USA > New York > Broome County > Biographical review : this volume contains biographical sketches of the leading citizens of Broome County, New York. > Part 37
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Remote from markets, without schools or churches, those people started the course of improvements which have resulted in the present condition of things, Orange County having now become quite thickly settled, the" seat of many beautiful homes. Among the more attractive of these is the old homestead selected from the primitive wilds generations ago by some of the Corwin immigrants, and upon which James H. lived until his death, which occurred in March, 1891. The family are the lineal descendants of Matthias Corwin, who settled at Ipswich, Mass., in 1635, and removed to Long Island in 1640. Years afterward members of the family, moving to Orange County, were there people of charac- ter and influence, assisting in the organiza-
tion of society, and being identified with the First Presbyterian Church of Middletown from its organization. The old homestead, situated first in the forest, then in the small settlement, next in the larger neighborhood, then within two miles of a village, and now within the limits of a city, indicates the stages of civilization through which these generations have passed to the present time and condition. From the union of James H. Corwin and Emma Hawkins there are four children, namely: Elizabeth; Coe H., a con- tractor and builder of railroads; Clara, wife of J. E. Bookstaver, of Binghamton; and . George E., who is on the old homestead with his mother.
Elizabeth Corwin, when a girl, attended the common schools, and later the Mountain . Home Institute. She then read medicine with Dr. Julia A. Bradner, of Middletown, and attended lectures at the New York Medi- cal College and Hospital for Women, at which' institution she was graduated in the class of 1886. She began actual practice soon after with Dr. M. Belle Brown, of New York City, remaining there one year, removing then to Binghamton, where she has since lived. Dr. Corwin came here a stranger, and has suc- ceeded in breaking down to a great extent the: unreasoning objection in the minds of some people to woman's work in the practice of medicine. She is well prepared and equipped for her chosen profession, and deservedly has a liberal patronage.
Dr. Elizabeth Corwin is a member of the New York State Homeopathic Medical Soci-
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ety, the Broome County Homeopathic Med- ical Society, and other organizations of similar character. She is also a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Binghamton, of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, and of the Young Women's Christian Association. She takes a deep interest in all these and other similar organizations, but has not the time to devote to their work, her profes- sional duties requiring her almost undivided attention.
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HARLES M. DICKINSON. It is a rare combination of talent which en- ables a man to unite the qualities of literary and poetic genius with a successful business carcer; but these gifts have been combined in the author of the beautiful poems of "The Children," "In Bereave- ment," "Come unto Me," and other poetic gems, with the sound judgment and financial ability required to edit and conduct a success- ful newspaper.
Among the most prominent editors in the city of Binghamton, N.Y., Mr. Dickinson stands the highest ; and the clean and admi- rably managed Binghamton Republican, which outranks all others, is due entirely to his thorough knowledge of the demands and wishes of the best element of the citizens of his city. Ilis publishing house in Bingham- ton is a substantial, elegant building, the finest newspaper building in the State out- side of New York City, a credit to his enterprise and a sterling memento of his con- scientious management ; and the literary and
moral character of his paper has made it an honor to his county and a safe and welcome guest in the most carefully guarded domestic circles.
Charles M. Dickinson was born at Low- ville, Lewis County, N.Y., in November, 1842, and belongs to an excellent and well- known family. When Mr. Dickinson left school at the age of eighteen years, he taught for several winters, thereby earning money enough to pay for a supplementary course at the Fairfield Seminary and Lowville Academy during the summers. He carly developed poetical talent, and when but fifteen years of age had already written many creditable verses. In 1864 Mr. Dickinson came to Binghamton, N. Y., and entered the law office of the Hon. Daniel S. Dickinson. Life was real and an earnest struggle with him in those days. Ile was poor, but ambitious; and he helped to pay his expenses by writing stories and poetry for New York newspapers at night. He practised law in Binghamton and New York City until 1877. The last of these years, in addition to an active private practice, he had charge of all the law business of the United States Marshal for the South- ern District of New York. His health broke down under this heavy strain, and compelled him to abandon his profession. In 1878 he became the editor, and later the sole proprie- tor of the Binghamton Republican.
An extract from a sketch in the Magasine of Poetry, and written by Hezekiah Butter- worth, the editor of the Youth's Companion, and also the author of that charming series
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of books entitled "Zigzag Journeys," can be fittingly brought into this biography here as a merited tribute to our accomplished subject : -
"Mr. Dickinson impresses one as a poet of great energy of character and depth of feeling, a man with width in the region of ideality, and a soul-grasp of the hand, yet with a clear vision of practical things that vins success in all undertakings. He loves a retired life, and lives in elegant seclusion amid the most picturesque scenery. He has led an ideal life; and his published volume of poems is but a voice of all his worthy aspiration, soul growth, and rich experience. lle is a poet of nature and the heart. He sympathizes with life, and expresses these sympathies with a cultured mind and a trained pen. Mr. Dick- inson loves humanity; and his poems make better the hearts and lives of all who read them, and will live among the immortals in grateful influence. He has that rare genius that sees beauty, and uses it to create good, and to plant with imperishable flowers the fields of inspired experience."
Mr. Butterworth also says of Mr. Dickin- son's poem, "The Children," that it is "the most beautiful expression of the true mission of the teacher ever written "; and he and other critics pronounce it, next to "Home, Sweet Home," more popular than any other American poem. We find a brief history of these verses which is worth repeating in a book published some years ago, entitled "Waifs and their Authors." They were written while Mr. Dickinson was teaching
school at Haverstraw on the Hudson, in 1863. They were published in a Boston magazine, and immediately won wide popularity, being copied over and over again in nearly every newspaper in this country and England. They were quoted from the pulpit, read from the platform, incorporated in nearly all the reading-books of the best schools of that day ; and they may now be found in nearly every collection of verse. In their tenderness and simple language they speak of the sympathetic nature of this teacher, who probably spoke from his own practical manner of dealing with his pupils; for he says, -
" The twig is so easily bended,
I have banished the rule and the rod.
I have taught them the goodness of knowledge, They have taught me the goodness of God.
My heart is the dungeon of darkness, Where I shut them for breaking a rule ;
My frown is sufficient correction ; My love is the law of the school."
And then, again, where he muses on the fut- ure of those little ones, he expresses himself in these beautiful lines : --
" All my heart grows as weak as a woman's, And the fountain of feeling will flow, When I think of the paths steep and stony Where the feet of the dear ones must go,-
Of the mountains of sin hanging o'er them, Of the tempest of fate blowing wild. Oh ! there's nothing on earth half so holy As the innocent heart of a child."
Some years ago, in printing this poem, a careless compositor dropped the final letters from Mr. Dickinson's name; and the poem, thus started again, went the rounds of the
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newspapers under the magic name of Charles Dickens. So persistent and wide-spread was this mistaken identity that the son of Charles Dickens, recognizing the merit and beauty of the poem and the injustice of as- cribing it to his father, wrote Mr. Dickinson a note, from which we quote as follows:
"I have written during the last seventeen years a large number of letters, and have many times inserted in my magazine, House- hold Words, answers to correspondents, stat- ing that the story about the poem having been found in my father's desk after his death was entirely apocryphal, and that I was altogether unaware to whom the credit of the authorship of the verses was due."
But it is not alone in "The Children " that Mr. Dickinson has sung his sweetest lays. All through his poems we meet the fragrance of beautiful flowers and tender sentiment, such as in "The Burial of the Year." We find the following bits of imagery too exqui- site to leave out of this sketch. He writes of the year "marching west with the stars, " and
" As they came down the valley, and slowly swept past, They bore the Old Year just breathing his last ; And a thousand fair forms that had faded and died,- The father, the mother, the husband, the bride."
And, again : -
"I caught a few words of a comforting lay, Of a dear little maid that one desolate day
Wandered out of her home to the brink of life's even, And found her own way To the unending day ;
And she never has had to be christened in heaven, For the angels still call her 'our dear little May.'
"Storms may wreck and Death may sever, Frosts may blight, but buds that never Ope the sweet hearts in their bosoms Till its time for heavenly blossoms, They are safe and fair forever."
Poems of the war, bristling with the clash of arms and thunder of cannon, appear in Mr. Dickinson's published work, ringing with true patriotism and fire; and his "Army Re- union " and " Memorial Day " are as inspiring as any written during the great struggle.
In 1889 Mr. Dickinson collected his vari- ous poems; and they were published in New York and London in a neat volume, which received flattering notices from the best peri- odicals in this country and England, and they were also commended very highly by the leading American and English critics.
Mr. Dickinson's literary reputation has readily admitted him to our leading national biographies, such as the "National Cyclope- dia of American Biography " and Edmund Clarence Stedman's "Library of American Literature." From the former we quote these pleasant words : -
"'The Children and Other Verses ' (New York and London) were recognized by Ameri- can and English critics as worthy and natural followers of the early poem which had made his name so familiar to poetic readers. Those who know Mr. Dickinson as a man of affairs have a profound respect for his busi- ness judgment and ability in whatever he undertakes. Those who know him as a poet see an entirely different phase of his char- acter, - the gentleness and the strength and
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elevation of thought that are characteristic of his verse. It is rare to find a man so success- ful in two fields so little in harmony with each other."
Mr. Dickinson was married in 1867 to Bessie Virginia, daughter of the llon. Giles W. Hotchkiss, one of the most prominent and distinguished lawyers of the Broome County bar. Mrs. Dickinson is a lineal descendant of David Hotchkiss, the pioneer settler of the town of Windsor, Broome County, and is a lady of high literary attainments and a charm- ing hostess in their beautiful home on South Mountain, which overlooks the glorious val- ley of the Susquehanna River. Of the chil- dren born to Mr. and Mrs. Dickinson, but two survive: Charles Hotchkiss, married, and residing in New York City; and Giles Hotch- kiss, a student at the Cayuga Lake Military Academy. The household in this ideal home consists of, besides the family proper, Mrs. Lucie K. Westcott, an aunt of Mrs. Dickin- son ; and also a cousin, Miss Mary A. Mason, whose rare talent for poetry has been recog- nized by the best magazines and newspapers of the country, which publish it in their columns.
This sketch is but a brief tribute to the worth and genius of a man of whom the city of Binghamton is justly proud to call its citizen. To conduct an honest, clean news- paper; to maintain its refined spirit and choice language as a public educator in these days of "hustling " for sensational news - the best proof of its high standing is that it suc- ceeds without any of these meretricious influ- ences to secure its prosperous continuance.
THOMAS BURROWS, present Super- visor of the town of Deposit, Dela- ware County, N. Y., is one of the prominent residents of that part of the coun- try, and comes from a family that was iden- tified with the interests and development of the county at an early day. He has for twenty-two years been engaged in general merchandising in the village of Deposit, and has a high standing among the business men of that place. Mr. Burrows is of Scotch ancestry; and some of his ancestors were officers in the Continental army during the War of the Revolution, one of them bravely meeting his death while facing the foe at Stonington, Conn. This martial spirit ap- pears to have been transmitted to some, at least, of their descendants, Mr. Burrows of this notice having well sustained the family reputation during the late civil strife. The grandfather of the subject of this sketch was Peris Burrows, a native of Connecticut, who' came to York State many years ago, and was among the carly settlers of the town of Tomp- kins (now the town of Deposit), Delaware County. His son, Harry Burrows, was born. in Delaware County, and married Betsey Whitaker, a native of Wayne County, Penn- sylvania. They were the parents of five chil- . dren: Wealthy, now Mrs. A. R. Davis, and living in Deposit; Eliza, wife of D. L. De- money, of Deposit; George A., a farmer of the town of Deposit; James Thomas, of this sketch; and Frances, wife of W. W. Main, of Rock Valley, Delaware County.
James Thomas, the subject of this sketch,
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was born in the town of Tompkins, now De- posit, Delaware County, November 11, 1841. lle was brought up to agricultural pursuits; and, his father dying when he was quite young, the boys of the family were obliged to work hard, having to care for two farms. Ile was thus employed until he enlisted in Au- gust, 1864, in Company A of the One Hun- dred and Forty-fourth New York Volunteer Infantry. Although needed at home, he could not remain a passive spectator of the great struggle for national life that was then being carried on; and so he went forth, as a soldier and patriot, determined to do his part, and have a share in saving the Union. He was in the battles of Hilton Head, Honey Hill, various skirmishes in South Carolina, in the charge on the Confederate works at James Island, and in a number of skirmishes about Charlestown. He was discharged on the close of the war at Hilton Head, June 20, 1865, and was mustered out at Elmira, N.Y., July 20 of the same year. He then went to work as clerk for his brother-in-law, D. L. Demoney, remaining thus engaged for five years, during which time he became fa- miliar with the business. He then formed a partnership with C. T. Edick, the style of the firm being Burrows & Edick. They bought out Mr. Demoney's store in Deposit, and continued together for ten years. In 1880 our subject bought out his partner, and has since been sole proprietor. He was mar- ried August 3, 1870, to Lola Evans, daugh- ter of Newell and Harriet (Webb) Evans. Mrs. Burrows is a lady of refinement, and was
educated in the high schools of Syracuse, where she was a teacher previous to her mar- riage. They have had three children: Ma- rian H .; Walter, deceased; and Lloyd, deceased.
Mr. Burrows was first elected Supervisor in 1883, and served that year, being defeated the year following for the same position. Ile was again elected in 1892, and again in 1893. Fraternally, he belongs to the Masonic Order, and is a member of Deposit Lodge, No. 396, and a member of the Deposit Chapter. Polit- ically, he affiliates with the Republican party. He is a courteous, affable gentleman, of well-defined opinions, but liberal-minded, and always willing to hear both sides of a question. He is popular in his town and vil- lage, and his life history is one that is worthy of a place among those of the most honored residents of Broome County.
AMUEL M. SOUTHEE, a resident of Binghamton, is engaged in the livery, teaming, and general dray- age business in that city, having his office and stables at the rear of 78 Court Street. He bought the business in February, 1893, and secured a central location, where he keeps thirteen horses, with the requisite carriages and cabs, the whole constituting a first-class establishment of its kind. In addition to the regular livery trade, he has teams and drays for the moving of freight, express, or other material, being equipped for all branches of the business. Mr. Southee is of English
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extraction, his father, Matthew, having been born in Canterbury, England, and his mother, formerly Mary A. Collins, being a native of the same place. The father, who was in the grocery business for thirty-three years, came to this part of the country in April, 1865, finally settling on a farm three miles north-east from Binghamton, and re- maining there until his death, which occurred December 22, 1883. The mother died in February, 1881, leaving three children : Emma J., wife of Adam Moser, of Bingham- ton; Samuel M., the subject of this sketch; and Benjamin F., of Binghamton.
Mr. Southee was born at Brooklyn, N. Y., March 31, 1857, was educated in the common schools and the union school of the city, and went to Stanton, Mich., where he engaged in the lumber trade for three years. HIc afterward worked at farming for about three years, and came to Binghamton in March, 1886. Ile engaged at once in draying, com- mencing at the bottom with one horse and a cart, adding to his stock as he was able and as the business prospered, until he had built up an excellent trade. Ile made money, and finally bought the property where he now is. Mr. Southee was married to Miss Lena Mahoney, of Silver Lake, Pa., whose father, John Mahoney, was an carly settler, and a prominent man in that part of the country. This marriage occurred in February 13, 1884; and Mr. and Mrs. Southee have a family of three children living - Gertrude, Cecelia, and Samuel J. They are members of St. Pat- rick's Catholic Church, and are respected in
the community for their high personal quali- ties. Mr. Southee is a gentleman of pleasant manners, and one who knows how to adapt himself to all classes of people. To properly manage such a business as he represents re- quires tact, good judgment, and a proper ap- preciation of the wants of the public. Mr. Southee possesses all these qualities in an eminent degree, together with a willingness to perform his part in all the common duties of life as a neighbor and citizen.
A LVIN EDWARDS, an enterprising farmer of the town of Windsor, be- longs to one of the old and distin- guished families of Broome County, his grandparents, Jasper and Betsy (Quick) Ed- wards, having settled about a mile below the site of the village of Windsor in the year 1780. Jasper Edwards was born in England, and came to this country with his brothers, twelve in number. Ile was a lover of liberty and religious independence, and he sympa- thized so much with the patriots that he espoused their cause. A daring scout, he , penetrated far into the wilderness, and in his heroic endeavors met with many narrow es- capes from the Indians. Four or five times these savages had captured him, and had made every preparation for their ghastly dance around their tortured victim; but he was as cunning as they, and succeeded in eluding them. He was with General Washington at the battle of Trenton, and later, being capt- ured by the Indian Chief Brant, was taken
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to Canada, where he was two years and ten months in prison. There was great rejoicing over his capture, as the Indians held him in the greatest fear for his unerring aim with his rifle and his apparently charmed life, which ever escaped their plans to kill him.
After the close of the Revolutionary War Jasper Edwards bought land in the town of Windsor, which was wild and uncultivated. He spent his time between clearing his farm and hunting and fishing, which had to be the main dependence for a living in those days. He reared a family of eight sons and one daughter, all of whom grew to maturity and had families of their own. He was a Presby- terian in religion, and belonged to the old Whig party, which was a powerful political organization at that time. He died at the age of ninety, and his name is one of the best known in the history of the village. When Jasper Edwards settled in Windsor, he was accompanied by his wife and four sons, one of whom, William, born in Pennsylvania in 1789, was the father of the subject of this biography. William Edwards was one of the leading farmers of the town of Windsor, being energetic and industrious, and, besides farming, turned his attention to many other pursuits. He was much engaged in lumber- ing, and was a pilot on the Delaware River for many years. William died at the age of seventy years, at the homestead now owned by his son Alvin; and his wife, Lodama (Smith) Edwards, who was born in Connecti- cut in 1794, died at the age of seventy-two. They were Methodists in their religious be-
lief, and Mr. William Edwards was politi- cally an "old school " Democrat.
Alvin Edwards was born in Windsor, Feb- ruary 12, 1832, and received the best educa- tion attainable in the district schools of those days. He remained with his parents, and from a boy assisted his father on the farm. When he became a man, he adopted this occu- pation for his life-work, and continued to reside on the old homestead until 1891, when he removed to the village of Windsor, where he has a handsome home. He still manages his farm in the town, which now contains one hundred and eighty acres, giving it his per- sonal attention, and running it on scientific principles, being quick to avail himself of modern inventions and labor-saving devices. He is engaged in dairying, which is one of the leading industries in his section, and pre- fers Durhams to any other cattle.
Mr. Edwards was married in 1872 to Miss Ellen E. Brown, who was born in llarpurs- ville, Broome County. She is the daughter of Jesse and Abigail (Church) Brown. Iler father came from Rhode Island before the year 1820, and was a shoemaker in llarpurs- ville, where he manufactured and sold his goods until 1869. Mr. and Mrs. Edwards have one son, Lisle Brown Edwards, whose birth occurred November 25, 1883. A daughter, Helen, died at the age of two years. The parents are members of the Episcopal church; and in the Masonic fraternity Mr. Edwards is connected with Windsor Lodge, No. 442. Ile is also a strong adherent of the Republican party.
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Mr. Edwards is particularly well informed in the history of Broome County; and his excellent memory makes him a most interest- ing narrator of the stirring events which occurred in the early days when the pioneer settlers, in their daily encounters with the wily Indians, fairly lived with their rifles for companions. One of his best stories, which is authenticated, is concerning his great-uncle, Thomas Quick by name, who was one of the most noted warriors of his time. He was a large, powerful man ; and his record as a slayer was just ninety-nine Indians. While the red-skins had a wholesome fear of him, and usually kept at a respectable dis- tance, they nevertheless made miny traps to capture him, all of which failed until on one unlucky occasion six Indians crept up to him while he was splitting logs in the woods. Feeling himself their prisoner, he set his wits to work to find some ruse by which he could escape, and for that purpose pretended to surrender to them. But, before going with them, he asked them to assist him in finishing the splitting of the log he had been working on when surprised. He had inserted a wedge in it; and he persuaded his captors to put their fingers in the place thus opened, to hold the log apart .. This they unsuspectingly did; and, when they had taken a firm grasp, he knocked the wedge out, and his six Indians became his captives Ile then deliberately killed each one, and made his escape.
Another story that Mr. Edwards relates occurred in the lifetime of his grandfather, Captain Elijah Smith, a celebrated man
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