USA > New York > Chenango County > Book of biographies : this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Chenango County, New York > Part 38
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
As one of the most representative attorneys of Chenango County, whose connection with the bar and legal interests probably exceeds
435
CHENANGO COUNTY
that of any other member of the profession in this district, we take great pleasure in presenting Mr. Clark's portrait on a preced- ing page.
ILLIAM E. STOVER, supervisor of the town of Smyrna, and a prominent citizen of his section, is a descen- dant of one of the first families to settle in the northern part of Chenango County, and was born in the town of Smyrna on the farm he now owns and operates, April 4, 1860. He is a son of Richard E. and Philura P. (Keeler) Stover, and grandson of William and Betsey (Elwood) Stover. His great- grandfather was Adam Stover, and his great- great-grandfather, Jacob Stover.
Jacob Stover (or Stauffer) was the first of the family to come to America ; he landed on one of the West India Islands, and remained there three months, when he was joined by his brother. He finally settled in Dutchess County, N. Y., while his brother took up his home in Pennsylvania. It is said that the latter had a large family of children, but nothing further is known of him, for com- munication was not to be easily had in the early part of the eighteenth century. Jacob Stover had four children : three sons, Phelta, Matinas and Adam ; and one daughter, whose name is not known. Matinas and his sister, whose husband's name was Emiegh, went to Canada about the time the Revolutionary War closed, and settled near Kingston, then a wilderness. The government gave the family of each settler an axe and a hoe. The names
of Stover and Emiegh are quite common in those parts, the members of those families being invariably well-to-do people. Phelta settled in New York State, near Lake Champlain. The date of Jacob Stover's death is unknown, but he was laid to rest in the burying grounds of the old Lutheran Stone Church, beside the Lutheran minister, of whose church he was long a member.
Adam Stover, the youngest son of Jacob Stover, continued to reside in Dutchess County, and married Mary Woolweaver Koonz, a woman of high intellectual endow- ments. They had seven children, six sons and one daughter, namely: William; Michael ; Frederick ; Adam ; Peter; John ; and Mary, who married Peter McLees, and for her second husband Shuble Nichols. Adam Stover presented each of his sons, when they became of age, with a wagon made by him self. All his children had large families.
William Stover, the grandfather of our subject, was born in Dutchess County, N. Y., May 23, 1765, and died in Smyrna, N. Y., November 4, 1841. On October 3, 1789, he married Elizabeth Holnbeck, who was born in 1768 and died in 1806. Their children were: Mary ; Adam ; Betsy ; Asenath ; Sam- uel ; Hannah ; Jemima; and William. In 1808 he married Betsey Elwood, who gave birth to the following children: Susan, who mar- ried Russell Wilcox; Lydia, the wife of Alfred Seymour ; Benjamin ; Ruth, who mar- ried Jarvis Pike; John A .; Catherine (Mrs. Thomas L. Willcox), and Richard Elwood, our subject's father. The father of Betsey (Elwood) Stover was Richard Elwood, whose wife was Catherine Bell, and whose children
436
BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES
were : Polly (Spencer); Betsey (Stover) ; Susan (Wilcox); Catherine (Russell) ; Mar- garet (Morse) : Dorothy (Goodman) ; Ben- jamin R .; Daniel; Peter P .; John B .; and Isaac R. The last named was a lawyer, and clerk of the New York Senate from 1843 to 1847, inclusive. John B., a physician, resided in Rochester, and was mayor of that city in 1847. Betsey (Elwood) Stover was born in 1778, and died in Smyrna in 1855.
William Stover, when he came to Che- nango County as a young man, purchased a tract of about 400 acres of land in the town of Smyrna, then Sherburne, where he farmed the rest of his life, and reared his large family of children. He built himself a house near the present dwelling of our subject, the latter structure being erected about 1814. He was a man of good business instincts, thrifty and energetic, and accumulated a considerable for- tune for those days, being considered a man of much more than ordinary ability, and was accorded a high place in the community. He at one time was a member of the sect of Reformed Methodists, but finally withdrew from that denomination for some cause or other, and built a church on his own land at his own expense, which he ever afterward supported, allowing no contributions to be taken, but paying all the bills himself. Min- isters of every denomination were welcomed and invited to occupy the pulpit, when it was not his regular preaching day, for he himself was a minister of no small renown. He was a very well educated man, and could speak German fluently. He was charitable and benevolent by nature, and was always ready to relieve the want and misery of those in
need. He was a Christian, and a truly good man, with most exemplary habits; it is affirmed that he never used tobacco in any form, nor did any of his sons ever learn to use the weed. The butternut grove, where he built his church, was, before the erection of that edifice, a favorite spot for the holding of quarterly meetings, and at least one such conference was held in the church after its erection. One of these largely attended meetings, held there about 1828, had among those present no less a person than Brigham Young, in later years the head of the Mor- mon Church. Our subject's grandfather was without doubt one of the great men of his section, and did an incalculable amount of good in shaping the destiny of Chenango County and Central New York. He had friends by the hundred, who aided him very materially in his good work. Both of his wives seconded his efforts in the home and in more extended fields in which he was such a power for good. He was a Whig in his pol- itics, and besides serving in other town offices, filled the office of supervisor of the town of Smyrna from 1810 to 1820.
Richard E. Stover, the father of our sub- ject, was ushered into life in the town of Smyrna, January 21, 1822, and took up farm- ing on a valley farm near his father's place. This property he improved in many ways, and had the reputation of being a successful as well as hard working farmer. His death, which terminated his career in 1873 at the age of fifty-one years, was the result of an accident. He was in the woods giving in- structions as to how he wished a tree cut down; the tree came down with a crash,
-
437
CHENANGO COUNTY
with him well out of the way of its fall, but the jar caused a dead tree back of him to topple over and fall, a knot giving the blow that resulted in death. Mr. Stover married Philura P. Keeler in 1851 ; she was a daugh- ter of Noah and Mindwell (Youngs) Keeler, and granddaughter of Nathan and Martha (Gregory) Keeler. Nathan Keeler, a native of Connecticut, moved from that state when his son Noah was a lad, and died in Otego, Otse- go County, N. Y. These children constituted his family : Ebenezer, Nathan, Noah, Betsy, Esther, Nancy, Polly, and Martha ; the last two remained in Connecticut. Nearly all these children reared large families, members of which went to Illinois many years ago. Noah Keeler was born in 1788, and died in Smyrna, N. Y., in 1851. He reared these chil- dren : Lucinda ; Polly ; Nancy ; Elsie; Rox- ana ; Rhoda ; Philura (Stover) ; and Devolson. His wife, Mindwell, was one of a family of sixteen children. Her ancestors came from England in the latter part of the seventeenth century. Her father, Joseph Youngs, a na- tive of Connecticut, settled near Amsterdam, N. Y., when the surrounding country was a wilderness. He served in the Revolutionary War, and in after years was never weary of eulogizing Washington, whom he had seen many times. Joseph Youngs married Eliza- beth Peck, and their children had numerous descendants. Elizabeth Peck had two broth- ers in the Revolutionary War, both of whom were killed in battle ; they both participated in the battle of Bunker's Hill. Their mother, who lived within hearing of the guns, passed the time of the conflict in great anxiety. She died in Albany at ninety years of age.
There were born to our subject's father and his wife two children, namely : William E., our subject ; and Burt W., who married Miss Jessie Nash of Poolville, N. Y., and lives at Norwich, this county, where he is filling the office of deputy county clerk. He was educated at Phillips Academy, Andover, Mass. Richard E. Stover was a Republican of decided views and well formed opinions ; he held several town offices, and was railroad commissioner for many years. The M. E. Church was his church home.
William E. Stover, in whom the interest of this personal narration centers, was given a good, practical education in the district schools, and in a private school of Utica, N. Y., and with his brother ran the home farm. In 1890 Mr. Stover became connected with a drug business, which he continued some little time. Mr. Stover is also interested in the Empire Chemical Co. of Earlville, N. Y. He is actively interested in the material progress and welfare of the town of Smyrna, and is a stanch Republican in his political views. He has been justice of the peace since 1881, served as road commissioner two years, and as supervisor six years, in which capacity he is now laboring in behalf of Smyrna.
ILLIAM W. ENGLISH, a retired farmer and stock dealer of Greene township, now a resident of Willards, this county, was born in the town of Greenc. Chenango County, N. Y., November 1, 1834. He is a son of Clark and Ann (Whitbeck)
438
BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES
English, and grandson of Jonathan and Isa- bella (Niles) English.
Jonathan English was born May 2, 1775, and came from Easton, Washington County. N. Y., to Chenango County, where he lo- cated in the south-eastern part of the town of Greene. He was one of the pioneers to settle in this county, and was one of those who saw the forests give way to the repeated and continued blows of the hardy woods- men's axe, and become transformed into smiling fields, covered with orchards, grain or pasturage. To his wife Isabella Niles were born the following children: Luke ; Jonathan ; William ; Clark; David; Mercy ; Mary ; Chloe; Isabella ; and Sarah. After the death of his first wife he married Mrs. Mary Wheeler, and they reared three chil- dren, namely : Francis M .; George W .; and Benjamin H.
Clark English, father of our subject, was born at Easton, Washington County, N. Y., April 7, 1809. He followed the trade of a carpenter a short time and later that of a cooper. In middle life he turned his atten- tion toward the occupation of a farmer, and carried on general farming for a time. He also ran a general store and a hotel at Wil- lards for some years, and then purchased a farm in Sapbush. Selling this farm he bought the Townsend farm, a part of which our sub- ject now owns. Mr. English then moved to Chenango Forks, where he purchased a home, and there he lived in retirement until his death, which occurred May 13, 1881.
On February 9, 1832, Clark English mar- ried Ann Whitbeck, daughter of Walter and Lydia (Townsend) Whitbeck. Walter
Whitbeck, was a son of Walter Whitbeck, Sr., who was born in Holland, and emi- grated to this country, settling in Albany, N. Y. Walter Whitbeck, Sr., reared the fol- lowing children, namely: Jasper; Martin ; Walter; and Cornelius. Walter Whitbeck, Jr., was born in Albany County, N. Y .; in 1826, with his horse and sleigh, he moved to Stillwater, now the town of Greene, and set- tled on the farm where A. Dunn now lives. He was joined in marriage with Lydia Townsend, and the following children were reared : Phoebe; Mariah; Ann ; Martin : Cornelia; Walter; Andrew ; and Jasper. By his second wife five children were born: Lano; Daniel; Benjamin; John; and Cor- nelius. Mrs. Ann English, mother of our sub- ject, died May 13, 1887, at the advanced age of seventy-six years. Two children mourned her death: Elizabeth Amelia, who is the wife of David Rogers and the mother of these children, - Isabella, Harriet E., Ed- ward C., and Fred B., twins; and William W., who is the subject of this personal history.
William W. English assisted his father on the farm until his marriage, February 18, 1859, to Miss Catherine C. Strickland, daughter of Jonathan and Rebecca (Dunn) Strickland. Mr. English then started to wage the battle of life purely on his own resources, renting a farm and engaging in agricultural pursuits with very little preparation to face the hard- ships of life, except a strong constitution and a determination to make a success. Being endowed with good judgment and persever- ance, he soon got a good foothold, and, when real estate was at its highest valuation, with
GEORGE A. MUNSON.
441
CHENANGO COUNTY
his father he purchased the Townsend farm, retaining one-half the south side. In 1868 he built a large and commodious house and en- larged and remodeled the barns; now he owns one of the best and handsomest farms in his district. In 1870 he began to deal ex- tensively in cattle and smaller stock, his mar- ket being at Binghamton. Shortly after the death of his wife, which occurred October 3, 1882, he retired to Chenango Forks.
Mr. and Mrs. English were the parents of three children, namely ; Annic; Bell, who died at the age of four years ; and Lottie L., born February 28, 1861, who married F. L. Willard, and has one child, A. May. Mr. English chose for his second wife Miss Carrie D. Smith, daughter of Oscar and Diana (Young) Smith. One son blessed their happy home, William W, born May 17, 1887. Mrs. English passed from this life in 1893, at the age of thirty-two years. For his third wife our subject chose Mrs. Mary J. Holland, widow of Sidney Holland, and daughter of David and Angelinc (Litchnor) Prince. Mr. English's operations are not conducted solely for his own benefit. He sympathizes with struggling men, and, with broad views of the need of the surrounding country, he has at times engaged in enter- prises that had as their object the promotion of the welfare and growth of his town. He has always been a man of sound judgment and good understanding, and has exerted a marked influence in his section, and has be- come a prosperous citizen as a natural result of his thrift and industry. Along social and political lines he is very energetic, and is a man whose ideas are sought for as having
real weight. He is a stanch Democrat, and has held the important office of town asses- sor. In religious views he is inclined to be liberal.
EORGE A. MUNSON, a descendant of one of Smyrna's earliest farmers, and a representative of the best and most noticed stock dealers in Chenango County, was born in the village of Smyrna, this county, January 9, 1853, and is a son of Al- bert and Hannah (Merrell) Munson, and grandson of John and Sarah (Merrell) Mun- son.
John Munson was born in Barkhamsted, Litchfield County, Conn., in 1785, and in 1809, with his wife and two children, moved west and located in Smyrna. He purchased the Hutchinson farm and mills, being a mil- ler by trade, and later he built a distillery and distilled malt liquors. He owned the only grist mill in his section of the county, and carried on milling the greater part of his life. He passed from this life in April, 1827, aged forty-two years. Mrs. Munson died January 29, 1862, at the age of seventy-two years. They were the parents of three children, who were as follows: Hannah; Albert and Eliza. Our subject's grandfather took an active part in politics and voted to uphold the principles of the Democratic party ; he served as justice of the peace for many years and held several minor offices. Religiously, he and his family were devoted members of the Universalist Church.
Albert Munson, the father of our subject,
442
BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES
was born in the village of Smyrna, January 4, 1811, and was reared to follow the trade of a miller, which he had learned in his father's mill. This mill, upon the death of John Munson, became the property of Albert and his two sisters. Our subject's father pur- chased the mill from the other heirs and carried on milling until the time of his death. The mill was burned down in 1836, but was rebuilt soon after. Albert Munson was united in marriage with Hannah Merrell, and they reared and educated three children, John H., Sarah E., and George A., the subject of this brief notice. Mr. Munson closed his eyes and entered the world of rest, May 28, 1880. Mrs. Munson passed from this life November 29, 1870.
George A. Munson was educated in the common schools and then entered the Clinton Liberal Institute, from which he was gradu- ated in 1872. He remained under the paren- tal roof, assisting his father in his labors about the farm; after his father's death he moved to the village of Smyrna, where he owns a handsome residence ; he also owns a fine farm, which he purchased from William S. Wilcox, which consists of 180 acres of the best improved land in this part of Chenango County. Since he has taken possession of this farm, he has remodeled the old barns and built new ones, and has it well stocked with some of the finest grade Jersey cows that can be found in the Empire State, in which he takes great pride. During the Chenango County Fair, held at Norwich, August 31, September 1, 2, and 3, Mr. Mun- son had on exhibition nine of his best Jerseys, which were premium winners. Among them
the most noted were: Gem of the County Fair, a promising three-year old, whose sire was Hugo Pogis of Smyrna, and whose dam was August Flower, one of the finest bred cows in Central New York; and Agonian Girl, a handsome yearling heiter, also sired by Hugo Pogis of Smyrna, and whose dam was Buttercup Midget. Mr. Munson is now breeding the noted St. Lambert stock. Our subject has purchased the E. W. Stokes Block, which he rents. The first floor is used for store purposes, and he has a finely fur- nished office on the second floor. In 1886, with his brother John, he built a fine opera house, 38 x 76, which has a seating capacity of five hundred. The second floor is rented to different organizations: the I. O. O. F .; G. A. R., and the A. O. U. W. Mr. Munson has been a director of the Chenango National Bank since 1890. October 30, 1875, our sub- ject established the Smyrna Citizen, a newsy eight-page paper which he conducted but one year, during which time he demonstrated his ability as a writer and journalist.
Mr. Munson is one of the leading Demo- crats in his community, and is proud of the record he has made in that party. He is now a justice of the peace and has been for the past seventeen years, and was appointed by Gov. David B. Hill as clerk of Chenango County in 1886. Socially, our subject is a member of the I. O. O. F. Lodge, No. 116, in which he is past grand, past deputy and grand master. Hc is also a member of Sher- burne Lodge, F. & A. M., No. 444. Mr. Munson has lived in Chenango County all his life, and has witnessed its development from an uncultivated condition to that of one
443
CHENANGO COUNTY
of the most productive agricultural counties in the State, and he has been more or less connected with its progress and advance- ment. His business career has been marked with naught except straightforward and hon- orable dealing with all, and indeed he is one of the most respected and esteemed citizens, not only of his community in which he lives, but also of the county. His portrait appears on a preceding page.
RASTUS J. BERRY, a prominent and successful farmer of South Oxford, was born in Oxford, September, 20, 1822, and is a son of Richard W. and Rosanna (Frink) Berry.
Richard W. Berry was born in the State of Rhode Island and received his education in the common schools of his native town. Upon beginning life for himself, he followed the fishing industry for a number of years. He then took up the occupation of a farmer and became a very prosperous man. In 1817, he moved to Preston and there purchased a farm ; he also owned farms in Pharsalia and Oxford. There he continued to farm, and at the time of his death was a very wealthy nian. He was a man with good principles, and took an interest in all things tending to improve the condition of the farmer. He was a Jeffersonian Democrat, and was well informed on political matters.
His companion in life was Rosanna Frink, who was a native of Connecticut, and their union resulted in the birth of nine children, whose names are as follows: Richard W .;
William P .; Mary E .; Eliza ; Silas E .; Hiram P .; Erastus J .; Peleg G .; and Clarinda S. In religious belief, they were members of the Universalist Church. Mr. Berry passed into the unknown beyond in 1849, at the age of sixty-seven years.
Erastus J. Berry attended the public schools of Oxford, and later graduated from Oxford Academy. He then turned his at- tention to farming, and became one of the leading agrieulturists in the town. He is sit- uated on a fine farm near South Oxford, which is well stocked and supplied with good buildings, which are so necessary for carrying on farming in a proper manner. He was united in marriage with Emily Com- stock of McDonough, and they became the parents of two children, namely : Daniel F., who married Isabel Tyler of Smithville, N. Y .; and Bertha L., who married Clark Strat- ton of South Oxford, and has one son, Perey. Mrs. Berry died at her home, June 27, 1887, aged sixty-four years. In religious be- lief, the family favors the Universalist Church.
OHN W. SHEPARDSON, the popu- lar depot agent on the N. Y., O. & W. R. R., and dealer in produce of the village of Smyrna, Chenango County, N. Y., was born in the above village September 21, 1859. He is a son of Andrew and Emma (Dalmon) Shepardson, grandson of Jonathan and Hannah (Munson) Shepardson, and great- grandson of Jonathan Shepardson.
Jonathan Shepardson, who was of Welsh
21
444
BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES
descent, came from Attleborough, Mass., and settled in the village of Plymouth, this county, where he followed the trade of a car- penter and joiner the remainder of his life. He also carried on farming, and was one of the early pioneer settlers to locate in his section of the county. While constructing a house he fell from the top of the building, the injuries received in this accident causing his death. He was twice married ; to his first wife were born the following children : Jonathan, grandfather of our subject ; Olive, (Phillips); Nancy ; Vianna (Holden) ; Elmira (Colburn); and Lydia (True). By his second wife he reared three children, namely : Polly ; Susan ; and Luther.
Jonathan Shepardson, grandfather of our subject, was born in the village of Plymouth, Chenango County, N. Y., and during his boyhood days clerked for Harvey Talcott, in Smyrna; later he assisted John Munson, his father-in-law, in running the mills and dis- tillery at Smyrna, and remained in the above employment until Mr. Munson's death, when he in company with Albert Munson continued the business until his (Mr. Shepard- son's) death, at thirty-six years of age. He married Hannah Munson, daughter of John Munson, and she lived to pass her seventy- second birthday. One child was born to them, Andrew, the father of our subject.
Andrew Shepardson was born on the farm now owned by John Munson, December 13, 1828. He attended the public schools of his native town until he was fifteen years of age, and then entered the store of Webster Mer- rill; later he went to Earlville, N. Y., and worked for Mr. Mudge, who manufactured
Trask's Ointment ; after remaining in this capacity a short time, he acted as traveling salesman for the above establishment. Mr. Shepardson moved to Smyrna and purchased an interest in the Munson Mills, and after conducting the same for two years, he sold his interests, and in 1869, he was appointed station agent of the N. Y. & O. M. R. R. In his prime Mr. Shepardson took an active interest in politics, and was a firm supporter of the Republican party. At one time when his residence was in Earlville he was elected justice of the peace. In 1870, he was elected to the State Assembly and served during 1871-72. He also served as supervisor of the town, U. S. assistant assessor, and town clerk of the town of Smyrna, and from 1873 to 1885 officiated as county clerk. He is now living in retirement, and is one of the most respect- ed and esteemed citizens of Smyrna. He purchased the Isaac Collins residence on Main Street, which he remodeled and en- larged, and thus transformed it into a hand- some and comfortable home. He was joined in wedlock with Miss Emma Dalmon, daugh- ter of John Dalmon of Earlville, N. Y., and they were the parents of the following chil- dren: Walter A .; John W .; Mary E .; and Albert L. Walter A., who is a leading far- mer and supervisor of Otselic, married Miss Ida Stokes, and two children blessed their home, Eri S. and a daughter, who died in infancy. Mary E. was married to Edward P. Lyons, a prominent lawyer of Brooklyn, N. Y., and four children were born to them : Edna S .; Percy S .; Harold; and Dorothy. Mrs. Shepardson passed from this life at the age of fifty-two years.
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.