The Newtown bee., 1898-07-22

!
In Wolfpits, Abel H0yt, Eli Morgan and
LemueI Landers each had hat shops.
In 1925 Asel and his brother Levi Beebe
were in business. Mr. Mcdowell saws
that he remained in Bethel until 1913.
when be went to Weston, and there. in
company with his brother, the late VIII
liam Mcdowell, opened shop and manu-
Iactured hats. His brother remained
only one year, and after short time he
also gave up the business as being IN
profitable. He next yentured into the
making OF matches, having for partner
seth Bishop. The buaineEs was moved
20 WestporC, Conn, but not proving q
success, he returned to Bethel Ia 1858,
where ne has since lived, working at hia
trade as hat-eizar for different firms,
In 1851 Charles @. Smith commenced
the manufacture of ladies' mapped hats
Ia the Glen shop, as did Nathan Seeley
and Austin B. Lockwood, and several
Others III the OUT districts. Ruben Tay-
lor made hats In the Elmwood district
in 1878 or 1879. In P!umtrees Nelson
Taylor had & small shop.
Uncle John, along with many others,
being expert workmen, worked and
earned good wages, Which proved OF
great benefit GO many, SIS it enabled them
60 pay OIL mortgages on their homes.
The Introduction OF the Old way Of max
ing hats revived business generally, and
time would fail US to tell Of the different
shops that were started, and the number
OF men who learned the art Of hating.
only TO be disappointed by the sudden
fall off in the demand for mapped hats,
Mr. Mcdowell subsequently worked in
the same shop, but for q new firm, that
OF Lee u Ratchford, who were the last
to attempt making mapped hats. In
1887, Mr. Mcdowell did his last work at
hat-sizing ia the factory OF Judd & Dun
ming, about which time hat-sizing ma
chimes were Introduced in some of the
factories here. Mr. Mcdowell, although
VI years OF age, Is genial and Jolly as in
younger days. He relates an incident of
bis boyhood which will doubtless be of
Interest to many. He says that In Sep
TENDER, 1921, terrible wind storm pre-
vailed, and the window glass in the
houses in the village were coated over
by the salt spray blown upon them
from the Sound. On that day he went
With T. L. Barnum down into East
Swamp, made famous by the great show
man, who owned ivy Island" and gave
mortgage on it when buying out
museum some years ago, and which
never was worth thinkers damn :" his
purpose in going to the island was 10
help +. L. b. drive the cows home. He
had forgotten the whole thing. unit!
some years ago he happened to be on q
visit to Bridgeport, and accidentally net
Barnum, who said John, do you re-
member what you stated to me the dav
OF the great wind, when we were in East
Swamp? asked you if you were not
sorry that you came with me after the
COWS, and you replied, No, for I have
! never been sorry for anything [ ever
| oio'." Linen, when l told Barnum,''
says Uncle John, "that since then
was quite sure l had done many things
that | was sorry for" Barnum was az
much pleased that he laughed heartily
over it. Leaving for the present the
consideration Of the hating industry of
these early days, we take up comb max
Ing, which aourished here for manv
years prior to 1910, In order to get val
liable information we called upon
Charles w. Stevens, probably the Oldest
comb maker in Bethel, at his pleasant
nome ON Maple street, and learned from
him that he was born in the town of
Brookfield, Conn, May 2, 1909; that he
came to Bethel at the age of IA, and went
to live with his uncle, John Williams. |
whe lived in the house now owned and
occupied by William Kyle, and that he
was apprenticed to his uncle to learn the |
comb makers trade, aud served six
years.
The claim has been made that comb |
making was first introduced by Daniel
Taylor, whose shop was located in Wild
cat, but Mr. Stevens informs us that his
uncle, John Williamg,with two brothers.
Whipple and Isaac Williams, came from
Philadelphia, and were the frat to intro
duce the business in the eastern section
OF Danbury, which was then, as now,
known as Plumtreea, including all of
Bethel and the other districts, viz, Wild
cat and Wolfpits. Isaac Williams' shop
was located on the ground where Mrs 7
Susan Hart now resides, and Whipple
Williams had comb factory where the
house OF Justice Of the Peace Henry G.
Judd is now located. OF those who car
Red on comb making, MFR Stevens men
ions Daniel Taylor, Sidney Peck, Char
es Smith, T. Z. Dibble, Azarael Smith. o
9. 81. Barnum and Ammon Taylor, all !
,eing located in Wildcat. n
Daniel Barnum, George Clapp and a
Ammon Benedict were located in Grassy q
Plain. Nathaniel Bishop, according to V
history Of Danbury, was the first to a
comb making in that village is
n the year 1910. d
Mr. Stevens says that In the village of p
sethel John Gale had comb maKer,s a
hop in o building on the ground where g
Walker Ferry built the block which is p
ow owned by Henry III. Baird and the Il
seorge "A. Hickok estate, on the corner 81
{ Center and Beaver streets, and that
he building was at one time, previous b