USA > New York > Schenectady County > Schenectady County, New York : its history to the close of the nineteenth century > Part 40
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SCHENECTADY COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.
Toledo, Ohio. In the following year Mr. Spitzer purchased the interest of the Widemans, and formed a co-partnership with his cousin, Adelbert L. Spitzer, under the firmn name of Spitzer & Co., bankers. In 1887 a branch office was opened in Boston, Mass. In May, 1899, the Boston office was moved to 20 Nassau street, New York City. The firin has enjoyed a continuous and permanent increase in prosperity, and is now the oldest and one of the most successful investment bank- ing houses in the central west, buying and selling municipal bonds and other high-grade investment securities. Mr. Spitzer is also a stock- holder and director in six other banks, including the Ohio Savings Bank and Trust Company, and the Security Trust Company, Toledo; a director of the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railroad Company, and president of the Spitzer Building Company, which erected, in 1893, the modern ten-story fire-proof building in Toledo. In January, 1900, Governor George K. Nash appointed him quartermaster-general of Ohio, with rank of brigadier-general. Mr. Spitzer is one of the leading citizens of Ohio, and is ever ready to foster or contribute to any worthy artistic, business or benevolent enterprise in his adopted city. He has always refused to permit his name to be used for any elective office, preferring to exert his influence and benefit his fellow men in the capacity of a private citizen and a general of financial affairs. He is a member of the Toledo and Country Clubs, of Toledo, and the Middle Bass Club, of Put-in-Bay, also a member of the Ohio Society of New York. He has traveled widely, both in this country and abroad, and his Colonial home, "Innisfail," on Collingwood Avenue, is filled with numerous choice specimens of the artistic and curious from all parts of the world, including a fine art gallery. He was married in 1884 to Lilain Cortez, daughter of Alexander McDowell, a lineal descendant of Elizabeth, sister of William Penn, and a cousin of General Irvine McDowell. They have no children.
GARRET SPITZER, financier, was born in Schenectady, N. Y., November 7, 1817, oldest son of Nicholas and Nancy (Bovee) Spitzer. He was an excellent business man, and his judgment and opinion were often sought on financial and business propositions. He was for over twenty years one of the advising directors of the Ohio
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BIOGRAPHICAL.
Farmers' Insurance Company, and for several years was associated with his two sons, Adelbert L. and Amherst T. Spitzer, in the banking and investment business. During the Civil War he was an extensive shipper of grain, flour and wool, and owned a large stock farm south of Medina. He always voted the Republican ticket, and was a member of the Congrega- tional Church. He was married to Mary Jane, daughter of Elisha and Sarah (Thompson) Branch, by whom he had three sons and five daughters, Amherst T., Aaron E., Adelbert L., Alice, Evelyn, Fran- celia, Luette, and Bessie Spitzer. Mr. Spitzer died in Medina, Ohio, January 3, 1891.
The Spitzers of to day are worthy descendants of a name long hon- ored in this country. General Garrett Effriter Ceilan M. Spitzer has attained dis- tinction in the military and public life of the state of Ohio, and he and Adelbert L. Spitzer, his cousin, are prominent bankers in New York City and Toledo, Ohio. Carl B. Spitzer, oldest son of the latter, was a well-known athlete, being at the present time the holder of the championship record for the mile run at Yale College, where he graduated. In 1899 he was sent to England by Yale College, with five others, to compete against the combined teams of Cambridge and Oxford. Lyman S. Spitzer, second son of Adelbert L. Spitzer, was also a graduate of Yale College, and edited the college paper in his Senior year.
ADELBERT LORENZO SPITZER, banker, was born in Medina, Ohio, in 1852, youngest son of Garret and Mary Jane (Branch) Spitzer, and great-great grandson of Dr. Ernestus de Spitzer. On his mother's side he descends from James Thompson, who came from England with a large colony, under the lead of Governor Winthrop, landing
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SCHENECTADY COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.
on New England shores in June, 1630; he was one of the first settlers of Charlestown, Mass. He died in 1682, at the age of eighty- nine years. The Thompsons in England were eminent in the intellectual, social and religious world, a number of them being knighted. James Thompson, a de- scendant of James, the colonist, with four of his five sons of twenty-one years and upwards, signed, with others, a covenant, adopted July I, 1774, to join in the defense of the colonies against the aggressions of the mother country. Two of his sons, John and Joseph, had already served in the French and Indian Wars ; four sons, James," Jonathan, John and Joseplı, and eight of his grandsons, were in the War of the Revolution. Mary Hancock, the. wife of James Thompson, was a cousin of Jolin Hancock, Governor of Massachusetts. Another ances- tor, John Thompson, was one of the framers of the National Banking Act, and established the First National Bank of New York, the first bank that was organized in the United States under this act. He later established the Chase National Bank of New York City, the name being given in honor of Salmon P. Chase, who was Mr. Thompson's warm and personal friend. Mr. Spitzer, through his mother, is a cousin of George K. Nash, Governor of Ohio. Mr. Spitzer was educated in the local schools and the Lodi (Ohio) Academy. At the age of twenty he entered the Exchange Bank of Seville, Ohio, and became cashier, and in 1873, in partnership with his brother, Amherst T. Spitzer, he established the banking house of Spitzer Brothers at North Amherst, Ohio. In 1878 he purchased his brother's interest. The following year he was elected a director of the First National Bank of Oberlin, Ohio. In 1882 he sold out the North Amherst Bank and removed to Toledo, associating himself
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BIOGRAPHICAL.
with his cousin, Ceilan M. Spitzer, in the banking and investment business, under the firm name of Spitzer & Co. Mr. Spitzer is a stockholder and director in five other banks, including the Merchants National Bank and Home Savings Bank in Toledo, and is secretary and treasurer of the Spitzer Building Company. He is a member of the Toledo Country and Polo Clubs, of Toledo, being president of the last named ; of the Middle Bass Club of Put in-Bay, and the Triton Fish and Game Club, of Canada. He is a well-known horse- man and an excellent whip. He has a large stable of horses, and with his four-in-hand coach, has won several blue ribbons at different horse shows and driving associations. In 1875 he was married to Sarah Elizabetlı, daughter of Lyman L. Strong, a descendant of Caleb Strong, Governor of Massachusetts, and cousin of William Strong, Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court. They have three sons and one daughter, Carl B., Lyman S., Roland A., and Luette Rutlı Spitzer.
HON. JACOB WINNE CLUTE was born in Schenectady, N. Y., October 1, 1847, and is the son of Jacob F. and Jemima (Winne) Clute, and is descended from Holland-Dutch ancestry. His father was a native of Schenectady. Having completed his school educa- tion at the age of nineteen years, he began the study of law in the office of Judges F. B. Mitchell and D. C. Beattie. He was admitted to the Bar in 1868, and opened an office with Judge Mitchell on State street, Schenectady, subsequently forming a co-partnership with him. This continued until the death of Judge Mitchell, since which time he has practiced alone. In 1893 he was elected Mayor of the city, and was re-elected in 1895. Hon. Jacob W. Clute married Elizabeth G., daughter of Francis Van de Bogert, and they have two children, Earl W. and D. Vedder. Mr. Clute has long been identified with the progress and development of Schenectady, has been a leading spirit in most of its important movements, and was one of those through whose efforts the General Electric Company located in Schenectady.
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SCHENECTADY COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.
HON. JUDSON STUART LANDON, LL. D., was born in Salisbury, Lichfield County, Connecticut, December 16, 1831. He was edu- cated in the common schools and in the Amenia and New York Conference Seminaries. In 1853 he became teacher of Latin, Mathe- matics and Natural Sciences in the Academy at Princetown, Schenec- tady County, N. Y., and, while teaching, pursued the study of law without an instructor. In 1854 he entered Yale College, where he studied law for one year. In 1855 he returned to the Academy as its Principal, and during the same year received the degree of Master of Arts from Union College. In 1856 he was admitted to the Bar, began the active practice of his profession, and was elected District Attorney, and in February, 1865, was appointed County Judge to fill a vacancy, and in the fall of that year was elected for a term of four years. In 1867 he served as a member of the State Constitutional Convention. In 1873 he was elected Justice of the Supreme Court in the Fourth Judicial District and was re-elected in 1887. During part of his first and second termns he served on the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, and on November 28, 1891, was designated a member of the Second Division of the Court of Appeals by the Gov- ernor, and again to the Court of Appeals January 1, 1900, under Section 7, of Article VI of the Constitution, as amended in 1899. On January 1, 1902, he retired from the Court of Appeals upon the expiration of his second term of service, and is again engaged in the active practice of his profession. He enjoys a high reputation both as a jurist and a Judge, being regarded as one of the ablest Justices of his day.
Judge Landon has always taken a warm interest in educational matters, and has been identified with Union College and the Albany Law School for many years. He is a member of the University faculty, is one of its trustees, is a member of the Board of Governors and of the Finance Committee. He received the degree of LL. D. from Rutgers College in 1885.
HON. EDWARD D. CUTLER was born at Ballston Spa, N. Y., Decem- ber 18, 1849, and was educated in the common schools and at the Classi-
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BIOGRAPHICAL,
cal Institute of Schenectady. In 1877 he entered the law office of Hon. Austin A. Yates, where he studied for two years, and in 1880 graduated from the Albany Law School, after which he became a law partner with Judge Yates. In the fall of 1884 he received the unan- imous nomination of the Democratic party of Schenectady County for Member of Assembly and was elected by a handsome majority, running 625 ahead of his ticket.
HON. AUSTIN A. YATES was born in Schenectady, N. Y., March 24, 1836. After a preparatory education he entered Union College, and was graduated from that historic institution in 1854. He then took up the study of law and was admitted to the Bar in 1857. Immediately after his admission he began the practice of his profes- sion, and was for a time editor of the Schenectady Daily News.
During the Civil War he raised a company, of which he became Captain, and at the close of the war was breveted Major for merito- rious services. He was made assistant to the Judge Advocate Gen- eral in 1865, at the close of the war. He commanded the company which hanged the murderer of Lincoln, Company F, 14th Volunteer Reserves. In 1867 he was elected District Attorney of Schenectady and was re-elected in 1870, but resigned in 1873, on his election to the office of County Judge. In 1879 he was appointed attor- ney to the Insurance Department by the State Superintendent of Insurance. He was Member of Assembly in 1887 and 1889.
Upon the breaking out of the Spanish-American War, Major Yates went to the front for the second time, upon this occasion as Major in the Second Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry and served until the regiment was mustered out. He was retired in 1900, upon his own application. He has been employed as attorney iu different departments of the state.
HON. D. C. BEATTIE was born in Salem, N. Y., December 2, 1827, and was graduated from Norwich University in 1845. He practiced law in Chicago from 1850 to 1859, and was located in Albany from
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SCHENECTADY COUNTY: ITS HISTORY
1860 to 1862, coming to Schenectady in February of the latter year. Here lie carried on his practice with success, and gained popularity so that he was elected District Attorney of Schenectady County in the fall of 1874, and filled that office from January 1, 1875 to Decem- ber 31, 1878. In the fall of 1879 he was elected County Judge, and took office on January 1, 1880.
HON. SAMUEL W. JACKSON was born in the town of Palatine, Montgomery County, N. Y., June 28, 1821. His father, Allen H. Jackson, a native of the same county, was engaged in mercantile pursuits. He was a graduate from West Point, was by profession a civil engineer, and was at one time chief of the corps of engineers of the New York & New Haven Railroad, and subsequently the Central Railroad of New Jersey. The progenitor of this branch of the Jackson family was Colonel Samuel Jackson, an Englishman, who came to America about 1790 and settled at Florida, Montgomery County. He served honorably in the war of 1812 and died in 1846. Samuel W. Jackson's mother was Diana (Paige) Jackson, sister of Judge Paige, of Schenectady.
After receiving an academic education he entered the Sophomore class of Union College in 1840, and, after a highly creditable course, was graduated in 1842 with honors.
Having begun a course in legal reading in the office of Alexander Sheldon previous to entering college, he resumed this study after graduating, and completed his legal course in the office of Paige & Potter in Schenectady. He was licensed as an attorney under the old regime in 1843 and as counsellor in 1846. Upon being admitted to the Bar in 1843 he began the practice of his profession at Gilboa, Schoharie County, N. Y., and continued thus occupied until 1850, when failing health forced him to retire for a time from active work. In 1856, however, his health being re-established, he resumed his professional duties, practicing in New York, but in 1858 he returned to Schenectady, where he has since remained, and where he has achieved a high reputation as a jurist.
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BIOGRAPHICAL.
He was appointed by Governor Hoffman in 1867 to fill the unex- pired term of Judge E. H. Rosecrans of the Supreme Court. In 1872 he was appointed a member of the Constitutional Convention, and is now attorney for the New York Central Railroad for his locality.
Mr. Jackson, although an octogenarian, is still actively engaged in the practice of his profession, and owing to his fine legal attainments · has long enjoyed a large and desirable clientele. He is a man of varied acquisitions, cultured and liberal, and has been called upon to occupy important official positions.
EDWARD E. KREIGSMAN, son of Arnold E. G. and Eva H. (Lucas) Kreigsinan, was born in the city of Albany, N. Y., February 2, 1852. His father died in April, 1858, and he and his mother moved west to · Ohio, and lived for a time on a farm of an uncle, near Toledo. In 1862 he came to Schenectady, where he attended school for the fol- lowing two years, when, in 1864, he began the active duties of life by selling papers. I11 1865 he entered the services of George Clair as paper carrier, and was one of the first to sell the Schenectady Union. In 1866 he entered the employ of O'Brien & Yates, cigar manufac- turers, with whom he remained some time. In February, 1869, he entered the classical department of the Union school and was gradu- ated in the class of 1872. He then entered Union College and was graduated from that time-honored institution in the class of 1876.
Immediately after graduating Mr. Kreigsman began the study of law in the office of Alexander J. Thomson, and was admitted to the Bar in 1878. In 1881 he was appointed City Clerk, and served until May, 1883. In August of 1881 he formed a partnership with H. G. Glen in the fire insurance business, and in December, 1882, he pur- chased the interest of Mr. Glen and consolidated the agency of Schermerhorn & Company, and he is still a member of that firm.
In addition to holding the office of City Clerk, Mr. Kreigsman has been Registrar of Vital Statistics and Clerk of the Board of Water Commissioners. In 1891 he was elected County Treasurer for a terin
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SCHENECTADY COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.
of six years, and discharged the duties of that office with such acceptability that he was re-elected in 1897.
In October, 1879, Edward E. Kreigsinan married Elizabeth M. Butler, and they have a family of four children1.
Mr. Kreigsman is a member of New Hope Lodge, No. 730, F. and A. M., and is highly popular with all classes because of his energy and enterprise and the active interest which he takes in public affairs and the promotion and advancement of the welfare of Schenectady.
JAMES A. GOODRICH was born in Schenectady County, N. Y., November 15, 1856. After passing through the public schools he took a course in the Classical Institute, from which he graduated in 1874. He then entered the Albany Business College and was gradu- ated therefrom in 1876. He then entered Union College, and after a highly creditable course was graduated with the degree of A. B. in the class of 1879.
In the fall of 1879 Mr. Goodrich began the study of law in the office of Hon. A. A. Yates, where he remained for two years, after which he took a course in the Albany Law School, from which he was graduated May 25, 1882, and two days later he was admitted to the Bar at the General Term at Albany, N. Y. He then returned to the office of Yates & Cutler for a short time, after which he opened an office of his own and began the practice of his profession indepen- dently, in which he has since been engaged with conspicuous success, not only building up a high reputation as an advocate and counsellor, but also making himself many friends as a man and a citizen.
On February 11, 1890, James A. Goodrich married Jennie, daughter of Robert and Agnes (Harvey) Clemments.
Mr. Goodrich's parents were William Luther and Mary (Walker) Goodrich. William Luther Goodrich was cashier, of the Schenec- tady Bank for many years, and was also president of this bank for a time. He was also accountant of the Schenectady Savings Bank and was engaged in the banking business altogether for a period of fifty- two years. Mr. Goodrich's mother, Mary Walker, was the daughter
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BIOGRAPHICAL.
of James Walker, one of the leading merchants of his day in Schenectady.
James A. Goodrich is a member of the Schenectady Bar Associa- tion, and is widely interested in church and benevolent work. He is a member of the First Presbyterian Church, is clerk of Session of that church, and is one of the trustees of the Y. M. C. A., of which he has been president for fourteen years, and still retains that office. He is also president of the Schenectady County Bible Society, and is Trustee of the Home for the Friendless.
HORATIO G. GLEN was born in the city of Schenectady December 26, 1859, and was educated in the public schools and the High school of his native city, graduating from the latter in 1877. After leaving the High school he entered Union College, and was graduated from that historic institution in the class of 1881, with the degree of A. B. He then took up the study of law at the Albany Law School, and graduated therefromn in 1883. He was also admitted to the Bar in that year. Immediately after being admitted lie began the practice of his profession in Schenectady, and has taken a prominent part in the Bar of the county.
Mr. Glen is a member of the Knights of Pythias, of the Mohawk Golf Club, the Alpha Zeta, the Psi Upsilon and the Phi Beta Kappa Societies. In politics he is a Democrat, and held the office of City Clerk for seven years, namely, from 1885 to 1892.
On October 1, 1884, Horatio G. Glen married Laura M., daughter of E. W. and Rachael Moore. They have three children, Laura C., Horatio G. Jr., and Ethel M. Mr. Glen's parents were Henry C. and Agnes (Schermerhorn) Glen. His ancestors, who were of Scotch descent, were among the early settlers of Schenectady.
Mr. Glen was one of the founders of the Daily Gazette, and is an enterprising and courteous gentleman, who takes an interest in the welfare and progress of Schenectady, both politically and com- mercially.
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SCHENECTADY COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.
WILLIAM DEWAR ELLIS-William Dewar Ellis, son of John and Arminda Green (Maxon) Ellis, and a scion of one of the oldest and and most notable families in this state, was born in the city of Schenectady, August 15, 1856. He received a liberal education, not only in American colleges, but also in France and Switzerland, adding to his store of theoretical knowledge by travel and practical observation.
As a business man he has been identified with the manufacturing business in connection with the celebrated Schenectady Locomotive Works. He was treasurer of the Company from 1891 to 1901, was vice-president and treasurer from 1893 to 1897, and was president and treasurer from 1897 to 1901.
Mr. Ellis is a member of some of the inost exclusive, as well as somne of the best known societies in the state of New York. Among them may be mentioned the Society of Sons of the Revolution, the Union League Club, the Republican Club, the New York Athletic Club,. the Suburban Riding and Driving Club, the Automobile Club, and the Transportation Club. All these clubs are of New York City. He is also a member of the Saratoga Club and the Golf Club of Saratoga, and also of the Mohawk Club and the Mohawk Golf Club of Schenectady.
His business career has been intimately associated with the opera- tions of the Schenectady Locomotive Works. The original company, which was known as the Schenectady Locomotive Engine Manufac- tory, was formed in January, 1848. The capital for the construction of the building was raised by the citizens of Schenectady, and the money for the equipment with machinery, by the Norrisses of Philadel- phia, Pa., who agreed to pay the interest on the capital annually, and to pay the stockholders the whole capital in eight years, and thus become the owners of the property themselves. This company carried on the works for about one year, but their affairs turned out so badly that they abandoned the enterprise, and the works remained idle for twelve months, during which time a part of the personal property was sold for taxes. The works were finally sold, and the purchasers under the sale were Jolin Ellis, Daniel D. Campbell and
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BIOGRAPHICAL.
Simon C. Groot, who, with others, raised a new capital, and on June 14, 1851, the Schenectady Locomotive Works was launched as an incorporated company.
John Ellis was the first president of the company, and when he died, October 4, 1864, he was succeeded by his son, John C. Ellis, who served as president until June, 1878, when Charles G. Ellis was elected, and retained the office until his death, May 15, 1891. He was succeeded as president by his brother, Edward Ellis, who died February 27, 1897, when William D. Ellis was elected to the position, which he held until June 15, 1901, when the concern was sold and merged into the American Locomotive Works.
Walter McQueen was superintendent of the works from 1851 to 1876, and vice-president from 1876 to 1893, in which year he died. John Swift succeeded Mr. McQueen as superintendent, and was followed by Albert J. Pitkin, who held this position until 1897, when he was elected vice-president and general manager, A. M. White becoming superintendent in his stead.
The company began in a very modest way, and has gradually grown to enormous dimensions. The output in 1851 was five locomotives ; in 1901 over four hundred were turned out, and over 3,300 men now find employment in these shops.
REV. ANDREW V. V. RAYMOND, D. D., LL. D .- Rev. Andrew V. V. Raymond, D. D., LL. D., was born at Vischer's Ferry, Saratoga County, N. Y., August 8, 1854. His father was a minister of the Reformed Church and a graduate of Yale College in the class of 1825, and of the New Brunswick Theological Seminary, class of 1828. His mother was Catherine M. Miller, of Little Falls, N. J.
In 1856 his father accepted a call to the Reformed Church in Lawyersville, Schoharie County, N. Y., and Dr. Raymond's earliest recollections are of that delightful locality. It is doubtful if many men of his age can remember as many old customs as he, for Schoharie County was then without a railroad and without any close connection
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SCHENECTADY COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.
with the world of activity and progress. It was then, as now, a stronghold of Democracy, and as his father was a Republican, and voted for Lincoln, he felt that he aroused prejudices which interfered with his usefulness, and so accepted a call to a church near Colioes, in 1864.
From that time Andrew V. V. Raymond's education was carried on in the public schools of Troy, first in the Fourth Ward School and later in the High School. After leaving the High School he studied with a private tutor for one year, and entered Union College in the fall of 1872, as a Sophomore. He took the A. B. course and graduated in the class of 1875. After leaving Union College he attended the New Brunswick Theological Seminary for the full three years' course, and in 1878 was licensed to preach by the Classis of Schenectady, N. Y. A month later he was ordained and installed as pastor of the First Reformed Church of Paterson, N. J.
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