History of Chautauqua County, New York, Part 97

Author: Edson, Obed, 1832-; Merrill, Georgia Drew, editor
Publication date: 1894
Publisher: Boston, Mass. : W.A. Fergusson
Number of Pages: 1068

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In 1870 Professor Edwards moved to this state to take charge of Cham- berlain Institute at Randolph. In 1872 its brick boarding hall, erected at a cost of $50,000, was destroyed by fire, being insured for only $10,000. Through the exertions of Professor Edwards and the liberality of its friends it was rebuilt by subscription in less than a year, and stands in its beautiful proportions, free from debt. In 1876 Allegheny College, at Meadville, Pa., conferred the degree of D. D. upon him, and in 1890 he was made Doctor of Laws. He continued at the head of Chamberlain Institute for 22 years, re- signing in 1892. During this time 6,000 students were in attendance ; 450 graduated from its several departments ; and more than 500 certificates were received from the Regents of the State University. There was an average attendance for 63 terms of 167 students, whose average age for the whole time was 17.1 years. Probably there is not a town in Cattaraugus and Chat- tauqua counties which does not contain representatives from this old school. Its patronage during the administration of Dr. Edwards was drawn from quite an extended area, often embracing several states. In the educational

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JAMESTOWN.

gatherings of this section Dr. Edwards has long been a familiar figure, often lecturing, dedicating school buildings, and engaging in kindred work. As a minister he has preached frequently, being especially called upon for anni- versaries, church dedications and funerals. He has been twice elected dele- gate to the " general conference," the lawmaking body of the M. E. church, and three times reserve delegate.

Dr. Edwards is an ardent lover of the natural sciences, and has endeavored to make these studies of practical value in this region by discussing, at agri- cultural fairs, farmers' institutes and conventions, their principles as applied to agriculture. He built the first silo in southwestern New York, and showed the wholesomeness and utility of ensilage. He is the author of numerous published addresses and of two volumes entitled respectively "The Grass Family " and "The Silva of Chautauqua Lake." Dr. Edwards has been identified with the great Chautauqua movement from its beginning, for most of the time in the three-fold capacity of trustee, professor and lecturer. For nine years he has had charge of the department of physics and chemistry in the College of Liberal Arts. He is also extension secretary of the Chautauqua system of education. In the fall of 1891 he was nominated by " certificate " as senator from the Thirty-second district, in accordance with a law passed in 1890 permitting a nomination of senator on the presentation to the secre- tary of state of the certified names under oath of 500 voters desiring such nomination. 750 names were forwarded, and the nomination was endorsed by a People's convention which met in Jamestown and by the regular Den- ocratic convention held the same day. He was elected by over 1,000 majorty. As chairman of the committee on education during his service, he was influ- ential in passing three important bills which bear his name, viz : The " university bill," covering all the higher education in the state ; the " library bill," which appropriates $55,000 annually to school and township free libraries ; and the "school commissioner bill," which allows women to vote for school commissioners. Dr. Edwards is a many-sided man, and the people instinctively regard him as their man. It can not be said that he is a poli- tician. Positions have sought him. He has been called to places of trust by the people because they judged him fitted by intelligence, a broad states- manship, purity of life, executive abilities and eloquence as a public speaker to represent them as lawmaker. He has always taken an active part in public affairs, and held the theory that every citizen who enjoys the blessings of a free government should be willing to bear his share of its responsibilities. He is an attractive, scholarly speaker, with an agreeable voice well balanced by a graceful delivery, and always receives a hearty welcome whenever he appears in the pulpit or upon the platform .*

*Dr. Edwards, since this sketch was written, has been appointed president of the McDonough School for Boys at McDonough, Md., founded in 1875 by John McDonough, who left $1,000,000 to educate poor boys. Dr. Edwards took charge of this institution in August, 1893, and makes his home there.

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HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY, N. Y.

W. W. HENDERSON.

William Wallace Henderson was born September 11, 1828, at Sinclairville, of Scotch and English parentage, received such advantages as the common and high schools of the period afforded, and with developing tastes and ten- dencies toward philosophic and scientific inquiry, early became a student of medicine under the tutelage of Henry B. Hedges, M. D., a graduate of Fair- field Medical College, one of the earliest instituted in this state. In 1847 and 1848 Mr. Henderson was a student in attendance upon the lectures and instructions of the medical department of the University of Buffalo which then numbered among its faculty Frank H. Hamilton, M. D. ; Austin Flint, M. D .; James Webster, M. D. ; Charles A. Lee, M. D. ; James P. White, M. D .; George Hadley, M. D. ; C. B. Coventry, M. D. ; Corydon L. Ford, M. D. The latter is the only survivor, and is a distinguished member of the faculty of the University of Michigan.

Mr. Henderson finally adopted the profession of pharmacy which he con- tinued for nearly half a century, retiring in 1894. At majority he affiliated with the anti-slavery element of the Whig party, and, in 1852 voted with the supporters of Jolin P. Hale for President, with " free soil, free speech and free men " as the motto. Later Mr. Henderson was active in the local organization of the progressive political elements which finally coalesced in the Republican party of the state and nation ; also as member of state com- mittee, and many times as delegate for Chautauqua in the district and state conventions of the party. He was appointed postmaster at Sinclairville in 1861 under President Lincoln, and continued in office during four successive administrations. In 1871 President Grant appointed Mr. Henderson collector of internal revenue for the 31st district of New York, and after its consolidation with the 27th district he was reappointed as its collector with office at Elmira. He creditably concluded his public service in this connection in 1876, and soon after became a resident of Jamestown, where he has since been identified as one of its actively interested citizens and business men, for many years having served as a member of its school board. He was the senior partner of the firm of Henderson & Putnam, druggists and book sellers, from June 10, 1878 to December 18, 1888, and continued in that business until August, 1894, when he devoted himself to the sale of books, stationery, etc. He is a charter member of the N. Y. S. Pharmaceutical Association ; president of the Chautauqua County Pharmaceutical Association, and of the Pharmaceutical Association of Jamestown. At its organization in 1886, he was elected a member of the board of curators for the department of phar- macy of the University of Buffalo, which relation is still continued.

Mr. Henderson is recognized as an enthusiastic explorer in fields of philosophic and historic research. He was an active participant in the

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organization of the Chautauqua Society of History and Natural Science, and from the first has been its secretary, and is now secretary and treasurer. He has contributed several papers of interest and value to its archives. He is also corresponding member of the Oneida Historical Society, one of the oldest county societies in the state, his certificate bearing the signature as its presi- dent of Horatio Seymour.

In 1867 Mr. Henderson was united in marriage with Martha Tiffany, a lady of taste and culture, daughter of the late Silas Tiffany of Jamestown, one of the earliest settlers and business men of the city. In all the varied relations of official business and social life in which Mr. Henderson has been placed, he has ever manifested kindliness of heart, the urbanity and courtesy of a true gentleman, and the ability of a far reaching and discerning intellect, softened and refined by culture and the inclinations of a poetic nature. He has many friends.

THOMAS W. HARVEY.

It may not be generally known that one of America's greatest inventors made his home in Jamestown for many years. A native of Wardsboro, Vt., born July 22, 1795, in 1816, after his marriage to Melinda Hayward, a sister of Mrs. Solomon Jones and Mrs. Samuel Garfield, of Busti, he came to James- town, where he located in 1819 as a blacksmith, building his shop on the corner of Third street and Potter's alley, and the next year building a resi- dence on the corner of Pine and Third streets. With his brother, Charles R., he built the woolen machinery for Hazeltine's mill, and carding and other machinery for others. From 1832, when he removed to the vicinity of New York city, he devoted himself to inventions. Young says : "Chautauqua county never had a citizen more fruitful of invention. Among the numerous inventions were a machine for making steam engine boiler rivets, one for heading wood screws, a rotary cam toggle-joint press, a loom for weaving hog's bristles and cloth for stocks, a machine for pressing bricks and hay, machines for making railroad spikes and sawing down trees. It is said he was the first to make pins with solid heads." He invented the machine to stick pins on paper, produced the first nail machine to make a complete nail and a loom to weave wire cloth. Away back in the forties or early fifties, he constructed electric motors and demonstrated the feasibility of electricity as a motive power. In addition to the machines already noticed, he invented a number of important and now indispensible ones, that are used all over the world. No man of the present century has originated more useful machinery. His inventions, it is said, numbered over 100, many of which were claimed and utilized by others. His fame, however, is the greatest in connection with the celebrated " Harveyized steel," which is adopted and used by the

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HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY, N. Y.

governments of England, Russia, France, Germany, United States, etc., in making the armor plate sheathing for their magnificent war ships. He died June 5, 1854, and is described as a man of massive size, erect, military bear- ing, with a great and finely developed head.

REV. WILLIAM LYMAN HYDE.

Rev. William L. Hyde, son of Captain Henry and Maria (Hyde) Hyde, was born at Bath, Maine, December 27, 1819. He was educated at Bowdoin College where he was graduated in 1842. He then studied theology, and was ordained a minister of the Presbyterian church May 4, 1849, and was pastor of the church at Gardiner, Maine, from 1849 to 1856, when he accepted a call from the Presbyterian church at Dunkirk. He was pastor there until 1862 when he was commissioned chaplain of the 112th Regt. N. Y. Vols., and rendered valuable service in that capacity until the close of the war. No one of the vast number of faithful chaplains in the army were better adapted to their onerous duties and none were more faithful in their transac- tion. He carried an atmosphere of cheer with him into the tents, the barracks, the hospitals, and on the battle field showed a courage equal to any. The soldiers had confidence in him, and in the christianity of which he was an exemplar. His next pastorate was at Ripley where he remained until 1871, then for three years he was in charge of the Sherman Presbyterian church. From 1874 to 1884 hie was principal of the Ovid (N. Y.) high school. In 1884 he came to Jamestown where he has since made his home. He is universally popular, preaches most acceptable sermons frequently, and his services are in demand at weddings and funerals. He is a graphic writer and a pains- taking searcher for truth. His history of the 112th regiment, one of the first histories written in the state devoted to the history of a regiment, is a volume of great worth. He is one of the prominent members of the Chautauqua Society of History and Natural Science, and has prepared several monographs and papers for that body, and has given much aid in the preparation of this work. He is a great favorite with the old soldiers, is chaplain of James M. Brown Post G. A. R., and the honorary chaplain of the Fenton Guards. He has ever been interested in the Chautauqua Assembly and recently donated a valuable minister's library to the Chautauqua College. He married May 4, 1852, Frances E. Rice, a granddaughter of Dr. Thomas Rice, a learned jurist of Maine. She died May 17, 1892. Their surviving children are Henry W., a physician of Omaha, Neb., and Frederick W., a member of the Journal Printing Co., and for several years the popular captain of the Fen- ton Guards.

لہیس

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JAMESTOWN.

HON. OSCAR F. PRICE.

The first mayor of Jamestown will ever be a conspicuous figure in the history of the city. Eight years of continuous service indicate executive ability of a high order in the incumbent, and it is well to record for coming time somewhat concerning the one who had so much to do in shaping the policy and future prosperity of the city. Hon. Oscar F. Price is a native of Jamestown, born September 11, 1840, son of Colonel Addison A. and Char- lotte (Green) Price. His grandfather, Charles Price, born in New Jersey in 1786, married Mary Neff, whose father, Abraham Neff, was born in Holland, and in Mr. Price is blended the widely different elements of English pro- gressive energy with Dutch honesty, economy and conservatism, giving him the mental organization necessary for wise executive functions. Passing his life in Jamestown, acquiring his education at its schools and academies, he studied law with able lawyers and became a real estate dealer, and a builder of homes for purchasers of lots possessing limited means. During the last 25 years he has erected 200 honses, which he has sold on such easy terms that the purchasers became full owners with little more expenditure than the payment of rent. In this manner Mr. Price has done more than any other person to give Jamestown the distinction of being the "city of homes," and it is said that he has never foreclosed a mortgage except to perfect title. Reference to the records of the county clerk's office will show that he has given between 400 and 500 deeds, and virtually all of these were to persons who became residents on the property. He was a member of the Village Board, serving in 1882-3 as its president. For two successive terms he was chosen as a Republican member of assembly in the state legislature. About this time some of the progressive citizens of James- town were impressed with the thought that the rapidly growing village needed a city charter, but strong opposition developed. After his service as assemblyman, Mr. Price, with other citizens, gave personal attention to educate the people in favor of a city goverment, and was largely instru- mental in securing the present liberal charter. At the first city election he was chosen mayor, and so well did he discharge the trust conferred on him, that at three successive elections he was reelected. His retirement then was entirely voluntary, for so completely had he won the regard of the people that had he chosen to run again his election would have been practically an unanimous one.

A resident of Jamestown for years says :

ITis service on the board of trustees of the village and as its president, together with the legislative experience acquired in Albany, gave him knowledge especially necessary to success in the onerous duties of his office, and he was well fitted for the administration of affairs in Jamestown in its changed condition as a city, which meant work and many things besides. The

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HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY, N. Y.

foundation stone of Mr. Price's character is a profound and accurate judgment, and this asserts itself in all his manifold relations with men and affairs, and in every effort he puts forth. Prac- tical common sense, tact, honesty, an exquisite sense of the proprieties of business, a singular aptitude for recognizing economical methods, a wise and prudent conservatisin, and an intuitive appreciation of the value of means with reference to their ends, are manifestations of his judg- ment, and if we add good executive ability, untiring industry, a dignity in accordance with the gravity of the questions under consideration, we see how he honored the position of chief executive of a rapidly growing and progressive city, while his unassuming and courteous man- ners and great kindliness of heart have bound him to the workingmen as with hooks of steel.

The Sunday Sun said in an editorial just after Mayor Price's successor had been inaugurated :

For eight years Mr. Price has occupied the mayor's chair, and during all that time not the shadow of a "job " has tarnished the record of his administration. Large contracts have been let, valuable franchises have been granted, but in every case the interests of the people have been carefully guarded and no whisper of scandal has been breathed against the city government. Mr. Price has striven to avoid even the appearance of evil. He has a great deal of money invested in Jamestown real estate and mnuch of it is residence property, but when street improvements were to be made he has asked that the work be expended on streets where he had no landed interests, lest the impression should be created that he was improving his property at the expense of the city. . At the end of his long term of service he returns to private life with a far stronger hold upon the confidence and esteem of the citizens of Jamestown than when he first took up the gavel. Of ex- Mayor Price as a private citizen it is needless to speak at length. He is a Jamestown man born and bred, and his record is 'that of a warm-hearted, whole-souled gentleman, who has assisted many of his fellow men to gain homes for themselves ; who has helped many a young man to start in business ; who has always had full faith in the future of Jamestown : who has given much of his time and talent to make that future a bright and pros- perons one.

At the same time, in a just and discriminating editorial, the Daily .4// said :

Upon Oscar F. Price was first conferred the honor of guiding the municipal ship through the untried and troubled waters of a new form of government. There were many difficulties in the way. He was hampered on one side by the intense conservatisin of those who had wot outlived the narrow ideas of early village environment, and on the other by the rash radicalism of those whose ambition for improvement knew 1.0 bounds. It was no small task to arbitrate between those two classes. How well this task was accomplished all who are familiar with our history know, and it is no exaggeration to say, whatever prosperity we have enjoyed, whatever progress we have made, has been due largely to the wise consels and careful guidance of the retiring mayor. Important questions have come up for settlement, and on every occasion Mayor Price has been found on the side of the people. At one time we were confronted with the question of a pure water supply. The mayor took a decided stand, and eventually we secured the purest water of any city. On another occasion a great railroad corporation sought to extend its lines across one of our streets, and had this been accomplished it would doubtless have shut out competition for the freight business of the city. Again prompt and decided action prevented this, and gave to our shippers another outlet to the outside world. Later, a street railway attempted to secure a valuable franchise, but the mayor and city officials were on guard, and as a result we are one of the few cities in the state which receives a money rental for the use of the streets by a rallway corpora- tion. All this time the city had been growing, and with its growth came the demand for public improvements. We needed lights, we needed sewers, we needed pavements, and to construct these was no small task. After much time had been spent in investigation, we built an electric light plant, and are now securing lights at the rate of $4 per year, which are costing many other cities double that sum. The sewer question was one which . involved the expenditure of large sums of money, and how to adjust this burden most equitably upon all the people of this community, was a question which required careful and thoughtful consideration. To this the mayor devoted his attention, and at last a plan was formulated which met with the approval of the people. The paving problem was another important question which his administration had to solve. Time and money were freely spent by the mayor in his efforts to best serve the people. Three special elections were held to determine the proper methods of beginning this work. It was settled at last. Through eight years of experiment and experience as a city goverment, we have passed untainted by any charge of municipal cor- ruption or municipal jobbery. No man has ever questioned the mayor's motives, and no man has ever had reason to say that a dollar of the people's money has been expended dishonestly, although at times it may have been expended uselessly. In this respect Mayor Price has made a record of which any man or any city may well be prond, and he retires with the consciousness that he has the confidence and regard of all citizens. He has conducted the city through the most important period of its existence. He has laid out the work for the succeeding generations to finish. He has given the best years of his life to the task. Faithfully and fairly he has presided over the city government. Honestly and earnestly he has labored for the best interests of the people, and, as he closes a clean and honest administration, we feel sure we voice the sentiments of the com- munity when we say, " Well done, thou good and faithful servant."

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BUSTI.

BY OREN STODDARD.

CHAPTER LXIX.

B USTI takes its name from Paul Busti, general agent of the Holland Land Company, and was formed from Ellicott and Harmony, April 16, 1823. It is bounded on the north by Chautauqua lake and Ellicott, east by Kiantone, south by Pennsylvania, west by Harmony, and contains 30,168 acres, valued at $24 per acre. The soil of Busti is well adapted for dairying. Grass is its best crop. Wheat, corn, oats, barley and potatoes are staple crops. Apples, pears, plums and cherries are its principal fruits, and it is timbered with pine, beech, maple, oak, chestnut, ash, hemlock, cucum- ber, whitewood, basswood and elin.

FIRST SETTLERS IN BUSTI .- It is uncertain who was the first settler in Busti, or the date of his settlement, but the first purchases I find on record are those of Russell Dyer, lot 47, James Slade, lot 38 and Hezekiah Seymour, lot 38, T. I, R. 11, in September, 1808. The original purchasers in this town were : June, 1809, Labon Case, lot 36, T. I, R. 11 ; April, 1810, Sam- uel Griffith, lot 4, R. 12 ; May, 1810, Theodore Bemuis, lot 12, R. 12 ; Decem- ber, 1810, Jonas Lamphear, lot 48, R. 12; 1810, Aaron Martin, lot 44, R. II ; April, 1811, Lawrence Frank, lots 62-63, T. I, R. II ; May, 1811, Palmer Phillips, lot 11, R. 12, T. 2. Mr. Phillips built a small factory for the man- ufacture of hand rakes and grain cradles in an early day, on a creek that run through his land, called Phillip's creek. Heman Bush, Jr., early built a fac- tory for making round picket fence and turning wooden bowls on the same creek. October, 1811, Nathaniel Fenner settled on lot 15, R. 12. Rev. John Broadhead, a Methodist minister, who preached on circuits including Jamestown, Kennedy and Randolphi, early settled on lot 18. Nathan Breed of Jamestown married his daughter. Urialı Bentley settled in 1810 on lot 16. In 1837 hie built the first brick dwelling house in this town, and it is yet in a fine state of preservation which testifies to the rare quality of mate- rial used, and skillful workmanship of the builder. The brick used were made on the farm now owned by George Osborn. On the death of Uriah Bentley, his fourth son, Gustavus Bentley, born Aug. 12, 1817, followed farm- ing on the homestead until his death. He was a splendid farmer and one of Busti's best men. His son, Fred A. Bentley, succeeded his father on the

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HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY, N. Y.

farm. In 1886 he was elected vice-president of the Chautauqua County National Bank of Jamestown, and since that time has given his attention princi- pally to the business of the bank, he still residing on the farm. Daniel Shearman and George Stoneman settled early on the same lot. Mr. Stone- man early built a sawmill on the shore of Chautauqua lake and it was run until it wore out, and was known as the dry sawmill. In 1811 Josiah Palmeter settled on lot 14, and at an early day built a sawmill there. This mill was run until nearly worn out when it was carried away by a flood.

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History of Chautauqua County, New York, Part 97

Author: Edson, Obed, 1832-; Merrill, Georgia Drew, editor Publication date: 1894 Publisher: Boston, Mass. : W.A. Fergusson Number of Pages: 1068

Author: Edson, Obed, 1832-; Merrill, Georgia Drew, editor
Publication date: 1894
Publisher: Boston, Mass. : W.A. Fergusson
Number of Pages: 1068