WI BIO - Dane Co - MAIN, Alexander Hamilton & Willett S.
Biographical Review of Dane County, WI. Chicago: Biographical Review Pub. Co. 
1893, Vol I, pp 176-178, Vol II, pp 603-604

Biography of Alexander Hamilton MAIN (pp 603-604) - brother of Willett S. MAIN

Alexander Hamilton MAIN, an influential and prominent citizen of Madison 
[Dane County, WI], was born in Plainfield, Otsego County, NY, 22 Jun 1824, 
and is the oldest son of Alfred and Semantha (STILLMAN) MAIN. Mr. MAIN was 
only nine years old when his parents moved to Allegany County, NY, [note the 
bio of Willett S. MAIN says Otsego County] and as it was before there were 
any railroads, the trip was made with one pair of horses and a lumber wagon. 
They took all their earthly possessions with them. Alexander attended school 
in the new country, and then later attended school at Alfred Academy. At the 
age of eighteen he taught school for one term, and then began the study of 
law. The lawyer with whom he studied, after one year, engaged in 
merchandising, and Mr. MAIN clerked for him. He clerked in Cuba and Little 
Genesee [both in Allegany County, NY] for four years, and then engaged in 
merchandising on his own account at Little Genesee, where he continued until 
1856, when he sold out and came to Madison, WI, and engaged in merchandising 
with his brother Willett until 1860, when he removed to Sun Prairie [Dane 
County, WI] and engaged in the same business, also acting as cashier of Sun 
Prairie Bank until 1862, when he returned to Madison, and soon after entered 
the insurance business, in which he has continued ever since, and now 
represents many of the largest American companies. Since 1882 he has been 
State agent for the German American Insurance Company of NY.

Mr. [Alexander Hamilton] MAIN has been twice married, the first time to Mary 
M. COTTRELL, who was born in Cortland County, NY, daughter of John B. and 
Eunice COTTRELL. This marriage occurred in September 1852, and Mrs. MAIN 
died Feb 1862. In September 1853 he was married to Emma L. COTTRELL, sister 
of his first wife. Mr. MAIN has one child, Willett, by his first marriage, 
and the following by his second marriage: George C., Edward S., Mary H., 
Royal C., and Fannie. Mr. and Mrs. MAIN are members of the Baptist Church of 
Madison, WI. He cast his first vote for President for Martin VANBUREN, the 
candidate of the Free Soil party, in 1848. He has been a member of the 
Republican party since its organization. In 1855 he was elected to the [p 
604] Legislature of New York by the Republicans, and was the first member of 
that party elected in Allegany County. This was the Legislature that voted 
for the long-drawn contest over the speakership, resulting in the election of 
Lucius ROBINSON by a combination of soft-shell Democrats and Republicans. 
From 1862 to 1878 he was Deputy Assessor and Deputy Collector of Internal 
Revenue in the 2nd District of Wisconsin.

Biography of Willett S. MAIN (pp 176-178) - brother of Alexander Hamilton MAIN

Hon. Willetts MAIN, Deputy U. S. Marshall for the western district of WI, was 
born in Edmeston, Otsego County, NY, 15 Aug 1828. His father, Alfred MAIN, 
was born in North Stonington [New London County], CT, and his father, Laban 
MAIN, was born in the same place. The great grandfather of our subject was 
also a native of the same place, but the [p 177] great great grandfather was 
a native of England and came to America in colonial times. The grandfather 
of our subject emigrated to Otsego County [NY] in 1814, and followed 
agricultural pursuits there for many years. He then removed to Allegany 
County [NY], where he spent the remainder of his days. The maiden name of 
his wife was Polly BROWN.

The father of our subject [Alfred MAIN] was nine years old when his parents 
removed to Otsego County [note the bio of A. H. MAIN says Allegany County], 
and there he was married at the age of eighteen, his wife being in her 
fifteenth year. In 1833, with his wife and three children, Mr. MAIN 
emigrated to Allegany County [NY]. They made the removal with teams, taking 
all their earthly possessions with them. He purchased a tract of timber land 
and at once began to improve a farm. There was water power on the place, and 
Mr. MAIN utilized it by building a saw mill, which he operated in addition to 
his farming interests until 1846, when he sold and came to WI, making the 
removal by team to Buffalo [Erie County, NY], thence by lake to Milwaukee, 
thence with a team to Waukesha [which was part of Milwaukee County, WI, until 
1846, when Waukesha County was formed], where he remained until April 1847, 
and then came to Madison [Dane County, WI]. In 1850 he was elected Sheriff 
of Dane County, and served two years. During the war he was Clerk in the 
Quartermaster's Department, and after the war was over, settled on his farm, 
four miles from the city [Madison], where he resided until his death, at 
seventy-seven years of age. The maiden name of his wife was Semantha 
STILLMAN, born in Otsego County, NY, daughter of Rev. Willet and Soviah 
(NOYES) STILLMAN. She died on the home farm at the age of sixty-nine, after 
rearing five children: Alexander H., Willett S., Amelia A., Fannie, and 
Annie.

Willett S. MAIN was seventeen years of age when he came to WI with his 
parents. In Feb 1847 he came to Madison, making his advent into the city on 
foot. At that time the capital city was a small village of about 500 people. 
He soon found employment of various kinds, most of the time clerking, until 
01 Jan 1851, when he was appointed Under Sheriff and served in that capacity 
for two years. In 1852 he was elected Sheriff, and also served two years in 
that position. At the expiration of his term of office, he and his brother 
[Alexander Hamilton MAIN] engaged in mercantile pursuits and continued in the 
same until 1860, when he was again appointed Under Sheriff, and served two 
years, and in 1862 was elected Sheriff, in which capacity he served two 
years. The next two years he served as Under Sheriff when again, in 1856, he 
was elected Sheriff for the third time. At the end of his term of office he 
was again made under Sheriff and on 01 Jan 1871, he was appointed Chief 
Deputy U. S. Marshal, in which position he served sixteen years. He then 
retired to his farm, where he engaged in agricultural pursuits. But he was 
not permitted to remain in obscurity, for in 1890 he was again called into 
public life to fill the position he had held four years before, that of 
Deputy U. S. Marshal, which position he still holds. Mr. MAIN has been a 
Republican since the formation of the party. He has served as a delegate to 
the different county, district and State conventions, and was elected to the 
State Senate in 1888, representing Dane County for four years. He is now 
President of the Monona Lake Assembly.

Willett S. MAIN was married in 1855 to Miss Eliza A. JENISON, a native of 
Indianapolis [IN], daughter of Hon. Samuel and Melvina (WINGATE) JENISON. 
Mrs. MAIN died 15 Jan 1866, and in June of the following year Mr. MAIN 
married Sophia L. SMITH, born in Rochester, Windsor County, VT, daughter of 
Samuel N. SMITH and [p 178] Lois (DICKINSON) WILLIAMS*. Mr. MAIN has two 
sons by his first marriage: Hamilton W. and Frank J., who are engaged in 
business in Hastings [Adams County], Nebraska. By the second marriage there 
are four children: Susie, Annie, John, and Lois. Mr. MAIN has been a member 
of the Baptist Church since he was twenty-one and has been a Trustee since 
1852. [* The unusual manner in which the names of Samuel and Lois are 
presented in the original text suggests that "DICKINSON" is a maiden name and 
that "WILLIAMS" is a surname, probably from a previous marriage. If 
"DICKINSON" is not a surname, the submitter would have expected that the 
names would have been presented in the usual manner of this source, i. e., 
"Samuel N. and Lois Dickinson (WILLIAMS) SMITH," which was not done. 
Verification in primary and other records is left to the researcher.] 

Submitted by Cathy Kubly