Source:
History of Litchfield County, Connecticut with Illustrations and 
Biographical Sketches of its Prominent Men and Pioneers……
Published: Philadelphia: J.W. Lewis & Co.,  1881.


HARVEY W. PINNEY,  the youngest of four children of Aseph and 
Betty Pinney, was born in Colebrook, Dec. 16, 1811.  His father was one 
of the early settlers in the town, a farmer, and somewhat noted as a 
school-teacher, and particularly as teacher of the higher branches of 
mathematics, which at that time were not a part of common-school 
education in country places.  His son, Harvey W., the subject of this 
sketch, passed his boyhood days on the home-farm, with the usual 
experience of a country lad of the time, receiving a common-school 
education.  The father died in the spring of 1835, leaving a moderate 
property, mostly in the farm, the care of which devolved upon Mr. 
Pinney and an older brother; but he was not destined to long follow the 
farmer’s occupation exclusively.  Infatuated as a boy with the violin, he 
had by great perseverance, and under much opposition from a father 
who, though a musician and teacher of singing, entertained a poor 
opinion of "fiddlers" in general, became quite proficient as a player, and 
eventually abandoned the farm and took up the profession of dancing-
master, furnishing with his violin music for balls and parties, and 
traversing the country in a circuit of thirty miles to attend his numerous 
engagements.  Traveling his rounds in a gig drawn by a white-faced 
horse (almost as well known as the driver), with fiddle-box strapped on 
behind, Mr. Pinney was one of the best-known men and most familiar 
sight of that region.  He followed this business profitably for twenty 
successive years, and meantime composed many pieces of music, some 
of which were published.  He was married, Oct. 23, 1850, to Harriet A. 
Wakefield, daughter of Hezekiah and Harriet B. Wakefield, of 
Colebrook, the fruits of which union were two sons, Victor Hugo, who 
died Feb. 12, 1854, at the age of two and one-half years, and Lucien 
Vernette, born in 1853, who at the present writing (1881) is editor and 
publisher of the Winsted Press.  In 1851, Mr. Pinney was sent to the 
State Legislature by the Democratic party as representative from the 
town of Colebrook, and at various times was elected justice of the peace.  
He was also postmaster at Mill Brook (an office in the town of 
Colebrook) for about thirty years.  Of late he has lived in retirement on 
the accumulation of a prudent, temperate, and industrious life, devoting 
his time mainly to such religious studies and meditations as are enjoyed 
by modern infidels, of which class he is one of the most outspoken, as 
his occasional contributions to the public press too plainly indicate.  He 
was one of the early converts to modern Spiritualism, and is still its 
sincere advocate.  In illustration of his peculiar independence of 
character, it may not be out of place to say that he cast the first 
“Greenback” vote in Colebrook, voting alone, though for perhaps forty 
years he had voted with the Democratic party at every election.  He lives 
in Mill Brook, in the southwestern part of the town of Colebrook.  An 
engraving of his residence (which during the thirty years that he was 
postmaster was also the Mill Brook post-office) will be found on another 
page.


Submitted by:  Linda Pingel  (LPingel@worldnet.att.net)