USA > Michigan > Lenawee County > History and biographical record of Lenawee County, Michigan, Volume I > Part 46
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
the personal efforts of Mr. Graves and his brother-in-law, Horace Sayles, composed of six stockholders, as follows : Horace Sayles, president and director ; William Graves, vice-president and direc- tor ; Stephen B. Mann, secretary and director ; Benjamin Kelly, director ; Albert Hoxie, superintendent and director ; Edson G. Walker. The factory is now in a prosperous condition, and has a capacity of three hundred bushels of apples every twenty-four hours. April 3d, 1844 he married Miss Lucinda Slade, daughter of Benjamin Slade, of Palmyra, by whom he had three children, as follows : Watson F., died at the age of two and a half years ; Madison M., born August 10th, 1849, manufacturer of willow baskets in Palmyra; Lewis W., born September 18th, 1856, a farmer of Palmyra. Mrs. Lucinda Graves was born in Niagara county, New York, in 1822, and died in Palmyra, December 14th, 1856. March 27th, 1862, he married Miss Amy Sayles, daughter of Lyman Sayles, of Palmyra. [For her family connection, see Horace Sayles' record on another page.]
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ICHAEL MCADAM was born in county Fermanaugh, Ireland, April 23d, 1816. His father, Barard McAdam, was born in the same county, where he was a farmer, and his family did a good deal of weaving, making considerable Irish linen. Barard McAdam owned his father's farm and always lived there until his death. He married Miss Ann McDonald, of the same county, by whom he had eleven children, seven sons and four daughters, Michael being the fourth son and fifth child. Michael McAdam, when a boy, had very little school advantages, spending most of his young days, and some nights, at the loom, He lived with his parents until he was about eighteen years old, when in the spring of 1835, he came to America, and, in the fall of that year, in company with his brother, Patrick McAdam, came to Adrian, and the very next day after their arrival they commenced work on the Erie and Kalamazoo railroad, just east of Palmyra village. They continued on the road until it was finished from Toledo to Adrian, helping lay the iron from the Cottonwood swamp to Adrian, and were on board the first (horse) cars that ever passed over the road. Subsequently he, with his brother Patrick, and Daniel Clark, took a contract to build three miles of road-bed for the Michigan Southern railroad, two miles east and one mile west of Clayton. Michael did not stay until the job was
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
finished, but returned to Adrian and was engaged in the warehouse of Henry Hart and John A. Rice, for some years. He also worked in a warehouse in Monroe for Sterling & Noble. In 1834 Patrick McAdam came to this county from the State of New York, and took up the s. w. { of section four in Ogden, and returned. In January, 1847, Michael purchased this land of his brother and moved upon it the following May. The farm was new at that time, but he has now eighty acres under a high state of cultivation, with nearly all the stumps out. He has erected a fine large brick house, with good barns and sheds. He has always been an active citizen, and has done his share of improving and building in Ogden. April 12th, 1847, he married Miss Esther Baker, daugh- ter of Thomas Baker, of Madison, this county, by whom he has had seven children, as follows: Sarah M., born March 25th, 1848, wife of Ruel A. Freeman, of Ogden ; Ann Eliza, born August 31st, 1850, of Leadville, Colorado; Mary E., born August 16th, 1852, now the wife of John J. Bradley, of Ogden; Daniel W., born September 9th, 1854, a farmer of Ogden; Nellie E., born December 28th, 1859, at home; Caleb E., born October 14th, 1861, at home ; Francis T., born September 4th, 1863, at home. All the children were born in Ogden. Mrs. Esther McAdam was born April 1st, 1828, in Sussex, England, and came to this country with her parents in 1834. [For her family relation see William Still's record on another page.]
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LINTON A. BLACKMAR was born in Wales, Erie county, New York, October 24th, 1824. His father, Charles Black- mar, was born in Massachusetts, December 25th, 1784. He married Miss Eleanor Rice, who was born in Rhode Island, March 20th, 1790. She died in Woodstock, this county, March 20th, 1856. Mr. and Mrs. Blackmar had eight children, four sons and four daughters. Clinton A. Blackmar lived at home until he was twenty-three years old. His father died when he was eight years old, and after that event he lived with his mother. His educa- tion consisted of what learning he could get in the first schools of the county. In 1847 he, with his brother Charles, purchased the old homestead, situated on the Chicago turnpike, on sections six and seven, in Cambridge. In 1849 he purchased his brother 58
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
Charles' interest in the property, and since that time has resided there. His father built a log tavern in 1829, at that time being the only house between Tecumseh and Jonesville, nearly midway of the "forty-mile woods," so called in those days, between the above named villages. His father was very poor when he came, and lived under a white oak tree for several days, and commenced "keeping hotel" under this tree the first night, and had several guests, as some travelers came along and were glad of the accom- modations offered. After a few days he rolled up a temporary log house, which he lived in, and kept hotel for about five years, and was one of the most popular landlords in the country. In 1834 he commenced the erection of a frame house, but during that summer a traveler came along and stopped with him, who died with the cholera which he had contracted in Detroit. Mr. Blackmar nursed him during his brief sickness, and shortly after the stranger's death, he was attacked with the dread scourge, and died August 22d, 1834. His death caused general mourning throughout the entire settlement, and even the Indians, with whom he was very friendly, wept like children at the loss of their old friend. The Indians had great respect for him, as on one occasion a petty Pot- tawatomie chief, Me-te-aw, came to his house intoxicated, and wanted whisky, and undertook to help himself to it, when Mr. Blackmar threw him out of the house, striking him several times, somewhat severely. He gathered himself up and ran away, whooping his loudest. In a few days he returned, sober, with several other Indians, and begged for peace and friendship, saying, "I boss Iujun, you boss che-mo ka-man," (white man.) Old Baw- Beese was the chief of the Pottawatomies, and often called and ordered his meals, and wanted to pay "two shilling like white man." The frame hotel building was finished by the family, and kept as a hotel for several years. In 1858 Clinton erected a fine brick house a few rods west, and tore down the old hotel. No- vember 1st, 1848, Clinton A. Blackmar married Miss Marinda Myers, daughter of Daniel and Deborah Myers, of Cambridge, by whom he had five children, as follows: Howard A., born Sep- tember 16th, 1849, now a druggist of Charlotte, Michigan ; Jerome B., born September 15th, 1853, died August 24th, 1854; George H., born May 13th, 1856, a resident of Alma, Gratiot county, Michigan ; Francis, born August 15th, 1857, at home ; Willie L., born November 17th, 1860, at home. Mrs. Marinda Blackmar was born in Portage county, Ohio, February 1st, .1826. Her parents came to Michigan in 1836, and settled in Cambridge. April 2d, 1862, he married Mrs. Anna M. Norris, daughter of John and Mary Rosebrugh, of Tecumseh. Her father was born
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
in Groveland, Livingston county, New York, in 1794, and died in Tecumseh in 1873. Her mother was a native of Pennsylvania, and was born in 1800. They came to Michigan in 1852.
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ORMAN F. BRADISH was born in Macedon, Wayne county, New York, August 25th, 1822. His father, Calvin Bradish, was born in Massachusetts. [See Augustus W. Bradish's record. ] Norman F. Bradish lived with his father until he was about twenty years old. He came to Michigan with his parents in 1831, and consequently enjoyed very little school advan- tages. When he was twenty years old, he and his brother, Wellington, worked his father's farm on shares, and continued for a year or two. About the year 1844 he came into possession of a part of the homestead, and has resided there ever since. In 1860 he purchased sixty-five acres on section twenty-two, it being a part of the old " Dick " Lewis farm. He also owns thirty acres more on the same section, being a part of his father's first purchase. Mr. Bradish came to Michigan when he was but ten years old, and is one of the oldest residents now living in the town of Madison. When he first saw the township there were but about four families within its present limits. The first school house erected in the township was one which stood for many years on the ground where Daniel Welch's residence now stands, on the corner of South Main and River streets, in the city of Adrian. The second school house was a log one, and stood on the corner, where the Randolph tavern now stands, at Randolph's Corners, on land then owned by Cassan- der Peters. Here is where Mr. Bradish received his education. The first child born in the township was Myron Bradish, son of Nelson Bradish. He still resides in the township. When the first settlers came in, they always sought springs or brooks, and located near them. Aaron Baker was one of the first settlers in Madison, and for some years, carried water nearly half a mile, but one morning he told his wife he was going to dig a well. His wife afterwards said he dug the well quicker than he often went after water. This was probably the first well, dug in the township. October 7th, 1845, Norman F. Bradish married Miss Caroline M. Caton, daughter of John and Elizabeth Caton, of Palmyra, New York, by whom he has had five children, as follows : Mentha A., born September 11th, 1846, and died January 23d, 1852; Helen A., born January 23d, 1849, died August 1st, 1851 ; Russell N.,
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
born February 22d, 1852, a farmer of Madison ; Mentha Amanda, born June 18th, 1854, now the wife of George B. Horton, of Fair- field : Maggie A., born May 25th, 1862, died February 18th, 1864. Mrs. Caroline M. Bradish was born in Palmyra, Wayne county, New York, September 30th, 1826, and came to Michigan with Mr. and Mrs. Nehemiah Colvin, and settled in Palmyra, in 1836. When Mrs. Bradish was a child only fifteen months old, her mother died, and she was brought up by Mr. and Mrs. Colvin, until she was about fourteen years old. She then lived with Mrs. Polly Harvey, mother of John Harvey, until she was married. She never knew much about her father, as, soon after her mother's death, he went to New Jersey, and was married again. She has never seen him since that time.
- ON. GIDEON D. PERRY was born in Palmyra, Wayne county, New York, October 25th, 1811. His father, Israel Perry, was born in Rhode Island, and moved with his par- ents, when quite young, to the State of New York, and finally, in his manhood, settled in Palmyra, Wayne county, where he lived until his death, as a farmer. He was connected with the same fam- ily as Commodore Perry. The family sprung from three brothers named Perry who came from England in the seventeenth century. He had two brothers, Pierce and Blake Perry; Pierce was a soldier in the war of 1812, and died in the service ; Blake was a sea captain, his vessel, himself and all on board being lost at sea. About 1810 Israel Perry married Miss Mary Durfee, daughter of Gideon and Hannah Durfee, of Rhode Island, by whom he had five children, Gideon D. being the oldest. Mrs. Mary Perry died in Palmyra, in 1825. Gideon D. Perry left his father's home when he was nineteen years old. He had been brought up a farmer, but after leaving home, he commenced teaching and going to school, and continued until 1833, when he commenced preaching, and was admitted to the Genesee conference of the Methodist Episcopal church. He preached for about eleven years, when, owing to poor health, he was compelled to give it up. In 1843 he came to Michigan, and settled on section twenty-six, in Frank- lin, on a new farm, where he has resided ever since. He was the first to introduce the system of Homeopathy in Michigan. In the spring of 1856 he was elected supervisor of Franklin, and every
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
vote polled in the township, for supervisor, was cast for him. He was elected chairman of the board that year. In the fall of 1856 he was elected a member of the House of Representatives of the Michigan Legislature. In 1858 he was elected a member of the State Senate, and served upon important committees. Since his his residence in Michigan, he has preached, more or less, every year, and during the first few years, he officiated at many funerals. June 26th, 1839, he married Miss Rebecca Buckley, of Milo, Yates county, New York. She died December 27th, 1841, with- out issue. January 26th, 1843, he married Miss Margaret Osborn, daughter of Thomas and Mary Osborn, of Ovid, Seneca county, New York, by whom he has had five children, as follows : M. Alice, born November 13th, 1844, now the wife of F. W. Dickey, of Marshall, Michigan ; Thomas O., born February 28th, 1847, of Batavia, Illinois ; Maggie R., born June 16th, 1850, now the wife of Joseph R. Keeney, of Franklin ; Jennie M., born Febru- ary 27th, 1856, at home; Eva A., born November 23d, 1857, at home. Mrs. Margaret Perry was born in Ovid, Seneca county, New York, December 29th, 1816. Her parents were pioneers of Seneca county, New York. Her mother was the daughter of John Hogarth, of Ovid, New York. She was born near Belfast, Ireland, and came to this country with her parents when she was eight years old. Her father was a descendant of the great painter, Hogarth. [For Mrs. Perry's family relations, see the record of her brother, William H. Osborn.]
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ON. CORNELIUS KNAPP was born in Nassau, Rens- selaer county, New York, July 12th, 1824. His father, Reuben Knapp, was born in Cherry Valley, New York, in 1799, and moved to Nassau with his parents when a boy. He re- sided there until he was about twenty-four years old, when he moved to Perrinton, Monroe county, where he rented a farm and lived about three years. In the spring of 1827 he moved to Gay- land, Wayne county, and purchased a farm. He lived in Gayland until the fall of 1835, when he sold out and came to Michigan, and settled on section seventeen, in Rome, this county, where he has resided ever since. After his settlement here, he took an active interest in the growth and development of his township, and has always been a prominent and respected citizen. He has lived a quiet but an honorable life, never seeking after notoriety or prom-
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
inence. About the year 1832 he united with the Baptist church, at Clyde, New York, and has always been an earnest, consistent member, and was one of the first to assist in organizing the Second Baptist church, of Rome. October 22d, 1822, he married Miss Polly Marks, daughter of Joseph Marks, of Nassau, New York, by whom he had six children, Cornelius being the second child. Mrs. Polly Knapp was a native of New York, and was born No- vember 25th, 1790, of German extraction, her mother's name be- ing Steinhardt. She died in Rome, December 24th, 1847. Oc- tober 31st, 1848, he married Miss Harriet E. Hicks, of Nassau, New York. She died in Rome, August 12th, 1849. May 24th, 1850, he married Miss Ellen M. Gurley, by whom he has had two sons. Cornelius Knapp, the subject of this sketch, came to Michi- gan with his parents in 1835, and was brought up a farmer. He received his education in a log school house which stood a short distance from his father's house. At the age of nineteen he con- menced to learn the carpenter's trade, and followed it for twelve years. In 1849 he purchased a farm on section eighteen, in Rome, and in 1851 he moved upon it, and has resided there ever since. In 1865 he was elected supervisor of Rome, and held the office for eleven consecutive years. In 1877 he was again elected super- visor, and was re-elected in 1878-9. In 1870 he was elected a member of the House of Representatives of the Michigan Legisla- ture. January 27th, 1848, he married Miss Harriett H. Jeffery, daughter of James K. and Harriett H. Jeffery, of Rome, by whom he has had two children, as follows: Rebecca M., born December 21st, 1848, now the wife of H. H. Ferguson, of Rome ; one son died in infancy. Mrs. Harriett H. Knapp was born in Sand- gate, Kent county, England, December 3d, 1827. [For her family connection, see James K. Jeffery's record.]
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ELIX A. WILCOX was born in Manlius, Onondaga county, New York, July 24th, 1815. His father, David Wilcox was born in Charlestown, Montgomery county, New York, about 1792. When a young man he went to Charlestown, where he has always lived. He has always been a farmer and cleared the land he now lives on, and has always been a quiet, honorable, religious man. Abont the year 1812 he married Miss Sarah Ruc, of Charlestown, by whom he had five children, Felix
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
A. being the oldest son. Mrs Sarah Wilcox was born in Charles- town, and died there in 1822. In 1823 David Wilcox married Miss Asenath Noble, of Manlius, New York, by whom he had two children. She died sonie years ago. Mr. Wilcox is still living on his farm in Manlius. Felix A. Wilcox lived with his parents until he was about seventeen years old, and received a common school education. In 1833 he went on the Erie canal and acted as steersman, bowsman, and general assistant until the fall of 1836. In the spring of 1837 he came to Michigan, and stopped in Monroe, where he commenced work for J. Q. Adams, and assisted in con- structing a railroad from the city to the pier, a distance of about four miles, and also in building a warehouse. In the spring of 1838, he commenced work on the Michigan Southern railroad, the construction of which was then commenced at Monroe. During the latter part of August that year, he was put in charge of a gang of men and built two miles of track in Blissfield and Palmyra. In the spring of 1839, through the advice of Henry Hart, he came to Adrian, and took a contract from Silas Crane and Abel Whitney, and laid the superstructure of the road from the LeRoy bridge to Adrian, with all necessary turn-outs. In 1841, Mr. Wilcox pur- chased the w. ¿ of the s. w. ¿ of section four in Rollin, and in March, 1845, settled there, and has resided in the township ever since. In 1872 he sold his farm and lived in the village of Addi- son nearly two years, when he went upon a farm again. He has served as supervisor of Rollin for five years. He was deputy sheriff under J. R. Bennett, and also under Col. S. B. Smith, and was constable for several years. He arrested the murderer, Bivins, who killed his wife, father and mother, at their home in Wood- stock, and set fire to the house and burned their bodies. The fol- lowing spring he arrested James Pennock, also of Woodstock, for the murder of his wife. In 1863 he commenced recruiting for the army, and in 1864 was appointed enrolling officer for Rollin, and did all of the recruiting, and filled the quota of the township, paying all bounties and filling all calls until the close of the Re- bellion, in 1865. In Palmyra, this county, April 6th, 1841, he married Miss Elizabeth Little, daughter of Thomas and Hannah Little, of England, by whom he had five children, as follows: David H., born in Palmyra, February 22d, 1843, now a farmer of Rollin; Thomas L., born in Rollin, November 7th, 1845, now a farmer of Leslie, Ingham county ; Lois A., born in Rollin, May 15th, 1850, now the wife Eli A. Beal, of Rollin; Wallace A., born in Rollin, April 29th, 1853, a resident of Addison ; Mary A., born in Rollin, February 26th, 1856, at home. Mrs. Elizabeth Wilcox was born in Kings Wood, England, November 24th, 1813, and
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
eame to this country, with her uncle and aunt, in July, 1834, and settled in Palmyra, this county, that year. She died in Rollin, February 27th, 1878.
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OHN CHENEY was born in Tunbridge, Vermont, Septem- ber 4th, 1802. His father, John Cheney, was born in New Hampshire, in 1765, and when a young man, learned the shoe-maker's trade, which he followed mostly through life. In 1803 he moved to Scipio, Cayuga county, New York. In 1809 he moved to Parma, Monroe county, New York, where he pur- chased a new farm, and where he died, about 1840. In 1788 he married Miss Lucy Fairservis, by whom he had ten children, John being the eighth child and fifth son, and is now the only survivor of the family. Mrs. Lucy Cheney was born in New Hampshire, in 1770, and died in Parma, New York, in 1810. John Cheney, the subject of this sketeh, never lived with his parents after he was seven years old, and received very little education. At the age of fourteen he eommeneed working by the month, in Monroe county, New York, until 1829, when he purehased a farm in Parma, that county. He lived on this farm until the spring of 1833, when he emigrated to Michigan, and settled in Madison, Lenawee eounty. He lived in Madison until 1847, when he sold out, and purehased land on section thirteen, in Fairfield, where he now resides. At the same time he purchased eighty aeres on section twenty-four. He afterwards purchased seventy-five aeres in Ogden. January 1st, 1827, he married Miss Louisa Fineh, daughter of Asahel, Sr., and Elizabeth Finch, (and sister of Asahel Fineh, Jr., a former old resident and pioneer business man of Adrian,) of Ogden, Mon- roe county, New York, by whom he had nine children, as follows : Edward S., born in Rochester, New York, July 9th, 1828, and died from disease contracted in the army-being a member of Company K, 11th Michigan Infantry, in the war of the Rebellion -March 24th, 1863; Evaline F., born in Parma, New York, February 15th, 1832, at home ; George P., born in Madison, this county, June 30th, 1834, and died September 15th, 1854; Delphi- na A., born in Madison, August 29th, 1836, wife of William Jenkins, of Ogden, died April 17th, 1879; Alpherous, born in Madison, November 30th, 1838, now of Lueas county, Ohio ; Cullen T., born in Madison, May 26th, 1841, a farmer of Fair-
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
field ; John N., born in Madison, July 7th, 1843, a farmer of Ogden ; Dewitt B., born in Madison, August 19th, 1845, and died April 7th, 1864; William H., born in Fairfield, July 12th, 1847, a farmer of Ogden. Mrs. Louisa Cheney was born in Genoa, Cayuga county, New York, May 3d, 1807, and died in Fairfield, July 31st, 1879. Her father, Asahel Finch, Sr., was born in Catskill, New York, December 4th, 1775, and died in Waukesha, Wisconsin, in 1859. Her mother, Elizabeth Finch, was born in Durham, New York, August 1st, 1778, and died in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1845.
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ARZILLA W. ARNOLD was born in Stafford, Monmouth county, New Jersey, May 28th, 1803. £ His father, John Arnold, was born at Barnegat, New Jersey, in 1779, and lived in New Jersey until 1806, when he moved to Wayne county, New York, near Palmyra. When he was a boy, he learned the tailor's trade, which he always followed until he came to Michigan, in 1829, settling in Washtenaw county, near Saline. In 1830 he moved to this county, and worked land for Darius Comstock, in Raisin, one year. In the spring of 1831 he purchased a farm in Madison, which he owned until the spring of 1833, when he pur- chased a large farm on Black creek, in Fairfield. At the time the township was organized, he proposed that it be called Fairfield, which was adopted. He was the first clerk of the Township. He afterwards sold his farm to William Wilbur, and purchased a farm in Seneca, where he died, February 24th, 1876. He was first married about 1802, to Miss Rachel Southward, of Hocking, New Jersey. She died in Wayne county, New York, in 1807. He afterwards married Mrs. Sarah Walker, of Palmyra, New York. She died in Seneca, this county, in 1839. He then married Mrs, Abigail Williams, who died in 1872. Barzilla W. Arnold lived at home until his fifteenth year. His father then " hired him out " by the month, until he was seventeen years old, when he went for himself, and in 1819 and in 1820 he assisted in digging the Erie canal, in Monroe county. In 1821 he commenced learning the trade of making spinning wheels and chairs, which he followed until 1825, when he went to boating on the canal. In 1833 he came to Michigan, and settled in Fairfield. Since that time he has 59
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HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD
owned three new farms on the " ridge," on sections twenty-three, twenty five and twenty-six. June 30th, 1825, he married Miss Hannah Havens, daughter of John and Sarah Havens, of Wayne county, New York, by whom he has had seven children, as follows: Levi J., born in Ontario, New York, April 24th, 1828, of Fairfield, this county ; Melinda, born in Macedon, New York, July 12th, 1830, died in Fairfield, July 1st, 1847 ; Sally Ann, born in Macedon, New York, September 2d, 1833, and died in Fairfield, in June, 1844; Lydia and Lucy, (twins) born in Fairfield, March 20th, 1839; Lydia is the wife of Samuel W. Davis, of Fairfield, and Lucy died in her third year ; Lucy Jane, born in Fairfield, June 20th, 1843, at home; Rachel F., born in Fairfield, November 23d, 1845, now the wife of Henry E. Hatt, of Fairfield. Mrs. Hannah Arnold was born at Egg Harbor, New Jersey, April 20th, 1807, and came to Michigan with her husband in 1833. Her parents were pioneers of Wayne county, New York, where her father died in the spring of 1833. Her mother came to Michigan, and died in Fairfield, in June, 1834.
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