Genealogical and biographical record of New London County, Connecticut, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens and genealogical records of many of the early settled families, Part 117

Author:
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 1568

USA > Connecticut > New London County > Genealogical and biographical record of New London County, Connecticut, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens and genealogical records of many of the early settled families > Part 117

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Hon. William Marvin, eldest son of William

Joseph and Ann M. (Parker) Marvin, was bc Hat the old home in Lyme, March 13, 1873. His h school days were spent in his native place, fer which he became a student at East Greenwich Aud- emy, graduating in 1893. Since leaving schic the had had charge of the homestead. He is a moffer and assistant steward of the Grange, and a me fer of the Grange Fair Association. In politics 1s a Republican. In 1896 he was elected town yk. and in the spring of 1897 judge of probate, ich offices he yet holds. At the time of his electi # to those offices he was the youngest incumbent i the county.

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN ANDREWS (ne of the highly esteemed citizens of Groton, belor ato an old New England family, which at the til of its founding in America, bore its Scottish clan ane of McAndrews, a name still known in the High Ids of Scotland.

Family and public records have establishe che fact that John McAndrews came from Scotland fad lived both at Boston and at Cape Cod, anlat Kingstown, prior to May 20, 1671, and died hre before Aug. 22, 1693. His sons, John and Wi jm, were born of his first marriage. He married lc- ond) Mary Ridgely, who died in 1716, and it children, Charles, James, Thomas, Edward |nd Benoni.

William Andrews, born Aug. 23, 1679, di fin 1762. On Sept. 25, 1700, he married Ann S ple, and they had children : John, Charles, Mary nd William, Jr.

John Andrews, son of William, born Marc 123, 1702, at East Greenwich, R. I., died in Covery, May 18, 1795. He married Hannah, daught of John and Hannah Greene, and granddaughtof the regicide, Judge Clark, who fled to America

Elnathan Andrews, son of John, was born b. 22, 1732, and died June 20, 1824, aged ninety vo years. On June 21, 1757, he married Jane, dau er of Ebenezer Greene, of Coventry. He was not as being the tallest man in Rhode Island, havin at- tained to the height of six feet eleven inches. fis children were: Waitey, Bethana, Timothy, hn and Rebecca. He married (second) Eliza th, widow of Ezekiel Johnson.

Timothy Andrews, son of Elnathan, was born Nov. 22, 1762, at Coventry, R. I., and died Se 5, 1843. He married Russelle C. Matteson, of Jest Greenwich, born in 1757, and died Feb. 2, 47, daughter of William and Sarah (Lee) Matton. Timothy Andrews was a farmer and resided at Jest Greenwich, Rhode Island.

George Andrews, son of Timothy and fath of Benjamin Franklin Andrews, was born Au |7, 1797, at Coventry, R. I., and died April 7, 18; in District No. 3, of Groton. On Dec. II, 182 |he married Mary Esther, born April II, 1805, dagh- ter of Amos Barnes, of Ledyard; she died Oc II. 1862, in District No. 3, of Groton. The childr of

William Marina

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GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

this urriage were as follows: Benjamin F., born Junet, 1833; Ezra Barnes, born Sept. 20, 1837; Sabrlı E., born Nov. 29, 1839, died Jan. 30, 1843; Chan; Beaumont, born Dec. 18, 1844, died June 8, 1864 t Hampton Hospital, Va., from a wound re- ceive at Drury's Bluff, May 16, 1864, while serv- ing i Co. C, 2Ist Conn. V. I. ; and a daughter born at Le ard, died in infancy, unnamed. N ing a ma with both

Andrews enjoyed but three months' school- his life, at Coventry, R. I., but he was of intellect and filled a number of local offices ficiency. While living in Ledyard he was and juror and constable. In politics he was formy a Whig, and later became identified with the Houblican party. In 1853 he removed to Gro- ton 1 settled on the farm now occupied by his son, fd there resided until his death.

Ela Barnes Andrews, son of George, who is now prominent citizen of Charlotte, N. C., spent his ya th in Ledyard and Groton, taught school and farm for some years in Ellington. He partici- patec V. I. Mari 1835 marr died died adop man Nov. i the Civil war as a member of the 26th Conn. On April 13, 1862, he married Miss Fannie Dewey, of Columbia, Conn., born April 24, id died in March, 1902. The children of this re were: Mary Lincoln, born April 16, 1865, t. 24, 1884; Cina Dewey, born Oct. 5, 1867, b. 2, 1868; Lenore, born Oct. 11, 1869, is the daughter of her father's friend, Congress- S. Henry, of Connecticut ; and Lura, born 5, 1870, the wife of Everett E. Crandall, of Newjt News, Virginia.

B jamin Franklin Andrews spent his youth and scho days at Ledyard and was engaged on the homefarm until he was twenty years of age, when he stated out to see something of the country. As a boc wich, For t excell souri,

agent, in the employ of Henry Bill, of Nor- e introduced the "History of the World." nty months Mr. Andrews traveled with this t standard work, through Illinois and Mis- hen he was attacked with persistent ague,

and v thus obliged to return home. He engaged

in far ng in Groton, and has spent the most of his ubselent life here. In 1862 he accompanied Capt. Josep 3 F. Potter to South Carolina on a coasting vessel aving a cargo of grain and hay for the army. In his his fil xcell nost

rming he is progressive and up-to-date, and farm of more than 100 acres testifies to his : management, and he ranks among the :cessful agriculturists in the town.

Andrews has been a stanch Republican all his life and a man of such reliability that he has quently called upon to fill important official

peen 3 positid

narri: Joseph

. In addition to the minor offices, he has erved that of selectman, and has been a justice í the 'ace for a considerable period. 01 Dec. 3, 1862, Mr. Andrews was united in : with Harriet Jane Potter, daughter of nd Mary (Fowler) Potter, of Noank, and randy ighter of Joseph and Mercy (Burrows) 'otter The children born to Mr. and Mrs. An-

drews were as follows: Charles Beaumont, born Sept. 17, 1863, died Sept. 8, 1865 ; George Edgar, born Aug. 30, 1865, married Carrie Williams, daughter of Owen H. Williams, and they have one son, Leland Williams, born Jan. 9, 1901 ; Sarah Potter, born Dec. 3, 1867, was married March 4, 1891, to Joseph G. Chesbro, son of James and Emma Chesbro, and they have one son, Leslie, born July 28, 1894; Carlota, born June 2, 1874, died on May 13, 1896, was married Sept. 21, 1895, to Frederick I. Rathbun, and their one son, Frederick, died in infancy; and Mary Jane, born May 8, 1881. Both Mr. Andrews and his estimable wife are consistent members of the Baptist Church at Noank. The fam- ily and its connections represent some of the best citizens of this section, and they have not only been prominent because of their honorable lineage, but for all that goes to make a locality desirable on ac- count of its educational and moral advantages, to which they have contributed.

JOHN NORTON GARDINER, a well-known citizen, stock and dairy farmer of the town of Gris- wold, was born Aug. 15, 1844, at Penn Yan, N. Y., and he is one of a family of twenty-one children born to the union of Ray Gould and Rachel (Nor- ton) Gardiner.

The family is an old settled one of Rhode Island. Gould Gardiner, grandfather of John N. Gardiner, was born in Rhode Island, and lived a long and useful life there, following the vocation of farmer in the locality of Exeter. He was succeeded on the farm by his son, Ray Gould, in 1804, where the lat- ter lived until 1830, when he removed to the State of New York, locating at Penn Yan. Here he re- mained until 1846, when he returned to Rhode Is- land and settled at Exeter among old family friends and kindred, but later removed again, locating at South Hopkinton, R. I., where he followed carpen- tering, and where he spent the remainder of his life, dying in 1868. He was buried in Hope Valley cem- etery. In his early political life he was a Whig, but a Republican after the organization of the party. He sought no office, being no politician in a self- seeking sense. During the Civil War he was a loyal supporter of the Union, and gave three sons to fight that it might be preserved. He died as he had lived, a devoted husband and the beloved father of his numerous children. He married Rachel Norton, who still survives at the age of eighty-five years, at Hope Valley, R. I. She was born at Benton, N. Y. In spite of maternal cares more than usual having devolved upon her she retains both physical and mental vigor, and is just as wise and careful a grand- mother as she was a mother, and is the center of a loving family circle. The children were born in the State of New York, as follows: George W., born July 28, 1836, was a soldier in Co. A, 7th R. I. V. I., and died at Pleasant Valley, Md., in 1862; Estella, born Jan. 6, 1838, married Silas A. Nichols, of Hope Valley, R. I .; William H., born June 23,

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GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

1840, resides at Providence, R. I .; Sarah T., born June 23, 1841, married Horatio Burdick, and died in 1871; Mary S., born July 17, 1842, married Harri- son Champlin ; John Norton, born Aug. 15, 1844; Henry C., born Jan. 22, 1845, resides at East Lyme, Conn .; Leander T., born Dec. 18, 1846, died at Boston ; Samuel A., born Feb. 22, 1849, resides at Jewett City, Conn. ; Edwin A., born April 18, 1850, resides in Rhode Island ; Ray Gould, born Aug. 26, 1852, resides at Boston; Melissa F., born Jan. I, 1854, married Charles Avery, of Mystic, Conn .; Addie F., born Aug. 22, 1855, married George T. Barber, of Hope Valley, R. I .; Charles L., born June 25, 1860, lives in Boston; George W. (2), born April 19, 1862, lives in Boston ; Ulysses Grant, born March 16, 1865, lives at Hope Valley, R. I. ; and five children died in infancy.

John Norton Gardiner was but two years old when the family removed to Exeter, R. I., where he attended school during the winter seasons and worked on the farm during the summers. When the Civil War broke out he was anxious to join the loyal troops marching to the front, but was only seventeen years old at the time. In 1862, however, he enlisted in Co. A, 7th R. I. Infantry, under Col. Bliss, and Capt. Leavens of Hope Valley, and served from August until December. He then returned to the farm, where he remained until the death of his father. In 1868 he came to Voluntown, engaged in farming and started into the mercantile business with John Leffingwell, under the firm name of Leffingwell & Gardiner, general merchants. The partnership continued until 1888, when he sold out and started into farming, buying his present farm of 170 acres, in Griswold. Here Mr. Gardiner has made extensive improvements, entirely remodeling the house and adding many substantial buildings. He is now extensively engaged in dairy farming and stock raising, and is commonly counted one of the successful agriculturists of this section. He is a man of unassuming manner, frank and kind-hearted, de- voted to home and family, and a type of the best class of American citizen. He is a member of the A. O. U. W., of Voluntown, and is a Republican in his political belief. He belongs to and liberally sup- ports the Baptist Church at Voluntown.

On Aug. 21, 1869, Mr. Gardiner married, at Hopkinton, R. I., Atteresta Allena Falmer, daugh- ter of John and Amy (Ritter) Palmer, of that place. Mrs. Gardiner is a lady of gentle manner and most engaging character. She is a member of the Sev- enth Day Baptist Church, of Rhode Island. Two children have been born to this marriage: Delmer, born Sept. 26, 1875, who is engaged in the dairy business with his father; and John Franklin, born Aug. II, 1879, a graduate of the East Greenwich Academy, class of 1903. Mr. Gardiner has never sought public position, but at one time consented to serve as road surveyor. He is a man of prominence in his locality, and enjoys the esteem of all who know him.

NELSON TAYLOR, a highly respected yizen and prosperous agriculturist of Lebanon, is a en of John B. and Prudence (Avery) Taylor, we are mentioned elsewhere.

Mr. Taylor was born Aug. 13, 1830, in F1. «lin, Conn., and he was about five years of age w his parents moved to Lebanon. There he atten( the district schools and was brought up to har vork upon the farm, learning to be industrious and iftv. He remained with his father, and, with the ex ation of seven months when he was employed on : fther farm by Squire Jesse Wright, he remained homestead farm until 1869, when he moved

the his present property, which he had purchased th pre- ceding year of L. L. Lyman. This farm was own as the "Maxwell place," and to it he has adde f.ddi- tional acres, improving all the property, unt ne is now the owner of sixty-five acres of exceller and, which he devotes to general farming and day'ing.

On Sept. 12, 1854, Mr. Taylor was maisd to Helen A. Topliff, of Willington, who died 1. 2, 1861, aged thirty-one years. No children we born of this marriage. On Dec. 25, 1862, Mr. tylor married Mary L. Kilbourne, who was born ry 6, 1837, in East Hartford, a daughter of Nath and Lucy (Burt) Kilbourne, the former a pai fr by occupation. Two children were born to Mand Mrs. Taylor: (1) John Clifton, born Madı 18, 1869, is mentioned below. (2) Frederick Mborn May 8, 1878, is one of the popular young In of the town, and now manages the farm for his ther. He is a member of the Lebanon Grange, al has served four years as master, and is now servg his second term as Master of the New London punty Pomona. His wife, who bore the maiden i nie of Hannah M. Kimball, was born in Scotland, onn .; they have one son, Ralph Winslow, born y 12, 1902.

Mr. Taylor is a stanch Republican, as are th of his sons. Mr. and Mrs. Taylor and son, Fr erick, and his wife are consistent members of the ungre- gational Church. During his earlier yea Mr. Taylor was a very hard working man, and now enjoying a well earned rest. His sons are credit to him, and his beloved wife is and has tyn his devoted helpmeet in all his work.

KILBOURNE. The Kilbourne family, o which Mrs. Taylor is a member, is one of the oldest Con- necticut, and she is in the ninth generatio from Thomas Kilbourne, who was born in Engnd in 1578, and in 1635 came to America in t ship "Increase," with his wife Frances and th chil- dren. The family landed in the New Wor April 15th of that same year, and he located at Withers- field, Conn., where he passed the remainderof his life.

(II) Sergeant John Kilbourne, young child of Thomas, was baptized in Wood Ditton, J gland, Sept. 29, 1624, and became one of the pininent men of the Connecticut colony, holding mar public offices, including those of magistrate in t local

515

GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

urts embe Iped member of the Colonial Legislature, and of the Colonial grand jury. In 1662 he procure the famous charter of Connecti- t. H and his wife Naomi, to whom he was mar- ed in 50, had several children, among whom was omas.

(II Sergeant Thomas Kilbourne was born in eld, in February, 1651. He married Su- aughter of William Hills, of Glastonbury. Thomas Kilbourne, the next in line of de- s born in Hockanum, Conn. In 1700 he daughter of Joseph Hills, of Glastonbury. Thomas Kilbourne, son of Thomas (4), Sept. 8, 1705, at what is now East Hart- May, 1728, he married Mary Diggins, of John Diggins, of Middletown, Conn., g their children was a son Thomas.

rd. ught d am (V Thomas Kilbourne, the great-grandfather Mrs Taylor, was born Aug. 25, 1729. He mar- ed andHecame the father of a son, Ashbel.

(V] Ashbel Kilbourne, the grandfather of rs. T lor, was born in East Hartford in April, '59, a soldi uch f isone during the Revolutionary war served as in Col. Webb's regiment. He suffered his country, and was one of those taken y the British troops in December, 1777, led in Philadelphia, from which place he is transferred in a wagon to Hartford, Conn. fter h If und return home he was obliged to place him- the care. of Dr. Tudor, of East Windsor,

trong "A

fee having been frozen while in prison. cruel neglect he was crippled for life, and rican Archives," published by order of e ingres in 1848, thus refers to his case : "Mr. Ibour Iphia

was disabled while a prisoner in Phila- is feet being frozen, his toes dropped off, d foi vant of proper care he was totally dis- led." congress granted him a pension and back , an : Ma the General Assembly of Connecticut, in ession of 1779, passed the following con- ning lis brave American patriot : "Resolved, this sembly, that the committee of Pay table, just all his such- liquidate the accounts of the memorialist :kness, and draw an order on the State ims as they shall find due." This worthy 11 ma ed a Miss Evans of East Windsor, and r sons was named Nathan.

of t (VI ma1 s Ma The

Nathan Kilbourne, father of Mrs. Tay- ed Lucy Burt, and one of their children L., who married Nelson Taylor.

lbourne family is not only one of the old- but representatives have been noted for their ustryand thrift, and they have maintained the 1or c the name wherever located, while their lic sif it and patriotism have been shown in both r and ace. JOHN eases ndon,

in 1

19, in

CLIFTON TAYLOR, M. D., the specialist on the Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat, of New which locality he enjoys a lucrative prac- chosen profession, was born March 18, banon, Connecticut.

Dr. Taylor's early educational training was be- gun in the district schools of his native town, and continued in the Natchaug high school, of Williman- tic, from which he was graduated in 1886. He then entered Oberlin College, in which institution of learning he was a student for two years. Entering the Medical School of the University of Michigan, he was graduated therefrom with the degree of M. D. in 1891, and he then began the practice of his chosen profession in Scotland, Conn., but after two years, although he had built up a good practice, he removed to Manchester, Conn., desiring a larger field for his labors. At the end of four years, during which time he attended lectures and had practical clinical work in various New York hospitals on dis- eases of the Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat, he sold out his practice in Manchester to Dr. C. E. Weidner, and in 1897 settled in New London, where he has become a very noted specialist in the treatment of the organs mentioned, his large practice being con- fined entirely to the diseases of these organs. He also has charge of the special work at the Memorial Hospital of New London in his line of practice. Dr. Taylor holds membership in the State, County and City Medical Associations, and is a member of Brainard Lodge, No. 102, F. & A. M., of New Lon- don, and of Palestine Commandery, Knights Tem- plar.

Dr. Taylor was married (first) in June, 1892, to Jennie Stofer, of Cleveland, Ohio, who died in New London, June 7, 1899, leaving one son, Harold Clif- ton, born Nov. 9, 1895. For his second wife Dr. Taylor was married Sept. 27, 1900, to Margaret Stevens, of Montgomery's Ferry, Pa., and to this union have come two children : Robert Nelson, born June 1, 1903, and Lurena Kilbourne, born Sept. 17, 1904.

Dr. Taylor's office is located in the Harris build- ing, New London, and is thoroughly equipped with all the modern and up-to-date appliances known to and used by the medical profession in diagnosing and treating diseases of the Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat.

REV. JAMES J. SMITH, better known in Nor- wich as Father Smith, is the well beloved priest and pastor of St. Mary's parish, where he has been in charge since Nov. 28, 1897. In the face of great difficulties, by his courage, energy, faith and enthu- siasm, Father Smith has brought St. Mary's into the rank of representative Catholic parishes of Con- necticut.

Father Smith was born in Ireland, but came to this country when he was ten years old. He at- tended a private academy, and graduated from Holy Cross College in Worcester, Mass., in June, 1876. He then took a three years' course in the Grand Seminary, in Montreal, Canada, and was or- dained in Hartford May 20, 1880, by Bishop Mc- Mahon. His first assignment was as assistant to Rev. M. F. Kelly, at Windsor Locks, where he spent

son,

ent,

arried

(V as bo

ethel nnah (II

516

GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

four years. When Father Kelly was transferred to the parish of St. Augustine, in Bridgeport, Father Smith accompanied him, and was his assistant there for another four years. He then received the ap- pointment to St. George's parish, in Guilford, where he remained five years. His next charge was the parish of St. Lawrence, in Hartford, where he spent four years, and from there he came to St. Mary's in Norwich.

The Roman Catholic Church has been established but a short time in Norwich, no persons of that faith being recorded there previous to 1824. Father Fitton, one of the missionaries of the Church, came to Norwich in 1831, and from that time visited the town at stated intervals, ministering to the spiritual needs of his people, and holding religious services as tradition tells "in shanties, or in groves." The first baptism into the Catholic faith recorded in Norwich, is dated May 15, 1836. From that time the growth of the Church was rapid and successful. The first Catholic Church to be dedicated in Norwich, and also the first in Eastern Connecticut, was that of St. Mary, which was opened for service by Father Fitton, March 17, 1845. The town records show the transfer to Father Fitton, Sept. 4, 1844, of land in Greeneville, which was transferred Nov. 14th of the same year to Rt. Rev. William Tyler, Bishop of Hartford, and on this land St. Mary's Church was erected. The desire of Father Fitton's heart was attained by the bringing together in St. Mary's of the Catholic population of Norwich. But the grow- ing number of parishioners eventually made another church necessary, and St. Patrick's parish was estab- lished in a more central location, St. Mary's becom- ing, after 1879, merely an out mission of the new parish. About the year 1897 it was determined by Bishop Tierney, that the needs of the Catholics in Greeneville, and the section adjacent to St. Mary's, demanded the establishment of a separate parish, and it was decided to sever the connection between St. Patrick's and St. Mary's, making each inde- pendent. The charge of the new St. Mary's was given by the Bishop to Father Smith, who was at that time incumbent of the parish of St. Lawrence, in Hartford.

It was no easy task that Father Smith undertook, that cold, cheerless November day, when he arrived in Norwich. He found the church entirely out of repair, and the whole parish disorganized; the church must be rebuilt, parish work arranged and systematized, a convent and a parochial school erected. For the first month Father Smith was a guest of Father Treanor, and by that time the parish had secured the Batchelor place, on Central avenue, now owned by Timothy Kelly, for the parochial residence, and there Father Smith has since lived. The church was formally reorganized Jan. 17, 1898, there being 1,800 people in the parish, and in less than four years the parish had a membership of 2,200, with 275 children of school age. A warm affection soon sprang up between Father Smith and

his parishioners, and by their united effort hne broken windows and falling ceilings of the clinch were repaired and beautified. The church waffe- stored at a cost of $4,000, and attention was en turned to the school. The old parochial resi ce was used at first, but the increasing number of 1 fils demanded better accommodations, and a new scol- house was built. A school building fund, fost. Mary's parish, was started through a beque of $5,000, from Patrick Kelly, in 1892, which has pen continually increased through the energetic Frk of Father Smith. Meantime the sisters in chan of the school were obliged to live in St. Patrick's on- vent, as St. Mary's had no place for them. Co provide for this need, a tract of land was purc fed ed. on Hickory street, on which a convent was er This land was a low marshy spot, of no prise except to the eye of indomitable energy and th. Now, thoroughly drained, filled in and imp fed with fine buildings, there are no more attr ve grounds in the vicinity. The cost of the nev em- provements is about $34,000. Both the new fon- vent and school-house are commodious and fell- arranged, and equipped with all the modern cfze- niences in the way of heating, lighting, ventilon and sanitation.

The severance of St. Mary's from St. Pat fo's, on which it had so long depended, was not ?ask to be performed so easily, or in a day. Buthe united efforts of Father Smith and his enthu stic congregation, have accomplished the work, at the new convent and school-house will enable St. My's to take the whole care of its own parish work. The hope and purpose of the parish now is to erect, the near future, a handsome church building, with- ar- ochial residence adjoining, on a beautiful si for which negotiations are now pending.

The great prosperity of the parish is due |the untiring work, and inspiring enthusiasm of I her Smith, who is never discouraged, and never om- plains of too great or too arduous labors.

CHARLES EDWARD SPENCER is de- scendant of an old family and is one of the leing and successful farmers of Lebanon. He trace.lack his line of ancestry through his father Ichabo his grandfather Jeduthan, through John, Samue | the first to settle in Windham), Thomas (who : tled at Hartford in 1635), Jared (of Stratford) t Mi- chael Spencer of Bedfordshire.

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Genealogical and biographical record of New London County, Connecticut, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens and genealogical records of many of the early settled families, Part 117

Author: Publication date: 1905 Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co. Number of Pages: 1568

Author:
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 1568