Geographical gazetteer of Jefferson county, N.Y. 1684-1890, Part 93

Author: Child, Hamilton, 1836- [from old catalog] comp; Horton, William H., [from old catalog] ed
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y., The Syracuse journal company, printers and binders
Number of Pages: 1384

USA > New York > Jefferson County > Geographical gazetteer of Jefferson county, N.Y. 1684-1890 > Part 93

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).

The Baptist Church of Philadelphia was formed by 10 members, Novem- ber 5, 1840. The organization was approved by a council from the churches of Watertown, Le Ray, Antwerp, and Fowler. E. D. Woodward, Elias Roberts, Walter Colton, Jesse Smith, and Henry York were trustees of the society, which was incorporated December 14, 1840. They first met for worship in a barn, then for a few months in the school-house, and in 1841 joined with the Congregationalists in the erection of a union house, before mentioned, located on Main street, which they became sole owners of by purchase, about 1868, and now occupy. The first pastor of this church was Rev. Ashbel Stevens. Rev. Hugh Hughs, who served as pastor during the years 1888 and 1889, has recently resigned and removed to Great Bend, Pa. The present membership of the church is about 70.

A Freewill Baptist society was organized at Whitney's Corners, July 25, 1852, by a council of which Elder Samuel Hart, their first pastor, was moder- ator, and Elder M. H. Abbey, clerk. For many years their meetings were held in the Whitney school-house, but they subsequently purchased a half interest in the building owned by the Baptists. Since Elder Samuel Hart their pastors have been William Whitfield, J. W. Hills, William Johnson, J. J. Allen, B. F. Jefferson, William G. Willis, J. B. Collins, Henry Ward, Joel Baker, and Mr. Dearing.

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A union church edifice was built at Sterlingville in 1856, by an associa- tion of citizens under the management of George Clark, Caleb Essington,. and Thomas Delancy, trustees. It has been occupied by the Episcopalians, Universalists, Baptists, Methodists, Disciples, and others. The original cost of the building was $1,800. At the present time the Episcopal Methodists. and Protestant Methodists hold services on alternate Sabbaths.

The Disciples Church inaugurated meetings in this town soon after 1850, their first preachers being Revs. Benedict, Oliphant, Bush, and others. In 1864 the church was organized with 22 members, under charge of Rev. Mr. Parker, who remained in their service one year. Succeeding Mr. Parker were Rev. Mr. Olin, Rev. John Hamilton, Rev. Mr. Goodrich, and Rev. John Bogg, the latter taking charge in 1877. Their meetings were held in Sterlingville. The Disciples still retain their organization, but they have no pastor.

St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church at Sterlingville was organized in 1838, under charge of Rev. Michael Gilbride. A house of worship was erected at a cost of $500, on a lot donated by James Sterling, and was occupied for about 10 years, when it was burned. In 1854, when Rev. Michael Clark was in charge, a new building was erected on the old site, and in 1885 it was removed to the present site, Rev. Father O'Niel then being in charge. It will seat 150 persons, and cost $1,000. Rev. F. M. Ambrose is the present priest in charge.

St. Luke's Protestant Episcopal Mission, at Philadelphia village, has been recently organized, and from the summer of 1889 until January, 1890, Rev. William Bours Clarke, of Antwerp, held weekly meetings in Scofield hall. The communicants number about a dozen, and the interest in the services by the people warrant the belief that the mission will grow in influence and number of church members.

OLIVER CHILD.

Oliver Child, who was born February 16, 1807, (the second birth in that part of Le Ray which later became the town of Philadelphia,) died February 28, 1878, at his home on a portion of the old farm whereon he was born. His paternal ancestor, who immigrated from England to America in 1681, ' bringing with him his young son Cephas, was Henry Child, a member of the Society of Friends who settled under William Penn. As a copy of the deed executed by William Penn to Henry Child is extant, the words of the text in that old conveyance may not be uninteresting. It is as follows :--

" KNOW all men by these presents, that I, William Penn, of Worming- hurst, in the county of Sussox, Eg'd, have had and received of and from Henry Child, of Coleshill, of the parish of Rindisham, in the county of Hert- ford, yoeman, 'a' the sum of tenn pounds of lawfull money of England, being for the purchase of five hundred acres of land in Pensylvania, and the con-

Olivar Child

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sideration money mentioned to be paid in and by one paire of Indentures of Release and Confirmation bearing even date herewith, and made between me, the said William Penn, of the one part, and the said Henry Child, of the other part, ' c ' according to the purport of the said Indentures. Of and from which said sume of tenn pounds, 'o' I, the said William Penn, doe' hereby, for my selfe, my heires, Executors: Administrator's: and Assignes, release, quitclaime and forever discharge the said Henry Child, his heires, Executors, Administrators, and Assignes, and every of them by these presents.

" WITNESS my hand and seale this five and twentieth day of January, Anno Dmini 1681, Annog., RRs Cad scdiunne Anglice zt.

" WM. PENN [SEAL. ]

" Sealed and delivered

in presentes of

Tho. Coxe, Ben. Griffith,

Harbt. Springett."

In 1715 Henry Child, who was at that time " of the province of Maryland," conveyed by deed of gift, " for the Love and affection he beareth to his son, Cephas Child," all the land originally conveyed to him by William Penn, in Pennsylvania, " and also 16 acres of Liberty land and two Lotts lying in Phila- delphia which he, the said Henry Child, purchased of the said William Penn."

Cephas Child 2 was a member of the Society of Friends, and in 1747-49 a member of the House of Representatives (provincial). He removed from Philadelphia to Plumstead, Bucks County, Pa., in March, 1715, and was married, in February, 1716, to Mary Atkinson. About 1723 they had the great misfortune to lose their first four children, who were burned in the accidental conflagration of the homestead. They subsequently had five other children, of whom Cephas Child, Jr.,3 was born in 1727. He married, first, about February 16, 1751, Priscilla Naylor, and had eight children, of whom Joseph Child 4 was born in Plumstead, Pa., October 29, 1753, and married, in 1780, Hannah Burgess, of Bucks County. He came to Jefferson County in 1803, purchased about 1, 200 acres of land, and in 1804 settled on " Child's Hill," in Le Ray (road 79), where he died in 1829. From Joseph Child and his wife, Hannah, sprang all the branches of the family who for many years made their home in Le Ray, and some are there now. For his second wife Cephas, Jr., married Mary Cadwallader, and their only son and child was Cadwallader,' the head of the families of the name in Philadelphia, this county.

Cadwallader Child ' was born August 18, 1776, in Plumstead, Bucks County, Pa., and died in Philadelphia, N. Y., in 1851. He received a good education for the time, and became a teacher, which vocation he followed several years, in the meantime mastering the principles of land surveying, in which he became expert. In 1800 he was married to Elizabeth Rea, daugh-

40*

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ter of John and Jane (Forman) Rea, of Philadelphia, Pa. She died at the homestead in 1862, in the goth year of her age. John Rea was the son of an Irish gentleman, a member of the old Irish Parliament. He had been educated at the University of Oxford, and upon his father's losing, through unfortunate speculations, the bulk of his property John emigrated to America and became a teacher. After marriage he became a soldier in the Revolu- tion and fought in the battle of Brandywine, and later, during the war, ·engaged as a privateersman, his vessel going to sea and was never heard of more.

Cadwallader Child came to Brownville in 1804, by direction of James Le Ray de Chaumont, to confer with his agent, Jacob Brown, relative to pro- jected roads Mr. Child was to survey. He spent the summer months in surveying roads from lot 611 (Philadelphia) to the St. Lawrence at Alexan- dria, and selected the site of Alexandria Bay for a port; and by his recom- mendation a mile square was set apart by Mr. Le Ray for that purpose. On his way down he had passed to the southwest of the High Falls of Indian River, but on his return he passed these falls, crossing the river where is now the lower bridge in Theresa village. Here he examined the immense water-power, marked it as a favorable site for the establishment of mills and the building of a village, and so reported to Le Ray. He then proceeded to survey a road from lot 611 (Philadelphia) to the great bend of Black River. When this was completed the season was far advanced, and he entered upon lot 644, which had been drawn by him in the assignment of tracts,* and here, with the assistance of Samuel Child (his nephew) and Thomas Ward, he made the first clearing and erected the first dwelling within the bounds of Philadelphia. It was a log cabin, and the clearing was about four acres on the small creek now in the southern part of the farm of his grandson, Lewis John Child. Mr. Child returned to Pennsylvania, and came again with his family (wife and sons Aaron and Joseph) the next season (1805) to settle for life, and in July, 1806, he harvested the first crop of wheat grown in the town.

Cadwallader Child held, frequently, the offices of highway and school com- missioner, and for many years was a chief surveyor for Mr. Le Ray. His children were Aaron5, born in 1801, who died at the age of 85 years, in Phil- adelphia ; Joseph A.5, born in 1803, who died at the age of 78, in Manches- ter, Iowa, at the home of his son Wattson, a prosperous farmer there ; Oliver 5; Mary 5, born in 1809, who became the wife of Amos Evans, and died at the age of 76, in Le Ray ; Gainor 5, born in 1812, who never married, and died in 1847, in Philadelphia; and Naylor5, who was born December 25, 1815, lived with his father on the farm until nearly 30 years of age, when he went to Morley, St. Lawrence County, and for several years was engaged in

* Mr. Child, in company with 12 others, had purchased of Mr. Le Ray 16 lots of 440 acres each, which were divided by the persons themselves, by ballots drawn at random from a hat.

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trade, and in rafting timber to Quebec, in company with his brother Oliver. About 1848 he returned to Philadelphia, where he was married, in 1864, to Julia R., daughter of Samuel and Rachel (Strickland) Rogers. He now re- sides on a fine farm in Masonville, Iowa, where he has lived for nearly a quarter of a century, and is the only child of Cadwallader now living. Nay- lor's children are William Stanley, now of Syracuse, N. Y., Frank Henry, Mary Annella (deceased), and Irving Howard.

Oliver Child &, third son of Cadwallader and Elizabeth (Rea) Child, was born in Philadelphia, N. Y., February 16, 1807. In early life he was not robust, and gave his attention to his studies more than to the hard work of a pioneer's life. He taught school, and soon after attaining his majority entered the employ of Mr. Le Ray. He was for a time English tutor of James Le Ray de Chaumont, Marquis de St. Paul, the son of Vincent Le Ray, and later became a well-known surveyor for Mr. Le Ray, doing duty for many years in all portions of the lands, in this county and in Lewis County, belonging to that extensive land-holder. He also purchased a tract in Le Ray and Orleans, which he sold, in parcels, on his own account.

Mr. Child married, July 27, 1830, Edith, daughter of John and Elizabeth Shaw, then of Bucks County, Pa., but a native of Philadelphia city, and their children were Elizabeth and Lewis John, both of whom died in childhood, about 1837; Hamilton 6, born in Le Raysville, March 17, 1836, now a pub- lisher, of Syracuse, N. Y .; Mary Jane ® (Mrs. Edward J. Stannard), born at Carthage, August 6, 1838, now living near Philadelphia city; and Lewis John 6, born (where he now lives) August 12, 1840, who enlisted in Co. C, Ioth N. Y. H. A., in 1862, and served until his regiment was discharged, several months after the close of the war, in 1865. He married, in 1867, Lydia M., daughter of John Wait, of Philadelphia, and now owns and occu- pies the homestead farm, being a part of that purchased by his grandfather, Cadwallader, in 1804, and on which the first clearing in town was made.

After his marriage Oliver Child settled in Le Kaysville, where he remained until the land office was removed to Carthage, whither he went and lived till about 1841, when he removed to his farm in Philadelphia, where his son Lewis John now resides. His wife, Edith, died while on a visit to her friends in Pennsylvania in 1842, and was buried in Doylestown. About this time Mr. Child was engaged by William H. Harrison, of New York city, to take the agency of his lands in St. Lawrence County, a position which he occupied, with his headquarters and home at Morley. He married for his second wife Eliza Shepard, of Norfolk, N. Y., a native of Vermont, September 12, 1844. There was no issue from this marriage. Mr. Child resigned the agency for Mr. Harrison and removed from Morley to Oswego, in 1850, to engage in the forwarding business in company with his brother-in-law, Charles Shepard, who was located at Ogdensburg ; but the business venture not proving profit- able, it was abandoned, and the same year he removed again to his farm in

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Philadelphia, where he ever after resided, until his death, as before mentioned. His widow survived till July 2, 1888, when she died, aged nearly 90 years.

Oliver Child was never a seeker after office-for one term only (1838) being supervisor of Wilna. In politics a Whig, and later a Republican, he was content to aid with his vote the success of his party. In religious faith he was, until middle life, a member of the Society of Friends. He later became an Episcopalian, his children also becoming members of the Church. Always kind and gentle in his family, he had a pleasant word for everybody, and though in latter life delicate health prevented his taking an active part in affairs he died possessed of the respect and esteem of a large circle of ac- quaintances.

JAMES STERLING.

Few men in Jefferson County have acquired a reputation for pluck and business energy, that led to remarkable success, beyond that accorded to James Sterling in the days when he was known as " the iron king of North- ern New York." He was born in Norwich, Conn., January 25, 1800. His father, Daniel Sterling, married Mary Bradford, a lineal descendant of Gov- ernor William Bradford, of puritanic stock, and in 1802 he moved with his family to the town of Antwerp, then a part of Brownville. The first, or one of the earliest, deed ; recorded in Antwerp was to Mary Bradford, and is a part of the John R. Sterling property, situated north of Antwerp, about one mile on the Gouverneur road. The early years of James Sterling were spent upon the farm, and at clearing land in the vicinity of Antwerp. Without the advantages even of a good common school education his mind expanded and demanded a larger field of operations. In 1836 he purchased the Hope- stil Foster land, which contained the afterwards, and now, famous Sterling iron ore mines, from which very many thousand tons of ore have been mined. In 1840 he organized the Philadelphia Iron Company, and located a blast furnace at Sterlingville, which place was named after him. Here the famous cold blast charcoal pig-iron was made, which for years was known in the markets as the " Sterling iron." In 1844 Mr. Sterling established the second blast furnace at Sterling Burg, about one mile easterly from Antwerp village, and he soon after purchased the furnace property at Wegatchie, in St. Law- rence County. In 1852 he purchased of Isaac K. Lippencott the entire vil- lage, and 4,500 acres of land in Lewis County, nearly 1 1 miles north of Car- thage, known as Sterling Bush. His business had grown to be very extensive, his pay roll at his different works embracing the names of as many as 1,000 men.

Mr. Sterling's physical stature was in proportion to his great intellect. Standing six feet three inches in height, his weight was, at his best, 396 pounds. Of his II children seven are still living, namely : Mary B. (Ster- ling) Clark, so well known in this county as a zealous Christian woman,

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whose efforts have, among other things, resulted in the establishment of Trinity Chapel at Great Bend, and of the Mission Chapel of the Redeemer at Watertown ; A. P. Sterling, James Sterling, Julia Sterling, Mills, Anto- nette (Sterling) McKinly, who with her husband and children are living hap- pily at their home in London, England ; Rochester H. Sterling, and Joseph Sterling. After many years of active life in this county, where the money he had paid out for labor had helped hundreds of farmers to pay for their lands, James Sterling died, at his residence in Sterlingville, July 23, 1863, at the age of 63 years. As a fit ending of this brief sketch of Mr. Sterling's life we quote from a writer in the New York Reformer, January 22, 1857, who dis- courses of the prominent business men of the county :-

" He is truly one of the most useful great men of the Empire State, and one of whom the Empire State may well be proud. It is such men as Mr. Sterling that raises the state to its prond position among the sovereign states of the Union. He takes from the earth that which is worthless in its primitive state, and converts it into the most useful of metalic substances."

The engraving we present of Mr. Sterling will be recognized by those who knew him as a very faithful likeness. It was copied from an India ink portrait.

FAMILY SKETCHES.

Jason Merrick, a native of Holland, came to America when young and located in Penn- sylvania. In 1805 he removed to this county and located in Philadelphia, and settled on lot 675, containing 440 acres, upon which he built a log house. His children were Jason, David, Mary Ann (Mrs. Rev. James Cooper), Jean, and Robert. David Merrick was born in 1803 and came to Philadelphia with his parents. He married Nancy, daughter of Tilton Pierce, in 1822, and they had two sons and one daughter, viz. : Mary Ann, born in 1827, who married James Sharon and had four children-David, Charles, Alvin, and Carrie; Charles F., born in 1831, who mar- ried Polly Putney; and John R. The latter was born in 1835, and was reared upon a farm. He married Angeline E., daughter of Leonard and Betsey (Cleghorn) Higgins, of Antwerp, January 1, 1858, and they have three sons and two daughters, viz .: Jason E., who lives in Low- ville. has been married twice and has one daughter. Myrtle C .; Erwin L., wbo married May Anable in 1889; George E .; Annie Eugenie; and Bertha May, the youngest, born in 1875. Mr. Merrick lives on the homestead on road 37, where his father first settled.

John Strickland was born in Bucks County, Pa., in 1757. In 1806 he immigrated to Jef- ferson County and located in Philadelphia, then a part of Le Ray. He was a member of the Society of Friends, and was possessed of a genial and kindly disposition. He brought with him a sum exceeding $25,000, with which he purchased 5,000 acres of land in this town. Dur- ing the War of 1812 he bought supplies for the American army, and at the termination of the war had a large quantity of supplies on hand, for which he received less than half their orig- inal cost. He was obliged to dispose of a large portion of his land to pay his indebtedness, after the accomplishment of which he had left of his vast estate only 220 acres. He died Sep- tember 15, 1849, aged 92 years. At the age of 25 years he married Margaret Stout, of German descent, with whom he resided 60 years. She died in 1853. Of their children, Elizabeth married Thomas Townsend, and died in 1864; John, Jr., married Rachel Townsend and died in 1859; Sarah married Ezra Comley and died in Pennsylvania in 1855; Deborah died in infancy; Ann married Edmund Tucker and died in 1863; Mahlon married Mary, danghter of James Rogers, and died in 1871; Margaret married Samuel Case and died in Chicago in 1888. aged 91 years; Rachel married Samuel Rogers and died in this town in 1863; Miles married Harriet A. Bronson (deceased); Martha married Robert Gray and died in Wisconsin in 1875; Seth, who was born in 1808, married Jane, daughter of Thomas Bones, January 25, 1835. Of their children, Ellen (Mrs. Isaac Mosher) and William reside in this town, and John E. in Car-

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thage. William Strickland was born October 15, 1839, and was reared upon the homestead farm, which he inherited. He married Betsey J., daughter of Truman and Fanny (Allis) Oat- man, of Philadelphia, December 29, 1862, by whom he has had two children, Seth T., born March 12, 1866, who died May 7, 1871, and Anna Jane, born April 2, 1874. Mr. Strickland is a farmer and resides in the village.

Stephen Roberts was born in Bucks County, Pa., and in the spring of 1806 came to Phila- delphia and took up 440 acres just south of the present village. He was one of the original proprietors of the town. His wife, Jane, bore him five children, namely: Daniel, Elias, Hugh, Grace, and Elizabeth. Daniel Roberts was born in 1784, learned the carpenters' trade, and died in 1866. He married Sarah Winner, in 1811, and their children were Jane, who died in 1833; Stephen, of Le Raysville; Sarah, who married Brainard Tooker and died in 1888; Thomas, who died in Virginia in 1856; Hugh, who lives in Indiana; Eliza, who died at the age of 15. years; Mary and Daniel, who died young; Charles, of Rutland; Mary Jane, of Oswego County; and Joshua. The latter was born January 30, 1832, and learned the wagonmakers' trade. He married, first, Mary Jane, daughter of Jason and Marilda (Paddock ) Francis, in 1849, and they had two children-Alice Eliza (Mrs. Slade) and Albert J., who died in infancy. Mrs. Roberts died in 1852, and for his second wife he married Mary W., daughter of William and Betsey (Barber) Allis, in 1858. Mr. Roberts is a farmer and occupies the Allis homestead.

Jonathan Miles, a native of Newport, R. I., came to Philadelphia when a young man. In 1812 he married Polly Elmore and located in Lorraine. Of his 10 children, Andrew B., born in 1818, was reared upon a farm, and at the age of 17 years located in Philadelphia and worked out among the farmers. He married Eliza A., daughter of Henry and Jane (Purvee) Stillson, in 1838, and their children were Henry, who was born in 1840 and lives in Le Ray; Sally J., who married William Nevils and has five children-Eddie W., Frank S., Sarah, Georgia, and Andrew W .; Eliza Ann, who married Milton Stewart and died in Missouri; Andrew B., Jr., Duane, and Baker, of this town; Deborah B., who married George W. Clark and has four children-Horace, Libbie, Eliza, and George. Andrew B. Miles, Jr., married Mary Emogene, danghter of F. H. and Clarissa (Harris) Dorwin, November 3, 1863, and they have a daughter, Alta Florence, who was born March 25, 1885. Mr. Miles owns nearly 500 acres, and is a gen- eral dealer.

Mason Whitney was born in 1765. He married Dolly Ransom and they had five children. Erastus Whitney, son of Mason, was born in Herkimer County in 1797. At the age of 18 years he bought his time from his father and came to this county, and engaged in clearing land in Theresa and Philadelphia. He married Mary, danghter of Moses Chadwick, of Philadelphia, in 1826, who died in 1872. He died in 1854, on the farm which he had settled. He had five sons and three daughters, namely: William M., Seymour M., Marion H. (deceased), Mason (deceased), Harriet M., Ann E. (Mrs. Aldrich), George E., and Duane L. (deceased).

Matthias Ritter, a native of Herkimer County, located in Le Ray and engaged in farming early in the present century. He married Ann Klock and reared a large family of children. Henry, son of Matthias, married Nancy Rickert, and they had two sons and a daughter, viz .: Hiram, who died in 1880; Absolom, of Philadelphia: and Margaret (Mrs. Jeremiah Shell), of Le Ray. Absolom Ritter was born in 1826, was reared upon a farm, and subsequently learned the carpenters' trade. He married Fanny, daughter of Henry and Mary (Foster) Klock, in 1853, and they have a son, Obed E., born February 19, 1857. Obed E. is a farmer and station agent at Sterlingville, where he resides, on Main street,

William York was born in Galway, N. Y., in 1799, and was reared upon a farm. In 1815 he married Prudencia Danforth, and they had six children, namely: Stephen V., who died at the age of 17 years; Frances D., who died in 1883; Mary, who married Harlow Frink, of this town; William, who resides in Philadelphia; Eliza Ann, who was born in 1836 and is now the wife of Daniel H. Scofield, of this town; and Eunice, who married Dexter Bennett, of this town. About 1815 William York located on Galway street (road 42), where he died at the age of 45 years. His wife died in 1883, aged 83 years.

Daniel Rogers, who was born in 1793, served in the War of 1812, at the battle of Sackets Harbor, and drew a pension and bounty land. He located in Watertown, and in 1816 married Fanny Taylor and reared a large family, of whom Charles, born in 1817, died in 1849; Lydia died in infancy; Anson died in 1887; Joel died in 1888; Daniel in 1860; Urana in infancy; Edith married William Clark and has three children, Brayton, George, and Frankie; Urana,

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Geographical gazetteer of Jefferson county, N.Y. 1684-1890, Part 93

Author: Child, Hamilton, 1836- [from old catalog] comp; Horton, William H., [from old catalog] ed Publication date: 1890 Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y., The Syracuse journal company, printers and binders Number of Pages: 1384

Author: Child, Hamilton, 1836- [from old catalog] comp; Horton, William H., [from old catalog] ed
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y., The Syracuse journal company, printers and binders
Number of Pages: 1384