Genealogical and family history of the state of Connecticut, a record of the achievements of her people in the making of a commonwealth and the founding of a nation, Volume IV, Part 14

Author: Cutter, William Richard, 1847-1918, ed; Clement, E. H. (Edward Henry), 1843- joint ed. cn; Hart, Samuel, 1845-1917, joint ed; Talcott, Mary Kingsbury, 1847-1917, joint ed; Bostwick, Frederick, 1852- , joint ed; Stearns, Ezra Scollay, 1838-1915, joint ed
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: New York, Lewis historical publishing company
Number of Pages: 1178

USA > Connecticut > Genealogical and family history of the state of Connecticut, a record of the achievements of her people in the making of a commonwealth and the founding of a nation, Volume IV > Part 14

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general in 1783, hut resigned before Shay's Rebellion and took no active part in it. In 1782 he was appointed by the governor jus- tice of the peace for the county of Worcester : in 1783-84-87-88-89 he was a selectmian, and during a long period of years was moderator of the town meetings, an office he filled with ability and to the satisfaction of his fellow- citizens. He was again a delegate to the state convention to ratify the federal constitution, held in Boston, January 9, 1788, and voted with the minority against accepting the consti- tution. Ile stated in the convention, however, that though he opposed it, now that the ma- jority had adopted it, he should support it as much as if he had voted for it. He was rep- resentative to the general court in 1780-81-87- 88-89. He was a prominent member of the church, and the important place he was given in the seating of the meeting house shows that he was one of the foremost men of the town for many years. He died in Ashby.

He married (first. intentions dated Septem- her 9, 1751), Sarah Farr, or Farrar, born January 19, 1735, died April 21, 1773; (sec- ond) in Harvard, February 3, 1774. Sarah Dwelly, of Bridgewater. She died at Whit- ington, Vermont, February 18, 1817. By his first wife he had sixteen children, thirteen of whom died young, and had nine by his second wife. Children of first wife: Josiah, men- tioned below; Elizabeth, born May 7. 1755: Stephen. May 1, 1757; infant. died June 4. 1761 : infant, died May 10. 1762: infant, died March 16, 1763 : infant, died February, 1,66: infant, died February 18, 1768; five others. Children of second wife: Sarah, born April II, 1775: Oliver, January 9. 1777; Artemas Ward. November 17. 1778; Susanna. October 2. 1,80: Dwelly, August 2. 1782: Lemuel, September 19. 1784: Daniel. October 25. 1785 : John Hancock. December 13. 1788; Mo- ses Gill, February 4, 1791 ; two others, died young.

(VI) Josiah (2), son of General Josiah (1) Whitney, was born February 25. 1753, and died January 2, 1827. He resided at Harvard until soon after the revolution, when he re- moved to Nelson, New Hampshire, where he conducted a large farm the rest of his life. lle was a soldier in the revolution, in a com- pany of minute-men from Harvard that re- sponded to the Lexington alarm. April IQ. 1775: also in Captain Manasseh Sawyer's company. Colonel Dike's regiment, Massachu- setts militia, in 1776, at Dorchester Heights. Fle married, in Harvard. January 10. 1776. Anna Scollay. baptized April 18. 1758, diedl March 8, 1824. Children: Nancy, born April 12, 1777: Sally, June 26, 1778: Lois,

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March 15. 1781 : Stephen, mentioned below : Lucy, married Asa Lawrence: James. Febru- ary 24. 1782: James, December 6, 1789: Ly- dia. July 6. 1795: Scollay, October 6, 1798; Betsey, June 4, 1801.

(VII) Hon. Stephen Whitney, son of Jo- siah (2) Whitney, was born at Harvard. July I, 1784, and died July 12, 1852. He resided at Conway. New Hampshire, but removed to Bloody Brook, Deerfield, Massachusetts. He was a prominent merchant and respected citi- zen, and represented Deerfield in the general court in 1834-36. In 1834 he was monitor of the first division of the house and a member of the committee on accounts. He was also a monitor in 1835. and in the same year one of the commissioners having charge of the building of the enlargement of the State Lunatic Asylum at Worcester. He married, January 13. 1810, Mary A. Burgess, born July 12, 1786. died at Saratoga, New York, in 1868, daughter of Dr. Benjamin Burgess of Goshen. Children: James Scolly, men- tioned below : Mary Ann: Susan C., married James I. Wakefield : Fanny J., married Pickering.

(VIII) General James Scolly Whitney, son of Hon. Stephen Whitney, was born May 19, 1811, and died at South Deerfield, Massachu- setts, October 24, 1878. His early education was obtained principally from the instruction of his parents at home. At an early age he entered the store of his father as a clerk, and by his tact. industry and resourcefulness soon demonstrated superior business qualifications. When he came of age he purchased the busi- ness of his father and continued as a general merchant at Bloody Brook until 1838. when he removed to Conway, Massachusetts. and became a partner of his brother-in-law. Anson Shepard, in the firm of Shepard & Whitney, soon gaining a large and profitable trade. Charles Wells succeeded Mr. Shepard in the firm, and the name became Whitney & Wells. afterward, Whitney. Wells & Company.

His public spirit and enterprise. general in- telligence and capacity, his tact in dealing with men and affairs, soon placed him in a position of prominence in the community. In 1843 he was chosen town clerk and continued in that office until 1852. He was frequently chosen as agent of the town in important matters, and in all cases was vigilant in attending to the interests of his constituents. He represented Conway in the general court in 1851 and again in 1854. It has been said that his vote elected Charles Sumner as United States senator. The legislature at that time was controlled by the memorable coalition of Democratic and Free Soil parties, and a part of the understanding

that preceded the coalition was that Sumner should be chosen senator, but several Dento- crats, of whom Whitney was one, refused to vote for Summer. Whitney was a Democrat of the Andrew Jackson type, and always had the courage of his convictions. He was no friend of American slavery, but he was an ardent supporter of the constitution of the United States, and regarded the agitation of the slavery question in congress as detrimental to the peace and welfare of the country. He regarded Mr. Sumner as an anti-slavery agi- tator, and cast his vote some twenty or more times for a Democrat. Efforts were then made to convince him that he was mistaken in his views of Mr. Sumner's character and purposes. Apparently by accident, Mr. Sum- ner met Mr. Whitney in the state library for the purpose of an interview. General Whit- ney was assured by Mr. Sumner that he was not disposed to play the part of an agitator, and the result of the interview was reason- ably satisfactory to Mr. Whitney, but know- ing that the Democrats of his town were op- posed to the election of Sumner and had ap- proved his course in opposing the coalition, he decided to refer the matter to them. He conferred with his constituents, who decided that he should settle the deadlock by voting for Sumner, and on the following ballot he cast the deciding vote. thus closing the contest. He was appointed sheriff of Franklin county in May, 1851, and filled that office acceptably and efficiently for two years. He was a dele- gate to the state constitutional convention in 1853 and took an active part in the proceed- ings, being one of the ablest and most useful members. In 1854 he was a prime mover in procuring the charter of the Conway Bank. of which he was a director as long as he lived in Conway. In the same year he was one of the founders of the Conway Mutual Fire In- surance Company and became its first presi- dent. But while he was thus devoting his time and abilities to the management of his ex- tensive privare business and the affairs of his immediate vicinity, he was unexpectedly called to a new and more important field of public service. From early youth he had been inter- ested in military affairs, and it became hi: duty to reorganize the state militia. a work in which his father was also interested. He made such an excellent record that when only twen- ty-four years old he was commissioned briga- dier-general of the Second Brigade. Massa- chusetts Volunteer Militia, Fourth Division. A superb horseman. an efficient executive. he won the respect and confidence of both officers and men. By an Act of Congress, early in 1854, the office of superintendent of the ar-

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mory at Springfield, Massachusetts, was to be filled by a civilian, and President Pierce found the selection from candidates for the place difficult. Without the knowledge of Gen- eral Whitney he was recommended by Caleb Cushing, then a member of the president's cabinet, who had been associated with Mr. Whitney in the legislature, and the position was offered to Mr. Whitney and accepted. He took charge October 19. 1834. and hi- ap- pointment and administration proved alike satisfactory. A testimonial, consisting of an elegant silver service, was presented to him by the officers and armorers. March 3. 1860. He introduced great improvements in the buildings and grounds, machinery and guns, and brought peace, order. harmony and good feeling to the armory and community, where previously bitter controversies had raged. Al- though a staunch Democrat him-elf. he kept polities out of the management of the armory. From Springfield he went to Boston. March 1, 1860, as collector of the port by appointment of President Buchanan, and his administra- tion of the custom house was efficient and sat- isfactory, but it was cut short by the success of the Republican party in the election of 1860. President Lincoln. according to custom, ap- pointed a Republican in his piace. Ile re- sumed his business career and became con- nected with enterprises of large extent and importance. For some years and at the time of his death he was president of the Boston Water Power Company and of the Metropoli- tan Steamship Company. the out-ide line to New York City.

But his political career did not end with his retirement as collector of the port. For many years he continued an active Democratic lead- er in the state. He had been Democratic can- didate for state senator in 1849 and for elect- or-at-large in 1852. In 1856 he was a dele- gate to the Democratic national convention that nominated Buchanan in 1860 : he was del- egate-at-large to the Democratic national con- vention at Charleston, and in the division that followed he supported Breckinridge. In 1872 he represented the First Norfolk district in the state senate : in 18-4 he was chairman of the Democratic state convention that nominat- ed Charles Francis Adams for governor, and of the convention in Faneed! Halt in 1878 where Josiah G. Abbott was nominated for governor in opposition to General Benjamin F. Butler, who was nominated is a faction of the Democratic party in a convention at Worcester. On that occasion he made an able and powerful speech that attracted much attention. He died suddenly, October 24. 1878, having until the hour of his death en-

joyed excellent health. "In all the active and busy walks of life," writes one who knew him well, "as well as in the quiet home circle, his conduct was most exemplary. No question was ever raised, no doubt was ever suggested as to his integrity and honor in his dealings with his fellow men, either in public or private capacity. He was temperate in all his hab- its, and the open avowed friend of temper- ance and good order, of industry and econ- omy and of all the virtues that tend most to promote the prosperity and true welfare of a community." His home, after 1860, was at the corner of Beacon and Pleasant streets, Brookline, Massachusetts.

Ile married, at Somers, Connecticut, No- vember 25, 1836, Laurinda Collins, born July 6, 18to (see Collins). Children : 1. Mary A., born September 16, 1837; unmarried, resides in Brookline. 2. Henry Melville, born Octo- ber 22. 1839: educated in public schools and Williston Seminary : clerk in his father's store and in the Conway Bank and Bank of Redemp- tion. Boston : clerk in the naval agent's office ; engaged in shipping business in New York City, and in 1866 became Boston agent of the Metropolitan Steamship Company, of which he gained control and became president in 1879: successful operator in real estate in Brookline and Boston; prominent factor in consolidating the street railroads of Boston and forming the West End Street Railway Company. which developed into the present Boston elevated system: president of the Never-slip Horseshoe Company, the Glouces- ter Steamship Company. the Asbestos Wood Company, King's Asbestos Mines. the Ameri- can Asbestos Company, director of the Boston & Maine Railroad Company and of the Amer- ican Express Company: former president of the Boston Chamber of Commerce : member of the Algonquin and Exchange Clubs; former chairman of the park commission of Boston: for years one of the foremost Democrats of Massachusetts, candidate for lieutenant-gov- ernor and in 1907 for governor: married. in Brookline, October 3. 18;8. Margaret Foster Green, born December. 1856. daughter of Ad- miral Green. U. S. N., children: Ruth Bow- man, born December 1. 1870: Elinor Green, January 18. 18St: Laura Collins, June 20. 1882: James Scolly. June 20, 1886: Margaret. April, 1891. 3. Hon. William Collins, born July 5. IS41 : graduate of Yale College, 1850: studied law at Harvard, and became a suc- cessful and prominent lawyer in New York City. in partnership with Henry F. Dimock, his brother-in-law : active in the campaign that resulted in Governor Tilden's election : became corporation counsel of the city of New York ;

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prominent in Democratic national politics, and was appointed Secretary of the Navy by Pres- ident Cleveland, and is generally credited with laying wisely the foundation of the modern steel navy; died February 5, 1893; married - Flora, daughter of United States Senator Henry B. Payne, a distinguished capitalist. 4. Susan C., born March 27, 1845 : married Henry Farnum Dimock ( see Dimock ).

(III) Joseph Wilcox, son of

WILCOX Obadiah Wilcox (q.v.), was born in East Guilford, after- wards Madison, Connecticut. in 1694, died July 15, 1,70. He married. 1,22, Hannah Goodale, of Long Island. Children. born in Madison : Timothy. May 27. 1724: Joseph, mentioned below : Elizabeth. September 17, 1728; Jehiel. June 12, 1731 : Hannah, Septem- ber 15. 1733. ( The family name also appears as Wilcoxon in early generations.)

(IV) Josephi (2). son of Joseph (1) Wil- cox, was born in East Guilford. May 27, 1726, died April 2. 1808. He married (first ) : September 17. 1754. Sarah, born February 10, 1729, died September 8. 1782, daughter of James Munger: (second ) 1784. Prudence Dudley, born 1742. died April 15. 1804. Chil- dren, born in East Guilford: Mabel, May 25, 1756; Abel. 1760: Joseph, mentioned be- low; Sarah. June 14. 1773, died November 27, 1863.

(V) Joseph (3). son of Joseph (2) Wil- cox, was born in East Guilford, 1763. died November 2. 1826. He married. 1783. Olive. born 1757, died November 9. 1835. daughter of Abraham and Mary ( Bishop) Doud. Her father. Abraham Doud. born ITIS. died 1801, was son of Abraham Doud. born 1601, died 1756, and Jane Doud. his cousin. born 1682. died 1748. daughter of John Doud. born 1650, died 1713, who married Sarah Tallman, in 1679. Abraham Doud Sr. was the son of Thomas Donde, who died in 1713. married. 1678. Ruth Johnson. who died in 1713. Tho- mas Doude was the son of Henry Doude of Guilford, county Surrey. England, who came to this country in 1639 in company with Rev. Henry Whitfield, and settled in Guilford. Connecticut. on land still owned by his de- scendants. Children of Joseph Wilcox, born in East Guilford: Olive. died December. 1864; Prudence. born July 15. 1784: Anna. 1786: Abel. February 12. 1;88; Zenas. men- tioned below : Roxanna. 1800.

(VI) Deacon Zenas Wilcox. son of Joseph (3) Wilcox. was born October 20. 1701. in East Guilford. died March 14. 1873. He was a deacon in the First Congregational Church. He married ( first) September 15. 1820. Betsy,

born 1798, died April 21, 1822. daughter of Pitman Wheaton. Married (second) Novem- ber 18, 1824, Lovisa, born January 5, 1802. died May 2, ISTS, daughter of John Meigs (see Meigs VII). Children. born in . Madi- son : Son, December 7, 1825, died same day ; Betsy Wheaton, March 20. 1827. died Decem- ber 7, 1906; Vincent Meigs, mentioned be- low ; Lucy Maria, June 8. 1830, died February II, 1906; Charles Morrison, August 20. 1832, died January 3, 1899.

(VII) Colonel Vincent Meigs Wilcox, son of Deacon Zenas Wilcox. was born in Madi- son October 17, 1828, died in New York City, May 9, 1896. He served in the civil war as colonel of the One Hundred and Thirty-second Regiment Pennsylvania Volun- teers. He was president of the corporation of E. & H. T. Anthony & Company ; an elder of Phillips Presbyterian Church: a comrade of Lafayette Post, No. 140. Grand Army of the Republic, department of New York ; com- panion of the New York Commandery. Mili- tary Order of the Loval Legion of the United States; member of the Society of the Army of the Potomac, and of his Regimental As- sociation. He married (first) Tune 17. 1855. Catherine Millicent. horn June 13. 1832. died April 1. 1860, daughter of Dr. Reynold Webb. of Madison ( see Webb). He married (sec- ond) November 27. 1866. Martha Fannie. born August ES. 1839. died March 20. 1873. daughter of George Dowd. of Madison. He married (third) November 17. 1875. Eliza- beth Bogert. born September 27, 1841, daugh- ter of Harmon K. Wells. of New York City. Children of first wife, born in Madison: Rey- nold Webb, mentioned below : Kate Elizabeth. born March 7. 1858. died October 7, 1258. Child of second wife: Son. born March 20. 18;3. died same day. Child of third wife: Francis Wells, born August 5. 1882.

(VIII) Dr. Reynold Webb Wilcox, son of Colonel Vincent Meigs Wilcox, was born in Madison. March 20. 1856. He attended the public schools of his native town and eu- tered Yale College, from which he was grad- uated in the class of 18-8 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He pursued a post- graduate course at Hobart College and ic- ceived the degree of Master of Arts there in 1881. He studied his profession at Harvard Medical School and graduated with the de- gree of Doctor of Medicine in 1881. He re- ceived the honorary degree of Doctor of laws from Maryville College in 1802. He studied in the hospitals of Vienna. Heidelberg. Paris and Edinburgh in 1881-82. His life has been devoted to study, research. teaching and hos- pital practice. He served as house officer

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of the House of the Good Samaritan, Boston. of the Children's Hospital, Boston ; and of the Woman's Hospital, New York. He was pro- fessor of medicine at the New York Post- Graduate Medical School and Hospital from 1890 to 1908: was assistant visiting physician to Bellevue Hospital of New York City from 1890 to 1895, has been physician to St. Mark's Hospital, New York, since 1895, and since 1903 consulting physician to the Nassau Hos- pital. He was surgeon-general of the Sons of Veterans of the United States in 1892-93. surgeon of the Society of Colonial Wars in 1905, and surgeon of the Society of American Wars since 1910. Ile is the author of "A System of Case Records" ( 1887) : "Madison. her Soldiers" ( 1890) : "Materia Medica" and "Pharmacology and Therapeutics." of which seven editions of each have been issued since 1892; "The Descendants of William Wilcox- son, Vineent Meigs and Richard Webb" (1893) : "Manual of Fever Nursing" (two editions since 1904) ; "Practical Medicine" (three editions since 1907) ; and a contribu- tor to Gould's "Year Book of Medicine," and of some four hundred medical and his- torical papers, published in the American Journal of Medical Science, of which he was the therapeutic editor from 1891 to 1908, also in .Imerican Medicine, the Medical Notes, New York Medical Journal and other periodicals. He was a member of the revision commission of United States Phar- macy. 1900-10. of which he was also vice- chairman, and vice-president of the conven- tion. He is a member of the American Thera- peutic Society, of which he was president. 1901-02, and chairman of the council since 1902: a fellow of the American Academy of Medicine, of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and of the Harvard Medical Society. of which he has been presi- dent. He is vice-president of the Society of Medical Jurisprudence, the Pennsylvania S - ciety of the War of 1812. and vice-president general in the General Society, and an officer of several of the local societies. He is a member of the Medical Association of the Greater City of New York, of which he has been president since 1000. the association of Military Surgeons, the Harvard Medical Al- umni Association. the New York Society of Colonial Wars. the New York Commandery of the American Wars, the New York Society Sons of the Revolution, the Military Order of the Loval Legion, and of the Metropolitan Club and of the Army and Navy Club. of New York. Dr. Wilcox is an Episcopalian in religion and an independent in politics and is not married.

(The Webb Line).

(1) Richard Webb, the immigrant ances- tor, came from Dorsetshire, England. t) Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1626, thence to Boston, where he was made a freeman in 1632. In 1635 he removed to Hartford. Con- necticut. He settled in Norwalk, Connecticut, in 1650, and removed subsequently to Stam- ford, Connecticut, in 1655. He died there January 1, 1676. He was a deputy in 1655. He married Elizabeth, sister of John Greg- ory, died January 24. 1680. Children: Jo- seph, died 1685: Richard, born 1623, died March 15, 1656: Caleb, died May 24, 1704; Mary, died September 18. 1706: Jolin, died May 19, 1670: Joshua, born September 15, 1660: Samuel, mentioned below; Sarah, mar- ried John Marshall.

(II) Samuel, son of Richard Webb, was born March 30, 1662, and married Hannah died October 7. 1729. Children : Waitstill. born January 6. 1601: Samuel, mentioned below : Mercy. born April 11, 1603; Charles, March 12, 1007: Nathaniel, Novem- ber 6. 1700: Mary. January 7. 1700.

(III ) Samuel (2), son of Samuel (1) Webb, was born November 6, 1992, and died January. 1731. Ile lived in Stamford. pod married. December 8, 1720, Abigail Slason, born March 8. 1700. died 1760. Children : Abigail, born January. 1722; Samuel, men- tioned below: Elizabeth. Jannary 16. 1725; Charles, April 19. 1730, died same day.

( [V) Samuel (3), son of Samuel (2) Webb. was born November 14, 1723. and died October. 1762. He lived in Chester, Connecticut, and married. 1744. Mary Cat- lin. born 1722. died 1770. Children: Sam- uel, born 1745: Jemima: Stephen, born 1746; Mary, 1749: Ann: Esther, born March 13. 1753. died August 2, 1830; Reynold. men- tioned below: Isaac: James.

(\') Reynold. son of Samve! (3) Webb. was born October 9. 1759, and died March 20. 1834. He married. November 15. 1787. Catherine Farmele, born June 30. 1768, died July 15. 1851. He served in the war of the revolution : Private. June 2. 1777. discharged January, 1,78, Captain Martin Kitland's company. Colonel William Douglas' regiment : Sixth Connecticut Line. 1777-1781. Children : Samuel Parmele, horn October 24. 1788: Rey- nold, mentioned below : Sally, born December 4. 1792: Catherine. April 20. 1795: Isaac. January 15. 1708; Mary. April 29, 1801: Am- brose. December 0, 1803: Ann, March 6. 1806: William Jones. April 11, 18G8.

(VI) D :. Reynold Webb, son of Reynold Webb. was born January 3. 17of, and died July 1, 1856. Fle was musician in Captain

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Zachariah Clarke's company, Colonel Elisha Sill's regiment, July 5-14, 1813. He received the degree of M. D). from Yale College, 1819. He was a member of the American Medical Association. He married for his second wife. March 8, 1821, Deborah Hopson, dauglier of Sergeant Daniel and Millicent Hopson Meigs, born May 24. 1797, died December 7, 1859. Sergeant Daniel Meigs was son of Captain Jeheil Meigs ( see Meigs). Sergeant Daniel Meigs served in the revolution: Sergeant, Captain Peter Vail's company, enlisted April IO, 1781. served 8 months 20 days; ser- geant, Lexington Alarm, 1775. served 5 days. His first wife was Chloe Scranton, died May 19, 1788. Children of Dr. Reynold Webb : . Daniel Meigs, born April 6. 1822, died Janu- ary I, 1906: Catherine Millicent, born June 13, 1832, married Colonel Vincent Meigs Wil- cox (see Wilcox).

(The Meigs Line).

(I) Vincent Meigs, the immigrant ancestor, born in 1583. came from Bradford, Peverill, Dorsetshire, England, to this country, 1637, with his family, and was at New Haven. Connecticut. He settled upon the border of the present public square in Guilford. Con- necticut, in 1638, and later removed to East Guilford (now Madison). and settled in Hammonasett (upon the spot owned and oc- eupied by Dr. Reynold Webb in 1856). He married, in England. Churchill. He died, December. 1658. Children: Vincent, born 1609. died December 3, 1700: John, mentioned below; Mark, born 161.4.

(II) John, son of Vincent Meigs, was born February 28, 1612. and died January 4, 1672. He married. in 1632, Tamzin Fry. of Wey- inouth. England. He was allotted land in East Guilford. March 3. 1653. and was made a freeman 1657. Children, born in East Guil- ford: Mary, 1633. died April 30, 1703: Con- currence, died October 9, 1708: Elizabeth. born 1645; Tryal, died 1690: John, mentioned below.

(III) John (2). son of John (1) Meigs. was born 1640 and died November 9. 1713. in East Guilford. He married (first) March 7. 1665, Sarah, daughter of William Wilcox- son, of Stratford. She died November 24. 1691, he married ( second) Lydia. widow of Isaac Crittenden. died December. 1720. Chil- dren, born in East Guilford: Sarah. Febru- ary 14, 1667: John. November 11, 1670: Jan- na, mentioned below : Ebenezer, September 19. 1675: Hannah, February 25. 16-8: Hes- ter November 10. 1685: Mindwell. 1682.

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