J. A. Redington is son of Captain John Redington, formerly of Saratoga county, New York, who, when nineteen years of age, ran away from his stepfather, who abused him, and volunteered into the Revolutionary army, where he served seven years, and was taken prisoner by the British, and incarcerated in the Sugar House, New York. There the privation that fell to his lot in the great struggle for freedom, nearly killed him. Had Capt. Redington lived till the present time he would have been one hundred and twelve years old. J. A. Redington, the subject of this sketch, was born June 4, 1818, when his father was sixty-one years old, and there were five children born to the old soldier afterwards. At the birth of the last, he was seventy-two years of age.

Ten years of the boyhood of J. A. was spent with an uncle in Vermont, where he received a good common school education. While living at that place his father died, and at the age of sixteen he had a keen realization of the situation. He had nothing, and could not mend matters where he was, so he determined to go home to his mother and see if he could be of service there. After remaining with his mother a year, he engaged with a ship-chandler at Oswego, for twenty-five dollars per year and board. After a few months his employer closed up, leaving him out of employment. About a year from this time, his former employer, who had gone to Cleveland, wrote him that if he would come to Cleveland he would employ him again. He worked his passage on a canal boat from his home to Oswego, where he took passage on board a vessel just leaving for Cleveland.

The late Chester Deming was the gentleman who had engaged his services. He received two hundred dollars the first year, three hundred the second year, and four hundred the third, on which handsome salary, for those times, he concluded to marry.

Mr. Deming closed up his business here in 1841, and Mr. Redington commenced on his own account, dealing in oats, wheat and other grains. This continued about a year when he formed a partnership for the purpose of opening a general furnishing house for vessels. He did a successful business, but as it was only during the summer months, he established a dry goods store in connection with it on the West Side. This enterprise was only partially successful, and so he closed it up, and for several years was employed as clerk on board a steam boat.

In 1856, he, in connection with Mr. Bacon, commenced the shipping and forwarding business, built the vessel E. C. Roberts, which was a profitable investment, and also ran the propeller Manhattan. This partnership was dissolved after two years, Mr. Redington retaining his vessel interests. He is now engaged in mercantile pursuits on the river, dealing principally in pig metal.

By dint of hard work and a determination to succeed in spite of adverse circumstances, and by strict integrity, he has accomplished his purpose and acquired a comfortable competency.