USA > New York > Delaware County > Biographical review : this volume contains biographical sketches of the leading citizens of Delaware County, New York > Part 26
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OHN KLING, agent and manager of the branch dry-goods store of Frank. Barclay, of Amsterdam, N.Y., is a wide-awake, energetic business man, and, although young in years, has already obtained a good start in life, and is numbered among the rising young men of the village of Walton. He comes of excellent Holland an- cestry, and was born in the town of Perth, Fulton County, N. Y., April 8, 1869, being a son of Peter A. and Phyllis Ann (Banker) Kling, the former a well-known contractor and builder of Amsterdam. The parents are both members of the Baptist church, and po- litically Mr. Kling casts his vote with the Republican party.
The subject of this brief biographical record received the elements of a good educa- tion in the Union School at Amsterdam, and,
being remarkably ambitious and industrious, secured employment as a clerk in a dry-goods store, thus spending his evenings and vaca- tions from the time he was seventeen years old until nineteen years of age. He has since then continued his mercantile career, and during the past two years has been em- ploycd by Frank Barclay, as before mentioned. In January, 1894, Mr. Kling opened the branch store in Walton, and in this new enterprise has met with encouraging success, his honorable and upright dealings, his fidel- ity to the interests of his employers, and his genial and courteous manners securing for him a good patronage.
April 28, 1892, Mr. Kling was united in the holy bonds of matrimony with Miss Jennie Cramer, of Amsterdam, a daughter of William and Emma (McConnell) Cramer. On the maternal side Mrs. Kling is of Scotch ex- traction, her grandparents having been born, reared, and married in Scotland. They after- ward emigrated to this country, stopping awhile in Albany, and going thence to Can- ada, where the grandfather engaged in the mercantile trade as a tobacconist. In Canada, near the town of Coburg, occurred the birth of their daughter Emma, the mother of Mrs. Kling. On the paternal side Mrs. Kling is of German descent, her great-grandfather hav- ing been a native of Germany, and her grand- father, Henry Cramer, a native of the Empire State. Her parents are esteemed residents of Amsterdam, where they are living retired from active labor. They have a family of three children : William H., who is engaged in the grocery business, lives in Amsterdam; Emma, who is an able instructor in the public schools; Jennie, Mrs. Kling, who has been engaged in the millinery business for some years, and since coming to Walton has con- tinued her occupation, her millinery parlors being in the store with her husband. She has a well-supplied stock, and displays much artistic ability, her talent being recognized by her large number of patrons.
In religious matters Mr. and Mrs. Kling are not entirely of one mind, he being a member of the Baptist church, in which faith he was reared, while Mrs. Kling worships at the Presbyterian church, of which she is a valued member.
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EROME WHIPPLE, a successful farmer and dairyman of Kortright, Delaware County, of which town he has long been a prominent citizen, was born in Roxbury, March 17, 1853. His grandfather, Abram Whipple, was a native of Vermont, where he followed the trade of blacksmith. He was a pioneer of Roxbury, Delaware County, and there resided until his death, which took place when he was eighty years old. He was a liberal-minded man, a Repub- lican, and was the father of seven children.
His son Daniel, the father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Vermont, but grew to manhood in the town of Roxbury, where he engaged in farming. In 1865, disposing of his farm of one hundred acres there, he re- moved to Kortright, and purchased the farm of three hundred and twenty-two acres which is now occupied by his son Jerome. Daniel Whipple was a hard worker and progressive farmer, and resided on the farm at Kortright until his death, at eighty-seven years of age, his wife, Maria Chamberlin Whipple, dying at the age of sixty-five years. He was a Re- publican in politics, and both he and his wife were devoted members of the Methodist Epis- copal church. They were the parents of eight children, all of whom are living: Mrs. Jane Nesbitt, of Stamford; Jerome; Mrs. Emma Goodsell, of Meredith; George, living at Rose's Brook; Mrs. Anna Lamport, of Stam- ford; Abram, of Fergusonville, Delaware County; Libbie, who lives at home; and Mrs. Sarah Nesbitt, of Fergusonville.
Jerome Whipple removed to Kortright with his parents when but twelve years old, and, after receiving the education afforded by the district school, gave his attention to farming, always living at home, where he took charge of the farm, and ministered to his parents in their old age. On December 5, 1888, he married Miss Mary Mehaffy, a native of Kort- right, and daughter of Benjamin and Mary E. (Storie) Mehaffy, the former of whom is a farmer, now residing in Iowa. The latter died in the prime of life. Mr. and Mrs. Whipple have one child, Blanche M., who was born March 22, 1890.
Just before his marriage Mr. Whipple pur- chased the old homestead consisting of three
hundred and twenty-two acres, and now has under his control four hundred and ninety-five acres, part of which he rents. His farm is under excellent cultivation, and the dairy is a very extensive and productive one, comprising sixty-five milch cows of finest Jersey breed. Mr. Whipple has in all one hundred head of stock,. employing two men throughout the year. His home is a most comfortable one, situated in the Delaware River Valley among the Catskill Mountains. The family attend the United Presbyterian church. Mr. Whip- ple is a stanch Republican. He is an indus- trious man, with remarkable business qual- ifications, and is eminently successful in whatever enterprises he undertakes.
ICTOR FINCH, a prominent citizen of Tompkins, Delaware County, N. Y., was born September 12, 1820, in Lexington, Greene County. The ancestors of Mr. Finch came from Holland to America with the early settlers of this country, and the family has been known in its history since that time.
Amos Finch, father of Victor, was born in Lexington in 1794, and died in 1868. After engaging in farming in his native town for many years, he disposed of his property there, and purchased a farm in Maryland, Otsego County, where he lived for some time, subse- quently removing to a farm that he bought in Tompkins. After the death of his wife his eyesight failed; and he gave his property to his sons, passing his last days at the home of his son Victor, where he died November 16, 1868, at the age of seventy-four years. He was buried in the cemetery at Trout Creek. His wife was Polly Merwin, also a native of Lexington; and she was the mother of six children - Lura, Victor, Samuel, Emmeline, Debias, and Wilson. Mrs. Polly M. Finch was herself the eldest of a family of fourteen children, of whom her brother, David Merwin, of Hensonville, now in his seventy-ninth year. is the only survivor. His earliest ancestors in this country came from Wales. His pa- ternal grandfather, his father, and his uncle, Daniel Merwin, came to New York from Wal- lingford, Conn., soon after the Revolution,
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crossing the Hudson on a raft of their own construction, and travelling thirty miles, mostly by blazed trees, through a howling wilderness. They took up a tract of land in Greene County, where the father of Mrs. Finch cleared a small piece of land, sowed it with wheat, built a log house, and then went back to Connecticut, and married Thankful Parker, who returned with him to the new home, where their children were born.
Victor Finch passed his boyhood in Tomp- kins, attending the district school, and help- ing with the farm work. When seventeen he went to work for a Mr. Palmer, learning the carpenter's trade, and at twenty-onc started out in life for himself, engaging in lumbering and farming. When he was thirty-five years of age, he purchased a farm in Manchester, Wayne County, Pa., where for fourteen years he engaged extensively in his old occupation of farming and lumbcring. Selling his prop- erty there, he purchased in 1856 the farm where he now resides, comprising one hundred and eighty-six acres. Besides raising crops and making maple sugar, he also operates a large dairy, keeping forty-five cows, doing much of the work of the place himself. He is strong and hcarty, was never known to be ill in all his life, and, although seventy-four years of age, is as active and energetic as when much younger.
January 30, 1855, Mr. Finch married Sarah E. Taylor, daughter of James and Clementina (Harse) Taylor. Both of Mrs. Finch's par -- ents were born in Winford, Somersetshire, England, where they were married, four chil- dren being born in England, two of whom died in that country. In 1828 they sailed for America with their two children in the ship "Cosmo," the voyage occupying sixteen weeks and four days. The passage was an unusually rough one, the good ship being twice blown off the coast; but. after much suffering and narrow escape from shipwreck, the family reached New York City and settled on a small farm where Jersey City is now situated. For three years they lived there, and then moved to Honesdale, Pa., which contained at that time but one log house. The journey from the old home to Honesdale was made on foot with the children on their backs, a man driv-
ing an ox team containing all their worldly goods. The country to which they immi- grated was a barren wilderness, abounding in wild animals, and was not particularly pleas- ing to Mr. Taylor. He accordingly removed to a tract called the French Woods, in Delaware County, N. Y., and here erected a bark cabin, in which he lived until able to build a log house. He proceeded to clear land on what is now called the Rolland farm, near Sand Pond, which is one of the largest in French Woods. Several years later he sold this property, and went to Bouchon- ville in the same county, where he carried on a hotel, which he afterward sold to purchase a farm in Manchester, Wayne County, Pa. Ten years later he disposed of this, and bought a farm near Lordville, Delaware County, consist- ing of one hundred and three acres; and here he lived until his death, which occurred Jan- uary 14, 1871, the result of injuries received by being struck by the cars near his home. His wife died one year later, in 1872, and they sleep side by side in the cemetery at Lordville.
Mr. and Mrs. Taylor were the parents of ten children : John and Michael, born in Eng- land; Mary Ann, Nathaniel, Sarah E., Henry, and William, born in French Woods; Bessie, born in Bouchonville; and two others, who died in England. In 1848 Mr. Taylor again crossed the ocean, the death of his father, without a will, making his presence necessary in the settlement of the property. The passage over occupied three weeks; and the return trip, being very stormy, occupied seventeen weeks, both voyages being made in the ship "Rappahannock," of Liverpool. Mr. Taylor being the eldest son, and his father a wealthy farmer, his portion of the estate amounted to a comfortable fortune. His daughter, Mrs. Finch, was born July 14, 1837, in French Woods, and passed the early part of her life in Lordville, attending the district school, and residing with her parents until her marriage.
Mr. and Mrs. Finch are the parents of three children: Alva Wilson, born October 16, 1856; William L., born May 4, 1860; Elmer E., born February 6, 1863. All are natives of Manchester, Wayne County, Pa., and at-
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tended the district school on Knickerbocker Hill, assisting their parents on the home farm. The son, A. Wilson, married Susan Brown of Tompkins; and they have one child, Ava, born January 30, 1891. William L. Finch died July 19, 1862, at the age of two years ; and Elmer works on the old home farm with his father and brother. Mr. Finch is profoundly respected for his upright character and honorable dealings.
ROFESSOR WILLIS D. GRAVES. Delaware Academy, located in Delhi, is fortunate in having for its princi- pal Willis D. Graves, a man of lib- eral culture and great executive ability. Under his wise régime of the past ten years the number of students has increased, the standard of scholarship greatly advanced, and many beneficial changes and improvements been made. Delaware Academy since its in- ception has been regarded as the leading in- stitution of its kind in this section of the State, and its high reputation and usefulness as a classical institute grow steadily from year to year. It was established in pursuance of an act of the legislature passed April 12, 1819, which appropriated six thousand dollars, the proceeds of a Tory estate, for the purpose of establishing an academy in Delaware County. The academy was incorporated by the regents of the university, February 12, 1820; and the first building was erected upon lands given by General Erastus Root, who had been in- strumental in obtaining the appropriation. Judge Ebenezer Foote was President of the first Board of Trustees, Colonel Amasa Parker the first Secretary, and John A. Savage the first Principal of the academy.
From the start this school had a successful career; and, having outgrown its accommoda- tions, in 1856 a new academy and two board- ing halls were built. Recently the boarding department has been enlarged, but is yet too small to accommodate all applicants. In 1893 the number of students registered reached two hundred and twenty-three, and the representation of the school greatly cx- tended, the non-resident attendance number- ing one hundred and twenty-six. No other
academic school in this section of the State approaches such an attendance of pupils from a distance, and few similar schools in the en- tire State of New York report such a non- resident attendance. During the past decade over ten thousand dollars has been expended in beautifying the grounds and in adding to the comfort and equipment of the buildings. Among the valuable accessories of the school is a library of two thousand volumes, an ex- tensive collection of apparatus, a thoroughly furnished gymnasium, and every convenience for efficient work. The work of the school is mostly academic, although both a preparatory and primary department are sustained. The regents' courses of study, the only recognized courses for graduation, are liberal and progres- sive, fitting the students in the most thorough manner for Princeton, Yale, Vassar, and other colleges, and for life work.
The faculty of this academy consists of a corps of thorough educators, who devote their entire attention to the best interests of the school. Under their tuition students who have matriculated at various colleges have be- come distinguished scholars. One of the stu- dents of the academy recently won a three years' fellowship at Yale College, and re- ceived the degree of Ph.D. at the age of twenty-one years. Another obtained the Mental Science fellowship of six hundred dollars at Princeton Collegc. One is instruc- tor of Latin in the Hartford High School, and another holds the Chair of Oratory in Cornell University. Reports have come back from the following-namcd colleges wherein Delhi Academy students have distinguished them- selves, testifying to the thorough preparation received in this school: Yale, Cornell, Princeton, Vassar, Wellesley, Hamilton, Middlebury, Westminster, and Elmira Femalc College, besides from the law, medical, and normal schools of the State. Aside from the academic course, Professor Graves has main- tained a kindergarten course, in which about twenty children are taught; and a practical course in book-keeping is included within the regular course. Special courses are given in music, drawing, and painting, these special studics being under the supervision of thor- ough and accomplished instructors.
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Professor Graves is a native of the Empire State, having been born in Bainbridge, Che- mango County, August 18, 1856, the eldest of four children born to Gaylord S. and Harriet E. (Pettys) Graves. His father was a suc- cessful business man, who, having amassed a competence during forty years in which he was engaged in the furniture business, is now enjoying well-earned leisure from the active pursuits of life. Professor Graves as a boy was an ambitious student, and, after leaving the public school, attended the academies of Afton and Bainbridge. He subsequently spent four years as a teacher in the schools of Chenango and Broome Counties, afterward taking a full course of study at the normal school in Albany, from which he was grad- uated in 1879. In August of the same year he accepted the principalship of the Bain- bridge Union School and Academy, a position which he retained six years, winning in the mean time a reputation as an instructor of rare ability and merit. In 1885 he leased the Delaware Academy at Delhi, which under his efficient administration occupies a front rank among similar institutions of the kind in the State.
Professor Graves was united in marriage in 1880 to Miss Elizabeth M. Rexford, an ac- complished young woman of superior mental attainments, who was graduated from Vassar College with the class of 1877, receiving the degree of A.B. She is a member of the fac- ulty of the academy, being the instructor in Latin and German. Professor and Mrs. Graves are both members of the Second Pres- byterian Church, and active laborers in de- nominational work.
ZRA H. HAIT, an estimable citizen of Stamford, N. Y., was born in this town, on Rose Brook, December 26, 1823, son of Stephen and Betsy (Lyon) Hait. Stephen Hait was born in South Kortright in the town of Stamford, and his wife was born on Rose Brook in the same town. His father, Ezra Hait, who was born in Connecticut, in 1790 moved to this county, and settled in Stamford in the Delaware River Valley. He bought a tract of wild land, built a log cabin,
and then, returning to his native State, was there married. As soon as practicable he took his wife to their new home. The jour- ney was made on horseback, which was then about the only way of travelling; and a hard and somewhat perilous trip it must have been, for wild animals, which are now seldom found, then abounded in the country.
Catskill was the main market for the wheat crop, and four days were consumed in going thither and coming back. The grist had to be taken to Schoharie to be ground. It must have required great courage and fortitude to live under these discouraging conditions. To be sure, deer, bears, and smaller game abounded in the forests, but so did prowling panthers and wolves; and, had not the pio- neers been men and women of dauntless dar- ing as well as sturdy workers, their hearts must have failed them. Mr. Hait owned a good farm, raised flax, and kept sheep, so that the family spun and wove their own linen and wool and dressed in this homespun cloth, which is now seldom if ever seen. He bought in the first place one hundred and fifty acres, but added to it till at one time he owned about four hundred acres. He was one of the well-to-do men of the town, and was a Presbyterian in religious views. He died on the old homestead, March II, 1849, at eighty- nine years of age, and his wife, April 16, 1839, when sixty-three years of age. They had five children, all of whom grew to matu- rity ; but none are now living. Their names were Lydia, Betsey, Patty, Stephen, and Daniel.
Stephen Hait, the elder of the two sons of Ezra, grew to manhood in the town of Stamford, and there resided throughout his life. He was well known as Captain Stephen Hait, was a farmer owning a good farm at Rose Brook, and was a practical and success- ful man in business. In 1820 he married, and moved in that same year on to his farm of one hundred and thirty-seven acres, the greater part of which he had to clear himself; and here he lived until his death. His first wife died August 3, 1837; and he was again married to Betsy Patterson. They were both members of the Presbyterian church; and he was a Whig in politics, and was Collector of
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his town. They both lived to a good old age. He died when about eighty years old. The three children by the first marriage were the following: Ezra H., the subject of this sketch; Mrs. Mary L. Ryer, widow of the late George W. Ryer, a farmer; Mrs. Louisa E. Wakeman, who was born in 1829, and died in 1860. The three by the second marriage were: Lydia E. Scott, who resides in North Kortright; Isaac Henry, who resides on Rose Brook; and Martin K., who lives on the old homestead.
Ezra H. Hait grew to manhood in the town of Stamford, and received his education in the district schools of that town. He lived under the parental roof until about thirty-six years of age, and assisted in carrying on the work of the home farm. He bought his first land, a tract of seventy-five acres, in the Delaware Valley; and this he still holds. About thirty-four years ago he bought the land where he now resides, being one of the oldest set- tlers in this part of the town. All improve- ments and additions have been made by him, and he now has one of the best farms in the valley. He is a practical farmer, and suc- cessfully carries on a dairy of twenty head of Jerseys. He has in all about one hundred and fifty acres of land, good farm buildings, and a fine dwelling. He also owns real estate in Almeda, and was one of the prime movers in having the South Kortright railway station established. His wife was a member of the United Presbyterian church, and he is liberal in religious views and politically a Democrat.
On May 18, 1859, he married Nancy Nes- bitt, daughter of George Nesbitt. She was born December 28, 1829, in the town of Stamford, on Rose Brook. Mrs. Hait died when sixty-one years of age, July 28, 1890. They had one son, Stephen, born October 12, 1865, who now resides with his father, and is practically the mainstay of the place, having full charge, and carrying on the business. On February 3, 1892, he married Katie Hilts, who was born in Schoharie County; and they have one son, Ezra Hilts Hait, born October 28, 1893. They are both members of the United Presbyterian church, and in politics he follows the principles of the Democratic
party. He is one of the rising young farmers of the town, and, like his father, has shown much interest in public affairs.
EORGE I. TREYZ is known to every resident of Butternut Grove as an enterprising and successful mer- chant of that place, doing an extensive and varied business. He is the son of Henry and Louisa (Mall) Treyz, and was born in Brook- lyn, N. Y., May 1I, 1865. His father be- longs to that class of foreign-born citizens who are in the front rank of progress, and who have the highest appreciation for the freedom and institutions of our country, having come here to share its privileges and help to mould its destiny. The same might also be said of his maternal grandfather, who was a native of France.
Henry Treyz was born July 3, 1842, in Ulm, Germany, and, coming to this country in his early manhood, worked at his trade of brewer in New Jersey and other places. At length, giving up that occupation, he bought in Fremont Centre, Sullivan County, N. Y., a farm of one hundred acres, which he has im- proved in every possible way. He keeps a choice dairy of fifteen Jersey cows, besides a large flock of sheep; and everything about the place is in a most prosperous condition, the farm being finely located near the village. His wife, Louisa, was a daughter of John C. Mall, who was born in France, and was son of a Protestant minister, the Rev. Christian Mall. John C. Mall raised a family of seven children - Louisa, Lewis, Caroline, Gottfried, John, Henry, Maggie.
Henry and Louisa Treyz are also the par- ents of seven children, of whom the following may be recorded: John, born February 26, 1863, married Rosa Holtzman, and has three boys, who live with him at Peakville, Dela- ware County. George I. is the subject of this biography. Gottleib H., born June 25, 1867, married Lena Bach, has three boys, and also lives at Peakville. Lewis A., born July 2, 1869, married Agatha Keen, has one son, and lives at Sherman, l'a. William H., born July 12, 1872, lives at Butternut Grove. August, born September 21, 1874, lives at
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Sherman, Pa. Maggie L., born September 17, 1876, is still at the parental home.
George I. Treyz, when but eleven years old, was obliged to leave school and begin to earn his own living. He was, however, so eager to be more than a mere laborer that he applied himself to his studies in the evenings after his daily work in the coal-yard was over, and, with a determination which was worthy of the object, acquired habits of application and gained knowledge which may be said to have been the foundation of his future success. Step by step he went on till he was enabled to start in business at Butternut Grove with a little store in one room, and keeping a small line of groceries. He gradually enlarged his stock until now he has the extensive business that may be seen to-day, including everything in the line of general merchandise, furniture, and many outside branches. He also handles all the coal used at this station, besides deal- ing largely in lumber and in stone. He em- ploys four clerks in his retail department and several other men outside. William Treyz, his brother and his chief clerk in the store, is a man of much business ability and tact, and one who has made himself a great favorite by his courteous and pleasing address, good judg- ment, and quick appreciation of the wants of his patrons. Both Williain and George are Republicans in politics, as was their father before them.
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