USA > New York > Schoharie County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Schenectady, Schoharie and Green counties, New York > Part 26
USA > New York > Schenectady County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Schenectady, Schoharie and Green counties, New York > Part 26
USA > New York > Greene County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Schenectady, Schoharie and Green counties, New York > Part 26
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Middleburg. Her marriage occurred on Octo- ber 25, 1871, and since that time she has shown her ability not only in the administra- tion of her domestic duties, but in various re- sponsible public positions. In connection with her efforts in behalf of the cause of tem- perance she has been county superintendent of the Sunday-school work of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union. For twenty-one years she was a teacher in the Sunday-school of the Methodist church, of which she is a member.
Mr. Chapman was born in Fulton, his par- ents being Jacob and Huldah (Winans) Chap- man. His mother was the daughter of the Rev. Mr. Winans, a Baptist minister. Mr. Chapman is an enterprising farmer and a man who commands universal esteem. He has been twice elected Supervisor of the town of Middleburg.
Mrs. Chapman takes an active interest in the advancement of agriculture, and has written several valuable essays, which were read be- fore the State Agricultural Society and before the State Dairymen's Association. She has also read papers before the county Sunday . school conventions, and has been one of the judges of award at two silver medal contests. Mrs. Chapman is the mother of three daugh- ters - Lena May, Mildred Il., and Agnes E. The first named is a graduate of the Cobleskill High School and of Syracuse University. Mildred II. is a graduate of the Cobleskill High School, and is now preparing to take a course of study in Syracuse University. Agnes E. is ten years of age.
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J AUGUSTUS SNYDER, superintend- ent of the Foltz summer home at Cobleskill, N. Y., near Warnersville, was born in this town, October 6, 1844, son of William and Rebecca (Bouck) Snyder. He is of thrifty German ancestry, and a lincal de- scendant of one of the original settlers of this section of Schoharie County.
William Snyder, first, his great-great-grand- father, emigrated from Germany in Colonial times, and located on Helderberg Mountain, near Albany, N. Y., but prior to the Revolu- tion he came to Cobleskill, where he took up a tract of wild land and began the improve- ment of a homestead. In the ensuing struggle for independence William Snyder took an ac- tive part, serving as a soldier in the army until the close of the war. The Lutheran church, which was built by him, contained a tablet bearing his name.
Peter W. Snyder, the grandfather of J. Au- gustus, was born on the old Snyder homestead, which later passed into his possession. He was an industrious, energetic worker, and added materially to the improvements on the estate, erecting the present comfortable set of buildings. He married Catherine Warner, a daughter of Nicholas Warner, who also was one of the earliest settlers of this part of Scho- harie County, and formerly the owner of al- most the whole of the present site of the village of Warnersville. A man of good understanding, interested in the cause of edu- cation, Peter W. Snyder had the distinction of being the first English school-teacher in this valley. For many years he served as Justice
of the Peace; in 1826 and 1827 he was a mem- ber of the Assembly; and was also one of the first railway commissioners in this locality. lle died at a ripe old age in 1850. Peter W. Snyder and his wife were members of the Lutheran church. Of their union seven chil- dren were born. Mrs. Catherine W. Snyder survived her husband a score or more of years, attaining the venerable age of ninety-three.
Their son, William Snyder, second, was born and reared on the old home farm, and eventually succeeded to its ownership. He carried it on successfully for many years, but later sold it, and, buying a farm near by, there spent his remaining days, dying at the age of seventy-six years. In addition to general farming he was extensively engaged in mill- ing, and built the plant now known as Sny- der's mills, a large mill having four runs of stone, which is now operated by one of his sons. He manufactured large quantities of flour and made a specialty of custom grinding, for years carrying on a lucrative business. He was an uncompromising Democrat, influen- tial in local affairs, and held many public offices, being Supervisor five years, Excise Commissioner eighteen years, and Justice of the Peace a number of terms. He attended the Lutheran church, and gave generously toward its support. He was three times mar- ried. His first wife, whose maiden name was Diana Bouck, died at an early age, leaving two children - George W. and Margaret. George W. attended Franklin and Schoharie Acade- mies and Union College, after which he entered West Point, where he was graduated at the
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head of his class in the engineer's department. In 1858 he was appointed Second Lieutenant, and he was afterward stationed at different points along the coast, including Boston, Pen- sacola, Key West, Charleston (S.C.), and Fort Moultrie. In 1861 he was ordered to Fort Sumter, and while there was twice promoted, first to the rank of First Lieutenant and then Captain. He was subsequently paroled for a time, and on returning to Washington was ap- pointed as Aide de-camp to General Heintzel- man, and was with him at the battle of Bull Run. Taken sick with typhoid fever just after the battle, he died November 17, 1861. Ile had been brevetted Lieutenant Colonel. As a soldier he was brave and courageous, faithful in the performance of every duty. The father's second wife, Lavina Bouck, lived but a few years. He subsequently married for his third wife Rebecca Bouck, who was born in Cobleskill, a daughter of David Bouck, and a lineal descendant of Governor Bouck. She bore him seven children, of whom three are now living; namely, J. Augustus, David B., and William. The mother died at the age of fifty-eight years.
J. Augustus Snyder lived with his parents until sixteen years old, when he began life for himself. While working with his father he had learned the miller's trade, and he subse- quently operated for five years a grist-mill that his father bought in Hyndsville. He then went West, and at Saginaw, Mich., he en- gaged in railroad construction and lumbering six years. Returning home in 1875, he en- tered the mill now owned by his brother,
David B., and this he operated a few years. After that he carried on a farm seven years, selling out at the end of this period and remov- ing to Richmondville, where he was engaged as a retail grocer and marketman for five years. During the next six years Mr. Snyder kept a hotel, and shortly after selling that property he assumed his present responsible position as su- perintendent of the Foltz place. Under his effi- cient management marked improvements have been made on the estate. The grounds have been finely laid out and beautified, and the new house has been built, the homestead being now one of the most attractive in the vicinity.
On June 26, 1882, Mr. Snyder married Miss Mary O. Baker, who was born in Worcester, Otsego County, N. Y., one of the six children of Sherman S. Baker, a well-known cattle dealer of that town. Politically, Mr. Snyder is a straightforward Republican, interested in public matters, and while in Michigan served as Justice of the Peace. Fraternally, he is a thirty-second degree Mason, prominent in the order, and a member of Cobleskill Lodge, F. & A. M .; the John L. Lewis Chapter, Cobleskill; St. George's Commandery, K. T., of Schenectady; and Temple Consistory, No. 2, of Albany. He also belongs to Cobleskill Lodge, No. 500, I. O. O. F. In religious matters he is broad and liberal.
ON. EMORY ALBERT CHASE, of Catskill, Justice of the Supreme Court for the Third Judicial Dis- trict of New York, was born on August 31,
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1854, at Hensonville, Greene County, N. Y., where his parents, Albert and Laura (Wood- worth) Chase, are still living. On the pater- nal side he is of English descent, and on the maternal of Scotch.
The ancestral home of the Chase family was at Chesham, England. Thomas Chase, a prominent resident of Chesham, had a son Richard, who married Joan Bishop at Chesham, April 16, 1564. This couple had a son Thomas, born at Chesham, who emigrated to America about the year 1639, and settled at Hampton, N. H. He married Elizabeth, a daughter of Thomas Philbrick, and remained in Hampton until his death in 1652. He had a son Isaac, born April 1, 1647, who is com- monly referred to as Lieutenant Isaac. This son married for his second wife Mary Tilton, and lived at Vineyard Haven, Martha's Vine- yard. He died there, May 19, 1727, and is buried on the hill overlooking the head of Vineyard Haven.
Isaac Chase and his wife had a son Joseph, born February 26, 1689, who married Lydia Coffin. Their first child, Abel, was born October 9, 1719. He married February 14, 1744, on Martha's Vineyard Island, Mercy Mayhew. They had a son Zephaniah, born March 14, 1748. He married for his first wife Abigail Skiff. Zephaniah Chase was a mem- ber of Captain Smith's seaport company during the Revolutionary War. After the close of the war and in the year 1787 he sold his property in Vineyard Haven and migrated to the pres- ent town of Lexington, Greene County, N. Y., then County of Albany. His son Benjamin,
born January 21, 1774, married Lydia Skiff, and had a son Albert, born January 4, 1819.
Albert Chase and Laura O. Woodworth were married on September 1, 1844. They have two sons, namely : Demont L., of Hensonville, N. Y. ; and Emory A., of Catskill, the special subject of this biography. Albert Chase was engaged for many years in contracting, build- ing, and lumbering. Since retiring he has lived on a farm.
Most of the early life of Judge Chase was spent on his father's farm. He attended the public school at Hensonville, and continued his studies at the Fort Edward Collegiate In- stitute, but did not graduate. He was fitted for the legal profession in the office of King & Hallock (Rufus H. King and Joseph Hallock) at Catskill. In April, 1880, he became inter- ested in the firm of Hallock & Jennings; and in 1882 he became one of its members, the firm name being changed to Halloek, Jennings & Chase. After Mr. Hallock's retirement, September 22, 1890, the business was con- tinued under the style of Jennings & Chase until December, 1896, when it was dissolved in consequence of Mir. Chase's election as Justice of the Supreme Court for the Third Judicial District. In a district usually Dem- ocratic he was elected on the Republican ticket by a majority of about thirteen thou- sand. Since the Ist of January, 1897, he has devoted himself to the duties of that office.
The jurisdiction of a Supreme Court Judge extends throughout the State, but the judges are elected by districts. The Third District is composed of seven counties - Rensselaer,
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Albany, Schoharie, Columbia, Greene, Ulster, and Sullivan. Judge Chase has always been a Republican in politics, and up to the time of his election as a Supreme Court Judge he attended as a delegate nearly every town, county, district, and State convention of the Republican party. During his career at the bar he was constantly connected with impor- tant litigations in the Third Judicial District and other parts of the State. He has been admitted to practice in the United States Dis- trict and Circuit Courts and in the United States Supreme Court.
Judge Chase has long been prominent in the local affairs of Catskill. He was a member of the Board of Education for fourteen years pre- vious to December, 1896, and for five years was its president. He served for a long period as corporation counsel of the village of Cats- kill, retiring from that office in 1895, and was Supervisor of the town of Catskill in 1890. He has also been conspicuously identified with several of the most representative local inter- ests. He is now first vice-president of the Catskill Savings Bank, a director in the Tan- ners' National Bank and in many other local enterprises. He is a member of the Presby- terian church.
Emory A. Chase married Mary E. Churchill on the thirtieth day of June, 1885. They have two children - Jessie Churchill Chase and Albert Woodworth Chase -and have a pleasant home at 25 Prospect Avenue.
Although Judge Chase is one of the youngest men elected to the Supreme Court in this State, he has met with a very favorable recep-
tion, as shown by the following resolutions and newspaper comments.
At a meeting of the Schoharie County bar, held at the Surrogate's office in the village of Schoharie, the twenty-fifth day of January, 1897, the following resolutions were unani- mously adopted : -
"Resolved, that the bar of Schoharie County have watched with pleasure and approbation the holding of Judge Emory A. Chase's first trial term following his recent election, and they congratulate themselves that Schoharie County has had the privilege and honor, as well, of seeing him start out in their midst of what we trust and expect will be a long and distinguished judicial career.
" Resolved, that, while hitherto he has been a stranger to many of us, yet we desire to testify to his patience and kindness; to his fairness, skill, and judicial ability, as mani- fested in conducting the trial of causes; to the case and facility with which he has put off the lawyer and assumed the dignity of the judge; to his evident desire to be right and impartial in his rulings; and we congratulate the bar and the people of this State, and assure them that they have made no mistake in elevating to the bench Judge Emory A. Chase. We extend to him the pledge of our loyalty and friendship, and express the desire that he shall long con- tinue to wear the judicial ermine."
From the Albany Daily Press Knicker- bocker : -
"Judge Chase has won a very enviable repu- tation during his sitting for ability and in ex- pediting the administration of justice."
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From the Albany Times Union : -
"It was the first term of Justice Chase in this city, and he has made a favorable impres- sion on the members of the bar in this county, not only as an honorable gentleman, but a fair and impartial lawyer, possessing extensive legal knowledge."
From the Albany Morning Express : -
"Justice Chase convened the March trial term of the Supreme Court on the first day of March. He came to Albany for the first time as a presiding justice, and was unknown to many members of the bar. He adjourned the term yesterday, and left the city, having won a reputation for judicial ability, fairness, and courtesy that is well deserved.
"Justice Chase has been a model presiding justice. He was confronted with a calendar of three hundred and forty-four cases, and during the three weeks of the term he disposed of sixty-six cases. Of this number twenty-six were settled, twenty-eight tried, eleven re- ferred, and a change of venue was made in one. This is a somewhat remarkable record; and, if other justices were as anxious to expedite busi- ness as is Justice Chase, many cases would not drag along in the courts for an extended period of time."
From the Albany Evening Journal : --
"The Judge has proved himself to be one of the most popular men who ever have sat upon the bench in the court room in the City Hall." From the Albany Evening Journal : -
"During the term just concluded Justice Chase has shown himself to be a model presid- ing officer. His first circuit has demonstrated
him to be practically all that a judge should be."
From the Troy Times : -
"The Hon. Emory A. Chase, of Catskill, Justice of the Supreme Court, has just finished his first trial term in Schoharie County. The term was highly successful, and Justice Chase was congratulated by the bar on the impartial- ity of the rulings and the fairness of his charges. Justice Chase has a fine command of language and a thorough knowledge of the rules of evidence. The opening of his judicial career fulfils the prophecy of his nomination." From the Hudson Republican : -
"The Hon. Emory A. Chase, of Catskill, Justice of the Supreme Court, Third Judicial Department, has accepted the invitation of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the First Department to hold a special term in New York City beginning May 17 and contin- uing until June 5. Justice Chase was chosen to the bench at the last election of a Supreme Court Justice in this judicial district, and he has already so thoroughly proved his efficiency as to warrant the high compliment which is contained in this invitation from the judiciary of New York City. Justice Chase has just finished holding a term of court at Hudson, where, as usual, his impartiality and judicial ability were praised by everybody. He is remarkably well fitted for the office which he fills, and it has not taken the courts, the bar, and the people long to find it out."
From the Troy Times : -
"The term of the Supreme Court just clos- ing in this city has given the lawyers and the
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people an opportunity to become acquainted with the judicial qualities of the presiding justice, the Hon. Emory A. Chase, of Cats- kill. Acquaintance has meant admiration. In sitting as judge at civil and criminal trials of unusual magnitude Justice Chase has shown promptness, fairness, and mastery of the law and its principles that have assured to him the place of a favorite in the esteem of the people hereabout. His future visits to this city in either a judicial or a social capacity will be cordially welcomed."
The Albany Express, speaking of the Octo- ber trial term of the Supreme Court, presided over by Judge Chase, says, "The term bas been one of the longest and most satisfactory ever held in this county."
ETER I. STANLEY, M.D., an able physician and a highly esteemed citi- zen of Windham, Greene County, N. Y., was born in Harpersfield, Delaware County, this State, on August 11, 1825, son of Nathan and Pamclia (logaboom) Stanley. His grandfather, Richard Stanley, came to New York State from New Jersey during the Revolutionary War, being among the farming population of that colony who were so harassed by the Hessian troops brought over to re-en- force the British army that they abandoned their homes.
Richard Stanley, settling in the wilderness, cleared a farm in what is now the town of Gil- boa, Schoharie County, where he resided for a number of years. Ilis last days were spent
in Harpersfield. He was the father of three children. Information at hand does not locate for a certainty the birthplace of his son Nathan, the Doctor's father, but he was prob- ably reared in Schoharie County. He served as a soldier in the War of 1812.
Nathan Stanley accompanied his father to Harpersfield, and, succeeding to the ownership of the homestead, he resided there for the rest of his life. Ilis wife, Pamelia Hogaboom, was a native of Prattsville, Greene County. She became the mother of fourteen children, ouly three of whom are living, namely : John L., who is residing in Kansas; Peter I., the subject of this sketch; and Jane, who married William Sampson. The parents both lived to be seventy-eight years old. They were origi- nally Presbyterians, but in their later years at- tended the Methodist Episcopal church.
Peter I. Stanley acquired his early education in the district schools and at the Stamford Academy. He remained upon the home farm until he was twenty-one, when he went to work in a woollen factory, and continued in that employment one year. Deciding to enter professional life, he began the study of medi- cine at the age of twenty-two with Dr. Covel, of Stamford, and completed his preparations at the Albany Medical College, from which he was graduated in 1853. Locating in Ashland, he resided there for sixteen years; and, as he was the only physician in the town, he was kept constantly busy in attending to a large and lucrative practice, which extended over a wide circuit. At the earnest solicitation of the people of Windham he in 1869 removed
PETER I. STANLEY.
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to this town, where he has ever since found an ample field in which to demonstrate his ability and usefulness; and it may be truthfully said that the entire community has profited by his fidelity, promptitude, and skill. He has re- ported many interesting cases to the County Medical Society, of which he has been a mem- ber ever since its organization, some forty years ago; and he has several times been called upon to serve as its president. As his physi- cal powers remain unimpaired, he still con- tinues to take long rides; and the inhabitants of all this locality consider themselves fortu- nate in being able to reap the benefits arising from his long experience as a practitioner.
In 1853 Dr. Stanley was united in mar- riage with Sarah Bassett, a native of Harpers- field and a daughter of Joshua Bassett, a pros- perous farmer of that town. Dr. and Mrs. Stanley have had ten children, five of whom are living; namely, Ella M., Ada E., Joseph- ine A., Nathan Wilmot, and Sarah Kathleen. Ella M. married J. C. Talmadge, a lawyer of Catskill, and has two children - Leone S. and N. Edna. Ada E. married Edgar C. Moon, a printer in New York City, and has two chil- dren - Vernon S. and Lena A. Josephine A. is the wife of Lawyer Mellen, a boot and shoe dealer in Windham, and has three children - Stanley H., Edith A., and Sheridan Wilmot. Nathan Wilmot Stanley is a civil engineer employed in the department of public works in New York City. Sarah Kathleen Stan- ley is an artist of local repute, her talent, which is of a high order, having been cultivated under competent instructors in
New York. Of the other children one died in infancy; Belle and Charles died while young; Vernon C. died at the age of twenty-two years, while pursuing his medi- cal studies; and William Sheridan, who was a hardware merchant in Cairo, N. Y., died at the age of thirty-one years. The latter was also an artist of ability both with the brush and needle. Among the dearly-prized prod- ucts of this genius is a piece of work five feet long and three feet wide, executed from an original design, and representing a deer in the forest on its way to drink. Another, which is a painting representing two admirably drawn dogs of different sizes, called "David and Go- liah," has received favorable comment from artists of note.
Politically, Dr. Stanley is a Republican. He was a member of the Ashland Board of Supervisors in 1860, has served as Town Clerk in Ashland for two years and as Coroner for the same length of time. He is a Chapter Mason, and formerly belonged to the Indepen- dent Order of Odd Fellows. For the past twenty-five years he has been a Pension Ex- aminer.
ACOB M. SNYDER, the genial, ac- commodating, and popular proprietor of the Snyder House at Gallupville, in the town of Wright, Schoharie County, was born in Berne, N. Y., May 6, 1837, a son of Peter I. Snyder. He is the worthy represent- ative of one of the early settled Dutch fami- lies of this section of the State. His grand- father, John Snyder, and his great-grandfather,
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Ludwig Snyder, natives of Holland, emigrated to America in Colonial days, and both served as soldiers in the Revolutionary army.
John Snyder came with his parents to Schoharie when a young man, and with them settled in the unbroken woods. At the be- ginning of the Revolution he entered the Continental army, and on July 26, 1782, was carried as a prisoner to Canada. lle there en- listed in the British army, from which he very soon after made his escape, and returned to Schoharie. Here he was afterward engaged in agricultural pursuits until his decease, in 1850. He married a Miss Dorstein. She died at an advanced age, after bringing up a large family of children.
Peter I. Snyder was born on the homestead in Schoharie in 1802. Learning the trade of a shoemaker in his youth, he followed it for a time in Berne, Albany County. Returning to Schoharie, he lived there a while, and after that he was located in Gallupville as a shoe- maker a few years, and then he removed to Knox, Albany County, where he died at the age of sixty-seven years. He was a Democrat in his political affiliations, and served as an Overseer of the Poor. While a resident of Berne he united with the local lodge of Odd Fellows, an organization in which he took great interest all his life. Both he and his wife were active members of the Lutheran church. Her maiden name was Eva Dietz. She was born in the town of Berne of German parentage, being one of the fourteen children of John B. Dietz. Eleven of these children grew to mature life, and the average age of
nine of them was seventy-nine years, a record for longevity seldom equalled. Of the seven children born to Peter I. and Eva (Dietz) Snyder four grew to years of maturity and two are now living, namely: Jacob M .; and Eliza- beth, wife of Sidney Shufildt. The mother died December 12, 1885, aged eighty-two years.
Jacob M. Snyder received his early educa- tion in the district schools of Berne, and after finishing his studies learned the shoemaker's trade, which he followed in Knox until 1863. Coming then to Gallupville, he opened a cus- tom shop, in which for twenty-two years he made shoes to order, being the pioneer of that line of industry in this region. In 1885 he purchased from the former owners, Twitchell & Collins, the old Collins House, to which he has since built an addition. It is now known as the Snyder House, has been entirely refur- nished, and is one of the best country hotels in this section of the State. Mr. Snyder also owns a livery stable, which he carries on suc- cessfully in connection with his hotel.
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