USA > New York > Monroe County > Rochester > History of Rochester and Monroe county, New York, from the earliest historic times to the beginning of 1907, Vol. II > Part 55
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world offered greater advantages and he engaged in the manufacture of shoes with the old firm of Churchill & Company. A little later he was in the foundry business and architectural works of the firm of Little, Hughes & Rowe. They enjoyed a liberal patronage and Mr. Little was interested in the business for a number of years or until 1888, when he decided to retire from active life. In 1875 he erected a spacious and comfortable home, where he has since lived with the exception of a few years.
Francis W. Little was married in Rochester to Miss Caroline Hunter, who died leaving a daugh- ter, Mrs. Benjamin O. Hough, of New York city, who now has three children. The second wife of Mr. Little was Miss Emily V. Cooke, of Brook- lyn, New York.
Politically Mr. Little has always been an ardent supporter of the republican party but never held office, although often solicited to do so. During the forty-eight years of his residence in Rochester he has been a prime factor in all that contributes to the city's prosperity. Assured that sound manu- facturing enterprises are large contributors to that result, he has taken a great interest in establishing and promoting those with which he has been con- nected. He possesses, nevertheless, marked liter- ary taste and has been especially interested in the study of Shakespeare. He has one of the finest collections of Shakespearean volumes and for sev- eral seasons has conducted classes for ladies and gentlemen in Shakespearean studies. For ten years he has been associated with Mrs. Little in conducting a select private school limited to twen- ty-five pupils. In the school special attention is given to individual work and the institution is regarded as one of the most excellent finishing schools in this part of the state. A man of strong intellectuality, while his industrial and manufac- turing interests made heavy claim upon his time, he always found opportunity for reading and re- search and has kept in touch with the best think- ing men of the age.
HORACE B. HOOKER.
Horace B. Hooker, senior member of the firm of H. B. Hooker & Son, general contractors in pav- ing, cement and sewer work, was born December 7, 1837, in Rochester, his parents being Horace and Helen (Wolcott) Hooker, both of whom were natives of Windsor, Connecticut, the former born July 5, 1794, and the latter on the 19th of March of the same year. The paternal grandfather. James Hooker, was a native of Hartford, Connec- ticut, and married Mary Chaffee, whose ancestors came from England. James Hooker was of the
H. B. HOOKER.
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HISTORY OF ROCHESTER AND MONROE COUNTY.
fifth generation in the line of descent from Rev. Thomas Hooker, who landed at Boston, September 3, 1633, and with a company of sixty people founded Hartford. The maternal grandfather of Horace B. Hooker was Erastus Wolcott, of Wind- sor, Connecticut, and both grandfathers served in the Revolutionary war.
Horace B. Hooker acquired his preliminary edu- cation in the public schools and afterward at- tended the Collegiate Institute of Rochester to his seventeenth year, when he took up the study of engineering and architecture with the firm of Bis- sell & Kaufman. During this time he was also employed in the engineering department on the construction of the suspension bridge at Rochester and on the construction of the Main street bridge of this city. Later he entered the employ of Hooker, Farley & Company, nurserymen, and sub- sequently became a member of the firm. In 1861, in connection with James W. Hooker, he raised a company for the Eighth New York Cavalry but before going to the front was commissioned in a Missouri regiment of engineers and served three vears in the west and southwest, or until Novem- ber, 1864, holding the rank of lieutenant.
Following the close of hostilities Horace B. Hooker formed a partnership with Elon Hunting- ton and conducted an extensive nursery business under the name of H. B. Hooker & Company until 1878. During the succeeding two years he was engaged in the manufacture of shoes, after which he sold the business and entered upon the work of general contracting, including street paving, ce- ment work, sewers, water works, reservoirs, etc. From the beginning of his connection with this line of activity he has enjoyed a large business in Rochester and throughout the state, having now a very extensive patronage, which brings to him a gratifying annual income. About nine years ago he admitted his son, Harry M. Hooker, to an in- terest in the business, which has since been con- ducted under the firm style of H. B. Hooker & Son.
In 1860 Mr. Hooker was married to Miss Susan Huntington, a daughter of Elon Huntington and a native of Rochester, where she was born and reared. Her education was acquired in the public schools here and in the Utica Female Seminary. By this marriage there have been horn five sons and two daughters: Albert H., who is a manu- facturing chemist of Chicago; Margaret Hunting- ton, an artist of Rochester; Elon H., president of the Development & Funding Company of New York; Harry M., who is in partnership with his father; Paul, a civil engineer of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; Horace Willard, manager of a branch of the Development & Funding Company at Niagara Falls; and Jeanette H., who is a graduate of Vassar.
The parents are members of the Second Baptist church and are well known in this city socially, while their own home is the scene of many a de- lightful social gathering. Mr. Hooker belongs to the Columbia Rifle Club and to Myron Adams Mounted Post, G. A. R. In politics he is a repub- lican but is not active politically, preferring home life to the turmoil of politics. In business he has manifested that perseverance which always ulti- mately reaches the objective point and his firm' determination and enterprise constitute the basis of a most gratifying success.
EDWARD J. BEIR.
Edward J. Beir is secretary and treasurer of the Moore & Beir Company, wholesale clothiers, and has attained to his present position by reason of marked enterprise, competent management and keen discrimination in commercial affairs. He was horn in the city of Rochester, August 1, 1861, his parents being Joseph and Caroline (Lindauer) Beir, both of whom were natives of Germany. They came to Rochester about 1839 and for many years the father figured actively and prominently in commercial circles, having been a member of one of its oldest firms, Beir & Stern, retail and wholesale dealers in dry goods and men's furnish- ing goods. After a residence here of almost six decades he passed away on the 25th of September, 1898. In the family were nine children, but only three are living: Mrs. L. W. Moore, Isaac and Edward J.
The last named entered the public schools at the usual age and passed through the successive grades until he had completed the high school course in 1880. Following his graduation, he entered the University of Rochester, close of 1884. He then entered the employ of Strauss, Moore & Beir. where he made it his chief object to master every detail of the business and thus increased his use- fulness and efficiency. He was admitted to the firm in 1890. The company was re-organized in 1904 and Mr. Beir was made secretary and treas- urer. His ability found ample scope in this po- sition and he has contributed in no small degree to the recent success of the business.
On the 6th of January, 1885, Mr. Beir was married to Miss Pauline Mvers, of Schenectady. New York, and they have one child, Claudia R. Mr. Beir has spent his entire life in Rochester and has occupied but three houses during this period, his present home being at 199 Oxford street. He has attained high rank in Masonry, having taken the thirty-second degree of the Scot- tish rite. He belongs to the Masonic Club and to the Eureka Club and is well known in political
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HISTORY OF ROCHESTER AND MONROE COUNTY.
circles, being interested in municipal affairs and in the growth and development of the city. Hc was appointed by Mayor Rodenbeck a member of the park board and has served on this for more than five years. He is now acting as a member of the Seneca park committee and purchasing committee and his services on the board have been most acceptable, constituting an important element in the recent improvement of the park system. Those interests which are a matter of civic virtue and civic pride receive his endorsement, and his co-operation can be always counted upon to fur- ther any movement for the public good.
GARRETT ROBERTS.
Garrett Roberts, who is still living in Hamlin on the same farm which he has occupied for thirty- five years, was born December 16, 1843, in the town of Chili, Monroe county. He received a lim- ited education in the district schools, but was trained in the practical work of the farm during his boyhood, gaining a knowledge thereby which was perhaps worth more to him than the the- oretical study which he might have acquired at a later period in the schools. The boys of this age were not conscious of being deprived by having to assist their parents. That held an accepted place in their lives.
Garrett Roberts was married to Anna Augusta Wright, who was born July 10, 1845, in the town of Hamlin. They are the parents of two children : Myron, born in Hamlin, September 18, 1873; and Carrie, born in Hamlin in 1875. Mr. Roberts is a republican in politics. His life is so modest and unassuming that only his most intimate friends know of his sterling traits of character. They ap- preciate him as a man who is true in every rela- tion of life, faithful to every trust and seeking only that which contributes to the public good.
His son, Myron Roberts, spent his boyhood days in the district schools and in work in the fields of his father's farm. In 1883 he commenced work for Horton & Company, who conducted a general store. Four years later he started out in business for himself, conducting for several years a general produce house. In 1899 he added to his other business a department for the sale of harness and agricultural implements. In 1903 he sold out the harness business and added a coal yard, which he is still conducting. He is doing an extensive busi- ness in all kinds of produce and has the advan- tage of owning a large stone cold storage building for his fruits. His farm in Hamlin consists of one hundred and eighty-seven acres, on which he has two thousand peach trees, two thousand three hundred pear trees and four hundred cherry trees.
On the 4th of April, 1901, Myron Roberts was united in marriage to Martha Curtis, who was born in Parma, October 7, 1875. To their union has been born one child, Louis C., whose birth oc- curred at Parma, March 24, 1905.
Myron Roberts is a republican in his political views and in fraternal affiliations is a member of the Rochester lodge of Masons, No. 660, and of the Elks. His wife is a member of the Methodist church, to which he is always ready to give his financial support. He was a member of the county central committee for two years, having been elect- ed in the fall of 1904. In the following year he was elected supervisor and is now serving his first term, having received a plurality of fifty-one votes. This was a hard contest and what is known as a three cornered fight, consisting of a democratic candidate and an independent candidate. He is also a member of the committee on the Pioneer
Picnic Association. His natural endowments make him a success wherever he goes. He has a warm heart, a gentle manner and quiet courtesy which easily make his friends at home in his pres- ence. Like his father, he is much respected and enjoys the confidence of the people, as is evidenced by the positions of trust to which they have elected him.
HOSEA T. COVELL.
Hosea T. Covell is numbered among the enter- prising and progressive agriculturists of Monroe county, operating three hundred and two acres of land in Sweden township, of which one hundred and thirty-two acres is comprised in the home place. He is a native son of Monroe county, his birth having occurred in Ogden, September 17, 1835. His parents, Edward and Rhoda Covell, were farming people of Ogden, his father having settled there at a very early date. He was born in Glastonbury, Connecticut, January 10, 1790, and removed with his parents to Vermont, where he remained until he reached the age of twenty- five years and was then united in marriage to Miss Mary Gilman, the date of their marriage being September 14, 1815, after which he took his bride to the new district of western New York, locating on a farm in the southwest part of the town of Ogden, where but few settlements had been made. His wife opened a school in her home, where the children of the neighborhood, numbering but seven or eight, received instruction. She became the mother of three children, but only one survives- Mary. On the 11th of June, 1822, the wife and mother passed to her final reward, and on the 12th of January, 1824, Mr. Covell was married again, his second union being with Rhoda Town, of
MYRON ROBERTS.
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HISTORY OF ROCHESTER AND MONROE COUNTY.
Ogden. For many years they traveled life's jour- ney happily together, but in March, 1864, she, too, passed away, and of the five children born of this marriage only two are now liivng: Hosea T. and Ed. The father was married a third time, this union, with Mrs. Harriet Terry, being celebrated- in March, 1866. He was very prominent in the community where he resided, being interested in the welfare and progress of his section of the state to the extent that his fellow townsmen, rec- ognizing his worth and ability, called him to of- fices of honor and trust, including that of super- visor and assessor. He was likewise a prominent member of the Christian church, and contributed liberally to the erection of the building and to the support of the denomination. He was numbered among the old and prominent pioneer settlers of Monroe county and passed away when he had reached the very venerable age of ninety-three years.
Hosea T. Covell, the youngest of the two sur- viving sons born of his father's second marriage, was reared to agricultural pursuits on the old homestead and acquired his education in the dis- trict schools near his father's home, and at Anti- och College at Yellow Springs, Ohio. He as- sisted in the operation of the old home farm until the time of his marriage on the 15th of June, 1864, on which date Martha Adelaide Comstock became his wife. Following their marriage they took up their abode on his father's farm, which he operated for twenty years, or until the father's death, when they removed to Sweden in 1885 and took charge of the old Comstock homestead, com- prising one hundred and thirty-two acres of land, which has been in possession, of the Comstock fam- ily since the time of its settlement by Captain Ansel Comstock, the paternal grandfather of Mrs. Covell. He was born in Lynn, Connecticut, and married Betsy Jewett, after which they located on this farm. It was then a dense wilderness and it was no uncommon sight to see bears roaming around through the timber or along the roadside. His father, Abner, the paternal great-grandfather of Mrs. Covell, was born in Connecticut in 1762, and was there married to Eunice Goodspeed, by whom he had nine children, Julius, Betsy, Ansel, Laura, Emma, Harry, Erastus, Eunice and George, all of whom were born in that state but are now deceased. The death of Abner Comstock occurred in 1845, when he had reached the advanced age of eightv-three years. Harry Jewett Comstock, father of Mrs. Covell, was born in Connecticut, as above stated, in 1806. He wedded Mary Peters Loomis, on the 20th of May, 1834, and to them were born four children: Jane Amelia, who was born June 24. 1838, and became the wife of Captain James B. Root, who passed away in Susanville, California, on the 5th of September, 1903, Mrs. Root, now residing with our subject
and his wife; Martha A., now Mrs. Covell; Caro- line Goodspeed, who was born July 6, 1843, and died August 4, 1865; and Helen Josephine, who was born February 13, 1847, and makes her home in Manchester, Connecticut.
In addition to operating the home farm of one hundred and thirty-two acres, Mr. Covell also op- erates another tract of two hundred acres, which constitutes the old William Root farm and was in- herited by his wife. Here he engages in raising the cereals best adapted to soil and climate and each year gathers good harvests, for the land is very productive and he is practical and progres- sive in his manner of agricultural pursuits. He is thus carrying on business on an extensive scale and is numbered among the prosperous men of Sweden township.
Unto our subject and his wife have been born five children : Harry Edward, who was born Jan - uary 13, 1866, and died June 23, 1871; George D., who was born October 18, 1867, and died Jan- uary 25, 1869; Mary Evelyn, who was born May 21, 18:0, and who on the 25th of February, 1891, became the wife of Dr. George E. Locke, a leading dentist of Brockport, by whom she has two chil- dren, Marion Covell, who was born July 12, 1895, and Gilbert Elicia, who was born October 12, 1899; Leah Arletta, who was born February 19, 1873, and was educated in Brockport Normal; and Rutherford B. H. Covell, who was born March 18, 1876.
Mr. Covell gives his political support to the re- republican party and takes an active and helpful interest in local affairs. He was deputy sheriff three years, constable three years, and a member of the county committee two terms. He has been asked repeatedly to run for supervisor, and always refused. He and his wife are representatives of old and prominent pioneer families of Monroe county, the names of Covell and Comstock having long been associated with its development and progress and by reason of this and their cordial manner they are popular among their many friends.
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NICHOLAS L. BRAYER.
Nicholas L. Brayer has spent his entire life in Rochester. He was born on the 4th of October, 1849, near Mechanics Square. The embryonic proportions of the city at that time bore little resemblance to the present metropolis, which in the course of years has become a commercial and industrial center, its ramifying interests reach- ing out to all parts of the country. The passing years, too, have witnessed his gradual advance- ment and business growth and today he is one of the most prominent contractors of Rochester.
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HISTORY OF ROCHESTER AND MONROE COUNTY.
His father, Jacob Brayer, came to this city from Alsace-Loraine, his native district, in the year 1843, and worked in the Western Car Shops for the New York Central Railroad at a time when the railroad company had nothing but strap iron rails. He was an active factor in the early his- tory here, being connected with many events which shaped the policy and molded the develop- ment of the city during the middle of the nine- teenth century. He died about twenty-seven years ago and was long survived by his wife, who passed away in 1906. She bore the maiden name of Catherine La Chauder and was also a native of Alsace. In their family were eleven children, nine of whom yet survive.
The public and parochial schools of Rochester afforded Nicholas L. Brayer the educational priv- ileges which he enjoyed and which equipped him for life's practical and responsible duties. Soon after he left school he entered the jewelry busi- ness as an employe of Charles Walters, then 'lo- cated where the John Burns block stood, now the Elwood building. Subsequently Mr. Brayer was engaged in the grocery business with Nicholas Kase for five years. He began a contracting business thirty years ago and has since gained much more than local prominence in street and sewer contracting. He built the Court street bridge and has done much to improve the streets of Rochester. His business has attained to mam- moth proportions, as is indicated by the fact that employment is now furnished to from two hun- dred to five hundred men, according to the sea- son. Mr. Brayer has made a thorough study of street and sewer contracting and is fully ac- quainted with the great scientific principles which underlie his work. In all he does he manifests system and thoroughness, combined with a busi- ness integrity which prompts him to meet fully every obligation of a financial nature that de- volves upon him.
In 1871 Mr. Brayer was united in marriage to Miss Catherine Holtz of Rochester, a daughter of Peter and Catherine Holtz. They now have five children: Mrs. Alice Fromm of Rochester; Edward F. and Arthur, who are engaged in busi- ness at Auburn, New York; Frederick J., who is in the hardware business ; and Bertha M., who is in her father's office. The parents and children are communicants of the Holy Family (Catholic) church and they reside at No. 828 Jay street, in a beautiful brown-stone house. Mr. Brayer is a member of the Whist and Driving Clubs, of St. Francis Society and of the Maccabees, but he does not display that devotion to club life which many manifest, finding greater pleasure and comfort at his own fireside in the midst of family and friends. He has always been a resident of Rochester and has witnessed its growth from a small town to a city of metropolitan proportions and business
conditions. As the years have passed he has borne his part in the work of development and advancement and has been especially active through his business connections with the im- provement of the city streets. It has been through personal merit and capability that he has gained a position of distinction in connection with in- dustrial circles and his worth is uniformly ac- knowledged by all who have had business or social relations with him. At the age of fifty-eight Mr. Brayer is an alert, active business man who can look back on a career of large accomplish- ment, and forward to a future secure in the honor and respect of his fellows.
FREDRICK H. RAPP.
Fredrick H. Rapp, the son of Fredrick and Augusta (Beutler) Rapp, was born in Rochester, March 28, 1859, where he resided until 1865, when he removed with his parents to Rush, New York, residing there until 1878, attending the district school and following the vocation of a farmer. In the spring of 1878 he removed to Ellsworth, Kansas, and was for two years identi- fied with the interests of that rapidly growing community.
Returning to New York state and Rochester in 1881, Mr. Rapp turned his attention to the carpenters' trade, which for a number of years he followed in the employ of others, while since 1890 he has been doing contract and construc- tion work on his own account. He began busi- ness for himself as a member of the firm of Rapp & Hill, which connection was continued for six years, subsequent to which time Mr. Rapp was alone in business until 1904, when he admitted J. H. Schoenheit to a partnership under the firm name of F. H. Rapp & Company, with offices at "20 Granite building, this city. In his career he has been identified with some of the best build- ings in the city, prominent among which are the West high school, Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburg Railway Company's office building, the Gleason works, the Haloid Company's building and nu- merous others.
In 1882 Mr. Rapp was married to Miss Nina Bernice Hurlbut, daughter of Samuel D. and Catherine (Eckert) Hurlbut. Their family numbers two children: Clara Marguerite and Elizabeth Marion. A third daughter, Florence Juliette, died in infancy.
Mr. Rapp is prominent in fraternal circles, be- ing a member of Yonnondio lodge, No. 163, F. & A. M .: Hamilton chapter, R. A. M .; Monroe
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HISTORY OF ROCHESTER AND MONROE COUNTY.
commandery, No. 12, K. T .; and Damascus Tem- ple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; also of Roclı- ester Tent, No. 80, K. O. T. M. His political endorsement is given to the republican party, but while he is never remiss in citizenship and is always loyal to the interests of his native city, his time and energies have been chiefly devoted to his business affairs with the result that the firm of F. H. Rapp & Company is now among the leading construction companies of the city.
CHESTER DEWEY, D. D., LL. D.
Chester Dewey, at the time of his death emeritus professor in the Universtiy of Rochester, was in two respects a representative man. He was not only a typical teacher, but he also held a dis- tinguished position among the few who at an early day cultivated and organized the study of natural science in America. In these two relations we propose to speak of his life and labors.
Mr. Dewey was born in Sheffield, Berkshire county, Massachusetts, October 25, 1784. His father was a man of strong character and clear head, who seems to have had the will and the ca- pacity to give his son a most symmetrical training, both moral and intellectual. In this work the father was aided by a wife of singular piety, cheer- fulness and moral excellence. It was doubtless to these early formative influences that Dr. Dewey owed much of that moral completeness which adorned the whole of his subsequent life. After a young manhood spent in alternate labor on the farm and study in the common schools, he fitted himself to enter the college at Williamstown, Massachusetts, in his eighteenth year. He gradu- ated in 1806, taking rank as a scholar among the first in his class. During his residence in college he became the subject of those deep religious con- victions by which he ever after ordered his entire life. In 1807 he was licensed to preach by the Berkshire Congregational Association. After teaching and preaching a few months at Stock- bridge and Tvringham, Massachusetts, he was ap- pointed a tutor in Williams College. After two vears' service in this capacity he was elected (at the age of twenty-six) professor of mathematics and natural philosophy. He held this position until 1827. a period of seventeen vears. During this time the college was poor and, of necessity, a heavy burden of labor and responsibility rested upon the officers of instruction. Among these Dr. Dewey bore a distinguished part. In times of con- fusion and internal disorder his influence over the students is said to have been most salutary and powerful. According to the custom of the times,
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