JAMESTOWN JOURNAL
ADOLPHUS FLETCHER
Born in Croydon, N. H., Sept. 3, 1796; m.1st Sarah STOW m. 2d, Caroline E. BROOKS;
Editor in Jamestown, N.Y.; died April 4, 1866.The following was written by Judge Abner Hazeltine:--
"Mr. Adolphus Fletcher came to Jamestown when it was a small village, a mere hamlet, situated in an obscure corner, remote from any thoroughfare, and scarcely known abroad, except to a few on the waters below us, who were engaged in the lumber trade. Mr. Fletcher and his paper were among the instrumentalities for bringing this secluded
section into notice; and if the remarks called forth by the first number of 'The Jamestown Journal,' from the editors of other papers to whom it was sent with the usual request, 'Please exchange,' could now be collected, they would be a source of much amusement. The undertaking was evidently regarded as Quixotic by those who had heard of Jamestown, if not a hoax. But the work then commenced has completed more than fifty yearly volumes."The boyhood of Mr. Fletcher was passed on his father's farm, with occasional attendance on the schools which were then well sustained in the Old Bay State. His apprenticeship was passed in the office of 'The Massachusetts Spy,' which was established at Worcester, by Mr. Thomas, prior to the American Revolution. Soon after becoming of age, he married, May 13, 1818, Miss Sarah Stow, a native of Worcester, and who had been his neighbor and associate from childhood.
"Prior to his marriage, an elder brother and sister had settled in Chautauqua County, N.Y., and had purchased from the first occupant, Reuben Slayton, Esq., the site of the present village of Ashville. His father's family having concluded about that time to follow their elder children to their new home, he was induced to accompany them. A friend who accompanied him informs the writer, that the two families started from Worcester with a span of horses and two pairs of oxen, and were three weeks on the way, arriving at what was then known as Goose Creek, or Slayton's Mills, in June, 1818.
"During his residence at Ashville, he was to some extent engaged in farming. He also had a small store in connection with the late Dr. Deming of Westfield, and kept a tavern. He was thus employed, when, at the solicitation of friends at Jamestown who knew something of his early pursuits, he resolved to resume his original occupation. He removed to Jamestown in the summer of 1824, and with a small stock of type, purchased mostly on credit, and a press constructed on the spot, under his own supervision, he soon commenced 'The Jamestown Journal,' doing a large share of the work with his own hands.
For several years no man in Jamestown worked harder or more hours than he.
"One great object in getting up the paper was to promote the interests of sonthern Chautauqua, which it was supposed had suffered for want of an organ; and this, instead of party politics, was intended to be its leading characteristic. Mr. Fletcher, although a man of decided opinions, adhered to this platform strictly, taking no part in the controversies between the Clintonians and Bucktails, as the leading political parties in the State were than denominated. But this position did not long suit the times. The abduction of Morgan, and the presidential contest between Jackson and Adams, were elements of party strife too strong to admit of neutrality; and a paper for the avowed object of aiding the election of Gen. Jackson was started in opposition to 'The Journal.' This division of support not only lessened his income, but imposed new responsibilities on Mr. Fletcher. His paper, as a matter of course, came out on the other side, and from that time became decidedly political. It soon acquired a patronage superior to that it had lost, and became a remunerative establishment. After remaining at its head about twenty years, he sold out to his son, from whom it soon passed into other hands."After the death of his first wife, Jan. 6, 1836, and just thirty years before his death, he married Miss Caroline E. Brooks of Westminster, Mass. Early in life he became a member of the Congregational Church, of which he was a consistent member until his death. He will long be remembered as a good citizen, and an upright and exemplary man."
Issue:--
i. John Warren
ii. Sarah M.
iii. Lucy
iv. Susan
v. Harriet, b. Oct. 23, 1829; m. H. A. McKelvey
of Sparta, Ill., Sept. 22, 1852; d. Jan. 25, 1865. No children.
vi. Cyrus D.
vii. Marshall, b. July 18, 1835; d. young.
viii. Adolphus Brooks, b. May 7, 1837; d. Apr. 4, 1866; printer.
ix. Adeline Emerson, b. Apr. 12, 1839; d. young.
x. Caroline Elizabeth, b. Apr. 12, 1841; d. young.
xi. Mary, b. Mar. 19, 1847.
xii. Charles Francis, b. Feb. 19, 1849.