Commemorative biographical record of Dutchess County, New York, Part 10

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1897
Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 1354

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As a lawyer, Mr. Tallman's chief strength was in his comprehensive grasp of any matter which he took in hand, and in the cool and clear estimate which he formed of its bearings both near and remote. His familiarity with legal points was clear and accurate, so that he was eminently wise in counsel. His great in- dustry and unfailing interest in his client's case, left nothing to the uncertainties of chance. His cases were carefully prepared, and the evi- dence was presented with convincing effect. Much of his practice was in the Surrogate's Court, for which the training and experience of his earlier professional life specially fitted him. He was retained in connection with sev-

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

eral important and well-known cases, involving large interests.

In addition to his general law business, he had a special practice in the United States District and Circuit Courts. He was a mem- ber of the New York State Bar Association, and for some years was on the Executive Com- mittee.

During the earlier years of his practice and prior to the period when that class of invest- ments was taken up by insurance and other financial institutions, large transactions in real estate, bonds and mortgages were arranged for in his office. A wide acquaintance with in- vestors was thus formed, which resulted in his being called to fill various positions of reponsi- bility and trust.

In 1856 Mr. Tallman was offered the posi- tion of Treasurer of the Iowa Central Railroad Company. This road was projected from a point on the Mississippi river, where the City of Clinton now stands, to Cedar Rapids. Under another name it now forms part of the great line to California. He declined the office, but yielded to the request of the officers to accompany the reconnoitering party over the territory. He drew the report of the commission as to the feasibility of the project and the route which the road should take.

In 1855 he established a banking house in Davenport, Iowa, under the name of Tallman, Powers & McLean. The resident partner was Mr. Powers, who had been his clerk when he was Surrogate. The direction of the business of the firm was necessarily left chiefly in the hands of Mr. Powers. Though at first this business enterprise met with much encourage- ment, it was ultimately unsuccessful and in- volved Mr. Tallman in pecuniary losses which seriously embarrassed him for several years.

In 1859 Mr. Tallman was active in the effort to establish the City Bank of Pough- keepsie, and was chosen its first President. He did not accept the office, but favored in his stead the Hon. Joseph F. Barnard, who retained that position for upward of twenty years. Mr. Tallman, however, was appointed attorney to the Bank, and continued to act in that capacity for nearly thirty years.

Early in his career he favored the building of the Hudson River railroad. Ile gave his earnest assistance to the establishment of the Poughkeepsie and Eastern railroad, and of the Poughkeepsie City railroad, of which he was one of the incorporators. In 1853 he aided in

establishing the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery; he was appointed a Trustee and continued to hold that position until his death. He was instrumental in having the Hudson River Hos- pital for the Insane located at Poughkeepsie, and was a member of the first Board of Trus- tees. In 1852 he helped to organize the Home for the Friendless; he prepared its Act of In- corporation and was one of the first Board of Counsellors. At the time of his death he was one of the Trustees of the Vassar Brothers' Home for Aged Men.

He was interested in every plan to beautify the City of Poughkeepsie, and to make it pleas- ant and inviting to all who should seek a place for elegant and refined homes.

From his youth Mr. Tallman was one in- terested in the cause of temperance, having when nine years of age signed what was then known as the partial pledge. At the age of twenty he became an officer in the Young Men's Temperance Society, and soon after signed the total abstinence pledge. Later he was an officer in the Duchess County Tem- perance Society, and occasionally delivered addresses before that and similar organiza- tions. He was one of the founders of the State Inebriate Asylum at Binghampton, of which for several years he was a Trustee.

Mr. Tallman united with the Methodist Church at the age of seventeen, while a student at Amenia Seminary, then under the super- vision of Dr. Merrick, later of the Ohio Uni- versity, afterward Bishop, and Dr. Davis W. Clark. In 1840 he helped to found the Sec- ond Methodist Episcopal Church in Pough- keepsie, located in Cannon street. In 1842 he became a Trustee of that Society, and con- tinued to hold that position and to maintain other official relations until his death. He was the representative of this Society to the first Electoral Conference of Laymen of the New York Conference in 1872, and was its presiding officer. For several years he was an officer of the Duchess County Bible Society. He was a member of the first and only State Council of Methodists of the State of New York, which met at Syracuse, February, 1870, and was composed of about 600 representatives from most of the churches of the denomina- tion in the State. This Council voted to raise about $200,000 for the Syracuse Univer- sity and favored various reforms for Church and State. One of these was the establish- inent of the State Council of Political Reform,

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

which was a potent factor in the overthrow of allowed himself to occupy a questionable atti- the Tweed Ring. He was a member of the ! tude in that important relation. State Executive Committee, and, although a lifelong Democrat, he disregarded any action inconsistent with the platform of the Council, which declared: " We leave the party relations of every man undisturbed, but when parties command the support of bad principles, bad measures, or bad men, we must refuse to obey."

In 1884 he was chosen a Lay Delegate from the New York Conference to the General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, which met in the City of Philadelphia. In the assemblage of representative men of Ameri- can Methodism he filled a place of marked importance. Although his voice was seldom heard on the floor in the debates, his wise and judicious counsels had weight in the delibera- tions of the Committees.

For many years it had been his hope that the Society with which he worshiped in the Cannon Street church should have a new and more eligibly located edifice, and to this sub- ject he gave much thought. In the year 1892 circumstances seemed to favor the consumma- tion of the plan. With characteristic earnest- ness Mr. Tallman gave himself to this welcome work. He encouraged the timid, admonished the faltering, guided the sanguine, and used his rare personal influence to create and mould a united sentiment which should make the move- ment for a new church a success. Largely through his efforts the site was selected, the ground purchased and prepared for building, the plans drawn, the mechanics set to work, the old property disposed of, the subscriptions obtained, the enterprise brought to a happy conclusion, and the Society put into the pos- session of its present beautiful and commodious place of worship. His whole heart was in the work, and his cheerful spirit and stimulating faith made him a leader whom it was a delight to follow.

In his home relations Mr. Tallman was seen at his best, If the work of the day had been severe and its results disappointing, no trace of this appeared upon his face or in his demeanor when he crossed the threshold of his home. His personal friendships were many, and he delighted to entertain his friends in his own house. Over those with whom he was brought in contact his influence was mor- ally bracing. He never disguised or com- promised his principle. Although far from ob- trusive of his religious experiences, he never

Perhaps the most pronounced characteris- tic of Mr. Tallman was his hopefulness. No situation was so full of danger or doubt that he could not see a happy outcome. When others faltered, he siniled and pursued his way. And this did not result from insensibility or indifference, but was the endowment of his na- ture and the charm of his character. It was this that made him a cheerful companion and an enthusiastic guide.

Mr. Tallman married Miss Mary New- man, of South Egremont, Mass., in 1840; she died in 1850. In 1851 he married Miss Sarah J. Anderson, of New York, a lady of rare in- tellectual endowments.

It was permitted Mr. Tallinan to enjoy a cheerful and healthful old age. He was able to attend the business of his office until within a few days of his death. His last professional service was in the Surrogate's Court on March 16, 1895. A few days afterward he was taken ill and his disease rapidly assumed a threaten- ing character. After a week of great suffering he passed away, at the age of seventy-five years and four days. His funeral was attend- ed by a large circle of friends in the Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church. The Revs. Doc- tors Osbon, Gregory and Stobridge, who had been his pastors, conducted the service, which was marked by the evidence of sympathetic feeling. Dr. Gregory, in the course of his re- marks, said: " He was a manly man, with strength of principle and great force of char- acter, possessed of refined sentiment and re- ligious feeling, with clear convictions of truth and duty, which were freely expressed, but never ostentatiously obtruded. He was tol- erant of the opinions of others who differed from him. He was not a pessimist. but had great faith in God, his fellow-men and in the future.

Mr. Tallman left four children: Mary E., wife of Theodore W. Davis, of New York: Augusta C., wife of John F. Phayre, of New York; JOHN FRANCIS, the General Agent in Brooklyn of the New York Life Insurance Company; and Katharine Eliot, wife of Rev. Dr. Maltbie D. Babcock, of Baltimore.

In the Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church in Poughkeepsie, in the erection of which he had labored with such joyous earnestness, the loving hands of his son have placed a tablet to his memory, bearing as its inscription the fol-

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

lowing words from the Book which he had made the guide of his life:

" He that overcometh I will make " Ium a pillar in the temple of God."

L EWIS TOMPKINS (deceased). Few citi- zens of Dutchess county have done more to advance her interests than did the late Lewis Tompkins, of Fishkill-on-the-Hudson, who was for many years the acknowledged head of the wool-hat industry in the United States, and whose extensive factories have fur - nished a well-earned livelihood to hundreds of workmen whose homes have sprung up in the neighboring towns. He was himself familiar with the trials of honest poverty; though hap- pily his later years were blessed with every comfort, and doubtless his well-known sympa- thy with the needy had its origin in a remem- brance of his own early struggles.

Mr. Tompkins was descended from an old English family, and the first of the American line was Stephen Tompkins, who it is believed located first in Connecticut and from there moved to Westchester county, N. Y., where his later years were passed in cultivating the soil. He was the father of sixteen children. among whom were James, the great-grandfa- ther of our subject, and Jonathan Griffin, both of whom rendered gallant service in the Revo- lutionary war on the patriot side. James served in the Seventh Dutchess county regi- ment under Col. Henry Luddington, and in company commanded by Capt. George Lane. This showed high courage, as Westchester county had a large Tory population, and neigh- bor was arrayed against neighbor, and friend against friend. Much of it was neutral ground, but spies were busy on both sides and perils abounded. The story of Enoch Crosby, the Harvey Birch of J. Fenimore Cooper's "Spy." is familiar to all, and there is no doubt that many another such romantic history might have been told. Jonathan Griffin Tompkins was the father of Daniel D. Tompkins, vice- president of the United States from 1816 to 1820. His was a notable career. He was graduated from college, read law and practiced with distinguished success, was a member of Congress, judge of the supreme court of New York, and governor of the same State, his last act in that office being to recommend the abo- lition of slavery.

Solomon Tompkins, a son of James, had

a son Solomon (2), our subject's father, and the two left the old home to locate in the wilds of Greene county, near the present vil- lage of Ashland, in which region settlers were then few and far between. Although Mr. Tompkins' father had only limited educational advantages, he was not lacking in good judg- ment and practical ability, and he took a lead- ing place among his associates. He married Elizabeth Randall, daughter of Timothy Ran- dall, a citizen of Delaware county, but a native of Connecticut; she is still living, in a hale and beautiful old age, with a married daughter at Matteawan.

Lewis Tompkins, the eldest son of this worthy couple, was born at the old farm near Ashland, August 5. 1836, and received his education in the district schools of the vicinity, working upon the farm in summer and attend- ing school for a few months each winter until he was about seventeen, when he began to learn the trade of hat finishing with Strong & Ruggles, of Ashland. After serving an ap- prenticeship of three years, he established a new hat factory at Ashland in 1852, in part- nership with Leveritt Conine; but this venture ended two years later in a complete failure. With characteristic integrity Mr. Tompkins gave up everything to the creditors, even part- ing with his watch. Soon after he turned his face westward with just enough money in his pocket to carry him to Chicago, and from that point he made his way on foot to Kansas, seldom getting a ride, and often passing the night upon the open prairie. He finally reached Manhattan, Kans., and located upon a government claim on Blue river. That was a memorable period. The fiery discussion of a few years before on the Kansas-Nebraska bill had stirred the whole nation, and those territories were being rapidly settled. Young Tompkins was, of course, a Free-Soiler, and was early drawn into the struggle between the opposing factions, being appointed deputy sheriff and, later, a delegate to the Constitu- tional Convention at Topeka. He remained in the West about two years, returning home in November. 1859, for a brief visit, which lengthened into a permanent stay. At Middle- town, Orange county, he accepted a position with Wilcox & Draper, which he held for a few months, and in the summer of 1860 he went to Matteawan, where he was employed for several years with the Seamless Clothing Manufacturing Co., and later he was in busi-

Lin's Tompkins -

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

ness as a clothier at Fishkill-on-the-Hudson; of the village of Fishkill-on-the-Hudson. For more than thirty years he belonged to Beacon Lodge No. 283, F. & A. M. also at Matteawan. He wisely invested his gains in real estate, buying and subdividing a large tract. Succeeding in this, he bought In 1862 Mr. Tompkins inarried Miss Van- Voorhis, who did not long survive to bless his life. One son was born of their union, Charles Randall Tompkins, who died in 1892 in early manhood. A second happy matrimonial union was formed on January 3. 1868, with Miss Helen E. Mather, of Wellsboro. Penn. Her father was a lineal descendant of Cotton Mather, of New England, and her mother, whose name was Beecher, was collaterally connected with the Lyman Beecher family. The three children of the second marriage are all living: Jennie, Helen M. and Ralph S. The family residence is a beautiful place. It is appropriately named " Edgewater." being situated on the bank of the Hudson opposite Newburgh, and it commands a lovely view up and down the river. Here Mr. Tompkins proved himself a genial host and generous en- tertainer. He traveled extensively both in this country and in Europe, spending several winters in Paris, Nice, Algiers. Mentone-on-the- Mediterranean, Davos Platz, and other places Mr. Tompkins had fine taste in art, and en- joyed visiting the celebrated galleries in which the chief works of the gifted artists of the past are preserved on canvas or in chiseled marble. other tracts of land and built a number of sub- stantial dwellings, adding to his own prosperity and that of the town. In 1872 he sold out his business interests and made a trip to Europe, where he remained a year studying European industries and business methods. On coming home a new enterprise was begun -the building of a large hat factory near the river at Fishkill-on-the-Hudson, and notwith- standing the "hard times" of 1873. the Dutchess Hat Works was put into successful operation. The business grew from year to year, and additions were made to the works as needed; but it was soon deemed advisable to establish a branch at Tioronda, a mile away. and later another branch was opened at Mid- dletown. The efficient hand of the founder of the business was on it all, mastering every de- tail; but he had capable coadjutors in his brothers, E. Lakin Tompkins, at Fishkill-on- the-Hudson, and Edward D. Tompkins, and Frank O. Tompkins, at Middletown. He be- came the leading manufacturer of wool hats in rich in associations and delightful for situation. the United States, and at his death his fortune amounted to several hundred thousand dollars. One feature of his enterprise was the erection of comfortable homes for his employes, which proved a benefit to all concerned.

He was greatly interested in local progress, and especially in educational matters. A stu- dent of men and affairs rather than of books, he still appreciated to the full the advantages of a thorough system of popular education, and it was largely through his endeavors that Mat- teawan and Fishkill-on-the-Hudson secured their new and commodious school buildings. The building of the handsome hose house of the Lewis Tompkins Hose Co., at the latter place, was chiefly due to him, and he was a constant and liberal giver to the Churches of both towns. The Highland Hospital was a charity which found him a steadfast friend, and his purse was ever open to sustain or en- large its usefulness. Many of his beneficences will never be known, as he could never withhold his help when his sympathies were touched, and his sense of justice wounded by the sight of suffering. He was a Republican in politics, and an influential one, but sought no office. He was a member of the board of education at Matteawan, and was at one time president

In the prime of his manhood. while the past was a pleasant memory and the future a delightful anticipation, this manly, generous. upright citizen passed from earth, breathing his last at his home on the 9th day of January, 1894. It is by his deeds alone that his merit was manifested, and the simple record of these shows him worthy of honor in every relation in life.

C HARLES E. SEGER, M. D. (deceased ). The expulsion of the Huguenots from France, however it may have been regarded by the unhappy exiles at the time, resulted in un- mixed good to this country, bringing into its rapidly developing civilization a large body of high-spirited, courageous, intelligent and God- fearing people, whose influence at that critical period of our history can scarcely be estimated. Among these early emigrants were the ances- tors of the subject of this biography. They settled near Kingston, Ulster Co., N. Y .. about 1640, and some time afterward two brothers

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

of the name moved to New Salem, Albany Co .. N. Y., where the home of this branch of the family has ever since remained. Garret I. Seger, our subject's great-grandfather, was born there January 4, 1753, the son of one of the brothers alluded to. He became a farmer there, married and reared a family of ten chil- dren: John. Magdalene, Frederick, Henry, Mary, David G., Frances, Polly, Francis and Michael. They located in various places as they settled in life. Francis was a judge in Lewis county, New York.

David G. Seger, our subject's grandfather, was born January 31, 1794, and remained at the old homestead. farming and conducting a hotel until his death, March 31, 1859. He married Mary Stalker, who died leaving six children, of whom Garret D., our subject's father, was the eldest: John A. is a resident of Schoharie county, N. Y .: Catherine married Andrew Allen, a farmer at New Salem; Mar- garet, the wife of William McMillen, formerly a farmer, is now living in Albany; Laura mar- ried (first) John Van Der Zee, now deceased, and (second) George Strevell, a carpenter; Ly- man, deceased, was a farmer.

Garret D. Seger was born October 31, 1816, and also settled near the old home. He has been engaged in farming and inercantile busi- ness, and has taken a leading part in various local movements. In politics he is a Demo- crat, and he belongs to the Christian Church; but his wife, formerly Miss Mary Shafer, is a Presbyterian. She is a descendant of a Ger- man family which has long been prominent in the town of Bern, Albany county. Her father, John Shafer, an agriculturist, was a soldier in the war of 1812. Our subject is the elder of two children. The younger, Florence, mar- ried Charles Wolf, of Albany, a bookkeeper for a fire insurance company.

On April 8, 1842, Dr. Seger entered upon his life's journey. He received his literary edu- cation in the district schools at New Salem and at Fort Edward Collegiate Institute, and then began his medical studies in the office of Drs. Fredenburgh & Mosher, 'of Coeymans. He remained with them four years, in the meantime attending Albany Medical College, and graduating in the class of 1863. For two years following he was in partnership with his former preceptors; but in 1865 he moved to Stockbridge, where he practiced successfully for nine years. From 1874 to 1885 he con- tinued his professional work in Albany, but

after that time he resided at New Hackensack. His ability and skill were widely recognized, and he had a fine practice.

On January 20, 1864, Dr. Seger was united in matrimony with Miss Agnes Schoonmaker, a native of Bayonne, N. J. Her father. John J. Schoonmaker, a shipping merchant of the firm of Schoonmaker & Johnson, and his wife, Jane Ann Van Buskirk, were both descended from old families of that place. Three chil- dren were born of this union: Mary L., Grace .A. and Garretta K., who are all at home. The Doctor was identified with many progress- ive movements in his locality, and was health officer of the town of Wappinger for ten'years. In politics he was a Democrat; he belonged to the F. & A. M., Albany Lodge No. 452. and to the Dutchess Medical Society. A victim of typhoid fever, Dr. Seger passed to his final rest December 10, 1896. Of him the Wap- pinger Chronicle says: "Dr. Seger was a man of mild and genial demeanor, quiet in manner, always the gentleman, and had a kind word for everybody. He was conscien- tious and punctilious to every duty, and this, added to his advanced medical experience, made him one, if not the best Health Officer Wappinger town ever had.

" He leaves a widow and three daughters, to whom the sympathy of the community is generally extended."

R EV. ROBERT FULTON CRARY, D. D. To the American born, the story of Rob- ert Fulton and the steamboat are matters of familiar interest, though it is difficult to realize that he lived but such a short time ago, and we here present a brief review of the life of his grandson, Rev. Robert Fulton Crary, I). D., rector of the Church of the Holy Comforter, Poughkeepsie, New York.

The Crary family have been known in America for over two centuries. Peter (1) Crary was a native of Groton, Conn., and signer of the Patent of New London October 14, 1704. In 1677 he married Christobel Gallup, daughter of Capt. John Gallup, one of the Crown captains who fell in the Narra- gansett Swamp fight, in 1675. In those days Groton was known as New Lucien. His son, Peter (II), married Anne Culver on January 11, 1709, and his son, Peter (111), had a son, Peter (IV), who married Lucretia Palmer De- cember 8, 1771, and their son, Peter (V), a

yours truly Robert Fulton Crazy

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

native of New York City and the grandfather of our subject, married Elizabeth Denison, a descendant of Maj. George Denison, of Ston- ington, Connecticut.

Edward Charles Crary, the father of our subject, was the only son of Peter (V) Crary. of the well-known firm of Peter & John S. Crary, wholesale dry-goods importers, the largest firm of the kind in New York City at that day. Edward C. was born in New York . City, and spent his early days there, attending school for a time, but completed his education from Columbia College, from which he gradu- ated with the class of 1824. In New York, on June 20, 1831, he was married to Cornelia Livingston Fulton, second daughter of Robert Fulton. After his marriage Edward C. Crary assumed control of the English branch of the house, and he and his bride made their home in Liverpool, where their eldest son, Robert Fulton, our subject, was born. Their other chil- dren were Edward Francis (deceased); Charles Franklin; Ella Cornelia, who married Her- man H. Cammann, of New York City, and Lena, who died in infancy. The family, return- ing to this country about the year 1837, made their home in New York. Cornelia L. Ful- ton) Crary was born August 6, 1812, at Rose Hill, which is now about Nineteenth street, New York City, but which then was a suburban place where Robert Fulton was spending the summer and proceeding with his inventions. She died October 6, 1893.

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Commemorative biographical record of Dutchess County, New York, Part 10

Author: J.H. Beers & Co Publication date: 1897 Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers & co. Number of Pages: 1354

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1897
Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 1354