John Dean's Pew at Grace Church

 This is the deed to pew number 67 in Grace Episcopal Church, issued by the parish to John Dean on August 27, 1866, granting him and his heirs the right to exclusive use of the pew in perpetuity, for a payment of fifty dollars (equivalent to a little more than $1000 today). It was common through the nineteenth century for churches to sell access to specific pews, to raise funds for the church and to recognize the prominence of certain parishioners. 

Grace Episcopal Church was founded in Sandusky in 1835, and has the oldest church building in the city. The original version of the building was completed in 1843; The towers, as seen in the photo above (circa 1870), were constructed in 1858. Other modifications have been made to the church over the years, and can be recognized by the difference in colors of stone.

John Dean, the owner of pew #67, had a productive life in Sandusky. He was born in 1835 in Tydd St. Mary, Lincolnshire, England, and came to Sandusky as a boy with his parents, William and Susannah Dean. He married Susan Belton in Sandusky on New Year's Day 1859, and together they had four sons and three daughters. He served two years in the United States Army during the Civil War years. He was a fisherman by profession. He died in 1892 and is buried with his wife in Oakland Cemetery.

T.C. Adams, Civil War Veteran and Merchant

Thomas C. Adams was born in England about 1839 to Thomas and Catherine (Cooley) Adams. When quite young, Thomas C. Adams came to the United States with his parents, and they settled in Edmeston, New York. During the Civil War Thomas C. Adams enlisted with the 121st New York Infantry. He rose to the rank of Lieutenant, but was seriously wounded in battle. Notes in the 1890 Veterans Schedules, accessible at Ancestry Library Edition, indicate that he lost his left arm during the war. In the early 1860s Thomas C. Adams married Emily Bower. Their first two children, Nelson and Robert, were born in New York State. Mr. and Mrs. Adams had several more children after they moved to Erie County, Ohio. The Combination Atlas Map of Erie County, published by Stewart & Page in 1874, shows that the Adams family resided close to Cold Creek, just west of Depot Street in 1874.

According to the publication Margaretta Township, Castalia Village, Past and Present, put out by the Cold Creek Girl Scouts in 1976, Mr. T.C. Adams, along with several other businessmen, formed Castalia Milling Company in 1875. The mill could produce 125 barrels of flour a day. Eventually T.C. Adams and his son ran a wholesale flour, fruit and produce business in downtown Sandusky. For most of his life, T.C. Adams resided in Margaretta Township, but he did move to Sandusky for a few years, and then returned to the Castalia Area. T.C. Adams and Son provided supplied flour to the Ohio Soldiers and Sailors Home for the year 1896. T.C. Adams retired from active business about 1901, and his son took over the business. On November 13, 1903, T. C. Adams passed away while visiting with the Quinn family in Sandusky County. Thomas C. Adams left behind a widow, five daughters, and two sons. Rev. C. L. Johnson of Trinity Methodist Church conducted services at the Adams home, and burial was at Castalia Cemetery.

Samuel and Fredericka Tebbutt

Samuel and Fredericka Tebbutt were married in Erie County, Ohio in October of 1875. The former Fredericka Zanger was the daughter of John and Louisa Zanger. She was born in New York State. Samuel Tebbutt was the son of Samuel and Ann Tebbutt, who were both natives of England. The elder Samuel Tebbutt came to the United States in the 1860s, where he worked as a house painter. Ralph Smalley Tebbutt, another son of Samuel and Ann Tebbutt was a well known painter in Sandusky. The younger Samuel Tebbutt worked as a professional sign painter, but he painted landscapes as a hobby. This painting of a stone powder magazine from Johnson’s Island, by Samuel Tebbutt, can be seen at the Follett House Museum.

These New England scenes were also painted by Samuel Tebbutt.

 

Fredericka Tebbutt died in 1926, and Samuel Tebbutt died in 1939. They are buried in the family lot at Oakland Cemetery.

The book Artists in Ohio, 1787-1900: A Biographical Dictionary features brief biographical sketches of hundreds of artists from Ohio. To see this book inquire at the Reference Services desk at the Sandusky Library.