Articles

Assembled by Steven Mann for the Friends of the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery
In section number one of the historic Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery, not far from the beautiful fountain, sundial, and office, rests a young minister and his wife. While this may not seem unusual, the depth of the information that exists on this man of the cloth and his short life is.

His name was Joseph Paige Davis. He was born in Guilderland, Albany County, New York on November 9, 1859, to Reverend William Paige Davis and the former Elizabeth Bullock. Rev. Davis, Sr. was a Dutch Reformed minister in the Guilderland/Schenectady area.

Rev. Joseph Paige Davis graduated in 1881 from prestigious Union College in Schenectady, New York. He then studied for three years at the Theological Seminary at New Brunswick, New Jersey. During that time he supplied the pulpit of the Freedom Plains Presbyterian Church in LaGrange, Dutchess County, New York. This is likely where he met his bride to be, the former Louise Van Benschoten, daughter of Henry E. Van Benschoten and Mary Jane Ver Valin. Her parents were both from influential families in the town of LaGrange who worshiped at Freedom Plains. He wed his bride on August 27, 1884.

The young couple lived first in Becker’s Corners as surviving correspondence shows. This is a small four corners area still marked as such as one drives north on Route 9-W in the area of Selkirk in Albany County. There, he served the pulpit of the First Reformed Church of Bethlehem at Selkirk, a parish still very much active. A couple of years later he answered the call to serve as pastor of the Third Reformed Church of Albany, then located in the proximity of what is today Albany’s South Mall built by Governor Nelson Rockefeller in the 1960s and early 1970s as part of Albany’s urban renewal and the State’s growing bureaucracy during his administration. Much of that neighborhood surrounding the Governor’s Mansion and the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception was torn down as was the site of that church. The neighborhood would have been in his day primarily Italian, Irish and German. Today, Third Reformed is now located off Delaware Avenue in Albany on Ten Eyck Street, named for one of the city’s founding Dutch families, in a modern structure.

While living in Albany the young couple resided at 202 Elm Street. This house would have been right near the Governor’s Mansion, likely on part of the site of the existing New York State Museum, Library and Archives. What is left today of that neighboring part of Elm Street is a series of row houses, mostly painted brick, with very tall ceilings and now rented basement apartments for housing State workers at the nearby South Mall or inside the Empire State Plaza, some of which runs underground. In his papers, which are being properly archived and preserved by his four great-grandchildren, are numerous receipts showing improvements to the house on Elm Street.

The young minister died of the fever during a time when medicine did not allow for quick cures, leaving his young wife and baby son. His widow was left to plan his funeral and burial in the Davis family plot at the Prospect Hill Cemetery in Guilderland. This cemetery is located on a high hill with an extremely steep drive about one mile west of Crossgates Mall on Western Avenue (Route 20). The hill is so steep that the cemetery, which is not a small cemetery, even today is closed in the winter as one cannot easily access the site. It is the resting place for the parts of the old Blessing, Bradt, Dutcher, LaGrange, Van Bramer, Vedder, and Westervelt families of the Guilderland/Albany area.

A traditional Church funeral had been planned by the young widow for the afternoon of April 19, 1887, in the city of Albany. However, a two-page letter must have arrived the day before, as it is dated April 18, 1887. It was from the City of Albany’s Board of Health stating that the plans were in violation of Section 39 of the Sanitary Code of the City of Albany, “There shall not be a public or church funeral of any person who has died of small-pox, Diptheria, scarlet fever, yellow fever, or Asiatic cholera, and the family of the deceased is required to limit the attendance to as few as possible, and to prevent the presence, so far as possible, of those liable to contract the disease of which the deceased person died”. It was the writer’s “duty to direct that the funeral be private, as few people being present as may be, and that the body be taken direct from the house to the cemetery. To violate the provisions of the sanitary code is a misdemeanor, and for the protection of the public health it is necessary that every precaution against the spread of contagion be taken”.

“It had been stated that Mr. Davis died of pneumonia, but he having scarlet fever as the same time, the pneumonia becomes but a complication of the primary disease, and the same sanitary precautions must be observed as if death was directly caused by the contagious disease”. The letter is signed, “Very respectfully, your dedicated servant, Lewis Balchy, Health Officer”. So, what was the young widow who was left with a very young son to raise, do? The story now returns to Dutchess County.
The plans apparently changed quickly. An undated and unheadlined article from a Dutchess County newspaper, signed by James B. Boldane, stated that, “The funeral service will be held in the Third Reformed Church, Albany, Tuesday afternoon at three o’clock, and in the Freedom Plains church, this county, on Wednesday at 11:30 a.m.” This likely was printed before the letter arrived on Monday, April 18, 1887, a mere 24 hours before the planned service. It was extremely important to Louise that her husband, as a man of God, should have a proper church service and burial.
Likely Louise either had family members from Dutchess County at the house, namely her parents or one of three siblings (Anna, Elias, or John), or she telegrammed home to Dutchess County inquiring what to do. Whatever the situation may have been, the family archives contains a few original copies of the black-bordered invitation to Rev. Joseph Paige Davis’ memorial service and answers some questions. There was a memorial service held at the Third Reformed Church of Albany, then at the corner of S. Ferry and Green Sts., Sunday, May 1, at 3:00 PM. Eulogies were provided by Revs. Wesley R. Davis, D.D., J. W. Chapman, Edwin F. See, and John McC. Holmes, D.D.

So, did Dutchess County have more lenient health codes, or did the family appeal to the local authorities to allow a full funeral service to take place regardless of the code? No correspondence survives to answer that question and as of writing time did not allow for research of the old health codes. However, if this had occurred today, we can imagine one phone call could do the trick. In any event, Rev. Joseph Paige Davis was buried in Section One of Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery. His wife Louise lived many years and was buried there. Interestingly, Rev. Davis is buried right near two other Van Benschoten allied families – the Cronkhites and the Hookers. All three families are related, and work continues on their extensive family genealogy by Rev. Davis’ great-grandchildren.

The family has indicated that Louise returned to Dutchess County and raised her son here. She later lived with her widowed brother Elias, whose young wife, the former Helen Lossing Titus of the Titusville Tituses, had died without issue, and kept house for him. They also indicate that the young boy, Joseph P. Davis born April 4, 1886, was raised with Elias Van Benschoten as his male role model, or father figure. Elias owned Van Benschoten Hardware on Main Street in Poughkeepsie. Joseph P. Davis married the former Virginia Duncan of Pleasant Valley and went on to run the business for Elias. They had a son Joseph Paige Davis who died at age six as a result of an infection from a knee wound, and a daughter Hazel Jane Davis. Joe Davis then took his son in law, Lawrence A. Heaton, into the business. So the young son of the late Rev. Joseph P. Davis was a success. He became very influential in local affairs and served as trusted executor to numerous estates. Also of interest, soon to be born is a little girl who will be Rev. Joseph P. Davis and his wife Louise Van Benschoten’s great-great-great granddaughter, and she will have Louise in her name.
In remembering Rev. Davis, the writer wishes to quote from a letter dated Pleasant Valley, May 7, 1887, to Mrs. Louise Davis, 202 Elm Street, Albany, NY and postmarked curiously May 6, 1887: “Dear friend Louise: I have been trying for the past three weeks to find time to write you. Louise, I hardly know how or what to write you in this time of trouble and sorrow. Oh how often I have thought of you and how deeply I sympathize with you, but we must look to a higher power for consolation and through his grace we can be comforted. Only trust him! We owe an apology to you for not attending the services at Freedom Plains, we were misinformed otherwise we would have been with you”.

The letter goes on with a little local news and then closes, “I must close now, take care of yourself and try to become reconciled to the loss of your Dear one. Hoping to see you before long I am your friend Annie F. Card”. Many other letters exist and carry the same message, hope and solace. Interestingly, a few letters are written to Mrs. Davis around the same time and are addressed to her at Freedom Plains. Many times minister’s widows and families were asked to vacate the “parsonage” immediately after the death of a minister so that a new one could move right in. This was likely the case with Louise and her son. Fortunately, she had much family she could rely on at home in Dutchess County.

It is of note that in the family archive are also numerous sermons written by the young minister as well as some of his college papers written at Union. There are also several boxes of books from his personal library which the family has to accompany these letters. A very special document is Rev. Davis’ record book which contains the baptisms, marriages, and funerals he presided over during his ministry. How fortunate that for over almost 125 years these records have survived to tell this story.
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The Friends of the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery are indebted to the Heaton children: Joyce, Virginia, Hooker and Joanne, and to their children, Rev. Davis’ great-grandchildren, for allowing us access to their private family papers. They are indeed thanked by our entire membership.

The DeGarmo and Smith Men of Luckey, Platt & Co., Poughkeepsie, NY by by Steven MannSmith Lawrence DeGarmo was born on October 10, 1842, at Highland, Ulster County on what was the DeGarmo family farm. He moved with his parents to Dutchess County while nine years of age. He was educated at the New Paltz Academy and later a private school kept by Rev. Sherman Hoyt, Presbyterian minister, at Dutchess County.

In November 1868, he came to work as a clerk in the furnishing goods store of a maternal relative, Thomas A. Lawrence. In spring 1869, he entered the firm of William H. Broas selling dry goods.

In 1870, Smith DeGarmo accepted the position of salesman at the store of Luckey & Platt, which was formed in 1869 from the firm of Luckey, Vail & Mandeville. He was admitted to the firm in 1872, and died on April 30, 1915. He was one of the three original members of the firm with Mr. C. P. Luckey and Mr. E. P. Platt, that was to be known as Luckey, Platt & Co. Mr. DeGarmo is buried at Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery as is his nephew, William DeGarmo Smith.

Mr. DeGarmo came from a long line of French Huguenots. His family settled in Ulster County in the rural farming community of Butterville. What is left of Butterville is located just down the old road from Mohonk Mountain House, outside of New Paltz. His grandmother, Hannah (Sutton) DeGarmo, widow of Rowland DeGarmo, is buried in the old Quaker Cemetery on the east side of that road, right at the hairpin curve. She may not be the only DeGarmo buried there, however many of the earlier buried Quakers did not have gravestones as gravestones were seen as vanity by many Quakers until the 1840s. The old Quaker meeting house was moved further down that road and still stands, in front of a neighboring c 1870 farm house. The Butterville Preparative Meeting was run as a mission of the (New) Paltz Preparative Meeting from 1894 until 1900. Remaining Quakers went to services either at Mohonk or at Poughkeepsie. He is descended from Thomas Lawrence, a Quaker preacher, and Captain Jonathan Lawrence, a captain in the Revolutionary War buried at Esopus in a private family burial ground.

Others members of the DeGarmo family are buried at the Friends of Progress Cemetery hidden on the west side of Route 9W, just north of the Ship’s Lantern Inn Restaurant. The next generation of ancestors is buried at the Crum Elbow Friends Burial Ground on Quaker Lane in Hyde Park. This being the case as much of the DeGarmo family moved from Ulster County to central Dutchess County. Over a dozen of that and the next generation are buried in several different plots at Wiltwyck Cemetery in Kingston.

William DeGarmo Smith was president and general manager of Luckey, Platt & Co., Poughkeepsie, NY. He was brought into the business by his uncle, Smith Lawrence DeGarmo, mentioned above. He entered service to the firm on November 6, 1901, and became secretary and treasurer of the same firm on February 19, 1912.
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He quickly advanced to the position of vice-president on January 26, 1914, and became president and general manager on June 5, 1915, shortly after the death of his uncle Smith DeGarmo. Although from Quaker stock, Smith was associated with Christ Church (Episcopal) in Poughkeepsie.

Two State Representatives Who Ran Against Each Other
Stephen Baker and Homer Augustus Nelson are both buried in the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery. Baker is in Section N overlooking the beautiful Hudson River while Nelson is buried in historic Section C. Both served in New York’s 12th District in the United States House of Representatives. Nelson succeeded Baker on March 4, 1863, Baker having served 1861-3. Baker was a Lincoln Republican while Nelson was a Democrat. Both served only one two-year term.
Baker was born in New York City on August 12, 1819. He was engaged in the woolen goods business for some time. He moved to Poughkeepsie in 1850, and there became active in politics.

At Poughkeepsie he was elected to the 37th Congress, serving March 4, 1861-March 3, 1863. He died enroute to California for his deteriorating health, on a train near Ogden, Utah, on June 9, 1875. He was returned to Poughkeepsie and interred here. Stephen Baker is buried one row closer to the river than this author’s plot. A descendant of his still comes to the cemetery and tends to the grave with fresh flowers.

His son, Stephen Baker, Jr., was president/chair of the board of the Bank of the Manhattan Company, the earliest predecessor to Chase Bank, and was an associate of the famed tycoon John D. Rockefeller, Jr. of Pocantico Hills, NY.
More information exists on Homer Augustus Nelson. He studied law in the offices of Tallman & Dean, Varick & Eldridge, and Charles H. Ruggles. He was admitted to the New York State Bar. He practiced in Poughkeepsie, and was County Judge in Dutchess from 1855-62. At the close of his term, he declined an appointment in diplomatic service, offered by President Abraham Lincoln.

He was a veteran of the Civil War who became Colonel of the 159th NY Volunteer Infantry. He left that assignment when he took his seat in the 38th Congress. Nelson lost his reelection bid in 1864, serving only until March 3, 1865. He became a delegate to the NY State Constitutional Convention of 1867.

Homer was selected Secretary of State in 1867, serving until 1871. He later became a State Senator in New York 1882-3. He was appointed a member of the commission to revise the judiciary articles of the New York State Constitution, in 1890.

His better known cases included the contest of the Matthew Vassar will and defending the noted Jacob Sharp. He was fond of hunting and fishing and other field sports. He married but had no children.
Locally, he served on the boards of the Vassar Home for Aged Men and was Director of the Central Cross-Town Railroad of Poughkeepsie and the City Railroad Company of Poughkeepsie.
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Nelson died on April 25, 1891, at age 61, and was buried at the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery. Much of the information I gleaned on Nelson was from a New York Times obituary dated April 26, 1891.

They were residents of Poughkeepsie, NY. In that same location is a monument in memory of two sisters, Mary Louise Scrymser wife of William Henry Merritt and Annie Scrymser who were lost at sea and whose bodies were not recovered. They lost their lives aboard the S. S. ATLANTIC of the White Star Line during her 19th voyage on Saturday, April 1, 1873.

The investigation into the accident began at Halifax, Nova Scotia, on Saturday, April 5, 1873, and continued for several weeks. The work of recovering the dead, cargo and valuables has been carried on by fishermen and divers of Marr’s Island. Each day bodies are raised via the grappling-irons until more than 250 had been interred ashore. Most were placed in coffins provided by officials at Halifax, and the bodies not recognized or taken away by friends repose in the Nova Scotia burying-grounds.

When the bodies of all the deceased were first brought ashore, their examination and identification were loosely conducted. In many cases money was taken off their persons. Several men from New York who were looking for deceased friends protested against this. Divers went out to the wreck in boats and dove looking for casualties. They reported that the water was clear and every object easy to see. The following is a description of the interior of the hull as seen by a diver.

“The air from above, which is furnished through the rubber tube, comes with a hissing sound, producing a strange feeling. I shudder at the thought of being immersed so deeply, and how slight an accident would insure instant destruction. All around the objects looked weird-like, the glasses in the casque magnifying the already bloated forms into twice their size. The waters are very cold, and a chilly feeling creeps over me at first, but as I proceed it wears away, and I enter upon the task I have undertaken with more nerve than I fancied I possessed. The immense hull lies down on the port side, which is broken in several places from contact with the reef. Fish were swimming around, eagerly devouring the particles of food which are to be picked up. Picking my way toward the hull, I catch hold of a rope and scramble up the deck. The place where I have descended is where the ship parted, and a sectional view of the hull and cargo is obtained. The forward hatch is open, and I peer down the hold.” And it goes on.

The Atlantic was built by the firm Harland and Wolff in Belfast in 1870. It was the second ship built for the new White Star Line. She had a steam engine producing 600 horsepower driving a single propeller with four masts rigged for sail. She sailed for New York on her maiden voyage on June 8, 1871. She weighed 3,707 tons, and traveled a speed of 14.5 knots.
Today, most of the ship lies fragmented under 40-60 feet of water. Artifacts from several salvage operations can be found displayed at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic at Halifax, and at the SS Atlantic Heritage Park and Interpretation Center at Terence Bay, Nova Scotia. A monument of the wreck is found at the mass grave in the Terence Bay Anglican Cemetery. A smaller monument marks a second mass grave at the local Catholic cemetery.
At the time, this was the worst maritime disaster for Canada in the 19th century. It is said 546 out of the total 975 on board perished. It is incredible that of those, two are buried at the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery while two more are memorialized there, in the same plot.

It is important to note that this is NOT the William Hamilton Merritt (1793-1862) who was a founder of the Welland Canal , born at Bedford, Westchester County, NY. However, that William H. Merritt did die in 1862 aboard a ship near Cornwall, Ontario, Canada and is buried at the Victoria Lawn Cemetery at St. Catherine’s, Ontario, Canada. More ironically, that William H. Merritt’s son was the late Thomas Rodman Merritt, a member of the Canadian House of Commons, who shared the same middle name as the Mary Merritt interred at Poughkeepsie. [Genealogical note: The Rodmans were a wealthy industrialist family with strong connections in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area and were Quaker as were the Merritt ancestors.]
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And in answer to an unasked question……The Titanic was a White Star Line ship.

A Visit from St. Nicholas, now referred to as The Night Before Christmas, is perhaps the best known of the Christmas holiday children’s stories. Poughkeepsie’s own Henry Livingston Jr. has been credited with writing this beautiful story. Many of Henry’s published stories and poems were written between the time his first wife died and his marriage to the second.

As part of the recent historic tour of the cemetery cosponsored by the Friends, one of the impersonators was Michael Frazier of Rhinebeck. Michael is a retired local educator and in retirement is serving as Treasurer of the Rhinebeck Historical Society and is a former President of The Museum of Rhinebeck History. He has authored a history of Rhinebeck published by Arcadia Press. He portrayed Abraham Lincoln in Rhinebeck on July 4 and was the perfect choice for portraying Henry Livingston

Henry was the son of Dr. Henry Gilbert Livingston and Susannah Storm Conklin. His grandfather was the noted Capt. Jan Storm, a founder of the First Reformed Church of Poughkeepsie. He was born October 13, 1748, in Poughkeepsie, Dutchess, NY and died February 29, 1828 in Poughkeepsie, Dutchess, NY. He married (1) SARAH WELLES May 18, 1774 in Stamford, CT, daughter of the noted REVEREND NOAH WELLES of Stamford, CT’s First Congregational Church and ABAGAIL WOOLSEY. Sarah was born November 07, 1752 in Stamford and died there in September 01, 1783. At that time he had his children boarded out and he concentrated on writing. He married (2) JANE M. PATTERSON September 01, 1793. She was born January 22, 1769 and died August 26, 1835.

Known as Major Henry Livingston for his service in the Revolutionary War, he was also a Judge, having been appointed by Governor Clinton. Like his father he was a surveyor and map maker by profession. Of course, he may be best known for his prowess as an author. Henry is buried in the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery with many other family members. Henry and Sarah had ten children, not all of whom lived to marry. He later had five children with Jane.
During his widowerhood of ten years, the Major was occupied with poetry and drawings for his friends and family, some of which ended up in the pages of NEW YORK MAGAZINE and the POUGHKEEPSIE JOURNAL. Although he signed his drawings, his poetry was usually anonymous or signed simply, “R”.

There has been great controversy over the years about Livingston having written the Christmas poem as it first appeared in the TROY SENTINAL on December 23, 1823. The poem definitely came out of the home of Clement Moore, and the person giving the poem to the newspaper, without Moore’s knowledge, certainly believed the poem had been written by Moore. It is documented, however, that several of Livingston’s children remembered their father reading that very same poem to them a good 15 years prior to the 1823 publication date.

It has been recorded that as early as 1837, Charles Fenno Hoffman, a friend of Moore’s, put Moore’s name on the poem. In 1844, Moore published the poem in his own book, POEMS. At various times in his later life, Moore wrote out the poem in longhand to give to his close friends. Even English department faculty at Vassar College have gotten into the controversy in the last decade and are quite sure Livingston did author the original document.

The mystery remains tucked away, perhaps with the remains of the esteemed Henry Livingston, in his burial plot at the historic Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery.

Margaret Brainard Hamilton
Margaret Brainard Hamilton was cremated in May 1985 at the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery, and her ashes were scattered in Amenia, NY, which is not too far from Poughkeepsie.

Margaret was born December 9, 1902 in Cleveland, Ohio, as the youngest of four children to Walter J. and Jennie (Adams) Hamilton.  She was educated at the prestigious Hathaway Brown School and Wheelock College in Boston.  She was trained to be a kindergarten school teacher, which she did only a short time before becoming a character actress in films for seven years prior to being cast in the Wizard of Oz in 1939, not only as the Wicked Witch of the West, but as Miss Almira Gulch, the kind neighbor of Dorothy Gale and her grandparents. In 1940, she played in My Little Chickadee and in 1948 the less-known Bungalow 13. She worked hard to support herself and her son as a single mother, and she never worked under a studio contract but asked for $1,000 a week for her acting.

Ms. Hamilton remained an active actress for many years, doing commercial and TV sitcom work. She was a noted advocate for children and animals, and public education.  In the 1940s-1950s she played in The Couple Next Door, a radio series where she was Aunt Eva/Effie (the name changed). In 1960, she played maid Elaine Zacharides in director/producer William Castle’s 13 Ghosts, a horror film of note at the time. In 1965-6, she played Morticia Adams’ mother Hester Frump in The Addams Family three times. She had turned down the memorable role of Grandmama. During that time she was a regular on the CBS soap opera The Secret Storm as housekeeper Katie. In the early 1970s she played Miss Peterson on the CBS soap opera As The World Turns.

In 1976, she played a witch opposite Oscar the Grouch on Episode #847 on Sesame Street. That same year she played on the Paul Lynde Holloween Special as the housekeeper resembling her earlier Wicked Witch role and introduced Lynde to the rock group Kiss. She also appeared as herself in an episode of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.  In 1979 and 1982, she played veteran journalist Thea Taft on Lou Grant. She finally retired from acting in 1982, at age 80.

She married Paul Boynton Meserve on June 13, 1931, divorcing in 1938. She never remarried. They had one son, Hamilton Wadsworth Meserve who she solely raised. Her three grandchildren are Christopher, Scott and Margaret Meserve.

She died on May 16, 1985 at age 82 in Salisbury, Connecticut. She will forever be remembered by millions of people throughout the world as the “Wicked Witch of the West” in the Wizard of Oz. According to the website Wikipedia, Ms. Hamilton was ranked #4 in the American Film Institute’s list of the 50 Best Movie Villains of All Time, making her the highest ranked female villain.

by Steven Mann