The Silvanius Willes Family Part 1

    Sorry about the long time between posts, with the holidays coming and going I had to get back on track and also I have been working on a lot of things at the St. Lawrence County Historical Association. I thought for the beginning of the new year I would write about some of the families who have four or more generations buried in Bayside.
  A few families have four or more generations buried in Bayside. One of those families is that of Silvanus Willes. The patriarch of the family was Silvanius/Sylvanus Willes. He was born Mar 26, 1756 in Windham CT.
   Silvanius/Sylvanus was a veteran of the Revolutionary War. He was in guard duty at Bunker Hill, retreat at Long Island. Silvanius/Sylvanus also served at Ticonderoga and during the invasion of Connecticut. On March 29, 1781 he married Eunice Davidson dau of Oliver & Eunice Spaulding Davidson. She was born Jun 13, 1757 in Mansfield, CT. They had eight children: Jabez, Betsey, Ziba, Wilder, Bela, Oliver, Luther, and Eunice. Three of them Jabez, Wilder, and Bela are buried in Bayside. Ziba and Luther are both buried in Erie Street Cemetery in Cleveland OH.
          Silvanius/Sylvanus died Aug 18, 1841 and Eunice died in Jun 29 1849. Sometime after Bayside opened their remains with the remains of their children and grandchildren who died in Potsdam before Bayside existed were moved to Bayside.

   

     Jabez was born Dec 6, 1790. He married Betsy Tupper, who was born Dec 6 1795. They had six children: George, Hiram, Jabez, Harriet, Mary and Eliza. Jabez Jr. died Jul 5, 1820. Hiram died Oct 31, 1822. George died Jan 31 1835.

     Jabez Sr. died on Mar 24, 1842

     Harriet married Wellington Stratton. She died Jun 4 1843.

Mary  was born Feb 20 1838 and died Dec 28 1855

    Betsy Tupper Willes died Jan 27 1885

      Eliza was born Jul 9 1827. She marred Charles Ward Leete who was born Jul 6, 1823 in Verona, NY to Rev. Charles W. Leete (who later became minister of Potsdam Methodist Church). Eliza was an active participant in the Temperance movement. There is a stained glass window in the office of the Potsdam United Methodist Church in honor of her work. They had two children Harriet (born Jan 31 1852 and married Sanford E. Clapp) and Charles Henry. Eliza Died Nov 16 1894 and Charles W. died Jun 8 1913

Eliza Willes Leete's Gravestone

Charles W. Leete's Gravestone

         Charles Henry Leete was born March 17, 1857 to Charles W. and Eliza Willes. Charles H. Leete was one of the earliest students of the Potsdam Normal School. He went to Syracuse University for a year before transferring to Yale from which he graduated in 1879. After Yale, he reentered Potsdam Normal School to study the theory & practice of teaching and from January to June of 1881 he taught there.

         Charles H. married Isadore Kelton on Jul 26, 1883. They had two sons, one of whom died at birth. From 1881 to 1887 he was associated with Dr. Julius Sach’s Collegiate Institute for Boys in New York City.

            In 1887 Charles H. Leete traveled to Europe where he attended lectures at different universities, and specialized in Pedagogy, Geography and Economics. He received a Doctor of Philosophy and Masters of Art from the University of Leipzig in 1890. He returned to New York City in 1890 and then that same year he succeeded his father as proprietor of the Potsdam Foundry & Machine Shop. The following year he became headmaster of Dr. Sach’s School for Girls, of which he later became principal and proprietor. In 1907 the school was renamed after him.

            In 1900 Charles became a Trustee of the Potsdam Normal School. Sometime later he was elected President of the Trustees after the death of General Edward A. Merritt.

            Leete helped write textbooks including: “Longman’s New School Atlas,” “Longman’s Textbook of Geography,” “Longman’s Questions in Geography and Exercises in Geography.” He was a life fellow of the National Geographic Society and for several years an examiner in Geography for the College Entrance Examination.

            Charles H. Leete retired to Potsdam. During his retirement he wrote several pamphlets including the following: “The St. Lawrence Ten Towns,” “Some Landmarks of Potsdam,” “The Early History of Potsdam” and “The Bridges of Potsdam.” He started a book titled “Potsdupinni” which his son Edward had published after Charles’s death.

          Isadore died in 1927 and Charles H. Leete died January 8, 1936 and is buried in the family plot at Bayside.  

Gravestone of Charles Henry and Isadore Leete