BIOGRAPHY: Charles Gorton Adams; Cayuga co., New York

transcribed and submitted by: Ann Anderson (ann.g.anderson at gmail.com)

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BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
THIS VOLUME CONTAINS BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF THE LEADING CITIZENS OF CAYUGA
COUNTY NEW YORK
BOSTON
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW PUBLISHING COMPANY
1894

CHARLES GORTON ADAMS entered  upon his responsible duties as Clerk of Cayuga
County with the new year, 1892, the term of office being for three years, and
his election having taken place in the autumn previous, 1891. He was born in
the city of Auburn, October 14, 1859, a son of Joseph A. and Olive A. (Glass)
Adams. His father was a worthy native of the Green Mountain State, where he
was born in 1825 and lived till about 1845. Then he came to Sennett, in Cayuga
County, when this region was scantily settled. At first he followed the
occupation of agriculture, whereto he had been reared; but later he removed to
Auburn, and began business as an architect and builder, which he continued
with marked success, constructing a number of buildings, which are now among
the oldest and most historic in the city. A public-spirited man, he was one of
the original members of the Auburn Volunteer Fire Department. When the Civil
War broke out, he was in the prime of middle life, and enlisted in the Third
New York Artillery, retaining his membership till the close of the fratricidal
contest, in 1865. As a veteran he belongs to the Crocker Post of the Grand
Army of the Republic. Mrs. Joseph A. Adams is a native of Onondaga County, and
still adorns the home she has helped to make comfortable and attractive.

In his childhood and early youth Charles G. Adams attended the city schools,
to prepare himself for the work of life. After a term at the high school he
found temporary employment as clerk in a store; but in 1879, at the age of
twenty, he came into the County Clerk's office as assistant. In the course of
ten years, in 1888, he was promoted to the higher place of Deputy Clerk; and
this position he held four years   in fact, until his election as chief of the
office, a post for which he was eminently fitted by more than a dozen years of
previous experience; and a most important office it is. He is an ardent
Republican, and has just received a renomination for a second term. In the
social line he belongs to Ensenore Lodge of Odd Fellows, No. 438, in Auburn.

Mr. Adams's marriage took place February 21, 1893, on the eve of the
anniversary of Washington's birthday; and his wife was Frances Anthony, the
daughter of Hicks Anthony, of Ledyard, N.Y. The family attend the Methodist
church; and Mr. Adams is greatly interested in the work of the Young Men's
Christian Association, in which he has served on important committees.

"Grant me neither property nor riches," is the Scripture prayer; and the
following stanza may be found in one of Horace's poems, as translated by the
pious William Cowper:  

"He that holds fast the golden mean,

And lives contentedly between
The little and the great,
Feels not the wants that pinch the poor
Nor plagues that haunt the rich man's door."

Such language fitly describes Mr. Adams's spirit. Amidst the hustling activity
of modern American life, it is refreshing to find some men working in quiet
nooks. In the world's grand marches the subalterns are quite as important as
the generals, for what would the army be without them? The Clerk of a large
and industrious county, like Cayuga, is brought into contact with "all sorts
and conditions of men," not forgetting women, and has to deal with varied
questions. For usefulness in such a position, especially if its incumbent
wishes to make his recalling and re-election sure, he must cherish the virtues
of affability, patience, and accuracy. This Mr. Adams is able to do, being
well endowed by nature as well as grace; so the community may look forward to
being competently and faithfully served for years to come.