The tale of Edmund B Bostwick is a short one, but of a life boldly lived. Born in Vermont in 1801, he was one of 12 children of Gershom Bostwick and Naomi Northrup. Gershom moved his family to Ohio around 1812, and died in Portage County, Ohio, 11 May 1831. Naomi died shortly after.
Edmund's first wife was Emmeline Smith, whom he married 16 December 1831, (unsubstantiated), and the second was Charlotte Lovett, married 21 December 1835, at the Philadelphia Episcopal Church of the Epiphany..
This blurry clipping from The American Railroad Journal reads: "On Monday evening, 16th instant, after a short illness, Emmeline, wife of Edmund B Bostwick, and only daughter of Thomas R Smith." Which means Emmeline died on 16 January 1832, after only a month of her wedding date. She is buried in Stamford, Fairfield, Connecticut.
Edmund had moved from Ohio to New York City and was evidently quite successful at whatever business he was engaged in there. He started buying and selling land in Michigan and eventually came to Grand Rapids to live around 1841.
Here are a couple of items that appeared in The History of Kent County, Michigan, by C.C. Chapman & Co., 1881:
"W. N. Cook built the first buggy ever built in the valley, for E. B. Bostwick, in 1842-3. Another one, built afterward for Bostwick, was sold by him to Antoine Campau, and is still in his family. Mr. Cook make the elliptic steel springs, bolts, woodwork and everything connected with the vehicles. Bostwick sold this buggy to Jeff. Morrison, who in turn sold it to a settler on Gull Prairie, after he had convinced the buyer that the iron work was not cast. This was so well and neatly done, that it resembled casting." (p818)
"The village was platted Dec. 1, 1848, for LeGrand Cannon, of Troy, New York, who commissioned E. B. Bostwick to purchase lands in Cannon. Mr. Bostwick platted the village of Cannonsburg." (p681)
Taken in order, these following land records tell a sad tale. Edmund B and Charlotte Bostwick bought up a quantity of lots in the Village of Grand Rapids, sold a few lots, then Edmund caught gold fever and left for California. Unfortunately he died along the way, near what is now Brady, Lincoln, Nebraska, on the way to Fort Laramie, according to a contemporaneous diary written by Micajah Littleton, also a traveler to California. The last two entries show that his wife had to sell the properties.
Edmund's first wife was Emmeline Smith, whom he married 16 December 1831, (unsubstantiated), and the second was Charlotte Lovett, married 21 December 1835, at the Philadelphia Episcopal Church of the Epiphany..
This blurry clipping from The American Railroad Journal reads: "On Monday evening, 16th instant, after a short illness, Emmeline, wife of Edmund B Bostwick, and only daughter of Thomas R Smith." Which means Emmeline died on 16 January 1832, after only a month of her wedding date. She is buried in Stamford, Fairfield, Connecticut.
Edmund had moved from Ohio to New York City and was evidently quite successful at whatever business he was engaged in there. He started buying and selling land in Michigan and eventually came to Grand Rapids to live around 1841.
Here are a couple of items that appeared in The History of Kent County, Michigan, by C.C. Chapman & Co., 1881:
"W. N. Cook built the first buggy ever built in the valley, for E. B. Bostwick, in 1842-3. Another one, built afterward for Bostwick, was sold by him to Antoine Campau, and is still in his family. Mr. Cook make the elliptic steel springs, bolts, woodwork and everything connected with the vehicles. Bostwick sold this buggy to Jeff. Morrison, who in turn sold it to a settler on Gull Prairie, after he had convinced the buyer that the iron work was not cast. This was so well and neatly done, that it resembled casting." (p818)
"The village was platted Dec. 1, 1848, for LeGrand Cannon, of Troy, New York, who commissioned E. B. Bostwick to purchase lands in Cannon. Mr. Bostwick platted the village of Cannonsburg." (p681)
Taken in order, these following land records tell a sad tale. Edmund B and Charlotte Bostwick bought up a quantity of lots in the Village of Grand Rapids, sold a few lots, then Edmund caught gold fever and left for California. Unfortunately he died along the way, near what is now Brady, Lincoln, Nebraska, on the way to Fort Laramie, according to a contemporaneous diary written by Micajah Littleton, also a traveler to California. The last two entries show that his wife had to sell the properties.
Bostwick, Edmund B. & Charlotte (w), Grand Rapids, Grantor. John H. Hollister, same place, Grantee. Convey Lots 2, 3, Blk. 14, Bostwick & Co., Add., Village of Grand Rapids.
4 May, 1850. Liber R Pg. 59
4 May, 1850. Liber R Pg. 59
Bostwick, Edmund V., by the Sheriff of Kent Co., Grand Rapids, Grantor. Alfred D. Rathbone, same place, Grantee. Convey numerous Lots on Blks. 2, 9, 13, 17, 21, in the Village of Grand Rapids Bostwick & Co., Add.
1 June, 1850. Liber S Pg. 7, 8.
Bostwick, Charlotte, Timothy J. Tanner, Mary Ann Tanner, James M. Smith, James W. Smith and Charlotte Bostwick as executrix of Edmund B. Bostwick,- by Charles G. Rood, Circuit Court Commissioner, forced sale of Property, Kent Co., Grantor. David A. Neal, Trustee of Nancy F. Barstow, Res.-----, Grantee. Convey land on Sec. 17, 160 acres, Paris Twp.
16 July, 1852. Liber R Pg. 265
Bostwick, Edmund B. – forced sale of Property by Harvey K. Rose, Sheriff of Kent co., Grantor. Ralph Clark, Res. – not spec. - , Grantee. Convey numerous Lots on Blks. 2, 9, 13, 12, 17, 21, Bostwick & Co., Add., and ½ Lots 168, 217, Kent Plat, Grand Rapids.
17 Aug., 1852. Liber R Pg. 328, 329
From: http://kent.migenweb.net/land/earlyrecords/b.html
These lots were the blocks encompassed by Park Street, Jefferson Ave, Wealthy Ave, and Division St, a good chunk of urban property. The Bostwick home was "on the south side of Cherry, east of Madison" or "at the head of State Street and south of Cherry". Interestingly, on the Henry Hart map of 1853 Madison is named Charlotte. Franklin Everett's "Memorials of the Grand River Valley" has this to say about that street name:
Here is what Baxter had to say about the Bostwick homestead: "In 1863, the Eagle Hotel property was sold for $4,000, in 1867 for $8,500, in 1872 with some betterments, for $20,000. The old Gilbert, or Bostwick place, as it was once called, on the south side of Cherry street east of Madison avenue, now known as the Morris place, was sold in 1865 for $45,000. It then contained about twenty acres of ground."
Earlier, Baxter had said this: "Taking the region enclosed by Fulton street on the south, Division street on the east, Bridge street on the north, and the river on the west, we have all that had the appearance of a village. A few scattering houses were outside, on Bostwick's Addition, and on the west side of the river. Several very good residences were on Fulton street, east of the limits given; and far out of town Mr. Bostwick had his cosy home, fitted up with admirable surroundings, at what always should be called the "Bostwick Place."
And, in speaking of Robert W Morris "in 1865, Mr Morris realized as his share upward of $250,000. Early in the latter year he returned to Grand Rapids for permanent residence and purchased the old Bostwick homestead, with about twenty acres of land and improvements, at the head of State street and south of Cherry -- one of the finest homes in the city. . . . Mr. Morris lived but about a year after settling his family at Grand Rapids, his death occurring May 5, 1866. He was a man possessed of fine traits of character; abhorred profanity; won the respect and affection of those in his employ, and was at once strong and manly and tender and affectionate in his social and domestic life. Since his death the fine property has been managed by his widow, Mrs. Sarah A Morris. Except the residence part, the homestead is platted and being sold in city lots, many of which are further improved and very valuable. The locality is elevated, slightly and pleasant, and has become one of the most desirable spots for residence within the city."
The person who owned the Bostwick house between Bostwick and Morris was Francis B Gilbert. Baxter has this to say about him:
"Francis B. Gilbert was born at Greenfield, Mass., May 25, 1818; came to Grand Haven, Mich., in 1837; to Grand Rapids in 1840; returned to Grand Haven in 1844; came again to Grand Rapids in 1855, and resided here until his death, May 25, 1885. He was a man of affairs, successful in business, upright and esteemed. For much of the time in business interests he was intimately associated with his brother, Thomas D. Gilbert. He was President of the Grand Rapids Gas Light Company for more than a quarter of a century, and was also connected with banking."
Both Francis and Thomas were listed as living in the house in the 1859 Grand Rapids City Directory.
The house referred to is the large one on the south side of Rose (Cherry) before College on the 1853 Henry Hart map.
Here is the house today at 434 Cherry (from Google Streetview.
These lots were the blocks encompassed by Park Street, Jefferson Ave, Wealthy Ave, and Division St, a good chunk of urban property. The Bostwick home was "on the south side of Cherry, east of Madison" or "at the head of State Street and south of Cherry". Interestingly, on the Henry Hart map of 1853 Madison is named Charlotte. Franklin Everett's "Memorials of the Grand River Valley" has this to say about that street name:
Here is what Baxter had to say about the Bostwick homestead: "In 1863, the Eagle Hotel property was sold for $4,000, in 1867 for $8,500, in 1872 with some betterments, for $20,000. The old Gilbert, or Bostwick place, as it was once called, on the south side of Cherry street east of Madison avenue, now known as the Morris place, was sold in 1865 for $45,000. It then contained about twenty acres of ground."
Earlier, Baxter had said this: "Taking the region enclosed by Fulton street on the south, Division street on the east, Bridge street on the north, and the river on the west, we have all that had the appearance of a village. A few scattering houses were outside, on Bostwick's Addition, and on the west side of the river. Several very good residences were on Fulton street, east of the limits given; and far out of town Mr. Bostwick had his cosy home, fitted up with admirable surroundings, at what always should be called the "Bostwick Place."
And, in speaking of Robert W Morris "in 1865, Mr Morris realized as his share upward of $250,000. Early in the latter year he returned to Grand Rapids for permanent residence and purchased the old Bostwick homestead, with about twenty acres of land and improvements, at the head of State street and south of Cherry -- one of the finest homes in the city. . . . Mr. Morris lived but about a year after settling his family at Grand Rapids, his death occurring May 5, 1866. He was a man possessed of fine traits of character; abhorred profanity; won the respect and affection of those in his employ, and was at once strong and manly and tender and affectionate in his social and domestic life. Since his death the fine property has been managed by his widow, Mrs. Sarah A Morris. Except the residence part, the homestead is platted and being sold in city lots, many of which are further improved and very valuable. The locality is elevated, slightly and pleasant, and has become one of the most desirable spots for residence within the city."
The person who owned the Bostwick house between Bostwick and Morris was Francis B Gilbert. Baxter has this to say about him:
"Francis B. Gilbert was born at Greenfield, Mass., May 25, 1818; came to Grand Haven, Mich., in 1837; to Grand Rapids in 1840; returned to Grand Haven in 1844; came again to Grand Rapids in 1855, and resided here until his death, May 25, 1885. He was a man of affairs, successful in business, upright and esteemed. For much of the time in business interests he was intimately associated with his brother, Thomas D. Gilbert. He was President of the Grand Rapids Gas Light Company for more than a quarter of a century, and was also connected with banking."
Both Francis and Thomas were listed as living in the house in the 1859 Grand Rapids City Directory.
The above is from the 1868 Ruger map of Grand Rapids.
This is from the 1876 Grand Rapids Map, courtesy of Barbara VanderMark.
The Bostwick house in 1888, from "Grand Rapids As It Is".
The belvedere on the house furnished a great place for panoramic views of the city, as this view attests. Looking Northwest over Fulton Street Park, (nw of Park Church).
Another view of Fulton Street Park after 1868. (First (Park) Congregational Church was built in 1868.) Thomas D Gilbert, an early Sheriff and later bank president, cared for the park, installed the fence and also planted the trees. In recognition of his service to the park, a monument to him was installed there in 1896. He also planted trees in Triangular Park. Both of these parks are undergoing restoration lately and here is a link to a city architectural assessment on them. 
Both above pictures from the GR Public Museum via Robert Kline's site.
Here is the house at 384 Cherry in 1895 after Morris Avenue was put through. The house has lost a wing, and is now in the "Morris Addition to the City of Grand Rapids."
Here is the house today at 434 Cherry (from Google Streetview.
This was not the first land speculation done by the Bostwicks. They were early buyers of land in Eaton County, Michigan, as this entry from the book, Honey, I Bought An Airplane, page 130, attests, but it is doubtful that they ever lived there.
The land on which the original village of Charlotte was laid out was purchased from the government by George W. Barnes, who sold it to Edmund B. Bostwick, of New York City, through the latter's agent, Mr. Lawrance. In the Charlotte Republican of Oct. 10, 1879, H. I. Lawrance caused the following old letter from Mr. Bostwick to be published, and it settles any doubt as to the origin of the name of the place;
" New York, Dec. 29, 1835.
Dear Lawrance, —
Your favor communicating the terms on which
you purchased the balance of the Eaton county-seat property is be-
fore me. I am much pleased with the purchase, and will soon write
you a long letter submitting a plan for the town. You speak of call-
ing the place after me, but as I have just become a married man, I
would prefer calling it Charlotte, or Charlotteville, after my wife. I
will make a deed for one-quarter of the property as soon as my deed
arrives, and hand it to your father. Next spring we will try to bring
the place into notice.
You will have heard through the papers of the late destructive
fire in this city. We, among others, were burnt to the ground, though
our loss is but small. On Sunday next I will write you a long letter,
and give some of the particulars of the late fire and also of my mar-
riage.
In haste, your friend,
E. B. Bostwick."
Your favor communicating the terms on which
you purchased the balance of the Eaton county-seat property is be-
fore me. I am much pleased with the purchase, and will soon write
you a long letter submitting a plan for the town. You speak of call-
ing the place after me, but as I have just become a married man, I
would prefer calling it Charlotte, or Charlotteville, after my wife. I
will make a deed for one-quarter of the property as soon as my deed
arrives, and hand it to your father. Next spring we will try to bring
the place into notice.
You will have heard through the papers of the late destructive
fire in this city. We, among others, were burnt to the ground, though
our loss is but small. On Sunday next I will write you a long letter,
and give some of the particulars of the late fire and also of my mar-
riage.
In haste, your friend,
E. B. Bostwick."
It is stated also that Mrs. Bostwick offered, in case the county-seat should be honored with her name, to donate a fine bell to the first church that should be erected here. Afterwards one of the churches (Methodist or Congregationalist) is said to have claimed the fulfillment of the promise, but the offer was asserted to have been made only to an Episcopal Church. Mr. Bostwick died in the mountain region of the West, in Carson Valley.
In August of 1835, Edmund had also bought over 1000 acres in Illinois.
In 1838 and 1839 he bought land in Berrien and Eaton counties in Michigan, and LaSalle and Grundy counties in Illinois.
Lest you think politics and land speculation were his only interests, in 1847 Edmund was interested in railroads.
In August of 1835, Edmund had also bought over 1000 acres in Illinois.
In 1838 and 1839 he bought land in Berrien and Eaton counties in Michigan, and LaSalle and Grundy counties in Illinois.
Edmund also, in 1841, received 340 votes running on the Whig ticket for Lieutenant Governor of Michigan, in St Clair County, with Philo C Fuller as his running mate for Governor. The Democrats won.
Lest you think politics and land speculation were his only interests, in 1847 Edmund was interested in railroads.
And plank roads.
And insurance.
In 1845, Edmund Bostwick and John Almy collaborated on a 6-page brochure to entice people to settle in Michigan, entitled "To Emigrants", and it contained a map. I have not seen a copy of this rare document, but this link shows which libraries have a copy. I did find a copy of it published in the Ypsilanti Sentinel, 11 June 1845. The map was not published.
In 1850, with mounting debt, Edmund caught gold fever and joined a group of men from Grand Rapids to seek their fortune in California. Unfortunately, he caught another fever, probably cholera, and died along the way, about June 25, 1850, near the present city of Brady, Lincoln, Nebraska, then Wyoming Territory. This is about 254 miles from Fort Laramie, where he is preported to be buried, although carrying a choler(Make sure you read the reader's comment below this post for more information!)
Here is an account of that final, fateful trip from the 24 May 1850 edition of the Milwaukee Daily Sentinal.
Charlotte didn't let any grass grow under her feet after learning of Edmund's death on the way to Fort Laramie in late June, being enumerated both in Grand Rapids in the spring of 1850, and Washington, DC, in December of that same year with her family, and lived on rents and investments in this not-too-shabby house in Mount Airy, Philadelphia, until 1899, when she died.
Charlotte left a trust to the city of Philadelphia for the running of the Lovett Memorial Library, named for her family. The Bostwick Trust had some legal issues in 1959. The following history is from their website:
| "Branch History |
Germantown Avenue began as an Indian footpath through the woods used as a road by settlers. In 1865, Thomas Lovett purchased more than ten acres along the avenue as a family estate. Mount Airy Free Library was founded twenty years later by a trio (one of whom was Miss Louisa Lovett) in a rented room at a lumberyard, where 7153-55 Germantown Avenue now stands. Another of the trio, Mrs. Sheldon Potter, acted as volunteer librarian. She had a small circulating library at her home for neighborhood boys, hoping to raise their standard of reading materials from the "dime novels" that were all they could afford for themselves.
In 1887, Charlotte Lovett Bostwick built and endowed the library as a memorial to her brother, Thomas R. Lovett. This portion now serves as a meeting room. Lovett Library became a branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia in 1924. A new addition was opened in 1961, and in 1982 the Friends of Lovett Library started.
The library was renovated in 1999 as part of the "Changing Lives" campaign. In 2004, the Lovett Memorial Reading Garden was dedicated."
In 1982 the Friends of Lovett Library organized for the purpose of raising funds for the library. Their website has a more comprehensive history, as well as a few historical photos, here.
Here is an article about the memorial to the first World War dead in front of the library.
Franklin Everett, who knew Edmund B Bostwick, wrote a beautiful tribute to him in his "Memorials of the Grand River Valley": |
Bostwick, had been an Eastern merchant--a partner in a heavy firm, in New York, which, failing, divested him of all property which he held in his own right. He had still some $40,000 which belonged to his wife, and with that, and the funds of others, he did an extensive business. He fitted up for himself, with refined taste, a modest suburban residence, the location of which still bears his name. He located lands extensively, laid out and put in market that part of the city known as Bostwick's addition; built mills in different towns; established a colony on Crockery Creek; represented the people in the Senate; and in short,,was in all kinds of speculations, each a brilliant scheme, when he began it, but sure to end unfavorably for him. If he had had-means, he would have done great things, but he would have needed a renewal of his fortune once in five years. Too ardent for a business man, he was sure to overleap himself, and his schemes were about as sure to fail.
On September 5, 1850, the Grand River Eagle published a letter from Canton Smith and Henry Cook stating that Bostwick had died June 25 of cholera while headed to the gold fields. Also en route to California, Micajah Littleton wrote in his diary on June 21 "... we past 3 waggons laying by for a sick man his name is E.B. Bostwick who I think will die has Dysentery..." (Cholera killed more than 270 individuals on the trail in 1849 and only two perished from dysentery, so Smith and Cook's cholera diagnosis is probably the correct one.) While writing his diary entry Littleton was in Nebraska on the south side of the Platte River about 20 miles east of the Platte Forks or across the river from what is now the town of Brady. This is about 260 miles east of Ft. Laramie. As wagons only traveled about 15 miles a day Bostwick clearly never made it to the fort in four days. He likely died at or very near where Littleton saw him. It was common for survivors to write home and state that deaths were at well known locations rather than where they actually occurred, so a contemporary document might (incorrectly) state he died at Ft. Laramie.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Richard. I had read of the Smith letter, but not the Littleton diary.
ReplyDelete