USA > Connecticut > New Haven County > Commemorative biographical record of New Haven county, Connecticut, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens and of many of the early settled families, V. I, Pt 1 > Part 28
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91
(V) Seth Clark, of Middletown and Southing- ton, 1768-1851, married in 1793 Chloe Bailey, and their daughter,
(VI) Chloe Clark, of Southington, by marry- ing Theodosius Clark, of Cheshire, merged her Clark line into that of another.
Joanna Fairchild, 1727-1793, wife of (IV) Dea- con Joseph Ciark, of Middletown, was descended from Thomas Fairchild, an early settler of Strat- ford, who died there in 1670, and his second wife, Katherine Craig; also from William Wilcoxen and Deacon John Birdseye. Through her mother, Katlı- erine Coe, she descended from Robert Coe, born in Suffolkshire, England, in 1596, who, with wife and children, emigrated to New England in 1634; and from Matthew Mitchell, of Southouram Parish of Halifax, England, and his wife, Susan Butterfield, whom he married at Ovenden, in the same parish, in 1616. Emigrating to this country in 1635, and suffering severely from sickness, fire and savage warfare, in the various places where he settled, he bore it all with Christian patience. He died in 1645, at Stamford, Conn., of which place he was one of the founders, and had served it as magistrate, representative and associate judge of the Plantation ; Court. Mrs. Joanna ( Fairchild) Clark also de- scended from Joseph Hawley, born in Derbyshire, England, in 1603, who died at Stratford, Conn .. May 20, 1690. He was town clerk at Stratford six- teen years, town treasurer several years, and also surveyor. In 1687 he was chosen one of the com- mittee for considering and drafting a patent for the town. He was deputy to the General Court nineteen years, and commissioner eight years.
Lydia Hull, wife of (V) Amasa Clark, born in Cheshire July 23, 1753, belonged to the noted
Hull family, being a descendant of the sixth gen- eration front (1) Richard Hull, of Derbyshire, Eng- land, who settled at New Haven in 1639. His son,
(II) Dr. John Hull, of Stratford, Derby and Wallingford, was a prominent man in each of these places, serving as selectman and representative. In 1687 the General Assembly granted him 700 acres of land for services in King Philip's war. His son,
(III) Dr. Benjamin Hull, 1672-1741, married Elizabeth Andrews, daughter of William Andrews, an early settler of New Haven. Dr. Hull was a prominent physician in Wallingford. His son,
(IV) Dr. John Hull, 1702-1762, married Sarah Ives, a great-granddaughter of William Ives, a set- tler of New Haven in 1639; also of Capt. Nathaniel Merriman, an early and prominent settler of New Haven and Wallingford, and a soldier in both the Pequot and King Philip's wars. His son,
(V) Dr. Zephaniah Hull, 1728-1760, of Che- shire and Bethlehem, Conn., married Hannah Doo- little, daughter of Lieut. Moses Doolittle, a promi- nent man in Cheshire, and a grandson of Abraham Doolittle, an carly settler of New Haven and Wal- lingford, and chief officer or sheriff of New Ha- ven Colony in 1644. He was sergeant of the train- band, and a member of the vigilance committee in King Philip's war; also deputy from Wallingford eight times. Through his mother, (III) Hannah Hall, wife of Ebenezer Doolittle, Lieut. Moses was a grandson of (II) Capt. Samuel Hall, 1648-1725, who took an active part in the French and Indian wars, and served as deputy from Wallingford to the General Court four years. He was a son of (I) John Hall, an early settler of New Haven, and a soldier in the Pequot war, 1637. He married, at New Haven, in 1641, Jeanne Wolen, of Huguenot ancestry. Both the Hall and Wolen families bear coats of arms, as do also the Coe, Mitchell and Hawley families, mentioned above.
REV. ALEXANDER HOLMES MEAD. a re- tired clergyman of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and unquestionably, in the estimation of the citizens of Meriden, one of the "grand old men" of that city, was born in the city of New York Jan. 7. 1821, a son of Staats Morris Mead, who was a well- known resident of the Metropolis. The Mead fam- ily was established in this country by
(I) William Mead, who came from Greenwich, Kent, England, in 1642. and located in Massa- chusetts. His brother Joseph. who came at the same time, went to Virginia. For a time William Mead lived at Hempstead. Long Island, whence in 1660 he went to Greenwich, Conn., accompanied by his sons Jolin and Joseph.
(II) John Mead in 1672 became one of the twenty-seven proprietors who purchased a large tract from the Indians in that year. This land, ever since called "Horseneck." included the present homestead of one of his descendants, Solomon Stoddard Mead. John Mead married a Miss Pot- ter, whose fathier afterward owned Shippan Point,
I.H. Mead
119
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
and through this marriage gained considerable property. He died in 1696, leaving the following children : John, Joseph, Jonathan, Ebenezer, Da- vid. Benjamin, Nathaniel, Samuel, Susannah, Abi- gail and Mary.
(III) Ebenezer Mead married Sarah Knapp, of Stamford, and they had children: Ebenezer, Abi- gail, Susannah, Jemima, Caleb, Sarah, Hannah, Ja- bez and David. His second marriage was to Han- nah Brown, of Rye, N. Y., who bore him twelve children, as follows: Ebenezer. Silas, Abram, Jo- nas, Solomon, Deliverance. Amos, Edmund, Han- nah, Jabez. Jared and Abram (2).
(IV) Jonas' Mead, born Dec. 25, 1725, at Indian Field, in the town of Greenwich, died there Sept. 14, 1785. For many years he was a deacon in the Congregational Church at Greenwich. His first wife, Sarah (Ferris), bore him two sons, Solomon and Edmund. His second wife, Sarah (Howe), was the mother of Noah, Mark and Jonas.
(V) Edmund Mead was a merchant in New York City. While he was on a voyage to the West Indies, about the close of the eighteenth century, his vessel, the "Sally," was lost, and no trace of crew or passengers was ever found. On Feb. 15, 1776, Edmund Mead married Theodosia Mead, who survived him. Their children were: Ed- mund, Jr., born in May, 1777, died April 28, 1778; Solomon, born April 28, 1778, died of yellow fever Sept. 20, 1798; Benjamin, born April 24, 1780, died Dec. 10, 1860, in Newark, N. J. : Sarah, born Aug. 27, 1782, married Benjamin Mead, of Golden Bridge, N. Y .; Obadiah, born March 10, 1785, died Feb. 28, 1878; Mary, born June I. 1787, married Judge Aaron Reed, of Bedford, N. Y. : Ralph, born April 24, 1789, was killed by a carriage in New York City, July 23, 1866; Staats Morris, born April 23, 1791, died in Naples, Italy, Jan. 17, 1863; Maria, born March 15, 1793, was drowned at the age of fourteen months; Brockholst L., born Aug. 8, 1795, died the next year; Brockholst (2), born Aug. 3, 1797, died June 21, 1874. After the death of the father of this family the mother returned to the home of her father, Benjamin Mead, Jr. The latter adopted her son Obadiah, who inherited the farm. The other sons became wealthy business men of New York City.
Benjamin Mead, Sr., was the first of the family to settle on the homestead in Greenwich now occu- pied by Solomon S. Mead. This he deeded to Ben- jamin Mead, Jr., July 6. 1770, with some other lands. Benjamin Mead. Jr., was born in 1735, and died March 5, 1815, and his entire life was passed on the homestead farm. He was a prominent cit- izen, and acted as justice of the peace many years. Hle married Martha Ferris, and they had five chil- dren : Annie, the eldest, married David Mead, and afterward James Bailey; Theodosia, above men- tioned, was the wife of Edmund Mead: Obedialı was a Revolutionary soldier, and was killed on the homestead by British soldiers; Mary married Sam-
uel Peck, of Clapboard Ridge, Conn .; Phæbe be- came the wife of Jehial Mead.
(VI) Staats Morris Mead was born in Green- wich April 23, 1791, and as he lost his father while still young his educational opportunities were un- usually limited. In every sense of the word he was a self-educated man. After a very short attendance at public school he was bound out as an apprentice to a cabinetmaker in New York City, working prin- cipally for his board and clothes for seven years. He had been enabled to save a little money, by working overtime, and thus, without working one day as a journeyman, he bought out his employer, setting up a small furniture business for himself on Broad street, near Stone and Mill streets, New York. There he built up a trade and became pros- perous, being known far and wide for his sterling character and honest dealings. For ten years he was a member of the New York Volunteer Fire Department. When he retired from active busi- ness he made his home in New Jersey. Travel be- came a source of great pleasure to him, and his wanderings led him into many lands. His death occurred suddenly, of heart failure, while he was making a tour through the European Continent, at Naples, Italy, on Jan. 17, 1863. On account of his clerical duties his son had been obliged to leave him, but his body was brought to New York. and now rests in Greenwood cemetery. Mr. Mead was a stanch Whig, later a Republican, but never a seek- er for office. In habits he was domestic and temper- ate. He was a consistent member of the Methodist Church.
Mr. Mead married Lydia Holmes, a native of Belleville, N. J., whose sisters, Betsey and Sarah, married the two brothers of Mr. Mead. Benjamin and Ralph Mead. Mrs. Lydia Mead died in New York City in 1821, and was buried in her native home cemetery, at Belleville, N. J. She was a good Christian woman, a devoted wife and mother, and a consistent member of the M. E. Church. Her three children were: Sarah Elizabeth, who mar- ried Amos M. Sackett. of Greenwich, Conn .; Caro- line E., who married W. K. Belcher. a son of the renowned Dr. Belcher, of New York; and Alex- ander Holmes, the subject proper of this sketch. The second marriage of Staats MI. Mead was to Hannah A. Glass, who also died in New York City, and was laid to rest in beautiful Greenwood. She was also a consistent member of the M. E. Church. There were no children by this union.
Alexander Holmes Mead was but six months old when his mother died, a deprivation he has lamented through life. He attended a private school in New York City, and in 1842 graduated from the Wesleyan University. at Middletown, Conn. Having a strong inclination toward the pro- fession of the law, lie entered the office of Lyman Tremaine, then a well-known lawyer of New York, and later the distinguished attorney-general of that State. With legal practice in view Mr. Mead con-
-
120
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
tinued his studies, but before he was fully prepared for admission to the Bar the whole course of his life was changed by a religious experience, and he turned to the ministry instead of the law.
In 1844 Mr. Mead received his license to preach the Gospel from the New York Conference, and was ordained by the same Conference in 1846. His first pastorate was at Glen Cove, where he remained from: 1846 to 1847, and he was at Moriches until 1850, when he was appointed to Greenport. There he made extensive repairs on the church, and dur- ing a useful year faithfully ministered to the spir- itual needs of this congregation. Then he was re- ceived into the New Jersey Conference and ap- pointed to the church at Passaic, remaining in that charge until 1853, when he went to Elizabethtown. There he built a parsonage and remained until 1854, at which time ne was appointed to the church at Middletown Point, N. J., continuing there until 1859, when, according to the discipline of his de- nomination, he was changed. He was sent to Hud- son City, where he built up a church, and he was subsequently stationed at the Quarry Street Church, Newark, until 1860.
At this date Mr. Mead was transferred to the East New York Conference and took the pastorate of the De Kalb Avenue Church, in Brooklyn. In 1862 he was transferred to New Canaan, Conn. In 1863 he took charge of the Ninth Street Church, in New York, remaining there until 1865, and going thence to the Second Avenue Church, in New York, where he remained until 1866. For the two follow- ing years he was a supernumerary, and from 1869 to 1870 he was pastor of the Greene Avenue Church, of Brooklyn. From there he came to the Davenport Avenue Church, of New Haven, Conn., in 1873 changing to Hartford, where he became pastor of the North Church.
In 1876 Mr. Mead was made secretary of the Prisoners' Friend Corporation of Connecticut. In 1877 he was transferred to West Haven, and re- mained there two years, at the end of that time tak- ing a charge in South Meriden and Yalesville, where he remained until 1880. He spent 1881-82 at the Watertown Church, and 1882-83 at the How- ard Avenue Church, in New Haven, going from there to Westville and thence to the Dixwell Ave- nue Church, in New Haven, where he remained until 1887. After that date, on account of the crit- ical illness of his wife, Mr. Mead gave up active labor in his profession, and has been since on the supernumerary list, residing in the city of Meriden, among those who honor and love him. His travels have extended over many lands, while his knowl- edge of his own country is that of a scholar. Al- though he has passed fifty years in active minis- terial work, Mr. Mead still occasionally fills a pulpit and expounds the Scriptures with the convincing power which has made him so useful in the vine- yard of the Lord through the past half century.
In 1847 Mr. Mead was married to Elizabeth A.
Stephenson, a lady of culture and refinement, who was much devoted to her family, her husband and his work. Her death occurred in 1804, in Meriden, and she was laid to rest in the East cemetery. For forty-seven years she was her husband's congenial companion, and in his declining years her loss is one of his greatest sorrows. A family of seven children blessed this happy marriage. Hannah, the first-born, died in infancy. States Maurice and Min- nie Elizabeth were twins; the former died when fourteen months old. Minnie E. married Richmond W. Armstrong, son of Lorenzo Armstrong, of New Haven. Ella Josephine died when three years old. Kittie H. married Alfred P. Sloan, then of New Haven, now of New York City, and member of the well-known firm of Bennett, Sloan & Co., wholesale grocers, corner of Franklin and Hudson streets. Maurice is a successful jewelry merchant in Chicago. Sarah E. married Edwin R. Ives, of Meriden, who died in 1892, and she is now the wife of Harry H. Johnson, of Fall River, Mass.
Although the snows of eighty years have touched the head of Mr. Mead, they have not touched his heart, nor have they affected his physi- cal faculties in any marked degree. A temperate life and regular habits have done much to preserve a naturally robust constitution, and that his years may extend as those of the patriarchs of old is the sincere wish of those who know him best. Blessed with good health, in a pastoral service of fifty years he never missed but one period of service on account of illness. Mr. Mead has long been a mem- ben of the A. F. & A. M., holding membership in Meridian Lodge, No. 77, of which he is chaplain; Sylvan Chapter, R. A. M .; and Palestine Com- mandery, K. T., of New York City.
As a clergyman Mr. Mead has not only admin- istered the duties pertaining to his own charges with extraordinary success and increasing useful- ness, but by his example and advice he has en- couraged many to pursue the path of rectitude. Al- ways charitable and philanthropic, he has never hesitated to go outside of his own denomination in his benevolences, but he has been singularly unos- tentatious. To the extent of his powers he has spent a half century in upbuilding Christianity and in fighting evil and immorality.
THOMAS BENJAMIN DOOLITTLE, of Branford, New Haven Co., Conn., is a native of this state, born June 30, 1839, in Woodbury, Litch- field county.
Abraham Doolittle, the progenitor of the fam- ily in America, was born in 1620, probably in Eng- land; was in Salem, Mass., at an early date, and was in New Haven prior to 1642, being the owner of a house there. In 1644 he took the freeman's oath. He was made the chief executive officer (or sheriff) of the county, and was chosen by the peo- ple of New Haven as one of a committee to super- intend the affairs of the new settlement then ( 1669)
-
.
121
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
just begun at the village, the name of which was changed to Wallingford, and which village was in- corporated May 12, 1670, by an act of the General Court then sitting at Hartford. Abraham Doolittle was one of the first to settle in the place, being a resident thereof two or three years before its in- corporation. He was a member of the vigilance committee in the time of King Philip's war, and his dwelling during that momentous period was fortified with a picket fort against an attack that might be made on it by the Indians. He was sev- eral times chosen a deputy from New Haven, and afterward from Wallingford, to the General Court ; frequently was elected selectman, and altogether appears to have been a very valuable and respected citizen. He died Aug. 11, 1690, aged seventy years, his wife, Abigail ( Moss), on Nov. 5, 1710, aged sixty-nine. Their son, Samuel Doolittle (great- great-grandfather of our subject), born July 7, 1665, married Mary Hitchcock. Their son, Ben- jamin Doolittle (great-grandfather of our subject), was born Jan. 17, 1730. His wife's name was Elizabeth. Their son, Benjamin (grandfather of our subject), born July 15, 1753. married Sarah French. He was a Revolutionary soldier.
Benjamin Doolittle ( father of our subject), son of Benjamin and Sarah (French) Doolittle, was born in Wallingford. Conn., March 9, 1798, and died in New Haven Feb. 19, 1868, aged seventy years. In early life he was a manufacturer of chairs in Litchfield, later for many years conduct- ing express routes (of which he was proprietor) between New Haven and various other points in Connecticut. He married Betsey Collier Moore, and they had children as follows: Miranda (Mrs. Clark Lindsley), William H., Frances E., Mary J. (Mrs. Otis Warner), John H .. George, Harriet P. (Mrs. Harvey Loveland), Thomas C., Thomas Benjamin, Merritt E. and Mortimer.
David Moore, of Litchfield, Conn., father of Betsey Collier Moore, married Mary Collier, daugh- ter of Richard Collier, who had another daughter Margaret, the wife of John Draper, editor of the Boston News Letter at the breaking out of the war of the Revolution. Shortly after the breaking out of that struggle Mr. Draper died, but his widow continued the publication of the paper, and edited it successfully until the close of the war. Richard Collier was a descendant of Richard Collier, who landed in Plymouth in 1630, and at one time was governor of the Colony.
Thomas Benjamin Doolittle, the subject proper of these lines, was reared in Litchfield county, and educated at the Woodbury Academy. At the age of seventeen years he was apprenticed to the trade of machinist, serving over two years, later working as a journeyman for a year or more at various points. In 1861 he entered the employ of the Colts Arms Mfg. Co., at Hartford, where he. had charge of a portion of the revolver department for nearly two years, at the end of which time he be- came a contractor for the manufacture of Spring-
field rifles with the same company, in which pur- suit he continued until the close of the Civil war. Mr. Doolittle then spent a short time in Ansonia, from there removing to Bridgeport, where for sev- eral ycars he was connected with the Bridgeport Brass Co., having charge of one of their depart- ments. In 1870 he embarked in the manufacturing business in Bridgeport, as president of a corpora- tion which was engaged in the manufacture of metallic goods, carriage trimmings being among the chief articles. Later this corporation became the pioneer in the manufacture of barbed wire for fencing. In 1877 Mr. Doolittle became interested in the telephone, and engaged in the telephone busi- ness, having been granted a license for western Connecticut and western Massachusetts, under the Bell patents. It was at this time that he took out the first letter patent that was ever issued, show- ing a complete telephone exchange. This patent was dated Oct. 22, 1878. The first complete tele- phone switchboard ever made in any manufactur- ing establishment was designed by Mr. Doolittle, and was built by Charles Williams, Jr., of Boston, Mass. Several patents were taken out by Mr. Doo- little covering the essential features of telephone exchange apparatus. He soon became directly con- nected with the American Bell Telephone Co., of Boston, and engaged in the general development of the telephone business throughout the United States and Canada.
Mr. Doolittle is the adapter of hard drawn cop- per wire (a most important contribution to all electrical industries), for which the Franklin In- stitute of Philadelphia awarded him the "Long- streth Medal of Merit." This wire, while retain- ing those properties of conductivity inherent in copper, has the additional quality of great tensile strength, and it is stated, by those qualified to judge, that without this discovery long distance telephony and the electrical transmission of energy over long distances would be impossible. In a word, the im- portance of this process, and its extensive applica- tion, is sufficiently evident from the fact that the annual consumption of hard drawn copper wire in the United States alone, from an experimental quantity of 500 pounds, manufactured in 1877, now exceeds 80.000,000 pounds a year. Mr. Doolittle conducted the experiments with hard drawn copper wire lines, which led up to the organization of the American Telephone & Telegraph Co., of which he became the first president.
On Dec. 24, 1866, Thomas B. Doolittle mar- ried Mary Louise, daughter of Willett and Harriet (Hotchkiss) Bradley, of Ansonia, Conn., and five children came to this union : Charles Benjamin, Harry W., Ruth E., Edith Y. and Mary Alice (de- ceased). Charles B. Doolittle is an officer of the Southern New England Telephone Co. He mar- ried Laura Leggett Seymour, of Washington, D. C., daughter of Henry A. and Mary L. Seymour, and they have one son, Mortimer Leggett.
Harry W. Doolittle was born Aug. 13, 1870.
122
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
He was educated for the Bar at Yale, and after- ward at the Boston University Law School. He then entered the newspaper field, and was a special correspondent in Boston, Mass., until 1897, when he became associated with Attorney Talco t 11- Russell, of New Haven, having been admitted to the New Haven Bar. He enlisted in the navy dur- ing the Spanish-American war, and served until its close. He is now Judge of the Branford Town Court, and is the youngest judge in the State.
Thomas Benjamin Doolittle has been a resident of Pine Orchard, in the town of Branford, since 1893, owning there a handsome property known as "Thimble Farm," which commands a delightful view of Long Island Sound. He and his wife are mem- bers of Trinity Episcopal Church, Branford, and fraternally he is affiliated with the F. & A. M., St. John's Lodge, No. 4, of Hartford. He is a member of the Franklin Institute, Philadelphia, and the American Society of Electrical Engineers. New York City, and of several clubs, including the Play- ers, of New York City, founded by Booth, the St. Botolph and the Papyrus Clubs, both of Boston. In his political preferences he is a Democrat.
MORTON. For a generation following 1839 there existed in New Haven a business partnership in which were associated two very successful busi- ness men, who became men of means and of in- fluence in that city. These gentlemen were broth- ers-in-law, and were the representatives of the best families that came from England to the New Eng- Iand Colonies. One of these gentlemen was Hor- ace J. Morton, the other Charles Prindle Hubbell, of the firm of Hubbell & Morton, carriage builders. They began the manufacture of carriages in New Haven in 1839 or 1840, in a building on Brewery street. which had been previously occupied by Ste- vens & Francis. The business from the very start was successful, and, by the energy, careful man- agement and progressive direction of its projectors, became large and prosperous. Through the long period from 1839 to the early 'seventies the names of Hubbell & Morton were synonymous in business circles for integrity, honesty and high credit. In the antibellum days in the South, when that section was most prosperous, the New Haven firm in ques- tion had a number of carriage repositories, notably at Savannah, Ga., and Mobile, Ala., where large stocks were carried. During the Civil war the stock at Savannah was confiscated by the government of the Confederate States, a receipt being given the firm and a promise of payment in three years after the recognition of the Confederacy as an independ- ent government. Through, and just after, the peri- od of the Civil war, the depressed condition of business affairs in general had made the carriage business like many other lines unprofitable, and es- pecially so with the firms whose business extended widely over the South. The Hubbell & Morton firm, however, had, prior to this time, been so suc-
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.