USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 11 > Part 38
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About twenty years ago, it being the desire of Mrs. Belden to make her sum- mer home in Connecticut, she was author- ized by her husband to select a site and to make all the arrangements necessary for the erection of a residence. She fin- ally purchased a plot on Wallack's Point, in the town of Stamford, one of the most beautiful spots on the Connecticut shore, and there built a spacious and attractive mansion, which reflects a strong indi- viduality and a fine sense of proportion. One of the most important elements in her influence was her love for the natural beauties of the place and her care for their preservation. In order to save a fine tree she had a U-shaped niche built into the house, thus giving it room for growth. Mr. Belden was a man of exceptionally strong domestic attachments, appreciat- ing nothing so highly as an atmosphere of family affection and fireside happiness.
It was not, however, in his beautiful Connecticut home, that Mr. Belden "ceased from earth," but in Montreal, Canada, where, on February 12, 1912, he passed quietly away. From the old city of the North, rich in historic associations, the sad tidings came to his beloved Stam- ford, bringing to many hearts profound sorrow for the loss of one whose daily life among them had given an example of every private virtue even as his course in the turmoil of the world of business had been one of undeviating rectitude and stainless integrity.
A career like that of Charles Denison Belden is independent of comment. Its unadorned record has a simple and con- vincing eloquence far transcending the language of eulogy.
(The Brush Line).
This name, which is another form of Broom or Broome, is, perhaps, derived from the German brusch, meaning a broom. Some claim that it is an angli- cized form of Plantagenet (planta genista), but it is, more probably, a local designa- tion derived from one of the parishes so- called in the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, Stafford, Bedford, and Durham. Robert de Brus went with William the Con- queror to England, where the name of his son Robert was changed to Bruce. This, some say, was the origin of the Brush, Bruse, Bruce and Bush families.
Branches of the Brush family were early transplanted to Massachusetts and Long Island, and also to Westchester county, New York. Everywhere have the members proved themselves worthy citi- zens, valuable, in the different walks of life, to their respective communities.
(I) Caleb Brush was born in West- chester county, and was engaged in busi- ness on Grove street, New York City. He married Eleanor Van Tassel (see Van Tassel family), the original of the fas- cinating Katrina Van Tassel, the cele- brated heroine of the "Legend of Sleepy Hollow," perhaps the best known of those charming tales from the pen of Wash- ington Irving, whose genius has clothed with an atmosphere of romance, the banks of the Hudson from New York to Albany.
(II) Joshua, son of Caleb and Eleanor (Van Tassel) Brush, was engaged in the lumber business. He married Lucretia Keesler, of New York City.
(III) Catherine Louisa, daughter of Joshua and Lucretia (Keesler) Brush, be-
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came the wife of David Belden, as stated above.
(The Van Tassel Family).
The original form of this name was Van Taxel, derived from the designation of the place in Holland, which was the native home of this heroic race. It is easily seen that the correct orthography has only one "1" and it is thus that the name is spelled by Irving, the historian and eulogist of this gallant family.
The Van Tassels came by marriage into possession of Wolfert's Roost, the house which was built by Wolfert Ecker, and which became, nearly two centuries later, the home of Washington Irving, by whom the estate was rechristened "Sunnyside."
At the time of the Revolutionary War Wolfert's Roost, or, as it was then called, the Van Tassel house, was owned by Jacob Van Tassel, a renowned patriot, who turned his house into a garrison and became the leader of a band of sturdy warriors, recruited from the neighboring farms, who scoured the countryside by day and night, defending it from the Brit- ish and from the marauders who followed in the tracks of both armies.
Abraham Van Tassel was the father of the immortal Katrina, whose kinswoman, Eleanor Van Tassel, became the wife of Caleb Brush (see Brush family).
(The Allen Line).
This patronymic is derived from the personal name Alan, which was common in Norman times, and is thought by some to signify a hound, or wolf-dog. By others it is said to have been introduced into England in the Conqueror's time by Alan, Earl of Brittany, and to be equiva- lent to the Roman Ælianus, sun-bright.
(I) John Allen, who appears to have been the founder of the New York branch of the Allen family, is thought by some to
have been born in Holland. If this be true, the family was probably Scottish and, like the Van Nesses, transplanted a branch to Holland in consequence of the persecutions of Charles the First. John Allen came to New York City and mar- ried Sabina Meyers who, as her name in- diçates, was of German parentage. Mr. Allen died when he was, comparatively, a young man.
(II) Stephen, son of John and Sabina (Meyers) Allen, was born July 2, 1767, in New York City, and was a young child at the time of the death of his father. Mrs. Allen, however, was a noble woman and an ideal mother. She caused the boy to be educated in private schools of his native city, and throughout his childhood and youth was his wise counsellor as well as his loving parent. And richly was she compensated for her devotion, for her son developed into a noble man, filling with honor the highest municipal office in the gift of his fellow-citizens and leading them in all that made for reform and for true progress. Mr. Allen was apprenticed to the trade of sail-making and at fifteen was thrown on his own resources. In 1787 he formed a partnership with Thomas Wilson, a sail-maker and a mem- ber of the Society of Friends, and in De- cember, 1791, went into business for him- self. So well established was his reputa- tion for integrity and fairdealing that he was popularly known as "Honest Stephen Allen."
In 1812, Mr. Allen, who was then a wealthy merchant, joined a volunteer company and lent all the money he could spare from his business for the mainte- nance of war activities. On being con- sulted by a United States naval agent in regard to furnishing a supply of duck, he sold his whole stock to the government upon its own terms. The cessation of
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hostilities caused the treasury notes with which the duck had been paid for to so increase in value that he realized a hand- some profit.
In April, 1817, Mr. Allen was elected to the Common Council and in March, 1821, he became mayor of New York. He took a prominent part in the completion of the New York aqueduct. In April, 1824, he was appointed commissioner to visit the prisons in Auburn and in New York City and to report upon conditions and recom- mend changes. The result was the sale of the old prison in New York, and the erection of the State prison at Sing Sing.
On November 1, 1825, Mr. Allen retired from business, and in May, 1826, he was sent to the New York State Assembly. In 1829 he was elected Senator and, as such, served as a member of the court for the correction of errors. This was the first instance in which written opinions were given in the court of errors by a lay- man.
In 1833 Mr. Allen was appointed one of the water commission for supplying New York with pure and wholesome water, and served as chairman of the committee. In 1840 he was relieved of the office of water commissioner by Governor Seward, for reasons purely political. Charles King said, in the "Memoir of the Croton Aqueduct :" "The chairman of the board, in particular, Stephen Allen, has left upon the work, from its commencement to the advanced stage in which he relinquished it to his successor, the stamp of his ener- getic character and . strong, inquiring mind." All the public positions filled by Mr. Allen were unsolicited. In early life he was a Moravian in religious belief, but later became a member of the Presbyter- ian church. He was officially connected with many public institutions of New York City, including the Tammany So-
ciety, the Mechanic and Scientific Institu- tion, the New York Hospital and Lunatic Asylum and the New York Prison Disci- pline Society.
Mr. Allen married (first) in 1788, Marschalk, and (second) in 1807, Sarah, daughter of Joseph and Mary (Coleridge) Roake. Mr. Roake came from one of the Channel Islands and his wife was a kinswoman of the author of "The Ancient Mariner." The marriage was, as seemed fitting, a romantic one, the lovers leaving England without the knowledge of their respective families and finding a home on the other side of the sea in the little village of Shrub Oak Plains, near Peekskill, New York. On July 28, 1852, Mr. Allen passed away, "full of years and of honors." It should always be remembered that he was the first man to propose bringing Croton water into the city of New York. So sane was he in his judgment and so impartial, that many people brought their differ- ences to him to arbitrate instead of tak- ing them into the courts. He was a wealthy man for the time in which he lived, and drew his own will. It is on record as a test will that could never be broken.
(III) William M., son of Stephen and Sarah (Roake) Allen, was born in New York City, and graduated in the Law School of Columbia University, but never practised, his ample means enabling him to give his time and attention to more congenial pursuits. He was a man of broad culture, having literary tastes, and greatly interested in scientific subjects. In the maintenance and improvement of the public school system of his native city he rendered, for many years, valuable as- sistance. A subject in which he took the liveliest interest was the wonderful pos- sibilities of the microscope. Mr. Allen
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married Catherine Maria Leggett, whose ancestral record is herewith appended.
(IV) Sarah R., daughter of William M. and Catherine Maria (Leggett) Allen, was born October 7, 1848, and became the wife of Charles Denison Belden, as stated above.
(The Leggett Line).
This name, which is sometimes spelled with only one "t," is derived from the Latin legatus, meaning a legate or ambas- sador.
(I) Gabriel Leggett was born in 1635, probably in County Essex, England, and about 1670-76 came to Westchester county, New York. His home was at West Farms, and he was a landowner and merchant. He married, about 1676, Eliz- abeth, daughter of John and Martha Rich- ardson, the former, one of the original patentees of the Manor of West Farms. Gabriel Leggett died at some time prior to July, 1700.
(II) John, eldest son of Gabriel and Elizabeth (Richardson) Leggett, married Cicily, daughter of Thomas Hunt, who was a son-in-law of Edward Jessup. The original grant of Hunt's Point was to Hunt and Jessup.
(II) Gabriel (2), youngest child of Ga- briel (1) and Elizabeth (Richardson) Leggett, was born in 1697 or '98, at West Farms, and in his latter years moved to West Patent of North Castle, Westches- ter county. He was a landowner and held the office of alderman. He married (first) Bridget , and (second) in 1765, Mary Wiggins, who died before 1781. He married (third) in 1782, Sarah Brown, and his death occurred at West Farms, in April, 1786.
(III) Thomas, son of Gabriel (2) and Bridget (-) Leggett, was born June 3, 1721, at West Farms. Prior to the Rev- olutionary War he bought a farm at Still- water, Saratoga county, New York, where
most of his children were born. At the time of the battle of Saratoga, the dwell- ing and outbuildings, which were of logs, were within the Hessian redoubt, and at the approach of Burgoyne the family crossed the river to Easton, Washington county. Mr. Leggett married Mary Em- bree, who was born in 1723, and he and his family were the first of the name to be enrolled in the Society of Friends. They were founders of a Friends' Society at Stillwater.
(IV) Thomas (2), son of Thomas (1) and Mary (Embree) Leggett, was born January 17, 1755, and, with his brother Isaac, was taken prisoner by the British and carried to the camp at Schuylerville, but escaped and returned home. Thomas Leggett lived in Westchester until 1836, when he removed to New York City. He married (first) in 1781, Mary, born in 1762, daughter of Samuel and Rebecca Haight, of Flushing, Long Island. He married (second) in 1808, Mary Under- hill, who died in 1849. Mr. Leggett died in New York, October 10, 1843.
(V) William Haight, son of Thomas (2) and Mary (Haight) Leggett. was born April 15, 1789, and was a merchant in New York City, a man of wealth for his day and generation. His home was at Rosebank, West Farms. He married, in 1814, at the Brick Presbyterian Church, New York City, Margaret Wright, and his death occurred December 22, 1863.
(VI) Catherine Maria, daughter of William Haight and Margaret (Wright) Leggett, became the wife of William M. Allen (see Allen line).
WILCOX, Robert Mead, Financier.
As vice-president and cashier of the Greenwich National Bank, no other in- troduction is necessary, nor would be,
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even were Mr. Wilcox's official position a less conspicuous one, as in any case his standing as a citizen would render him a "man of mark" in the community.
(I) Josiah Wilcox, grandfather of Rob- ert Mead Wilcox, was a native of Crom- well, Connecticut, and removed to Riv- ersville, in the town of Greenwich, where he established himself as a manufacturer of carriages, hardware and tinsmith's tools, thus proving himself abundantly possessed of the initiative which he inher- ited, no doubt, from his New England ancestors.
(II) Willis H. Wilcox, son of Josiah Wilcox, was born June 15, 1841, in Riv- ersville, Greenwich, Connecticut. He was educated in the Berlin, (Connecticut) Academy. After working for a time in a store in Berlin, he returned home where he was employed by his father. At the outbreak of the Civil War he enlisted in Company I, 10th Regiment, Connecticut Volunteer Infantry, and was three years with the army, receiving a wound while in the service. After the war he was asso- ciated in business with his father until the
death of Mr. Wilcox, Sr., when Willis H. and his brother George succeeded to the ownership of the concern. Prior to the father's death the business was conducted under the firm name of J. Wilcox & Sons, the style being subsequently changed to J. Wilcox's Sons. Upon the death of George Wilcox, Willis H. Wilcox con- tinued the business for a short time. Mr. Wilcox was a director in the Greenwich National Bank, and president of the Greenwich Savings Bank. He was an adherent of the Republican party, and though never a politician was active as a young man in public affairs, occupying a seat in the Legislature for two terms, his reëlection proving how ably and satisfac- torily he defended and advanced the rights of his constituents. He was a
member of Lombard Post, No. 24, Grand Army of the Republic. Mr. Wilcox mar- ried Susan C. Mead, daughter of Edward and Susan (Merritt) Mead, and they be- came the parents of one son: Robert Mead, mentioned below. The death of Mr. Wilcox occurred September 13, 1916. He was a useful and public-spirited citi- zen, domestic in his tastes and admirable in all the relations of life.
(III) Robert Mead Wilcox, only child of Willis H. and Susan C. (Mead) Wil- cox, was born October 9, 1873, in Rivers- ville, Connecticut. He received his edu- cation in the public schools of his native town and at the Greenwich Academy. He then entered the service of the Fourth National Bank, of New York City, be- ginning as a messenger, but not remain- ing long in that humble position, as those who knew him were sure he would not. He was then seventeen years old, and as time went on he advanced steadily step by step, serving practically in every de- partment of the bank until August 3, 1907, when he associated himself with the Greenwich National Bank in the capacity of assistant cashier. The following year he became cashier, and in January, 1917, was made vice-president of the institu- tion, an office which he still retains in conjunction with his former position of cashier. At the time of his election as vice-president he became a member of the board of directors. In the political life of his community, Mr. Wilcox has never taken an active part, but has always man- ifested a helpful interest in whatever he deemed calculated to advance the gen- eral welfare. He belongs to Lombard Camp, Sons of Veterans, and affiliates with the Benevolent and Protective Or- der of Elks. He is a member of the Second Congregational Church, in which he holds the office of treasurer.
Mr. Wilcox married, November 20,
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1901, Tillie A. Mead, daughter of the late Alexander Mead, whose biography fol- lows this.
The career of Robert Mead Wilcox has been that of an honorable financier and an upright citizen. Surely such a record as this is independent of comment.
MEAD, Alexander, Leader in Floriculture.
No resident of Greenwich needs to be told that this was for many years the name of one of her most successful busi- ness men and respected citizens. Mr. Mead was a representative of an ancient and honorable family which traces its descent from John Mead, one of two brothers who came from England about 1642. The escutcheon of the family is as follows :
Arms-Sable, a chevron between three pelicans or, vulned gules.
Alexander Mead was born May 27, 1835, in Greenwich, Connecticut. He was educated in public schools and at the Greenwich Academy. All his life he lived on the farm on which he had been reared and which he inherited from his father. He early showed a strong interest in the cultivation of flowers, and established in a small way a florist's business, having one greenhouse. From its inception the venture was successful and the business steadily increased. As time went on Mr. Mead became one of the leading florists of the State, and for many years carried on a wholesale as well as a retail busi- ness. The growth of Greenwich, in more recent years, developed a demand which consumed his entire stock of plants and flowers. About ten years before his death he retired, bequeathing to his son a flour- ishing business, with fifteen greenhouses, one hundred by twenty-three feet in di- mensions.
Mr. Mead married Matilda Grigg, daughter of John Grigg, of Greenwich, and they became the parents of a son and a daughter : Henry Sanford, who has succeeded his father in the business; and Tillie A., who became the wife of Robert Mead Wilcox (see Wilcox III).
The death of Mr. Mead occurred Octo- ber 12, 1918. Thrifty, industrious and fair-minded in all his dealings, he was devoted to his family and to the many and exacting responsibilities of his calling. He has left a record worthy of the stock from which he sprang, and one in which his descendants may well take a worthy and justifiable pride.
BOGARDUS, Frank W., Lumber Dealer, Man of Public Spirit.
From the earliest records of the immi- grant settlers who came to this country, leaving behind them all the traditions in which they had been nurtured, the aim and ambition of our forefathers has been to establish in the New World a complete nation in which each citizen should be a king in his own right. This propaganda of individual supremacy in private affairs has in turn become our tradition, and has made us what we are, a nation of men. The development of the typically Amer- ican city of Stamford, Connecticut, has been along these lines, and she stands today among the most progressive com- munities of the State and Nation. This result, so far as Stamford is concerned, has been brought about from year to year, period to period, down to the present, by the diverse yet united efforts of its many sterling citizens. Among these is to be counted Frank W. Bogardus, who for a number of years has been prominently identified with the life of the city. Mr. Bogardus is a member of a family of Dutch origin, which came to America
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early in the history of the Colony of New Amsterdam, the name being one of the most prominent in the affairs of the youthful settlement.
The surname Bogardus is derived from the Dutch "boomgard," an orchard, sig- nifying one who possessed an orchard of particular account or who kept an orchard.
(I) The family of Bogardus was founded in the New World by Everardus Bogardus, universally known as Dominie Bogardus, a native of Holland, who sailed from that country on the Dutch frigate "Zoutberg" in the year 1633, in company with the newly appointed governor, major-general, director-general, provost marshal, and Burgomaster Wouter Van Twiller, for what was known as Fort Am- sterdam, founded thirteen years before. For many years it was thought that he was the first minister in the Colony until the discovery of Michaelius's letter in 1858, when it was found that the dominie was preceded by the author of that docu- ment. His first church, on the present north side of Pearl street, between Whitehall and Broad, was not at all to his liking. He persuaded Governor Van Twiller to have a new church built within the walls of the fort. Later he obtained a parsonage, on the front door of which he placed a brass knocker he had brought from Holland. It has been said that "the outside of his house was the delight of the passer-by, while inside he dispensed a cordial hospitality." In 1633 he became the proprietor of a tobacco plantation on Manhattan Island. About a year after the arrival of Van Twiller and Bogardus a bitter dissension arose between them. In the early days of the settlement, when there were few educated men there, it was one of the "unwritten laws" that the cler- gyman should join with the council in conference. The leaders in the church
were in accord with the dominie in this matter, but Van Twiller, who was of a disputatious mind, sought to curtail the privilege. Dominie Bogardus, seeing that unprofitable strife would surely develop, in 1647 sought and received permission to visit his native land. He sailed in the brig "Princess," which went down with eighty other passengers.
He married, as is found in an old vol- ume dated 1638, the widow, Anneke Web- ber Jansen, or Anneke Jans, as she was familiarly known. She was the daughter of Tryntje Jans, or Tryn Jonas, a pro- fessional midwife in the employ of the West India Company, for their Colony of New Amsterdam. The trained nurse of that day was an important factor in the community. Her work corresponded to that of the trained nurse of the present day, only it must be remembered that the general level of education and intelligence was not nearly so high as it is now. Even in that early day the widwife had to be examined by a board of physicians before she could receive a license. Her pay was small and her labors arduous. She mar- ried Roeloff Jansen Van Masterlandt. With his wife and child he came in 1630 as farmer to the Patroon Kilaen Van Rensselaer at a salary equivalent to sev- enty-two dollars a year. Five or six years later he was settled among the dignitaries of the colony, having received from Gov- ernor Van Twiller a patent for sixty-two acres of land. It is this farm about which there has been an historic controversy. The farm "extended from a line a little south of the present Warren street, north- westerly about a mile and a half, to what is now Christopher street, forming an irregular triangle having its base on the river, running, however, on Broadway only from Warren to Duane street."
After the death of her second husband, Anneke Jans Bogardus had the grant
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confirmed to herself. Her heirs, upon the subsequent capture of the province by the British, had the grant confirmed to them- selves by the first British Governor, Hon. Richard Nicholes, and sold it in 1671 to Governor Lovelace. One of the heirs failed to sign the conveyance, and this fact caused the controversy, his descend- ants claiming an interest in the property, which finally passed into the possession of Trinity Church.
(II) Cornelis Bogardus, son of Ever- ardus and Anneke (Jans) Bogardus, was born September 9, 1640. As a young man he moved to Albany, New York, and re- mained in that city until his death in 1666. His "boedel," a personal estate, amounted to 2,015 guilders, a large sum for the times. He married Helena Teller, daugh- ter of William Teller, of Albany. Their descendants were those who first laid claim to the Trinity Church property.
(III) Cornelis (2) Bogardus, son of Cornelis (1) and Helena (Teller ) Bogar- dus, was born in Beverwyck or Fort Or- ange (Albany), New York, October 13, 1665. Following his mother's second marriage to Jans Hendrickse Van Ball, Cornelis (2) Bogardus went to live with his uncles, Pieter and Jonas Bogardus, children of Dominie Everardus and An- neke (Jans) Bogardus. When, several years later, Pieter Bogardus moved to Kingston, New York, Cornelis (2) Bo- gardus accompanied him, and there mar- ried Rachel De Witt in 1691. She was a daughter of Tjerck Classen, son of Nicholas and Taatje De Witt, whose home in the Netherlands was in Groot- holdt, district of Zunderland, in the south- ern part of East Friesland. Tjerck Classen De Witt came to America some time prior to the year 1656, and is the ancestor of the De Witt family in the United States. De Witt is one of the few Dutch-American names illustrious in
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