JULIUS S. THRALL & CHARLES H. THRALL

BIOGRAPHY

AS RECORDED IN:

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD OF TOLLAND AND WINDHAM COUNTIES CONNECTICUT.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF PROMINENT AND REPRESENTATIVE CITIZENS AND OF MANY OF THE EARLY SETTLED FAMILIES.

PUBLISHER: J.H.BEERS & CO., CHICAGO; 1903 P. 774

JULIUS S. THRALL, one of the prominent retired citizens of Rockville, Tolland county, comes from one of the oldest families in the State of
Connecticut, and is in the eighth generation from William Thrall, one of the first settlers of Windsor, and a member of the party of Rev. John Wareham, who settled there in 1635. His ancestry is given in the sketch of his brother, which immediately precedes.

When Julius S. Thrall had reached an age mature enough to start school, he was placed under the scholarly care of Dr. A.R. Goodrich, of what is now called Dobsonville, but which then bore the name of Centerville, and later was given two terms in the Vernon Center select school, this ending his educational advantages. At this time he was a strong and hearty young man of seventeen, and he decided to learn the trade of finisher, entering the New England mill for this purpose, and later, when competent, went to Stafford Springs, there taking charge of the finishing room in the mill, and still later went on to Coventry where his uncle D.B. Bacon, had charge of the mill.

On May 18, 1853, Mr. Thrall was married in West Stafford, Conn., to Miss Mary A. Holmes, who was born there Jan. 2, 1832, a daughter of John and Sabrina (Case) Holmes, the former of whom was a native of Stafford, a son of Deacon David Holmes, who had come there from Ashford, Conn., the latter a daughter of Stephen Case, of Tolland.

Early in the fifties Julius S. Thrall came to Rockville and for a short time was overseer in the American mill, this being an unusual position for a boy of twenty, but a short time subsequently he held a like position at Windsor, Conn. In 1857 he entered in the shuttle business, getting out the square blocks of timber; and while engaged in this industry, his right arm came in contact the saw, inflicting an injury which sadly crippled him and which has been a handicap to him ever since. After this accident in the spring of 1858, he went to his father's home in Vernon, and remained there until 1865, engaged in farming. At this time he endeavored to obtain admission into the army, but was debarred by his injured hand, and he then returned to his trade, working in Talcottville for two years, thence coming to the Rock mill at Rockville, where for six years he had charge of the finishing room.

On May 18, 1853, Mr. Thrall bought out the livery business of Jeremiah Page, in the rear of the "Rockville House," selling this in October, 1892, but during the first four years in that line he purchased the grounds on which the buildings stand, all of which he still owns, and he also owns the building occupied by White's warehouse. Since leaving the livery business he had charge of the bill-posting line of the town, which was previously conducted by his son Charles, but he later resigned this also to other hands, and in the Spring of 1899 accepted the position of superintendent of Grove Hill cemetery. Mr. Thrall owns a fine farm in Vernon, upon which his son William resides. To Mr. and Mrs. Thrall came children as follows: Ella Jane, born in 1854, died in 1857; Mary Josephine, born in 1855, died in 1856; Carrie Louise, born Sept. 26, 1857, married Arthur Kingsbury, and lives in Des Moines, Iowa; William B., born in 1859, now a farmer of Vernon, married Florence Preston, of Wapping, and has three children, Robert, Wallace, and Frederick; Julius Dwight, born in 1864, married Lizzie Layer, of New York city, and they have two children, May and Chester; Wilbur F., born in 1866, died in 1867; Charles H., born in Aug., 1870, in October,
1895, married Ida McPherson, of Rockville, and has one child, Corinne; and Edna Mabel was born in 1874.

Charles H. Thrall is located in Havana, Cuba, dealing in electrical supplies and also engaged in a contracting business. He was a member of the Rockville High School graduating class of 1889, and then entered Yale College, but failing eyesight in the second year necessitated his giving up school and his physician recommended a warmer climate. Going to Havana he entered in business there, and at the time of the breaking out of the Spanish war he had a thrilling experience in his attempt to reach the insurgents camp, a full account of which was printed in the New York World of May 22, 1898. He was confined in the Cabanas Fortress as a Spanish prisoner. Haydon Jones, a newspaper correspondent, was captured with him, and they were exchanged for two Spanish officers, and two servants, who had been captured on board the prize steamer "Argonauta," by the U.S. fleet. Edna Mabel Thrall, youngest in the family of Julius S. Thrall, is a graduate of the Rockville High School, class of 1893. She then went to the Boston School of Oratory, and also attended Dr. S.S. Curry's School of Expressions. At present this young lady is primary teacher in Rockville, having previously taught physical culture and elocution. In 1898 she had charge of the Elocution of the midland Chautauqua, at Des Moines, Iowa. She has charge of the primary department of the Sunday school of the Union Congregational Church, of which both she and her mother are devoted members.

The first presidential vote cast by Julius S. Thrall was for John C. Fremont, in 1856, and since that time he has voted with the Republican
party. He is a member of the city council, and socially is connected with the Golden Cross Society.

Reproduced by: Matthew Markert, grandson of Dorcas Smith and LeRoy T. Markert of Rockville, CT.