Résumé

Absalom B. Hallock arrived as one of the earliest surveyors-builders-architects working in the Oregon Territory, settling here in the spring of 1850. He integrated himelf quickly in the city's business culture and political affairs. A 1911 Portland, OR biographical dictionary said of him: "He became actively connected with the growth of the city as a surveyor and builder and retained his residence here for a quarter of a century.... Later he turned his attention to building and contracting and to him is due the distinction of having erected the first brick building on First street, Portland, its location being near Pine. ...[H]]e erected the Ladd & Tilton Bank building and a number of other early prominent business blocks of the city. Moreover in matters of public interest he took an active and helpful part and his labors were of distinct value to the city in many ways." (See Joseph Gaston, "A.B. Hallock," in Portland, Oregon Its History and Builders, Vol. III, [Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1911], p. 109.)

Steward, Portland, OR, c. 1850. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation The National Archives in Washington D.C.; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29; Series Number: M432; Residence Date: 1850; Home in 1850: Portland, Washington, Oregon Territory; Roll: 742; Page: 133b, accessed 02/02/2023.)

Partner, Hallock and Company, Architects, (partnership with building contractor William McMillan), Portland, OR, 1852-1853;

Partner, Hallock and [Lou] Day, Architects, Portland, OR, 1853-c. 1860.

County Surveyor, Multnomah County, Portland, OR, c. 1855.

Principal, A.B. Hallock, Architect, Portland, OR, 1863. In 1863-1864, Hallock had his office at 51 Front Street in Portland. (See Portland Directory for the Year 1863, [Portland, OR: S.J. McCormick, 1863], p. 59 and Portland, Oregon, City Directory, 1864, p. 47.)

Associate, Hallock and [Ellwood M.] Burton, Architects, Portland, OR, c. 1862-1870. In 1869, an Internal Revenue Service document listed Hallock as earning $1,613. He owned a watch, as well, which was listed as an asset. He paid 5% tax for a total of $80.65. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation The National Archives and Records Administration; Washington, D.C.; Internal Revenue Assessment Lists, Oregon District, 1867-1873; Series: M1631; Roll: 1; Description: Annual Lists; 1869; Record Group: 58, Records of the Internal Revenue Service, 1791 - 2006, accessed 02/02/2023.)

City Surveyor, City of Portland, Portland, OR. Of his surveying career, the 1911 Gaston biography stated: ""In addition to his other work in Portland he was one fo the early surveyors of the city and laid out the Couch addition." (See Joseph Gaston, "A.B. Hallock," in Portland, Oregon Its History and Builders, Vol. III, [Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1911], p. 109.)

Postmaster, Barnegat, Tillamook County, OR, 1891-1892. (See "Postal Changes," San Francisco Examiner, 06/02/1891, p. 2.)

Training

The 1911 biographical dictionary entry by Joseph Gaston said of Hallock's education: "Mr. Hallock was born in Utica, New Yorkm in 1826, a son of Dr. A.B. Hallock, whi was a representative of an old Quaker family. After attending the schools of Utica for several years the son entered business circles as an apprentice to the cabonet-maker's trade and became a fine mechanic and also an expert draftsman, civil engineer and surveyor." (See Joseph Gaston, "A.B. Hallock," in Portland, Oregon Its History and Builders, Vol. III, [Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1911], p. 109.)

Relocation

Born in Milton, NY, Absalom Barrett Hallock resided with his parents in Marlborough, Ulster County, NY, in 1830. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1830; Census Place: Marlborough, Ulster, New York; Series: M19; Roll: 106; Page: 274; Family History Library Film: 0017166, accessed 02/02/2023.) The Quaker Hallock Family had deep roots in the nearby town of Milton, NY. This was the place where Absalom's siblings were born and where his father Robert T. Hallock was buried.

By 1840, Robert T. Hallock had a medical practice in Utica, NY. The US Census of that year listed nine people living in the Hallock household, including one male and one female between 5 and 10 years, one male and one female between 10 and 15 years, one male between 15 and 20 years, one male and one female between 20 and 30 years, and one male and one female between 30 and 40 years. Unfortunately, the 1840 US Census did not name family members, but only listed then as tickmarks categorized by age, gender and race. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1840; Census Place: Utica Ward 3, Oneida, New York; Roll: 312; Page: 231; Family History Library Film: 0017199, accessed 02/02/2023.)

Hallock traveled to the Oregon Territory via the Panama Isthmus in 1849. An index card in the biographical file of the Oregon Historical Society indicated that he "started to Oregon Dec. 13, 1849" and "arrived April 1850." (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Oregon Historical Society; Portland, OR; Index Collection: Biography Index, accessed 02/02/2023.) He settled first in Oregon City, OR, working as a woodworker, before moving to Portland by at least 1850. The US Census of 1850 listed an "A.B. Halleck" in Portland working as a steward. Hallock resided in a boarding house operated by Frank de Witt (born c. 1816 in Hanover, Germany) and Otilia De Witt (born c. 1916 in IN). The de Witts had four children and lodged 17 other individuals. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation The National Archives in Washington D.C.; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29; Series Number: M432; Residence Date: 1850; Home in 1850: Portland, Washington, Oregon Territory; Roll: 742; Page: 133b, accessed 02/02/2023.)

Hallock developed an important practice in Portland and its surroundings during the 1850s-1860s, before his workload declined in the 1870s. In 1864, the architect resided on North 6th Street between Pine and C Streets. (See Portland, Oregon, City Directory, 1864, p. 47.)

The Pacific Coast Directory, 1867, indicated that A. B. Hallock worked at the Willamette Iron Works, Portland, as a civil engineer. Hallock also dabbled as a land surveyor and construction supervisor.

Hallock remained a highly visible and influential member of Portland's society during the 1850s through the 1870s. There were some bumps in the road, however. In 01/1858, members of the Oregon Territorial Legislature made an official inquiry into possible misappropriation of funds in relation to bricks supplied to the Oregon Territorial Penitentiary. Hallock was involved in a few court cases over the years, most about recovering fees never paid by clients.

In 1874, he retired to a 40-acre homestead at Bay Ocean, OR, in Tillamook County, living there until his death on 10/30/1892. (See "Death of A.B. Hallock," Salem Capital Journal, 11/01/1892, p. 2.) Some of Hallock's land may have been sold on 03/13/1891, just before his death. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Bureau of Land Management, General Land Office Records; Washington D.C., USA; Federal Land Patents, State Volumes, accessed 02/06/2023.)

Absalom Hallock died in Tillamook, OR, on either 10/30/1982 or 10/31/1892. A death notice in the Capital Journal stated: “A.B. Hallock, an old pioneer, and for many years a resident and prominent citizen of Polrtand [sic], died on Sunday, in Tillamook county, where has resided for the past 12 years.” If his death occurred on Sunday, this was 10/30/1892. (See “Death of A.B. Hallock,” Capital Journal, 11/01/1892, p. 2.)A note in the Albany Daily Democrat listed his death on 10/31/1892. (See "Events of 1892," Albany Daily Democrat, 01/03/1893, p. 2.)

The architect was buried at the Lone Fir Pioneer Cemetery in Portland, OR.

Parents

His father was Dr. Robert Titus Hallock (born 1806 in NY-d. 01/18/1879 in New York, NY), a prominent physician and intellectual, who spent his later years living New York, NY. Robert Hallock probably married three times. He first wed Amelia Adams Barret ( or possibly spelled "Barrett," born c. 1805-died 06/09/1848 in NY) of Milton, NY, at the Friends Meeting House in Milton on 11/28/1827. Amelia's father was Abraham Barret (dates unknown). (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Genealogical Publishing Co.; Baltimore, Maryland; 10,000 Vital Records of Eastern New York, 1777-1834, accessed 02/02/2023.) Absalom's mother Amelia likely had two other children with Robert: Elizabeth Hallock Willson (born 05/15/1832 in Milton, NY-d. 02/06/1917 in Winona County, MN) and Robert Edward Hallock (born 03/21/1837 in Milton, NY-d. 10/04/1896 in Boise, ID).

An 1855 NY State Census form indicated that the doctor lived with Elizabeth Hallick [sic] (born c. 1820 in NY) in New York City. This was likely not Amelia, if the age listed for Elizabeth was correct. Elizabeth was probably a second wife, and the household included at that time Emma Hallock (born c. 1840 in NY), Marion A. Hallock (born c. 1844 in NY), Waverley Hallock (born c. 1852 in NY) and a boarder, Phoebe Post (born c. 1815 in NY). Emma, Marion and Waverley were likely children by Elizabeth, not Amelia. (See Ancestry.com, Source Information Ancestry.com. New York, U.S., State Census, 1855 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013, accessed 02/02/2023.)

Following her death, Robert wed Frances Virginia Robinson (born c. 1821 in VA-d. 1899 in NY). This was his third marriage and her second. Frances was previously married to William Henry Dietz (born 05/29/1816-d. 10/14/1860) on 10/21/1841 in New York, NY. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation: The Episcopal Diocese of New York; New York, New York Source Information: New York, U.S., Episcopal Diocese of New York Church Records, 1767-1970 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2017, accessed 02/02/2023.)

Robert Hallock lived in Marlborough, NY, in 1865, as per the NY State Census of that year. The household included his wife Frances V. Hallock, Waverley Hallock (born c. 1852 in NY), Ethelinda "Ella" Dietz (born c. 1851 in NY) and two servants, Mary Mullins (born c. 1843 in Ireland) and Joanna Sheehan (born c. 1844 in Ireland). (See Ancestry.com, Source Information Ancestry.com. New York, U.S., State Census, 1865 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014, accessed 02/02/2023.) The 1870 US Census reported that Robert Hallock's family resided in New York. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1870; Census Place: New York Ward 18 District 4, New York, New York; Roll: M593_1001; Page: 141A, accessed 02/02/2023.)

The elder Hallock was a homeopathic physician who practiced in Ulster County, NY, and later in New York City. An obituary appeared in The Medical Eclectic (04/879), that said of Robert Hallock: "Dr. Robert T. Hallock, for many years a practising physician of New York, died suddenly January 21, 1879, at his residence, No. 140 East Fifteenth Street, of disease of the heart. Dr. Hallock was a member of the Geographical and Polytechnic Societies and of the Farmers' and Liberal Clubs of this city. It was at the regular meeting of the latter organization that he was stricken with the disease which within a few hours caused his death. He was born of Quaker parents, at Milton-on-the-Hudson, and was seventy-three years of age." (See "Obituary Notices: Robert T. Hallock, M.D.," The Medical Eclectic, 04/1879, pp. 191-192.)

Robert Hallock was also prominent lecturer in the American Spiritualist Movement of the mid-19th century. An 1879 obituary was published in the magazine Spiritual Notes said this of him: "Since my last letter that genial and accomplished worker, Dr. Robert T. Hallock, has departed to the higher life. The writer little thought when some time ago he clasped the worthy Doctor's hand in London that it would be the last time of doing so in this life. Our American contemporaries gave full and extended accounts of the funeral service, in which some of the most eminent and worthy of American Spiritualists participated. Thank God the good Doctor's life is not over; he has but been removed to a wider sphere of action. A very expressive piece of poetry has been contributed to a recent issue of the Spiritualist as a memorial tribute by the Doctor's adopted daughter, Miss Ella Dietz. The poem is rich in those graces of soul that have made Miss Dietz beloved by those who know her best." (See J.J. Morse, "Notes by the Way--No. VIII," Spiritual Notes, 03/1879, p. 113.)

Hallock and his wife Frances were also ardent suffragists. They belonged to the National, New York and Union suffrage organizations. (See The Selected Papers of Elizabeth Cady Stanton & Susan B. Anthony, Volume II, Against an Aristocracy of Sex, 1866 to 1873, Ann D. Gordon, ed., [New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2000], p. 230.)

In 1870, Robert Hallock lived with his wife Frances in a residence in New York, NY. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Year: 1870; Census Place: New York Ward 18 District 4, New York, New York; Roll: M593_1001; Page: 141A, accessed 02/02/2023.)

Amelia Barrett and Robert Hallock had at least three children: Absalom, Elizabeth Hallock Willson (born 05/15/1832 in Milton, NY-d. 02/06/1917 in Winona County, MN) and Robert Edward Hallock (born 03/21/1837 in Milton, NY-d. 10/04/1896 in Boise, ID). Elizabeth Hallock Willson was an enthusiastic supporter of both women's suffrage and temperance. Robert Edward Hallock moved to ID by c. 1863, and to Boise, ID, by 1867 where he settled.

Spouse

He wed Mary Tiffany Bliss (born 01/13/1829 in VA-d. 03/1863 in Portland, OR) on 04/22/1855 at Oregon City, OR. (See John Homer Bliss, Genealogy of the Bliss Family in America, from aboutthe Year 1550 to 1880, [Boston, MA: John Homer Bliss, 1881], p. 369) One of the Oregon Historical Society's biography cards indicated that Mary Bliss lived in Corvallis at the time of her marriage and that she had formerly lived in Pawtucket, RI. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Oregon Historical Society; Portland, OR; Index Collection: Biography Index, accessed 02/08/2023. This card referred to articles in the Oregon Statesman on 05/12/1855 p. 3 and the Oregon Weekly Times [OWT], 04/28/1855, p. 3.)

Children

With Mary Bliss, Absalom Hallock had at least three children: Annette B. Hallock Cotter (born 05/19/1852-d. 11/14/1925) and Edward Hallock (born c. 1858), Bessie Hallock (born 1861 in Portland, OR-d. 08/26/1862 in Portland, OR)

Biographical Notes

Member, Taylor Street Methodist Episcopal Church, Choir, 1850. (See "Picture of Original Taylor Street Choir Will Be Displayed," Oregon Daily Journal, 03/26/1914, p. 7.) At the time, there was likely no Quaker congregation established in the frontier town of Portland.

Hallock was an influential civic leader in Portland, OR, c. 1852-1873. During this time, he served as the city's first city surveyor and as a city council member. He was responsible for Portland City Ordinance #72, "An Ordinance to Divide the City of Portland into Three Wards," passed on 03/3/1858. This ordinance stated: "The People of the City of Portland do ordain as follows: Section 1. All that portion of the City of Portland which lies to the north of the center line of Washington street, shall be the First Ward of the City. All that portion of the City which lies between the center line of Washington Street and the center line of Taylor street, shall be the Second Ward of the City. And all that portion of the City which lies to the south of the center line of Taylor street, shall be the Third Ward of the City. Section 2. That this ordinance shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage. Passed the Council March 2d, 1858." (See Portland, Oregon Directory, 1864, p. 79.)Hallock served as a Portland City Councilman for the 1st Ward in 1867. (See Ancestry.com, Source Information Ancestry.com. Pacific Coast Directory, 1867 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2000, accessed 02/02/2023.)

The book, Portland's Finest, Past & Present, noted that "Governor Lafayette [sic] appointed William P. Burke, John H. Hayden and Absalom B. Hallock as the city's first police commissioners on October 21, 1870. The new board had its initial meeting on November 1 and elected Hallock as chairperson." (Governor La Fayette Grover [1823-1911] made the appointment. See Portland's Finest, Past & Present, [Paducah, KY: Turner Publishing Company, 2000], p. 18.)

Hallock also was an inventor. On 03/24/1868, Hallock and John Nation patented "...a new and useful Mode of Injecting Oil or Tallow into Steam-Cylinder Chests and Steam-Cylinders for Lubricating Purposes." (See "U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Patents, 1790-1909," Ancestry.com, Accessed 12/13/2012.) He also received US Patent #149,653 for an "Auxiliary heater for steam engines," filed 11/09/1872. Richard Ellison Ritz, in his Architects of Oregon, biographical dictionary, spelled Hallock's first name variously as "Absolom" (p. 60) and "Absolam" (p. 161). The spelling of his last name has also been spelled in documents as "Halleck." Hallock was party to a district court case--White v. Delschneider--over land title in Portland in 05/1858, and his name was spelled "Absalom B. Hallock." (See Pacific States Reports: Extra Annotated, Book 37, p. 254.)

According to the Oregon Historical Society's Biographical Card Index, Hallock identified with the Democratic Party. (See Ancestry.com, Source Citation Oregon Historical Society; Portland, OR; Index Collection: Pioneer Index, accessed 02/02/2023.)

Prior to 02/06/2023, PCAD had an erroneous death date for Absalom Hallock of 10/28/1889.