Our county and its people : a descriptive work on Erie County, New York, Volume II, Part 39

Author: White, Truman C
Publication date: 1898
Publisher: [Boston] : Boston History Co.
Number of Pages: 684

USA > New York > Erie County > Our county and its people : a descriptive work on Erie County, New York, Volume II > Part 39

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Dornes, Michael, Sardinia, p. o. East Concord, was born in Germany, August 11, 1846, and was a son of August and Augusta Dornes, natives of Germany, who came to Colden in 1857. Later they moved to Concord and purchased 200 acres of land, and spent the last of their days in Sardinia. He died October 9, 1889, and his wife in 1882. Michael Dornes was reared in Germany and began when a boy to herd cattle. He worked out about seventeen years on a farm, and in 1880 bought 175 acres of land, having put up buildings that cost about $5,000. Mr. Dornes started poor and is to-day one of the well-to-do farmers of the town. June 13, 1869, he married Margaret Barthel, and they have four children: George J., Michael J., Frederick W. and Augusta A.

Mihm, Andrew, late of Sardinia (deceased), was born in Hessen Cassel, Germany, February 24, 1824, and was a son of Conrad and Anna M. Mihm, who lived and died in Germany. August 6, 1846, he married M. Cathrine, daughter of John and Mary M. Weisenberger, of Saxon Weimer, Germany. April 18, 1848, they sailed for America, arriving at Buffalo June 29 of the same year, whence they went to Boston, where they remained for three years, and then removed to Sardinia and bought thirty acres of land, which he afterwards sold and since then bought at different times until he owned 500 acres of land, and became an energetic and prosperous farmer. Mr. and Mrs. Mihm had seven children: Frank, Mary A., George C., Anna M., Mona M., Carrie B. and Nettie J., of whom two died, George and Nettie. Mr. Mihm died August 6, 1885.

O'Shea, Richard, Sardinia, p. o. Holland, born in Ireland, County Clare, in 1823, is a son of Richard and Eliza (McMan) O'Shea. Mr. O'Shea came to Buffalo in 1852 and entered the service of M. Griffith, in a warehouse; later he was engaged by James C. Evans, where he remained one year. He then worked for the N. C. Rail- road Company, handling merchandise, and in 1859 came to Concord, where he worked on a farm. In 1871 he came to Sardinia and bought a farm, making a specialty of dairying. In 1849 he married Margaret O'Gorman, and they have had seven children; Michael, Richard, Mary, Catharine, Annie, Ellen and Margaret.

Cook, Ira S., Sardinia .- The maternal grandfather of Ira S. Cook was born in Cayuga county, N. Y., and removed to Orleans county, where he died late in the fifties. The father of Ira S. Cook was Jonathan Cook, born in 1789. He lived in

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Madison county for a time and followed farming while there. He married Mary Graves, and then moved to Sardinia, where he purchased a farm and followed farm- ing and stock speculating. Their children were Emogene, deceased; Waters, de- ceased; Caroline, and Elvira, deceased; Herman, deceased; Harriet Antoinette, died March 7, 1897: Eliza, deceased; Ira S., born March 2, 1824; Orlando, deceased; Erwin, deceased; and Irving J., deceased. Ira S. was educated at the common schools and at Aurora Academy. He followed farming, with the exception of about twenty years, when he was in the mercantile business with his son. He mar- ried Maria A., daughter of George and Martha Bigelow. She was born February 21, 1827, and had a good common school education. They had two children: James A., who was born April 20, 1847, and died November 19, 1891; and George W., born December 10, 1854; he is in the mercantile business at Sardinia, where he has car- ried it on for twenty-two years. He married Theodosia Ryder, and they have one child, Metta May Cook, born May 9, 1878, who is now in Buffalo taking vocal and music lessons.

Crosby, Alden, Sardinia, was born in that town, February 26, 1839, son of Hiram (born March 30, 1814, died July 14, 1885) and Maria (born December 9, 1817) (Jack- man) Crosby. His paternal grandparents were Morton and Charlotte (Wilcox) Crosby. His mother is living at the age of seventy-nine years. Alden Crosby is a farmer in Sardinia, and has thirty five acres, where he has lived for ten years. He is a Republican and was highway commissioner for two terms. He married, April 14, 1863, Mary L., daughter of Richard C. and Eliza (Curtis) Johnson, who has borne him three children: Hiram R., deceased; Byron A., born November 15, 1865; and Frank M., born September 3, 1867, married Maggie E. Bell and has one child, Glenn M. Frank was educated at Springville Academy, and is now superintendent of schools at Marseilles, I11.

West, Benjamin A., Sardinia, was born in that town, on the farm where he now resides, February 17, 1853, son of Frederick (born in Tompkins county, January 12, 1821, son of Ashbel, born May 10, 1789, in Massachusetts) and Huldah (Thompson) West. Ashbel West was at the burning of Buffalo in the war of 1812, and came to Sardinia in 1843; he died December 10, 1876, and his wife, Elizabeth Hanford (born April 22, 1792), died June 6, 1869. Benjamin A. West is a farmer and a Democrat. The family homestead consists of 160 acres and has been in the possession of the family for forty-five years. Mr. West married, August 20, 1893, Ella, daughter of Ezra and Diantha (Haynes) Bull. A brother of Frederick West, Hanford C., born October 2, 1817, went to Illinois in 1840 for five years, returned and in 1853 went to California, starting from Chicago, driving 100 head of cattle, six horses and a mule, being six months on the way. After three years he returned to Sardinia where he has since lived. He married in 1857, Alvira Newton, born March 3, 1836, in Jeffer- son county.

Ward, J. E., Sardinia, p. o. Protection, was born in Holland, Erie county, N. Y., November 30, 1843, and is a son of Roger P. Ward and Lurinda Ward. Mr. Ward was educated in Yorkshire select schools and East Aurora Academy. He com- menced teaching in his nineteenth year and taught for seventeen consecutive years in the winter, and followed farming in the summer season. October 27, 1868, he

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married Sarah Orr, who was born in Scotland, April 26, 1845. Mr. and Mrs. Ward have one daughter, Lena Ward, born December 30, 1873. Mr. Ward is a member of Holland Lodge No. 631, and Encampment No. 60, I. O. O. F., and K. of P. No. 379 of Protection. He is a Democrat, and has been assessor for three years and justice of the peace for twenty years in succession, and still holds the office.

Hall, Lucius M., Sardinia, p. o. Chaffee, was born in Wisconsin, June 1, 1844, and is a son of Lewis and Sarah (Cutting) Hall, farmers of Erie county. Mr. Hall was raised on a farm and educated in the common schools, and since completing his edu- cation has carried on general farming. In May, 1872, he married Angusta Sher -- man, and they have two children, Grace E. and Edward S.

Hopkins. Mrs. Dudley, Sardinia .- Dudley Hopkins, deceased, was born in Lon- donderry, Vt., in 1806, son of Thomas N. (born in Londonderry, N. H., in 1776, came to Sardinia in 1820 and died January 26, 1870), and Sallie (died July 25, 1851) (Howe) Hopkins. Dudley Hopkins was a farmer at one time of 150 acres, and was a Republican. He married, January 6, 1836, Maria (born March 27, 1816, in Pownell, Vt.), daughter of Lyman and Lydia (Welch) Wilson, who came to Perinton, east of Rochester, where he died; she died in Sardinia. Dudley Hopkins was noted for his liberality in all his dealings. He and his wife attended the M. E. church, of which she has been a member since she was twenty-seven years old.

Goldberg, John W., Sardinia, p. o. Chaffee, was born in Sardinia, 1870, the son of John H. and Mary (Croner) Goldberg, the latter a daughter of John Croner, who came to Buffalo from Germany in 1853, and died in Sardinia in 1880. John H. Gold- berg came from Germany to Lancaster in 1858 with his mother and four brothers, his father having died on the journey; three brothers are now living, all farmers. John W. Goldberg is a farmer. He married, in 1892, Ida M., daughter of Hiram and Jane Cheeseman, who came from Franklinville to Sardinia in 1854, and bought the farm on which Mr. Goldberg now lives. He keeps a dairy of thirty cows on an average. Mr. Cheeseman died in Sardinia, April 2, 1886, and his wife April 15, 1866; they had a family of four children, three of whom are now living.

Brady, Charles F., Sardinia, p. o. Chaffee, was born in Canada, November 29, 1865, and was a son of George and Margaret M. (Smith) Brady, both born in Canada and who came to Sardinia in 1884, where Mr. Brady died in 1888 and his widow is living with her son. Charles F. Brady was educated at Rockford, Canada, graduat- ing in 1883, and when seventeen years of age came to Sardinia, where he now lives. In 1894 he traded his farm of 208 acres for city property, and for several years he has been engaged in real estate business. In 1887 he married Hattie B., daughter of A. P. Carney, and they have three children, Roy R., Charles R. and Florence E. Mr. Brady is a Republican, but not an aspirant to public office.

Freeman, Howard B., Sardinia, was born in Springville, Eriecounty, N. Y., August 28, 1870, a son of Norman A. and Estella (Battey) Freeman, he born in Springville, N. Y., and she in Lagro township, Wabash county, Ind. Norman A. was a son of Healey Freeman, one of the early settlers of Springville, and is a miller by trade. He lived in Springville and Gowanda for a number of years, but at present lives in Sardinia, N. Y. Mrs. N. A. Freeman's parents were Marmadude S. and Selinda W. Battey of Lagro township, Wabash county, Ind. Howard B. was educated in Ran-

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dolph and Delavan and Bryant & Stratton Business College. He began life as a clerk in Colden with Warren & French and French Bros. He then went to Buffalo and followed clerking for a while, afterward acting as traveling salesman for three years and a half. He was then engaged in the real estate business for about four years, and in 1896 came to Sardinia and bought out R. C. Davidson and now has the leading store of the place. October 3, 1894, Mr. Freeman married Leonora Lauffee of Buffalo, N. Y.

Rider, Seymour, Sardinia, was born on the farm he now owns in Sardinia, Octo- ber 21, 1849, son of Jerome B. and Eliza (Nichols) Rider, both natives of Sardinia, he a son of Reuben Rider and she the daughter of Amos Nichols of Rhode Island. Jerome B. Rider died in 1882, and his widow lives in the village of Sardinia. Sey- mour Rider was educated in the common schools and Springville Academy. He owns 263 acres and follows dairying. Mr. Rider married, December 31, 1873, Adelle M., daughter of Wilbur H. and Eliza (Stewart) Parker. They have one son, Stewart J., born May 6, 1880.

Smith, Loren D., Sardinia, was born in that town July 2, 1834. He is a son of Isaac and Phila Smith, mentioned elsewhere. Loren D. lives on the farm where he was born, which was purchased by his father of the Holland Land Company. He was educated in Springville Academy and was long and favorably known as a teacher of common schools-scores of children having at different times been under his care and guidance. Additions have been made to the homestead farm, and it now com- prises 200 acres of land. Mr. Smith has served as justice for four years and inspector and clerk of elections almost continuously since he was twenty-one years of age. In 1866 he married Emma L. Curtiss, who was born in Buffalo, N. Y., March 20, 1844. She was a daughter of Cyrenius Curtiss, who came to Sardinia when she was a child. Educated at Buffalo and Springville, she engaged in teaching and worked at that calling some time. Mr. Curtiss died in Buffalo and his wife in Sardinia.

Shedd, John S., Sardinia, p. o. Chaffee, was born in Sardinia on the farm he now owns, April 11, 1872, son of Daniel (born in Sardinia, December 20, 1831, a son of Andrew W.) and Octavia (born in Sardinia, May 3, 1840) (Hyde) Shedd. Daniel Shedd died February 8, 1894, and his wife April 25, 1872. John S. Shedd was edu- cated at Arcade Academy and was graduated in 1894, afterwards taking a course in Bryant & Stratton's Business College in Buffalo. He is one of the leading farmers in Sardinia, owning 223} acres, and making a specialty of dairying (keeping twenty-five cows) and potato culture. He is a Democrat and a member of the I. O. O. F., China Lodge No. 698. The family of Andrew W. Shedd consisted of four sons and four daughters, four of whom are now living.

Smith, Maland, Sardinia, was born in that town, February 28, 1826, and is a son of Isaac and Phila (Palmer) Smith. He was educated in the common schools and Aurora Academy. He followed teaching for six years and is now engaged in farm- ing. May 28, 1853, he married Zilpha S. Loomis, and they had two children that died in infancy. Mr. Smith is a Democrat and has been justice for nine years and town clerk for some time. Mr. Smith's father was born in Litchfield, Herkimer county, N. Y., March 27, 1796. Mrs. Phila Smith's parents, Darius and Elizabeth Palmer, came from Coeymans, N. Y., to Albany, where they spent several years,

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when they removed to Montreal, Canada, where she was born, March 20, 1803. He was pressed into the British army, but escaped and came with his family to Con- cord, Erie county, N. Y.

Wiedemann, Friedrich, Sardinia, was born in Grosfishlingen, Rhein Pfalz, Ger- many, March 6, 1835, son of John A. and Margaretha Wiedemann. Friedrich was educated in Germany. He came to Buffalo in 1854, where he remained four years, going thence to Cattaraugus county, where he worked by the day. He bought a small farm to which he added until he had 115 acres of woodland; upon this he lived sixteen years, then came to Sardinia and bought 250 acres, where he now lives. Mr. Wiedemann was drafted during the Rebellion and served one year in Co. F, 96th N. Y. Vols. He was wounded in a railroad accident at Warrenton Junction, Va. He was a Democrat up to Cleveland's administration, when he became a Repub- lican. He married, January 1, 1856, Elisabethe Mahl, born in Wiesenthal, Baden, Germany; she came to Buffalo in 1853 when a girl. She has borne him seven chil- dren, now living: George F., John A., K. Magdalena, Anna F., Henry R., Luisa and Maria Maggie.

Simons, Julian S., Sardinia, was born in that place, November 11, 1847, and is a son of Roderick and Francis M. (Kingsley) Simons, he born in Springfield, Mass., April 30, 1813, and came to Sardinia with his parents in 1820, where he spent most of his life. Roderick Simons was one of the most enterprising men Sardinia ever had. He was a Republican and held nearly every office in town; was super- visor and justice several terms and was revenue assessor for some years. He was married in August, 1836, to Francis Kingsley, and they had four children, of whom two are now living, Mrs. Crosby of Sardinia and the subject. Mr. Simons died June 17. 1880, and his wife September 7, 1894. Julian S. Simons has followed farming and milling, and mercantile business, and he with his father were manufacturers of and dealers in lumber, flour and feed for about ten years, until his father's death. He then continued the business alone for five years, and sold to Strong & Williams. Mr. Simons now carries on cheese factories, manufacturing about one hundred tons of cheese yearly, and also carries on his farms, and in the mercantile business in com- pany with H. B. Freeman. June 8, 1873, he married Alice A. Bigelow, and they have three children, Harry L., Bessie D. and Lloyd R. Mr. Simons is a Republican, but not an aspirant to office. He is a member of Arcade Lodge No. 419, F. & A. M., and Delevan Lodge No. 616, I. O. O. F., and Holland Encampment.

Rinewalt, A. L., Amherst, p. o. Williamsville, one of the leading editors and moulders of public opinion, was born in Williamsville, May 4, 1849, and educated in the district school and the academy of his native place. In 1865 he moved to Beloit, Wis., and endered upon his apprenticeship as a printer. He remained there until 1870, when he returned east and took a position on the Commercial Advertiser of Buffalo, N. Y., and remained with that paper until 1879, when he came to Williams- ville and established the Amherst Bee, which has become a leading country paper in Western New York. Mr. Rinewalt has been successful as a business man as well as an editor, and has always been a promoter of enterprises and an exponent of pro- gress. He was one of the first to advocate the construction of the Buffalo and Williamsville Electric Road and is one of the stockholders and a director of the

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company. He is also largely interested in real estate and takes a lively interest in the welfare and progress of Williamsville. He was collector for the town of Am- herst in 1881, was trustee of Williamsville for nine years, a member of the Board of Education eleven years, and for several years past president of the board, and was postmaster during Harrison's administration. September 18, 1878, Mr. Rinewalt married Sarah Filena Bloker of Williamsville. His parents were among the early settlers of the town of Amherst.

Hopkins, Mrs. E. N., Amherst, p. o. Williamsville .- Timothy A. Hopkins, eldest son of General Timothy S. Hopkins, was born February 5, 1806, in what is now the town of Amherst, and during his youth aided his father on the farm, receiving only the ordinary educational advantages of that early day. In 1826 he located in Elyria, Ohio, and for several years remained west and engaged in mercantile business of a nature so extensive as to employ agents in the States of Michigan, Ohio, Pennsyl- vania, Kentucky and in different parts of Canada. In 1831 he settled permanently in Williamsville, where he continued to reside the remainder of his life. In 1844, after having been in partnership with William and John Horner a few years in the manufacture of plows at Williamsville, he purchased the mill property on the west side of the creek (in company with J. S. King and J. S. Tefft) of the executor of the estate of Oziel Smith. and commenced the manufacture of hydraulic lime and lum- ber, and in 1857 he became sole owner of the whole establishment and carried on the business until 1866, when he sold the mills to Benjamin Miller. February 5, 1831, Mr. Hopkins married Hannah Williams, who died April 9, 1856, leaving five children : Timothy Orlando (since deceased), James A., Charles W. (deceased). Horace G. and George T. He was again married on August 15, 1866, to Elvira M. Sawtell, who died November 30, 1870, leaving one son, Nelson S. His third wife, Elizabeth N. Oswald, he married July 20, 1873, who has one daughter, Florence Augusta. Mr. Hopkins had a successful military life and was lieutenant-colonel in the State militia when he resigned. His civil life was quite brilliant, as he filled the highest offices in his town and served many years as justice of the peace. He was sheriff of the county for the term ending January 1, 1850. The Democratic party elected him to the Assembly in 1863 and again in 1864, where he served on very important commit- tees. The act of 1863 requiring the State to build a bridge across Tonawanda Creek, where it is used as a canal between Erie and Niagara counties, was secured by his energy, and another was secured the following year, a work that the members from Erie, with almost yearly lobbying, had failed to obtain since the completion of that canal. His perseverance also procured an appropriation of $10,000 from the State in 1868, which, combined with $13,000 raised by tax upon the town, enabled him, with his associate commissioners, to construct ditches for draining the north part of the town of Amherst, thereby reclaiming several thousand acres of land that were often covered with spring floods, by reason of the dam, placed near the mouth of the Tonawanda Creek for canal purposes. Mr. Hopkins was a man of broad views and keen intelligence. He had been a great reader all his life and had enriched his mind in the refreshing fields of the best literature, and even after he passed fourscore years he continued to buy books which he read with eager interest and discussed with an intelligence almost unlooked for at that age. The improvements in making and illustrating books were a delight to him, and he would handle one of the new

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editions with its fine paper and bindings, excellent print and beautiful illustrations, with a sparkle of enthusiasm, and during his life collected a large library of choice works. In early manhood he had taught a district school and always retained a warm interest in education, whether it related to the curriculum of the colleges or the methods of the common or even primary schools. And though he kept thus in touch with the times, and appreciated the modern conveniences and wonderful scien- tific advances of the present age, he never lost his interest in the past nor forgot the debt that the present generation owed to the pioneers of the early part of the century. He feared that the children would ignore the humble beginnings of their ancestors and allow the story of the old days to be forgotten, and it was his custom for many years to note down any date or incident of interest, and having a good memory and a familiarity with the history of Erie county almost from the beginning, he was re- ferred to as authority on these matters. He gave valuable assistance in furnishing data for the histories of Erie county, and it was a delight to him to respond to the many letters that came asking information on facts of local history. Being full of reminiscence and anecdote, and naturally an entertaining talker, he would interest his hearers by the hour in telling of the primitive days when Buffalo was a village surrounded by woods that swarmed with Indians, and Williamsville was being set- tled by sturdy pioneers whose children are now among its most honored citizens. He died February 3, 1894. Sometime previous to his death he commenced a history of Amherst, for which work he was exceptionally well qualified, and the chapters that were written show a care and thoughtfulness that would have made the com- plete work valuable. The family of Hopkins of Erie county belong to the Hopkins family of Great Barrington, Mass., descendants of "John, the Miller," of Water- bury, Conn., who have been noted for generations for their public spirit, patriotism and loyalty to American interests. Their claim to be Sons of the Revolution is due to the valuable service of Col. Mark Hopkins, Ehud, Moses and Ichabod, during the Revolution, as shown by the town records of Great Barrington in the office of the secretary of state in Boston, Mass.

Chalmers, James, p. o. Williamsville, was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, October 15, 1844, and was educated at Gillespie's Free School in his native city, where he received the medal for the highest average in all branches of the curriculum. He then taught school in Edinburgh for some time and also took up the trade of ma- chinist. For eight years he was a worker in a gelatine factory, and with indomitable energy kept on studying, teaching and working until twenty-one years of age. In 1872 Mr. Chalmers came to the United States and entered the Spring Hammer Works at Williamsville, after which he found employment in the railroad repair shops in Susquehanna, Pa. In 1873 he established the Gelatine Works at Williamsville, which have proved a great success under his able management. Mr. Chalmers has not only been a successful man in business, but has given much attention to public affairs, his efforts always being distinctly in the line of progress. He has taken especial interest in educational matters and is a member of the High School Board ; much of the success of this fine institution, of which Williamsville is justly proud, being due to his intelligent efforts in its cause. He is also president of the Board of Water Commissioners and has been trustee of the village and president of the Board of Trustees. He is very popular socially and is a 32d degree Mason. August 23, 1866, he married Helen Wilson of Peebles, Scotland.

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Stevens, Mrs. C. S., Amherst, p. o. Williamsville .- Oziel. Smith, son of Oziel and Margeret Walton Smith, was born in Clarendon, Vt., April 19, 1784. His an- cestors on both sides were of English descent. With his parents he moved to Livonia, N. Y., in 1801, went to Buffalo in 1808, and took the contract for building the first court house there. He was married to Miss Phebe Cook Norton in 1809 at Lima, N. Y., and purchased a lot on Main street from the Holland Land Co., the present site of the Tifft House. In the war of 1812 his houses, with his tools and plant, were burned. With his family he moved to Williamsville, where he afterwards resided. When peace was proclaimed Mr. Smith again worked at his trade, planning and building. He was elected supervisor, justice of the peace, and represented his town in the Legislature of 1827. The same year he bought the property called " Mill Property" in Williamsville, which included the flouring, cement, and saw mills, and village property. He was an energetic, progressive, liberal business man, laid out village lots, employed many men who moved in with their families and bought homes. For many years Williamsville rapidly improved. Mr. Smith died in 1836 in his fifty-second year. Previous to his last illness, he had in contemplation many general improvements, looking to the future prosperity of the village. Mrs. Smith survived her husband many years; she was of English descent, and born in Rich- mond, Mass., in 1789, and died in 1890 in the one hundred and first year of her age, a space of time covering the administration of all our former presidents. Mrs. Smith was sympathetic and intellectual, with strength of character, keen perception and good judgment, retaining her mental faculties to the last. Of five children born to Mr. and Mrs. Smith, two are living: Mrs. M. S. Graves of Union Springs, N. Y., and Mrs. C. S. Stevens of Williamsville, N. Y.

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Our county and its people : a descriptive work on Erie County, New York, Volume II, Part 39

Author: White, Truman C Publication date: 1898 Publisher: [Boston] : Boston History Co. Number of Pages: 684

Author: White, Truman C
Publication date: 1898
Publisher: [Boston] : Boston History Co.
Number of Pages: 684