USA > New York > Herkimer County > History of Herkimer county, New York > Part 13
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member of the Constitutional Convention of 1846, and one of the most useful of that body of men. He had at that time gone to reside in New York city, and died there (or in Brooklyn), September 27, 1848.
David Holt was a practical printer and came into Herkimer county in 1805, from the city of Hudson, to begin the publication of a news- paper. This he was soon afterwards forced to abandon for want of patronage. About the year 1811 he was editor of a paper in Herkimer and was postmaster at that place many years, and collector of internal revenue. He was appointed one of the judges of the Court of Com- mon Pleas in February, 1817, and first judge in 1821 ; he held the office until 1825. Adhering to the fortunes of De Witt Clinton he lost political preferment with the decline of that statesman, and resumed his trade of printing. For a brief period he published the Republican Farmer's Free Press in Herkimer, and then removed to Little Falls and conducted the Mohawk Courier, while it was published by Charles S. Benton & Company. Thence he went to Albany where he worked at his trade about ten years, and removed to Wisconsin. Judge Holt en- joyed for years the confidence of the community and met his reverses with fortitude and resignation.
Gaylord Griswold was a native of Connecticut and came westward with Theodore Gold, who became eminent in the legal profession of Oneida county. Mr. Griswold settled at Herkimer and became a con- spicuous politician ; was elected to the Assembly in 1797-98, and mem- ber of Congress in 1803-04, where he was a useful and able legislator. He died at Herkimer March 1, 1809, at the age of forty- one.
Simeon Ford came into Herkimer county previous to 1797, and was afterwards associated with Gaylord Griswold in law practice, in which he became prominent. He was appointed district attorney early in 1819 and held the office until 1823, performing its duties with fideli- ty and ability. He was often a candidate for office when his chance of election was not good, but his frequent nominations evinced the strong hold he possessed upon the party. At the annual elections of 1820 and 1821 he was chosen to the Assembly. In 1825 he was appointed by Governor Clinton to an office at the salt springs in Syracuse. Previous to this he had become pecuniarily embarrassed through the purchase of lands on the Hasenclever patent. After a few years he resigned his post
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in Syracuse, removed to Rochester and five years later returned to Herkimer and resumed his profession in 1832. Not securing a satis- factory clientage, he removed to Cleveland, Ohio, about 1836. There he met with success. He died in Cleveland in 1839.
David W. Golden, a native of Dutchess county, settled in Columbia in 1798, where he was a merchant. He was appointed judge of the Common Pleas in March, 1810, and commissioned first judge in 1811. He held the office until his death, in February, 1814. He was regarded for his honorable character and was a conscientious and discriminating official.
John Frank was a son of a Palatine emigrant, Conrad Frank. He was appointed a justice of the peace for Montgomery county in March, 1790, and afterwards commissioned as one of the justices of Herkimer county (1791) and in March, 1794, was appointed one of the judges of the Common Pleas; he held the office until about 1799. Judge Frank was an active and zealous participant in the Revolution on the patriot side and was present and took part in repelling the attack of Brant and his warriors in July, 1778, in their attack on Andrustown. Judge Frank lived near the south bank of the Mohawk, in German Flats, nearly oppo- site the village of Herkimer, and there he closed his life.
John A. Rasbach was formerly a prominent attorney of llion. He was a great-grandson of a Palatine settler, Johannes Rasbach, who located about a mile east of Fort Dayton in 1726. John A. Rasbach was born May 9, 1805 ; worked on a farm, taught school, and was a merchant in Herkimer, and was postmaster and justice of the peace about twelve years. During this time he read law and was admitted in 1841. In 1852 he bought a farm near Ilion and removed thither, where he became an active factor in the progress of that section, particularly in railroad operations. He died at his home in Ilion.
Aaron Hackley, jr., was the eldest son of Aaron Hackley, sr., who came with his family and settled in Salisbury near the close of the last century. It is believed that he was a graduate of Union College and that he studied law in the office of Gaylord Griswold. Ile entered upon the practice of law in Herkimer in the year 1807. In person he was above the medium stature, erect, well formed, dark complexioned, with irregular features. In temperament and manner he was affable, as he
JB Raffin
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was kind in feeling, with good address, and always a gentleman. He attached himself to the Democratic party (then known as the Republi- can as opposed to the Federal party). In 1814 and again in 1815 he was a member of Assembly from Herkimer. In 1812 and again in 1815 he was elected to the office of clerk of Herkimer county. In 1819 to 1823 he was representative in Congress, and afterward was appointed United States collector of the port of Ogdensburg, and he took up his residence there. Several years later he returned to his old home in Herkimer, and in 1828 was appointed to the office of district attorney for this county for the term of three years. In this, as in every other public office which he ever held, the duties were discharged with fidelity and credit to himself and satisfaction to the public. As a lawyer, Mr. Hack- ley was highly respectable in standing and ability, but not remarkable for any special or distinguishing power as an advocate or speaker. Later in life he went to New York and lived until his death with his son, who was a distinguished professor in Columbia College
Ezra Graves was born in the town of Russia in 1803. He began the study of law with S. & L. Ford in 1832, and three years later was ad- mitted to practice in all the State courts. In 1845 he was appointed a judge of the County Court, and in 1847, after the change in the con- stitution, was elected by the people ; held the office about eight years and was again elected in 1859. In 1872 he was elected inspector of State prisons by the Republicans. He was a son of John Graves, one of the enterprising pioneers of the town of Russia. He was a faithful officer and highly respected for his integrity. He was father of Gen. John C. Graves, of Buffalo, and of Dr. George Graves and Margaret G. Mayton, of Herkimer.
Hiram Nolton was educated at Fairfield Academy and spent his early life in that town. He studied law in the office of William D. Ford, and was admitted in 1814, opening an office in Little Falls. He shortly afterward removed to Fairfield, where he remained until 1836. He then returned to Little Falls and continued in the profession until his death, September 10, 1863. In 1825 he was appointed first judge of the county and held the office three years. In 1837 he was chosen district attorney and held that office six years. In Little Falls he was a partner of Arphaxed Loomis for about ten years. He was a partner
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of Jarvis N. Lake, 1847 to 1855, and a partner of George A. Hardin from 1855 to 1860. Judge Nolton is remembered as a man who per- haps had not an enemy, and merited and received the respect and es- teem of his fellow-citizens for both his integrity and professional ability. Fle left him surviving Mrs. Helen M. Ashley, now a resident of Mont- clair, N. J. He died in October, 1863.
Sandford Clark was one of the earliest lawyers in this county, but very little is known of his life. He was in practice in Herkimer as early as 1792, and it is believed that he preceded Gaylord Griswold as a law- yer there. lle was certainly a contemporary of Griswold, and was the opposing attorney in the first suit in which Griswold was retained. He built the main building of the old Waverly Hotel in Herkimer before 1800. It has been said that his affairs became broken up through do- mestic difficulties, and that he disappeared from the field.
Oran Gray Otis was graduated at Union College, studied law in the office of Simeon and Lauren Ford, and was admitted to the bar in 1819. He opened an office at Little Falls. He was fairly accomplished in his profession, was a fluent and forcible speaker, and commanded a pros- perous business Early in 1825 he removed to Ballston, where he practiced until his death in middle age. Hle was elected to the Assem- bly in 1831 and re-elected the next year.
Dudley Burwell was born in Norway, Herkimer county, in 1801. (See history of Norway herein.) He attended Fairfield Academy a few terms, and about 1824 entered the law office of Feeter & Benton at Little Falls, and soon acquired a good practice and high reputation. Ile was one of the first attorneys employed by the village of Little Falls. In 1834 he married a daughter of Col. Samuel Young, of Ball- ston ; she died within a year afterwards and he never again married. He was elected to the Legislature in the fall of 1832 and was prom- inent in that body. In 1836 he was appointed district attorney of this county and made an able official. Mr. Burwell was a man of large brain and sound judgment, with clear perception and application of le- gal principles and a very good lawyer. He removed to Albany and opened an office about 1838. In politics he was a strong Democrat, and for many years was influential in his party. In 1858 he returned to his old home in Little Falls. Ilere he purchased several adjacent par-
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cels of land on the hillside east of the village, built a residence at the foot of the hill, hired a housekeeper and became a farmer on a small scale, still keeping a lively interest in public affairs. In his later years he was regarded by many as a recluse, if not as a misanthrope. He was, however, really kind-hearted and charitable, of strict integrity and good morals. He died April 18, 1876, leaving a generous legacy of about forty- five acres of land lying in the eastern part of the village, to be known as Burwell Park, to the village of Little Falls, to become the property of the corporation at the death of William G. Milligan. Be- fore his death lie caused to be excavated a tomb in the rock on the hillside of the land, in which he was buried.
Abijah Mann, jr., was born at Fairfield September 24, 1793, and re- ceived education only in the common schools. He taught school for a short time in Oneida county, and was married January 18, 1814. The same year he settled in Seneca Falls, where he was postmaster, mer- chant, and built a block of buildings. The pressure of financial affairs in 1815 closed his mercantile career, and in 1819 he returned to Fair- field and entered the law office of Hiram Nolton. In 1822 he was a successful competitor of Mr. Nolton for the office of justice of the peace. In the fall of 1827 he was elected to the Assembly and re- elected the next year. He here became conspicuous as a public man and politician. His career in Congress-1832 to 1836-was marked by the same aggressive and rude strength in debate that he had exhibited in the Legislature, and secured for him a large measure of influence. He had the confidence of the Democrats, among whom were Martin Van Buren, Silas Wright, Azariah C. Flagg, Michael Hoffman and others. In 1836 Mr. Mann took up his residence in Frankfort and re- mained there until 1842, when he removed to Brooklyn and opened an office with his son-in-law, John H. Rodman. He had been appointed receiver of the Washington County and other banks, from which he re- ceived large fees. He subsequently left the Democratic party, and was nominated by its opponents for attorney general in 1855, but was de- feated ; he ran agam on the same side for senator and was again de- feated. He then returned to the party of his old affections. His health finally failed and he was an invalid some years. He died in Buffalo, while on a visit, on the 8th of September, 1868, aged seventy-five years. He was reported to be worth more than a million dollars.
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Charles Gray was born in the town of Palatine in 1796. He was ed- ucated at Fairfield Academy and began his law studies with Henry Markell. In 1819 he went to Herkimer and entered the office of Sim- eon and Lauren Ford. He was admitted to the bar in 1822, settled in Herkimer, and was for the first year or two of his practice a partner of James McAuley. After that lie practiced alone until his death in 1871. He was a lawyer of fair ability and was better qualified for office busi- ness than for trial cases before the court or jury. His business was chiefly conveyancing, office counsel, and other unlitigated matters. He was a good business man and good citizen, and for a long time was in- fluential and prominent in the politics of the county. In 1835 he represented the county in the Legislature, and in 1838 to 1841 was one of the judges of the Court of Common P'leas, and for several years held the office of master in chancery in the county. At the first elec- tion of judges of the Supreme Court, under the new constitution of 1846, he was nominated by his party and was elected. He drew the shortest term, two years, of which one was in the Court of Appeals ; the reports of the latter court contain a few of his opinions. Judge Gray was fond of military duties and for many years he held the office of brigadier general, commissioned by Governor Marcy.
Arphaxed Loomis was a native of Connecticut, where he was born April 9, 1798. He was a son of Thaddeus Loomis, who settled in Salis- bury in 1803. He was admitted to the bar in 1822 and first prac- ticed with Justin Butterfield, at Sackett's Ilarbor until 1824; in 1825 he established himself at Little Falls; was appointed surrogate of Her- kimer county in 1828, and held the office about eight years; was first judge of Herkimer county five years, 1835-40; representative in Con- gress 1837-39; member of Assembly 1841-42 and 1853 ; member of the Constitutional Convention of 1846, etc. Later in life he was asso- ciated with his sons Watts T. and Sidney Loomis in the practice of law in Little Falls, and died there, September 16, 1886. Mr. Loomis occu- pied a foremost position at the bar of the county, and as a citizen of Little Falls was always conspicuous in every movement for the ad- vancement of the village. Ile early became a large real estate owner, which property he developed and improved. He held several village offices and in their administration evinced an active public spirit. In
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his judicial and legislative career he gained the confidence and appro- bation of the public for his ability and efficiency.
Sidney Loomis, son of Arphaxed, was born in Little Falls December 19, 1846, and died in September, 1879 He was a graduate of the Al- bany Law School and of Union College, and practiced with his father and brother until his death. He was a man of high intelligence, well read in his profession, and one who drew around him a large circle of sincere friends.
Nathaniel S. Benton, to whom the editors and publishers of this vol- ume are so greatly indebted for valuable information preserved in a local history issued by him more than thirty years ago, was a native of New Hampshire, and resided in that State until he came to Little Falls, about 1816. He was born February 19, 1792. At the battle of Platts- burg, September, 1814, Mr. Benton served as a warrant officer of vol- unteers and received a commission in recognition of his good conduct on that occasion. At Little Falls he studied law in the office of George H. Feeter, and was admitted to practice in 1817. He served as justice of the peace at Little Falls several years, by appointment of the gov- ernor. About 1820, or 1821, he made an extended tour through the Western States in quest of a future home for the practice of his pro- fession, but failed to be suited and returned to Little Falls. After this he became a member of the law firm of Feeter & Benton, in which he continued several years, doing a respectable business. From 1821 to 1828 he held the office of surrogate of the county, and from 1833 to 1835 he was first judge of the county. In 1836 he was nominated by the Democratic party and elected State senator for a term of four years. Shortly before the expiration of the term he was appointed United States district attorney for the northern district of New York, and took part in the memorable McLeod trial. In 1846 he was appointed secre- tary of state, which office he held for two years. In 1856 he was ap- pointed to the office of canal auditor and held the position until 1868, when he retired from public life with impaired health and died June 19, 1869, aged seventy-seven years. At the time of his death he was senior warden of Emanuel Episcopal church. In all the various public stations held by him the duties were discharged with fidelity and with satisfaction to the public. These duties were so continuous that he was allowed
19
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little time to devote to his profession. Indeed, he was better adapted to discharge the duties which devolved upon him in his executive and official life than for the successful practice of law. He was not gifted with the qualities of a public speaker or of a popular advocate at the bar. While he was secretary of state he availed himself of the public records on file in the office to collect some of the materials for his his- tory of Herkimer county, which he published in 1856 His work is still very valuable for reference. Mr. Benton was a man of fine personal appearance, a good citizen and well esteemed wherever known. His wife was a daughter of Eben Britton, an early settler of Little Falls.
George H. Feeter was born in Herkimer county. His father was Col. William Feeter of revolutionary memory. He was educated at Fairfield Academy, studied law with Simeon Ford at Herkimer and settled in Little Falls for the practice of his profession in the year 1811, continuing in business there for over forty years and until his death, February 18, 1852. He had several successive law partners, among whom was Nathaniel S. Benton. Mr. Feeter was fairly versed in the law, and active in temperament, better adapted to the trial of issues before a jury, then to law issues before the court. He held the office of district attorney from 1825 to 1828 and discharged its dutics in a
creditable manner. Mr. Feeter was the local land agent for Mr. Ellice, the chief proprietor of large tracts of lands in and about Little Falls, and also acted for John Delancy, another non-resident proprietor of lands in this county. These agencies gave him business and influence, but were not a means of personal popularity. He was of social dispo- sition and hospitable in his home. In his early days he exercised a large influence in the municipal affairs of the village. Later, when the laying out and improvement of streets at the expense of owners of lots fronting on them became a part of the village policy, which had the effect, if it was not the design, to induce the non resident owners to sell out, his agency interests became hostile to those of the village authorities. When Mr. Feeter first settled in the practice of law at Little Falls the village was small. He grew up with the village, and his house with its hospitable associations, was a marked object of at- tention by both citizens and visitors of the place.
Lauren Ford was a nephew of Simcon Ford and several years his junior. He was a graduate of Union College, studied law in the office
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of his uncle at Herkimer and upon his admission to the bar in 1812, became his law partner, under the name of S. & L. Ford. This firm for quite a number of years stood foremost in the profession in this county. Lauren Ford was a man of good address and manner, cheerful and agreeable in conversation and social intercourse. He was well grounded in the principles of the common law and the law pertaining to real estate, and ready in their application. He was a fluent and ready speaker with but little action, emotional in temperament to a degree that he was not unfrequently moved to tears in addressing a jury. No man in the county was better known or more popular, and he was himself remarkable for his knowledge of the individual men of the county and of their family descent and affinities, and also for his acquaintance with the land titles and the patents under which they were held. He moved to Little Falls about 1840 and continued there in practice with fair suc- cess for many years. He was the candidate of his party at different times for State senator and representative in Congress, but was defeated for the reason that his political party (the Federal and later the Whig) was in the minority in the district. At a later period (1857) when his party gained the ascendency he was elected district attorney, which office he held to 1858, when he resigned, and George A. Hardin was appointed by Governor King to fill the vacancy, Mr. Ford removing to Brooklyn, where he died. Mr Ford held the office of surrogate by appointment from 1841 to 1845. He was moderate in his charges for professional services and made no attempt to make money by invest- ments for prospective rise in value.
William D. Ford was born in Herkimer county or came here early. He was educated at Fairfield Academy, studied law at Herkimer with Gaylord Griswold and Simeon Ford, and came to the bar in 1809. He established himself at Fairfield in the practice of his profession, where he remained until he removed to Watertown nine or ten years later. He was fairly well read as a lawyer and of good mental ability, but was not distinguished as an advocate before either court or jury, although equable and respectable. In politics he was a Democrat and was the recipient of a fair share of political honors from his party. He was a member of Assembly in the years 1816-17-18 from Herkimer county, during the last of which years he moved to Jefferson county and was in
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the next year elected to Congress. At Watertown he became law partner of David W. Bucklin and the firm carried on a successful prac- tice for some years, until Mr. Ford's death.
Elisha Powell Hurlbut was born in the town of Salisbury October 15, 1807. He was admitted to practice June 3, 1828, and had an office at Little Falls on the site where the chambers of Judge Hardin are now located. He removed to the city of New York in the year 1835 and practiced until 1847 when he was elected a judge of the Su- preme Court. In 1850 he was ex officio judge of the Court of Appeals, and several of his opinions delivered in that court appear in Vols. 3 and 4 of the New York Reports (3 and 4 Comstock), and they were written in a clear, terse style. He resigned the office by reason of impaired health and took up his residence in the town of Newport. In 1860 he removed to Bethlehem near Albany where he resided until his death, which occurred August, 1890. He was a descendant of Thomas Hurl- but who came from Scotland in 1635 and settled in the town of Weth- ersfield, Connecticut. Gansevoort Hurlbut, a son of Judge Hurlbut, is practicing law in Albany, and Catharine M. Ingham, the wife of Schuy- ler R. Ingham, is a niece of Judge Hurlbut, residing at Little Falls. He was an able lawyer and a useful judge. In 1856 he delivered several addresses in Little Falls with great clearness in his style and energy in his delivery, at times becoming sarcastic and eloquent.
Alexander Ilamilton Waterman was born in the town of Newport, November 6, 1825. After completing his legal studies and being ad- mitted to the bar, he opened an office in Little Falls where he continued practice until his death, which occurred October 8, 1856. He was married to Janette Ingham, the daughter of the late William Ingham, and left him surviving his son, George D. Waterman, secretary of the Henry Cheney Hammer Company and his daughter, Mrs. Irving E. Waters, now of Buffalo. He was studious and energetic in his profes- sion, and in 1855 was the attorney for the plaintiff in the memorable slander case of Snell vs. Snell, tried at the Herkimer Circuit, Hon. Ros- coe Conkling being associated with him as counsel. In this case a recovery was obtained of $1,000. The writer of this paragraph fre- quently measured swords with him in legal contests, and thereby learned to appreciate his ability, skill and great promise of a brilliant career, which was cut off by sickness and death.
EGraves
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E. S. Capron was a native of Onondaga county, N. Y., and became prominent in the bar of Herkimer county. From the year 1832 to 1847 he was a partner of Jarvis N. Lake, and the firm was among the fore- most legal practitioners of Little Falls. After the dissolution of this firm he was associated with Henry Link. In 1854 he made a trip to California where he gathered materials for a historical work on that State. Returning east he located and practiced in New York city and was subsequently appointed county judge by Gov. Myron H. Clark. At the expiration of the term he resumed practice and died about 1883 at the home of his son-in-law, Spencer S Coe, in Stamford, Conn.
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