USA > Connecticut > New Haven County > Waterbury > The history of Waterbury, Connecticut; the original township embracing present Watertown and Plymouth, and parts of Oxford, Wolcott, Middlebury, Prospect and Naugatuck. With an appendix of biography, genealogy and statistics > Part 44
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APPENDIX.
Chauncey Jerome commenced his career in clock making at a later period, gaining his first knowledge of the business under the tuition and encouragement of Mr. Terry. He commenced some part of the clock business in Plymouth, as early as the year 1821. He afterwards removed to Bristol, where he embarked in making clocks, introducing clock-cases of different sizes, and clocks adapted to the new form of cases made. At a still later period, and according to the recol- lection of the writer, not far from the year 1837, he introduced or did much towards the introduction of the most common form of the brass clock now in vogue. The pinion leaves or cogs are made of round wire. This is a cheap way of making pinions, never before practiced, whatever may be said as to the quality and durability of the clock so made. The present form of the brass count-wheel, so divided as to allow the stop-dog to drop between the teeth, and being driven by a pin in the fly-wheel, Mr. Jerome claims as his improvement, for which he obtained letters patent.
In justice, however, it should here be stated, that certain individuals anterior to, and others soon after the period Mr. Jerome commenced business in Bristol, em- barked in this occupation, to wit : Mark Leavenworth, of Waterbury ; Samuel Terry (afterwards of Bristol) and Eli Terry, Jr., of Plymouth ; Chauncey Boardman, Ives Brewster and others of Bristol; filling the market with a great variety of clocks, of an exterior in every conceivable form, until some of those who had immedi- ately succeeded Mr. Terry were ready to abandon the business, and did so on account of the very reduced price of clocks, and the interminable credit it was then customary to give. The writer was one of this number, who had until then very little acquaintance with any other business, having been a witness to all the improvements in clocks and the machinery for making the same, from the time the shelf-clock was first introduced, in the year 1814, to the period in question, or the year 1836.
[For many years before his death, Mr. Terry was not actively engaged in busi- ness. Still, he never abandoned the work-shop. He occupied himself in making now and then a] church clock, a few watch regulators, and the like. The church clocks were made in three parts, independent or nearly so, the connection between each being such as not to be injuriously affected by the other. The time-keeping part was of the ordinary size, and moved by a separate weight. The striking part was moved by one large weight, and the dial-wheels by another, while that of the time-keeping part weighed only three or four pounds. The dial wheels, hands or pointers, moved only once in a minute. Church clocks constructed in this way were thus rendered as perfect time-keepers, and were as little affected by wind or storm, as any house-clock or watch-regulator could be. These clocks were made with compensation pendulum rods of his own design, and the es- capement after a model of his own. During these years of comparative leisure, his time was mostly spent in making this description of clocks, chiefly in reference to accuracy as time-keepers, making a variety of regulators with new forms of escapements and compensation rods. No year elapsed up to the time of his last sickness, without some new design in clock-work, specimens of which are now abundant.
[By industry and prudent management, Mr. Terry accumulated a large property. He distributed to] his family, and gave away to different objects during the latter part of his life, not less than one hundred thousand dollars, retaining at the same
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
time an amount of available property sufficient to afford him an annual income of three thousand dollars. This he regarded as sufficient for all his temporal wants. When commencing business in early life, he never once indulged the thought of accumulating one-tenth the amount.
It is unnecessary to add much in regard to clock-making, as it is prosecuted at this time. It is scarcely to be credited that half a million of shelf-clocks are now annually made in Connecticut, and places not far distant. We have reason, how- ever, to believe that this estimate is not an exaggeration.
The improvements in machinery, and the skill attained in manufacturing, gradu- ally reduced the price of clocks. Thus it is, that a brass clock which formerly cost from $38 to $80 is superseded by a more neat and convenient shelf-clock, and afforded and sold at the very low price of $5, $3 or $2. Some may suppose these clocks to be a poorer article and not as durable. This may be true of many of the clocks now manufactured ; still it is equally true, that a clock as good and durable can now be made and sold at a profit, at these low prices. What is true of the entire clock, is well illustrated by the reduction in price of several of the separate parts of the clock, as now made. Such parts as at one time cost ten, twenty, or even fifty cents, to each clock, are now manufactured for one-fourth the amount, and in some instances for less than a tithe of what they formerly cost. Spring clocks are made more extensively than they were a few years since. The springs for one clock that cost, only six or seven years ago, seventy-five cents or more, are now made and sold for eight and seven cents. It is proper to add here, that this description of springs cannot be imported, nor is the secret of manufacturing them known in foreign countries .*
Mr. Terry had not the advantages of an early education, but he was a man of strong mind and sound judgment. Though his reading did not take a wide range, he understood his business thoroughly. He was a plain, practical man, and esteemed that knowledge of most ac- count which had a direct bearing on the concerns of life, or which, in other words, bore fruit. His success in the manufacture of clocks when the business was in its infancy, and the important mechanical im- provements which he introduced, demonstrate his enterprise, his sagacity, his inventive genius. Success as the result of the skillful use of means and the powers of nature-persistant success-always proves ability. Judged by this standard, Mr. Terry was no ordinary man. He died, with a character for strict integrity, late in February, 1852. His man- ners were blunt, his ways peculiar and original, but he had the confi- dence, respect and esteem of a large circle of acquaintances.
* Extracted from a Review of Dr. Alcott's History of Clock-making, by Henry Terry, pub- lished in the Waterbury American, June 10, 1853.
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APPENDIX.
JOHN TRUMBULL, LL. D.,
The only son of Rev. John Trumbull, was born in Westbury, April 13, (old style,) 1750 .* Being of a delicate and sickly constitution, he was the favorite of his mother. She learned him to read, and also taught him all the songs, hymns, and other verses with which she was ac- quainted. He discovered an extraordinary memory for this last exercise, and even took to composing verses himself. Unknown to any body but his mother, he began the study of the Latin language, and soon made great proficiency. During all this time, however, he was a boy and liked boyish sports. Mr. Trumbull smoked and raised his own tobacco. One day, he set his son to suckering the plant. The latter filled his hat with the unsightly worms that infest the tobacco, and then persuaded his little sister that he had found a hen's nest on the scaffold in the barn, and could not get down with the eggs. "Parad- ing her below with her apron spread, he let fall the contents of his hat. She fainted. The father was soon on the spot, and exclaimed, 'now, John, you shall be whipped.' 'Father, father,' cried the excited ur- chin, 'I deserve it, but I beg you will not whip me till Madam Pritchett is gone.'"t After a course of preparatory study, under the direction of his father, the two started on a horse for Yale College, the boy, of course, behind. The latter, says the Connecticut Gazette of Sept. 24, 1757, " passed a good examination, although but little more than seven years of age ; but on account of his youth his father does not intend he shall at present continue at college." After an interval of six years spent in reading Latin, Greek and English authors, and in writing verses, he returned to New Haven, and received the degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1767. He remained as a resident graduate for three years longer, devoting his time to polite literature, and sometimes to less dignified occupations .¿ In 1771, he was appointed a tutor, which posi- tion he held two years. It was during his connection with Yale Col- lege that his acquaintance with Dwight and Humphreys commenced.
In 1772, Trumbull published the first part of " The Progress of Dull- ness ;" and in the following year, two other parts. The object of the
* His birth is not recorded in Waterbury.
t Dr. McEwen's Discourse, published in the proceedings at the Centennial Anniversary in Litchfield, 1852.
¿ " After he had graduated, at the age of sixteen, [seventeen,] being small of stature, he was sometimes seen seated in the road with other children, scraping up sand-hills with his hands."' (Dr. McEwen's Discourse.)
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
poem was the prevalent method of education, which the author cen- sured and ridiculed.
Mr. Trumbull was admitted to the bar in Connecticut, in November, 1773, and immediately went to Boston and entered the office of John Adams, afterwards President Adams. Here he studied law, and in his leisure hours wrote essays on political subjects for the gazettes. He be- came an ardent Whig; published without his name, his "Elegy on the Times ;" returned to New Haven, and commenced the practice of his profession in 1774. Here, though fully occupied as a lawyer, he found time, at the solicitation of certain members of the Continental Congress and other Whig friends, to compose and publish the first part of his most celebrated work, "McFingal," a burlesque epic poem. He de- signed it as a satire on English officials and Tories in general, and to help prepare the way for the independence of the Colonies. His business in New Haven was broken up by the war, and an invasion of the town was almost constantly apprehended. He, therefore, removed in May, 1777, to his native town, where he remained about four years. Here, he appears to have lived in the house with his father, and to have continued, to some extent, the practice of his profession. He had previously married (Nov. 1776) the daughter of Col. Leverett Hubbard of New Haven.
In 1779, he was chosen by the town one of the "inspecting com- mittee," whose special business it was to look after the Tories and all "inimical persons," to discover their plots, and to inform against them. But, at length, his health gave way, owing partly to the fatigue and exposure of attending the courts at a distance; and in June, 1781, with the hope of improving his chances of recovery, he removed to Hartford. Soon after, he finished, and in 1782, publish- ed, an edition of his McFingal, some part of it, tradition says, being written in the old Trumbull house in Watertown. He also became a member of a literary club, to which Col. Humphreys, Barlow and Dr. Lemuel Hopkins belonged, which met weekly for the discussion of in- teresting questions, political, philosophical and literary. They were called the " Hartford wits," and after the peace in 1783, published a series of essays, called " American Antiquities," pretending to be ex- tracts from an ancient poem which had been disinterred, entitled "The Arnachiad." These papers first appeared in the Hartford and New Haven gazettes, and were widely circulated. They were intended to check the progress of disorder and a sceptical philosophy, and help prepare the way for a more stable government.
In 1789, Mr. Trumbull was appointed State's attorney for the County
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APPENDIX.
of Hartford, and in 1792, represented the town of Hartford in the Legis. lature. Ilis impaired health compelled him to resign the office of State's attorney in 1795, and to retire wholly from business. A severe and dangerous course of sickness followed, in November, 1798. At length, however, he was able to resume his professional life, and in May, 1800, was elected, a second time, State representative. In the follow- ing year, he was chosen a judge of the Superior Court of the State, and in 1808, was made a judge of the Supreme Court of Errors. He re- mained in office till he was "rotated " out of it, May, 1819, a new con- stitution having been formed and a new party installed in power. In 1818, he received from Yale College the degree of LL. D.
Judge Trumbull was esteemed a good but not a very learned or profound judge. The dignity of his office did not always repress his wit or his satirical propensities. An advocate from the eastern part of the State made a very boisterous speech. After it was over, in some miscellaneous conversation, he remarked to the court that his case was a hard one, as the wind and tide were against him. "I don't know how it is with the tide, but the wind, sir, seems to be in your favor," re- plied the judge.
Judge Trumbull remained in Hartford till 1825, when he removed to Detroit, and resided for his remaining life in the family of his daughter, the wife of Hon. William Woodbridge. He died in May, 1831.
BENONI UPSON, D. D.
Ile was the eldest son of Thomas, the grandson of Thomas and the great grandson of Stephen Upson. He was born in the part of Water- bury since called Wolcott, Feb. 14, 1750 ; was graduated at Yale Col- lege in 1776, and became the settled minister of Kensington. In 1809, he was made a Fellow of Yale College, became a member of the Pru- dential Committee, and in 1817 received the degree of D. D. His death took place Nov. 13, 1826.
Dr. Upson was considered as a prudent, safe man, without brilliancy. He was known for his urbanity and hospitality.
STEPHEN UPSON
Was the only son and child (except one that died in early infancy) of Capt. Benjamin Upson. He was the grandson of Benjamin, the great grandson of Stephen and the great, great grandson of Stephen Upson, the original planter, and was born in the "old Clark house," June 12, 1783. His mother, before marriage, was Mary Clark, the widow of Thomas Clark, (2d,) and daughter of Daniel Hine of New Milford. He pursued
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
his classical studies, for a time, with Rev. Mr. Woodward of Wolcott. He also studied with Thomas Lewis of Salem society, and entered Yale College. While he was a student there, the sea of politics raged vehe- mently. Those in authority in College, and particularly the President, were strong Federalists; and it was considered rash for a young man, who expected college honors, to avow republican opinions. Before the close of his junior year, young Upson embraced these opinions. As he had already received many honors and was a candidate for more, his father became alarmed, and remonstrated with him by letter, telling him how much he was in the power of the President, and how unwise it was to adopt adverse political sentiments. The son defended his views at length, also by letter. One of his epistles is before me. In it, he ac- knowledges his perilous condition, but asks-" Do you wish me to dis- semble the real sentiments of my heart for the paltry reward of a collegi- ate honor ?" &c. Both the correspondents, probably, exaggerated the danger of holding the proscribed opinions.
Mr. Upson graduated in 1804, having for classmates John C. Cal- houn and other distinguished men. He commenced the study of law with Judge Chauncey of New Haven ; but feeling the necessity of earn- ing something for himself, he left in March, 1805, and went to Virginia. In Richmond, he met his classmate and room-mate, Royal R. Hinman, who had taken charge of an academy in that city. The two went to- gether a few miles north, to visit Gen. Guerrant, who had advertised for a family teacher. Upson made an engagement for six months, and en- tered upon his duties April 22d. He was to receive £50 and board, washing, lodging, &c. When the six months had expired, he entered the family of Nathaniel Pope, Esq., a distinguished lawyer of Hanover, (about. twenty miles from Richmond,) as teacher. He engaged for one year, and was to receive £90 and board, &c. ; and also legal instruction and the use of law books. Before the time had expired, Mr. Pope was killed in a duel, and Upson, at the solicitation of his friend and college mate, Addin Lewis, then living there, went to Georgia, and entered the law office of the celebrated William H. Crawford. He was admitted to the bar and became Mr. Crawford's law partner. His connection secured him immediate business, and he rose rapidly to the highest eminence in his profession.
Mr. Upson interested himself in the politics of his adopted State. As early as 1808, he wrote a series of articles which were published in the Georgia Express, and republished in the Savannah Advertiser, on the stay laws just enacted in that State, (made necessary, it was claimed, by the Embargo laws of Congress,) which attracted much notice at the
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APPENDIX.
time. They were entitled " An enquiry into the constitutionality, the necessity, the justice, and policy of the EMBARGO lately laid upon LAW in this STATE," and were signed "LUCIUs." They denounced, in un- measured terms, the obnoxious laws and the men who concocted them, and evince a good deal of legal knowledge and argumentative force for so young a man. In 1813, alluding to some recent acts of the Legisla- ture of Georgia, he said, in a letter to his father, that the country " ap- peared to be in a rapid progression from a representative republic down the grades of Democracy to a perfect state of anarchy."
In the latter part of his life, Mr. Upson, having accumulated consider- able property, purchased a plantation and cultivated wheat, oats, corn, &c., and was intending, had life been spared, to raise cotton. He did not, however, neglect his profession. Some attention he continued to give to politics, and became, as I gather from his letters, a member of the Legislature. When his old friend, Mr. Crawford, came to be talked of, and was finally nominated, for the presidency, he gave him his hearty support. To this course he was prompted, not only by friend- ship and a sense of gratitude, but by a belief that Mr. C. was " eminently qualified for the office." Could he see him elected, he declared, he should " be perfectly satisfied, without further interference in political matters." He became famous for his political harangues, and had the entire confidence of the Democratic party ; and at the critical period of his death, it is stated that his party had settled the point that he should be the next senator in Congress, to be chosen by the Legislature then about to meet.
Mr. Upson married, Nov. 12, 1813, Hannah Cummins, the youngest daughter of Rev. Francis Cummins of Georgia. They had five chil- dren, all of whom survived their father, viz, Francis Lewis, (for a time a member of the Law School of New Haven,) Mary Elizabeth, Sarah Eveline, William Benjamin and Stephen. All are believed to be now living, except Wm. Benjamin. Stephen, the youngest, (born Nov. 8, 1823,) graduated at Yale College in 1841, and is now, or was recently, in New York. The mother, after she became a widow, married Elijah Boardman of Connecticut, (then of New York.) After Mr. Boardman's decease, she returned to the South, and is still living.
Mr. Upson resided at Lexington, Oglethorpe County, Ga., and died August 3, 1824, aged 41. He had acquired more reputation as an ad- vocate, perhaps, than any other man in the State, of his age. "Had he lived ten years longer," says one of his admirers, "he would have been the great man of the South." Ile was a fine scholar, an arduous stu- dent of law, an elegant and persuasive speaker, and a high minded,
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
honorable man. He had, too, a large and kind heart. This appears in his letters to his parents, and to his sister who lived with them. They are full of anxious solicitude and tender feeling. After the decease of his mother, he, for the first time since he left Connecticut in 1805, visited his father, then (July, 1821) somewhat infirm with age, and made the most liberal provision for his permanent comfort. He had previously made his friends at home, to a large extent, the sharers of his prosperity. While he was an affectionate son and broth- er, he won the esteem and the confidence of all who knew him. His form was good, his person somewhat tall and slender, his dress and mode of living plain, and his manners gentlemanly and agreeable.
CAPT. JOHN WELTON.
He was the eldest son of Richard Welton, and was born Jan. 1, 1727. He was a farmer of Buckshill, and had only the ordinary advantages of an English education ; still he possessed a strong mind and exerted a wide influence. From an early period, he was a prominent member of the Episcopal society and held the office of senior warden. In the begin- ing of the Revolutionary war, he espoused the patriotic cause, became a moderate Whig, and was confided in by the friends of colonial inde- pendence. In 1784, he was first appointed a justice of the peace. He was a useful and much respected member of the Legislature fifteen ses- sions, beginning in 1784. It is stated that when he arose to address the house, few men were listened to with more deference.
Esquire John Welton, as he was called, died Jan. 22, 1816.
REV. BENJAMIN WOOSTER
Was the third son and fourth child of Wait and Phebe (Warner) Wooster, and was born in Waterbury, Oct. 29, 1762. He was a sol- dier of the Revolution, and was taxed as a minor in the first society in 1782. Subsequently, he entered Yale College and graduated in 1790. His theological studies were pursued under the Rev. Dr. Edwards of New Haven. After being licensed to preach, he occupied himself for a time in missionary labor; but in 1797, was ordained pastor of the church in Cornwall, Vt. He gave up his charge in 1802, and spent three years in the service of the Berkshire Missionary Society. On the 24th day of July, 1805, he was installed in Fairfield, Vt., where he labored assiduously till bodily infirmity, in 1833, compelled him to de- sist. During this time, he was once a representative to the General Assembly of the State, and twice a member of the "Septennial Conven- tion convened by the Board of Censors." He died, says Dr. Sprague's " Annnals," at St. Albans, Vt., in February, 1843.
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APPENDIX.
"I here, contrary to my original purpose, introduce a few names of persons still living. The very brief sketch of Mr. Israel Holmes has been furnished by a friend of that gentleman.
AMOS BRONSON ALCOTT,
Son of Joseph C. Alcott, was born in Wolcott, Nov. 29, 1799. He is a well known literary man, lecturer and "conversational teacher." His name is identified with what is termed the transcendental philoso- phy in Massachusetts. He is the friend of Ralph Waldo Emerson, and has written some books on human culture and his favorite philosophy. Boston has hitherto been his home.
Mr. Alcott was married, May 23, 1830, to Abigail, youngest daughter of Col. Joseph May of Boston. Samuel Sewall, chief justice of the Mas- sachusetts Colony from 1718 to 1728, was the ancestor of his wife's mother, Dorothy Sewall.
WILLIAM A. ALCOTT, M. D.,
Son of Obed Alcott, was born in Wolcott, Oct. 6, 1798. In boyhood, he attended the common district schools, and finally, a private school for two terms. Afterwards, he taught a district school for several years. Finally, he commenced the study of medicine, and after three years, or in 1826, received at New Haven a license to practice. IIe then returned to teaching, but his health breaking down, he became a practitioner of medicine in Wolcott till 1829. Subsequently, he connect- ed himself with Mr. Woodbridge, the geoprapher, removed to Boston, and devoted his time to the cause of education and literary pursuits. In 1832 he went to Boston and soon became the editor of the " Annals of Education," &c.
Dr. Alcott is the author of many books on education, temperance, moral reform, domestic medicine, &c. Among these are the Young Man's Guide, House I Live in, The Young Mother, The Young Wife, The Young Husband, Young Woman's Guide, The Young House- keeper and Mother's Medical Guide. He has also written largely for the periodicals, and has edited several beside the Annals-Parley's Mag- azine, Library of Health, &c. He has also lectured on his favorite topics in several of the States. Notwithstanding his severe labors, he is, in his own language, " a water-drinker and a bread and fruit-eater, eschewing all seasonings and mixed dishes, and rejecting all medicines." He is now, he continues, "in his thirty-second year of respite from the grave by consumption, of which he has always had a dread, with which he is still threatened, and to which some day he will fall a victim."
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
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