Commemorative biographical record of Hartford County, Connecticut : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families, Pt 2, Part 26

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 1172

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 2 > Part 26

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).

Samuel Knox, our subject's father, was born in November, 1816, in Hampden county, Mass., where he grew to manhood. After his marriage he re- sided for a time on a farm at Blandford, but later he removed to Chester, Mass., and in 1866 he lo- cated at Suffield and took charge of the stage line between that village and Windsor Locks. Suffield was a busy center for the tobacco business in those days, and the line was well patronized, but as the old hotel in the village had been abandoned travelers had great difficulty in securing accommodations. This fact led to our subject, then a young lad, suggesting the advisability of furnishing suitable entertainment, and as Samuel Knox had accumu- lated a little capital by industry and economy it was

invested in the hotel owned by Nelson Wright. The venture proved successful from the start, and soon he was obliged to enlarge the house, so large was the patronage. He was a man of fine abilities and sound judgment and, although he started in life without means or education, he acquired a com- fortable competence. For some years he dealt ex- tensively in horses, but his attention was chiefly given to the management of the hotel, which was continued by his two sons after his death. In poli- tics he was a stanch Republican, but never sought or held office. In person he was short and stout ; although he seemed to possess a good constitution he did not attain advanced years, his death oc- curring in 1872. His remains were first placed in a vault, and in the spring were interred in the new Woodlawn cemetery at Suffield, being the first to be interred there. On May 8, 1837, he was mar- ried, at Harwinton, Conn., to Miss Emily Jane Catlin, a native of that town, and three children were born of the union. (1) Watson E., a graduate of the normal school at Westfield, Mass., and Wesleyan University, at Middletown, Conn., is now a prom- inent clergyman in the Methodist Episcopal Church, being stationed at present at Waltham, Mass. Few ministers have been as successful as he in building new churches and clearing others from debt, and he is deservedly popular wherever he has been sent. (2) Waldo S., our subject, is mentioned more fully below. (3) Wallace C. is mentioned below.

Mrs. Emily J. (Catlin) Knox, whose efficient help was a leading factor in the success of the hotel, now makes lier home with her son, Wallace. She was born Aug. 5, 1820, and was reared at Har- winton, where her parents, Jacob O. and Diana (Wilcox) Catlin, resided upon a farm. Her father was a prominent citizen of that locality and for many years served as justice of the peace. She was the youngest in a family of eight children, of whom she is the only survivor. Of the others, Anna married Isaac Fenn, of Plymouth, and died at Otis, Mass., aged sixty-six years; George was a successful merchant in South Carolina, later in Leavenworth, Kans., and he died in New Haven at the age of seventy-three; Rhoda married Syl- vester Palmer, of Otis, Mass., and died there, aged seventy-five; Sheldon G., a prominent merchant in South Carolina and later in Leavenworth, Kans., died in the latter place at eighty-seven years of age : Artemisia married Abijah B. Knox, and died at Westfield, Mass., at the age of eighty-six years; Lorenzo died when nineteen while yet at home ; and Sophronia married George Adams, of New Hartford, where she died aged seventy-five years.

As a boy Waldo S. Knox attended the public schools of the localities in which his parents re- sided, and for a short time was a student in Wil- braham College. His excellent business ability be- came apparent at an early age, and in the fall of 1866, after his father had purchased the stage route at Suffield, he came alone to take charge of it, the

S94

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

family not arriving until the following spring. He drove the stage for some time, making four trips a day, and, as stated above, the opening of the hotel was at his suggestion, its success demonstrating his shrewd judgment, even in boyhood. After his father's death he assumed the cares of the estate readily, carrying on the hotel and stage business with his brother, Wallace, and continuing the trade in horses, which was then well established. His purchases were chiefly made in New York and Con- necticut, but he made annual trips to Iowa, bring- ing large numbers of horses east for sale. He be- came known as an excellent judge of horses, his deals being uniformly profitable, and in his time has owned many valuable specimens. The com- pletion of the Suffield branch of the New York, New Haven & Hartford railroad caused the stage line to be abandoned, but the brothers carried on the hotel until 1888, when they sold out and turned their attention to the culture of tobacco; for some years they were also interested in packing. Our subject was a stockholder in the Suffield Water Works Co., and has been identified with different enterprises connected with local improvement and the general advancement of the community, serv- ing ten years as president of the Suffield Agricult- ural Society. His political influence has always been used in favor of the Republican party, and in 1890 he was elected to the State Legislature, where his services were marked by the same business-like methods that have proved so successful in his private affairs.

On Dec. 28, 1870, Mr. Knox married Miss Maria Brackett, a native of Blandford, Mass., whose father, Benajah Brackett, a well-known agricult- urist, settled in Suffield during her girlhood. The only child of this marriage, Carrie, died when nine years old. On retiring from the hotel Mr. and Mrs. Knox removed to the Baptist parsonage, and in the spring of 1889 our subject bought property on Main street from Capt. Gillett, which he and his brother, Wallace, occupied together for about nine years. In 1898 our subject finished building a handsome modern residence, one of the finest in Suffield, where he expects to pass the afternoon of life in comfort. He and his wife are prominent in social life, and he belongs to Apollo Lodge, No. 59, F. & A. M., and Gideon Granger Lodge, No. 62, K. P., at Suffield.

WALLACE C. KNOX, the junior member of the firm of Knox Brothers, was born Oct. 7, 1854, at Blandford, Mass., and attended the common schools of that town and of Chester, Mass., and at Suffield, this county. He also studied in the Connecticut Literary Institute at Suffield and the Eastman Business College at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and be- ing more inclined to business life than to books he immediately after his father's death devoted his energies to the hotel in partnership with our sub- ject. In their present business of farming he has shown capacity for successful management, and has

won a high reputation in the community, having been elected continuously for a number of years as treasurer of the.Suffield Agricultural Society. He is also a stockholder in the Suffield Water Works Co., and his enterprise and public spirit have been manifested in various ways. Socially he and his wife are much esteemed, and he is a member of Apollo Lodge, No. 59, F. & A. M., at Suffield, while Mrs. Knox is an active worker in the Con- gregational Church. Politically he affiliates with the Republican party. He married Miss Kitty Sykes, of Suffield, a daughter of Frank and Jane (Allen) Sykes, and they have one child, Helen E., born Dec. 24, 1890.

EDWIN WELLES, a well-known and honored citizen of Newington, belongs to one of the oldest and most distinguished Connecticut families, one that has been quite prominent in both civil and military affairs. He is a lineal descendant of Gov. Thomas Welles, who was born in England in 1596, and at an early day in the history of this country emigrated to the New World. He served as gov- ernor of Connecticut in 1655 and 1658 and died in Wethersfield, this State, Jan. 14, 1659-60. From him our subject traces his ancestry through the following :

(II) John Welles, born in England in 1621, followed agricultural pursuits throughout life, and died in Stratford, Conn., in 1659.

(III) Capt. Robert Welles, born in 1651, was made captain of the train-band of the north end of Wethersfield in September, 1689. He died June 22, 1714.

(IV) Capt. Gideon Welles, born in 1686, died March 28, 1740. He was appointed ensign of the North Company of Wethersfield in May, 1725, lieu- tenant in May, 1731, and captain in May, 1735.

(V) Col. Solomon Welles, born Oct. 6, 1721, died Sept. 18, 1802. He graduated from Yale in 1739, and later was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the Sixth Battalion of Foot.

(VI) Gen. Roger Welles, born in Wethersfield Dec. 29, 1753, died May 27, 1795. He graduated from Yale in 1775, and taught school in Wethers- field until the Revolutionary war broke out, when he entered the Colonial service, taking an active part in the conflict until hostilities ceased. He was captain of a company of picked men, none less than six feet tall, and served under Gen. La- Fayette in the siege of Yorktown. He was present at the surrender of Cornwallis. After the war he was married, March 27, 1785, to Jemima Kellogg, daughter of Capt. Martin and Mary (Boardman) Kellogg, and located in Newington, where he made his home until his death. He was commissioned general in the state militia of Connecticut, and was a member of the General Assembly at the time of his death. He was a tall man, six feet, two inches in his stockings, had light brown hair and blue eyes, and was of commanding appearance. Dur-

895

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

ing the war he was wounded by a bayonet thrust in the leg Oct. 14, 1781, and in token of his friend- ship Gen. LaFayette presented him with a sword.

(VII) Roger Welles, born Aug. 10, 1790, was the younger of two sons, and was left fatherless at the age of four years. As his brother, Martin, entered Yale College the whole care of the farm devolved upon him at the age of fourteen years, and from that time until his mother's death, in 1829. he had charge of the family homestead. He continued to live in the ancestral home until it was destroyed by fire in September, 1855, when he erected a good brick residence near the Congrega- tional church in Newington, there spending the re- mainder of his days, He was married, April 16, 1815, by Rev. Joab Brace, to Miss Electa Stanley, who was born in July, 1796, and died Oct. 25, 1880. Her father was Timothy Stanley, formerly of New Britain and later of Marietta, Ohio. Roger Welles died of typhoid fever Nov. 18, 1859, in Newington. He was a man of large frame, broad shoulders and nearly six feet tall and of athletic physical powers, the result of a good constitution and a life of temperance and simple habits spent in personal toil upon his farm. In his youth he was somewhat noted as a wrestler and for his feats of strength and agility. He was a man of practical mind, sound common sense, excellent judgment, sterling integrity and Christian uprightness, was conscientious and true to his convictions. He carried on a distillery for some years where cider brandy was manufactured, until the Washingtonian temperance movement appealed to his conscience, and he abandoned the business. For about twenty years he was the trusted treasurer of the Ecclesi- astical Society in Newington, and as a citizen was always prompt to help forward any good work by his encouragement and financial support. In 1844 he was a member of the General Assembly, repre- senting the town of Wethersfield, which then em- braced Newington. In his family were the follow- ing children: (1) Frances Norton, born April 12, 1816, was married, March 17, 1836, to Heze- kiah Griswold, and died Feb. 25, 1865. (2) Ed- win, the subject of this sketch, is next in order of birth. (3) Charlotte Jemima, born Dec. 20, 1820, was married Dec. 20, 1841, to Baldwin Hart, of Madison, and died March 31, 1858. (4) Julia, born March 5. 1823, married, Aug. 23, 1843, Henry Olmstead, of East Hartford, and removed to Dun- lap. Iowa, where she died Feb. 2, 1877. (5) Abi- gail, born Oct. 30, 1825, was married Nov. 25, 1852, to John D. Seymour, of Newington. (6) Roger, born March 7, 1829, was married at Prairie du Chien, Wis., June 16, 1858, to Mercy Delano Aiken, daughter of Lemuel S. Aiken, of Fairhaven, Mass. (7) Electa Stanley, born Aug. 15, 1832, was married April 13. 1858, to Coleman E. Wheeler, and died Jan. 10, 1861.

Edwin Welles, our subject, was born March 29, 1818, in the old homestead in Newington, which stood on the opposite side of the road from his

present residence. He was provided with a good common-school and academic education, pursuing his studies in Newington, Westfield, East Hartford and New Britain. At an early age he entered a company of horse under Gen. Pratt, and met for a few times with the company for officers' drill, appearing in the street under Capt. Stephen Mor- gan, but his military career was suddenly ended by ill health. His entire life has been passed on the home farm, and in connection with agricultural pursuits he was engaged in business as a manu- facturer for a number of years.

In Newington, Jan. 20, 1853, Mr. Welles was united in marriage with Miss Lucy Lowry Robbins, a daughter of Unni and Sarah ( Dunham) Robbins, granddaughter of Gideon Dunham, and a great- granddaughter of the somewhat famous David Lowry. Three children were born of this union : Fanny Augusta is at home : Mary Robbins is mar- ried to Elford B. Eddy, of New Britain, and has three children, Elford Welles, Stanley Robbins and Margaret Ames; Charles Edwin is now engaged in the banking and stock exchange business as a member of the firm of Welles, Herrick & Hicks, No. 15 Wall street, New York City; he married Mary Ames de Steiguer, of Athens, Ohio, who died in April, 1893.

Mr. Welles has ever taken an active interest in political affairs, first as a Whig and later as a Republican, and has held a number of town offices. He was also elected by the Legislature a county commissioner for two successive terms of three years cach, serving from 1861 to 1867, and in 1861 represented Newington in the State Legislature. He and his family are active members of the Con- gregational Church, and for ten years he served as clerk of the Ecclesiastical Society. He is also a member of the Connecticut Society, Sons of the American Revolution. He commands the respect and esteem of all who know him on account of his sterling worth and many excellencies of character. Mr. Welles is five feet, ten and a half inches it: height, and of medium build.

WILLIAM SUMNER GOSLEE (deceased). For many years this upright, conscientions attorney was a practitioner at Glastonbury. His life was an example of painstaking and successful professional effort, for whatever cause he espoused received his carnest and thorough support. He was renowned as a lawyer, and practiced among the people whom he had known from childhood, for he was a native of the town of Glastonbury.

Mr. Goslee was a descendant of an old Connecti- cut family, which first settled in Buckingham. James Goslee, the father of our subject, was for many years a farmer of Buckingham, where both he and his brother, Thomas, were large land holders. James Goslee married Polly Sumner, a native of Hebron, and to them were born five children : Wil- liam S., our subject : Philura, who married Lafay- ette Bosworth, of Vernon, and now lives at the old

896

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

homestead in Buckingham; Jemima, who married Gilbert Strickland, of Buckingham, where she now resides ; Rhoda, who married E. B. Treat, a pub- lisher in New York city, and died in May, 1899, her husband and five children surviving her and living in New York ; and Timothy, who died young.

William S. Goslee was born Aug. 15, 1832, in Buckingham. His boyhood days were spent on the home farm, while he attended the neighboring schools. Desiring a higher education, he became a student in the excellent academy, then at Bucking- ham, and later attended Williston Seminary, Wil- liston, Mass. While a student there, aged nineteen years, his father died. He returned home and took charge of the farm for a time, and later pursued his studies at the New Britain Normal School. Choos- ing the profession of law as his life vocation, he en- tered the office of Judge Loren P. Waldo, at Tol- land, as a student. While reading law he taught school during the winter in his native district. Upon his admission to the Bar Mr. Goslee returned to Glastonbury, and there began a practice which he continued uninterruptedly until his death. In poli- tics he was a Whig in early life, and later a Republi- can. His political convictions were deep, and he became a leader in the local councils of his party. He served the town in various public capacities, and for several years was town clerk. During the pe- riod the Legislature met at New Haven, in 1870, he was elected and served as State senator, having previously served as assistant clerk in the Legisla- ture, and as representative of his town in that body. He was a man of superior intelligence, was an oni- niverous reader, and, possessing a retentive memory, was well informed upon professional and public matters.

Mr. Goslee was married, Oct. 30, 1861, to Miss Mary T. Storrs, who was born at Mansfield, Conn., May 30, 1835, daughter of Dan P. and Mary S. (So- lace) Storrs. To our subject and wife were born two children, one that died in infancy; and Henry Storrs, who was born Sept. 12, 1872, and was edu- cated in the common and select schools of Glaston- bury, and at Williston Seminary. By a curious co- incidence, when his father died he was at the same school, and at the same age as his father when the father of the latter died. Henry Storrs graduated from Williston in June, 1892. He spent two years in New York University, and is now practicing law at Hartford. He was married April 28, 1898, to Lulu E. Wright, of Glastonbury.

Mr. Goslee, our subject, died at his home in Glas- tonbury, March 31, 1892, aged fifty-nine years, and was mourned by a wide circle of friends and ac- quaintances. He was a prominent member of Das- kam Lodge, F. & A. M., and filled the chair of grand master. During the Civil war he was drafted, but owing to deafness he did not serve; nevertheless he furnished a substitute. He was a lifelong member of the Congregational Church, join- ing the church at Glastonbury at the early age of thirteen years. His prosperous professional career

was the result of his own individual efforts, and the self-reliance which he displayed in his earlier years no doubt enhanced the measure of his success. Mr. Goslee was a man of recognized literary tastes and ability, and possessed one of the finest libraries in Glastonbury. His life principles, exemplified in every act, won for him the entire confidence of his fellow men. At the time of his death Mr. Goslee was engaged in the compilation of a local history of Glastonbury, but the valuable historical data which he had collected at the expense of much time and trouble were lost, as the manuscript could not be found. Mrs. Goslee, his widow, still resides in the old home. She has proven a devoted wife and mother, and her faithful life has won for her the kind regard and high esteem of the community in which she lives.

LEAVITT POMEROY BISSELL, though one of the younger business men of Suffield, is an in- fluential factor in the welfare of that town, his extensive manufacturing enterprises supplying many people with employment. While the village is known as the "haven of beautiful homes," it has heretofore lacked any adequate means of supplying its laboring elements with profitable and steady work, and in investing his capital to meet this need Mr. Bissell has shown a wise appreciation of the obligations resting upon wealth. As a manufacturer of cigars and dealer in leaf tobacco he has estab- lished a high reputation, his product being shipped to all parts of the United States, and each year sees his capital increased by his thrifty manage- ment. He sells his goods, keeps his own books, is his own confidential clerk, and is thoroughly fa- miliar with the details of his business, yet with all his industry and application he is always genial and courteous as a companion, and finds time to lend effective and generous aid to many worthy public movements.

Mr. Bissell is of the eighth generation of his family in America, being a descendant of (I) John Bissell, Sr., who was born about 1591 in the County of Somerset, England, and came to Plymouth, Mass., in 1682. Previous to 1640 he removed to Windsor, Hartford county, and in 1648 or '49 he was granted by the Colony of Connecticut the sole right to run a ferry across the Connecticut river near Hayden's ·Station. This old ferry is still operated, but has been moved further down the stream.

(II) John Bissell, Jr., son of the pioneer, was born in England, and died in this county in 1693. He inherited the ferry from his father and con- tinued to operate it throughout life.

(III) Jeremiah Bissell, the next in line of de- scent, was born Feb. 22, 1677. He married Mehit- abel White and had a son, Samuel.

(IV) Samuel Bissell died Sept. 18, 1759. He was married, Aug. 1, 1746, to Mary Kibbe, of En .- field, this county, and among their children was a son, Isaac.

(V) Isaac Bissell, our subject's great-grandfa-

897

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

ther, was born in Windsor Jan. 25, 1749, and died July 28, 1822. He was the first of the family to locate in Suffield, and all of the name now residing there are his descendants. On July 4, 1776, he married Amelia Leavitt, who was born in 1757, and died Nov. 15, 1809. They had the following children : Amelia; Amelia (second) ; Isaac; Amelia (third) ; Samuel ; Sophia ; Harvey ; George; Asaph L., who is mentioned below; Betsey; Sally ; Luthera; and George (second).

(VI) Dr. Asaph L. Bissell, the grandfather of our subject, was born in Suffield Jan. 1, 1791, be- came a successful physician and an influential citi- zen of that locality. His judgment in business matters was exceptionally good. His death occurred Aug. 2, 1850. On June 3, 1819, he married Lucy Norton, daughter of Daniel and Lucy (King) Nor- ton, and they had eight children: Charles S., our subject's father : William N., born in 1823, died in 1843; Francis L., born in 1825; Mary, who died in childhood; Mary A., born Sept. 28, 1828, who married Horace E. Mather ; Emily L., born in 1831, who married N. S. Bouton, of Chicago, Ill., and died Sept. 12, 1857 ; Harvey L., born in 1834; and Eugene, born Nov. 1, 1839.

(VII) Charles S. Bissell, father of our subject, was born April 5, 1821, in Suffield, where he con- tinued to reside until his death, on Feb. 2, 1887. At an early age he began to manifest unusual busi- ness ability, and for many years he was one of the leading financiers of this section. He seemed to have an intuitive knowledge as to the worth of an investment, his opinions carrying much weight with his associates in business, and his ventures proved uniformly profitable. At one time he was a di- rector in the old Continental Insurance Co. Po- litically he was a strong Republican, but he never sought public honors as a reward for partisan work. In religious faith he was a Congregationalist, and his wealthi enabled him to assist in many worthy movements. He married Miss Maria E. Pomeroy, of Suffield, and had two children: Leavitt P., our subject ; and Charles C., a member of the firm of L. P. Bissell, Bro. & Co., of Suffield. The inother, who is still living, is now the wife of Charles G. Pomeroy, of Suffield. She was born in Suffield, the daughter of Chauncey and Maria Granger Pom- eroy, and is a sister of the late A. G. Pomeroy, the well-known tobacco dealer of Hartford, formerly of Suffiel 1.

(VIII) Leavitt P. Bissell was born April 18, 1865, and was educated in the public schools of Suf- field and the Connecticut Literary Institute, with one year of study at Wilbraham Academy. As a boy he gained many practical business ideas from observing his father's operations, and at nineteen he started upon his career by accepting a position as clerk in the home office of the Travelers In- surance Company at Hartford. His capabilities brought him one promotion after another until he was the second in rank in the auditing depart- ment, and after six years in the office he left it to 57

engage in business on his own account, as a men- ber of the firm of W. B. Drake & Co., cigar man- ufacturers of Suffield. Mr. Drake's death caused a change in the firm in February, 1895, our sub- ject becoming sole proprietor and conducting the firm under the name of L. P. Bissell with marked success, the output now averaging over a million cigars annually. In 1897 Mr. Bissell became in- terested in the leaf tobacco business as a partner in the firm of R. F. Brome & Co., soon afterward buying Mr. Brome's share in this concern. For a time he conducted both establishments alone, but in the fall of 1898 his brother joined him and they organized the firm of L. P. Bissell, Bro. & Co. He is also largely interested in growing tobacco, and was one of the original organizers of The Bissell Graves Co., of which he is secretary and treasurer. They own one of the finest tobacco farms in the Connecticut valley, located about two miles from Suffield Center, where they grow from seventy- five to one hundred acres of tobacco annually. Mr. Bissell's well-proven sagacity has made his co-op- eration or recognized value in other lines, and he has been connected with various corporate ventures ; is a director of the Suffield Water Works Co., and is a trustee of the Connecticut Literary Institution. of which he was secretary of the board for several years.

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

Commemorative biographical record of Hartford County, Connecticut : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families, Pt 2, Part 26

Author: J.H. Beers & Co Publication date: 1901 Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co. Number of Pages: 1172

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 1172