The Press., 1911-05-24
WILMINGTON. "Reminiscences of Rockville, Conn.,, il 1S45 to lS49, by J. Merrick.

In the fall of 1S45, after having twnked the most of two summers with local calp ,nters in my native town, WillipgtoD, and having learned by lexperience that what was worth doing Twas worth doing we'll. and to better lsarn the trade that I had chosen as my life work. entered the employ of the late Wm T. Cogswell of Rock
 V He as third year apprentice. he agreeing to pay me his usual price for the third year service, and l was at the age of the third year. When entered the emp Joy of Mir. OoRswell Rockville was a typical New England, as we'll as an American village, being, I believe. at the time of which write in the hands of those that had been it's founders and having drawn its population largely from the surround ing towns, Wilmington having oontri- buttd her full share. Several fami- lies from Wilmington had made Rock vills their home and many of her young people had found employment in the mills there. I judge that the first growth of Rockville had been quite rapid till about the time that Martin Vfn Buren wAs elected to the presidency, which was soon followed by the financial panic of 1887 and 1888. The industries of the village were the warp mill at the extreme east end of the village. near the outlet of the Snipsio lake, which furnished the water pc wer. The paper mill at the main fall may have been built later, but on the stream below was the Rock mill, the Leeds, the New Eng land, The Springville, at the first run by the late Austin Holt about 1885, and for several years following; next was the old Hockanum, and at the extreme west end was Saxony mill. Following the panic of 1837-8 to 1S44 no new industry had been de- velopsd when the Rock company built their first large mill, followed in three or four years by another of near ly the same size Just below the fall was the gristmill of Horace Vinton, which at that time was doing a good business, and below that was the blacksmith shop of Elizur Hurlbut, that after wards came into the posses sion of Cyrus White. who had much to do with the growth and prosperity of Rockville. Next, just over the canal, was two-story building, on the first floor of which was the shoe shop of MT. Johnson and on the second floor was the tailor shop of MT. Gill; man, an intimate friend of Edwin Mo- Lean, then in company with his uncle, Samuel Rose, in the old store then near the center of what was to be the common. The one hotel was kept by the late Asaph Mckinney, who also kept something of livery stable, and was the headquarters of the tally he coach that ran daily to Hartford. The telegraph had hardly been thought oi and railroads were few and far be- tween. The First Congregational church was the strong church of the village, but believe that there was a small Methodist church near the Saxony mill, but the Congregational church was we'll supported and they began to talk of another church. Luoius Hunt was the teacher of . class of young men and soon joined them and was ever a constant attend ant, and the friendship then formed for my Sunday school teacher wal never broken. This being the time oi the Washingtonian temperance move. ment, the public sentiment of Rock. vile was strongly in favor of temper. ance and total abstinence. Of those who had been the pioneers of Rock. vile can recall but 8 few, and among them shall include the man in whose employ then was, Wm. T. OoRswell, Dea. George Kellogg, Capt. Allen Hammond, Alonzo Baile y, Cyrus Winohell, Ralph Talcott and Esq
 Phinneas Talcott and others, and they were we'll supported by the younger generation that followed them, and the men in their employ. The mantle of the pioneers seems to have fallen upon those that followed, and the period of which write seems to have marked an epoch in the history oi Rockville, as it seems to have taken on new life from this time.
 Of thosa who took part in this new | fo A4 r J. N. Stickney, the active manager of the paper mill in the interest of . New York paper; Stanley White and Lebius Bissel, under the firm name of White 6 Bissel. in store at the west of the common; the Smith Broth. CTS, Col. Elijah and Ell, who built . fine store near the junction of Main street, the street passing to the north by the residence of MT. Ooggswell; the late Edwin Mclean and Uriah Car rier, who occupied the new store at north of the common, and Thayer 6 Crosby. MT. Thayer was a good musician and leader of the choir. Of the young men, Cyrus Winchell, IT,, George Maxwell, George Kellogg, Jr., and, think, two sons of Allen Ham, mond, and Clark Holt and otherd.
 Early in the summer of 1S46 Mir. Ooggswen built the twin houses for Gilman and Mclean. This was fol- lowed by the old store on the common giving place to the new store at the north of the common, with Mir. Mo- Lean in charge. The old wooden store was removed to another location and made lnto residence, or as 1t would be called to-day flat or duplex house. In midsummer, Mir. Coggs- we'll having taken a contract for . church at South Windsor. went there