USA > New Jersey > Essex County > Newark > Biographical and genealogical history of the city of Newark and Essex County, New Jersey, V. 1 > Part 31
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The active public life Mr. Campbell led for so many years naturally brought him in contact with politics and political men. He took a lively interest in the same and was always found on the right side of every question. In early life he was an old-line Whig. At the organization of the Repub- lican party he allied himself with it and has been true to its principles ever since. He cast his vote for William Henry Harrison in 1840, in 1888 voted for the grandson of that grand old man, and in 1896 helped to
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elect President Mckinley. It is the wish of Mr. Campbell's numerous friends that he may yet live many years and be able to cast his vote for other presidents.
Mr. Campbell's long life may in a meas- ure be attributed to his temperate habits. He has never used intoxicating drink and, with the exception of a brief period when he smoked cigars, has never used tobacco. His sympathy is with the prohibition move- ment. For many years he has been a church member, is identified with the Con- gregational church, and for some time has served as a deacon of the same. He was formerly a member of the Presbyterian church of Bloomfield, and also served as an elder of the Presbyterian church of Montclair.
CHARLES M. DECKER.
The inevitable law of destiny accords to tireless and well directed energy a success- ful career, and this fact has ample verifica- tion in a specific way in the case of the subject of this review. Mr. Decker, who is recognized as distinctively one of the rep- resentative business men and most public- spirited citizens of that beautiful section of Essex county known as the Oranges, and who has attained the grateful prestige of worthy success in material affairs through his own ability and industry, has promoted public good through private en- terprise and has proved himself fully alive to those higher duties which represent the most valuable citizenship in any locality and at any period. His personal career and his genealogical history are such as to render him particularly eligible for repre- sentation within these pages.
The lineage of Mr. Decker touches two
distinct strains,-the New England, or transplanted and reinfused English, and the Holland. The characteristics of these two lines are so well known, that, if hered- ity implies aught, it can not but be taken for granted that any scion must possess the sturdy, pragmatic ability of the latter, coupled with the alertness, vigor and en- durance of the former. Certain it is that these attributes are manifest in the career of our subject and in his individuality have been most potent, for he has made the best use of his powers and has proved a profitable servant in the great field of life's economies.
Jacob Decker, grandfather of Charles M., was a native of Orange county, New York, whence he eventually removed to Chemung county, in the same state, where he married Eunice Kelsey, of whom it is recorded that she was the first white child born in the town of Ashland, that county, the date of her nativity having been March 16, 1789, and her father having been Abner Kelsey. The name of Johannis Decker is mentioned among those who settled in the town of Montgomery, Orange county, New York, between the years 1678 and 1778, and it is practically authenticated that he was either a son or grandson of Abraham Decker, the American progeni- tor, who came from Holland and settled in Copake, New York, about 1757. Jacob and Eunice (Kelsey) Decker became the parents of six sons and two daughters, one of the sons, Harrison Decker, who was born about 1821, at Wellsburg, Chemung county, New York, being the father of the immediate subject of this sketch. Harri- son Decker took unto himself a wife, in the person of Harriet Tubbs, daughter of Charles Tubbs, who was a lineal descend-
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ant of William Tubbs, of Duxbury, Massa- chusetts. The last-named was made a freeman of Plymouth colony in 1637, and in June of the same year he was one of those who volunteered for service in the expedition against the hostile Pequot In- dians, who were then committing serious depredations and otherwise proving a men- ace to the colonists. William Tubbs be- came a member of the historical company commanded by the famous Puritan, Miles Standish.
Charles M. Decker, son of Harrison and Harriet (Tubbs) Decker, was born at Wellsburg, Chemung county, New York, on the Ist of November, 1850. His edu- cational discipline was such as was af- forded by the public schools of his native town, and even as a boy he gave distinctive evidence of that ambition and self-reliant spirit which have been such potential fac- tors in insuring his success in connection with the material activities of life. His father was a successful business man and one whose character was such as to gain and retain to him the respect and confi- dence of the community in which he lived. He understood thoroughly the ambitious nature of his son and gave him all the en- couragement possible, recognizing that in the quickening of the inherent energies of the youth by actual conflict with the world would be engendered the maximum of strength and the greatest usefulness. Thus when Charles M. was but a lad of fourteen years he made his initial trip to New York city, with a view to seeking employment in the metropolis. After passing a brief in- terval in the city he concluded to continue his journey to Orange, New Jersey, to visit an old friend of his father's, Stephen D. Herman, who was at that time one of the
leading business men of this section. The young man met with a kindly reception, and through the influence of Mr. Herman secured employment in the grocery store of Benjamin F. Cairnes. After retaining this position about a year our subject en- tered the employ of Mr. Herman and con- tinued with him and his successors until 1869. Within this interval of faithful and efficient service Mr. Decker had become familiar with business methods and had duly profited by his experience. But one of so strong and resourceful individuality was certain to eventually seek wider fields of endeavor, and in 1870 Mr. Decker went to New York city, where, in the line of handling butter on commission basis, he engaged in business upon his own respon- sibility, continuing the same, with a fair measure of success, about one year, when, having just attained his legal majority, he returned to Orange and effected the pur- chase of the grocery business of his old em- ployer, Mr. Cairnes.
The courage of the young man and his keen discernment as to ultimate results were brought into evidence at this time, for he was not content to follow along in the old lines of undue conservatism, but showed his progressive ideas and enter- prise by inaugurating an entirely new sys- tem of conducting operations. Much of the trade of the locality was still deflected to the New York market, and Mr. Decker was convinced that by the proper methods this could be all, or practically all, retained in Orange. His prescience of the means necessary to attain the desired ends was manifest when he stocked his establish- ment with the finest lines of goods, pro- vided a free-delivery system and adopted the plan of extending only short credit.
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His labors were attended with success, for eventually the best suburban trade was drawn from New York to the home mar- ket, which offered equal inducements in the way of goods and better facilities in all other ways. After his lease of his original headquarters expired Mr. Decker removed his establishment to the opposite side of Main street, in East Orange, where he was provided with ample accommodations and facilities for carrying on his ever increas- ing business. He wisely adopted the plan of purchasing all goods for cash, thereby securing discounts which enabled him to offer inducements outside the reach of competition. His trade gradually ex- tended its ramifications throughout the Oranges and outlying towns and villages, and an idea of the expansion of the enter- prise may be gained from the statement that while the year 1871-2 recorded tran- sactions amounting to approximately ten thousand dollars, the annual business for 1893 had reached the notable aggregate of half a million dollars. The significance of this fact may not be fully appreciated at a glance, but a moment's thought will give one a comprehension of the ulterior or in- direct benefit derived from deflecting this additional trade from the metropolis to the immediate locality,-the influence upon the wealth and prosperity of the commu- nity is unmistakable.
In 1889 Mr. Decker opened a branch establishment in the Lindsley building, lo- cated on Main street, in Orange, and within the following year he purchased the Sharp property, at 222-4 Main street, where he erected a substantial and ornate building of approved modern architectural design, the same being one of the finest business structures in the county. The
front of the building is of Indiana stone, rubled, and its lateral dimensions are 50 X 100 feet, while it is four stories in height. The building extends through from Main street to Railroad avenue, and its total cost, including the land, was about sixty-five thousand dollars. It has been truly said that this, together with the new bank building, in whose erection Mr. Decker was largely instrumental, have added materially to the appearance of Or- ange as a business center and to the city in an architectural way. Mr. Decker has made other judicious investments in local realty, and has improved the same in a style indicative of his good taste and liberality.
Strenuously withholding himself from active participation in political affairs of the city and county, Mr. Decker has been by no means unmindful of the duties of citizenship along this line, and has given his influence to the promoting of good government and to all that conserves the progress and material prosperity of the community in which he has maintained his home for so long a period of years. He is known as a man of unswerving integrity in all the relations of life, and this may be said to be the key-note of a character which has ever appealed strongly to the confi- dence and esteem of all with whom he has come in contact.
By marriage Mr. Decker is connected with two of the oldest families in East Or- ange,-the Peck and the Jones families. In September, 1871, he was united in mar- riage to Miss Harriett L. Jones, daughter of Alfred and Margaret E. (Peck) Jones, two of the earliest settlers of that locality which was formerly known as Pecktown. Mr. and Mrs. Decker are the parents of nine children, whose names, in order of
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birth, are as follows: Margaret, Harrison, Harriett L., Arthur, May, Richard F., Katharyn and Laraus. Charles M., Jr., the third child born, is deceased.
ANDREW PETERSON,
now engaged in the manufacture of cigar boxes at No. 95 Bruce street, Newark, is carrying on a successful and extensive busi- ness, which is the legitimate result of his own well directed and persevering efforts. Even in a republic like ours, where there is no favored road to fame or wealth, where all may aspire to the highest point that am- bition may set without natural hindrances, individual failures are more numerous than individual successes; and it requires ex- cellent business qualities, the closest appli- cation and untiring energy to conquer the circumstances which forced him to start out in life for himself at the early age of ten, and make his way upward in the face of many difficulties. This Mr. Peterson has successfully accomplished. however, and is now at the head of a large and profit- able enterprise of Newark.
Born in West Orange township, Essex county, on the 6th of January, 1867, Mr. Peterson is a son of Peter A. and Agatha (Bork) Peterson. The father was born in the city of Varda, in one of the districts of Denmark, and was educated in his na- tive land. In his early manhood he learned the wheelwright's trade, which he followed until his emigration to America in 1866. Crossing the broad ocean, he landed at New York, and taking up his residence in Orange, New Jersey, entered the employ of Nicholas Alby, for whom he worked for some time, and next with Rob- ert Baldwin. After working for less than
two years at the trade of wheelwright, he decided to return to his native land and introduce many American methods of con- struction into that country. He engaged in the manufacture of wagons on the American plan and was very successful in that enterprise, acquiring thereby a fair competence. Later he converted his busi- ness into money, and in 1873 again came to the United States, locating in Newark, where he entered the employ of the firm of Meeker & Hedden, working for them in the capacity of wheelwright and stair- builder. He continued in their employ un- til 1876, when he took charge of an ex- hibit at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, and on its close he again entered the employ of Meeker & Hedden, with whom he continued for several years, or up to the time of his death, which oc- curred March 5, 1879. He was born March 12, 1844. He made investments in real estate after his second removal to America, and owned some valuable prop- erty. He was a consistent member of the church of the House of Prayer on Broad street, Newark, and was a man of the ut- most reliability.
June 2, 1866, Peter Peterson was mar- ried to Agatha Bork, and to them were born four children: Andrew; Annie, wife of Emil Rosetzky: they had one son, An- drew, who died at the age of one year; Jeremiah, of Newark, who married Miss Hemhouser and has two children; and Harry. After the death of Mr. Peterson his widow married John Williams, and by this marriage has one daughter, Orando A., born May 14, 1880.
In his early childhood Andrew Peterson returned with his parents to Denmark, where he attended school until the family
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once more came to America. He was af- terward a student in the schools of New- ark. At the early age of ten years he was obliged to earn his own living, and by his well directed efforts he acquired the money which- enabled him to pursue a course of study in the Coleman and New Jersey Business Colleges, thus being fitted for the practical and responsible duties of a busi- ness career. He then began to learn the cabinet-maker's trade, at which he served a three-years apprenticeship. He also worked for three years as a millwright and machinist. In 1889 and 1890 he worked upon and at length perfected an invention, consisting of a mechanical appliance for the construction of cigar boxes, and then em- barked in the manufacture of such boxes. In 1890 he admitted to a partnership in this business his brother-in-law, Ernest Riehman, opening a small factory at No. 20 Broom street. This connection was continued for about a year, when Mr. Peterson bought out his partner's interest and installed himself in the rear of 172 Newton street, Newark. For three years, he remained at that place, but his rapidly increasing trade necessitated his removal to more commodious quarters, and he pur- chased the ground at No. 95 Bruce street, erecting thereon a two-story building, twenty-five by fifty feet, and there he be- gan the manufacture of boxes by steam power. In 1895 he was again compelled to enlarge his plant and added another story to his building. He now has a well - equipped factory, manufacturing according to his own invention, and turns out five thousand boxes per week. The industry is now a profitable one and brings to the owner a well earned reward for his labor. Mr. Peterson was married in Newark, on
the 6th of February, 1889, to Miss Char- lotte Henrietta Riehman, a daughter of August and Dorothy Riehman. She is a member of the Presbyterian church, of Newark. Mr. Peterson belongs to several benevolent and social organizations, in- cluding Newark Lodge, No. 25, F. & A. M .; Orange Lodge, No. 135, B. P. O. E .; Golden Star Fraternity, Columbia Council, No. 4 .; and the society of the Young German-Americans of Newark. In his political views he is an ardent Republi- can.
AZARIAH H. CARTER,
who is well established in business in East Orange as a successful contractor and builder, is numbered among New Jersey's native sons, his birth having occurred in Madison, Morris county, on the 18th of April, 1837. His parents were Azariah Wesley and Abby (Force) Carter. The grandfather, Azariah Horton Carter, was also a native of Madison, Morris county, and was of Irish lineage. He was a farmer by occupation and followed that pursuit throughout his active business career. He was widely known for his generous hospi- tality, his benevolence and his Christian virtues, and his life was a benediction to all who knew him. He was instrumental in the organization of the first Presbyterian church in Madison, aiding in building the first house of worship, and by his means and influence contributed largely to its sup- port and progress. For a number of years he served gratuitously as its pastor, and ever earnestly endeavored to promote Christian enterprises. He died in 1852, at the advanced age of ninety years. It was "a father in Israel" that had fallen, a man
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beloved and honored by all, but the mem- ory of his noble life still is cherished by those who knew him. He had five sons and three daughters: Mahlon, Abraham, George, Azariah Wesley, Elias, Betsey, Phoebe and Mary.
Azariah Wesley Carter, the father of our subject, was born in 1810, received a com- mon-school education and spent his child- hood days under the parental roof. He also followed agricultural pursuits until his life's labors were ended, November 18, 1892. He married Abby Force, a daughter of Benjamin and Sarah Force, and six chil- dren were born of their union: Azariah Horton, whose name introduces this sketch; Harriet, wife of Ira De Hart, by whom she has two children; Elias, who died at the age of thirty-five years, after serving for three years as a member of the Twenty-seventh New Jersey Volunteers and had been honorably discharged; Mah- lon, who married Mary Brandt, and died in 1887, at the age of thirty-two, leaving one child, Mary, who married Joseph Kent and after his death became the wife of William Newman, while her death occurred in Oc- tober, 1894; Jane, who died at the age of seventeen years; and Phoebe, wife of James McMickle, by whom she has one child. The mother of this family departed this life at the age of seventy-eight years.
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Mr. Carter, of this review, spent his early boyhood days in Madison, where he at- tended the common schools. At the age of sixteen he began to learn the carpen- ter's trade under the direction of Asahel Bowen, who died a year and a half later, and Mr. Carter completed his apprentice- ship in the employ of Frank Springer. He afterward worked as a journeyman for a number of years, and in 1864 began busi-
ness on his own account in East Orange, where he soon established a reputation as a skilled contractor and builder, who had thoroughly mastered his business and ren- dered excellent service to his patrons. He has erected many modern residences in Orange and East Orange, which attest his architectural skill and are monuments to his thrift and enterprise. In 1867 he built his own commodious home at No. 373 Williams street.
Mr. Carter was married November 15, 1862, to Miss Esther A. Kent, a daughter of Simon and Jemimah (Day) Kent, who were of German lineage. Her grandfather, Jacob Kent, was a soldier in the Continental army during the war of the Revolution. He was a resident of Morris county, living near Greenwood lake, where he followed the quiet pursuits of the farm and also en- gaged in the manufacture of baskets. Dur- ing his service in the army he experienced the terrible hardships of the winter at Val- ley Forge. He married Affey Edwards and they became the parents of twelve children. He afterward married Keziah Dodd and they had nine children, all of whom reached mature years and became good Christian people.
Mr. and Mrs. Carter had the following children: Charles Harvey, born May II, 1864, married Carrie Coons and has two children,-Florence and Ethel; Freddie W., born August 3, 1865, died at the age of six years; Jennie, born December 28, 1868, is the wife of James E. Berry, and they have one child, Howard; Ella W., born November 6, 1872, died at the age of two years; Frank Wesley, born September 24, 1870, died at the age of two and a half years; Azariah Wesley, born January 24, 1879; Eva B., born November 24, 1881;
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Emma Force, born February 14, 1885; and Mildred Louise, born December 30, 1888.
The parents of this family are worthy Christian people, holding membership in the Calvary Methodist Episcopal church, of East Orange. Mr. Carter is an advo- cate of Democratic principles, but at local elections where no national issue is in- volved supports the men whom he thinks best qualified for the duties of the office regardless of party affiliations.
STEPHEN HAINES PLUM.
As general history is but composite biog- raphy, it naturally follows that the deepest human interest in study and investigation must lie along those lines where thought has engendered achievement, not less for the general than the individual good. In any locality where progress has left its con- secutive tracings by the way there must ever be a dominant interest in reverting to the lives which have been an integral part of such advancement,-whether on the lofty plane of "massive deeds and great," or in the more obscure levels where honest pur- pose and consecutive endeavor play their part not less nobly and effectively. New Jersey is peculiarly rich in historical lore, and it can not but be a matter of gratifica- tion to find, in these latter days of electrical progress, that to the favored common- wealth remains a numerous progeny of those who were the founders and honored pioneers of the state. The ancestry of him whose name initiates this review is shown by records extant to have been long and conspicuously identified with the annals of American history. The lineage traces to Samuel Plum, or Plumbe, as the originator of the Essex county branch of the family.
He was a son of John Plum, who removed from either Dorchester or Maldon, Essex county. England, and took up his abode in Wethersfield, Connecticut, prior to Sep- tember, 1636. In the succeeding year, be- fore deputies were introduced into the Con- necticut colony, he was a sort of ruler or colonial governor. He was a representa- tive in 1641 and served in a similar office twice thereafter. He eventually removed to Branford, before 1646, and his death oc- curred in that place about two years after- ward. Samuel Plum came from Branford, Connecticut, and settled in Newark, having been one of the company who came hither with Governor Treat, one of the colonial governors of Connecticut, and figured among the founders of the city of Newark. The year of his arrival here was 1666, and the old records of the city show that he be- came a man of no little prominence in the community, his vocation being that of a surveyor. He became the father of four sons and three daughters, and one of these sons married a daughter of Governor Treat, above referred to. The direct line of de- scent touching the immediate subject of this memoir is through Samuel's second son and fourth child, John (1), thence through John (2), John (3), Matthias and Stephen Haines, whose full patronymic is borne by our subject. Matthias Plum, the grandfather of Stephen Haines (2), was a well known and honored resident of New- ark, having been prominently identified with local affairs. The original orthogra- phy of the name was Plum, and later, until 1760, it was spelled Plume. The maiden name of our subject's mother was Margaret Monteith Todd, and she was born in Bel- videre, New Jersey, being the daughter of Michael Todd, who emigrated from Glas-
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gow, Scotland, and took up his residence in the United States in the latter part of the eighteenth century. He died while his children were yet young.
Stephen Haines Plum, father of our sub- ject, was born in the city of Newark, New Jersey, on the 7th of January, 1800, and for many years was a prominent merchant and shoe manufacturer of his native city, where he died in 1885, his wife having died Janu- ary 6, 1883.
Stephen H. Plum (2), the immediate sub- ject of this review, was born in Newark on the 12th of November, 1842, acquiring his educational discipline under the effective direction of Professor Nathan Hedges, who was widely known as a cultured man and a thorough instructor in the educational field. At the age of nineteen Mr. Plum completed his studies and secured a posi- tion in the City Bank of Newark, retaining the same for eighteen months, after which he became connected with the National Bank of the Republic, in New York city, where his promotion was insured, since he proved his abilities and his fidelity to the re- sponsible trusts imposed. He continued with this institution for but one year less than a quarter of a century, and during the last twelve years of service he held the of- fice of paying teller. His father died in 1885, leaving a large estate to be settled up, and on this account Mr. Plum resigned his position in the bank in order that he might devote his entire time and attention to his individual property interests. He spent eighteen months abroad, visiting England, Scotland, Ireland, France, Italy, Germany, Algeria and other foreign coun- tries, and since his return he has found that his private interests place demands which require his undivided attention.
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