USA > New York > Onondaga County > Pompey > Re-union of the sons and daughters of the old town of Pompey > Part 23
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Of the Clarkes, there were seven brothers; six of them were professional men, and one of them a farmer ; and five of them had special interest in Pompey.
Dr. Deodatus Clarke was born July 27th, 1762, and died January 10th, 1847; he settled on lot 66 in 1795, and owned the whole of lot 52. He moved thence to Oswego, in 1807, where he died. Two of his sons are now living, Edwin W., (a lawyer, retired from practice) now lives in Oswego, N.Y., and Ossian, his youngest son, a physician and surgeon, in Neosho, Wis.
Henry Clarke, farmer, settled in Pompey about 1795, and moved to Manlius prior to 1805, where he died in 1810. None of his children are now living.
Thaddeus Clarke was born February 12th, 1770; he set- tled on lot 81 in 1820, and moved thence to Fabius, about the year 1830; thence to Rochester, and thence to New Brighton, Pa., where he died February 15th, 1854. His widow now lives in Dowagiac, Mich. His children now living, are Joseph B., Attorney, Dowagiac, Mich., Frederick J., Merchant, Ottumwa, Iowa, Charles E., Colonel in the Regular Army, Rufus L. B., Attorney, Dr. William E., Chicago, Ill., Lucy C., wife of Rev. Amory D. Mayo, Sarah I., (Grace Greenwood,) Washington, D. C., and Al- bert Henry.
Erastus Clarke was born May 11th, 1768, attorney, an- other brother, settled in Utica, N. Y., in its infancy, of whom the Hon. Ambrose Spencer said :- "He is the only man I ever knew who could split a hair, and then show the difference ot the parts."
He owned the whole of lots 81 and 54, and about 200 acres
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of lot 37, Pompey. It is said that he took a petition to Al- bany, for the incorporation of Pompey Academy, and a bill prepared for that object, the passage of which through the Legislature he procured, with an appropriation of a milita- ry lot for the benefit of the Academy. He died November 6th, 1825.
Dr. Hezekiah Clarke, the eldest brother of the five, was born December 19th, 1757, in Lebanon, Conn, and was the son of Dr. John Clarke, grandson of Moses Clarke, great- grandson of Dr. Daniel Clarke, Jr., and great-great-grand- son of Daniel Clarke, who emigrated to America in the year 1640, and settled at Hartford, Conn. His maternal grandmother, was Elizabeth Edwards, daughter of Timothy Edwards, and sister of President Jonathan Edwards.
He studied Medicine and Surgery under his father; was appointed by Governor Trumbull, Surgeon's Mate in the Third Connecticut Regiment, in the army of the Revolu- tion, commanded by Colonel Samuel Wyllis, General Par- sons' Brigade. Subsequently, on the re-organization of the army, denominated the First Connecticut Regiment.
He was in the regular service two years, when, by reason of protracted sickness he left the army.
Afterward, when Fort Griswold, on the river Thames, opposite New London, was captured by the British under the traitor Arnold, he repaired to the scene which might put savages to the blush, and gave his professional aid.
When he arrived at New London, he found a large num- ber of men who could not pass over, the enemy having de- stroyed all the craft on the river, but by searching he found a rickety skiff, utterly unseaworthy. Here he found him- self in a dilemma ; for he could not cross in it alone, and they who were standing there refused to accompany him, concluding that, if it could not carry one, two must inevita- bly go down with it. After much effort, he prevailed on one man to row the skiff, while himself bailed the water out of it, and thus, by their united effort, they arrived safely on the opposite side.
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He immediately repaired to the scene of murder, (for it was nothing less,) and assiduously devoted himself to the re- lief of the unfortunate victims, by dressing their wounds, and rendering any other assistance of which they stood in need. Thirty years after, three of the sufferers called on him in Pompey, to express to him their gratitude for his timely and kindly aid.
Soon after the close of the war, he settled in Pittsfield, Mass., where he remained one year. He then (June 2d, 1786) married Miss Lucy Bliss, daughter of Hon. Moses Bliss, of Springfield, Mass., and grand-daughter of Timothy Edwards, and settled in Lanesborough, Berkshire County, Mass. There he pursued his profession about eighteen years, then moved with his family to Pompey, where he arrived November 3d, 1805; he lived in the house then owned by Daniel Wood, Esq., near the Academy, one year, and then settled on the farm on lot 66, where his son John H. Clarke now lives. Here he continued to labor in his profession till infirmities incident to old age terminated his labors, and he closed his useful life in Pompey, March 4th, 1826.
Dr. Clarke's reputation as a Physician and Surgeon, stood high ; but his reputation as a Surgeon did not consist so much in the number of limbs amputated, as in their pres- ervation ; but when it became necessary to resort to the tourniquet and knife, he knew how to use them. He was a skillful operator.
His children were :-
First-Henry, who studied law with Hon. Victory Birdseye, served as an officer in the war of 1812, and died at Ithaca, February 19th, 1817.
Second-Harriet, married Hon. Daniel Gilbert, and died at Coldwater, Mich., November 27th, 1864.
Third-Charles, died at Dowagiac, Michigan, April 22d, 1874.
Fourth-Lucy, died July 29th, 1846.
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Fifth-John II., now lives on lot 66, Pompey.
Sixth-William M., now lives in Onondaga, near Syra- cuse.
Seventh-Moses B., died November 20th, 1865.
Eighth-Theodore E, died October 26th, 1853.
PAUL CLAPP.
Paul Clapp, the father of John, Chester and Carlton, was born in the year 1752, at Chesterfield, Mass., and when the youngest son, Carlton, was two years old, he immigrated to Pompey, in the year 1798. His family then consisted of his wife, whose maiden name was Hepsibah Guilford, and nine children, to-wit :- Paul, Jr., Sally, Electa, Hadessa, Patty, Philena, John, Chester and Carlton. Electa lives in George County, Ohio, and is the only surviving member of the family. Paul Clapp was a soldier in the war of the Revo- lution, and at the time of his death was a recipient of a pension ; he was a member of an expedition through the northern wilderness, which made an aggressive war upon the Indians and Tories, and was taken prisoner, carried to Canada, and suffered great hardship. After coming to Pom- pey, he took up a large tract of land, to which he afterwards added largely ; being engaged in agricultural pursuits till his death, which occurred in 1845, upon the land which he reclaimed from its wilderness state. Three of his sons set- tled on his land in Pompey-John, Chester and Carlton. Paul Clapp, Jr., went to Ohio, being one of the pioneer settlers in that State. John Clapp married a daughter of David Hinsdell ; his children now living are Addison Clapp, of Pompey, Edmund O. Clapp, of Syracuse, Therissa, wife of Chester Baker, of LaFayette, N. Y., Mary Clapp, of Manlius, N. Y., Rhoda, wife of Dr. Tollman, of Onondaga Valley, and Flora, Mrs. Reed, of Manlius Village.
Chester married Sally Hinman about the year 1819; their living children are Morris H. Clapp, of Urbanna, Ohio, and Esther, Mrs. Dorwin, of Syracuse.
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Carlton Clapp married Harriet Foote, of Manlius; their surviving children are Mary A., Mrs. Hervey Jerome, of Lincoln, Nebraska, Guilford C. Clapp, of Pompey, N. Y., and DeLancy Clapp, of De Witt, N. Y.
Edmund O. Clapp, named above, died in Syracuse since writing this sketch.
JOHN J. DEMING.
Sacred to the memory of John J. Deming, whose biogra- phy it has been impossible to obtain. He was an accom- plished gentleman, a profound scholar and favorite teacher. He was one of the early teachers in Pompey, and taught in the west room of the old Pompey Academy.
" Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, And waste its sweetness on the desert air."
DODGE FAMILY.
Hezekiah Dodge came to Pompey with his brother, Ezra, in 1795, and settled on the same tract of land on Lot No. 50. He owned that portion of the land subsequently known as the John Wells' farm. Like his brothers, his life was de- voted to agriculture. He, too, was one of the early con- tributors to building and endowing the Pompey Academy. He removed from Pompey in 1842, and went to live with his son, Oren, who moved to Lysander, Onondaga County, in 1826. With him he lived till his death, which occurred in 1844, at the age of sixty-five. He was married in Cou- necticut, to Hannah Roberts, whose father was a Revolu- tionary soldier ; by her he had six children ; in the order of their' ages, they were Nehemiah, Oren, Charles, Julia, Joanna and William. Nehemiah went to Oswego, and died at about the age of fifty-two. He was married to Fannie Beebe, and left four children who live in Wisconsin, except one who resides at Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Oren, who was seventy-five years old Jan. 3d, 1875, mar- ried Almira Russ, by whom he had three children, Caroline,
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Sarah and Julia, two of whom only, Caroline and Julia, are living and both married. They reside in Schroppel, Oswego County, N. Y. His first wife died, and he married Almira Lyboult, who died in 1868. He now lives with his third wife, who was Mrs. Susan Smith, at Plainville, in Lysander. Two years ago, at the age of seventy years, she wove eleven hundred yards of carpeting, manufactured twenty pounds of wool and did her own house work, her husband and herself constituting the family.
Julia, the fourth child of Hezekiah, married Dr. George Morley, who lived on the farm now owned by Joseph Wallis. She died leaving no children.
Charles, the third son of Hezekiah, married Nancy Wells, of Cazenovia. At first they went to Lysander, and thence to Michigan, stopping a short time near Rochester, N. Y. From St. Joseph, Mich., they moved to near Austin, Texas, Dec. 3d, 1853, where they now reside. He is a farmer and largely engaged in raising cattle. One child, a son, died in Michigan, and he has remaining one daughter, Helen, who married Judge Turner, of Texas. He, on account of his Union sentiments, was obliged to leave his State and come north. During the campaign which resulted in the second election of Lincoln, he advocated the Republican cause upon the stump, in various places through the North.
Joanna Dodge married Jerome Sweet, a nephew of Horace Sweet, late of Pompey. They went to Indiana, near Al- bion, where he engaged in farming. They have four children, having lost one son in the late war; three daugh- ters and one son are living near their parents; they are all married.
William Dodge moved to Michigan and engaged in lum- bering; he was married to Juliette Dunham, of Little Utica, N. Y. He met a violent and sudden death while at work in the saw mill which he built. He left a widow and five children.
Ezra Dodge came to Pompey from Litehfield, Conn.,
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about the year 1795, and located on Lot No. 50, where Thomas Cox now resides, the farm still being known as "The Dodge Farm." He was a farmer, and changed from its wilderness condition the land upon which he settled, and which his son, David F., subsequently owned. He, in com- mon with the pioneer settlers, was subjected to the toils, privations and hardships incident to pioneer life ; and yet, in common with the early settlers of Pompey, he found time to devote his attention to the early establishment of schools and churches. He was among the subscribers to the en- dowment fund of the Pompey Academy. He was old enough to remember the Revolutionary struggle, and be- lieved and acted upon the principle that the general diffu- sion of knowledge and virtue is essential to the perpetuity of the system of government which the patriots of '76 fought to establish. Before he came to Pompey, he had married Polly Foote, and six children were the fruits of that union ; they were, in the order of their ages, David F., Ira. Clarissa, Hezekiah, Seabred and Ezra, Jr. His family were of more than ordinary intellectual ability. He and his wife lived and died upon the land they reclaimed from its wilder- ness state.
David F. Dodge, his eldest son, married Ada D. Roberts in 1824, and inherited a part of the farm of his father, upon which he lived till 1854, when he purchased the vil- lage house and lot, now the Catholic pastoral residence, and subsequently the Daniel Wood residence in the village of Pompey Hill, together with the farm attached, where he lived till his death, which occurred in 1869. His widow still survives, living in the family of her daughter, Mrs. Daniel G. Wheaton, upon the farm where her husband died. In early life Mr. Dodge was, for eighteen winters, a success- ful teacher, and he and his wife were Protestants, but about the year 1835 they renounced the faith of their fathers and embraced the Catholic faith, and Mr. Dodge was largely in- strumental in establishing the Catholic Church at Pompey Hill. He was a man of extensive reading and of strong in-
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tellectual power, and although devoted to agricultural pur- suits during his active life, was always fond of debate, and was acenstomed to attend and participate in the discussions at the Lyceum of the Academy. Their children were Diane, Mary, Hobart and Cynthia.
Diane died in 1856, and though young, she had acquired among a circle of choice friends, an enviable reputation for intellectual and moral worth. She gave early promise of authorship of a high grade of excellence. Mary became the wife of Daniel G. Wheaton, of Pompey, and resides on the farm her father left, surrounded by a large family of children.
Hobart is a lawyer, and resides in Perrysburg, Ohio; he married Sarah, a daughter of Capt. Wilkinson, of Lake Erie ; they have three children-two daughters and a son. .
Cynthia has chosen to devote her life to the service of the Church; she is Sister of Charity at Mount St. Vincent, on the Hudson.
Ira Dodge, the second son of Ezra Dodge, commenced life with little inheritance but his strong arm and strong common sense ; these he has made the most of, and now at a ripe old age resides in LaFayette, which was originally a part of Pompey, enjoying the fruits of his labors. His sons Harvey, Daniel and Homer, all in affluent circumstane- es and devoted to farming, live in his immediate neighbor- hood.
Clarissa is the wife of Nelson Hall, of LaFayette.
Clarissa, the third child of Ezra, died at an early age un- married.
Hezekiah Dodge was a practicing Physician and Surgeon ; he went south, and in Georgia married a Planter's daugh- ter : here he lived about twenty years; from Georgia, he moved with his family to Mount Pleasant, Ill. They are both dead, leaving them surviving a large family of chil- dren, who are residents of Illinois.
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Seabred Dodge was the intellectual giant of the family, and with the assistance of his eldest brother, David F., ac- quired a thorough classical education; he graduated at Hamilton College, and took high rank as a scholar ; espe- pecially did he excel in mathematics, being, in his day, one of the best mathematicians in the United States. He chose engineering for a vocation, and went to Ohio in 1826, and at first located at Cleveland; he was the chief engineer of the Ohio Canals, and had the supervision of their construc- tion. Late in life he married Jane Town, and they located at Acron, Ohio. His arduous labors and exposures incident to his calling, among the miasmatic swamps and lowlands, engendered disease which took him prematurely from this world, and he died in 1849, leaving his widow but no chil- dren to survive him. He was a man of the highest integ- 'rity, always guarding with exact justice, the interests of the State. One circumstance in his life illustrates this truth :- Water lime was an article much used in the construction of the canals, and the Ohio lime seemed not to be suited for the purpose ; a limited contract was made for a supply from Onondaga County, N. Y., and his brother David F. was chosen to negotiate for what should be needed; making a position for him which promised weath, at what was sup- posed at the time, a necessary expense to Ohio; the broth- ers very soon ascertained how to make the Ohio lime answer the purpose, and his brother's rich prospects were quickly ended, to the great saving of the people of Ohio. It would be refreshing for officials and contractors in these days to imitate an example of integrity thus manifested by these two brothers. His widow now resides in the city of Cleve- land.
Ezra Dodge, Jr., married Miss Armena Hendricks, and they went to Ohio, but remained but a short time, and fin- ally settled at Mount Pleasant, Ill.
Here he remained till his death, which occurred about the year 1865, leaving a large family, who reside in the vicinity of Mount Pleasant.
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THE DUNHAM FAMILY.
Deacon Daniel Dunham, emigrated from Windham, Con- necticut, in the year 1795, and established the clothiers' trade, at the old mills in Manlins ; he also bought a wild lot ยท of land, of about one-hundred and thirty acres, three miles south-east of Pompey Hill. Captain Samuel Dunham, his son, was born in Windham, Conn., in the year 1780. When he was seventeen years of age, his father sent him alone to work and clear up his new lot of land in Pompey. IIe boarded at the four corners near the old residence of Dr. Hezekiah Clarke, about two miles south-east of Pom- pey Hill, also near the place where "Grace Greenwood" was born. From here he went daily to his work, one mile south by marked trees, for two years clearing the land, and he put up a log house. Then his two sisters came, and kept house for him, for five years longer. He then at the age of twenty-five, married a Miss Parmerlee, of Cazenovia ; he continued to reside on this farm up to his death, at the age of sixty-nine years; his wife survived him, and he left a large family of children. His son Samuel Mosley Dunham, was born on the old farm in Pompey, September 17th, 1805, and lived with his father until he was twenty-five years of age. He then married and lived for five years on the farm which was the birthplace of Grace Greenwood, and next west of the farm then and till his death, owned by Nicholas Van Brocklin. When at the age of thirty years, the winter of "the deep snow," March 10th, he moved to the town of Clay, where he still resides. The following are the remain- ing children of Captain Samuel Dunham : General Albert Tyler Dunham, who resided many years at Chittenango. married the daughter of Colonel Sage, of that place, and subsequently removed to Troy, N. Y. He has been engaged on Public Works for many years, and acquired a handsome fortune ; he now lives in New York City with his second wife, his first wife having died several years ago; Mary Ann Dunham, now Mrs. Clute, resides in Syracuse ; Char- lotte Sophia, now Mrs. St. John, now resides in Orange,
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New Jersey; Nancy Maria, now Mrs. Knight, resides in Collins, Erie County, N. Y .; Susan Amelia, now Mrs. Ab- bott, now resides in Fort Dodge, Iowa; Charles Parmerle, the youngest son lived and died on the old homestead, which is now owned by Lewis H. Robinson, married a daughter of Deacon Asa H. Wells, Doxanna, by whom he had two children-Luella and Harriet; his widow and daughters now reside at Pompey Hill.
THE FENNER FAMILY.
James L. Fenner, the father of Frederick W. Fenner, who, it will be remembered very happily responded to a sentiment " to any body," on the occasion of the Pom- pey re-union, was born in Rhode Island, May 20, 1777. His wife, Betsey Perry, was born in Dighton, Bristol Co., Mass., June 18th, 1780. They were married February 22d, 1801, and in the Spring following moved to the State of New York, and temporarily settled in the vicinity of Man- lius village. But after looking for a favorable locality for his business (being a Millwright,) he resolved to locate on the farm now occupied by Charles Carr, but was unsuccess- ful in obtaining a good title. It became the property of James Carr, (afterwards Col. Jas. Carr.) Mr. Fenner then located on the farm next west. Soon after saw mills were built and the pioneer settlers became active in lumbering and building dwellings 'and barns. Slabs became plenty, and the pioneer flourishing village was named Slab Hollow. Mr. Fenner was active in erecting the saw mills, and was one of the proprietors who erected the first grist mill in Slab Hollow. It was built on the creek nearly north of his resi- dence on the road running west to the Murray neighbor- hood. Mr. Fenner permanently settled in Slab Hollow, in Pompey, as early as 1804. Their second child, a son, was born in Pompey. So early did he come that he had to cut his road from Manlius to his residence in Slab Hollow. He and his family continued to reside in Pompey until March 20th, 1818, when he moved to Lysander, Onondaga Co.,
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where he owned over three hundred acres of wild timbered land, nearly all of which he lived to see under a state of cul- tivation. During the war of 1812 he was a volunteer in the service of his country. His wife died at Lysander, March 16, 1849, being at the time of her death nearly sixty-nine years of age. Mr. Fenner survived her till January 16th, 1851, being then nearly seventy-four years of age.
Nine children were born unto them, six of whom claim Pompey as the place of their birth : Betsey Fenner was born in Manlius, July 25th, 1803; James L. Fenner, Jr., was born in Pompey, Sept. 14th, 1805; John L. Fenner was born in Pompey, Dec. 1st, 1807 ; Darius P. Fenner was born in Pompey, Oct. 12th, 1809; Frederick W. Fenner was born in Pompey, Sept. 9th, 1811; Russel B. Fenner was born in Pompey, Feb. 9th, 1814; Harriet J. Fenner was born in Pompey, Sept. 21st, 1816; Luther W. Fenner was born in Lysander, May 14th, 1820; Ethalannah Fenner was born in Lysander, July 21st, 1822. Of these, three have died; Betsey Washburn died in Granby, Oswego County, N. Y., March 20th, 1847; James L. Fenner, Jr., died May 11th, 1856, in Lysander, Onondaga County, N. Y., and Ethalannah Blackman died January 20th, 1862, in Northfield, Minnesota.
Frederick W. Fenner, whose son, James R. Fenner, now resides in Delphi, in Pompey, after living in Lysander four years, came back to Pompey and lived with his aunt, Anna Allen, with whom he lived at the time the name of Slab Hollow was changed to Watervale. It seems that about the year 1823, the citizens of Slab Hollow became dissatisfied with the name of their village; one of two things must be done they said, either to move out or change its name. So they resolved, in a public meeting called for that purpose, to change its name to Watervale, that name being suggested by Ansel Judd, who was always consulted at that day upon all important matters touching the interests of the village. It was also resolved, that Mr. Judd, who was somewhat given to the muses, should originate some lines appropriate
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to the occasion. Of much that was written, the following lines are given from memory :
" The timber's all gone, of the Slabs we've made sale, We've no more now Slab Hollow, but we've now Watervale."
THE FLINT AND RICE FAMILIES.
Thomas Flint and his brother, Henry, emigrated from England in 1635, where they and their ancestors had dwelt for eight hundred years, as appears by the record. It was Matlock in Derbyshire, by the river Darrow, which place Thomas sold for forty thousand pounds. Thomas came to Boston and settled there, and in 1637 removed to Concord. His property was chiefly expended in improving the town of Concord. For three years he was a representative of the General Court of Massachusetts and Assistant until his death, which occurred Oct. 8th, 1653. Henry was a minis- ter of the gospel and was ordained at Braintree (now called Quincy), March 17th, 1640. He married a sister of Presi- dent Hoar, and died April 27th, 1668. The eldest son of Henry Flint graduated at Harvard College in 1673, and af- terwards became a Professor in that institution. John Flint, son of Thomas, was Lieutenant and Representative in 1677 and 1679. He married a sister of President Oaks, of Harvard College, in 1677, and died in 1687. His children were Mary, Thomas, John, Abigail and Edward.
John Flint, son of the above John, settled in Concord as did his father. His children were Ephraim, Abigail, Mary, Sarah, John, Hannah and Jane.
The next list includes the children of the last named John Flint, who was born May 12th, 1722, was married to Hipsi- bah Brown, Jan. 12th, 1744. Their children were born and died as follows: Hepsibah, born Nov. 1st, 1747, and died June 4th, 1790; Edward, born Ang. 14th, 1749, died March 25th, 1812; John, born Aug. 11th, 1751, died Oct., 1822; Nathan, born Feb. 11th, 1755, died March 2d, 1824 ; Ephraim, born April 17th, 1757, died Aug. 22d, 1769;
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Thomas, born May 6th, 1759, died Nov. 6th, 1839; Eleazer, born Aug. 9th, 1761, no date of his death ; Cumming, born Sept. 11th, 1763, died July 1st, 1831; Abisha, born Oct. 20th, 1766, died April, 1807.
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