History of Westchester County, New York, Volume 2. Группа авторов
She died in 1888, and in June, 1890, he married Mrs. Mary B. Roberts. Of the children of Dr. Hasbrouck, Dayton, the eldest son, died January 13, 1885, at the age of twenty-four years, being at the time of his death a member of the senior class in the New York Homeopathic College. His surviving children are Mabel E. and Edith S. , twin daughters, and a son, David Marks, fourteen years of age. He is a member of the Westchester County Homeopathic Medical Society, and for two years its president, and is a member of the Homeopathic State Society. He has for several years been connected with the board of education of Dobbs Ferry. He is president of the savings bank, is the health officer of the village and was president of the village from 1894 to 1898. He is deeply interested in all that pertains to the welfare of the community, and has been connected with the Republican party since its organization, taking an intelligent interest in its success, although he has not been an aspirant to office. Socially, he is a member of the Holland Society of New York. His residence is one of the historical landmarks of Westchester county. It was in this house that General Washington, Governor Clinton and General Sir Guy Tarleton met on the suspension of hostilities, May 3, 1783, to arrange for the evacuation of New York. It was during the Revolution a part of the Phillip Phillips estate, and it later became the Livingston mansion, formerly the home of Van Brugh Livingston, and sold by him to Steven Archer in 1836. It was the residence of Mr. Archer until his death in 1877, and was purchased from his heirs by Dr. Hasbrouck in 1882. The mansion, which is a well preserved relic of olden times, stands on the east side of the old Albany post road, a short distance below Livingston avenue. In 1894 Dr. Hasbrouck presented to the Empire State Society of the Sons of the American Revolution a site for a monument, which was erected June 14, 1894.
Before closing these memoirs, a brief mention must be made of the maternal grandfather of the Doctor, Wilhelmus Elting. He was of Huguenot stock, and traces his ancestry back to Henry IV, of France. He devoted his life to the improvement of mankind, and served as pastor of the Dutch Reformed church at Paramus for fifty years, and he and Dr. Dewitt, of New York, were the last ministers of the Dutch Reformed church who preached in either the Holland or English language.
Concerning Dobbs Ferry, we may add, as a postscript, that General Washington made his headquarters here July 6, 1781, when the French allies under Rochambeau joined the American army. August 14, that year, Washington planned the Yorktown campaign, which brought to a triumphant termination the war for American independence. May 6, 1783, Washington and Sir Guy Carleton arranged here for the British evacuation of American soil; and opposite this point, two days afterward, a British sloop of war fired seventeen guns in honor of the American commander in chief, — the first salute by Great Britain to the United States of America.
KEELER, JOHN H..
The unostentatious routine of private life, although of vast importance to the welfare of the community, has not figured to any great extent in history; but the names of men who have distinguished themselves by the possession of those qualities of character which mainly contribute to the success of private life and to the public stability, and who have enjoyed the respect and confidence of those around them, should not be permitted to perish. Their example is more valuable to the majority of readers than that of heroes, statesmen and writers, as they furnish means of subsistence for the multitude whom they in their useful careers have employed.
Such are the thoughts that involuntarily come to our minds when we consider the life of him whose name initiates this review — a man who is accounted as one of the most important factors in business life in Yonkers, and whose reputation in business circles is unassailable. He was born in the city which is still his home, May 26, 1840, his parents being Albert and Harriet (Myers) Keeler. During the colonial epoch in the history of the country representatives of the family resided for several generations in Fairfield, 'Ridgeway county, Connecticut. The paternal grandfather of our subject was a farmer of that county, and when the Revolutionary war was inaugurated he aided in the struggle which brought independence to the nation. He reared his family in his Connecticut home, and there Albert Keeler was born and reared. Having arrived at years of maturity he became a lumber merchant, and removing to Yonkers continued to be engaged in the same line of business activity until his death. His political support was given the Whig party until the organization of the Republican party, when he joined its ranks. He was one of the early trustees of the village of Yonkers and afterward served as alderman for eight or ten terms. He was also a member of the state militia and took part in the general training, common at that time. His religious opinions were in harmony with the doctrines of the Episcopal church and he attended its services. He died at the age of seventy-five years, and his wife still survives. Their children were Charles E., Albert and Josephine, all now deceased; and John H. The maternal grandparents of our subject were John and Charlotte (Nodine) Myers. The former was a carpenter by trade and was one of the pioneers of Yonkers, his home being in Getty Square — the present location of the Citizens' National Bank, of which Mr. Keeler is cashier. The grandmother also was a representative of one of the oldest families of Yonkers, in whose honor Nodine Hill was named.
John H. Keeler pursued his early education in public school No. 2, of Yonkers, afterward attended Professor Francis' Academy, and later Professor Hasbrouck's Academy, of Yonkers. At the age of seventeen he put aside his textbooks to learn the more difficult lessons in the school of experience. He entered upon his business career as bookkeeper in the employ of Henry W. Bashford, dealer in coal and wood, with whom he remained for three years, after which he spent eight years as bookkeeper with Robert P. Getty & Son, government inspectors in the beef department at New York city. While there he connected himself with the Seventeenth Regiment of New York Militia, with which he was associated for about seven years, and during the war of the Rebellion he served for a short time under General Schenck, doing duty at Mount McHenry and Harper's Ferry. After receiving his discharge, he returned to the employ of Mr. Getty, with whom he remained until 1863. In that year he came to Yonkers as bookkeeper for the First National Bank here, remaining with that institution until February 1, 1873, when he was elected cashier of the Citizens' National Bank, in which capacity he has since served. He is also a member of the board of directors. During the first six years of his connection with the bank he devoted his entire time and attention thereto, putting forth his strongest efforts to make it a success, and its prosperity is undoubtedly due in a large measure to the capable management and untiring labors of Mr.- Keeler. The bank was incorporated December 5, 1872, and on the 1st of February, 1873, was opened for business, with the following officers: Charles H. Hamilton, president; Jonathan Vail, vice-president; and John H. Keeler, cashier. A large crowd was waiting to open .accounts with the new bank. Mr. Keeler attended to all the business, and the assets were carried by him in a tin box, which was removed each night to a place of safety. The business of the bank increased rapidly, — from one hundred and thirty-one thousand and nine hundred and forty-four dollars and fifty-one cents, in 1873, to one million three thousand seven hundred and sixty-eight dollars and forty-nine cents, in 1898. The bank is capitalized for one hundred thousand dollars and has a surplus of one hundred thousand. The present officers are: C. E. Waring, president; Peter J. Elting, vice-president; and John H. Keeler, cashier; and these gentlemen, together with C. R. Dusenberry, Henry R. Hicks, E. J. Elting and Andrew Deyo constitute the board of directors. The volume of the business having increased to a great extent, the quarters occupied were found to be too small, and the directors decided to build a structure which would answer all requirements of a modern banking-house. Accordingly this was done in 1897. The first or main floor of the building, used for banking purposes, is twenty-five by one hundred and five feet, the walls, floors, partitions and ceiling being so constructed as to make the entire first floor absolutely fire proof. Every convenience and . equipment necessary for conducting a successful banking business according to the most approved modern methods are there found, -and the safety-deposit vaults are models of strength and the finest specimens of the safe-builder's art. The business of the bank is conducted with the -regularity and exactness of clock work. Old methods of bookkeeping have been abandoned, and in their place has been adopted the best modern system of accounts to insure protection and correctness. A system of steel boxes is used, arranged alphabetically, in which each depositor's vouchers are kept separately; and each day's business, also kept separate, can be referred to in a moment,
The close application of the popular cashier, his trustworthiness, great energy and enterprise have been