Our county and its people; a descriptive work on Oneida county, New York;, Part 133

Author: Wager, Daniel Elbridge, 1823-1896
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: [Boston] : The Boston history co.
Number of Pages: 1612

USA > New York > Oneida County > Our county and its people; a descriptive work on Oneida county, New York; > Part 133

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

McAra, William F., was born in the county of Stirling, Scotland, October 24, 1854, son of James and Jessie (Ferguson) McAra, James McAra being forester for Lord Abercrombie at Airthrey, receiving his education in the parish schools of Locherbie and Lochenaben, and was apprenticed as gardener at the country seat of Sir William Jardine, of Locherbie, Scotland, whose extensive ranges of glass were famed for their collection of tropical fruits, flowers and rare plants. Here he remained for five years, removing to Birroughtree Gardens; thence to the country seat of Sir Richard Musgrave, of Eden Hall, Penrith, England; was foreman at Caldwell House, the summer home of Colonel Mure, M. P. for Renfrewshire; was appointed head gar- dener to Henry Weiss, esq., of Edgbarton, Birmingham, England, and was for four

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years in a similar capacity with Tipping Lawden at the Uplands, Handsworth, Birmingham; removing to America in 1882, he received the appointment of head gardener to Charlemagne Tower at his country home in Waterville, where he has resided upwards of thirteen years, and is now overseer for Miss Henrietta Page Tower, at her summer home in Waterville. He is a past master of Sanger Lodge No. 129, F. & A. M., and also a past secretary and past high priest of Warren Chapter No. 22, R. A. M., and a past regent of Waterville Council No. 398, Royal Arcanum.

Miller, Jacob, was born in Alsace, France, in December, 1835, and came to the United States with his parents when three years of age, locating in New London, N. Y. He was educated in the common schools, and is a carpenter and farmer by occupation. August 4, 1862, he enlisted in Company H, 117th N. V. S. Vols., and was in several general engagements and many skirmishes. November 1, 1864, he was promoted sergeant, and was honorably discharged June 6, 1865. August 10, 1865. he married Anna Sisbrower, by whom he had six children: Jacob, who died at twenty-nine years of age; Francis H., Mary R., Elizabeth C., Clara E., and Charles A. Francis H. married Margaret Hoffman. Mary R. married Charles Rounds, of Green's Corners, and they have two children, Raymond, and a baby not named. Mrs. Miller died February 19, 1881, and January 18, 1863, Mr. Miller married for his second wife Theresa F. Essinger, of Verona. Mrs. Miller's father, William Essinger, was born in Germany, September 22, 1822. He married Catherine Sees, of his native place, by whom he had nine children: John, Seuly, Frederick, George, Joseph, Theresa F., as above, Catherine, Margaret and Francis. Mr. Essinger died April 25, 1893. Mr. Miller is a member of Skillin Post No. 47, G. A. R., Department of New York. The ancestry of the family is French and German.

Ague, Philip C., was born at Lawton Bridge, in Verona, April 23, 1854. He was educated in the district schools, and has always followed farming. January 24, 1882, he married Caroline Kline, of Verona, by whom he had three children: Walter K., Mary M., and Oscar G. Mr. Ague's father, Jacob, was born in Bavaria in 1920, was educated there, and came to the United States when a young man, locating in Verona. He married Margaret Roth, formerly of Germany, by whom he had five children: Philip C., Francis, Jacob, Daniel, and Catherine; all of whom are now dead, with the exception of our subject, Philip C. Mr. Ague died in 1885. Mrs. Ague's father, Jacob Kline, was born in Alsace, France, in 1812. He was educated there and came to the United States when nineteen years of age, locating in Verona. He married Margaret Wiedrick, formerly of Germany, by whom he had eleven children, nine of whom grew to maturity: George J., Eva M., Elizabeth, Margaret, Caroline, Amelia, Jacob, Alice, and Sarah. Mr. and Mrs. Ague are members of St. Peter's German Lutheran church, of which he is one of the deacons. The ancestry of the family is German on both sides.

St. John, N. J., was born in Montreal, Canada, September 7, 1850, and came to this country when eight years of age, and has resided in Waterville for the past thirty- two years. He learned the trade of harness maker and followed it for twelve years, when he engaged in the hotel business. The Central Hotel in Waterville was built by him. He has also been largely interested in farming for years. He first married

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Mary Burnett, who died leaving two daughters: Mary Imogean and Carrie. His present wife is Alice Wilson, by whom he has two daughters: Maud and Annie. Mr. St. John is a prominent Democrat; he also takes a great interest in horses, and owns some fine stock.

Wheeler, E. A., was born in New Hampshire, and moved to Clayville, with his parents, when four years of age. He enlisted in Co. G, 117th N. Y. Vols, August 4, 1862, and participated in the battles of Petersburg Bluff, Bermuda Hundred, etc. He served until the close of the war, and has been prominently identified with the G. A. R. He was commander of the post four years, and is also a prominent Mason. He is at present trustee of the village of Waterville and water commissioner. In 1865 he married Anna Barker, who died, leaving four children: Mrs. F. A. Gifford, Mrs. Louise M. Case, Lillie, Millie B. and Nellie F. Wheeler. His present wife is Silvina E. Bates, of Cassville, N. Y.

Owen, Robert C., was born in Utica, N. Y., December 14, 1828. His father, Richard Owen, was born in Wales and came to the United States when seventeen years of age, and settled in Albany, N. Y. He afterward removed to Oneida county where he married Eleanor Edwards, who was born in Deerfield, N. Y. Later he settled on a farm in the town of Floyd where he remained until his death Robert C., the eldest of five children, received a common school education. At the age of sixteen he engaged as clerk in the store of White Brothers in Alder Creek, N. Y., where he remained several years. He was afterwards employed as clerk in the store of J. Howe & Co. in Remsen, N. Y., and later in the firm of Hill Brothers, Rome, N. Y. In 1857 he started for himself in the mercantile business in Rome, re- moving to Clinton, N. Y., in 1860, where has since remained being one of the lead- ing men of the town. In 1857 he married Blanche Edwards, of Remsen, N. Y., by whom he has four children: Ida M., Nellie B., Jennie V., and Milton Edwards. Mr. Owen is a stockholder in the New Hartford Cotton Company, also in the Citizens' Bank and Trust Company, Chattanooga, Tenn., and a director in Texas Loan Agency of Corsicana, Texas. About twenty years ago Mr. Owen was elected ruling elder, trustee and treasurer of the Presbyterian church in Clinton, which offices he still holds.

Blake, John, was born in Westchester county, N. Y., in 1844. He was educated in the common schools, and is a farmer and market gardener by occupation. August 6, 1862, he enlisted in Co. G, 113th N. Y. Vols. Nov. 7, 1865, his regiment was con- solidated with the 7th Heavy Artillery, of the Second Corps, Army of the Potomac. He was wounded in the leg in the battle of the Wilderness, and on -June 19, 1864, in the battle of Petersburg, was wounded in the hand and forearm with rifle bullets, and in the back with a piece of shell, four ounces and a half of which was extracted by the surgeon. He was left on the field for dead sixty four hours, and yet survives to tell the story. February 12, 1865, he was honorably discharged by surgeon's cer- tificate of disability from Finlay Hospital, Washington, D. C. In the fall of 1869 he married Emily E. Dunn, of Verona, by whom he has eight children: Mary M., Julia E., E. Isabel, Adeline E., John L., Clara L., Carrie I., and Howard L.

Dye, Daniel C., M. D., son of Amasa A. and Caroline (Hutchinson) Dye, was born in Rockwood, Fulton county, June 23, 1860, read medicine with Dr. Nelson Everest

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of his native village, and was graduated from the Department of Medicine and Surgery of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor June 23, 1885, his diploma being endorsed by the faculty of Bellevue Hospital Medical College of New York city. In the fall of 1886 he began the active practice of his profession in Utica, where he has since resided. Dr. Dye is a member of the Oneida County Medical Society and on April 14, 1896, was elected its president He is also a member and for four years was secretary of the Utica Medical Library Association and later its delegate to the New York State Medical Society, of which he is a permanent mem- ber. He is a charter member of the Utica Medical Club and in March, 1896, was elected its president He is a member of the Association of Medical Officers of the National Guard and Naval Militia of New York State, first lisutenant and perman- ently commissioned (October 1, 1890) assistant surgeon' of the 44th Separate Co. N. G. S. N. Y., ward physician of the Eighth ward, and surgeon on the staff of St. Elizabeth's Hospital, of which he was resident physician three and one-half years. June 23, 1892, he married Jessie M., daughter of Alonzo B. Walling, of Utica, and they have one daughter, Dorothy Jessie.

Hewett, C. E., was born in the town of Marshall, March 27, 1830, son of Jedediah and Falley (King) Hewett. He learned the trade of joiner and carpenter, and worked at it for fifteen years, when he engaged in wagon building, which he followed for twenty six years, retiring in 1895. In 1850 he married Adeline C. Wilmott, by whom he has two daughters, Mrs. Richard Corcoran of Albion, Mich., and Nellie A., born in Appleton, Wis., in 1860.

Roberts, Henry W., was born in the town of Deerfield, Oneida county, December 1, 1858, son of Ellis R. Roberts, who was also born in that town, where he was for a number of years in the mercantile business. His grandfather was born in Wales, and came to the United States in 1818, and first settled in Utica. Ellis R. Roberts married Ann Johns, who was born in the town of Trenton, N. Y., by whom he had two children. Henry W. Roberts was a graduate of the Clinton grammar school in 1878, and has been engaged in the mercantile business most of his life. He was for six years (1883 to 1889) clerk in the store of Comstock Brothers, of Utica, and since 1889 has been in business for himself in Clinton for seven years. He married Anna Clark, of this town, by whom he has one daughter, Gertrude, and one child deceased, Vincent Ellis Roberts. Mr. Roberts was town clerk for three years, and at present is a member of the Board of Education, serving his second term, and he is also Republican county committeeman for his town, and a stockholder and treasurer of Empire Park Granite and Marble Co., located at Syracuse, N. Y.

Barker, Laurens M., was born in Oriskany Falls, N. Y., October 3, 1828, on the farm where he now resides. His grandfather. Munson, and his brother Miles were pioneers in Oneida county, coming from Connecticut in 1797, with an ox team and settling on what after became known as Barker Hill, when there was not a house within several miles of their own rudely constructed homes. Laurens H., father of Laurens M., was born May 9, 1804, and spent his life on the old homestead, where he died October 20, 1869. Laurens M. Barker received his education at the district school in the vicinity of his home, after which he settled down to farm life. January 3, 1872, he married Phebe Barker of Oriskany Falls, by whom he has one son,

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Charles H., born July 13, 1874. Mr. Barker's farm occupies a commanding pictur- esque site, upon which they raise large crops of hops.

Dempsey, Hon. James L., son of John and Catharine (Lyons) Dempsey, was born April 29, 1848, in Dublin, Ireland, and came to America with his parents the same year, settling first in New York city. In 1849 the family came to Utica and in 1853 moved thence to a farm in Westmoreland. In 1856 they settled in Kirkland, Oneida county, where his parents still live. John Dempsey is a farmer and mason by oc- cupation. He had eight children, all of whom are living: James L., Terrence J .. Thomas E., all of Clinton; John J. of the town of Kirkland; William, of Clinton; Mery J. (Mrs. John R. Tierney), of Lairdsville,, Oneida county; Anna (Mrs. John Nichols), of Utica; and Nellie (Mrs. Michael Dolan), of Albany, N. Y. James L. Dempsey was educated in the public schools of Kirkland, learned the trade of mason and builder, and for a time carried on a successful contracting business. In 1870 he became proprietor of a hotel in Clinton, his partner being Peter Blake, his brother- in-law, continuing seven years. In 1869 he commenced dealing in hops and farm produce, and has ever since continued in that business with unusual success. He has been an extensive operator in this connection, buying, handling, and shipping large quantities of hops, etc. In 1886 he was one of the organizers and first directors of the Clinton Burial Case Company, since removed to Utica. He was the prime mover and mainly instrumental in securing the location of the Clinton Canning Company in the village of Clinton, the leading manufacturing industry there. Mr. Dempsey has always taken a deep interest in the welfare and prosperity of the village of Clinton, contributing liberally of both time and means toward every worthy en- terprise, and encouraging all movements promising general benefit. Public spirited, progressive, and energetic he is prominently identified with the town, and is active in furthering its moral and material interests. He is a staunch Democrat, and has been for several years an influential member of that party. In 1890 and 1891 he represented his district in the State Legislature, where, as the records show, he looked carefully after the interests of his constituents, and especially after the wel- fare of the farming and laboring classes. As member of assembly he was instru- mental in starting the movements which resulted in the selling of the old county farm and poor house at Rome for $209,000, which gave to the county the present county house and poor farm and also the Rome State Custodial Asylum, two insti- tutions of permanent local as well as general value. He has been a trustee and one of the water commissioners of the village of Clinton since the spring of 1893. He was also a member of the first sewer commission, and as such was instrumental in introducing the present sewerage system, resigning to become village trustee. In all matters of local improvement he has taken a conspicuous part, and has labored assiduously for the benefit of the place. May 19, 1870, he married Catharine, daughter of Michael Blake, of the town of Kirkland, and they have had eight chil- dren: John A., Francis M., Joseph W., Elizabeth Maria, James L., jr., Kate, Robert (deceased), and Rose.

Foster, William S., president of the Foster Brothers Manufacturing Company of Utica, was born in Durhamville, Oneida county, February 15, 1848, and is the fifth of six sons of Orson Foster, a native of Litchfield, Conn., born in June, 1809. Orson Foster lived in Clinton, N. Y., during his youthful life, and about 1835 settled

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in Durhamville. He was a farmer, millwright, and contractor, prominent in local affairs, and served two terms as supervisor. He died in Utica in February, 1893. He married Dulina A. Smith, of Verona, whose death occurred in 1891. Their chil- dren were Albert N., deceased; Oscar S., of Utica; Charles M., deceased; Theo- dore, of Utica; William S., of Utica; and Niles H., of St. Louis, Mo. William S. Foster conducted his father's farm for a time. His brother, Oscar S., had become a partner and finally sole owner of the furniture manufacturing business of C. T. Segar & Co., in Utica, which was originally established by Mr. Segar in a building on John street in 1871. In January, 1881, William S. Foster purchased a half inter- est in the concern under the firm name of C. S. Foster & Brother, which in 1885 was changed to Foster Brothers. In April, 1892, the establishment was incorporated with a capital of $70,000, and adopted the present style of the Foster Brothers Manu- facturing Company with William S. Foster as president and Oscar S. Foster as secretary and treasurer. January 1, 1888, the concern occupied its present plant on Broad street, and in the fall of 1893 the manufacture of iron beds, brass trimmed, was commenced. Prior to that the business had been confined to the manufacture of springs and spring beds, woven wire cots, cribs, etc. Now all these articles are manufactured on a large scale and about seventy-five hands are employed, the trade extending throughout the United States. They are also interested in the Foster Brothers Manufacturing Company of Baltimore, Md., of which Oscar S. is presi- dent; the Foster Brothers Manufacturing Company of St. Louis, of which Oscar S. is president and Niles H. is secretary and treasurer; and is also interested in the Rome Metallic Bedstead Company of Rome, N. Y.

Jewett, James G., was born in Whitestown, now a portion of Utica, August 17, 1807, son of Samuel and Sarah Jewett. Samuel Jewett was born in Jeffrey, N. H., November 17, 1765, and died January 31, 1831. Sarah, his wife, was born April 27, 1769, and died February 12, 1861. James G. Jewett was educated at the Utica Academy, after which he engaged in farming. He married Orissa F. Rhodes, of Paris, Oneida county, N. Y., who died in August, 1870, aged forty-eight years. They had these children: Annette O .; Sarah E., who married J. J. Taylor, of Forest City, Ia .; Samuel F., who lives at Elgin, Ills. ; Emma E., deceased; James G., jr., who is a Mason, a member of Hampton Lodge No. 347 and Fort Stanwix Chapter No. 153; Lillias C., who married Carl A. Bliesmer, both deceased; Charles F., deceased ; Grant R., who is in Circle City, Alaska; Arthur P., in Port Angeles, Wash .; Grant R., is also a Mason, Hampton Lodge No. 347, and Arthur P. also belongs to the same lodge, No. 347, and Fort Stanwix Chapter No. 153.

Glatt, Joseph, was born in Forbach, France, in 1824 and in 1833 came to this country with his father and seven other children, he (Joseph) being the younger of the eight. Joseph Glatt, sr., was a brick and tile manufacturer by trade, which he followed in France; but upon coming to this country settled on a farm in Deerfield, remaining there until 1854, when he moved to Utica, where he spent the remainder of his days, living to the ripe old age of ninety-three years. While in France he was ten years in the French revolution and was one of Napoleon's body guard. Joseph, jr., and a sister in Iowa are the only surviving members of the family. In 1851 he married Sarah A. Johnson, of Deerfield, and moved to New Hartford on a farm of 250 acres, where he still resides. In 1858 his wife died, leaving three chil-

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dren: George A., Phebe M., and Ernest J. In 1862 Mr. Glatt married H. Cornelia, daughter of the late Peter and Delia A. Smith, old and much respected citizens of New York Mills. His present wife was for a number of years an experienced teacher in the public schools of that place. They have one son, Albert Smith, born November 28, 1863.

Thorneley, Edward, was born in England, January 23, 1831, son of Charles and Mary Thorneley. Edward Thorneley came to the United States in 1848, and settled in Westmoreland on his present farm in 1852. He married Eliza Carwardine, daughter of John and Mary Carwardine, of English extraction. Mr. Thorneley is a staunch Republican in politics, and contributes his best efforts to the support of his party.

Bacon, Ezekiel, son of Rev. John Bacon, was born September 1, 1776. His father was pastor of South church, Boston, later a resident of Stockbridge, Mass., a representative to the Massachusetts Legislature and the Congress of the United States, and for several years the presiding judge of the Berkshire Common Pleas. When fourteen Mr. Bacon entered Yale College and was graduated in 1794. He read law with Judge Reeve in Licthfield, Conn., and with Nathan Dane in Beverly, Mass., and practiced for some years in Berkshire county. He was a member of the Massachusetts Legislature in 1806 and 1807, and represented his county in Congress from 1807 to 1813, serving one year as chairman of the ways and means committee. He was appointed chief justice of the Circuit Court and Common Pleas for the Western district of Massachusetts, and soon after assuming the office was made first comptroller of the treasury by President Madison. On account of ill health he re- signed this latter office within two years and came to Utica, where he became a part- ner in the mercantile firm of Alexander Seymour & Co. In 1818 he was appointed associate judge of the Court of Common Pleas; in 1819 he was elected to the Assem- bly ; in 1821 he was a member of the State Constitutional Convention. About 1824 he was nominated for Congress but was defeated by Henry R. Storrs by less than 100 votes. In October, 1825, he was selected by the citizens of Utica to do honor to Governor De Witt Clinton in locally celebrating the Erie Canal. He was also at one time chief of a packet boat company. Judge Bacon was for a while the main edi- torial writer on the Oneida Whig and Utica Daily Gazette, to both of which he fre- quently contributed valuable articles. At his death on October 18, 1870, he was the oldest living graduate of Yale College and the last representative of Madison's ad- ministration. In 1799 he married Abby, daughter of Dr. Reuben Smith, of Litch- field, Conn., and their children were John H., William J., Francis, Elizabeth (Mrs. Henry Colt), and Fanny (Mrs. Theodore Pomeroy). William Johnson Bacon was born in Williamstown, Mass., February 18, 1803, came with his parents to Utica in 1815, and was graduated from Hamilton College in 1822. He read law with Gen. Joseph Kirkland and his son, Charles P., and also in the law school of Judge Gould, of Litchfield, Conn., and was admitted to the bar in 1824. Soon afterward he be- came partner of Samuel D. Dakin in the proprietorship and editing of the Sentinel and Gazette, now the Utica Morning Herald, for about two years. He then resumed his profession and in 1832 formed a partnership with his brother-in-law, Charles P. Kirkland, which continned successfully until Mr. Kirkland's removal to New York in 1851. In 1853 Mr. Bacon was judge of the Supreme Court, and by re-elec-

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tion remained on the bench sixteen years, retiring in 1870. Afterward he acted as counsel and referee. He was a most able jurist, high minded, and dignified. He was city attorney in 1837, elected to the Assembly in 1850, and was sent to Congress as a Republican in 1876. He was for many years a trustee of Hamilton College; for more than twenty years a director of the Oneida County Bible Society ; a director of the Second National Bank ; a trustee and president of the Savings Bank of Utica; a director and vice-president of the Utica Gaslight Company and the Forest Hill Cemetery Association ; a director of the Utica and Black River Railroad, Company, the Utica Water Works Company, and the Utica Steam Cotton Mills; a trustee of the Home for the Homeless, and consulting manager of the Utica Orphan Asylum; councilor and vice-president of the Oneida Historical Society ; a trustee of the Saratoga Monument Association; and president of the Utica Philharmonic Association. He was a profund Bible student and an able writer and speaker. For forty-nine years he was an officer of the Reformed church. He died July 3, 1889. His first wife was Eliza daughter of Gen. Joseph Kirkland, and their only surviving child is Mrs. Seth W. Crittenden. He married second, Mrs. Susan Sloane Gillett.

Tracy, Charles, was born at Vernon Center, in 1851, and spent the early part of his life in that vicinity. The Tracys were among the earliest settlers in Oneida connty, and were also the foremost citizens, having been identified with the develop- ment and progress of that part of the country. His father, Samuel Dill Tracy, was born at Ridge Mills, Oneida county, N. Y., October 22, 1813. When a mere boy he went to work for Joshua Hathaway, one of the first merchants in the city of Rome, N. Y., and in 1828 he went to New York city, where he learned the art of piano making, in company with Steinway, Chickering, Hardman, Nunn Bros., and others who were learning the trade at that time. Leaving New York he went to Albany in the latter part of the twenties, and had the honor of stringing and tuning the first piano manufactured in this State (outside of New York city), for George Meecham & Co., of Albany. Leaving Albany he located at Hampton, Oneida county, where he built several pianos; later on he moved to Vernon, N. Y., where William H. Beebe and the late E. D. Buckingham, of Utica, learned the piano trade of him. Mr. Tracy invented the "back catch " and " spring jack " that were first made in square pianos. He was the first American piano tuner in Oneida county, where he prac- ticed tuning for over fifty years. He married Emily Jane, daughter of Silas and Prudence (Gridley) Crocker, by whom he had these children: James, Henry C. Mary Maria, Charles, Luna Jane, Samuel D., jr., and Edwin C., all of whom are deceased but Mary Maria (Mrs. S. D. Norton), Charles, and Edwin C., who is post- master at Vernon Center. Charles Tracy is connected with Buckingham, Moak & Marklove, piano dealers in Utica. He is a musician of considerable reputation, and one of the most skillful piano tuners in the State. His paternal grandparents, Silas and Prudence (Gridley) Crocker, came from Connecticut and settled in Vernon, N. Y., in 1802. With them came Titus Pettibone, a brother-in-law, who married Cyn- thia Gridley. They settled on and cleared up a lot of sixteen acres, which is now owned by Clayton Lewin. Mr. and Mrs. Crocker had these children: Silas, Edwin, Mary and Emily Jane, all of whom are now deceased.

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Our county and its people; a descriptive work on Oneida county, New York;, Part 133

Author: Wager, Daniel Elbridge, 1823-1896 Publication date: 1896 Publisher: [Boston] : The Boston history co. Number of Pages: 1612

Author: Wager, Daniel Elbridge, 1823-1896
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: [Boston] : The Boston history co.
Number of Pages: 1612