Washington county, New York; its history to the close of the nineteenth century, Part 62

Author: Stone, William Leete, 1835-1908, ed; Wait, A. Dallas 1822- joint ed
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: [New York] New York history co.
Number of Pages: 1000

USA > New York > Washington County > Washington county, New York; its history to the close of the nineteenth century > Part 62

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In 1838, Mr. Middleworth married Orril Bliss, of Massachusetts. They have two children who are both living today, namely: Ella Josephine and Warren H. Middleworth.

Henry V. Middleworth died November 12, 1887. His wife was born March 12, 1810, and died May 26, 1891.

Ella Josephine Middleworth married Frederick C. Burdick, October 25, 1859. Mr. Burdick died in 1862, and on April 16, 1867, she mar- ried Burton C. Dennis, who died October 23, 1890.

Mrs. Dennis had one son, Fred M. Dennis, who was born February 21, 1874, and died June 26, 1881.

Her mother was a member of the M. E. Church and her father was a liberal supporter of all churches.

CHARLES S. NORTHUP was born in the town of Hartford, Washing- ton County, N. Y., July 10, 1875, and received his preliminary edu- cation in the district schools of his native place. He then attended the North Granville military academy for one year and was Captain of a company while there. He completed his education at the Sandy Hill high school, where he took a three year course.

CHARLES S. NORTHUP.

BIOGRAPHICAL.

After leaving school Mr. Northup engaged in the real estate busi- ness with his father, the late James M. Northup. Subsequently, on April 1, 1899, he started in business at Hartford, N. Y., with B. W. Arnold, under the firm name of Arnold & Northup, but on February 22, 1900, the firm dissolved and Mr. Northup has since conducted the business alone. His store is 25x50 feet and comprises two floors. He carries on a general merchandise business and is both popular and successful.

On August 21, 1895, Mr. Northup married Josie, daughter of Wil- liam N. and Ida E. Warren, and they have one daughter, Harriette Northup, born May 31, 1897. Mr. Northup's parents were Hon. James M. and Harriet D. ( Sill) Northup.

The Northup family is one of the oldest, best known and most highly respected in Washington County and is of English descent.

Mr. C. S. Northup is a Republican in politics and is always active and consistent in the support of his party.

HON. JAMES M. NORTHUP .- It is doubtful if the town of Hartford has ever had a citizen to whom it owes as much as to the late James M. Northup-indeed he has been the man of this century in that town-and Hartford has had her share of worthy men. Mr. Northup was a very successful man in many ways, and yet he differed from most successful men in one great and important particular, his suc- cess was directly reflected upon the community in which he resided. Others were successful because of his success, others enjoyed more than they would ever have enjoyed, but for his success. Greater tribute than this can be accorded to no man, for greater success than this is not attainable.

Mr. Northup was a native of New York State and was born in Platts- burgh, October 8, 1820. His parents were John S. and Laura (Baker) Northup, and his education was such as the public schools of the early part of the century afforded. Yet his school days were brief, for he commenced the battle of life for himself at the early age of fifteen, working as a farm hand. But notwithstanding his restricted opportu- nities he developed into a broad minded, sterling, enterprising and notably successful man. In 1842 he married Julia A. Davis of Hart- ford, and assumed charge of her mother's farm. Shortly after this he

WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.

began to speculate in farm produce, making a specialty of potatoes, for which crop Washington County was at that day already famous. In this branch of business his strong and active mind found a con- genial field, and his operations were so successful that he soon became the largest dealer in northern New York, in which he was also the pioneer potato dealer. Referring to this part of his career, an old resident of Hartford has said, "at that time Mr. Northup was the salvation of the town;" and it is a well authenticated fact that some years his purchases reached the enormous amount of half a million bushels of potatos, which he shipped to New York city. It was in the produce business that he laid the foundation of his successful business life, as well as of his large estate.

In later years Mr. Northup became interested in banking and was for ten years president of the First National Bank of Fort Edward, a position he held up to the day of his death.

His large business interests naturally occupied his mind to an extent that precluded an extended political career, yet in the field of local politics he was always a strong factor, and held several important public offices, all of which he filled with the honest zeal and success that characterized his business career. He was supervisor of the town of Hartford in 1856 and 1857, and in 1858 he represented Washington County in the State Legislature. He was elected and re-elected County Treasurer for six successive years, namely : from 1872 to 1878, and was one of the Excise Commissioners of the county for six years.

In his social and private life Mr. Northup was an exemplary man. He was wisely charitable and broadly generous, and won not only the respect and confidence, but also the warm regard of all who knew him. For many years previous to his death he was a member of the Baptist Church at Hartford, and its largest contributor. He took great interest in the new church building, erected a few years ago, and pre- sented to the church the bell which shall long remind the worshipers of the good man who was once among them. He also contributed $1,000 to the building fund.

Mr. Northup's first wife, Julia A. Davis, died in May, 1850, and in 1851 he married Martha Dunham of Argyle, who died in 1867. In 1871 he married Harriet D. Sill of Hartford, who died in June, 1889. Two sons survive him, namely, H. Davis Northup of Fort Edward, son of his first wife, and Charles S. Northup, son of his third wife.

Mr. Northup died October 20th, 1899.

Ne Davis Monthich

BIOGRAPHICAL.

H. DAVIS NORTHUP, one of the leading business men of Fort Ed- ward, was born at Hartford, Washington County, N. Y., October 9, 1842, and was educated at the Fort Edward Institute. At the age of eighteen he engaged in the produce business with his father, the late James M. Northup, operating along the Champlain Canal. Three years later, when of age, he succeeded to the entire business, and sub- sequently formed a partnership with his uncle, W. B. Northup. In all, he was engaged in the produce business for a period of twenty-two years.

While still in this branch of trade Mr. Northup became a member of the house of Davis & Company, shirt and collar manufacturers, of Troy, N. Y .; subsequently operating at Fort Edward, also. He re- mained in this company until 1890, when he became secretary of the Automatic Tap & Faucet Company, of Fort Edward, in which he was a stockholder, and which company still exists. He is also a partner in the F. E. Hicks Manufacturing Company, which makes tinware and milk patents.

In politics Mr. Northup has always been a staunch Republican and has held several important public offices. He served for six years as Deputy County Treasurer, under his father, and subsequently was himself elected County Treasurer, and re-elected at the expiration of his term, filling that responsible office for two full terms. He was Village Treasurer of Fort Edward during 1898, and has also been Republican County Committeeman on many occasions, as well as a reg- ular delegate for years. His one social organization is the Masonic, in which he has passed to the degree of Knight Templar. He is a member of Herschell Lodge No. 508, Fort Edward, of the Hartford Chapter No. 192, and of Washington Commandery No. 33, Saratoga; also Jane McCrea Lodge of Odd Fellows, Fort Edward.

In January, 1864, Mr. Northup married Parmelia E. Wait, daughter of Mansur K. Wait, of Granville. She died in January, 1879, leaving three children, namely: James M. Northup, for some time Under Sheriff of Washington County; Mansur W. Northup, in Comptroller's Office of Delaware & Hudson Railroad Company, New York; and Maud E., now Mrs. Wilfred J. De Wolfe, of New York City.

On September 10, 1885, Mr. Northup married Kate J. Hopping, of New York City.

The Northup family is an old and honored American line. Some of

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WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.

Mr. Northup's ancestors aided in founding the Union, his great grand- father, Joseph Northup, having served as a Sergeant under Colonel Schuyler during the Revolutionary War. His grandfather, John S. Northup was a drummer in the War of 1812, and came with his father into Washington County among the early pioneers, settling in the town of Hebron. The original Northup in America was one of the early immigrants to this country from England, and was one of the pioneers of New England.

Mr. H. Davis Northup is a courteous and affable gentleman, while at the same time he is an energetic and successful business man. He is a typical representative of the Northup family, embodying the business abilities that have made its members prosperous, and the ster- ling qualities that have ever won respect and confidence.

HENRY S. ROOT, who died in Fort Ann, in November, 1896, was born in Fort Ann, December 14, 1814, and was a descendant from a family of distinction, his father, Asa Root, having served with honor in the War of 1812. Asa Root was also a native of Fort Ann, so that the family has been identified with this town for over a century.

On October 19, 1853, Mr. Root married Jane Murrell, of Hartford, and from that day until the time of his death was a prominent and highly respected farmer in the town of Fort Ann.

He was a staunch Democrat, highly respected by his party and was justice of the peace in the town of Fort Ann for several years.

Mr. and Mrs. Root had one daughter, Hattie Root, who married Captain Charles Curtis of Fort Ann. Mrs. Root's parents were Hiram and Rhoda ( Winegar ) Murrell. Her grandfather ( William ) was an English soldier in the Revolutionary War.

Her father was born in England and came to the United States during the Revolutionary War. He married Sarah Williams, a niece of Roger Williams. He was always a farmer, and his father was a harness maker and farmer.

GnomePolice

BIOGRAPHICAL.

JEROME BONAPARTE RICE .- The subject of this sketch, who is not only one of the best known business men in northern New York, but has a distinguished record as a soldier who fought for the cause of his country, was born in the town of Salem, N. Y., July 19, 1841, and received his education in the district schools and at the Albany Busi- ness College, from which he was graduated at the age of nineteen. When the Civil War broke out he was working on his father's farm in the town of Jackson, Washington County, and with that promptness and ardor which has distinguished his whole career he resolved to champion his country's cause and so enlisted from White Creek, N. Y., August 8, 1862. as a private, and was mustered into the service at Salem, N. Y., September 4, 1862, as First Sergeant of Company G, 123d Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry, to serve for a term of three years. On May 21, 1863, he was promoted to Second Lieu- tenant, to rank from February 16. 1863. He was taken prisoner at Chancellorsville, Va., May 3, 1863, and confined in Libby and Belle Isle prison for four weeks, when he was paroled. He was subsequently exchanged September 15, 1863. On August 1, 1864, he was trans- ferred to the signal corps and did duty in the Department of the Cum- berland under General Thomas until the close of the war. He was honorably discharged and mustered out at Albany, N. Y., June 27, 1865.

The 123d Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry, left the state September 5, 1862, under the command of Colonel A. L. McDougall, and served in the First Brigade, First Division, 12th and 20th Army Corps, and participated in the following battles: Chancellorsville, Va., May 1-3, 1863; Gettysburg, Pa., July 2-3, 1863; Resaca, Ga., May 14-15, 1864; Cassville, Ga., May 19-20, 1864; Dallas, Ga., May 25 to June 4, 1864; Kenesaw Mountain, June 9 to July 2, 1864 ; Culp's Farm, Ga., June 22, 1864; Peach Tree Creek, Ga., July 20, 1864; Siege of Atlanta, Ga., July 21 to August 26, 1864; Sherman's March to the Sea, November 15 to December 10, 1864; Savannah, Ga., December 10-21, 1864; Campaign in the Carolinas, January 26 to April 26, 1865; Averys- boro, N. C., March 16, 1865; Aikens Creek, N. C., April 10, 1865; Bennett House, N. C., April 26, 1865, and many other skirmishes. The regiment was mustered out near Washington, D. C., June 8, 1865

Mr. Rice has just reason to be proud of his record as a soldier. From the very first his regiment was put where the fight was the

WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.

hottest, and the Rebels practically on all sides of them. His regiment always rendered a good account of itself, and Lieutenant Rice, an intrepid and brave soldier, was always at the head of his men.

After receiving his honorable discharge he returned home and worked on the seed farm with his father. In 1866 he bought out his father's interest in the seed business and continued on the farm for two years. During this time, and for a few years afterwards, he was his own sole salesman, traveling with a horse and carriage from town to town.

In 1868 he moved his business to Cambridge occupying the second story of the old steam mill building on Main street where he con- ducted business successfully for eleven years. During this time he admitted his father again into partnership which continued until the latters death in 1895.

In 1879 Mr. Rice completed his present large warehouse and moved his business into its new quarters. This building is located on the Robert Blair lands facing on Main street. It is not only commodious and admirably adapted to the business for which it is used, but is a handsome structure architecturally and its appearance is enhanced by a spacious lawn comprising two acres of ground spreading in front of it.

In 1886 this business was incorporated under the firm name and style of Jerome B. Rice & Company. From time to time it was found necessary to add new buildings to meet the requirements of a rapidly expanding business and in 1895 a fine office building was erected where twenty-five bookkeepers and stenographers are employed. From the modest beginning, already mentioned, this business has grown under the able management of Mr. Rice until now over twenty traveling salesmen are representatives throughout the country and seeds from this establishment are sold in every state and territory in the Union, while two hundred men and women are employed in the packing and sorting rooms.

The company has a branch house at Detroit, Mich., where one hun- dred and fifty hands are employed, and at Wellington, Ontario, they have another large and flourishing branch. The Detroit branch was founded about six years ago and now over sixteen hundred farmers are engaged around the Great Lakes to supply its wants. In addition to the seeds which are obtained from almost every state in the Union large quantities are imported from European countries. The company

BIOGRAPHICAL.

handles over one hundred thousand bushels of garden beans and peas annually; six thousand five hundred bushels of peas ( thirteen car- loads ) of one variety were used as seed stock by this firm in the year 1899. The amount of peas and beans handled by the company is greater than that handled by any other company in the world. They do an annual business of over five hundred thousand dollars; handle all kinds of vegetable and flower seed known to the trade and their plant is the most complete in the United States, if not in the world.

This industry is of great value to Cambridge because of the large number of men and women to which it furnishes employment where no other staple industry exists or has ever existed. Mr. Rice employs home people and even his traveling men are Cambridge boys.

In other ways Mr. Rice is an invaluable factor in the commercial life of his town. When the Lauderdale Agricultural Fair showed clear signs of discontinuance, he at once organized a stock company, now called the Cambridge Valley Agricultural Society and Stock Breeding Association, which annually holds an immensely successful fair. The first of its fairs was held in 1890, with Mr. Rice as Presi- dent. For ten consecutive years he has been elected President of the Association, and in that capacity he has personally interested himself in the welfare of the enterprise. As the result it pays more cash pre- minms than any fair in the state of New York, excepting the State Fair, and is generally on a par with that.

Mr. Rice for many years was a promoter of the Cambridge Fire De- partment and through his efforts "The Old Tub" went to several conventions and won many prizes. He was fire chief for several years and served with great credit.

In 1898 he was the unanimous choice of the American Seed Trade Association for its president. He is president and was an organizer of the Electric City Bank at Niagara Falls, which has a capital stock of $75,000 and was established in 1893.

During the war Mr. Rice incurred from exposure a severe case of rheumatism, which increased as the years went by, and for months at a time he was unable to attend to business. The disease continued in spite of all medical skill and for years he has been wheeled about in a chair. This condition renders his great business achievements all the more remarkable, yet his mental energy has never flagged, but, indeed, has developed as the demands upon it were increased. so that he continually performs an amount of work that few physically

WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.

sound men would be equal to. Both socially and in a business way Mr. Rice is a genial, courteous gentleman and is universally liked. A caller, or a guest, soon forgets his physical infirmity, because of his personal magnetism, his mental vigor and hospitable manners.

In 1877 Mr. Rice married Laura Jackson Chandler, a native of West Granville, N. Y., and daughter of Edgar D. and Sarah (Everts) Chandler. Jesse Averill, her grandfather on her father's side, was a private under Captain Brunson and Colonel Clark Warner in a Vermont regiment during the Revolutionary War.

Mr. Rice's father was Roswell Niles Rice, who married Betsey Ann Hodges. R. Niles Rice was a son of Daniel and Zina (Kidder) Rice. Daniel Rice was a son of Thomas and Thankful (Eldridge) Rice. Thomas Rice was a Revolutionary soldier. The Rices are of English descent. The children of Mr. and Mrs. J. B. Rice are Jerome B. Rice, Jr., C. Evelyn, L. Josephine, Marguerite H. and S. Albertine. The last named died in 1889, aged ten years.

R. Niles Rice's children are as follows: H. Josephine, born Septem- ber 15, 1845, wife of Henry B. Wilcox, of Rochester, N. Y .; James H., born October 31, 1843, a stockholder and traveling salesman for the seed firm; Marietta H., born December 11, 1847, wife of Dr. A. S. Newcomb, of New York city; Albertine, born October 9, 1853, wife of E. J. Fuller, of Cambridge, N. Y .; Anna G. (deceased) wife of Frederick M. Becker, of Troy, N. Y .; Mrs. Becker died December 30, 1893; Jerome B., born July 19, 1841.

Mr. Rice is a member of Cambridge Valley Lodge No. 481, F. & A. M .; also of John McKie Post No. 309, G. A. R., and is President of the Board of Trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church.

HON. O. W. SHELDON .- The subject of this sketch, who is not only one of the most prominent citizens of Washington County, but who has achieved a career both high and honorable, was born in the neigh- boring county of Warren, town of Queensbury, September 2, 1828. In 1832 his parents moved to Fort Ann and here he received his edu- cation in the common schools. Early in life he engaged in the canal boat business, in which he continued until 1862, when he embarked in the lumber business, which he still conducts.

Groom HSheldon

BIOGRAPHICAL.

From the very outset he was successful in all his business opera- tions, so that shortly after the war he was enabled to give part of his attention to banking and financial matters generally, and he is today a factor in financial circles, not only in Washington county, but in New York city and the state of Kansas. He was for some years Pres- ident of the Bank of John Hall & Company, and has been for years President of the Smith County National Bank of Smith Center, Kansas.

In politics Mr. Sheldon has always been a consistent Democrat and first became actively identified with the public life of his party in 1872, when he was elected Supervisor of the town of Fort Ann, an office to which he was re-elected in the years 1873, 1877, 1878, 1879 and 1887. In this office he attracted the attention of all citizens of Washington County by the ability and honesty with which he dis- charged the duties of his office, and he became popular with the Re- publicans as well as Democrats. In 1887 the Democrats nominated him for Member of Assembly, and although Washington County has become proverbial for its huge Republican majorities, so great was his popularity with the people at large, that he was elected, although the other candidates on the Democratic ticket were defeated by about 3,000 votes. His career in the State Assembly was highly creditable, yet he declined a renomination and withdrew from politics, to a great extent, feeling that his large business interests demanded his undi- vided attention, yet in any political emergency, and indeed at all times, he is always ready to do all in his power for the interest of his party.

On March 19, 1850, Mr. Sheldon married Esther B. Broughton, daughter of Amos Broughton of Fort Ann. They have two children. Albert U. and Helen M. The progenitor of the Sheldon family in America came from England and settled in Delaware County, N. Y. He had a son born in Delaware County, who came to Fort Ann in his youth, and lived and died in this town. He served in the War of 1812 against England. His son, Uriah Sheldon, was born December 23, 1799, in the town of Fort Ann and died June 23, 1836. He was the father of Hon. O. W. Sheldon and was a Jacksonian Democrat in pol- itics. He married Calista Spicer, who was born July 3, 1801, and died August 15, 1854. Mr. Sheldon inherits from his father not only his sound political principles, to which he has adhered during a long and active life, but also sterling characteristics which have character-

WASHINGTON COUNTY: ITS HISTORY.

ized the Sheldon family through many generations, and today he is as highly respected as he is widely known.

HIRAM SHIPMAN was born in the village of Fort Ann, Washington County. N. Y., March 8, 1834, and today he is one of the most pros- perous and prominent citizens of Washington County, as well as a man with a clean and honorable record. He owes it all to his own ability, energy and enterprise.

At the age of fourteen years he was left an orphan, his mother having died in 1837 and his father in 1848, so that from that early age he had to combat the world alone.

In the winter of 1850 he went to Whitehall, where he attended school, and in the following summer secured a situation in the for- warding office of Nathaniel Jillson.

In 1852, at the age of eighteen years, Mr. Shipman went out to the Golden State, making the voyage by way of the Isthmus of Panama. The trip cost him $250, although he took second class passage to the Isthmus and steerage on the Pacific to San Francisco. On arriving at San Francisco he worked in a mine near that city for three years, when he returned east, but returned to California again in 1856, and went to work in the same mine. His experience in mining was thor- ough and extensive, and this, with a course of study in the School of Mining at San Francisco, made him an expert in mining. He re- turned east in 1859, but in 1861 again went west, stopping in Oregon until 1863, and returning to Fort Ann in 1865. In that year, how- ever, he again went west, and in 1866 to Brazil, coming back to Ari- zona in the following winter. He came to St. Louis in 1862, and from there went by way of the Missouri River to Fort Benton and thence to Walla Walla, a distance of 800 miles, traveling all the way on mule back. Between 1865 and 1884 he opened the following mines and put up the mills mentioned below; he was also superintendent of the mills: The St. Lawrence, Ophir and Califorhia Stamp Mill, capacity eighteen tons per day; The Taylor Mill and Mining Company, George- town, Cal., Stamp Mill, capacity twenty tons per day: The Stickle Mill & Mining Company, Angels Camp, Cal., Stamp Mill, fifty tons per day; The Senator Mill and Mining Company, Prescott, Arizona, Stamp Mill, capacity ten tons per day; The Old Vulture Mill and

HIRAM SHIPMAN.

BIOGRAPHICAL.

Mining Company, Phoenix, Arizona, Stamp Mill, capacity 240 tons per day. For this company he put in sixteen miles of nine inch water pipe that lifted the water 350 feet, for use in the mine. He opened the Clip Mine, 350 miles northeast of Yuma, Arizona. This mine was owned by Hiram Shipman, George Bowers and A. G. Hub- bard. The Senator Mine was developed in the face of serious trouble from Indians, who interfered with the mule teams bringing in sup- plies from Wickenburg, 150 miles distant.

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Washington county, New York; its history to the close of the nineteenth century, Part 62

Author: Stone, William Leete, 1835-1908, ed; Wait, A. Dallas 1822- joint ed Publication date: 1901 Publisher: [New York] New York history co. Number of Pages: 1000

Author: Stone, William Leete, 1835-1908, ed; Wait, A. Dallas 1822- joint ed
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: [New York] New York history co.
Number of Pages: 1000