USA > New York > Schuyler County > Portrait and biographical record of Seneca and Schuyler Counties, New York : containing portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens of the counties, together with biographies and portraits of all the presidents of the United States > Part 19
USA > New York > Seneca County > Portrait and biographical record of Seneca and Schuyler Counties, New York : containing portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens of the counties, together with biographies and portraits of all the presidents of the United States > Part 19
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54
After years of studious and prayerful prepara- tion, during the last six of which he often con- ducted services in the absence of an ordained minister, our subject was ordained, in 1874, at the Rochester Conference of the Wesleyan Meth- odist Church held at Farmington, N. Y. He was first assigned to South Bristol, where he re- mained until 1877, and the next four years he spent at Haskinville, Steuben County. There he had a very large district to cover, and did it greatly to the satisfaction of the conference. His next field was Farmington, whence after a year of successful work he came to Varick, in 1882. For six years thereafter he preached the Word to the people here, and in 1888 purchased a farm of twenty-seven acres, to which he retired in that year.
In 1894 Rev. Mr. Cook was again called to minister to the spiritual wants of the people of Varick, and is their esteemed pastor to-day. In church circles he is greatly honored, being Sec- retary of the Rochester Conference, a post which he has held for twenty years, the longest incum- bency on record. On two occasions lie has rep- resented the Rochester Conference at the general conference, once at Pittsford, Mich., and again at La Otto, Ind. He is also Secretary of the Mis- sionary Board of the Rochester Conference.
In politics Rev. Mr. Cook is a Prohibitionist,
Chairman of the organization of that party in this town. Two children have blessed the union of Rev. and Mrs .. Cook, a son and daughter, Edward L. and Editlı B.
ORACE C. SILSBY, the well known man- ufacturer of the Silsby Fire Engines at Seneca Falls, was born in Sheffield, Conn., on the 3d of May, 1817, and is a son of Seth and Betsy K. (Cady) Silsby, the former be- ing a native of New Hampshire. The ances- try of our subject can be traced back to Henry Silsby, who was born in London, England, in 1608, and who emigrated to America in 1670. He died in Lynn, Mass., in 1700. Betsy Cady, the mother of our subject, was a daughter of James Cady, and her death occurred in Monroe County, N. Y., in 1840.
The subject of this sketch is the sixth in a family of nine children, only three of whom are now living. His boyhood days were passed in the village of Mendon, Monroe County, .N. Y., to which place his parents had removed. He at- tended the village school there .until fourteen years of age, when he commenced clerking in a store at Palmyra. He afterward went to Pitts- ford, in the same county, and later to Honeoye Falls, where he engaged in the same business. In 1836 he came to Seneca Falls, where he en- gaged in the manufacture of chopping axes and mill picks, in company with his brother, William C. Silsby, and his brother-in-law, William Wheel- er. After following this business until 1840, he sold his interest and engaged in the dry-goods business, and later in the hardware trade, in which he continued until 1843, when he began the manufacture of pumps and stove castings, doing a large and successful business until 1856, at which time, in connection with his other lines
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of business, lie commenced experimenting in the manufacture of fire engines. In that year he completed his first engine, which, when tested, proved all that was claimed for it. He then be- gan the manufacture of the Holly Rotary En- gine and the Holly Rotary Pump. Mr. Holly was the inventor, but they became the prop- erty of the Silsby Manufacturing Company.
The works of this company are known in the vil- lage as the Island Works, being situated on the island and covering about five acres. The plant includes twenty-two buildings, constructed of brick, with metal and slate roofs. The works were established in 1845, but it was not until 1856 that the rotary engine was manufactured and presented to the public. Mr. Silsby was a pioneer in the United States in the manufact- ure of steam fire engines, and was the first to produce a practical and successful one. The business of the company has practically been un- der one management for about forty years, and in more than half the villages of more than ten thousand inhabitants which have steam fire en- gines the Silsby is used. Our subject was con- nected with the business until 1889, when he turned it over to his sons and retired. The pres- ent company was incorporated, in 1891, as the American Fire Engine Company. This is a con- solidation of the Silsby Company and three other companies. They now operate two plants-one at Seneca Falls and the other at Cincinnati, Ohio. The capital stock is $600,000, and the annual product exceeds that of all other fire-engine man- ufactories combined. In addition to steam fire engines, the company manufacture hose carriages aud carts, fire pumps and fire-department sup- plies. Their trade is very large throughout the United States, and also extends into Mexico and Central and South America.
In 1839 Mr. Silsby was united in marriage with. Miss Phoebe M. Burt, of Mendon, N. Y., a daughter of Festus Burt. By this union nine children were born. Those living are: Horace, General Manager of the American Fire Engine Company; Charles T., Treasurer; and William S., Secretary. All are well known and promi- nent residents of Seneca Falls.
In politics Mr. Silsby is a Democrat, but lias never been very active, as his business required his undivided attention, though he served four years as Trustee of the village and two years as Supervisor. He is a regular attendant at the Presbyterian Church, to which he has contributed liberally, and of which lie served as a Trustee for a number of years. Mrs. Silsby, who died in March, 1893, in her seventy-fifth year, was a consistent member of the Presbyterian Church, and was always happy in carrying on the Master's work. For nearly sixty years Mr. Silsby lias been a citizen of Seneca Falls, and it goes with- out question that lie has done more than any one man in building up the industries of the place. Throughout the entire country Seneca Falls is known as the place in which the Silsby Fire Engines are manufactured, and its reputation as a village has been largely acquired from that fact. The honors heaped upon Mr. Silsby are worthily bestowed.
EV. JAMES O'CONNOR, pastor of St. Pat- rick's Catholic Church at Seneca Falls, was born in the town of Wheatland, Monroe County, N. Y., April 8, 1844, and is a son of John and Winnifred (Dooley) O'Connor, both of whom were natives of Ireland, but who emigrated to the United States at an early day. At first they located in New York City, afterward re- moved to Rochester, and later settled in the vil- lage of Scottsville, in the town of Wheatland, where the father died in 1855, at the age of forty years. The mother survived him until 1879, and at her death was sixty-seven years of age. They were the parents of nine children, five sons and four daughters, our subject being fifth in order of birthi. His education was obtained in the dis-
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trict schools, and in Niagara University, from which he was graduated in 1867. The same year he was ordained priest by Bishop Timon, of Buffalo, N. Y. His first charge was at St. Mary's Church at Rochester, where he was assist- ant pastor, and he was later pastor of the churchi at Weedsport for one year. He was then trans- ferred to the village of Ovid, in Seneca County, where he remained six and a-half years, and from that place went to St. Bridget's Church, at Rochester, remaining fifteen years. In 1891 he came to Seneca Falls as pastor of St. Patrick's Catholic Church, which is the largest congrega- tion in the county, there being at least two thou- sand four hundred souls in the parish. In con- nection with the church there is a parochial school, taught by the Sisters of St. Joseph, which has an attendance of four hundred and thirty scholars. Since being ordained to the priesthood, Father O'Connor has been very successful, as is attested by his long service here. He is a man calculated to win the love and esteein of his parishioners, who go to him without fear for counsel. He has always been interested in the cause of temperance.
FORGE W. McNEMER. Among the rep- resentative, thoroughr-going and trustworthy officials of Schuyler County, there is proba- bly no one more deserving of mention than Mr. McNemer, who holds the responsible office of Supervisor of the town of Reading. Although retiring and unpretentious in manner, he has al- ways been a strong factor in the community. As he has always been honorable and upright in all his relations with the public, they have the satis- faction of knowing that their confidence in him is not misplaced.
Mr. McNemer is the son of Mathew Mc Nemer, whose birth occurred in Ireland in June, 1826.
His mother, prior to her marriage Lettie AIIII Jackson, was a native of Westchester County, N. Y., and was born in 1827. After their mar- riage they located in North Salem, that county, and after various removals we find them in Bir- mingham, Conn., where Mrs. McNemer died in 1862. The fatlier now makes his home in Som- ers, tliis state: The parental household included two children, of whom our subject was the elder. His brother, Charles J , is a resident of New York City.
George W. McNemer was born in North Salem, Westchester County, May 29, 1850. He re- mained under the parental roof until the death of his mother, when, the household being broken up, he was thrown on his own resources, and al- though only a lad of twelve years was obliged to look out for himself. Two years previous to this time, however, he had worked in a factory, but when deprived of his mother's care found employment on a farm near Huntington, Conn. There he remained until 1866, when he came to Schuyler County, this state, where he was also employed to work out on farms by the month. This state of affairs continued until the fall of 1868, when, ambitious of securing a better edu- cation, and having saved $365 of his earnings, he entered Starkey Seminary, in Vates County. After conducting his studies there for two years, he worked at the carpenter's trade during the summer months and taught school in the winter season for the succeeding four years.
Mr. McNemer was married about this time, and engaged in cultivating property, which he rented. It was not until five years thereafter that he was enabled to purchase land of his own, but at the end of that time invested his earnings in the farm on which he was residing. He was very prosperous in every undertaking, and from time to time added to his place until now his farm in- cludes one hundred and sixty-five excellently cul- tivated acres.
Mr. McNemer was married in Reading, Sep- tember 9, 1874, to Miss Lillie M. Sutton, daugli- ter of Carlos H. and Maria ( Eggleston) Sutton, both old and honored residents of this commu- nity. Mr. and Mrs. Sutton became the parents
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of two children, Lillie M. and Harry E. Mrs. McNemer was born in Reading December 23. 1853, and was well educated in the schools near her home. Our subject and his wife have one danghter, Grace, who is now fourteen years old.
In February, IS93, our subject was elected upon the Democratic ticket to liis present posi- tion, that of Supervisor. He has also been Jus- tice of the Peace, and for two years was Road Commissioner. It is impossible to mention all the services rendered the community by Mr. McNe- mer; suffice it to say, therefore, that his good name is above reproach and that he has won the confidence, respect and esteem of all who know him, and is one of the most popular men who have held official positions in the county.
Mrs. McNemer is a member of the First Bap- tist Church of Reading, and although not con- nected by membership with this denomination, her husband is Chairman of the Board of Trus- tees and gives liberally toward the support of the church. He is likewise Chairman of the Board of Supervisors, is one of the Trustees of Starkey Seminary, and is President of Reading Farm- ers' Alliance No. 6SI. In addition to his farin- ing interests, for the past six years he has been engaged in the hay and grain business in Read- ing with Messrs. I. E. Overton and F. A. Smith, the firm name being Overton & Co.
D HARLES C. HOWARD, now residing in the village of Alpine, is a well known citi- zen of Schuyler County. He was born in Candor, Tioga County, N. Y., March 22, 1837, and is a son of Charles C. and Laura ( Phelps) Howard, the former a native of Tompkins Coun- ty, N. Y., and the latter of Vermont. Our sub- ject grew to manhood in his native county and received a common-school education. October 22, 1862, he was married to Margaret A. Snyder,
who was born in the town of Catharine. Schuyler County, and who was a daughter of William and Electa (Rumsey) Snyder. Her father was an early settler of this county and was well and fa- vorably known, especially in religious circles, being an active member of the Methodist Episco- pal Church. He died August 4, 1862, at the age of forty-six years.
After the death of Mr. Snyder, our subject took control of the farm, whichi lie soon afterward purchased. It then contained sixty-six acres, but he lias since added thirty-four acres to it, making a good farm of one hundred acres, and here he made liis home until 1893. One year prior to this, in company with his son-in-law, Mr. Howard established his present business in Alpine. The firm is engaged in the buying and shipping of stock, to which Mr. Howard gives his special attention, and in which he has been per- sonally engaged for many years. It is likewise engaged in buying and shipping grain and prod- uce of all kinds, and also handles coal and agri- cultural implements. In 1893 Mr. Howard pur- chased his present residence and removed to Alpine. He still retains his farm, on which he keeps a tenant to care for the stock, as he makes a specialty of buying and feeding the same for the market. The first shipment of stock from this section over the Lehigh Valley Railroad was made by Mr. Howard. The Lehigh Valley Rail- road built a switch to accommodate the trade of Howard & Savercool, with the understanding that five thousand tons per year should be shipped from the station. The first year the shipments of the firm were more than three times that amount, and the railroad company has no reason to regret its investment.
In politics our subject is a stanch Republican, and cast his first Presidential vote for Lincoln. He lias since continued to act with that party, be- lieving its principles more in accord with the best interests of the people than that of any other party. While he cares nothing for official posi- tion, he has yet filled a number of local offices to the satisfaction of his friends and constituents. He and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Odessa, in the work of which
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they are active, and for years he has been Class- Leader and Steward. They are the parents of one child, Emma M., now the wife of F. N. Sav- ercool, who is Mr. Howard's partner in the busi- iness at Alpine.
F. N. Savercool was born in Newfield, Tomp- kins County, N. V., in 1861, and is a son of Uriah and Hannah (Thomas) Savercool, the for- mer a retired and wealthy farmer of Tompkins County. One child has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Savercool, Edna. In business Mr. Saver- cool has shown himself enterprising and success- ful, and to him is due much of the success of the firm.
ENRY L. KINNE. Among the pioneers and early settlers of Seneca County, Henry L. Kinne was always conspicuous and hon- ored. He was born in the town of Ovid, Decein- ber 14, 1808, and his father, Elijah, was born in Dutchess County. The latter, who was the first American to locate his family between Seneca and Cayuga Lakes, purchased a large tract of land near Ovid. He kept a hotel, which was noted all through that country for the excellence of its larder and the hospitality of its landlord. Besides this he carried on farming quite exten- sively, and upon this place that he had opened from a wilderness he died, leaving his large fam- ily well provided for. In central New York he was one of the strong and striking figures of the early days. He was twice married, Miss Leak becoming his second wife.
Mr. Kinne, the subject of this sketch, was mar- ried, May 24, 1834, to Miss Mary Marsh, and they had a family of six children. Cyrus, now in Newark, N. J., is in the railroad service in that city; Phebe M., who has been a teacher of this town for many years, is very successful in her call- ing, and is highly appreciated in her own district,
where she has taught for six terms; Daniel M., who at the present time has charge of the farm, has been Assessor of the town, and lias also served as Road Commissioner; John S. is also a farmer in this town; and Anne E. became the wife of Dr. Deniston, of Ovid, and died in 1876. There was another daughter, but she died in in- fancy.
Mr. Kinne moved onto this farm in 1829, and carried it on with vigor and success until the day of his death, December 4, 1864. By his thrift and economy he had acquired an estate of over two hundred acres, besides considerable ready money. His wife survives him, and is now in her eighty- sixth year. She was six years old when she was brought to this county, and her memory goes back to the time when it was all a wilderness, and Waterloo and Seneca Falls were insignificant hamlets.
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SAAC G. GREGORY is one of the younger business men of the village of Waterloo, and exerts much influence in its commercial and social development. He is of English origin, but has thoroughly harmonized himself with the con- ditions of modern American life, so that it would be hard for a stranger to detect anything indi- cating that he was not "to the manner born." His parents, Henry and Jane (Laney) Gregory, were married in Banwell, Somersetshire, Eng- land, where our subject was born in July, 1850. Their married life, however, was brief, as the fa- ther died while Isaac was less than three years old. The mother, hearing of the possibilities of the New World, gathered hier little family to- gether, and in the winter of 1854 sailed for New York City. Landing on these unfamiliar shores on the ist of the following January, she came di-
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rect to Waterloo, where she permanently located. She has now reached the venerable age of eighty- two years, yet does not find them full of weari- ness and trouble. Her two daughters, Mary and Hester, are close at hand, while her eldest son, Henry Gregory, is established upon a large farm in Pettis County, Mo., where he is extensively engaged in general farming and fruit-raising.
The boy Isaac received his education in the public schools of Waterloo, and finished his school days at that institution which has turned out so many strong and successful business men into the world during the last half-century-the Wa- terloo Union School. In 1866 he passed through his first experiences in the great mercantile world in his mother's grocery store. When he had mastered the details of the business, he exhibited a decided genius for its successful administration, and was put in full charge of the business, his mother retiring to enjoy a well earned rest. Un- der his control it has grown to large proportions, and he now carries a full line of dry goods, gro- ceries, provisions and canned goods. He owns
the building in which this business is carried on. and lias saved enough to warrant the erection of several dwelling-houses in different quarters of the village, which rent for a good figure. Al- together, he may be said to be one of the solid men of the community, and as such is generally recognized.
In 1875 Miss Sarah A., youngest daughter of the late John1 Bisdec, of Waterloo, became our subject's wife, and lived with him nincteen years, dying March 14, 1894, leaving four children, Keith Sumner, Paul, Mildred Alice and Henry Raymond. Her name is a tender memory with husband, children and friends.
Mr. Gregory has worked and voted with the Republican party, and by it has been honored, having served two terms as Village Trustee, and in party affairs has served on important commit- tees. He is a member of and has an active inter- est in the Knights of Pythias. Religiously he follows the bent of early associations and more mature convictions, and is a member of St. Paul's Episcopal Church.
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JOHN J. VAN ALLEN.
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JOHN J. VAN ALLEN.
OHN J. VAN ALLEN. The life of this well known attorney of Watkins has been one of untiring effort, unaided by any of the ad- vantages that tend so materially to help young men. To him belongs the distinction of being not only one of the oldest attorneys of Schuyler County, but also the oldest lawyer now living in the county seat. The knowledge acquired by an academical education in youth he has supple- mented by constant reading, that makes him one of the best informed men on general subjects in his community.
In the town of Birdsall, Allegany County, N. Y., the subject of this sketch was born Sep- tember 22, 1826. The grandfather, Peter Van Allen, was a native of Kinderhook, Columbia County, N. Y., his ancestors coming from Hol- land. They were among the first Dutch settlers of New York, emigrating about 1620. The fa- ther, John P., was also born in Kinderhook, Co- lumbia County, February 1, 1794, and was reared to manhood on a farm. His marriage united him with Elizabeth Cooper, a native of Schiodack, Rensselaer County, N. Y., and daughter of Joli Cooper, who removed from Rensselaer to Cayuga County, settling near the village of Cato.
The parental family consisted of four sons and four daugliters, of whom four are still living, John J. being the third of the number. His boy- hood days were passed at Angelica, Allegany County, where he was a student in the district
schools and the academy. Later lie carried on his studies in the Genesee Wesleyan Scminary at Lima, N. Y. For five years he clerked in stores at Angelica, Waterloo and Seneca Falls. On completing his literary studies, he began to read law with Diven, Hathaway & Woods, at Elmira, and in July, 1851, was admitted to practice at the Bar in Cooperstown, Otsego County, at the gen- eral term of the Supreme Court.
Immediately afterward Mr. Van Allen came to Watkins, and commenced a general law practice, to which the succeeding years have been devoted. Having practiced forty-four years in the county, he is, as above stated, the oldest member of the Schuyler County Bar. In January, 1856, he was admitted to the Supreme Court of the United States at Washington, D. C., and practices in state and federal courts.
The political views of Mr. Van Allen are of a positive character; he is a Democrat of the Jeffer- sonian school, and lie has been intimately identi- fied with the history of that party for forty years or more. On different occasions he has been a delegate to national and state conventions, in which he has taken an active part, discharging his duties in a praiseworthy manner. During the campaign of Horace Greeley, Mr. Van Allen did not favor hint for President, and with other mem- bers of the party he issued a circular letter to prominent Democrats throughout the country, urging that a Democratic candidate be placed in
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the field in opposition to Greeley. The result was that a convention met at Louisville, Ky., September 3, 1872, when Charles O'Conor was nominated for President and John Quincy Adams for Vice-President. The former, however, de- clined the nomination.
June 21, 1852, Mr. Van Allen married Miss Sophia L. Downer, daughter of Joseph G. Dow- ner, an old resident of Auburn, N. V. She died February 15, 1874, leaving four children, namely: Charlotte L., wife of L. Comstock, of Oxford, Chenango County, N. Y .; Washington Irving, an attorney residing at Mt. Morris, N. Y .; Altia, who is married and lives in Detroit, Mich .; and Margaretta, who is at home. The present wife of Mr. Van Allen, with whom he was united Feb- ruary 23, 1875, was Miss Anna Augusta Bennett, of Norwich, Chenango County, N. Y. Socially our subject is connected with Jefferson Lodge No. 326, F. & A. M., at Watkins. A generous, kind- hearted man, he gives of his means to all worthy objects, especially those calculated to promote the general welfare, and to the needy his aid is always cheerfully extended.
A RTHUR C. WOODWARD. As one of the leading Republicans. of Schuyler County, Mr. Woodward is well known throughout the state. For some years he has made his home in Watkins, and in the public affairs of this vil- lage he has been an important factor. For six years he was Deputy County Clerk, and for fif- teen consecutive years officiated in the capacity of Clerk of the county, which responsible position he filled with such efficiency as to win not only the commendation of those of his own political belief, but also the approval of his political op- ponents.
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