USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 10 > Part 19
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(VI) William (2) Cornwall, son of Thomas and Mary (Beers) Cornwall, was born September 4, 1784, in Stratford, Connecticut, and lived in Norwalk, his oc- cupation being that of fitting out sailing vessels. He married, in 1810, Lucinda Nash, daughter of Noah and Anna (Keeler) Nash, and his death occurred September 16, 1832. His widow sur- vived him forty years, passing away De- cember 1, 1872.
(VII) Clark Thomas Cornwall, son of William (2) and Lucinda (Nash) Corn- wall, was born April 10, 1826, in Norwalk, Connecticut. He learned the tailor's trade. He was yet a young man when he established himself in business as a cus- tom tailor, but when he was but twenty- five years of age the doctors told him that he had only a year or two to live and sent him to Scranton, Pennsylvania. There he was employed for two years in the store of one of the coal mining com- panies, and the fine air of the hills about Scranton restored his failing health. Upon his return to Norwalk he engaged in farming, continuing along that line during the remainder of his life. He af- filiated with St. John's Lodge, No. 6, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and
at the time of his death was its oldest member. He married Catherine Guion (see Guion), in 1856, and died at the ad- vanced age of eighty-six, more than sixty years after the doctors had predicted his speedy demise.
(VIII) Kate Guion Cornwall, daugh- ter of Clark Thomas and Catherine (Guion) Cornwall, was educated in St. Mary's Episcopal Convent School in New York City. She became the wife of Henry Banks Balcom, as stated above. Mrs. Balcom was an active member of St. Paul's Protestant Episcopal Church, of Norwalk.
(The Guion Family).
This patronymic, spelled Guion, or Guyon, is the name of an ancient and hon- orable Huguenot family. At the Revoca- tion of the Edict of Nantes and even before that tremendous and well-nigh fatal blow at French Protestantism, many of them fled to Holland and America. Gregory and Jaques Guyon came to New York, the former settling at New Rochelle and the latter on Staten Island.
Peter Guion, probably a descendant of Gregory Guyon, was of Mamaroneck, New York. He married Amy - - He is said, also, to have lived in Rye, New York.
Catherine Guion, daughter of Peter and Amy Guion, became the wife of Clark Thomas Cornwall (see Cornwall VII).
BOHL, John J.,
Postmaster.
The public servant is too often little regarded and less known. Particularly is this true of those men who hold offices in connection with what might be termed public utilities, offices remote from the lime-light, but involving considerable labor and infinite attention to detail. It might reasonably be questioned if in anv
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city the majority of the letter-writing public even knows the name of their postmaster. The office is one of multi- tudinous duties, and it would indeed be unfortunate to pass by the name of John J. Bohl, the Stamford postmaster, in this group of representative citizens of Con- necticut.
(I) Benjamin Bohl, Mr. Bohl's pater- nal grandfather, was the founder of this family in America; he was a highly re- spected farmer of Woodbury, New Jersey. He was born in Frankfort-on-the-Main, Germany, and came to this country with his wife and three children. He went im- mediately to Woodbury, where he re- mained as long as he lived, following agricultural pursuits.
(II) Benjamin F. Bohl, son of Benja- min Bohl, was born and grew up on the home farm, interested in the work of the place, helping his father until he became of age to strike out for himself. He then became a gardener on one of the large estates in the neighborhood. A young man of the highest ideals, devoted to the simplest duty that came to his hand, he won the esteem of all who knew him. When the great struggle of the Civil War was begun, he took up the larger duty without hesitation, and enlisted in the New Jersey Volunteer Infantry. He was twice wounded; first at Antietam, and again at Gettysburg. He was finally given an honorable discharge, and though fully eligible would never accept a pen- sion. He was very strict in his sense of honor. He married Mary Berin, and they were the parents of ten children, nine of whom came to an age of maturity, namely: Charles, now deceased, who served three enlistments in the United States navy ; Fred, a resident of Tacoma, Washington ; Annie, who became the wife of Fay Babcock, of Woodbury, New Jer- sey; two daughters and a son now de- years. He organized the Central Labor
ceased-Elizabeth, Mary, and Samuel ; John J., of whom further; Ida, who be- came the wife of Philip Walaman, of Philadelphia ; and B. Franklin, now de- ceased. Mr. Bohl was a member of the Lutheran church, and his wife was a Roman Catholic. The children, as they grew up, were allowed free choice, and now belong to at least five different re- ligious denominations.
(III) John J. Bohl, son of Benjamin F. and Mary (Berin) Bohl, was born in Woodbury, Gloucester county, New Jer- sey, February 2, 1866. He received his early education in the public schools of that town, which he attended until he was ten years of age. At that time his parents removed to Bridgeton, Cumberland county, New Jersey. There his education was completed, and he learned the trade of cigar maker with his brother. This trade he followed for a number of years. In 1882 he removed to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and it was there that he became interested in the political activi- ties of the day. Always a Democrat, never a politician merely for the sake of the game, he threw the weight of his in- fluence on the side of public progress. He was a member of the School Board of Philadelphia for six years, and was chair- man of the Gerard School after it was built. He ran for State representative in a community that was Republican two to one. He became a prominent figure in the political world of that city. He came to Stamford, Connecticut, in 1903, and from that time to the present has taken an active part in political affairs. During Woodrow Wilson's first campaign he served as chairman of the Democratic city and town committee. He has always been deeply interested in Labor Union work. He was secretary of the Cigar Makers' Union in Philadelphia for six
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Union, of Stamford, and was its president for five years.
Mr. Bohl was made postmaster of Stamford in 1913. Gifted with executive ability of a high order, possessed of the natural German instinct for thoroughness, and withal a conscientious gentleman of genial presence, he is a man peculiarly fitted for the position. He has never spared himself in the least. It is safe to say that few men in like office give so much time and energy to the performance of official duties. Frequently he is at the office before many Stamford citizens are out of bed in the morning, and he is often there late at night. He is always most accessible to the public, and always ready to give open-minded consideration to the adjustment of any matter for the good of all concerned. No detail escapes his at- tention, and under his administration, during most trying times, the Stamford Post Office has given wonderfully efficient service, constantly improving and broad- ening its scope. Mr. Bohl is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, of which organization he is past exalted ruler ; he is also past president of the Fraternal Order of Eagles' and served as a member of the grand board of trus- tees of that order. He is a member of the Improved Order of Red Men, and the Knights of Columbus.
Mr. Bohl married Ellen Maria Mc- Cooey, daughter of Lawrence McCooey, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and had one son, Leonard Francis, who was grad- uated from the University of Pennsyl- vania in 1913, and died in the fall of that year.
CULLEN, Frederic Martin, Electrical Contractor.
The Cullen family is one of the oldest in Irish history. Members of this family
were granted lands in County Leitrim at the time of Charles I. Previously they had emigrated to Scotland, but later re- turned to their native home. The sur- name of the family is derived from the Irish, Cuilthinn, which means handsome or fair ; it is of the class of names known as "names derived from personal charac- teristics." The early spelling was Cuil- leans, and often the prefix O' is found. With the passing of time the name has been anglicized into its present form of Cullen.
John Cullen was born in Boyle, County Roscommon, Connaught, Ireland, where he grew to manhood. He came to Amer- ica and settled in Norwalk, Connecticut, where he worked as coachman for pri- vate families the greater part of his life. For about twenty years he was with the late Hon. Dudley P. Ely, of Norwalk. Mr. Cullen married Ellen McCoy, born in Adare, County Limerick, Ireland, daughter of Michael McCoy. At the age of six months she removed with her par- ents to London, England, where they re- mained until she was eighteen years of age, then they came to the United States, locating in Norwalk, Connecticut, where her father followed farming for several years. Mr. and Mrs. Cullen are the par- ents of fifteen children, a family of which they may well be proud of. Their names are as follows: Eugene and Charles, twins; Walter Francis, Charles Dudley, John Edward, John William, William, Frederic Martin, of whom further; Mary Alice, Nellie Rebecca, Augusta Anna, Florence Winifred, Gertrude, and Eliza- beth Josephine and Geneva Lucy, twins.
Frederic Martin Cullen, son of John and Ellen (McCoy) Cullen, was born in Nor- walk, Connecticut, February 10, 1891. He received his education in the public schools of Norwalk, and for a time worked for the Norwalk Lock Company.
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Later he entered the employ of the Lock- wood Manufacturing Company, and after a few years spent with the Reed & Volk Electrical Company he engaged in busi- ness on his own account. This fact alone is sufficient evidence of his ability. But Mr. Cullen did not stop seeking to fur- ther his knowledge and thereby his work- manship. He studied diligently in the evenings and trained himself in electrical theory. He is deserving of the success which he has attained, which has come to him from the constant application of effort. On July 5, 1916, he opened his present store, where a general line of elec- trical goods is carried. At first his business venture was small, consisting mostly of taking contracts for electrical wiring, and it has steadily and consist- ently grown until at the present time he employs on an average of twenty-five men. Mr. Cullen has also entered into the civic life of Norwalk with a real pub- lic spirit, and has served as chairman of the building committee of the Common Council.
Mr. Cullen served in the World War, enlisting February 17, 1917, in Company B, 77th Division, 302nd Regiment of En- gineers. He saw active service in France, landing there April 12, 1918. He fought at Bacaret, from June 21 to August 4, 1918; at Oise-Aisne, August 18th to September 16th ; at Meuse-Argonne, September 26th to November IIth. Unfortunately he was gassed and compelled to spend six weeks in the hospital at Nevers. Mr. Cullen is a member of the American Legion, the Knights of Columbus, the Putnam Hose Company, and the Norwalk Club.
JOHNSON, Edgar,
Building Supplies Broker.
The eighties, in Stamford, Connecticut, constituted a decade of progress. Re-
markable changes and advancement were evident along all lines of public activity. Particularly was this true of the building trades. New houses took the place of old dwellings ; suburban residences seemed to grow, almost over night, where before had been only barren fields. Business interests doubled and trebled, and the housing of the growing industries changed the face of almost every import- ant street. This was the period when Edgar Johnson, the prominent broker in building supplies, became identified with the industrial life of Stamford.
Mr. Johnson comes of the Mechanics- ville, Rockland county, New York, family of that name, which dates back in Amer- ica to early Colonial times.
(I) Robert Johnson, great-grandfather of Edgar Johnson, was born in Mechan- icsville, New York, on the old farm, which even then was the family homestead.
(II) Stephen R. Johnson, son of Robert Johnson, was born on the same farm, and followed farming on the home place all his life. He married Hannah Young.
(III) Henry Johnson, son of Stephen R. and Hannah (Young) Johnson, was born on the old homestead, in 1824. He cared little for the work of the farm, and being ambitious to strike out for him- self he learned the trades of carpenter and stair builder. This gave him more free- dom of movement, and he left the farm, going in one direction or another as his work called him. He was a Republican in political affiliation, and took a lively in- terest in all public affairs. What would undoubtedly have been a brilliant future was cut short by his untimely death of pneumonia, in 1856, at the early age of thirty-two years. He married Julia Springsteen, daughter of Cornelius Springsteen, of Saddle River, New Jer- sey, and they were the parents of five children: Edgar, of whom further; Ma-
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rilda, who died some years after her mar- riage; Elmira, now deceased, who became the wife of James Madison Herring ; Cor- nelius, of Brooklyn, New York; and Henry, also of Brooklyn, New York. The family were members of the Methodist Episcopal church.
(IV) Edgar Johnson, eldest child of Henry and Julia (Springsteen) Johnson, was born in New York City, September 29, 1849. Left fatherless at an early age, he spent much of his childhood on the old homestead. There he received a practical education, attending the public schools of Mechanicsville until he was thirteen or fourteen years of age. Being the eld- est of five children, and realizing that the future depended largely on his own ef- forts, he went to Brooklyn, New York, when he was about fifteen, and learned the trade of carpenter. During all his life he has been closely identified in one way or another with the building busi- ness. Naturally farsighted and an ex- cellent judge of conditions, he has been a significant factor in the rapid develop- ment of Stamford in recent years from the small, quiet village to the thriving, busy city. He first came to Stamford in 1884, as foreman for a New York concern to take charge of the construction of a dwelling house. He liked the location, and liked the people with whom he became acquainted, and he believed that the town faced a future of more than ordinary busi- ness and social importance. When the building upon which he was working was finally completed, he was induced to ac- cept a position with the St. John Wood- Working Company, and became a resi- dent of Stamford. He continued with that company until 1896, during the last several years of which period he was gen- eral manager.
Possessed in no small degree of that initiative and business acumen which count so far toward success, he severed his connection with the St. John Wood- Working Company, and established him- self in business. He chose the line of brokerage, handling all kinds of building materials. The business has grown to large proportions, reaching well outside the immediate vicinity. It covers all of Western Connecticut and Eastern New York, and Mr. Johnson's office is one of the busiest places in Stamford. In po- litical affiliation Mr. Johnson is a Repub- lican, and in all matters pertaining to the public welfare he is constantly placing his keen business ability at the disposal of the community, joining wholeheartedly in every movement for progress. In 1896 and 1897 he served as councilman, and he has also served on the street committee. He is a member of Union Lodge, No. 5, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons.
Mr. Johnson married Isabella Hallock, daughter of Samuel M. Hallock, of Brook- lyn, New York. There have been eight children born of this union, five of whom are now living: 1. Sylvia, who became the wife of Caswell Travis, and has two children, Pearl and Violet; they reside in Silver Springs, New York. 2. James Madison, of Newark, New Jersey. 3. Judd Edgar, now in the service of the United States navy. 4. Elsie H., who became the wife of Pierre Bonteceu, and has two children, Kenneth and Sylvia. 5. Ideson B., who was in the aerial branch of the service during the World War ; was in France one year ; enlisted from Oberlin College, and returned there after the close of the war. Mrs. Johnson died in 1912, at the age of fifty-nine years. Mr. Johnson has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal church for many years, as was also his wife.
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DREW, George Albert, Fruit Grower.
The surname of Drew is traced to Drogo or Dru, a Norman of noble birth, son of Walter de Ponz, and brother of Richard, ancestor of the Clifords, who ac- companied William the Conqueror to England. Several tenants in chief of the name of Drogo were in the Domesday Book. Drogo was anglicized to Dru, and there are many different spellings in the early records such as Drewe, Drews, Druce. The immigrant ancestor of the family was John Drew, who was in Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1660. There have been many noted members of this family and many have added distinction to the lineage through their achievements. There is none more deserving than George Albert Drew, of Greenwich, Con- necticut, whose name is widely known by virtue of his success as a horticulturist.
(I) Cephas Drew, grandfather of George A. Drew, was born April 21, 1797, in Halifax, Massachusetts, and died Sep- tember 5, 1833. He was a farmer. He married, April 2, 1822, in Westford, Mas- sachusetts, Edea Fletcher Symmes, who was born August 2, 1795, and died May 7, 1877, a daughter of Thomas and Re- becca (Carver) Symmes, and a lineal descendant of Rev. Zachariah Symmes, who came from England with his wife, Sarah, in the "Griffin," arriving in Boston, September 18, 1634. Mr. and Mrs. Ce- phas Drew were the parents of two sons: George and Thomas Drew.
(II) George Drew, son of Cephas and Edea F. (Symmes) Drew, was born in Westford, Massachusetts, December 14, 1828, and died in Lowell, June 18, 1906. He was educated in the public schools of Westford and in the Westford Acad- emy. After completing his schooling, Mr. Drew became associated with Jonathan
Larcom, of Chelmsford, and learned the carpenter's trade under his able training. Mr. Drew was successful as a builder, and many of the most handsome residences in Westford were built by him. At one time he owned a large farm in the town and devoted much of his time to the care of it. In politics, Mr. Drew was a Republican, and was active in the affairs of Westford. He served as a member of several minor committees such as the school committee and so forth. He was a member of Troop F, Cavalry, Massachusetts Volunteer Militia, and of the Unitarian church.
Mr. Drew married, October 4, 1863, in Washington, Vermont, Sarah Jane Ober, born October 12, 1835, daughter of Ben- jamin Ives and Rebecca (Parker) Ober. Benjamin Ives Ober was born August 20, 1794, in Beverly, Massachusetts, and died in Washington, Vermont, January II, 1873. He was educated in the public schools, and as a boy went to sea. As a young man he learned the carpenter's trade and worked at this occupation in Chelmsford and Westford. He owned a farm in Chelmsford, and in 1849 pur- chased one in Washington, Vermont, where he lived the remainder of his life. Mr. Ober married (first) January 23, 1816, in Chelmsford, Harriet Hart, of Beverly, born March 22, 1792. He mar- ried (second) September 19, 1830, Re- becca Parker, of Chelmsford, born Sep- tember 9, 1804, died January 19, 1874, daughter of Joseph and Tabitha (War- ren) Parker. Benjamin Ives Ober's fa- ther was Thomas Woodbury Ober, born about 1758, married, in 1793, Anna Ives; he was lost at sea. Thomas Woodbury Ober descended from Richard Ober, the immigrant, who was in Salem as early as 1664. Sarah Jane Ober, daughter of Benjamin Ives Ober, was born October 12, 1835, and became the wife of George Drew, as above noted. Mr. and Mrs.
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Drew were the parents of the following children : I. Edea Jane, born December 4, 1864, died January 9, 1892; she mar- ried, June 1, 1885, Charles Soule Packard, of Brockton. 2. Emma Frances, born November 22, 1867, died June 20, 1870. 3. Annie Mabel, born March 5, 1872; is a teacher in the Westford and New Bed- ford schools; Miss Drew graduated from the Westford Academy, and was a stu- dent at the Leland Stanford University. 4. George Albert, of whom further.
(III) George Albert Drew, son of George and Sarah Jane (Ober) Drew, was born in Westford, Massachusetts, March 18, 1876, and was prepared for college in the Westford Academy. He received his degree of B. S. from the Mas- sachusetts Agricultural College in 1897, and the same year received a similar de- gree from the Boston University. After completing his college work, Mr. Drew was given charge of the college horticul- tural department and the experimental and park department work. In addition he served as instructor in horticulture. In 1903 he became associated with Mr. E. C. Converse, who had conceived the idea of developing a beautiful country estate in Greenwich, Connecticut. The present location was selected because it afforded a combination of water, wood- land and field. On the estate is a beauti- ful body of water covering 175 acres. At first it was suggested that this lake would furnish a desirable water supply for the town of Greenwich. In order to protect the purity of the water, Mr. Converse be- gan buying the contributing water-shed. Gradually the surrounding farms were ac- quired until the estate grew to 1,600 acres. At one time 1,000 men were employed in clearing and consolidating the small fields and pastures as they had been divided in the former farms. Work was begun on the first unit of 450 acres, and the best of the
stone was used in erecting buildings which probably have no superiors any- where in this country. They are arranged on a scientific plan, embodying the most advanced ideas in farm arrangement, and include besides the usual list of farm buildings a fine cold storage warehouse. The refuse stone was used in constructing roads of which there are fifteen miles on the estate, well built.
They have a dairy herd of 100 thor- oughbred Guernsey cattle, and a large poultry department in which White Leg- horns and Rhode Island Reds are raised. There are about 2,000 laying fowls, and about 10,000 chickens are raised in a season. Each season there are 100 acres planted in corn, while about fifty acres are devoted to the small grains, such as wheat, rye and oats. The general harvest of hay is about 100 tons. The main in- dustry on this immense farm, however, is fruit growing. There are about 400 acres planted in apples, peaches, plums, pears and small fruit. The biggest pear orchard in New England, 10,000 trees, including all the standard varieties, is on this farm. There are 10,000 apple trees, 12,000 peach trees, and 1,000 plum trees. An army of 100 men are employed to carry on this big enterprise, and in some seasons this number is doubled. The fruit is marketed in a commercial way from Stamford to New York City. 'The lake above referred to is stocked with fish, and when the town of Greenwich finds its water supply running low, water from this lake is furnished free of charge. The farm is equipped completely with the most modern agricultural implements and machinery, including a tractor.
Besides managing this vast estate, Mr. Drew has two farms in his native town of Westford, Massachusetts, where he is de- veloping apple and pear orchards. There are about 200 acres altogether, 75 of
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which are under cultivation, and his trees number 7,000. In 1914 Mr. Drew organ- ized the Drew Orchards of Sutton, Mas- sachusetts, of which corporation he is president and treasurer. They are now developing orchards of 12,000 peach trees and 10,000 apple trees.
In politics Mr. Drew is a Republican, and is vice-president of the Greenwich Republican Town Committee, as well as serving as a member of the Board of Es- timate and Taxation; he also serves as a director of the Greenwich Trust Com- pany. His fraternal associations are with the following: Phi Sigma Kappa; the Connecticut Pomological Society, of which he is county vice-president; the Massachusetts Fruit Growers' Associa- tion ; the New York Fruit and Horticul- tural Society. Mr. Drew has delivered many addresses before horticultural so- cieties in New Jersey, Virginia, Massa- chusetts, New York and Connecticut, and several of these addresses have been pub- lished, thereby enabling many to gain knowledge from them.
Mr. Drew married Rachel Brooks, daughter of William P. Brooks, Ph. D., a professor of the Massachusetts Agricul- tural College at Amherst, who recently retired as director of the Massachusetts Experiment Station, and was at one time acting president of the Massachusetts Agricultural College, and one of the founders of the Imperial Agricultural Col- lege of Japan. For his work in that con- nection he was decorated with the Order of the Rising Son by the Emperor. Mr. and Mrs. Drew are the parents of three sons: William Brooks, Benjamin War- ren, George Albert, Jr. With his family Mr. Drew attends and aids in the support of the Congregational church, of Green- wich.
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