Landmarks of Albany County, New York, Part 62

Author: Parker, Amasa Junius, 1843-1938, ed
Publication date: 1897
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason
Number of Pages: 1374

USA > New York > Albany County > Landmarks of Albany County, New York > Part 62

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Professor Howell was married on the 18th of August, 1868, to Miss Mary Catherine Seymour, daughter of Norman and Frances Hale (Metcalf) Seymour, of Mount Mor- ris, N. Y. They had one son, George Seymour Howell, who died at the close of his junior year in Harvard University, in March, 1891.

W. HOWARD BROWN.

W. HOWARD BROWN, son of Rev. Samuel R. Brown, D. D., was born in New York city April 27, 1852, and descends from one of the old and prominent families of Con- necticut. Dr. Brown, born in East Windsor, Conn., in 1812, was graduated from Yale College about 1833 and subsequently from the New York Theological Seminary, and was sent to Macoa and later to Hong Kong, China, under the British Morrison Educational Society. He remained there through all the dangers of the opium war, and brought home with him four Chinese boys, all of whom were graduated from Vale College and became, respectively, a Chinese minister at Washington, president of a large fleet of Chinese merchant steamers, Chinese consul-general at San Fran- cisco, and a practicing physician in Canton. The latter was a graduate of a medical college in Edinburgh, Scotland, and was the only native Chinese who ever practiced medicine among Europeans in the Orient. About 1859 Dr. Brown went to Kana- gawa, Japan, under the auspices of the Reformed Church Mission, and was the first chaplain of the American Legation in that country, the ports of which had just been opened to foreigners. He held this position for several years, and was also president of the Asiatic Society. He was the first to institute government schools in Japan, was chairman of the committee which translated the Bible into the Japanese lan- guage, and remained until he became the oldest European in that country. Return- ing to Orange, N. J., in 1878, he died in June, 1879, while on his way to attend a reunion of his class at Yale College. He married Miss Elizabeth Goodwin Bartlett, daughter of Rev. Shubael Bartlett, for fifty years a Congregational minister at Scan- tic, Conn. She died in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1890, leaving four children : Julia M., born in Macoa, China, now of Yokohama, Japan, the wife of J. Frederick Lowder, chief interpreter and stepson of Sir Rutherford Alcock; Robert Morrison Brown, born in Hong Kong, China, and now of New York city; W. Howard Brown, of Albany; and Harriet W., wife of Judge Samuel E. Williamson, of Cleveland, Ohio.

W. Howard Brown received his earlier education in Yokohama, Japan, where he became a fluent Japanese scholar as well as a thorough student of the English branches. While there he was for six months a guest of the captain of the British fleet engaged in making the admiralty charts of the coast of Japan. His residence in that enterprising country, with its Oriental customs and traditions, made a lasting impression upon his youthful mind and was productive of much good. Returning to America he finished his studies in the preparatory school for Yale College at Hart- ford, Conn., and then became the first interpreter to the officers of the Japanese prince, Satsuma, who were sent to the United States for the purpose of studying the English language and American customs and institutions. It was in this capacity that Mr. Brown's early training in Japan proved both useful and profitable. In 1876 he engaged in mercantile business in Albany and continued successfully for three years. In 1879, having directed his attention to the field of life insurance, he was made the manager of the Albany district of the Travelers Insurance Company, of Hartford, Conn., which position he has since filled with great credit and ability.

Mr. Brown has also been prominent in military affairs, in which he has long taken a deep interest. He joined the Tenth Regiment N. Y. N. G. in 1868 and served as private, corporal, and sergeant for twelve years. Later he passed successfully the competitive examinations for promotion to first lieutenant and quartermaster of the

battalion, which office he now holds. He is a director in the Marshall & Wendell Piano Forte Manufacturing Company (limited), has been prominent in the Young Men's Christian Association, and was for several years an officer and member of the First and Second Reformed churches and their Sunday schools, and is now a mem- ber of the last named church. In politics he is a Republican. He is vice-president of the Albany Musical Society, and a member of Masters Lodge, No. 5, F. & A. M., Capital City Chapter, No. 242, R. A. M., and Temple Commandery, No. 2, K. T.

In 1879 Mr. Brown was married, first, to Miss Saraphine de K. Townsend, of New York city, who died in 1888, leaving one son, Samuel R. He married, second, in November, 1895, Miss Kate Westcott Rider, of Brooklyn, N. Y.

BENJAMIN W. WOOSTER.

BENJAMIN W. WOOSTER was born in Albany county on the 24th of March, 1820, and is a son of David and Polly (Woodbury)Wooster, who came from New Hampshire to the county of Albany in 1816. He was liberally endowed with those traits of perse- verance and thrift which characterized the sons of New England parentage, and after receiving a good common school education became an apprentice at cabinet making, at which he served faithfully for four years, and for which he had strong natural tastes. His parents' limited means forced him in early youth upon his own resources, but with a determination at once rare and commendable he rapidly acquired great skill and won approval from all who knew him. Finishing his ap- prenticeship in 1843 he opened a small store in South Pearl street, Albany, where his close attention to business, his pluck, industry, and honorable dealing, aud the ex- cellent style and finish of his manufactured goods brought him success and substan- tial prosperity. Here he prosecuted a constantly increasing business for eight years, or until 1851, when he erected a four-story building at Nos. 57 and 59 South Pearl street to accommodate the growing demands of his trade. He enlarged the capacity of this structure from time to time, conducted his cabinet-making business with marked success, established a wide reputation as a manufacturer of the highest class of work, and devoted his energies and his mechanical skill to building up a trade not only in this section but in many of the Eastern States. He attained what he set out as a youth to accomplish, a foremost place as a manufacturer of artistic house- hold furniture. His work has always been noted for its beauty, durability, and ornamental design, and numerous specimens of it have for many years graced the finest homes, hotels, banks, offices, etc., in this as well as in other localities. His estublishment has long been the leading one in the furniture trade of Albany, where his active life has been spent. As a designer and decorator of private and public buildings Mr. Wooster has won the highest reputation, which is due largely to his love of the beautiful in art, his excellent judgment in appropriate and harmonious ornamentation, his long experience as a manufacturer, and his careful and constant oversight of his work. In July, 1889, he occupied the present handsome store at Nos. 36 and 38 North Pearl street, which was built by him for the sole use of the business.

While Mr. Wooster has devoted his time chiefly to his private business interests

B. W. WOOSTER.

he has nevertheless taken an active part in furthering the material welfare of the city of Albauy and is prominently identified with its growth and prosperity. As a citizen he has always been progressive, sustaining every movement which promised general benefit. He was one of the founders in 1871 of the Albany County Bank and became its vice-president, a position he held for seven years or until 1878, when he was elected president. He served in this capacity till 1891, when he resigned, leaving the institution as it now stands-one of the best, soundest, and most useful in the city. During his administration as president a savings bank became neces- sary to the other financial developments and was added, and the result of this move is a flourishing savings department with deposits aggregating over $400,000. The Albany County Bank was originally quartered in the old Tweddle Hall, where it was burned out. The board of directors then purchased the site and erected the present handsome bank building on the corner of State and South Pearl streets, where for over 200 years stood the historic Staats house, one of the earliest Dutch dwellings in Albany and the last to disappear. Many other offices of honor and trust have been offered to Mr. Wooster, but he has declined them, prefering to give his whole attention to his large furniture business, in which he has attained the highest degree of success. In 1878 he erected a handsome brick residence on the corner of State street and Western avenue, fronting Washington Park, and most beautifully furnished its interior with furniture of his own designing.

Mr. Wooster was married, first, in 1845, to Miss Mary E., daughter of Levi Steele, Albany, who died in the fall of 1860, leaving two daughters. In 1852 he married, second, Miss Katharine M., daughter of the late Thomas Wright, of Elmira, N. Y., and they have had six children, of whom four are living.

SAMUEL L. MUNSON.

SAMUEL LYMAN MUNSON descends, paternally and maternally, from the purest and earliest Puritan stock, his father's family settling in New Haven and his mother's, the Lymans, in Hartford, Conn., where they lived for several generations. His first American ancestor, Thomas Munson, came, it is supposed, from England in 1621, and was one of the founders of the New Haven colony. Mr. Munson's father, Garry Munson, of the eighth generation in this country from the pioneer Thomas, was a man of noble impulses, of remarkable industry, and of very considerable ability. He held several public offices, was a farmer, a wool dealer, and a manufacturer, and imparted to his children those sterling traits of character which have distinguished the family name. He married Harriet Lyman, a lineal descendant of Richard Lyman, another Puritan who, as early as 1635, was one of the little band that left Boston and founded the present city of Hartford, Conn. Her father, Samuel Lyman, was a colonel stationed at Boston in the war of 1812.

Samuel L. Munson was born in Norwich (now Huntington), Mass., June 14, 1844, was reared on the parental farm, and received his rudimentary education in the common schools of Huntington. When twelve years of age he entered Williston Seminary at Easthampton, Mass., where he pursued his studies for three years. He then became a clerk in a large dry goods store in Boston, but after an experience of

two years in mercantile life he was compelled on account of his health to return to the farm. In 1863 he came to Albany and obtained a situation as commercial trav- eler for Wickes & Strong, manufacturers of clothing, his territory lying principally in the West. In 1867 he resigned this position, in which he had met with unusual success, and forming a copartnership with J. A. Richardson and L. R. Dwight, under the firm name of Munson, Richardson & Co., established a linen collar man- ufactory, of which he became sole proprietor in 1869. Through Mr. Munson's able business management this enterprise proved successful from the start. It was founded upon a modest scale, but by rapid strides increased to immense proportions, and within a few years larger and more convenient accommodations became neces- sary. In 1884 he purchased the old Hudson Avenue Methodist church, which he re- modeled and enlarged for the manufacture of shirts, collars, cuffs, lace neckwear, etc. This building, which was opened and occupied by the business on December 21, 1885, is 140 by 68 feet and five stories high, and is equipped with the best ma- chinery and conveniences. Between 400 and 500 persons are employed, and the goods find a sale in almost every State in the Union as well as abroad. This was among the first industries of the kind started in Albany, and has grown until it is now one of the largest and most successful in the State, employing a thousand per- sons. In 1889 he erected another shirt factory at Cobleskill, N. Y.

Mr. Munson is a representative business man. He is a trustee and secretary of the Home Savings Bank, a trustee and chairman of the committee on manufactures of the Albany Chamber of Commerce, the original treasurer of The Pure Baking Powder Company, a trustee of the Madison Avenue Reformed church, and formerly a director of the National Exchange Bank. He is a member of the Sons of the Revolution, through his great-grandfather, Stephen Munson; a life member of the New England Society; and a member of the Fort Orange Club of Albany and the Colonial and Republican Clubs of New York. He is also prominently identified with several literary, Masonic, athletic, and social organizations of Albany, is a great lover of literature and collector of books, and has traveled quite extensively.

In 1868 Mr. Munson was married to Miss Susan B., daughter of Lemuel J. Hop- kins, of Albany, and they have four sons and two daughters: Harriet Lyman, Ed- ward Garry. Paul Babcock, Samuel Lyman, jr., Amy Treadwell, and Robert. The eldest son is associated with his father in business, the second is a member of the class of 1897 of Yale University, and the third, Samuel L., jr., is a student at Harvard University, class of 1900.

BENJAMIN MARSH.

BENJAMIN MARSH, son of Seymour and Mary (Gage) Marsh, of Oxford, N. H., was born in Palatine Bridge, N. Y., on the 10th of February, 1817. He inherited many sterling characteristics and received in early life a good commou school education, and the excellent qualities with which he was endowed were used for noble and use- ful ends. In 1832, when a lad of fifteen, he came to Albany and entered the employ of Chauncey johnson, one of the leading jewelers and watchmakers of the city on what was then South Market street, now Broadway. In 1838 he commenced business

T. HOWARD LEWIS.

for himself at the old location, which is now the printing house of J. Van Benthuy- sen, and subsequently moved to Douw's building, where he finally sold out to Henry Rowlands. About 1880 he resumed business at Nos. 79 and 81 North Pearl street, taking as his partner Frederick W. Hoffman, under the firm name of Marsh & Hoff- man. Here Mr. Marsh continued in the jewelry, watch and diamond trade until his death on March 28, 1896, when he was succeeded by Mr. Hoffman.

Mr. Marsh was one of the leading jewelers and representative business men of Albany, and throughout a long and successful career won the respect and confidence of his fellow citizens. His character, his integrity, and his business reputation were unsullied and above criticism. He was public spirited, kind, generous, and benevo- lent, and was highly esteemed by all who knew him. In his home and among his family he found his greatest enjoyment, and it was there that his best characteristics were displayed. He was first and last an honest man, a simple but noble citizen, and a friend whom every one revered. He was one of the oldest members of the Burgesses Corps, serving under Captain Bayeaux in the anti renters' little disturb- ance in the Helderbergs. He was also an exempt fireman, a member of Temple Lodge, No. 14, F. & A. M., and one of the founders of the Jagger Iron Company, of Albany. In politics he was first a Whig and then a Republican, but never accepted public office, though often urged to do so.

On October 5, 1848, Mr. Marsh was married to Miss Ruth Picket Camp, of Dur- ham, Conn., who died April 20, 1896, three weeks after the death of her husband. They are survived by four children.

T. HOWARD LEWIS.

IN this brief summary of points in the career of T. Howard Lewis, general agent at Albany of the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, it should be said, as excuse for any omission, that a biography of more pretension could best convey the lesson of his life of industry and intelligent management, which is full of instruc- tion to all. His career, though only fairly begun, shows that honesty, capacity, and power to " hustle" receive their reward at last, and in good measure. For the past twelve years he has been associated with the Mutual Life, and during that time has displayed much wisdom in the management of his affairs.

Mr. Lewis was born in Brooklyn, N. Y., November 6, 1869, and received his edu- cation in the schools of that city. Being desirous of entering commercial life he secured an appointment from the home office of the company in 1885, when but fif- teen years of age. His first duties consisted of running errands for the various departments of the company. He was advanced from time to time to various posi- tions in the company's service, and on January 1, 1893, at the age of twenty-three, was appointed a general agent of the company for Delaware, Virginia, and Eastern Maryland, with headquarters at Wilmington, Delaware. The Mutual Life never had a general agent in that territory before, and of his work in 1893 and 1894 the statistician of the company published in a report the following flattering statement relative to his efforts in that field for those two years:

" The Mutual Life record in Delaware under the the agency of T. Howard Lewis

is another illustration of what can be accomplished in the life insurance field by en- ergetic, intelligent, and faithful attention to the business of getting applications through competent solicitors. In two years the new business done has been increased to more than ten times as much as it was in 1892, while the insurance in force has been more than doubled. In 1894 the insurance issued was $1,944,500, and in 1892 it was $174,500. Thus the gain of issue in two years was $1. 770,000. December 31, 1894, the insurance in force was 82,730,000; in 1892 it was $1,266,360. The gain of insurance in two years was $1,464, 540.

"There are several interesting lessons connected with the Mutual Life's agency work in Delaware during the last two years that ought to be observed and utilized at this time. In 1892 this company did only nine per cent. of the total done by all the companies operating in the State; and the Equitable and New York Life both did a larger amount than the Mutual Life. In 1894 the Mutual Life did fifty-two per cent. of the total, twice as much as the Equitable, and six times as much as the New York Life. In 1892 the Mutual Life had only 16.5 per cent. of all the insurance in force in the State, and stood number four in the list of twenty companies, the Equi- table, the Penn Mutual, and the Provident Life and Trust being ahead. But in 1894 it was raised to the head of the list and held twenty-seven per cent. of the total in all companies, it being ahead of the Equitable by 8600,000, of the Penn Mutual by nearly $1,200,000, of the Provident Life and Trust by $1,300,000, and of the New York Life by $1,900,000. This business was obtained by legitimate soliciting meth- ods and push, and without controversy with other companies. The total new busi- ness done in the State was increased by $1,800,00 in two years, of which increase the Mutual Life secured ninety-eight per cent. The total insurance in force in all companies was increased by nearly $2,500,000, of which the Mutual Life secured three-fifths, and the balance was distributed among the smaller companies."

This remarkably large volume of business written in such a limited field resulted in the transfer of Mr. Lewis to a larger one in New York State, with headquarters in Albany, in January, 1895. He succeeded the old agencies of D. L. Boardman & Son and afterward Henry F. Boardman. This general agency is one of the oldest of the company, and since assuming charge of his new territory Mr. Lewis wrote during the year 1895 more than four times the amount of business written in 1894. This ratio has been proportionately increased during 1896. He has a large staff of special and local agents, and maintains a branch office in Troy, besides offices in smaller cities and towns throughout Eastern and Northwestern New York.

Mr. Lewis was married in April, 1895, to Miss Jennie B. Lindsay, of Wilmington, Delaware, daughter of David Lindsay, who is prominently identified with the large paper manufactory of the Jessup & Moore Paper Company, of Wilmington, New York, and Pniladelphia.

WILLIAM M. NEAD, M. D.

DR. WILLIAM M. NEAD is the second son of a family of three sons and two daugh- ters of Gabriel and Mary (Eckerman) Nead, both natives of Pennsylvania, and was born in the town of Lodi, Medina county, Ohio, November 30, 1859. He is of

Dutch descent. His father followed at different times the occupations of photogra- pher, stone mason, and meat dealer, and died in Lodi, Ohio, June 30, 1877, leaving a widow who still survives. Dr. Nead was graduated from the Lodi public and high schools, and for about a year taught the district school at Homerville, Ohio. Soon afterward he began the study of medicine in the office of Dr. A. E. Elliott, of Lodi. with whom he remained about two years, pursuing his studies nights and teaching school during the day to pay his expenses. In September, 1882, he entered the Cleveland Homeopathic Hospital College and was graduated therefrom with the de- gree of M. D. in March, 1884. During the next two years he was associated in prac- tice with Dr. W. G. Pope, of Keeseville, Essex county, N. Y. In 1886 he removed to Albany, where he has since practiced his profession with marked success, not only discharging every obligation which he had contracted for his education, but acquiring in the brief space of ten years a handsome competency. In the spring of 1895 he built his present residence and office at No. 205 State street.

Dr. Nead is a member of the medical staff of the Albany City Homeopathic Hos- pital; is a member and in 1895 was president of the Albany County Homeopathic Medical Society ; and has been a prominent member of the New York State Homeo- pathie Medical Society since 1891 and of the American Institute of Homeopathy since 1892. He is also a member and past chancellor of Chancellors Lodge No. 58, K. P. ; examining surgeon and past commander of Albany Tent No. 362, of the Maccabees; ex-senator of Albany Senate No. 641, Knights of the Ancient Essenic Order: member of Ancient City Lodge No. 452, F. & A. M. ; and a member and trustee of Trinity M. E. church.

On July 24, 1890, Dr. Nead was married to Miss Linnie M., daughter of Rufus Prescott, of Keeseville, Essex county, one of the largest furniture manufacturers and builders in Northern New York. They have two children: Marjorie Amanda and Prescott Eckerman.

DAVID C. FITZGERALD.

DAVID C. FITZGERALD, son of Maurice and Mary (Cregan) Fitzgerald, was born in Limerick, Ireland, June 8, 1868, and is a lineal descendant of one of the most dis- tinguished Irish families (the Geraldines), having among his ancestors men whose biographies are among the brightest glories of Ireland's history.

The family seat of the branch of the great Geraldine family, of which the object of this sketch is a descendent, has been established in Limerick since early in the fourteenth century. Mr. Fitzgerald completed his preliminary education in the Royal University of Ireland, Dublin, where, in 1888, the degree of Bachelor of Arts was conferred on him. In 1890 he received the degree of Barrister at Law at Oxford, after which he seriously considered entering service in the British army, for which he had studied, until attracted by the world-wide fame of the Albany bar, with several prominent members of which he was already on close acquaintance, he settled in this city, and in 1891 was admitted to the bar of New York State, having previously in 1886 declared his intention of becoming a citizen of the United States.

His career as a student was particularly brilliant and distinguished him as a young

man of extraordinary intellectual powers and oratorical ability, which his distin- guished achievements at the bar and in public life, since his advent into the busines world, has more than confirmed. He has an extensive foreign legal practice, in connection with which he travels extensively in both hemispheres, and has success- fully handled many cases involving millions of dollars, showing himself, on every occasion, an able and successful lawyer and a brilliant orator. In politics he is a Democrat, not of the partisan type but on principle, and has on several occasions been honored by his party to which he has rendered invaluable services.

He is of athletic mould with an indomitable will and a vigorous constitution, and the possessor of numerous trophies of victories won by him in the athletic arenas of his college days; he is quite an equestrian and has been the hero of several life-saving incidents, in a manner that has made conspicuous his brave and generous nature and gained him the love and esteem of his fellow citizens.

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Landmarks of Albany County, New York, Part 62

Author: Parker, Amasa Junius, 1843-1938, ed Publication date: 1897 Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason Number of Pages: 1374

Author: Parker, Amasa Junius, 1843-1938, ed
Publication date: 1897
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason
Number of Pages: 1374