Genealogical and Family History of Western New York, Volume I, Part 74

Author: Cutter, William Richard, 1847-1918
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: New York : Lewis Historical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 680

USA > New York > Genealogical and Family History of Western New York, Volume I > Part 74

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).

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(also a descendant of Deacon Samuel), who was the first practicing physician to locate in Buffalo.

Dr. Charles P. Chapin married, January 21, 1881, Mertie Amanda Barker, born October 3, 1863, daughter of Rev. Sewell P. Barker (see below), of Buffalo. Children (tenth gen- eration) : 1. Martha Mertilla, born in Buffalo, October 27, 1885; graduate of Buffalo high school; married, March 7, 1911, Arthur George Hunt, of Buffalo. 2. Loring Dudley (3), born May 31, 1887, died March 11, 1888. 3. John R., born March 4, 1891; student of Buffalo high school ; swimming expert, holding all city records. 4. Harry MacBeth, born May 8, 1896.

Rev. Sewell P. Barker (see below) was born in Danton, Vermont, July 7, 1818, died March 30, 1900, at Buffalo. He was a regularly ordained minister, of deep piety, of the Meth- odist Episcopal church, with charges in Niagara and Erie counties, Genesee Confer- ence, and was principal of public school in Buffalo twelve years. He married, December 14, 1843, at Spencerport, Ruth E. Dean, born at Ridgefield, Connecticut, December 14, 1843, died at Buffalo, March 7, 1908, daughter of Lewis Dean, born at Ridgefield, September 12, 1784, died at Victory, New York, May II, 1830; married, March 12, 1804, Betty Marvin, born March 17, 1785, died at Hudson, Michi- gan, January 1, 1857; children : Charles, Es- ther M., Daniel M., Huldah, Orrin, Lewis, Betsey A., Mary Harriet, Ruth E. and Henry W. Children of Rev. Sewell P. and Ruth E. (Dean) Barker: 1. Betsey De Lemere, died in infancy. 2. Lauren Stiles, born in Shelby, New York, 1851 ; married, September 6, 1875, Maria Stokes. 3. Mary D., born in Charlotte, Michigan, April 27, 1853, died in Utica, Mich- igan, May 17, 1855. 4. William Buxton, born in Utica, Michigan, December 25, 1854, died May 9, 1855. 5. Charles Marvin, born in Hudson, Michigan. August 22, 1856; married, December 31, 1879, Mattie Prescutt. 6. James Raymond, born October 18, 1859, at Lewiston, New York; married Nettie Glea- son, 1885, at Buffalo. 7. Mertie A., born in Olcott, New York, October 3, 1863 ; married Dr. Charles P. Chapin (see Chapin IX). 8. Mertilla E., twin of Mertie A., died in Gas- port, New York, June 13, 186 -. 9. Harriet E., born in Hamburg, New York, March 23, 1868; married Dr. George S. Skiff, July 4, 1886,

The revolutionary descent of Dr. C. P. Chapin's family is on the maternal side, from Abner Wade, who served from New Jersey. His wife Mary was a daughter of Abraham Clark, a signer of the Declaration of Inde- pendence, from New Jersey.

(II) Henry Chapin, second son

CHAPIN of Deacon Samuel (q. v.) and Cecily Chapin, does not appear to have resided in Springfield in the early part of his manhood, but took up his residence there about 1659. The town records show that he was prominent in town affairs, and a repre- sentative in the general court in 1689. Tra- dition says he was impressed on board a Brit- ish man-of-war and served seven years, dur- ing which time he was in severe engagements with the Dutch. He afterward commanded a merchant ship and made several voyages be- tween London and Boston, but at length, tired of a seafaring life, took up his residence in Boston, and afterward in Springfield, where his father and family resided. He settled in that part of Springfield now Chicopee, built a house on the south side of Chicopee river, on Ferry street, facing south on West street, near where a large elm tree now stands. This house was burned in 1762. He bought of John Pynchon, May 9, 1659, two hundred acres of land on the north side of Chicopee river, for which he was to pay in wheat the sum of twenty pounds in money by March, 1663. The greater part of these premises have been and still are in the possession of the descendants of Henry Chapin. He married Bethia, daughter of Ben- jamin and Sarah Cooley, at Longmeadow, December 5, 1664. She died December 11, 17II ; he died August 15, 1718. Children, found on record: Henry, Sarah, Bethia, Henry (2), Benjamin, next mentioned.

(III) Deacon Benjamin Chapin, youngest child of Henry and Bethia (Cooley) Chapin, was born in Springfield, February 2, 1682, and died March 22, 1756. He was one of the first deacons of the church in Chicopee, elected to that office in 1752. He lived on Chicopee street, near where Deacon Giles S. Chapin lived some years ago. Benjamin Chapin married (first). November 9, 1704, Hannah, daughter of Isaac and Mary Colton, of Longmeadow. She died March 5. 1739, and he married, ( sec- ond) Joanna, widow of Ebenezer Warriner. She died October 13, 1764. Children by first wife : Hannah, Benjamin, Isaac, Abner, Jacob,

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Bethia, Sarah, George, Abigail, Mary, Eph- raim, Eunice.

(IV) Isaac, son of Deacon Benjamin Chapin by his first wife, Hannah (Colton) Chapin, was born August 18, 1710, in Chico- pee, Massachusetts, died November 22, 1789. He married, June 29, 1734, Experience War- riner, who died August 22, 1777. Children : Isaac, Martin, William, Zebulon, William (2), Experience, Gideon, Mercy, Vashti.

(V) Zebulon, son of Isaac and Experience (Warriner) Chapin, was born November 1I, 1741, died October 27, 1823. He married (first) He married (second), January 23, 1777, Lydia Ely, and lived one mile east of the church in Wilbraham. Chil- dren : Isaac, Mercy, Solomon, Matilda, Celia, Achsa, Solomon, Celia (2), William.

(VI) Isaac (2), son of Zebulon and Lydia (Ely) Chapin, was born October 30, 1777, died October 8, 1855. He lived in Wilbraham. He married, January 13, 1800, Nancy Sibley, of Monson. (The Sibley family afterward re- moved to Rochester, New York). Children : Oramel Sibley, Zebulon, Juliana, Alfred E., Daniel F., Daniel E., William, Lydia Ann, John M., Isaac N., Solomon.

(VII) Oramel Sibley, son of Isaac (2) and Nancy (Sibley) Chapin, was born in Wilbra- ham, Massachusetts, June 17, 1801, died in Lockport, New York, April 30, 1886. His early life was passed in what is now Spring- field, Massachusetts. In February, 1834, he settled in Niagara county, New York, acquir- ing a large tract of land in Royalton, later re- moving to Lockport, where the last fifteen years of his life were passed. He became one of the most substantial, influential men of Niagara county. He married, May 25, 1824, Jemima Smith, of Haddam, Connecticut. Chil- dren : Horace B., died in 1875; Josiah S., died about 1870; George Flagg.

(VIII) George Flagg, son of Oramel Sib- ley and Jemima (Smith) Chapin, was born at Royalton, Niagara county, New York, May 26, 1833, died there July 16, 1896. He acquired a technical education at the School of Engin- eering, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from which he was graduated civil engineer. He was engaged for many years in railroad construc- tion, chiefly in the south. In later years he returned to Niagara county. He married Emily Bouck, a niece of Governor William C. Bouck, of New York. Children : Ida C. and Willis O.

(IX) Willis O., son of George Flagg and Emily (Bouck) Chapin, was born in Royal- ton, New York, October 7, 1860. He was ad- mitted to the bar in 1881 and is now a prac- ticing attorney of Buffalo, New York. He is also deeply interested in the work of the sci- entific and art societies of Buffalo. He is author of "Masters and Masterpieces of En- graving" (Harper Brothers, 1894). He is a trustee of the Buffalo Historical Society, di- rector of the Buffalo Academy of Fine Arts and served as president, 1908-10; director of the Fidelity Trust Company and interested in other societies. He received the honorary de- gree of A. M. from Hobart College, 1906. He is a member of Trinity Episcopal Church and a Republican in politics.

He married, June 21, 1888, Abby G. Flint, of Buffalo, daughter of William B., born 1825, died 1887, and Joanna (Gillespie) Flint. Chil- dren : Janet and William Richmond.

MINARD This early New England name first appears in New London. Connecticut, where it is fre- quently confounded with Miner, another pioneer name there, and also with Maynard, which is a name frequently found in New England. This name is often written Mynard. It has been identified with the early settle- ment of Western New York and is there still ably represented.

(I) William Mynard, an immigrant from Great Britain, settled in New London, where he married, November 15, 1678, Lydia Rich- ards, baptized in the First Church of New London, March 26, 1671, daughter of John Richards, whose wife is supposed to have been Lydia Beman. John Richards was at Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1637, and re- moved about 1658 to New London, where he died in 1687. William Mynard died in 1711 and at his death left sons, William, George, David and Jonathan (whose name was indif- ferently written Mynard, Minard, Maynard. Mainer ). These were all householders about 1730. The church records of New London show the baptisms of David's children, but of none of the others.

(II) The records of New London have frequent mention of William (2) Minard, but there is nothing to show the name of his wife or children. He was born November 16,. 1680.

(III) William (3), probably son of Wil-

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He married (first), August 29, 1754, Eliza- beth Lawrence, both being of Littleton. She was born June 24, 1737, daughter of Jonathan and Tryphena ( Powers) Lawrence, of Little- ton, and died October 2, 1762, being the mother of three of his children. He married (second) in Concord, January 19, 1764, Elizabeth Burt, of Harvard. Their first child was born in Harvard; the next two in Rindge, New Hamp- shire, and the last two in Rockingham, Ver- mont. Children: William, Isaac, Jonathan, John Burt, Jabez, Barbara, married Levi Sa- bin, of Rockingham; Abigail, baptized July 22, 1777; Sarah, May 23, 1779.

(VI) John Burt, son of William Stearns, and eldest child of his second wife, Elizabeth (Burt) Stearns, was born September 7, 1764, in Harvard, and appears on the freemen's roll of Rockingham, Vermont. He was a soldier from that town in the war of 1812, and died there in 1848. He married, August 22, 1789, Ruth Eastman. Children : Elizabeth Burt, born February 14, 1790; John Eastman, March 13, 1792; Otis, May 19, 1794; Jabez, October 9, 1796; Maria, mentioned below; William Burt, December, 1803; Samuel Eastman, Au- gust 3, 1806.

(VII) Maria, second daughter of John Burt and Ruth (Eastman) Stearns, was born Janu- ary 19, 1801, in Rockingham, and married, September 19, 1832, George Minard, of Hume, New York, formerly of Rockingham ( see Min- ard VI).

SCHOELLKOPF From no other land has the United States drawn a more desirable emi- gration than from Germany. Richly endowed with characteristics eminently qualifying them for loyal and intelligent citizenship they have ever proved themselves worthy sons of their adopted country. The Schoellkopfs of Erie and Niagara counties spring from a hardy, ambitious ancestor, who not only achieved success for himself but transmitted to his posterity qualities that have kept them in the front rank of industrial progress and develop- ment.

(II) Jacob Frederick Schoellkopf, son of Gottlieb Schoellkopf, was born in Krichheim, Unter Teck, a small town in the kingdom of Wurtemberg, Germany, November 15, 1819, died in Buffalo, New York, September 15, 1899. He was educated in the town schools, and at the age of fourteen years began learning the

trade of tanner with his father, a large leather manufacturer, who had learned the same trade with his father. After completing his five years of apprenticeship he became clerk in a mercantile house at Strassburg, remaining two years. In 1841, realizing that as a younger son he could not inherit, he determined to try his fortune in the land across the seas, from which such glowing reports came from those of his acquaintances who had made the ven- ture. In December, 1841, he landed in New York City, aged twenty-two years, totally un- acquainted with the English language. He soon found work at his trade and almost as quickly acquired the language. He worked in New York City for two years, was for a time in the west, and in 1844, with a capital of eight hundred dollars loaned him by his father, located in Buffalo. He began his business career there in a small leather store which he established on Mohawk street. In the same year (1844) he purchased a small tannery at White's Corners ( Hamburg) Erie county, ar- ranging payments to cover a period of six years. In 1846 he started a tannery in Buf- falo for the tanning of sheep skins. In 1848 he built a tannery in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in association with another, the firm name being G. Pfister & Company. In 1850 he be- came interested in a Chicago firm, C. T. Grey & Company, operating a tannery there, con- tinuing in the latter firm until 1856. He did not long retain these western interests; after seeing them placed on solid business footings, he disposed of them profitably and sought new outlets for his rapidly increasing capital. In 1853-54 he established tanneries at Fort Wayne, Indiana, and North Evans, New York, operat- ing the latter with unusual success for twenty years. In 1857 he made his first large invest- ment outside the tanning business. He erect- ed the North Buffalo Flouring Mills, which proved so profitable that he continued his in- vestments in that line, ultimately becoming one of the largest operators of flouring mills in the Empire State. He bought the Frontier Mills of Buffalo, in 1870, and later erected exten- sive mills at Niagara Falls. He retained his vast milling and tanning interests until his death, some being held in his own name, others as senior of the milling firm of Schoellkopf & Mathews. In 1877 he purchased the Hydraulic canal, at Niagara Falls, and in the develop- ment of that plan for utilizing the power of the Niagara river has forever connected his

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two daughters, Mary and Ann. Mr. Stearns settled at Watertown, Massachusetts, and was among the first freemen established there in 1631. He was selectman several years. He died June 19, 1671, being survived nearly six years by his widow, who passed away April 2, 1677. Besides the children above named they had John, Isaac, Sarah, Samuel, Eliza- beth, Abigail. John is supposed also to have been born in England.

(II) Isaac (2), second son and fourth child of Isaac (I) and Mary Stearns, was born Jan- uary 6, 1633, in Watertown, where he was made a freeman in 1665. He settled in Cam- bridge Farms, now Lexington, and died there August 29, 1676. He married, June 24, 1660, Sarah, daughter of Captain Richard and Eliz- abeth Beers. Captain Beers was one of the original proprietors of Watertown, command- ed a company in King Philip's war, and was killed in battle with the Indians at Northfield, Massachusetts, September 4, 1675. After the death of Mr. Stearns his widow married, July 23, 1677, Thomas Wheeler, of Concord, Mas- sachusetts. Isaac Stearns left an estate inven- toried at three hundred pounds. His children were: Sarah, Mary, Isaac, Samuel, Abigail, John.

(III) John, son of Isaac (2) and Sarah (Beers) Stearns, was born 1675, in Lexington, and resided in Concord and Bedford. He is of record as a landowner in Bedford in 1729, and died there June 14, 1734, aged about fifty- nine years. Following is an item from his will, which was dated May 29, 1733: "I give and bequeathe to my daughter, Mercy Ken- dall, five pounds and all the right I have in a mulatto girl, named Mary, now living with me." He married, April 26, 1699, Mercy Davis, born August 12, 1677, daughter of Samuel and Mary (Meadows) Davis, of Con- cord. Their children were: John, Zachariah, Eleazer, Mercy, Abigail, Benjamin.

(IV) Eleazer, third son of John and Mercy (Davis) Stearns, was born September 8, 1704, in Concord, and resided in that town, subse- quently in Bedford and Littleton, Massachu- setts. He married, about 1733. the baptismal name of his wife being Abigail (surname un- known). She died after 1755 and he had a second wife, Mary. Children : William, men- tioned below ; Eleazer, born October 10, 1737; Mercy, January 10, 1739; John, October 4, 1740: Abigail, March 28, 1746; Jonathan and David (twins), April 12, 1748, Jonathan died

young ; Sarah, June 24, 1750; Jonathan, June 12, 1752; Mary, September 22, 1755; all re- corded in Littleton.

(V) William, eldest child of Eleazer and Abigail Stearns, was born April 27, 1734, in Concord; was reared in Littleton, where he was living in 1764, and was in Harvard, Mas- sachusetts, in 1769. For a short time he re- sided in Rindge, New Hampshire, where he was a lessee of one of the public lots, but re- moved to Rockingham, Vermont, as early as 1774, in which year his eldest child was bap- tized there. On February 13, 1777, he con- tributed three shillings at a town meeting to bear the expenses of a delegate to a convention in Dorset, which organized the first state gov- ernment. He signed the association test June 23, of that year, and on March 3, 1778, sub- scribed allegiance to the first constitution of the state of Vermont. His name appears on the first freemen's roll of Rockingham which was begun about 1781, and with his wife was a member of the church there. He partici- pated in the battle of Bunker Hill, being a sergeant in Captain John Marcy's company, of Colonel Joseph Reed's regiment, which was recruited on both sides of the Connecticut river in the vicinity of Rockingham. He ap- pears on a roll dated May 8, 1775, and served three months and one day, receiving pay for one hundred and thirty miles of travel. He marched to Ticonderoga, carrying a supply of two pounds of lead, and was a member of Captain Jonathan Holton's company, Colonel Ebenezer Wood's regiment of militia, in which he was a lieutenant, which marched October 17, 1780, on account of the Indian raid which burned the town of Royalton, Vermont. This force marched sixty miles. He appears on a pay roll dated October 26, 1782, as a sergeant in Captain William Simonds' company, Colo- nel Bradley's regiment, which supported the sheriff at Guilford. This was probably on ac- count of some trouble arising from the dis- pute between the jurisdictions of New York and Vermont which caused much trouble in and about Guilford. On this occasion he was credited with four days service and a march of forty miles. He died in Rockingham in 1804, and was buried in the village burying ground at Rockingham .. He was constable of that town in 1796, and appears in the list of voters at a special meeting, March 22, 1797, for the election of a representative in con- gress.

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name with the city of Niagara Falls and with one of the greatest of modern enterprises. The canal was later capitalized and created a cor- poration, known as the Niagara Falls Hydraulic Power and Manufacturing Company, Mr. Schoellkopf being president at the time of his death. Large manufactories were established along its banks by the owners and arrange- ments entered into by many other companies who built and took their power from the canal. The impetus given to Niagara Falls by this cheap and unlimited water power has resulted in continuous growth and prosperity. Having safely established his own private enterprises and fortune Mr. Schoellkopf became interested in corporate and financial activities. He was vice-president of the Buffalo & Philadelphia railroad prior to its sale to the Western New York & Pennsylvania Company; was vice- president of the Third National Bank of Buf- falo; the Merchants' and German banks of Buffalo; also banks in Niagara Falls. He was president of the Citizens' Gas Company, of Buffalo, and a trustee of the Buffalo General Hospital until his death. He was intensely public spirited and placed at the disposal of the city and its institutions his best talents, as well as a great amount of his time and means. His nature was generous, his charities being many and widely distributed. The church ever had in him a warm friend and a most liberal contributor. His life was a truly remarkable one. He had a capacity for great undertakings, nothing daunted him and he will ever be held as one of the great men of his period, and this too without the glamour of a military or public official life. He was great in the best sense, great in the arts of peace, a builder not a de- stroyer.

He married, in 1848, Christiana T. Duerr, born in Germany, coming to the United States about 1842. She survived her husband four years, dying October 13, 1903. She was a worthy companion and contributed her full share to her husband's success. Children:

I. Henry, born in Buffalo, New York, De- cember 22, 1848, died in that city, February 27, 1880. He studied in Germany, but soon became associated with his father in the lat- ter's business enterprises. The period when the association began was one in which the undertakings of the elder Schoellkopf were yet in an initial stage compared with their later magnitude. He became a member of the firm of J. F. Schoellkopf & Son in 1870, later this

firm was enlarged by the addition of other sons, and the son changed to sons in the firm name. Henry was a man of fine qualities and occupied a prominent place in Buffalo busi- ness circles. He was fitted by natural inclina- tions for a manufacturer, while his fidelity and integrity commanded implicit confidence. He married, 1874, Emily Vogel, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Children: i. Elsie, married Kai Von Rumohr, an officer of the German army; resides at Schwerin, Germany. ii. Paula, mar- ried Gustav Reuss, a banker of Milwaukee. iii. Henry, graduate of Cornell and Harvard universities, now a practicing lawyer at Mil- waukee, Wisconsin.

2. Louis, born in Buffalo, New York, March 25, 1855, died July 7, 1901. He was educated under private tutors, spent four years at school in Germany, returned to Buffalo where his studies were completed under private teachers, a course at St. Joseph's College and at Bryant & Stratton's Business College. His business life began in his father's tannery, where he acquired a thorough knowledge of the busi- ness. In 1877 he became a member of J. F. Schoellkopf & Sons, continuing until the death of his brother Henry in 1880, when a new firm was organized consisting of Louis and Alfred P. Schoellkopf and John Russ. Louis was interested in many other enterprises in Niagara Falls : The Power City Bank, Niagara Falls Hy- draulic Power and Manufacturing Company, the International Hotel Company and the Cliff Paper Company. His culture, experience and uprightness won him the esteem of a very large circle of friends. His business abilities were undisputed and he filled a useful place in the life of his community. While neither holding or seeking office he was a Republican in poli- tics and had a well defined conception of his duty as a citizen. He belonged to the Buffalo Republican League, the Ellicott Club, Orpheus Singing Society, Westminster Club, Merchants' Exchange, the Charity Organization, and at- tended the Westminster Presbyterian Church. He married, May 18, 1881, Myra Lee Horton. Children : Walter Horton (mentioned below), and Genevieve Christina (see Vom Berge).

3. Arthur, of whom further.

4. Jacob Frederick, of whom further.

5. Alfred, born in Buffalo, New York, July I, 1859, died there October 12, 1901. Here he first exhibited the unusual business capacity that later won him recognition as a manu- facturer and financier. He soon outgrew the

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tannery, becoming identified with the Niagara Falls Hydraulic Power and Manufacturing Company, of which he was a director at the time of his death. Later he entered the sphere of finance as a director of the Power City Bank. From the time of his first entry into business his progress was rapid, and as he progressed he constantly developed new sources of strength, becoming a tower of strength to the corpora- tions in which he was interested. His death came at a time when the enthusiasm of youth was happily blended with matured judgment and extensive experience, better preparing him for important achievement. He married Emily Græbe, then a resident of Niagara Falls. Chil- dren : Lucia, William Græbe and Emily.

6. C. P. Hugo, of whom further.

7. Helena, of whom further.

Four children died in infancy.

(III) Arthur, third son of Jacob Frederick and Christiana T. (Duerr) Schoellkopf, was born in Buffalo, New York, June 13, 1856. He studied in private schools in that city, was for four years an academician at Kirchheim, Wur- tenberg, Germany (his father's birthplace), and returned in 1869 to Buffalo, where he com- pleted his literary education at St. Joseph's College, and took a course in Bryant & Strat- ton's Business College. He began business in the North Buffalo and Frontier mills, then operated by Thornton & Chester, and later by Schoellkopf & Mathews, remaining four years. In 1877 he became part owner of the Niagara flouring mills at Niagara Falls. His interest in the milling business has been continuous, he now being president of the Niagara Falls Mill- ing Company, operating the Central and Ni- agara flouring mills, with a combined output of four thousand barrels daily. In 1878, in association with his father, he organized the Niagara Falls Hydraulic Power and Manu- facturing Company to develop the hydraulic canal purchased by his father, and to furnish power for other mills, the father being presi- dent, and the son secretary, treasurer and gen- eral manager. This enterprise was of the greatest benefit to the village, and is now com- memorated in the now thriving city of Niagara Falls by a beautiful memorial bridge spanning the canal, in the very heart of the city. An instance of the public spirit of Arthur Schoell- kopf is shown in his building, equipping and personally managing for seven years the first street railway, known as the Niagara Falls and Suspension Bridge street railway. This

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Genealogical and Family History of Western New York, Volume I, Part 74

Author: Cutter, William Richard, 1847-1918 Publication date: 1912 Publisher: New York : Lewis Historical Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 680

Author: Cutter, William Richard, 1847-1918
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: New York : Lewis Historical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 680