USA > New York > Chautauqua County > History of Chautauqua County, New York, and its people, Volume II > Part 18
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On Nov. 16, 1863, at Bridport, Vt., Dr. Towle mar- ried Adelle Miner, born in that town, the daughter of Uriah and Sally Doty Miner. Mrs. Towle is a descend- ant of some of the best known and prominent families of New England, and her ancestry is of "Mayflower" origin. She is a lady of culture and education, her home giving evidence of her refined taste and judgment. She has always been a devoted wife and excellent mother. Dr. and Mrs. Towle had five children: 1. Miner, born March 14, 1865, died Oct. 29, 1865. 2. Frank Witherbee, ' born April 17, 1866, died April 22, 1869. 3. Charles Julian, born May 24, 1871; he is an electrician, and resides in Cleveland, Ohio. 4. Mary Amelia, born Jan. 28, 1874, married Delbert P. Snyder, who is county clerk of Alleghany county, N. Y. 5. William Earl, born Dec. 2, 1878 ; he is a photo engraver, is unmarried, and resides at home.
Dr. Towle died at his residence on Crosby street, Jamestown, March 11, 1898, aged sixty-one years, two months and four days. His widow is still living in Jamestown, devoted to the memory of her distinguished husband. He is buried in the family plot in Lakeview Cemetery, the services having taken place in his late home. The members of Mt. Moriah Lodge were present . in a body, as were also the physicians and surgeons of the city, besides a large attendance of the citizens of Jamestown. The pall bearers were all physicians. As a citizen, Dr. Towle was exceedingly popular ; as a physi- cian he ranked high among his peers; a devoted husband and fond and indulgent parent, taking a deep interest in Jamestown and its advancement, and in the welfare of its people and institutions.
EDWARD APPLEYARD-On April 15, 1920, Edward Appleyard entered the ranks of the octogena- rians, an event that was duly celebrated by his friends, associates and family. Fifty years of his long life have been spent in Jamestown and have been devoted not only
Eduard appleyard
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to useful industry, but to the promotion of many good causes. There are two organizations of the city of Jamestown, one secular, one religious, where Mr. Apple- yard is best known-the Broadhead Worsted Mills, where tor forty-four years, 1876-1920, he has been the efficient and capable superintendent, and the First Methodist Epis- copal Church, of which he has been a member for forty- seven years, 1873-1920, and actively identified with its work. His eightieth birthday was made the occasion of a banquet in his honor, given in the church parlors, at which a silver salver inscribed :
To Edward Appleyard, a brother heloved, clear in vision, sound in judgment, vigorous in thought, elo- quent in speech, and full of faith and good works, this presentation is made on the occasion of his 80th birth- day, by the official board of the First Methodist Epis- copai Church, Jamestown, New York, as a token of the affection and esteem In which he is held by our entire membership, and in sincere appreciation of forty-seven years' faithful work and efficient service.
The life of Edward Appleyard began in Yorkshire, England, April 15, 1840, and from his sixth month he has been motherless. His parents, John and Mary ( Pickles) Appleyard, were also of Yorkshire birth, his father a weaver of worsted cloth. His mother died in November, 1840, the mother of three sons: John, Joseph, and Ed- ward; and four daughters : Mary Ann, Elizabeth, Rhoda, and Sarah. Edward, the youngest son, was cared for by his sisters and until eight years of age attended school, but then began working in the worsted mills as a bobbin boy, earning sixpence weekly. Half time school attendance, self study, and night school in later years were the sum of his educational advantages, but they were well im- proved, and his life has not been barren of the advan- tages of good literature and the society of cultured peo- ple. He continued in the worsted mills until reaching youthful manhood, and was thoroughly familiar and ex- pert in the different branches of cloth manufacturing as there practiced.
From 1870 until 1873 Edward Appleyard and his brother Joseph were in business for themselves as spin- ners of yarn, their little plant operating sixteen spinning frames. In 1873 the brothers came to the United States, locating in Jamestown, organizing the old Jamestown Alpaca Mills, which was the first textile industry to locate in this city, Joseph in the weaving department and Edward as overseer of the spinning, drawing and comb- ing departments, the mills at that time being operated by Hall, Broadhead & Turner. In 1876, when William Broadhead withdrew from the company and founded the Broadhead & Sons Worsted Mill, Edward Appleyard went with him and became superintendent of the new plant, and from that year until the present (July, 1920) he has held that responsible position, a fact which loudly pro- claims his ability, integrity and worth. That he has fully won and retained the confidence of the officials of the company is a patent fact and it is equally true that he has won the respect and good will of those who in this nearly half a century have been under his authority. When he first became superintendent of the Broadhead Worsted Mills in 1876, 100 hands constituted the force, 110W, 1920, 700 hands are employed. To Mr. Appleyard is due a great deal of credit for the success of the busi- ness from a physical or mechanical standpoint, for he was an expert in certain lines when he began his connection with the plant. He has grown and expanded with the
business, and the connection has been mutually agree- able and profitable. For a period of twenty-five years Mr. Appleyard served as one of the trustees of Allegheny College.
When seventeen years of age Mr. Appleyard was con- verted and became a member of the Methodist Episcopal church in his English home. When he came to the United States he brought his religion with him and con- nected with the First Methodist Episcopal Church of Jamestown, his active membership covering a period of forty-seven years, thirty-five years of which he served as superintendent of the Sunday school. Of his early religious life Mr. Appleyard said in response to the felici- tations of his brethren on his eightieth birthday :
I shall never forget leaving home and after passing over a hill that divided my township from the world beyond, I knelt down beside a milestone and asked God to go with me and he did. Since then I have tried to honor Him and have been every Sabbath when possible in the church of the living God. When I was a young man I came to America, and here I tried to keep iny covenant with the Lord. What I have done for Him is little in comparison with what he has done for me.
For many years Mr. Appleyard has been a licensed local preacher, and on the Sunday following his eightieth birthday anniversary he was invited by Rev. T. R. Cour- tice, his pastor, to fill the pulpit of the First Methodist Episcopal Church. Prior to the sermon, Rev. Pietro Campo, pastor of the Italian Methodist Church, spoke briefly, bringing the greetings of his congregation and telling of the interest taken by Mr. Appleyard in the Italians, calling him the "father of the Italian Methodist Episcopal Church."
In introducing Mr. Appleyard, the pastor said :
No church ever had a more faithful official, no con- gregation a truer friend and no pastor had ever a more loyal supporter than Mr. Appleyard.
Mr. Appleyard, during the course of his sermon, spoke feelingly of the kindliness of the pastor and congrega- tion, saying :
I recall the first sermon I ever preached, walking six miles in fear and trembling. There have been many times when I could have preached but I don't want you to think I am preaching now. I appreciate every- thing that was done and said for me last week in celebrating my eightteth milestone, not that I am worthy of it but because I feel that your hearts are with me. There is before my eyes the memory of other congregations, friends and loved ones who have passed on into the greater communion.
Mr. Appleyard married (first) July 15, 1868, in York- shire, England, Isabella Stott, daughter of William and Phoebe (Priestly ) Stott. William Stott was a well known and highly respected cotton manufacturer of Brighouse, Yorkshire, England. Children : 1. John, died in childhood. 2. William S., a graduate of the Philadel- phia Textile School and an expert spinner and weaver, now deceased; he married Meave Rew, and left a son, Edward Dey Appleyard. 3. Francis J., now assistant superintendent of the Broadhead Mills ; he married Bessie White, and has five children. 4. Albert E., cashier of the Farmers and Mechanics Bank of Jamestown ; he mar- ried Elizabeth Sharpe, and has three children. 5. Phoebe J., married Rev. Arthur Staples, D. D., of Wilkinsburg, Pa. 6. Ethel L., residing at home. 7. Wilbur E., a graduate of Michigan State University, now a chemist with the Goodyear Rubber Company at Toronto, Canada ;
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he married Josephine Thomas, and has one child. Mrs. Isabella (Stott) Appleyard died Feb. 18, 1903, aged fifty- eight years, three months, and twenty-eight days. At the age of sixteen she joined the church and for many years was a member of the First Methodist Episcopal Church of Jamestown. She was several times elected president of the Ladies' Aid Society of the church, and in that as well as in every branch of church work in which she engaged she did her share willingly and in the same spirit that she performed her many acts of charity, quietly, unostentatiously, but most effectively. Edward Appleyard married (second) July 14, 1907, Louise Stott, sister of his first wife. Mrs. Appleyard is also a mem- ber of the First Methodist Episcopal Church. The family home is at No. 31 Foote avenue, Jamestown. Mr. Apple- yard is the owner of one of the finest private libraries, literary and scientific, to be found in Chautauqua county.
CAPTAIN SAMUEL J. BAILEY, a veteran of the Civil War, and now living in Jamestown, Chautauqua county, N. Y., was born at Smithville Flats, Chenango county, N. Y., Oct. 4, 1837. He is a son of James Bailey, a native of County Monaghan, Ireland, who came to this country as a young man, crossing the Atlantic in a sailing vessel. He landed in New York, but soon made his way to Albany, where he first made his home in America. Later he moved to Smithville Flats, where his occupation was farming but afterwards went to Owego, Tioga county, N. Y., which proved to be his permanent home, as he lived there, owning and oper- ating a farm until his death. He married Margaret Gaut, born in the south of Scotland, the daughter of a Presbyterian minister, Mr. Bailey being himself of the same faith. In that city he and his wife died and were buried there. There were eight children born of this marriage, as follows: Alexander, deceased; Samuel J., who is mentioned at length below; Thomas, deceased; Joseph, deceased; Mary, deceased; Jane; William, de- ceased ; and Isabelle.
Samuel J. Bailey, second son of James Bailey, was educated for the most part at Owego, where he moved with his parents when still very young. At sixteen years of age, he took a position with the United States Ex- press Company, being sent by them to Dunkirk, where he remained six years, when in 1860 he came to James- town and acted as messenger between Salamanca and Jamestown, continuing so until the outbreak of the Civil War. While at Dunkirk, Mr. Bailey had been a member of a company of militia, so at the call for volunteers he returned to Dunkirk, and on May 28, 1861, enlisted in Company D, 72nd Regiment, Sickles' Brigade, New York Volunteer Infantry, under Captain (later Colonel) Stevens, and Colonel Nelson Taylor of General Sickles' Brigade. Having some military experience, he was at once made corporal. On his arrival at Staten Island, he was made sergeant-major of the regiment. In July, 1861, they reached Washington, and were made the second brigade of the second division, Third Army Corps, Army of the Potomac. The 72nd New York Volunteers were organized by Colonel Nelson Taylor, a veteran of the Mexican War, a man not only of organizing ability, but also, to the great advantage of the regiment, of military experience. On Oct. 18, the 72nd left the camp at Washington, and marched through
lower Maryland, camping at Budd's Ferry, Camp Wool. Nov. 5, 1861, Sergeant-major Bailey was promoted to be second lieutenant of Company B. They left Camp Wool, April 9, 1862, on the steamer "Elm City" for Fortress Monroe, and marched from there to the vicinity of Yorktown, then on to Williamsburg. Here, after the death of Captain Willard, Lieutenant Bailey became first lieutenant of Company B. On May 2, 1862, at the battle of Williamsburg, he was wounded in the right arm and left leg. These wounds were serious enough to keep him in the hospital at Fortress Monroe for thirty days, after which, being given a well-earned furlow, he returned to Jamestown, and was there married. On re- joining his regiment at Harrison's Landing, he was
advanced to the captaincy of Company I, on Oct. 30, 1862. After remaining with the colors for three years, he was mustered out, June 27, 1864. Captain Bailey fought in many of the greatest battles of the war, among them being the seige of Yorktown, Williams- burg, the second battle of Bull Run, Chancellorsville, the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Petersburg, and Gettysburg.
After his return from the war, Captain Bailey held the position of clerk with the United States Express Company at Jersey City for several months, then became agent for the same concern at Oil City, Pa., where he remained for two years, leaving to become a stockholder in the Jamestown Iron Works, with Baker Brothers & Company, and had been with them for several years when he entered the postal service, as a mail clerk, running between Buffalo and Emporium, Pa., and as far west as Kent, Ohio. During his term on the railroad, Captain Bailey was in several wrecks, and received injuries so severe as to force him to give up his position as railway mail clerk. He was accord- ingly transferred to Jamestown, where he held a position in the transfer station for a time, and later became mail clerk in the post office there, at one period of his service being assistant postmaster, under Major Edgar Putnam. He continued in the United States post office service until June, 1915, at that time having been thirty years in this work, and retired at the age of seventy- seven years. In 1916, he had a leg amputated above the knee. Captain Bailey bears his infirmity so well that in spite of his age he is strong and vigorous in body and active in mind.
Captain Bailey has always been a public-spirited citizen, but while he is a strong Republican in politics, and active in his party, his duties in the post office have pre- vented him from holding any other public office. He is held in the higliest esteem by his fellow-citizens, who through his long service to the city have come to regard i him as a man of high character and proved integrity. Captain Bailey is a charter member of the James M. Brown Post, No. 285, Grand Army of the Republic, and is an active member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
On July 7, 1862, in Jamestown, Captain Bailey married (first) Henrietta Winsor, a sister of Mrs. Richard Baker, of Jamestown, the ceremony being performed by Chaplain Levi W. Norton, rector of the Episcopal church of Jamestown. Mrs. Bailey died in this city, Jan. 28, 1878, the interment being in Lakeview Cemetery. The children born of this marriage were as follows: Anna M., who for a time taught school, married James
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B. Crankshaw, and is residing in Ft. Wayne, Ind. ; Helen . M., also a teacher, who married Beardsley Frisbee, of Jamestown; Clinton B., who followed the profession of civil engineer, and at present makes his home at Wynne, Ark .; Martenette, who died in childhood. On July 15, 1880, Captain Bailey married (second) Alice Branch, of Jamestown, the daughter of Hira K. and Alice (Winchell) Branch. Mrs. Bailey was educated in the grammar and high schools of Jamestown, and after- wards taught in public school No. 3, for two years, later becoming clerk in the money order department of the post office, where she was also employed for two years. Mrs. Bailey is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and is actively engaged in charitable work in this city, being a member of the Woman's Relief Corps. But these outside interests are never allowed to interfere with her home duties, for she is devoted to her home, and her greatest pleasure is to care for her husband in his infirmity. One child was born of this marriage, Edward L., who died in childhood.
PORTER SHELDON-Among the many strong men who helped to make the city of Jamestown one of the industrial centers of the country and who have added to the prominence of Chautauqua county in the councils of the nation, and at the bar the name of Porter Sheldon will always be numbered. As a success- ful advocate, as representative in Congress, and as one of the pioneers in the great photographic industry of the land, he won a unique distinction among his fellow- citizens in three separate fields of activity. He was an able lawyer, a public man of independent thought, and a leader in industrial development who was keenly inter- ested in the future of his home city.
The genealogical record of the Sheldon family in Western New York begins with Captain Sheldon, who was descended from the Sheldons who emigrated from Holland to England, thence came to Vermont, and after- wards settled in New York. Captain Sheldon (grand- father) was an officer in the War of 1812, and after its close removed to Monroe county, this State. His son, Gad Sheldon (father) was born in Vermont, reared in Monroe county, N. Y., and early in life became a resi- dent of Ontario county, where he died in 1876. He was a farmer. He married Eunice Hosford, a woman of unusual attainments, a native and resident of New York State. Their family consisted of five sons and one daughter, all of whom are now deceased.
Porter Sheldon, one of Jamestown's most distinguished citizens and Chautauqua county's most eminent lawyers, was born at Victor, Ontario county, N. Y., Sept. 29, 1831, and died at his home in Jamestown, Aug. 15, 1908. He received his early education in the public schools of Ontario county, and later attended the Randolph Academy. He was graduated from the Fredonia Academy with the class of 1852, and immediately took up the study of law in the office of George Barker, of Fredonia. He afterwards read with Alvah Worden, a prominent lawyer of Ontario county. Mr. Sheldon was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court at Batavia in 1854, and immediately formed a partnership with his brother, Alexander Sheldon, at Randolph, where he remained until 1856, when he removed to Jamestown and opened an office.
One year later Mr. Sheldon went to Rockford, Ill., where he attained such political prominence and favor- able standing with the people of Winnebago county that he was elected in 1861 from that county as a delegate to the State Constitutional Convention of that year. He was one of the twenty-two Republican members of that notable body, which contained many of the leading men and ablest jurists of that State. With Melville W. Fuller, later Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, "Long John" Wentworth, and other talented men, he took a prominent part through the many stormy sessions of this convention that gave to Illinois her present State Constitution.
In August, 1866, he returned to Jamestown and formed a law partnership with his brother, Alexander Sheldon, who died soon after, and from that time until 1886 he practiced continuously. In 1887 he retired from practice, only appearing thereafter in a few important cases. He was recognized as a leader at the bar of his county and in this section of the State. One of his most successful litigations was the Buffalo and Southwestern bonding suit. On behalf of the town of Ellicott he opposed the payment of the bonds on the ground that the railway company had failed to keep its contract by extending the line into the oil regions of Pennsylvania. It was a hard fought legal battle, but Mr. Sheldon won on an appeal to the United States Supreme Court, where Grover Cleveland appeared for the railway. As an expression of appreciation, a large number of his James- town friends presented him with a silver service on Jan. 1, 1882. Mr. Sheldon with C. R. Lockwood defended Charles Marlow for the murder of William Bachman at the old brewery on North Main street, in 1871. The jury disagreed at the first trial, but convicted the brewer on the second and he was hanged in the Mayville Jail. These two trials are among the most famous in the annals of the county.
Most of the time Mr. Sheldon practiced law alone, but he became the head of the firm of Sheldon, Green, Stevens & Benedict prior to his retirement from the law to engage in the development of the American Aristotype Company in 1888. He was made president of that new concern, and the present factory was built in 1889. The rapid development of the business took place under Mr. Sheldon's direction. He was associated with the late Charles S. Abbott, who became its president after Mr. Sheldon's retirement in 1898, when he sold his large interest in the company. His son, Ralph C. Sheldon, who succeeded Mr. Abbott as president of the company, entered the business with his father in 1890. It is now part of the Eastman Kodak Company of Rochester. Mr. Sheldon's last business enterprise was in developing Griffith's Point on Chautauqua Lake as a summer resort, where he built Sheldon Hall in Colonial style in 1900. He had spent most of his summers at Sheldon Hall since that time, and his winters on his Virginia plantation.
In 1868 Porter Sheldon was elected to Congress from this district consisting at that time of Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties. In the single term that he was in Washington, Mr. Sheldon made an excellent record. In his book, "Twenty Years in Congress," James G. Blaine spoke of him as "the useful and capable member from the district formerly represented by Reuben E. Fenton."
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Mr. Sheldon was succeeded by Walter L. Sessions. The political career of Porter Sheldon followed to a con- siderable extent the lines of that of Governor Fenton, whose friend, neighbor, and counselor he was. He was a man of independent political judgment. Like Senator Fenton he supported Horace Greeley for presi- dent in 1872. The Democratic reform movement led by Samuel J. Tilden attracted his support in 1876, and lie served as a Presidential Elector chosen on the Tilden ticket. In 1880 he advocated the election of his old Con- gressional friend, James A. Garfield, and after that acted with the Republican party.
Mr. Sheldon could remember all the greatest Ameri- cans of his time. As a youth he heard Daniel Webster speak at the opening of the Erie railroad at Dunkirk. In 1858 he listened to the closing debate between Lincoln and Douglas. He had known personally every president from Lincoln to Roosevelt, and was acquainted with all the national and State leaders.
On May 13, 1858, Mr. Sheldon was united in marriage with Mary Crowley, daughter of Hon. Rufus Crowley, of Randolph, who was a prominent Republican leader of that county, and who had twice served as a member of the State Assembly. Mrs. Porter Sheldon was born at Montpelier, Vt., but was brought by her parents when very young to Cattaraugus county, N. Y. Her girlhood days were spent at Randolph, where she received her education. She came to Jamestown with her husband in 1866, and there was prominently engaged in all the social as well as charitable activities of hier city. During the later years of her life much of her time was spent in her home, and there she was known to a large circle of loving friends. She died Oct. 23, 1917, and James- town lost one of its most gracious women, beloved by all who knew her. To Mr. and Mrs. Porter Sheldon were born three children: Cora, wife of Herbert W. Tew; Ralph Crowley, who has been engaged in various successful business enterprises; and Harry Porter, now a vice-president of the First National Bank, actively identified with its management. Three grandchildren survive him: Dorothy Sheldon Tew, Julia Ormes Shel- don, and Ralph Crowley Sheldon, Jr.
Porter Sheldon gave of his best to his City, State, and Nation. He represented in his private character as well as in his public and professional service forces and principles which are the solid foundations of our Ameri- can life and an incentive for all the world. In his home there was unassuming devotion to the simple duties of a kind and loving husband and father and an honorable gentleman. In professional life there was always de- liberate judgment, calm action, clear thinking, and unswerving devotion to every ·trust. Broad-souled, he was tolerant of the political or religious opinions of others. Men liked him for what he was, a simple, kindly man, devoted to his home, loving and loved by his friends.
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