Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut

children: Eugene E., Etta V., Marietta V., Ed- ward T. and Clinton B., all yet at home except Etta v., who dietl when five months old. This wife was called from earth November 11, 1886, being killed by a passing train on a railroad crossing at Southport. Politically, Mr. Hall was a Democrat till the Civil war, since which time he has been an un- compromising Republican. Socially, he was at one time identified with the L O. O. F. at South- port, but when the lodge there was abandoned he retired from membership. Mr. Hall is a son of Alanson and Sophia (Ed- wards) Hall, respectable farming people, the for- mer of whom died in 1863, at the age of seventy- two years, the latter in 1862, when sixty-six years old. They had a family of eleven sons and four daughters, of whom are yet living the fol- lowing: Sheldon L. and Claudius B., both of Racine, Wis.; George A., in California; Julia G. (widow of M. Nicholls), in Bridgeport; Eliza (widow of Dwight Brinsmade), in Trumbull Cen- ter, Fairfield county; and Edward T. The par- ents were members of the Episcopal Church, and devout Christians, highly respected by all who knew them. HON. JAMES S. TAYLOR is one of Dan- bury's most distinguished citizens, his able service in various positions of public trust having won for him wide recognition. In business circles, also, he holds a prominent place as the inventor of the Taylor hat-felting, or sizing, machine, of the roller system, now a necessary part of the equipment of every well-directed hat factory in both the United States and foreign countries. Mr. Taylor's ancestral history is of more than ordinary interest. He is of the seventh genera- tion in direct descent from John Taylor, who emi- grated from England early in the seventeenth cen- tury, and settled first at Boston, where he mar- ried a widow with two daughters. In 1640 he moved to Windsor, Conn., where he engaged in business as a pewtersmith. In 1644 he served on a jury. His death occurred, in 1647, on board the ship "Phantom," while he was on a return voyage to England. His will, which was dated November 4, 1645, was recorded at Hartford in 1694. Of his two sons, the elder, John, born in 1641, located at North Hampton, Deerfield, Mass., "nd Thomas, born in 1643, became one of the first settlers at Danbury, Conn., passing his remaining years there; his death occurred in 1735. He married Rebecca Ketchum, and they had ten children, as follows: Deborah married Daniel Belts, of Norwalk; Thomas, born in 1668, '^■.Tt^l^^lH gm M^ ^p |H|. jft^ 9IrB ^b^ ^Kk- 05 WL V ' m il w r 4 COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 1G9 died in 1758, married Abigail Benedict; John, born ill 1673, died in 1742, married a Miss Betts; Joseph, born.in 1673, died in 1762, married Sarah (John and Joseph were twins); Daniel, born in 1676, died in 1770, married (first) Miss Bene- dict, and (second) a Miss Starr; Timothy, born in 1678, died in 1744, married a Miss Davis; Na- than is mentioned more fully below ; Rebecca mar- ried Daniel Benedict; Theophilus, born in 1687, died in 1777, married (first) a Miss Bushnell, and (second) Miss Sarah A. Gregory; and Eunice, married Benjamin Starr. Nathan Taylor, the next in the line of de- scent, was born at Norwaik in 1682, and when four years old accompanied his parents to Dan- bury, where he grew to manhood. He was mar- ried there to Miss Hannah Benedict, a member of another pioneer family of that locality, and they settled at what is now known as Bethel, building a stockade as a defense against the In- dians. A well now marks the site of this struc- ture. Like all of his brothers, Nathan Taylor lived to an advanced age, his death occurring in 1782. His children were Nathan, Mathew, James, Daniel, Mercy, Mindwell, Deborah, Rhoda, Hannah and Oliver. Mathew Taylor, our subject's great-grand- father, was born at the old home in Bethel, and after his marriage to Esther Waller settled in the center of the village of Bethel. He had ten children: Mathew, Abigail, Preserved, Daniel, Joshua, John, Noah, Hannah, Levi and Eleazor. Joshua Taylor, our subject's grandfather, was a native of Bethel District, where he followed agricultural pursuits during his active life. He enlisted in the Revolutionary army soon after the struggle for independence began, was at Ticon- deroga, and later re-enlisting he served until the close of the war. He was a Presbyterian in re- ligious faith, as was also his wife, Eunice Seeley, who was a daughter of Deacon James Seeley, and a native of Bethel. They had nine children, all but one of whom married and left families: Asael had ten children; Sally died early in life; Eunice lived to an advanced age (she left no children); Levi had seven children; Abel had one child; Joel is mentioned below; Clarissa had seven children; Clorinda had six; ind Esther, five. Joel Taylor, father of James S. Taylor, was born, in 1795, in Bethel Society, and was reared to farm life. He learned the hatter's trade, which he followed for the most part during his later life, and he was noted for his ability as an inventor, he having received Scott's premium, a gold medal, from the Philadelphia Society, 1827. As a citizen he gave attention to all the issues of the day, served as a soldier in the war of 181 2, and in his later years was an earnest supporter of the principles of the Republican party. In re- ligious faith he was a Universalist. He died at his home in Danbury in 1870, and his wife, whose maiden name was Linda Adams, passed away in the same year. She was a native of Redding, Conn., and a descendant of the Boston family of that name, her ancestors having come originally from England. Six children were born to this worthy couple: Harriet (deceased) was the wife of Reuben Taylor. Granville, who is a farmer at the old homestead, married Helen, daughter Dr. Sylvester Stevens. James S. is the third in order of birth. Nelson, who has been admitted to the Bar, resides upon a farm at Bethel, and is engaged in the hat industry and other business enterprises; he married Emeline, daughter of George Monroe. Adeline (deceased) married Francis H. Austin. Adelaide is the widow of Dr. J. A. Holton. To return now to the subject proper of this biography. He was born December 24, 1825, at Danbury, and received his education in the local schools and Danbury Academy. On completing his course of study he learned the hatter's trade, but preferring a mercantile life he embarked in that line with his brother Nelson at the age of twenty, opening a general store at Danbury. He continued this business until 1850, since when he has given his attention mainly to his hat-sizing machine, on which he secured patents in 1853 in this country and in Europe, and which has made his name familiar in every hat factory. He has devoted much time and thought to the perfection of his various innovations in the line of hat ma- chinery, has made numerous improvements on his original ideas, and his perfected machine is now considered the best of the kind on the mar- ket. Mr. Taylor has succeeded in obtaining patents at various times on valuable innovations, which have enabled him to command a large rev- enue from the royalties of one-half per cent, a hat from 1853 up to the present time on ma- chines having valuable patents, some of them terminating in 1905, thus giving him practically a monopoly in one class of machinery for about fifty years. Among the firms which use his ma- chinery are the New Milford Hat Co., at New Milford, Conn.; J. G. Wilson, of South Norwaik; J. Marshall, of Fall River, Mass.; Andrews & Durant, F. Smith & Son, Richmond Brothers, J. Baird & Co., Judd & Co., Judd & Dunning, Far- num & Fairchild, Edwin Short, Cole cS: Ambler, all of Bethel; and the following in Danbury: Holly, Beltaire & Co., Henry Crofut, John W. Green, T. Meath & Co., Davenport & Von Gal, William Burns, M. Delohery, C. Smith & Co., 170 COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. Mackenzie & Sons, T. C. Millard, Lee & Co., Beltaire, Lurch & Co., Higson & Collings, the Vinson Hat Co., McLachlan & Co., E. A. Mal- lor}' & Sons, and many others. Early in the sixties Mr. Taylor was associated with W. A. & A. M. White, E. Arthur Nichols and George Dickinson in the introduction of the Lyman Piatt machine for forming fur hats on the inside of the perforated cone. The machine as improved by Mr. Taylor went into general use, and he was prosecuted under claims for in- fringement of the Burr or Wells patents, but, after a long litigation prosecuted by the Henry Burr Company, the Taylor machines, as they were then known, were by the United States courts decided to be free from the alleged in- fringements. On Mr. Taylor, who had then some considerable experience in patent law, was placed the responsibility of prosecuting the de- fense to its successful termination, when the Taylor and Piatt patents were incorporated with the Burr patents at a cash value of twenty-five thousand dollars.