Richard U. Sherman

      RICHARD U. SHERMAN.
             -----
End of One of the Most Useful Lives
     in the State's History.
  The death Thursday morning of Gen.
Richard Updyke Sherman, of New Hart-
ford, takes from Oneida County and from
the Empire State one of the most
highly esteemed, most useful and
most upright of citizens.  Born in
Vernon, in 1819, he had always made this
county his  home.  His father, Willett H.
Sherman, was one of the pioneers of
the county, having come early in
the century from Rhode Island.  His
mother was Catherine Schoolcraft, a sister
of Henry R. Schoolcraft, the eminent
scientist and author.
  When he was 14 years of age young
Richard graduated from the Utica
Academy.  He began life among mercan-
tile pursuits, but this he did not fancy, so
at the age of 21 he entered the field of
of literature as a newspaper writer.  Hav-
ing shown his ability in this line in a
marked degree he became editor of
the Daily Gazette.  For the next
10 years he continued steadily in
an editorial career.     In 1848,
with Robert W. Roberts, a brother of Ellis
H. Roberts, and a young man named
Colston, he established the Utica Morning
Herald.
  In 1851 Mr. Sherman became clerk of
the Assembly.  With the exception of a
single year he held this position
continuously until 1857, when he
took his seat as a member of
the body of  which he had been clerk. In
1860 he became assistant clerk of the House
of Representatives, a position which he 
held for ten years, resigning in 1870.
In 1874 he was again elected to the State
Assembly and in the many years during
which he was connected with that body he
performed signal service for his constitu-
ents.
  In 1877 Mr. Sherman retired after 30
years from active official and political life.
From that time until his death he
gave his attention to private business.
Besides his positions at Albany and Wash-
ington he had held a number of other
official positions, having been in turn alder-
man, chief engineer of the Fire Department
of the City of Utica, supervisor, justice of
the peace, president of the village of New
Hartford, brigadier general of the State
militia and one of the commissioners of
fisheries for the State of New York.
  Gen. Sherman leaves besides his widow
three brothers: William Pitt Sherman,
of New York, who is ex-treasurer of the
Erie Railroad Company and the ex-com-
missioner of accounts of New York
city; Albert Sherman, of Lafayette, Ind.,
who is ex-superintendent of the Chicago
& Alton Railroad, and Even Sherman,
of Elgin, Ill.  He also leaves the
following sisters: Marion and Helen
Sherman, of Allendale, N.J., Marrietta,
of New Hartford, Mrs. Angeline Sullivan
and Mrs. Joseph Foote, of Elgin, Ill.: also
the following children: Richard W. Sher-
man, Mary Louise Sherman, who is the
wife of Hon. Henry J. Cookinham, Hon.
James Schoolcraft Sherman and Sanford
E. Sherman.