Monroe County Biographical Sketches C

The following biographical sketches were originally published in the History of Rochester and Monroe County New York From the Earliest Historic Times to the Beginning of 1907 by William F. PECK, The Pioneer Publishing Company, New York and Chicago, 1908.

See the indexes for a complete listing of all of the biographical sketches included in this two volume work.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

Louis Brooks CARPENTER

Among the honored dead of Monroe county is numbered Louis Brooks CARPENTER, who passed away May 30, 1906. He was born on a farm in Chili township, December 8, 1850, and there spent his entire life, his widow still residing on the farm, which comprises one hundred and eighty acres of well improved and valuable land. His father, John Henry CARPENTER, was a native of Pittsford, Monroe county, and at an early day settled on the farm in Chili township, where he built a good country residence and developed a good farm.

Louis Brooks CARPENTER was reared on the farm on which he spent his entire life and acquired his education in the district schools of the neighborhood. During the period of his boyhood and youth he assisted his father in the operation of the home farm and after attaining manhood continued to carry on the work there which had been instituted by the father. He had a fine farm of one hundred and eighty acres and was there engaged in general agricultural pursuits throughout a long period. He was an active, energetic man and accumulated a goodly competence, so that at his death he left his family in comfortable financial circumstances.

Mr. CARPENTER was twice married. He first wedded Miss Emma WOOSTER and to them were born a daughter and son: Mary M., the wife of Richmond BANGS, a resident of Churchville, New York; and John H., a resident of Chili. After losing his first wife Mr. Carpenter was married again, his second union being with Libbie L. TROTT, a native of Germany, and a sister of TROTT BROTHERS, monument dealers of Rochester. This marriage was blessed with one son, Louis B., who was born July 23, 1892. Mrs. CARPENTER is a member of the Monroe Avenue Methodist church at Rochester.

Mr. CARPENTER was a democrat in principle and policy and for eight years served as trustee and assessor. He had attained a high degree in Masonry, belonging to the Mystic Shrine. During his lifetime he performed many acts of charity in helping others whom he deemed deserving and his many excellent traits of character commanded for him the high respect and esteem of all, so that his death was the occasion of deep regret to his many friends, for, having spent his entire life in Chili township he was widely and favorably known.

The COLBY Family

On the west bank of the Merrimac river in the old Granite state, there lies the small town of Salisbury, where, one hundred years ago lived a man named Ephraim COLBY who traced his ancestry back to one Anthony COLBY who came from England in the year 1630 and located in that town about 1639. His family consisted of a wife, Mary EASTMAN, and seven sons and one daughter, named in the order of their birth as follows : Ephraim, Zaccheus, Mary, Abraham, Isaac, Timothy, Eastman and Merrill, he being at this time fifteen years of age.

On the 5th of October, 1802, four of the said sons, Ephraim, Abraham, Isaac and Timothy, got together their small belongings and started from the old homestead with an ox team for, what was then considered the far western country. After a long, slow and tedious journey they arrived, near the last of October, at Canandaigua, where they found and consulted a map of the PHELPS and GORHAM purchase, in the Genesee country, west of the Genesee river, this tract being then owned by WADSWORTH & MURRAY. They each articled a lot in the then North Hampton township, county of Genesee, now the town of Ogden, Monroe county. They settled as follows : Ephraim, on lots 80 and 93, now owned and occupied by J. C. ROSS and Alexander G. COLBY; Abraham, on lot 68, now owned by Charles KINCAID, on which he built a small log house, near the middle of the lot, on the Colby road and on the west bank of a creek, where on the 24th day of May following (1803) was born to him a son who was named John Murray and who was the first white child born in the town of Ogden; Isaac settled on lot 67, now owned by William F. ROSS; and Timothy on lot 76, now belonging to the FARGO estate on Salmon creek. Two years later the father and mother, with the remaining three brothers, namely, Eastman, Zaccheus and Merrill, came from the old home in New Hampshire in the same primitive fashion and located as follows : Eastman on lot 64, now owned by the Leander DANFORTH estate; Merrill on lot 78, now the William ARNOLD estate, opposite the Baptist church. He shortly afterward erected a frame building on the southeast corner of Colby and Washington streets, where he conducted a store for many years ; Zaccheus settled on the Ridge road, in what is now the town of Greece. Being a physician he practiced his profession successfully for years, as well as conducting the farm and nursery on which he settled.

Some years after on the organization of the State Militia, about 1810, Eastman COLBY was elected colonel and commanded a regiment at general training, with great ability and general satisfaction to all. On his journey here he was injured by a severe cut by an ax while clearing away an obstruction to the road by a tree which had fallen across it, from which, however, he in time entirely recovered.

On the 8th day of October, 1803, there was born to Ephraim COLBY a daughter who was named Betsy, she being the first white female child born in Ogden. She afterward married John A. FINCHER and died in this town in 1872.

Abraham COLBY was the first town clerk of North Hampton and continued in that position until after 1824, during the time that this town was known as Fairfield and Parma successively, which covers a time of more than twenty years. Many records are in his hand-writing and signed by him as town clerk. He also started the first nursery from apple seeds brought with him from New Hampshire.

This reminds the narrator of an incident connected with this nursery which his father, James COLBY, the brother of John M. COLBY, before mentioned, at many times related to him. In the course of a few years one of the trees, which had been transplanted from the nursery and set near the aforementioned log house, had a few blossoms which attracted the wondering attention of two boys, as it was explained to them what a wonderful fruit the apple was; they continued to keep a diligent watch from the time of the blossoming, and subsequently when two small apples appeared and gradually grew during the whole season until the cold weather came in the fall, at which time their father carefully picked them and placed them in a small cupboard near the fireplace in the log house, where they were told that they would ripen, at which time they would be allowed to share in the great fruit. They were occasionally allowed to look at, and even smell of the precious fruit, but not to handle. Oh! that smell set them nearly crazy, they could hardly wait for the happy time to come-but then as ever the human family was, and is, always subject to disappointment and grief, - It seems that there had come from the east a family who had settled a short distance from Mr. COLBY (whose name need not be mentioned), and one day as the two boys and their mother were in the old log house they heard a knock at the door, and on opening it they saw a woman of the aforesaid family, who immediately upon entering turned up her nose and commenced to sniff, saying,-"Peers to me I smell apples" at the same time to the horror of the boys she approached the cupboard, and opening the door she saw and took the two apples, seated herself in a chair, and deliberately ate them both, not even giving the others the core. The feelings of the boys as well as the mother can better be imagined than described. It is needless to say that she died shortly after, and left no descendant to be heard from at this meeting.

The daughter Mary, before mentioned, of Ephraim COLBY, married a man by the name of Judah CHURCH and settled in Pontiac, Michigan, where she lived many years and died leaving a large family of children.

Eugene C. COLBY

Professor Eugene C. COLBY, who since 1905 has been state supervisor of drawing and manual training, while for twenty years previous he was connected with the Mechanics' Institute of Rochester as principal and one of the leading teachers, has gained a reputation in connection with instruction in industrial art that extends far beyond the borders of the state. He was born in Denmark, Maine, on the 13th of October, 1846, his parents being Samuel C. and Harriet (DAY) COLBY. His preliminary education was acquired in the district schools and he also studied in the village of Denmark, at Hiram and in the academies at Freiburg, North Bridgeton and Norway, eagerly availing himself of the opportunities for educational advancement. In early manhood he taught school in Hiram, Sebago and Naples, Maine, and soon after attaining his majority went to Cambridgeport, Massachusetts, where he was employed in a wood working shop and later in a piano factory.

About the time industrial drawing schools were established he attended such institutions in Cambridge and in Boston, Massachusetts, and in 1874 he entered the Massachusetts Normal Art School in Boston. While pursuing his course there he also taught drawing in the evening school at Cambridge and when three years had passed he accepted a position as teacher and supervisor of drawing in the schools of Lawrence, Massachusetts, where he remained for eight years. Later he became principal of the Mechanics' Institute of Rochester, New York, which was established in that year - 1885 - for the purpose of teaching art and industrial education. He was principal of the department of industrial and fine arts from the beginning until the department was divided, when he became the superintendent of industrial arts. The department annually has upwards of one thousand pupils under the charge of thirty teachers. After twenty years' connection with the school he resigned his position, to the deep regret of all of the faculty, the pupils and those interested in the school. One of the local papers spoke of him as a tireless worker in behalf of the Mechanics' Institute and continued : "He is the one who may be said to have brought the Mechanics' Institute through years of struggle and adversity to the period when it became easy sailing for all who identified themselves with the noble work. He was one who did the practical work of organizing the classes and teaching at a time when all looked discouraging and before there was any silver lining to the clouds of difficulty which hovered around the institute. It was a battle royal Mr. COLBY fought in the early days and he not only performed the duties of principal and teacher but materially assisted Captain LOMB and his loyal associates in securing patrons and funds to carry on the work. Many people have wondered how it is that in all reports during past years of the working of the institute the name of its most valuable officer has been so seldom seen. No doubt this is due to the innate modesty of Professor COLBY, who recoils from publicity and prefers to keep in the background. Public opinion, however, which seldom errs, is fully posted in regard to the inestimable services which have been rendered to the Mechanics' Institute by him and there is a strong feeling among the citizens that he should be recognized and his future in the institute rendered impregnable. Professor COLBY possesses all the characteristics necessary in the oversight of multifarious studies, being cool and dispassionate in his temperament, patient and courteous in his attitude and endowed with peculiar gifts for imparting instruction in the various training departments of the institute. He is, withal, a man of unspotted character, a Christian gentleman and a true friend. The whole interior arrangements of the Eastman building were planned by Mr. COLBY and indeed it may be truly said that had it not been for his heroic and faithful devotion and incessant toil since 1885 the Mechanics' Institute would never have arrived at that point of perfection as to merit the confidence and magnificent generosity of George EASTMAN."

When twenty years had passed Professor COLBY resigned his position in connection with the institute to accept the proferred one - that came to him unsolicited - of state supervisor of drawing and manual training. On the occasion of the commencement exercises which marked the close of his twenty years' connection with the school Mr. ROSS said:. "For twenty years Professor COLBY has worked with us honestly, earnestly and with untiring industry, and with a singleness of purpose and loyalty to the best interests of our institute that have only been equaled by the work of Captain LOMB. The name of Professor COLBY will always be associated with the long years of our severest struggle for existence, and it is greatly to his honor that no suggestion of leaving us ever came until our institute had become an assured success. It is with deep regret on the part of the board of directors that he is leaving us, and he leaves with the respect and friendship of every member of the board and our best wishes for his success in the position he has taken. The institute owes him a debt of gratitude, and his fidelity to its interests will never be surpassed"

During Professor COLBY'S second year in Rochester the board of education engaged him to establish and supervise the teaching of drawing in the public schools, which work he did for two years in addition to his regular institute work and brought that department of the schools to a high degree of proficiency. He has always been interested in the progress of art education and has been a prominent figure in many educational movements, being closely identified with various teachers' associations.. He was the first president of the New York State Art Teachers' Association and was one of the organizers and the first president of the Rochester Teachers' Association. He has also held other offices in state and national educational associations, is a life member of the New York State Teachers' Association and was its superintendent of exhibits for several years. Few men have had his breadth of experience in their special work and few, if any, have had their work more thoroughly endorsed by the educational authorities. In his present position as state supervisor of drawing and manual training he makes out the . examination questions in drawing and has charge of the marking and rating of papers in Albany. He also instructs teachers in drawing at the teachers' institute and is now inspector of the divisions of the department. He also does much institute work and inspects schools in their work in drawing and manual training.

On the 18th of July, 1878, Professor COLBY was married to Miss Anna C. HOLMES, a daughter of Judge Alfred HOLMES, of Lockport, New York. He built a fine residence at No. 39 Rutger street, where he and his family are now living. Unto them have been born two daughters and two sons : Alice Harriet; Frances Maria and Alfred Holmes, both now deceased; and Eugene Holmes.

Professor COLBY has been president of the Rochester Art Club and is a member of the Rochester Society of Artists, while at the present writing, in 1907, he is president of the art department of the National Educational Association. He has gained national distinction in connection with his chosen field of labor, and there is today no man in all the country whose opinions are regarded more as authority upon the subject of instruction in industrial art. Fraternally he is connected with the Masons, and his interest in the moral development of the community is shown in his membership in the Plymouth Congregational church, in which he is now serving as a member of the board of trustees.

Oscar P. COLBY

Oscar P. COLBY, in former years connected with agricultural interests, his attention, however, being now given to the discharge of the official duties which devolve upon him as justice of the peace and clerk of the village board in Spencerport, was here born on the 26th of April, 1841, his birthplace being the farm which was settled by his grandfather, Abraham COLBY, in 1802. Here the grandson has spent his entire life with the exception of three years when he was a soldier of the Union army in the Civil war. His parents were James and Martha W. (PECK) COLBY. The father was also born at the old COLBY homestead, where he spent his entire life, passing away at the age of eighty-five years. He followed the occupation of farming and thus provided for the support of his family. His wife was born in Rehoboth, Massachusetts, and became a resident of East Bloomfield, Ontario county, New York, where she was residing at the time of her marriage. She had previously engaged in teaching in the town of Ogden. Unto Mr. and Mrs. James COLBY were born two children, the elder being Adelaide, who became the wife of James C. ROSS and died about 1905.

Oscar P. COLBY acquired his early education in the public schools and also attended the Rochester Collegiate Institute and what is now the Brockport Normal School. He assisted in the work of the home farm during the periods of vacation and after he had put aside his text-books. On the 8th of August, 1862, he offered his services to the government in defense of the Union, enlisting as a member of Company A, One Hundred and Fortieth New York Volunteer Infantry, under Colonel O'RORKE. The regiment was assigned to the Army of the Potomac and Mr. COLBY participated in the battle of Fredericksburg, where he was under fire for the first time. He afterward took part in all of the engagements that led up to Gettysburg, where on the 2d of July, 1863, he received a ball in the right leg at Little Roundtop. It was at that time that his colonel was killed. Mr. COLBY carried the ball for six weeks before the surgeons could locate it. After he had sufficiently recovered from his injuries he was assigned to detached service at Sickel's general hospital at Alexandria, Virginia, where he remained until the close of the war.

Mr. COLBY was a brave and loyal soldier, never faltering in the performance of any duty, whether it called him to the lonely picket line or to the firing line. Soon after his return home he was married and began farming on the old family homestead, continuing to engage actively in general agricultural pursuits until about fifteen years ago, when he was elected justice of sessions and served for two terms on the bench with Judge William E. WERNER. For fifteen years he has lived in the village of Spencerport and for a similar period he has filled the office of justice of the peace, while at the present writing he is serving as clerk of the village board. In his political affiliation he has been true to the teachings of the COLBY family, who through several generations have been stalwart democrats.

It was in 1865 that Mr. COLBY was united in marriage to Miss Hattie E. ROSS, a native of the town of Ogden, and to them have been born two children: Alexander G., who is now upon the old homestead farm; and Ida V., who is with her parents. Mr. COLBY has sold a part of his farm to his son but still owns about one hundred acres of land which is very valuable and productive. Fraternally he is connected with John H. MARTINDALE post, No. 270, G. A. R., of Spencerport. In 1863 he joined Etolian lodge, No. 479, A. F. & A. M., of Spencerport, being one of its oldest members. He is a worthy representative of a prominent pioneer family, the name of COLBY having ever stood for good citizenship, for progress in business and for fidelity in social life. His record is in harmony with that of an honored ancestry and it is his personal worth which entitles him to mention in this volume.

Frederick COOK

Frederick COOK, who at the age of fourteen years was thrown upon his own resources, the parental home being broken up by the death of the father, attained through the inherent force of his own character, his strong determination and his close application to the duties that devolved upon him distinction and honors in his adopted land. The penniless boy of fourteen became one of the most successful business men of the Empire state, served as secretary of state of New York and would undoubtedly have gained gubernatorial honors had he not declined. The multiplicity and extent of his business interests also made him one of the best known men of the state, while his activity extended to those concerns which touch the general interests of society in lines of progress, in social and benevolent interests.

The specific and distinctive office of biography is not to give voice to a man's modest estimate of himself and his accomplishments, but rather to leave the perpetual record establishing his character by the consensus of opinion on the part of his fellowmen. Throughout Rochester and the state Frederick COOK is spoken of in terms of admiration and respect. His life was so varied in its scope, so honorable in its purposes, so far-reaching and beneficial in its effects that it became an integral part of the history of Rochester and of the commonwealth. He exerted an immeasurable influence on the city of his residence; in business life as a financier and promoter of extensive industrial and commercial enterprises; in social circles by reason of a charming personality and unfeigned cordiality; in politics by reason of his public spirit and devotion to the general good as well as his comprehensive understanding of the questions affecting state and national welfare; and in those departments of activity which ameliorate hard conditions of life for the unfortunate by his benevolence and his liberality.

The life record of Mr. COOK covered the period between December 2, 1833 and February 17, 1905. He was born at Wildbad, a noted watering-place in the famous Black Forest district of Germany. The father hoped to give his son excellent educational privileges and sent him to one of the best schools of the whole neighborhood, expecting eventually to allow him to attend college, but the death of the father in 1846 completely frustrated this plan and Frederick COOK, then a lad of fourteen years, was obliged to provide for his own living. The family home was broken up and with no advantages of wealth or influential friends to aid him he started out to win life's battles. He possessed a courageous, determined spirit and when but fifteen years of age came to the new world to try his fortunes. He had a married sister residing in Buffalo, new York, at that time and made his way to her home. His youth had been passed in a country where all boys must learn a trade and according to this rule, with which he had been familiar, Frederick COOK resolved to acquaint himself with shoemaking. He did not find it congenial, however, and soon afterward secured employment with a butcher in Batavia, New York, where his close application and fidelity soon won recognition. His ability gained the attention of D.W. TOMLINSON, the president of the bank of Batavia, who was also extensively interested in railroads and because of Mr. COOK'S knowledge of the German language Mr. TOMLINSON procured for him a position on the BUFFALO & ROCHESTER RAILROAD whence he was soon promoted to the position of conductor on an immigrant train on the Niagara Falls division of the Central Hudson road. In this capacity he aided many an immigrant from Germany in looking for a home and the corporation which he served, appreciating his services, soon made him a passenger conductor. He remained with the road for about twenty years, severing his connection on the 1st of January, 1872. That he enjoyed to the fullest degree the friendship, regard and confidence of his fellow employes [sic] and the patrons of the road was manifest by a gift from them of an elaborate set of solid silver plate.

One of the salient features of Mr. COOK'S successful business career was his ability to recognize an opportunity. When once he believed in the possibility for successful accomplishment he utilized the advantage to the utmost and thus the scope of his activity was continually enlarged until he was known as one of the foremost representatives of commercial and financial interests in western New York. While in the railroad service he became intimately acquainted with George M. PULLMAN, and when the latter organized the PULLMAN PALACE CAR COMPANY Mr. COOK invested the greater part of his accumulated earnings in that enterprise, the prosperous history of which is known to the world. Thereby he laid the foundation for his wealth. In 1852 he took up his abode in Rochester, and not only became closely associated with its business history, but also with its political life, but of the latter we will speak later on. He became closely connected with many enterprises that largely promoted the commercial activity and consequent prosperity of Rochester, at the same time adding to his business success. In 1874, he was chosen vice president of the BARTHOLOMAY BREWING COMPANY, which was organized that year with capital of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. From the beginning until 1889 he served as vice president and was then elected president. His activity, however, was not confined to one or even a few lines, but embraced manifold business interests. On the 12th of January, 1876, he was elected president of the ROCHESTER GERMAN INSURANCE COMPANY, as a successor of Colonel Louis ERNST, and so continued until his demise. On the 13th of January, 1877, he was elected president of the ROCHESTER DRIVING PARK ASSOCIATION, and under his capable management its financial interests were advanced from the lowest to the highest degree. On the 16th of May, 1878, he was appointed one of the commissioners of MOUNT HOPE CEMETERY and continuously served in that office, and was chairman of the board from that time until his demise. Hise [sic] name became prominently known in banking circles, for in the fall of 1880 he was made a trustee of the ROCHESTER SAVINGS BANK and later chosen one of its vice presidents. On the 25th of March, 1882, he was elected president of the BANK OF ROCHESTER, the predecessor of the GERMAN-AMERICAN BANK, and remained at the head of the institution until his life's labors were ended. In February, 1887, he was chosen to the presidency of the ROCHESTER TITLE & GUARANTEE COMPANY and upon the death of J. Lee JUDSON he was unanimously elected president of the ROCHESTER GAS & ELECTRIC COMPANY of Rochester. He was also president of the ROCHESTER RAILWAY COMPANY, the ROCHESTER TELEPHONE COMPANY and the OHMER FARE REGISTER COMPANY. His career seems almost phenomenal and yet there was not in his business life an esoteric phase. His path was never strewn with the wreck of other men's fortunes, his whole course being marked by business integrity and probity, his success resulting from his close application, his keen discernment and his able management.

Distinguished honors came to Mr. COOK in his political life. If other men who have control of mammoth industrial and commercial enterprises realized that they owe a duty to their country and would enter into politics, the welfare of the nation would be greatly augmented, for what the country needs is men in charge of its affairs who have keen foresight, business sagacity and sound judgment. The democratic party gained a valuable accession to its ranks when Mr. COOK became one of its stalwart supporters. The first political office he ever filled was that of excise commissioner of Rochester, to which he was appointed by Mayor John LUTES, on the 20th of April, 1870, but on account of ill health he resigned in 1872, and with his family made an extended tour over Europe. In the autumn of 1873, however, upon his return to Rochester, he once more took his place in the democratic ranks to labor earnestly and effectively for his party's growth and progress. When nominated for mayor he ran far ahead of his ticket, although Rochester is acknowledged a republican stronghold. On the 19th of April, 1872, Governor HOFFMAN appointed him judge advocate with the rank of colonel of the Seventh Division of the New York State National Guards, and on the 29th of July, 1875, he was appointed by Governor TILDEN, assistant adjutant general and chief of staff of the same division, but he resigned November 24, 1877, on account of the pressure of his private business affairs. In 1876 he went as delegate to the democratic national convention at St. Louis when Samuel J. TILDEN was nominated for the presidency and in 1880 he was called to perform an important service in behalf of his adopted city, being one of fourteen citizens appointed as a commission on behalf of Rochester to guard the public interests during the work of elevating the NEW YORK CENTRAL RAILROAD tracks inside the corporate limits. Politics engrossed a large share of his attention and he was regarded by his party as one of its best and strongest representatives. In 1885 he was nominated for the position of secretary of state and after a strong canvass and an exciting campaign, he was elected by a majority of more than fourteen thousand over Colonel Anson S. WOOD. In this important office within the gift of the people, he served so acceptably that in 1887, at Saratoga, he was renominated and was re-elected over Colonel Frederick GRANT by a plurality of seventeen thousand six hundred and seventy-seven, the highest given to any candidate on the democratic ticket. On the 1st of January, 1890, after declining a renomination as secretary of state, he retired permanently to private life and from that time until his death devoted his attention wholly to the care of his large and varied business interests. On the 31st of December 1889, just before his retirement, Governor HILL, on behalf of himself and other state officers, presented Mr. COOK with a costly watch with chime attachments, while the clerical force of the office gave him a much prized collection of photographs, representing the employes [sic] during his two terms of four years' service. The party, however, still further honored him, when in the state convention of 1894 he was urgently solicited by a large majority of the party leaders to accept the nomination for governor of New York but he declined to become a candidate. The probability was that he would have been elected had be [this is an obvious error; should be he] accepted the nomination, for Frederick COOK was honored throughout New York and sustained a high reputation for political integrity and lofty patriotism, as well as of marked ability.

In 1853 Mr. COOK was united in marriage to Miss Catherine YAKY, of Rome, new York, who died in 1864. The following year he married Miss Barbara AGNE. His one daughter is now the wife of Augustus Masters MACDONELL and is the mother of one son, Frederick Cook MACDONELL.

Mr. COOK was one of the distinguished Masons of the city, belonging to the blue lodge, chapter, commandery and to the consistory, having attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish rite. He was likewise a member of the Rochester Maennerchor, which was organized in 1854 and of which he served as president in 1874-5. On the 24th of February, 1882, he became a member of the Liederkranz. he was also a member of the Rochester Historical Society, the Genesee Valley Club, the Rochester Club, the Country Club, and the Rochester Yacht Club, but it would be almost impossible to enumerate his connection with the many organizations which he represented. He was made an honorary member of Salye Citizens Corps, Eighth Separate Company, N. G. S. N. Y., January 26, 1888. In February, 1893, he presented to Peissner Post, No. 106, G. A. R., a handsomely bound memorial record book, one of the finest works of the kind in existence.

Along all lines of humanitarian action which tend to ameliorate the conditions of human life, Mr. COOK was a factor. In February, 1882, he was appointed by Governor Alonzo B. CORNELL, a manager of the Western House of Refuge and was re-appointed by Governor CLEVELAND in 1883, while on the 29th of September, 1885, he was elected secretary and treasurer of that institution. In 1887 he was chosen a life member of the New York State Agricultural Society and on the 19th of December of that year, he became corresponding member of the Oneida County Historical Society. On the 1st of June, 1891, he was appointed by Governor HILL as one of the managers of the Rochester State Hospital for a term of nine years, and upon the organization of the board was elected its president and was re-elected each succeeding year until the office was abolished by law when Mr. COOK was appointed a member of the board of visitation by Governor ODELL. His private charities were numerous, yet no ostentation or display ever characterized his giving. He was especially helpful to young men who were ambitious and determined and who start out in life upon their own account empty-handed. Remembering his own struggles and trials in youth, he was ever quick to show appreciation for close application and to recognize ability by promotion as opportunity offered. For some years prior to his demise he took no active part in political work, his attention being given to the superintendence of his private business affairs and extensive investments. He held friendship inviolable and as true worth could always win his regard he had a very extensive circle of friends, his life demonstrating the truth of Ralph Waldo EMERSON'S statement that "the way to win a friend is to be one." The public work which he did was largely of a nature that brought no pecuniary reward and yet made extensive demands upon his time, his thought and his energies. Opportunities that others passed by heedlessly he noted and improved - to the betterment of the city and the state in many ways. He was unostentatious in manner, but all who knew spoke of him in terms of praise. In his life were the elements of greatness because of the use he made of his talents and his opportunities, because his thoughts were not self-centered but were given to the mastery of life problems and the fulfillment of his duty as a man in his relations to his fellowmen and as a citizen in his relations to his city, his state and his country.

Willis C. COOK M.D.

The state of New York has attracted within its confines men of marked ability and high character in the various professional lines, and he whose name initiates this review has gained recognition as one of the able and successful physicians of the state, and by his labors, his high professional attainments and his sterling characteristics commands the utmost respect not only of the medical fraternity but of the general public as well, and in Brockport, where he has been engaged in practice since 1887, he has become the loved family physician in many a household.

Dr. COOK is a native son of the Empire state, his birth having occurred in Bergen, Genesee county, June 25, 1832. His paternal grandfather, Lemuel COOK, was a native of Norwich, Connecticut, and served in the Revolutionary war under General WASHINGTON, who signed his discharge papers. Following the war the grandfather located at Pompey Hill, in Onondaga county, while later he took up his abode in Clarendon, where he died at the very extreme age of one hundred and seven years, the only Revolutionary soldier known to be alive at that date, March 6, 1863

The father, Curtis COOK, was a native of Pompey Hill, Onondaga county, and at an early day settled in Bergen, while later he removed to Clarendon, where he was engaged in farming throughout his entire active business career, owning a farm of one hundred and twenty acres, situated near the old Root schoolhouse. He wedded Betsy Snow BROWN, a daughter of Richard BROWN, of Vermont, he being one of the first three white settlers of Byron, Genesee county, locating on a farm there, where his death occurred in 1852, when he had reached the advanced age of ninety-six years. Both of the parents are now deceased, the father having been called to his final rest December 1, 1883, when he had reached the age of eighty-three years, while the mother survived for a few years and passed away on the old homestead, being ninety-one years of age at the time of her demise. The father gave his political support to the republican party and supported the Sweden Baptist church. His family numbered six children: Henry, a resident of Coldwater, Michigan; Willis C., of this review; Rosetta, who is the wife of Henry VANDEBURG, a farmer of Sweden township, Monroe county; and Nancy, William F. and Whitney, all of whom have passed away.

Dr. COOK, the second in order of birth in his father's family, was reared under the parental roof, assisting his father in the duties connected with the operation of the old homestead property and acquiring his early education in the Root school. At the outbreak of the Civil war, loyal to his country, he offered his services to the government, enlisting November 16, 1861, as a member of Company K, Thirteenth Michigan Volunteer Infantry, and was discharged at Detroit on account of disability on the 3d [sic] of November, 1862, with the rank of sergeant. He re-enlisted as a veterinary surgeon in the Ninth Michigan Cavalry and served in that capacity until the close of the war, being discharged at Lexington, North Carolina, July 21, 1865.

Following his return home from the war he once more took up his abode in Monroe county but eventually decided upon the practice of medicine as a life work and to that end, in 1883, entered the medical department of Niagara University, at Buffalo, where he studied for one year, subsequent to which time he continued his studies in the Northwestern University of Ohio, and in 1885 entered the Toledo Medical College, from which he was graduated in that year. He then returned to New York and located in Brockport, where he has since been engaged in practice. He has ever been a student of the science of medicine and keeps abreast with the advancement which is continually being made in the medical profession through research and investigation. He is genial and courteous in manner, devotedly attached to his work, and therefore constant demand is being made upon his services.

Dr. COOK has been twice married. His first wife was Miss Adeline HAWKS, whom he wedded in 1855, and who died two years later. His present wife bore the maiden name of Mary E. WILLIAMS, and was born at Paw Paw, Michigan, a daughter of Philip and Polly WILLIAMS, farming people of that place. By her marriage Mrs. COOK has become the mother of five children: Francis W., who resides on a farm near Clarkson, New York; Carl R., who is engaged in mining and the real-estate business in the city of Mexico, where through his operations he has accumulated a capital of three million dollars; Lenore V., the wife of Charles H. PHILBROOK, of New York city; J. W., who resides in Rochester, where he is engaged in the drayage business; and Curtis L., a resident of Chicago.

Like his father, the Doctor gives his political support to the republican party. He has served as health officer for ten years and was coroner's physician for two years. His fraternal relations are with the Masonic order. Like the older generations of the COOK family the Doctor has rendered valuable aid to his country, while his brother, J. W., served in the Spanish war, and his brother Frank was with General MILES fighting the Indians in the Rose Bud reservation. His life has been one of continuous activity and that his professional labors have been crowned with a gratifying measure of success is indicated by the fact that he today enjoys a large and lucrative patronage not only in the city of his residence but throughout the surrounding districts as well.

William H. COOLEY

William H. COOLEY, well known throughout the city as the successful patent solicitor and mechanical and electrical expert, was born in Brockport, New York, June 22, 1852. The family had for generations settled around what is now Brockport. The great-great-grandfather, great-grandfather and great-grandmother of our subject are buried in the East Sweden cemetery, while the grandfather, grandmother, father and mother are laid to rest in the Brockport cemetery. They were all long-lived, many of them living to the age of eighty and ninety years. The grandfather and the father, Levi, Jr., were both contractors, the latter being the architect for the original building of the State Normal School at Brockport. The father died of typhoid fever when a young man. The mother, Elizabeth Mabel (STORY) COOLEY, a near relative of the late Judge STORY, was a well known musician, who died in 1894. Three of the five children born to this union died in infancy. The two living are B. Frank COOLEY, now connected with Brown's Business College in Brooklyn, New York, and William H. COOLEY.

William H. COOLEY was educated in the State Normal School of Brockport. At the time of his father's death he was studying in the University of Rochester, but was obliged before completing the course to leave in order to close his father's business, a task which took several years. During this time he pursued the study of law, and, although he has never taken the examination for admission to the bar, he could have taken it and been admitted. He is so well posted in legal matters that he can settle many questions at law as well as the best attorneys. Having won as a boy in an important case of a patent that was pending in Washington he became so interested in the law pertaining thereto that he concluded to devote his energies to the special practice of patent law. His offices are in the Powers building, and he has built up a large and ever-increasing clientage. He is also an inventor and expert on mechanical and electrical appliances, having some forty or fifty inventions, many of which he has patented and are now in use. So efficient is his service in this business that he is often called to New York city, Washington, D. C., and elsewhere as an expert in his special field.

On December 11, 1888, occurred his marriage to Miss Augusta H. HARRISON, a native of Ontario. He is a member of the International Inventors' Congress and the Society of the Genesee and the Rochester Chamber of Commerce.

Frederick G. CUMMINGS

Frederick G. CUMMINGS, founder, promoter and owner of the ROCHESTER MOULDING WORKS, was born at Stony Point in Rockland county, New York, on the 26th of April, 1867, and is a son of Charles Moody and Alma (GOODSPEED) Cummings. The mother is now deceased while the father resides in New Jersey and has retired from business life. The two sisters of the family are Miss E. M. CUMMINGS and Mrs. Blanche DUMPHY.

Following the removal of the family to Brooklyn, New York, in his early childhood, Frederick G. CUMMINGS pursued his education in the schools of that city and when a young man came to Rochester, where he learned the trade of manufacturing picture moulding, serving a regular apprenticeship thereto. In 1900 he established the ROCHESTER MOULDING WORKS, of which he is the sole proprietor and has built up a very large and profitable business in his line as a manufacturer of all kinds of picture frames and mouldings, his trade covering the entire United States. He employs from twenty-five to thirty skilled workmen and his output finds a ready market in various parts of the country.

In 1901 Mr. CUMMINGS was married at Little Falls, New York, to Miss Helen E. WALRATH and they now have one son, Frederick W., born in Rochester. In politics Mr. CUMMINGS is an earnest republican. He has no fraternal or secret society affiliations, but in the community where the greater part of his life has been passed is recognized as a sound business man, having many friends both in social and in business circles though he does not court popularity in either, high regard being given him in recognition of his sterling qualities

Barnabus CURTIS

The name of CURTIS has from an early period been identified with the agricultural interests of Monroe county, for the family was established here in 1825, when Barnabus CURTIS came from Stockbridge, Berkshire county, Massachusetts, to this state, making the journey with team and wagon, while his household goods were shipped by canal boat. This was during the pioneer development of Monroe county, and in the work of progress and improvement Mr. CURTIS bore his part in bringing this section of the state to its present standard. Although he has long since passed away, his memory still lives in the minds of many of the residents of this portion of the state.

Upon his arrival in Monroe county, Mr. CURTIS made his way to Brighton, where he purchased fifty acres of unimproved land, on which was a log house, and in this the family lived in true pioneer style. The father at once undertook the work of cultivating his land and making improvements upon the place and in due course of time it was transformed into a valuable property. As time passed and he accumulated from the sale of his crops an income that justified the purchase of more land, he added to his original holdings a tract of forty acres, making in all ninety acres. He was successfully engaged in agricultural pursuits throughout a long period, and at that early day the nearest market was at Rochester, to which city the products of the farm were hauled with ox teams. There were many other inconveniences which the family had to endure, for the work of progress and improvement remained to the future and there was little promise of early development, owing to the fact that as yet few settlers had dared to venture into this wild and unbroken district.

Mr. CURTIS was united in marriage to Miss A. MARTIN, who was a native of Vermont, and they became the parents of seven children, of whom two still survive. He gave his political allegiance to the whig party and served in the war of 1812, where he distinguished himself as a brave and gallant soldier. As a pioneer of the Empire state Mr. CURTIS nobly did his duty during the quarter of a century in which he resided here in establishing and maintaining the material interests of his community, and thus he is still remembered as one of its most honorable and honored citizens.

Miss Electa E. CURTIS, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Barnabus CURTIS, was reared under the parental roof and during her girlhood and early womanhood was trained to the duties of the household, while in the winter seasons she pursued her studies at the Allen Creek school and in Clover Street Seminary. After the death of her father, which occurred in 1859, the daughter assumed the management of the homestead property and she has since capably conducted the same. She has carried on the work of improvement which was begun by the father, has replaced the original residence by a more modern and up-to-date structure, has built a barn and set out a good orchard, devoting about sixty acres of the place to horticultural pursuits. The property is well located, the main line of the New York Central Railroad having been built through the place, as is also the Rochester, Syracuse & Eastern Railroad.

Miss Curtis possesses excellent business ability and sound judgment and is therefore able to manage her affairs in capable manner. She has spent her entire life on the farm which is still her home and which has been in possession of the CURTIS family for more than eighty years, and she is therefore well known in this locality, where she has many warm personal friends.

Gilbert CURTIS

There is no better criterion concerning the life and work of any individual than his position in the regard of his fellow townsmen. The community that knows him in his every day life becomes cognizant of his real worth and judges him by his character rather than by any special success he may have attained in business or any single line of activity. Throughout the community in which he made his home Gilbert CURTIS was held in warmest regard, winning not only the respect but also the closer ties of friendship from the great majority of those with whom he came in contact.

A native of Stockbridge, Massachusetts, he was born January 8, 1818, his parents being Barnabus and Asenath CURTIS, who were likewise natives of the old Bay state.

Their family numbered seven children, of whom Gilbert CURTIS was the eldest. For a short time he attended school in his native town and in 1825 accompanied his parents on their removal to Monroe county, New York, his father purchasing a farm in the town of Brighton from Daniel PENFIELD, one of the early and prominent settlers, for whom the town of Penfield was named. This farm afterward became the property of Gilbert CURTIS and upon it his last days were passed.

Following his arrival in Monroe county, Mr. CURTIS continued his studies in the common schools of the town of Brighton and afterward in the high school at Rochester. Putting aside his text-books, he left home and for three years was on a whaling vessel, which made voyages to many parts of the world. It was an interesting experience, bringing into his life many incidents unknown to the landsman, and his reminiscences in later years concerning his life on a whaler were always a source of entertainment to his friends. Upon his return he took ship at Boston and went to New Orleans, where he enlisted for service in the Mexican war, his commanding officer being Colonel DENT, afterward a brother-in-law of General U. S. GRANT. He served for about three years in the army, the regiment being discharged in California soon after the discovery of gold in that state.

His military life having ended in 1849, Mr. CURTIS continued a resident of California until 1855 but met with only a fair degree of success in his mining operations. He became, however, familiar with that life that constitutes the romantic, unique and interesting chapter in the history of American development. When six years had been passed on the Pacific coast. he returned to Monroe county and settled upon the old homestead farm in the town of Brighton, his remaining days being devoted to general agricultural and horticultural pursuits, in which he was quite successful. He brought his place under a high state of cultivation. With its rich harvests and large fruit crops it presented a most attractive appearance, proving one of the pleasing features in the landscape.

In his political affiliation Mr. CURTIS was in early life a stanch whig and later he became an earnest retpublican [sic]. The only office he ever held, however, was that of school trustee. He was especially interested in the cause of education and in a quiet way did everything he could to promote good schools and advance the intellectual development of the community. He was himself a well informed man on all topics of general interest, reading broadly and thinking deeply. He was charitable and of kindly spirit, giving generously of his means to those in need, yet in his beneficence was entirely unostentatious, and throughout his life was at all times unassuming. To see him in his later years, quietly pursuing the work of the farm, amid scenes of great peacefulness and activity, one would hardly dream that there were in his life history chapters of intense interest connecting him with the varied experiences of a whaling vessel on the deep, with military service in the lands of the Montezumas and with the mining excitement of early days in the golden west. Reminiscences of those times, however, enriched his conversation and added an intensely interesting element to it. To know Mr. CURTIS was to respect him, and his genuine worth was recognized by all who knew him in Monroe county. He died upon the old homestead farm, June 1, 1885, and was laid to rest in Brighton cemetery.

Monroe County, New York History

Biographical Sketches of Monroe County Residents

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