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Eli Whitney Blake
Gender:
Male
Born:
January 27, 1795
Died:
August 18, 1886
Home Town:
Westborough, MA
Marriage(s):
Eliza O'Brien Blake (July 8, 1822)
Biographical Notes:
Eli Whitney Blake was born in Westborough, Massachusetts on January 27, 1795 to Elihu Blake and Elizabeth Whitney Blake (sister of Eli Whitney, the inventor of the cotton gin). In 1816 Eli graduated from Yale College before attending the Litchfield Law School in 1817. After completing a year of study in Litchfield, Eli abandoned the prospects of a career in law and instead entered into the manufacture of firearms at Whitneyville, Connecticut under the employment of his uncle.
In 1822 he married Eliza Maria O'Brien, with whom he had twelve children. After the death of his uncle, Eli became one of the earliest and most successful manufacturers of hardware in the United States. He went into business with his two brothers Philos and John. The company, under the name Blake Brothers, created ...
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In 1822 he married Eliza Maria O'Brien, with whom he had twelve children. After the death of his uncle, Eli became one of the earliest and most successful manufacturers of hardware in the United States. He went into business with his two brothers Philos and John. The company, under the name Blake Brothers, created ...
[more]
Education
Years at LLS:
1817
Other Education:
Graduated from Yale College in 1816.
Profession / Service
Profession:
Manufacturer; Other
Immediate Family (Why only immediate family?)
- Eliza O'Brien Blake
Wife - Maria Blake Burgess
Sister
LFA (1816) - Elihu Blake
Father - Elizabeth Whitney Blake
Mother
Related Objects and Documents
Other:
The Citation of Attendance provides primary source documentation of the student’s attendance at the Litchfield Female Academy and/or the Litchfield Law School. If a citation is absent, the student is thought to have attended but currently lacks primary source confirmation. Records for the schools were sporadic, especially in the formative years of both institutions. If instructors kept comprehensive records for the Litchfield Female Academy or the Litchfield Law School, they do not survive. Researchers and staff have identified students through letters, diaries, family histories and genealogies, and town histories as well as catalogues of students printed in various years. Art and needlework have provided further identification of Female Academy Students, and Litchfield County Bar records document a number of Law School students. The history of both schools and the identification of the students who attended them owe credit to the early 20th century research and documentation efforts of Emily Noyes Vanderpoel and Samuel Fisher, and the late 20th century research and documentation efforts of Lynne Templeton Brickley and the Litchfield Historical Society staff.
CITATION OF ATTENDANCE:
Handwritten list by William Samuel Johnson, "Catalogue of the Students at Law in the school at Litchfield Conn. at & after Aug. 15th 1817..", Connecticut Historical Society, Johnson Family Papers, 1722-1863, Box - Johnson Papers.
Catalogue of the Litchfield Law School, Hartford, CT: Press of Case, Tiffany and Company, 1849.
Catalogue of the Litchfield Law School, Hartford, CT: Press of Case, Tiffany and Company, 1849.
Secondary Sources:
Gould, William Tracy, et al. Biographical Sketches of the Members of the class of 1816, Yale College. T.J. Stafford, 1867.
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