Biographical Sketches of Monroe County Residents

H

Reuben HILLS

pages 676-677

Among the men who were at one time active factors in the business life of Rochester but who have been called to their final rest is Reuben HILLS, who gained a goodly measure of success in the dairy business. He was born on St. Paul street, in Rochester, in 1842, and was a son of Reuben Hills, who was likewise a native of the Empire state and came to Rochester at an early day. He was first employed in the Whitney mill and later turned his attention to the dairy business, which he followed throughout the remainder of his life. His home was on Woodbury street and there he passed away. For a number of years he was a member of the Central church of Rochester. He married Jane OVATT and they had five children who reached adult age.

Reuben HILLS of this review pursued his education in public school No. 14, in Rochester, and as he advanced in years he became more and more actively associated with his father in the dairy business. At first they owned a number of cows but later Mr. HILLS conducted a wholesale milk business. At one time the father owned all of the property bordering on one side of Woodbury street. Father and son continued in the dairy business together until the formers death, after which Mr. HILLS of this review was alone in the conduct of the enterprise. He won a gratifying measure of success in this way and he also owned a half interest in the ROCHESTER LAUNDRY, which business is now in possession of his widow.

In 1864 Mr. HILLS was married to Miss Sarah RIELLY who came to Rochester when very young, and was a daughter of William RIELLY, who was in the milling business, and died in this city about 1850. He had six children, of whom two are living : Mrs. HILLS and Mrs. SOUTHARD, the latter living on Arlington street, Rochester. Unto Mr. and Mrs. HILLS were born four children, but only one survives-Edwin W., who is in the advertising business as a member of the firm of MYERS & HILLS, and now resides in Brighton, this county. Politically Mr. Hills was a republican. He died at his home in Rochester, February 14, 1898, respected by all who knew him, for, though his life was quietly passed he was ever found reliable and trustworthy in the business world and those who knew him gave him their warm regard. His widow is a member of the Brick church in Rochester and resides at No. 183 Alexander street, where Mr. HILLS erected a nice residence in 1891.

Daniel HOLMES

page 535

Daniel HOLMES, now practically living retired, was the pioneer lawyer of Brockport and for many years a prominent attorney of the Monroe county bar. He is a native of West Bloomfield, Ontario county, New York, born September 11, 1828, and has therefore reached the seventy-ninth milestone on life's journey. His parents were Daniel and Susan (HALE-STUART) HOLMES, natives of Massachusetts, who, removing westward about 1812, settled in Ontario county, New York, where they cast their lot with those who were reclaiming a frontier district for agricultural uses. The father served his country as a soldier in the war of 1812 and participated in the battle of Buffalo. The maternal ancestry of Mr. HOLMES was represented in the Revolutionary war, the grandfather, Thomas HALE, being a drummer boy at the battle of Bunker Hill.

Daniel HOLMES was reared at Aliens Hill, New York, his father being proprietor of a hotel at that place for a number of years. After mastering the elementary branches of learning he prepared for college at the Brockport Collegiate Institute and received his university training at Yale, which he entered in 1846. He is numbered among the alumni of 1848, having been graduated with the degree of bachelor of arts. Subsequently, in 1853, he received from the University of Rochester the degree of master of arts, and in the fall of the same year was admitted to the bar, for which he had previously prepared. He immediately began the practice of his profession in Brockport, where he has resided continuously since, having been in practice here for more than a half century. He was the pioneer lawyer of the town and his ability enabled him always to maintain a place in the foremost ranks of its legal fraternity. In recent years, however, he has retired from active practice to enjoy well-earned ease.

In early manhood Daniel HOLMES was united in marriage to Miss Mary J. HAWES, of Brookfield, Massachusetts, of whom extended mention is made below. Theirs was an ideal relation, their mutual love and confidence increasing year by year as they met together the joys and sorrows, the adversity and prosperity, the disappointments and the pleasures which checker the careers of all. Closer grew their friendship as time went by, the desire of each being always for the best interests and happiness of the other, but on the 6th of October, 1907, they were separated through the death of Mrs. HOLMES.

Mr. HOLMES still continues to reside in Brockport, where for many years he has figured prominently in community affairs. For thirty years he served as justice of the peace of Brockport, his decisions being strictly fair and impartial, so that he "won golden opinions from all sorts of people." He was also clerk of the village for twenty years and in community affairs was actively and helpfully interested, and is secretary and treasurer of the State Normal School at Brockport.

Mr. HOLMES is a member of the Masonic fraternity, belonging to Monroe lodge, No. 173, A. F. & A. M., of which he is a past master. He also belongs to Daniel HOLMES chapter, No. 294, R. A. M., and to Monroe commandery, No. 12, K. T., of Rochester. He is senior warden of St. Luke's church at Brockport. He is also a member of the Empire State chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution and a member of the New York State Bar Association. He is one of the oldest attorneys of Monroe county, and while his professional career gained him rank with the leading lawyers of Brockport he has also been well known because of his activity in connection with the interests bearing upon the general welfare of society and the upbuilding and improvement of the community.

Mary J. HOLMES

pages 535-536

With one exception the works of no American novelist have been so widely read as those of Mrs. Mary J. HOLMES, and Brockport was proud to number her among its citizens; but while her name was a household word throughout the length and breadth of this land, in her home town she was loved for personal traits of character that endeared her to all with whom she came in contact.

She was the wife of Daniel HOLMES, whose sketch is given above. In her maidenhood she was Miss Mary J. HAWES, of Brookfield, Massachusetts, a daughter of Preston HAWES, a man of rare mentality, while from her mother she inherited a love of poetry and of fine arts. When but three years of age she began to attend school, studied grammar at the age of six, and began teaching school when but thirteen years old. Her first article was published when she was only fifteen years old. Very early in life she manifested rare ability for story telling, entertaining her young companions with tales of her own invention. Her precocity has been borne out by the work of her later years, for there is perhaps no American author whose works are more widely read than those of Mrs. Mary J. HOLMES.

Over two million copies of her books have been published and the demand for all of them continues unabated. The annual sale amounts to almost a hundred thousand copies, and no better proof of their merit and popularity could be given. A list of her published works includes the following: Tempest and Sunshine, English Orphans, Homestead on Hillside, Lena Rivers, Meadow Brook, Dora Deane, Cousin Maude, Marian Grey, Darkness and Daylight, Hugh Worthington, Cameron Pride. Rose Mather, Ethelyn's Mistake, Millbank, Edna Browning, West Lawn, Edith Lyle, Mildred, Daisy Thornton, Forrest House, Chateau D'or, Madeline, Queenie Hetherton, Christmas Stories, Bessie's Fortune, Gretchen, Marguerite, Dr. Hathern's Daughters, Mrs. Hallam's Companion, Paul Ralston, The Tracy Diamonds, The Cromptons, The Merivale Banks, Rena's Experiment, and The Abandoned Farm. As an author she had a most happy career, with none of the trials which fall to the lot of so many writers, and her publishers have always been her friends. G. W. CARLTON and later Dillingham had charge of the sale of her books. Her first novel, Tempest and Sunshine, was published in 1854, and since that time her writings have been constantly on the market. With the possible exception of Mrs. STOWE, no American woman has reaped so large profits from her copyrights, some of her books having attained a sale of fifty thousand copies.

In commenting on this, the Brockport Republic said: "Her success as an author is said by some to be the result of her power of description; others assert it was her naturalness, her clear, concise English and the faculty to hold the reader's sympathy from the beginning to the end; others attribute it to the fact that there was nothing in her works but what was pure and elevating. We who know her best, feel that all this has made her the successful writer that she was."

Mrs. HOLMES was deeply interested in benevolent work in Brockport and in those organizations which promote culture, charity and patriotism. She was president of the Brockport Union Charitable Society and vice regent of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She was indefatigable in the founding and sustaining of a free reading room and did everything in her power to promote knowledge and culture among the young people, of whom she was particularly fond. She often talked to them concerning art and foreign travel. on which subjects she was well versed, she and her husband having made various trips abroad, visiting the noted art centers of the old world. As a hostess she was charmingly gracious and hospitable, having the ready tact that enabled her to make all guests feel at home. Her benevolence was also one of her strongly marked characteristics. In early life she made it her plan to give one-tenth of her income to charity and this she did ever afterward. St. Luke's Episcopal church, of which she was a member, is greatly indebted to her for its prosperous condition. Her charitable work, however, was done quietly, and few people knew the great amount of good she did. She cared not for public recognition of her benevolence, content in the consciousness of having aided a fellow traveler on life's journey. While she had thousands of admirers throughout the country, in her home town where she was best known she was much loved by the people among whom her daily life was passed.

The summer of 1907 was spent by Mr. and Mrs. HOLMES at Oak Bluffs, Martha's Vineyard, and while on the return trip Mrs. HOLMES became ill. After improving to a slight degree she insisted on continuing the journey, but lived for only a brief period after she reached Brockport, passing away on the 6th of October, 1907.. Perhaps no better testimonial of the regard in which she was held in Brockport can be given than by quoting from a local paper, which said :

"During the many years of Mrs. HOLMES' residence in Brockport her influence for good has been constant and unvarying, and every enterprise that made for the welfare of the village received her most hearty sanction and support. With charity toward all, with malice toward none, she moved among us the very embodiment of precious kindness. And so, in thousands of ways, her death will prove an inestimable loss to this community, and today nearly every household is shadowed by a personal grief. `She went to her death wearing the white rose of a blameless life.' The world is the poorer for her going."

Colonel Caleb HOPKINS

pages 503-504

Colonel Caleb HOPKINS, whose life history forms an integral factor in the annals of Monroe county, was connected with many events which shaped the policy and molded the destiny of this part of the state. He was born in 1770 and died January 14, 1818, at the age of forty-seven years, three years before the county of Monroe was organized. He was a son of James HOPKINS and a grandson of Ebenezer HOPKINS who removed from Connecticut to Pittsford, Vermont. Both the father and grandfather were farmers. James HOPKINS had two sons, Caleb and James, and two daughters: Rhoda, the wife of Elisha HOPKINS, JR., and Susanna, the wife of Elijah KIRKHAM.

Colonel HOPKINS of this review was married, probably in 1795, to Dorothy MABEE, a daughter of Jacobus MABEE, who came to western New York about 1791. Her death occurred August 20, 1847, when she had reached the advanced age of seventy-nine years. Both she and her husband lie buried in the cemetery a mile south of the village of Pittsford and beside them are the remains of three children: Clarissa, James and Marvin.

The life history of Colonel HOPKINS, covering a period of forty-seven years, was in many respects a notable one. In 1791 he started from Pittsford, Rutland county, Vermont, for western New York in company with General Jonathan FASSETT, and on reaching the Mohawk valley they were joined by Jacobus MABEE. They settled in the wilderness of what was Ontario county. General FASSETT caused a plot to be surveyed for a village nearly opposite Tryonstown on Irondequoit creek but the village never materialized and, becoming disappointed and discouraged, he returned to Vermont, leaving Colonel HOPKINS in charge of his extensive land purchase.

The latter was only twenty-one years of age when he settled in this region. He was made of the stern stuff demanded of the pioneers and the obstacles to be met in a new country only made him more persistent. In 1791 he built the first log dwelling in the present town of Penfield. It was a large substantial structure, containing several rooms, and later many friends and strangers were there entertained. He also cleared and sowed the first land which was cultivated in the town. Noting that the population was increasing much faster in the vicinity of Stonetown than in his own neighborhood, Colonel HOPKINS moved to a point near there about the year 1800 and erected a house about a half a mile south of the present village of Pittsford. He became one of the prominent and active business men of the locality and for several years was engaged in mercantile pursuits in the village with Dr. A.G. SMITH, Nathan NYE and John ACER, while at the same time he was interested in milling and in supervising his several farms. In 1809 he was elected supervisor of the town of Boyle and in the same year was appointed by President MADISON United States collector of customs for the port of Genesee, becoming the second incumbent in the office. He was reappointed at the end of four years and served until May, 1817. He also held the office of inspector of customs during the same time and his principal deputy was Jonathan CHILD, afterward the first mayor of Rochester. During two years of the time he was United States collector he acted by appointment of Governor TOMPKINS as bridge commissioner for Ontario county, with Zacheus COLBY of Genesee county in building the first bridge across the Genesee river below Avon.

While in office Caleb HOPKINS did not confine his attention entirely to civil pursuits. When the war of 1812 was declared he was prompt to serve his country in the field and became an active and efficient officer on the Niagara frontier. Governor George CLINTON had commissioned him as a lieutenant of the militia in 1804 and Governor Morgan LEWIS had made him major in 1807. His further promotions were to lieutenant colonel in 1812 and colonel in 1813, both of these being signed by Governor TOMPKINS. He was in several battles and skirmishes and once received a wound in the shoulder. In one emergency General Peter B. PORTER placed him in command of a band of Indian warriors and evidence is not lacking that he handled them skilfully [sic]. He received letters of acknowledgement from General PORTER and when he resigned his commission Governor TOMPKINS wrote him a letter expressing deep regret that such a course was necessary and also "tendering an acknowledgement of his approbation and gratitude." On the 22d day of March, 1816, Governor TOMPKINS had issued to Colonel HOPKINS a commission as brigadier general by brevet for gallant service during the war. In 1814 the town of Smallwood was divided into Brighton and Pittsford, the latter being named by Colonel HOPKINS in honor of his birthplace in Vermont. About the time the war closed in 1815 he bought the present large homestead farm in the southwestern part of the town of Pittsford and built the house now owned and occupied by his grandson, Jared W. HOPKINS, and formerly by his son, Marvin HOPKINS. After the war he was awarded several contracts for carrying the United States mail in western New York and Ohio. In 1815 he was employed for some time with his friend, Colonel Philetus SWIFT, of Phelps, as commissioner for making alterations in the state road, now known as the Ridge road.

In 1816 Colonel HOPKINS interested himself in the GENESEE MANUFACUTURING COMPANY, which was the first manufacturing company in Rochesterville. He was a member of the general assembly of New York in 1816 and 1817 and served upon the committee in military affairs. There is in possession of his grandson a fine oil painting of Colonel HOPKINS, painted when he was a member of the legislature. It shows an intellectual and attractive face, indicative of strong character, not dissimilar to those of some of his eminent ancestors. He was a lineal descendant of John HOPKINS, who came from England and settled in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1643 and two years later moved to Hartford, Connecticut. The life of Caleb HOPKINS was not long, but a man of his intelligence, enterprise and public spirit could not fail to leave an impress on the age in which he lived and the record left by him in civil and military affairs is a source of just pride to his descendants.

Jared W. HOPKINS

pages 481-482

Jared W. HOPKINS, engaged in farming and the dairy business, is the owner of a well improved farm of one hundred and seventy-two acres comprised in the home place and he likewise owns an additional tract of one hundred acres, which he leases. His land is located near Pittsford, which is his post office address. He was born on a farm near this city, August 11, 1857, and comes of English ancestry, the family having been established in America by John HOPKINS, who came in 1634 from Coventry, England, and settled in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Caleb HOPKINS, the paternal grandfather of our subject, was an early settler of Monroe county and was colonel of the Fifty-second Regiment of militia, where he achieved distinction as a brave and gallant soldier. Marvin HOPKINS, the father, was born October 26, 1803, and in 1830 he was united in marriage to Miss Jane PHELPS, who was born in Pittsford, November 13, 1813, and died November 22 1898, having for a long period survived her husband, who passed away December 19, 1867. As a supporter of democracy he was prominent in its local ranks and by his fellow townsmen he was frequently called to fill positions of public trust and honor, serving at various times as supervisor. In the family of Marvin and Jane (PHELPS) HOPKINS were eight children, of whom seven still survive: James, a resident of Cedarhurst, New York; Clarissa M. who first wedded Lyman M. BARKER, and after his death became the wife of Orlando AUSTIN, of Williamson; Dorothy P., the wife of Charles W. ROGERS, of Pittsford; Robert M., a resident of Lockport; George; Chauncey I., of Ohio; and Jared W., of this review. The third member of the family, Mary, died in infancy.

Jared W. HOPKINS, the youngest member of his father's family, was reared in much the usual manner of farm lads, assisting in the operation of the homestead property during the period of his boyhood and youth, while his education was acquired in the Pittsford and Lima schools. After completing his education he assumed the management of the home farm, being then a youth of eighteen years, and agricultural pursuits have continued to be his occupation to the present time. There is comprised in the home place a tract of one hundred and seventy-two acres and he has added many improvements thereto in the way of good and substantial outbuildings, including a silo. In connection with his agricultural interests he likewise conducts a dairy business, keeping on hand twenty-five cows, Mr. HOPKINS is a practical and progressive man in his labors and keeps everything about his place in good condition. He has set out an orchard on his place comprising three hundred apple trees. In addition to the home property he also owns a tract of one hundred acres, which he rents, and in 1906, in company with Mr. SCHOEN he purchased of Julian GEAR one hundred and seventy-two acres of land, which they expect to lay out in town lots. He is also associated with others in the MONROE ROAD BUILDING COMPANY, the company having been organized for the purpose of building state roads, etc., his partners in the business being Charles G. SCHOEN and A. J. ROCKWOOD.

On the 1st of February, 1893, Mr. HOPKINS was united in marriage to Miss Lettie May NYE, who was born in Pittsford, a daughter of Alvin E. NYE, an early settler of this locality, being engaged in the farming and nursery business. The home of Mr. and Mrs. HOPKINS has been blessed with four children, Irving NYE, Phelps A., Delora and Jane E., aged respectively twelve, nine, six and five years.

Mr. HOPKINS formerly allied himself with the democratic party but for the past eight years has supported the men and measures of the republican party. For five years he served as assessor and in the fall of 1903 was elected supervisor. The family are communicants of the Presbyterian church. Monroe county numbers him among her most substantial and honored citizens, for his career has ever been characterized by high and manly principles which have commanded the respect of all with whom he is associated whether in business, public or social life.

John Hampden HOPKINS

page 1014

John Hampden HOPKINS, lawyer of Rochester, was born at Auburn, New York, June 20, 1852, a son of Samuel M HOPKINS, D. D., and Mary J. H. HOPKINS. Dr. HOPKINS was, for over fifty years, professor of church history in the Auburn (New York) Theological Seminary. He died in 1901 and his wife in 1884. Samuel M. HOPKINS, grandfather of John Hampden HOPKINS, died in 1837. He was a distinguished lawyer and a man of highest character, who practised his profession for some years at Albany, New York, but retired from practice several years before his death. He edited one volume of reports of the court of chancery of this state, which bears his name and which is considered one of the best specimens of law reporting.

John H. HOPKINS was graduated from Hamilton College in 1872 and from the Albany Law School in 1875. He came to Rochester in 1877 and has here practiced his profession to the present time. He is a member of the New York and Rochester Bar Associations. In his political views Mr. HOPKINS is a democrat. He is president of the Genesee Whist Club, president of the Children's Aid Society and attends the Third Presbyterian church. On the 10th of November, 1887, he married Martha P. PORTER, daughter of Samuel D. PORTER, of Rochester, who was one of the leaders in the anti-slavery movement in this section. Mr. and Mrs. HOPKINS now have a daughter sixteen years of age.

James L. HOTCHKISS

page 687

On the roll of officials in Monroe county appears the name of James L. HOTCHKISS, who is now serving as county clerk. One of the native sons of the Empire state, his birth occurred in Naples, Ontario county, May 1, 1857, his parents being Levi and Anna (DWIGHT) HOTCHKISS. The father was a merchant in his early days and later was insurance adjuster. He held several minor offices in early life and in 1868 he removed to Rochester to spend his remaining days his death occurring in 1885. His widow still survives him and is yet a resident of Rochester.

James L. HOTCHKISS was educated in the public schools, the Rochester Free Academy and the University of Rochester, in which he completed the scientific course, being graduated in 1879. He then studied law with George and Thomas RAINES and was admitted to the bar in the spring of 1883. He continued with RAINES BROTHERS for a few years and then began the practice of law on his own account, remaining an active member of the bar until 1903, when he was elected to his present office on the republican ticket and took charge of the same in January, 1904. He served so capably that he was re-elected in the fall of 1905, so that he is the present incumbent. He has long been recognized as a prominent worker in republican ranks and is now chairman of the republican general committee of Monroe county, acting in that capacity since January, 1901. Mr. HOTCHKISS has taken a very active interest in politics, both local and national, since 1900, and was a delegate to the national convention at Chicago in 1904, while in 1902, 1904, and 1906 he was a delegate to the state conventions of New York. Although he entered upon active political work only seven years ago he has in this time become one of the best known party leaders in the state and has done much in late years to shape the republican policy and to promote the interests of the party.

On the 28th of February, 1907, Mr. HOTCHKISS was married to Leah LEACH, a daughter of William J. LEACH. He is well known socially and in club life, being now a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon, a Greek letter fraternity, also of the Rochester Yacht Club, the Rochester Club, the Oak Hill Country Club, the Genesee Valley Golf Club, the Rochester Auto Club and the Society of the Genesee. He likewise belongs to the Historical Society and to the bar associations of the county and the state. He has long been greatly interested in horses and is a member and officer of several driving clubs. He takes an active interest in all athletic and manly outdoor sports and in this way finds needed rest and recreation from the cares of official and professional life. He still retains his law office as a partner of Andrew E. TUCK, but his time and energies are naturally largely occupied by his duties as county clerk.