USA > New Jersey > Memorial cyclopedia of New Jersey, Volume II > Part 23
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BROWN, Abel Swan,
Man of Large Affairs.
Abel Swan Brown, late of Passaic, New Jersey, was a descendant of James Brown, one of the early settlers of Hatfield, Mas- sachusetts. Rev. Abel Brown, father of the Mr. Brown of this sketch, was ordain- ed a minister of the Baptist church in 1837. He was active in the "Underground Railway" to assist slaves on their way to Canada, and in 1839 was appointed agent
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of the Western Education Society, and assisted in raising $80,000 to found a co !- lege. He had married, in 1835, Mary Ann Brigham, who was an active worker in the temperance cause, was the founder of the Orphans' Home in Albany, and at the time of her death at the early age of twenty- seven years, editress of "The Golden Rule," in that city. Mr. Brown was associated with E. W. Goodwin in the publication of "The Tocsin of Liberty," at Albany, New York, in 1842. He married (second) in 1843, Catherine, a daughter of Samuel Swan, of Hubbardston, Massachusetts. Mrs. Brown was at that time the agent of the Eastern New York Anti-Slavery So- ciety, and she assisted Mr. Brown at his meetings by singing and speaking. Mr. Brown died in Canandaigua, New York. in 1844, after a short illness, and his widow married (second) in 1855, Rev. Charles Spear, a Universalist minister of Boston, now also deceased.
Abel Swan Brown, only child of Rev. Abel and Catherine (Swan) Brown. was born at Hubbardston, Massachusetts, July 3, 1845, and died at his home in Passaic, New Jersey, September 6, 1899. His mother having remarried, he was brought up by his grandparents in Hubbardston, and there attended school until he had at- tained the age of sixteen years. He also benefited by one term in a Boston school. He then obtained a position in the dry goods store of Josiah H. Clarke, of Wor- cester, Massachusetts. where he soon proved his ability as a salesman. He was twenty years of age when he entered the employ of the firm of Lathrop, Ludington & Company, an important dry goods house in New York, his uncle, Reuben Swan, being a member of the firm. At the end of three years he obtained a position with H. B. Claflin & Company, of New York, and held an important position with this firm for a period of eleven years. In 1880 Mr. Brown organized the Syndicate Trading Company, with the main office in
New York City and branch offices at Man- chester, England; Paris, France ; St. Gall, Switzerland; and Chemnitz, Germany. He was elected to the presidency of this cor- poration, an office he filled with remark- able executive ability throughout the re- mainder of his life. The original firnis forming this company were: Adam, Mel- drum & Anderson, of Buffalo, New York ; Callender, McAuslan & Troup, of Provi- dence, Rhode Island; Brown & Thomp- son, of Hartford, Connecticut ; Forbes & Wallace, of Springfield, Illinois ; Sibley, Lindsay & Curr, of Rochester, New York ; Taylor & Kilpatrick, of Cleveland, Ohio. Later, other leading department houses joined the concern, until it was composed of the largest and most progressive de- partment stores of the United States. The Syndicate Trading Company grew to be the largest business of its kind in the country, their annual purchases amount- ing to upward of $20,000,000 worth of goods annually. When the senior partner of Denholm & McKay, one of the firms of the Syndicate, died in 1890, Mr. Brown acquired a controlling interest in this cor- poration, which owned the Boston Store in Worcester. He became the president of the Boston Store, and after that he spent a part of each week in Worcester, and the other part in New York. Subse- quently he held the same official position in the Pettis Dry Goods Company, of Indianapolis, Indiana ; and became vice- president of the Callender, McAuslan & Troup Company, and of the Doggett Dry Goods Company, of Kansas City, Mis- souri.
He made his home in Brooklyn, New York, until 1880, when he removed to Passaic, New Jersey. After he had be- come interested in the Boston Store, in Worcester, he made his summer home there, calling this "The Hermitage," this being one of the "show places" of that vicinity. His estate there consists of about six hundred and fifty acres, known as
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"Wildwood Park," and in this place he provided a day of enjoyment, annually, for his employees in the Boston Store, who came with their families. In Wor- cester he attended the Main Street Baptist Church, and was a member of the Bible class of the Hon. Joseph H. Walker. Later he was a member of the First Bap- tist Church of Brooklyn, now known as the Baptist Temple. In this he was su- perintendent of the financial department, a member of the music committee, trustee, and chief organizer in 1877 of the Young People's Baptist Union, the most active organization of that denomination in Brooklyn, which has since become a na- tional organization of the Baptist denom- ination. His wife was also an active work- er in the church, both were prominent in musical circles, Mr. Brown being president of the Amateur Philharmonic Society. In Passaic they joined the First Baptist Church, of which he was a trustee, and chairman of the music committee. He took a leading part in the organization of the Young Men's Christian Association, of Passaic, and was a member of the Board of Directors from its inception until his death. He was a generous contributor to this association, as well as to the Gen- eral Hospital, and a number of charitable institutions. He was patriotic and public spirited to a degree, and organized the movement to build the City Hall, one of the finest in the entire State; also the public library building and the Passaic - Club house. In political matters he was a stanch Republican, and while his in- fluence was a wide spread one for good, he consistently declined public office, on account of lack of time. He was a mem- ber of the New York Chamber of Com- merce, and was one of the original com- mittee sent to the monetary conference at Indianapolis. His social membership, in addition to that mentioned above was with the Passaic Club, the Worcester Club,
Tatnuck Country Club, Union League Club, Merchants' and Wool Club of New York City, and the Kenilworth Literary Society of Passaic.
Mr. Brown married, in June, 1869. Charlotte, a daughter of John Connah, Jr., and his wife, Keturah E. Connah, of New York City, and they had children : I. Irving Swan, a real estate dealer in New York City, president of what is known as the Swan Brown Company. 2. Luther Connah, president of the Boston Store. Worcestor, Massachusetts, as was his father. Mrs. Brown resides at the original home in Passaic, and is actively interested with charitable, philanthropic and reli- gious work in that city. Mr. Brown's death in the very prime of life was a great loss to the mercantile world and was re- garded in the light of personal bereave- ment by many business friends and em- plovees, as well as by his immediate family and personal friends. The length of the life of such a man is measured by his achievements, not by the mere number of years he has counted. The resolutions adopted at the time of his death by the City Council of Passaic contained the fol- lowing paragraph :
In his private life, in his business career and in the active interest taken by him in public af- fairs, he has left a noteworthy example and one that reflects credit upon himself and luster upon the community in which he took such pride. He was exemplary in his private life and character, a man of liberal disposition, abundant in his be- nevolences, which were always bestowed with judgment and without ostentation. We record with satisfaction the fact that his name has be- come widely known and highly esteemed far be- yond the city limits in which he lived as a busi- ness man of sterling character and unusual ability and capacity. On the foundation of strict integ- rity and sound business principles he built up a large commercial structure, the uprearing and conduct of which called for the shrewdest busi- ness instinct and sagacity, the most practical com- mon sense and unwearying personal energy and industry.
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DRAKE, Edward Cortlandt,
Merchant, Active in Public Concerns.
Edward Cortlandt Drake was one of the best known and most influential citizens of Newark, New Jersey, where he lived the greater part of his life. He was a member of a prominent and highly re- spected family of Morris county in the same State, which has made its home for a number of generations in the picturesque town of Mendham, the family homestead being erected there in the year 1743. So complete has been the development of the Eastern States, and so entirely has every trace of past conditions been obliterated, that it is practically impossible for those who dwell within their borders at the present time, sunk in the security and sur- rounded with all the circumstances of an age-old civilization, to realize how short a time has elapsed since their now quiet farms and busy cities were parts of an un- broken wilderness extending indefinitely westward and inhabited by semi-hostile savages. And yet it was not so many years before the building of the old Drake residence that what is now Morris county actually lay within such a region and that peaceful and familiar Lake Hopatcong was but dimly known and then only as a rendezvous for the tribes of the Lenni- Lenape.
The town of Mendham itself is one of the oldest places in Morris county, and the natural beauty of site is taken advantage of to the fullest extent by the work of man. The wide and tree-bordered streets make one think of the typical New Eng- land town, and the simple and substantial dwellings belong to a period when men built for comfort rather than display, and for their children as well as themselves. Such a house is that of the Drake family, where Edward C. Drake first saw the light of day. His father, who had always lived there, was Colonel James Wills Drake, and his mother had been before her marriage,
Nancy Carnes Doty, a member of another old New Jersey family. Colonel James Wills Drake was a prominent man in his neighborhood. He was a surveyor and civil engineer by profession, both callings for which there was great demand in that day, and he was also prominently associat- ed with the New Jersey National Guard, serving as captain, major and colonel, con- secutively, in the Seventy-first Regiment, Morris Brigade, under the administration of Governor Williamson. He also repre- sented his district in the State Legislature during the term of 1840-41. His progeni- tors were among the first settlers in Mend- ham, coming at the same time as the Byram, Cary and Thompson families. The first person buried in the ancient graveyard adjoining the Presbyterian church in 1745 was Mrs. Drake. On the farm of Colonel James Wills Drake, about forty rods from his dwelling, there was once an Indian village; arrow heads and other Indian relics having there been found in abun- dance. In the winter of 1779-80 when the American headquarters were at Morris- town, a portion of the army were barrack- ed in rude log huts in both Mendham and Morris townships. The headquarters of two of the officers, Colonel Robinson and Chevalier Massillion, a French officer, were at the dwelling later occupied by Colonel James W. Drake, about a mile from Mendham village on the road to Mor- ristown, the home at that time of Colonel Drake's grandfather. During the sick- ness, suffering and want of that winter, there were pitted against the barn of Mr. Drake at one time forty coffins, that build- ing being at the time in use as a hospital.
Edward Cortlandt Drake was born in the old Drake dwelling in Mendham, and there passed a considerable portion of his childhood, attending private schools in that place and in Morristown, where he received the general part of his education. He later removed to Newark and there took a special course at a business college
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where he finished preparing himself tech- nically for the business career for which his natural talents fitted him. Somewhat later he opened a mercantile house in his adopted city, devoting himself to the sale of drygoods.
Mr. Drake's activity was by no means measured by his mercantile enterprises, however, for though a successful merchant whose time was largely occupied in the conduct of his business, he nevertheless gave generously both of energy and at- tention to many other departments of the community's life. He was always particu- larly interested in the conduct of public affairs from a purely altruistic viewpoint and because he truly desired the welfare of the community. He never took part in politics, as that phrase is used at the pres- ent time, although a keen observer of po- litical issues, both national and local, and a staunch member of the Democratic party. He was active only to the point of doing all that he could in furtherance of the principles in which he believed in his capacity as a private citizen, but always consistently declined the numerous offers of office that were tendered him. How prominent and influential he was in this line, despite his aloofness from the game of politics, and how important and popular a figure he was in the life of Newark, may be gathered from the fact that he was mentioned by his party as candidate for mayor of the city, but would not himself consider it. The last decade of the past century was marked in New Jersey by the sittings of the important commission ap- pointed to revise the system of jurispru- dence in the State, and at two successive sessions, those of 1893-94, was Mr. Drake a member of that honorable body, attend- ing its meetings and taking part in its de- liberations.
Mr. Drake was also a member of club circles in Newark, and was a member of a number of prominent organizations such as the Washington Association, the His-
torical Society of New Jersey, and the Essex Club of Newark. No sketch of Mr. Drake would be complete without a men- tion of the factor of religion and his as- sociation with his church extending over a long period of years. He was an Epis- copalian in belief, and was a member of long standing in Grace Episcopal Church of Newark. He was active in the work of the parish, holding the office of vestry- man for overy thirty years, and supported materially the many philanthropies in con- nection therewith.
Mr. Drake married, March 28, 1860, in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Mary Jane Wood- ruff, a resident of that place, and a daugh- ter of Stephens Haines and Abigail Ogden (Meeker) Woodruff, well known people of Elizabeth. To Mr. and Mrs. Drake were born five children, as follows: Nicholas Murray, deceased : Mary C., who became Mrs. Howell, now deceased; Gertrude Woodruff ; Helen Esther, now Mrs. Wil- liam Chauncey Coles, of Summit : Edwina. now Mrs. Archibald E. Montgomery, of Tenafly.
BALL, James Thomas,
Prominent Merchant, Esteemed Citizen.
James T. Ball was of the sixth Ameri- can generation of the Ball family, and of the sixth generation of his direct ancestors in Newark. Edward Ball, of the ancient English family first mentioned in the Book of Domesday, came from England in the year 1665, first making settlement at Bran- ford, Connecticut. The English family of Ball bore arms thus described in Burke : "Out of a ducal coronet a hand and arm, embowered in mail, grasping a fireball, all proper."
That Edward Ball, of Branford and Newark, New Jersey, and Colonel William Ball, settled at St. Mary's, Virginia, in 1657, sprang from the same stock, there is little doubt, but no known connection can be shown. The Balls of Virginia, from
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whom President Washington maternally de- cended, and the Balls of Newark, New Jer- sey, both have ample claim to distinction and neither need depend on the other for great- ness yet they probably sprang from a com- mon ancestor.
Edward Ball did not long remain in Con- necticut, but short as the time was, he there married Abigail Blatchley, and the same year he appears as one of the Twelve Pro- prietors of the town of Newark, his first date of residence being October 30, 1665. He was then about twenty-five years of age, and a man of importance in the set- tlement on the "Passaick" and in the coun- ty of Essex, for he filled many town of- fices, and in 1692 and 1693 was high sher- iff of the county. His last appearance in public life was as a member of the grand jury in 1709 and 1710. Abigail Blatchley, wife of Edward Ball, was a daughter of Thomas Blatchley, also an Englishman and a resident of Branford. Children : Caleb, Joseph, Moses, Thomas; Abigail, married Daniel Harrison; Lydia, married Joseph Peck.
Thomas, youngest son of Edward and Abigail (Blatchley) Ball, was born in New- ark, in 1687, and there spent his life, dying in 1744, the old cemetery of Newark being his burial place. He left to his nine sons four hundred acres of land, but all except a portion left to Aaron, his second son, has passed out of the family. He married Sarah Davis, who survived him over thir- ty-four years, dying February 1, 1778, aged eighty-seven years, a daughter of Thomas Davis, who in his will named "Sarah, wife of Thomas Ball." She is buried in the old graveyard at Connecticut Farms (Union, New Jersey), where she slept undisturbed while two years later (June, 1780), over her grave the battle was raging in which a dozen of her descendants took part, one of whom, Samuel Ball, son of Ezekiel, was mortally wounded. Children of Thomas Ball: A daughter, died unmarried; Timo- thy, married Esther Bruen; Aaron, mar-
ried Hannan Camp; Apphia, married Si- mon Learing; Nathaniel, married Esther Osborn; Ezekiel, of further mention.
From an old tombstone in the church graveyard at Connecticut Farms, this in- scription is taken: "Here lies the body of Sarah, wife of Thomas Ball who died Feb- ruary A. D., 17/8, in the 88th year of her age."
Ezekiel, sixth child and fourth son of Thomas and Sarah (Davis) Ball, seems to have been overlooked by the biographers and record keepers of his day, as there is nothing to show the date of his birth or death, nor whom he married. He left five sons: Stephen, a surgeon of the Continen- tal army; Timothy, Edward, William; Sam- uel, of further mention.
Samuel, second son of Ezekiel Ball, was an officer of the Revolutionary army, and at the battle of Connecticut Farms, fought in June, 1780, against the British, received a mortal wound. He married and left three sons: Oliver, of further mention ; Gardner and Samuel.
Oliver, eldest son of Samuel Ball, the Revolutionary patriot, died in Newark, in 1845, aged sixty-six years. He married Elizabeth Ward, who died in 1865, aged eighty-four years. His four sons were: Edwin N., a real estate dealer of Newark ; Augustus I., member of the carriage man- ufacturing firm of Quinby & Company, Newark ; Hooper C., a manufacturing jew- eler of Newark; Horace W., of further mention. His three daughters, Harriet, Matilda and Julietta married, respectively, Abraham Johnson, of Lyons Farms, George Rolff, of Danbury, Connecticut, and Hor- ace Alling, of Newark.
Horace W., youngest son of Oliver and Elizabeth (Ward) Ball, was born, lived and died in Newark, where during his bus- iness life he was a manufacturing jeweler. He married Elizabeth Daniels, and left sons, Alfred P. and James Thomas.
James Thomas, son of Horace W. and Elizabeth (Daniels) Ball, was born in New-
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ark, New Jersey, July 14, 1846, and after a useful life of fifty-two years died there January 7, 1898. He attended Hedges' private school in Newark, but he was a youth of such delicate health that he was taken out of school and sent abroad, where he spent several years in travel and with relatives in England. Returning home with greatly improved health, and having decided upon a mercantile life, he joined forces in 1865 with James Marshall and opened a clothing store at the corner of Broad and Bridge streets, Newark, under the firm name of Marshall & Ball, a name that became a household word in Newark and northern New Jersey. They prospered in their new venture, and in a short time re- moved their store to a more central part of the city, choosing a site opposite the New Jersey Central railroad station. These quarters soon proving insufficient to accom- modate their business, the young partners moved to the present location, 807-810 Broad street. The history of Marshall & Ball covering the period of 1865-1898 was one of success and expansion. For thirty- three years Mr. Ball gave it his strict per- sonal attention, and incorporated into the business the strong phases of his personal character, honesty and square dealing. Re- garding his personal honor as sacred, he placed the same high valuation upon his business honor, and "quality" became the store motto. No article was placed on sale. that he could not conscientiously vouch for, and to quality was added the "square deal" with all patrons. On this foundation Mar- shall & Ball built, and to this day adhere. He was liberal m his treatment of employ- ees, and as men proved their loyalty and worth they were given profit sharing inter- est in the business. He builded well, and after half a century his work endures.
Mr. Ball was most kindly hearted and genial in disposition, possessing the quality of not only attracting friends but of hold- ing them. He belonged to several clubs in Newark, and was everywhere a social fav- orite. He belonged to the Masonic order,
affiliated with St. John's Lodge of Newark, and held in the order, as in the business and social world, the undivided love and respect of his associates. His clubs were the Essex, Republican, and Essex and New- ark County Country Club of Orange, the New York, Knickerbocker and Chelsea of New York. In political faith a Republi- can, he was one of the presidential electors on the Mckinley ticket in 1896.
His religious affiliation was with Trinity Protestant Episcopal Church, which he served as vestryman. He gave liberally to all worthy objects, and from whatever angle his life may be viewed there is no room for unfriendly criticism. He was a wise, progressive business man, a public- spirited citizen, a loyal friend, and consis- tently faithful to all religious or moral ob- ligations. He bore well his part in the development of his city, and rendered to every man his due.
Two hundred and three years after his great-great-great-great-grandfather, Ed- ward Ball, married Abigail Blatchley, in Connecticut, James T. Ball returned to the same State for his bride, and on Decem- ber 2, 1868, he married, at Stamford, Mary F., daughter of Thomas and Caroline Dunn. He married (second) Mary Eliz- abeth, daughter of George B. Jenkinson, of Newark. Children, all by first wife: I. James Marshall, deceased. 2. Elizabeth. 3. Mary Isabel, married -- Gifford. 4. Florence Louise, deceased. 5. Frederick W., who continues the business of Marshall & Ball; he married Bertha Duren, daugh- ter of George B. and Elizabeth Duren, there are two sons-James T. and Freder- ick W. Jr. 6. Elsie, youngest child of James T. Ball, is deceased.
NELSON, William,
Lawyer, Historian, Litterateur.
"An open book to him New Jersey lay,
The annals of her fortune fairly writ; A scene each page by fact or fancy lit, Wherein their parts did many actors play ; He mark'd the Pilgrim founder win his way
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Amid the wild with piety and wit: The Redman, saw beyond the mountain flit. Yet learned his language, and his simple lay.
"Or colony or sovereign State, he knew Her laws, her legends and her noted men; Her roads he saw by stage and motor-car
Travers'd, and how canal and railway grew -- The leaves were turn'd till twilight fell, and then He clos'd the book, and life's full calendar."
The above beautiful lines by Joseph F. Folsom are a fitting introduction to a re -. view of the life of the late William Nelson, a man whose name is known throughout the country. In matters of biography, local history and genealogy he was con- sidered an authority, and in this connec- tion was in constant correspondence with men and women in every State in the Union. From his earliest youth these fields contained matter of interest to him. and in the course of time he had so identi- fied himself with his research work that he became an expert of high standing. But it was not with these matters alone that Mr. Nelson was identified. On questions of religion he was equally well versed, and in matters of charity and philanthropy there was no more enthusiastic worker.
William Nelson, son of William and Susan (Cherry) Nelson, and grandson of Thomas and Jane (Coulter) Nelson, was born February 10, 1847, and died August 10, 1914. The public schools of Newark. New Jersey, furnished him with educa- tional advantages, and he was graduated from the high school in the class of 1862. His literary ability was already noticeable during his school years, and he was chosen as one of the editors of the high school paper, for which he wrote a story entitled "Isabel, a Tale of the Mexican Banditti." which he reprinted in 1884. He was but sixteen years of age when he became a reporter on "The Daily Advertiser." He then spent two years in teaching English in the German schools in Newark and South Orange, and in 1865 he taught a dis- trict school at Connecticut Farms, now Union. Removing to Paterson. New Jer-
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