Commemorative biographical record of Hartford County, Connecticut : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families, Pt 1, Part 43

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 1336

USA > Connecticut > Hartford County > Commemorative biographical record of Hartford County, Connecticut : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families, Pt 1 > Part 43

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( II) William Bradford (2), son of Gov. Brad- ford. born in 1624. married ( first ) Alice Richards, of Weymouth. He was a prominent man in the Colony. and held several public trusts, among them that of deputy-governor for eight or ten years.

( III ) William Bradford (3), son of William (2). b: rn in 1655, married in 1679 Rebecca Bart- lett.

( IV) William Bradford (4), son of William (3). married in 1713 Elizabeth Finney.

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(V) William Bradford (5), son of Williani (4), was born in the year 1720.

(VI) William Bradford (6), son of William (5). (VII) Of the immediate family of William (7): Of his brothers and sisters there seems to be no valid record, the present generation having only a vague hearsay that relates to one sister drowned coming from Boston in a small sailing vessel, and one brother, a Doctor, driven almost deranged by the loss of this only sister and never married. The tragedy seems to have left William Bradford of Rocky Hill almost without interest in his immediate ancestors, or the family without any record back of their own time. The substan- tial old homestead seems capable of fulfilling its mission as family home for as many generations as it has already housed. It is now owned and occupied by Capt. Grimes' daughter. Though born in New England, she was reared in the South, and during the Civil war, though then on a visit at the North, she had still a warm place in her heart for her friends at the South, and true to her convic- tions, believing the South to be in the right, and strongly in sympathy with the cause she had made her own, gave orders to place in the field in de- fense of her adopted State "Fanny Grimes' " sub- stitute. Reared amid scenes of pioneer life in Texas, and a woman of observation, Mrs. Camp (she having married in 1876 J. William Camp, of Bristol, Conn.) is full of reminiscence and incident, an interesting and pleasant conversationalist. She has inherited of the characteristics of her parents, is of a generous nature, and has the reputation of doing deeds of charity in a quiet, modest manner. She has no children, and is the last representative of either Grimes or Bradford family left in Rocky Hill, though, as before mentioned, William Brad- ford Grimes is still living, at Great Bend, Kans. In 1855 he married Maria Louise Robbins (the eldest daughter of Philemon Robbins, of Hartford, Conn. ), who died in 1876, leaving a large family of children. William B. Grimes married for his second wife Mrs. Irene Poole, of Texas, who died in 1895.

After the death of Capt. Grimes, in 1857, his widow and daughter remained at their Texas home until 1860, when they returned to Mrs. Grimes' early home in Connecticut, and being quarantined by the war eventually became possessors of the same.

FRANK ALEXANDER THOMPSON, who for nearly a third of a century has been efficiently and successfully connected with the Phoenix Mu- tual Life Insurance Co., and for years as the com- pany's general agent for the State of Connecticut, is well and favorably known throughout the State, and has attained a deserved prominence in insur- ance circles.

Born Feb. 12. 1848, on Market street, in Hart- ford, son of Alexander and Amanda (Crane)

Thompson, our subject is a representative of sev- eral ot the old families of Connecticut, among theni the illustrious and historic Wolcott family of Windsor, which gave to the State three governors. Henry Wolcott, the progenitor of the Windsor family, came to New England along with Rev. Warham and company in 1630, and that year was one of the first freemen of Boston. He removed to Dorchester in 1635, and later to Windsor, Conn. In 1637 he was chosen a deputy to the General Court of Connecticut, and in 1643 to the House of Magistrates (Senate), and continued to be re- turned to that body the remainder of his life. He died in 1655. From this ancestor Mr. Thompson, of this review, through his grandmother, Betsey ( Wolcott) Thompson, is in the ninth generation, his line being through Simon, Lieut. Henry (whose brother, Hon. Roger Wolcott, was governor of the Colony of Connecticut in 1750), Henry (2), Capt. Simon (who commanded a company in 1776 un- der Gen. Prescott at the battle of Long Island under Gen. Washington), Peter (who served in his father's company), Betsey ( Wolcott) Thompson and Alexander Thompson.

On his father's side our subject is of Scottish origin. There is a family tradition that William and Margaret Thompson, with seven sons and two daughters, left Scotland for America in 1716, but for some reason tarried for a year in County Derry, Ireland, where William, the father, died, enjoining his family, in his dying hours, to carry out their original plan of settling in America. Prob- ably about 1718 the widow and her children sailed for New England. Her children were: William, Mariam, Samuel, James, Robert, Joseph, John, Hugh and Ruth. The family settled in Windsor, and the mother died in 1752, aged eighty-six years, and is buried at Ellington. From this source came Benoni Thompson, the grandfather of our subject. He was born in April, 1789. married Betsey Wolcott, who was born Sept. 17, 1788. Benoni died in 1807, and his wife passed away Aug. 23, 1874.

Alexander Thompson, the father of our sub- ject, was born Jan. 31. 1808, in Old Windsor, now East Windsor, where he passed his early life in work on the farm, and attending school. Later he followed school teaching. Fut he finally removed to Hartford, where he was engaged in the manu- facture of brooms, brushes, etc., on Morgan street. He and his wife were consistent members of the old First Church, Dr. Bushnell's, and were highly respected by all who knew them. He was married in East Windsor May 1, 1832, to Miss Amanda Crane. a daughter of Chauncey Crane. She died May 12, 1889. and his death occurred Feb. 10, 1854. Nine children were born to them: Dan Orvilla Thompson, born March 30, 1833, died Sept. 3. 1861 : Mary Elizabeth ( Thompson) Case, born March 20, 1835; William Earl Thompson, born Feb. 27, 1837, is a publisher in Milwaukee, Wis .; Julia A. Thompson, born Nov. 17, 1839. died Dec.

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15, 1840; Anna Cecilia (Thompson) Marsh, born Dec. 19, 1841; James Alexander Thompson, born Feb. 16, 1843, died Oct. 14, 1843; Susan Adelaide (Thompson) Marsh, born Oct. 29, 1845; Frank Alexander Thompson, born Feb. 12, 1848; and Lizzie Amanda Thompson, born Jan. 12, 1850, died Feb. 8, 1854. Of these, Mary Elizabeth mar- ried Ariel J. Case (Simsbury Case stock), who went out as a private with the 16th Conn. V. I. in the Civil war, and returned as a lientenant. Anna Cecilia is the widow of Capt. Wolcott Pascol Marsh, and resides in Ontario, Cal .; Capt. Marsh went out as a private under Capt. (later Gen.) Hawley, in the First Conn. Vols., three-months men, returned, re-enlisted in the 8th Conn. V. I., and returned as captain of a company in that regi- ment. Susan Adelaide is the wife of Edward W. Marsh, of Hartford.

Frank A. Thompson, our subject, during his boyhood and youth attended the public schools of Hartford, and also Bryant & Stratton Business College. After his graduation he followed book- keeping for five years, and then accepted a clerk- ship under the general agent of the Phoenix Mutual Life Insurance Co. of Hartford. Later he succeeded to the Connecticut general agency, and has been con- nected with the Phoenix Co. since 1870, his labors in their behalf being justly appreciated. On April 23, 1894, he moved to West Hartford, having purchased the Gilman farm, but in June of that year he bought the Cone farm from J. D. Browne, and has since re- sided there. It is a well-improved and valuable farm of 102 acres, and he has met with excellent success in its management. Previous to coming to West Hartford he had lived in Hartford. and from North Market street, in the eastern part of the city, he had moved to Asylum avenue in 1872.

Mr. Thompson first married Miss Lydia R. Warner, a native of Burlington, \'t., and a daughter of Samuel Clark Warner. She died in March, 1886. By that union four children were born, all of whom died in infancy except Raymond Clark Thompson, now living, born Feb. 24. 1886. For his second wife Mr. Thompson married Miss Anna Imo- gene Cate, of Bridgeport, Conn., a daughter of Ste- phen Mead Cate and Annie Rogers Cate, the latter being a daughter of Simeon S. Rogers, one of the founders of the Meriden Britannia Co. One child blesses this union: Ruth Crane Thompson, born Oct. 2, 1891.

Mr. Thompson has taken quite a leading part in local political affairs, and represented the old Sec- ond ward in the city council of Hartford in 1891. 1892 and 1893. He has been secretary of the Connecticut Life Underwriters Association since Feb. 2, 1892, and is widely and favorably known. He is a mem- ber of Custer Council, No. 85, and is also a prom- inent member of the Asylum Avenue Baptist Church, of which he has been society clerk since 1879.

field, Conn., as early as 1655, whither he had likely come from a parish in Massachusetts. He had assigned to him by the town two and one-half acres of land. He married, in 1655, Mary, daughter of William and Sarah ( Charles ) Backus, and carried on tanning just below the village. From this first American ancestor of the family Alrs. Amanda (Crane ) Thompson's line is through Lieut. Jona- than, John, Hezekiah, David and Chauncey Crane.

(11) Lieut. Jonathan Crane, son of Benjamin the settler, born in 1658, married, in 1678, Deborah, daughter of Francis Griswold. Lieut. Crane was among the early settlers of Windham, Conn., and a man of prominence. He is referred to as of Wind- ham, Norwich and Lebanon. It is said that he erected the first sawmill in the town of Windham, was ap- pointed a lieutenant in 1703, was a deputy to the General Court fifteen times between 1701 and 1722. He had been one of the petitioners for the formation of that town, and in 1691 was chosen the first townsman.

(1H) John Crane, son of Lieut. Jonathan, born i11 1687, married (first) Sarah Spencer, at Wind- ham. She died in 1715, and he married (second ), in 1716, Prudence Belding, and lived near Fort Hill. In 1735 he was called "of Coventry."

(IV) Hezekiah Crane, son of John, born in 1721, married, in 1746, Rachel Rockwell. He was called "of Windsor," but purchased land in Bolton in 1750 and moved there about that time. He died in 1805, aged eighty-four years, and she in 1809, aged eighty-three years.

(V) David Crane, son of Hezekiah, born Oct. 1, 1748, married (first) Theodocia Pitkin, and ( sec- ond ) Jan. 7, 1779, Jerusha Smith, of Ellington, daughter of David, one of the first settlers of East Windsor. Mr. Crane was a carpenter and builder as well as a farmer. He served in the war of the Revolution. He lived to be about ninety-two years old, dying in Scantic Parish in 1841.

(\1) Chauncey Crane, son of David, born in 1783, married Oct. 18, 1800, Phoebe Gustin. She died Feb. 25, 1849, and he on Jan. 24, 1864.

(VII) Amanda (Crane) Thompson, daughter of Chauncey, born May 20, 1812.

JAMES NEWBERRY GOODWIN (de- ccased), for many years a member of the firm of Keneys, Roberts & Goodwin, wholesale grocers, was of the seventh generation in direct line from Ozias and Mary ( Woodward) Goodwin, of Brain- tree. England, who in 1639 became residents of Hartford. His line of ancestry is traced through (VI) Jonathan, (V) James, (IV) Jonathan, (111) Ozias, ( 11) Nathaniel to (1) Ozias, the pioneer.

Jonathan Goodwin, father of James N., was born Dec. 23. 1799. at the homestead on the AAlbany road, near Hartford, Conn. Hon. James G. Batterson says of him: "His education was of the common schools and the select and private school of John J. White, a teacher of considerable distinction in Hart-

Mrs. Amanda ( Crane) Thompson, our subject', miother, was a descendant in the seventh genera- tion from (I) Benjamin Crane, who was at Wethers- ford during the early years of the present century.

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In early manhood Mr. Goodwin employed his winters in teaching, but his principal occupation through life was that of a farmer. His farm on Albany ave- nue came to him from his father in 1827.

"When quite young he became interested in mil- itary affairs, and in May, 1818, enlisted as a private in the First Company, Governor's Foot Guard. He was promoted to be captain in 1828, and to major in 1830. He was representative to the Legislature in 1836, assessor in 1838, and from 1846 to 1862; on the board of Relief, 1840, '43-44-45 ; selectman 1842 to 1852; and member of High school committee in 1849. He was one of the incorporators of the Hartford Hospital, and director of the Farmers and Mechanics Bank. In politics he was a Whig and Republican ; in religion a Unitarian."

On June 7, 1826, at East Windsor, Conn., Jona- than Goodwin was married to Clarinda Newberry, who was born Jan. 1, 1800, a daughter of John and Elizabeth ( Ellsworth) Newberry, and three children were born to them: Eunice Elizabeth, born April 6, 1827, married James G. Batterson ; James Newberry. the subject proper of these lines : and Jonathan (de- ceased ), born March 11, 1840, married Mary Rip- lev. The father died Oct. 8, 1877, the mother on May 5. 1866.

James N. Goodwin was born at Hartford, Sept. 29, 1833, and died at Newport, R. 1., March 30, 1867. He married, Oct. 21, 1857, Fannie Rebecca Batter- son, daughter of Simeon Seeley and Melissa (Rob- erts) Batterson, the latter of whom is a sister of Hon. James G. Batterson, of Hartford. Mr. and Mrs. Goodwin had one daughter, Lucy Jeannette, born July 29, 1858, died Dec. 24. 1863. Like many others of the family, Mr. Goodwin was for several years connected with the First Company of the Governor's Foot Guard. In politics he was a Republican.

ROBERT ORRIN CLARK, one of the most substantial and highly-respected citizens of the town of Berlin, Hartford county, is a scion of patriotic stock. ,

Mr. Clark's great-grandfathers were soldiers in the Revolution, serving throughout the war for in- dependence. His grandfather, Daniel Clark, was a native of Higganum, Conn., and from that place removed to Philadelphia, of which city he remained a resident until his death, which occurred two years later : he was buried there. He was a tinner by trade. During the war of 1812 he was made a prisoner by a British man-of-war, while aboard a merchant vessel. The captors made use of the most brutal measures in their treatment of the prisoners. Daniel Clark was chained by the leg to another vic- tim of English cruelty, the irons cutting so deep into the flesh and muscle that it was found neces- sary to amputate the left limb directly below the knee. He married Ruth Strickland, of Glastonbury, daughter of Asa Simeon Shrickland, who was a soldier in the Revolutionary war. To this union were born six children, of whom Orrin Cole, born

Sept. 21, 1823, in the western part of the town of Meriden, was the father of Robert Orrin. .

Orrin C. Clark was but six years old when his father removed to Philadelphia, and was but eight when the latter died. The mother died in Berlin, where she was buried. After the father's death Mrs. Daniel Clark returned with her children to Connecticut, making her home at Cromwell. Her struggles were more than ordinarly severe. Ne- cessity forced her to bind out her son, Orrin C., but she soon withdrew him from his employer's charge because of ill treatment. Being obliged to find other employment the boy worked for five years as a farm hand for Burge Marion, of Rocky Hill. On leaving the farm he went to Berlin, where for some eighteen months he worked at turning out German-silver spoons for Col. William Bulkeley, at the latter's shops. The next five years he passed upon the farm of Russell Clark, of Berlin, and at the end of that period found employment in the screw shop of Crocker & Ives, at Meriden. Within a little less than a year he returned to Berlin, to enter the employ of the Roys & Wilcox Co. His connection with that concern extended over a period of forty years, during a considerable portion of which time he was a contractor, his special line of work being brass-polishing. In 1894, after a life- time spent in hard, honest work, he retired to enjoy a well-earned, richly-merited rest. While yet very young he severely overtaxed his muscular system through lifting a sack of corn, the weight of which was beyond his strength. The result was an affec- tion of the nervous system from which he never re- covered. Before the birth of the Republican party he was a stanch Whig, and later a supporter of Lincoln.

On Jan. 18, 1849, Mr. Clark was married to Amelia Belden, of Cromwell. For nearly fifty years she sustained to nim the relations of a loving, faith- ful helpmeet. She entered into rest Sept. 15, 1898, and sleeps in the Wilcox cemetery, in East Berlin. She was the mother of four children: Helen Amelia, Georgiana Laura, Robert Orrin and Flor- ence May. The eldest daughter is the widow of George W. Cook, at one time an employe of the Peck, Stow & Wilcox Co. Mrs. Cook now makes her home with her father. The second daughter, Georgiana Laura, is also a widow, and lives at home. Her husband, Herbert Andrews, was an engineer for the Peck. Stow & Wilcox Co. Robert Orrin, the third child and only son is the subject of the present memoir. The youngest daughter. Florence May, lives at home. The two elder daughter, fol- lowing the path trodden by both parents, are mem- bers of the Congregational Church, while the young- est, following her own earnest convictions, has united with the Methodist Church. Zaccheus Stowe. maternal grandfather of Mrs. Amelia ( Belden) Clark, was a soldier in the Revolution.

Robert Orrin Clark was born in East Berlin Oct. 20. 1860. His school days ended when he reached the age of sixteen years, when he entered

R.O.Blanc

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the shops of the Peck. Stow & Wilcox Co., under the immediate instruction and supervision of his fa- ther. He remained in connection with that concern for about ten years, during a part of that time acting as a contractor. Since quitting that firm he has been engaged in business as a building con- tractor, in which line of trade his success has been well-nigh marvelous. He was the pioncer in his line in that locality, and through hard work, close attention to business and unswerving integrity he has not only accumulated a handsome competence, Lut has also earned the sincere respect and unques- tioning confidence of his fellow citizens. So thor- oughly is his work done, and so conscientious is he in the fulfillment of his undertakings, that there have been less than a half-dozen buildings erected in East Berlin since he engaged in business of which he has not made the excavations and laid the foundations, besides setting the fundamental brick work. He has also been contractor for the erection and completion of a large number of private residences, and not a few public buildings. Among the finest private dwellings which he has built may be mentioned his own home, which in point of perfection of finish and completeness of modern improvement is unsurpassed by any in the town. He erected the Catholic church, and laid the foundation for the Episcopal house of worship, and has put up many buildings in Berlin, Cromwell and other towns, among them being Mechanics' Hall, on Berlin street. He is a large property owner in Fast Berlin, among his holdings being Clark's Hall, built by himself, and the only public hall in the town. He employs about forty men, and uses about thirty horses. With the exception of the Iron Bridge and the Peck, Stow & Wilcox Cos. he is the largest employer of labor in East Berlin. In addition to his business as a builder and contractor lie is interested in sundry ventures of comparatively minor importance. Some eighteen years ago he opened a livery stable, with but one horse for hire : he still conducts the stable, but on a very different scale, and in connection therewith manages an agency for several makes of wagons, sleighs, etc. He also owns and operates a portable stone crusher. and has for the past five years sawed about 1,000,000 feet of lumber annually in a portable steam saw- mill. besides shipping considerable quantities of white oak and hickory to various points in the State.

In his political sympathies Mr. Clark is an out- Spoken Republican. He is a member of Pequot Council, No. 24. of the Senior O. U. A. M., of Berlin. and a charter member of Mattabessett Ledge. No. 25. K. P .. of East Berlin. He also belongs to R. O. Clark Co. Lodge, of the Uniformed Rank. K. P., which he was instrumental in organiz- ing.

On Oct. 22, 1881. Mr. Clark was married to Miss Etta Frances Belden. of Rocky Hill. Mrs. Clark was born Aug. 1. 1860, daughter of Perry and Maria (Taylor ) Belden. One son and one

daughter have been born of the union: Harold Robert, Aug. 31, 188), and Ruth, Aug. 14, 1894. The son is attending school at New Britain. Both Mr. and Mrs. Clark are attendants of the Methodist Church.

The foregoing sketch of the life and business career of Mr. Clark demonstrates his tireless energy and his remarkable business capacity. Starting in life without the adventitious aid of inherited wealth, lie has climbed the ladder of success round by round, through his own pertinacity, pluck and courage. His disposition is genial and generous, and his friends are many, while his life as a man and a citizen is beyond reproach.

GEORGE WENTLIN NEUBAUER, an ex- tensive manufacturer and business man of Bris- tol, was born in Bavaria, Germany, Dec. 17, 1848, a son of George and Elizabeth ( Kauffman) Neu- bauer.

George Neubauer, who was born Feb. 11, 1811, was reared a cabinetmaker, and followed his trade until 1842, when his brother died of cholera, through which event he fell heir to a large farm, on which the brother had conducted a thriving tavern. On taking possession of the estate, he also assumed charge of the tavern, which he continued to con - duct with profit. On Feb. 7, 1834, he had married Miss Elizabeth Kauffman, who was born Feb. 10, 1816. and with her passed a happy married life until his death, Dec. 30, 1874. She survived until September, 1892, and the remains of both are now resting quietly side by side in their native Bavaria -a land they had never forsaken.

John Neubauer, father of George, and grand- father of our subject, carried on a tavern and cul- tivated this same farm, which for generations had been in the hands of the family. He married Eliza- beth Warner, and died in 1831, at the age of fifty- six years. His death was due to an accident, he having fallen from his house steps.

George W. Neubauer at the early age of thir- teen years sailed from Hamburg for America, hav- ing an uncle in New Haven, Conn., with whom he knew he would find a warm welcome, and being desirous of testing life on republican soil. After his arrival here his father was anxious for his re- turn. but the surroundings at home were not quite as satisfactory as here, and he decided to remain. For the first ten months after his arrival here young Neubaner worked for a John Brooks, and then apprenticed himself to wood-carving at a compensation of $3 per week the first year: $4 for the second : $5 for the third, and became an expert. He then followed his trade in New Haven as a journeyman for about seven years.

In May, 1867, Mr. Neubauer came to Bristol as head wood carver for J. H. Sessions, but three years later went into the same business on his own account on Main street. Having secured special work in clock case carving, he a year later moved to more commodions quarters and added burcan

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drawer handles to his industry, employing twenty- seven men. Until 1893, when machinery took the place of hand work, he did all the clock carving for the Ingraham Co. and the E. N. Welch Manu- facturing Co., and invented several machines him- self for making handles.

Another enterprise had in the meantime been undertaken by Mr. Ncubauer. In 1887 he added a leather washer factory to his establishment, in which he cut up leather costing Șioo per day for over three years, but this branch of his business he sold to the Searles Manufacturing Co., of New- ark, N. J. In 1890 Mr. Neubauer became a stock- holder in, and in 1892 secretary, treasurer and gen- eral manager of the Turner Heater Co., which complicated and responsible position he still retains. The specialty of this company is the manufacture of fine furnaces of all kinds, in which specialty it secured the first prize over all competitors at the re- cent mechanics fair at Boston. The capital stock of this company is $50,000, and the quality of its product has never been excelled. Mr. Neubauer is also a director in the Bristol Press Co., publishers of the newsy and very influential journal bearing that name.

In politics Mr. Neubauer is a stanch Republi- can, and has served as burgess of Bristol for three years, has been chairman of the street committee, and also of the police committee. He is a member of the Royal Arcanum.

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Commemorative biographical record of Hartford County, Connecticut : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families, Pt 1, Part 43

Author: J.H. Beers & Co Publication date: 1901 Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co. Number of Pages: 1336

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 1336