- Biography Of Slocum Howland
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SLOCUM HOWLAND, late of Sherwood, in the town of Scipio, was for many years numbered among the most worthy and respected citizens of Cayuga County, and was an important factor in its mercantile interests, being for several decades extensively engaged in business in this village, where he built up an extensive trade, and at the same time won for himself a lasting reputation as a man possessing most excellent traits of character, upright and honorable in his dealings, and imbued with that generous public spirit that was always ready to assist in any enterprise conducive to the general welfare. He was a native and life-long resident of the Empire State, his birth having occurred in Saratoga County, September 20, 1794, one hundred years ago, and his death in 1881.
Mr. Howland was of New England ancestry, his parents, Benjamin and Mary (Slocum) Howland, being from Dartmouth, Mass. In order to improve their financial condition, they decided to remove to the Western frontier, where a good deal of land could be bought for a small sum of money. Accordingly, he and his wife crossed the boundary line between Massachusetts and New York, and settled in Saratoga County, where they remained a few years. Then, hearing glowing accounts of the Lake District, one hundred and fifty miles westward, they decided on another removal; and in 1794 they came to the town of Scipio. It was in the winter season; and the journey, which it took two weeks to accomplish, was made in sleighs, the herd of twenty cattle that they brought being driven before them. On their way they stopped at Hardenburg's Corners, now the city of Auburn. Mr. Howland bought eighty-five acres of land in the southern part of the county, paying four dollars an acre for it. He was a mason by trade and a workman of skill, and on arriving in Scipio secured all the work he desired at three dollars per day. He was employed in the construction of many of the dwelling-houses and other buildings, one of them being the Friends' meeting-house, which was built in 1810. Prior to that time the Friends had worshipped in the front room of Benjamin Wilbur's log cabin. Benjamin Howland and his wife reared a family of six children, of whom two were sons-Slocum, whose name is placed at the head of this sketch; and Humphrey. The latter was a member of the Assembly of 1812. The daughters were Sylvia, Martha, Mary, and Harmony. Benjamin Howland died in September, 1831, at the advanced age of seventy-seven years; while his wife, who died in 1840, lived to the age of fourscore and five years. The mortal remains of both lie buried in a burial-place set apart by Mr. Howland shortly after he came to this county.
Slocum Howland was bred and educated in Scipio. Not liking the farm, when old enough to choose for himself, he entered the store of Richard Talcott, at Talcott's Corners, as a clerk, and remained there in that capacity for some years. Afterward he established himself in mercantile business in the village of Sherwood, where he was in partnership with his brother-in-law, Thomas J. Alsop. When this partnership was dissolved, in 1831, his nephew, Ledra Heazlet, became his partner, the firm being known as Howland & Heazlet until the death of the latter. Mr. Howland later admitted his son William to the firm, which was then called Howland & Son, remaining thus until the death of the senior partner in 1881. Mr. Howland was well known all over Western New York as a man of honesty and honor, and a friend of the poor and oppressed. He was a Garrison Abolitionist and an active worker in what was known as the "underground railway." He was by birth a member of the Society of Friends, and accepted and revered the faith of his fathers.
On September 27, 1821, Slocum Howland was united in marriage with Hannah
Talcott, a daughter of Joseph and Sarah (Hawxhurst) Talcott. Three children
were born to them - William, Emily, and Benjamin. William, who married Hannah
Letchworth on April 20, 1853, has two children - Isabel and Herbert. Benjamin
married Louisa Powell in 1858; and to them have been born four children `
Agnes, Clarence, Edith, and Blanche. The exellent
portrait of Mr. Slocum Howland on another page will
be highly appreciated by the readers of the present volume. Although it is
written thirteen years since this good man passed to his rest,
"The soft memory of his virtues yet
Lingers, like twilight hues when the sun is
set."
Early History Of Friends In Cayuga County, N.
Y
Cayuga County NY Historian's Office
Cayuga County NYGenWeb Project