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 4 > Part 6
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
Our subject's early life was spent in Glasgow, and he obtained his education in a private school. For a time he was employed in a dry-goods store as a boy, and when twenty-three years old he came to America, locating first in Providence, R. I., where he was in the dry-goods business for nine years. In 1879 he settled in Ansonia, and in part- nership with John H. Shaw, a native of Airdrie, near Glasgow, he founded his. present store, be- ginning in half of the store building known as "Military Hall," formerly the Methodist Episcopal church, which they rented. The partnership con- tinued up to 1890, when Mr. Murray bought his partner's interest, and several years afterward he became owner of the store premises. The business has steadily grown since its foundation. Some nine years ago the addition of a second floor was found necessary to meet its demands. The floors are 50 feet square, and the entire store has recently been renovated and painted in a most attractive manner. Twenty clerks are employed, and in the various de- partments everything is kept which is to be found in metropolitan stores. Mr. Murray is now one of the oldest in the dry-goods business in any of the four towns of Seymour, Ansonia. Derby or Shelton.
Mr. Murray married Janet Shaw, in America, and has one son, Walter J., who is attending the Cheshire Military Academy, and next year expects to enter Yale College. Mr. Murray is a member of the United Presbyterian Church, his wife of the Episcopal Church. The family is much esteemed socially, and our subject is one of the oldest mem- bers of the F. & A. M. in Ansonia, having united originally with St. Mary's Lodge, of Glasgow. Be- fore coming to the United States he was a sergeant in the Seventh Roval Lanarkshire Artillery of Scot- land, in which he served some years, and in 1876 he enlisted in the Rhode Island militia. He has crossed the Atlantic four times, having visited sev- eral parts of Europe, and having journeyed as far north as the North Cape, and has beheld the mid- night sun.
died in London in 1888. He was employed on the editorial staff of the London Times and London News, as a "specialist." He married Amelia Thompson, daughter of George Thompson, who, in concert with William Lloyd Garrison, was a strong anti-slavery advocate. The following named children born to our subject's parents are still liv- ing: E. May, Constance, Julia, Frederick Will- iam, Harold, Hugh and George. Of these, Harold lives in Florence, Mass., and George in Springfield, Mass. The mother of this family is yet living in London.
Frederick W. Chesson, our subject, attended school in his native city. "In May, 1880, when six- teen years of age, he came to the United States, first locating in Boston, Mass., where he entered the employ of the Plume & Atwood Co., manufacturers of brass goods, remaining there until May, 1883, at which time he came to Waterbury to accept a position with the American Ring Co., with which he has ever since been connected. Commencing as office boy, he rose by sheer native ability, per- severance and thorough attention to business, un- accompanied by any influence, to the position of superintendent, which he held seven years, or until 1800. when he was appointed secretary and general manager of the concern, his present incumbency. The firm when Mr. Chesson came to it employed about one hundred and twenty-five hands. and now some seven hundred are engaged in the works.
In 1887 our subject was married to Clara W. Cooke, of Waterbury, daughter of Walter H. Cooke, a sketch of whom follows. Four children have graced this union: Frederick William, Wal- ter, Robert and Sterling. In church connection Mr. and Mrs. Chesson are Episcopalians. Polit- ically he is a Republican, and is now serving as alderman of the Third ward, having been elected to that office in 1809: he is also a member of the board of public works. Socially he is a Freema- son, also a member of the I. O. O. F. and K. of P. He owes his enviable position, as already intimated, to his own exertions, and his example is one which young men of the present day would do well to follow. His character is above reproach, and no resident of Waterbury holds a higher place in the esteem of his fellow men.
WALTER H. COOKE, father of Mrs. Fred- erick W. Chesson, is a native of Connecticut, born Sept. 30, 1835, in Reynolds Bridge, Litchfield coun- ty, and comes of an old New England family.
(I) Henry Cook (for so the name was orig- inally spelled, the "e" having been added by a mem- ber of the family later on), great-great-great-great- FREDERICK WILLIAM CHESSON, secre- tary and general manager of the American Ring Co., Waterbury, is an Englishman by birth, having been born June 7. 1864, in the city of London. great-grandfather of our subject, was married in Plymouth, Mass., in 1639, and died Dec. 25, 1661. (II) Samuel Cook, his son, was born in 1641, and died in 1702. ( III) Samuel Cook, Jr., son of Sam- Frederick William Chess n. father of our sub- nel, was born March 3, 1668, and died in Septem- ject, was of the same nativity, born in 1832, and , ber, 1725. (IV) Moses Cook, son of Samuel, Jr.,
1194
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
was born in Wallingford, Conn .. Nov. 6. 1716, and died Dec. 12, 1771. (V) Moses Cook, Jr., his son, was born May 30, 1744, and died, probably in Wallingford, in 1831. He was a drummer in the war for independence.
(VI) Joseph Cook, son of Moses, Jr., and the grandfather of our subject, was born in Water- bury Nov. 4, 1767, and died there March 26, 1855. In early life he was a tanner and shoemaker, later taking up farming in Waterbury; was also a sur- veyor, and collector of taxes for years. He mar- ried Anna Bronson, a native of Waterbury, and a daughter of Ezra Bronson, who was a commissary during the Revolutionary war; his son Michael was a lieutenant in the same struggle. Josephi Cook was a soldier in the war of 1812. After mar- riage our subject's grandparents settled in Water- bury, where were born to them eight children : Ed- ward B., Samuel, Susanna. Sally, Nancy, Nathan, George and George W. Of these, Edward B. died in Waterbury, where he followed the trade of me- chanic, and later was the originator of the Water- bury American; Samuel was. also a mechanic in Waterbury, and died there ; Susanna married Mark Leavenworth, of Waterbury: Sally married Solo- mon Curtis, of Southington, Conn. ; Nancy married William Scovill, a cabinetmaker by trade; George died at the age of nine years ; George W., who by trade was a silver plater, died in Waterbury.
(VII) Nathan Cooke, father of our subject, was born Jan. 8, 1804, and died Oct. 26, 1892. He was a clockmaker by trade, and followed same in Waterbury and Reynolds Bridge. Conn. ; in fact, he may be said to have been a lifelong "clock man," as at the early age of sixteen years he traveled through the South selling clocks from a wagon, and setting them up for customers. He married Clarissa Reynolds, who was born July 4. 1806, at Reynolds Bridge, a daughter of Russell Reynolds, a farmer of that locality, and whose ancestry were English. Walter H., our subject, was their only child. The mother died in Waterbury Oct. 22, 1892. The father was a Whig in politics, later a Republican. and in religious faith he was a Con- gregationalist.
Walter H. Cooke, our subject, was about eight years of age when he came from Reynolds Bridge to Waterbury, and attended school at both places, including the high school and an academy in the latter city; also for a time was at a school in Watertown, Conn. After finishing his education he clerked in a dry-goods store about a year ; then for three and one-half years was in the employ of the American Pin Co. Taking a six months' rest after this, Mr. Cooke entered Hall & Smith's insurance office, remained a year there, and then clerked in a dry-goods store for several years. Subsequently he was in the photographing business some four or five years in Torrington, Conn .: conducted a grocery business in the same town ; and was engaged for a time in a factory, having charge of a room. Re-
turning to Waterbury, he was for sixteen years bookkeeper for the American Ring Co., and for four years was in the coal business, but of late years he has been living retired.
On Sept. 27, 1862, Mr. Cooke married Jane D. McClintock, who was born in New York, a daugh- ter of Jolm McClintock, a native of Ireland, and of Scottish extraction. Two children have come to this union : Clara W., wife of Frederick W. Ches- son ; and Frederick S. The family attend the serv- ices of the Congregational Church. In politics Mr. Cooke is a Republican ; socially he has been affil- iated with the I. O. O. F. for many years, and for five years he has been president of the Naturalist Club of Waterbury.
PETER WILKINS, foreman of the brass roll- ing and casting departments of the A. B. C. Co., of Ansonia, was born April 15. 1862, in Gloucester. England, a son of Daniel and grandson of William Wilkins.
For many years the family was identified with Elkstone, England, and William Wilkins was born there and passed his life in farming in that locality. He was a member of the Church of England and a man of most excellent qualities of character. He lived to the advanced age of 101 years, and his wife, Anna, lived to the age of eighty. Of their fourteen children, four are still living in England.
Daniel Wilkins, our subject's father, was born at Elkstone, England, in 1819, and settled at Glou- cester in early manhood. For forty years he was in the employ of the Midland railroad, and he died in the service at the age of sixty-six years. He mar- ried Sarah Jeynes, who is still living in England, and they had fourteen children, of whom seven are living. Thomas, a brass annealer with the A. B. C. Co., was the only one besides our subject to come to America : Jane married John Merchant, of Glou- cester, England ; Emmanuel is a locomotive engin- eer in Manchester, England; Sarah A. married Thomas Vallender, who has charge of a round house in Australia : Alfred is a locomotive engineer in Derby, England : Peter was the next in order of birth ; Albert is a locomotive engineer in Glouces- ter, England. It will be noted that three of the sons are engineers, all being in the employ of the Midland Railway Co. Mrs. Sarah ( Jeynes ) Wil- kins was born in Gloucester, a daughter of Thomas and Sarah Jeynes, also natives of that city, and the former a farmer by occupation. Both were mem- bers of the Episcopal Church, and the mother (our subject's grandmother ) died aged sixty years, leav- ing two children.
Peter Wilkins received a common-school edit- cation in his native city, and when thirteen years old went to Birmingham to learn the brass rolling trade. At twenty his apprenticeship ended, and he came to the United States, locating first in New York City, where he was employed for some years by the Manhattan Brass Co., at Ist avenue and
1 1
1628683
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
1195
28th street. He rose to the position of foreman of the brass rolling and casting department, and on July 1, 1889, went to Ansonia to take a similar posi- tion with the A. B. C. Co., the first six months, how- ever, having been spent in general work as a roller. He has 150 men under his direction and has been notably successful as a manager. In 1893 he built a large double house on Forest avenue, where he now resides. He was married March 15, 1892, to Sarah Maybury, and they have had four children, of whom three are living: Daniel R., Frederick WV. and Peter E. Mrs. Wilkins was born in Wol- verhampton, England, the daughter of Samuel and Sarah Maybury, both of whom were devout mem- bers of the Methodist Church. Her mother died in Shelton, Conn., at the age of seventy-nine, but her father, who was an iron worker at Wolver- hampton, died at forty-eight. He had twenty-one children, of whom three are living: Annie, wife of Frederick Frost, of Shelton; Mary Jane, who married Charles Shedd, of Providence, R. I .; and Mrs. Wilkins.
Few men in Ansonia are so popular as our subject, whose genial disposition and high character make him a general favorite. Politically he is a Republican, and his party has kept him prominent in municipal affairs of late years ; he was elected in 1895 to the city council, and in 1897 and 1899 to the board of aldermen, his present term expiring in 1001. The family is prominent in social life and Mr. Wilkins belongs to the order of United Friends, the Eagle Hook and Ladder Co., of Ansonia, and the Knights of Pythias; the A. O. U. W .; the Sons of St. George, and has passed through all. the chairs in the last society. While in New York he became a member of the Pastime Athletic Club and the Y. M. C. A. In his religious connection he belongs to Dr. Crosby's Church. The family, however, attend the Methodist Church of Ansonia.
H. WALTER MURLLESS, M. D., has, though still young, gained a substantial place for himself among the medical fraternity in New Haven county, where he has built up an enviable practice and ac- quired a well-deserved reputation for skill and thor- ough knowledge in his chosen calling.
Dr. Murlless was born Aug. 10, 1868, in Wind- sor Locks, Hartford Co., Conn., son of F. T. and Mary E. (Perrin) Murlless, the former a dentist of Windsor Locks. He received his early education in the common schools of his native place, later attending the high school, and the Connecticut Lit- erary Institute, at Suffield, Conn., from which latter he was graduated. Subsequently. for several terms, he was engaged in teaching in Windsor and East Hartford, during that time taking un the study . medicine under Dr. S. R. Burnap. In 1890 he en- tered the Louisville ( Ky.) Medical College, from which he was graduated in the class of 1803. and on his return to Connecticut he began practice at Hartford, where he spent four years. After the
death of Dr. G. P. Reynolds, in 1897, at Guilford, Dr. Murlless came hither, and he has followed his profession here with flattering and unusual success, his kind disposition and winning personality aiding him quite as effectively as his studies in gaining the confidence and good wishes of all with whom he has come in contact. He is popular and highly respected, and has already made a place for himself among the useful citizens of his adopted town. The Doctor belongs to the City Medical Society, the Hartford County Medical Society, and the Con- necticut State Medical Society, and fraternally holds membership in Euclid Lodge. No. 109, A. F. & A. M., Windsor Locks; Pythagoras Chapter, R. A. M., Hartford; Wilcott Council, R. & S. M .: and Mennacatuck Lodge, I. O. O. F., Guilford.
GEORGE C. HAM, senior member of the well- known firm of Ham & Tuttle, surveyors of Nauga- tuck, Conn., was born in Washington Hollow, Dutchess Co., N. Y., April 11, 1867, and is a worthy representative of one of the old and hon- ored families of that county. The first to locate there was Conrad Ham, who came from the Rhine Valley, and was probably of German descent. His son, Frederick Ham, was the great-grandfather of our subject ; the grandfather was Conrad Ham ; and the father was Milton Ham. All were natives of Washington Hollow, Dutchess Co., N. Y., where they spent their entire lives; were farmers by oc- cupation; and members of the Dutch Reformed Church. Milton Ham married Phoebe Ferris, a na- tive of the town of Pawling, Dutchess county, and to them were born three children: John, a farmer of Washington Hollow ; Sarah ; and George C.
George C. Ham was reared upon the home farm, and was educated in private schools at Millbrook and Pine Plains, Dutchess county ; Andover, Mass. : and the Yale Scientific School, being a graduate of the last three. For a short time after leaving school he engaged in surveying in his native coun- ty, and in 1888 came to Naugatuck, Conn., where he did the surveying for the Naugatuck water works: in 1889 was constructing engineer of the Litchfield water works, and subsequently with Mr. T. H. Mckenzie, C. E., of Southington, was em- ployed on various hydraulic and sanitary works. Returning to Naugatuck in 1801, he built the storage reservoir for the Naugatuck Water Com- pany, and after other engagements outside the State in 1893 he opened an office here on Church street, which has since been his headquarters, though his business calls him to other parts of Connecticut and New York State. He formed a partnership with Howard B. Tuttle, M. E., and under the firm name of Ham & Tuttle they carry on an extensive busi- ness as civil engineers and surveyors.
In 1892 Mr. Ham married Miss Grace Seymour, a daughter of Zera Seymour, of Naugatuck, and to thein has been born one child. Conrad C. Polit- ically' Mr. Ham is what may be termed an inde-
1196
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
pendent. 'Since the organization of the borough he has served as engineer of Naugatuck, and is also secretary and treasurer of the Naugatuck Board of Trade, and is a director of the Naugatuck Water Co. A man well known in his section of the coun- ty, he is highly esteemed by all, and while giving striet attention to his business interests has yet man- ifested an interest in public affairs, and has ever shown his desire to promote the welfare of his adopted county and State.
LIEUT. COL. JAMES GEDDES, toolmaker in the employ of the Scovill Mfg. Co., Waterbury, is a native of that city, born Oct: 28, 1865. and is the eldest son of Samuel and Elizabeth ( Henderson ) Geddes. The remainder of the family consists of Elizabeth, Margaret, John H. and Mary.
James Geddes attended the public schools of Waterbury, and then worked in sundry factories, in 1892 entering the employ of the Scovill Mig. Co. as toolmaker, and there he has since remained. On Nov. 24, 1898, he was married, and has a son, James, Jr .. A Republican in politics, our subject was one of the assessors of Waterbury during the years of 1897-98-99. Socially he is a member of Comstock Lodge, No: 13, K. of P .; of Townsend Lodge, No. 89, I. O. O. F .; and is a charter mem- ber of Winona Lodge, No. 8. Order of Rebekah. The record of Lieut. Col. Geddes' military career is as follows : Private Company A. 2d Regiment National Guard, June 6. 1887: corporal. April 3. 1880; sergeant, March 16, 1891 ; second lieutenant, Nov. 23, 1891 ; first lieutenant, Jan. 2, 1893; cap- tain, March 15. 1893; major, Dec. 5, 1899; lieu- tenant colonel, Jan. 10, 1901.
SAMUEL AUGUSTU'S HALE, a prominent agriculturist of Cheshire, was born in Scipio, N. Y., March 30, 1862, but is a representative of an honored pioneer family of Cheshire. His great- grandfather, Ebenezer Hale, was a native of this county, and a very prominent early settler of Mix- ville, where he followed farming throughout life. The grandfather, Ebenezer Hale. Jr., was born in Mixville, in 1793, and for a quarter of a century made his home in Cheshire, in the meantime learn- ing the trade of tanner and currier in Wolcott, New Haven county. At the age of twenty-five years he went to Wolcott, N. Y., where he worked at his trade for a time, and then removed to Scipio, that State. In New York he married Miss Maria Johnson, a native of Chenango county, who died in 1888. at the advanced age of ninety years. He died in Scipio in 1860. Of their eight children, only four reached years of maturity, namely: Titus Johnson, a resident of Auburn, N. Y., and the only one of the family now living; Lucius, father of Samuel A. : Thomas ; and Mary Augusta.
Lucius Hale was born in Scipio. N. Y .. April 9. 1824. and there he was reared and educated. Throughout his active business life he followed the
occupation of a farmer, while making his home in Chenango county. He wedded Miss Mary Bush, also a native of New York, and both died in Che- nango county, the former in 1882, the latter in 1891. To them were born three children: Rosabelle, who died at the age of ten years; Samuel A .; and one who died in infancy.
During his boyhood and youth Samuel A. Hale pursued his studies in the schools of Cayuga and Chenango counties, N. Y., and upon the home farm acquired an excellent knowledge of agricultural pursuits, which he has followed as a life work. Coming to Cheshire, New Haven county, in 1893, he purchased the Hotchkiss farm, upon which was then standing an historic apple tree, the age of which was variously estimated from 200 to 250 years, but it has recently been blown down.
On Oct. 13, 1886, in Chenango county, N. Y., Mr. Hale was united in marriage with Miss Mary Shoales, a native of Syracuse, N. Y., and an adopted daughter of Trowbridge Shoales. Her father, James Morgan, was a soldier of the Civil war from New York. By this union have been born four children, namely: Lucius Johnson, Alta Maria, Adaline Ruth and Eben Augustus. Mr. and Mrs. Hale are members of the Congregational Church of Cheshire Centre, and both are held in high re- gard by all who know them.
WILLIAM S. RANDALL, M. D., though a comparatively young man, has by loyal devotion to the practice of his profession placed himself among the foremost physicians in the field of his labor in this part of Connecticut.
Born in Brookfield, this State, Aug. 5, 1861, a son of the late Charles W. and Elizabeth ( Ruggles ) Randall, the former a successful business man of Shelton and Derby, he at an early age went to re- side in Southbury, and afterward in Huntington. He received his preparatory education in the public schools of that town and those of Derby, Conn .. and then began a course of instruction at Yale College, graduating from the Scientific Department of that university in the class of 1883. Immediately there- after he entered the Medical School connected with that institution, where he pursued the study of med- icine for a period of one year. He completed his professional course in the College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia College, N. Y .. graduating therefrom in 1885. Soon after, having been ap- pointed on the staff of physicians at the New Haven Hospital, he held the position of house physician and surgeon therein from December, 1885, to No- vember, 1886. Thus fully equipped, with his scien- tific and medical training at the colleges supple- mented by practical experience in hospital service, he located in Derby, in 1886, and began the practice : of his profession, which he has steadily increased until it extends over a large field, including the cities of Derby and Ansonia, the town of Hunting- ton and neighboring localities. During the earlier
AS Randall, M.A.
1197
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
years of his professional career he resided in Derby, but in 1891 he purchased the Ruggles homestead in Shelton and took up his residence in that borough. He has since maintained two offices, the one in Derby, the other in Shelton, being prominently identified with both municipalities. He is a mem- ber of the Fairfield County Medical Society, the Connecticut State Medical Society and the Ameri- can Medical Association. The marked professional success and high social position which Dr. Randall has attained come only to one who, possessed of good natural ability, supplemented by excellent preparatory training, pursues his life work with unselfish and indefatigable devotion. Though now reaping the harvest of years of patient toil and study, lie is not content to rest on present acquisi- tions, but is ever on the alert to bring into his serv- ice the most approved methods and the latest con- tributions of science to the theory and practice of medicine. While having thus gained an enviable reputation as a skillful physician and surgeon .in the field of general practice, he has been remarkably successful in the treatment of diseases of the nose. throat and ear, having been connected as an assist- ant with the Manhattan Eye and Ear Infirmary of New York City. Many insurance companies and organizations have chosen him as medical examiner, thus testifying to their confidence in him both as a physician and a man of integrity.
Though not a politician, in the sense of an office-seeker, Doctor Randall's political friends have wisely recognized in him a strong leader, and when- ever nominated to any office-as a candidate of the Democratic party, with which he has been identi- fied-he has received the hearty support of his fel- low citizens, drawing to himself more than the party vote. Among local incumbencies which he has filled are those of chairman of the committee of the Ferry school district, which he held for a period of two . years, and health officer of the town of Huntington, a position which he has held contin- uously since 1893. He is an active member of the New Haven County Public Health Association, and takes a deep interest in all matters relating to the public health, especially those of a sanitary nature. In 1892 he was elected to the General Assembly as representative from the town of Huntington, de- feating in his campaign for that office the Hon. Allan W. Paige, the Republican candidate, and at the time Speaker of the House of Representatives. While in the Legislature Dr. Randall was a mem- ber of the School Fund committee, also clerk of the committee on Public Health. Only his loyalty to his chosen profession hias prevented him from ap- pearing more conspicuously in positions of trust and responsibility in the administration of public affairs. Among the laws which are largely attrib- utable to his legislative work are the Medical Prac- tice Act, and an act concerning county and town health officers, for which his professional brethren will do him grateful honor.
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.