USA > New York > Genealogical and Family History of Western New York, Volume I > Part 75
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was completed July 4, 1883, and he continued as manager until 1890, when he disposed of his entire interest. With his father he found- ed the Brush Electric Light Company of Ni- agara Falls, and is also connected with many extensive industries as well as others having important financial connections. He is a di- rector of the Power City Bank of Niagara Falls, a director of the Bank of Niagara, and president of the Cliff Paper Company. He is preeminently an able, broad-minded and pub- lic-spirited man, holding an undisputed place among the foremost citizens of Western New York. Politically he is a Republican, but not pronouncedly partisan, and he has served the people in many responsible positions. When Niagara Falls was a village, he was one of its first commissioners. In March, 1896, he was elected mayor, and his administration was marked by enterprise, ability and integrity. He is a member of the Niagara Falls Cham- ber of Commerce, the Niagara Club, and the Ellicott Club of Buffalo. He is a Mason, of Knights Templar rank; a Noble of the Mystic Shrine; and a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, a past exalted ruler of Lodge No. 346. In religion he is a Pres- byterian, and a trustee of the First Church of Niagara Falls.
He married, October 13, 1880, Jessie, daugh- ter of Alva Cluck, of Niagara Falls, and the family home is in that city. Children: Paul Arthur, of whom further; and Beatrice, mar- ried Julius Schwoll, of Chicago, Illinois.
(IV) Paul Arthur, only son of Arthur and Jessie (Cluck) Schoellkopf, was born in Ni- agara Falls, New York, March 7, 1884. He prepared for college in the University Pre- paratory School, Ithaca, New York, and enter- ed Cornell University, from which he gradu- ated in 1906. He at once engaged in business with his father, in manufacturing enterprises, and became connected with his various inter- ests-hydraulic and electrical power, paper manufacturing and flour milling-proving him- self a master of each, and in all displaying the abilities of the real practical operator and busi- ness manager, and is accounted among the first men of large affairs in the city. He is a di- rector in the Power City Bank. He is a mem- ber of the First Presbyterian Church, and in politics is a Republican. He is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; of the Zeta Psi college fraternity; of the Ni- agara Falls Club, of Niagara Falls; and the
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Buffalo Club of Buffalo. He married, Au- gust 16, 1911, at Reidsville, North Carolina, a native of that place, Mattie Irwin Penn, born December 28, 1887, daughter of Frank R. and Annie (Spencer) Penn.
(III) Jacob Frederick (2), fourth son of Jacob Frederick ( 1) and Christiana T. (Duerr) Schoellkopf, was born in Buffalo, New York, February 27, 1858. He attended the public schools and St. Joseph's College, Buffalo, after- ward going to Germany where he studied for seven years (1873-80) at the University of Munich and in Stuttgart, making a specialty of chemistry, being graduated from the Stutt- gart Polytechnic College, class of 1880. In 1880 he returned to Buffalo and engaged in business. His knowledge of chemistry and his experiments convinced him that the ex- tracting of dyes from coal tar could be made a very profitable business in the United States. The outcome of his effort was the organi- zation of the Schoellkopf Aniline and Chem- ical works with plant at Buffalo, the most extensive in the county. The works are operated by Schoellkopf, Hartford, Hanna & Company, a corporation of which Mr. Schoell- kopf is president. The plant embraces about thirty-six acres of land on which thirty brick factory buildings are erected. This company employ three hundred and fifty men, with a monthly wage pay roll of fifteen thousand dollars. Mr. Schoellkopf is not only a capable, energetic man of business, but is a technical expert in his line, chemistry. His years of study and experiment have not been devoted to theory, but the conclusions reached in the laboratory have been applied to practical pur- poses. His acquirements have been fully recognized and his cooperation and assistance sought for by many corporations. He is presi- dent of the Contact Process Company; vice- president of the Commonwealth Trust Com- pany, Buffalo; vice-president of the Central National Bank, Buffalo; director of the Co- lumbia National Bank; director of the Secur- ity Safe Deposit Company; vice-president and director of the Hydraulic Power Company of Niagara Falls; director of the National Ani- line and Chemical Company of New York; director of the Cliff Paper Company of Ni- agara Falls. Though eminently a man of af- fairs Mr. Schoellkopf does not allow business to be his all absorbing thought. He is a mem- ber of the Buffalo Historical Society, of the National Geographical Society of Washington,
District of Columbia, and of the American So- ciety of Political and Social Science. He is also interested in purely home philanthropies which he liberally supports. For several years he has served the Buffalo General Hospital as trustee. In politics he is a Republican. His clubs are the Buffalo and Country.
He married, April 1, 1882, Wilma, daughter of Alexander Spring, of Stuttgart, Germany. Children : Jacob Frederick, of whom further ; Ruth Wilma, born November 30, 1899; Esther Spring, June 27, 1901.
(IV) Jacob Frederick (3), only son of Jacob Frederick (2) and Wilma (Spring) Schoellkopf, was born in Buffalo, New York, May 3, 1883. He was graduated A. B., class of 1905, Cornell University, after which he went abroad, entering Strassburg University, Alsace, Germany, from whence he was gradu- ated, Doctor of Philosophy, 1907. He is a director of Schoellkopf, Hartford & Hanna Company; assistant secretary and director of Hydraulic Power Company, Niagara Falls, and director of National Aniline and Chemical Company. He is a member of Trinity Church (Episcopal), and a Republican in politics. He is a member of the American Chemical Society and the University Club.
He married, October 24, 1907, Olive Ches- nutwood, daughter of George Lansing Abbott, a retired cut glass manufacturer, of Corning, New York. She is a graduate of Corning Free Academy, finishing with a year in Paris, France, 1904. Children : Olive Wilhelmina, born Au- gust 9, 1908; Jacob Frederick (4), born in Buffalo, October 1, 1910.
(III) C. P. Hugo, sixth and youngest son of Jacob Frederick and Christiana T. (Duerr) Schoellkopf, was born in Buffalo, New York, July 6, 1862. He pursued his studies in the public schools of Buffalo until past sixteen years of age, then went abroad, entering the Oberralschule in Stuttgart, later becoming a student at the Polytechnic College of the same city. Finishing here he took a course of study at the Polytechnic College at Berlin, special- izing in chemistry. Returning to Buffalo in 1885 he at once entered the Schoellkopf Ani- line and Chemical works with which he has ever since been connected. His advancement in the business world has been rapid and con- tinuous. His scientific training, his thorough knowledge of chemistry and practical years of experience have placed him in a prominent position. He is treasurer of the Schoellkopf,
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Hartford & Hanna Company, which operate the Aniline and Chemical works; director of the National Aniline and Chemical Company of New York; vice-president of the Contact Process Company (an allied company of Schoellkopf, Hartford & Hanna) ; treasurer of the Shafer Fruit and Cold Storage Com- pany; treasurer of the Schoellkopf Holding Company; director of the Hydraulic Power Company of Niagara Falls; director of the Cliff Electrical Distributing Company ; presi- dent of the Canandaigua Brewing Company ; president of the Niagara Spraying Company ; director of the Central National Bank (two years, 1907-08), and has a large interest in the American Magnesia and Covering Company. He is a member of the Buffalo Chamber of Commerce; life member of the Orpheus Sing- ing Society of Buffalo, New York. Politically he is a Republican. His clubs are the Buffalo, Automobile, Park, Launch, Niagara and Chem- ist Club of New York. He is a prominent member of the Masonic order, belonging to Ancient Landmarks Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons ; Ismailia Temple, Order of the Mystic Shrine, and Buffalo Consistory, Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite, in which he has at- tained the thirty-second degree. He also holds membership in the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
He married, September 18, 1890, Emily Frances Annette, of Fort Lee, New Jersey. Child, Alfred H., born July 12, 1893.
(III) Helena, only daughter of Jacob Fred- erick (1) and Christiana T. (Duerr) Schoell- kopf, was born in Buffalo, New York, April 14, 1870. She married, February 1, 1893, at Buffalo, Hans, son of Henry Schmidt, born in Hanover, Germany, May 4, 1839, died in Buf- falo, December 10, 1891. He came to the United States in 1877 and was engaged in the tanning business with the Schoellkopf inter- ests. He married Clara, daughter of August Mannory, who died in Hanover, Germany, in 1888. Mrs. Clara Schmidt survives her hus- band, a resident of Buffalo. Hans Schmidt was born in Hanover, Germany, April 30, 1865, and is a graduate of the Lyceum of that city. He came to the United States in 1882, locating in Buffalo, where he engaged in the tanning business with the Schoellkopfs. He is interested in matters military and from 1885 to 1895 served in the New York National Guard. Politically he is a Republican. His clubs are the Buffalo, Country, Ellicott and
Automobile. Children: I. Hans (2), born January 17, 1896; now a student at the Nichols school. 2. Walter, born August 4, 1898, also a student at the Nichols school. 3. Elsie Helen. 4. Marie Louise.
(IV) Walter Horton, only son of Louis and Myra Lee (Horton) Schoellkopf, was born in Buffalo, October 18, 1882. He was educated in the Nichols school, Buffalo; Cascadilla Pre- paratory School, Ithaca, New York; Pennsyl- vania Military College, Chester, Pennsylvania, from whence he was graduated C. E., 1904; Cornell University, graduating electrical engi- neer, class of 1906. After a tour of Europe he returned to Buffalo where he is in charge of the family estate and prominent in business. He is president of the Atlantic Filter Company, of Buffalo; director of the Hydraulic Power Company ; director of the Schoellkopf Hold- ing Company, and director of the Citizens' National Bank of Buffalo. He is a Repub- lican in politics, and an active member of Westminster Presbyterian Church. His col- lege fraternity is Zeta Psi. His clubs are the Buffalo, Saturn, Ellicott, Country, Park and Automobile of Buffalo; The Lambs of New York City and the Royal Automobile Club of London, England.
He married Anna Johnston, February 1, 1908; one son, Walter Horton Jr., born Sep- tember 13, 1911.
This is an ancient and hon-
VOM BERGE orable family of Germany, where they hold high posi- tion. Later generations settled in Buffalo, New York, where they are equally important. (I) Heinrich Gottlob Vom Berge was born August 20, 1788, died November 2, 1864. He was a wealthy landowner and successful busi- ness man of Germany. He married Wilhel- mina Charlotte Von Koeckritz.
(II) Gottwalt Benjamin, son of Heinrich G. Vom Berge, was born in Germany (Silesia), February 27, 1830, died in Buffalo, New York, September 4, 1886. He was educated in the Royal College of Engineers, Breslau, Germany. At the age of twenty-one years, in 1851, he came to the United States and established as a civil engineer in Buffalo, New York. He mar- ried, December 10, 1872, Marie de Rutté, born February 20, 1846, daughter of Bernhart Gott- lieb de Rutté, and granddaughter of Johan Emanuel Victor de Rutte, of Switzerland and Germany, born 1788, died March 29, 1833:
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married, June 28, 1814, Anna Charlotte Hiuze, born November 3, 1791 ; their son, Bernhart Gottlieb de Rutté, born in Germany, Septem- ber 22, 1819, died in Buffalo, December 8, 1878; married, April 4, 1845, Wilhelmina Franziska Henning, born November 26, 1820, died August 10, 1850, daughter of Carl and Marie (Lampel) Henning, the latter born Oc- tober 18, 1797, died March 17, 1860. Mrs. Marie (de Rutté) Vom Berge survives her husband and resides in Buffalo.
(III) Henry de Rutté, son of Gottwalt Ben- jamin Vom Berge, was born in Buffalo, Janu- ary 4, 1874, died November 28, 1911. He was educated at Canisius College, from whence he was graduated A. B., 1892. On his return to the United States he became associated with the Schoellkopf interests, later becoming sales manager. He was a director of the Central Na- tional Bank, of the Hydraulic Power Com- pany, of the Wegner Machine Company and of the Canandaigua Brewing Company. Mr. Vom Berge served ten years in the Sixty-fifth Regiment, New York National Guard, attain- ing the rank of first lieutenant and inspector of small arms practice. He was actively asso- ciated with the Charity Organization, the Mu- nicipal League and was treasurer of the Ger- man Hospital and secretary of the Philhar- monic Society. He was a Democrat in politics although taking no active part in public affairs. His clubs were the Saturn, Country, Automo- bile and Ellicott of Buffalo.
He married, September 26, 1907, Genevieve Christina Schoellkopf, born in Buffalo, Febru- ary 16, 1884, daughter of Louis and Myra Lee (Horton) Schoellkopf (see Schoellkopf). She is a graduate of the Buffalo Seminary and the Ogoontz School, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. One child: Henry Schoellkopf, born in Buf- falo, July 6, 1908.
PRATT The Pratt family is of Norman stock, the name appearing in An- glicized form in France early in the middle ages. It is derived from the Latin "Pratum," a meadow ; Spanish, Prade ; French, Pre, Preux, Prarie. The barony of Pratella existed near Rouen, on the Seine below Paris, early in the eleventh century. Its lord, Le Sire de Preaux, followed William the Conqueror to England in 1066, his name being found on the Roll of Battle Abbey as having been present at the battle of Hastings. Thirty years later, in 1096, a Sire de Preux followed Duke Robert
of Normandy, the eldest son of William the Conqueror, on the first crusade. Two of his kinsmen, William and John, accompanied him. John de Pratelles was a favorite minister of King Richard I. (Cour de Lion). Two broth- ers, William and Peter de Pratelles, followed Richard on the third crusade in 1189-91. Will- iam saved the king from capture in a skirmish with the Saracens by allowing himself to be captured, pretending that he was the king. He was later exchanged for ten emirs and was knighted for his valor. Documents connect him with Rouen, where the barony of Pratella was located. A Seigneur de Preux was killed at the head of his household in the battle of Agincourt, in 1415.
The Anglicized form of the name, Pratt, be- gins to appear frequently in England in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. There are nine armorial bearings extant among dif- ferent families of this name. Its frequent occurrence on Norman rolls proves the Nor- man origin of the family. While it is found in nearly every county in England it is partic- ularly identified with Herts and Norfolk.
(I) The first of the name to whom the American Pratts can trace direct descent was Thomas Pratt, who lived at Baldock, county of Herts, England, about thirty-four miles from London, in the early part of the sixteenth century. His will is dated February 5, 1538- 39. His wife's name was Joan and he had three sons, Thomas, James, Andrew, and one daughter, Agnes.
(II) Andrew, son of Thomas Pratt, had three children : Allen, baptized 1561 ; William, October, 1562; Richard, June 27, 1567.
(III) Rev. William Pratt, son of Andrew Pratt, was rector at Stevenage, in Hertford- shire, for thirty years. His wife, Elizabeth, bore him three sons and three daughters : Rich- ard, baptized February 16, 1618; John, No- vember 9, 1620; William; Sarah; Mary, born February 6, 1605; Elizabeth, April 2, 1613. The Rev. William Pratt died in 1629, aged sixty-seven.
(IV) John Pratt and his brother William were the founders of the Pratt family in America. John appears in the records of Cam- bridge, Massachusetts, as the owner of a home lot and as one of the original members of the Rev. Thomas Hooker's church. This would fix the date of his immigration as prior to 1636, when Hooker and Samuel Stone led their flock through the wilderness to found New-
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ton, or, as it soon became, Hartford, Connec- ticut. The fact that these two sons of a clergy- man of the Church of England were at this time living in a Puritan colony and were mem- bers of a Puritan church may explain the omission of their names from their father's will. John and Lieutenant William Pratt ap- pear among the original proprietors of Hart- ford. They drew home lots in the first division of land in February, 1639, and their names occur frequently in the records of the colony. John had wife Elizabeth, and died on July 15, 1655. He had sons, John and Daniel.
(V) John (2), son of John (1) and Eliza- beth Pratt, married (first) Hannah Boosey ; (second) Hepsibah Wyatt. Children: Han- nah, born 1658; John, 1661; Elizabeth, 1664; Ruth, 1667; Sarah, 1668; Joseph, 1671; Sus- annah, 1680; Jonathan, 1683. John Pratt died November 23, 1687.
(VI) Jonathan, son of John (2) Pratt, born November 23, 1683, married Mary Benton. They lived at East Hartford. Children : Eliz- abeth, Jerusha, Daniel, Moses, Jonathan, Eliab, Aaron, Mary, Hepsibah. Jonathan Pratt died in 1755.
(VII) Aaron, son of Jonathan and Mary (Benton) Pratt, was born about 1725-26. He married Mary Clark, of East Hartford, in 1756, and removed to Westminster, Vermont. In 1805 he came to his son's home in Buffalo, where he died, February 9, 1806. His widow also died in Buffalo, November 20, 1809. Both were buried in the village cemetery, where is now Franklin square. He was a member of the Congregational church. Children: Eliza- beth, Aaron, Mary, Samuel, William, died in infancy ; William.
(VIII) Captain Samuel Pratt, son of Aaron and Mary (Clark) Pratt, the founder of the Pratt family in Buffalo, was born at Fast Hart- ford, Connecticut, and was still a child when his parents removed to Westminster, Vermont. As soon as the news of Bunker Hill reached this distant settlement he enlisted, July 10, 1775, in the Third Company, Eighth Regiment, of General Jedediah Huntington's brigade. The command was first stationed on Long Island south, but was ordered by General Washing- ton to the camp around Boston, where it took post with General Spencer's brigade at Rox- bury. Samuel Pratt was honorably discharged December 14, 1775. On July 2, 1777, he again enlisted in Captain John Harman's company, Fourth Connecticut Regiment. This command
was stationed at Peekskill and in September was ordered to join General Washington in Pennsylvania, marching with the Connecticut brigade under General Alexander McDougal. He also took part in the battle of Germantown and the defense of Fort Mifflin. Returning to his Vermont home after the war, Captain Pratt is next heard of as the organizer of an expedi- tion into the western country to buy furs. The party started from Montreal in 1802, passed through Buffalo and went as far as Mackinaw. On his return he was stricken with smallpox, at Sandusky, Ohio, and was nursed back to health by the Indians. He marketed his furs in Boston, and then determined to emigrate with his family to Buffalo, which had impress- ed him as an advantageous point at which to settle. The journey was made in a substantial coach built for the purpose, while two covered wagons held his furniture and trading stock. When this caravan made its way down Wil- link avenue( Main street) in September, 1804, it caused a sensation in the settlement. It brought the first private coach ever seen in Erie county. Captain Pratt put up at John Crow's tavern, where the superintendent of Indian affairs, Erastus Granger, kindly gave up his quarters to Mrs. Pratt and the children. His first purchase of land was the lot where the Mansion House now stands. Here he built what was at first both his home and his store. Later he built a substantial farm house on what is now Ohio street, a little north of the creek, near where the Erie freight house stands. There was also a large barn and storehouse at the corner of Ellicott and Seneca streets. The frame of this structure remained standing when Buffalo was burned by the British in 1813. It was afterward recovered and used as a stable for the Franklin House. Captain Pratt is credited with building the first frame house of any considerable size in Buffalo.
Captain Pratt was a man of great energy and public spirit. His store was the principal trading resort of the Indians, who gave him the names Ho-da-ni-da-oh, "merciful man," and Ne-gur-re-you, "honest dealer." Very soon after his arrival an incident occurred which illustrates the character both of the merchant and his customers. While he was building his house his wife was boiling some meat out of doors. An Indian, known as Peter Gimlet, snatched a piece of the meat and ran away. Captain Pratt's little daughter call- ed her father, who sent his son Asa to catch
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the Indian and bring him back. Finding the meat still on his person, Captain Pratt seized a horsewhip and applied it vigorously to the thief's legs. The Indian bounded away but in a short time returned with a large number of his friends, including the noted chief, Farm- er's Brother. The chief complained that Peter Gimlet had been horsewhipped, as he said, without cause. Captain Pratt boldly told his own side of the case, calling his daughter to corroborate him, whereupon Farmer's Brother decided that Ne-gur-re-you might whip Peter Gimlet again if he liked. Furthermore, the thief was banished from the reservation for several years. Captain Pratt then rolled out a barrel of salt to which the Indians were in- vited to help themselves. Another characteris- tic incident of the time was an attempt by a Seneca squaw to steal the captain's infant daughter, but the child was promptly recover- ed. Still more exciting was an attempt by an Indian to kill the captain's son, Benjamin, who had been teasing him. The boy rushed into the store, closely pursued, but upon the father's interference, the Indian thrust his knife into the door post, saying: "Me no kill Ho-da-ni- da-oh's boy."
Returning to the east in 1805, Captain Pratt brought back with him his aged parents and a clergyman, the Rev. Mr. Whiting, of Boston, who was the first minister, not under the direc- tion of a missionary society, to settle in Buf- falo. The expense of the journey was con- siderable, and the act demonstrated Captain Pratt's public spirit. He was not himself a church member, but his wife was a Presby- terian, although in later life she became attach- ed to the Baptists. Mr. Whiting lived for some time in the Pratt family. Captain Pratt helped to lay out the first cemetery, where his own parents were soon afterward buried.
He married, about 1785, Esther Wells, born at Hatfield, Massachusetts, April 20, 1766, daughter of Samuel and Lucy (Evens) Wells, of the oldest and best New England families. Captain Pratt died August 31, 1812. In con- sequence of the burning of Buffalo the fol- lowing year, his widow with her younger chil- dren returned to Westminster, Vermont, but later came back to Buffalo, where she died in 1830, aged sixty-four. Children: I. Samuel, of whom further. 2. Asa, called by the In- dians, To-yo-nih, "the wolf." He enlisted in a regiment known as the Buffalo Greys, and was seriously wounded at the battle of Chip-
pawa, July 5, 1814. After the battle he was placed in a canoe and brought to the family home on Ohio street. The surgeon wished to amputate his leg, but he would not consent. He sent for Farmer's Brother who brought a Mohawk squaw named Sally. The two In- dians applied native herb remedies, which so reduced the inflammation that Asa saved both his leg and his life. When partially recover- ed he rejoined the army at Fort Erie, acting as one of the secretaries of General Jacob Brown. One of his descendants, George Burt Pratt, died in Andersonville during the civil war. 3. Pamelia, born 1792; married Elijah Leech. 4. Pascal Paoli, born 1794, died September 24, 1828. He was a great friend of the Indians, spoke several Indian dialects and frequently acted as interpreter. He was deputy sheriff in 1825, at the time the three Thayers were hanged. He escorted his mother to Westmin- ster, Vermont, after the burning of Buffalo, and then returned and took charge of the farm. His Indian name was O-we-noh-geh, meaning "Floating Island" or "Floating Raft," refer- ring to his operation of a ferry across the creek. 5. Benjamin Wells, born 1795; was preparing for college at Brattleboro, Vermont, at the time Buffalo was burned. The change in the family fortunes compelled him to give up his plans. He helped his mother in man- aging the farm; married, in 1824,
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