Middlesex County CT Archives History - Books .....Goodspeed-Boardman 1887

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File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com May 20, 2005, 5:47 pm

Book Title: The Old Chimney Stacks Of East Haddam

CHAPTER XV.

GOODSPEED—BOARDMAN.

  Nathan Goodspeed moved to East Haddam from Barnstable, Cape Cod, Mass.,
between 1775-80, bought the lot on which the Gelston House stands, and built a
commodious two-story house thereon. He raised three children, viz.: Nathan,
Joseph, and Anna. Nathan married and occupied the homestead. He left one
daughter, Jerusha, who married Oliver Allen, of Norwich, and is now living in
San Francisco or its vicinity. They have one son. Anna married Samuel Gilbert,
of Hebron. Died about 1860, leaving one son, Nathan Gilbert, who resides in
Norwich. Joseph married Laura Tyler, of Haddam, about 1812, and raised six
children—George E., William H., Joseph K, Nathan T., Mary Anne, and Sophia. The
only survivor of this family is William H., who is still an active business man
of about sixty-three years, occupying the residence of his late father, who died
at the age of sixty. His mother died at the age of forty-two, his brother George
at fifty, his sister Mary Anne at forty, Sophia at twenty-four, Joseph and
Nathan both at twenty-six.

  Joseph Goodspeed was a clerk for the Rev. Solomon Blakeley, in a store in
front of the lot now occupied by the Gelston House. After his marriage he
carried on a store for several years in Haddam, hiring for that purpose a room
in Timothy Shailor's house. He finally built a good-sized building which he used
for a dwelling and store. Soon after this, Mr. Blakeley, wishing to give up his
interest in mercantile business and being desirous of bringing his late favorite
clerk back to East Haddam, persuaded him to buy out his stock of goods and lease
the store. Mr. G. at once accepted the proposition of his friend, and moved back
into the old store about 1814. He soon did a very thrifty business, and became a
formidable rival of the staid old merchants of the Upper Landing. One of them so
chafed over the growing popularity of the new store that he called upon its
proprietor and notified him, through his position of first Selectman, that the
store was on the highway and must be moved. Mr. G. replied that he knew one
corner extended on the old highway about two feet, but was still five or six
feet from any part of the road that was used—that the building had stood there
over fifty years without complaint from any one, and that he would not attempt
to move the building, but would move out of it as soon as he could make other
arrangements. He was then ordered to move the building within twenty days, or
the town would move it for him. When his good neighbor left, Mr. G. saddled his
horse, and in two hours had contracted with Darius Dickinson and the Messrs
Bailey in Haddam for the erection of the store recently moved from the site now
occupied by the new store, and in just forty-two days it was opened with the
largest stock of new goods which had ever been introduced into the town.

  Thus commenced a feud between the two villages which was kept up to a certain
extent for many years. Indeed, even now there is an absence of that loving
kindness, neighborly generosity, and mutual affection which Christian teachers
enjoin and of which poets sing.

  Mr. Goodspeed was a hard-working-merchant, up early and late, and managed to
draw not only from, the best trade in town, but also sold goods to people of the
adjoining towns. In fact, the new store of 1816 attracted as much attention as
the magnificent new one of 1876, or sixty years later. George E. Goodspeed died
in 1863. His widow, whose maiden name was Nancy G. Hayden, still resides at
Goodspeed's Landing. Their son, Joseph H. is in a good position in Boston.
Georgiana lives with her mother, and George E. is at school in New Haven.
William H. Goodspeed married, in Baltimore, Miss Louise M. Robbins, formerly of
Rocky Hill. She died young, leaving two children, William R., the present
proprietor of the new store, and Louise R., who resides with her father in the
family house, built by her grandfather Goodspeed in 1838. This house stands upon
the site of the old Col. Chapman house, that the Chapman family occupied for
many years, and afterwards by Rev. Mr. Blakeley, the son-in-law of Col. Chapman.
It was occupied next and last by Jos. Goodspeed, who, after living in it twenty
years, moved it across the street and attached it to the then called Belden's
Hotel. Subsequently, when the Gelston House was built, the old Chapman House was
sold to Gideon Higgens, who took it down, and out of a part of it built the
house where he resided at the time of his death in 1878. After Col. Chapman's
death, the most of the large farm he owned came into the hands of his
sons-in-law, Rev. Stephen Blakeley and Capt. Oliver Attwood. In 1831, Mr. Jos.
Goodspeed bought that part of the farm owned by Mr. Blakeley, and since their
father's death, George and William have bought of the heirs of Oliver Attwood
nearly all the farming land left by him, and to-day the old Chapman farm of 200
acres is in better condition than ever before. The owner, Wm. H., seems to enjoy
farming, though one would naturally think he had enough to do without it. He
claims that he likes to employ all the men he can keep at work, and was never
happier than when he had 138 men at work on the following vessels in his yard in
1863: The steamers "Charles Binton," "El Cid," "Sunshine," "Silver Star,"
"Sentinel," "Gen. Lyon," and schooners "Meteor" and "Early Bird." This work,
with the building of the engines, etc., employing about 250 men in New London,
Mystic, and New York, kept him so busy for a year or more that his average time
for sleep was only four or five hours out of the twenty-four. Even now he
remains in his office till 9 P. M., reads one or two hours, and is invariably in
his office before five o'clock in the morning. He is also Vice-President and
General Manager of the H. & N. Y. S. Boat Co., a corporation with a capital of
$400,000, owning five steamers and a large property in real estate. Mr.
Goodspeed has two children, Wm. R. and Louisa. Wm. R. has built one of the
finest stores in the county, at Goodspeed's Landing, and carries on an extensive
business in general merchandise.

  NOTE:—The main points of the above sketch were furnished the writer by Wm. H.
Goodspeed in 1875. He died Jan. 1st, 1882. His daughter Louisa died Oct. 2ist,
1880.


BOARDMAN.

Thomas Curtis Boardman, born at Wethersfield, Conn., March 29th, 1798, came to
Millington in 1815, as clerk for Noah Bulkley, in a store standing on the north
side of the Green. He and Aaron T. Niles ran the same store for a while in
partnership.

  He moved to East Haddam Landing in 1836, and lived in the old "Tinker House,"
was elected cashier of the East Haddam Bank, the same year, and held the
position till his sudden death September i8th, 1865. He was on the steamboat
dock at East Haddam, when the Hartford steamer landed. The wooden cleat through
which the cable ran, split as the boat strained upon it in the high wind, and
the piece struck him on the head and breast. He fell dead at the feet of the
writer.

  Mr. Boardman married Sophronia, daughter of Hon. Wm. Palmer, by whom he had
five children, four of them born in Millington.

  Julia S., now living unmarried.

  William B., married Georgiana R. S. Turner, of Boston. Have one daughter,
Georgiana Chickering, named after the founder of the celebrated piano firm. They
live in New York City.

  Dorothea Amelia, died in 1842.

  Francis married Mary Douglas. Children: Addie Minnie; Jeanie Douglas; Charles
William.  Isabella Palmer; drowned in Connecticut River in 1866.

  Ellen Douglas.

  Clarissa S. died in infancy.

  Addie married Luther B. Williams of Rocky Hill. They have four children:
Charles W. married Carrie Welch, of New Haven; Jeanie married Wilbur S. Comstock.

  Dorothea Amelia, 2d. youngest daughter of Thos. Boardman, married Wilson C.
Reynolds, of Lyme. He was post-master at East Haddam for 19 years. They have a
fine residence at East Haddam, between the two Landings. Have three children:
Gertrude Palmer; Elsie Boardman; Harry Wilson. Mrs. T. C. Boardman died in 1866.


Additional Comments:
Transcribed from:

THE OLD CHIMNEY STACKS OF EAST HADDAM, MIDDLESEX COUNTY, CONNECTICUT,
BY
HOSFORD B. NILES,
Author of Genealogy of THE NILES FAMILY.
NEW YORK: LOWE & CO., Book and Job Printers No. 210 Fulton Street.
1887


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