Dayton Samuel Morgan Obituary

From: "Linda H. Gutiérrez" <lilacarlhg@amnet.co.cr>
Subject: Biographical sketch of Dayton Samuel MORGAN
Date: Fri, 6 Aug 2004 22:37:34 -0600

The following biography appears on pages 598-600 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.

**PLEASE NOTE: I have transcribed this biography EXACTLY as it appears in the book. Any errors, especially one that I question in the second paragraph in reference to a date, are the fault of the publishers of this work.**

Other surnames of interest in this biography: PYNCHEON, WINTHROP, WELLES, WEBSTER, MCCULLICK, WYLLYS, TALCOTT, MASON, CLARK, GOULD, GOSMORE, OGDEN, STEELE, WELLES, BUTLER, PHELPS, TROTT, DEMING, BREWSTER, CANFIELD, DAYTON, WHITNEY, SEYMOUR, HOLMES, MCCORMICK, LINCOLN, STANTON, SEWARD, SELDEN, JOSLYN, MANNING, & MACY


Dayton Samuel MORGAN was born in the town of Ogden, Monroe county, New York, November 19, 1819, and died in Brockport, this county, April 9, 1890. He was the sixth in descent from James MORGAN, the first American ancestor of the family, who was born in Wales, in 1607, and with two younger brothers, John and Miles, sailed from their native country and arrived in Boston, Massachusetts, in April, 1637. John, the next younger brother, was a high churchman, and disliking the austerity of the Puritans, left Boston in disgust for more congenial society and settled in Virginia. Miles, the youngest brother, who was born in 1615, soon after arrival associated himself with a party of which Colonel William PYNCHEON was the head and founded the settlement of Springfield, Massachusetts.

James MORGAN, the first American ancestor, finally located in the settlement of Pequot, which by an act of the general court or colonial assembly at Hartford, March 11, 1657, was named "New London, in memory of ye renowned city of London." making his final abode on the east side of the Thames river, in what has since been named the town of Groton. He was one of the townsmen or selectmen for several years, and one of the first deputies sent from New London plantations to the general court at Hartford, May session, in 1657, and was nine times afterward chosen a member of that grave and important assembly, the last in l1670. His associates and compeers composing the general court or colonial assembly in May 1857, when he was first chosen, as shown by the family records, were:

John WINTHROP, of Pequot, governor.
Thomas WELLES, of Hartford, deputy governor.
Magistrates - John WEBSTER of Hartford; Captain John MCCULLICK, of Hartford; Samuel WYLLYS, Hartford; Captain John TALCOTT, Hartford; Major John MASON, Saybrook; Daniel CLARK, Windsor; Nathan GOULD, Fairfield; John GOSMORE, Southampton, L.I.; John OGDEN, Southampton, L.I.
Deputies - George STEELE, of Hartford; John WELLES, Hartford; Richard BUTLER, Hartford; William PHELPS, Windsor; Richard TROTT, Wethersfield; John DEMING, Wethersfield; Jonathan BREWSTER, Pequot; James MORGAN, Pequot; Mathew CANFIELD, Norwalk.

James MORGAN seems to have impressed this carefully selected body of men with a high sense of his sterling honesty and integrity of character, as it appears that in a controversy between the general court and the New London plantations regarding boundaries and jurisdiction it was ordered that the matter should be submitted to three arbiters, mutually agreed upon. New London at once named its townsman, James MORGAN, really a party in its own interests, but nevertheless, the general court as promptly accepted him and without naming another agreed to submit to his sole decision, which, when made, seemed to have satisfied all parties.

The father of Dayton S. MORGAN, Samuel MORGAN, married Sara DAYTON in 1816, of the New Jersey family of that name. He settled in the town of Ogden, Monroe county, being a prosperous miller and farmer. Here Dayton S. MORGAN was born, being the only son of these parents, his mother dying soon thereafter. In the financial reaction of 1836, Samuel MORGAN became overwhelmed and lost his property. He also became broken in health and survived but a short time. Dayton S. MORGAN was then seventeen years of age and was obliged to make his own career. He had secured such educational benefits as could be obtained from the district schools of that time. After his father's financial reverses, by in turn teaching district school and studying hard at night, with great struggle and deprivation he finally obtained a course at Brockport Collegiate Institute, which institution later became transformed into what is now the Brockport State Normal School.

[Source: http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/NYMONROE/2004-08/1091853446



Dayton S. MORGAN secured his first regular employment as clerk in the Erie Canal collector's office. It was his first intention to prepare for a legal profession but finally decided it would take too many years of unprofitable application, being obliged to earn his own living. In 1840 he decided to adopt a business career and in 1841 secured his first position. The following year he became associated with E. WHITNEY, a merchant of Brockport, who for those times was doing an extensive business, retailing dry goods, buying grain, etc. His ambition to succeed and his perseverance and application had gained for him a reputation as "a young man who was bound to succeed, " to the extent that in the spring of 1844 he was invited to enter into partnership with William H. SEYMOUR, a merchant of Brockport, and one of the wealthiest men of that section at that period. Mr. MORGAN had been able to save only a few hundred dollars and stated this fact in answer to Mr. SEYMOUR'S propos!
ition but the reply was that it was not his money that was sought but rather his ability and application. The firm of SEYMOUR & MORGAN was then founded and in connection with a large mercantile business established the GLOBE IRON WORKS in Brockport and began the manufacture of stoves and agricultural implements. In the following year, the Hon. E.B. HOLMES of Brockport, member of congress, while in Washington, met Cyrus H. MCCORMICK, of Walnut Grove, Virginia, who was attending to the taking out of patents on a reaping machine of his invention and told him of the GLOBE IRON WORKS of Brockport and the character of the men in charge, advising him to go there. This he did, bringing for the inspection of SEYMOUR & MORGAN his reaping machine. It was extremely crude, having no driver's seat, the plan for raking off the grain being by a man who should walk beside the platform of the machine. The gearing for operating was very imperfect and the cutting sickle was but a thin stri!
p of steel on the front edge of the platform, serrated reversely every four or five inches of its length; yet though so crude, immature and imperfect, it was a machine with which it was possible to cut grain when all conditions were favorable. Trials were made which suggested various improvements. The machine was cut down here and strengthened there and generally brought into better form. A saddle was provided for the men to sit astride, who used an ordinary hand rake in removing the grain from the platform but the driver walked or rode a horse alongside the machine. The experiments and negotiations resulted in an arrangement whereby SEYMOUR & MORGAN engaged themselves to build a quantity of Mr. MCCORMICK'S reapers, as improved, for the harvest of the following year. In pursuance there were built at the GLOBE IRON WORKS by SEYMOUR & MORGAN, one hundred of these reapers for the harvest of 1846, the first quantity of harvesting machines ever built by one concern, put upon!
the market and sold, and thus the historical fact was established that the old GLOBE IRON WORKS at Brockport, Monroe county, New York, became the first reaper factory in the world.

The firm continued the manufacture of these machines until 1848. They then introduced a machine of their own design, known as the "New Yorker," which gained a world-wide reputation. For the harvest of 1851 they ventured to make five hundred of these machines and the people then wondered how and where they could all possibly be sold. At this time Mr. MORGAN purchased Mr. SEYMOUR'S interest in the patents that controlled this reaper and licensed other manufacturers to build for specified territory. The quadrant shaped platform, today still universally used on reaping machines, was brought out by the firm and other manufacturers licensed. In connection with it and other inventions Mr. MORGAN was obliged to bring several suits for infringement, some of which became famous, involving very large sums of money, and were not finally determined until reaching the United States supreme court at Washington. In these litigations wide attention was attracted. Men of prominence, so!
me of whom became particularly so in the affairs of the nation, were associated as counsel. Among these were Abraham LINCOLN, Edward M. STANTON, who became secretary of war during the war of the Rebellion; William SEWARD, who was New York's whig governor in 1838; Judge Henry R. SELDEN of Rochester, and others.

In all these patent litigations Mr. MORGAN was finally successful. Eventually Mr. MORGAN became sole owner of the concern, which was subsequently incorporated under the name of D.S. MORGAN & COMPANY, and continued as its president and active head up to the time of his death. A few years thereafter this large company, the outgrowth of the pioneer of its kind, bowed to the march of progress of the day and became absorbed by combination with other interests. After disposing of its manufacturing interests the corporation which Mr. MORGAN founded erected in the heart of the city of Buffalo, New York, the first so-called steel constructed office building built in that city, one of the most complete in the country, known as the D.S. MORGAN building.

Mr. MORGAN also became interested in various railroads, and at one time served as vice president of the central branch of the UNION PACIFIC RAILROAD COMPANY. He was also one of those originally interested in organizing in 1869 the CENTRAL CROSSTOWN STREET RAILROAD in New York city. He was a large and judicious investor in real estate and acquired much farming, timber and city property. Convinced of the future of the city of Chicago, he purchased in 1872 the five hundred acres of land upon which that city's suburb, West Pullman, is now built.

Personally, Mr. MORGAN was quiet and unassuming in manner, refusing political preferment and avoiding publicity. While a man of great dignity, he was affable and approachable and always glad to receive suggestions from any one in his employ. He possessed unusual will power, undaunted tenacity and a high order of business talent, with honesty and pureness of purpose. At the time of his death he was president of the Brockport State Normal School board, a vestryman at St. Luke's Episcopal church at Brockport, and a member of the Rochester Historical Society. During his lifetime he performed without ostentation, avoiding publicity, and many important acts of consideration for others were unknown until revealed after his death by those benefited. Indicative of his character, when he had acquired a competence, many years after his father's financial reverses and death, he reimbursed to those the losses which had been incurred through his father's misfortune.

In 1864 Mr. MORGAN was married to Miss Susan M. JOSLYN, of Brockport, who survives him and resides in The Homestead, the old family residence in that village. Their children are George D. MORGAN, William P. MORGAN, Sara MORGAN MANNING, Susan MORGAN MACY, Henry MORGAN, Gifford MORGAN and Gladys E. MORGAN.

*****

I am not related nor do I have any connection to any of the persons in the above biography.

Linda
in Costa Rica