USA > New York > Oneida County > Utica > Memorial history of Utica, N.Y. : from its settlement to the present time > Part 62
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Aulo & Curtas 1
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BIOGRAPHICAL.
talk, and the columns of the local press frequently bore testimony to his vigorous mastery of good English as well as to the soundness of his opinions.
A man possessing the fine judicial mind and the happy temperament of Mr. Fish- a man given, as he was, to the studious examination of all contemporaneous topics and an earnest promulgation of the principles he formed after careful research-is always a valuable factor in the life of a community ; and he will long be remembered for the ex- cellent influence he exerted upon the thoughts and purposes of our leading citizens. If to this is added his responsiveness of action, his tact in dealing with men, and his skill in managing large affairs we are not surprised that his co-operation in the conduct of them was deemed of importance and was often sought. His home life was affectionate and exemplary. By his many subordinates he was ever esteemed and beloved. His death took place on April 1, 1887. His widow, two sons, Winslow P. and William A., and a daughter, Grace, survive him.
C URTIS, PHILO C .- The father of Philo C. Curtis was Asahel Curtis, a native of Old Canaan, Conn., who had seen service on our Northern frontier during the war of the Revolution, and who after two or three different residences in the eastern part of this State finally settled in 1803 in East Sauquoit, Oneida County, N. Y. He was rec- ognized as a man of integrity and worth, was a justice of the peace, commissioner of deeds, and for several years superintendent of the Stockbridge and Brothertown In- dians. The historian of Paris, in speaking of him, remarks that "Philo C., the second son, was a mechanic of rare skill and great inventive genius, perfecting an improvement of the power loom at an early period of its introduction into the factories of the Sau- quoit Valley."
This Philo C. Curtis was born at Hoosick, Rensselaer County, N. Y., June 21, 1789. His inechanical ingenuity was displayed at an early age. He took great interest in textile machinery and the first three patents taken out by him were of that nature. The first one he obtained in 1810, the year when he became of age, and was for an im- provement of the loom. In 1828 Mr. Curtis removed to Utica and started a machine shop on the west side of Cornelia street opposite what was at that time the foundry of Ephraim Hart. He there built the first steam engines that were made in Utica. In 1831 he took out a patent for an apparatus for heating the supply water of boilers after the water had passed the pump and was under boiler pressure. To accomplish this purpose he utilized the heat of the exhaust steam from the engine. This patent was of great intrinsic value and is today in almost universal use, especially with non- condensing engines. It is, therefore, deserving of high consideration. In 1832 he built and changed his place of business to the shop in West Utica known for many years as the Vulcan works. Here he continued the making of steam engines and of machinery in general. According to the City Directory of 1832 there were then twenty-one steam engines at work in the county, ten of which were in Utica; eighteen of them were made by Mr. Curtis. Like most mechanics who are given to invention he gave more time to carrying out mechanical ideas than he did to matters of finance, and so it fol- lowed that the building of the West Utica shop, in connection with other matters he had under way, caused his failure, resulting in the loss of all of his property and obliging him to retire from business for a season.
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
In 1837 he entered into an arrangement with J. M. Church, a lumber dealer, by which was procured a Woodworth planer and matcher and a few auxiliary tools, as well as an engine and boiler for running the same. This machinery was set up in a large frame building then standing on Pine street near the canal and it was started by Mr. Curtis, and the first planing and matching of flooring and dressing of lumber by power that was done in Utica was done under his direction and supervision. After carrying on the work for a while Mr. Curtis sold his interest therein to Chauncey Palmer and Mr. Church disposed of his to Lewis Lawrence. After this episode Mr. Curtis moved away from the city and for some years lived in New Hartford. In the fall of 1845 he returned to Utica and started a machine shop on Jay street near the old city furnace. Although his facilities were limited his acquired reputation as a mechanic gave him employment. After two or three changes of location he moved in 1849 into a building on Pine street, where he remained for twelve years, and from which he again moved to the West Utica shop he had erected in 1832, and where he had met with his financial reverse. He sold his works in 1862 to his son and retired wholly from active business pursuits. Besides being an industrious and skillful mechanic Mr. Curtis was a man of thought, and one whose thoughts led in the main to sound practical results, results that benefited the entire community in which he lived. He had, perhaps, too much of a spirit of inven- tion for his own pecuniary good. He loved invention better than he loved wealth and disregarded the essentials needed to secure it. Among others of his devices not already mentioned above was a pump for raising water and other liquids. This was a very valuable invention and had it been well followed up would have made his fortune. This was patented in 1835.
In resolutions passed after the death of Mr. Curtis, which occurred September 23, 1864, by the Oneida R. N. Chapter it was said that, in the inventive talents of the de- ceased, man has been benefited by the ingenious application of machinery to various implements of industry, making latent power subservient to his will, overcoming ob- stacles heretofore considered impracticable, and conferring a boon upon the "man of toil." It was added in the same resolutions that in his life we have an example of the upright citizen, a kind and affectionate parent, and one who by strict integrity in all the rela- tions of life has left behind him a name both honored and respected. His family con- sisted of his wife, a son, and a daughter. The daughter died in 1852. His wife and son survive him.
G RAY, JOHN PERDUE, M.D., LL.D., died at Utica, N. Y., on the the 29th day of November, 1886, at the age of sixty-one years. The initiatory cause of his final illness was the result of an attempt made by an insane man to assassinate him, in March, 1882, immediately upon his return from Washington at the conclusion of the trial of Guiteau for the murder of President Garfield. This injury, with the nervous ·strain and responsibility of the protracted trial, combined with the continued perform- :ance of the duties of his position in the asylum, perceptibly impaired his health and were powerful factors in producing the fatal results. In January, 1886, the Board of Managers of the asylum gave him a leave of absence for six months. A portion of this period was passed in the South and the remainder in a foreign tour, undertaken in the
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hope of improving his health. He returned in October, seemingly benefited by the change, and again resumed his labors, but under peculiarly trying circumstances. Early in November business called him to Baltimore, whence he returned much prostrated and suffering from a recurrence of the disease which was so soon to prove fatal. From this time it was evident that little hope could be entertained of his recovery. He slowly failed from blood poisoning induced by disease of the kidneys, and died in uræmic coma.
Dr. Gray was one of nine children, and was born on the 6th of August, 1825, at Half Moon, Center County, Pa. He was educated in the common school, in Bellefonte Academy and Dickinson College, and received his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania in the class of 1848. After a period of two years' service in the Phil- adelphia Hospital he was chosen on account of his qualifications and ability the junior as- sistant in the State Lunatic Asylum at Utica. He passed through the higher grades of second and first assistant and in July, 1854, was elected the superintendent of the asylum. At the early age of twenty-nine years he was thus placed in a most responsible position at the head of what was then the largest asylum for the insane in the country. He be- came the successor of Drs. Brigham and Benedict, whose skill and ability had given the Utica Asylum an enviable reputation. This Dr. Gray not only sustained, but widely extended, by improving the old and originating new measures of administration. Ac- cepting unreservedly the view that insanity was a physical disease the medical care of patients assumed the highest importance and the institution was made more completely than ever before a hospital for the nursing and care of patients as sick people. The influence of the predominant idea was felt in every part of the asylum. To the strictly medical treatment of insanity he gave special consideration; the medical history of patients was more fully sought out and recorded and the resources of the pharmaco- poia were employed with a belief in their efficacy in this as in other forms of disease. The moral treatment by employment, amusement, and mental occupation was early given a prominent place. One of the methods introduced by Dr. Gray was the establish- ment of the Opal, a paper contributed to and published by the patients in the asylum. This was continued until the third issue of the tenth volume and proved of great in- terest and value to the patients, and was also a source of revenue. Its exchanges reached as high as 300 newspapers and periodicals annually ; it added several hundred volumes to the library and hundreds of dollars to the amusement fund for patients. His labors were always in the direction of progress, both in material improvement and administration, as well as in the treatment of patients. The organization, making subor- dinates individually responsible to heads of departments, and these in turn to the super- intendent as the highest authority, resulted in improved order and discipline and in- creased efficiency. The Utica Asylum under his control became the model for many of the institutions subsequently erected, and later a school of instruction which has furnished a larger number of men equipped for the specialty than any other asylum in the country.
Early in his career as superintendent, and while most men would have been fully oc- cupied with the details of management, he enunciated the principles which have since largely guided the State in the care of the insane. In the resolutions passed by the superintendents of the poor in 1856 we recognize his hand. These were that the State
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
should make ample provision for all of its insane who were not in condition to reside in private families ; that none should be cared for in any county poor and almshouse; that the proper classification demanded for the care of the insane could only be secured in establishments constructed with special view to their treatment; and finally, that the curable and incurable should not be cared for in separate institutions. In accordance with these views he urged the erection of two State hospitals for the insane so located that in conjunction with the Utica Asylum they would most fully meet the needs of the people of the State. In the discussion of the question of separate institutions for the acute and chronic classes of the insane, which excited deep interest in the pro -. fession, Dr. Gray bore a notable part and one which gave him great prominence. He maintained then, as always, that it was the duty of the State to provide for all of the insane the best medical care, and to remove them from the county poor-houses to asy- lums properly equipped with every means to promote recovery. Although overruled by the establishment of asylums for the chronic insane he lived to see his plans carried out in the erection of the Hudson River Hospital at Poughkeepsie and the Buffalo State Asylum at Buffalo to accommodate the patients in the eastern and western divisions of the State respectively. Another movement in which Dr. Gray was identi- fied as the originator, and which he carried to a successful issue, was the removal of children from the poor-houses to the various orphan asylums and their support at pub- lic expense. This reform, first inaugurated in Oneida County, has been adopted in the other counties of the State, and has been of inestimable benefit in rescuing children from the association and degredation of life in the poor-houses and giving them the ad- vantage of training and education. This philanthropic work entitles him to rank as a public benefactor.
The separation of the convict and criminal insane from other patients, and treatment in an institution constructed with special reference to their isolation and safe-keeping, was largely if not entirely due to the efforts of Dr. Gray. The wisdom of this action has been fully sustained, and the example has been followed by other States where the numbers of this class warranted the expense of their separate maintenance. Subse- quently he was made one of the commission to locate both the Willard and Buffalo Asylums, for the latter of which he furnished the plans and was one of its Board of Managers until it was in full operation. The subject of the causation of insanity has always received the careful consideration of alienists. In the asylum under Dr. Brig- ham, and for some years under Dr. Gray, the two classes of causes, moral and physical, were recognized as productive of the disease. The moral causes were given a largely predominating position and included all of the cases in which there had been a history of any emotional excitement or disturbance, while to physical causes were attributed only the small number of cases which were the result of injuries or deformities of the head and like material influences. Upon more prolonged observation and reflection Dr. Gray became convinced of the incorrectness of this theory and practice, and satis- fied that moral causes alone were not sufficient to produce disease. He believed that it was only when the physical health was affected that insanity resulted, and that this change was really the cause of the emotional disturbance. From this time forward he regarded physical causes only as producing insanity and recorded none but them in
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the tables of causation. This was deemed a most important step, as it gave the first place in treatment to therapeutic measures, and divorced the subject more fully from the influence of the metaphysical theory that insanity was a disease of the mind. " Rest, nutrition, medication -could then be presented in truth as the relief of sorrow." Insanity, a physical disease due strictly to physical causes, was one of the distinctive features of his belief and teachings.
Dr. Gray was the first in this country to recognize the importance of and to intro- duce special investigation into pathological conditions existing in insanity, and to the Utica Asylum belongs the credit of having the first special pathologist appointed on its official staff. This course has been fully endorsed by the specialty and the profession. However great the success and credit Dr. Gray deservedly gained for his labor in the directions already mentioned it was in the field of medical jurisprudence, as an expert in insanity, that he attained the greatest triumphs of his life. Beginning with the Parish will case and the trial of Fyler for murder, one of the first in which epilepsy was pleaded as a defence, his course is fairly marked out by recalling the list of promi- nent trials throughout the State. A few of these are the trials of Heggie, of Buckhout, of Ruloff, of Walworth, of Montgomery, of Dillon, of Gaffney, of Waltz, of Mancke for murder, and the Vanderbilt and Fillmore will cases. In behalf of the general gov- ernment during the war he presided at the trial of Dr. Wright, of Norfolk, Va., for the murder of a lieutenant of colored troops, and was a witness in the case of Stewart, tried for poisoning a fellow soldier in the recruiting camp at Elmira, and of Payne, one of the assassins of President Lincoln. He was many times appointed a commissioner by the various governors of the State to whom a final appeal had been made for execu- tive clemency. His aid was often sought by prosecuting officers and by the friends of the accused when there was a suspicion of the existence of insanity. On whatever side his services were employed his testimony was true to his convictions of right, and always carried with it the force of being truthfully and honestly .given. No imputation of being influenced by any unworthy motive was ever cast upon his evidence. He re- sorted to no subterfuges, clothed no mere theories in the garb of science to excuse crime, yielded to no clamor, but always took his position and sustained himself upon the principles deduced from his broad knowledge and vast experience, and consequently his opinions had the utmost weight with the judge, the jury, and the people. He bore successfully the most searching questions of the best legal talent, at times lasting sev- eral days, and no exceptions to his testimony were ever made a ground of appeal to a higher court. The amount of labor he was called upon and often compelled to perform against his most earnest desire furnishes the best evidence of the value placed upon his services. Upon his conduct of the Guiteau case, in which he was the principal medical witness for the prosecution, may rest his reputation as the leading expert in insanity in the country. His testimony is a model of terse logic, of strong statement, of clear expo- sition of principles and facts of science, incontrovertible and convincing in its conclu- sions, a fit culmination of his labors.
Dr. Gray also achieved success as a lecturer on insanity. For some years he occupied the chair of psychological medicine and medical jurisprudence in the Albany and Belle- vue Medical Colleges. These lectures were undertaken not so much for his own honor
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
and emolument as for the advancement of the medical profession. His lectures were noted for their clearness and definiteness of statement, and for an eloquence and grace of style which attracted many hearers besides the students of his own department. More than any other person Dr. Gray shaped the lunacy legislation of the State of New York and it is largely to his influence with the commission appointed to codify and revise the law that we owe the present lunacy statutes. In matters pertaining to other de- pendent classes his influence was also felt, as his advice was often sought by the Boards of Managers having charge of the various charities, reformatories, and prisons, by legis- lators, judges, and officials.
As a writer Dr. Gray was widely known to the profession, though he never pub- lished, as he was often importuned to do, any consecutive work upon the subject of insanity. He wrote many articles for the Journal of Insanity and addresses before so- cieties which attracted attention and showed his ability as an author. The annual reports of the asylum were often important contributions to the specialty, as they con- tained, not only his views and ideas upon subjects of interest in the study and treat- ment of disease, but also details of construction, organization, and administration of great value to those in charge of like institutions.
In the death of Dr. Gray the medical profession lost one of its strong, great men, and one whom it has honored by the many offices and preferments conferred upon him. He was successively chosen president of the Oneida County Medical Society, of the State Medical Society, of the State Medical Association, of the Association of Superintendents of American Institutions for the Insane, and of the Association of Medical Editors. He was an honorary member of the Psychological Association of Great Britain, of the Medico- Psychologique of Paris, of the Society de Freniatrica of Italy, and of various other scientific bodies. He was president of the Psychological Section of the Centennial Medical Congress of 1876 and at the time of his death held a similar position in the Ninth International Medical Congress, held in Washington in September, 1887. He also had conferred upon him the title of LL.D. from Hamilton College. As a phy- sician he held a high place in the regard of the profession and the public. He was readily approached, gave freely and willingly of his time to all, but especially to the younger members of the profession who appealed to him for assistance. In his prac- tice he exhibited the same characteristics as in his conduct of public affairs. He pos- sessed a comprehensive knowledge of medicine which, combined with ripe judgment, the power to note the salient points of a case, and to apprehend the relation between cause and effect, made him a safe counselor, inspired confidence in his decisions, and caused him to be consulted in the most important cases, both by physicians and those occupying the highest official and social positions. No better evidence could be given than the confidence thus reposed in him by those most competent to judge of his at- tainments in his profession.
Though fully occupied with the labors of his position Dr. Gray found time for the exercise of the duties of a citizen, and as such was most highly respected. His patriot- ism was unquestioned and unbounded. Unable to enter the army from the position he held as superintendent of the asylum he gave freely of his means and time in col- lecting money and obtaining recruits to fill the quota of the city. He was generous,
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liberal minded, and active in every charitable and public work which would relieve suf- fering or promote the interests of the community. Among charities which had their origin with him was one designed to provide nurses for lying-in women in needy cir- cumstances. A suggestion of the want of such aid made in a lecture delivered in Utica. gave rise to the Maternity Society of this and other places. He was domestic in his feelings and tastes, and loved to spend the time not urgently demanded by his duties in his home surrounded by his family and intimate friends. He was an affectionate hus- band and an indulgent father, a sympathizing friend in sickness, and an admirable nurse. Among the most notable characteristics of Dr. Gray were his readiness to appreciate and ability to state in a clear, forcible manner the fundamental principles of any ques- tion, his rare power of observation, his calm and independent judgment, and his strong convictions. These qualities, combined with an indomitable will, fully explain his influ- ence over others and were elements of his success. He had a wonderfully retentive memory both of persons and things, great affability of manner and kindness of heart, and a strong love for children, by whom he was always beloved.
In conversation he was brilliant and instructive. From every place he visited and from every person he met he gathered information which it was his pleasure to impart to others. To all he was a cheerful and agreeable companion. Though like all men with true independence of character he met with opposition and criticism of his ad- ministration ; they rarely provoked him into controversy or changed his course of ac- tion, but if attacked upon charges reflecting upon the probity of his official acts he never failed to defend himself successfully. Dr. Gray was a firm believer in the Christian religion and a member of the Reformed Church in Utica. His religious views, formed early in life, were settled convictions and never a subject of question or doubt. They controlled his life and conduct.
In looking over his life work there is a richness of labor and a fullness of success that. rarely falls to the lot of man. In all the fields of action in which he bore a part, as the head of a great charity, a medical jurist, a lecturer, as the editor of the Journal of Insanity, as a physician, a citizen, and a friend, there were the evidences of great power, of strength of character, and generosity of disposition, which were the elements of his success, which made him beloved, and which made his death a serious calamity to the community, to the profession, and to his friends. What higher tribute could be given to his memory ?
Dr. Gray married Mary, eldest daughter of the late E. A. Wetmore. Of their several children two sons and one daughter are living.
H OPPER, THOMAS, was born on the site of his present residence in the city of Utica, January 31, 1807. His father was Capt. James Hopper, a native of Eng- land. For many years he was in command of English vessels in the merchant service and owned shares in them and their cargoes. During the war between France and England he commanded an armed vessel of sixteen guns, and furnished with letters of marque from the British admiralty he cruised in the South Seas. Attacked on one occasion by a superior vessel his ship was taken after a brave defence and he was car-
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