USA > Massachusetts > Berkshire County > Historic homes and institutions and genealogical and personal memoirs of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, Vol II > Part 24
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37
336
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
lowing year he yielded to, being elected to council for the 1898-99 term, serving efficiently on the fire department, fuel and street lights, and or- dinances and printing committeees. As a resident of ward five he was candidate in 1900 for council, and was defeated, as were all Republican candidates in that memorable year in local politics. Mr. Spall was for some years in active fellowship with the local lodges of Elks and Red Men, serving two terms as exalted ruler of the former and two terms as sachem of the latter order. He was married in New Haven, Connect- icut, October 22, 1901, to Miss Rose Hazelton, a graduate of Henry W. Bishop's Training School for Nurses, and well known in Pittsfield, where she was for four years recognized as one of the most capable and cultured of the members of her profession. Mr. and Mrs. Spall have one child, Marion Emily, born October 22, 1902, reside at No. 24 Oxford street, and are members of the First Congregational church.
ENSIGN MARSHALL SMITH.
Ensign Marshall Smith, of Dalton, Berkshire county, Massachu- setts, a veteran of the Civil war, who at great personal sacrifice gave his time, his abilities and his skill to the service of his country in her hour of peril and need, is a native of the town in which he now resides, born August 19, 1842. a son of David Chaffee and Pamelia (Comstock) Smith.
Amos Smith, great-grandfather of Ensign M. Smith, was a native of England, emigrating to this country about the year 1760. On May 18. 1779. he married Miss Annie Chaffee, and they were the first set- tlers in that part of the town of Dalton now known as North street, which has in more recent years been extensively occupied by the Smith families.
337
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
Abner Smith, grandfather of Ensign M. Smith, was born in Berk- shire county, Massachusetts, February 26, 1781. On August 25, 1811, he was united in marriage to Mary Diskill, born October 17, 1785, and the issue of this union was seven children, namely: I. Julia F., born February 12, IS12, was married three times, her last husband having been Mr. Hicox. 2. Electa, born December 26, 1813, died September 12, 1870; she was the wife of Marble Foote, of Pittsfield, Massachu- setts. 3. David Chaffee, born January 14, 1817, mentioned hereinafter. 4. Abner Marshall, born 1820, was a physician in this county; he mar- ried Betsey Evans, of Bainbridge, New York, and after her death mar- ried her sister, Robie Evans, who survives him, he having died in 1889. 5. Eliza, born May 31, 1822, married (first) James Lambdin, and after- wards Mr. Campbell; they made their home in Toledo, Ohio. 6. Amos, born July 2, 1823, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this work. 7. James D., born December 13, 1825, died in April, 1895; he was en- gaged in the lumber business in Dalton, Massachusetts, and was also a poetical writer of some renown. In 1847 he married Rachel Gleason, who survives him.
David Chaffee Smith, father of Ensign M. Smith, was born Janu- ary 14. 1817. During the early years of his life he engaged in farm- ing, and later became the owner of some sixteen hundred acres of land devoted to farm culture, upon which was some valuable timber. He also purchased a tract of valuable timber land in Forest Port, New York, containing about twelve hundred acres. As early as 1849 he built a grist and saw mill, and it was at this mill that the lumber used in the con- struction of the dwellings erected in the carly period of the history of the town of Dalton was turned out. He was one of those honest, hard- working and industrious men who laid the foundation for a growth of able-bodied and prosperous men. He was held in high esteem by his
Z2
338
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
fellow townsmen, served the town in the capacity of selectman for almost twenty years, was instrumental in constructing the Methodist church, in which he was a class leader, and took an active and prominent part in all affairs of his time. During the Civil war he was a recruiting officer.
On March 25, 1841, Mr. Smith married Pamelia Comstock, daughter of Oliver Comstock, of Stockbridge, a member of one of the highest esteemed families of that town. Their children are: I. Ensign M., born August 19. 1842, mentioned hereinafter. 2. David C., Jr., born December 1, 1845, who married Kate Fish, of Northampton, and they make their home in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. 3. Robert A., born February 18. 1850, who married Lucia M. Owen, daughter of Walter Owen. of Lee, Massachusetts, May 15, 1873, and they have one child, Blanche E., who resides with her parents in Dalton. 4. Pamelia E., born May II, 1852, who became the wife of Clarence Cody, and they make their home in Pittsfield.
Ensign Marshall Smith was born in Dalton, Massachusetts, August 19. 1842. After attending the local schools he completed a course at the Pittsfield high school. When not at school he devoted his time to assisting with the work on his father's farm and working in the mill. At the age of nineteen years he enlisted in Company K, Thirty-fourth Massachusetts Regiment, and served three years in the war, during which time he was thrice wounded and once taken prisoner. He par- ticipated in many a severe conflict, and was with General Sheridan while in the Shenandoah Valley and also before Richmond, Virginia. He has three distinct bullet wounds, one that passed through the left lung, one on the left foot and one on the left leg. He spent five years as overseer for his father at the mill in Forest Port, New York, and after the ex- piration of this period of time formed a partnership with Russell Allen. of Pittsfield, and they engaged in the granite business in St. Louis.
339
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
Missouri. He made his home in Graniteville, Missouri, where he was a much honored and highly esteemed citizen. Mr. Smith is vice-president of the Granite Cyanide Company, which position he has held for twenty years, together with that of superintendent. During the past few years he has retired from active duties, owing to the impaired condition of his health. He is the owner of a large farm, whereon he raises cattle and Angora goats for the market. He is a Methodist in religious belief, and a Republican in politics.
On September 25, 1864, while at home on a furlough, Mr. Smith married Lucy A. Branch, daughter of Grove N. Branch, and a grand- daughter of - Branch, who located in Berkshire county, Massa- chusetts, in 1770, and participated as a private in the battle of Benning- ton. Their children are: 1. Walter Rupert, born April 6, 1866, who is engaged in the electric light business in New York city; he married Fannie Golden. 2. Russell Allen, born October 11, 1882, who is em- ployed by the Bell Telephone Company, of New York.
HENRY PLUNKETT KITTREDGE.
The Kittredge family, of which the well-known Dalton resident, Henry Plunkett Kittredge, is a representative, is one of the most promi- nent of the old established Berkshire county families, and its founders in this section of the state came from eastern Massachusetts consider- ably more than a century ago. Shortly before or during the revolu- tionary war, William Kittredge, a physician, settled in Pittsfield and was probably one of the first regularly trained medical practitioners in that locality. His brother, Abel, Henry P. Kittredge's grandfather, who was born in Tewksbury, Massachusetts, in 1773, also studied medi- cine, and after the completion of his professional preparation located
OF8
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
for practice in the neighboring town of Hinsdale. He subsequently re- n.oved to Dalton, where he married, but returned to Hinsdale in 1802 and practiced there until 1827, when failing health compelled him to retire from professional life. He was succeeded in his medical practice by his son, Dr. Benjamin F. Kittredge. The last twenty years of his life were devoted to agriculture, and he was one of the most extensive farmers in Hinsdale. In the year IS00 he was commissioned a sur- geon's mate in the Third Regiment, Second Brigade, Ninth Division, Massachusetts Volunteer Militia. He was one of the first to represent Hinsdale in the general court. Dr. Abel Kittredge died in 1847, at the age of seventy-four years. In 1795 he married Eunice Chamberlain, a member of one of the most noted early settled families in Dalton. Of this union there were nine children, namely: Mirinda, born in 1798; William C., born in 1800; Benjamin F., born in 1802: Judith, born in 1805; Mary, born in 1809; Eunice, born in ISII; Sophronia, born in 1816; Charles James, born in 1818, and Abel, born in 1822. Mirinda, William C. and Benjamin F. were born in Dalton and the births of all the others took place in Hinsdale. Mirinda, who became the wife of the Rev. Mr. Lombard, and had two children, died in 1880, aged eighty- two years. William C. Kittredge, who was graduated from Williams College and entered the legal profession, located in Vermont, where he became a judge, and also served as lieutenant-governor. He died in 1870. Benjamin F. Kittredge, M. D., who was a graduate of Williams College and of the Pittsfield Medical School, succeeded to his father's practice at Hinsdale in 1827, and resided there until his death, which occurred in 1861. He was the father of eight daughters. Judith Kitt- redge married Dr. Wells, of Windsor, Massachusetts, and removed to Attica, New York, where she died in 1882. Mary Kittredge became the wife of Charles H. Plunkett in 1841. Eunice Kittredge married Hiram
341
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
Paddock, of Hamilton, New York, and was the mother of two phy- sicians of that name who formerly practiced medicine in Dalton and Pittsfield. Sophronia Kittredge became the wife of a Mr. Bardin, also of Hamilton. Charles James will be mentioned at greater length pres- ently. Abel Kittredge, who resided in Dalton for the greater part of his life, which terminated in 1886, married Sarah Hooker.
Charles James Kittredge, Henry P. Kittredge's father, was during his earlier years interested in farming. which he relinquished in order to engage in mercantile pursuits in company with his brother-in-law, Charles H. Plunkett, previously mentioned. They subsequently estab- lished a woolen manufacturing enterprise in Hinsdale, which afterward developed into much larger proportions and became known as the Plunkett Woolen Company. After the death of Mr. Plunkett, Mr. Kitt- redge became associated with his late partner's heirs in organizing the above-named company, and was the president until 1875. In company with his brother Abel and son James he established a woolen mill in Dalton, and was for many years one of the leaders of that industry in Berkshire county. He was financially interested in other enterprises, being a director of the Boston and Albany Railroad Company, and oc- cupied numerous other positions of trust. For some time he was a mem- ber of the Hinsdale board of selectmen, was also one of the county com- missioners, and gave the public service the benefit of his superior execu- tive ability and sound judgment. Charles James Kittredge married Miss Frances Birchard. She became the mother of seven children, of whom four are now living-James B. Kittredge: Mrs. James A. Crane, of Westfield, Massachusetts; Mrs. Zenas Crane, and Henry P. Kitt- redge, of Dalton, Massachusetts. Charles James Kittredge died March I. 1903, aged eighty-four years. Mrs. Frances Birchard Kittredge died October 28, 1898, aged, seventy-two years.
342
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
JOHN SYNAN.
The story of a community's progress is not by any means com- passed in the detailing of the careers of its successful capitalists, mer- chants and manufacturers, doctors, lawyers and divines. " The man be- hind the gun" plays a very large part in the winning of battles, and the faithful, honest and intelligent service of the employe is equally con- ducive to business success and its attendant benefits to a community.
As a boy of limited education, John Synan, born in Pittsfield, August 1I, 1861, walked into the carpet establishment of Prince & Walker. Pittsfield, seeking the employment which he obtained. He still continues in the service of this company, having been invested through- out this long period of employment with constantly augmented respon- sibilities to which he has proved equal.
He is a son of William and Mary ( Keating) Synan, both natives of county Limerick, Ireland. William Synan came in 1857 to Pittsfield, where he was employed for many years by the Boston and Albany Rail- road Company. He died in 1874. Of his children, two daughters be- cante teachers in the Briggs school. A son, James W. Synan, also for a time in the employ of Prince & Walker, subsequently rendered efficient service as tax collector of Pittsfield, and has been actively identified with Denx cratic party work, a member of ward and city committees, dele- gated to numerous conventions, and candidate for representative to the legislature for the fourth Berkshire district. He is now sales agent for the Triumph Voting Machine Company, Pittsfield. The Messrs. Synan mentioned in this brief narrative were alike in demonstrating a superior capacity for usefulness and in winning the confidence of the community as men of business integrity.
Captain Israel C. Weller.
343
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
CAPTAIN ISRAEL CASEY WELLER.
Captain Israel Casey Weller, who was a veteran of the civil war. formerly connected with the noted Allen Guards that went out from Pittsfield, Massachusetts. in 1861, was born at Fowlersville. Livingston county, New York, January 21, 1840, a son of Eliakim and Ada ( Pow- ell) Weller.
Eliakim Weller ( father) was born in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, where he spent his early life and attended the public schools. He sub- sequently learned the tanning trade. Shortly after his first marriage he took up his residence in Fowlersville, New York, where he was both farmer and tanner, and a few years later went to Michigan, being one of the first settlers of the town of Constantine. Returning east he re- located in Fowlersville, where he became engaged in the boot and shoe business. About 1858 he returned to Pittsfield. Massachusetts, where he carried on the boot and shoe business while engaged also in general farming. He married for his first wife, November 17, 1828, Adah Powell, daughter of Curtis Powell, who was born in Lanesboro, but who was for a time a resident of Pittsfield. Of this union were seven chil- dren. I. Curtis, who died in youth. 2. John, deceased, who was a soldier in the Thirty-first Massachusetts Regiment and later a resident of Pittsfield. 3. Edgar M .. a well known farmer of Pittsfield. 4. Israel, who died in childhood. 5. Israel C., mentioned hereinafter. 6. Celia, who became the wife of George W. Clark, of Auburn, New York. 7. Mary, who became the wife of Charles Lombard, an employe of the Boston & Albany Railroad at Pittsfield. Mrs. Adah ( Powell) Weller died about 1855, and Mr. Weller married for his second wife Henrietta Bigelow, of Fowlersville, by whom he has two children, a girl, who died in infancy, and a son, Irving, who resides in Pittsfield, and is in the
344
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
employ of the New York & New Haven Railroad. Eliakim Weller died April 28, 1872. His wife, Adah (Powell) Weller, died December 2. 1856.
Israel C. Weller received his elementary education in the public schools at Fowlersville, but at the age of twelve years came to Pittsfield to live with his uncle and aunt, John and Mary S. Weller, and his school- ing was completed in the Pittsfield high school. In 1860 he joined the Allen Guards, a company of state militia, and later, when the President of the United States issued his first call for seventy-five thousand vol- unteers, he became with others of the company a part of the Eighth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. The company was hurried on to the defense of the national capital, going first to Annapolis, Maryland. Arriving there they drew out the old frigate "Constitution," and then were set to work to relay the tracks of the railroad between that city and Annapolis Junction, which had been torn up by the Confederates, since it furnished the quickest route between the northern states and Washington. After reaching the capital they were ordered back to the Relay House and assigned to guard duty at the stone bridge on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. In July (previous to which time the Guards had become incorporated in Company K) the men were moved to Balti- more, where they remained in camp until September, when their term of service expired and they were mustered out, having already served four months and a half, although enlisted but for three months. Captain Weller was promoted to the rank of second sergeant before he left home, but returned as acting orderly.
Returning to Pittsfield, Captain Weller re-engaged in the flour business, with his former partner, John Isham, under the firm name of. Isham & Weller, with their store in Bank Row. Scarcely was this busi- ness resumed when Captain Weller again felt it to be his duty to enter
345
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
the army. He re-enlisted in September, 1862, and at once began raising a company. For a few days he drilled his men in Burbank Hall, but later went into camp at Camp Briggs, which had just been quitted by the Thirty-seventh Massachusetts Regiment. This was a public pleasure park, and here captains from other parts of the county also formed and drilled their companies. Since Captain Weller was the first to take possession, he became commanding officer of the camp, and his com- pany received first rank. Upon the organization of the regiment, Gen- eral Bartlett was appointed colonel, Samnel B. Sumner, lieutenant col- onel, and Charles Plunkett, major. On Thanksgiving Day, November 28, the regiment went into camp at Worcester. Although the snow lay on the ground the barracks were in good condition, and good cheer and courage reigned. There they remained, under constant drill, until Friday, December 4, when at two o'clock in the afternoon they started by rail for New York state. For the remainder of that month and until January 23 of the following year they were at Camp Banks, Long Island, during which time a part of Captain Weller's company did pro- vost duty. On January 23 the regiment, with its one thousand men, together with three hundred men of the Twenty-first Maine Regiment, embarked on board the steamship "Illinois." bound for New Orleans. The greater number of the men were young and wholly unaccustomed to the water, having always lived inland, and the rough passage of fourteen days, during four of which the ship lay off Cape Hatteras in a heavy sea, told heavily upon them. Captain Weller's men had the post of honor. and occupied berths in the bow of the boat, having marched aboard first. In New Orleans the boat ran on a bar and had to be taken off by the steamer " New Brunswick." Going to Carrollton, the regi- ment went into camp, and Sunday, February 8, Colonel Sumner marched the men through the streets, giving them opportunity to stretch their
346
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
muscles after fifteen days aboard ship. From Carrollton they traveled to Baton Rouge by boat, and on February 21 went into barracks at Camp Banks. From there they were marched to Port Hudson and back, about the time Farragut succeeded in opening the Mississippi river. Being ordered to Port Hudson a second time, they were met at Plains Stores on May 21, 1863, by a force of rebels, and saw their first fighting, a few being wounded. The previous day they had marched sixteen miles under the hot Southern sun, during which the men who wore cast-iron vests had been obliged to fling them away. A second fight occurred at Plains Stores, in whch the One Hundred and Sixty- sixth New York. the Forty-ninth Massachusetts and the Twenty-first Maine Regiments also took part, and as a result of which several more men were wounded. After a day's rest they pushed on to Port Hudson, and were in the outskirts of that town until the 27th instant, when Gen- eral Banks opened the assault. The regiment of which Captain Weller's company formed a part led, the men walking five deep. The detachment was cut to pieces, Colonel Bartlett was wounded, and a third of the men were killed or wounded. Captain Weller received a flesh wound, but remained on the battlefield until the flag of truce was raised, and then assisted in carrying off the killed and wounded. On June 14, a second assault was made, the men remaining in rifle pits behind ram- parts constructed of cotton bales and covered with earth to prevent their taking fire. Captain Weller and his men were so near the enemy's breast- works that they were within hailing distance. On July 8, word was received that General Grant had captured Vicksburg, and at once the Con- federate commander at Port Hudson asked for twenty-four hours' armis- tice and terms of capitulation. At the end of that time six thousand men were surrendered to the Union troops, who themselves were in enfeebled and wretched condition. The formalities required some time.
347
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
The rebel arms were stacked and then covered with flags. All the men were paroled except the officers. The stacks of arms were transported to a steamer lying on the other side of the fort, and Captain Weller with his command sailed down to Donaldsonville the following Friday. From that place, on July 13, several brigades marched into the interior, Captain Weller acting as lieutenant-colonel of his regiment, which position he filled until the return home. After returning to Donaldsonville there was a sharp encounter with Dick Taylor and Kirby Smith, who, with twelve thousand men, had started for the relief of Port Hudson. The rebels outnumbered the Union soldiers three to one, but were forced to retreat. The following days were trying ones for the Massachusetts men. There was no active fighting to engage their attention, and the heat was extreme. When on August 8, word came that their period of service having expired, they could be mustered out, it was heartily wel- comed. They went up the Mississippi by boat to Cairo, and there took train, the men riding in cattle cars, and the officers having one passenger car in the rear. They were cheered all along the route. At Cleveland a number of the sick men were left, among the number being Second Lieutenant George Reed, who subsequently died there. Many kind at- tentions were shown them on the homeward journey, especially at Utica and Buffalo. At Albany they were given passenger cars. Upon arriv- ing in Pittsfield they were met by all the bands in the county and by a throng of ten thousand people. At the railroad station they broke ranks, but shortly collected again and marched to the park, Colonel Bartlett leading on a war horse he had taken at Port Hudson. It was an im- posing procession, but withal a most pathetic one, for no one could look without remembering the three hundred and fifty brave men who had gone out with them, but did not come back. A right royal reception was accorded to the returned men, and at the park, to which they
348
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
marched, refreshments, the best the land could provide, were furnished. The committee of arrangements included Messrs. W. R. Plunkett, D. J. Dodge, and J. D. Adams, Jr.
Captain Weller again went into business in the flour trade, in which he continued until 1877. He was then engaged for about a year in manufacturing bricks, after which he started a wholesale commission business, handling grain and provisions. For about six or eight years after his return he was captain of the Allen Guards, and as such a member of the Second Massachusetts Regiment of Militia. He was subsequently promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel of the regiment, but later resigned. He was a charter member of Rockwell Post, Grand Army of the Republic, and an active worker in that organization. He was formerly a member of the Housatonic Fire Insurance Company. He was a Mason and member of Mystic Lodge, and of Berkshire Chap- ter, Council and Commandery, also a charter member of Kassid Senate, Ancient Essenic Order. Captain Weller died November 3, 1900.
Captain Weller married, January 21, 1864, Harriet B. Clark, of Pittsfield, daughter of Henry Clark, who located in Pittsfield from Suf- field, Connecticut. Mrs. Weller, who died in March, 1884, was a mem- ber of the First Congregational Church. She was the mother of three children, of whom two are now deceased. The surviving child. Ger- trude, married Frank L. Bourne, of Lenox. Mrs. Bourne, a trained nurse, is now a resident of Springfield, Mass.
EDGAR MOSELEY WELLER.
The eldest of the surviving members of the family of the late Elia- kim and Adah ( Powell) Weller is the gentleman whose name introduces this narrative.
349
BERKSHIRE COUNTY
Edgar M. Weller was born in Fowlersville, New York, June 21, 1836. He received such education as was afforded by the public schools of his native place, but was in early youth called upon to assume a share in the serious business of life-the earning of a livelihood, assisting in farming work when he was eight years old and up to his thirteenth year, when he was apprenticed to learn the carpenter's trade, being "bound out." as it was termed in that day, until he had attained his majority, in 1858, when his father removed with his family to take up residence in Pittsfield; Edgar M. Weller came also, and was miscellaneously em- ployed in and about Pittsfield up to 1875, when, as a result of his thrift and industry, he had a sufficient sum to enable him to purchase the tract of land in the east part of Pittsfield, where he has ever since been located, having a dairy farm and pursuing general agriculture.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.