The Stouts of Schenectady, New York, are lineal descendants of two of the ancient families of the United States, Stout and Drake, both being early settlers of the state of New Jersey, the Drakes going there from New England, John Drake, of Dorchester, Massachusetts, settling there in 1630.
(I) Richard Stout, first of the name in America, was born in Nottinghamshire, England, son of John Stout, a gentleman of good position. Richard Stout paid his addresses to a young woman whom his father disapproved, whereupon he left home, enlisted in the British navy, served seven years on a man-of-war, receiving an honorable discharge in New Amsterdam, New York, where he remained until 1668. He became one of the original proprietors of Middletown, Monmouth county, New Jersey. He continued to reside in Middletown until his decease at an advanced age. Longevity is characteristic of the Stout family. He married, at New York, a widow whose maiden name was Penelope Van Princess, born at Amsterdam, Holland, in 1602, died at Middletown, New Jersey, 1712, aged one hundred and ten years. She crossed the ocean with her first husband on a vessel that was wrecked upon the Jersey coast near Sandy Hook. All reached the shore in safety and proceeded by land to New York. Her husband was overcome by illness and was left behind with his wife. They were discovered by the Indians and her husband was killed. She was left for dead, but recovered consciousness and concealed herself in a hollow log, where for several days she subsisted in part upon the excresences that grew upon it, until discovered by an old Indian to whose kindness and crude knowledge she was indebted for the recovery of her health and restoration to her friends in New Amsterdam. (See Smith's History of New Jersey, published 1765, Appendix VI [i.e., Samuel Smith's The History of the Colony of Nova-Caesaria, or New Jersey]). In New Amsterdam she became acquainted and married John Stout. They settled in Middletown, New Jersey, where their children were born. At her decease in 1712, she was said to have had five hundred and two descendants. Richard and Penelope (Van Princess) Stout had nine children:
- John, married Elizabeth —————; died prior to March 11, 1717, when "Captain Richard Stout of Middletown, Gent," disposed of some property which he inherited as son and heir of John Stout "late of the same place, deceased."
- Richard (2), married Frances —————; removed to Squan Beach prior to March 10, 1691, when he was styled of that place "planter."
- James, first of mention in 1675.
- Sarah.
- Mary, married James Bond, of Middletown.
- Alice, married John Throgmorton.
- Jonathan.
- David, of Freehold, New Jersey.
- Rebecca Ashton, of Freehold, New Jersey.
(II) Jonathan, third son of Richard and Penelope (Van Princess) Stout, was born in Middletown, New Jersey. He married Ann Bullen; and settled in Somerset county, New Jersey. Children:
- Joseph, 1686;
- Benjamin, 1696;
- Zebulon, 1699;
- Jonathan (2), 1701;
- David, 1706;
- Samuel, 1709;
- Sarah,
- Hannah and
- Anne.
(III) Jonathan (2) (John), son of Jonathan (1) and Ann (Bullen) Stout was born in 1701 in Bound Brook, Somerset county, New Jersey, where he died in old age, said to have been one hundred years old. He married Permelia Drake, a descendant of Francis Drake, who was of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where he served on the grand jury in 1663. He is supposed to have been a son of Robert Drake, who emigrated from Colchester, Essex county, England, where he was born in 1580. He is first of record in Exeter, New Hampshire, in 1643, finally in Hampton, New Hampshire, where he died January 14, 1668. Francis Drake appears on the town records of Piscataway, New Jersey, in 1667-68, where he died about 1687. He married Mary —————, and had George and Rev. John. The latter married three wives and had thirteen children, ten of them sons. His eldest son John, born June 2, 1678, married Sarah Compton and had six children, one of whom, Permelia Drake, born about 1708, married Jonathan Stout (John) and reared a large family.
(IV) Abraham, son of Jonathan (2) (John) and Permelia (Drake) Stout, was born in Bound Brook, New Jersey, July 26, 1735, died in Ovid, Seneca county, New York, June 28, 1841, at the great and unusual age of one hundred and six years, almost equalling the years attained by his great-grandmother, Penelope Stout. He settled in Seneca county early in life, and was a successful farmer. He married (first) January 11, 1754, Elizabeth Houghton, born July 5, 1735, died April 7, 1775, a descendant of John Houghton, who came in the ship "Abigail" from London in 1635 to the Massachusetts colony. Children:
- Solomon, born February, 1759, died March 30, 1777; was a soldier of the revolution and was killed in battle.
- Mary, May 30, 1762.
- Rachel, February 16, 1764.
- Joab, Septemher 23, 1767.
Abraham Stout married (second) Alice —————, in 1775, who died in January, 1777, at the birth of her only child, John.
(V) John, son of Abraham and Alice Stout, was born in Ovid, Seneca county, New York, January, 1777, died there June 23, 1841. He was a thrifty, successful farmer, and a devout Christian. He returned to New Jersey for a wife, and married a distant kinswoman, also Permelia Drake, of the same ancestry as his grandmother, and a native of Somerset county, born 1781, died August 26, 1855, and is buried in Chili, near Rochester, New York. Children:
- Abraham, born November 23, 1800, died March 2, 1869, unmarried.
- Rachel, January 2, 1805; married, December 31, 1822, Tunis Brokaw, born in Ovid, New York, December 29, 1799; children: Isaac, George, and Permelia Brokaw.
- Mary Drake, August 31, 1807, died by accidental injuries, October 16, 1810.
- Rev. William Drake, December 25, 1811, died in Michigan; was an early minister of the Baptist church; married and left issue.
- Miner T., April 28, 1815, died in Dansville, New York, 1893; he was well-known all through Central New York as a bandmaster and earnest church worker; married Clara Conkling, a cousin of Senator Roscoe Conkling; she died in Dansville, leaving five children, three still surviving, all veterans of the civil war; one brother was killed in battle during that war.
- Joab, of further mention.
(VI) Joab, youngest child of John and Permelia (Drake) Stout, was born in Ovid, New York, November 23, 1818, died at Painted Post, Steuben county, New York. He was a carriage builder, and a man of the highest character. He was a devoted member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and a member of the Republican party. The papers referred to him in the most complimentary manner at the time of his death. His pastor in his funeral sermon said: "He was the best man I ever knew." He possessed the confidence and friendship of all with whom he came in contact. He married (first) at Lodi, New York, November 19, 1842, Jane Smalley, born 1820, died July 31, 1846. Children:
- Emma, born 1844, died 1846.
- Helen, June 12, 1846.
He married (second) in Ovid, December 7, 1847, Louisa M. Wightman, born in Columbia, Herkimer county, New York, February 16, 1826, was educated and passed most of her life in Steuben county. She survives her husband and resides in Schenectady with her daughter-in-law, Mrs. Sarah Morrison Stout. She is a life-long Methodist, a devoted Christian whose life has been spent in good works and Christian service. Her father, Dwyer Wightman, was born in 1784 in New London, Connecticut, died 1848. He married Phoebe A. Ormsby, born in Windham, Connecticut, 1797, died 1884. They had four children, one dying in infancy. The living are:
- William A., born October 21, 1823, now living (1910) in Alleghany county, New York, a veteran of three years civil war service; he married Amelia Enos; children: Marcus, Edna, Green and Ida.
- Louisa M., married Joab Stout.
- Albert Tracey, born September 21, 1829, veteran of the civil war, and resides in Hawkins, Michigan.
Joab and Louisa M. (Wightman) Stout has a son, Ernest A.
(VII) Ernest A., only child of Joab and Louisa M. (Wightman) Stout, was born in Reading Centre, Schuyler county, New York, October 15, 1851, died in Schenectady, December 17, 1908. He was educated in Watkins, New York, became well versed in commercial accounting, and was head bookkeeper and chief accountant for a leading business house of Waverly, New York, for sixteen years. He removed to Schenectady, New York, where he engaged in the transportation business until his death. He was a consistent and active member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and a Republican. He was a member of the Knights of Pythias, and held official position. He was well known and highly respected. He married in Osceola, New York, Sarah Louise Morrison, born October 27, 1852. She resides in Schenectady with her children and their grandmother, Mrs. Joab Stout. She is a daughter of John Morrison, a farmer of Friendship, Alleghany county, New York, where he died in 1869, aged sixty years. He enlisted in the Union army at the outbreak of the civil war and served until the last shot was fired. He died four years later of disease contracted in the army. He married, in Plattsburgh, New York, in 1850, Julia Brown, who also had three brothers in the civil war. She died March, 1877. Children of Ernest A. and Sarah Louise (Morrison) Stout:
- Mabel Louise, graduate of Painted Post high school, Syracuse University, class of 1901; she at once became librarian of the works of the General Electric Company at Schenectady, where a technical library is maintained by the company for the benefit of their employees; in 1909 Miss Stout was voted a vacation of six months and during that period she toured the United States and Mexico; she is a lady of culture and refinement, fully equipped for her present or more important positions in life.
- Jesse Ormsby, educated in technical schools, now connected with the engineering department of the Edison Company, New York City; he possesses superior qualifications, and is a rising young man; he is a member of the Methodist church and of the Young Men's Christian Association; in politics a Republican.