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 55

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

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ferest to John E. Warren, and the latter was mad fecre- tary, Charles W. Hopkins becoming treasu and general manager of the concern. Another fther, Samuel S. Hopkins, was made superintender, This firm of Hopkins & Allen continued in the i bufac- ture of small arms, army revolvers, andguns, rifles, etc., until the fire of Feb. 4, 1900, de fored their large four-story building, 218x55 fej and a large stock of guns, pistols, bicycles, etc., . loss sustained aggregating $500,000. In 1896 1 firm added the manufacture of bicycles to thei other business.

Several years after moving the plan from Franklin and Willow streets the capital 's in- creased to $225,000 and Hurlbut Bros., wesale dealers in firearms, sporting goods, etc., king stock, several of the latter's patents were tan up and manufactured. In 1887 the firm began t | man- ufacture of guns, and they purchased at th time the machinery of the Bay State Arms Co., U'x- bridge, Mass., removing the same to their nt in

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GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

wic as ew re 2 rt d ir After the fire the company was re-organ- : Hopkins & Allen Arms Co., and erected e-story brick building on the old site, now employed several hundred hands. fire Mr. Hopkins was not actively inter- he concern, but lived retired until his h, F. 10, 1904. During his active career he ntedand took out patents on a "swing" out der ad a "safety" lock for small firearms.

Mr. ·pkins was a member of Somerset Lodge, 34, sister . F. & A. M., of Norwich. He was a member of the Trinity Methodist Episco- Chuti, and was treasurer of the old Centre hodi Church, which was located on Sachem et. } was a stanch Republican, and served on boa f selectmen for two years, and as a mem- of tl common council of the city. On J e II, 1856, Mr. Hopkins was married to 1 Ana Beach, daughter of William S. and dale) Beach, of Glastonbury, Conn., later y (G Norw 1. One child came to this marriage, rles slie, who was born at Norwich. Mrs. kins a member of the Trinity Methodist Epis-

al Ch ich.

CHAR S LESLIE 1861 in t demy 880. at F HOPKINS was born Jan. at Norwich, and received his educa- public schools and the Norwich Free rom which he was graduated in the class Ie then entered Scofield's business col- vidence, R. I., from which he was grad- y, 1881. Returning to Norwich, he ac- sition in the shipping department of the

d in ed a j kins he de

Allen Co., with the intention of learning Is of the business. He remained there Oct. 7, 1882, when he entered the employ of Secon

National Bank in the capacity of clerk, rose the position of assistant cashier, holding posit until his resignation, in March, 1901, the it cas

nk was liquidated. He then became as- er of the First National Bank, and held incur ency until January, 1903, when he was n casher of that institution, to succeed Frank- Jer e, who became president.

n Ju

14, 1892, Mr. Hopkins was married to n Le s, a native of Norwich, daughter of Lewis, of that city. Their children ge I Rus I Norman, born Oct. 17, 1894; and es S hen, born May 31, 1899. In politics Hopk is a Republican. Fraternally he is a jer of v, aff

e Royal Arcanum and the Masonic fra- ting with Somerset Lodge, No. 34, A. A. I lin

Franklin Chapter, No. 4, R. A. M., uncil, R. & S. M., and Columbian hande

, No. 4, K. T. He served as master lodg n 1898 and 1899, and since December, en secretary. Religiously he is a ie Methodist Episcopal Church, and is · of the church and Sunday-school. Mr.

, an city.

has er of Feas ns is capable, accommodating and popular ne of the representative business men

WILLIAM W. BACKUS, the founder of the hospital in Norwich which bears his name, was the last of a line founded in New England in the days of the earliest settlements, and the seventh generation to reside at the old home in Yantic, town of Norwich.

William Backus, the emigrant ancestor, came to Saybrook from Norwich, England, in 1637, and moved to New London county in 1659, being one of the first settlers under the leadership of Rev. James Fitch and John Mason. It is said that William Backus named the town of Norwich after his native place. He died soon after his removal thither, at an advanced age, leaving two sons and three daugh- ters. The descendants were prosperous and re- spected, and took active part in the affairs of their day. During the Revolution a number of the family conducted an iron mill at Yantic and made swords for the soldiers.

William W. Backus was born Oct. 22, 1803, in the village of Yantic, son of James and Dorothy Church (Chandler) Backus, formerly of Wood- stock, Conn. In 1788 the father went to Marietta, Ohio, being among the first settlers in that State, and as agent of the Ohio Company made the first surveys in Marietta and built what was really the first house in that place. He was a man of marked ability, both physical and mental. In 1791, in ac- cordance with the earnest wishes of his father, he returned to Connecticut, and made his home in Yantic. He and his wife had a family of eight chil- dren of whom William W. was the sixth. The latter was but thirteen years old when his father died. A few years later he went to Marietta, Ohio, where he was employed for part of a year in the mercantile establishment of Dudley Woodbridge, Jr., but he returned to Connecticut in 1819, on ac- count of failing health, and with that exception his life was passed in the village where he was born. His principal occupation was farming, which he carried on extensively, having increased the old homestead to a large acreage, and he also dealt and raised cattle on a large scale, for fifty years being counted the largest owner of horned cattle in New London county. By industry he amassed a fortune, which was not materially helped by his inheritance, as the old home was heavily mortgaged when it came into his possession, though he soon succeeded in clearing it of all incumbrance. Though shrewd in matters of business he was the soul of honor and integrity and kept strictly to every agreement, enjoying the respect of all with whom he had rela- tions of any kind.

Politically Mr. Backus was a man of exemplary habits, cheerful disposition, and a delightful con- versationalist. He was especially interested in the early history of the town and kindred subjects, and in 1889 published a genealogical memoir of the Backus family, together with the private journal of James Backus-a volume of some four hundred pages. During his youth Mr. Backus had only com- mon-school advantages, but he was ever fond of

236

GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

study and spent all his spare time among good books, thus becoming a well-informed man. He was always interested in the questions of the day. He was able to draw up deeds and wills as well as a lawyer, and wrote an exceptionally good hand.

Mr. Backus was unmarried, and the last of his name, and some years before his death he formed the idea of leaving a monument of some kind to perpetuate the name. After some hesitation as to the nature of the institution he decided to follow the advice of his lifelong friend, Hon. John T. Wait, who suggested that he expend about $75,000 in the erection of a hospital in a good location. William A. Slater, a cousin of Mr. Backus, offered to make a liberal endowment, and Mr. Backus accordingly gave the money with the understanding that the hospital should bear his name. The Bulkeley estate, on North Washington street, Norwich, was the chosen site, and building was commenced in due time. On Oct. 4, 1893, the William W. Backus Hospital was formally opened and dedicated-the greatest institution in the city of Norwich, and sec- ond to none of its kind in the country. Mr. Backus, however, did not live to see its completion, as he died at his home in Yantic, July 13, 1892, after a short illness from pneumonia. Though afflicted with rheumatism, he had enjoyed good health until attacked by the disease which terminated his life. His career of nearly ninety years was crowded with usefulness, and crowned by the act in which he gave a third of his fortune for the benefit of human- ity. His memory will ever be held in the highest respect in the town where the name of Backus for so many generations has been deservedly honored.

GEN. WILLIAM GROSVENOR ELY, of Norwich, citizen, soldier and manufacturer, is one of that city's distinguished sons, and veterans of the Civil war, whose conspicuity in that great crisis of our country is ever referred to with pride by the citizens of his city and State. General Ely comes of sturdy New England stock, descending in the pa- ternal line from Richard Ely, of England and Amer- ica, from whom his generation is the eighth, and his line through William, William (2), James, Ja- cob, Eli, and Jesse Sanford Ely. The details of these appear in the following in the regular order.

(I) Richard Ely, of Plymouth, Devonshire, England, came to America between 1660 and 1663. He resided for a time in Boston, and later settled in Lyme, Conn., which, in 1660, was a part of Say- brook. His first wife, Joane (presumably Phipps), died in Plymouth, Jan. 7, 1660, and he married (second) in Boston, in 1664, Mrs. Elizabeth Cul- lick. His children were: William, Judith, Richard, Daniel (born to the first marriage), and Samuel (born to the second).

(II) William Ely, baptized in October, 1647, married May 12, 1681, Elizabeth Smith. Mr. Ely had gone to the West Indies about the time of his father's emigration to America. Two years after his

settlement in America Richard Ely sent fonis son William, who arrived in Connecticut fromffe West Indies about 1670. He resided in Lyme, e.s mar ried, and for many years was judge of tl County Court of New London. He died in Febru ,1717 His children were: Anne, Elizabeth, Rich 1, Dan- iel, William, James, Elizabeth (2), Mary Deborah and Joanna.

(III) William Ely (2) married (first) )ct. 25. 1715, Hannah, born in 1690, daughter o Villiar Thompson. She died in 1733, and he mar ed (sec- ond) Widow Mary Noyes. Mr. Ely diec 1760. His children by Hannah were : Jacob, Jon James, Mary A., Martha, Deborah, Samuel, and Immiru- hama ; and those by Mary were: Hannah. nn and Mary.

(IV) James Ely, born in 1719, marrie. 1 1741, Dorcas Andrews. He died in 1766. Thei hildren were: Elizabeth, James, Ruhama, Jacol Dorcas, Tabitha, Aaron, Andrew, John, Gad an Rhoda. The six sons served in the war of the Rblution.

(V) Jacob Ely, of Lyme, Conn., bori 1 1748, married (first), in 1773, Temperance Tif ly, who was born in 1747; she died in 1781, and hmmarried (second), in 1783, Lois (Beebe) Perkinsporn in 1756, widow of Isaac Perkins, and daughter of Da- vid and Sarah (Lord) Beebe. She diec 1837. Mr. Ely died in 1836. His children were: emper- ance, Temperance (2), Aaron, Eli, Jacob, eabury, Calvin, Benjamin, Seth, Clark and Gad, afexcept- ing the first four born to the second marrife.

(VI) Eli Ely, of Bristol, born in 1780 (married, in 1805, Sarah Sanford, of Plymouth, Co., born in 1784, daughter of Jesse and Sarah (Fel) San- ford. Mrs. Ely died in 1854, and Mr. E passed away in 1869. Their children were: Jesse fanford. born in 1807; Albro, 1809; David, 1811 Edwin, 1813 ; Sarah F., 1815; Julia T., 1818; Jane [., 1825.

(VII) Jesse Sanford Ely, of Norwich Conn. born in 1807, married, in 1835, Harriet C svenor of North Killingly, Conn., born in 1813, ughter of Robert Grosvenor, M. D., and Mary Begg! Mr. Ely died in 1879. Their children we : Will- iam Grosvenor, born Dec. II, 1836; Eden San- ford, June 17, 1841 ; and Charles Albro, I ; (dieu in 1846). The second son,

(VIII) Edwin S. Ely, was quite young hen his parents moved to Norwich, and he was ec ated in the public schools and the Free Acade 7. He studied law with the late Judge James AHovey. Later he was engaged in the paper mant cturing business, controlling and successfully c lucting the Reade & Obenauer Paper Company n Ver- sailles. Because of ill health he sold out ; pape interests in 1889. He died very suddent at his home, on May 4, 1898. "From 1882 to 123 Mr. Ely was president of the Uncas Bank, a time of his death was a director of the badway at the Theatre corporation, taking a lively inter : in its affairs. He was a popular member of the orwich Club. Mr. Ely was an attractive man to et, en-

BREVET BRIGADIER GENERAL

237

GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

erta ng and pleasing of address and of a hospit- ble im ture. His friends who knew him best liked his genial ways and his cordial companion- hip. 1 politics the deceased was a stanch Repub- can. On May 1, 1873, Edwin S. Ely married Iary Brewer Chappell, who was born Nov. 13, i Norwich, daughter of Edward and Eliza- (Brewer) Chappell. Mrs. Ely died March 9, I.5. They had four children : Mary Grosve- n May 30, 1875; Augusta Chappell, April

or, i 18- Edward Chappell, May 9, 1882 ; Grosvenor, eb. 1884.

[I) William Grosvenor Ely, son of Jesse (' ar

Harriet (Grosvenor) Ely, born Dec. II, 336, arried, in 1865, Augusta Elizabeth Greene, f Nof ich, Conn., who was born in 1839, daughter f Wijam Parkinson and Augusta Elizabeth ( Bor- nd) eene. Their children are : Anna Lloyd Ely, orn i 1867; and William Grosvenor Ely, Jr., born 186 The son graduated from Brown Univer- ty w honors, and later from Cornell, where he ok al pecial course in engineering. He is now oldin the very responsible position of superin- ndenof construction in the General Electric Com- any's orks at Schenectady, N. Y. He married lice ite, and they have had two children : Will-

m G svenor Ely (3), born May 23, 1898; and loyd ute Ely, born April 22, 1900.

Wi im Grosvenor Ely was educated for the "ofess 1 of civil engineer at Brown University, hode land. He was sent out to Cuba as repre- nting heir interests by the Rogers Locomotive orks f Paterson, N. J., prior to the breaking out the vil war in 1861. When war was declared r. El returned home, and on April 22, 1861, be- ember of Company A, Ist Conn. V. I. He me a as co nissioned captain and A. D. C. May 28, 61. was his privilege to participate in the first ttle Bull Run, Va. On the expiration of his ree niths' term of service, Aug. 7, 1861, Capt.

y aga entered the service Sept. 4, 1861, and was ister‹ lonel in Sept. 13th, of that year, as lieutenant the 6th Conn V. I. On July 24, 1862, he is prooted to the rank of colonel, and was com- ssion to command the 18th Conn. V. I. On

ne 13 863, at Winchester, Col. Ely commanded

soner

Sec 1 Brigade, under Milroy, and was taken hile advancing in a charge of the Brigade the I t Royal turnpike. His sword was returned the battlefield by Gen. Walker, Jackson's him ( igade having been shattered by a cannon ball the ch Jı

ge. Col. Ely was confined in Libby Prison :, 1863, until paroled and exchanged, rch 2 1864. The Colonel was one of the men le tunnel out of Libby Prison, and is be- e the only Connecticut man who escaped o dug ed to pugh He was re-captured forty-two miles hy, 01 half a mile from Union forces, and re- med, lle-footed and half-clad, to a dungeon. On 17, 364, he was relieved from parole and re- ed tl army.

Concerning the 18th regiment's part at Winches- ter the following extract from the history of that gallant regiment is apropos :

"The first battle of the Eighteenth was at Win- chester, Va., June 13th, 14th and 15th, under Gen. Milroy's command. The engagement was disastrous to the Union forces. Milroy had but 7,000 men and his opponent, Gen. Early, 30,000, and eighty-seven field guns. In a third and last charge the Eight- eenth wholly disabled a Confederate battery ; but it had charged into the center of Gen. Johnston's Division, 9,000 strong, and 500 of its men were cap- tured. Gen. Walker, of Stonewall Jackson's brig- ade, generously praised the valor and discipline of the Eighteenth, and returned Col. Ely's sword to him on the battlefield." Gen. Milroy met the Eight- eenth at Martinsburg, on their return from Rebel prisons, and made the following speech :

"Soldiers of the Eighteenth: Since I last saw you, you have suffered captivity in Rebel prisons. We have been separated since then, but I have come to see you and to praise you for your gallantry. I saw you in the second day's fight, as you charged the enemy from your rifle pits and drove them back upon their reserves, holding them in check until night, when you fell back, but with your face to the foe. Again I saw you the next morning, facing as hot a fire as I ever witnessed. I looked in vain to see you waver. Boys, it was a hot place-a hot place. I saw you go where none but brave men dare to go; saw you make three successful charges, pre- serving your line as well as if on dress parade. I witnessed it all, I saw you as you broke the first line of Rebel infantry, and charged up to their batteries, driving away their gunners, still pressing on, and breaking their reserves. But a third line was too strong for you. I knew it was. Only then did you fall back, when your lines were broken, and many brave Connecticut men lay bleeding on the field. But you only fell back to re-form and give them an- other taste of your steel. * I knew it was madness to order you forward again ; it was ordering you to death and annihilation. Boys, I watched you with pride as you charged the third time, but when I saw your ranks withering and your comrades fall- ing, it made my heart grow sad within me, and I ordered you back. You know the rest. You were surrounded, and there was no escape. But I miss your noble commander, Col. Ely. May he soon re- turn to you! Boys, to your valor I owe my safety. You come from a State whose soldiers never dis- graced themselves nor their flag. I am proud of you."

On Gen. Hunter's raid at the battle of Piedmont, June 4, 1864, the 18th Connecticut went into action with 350 men in line, and lost 122 men in killed and wounded and Col. Ely had his horse killed under him. The survivors rejoiced in a complete victory, capturing a large body of the enemy. In advancing on Lynchburg, June 18, 1864, Col. Ely was disabled by a shell wound in his throat, and

845, eth

238

GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

sent to the hospital. He resigned for disability and was honorably discharged in September, 1864. His command at that time was the 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division, 19th Army Corps, and consisted of the 5th New York Heavy Artillery, 12th Virginia, 18th Connecticut and 4th Virginia Regiments. He was breveted brigadier-general March 13, 1865. The engagements in which Gen. Ely participated were : First Bull Run, Port Royal, Port Pulaski, Winches- ter (second and third), Piedmont, Lynchburg, Snicker's Gap, Martinsburg and Berryville. He is a companion of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States. After returning from the war he was for several years engaged in the manufacturing of machinery, also in the manufac- ture of paper, being largely interested with the Reade Paper Mills, of Lisbon, Conn. He is at this writ- ing, and has been for years, treasurer of the Falls and of the Shetucket Cotton Mills, at Norwich, Connecticut.

Mrs. Augusta Elizabeth (Greene) Ely died at her home, No. 297 Broadway, Norwich, on the evening of July 25, 1900. On the evening following the Evening Record of that city thus noticed her passing away :

"In the death of Mrs. Augusta Elizabeth Greene Ely we part with the last survivor of a family circle which was once the social center of this community. From her father, William P. Greene, she inherited much more than a name honorably distinguished in the business and municipal affairs of the city; she inherited, also, in a large measure, the personal qualities that made him the leader that he was in works of beneficence to the public. In the daughter, indeed, the noble passion for patriotic service was restricted in its exercise to less conspicuous lines of working ; but it was not less noble and energetic. And presently the time came on when patriotic womanhood, with no sacrifices of tenderness and gentleness and modesty, but rather by virtue of all of these, was to be given a noble part. At the out- break of the great war the brilliant young society leader devoted herself, with all her talents and social advantages, to those labors for the soldiers depart- ing, or in the field, or returning from the field, in which patriotic women throughout the land eagerly engaged, but in which it is no vain boasting to say the women of Norwich were pre-eminent. One fact of this service deserves to be put on record. She was the first to set the example in Connecticut, soon to be followed by others, of employing at her own cost and charges a substitute who should serve as her representative in the army. The grateful work of Decoration Day will be imperfectly done if there are not some flowers to fall upon the recent grave of so true a patriot.

"It was the appropriate sequel of those years of patriotic service when she was married to one of those Norwich soldiers, whose distinguished service in the army has been followed by successful work in civil life. From this time the current of

her life has flowed in the less conspicuous "annels of domestic duty as wife, mother, friend an meigh- bor. How loving and fruitful a life it has b there are so many to tell, in the church where s was a worshipper and in the social and literary ( les of which she was an ornament. But it is mno of all in the home, of which her presence was light It is and soul, that her memory is to be cherish there 'that her children rise up and call her fessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.' "

RATHBUN. Various accounts are cur It con- cerning the early history of the Rathbone as the name was originally spelled) family in Ame a, one asserting that the family is descended from nomas Rathbone, who came from England in Io; an- other from John Rathbone, of the Liverpor 'amily who emigrated from that city in 1625; and third from an elder brother of Col. John Rath lie, an officer of the Parliamentary army of 1658, jo was noted for his devotion to Republican princi s.

Says Livermore, in his History of Bloch [sland, "it is an undoubted fact, however, that tl Block Island Rathbones, as well as others in Amer have descended from an honorable race of Saxo prigin, in England, of whom one writer says they h : been a distinct family there 'for more than 500 ars."" A wealthy branch of this family has resideen the city of Liverpool more than 300 years, andone of the principal streets there is named for the : nily.

(I) John Rathbone, son of Richard and farion (Whipple) Rathbone, born about 1610, wapne of the number who met at the house of Dr. jin Al- cock, in Roxbury, Mass., Aug. 17, 1660, t tonfer about the purchase of Block Island. He wapne of the original sixteen purchasers of that isla | from Gov. Endicott and three others, who, two yrs be- fore, had received it from Massachusetts as grant for public services. He was admitted to fupoliti- cal rights as a freeman of New Shoreham Block Island) May 4, 1664. In 1676 he was chose one of the surveyors of highways, and in 1681, 16 1683 and 1684, he occupied a place in the Rhod sland General Assembly, as a representative from Block Island. In 1686 he was one of the petitione :o the King of Great Britain in reference to the "Q War- ranto," and in 1688 he was one of the grandfury of Rhode Island. He married Margaret Doc, and their children were : William, Thomas, John, seph, Samuel, Sarah, Margaret and Elizabeth John Rathbone and his wife Margaret both died 1702.

Many years before his death John Rathble set- tled his sons on farms on Block Island, wh they lived with their children. Their grande dren, however, scattered, leaving, it is supposed, fe de- scendants of Samuel alone, of the name, 1 the island. His grandson, Jonathan (son of Jo ), re- moved before 1715 to Colchester, Conn., now alem, and purchased from the Mohegan Indians tract of land on which he settled, a portion of wlh has continued uninterruptedly in the possessionof his

239

GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

cencats of the same name to this time. Joshua, on of John (2), settled in Stonington, 1 John, Benjamin, Nathaniel and Thomas, of John (2), settled in Exeter, Rhode

Samuel Rathbone, son of John the settler, boi Aug. 3, 1672. On Nov. 3, 1692, he mar- -, and their children were:

ence orn May 3, 1695, who died in 1733; Pa-

1 P: mas ice,

'n Aug. 21, 1697; Mary, born Sept. II, 0, v) married June 6, 1723, James Gould ;

it, 1 Dec. 30, 1702, who married June 1, 1727, ickens ; Samuel, born April 16, 1705, who arch 15, 1732, Elizabeth Dodge, and died 80 ; James, born April 10, 1707, who mar- 7, 1732, Mercy Downing ; Abraham, born [709, who married Jan. II, 1735, Mary id Rebecca, born Jan. 9, 1713, who mar- 25, 1735, John Rider, of Newport.

amuel Rathbone (2), son of Samuel, was 16, 1705, and died on Block Island 80. In 1755 he was a member of the nd Assembly. On March 15, 1732, he izabeth Dodge, of Westerly, R. I., who m and died Aug. 8, 1793, aged seventy- Their children were : Walter, born June narried March 4, 1756, Hannah Rose ; 'n July 10, 1736, married Nov. 19, 1758, ynolds ; Elijah was born May 28, 1740; orn Dec. 2, 1742, married James Dodge. n of the third generation began to spell Rathbun."

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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 55

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