USA > New York > Westchester County > Biographical history of Westchester County, New York, Volume I > Part 45
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When the Civil war broke out, Thomas Oliver was just seventeen years' of age, and as soon as possible he enlisted to do battle for the land of his adoption. May 17, 1861, he became a private of Company G, Thirty-sev- enth Regiment of New York Volunteer Infantry, his captain being James D. Clark. The regiment was assigned to the First Division, Third Brigade, Third Army Corps, in the Army of the Potomac, and saw very active service. Among the many important engagements in which Mr. Oliver took part dur- ing the two years following were Bailey's Cross Roads, siege of Yorktown, Williamsburg, Fair Oaks, seven days' battle of the Wilderness, Malvern Hill, Bull run, Chantilly, Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. At the expiration of his term of service, June 1, 1863, he was honorably discharged, but at once re- turned to the ranks and re-enlisted under date of July 23d. For some time he was the bugler of Company C, Eighteenth Regiment, New York Cavalry, commanded by Colonel James J. Burk. He assisted in the defense of Washington, in the Twenty-second Corps, and in the Department of the Gulf, in the Fifth Cavalry Brigade, participated in the following-named bat- tles : Compton, Pleasant, Sabine Cross Roads, Grand Echo (near Alexan- dria), Moore's Farm, Marksville Plains, Yellow Bayou, Morganza, Clarksville,
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and many others. At the skirmish at Moore's Farm, where he was acting as orderly, he was wounded in the left foot by a minie ball, which missile then passed through the body of his horse. He remained with his command, and was finally discharged May 21, 1866, his services having been deemed neces- sary until long after the termination of the war. While acting in the capacity of orderly in Texas he rode on horseback seventeen hundred miles from one point to San Antonio. In a skirmish at Morris' plantation in Louisiana, in 1864, he lost his badge as orderly, and in 1890, some one, in plowing, found it, and through advertising in the New York papers it was restored to the owner! July 18, 1870, Mr. Oliver became a member of Company H, Six- teenth Battalion, of the New York state militia, and, having been promoted from the ranks to sergeant, he served as such for fifteen years, and was ulti- mately senior sergeant of the whole division. At length, resigning, in order to give way to others, he was granted a certificate by the state, signed by Levi P. Morton, the governor, in testimony to the quarter of a century of faithful and meritorious service which he has given to New York. On many occasions he has been awarded medals for his bravery and fidelity to the public, and his long continuance in office is a fitting commentary on the high place which he holds in the esteem of his associates. Since he resigned he has been the armorer for the Fourth Separate Company, of Yonkers, at first volunteering his services without remuneration, but since the new armory has been completed he has been armorer of the same, under appointment of a committee, and by the manner in which he meets his duties has won the ap- probation of all concerned. He has received numerous medals for skillful marksmanship. Few stand higher in the Grand Army of the Republic or are more actively interested in the organization. He is a member of Kitching Post, No. 60, has frequently served as a delegate and on committees, and for a period was on the national staff, with the rank of colonel. Politically, he has always given his support to the Republican party.
In 1868 Mr. Oliver married Miss Emma Brown, of New York city, and five children were born to them. Their two sons died in infancy, and their first born, Hattie H., is also deceased. Cora resides at home and Gertrude May is the wife of George Enery.
JAMES WATSON.
The subject of this sketch occupies a responsible position at the head of one of the important departments of the Otis Elevator Works, Yonkers, New York, a place to which he honestly and earnestly worked his way, having started out a poor boy and his promotions, from time to time, being made solely upon his merit. The record of his life, in brief, is as follows:
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James Watson was born at Yonkers, New York, August 30, 1859, and until he was thirteen was a student in public school No. 2, of this place. At that age he left school and secured employment in the Eagle pencil factory, where he remained a short time. Then he started to learn the carpenter's trade, and worked at it a short time, and afterward entered the Otis Elevator Works to learn the machinist's trade. This was in 1873. After serving in this capacity a year and a half, the Beale & Walworth Foundry was estab- lished on the present site of the shipping department of the Otis Elevator Works, whereupon he became a regular apprentice to the molder's trade and served a term of three years. When this foundry was purchased by the Otis Elevator Works, Mr. Watson was placed in charge of it, and has since main- tained his place at the head of this department. The new foundry, which has recently been built, is equipped in the latest and most improved manner, is thoroughly up-to-date, and is one of the most complete and conveniently arranged foundries in the country. It has cranes for handling the large cast- ings, some of which weigh many tons. Among the products turned out by this establishment may be mentioned the elevators for Eifel Tower, Wash- ington Monument, Catskill mountain incline railroad, and for the depot at Weehawken, on the West Shore Railroad, in New Jersey. Mr. Watson has had charge of the very important work of preparing the mountings and cast- ings for all this work, his position, without doubt, being the most responsible one so far as securing the safety of the product is concerned. He regularly employs fifty-four men and at times has had as many as eighty-six. He has full charge, and it is largely to his efficiency that the business has reached its present high standard.
Mr. Watson is a Republican, taking a commendable interest in public affairs, but never aspiring to official honors. He was reared in the Presby- terian faith.
May 4, 1881, he married Miss Louise Hitzelberger, daughter of John Hitzelberger, and they have one son, James A.
JAMES E. DEGNAN.
The subject of this sketch is the genial and popular proprietor of the Union Hotel, at Croton-on-the-Hudson, one of the best known and most liberally patronized hotels in Westchester county. For the past five years he has been connected with the hotel business, has become a thorough master of the art of hotel-keeping, and his house is a favorite with the trav- eling public.
Mr. Degnan is a native of Danbury, Connecticut, born in 1858, and is a son of Sylvester and Ellen (Garrigon) Degnan, both of Irish descent. He
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was reared and educated at Croton-on-the-Hudson, where, since attaining manhood, he has taken an active part in the business life of the place. He was married, in 1892, to Miss Julia Cassidy, a native of Cortland township, Westchester county, and a daughter of Philip Cassidy, and they have become the parents of three children, namely: Ella, James, Jr., and Catherine.
Mr. Degnan has always taken an active and influential part in public affairs, and has done all in his power to advance the interests of his village and county. He was for some time treasurer of the fire department. He is recognized as one of the "wheel-horses" of the Democratic party in his community, having been prominently identified with political affairs since attaining his majority, and for five years he has efficiently served as a mem- ber of the school board. He is a man of ability, is wide-awake and energetic, broad and liberal in his views, courteous and sympathetic in manner, and is therefore popular with all classes.
THOMAS QUIRK.
All the theorizing in which one may indulge concerning success cannot do away with the fact that the most important element therein is effort- consecutive, persistent effort-and it is this quality which has gained Thomas Quirk a place among the leading and reliable business men of Yonkers, where he is doing a large and prosperous business as a general contractor. His reputation for sterling rectitude, promptness and fidelity to the trust reposed in him is most commendable, and he well deserves mention in the history of his adopted county.
Mr. Quirk is a native of the Emerald Isle, his birth having occurred in Queen's county, Ireland, July 13, 1833, his parents being William and Mary (Lorler) Quirk. He was reared and educated in the land of his birth, where he remained until his twenty-sixth year, when he emigrated to America, locating first in Tarrytown, Westchester county, New York. He soon secured a situation as a farm hand, and later became manager of a farm owned by a gentleman in New York. At length, however, he turned his attention to contracting in Tarrytown, making that place his home until 1865, when he came to Yonkers. Here he has been engaged in general con- tract work since that date and has taken many large and important con- tracts, including such public works as grading and paving streets. He employs from fifty to a hundred men and about twenty teams, and the volume of his business.has assumed extensive proportions.
In 1864 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Quirk and Miss Lucy Men- ton, daughter of Peter and Lucy Menton, and they have a family of six chil- dren, namely; Thomas, who is a member of the Hoboken police force; Mary,
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wife of Thomas McCauley, one of the superintendents of the construction of the Croton dam; Sarah, wife of William J. Marshall, corporation counsel for the city of Mount Vernon; and Margaret, Nora and Peter, at home.
Mr. Quirk was reared in the Roman Catholic faith and is now a devout member of St. Joseph's Catholic church, of Yonkers. In his polit- ical affiliations he is a Democrat, but takes no active part in political work, preferring to devote his time and energies to his business interests. During his busy and useful life he has accumulated valuable property, owning con- siderable real estate in Yonkers. Although he came to America empty- handed, he has steadily advanced, making his way over obstacles and dif- ficulties by determined purpose and unfaltering energy, and to-day he is num- bered among the substantial citizens of Westchester county.
ADJUTANT MICHAEL F. CARMODY.
This very popular citizen of Mount Vernon was made First Lieutenant of the Two Hundred and Third Regiment of New York Volunteer Infantry, July 8, 1898. For ten years he has been a member of the Eleventh Sepa- rate Company of this city, being made its corporal in 1890, the following year was sergeant, in 1893 first sergeant, and in 1895 was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant, and is now serving as adjutant of the First Regiment. Always active and influential in the Democratic party, he is now acting spe- cial deputy sheriff of Westchester county. As a business man he stands sec- ond to none, being diligent, prompt and faithful in the execution of his contracts and thus meriting the large and lucrative custom which he receives.
James Carmody, the father of our subject, was one of the founders of Mount Vernon, was a carpenter by trade and erected many of the public and private buildings and residences of this vicinity. Coming here in 1840, at which time there were but three houses in the place, he continued to reside here up to the time of his death, October 28, 1876. An active Democrat, he was one of the assessors of the village in 1868 and again, twenty years later, in 1888. His wife, whose maiden name was Bridget Kelly, is still liv- ing, now sixty years of age. Their family comprised six sons and one daugh- ter, namely: John, of this city; Stephen and Charles, both deceased; James; Michael; and Margaret, deceased.
The birth of Michael F. Carmody took place in Mount Vernon, Decem- ber 8, 1869, and in the public schools of this city he gained his literary edu- cation. Leaving his studies about three months prior to his graduation from the schools he commenced an apprenticeship at the plumber's trade with Ed. Murphy, one of the longest in the business in New York city, and standing very high in the estimate of competent judges of excellent work in his line.
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Having thoroughly mastered the business in its various branches young Car- mody returned to Mount Vernon at the end of seven years and was manager of Fiske's plumbing establishment here for the next three years, dating from the first of March, 1890. He embarked in independent business in 1893, on Depot Place, and in 1896 removed to his present location, No. 17 North Fourth avenue. He receives a large proportion of the business of plumbing and gas-fitting of this vicinity, has employed as many as ten or a dozen men at a time, and his receipts in a single year have amounted to as much as twenty thousand dollars. Among others for whom he has executed contracts for work are James J. Cannon, vice-president of the Fourth National Bank of New York city, and J. C. Carstensen, controller of the Hudson River Rail- road, both having homes at Scarsdale; William Adams, an extensive builder in New York city and a resident of Mount Vernon; and E. T. Gilliland, an inventor of note, living at Pelham Manor. Mr. Carmody is a member of the examining board of plumbers of Mount Vernon, having served for two terms as such, is the secretary and treasurer of the Master Plumbers' Associa- tion, and for the past ten years he has been a member of the National Grand Plumbers' Association. Socially he is identified with the Foresters, the Im- proved Order of Heptasophs, and the Catholic Benevolent Legion. He is a member of Golden Rod Council, No. 1316, Royal Arcanum, and is uni- formly, at Mount Vernon, popular and esteemed.
In October, 1895, Mr. Carmody married Miss Cordial, and the young couple have one child, a little son, Jaines.
FRANK L. YOUNG.
Frank L. Young is a practitioner at the Westchester bar, and by close application, devotion to the interests of his clients and careful preparation of his cases is working his way steadily upward. Advancement in the law in proverbially slow, but in his seven years' connection with the profession Mr. Young has made good advancement, and in the future will doubtless take his place among the foremost practitioners of this section of the state.
He maintains his residence in Sing Sing, and is a native of the Empire state, his birth having occurred in Cayuga county, New York, on the 31st of October, 1860. His father, Levi W. Young, was a native of North Hebron, . Washington county, and was there reared to manhood. He married Miss Margaret Lane, who was born in Syracuse, Onondaga county, New York, of Scotch parentage, and three children blessed their union: Frank L., of this review; D. L., a resident of Union Springs, New York, and Stella L.
In the public schools Frank L. Young pursued his studies until fifteen years of age and then entered an academy where he remained for some
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Frank L. Young.
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time. Later he completed the classical course at Cornell University, and has the degree of Bachelor of Arts from that institution. In May, 1892, he was graduated at a law school, and being thus well fitted for his chosen profes- sion opened an office in Sing Sing, where he has gradually secured a good patronage. He is a close student, and his resolute purpose combined with strong mentality, clearness of thought and logic in argument, have already won him a creditable standing among the younger representatives of the Westchester bar.
On the 31st of July, 1889, Mr. Young married Miss Mary Yawger, of Union Springs, New York, but on the 25th of July, 1897, was called upon to mourn the death of his wife. He is very popular both in social and political circles, is unwavering in support of Republican principles and manifests a deep interest in the growth and success of his party. He belongs to the Cornell Club, the Westchester Bar Association, and the Society of Medical Jurisprudence of New York city. He is a genial, courteous gentleman of manly bearing, and he has the high regard of many friends.
CHARLES H. ACLY.
Charles H. Acly, the well known station agent of the Hudson River Railroad at Croton-on-the-Hudson, and also justice of the peace at that place, was born at Hudson, New York, in 1844, and traces his ancestry back to an old Holland family which settled in this country prior to the Revolu- tionary war. His father, Henry Acly, was a native of Columbia county, New York, and in early manhood married Miss Ann Myrick, who was born at Nantucket, Massachusetts, a daughter of Captain John Myrick, a whaler. Ten children were born of this union, namely: Francis, deceased; Elizabeth; Jane, deceased; Kate; Charles H., of this sketch; George, Edward, Harriet, deceased, Ann and Mary. The father, who was a brick-mason by trade, died at the ripe old age of eighy-four years. He was a large man, a Repub- lican in politics, and liberal in his religious views. The wife and mother passed away at the age of eighty-one.
Charles H. Acly received a good public-school education during his youth, and learned the mason's trade, at which he worked for one year prior to the Civil war. Prompted by a spirit of patriotism, he enlisted in May, 1861, in Company B, Ninety-Seventh New York Volunteer Infantry, and took an active part in the Peninsular campaign under General George B. McClellan. He was in the battles of Gettysburg and the Wilderness, and at Spottsylvania, May 12, 1864, he was wounded in the left shoulder by a large minie-ball, which remained imbedded in the flesh for five years before it was extracted. He still has the ball, keeping it as a memento of his army life,
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though it calls to mind the sufferings and hardships he endured on many a southern battlefield. For six months he was confined in the Lincoln General Hospital at Washington, but was finally honorably discharged November 28, 1864, and returned home, though unable to perform any manual labor for two years. He then accepted the position of telegraph operator and station agent at Croton-on-the-Hudson, and so satisfactorily has he served the company that he is still retained at that place.
On the 21st of July, 1896, Mr. Acly married Mrs. Elnora (Carrigan) Warren, a daughter of Edward and Mary (Anderson) Carrigan. Her father is now deceased, but her mother is still living. They had a family of twelve children, of whom seven survive: Elnora, wife of our subject; Marian, Phema, William H., Elizabeth, Edward and George C. Mrs. Acly's first husband was Van Courtland Warren, a son of Beverly and - (Field) Warren, representatives of old and prominent Westchester county families. She has two sons by that union: Edwin, who is married and resides in Cro- ton-on-the-Hudson; and Henry, who lives at home with his mother.
Politically, Mr. Acly is an ardent Republican, and socially, is an hon- ored member of the Grand Army of the Republic, the Free and Accepted Masons, and the Improved Order of Red Men. He has acceptably served as justice of the peace for four years, and in all the relations of life has been found true and faithful to every trust reposed in him.
GUSTAV A. RUEMMLER.
A leading representative of the industrial interests of Yonkers is Gustav A. Ruemmler, who is the efficient foreman of the cabinet-making, painting and carpentering departments of the elevator manufactory of Otis Brothers & Company. He was born in Prussia, Germany, on the 22d of May, 1848, and is a son of Gustav and Wilhelmina (Gentoch) Ruemmler. The father, who was a cabinet-maker by trade, came to this country in 1873 and located in New York city.
In the public schools of Zeitz, Germany, the subject of this review ac- quired a good education,-one that well fitted him for the responsible and practical duties of life. He also attended night school for a time, and in his youth learned the painter's trade. Subsequently he mastered the carpenter's trade, and after two years learned the cabinet-maker's trade, which pursuits he has followed throughout his business career with excellent success. Hear- ing of the superior advantages afforded young men in America, where ability is recognized and merit wins, unhampered by caste or class, he resolved to try his fortune in the United States, and when nineteen years of age crossed the Atlantic, landing at New York city on the 17th of October, 1867. He
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was a stranger in a strange land, but with resolute spirit and strong de- termination he began the search for employment, and for five years worked at his trades in New York city. On the 4th of July, 1872, he came to Yon- kers and entered the service of Otis Brothers & Company, elevator manu- facturers, as a cabinet-maker. His efficiency and fidelity afterward secured him promotion to the position of foreman, and for twelve years he has been superintendent of the cabinet-making department. He has since been made foreman of the painting and carpentering departments, and his faithful and prompt discharge of the responsible duties which devolve upon him has won him the high commendation and unqualified trust of the company.
Mr. Ruemmler was united in marriage to Miss Wilhelmina Ebling, who died January 7, 1897, at the age of forty-nine years. He is quite prominent in social circles, has been twice president, three times vice-president and has also served as secretary and treasurer of the Yonkers Teutonia Verein; is a member and treasurer of the Germania Boat Club, and also belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. In his political views he is a Repub- lican.
A. NOEL BLAKEMAN,
Among those whose depth of character and fidelity to clearly defined principles, as well as marked ability along professional or business lines, render them leading and valued citizens of Westchester county, is the gentle- man whose name introduces this review. He was prominently connected with the educational interests of Mount Vernon as president of the board of education, and has at all times been a progressive, public-spirited citizen, whose aid and influence have been important factors in the promotion of many interests of benefit to the community.
Mr. Blakeman was born in the fifteenth ward in New York city, in July, 1840, his parents being Dr. William N. and Helen (Robertson) Blake- man. The Blakeman family originated in England, and was founded in America by the Rev. Adam Blakeman, who crossed the Atlantic and landed at Stratford, about the year 1640. Isaac Blakeman, the grandfather of our subject, was a native of the village of Huntington, Connecticut, and his- son, Dr. William N. Blakeman, was born in Roxbury, Connecticut, in 1805. The latter supplemented his preliminary education by a course in Yale- College, from which institution he was graduated. Later he completed the course in the medical department of that institution and then entered upon the practice of his profession in New York city, where for more than fifty years he devoted himself to the alleviation of human suffering. His death occurred there in the year 1891, his wife having passed away in 1869. She- was born and reared in New York city, and was a daughter of Robert S.
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and Maria (Caldwell) Robertson. The latter was a daughter of the Rev. James Caldwell, a Presbyterian minister of New Jersey, who served as commissary-general on the staff of General Washington in the war of the Revolution and was widely known as the "fighting parson of New Jersey." During his absence with the army his wife, who was one day sitting by her window, was shot by British soldiers.
In his parents' home Alex Noel Blakeman spent his childhood days, acquiring his early education in what was known as John Doane's school, which was also known as ward school No. 13, on Thirteenth street, New York. Later he pursued his studies in the College of New York city, but during his sophomore year was obliged to put aside his text-books on account of ill health. He then went to sea, spending two years on the water, after which he returned to his native city and engaged in clerking in a mercantile establishment.
In April, 1861, when the differences between the north and the south plunged the country into civil war, he enlisted in the Thirteenth Regiment of New York National Guards, commanded by Colonel Smith, responding to President Lincoln's call for seventy-five thousand men to serve three months. On the expiration of that period he was commissioned acting assistant pay- master in the navy, and served in that capacity until the close of the war, in 1865. He then went to California as special treasury agent, with head- quarters at San Francisco, where he remained for eighteen months. After twelve years spent in China, he returned to his home in New York city, and became connected with the journalistic interests of the state. For a number of years he was editor of the Shipping and Commercial List, then had charge of the editing of commercial topics and statistics. He is a man of strong intellectual endowments and literary culture, and his time is now largely occupied with the production of articles for various magazines and journals. He is also the author of a work entitled "Personal Reminiscences of the Civil War," which has elicited much favorable comment in literary and news- paper circles.
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