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 92

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 92

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JOSHUA B. WHEELER was one of theled- ing citizens of Colchester, where he was for kny years a prosperous merchant. He was bof in Waterford, Conn., Nov. 27, 1798, son of Gi Mercy (Bolles) Wheeler.

Mr. Wheeler early in life began as a clerk che employ of John Turner, and later he mar a daughter of that gentleman. He continued lith Mr. Turner until the latter gave up mercantil fus- iness, after which time Mr. Wheeler carried the

establishment with marked success until he h fac- quired a competence, and he retired from an five life about a quarter of a century prior to his tth, which occurred April 17, 1882. He was bung in Linwood cemetery, at Colchester, which plat he had named, and was one of its charter membe § In politics he was a Whig, later a Republican, ag he was very active in the affairs of the town, hol g a number of the minor offices, and in 1837-38 pre- senting the town in the Legislature. He ser tas postmaster at Colchester during the administ Fion of William Henry Harrison, and was app ted deputy revenue assessor for the district by kasi- dent Lincoln, holding this office until it was pol- ished. In 1826 he joined Wooster Lodge, MIO, A. F. & A. M., and the same year became a mpber of Washington Commandery, No. I, Knights em- plar, becoming well known in Masonic cles throughout the State. He erected the build . in which the lodge room is now located, in ordehat the order might have a permanent and comforble home. He became a member of the Met dist Church and was one of the prime movers in thes- tablishing of the present church at Colcheste fur- nishing the site and being one of the heavies con- tributors toward the support of the church, of fich he also served as a trustee and steward for any. years. All his life he was an upright Ch tian man, who stood high in the esteem of al vho knew him.

On May 9, 1827, Mr. Wheeler was unit in marriage with Aurelia L. Turner, who wasborn Jan. 10, 1805, in Colchester, daughter of Joh and Sabra (Tinker) Turner. John Turner wil the wealthiest citizen of Colchester in his day, andarly in life was a prominent merchant, but later di sed of his business in order to devote his entire te to the management of his many other interests. . Irs. Wheeler died Feb. 18, 1889. The following ned children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Wheeler : |me- line T., widow of Rev. George R. Ransom, i: ien- tioned more fully below ; William T. served the 9th New York Regiment during the Civil war and died in New Jersey ; Fanny S. married Will |1 S. Curtis, of Suffield.

REV. GEORGE REED RANSOM was | na- tive of Norwich, Conn., and when a young man came to Colchester, where he was employed as a clerk. and later engaged in the mercantile bu iess, first in Colchester, and afterward in Norwich He

J. B.helen

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GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

stud ng for the ministry, and was ordained I in the Congregational Church. For seven he vs acting pastor of the church at Web- ity, owa; was at Waverly, Iowa, for six andlawn Ridge, Ill., for six years. Return- Com al c, w alth cticut, he soon afterward responded to to supply the Congregational church at re he remained for a time. Then fail- de this learned and most excellent man est al a change of climate, and he spent each famous resort, Southern Pines, North

wayseeking to carry the message of the 1, wife in Southern Pines he organized a 1, w and h was recognized by the council in · his untiring efforts he succeeded in g a ne edifice, living to see it dedicated and f det During all of his stay there he offi- as it astor, and he died there in its service rch 1900, at the age of sixty-three years. as deeply mourned by a very wide owing friends who knew and appre- eath of s his ny virtues. The remains were con-

home at Colchester and interred in the to hi ful I vood cemetery. Mr. Ransom had ac- shed ore than most men in the way of ben- his flowmen, for he never let pass an oppor- of do

g good, and always tried to better the on o those in sorrow, weakness of either al or oral nature, and despair, and he was by all who had the honor of knowing belov

VIS. The family of this name has been it of hnecticut for two hundred years. Johı Davis, the progenitor of the branch of nily w found in Stonington, Conn., was 1 En nd in 1612. His wife died in East on, I I., Dec. 17, 1696, and he died there 2, 170 aged ninety-three years. Their chil- ere : hn, Hannah, Thomas and Maryette. ) Thias Davis, son of John, was born in On Jí. II, 1722, he married Abigail Par- nd tør two children were: John, born 4, 17); and Abigail, born April 26, 1725. D) Jo Davis, son of Thomas, was born at ampt L. I., March 4, 1723. He was a by cupation, and he also carried on an e busfess in the manufacture of leather and makiı nk ic lat of it. Mr. In 1765 he rented a farm on the he Pawcatuck river, in Stonington, purchased, putting his son John in his farm was owned by Robert Stan- avis became its owner in 1772, since as been handed down from father to occupied by John J. and Alphonso

me it is n IS. old the ly sta

icar

nsion house, with its spacious fire- ing-room, and its hand-carved solid case, is still in good preservation. It brook Grove, which slopes to the 21

water, and lends its euphonious name to the place. No one knows exactly when this house was built, but it is supposed to have been erected some time about 1670 by Thomas Stanton, first, the original Indian interpreter ; at any rate, it was a grand man- sion for the time in which it was built, and it is now in so remarkable a state of preservation, both inside and out, that it is difficult to realize its antiquity. The massive timbers used in the frame and the original coverings of shingles, three feet in length, are still intact. The rooms are very large and elabo- rately wainscoted. In one corner of the east room, or parlor, is a large niche, or buffet, hand carved at the top like a fluted shell, with closed doors below. This contains quaint shelves where can be seen old- time china. The front staircase railing, hand carved of solid mahogany, was brought from England, and one of the panels in the side of the stairway is six feet long. The hall is wainscoted in broad panels, and all the rooms have deep cornice and corner- posts. The west great room, nineteen by twenty feet, has the cupboard over the fireplace, with glass doors, through which can be seen the blue and white crockery, while on the high mantel in the long kitchen rest the glass, brass and iron candle sticks, the pink and blue plates, and platters for fish with separate china drains upon which the fish rests. This room has the original fireplace of by- gone days, nearly eight feet in length and corre- spondingly deep, with the crane from which hang the ancient trammels for the pots and kettles. The large brick oven at the end reminds one of the quantities of good things drawn from its capacious depths during the years this house has sheltered so many generations.

After John Davis purchased this old home he carried on his business as cordwainer and shoe- maker in connection with his farming. In April, 1784, he returned to East Hampton, L. I., that he might send his children to the Clinton Academy. He married (first), Dec. 31, 1744, Catharine Talmage, who died April I,I, 1759, the mother of eight chil- dren : Catharine, born March 13, 1746; John, born Jan. 20, 1748; Benjamin, born Jan. 4, 1750 (died young) ; Thomas, born Nov. 27, 1751; Benjamin (2), born May 15, 1754; Enos, born Oct. 14, 1755 ; and Catharine and Abigail, twins, born April 5, 1758. Mr. Davis married for his second wife Mary Conklin, of East Hampton, who after his death, Dec. 15, 1798, returned to Stonington to live with her stepson John, and upon his death, in 1809, she went to live with another stepson, Thomas, in Pres- ton, and there she died Jan. 18, 1814. The chil- dren born of the second marriage were: Mary, born April 27, 1763, who died April 6, 1852; Dr. Samuel, born Oct. 7, 1765; Abigail, born Jan. 15, 1767; Rev. Henry, born Sept. 15, 1771 ; and Benja- min, born Feb. 6, 1774.

(IV) John Davis (2), son of John, was born Jan. 20, 1748, and resided in Stonington at the old homestead until his death, March 31, 1809. On Nov;

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GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

14, 1773, he married Abigail, daughter of Daniel Baker, of East Hampton, and their children were: John (3), born Sept. 19, 1776, married Sally Stan- ton ; Abigail, born Oct. 12, 1778, married Lemuel Palmer ; Daniel, born March 6, 1783, married Mary Robinson ; Maria, born Oct. 16, 1786, married Ben- jamin F. Stanton; and Nancy, born June 13, 1793, married Elias Stanton.

(IV) Thomas Davis, son of John, was born Nov. 27, 1751. He and his brother Enos lived on the homestead in Stonington until 1802, when they purchased the Jonathan Brewster farm in Preston. He engaged in the manufacture of leather and shoe- making in connection with farming. On Dec. 25, 1780, he married Mary Conklin, and he died Jan. 23, 1831. His children were: Thomas, born Sept. 21, 1781, who married, April 4, 1813, Mary, daugh- ter of Peleg and Lucretia (Billings) Shaw, of Westerly, R. I .; Mary, born July 12, 1784; Henry, born Aug. 26, 1788; Dudley, born March 18, 1795; Julia, born Aug. 24, 1797 ; and Clarissa, born March 29, 1803.

(IV) Enos Davis, son of John, was born Oct. 14, 1755, and died May 31, 1837. In 1792 he married Phebe Mulford, and he married (second) Mrs. Lois (Palmer) Perkins, of Groton. His children were: Phebe Mulford, born in 1793, married Jason Rog- ers ; Jeremiah, born Oct. I, 1795, married Harriet Sydleman ; Huldah, born Aug. 15, 1799, married George A. Sydleman; and Fanny, born Sept. 12, 1802, became the second wife of George A. Sydle- man.

(V) John Davis (3), son of John (2), was born Sept. 19, 1776. On Feb. 27, 1804, he married Sally, daughter of William and Sarah (Breed) Stanton, of Stonington, and a descendant in direct line of Thomas Stanton, the celebrated Indian in- terpreter, who came to America from England in 1636. She died Sept. 6, 1861, and he passed away April 21, 1864. They were the parents of six chil- dren : Clarissa, born June 18, 1806, married, March 10, 1857, James Green ; John, born April II, 1808, married, Dec. 22, 1851, Phebe M., daughter of Jere- miah Davis, and died April 9, 1884; Abigail, born April 6, 1810, married, Nov. 25, 1830, Thomas W. Robinson ; Sarah was born Dec. 15, 1813; Mary, born May 29, 1814, married, Jan. 14, 1839, Oliver D. Cole; and Thomas William, born June 1I, 1818, married, March 14, 1842, Susan Davis.

(VI) John Davis (4), son of John (3), born April II, 1808, died April 9, 1884. On Dec. 22, 1851, he married Phebe Mulford Davis, daughter of Jeremiah and Harriet (Sydleman) Davis, of Norwich, Conn., and granddaughter of Enos and Phebe (Mulford) Davis. Their children were : John Jeremiah, born Jan. 16, 1854; Sarah Maria, born Feb. 23, 1856; and Alphonso Whitman, born Feb. 20, 1861. John Davis (4) succeeded to the ownership of that part of the ancestral estate that had been owned and occupied by his father for more than half a century. From early manhood he

had been a humble and consistent Christian und for many years a member of the Congregationa Church at Westerly, R. I. His daily life and cor -satior bore witness to the truth and sincerity offs pro- fession. He delighted to minister to the nts of to his fe char- those whose individual necessities appeal generous sympathy, and he gave willingly itable and benevolent purposes, demonstring the truth of the Divine utterance, "It is mor blessed to give than to receive." Being himself tl soul of honor, he looked for the same quality in offers, and was unwilling to impute dishonesty or seit to Hys, his any one. Quiet and unassuming in his manifest goodness and geniality attrac . even strangers to him. He always had a smile and en- couraging word for the troubled and de ndent; and he was never happier than when doinger plan- ning something to contribute to the pl ure of others. He was an affectionate and indul it hus- band and father, a kind neighbor, and inne lan- guage of one who knew him well-"a goe man." In the evening of life, with his work on [th wel done, he entered into rest. Rev. A. H Vilcox. sometime pastor of the church at Westerly ays th following tribute to his memory: "My n fory of Mr. Davis is perfectly fresh and distinct end will continue to be so as long as I live. I ca see him now, just as he looked on a bright Sabbath:forning as he drove up to the steps of the chur a hall and strong man, with the color of hea. in hi cheeks, and his whole countenance bear ng with an expression of hearty good will to all &fund. remember distinctly his readiness to coferse c religious subjects, and especially on ait subje. connected with the promotion of more hristia feeling among church members, and m memor would be deficient, indeed, if I failed to memb that no one ever gave me a more kindly \ come his home, or pressed upon me a more colial ho pitality. In a word, if all our New Eng could be be tilled by such men as he

d farr ras, o New England churches would be ful. o ovo flowing, and instead of modern vices and rreligi- we should have again the sterling virtues Ind pie of former days."

(VII) Alphonso Whitman Davis, so of Jo (4), was born Feb. 20, 1861. On Sept 29, 18 by Rev. J. D. Herr, D. D., he was Married Miss Ida May Palmer, of Norwich, dighter Henry J. Palmer. They have two chillen: Jo Lawrence, born Dec. 3, 1898; and Mar Lou born Oct. 7, 1900.

(VII) John Jeremiah Davis, son of ohn ( was born Jan. 16, 1854. On Dec. 7, 181 by R William C. Styles, he was married to jfss Ell beth Hamilton, of Stonington borough. Their daughter, Florence Elizabeth, died in inancy.

(VII) Sarah Maria Davis, only d ghter John (4), is unmarried. She belongs the A Warner Bailey Chapter, D. A. R., of foton Stonington.

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GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Thomas William Davis, son of John (3), Tune II, 1818. He was a farmer all his sided upon that portion of the old home- belonged to his uncle, Daniel Davis, and equently became his by purchase. He was

VI bor and d th ch st a11 0 rreproachable character, and was highly emecen the community where he lived all his Hej ied Aug. 21, 1894. On March 14, 1842, marr Susan, daughter of Oliver and Nancy le) vis, and a descendant of William White, cang over in the "Mayflower." She died at ningt lison,

Feb. 7, 1882, and of her Rev. Frederick ho had been her pastor, said, " I remem- Mrs avis well as a model wife and mother, as a modest, active, faithful and loving The children were born to Mr. and Mrs. illiam Dudley, born Feb. 1I, 1843, died 866; Oliver, born Nov. 15, 1844, died 846; John H., born Nov. 19, 1846, died 17; John Daniel was born Dec. 28, 1848; nds, born June II, 1850, died May 20, Jane, born April 10, 1854, died Feb. 18, les Smith, born Jan. 30, 1856, died Nov. rederick Prentice, born Nov. 28, 1858, llie Robinson (their child, Joseph Will-

hers"

is: v. 30 t. 27 . 13, vard 2; M: o; CH 1899 Fried Da born Sept. 21, 1898, died Aug. 30, 0); Anie Elizabeth, born Dec. 8, 1861, died rch 6, 389; and Walter Howard, born Aug. 15, 5, has een captain of the life saving service at tch El, R. I., for many years; he married ra El ed.

(VII Charles Smith Davis, son of Thomas liam, 1885 of E horn Jan. 30, 1856, was married, June Grace Chamberlayne Loveridge, daugh- ard Daniel Loveridge, of Cuba, N. Y. g manhood, in 1877, Mr. Davis went to .. , and began his business career as a

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Cuba National Bank, and with the ex- one year he continued as an employe hat ba : until his death. In February, 1883, he me c iier, and in 1896 he was unanimously ed it president. He was a thorough business , and hile he succeeded in his own behalf his test

ancial success was in his handling of sum intrusted to his care by others. His itabl cts were wholly without ostentation, ell guarded by a dignified and quiet re- were : tha essib ty wa st sta His convi o the stranger made him seem a little To friends and acquaintances his cor- complete, and with the needy a plain nent of the case was all that was neces- idgment was clear, strong and practical. ons were of a fixed quantity, and as a t his of ho siness record was one of fidelity to duty, bor alike to himself, his family and the le he rved.

ES HENRY KINNE, PH. D., who March 31, 1899, in Providence, R. I., the best scholars Norwich ever had r to cm, and his death cut short a most prom-

ising career. He was descended on both sides from old Colonial ancestry.

Charles R. Kinne, his father, was a jeweler by trade, but in his later years he followed mechanical work. He was born in Norwich in 1816, and lost his life Oct. 3, 1883, being struck by a train on his way to the factory from his home. He married Charlotte B. Roath, a native of Preston, and daugh- ter of Nathan and Elizabeth (Sholes) Roath. The family income was small, the father working by the day, and the parents (particularly the mother, from whom he inherited many sterling traits) deserve great credit for the son being enabled to attend col- lege, and to acquire the education he so earnestly de- sired. Charles Henry was the only child born to Charles R. Kinne and his wife.

Charles Henry Kinne was born on the corner of Eighth street and Central avenue, in what was then Greeneville, Feb. 4, 1857, and four years later entered the public school. The following year his parents removed to Preston, and he attended school there for two years, when the family returned to Norwich for a year, thence going back to Preston, where they remained three years. Finally they re- turned to Norwich, when young Charles was twelve years old, and he entered the Broadway school in April, and in June, two years later, had completed the three years' course. During the time he was in attendance at the Broadway school, he worked at various occupations in order to obtain the requisite money for further schooling. In September, 1871, he entered the Norwich Free Academy, and in his junior year he received the Newton Perkins medal for declamation, and in the year of his graduation (1875) he received the Newton Perkins medal for Latin. As a classical scholar he led his class. He entered Brown University the same year, and grad- uated therefrom in 1879. For one season following his graduation he taught school in Preston, and in 1880 he became a teacher in the Free Academy un- der Prof. Hutchinson, remaining there until 1884. In July, of that year he went to Germany, to study the modern languages, and was a student at Bonn, Berlin, Paris and Geneva from 1884 to 1886. In 1887 he became a teacher of modern languages in the Hill school, kept by Dr. Meigs, at Pottstown, Pennsylvania.

On July 25, 1887, Mr. Kinne was married to Miss Mary A. Huntington, of Providence, R. I., a cultured lady who survives him. The day follow- ing their marriage Mr. Kinne and his bride sailed for Paris. After a year's study at Paris and Berlin, Mr. Kinne entered the University of Strasburg, receiving the degree of Doctor of Philosophy from that university in 1890. From 1890 to 1892 Dr. Kinne was professor of modern languages in the Pennsylvania State College, resigning this position to become a fellow in Romance languages at the University of Chicago in 1892-93, and instructor of Romance at the same university in 1893-94. In 1894 he was obliged by ill health to leave Chicago,

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GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

and he spent the winter of 1894-95 in Cuba studying Spanish. In October, 1895, he was appointed in- structor of modern languages at the New Hamp- shire College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts at Durham, N. H., and continued in that position until compelled by ill health to relinquish it, in 1898. For many months he struggled with heroism, patience, uncomplaining endurance and hope against insidious disease. The faculty of the college with which he was last connected said : "Those who knew him most intimately understood best the rare in- tegrity of his thought, the constant kindliness and gentleness of his feeling. The students who have been under his instruction gained from his person- ality even more than from his teaching. In the meetings of the Faculty, his opinions were rarely volunteered, and never hastily given ; but once given they were marked by a judicious fairness which in- dicated a minute and comprehensive survey of the matter in hand. Here also the grace of his char- acter gave him a strong, though unobtrusive, in- fluence. Scholar, teacher, associate, friend, he was all, and first of all, the Christian gentleman.".

Mr. Kinne united with the Central Baptist Church at the age of eighteen years, during the pas- torate of Rev. John Davies, and through life was a consistent attendant of church. A Republican in politics, his interests in politics ended with his cast- ing his ballot. The only fraternal organization with which he was connected was the Delta Upsilon So- ciety at Brown. His was a pure and noble life, his success being well merited. His remains rest in the family lot in Yantic cemetery, Norwich. Mrs. Kinne resides at her old home in Providence, and Mr. Kinne's mother makes her home in Norwich.

FRANKLIN STARR JEROME, President of the First National Bank, and of the Thames Loan and Trust Company, of Norwich, and Treasurer of the United States Finishing Company, is one of the best known men in business and financial circles in that city. Mr. Jerome descends from an old New London county family, whose ancestral history ap- pears elsewhere in this volume.

He was born Oct. 6, 1870, in Montville, Conn., son of Henry G. and Eliza Holt (Starr) Jerome, and spent the earlier part of his school days in Nor- wich, where his parents then resided. Later the family returned to Montville. He attended a high school at Uncasville. He next entered Eastman's Business College at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and grad- uated from there in February, 1888. Returning home the following June, he was engaged as an extra clerk in the First National Bank at Norwich, and remained there until the extra work caused by the vacations of the different clerks was done, and he was then employed in a like capacity for one month in the Uncas National Bank. In October, 1888, he was offered a position as clerk in the Sec- ond National Bank, and he remained there until May, 1889, when he accepted the position of dis-

count clerk in the First National Bank. On(n. II, 1897, he was advanced to the position ofs- sistant cashier, and on Jan. 16, 1899, he was el ied cashier. He became a director Jan. 8, 1900. (had on Feb. 25, 1901, he was elected vice-president he acted as vice-president and cashier until Jai 1903, when he was elected president, which offi fe now holds. On Jan. 14, 1902, he was elected 1 ii- dent of the Second National Bank, and held at office until the charter expired, Feb. 24, 1903 the bank was liquidated. On February 10, 1903 Er. Jerome was chosen president of the Thames & Trust Company, which succeeded the Second fa- tional Bank. In January, 1902, he was chosen te- president of the Pawcatuck National Bank, of Vat- erly, R. I., which office he still holds. In June, 18. he was elected a trustee of the Norwich Saving to- ciety, being the youngest member of the boa fat that time. In 1903 he was elected a director ofhe Equitable National Bank of New York. Mr. Jojne is treasurer of the United States Finishing pany, also a director of several manufacturing fir- porations, president of the Isham Compan [of Groton, and treasurer of The Assawaga Compa tof Killingly. It seems almost incredible that se high positions of responsibility are held bso young a man ; he is the youngest bank preside in the State, and is regarded as a reliable authori fon financial questions. Whatever success he hejat- tained is but the just reward of his own worth.

On Oct. 10, 1894, Franklin Starr Jeromeyas married to Katherine S. D. Douglas, who was born in Indianapolis, Ind., daughter of Frank D. nd Anna (Campbell) Douglas, the former of vom was superintendent of agencies for the Conne fut Mutual Life Insurance Company, and died in ford, Conn. After his death his widow and d: h- ter moved to Norwich, where they have sind fre- sided. Mr. and Mrs. Jerome have one child, Lise Douglas, born Oct. 9, 1900. In his political fith Mr. Jerome is a Republican. Socially he is a m11- ber of the Norwich Club. Both he and his wi are members of the Park Congregational Church. He is a pleasant, courteous man, easily approached und is highly respected by his business associates .1 a great favorite with his friends. The family is im- inent in social circles.

RICHARD RAYMOND (deceased), dling his lifetime one of the representative farme| of Montville, was descended from a family pron ent among the early settlers in New England, ma of whose members have attained distinction. H vas of the eighth generation in direct line from ch- ard Raymond, the emigrant ancestor.

(I) Richard Raymond, ancestor of the rge family of Raymonds who have been residen of Montville and influential citizens since its e: iest settlement, is first heard of in Salem, Mass., ere he and his wife, Judith, are recorded as c rch members in 1634. In the same year he was ile a

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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 92

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