USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 8 > Part 24
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Mr. Knapp is a charter member of the Springdale Fire Company, of which Al- fred B. Knapp was also a charter mem- ber and organizer. His fraternal affilia- tion is with the Junior Order of United American Mechanics. He is an inde- pendent Democrat in political action, the
need of the office and the desirability of the candidate determining his vote. He is an attendant of the Episcopal church.
FERGUSON FAMILY,
Ancestral History.
Since 1842, in which year John Fer- guson settled in Stamford, the family has been a prominent one in Fairfield county. The members of the present generation have brought distinction to the family name throughout the State : The late John Day Ferguson, by giving largely of his time to public service ; Walter Ferguson, as a banker and business man of affairs ; the late Professor Henry Ferguson of Trinity College, Hartford, as an educator, and later a rector of St. Paul's School of Concord, New Hampshire. In Stam- ford, Connecticut, the Ferguson Library, endowed by John Day Ferguson, will re- main a silent testimony to the memory of this good man for many generations to come.
The members of the Ferguson family have been public-spirited men, men of cultured minds, and possessed of many other qualities which have made their careers worthy of emulation.
The family was founded in America by Samuel Ferguson, who was born in Hali- fax, County of Yorkshire, England, April II, 1769, and died in New York City, Au- gust 16, 1816. He married Elizabeth Day, a native of St. Johns Ilketshall, near Bun- gay, County of Suffolk; she was born July 4, 1778, and died in New York City, October 6, 1823.
When a young man, Samuel Ferguson crossed the ocean to Philadelphia, and re- mained there three or four years associ- ated with a cousin, Robert E. Griffith, who had preceded him to America and who had already established himself in business there as a merchant. That was
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in the days of flourishing trade with the Orient, and young Ferguson went to China for his cousin as supercargo on one of his vessels. Many of the early import- ing merchants secured an important part of their business training in that way. Later, Mr. Ferguson went to New York City and engaged in business with his brother-in-law, John Day, with whom he remained until his death in 1816.
John Ferguson, son of Samuel and Eliz- abeth (Day) Ferguson, was born in New York City, April 23, 1803, and died in Stamford, Connecticut, September 1, 1874. He attended Mccullough's cele- brated private school at Morristown, New Jersey. Upon the death of his father, he was sent to live with his uncle, Edward Ferguson, a prominent woolen merchant of Yorkshire, England. When he became of age, he returned to America, and took the place in the firm of Ogden, Ferguson & Day, vacated by the death of his father. John Ferguson continued active in the business until his death. Owing to the death of various partners, changes were made from time to time in the style of the firm name. For some years prior to 1874, it had been J. & S. Ferguson. While a resident of New York City, Mr. Fer- guson was a member of Grace Episcopal Church and served as clerk of its vestry. In 1842 he became a resident of Stamford, and from that time was identified with St. John's Episcopal Church, of which he was warden for many years. He married Helen Grace, born in New York City, February 22, 1807, died in Stamford, Sep- tember 7, 1853, a daughter of Edmund and Sarah Eliza (Walton) Morewood. Edmund Morewood was born in Salford, England, May 11, 1770, and died in Stam- ford, September 17, 1861. His wife was born in New York City in 1780, and died there August 18, 1838. John and Helen Grace (Morewood) Ferguson had eight children, all of whom are deceased, ex-
cept Walton and Elizabeth Day. They were: I. John Day, a sketch of whom follows: 2. Sarah M .. 3. Samuel, died from the effects of exposure in a ship- wreck. He was associated with his father in business in New York as long as he lived. 4. Helen. 5. Edmund Morewood, who was in business in Pittsburgh as an iron and coal merchant. In his later years he was president of the Merchants' & Manufacturers' Bank of Pittsburgh; he married Josephine E. Mackintosh, and left four children, two sons now deceased, and two daughters. 6. Walton, a sketch of whom follows. 7. Henry, a prominent educator of Hartford. 8. Elizabeth Day.
FERGUSON, John Day,
Public Benefactor.
One of the most beloved citizens of Stamford, Connecticut, John Day Fer- guson, was born in New York City, Au- gust 7, 1833, and died December 9, 1877, leaving the priceless legacy of a good name which will ever endure. Mr. Fer- guson was a son of John and Helen Grace (Morewood) Ferguson, and a man of great foresight and generous nature. He had the rare faculty of inspiring both af- fection and respect in all with whom he came in contact. Possessed of sufficient means to enable him to choose the activi- ties that appealed to him, Mr. Ferguson devoted much of his time to furthering the interests of education. He felt it his duty to aid in giving to society the high, unselfish disinterested, intelligent service that would promote the best interests of the community. His work as member of the School Board did much toward estab- lishing the Stamford Public School sys- tem on a sound pedagogical basis. For many years he was connected with the School Board, and it was universally rec- ognized among his fellow-citizens that he was the efficient member of the board.
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John Day Ferguson.
Watton Freguten
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
John Day Ferguson was educated in the private school of Rev. Robert Harris, at White Plains, New York, and was graduated at Trinity College, Hartford, in 1851. He then studied law, and for ten years was engaged in practice in New York City. In 1866 and 1867 Mr. Fer- guson served as representative from Stamford in the Legislature, and from 1871 to 1874 he served as Judge of Pro- bate.
Mr. Ferguson always considered a public library a necessary adjunct of the formal educational facilities of the town and he left in his will money which, in March, 1881, went to found the Ferguson Library of Stamford, which was opened to the public in January of the following year. The location has since been changed, being now located on Broad street at the head of Atlantic street, and the new building was opened September 4, 19II. It is probably safe to say that no library building of its size in this country is more attractive, better lighted, or has superior appointments.
A fitting close to the biography of this worthy man is the following, quoted from "Picturesque Stamford :"
He had for many years been identified with the cause of popular education in Stamford and had made the interests of our school system a special study and brought to their promotion an enthusi- asm which no discouragement could dampen. His sagacious judgment led him always to make the best use of attainable means while hopefully striv- ing for better. His suavity of manner, his obvious sincerity, and the confidence imposed in his integ- rity always enabled him to secure an attentive hearing in the town meetings and to exert a large influence with the voters on behalf of the plans for school improvements, to which he devoted so much of his time and energy.
FERGUSON, Walton,
Leader in Community Affairs.
There are many citizens in Connecticut of which the State has reason to be proud,
and one of these is Walton Ferguson, scion of a distinguished family, and pres- ident of The Stamford Trust Company. Mr. Ferguson was born in Stamford, July 6, 1842, and was educated at a pri- vate school in Baltimore, and at Trinity College. While at college he was a mem- ber of the Psi Upsilon fraternity. Subse- quent to his college training Mr. Fer- guson became associated with his father in business, becoming a member of the firm of J. & S. Ferguson, a private bank- ing business. Many business and finan- cial interests have held his attention at various times. For several years he was in Pittsburgh associated with H. C. Frick, in the coke business, and later, was inter- ested in railroad, gas and electric com- panies. Mr. Ferguson was one of the founders of The Kings County Electric Light and Power Company, which ab- sorbed the Brooklyn Edison Company. He was active in establishing The Union Carbide Company, of which he was a director, and was a director of The Peo- ple's Gas Company of Chicago. Mr. Fer- guson is now a director of The Virginia Iron, Coal and Coke Company, the Vir- ginia & Southwestern Railroad, and the Detroit & Mackinaw Railroad.
Mr. Ferguson was organizer of The Stamford Trust Company, of which he is now the president; he is a director of The First-Stamford National Bank, and chairman of the Board of Directors of The Stamford Gas and Electric Company.
Mr. Ferguson's clubs are : Union League ; Union ; St. Nicholas Society, and other prominent clubs. He has always been greatly interested in St. John's Epis- copal Church, which he long served as vestryman, and of which he is senior war- den. He married Julia L., daughter of John White, of New York City, and they are the parents of six children, five of whom are now living. They are: I. Walton, Jr., born November 28, 1870. He
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attended St. Paul's School at Concord, New Hampshire, and Trinity College, and until recently was in the lumber business. Walter Ferguson, Jr., married (first) Emily Carstairs, by whom he had one daughter, Frances, born February 12, 1900. He married (second) Dorothy Taylor and they are the parents of two sons : Walton, 3rd, born April 1, 1914, and Matthew H. T. 2. Helen G., born July 23, 1872. 3. Grace Carroll, born January 8, 1874, married Alfred W. Dater, a sketch of whom follows in this work. 4. Alfred L., born March 7, 1879. He was educated at the Pomfret School, and graduated from Yale in 1902, with a B. A. degree. He was a member of Psi Upsilon and Skull and Bones, and after graduation became associated with J. & S. Ferguson. His chief work has been as treasurer of The Windsor Print Works and he is vice-president of The Consoli- dated Textile Corporation. He married Ruth Howard of Brooklyn, New York, and they have four children : Alfred L., Jr., born April 27, 1904; Carroll, born July 6, 1908; Ruth W., born August II, 1913; Charles H., born July 18, 1919. 5. Henry Lee, born March 28, 1881; was educated at Pomfret School, and gradu- ated from the Sheffield Scientific School in 1905, with a degree of Ph. B. He is now manager of the Fisher's Island Farms, and is a member of Delta Psi fra- ternity. He married Marion Benner, and they are the parents of three children, two now living: Henry Lee, Jr., born March 14, 1915; Charles B., born June 30, 1918. With his family Mr. Ferguson resides at Fisher's Island.
DATER, Alfred Warner,
Man of Enterprise and Public-Spirit.
Alfred Warner Dater, president of the Stamford Gas and Electric Company, and
prominently associated with many im- portant business and industrial concerns in Southern and Eastern Connecticut, is one of the most progressive citizens of Stamford, in this State, and a conspicuous figure in the life and affairs of the com- munity. Mr. Dater is a native of Brook- lyn, New York, where his birth occurred August 23, 1872, and a son of J. Henry and Adda H. (McMurray) Dater, old and highly respected residents of that city. The Dater family was resident in New York State for a number of genera- tions, and the elder Mr. Dater was born in the city of Troy, where he spent his childhood and early youth. As a young man he was engaged in several different lines of business and while yet young entered the employ of the firm of John G. McMurray & Company, brush manu- facturers, of Troy. This concern was one of the oldest of its kind in the United States, having been founded in the first half of the nineteenth century, when the industrial development of the Hudson Valley region was yet in its infancy. In 1859 a new factory was erected to take the place of the original plant, which had been destroyed by fire, and was consid- ered at that time to be the largest and most perfectly equipped brush factory in the world. It was engaged in the manu- facture of a general line of bristle brushes and for many years maintained an office in New York City. Mr. Dater was em- ployed by this concern for a number of years and was finally admitted as a part- ner and placed in charge of the sales end of the business, having come to Brooklyn to make his home, where his death oc- curred in 1875. In 1855 he married, at Lansingburg, New York, Adda H. Mc- Murray, a daughter of John G. McMur- ray, his old employer, who had recently taken him into partnership. Mr. McMur- ray, a native of New York City, was a
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alfue Mr. Dater.
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
member of an exceedingly ancient Scot- tish family, the name belonging to that great class of patronymics that have taken their origin from earlier given names, the Celtic prefix "Mac" or "Mc" signifying in the early dialects the "son of." The Mc- Murrays have for many generations been associated with various communities in both the old and new worlds and its members have always maintained a high place in the regard of their fellow-citizens wherever they have resided. J. Henry Dater and his wife were the parents of six children, five of whom grew to ma- turity, as follows: Mary, who became the wife of Gardner S. Lamson, of Boston, Massachusetts; John G., who resides in New York City; William Roberts, who died in the year 1893, at the age of twen- ty-five; Henry Murray ; and Alfred War- ner, with whose career we are here especially concerned. J. Henry Dater was a son of Jacob Dater, a native of Troy, New York, where he was born about 1791, and married Mary Roberts. During the time of his residence in Brook- lyn he was prominent in social and re- ligious life and was a vestryman of the Church of the Messiah there.
Alfred Warner Dater passed his child- hood in his native city of Brooklyn, and received his elementary education at the Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute. Later, he attended the Dwight School in New York City for a year, where he completed his preparation for college. He then matriculated at the Sheffield Scientific School at Yale University, and was grad- uated from that institution with the class of 1895, taking the degree of Ph. B. After graduation from the Sheffield School, Mr. Dater entered the shops of the Pennsyl- vania Railroad Company, at Fort Wayne, Indiana, as a machinist's apprentice, for a special practical course for technical
school grades. He remained at Fort Wayne until 1897, and then came to Brooklyn, New York, to accept a position as assistant general superintendent of the Kings County Electric Light and Power Company. Upon the consolidation of that company with the Edison Electric Illuminating Company, Mr. Dater was appointed treasurer of the latter concern, and held that responsible post until 1902. It was in that year that Mr. Dater moved . to Stamford and became connected with several Stamford companies, among which was the Stamford Gas and Electric Company. Upon the death of its treas- urer, George H. Hoyt, Mr. Dater suc- ceeded him in that office, and in 1917 was elected president of the company, an of- fice that he holds today. In 1909 Mr. Dater removed to Williamstown, Mas- sachusetts, and there made his home, be- coming associated with the Windsor Print Works of North Adams, but two years later came to Stamford, where he has since lived. In Stamford he was elected vice-president and general man- ager of the Stamford Gas and Electric Company, and later, in 1917, became its president. In addition to this office that he still holds, Mr. Dater at the present time is a director of The Stamford Sav- ings Bank, the Stamford Water Company, the Windsor Print Works, the Nazareth Cement Company, of Nazareth, Pennsyl- vania, and of other concerns. He is also treasurer of the Stamford Children's Home, and is prominent in charitable un- dertakings of many kinds. He is a well known figure in social and club circles at Stamford. He is a member of Delta Psi fraternity, which he joined while a student at Yale University; the Gradu- ates' Club of New Haven, Suburban Club and Woodway Country Club of Stamford, and the Yale Club and St. Anthony Club
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ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
of New York City. He is at present serving a second term as member of the Stamford School Board; is president of the local council of the Boy Scouts of America, and a member of the National Executive Committee of that order. Dur- ing the participation of the United States in the great World War, Mr. Dater served as chairman of the local Fuel Ad- ministration and in this capacity per- formed an invaluable service for his fel- low-townsman .. In his religious belief Mr. Dater is an Episcopalian, and is a member and vestryman of St. John's Church of that denomination at Stam- ford.
Alfred Warner Dater was united in marriage, November 23, 1898, with Grace Carroll Ferguson, a daughter of Walton and Julia L. (White) Ferguson, old and highly respected residents of Stamford, a sketch of the former appearing on pre- ceding pages of this work. Mr. and Mrs. Dater are the parents of three children as follows : Walton Ferguson, born Sep- tember 10, 1899; Alfred W., Jr., born May 8, 1902; and Philip, born November 2, 1905.
Combined with splendid technical and mechanical training, Mr. Dater possesses an unusually natural aptitude for business and an executive ability that enables him to dispatch easily and quickly an im- mense volume of work. He is the type of business man, none too common, who takes pains always to be gracious and helpful to people who come in contact with him, who are immediately put at ease by his genial manner. Holding steadfast the highest ideals of business and personal conduct, with good humor well nigh inexhaustible, he has the con- fidence of those who are called upon to transact business with him, and the friendship and esteem of all who know him.
HURLBUTT, Ambrose Spencer,
Man of Great Enterprise.
The name of Hurlbutt, which is an- other form of Hurlbatt, is a very ancient one, presumably of Saxon origin. It is derived from an implement of battle, the whirl-bat, and thus it is proved that the family are descended from some early warrior. The spelling of the name has varied greatly. It has been written Hurl- bert, Hurlburt, Hulburt, Hulburd, Hurl- burg, Holliburt, Hollybut, Holybut, Holybud.
(I) Among those pioneers of courage and energy was Thomas Hurlbut (as he and some generations of his descendants spelled the name), early settled in the New England Colony. He was born in 1610, and died after 1681. On August II, 1635, he left London, England, in the ship "Bachelor," and was among those who settled in Saybrook, Connecticut, and while there he was a member of a party of eleven men sent out February 22, 1637, to burn leaves, weeds and reeds upon the neck of land half a mile from the fort, and while engaged in this work were attacked by Indians. Thomas Hurlbut was shot almost through the thigh, but escaped. After the Pequot War, he set- tled in Wethersfield, where he was the first blacksmith, an occupation which he had followed since coming to New Eng- land. For his services in the Indian wars, the Assembly voted him a grant of one hundred and twenty acres of land, Octo- ber 12, 1671. In 1640, Thomas Hurlbut served as clerk of the train-band; was deputy to the General Court; juryman; constable in 1644; collector of taxes in 1647. The Christian name of his wife was Sarah.
(II) Thomas (2) Hurlbut, son of Thomas (1) and Sarah Hurlbut, was probably born in Wethersfield, Connecti-
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.
a. S. Ihrwhite
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ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
cut. He learned the trade of blacksmith from his father, and in March, 1662, was granted land by the town on which to build a shop. The first wife of Thomas Hurlbut was named Lydia, and the sec- ond wife Elizabeth.
(III) Thomas (3) Hurlbut, son of Thomas (2) and Lydia Hurlbut, was born about 1660, and appears to have settled in Woodbury, Connecticut, previous to 1682. The name of his wife is not known.
(IV) Gideon Hurlbutt, son of Thomas (3) Hurlbut, was baptized in August, 1688, and died March 9, 1757. He re- moved to that part of Westport called Greens Farms, two miles east of the vil- lage. He married Margaret - -- , and
she died February 28, 1754.
(V) Gideon (2) Hurlbutt, son of Gideon (1) and Margaret Hurlbutt, was born in Westport, Connecticut, baptized about 1728, and died September 30, 1775. His wife, Hannah (Taylor) Hurlbutt, born June 1, 1731, died in 1772, daughter of Captain John Taylor, of Westport, and a descendant of John Taylor, who was early in Windsor.
(VI) James Hurlbutt, son of Gideon (2) and Hannah (Taylor) Hurlbutt, was born November 3, 1756, in Westport, Con- necticut, and died in Albany, New York, January 1I, 1815. He was long engaged in the business of a merchant and also was a builder of vessels. Mr. Hurlbutt was among the most prominent citizens of Westport, and also was very wealthy for that time. For his second wife, he married, March 18, 1781, Ann or Nancy Hays, born October 22, 1761, died March 25, 1819, daughter of Isaac Hays, of Lew- isboro, New York. Previous to his death Mr. Hurlbutt removed to Albany, New York.
(VII) Isaac Hurlbutt, son of James and Ann or Nancy (Hays) Hurlbutt, was born January 18, 1782, and died March
25, 1831, in Westport. He married Free- love Nash, born March 11, 1782, died July 24, 1871.
(VIII) George Nash Hurlbutt, son of Isaac and Freelove (Nash) Hurlbutt, was born October 11, 1801. He married Bet- sey Disbrow.
(IX) Ambrose Spencer Hurlbutt, son of George Nash and Betsey (Disbrow) Hurlbutt, was born September 2, 1825, died September 4, 1913. Mr. Hurlbutt was like his ancestors among the public- spirited men of Westport. He was a great promoter of public works, and was one of the founders of the Central Na- tional Bank, of Norwalk, now the Central Trust Company. He was also a founder of the Willowbrook Cemetery, and was president of the association from its or- ganization until his death. He was one of those who made a fortune in the gold fields of California in 1849. With a part- ner, he invested in timber lands in that State, the property including a large part of the present site of the city of San Fran- cisco. They sold their holdings and he retired East in 1868, a millionaire. Every matter pertaining to the welfare of the public held his attention ; he was the first to advocate the building of the old horse car system in Westport, and later was largely instrumental in getting the trolley line through the town. He served as the first president of the Street Railway Com- pany, and was also president of the Dan- bury & Norwalk Railroad Company. At the time of his death, Mr. Hurlbutt was a director of the Westport Library and had been active in the work of this li- brary for many years. At his death the town of Westport lost one of its most useful and valued citizens.
Mr. Hurlbutt married, in November, 1860, Cornelia Doughty Kelsey, daughter of John Burnett and Delia (Conger) Kelsey.
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Mr. and Mrs. Hurlbutt were the parents of the following children: I. Mary E., wife of Edward B. Mohler, of Baltimore, and mother of Mary H. Mohler. 2. Horace Carpenter, married Liela, and had a son, Horace C .; the latter enlisted and served about two years in France, and after his return home was killed in an automobile accident in 1918. 3. Frederick Wood, married Martha M. Boyd, and resides in Atlantic City. 4. Ambrose Spencer, Jr., married Maude Mills, of Baltimore, and died in 1914, leaving no children. 5. Cor- nelia Kelsey, married Frank C. Coley, of New Haven; they have three children : Ambrose Hurlbutt, James Edward, Cor- nelia Kelsey. 6. Helen, married William Ridge Allen, and resides in Richmond, Massachusetts.
John Burnett Kelsey, father of Cornelia D. (Kelsey) Hurlbutt, was born in Sparta, New Jersey, January 17, 1797, died Jan- uary 3, 1885. He was a son of Jabez and Sarah (Corwin) Kelsey. While yet in his boyhood, John B. Kelsey went to live with his uncle in Flanders, New Jersey, and remained there until he was about eighteen years old. Then he removed to Randolph to learn the shoemaker's trade. He married, April 7, 1821, Delia Conger, born July 13, 1803, and died September 30, 1880, daughter of David and Elizabeth (Ayres) Conger. Previous to his mar- riage, Mr. Kelsey removed to New Or- leans, but remained there only a year. In the fall of 1824, he removed with his wife to East Tennessee, remaining until the spring of 1826. In 1859, they yielded to the solicitations of their five children in California and went out there. Four years later they returned and spent the re- mainder of their lives in Rockaway, New Jersey. Mr. Kelsey was never a man of great physical strength, but he possessed a constitution of great vitality and re- cuperative power, and by his temperate
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