Onondaga's centennial. Gleanings of a century, Vol. II, Part 32

Author: Bruce, Dwight H. (Dwight Hall), 1834-1908
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: [Boston] : The Boston History Company
Number of Pages: 1094

USA > New York > Onondaga County > Onondaga's centennial. Gleanings of a century, Vol. II > Part 32

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Calvin McIntyre, sr., was born in Essex county, N. Y., February 12, 1808, and came into Onondaga county with his parents. He was among the leading business men of that period ; carried on an early mercantile business at Elbridge in associa- tion with Ezra Brackett, and after the opening of the Erie canal engaged extensively in boat building and transportation at Peru. His account books indicate a large business and an active career. He held the office of town assessor in 1851 and post- master at Peru, Onondaga county, in 1861, and was often solicited to accept public stations of responsibility. He died Sept. 5, 1870. He married Almeda Corey, born in the town of Elbridge September 16, 1809, died February 21, 1891. She was a daughter of John and Lusina (Rhodes) Corey, and a woman of marked ability, and a highly religious character. Their children were Harriet, born May 12, 1830, now living on

ONONDAGA'S CENTENNIAL.

the homestead, Calvin, jr., born August 18, 1835, died February 13, 1895, noticed further on ; Elizabeth, born December 13, 1837, and John C., born December 13, 1849, living on the homestead. Of these children Harriet received a liberal education, graduating from Munro Collegiate Institute, after having taught several years. She then accepted the position of preceptress of the academy at Gilbertsville, N. Y., where she taught languages and higher mathematics. In the late years of her father's life she returned to the homestead to give him needed care.

Elizabeth graduated from the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, taught school sev- eral years, and then removed west to accept the position of preceptress of the high school in Charlotte, Mich. She subsequently married Hon. Norman H. Ryan, a prominent attorney, now of Wellsboro, Pa .; their children were Stella M., graduate of Mansfield Normal School; Frank and Fred (twins), the latter died in infancy.

John C. was educated at the Munro Collegiate Institute and married Mary Sher- man. They have one child, Irving C., born in 1885, and occupy the homestead.

Calvin McIntyre, jr. (subject of engraving), occupied a conspicuous position in his native town many years. Reared on his father's farm and accustomed from his early life to energetic and industrious labor, he acquired habits which enabled him in later years to achieve success in whatever he undertook. He was given opportunity to acquire a thorough education in the district schools and the Jordan Academy. His business career began two years before he reached his majority, and after a few years of service as clerk in a store in Jordan, he joined with his father in the agricultural business until the latter's death in 1870 and dealt in implements and other commod- ities pertaining to that branch of industry. This enterprise afforded him valuable business experience, and in 1878 Mr. McIntyre removed to the village of Clyde and established the firm of Warner & McIntyre, grain dealers and maltsters. This busi- ness in 1894 was formed into a stock company, Mr. McIntyre retaining a large share of the stock. In 1884 for the further extension of his operations he formed a co- partnership with his son, Edward M., under the name of Calvin McIntyre & Son, and established malt houses in Lyons. In 1885 they removed their malting interests to Phelps and in 1887 established a branch in Seneca Falls. He was also a stock- holder in the Cayuga County National Bank, of Auburn, N. Y., all of which connec- tions he continued until his decease. In January, 1895, he returned with his family to their native county, locating in Syracuse.

Mr. McIntyre was a Democrat in politics and while he always took an active part in promoting the interests of his party, he never sought political preferment. He was collector of taxes in the town of Elbridge in 1869-70, and held various offices in the village of Clyde. He was frequently sent as a delegate to county and State con- ventions, and in 1890, while acting as delegate to the State Convention at Saratoga, he was elected one of the vice-presidents of the convention and supported the nomi- nation of Governer Flower. He held a lieutenant's commission in the army of the late civil war, and was a member of the Homestead Club of New York city.

Mr. Mcintyre was a man of strong and positive character, in which also were ele- ments of a broad and generous humanity. He was self-reliant in all things, never wanting faith in his own capacity to accomplish whatever engaged his attention. While ever ready to grant favors to others, he rarely asked or accepted them him- self; this was true not only in the ordinary affairs of life, but also in the broader field of politics, where he many times exerted his influence to place others in stations

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BIOGRAPHICAL.

which had already been tendered to himself. On many occasions he was earnestly urged to accept of public positions of honor and emolument, but he almost uniformly declined ; it was not his nature to either crowd himself forward to stations of promi- nence, however well he was equipped for their duties, nor would he consent to be thus advanced through the effort or influence of others. His integrity was unim- peachable and he was ever true and generous to his friends. Among these were many of the prominent business men and politicians of Central New York. Mr. Me- Intyre's death took place in Syracuse, February 3, 1895. The following quotation is from the Clyde Democrat Herald, published after his death, and indicates the esteem in which he was held in that village: "During Mr. McIntyre's residence in this vil- lage he had won a strong and wide circle of friends who share with the family the loss they have sustained. His kindly disposition, pleasing manners and loyal fellow- ship will be greatly missed, and his absence will be keenly felt by the great number whom he has befriended."

On May 11, 1860, Mr. MeIntyre was married to Frances E. Shaw, born in the town of Elbridge, October 10, 1843, daughter of Nathan Shaw and Laura A. Evans of Elbridge. She was educated at Jordan Academy and Munro Collegiate Institute, is a member of the Presbyterian church, and a descendant of Sherebiah Evans, sr., who was born in Wales and settled early in Massachusetts. He served long and honorably in the Revolutionary war; participated in the expedition and battle of Rhode Island in July, August, and September, 1778, as matross, was on duty at Winter Hill, Mass., in Capt. Nathaniel Cowdry's company in the same year; was in Capt. Abram Forster's company, Col. Samuel Bullard's regiment of General Gates's army in the summer and fall of 1777; was matross of Colonel Crane's regiment of artillery, of Vermont, in 1779. He married, January 29, 1795, Elizabeth Dudley, of Wayland, Mass., being at that time a widower. From Castleton, Vt., he removed to Camillus, N. Y , where he was one of the early settlers. He owned the first grist mill in Camillus village, and another between Fonia and Baldwinsville, in what is now Van Buren. He is remembered as a prosperous, upright and intelligent citizen.

Elizabeth Dudley, mentioned above, was a direct descendant of Francis Dudley, who was a relative of Thomas Dudley, the first of the name to come to America, and who was three times elected governor of Massachusetts colony. He was born at Canon Ashby, England, about 1576, and came over with Governor Winthrop in the Arabella to escape persecution as a Puritan. Back of Thomas Dudley the family is traceable more than half a score of generations without a break and to within five removes from Henry 1, King of France. Thomas Dudley settled in Roxbury. Francis Dudley, of Concord, Mass., was a soldier in King Philip's war in 1675, and great- great-grandfather of Elizabeth Dudley, who married Sherebiah Evans, sr., as above noted. Among the children of this Sherebiah, and the oldest, was Sherebiah, jr., born in Boston in 1795, and removed to Castleton, Vt., with his parents. In 1816 he married Charicy Scribner, of Poultney, Vt., born April 2, 1795, died March 24, 1872, Mr. Evans removed from Vermont to Orleans county and from there to the town of Elbridge in 1835. He was a prominent business man and a highly respected citizen. He died October 10. 1856. Charicy Scribner, mentioned above, was daughter of Peter Scribner, of Poultney, Vt., who was a man of wealth and distinction and a noted philanthropist ; he was a cousin to Col. Benjamin Scribner, of New Hampshire, and to Isaac Scribner, author of "Legends of Laconia," and to John Seribner, author

ONONDAGA'S CENTENNIAL.

of "Scribner's Ready Reckoner." Peter's father was Samuel Scribner, born in Salisbury, N. H., and his father was another Samuel, who married Hannah Webster, a cousin of Daniel Webster, and was descended from Benjamin Scrivener (later Scribner) and IIannah Crompton, who were married in Norfolk, Conn., in 1683. £ The latter Samuel was a captive of the Indians in the Revolutionary war and held in Canada two years, and took part in the battles of Bennington and Bunker Hill.

Nathan Shaw, esq., father of Frances E. Shaw (wife of Calvin McIntyre, jr.), was born in Whitehall, N. Y., August 27, 1817, and was educated in Fort Edward. He was an influential business man of high character and more than ordinary intellect- utal powers. Removing to Elbridge he was elected justice, but declined to serve. He died November 5, 1875, aged fifty-seven years, having been long an invalid. His father, Benjamin Shaw, joined the army in the war of 1812, when seventeen years old. Laura A. Evans, wife of Nathan Shaw, granddaughter of Peter Scribner, and daughter of Sherebiah Evans, jr., was born at Poultney, Vt., May 5, 1822, and edu . cated at Poultney Seminary, Vt. She was an estimable woman in all the relations of life and a member of the Baptist church. They were parents of seven children.

The children of Calvin Melntyre, jr., and Frances E. Shaw are Emma Laura, born in the town of Elbridge June 6, 1862; she received an academical education in Jordan Academy and Clyde High School, and possesses artistic genius, which has been liberally cultivated. In oil painting she received thorough instruction by home artists and in New York city, and her work is commended by competent critics. June 29, 1892, she married David Miller Wright, of Rahway, N. J., now resident in Syracuse. Mr. Wright is a direct descendant of Capt. Richard Skinner of New Jer- sey who served in the war of Revolution.

Stella Elizabeth, born in the town of Elbridge November 9, 1869, graduated from the Clyde High School and entered Syracuse University in 1888, taking the Latin scientific course and afterwards attended New England Conservatory of Music, Bos- ton, Mass. She is an accomplished musician of exceptional ability. She, as well as her sister, are members of the Presbyterian church and is prominent in church work and social circles.

Hon. Edward M. Mcintyre was born in Elbridge April 16, 1861. Receiving hiseduca- tion in the Jordan Academy he removed with his parents to Clyde in 1878 and entered his father's office as bookkeeper and general assistant. In 1884 he became a member of the firm of Calvin McIntyre & Son, with large malting interests in Phelps, Lyons, and Seneca Falls. During the ten years from that time until the death of his father he was constantly and actively engaged, and very much of the detail of their large business fell upon him.

Mr. McIntyre has a natural taste for politics and possesses many of the natural qualifications necessary for success in that broad field. Popularity with all who know him, whether of his own political creed or the opposite, and activity in local politics from his early years, drew the attention of party leaders long before he reached his majority. Where he was best known he wielded an influence that could not safely be ignored. This gave him an extended acquaintance with prominent men with whom his relations have always been intimate and cordial. Living in a Republican county (Wayne) it is a noteworthy fact that he was made candidate for sheriff by the Democratic party when he was twenty-one years old, and wholly with- out solicitation or effort on his part. What is perhaps still more remarkable, he was

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, BIOGRAPHICAL.

defeated by only a small plurality, greatly reducing the usual Republican majority. Regarding this candidacy and previous to the election, the Wayne Democratic Press said: " Although young in years, Mr. McIntyre has been engaged in extensive busi- ness long enough to establish a reputation for honesty and integrity. Of conceded ability, pluck, energy, and perseverance, he is the peer of any man in the county in the qualifications requisite to a prompt and faithful discharge of the duties of the chief executive office of the county. Mr. McIntyre did not seek nor ask for the nom- ination. His worth and fitness attracted the attention of the county committee and subsequent facts have firmly established the wisdom of their choice. Where he is personally known he will receive a vote largely in excess of the numerical strength of his party."

Mr. McIntyre has been repeatedly sent as a delegate to State and county conven- tions. In the State Convention of 1887, at Saratoga, he served on the Committee on Credentials. In September of the following year he was delegate to the State Con- vention at Buffalo and was placed on the Committee on Permanent Organization, and supported the nomination of Governor Hill. During this canvass he declined the nomination for member of congress, which was tendered him by the party leaders of his district. In 1889 he was chairman of the Wayne County Democratic Commit- tee and delegate to the State Convention in Syracuse. In 1892 he was elected one of the presidental electors and cast his vote for Grover Cleveland for president in the Electoral College at Albany January 9, 1893.

In all of these honorable positions-doubly'honorable when conferred upon so young a man-he has shown that general knowledge of the political situation and the trend of current events, a readiness of resource, a personal popularity and a judgment of both measures and men, which are the most powerful elements of political success. The large and exacting business duties devolving upon him in the settlement of his father's estate have demanded his unremitting attention, since his father's decease.

Mr. Mcintyre is liberally educated and has thoroughly studied political economy and contemporary history. He inherits the self-reliance of his father, is quick in perception and judgment, and courteous and affable in his intercourse with others. In his present large business connections he has gained the respect and confidence of all with whom he has come in contact.

NATHAN R. TEFFT, M. D.

DR. NATHAN REMINGTON TEFFT was born in Greenwich, Washington county, N. Y. December 25, 1808, his ancestors coming from Rhode Island to this State in 1766. He was reared by his maternal grandfather, who gave him an excellent common school education, which enabled him to early engage in teaching and thus obtain the means to defray the expenses of a course of study at Lansingburg Academy, then in charge of the late Alexander McCall, of Troy, who ranked among the most popular educators of that period. In the fall of 1827 he came to Marcellus, Onon- daga county, and entered upon the study of medicine in the office of his brother, the late Dr. Lake I. Tefft, with whom he remained until the spring of 1831, except- ing two winters in teaching school in the town of Skaneateles and a few months as

ONONDAGA'S CENTENNIAL.

a student under Drs. Hopkins and Porter, of that village. Removing to Onondaga Hill in 1831 he continued his medical studies with the late Dr. Samuel Healy, and in. the winter of 1822-33 attended a course of lectures at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York city. In the spring of 1833 he obtained from the New York State Medical Society a diploma to practice medicine and surgery, and returning to Onondaga Hill he formed a copartnership with his old preceptor, Dr. Healy, which continued for two years, when, owing to ill-health and advanced age, the latter re- tired, leaving Dr. Tefft his extensive patronage. Dr. Tefft resided there and suc- cessfully prosecuted a wide professional business until shortly before his death, which occurred November 19, 1890.

He was long one of the best known physicians in Onondaga county, and in hun - dreds of homes his cheerful presence, kindly manner, and words of encouragement were welcomed and revered. His practice covered a wide territory, extending even into the adjoining towns of Geddes, Camillus, Marcellus, Otisco, and La Fayette, and wherever he went his strong personality and personal influence were potential factors. Though unassuming and characteristically modest, he was endowed with rare tact and perseverance, and invariably succeeded in whatever he attempted. He was public spirited, enterprising, and progressive, and took a deep and often an active interest in all that concerned the general welfare. For fifty years he was the efficient physician and surgeon to the Onondaga County Poorhouse and Asylum for the Insane. In 1862 he was commissioned surgeon of the 122d Regt., N. Y. Vols., and remained in active service in the war of the Rebellion for two years, when ill- health forced him to resign. He brought from the war physical ailments from which he never recovered, and which year by year exhausted his naturally strong constitu- tion and ultimately impaired his system. He continued, however, in the practice of his profession with the same success that marked his earlier years, and also identi- fied himself with the affairs of the community. In 1869 he was elected to the State Legislature from the Second Assembly district of Onondaga and at the ex- piration of his term declined a renomination, which was unanimously tendered to him.

Dr. Tefft joined the Onondaga County Medical Society on June 11, 1833, and served as its secretary from June, 1838, to June, 1847. At the annual meeting in 1882 the society unanimously adopted the following resolution :

" Resolved, In view of the estimable character of our worthy member, Dr. N. R. Tefft, and his having reached the fiftieth anniversary of his membership in this society, we hereby tender to him as a mark of our respect and high regard a public reception and dinner at such time and place as shall best suit his convenience."

Dr. Tefft was never able, owing to impaired health, to make that appointment. He was held in high esteem, not only by his professional brethren, but by the public at large, and especially by those with whom he came in contact. He led a very useful life both as a physician and as a member of society, and was much sought after as an executor for the settlement of estates. He was a close student and an indefatigable practitioner, a man of good ability and of excellent judgment, a courteous gentleman, a skillful surgeon, a safe physician, and an honest citizen. His integrity was never questioned. He rode in the saddle as long as he practiced medicine, and that was as long as he was able to travel. He was also a member of the New York State Medical Society.

BIOGRAPHICAL.

In 1834 Dr. Tefft was married to Miss Emily Strong, daughter of the late Hezekiah Strong, of Onondaga Hill, who died in March, 1890. Their life was a peculiarly happy one. She was long an earnest member of the Presbyterian church, with which he united a few years before his death, but which he always liberally sup- ported. Three children survive them: Ellen and Emma, of Fayetteville, N. Y., and Edward S., assistant cashier of the First National Bank of Syracuse.

HENRY W. SLOCUM.

MAJOR-GEN. HENRY WARNER SLOCUM was born in Delphi, Onondaga county, where his father was a merchant, September 24, 1827, and received his earlier education at Cazenovia Seminary. In 1848 he entered West Point Military Academy, and was graduated from that institution, the seventh in a class of forty-two, in 1852. He was made second lieutenant in the First U. S. Artillery and soon went with that organization to Florida to quell the Sem- inole Indian disturbances, but two years later was ordered with the command to garrison Fort Moultrie at Charleston. While there, and chafing under the inact- ivity of garrison life, he read law and took up other studies, and on October 31, 1856, he resigned, a first lieutenant, and began the practice of his profession in Syracuse. In 1859 he was elected to the Assembly from the second district of Onondaga, and from that year to 1861 he also served as in- structor of artillery to the State Militia, with the rank of colonel. He was also treasurer of Onondaga county in 1860. His five years of civil life at this period doubtless made him a better soldier, as it enabled him to better appreciate the na- ture of the volunteer force to which the defense of the Union was to be intrusted. When the war of the Rebellion broke out he promptly volunteered and on May 21, 1861, was appointed colonel of the 27th Regt., N. Y. Vols. The regiment left Elmira for the front on July 10, and at the HENRY W. SLOCUM. first battle of Bull Run he was one of two of its officers who were wounded. Before he was able for duty again he was made a brigadier-general, and after recovering was assigned to Gen. William B. Franklin's division of the Army of the Potomac. He participated in the siege of Yorktown, was in the action of West Point, Va., in 1862, and succeeded to the command of the division on May 16, when Franklin was transferred to the Sixth Corps. He dis-

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tinguished himself at Gaines's Mills on June 27, by promptly reinforcing Gen. Fitz John Porter at a critical moment, and also rendered important service at Malvern Hill and Glendale.

July 4, 1862, he was made major-general of volunteers and in October was trans- ferred to the command of the Twelfth Army Corps. He was present at Second Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg, where he led the right wing of the army and contributed largely to national victory. In August, 1864, General Slocum succeeded Hooker in command of the Twentieth Corps, and during Sherman's march to the sea he was intrusted with the leadership of the west wing. He was in every engagement until the surrender of Johnson at Durham Station, N. C., and when the war closed he commanded the Army of Georgia.

After the war General Slocum declined a colonelcy in the permanent establish- ment, and resigning in September. 1865, he resumed the practice of law in Brook- lyn, where he lived during the remainder of his life, and where he died April 14, 1894. In 1865 he was defeated as the Democratic candidate for secretary of the State of New York. In 1868 and again in 1870 he was elected to Congress from the Third Congressional district, and in 1884 he was once more elected to that office from the State at large. He was a Democratic presidential elector in 1868 and was president of the Electoral College of that year. In 1876 he was chosen president of the Board of City Works of Brooklyn. He was a commissioner of the Brooklyn bridge and in favor of making it free. His name was often mentioned in connection with the presidency, particularly at the National Democratic Conventions of 1888 and 1892. In 1878 he was made a trustee of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Home at Bath, N. Y., and for many years he served as its president. In 1886 he was one of the commissioners appointed by the governor to determine the positions of the monuments of the battlefield of Gettysburg.

General Slocum was a frequent visitor to Syracuse and manifested a keen interest in the progress of the city, after he took up his residence in Brooklyn. His native county and the scene of his first professional ambitions ever had for him an attrac- tion which grew stronger as the years rolled by, and Onondaga will forever honor him as one of her most conspicuous, gallant, and distinguished citizens.

DR. JOHN M. WIETING.

THE life and labors of Dr. John M. Wieting will ever adorn with brilliant splendor the annals of Syracuse and grace with imperishable radiance the history of Onon- daga. His achievements, preserved to future generations, and worthy of careful study, are notable examples of native energy, of indomitable perseverance and of thoughtful application. He was prominently and actively connected with Syracuse from 1837, while it was yet a village, until his death in 1888, a period of over fifty years. His grandfather was John C. Wieting, an accomplished linguist and teacher in early life, who was born in Stendal, Prussia, came to America in his youth, took an active part in the Revolutionary war, and subsequently became the pastor of the first Lutheran church established in the United States, a position he held for twenty-

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two consecutive years, dying in 1817. His father was Peter Wieting, a native of Montgomery county, N. Y., born October 30, 1790, and during the latter part of his life a resident of Syracuse, where he died in 1856. His mother, Mary Elizabeth Manchester, a descendant of the family of that name which came from Manchester, England, and settled in Rhode Island, was born in Washington county, N. Y., in April, 1792, and died in May, 1872.

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Onondaga's centennial. Gleanings of a century, Vol. II, Part 32

Author: Bruce, Dwight H. (Dwight Hall), 1834-1908 Publication date: 1896 Publisher: [Boston] : The Boston History Company Number of Pages: 1094

Author: Bruce, Dwight H. (Dwight Hall), 1834-1908
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: [Boston] : The Boston History Company
Number of Pages: 1094