Genesee-Livingston County MI Archives Biographies.....Curry, Lewis V. 1860 - 
************************************************
Copyright.  All rights reserved.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm
http://www.usgwarchives.net/mi/mifiles.htm
************************************************

File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com July 12, 2007, 10:05 pm

Author: Chapman Bros. (1892)

LEWIS V. CURRY, the Postmaster of Fenton and a prominent hardware merchant, was
born in Brighton, Livingston County, Mich., October 25, 1837. He is one of the
most successful business men of this village and exerts a broad influence in the
community. His father, Lewis M. Curry, was born in New York, January 31, 1807,
and died at Brighton, July 14, 1842. The grandfather, John Curry, was a native
of New York, and like his son, passed his last days at Brighton. The ancestry is
supposed to be of Scotch extraction but the family for generations has lived in
the North of Ireland. The great-grandfather of our subject, William Curry, was a
soldier in the Revolutionary War and lived to be almost ninety-six years old.

  The grandfather of our subject came to Michigan about the age of forty-four.
He was a highly respected citizen and a valuable member of the Methodist
Episcopal Church. His son, Lewis M., became first a teacher and then a lawyer,
graduating art Owego. He was married February 25, 1835, to Sarah A. Maynard and
the following year came West, where he engaged in the mercantile business in
Brighton, Livingston County. On account of ill health he subsequently removed to
Smithfield Pa., but returned to Michigan and undertook teaching, and died in
1842. He was a man of marked ability and had purposed to practice law
eventually. The mother of our subject still lives in Brighton at the age of
seventy-three, and she is now the wife of David Thompson. She is well known as a
stanch Presbyterian. There were two children by the first marriage and three by
the second.

  Mr. Curry was the first white child born in Brighton and was quite young when
his father died. He took a course at the Normal School, Ypsilanti, also at the
Commercial College at Detroit, and until he was fifteen years old he worked in
his stepfather's foundry, thus obtaining a good knowledge of that business. He
spent five years clerking in a store and somewhat later clerked for a year in
Brighton. In 1852 he went to Colorado across the plains and saw much of the
various tribes of Indians and thousand of buffaloes. They located at Boulder and
mined on the Boulder River which they changed from its natural channel, and were
successful for about six months. Denver had then but one log house "The house
that Jack built." Returning to the East he again resumed clerking.

  In June, 1861, Mr. Curry enlisted in the army. He raised nearly the whole of
Company K, Ninth Michigan Infantry and was made its Second Lieutenant. The Ninth
built forts at the junction of the Salt River with the Ohio, and at various
other points. This regiment was placed mostly in positions of trust and did not
see much active service. In 1862 it was sent to guard the Nashville and
Louisville Railroad, and took part in the battle of Ft. Donaldson. It had the
honor of encountering the great raider, Morgan, May 5, 1862, and drove him from
point to point. Lieut. Curry was in charge of a force of about three hundred men
at Murfreesboro, previous to the time when Gen. Forrest attacked that city with
three mounted cavalry, and our subject was captured with the entire force, but
he slipped out through the lines and escaped. Having reported to Nashville he
was sent to Camp Chase at Columbus, Ohio, to take charge of the paroled
prisoners, but in October he returned to Nashville in time to participate in the
battle of Stone River, after which he resigned on account of being afflicted
with inflammation of the eyes and was nearly blind for four years. He was
offered a captaincy if he would return to the army, but ill health prevented an
acceptance of this honor.

  In February, 1863, Lieut. Curry located at Fenton and engaged in the grocery
business and two years later took up the drug business. In the fall of 1867 he
purchased a hardware store in which business he still continues. He was married
August 12, 1862, at 199 Cass Street, Detroit, to Miss Abbie J., daughter of
Chamberlain and Lucy (Thompson) Barry.

  Mrs. Curry was born in Sodus N. Y., May 16, 1842. Mr. Barry now lives
Fowlerville, Mich., Mr. and Mrs. Curry have seven children, Ira G., who
graduated at the Michigan University in the Class of '86 and is in the hardware
business at Owosso; Arthur L., who is in the same line of business here; Herbert
V. (deceased); twins who died in infancy; Lura May and Grace A., and to all of
these has been granted an excellent education.

  Mr. Curry has been active politically and is frequently a delegate to
Republican conventions. Besides being Chairman of the township Committee he has
been Marshal of Fen ton Township, Clerk, and a member of the Common Council, and
was appointed Postmaster of Fen ton in July, 1890. The Fenton Union Agricultural
Society has for eight years had his services as Treasurer. He is a member of the
Board of Trustees in the Methodist Episcopal Church, to which he and Mrs. Curry
both belong, and he is identified with the Knights of Honor and the Grand Army
of the Republic, of which he is Commander at present.


Additional Comments:
Extracted from:

Portrait and Biographical Record of Genesee, Lapeer and Tuscola Counties,
Michigan, Containing Biographical Sketches of Prominent and Representative
Citizens, Together with Biographies of all the Governors of the State, and of
the Presidents of the United States

Chicago:
Chapman Bros.
1892

File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/mi/genesee/bios/curry802gbs.txt

This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/mifiles/

File size: 5.9 Kb