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 72

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 72

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In 1859 Mr. Barker was married to Jennie

Wallace Hendry, who was born in Ryegate, \'t.,. daughter of Thomas and Mary (Lindsay) Hendry, prominent farmers in that State, and three chil- dren have been born of this union : ( 1) John Tenny, a leading dentist of New Haven county, practic- ing in Wallingford; he married a Miss Hubbard, and they have one child, Eric. (2) Grace, wife of Dr. Waite, of Hartford. (3) William Hendry, a patent expert and patent attorney of Hartford. Mr. and Mrs. Barker are members of the South Baptist Church ; in politics he is a Republican. He owns one of the finest residences in Wethersfield avenue, where he formerly owned twenty-two acres of land, which he had divided up into building lots.

In 1872 Mr. Barker gave to the trustees of the Campfield Monument Association the lot in Hart- ford, in the center of which now stands the monu- ment erected to the memory of Gen Steadman and the Hartford county soldiers who participated in the war of the Rebellion, and toward the erection of which monument Mr. Barker also gave so much of his influence. The funds for the patriotic work came in the main from the regiments, and friends of the members of those regiments, that were en- camped on the grounds (Mr. Barker's farm) on Campfield avenue during the Civil war days, one object of the monument being a commemoration of that fact. The dedication took place Oct. 4, 1900, with a monster parade, stirring addresses be- ing delivered by the Governor of the State and others. It may not be out of place here to mention that, while Mr. Barker operated a sawmill in his younger days, he it was who sawed up the historic "Charter Oak" tree. He is a genial whole-souled man, having ever in view the advancement of his adopted city and county, and the furtherance of all movements tending toward the happiness and pros- perity of the people at large.

HON. NOBLE EMERSON PIERCE, who is associated in the practice of law with Hon. Marcus H. Holcomb, under the firm name of Holcomb &' Pierce, at No. 213 Main street. Bristol, and in the Sage-Allen Building, at No. 902 Main street. Hart- ford, was born in Bristol, July 31, 1854, and de- scends from an old Bristol family, whose ancient homestead, now occupied by his father. Julius E. Pierce, is still one of the most noticeable land- marks of the town. This unique and antique build- ing may be partially described here, and its history given before recording the biography proper of the subject of this sketch.

The building is an oblong structure, two stories high, is surmounted with three chimneys, and is built in three sections in a straight line, on King street. The middle third of the house was built by Ebenezer Barnes in 1728; later the north third and the south third were added to provide accon- modations for a son and daughter, respectively. on their marriage; the exact date of these additions

John to Barker

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is not known. Amos Barnes sold the property to Abraham Pierce, of Southbury, Nov. 29, 1797. Upon his death it descended to his son, Noble A. Pierce, and upon his death it descended to his children-Mrs. Jared Goodrich, of Plainville, Mrs. H. M. Welch, of New Haven ( both now deceased). E. N. Pierce, of Plainville, and Julius E. Pierce- E. N. Pierce and Mrs. Welch having since con- veved their share to their brother, Julius E. The place has therefore been in the Pierce family for a century, and Mr. Pierce's grand-children are the fifth generation of the family that have slumbered beneath its giant rafters.

The original purchase ran about half a mile east of the homestead, and as far west as the old Episcopal cemetery, near the school house in district No. I; it also included three-fourths of a mill "seat," the whole of a gristmill, and the tools and implements thereto belonging, one-half of a saw- mill and implements, the whole of the south side of the river, three-fourths of the dam, and pondage privilege. This dam was located about two rods westerly of the present stone dam of the Bristol Brass & Clock Co. The consideration paid for the whole property was fourteen hundred ( 1,400) pounds.

Abraham Pierce was accompanied by his sons, Calvin, Philo, and Noble. Philo married Sally Norton, and built the house now owned by James Kane, standing between the Pierce homestead and the bank of the river ; he afterward removed to the Norton homestead, belonging to his wife's family, which stood very nearly on the same site as the present residence of Edward Pierce, his grandson, near Lake Compounce.

From the time of the purchase by the Pierces until about 1835 the place was kept as a tavern. The road from Bristol to Forestville is modern, but the north and south road that passes directly in front of the house, a few rods of which are used by the Bristol and Forestville road, is an old Queen's highway, and was the great thoroughfare for the cartage of grain from northern Connecti- cut and Massachusetts to New Haven, for ship- ment by vessel to the West Indies. The Pierce tavern was about a day's journey from New Haven, and much patronized by the teamsters, who made it their last stopping-place for the night before reach- ing the city, and the first stopping-place for the night on their way home.

Julius Emerson Pierce, father of Senator Noble E. Pierce, was born in the old Pierce mansion, in Bristol, Jan. 18, 1825. He was educated in the common schools of his native town, and after leav- ing these institutions of learning took charge of his father's farm, which was very large compared with the farms of the present day. On May 30, 1849, he married Miss Huldah Botsford, who was born Nov. 5, 1822, and is a daughter of Amadeus and Huldah (Merriam) Botsford, of Kensington, Berlin town, Hartford Co., Conn. To this mar-

riage have been born two children: Noble E., the subject of this sketch, is the elder. Annie So- phronia, born Feb. 6, 1859, was married May 2, 1888, to Frank A. Haviland, of East Boston, Mass., born March 10, 1862, a son of John B: Haviland. Mr. and Mrs. Haviland have had two children, Julius Edward, born June 15, 1889, who died July 7 1898; and Calvin Pierce, born Oct. 23. 1893. Mr. Haviland is a member of the Order of the Sons of Veterans ; of Ethan Lodge, No. 9. Knights of Pythias; of the Knights of Khorrasson ; and of the Royal Arcanum ; in politics he is a Republican, and in religion both he and his wife are Baptists. Julius E. Pierce and wife are members of the Baptist church, and in politics Mr. Pierce is a Democrat, but has always declined accepting office when proffered.

Noble Abram Pierce, father of Julius E. Pierce, and son of Abraham Pierce (who died in 1803), came to Bristol in 1797, and there passed the re- mainder of his days, dying Oct. 29, 1834. It was Abraham who purchased and brought into the fan- ily the old mansion on King street, built in 1728, and described at the opening of this memoir. Al- though a farmer by vocation Noble A. Pierce also engaged in making horn cobs and inkstands. In 1809 he married Miss Lydia Gridley, who was born in 1783, and died in 1874, at the advanced age of ninety-one years, and was the mother of four children. In politics Noble A. Pierce was a Demo- crat when there were only eleven Democrats in the town of Bristol; in religion he was a Baptist, and a member of the building committee of huis church. Deacon John Pierce, antecedent of Abraham, set- tled in Wethersfield, Conn., in 1731, but removed to Woodbury a few years later.

Hon. Noble E. Pierce, whose birthplace was the ancient mansion already alluded to, was primarily educated in the common schools of Bristol and at the Connecticut Literary Institute, at Suffield. He was graduated from the Connecticut State Normal School in 1873, from the Albany (New York) Law School in May, 1876, and was admitted to the Bar at Albany May 18, of the same year. Dir- ing 1873-74-75 Mr. Pierce taught the lower Middle school at Ansonia, and read law with Judge V. . Munger during the same period. Mr. Pierce be- gan the practice of law at Angelica, N. Y., in 1876, and remained there until May, 1878, when he came to Connecticut and was admitted to the Bar at Hartford. He has been connected with the school board of Bristol since 1887, and was chairman of district committee No. 1; was treasurer of Hart- ford county from 1893 to 1895; and was a member of the Connecticut State Senate from the Fourth District from 1891 to 1895. This included the memorable dead-lock session of 1891-92. In both sessions he was the Democratic leader. As justice of the peace of Hartford county Mr. Pierce ad- ministered the oath of office to Gov. Morris and his associates, and during the two years that fol-

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lowed he was the recognized mouthpiece of the Democratic side of the Senate. In the session of 1893 he was chairman of the committee on Cities and Boroughs, which committee, after six weeks of public hearings, reported the General Street Rail- way Law of 1893. The work of sifting the vari- ous suggestions offered, and the drafting of the bill, were left almost entirely to Senator Pierce. The committee considered one hundred and fifty- three applications for street railway charters, and during the session the charter of almost every city in the State was either completely revised or ma- terially amended. As chairman of the committee Mr. Pierce gave careful attention to each of these applications, and in many cases rewrote and revised them.

Senator Pierce is well and favorably known as a campaign orator. He stumped New York State in the Tilden campaign against Hayes in 1876, and stumped Connecticut in every subsequent Pres- idential contest, with the exception of the last. Mr. Pierce is a member of Franklin Lodge, No. 56, Free and Accepted Masons ; Pequabuck Chap- ter, No. 32, Royal Arch Masons, of Bristol; and of Clark Commandery, No. 7. Knights Templar, of Waterbury. He is also a member of Ethan Lodge, No. 9, Knights of Pythias, of Bristol.

Senator Pierce first married, July 16, 1879, Miss Hattie Kendall, of Angelica, N. Y., daughter of Z. A. Kendall. She died Oct. 26, 1895, and Sen- ator Pierce later married Miss Ettie Merriam, of Washington, N. C., daughter of Capt. James E. Merriam. To the first marriage were born: Ger- trude, Dec. 24, 1883; and Kendall, May 26, 1888. Mr. Pierce is a director in the Free Public Library of Bristol; he was instrumental in organizing the Bristol Electric Light Co., 1886, and was a director until it was consolidated with the B. & P. T. Co., of which he was first president, and is now vice- president ; he is also a director in the same com- pany, and is a director in and treasurer of the Hartford & Torrington Tramway Co. He was also instrumental in securing the charter for the bor- ough of Bristol, and in securing the high school for the town.

JOEL WILLARD UPSON descended from one of the old families of New England, and traced his line of descent from Thomas Upson, of the fifth generation back, and one of the original pro- prietors of Farmington, Conn. Thomas Upson married Elizabeth Fuller in 1646, and died July 19, 1655, the father of the following children : Thomas, who died in Saybrook, whither he had moved ; Stephen ; Mary ; Hannah ; and Elizabeth, who died July 20, 1655.

Stephen Upson, son of the above-named Thomas, born in 1650, was married Dec. 29, 1682, to Mary, daughter of John Lee, Sr., of Farming- ton. Stephen was a surveyor. In 1679 he removed to Waterbury, where he became a school commis-

sioner ; grand juryman; three times a deputy to the General Court (in 1710, 1712 and 1729) ; and a sergeant in 1715 and 1729, and he had a seat with the veterans in the new meeting-house. He lost his wife Feb. 15, 1715-16, and his own death took place Nov. 5, 1735. Their children were : Mary, born Nov. 5, 1683, married to Richard Welton; Stephen, born Sept. 30, 1686; Elizabeth, born Feb. 14, 1689-90, married Thomas Bronson ; Thomas, born March 1, 1692-93; Hannah, born March 16, 1695, first married Thomas Richards, and later wedded John Bronson; Tabitha, born March II, 1698, married John Scovill, Jr .; John, born Dec. 13, 1702; and Thankful, born March 14, 1706-07, married James Blakeslee.

Thomas Upson, son of Stephen, married Rachel, daughter of Deacon Thomas Judd, of Waterbury. I11 1732-33 he removed to Farmington, afterward Southington, now southeastern Wolcott, and died Sept. 29, 1761, the father of the following family : Thomas, born Dec. 20, 1719; Mary and John (twins), born Jan. 21, 1721 ( Mary married Josiah Newell, of Southington, and John died in 1741) ; Josiah, born Jan. 28, 1724-25; Asa, born Nov. 30, 1728; Timothy, born Oct. 8, 1731; Amos, born March 17, 1734; Samuel, born March 8, 1737; and Freeman, born July 24, 1739, ( died in 1750).

Timothy Upson, son of Thomas, married De- light Norton March 25, 1755. He was a farmer, and lived in Southington. He was a member of the Congregational Church, and was a more than ordinarily good man. He died Sept. 4, 1799, at the age of sixty-eight years, while his widow sur- vived him until Feb. 24, 1828, when she passed away at the extreme old age of ninety-four. Their children were: Trypliena, born Sept. 1, 1756, was married to Stephen Carter; Freelove, born March 22. 1759, married James Smith, of Southington ; Sarah, born June 20, 1761, married Dr. Samuel Towner, and removed to Vermont; Ashbel, born March 19, 1764; Timothy, born Sept. 21, 1766; Delight, born March II, 1769, married Moses Todd, and removed to Vermilion, Ohio; Seth, born June 21, 1771 ; Martin, born March 29, 1774, died Feb. 7, 1777; Selah, born May 20, 1776; and Freeman, born June 16, 1781.

Selah Upson, son of Timothy, was married in October, 1802, to Martha, daughter of David Hitch- cock, of Southington. At this time he came to Wol- cott, where he built a house upon a portion of his father's farm. Here he continued to live until his death, which occurred June 3, 1854, his wife sur- viving until Dec. 31, 1863. They were both faith- ful members of the Congregational Church. Mr. Upson was a man of few words, but possessed of strong character and good judgment, and was much relied upon in church and town affairs. Their children were: Sabrina, born Aug. 21, 1804, mar- ried Chester Thorpe, of Southington, Feb. 9, 1825; Martha, born Aug. 28, 1807, was married to Mark Tuttle, of Wolcott, April 12, 1827; Henry Doolit-

Joel Houepson

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tle, born Oct. 5, 1809, married Polly Tuttle, of Wolcott; Emily, born June 24, 1814, died June 28, 1815; Emily Maria, born April 16, 1817, died Sept. 13, 1865; Miles Selah, born Dec. 6, 1820, married Mary Hough; and Joel Willard.

Joel Willard Upson was born in Wolcott Jan. 10, 1823. He was a farmer by vocation, and also a dealer in wood and timber. In politics he was a Republican, but would never consent to accept pub- lic office. Always interested in educational affairs, he occasionally served on the school committee. He was a member of the Congregational Church (of which his wife was also a faithful adherent ), and a quiet, unassuming man, universally respected for his sterling integrity and many excellent per- sonal merits. Early in life he developed energy and business ability, as well as caution, and what- ever he undertook in a business line was carried through with success. Quick to discern and appre- ciate superior merits in others, he was seldom deceived in the character of those with whom he came in contact, and almost never placed confi- dence in those unworthy of it. He was a man of refined taste, and all things of beauty, both in na- ture and in art, appealed strongly to his sensibili- ties. He never belonged to a club or secret order, and was ever to be found in the midst of the family circle when the business of the day was ended. In 1876 he sold his farm in Wolcott, where the active years of his life had been spent, and moved to Bristol. remaining there until his death.

Mr. Upson was happily joined in marriage Oct. 4, 1855, with Miss Eleanor Gaylord, who was born Jan. 4, 1831, and was a daughter of Jesse and Lois (Alcott) Gaylord, of Bristol, and a lineal descendant of Deacon William Gaylord, who came from Exeter, England, to Dorchester, Mass., in the spring of 1630. Deacon William Gaylord was de- scended from a family of Huguenots who left Nor- mandy for Western England in 1550-51. Mrs. L'p- son died Sept. 18, 1885, and Mr. Upson followed her to the grave Aug. 31, 1891. To this couple were born six children, of whom but two are living, Lena J. and Ella .A. Upson, both residents of Bristol.

JOIN WINSLOW, justice of the peace, assis- tant prosecuting attorney, and eminent as a lawyer of Bristol, was born in Dublin, Ireland, Oct. 31, 1844. and is a son of John and Eliza ( Devlin) Winslow, natives of County Tyrone.

John Winslow, the father, was born Sept. 19, 1806, learned the business of carpet cutter and fitter, and July 31, 1833, married Miss Devlin, who bore him ten children, the eldest of whom, Sarah, was born July 8, 1834; then followed, in order, Robert, Eliza. William and Thomas (twins that died in infancy ), William Thomas, John ( subject ), Olivia, Eliza and Jane-the youngest born Sept. 20. 1852. In June, 1856, the family came to Amer- ica. landing in New York, went thence to Canada West, and located in what is now known as Thorold,

Welland county, where the father kept a hotel until 1860, at which time he came with his family to New Hartford, Litchfield Co., Conn., and went to work in the Greenwood Co.'s cotton factory. During the last years of his life he resided first with a daughter in New Haven, then with his son John in Bristol, and died at the home of his youngest daughter in Middlebury, Feb. 6, 1891, aged eighty-four.

John Winslow, the subject of this sketch, at- tended the National (or public) schools of his na- tive city of Dublin until the departure of the family for America, when he was twelve years of age. At Thorold his studies were continued until he was fourteen years old, and he then worked for a year in a printing office. On the removal of the family to New Hartford, Conn., our subject worked about two years in the Greenwood cotton factory with his father, then went to Tariffville and worked for the Hartford Carpet Co. until its factory was destroyed by fire, in June, 1867, and during this interval mas- tered the machinist's trade. After this conflagra- tion Mr. Winslow was obliged to seek new quarters, and went to New Haven, there working as a ma- chinist until 1874, when he came to Bristol, worked for S. Emerson Root, at the same trade, for three years, for Everett Horton four years, and two years for the Bristol Brass & Clock Co. His first venture in business on his own account was the opening of a repair shop on Root's Island, in partnership with Roswell Attsins, under the firm name of Winslow & Attsins, and this was continued until 1887, when Mr. Winslow sold out.

Mr. Winslow now began the study of law under Senator Noble E. Pierce, and in February, 1889, was admitted to the bar at Hartford. He at once formed a partnership with his former preceptor, and the firm of Pierce & Winslow were very prosperous until August, 1893, when the partnership was dis- solved, and Mr. Winslow went into business for himself, in Bristol, where he has since had a phe- romenally good practice. In politics Mr. Wins- low is a stanch Republican. He was elected a justice of the peace in 1889, and has ever since filled that office; he was clerk of the borough of Bristol for two years, and is also a member of the Republican town committee ; on March 21, 1895. he was appointed assistant prosecuting attorney, by Judge Roger S. Newell, when the office was created, and retained the position till he had a stroke of apoplexy, June 24, 1900. Fraternally Mir. Winslow is a member of Franklin Lodge, No. 56, F. & A. M., of which he is a past worship- ful master.

Mr. Winslow has been twice married. On May 3. 1868, he was united in marriage with Miss Clara Pomeroy, of New Haven, who was born in 1839, and died Oct. 24, 1875, the mother of two chil- chien : Emma Eliza, born Feb. 1, 1869, now teach- ing school in Hartford; and John Pomeroy, born Oct. 7. 1871. now employed by the Eagle Lock Co., of Terryville, Litchfield county. The second

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marriage of Mr. Winslow took place April 8, 1877, when Miss Esther Matthews, of Bristol, a daugh- ter of David Matthews, and born in 1836, became his wife. That Mr. Winslow is a gentleman who through his innate talents has risen unaided to his present eminent position is too palpable a proposi- tion to admit of discussion.

SIDNEY ELBRIDGE CLARKE, who has been identified with the legal profession in Hartford for nearly twenty years, was born Feb. 16, 1851, in Peterboro, N. H., son of Eldridge W. and Sarah P. (Chamberlin) Clarke.

Mr. Clarke received his primary education in the district schools of Peterboro, later attended the public schools of Hartford, Conn., and the Hart- ford Public High School. In 1881 he graduated from Yale Law School, and the same year was ad- mitted to the Bar in New Haven county, and he began practice at Hartford Sept. 1, 1881, having continued there ever since with unvarying success. Mr. Clarke has been quite prominent in the public affairs of the city, having served in the Court of Common Council from the Fifth ward in 1884, as member of the board of school visitors in West Hartford for three years, and from 1884 to 1897 as member of that board in Hartford, being sec- retary of same for three years. His services have ever been characterized by the highest efficiency and fidelity to duty.

On May 19, 1893, Mr. Clarke was united in mar- riage with Miss Mary Moore Robinson, daughter of Thomas and Margaret (Moore) Robinson, of Middletown, Conn., and they have one child, Ar- thur Robinson, born June 15, 1895. Mr. Clarke is a member of Wyllys Lodge, No. 99, F. & A. M., West Hartford, and has attained the thirty-second degree in the Fraternity, being also a member of the Mystic Shrine ; he also united with Crescent Lodge, Knights of Pythias, and with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. His political allegiance is given to the Democratic party.

LUCIUS H. UTLEY. For over one hundred years the home at No. 55 Blue Hills avenue, Hart- ford, has been occupied by the Utley family, and there the head of the present family, Lucius H. Utley, was born Sept. 25, 1828, a son of Henry Utley, who was also born in the same house. The family are but the third generation from the founder in this section. Joseph Utley came here from Rhode Island in the early days ; he was a minister and circuit rider, and also founded the Baptist Church at Albany, N. Y., to which place he rode for services. All New England knew Elder Utley, and when he died it was to leave to his family an untarnished reputation and the memory of a sainted life. His wife was Temperance Horton, a native of Gilead, Conn., who bore him three children, all long since deceased.

Henry Utley was a tanner, and carried on busi-

ness for many years in a large tannery that stood on the old homestead. He spent his entire life here, and died, in 1861, in a house adjoining the present one, when he was aged sixty-six years. In poli- tics he was a Republican. He married Mary Baker, a native of Brooklyn, Conn., and a daugh- ter of Parde Baker, who came from Brooklyn to Hartford in 1814, and purchased a farm near the Utley homestead, also engaging as a brick manu- facturer ; he died at the age of eighty years. Mrs. Mary (Baker) Utley became the mother of seven children, three of whom are living: Lucy, who married Anson Mills, of Bloomfield; Elizabeth, who married Charles L. Tuttle ; and Lucius H., our sub- ject. The mother died in 1867, at the age of sixty- five years. Henry Utley and his family were all members of the Baptist Church.

Lucius H. Utley passed his early years at home, and received such preliminary education as the city schools afforded, later attending an academy at Buffalo. On his return from school he assisted his father in farming until the latter's death, when our subject bought out the other heirs, and now owns the entire homestead, consisting of sixty-five acres. He raises quite a large quantity of tobacco, and is now running a retail milk route, keeping thirty-five cows, for the most part Jerseys. For a number of years he engaged in buying cattle through the New England States, and has in every way proven himself a fine business man, meeting with good success in every line he has undertaken.

In 1854 Mr. Utley was united in marriage with Miss Sarah J. House, of Hartford, Conn., a daugh- ter of Truman B. and Sarah ( Hubbard) House, the former of whom was a carpenter, and when Mrs. Utley was a child brought his family from Glastonbury to Hartford, where he learned his trade; he then located in Westfield, Mass., later returning to Hartford. His death occurred in New Britain in 1875, when he was aged sixty-eight years. In every respect he was a self-made man, and his fortune, which at the beginning of his career was but fifty cents, at its close was $40,000. Sarah (Hubbard) House was a native of Glastonbury, a daughter of Ira and Anna (Stratton) Hubbard. the former of whom was a son of Jonathan Hubbard, an early settler of Glastonbury, and was a cabinet maker by trade. Mrs. Anna (Stratton) Hubbard was a native of Glastonbury, and became the mother of six children.

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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 72

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