Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut

John (2), from whom the Mead family in this section trace their descent, had the following children: John, Joseph, Jonathan, Ebenezer (1), David, Benjamin, Nathaniel, Samuel, Hannah, Abigail and Mary Elizabeth. Ebenezer (i) reared a family of children, among whom was a son and namesake known to posterity as Ebenezer (2), who was born Octo- ber 25. 1692, and died May, 1775. He married Hannah Brown and had twelve children, as fol- lows: (i) Ebenezer, born October 8, 1718, died February 25, 1758; (2) Silas, born May 22, 1720, died October, 1816; (3) Abraham (i). born June 15, 1721, died in 1742; (4) Jonas, our subject's paternal grandfather, born December 25, 1725, died September 14, 1783; (5) Solomon (twin of Jonas), born December 25, 1725 (^date of death COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 247 not known); (6) Deliverance, born May 4, 172S, died May 3, 1785; (7) Amos, born November 22, 1730, died February 24, 1807; (8) Edmond, born 1732, died 1755; (9) Hannah, born in 173,5, died June 25, 1757; (lOj Jabez, born March i, 1737, died September 14, 1866; (ii)Jared, our subject's maternal grandfather, born December 15, 1738, died May, 1830; (12) Abraham (2), born December 14, 1724, died December 24, 1827. He was known as Capt. Potter Mead, ' and became the progenitor of the Belle Haven branch of the family. He was an officer in the Revolutionary army, and did gallant service at the battle of White Plains. The place where Capt. Abraham Mead lived was at Indian Har- bor, east of what is now called Indian Field, where formerly vessels were built and fitted out, and had quite a trade with the West Indies. At that time bread was baked in what was called brick ovens, which would contain loaves enough to last a week for a large family; a fire would be made in the oven, and when the oven was hot enough to bake the bread, the coals and ashes would be taken out and the dough for the bread made in the shape of loaves and put into the oven with a long-handled shovel, and left a sufficient time to bake. Then what was called a lid was placed where the loaves were put in, to keep the heat from escaping. The oven faced the street, "out of doors," as they say, and they had a little dog they called " Cider," which some cruel fisherman, who happened to be passing just at the time the oven was ready for baking the bread, threw into the oven (having taken down the lid), and the poor animal was baked with the bread; so they said they had "bread and cider." Jonas Mead, the grandfather of our subject, was a lifelong resident of Indian Field, in the town of Greenwich, where he owned an extensive farm, and was prominent in the various activities of his time. He was especially interested in the support of the Congregational Church, in which he held the office of deacon for many years. By his second wife, Sarah (Howe), he had three sons who lived to adult age, viz. : Noah, Mark and Jonas. Their mother died when Jonas (2) was about ten months old, and their father when he was three years old. Being consequently left minors, the three children were placed under the guardianship of their uncle, Capt. Potter Mead, of Greenwich. Mark, one of the three brothers, chose to receive an education for the ministry instead of taking his share in his father's home- stead, which was accordingly assigned to the other brothers. Jonas Mead (2), our subject's father, known far and near in later life as " Old Deacon Jonas," was born at the old homestead in Indian Field April 13, 1784, and in 1820 removed from that place to another farm, at Byram Shore, in the extreme southwestern portion of the township. The locality was then in an almost primitive con- dition, but has since become quite thickl)' settled, and some years before his death he sold seven- teen acres of land, upon which the first buildings in the present village of East Port (by some per- sons now called New Lebanon) were erected. He was a man of firm will and strong convic- tions, Heing immovable as to any course which he thought right, and in his time he was an ear- nest champion of various reform movements. He was one of the early promoters of what was known as the "new temperance pledge." He was an ardent Liberty-party man at first, after- ward a Free-soiler and Republican, and in 1840 he was one of the six men in his town who voted for James G. Birney, the others being his son, Mark Mead, Nehemiah Howe, Allen Howe, Gilbert Close and David Banks. As a citizen he was much esteemed, and he was a devout mem- ber of the Congregational Church (of which he was deacon) at Greenwich from 1828 to the time of his death, which occurred August 2, 1871, at the old homestead. He married (first) Miss Hannah Hibbard, and (second) Miss Hannah Mead, his cousin, who was born May 25, 1788, and died January 27, 1874, her remains being interred beside those of their son in the Con- gregational cemetery at Greenwich. She was a daughter of Jared Mead, and granddaughter of Ebenezer Mead (2). By the first marriage there were three children: Sarah (who died young), Charles and Hannah. Of these, Charles died January 10, 1895, at his home in Indian Field, and Hannah, who became the wife of Benjamin Mead, of the town of Rye, N. Y., died October 10, 1895. There were three children by the second union: Mark (deceased), formerly a resident of Byram; Sarah, who died at the age of nine years; and Milo, our subject, who is men- tioned more fully farther on. Abraham Mead (brother of Jonas Mead (i), grandfather of Milo Mead), was the only man in this section who understood the manufacturing and glazing of stoneware, and it is said that he learned from the Dutch the secret of glazing, adding salt in the burning of the kiln. This Abraham Mead bought one hundred and fifty acres of land called Horseneck Field, for two thousand dollars, which he paid all in silver dol- lars, almost as much as he could carry in his overcoat pockets. He had to keep his money over night, and fearing robbers he collected clubs, axes and other weapons, for protection against '■ .i V- " 3 '■t...v>' ' ' r! iiri. '•.. ■ .;'' ■■;!' ,'• '■.uy^':--^) lj.,r. .Li/:(Jni}i fir.fi:.,ii ' o i i, ''. ''( ..,(r' ,f)-HVc't!'j--. y ji. ,1 ' : I'i ■ .' t '■ ■ 111 /w , li i'.'.'i.'r! : no. ;,iijvi- i.',jbi-':<M :-ni i) .i-:r,M , t . 248 COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. possible intruders, at the house at Belle Haven formerly occupied by Oliver Mead, now occupied by Oliver D. Mead, farther south across what is called Byram Cove of Belle Haven, where our subject's father, mother and his aunt Alma re- sided, and where they died. Abraham Mead bought the farm which is now owned by Oliver D. Afeatl, for his two sons, Zopher and Isaac; Zopher Mead was the father of Oliver Mead, from whom the property was inherited by Oliver D. M'ead, and Isaac was the father of Augustus, the father of the present Augustus and Nelson B. Mead. In 1 85 I William P. Abendroth, William Pro- vost and a William Jones bought seventeen acres of Jonas Mead, and laid out a village opposite Port Chester. They also built a draw-bridge in Connecticut nearly opposite the Aberdroth foun- dry, and later another bridge farther north nearly at the head of navigation, but without a draw, to avoid e.xpense. At the death of Deacon Jonas Mead, that part of his farm which adjoined the village known as East Port Chester was inherited by his son Milo, who e.xtended streets farther to the east, and called the place New Lebanon. Milo Mead, the subject proper of these lines, has always resided at the old farm house, at Byram Shore, and at his father's death he and his brother Mark inherited the estate. He was extensively engaged in farming, but of late years the rapid development of the locality has made his land valuable for building purposes, and he has laid out and sold many lots at large prices. With his good judgment he has been quick to en- courage local improvements, and he has made liberal expenditures of money from his own pocket, especially in the building up of the village of New Lebanon, where he has laid out numerous roads and assisted in various public enterprises. He is a man of intelligence, and as he is fond of reading, and possesses an excellent memory, his conversation is both interesting and instructive. His education was largely self-acquired, as in his youth the schools of the locality wer^ of a crude sort. The old Byram school house, 15x1 5, which was moved to where William Newman formerly lived, and where Abraham Slater now lives, was occupied as a corn crib a number of years, and at the most liberal estimate could not have cost $300 for labor and materials, while the box stove, the uncomfortable wooden benches, and the other features of the place were in sharp contrast with the furnishings of the modern school. Our subject's first teacher was a Mr. McFunn, and his other instructors in the old school were William Dusenberry and John Tyler. The methods of teaching were as primitive as the building, but in spite of that the scholars, who usually numbered forty, learned the elements of reading, writing (with quill pens made for the scholars by the teacher) and arithmetic, and laid a good foun- dation for further progress. When thirteen years old Mr. Mead began attending the academy at Greenwich during the winter, walking to and fro every school day, and while there he enjoyed the able instruction of Jeremiah Spencer and Prof. Philander Button. While,Arr. Mead has never united with any religious society, he attended the Congregational Church regularly in his younger days, and has always contributed generously to its support and to the work of other denominations. For many years he served as assistant librarian of the Sec- ond Congregational Church at Greenwich. In politics he is a stanch Republican, and at one time he held the office of tax collector; but he does not care for official positions, preferring a quiet life, devoted to his own business and to the companionship of his books. It is the wish of all who know him that he may keep up the family record for longevity, the average age being eighty-five 3'ears.