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 32

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 32

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Samuel Hotchkiss, a soldier in the Revolutionary war, was born in Cheshire, Conn., Oct. 22, 1755. and died March 19, 1843. He settled in Burling- ton, and engaged in farming. He was married in 1777 to Rachel Upson, of Bristol, who was born in 1754, and died June 23, 1833. Of their children, Mary Newell, born August, 1779, married Daniel Andruss. Isaac, born May, 1781, married Lucy Goodsel, and was killed July 14, 1819, by falling in the barn. Rachel, born in March, 1783, was re- markable for her beauty ; in 1804 she married Capt. John Spencer, who was born Aug. 8, 1782, and by whom she had ten children ; she died in May, 1820. Zenas, born in December, 1785, married Lydia Phelps. Lucretia married Elisha Cleveland. Sam- uel is mentioned below. Anson, born June 10, 1793, married Chloe Cook, and died May II, 1856. Lovisa, born in 1794, was the second wife of Capt. John Spencer, referred to above. Carlos, born in 1797, married Phila Clark, and settled in Burling- ton, on the old homestead.

Samuel Hotchkiss was born in Burlington Oct. 5, 1789, and died in New Hartford Jan. 6, 1859. He was a woodworker by occupation, and he took an active part in politics as a Whig, serving as a member of the Legislature. He was a Free- mason, and religiously a member of the Congrega- tional Church. On May 29, 1814, he was married

to Chloe Marsh, who was born Sept. 21, 1792, and they had children as follows: Eliza Ann, born April 19, 1815, died June 14, 1817. Abigail Marsh, born Nov. 2, 1816, married Selden Millard, and died June 15, 1898, at Arcata. Willard is men- tioned below. Wolcott, born July 17, 1820, died Dec. 7, 1839. Correll Upson, born July 22, 1822, was married April 14, 1850, to Laura Boyden ; their daughter, Miss Louise Hotchkiss, has been a school teacher of Collinsville. Eliza Ann, born May 29, 1824, was married May 22, 1846, to Francis N. Holley, of Torrington, and died May 15, 1866. Mi- nerva Rossiter, born June 2, 1826, was married Sept. 19, 1846, to Nelson G. Hinckley, of Hartford. Rob- ert was born June 9, 1828. Harriet, born May 28, 1830, died Jan. 24, 1874. George, born Feb. 21, 1833, now deceased, was a resident of Eureka, Cal. Eugene, born June 1, 1839, died in lowa Sept. 21, 1845.

Willard Hotchkiss, father of Mrs. Robinson, was born Aug. 18, 1818, at New Hartford, near Town Hill, and died May 18, 1868. He received a common-school education, and learned the trade of pattern maker, which he followed in New Hart- ford in connection with farming, becoming a suc- cessful man financially. He was prominent in local affairs, and held various offices, including that of justice of the peace, being elected on the Republi- can ticket. On July 23, 1843, he was married at Pine Meadow, Litchfield Co., Conn., to Sarah Cro- mack, who was born at Leeds, England, Jan. 25, 1825, daughter of Samuel Cromack. She died in 1897, at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Codaire, of Canton. Their children were : Mary, wife of Bentley Frazier, has one daughter, Clara, who is married to George Wilcox, and has one son, Frazier Bentley. Isabella married W. S. Gould, of South- ington, Conn., and had two sons, Willard J. and Harry H. (deceased ) ; Willard J. married Emma Nelson Clark, and nas two children, Doris Clark and Clark Gould ; Minerva A. is the wife of William H. Robinson, our subject. Alfred, deceased, formerly a merchant in Collinsville, left one son and one daughter, Nellie T. and Edwin A. (now a student at MeGill University). Jennie Lind, wife of G. A. Codaire, has had six children : Bessie H., Minnie R., Alfred H., George A. (deceased), and Ruth and Robert, twins, the latter deceased in childhood. Wil- lard, a farmer of Burlington, married Belle Wilson, of llarwinton, daughter of Cyrus Wilson, and has two sons, Willard E. and Henry II.

ROLLIN W. NEALE, the well-known super- intendent of the Peck, Stow & Wilcox Co., of Southington, was born in that town Dec. 7. 1828, a son of Jeremiah and Charlotte ( Hills) Neale.

The father was also born in Southington, in 1802, and for many years was engaged in the man- ufacture of stocks, collars, shirts, etc., in Plants- ville, but later turned his attention to the manu- facture of brass goods in company with others, and for a time was a member of the firm of Wight-

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man & Neale, merchants of Southington Center. In his family were the following children: Rollin W., our subject ; Walter S .; Joel, born March 21, 1835, who died in December, 1839; Anna F., wife of Dr. Charles E. Sanford; Sarah J., wife of John Lines ; Henry H., who died Sept. 14, 1862, while in the Union service during the Civil war, and is buried in Rockville, Md .; Elmira L., who is the widow of Charles Minor, who died July 21, 1899; and Charles J.

Our subject's maternal grandparents were Elias and Sally ( Curtis) Hills, of Plainville. The grand- father was born in that place, and was a wheel- wright and builder by trade. His parents were Chauncey and Eleanor (Gillette) Hills, of Farnı- ington, and his wife's parents were Abner and Mabel ( Squires) Curtis, of the same town. The Hills are said to be descended from William Hills, a native of England, who came to America in 1632 and was one of the original settlers of Hartford, where he died in 1683.

Jeremiah Neale, the paternal grandfather of our subject, was born in Southington in 1757, and was married, Dec. 4, 1780, to Anna Fuller. He lived in West street, where he died Nov. 8, 1827, and his wife died Dec. 9, 1823, at the age of sixty-six years. His father, John Neale, was born in Southington Oct. 28, 1719, and was a son of Edward Neale, who died in Southington in April, 1768. The latter is supposed to have been a son of Edward and Maria (Hart) Neale, early settlers of Westfield, Massachusetts.

Rollin W. Neale, subject of this sketch, was reared in Southington, and educated in the public schools and Lewis Academy. He began his busi- ness career as a mill hand in Plantsville in 1846, and since 1850 has been in the employ of the con- cern now merged into the Peck, Stow & Wilcox Co. For a number of years he was engaged in con- tract work for them, and he has held his present responsible position of superintendent since 1880. His labors have always given the utmost satis- faction, and he has the entire confidence and respect of his employers, as well as of those working under him. He is an earnest and faithful member of Gospel Mission Chapel, and politically is an advocate and supporter of Prohibition.

Mr. Neale has been twice married, his first wife being Martha Harrison, a daughter of Rollin and Harriet (Meshurul) Harrison, of Southing- ton, and to them was born one daughter, Alice E. For his second wife he married Addie T. Morse, a daughter of Barzillai and Jennette (Dawson) Morse, of West Haven, Conn. Mrs. Neale died Nov. 20, 1895.

HON. CHARLES DIMON PARSONS, who has entered into rest, was one of those rare char- acters whom to know is to love, and whose daily life is a daily lesson. "The memory of the just is blessed."

Mr. Parsons was born at East Hampton, L. I.,

in August, 1826, and at the age of sixteen years entered upon a four-years' apprenticeship to the carpenter's trade at Sag Harbor, L. I. Three years after becoming a journeyman he removed to Man- chester (1849) and entered the employ of Colum- bus Parker, then the leading builder of the town. At the end of a year he determined to embark in business on his own account as a contractor and builder. At that time the town was rapidly grow- ing, and building was being pushed on every hand. The tireless energy which was one of Mr. Parsons' prominent characteristics soon enabled him to forge ahead of his competitors. His business steadily in- creased, and at times he had scores of men in his employ, his reputation for skill, fidelity and "push" bringing him contracts from many of the neigh- boring towns. For many years he continued in this line of work, during which period he erected many of the dwellings and not a few of the mills in Hartford county that were put up by Cheney Bros., and the work of this firm finally became so large that he abandoned taking other contracts and entered their employ, at a large annual salary, as superintendent of their operations. This position he filled with characteristic energy and integrity until about twelve years before his death when he gave it up to engage in farming. To this pursuit he brought the same qualities which had already won for him such phenomenal success in the world of business. His farm at Manchester Green was a model, his stock always sleek and well cared for, his farm buildings commodious and well arranged, and his home an ideal one, ruled by love that was enlightened and purified by the guiding principle of Christianity.

Politically Mr. Parsons was a Republican, and at no time throughout his long and useful life did he seek office ; yet in such high esteem was he held by his fellow citizens, who well knew his fearless- ness in defense of principle and his incorruptible integrity, that in 1878 he was elected a represent- ative of the town in the State Legislature, and in 1879 was chosen the first selectman. The latter office he held continuously until the time of his death, with the exception of one year, when he de- clined a renomination. To the performance of his public duties he gave the same thoughtful, consci- entious care that he devoted to the conduct of his private affairs, and his long retention in office tells, more eloquently than words, the story of a faithful, intelligent administration of the town's business.

Charles D. Parsons passed from the world on April 4, 1890, leaving behind him a fragrant mem- ory. If he had faults, they were superficial; his many virtues were inwrought in the very fibre of his nature. He was a devout and consistent mem- ber of the First Congregational Church, and served several years as a member of the committee of the First Society ; and his daily life, even in its minor and commonplace details, gave evidence of the con- trolling influence of a sincere Christian faith. His mind was of a fine order, well trained and always at his command; while his physical manhood was

C. D. Parsons

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equally well developed. Neither his brain nor his hand was ever iale. His capacity for work appeared to know no limit, yet it was equaled by his intense desire to be always "up and doing." It was said of him after his death that "his work can never be measured by years; gauged by that standard, it is no figure of speech or exaggeration of facts to say that they would have fully rounded out a century."

Mr. Parsons' first wife was Elizabeth Miller, by whom he had one daughter, Elizabeth H., now the wife of Henry H. Schellenger, of East Hamp- ton, Long Island.

On Nov. 5, 1867, Mr. Parsons was married to Miss Ellen, daughter of Edwin and Fannie ( With- rel) Perry, of Manchester. The fruit of their union was one son, Charles Foster, born Aug. 20, 1869. Mrs. Parsons and son still survive our sub- ject, and reside at Manchester.

JULIUS ALONZO CASE (deceased) was for many years one of the most highly esteemed and valued citizens of Wethersfield. A native of Hartford county, he was born in Poquonock, in the town of Windsor, Dec. 13, 1832, and was a worthy representative of one of the oldest and most hon- ored families of Windsor and Simsbury, a full ac- count of which will be found elsewhere.

Julius Case, father of our subject, was born in Simsbury, May 22, 1790, a son of Amasa and Mercy (Hillyer) Case, also natives of that town. The former served in the Revolutionary war as a private in the company commanded by Capt. Joel Case. When a young man Julius Case removed to Windsor and took up his residence in Poquonock, where he engaged in farming throughout the remainder of his life, dying there Nov. 11, 1834, and his remains were interred in the Poquonock cemetery. He wedded Miss Mary Phelps, who was born Aug. 4, 1803. a daughter of Noble Phelps, and died Nov. 22, 1843, being laid to rest by the side of her hus- band. Their children were Jane, wife of Robert Moffett, of Akron, Ohio; Charlotte, wife of Horace Baxter, of Poquonock; and Julius Alonzo, our subject.

Julius A. Case was only two years old when his father died, and he was reared by his aunt, Mrs. Phelps. He attended the district schools of his na- tive town and also Wilbraham ( Mass.) Academy. When in his teens he went to Hartford, where he clerked in the store of Johnson & Ransom for three years, and at the end of that time purchased Mr. Johnson's interest in the business, which was then conducted under the firm name of Ransom & Case, dry-goods merchants. At the end of two years Mr. Case sold out and formed a partnership with a Mr. Pratt in the wholesale millinery business, under the firm name of Pratt & Case. Several years later Mr. Prentice became a member of the company, and the name was changed to Case & Prentice, and the business was successfully carried on by then until 1878, when they met with reverses. Being a man of honor, and noted for his honesty, Mr. Case

sacrificed all that he possessed in the world to meet his creditors, and accepted a position as salesman in the silk department of Brown & Thompson's store, where he spent several years. His health finally broke down, and he died at his home in Wethersfield after much suffering, Sept. 20, 1886, his remains being interred in Cedar Hill cemetery. He was a prominent and active member of the Episcopal Church, and served as vestryman in Christ Church and Trinity Church, Hartford. He was temperate in his habits, domestic in his tastes, was charitable and generous, and was a good cit- izen, a kind friend, and a devoted husband and fa- ther. His business reverses seemed to crush him, however, and blight all of his future hopes. He was one of the original members of the city guard, and was a Republican in politics.

At Hartford, Sept. 24, 1857, Mr. Case was mar- ried, by Rev. Dr. Turnbull, to Miss Jane Crosby, who was born in Bridgeport, Conn., June 17, 1839, daughter of Nathaniel and Jane (Goodsell) Crosby, also natives of that place. She is a most estimable lady still living in Wethersfield. To Mr. and Mrs. Case were born six children : Minnie, born Feb. 14, 1860, is the wife of James Anderson, of Wethersfield, and they have four children, Gert- rude, William, James and Frank. William Mather, born Dec. 13, 1862, died June 2, 1866. Frank Burr, born July 16, 1867, died Dec. 27, 1884. Leila Wood- ruff, born Jan. 16, 1871, married Charles Hanmer, and has one child, Charlotte Case. Charlotte Grace, born Jan. 25, 1873, was educated in the district and high schools of Wethersfield, and also St. John the Baptist School, New York, where she was gradu- ated in 1891 ; she taught school in South Windsor one year, and for the past five years has successfully engaged in teaching in the South School, Hartford. Edward Welles, born April 10, 1877, is employed in Buckley & Hanmer's store in Wethersfield. The family are members of the Episcopal Church, and are people of prominence in the community where they reside.

Mrs. Case traces her ancestry back to Thomas Goodsell, a native of Wales, who came to this country from Liverpool, England, about 1678, and located in East Haven, Conn. In 1679 he married Sarah Heminway. Their son, Rev. John Goodsell, born Dec. 21, 1705, was educated at Yale College, and was appointed the first minister of the Church of Christ, on Greenfield Hill, in 1726. He died in 1763. He married Mary Lewis, of Stratford, and among their children was Epaphras Goodsell, who was born May 23, 1742. He married Jane Brad- ley, who was born April 21, 1733, and died Dec. 5, 1765. He was sergeant in Capt. Dimon's com- pany, of Fairfield, Conn., in May, 1775; and he afterward enlisted, Jan. 1. 1777, in Capt. John Mill's company. 2nd Regiment, Connecticut Line, com- manded by Colonel Charles Webb, which regiment was wintered at Valley Forge in 1777-78, and was present at the battle of Monmouth.

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Capt. William Goodsell, son of Epaphras, mar- ried Prudence Nichols, a descendant of Sergt. Francis Nichols, a native of England, who located in Stratford, Conn., in 1639, among the first settlers. He married Anna, daughter of Barnabas Wines, of Southold, L. I. Their son, Isaac Nichols, died in Stratford, in 1695. His wife's name was Margaret. Isaac Nichols, Jr., son of Isaac, died in Stratford, in 1690. Richard Nichols, son of Isaac (Jr.) and Mary Nichols, was born Nov. 26, 1678, and was married June 3, 1702, to Comfort Sherman, a daugli- ter of Theophilus Sherman. She died Feb. II, 1726, and he died Sept. 20, 1756. Theophilus Nichols, son of Richard, was born March 31, 1703, and married Sarah Curtis, a daughter of Lieut. Ebenezer Curtis, Jan. 2, 1723. She died Sept. 26, 1769. Their son, Philip Nichols, born Jan. 5, 1726, was married Oct. 9, 1753, to Mehitable Peet, and died May 13, 1807. He was a man of much influ- ence in public affairs, and served as magistrate for many years. He was a large land owner, and also owned several vessels which were engaged in the West India trade. William Nichols, son of Philip, was born March 10, 1755, and married Patience Edwards, of Chestnut Hill, Bridgeport. Their daughter, Prudence, married Capt. William Good- sell, before mentioned, and to them was born a daughter, Jane, who married Nathaniel Crosby, the father of Mrs. Case. Mrs. Case is also a de- scendant of Capt. John Edwards, who was born in Scotland, in 1662, and came to this country in 1700. He wedded Mary Hanford, daughter of Rev. Mr. Hanford, of Norwalk, and their son, John Edwards, married Rebecca Porter. Patience, daughter of John and Rebecca ( Porter) Edwards, married Will- iam Nichols, before mentioned.

DANIEL KINGSBURY, M. D., of Glaston- bury, is one of the oldest and best-known physi- cians of this section, and although now less active than in past years, his advice is constantly sought in difficult cases, and he has a large office prac- tice.

The Doctor was born in Hartford Jan. 22, 1828, and soon after his father, Sandford Kingsbury, es- tablished a new home in Tolland county, where he was engaged in farming for many years, his death occurring in 1856. Our subject's mother, whose maiden name was Cynthia Baxter, was a native of Tolland county, and a daughter of Ira Baxter, a well-known farmer. Of the five children of San- ford and Cynthia Kingsbury, (1), a daughter, died in infancy ; (2) Simeon married a Miss Baxter, and settled upon a farm in Tolland county, where he died some years ago; (3) John married Miss Rosetta Pease, and died in Mansfield, where he had been engaged in farming in connection with the stone-mason's trade; (4) Daniel is our sub- ject : (5) Henry, who never married, was a sailor, and died and was buried at sea.

Dr. Kingsbury's early educational opportuni- ties were not of the best, as his parents were in

limited circumstances. He attended a common school for a short time, but was compelled at an early age to begin earning his own living. For- tunately he found a home with Dr. Sperry, of Hart- ford, who lived on Hudson street, and at that time had an office on Main street, three doors north of the Centre Church, two stores being between. Later he had an office on Pearl street, and then on Grove street. Our subject began as office boy at seventy- five cents per weey and board, but Dr. Sperry soon became interested in him, seeing even then a prom- ise of the success which he has attained in life. Dr. Sperry encouraged him to study medicine, and after four years of preliminary reading under this kind preceptor, he attended a course of lectures with the Connecticut Botanical Society, from which he re- ceived a diploma. Early in 1851 he engaged in practice at New London, but spent the following winter with Dr. Sperry, and on June 2, 1852, he opened an office at Glastonbury in the house of Asa Wells. While there he married his first wife, and soon afterward he removed to the house now oc- cupied by the widow of Frary Hale. In 1858 he lo- cated at his present home, which he purchased. While he has never been active in politics, he is a stanch Republican. He is a member of the F. & A. M., Daskam Lodge, No. 86. He and his fam- ily are members of the Episcopal Church; at one time he held the office of senior warden, is now treasurer, and has been most of the time since the organization of the parish.

In October, 1853, the Doctor married Miss Mary Chapman Loomis, a native of Tolland coun- ty, and daughter of Elmer and Cynthia (Davis) Loomis. Her father was born in Tolland, Conn. She died Aug. 10, 1859, and on June 12, 1862, our subject married Miss Lucy M. Cone, who was born in East Haddam, Aug. 22, 1829, daughter of Eras- tus and Lucy B. (Beebe) Cone. By his first wife the Doctor had two children: (I) Frances E., born April 13, 1856, was married Dec. 31, 1880, to Rev. Thomas H. Gordon, an Episcopal minister at Chews, N. J .; (2) Miss Carrie A. is at home. By the second marriage there are three children: (I) Miss Mary A., born July 3, 1865, was educated in Germany, and taught school for a time in New York, but is now employed in the Erasmus Hall library, Brooklyn. (2) William Sanford, born Sept. 17, 1867, attended a district school and the Glas- tonbury Academy, and later a select school con- ducted by his brother-in-law, Rev. Mr. Gordon, in Faulkland, Del. He then went to the Hartford Pub- lic High School, on graduating entered Trinity Col- lege, later took a course in the Yale Medical School, graduating in 1896, and served for a year as in- terne in St. John's Hospital, Lowell, Mass. He is taking up his father's practice with remarkable suc- cess, and bids fair to maintain the reputation of the Kingsbury name in medical circles. On Sept. 28, 1898, he was married to Miss Mary L. Raymond, of Boston, and they reside next door to our subject. (3) Miss Lucy E., born July 4, 1869, has been a teacher for the past six years in the East Hart-

Daniel Kingsbury KA

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

loved by his neighbors and friends for his kindly, helpful life. Liberal with his means and influence to the support of every good cause, generous to the needy and unfortunate, and active in religious work as a member and deacon for years of the Man- chester Congregational Church, he won a place in the hearts of his fellow man, which could only be filled by one of his sympathetic and unselfish dispo- sition, and his death, which occurred very suddenly, from heart disease, was widely mourned through- out the vicinity of his home. Physically he was five feet, nine inches in height, and weighted 160 pounds, and he was ever an abstemious man, re- fraining from stimulants in any form or inmodera- tion of any kind. He was upright and honorable in all his relations with men, and the influence of his honorable life will long be felt in the community. Simeon A. Spencer was married, Oct. 15, 1823, to Miss Clarissa McLean, who was born June 19, 1800, and survived him many years, dying Dec. 9, 1897. Mr. Spencer passed away Dec. 5, 1864. Five children were born to this union, as follows : John Olds, who died in June, 1890, was a resident of New London, Conn., and up to within a few years of his death was engaged in the wholesale and retail tea business, spending his last years in retirement ; Abbie T., who died Oct. 15, 1870, was the wife of George Parkhurst, of Manchester ; Dwight was third in the order of birth; Charles S. was a carriage manufacturer of New Haven, Conn., where he died Feb. 20, 1869; George M. is a practicing attorney of San Francisco, Cali- fornia.

Dwight Spencer was reared on the farm on which he was born, and commenced his education in the district schools near his home, at Buckland's Corners, where among his first teachers were Walter McKee and Edward Hayden. For some time he was a student in the Manchester Academy, at Man- chester Center, and the year after leaving this in- stitution taught school in the West District. After his marriage he continued to make his home on the farm mentioned until 1855, when he purchased and removed to a place in the town of Manchester, living thereon until 1876. On April 23, 1852, Mr. Spencer wedded Miss Mary Fitch White, who was born July 7, 1828, daughter of Miner White, a prominent resident of Manchester, and two children came to this union, Nellie W. and Frank F. The daughter is now the wife of W. H. Childs, of Brooklyn, N. Y., who was formerly a successful grain merchant of Manchester, and they have two children, Richard S. and Mary W. Frank F. Spencer is a prominent young business man of Manchester, engaged with the Grand Union Tea Co .; he married Miss Mary Parker, and they have two children, Dwight Par- ker and William White. Mrs. Mary F. (White) Spencer passed away March 6, 1870, and on Mav 7, 1885, our subject married for his second wife Miss Lucy G. Ford, who was born Jan. 10, 1845, in the town of Hebron, daughter of John P. Ford, and granddaughter of Luther Ford, both of whom

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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 2, Part 32

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