History of Cattaraugus County, New York, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers, Part 58

Author: Franklin Ellis and Eugene Arns Nash
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Inquiry among the friends of Mr. Ingersoll as to his general characteristics, leads us to assert that he is a man of good business abilities ; of great personal integrity ; of more than ordinary intelligence, and of unblemished repu- tation. In public life he has been honest and upright; his business career based upon a reliable foundation ; he enjoys self-acquired and excellent credit, which he has succeeded in sustaining at all times, no matter under what difficulties.

In private life he is the Christian gentleman. Strongly attached to domestic affiliations, and ever mindful of his own excellent early training, he imparts to his own chil- dren, and to those of others whose tuition in the Sunday- school is intrusted to him, the grand old maxim, " the way to be happy is to be good." And by his own example, both within the hallowed precincts of home and in the avocations of business life, offers the criterion of an honorable life, which is worthy to be followed alike by his own household and by his business acquaintances and friends.

Mr. Ingersoll is an active and exemplary member of the Methodist Episcopal Church ; president of the Catta- raugus County Sunday-school Association; an ardent and consistent advocate of temperance, and by a faithful main- tenance of these principles, being true to his own convic- tions, and having respect for the opinions of others, present additional testimony to his unusually fine record.

HON. ALBERT G. DOW.

It has been said that no one is competent to judge a busy life under a hundred years from its close. Certain it is that to impartially criticise a fully-rounded career,-to study both the influences it derived from, and those it ex- erted upon, contemporary matters, the reviewer must await

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HISTORY OF CATTARAUGUS COUNTY, NEW YORK.

the relapse of many years from the beginning of its activity, to enable systems and principles to become either estab- lished as practical and true, or dissolved as erroneous and unwise. A life extending to the verge of the allotted span, the major portion of which has been spent in active business pursuits, offers at least a fair criterion of what the chronicler of its principal events would say of it a hundred years from its close. For more than half a century the subject of this brief narrative has been practically engaged in the arduous duties of life, and for four-fifths of that time in some regular business, which latter period offers a fair opportunity for regular notice on the pages of local history.

Albert G. Dow was the eighth child of a family of ten children of Captain Solomon and Phebe Dow, and was born at Plainfield, Cheshire Co., N. H., Aug. 16, 1808. When quite young he removed with his parents to Pem- brooke, Genesee Co., N. Y., which was then a wilderness, and even the semblance of its present prosperity did not exist. The old log school-house was there, for those pioneers from the east deemed the education of their youth of paramount importance; hence the early establishment and maintenance of public schools. Here young Dow procured his primary education, which was augmented by a few months' attendance at a private school, and largely so by subsequent self-study and observation.

When in his eighteenth year he removed to Panama, Chautauqua Co., N. Y., and after remaining there almost six months he went to Silver Creek, in the same county, where he engaged at the trade of shoemaking, which he had previously learned. He became a good practical tradesman, for his early as well as later life was character- ized by great thoroughness in everything he undertook to perform. While at Silver Creek his fellow-townsmen hon- ored him with the office of justice of the peace, which he filled faithfully and well four years. On the 1st of January, 1840, he entered a copartnership with George S. Farnham, in the hardware business at Silver Creek, which continued about a year. On the dissolution of the above partnership Mr. Dow went to Sinclairville, Chautauqua Co., where he conducted a hardware store alone for about a year and a half. In the fall of 1842 he became associated in the hardware business with Horatio N. Farnham, at Silver Creek, which continued until 1845. In the mean time, during the year 1843, Mr. Dow established a dry-goods store at West Randolph, in connection with James Nutting, a nephew of his, and they conducted that business jointly until 1851. From 1845 to 1863, Mr. Dow had a hard- ware store in West Randolph, which was an individual enterprise. In 1860, Warren Dow became a partner with his father, and in 1863 succeeded to the business. He is now residing at Limestone, where he is extensively engaged in the production of oil.

In 1860, Mr. Dow commenced a private banking busi- ness, and three years later turned his entire attention to that. In October, 1875, his son, Charles M. Dow, became a partner in the bank, and the style of the house is now A. G. Dow & Son.

From 1848 to 1856 Mr. Dow held the office of justice of the peace for Randolph, and was also a member of the

Board of Supervisors, in all ten years. In 1862 he was elected a member of Assembly, and re-elected to the same position in 1863.

In 1873 he was chosen by the Republicans, with whom he has affiliated since 1861, to represent the Thirty-first (now Thirty-third) District in the State Senate. His record as a legislator is one of singular merit. His entire service, both in the House and Senate, was characterized by an honesty and intelligence which reflected honor upon his constituents and redounded to his personal credit. In public as in business life he was always actuated by a de- sire to do right, and evaded everything partaking of the semblance of fraud or corruption. He neglected no duty, but cheerfully lent his influence where questions for the general good were involved, regardless of opposition, and without fear or favor.

On the 4th of October, 1829, he married Miss Freelove Mason, daughter of Wheaton Mason, Esq., of Batavia. This union was blessed with five children, namely : James, born July 1, 1830; married Lucy O. Stephens, of Roches- ter ; died Feb. 15, 1859. Warren, born Jan. 15, 1833 ; married Josephine, daughter of John J. Guernsey. Sarah, born Jan. 22, 1837; died Feb. 6, 1840. Mary, born June 13, 1842 ; married James G. Johnson, and resides at Randolph. Albert G., Jr., born April 17, 1844; married Frances Sheldon, Sept. 17, 1868.

On the 29th of August, 1847, he sustained the loss of his wife, who had shared his early toils and cares, and had been a " help-meet " indeed to him for about eighteen years. After remaining a widower for about two years, and on the 23d of April, 1849, he married Lydia Ann Mason, a sister of his first wife. They have one son, Charles M., born Aug. 1, 1853; married Ella, daughter of E. L. Jones, Jan. 12, 1875, and resides at Randolph, now the junior member of the banking-house of A. G. Dow & Son, as before mentioned.

Mr. Dow was one of the original members of the board of trustees of the Chamberlain Institute, and is now its treasurer. He is an exemplary member of the Congrega- tional Church. From those who have known Mr. Dow longest, and those who know him best, we gather informa- tion touching his general characteristics. A summary of these shows that he is a man of indomitable energy, in- dustry, and enterprise ; that his entire business career has been a peculiarly honest and upright one ; that his polit- ical life was remarkable for its purity of motive and intelli- gence of action ; that in the familiar relation of friend he holds a warm place in the hearts of many, while in the home circle he enjoys that filial regard that the affec- tionate father and the kind husband always retains in the hearts of his children and wife. Having passed the age allotted to humanity by the psalmist, he yet enjoys good health and the retention of all his faculties. Indeed, his is a vigorous old age, which is the inevitable reward of a temperate youth and a discreet manhood.

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HISTORY OF CATTARAUGUS COUNTY, NEW YORK.

RODNEY R. CROWLEY,

son of Rufus and Parmelia Crowley, was born at Mount Holly, Vt., Nov. 12, 1836. In April, 1841, he accom- panied his parents to Yorkshire, Cattaraugus Co., and in 1848 to Randolph, at which latter place he has since resided. His rudimentary education was received at the public schools, which he attended until about thirteen years of age, when he entered the Randolph Academy, remaining there four years, principally under Prof. S. G. Love. After completing his literary education, and in the spring of 1855, he commenced the study of law in the office of Weeden & Henderson. Owing to the im- pairment of his eyesight by a too close application to study, he became a clerk in the store of W. H. Lowry, of James- town, for a limited period. He afterwards resumed reading law, and finished his legal studies with Hon. Porter Shel- don, at Rockford, Ill., and with Hon. Alexander Sheldon, at Randolph, N. Y. He was admitted to practice in all the courts of the State of New York in May, 1861.

Within a few days of his admission to the bar, Mr. Crowley enlisted as a private in Company B, 64th Regi- ment New York Militia, which regiment attempted to be included in the first call for volunteers, but failed to be accepted. He again enlisted as a private in the same company and regiment, Aug. 17, 1861, and shortly there- after was promoted to sixth corporal, and subsequently to quartermaster-sergeant of the regiment. In February, 1862, he received the first promotion by commission made after the regiment was accepted, as second lieutenant of Com- pany B, 64th New York Volunteers. In March follow- ing he was promoted to first lieutenant and quartermaster of the same regiment, and served as such until immedi- ately before the battle of Fair Oaks, when, by order of the colonel of the regiment, he was transferred to Company H, as first lieutenant, and participated as such in the battle of Fair Oaks, June 1, 1862, and was wounded in the left arm. After a two months' leave of absence he returned to the front, and was restored to the position of regimental quartermaster. He served as such, with occasional detail as brigade quartermaster, until about Jan. 1, 1863, when he was promoted to the captaincy of Company B in his old regiment. He afterwards served as brigade quarter- master, and also as brigade commissary, on the staff of Brig .- Gen. Caldwell for several months, after which he took command of his company, and served in such com- mand through the campaign and battle of Chancellorsville, the campaign and battle of Gettysburg, in which latter he was severely wounded in the knee, on account of which he resigned his commission Nov. 7, 1863. In the fall of 1862, Lieut. Crowley was elected major at the regimental election, but the Governor appointed a stranger, instead of confirming his election. On returning from the army, Capt. Crowley resumed the practice of law at Randolph, for that purpose forming the firm of Johnson & Crowley.

Dec. 6, 1864, he was appointed provost-marshal for the thirty-first Congressional District of New York, which position he occupied until Oct. 15, 1865. He afterwards practiced law under the above firm-name. In May, 1869, he was appointed collector of internal revenue for the thirty-first New York District, which position he held until June, 1871, when he resigned in favor of W. W. Henderson, of Sinclairville, N. Y. From this time until Jan. 1, 1876, he practiced law alone at Randolph.

In 1872 he received the nomination of the Liberals and Democrats for Assembly in the second district of Catta- raugus County, and though he ran about six hundred ahead of his ticket, he was defeated by the Republican candidate. In 1875 he was nominated without his attendance at the convention, or consent, as State Prison Inspector at Syra- cuse, N. Y., on the regular Democratic ticket, and was elected by about twenty-one thousand majority, being from seven to eight thousand votes ahead of the average ma- jority on the ticket. About March 1, 1877, he, with two other inspectors, was superseded by appointment under the ammended constitution of L. D. Pillsbury, Superintendent of Prisons. Mr. Crowley has reason to congratulate him- self that within two months after he became a member of the Board of Prison Inspectors the prison deficiency began to decrease, and that during the last year of his term the deficiency had been cut down one hundred and fifty thou- sand dollars and upwards, thus preparing the way for the success Mr. Pillsbury has achieved.

In 1860 Mr. Crowley was elected a justice of the peace in Randolph, and was twice re-elected, serving in all twelve years, though never officiating as a trial justice, except when circumstances compelled.

In 1868, and again in 1869, he was elected a member of the board of supervisors, resigning in the latter year in favor of James G. Johnson, who was appointed at Mr. Crowley's request. He was one of the original incorpora- tors of the State Bank of Randolph, of which he is at present a stockholder. He is also one of the trustees of the Western New York Home for Friendless and Homeless Children, and a member of the executive committee. He is now the senior member of the law firm of Crowley & Armstrong, of Randolph.

It is due to Mr. Crowley to state that in the various offices to which he has been elected, he has faithfully dis- charged the incumbent duties thereof, and has been pecu- liarly happy in the satisfaction he has given in all his public positions. His military record is an honorable one, and taken all in all, his industry and general ability has received a reward as just as it is well deserved.

On the 2d of September, 1861, Mr. Crowley was married to Miss Jeanie Mussey, of New London, Conn. They have two children, one son and one daughter,-Fred B., born Aug. 19, 1865, and Mary G. Crowley, born March 6, 1872.

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ASAHEL CROWLEY.

MRS. O. M. CROWLEY.

ASAHEL CROWLEY.

Among those who were prominently identified in the early mercantile history of the village of Randolph, none have fol- lowed trade for a longer period, or with greater general suc- cess than he of whom we write. Coming here more than forty-five years ago, at a time when what now constitutes the village of Randolph was a straggling settlement of a few dwellings, he has witnessed the development to its present prosperous condition, and has himself, by his energy and enterprise, been largely instrumental in its growth and pros- perity. Mr. Crowley arrived at a time when business ability was much needed to lay the foundation for successful commer- cial interests, and to him and his coadjutors in trade is mainly due the present flourishing status of the village as a mercan- tile centre.

Asahel Crowley was born at Mount Holly, Vt., Feb. 14, 1809. He is the son of Walter and Mary (Todd) Crowley, and inherits from both his parents the essential elements to business success. It was in the fall of 1831 that Mr. Crowley removed to Randolph, where he has ever since resided, now enjoying the distinguished honor of being the oldest resident living within the corporate limits of the village. On first settling here, the people feeling the need of a teacher in the then infant public school, he engaged in that capacity, in which he continued two winters, turning his attention to lumbering on the close of his school. All the members of the family came here previous to 1847, where his father and mother died, at an advanced age. Walter, the elder brother, came in 1835, and is still living, at the age of seventy-nine years.

In 1838 he first embarked in the mercantile business, and three years later formed a copartnership with his brother, Addison Crowley, and Joseph Stanley, and conducted a gen- eral business. They erected a store building, which at that time was the largest and most pretentious establishment in this section of country. In addition to their regular business they purchased cattle and lumber quite extensively. This copartnership existed about four years, when Mr. Stanley retired from the firm, and the remaining members conducted its interests alone, under the name and style of A. & A. Crowley. They subsequently associated with them a younger brother, Alvin Crowley, and changed the name of the firm to A. Crowley & Company. On the 10th of July, 1846, their store buildings and contents were destroyed by fire, involving a loss of $5500, which was a serious drawback to their general pros- perity. Nothing daunted, however, by that calamity, they rebuilt and continued the business jointly until 1860, when Alvin retired, and for the ensuing eight years the concern was

conducted under the old style of A. & A. Crowley. In 1868 a general division of the business was made, and Asahel Crowley has since transacted a business consisting of lumber- ing, cattle-buying, and farming alone.

In 1836, Mr. Crowley returned to his old home in Vermont, and on the 6th of October of that year was united in marriage with Miss Clarissa M., daughter of Marvel and Julia (Mason) Johnson, of Mount Holly. She was born on the 3d of May, 1815. Immediately after the wedding, the happy couple pro- ceeded to their new home in the then far West, where, amid privation, toil, and cares, they made for themselves a home, and by industry and economy accumulated a well-earned independence. They have raised a family of five children, as follows, namely : Julia M., born Sept. 1, 1837; married Charles M. G. Chase, May 16, 1860; has one daughter, Mary, born July 26, 1862. Ellen A., born Aug. 26, 1839; married Alexander Wentworth, Oct. 10, 1859; has one daughter, Belle, born Sept. 13, 1860; and a son, Crowley, born May 8, 1868. Marvel J., born Aug. 3, 1841; married Addie, daughter of William F. Weed, Aug. 29, 1865. Mary L., born Feb. 16, 1844; married Theodore E. Adams, Dec. 14, 1865; has one daughter, Theodora, born June 23, 1867; and one son, Percy, born April 4, 1869. Genevieve, born Oct. 31, 1858; single, and resides with her parents.

Mr. Crowley was one of the original incorporators of the State Bank of Randolph, of which he is at present one of the directors. He was among the founders of the Western New York Home for Homeless and Dependent Children, and is now the treasurer of that admirable institution.

Mr. Crowley took a deep interest in the project of the Erie and New York City Railroad, and was one of the original directors of the company, which position he retained after the change of name to the Atlantic and Great Western Railroad, as at present, in all about seven years.

He has always exercised the extensive influence he enjoys, by virtue of his long residence, wealth, and respectability, in promoting the best interests of the village of which he is the recognized parent. His reputation is blameless, while his business carcer has been characterized by an integrity and uprightness that alike excites admiration and defies calumny. And now, as he stands upon the confines of the allotted " three- score years and ten," with the satisfactory retrospection of a busy and blameless life, and the knowledge that he will leave to those near and dear to him the priceless legacy of an honor- able name, he can indeed console himself with the fact of having achieved the grand consummation of the best hopes and of the highest aspirations of mankind.

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WILLIAM M. BROWN.

Among the representative men of Cold Spring, those who, by their own exertions, have succeeded in establishing a creditable reputation and an honest name, William M. Brown holds a conspicuous place. His father before him possessed many of the requisite qualities that lead to business success, which are reproduced in his son. William M. Brown, Sr., was born at New Haven, Conn., Jan. 15, 1781. He removed with his family to the town of Portland, Chautauqua Co., N. Y., more than half a century ago; and about the year 1838 to the town of South Valley; and subsequently, in 1852, to Cold Spring, where he died May 3, 1863, well advanced in years, and enjoying gen- eral respect. He was a prominent citizen, and a good, practical farmer. His wife was Eliza Merrill, who is a native of Canand, and now resides with her son, who forms the subject of this sketch.

William M. Brown was born at Portland, Chautauqua Co., N. Y., Dec. 18, 1830. The country where he was born was then, and during his youth, comparatively new, and thinly settled. Schools were few and far between, so that his educational advantages were not such as to warrant the easy acquisition of learning. True, he attended the public schools of Cattaraugus County, and there laid the foundation of an education which self-study, observation, and practical applica- tion have developed into a sound business knowledge. At the age of fifteen years he left his father's house, and went to work for an elder brother, Norman Brown, now deceased, with whom he was connected in business for several years. He remained with him at that time almost three years, and then returned to Cold Spring, where they engaged jointly in the lumber business. This copartnership existed almost three years, when it was dissolved by mutual consent by the retirement of Norman. A division of the property was made, William M. taking that in the town of Cold Spring, and his brother that in South Valley, on the opposite side of the river. He has continued in the lumbering and farming business from that time until the present, although not residing in the town all of the time. At two different periods he has lived in Randolph, where he now resides. His farm is located in Cold Spring, about five miles southeast of the village.

In 1852, Mr. Brown embarked in the mercantile business at Cold

Spring village, and remained in trade there about eighteen months. The interest he established there still remains, and adds materially to the material prosperity of the place. His principal businesses, how- ever, have been lumbering and farming, in both of which branches he has been eminently and deservedly successful.

On the 13th of September, 1855, Mr. Brown was united in marriage with Emeline M., daughter of Madison Woodworth, an early settler and prominent farmer of Cold Spring. They have had four children born to them, of whom three survive. Their names and the dates of their births are as follows :

Frank A., born Dec. 23, 1856; now resides at Bradford, Pa., where he is engaged in the real estate business.

Gracia E., born March 15, 1859; died March 30, 1862.

Minnie M., born July 17, 1864.

Louise L., born January 26, 1869.

In politics, Mr. Brown is a Democrat; and, notwithstanding the fact that the Republicans have a large majority in the county, he has been honored with one of its most important and responsible offices,-that of sheriff,-to which he was elected in 1870, overcoming a majority of upwards of fifteen hundred. He served the term for which he was elected in a manner quite satisfactory to the people at large, and highly creditable to himself.

Mr. Brown has also served six years as a member of the board of supervisors, representing the town of Cold Spring in that body. His practical business knowledge and ability rendered his term of service flatteringly successful ; and few, if any, have filled the position with greater general worthiness.

Mr. Brown is a man of good principle, moral rectitude, and uncom- mon worth. A business career of more than a quarter of a century has developed his adaptability to carry out successfully the various plans he has laid; and honesty of purpose and a desire to do right having been the chief factors in his undertakings, the result of them has been favorable to his enterprise, his industry, and his ingenuity. He naturally occupies a leading place in the respect and esteem of the community in which he is best known.

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HISTORY OF CATTARAUGUS COUNTY, NEW YORK.

ADDISON CROWLEY.

The assertion has been made, and we believe successfully maintained, that the life and services of a good man consti- tute the brightest and best page in the annals of history. The career of a self-made man, with the narrative of the most salient events that led to the successful issue of his various enterprises, to the fulfillment of his hopes, the con- summation of his aims, and the realization of his aspirations, affords a record at once interesting and instructive ; inter- esting because rare, instructive because true and worthy of emulation. Indeed, a busy life offers many lessons that youth should cherish, and is a fitting criterion for the young to follow. Therefore personal history, with its manifold changes, trials, troubles, and vicissitudes, forms the most valuable as well as the most interesting part of our work. Nor is the life and character of he of whom we write devoid of its interesting features, but offers an excellent example of what well-directed energy, industry, and business talent can and almost invariably does accomplish.

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History of Cattaraugus County, New York, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers, Part 58

Author: Franklin Ellis and Eugene Arns Nash Publication date: Publisher: Number of Pages:

Author: Franklin Ellis and Eugene Arns Nash
Publication date:
Publisher:
Number of Pages: