Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 92

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

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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).

The business of the firm of James Staples & Co. is carried on in their own building, known as the Staples Bank building, five stories high, and occupied above the banking house by offices, and on the upper floor by a lodge-room and hall. No banking house in Connecticut is conducted on safer or more conservative methods, and none enjoys a higher reputation in the community. It is a house for discount and deposit, and all de- positors' balances, averaging $500 or more, re- ceive a satisfactory rate of interest. It contains a thoroughly fire and burglar-proof safe-deposit vault for the benefit of its customers, built and equipped in the most substantial and approved manner. The Staples Bank building was com- pleted in September, 1892, and is equal to any of the many costly and durable structures which have been erected in Bridgeport during recent years. The real-estate and insurance depart- ment of the firm is still in full operation, but its distinctive character is that of a permanent and successful banking house. Notwithstanding his business cares Mr. Staples has taken an active part in promoting the prosperity of his adopted city. As a member of the Bridgeport Board of Trade he has aided in the establishment of vari- ous manufacturing enterprises, and is at the pres- ent time president of the Consolidated Rolling Stock Company. He has always felt a deep in- terest in the cause of education, and has been a member of the school board of Bridgeport. Every cause in the interest of the moral, religious and social welfare of the community. of which he is a member finds in him a zealous and generous friend.

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James Staples was married (first) January 19, 1851. to Harriet H. Shirley (daughter of Hugh Shirley, of Searsport, Maine), who died April 2, 1852, and (second) September 21, 1858, he wedded Sarah Elizabeth, daughter of Andrew and Sarah (Turney) Trubee. Mrs. Staples is descended from Andris Trubee, who came from Holland about the year 1700 and settled in Bos- ton, where he entered into business with a Mr. Solomon, a brother Hebrew. The firm of Trubee & Solomon established a branch house in Fairfield, Conn., and Mr. Trubee became its manager. Since that time the descendants of Andris Trubee, in the line of Mrs. Staples, have made Connecticut their home. Mrs. Staples is also descended from Thomas Staples, who came to Kittery in 1640 with his brother Peter. the ancestor of her husband. Thomas Staples removed to Fairfield about 1650, and became a prominent man in public affairs. His wife was accused of witchcraft by Roger Ludlow, and a successful suit for defamation of character against the accuser was the means of putting an end to the delusion, which in some localities was attended by such serious results.

Frank T. Staples, the only son of James Staples and his wife, Sarah Elizabeth (Trubee) Staples, and already mentioned as a member of the firm of James Staples & Co., was born No- vember 24, 1863, in Bridgeport, Conn., where he was educated in the city schools, graduating from the high school in 1881. He began his business career in the insurance department of his father's business. In January, 1882, on the death of T. R. Cruttenden, young Staples took charge of the banking department of the busi- ness, with which he has ever since remained con- nected, becoming a partner in 1884. He is re- garded as one of the brightest and most success- ful of the young business men of Bridgeport. On December 16, 1884, he married Miss Laura Frances, daughter of William and Mary C. (Sperry) Stevens, and the union has been blessed with one son, Richard T. As a Republican he was appointed, June 1, 1897, to the office of fire commissioner. Socially, he and his wife are popular, and he is a leading member of the Sea Side Club.

W TARREN P. HURLBUTT, a prominent resident of Stamford, has been for many years a leading business man of that city, but he has now retired from active participation in business life, and is enjoying a well-earned period of leisure.

Mr. Hurlbutt was born July 6, 1828, in the

town of Darien, this county, the son of Joel and Charlotte (Weed) Hurlbutt. His grandfather, Joseph Hurlbutt, a native of Fairfield county. was born March 7, 1748, and he and his wife, Sally Hurlbutt, who was born November 29, 1755, reared a large family of children, whose names with dates of birth and death are as fol- lows: Lewis, October 26, 1773-May 5, 1856; Sally, August 26, 1775-December 18, 1825; Foster, October 12, 1777-April 3, 1842; Anna, February 17, 1780-June 17, 1781; Horatio, May 13, 1782-February 5, 1820; Anna (2), July 23, 1784-August 6, 1847; Clarissa, Feb- ruary 7, 1787 -- 1860; Joel, twin to Clarissa, February 7, 1787 -- May 25, 1866; Charlotte, May 3, 1789-October 11, 1871; Walter, May 17, 1791-April 7, 1811; Polly, May 1, 1793- September 3, 1873; Susan, March 24, 1795- August 4, 1851, and Dudley, May 16, 1797- July 21, 1832.

Joel Hurlbutt, the father of our subject, was born and reared in the town of Wilton, this county, and in early manhood was engaged for some time in teaching school. Later he became interested in farming in the town of Darien, and on December 20, 1812, he was married there to Miss Charlotte Weed, who was born January 18, 1789, and died May 17, 1859. He was a man of influence in his town, serving as selectman, assessor, and in other positions, and he always took great interest in the political movements of his day, being first a Whig, later a Free Soiler, and finally a Republican. In religious work he was active as a member of the Baptist Church of Stamford, which he attended for forty years, missing only one half-day during all that time. Of his seven children four are now living. Joseph, born October 13, 1813, died April 29, 1891; Deborah Ann, born September 22, 1816, died May 12, 1896; Isaac B., born November 24, 1820, died October 17, 1878; William, born October 3, 1823, is now a resident of Arborville, Neb .; Sarah L., born November 26, 1825, re- sides at Sound Beach, Greenwich township; Warren P., our subject, is mentioned below; Lewis, born August 1, 1830, resides in Colum- bus, Ohio.

Warren P. Hurlbutt spent his early life in the town of Darien, his education being obtained in the local schools and at Norfolk, Conn., where he served an apprenticeship of four years and a half to the tailor's trade. At the age of twen- ty-two, on account of his health, he went to Cas- cade, lowa, where he remained for about thir- teen years, during eleven of which he was en- gaged in farming. While there he was married, as stated more fully farther on, and after his

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wife's death he returned to Connecticut. After his second marriage he again went west, this time for three years. On his return to Darien Mr. Hurlbutt purchased the old homestead, and resid- ed there for two years, and four years following he was in the merchant-tailoring, clothing and furnish- ing business with his brother Lewis, at Nos. 104- 106 Main street, Stamford, under the firm name of W. P. & Lewis H. Hurlbutt. He then went to West Winsted, Conn., and spent four years in the same line as a member of the firm of Foster & Hurlbutt, and on the dissolution of that part- nership he returned to Stamford and again en- gaged in business. During the next twelve years he had different partners, the style of the firm being Joseph W. & W. P. Hurlbutt, then W. P. Hurlbutt & A. P. Weed, and later W. P. Hurl- butt & Son, each partnership lasting about four years. Mr. Hurlbutt at the end of this period sold his interest to Frederick Rockwell and retired on account of ill health; Mr. Rockwell in turn sold his interest to Walter Hurlbutt, and the firm is now known as Hurlbutt Bros. Our subject has since remained free from the cares of financial enterprises. Mr. Hurlbutt began life without a dollar, and only equipped with such educational training as the common schools of his boyhood afforded, and the high standing and success which he has attained are all the more remarkable and praiseworthy. While he has never been active as a politician, he has been an ardent believer in the principles and policy of the Republican party ever since its organization, and he is in sympathy with every progressive movement afoot in the community. Since 1842 Mr. Hurlbutt has been a member of the Baptist Church, and dur- ing his residence in Stamford he has held numer- ous offices in the Society there, including that of treasurer of the poor fund and the trust fund. When about eighteen years of age Mr. Hurlbutt joined the I. O. O. F., but after he went west, the country being wild, he had little opportunity for continuing in the order.

On March 12, 1854, Mr. Hurlbutt was mar- ried at Cascade, lowa, for his first wife, to Miss Caroline S. Tilton, who was born April 15, 1829. and died October 10, 1857, leaving two children: George and Hattie (twins), born April 17, 1857; the last named died August 12, 1861; George, who is mentioned below, is a resident of Stam- ford. On July 6, 1859, at Newark, N. J., Mr. Hurlbutt formed a second union, this time with Miss Catherine Hopper, who was born August 27, 1831, and by her has had four children, viz. : Carrie G., born April 12, 1861, died March 4, 1878; William A., born October 7, 1863, died July 2, 1891; Walter H., born September 9,

1864; and Kittie, born October 26, 1868, died January 6, 1869.

George J. and Walter H. Hurlbutt are now engaged in the retail clothing and merchant- tailoring business in Stamford, having succeeded their father, as stated above, and they are re- garded as substantial citizens of the town. George J. Hurlbutt was married in Nyack, N. Y., to Miss Emma D. Clark, by whom he has had two chil- dren: Carrie G. and Ralph. Walter H. Hurl- butt was married in New York City to Miss Addie Lockwood.

R OBERT SAYER, who has for more than forty years been prominent in the business circles of Danbury, has made his way to that envi- able position by his own efforts, having started in life without either capital or influence. He is now president of the Danbury Ice Company, but is best known through his long connection with the undertaking firm of Hawley & Sayer, now Sayer Bros.

Mr. Sayer was born February 27, 1825, in Whitham, County of Essex, England, a son of Benjamin and Rebecca (Newton) Sayer, of the same nativity. They had filteen children, seven of whom lived to adult age: Mary, Philip, James, Charles Newton, Henry, Robert and William. Of these, our subject and his brother James, a resident of Danbury, are now the only survivors. The father, who was by occupation a mason and builder, came to America in 1827, but after a few years returned to England with several of the children, where he died.

Coming to this country in infancy. Mr. Say - er was educated at the schools of Mill Plain, in this county, and at an early age he went to Dan- bury to learn the trade of carpenter and joiner, which he followed for six years. He then pur- chased the business with which his name has so long been associated, and, after conducting it alone for some fifteen years, he formed a partner- ship with the late Abel S. Hawley, under the style of Hawley & Sayer. This continued twenty-five years, or until January 1, 1894, when, Mr. Haw- ley having died, Mr. Sayer bought his interest from his widow. For one year he carried on the work alone, but he has since turned it over to his sons, Frank B. and George R., who conduct it under the firm name of Sayer Brothers. Our subject is thus left free to enjoy a well-earned pe- riod of leisure, and in 1896 he made a trip to Europe, leaving New York on June 27, and re- turning on October 27, most of the time being spent in Paris, France, and in England-at Lon- don, Yarmouth and Ipswich. He has always

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been fond of travel, and has crossed the Atlantic seven times in all. His residence at No. 9 Granville avenue, Danbury, built by him about the year 1881, is one of the most elegant homes in the city; he also owns other residence property.

On March 18, 1852, Mr. Sayer married Miss Annie E. Benedict, daughter of Ebenezer and Hannah (Dean) Benedict, and five children have blessed their union: (1) Johanna lived only nine days. (2) Gertrude died at the age of six years and nine days. (3) Florence A. married (first) Sumner D. Aspinwall, by whom she had two children-Robert S. and Gertrude A .; she is now the widow of Charles D. Tyler, formerly of Binghamton, N. Y., later of New York City; he was the owner of the " Hotel St. George, " at St. Augustine, Fla .; by this marriage there is one child, Tracy B. (4) Frank B., born Sep- tember 25, 1860, married Miss Gertrude Buck- ley, and resides at No. 117} Pennsylvania ave- nue, Newark, N. J .; their only child, Charles, died of diphtheria when about four years old. (5) George R., born March 15, 1864, married Miss Annie V. Fanton, daughter of John H. and Josephine Fanton, of Danbury, and they have one son, John F., born November 9, 1890.

On February 10, 1894, the mother of this family passed to the unseen life, deeply mourned by a large circle of friends. She was a devout and consistent member of the M. E. Church, to which Mr. Sayer also belongs. For twenty years past he has held the office of steward, and has given much time and attention to furthering the work of the Church. He is a member of various social orders, including Union Lodge No. 40, F. & A. M., and the Improved Order of Red Men, Paugussett and Pocahontas Lodges. In politics he is a Republican, but he has neither sought nor held office.

TEROME NORTHROP, a prominent resident of Newtown, is the owner of a fine estate near Newtown village, and is regarded as one of the progressive agriculturists of that lo- cality. He represents a family which has held an honorable place in the history of this State, being a direct descendant of Joseph Northrup, a pioneer settler at Milford. The line of descent is traced from Joseph through Jeremiah, John, John, Jr., Peter, and Walter Northrop, the father of our subject. [See genealogical record else- where.]

Mr. Northrop, our subject, was born Decem- ber 8. 1833, and was given excellent educational opportunities for the time, attending the public schools in the Head of the Meadow District,

also the private schools in Redding conducted by Aaron Wilson and Harry Peck. Among his early schoolmates were many who have since achieved prominence in different lines of effort, the list including John M. Toucey and Judge Briscoe. When about eighteen years of age Mr. Northrop left school, and for twelve or thir- teen years devoted his time and attention to general farming. In 1865, desiring a change, he purchased his present farm from Theron Ap- pell, and engaged in stock raising, in which he has been quite successful. In connection with this he has been interested to some extent in buy- ing and shipping stock for the home market, his sound judgment and thorough knowledge of stock enabling him to make the venture profitable. He is not identified with any corporation, his business being entirely in his own hands. As a citizen he has always shown much public spirit, desiring the success of any movement that prom- ised to benefit the community. Politically, he is a Democrat, but he is not active in party work.

On April 19, 1859, Mr. Northrop married Miss Sarah Stuart. daughter of Lewis L. and Emeline Stuart, of Amenia, N. Y. To this union have been born two children: Nellie S., born June 11, 1863, and Sarah F., born Decem- ber 8, 1869, who married J. J. Schermerhorn, of New York (now deceased); both daughters are living at home. The family is connected with the Congregational Church, but Mr. Northrop is a Universalist in religious faith.

H ENRY ALLEN HUBBARD. The Hubbard family is one of the oldest in this State, and the subject of this sketch, a prominent real-estate dealer of Stamford, is of the ninth generation in direct descent from George and Mary (Bishop) Hubbard, pioneer settlers at Milford, Conn. [See work entitled "1, 000 Years of Hubbard History."]

II. William Hubbard, son of George and Mary (Bishop) Hubbard, was born in 1642 in Connecti- cut, probably in Milford, and prior to 1664 he married Abigail Dudley and settled at Greenwich, this county. The records show that he owned land there in 1667, and a few years later he joined with twenty-six others in the purchase from the Indians of Miosehasseky, a tract of land which was afterward known as Horseneck, and is now the site of the village of West Greenwich. This is a historic locality, being made especially famous by Gen. Israel Putnam's bold leap on horseback. The purchasers of the tract are men- tioned in the writings of that day as "the twenty- seven proprietors of 1672," and between 1664 and 1750 the name of William Hubbard appears

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ten times in the land records of the town of Greenwich. Some of the items doubtless refer to William Hubbard, Jr., a son of the first Will- iam, as the latter spent his last days at Stamford, where his death occurred in 1684. He had three children: Abigail, of whom nothing is now known; William, Jr. who is mentioned more fully below; and George, who was born in 1675 and died in 1688.

III. William Hubbard, Jr., was born in 1670 at Stamford, where he purchased land in 1697. In 1704, or the year following, he bought another tract in that town on Pepperwood Ridge, west of Mill river. He married Hannah Mead, and died in the year 1723.

IV. Abraham Hubbard, the next in the line of descent, was born in 1703 and died in 1780 in the town of Greenwich. He married Abigail Rose, of Guilford, Conn., and had five children: Abraham, William, Mary, Abigail, and Nathaniel.

V. Abraham Hubbard was born in Green- wich in 1729, and died there in 1786. He mar- ried Sarah Jenkins, of the same town.

VI. Henry Hubbard, the great-grandfather of our subject, was born in 1751, and was mar- ried in 1771 to Lydia Dickson; died in 1784.

VII. Andrew Hubbard, our subject's grand- father, was born in 1778, and attained the ad- vanced age of eighty-four years. A portion of of his life was spent in Greenwich, but for fifty years he resided in New Rochelle, N. Y., where he engaged in farming. He married Mary Mead, and had the following children: Allen, born in 1799; Mary, born in 1801, married Samuel Baylis; Jane, born in 1804; Azubah, born in 1805, married Walter Thompson; Husted, born in 1809; Anne, born in 1811; Dickson, in 1813; Han- nah, in 1816; Harriet, in 1818, married Veeder Colegrove; and Lot, born in 1822, died in 1895.

VIII. Allen Hubbard, the father of our sub- ject, was a native of the town of Greenwich, where he grew to manhood, and for three years he carried on agricultural work on City Island. At the age of twenty-three he went to Adrian, Mich., where he followed farming some fifteen years, being the owner of about one thousand acres of land in that vicinity. In 1849 he went to California, and for five or six years was inter- ested in mining operations there. His death oc- curred in 1881 at Roseburg, Oregon. His wife, whose maiden name was Harriet Schureman, died in 1860. Of their three children (1) Frede- rick, born in 1828, died in 1868; he married Miss Therese Dohler, and had five children. (2) Henry Allen, our subject, mentioned more fully below, and (3) Cornelia A. (now Mrs. Lippiatt, of Bernardsville, New Jersey).

Our subject was born June 9, 1832, at New Rochelle, N. Y., and his early education was secured in the public schools and the academy of that place. For nine years he was employed as a clerk in the dry-goods business, thus gain- ing practical preparation for mercantile life. In 1852 he located at Stamford, and in 1854 he en- gaged in the dry-goods business there on his own account. In 1859 E. S. Holly became a partner, and for sixteen years the business was continued under the firm name of Hubbard & Holly. They owned what was known as "Concert Hall," and for sometime they conducted their business at that building, later building a store at No. 2, Park Row. Their trade was the larg- est in that line in Stamford, amounting to more than ond hundred thousand dollars annually dur- ing the Civil war. About the time of Mr. Hub- bard's retirement from the firm, Mr. Libby, of the firm of A. T. Stewart & Co., then the lead- ing wholesale dry-goods house of New York City, informed Hubbard and Holly that they had pur- chased of them during the previous five years more goods than any customer of theirs west of the Alleghany Mountains. After disposing of his interest in the store in 1874 Mr. Hubbard en- gaged in a real-estate and insurance business, his offices being located at No. 8 Park Row, and he has also established a high reputation as an auc- tioneer, having held hundreds of sales of real es- tate and personal property, involving millions of dollars. His wide acquaintance with moneyed men in New York and elsewhere has enabled him to attract many buyers from out of town, and some of the finest residences of Stamford are now owned and occupied by families who were led through his efforts to locate there. Mr. Hubbard takes keen interest in all movements that promise to benefit the community, and for many years he has been a leading member of the Methodist Church at Stamford, having served as treasurer for a quarter of a century. On October 22, 1868, he was married to Miss Sarah A. Ayres, daughter of James E. Ayres, a well-known cit- izen of Tarrytown, New York.

R ICHARD D. SHEPARD. It would be difficult to find a safer or more practical rule of conduct than that familiar but somewhat blunt saying: "Mind your own business." If any ambitious youth will take the trouble to note the characteristics of successful men he will be apt to conclude that the homely injunction is worth considering, and certainly it has been fol- lowed profitably by the subject of this biography, now a prosperous merchant of Newtown town-

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ship. Mr. Shepard was born December 26, 1832, in Dodgingtown, Fairfield county, and is descended from one of the old families of the county, his great-grandfather, George Shepard. a farmer by occupation, having had his home for many years on Sugar street, Newtown.

Richard D. Shepard (1), the grandfather of our subject, was born in Newtown, and through- out his life he followed agricultural pursuits, residing for some time at .Butternuts" (now Cooperstown), N. Y., and later at Dodgingtown, this county, where he built for his own use the house now occupied by James Barnum. His death occurred in 1825. By his first wife, Hannah (Foote), he had the following children: Ambrose, our subject's father; Phobe, who married Bennett Fairchild; Nancy. who married Joshua H. Taylor, of Bethel; Delia (now Mrs. Elijah Taylor, of Bethel); and Susan (now Mrs. Lyman Chipman, of Newtown).

Ambrose Shepard, the father of our subject, was born January 1, 1802, and died February 23, 1876. He was a remarkably talented man, and, although he was self-educated in the main, became distinguished as a mathematician, being able to calculate the most difficult problems with apparent ease. He was especially well-versed in astronomy, and could compute the data for an almanac or navigate a vessel in any part of the globe. He taught the science of navigation in all its branches, but never followed the sea him- self, his life being spent chiefly in this county. For about thirty years he was engaged in the manufacture of combs at Dodgingtown, having been among the first to follow that line of busi- ness, and during this time he enjoyed a large trade, employing eight or ten workmen con- stantly. He was not a member of any Church and, in fact, was not particularly active in local affairs of any nature, although when chosen at one time to the office of justice of the peace for the town of Newtown, he filled the position with satisfaction to the public and credit to himself. On September 25, 1825, he married Miss Nancy Gray, daughter of George Gray, of Tinkerfield, Newtown, Fairfield Co., Conn., and she survived him about eight years, passing away May 14, 1884, They had seven children, as follows: William H., born August 2, 1827, now a resi- dent of New Haven; Sarah Ann, born January 4, 1831, now Mrs. Clark Blackman, of Taunton District, Newtown; Richard D., our subject; Frank, born February 18, 1836, now deceased; Elmer B., born July 17, 1839, who is engaged in the grocery business at Bridgeport, this county; Mary E., born March 1, 1842, who married (first) Frederick Dunham, and (second)

Harry Lockard; and Minot, born February 12, 1847, who entered the Union army as a soldier, and at the last report was "missing," nothing definite having ever been learned as to his fate.

Our subject's educational advantages were limited to an attendance at the common schools of Dodgingtown, with the exception of a brief period of private instruction in a select school conducted by Henry Peck. As be has always been fond of reading he has managed to keep well posted upon the questions of the day, how- ever, and he is also acquainted with the best literature. During boyhood he learned the busi- ness of comb making, which he followed for some years, but as his tastes inclined him to mercan- tile life he soon sought an entrance into that line of business. His father had previously built a store on the place where our subject's residence now stands, and after purchasing first the busi- ness of D. N. Morgan at Morgan's Corners, our subject rented for a time the old store, then owned by Alfred Sharp. He began a general mercantile business there in 1867, and as the venture proved successful he bought the property, and in 1875 he built his present store building there. In politics Mr. Shepard is a Democrat, but he has never given any time to party work, having no inclination for public life. His follow- townsmen showed their appreciation of his abili- ties some time ago by electing him to the office of justice of the peace, but he declined to qualify. Socially, he belongs to the Masonic Fraternity, being connected with Hiram Lodge No. 18, F. & A. M., at Sandy Hook.

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Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut, Part 92

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