USA > New York > Jefferson County > Genealogical and family history of the county of Jefferson, New York, Volume II > Part 47
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Southside Railroad. October 27, 1864; formed part of Warren's com- mand in his raid to Nottoway, December 10: was in the charge on Fort Mahone. in front of Petersburg. April 2. 1865 ; and finally joined in the pursuit and capture of General Lee. It was among the first to enter the rebel fortifications at Petersburg, and was highly compli- mented by its brigade and division commanders for the gallantry shown in its charge on Fort Mahone. It had been organized at Sackets Harbor for the period of one year, and was mustered out in accordance with orders from the War Department, at Alexandria, Virginia, June 2. 1865. Mr. Burns was honorably discharged from the service of the United States government at Sackets Harbor, New York, April 9, 1865.
On his return to civil life Mr. Burns again engaged in the lumber business in Wilna, and in 1866 purchased large tracts of land from which he cut the wood and timber, and he also built a number of mills for the disposal of the same, giving constant employment to fifty men. He paid the high price of twenty-eight thousand dollars for one tract of land. In 1884 he built a steam mill at Natural Bridge, which he conducted until 1890. and in that year built another steam mill which he operated until 1894. He also purchased large tracts of land on the Carthage & Adirondack Railroad, which he cleared off, laid out in lots and then disposed of at advantageous prices. The large tract of land in Martinsburg. Lewis county, of which he was the owner, and for which he paid a large sum of money, had a public highway laid through it, this being done by a special act of the legislature. In 1897 he disposed of this tract to the Dexter Sulphite Company, and, owing to the advantages to be derived by the company from the highway, they paid a large price for the land, which gave Mr. Burns a fair mar- gin. He has probably bought and sold more timbered land than any other man in this section of the state, having been the owner of almost two thousand acres in 1903, but during the past year he has disposed of nearly fifteen hundred acres. He has always taken an active in- terest in the improvement and advancement of the village of Natural Bridge. He purchased the old tannery property in the village. a por- tion of which he sold to the railroad, and the remainder was disposed of to good advantage for the erection of a lime plant. He also erected twelve houses, a number of which he has sold, and one he reserved for his own residence, this being a particularly fine and commodious structure. Mr. Burns has held the office of commissioner of high-
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ways, and during his incumbency fulfilled all the duties in an efficient and creditable manner. He is one of the most popular and well known men in the village, and is held in high esteem by his business associates and personal friends.
Mr. Burns is prominently identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, having joined the lodge in Antwerp. New York, forty years ago, and at the present time ( 1904) is the oldest member of the organization in this vicinity. He was the organizer of the lodge at Natural Bridge, in which he has filled all the chairs and has held the office of first noble grand. He was at one time connected with the First National Bank, and is now a director in the Carthage Bank. He up- holds both in theory and practice the political principles of the Demo- cratic party. In matters of religion he is extremely liberal, attaching little importance to creeds and dogmas, but having firm belief in the truths of practical Christianity.
In 1866 Mr. Burns married Patience Blanchard, only child of Isaac and (Allen) Blanchard, both of whom are deceased. The follow- ing named children have been born to them: I. John, who was reared and educated in the village, and when about twenty years of age estab- lished his present store, which he has conducted in such a manner as to be able to realize large profits; he married May Anderson, and they are the parents of one son, Harold, two years old. 2. Mabel, who is the wife of Edward Montondo, of Oswegatchie, and one son has been born of this marriage, Ralph Montondo (see sketch of his brother, J. N. Montondo, elsewhere). 3. Guy, who is engaged in farming pur- suits in the town of Natural Bridge, married Theresa Downly, and they are the parents of one child, Blanchard Burns. Mrs. Burns, wife of James W. Burns, died in February, 1903.
FREDERICK C. ANDERSON. In the younger generation of the business men of Jefferson county no one occupies a more undisputed place than does Frederick C. Anderson, of Deferrit. He belongs to a family which traces its genealogy as far back as 1630, and which has been since that time resident in the neighborhood of White Plains, New York.
Jeremiah Anderson, a farmer, was the father of Joseph H., who was born in 1780, and married Marcia, daughter of David and Sarah Field, the former born in 1768. They were married in 1790, and had three children: Marcia, who was born in 1799, and became the wife
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of Joseph H. Anderson, as mentioned above; Stephen, who was born in 1800; and David, who was born in 1804. Mr. Field died in 1815, and his wife passed away in 1817. Mr. and Mrs. Anderson were married in 1818, and were the parents of two children: Elizabeth, who was born in 1820, and David, who was born in 1821, and as a young man engaged in farming in White Plains and died there. He married in 1846 Caroline M. Mitchell, and two children were born to them: Joseph H., mentioned hereinafter; and David M., who was born in 1855.
Joseph H. Anderson, son of David M. and Caroline ( Mitchell) Anderson, was born in 1848. and married Hattie Eells of White Plains, whose family was connected with the Randalls, in honor of whom Randall's Island received its name. She belonged to a family of nine children, only two of whom are now living: Mrs. Youngs, of New Rochelle (late of Stamford, Connecticut) ; and James, who resides in Stamford, Connecticut. Mr. and Mrs. Anderson were the parents of three children, two of whom are living: Caroline M., who is the wife of Frederick K. Houston, of New York; and Frederick C., mentioned at length hereinafter. The death of Mrs. Anderson, the mother, oc- curred in October. 1898. She was a member of the Episcopal church, and a woman whose estimable and winning character had endeared her to a large circle of friends.
Frederick C. Anderson, son of Joseph H. and Hattie (Eells) An- derson, was born September 5, 1872, in Brooklyn, New York, and re- ceived his early education in Bridgeport, afterward attending the Hol- brook Military Academy at Ossining on the Hudson. In 1889 he came to Brownville and entered upon his connection with the paper industry, later being employed in the draughting room of The Begley & Sewall Company, of Watertown. After a time he went to Felt's Mills, where he remained three years, and then spent two years in Maine. On return- ing to Watertown he was employed by the firm of Taggart Brothers. and later engaged in the electrical and steam engineering business in Watertown. He abandoned this in 1898 upon the outbreak of the Spanish war. when he enlisted as an electrician in the United States Navy, and during his term of service visited Cuba. the Philippines, Australia. India, China, Japan. Corea. the Hawaiian Islands. He then resigned and continued on his own account. Returning. he embarked frem Japon on a Pacific Mail steamship, and the engineer being taken ill only a few days after stiling. his place was filled by Mr. Anderson, who
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retained the position until the vessel reached the harbor of San Fran- cisco. In 1900 lie accepted the position of electrical engineer with the St. Regis Paper Company, of Deferrit, a position which he still hokls and in which he has fully demonstrated his sterling business abilities. In addition to this in 1904 he was placed in charge of the Sulphite Mill. Mr. Anderson enjoys the distinction of being a thirty-second degree Mason. His political affiliations are with the Republicans.
Mr. Anderson married November 20, 1900, Mabel Phelps, and they have one child, Julia Annette, who was born June 3, 1902. Mrs. Anderson belongs to a family which was founded in Jefferson county by William Phelps, a native of Connecticut, who came here in 1816 and was extensively engaged in the lumber business, being the owner of a large mill. He married Eliza, daughter of Cyrus Brown, brother of General Brown, the pioneer. Mrs. Phelps lived to the remarkable age of ninety-two years.
William S. Phelps, son of William and Eliza ( Brown) Phelps, was born in Jefferson county. He served throughout the Civil war as a member of the One Hundred and Ninety-fourth Regiment, and after- ward engaged in the practice of the law, which he continued for the remainder of his life. He was prominent in the affairs of the town- ship, holding the offices of supervisor and justice of the peace. He married Julia, who was born in France, daughter of Julius Renie and Annetta Payen, both natives of that country. The former, who was a civil engineer and a Knight of Honor, came to the United States and purchased the present Le Ray mansion, with the intention of manufactur- ing gunpowder, but was forced to abandon the project. He died July 27, 1862, and his wife expired July 24, 1875. The death of Mr. Phelps occurred December 31, 1899, when he had reached the age of seventy- eight.
Frederick J. Phelps, son of William S. and Julia (Payen) Phelps, was born in 1850 in Leraysville, and married Candice, a native of the same place, daughter of A. P. Mosier. Mr. and Mrs. Phelps were the parents of a daughter, Mabel A., who was born in Leraysville, and be- came the wife of Frederick C. Anderson, as mentioned above.
CHARLES A. ELLIS. It is safe to say that few business men of Jefferson county are more widely or more favorably known than is Charles A. Ellis, of Clayton. He traces his descent from ancestors who came from New England and settled in the town of Adams, whence at a later period the family removed to Brownville.
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Amos Ellis was born January 9, 1810. in Brownville, where he received his education in the common schools. He graduated from Fairfield Medical College with the degree of Doctor of Medicine after a course of preparatory study with Dr. Walter Webb of Adams. In 1833 he came to Clayton, where he passed the remainder of his long and useful life in the active practice of his profession. The office in which he first established himself on coming to the town was situated where Delaney's market now stands. After occupying this office for more than twenty years he moved to one connected with a drug store, which he erected in 1856 and which was the first drug store ever built in the town. This he conducted in connection with his practice until the close of his life. In 1839 he became a member of the Jefferson County Medical Society, and of the new society in 1871. He was post- master in 1845, and justice of the peace in 1871. Dr. Ellis died in 1879 in the town of Clayton, where more than half his life had been spent in the faithful discharge of the arduous and benevolent duties of his call- ing. Respected and admired for his professional skill, he was beloved for his kindness of heart, and was mourned as a friend by the whole community. . At the time of his death he was the oldest practicing phy- sician in the town.
Dr. Ellis married Lucy Herrick, who was born in the east, a daugh- ter of Martin Herrick. Mr. Herrick came to this section and settled on Washington Island when she was four years old. He followed the vocation of a lumberman. He died at the age of fifty-six years. His wife. Lucy (Hoyt) Herrick, had seven children, of whom Martha E. Moore, of California, and Mrs. Willard Ainsworth, of Cape Vincent, are the only ones living.
Dr. Amos and Lucy ( Herrick) Ellis were the parents of nine chil- dren, four of whom came to maturity, and three are now living: Marie L .. Clara. and Charles .A., the special subject of this sketch, who is the youngest.
Charles A. Ellis, son of Amos and Lucy ( Herrick) Ellis, was born November 1, 1854. in Clayton, where he received his early edu- cation in the common schools, afterward attending the Adams Col- legiate Institute. On completing his education he became the assistant of his father in the drug business, and on the death of Dr. Ellis the establishment was continued by his widow, in partnership with her son Charles A. Since the death of Mrs. Ellis, which occurred Angust 22, 1886. Mr. Ellis has conducted the business alone. While maintaining
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and increasing the high reputation and financial profits of the drug store, he also keeps an extensive stock of camp supplies, fishing tackle, fancy canned goods, confectionery and souvenirs of all kinds to meet the requirements of the great army of summer visitors who annually invade Clayton and the beautiful Thousand Islands of the St. Lawrence river. His trade is very large, extending from Cape Vincent to Alexandria Bay. In connection with the business in Clayton he has a store of equal dimensions at Round Island, which is kept open during the sum- mer months.
Mr. Ellis takes an active part in all township affairs, and possesses in a high degree the esteem and confidence of his neighbors. He is a director in the First National Bank and in the Telephone Exchange, and has been instrumental in the organization of a number of insur- ance companies in which he now holds the office of director. He is president of the Electric Light Company. For some years he held the office of trustee of the village, and he has also served on the board of education. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, affiliating with Clayton Lodge, No. 296. of Clayton: Carthage Chapter; Watertown Commandery, of Watertown: Media Temple of the Mystic Shrine, and is a charter member of the Independent Order of Foresters. In politics he is a Democrat. He and his family are members of the Protestant Episcopal Church of Clayton, in which he holds the office of vestryman.
Mr. Ellis married December 2, 1880, Mary C. Rees, and they have two children: Lucy A. and Leonard R., who both graduated from Cornell University, the daughter in the class of 1903. and the son in that of 1904.
Mrs. Ellis belongs to a family of Welsh origin. Eben Rees, a farmer, was born in Caermarthenshire. South Wales, where he died. His son Thomas emigrated to the United States and settled in Philadel- phia, subsequently removing to New York city, and in 1832 to Clayton, where he engaged in farming. He married Mary, daughter of William and Mary Saunders, of Caermarthenshire, and their children were: Mary Ann; David S .; Thomas, mentioned at length hereinafter; Will- iam: Evan J., and Henry C. Mr. Rees, the father, died in 1840, at his home in Clayton, being then sixty-eight years old.
Thomas Rees, son of Thomas and Mary (Saunders) Rees, was born in March, 1819, in South Wales, and in 1832 was brought by his parents to Clayton, where he has been for many years engaged in busi- ness as a lumberman and shipbuilder. He married Alzada, daughter
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of William and Catharine Hudson, by whom he had six children : Thomas G .; William H. ( see sketch elsewhere ) ; Charles E. ; Mary C .. who became the wife of Charles A. Ellis as mentioned above : Adaline D .; and Alzada B. Mrs. Rees, the mother of these children, died, and Mr. Rees subsequently married Mrs. Alicia S. Radcliff, daughter of Hugh Rothwell, of Birkenhead, England.
JAMES HERVEY DURHAM, of Cape Vincent, Jefferson county, New York, was one of the men who during the troublous pe- riod of the Civil war, at great personal sacrifice, gave his time, his abil- ities, his skill and his experience to the service of his country, enlisting in the ranks of the defenders of the Union.
The information is derived from a genealogical work that there were five distinct families by the name of Durham in the old county of Durham, England, they being of Scotch and Scotch-Irish origin. The progenitors of the family in America were two brothers, natives of England, one of whom settled in Jamestown, Virginia, and the other in New York state. There were also two brothers who remained in England, Edward and James, lieutenants in the English navy. Ed- ward was killed on Nelson's flagship "Victory " at the battle of Tra- falgar, October 21, 1805.
William Egbert Durham, grandfather of James H. Durham, was one of the pioneer ancestors aforementioned. and in 1784 or 1785 he purchased a large tract of land in Madison county, New York, the lo- cality afterward being called Durhamville in his honor. Subsequently he purchased land in Onondaga county, which is now within the limits of the city of Syracuse, and here he resided until the year of his death ( 1826) at the extreme old age of one hundred and four years and three months. Prior to his emigration to America he was a major in the English army, attached to the Eighty-sixth Grenadiers. His wife was Mary Ann ( Clinton) Durham, a native of county Durham, north . i England, and a relative of Sir Henry Clinton, commander of the British forces in America during the Revolution.
John Perrin Durham, son of William E. Durham, was born at York, England, in 1782. He enlisted in the regular army of the United States, became an ensign in the Frasier Rifles, and performed frontier duty in northern New York from 1812 to 1815. Subsequently he be- came a major in the First Regiment, United States Army, served in the Northwestern Territory, and remained in active service until his
Light House on Tibbits' Point, near Cape Vincent
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retirement on account of the age limit. His wife, Mary Ann ( Kendall) Durham, who was born in Onondaga county, New York, in 1802, of English ancestry, bore him the following children: 1. John, a grad- tate of West Point, served three years as a member of the Third Ar- tillery, United States Army, but resigned in order to take up civil en- gineering ; he was married in Macon, Georgia, in which city he resided until his death. 2. Miranda, wife of a Mr. Clark. died at St. John's, Michigan. 3. Edward, a graduate of West Point, served three years in the United States service, and after his resignation entered a theo- logical seminary, joined the Methodist Conference, and died in Buffalo, New York, while serving in the capacity of presiding elder of the Dis- trict. 4. Caroline died in Clinton county, Michigan. 5. James Hervey. mentioned hereinafter. 6. Kate, married George Rush Phil- lips, and died in Norwalk, Ohio.
James H. Durham was born on Onondaga Hill, now Syracuse, New York, December 17. 1821. He was educated in the common schools of northern Ohio, in a log school house in Huron county ; at Norwalk Seminary : took a preparatory course at Berea Institute; Oberlin Col- lege, from which he was graduated in 1840; a theological seminary in Massachusetts; and the West Point Military Academy, where he re- mained three years. He then enlisted in the Second Dragoons, United States Army, remaining twelve years. At the breaking out of the Civil war he enlisted as a private in Company B, Ninth Regiment Indiana Volunteers ; was detailed by General George B. McClellan as a scout ; was appointed second lieutenant ; later became assistant mustering officer at Indianapolis, Indiana ; appointed post adjutant of state camp by Governor Morton: commissioned adjutant of the Thirty-third Regi- ment Volunteers. After fifteen months' service with said regiment he was promoted to major of cavalry, and assigned to duty on the staff of General George W. Morgan, of Ohio, and finally as assistant chief of artillery, Third Division, Twenty-third Army Corps, under General John M. Schofield; served throughout the rebellion, and was mustered out of service in 1864. His political affiliations are with the Republi- can party. He was present at the organization and was made honorary member, of the first post of the Grand Army of the Republic, organized in Decatur, Illinois, in 1866, and is now a member of D. B. Sackett Post, No. 278, of Post Vincent. He holds membership in Vernon Lodge, No. 37. F. and A. M., and Temple Chapter No. 19, R. A. M., Lexington, Kentucky.
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In 1873 Major Durham married Louise Adams, of Brownsville, this county, born in 1835, a daughter of John Keeler and Helen ( Keith) Adams. On the maternal side Mrs. Durham traces her ancestry to the Rev. James Keith, who was born in Scotland in 1643. the youngest son of William, Lord Keith, of Scotland. He was educated at Aberdeen University. Scotland, emigrated to America, and was ordained to the ministry in this country at the age of nineteen by Cotton Mather. His first sermon was preached on Mill Pasture Rock, known to this day, and for fifty-six years he preached at Plymouth, Massachusetts. In February. 1664. he married Susannah Edson, daughter of Deacon Samuel Edson, and nine children were the issue of this union. He died July 28. 1719. One of his granddaughters married a son of Miles Standish. The line of descent from the Rev. James Keith is as fol- lows: Job, Henry, Job. Phineas, Henry, Fleury, grandfather of Mrs. Durham, who was elected three times to the New York legislature; Helen, mother of Mrs. Durham: and Louise, aforementioned as the wife of Major Durham.
JOHN T. FOWKES. M. D., a leading and eminent physician of Lafargeville. Jefferson county, New York, was born in Sheffield, England. June II. 1867. He is a son of the Rev. John and Elizabeth (Grey) Fowkes, and grandson of Thomas Fowkes. Thomas Fowkes was born in Reddich, near Birmingham, England, and there followed the trade of needle maker. that being the town where the needles are made for the British Empire: he died in his native town, aged sixty- five years. His wife was a native of Wales.
Rev. John Fowkes ( father) was born in Reddich, near Birming- ham. England, in October. 1840. After completing his studies he learned the trade of painter, paper hanger and sign painter in his na- tive town, and in 1870 came to Canada and located in Hamilton, where he followed his trade for a number of years. In the meantime he also studied for the ministry, and was ordained in 1875, and since then has devoted his energies and attention to that profession. He was first connected with the New Union Conference, with which he remained for a short period of time. and since then he has been identified with the Montreal Conference, which is connected with the Wesleyan Methodist Church, preaching in the different towns of that conference. He mar- ried Elizabeth Grey, who was born in Birmingham. England, one of twelve children born to John Grey. John Grey was an umbrella manu-
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facturer, and died at the age of sixty years. His wife, who was mar- ried to him when only sixteen years old. lived to the advanced age of eighty-three years. Eight children were born to the Rev. John and Elizabetli (Grey) Fowkes, three of whom are living at the present time (1904), namely: John T., mentioned hereinafter; Samuel Alexander, a resident of Buffalo, New York; and Gertrude May, now studying for the profession of trained nurse in Hartford. Connecticut. The mother of these children, who was a most estimable woman in every respect. and esteemed and beloved by all who knew her, died in 1889.
John T. Fowkes came from his native country, England, to Ham- ilton, Canada, in 1871, with his parents. He attended Kempville high school, Kempville, Canada, and entered Wesleyan College in 1884. After completing the regular course in that institution he entered the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons at Kingston, Canada, from which he was graduated in 1891. He located first in Omar, where he remained four years, coming to Lafargeville in 1895. where he has an extensive practice. He is licensed by the State Board of Pharmacy, and is associated in the drug business with Ford Jerome in Lafargeville. Dr. Fowkes is a fine appearing gentleman, possessing agreeable man- ners and social qualities, and is much liked in the community.
In 1890 Dr. Fowkes married Ellen Grace Tinkess, and they have one son, John Thomas Fowkes, Jr.
HIRAM MALCOLM BUCHANAN, M. D. Dr. Hiram Mal- colm Buchanan, of St. Lawrence, Jefferson county, New York, was born in Ontario, Canada, between Prescott and Ottawa, town of Kemp- ville, June 29. 1865, a son of Alexander Buchanan, born in the same town, and grandson of William Buchanan, who was born in the north of Scotland, emigrated to America in 1812, and as an early pioneer located near where Alexander Buchanan was born, and where he died at the age of eighty-five years. William Buchanan was the father of four children, three of whom were born in this country. The eldest. Isabel, was born in Scotland, where she remained to he educated by Will- iam Hunter, Esq., a large shipowner, whose fleet numbered ninety-nine vessels. Mary (Mrs. James Sellig). of Kempville, Ontario, is the only one of the children now living ( 1905.)
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