Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 310

Author:
Publication date: 1900
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 2390

USA > Pennsylvania > Pike County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 310
USA > Pennsylvania > Monroe County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 310
USA > Pennsylvania > Susquehanna County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 310
USA > Pennsylvania > Wayne County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 310

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Ruth and Rex. (4) Eudora, born in 1860, is the wife of Harney Brown, a farmer of Thompson. (5) Julia A .. born in August, 1863, was educated in the schools of Thompson and Harford, and was one of the successful teachers of Susquehanna county for several terms. She married Lewis Banks, of Lanes- boro, who is now employed in the shops at Sus- quehanna, and they have one daughter-Lena. (6) Alice, born in October, 1867, was educated in the Harford schools and is now the wife of Verna Slocum, a farmer of Jackson, by whom she has one child-Celia. (7) Lena, born in 1869, obtained a

1327

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

good education in the Harford schools, was a suc- cessful teacher, and is now the wife of Myron Avery, of Ararat. Their children are Ivadeit, Orla and Harold. (8) Adelaide, born in March, 1873, was educated in the home and graded schools of Harford, and is with her parents upon the home farm.

During the dark days of the Civil war Mr. Clapper enlisted in Company A, 137th P. V. I., which was assigned to the 20th Corps, Western Di- vision, under Gen. Sherman, and remained in the service until hostilities ceased. Since the organi- zation of the Republican party he has been one of its stanch supporters, and he has filled the office of school director in his district. He and his wife are prominent members of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Thompson, and give liberally to its sup- port. Fraternally they belong to the Grange, and he is also a member of Grand Army Post No. 505, of Thompson. He began married life on a very modest income, but being industrious, honest, persevering and economical, as well as a careful manager, he has succeeded in accumulating a fine property, be- sides giving his children good educational advan- tages. As a citizen, friend and neighbor he is true to every duty, and justly merits the esteem in which he is held.

FREDERICK J. OSGOOD. The life of this prominent citizen of Susquehanna county attests in various ways the wide influence which he has exerted in the social and business affairs of the community in which he lives. Early in life he mani- fested a strong inclination for mercantile affairs, and with this inclination went eminent ability which insured for him an abundant success.

Mr. Osgood is a descendant of Willian Osgood of Salisbury, Essex county, Mass., who emigrated to this country from England in 1638. He was a millwright and carpenter, and with his associates, in prospecting the valley of the Merrimac for a place to locate, heard the sound of water-falls in a dis- tance, and following the direction of the sound, came to the falls on the Powow river, not far from its junction with the Merrimac. The place being fav- orable for mill sites, he located there and built and owned the first mills in Salisbury, which long re- tained the name of Osgood's Mills. These mills were built where now stand the Salisbury factories. He was one of the proprietors of Salisbury, 1640, and had a grant of land on each side of the Powow, extending back half a mile, from its junction with the Merrimac, and embracing a large portion of the land on which stands the settlement of Salisbury and Amesbury Mills.

Frederick J. Osgood was born at Colesville, Broome Co., N. Y., January 6, 1863, the son of William and Laura Lucretia (Prentice) Osgood. The father was born in Epping, N. H., May 25, 1817. In 1849 he became one of the argonauts who sailed for California in search of gold. During the latter years of his life he followed farming, and lived retired upon the competence which his busi-

ness ability had accumulated for him. For his first wife he married, on May 23, 1843, Carolina L. A. B. Hyde, of Brooklyn, N. Y., by whom he had three children. (I) Charles True, born February 16, 1846, enlisted October 1, 1861, though but fifteen years of age in Company E, 90th N. Y. S. Vols., and was discharged December 28, 1862, on surgeon's certificate of disability. On May 1, 1863, ne re- enlisted in the recruiting service, and was mustered into Battery D, IIth N. Y. H. Art'y. June 12, 1863, which was consolidated to Company M, 4th N. 1. H. Art'y, and was mustered out October 5, 1865. He was promoted successively to corporal, sergeant and first sergeant. At present he is a mechanic in Windsor, N. Y., and his son William D. Osgood is editor of the Windsor Standard. (2) William Bross, born December 23, 1847, at Brooklyn, N. Y., enlisted, in 1863, when less than fifteen years of age, in Company D, 109th N. Y. V. I. He was taken prisoner at Cold Harbor, Va., on June 2, 1864, and confined in Libby prison and Castle Thunder, Rich- mond, Va., Andersonville, Ga., and Florence, S. C., until paroled on December 6, 1864. In 1865 he was transferred from the 109th to the 51st N. Y. V. I., known as the "Shepard Rifles," and remained in the service until the expiration of the war of the Rebellion, and in 1877 he received the Elliott F. Shep- ard Medal of Honor. In 1896 he was appointed aide- de-camp to the commander of the Grand Army of the Republic. He is an expert penman, and the in- ventor of "Osgood's Fountain Brush." On August 4, 1869, William B. Osgood was married to Mary J. Hickey, of Brooklyn, N. Y., where they now re- side. They have three children living- Caroline Bross, Charles Franklin, and Frederick William. (3) Franklin Howard, born March 18, 1854, is a mechanic residing in Center Village, where he con- ducts a wagon shop. He was married in 1882 to Clara Markman, and they have one child-Howard W. For his second wife William Osgood married, on January 23, 1857, Laura Lucretia Prentice, of Sanford, N. Y., and by this union he became the father of seven children: Albert, born in February, 1858, died February 1, 1876; Myron, born Septem- ber 17, 1859, is a farmer residing near Seymour, Webster county, Mo .; George Eric, born August 6, 1861, is a farmer near Center Village, N. Y .; Frederick J., mentioned below; Edward Warren and Sunnie, born May II, 1865, the latter of whom died April 12, 1875, and Emma, born June 27, 1867, died April 15, 1875. The father died May 18, 1890, at Center Village, N. Y. The mother, Laura L. (Prentice) Osgood, was born April 4, 1833, and died February 26, 1895. She was one of the large family of children born to John Prentice, a miller of Sanford, N. Y., noted for his probity of character.

Frederick J. Osgood was reared as a farmer's boy, attending school during the winter terms, at the close of which he would often be ahead of his classmates who had the advantage of the summer terms, and at the age of sixteen he had a fair edu- cation for a country boy. Farm life was distasteful

1328

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

to him, at that age he began his mercantile career by peddling through the country afoot. He con- tinued successfully for two years when he entered into partnership with his brother, Frank H. Osgood, and they conducted a general store in Center Village, N. Y. A year later a fire completely destroyed their possessions. In the spring of 1882 Mr. Osgood went to Lincoln, Neb., and began working on a farm. During the winter of 1882-83 he bought grain for Church & Co., of Lincoln, and soon after met with fresh misfortune, in the shape of typhoid pneumonia. After his recovery he again worked on the farm for a time, but in the winter of 1884 returned to New York, where he re-engaged in the mercantile business. In 1890 he removed to Forest City, where he established a milk business, and in 1894 he erected a business block, 48x40, containing three stores, two of which he rented and the third he occupied. In the spring of 1900 he sold out his milk business. He has also engaged successfully in the real estate business and now owns several valuable business lots. Mr. Osgood has taken active interest in the prosperity of his adopted city, and in 1895 he was one of the ten citizens who built the car works, then known as the Forest City Car & Manufacturing Company-the plant having since been converted into a silk mill. Since his retirement from busi- ness he has organized the North Eastern Pennsyl- vania Telephone Co., with headquarters at Forest City, a mutual line organized for the benefit of the stockholders at cost. It is the intention of the pro- moters to have their lines run through the entire country districts, connecting with the lines in New York State. Mr. Osgood was elected secretary, and is now actively pushing the scheme with abundant success.

On August 25, 1886, Mr. Osgood was married at Sanford, Broome county, N. Y., to Miss Julia E. Ahrens, who was born at Sanford, August 20, 1865, daughter of John and Catherine (Lynch) Ahrens, and the youngest member of a family of eight children, four of whom survive, namely : Mary, now Mrs. A. L. Fuller, of Elizabeth, N. Y .; Catherine, now Mrs. E. L. Conrow, of Deposit, N. Y .; John, who occupied the old homestead at San- ford ; and Mrs. Osgood. Another brother, Nicholas, has not been heard from in thirteen years. John Ahrens was born in Germany and came to America when about twenty years of age. He established himself in the grocery business in New York, and in 1860 married Catherine Lynch, a native of Ireland, who came to America when a young girl. Later he removed to a farm which he had purchased at De- posit, N. Y., and after the death of his first wife he married Hannah Palmer. In politics he is a Democrat, and in religious faith a member of the Lutheran Church.

To Mr. and Mrs. Osgood came one child, Blanche C., born June 5, 1887, and died October 8, the same year. Mr. Osgood is an active member of the Presbyterian Church. He is prominently con- nected with the P. O. S. of A., and was secretary

of the lodges, comprising the Susquehanna county district. He is one of the best informed men in the community in which he lives, and takes a deep inter- est in all the leading questions of the day, is a great reader and student and is recognized as an authority on many subjects. He is a fluent and ready speak- er. While in the West he organized a debating school, and during the Mckinley campaign of 1896 he delivered a number of addresses in favor of that candidate for the presidency. In politics he is a stanch Republican, but is not an office seeker. He is one of those live business men, upon whom de- pend the advancement of any community. Every town thrives or not in proportion as it may claim the residence of men like Mr. Osgood.

JOSEPH WARREN TIFFANY, an honored citizen of Brooklyn township, who is now living re- tired from active business life, has always made his home in Susquehanna county, his birth having oc- curred in Dimock township, February 19, 1827, and he is a worthy representative of one of its old and highly respected families, his parents having been Preston and Eliza M. (Mack) Tiffany, natives of Harford and Brooklyn townships, respectively. Both died in Dimock township, the father, October 23, 1876, at the age of eighty-one years, five months and twenty-four days, the mother, September 30, 1829, at the age of twenty-three years, four months and twenty-four days, and their remains were in- terred in Brooklyn cemetery. They were consistent members of the Presbyterian Church, and the father was a Republican in politics. He held township offices of honor and trust, and followed the occu- pation of farming as a life work. He was twice mar- ried, his second wife being Abial Truesdell, but had no children by that union. The children of the first marriage were as follows: Lydia E., born May I, 1820, married Amos Hollister, and died in 1889; Elisha T., born September 25, 1821, mar- ried Julia Hemstead, and died January 28, 1897; Milla L., born May 16, 1823, married William Aus- tin ; Preston H., born July 9, 1825, married Sarah Quick, and is engaged in farming in Brooklyn township; Joseph W. is the next in the order of birth; and Orville N., born August 30, 1828, died in 1887. Our subject's paternal grandparents were Thomas and Milletiah (Tingley) Tiffany.

Joseph W. Tiffany passed his boyhood and youth upon the home farm, and remained with his parents until his marriage, when he purchased a large farm in Dimock township, which he success- fully operated until 1863, and then traded it for his present farm of 120 acres in Brooklyn town- ship. A creek running through the place supplies it with abundant water, and to its cultivation and improvement he has devoted his energies for many years, until it is now one of the most desirable farms of its size in the locality.

On February 21, 1849, in Brooklyn township, Mr. Tiffany was married to Miss Esther M. Safford, who was born in that township, July 26, 1830, a

1329

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

daughter of Elisha and Olive (Tracy) Safford. The father was born in Massachusetts, December 18, 1781, the mother in Lisbon, Conn., July 4, 1786, and they were married in the latter State in 1808. In 1811 they came to Susquehanna county, Penn., and took up their residence in Brooklyn township, where the father followed farming throughout the remainder of his life. He was drafted during the war of 1812. His death occurred July 16, 1862, and his wife departed this life December 22, 1859, both being laid to rest in Brooklyn cemetery. They attended the Presbyterian Church, and were estimable people. Their children were Felix T., born November 10, 1808, married Elizabeth Reece and died January 6, 1862 ; Vera A., born November I, 1810, died July 24, 1867 ; Levi N., born Novem- ber 12, 1812, married Maria Munn, who died March 28, 1900; Susan, born January 22, 1815, married Benjamin Van Auken, and died April 2, 1896; John D., born September 14, 1817, and died October II, 1852, became a Methodist minister, and married Araminta Blackman; Laban T., born February 9, 1820, married Hester Bunnell, and died June 7, 1855; Jedediah, born June 14, 1822, married Jane Rockwell, and died June 12, 1897 (he served two years as a soldier during the Civil war, received an honorable discharge and returned to his farm in Lathrop, Susquehanna county, where he passed the remainder of his life) ; La Fayette, a resident of Meshoppen, born April 12, 1825, mar- ried (first) Samantha Russell, (second) Adeline Bunnell and (third) Eliza Blakeslee; Martha, born December 1, 1827, died July 22, 1859; and Esther M., Mrs. Tiffany. All are now deceased with the exception of La Fayette and Mrs. Tiffany. Her paternal grandparents, Silas and Sylvania (Hall) Safford, were natives of Massachusetts, and from that State removed to Connecticut, where they spent the remainder of their lives as farming peo- ple. Her maternal grandparents, Jeremiah and Martha (Lazelle) Tracy, were natives of Connecti- cut, and in 1813 located in Wayne county, Penn., where they continued to make their home through- out life, the former being engaged in agricultural pursuits.

The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Tiffany were as follows: (I) Owen L., born March 20, 1850, is a farmer of Dimock township. He mar- ried Jennie Goodwin, and has three children-Earl, who resides at Franklin Forks, where he conducts a prospering shingle mill, blacksmith and wagon shop (he was married October 18, 1896, to Bessie Snow, and has two children, Vera E. and Clyde), Carroll and Elbert. (2) Warren, born December 28, 1854, died April 2, 1882. (3) Eva A., born Feb- ruary 23, 1857, died September 14, 1891. (4) Elbert, born January 26, 1862, died March 15, 1862. (5) Ida M., born September 17, 1863, married George W. Tiffany on May 25, 1886, and has one child, George Elwood, born July 2, 1895. Mr. Tiffany was educated in Binghamton, N. Y., and was graduated from the high school in 1879, sub- 84

sequently entering Ada College, at Lima, Ohio, whence he was graduated in 1882. For fourteen terms he taught school, but after his marriage he purchased a farm in Harford, upon which he lived until 1891, when he was appointed postal clerk on the Pennsylvania railroad, running from New York to Pittsburg. He then removed to Harrisburg, where he was living at the time of his death, which was caused by the cars at Kingsley Crossing, Au- gust 31, 1895, while home on a vacation. (6) Olive M., born October 27, 1871, married Edwin M. Loomis, a hardware merchant of Foster, Penn. Mr. Tiffany gives his support to the men and meas- ures of the Republican party, and filled the office of supervisor while a resident of Dimock township. He attends the Methodist Episcopal Church, and is a member of the Grange. Widely and favorably known throughout the county, his warmest friends are those who know him best.

SAMUEL WASHBURN, an honored and highly esteemed resident of Thompson township, is a nativeof Susquehanna county, born in Gibson town- ship, in August, 1823, and is a representative of one of its prominent pioneer families. His parents, Waller and Jemima ( Goodrich ) Washburn, were both natives of Connecticut, the former born in 1777, the latter in July, 1784, and they were married in that State April 4, 1802. Soon afterward they came to Susquehanna county, Penn., and took up their resi- dence in Gibson township, where in the midst of an unbroken forest the father erected a small log house and later cleared and improved a large farm. There both he and his wife spent their remaining days, the former dying in 1864, at the age of eighty-six years, the latter in 1854, at the age of seventy. She was a worthy Christian woman and a member of the Baptist Church. In his political views the father was a Democrat, and for many years held local office in Gibson township. They had a family of twelve children, all of whom reached years of ma- turity with the exception of Mary. In order of birth they were as follows: (I) Lyman, born in Gibson township, in December, 1802, married Re- dexa Sparks, of that township, where they made

their home throughout life. They had two daugh- ters: Almeda, wife of Thomas Bowell, of Lanes- boro, Penn .; and Eunice, wife of Edwin Warner, of Ararat. (2) Ruth, born in August, 1804, mar- ried Benjamin Doughty, of Jackson ,and died leav- ing children who live in the West. (3) Lucy, born in July, 1806, married Enoch Tarbox, and after living in Gibson for a time removed to Her- rick, where she died leaving a large family. (4) Dexter, born in November, 1808, married Abigail Doughty and settled on a farm in Jackson township, Susquehanna county, where he died leaving a fam- ily who now reside in Bridgewater and Scranton, Penn. (5) Mary. (6) Julius, born in February, 1812, married Sallie Hall, of Jackson, and located in Gibson township, where they died leaving two chil- dren : Loenza, now the wife of a Mr. Simpson, of

1330

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Susquehanna ; and Polly, deceased wife of Orville Tarbox. (7) Elmyra, born in April, 1814, married William Blaisdell, of Jackson, and died leaving no family. (8) Theron W., born in January, 1817, married Esther Roberts, of Jackson, and died in Gibson, leaving three children: Martha, wife of David Sternberg, of Jackson; and Leroy and Lucy, both residents of Gibson. (9) Seymour, born in April, 1819, died when a young man. (10) Frank- lin, born in June, 1821, married Lucy Ross, of Beth- any, Wayne Co., Penn., and settled in Gibson, where she died. Later he married Sallie Hall Washburn, and they have one daughter, Isola, now the wife of Joseph Potter, of Thompson. (II) Samuel, of this sketch, is the next in order of birth. (12) Lucretia G., born in August, 1826, married Riley Blaisdell, of Jackson, and located in New Milford, Penn., where both died leaving no family.

Samuel Washburn was reared on the home farm in Gibson township, and acquired his education in the district school of the neighborhood. On April 29, 1847, he married Miss Harriet A. Felter, of Herrick township, who was born in Delaware coun- ty, N. Y., in February, 1827, but when a small child was brought to Herrick townsnip, Susquehanna Co., Penn., by her parents, Henry and Maria (Hopper) Felter, who died there. Both were natives of New York City. Of their eleven children only two are now living: Mrs. Washburn, and Henry Felter who still lives at the old home in Herrick township and has three children-Francis, Ferona and Fred- erick-all married.

To Mr. and Mrs. Washburn were born four children, namely : (I) Clarence D. was born in Gib- son township, in August, 1848, and his early educa- tion, acquired there, was supplemented by a course in the higher graded schools of Scranton, Penn. He married Ethelinda J. Potter and located in Susque- hanna, where she died leaving seven children : Blanch W., the wife of Ray Larrabee, of Susque- hanna ; Monroe, a resident of Thompson ; Osmond, of Lanesboro; Douglass, of Thompson ; Earl, Mary and Berenice, with their father in Susquehanna. For his second wife Clarence D. Washburn married Cora Lanxterman, of Cincinnati, Ohio, by whom he has one daughter, Ruth. He is in the employ of the Erie Railroad Company at Susquehanna, Penn. (2) Edson, born in Gibson, in May, 1850, married Esther Felter, of Wilkes Barre, and they lived on the home farm, where he died in August, 1872, leaving a wife and one daughter, Hattie, who died in childhood. (3) Emma A., born in August, 1852, married Joseph Potter, of Thompson, where she died in April, 1887, leaving two sons, Ernest and Rufus, now young men of New York. (4) Frances, born in April, 1857, in Gibson township, married John Clapper, of Thompson, who is now clerking in a general store in Susquehanna. They had four children: Gertrude, now the wife of Al- bert Batterson, of Susquehanna; Ethel, who died at the age of thirteen years ; Hugh and Iva, at home.

After his marriage Mr. Washburn located on his father's old homestead in Gibson township and cared for his parents during old age. In 1869 he removed to Dorchester county, Md., where he pur- chased a large farm and was engaged in raising sugar corn and cotton for three years, but at the end of that period he sold out and returned to Gibson. A year later he purchased his present farm in Thompson township, near Comforts Pond, on the Harmony township line, it being known as the A. A. Toby farm. Upon this place he has made many improvements, including the erection of a barn, and in his farming operations he has met with well-deserved success. He has always been identified with the Democratic party since casting his first vote, and he has filled the office of justice of the peace for six years and held positions on the election board. In religious faith he and his wife are Baptists and take an active part in Church work. For over a half century they have traveled lifes' journey together as man and wife, and can look back over the past with no regrets as it has always been their endeavor to do unto others as they would have others do unto them. They are therefore surrounded by many friends who esteem them highly for their sterling worth.

EDWIN G. TAYLOR, after a long, use- ful and well-spent life, is now living retired in Susquehanna, having through his own well-direct- ed and energetic efforts become the possessor of a handsome property, which enables him to lay aside the arduous cares and responsibilities of business life and spend his declining years in ease and quiet.

Mr. Taylor was born in Danbury, Conn., February 2, 1830, a son of Azel and Catherine (Knapp) Taylor. The father was born in the same place in. 1776 and was the younger son of Thomas Taylor, one of the early Puritans of New England and a soldier of the Revolutionary war who died in Connecticut. His other son was Joel, who made his home in Fairfield county, Conn., where some of his descendants still reside. Azel grew to manhood in Fairfield county and there learned the trade of a comb maker. During the childhood of our subject he came to Susquehanna county, Penn., in 1832, and purchased a tract of wild land in Har- ford township, where he cleared and improved a farm, making his home there until his death in 1858, Politically he was a Henry Clay Whig, and religiously he and his wife were prominent and faithful members of the Baptist Church and always took an active interest in its work. She continued to reside upon the old homestead until 1864, when she went to New York, and died at the home of her eldest son, William B. Taylor. The father was twice married, his first wife being a Miss Seeley; of Connecticut, by whom he had four children : Maria, wife of Bradley Diamond, of Connecticut ; Seeley and Orson, residents of Bethel, Conn .; and David. The children born of the second union are

1331

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

as follows: (1) William B. was a composer and publisher of instrumental music in New York, where his death occurred. He married Annie E. South- worth, of that city, and to them were born three daughters-Adda, Mary and Ella. (2) John K., born in Connecticut, was reared in Susquehanna county, Penn., and throughout life devoted his time and attention to chemistry. He married and lo- cated in Bridgeport, Conn., where he died leaving two children-Frank and Augusta. (3) Alonzo, born in Fairfield county, Conn., died when young. (4) Charles, born in Danbury, Conn., was reared on the home farm in Harford township, Susque- hanna county, and as a life work he followed the molder's trade. He married Jane Southworth, of New York, and died on the old homestead. (5) Horace E., born in Connecticut, was educated in the Harford Academy, and moved to Oxford, N. Y., where he died soon after his marriage, leaving a wife and daughter, who are still residents of that place. (6) Edwin G., our subject, is the next of the family. (7) Orin L., born in Harford, in 1833, married Sarah Steele, of Ogdensburg, N. Y., and removed to Chicago, Ill., where he was a mu- sical director and publisher for a number of years. During the Civil war he raised a company, was elected captain and was in the service about one year during Lee's invasion in Pennsylvania. From Chicago he removed to New York, where he died leaving one daughter, Bessie, now of Ogdensburg. (8) Joel W., born in Harford, in 1836, learned the printer's trade when a young man and worked on the Binghamton Republican for a number of years, becoming part owner of that paper. He is now a resident of New York City, where he is en- gaged in stereotype work and in publishing music.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 310

Author: Publication date: 1900 Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co. Number of Pages: 2390

Author:
Publication date: 1900
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 2390