USA > New York > Oneida County > Utica > Memorial history of Utica, N.Y. : from its settlement to the present time > Part 64
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Publius V. Rogers received his early education in the district schools of Antwerp and Watertown. One of the teachers of his boyhood at Watertown was the late Judge Charles Mason. He was afterward a student in the Watertown Academy while the late Judge Joseph Mullin was its principal. He began his preparation for college in the " Black River Literary and Religious Institute " of Watertown under the instruction of the late Rev. Dr. James R. Boyd. He entered the sophomore class of Hamilton Col- lege in 1843 and was graduated in 1846. In scholarship Mr. Rogers ranked with the best men in his class. One of his collegiate instructors writes with discrimination and emphasis of his college course: "While Mr. Rogers was one of the youngest of his class, his manliness and maturity of character were beyond his years. He was prompt and faithful at the post of duty. His mind and attainments were well balanced, so that the outcome of his undergraduate studies was a well-rounded, generous culture."
Soon after his graduation Mr. Rogers began the study of the law in the office of Skinner & Brown at Adams, N. Y., spending one hour each day at book-keeping at the Hungerford Bank ; afterward he continued his studies in the office of Judge George C. Sherman at Watertown. During the summer of 1848 he took part in the survey of the Rome, Watertown, and Ogdensburg Railroad. On the organization of the Water- town Bank and Loan Company by Judge Sherman in 1849 Mr. Rogers was placed at the head of its management as cashier. In September, 1850, he was appointed cashier of the Fort Stanwix Bank at Rome, N. Y., and on September 1, 1853, cashier of the Bank of Utica. This appointment was due largely to the influence of the late Hon. Hiram Denio. In the litigation of certain cases in which the Fort Stanwix Bank was a party Judge Denio had observed the thorough knowledge of banking and of the laws appertaining thereto which Mr. Rogers possessed. When the directors of the Bank of Utica had decided to appoint a new cashier on his recommendation Mr. Rogers was elected. The appointment of so young a man to be the principal manager of so old and influential a bank, having so large a capital and so many stockholders and custo- mers, was a very high compliment to the ability, integrity, and trustworthiness of Mr. Rogers. Soon after entering upon his official duties the new cashier discovered that the capital of the bank had been impaired to the extent of one-sixth of its amount-$100,- 000. With the concurrence of the directors he had the courage to suspend the payment of dividends until this loss should be made good. Under his administration the capital was restored gradually to its full amount; and since its restoration the bank has paid semi-annual dividends with the regularity of the periods and has accumulated a
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
surplus of $400,000. That Cashier Rogers has fully met the expectations of the directors was shown by his election as president of the bank in 1876.
His reputation for financial ability, integrity, and public spirit has been further shown in his annual election as a director of the Utica Water Works Company since 1872. He is also a director of the Utica Cotton-Mills, of the Mohawk Valley Cotton-Mills, of the Sknandoa Cotton Company, and of the Utica and Willowvale Bleaching Company. As a faithful trustee of Hamilton College since 1869, and as the treasurer of the college from 1880 to 1887, Mr. Rogers has manifested his grateful affection for his alma mater, his faith in collegiate education, and his self-sacrificing spirit. As a financial adviser his judgment has been of the highest value to the Board of Trustees, and has greatly strengthened the confidence of the alumni and friends of the college in the wisdom of its management. Mr. Rogers has served the State as a manager of the Utica State Hos- pital, having been appointed by the governor and Senate of New York in 1881, and elected president of the board in 1885. He has been president of the Home for the Homeless since 1889 and the president of the Fort Schuyler Club since 1888. He has been a faithful and useful trustee of the Reformed Church, Utica, for many years.
Throughout his long residence in Utica Mr. Rogers has been proverbially modest, un- aggressive, and unostentatious. He has gained the confidence of the community by his unswerving fidelity in the performance of official duties, while his frequent acts of self- sacrificing kindness have strengthened and deepened the sincere regard of his many friends.
On September 11, 1861, Mr. Rogers married Elizabeth Butler, daughter of Chauncey S. Butler, of Sauquoit, N. Y.
H EAD, GEORGE WASHINGTON, a native of Paris Hill, Oneida County, N. Y., was born on the 21st of May, 1815. The remote ancestors of this family came from Ireland and settled in New England. The father of George W. was Jonathan Head, of Rhode Island, who came to Oneida County very early in its history. He was a successful farmer, an ardent temperance worker, and was very prominent in the organization and upbuilding of the church at Paris Hill. He died there on the 10th of February, 1866, at the age of ninety-one years, having accumulated property and gained the esteem of his townsmen. His wife was Hepzibah Livermore, who died in March, 1862. The family of children numbered eleven, of whom nine were sons, George W. being next to the youngest.
George W. Head passed his boyhood at home and in attendance at the district school, where he acquired the foundation of an education which was afterward extended in a practical way by reading and his natural habits of observation and thought. While still young he went to live with his elder brother, Ralph, at, Paris. Jesse Thompson then kept a tavern at that place. It was one of the old stage-houses which in early days were thickly scattered along the turnpikes, receiving a large patronage from trav- elers and furnishing welcome accommodations. There the young man acted as clerk and made himself generally useful, and broadened his knowledge of human nature and of business methods. He remained there until 1837, when he was twenty-two years
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old, and then established himself in a country store on his own account at Paris Hill. He at once gained the good will and confidence of a large business constituency and was very successful. He conducted his store on the same basis of integrity and fair- ness that has characterized his whole life, and put forth his best energies with the usual results of such a course. He carried on the store for ten years, and in 1857, feeling an ambition for larger fields, he went to New York city, where he was engaged for a number of years with Hurlburt, Sweetzer & Co. in the dry goods trade. During this time his capital was invested with the firm of Head, Campbell & Head, foundrymen and stove manufacturers in Kenosha, Wis., but he gave no personal attention to this After his return from New York Mr.
business. This connection continued ten years. Head joined with William S. Bartlett in the lumber trade, buying in the West and sell- ing in the South, an enterprise that met with success. Still later he traveled for Theo- dore Pomeroy in the interest of the oilcloth manufactory until the year 1861, when he founded the business with which he has ever since been identified, the firm of G. W. Head & Co., dealers in flour, feed, grain, and kindred products. His partner was D. D. Winston, and their place of business was in the " checkered store " across the canal from the present location. For twenty-eight years those two men carried on their large and rapidly growing enterprise, which was successful in the broadest sense of the word, for it not only brought to its owners the material benefits which are sought by all, but also the more desirable returns that grow out of the respect and esteem of one's fellow citizens. At the end of the term mentioned Daniel Head purchased Mr. Win- ston's interest in the business and the new firm continued it one year, when the pres- ent stock company was organized in 1890 with George W. Head as president, although he has not for some time taken part in the active labors of the business.
Mr. Head's prominent personal characteristics are benevolence, indulgent kindness to family and friends, and a disposition essentially retiring and modest in its nature. Though an active worker in and supporter of the temperance cause, and a faithful ad- herent to the Republican party in politics, he has never held office though often solic- ited to do so. He is the president of Head's iron foundry, which came to a large ex- tent under his direction through the death of his son. While it is true that Mr. Head has not united with a church he has always been a regular attendant at divine worship and has liberally supported the cause. For twenty years he attended the Bethany Presbyterian Church, but in later years has attended the Westminster Presbyterian.
Mr. Head married, June 15, 1843, Sarah C., eldest daughter of Horace Bartlett, of Paris Hill. She was a woman of strong character and possessed deep-rooted ideas of right and wrong. Her good common sense and clear-sighted views were of great value to her husband. She died May 22, 1890, aged sixty-seven years. Their children were five daughters and one son : the oldest is Helen F., who resides at the family home; Sarah Elizabeth also lives at home; Florence Amelia married Rev. H. M. Sim- mons, of Minneapolis; and John Q. (deceased), Emma Grace (deceased), and Alice Augusta (deceased).
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
K ERNAN, FRANCIS .- Among the immigrants to this country from Ireland in the early years of the century was Gen. William Kernan. He landed in New York city, where he remained about two years, and then went to Steuben County in that part of it now included in Schuyler County, and purchased a tract of wildland in what is now the town of Tyrone. Settling on this he took up the life of a farmer and there married Rose Stubbs, also a native of Ireland, who had with her parents come to that locality in 1808. William Kernan and his wife remained on the farm where they first settled until they were far advanced in years, when they came to Utica and died here. Francis Kernan, son of William and Rose Kernan, was born on the homestead farm Jan- uary 14, 1816. He remained at home until he was seventeen years of age, laying the foundation of an education in the district school when he could be spared from the farm labor. At the age of seventeen years he went to Georgetown College, an excel- lent educational institution in the District of Columbia, and remained there until 1836. In the fall of that year he began the study of his chosen profession, the law, in the office of his brother-in-law, Edward Quin, at Watkins, N. Y. In 1839 he removed to Utica and finished his study in the office of Hon. Joshua Spencer, and was admitted to prac- tice in July, 1840. Mr. Spencer's confidence in and respect for the character and talents of Mr. Kernan are clearly indicated in the fact that as soon as Mr. Kernan was admitted he was taken as a partner by Mr. Spencer. From that time until 1857 he was in constant practice and soon exhibited in strong light the remarkable legal insight, the comprehensive grasp of every salient point in the many important cases that came into his hands, and the ability to turn to the benefit of his client every possible advantage, which for many years characterized his work at the bar. In 1854 he was appointed reporter of the Court of Appeals, which office he held until 1857. Politics early at- tracted the attention of Mr. Kernan, and in that field he found work that was congenial to him and in which he was successful. It was about the year 1860 that he entered the political arena with all his native ardor, and where he soon attained an eminent station. It was a stirring time. The very foundations of the Union were threatened and Mr. Kernan threw himself into the ranks of the staunchest supporters of the government with the utmost zeal. In 1860 he was nominated by the Democrats for the Assembly in the first district of Oneida County. That district had been a Republican stronghold, Gen. James McQuade having carried it by 1,500 majority at the previous election; but such was Mr. Kernan's popularity and strength that he was elected over his opponents by about 200 majority. In the Assembly he at once took high rank as a legislator, and at the same time continued active in his support of the government in its great trial. Utica had few more powerful and gifted defenders of the Union and his war speeches were frequent and intensely loyal and eloquent.
In 1862 Mr. Kernan was elected to Congress, his Republican opponent being Roscoe Conkling. Two years previous to that time Mr. Conkling ran against De Witt C. Grove for the same office and was elected by a majority of 3,500. After a very spirited can- vass Mr. Kernan was elected over his powerful opponent by about ninety majority. In his early congressional career Mr. Kernan was particularly active in all measures for the support of the government and was often called in consultation by President Lincoln. In 1864 he was renominated and Mr. Conkling was again his opponent and succeeded
Hranici Reman
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BIOGRAPHICAL.
in defeating him. Mr. Kernan then took up his law practice with new vigor and rapidly won distinction in the foremost rank of the bar of this State. In 1867 he was elected a delegate at large to the Constitutional Convention of 1867-68 and performed a prom- inent part in that body. In1 1872 he was honored by the Democratic and Liberal parties with the nomination for governor of the State, but was defeated by Governor Dix. In 1875 the Democrats gained control of the State legislature and Mr. Kernan was chosen State senator to succeed R. E. Fenton. His services in that high office were such as to fully sustain his previously acquired reputation as a wise and an able statesman. All meas- ures affecting the State of New York received his special attention, while those of a more general character were not neglected. His term expired in 1881.
Mr. Kernan married in 1843 Miss Hannah Devereux, daughter of Nicholas Devereux, . a prominent early resident of Utica. They have had ten children.
B UTLER, TRUMAN KELLOGG, was born in New Hartford, Oneida County, October 31, 1810. His grandfather came to New Hartford from Middletown, Conn., in 1789, bringing with him four sons, Ashbel, John, Sylvester, and Eli, jr .; the latter was the father of Truman K. Eli, sr., settled on a farm which was said to have once been the property of Gen. George Washington. Eli, jr., married a daughter of Truman Kellogg and they had eight children, and the family was one of character and respectability.
Truman K. Butler left New Hartford and located in Utica when he was fourteen years of age, in the year 1824, and lived out his long life in this place. He saw its growth from a humble village to a city of more than 40,000 population, and was closely identified with its advancement in many directions. During the first years of his resi- dence in Utica he attended a school in what was known as the Kirkland block, on the corner of Liberty and Genesee streets, and then entered the store of Devereux & Co. That firm was composed of John C. and Nicholas Devereux and Horace Butler, the lat- ter being a cousin of Truman K. Their business was at that time on the site of the Devereux block with a warehouse on the opposite side of the canal, and they carried on a large wholesale grocery trade and forwarding and commission business. In 1826 the firm dissolved, the Messrs. Devereux withdrawing, and it was continued as Butler, O'Connor & Co., the firm being represented by James McDonough. A few years later Mr. O'Connor died and the business was continued by Butler, McDonough & Co., rep- resented by Van Vechten Livingston. The latter soon afterward entered the firm, which was then succeeded by the firm of Livingston & Butler, the subject of this sketch being one of its members. The business was at that time on Catharine street with a retail store on the corner of Broad and Genesee streets. Mr. Butler remained in this firm but a short time, when he sold out and purchased the drug and grocery business of Dr. Peleg Peckham, then located in a store now occupied by Charles & H. H. Ham- ilton. After several years of successful business alone Mr. Butler took as a partner Miles C. Comstock. The latter retired about the year 1858, and the firm became But- ler & Hamilton with Charles Hamilton as the partner. The business was carried on with flattering success by this firm until the year 1887, giving Mr. Butler a period of activity in the trade interests of Utica extending over more than sixty years.
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
Mr. Butler was largely interested in the manufacturing industries of Utica as well as in its benevolent and charitable institutions. He was made a trustee in the Utica Cotton- Mills Company in 1861 and continued in that capacity until his death. He was chosen president of the Mohawk Valley Cotton-Mills at the organization of the company and continued in the office until 1887. He was for forty years a trustee of the Utica Sav- ings Bank and one of its most faithful and conservative officers. He was a trustee of Forest Hill Cemetery many years. But the work for which he will be most gratefully remembered by the people of Utica, and which displays the benevolent tendencies of his nature, was that in connection with the founding of St. Luke's Home and Hospital. In 1869 he was the owner of a house on the corner of Columbia and Hamilton streets, which had been erected as a boarding-house for factory operatives. At the suggestion of Dr. Van Deusen and others, of Grace Church, he leased it for one year to the corpo- ration of St. Luke's Home, for the reception of aged and indigent persons in that church. The great need of such an institution was apparent through the number of inmates that came to its doors and at the end of the year Mr. Butler presented the building to the corporation. He soon afterward sold to them the wooden house adjacent for mission purposes. This was the foundation of St. Luke's Hospital. He subsequently sold to the corporation the house on the corner of Whitesboro and Wiley streets, contributing lib- erally from the purchase price, and gave to the institution the lot on which St. Luke's Memorial Church stands. At a still later date, when more ground was desired by the hospital, Mr. Butler and Charles Downer purchased the vacant lot belonging then to the city, on Columbia street west of the Home property, and presented it to the hospital au- thorities. He also presented to the Home and hospital the handsome park on Whitesboro street on condition that it should remain for the benefit of the sick and aged, and that no buildings should be erected on it. He also purchased a piece of ground in Forest Hill Cemetery opposite his own vault, erected upon it a monument, and enclosed the whole for the benefit and use of the hospital. Mr. Butler's benefactions to this most worthy institution probably exceeded $20,000, and it was to him a source of great satisfaction that it became the noble and useful charity that is now the pride of Utica. In Mr. But- ler's long life in Utica he developed a character which commanded the respect of all with whom he came in contact ; his integrity was unyielding, his friendships strong and lasting, and his public spirit active. Upon his death the Board of Managers of the hospital and the trustees of the Savings Bank adopted resolutions appreciative of his good works and character.
R USSELL, WILLIAM. 1 -- Thirty-five years ago, when the writer's acquaintance with the physicians of Oneida County began, the city of Utica was widely known for the high character and distinguished ability of its medical practitioners. A majority of them had reached middle age and a large proportion were well advanced in years. It was, perhaps, the custom of that time to set a high value upon age and experience in the practice of medicine. At any rate nothing but death or positive disability was per- mitted to deprive the public of the services of these nestors of our profession. Three
1 See Transactions of the Medical Society of the State of New York, 1891.
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BIOGRAPHICAL.
of their number survived at the beginning of the year 1890 and still retained their place as leaders of their brethren. Since that time one of them, and the youngest, although on the verge of three score years and ten, has gone over to the majority.
" Happy is the man who is without a history," says the proverb, and the happy and fully rounded term of our brother's life presents few salient points for his biographer. But it is none the less due to the profession which he loved so well and to the com- munity he so long and faithfully served that the archives of this society should embalm his memory.
William Russell was born in the city of Glasgow, Scotland, on the 5th of June, 1821. He was the eldest son of Robert Russell, a coal factor in that city who came to this country with his family in 1832 and settled in Oneida County. William received his education in the common schools and in Whitestown Seminary. A special taste for the physical sciences led him to the choice of medicine as his; profession, and he began its study in the office of Dr. Whiting Smith, of Whitesboro, in 1845. His studies were continued in the Berkshire Medical College at Pittsfield, Mass., whence he was gradu- ated in the autumn of 1848. During the following winter he took a post-graduate course in the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York, where he also attended the lectures of the famous surgeon, Dr. Valentine Mott. The next year he entered upon practice in Utica, where he soon became prominent and gradually won a place in the front rank of his profession. He was an active member of the Oneida County Med- ical Society and was its secretary for ten consecutive years. After serving as vice- president of the society he was elected its president in 1871. In the following year he delivered an able address to the society upon the question : "Is Woman Adapted by Nature and Social Position for the Arduous Duties of the Medical Profession ?" Sub- sequently he read before the same body a series of papers on " Diseases Peculiar to Women." In 1868 Dr. Russell was elected a permanent member of the State Medical Society and a member of the American Medical Association. He was appointed con- sulting surgeon to the Provost-Marshal's Board for the examination of drafted and en- listed men during the Civil war. Upon the organization of the Faxton Hospital in 1875 he was elected a member of its medical staff, and served this important charity faithfully for several years. He was also for a time on the consulting staff of St. Luke's Hospital in Utica. The local organizations to which he belonged were Utica Lodge F. and A. M., the Utica Mechanics Association, and the Oneida Historical Society.
Dr. Russell was a member of the First Presbyterian Church from his youth and was very regular in attendance upon its services. Strictly temperate in all things he was a model of sobriety, industry, and devotion in his duties, public and private. His disposi- tion was kind and benevolent, his bearing modest, and wholly free from pride and self- assertion. During a life which nearly filled the allotted term of human existence he preserved a character without reproach and gained the love and esteem of all who knew him. Although never seeking in name or in fact the position of specialist Dr. Russell's practice was for many years largely that of the gynecologist and obstetrician. He had performed every operation in the obstetrical field except that of Cæsarean sec- tion, and he was in later years frequently called to the assistance of his brethren in this department. During thirty years of active practice his obstetrical cases amounted to
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
about 2,500, and he never shrank from night work in this or any branch of his profes- sion until after its effects upon his health had become too plain to be mistaken. He would not deny that upon this point his life should be taken as a warning and not as an example to others. It is proper to say, however, that he was not led into this serious error by the love of money or by any selfish ambition. A very large part of his prac- tice was unremunerative. His charges were uniformly moderate and their collection was made with due consideration for the circumstances of his patrons. The modest compe- tence which he acquired was wholly the result of prudent living and careful manage- ment. But he was fond of his work, and his constitution was so perfect that it gave him no warning of the strain to which he was subjected until too late. Insomnia, the consequence of his excessive night work, came first in the train of morbid symptoms. The automatic activity of the brain and its period of rest are as cyclical in their nature as the systole and diastole of the heart, and it is impossible to violate this law with im- punity. Nor could the effect of this violation be limited to the cerebral hemispheres. It was extended everywhere into the nervous system and thence to the muscular and glandular tissues. Muscular rheumatism and prostatitis were added to the insomnia, which was made much worse by these complications. As his disorders were unfavor- ably affected by the length and severity of our cold season Dr. Russell sought and found relief by a stay in Florida during the winters of 1883, 1884, 1885, and 1886. But it was plain that the rapid progress of decay which was certainly premature in his case could not be arrested. A third trip to Florida in the winter of 1889-90 no doubt had the effect of hastening the inevitable end. The season was cold almost beyond prece- dent throughout the South and the proper means for protecting invalids from its sever- ity were almost wholly lacking. Symptoms of organic lesion of the heart and lungs were manifested, and the invalid was forced to return home early in the spring. He died of emphysema and pneumonia on the 27th of June, 1890.
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