USA > New York > Wyoming County > Biographical review : this volume contains biographical sketches of the leading citizens of Livingston and Wyoming counties, N.Y > Part 15
USA > New York > Livingston County > Biographical review : this volume contains biographical sketches of the leading citizens of Livingston and Wyoming counties, N.Y > Part 15
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95
Harvey Ewart is probably the oldest native- born citizen in the town of Groveland. He was reared to agricultural pursuits, and, with the exception of some time spent in travel. has always lived upon the farm where he was born. When about twenty-three years of age, his health being somewhat impaired, he was advised to try a sea voyage; and he went to Ireland, where he remained a year. He then returned to the United States, going first to
Iss € .
nagy do estor vitil irigood and body raise) yfu
tisub bob
108
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
Ohio, and from there to Virginia, where he taught school for a time, and after an absence of three years came back to Groveland and re- sumed farming. He succeeded to the owner- ship of the home farm, and has resided upon it ever since. His first wife was Matilda Begole, a native, it is supposed, of Wayland, Allegany County, N. Y. She was the daugh- ter of Thomas Begole, a farmer of Groveland, and died May 11, 1861. His second wife, whom he married March 24, 1863, was Eliza- beth Sears, daughter of Franklin and Eliza- beth (Shadders) Sears, natives, respectively, of Barre, Mass., and Hagerstown, Md. Mr. Ewart's three children are: Mary Ann, Nancy M. E., and George T. Mary Ann married Fred Van Antwerp, and resides at Hinton, W. Va., where he is a merchant. Nancy M. E. married Azel Ford, a real estate dealer, who has served as a member of the West Virginia legislature. They have five children - Anna, Grace, Harvey, Marion, .and Cecil Ford.
George T. Ewart attended the State normal school at Geneseo two years, and afterward assisted his father on the farm until 1884, when he went to West Virginia. He remained there four years, being engaged in mercantile business. In 1888 he returned to Groveland to assume charge of the home farm, and has since remained there. He is a very active and intelligent young man, a fair-minded and consistent politician, and a general favorite with all who know him. He has a future be- fore him, and his fellow-townsmen will watch his advancement with pride. Besides being Supervisor, he has already served six years as Justice of the Peace.
P. BURKHART, M. D. S., a skilful and successful dentist of Dansville, N. Y., a citizen closely connected with every interest of local impor- tance in the town, was born in Cleveland, Ohio, May 17, 1852. His father, Jacob, was of Ba- varian birth, and lived for a time in New York City, where he followed the trade of a cooper. Removing to Cleveland, Ohio, he there became a manufacturer of barrels, casks, and tanks.
He died at the age of fifty years. He was an active member of the National Guard of Ohio, being connected in various positions with one of the leading military companies in Cleveland. He was one of the best rifle shots in the city. At the breaking out of the war in 1861, with the assistance of several friends, he organized a company of sharpshooters, but he was not accepted on account of physical disabilities. The maiden name of his wife, who is still liv- ing in the West, was Binna Buckholts. She reared five children, namely : A. P. Burkhart, the subject of this sketch ; Laura; Julia; Har- vey; and William. Laura married Charles Keppler, a Western gentleman.
A. P. Burkhart was very young when his father died. He was educated at the public schools in Cleveland, and afterward attended Bryant & Stratton's Business College in that city. He later taught one year in the Collegi- ate Institute at Towanda, Pa., after which he taught several years in the union school in Lyons, Wayne County, N. Y. From there he came to Dansville in 1873, and began the study of dentistry with Dr. Quigley. He completed his studies, and entered into prac- tice, having purchased his principal's interest ; and in 1879 the degree of M. D. S. was con- ferred upon him by the State Board. He has also taken several courses at the post-graduate school. The business which he purchased in 1874 was established in 1838 by Farley & Bristol, who were succeeded by Dr. A. Quig- ley, Dr. G. C. Daboll, and Dr. Burkhart. It will be seen, therefore, that the present busi- ness has been established nearly sixty years. Dr. Burkhart enjoys a very large general prac- tice. He also attends to the dental work of the Sanatorium, which speaks highly for his professional ability. He has been a member of the Eighth District Dental Society for many years, and has filled the office of Presi- dent of same, and for a number of years that of Secretary. He is a member of several secret and other social societies, has held nearly all the offices in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and was District Deputy. He joined Phoenix Lodge, No. 115, A. F. & A. M., and has held all the chairs of that lodge, having served as Master five years.
367 007
1
A. P. BURKHART.
III
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
In the Equitable Aid Union he has held the office of Supreme Accountant, handling in two years one and one-half million dollars, and has represented New York State in the supreme body as supreme representative since 1886.
Dr. Burkhart married Miss Sarah Quigley, a daughter of Dr. Quigley, his instructor in den- tistry, of whom he purchased his business. They have two children - George and Vera. The Doctor is a Republican in politics. He has served on the Town Committee several years, has been active in county politics, and is a hard worker during Presidential campaigns. He is also a member of the Royal Arch Chap- ter, being High Priest. I Ile is District Deputy at this time (1894) of the Twenty- second Masonic District, which is composed of four counties, having been appointed in 1893 by the Grand Master. He is Secretary of the Dansville Fair and Racing Association, in which he takes an active interest. He was the first Treasurer of the new union school, and was very active in its establishment, and in se- curing and forwarding the erection of this beautiful school building. He is a communi- cant of the Episcopal church, of which he is one of the Vestry, and was for a number of years the Treasurer.
The many sterling qualities of Dr. Burkhart are greatly appreciated by the entire commu- nity in which he lives; and the exceptionally prosperous condition of his business, together with the numerous social distinctions that have been conferred upon him, speak much more forcibly than words of the high esteem in which he is held by his fellow-townsmen. Ilis portrait on an adjoining page will be viewed with pleasure by many acquaintances and friends.
YMAN S. COLEMAN, Postmaster of Castile, Wyoming County, N. Y., is a successful produce dealer in this place. He was born in West Haven, Rutland County, Vt., August 30, 1840, being the younger son of Sidney A. and Emily L. (Webster) Coleman, and grandson of Erastus and Cornelia (Billings) Coleman. Erastus
Coleman and his wife were natives of Litch- field, Conn. ; and in that place they were mar- ried. He was a woollen manufacturer, and subsequently removed to West Haven, where he died at the age of eighty years. In politics he was a Democrat, and he and his wife were members of the Baptist church. Their six children were : Eliza, who married A. Benson, and is now dead; Hiram, who married Ange- line Church, and lives in Iowa; Cornelia, who married Isaac Dickinson, and is now dead; Erastus, deceased; Sidney, who is the father of the subject of this biography; and Fannie, who married Professor McCandless.
Sidney Coleman was born at West Haven, Vt., in 1816. He received a district-school education ; and, being naturally of an inventive turn of mind, he gave his attention to mechan- ical pursuits, and invented an engine for boats and a machine for fulling cloth, both of which have been used with much success. He also studied surveying; and, when only twenty- eight years of age, while surveying the coast of North Carolina, he fell a victim to yellow fever and died, leaving a wife and two children. He was buried at Newbern, N. C. His wife, Emily Webster, was born in Hampton, Wash- ington County, N. Y., April 2, 1814, being the daughter of Wait and Hannah (Wheat) Webster. Wait Webster, a well-known farmer of Hampton, N. Y., was born in New Hamp- shire, and died at the age of seventy-seven years. He had a family of five children - Anna, Emily, Horace, Isabelle, and Hiram. He was a private in the War of 1812, and in politics was a Democrat. The children of Sidney Coleman were Clayton W. and Lyman. Clayton was born January 14, 1838, and mar- ried Ida Jacobs, who died, leaving five chil- dren. He lives in Louisiana, and is a lumber merchant and a manufacturer of sashes and blinds.
Lyman Coleman was born in the same house and in the same room where occurred the birth of Horace Greeley. After receiving an educa- tion at the district school, he began farming at Genesee Falls, on a farm of eighty acres. Four years later he went to Castile and started in business on Main Street. In 1870, selling out that business, he built two storage houses,
-- --
Noti I is advitne crest gibt ald ous nemalo) . 1
myw prim erus band bas arrearmeti m enu od f
all lo |. bas aoistfor times an svine good
wiel duifl uniod
2 cupseight di to ma
1
1
112
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
which he stocked with produce, and carried on a large trade. In 1887 he went to New Or- Jeans, and there operated a sash and blind fac- tory, which is now under the management of his son, who also does an extensive business in buying and selling lumber. In connection with the produce business, Mr. Coleman deals in grain and fertilizers, and also has a large coal yard.
In 1860 Mr. Coleman married Miss Lucy A. Bliss, who was born in the town of Pike, Sep- tember 8, 1840, daughter of Scuyler and Mary . (Porter) Bliss. Scuyler Bliss was a native of Hartwick, Otsego County, whence he re- moved to Pike, and afterward to Genesee Falls. In the latter place he owned two hun- dred and sixty acres of uncultivated land, which he cleared and improved, and on which he erected frame buildings. He and his wife died when about eighty years of age. They were the parents of two children -- Guilford D., who married Elizabeth Post, lives in Castile, and has one child; and Lucy A., who is the wife of the subject of this biography.
Mr. and Mrs. Lyman Coleman have had four children, two of whom have passed away ; namely, Emily and Sidney. The two now living are Scuyler B. and Etta. Scuyler B. Coleman was born May 15, 1865, and now lives in New Orleans, where he has the man- agement of his father's factory. His wife's maiden name was Estelle Hamblen, and they have two children -- Scuyler and Vera -a daughter, Rosetta, having died. Mr. Cole- man's daughter Etta was born April 30, 1867, and is now the wife of P. L. Hunblen, a hard- ware dealer of Houston, Tex.
Mr. Coleman is a Democrat, and was ap- pointed Postmaster January 5, 1894. He was United States Loan Commissioner for twelve years, is a Corporation Trustee, has been on the School Board for twenty years, and was Deputy Postmaster in 1879. He is a member of Oak- land Lodge, A. F. & A. M., No. 379, and of Wyoming Chapter, No. 181, at Warsaw, N. Y. Ile is an influential and esteemed citizen of Castile, where he is well known through his successf A business career and his many offices of public trust.
LLEN AYRAULT, one of the fore- most business men of the village of Mount Morris, N. Y., occupies an important position among the enter- prising and influential citizens of this section of Livingston County. He was born in the town of Allen, Allegany County, May 31, 1849. He comes of substantial New England stock, being a grandson of Roswell Ayrault, who migrated to this State from New Hamp- shire, becoming one of the pioneers of Alle- gany County, where the last years of his life were spent. One of his brothers, Allen Ayrault, grand-uncle of the gentleman to whom we refer in this brief sketch, was for many years one of the leading financiers of Livingston County, being a well-known banker of Geneseo.
Lyman Ayrault, son of Roswell, was born during the residence of his parents in Short Tract, Allegany County, and was there reared and educated. He was a man of marked ability and force of character, and carly in life embarked in a mercantile career. Removing to this county, he established himself in the town of Dalton, and was for many years one of its most successful mer- chants and esteemed citizens, but subse- quently changed the base of his operations to New York City. He is now engaged in the produce and commission business at 110 Povina Avenue, Jersey City. His wife, whose maiden name was Baldwin, became the mother of two children - Nella, the wife of W. H. Upson, of Lockport, N. Y., and Allen, of Mount Morris.
Allen Ayrault received a substantial foun- dation for his education in the public schools of Dalton, going thence to the high school in Rochester, and subsequently taking a thor- ough commercial course at the Poughkeepsie . Business College. After his graduation Mr. Ayrault entered the store of his father, and while associated with him acquired a practical knowledge of mercantile affairs. In 1889 he opened his present elevator at Mount Morris, where he has built up a large and lucrative trade as a produce dealer, handling among other articles of traffic beans, grain, wool, baled hay, straw, and apples, his energy,
-
HAHA. VOD.1
Hojevolt lo toicob stru
!
113
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
capability, and honorable methods winning him prosperity and success in his various undertakings.
The union of Mr. Ayrault and Miss Jennie E. Carson was celebrated in 1872; and the joys of their wedded life have been increased by the birth of five children - William L., Lillian C., J. Allen, Arthur H., and Marion. Mr. Ayrault is extremely public- spirited, ever lending his influence and assistance to promote the welfare and ad- vancement of his town and county, and is everywhere recognized as a man of sterling qualities of mind and heart. In politics he is a straight Republican, and cast his first Presidential vote in 1872 for General Grant. He has served for several years as school Trustee, and takes an active interest in educa- tional matters in general. Socially, Mr. Ayrault is a member of the Masonic frater- nity, of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- lows, and of the United Workmen. Both he and his estimable wife are communicants of the Episcopal church.
ALVIN BLAKE, a well-known citizen of the town of Gainesville, Wyoming County, N. Y., is a native of the Green Mountain State, having been born February 20, 1811, in the town of Sut- ton, Caledonia County. His father, James Blake, probably belongs by birth to the same State, as his boyhood and youth were spent there; and there his marriage took place. When his son Calvin was two years old, in 1813, James Blake moved to Perry, bought a tract of timbered land about one-half mile west of Perry Centre, erected a house, and resided there a few years. He then sold out and went to live at West Perry, from which place he removed in a short time to the Inlet, near Perry Village, and, establishing a brick-yard, introduced the industry of brick-making. Having continued in this business for some years, he gave . up his interest in the concern, and went back to Perry Village and opened a hotel, which he carried on under his own supervision till the time of his earthly labors was ended. His wife was before marriage
Miss Hannah French. She was born in Ver- mont, and was a daughter of Obadiah French, of that State. The children she bore to James Blake were three in number, two of whom are still living and holding honored places in the community, namely : Calvin; and Polly, wife of Obadiah Howe. John died at the age of nine years. In religion the father was a Uni- versalist, and the mother was a member of the Congregational church. After the death of her first husband Mrs. Blake contracted a sec- ond marriage, and was the mother of three other children not named in this account. She spent her later years in Montgomery County, Illinois, and died there at the age of seventy-two years.
Calvin Blake spent his early years under the paternal roof, attending school, and later going for a year to the Middlebury Academy. After this he taught school for a year, and then went to work in the employ of his uncle, Rozell Morgan Curtiss, a lumber merchant of Castile. He remained in this occupation till he was twenty-four, and then concluded to set up for himself. In the year 1834 he was mar- ried, and purchased a farm in Castile, consist- ing of about seventy-five acres of land cleared off the Flats. He remained on this place, get- ting it gradually under cultivation, three years, and then sold it and went to Montgomery County, Illinois, where he taught school for a year, subsequently carrying on a farm for some years longer. Having an opening presented to him which promised to be advantageous, he returned East to Lamont, and became the very successful proprietor of the hotel in that town. He held the management of this enterprise four years, from 1842 to 1846, and then sold out his interest in the business, and, going back to the scene of his early days, bought eighty acres of land in Castile, where he re- mained for a brief period. He next bought the Temperance House in Gainesville, which he finally sold, and purchased a farm of seventy-six acres in this town, on which he has remained till the present time. Mr. Blake has erected all the buildings now standing on the estate, and has put the land under such successful cultivation that it presents a fine appearance.
In October, 1834, Mr. Blake was united in
---- v
£
Cla 2001
114
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
marriage to Miss A. Diana Dudley, of Castile. She was born in Rutland, Vt. ; and her parents were pioneers in this part of the country. Her only child, Willard D. Blake, was a brave young man, who, responding to his country's call, went to the field of action in the New York Twenty-fourth Battery, and during ser- vice was taken prisoner and conveyed to the prison at Andersonville, where he subse- quently died at the early age of twenty-five. Mr. Blake's first wife died at the age of thirty- seven. His second wife was Miss Laura Ann Bedell, who became the mother of six children - Hannah, a school-teacher in Victor, Monroe County, N. Y. ; John, deceased; Mary; Frank, a farmer in Gainesville, married to Estelle Sheffield, who has one child, John C. ; James F. ; and Rozell Curtiss, who conducts his father's farm. Two of the sons are on a farm of one hundred and eighty acres, situated about two miles from the Gainesville Semi- nary, from which one of Mr. Blake's daughters was graduated, and which was considered a flourishing school. The parents attend the Congregational church, and Mrs. Blake's fam- ily are also members. In politics Mr. Blake holds to the Democratic party. His first Pres- idential vote was for Andrew Jackson; and at every succeeding Presidential election he has voted for his party's candidate, with the excep- tion of Franklin Pierce.
R EV. THOMAS AITKEN, who was for over forty-five years the faithful pastor of the Presbyterian church at North Sparta, Livingston County, N. Y., was born at Falkirk, Stirlingshire, Scotland. From early youth he showed marked intellect- ual ability, and in consequence was allowed to pursue the course of study for which he was best qualified, so that, when twenty years of age, he was graduated from the University of Glasgow. With the knowledge thus acquired Mr. Aitken felt himself called to the highest of professions, and soon began the study of theology at the Secessionists' Seminary at Selkirk and Glasgow. He was there grad- uated with high honors in the class of 1823. He was licensed to preach by the Presbytery
of Stirling on June 8, 1824, and was sent in 1825 as a missionary to the Orkney Islands, where he lived and preached among the people for two years. On June 2, 1829, he was ordained at Cupar, and preached at St. An- drew's for nine years. In 1838 the Rev. Thomas Aitken came to America, and first settled in Fall River, Mass., preaching there six months, at the end of which time he was called to the church in North Sparta, N. Y. This pastorate he held until his death in 1884.
Thomas Aitken was first married in 1827 to Agnes Smith, who died in 1870. In 1871 he married for his second wife Margaret Mann, daughter of Samuel M. Mann, one of the early pioneers of the town of Groveland. Mr. Mann was born in Horsham, Montgomery County, Pa., and was the son of Samuel Mann, of the same town. His grandfather, John Mann, was born in the northern part of Ireland of Scotch ancestry, and came to this country when a young man. Purchasing a tract of land in the town of Horsham, he erected a stone house, which is standing at the present day. After his death his son Samuel succeeded to the ownership of the old homestead, carrying on lumbering and farming there until he, too, passed onward to the silent realms. Samuel Mann enlisted 'in the patriot army at the time of the Revolution. He married Margaret Keith, a native of Bucks County, Pennsylva- nia, and a daughter of William Keith, whose home was noted as having been the head- quarters of Washington for a season during the Revolutionary War.
Samuel M. Mann, son of Samuel and Mar- garet, and father of Mrs. Aitken, followed the trade of blacksmith in his native State until 1805, when he made his first visit to New York, and was so impressed with the advan- tages of this part of the country that he bought a tract of timbered land in what was then Sparta, Ontario County, but is now Groveland, Livingston County. Here he cleared land and built a log cabin, after which he returned to Pennsylvania for his family .. In 1806 the journey was made in wagons containing all their earthly possessions, and for two weeks they were upon the road. Persevering through toils, privations, and hardships that can be
1
115
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
scarcely appreciated by those who live in the present day, the Mann family established a pleasant home, where Mr. Mann dwelt until his death at the age of seventy-eight years.
He married Susan Burrows, a native of Philadelphia and daughter of General John Burrows. Her grandfather, also John Bur- rows, was born in England, whence he came to America, settling first in New Jersey and afterward in Pennsylvania. At the time the capital was established at Washington Mr. Burrows removed there and was employed as a clerk in the Post-office Department. Five of his sons and two step-sons served in the Revo- lutionary War; and of the seven but two returned, one of these being General John Bur- . rows, the father of Mrs. Mann. He was com- missioned as General of the State militia, and afterward raised a regiment, which he com- manded in the War of 1812. The home of General Burrows was about two miles from Williamsport, where he built a flour-mill and carried on a large farm. His wife was Jane Torbert. He was a man much interested in all public affairs, and was ever ready to do what he could for the common weal. He died at the age of seventy-seven years. His daugh- ter, Mrs. Mann, died when eighty-two years of age, having reared eight children - Samuel A. ; John B. ; William K. ; Josiah S. ; Jane B. ; Margaret, Mrs. Aitken; Mary W. ; and Nathaniel B. Mann.
Since the death of her husband Mrs. Mar- garet Aitken has continued to occupy her old home, which is pleasantly located in the southern part of the town of Groveland. Rev. Mr. Aitken was a man of pure and noble char- acter, and was greatly beloved by his parish- ioners and fellow-citizens, who will ever revere his memory.
RANCIS MARION PERINE, M. D., of Dansville, Livingston County, N. Y., a physician of ripe experience and high standing, was born in this village on March 27, 1831. His family history, on the paternal side, dates back to the early part of last cen- tury, when his ancestor came to America and settled in New Jersey. The Doctor's grand-
father was born in that State; but later in life he moved to Cambridge, N. Y., and thence by team to Williamsburg, near the present site of Geneseo. After a residence of two years in Williamsburg he finally removed in 1799 to Dansville, where he occupied the fifth resi- dence in the village. During the Revolution- ary War he served for five years under General Marion, whose honored name is borne by the grandson of whom this sketch is written. In Dansville, where the declining days of his long and laborious life were passed, he reared a family of ten children, and died here in his ninety-fourth year.
His son, Peter Perine, was born in the year of the removal to Dansville, and was brought up with an accurate and practical knowledge of farm life and duties. At his father's death Peter came into the possession of the family estate, where he spent his entire life, which extended over a period of eighty-four years. He was a member of the United Presbyterian church. His wife was Miss Catherine Rice, one of a family of ten children, whose parents lived near Troy, in the eastern part of the State. Of the four children born to Peter and Catherine (Rice) Perine, three lived to matu- rity, namely : Lucy, who married Charles Hall, formerly a merchant of Allegany County, and in Dansville also, and a member for two terms of the Assembly from Allegany County; Thomas L., a retired farmer, now a resident of Paines- ville, Ohio; and Dr. Perine, of the present sketch.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.