USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 10 > Part 49
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English Mead, Meade, Mede, Meads. The first of the Mead family who settled at Elmdon, County Essex, England, in the reign of Henry VI was Thomas Mead, Esq. Coat-of-arms: Sable, a chevron, between three pelicans or, vulning gules. (I) In 1635 the ship "Elizabeth" ar- rived in Massachusetts, having sailed from Lydd, County Kent, England. Among the list of passengers were Good- man (called Gabriel) Mead and William Mead (probably brothers). Goodman Mead remained in Massachusetts; Wil- liam Mead, however, followed the tide of immigration, which at that time was toward the Connecticut Valley. William Mead settled first in Wethersfield, and in 1641 removed to Stamford, where he re- ceived a home lot and five acres of land. His children were: Joseph, born about 1630, married Mary Brown, of Stamford ; Mary, born about 1632, married John Richardson ; John, of whom further.
(II) John Mead, son of William Mead, was born about 1634, and died February 5, 1699. In 1657 he removed with his brother Joseph to Hempstead, Long Is- land, and in 1660 to Old Greenwich. He was a member of Assembly, 1679-80 and 1686, and one of the twenty-seven pro- prietors of Greenwich in 1672. His two wills are recorded in Fairfield Probate Records. He married, about 1657, Han- nah Potter, of Stamford. Children : John, Joseph, Hannah, Ebenezer, of whom fur- ther; Jonathan, David, Benjamin, Na- thaniel, Samuel, Abigail, Mary.
(III) Ebenezer Mead, son of John and Hannah (Potter) Mead, was born in 1663, and died in 1728. In 1696 he was appointed to keep a tavern, which stood on the same site for nearly two hundred years, and has a history linked with Colo- nial and Revolutionary wars. When it was torn down in 1886 many old relics
were found, including a Hessian sable, an English penny dated 1701, a piece of blue cloth with brass buttons on it, and a pair of Indian moccasins. A board was dis- closed near the big chimney, on which the name Reuben Mead and date 1741 were printed in charcoal. Ebenezer Mead married, in 1691, Sarah Knapp, of Stam- ford. Children: Ebenezer, of whom fur- ther; Captain Caleb, born 1694, married Hannah Rundle; Sarah, born 1696, mar- ried Jonathan Hobby ; Hannah, born 1698, married, 1716, John Hobby; Jabez, born 1700, died unmarried; David, born 1702, married, 1731, Sarah Close, died 1766; Abigail, born 1704, married Isaac Holmes ; Susanna, born 1706, married, 1726, Moses Husted; Jemima, born 1708, married, 1731, Moses Knapp.
(IV) Ebenezer (2) Mead, son of Eb- enezer (I) and Sarah (Knapp) Mead, was born October 25, 1692, and died May 3, 1775. He was a lieutenant of the East Company of Militia in 1728, and was com- missioned captain of the same company in 1738. He married, December 12, 1717, Hannah Brown, of Rye, and they resided in Greenwich. Children : I. Ebenezer, born October 8, 1718, died 1758; married Amy Knapp. 2. Silas, born May 22, 1720, died 1787; married Mary Mead. 3. Abra- ham, born December 5, 1721, died 1743, unmarried. 4. Jonas, born December 25, 1723, died 1785; married (first) Sarah Ferris, (second) Sarah Howe. 5. Rev. Solomon, born December 25, 1725, mar- ried (first) Hannah Strong, (second) Hannah Clark. 6. Deliverance, born May 4, 1728, died 1785; married Abigail Howe. 7. Dr. Amos, born February 22, 1730, married Ruth Bush. 8. Edmund, born 1732, lost at sea in 1755, unmarried. 9. Hannah, born December 5, 1734, died 1757, unmarried. 10. Jabez, born Novem- ber 4, 1737, died 1766, unmarried. II.
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Jared, of whom further. 12. Captain Ab- raham, born December 14, 1742, died De- cember 24, 1827; married Keziah Howe. (V) Jared Mead, son of Ebenezer (2) and Hannah (Brown) Mead, was born December 15, 1738, and died May 8, 1832. He married, December 10, 1775, Lydia Smith, daughter of Daniel Smith, born December 8, 1754, died January 27, 1824. Children : I. Zetta S., born January 14, 1777, married Ebenezer Mead. 2. Daniel S., of whom further. 3. Lydia, born Au- gust II, 1781, married Ellison Lockwood. 4. Alma, born July 26, 1783, unmarried. 5. Hannah, born May 25, 1788, married Deacon James Mead. 6. Jared, born Sep- tember 28, 1791, married Anna Arm- strong. 7. Alvin, born November 30, 1794, married Eliza Peck.
(VI) Daniel S. Mead, son of Jared and Lydia (Smith) Mead, was born Novem- ber 20, 1778, and died December 21, 1831. He married, January 16, 1806, Rachel Mead, daughter of Joshua Mead, born September 2, 1779, died January 10, 1859. Children: I. Zetta, born March 16, 1807, died 1861, unmarried. 2. L. Adelia, born June 2, 1808, died 1827, unmarried. 3. Adaline, born October 3, 1809, died 1810. 4. Daniel S., born April 9, 1811, married Huldah Mead. 5. Ada- line, born August 31, 1812, died 1828. 6. R. Elizabeth, born October 13, 1814, mar- ried (first) Odle Close, (second) David B. Mead. 7. Jared, born July 25, 1816, married Clarinda McFarland. 8. Edwin, born October 27, 1819, married Maria Reynolds. 9. S. Merwin, of whom fur- ther.
(VII) S. Merwin Mead, son of Daniel S. and Rachel (Mead) Mead, was born October 5, 1823. He married, May 20, 1851, Elethea Reynolds, born May 4, 1826, died April 28, 1890. Children : I. Mary Louisa, born February 24, 1853, married, May 15, 1873, Alexander B.
Brush, of New Fairfield, Connecticut (see Brush line). 2. Daughter, died in in- fancy. 3. Ella R., born July 17, 1857, died 1896, unmarried. 4. George M., born Au- gust 14, 1859, married Georgia E. Graves. 5. Anna R., born September 25, 1861, mar- ried Nelson B. Mead. 6. Gertrude, born August 23, 1863, unmarried. 7. Joshua R., born January 8, 1866, died 1885. 8. Ada B., born June 12, 1869.
ANDERSON, Captain Carl A., Oyster Grower, Legislator.
There are many huge industries in Connecticut, but the unique one is under the deep seas. There are about 64,000 acres of privately planted oyster beds in Connecticut and 5,000 of natural beds. One of the oldest growers of oysters in Connecticut is Captain Carl A. Anderson, of Norwalk. Captain Anderson was one of the organizers of the J. & J. Ellsworth Oyster Company, which owns about 600 acres of oyster grounds, and during the season employs on an average of one hun- dred men. Captain Anderson was born in Frederichald, Norway, December 30, 1865 son of Hans and Beathe (Olsen) Anderson.
Hans Anderson, father of Captain Carl A. Anderson, was born in the same place in 1834, and was reared on a farm. He lived to be seventy-six years of age, and learned the trade of tailor, which he fol- lowed the greater part of his life. He married Beathe Olsen, a native of the same town, and they were the parents of six children. Two of the sons came to America and one, Hans Anderson, Jr., died in East Norwalk, Connecticut, leav- ing two sons, Harry and Carl A.
Carl A. Anderson attended school until he was fourteen years old, and then left his native home to ship as a cabin boy. As the years passed he was promoted,
Conn-9-23
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and in 1882 came to America, locating in New York City. He continued to follow the sea out of that port, but on steam vessels, and was only about twenty-two years old when he was given his master's license. Captain Anderson engaged in the coastwise trade until about 1885, in which year he entered the oyster business on his own account. He located in Rocka- way and Princess bay, and in 1890 be- came a resident of East Norwalk, acquir- ing oyster grounds along the Connecticut shore. It was at this time that the J. & J. Ellsworth Company was organized, of which Captain Anderson is the outside manager.
Captain Anderson has taken a promi- nent and leading part in the public affairs of Norwalk since making his residence there. He is held in high esteem by his townsmen, and has several times been called upon to occupy positions of trust and responsibility. He is a Democrat in a town which is staunchly Republican, and in 1891 was chosen to represent his party in the State Legislature, which was a high honor to a man, not native born and a member of a minority party. While in the legislature Captain Anderson served as a member of the shell-fisheries com- mittee.
Captain Anderson married, February 3, 1886, Lovise Knudsen, daughter of Silas Knudsen, born in Twedestrand, Norway. They were the parents of six children : I. Bessie, born August 25, 1887. 2. Clara, born December 6, 1889, married George Glover, and is the mother of a son, Carl A. 3. Howard S., born December 22, 1891; he enlisted in the United States Navy and served as machinist on the de- stroyer, "Drayton," and made many trips across the ocean ; he is married and is the father of a child, Margaret. 4. Lillian M., born April 26, 1896; married Charles
Vaast, and has a daughter, Lillian. 5. Henry M., born December 27, 1901. 6. Frederick W., born September II, 1904. Captain Anderson and his wife are mem- bers of the Methodist Episcopal church, and he is a member of Ichoda Yacht Club, of South Norwalk; of Old Well Lodge, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons ; But- ler Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fel- lows ; Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; Loyal Order of Moose; Uncas Tribe, Improved Order of Red Men ; For- esters of America, and the Putnam Hose Company.
CROOKER, Captain Frederic S., Boatyard Proprietor.
There are few citizens of Greenwich, Connecticut, better known than the one whose nanie stands at the head of this article, and in addition to being an able, aggressive business man, Captain Crooker is a highly esteemed citizen, always inter- ested in promoting the welfare and prog- ress of his home town.
Ephraim Crooker, grandfather of Fred- eric S. Crooker, was a scion of old Dutch stock, his ancestors having belonged to the race which made the first settlement on Manhattan Island and founded the city of New Amsterdam, later named the city of New York. Mr. Crooker was a sea captain all his life, running a market boat between New York City and Port Washington, New York, and having his home for the most part in the latter place.
Simeon Weeks Crooker, son of Eph- raim Crooker, spent much of his boyhood at Hempstead, Long Island, and when he grew to manhood engaged for a few years in boating. He and his father purchased a market sloop and ran it for a consider- able period. Simeon Weeks Crooker learned the trade of a ship carpenter and
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after following it for a time went into the oyster business, being one of the first to plant oysters in Manhasset Bay, formerly known as Cow Bay, New York. During the remainder of his active life he was connected with this line of endeavor.
Simeon W. Crooker married Julia H. Sands, an account of whose family is ap- pended to this biography, and they be- came the parents of the following chil- dren : Frederic S., mentioned below; Ef- fie, married John Noon; Frank, of Port Washington, New York; Alfred, de- ceased; and Walter, also of Port Wash- ington. Mr. Crooker died in 1914, at the age of eighty-five. He was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, but his wife held membership in the Protestant Episcopal church.
Captain Frederic S. Crooker, son of Simeon W. and Julia H. (Sands) Crooker, was born May 10, 1866, at Great Neck, Long Island, and received his education in local public schools, in the summers making boat trips with his father. After leaving school, at the age of sixteen, he sailed with his father for three years, and at the age of nineteen purchased a boat of his own, engaging in the oyster busi- ness on his own account. After spending about seven years in this business, Cap- tain Crooker came, in 1893, to Greenwich and turned his attention to the clam in- dustry. For four or five years he engaged in digging and shipping clams to the New York market and at the end of that time purchased his present property. He has since devoted himself successfully to painting, repairing and storing small pleasure craft, making of the enterprise a profitable and flourishing concern, giving employment during the summers to a large number of men.
Captain Crooker married, in 1889, Mary Hahn, daughter of Charles Hahn, of Man- hasset, and they are the parents of one
daughter, Anna, who is now the wife of William Miller, of Manhasset.
(The Sands Line).
This ancient race is of Saxon origin and has been traced as far back as the reign of Edward the Confessor. The name is supposed to be derived from a place called Sande, in the Isle of Wight. The family was distinguished in English his- tory from a very early period, many of its members holding high offices in church and state. The Sands escutcheon is as follows :
Arms-Or, a fesse dancettée between three cross crosslets fitchée gules.
Crest-A griffin segreant per passe or, and gules.
Motto-Probum non pænitet.
Edwin Sandes (Sandys also being an- other form of the name) was Archbishop of York in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and not more than two or three genera- tions later we find the first of the name in New England, Henry Sands, of Boston, Massachusetts ; this was in 1640.
Captain James Sands, brother of Henry Sands, was born in 1622, and is said to have settled the same year of his brother's emigration at Portsmouth, Rhode Island, some accounts giving the date as 1658. He is said to have removed, subsequently, to Long Island, where his descendants have since remained, constituting one of the oldest and most distinguished fam- ilies of that region. Sand Point was named in their honor. During the Rev- olutionary War the family record was a narrative of patriotic activities, and throughout the century and more which has since elapsed, bearers of the name have rendered notable service in civil and military life.
Gideon Sands, father of Mrs. Julia H. (Sands) Crooker, was of Great Neck, Long Island, one of the representative men
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of his community and a citizen whose life was in harmony with the honorable tra- ditions of his race. The Sands property at Great Neck was a deed from a grant of the English through Queen Elizabeth.
LEONARD, William J., Business Man.
The business in which Mr. Leonard is engaged is one which brings him in touch with the commercial interests of his com- munity, and when we consider that he is following that business in his native town, where he has always resided, we readily understand that he must be one of the best known men in Stamford, Connecti- cut. Also, it should be added, he is one of the most respected citizens.
The name of Leonard, in French Léon- ard, is an ancient one. Its form in Old French, Léonhard, signifies Lion-Brave, being composed of leon, lion, and hard, brave. Leon is derived from the Latin leo, lion.
John Leonard, father of William J. Leonard, was born in County Down, Ire- land, and came as a boy to the United States. He grew up on a farm and be- came a coachman, a vocation which he followed forty years, nearly all that time in the service of Harvey Weed. After Mr. Weed's death, Mr. Leonard devoted his attention to his farm of twelve acres, the land being now comprised in the city park. Mr. Leonard married Mary Mc- Lean, like himself a native of County Down, and his death occurred in 1887, when he had reached the age of seventy- three years.
William J. Leonard, son of John and Mary (McLean) Leonard, was born July 13, 1862, in that part of the town now called Wallack's Point, Stamford, Con- necticut, and received his education in the local public schools. After leaving
school he learned the moulder's trade in the Stamford Foundry and for five years followed it diligently. At the end of that time he abandoned it in order to give his attention to gardening, in which he en- gaged for about fifteen years, being em- ployed on private places at Shippan Point.
About twelve years ago Mr. Leonard purchased his present place at Shippan Point, and engaged in the livery and ex- press business. But the opportunities for a livery establishment were not what they had been. Horses were being gradually displaced by automobiles, and in 1919 Mr. Leonard discontinued the livery branch ·of his business. He still, however, con- ducts the express department of the con- cern, thus supplying a very real and ur- gent need of his friends and neighbors in Shippan Point.
In politics, Mr. Leonard has never been active, but his interest in community af- fairs is keen and helpful and he can al- ways be counted on to "lend a hand" in any movement having for its object im- provement of local conditions.
Mr. Leonard married Annie King, born in Ireland, daughter of John King, and they are the parents of the following chil- dren: I. May, widow of Oscar Spalir ; she has one child, Constant, and since the death of her husband has resumed the work in which she was engaged before her marriage, teaching in the Stamford public schools. 2. William F., married, and has one child, Robert. 3. John E., married Nonie Gleason. 4. Gertrude R., also a teacher in the public schools of Stamford.
After engaging industriously and prof- itably in various forms of activity, Mr. Leonard finds himself, while still in the prime of life, in independent circumstan- ces as the head of a flourishing business, with an enviable reputation for honesty and fair dealing and for those qualities
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which cause a man to be regarded with respect and affection by his neighbors and fellow-citizens.
HANSEN, John M., General Contractor.
A nation cannot be measured by its physical boundaries. Her area may be small, she may not be numbered among the Great Powers of the earth, but Den- mark has given to greater nations, in the sons of her soil, the sturdy qualities of mind and soul without which all nations, whatever greatness they may have at- tained, will crumble to the dust. In the Scandinavian countries, where the rigors of the Northern climate test every man, the rugged, active virtues become estab- lished characteristics. Thrift and indus- try are learned in the cradle, so to speak ; the hard conditions make mutual helpful- ness the accustomed attitude, and bind men together in a universal brotherhood. This public spirit, these homely qualities, so vital to the social welfare, are brought to us by the young men who seek our shores, and in the homes they build among us are perpetuated, becoming a part of the very fabric of our civilization. John M. Hansen, the progressive contractor of Greenwich, Connecticut, ably exemplifies this accession of new and wholesome blood.
In Mr. Hansen's name survives the time-honored Scandinavian custom, still in vogue in many sections, through which the surname given to a child is composed of his father's Christian name and the suffix, "son," or, with the same meaning, "sen." Thus the son of Jens becomes Jensen ; the son of Hans, Hansen.
Mr. Hansen comes of a family of high character, whose members held positions of trust in the community. In the fa- mous old city of Lubeck, by the river
Trave, nearly a hundred years ago, Hein- rith Moos, Mr. Hansen's grandfather, watched over the city from a quaint old tower while the people slept, and any who chanced to be wakeful heard his call, hour after hour, and knew that all was well.
Hans Henrick, his son, was born in Lubeck, in 1834, and died in 1912. He was ambitious to enter some active field of labor, and while still quite a lad went to Denmark and learned the trade of brick making. He worked hard, and de- nied himself every luxury, and soon after completing his apprenticeship managed to start a brick yard of his own. He began in a small way, but the excellence of his product and his natural business sagacity gave him success from the very start. It was located in Aalborg, Veusysel, Den- mark, and after a few years he took one of the young ladies of the town for his wife, Lena Maria Emerson. They were the parents of three children: John M., whose name heads this review; Chris, now also a resident of Greenwich, Con- necticut; and Fred, who still resides in Veusysel. The parents were faithful and earnest members of the Danish Lutheran church up to the time of their death.
John M. Hansen, the well known con- tractor of Greenwich, Connecticut, was born in Aalborg, Veusysel, Denmark, No- vember 23, 1865, the oldest son of Hans and Lena Maria (Emerson) Henrick. He received his early education in the pub- lic schools of his native town. This pe- riod of his life was closed at the age of fourteen, but being active, observant, al- ways on the alert for knowledge from the least important matter to the great issues of the hour, Mr. Hansen supplemented the formal education of his boyhood with the live, practical information which is so potent a factor of success. On leaving school the boy entered his father's brick
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yard and learned the trade. He remained with his father until 1888, when he be- came interested in the accounts he heard of the wonderful country across the seas. The idea of a radical change of environ- ment appealed to him, and fearing noth- ing he set out for the shores of America. He located in the Glenville section of the town of Greenwich, Connecticut. Here he turned his hand to anything that offered a livelihood, studying, meanwhile, men and conditions, manners and customs. He worked on a farm for about two years, then for about a year in a stove foundry. After this he became ill, and as soon as he was able to travel he took his wife and two young children and returned to the old country for a rest. He remained about a year, then returned to Greenwich. His business connections were now in the line of contracting, he being foreman for some years for one of the principal contractors of Greenwich at that time. About ten years ago he branched out for himself in this line. He made a modest beginning, laying cement sidewalks and doing a va- riety of work in that class. But the young man possessed in himself the elements of success. A tireless worker, an aggressive business man, he let no opportunity es- cape him, and he allowed no piece of work to pass inspection until it was done in a workmanlike manner. He built up a large business, and three years after start- ing for himself bought the general con- tracting business with which he was pre- viously connected. He now does all kinds of contracting, including the erection of residences and business structures. Throughout the town of Greenwich, and in many parts of the surrounding coun- try, his work stands as a worthy example of the threadbare adage, too often for- gotten or disregarded in this age of haste and bustle, "Whatever is worth doing at
all is worth doing well." He recently completed a fine residence for Ernest Thompson-Seton, the famous writer. He employs fifty to sixty men on the aver- age, and has all necessary modern equip- ment for doing concrete work, as well as steam rollers for doing road work. Not long after this change the firm bought the ice business of Maher Brothers, which in- cludes the handling of both natural and artificial ice. Mr. Hansen is head of the concern, and his broad experience and splendid executive ability augur well for the future success of the business.
On June 12, 1886, about two years be- fore coming to America, Mr. Hansen mar- ried Anna Marie Neilson, who was born in the same neighborhood as her husband, daughter of Neils Christian Neilson. They are the parents of twelve children, of whom four are married and have es- tablished homes of their own. The chil- dren are as follows: 1. Carolina Doro- thea, born September 12, 1887; married Harry Holbeck, and has two children, Howard and Edward. 2. Emma Eliza- beth, born November 30, 1889; married James Anderson, and has two daughters, Emma and Florence. 3. Martin A., born January 17, 1891, died March 3, 1892. 4. Martin Harry, born April 25, 1893; mar- ried Florence Ritch, and has one daugh- ter, Florence. 5. John Antoine, born July 21, 1894 ; now in association with his fa- ther in business ; served in the late World War as sergeant on Fisher's Island, and was transferred to the 31st Regiment about the time the Armistice was signed. 6. Thomas Frederick, born April 28, 1897; served in the Aviation Corps in France. 7. Hans Frederick, born April 13, 1899; married Alice Francefort, and has a son, James Henry Hansen, born April 5, 1920. 8. George, deceased. 9. Lillian Jensine, born September 26, 1902. 10. Charles
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Ferdinand, born December 16, 1904. II.
Anna Marie, born March 10, 1907. William, born November 2, 1908.
12.
KARL, John Martin, Business Man.
One of the great uses of biography is to supply readers with notes of encour- agement. The pages tell of the achieve- ments of self-made men who have accom- plished their aims through their own ef- forts. Such a history is the story of the career of John Martin Karl, of New Can- aan, Connecticut. Mr. Karl was born in Brooklyn, New York, November 11, 1888, son of Stephen and Mary (Schwarz) Karl.
Stephen Karl was born October 16, 1862, in Germany, where he attended the district schools until he was thirteen years of age. This was supplemented by a three year course in the evening schools. Mr. Karl learned the trade of tailor, and when he was twenty years of age came to America, locating in Brooklyn, New York. There he followed his trade until 1895, in which year he removed to Mil- ford, Connecticut, and purchased a small farm. He engaged in the business of raising poultry, small fruits, and makes a specialty of garden truck. In all Mr. Karl has about fifteen acres, and he has been very successful in the cultivation of his crops.
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