History of Chautauqua County, New York : from its first settlement to the present time : with numerous biographical and family sketches, Part 75

Author: Young, Andrew W. (Andrew White), 1802-1877; Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation. fmo; Huntington Free Library. fmo
Publication date: 1875
Publisher: Buffalo, N.Y. : Printing House of Matthews & Warren
Number of Pages: 948

USA > New York > Chautauqua County > History of Chautauqua County, New York : from its first settlement to the present time : with numerous biographical and family sketches > Part 75

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JASPER HARRINGTON, a son of Abijah Harrington, came to Pomfret in 1818, and a few years afterwards removed to Hanover, where his father died. In 1827, he came to Westfield, where, for a number of years, he carried on the carding and cloth-dressing business. He subsequently engaged in the tin and copper ware manufacture, and in the stove trade, to which was added the general hardware business. During most of the time he was in partner- ship with different persons, and, for several years past, with his son, De Witt C. Harrington. He was married to Thankful S. Barnes, who died about ten or twelve years ago. They had 5 children, of whom 3 passed the age of infancy : De Witt C., who married Lucy Carlisle, and is a partner in the hardware trade ; Henry J., who married Mary A., daughter of Thomas M. Prendergast ; and Ellen E., wife of Dr. John M. Brown. All reside in Westfield.

JONAS HARRINGTON, brother of Jasper, came to Westfield in 1837, and commenced the boot and shoe making business, which he has continued, in the village, to the present year, in which he sold out the establishment to Horace Hale. He was married to Ruby Benton, of Hanover, and had 3 children : Ann M., who was married to Jefferson Fraser, of Brooklyn, N. Y., and died in Elmira ; Amaret E., who also was married to Mr. Fraser, who had 6 children, of whom 5 are living. He died in Brooklyn, August 24, 1874 ; she resides with her family, in Brooklyn. Amelia S., the third daugh- ter, is the wife of George W. Holt, of Westfield, for many years, to the present time, engaged in the commerce of the lakes.

LEWIS T. HARRINGTON, son of Larkin Harrington, was born in Westfield, in 1834, and was married, 1852, to Julia L. Dickson, and removed, in 1853, to Sherman. While a resident of Sherman, he served as deputy sheriff six years, and under sheriff three years. In 1869, he was elected sheriff, for the term of three years, from the first of January ensuing. Since the expiration of that office, he has again served as deputy sheriff."

WATSON S. HINKLEY was born in the state of Massachusetts, Jan. 18,

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HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY.

1815, and has been a resident of the county since the fall of that year, with the exception of a few years. His father, Solomon Hinkley, was born and reared in Barnstable, Mass., and was a descendant, in the fourth degree, from Thomas Hinkley, of Barnstable, governor of Plymouth Colony, the last eleven years of its colonial existence. His wife was Mercy Otis, of Plymouth, a relative of James Otis, of Revolutionary fame. They removed from Buck- land, Berkshire Co., Mass., to Chautauqua Co., N. Y., in the fall of 1815. with 8 children, and settled in Pomfret, near Laona, in a house which they occupied as the family homestead for over 30 years, and which is yet stand- ing. Of their children, seven were sons and one a daughter : George, Otis, Solomon, Allen, Hiram, John G., Watson S., and Hannah, the wife of Samuel Barker. All left descendants except Allen, and all are dead except Watson S .; and are buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, near Fredonia, except Otis, in California ; Hiram, in Illinois ; and John G., in Westfield. Watson S. spent six years in Rochester ; two years in the study of medicine, and four in the study of law. He returned to Westfield in June, 1841, where he remained in the practice of law till May, 1872, when he removed to Cook Co., Ill., near Chicago. He is now president of the First National Bank of Ottawa, Kansas, and resides in the city of Chicago. He married Clara T. Thacher, daughter of Dr. Thacher, of Brockport, N. Y., and has two sons, Charles W., aged 18 ; and James O., aged 16 years.

SEXTUS H. HUNGERFORD was born in' Smithfield, Madison county, Jan. 14, 1806. When quite young, he removed with his parents to Vernon, Oneida Co. He was the eldest of nine children, and was about 21, when his father died, when the care of a small farm and of a large family devolved upon him. In 1830, he was married to Maria P. Skinner, who survives him. He continued in the farming business, in Vernon, until 1837, when he re- moved to Westfield, and purchased of Joshua R. Babcock a stock of goods, and continued in the mercantile business about 6 years, in connection with his brother-in-law, H. J. Miner, [Hungerford & Miner.] In 1843, he re- moved to Ripley, on a farm, and, after about two years, returned to Westfield, where he resided until his death, May 15, 1867. In 1848, he established the Bank of Westfield, of which he was president, and John N. Hungerford, his brother, cashier. In 1864, he, with others, organized the First National Bank of Westfield. He was for six years, successively, supervisor of this town. He was untiring in his efforts to sustain the government during the late war, devoting much time, gratuitously, to furnishing men and means. By the policy suggested by him, the town escaped the pressure of a heavy war debt. In 1865, he represented this assembly district in the legislature. The several trusts confided to him by his fellow-citizens, were discharged with fidelity and to the general acceptance. He was for many years a ruling elder in the Presbyterian Church, and aided in sustaining the institutions of the church, and of religious and benevolent institutions generally, by personal effort and liberal pecuniary contributions. By his will he bequeathed to the Presbyterian Board of Home Missions and the Theological Seminary, about

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$15,000, and sums of considerable amount to other benevolent institutions. He left no children to inherit his estate.

JOHN JOHNSTON, from the north of Ireland, in 1826, settled one mile west of the village of Westfield, on the old James McMahan farm, the first farm cleared in the county, and now owned by Wm. Vorce. Mr. Johnston's sons were William, Hugh, Alexander, John, James, Robert, and Francis; his daughters, Agnes and Elizabeth. In 1836, William, Hugh, and James com- menced the mercantile business in the village, in partnership. In 1851, Hugh retired, and in 1866, William and his son, John.W., removed their business to the West ; and after two or three years' stay in Dubuque, Iowa, and Ypsi- lanti, Mich., returned to Westfield in 1869, where John W., son of William, still continues the mercantile business. In 1853, William, Hugh, and Alex- ander commenced the banking business, and continued it until the establish- ment of the national banking system. Hugh, for the benefit of his health, went, in December, 1864, to Fernandina, Florida ; and, after a stay of about two months, he started on his return, and died at sea on the passage. His body was brought home for interment. John Johnston, Sr., died in 1852, aged 80 years. William, Hugh, and Francis were married to three daughters of Dea. James Montgomery. Alexander was married to Elizabeth Patterson, of Londonderry, N. H. ; John, to Olive Hale, of Ripley ; James, to Mary, a daughter of William Bell ; Robert, to Julia, daughter of Paul Persons, Jr. ; Agnes, to James Cochran, of Ripley ; Elizabeth, unmarried. All are mem- bers of the Presbyterian Church.

THOMAS MCCLINTOCK was born in Northumberland Co., Pa., in 1768, and emigrated to Erie Co., Pa., in 1798 or 1799. In December, 1803, he located land at Canadaway [Fredonia.] He subsequently articled lots or parts of lots 8, 14, 20, on both sides of the creek, and embracing most of the land within the present village of Fredonia. In 1804, he built a cabin, which he occupied in the spring of 1805, when David Eason and Low Mini- ger also made their settlements there. He and they sold their lands about the same time ; and all moved to Westfield. McClintock, for several years, kept a tavern in a log house, on the corner east of the Westfield House, on or near the site of the Spencer block, corner of Main and North Portage streets. After three years he sold out and removed east of the site of the present village to the place subsequently known as the Bradley farm ; next to the McMahan farm, 2 miles west of Westfield ; and thence to Ripley Hill, now in the town of Westfield, where his wife died, Feb. 8, 1831, aged 58 years. He married for his second wife widow Adams, emigrated in 1834 to Illinois, where he died Sept. 11, 1838, aged 70 years.

JAMES McCLURG was born in Ireland, and, when a youth, removed with his family to America. His father took an active part in the famed Irish Re- bellion which culminated about the year 1797 or 1798, the object of which was deliverance from Irish grievances. The failure of this object is said to have been the cause of their removal to this country. They first settled in Philadelphia, whence they removed to Pittsburgh, where the father and son

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HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY.

became extensively engaged in the iron foundry and furnace business. In 1810, (?) James McClurg came to Westfield; and after the war of 1812 broke out, he returned to Pittsburgh and made cannon for the government at his iron works. These cannon, it is believed, were the first ever made in this country. After the war, he returned to Westfield, where he spent the remain- der of his life. He opened a small store, it is said, before he returned to Pittsburgh, which, some say, was the first in the town; which, however, is doubted by others. He was afterwards, for many years, a merchant in West- field. He erected on or near the corner of what is now the common, a build- ing used by him a long time for a store. This is thought to have been the first frame building in the town. Mr. McClurg, Judge Campbell, and Geo. Hall, built the "Westfield Mill" in the village, where the old mill had stood. The Westfield House block and the McClurg brick block on South Portage street were built by him. He purchased what was known as the Eason farm, and divided it into village lots, which now form an important part of the vil- lage. While thus investing money in real estate, he contributed to the growth and prosperity of the town. In an obituary notice it is said: "Business was his ruling ambition ; and he was quick to see and avail himself of remunera- tive enterprises. He took a lively interest in public affairs and public men, and frequently mentioned the fact of his having seen President Washington in Philadelphia, in his boyhood days. His religious convictions were of the Presbyterian order; and he was as exact in his observance of the sabbath as he was methodical in his business transactions." He died May 26, 1872, aged 87 years.

JAMES McMAHAN, the pioneer settler of Westfield, an account of whose settlement has been elsewhere given, was born in Northumberland Co., Pa., in March, 1768, and died in Westfield, Dec. 13, 1846. His father's name was James ; his mother was a Murray. His father was born in Ireland, and came to this country when very young, with his parents. James, the son, was married, July 3, 1795, to Sarah McCord, by whom he had 5 children, all of whom died very young, except Robert and Sarah A. Robert died at the age of 23, of yellow fever, near New Orleans. Sarah A. was married to Austin Smith, Esq., of Westfield. Col. McMahan, before he was married, surveyed in the lake country two seasons. For six months in each year, he saw the face of no white man except his chain-bearers and assistants. He was here surveying the year in which Gen. Wayne fought the Indians in the West. One of his chain-bearers was shot and scalped by the Indians, as they were returning to their encampment, near the mouth of the Broken Straw. The sketch of Col. McMahan's settlement in this town, and the prominence which his name has acquired in the history of this county, render an extended notice of his life in this place unnecessary.

JOHN McMAHAN was born in Chelisquaque, Pa., about 1764, and was raised, in his juvenile years, in a fort erected to protect the inhabitants against Indian depredations. He removed to Chautauqua creek, near its mouth, in 1803, having purchased of Mr. Ellicott, agent of the Holland Com-

JohnA . Mintow

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pany, township 4, range 14, containing 22,014 acres, at $2.50 an acre, amount- ing to $55,035, and paid down $1,035, the remainder to be paid in eight annual installments. He built, in 1804, the first grist-mill erected in the county, about one-fourth of a mile above the mouth of the creek. At the first town-meeting held in Chautauqua, April, 1805, he was elected supervi- sor of the town, and reelected in 1806 and 1807, and met with the board of supervisors of Genesee county at Batavia. He was also appointed, in 1806, a justice of the peace. He was captain of the first military company in the county, and was promoted to the command of the first regiment in the county, which was at the battle of Buffalo and Black Rock, Dec. 30, 1813. After the war, he rose by grade to the office of general. His contract for land proved an unfortunate one, in relation to which it has been remarked: "After having suffered many hardships and privations, being unable to fill the terms of his contract, it was wrested from him by the Company ; and, in reduced circumstances, he removed to Mayville, where he died Sept. 22, 1831, aged 66 years."

EDWARD MCHENRY, from Pennsylvania, settled at the Cross Roads in the spring of 1802, being the first settler with his family on the John Mc- Mahan tract. James McMahan, though he had previously built a cabin and made a clearing, did not bring in his family until after McHenry's arrival. The death of the latter by drowning on Lake Erie, in 1803, has been men- tioned elsewhere [page 74.] His was the first death in the county, and the sermon at his funeral was the first ever preached in the county. The preacher was Joseph Badger, who was attending a meeting of the Erie Pres- bytery at Colt's Station, Pa., and was sent by that body to perform the service. Mr. Henry was keeping a, tavern at the time of his death, which was continued by his widow, who afterwards married James Perry, who, a few years after, left home to be absent a few days, but was never heard of since. Having some money, he was supposed to have been murdered. Mrs. Perry continued the tavern, which was for many years a place for public meetings, trainings, etc. She died in Ripley at the advanced age of upwards of 80 years. Three sons of McHenry are still living in the county: Alexander, in Ripley; and Hiram and John, in Westfield, the last mentioned being the first white person born in the county. All the others are believed to be dead. Alexander was married to Lydia Royce, and had several children. A daugh- ter, Martha, deceased, was married to William Perry, who was for many years a justice of the peace, and now resides at Quincy. Another daughter, Sarah Jane, is the wife of John Ely, formerly of Ripley, now residing in Virginia. John McHenry was married, and had several children, all believed to have gone West. His wife died many years ago.

JOHN H. MINTON, son of James Minton, was born in Auburn, N. Y., September 2, 1817. When he was 7 years old, his father died; and, in 1829, he came with his mother's family to Portland, and settled near Brocton. At a very early age, he engaged as clerk for B. F. Post, a merchant in Brocton. A few years later, he was employed as a clerk in the store of Baldwin &

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HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY.

McWhorter in Westfield. In 1843, he formed a partnership with Edwin Buck in the mercantile business ; and, after about 8 years, he became sole proprie- tor of the concern, and continued the business until his death, November 18, 1867. He was married, Dec. 17, 1843, to Harriet L. Coney, and had six children : Henry J., who was born October 31, 1844; Julia F., born September 20, 1846, and died at 3; Charles C., born October 24, 1850 ; Clara H., born July 4, 1852 ; married, November, 1873, Rev. H. S. West- gate, and resides at Kingston, N. Y. ; Hattie M., born September 30, 1859 ; Fanny and Susan, born January 24, 1868; the latter died in infancy.

JAMES MONTGOMERY was born in Mifflin Co., Penn., Sept. 12, 1783, and settled, in 1803, in Westfield, 2 miles west of the village. There were then but a few families in the county. The town of Chautauqua was formed from the town of Batavia in 1804; and at the first election of town officers, held in 1805, Mr. Montgomery was elected town clerk, and was subsequently elected to other town offices. He was one of the constituent members of the Presbyterian Church formed at the Cross Roads, [Westfield,] in 1808, and one of its ruling elders. And on its reorganization in 1817, he was chosen to the same office, which he held during the remainder of his life. He was justly regarded as one of its strongest pillars. By one who had for many years been his pastor, he is said to have " exhibited a Christian man- hood such as is rarely found-great faculties of mind-great intellectual strength-a tenacious adherence to principles he had adopted." But "his character was not fully comprehended if we did not look upon him as a Christian man. His reason admired the wisdom of God in the system of the gospel. He considered the atonement of Jesus Christ as the basis of his own salvation ; and loved the gospel and its institutions better than any earthly thing." He married Sarah Taylor, of Penn., and had Ir children : I. William, drowned in the creek at Westfield, at the age of 14. 2. Alex- ander, principal of Westfield academy ; afterwards minister of Presbyterian churches at Beaver Dam, Wis .; Chicago, Ill .; and Beloit, Wis., where he died in 1858. 3. Victoria, wife of Wm. Johnston, of Westfield. 4. Eleanor, wife of Hugh Johnston ; [see Johnston Family.] 5. Hamilton, married, and re- moved to Beaver Dam, Wis .; served in the late war, and was drowned in Duck river, Tennessee. 6. Julia B., wife of Isaac Cochran. 7. William, who married Sarah Hall, daughter of David Hall, of Westfield, and is a lawyer in Lawrence, Kansas. 8. Sarah A., wife of Francis Johnston, and resides in Missouri. 9. James, who removed with his family to Clinton, lowa, (?) and died there. 20. Joseph Addison, married, and resides in Chi- cago. 11. Hugh, unmarried, and resides in Kansas. Deacon Montgomery's mother died in Center Co., Pa., in Feb., 1803, and in March, 1803, he came to Westfield. After boarding about two years with Arthur Bell, whose wife was Mr. Montgomery's sister, he was married to Sarah Taylor, June 29, 1805, who was born in Dauphin Co., Penn., Oct. 28, 1787. She died sud- denly at her old home in Westfield, March 2, 1861. She was an exemplary Christian lady.

James Montgomery.

The W Patterson

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WESTFIELD.

JONATHAN NICHOLS, born July 25, 1754, at Bolton, Mass., went to Orange Co., Vt., at the beginning of the Revolutionary war, in which he was a private under Gen. Stark, and was wounded at the battle of Bennington, just before Burgoyne's surrender, and drew a pension till his death. In the fall of 1813, he removed with his family to Westfield, N. Y., the journey requiring six weeks with a three-horse team. His children were Lorrel, Olney, Orvis, Achsah, Wiseman C., Chloe, Jonathan Sackett, and Lucinda, of whom only Lorrel and Wiseman C. are living. Mr. Nichols held the office of sheriff in Vt. for several years. His son Orvis was for many years postmaster at West- field ; Wiseman was a justice in Westfield, and a deputy sheriff of Chautau- qua Co., and was for many years a magistrate in Cardington, O., where he resides. Jonathan Nichols died on the farm in 1842, aged 88.

LORREL NICHOLS, son of Jonathan, was born Feb. 9, 1794; came with the family to Westfield ; became the owner of the farm, which he occupied until his removal to the village of Westfield in 1869. He served as corporal in the war of 1812, being stationed most of the time at Black Rock. He was married in Oneida Co.,'in 1826, to Sarah Knight, of Vermont, an edu- cated lady, for many years a teacher in a popular seminary. She taught her children at home, never sending them to school until they commenced the study of the classics. She died in 1864, aged 71, having had three children, only one of whom survived her. Their names were D. Azro A., Hervey Brayton, and Henry Leach. Hervey was a rising lawyer in Texas, and had been president of Gonzales College. He was killed by the explosion of a boiler on the steamer Pennsylvania, in June, 1858, 70 miles below Mem- phis, being on his way from Texas, to visit the family at Westfield. His body was found 530 miles below the place of the accident, being identified by the college pin fastened on his shirt. Henry L. had been a professor in Gonzales College, and was killed at Port Hudson, La., during Gen. Banks' memorable attack on that place, June 13, 1863. D. Azro A. was married to Clarissa A. Dickson, in Ripley, June 1, 1852. They have three children : Sarah E., Mary E., and Lorrel B. Mr. N. was for two years connected with the Daily News, Springfield, O .; afterwards with a Chicago agricultural jour- nal ; and is now one of the editors of the Albany Country Gentleman.

GEORGE W. PATTERSON, son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Wallace) Patter- son, was born in Londonderry, N. H., Nov. 11, 1799, and was the youngest of twelve children, eleven of whom lived to mature age. He received a common school and an academic education in his native town ; and, at the age of 18, he taught a common school, in his native state, for three months, and, at the close of the term, he came to Groveland, Ontario, now Livingston Co., N. Y., with his brother William, who was ten years older than himself, where they were engaged in the manufacture and sale of fanning mills, and remained in that town and Sparta till the spring of 1822, when he came to Ripley, and carried on the same business until the autumn of 1824. He then purchased a farm in Leicester, Livingston Co., and erected on it a dwelling house; and, on the 24th of February, 1825, he was married to

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HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY.

Hannah Whiting Dickey, daughter of John Dickey, Esq., of York, Living- ston Co., formerly of Londonderry, N. H. He was engaged in farming and fanning-mill making at Leicester, until May, 1841, when he came to West- field and took charge of the Chautauqua land-office. While residing in Leicester, he held the offices of supervisor and justice of the peace, and was elected to the assembly eight years, the last two of which he was speaker of the house. He was elected as a delegate to the constitutional convention of 1846, from the county of Chautauqua ; and, in 1848, he was elected lieu- tenant-governor, on the ticket with Hon. Hamilton Fish, who was elected governor. He has two children : George W., Jr., and Hannah.

DANIEL C. NORTHROP, a native of Lenox, Mass., resided successively in Penfield, Painesville, O., and in the west part of Westfield, on the Erie road, and, in 1816, removed to where his son Joseph now resides, 2 miles south- west of the village, and where he died in 1854, aged 72 years. His wife was Ann, a daughter of Wm. McBride, an early settler near the state line, in Erie county, Pa. Mr. Northrop served in the war of 1812, first in Capt. James McMahan's company; afterwards in Capt. Moses Adams' company, and was at the battle of Buffalo. For these services, his widow, now living with her son Joseph, has become the recipient of a pension. He had 4 sons and 6 daughters. Of the sons living, William and Joseph reside in this town, and Robert M. in Michigan. Of the daughters, Eliza A. was married to N. Hart; Martha, to J. D. Murdock, Canada; Mary, to Wm. Dick, Sherman ; Lucy, to Thomas Quayle, Garden City, Minn. Joseph married Abigail Bunker, from Vt .; and has 2 sons living, John L. and Schuyler.

LORENZO F. PHELPS, from Warsaw, in 1835, commenced business in . Westfield, as a journeyman harness-maker and saddler; and, in 1838, he began business on his own account, which he continued until 1871. Several years before the latter year, his son Augustus F. was partner in the business. While pursuing his trade with industry and success, he commenced dealing in Buffalo robes, making his purchases in the Far West. In this trade, which he prosecuted for a number of years, on a very large scale, he was eminently successful. In 1871, he turned his attention to the banking business, and, in connection with his son Augustus, established an individual bank, of which they are the only proprietors, and of which a younger son, Charles C., is cashier. Mr. Phelps was married, Oct. 15, 1839, to Cornelia Dustin, of Ripley. They have five children : Helen R., wife of Seneca Durand, a mer- chant in Ypsilanti, Mich .; Augustus F., who married Minerva Sage, of Fre- donia ; Amelia R .; Frances C., who married Carson R. Crossgrove, and re- sides in the village ; and Charles C.

ALVIN PLUMB was born at Paris, Oneida Co., Sept. 6, 1802, and came to Fredonia in 1816, with his elder brothers, Joseph and Ralph, who established a store in that place. From 1820, he was for several years a clerk in stores at Rochester and Geneva ; and at the latter place he also attended school at the academy. In 1824, he commenced the mercantile business at Jamestown, and continued it until 1832 or 1833. He was also engaged in the milling

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