USA > Michigan > Lenawee County > History and biographical record of Lenawee County, Michigan, Volume I > Part 39
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
The contracting parties were Hiram Aldrich and Miss Eliza Titus. Job Comstock, Esq., officiated. Miss Elizabeth Beal taught the first school, in the summer of 1835. The M. E. church was or- ganized in 1835. The first preacher was Mr. Staples. July 4th, 1841, Nicholas A. Page married Miss Charity Marlatt, daughter of John Marlatt, of Rollin, by whom he has had eight children, as follows : Melissa A., born April 5th, 1842, now the wife of David Allen. of Rollin ; George L., born August 6th, 1844, at home ; Orien C., born January 15th, 1847, died August 5th, 1847 ; Frank, born July 28th, 1854, a farmer, of Rollin ; Eva A., born Febru- ary 15th, 1857, now the wife of George Royce, of Rollin ; Harri- son, born November 24th, 1858, died December 25th, 1871; Stephen W., born September 13th, 1860, at home ; John T., born November 13th, 1862, died Angust 25th, 1864. Mrs. Charity Page was born in Yates, Orleans county, New York, March 10th, 1823, and came to Michigan with her parents in 1835, and settled in Adrian township. In 1840 they moved into Rollin.
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OHN H. LIVESAY was born in Horseheads, Chemung county, New York, February 5th, 1832. His father, Judah M. Livesay, was born in the same place, (then Tioga county,) December 7th, 1803. The first record of the family is of a Frenchman by the name of John Livesay. Leaving his native France he went to England and engaged as a weaver of silks in the factories of Queen Ann, in the city of London, where he gained for himself the reputation of an expert in the weaving of silk handkerchiefs. But being desirons of seeing the new world he sailed for the present United States, and settled in the State of Connecticut, Fairfield county, about the year 1771, when he was married to Sarah Bennett, and moved again to Orange county, New York, and in a few years died, leaving behind, his wife and two small children about the ages of one and three years, Gersham and Rachel. Gersham was born November 3d, 1773, he being the oldest of the two children. Soon after, his mother married again to Jonathan Bailey. Gersham, leaving home, went to live in the family of John Simmons, and learn the hatter's trade, but not liking his situation, soon left and went to work as a farm hand for Judge Wheeler, where he remained until the 24th year of his age. He then followed the tide of emigration, moved west to Tioga county, (now Chemung) where he married Hannah Silsby, widow
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
of Jonathan Silsby, she having one child. They lived on a farm left by Jonathan to his son John, until the year 1800, when they moved again to the town of Horseheads, Chemung county, and settled an unimproved farm of his own, to endure the privations and hardships of a new and timbered country. They were blessed with a family of seven children, six boys and one girl, all striving with the best of their ability to make a home of peace and plenty. Their efforts were crowned with success, and they lived in an unbroken circle until 1831, when the family was taken with what was then called the Michigan fever, and the old home with all its endearments was sold, and the family, with one exception moved west between the years 1831 and 1837, to hew out of the wilderness, homes for themselves and families, George being the first, and now resides in Madison, this county, where he settled in 1831, Gersham having settled in Fulton county, Ohio, to endure for the third time the hardships of a new country. Judah M. Livesay lived in Horseheads until the spring of 1837, when he came to Michigan, arriving in Adrian the 11th day of June. During the fall of 1834, he came to Michigan and purchased 170 acres of land on section 31 in Madison. When he moved his family here in 1837, he stayed a few days with his brother George, until he built a rough board shanty, in which he lived during the summer. The land was entirely new, and very heavily timbered, with no road cut, and the only means of getting through the woods was by following an Indian trail running east and west. In the spring of 1838 he planted a little corn, and that fall he sowed a little piece of wheat. The ground was not plowed for this crop, but was dragged over, among the stumps, and the seed sown, yielding him a good return the next year. He cleared about 140 acres, built good buildings, &c., and lived to enjoy his farm home for many years. He died November 25th, 1870. April 7th, 1831, he mar- ried Miss Caroline Hathorn, daughter of John and Hannah Hathorn, of Horseheads, Chemung county, New York, by whom he had seven children, John H. being the oldest. Mrs. Caroline Livesay was born in Orange county, New York, November 3d, 1806, and died in Madison, this county, September 30th, 1865. She was a grandchild of General Hathorn, of Revolutionary fame. The General lived in Orange county, New York, and was at one time a slaveholder there. His ancestors came from Holland. John H. Livesay lived with his parents until he was about 24 years old, when he went to Royalton, Fulton county, Ohio, and purchased his grandfather's (Gersham Livesay's) farm, where he resided ten years. In 1866 he traded farms with his father, and returned to his old home in Madison, where he now resides.
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
October 9th, 1856, he married Miss Jane A. Thurber, daughter of Robert G. and Isabella Thurber, of Fairfield, this county, by whom he has had two children, as follows: Robert G. born in Royalton, Fulton county, Ohio, January 18th, 1859, at home; Carrie B., born in Madison, July 29th, 1866, at home. Mrs. Jane A. Livesay was born in Fairfield, this county, July 9th, 1838. Her father, born March 11th, 1808, was a native of Unity, Chesh- ire county, New Hampshire, and went to Canandaigua, New York, when he was a boy. Her mother was born December 24th, 1814, at Bothwell, Lenoxshire, Scotland, and came to America with her parents when she was three years old. Mr. and Mrs. Thurber were pioneers of Fairfield, this county, settling there in May, 1835. Mr. Thurber died February 19th, 1859. Mrs. Thurber is still living in Fairfield on the old homestead.
EZEKIAH KNOWLES, JR., was born in Haddam, Mid- dlesex county, Connecticut, August 23d, 1808. His father was born in the same place, in 1786, where he was a tanner and currier, and carried on that business in Haddam, for many years. In 1817 he moved to the State of New York, and finally settled in Varick, Seneca county, where he engaged in the lumber business, and continued until the spring of 1837, when he came to Michigan, arriving in Adrian June 10th. He immediately pur- chased eighty acres of land, in Rome, where he lived until his death, which occurred March 22d, 1846. About the year 1807 he married Miss Anna Smith, daughter of Henry and Susan Smith, of Haddam, Connecticut, by whom he had eight children, Heze- kiah, Jr. being the oldest. Mrs. Anna Knowles was born in Haddam, Connecticut, in 1790, and died in Adrian, this county, in 1870. Hezekiah Knowles, Jr. lived with his parents until he was about twenty-four years old, when he went to the village of Havana, Tioga county, New York, and engaged as clerk, in a dry goods store. He remained there for eighteen months, when he returned home, and assisted his father, who, at that time, run a large lumber yard, and dealt in grain and produce. He came to Michigan in 1837, and opened a general store at Warsaw, in Adrian township, where he carried on the business until he sold his goods, when he purchased a farm, on section twenty-four, in Rome, where he has resided ever since. When he purchasud this farm there were only six acres cleared,
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
and he was in very poor health, but he commenced the work of chopping and clearing, his health improving, and he soon became a robust man. November 12th, 1833, he married Eliza Vreeland, daughter of Michael and Elizabeth Vreeland, of Fayette, Seneca county, New York, by whom he had two children, as follows : Elizabeth Anna, born in Varick, New York, October 6th, 1835, now the wife of Dr. Perkins, of Hudson, this county ; Oliver W., born in Rome, this county, June 14th, 1838, died August 22d, 1839. Mrs. Eliza Knowles was born in Fayette, Seneca county, New York, September 7th, 1812, and died in Rome, this county, December 20th, 1840. October 10th, 1844, he married Miss Margaret Shoemaker, daughter of Abraham and Maria Shoemaker, by whom he had two children, as follows: Lorissa A., born in Rome, July 25th, 1846, at home ; Mary A. born in Rome, Decem- ber 16th, 1848, died September 1st, 1851. Mrs. Margaret Knowles was born in Mindon, Montgomery county, New York, May 30th, 1817, and died in Rome, January 20th, 1849. Sep- tember 16th, 1852, he married Mrs. Elizabeth Gardner, daughter of Abram and Maria Soop, of Wayne county, Michigan, by whom he had one son, Albert W., born in Rome, October 14th, 1853, at home. Mrs. Elizabeth Knowles was born in Albany, New York, September 3d, 1816, and came to Michigan with her parents in 1832. She died in Rome, this county, November 5th, 1874.
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ON. THOMAS F. MOORE was born in Peterborough, New Hampshire, October 2d, 1819. His father, Nathaniel Moore, was born in the same place, in 1776, where he al- ways lived, and died there in 1854. He was a prominent man in his township, and held the office of selectman (supervisor), for six- teen consecutive years. He was a prosperous farmer, and was one of twelve children, he being the second child. He owned his fath- er's-William Moore's-homestead, and the farm is now owned by one of his sons. It has been in possession of the family for more than one hundred and fifty years. William Moore was a native of Londonderry, New Hampshire, and was a drum major in the French and Indian war, previous to the Revolution. He was also a soldier in the Revolutionary war, but owing to ill health, was obliged to leave the service, furnishing a substitute, however. About the year 1806, Nathaniel Moore married Miss Sarah Fer- guson, daughter of Henry Ferguson, of Peterborough, New
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
Hampshire, by whom he had ten children, Thomas F. being the youngest of the family. Mrs. Sarah Moore was born in Peterbor - ough, New Hampshire, and died there. Thomas F. Moore lived with his parents until he was eighteen years old. He went to school in his native township, and afterwards attended three terms at the Appleton Academy, at New Ipswich, New Hampshire. About the time Thomas was eighteen, his father sold his farm to his son, Nathaniel, and at the same time, sold Thomas' labor until he was twenty-one, when he was to have one hundred dollars. This arrangement did not suit Thomas, and he told his brother to keep his one hundred dollars ; that he would look out for himself. Therefore, in the spring of 1838, Thomas went to Aurora, Erie county, New York, and worked on a farm during that summer for twelve dollars per month, working four months, and only drawing fifty cents of his wages during this time. That winter he taught school in Barre, Orleans county. In the spring of 1839 he came to Michigan, and during that summer, worked for his brother, G. W. Moore; of Medina, on his farm. During the winter of 1839-40 he taught school in York, Washtenaw county. In 1836 his uncle, William Moore, of York, Washtenaw county, located for him, one hundred and sixty acres of land, adjoining his brother, in Medina, it being the s. w. { of section 3. In the spring of 1840 Thomas F. settled on this land, cutting a road for half a mile, through heavy timber and underbrush. He cleared eighty acres, and erected comfortable buildings, and lived there until 1854, when he sold out and purchased the old Seth Benson farm, on section twenty-one, in Madison, where he now resides. Since his residence in Madison, he has been elected justice of the peace, and was elected supervisor for the years 1859-60, and again in 1867. He was twice made chairman of the board, and was chair- man of the building committee when the present county house was erected. In 1860 he was elected a member of the Michigan Leg- islature. In 1862 he was elected a member of the State Senate. In 1865 he was appointed Inspector of the State Prison, by Gov. Crapo, and served four years. In 1869 he was appointed superin- tendent of the poor, of Lenawee county, and served ten years. In 1877 he was appointed, by Gov. Croswell, member of the Board of Managers of the State House of Correction, at Ionia, which office he now holds. May 28th, 1840, he married Miss Rachel Todd, daughter of James B. and Sarah Todd, of Byron, Genesee county, New York, by whom he has had six children, as follows : James N., born in Medina, September 3d, 1844, a resident of Adrian. He was a soldier in the 18th Michigan Infantry, during the war of the Rebellion ; Hattie N., born in Medina, November
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
25th, 1853, now the wife of Warren M. Beals, of Madison ; Sam- uel A., born in Madison, August 19th, 1859, died January 14th, 1877 ; three children died in infancy. Mrs. Rachel Moore was born in Peterborough, New Hampshire, May 3d 1819. She mov- ed with her parents to Genesee county, New York, in 1828. Her father was born in Peterborough, New Hampshire, November 25th, 1787. He was a soldier in the war of 1812, and held a lieutenant's commission. He died in Byron, Genesee county, New York, May 27th, 1863. His father, John Todd, enlisted in a Continental regiment, in New Hampshire, when he was sixteen years old, and immediately went into the battle of Bennington. When he enlist- ed, he was hardly tall enough to be mustered into the Continental regiment, but put a pack of cards in his shoes to make him a " Jeetle " taller. Her mother was born in Dublin, New Hamp- shire, March 5th, 1790, and still resides in Byron, New York. She is the daughter of the Hon. Isaac Appleton, who was a prom- inent citizen of New Hampshire, being a member of the Legisla- ture for 12 years. He was a man of great intelligence, although he was always a farmer.
AVID CARPENTER was born at Potsdam, St. Lawrence : county, New York, April 19th, 1815. He is a borther of the late Guy Carpenter, and also of Joel Carpenter, a sketch of whose lives is given in another part of this volume. He was brought up on his father's farm, till the age of fifteen years, when, . his health failing, he was sent to St. Lawrence Academy, to fit him to fight the battle of life at some lighter employment than that of farming. During the winters of 1835 and 1836, he taught a dis- trict school, and in the spring of 1836, he turned his face, in search of fortune, to the West. Arriving at Toledo, he was, for a few months, employed as clerk in a store, but in the fall, started on his own account in the grocery and bakery business, in the then thriving city of Manhattan, now a part of the city of Toledo. In May, 1837, he returned to St. Lawrence, and was married to Miss Thirza Pease, daughter of Elijah Pease, of that county, and sister of Mrs. Royal Barnum, of Adrian, this county. Returning to Manhattan, he continued in business at that place, till November, 1838, when he removed to Blissfield, Michigan, and became the junior member of the firm of G. & D. Carpenter, merchants of
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
that place. His natural taste was that of a farmer, and while his partner attended mostly to the mercantile part of the business, he employed himself in clearing and reducing to cultivation the large farm owned by them, adjoining the village of Blissfield. Decem- ber 22d, 1839, he buried his wife, after a long and painful sickness. In May, 1840, he returned to St. Lawrence, and on the 11th day of August, of that year, he was married to his second wife, Miss Mary L. Ellis, daughter of William E. Ellis, of that county, and late of Blissfield, Michigan. During the years succeeding the de- cease of his partner, Guy Carpenter, in 1849, his great energy, patience, and industry, aided much in laying the foundation of the ample fortune which he now enjoys. On the 15th of June, 1849, he buried his second wife, she falling a victim to the terrible scourge of erysipelas, which prevailed at that time. In July, following, he married his present wife, Hepsibeth Worth, daughter of David R. Worth, Esq., of DeRuyter, Madison county, New York. In the spring of 1850 he formed a co-partnership with his brother, Joel Carpenter, in the mercantile business, which continued till September, 1852, when he sold out to his partner, and devoted himself, with great assiduity, to his farm and land business. In February, 1861, he was appointed a member of the Board of Con- trol, of the State Agricultural College, a position which he filled with general acceptance, for several years; his shrewd common sense, and practical knowledge of farming gave him a prominent place in the doings of the Board. In 1867 he again went into the mercantile business, as senior partner of the firm of Carpenter & Brown, and the next year, in conjunction with W. Furman, built the Carpenter & Furman brick block, the first ever built in that town. His business tact, energy, and liberality, have done much to advance and build up that wide-awake and go-ahead village. Three years since he was induced to take an interest in "Bay View," near Petoskey, in Emmett county, this State, has built himself a summer residence at that place, purchased a large farm, and invested quite largely in real estate. He has spent much of his time there for the last two years.
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INSLOW BATES, of Rome, was born in Erie, (now Newstead) Erie county, New York, October 11th, 1819. His father, Daniel Bates was born in Pownal, Bingham- ton county, Vermont, August 8th, 1800, but moved with his father, Stephen Bates, who was a Revolutionary soldier, to
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
New Lisbon, Otsego county, New York, when he was about eighteen months old. Stephen Bates lived in Otsego 'county until 1811, when he sold out, and moved to Erie county, New York, and bought a farm of the Holland Land Company, where he lived until his death, in 1850, in his eighty-fifth year. Here Daniel Bates was brought up, and assisted his father in clearing up his new farm, and lived there until he was eighteen years old, when he commenced on a farm for himself. He took an "article" for some land, and lived upon it ten years, when he sold his "chance" for four hundred dollars, and purchased another farm, in the town of Clarence, in the same county, where he lived until 1835. He then sold out, and came to Michigan, and purchased two hundred acres of land of Job Comstock, on section ten, in Rome. This was all new land, but a log shanty had been erected, with shake roof, and split log floor. He cleared up his first purchase, and added to it until he owned five hundred and twenty acres, and built a good frame house, with barns and sheds. He was a sturdy, honest, energetic man, a thrifty farmer, and good citizen. In his early settlement here, he was alive to every enterprise that would benefit the town or county, assisting in cutting through roads, building bridges, erecting school houses and churches, and advanc- ing the social and material interests of the community. He died on the land he purchased in 1835, January 13th, 1878. In relig- ious faith he was a Baptist, having united with the church in 1832, and always lived a consistent christain life, and died very peaceful- ly, without any apparent disease, except the giving out of the vital forces. October 11th, 1818, he married Miss Priscilla Cole, daugh- ter of Peleg and Mary Cole, of Clarence, Erie county, New York, by whom he had nine children, Winslow being the oldest. All of the children grew to become men and women, and there are now twenty seven grandchildren, and ten great-grandchildren. Mrs. Priscilla Bates was born in Lisbon, Otsego county, New York, December 4th, 1801, and still resides on the homestead, in Rome. Her father was born near Providence, Rhode Island, in 1759. He was a soldier in the Revolutionary war, moving to Western New York, and settling in Clarence, Erie county, in 1813. He died in Rome, this county, in 1844. His mother was a descendant of the Winslows, who came over in the Mayflower. Her mother was Miss Mary Salisbury, who was born in Rhode Island, in 1757, and died in Rome, this county, in 1839. Winslow Bates, the sub- ject of this sketch, lived with his father until he was twenty-three. He came to Michigan with his parents in 1835, and has resided in Rome ever since. He has always been a farmer, and now owns one hundred and sixty acres of land on section twenty-five. He is
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
a genuine pioneer, having assisted his father in clearing up his farm, and has seen the township transformed from a wilderness to its present high state of cultivation. When he first saw the town- ship, there were only a very few log shanties within its limits, but he has seen them all gradually replaced by comfortable, and, in many instances, elegant brick and frame houses. Every acre of land in Rome is now owned and occupied by farmers. There is not an eighty acre lot in the town but what a farmer can get a liv- ing off of. There are no large swamps or marshes within its limits. Winslow Bates, like his father, is a true Roman, and has ever been on the alert for the best interests of the township. He was elected highway commissioner in 1854, and was annually re- elected as long as he would accept the office. He has been elected justice of the peace, and filled the office one term. He has always been an enthusiastic Republican, and posted the first call for a Republican caucus, in Rome, in the spring of 1854. The notices were written by James H. Parker. The Republicans carried the township that spring, and have elected a majority of the officers every year since. April 4th, 1843, he married Miss Lusina Sweet, daughter of Philip and Lydia Sweet, of Coldwater, Branch county, Michigan, by whom he has had seven children, as follows : The first born died in infancy; Lydia P., born April 4th, 1845, widow of Charles E. Nickloy, and now the wife of Henry Pier- son, of Adrian ; Mary E., born February 15th, 1848, now the wife of Oliver H. Beach, of Adrian ; Philip M., born October 6th, 1849, a farmer, of Adrian. He married Miss Emily Smith, daughter of David Smith, Jr., of Rome ; E. Madora, born June 4th, 1852, wife of Fred A. Knight, of Rome; Daniel W., born October 27th, 1854, at home; Ruth E., born February 7th, 1857, at home. Mrs. Priscilla Bates was born in Erie, (now Newstead) Erie county, New York, January 22d, 1820. Her father was a farmer, and came to Michigan, and settled in Branch county, in 1841, where he died, at the age sixty-four. Her mother died in Branch county, aged sixty-one.
TILLIAM OLDER, JR., was born in Shelby, Orleans county, New York, February 18th, 1819. His father, William Older, was born in Seneca county, New York, February 22d, 1786, where he resided until he was about twenty- four years old, when he moved to Orleans county when it was all
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
a wilderness, he being one of the very first settlers in that county. He bought one hundred acres of land of the Holland company, clearing it up and paying for it. He had nothing to commence with but a yoke of steers, courage and good health. Just after he had got fairly settled there, he was drafted as a soldier in the war of 1812 and served until the end of the war. He lived in Orleans county until the spring of 1833, when he sold out and came to Michigan and settled on section twenty-one, in Adrian township, where he lived until his death, which occurred November 3d, 1875. At the time of his death he drew a pension for his services as a soldier in 1812. In 1809 he married Miss Caroline Hagaman, daughter of Francis Hagaman, of Romulus, Seneca county, New York, by whom he had eleven children, William, Jr., being the fifth child and second son. Mrs. Caroline Older was born in Romulus, New York, in 1789, and died in Adrian, this county, in July, 1861. William Older, Jr., lived at home until he was about twenty-three years old, when he commenced for himself, on eighty acres of new land, on section twenty, in Adrian. He cleared up this, built on it, and lived there nearly twenty years, when he purchased forty acres adjoining on section nineteen, where he has erected a good frame house, fine barns, sheds, &c., and he now owns two hundred and twenty-one acres in one body, one hundred and eighty acres of which are under a good state of cultivation, and one hundred acres he has cleared himself. He came to Michigan when he was about fifteen years old, and was brought up to hard work and hardships, but during all this time he has had a purpose in view, and now he is enjoying the results of his work and pluck. Octo- ber 28th, 1841, he married Miss Miriam Knowles, daughter of Hezekiah and Anna Knowles, of Rome, this county, by whom he had three children, as follows: Hudson, born July 15th, 1843, and died May 26th, 1844; Hezekiah W., born April 19th, 1845, was killed a few rods from his home by being run over by a wagon, having started for Adrian to attend the county fair; Caro- line Anna, born July 24th, 1851, died September 3d, 1855. Mrs. Miriam Older was born in Romulus, Seneca county, New York, January 3d, 1823, and died in Adrian, September 15th, 1855. March 8th, 1857, he married Miss Eleanor Hawley, daughter of Henry and Mary Ann Hawley, of Adrian, by whom he has had three children, as follows: Mary E., born October 25th, 1858, now the wife of Norman M. Peters, of Adrian; Charlie F., born January 5th, 1864, at home; Henry L., born December 2d, 1868, at home. All the children were born in Adrian. Mrs. Eleanor Older was born in Adrian, July 10th, 1835. Her father was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, February 8th, 1803, and came to Michigan
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