Henry Reed Stiles

Henry Reed Stiles (March 10, 1832 ) was an American physician who wrote several historical records and genealogical books. As a doctor, he served in various medical positions primarily in New York City, although he spent four years in Dundee, Scotland. He was very interested in genealogical and historical research. , his work (including The Stiles Family in America, Genealogies of the Connecticut Family and The History and Genealogies of Ancient Windsor, Connecticut) continued to be widely cited by researchers and remained in print more than 115 years later.

Family life and education Henry Reed Stiles was born in New York City and had three brothers, Arthur, William, and Samuel, and one sister, Charlotte. Henry Stiles' father Samuel was the son of American Revolutionary War soldier Asahel Stiles from East Windsor, Connecticut. Their ancestors included farmer John Stiles, one of the first settlers of Windsor, Connecticut in 1636.

He practiced medicine for a few months in New York City before moving briefly to Galena, Ohio, where he took on a partner, Dr. Timothy M. Wilcox. In 1856 he moved again to Toledo, Ohio where he edited the Toledo Blade newspaper.

In 1865 he was an active member of the Faust Club which published limited editions of Wood's History of Long Island, and of Farman's Notes on Brooklyn, N. Y. In 1865 he issued a limited edition of two volumes describing to the condition and experiences of prison ship captives in Wallabout Bay, under the title of The Wallabout Prisonship Series, and also edited The Genealogy of the Stranahan and Josslyn Families.

In 1867 he issued the first volume of his History of the City of Brooklyn, N. Y., in 1869 the second, and in 1870 the third. He wrote a short biography, the Life of Abraham Lincoln (1865); 22 of the 56 biographies in The Men of Our Day (1868), one or two campaign biographies of General Ulysses S. Grant, and portions of many other subscription books. He contributed articles to many newspapers and magazines, and brief biographies of publishers in the Round Table for 1866-7; papers in the Historical Magazine, of which he was editor; letters and historical sketches in the Rahway Times, New Jersey, under the nom-de-plume of "Tip Top." In 1884 he edited and largely contributed to the Illustrated History of the County of Kings and the City of Brooklyn, in two volumes, and in 1887 completed editing The Humphreys Family and Genealogy.

He helped to organize the American Anthropological Society in 1869, and was one of the seven founders of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, serving as its president from 1869 until 1873. After his full retirement in 1901, he devoted all his time to completing and preparing for publication of The History of Ancient Wethersfield, Connecticut. Stiles was described upon his death as having "made it possible for thousands to trace their ancestry to the founders of our American Government and to honored names in the older governments of the world." Stiles died on January 7, 1909.

Works

Stiles wrote a number of books and also contributed numerous articles to magazines, newspapers, and genealogical publications. These are most of his major works.

The History and Genealogies of Ancient Windsor, Connecticut (Volumes 1 and 2); Including East Windsor, South Windsor, Bloomfield, Windsor Locks (New York, 1859; supplement, Albany, 1863) Genealogy of the Massachusetts Family of Stiles (1863) The Wallabout Prison-Ship Series (2 vols., 1865) Letters from the Prisons and Prison-ships of the Revolution Account of the Interment of the Remains of American Patriots, Who Perished On Board British Prison Ships During the American Revolution The Genealogy of the Stranahan and Joselyn Families (1865) Life of Abraham Lincoln (1865) A History of the City of Brooklyn (Volume 1, 1867; Volume 2, 1869; Volume 3, 1870) Monograph on Bundling in America (Albany, 1861) The Stiles Family in America. Genealogies of the Connecticut Family. Descendants of John Stiles, of Windsor, Conn., and of Mr. Francis Stiles (1895) Historical Magazine: And Notes and Queries Concerning the Antiquities, History, and Biography of America (2 vols.) A History of the Town of Bushwick, Kings County, N.Y. and of the Town, Village and City of Williamsburgh, Kings County, N.Y Illustrated History of the County of Kings and City of Brooklyn (2 vols., 1884) The Humphreys Family and Genealogy (1887) Bundling: Its Origin, Progress and Decline in America Knickerbocker Publishing Company, Albany, NY (1871) A Hand-Book of Practical Suggestions, for the Use of Students in Genealogy Joel Munsell's Sons, Albany, New York (1899) , ed. 3 volumes.