USA > New York > Ulster County > The history of Ulster County, New York > Part 65
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GEORGE F. SCHUMAN, eldest son of Charles and Elizabeth (VanBeck) Schu- man, was born at Fly Mountain, October 15, 1859. He obtained his education at the district schools and Ulster Academy. Having decided to adopt the profession of an architect, he began studying for that purpose at Rondout, but as his services were needed in his father's hotel he gave up his intentions and returned home. He studied music with Jerome Williams, of Rondout, and organized a band of which he was the leader for a time, and which was a popular feature at Fly Moun- tain. He is now the genial proprietor of the "Schuman Hotel," which his father built in 1855, a most pleasant resort for travelers as well as permanent guests.
October 21, 1879, Mr. Schuman was united in marriage to Francis N., daughter of Richard Wei. They are the parents of the following children: Lena F., born August 19, 1880; Charles VanBeck, born December 4, 1881 ; George W. (deceased) ; Harry H., born March 21, 1886; Florence J., born August 21, 1890; Clara B., born May 21, 1895, and Frederick Irving, born May 31, 1897.
Mr. Schuman is identified with the Masonic Fraternity, the I. O. O. F., the K. of P., and the Odd Fellows' Encampment.
ALVAH SHERWOOD STAPLES, one of the oldest business men in this city and well known throughout the State, was born in Marlborough, Ulster County, New York, April 25, 1832.
He was the son of Stephen and Jane Case Staples, and grandson of David Staples, first Judge of Ulster County.
He was educated in the Public Schools of Kingston, whither his father moved when he was eight years old.
He was interested in general merchandise from 1852 until 1860, when he estab- lished the wholesale flour, feed and grain business, in which he continued until his death.
In 1876 he established the Arcade Mills at the corner of Hasbrouck Avenue and Mill Street, where he carried on an extensive trade throughout the State, but prin- cipally in Greene, Ulster and Delaware Counties.
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He also established a plant for the manufacture of brick at East Kingston, and owned a brick plant at Port Ewen, enjoying a good business in that line.
For twenty-five years or more he was President of the Rondout Savings Bank, and for a quarter of a century Director of the First National Bank of Rondout ; Director of the Ulster and Delaware Railroad, President of Montrepose Cemetery, and a member of the Rondout Lodge No. 343, Free and Accepted Masons. For a great many years he was a regular attendant of the Rondout Presbyterian Church. Mr. Staples took an active interest in everything concerning the advancement and prosperity of the city, and in politics was a staunch Republican.
September 8, 1906, one week before he passed away, Mr. and Mrs. Staples cele- brated their golden wedding at their home, having with them all their children and two grandchildren, Marion Staples Cadwell and Mildred S. Morse.
He died at his home, Knowl Lawn, Broadway, September 16, 1906. His family consisted of his wife, Mary Stitt Rouse, whom he married September 8, 1856. The names of the children are: Carrie S., wife of John Cadwell of Jamestown, N. Y .; Henry S. and Ida S., who died in infancy; Alvaetta S., wife of J. Wilton Morse of Toronto, Canada; Anne R., wife of B. Morss Tremper of Kingston, N. Y .; Seth Stitt and Alva Sherwood.
W. O. SCHWARZWELDER, of Chichester, Ulster County, proprietor of the manufacturing plant located there and of the greater portion of the village, is worthy of a somewhat extended biography. He has done much that is creditable in bringing the old chair works to their present state of efficiency and in beautifying Chichester, a charming village of some five hundred inhabitants situated in the Catskills. It is a most important life work even in this age of progress that has been accomplished by Mr. Schwarzwelder and one which will place his name high among the liberal-minded and philanthropic manufacturers of this country, for he took the works and village when they were in the last degree of decay, infused new life, installed new machinery, erected new houses for work people, and en- larged upon everything. He built club houses, bowling alleys, brought in amuse- ments, dance hall, billiard tables, lodge hall, fountains, constructed artificial lakes, new roads and parks, improved the school, and to-day there is not a brighter spot in old Ulster or a more contented and prosperous people than can be found in Chichester.
The man who has accomplished this is still young. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, August 6, 1854, and is therefore only fifty-two years of age. He at- tended school in New York and finished at the University of Munich in Germany. In 1897 he secured these works, then carried on as a chair factory exclusively. Since that time his great executive ability has become thoroughly apparent in the work he has accomplished.
JOHN W. SEARING was born in Saugerties, N. Y., March 22, 1855. He attended the Saugerties Institute, and graduated from Rutgers College with the degree of A. B., 1874. He then read law with the Hon. Augustus Schoonmaker of Kingston, and in 1877 was admitted to the Bar. From 1886 to 1897 under the
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firm name of Kraft & Searing, he was engaged in the publication of the Kingston Leader. He then devoted his entire time to law practice, and in 1899 the law firm of Brinnier & Searing was formed, continuing until 1905, when Mr. Searing be- came Assistant General Counsel for the Brooklyn Rapid Transit Company. Since September, 1906, he has been associated with the law firm of Parker, Hatch & Sheehan in New York.
Mr. Searing is a member of the University, Brooklyn, Bernard and Kingston Clubs. He is identified with the Masonic fraternity, and in politics is a Democrat.
HECTOR SEARS, Attorney of Gardiner, is a native of Pine Bush in the town of Rochester, Ulster County. He was born, July 27, 1843, attended the common schools and later pursued his studies . at the Academy in Montgomery, Orange County. When the Civil War broke out, he was a clerk in a wholesale crockery store in New York City. He at once enlisted in the Seventy-first N. Y. State Militia, for a term of three months, and with his company participated in the first battle of Bull Run. At the expiration of his time he re-enlisted in the 131st N. Y. V. and remained until January 30, 1864, when he was discharged to accept promo- tion as Second Lieutenant in the same regiment, and was later commissioned First Lieutenant of that regiment. On May 27, 1863, in the charge on Port Hudson, he was severely wounded in the left arm; the shoulder joint was removed and he lay for two days in the field under a tree, and was then taken to the old Barracks Hospital at New Orleans. Some months later, having sufficiently recovered, he was made a clerk in the Quartermaster's Department of the Army of the Gulf.
In November, 1864, he was appointed Second Lieutenant in the Seventh Veteran Reserve Corps, and assigned as Assistant Military Superintendent of the War De- partment, and a few months later was assigned charge of Camp Casey, a white refugee camp on Arlington Heights, opposite Washington, where he remained until active hostilities ceased. Mr. Sears was then assigned to duty in the south, where he was made Provost Marshal and Assistant Military Superintendent of nine counties, with headquarters at Fredericksburg. He was afterward made Provost Marshal and Military Superintendent of King George County, Virginia, and his territory was enlarged from time to time, until as Provost Marshal and Superin- tendent, he had charge over Stafford, King George, Spottsylvania and Caroline Counties and the City of Fredericksburg. He remained in charge there until January I, 1868. He was breveted as First Lieutenant, and Captain of U. S. Vol. Infantry for bravery at Port Hudson.
During the time he acted as Military Superintendent he was also serving as an officer in the Freedman's Bureau, and was retained in that capacity until January, 1869, when he returned to his home in Gardiner.
In 1875 he took up the study of law with his uncle, John P. Sears, of Mont- gomery, and was admitted to the Bar at Saratoga, New York, September 5, 1879. He then opened his present office in Gardiner.
In 1882 he established the Gardiner Weekly, which, in 1901, he sold. In 1887 he established the Highland Post, a weekly paper, conducted by his sister, Carrie W.
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Sears, for upwards of nineteen years, to whom he had sold a half interest. He sold the Highland Post plant, December 3, 1906, and will devote his entire time to the legal profession, with his sister as assistant.
Mr. Sears is a Republican in politics. In 1880 he served as Supervisor, and has served three terms as Justice of the Peace, and two terms as Justice of Sessions. He is a member of the following social organizations: Adonia Lodge No. 718, F. & A. M., of Highland; U. S. Grant Lodge No. 529, I. O. O. F., of Gardiner; Gardiner Lodge No. 184, K. of P .; Pratt Post No. 127, G. A. R., of Kingston; Gardiner Grange No. 965, P. of H., and has taken all degrees, County, State and National; Highland Lodge No. I, Social Order of Loyal Americans, of which he is Past General of the Supreme Lodge.
He was married to Margaret A. Collins, of New Orleans, La., a native of Louis- ville, Ky., July 20, 1865, and they have two sons and three daughters, as follows: Edward J., an electrical engineer of New York City; William H., with the W. S. R. R. Co. at Haverstraw, N. Y .; Edith, living at home; Estelle, married Wilbert D. Woolsey, and resides in Newburgh, N. Y., and Ida, who is living at home.
Mr. Sears practices in both State and United States Courts, having been ad- mitted to the Bar of the latter, March 3, 1902.
His father, Dr. Samuel J. Sears, practiced as a physician for over fifty years in Ulster County. He was a native of Orange County, and died in the town of Gardiner in 1893.
REV. FRANK BARROWS SEELEY, pastor of the Fair Street Reformed Church of Kingston, was born at Richfield Springs, N. Y., in 1872. His boyhood days were spent at Delhi, Delaware County, where he attended the public schools and Delaware Academy. In 1893 Mr. Seeley graduated from Middlebury College, Vermont, with the degree of A. B., and then entered upon a three-years' theological course at Union Seminary, New York, graduating in 1896, and shortly after was ordained by the Presbyterian Church of New York.
Mr Seeley's first charge was at Margaretville, N. Y., where he remained one year, and in 1898, in view of wider opportunities for usefulness, accepted his present pastorate in Kingston. Since coming to this church he has clearly demonstrated, in the performance of his various and arduous duties, that he possesses strong and attractive qualities, both as a preacher and a man. His sermons show careful and conscientious preparation, and his wide reading and acquaintance with mundane as well as sacred literature is apparent in his discourses. He has endeared himself to the flock who know and honor him, and many fruitful years of sowing and reaping are in store for him before the full measure of his usefulness shall have been attained.
In 1896 Mr. Seeley was united in marriage to Miss Virginia Sinclair, only daugh- ter of Hewitt and Caroline (Sinclair) Boice, of Kingston.
Rev. Frank W. Seeley, father of our subject, is a resident of Delhi, N. Y., where he has filled his pastorate of the Presbyterian Church some twenty-four years.
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COLONEL C. B. SHAFER .- Phillip Shafer, Sr., and his wife Catherine, grand- parents of the subject of this sketch, came from Holland about the year 1784, and settled in Delaware County, N. Y., near the east branch of the Delaware River, on a farm of 300 acres, where they raised a family of six sons and two daughters. Mrs. Shafer died in 1837, and her husband a year later, each in their seventy-sixth year. Their son, Phillip Shafer, Jr., a Mexican War veteran and father of Colonel C. B., was born in 1794. He married Melvina, daughter of Ezrah Benedict, of Andes Village, and was engaged in stock raising, dairying and the lumber business. Their family consisted of nine children. Colonel Shafer was born in 1827 and obtained his education at the public schools, and Andes Academy. In 1849 he embarked in a general hardware business and engaged in the manufacture of tin- ware at Andes, which he continued until 1855, when he disposed of his business and property there, and removed to Eddyville, Ulster County, taking charge of the cement plant of Thomas W. Cornell & Co. In 1871 he purchased a half interest in this business, and with Henry C. Connelly established the firm of Connelly & Shafer, manufacturing Rosendale cement and conducting a general store. This partnership still exists, although the cement interest was sold to the Consolidated Cement Company in 1899. Mr. Shafer served as Commissioner and Secretary of the Board of the U. & D. R. R., until the bonded debt was paid. He was also Adjutant of the Twenty-seventh Regiment in Delaware County for about eight years.
September, 1853, he was united in marriage to Jane Frances, daughter of Thomas W. and Emeline Cornell, of Eddyville, N. Y. They had five children, two of whom are living, William Cornell, married to Minnie Whitney in 1898, and Mary, who married Leonides Dennis, a lawyer of New York City, in 1890.
JAMES SHANLEY, proprietor of the Napanoch Hotel, is a brother of the well- known firm of caterers in New York, whose establishments are of great excellence and of national reputation, and which are known as "Shanley's." James Shanley, who has been spending considerable time in Wawarsing during the past few years, purchased his present hotel property in October, 1906, and is personally conducting it. He is a native of Ireland, and came to this country eighteen years ago, when but a boy, and became associated with his brothers in New York. He remained with them for fifteen years, and during this time became thoroughly pro- ficient in catering to the wants of the public. His hotel will accommodate fifty guests easily and is equipped with modern conveniences. Mr. Shanley is an agree- able and genial "Mine Host," and will undoubtedly do a thriving business there.
PROF. JOHN E. SHULL, principal of the Ulster Academy, Rondout, New York, was born at Martin's Creek, near Easton, Northampton County, Pa., in 1846. He obtained his education at the public schools there, and graduated from La- Fayette College with the degree of B.A. in 1872. He then taught school for several years at Belvidere, N. J., Bordentown Female College, Pottsville and Stroudsburg (Pa.) High Schools, and in 1890 accepted the position of Superintendent of Schools
a
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at Hoosic Falls, New York, where he remained six years. He was then Superin- tendent of the Long Isand City Schools for four years, and in 1898 came to Kings- ton as Principal of Ulster Academy.
Prof. Shull is identified with the Masonic Order, a member of Cypress Temple of the Mystic Shrine, and is affiliated with the Rondout Presbyterian Church. He was united in marriage to Miss Millie R. Huber of Pennsylvania, and they have one son, Huber. Prof. Shull died March 20, 1907.
GEORGE SIEMON was born in the town of Olive, January 28, 1858, and ob- tained his education at the District Schools. In 1884 he became a resident of West Shokan and engaged in the blacksmith's trade and manufacturer of wagons, which he continues at the present time. Mr. Siemon is a member of the Knights of Pythias and in politics a Republican. He was united in marriage February 24, 1887, to Orpha Boice, who died January 24, 1888. He was again married July 6, 1901, to Mabel Mead of Woodstock.
John Siemon, father of our subject, was born in Germany in 1820. He married Catharine Schmidt in 1850, and four years later came to America, locating at Samsonville, Ulster County.
AUGUSTUS J. SIMPSON, Merchant and Postmaster of Phoenicia, was born August 27, 1857, in the old homestead at Phoenicia. He attended the public schools and the Kingston Academy. When old enough to start out for himself he learned telegraphy; was operator at Big Indian for one year and for three years was operator and Station Agent at Phoenicia. He then turned his attention to the mercantile business, opening a store in Phoenicia, which he has carried on ever since, it being the largest establishment in the place. In addition to this, he is extensively engaged in the bluestone business and identified with the Phoenicia Water Works Company, of which he is Secretary and Superintendent. He was appointed Postmaster of Phoenicia, August 8, 1897.
Mr. Simpson was married, February 20, 1884, to Emma L. Osborne, of Greene County. Mr. Simpson takes much interest in public affairs. He has served two terms as Supervisor, 1884-85, and was at one time his party's candidate for the State Assembly. He is a member of several fraternities, belonging to Kingston Lodge No. 10, F. & A. M., and Phoenicia Lodge No. 154, I. O. O. F.
F. F. SIMPSON, Postmaster of Highland, N. Y., was born in Lloyd, August 7, 1869. He attended the local schools and afterward accepted a position as clerk in a store. In this capacity he remained two years, and then learned telegraphy. He was appointed telegraph operator in Highland and faithfully performed his duties there for five years. In 1897 President Mckinley appointed him Postmaster of the Village of Highland, and he is now serving his third term in that office, to the entire satisfaction of the public. Mr. Simpson is a member of the Masonic fraternity, Chapter at Kingston, and Commandery at Rondout; the K. of P., Loyal Americans and a local fireman.
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JAY H. SIMPSON was born in Phoenicia, New York, in 1861, and obtained his education at the public schools and Stamford Academy. He then entered the employ of the Kaaterskill Railroad Company, with whom he remained eleven years. The saw-mill business which he now conducts was established by him in 1899.
Mr. Simpson has served eight years as Commissioner of the town of Shandaken. He built the State road from Pine Hill to Phoenicia, which is conceded to be one of the finest roads in the State of New York. Socially, Mr. Simpson is connected with the B. P. O. E. and is trustee of the Methodist Church. He was united in marriage to Miss Clara Selle of Pennsylvania, and they have six children, James A., Carroll, Katherine, Minnie B., Annie and Augustus J.
NATHAN ANDERSON SIMS, General Freight and Passenger Agent of the Ulster & Delaware Railroad, was born in Kingston in 1856. He entered the employ. of the Ulster & Delaware in 1876 in a clerical capacity, and in less than ten years worked his way up to his present responsible position, which he has maintained since 1885. Mr. Sims is a member of the Masonic Order and in politics a Re- publican.
RICHARD E. SLEIGHT, who with his brother, Benjamin H. conducts a general grocery and provision store under the firm name of J. Sleight's Sons in Sleight- burgh, at the mouth of the Rondout Creek; has succeeded to a business that was established in 1868, by their uncle and father, George S. and Johannis Sleight.
The chain ferry between Rondout and Sleightburgh was established by John P. Sleight, great-grandfather of Richard and Benjamin. It passed into the hands of his sons, Abraham and Isaac, and thence to the next generation. Abraham Sleight married Hester E. Elting and eight children were born to them; Josephine B. Richard, George S., Johannis (father of our subject), Isaac C., Bevere H., Lizzie E. and Helena. The father of this family died in 1875, aged sixty-five years. His sons, Johannis and George S., were prominently identified with business and public affairs in this section of the county. Johannis married Mary Louise Horton, and the dates of the birth of their children are as follows: Richard E., February 27, 1875; Benjamin H., December 17, 1877, and Mary Louisa, April 23, 1879. Both sons are members of Hope Lodge No. 65, Knights of Pythias, and are numbered among the progressive and enterprising merchants of the community.
HON. ALBERT K. SMILEY, proprietor of the far-famed "Lake-Mohonk," was born in Vassalboro, Maine, March 17, 1828.
He received his education at the Academy of his native town, the Friends' Boarding School, Providence, R. I., and Haverford College, where he was gradu- ated with the degree of A. B. in 1849. From 1850 to '53, he was Professor of English and Science in Haverford, but severed his connection with that institution to establish an English and Classical Academy (in conjunction with his twin brother, Alfred H. Smiley), in Philadelphia. He remained there four years, at the end of which time he married Eliza P. Cornell, of New York, and then made his
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home for a year in Oskaloosa, Iowa. In 1858 he returned to his native town to accept the principalship of "Oak Grove Seminary," a large boarding school situ- ated near his birthplace, remaining there until 1860, when he was called to Provi- dence, R. I., as Principal and Superintendent of the well-known Friends' School in that city, and there he remained nineteen years, building up a large school and adding greatly to its equipment.
Ten years before leaving Providence, in the Autumn of 1869, Mr. Smiley's twin brother, Alfred H., who had for eight years been with him as Associate Principal in the Providence School, and afterward settled in Poughkeepsie, visited Lake Mohonk and was so impressed with the beauty and grandeur of the scenery, that he wrote an urgent letter to his brother to come and see it. Mr. Smiley came, and after a single day's inspection, purchased the lake with three hundred acres of land, spent all his limited fortune, ran in debt $14,000, and entered upon a business in which he had no experience, and for which he had a great distaste, all to secure as a home, a bit of scenery of almost unsurpassed picturesque beauty.
The lake and mountain are old in history, and for over two hundred years the settlers along the Rondout and Wallkill Valleys had fished in the placid waters of the lake, or viewed the magnificent landscape from the lofty point on the mountain, called in the vernacular of their Indian predecessors "Moggunk" (Mohonk), which means "On the great sky top," by which name it is known to this day.
At the time of the purchase, Mr. John F. Stokes, the owner, had a small tavern with ten lodging rooms, a dance hall and a saloon, used mainly for the entertain- ment of picnic parties. Mr. Smiley at once remodeled and enlarged it, and in 1870 opened the hotel as a "Temperance House," with a capacity of forty guests. In those days such a thing as a successful "temperance hotel" was sneered at, and speedy failure was predicted, yet the success of this resort has been phenomenal. Year by year, the demand for accommodations has increased, and extensive addi- tions to the building and area were made until "Mohonk" of 1906 is universally admitted to be the foremost summer hotel resort in America, whose wonderful beauty must be seen to be realized.
By frequent and extensive purchases the property now covers an area of some 4,000 acres, lying in the towns of Marbletown, New Paltz, Rochester, Gardiner and Rosendale. Over this region Mr. Smiley has built nearly fifty miles of drives, of almost endless variety, wisely planned and perfectly safe, involving most difficult and costly labor; they are constructed boldly along the precipices and rise by easy grades to the highest points of the mountains. From the road that leads to Sky Top, one may view the entire range of the Catskills, the whole Valley of the Rondout, the Wallkill Valley from its beginning in Pennsylvania to its union with the historic Hudson, and looking beyond, see the mountains of Connecticut, Massa- chusetts and Vermont. The extensive and beautiful buildings accommodate 475 guests, and every year since its establishment, during the hot months, the hotel has been taxed to its utmost capacity. From surrounding villages and cities, picnic parties frequently from three to four hundred in number, go almost daily to spend a few delightful hours among the beauties of nature and art combined, which are
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found at Mohonk. For the free use of these parties a beautiful and commodious building, called "Picnic Lodge," was erected several years ago, and contributes greatly to their comfort. Another picnic lodge, 100 x 100 feet, is now under con- struction. The grounds are free and open to all, except on Sunday, when they are closed.
The house, a picturesque structure, with additions built from time to time, now has a frontage of seven hundred feet. Most of the lodging rooms have private balconies, and there are broad public piazzas extending some 400 feet in length. A library of 2,000 volumes, and reading room with the leading periodicals, in English, French and German, is provided for guests.
Contrary to the usually accepted opinion concerning educators, Mr. Smiley in the management and development of this property, has proven himself not less successful than he had been as an educator. Nevertheless, despite his success in his new line of work, he has not failed to exert a continuous and important influ- ence in educational affairs. For more than a quarter of a century he has been trustee of Brown University, from which institution he received the degree of A.M., an honor which has also been conferred by his own college, and from which he also received the degree of LL.D. in 1906. In 1886 Mr. Smiley was appointed one of the original Board of Trustees of Bryn Mawr College. He has also for a number of years been Trustee of Pomona College at Claremont, Cal.
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