Chemung County NY
History of Tompkins, Schuyler, Chemung, Tioga 1879
Page 275 - John M. Robinson Biography
Home Page
1879 Four County History - Table of Contents
Typed for Tri-Counties by Kelly Kimball
Formatted by Joyce M. Tice
JOHN M. ROBINSON was born at Windham, Greene Co., N.Y., Feb. 23, 1814. He was next to the youngest in a family of four sons and one daughter of Captain Eli P. Robinson and Mary (Saxton) Robinson, the former native of Windham, Conn., and a lineal descendant of John Robinson, one of the emigrants on the "Mayflower", in 1620. Captain Robinson was a man highly esteemed by his fellow-citizens, liberally educated, was for many years a justice of the peace and general conveyancer. As a teacher, gave special attention to the early education of his children. He was a captain in the war of 1812-1814, and took part in the defense of Sacket’s Harbor and Brooklyn Heights.

His wife was a woman of rare virtues and womanly qualities, and during the war in which her husband was a soldier traveled on horseback through the neighborhoods in her vicinity to gather material for the comfort of needy soldiers.

Of their children, Hon. Lucius Robinson is the present Governor of New York State; elected 1876. Mr. John M. Robinson attended school more or less until he was thirteen years of age, at which time he was apprenticed until he should become of age to Humphrey Potter, to learn the cabinet business, and during these years he received one more year’s schooling.

At the close of his apprenticeship, in the year 1835, he came to Horseheads and took charge of a cabinet manufacturing business where he remained for one year, and in 1836 settled in the then village of Elmira and established a chair-manufactory on a small scale. From this beginning, he about the year 1839 added the cabinet-making and subsequently a general furniture business he has continued until the time of writing this sketch. By economy and industry, with a will to do, and a business sagacity not uncommon among self-made business men, Mr. Robinson has gradually extended his business from sales only reaching a few hundred dollars annually to those now amounting to seventy-five thousand, and passed through the days when each manufacturer cut his own timber in the wood, and by a long and tedious process prepared it for the various departments of work,- a wide contrast with 1878, when machinery for the manufacture of almost every article has made rapid strides, and taken the place pf the rude tools of a half-century ago.

In his early days Mr. Robinson was a member of the Whig party, and was identified with the Republican party upon its formation. He has never been solicitous of political preferment, but closely allied to a business life.

In the year 1836, May 4, he married Nancy, daughter of Jacob Satterly, of Jamesville, Onondaga Co., N.Y. She was born September, 1814.

Their children are Julia, wife of E. P. Nement, of Elmira, William, Sarah (deceased), Mary, George, and Lucius D. Of these sons, William and George are associated with their father in business.

Joyce Tip Box -- December 2007 -
If you are not navigating this Tri-Counties Site via the left and right sidebars of the Current What's New page you are doing yourself a disservice. You can get to any place on the site easily by making yourself familiar with these subject and place topics. Try them all to be as familiar with the site's 16,000 plus pages as you can. Stop groping in the dark and take the lighted path. That's also the only way you'll find the search engines for the site or have access to the necessary messages I may leave for you. Make it easy on yourself.