History of Fairfield County, Connecticut : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 51

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) comp. cn
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co.
Number of Pages: 1572

USA > Connecticut > Fairfield County > History of Fairfield County, Connecticut : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 51

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

"The house next to the tavern, and now known as

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DANBURY.

the Bedient place, was, until 1830, oceupied by two brothers, Darius and Jolin Starr.

"The next building stood where James Doran now lives. It was occupied by Nathaniel Wood, who was a shoemaker and had a shop in his yard.

" Just north of William H. Clark's residenee, and on his property, is a briek dwelling which was built by Fairehild Wildman, who kept a store there for many years, and it was also occupied by Warden Clark and Nelson Crane for this purpose. In 1865 it was converted into a dwelling. On its site stood a building owned by Zachariah Griswold, who occupied it about 1820 for a suspender-manufactory. It was not a successful venture, although Mr. Griswold did quite a business at one time.

"The present residence of Mr. Clark dates back from the last century. At oue time in the last decade of the eighteenth eentury a room in it was used as the office of the village paper, and the building itself was the dwelling of one of the proprietors. Mr. Clark retains a door in which are the nails that held the various prints which it was once customary to taek on the printing-office door. For many years the place belouged to Hiram Barnes, the famous stage- man, and from its gates his four-in-hands have gal- lautly trotted, to the great delight of the village youth.

"The house now occupied by Charles H. Hoyt was long the residenee of Everett Ames, grandfather of Mrs. Hoyt. At the beginning of the century it was oeeupied by Joshua Benediet, who was a saddle-man- ufacturer and made saddles in the building.

" His neighbor ou the south, and in the house now oeeupied by Charles Bigelow, was Dr. Daniel M. Car- rington. Mr. Carrington had an addition to his resi- denee in which he dispensed drugs, and whieh busi- ness gave him the title of 'Doctor.' Dr. Carrington was a prominent eitizen, aud was several times sent to the Legislature.

"In the time of which we write Town Hill Avenue had but three houses. It was not au avenue then, but simply a lane, runuiug around from Liberty Street, as it does now, and connecting with South Street. It was then commonly known as 'Niggers' Lane,' although the hill itself bore its present name. Why it was called Town Hill we do not know. Per- haps because there was no town ou it, nor any likely to be.

"One of the three houses was owned and occupied by Agur Hoyt, father-in-law of the venerable Amos Morris, He lived on the east side of the street, where I. W. Stillman's house now stands.

lives, and a part of it is, we believe, incorporated in his building.

" Near to where Turner Street now intersects Town Hill Avenue stood a building occupied by a negro named Peter Stockbridge. It is remarkable what a great matter a little fire kindleth. As near as we can get at it, the disagreeable name of the lane came from this single family of colored people. Peter was a prolific man, and he had a large family of interesting children. He was commonly known among the peo- ple of that day as Peter Goathead.

"There were no more buildings until the foot of Liberty Street was reached. There, where is now Railway Avenue, stood the extensive tannery of Starr & Sanford. Of both of these men we have already spoken. The business of the tanner, like that of the fuller, has concentrated at prominent centres since that day. Then tanneries and fulling-shops were distributed throughout the land, Danbury having sex- eral of caeh. The Starr & Sanford tannery, with its vats and bark-buildings, extended almost to where is now the railway-track.

" The only dwelling on Liberty Street then was oc- cupied by Mrs. Betsey Starr, widow of Col. Ebenezer Dibble Starr, who was a shoemaker. He died in 1816. It stood where is now Burr Rockwell's place.

WEST STREET.

" North Side .- The first house was the dwelling of Elijah Gregory, where L. S. Benedict now lives. He was a blacksmith, and had his shop in one corner of the yard. Mr. Gregory was a somewhat prominent man, and was sent to the Legislature. The house was a large frame building. It now stands on George Street, where it has beeome a tenement.

" The ucxt house was that in which John Fry lived, and where now stands Dr. W. H. Rider's residence. He was a hat-manufacturer, and had his shop on the premises. Prior to his occupaney Benedict Gregory owned the premises. This was in 1812. In 1827, Fry, Gregory & Co. occupied the shop. After this Mr. Gregory went to Dayton, Ohio, where he died. Ohio, and especially Dayton, ealled away a number of people from Danbury in the first years of the present century.

"Next came the place of Ezra Gregory, grand- father of Mr. L. P. Hoyt. He lived where C. H. Reed uow does, and had a small tannery in the rear of his house. He was a shoemaker.

" Next to him was the home of Uucle Mathew Gregory, now occupied by the family of the late Ephraim Gregory; he was a farmer. "Between the two places is now New Street. This street was opened mainly through the exertions of Thomas T. Whittle- sey, and it was named after him, but the naure was subsequently changed by a borough-meeting.

" There was a low-browed house which stood across the way. It was occupied by Aunt Liz Henry. Aunt Liz was an aged maiden, of decrepit form, popularly supposed to be a witch, although no more direet evi- denee of this than mere surmise hatched from the " Nathan Gregory lived where is now the large double house owned by Mrs. Charles Benedict. Hc brain of the superstitious was ever laid at her diugy door. Her house stood where Lawrence Smith now was a fuller of cloth, and the buildings used for 14

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HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT.

fulling stood on the premises. The manufacture of cloth in those days was strictly a domestic industry. The wool or flax (linen) was bought of the stores. The housewife spun it into threads on her spinning- wheels. It was then woven iuto cloth, and after that taken to the fuller, who dressed and colored it. The process was something similar to the making of rag carpets in a later day. There are fine linen sheets preserved in Danbury to-day which were made from the flax seventy years ago.

" Rev. Israel Ward owned the place now occupied by Uncle Ira Dibble. He was the pastor of the First Congregational Church, and lies buried in the Wooster cemetery. He died in 1812. After his death the house passed into the possession of Samuel Dibble, the father of the present occupant. He was a miller, and his first mill was on Main Street. His second and last mill stood where is now White's fur-factory, on Beaver Street. Mr. Dibble was 'always noted for taking honest toll.' In those days people got their flour principally from the mills, buying or raising the grain and giving a portion of it to the miller for grinding. Rye-flour was the staple, although corn- meal was considerably used. Benjamin Knapp, who figured as a caterer to several of Tryon's officers, was remarkably fond of Indian meal, and it was said of him that a pudding of that meal graced his dinner- table every day in the year. Wheat was not a com- mon grain then, and its flour was used principally for pie-crust and the finer grades of pastry.

" The remaining house on that side of the street was occupied by Caleb Starr, grandfather of Charles F. Starr and Mrs. F. S. Wildman. His house stands at the junction of Harmony Street with West. He was a farmer, and owned a great deal of land.

"South Side .- Col. Taylor, merchant, lived where now stands the residence of Mr. F. S. Wildman. It was a story-and-a-half house, of double pattern, and had a long sloping roof, although the roof did not run so near the ground as was common in the houses of that day. Subsequently the house passed into the possession of Seymour Wildman, uncle of Frederick. The latter tore it down in 1842, and built his present place. Before this the old house was occupied by several families. Judge Reuben Booth lived there at one time, and Miss Eunice Seeley kept a school there for young women. She subsequently moved to Ro- chester, where she died. There was no other house until that of Andrew Beers was reached. He lived where Charles Hull does now. Mr. Beers was a delver in astronomy and a prominent cultivator of weather. For several years he prepared an accept- able almanac, which had a circulation throughout the United States. Andrew Beers (Philomn) was a familiar address to many families. His almanac was the origin of the 'Middlebrooks.' A remark attributed to him and in general currency seventy years ago was the information that 'grass wouldn't start to grow until thunder shook the earth.'

" Mr. Beers lies buried in the old Episcopal church- yard, in South Street. There is the following inscrip- tion on his headstone :

"' In Memory of Andrew Beers, Esq., Born in Newtown, August 10, 1749, Died in Danbury, Sept. 20, 1824,. 75 years, 1 month. Life and the grave Two different lessons give :

Life teaches how to die, Death how to live.'

"The next house was that of Joseph Benedict, who was a tailor. His house stood where now S. A. Bar- num lives. It was moved back on George Street, where it still stands.

"Next came the dwelling of Joseph Hoyt Gregory, where Allen McDonald now lives. Mr. Gregory was a hatter, and had his factory by his house. He moved to Indiana in 1830, and there died.

" Farther on, and where now stands L. Wildman's place, lived Abial Phillips. Samuel Dibble lived there before he bought the Ward place. The house was removed years ago. Division Street was then an open road containing no dwellings.

"The last house on West Street stands there now, close to the pond. Sixty years ago it was occupied by Ezra Boughton ; it now belongs to Mr. A. M. White. Mr. Boughton was a dresser of cloth, and had his works by his home.

" The house owned and occupied by William H. Clark was once owned by Stiles Nichols, and the paper printed in the building was the Republican Farmer, which at one time was published by Mr. Nichols.

"David Wood owned the house now occupied by George B. Benjamin, Jr. Sixty years ago it was a tavern under his management. He subsequently kept the tavern where now stands the Turner House.

"Next to his place were the dwelling and hat- factory of Ezra Wildman. The house is now occu- pied by Berlin St. John. The hat-shop is a tenement. "Next was the dwelling of Miss Ann Bennett.

" Following it came the residence of Eliakim Peck, father of S. S. Peck. It still stands. Mr. Peck was a blacksmith, and his shop stood on the corner where is now the old Episcopal church tenement. He was a strong Episcopalian, a man of marked hospita- ble traits, and his shop and home were the resort of people fond of entertainment and given to discussion. In those days there were no fires in churches, and the worshipers in the Episcopal church (then on South Street) used to go to Mr. Peck's home Sundays, be- tween service, to get warm."

MAIN STREET.

"East Side .- The first building on the south of the court-house was the dwelling of Jesse Skellinger. He had a carriage-shop next to it. The place was

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DANBURY.

subsequently occupied by Jolin Rider, father of George E. Rider. The carriage-factory is gone. The residence is at present occupied by Dr. S. G. Griffin.

"Next to it was a small building owned and occu- pied as a silversmith-shop by John S. Blackman, father of F. S. Blackman. The building, in an en- larged form, is still used for this purpose, and is con- ducted by the son. The senior's warcs were of the genuine metal, without doubt, and many of the spoons he sold sixty years ago with his name upon them are now in the possession of the older families. His dwelling is now the property and home of Fred Tweedy.

"Next eame the residence of Matthew B. Whittle- sey, father of E. B. Whittlesey, and the site is now occupied by him. Mr. Whittlesey was a lawyer.

"The present dwelling of George Bates, which comes next, was the property of E. S. Sanford, the tanner, who had a shoe-shop there.

" Next eame a dwelling, whose occupant's name we do not know. It still stands.

"Capt. John Rider lived where now George St. John resides.

"Samuel Wildman and Fairchild, his son, lived in the house occupied by Samuel C. Wildman, son of the latter.

" The store and dwelling of John Dodd came next. It is now the property of Mrs. Edwin Taylor and Mrs. William H. Rider.

" Following this was the house of Epaphras W. Bull, a promising young lawyer, who went to Ohio in 1810, to grow up with the great West, and shortly after died there of a fever. The house was later owned by Curtis Clark, and is now owned by Mr. Murphy.

"Capt. James Clark owned a small dwelling next south, which is at present the property of Patriek Burke.

"Following this was the residence of Philo Cal- houn, father of the president of the Fourth National Bank in New York City.

"Next came the MeLean place, a Revolutionary house, which still stands.

" On the corner of South Street, in the yard of the house occupied by the late Charles Rider, stood, fifty or more years ago, a store kept by a man named Gris- wold. It was burned down, and was not rebuilt."

SOUTH STREET.

" South Side .- The most prominent house on the street then, because in full view of Main Street, was the residence of Daniel Taylor at the beginning of the century. Mr. Taylor was a hatter. The house was a relic of the Revolution. It is now occupied by Myron Clark, and has changed bnt little in the past century.

"Going south, the dwelling of Eliakim Benediet, farmer, came next. It still stands.

" Third was a small dwelling, which is at present occupied by Reuben Tompkins.

" Following was another small dwelling, the name of whose occupant we do not know. It belongs to the estate of E. S. Griffin, and adjoining was the home of E. S. Griffin, who recently died at an advanced age.

"West of Samuel Brunker's place was the dwelling of Comfort Hoyt, who was a farmer.

" Beyond that was incadow-land until where is now the home of Mrs. A. N. Sharp. Then stood the residence of Walter Dibble, farmer.

"On the corner of the street leading to Stephen Bates' place and Coalpit Hill road stood a house occupied by Thomas Flynn, which was torn down.

"Next came the home of Harry Taylor, which stood a short distance east of. the house occupied by his grandson, Charles Taylor. Mr. Taylor was a farmer.

" His next neighbor was Lemuel Taylor and next to him was Joel Stone, who did not appear to have any particular ocenpation, but at one time carried the mail between Danbury and New Haven.

" North Side, going west .- Capt. Ezra Dibble lived where is now the residence of Stephen Bates. He was grandfather to Miss Mary Bull. He was a large farmer, and owned nearly all the land in that neigh- borhood. He was noted for his generons help of the needy.

" There was no other house until the place of Amos Hoyt was reached. He was a tanner and shoemaker and a deacon. The widow of his grandson, E. C. Hoyt, now occupies the place.

"The present home of Ira. Morse was then occu- pied by Capt. Peter Starr, grandfather of Mrs. Morse. He was a blacksmith and a prominent citizen of that day.

"East of Capt. Starr's place was the residence (since removed) of Daniel Frost.

"The old Dibble house came next. It was built before the Revolution, and became famous in local history as the house where Wooster died.

"Next eame the home of Wm. Chapel. He was a cabinet-maker, and carried on a small business. His place is now the property of Mrs. Roff.

" No other building occupied the interval between his place and the old Episcopal church which stood in the west end of the present graveyard, which was its churchyard. The South Centre District school stood close by, as at present.

"Deer Hill Avenue was a lane then. It was not one-half the width it is now, and the most travel was done by farm-teams and cattle. The only house in its entire length was occupied by Munson Gregory. It stood where E. A. Honsman now lives, and was torn down some years ago. Rev. William Andrews lived here during his pastorate of the First Church.

"Wooster Strect was not considered a street, but a road. It had no house until that of Eli Jarvis was reached. It still stands, and is owned by George E. Rider. Nearly opposite lived Eli Wildman, a farmer. The place is now owned by Wilson Small.

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HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT.

"Lovers' Lane contained one house,-a small one. It stood near to where is now Beach Wilson's place. Lovers' Lane was a popular name for this road many years ago, and everybody in Danbury knew of it. As late as twenty years ago a good part of it was shaded by overhanging branches. It is not now a walk for the sentimental, and perhaps not more than half of our citizens know where it is.

"The house now owned by Mrs. B. Crofut, on the Mountainville Road, was in that day occupied by Benj. Griffin.

"There were but three houses on White Street. White Street runs through a section called Barren Plain. It took this title from its sandy soil, which was not fit to cultivate. The bridge over the Still River, although generally known as the White Street Bridge, is yet called by many, especially older citi- zens, 'Bar'n Plain Bridge.'

"There were no dwellings on the north side of the street, unless we count the place of Mr. Knapp, cor- ner of Main Street. On the south side the first house was a small dwelling, owned by Abel B. Gregory, who was a farmer. It is now occupied by Michael Zieg- ler, and stands on the corner of Canal Street.

" Next came the large house of Noah Knapp, son of Benjamin Knapp. It is supposed to have been built on the close of the war, if not before it. Noah was a farmer. The place is now the property of Jo- seph Bell.

" There was no other dwelling on the road until where is now Nursery Avenue. A large dwelling, the property of Zalmon Wildman, father of Fred- erick S., stood there."

ELM STREET.

" At the east end of this street, on the north side, the first house was the dwelling of Zelotes Robinson. He was a butcher, and began the peddling business with a wheelbarrow. He was among the first peddlers of meat in Danbury. Alvin Hurd also lived there. He was a hat-manufacturer. The house stood where is now Darius Stevens' place. Mr. Hurd's factory stood on the river, where Conductor A. Pulling lives.

"On the corner of River Street was the next house. It was occupied by Dorastus Green, a laborer.

"On the south side there were but two buildings. One of them was the dwelling of Rory Starr, father of George Starr, the present occupant. The other was his shop, and is now Daniel Starr's box-shop. Mr. Starr was a builder, and a very extensive one, too. He did most of the building in those days, when houses with their gable-end to the street began to make their appearance here. Many of our older substantial residences were constructed by Mr. Starr, the most conspicuous being the residence of Mr. F. S. Wildman, which we believe was the last he put up. Mr. Starr was elected to the Legislature, serving in both the House and the Senate. He was a Metho- dist, and an active member of the local church.

"That portion of Elm Street which runs over Rabbit Hill contained but four houses. These were small, and it is not known who occupied them. Two of them were tenements, belonging to Col. Russel White. One of them is now occupied by John and Charles Meeder. Another stood where F. McCready lives, and the other is G. S. Disbrow's.

" In one of these houses lived a man who was noted in the village as shiftless and improvident. He was a wagoner by profession, but scarcely by practice. His wife was entirely opposite in nature. She was both industrious and frugal, and, like such people, had an ambition. Hers was to have a home of her own, or a homestead, as she termed it. Her want was frequently, if not daily, presented to her hus- band. Finally, becoming impatient with her de- mand, he told her one day,-

"'My dear, I would get you a homestead in a minute if I had anywhere to put it.'

" This covered the subject completely, and the poor woman never again put in her petition for a home- stead.

" Rabbit Hill was thus called because its gravel pits and clumps of brush were the home of that animal.

"Gallows Hill is the mass of rock at the head of the street, near the pond."

RIVER STREET.

" The classical name of River Street, in the early days of the town's history, was Pumpkin Ground. The hill which skirts its west side was in spots de- voted to the culture of that plain-looking but excel- lent vegetable.

" River Street was a mere lane, and ran to the east of its present location. Dorastus Green's house, which stood on the corner of Elm, had a well within eight feet of the front door. The present roadway now covers the well. Rabbit Hill was so steep in that day that a half-cord of wood was about all a team could haul up it. Mr. Green's house sat perched upon a high bank. The street was opened by Col. Russel White for the convenience of his factory busi- ness. A good part of the hill on the west side be- longed to Rory Starr. The house now occupied by the venerable widow of Monmouth Lyon stood there then.

" Richard Lovelace, who was a miller, lived oppo- site S. C. Holly & Co.'s factory. The house still stands.

"Next to him lived Wm. Earle. His place also remains.

" There were but two more houses, both of them opposite E. S. Davis' factory. One of them was occupied by Jonathan Leggett, a fur-cutter. The other was the dwelling of Sergt. Joseph Moore. Both yet remain.

" At the farther end of the street, near White's factories, lived Anthony Buxton."

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BEAVER STREET.

" There were but two houses on this street (which is popularly known as Rose Hill). One of these was occupied by Ephraim Benedict, and is now owned by his granddaughter, Mrs. E. Polley.

"Lower down the hill lived Samuel Curtis. His house has been gone for years. He was for a long time sexton of the First Church, and was known to the young and old of his day as simply 'Sam.'"

NORTH STREET.

" There were but two houses on North Street sev- enty years ago. One of these stood where now lives Mrs. Patience Stratton. It was the property of Ezra Barnum, a farmer. The second house was a small building, since removed, which stood on Mrs. Bene- diet's lot.

"At a later day, fifty years ago or thereabouts, there was a hat-factory on the street. It stood near the bridge, on the north side."

FRANKLIN STREET.

" There was but one house on the north side of this now pretty well built-up street. This was the dwell- ing of Stephen Gregory, and is now occupied by Harris L. Crofut.

" On the south side the first house was that now owned by Mrs. Betsy Rosebaum, on the corner of Rose Street. In the rear stood the Methodist meet- ing-house of that day.

" George Lovelace lived next, where George W. Wilson now lives.

" The third and last house on that side was occupied by Darius Barnum. It stood nearly opposite Mr. E. S. Davis' place."

CHAPTER XIX.

DANBURY (Continued).

Internal Improvements-Canal from Danbury to Westport-The Fair- field Railroad Company-New York to Albany via Danbury-Interest- ing Figures-The Danbury and Norwalk Railroad-The Ridgefield Branch-Miscellaneous.

" As the town grew and its business grew the demand for a better means of transportation began to make itself felt. There are in every age and in every com- munity, fortunately, progressive spirits who are al- ways restless, because they are always looking for something better than what is already possessed. Danbury was blessed with this element, and those who composed it chafed under the limitations of the stage-coach and the slow-plodding road-wagons.

"In 1825, when the Erie Canal projeet was being agitated, the public attention throughout the country was directed to the subject of inside water-eommuni- cation, and the agitation reached Danbury, being drawn here by the progressive spirits of that day. It was proposed to run a canal from Danbury to the tide-

water. The point on the Sound was Westport. A survey was even made, the line following near to that of the present railroad as far down as Redding, where it crossed over to the Saugatuck Valley and thence to Westport. It was proposed to use Neversink Pond as a feeder to the canal. The levels taken showed Main Street at the Wooster House to be three hundred and seventy-five feet above tide-water, and Neversink to be twenty feet above Main Street. Much was said and done about the canal project, but it was finally deemed to be inexpedient because of the heavy lock- ing that would be necessary, and was abandoned.

"The next project under consideration was a rail- road. This agitation began in 1835,-the same year of the survey of the Hartford and New Haven road,- and in that year the charter was obtained from the Legislature. The charter was granted to 'Ira Greg- ory, Russell Hoyt, Eli T. Hoyt, Edgar S. Tweedy, David M. Benedict, Ephraim Gregory, Curtis Clark, Frederick S. Wildman, Elias S. Sanford, George W. Ives, with such other persons as shall associate with them for that purpose.' These were to be incorpor- ated as 'The Fairfield County Railroad Company,' with a capital stock amounting to two hundred thou- sand dollars, or three hundred thousand dollars if necessary, and the following-named were authorized to receive subscriptions : Russell Hoyt, Jarvis Brush, Aaron Seeley, Ephraim Gregory, Starr Nichols, George Clapp, Starr Ferry, Isaac H. Secley, Nathaniel H. Wildman, William J. Street, and Henry Sherwood. The road was authorized to run from Danbury by the most direct and feasible route to some suitable point at tide-water in either the town of Fairfield or the town of Norwalk.

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History of Fairfield County, Connecticut : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 51

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) comp. cn Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co. Number of Pages: 1572

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) comp. cn
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co.
Number of Pages: 1572