Joseph Farr Sr (Pittsfield), 1 was born in Acton, Massachusetts, August 30, 1743. He died in Pittsfield, February 24, 1796. Joseph was both a surveying instrument maker and a clockmaker.


Jospeh Farr (Pittsfield) was probably apprenticed in the Boston area before arriving with his parents in Cummington. He married 21-year-old Sarah Susannah in Cummington, about 1768.

Joseph Farr Jr. (Manlius Village) was born on Feb. 4, 1775, in Cummington. Jospeh Farr Jr. (Manlius Village) became a silversmith by trade and a manufacturer of mathematical instruments including surveyor's instruments. He likely learned his craft from his father (JF Pittsfield), a skilled, but not very active, clockmaker. Jospeh Farr's (Manlius Village) prominence in the making of surveying instruments is recorded in the book: THE MAKING OF SURVEYING INSTRUMENTS IN AMERICA SINCE 1700.

It is likely that after his Jospeh Farr (Pittsfield) death, Jospeh Farr (Manlius Village) and his family moved back to Cummington to live with his grandparents. His prominence as an instrument maker evolved at that time. Based on records in Ancestry.com. Jospeh Farr (Manlius Village) lived in Manlius from approximately 1805 until he died in Manlius Village, NY on December 2, 1845.

When Smart published his book, Jospeh Farr's (Manlius Village) instruments could be found at:

The Buffalo Historical Society have a Farr Surveyor's Vernier Compass. It is 16” overall, with a 5 and 3/4” needle.

One Compass is privately owned in Syracuse, New York. It is 16” overall, with a 5 and 3/4 needle. It is numbered 82, and engraved “J. Farr, Manlius Village, N. Y.”

The State of Wisconsin, State Historical Society in Madison, Wisconsin have a Surveyor's Compass, 16” overall, with a 6” needle, engraved “J. Farr, Manlius Village, N. Y.”

The Henry Ford Museum, Dearborn, Michigan, have a Surveyor's Plain Compass, 15 and 3/4” overall, with a 5 and 3/4” needle. it is numbered 85, and engraved “J. Farr, Manlius Village, N. Y.”

All the above information comes from:
JOSEPH FARR, CLOCKMAKER By Raymond W. Fischer
Berkshire Genealogist, Volume 23 - Number 2 Spring 2002, page 39