USA > Connecticut > Illustrated popular biography of Connecticut > Part 39
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THOMAS A. LAKE, ROCKVILLE: Secretary and Treasurer Hartford Lumber Company.
Thomas A. Lake is a native of Woodstock in this state, where he was born June 3, 1848. His early years were spent in acquiring the rudiments of an education in the district schools of his native town. When the war of the re- bellion broke out his patriotic ardor overcame his educational inclina- tions, and at the age of fourteen he ran away from home and joined the Eighteenth Connecticut regiment in Baltimore, on its way to the front, in the capacity of waiter for the company officers of T. A. LAKE. company G. He remained with the regiment through its trying experiences up to the time of the battle of Winchester, Va., in June, 1863, when he was captured with others by the Confederate forces June 15. During the excite- ment after the surrender he made his escape into the swamp just beyond the lines, and six days later, after a wearisome and hazardous tramp, came out at a point over the Pennsylvania border. He received from Major Matthewson a certificate stat- ing that he was not an enlisted man, and eom- menced his homeward journey without means for obtaining transportation. He was put off the trains, which he boarded as a deadhead, at nearly every station between Harrisburg, Pa., and Putnam, Conn., the latter place being his objective point by railroad and but a few miles from his home. After the regiment was " exchanged," the same autumn, he returned to it and formally enlisted, and served until the close of the war. As soon as possible thereafter he engaged in business and continued with varying fortunes in Woonsocket, R. I., Worces-
ter, Mass., and for a time in Stromsburg, Neb. He married in Woodstock, Miss Martha A. Cocking, by whom he has three children. During his resi- dence in Woodstock he represented that town for a single term in the legislature in 1885. He removed to Rockville in 1887, and at various times has held the positions of state auditor, member of the state board of agriculture, and secretary of the Tolland County Agricultural Society, the last two of which positions he still holds. His business is that of a lumber merchant, being secretary and treasurer of . the Hartford Lumber Company of Hartford, and proprietor of the Lumber Yard at Rockville. His neglect to avail himself in his youth of the facilities offered for acquiring a liberal education has led him to provide carefully for the thorough education of his children. His son is in Harvard College, the elder daughter is at Wellesley College and the younger is about to enter Mount Holyoke semi- nary. Mr. Lake is in the prime of life, a thor- oughly energetic man, and devoting earnest atten- tion to his business, in which he has accomplished most satisfactory results. It is his intention to associate his son with him in it as soon as the young man shall graduate from college.
P. H. WOODWARD, HARTFORD).
P. Henry Woodward, eldest son of Ashbel Wood- ward, M.D., and Emeline (Bicknell) Woodward, was born in Franklin, Conn., March 19, IS33. His father, a distinguished physician, was perhaps even better known as an antiquarian and genealo- gist in matters pertaining to New England. The son inherited thoughtful and studious habits from a long line of clerical an- cestors; a sturdy integ- rity from Puritan stock on both sides; and a natural cheerfulness of disposi- tion, which has been of P. H. WOODWARD. unusual service to him in his years of dealing with his fellow-men. Begin- ning as do most youthis of New England whose parents have the pecuniary ability, he graduated from Vale College in 1855, and afterward studied law at Harvard. Although he never engaged in active practice, his legal training sharpened and polished a mind naturally subtle and acute, and probably did much to fit him for those peculiar duties which in later life devolved upon him. Mr. Woodward's tastes are literary and schol- arly, and the field of journalism was one espe- cially congenial. From 1862 to 1865 he was the editor of the Hartford Courant, remaining in
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that position till the end of the war. At that time nothing in the disorganized south stood more in need of reconstruction than the post-office service; and, during Johnson's administration, Mr. Wood- ward, as special agent of the post-office depart- ment, bent all his faculties to the reorganiza- tion of that most important branch. He estab- lished, on suitable lines, railway post-offices for the distribution of through mails; and, at the end of four years, the South had a far more complete and perfect mail service than ever before. He was then employed for several years largely in impor- ant cases where it was the object of the govern- ment to discover, not to suppress or ignore, facts. In 1873 he was called from the south to New York city to conduct the investigations which led in the post-office to the overthrow of the old regime, and the incoming of Thomas L. James, afterward post- master-general. In 1874 he was made chief of the corps of post-office inspectors, which he at once re- organized on a plan that has never since been materially modified, and which he raised by sift- ings and promotions for merit, to such a state of efficiency that other departments of the govern- ment repeatedly called upon him for aid in import- ant cases. Relieved from service in the closing days of Grant's second administration, at the time Bristow and Jewell left the cabinet, one of the early acts of the Garfield administration was by telegraph to invite him to return to conduct the investigation of the Star Route robberies. The public have not forgotten the gigantic scale on which those frauds were planned and executed, or the overwhelming evidence of the guilt of cer- tain officials and contractors. It was due to Mr. Woodward's trained mind, and his capacity for managing his subordinates, that these villainies were unearthed. He had charge of collecting and arranging the evidence, and, in his testimony be- fore the congressional investigating committee, Attorney-General Brewster, the prosecuting attor- ney for the government, declared in the most em- phatic way, that it would have been impossible to properly prepare the cases without the invaluable aid of Mr. Woodward. The words of Mr. Brewster, as given on page 885 of the printed report, will bear quoting: " When I first went into the case," says General Brewster, " I did not know Mr. Woodward. He was a stranger to me. After the case went on he was necessarily detailed and handed over to the department of justice. He was at the elbow of Mr. Bliss all the while, and at Mr. Merrick's elbow whenever he was needed. I do not think there was a fact in the case they did not acquire from him. When I prepared the short argument I made in the first case-the investigation and preparation -in- dicated by this file of notes I have shown you - when I prepared that argument, I consulted a
great deal with Mr. Woodward. I had learned his value. I think without Mr. Woodward these cases never could have been instituted. I think he was, to use one word, invaluable. He is a man of re- markable intelligence; he is a man of great purity of character; he is an educated gentleman. In all my life, in an experience of over forty-six years of legal practice, I never have met with a man who could assist a lawyer better than Mr. Woodward. He understood his subject thoroughly. He under- stood all the bearings and relations of each point he submitted, and he would instruct himself in the law bearing upon it, by conference with counsel. He was the most valuable assistant I ever had, and I believe to him mainly is owing the fine prepara- tion that was made in these cases, the complete and thorough preparation. The government, I think, is in debt to Mr. Woodward for his intelligence, in- dustry, and integrity. I have learned to admire and respect him very much." Conviction in the District of Columbia was impossible, but morally the case was an overwhelming success.
With the close of the Star Route cases. ended Mr. Woodward's connection with the government. Since that time he has resided with his family in Hartford. His keen intellect is never weary in exploring some fresh domain, whether of finance, science, or literature. His antiquarian bent has caused him to take delight in genealogical pursuits, and he has prepared various monographs on historical and other subjects. Some of the experiences in the secret service of him- self and others he embodied in a book called " Guarding the Mails," which contains many spirited and stirring sketches of western and southern life. Much of his literary work has been journalistic, and necessarily fugitive; but it is all distinguished by that peculiar clarity and luminos- ity of style which betokens definiteness of thought. In 1888 Mr. Woodward was elected secretary of the Hartford board of trade, and the following year prepared a handbook of the city, which is a model of its kind. The duties of his position do not deter him, as they have not deterred him for many years, from assisting with his legal, business, and finan- cial knowledge the many friends who are contin- ually applying to him for advice. Such is the reflex action on character of a life of altruism and true beneficence, that once more is exemplified the truth of Shakespeare's words, " It blesseth him that gives and him that takes."
Mr. Woodward married, September 11, 1867, Mary, daughter of Charles Smith of South Wind- ham, Conn., one of the successful leaders in the great industrial movement which began about 1820, and to which Connecticut is largely indebted for her prosperity and wealth. He has two children, a daughter and a son.
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BIOGRAPHY OF CONNECTICUT.
ISRAEL B. WOODWARD, THOMASTON: Presi- dent Thomaston Savings Bank.
The subject of this sketch was born at Water- town, March 12, 1814, and received a common school and academic education. With the excep- tion of two years in the west his life has been spent in his native town and at Thomaston. He has been married twice. There is one child living. Mr. Woodward has held the offices of justice of the peace, grand juror, selectman, assessor, and member of the board of relief, represented Thom- aston in the legislature in the session of 1879, I. B. WOODWARD. and now holds the office of town agent. He is a member of the Congre- gational church, and is a republican in politics. Mr. Woodward is living in retirement, having with- drawn from active business pursuits. He was for- merly a leather manufacturer. Years ago he was connected with the state militia. He has been honored with public trust in many ways, and is highly esteemed as a citizen of the town where the most of his life has been spent.
RICHARD JORDAN GATLING, HARTFORD : President Gatling Gun Company.
R. J. Gatling, whose name is perhaps more widely known than that of any other living Ameri- ean in connection with modern war enginery, as the inventor of the cele- brated revolving battery gun which bears his name, was born in Hertford county, North Carolina, September 12, 1818. His father was a substantial, industrious farmer, who taught his children the necessity of labor and economy as the surest road to fortune. He re- ceived his primary educa- tion at such schools as were near his home, and R. J. GATLING. when nineteen years of age taught school for a short time. At twenty he engaged in merchandis- ing for several years, and during this time he in- vented the propelling wheel now used in ocean steamers, but was preceded by Ericsson a few weeks in application for a patent. In 1844 he
moved to St. Louis, Mo., and having invented a seed-sowing machine for sowing wheat and other small grains, engaged extensively for some time in their manufacture and sale. He was the first man to introduce this class of farm implements into the northwestern states. While engaged in this business, and during a trip by water from Cincinnati to Pittsburg, he was taken with small-pox and came very near dying- the vessel on which he was making the trip being frozen up in the ice for thirteen days, and having no physician on board. This experience induced him to take up the study of medicine, which he did for several years, attending courses of lectures at various colleges, acquiring a thorough knowledge of the medical science, and the title of "doctor," although he had no intention of undertaking medi- cal practice. In 1849 he invented a method of transmitting power from one locality to another, through the medium of compressed air in pipes ; other inventions following, previous to 1861, about which latter date, early in the war of the rebellion, he conceived the idea of making a machine gun which would, to a great extent, supersede the necessity of large armies. He made his first revolving battery gun in the city of Indianapolis, Ind., and in the spring of 1862 he fired it, in its then imperfect state, at the rate of over three hundred shots per minute, in the presence of many army officers and citizens. In the fall of the same year he had a battery of six of his guns made in Cincinnati, Ohio, and later twelve more - which were afterwards used by General Butler in repelling rebel attacks near Richmond, Va. In 1865 he made additional improvements in the weapon. Thorough tests of it were made at the Frankfort Arsenal in Philadelphia, and subsequently at Washington and Fortress Monroe, which proved so satisfactory as to induce Secretary Stanton and General Dyer, chief of ordnance, to adopt the arm into the service ; and in 1866 an order was given for one hundred of the guns of various calibres. They were made at Colt's Armory in Hartford, and delivered in 1867. Since their adoption by the United States Government, Russia, Turkey, Hungary, Egypt, and England have adopted the Gatling gun, which are still made by the Gatling Gun Company at the Armory Build- ing of the Colt's Patent Fire Arms Manufacturing Company in Hartford, which city Dr. Gatling has for many years made his home. The inventor of this pioneer in the line of revolving battery guns has devoted twenty-five years of his life to the continual improvement and final perfection of his invention. and has spent considerable time abroad testing his gun before nearly all the erowned heads of Europe. His name and fame as the inventor of something absolutely unique and revolutionary in modern
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warfare will be preserved and perpetuated in the world's history.
Dr. Gatling was married in 1854 to Miss Sanders, the youngest daughter of Dr. John H. Sanders, a prominent practitioner of medicine in Indianapolis, Indiana. He has one daughter and two sons. He is a member of the Hartford Club, and a republican in politics- being president of the "Harrison Veterans of 1840," an organization existing in Hartford, whose membership is indicated by its name. He is also president of the American Association of Inventors and Manufacturers of the United States.
MICHAEL F. SKELLY, WOODBURY.
Mr. Skelly is a native of Ireland; was born Sep- tember 6, 1837, in the village of Carrobeg Skelly, parish of Cashel, Longford county. Came to this V country in 1853, and to Woodbury in 1854, where he found a home in the family of the late Joseph F. Walker, and from him learned the blacksmith trade. After six years in the service of Mr. Walker he established a business of his own, which he per- sonally conducted in the same locality for thirty- one consecutive years. M. F. SKELLY. He received some educa- tion in the national school in Ireland, and in the common school in Woodbury. Since his residence in Woodbury he has for ten years occupied the office of registrar of voters; was for three years a grand juror; is now and has been for twelve years a justice of the peace; for the last eight years has acted as a trial justice; for eighteen years a member of the democratic town committee; is a member of the twentieth district senatorial committee, and for several years its chairman. He was one of the corporators of the Woodbury Sav- ings Bank, has been one of the directors since its organization, and is now a loan agent for the bank. He is a member of the Catholic Total Abstinence Union of Connecticut, and was for three years treasurer of that organization. Is a member of the National Catholic Total Abstinence Union of Amer- ica, and was a delegate to the national convention held at New Haven, August, 1885. He hates all prevalent vices of the day, but especially the vice of intemperance. He is a member of the board of school visitors, and takes great interest in the edu- cation of the youth of his adopted town. He takes a lively, active part in all that concerns the welfare of his town. Although Mr. Skelly has always been a fearless and outspoken democrat, and was elected
to the legislature as the candidate of that party in 1886, he has the satisfaction of knowing that his election was aided by his fellow-citizens and neigh- bors, regardless of party lines; and during his leg- islative experience he did not forget that he was in the house the representative of the citizens of Wood- bury, and not of any party in the exclusive and of- fensive sense. During the session he proved him- self to be an energetic, faithful, and influential member, never absent from his duties, and giving satisfaction to his constituency of all parties. He was a candidate for state senator in the fall of 1888, and now occupies the position of assistant superin- tendent of the state capitol and grounds at Hart- ford, to which he was appointed the present year. Mr. Skelly furnishes an excellent example of what a boy, born abroad and coming to this country without money or acquaintances, can do, by the exercise of the virtues of industry, temperance, and a laudable ambition, under the benign influence of our free institutions. He has furnished an exam- ple worthy of emulation by the youth of this coun- try, and especially by those of his own nationality.
EDWARD S. WHITE, HARTFORD: Attorney-at- Law.
Judge Edward S. White, of the firm of Chamber- lin, White & Mills, was born in Granby, Hamp- shire county, Mass., March 12, 1848, and was edu- cated at Wilbraham acad- emy and Yale College, graduating from the uni- versity in the class of 1870. During the first year after graduation he taught in General Rus- sell's Military School in New Haven, being in charge of the classical de- partment. Hestudied law with the firm of Chamberlin & Hall in this city, and was ad- mitted to the bar in 1873. E. S. WHITE. One year afterwards he was made a member of the firm, the name being changed to Chamberlin, Hall & White. This designation was retained until the death of Mr. Hall, who was a leading lawyer, in 1877, when the name of Chamberlin & White was adopted. In 1883 a new change was effected by the admission of Hiram R. Mills, who has since re- mained in the firm. It is one of the ablest legal concerns in this locality, and has an extensive practice. Judge White has been an indefatigable worker through life, and has won an enviable posi- tion in this community. He has manifested genu- ine interest in the city's educational progress, and
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has served on the Hartford High School commit- tee, and the district committee of the Washington district. He was also a member of the High School building committee, serving in that capacity with Messrs. James G. Batterson and James L. Howard, and the Rev. Drs. George L. Walker and E. P. Parker. In 1883 he was elected associate judge of the Hartford police court, and retained the position until July, 1889. He is the secretary and treasurer of the Overman Wheel Company, and its legal adviser. Judge White is a member of the South Congregational church, and a gentle - man of the most exemplary character. He has been married twice. His first wife was Miss Alice E. Smith of Granby, Mass., the marriage occurring Aug. 13, 1874. February 11, 1883, Mrs. White's death took place in this city. The second marriage was celebrated Oct. 28, 1885, the bride being Miss S. Adelaide Moody of Belchertown, Mass. Her death also occurred in this city, the date being Feb. 13, 1890. There are three children by the first and one by the second wife. The oldest daughter, Miss Ruth Dickinson White, is a student at the Hartford High School. Both of the Judge's wives were ladies of collegiate education, being graduates of Mount Holyoke Seminary. The first graduated in 1869 and the second in 1871. Both were re- garded with the sincerest affection and esteem in this city. As a lawyer and citizen Judge White is an honored representative of the city.
ANDREW B. MYGATT, NEW MILFORD: Banker.
A. B. Mygatt, son of the late Eli Mygatt, was born in New Milford, October 31, 1820, and has always resided there. He has one son, Henry S. Mygatt, cashier of the First National Bank of New Milford, and two daughters who reside in Bridgeport. He received an academical education and prepared for college, but was unable to enter on account of trouble with his eyes. He engaged in mercantile business in 1840, at the age of twenty, and pursued it with suc- cess until 1855, when he A. B. MYGATT. retired owing to ill health. In 1878 he was chosen president of the First Na- tional Bank of New Milford, which position he still holds. He has always been a public-spirited and progressive citizen, and identified with most of the improvements and enterprises that have been undertaken for the benefit of the town. He laid out several new streets and built numerous houses,
and is still a large owner of real estate in New Mil- ford.
In politics Mr. Mygatt was originally a whig, casting his first presidential vote for Henry Clay in 1844. Since the formation of the republican pa. ty, he has always been one of its ardent supporters. He has been much in public life. He was a mem- ber of the state senate in 1860 and 1861, the latter year being president pro tem. of that body. In 1865 he represented New Milford in the house of representatives. From 1861 to 1864 he was state bank commissioner, and in 1865 he was appointed national bank examiner for Connecticut and Rhode Island, and served in that office with distinguished ability for twenty-two years, resigning in 1857. in the second year of President Cleveland's adminis- tration, and retiring with the cordial commenda- tions of his superior officers, though of a different political party.
Mr. Mygatt was married June 7, 1843, to Miss Caroline Canfield, daughter of Colonel Samuel Can- field.
WILLIAM N. CLEVELAND, ANDOVER: Farmer.
William Nelson Cleveland was born in the town of Bozrah, April 16, 1819, and received a district school education. He is a descendant of John Cleveland of Brooklyn, Conn., the early home of many of the family. The first wife of the subject of this sketch, Pamelia S. Standish, was of the seventh generation from Captain Miles Standish. Mr. Cleveland was first married when he reached the age of 22. The result of this union was five children, William Chaun- cey, Henry Franklin, Eliza M., Fannie F., and W. N. CLEVELAND. Hattie S. Cleveland. The two sons enlisted in the war, William uniting with the Tenth and Henry with the Eighteenth Connecticut. The latter re- turned from the field, broken in health, and died within a brief period. The remaining son is in the employ of the government at Washington, D. C. The wife of Mr. Cleveland died May 17, ISS6. His second marriage occurred March 9, 1887, thie bride being Miss Esther D. Phillips of Andover, sister of the Rev. James M. Phillips. The maiden name of Mr. Cleveland's mother was Mary Cong- don, daughter of Daniel Congdon of Warwick, R. I. She died at Preston City, March 14, 1837. Mr. Cleveland's father died at Bozrahville, April 10, 183S. Mr. Cleveland has resided in the towns of Gris- wold, Norwich, Colchester, and Windham, and is
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well known in those localities. He came to Andover, his present residence, October 6, 1841. He has spent most of his life in blacksmithing, farming, and mercantile business. He was one of the first republicans in Andover, and has held a number of town offices. He is a member of the Methodist church.
AUGUSTUS STORRS, BROOKLYN, N. Y., and MANSFIELD: A Retired New York Merchant.
Augustus Storrs, second son and second child of Royal and Eunice Freeman Storrs, was born in Mansfield, June 4, 1817. He is a lineal descendant of the sixth generation of Samuel Storrs, the first resident bearing the name of Storrs in Mansfield, and the first in the Eng- lish colonies. He came from Sutton-cum-lound, Nottinghamshire, Eng- land, to Barnstable, Mass., in 1663, and removed from there to Mansfield in 1698, and became one of its most active, respected, and influential citizens. AUGUSTUS STORRS. The Herald's College of London makes this family descendants of Philip du Storrs, companion of William the Conqueror when he entered England in 1066. Edmund Freeman, Mr. Storrs' maternal great-grandfather, was grad- uated at Harvard College in 1733, and, after teach- ing a few years in Massachusetts, moved in 1742 to Mansfield, where he became a practical farmer, and was highly esteemed as an intellectual and cultured Christian gentleman. His wife, Martha Otis, was a daughter of Hon. Nathaniel Otis of Sandwich, Mass., and first cousin of James Otis, the patriot and orator, and great-granddaughter of Rev. John Russell of Hadley, Mass., who secreted in his own house for a longtime the regicides Whalley and Goffe.
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