Landmarks of Monroe County, New York : containing followed by brief historical sketches of the towns of the county with biography and family history, Part 56

Author: Peck, William F. (William Farley), b. 1840; Raines, Thomas; Fairchild, Herman LeRoy
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: Boston : Boston History Co.
Number of Pages: 1160

USA > New York > Monroe County > Landmarks of Monroe County, New York : containing followed by brief historical sketches of the towns of the county with biography and family history > Part 56

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LANDMARKS OF MONROE COUNTY.

ALFRED WRIGHT.

ALFRED WRIGHT, perfumer, was born in Avon, N. Y., November 5, 1830, and fin- ished his education at Genesee Wesleyan Seminary in Lima. Coming to Rochester in 1850 he first engaged in the hardware and gas fixture business, to which he later added that of building the first rosin gas works in Western New York. He con structed a large number of these works throughout this part of the State, as at that time they were in general demand. The business, however, proved unprofitable and Mr. Wright went to Oil City, Pa., arriving there during the first flush of the great oil excitement. He engaged in an allied business to that of the gas works-that of handling and selling oil-well tubing, fixtures, etc., and through the fine quality of his goods secured an enormous trade, which he continued until the big fire of 1865, when he returned to Rochester. In 1866 he began the study and manufacture of per- fumery, a business in which he became the foremost representative in America, his factory at the corner of West avenue and Willowbank place being the best and most complete establishment of the kind in the world. He probably acquired a wider reputation and enjoyed a more extensive influence in his line than any similar manu- facturer in any country, but it all came by degrees, by perseverance and continued effort, and by steadfastness of purpose. He was practically a pioneer in the busi- ness, and engaged in it at a time when perfumery was almost wholly imported. "In a country where few distinguish between crude smells and artistic perfumes," he said, "I shall make the artistic. I shall wait for the most unmercantile class of mer- chants-the druggists-to sell them: because the druggist cares more for quality than the average shopkeeper." He waited, but finally the highest degree of success crowned his efforts. He accumulated a fortune and died, widely respected and as widely known, Jannary 18, 1891. Since then his sons, Alfred G. and John S. Wright, who had been reared under the influence of the establishment, have ably conducted the business.

Mr. Wright was a man whose honesty and probity were never questioned. Meet- ing with reverses in the earlier part of his career and accumulating a fortune in later life, he conscientiously discharged every obligation to the full satisfaction of all with whom he had ever had business dealings. He always took a keen interest in public affairs and was a trusted friend and counsellor of the Republican party, but he de- clined official honors and never became a politician. For eight years he was chair- man of the Republican Business Men's Committee. He was also a member of the Chamber of Commerce, the Rochester Park Commission, and the Masonic fraternity, a director in the Commercial Bank, a trustee of the Mechanics' Savings Bank, the Rochester Electric Light Company, the City Hospital, and the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary at Lima, vice-president of the Humane Society, and president of the board of trustees of the Brick church. He was charitable to a fault, and liberally sup- ported institutions and objects which met his approval.

Mr. Wright was married, first, in 1853, to Miss Maria E. Goold, daughter of Horace O. Goold, of Lyndonville, N. Y. She died October 1, 1859, leaving one son, Alfred Goold Wright, born January 24, 1856. His second wife, Mary Jeanne Hunter, daughter of Daniel Hunter, of Orleans county, whom he married in 1864, died Janu- ary 8, 1877, leaving three children: Marian Hunter Wright, John Sears Wright, and Margaret Jeanne Wright. February 13, 1879, he married, third, Miss Mary Dean

Ceefred Wright

BIOGRAPHICAL.

Butterfield, daughter of Hon. Martin Butterfield, a prominent citizen of Palmyra, N. Y., and at one time congressman from that district, who survives him. Alfred G. Wright was married on April 5, 1879, to Miss Cora Hall, daughter of Jonathan O. Hall, a pioneer of Rochester and for many years a prominent liveryman here. They have three children: Mary Dean, Corinne Hall, and Ethel Amelia.

GEORGE A. GOSS.

GEORGE A. Goss was born in the town of Pittsford, Monroe county, N. Y., March 3, 1834. His grandfather, John Goss, a native of Schoharie county, came to Pitts- ford in 1816 and for a time kept tavern on his farm; he married Mary Lamont, whose family were early settlers of Schoharie, and died at Allan's Creek in Brighton in 1847; his father, Ephraim Goss, served throughout the Revolutionary war and was a gallant and successful soldier.

Ephraim Goss, youngest child of John and father of George A., was born in Scho- harie county in 1806, was educated and reared in the Genesee valley, taught school several terms, and studied law with Ira Bellows, of Pittsford. Admitted to the bar in 1831 he practiced his profession in that village until his death in June, 1877, except a few periods of interruption when official duties called him elsewhere. He was an old line Whig and then a Republican, and throughout life took an active part in political affairs. In 1837 he was elected county clerk and served one term; after- ward he was justice of sessions for several years and for thirty years officiated as jus- tice of the peace. In 1860 and 1861 he served as State senator from this district and in the Senate was chairman of the committee on internal affairs of towns and counties. He was also supervisor of Pittsford several years, chairman of the board two years, and prominently identified with all that concerned the public welfare. He was al- ways a leading member and generous supporter of the Pittsford Presbyterian church, of which he was long the treasurer and for many years served as an elder. In 1840 he located on the place now occupied by George A., and at that time owned a farm of about seventy-five acres adjoining. He married Margaret Porter, who was the mother of his five children: George A., Caroline C., wife of Charles McLouth, a prominent lawyer of Palmyra, N. Y .; Chauncey P., treasurer and manager of the Scoville Manufacturing Company, of Waterbury, Conn .; Mary E., who died in Waterbury, Conn., in 1874; and John Henry, who died in 1858, aged five years.

George A. Goss received his education in the public schools of Pittsford and Roch- ester and remained on the farm until the age of twenty-five, when he engaged in the commission business as a dealer in grain, coal, lumber, etc., at Fairport. He continued in that for several years and then went to Waterbury, Conn., where he was associated with the Waterbury Brass Company, of which he was successively traveling representative, and secretary. He returned to Pittsford in 1870 and has resided there ever since, looking after and settling estates in the capacity of admin- istrator, executor, etc. On January 25, 1882, he married Miss Kate Billinghurst, daughter of Henry Billinghurst, of Pittsford.

Mr. Goss has been for many years actively identified with the Republican party and since 1870 has almost continuously held public office. He was town clerk for

LANDMARKS OF MONROE COUNTY.

three years and a justice of the peace about as many terms, and in 1872, 1873, and 1874, represented the district of Monroe in the Assembly, where he was chairman of the committee on villages during the three sessions. He was also a member of the sub-committee of the whole, the committee on roads and bridges, and the committee on expenditures of the executive department. In 1875 he was first elected supervisor and has held that office twelve years-1875, 1866, 1877, 1880, and 1888 to 1895 inclu- siue-being chairman of the board in 18.6, 1877 and 1889, chairman of the law com- mittee during several sessions, and in 1893 becoming a member of the building com- mittee of the new court-house. He was sergeant-at-arms of the Assembly in 1876 and 1877 and held the same post in the State Senate in 1884 and 1885, and for the past four years has been one of the inspectors of the Monroe County Penitentiary. In all these official capacities Mr. Goss has won distinction and respect, and few men enjoy a longer and better political record. He performed the duties of each position with ability, faithfulness, and good judgment. In town affairs he has always taken a lively interest, and educational matters have constantly found in him a firm friend and generous supporter. He early joined Northfield Lodge, No. 426, F. & A. M., of Pittsford, and is now a prominent member of Hamilton Chapter R. A. M., and Monroe Commandery K. T., of Rochester.

HENRY J. SNYDER.

HENRY J. SNYDER was born in Rochester, N. Y., July 2, 1855. Jacob Snyder, his father, was born in Germany in 1829, came to America in 1850, and settled in Roch- ester, where he engaged in house building. In 1858 he moved to Riga, Monroe county, where he has since followed the vocation of a farmer, settling upon his pres- ent place the same year and adding to it until he now owns 130 acres. He has al- ways taken a lively interest in town affairs and since his settlement there has been a prominent member of the Congregational church at Churchville. He married Rosa Wherlie, a native of Germany, but a resident of Rochester, and they have had chil- dren as follows: Henry J., Robert, Augustus J., Charles E., and Rosa Lena.

Henry J. Snyder, the oldest of these five children, received his education in the public schools of Riga and at Chili Seminary. Inheriting the thrifty characteristics of a worthy German ancestry, he early imbibed the qualities which make the success- ful and enterprising citizen, and upon leaving school engaged in the building busi- ness, which he continued about four years. He then started out for himself, becom- ing a general contractor and builder, and ever since has carried on a large and profitable business, which extends throughout the counties of Monroe and Genesee. He has erected a number of fine and imposing churches, notably the Catholic edifices at Churchville and Byron and the M. E. church at Chili, and also several large school houses, among them being the one at North Parma and the new brick struc- ture at Churchville, besides many residences in Rochester and elsewhere. Mr. Snyder is one of the largest contractors in the county outside the city, and in his chosen calling has met with unvarying success. He has also been heavily engaged in the retail lumber business in Churchville since 1889, and is one of the most exten- sive property owners in that village, where he became a permanent resident in 1883

Alphonso Collins

BIOGRAPHICAL.

In politics Mr. Snyder has for several years been an active and influential leader, and being a staunch Republican, like his father, has taken a prominent part in the councils of his party, which has often placed him in positions of trust. In 1883 he was elected a trustee of the village of Churchville and the following year was chosen president, and for ten consecutive years he filled one or the other of these offices. He was also a member of the Board of Education four years-one of which he served as president-prior to the spring of 1892, when he resigned to accept the election of supervisor. In 1893 he was unanimously re-elected supervisor, and since then he has been re-elected to that office without opposition, serving now on his fourth year. As a member of the board he has labored conscientiously for the best interests of his constituents and for the welfare of both town and county. He was one of two who made the equalization table for 1893 and has always been a member of various im- portant committees. For one year he was chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Monroe county court-house and jail, and at the expiration of that term was unani- mously elected by the Board of Supervisors as inspector of the Monroe County Peni- tentiary for four years beginning January 1, 1895. He has frequently been sent as a delegate to Republican State, district and county conventions, and for four years has been a member of the Republican County Committee from Riga. He is one of the mnost enterprising citizens of Western Monroe, and has always taken a keen in- terest in all movements which have for their object the betterment and advancement of his town and village. Being one of the heaviest tax-payers of the community he is intimately associated with its welfare and progress.

September 26, 1877, Mr. Snyder married Miss Louisa Moore, daughter of John Moore, of Batavia, N. Y., and they are the parents of four children: Helen Louise, Henry Frederick, Irene Elizabeth, and Florence.

ALPHONSO COLLINS.

ALPHONSO COLLINS, third child and second son of Calvin and Armida (Marsh) Collins, farmers and natives of Massachusetts, was born in the town of Sardinia, Erie county, N. Y., September 6, 1830, and moved with the family to Ogden, Monroe county, about 1840. He was reared on a farm until the age of nineteen, attending district schools winters, and then engaged in the grocery business at Niagara Falls with John Pierce, as Pierce & Collins He soon disposed of his interest there and turned his attention to railroading, accepting a position as brakeman on the New York Central and Hudson River line between Syracuse and Rochester. Ten months later he was promoted to conductor and remained on the road in all twenty-seven years, running principally between Syracuse and Buffalo. In 1852 he settled in Rochester, where he has ever since resided.

Mr. Collins resigned as conductor in 1879, and for one year was superintendent of the Irondequoit Bay Railroad from Rochester to Sea Breeze. In the meantime he had become interested in trotting and trotting stock, and in 1880, upon the reorgani- zation of the Rochester Driving Park Association, was made its secretary and treas- urer, which positions he has held ever since, being also a member of the board of directors. The success of this association is largely due to his untiring efforts and

LANDMARKS OF MONROE COUNTY.

efficient management. For more than fifteen years he has given it his undivided attention, attending personally to all the details of its meets, and ably directing its business with the noted horsemen of the country. He is a prominent member of Cyrene Commandery K. T., and for several years has officiated as vestryman of St. Paul's Protestant Episcopal Church of Rochester. In politics he is a Democrat, and for two years served as alderman of the First ward of Rochester, but excepting this has steadfastly declined public or political honors, preferring the more congenial field of business activities.

In June, 1855, Mr. Collins was united in marriage to Miss Persis Eldredge, daughter of Asel Eldredge, of Gates. She died in August, 1883, and in October, 1884, he mar ried her sister, Miss Ann Augusta.

LOUIS ERNST.

LOUIS ERNST was born in Zinsheim, near Baden Baden, Germany, July 19, 1825, and came with his parents to this country in 1831. His father at that time purchased a farm on the River road, about four miles south of Rochester, in the town of Brighton, Monroe county, and in the schools of the neighborhood the lad received his education. While yet a youth, however, he began to earn his own living as a clerk in the shoe store of John Wegman in Rochester. In 1845 he accepted a similar posi- tion in the hardware store of D. R Barton, where he remained for eleven years, and where he acquired a thorough knowledge of the business in which he was subse- quently so successful. In 1856, having accumulated a little capital, he commenced business for himself in partnership with Ferdinand Seifried, under the firm name of Ernst & Seifried. They rapidly built up a large hardware trade and laid the founda- tions for a thrifty enterprise. In 1869 Mr. Ernst sold his interest to his partner and opened another store, which he conducted alone until 1880, when he admitted his eldest son, Louis J. Ernst (who had been his clerk since 1863), as a partner under the style of Louis Ernst & Son. This firm continued an extensive business until 1891, when a stock company was organized with Mr. Ernst as president, the stockholders and other officers being his sons and daughters. He died suddenly at his home in this city on April 3, 1892, and since then Louis J. Ernst has officiated as president of the concern.

Mr. Ernst possessed a most commendable patriotism and a military spirit of rare purity. He entered the old State militia in 1849, and passed through all the grades to lieutenant-colonel of the 54th Regiment in 1860, a position he held for two years thereafter. He was a member of the war committee which in 1862 had charge of raising the 108th and 140th Regiments, as well as other small organizations for the county of Monroe, and was urgently solicited to take command of the 140th, but de- clined to do so. He finally consented, however, to accept the position of lieutenant- colonel if an officer already in the service, and who had had a military education, would become colonel. The suggestion was acted upon, and P. H. O'Rourke, a graduate of West Point, was so appointed. Colonel O'Rourke was then at the front and remained there, and the active work of organizing the regiment and taking it to the seat of hostilities devolved upon Lieutenant-colonel Ernst. In fact he commanded

BIOGRAPHICAL.

the 140th nearly all the time he was in the service, Colonel O'Rourke being frequently detailed as brigade commander. Colonel Ernst participated with his regiment in the battles of Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville and, Gettysburg, where Colonel O'Rourke was killed, and immediately after the latter was unanimously elected colonel by the officers of the organization, but declined. the honor in favor of Col. George Ryan, a graduate of West Point, on account of business interests at home requiring his prompt attention. As soon as his resignation was accepted he returned to Rochester.

Mr. Ernst was endowed with business qualifications of a high degree, and through- out life took a prominent part in the material prosperity of the city. In 1869 he was appointed by Gov. Reuben E. Fenton as one of the managers of the Western House of Refuge (now the State Industrial School) at Rochester and held that position until he resigned in 1885. He was one of the originators of the Rochester German Insur- ance Company, and served as a member of its board of directors from its organiza- tlon till his death, being its president in 1875 and 1876, and declining a re-election to that office on account of business duties, but accepting the vice-presidency instead. He was also a director in the East Side Savings Bank from its inception in 1869 until his death in 1892. When the German American Bank was organized in 1875 he be- came a member of its board of directors and continued in that capacity during the remainder of his life. He was a member of the Memorial Committee having charge of the erection of the soldiers' monument, and at the time of his decease was com- mander of the Veteran Brigade. During his entire career he manifested a patriotism which sprung from the fires of a noble heart; he was a soldier and a soldier's friend ; a loyal citizen, a wise counsellor, and a public-spirited, generous and enterprising man of affairs. Charitable and benevolent objects found in him a liberal supporter, while all worthy movements received his hearty encouragement. At the time of his death he was the oldest and most widely known hardware merchant in Rochester, having been in continuous business in this city since 1845, a period of forty-seven years. In all his varied relations he was highly esteemed and respected as a man of the strictest integrity, of the purest motives, and of the highest character. He was a prominent member of St. Joseph's Church from the time of its erection in 1834 until his death.

In politics Mr. Ernst always took a lively interest, although he was never actively engaged therein as a politician. He was supervisor and alderman from the Tenth ward from 1860 to 1864, inclusive, and was repeatedly urged to accept, and was several times nominated for almost every position in municipal and county govern- ment, but invariably declined official honors, preferring to give his attention and energy wholly to his business and numerous other interests. He died, as stated, April 3, 1892, leaving a widow, three sons and four daughters, Louis J., Edward J., Charles B., Cora M., Louisa J., Helen E., and Mary D.

GEORGE TAYLOR.

THE subject of this memoir was a lineal descendant of William Taylor (1), who came to America in 1635, lived and probably settled at Concord, Mass., and died in 1696, being the father of John, Samuel, Abraham (2), Isaac, Joseph, and Mary Tay-

LANDMARKS OF MONROE COUNTY.

lor, his wife being Mary Merriman. Abraham Taylor (3), son of the Abraham just mentioned, was born about 1690, and moved from Concord to Dunstable, Mass. The line from him is as follows: (4) Deacon Samuel, second son, born October 1, 1708, died October 3, 1792, his wife being Susannah Perkins: (5) Jonas, born November 30, 1739, married Mary Danforth, and died December 15, 1823: (6) Danforth, born October 30, 1769, married, in Dunstable, December 2, 1790, Tabitha Fletcher (who was born in Hollis, N. H., February 5, 1770, and died in Stoddard, N. H., June 8, 1859), moved to Stoddard, N. H., in 1793, and died there January 4, 1858. All these were born in Dunstable, Mass. Jacob Taylor (7), son of Danforth and father of our subject, was born in Stoddard, January 10, 1797, and married in June, 1828, Mary Harnden, who was born in Wilmington, Mass., November 27, 1801. Their children, all of whom were born in Stoddard, N. H., were George, born November 26, 1832; Mary A., born in May, 1836; and Frank, born October 4, 1844.

George Taylor was reared and educated amid the picturesque environments of Stoddard, Cheshire county, N. H., and inherited the principles of thrift and manli- ness which characterized his race. In July, 1851, when less than nineteen years of age, he came to Rochester and engaged in the business of manufacturing thermom- eters, barometers, etc., with which he was identified during the remainder of his life, being at the time of his death the senior member of the firm of Taylor Brothers, whose establishment ranked among the largest of the kind in the United States. Mr. Taylor, mainly through his individual labors, built up this extensive enterprise, which employed a large force of skilled artisans and disbursed hundreds of thousands of dollars. In January, 1890, the Taylor Brothers Company was incorporated, of which the officers are Frank Taylor, president and treasurer ; J. Merton Taylor, vice- president; and G. Elbert Taylor, secretary.

Mr. Taylor was a life-long Democrat and always took an active interest in public affairs. From 1865 to 1868 he represented the Eighth ward in the Common Council and for one year was president of that body. In 1873 and 1874 he was a member of assembly, and during that period secured by legislative enactment the admission of the Fifteenth and Sixteenth wards in the city. His marked ability and faithful pub- lic service were admitted and complimented by citizens of all parties. He was a member of the Chamber of Commerce and of Rochester Lodge F. & A. M., a direc- tor in the Union Bank, and a stockholder in the Standard Sewer Pipe Company, the Genesee Brewing Company, and other local enterprises. He died at his home in this city October 20, 1889, universally respected as an upright, conscientious man whose life was marked by fairness and honesty. He possessed business ability of a high order, and as a man of affairs was eminently successful. He generously encouraged and supported all worthy objects, and took a lively interest in the growth and pros- perity of the city,

February 1, 1855, Mr. Taylor was married in Stoddard, N. H., to Miss Joanna Gilson, who was born in that place October 20, 1833, and who survives him. They were the parents of eight children, namely: Jacob Merton, Fred Alison (born Sep- tember 16, 1857, died January 28, 1883), George Elbert, Minnie, Horatio Seymour, Carrie, Cora, and Charles Walter.

BIOGRAPHICAL.

JACOB GERLING.

JACOB GERLING, senior member of the milling firm of Gerling Brothers, of Roches- ter, was born in Alsace, Germany, April 15, 1840, and received his education in his native country. Coming to America in 1855 he settled in Rochester, where he has since resided. In 1857 he engaged in the flour, feed, and milling business, which he still continues. He is one of the leaders of the Democratic party in Western New York and has several times been nominated or mentioned for responsible official trusts. From 1869 to 1873 he represented the Eleventh ward in the Common Council, and in 1874 and 1875 served as weighmaster of the city. In 1875 and 1876 he was a member of the board of supervisors; in 1880 was elected to the executive board of Rochester for a term of three years and during the last two years of that period served as chairman. In 1887 and again in 1889 he was elected a city assessor, and at the State convention of 1895 was prominently mentioned for the position of State treasurer. In all these capacities he served with distinction and rare executive ability.

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Landmarks of Monroe County, New York : containing followed by brief historical sketches of the towns of the county with biography and family history, Part 56

Author: Peck, William F. (William Farley), b. 1840; Raines, Thomas; Fairchild, Herman LeRoy Publication date: 1895 Publisher: Boston : Boston History Co. Number of Pages: 1160

Author: Peck, William F. (William Farley), b. 1840; Raines, Thomas; Fairchild, Herman LeRoy
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: Boston : Boston History Co.
Number of Pages: 1160