Samuel Chichester

Samuel Chichester was born December 4, 1801 in Cairo, NY.  His father is unknown, but according to Munson Parker's will, his mother's name was Rebecca and he had a step father named Simeon Fowler, who was living with him in 1850 (Poughkeepsie census).  On March 4, 1824 Samuel married Susannah Andrus, daughter of Sylvester Andrus and Elizabeth Parker Clark.   Samuel and Susannah had 10 sons. Thier first son died within a few weeks of his birth.

In 1823, Samuel helped build the Mountain House (located in the Catskills). "Construction of the hotel was in charge of Well Finch, a local carpenter, and Samuel Chichester, a young man of Welsh background who had just completed his apprenticeship under Finch in the nearby town of Cairo and who eventually became, in the 1850's and 1860's, one of the leading furniture manufacturers in the state." ("The Catskill Mountain House: America's Grandest Hotel", Roland Van Zandt).  Samuel is listed as being a church elder at the Hunter Presbyterian church, Green Co., NY, from May 5, 1839 until 1845.

Samuel again shows up in Dutchess Co., NY index of deeds-- he received two deeds: one from Roderick C. Andrus, his brother-in-law, in 1841 and one from Stephen Armstrong in 1851.  Several other Chichesters are mentioned on this index, including Rebecca Chichester, Sam's son Edward, and Frank's wife Emily M. Chichester (Ingersoll). 

According to a History of Ulster County with Emphasis on the Last 100 Years (1983), Samuel's son Frank traveled to the foothills of the Catskills in 1863 looking for a site to build a chair factory.  "Frank, his brother Lemual A. and their uncle, Henry L. Chichester, bought the valley, which they named Chichester."  As a side note, Samuel had a son named Henry Lavius, and he may have been mistakenly referred to as "uncle Henry" in this history -- no evidence of a person named Henry L that was Samuel's brother has been found.  Frank and Lemuel ran the chair factory in Chichester for a few years, and in 1875 Frank sold his share of the company to Lemuel and went to Ohio.  The business failed soon after, and Lemuel sold the business and land to William O. Schwarzwaelder.   Here is a more detailed account of how the town of Chichester came to be.  The town of Chichester still stands today, and can be visited on the web at: http://www.chichesterville.net/

Samuel's son Lemuel was a very interesting individual, and a short biography written by Nathaniel Bartlett Sylvester can be found here.

The 1850 Poughkeepsie, Dutchess Co., NY census lists the following:

The 1860 Poughkeepsie Census lists:

There are several discrepancies between the two records, such as Susan's age and place of birth.  The latter info has proven to be accurate. 

Samuel Chichester died at Phoenicia, Ulster Co., Sunday, Jan 26th 1873.  He was 72.  His obituary appeared in the Jan 29  Poughkeepsie Daily Eagle.   Samuel is buried at the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery, Section B, Lot 68 & 69, next to his wife Susan.

Last updated: Jul 23, 2007