USA > New York > Delaware County > Biographical review : this volume contains biographical sketches of the leading citizens of Delaware County, New York > Part 93
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On September 27, 1865, Mr. Morenus was united in marriage with Elizabeth H. Bailey, who was born in Suffolk, Va., January 23, 1843, a daughter of James M. and Ann (Gynn) Bailey. Mr. Bailey was born April 15, 1799. By his union with Ann Gynn, December 31, 1835, he had eight children, namely: Mary Ann, born September 29, 1836, died April 9, 1863; Sarah R., born February 1, 1838, died February 13, 1863; James M., born August 22, 1839, an officer in the Confederate army,
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who died August 8, 1864, from wounds re- ceived at the blowing-up of the mine in front of Petersburg; Martha F., born January 16, 1841, died November 9, 1864; Elizabeth H., Mrs. Morenus; Robert S., born January 16, 1845, who lost an eye while serving in the Confederate army, and died April 27, 1888; Cornelia G., born August 16, 1846, died Sep- tember 3, 1874; and Edna S., born March 26, 1848. The mother of these children died March 3, 1852 ; and Mr. Bailey married Mrs. Martha Shepard, December 16, 1852. By his last marriage were three children, namely : Charles W., born October 15, 1853; Eugene S., born May 27, 1856, died September 24, 1856; and Lucy M., born May 15, 1859. Mr. Bailey died in 1864.
Mr. and Mrs. Morenus are the parents of three children. Mae, born July 18, 1867, is the wife of Charles M. Hackett, of Greensboro, N.C. Howard B., born May 31, 1869, now the chief book-keeper for the Cottage Organ Company, of Chicago, married Martha Cable in 1893. Robert F., born January 10, 1873, is book-keeper for Fitch, Brook & Sully, of Walton. In politics Mr. Morenus is an un- compromising Republican, and, though no aspirant for official honors, has served as Deputy Sheriff for nine years. He is Adjutant and ex-Commander of the Ben Marvin Post, No. 209, Grand Army of the Republic. He also served for thirteen years as Lieutenant of the Separate Company, National Guards, being then placed upon the retired list.
EWITT B. COLE, who for the last fifteen years has been successfully engaged in the hotel business in Ark- ville, was born November 1, 1857, in Middletown, Delaware County, N. Y. His parents were Solomon and Emeline (Gray) Cole, the former of whom was the son of Thomas Cole, a farmer and lumberman who came from Connecticut when a young man, accompanied by his wife, Jerusha Jenkins, a worthy helpmeet. This couple became the parents of seven children, by name: Betsy, who became the wife of George Osterhoudt ; Solomon, who became the father of the subject of this sketch; Mary, who married Ephraim
Isham; Emeline, who was united in marriage to - Robinson; John; Harrison, who left his native place to seek his fortunes in the West ; and William H. The father, who was a good example of the sturdy pioneer class, and was a man much respected, died at the age of eighty-six. His wife survived to the re- markable age of ninety-nine, an illustration of the advantage of plain living and simple tastes.
Solomon Cole, the next in line, was born in Middletown, and became accustomed to farm life and work at an early age. When a young man, he purchased a farm of two hundred acres near Griffin's Corners, and occupied himself in tilling the soil. He married Emeline Boughton, daughter of David Boughton, a farmer and an early settler in the town of Rox- bury. In 1861 Solomon Cole sold his farm and moved to Roxbury. One year later he moved to Margarettville, and still later to Ark- ville, where he bought the hotel of Griffin & Crespill, and engaged in its management until his death at the age of fifty-eight. He was a prominent figure in his locality, a man of square dealing, and a stanch Republican in political faith. He was the father of seven children, named as follows: Abraham, who married Olive Meeker for his first wife, was later united to Emma Keater, and is now de- ceased ; Charles, who chose for his wife Emma Kittle, now resides in Binghamton, N. Y., and has one child; Edward, resident in New York City, who married Trudie Emmett, and has two children; Rena, who became the wife of Charles Still, an engineer, and resides in Ark- ville; James M., the eldest, married, but now deceased ; Emma Halstead, who is married, re- sides in Jersey City Heights, and has one child; and Dewitt, whose name claims atten- tion at the head of this sketch.
Dewitt B. Cole attended the public schools of his native town in early youth, and assimi- lated a fair amount of practical knowledge, which he has since supplemented by observa- tion and experience in the affairs of every-day life. Taking his father's hotel at the age of twenty-two, he applied himself to the task of managership with the determination to make his hostelry known far and wide as a place of comfort for man and beast. In this he has been singularly successful, and his present
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standing in the community is due to his own good judgment and far-sighted business policy. His hotel is situated opposite the depot, an advantageous location, as it is thus its own advertisement.
Mr. Cole is a married man, as all hotel- keepers should be. His wife was, by maiden name, Pevila Hasbrook. Her parents were Barney L. and Rosa (Hubbard) Hasbrook, the former of whom is the leading merchant in Clovesville, N. Y. Mr. and Mrs. Cole have one child, Beulah, born April 10, 1893. Al- though known so well as a genial host, Mr. Cole's duties and responsibilities in life are not confined to his hotel business. He is so well liked by his fellow-townsmen that they have chosen him to serve as Collector and Deputy Sheriff, both of which responsible positions he has well filled. His politics are Republican ; and, when the interests of his locality or the country at large are to be served, he is not to be found among the stay-at-homes. Of a social nature, he belongs to Margarettville Lodge, No. 389, A. F. & A. M., and is also a member of the order of Knights of Pythias. His popularity is unquestioned, and he is prop- erly assigned a place among the substantial residents of his county.
EORGE BURCHUS, a successful stock-raiser and dairyman, owns and occupies a farm of one hundred acres located about four miles from the village of Walton, on which his birth occurred June 5, 1834. His father, James Burchus, was born in the town of South East, a son of Samuel Burchus, who was a farmer in that place, and a life-long resident.
James Burchus learned the trade of a shoe- maker; and some time during the War of 1812 he made shoes for the soldiers, but was after- ward drafted into the army, and served three months. He was a Corporal of his company, and was detailed to look after deserters, serv- ing in this capacity until he received his discharge. He continued to follow his trade for a while, but after marriage returned to farming. His wife was Bathsheba Foster, a native of South East. Removing with his bride to Delaware County, Mr. Burchus bought
a tract of partly cleared land, taking possession of it in 1821. He continued the improve- ments, among other things setting out a fine orchard. Seven years later he sold that land and purchased a farm of fifty acres, mostly covered with a dense growth of timber, of which so little had been cleared that he has been known to hunt for two days to find a yoke of cattle. He was an active worker, and by able and vigorous management placed the original land under cultivation, and occa- sionally bought other land, until at the time of his decease he owned two hundred and seventeen acres, his homestead being one of the most valuable estates in this vicinity. His first wife bore him the following children : Sarah, Elizabeth, Pamelia, Sally, Betsey, and Samuel. She lived but ten years after her marriage; and he subsequently married Polly Bossett, a native of Dutchess County, and a daughter of Samuel and Sally Bossett. Of this union three children were born, namely : Sherman ; George; and Mary, who married Wesley Wilman, of Connecticut.
George, the youngest son, is the only mem- ber of the parental household now living. He received a very good education in the district school, and ably assisted his father in the farm work, remaining at home until becoming of age. He then bought of Hezekiah Cable fifty acres of land, situated about a mile from the home of his parents. He cleared the land, and prepared it for tillage, in the mean time erect- ing a frame house and a log barn, and con- tinued to reside there some fifteen years. On the death of his father, Mr. Burchus purchased the old homestead where he was born and reared, and has since carried it on with marked success. He has made extensive improve- ments, building a new barn, but occupying the house which his father erected. At the time that he took possession of his property, part of the land was in its original wildness, and in such a condition that he could not cut hay enough to feed twelve head of cattle. He now cuts hay enough on one hundred acres to keep twenty-four cows, five yearlings, ten sheep, and four horses. He operates a large dairy, making a fine grade of butter, most of which is sold in New York City. His cattle are graded Jersey. He had the misfortune a
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short time ago to have nine of his cows killed by lightning in one night.
Mr. Burchus and Laura J. Cable, the daugh- ter of Hezekiah and Sally (Bradley) Cable, were married in 1855. Mr. and Mrs. Cable were natives of Connecticut, but removed to this county, and purchased a farm in Walton, on which their children, four in number, were born. Mr. and Mrs. Burchus became the par- ents of five children, three of whom have passed to the "life elysian," Alice dying when a little child of seven years. Ida died when seven years old; and Esther, who was married, died at the age of twenty-three years, leaving two children - Ida and Willie. Julia and Frank are still living, the latter superin- tending the management of the home farm. Mr. Burchus is a Granger, and in politics is independent, although he usually supports the Democratic ticket. Both he and his family are among the most active workers in the Bap- tist church, in which he has served as Trustee, besides holding many other official positions. He was one of the prime movers in the build- ing of the present Baptist church, and it was chiefly through his efforts that the church was organized.
DGAR A. VERMILYA was born in Middletown, June 20, 1840. His grandfather, William Vermilya, was a Hollander, who settled in Putnam County, where he reared a family of four children - William, Jesse, John, Samuel. The last named, and father of Edgar A. Vermilya, re- moved from Putnam County when a young man. He was a cobbler by trade, but did not follow this occupation for any length of time. He bought a mill on Batavia Kill, which is now known as Morse's mill. Here he lived until his death, though not after the fashion of that "Miller of Dee" who sang, "I care for nobody, and nobody cares for me"; for he wooed and married as most young men do. His wife was Miss Catherine Robinson, a daughter of Issacher Robinson. Her father was also a miller, and had many a tale of the days of 1776, having fought in the Revolu- tionary War. Both husband and wife were members of the old-school Baptist church.
Their six children may be briefly named. Ed- ward married Jane Whipple. Orville married Margaret Stone. William married Lydia Kelly. Melissa married Mr. Birkley. Edgar is the subject of the following paragraphs. Olive married first John Delamore; second, Rexford Hewitt.
Edgar A. Vermilya was educated in the dis- trict schools, and came when a young man to Griffin's Corners, where he went into the cabinet-making business. Three years after the enterprise was established his entire stock in trade was consumed by fire; but the young man was nothing daunted by this misfortune, and immediately began to work at his trade as a carpenter. In the second year of the Civil WVar, on August 11, 1862, he enlisted in Com- pany G, One Hundred and Forty-fourth New York Volunteers. He was a Sergeant, and was at one time a Second Lieutenant. He was for five long weary months in the hospital at St. Augustine, Fla., from which he was dis- charged in August, 1864, on account of physi- cal disability.
He married Melissa Todd, a daughter of Isaac and Fanny (Boughton) Todd. Miss Todd's grandfather, Samuel Todd, was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. Including Mrs. Vermilya, there were nine children in Isaac Todd's family : Scudder; Orrin ; Henry ; John; Burr; Aaron; Hiram; Walter; and Melissa, now Mrs. Vermilya. To Edgar A. and Melissa Vermilya only one son was born, Herbert S., whose birth was on September 26, 1868, and who married Augusta Maud Banker, daughter of T. C. and Emma (Visner) Banker. The father-in-law of Mr. Herbert S. Vermilya is a boarding-house proprietor at Griffin's Corners, while he himself is a jeweller in the same place, and is doing a flourishing business. In politics he is a Republican, his father, Edgar A. Vermilya being a Prohibitionist. The latter is a class leader and Trustee of the Methodist Episcopal church.
OHIN HUTSON, the genial and accom- modating proprietor of the American House, Delhi, N. Y., was born Decem- ber 10, 1860. His grandfather, Will- iam llutson, emigrated to America from
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Scotland, and became one of the early settlers of Delhi, where he improved a farm. He and his wife reared a family of nine children ; namely, Ebenezer, John, Thomas, George, Margaret, Catherine, Ellen, Mary, and Jane. Both parents were deeply religious, and mem- bers of the Scotch Presbyterian church.
John Hutson, Sr., was the second child born to his parents. He entered upon a mercantile career, conducting a general store in Delhi for many years. He also carried on a substantial flour and feed business, and dealt largely in butter. He was well known throughout this section of the county, and was numbered among the solid and substantial citizens of Delhi. He married Julia Hewes, a native of this county, and one of a large family of children born to James and Margaret (Weasoner) Hewes. Mr. Hewes was born in this country, of Welsh antecedents; and his wife was of Holland ancestry. Of the union of Mr. Hut- son and Miss Hewes the following children were born: William; Jane, who became the wife of Abraham C. Crosby, an eminent lawyer of this town; Elizabeth, who married Charles R. Stillson, a jeweller, of Delhi; John; and Ida M., who married Charles E. Woodruff, whose sketch appears elsewhere in this volume. The good mother passed away at the age of fifty years, and the father after a useful life of threescore years. Both were tried and faithful members of the Scotch Presbyterian church.
John Hutson, the subject of this brief sketch, spent his early years in the village of Delhi, obtaining a practical education in the village schools and academy. After complet- ing his studies, Mr. Hutson began working in the flour and feed mill which his father had built and was then operating, and where Kiff & Gleason, whose sketches may be found in another part of this work, are now engaged in business. He afterward entered the butcher- ing business, working first for his father, and subsequently for himself, continuing thus en- gaged for four years. Soon after this, occurred the death of his father; and Mr. Hutson spent two years travelling in the West, being em- ployed in various lines of business. Not find- ing any locality more pleasing to his tastes than his native town, he returned to Delhi, and, securing a position as clerk in the Ameri-
can House, remained there until Richard D. W. Kiff, the proprietor, retired, when Mr. Hutson made a second visit to the West. When Mr. Kiff assumed the management of the hotel for the second time, Mr. Hutson again entered his employ as a clerk, retaining the position until January 1, 1893, when he formed a partnership with C. E. Kiff, son of his former employer (see sketch given elsewhere in this volume) ; and they managed the affairs of the house successfully for a year, when the partnership was dissolved. Since that time Mr. Hutson has continued the business alone, and is meeting with decided success, having a well-kept and well-appointed hotel, centrally located and extensively patronized. It is situated on the main street of the village, is conveniently arranged, heated throughout with steam, and has accommodations for fifty guests, the gentlemanly proprietor himself attending personally to its management. The table is excellent ; and the cheerful, home-like air pervading the house makes it very attractive.
Mr. Hutson was united in marriage in March, 1884, to Miss Mary Riley. They have one child, a bright little boy, named William Henry. In politics Mr. Hutson in- variably supports the principles of the Repub- lican party. Socially, he is a member of Walton Lodge, No. 625, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and belongs to the Elks of Scranton. Mrs. Hutson is a faithful member of the Catholic church.
ILLIAM WICKS NORTH, proprie- tor of the popular restaurant at the Walton station of the Ontario & Western Railway, is a native of the town where he resides, having been born within its limits, August 10, 1821, at the home of his father, Benjamin W. North.
Benjamin North, Jr., the father of Ben- jamin W., was born in Newtown, L. I., May I, 1749, at the home of his parents, Benjamin and Margaret (Freeman) North. On January 17, 1773, he married Jane Brown, who died October 16, 1779, leaving two children - Mary B. and Jane. On March 17, 1784, he was united in wedlock with Sarah Lockwood, who died October 30, 1789. His third wife,
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to whom he was united March 15, 1792, was Sarah Wicks, of Huntington, L. I. They re- moved to New York -City, and there were born all of her children; namely, Jane, Eliza H., Benjamin W., William F., Hannah H., and Robert F.
Benjamin W. North married Emeline, daughter of Gabriel and Deborah North. He was for many years prosperously engaged in mercantile business in New York, where he was an extensive dealer in groceries. He was a man of great push and energy, and was an active member of the old fire department of that city, being foreman of Engine Company No. 15, to which his eldest son also belonged. It was due to his efforts that engines were in- troduced into the city fire department.
William Wicks North received an excellent elementary education in the city schools of New York, and completed his school life at Rye, Westchester County. In 1842 he went with his father to Poughkeepsie, N. Y., where they established a nursery and fruit business. In 1846 Mr. North, leaving his father, came to Walton, and for some time thereafter was engaged in general farming. Just prior to the late Rebellion he embarked in the grocery business, which he finally relinquished for his present occupation, opening a restaurant at the Ontario & Western Railway depot ; and this he has successfully managed for the past twenty years. For three years he and his eldest son were employed in surveying for the railroad.
On May 10, 1849, Mr. North was united in marriage to Mary A. Eells, daughter of Horace Eells, an old and honored settler of Delaware County. This union was hallowed by the birth of four children, as follows : Benjamin G., born December 22, 1851, is Superintendent of the Ontario & Western Railway Company, and a valued citizen of Walton. Horace E., born December 31, 1853, is an insurance agent of the firm of Paul & North. Ida M., born May 3, 1856, died January 22, 1876. William F., born Novem- ber 17, 1861, is a clerk for the railway com- pany, employed by his brother Benjamin. Mrs. North, the beloved wife and mother, passed to the higher state of existence, January 11, 1894. She was held in high esteem as a
neighbor and a friend, and her death was uni- versally mourned. In politics Mr. North has always affiliated with the Democratic party.
ILLIAM H. LASHER was born July 9, 1842, on Brush Ridge, in Middletown, Delaware County, N. Y. He is a grandson of Conrad and Maria (Sagendorph) Lasher. Five brothers of the Lasher family came from Wittenberg, Ger- many, and settled in Dutchess County, New York, before the Revolutionary War. Conrad married in Dutchess, and came with his wife and family to Delaware County, which was then almost unsettled. The journey was made on horseback, as was often the mode in those early days; and the road was only dis- covered by following certain trees which had been marked by previous travellers. Another family of emigrants came to this locality about the same time. They bore the name of Rackit, and were for some years the only neighbors of the Lashers.
Conrad Lasher bought one hundred and forty acres of land, built a house in the woods, and began to clear the land. He sold out to his son Allen when he felt the burden of his years bearing too heavily upon him, and lived with his children until he died, at the age of eighty-three years. He was a Lutheran in religion and a Democrat in political faith. Neither he nor his wife ever learned to read or to speak English. Their children were : Robert ; Edward H. ; Allen ; Abraham ; Fred- erick ; and Maria, Mrs. Traver.
Edward, the second son, was born in Dutchess County, but came to Delaware and began farming on an estate just one mile from the paternal homestead. He afterward en- gaged in lumber dealing, putting up a saw-mill at Emery Brook, where he sawed and shipped his own lumber. This was one of the first saw-mills in this part of the country. There was a good home trade, and he was able before long to own a good property. He died on December 21, 1875. His wife was a Miss Mabee, daughter of William Mabee, a farmer near Pine Hill village in Ulster County. They had seven children, one of them being William, the subject of this sketch. Alonzo
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Lasher married Anne O'Brien, was left a widower, and married Nancy Davis, having one child by each marriage. Elbert is now the superintendent of a lumber estate in Pennsylvania. They have two sisters : Sarah ; and Samantha L., who married Alonzo John- son, was left a widow, and married Silas Blish.
William H. Lasher received a plain educa- tion at Townsend Hollow and Griffin's Cor- ners. At the latter place he engaged in the grocery business with Allen Lasher, when he was twenty-one years of age. Later in life he went into lumber dealing, buying a large amount of real estate. In 1874 he sold all of his land with the exception of seventy acres which he retained for a home. A comfortable house, barn, and dairy are among the improve- ments. He has been engaged in the insurance business to some extent. In 1863 Mr. Lasher was united in wedlock to Jeannette Crawford, a native of Cayuga, and one of a family of four children. She was born February 1I, 1841, and had two brothers - William H., born January 1, 1829; and Robert, born March 20, 1831 - and one sister, Isabella, born August 17, 1833. To William H. and Jeannette (Crawford) Lasher were born three children. Eugene E., born June 29, 1869, married Ada Rowley. Willie E., born April 9, 1870, mar- ried Ella Crispell. Lulu May, born March 9, 1871, lives at home. Mrs. Lasher died in November, 1889. She was a conscientious member of the Presbyterian church.
William H. Lasher has been eminently suc- cessful in the different lines of business in which he has been engaged, and is one of the leading politicians of the Republican party in his town. In 1890 he was appointed to the office of Postmaster, which he held for four years. He was Deputy Sheriff for fifteen and Pension Agent for twelve years, and was Sur- veyor of Highways for two terms.
HARLES H. MACE, stationer and perfumer, is a young man of much promise in the business circles of Walton, and one of its most popular residents. He was born in the village, Octo- ber 16, 1871, son of Abram L. and Anna
(Fanchen) Mace, the former of whom was born in Delhi, this county, in 1845, and the latter, a daughter of Henry and Hannah (Eels) Fanchen, having been born in Walton, in 1846.
The paternal grandfather was Abram Mace, who was born in Poughkeepsie, N. Y., in 1822, and was for many years a well-known manufact- urer of this county, owning and operating a large woollen-mill in Hamden. He was a man of much business capacity, and, having by prudence and good management accumulated a competence, he is now living retired from the active pursuits of life in the village of Ham- den. He married Antoinette Phelps; and they reared five children, the following being their record: Nettie, who died when a young girl; Charles H., who gave his life for his country during the late Civil War, having enlisted as a Corporal in Company C, One Hundred and Forty-fourth New York Volun- teer Infantry, and being stricken, while at Cold Harbor, with a fever from which he never recovered, dying there at the age of twenty- two years; Abram L., the father of the sub- ject ; Delia, widow of the late Edward Buxton, residing in Oneonta; and Albert, operator of the Delhi woollen-mills.
The marriage of the parents of the subject of this sketch was solemnized in September, 1868, in the village of Walton; and this has since been their home. Abram L. Mace has for many years been a prominent man in busi- ness, social, and public life, and an important factor in the industrial interests of the town. He was engaged for many years as a carpenter and builder, but afterward embarked in mer- cantile business, and was also a successful dealer in real estate. In him the Democratic party has a warm supporter, and during Grover Cleveland's first administration he served four years as Postmaster. He and his wife spend the winter months in North Carolina; and he is practically retired from business, his son Charles having succeeded him in the store. Mr. and Mrs. Abram L. Mace are the parents of three children : Charles H. ; Hanna, a young lady, who was graduated from Vassar College with high honors in the class of 1890. She is now making practical use of her mental attainments as a teacher of mathematics. She
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