USA > Michigan > Lenawee County > History and biographical record of Lenawee County, Michigan, Volume II > Part 27
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
facturing company for $50,000, $10,000 cash, $20,000 in company bonds, and $20,000 in stock in the company. He was one of the directors, and also one of the building committee. He was one of the principal projectors and heaviest stock holder in the erection of the Masonic Temple, in Adrian, and was one of its trustees, and President of the Board of Trustees for four years, and chairman of the building committee. In 1869 Mr Lawrence went to Grand Rapids and leased and furnished Sweet's Hotel, one of the largest in the State, then just completed. After running the house for six months, he sold his lease and furniture for $50,000, and again re- turned to Adrian, and for a short time was engaged in the livery business. He next purchased the Rowley farm, on Railroad street, which he owned for several years. In 1878 he purchased the ground so long and familiarly known as the Lenawee Connty Fair grounds. He has greatly improved this property, and has expended in actual outlay, over $18,000. He has erected new buildings, fences, etc. Every person in the county will remember the sad disaster-the fall of the grand stand, which had just been erected, and was still unfinished. Mr. Lawrence has twice been a candidate for the State Legislature, and once been a candidate for Mayor of Adrian. He has served four years as alderman of the Third ward of Adrian, and two years as chairman of the commit- tee on streets, doing excellent work throughout the city. For more than twenty years Lenawee county has been strongly Repub- lican in politics, but when he was a candidate for the Legislature, he greatly reduced the majority which had usually been given to the Republican candidates. He is an indefatigable and thor- ough worker in a political campaign, and very seldom fails when there is anything but a forlorn hope against him. October 11, 1841, Willis T. Lawrence married Jane Adelia Jackson, daughter of Hezekiah and Lovina Jackson, of Rochester, N. Y., by whom he had one daughter, Louisa F., born February 20, 1844, in Rochester, now the wife of John W. French. Mrs. Adelia Lawrence was born in Towanda, Bradford county, Pa., Oc- tober 11, 1824, and died in Rochester, N. Y., May 14, 1846. Hezekiah Jackson's father, Nathaniel Jackson, was born in Goshen, N. Y. Lovina Jackson was born in Montpelier, Vt., June 21, 1787. She was the daughter of Nathaniel Carpenter, a prominent man, who was one of four brothers who came from England in 1780, being the heirs of a large property in England, which is now in chancery. There is also a title of countess in the family. May 25, 1847, Willis T. Lawrence married Miss Marion Wads- worth, daughter of Joseph and Polly Wadsworth, of Pittstown, Rensselaer county, N. Y., by whom be has had two children, as
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follows: Marion Sela, born in Rochester, N. Y., May 15, 1848, now the wife of D. A. Whitney; Erin Hickok, born in the same place, December 31, 1849, and died October 12, 1850. Mrs. Ma- rion Lawrence was born in Pittstown, N. Y., August 27 1829. Her father was born in Bennington, Vt., February 15, 1795, and died of cholera, in Rochester, August 17, 1864. February 19, 1817, Mr. Wadsworth married Polly Haskins, daughter of Azariah and Eliza (Potter) Haskins, of Pittstown, N. Y. Mrs. Polly Wadsworth was born in Pittstown, May 15, 1799, and died in Rochester, April 18, 1861.
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ORNELIUS BANCROFT was born in Lockport, Niagara county, N. Y., August 27, 1830. His father, Neley Ban- croft, was born in Auburn, Worcester county, Mass., May 22, 1799, where he resided until after he was married. In the fall of 1827, he moved to Lockport, N. Y., where he purchased a farm and resided until 1835, when he came to Michigan and located land on section 18, in Rome, this county, settling on his land in October; he immediately put up a log house, 18x26, and made it very comfortable to pass the winter. The only inhabitants for a distance of four miles west, and half a mile east of him were the wolves, deer and bear, who asserted their rights, and made bold their attempts to scare or drive him away, by their hideous howls and frequent visits. He did not build a fire place in his house, for he was told that a large stove could be got in Adrian, and as soon as possible he went "to town" and purchased the first cook stove that was ever set up in the western part of the county, which cost $39.87. He cleared up sixty acres of land, built good buildings, and set out a good orchard, which he raised from seed brought from New York. He was one of the men who organized the township of Rome; also, the first school district and first Baptist church, and assisted in building the first frame church in the town, of which he was a member. He resided on this farm until his death, which oc- curred July 7, 1870. November 1, 1827, Neley Bancroft married Sally Stone, of Bennington county, Vt., who was born April 6, 1800, and died in Rome, this county, March 9, 1852. She was the mother of only one child. He was married the second time
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
December 4, 1852, to Ann Moore, of Bradford, Orange county, Vt., who now resides on the old homestead. Cornelius Bancroft came to Michigan with his parents in 1835, and has lived in Len- awee county ever since. He was the only child of his parents, and now owns and resides upon the farm his father located from the government, forty-five years ago. He was only five years old when he came to Michigan, and has no knowledge of any other home. Although he was young when he came here, he remembers very distinctly that Michigan of to-day is not what it was when he first saw it. He always lived with his parents, and assisted his father in clearing up the land, and appreciates fully what has been done to bring the county to its present proud position, of being one of the very best in the State. The present generation will never real- ize what their parents and grand parents have undergone here, seeming to think that everything was always about as it is now ; but happily, perhaps, for them that they do not know all that was endured and overcome. He remembers one instance that happened to his father while coming from Toledo to Adrian with his goods and family. The day was warm and he had taken his coat off and laid it upon the wagon, but it slipped off and was never found. In one of the pockets of this coat were one hundred dollars, nearly all the money he had with him. A thorough search and enquiry was made, but neither the coat nor the money was ever recovered. Following this was the loss of cows and oxen by disease. At three different times an ox died, breaking up the team, and finally the climax came by the burning up of the house and all its con- tents, March 18, 1841. To show the true friendship and sympathy of the people in those days, it is proper to record that friends and neighbors to the number of nearly one hundred turned out a few days after the fire and nearly completed a new house in one day, the timber being taken from the stump and one side hewed. Company came in after the new house was occupied, and a wide board laid across a barrel was the table, but the food was relished, and the visit was enjoyed just as much as if the furniture had been carved and polished mahogany. May 27, 1855, Cornelius Bancroft mar- ried Harriet M. Moore, daughter of William C. and Lucinda W. (Wells) Moore, of Union, Branch county, Mich., by whom he has had nine children, as follows: William W., born February 20, 1856; Mary E., born October 3, 1860; Rosa E., born March 25, 1863; Wallace G., born May 15, 1865; Herbert O., born May 15, 1867; Sarah A., born August 14, 1869; George H., born May 6, 1873; all born in Rome, and all at home; two died in infancy. Mrs. Harriet M. Bancroft was born in Bradford, Orange county, Vt., September 11, 1835, came to Michigan with her parents in (33)
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the fall of 1844, and settled in York, Washtenaw county, and in 1852 sold out and moved to Union, Branch county. Her parents are natives of Vermont, her father being born in Bradford, March 4, 1810, and died in Union, Branch county, Mich., April 12, 1873. Her mother was born in Marshfield, Washington county, April 30, 1814, and now resides in Union.
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ROWELL EDDY was born in Morristown, Morris county, New Jersey, April 6, 1811. His father, John Eddy, son of James and Marion Eddy, was born in the same place, where he lived until about the year 1815, when he went to the State of New York, and purchased a farm in Reading, Schuy- ler county. He was a cooper by trade, and at one time carried on a distillery in New Jersey, manufacturing cider and peach brandy. He owned a large farm in Reading, was a prominent man there, and was called as good a farmer as there was in the town- ship. He died there in the year 1825, aged 58 years. His an- cestors were English. He married Catharine Crane, daughter of Daniel and Rachel Crane, of Morris, New Jersey, by whom he had ten children, seven sons and three daughters, Crowell being the 5th child. Mrs. Catharine Eddy was born in Morris, N. J., and died in Reading, N. Y., in 1863, aged 80 years. Her an- cestors were Scotch. Crowell Eddy lived with his parents on a farm until he was about nineteen years old, when he went to Hammondsport, Steuben county, N. Y., and served an apprentice- ship at the carpenter and joiner's trade. He followed his trade in that vicinity until he was twenty-four years old, and in the fall of 1835 he went to Milan, Huron (now Erie) county, Ohio, and followed his trade until the spring of 1845, when he came to Michigan, and after stopping in Lenawee county a short time, he went on to Kalamazoo, and looked around for a few days. He then went to Chicago, and thence to Milwaukee, and many other points in Wisconsin, but finally returned to Michigan, and pur- chased a farm on section 12, in Franklin, this county, where he has resided ever since. He drove his own team the entire dis- tance, and had an excellent opportunity of seeing and judging of the country. He found no locality in his entire trip that suited him
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
so well as Lenawee county, and he also found that he could buy land cheaper here. He was offered between twenty and thirty acres of land by a man who had located on the north side of the river in Chicago, and started a small store. He was offered the entire tract for his team, wagon and harness, and a very small amount of money: After carefully looking over the premises, Mr. Eddy made up his mind to look further, and went on to Mil- waukee, where he was also offered land in the present city. If he had accepted either of these offers and held the property for a few years, he would have become a millionaire, for in both instances the land is now in the very heart of the cities. In October, 1845, he settled on his present farm, which was then nearly covered with timber, only fifteen acres of which had been cultivated. He now owns 200 acres, with about 180 acres under cultivation. He has erected a large stone house, and a number of barns and out-build- ings, and has one of the most desirable and productive farms in Lenawee county, having raised in 1880, forty tons of hay and 2,000 bushels of grain, besides having thirty head of horses and cattle, and 185 sheep. He also owns a farm in Manchester Wash- tenaw county. Mr. Eddy has always taken an interest in town- ship affairs, and holds himself in readiness to do his share of pub- lic improvement. He is at present justice of the peace, and has held the office for many years. He has also held many other minor offices. June 3, 1836, Crowell Eddy married Mary Am Spears, daughter of William and Love Spears, of Milan, Ohio, by whom he has had ten children, as follows: Catharine C., born in Milan, Ohio, June 9, 1838; Henry H., born in: Milan, January 5, 1841, was a soldier in the great rebellion, and member of the 93d Illinois Regiment, being promoted from sergeant to 1st lieutenant, now a merchant of Vinton, Iowa; Charles S., born in Milan, Oc- tober 12, 1842, was a soldier in the rebellion, and member of Com- pany E, 18th Michigan Regiment, and died at Jefferson Barracks, Mo., May 4, 1865; Edwin A., born in Milan, March 7, 1844, a farmer of Manchester, Washtenaw county; William G., born in Franklin, this county, January 12, 1847, a merchant of Vinton, Ia .; Amelia M., born same place, August 31, 1849, died March 6, 1857; Sarah E., born same place, February 2, 1851; John J., born same place, August 9, 1853, a merchant of Vinton, Ia .; Horace Greeley, born same place, May 1, 1855, a resident of Vinton, Ia .; Janies C., born same place, October 21, 1859, at home. Mrs. Mary A. Eddy was born in Pennfield, Monroe county, N. Y., February 3, 1817, and moved to Milan, Ohio, with her parents, before she was a year old. Her father was a native of Pennsyl- vania, and died in Milan, Ohio, in 1847, in the 80th year of his
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age. He was always a farmer, and was a thrifty, intelligent man, and filled the office of justice of the peace for nearly 50 years of his life. He married Love Watkins, of Ontario county, N. Y., by whom he had ten children, five sons and five daughters, Mrs. Eddy being the fourth daughter and eighth child. Love Spears died in Milan, in February, 1843, aged 61 years.
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R. DANIEL TODD was born in Peterborough, N. H., . December 17, 1827. His father, James B. Todd, was born in the same place, November 25, 1787, and was the son of John Todd. He lived in Peterborough until after he was married, and followed farming and laying stone wall. In the spring of 1828 he moved to Genesee county, N. Y., and purchased a farm of the Holland Land company, in Byron township. He cleared up 216 acres of land, built good buildings, and resided there until his death, which occurred May 27, 1863. February 8, 1816, James B. Todd married Sarah Appleton, daughter of Hon. Isaac Appleton, of Dublin, by whom he had eight children, Daniel be- ing the sixth child and third son. Mrs. Sarah Todd was born in Dublin, N. H., March 5, 1790, and is now living on the old farm in Byron, Genesee county, N. Y., in good mind and health, in her ninety-first year. The ancestors of the Todd family were Scotch- Irish, and came to this country early in the last century. Daniel Todd was brought up on a farm, and lived with his parents until he was about seventeen years old, when he went to the Alexander seminary, in Genesee county, where he remained two years. In the spring of 1848 he began the study of medicine with Dr. Bur- dett J. Lynde, of Byron, and remained there until July, 1849, when he went to Harvard college and attended the medical depart- ment and hospital, until June, 1850. During the summer of 1850 he came west, with the idea of prospecting for some locality in which to locate the next year, after he should graduate from Harvard. He went to Wisconsin, and on his way back he visited his sister, Mrs. Thomas F. Moore, who then lived in Medina, this county. There was a great deal of sickness in this county that season, and becoming acquainted with Dr. Kibbie, of Canandaigua, he persuaded him to remain during his vacation. That was the first season that typhoid fever appeared here, and, as Dr. Todd had
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
been brought in contact with the disease in the hospital at Harvard, and received special instructions in the disease, his treatment of it here was quite successful, and he had more business than he could attend to. His experience here that summer showed him that all of the New England notions would not work in the western country, and finally resolved to go to the Cincinnati Medical college, where the western ideas prevailed; but that fall his father was taken sick, and he returned home and finally graduated at the Buffalo Medical college, in March, 1851. About the 1st of April, 1851, he returned to Michigan and located at Canandaigua, this county, where he practiced very successfully until 1855: In the fall of 1855 he purchased a farm on sections 17 and 20, in Madi- son, where he lived only about one year, when he sold out and pur- chased another farm on section 10, where he resided and practiced his profession until 1870, when he moved to the city of Adrian, where he now resides and enjoys a lucrative practice. He served the town of Madison as supervisor two years, and town clerk three years. In the spring of 1878 he was elected alderman of the Fourth ward of Adrian, and was re-elected in the spring of 1880. What is the most remarkable about this circumstance is that he was the only Democrat elected in that ward for nearly twenty years. March 22, 1854, Dr. Daniel Todd married Julia S. Welch, daughter of James and Laura H. Welch, of Canandaigua, this county, by whom he has had four children, as follows: James Frederick, born in Madison, this county, September 12, 1856, now a resident of Detroit; Helen J., born same place, February 26, 1858; Emma L., born same place, May 12, 1861; William W., born same place, May 6, 1866 Mrs. Julia S. Todd was born in Man- dana, Onondaga county, N. Y., June 1, 1833, and came to Michigan with her parents in 1852, and settled on section 7, in Seneca. Her father was born at White Plains, N. Y., March 6, 1796. He married Laura H. Whaley, daughter of John and Samantha Whaley, of Mandana, N. Y.
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ALDEN WING was born in Washington, Berkshire county, Mass., April 12, 1814. His father, Elijah Wing, was born in Massachusetts, December 10, 1775, of Eng- lish parents, who settled in Massachusetts. He was a farmer and
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owned a farm in Berkshire county, but in 1825 he sold out and went to Cohocton, Steuben county, N. Y., where he resided until his death, which occurred April 11, 1843. He was a sturdy, hon- est farmer, who enjoyed the respect and confidence of all, with a retiring, modest and unassuming disposition, being a good citizen, neighbor and friend. About the vear 1805 he married Hannah Squires, of Tolland, Conn., by whom he had thirteen children, twelve of whom lived to become married men and women. Wal- den was the fifth child and fourth son. Mrs. Hannah Wing was born in Connecticut, February 4, 1786, and died in Rollin, this county, July 22, 1868. Walden Wing lived with his parents until his twenty-fifth year, when he came to Michigan in the fall of 1838, arriving in Tecumseh October 1st. In the spring of 1837 he came west to look for a home, and having a brother-in-law, Ancil Rogers, who then lived in Raisin, this county, he naturally visited him. He was so well pleased with Lenawee county that he concluded to settled here, leaving money with Mr. Rogers to pur- chase land, and returned to New York to get ready to bring his family the following year. August 22, 1837, the school section in Rollin was sold, and Mr. Rogers bid off eighty. acres. Mr. Wing came on the next year and settled on this land, and has resided there ever since. It was covered with heavy timber at that time, but he had neighbors near by, Joseph Beal, living about one hun- dred rods east, and his brother-in-law, A. H. Raymond, about the same distance west. Mr. Wing has made a desirable farm, with good buildings and all the comforts necessary for peace and happi- ness. He was one of the organizers of the Rollin M. E. church, in the spring of 1841, Rev. Gideon Shurtliff being the pastor. The first services were held in a log house, on the shore of Devil's lake. Mr. Wing has been a class leader in this church for thirty- five years, and assisted liberally in building the new and elegant brick church at Rollin center. January 12, 1837, Walden Wing married Elyira Raymond, daughter of Silas and Philura Ray- mond, of Cohocton, Steuben county, N. Y., by whom he had seven children, as follows: Stephen C., born in Cohocton, N. Y., June 13, 1838, died in Rollin, June 7, 1846; Oscar E., born in Rollin, January 31, 1841, died September 14, 1842; Philura H., born same place, August 25, 1843, was the wife of C. M. Reynolds, of Rollin, and died January 31, 1866; Henry S., born same place, August 8, 1845, died March 17, 1846; Mary L., born same place, October 9, 1848, now the wife of Thomas Malony, of Rollin; Crosby W., born same place, August 11, 1851, was killed in a rail- road accident near Rochester, Ind., June 9, 1878; Clarence O., born same place, June 19, 1858, works the home farm. Mrs.
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OF LENAWEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
Elvira Wing was born in Bath, Steuben county, N. Y., July 29, 1813, and came to Michigan with her husband in 1838. She died in Rollin, August 29, 1872. She was a woman of many virtues, and during the pioneer days of the township endeared herself to all by her constant thoughtfulness for the comfort and happiness of all. Mr. Wing was again married October 27, 1875, to Helen Morehouse, daughter of Aaron and Luncinda Morehouse, of Rollin. Mrs. Helen Wing was born in Ridgeway, Orleans county, N. Y., July 6, 1835. She came to Michigan with her parents in 1853, and settled in Albion. Her mother died there in 1864, and her father died in Rollin, this county, August 22, 1877, aged seventy years.
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OSEPH F. BAKER was born in Manchester, Ontario county, N. Y., June 18, 1819. He lived there with his par- ents until the spring of 1833, when his father, Joseph M. Baker, and all his family, consisting of his wife and eight chil- dren, came to Michigan and settled in Rome, this county. Joseph M. Baker first took up 240 acres, of land in Bedford, Monroe county, but was not satisfied there, and subsequently came to this county and took up 736 acres of land on sections 12 in Rome, 5, 6 and 7, in Adrian, and 30 in Franklin. That fall (1833) he sold his land in Monroe county, and afterward divided up his land in this county among his children, only retaining 140 acres him- self, which is now owned by his grandson, Joseph E. Baker. De- cember 27, 1801, Joseph M. Baker was married to Miss Sally Cruthers, daughter of John and Betsey Cruthers, of Phelps, Onta- rio county, N. Y., by whom he had eleven children, Joseph F. and Sally being twins, and were the eighth and ninth children. Jo- seph M. Baker died in Adrian, May 27, 1872. He was born in Adams, Mass., February 19, 1780. His ancestors were undoubt- edly German and English. Mrs. Sally Baker was born at Half Moon, N. Y., of Irish parents, in 1778, and died in Rome, Sep- tember 15, 1851. Joseph F. Baker was brought up a farmer, and has never engaged in any other business. He finally came into possession of his father's homestead, and lived there until about 1865, when he purchased a farm on sections 22 and 29, in Adrian, about 23 miles west of the city, where he now resides. His farm
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consists of 192 acres, and is a desirable, productive one. He has dealt quite largely in stock, but has paid his attention more par- ticularly to mixed farming, believing that to be the most profita- ble for farmers in his circumstances. Mr. Baker has always been an active man in his township, but has never been an office-holder to any great extent. He has served four years as justice of the peace in Rome, and nine years as road commissioner. He has been quite active in politics, always being a Democrat, and has served many times as delegate to both county and State conventions. October 17, 1845, Joseph F. Baker was married to Miss Cynthia M. Dewey, daughter of Col. Edward B. and Sarah (Cooper) Dewey, of Man- chester, Ontario county, N. Y., by whom he had three children, as follows: Xara F., born July 29, 1847, died September 10, 1851; Joseph E., born April 12, 1853, now a farmer of Rome; one daughter died in infancy. Mrs. Cynthia Baker was born in Man- chester, Ontario county, N. Y., January 29, 1828, came to Michi- gan with her husband in 1845, and died in Rome, October 15, 1857. October 17, 1858, Joseph F. Baker was married to Mrs. Anna D. Teachout, widow of Alonzo Teachout, and sister of his first wife, by whom he has one child, Cynthia Jo Anna, born in Adrian, January 10, 1866, died February 17, 1875. Mrs. Anna D. Baker was born in Manchester, Ontario county, N. Y., Decem- ber 19, 1822, and came to Michigan in 1858. She is the mother of three children by Alonzo Teachout, as follows: Oscar L., born in Manchester, Ontario county, N. Y., July 22, 1841, now a resident of Austin, Texas ; Sarah A., born in the same place, July 2, 1843, was the wife of Samuel B. Gambee, of Rome, and died November 21, 1870; Frank D., born in the same place, February 29, 1852, a farmer of Rome.
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TEPHEN H. ALDRICH was born in Palmyra, Ontario county, (now Macedon, Wayne county,) N. Y., March 5, 1817. His father, Jabez Aldrich, was born in Northbridge, Mass., about the year 1795, and lived there until he was twelve years old, when his father, Asa Aldrich, moved to Palmyra, N. Y., and purchased a farm in the present town of Macedon. Jabez Aldrich lived with his parents until he was about twenty-one, and
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