Person Information

Biography

Mentioned in 18380504BJS_WHS1: "Abell  of the Johnson House Fredonia  will write you about raising some funds for him—begs me to add a word. I supposed it would be painful to the poor fellow to mention the particulars, & so I did not ask & know nothing—only that he is needy."

From a History of the Colombia Hotel in Fredonia: 
"The corner of West Main Street (Route 20) and Park Street in Fredonia has been a valuable parcel of real estate since the earliest settlement of the area. The first known use was the location of Hezekiah Barker's log home/tavern in 1808 which he later sold to Mosely Abell. This structure was lighted by gas in 1821, possibly the first hotel in America to do so, according to the Dunkirk Evening Observer. General Lafayette stopped there in 1824.

Stage lines east/west and south crossed at Fredonia, generating much business for the hotel. In 1836, Captain Samuel Johnson built a brick hotel on this site, the Johnson House, opening it on July 4, 1837. It was subsequently owned by W. H. Taylor, and called the Taylor House. For years, this hotel was the principal hostelry in the region."

Letter References

Citations

Biography and Citation Information:
Biography: 
Mentioned in 18380504BJS_WHS1: "Abell of the Johnson House Fredonia will write you about raising some funds for him—begs me to add a word. I supposed it would be painful to the poor fellow to mention the particulars, & so I did not ask & know nothing—only that he is needy." From a History of the Colombia Hotel in Fredonia: "The corner of West Main Street (Route 20) and Park Street in Fredonia has been a valuable parcel of real estate since the earliest settlement of the area. The first known use was the location of Hezekiah Barker's log home/tavern in 1808 which he later sold to Mosely Abell. This structure was lighted by gas in 1821, possibly the first hotel in America to do so, according to the Dunkirk Evening Observer. General Lafayette stopped there in 1824. Stage lines east/west and south crossed at Fredonia, generating much business for the hotel. In 1836, Captain Samuel Johnson built a brick hotel on this site, the Johnson House, opening it on July 4, 1837. It was subsequently owned by W. H. Taylor, and called the Taylor House. For years, this hotel was the principal hostelry in the region."
Citation Type: 
Website
Citation URL: 
http://wnyheritagepress.org/photos_week_2008/fredonia_columbia_hotel/fredonia_columbia_hotel.html
Title of Webpage: 
nyheritagepress.org
Website Viewing Date: 
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Website's Last Modified Date: 
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Biography: 
Mentioned in 18380504BJS_WHS1: "Abell of the Johnson House Fredonia will write you about raising some funds for him—begs me to add a word. I supposed it would be painful to the poor fellow to mention the particulars, & so I did not ask & know nothing—only that he is needy." From the Chautauqua Genealogist: "Thomas Griswold Abell, the father of William H. Abel and grandfather of Harriet E. Abell, was born 15 April 1791 in Bennington, Bennington Co., VT. He removed to Fredonia, Chautauqua Co., NY in 1814 to join his brother, Moseley Wells Abel. Moseley W. Abell had been an innkeeper in Buffalo, NY and had been burned out during the War of 1812. Thomas B. and Moseley W. Abel took over the log tavern which had been run by Hezekiah Barker, making it an increasingly popular stopping place for travelers. They later operated the stageline running between Buffalo, NY and Erie, PA."
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Biography: 
From the ancestry.com forum: "The picture that emerges from all this makes some sense. Cushing had served on the 30th and 31st, retreating with the others when it became necessary. Abell packed up and fled on the 31st. Moseley Abell, who was born on February 24, 1781, had moved from Bennington, VT to Buffalo in 1811 where he had kept an inn at the corner of Main and Seneca Streets. The British burned the building along with many others on December 31, 1813. Abell left, probably in a large sleigh, with his wife and three young daughters as well as any of their household goods that they could carry. Some families fled east and south toward Batavia, but Abell and others chose to go west. They crossed the Cattaraugus Creek, and, Mrs. Avery said, stopped along with other refugee families at a tavern in Silver Creek. Ordinarily, in most travelers’ accounts, stopping at an inn or tavern in that vicinity usually meant Mack’s tavern near the mouth of the creek where he had also taken over the ferry that made crossing a little less dangerous. However, because Mrs. Avery, in repeating this anecdote, which had obviously been passed down through the family, specified Silver Creek, the location was probably John Howard’s tavern that was meant. From other contemporary accounts, we can be fairly sure that the Abells took at least one day or perhaps two to reach Silver Creek, so he and his family and the other refugees would be huddled together at the inn probably on January 2nd, 1814. The Abells went on the next day, finally reaching Mayville, and that might have been the end of it. However, Moseley Abell’s father, Thomas, with another son named Thomas G. Abell, came to Fredonia from Vermont in 1814 and in May the father bought Hezekiah Barker’s inn on today’s Park Place. By the fall of 1814 he had replaced it with a larger framed building. Early in October the elder Thomas Abell died, and the property was taken over by his sons, Thomas and Moseley W. Abell. Probably because of that, Moseley and his family moved to Fredonia in early 1815."
Citation for Birth Info:
Citation Type: 
Website
Citation URL: 
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nychauta/CEMETERY/Pioneer/Shepard-Dougnuts.html
Title of Webpage: 
ancestry.com
Website Viewing Date: 
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Citation for Death Info:
Citation Type: 
Website
Citation URL: 
http://www.chautgen.org/sadmin/pdfs/990200.pdf
Title of Webpage: 
The Chautauqua Genealogist
Website Viewing Date: 
Friday, April 17, 2015 - 12:15
Website Last Modified Date: 
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