Transcribed by Elaine Merrell and taken from Historic Homes and Institutions and Genealogical and Personal Memoirs of Worcester, County Massachusetts, by Ellery Bicknell Crane, published 1907 by the Lewis Publishing Co., Vol. # 1, pages 246-248
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WILLIAM PHINEHAS SEARLS. Robert Searls (1), the pioneer ancestor of William Phinehas
Searls, late of Worcester, Massachusetts, and of a number of families in Massachusetts and Conneccut was born in England, in Dorchester, if family tradition is correct. The date of his was about 1640. He married in 1660, Deborah_______,and about the same time came to this coutry, settling in Dorchester, Massachusetts. Other Searles or Searle pioneers preceded him. Many of the Searles families are descended from Searles, of Springfield, Massachusetts, who was there as early as 1637, and from Philip Sear1 of Roxbury, Massachusetts. The name is variously spelled in the early records, but the descendants Robert Searts, of Dorchester, Massachusetts, maintained the spelling, Searls, in all the generations except for occasional variations of individuals.
Robert Searts was admitted an inhabitant of Dorchester June 9, 1662. His wife died March 2, 1713/4 at Dorchester. The town record of his death notes that he was "town clerk for many years." Doubt less the completeness of the early records in Dor chester, relating to the Searls family, is due to the fact that for sixteen years he himself kept record as town clerk. He died, at Dorchester, February 7, 1717. He signed the Dorchester petition to the King in 1664. He owned twelve acres in "Great Lots" in 1668. The children of Robert and Deborah Searts were: Nathaniel, born in Dorchester, June 9, 1662, baptized there April 5, 1668; marrieded, 1694, Sarah, daughter of John Rogers and Elizabeth Peabody, and great-granddaughter of Thomas Rogers of the "Mayflower"; Salter a peculiar family name found in almost every family of Robert Searls' descendants. There were several pioneers of this name. William Salter, of Boston left a large family of children and was in Boston as early as 1638, born June 26, 1664, died April 8. 1690: baptized at Dorchester Church, April 5 1668; Esbon (given Edna in some accounts), born February 24, 1669, died young; Robert, (see forward) ; Esbon, born March 18, 1674; Deborah, b April 4, 1677; Jabez, born March 13, 1679, married Thankful Topliff, April 9, 1702, at Dorchester, had a large family of children there; she died May 1, 1747; be died July 31, 1724.
(II) Robert Searls, son of Robert Searts (I) born in Dorchester, Massachusetts, July 2, 1671 married there December 4; 1695, by Rev. Mr. Danforth, Rebecca Evans. He settled in Dorchester
and died there July 13, 1752, of smallpox "being," the town records tell us, "the fourth person that had it in the town in the year 1752, and the only one that died of it in the town of Dorchester, though such numbers had it in Boston and surrounding towns, and hundreds died of it there." His widow, Rebecca, died May 17, 1761, in her eighty-flfth year. Both were buried in Dorchester, and their graves are marked with headstones. The children of Robert and Rebecca (Evans) Searls were: Salter, baptized December 6, 1696, died at Dorchester, May 15, 1753 (headstone at Dorchester); Rebecca a (twin), born February 15, 1700; Deborah, (twin) born February 15, 1700, died January 20, 1755, unmarried; Mary, born December 21, 1701, died unmarried October 12, 1765; Robert (see forward).
(III) Robert Searls, son of Robert Searls (2), born in Dorchester, Massachusetts, July 3, 1705; sett- led in Dorchester and married Sarah Maudsley, who was of an old Dorchester family, January 6, 1731. He was known generally as Robert Searls, Jr. Children, all born in Dorchester, were: Elizabeth, born December 17, 1732; Rebecca, May 26, 1'734; Elijah, March 28, 1736; John, May 17, 1738, settled in Dorchester and raised a family there; Salter, (see forward).
(IV) Salter Searls, son of Robert Sceals, Jr. (3), was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts, June 15, .1741. When a young man he removed to Brooklyn, the county seat of Windham county, Connecticut. He died there May 25, 1808. He served on the school committee and in other offices. He married Alice Cady, of Brooklyn, Connecticut, born February 23, 1747; died October 24, 1819. Their seven sons and one daughter all settled in Windham county in the towns of Plainfield, Brooklyn, Hampton, and Pomfret. The children were : Daniel, Sarah, Phinehas, (see forward) ; Elijah, Joel, John, Richard, Bela.
(V) Phinehas Searls, son of Salter Searls (4), was born April 26, 1773; died May 30, 1856; married (first) Alithea Brown, born in Brooklyn, Connecticut, April 11, 1786; died February 15, 1825. She was the daughter of Alpheus and Sarah Brown; married (second) Mary Witter Paine, born January 30,1785; died January 5, 1857. The children of Phinehas and Alithea (Brown) Searls were: Harriet, born May 28, 1805; died July 8, 1805; William, (see forward) ; Charles, July 5, 1815, died October 18, 1892; Alithea, October 27, 1819, died January 24, 1824; Henry, March 18, 1821, died July 13, 1821 ; Almary, August 12, 1822; died April 8, 1856; Daniel, February 15, 1825, died June 29, 1866. The children of Phinehas and Mary Witter (Paine.) Searls were: Martha Ann, November 29, 1826, died February 15, 1829; Lewis, September 2, 1828, died December 19, 1902.
(VI) William Searls. son of Phinehas Searls (5) and father of William P. Searls, was born in Plainfield, Connecticut, (now called Wauregan) on the Quinebaug river, January 26, (?) 1811; died January 11, 1900. He married Catherine Jane Backus, of New York city, May 27, 1841. She was the twin daughter of Simon and Eunice Alice (Linus) Backus, of a family of ten children. She was born in New York city December 8, 1822; died in Worcester, April 20, 1905. She was the great-great-granddaughter of Rev. Timothy Edwards, her father's grandmother being a sister of the famous Rev. Jonathan Edwards. The record of the Linus family was destroyed in a fire some years ago, when the old homestead at Bridgeport, Connecticut, was destroyed. The family was of English and French descent. Mr. Searls removed from Plainfield, with his parents, to Brooklyn, Connecticut, when he was a young boy. The Searls place at Brooklyn is the farm now owned there by Frank Weaver. The family occupied the place forty-seven years. He began life as clerk in the country stores at Brooklyn and Plainfield, Connecticut. From there he went to Hartford, Connecticut, where he held a position in a dry goods establishment. He went to New York to take a responsible position in one of the largest dry goods store there. Eventually he went to Wall street and became one of the leading brokers of his day. With his brother Charles he became associated with several of the most prominent operators of Wall street. Both were members of the New York Stock Exchange for many years. William. Searls was elected president of the Stock Exchange in 1868. At the end of his term be retired from active life. For thirty years he enjoyed his retirement occupied only with the cares of his investments. He resided in Brooklyn, New York. He became a member of the Clinton Avenue Congregational Church of that city May 1, 1850. Children were: Catherine Isabelle, born in New York city, June 2, 1842, died July 26, 1842; Florence Amelia, born in Brooklyn Heights, New York, June 29, 1848; educated in private schools and at the Parker Collegiate Institute; has lived in recent years in Worcester, at the home of her brother, William P. Searls, 105 Burncoat street; William Phinehas, (see forward).
(VII) William Phinehas Searls, son of William Searls (6), was born in Brooklyn, June 3, 1851; died November 20, 1904. His early education was obtained at private schools and at the Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute. For a time he was with his father on Wall street in the brokerage business. Later he was associated with Hatch & Foote, bankers and brokers, and with the Tiffany jewelry es- tablishment. He went to Chicago, where he was connected with the grocery business of J. W. Doane. Returning to New York, he married September 12, 1882, Kate Robinson, daughter of John R. Robinson. His father-in-law was interested in Mexican silver mines and Mr. Searls for a time managed a mine for him at Chihuahua, Mexico. He was in the real estate business until 1890, when he came to Worces- ter to live on account of the health of his daughter Florence. He made his home at 105 Burncoat street, in an attractive portion of the suburbs of the city. Soon after coming to Worcester he became inter- ested in the North End Street Railway Company. When the company was organized in 1892 he became its first president. While his company was fighting for its franchise and locations he was called upon many times to appear before the Board of Aldermen at hearings in opposition to the powerful Consoli- dated Street Railway Company, of Worcester. He won for his company, and the line was constructed from Greendale to Washington Square, and it was.operated by the North End Street Railway Company until it was leased to the Consolidated August 1, 1895, for a term of ninety-nine years. The North End Street Railway Company is still in existence as a corporation. It was the intention of the company from the first to extend its lines to Clinton. He was also interested for a time in the Drapery Fixture and Wood Carving Company, and during the last years of his life was interested in the Worcester Manufacturing Company, which conducted extensive experiments with compressed air motors etc. He was one of a committee of seven appointed to recommend a plan for the investment of the funds obtained by the Worcester Agricultural Society from the sale of its grounds. His committee reported
in favor of the purchase of the present grounds at Barbers' Crossing. At a meeting in Horticultural
Hall it was voted to accept the recommendation and to negotiate the purchase of the tract, also to
locate and lay out a regulation racing track, much to the satisfaction of horsemen generally. Mr.
Searls was an ardent Republican. He represented Ward Two in the general. court in 1893-94-95. He
was on the committee on election laws in 1894, and chairman of the committee on finance and house
chairman of the committee on expenditures in 1895. He was a man of attractive personality. He made friends readily and kept them. He was a shrewd man of business. The only child of William Phinehas and Kate (Robinson) Searls was: Florence, born on West End avenue, New York city, November 3, 1888.

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