Lyman-Corse Family, 1815-1891

Richard Lyman arrived in New England in 1631 from England. Succeeding generations of Lymans lived in Massachusetts and Vermont, as well as Montréal and Toronto. Many members of the family were involved in the wholesale and retail drug business in Upper and Lower Canada. Lewis Lyman (1772-1852) came to Montréal around the end of the 18th century, and entered into partnership with George Wadsworth under the name of Wadsworth & Lyman, wholesale and retail druggists, in 1800. Lewis Lyman's nephew, Henry, joined the firm and became one of Montréal's leading businessmen. The firm continued under various names until 1951. Its business records are described in Section V, Business and Economy of this inventory. In 1841 Henry Lyman married Mary Corse, daughter of Roswell Corse, of Northfield, Massachusetts Her brother Henry Corse became a successful Montréal businessman and contributed to the building of St. Lawrence Hall, a famous Montréal hotel, 1845-1847. He was also the president of the Montreal Board of Trade in 1878-1879. He died in 1914.