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 2 > Part 48
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Harvey Stevens was born in Clinton March 31. 1799, and died April 19, 1888. He married Betsy Kilbourn, who was born in Clinton, Conn., a daugh- ter of Jonathan Kilbourn, a representative of an old English family. Jonathan Kilbourn was born in East Haddam, and was descended from Thomas Ki !- bourn, who was born in England in 1578. John. son of Thomas, was born in England in 1624, and had a son John (2), born in Waterford. Jonathan Kilbourn (I), son of John, was born in Glaston- bury, Conn .. and his son, Jonathan (2), was born in Colchester, Conn., and became the owner of sev- eral mills. Jonathan (2) was of an inventive turn of mind, and the iron screw is the product of his thoughit : he was a politician, and represented his district in the General Court. Capt. Jonathan (3), son of Jonathan (2), was born in Colchester, and served in the Revolutionary war, and his son, Jona- than (4). was born in East Haddam, and became the father of Jonathan (5), the father of Mrs. Betsy ( Kilbourn) Stevens. To Mr. and Mrs. Ste-
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vens were born two children: Orville Harvey and Elizabeth, the latter the wife of S. Wilcox, of Clin- ton.
Orville Harvey Stevens was reared to early man- hood on his father's farm and had the privilege of an unusually good education. When a young man he worked on the farm during the summer, and in the winter taught school. In early manhood he went to Hartford, Conn., where he was engaged in the grocery business for some two years, and in 1852 made his first appearance in Waterbury. Here he promptly became established in business, and was associated with the commercial interests of the city as long as he lived. The Blake & Johnson Co. owes not a little of its extended business to his arduous labors as its president for many years. At one time he was treasurer of the Carrington Manufacturing Company.
On May 5, 1853, Mr. Stevens was united in marriage with Harriet E. Elton, who was born in Hartford, a daughter of Calvin and Jerusha (Cad- well) Elton, the former a son of William Elton. John Elton was the first of the family to come to this country, and he settled at Branford, Conn., later moving from there to Bristol. Ebenezar Elton, his son, was born at Middletown, Conn., was the father of a numerous family, of whom Nathaniel Elton was the father of William, whose name appears above. The union of Mr. and Mrs. Stevens was blessed with two children : Charles E. and Jennie E. Jennie E. became the wife of William K. Mayo (deceased), who was a commodore in the navy ; she is still living. Charles E. graduated from Princeton. was a mining engineer in the western country, and is now a hotel keeper at Readfield, Maine. Mr. Stevens was a Republican, and was closely associated with municipal politics, serving as selectman and road commissioner many years. He had other im- portant nominations, but suffered the fate of his party and was not elected. He filled a long term as water commissioner and another as police commis- sioner. Mr. Stevens was a courteous gentleman, of a kind heart and a gracious manner. Honesty, integrity, breadth of view, a high sense of honor and a deep religious feeling were strongly marked characteristics of the man.
GEORGE MYERS, master mechanic for the Goodyear India Rubber Glove Co., and a highly es- teemed citizen of Naugatuck, is a native of Pennsyl- vania, born in Lycoming county, Nov. 22. 1845.
George Myers, Sr., his father, was born and leared on a farm in the same county, and there spent his entire life engaged as a farmer and lumber dealer. He wedded Mary Snyder, who was born in New Jersey, of German ancestry, and to them were born twelve children, namely: Lucy married O. Ramsdale, a lumberman from Massachusetts. now deceased : Andrew is a farmer of Jersey Shore, Pa .; Barbara and Eliza both died young; Harriet married John Gast, a meat dealer of Lock Haven,
Pa .; Catherine (deceased) was the wife of G. P. Smith, a railroad man from Massachusetts; Re- becca married Edward Messer, a lumberman of Williamsport, Pa. ; Mary died unmarried; Lydia is the wife of Robert Easton, a machinist of Will- iamsport, Pa .; Michael is a lumber dealer of that place ; George, our subject, is next in order of birth ; Robert died young. The father died when our sub- ject was only four years old, and the mother de- farted this life in 1892. Both were earnest mem- bers of the Methodist Church, and he was a Whig in politics.
The first sixteen years of his life George Myers spent upon the home farm in Lycoming county, Pa., aiding in its operation and attending the district schools of the locality. He then left home, and for thirteen years was engaged in railroad construction in different sections of the country, devoting two years to the building of the New England railroad. He then went to Carmel, Putnam Co., N. Y., where he worked on the railroad for the same length of time. While there Mr. Myers was married, Dec. 24, 1870, to Miss De Ette Nichols, a daughter of Isaac Nichols and a sister of F. S. Nichols, of Nauga- tuck. On leaving Carmel they went to Pleasant- ville, Pa., where cur subject ran an oil pumping en- gine in the oil region for about six months. He was next engaged in railroad work at Brighton, Mass., for one year, and at Zoar, Mass., for the same length of time, after which he went to Plain- field, Vt., and was similarly employed until coming to Naugatuck, Conn., in 1875. Here he has since made his home. For six years he was engineer for the Goodyear India Rubber Shce Co., and at the end of that period entered the employ of the Good- year India Rubber Glove Co. as machinist. remain- ing with them up to the present time. He is now one of the most trusted employes of the firm, hav- ing their entire confidence and respect, and has held the responsible position of master mechanic for the past twelve years. His son, Charles S. Mvers, has been bookkeeper for the Goodyear Metallic India Rubber Shoe Co. for ten years. Mr. and Mrs. Myers have had two children ; the daughter, Kather- ine, is now deceased.
Politically Mr. Myers is identified with the Re- publican party. He was chief of the Naugatuck fire department for about three years, and has always taken a deep and commendable interest in public affairs. He is a prominent and active member of several civic societies, including the Improved Or- der of Red Men, the Foresters of America, the An- cient Order of United Workmen and Shephard Lodge, No. 78, F. & A. M., of Naugatuck. With his wife he also belongs to the Eastern Star Chapter and the Amaranth of Waterbury, and both hold membership in the Episcopal Church.
GUSTAV A. BECKER is an intelligent, indus- trious citizen of German birth, who has contributed his mite toward the material and intellectual growth
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of New Haven county. His family has been among the most respected in Frankfurt, on the River Oder, in Prussia, in which city he was brought up. He was born in Koenigsberg, Aug. 9, 1834. His pa- ternal grandfather was John Frederick, and his fa- ther's Christian name was Carl Frederick. The latter was for many years a clerk in the employ of the government, retaining his position until his death, July 1, 1851 ; he married Johanna Melchert, whose birthplace was New Brandenburg, Mecklen- burg, Germany, and she died at the age of seventy- six. Six children were born to them, of whom three are yet living : Adelheid and Johannes reside in Ber- lin, Germany; and Gustav A. The father and mother were both members of the Evangelical Church.
Mr. Becker remained in the Fatherland until he was twenty-six years old. In 1860, he crossed the ocean with the family of his intended to find a new home among people whose customs and speech were to him new and strange. He brought with him, however, what was better than fortune-good health, a sound constitution, sturdy purpose and rugged in- tegrity. He had learned the trade of brass work- ing in his native country, but after reaching these shores he found his way to Kentucky, and went to work upon a farm. From that State he went to Cincinnati, Ohio, and thence drifted back to New York. In 1863 he went to Seymour, where he en- tered the employ of Austin G. Day, Hard Rubber Works, which in time changed to the H. P. and E. Day Manufacturing Co., as a turner of hard rubber. He soon demonstrated his skill as a workman, and in 1872, nine years after beginning his new experi- ence, he was promoted to a responsible position, and has continued to discharge the arduous and responsible duties of that important post with signal ability and unswerving fidelity. His technical knowledge is superior to that of any man about the works; and this, joined to his long practical experi- ence, makes him a most capable and efficient super- intendent. Naturally endowed with mechanical genius of a high order, he has been able to devise and perfect many improvements in the machinery used in the plant. The force of employes not infre- quently numbers one hundred, and all are under his direct personal supervision and control. During his long connection with the establishment, he has seen many changes in its management, one generation succeeding an earlier one, and sons taking the places once filled by their fathers.
Mr. Becker has been twice married. His first wife was Auguste S. Trost, a German maiden, who died within a year after their union, in 1867. His second wife was Elizabeth, a daughter of Conrad and a sister of John N. Popp, a biographical sketch of whom may be found upon another page. She was born in Bavaria, March 27, 1852, and departed this life June 24, 1901, after a happy union of twen- ty-three years.
Like most men of his race and temperament, MIr.
Becker is genial, whole-souled and generous, faith- ful to his friends and charitable toward human frail- ty. He built his present handsome residence in 1895, and here he loves to dispense a liberal hos- pitality. He is a member of Morning Star Lodge, No. 47, A. F. & A. M., of Seymour, and formerly belonged to the Concordia Society. His political creed is that of the Republican party, while in relig- ious faith he is an Episcopalian, and was for many years a vestryman in that communion.
SHERMAN W. CHIPMAN, D. D. S., who for the past twenty-two years has been practicing den- tistry in Waterbury, has won for himself a reputa- tion in the profession second to none in the State.
Dr. Chipman is a native of Connecticut, born Oct. 2, 1852, at the old Wheaton place, on the edge of the town of Waterbury, a son of William Chip- man, who was born in Waterbury Aug. 13, 1811. He was apprenticed to the trade of shoemaker, but be- coming dissatisfied ran away from home, eventually reaching Mobile, Ala., where he learned the car- penter's trade, and followed same there several years. Returning to Connecticut, he, in company with his brother George, purchased a farm in Watertown, Litchfield county, at which time he was in the en- ploy of the Seth Thomas Clock Co. After a time he removed to Middlebury, New Haven county, pur- chased the old Wheaton place, and there for several years conducted a milk route. Retiring from that business, he went to Cheshire, New Haven county, and in his later years bought and sold farms, at the same time carrying on the carpentry business. He died in Cheshire April 21, 1893, a Republican in politics, and a member of the Congregational Church.
On May 6, 1840, William Chipman was married to Rowena Baldwin, who was born April 11, 1816, of Scottish lineage, and died Jan. 27, 1894, in Che- shire, Conn. Four children came to this union : Miss Jane E., born Sept. 17, 1842; Susan N., born Nov. 25, 1845, died April 26, 1886; Timothy L., born June 14, 1850, a jeweler by trade, but now conduct- ing the old homestead in Cheshire ; and Sherman W.
Sherman W. Chipman, whose name introduces this sketch, received his education in Cheshire, at- tending the Episcopal Military Academy. He then taught school two terms in his native town, also one term in Somerville, N. J., and upon returning to Connecticut commenced the study of dentistry with Dr. Austin B. Fuller, of New Haven. At the end of about one year with Dr. Fuller our subject at- tended the Pennsylvania Dental College, at Phila- delphia, and dissected at the Jefferson Medical Col- lege, then returned to Cheshire and opened a dental parlor which he continued for two years. During this time, as he had made himself proficient in medi- cine and surgery while in Philadelphia, he was called in to assist at a post mortem examination. On Feb. 28, 1874, he graduated from the Pennsylvania Den- tal College. The Doctor then opened a dental office
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in Torrington, Litchfield county, the first of its kind in the place, and here he practiced three years, mean- time opening a branch office at Thomaston. same county, attending to both for a time. In 1879 he abandoned the Torrington office, and opened a branch in Waterbury, New Haven county, in course of time giving up the Thomaston office and moving to Waterbury, where he has for a period of twenty- two years. been engaged in the continuous practice of his profession.
The Doctor in' politics is a Republican, but not active in the affairs of the party. By his own in- dividual efforts he has risen from the position of a poor boy ( who had to teach school in order to secure the means of taking him through college) to that of . a man of wealth, accumulated by ability in his pro- fession, assisted by industry and indomitable per- severance, not to speak of the popularity he has so . justly earned.
WALTER CLARK LEWIS, one of the esteem- ed and well-known citizens of the town of Madison, is a descendant of an old and honored family, origin- ally located in England.
George Lewis, the first of the name to locate in New England, came, about 1633, from East Green- wich, Kent Co., England, where he had married Sarah Jenkins, and located at Plymouth, Mass. A year later he removed to Scituate, and there joined the church, later removing to Barnstable, where he died in 1663. His children were: Mary, who mar- ried John Bryant, of Scituate, Mass .; Thomas ; George, who married Mary Lombard, of Scituate ; James, who married Saralı Lane; John; Ephraim ; Sarah ; Nathaniel; and Joseph.
Thomas Lewis, son of George, came to America with his parents. He was a surveyor of highways. He married Mary Davis.
Thomas Lewis, son of Thomas, was born in Barnstable in 1656, lived in Falmouth, later in East- ham, where he died. His fifth son, Zebulon, was the direct ancestor of our subject.
Zebulon Lewis removed to Haddam, Conn., in 1723, from Salem, Mass. He became the father of x sons : Zebulon, Nathan, Eleazer, Levi, Elisha and Thomas.
Nathan Lewis, son of Zebulon, married and in his family of children was a son, Francis.
Francis Lewis grew to manhood, married and became the father of three sons, Ansel, Milton and Levi.
Levi Lewis, the grandfather of our subject, was born in Haddam, where he engaged in agricultural pursuits. He married Sarah Doane, and moved with his family to Madison, where he located on the Kelsey place, near the county line, continuing to farm. A stanch Whig, he upheld the principles of that party throughout life. His death occurred in Madison. In his family were three children : Phil- ander ; John E., and Philona, who married Josepli Doane, of Clinton, Connecticut.
John Erastus Lewis, the father of our subject, was born in Haddam, Feb. 9, 1815, and came with his parents to Madison, where he grew to manhood. His life was a busy one. He engaged in farming and the manufacture of lumber, was also in the prod- uce business, and he was part owner of a vessel. Endowed with considerable energy and business ability, Mr. Lewis became a prominent man in the. community, was noted for the correctness of his life, and was spoken of as one who lived up to the pre- cepts of the Golden Rule.
On Feb. 13, 1854, he was married in Haddam, to Drusilla Clark, daughter of Coleman and Betsey ( Pelton) Clark, granddaughter of Asher Clark, and great-granddaughter of Aaron Clark, a soldier of the Revolutionary war. Three children were born of this union : Walter Clark, the subject of this sketch ; Wallace; and Catherine, who married Ralph Burr, of Middletown. Mr. Lewis died Dec. 23, 1893. Mrs. Lewis, who still survives, resides on the old homestead.
Walter C. Lewis, the eldest son of the family, was born April 24, 1855, at the family homestead. where he was reared, and attended the district school and Lee's Academy. His life has been occupied with farming, and he has taken a deep interest in the cultivation of the land, making his place, yearly, more attractive and valuable. On May 14, 1879, Mr. Lewis married Mary Nellie Bristol, a daughter of Charles and Mary ( Parmelee) Bristol, and a granddaughter of Uriah Bristol and Albert Par- melee. Three children have come to this union : Catherine Francelia, born Sept. 12, 1886; Wallace Frank, born Jan. 24, 1895; and Raymond Bristol, born Dec. 22, 1896. In politics Mr. Lewis adheres to the Republican party. The family is identified with the Congregational Church. There are no: more highly esteemed residents of Madison than our subject and his wife.
EUGENE R. HUBBARD, one of the well- known residents of New Haven, connected with the prominent firm of Reynolds & Co., and serving the city as president of the Board of Aldermen, is one of the solid and substantial citizens who are de- voted to the advancement and progress of this city and her industries.
Mr. Hubbard is a product of New Haven, born here Sept. 23, 1852, a son of Russell Hubbard, who was born in Middlesex county, Dec. 6, 1807, and died in June, 1887 .. Russell Hubbard married Miss Mahala Wright, also of Middlesex county, born April 17, 1813, and she died April, 1899. After marriage, Russell Hubbard, who was a carpenter and joiner, came to New Haven, about 1835, and here reared in comfort his family of six children : Mahala who married Theodore F. Lamb, of New Haven ; Chauncy R., who went to Brazil, where he died when about twenty years of age; Ralph, who died in 1877; Willard, a dealer in brass goods, resides in | Boston, Mass .; Herbert L., who is with Reynolds
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& Co., of New Haven ; and Eugene R. During his whole life, Mr. Hubbard was a consistent Demo- crat, and both he and wife were members of the Universalist Church.
Eugene R. Hubbard spent his boyhood days in New Haven, and attended both common and high school there. After he had passed his fourteenth year, he went to work in the New Haven Clock Co., where he remained three years, and then became an employe of the Reynolds Company, screw manufac- turers, where he continued for two years, going thence to Danbury, Conn., remaining one year. He then worked with Peck Bros. & Co., of New Haven, one year, and in March, 1874, he became shipping clerk with Reynolds & Co., and has continued with that firm ever since.
On Sept. 17, 1874. Mr. Hubbard was married to Miss Emma J. French, of New Haven, a daughter of Smith and Emelie French, and two children have been born to them, Maud I. and Eugene E. Mr. Hubbard has always been a Democrat, and has taken an active interest in politics. In 1895, he was elected councilman in the Eleventh ward, which is regarded as a Republican ward, and he was the only one on the Democratic ward ticket that was elected, this testifying pretty strongly to the confidence and es- teem in which he is held by the community. In 1896, he was nominated for alderman of the same ward, but in the city convention, he was nominated for the position of police commissioner, and thus was obliged to resign the previous nomination, in the following December being elected to the office, for three years, a Republican mayor being elected at the same time. A short time after his term began, a new city charter was formed and this threw Mr. Hubbard out of office by legislation, but the mayor appointed him police commissioner, for one year. In April, 1900, he was elected alderman of the Sixth ward, and has served most acceptably ever since, and has recently been made president of the board. and acting mayor in case of the absence or disability of the incumbent of that office.
Fraternally, Mr. Hubbard is connected with Hiram Lodge, No. 1, A. F. & A. M .. and with Montowese Lodge, No. 15, I. O. O. F., and is a member of the Odd Fellows Mutual Aid Association having passed through all the chairs in the I. O. O. F., and has been its secretary. Mr. Hubbard has the respect and esteem of all classes, in New Haven, irrespective of party, and may be justly called one of her representative men.
EDWIN RUSSELL WHITING. For three generation's the Whiting family have been promi- nently identified with the industries of Connecticut.
Jacob Whiting, the grandfather of Edwin R., was born in Danbury, Conn., Dec. 27, 1770. He moved to Whitneyville, where for many years he was closely identified with Eli Whitney, the manu- facturer, and as the right-hand man of Mr. Whit- ney aided greatly in the development of his inven-
tions and factory. Jacob Whiting married, Feb. II, 1791. Sarah Blake, who was born Feb. 17, 1769. Their family of seven children were as follows: Sally, born Sept. 28, 1791 ; Nathan, born April 11, 1794; Jacob, father of our subject, born March 5, 1796; Jane, born Dec. 31, 1798; Daniel, born Aug. 1, 1801 : Daniel (2), born July 8, 1803; Eveline, born May 1, 1805.
Jacob Whiting, the father of Edwin Russell, was a life-long resident of Hamden, Conn. He ac- quired the trade of gunsmith, serving an eleven years apprenticeship with Eli Whitney, Sr., and for many years worked in the Whitney factory. He married, in October, 1816, Rebecca Alling, a native of Ham- den, daughter of a farmer and butcher of that town. To Jacob and Rebecca (Alling) Whiting were born seven children, as follows: Maria, born June 10, 1818, married James F. Wilcox, of Westville, and died in 1898, leaving two daughters, Angeline (widow of Frank Cummings) and Ella ( wife of Edwin Payne, of Hartford) ; Jared, born in 1820, married Susan Leek, and died in the town of Ham- den in 1895, leaving a widow (who resides in Whitneyville), and seven children. Ellen (de- ceased), Dennis, Isabella (deceased), Frederick (deceased), Putnam, Hayden and Isadora ; Russell, born in 1822, died in infancy; Grace, born in 1824, is the widow of Frederick Thomas. of Westville; Mary, born May 4, 1827, died April 10, 1847, leav- ing one son, Burton L. Umberfield, now a prom- inent member of the police force, Hartford, Conn .: Edwin R., subject of this sketch, born May 20, 1830; Ellen, born in 1838, died Oct. 5, 1840. Re- becca, the mother of these children. died in New Haven April 7. 1880, aged eighty-three years. Jacob Whiting, the father, died in Hamden June 2, 1866; he was a Democrat in politics, and in his re- ligious views independent.
Edwin R. Whiting. the subject of this sketch, passed his boyhood days at Whitneyville. attend- ing the public schools of the town until the age of fourteen years, when, on Sept. 18. 1844. he came to New Haven, and at that age began a service at two dollars per week in what are now the works of C. Cowles Co., manufacturers of carriage . trim- mings, but which was then Judson, Cornwall & Cowles, which extended through the long period of thirty-five years.
This long term of service was broken by Mr. Whiting's military service during the Civil war. He enlisted at Centerville, Conn., Aug. 9, 1862, in Co. 1, 24th Conn. V. I. The regiment was assigned to Gen. Banks and participated in his Louisiana campaign, performing an important part at the siege of Port Hudson. Mr. Whiting was taken ill, and was confined in the hospital from May 20, 1863. until August, when he was sent home. He was in the service thirteen months and was mus- tered out at Middletown, Conn., Sept. 30, 1863.
Returning to New Haven Mr. Whiting resumed his position with the C. Cowles Co., and during the
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Edwin R Whiting
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latter years of his connection with the company did work on contract for them and lastly as superin- tendent. In 1880 he retired from active work in the factory to devote his time exclusively to his real estate interests, of which he now possesses consid- erable.
On July 4, 1849, Mr. Whiting married Louezer A. Hickox, of Woodbridge, who was born July 28, 1828, daughter of Henry and Lucy (Alling) Hickox, farming people, and great-granddaughter of Reuben Hickox, who, as an English emigrant, settled in Durham, Conn. The maternal grand- father of Mrs. Whiting was Justice Alling, of Woodbridge. Of these families Henry Hickox is the only one left in Woodbridge. To our subject and wife were born four children, viz .: Jennie A., who died at the age of thirteen; E. Park, who died at the age of seventeen ; Howard E., of New Haven, who married Marguerite O'Neil, and has three children, Ceres Belle, Henry and Edwin; Le- roy E., proprietor of the hosiery manufacturing fac- tory known as the White Knit Mills, New Haven, and who married Carrie Anna Elder, of Hartford.
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