Hiram C. Denton, president of the village of Northville, Fulton county, and one of its foremost business men, is a native of New York, his birth having occurred in the town of Day, Saratoga county, on January 26, 1875. His mother, Mrs. Martha M. (Darling) Denton, was also born in Day and is still living there. His father, J. Weston Denton, was born in Peru, Clinton county, New York. He served in the Civil war and after the war was over resumed his occupation of a farmer and lumberman in the town of Day, where he lived until his death in November, 1884.
Hiram C. Denton grew to manhood in Day, where he obtained his education and remained on the family farm until he was of age. When he was about twenty-six years old he engaged in the general merchandise business at Conklingville, New York, for a couple of years. For five years after that he was interested in real estate in Albany. It was in 1915 that Mr. Denton located in Northville to go into the hardware and furniture business, which he conducted successfully until 1923. In the latter year he disposed of his hardware business, but he is still operating his furniture store and enjoys a liberal patronage from the people of Northville and the surrounding trade territory.
As something of a side line Mr. Denton has become intensely interested in bee culture and now has the largest apiary in this section of the country, to which he keeps adding from time to time, until at present he has sixty colonies of bees. One year, quite recently, his bees produced fifteen hundred pounds of honey. He also enjoys gardening and has quite a little truck farm on his tract of eight acres at the edge of the village.
Almost from boyhood, one might say, Mr. Denton has been interested in local politics and civic affairs. At the age of twenty-one, as soon as he was eligible for public office, he was elected county supervisor for Saratoga county and held this position for nine years, for one year also serving as chairman of the board. Since coming to Northville he has taken a leading part in public life. He has been a village trustee for two years, a member of the local school board for five years and in 1924 was elected president of the village. His selection for this important office was a fitting recognition of his ability as an executive and faithful service in behalf of the general welfare in other official capacities. As a stanch democrat Mr. Denton has been an important factor in the work of his party in this section and is now acting as chairman of the democratic town committee. He is an active Mason, past master of Fish House Lodge, No. 298, A. F. & A. M.; and past high priest of his chapter. Religiously he is identified with the Presbyterian church, in which he holds the offices of elder and secretary of the board of trustees.
On September 15, 1909, Mr. Denton was married to Miss Anna McKenzie, daughter of Charles W. and Elizabeth (George) McKenzie, natives and residents of Albany. Mr. and Mrs. Denton have four children: Hiram McKenzie, born June 19, 1910; Thomas Edwin, born September 18, 1911; Elizabeth M., born February 14, 1914; and Howard R., born November 29, 1915. The Dentons live on South Main street, Northville.