pied with business cares to assume official duties he served one term as assistant registrar of his

town. He is quite prominent in local affairs, and his public spirit has been shown in many ways when matters relating to local improvement have been under discussion. On October 24, 1878, he was married to Miss Elizabeth Ford, adopted daughter of Mrs. Harriet Beers. They have no children.

H ON. EDWIN L. SCOFIELD, a promi- nent member of the Fairfield County Bar, at Stamford, and ex-State Senator and member of the Lower house, is of the seventh generation of the family of that name who have lived in the county.

John Scofield, the first of the family in Amer- ica, came from Wethersfield, England, to Stam- ford, Conn., in 1640, being one of the early set- tlers of the town, and he married Hannah Mead. Samuel Scofield, the ancestor next in the line of descent, was born in Stamford, July 10, 1678. He married Hannah - -, and their son Samuel Scofield (known as Samuel third), born June 21, 1712, married Elizabeth Ambler, March 1, 1743. He resided in Newfield, and served in the Con- tinental army during the war of the Revolution. Ezekiel Scofield, a son of the patriot, born July 30, 1767, in the town of Stamford, married December 21, 1793, Abigail Scofield. By occu- pation he was a farmer. Edwin Scofield, next in line, also a farmer, was a native of Stamford, born August 7, 1794. He married Elizabeth Bishop, and their children are: (1) Erastus E. was born November 11, 1816, on his father's farm in the town of Stamford, where he passed his boyhood days. Here he received a primary education in the district schools, and later he became a teacher in a boarding school at North Stamford. Subsequently he was engaged in the milling business at the same point. In 1856 he moved to Stamford, where for ten years he was engaged in milling business. He next carried on a flour and feed store, the business of which he still conducts. He is a man of good infor- mation and intelligence, and has at various times been placed by his fellow citizens in positions of honor and trust. He served as first select- man, for a term of two years. Politically, he was a Whig before the organization of the Re- publican party, and then became a Republican. In New York City he married Mrs. Jane A. Waterbury, who was a native of Pound Ridge, N. Y. She was a member of the Congregational Church, and a most estimable woman, in whose death, which occurred December 25, 1867, the community lost a woman whose influence was ever for the right. To this marriage were born- Edwin L., who is mentioned farther on; and

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Frederick, who died in infancy. (2) Horace Granville is at this time city engineer for Bridge- port. He is identified with the Congregational Church.

Edwin L. Scofield was born June 18, 1852, in the town of Stamford, and his boyhood was passed in the village of Stamford, where he at- tended private schools. In 1871 he entered the senior class of Columbia Law School, New York City, from which he was graduated in 1873, and in September of the same year he was admitted to the Bar at Bridgeport, becoming a member of the Fairfield County Bar. On January 1, 1874, he formed a partnership for the practice of law with James H. Olmstead, at Stamford, which partnership continued until January 1, 1880, since when Mr. Scofield has been engaged in practice alone. During the years that Mr. Olm- stead was an attorney for the State he was as- sisted in his duties by our subject. From 1874 to 1880 Mr. Scofield served as prosecuting agent for Fairfield county, and for several years he was the attorney for the corporation of the town and borough of Stamford. In 1881 he was honored by the people of the county by an election to the State Legislature. While a member he served on a number of important committees, among them the Judiciary committee, and as chairman of the committee on New Counties and County Seats. In 1882 he was elected to the State Senate from the Twelfth Senatorial District. While in the Senate in 1882-83 he served as chairman of the Judiciary committee. In 1895 he was elected mayor of Stamford, and in 1896 he was re-elected to that office. On July 1, 1897, he was appointed, by Governor Cooke, commissioner of building and loan associations, which office he held until July 1, 1899, when he resigned same in order to accept the appointment of insurance commis- sioner for the State, for a term of four years, from July 1, 1899. In all of these public trusts Mr. Scofield has measured up to the duties and responsibilities devolving upon him, and given his constituents clear and business-like represen- tation. He is a lawyer of ability and a citizen of high order.

On October 15, 1879, Mr. Scofield was mar- ried to Annie W. Candee, a daughter of Julius A. and Evaline (Weed) Candee, and the marriage has been blessed with one son, Edwin, born Au- gust 25, 1887. Mr. Scofield is a director of the Greenwich Trust, Loan & Deposit Company, of Greenwich, Conn .; is also a director in the First National Bank of Stamford; and he was one of the incorporators of the Stamford Savings Bank. He is also a director and secretary of the Stam- ford Hospital.

J OTHAM BURR HAWLEY, a well-known re- spected citizen of Hartford, Conn., is a na- tive of Newtown, Conn., having been born there June 2, 1828, and is descended from the original family of that name who came to the New England States in pioneer times.

Tyrus Hawley, father of Jotham B., and who through a long and useful life was a resident of Newtown, lived on a farm in the vicinity of Haw- leyville, and before the day of railroads kept an old-time tavern or house of entertainment, in connection with agriculture, He married Sally Lewis, and their children were as follows: Joth- am Burr, our subject; Royal DeForest and Sarah Caroline, both of whom died in Hartford, Conn., Royal De F. on April 9, 1893, and Sarah C., on December 22, 1896, in her fifty-seventh year; and Lewis Marshall, a resident of Danbury, Conn. Tyrus Hawley died April 2, 1868, in the seventy-eighth year of his age, Sally (Lewis), his wife, passing away July 26, 1885, in her eighty- first year.

Jotham B. Hawley, whose name introduces these lines, passed his boyhood on a farm, attending during the winter seasons the district schools, and at the age of seventeen commenced learning the merchant-tailoring business in Sandy Hook, serving his apprenticeship with Almon Keeler. At the age of twenty-one he removed to Fairhaven, and one year later took up his resi- dence in Bethel, his cash capital at the time be- ing just fifteen dollars. At the end of nine months, however, he again moved, this time to Newtown, where he commenced business for his own account, buying out an established merchant- tailoring establishment, one year later entering the employ of David H. Johnson, whose mer- chant-tailoring establishment business he con- ducted some five years. We now find Mr. Haw- ley in New Haven, he having accepted a position as cutter with Thomas Chatterton, at the end of a few months commencing for himself in that city in partnership with John S. Parmalee, their place of business being for five years on the corner of State and Chapel streets, then for the same length of time on the corner of Chapel and Church streets. In April, 1868, Mr. Hawley and Mr. Parmalee dissolved partnership, and, our sub- ject's wife dying shortly afterward, he made up his mind to try his fortune in the far West. Ac- cordingly, having purchased a stock of jewelry, he set out on his journey in the capacity of Yankee peddler, arriving in due course at Kansas City, Mo. From there he proceeded to St. Joseph, in the same State, where he had a cousin living, and here he passed the winter, which was near at hand when he arrived there. Becoming interested

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in Western land along with his cousin, he went to Sioux City, Iowa, and purchased a farm of two sections in Sioux county. At that time Sioux City was the extreme point of advanced civiliza- tion on the Missouri, and had only one railroad communication.

Returning after seven months to his home in Connecticut, he spent the following summer in New Haven, and the succeeding fall set out for Chicago, obtaining a situation through John Peck, as cutter with W. H. Clingman. He remained with Mr. Clingman one year, then once more ·journeyed to Kansas City. Here, in the in- terests of a Boston firm, he had charge of an ex- tensive tailoring establishment, remaining in that connection from September 14, 1869, to January 15, 1870, then returning east via Chicago, New York City being for the time his objective point. In the summer of 1870 we find him in Toronto, Canada, but before the ensuing fall he was once more in New York City, where he secured a posi- tion as cutter with Louis H. Grass, merchant tailor on the corner of Broadway and Chambers street. With him he remained one season, then worked for Isaac Hull & Company, on Broadway, in same line, also one season. From New York Mr. Hawley proceeded to Providence, R. I., and for two years was in the employ of West & Brothers; thence went to Auburn, N. Y., at the end of some ten months taking up his residence in Newark, N. J., having accepted a position with Miller & Westervelt, which at the end of four years he resigned to make another change, this time " trying his luck " in Saginaw, Mich., but remained there only a short time finding "metal more attractive " in Chicago. Here he succeeded in securing a position as cutter for Edward Ely, who at that time had the leading tailoring business in the city, and the latter open- ing a branch establishment in Grand Rapids, Mich., to do the finest work in their line, sent Mr. Hawley to manage the cutting department. Within a short time, however, Mr. Ely closed up that branch, and our subject was recalled to Chi- cago, whence not long afterward he again re- moved to New York, and for a season followed his trade there. Once more we find him in Newark, N. J., with his former employers, Mil- ler & Westervelt, and after some other " chang- ing around " he finally landed in Bridgeport, re- maining there for one season, then coming to Hartford.

In Hartford Mr. Hawley for two years was in the employ of Henry P. Hitchcock, merchant tailor, then for three months worked at his trade for Strickland & Gallard, in New London, since when he has lived in Hartford retired.

Some two years after going to New Haven, Conn., as above related, Mr. Hawley was united in marriage, at Middlebury (now Port of Akron), Ohio, with Miss Emily M. Cotter, daughter of Ambrose and Mary (Pratt) Cotter. Mrs. Hawley died at New Haven May 20, 1868, aged thirty- two years, leaving one child, Hattie Cotter Hawley, who now presides over her father's home, No. 355 Windsor avenue, Hartford, which residence he built in 1896.

After the death of her mother Miss Hawley lived with her aunt and grandmother in Hart- ford, where she was educated, and where the greater part of her life has been passed. She is- a lady of much refinement, and a violinist of considerable ability, in which connection it may be mentioned that the violin (a remarkably fine instrument) used by her is one given to her by her uncle, Royal DeForest Hawley, who was a thorough connoisseur in those instruments, and is reputed to have had one of the finest collections of violins in the world, which at his death, with the exception of the very fine one he gave to his niece, was sold to Mr. Granger, of San Diego, Cal., for twenty thousand dollars. One of his violins, called "King Joseph," he paid $3,000 for, and he was at one time offered as much as $5,000 for it, but would not part with it for that sum.

FRANCIS J. ROGERS, A. M., M. D., a prominent physician of Stamford, Fairfield county, where for twenty years he has, profes- sionally and socially, been closely identified with the city's interests, was born in Carlisle, Ohio, June, 19, 1849.

John K. Rogers, father of Doctor Rogers, was a native of Ireland, where in Maynooth Col- lege he studied for the priesthood, and was gradu- ated from that institution. Coming to the United States, he engaged in business in Philadelphia, later leaving that city with the intention of going to California, but stopped en route at Carlisle, Ohio, where he began teaching school, and during President Pierce's administration he served as. postmaster at that place. While in Philadelphia Mr. Rogers was married to Alice McCallion [?], who was a native of Ireland, and to their union were born children as follows: Charles (de- ceased), who at one time was a Roman Catholic priest in Bristol, R. I .; William H., a priest in charge of St. John's Roman Catholic Church, at Stamford; Francis J .; Mary (Mrs. James Tobin, of Bristol, R. I.); and Daniel J., of the Wagner Palace Car Company, with residence at Harlem, N. Y. The parents are both deceased.

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Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 88

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