Matthew Laflin (December 16, 1803 – May 20, 1897) was an American manufacturer of

gunpowder Gunpowder, also commonly known as black powder to distinguish it from modern smokeless powder, is the earliest known chemical explosive. It consists of a mixture of sulfur, carbon (in the form of charcoal) and potassium nitrate (saltpeter). T ...

, businessman, philanthropist, and an early pioneer of

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Biography

Early life and ancestors

He was born on December 16, 1803,Cutter, 1186 an American of Ulster Scots and early

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

ancestry, at the

Laflin-Phelps Homestead The Laflin—Phelps Homestead is a historic house at 20 Depot Street in Southwick, Massachusetts. Built in the early 19th century, circa 1808–1821, it is a local example of Federal style architecture. The property was listed in the National Re ...

in Southwick,

Hampden County, Massachusetts Hampden County is a non-governmental county located in the Pioneer Valley of the state of Massachusetts, in the United States. As of the 2020 census, Hampden County's population was 465,825. Its traditional county seat is Springfield, the ...

.Otis, p.104 He was the son of Matthew Laflin,Cutter, 1186 a gunpowder manufacturer and Lydia Rising, the daughter of Amos Rising. He was the grandson of Matthew Laflin and Lucy Loomis and his great grandfather, Charles Laflin, migrated to the US in 1740 from

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...

, Ireland settling at

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

Worcester County, Massachusetts Worcester County is a county located in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. At the 2020 census, the population was 862,111, making it the second-most populous county in Massachusetts while also being the largest in area. The largest city and tr ...

.Currey-5, pp. 209-214 Charles Laflin and his family were living at Oxford, Massachusetts, when he purchased land in 1749 in the Southern ''(South-)'' village ''(-wick)'' part of the town of

Westfield, Massachusetts Westfield is a city in Hampden County, in the Pioneer Valley of western Massachusetts, United States. Westfield was first settled by Europeans in 1660. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population w ...

.Cutter, 1186 After manufacturing

saltpeter Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . This alkali metal nitrate Salt (chemistry), salt is also known as Indian saltpetre (large deposits of which were historically mined in India). It is an ionic salt of potassium ...

for the

Massachusetts militia This is a list of militia units of the Colony and later Commonwealth of Massachusetts. *Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts (1638) * Cogswell's Regiment of Militia (April 19, 1775) *Woodbridge's Regiment of Militia (April 20 ...

during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

, he built a powder mill in Southwick, Massachusetts, and the family successfully entered the explosives business.

Marriage and family

He married in 1827 at

Canton, Connecticut Canton is a town, incorporated in 1806, located in the Farmington Valley section of Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 10,124 as of the 2020 census. It is bordered by Granby on the north, Simsbury on the east, Avon a ...

, Henrietta Armenia Hinman, the daughter of Ransom Hinman and Mary Battele.Cutter, 1186Hinman, 832 She was born in

Lee Lee may refer to: Name Given name * Lee (given name), a given name in English Surname * Chinese surnames romanized as Li or Lee: ** Li (surname 李) or Lee (Hanzi ), a common Chinese surname ** Li (surname 利) or Lee (Hanzi ), a Chinese ...

Berkshire County, Massachusetts Berkshire County (pronounced ) is a county on the western edge of the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 census, the population was 129,026. Its largest city and traditional county seat is Pittsfield. The county was founded ...

on June 20, 1805,Woods, 57 and died on February 12, 1834, in Canton, Hartford County, Connecticut. Matthew and Henrietta were the parents of three children. He married secondly, before 1837, Catherine King of Westfield, Massachusetts. She died in Chicago, Illinois, in 1891.Currey-5, 213 Their son, George H. Laflin,Jones, 1037 was born on July 19, 1828, at Canton, Connecticut. He died on July 24, 1904, at Pittsfield, Berkshire, Massachusetts. He married on September 3, 1851 at

Pittsfield Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfield ...

, Mary Minerva Brewster,Jones, 1037Jones, 1038Jones, 1039 who born at Lenox, Massachusetts on January 24, 1832, and died at Chicago, Illinois on January 10, 1902.Otis, p.122 She was the daughter of Dr. John Milton BrewsterJones, 605Jones, 606Jones, 607Child, 311Child, 312 and Philena Higley. Their daughter Georgina, a twin of George H., died as an infant. Their youngest son was Lycurgus Laflin. He was born June 2, 1832 in Canton, Connecticut. He died on February 25, 1900 in Old Pt Comfort, Elizabeth Cty County, Virginia.

Career

He learned the trade from his father, also named Matthew Laflin, a manufacturer of

. He was attracted to Chicago because of the construction of the Illinois and Michigan Canal and hoped to sell gunpowder to the construction company. He quickly found a market for his product. The opening of the Illinois and Michigan Canal in 1848 allowed shipping from the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

through Chicago to the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest Drainage system (geomorphology), drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson B ...

and the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...

. He relocated his family to Chicago in 1837 and his first home in Chicago was at

Fort Dearborn Fort Dearborn was a United States fort built in 1803 beside the Chicago River, in what is now Chicago, Illinois. It was constructed by troops under Captain John Whistler and named in honor of Henry Dearborn, then United States Secretary of War ...

, because no other shelter could be found in the young city.Higley, 51Higley, 52 With the money he made in the gunpowder business, he began to purchase large tracts of real estate and once owned of land within the city limits. He bought the land for $300 and lived to see it worth millions.Higley, 51Higley, 52 In 1849, he purchased of land on the west side, extending eastward from Madison Street and

Ogden Avenue Ogden Avenue is a street extending from the Near West Side of Chicago to Montgomery, Illinois. It was named for William B. Ogden, the first mayor of Chicago. The street follows the route of the Southwestern Plank Road, which opened in 1848 acr ...

. Here he built the Bull's Head Hotel, resort for men in the cattle business.Higley, 51Higley, 52 The hotel was constructed complete with barns, sheds and cattle pens and so established Chicago's first stock yards. After its heyday, the hotel was used as an asylum for alcoholics before being torn down. In 1867, he refinanced the

Elgin Watch Company The Elgin National Watch Company, commonly known as Elgin Watch Company, was a major US watch maker from 1864 to 1968. The company sold watches under the names Elgin, Lord Elgin, and Lady Elgin. For nearly 100 years, the company's manufacturing ...

when it was on the verge of failure, and became one of the largest stockholders in the company. The Laflin family sat on Elgin's board of directors for more than 70 years. It was his capital and enterprise that laid the foundation for Waukesha as a famous Wisconsin watering resort and he was the proprietor of the grand resort, the Fountain Spring House. Waukesha was once known for its extremely clean and good-tasting

spring water A spring is a point of exit at which groundwater from an aquifer flows out on top of Earth's crust ( pedosphere) and becomes surface water. It is a component of the hydrosphere. Springs have long been important for humans as a source of fresh ...

and was called a "

spa town A spa town is a resort town based on a mineral spa (a developed mineral spring). Patrons visit spas to "take the waters" for their purported health benefits. Thomas Guidott set up a medical practice in the English town of Bath, Somerset, B ...

." This earned the city the nicknames, "Spring City," and "Saratoga of the West." In the summer of 1905 the Fountain Spring House was sold by the heirs of Matthew Laflin to the Metropolitan Church Association of Chicago. He built one of the first plank roads, known in those days as the Blue Island toll road. He operated the first omnibus line to carry his hotel patrons to his stock yards and the State Street markets. He also established the first water works system in Chicago by building a pine-log reservoir at Lake Street and the lake shore. Water funneled into the reservoir was distributed through wooden pipes to the city.Higley, 51Higley, 52 During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

, he was a

Union Democrat ''The Union Democrat'' is a newspaper that serves the Sonora and Sierra Nevada foothills area of Tuolumne and Calaveras counties, California since 1854. It was acquired by Oregon-based Western Communications since 1998. Previously, it was owned ...

. Laflin was also a founding member of the

Chicago Board of Trade The Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), established on April 3, 1848, is one of the world's oldest futures and options exchanges. On July 12, 2007, the CBOT merged with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) to form CME Group. CBOT and three other exch ...

. He died in Chicago on May 20, 1897, and was buried at

Rosehill Cemetery Rosehill Cemetery (founded 1859) is an American garden cemetery on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois, and at , is the largest cemetery in the City of Chicago. According to legend, the name "Rosehill" resulted from a City Clerk's error – the a ...

Honors and legacy

In 1892, Laflin made a lasting contribution to Chicago by donating $75,000Currey-3, 160Currey-3, 161Currey-3, 162 toward the building of a structure to house the Chicago Academy of Sciences, a scholarly society formed to promote the scientific investigation of natural history. As a result of Laflin's gift, the Academy of Sciences was granted a plot of land in

Lincoln Park Lincoln Park is a park along Lake Michigan on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. Named after US President Abraham Lincoln, it is the city's largest public park and stretches for seven miles (11 km) from Grand Avenue (500 N), on the south, ...

; the Lincoln Park Board of Commissioners then donated $25,000 in public funds to assure adequate financing for the project. The building opened as the Matthew Laflin Memorial on October 31, 1894, and housed the academy until 1995 when it moved to a new building. The building reverted to the

Chicago Park District The Chicago Park District is one of the oldest and the largest park districts in the United States. As of 2016, there are over 600 parks included in the Chicago Park District as well as 27 beaches, several boat harbors, two botanic conservatorie ...

, which rehabbed it into Lincoln Park Zoo administrative offices. Laflin Street in Chicago begins 1500 West from 356 North to 12258 South, it is named in his honor.

Descendants

*Matthew Laflin Rockwell, (1915–1988) was an American architect and director of planning for the

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...

and responsible for the site selection, plan and design of

O'Hare International Airport Chicago O'Hare International Airport , sometimes referred to as, Chicago O'Hare, or simply O'Hare, is the main international airport serving Chicago, Illinois, located on the city's Northwest Side, approximately northwest of the Loop busines ...

. He is a cousin of Sylvester "Pat" Laflin Weaver, actress

Sigourney Weaver Susan Alexandra "Sigourney" Weaver (; born October 8, 1949) is an American actress. A figure in science fiction and popular culture, she has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Gramm ...

and comedian and actor

Doodles Weaver Winstead Sheffield Glenndenning Dixon "Doodles" Weaver (May 11, 1911 – January 17, 1983) was an American character actor, comedian, and musician. Born into a wealthy West Coast family, Weaver began his career in radio. In the late 1930s, he p ...

. He is also the grandson of Francis Williams Rockwell, a

United States representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

and the great grandson of

Julius Rockwell Julius Rockwell (April 26, 1805May 19, 1888) was a United States politician from Massachusetts, and the father of Francis Williams Rockwell. Rockwell was born in Colebrook, Connecticut and educated at private schools and then Yale, where he st ...

, a United States politician from Massachusetts.

Notes

References

* Alft, E.C. and William H. Briska. ''Elgin Time: A History of the Elgin National Watch Company, 1864-1968.'' Elgin, IL: Elgin Historical Society, 2003. *Child, Hamilton. ''Gazetteer of Berkshire County, Mass., 1725-1885'' Pittsfield. Publisher: Printed at the Journal Office, 1885. *Currey, Josiah Seymour. ''Chicago: Its History and Its Builders, a Century of Marvelous Growth, Volume 3 '' Chicago. Publisher: Clarke Publishing Company, 1912. *Currey, Josiah Seymour. ''Chicago: Its History and Its Builders, a Century of Marvelous Growth, Volume 5 '' Chicago. Publisher: Clarke Publishing Company, 1912. *Cutter, William Richard. ''New England families, genealogical and memorial: a record of the achievements of her people in the making of commonwealths and the founding of a nation, Volume 3'' Publisher: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1913. *Higley, William Kerr. ''Special publication - Chicago Academy of Sciences, Issues 1-2'' Chicago. Publisher: Chicago Academy of Sciences, Chicago Academy of Sciences, 1902. * Hinman, Royal Ralph. '' A catalogue of the names of the early Puritan settlers of the colony of Connecticut: with the time of their arrival in the country and colony, their standing in society, place of residence, condition in life, where from, business, &c., as far as is found on record, Issue 1'' Chicago. Publisher: Case, Tiffany, 1852. *Jones, Emma C. Brewster. ''The Brewster Genealogy, 1566-1907: a Record of the Descendants of William Brewster of the "Mayflower," ruling elder of the Pilgrim church which founded Plymouth Colony in 1620.'' New York: Grafton Press. 1908. *Otis, Philo Adams. ''The First Presbyterian church, 1833-1913: a history of the oldest organization in Chicago, with biographical sketches of the ministers and extracts from the choir records'' Chicago. Publisher: F. H. Revell Co., 1913. *Woods, Henry Ernest. ''Vital records of Becket, Massachusetts: to the year 1850'' Boston. Publisher: New England historic genealogical society, at the charge of the Eddy town-record fund, 1903. *Woods, Henry Ernest. ''Vital records of Lee, Massachusetts, to the year 1850'' Boston. Publisher: New England historic genealogical society, at the charge of the Eddy town-record fund, 1903.