through Barnabas. Timothy, Enoch, Alexis, Darius
and Charles A. Baldwin.
(II) Barnabas Baldwin, son of Richard, born
in 1665, in Milford, married (second) Abigail. He
'434
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
was one of the grantees to the charter of Derby,
and in 1738 was one of the fifteen inhabitants of
Milford, who, with others of Xew Haven, incor-
porated to make the Parish of Amity. He served
as a selectman of Milford.
(HI) Timothy Baldwin, son of Barnabas, born
in 1695, in Milford, married (first) in 1719, Zur-
nah Johnson, of Derbv, and lived in that town or
W'oodbridge (his land was in both towns). His
second wife bore the name of Mabel. He joined
in the formation of the church at Amity. His
death occurred in 1766.
(IV) Enoch Baldwin, son of Timothy, born in
Derby, in 1736, likely to the second marriage, con-
tinued to live in that town.
(V) Alexis Baldwin, son of Enoch, born in
1778, in Derby, married Comfort Baldwin, and
lived in Woodbridge, Conn. He died in 1821 and
his widow in 1857.
(\'I) Darius Baldwin, son of Alexis, born in
1804, in Woodbridge, was a blacksmith in Orange,
thence removed to Xew Haven where he was resid-
ing in 1875. He married Thirza, daughter of Amos
Dorman, of Oxford, and wife Hannah Baldwin.
(\TI) Charles A. Baldwin, son of Darius, born
Jan. 28. 1832, in Orange, Conn., married Dec. 3,
1863, Hannah Pitt Smith, of Lima, Delaware Co.,
Pa., and to them were born children as follows :
Charlena H., born in 1865: William Pitt, born in
1867; Mary E., born in 1870; and Sherman H.,
born in 1873.
Dr. William Pitt Baldwin, our subject proper,
received his education in the schools of Xew Ha-
ven, attending the Dwight public school and the
Hillhouse High School. He then entered Yale
College, and was graduated from the academic de-
partment in 1888, and from the Yale Medical School
in 1890. In 1891 he was at the Xew York Homeo-
pathic Medical College and Hospital. After a term
of service in Ward's Island Hospital, Xew York,
in 1892 he became assistant to Dr. L. P. Jones, of
Greenwich, Conn. The winter of 1893-94 he passed
in study abroad in the University of Vienna. Re-
turning to this country he settled in the practice of
medicine in Xew Haven in the fall of 1894, which
year he became junior surgeon at Grace Hospital,
and is now associate senior surgeon. Since 1895
he has been sanitary officer and medical director of
the Connecticut Masonic Home, Wallingford.
Dr. Bald^vin is a member of Wooster Lodge.
No. 19, F. & A. M., and the Royal Arcanum; of
the Young Men's Republican Club and the Xew
Haven Republican League, now called Union
League. He has alwavs been interested in public
affairs, and in i8(>8-99 'i^ represented the First
ward in the council, and in 1899-01 on the board
of aldermen. I'or two vears he has been a member
of the Park board. Through his active work in
Masonic affairs he has been made a director of the
Masonic Mutual Benefit Association.
On Oct. ID, 1895, Dr. Baldwin was married to
Gertrude Louise Lockwood, of Riverside, Conn.,
who died July 12, 1896.
R. BURTOX LEETE, a brother of Richard
M. and Roger C. Lcete, whose sketches, found
elsewhere, contain a full family history, was born
June 22, 1843, on the homestead farm, and was
educated at the district school and in Guilford
Academy. Since the death of his father he has
had charge of the paternal estate. Like his broth-
ers, he is of a genial and winning disiwsition, quiet
and undemonstrative, but of a warm-hearted and
friendly spirit. He works hard, and loves his home.
In politics he is a Democrat, but has never had as-
pirations for political honors.
Ezra S. Bishop, grandfather of the Leete broth-
ers, was born in Guilford, where he received a good
common-school education. He was a shoemaker,
and learned his trade of a Mr. I-'risbie, and followed
the same during the winter season in the Southern
States. He was a shoemaker all his life, and died
at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Rufus X. Leete,
who cared for him tenderly and devotedlv during
his old age. He was buried in the West Cemetery.
In ]X)litics he was a Democrat. Although a good
man, he took little active interest in church mat-
ters. Mrs. Leete, his daughter, and mother of R.
Burton, is still living, and is the center of a large
circle of friends. She is highly regarded, and is
still active in every good work which commands
the interest and attention of her kind heart.
GEORGE P. MERWIX. The ancestors of
George P. Merwin, the successful and well-known
contractor and builder, of Xew Haven, came to
America froni Wales, and when the great-grand-
father, John Merwin, came to Connecticut, he lo-
cated at Milford. Here he engaged in agricultural
pursuits, and his son, Samuel ^lerwin, following
his father's example, farmed also, and died, upon
the same land, at the age of sixty-two. His chil-
dren were named Charles, Susan, Caroline, John,
Dorcas, Homer, and Orange.
Charles C. Merwin, the father of George P.,
was born in Milford, and followed farming all his
life on the old homestead. He married Amelia C.
Piatt, who was born on Pond Point, and reared the
following children : George E. ; Mary, deceased ;
William, of Xew Haven ; John \\'., located on the
farm ; Caroline, who married John R. Johnson ;
Charles H., who resides with aur subject ; and
Samuel, deceased. Th.e beloved mother, who was
a devoted member of the Congregational Church,
died at the age of seventy.
George P. Merwin was born in Milford, Conn.,
Oct. 16, 1828, and spent his early life on the farm,
nacanwhile speculating upon more ambitious pro-
jects beyond the boundaries of the old home. .At
the age of eighteen he went to Xew Haven and
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
1435
learned tlie carpenter trade, of Richard F. Mer-
win, and followed it as a journeyinan for several
years. Afterward, with John H. Bristol and Her-
man Xettlcson, he formed a partnership in build-
ing and contracting, but the latter withdrew, and
several years later Mr. Merwin bought out Mr.
Bristol's interest, and then associated himself with
William R. Hubbell. For thirty-eight years this
firm was one of the strongest in New Haven, and
not only secured some of the largest contracts in the
town, laut gave universal satisfaction. After the
tleath of Mr. Hubbell, Mr. Merwin continued alone
until 1896, and then took into partnership his two
capable sons, Charles F. and George W. The firm
carries on a general contracting and jobbing busi-
ness, making a specialty of residences and fine build-
ings. Kent Hall is but one of the numerous testi-
monials to their abilit\-. Mr. Merwin is one of the
oldest in his line in Xew Haven, his first building
having been completed in 1852. He has every ap-
])!iance and convenience for his work, and his own
mill makes all his mouldings and decorations,
sashes, doors and blinds. At times, when five or
six houses are in course of construction at once, as
many as thirty men are ke])t employed.
In 1S56 Mr. Merwin married Laura S. Whit-
ing, in Colebrook, Conn., and of this union were
born two sons, Charles T. and George W., who are
with their father in business, and a daughter, Grace
Lily. In politics, Mr. Merwin has been an active
Republican, and for two years was a member of the
council. The year that the city authorities changed
the fire department from hand to steam, Mr. Mer-
win was on tile fire department committee and was
instrumental in having the new engine bought from
the Amoskeag Engine Co. Later, he was made
foreman of the committee, and' one year served on
the ward committee, at the time of the election of
President Lincoln.
Socially, Air. Merwin is connected with the Ma-
sonic fraternity, Hiram Lodge, F. & A. M., and in
the I. O. O. F. Relief Lodge, he has been a trustee
many >ears. His eldest son is a Royal Arch Ma-
son, and Ixjth are highly valued in this connection.
The youngest son of Mr. Merwin is possessed! of
great musical talent and is also a skilled pottery
decorator. Since the Humphrey Street Church was
a mission, Mr. Merwin has worked earnestly for
its growth, and was one of the most helpful of the
committee to build a new church. As one of its
supporters of the church he has been very liberal,
and has held almost all of its offices. In New Ha-
ven, Mr. Merwin is held in high esteem, and his
business standing is of the very best.
JOSEril SCHAVAXDER, now living retired
in Aleriden, is one of the most respected German
residents of that city, with which he has been iden-
tifiedi since 1874.
Mr. Schwander was born March 14, 1832, in
Seckenheim, Baden, Germany, son of Urban
Schwander, also a native of Baden, who passed his
entire life there. He followed farming for a time,
and later purchasing a mill was engaged in flour-
milling for the remainder of his life. He died in
1854, his death being caused by a fall, while pick-
ing fruit from a jjear tree. He was buried at his
native place. Urban Schwander married Monica
Apner, who was also born in Baden, where she
died, and they had a family of six children : Mary,
who died young ; Cunigunda, now deceased ; Fred-
erick, who remained in Germany ; Joseph, our sub-
ject; Alexander, who located in Chicago; and Ben-
edict, who also resides in the West. The parents
were both members of the Catholic Church.
Joseph Schwander received a good practical ed-
ucation in the public schools of his birthplace,
where he remained with his parents untd he
reached the age of eighteen years, learning the
trade of miller and working in the tlour mill with
his father. Going to Switzerland, he followed mill-
ing in that country for three years before decid-
ing, in 1854, to try to better his condition in Amer-
ica. He took passage at Havre de Grace on a sail-
ing vessel, and after a voyage of forty days landed
at New York, where he spent a year, engaged at
the carpenter's trade. From that city he came to
Connecticut, locating first at Chaplin, where he was
employed three years in the paper mills. Thence
he removed to South Coventry, where he found
work in the woolen mills, and there spent two
years, learning the trade of fuller. For the next
four years he was at Eagle Mills, in the woolen
mills, and in 1874 he came to Meriden. Mr.
Schwander's first employment in this city was in
the Wilcox Woolen Alills, where he spent ten years,
part of the time as foreman of the fulling depart-
ment. Thinking that outdoor life would improve
his health, he bought a farm at Westfield, Conn.,
where he spent one year, but the work was hard
and uncongenial, so he sold out and returned to
Meriden. He obtained employment with Whit-
more, Peet & Post, who conducted the woolen mills
as successors to J. Wilcox & Co., and was foreman
w-ith them for five years, at the end of which time
he removed to Great Barrington, Mass., where he
was engaged five years as foreman of the fulling
department with Russell Bros. On his return to
Meriden he bought a piece of land on West Main
street, with a house over one hundred years old,
and there opened a saloon, w'hich he conducted,
however, only one year, the business not proving
to his liking. He then accepted a position with C.
T. Dodd, as box-maker, and spent five years at that
business, at the end of which time he retired. His
time has since been given to looking after his real-
estate interests, which are extensive. Mr. Schwan-
der commenced life empty-handed so far as finan-
cial aid of any kind was concerned, but he has al-
wavs been industrious and economical, has made
judicious purchases, and now, in his declining days,
has a comfortable competence. In 1897 he built
1436
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
the fine brick block at Nos. 107-109 ^^'â– cst Main
street. He also erected the handsome dwelling
which he occupies, and owns considerable other
property in and near Meridcn, which under his
careful management, yields him a handsome in-
come. By a life of sobriety and thrift Mr. Schwan-
der has gained the unqualified respect of all his as-
sociates, and his career is a splendid example of
what may be accomplished by industry and perse-
verance, coupled with honesty and integrity of a
high order.
Mr. Schwander was married in Hartford,
Conn., in 1867, to Mary Xagel, a native of Ger-
many, and three children blessed their union, name-
ly: Ellen Mary, who died young; Walter Arthur,
who died young; and William Gage Nagel, bom
July 8, 1885. Mrs. Schwander died very suddenly
July 3, 1900, at the home in Mcriden, and was laid
to rest in West cemetery, by the side of her mother,
whom she loved devotedly. She was a good Chris-
tian woman, faithful to all her duties as wife and
mother, and was an earnest member of St. John's
Lutheran Church of Meriden, to which Mr.
Schwander also belonged. Our subject is a plain-
going, unassuming man, domestic in his tastes and i
habits, a fact which has made the loss of his wife
doubly hard to bear, for she was a companion and
helpmeet in the truest sense of the word.
WILLIAM JULIUS MUELLER. Among
the most enterprising and successful citizens of
New Haven county are many of foreign birth, who
have brought to this country the thrift and economy
of the Old World. Prominent among those who
have located in Cheshire is the gentleman whose
name introduces this sketch. He was born in
Remse, the Kingdom of Saxony, Gcmiany, Nov.
12, 1862, a son of Bernard and Mary Magdelena
(Weinhold) Mueller, also natives of Saxony, in
whose family were three children, the others being
Mary and Richard, who are still residents of Ger-
many. In his native land the father engaged in
the manufacture of windows until called from this
life about the close of the nineteenth century. In
1870 the mother came to America and first located
in Holyoke, Mass., where she married Frank Eger.
They lived in Meriden, Conn., for some time but
now make their home with our subject in Cheshire.
There were no children by the second marriage.
Reared in his native land, William Julius
Mueller acquired a fair education in the German
language. At the age of eighteen years he de-
termined to try his fortune in the United States,
and accordingly, in 1880, crossed the broad At-
latic and took up his residence in Meriden, Conn.,
where he made his home for seven years, working
first in the shops of Bradley & Hubbard. For
two years he was employed as a farm laborer by
William Bankbum, of Cheshire, and later on the
farm of Newton Baldwin, in Kensington. In July,
1887, he came to Cheshire, where he purchased what
is known as the Smith farm, a well improved and
valuable tract of seventy-five acres, on which is a
good house and barn, and here he has since success-
fully engaged in general farming. Through his
own well-directed efforts he has prospered, and his
upright, honorable life has gained him the confi-
dence and good will of 'those with whom he has
come in contact.
In 1887, in Meriden, Mr. Mueller was mar-
ried to Miss Julia Albertine Zemke, a native of
Green Sea, West Prussia, and a daughter of Fred-
crick and Paulina Zemke, who now reside in Mcri-
den. By this union four children were born, and
three are now living, namely : Emil Charles, Edith,
Emma and Gustaf Richard. The family worship
in the German Lutheran Church, and Mr Mueller
votes independent of party dictates.
DURELL SHEPARD, M. D. The family of
this distinguished physician — the oldest practi-
tioner in West Haven, venerated for his long and
useful life, honored for his professional skill, and
beloved for his many noble, personal traits — was
among the first to settle in Cambridge, Mass.,
about 1639. Edward Shepard, the emigrant, com-
ing from England. From this historic starting
point branches spread out here and there, one lo-
cating in and near Milford and Newtown, Conn.,
after a short stay in Hartford. It is from this
branch that Dr. Shepard traces his descent. His
grandfather, George Shepard, who was a large
land owner and a successful farmer, died at the
age of eighty-five years. He married Phabe Hlull,
and they had ten children.
Hiram Shepard, the Doctor's father, was born
at Newtown, and was educated in the common
schools of that town. Hs passed his life there as a
farmer, although, having acquired considerable
skill in veterinary surgery, he practiced that call-
ing, too, with much success. He married Lucretia
Ann Sherman, of Newtown, the youngest of seven
children born to Andrew and Bets?v (Wright)
Sherman, the former of whom was a tanner, cur-
rier and shoemaker, and respected alike as a work-
man, a citizen and a man. Both Hiram Shepard
and his wife are now deceased, he having passed
away in his seventy-sixth year, and she in her
fifty-third. They were the parents of six chil-
dren, two of whom are yet living: Durcll ; and
Charles S., the youngest survivor, now a resident
of New Haven.
Dr. Durell Shepard was born at Newtown,
Fairfield county, Sept. 19, 1831. He received his
early education in the common schools of his na-
tive place and at Wilbraham Academy, Mass. He
left the last named institution at the age of six-
teen, fully resolved to obtain a higher, and a pro-
fessional, education. In 1852 lie mrltriculated at
Yale University, but. his course being interrupted
for several years by failing health, he did not grad-
uate with the degree of M. D. until 1864. His
/X/i-,
^
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
1437
pecuniary circumstances were such as to necessi-
tate his supporting himself, in a large measure,
during his collegiate course, and it is chiclly
through his own indomitable energy, joined to
self-denying effort and tireless application, that
he occupies to-day his present prcud position.
Finding it necessary to leave college, he started
upon a mechanical career, and for a time worked
in various factories.
The outbreak of the Civil war found Dr. Shep-
ard with physical energy restored, and his patri-
otic impulses were stirred to their depths by the
trailing of the National ensign across the shoals
and through the mud of Charleston harbor. He
enlisted as a private in Company F, 1st Connecti-
cut Heavy Artillery, and performed gallant serv-
ice. Although the recognition of his attainments
and scientific knowledge induced his assignment
to hospital service, he was made a prisoner at
Cold Harbor in 1862, and carried to Savage Sta-
tion. He remained in confinement, however, only
for thirty days, and during the greater portion of
that period was assigned to the care of the sick
and wounded. At the end of his month of cap-
tivity he was paroled and exchanged ; after cross-
ing the Federal lines he was ordered to the mili-
tary hospital in Philadelphia, andi in November,
1862, he received his honorable discharge. He
at once followed his own first and best impulse.
No sooner had the embryo surgeon quit the ser-
vice than (in November, 1862) he resumed his
professional studies, which he pursued until — about
a year following — ^he received his degree. For
a while he practiced at Bridgeport, and then re-
entered the service, as assistant surgeon. His field
of duty was North Carolina, he being located first
at Fort Schuyler and afterward at Newbcrn. His
experience covered an epidemic of yellow fever
through which he passed personally unscathed, al-
though his ministrations to the victims of the
scourge testified, by their assiduity, to his earnest-
ness of purpose and unflinching courage.
In July, 1865, the Doctor resigned his com-
mission, and during the year following practiced
at Ballston Spa, N. Y. From that point, in 1866,
he removed to West Haven, Conn., in which town
he has resided for thirty-six years, a successful
practitioner and an honored citizen. In 1867 he
opened a small store for the sale of drugs. The
venture proved successful, and his business grad-
ually increased and uniformly prospered until his
establishment became one of the best stocked and
best patronized in the locality.
Dr. Shepard has been twice married. His first
wife, to whom he was married in 1856, was Miss
Ellen Hart, daughter of Rucl Hart, a respected
and well-to-do farmer of Southington ; her moth-
er's maiden name was Barnes, ^irs. Ellen Shep-
ard had one child (now deceased), and died in
1863. in her twenty-fifth year. The Doctor's sec-
ond wife, Eleanor AI. Tyler, was born in Essex.
Conn. Her father, Sylvanus Tyler, was captain of
a coasting vessel. To the second marriage have
been born four children, two of whom are living.
The elder, George S., resides in West Haven.
Th younger, Gussie S., is unmarried, and lives
with her parents. Another son, Carroll S., died
at the age of twentv-four; he hadi one son,
Durell B.
In politics the Doctor is a Republican ; in re-
ligious faith a Methodist. He is of generous im-
pulses and social instincts, with many friends who
esteem him for his moral worth and love him for
his whole-souled, genial temjierament. He is a
member of the Masonic fraternity, being connected
with Annawan Lodge, No. 115, A. F. & A. AL,
Wesr Haven, in which he is past master, and
Franklin Chapter, R. A. M. He also belongs to
the County and State Medical Societies, and the
American Medical Association. His life has been
a busy one, but by careful and constant study he
keeps fully abreast of the rapid advance made in
medical science.
THOAIAS PATRICK CARNEY, for many
years superintendent of the Branford Lock Works,
and one of the popular and progressive citizens
and a native son of Branford was born April 26,
1854.
James Carney, his father, was born in County
Tipperary, Ireland, whence, about the year 1846, he
came to America, locating in Middletown, Conn.,
where he worked as a farm hand a couple of years.
In 1848 he removed to Branford, Conn., and en-
tered the employ of the Branford Lock Works, as
a polisher, continuing with that company up to
the time of his death, in May, 1899, at the age of
seventy-four years. To James Carney and his
wife, formerly Margaret Cusick, also a native of
County Tipperary, Ireland, were born the follow-
ing children : Anna Mary, now Mrs. John J.
Matthews ; Thomas P. ; Alice, the wife of John
1 P. Callahan ; Margaret, now Mrs. James O'Con-
nor ; James, deceased ; Peter J. ; and Elizabeth.
Thomas P. Carney received his education at
the public schools of Branford, and at the age of
fourteen years entered the employ of the Bran-
ford Lock Works, where his industry and ready
adaptability won continuous promotion. At the
early age of nineteen he was appointed assistant
superintendent of the works, and in 1879, was pro-
moted to the position of superintendent.
Mr. Carney has been twice married. On April 24,
1878, he married Margaret, daughter of James and
Elizabeth (Rogers) Clancy, of Branford, and by
her he had six children : James, Grace, William,
Margaret, Thomas and Genevieve. The mother of
these children died April 2, 1888, and in 1892, Mr.
Carney married Agnes, daughter of David and
Mary (Regan) Carney, of Branford, by which
union he has one son, Arthur C. The entire family
are members of the Catholic Church.
Socially Mr. Carney is affiliated with the K. of
1438
COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
C, the Emerald Social Club, Court Totoket, and
with the New England Order of Protection. In
his political predilections he has always been a
Democrat, and has served as chairman of the Demo-
cratic town committee two years, on the board of
education fifteen years, and as warden one term.
HOX. HART D.WID MUXSOX, of New
Haven, one of the board of County Commissioners
of New Haven county, is a representative of a fam-
ily whose history in New Haven covers a period
of more than two hundred and sixty years.
Thomas JNIunson, the progenitor of the New
Haven branch of the Munson family, was born in
1612, and was a participant in the Pcquot war of
1637. He was a carpenter by fade, and came to
New Haven in 1639 or 1640 and died in 1685; the
death of his wife Joanna occurred in 1678.
From this first American ancestor Commis-
sioner Munson, of New Haven, is in the eighth
generation, his line of descent being through Sam-
uel, Thcophilus, Daniel, Daniel (2), Gorham and
David Munson.
(H) Samuel Munson, son of Thomas of Hart-
ford and New Haven, born abcut 1643, i" ^'^w
Haven, married in 1665 Martha, daughter of Will-
iam and Alice (Pritchard) Bradley. Mr. Munson
was a shoemaker and tanner by trade, and resided
in New Haven, Wallingford and New Haven, re-
spectively, and died in 1693.
(HP) Theopbilus Alunson, son of Samuel, born
in 1675, in New Haven, married Esther, daughter
of John Mi.x, who died in 1746, and her husband