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CORNELL  UNIVERSITY   LIBRARY 


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Library 


The  original  of  this  book  is  in 
the  Cornell  University  Library. 

There  are  no  known  copyright  restrictions  in 
the  United  States  on  the  use  of  the  text. 


http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924096961069 


In  compliance  with  current 

copyright  law,  Cornell  University 

Library  produced  this 

replacement  volume  on  paper 

that  meets  the  ANSI  Standard 

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irreparably  deteriorated  original. 

2003 


CORNELL 

UNIVERSITY 

LIBRARY 


ERRATA. 


On  page  138  the  following  names  of  graduates  of  Stevens  High  School  sUoulJ  have  been 
inserted. 

1871.  187-^. 

Edward  F.  Barnes.  Clarissa  A.  Bardwell. 

Imogene  E.  Barnes.  Annie  E.  Stone. 

Cora  E.  Chollis  1373. 

Elizabeth  W.  Goddard.  Fannie  A.  Bailey. 

Mary  E.  Partridge.  Ella  B.  Carroll. 

Abbie  E.  Rea<l.  H.  Maria  Chase. 

Kate  M.  Rossiter.  .James  P.  Holt. 

Marshall  S.  Kossiter.  Franklin  N.  Hunton. 

Julia  E.  Roys.  Arthur  G.  Jones. 

Ge.orgianna  H.  Tntherty.  Fannie  li.  Jones. 

Emma  J.  Weed.  Ida  B.  Roysiter. 

Mary  E.  Wliitcomb.  Lilla  A.  Tutherly. 

On   paj?e  290,  insert   Andrew  J.  Pi'jroe,  muytered  into  Co.  G,  5th  Rngt.  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  dis- 
charged tor  disability,  Oct.  28,  1863;  pensioner. 

Page  43,  eleventh  line,  read  Grandy  instead  of  Graiidy. 


OTIS  F.  R,  WAITE. 


HISTORY 


OF   THE 


TOWN  OF  CLAREMONT 

New  Hampshire 


FOR   A   PERIOD   OF 


ONE  HUNDRED  AND  THIRTY  YEARS 

From  1764  to  1894 

By  OTIS  F.  R.  WAITE 


Published  by  Authority  of  the  Town 


MANCHESTER,  N.  H. 

Printed  by  The  John  B.  Clarke  Company 

1895 


/!>^ 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  In  the  year  1895, 

ET  THE  TOWN  OF  CLAREMONT,  N.  H., 

In  the  office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


INTRODUCTION. 


At  the  annual  town-meeting  in  1892,  the  question  of  a  his- 
tory of  Claremont  heing  under  consideration,  and  having  heard 
the  report  of  the  committee  previously  appointed  to  investigate 
and  report  upon  the  subject,  it  was  : 

"Voted  that  the  committee,  viz.,  John  S.  Walker,  Ira  Colby,  and 
George  L.  Balcom,  be  authorized  to  act  as  a  committee  to  procure 
the  writing  and  publication  of  a  history  of  Claremont." 

Agreeably  to  the  authority  thus  conferred,  the  committee, 
on  behalf  of  the  town,  contracted  with  Otis  F.  K.  Waite  to 
write  and  prepare  such  history,  from  the  grant  of  the  township 
and  its  settlement  through  all  its  subsequent  growth  and 
progress  down  to  the  close  of  1894. 

The  work,  completed,   is  now    submitted   to    the    approval  of 
the  town.  John  S.  "Walker. 

Ira  Colby. 
G-EORGE  L.  Balcom. 

Claremont,  K  H.,  August,  1895. 


PREFACE. 


Sober  and  exact  history  is  one  thing,  while  imagination  and  ro- 
mance is  quite  another.  In  writing  a  history  of  Claremont  from 
1764  to  1894  —  a  period  of  one  hundred  and  thirty  years  —  which 
has  been  too  long  delayed  —  the  author  has  relied  upon  town  and 
other  records,  written,  history,  and  available  tradition  for  his  facts. 
Many  who  might  have  furnished  valuable  information  of  interest- 
ing and  entertaining  incidents  of  the  early  days  of  the  settlement 
of  the  town  and  of  the  struggles,  lives,  and  habits  of  the  inhabit- 
ants of  a  century  and  a  quarter  ago,  have  long  been  numbered 
with  the  great  majority  and  their  records  are  to  be  found  upon  stones 
in  the  cemeteries.  Tradition  is  generally  unreliable,  from  the  fact 
that  the  children  and  grandchildren  of  the  early  settlers  know  the 
stories  they  relate  only  from  hearsay  and,  as  a  consequence,  conflict 
in  their  statements  of  the  same  event.  Information  from  this 
source  has  been  examined  with  much  care,  with  a  view  of  arriving 
as  nearly  as  possible  at  the  exact  truth. 

It  would  be  worse  than  idle  to  suppose  that  this  history  is  en- 
tirely free  from  errors  of  statement  or  other  mistakes,  although  they 
have  been  guarded  against  in  all  practicable  ways  ;  but  it  is  hoped 
that  none  will  suffer  from  them. 

Believing  that  the  genealogy  of  families  of  any  real  value  is 
impracticable,  it  has  not  been  attempted  ;  but  biographical  sketches 
of  many  dead  and  living  citizens  are  given  in  the  last  part  of  the 


VI  PEEFACB. 

book.  Others  would  have  been  noticed  in  a  similar  way  had  the 
necessary  data  been  obtained.  In  these  sketches  the  author  has 
confined  himself  to  ascertained  facts,  rather  than  resort  to  the  use 
of  rhetoric  in  the  treatment  of  each  subject  of  them. 

To  the  many  who  have  in  any  way  assisted  in  this  work,  by  fur- 
nishing data  or  otherwise,  the  author  hereby  tenders  his  grateful 
thanks.  o.  P.  R.  w. 

July,  1895. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 


Grant  of  the  town  —  Division  into  shares  —  Names  of  grantees  —  Names  of  pro- 
prietors —  Meetings  of  proprietors  —  Draught  of  lots   .        .        .  9-25 

CHAPTER  II. 

First  settlement  of  the  town  —  Burying  yard  and  common  —  Taxes  —  Small-pox 

—  Paper  currency    .  .  26-46 

CHAPTER  III. 

New  Hampshire  grants  —  Vermont  controversy  —  Letter  from  George  Wash- 
ington —  Petition  of  sundry  inhabitants  of  Claremont  .        .        .        27-58 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Federal  and  state  constitutions  —  Federal  constitution  —  State  constitution  59-66 

/               CHAPTER  V. 
County  of  Sullivan 67-69 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Boundaries  —  Natural  characteristics  —  Localities  —  Village  in  1822   .        70-77 

CHAPTER  Vn. 

Ecclesiastical  —  Congregational  church  —  Settlement  of  Rev.  George  Wheaton 

—  Will  of  Joel  Richards 81-92 

CHAPTER  Vin. 
Episcopal  church  —  Division  of  the  parish  —  Trinity  church        .        .      93-110 


VIU  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Baptist  church  —  Methodist  Episcopal  church  —  Alterations  and  improvements 
of  the  church  building  —  Junction  camp-meeting  grounds  —  Universalist 
church  — St.  Mary's  church 111-129 

CHAPTER  X. 

Schools  and  academies  —  Stevens  high  school  —  Mary  J.  Alden  prizes  —  ReV.. 
Virgil  H.  Barber's  academy  —  Clarerdont  academy    .        .  133-143 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Literary  societies  —  Libraries  —  New  Hampshire  Historical  Society  —  Newspa- 
pers —  United  Fraternity  of  Young  Men  —  Fiske  free  library  —  Claremont 
Book  Club  —  Private  libraries  —  the  Claremont  Spectator  —  Independent 
Advocate  — The  Impartialist  —  The  National  Eagle  —  The  Northern  Ad- 
vocate —  The  Compendium     ...  ....     144—155 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Farming  interests  —  Family  manufactures  —  Sullivan  County  Agricultural  So- 
ciety—  Market  day  and  cattle  fair  —  New  Hampshire  State  Agricultural 
Society  —  Claremont  —  Farms         ....  .     156-182 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
Town  hill  —  Part  of  the  town  first  settled     .  .        .  .     183-187 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Water  power — Manufacturing  and  industrial  interests  —  Monadnock  mills  — 
Sullivan  Machinery  Company  —  Sugar  River  Paper  Mill  Company — The 
Claremont  Manufacturing  Company  —  Slipper  shop  —  Sugar  River  Mills 
Company  —  The  Home  mill  —  The  Emerson-Hey ward  privilege  —  The  Sulli- 
van Manufacturing  Company  —  The  old  knife-factory  privilege  —  The  Lower 
Falls  Company  —  The  Lafayette  privilege  —  The  old  Meacham  factory  — 
Freeman  &  O'Neil  Manufacturing  Company  —  The  Maynard  &  Washburn 
shoe  factory  —  The  Eastman  tannery  —  Carpet  factoi-y  —  The  S.  T.  Coy  Pa- 
per Company  —  Benjamin  Tyler's  smelting  and  iron  works  —  The  Gilmore 
edge  tool  works  —  Flax  mill  —  The  Grannis  lumber  mill  —  Shoe  manufactur- 
ing—  Claremont  creamery 191-212 


CONTENTS.  IX 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Revolutionary  War  — Stamp  act  —  Sons  of  Liberty — Duty  act  —  Arrests  on 
charge  of  Toryism  —  False  alarm  —  Arrest  of  William  McCoy  —  Another 
alarm  —  Claremont  men  engaged  —  Capt.  Oliver  Ashley's  company  215-241 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

The  war  of  1812  and  Texan  wars  —  Volunteers  from  Claremont —  Capt.  Joseph 
Kimball's  company  —  Capt.  Reuben  Marsh's  company  .        .        .    242-246 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

War  of  the  Rebellion  —  Assault  on  Fort  Sumter  —  Meetings  of  citizens  —  Vol- 
unteers—  Home  guard  —  Meeting  of  condolence  —  County  war  meeting  — 
The  draft  —  Claremont's  quota  of  soldiers — Ladies' Soldiers'  Aid  societies 

—  Auxiliary  sanitary  commission  —  Thanksgiving  to  soldiers'  families 

247-269 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Soldiers' monument  —  Financial  statement 270-279 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

Memorial  tablets  —  Citizen  soldiers  who  have  been  killed  or  died  in  the  war  of 
1861-1865        ...    280-302 

CHAPTER  XX. 

National,  state,  county,  and  town  officers  —  Representatives  in  congress  —  Presi- 
dential electors  —  United  States  marshal  —  Members  of  the  governor's 
council  —  Railroad  commissioners  —  Insurance  commissioner  —  State  sena- 
tors —  Speakers  of  the  house  —  Clerk  of  the  house  —  Engrossing  clerk  — 
Judges  of  the  supreme  court  —  Judges  of  probate  —  Register  of  probate  — 

—  County  treasurers  —  Sheriffs  —  County  solicitors  —  Road  commissioners 

—  County  commissioners  —  Town  officers  from  1768  to  1894  —  Moderators 
— Town  clerks  —  Selectmen  —  Representatives      ....    30i?-313 

CHAPTER  XXI. 
Marriages  — Births— Deaths,  prior  to  1797  .  ...    314-324 

CHAPTER  XXII. 
Licensed  liquor  sellers  and  tavern  keepers 325-331 


X  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 
Lawyei's  and  physicians  —  Brief  records 332-335 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

Fires  —  Casualties  —  Freshets  —  Lightning  —  Tornadoes  —  Earthquake  —  Mur- 
ders    336-344 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

Postal  service  —  Banks —  Piailroads  —  List  of  postmasters  in  Claremont  —  Sum- 
nerville  —  West  Claremont  — Claremont  Junction  —  The  Claremont  bank  — 
The  People's  National  bank — Sullivan  Savings  Institution  —  Sullivan  County 
railroad  —  Concord  and  Claremont  railroad  —  Windsor  and  Forest  Line  rail- 
road —  Claremont  and  White  Eiver  Junction  railroad  —  Black  River  railroad 

845-2^ 
CHAPTER  XXVI. 

Town  hall  —  Cottage  hospital  —  Highways  aud  bridges  —  Ashley  ferry — Lot- 
tery bridge  —  Turnpike 352-360 

CHAPTER  XXYII. 

Death  of  Presidents  William  H.  Harrison,  Abraham  Lincoln,  and  Ulysses  S. 
Grant       .  .         .     361-365 

CHAPTER  XXVin. 

Secret  societies  —  Masonic  organizations  —  Hiram  Lodge,  No.  9 — Union  Mark 
Lodge,  No.  1  —  Webb  Royal  Arch  Chapter—  Columbian  Council,  No.  2  — 
Sullivan  Commandery — Odd  Fellows — Sullivan  Lodge,  No.  12  —  Knights 
of  Pythias  —  Grand  Army  —  Major  Jarvis  Post,  No.  12  —  Patrons  of 
Husbandry .     366-369 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 

Marks  of  cattle,  sheep,  and  swine  —  Musical  reminiscences  —  Western  New 

Hampshire   Musical  association — Coaching  party  —  Speculation  times 

West  Claremont  Cadets  —  Visit  of  General  Lafayette  —  Unusual  seasons  — 
The  cold  season  —  Army  worm  —  Flood — Carnival  of  coasting — Laro-e 
elm  tree  —  First  muster 361-384 

CHAPTER  XXX. 

Biographical  sketches 387-500 


INDEX  OF  BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Abel,  Dr.  Truman 

387 

Chase,  Dudley  T. 

406 

Ainsworths          ....        387 

Chapin,  Bela 

407 

AMen  family 

388 

Chellis,  Burt       . 

409 

EzraB.    . 

390 

Clark,  William  . 

409 

Levi 

888 

Colby,  Ira  .... 

410 

Levi,  2d  . 

389 

Cole,  Samuel 

411 

J    Louisa  M. 

388 

Cooke,  Capt.  John 

411 

Lucinda  C. 

390 

Cossit,  Ambrose 

413 

.,     Thomas  W. 

389 

Ambrose,  Jr.  . 

413 

Allen,  Dr.  Arthur  N. 

390 

Cummings,  Dr.  Alvah  R.  . 

414 

William  H.  H. 

390 

Dexter,  Col.  David     . 

414 

Ashley,  Samuel 

392 

Dickinson,  Aurelius    . 

415 

Austin,  William  P. 

393 

Dole,  Edmund    . 

416 

Baker,  Dr.  Cyrus  E. 

394 

Lemuel 

415 

Edward  D. 

394 

Dustin,  Mighill  . 

418 

Balcom,  George  L. 

395 

Moody    . 

417 

Balloch,  George  W. 

399 

Thomas  and  Timothy 

417 

Barnes,  Bill 

398 

Dowlin,  Dr.  Winefred  M. 

418 

Bingham,  Charles  M. 

400 

Eastman,  Charles  H. 

418 

James  H. 

401 

Timothy      . 

418 

Bond,  Daniel 

401 

Ellis,  Barnabas  . 

419 

Daniel,  Jr. 

401 

Caleb 

420 

George 

402 

William    . 

420 

Job  . 

402 

Emerson,  John  T. 

422 

Bowker,  Daniel  S. 

402 

Farley,  Harriet  N".     . 

423 

Breck,  William  . 

402 

Farwell,  George  N.    . 

424 

Brown,  Oscar  J. 

377 

George  N.,  2d      . 

426 

Bunnell,  Abel     . 

404 

John  L. 

425 

Charlton,  Edwin  A. 

405 

Nicholas 

423 

Chase,  Arthur    . 

406 

Fay,  Harry  C.     .        .        . 

426 

Rev.  Dr.  Carlton 

405 

Fisher,  Leonard  P.     . 

426 

Daniel     . 

406 

Fiske,  Samuel    . 

427 

INBEX   OF   BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHES. 


Piske,  Samuel  P. 

427 

Ladd,  Dr.  William  M. 

446 

Freeman,  Philander  C. 

428 

Leland,  Charles 

446 

Puller,  Samuel  W.     . 

428 

Leland,  Thomas 

447 

Gardiner,  Col.  Alexander 

429 

Lewis,  George  G. 

447 

Gates,  James  M. 

429 

Livingston,  Jonas 

449 

Gilmore,  Hiram 

429 

Locke,  Francis   . 

449 

Leonard 

429 

Long,  Charles  H. 

449 

Glidden,  Charles  E.    . 

431 

Lovell,  Michael 

450 

Gen.  Erastus 

430 

Levering,  Leonard  A. 

451 

Goddard,  Edward  L.  . 

431 

Marden,  Albert  L. 

461 

Goss,  Joel  . 

432 

Maynard,  Frank  P. 

452 

Nathaniel 

432 

McClure,  Milon  C.     . 

451 

Grannis,  Solon  C. 

433 

Metcalf,  Gov.  Ralph  . 

452 

Timothy 

432 

Moody,  William  H.  H. 

453 

Timothy,  Jr. 

432 

Noyes,  Chase 

454 

Graves,  Dr.  Leland  J. 

433 

Parker,  Hosea  W. 

455 

Handerson,  Gideon     . 

434 

Patten,  Henry    . 

*457 

Phinehas 

434 

Ralston,  Alexander    . 

457 

Kufus 

435 

Rand,  Samuel  S. 

Hi5& 

Hart,  lohabod     . 

435 

Richards,  Dr.  Josiah 

458 

Hitchcock,  Ichabod     . 

436 

Rossiter,  Sherman 

459 

Holt,  Hermon 

436 

Pomeroy  M. 

460 

Dr.  James  P. 

436 

Stephen  F.   . 

461 

Holton,  Asa 

437 

Timothy  B. 

461 

Howe,  Rev.  James  B. 

437 

William               » . 

460 

Hubbard,  Isaac  . 

438 

Sabine,  Dr.  Silas  H.   . 

461 

Rev.  Dr.  Isaac  G 

r.        .          438 

Sankee,  Simeon 

462 

Ide,  Simeon 

439 

Smith,  Rev.  Henry  S. 

462 

Jarvis,  Dr.  Leonard    . 

441 

Dr.  Nathan 

.'      463 

Dr.  Leonard,  2d 

442 

Snow,  Alpheus  F. 

464 

Russell    . 

441 

Stevens,  Alvah   . 

466 

Col.  Russell    . 

441 

Godfrey 

465 

Dr.  Samuel  G. 

442 

Col.  Josiah    . 

464 

Jewett,  Frederick 

443 

Dea.  Josiah  . 

465 

John 

443 

Linus    . 

468 

John  W. 

444 

Paran    . 

466 

Marcus  L. 

443 

Stone,  Dea.  Matthias  . 

468 

Johnson,  Daniel  W.    . 

444 

Stowell,  George  H. 

469 

Miles   . 

444 

Swett,  Josiah 

470 

Parmer 

445 

Rev.  Josiah 

471 

Kimball,  John    . 

445 

Josiah,  Jr. 

470 

Kingsbury,  Sanford    . 

446 

Dr.  John  L.     . 

470 

INDEX   OF   BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCHES. 


Sumner,  Col.  Benjamin 

471 

Upham,  James  P. 

485 

Dr.  William 

471 

Samuel  R.     . 

486 

Tappan,  John  W. 

471 

Vaughan,  Edwin 

299 

Taylor,  Capt.  Joseph 

472 

Waite,  Col.  Joseph     . 

486 

Tenney,  Amos  J. 

473 

Otis  F.  R. 

490 

Edward  J.     . 

473 

Walker,  Horace  Eaton 

493 

George  A.     . 

474 

John  S. 

490 

Ticknor,  George 

474 

Warland,  John  H.      . 

493 

Thomas,  John     . 

475 

Warner,  Thomas 

494 

Tolles,  Db.  Clarence  W.     . 

476 

Way,  Dr.  Osmon  B.    . 

495 

Dr.  Nathaniel 

476 

Weber,  Joseph  . 

495 

Tutherly,  Herbert  E. 

477 

Whitcomb,  Dea.  Jonathan 

496 

William  E. 

476 

Whipple,  John  M. 

495 

Tyler,  Austin 

479 

Wilkinson,  Dr.  Frederick  C. 

496 

Col.  Benjamin 

477 

Williamson,  Alonzo  B. 

499 

John 

479 

Wilson,  Josiah   . 

497 

,-/      John,  2d 

479 

Nahum 

498 

Upham,  George  B.      . 

480 

Woolson,  Charles  J. 

499 

^.:        Jabez    . 

483 

Constance  Fenimore 

600 

Dr.  J.  Baxter 

484 

Thomas      . 

498 

ILLUSTRATIOxNS. 


Maps  — 

Soldiers'  Monument 

175 

Town  of  Claremont 

9 

Highland  View,  W.  H.  H.  Moody 

177 

Claremont  Post-office 

71 

The  Capt.  John  Cooke  farmhouse 

180 

Claremont  Village  . 

167 

Shoe  shop  dam 

191 

Monadnock  mills    . 

195 

Views  of  — 

Sugar  River  paper  mill 

197 

Village,  from  Flat  rock  . 

29 

Sullivan  Machinery  Co.'s  works 

201 

John  Tyler  house,  W.  Claremont     41 

Sullivan  mills,  Geo.  L.  Balcom 

203 

Hira  R.  Beckwith's  residence 

71 

Maynard  &  Washburn  shoe  fac- 

The Bill  Barnes  homestead     . 

73 

tory      

206 

East  side  of  Tremont  square  . 

73 

Stone  watering  trough    . 

223 

Upper  iron  bridge  . 

75 

George  N.  Farwell's  residence 

227 

George  H.  Stowell's  residence 

77 

Hosea  W.  Parker's  residence 

273 

Dr.  Osmon  B.  Way's  residence         78 

Union  block    .... 

329 

Congregational  church    . 

81 

Heywood's  and  Rand's  blocks 

331 

Union  church.  West  Claremont         95 

Hunton's  block 

331 

Interior  of  Union  church 

99 

Hotel  Claremont  block    . 

333 

Trinity  church 

105 

Tremont  House,  in  1870 

337 

Baptist  church 

110 

Claremont  National  bank 

847 

Methodist  church     . 

114 

Sullivan  Railroad  high  bridge 

351 

Universalist  church 

125 

Town  House,  in  1850 

353 

From  High  street,  in  1846 

127 

Cottage  Hospital     . 

355 

St.  Mary's  church    . 

129 

Lower  village  and  bridge 

356 

Stevens  High  School 

136 

Upper  dam,  and  Green  Moun- 

Sugar river  at  high  water 

141 

tains             .... 

369 

Fiske  Free  Library 

147 

Coaching  party 

375 

Cupola  farm ,  Pomeroy  M.  Ros 

3iter  171 

Central  street  .... 

379 

Broad  street    . 

174 

Frank  P.  Maynard's  residence 

427 

Portrait  of  William  H.  H.  Allen 

391 

Porti-ait  of 

George  L.  Balcom    . 

393 

Geo.  W.  Balloch       . 

399 

Charles  M.  Bingham 

401 

William  Breok 

403 

Oscar  J.  Brown 

375 

Bela  Chapin     . 

407 

Bishop  Carlton  Chase 

109 

William  Clark 

409 

Ira  Colby 

411 

Ambrose  Cossit 

413 

John  T.  Emerson     . 

423 

Harry  C.  Fay    . 

153 

George  N.  Farwell   . 

425 

John  L.  Fai-well 

347 

Samuel  P.  Fiske 

149 

Philander  C.  Freeman 

429 

Erastus  Glidden 

431 

Isaac  Hubbard 

178 

Rev.  Isaac  G.  Hubbard 

97 

Rev.  James  B.  Howe 

437 

Simeon  Ide 

199 

Dr.  Leonard  Jarvis  ^ 
Dr.  Samuel  G.  Jarvis 

441 

443 

Daniel  W.  Johnson 

195 

Rev.  Robt.  F.  Lawrence    91 

Francis  Locke  .         .  449 

Charles  H.  Long      .  279 

Frank  P.  Maynard    .  205 

William  H.  H.  Moody  176 

Hosea  W.  Parker      .  455 

Dr.  Josiah  Richards  459 

Pomeroy  M.  Rossiter  172 

George  H.  Stowell    .  469 

Rev.  Henry  S.  Smith  105 

Paran  Stevens          .  135 

Dr.  Clarence  W.  Tolles  477 

Dr.  Nathaniel  Tolles  475 

Edward  J.  Tenney   .  473 

John  Tyler,  1st         .  479 

John  Tyler,  2d         .  197 

George  B.  Upham     .  481 

Dr.  J.  Baxter  Upham  173 

James  P.  Upham     .  196 

Edwin  Vaughan        .  297 
Otis  F.  R.  Waite,  Fr'ntisp'ce 

John  S.  Walker        .  491 

Dr.  Osmon  B.  Way  .  494 

Joseph  Weber .        .  155 


EARLY  HISTORY. 


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HISTORY  OF  CLAREMONT. 


CHAPTER    I 

GRANT   OP   THE   TOWN.  —  DIVISION   INTO    SHARES. 

By  the  proprietors'  book  of  records  it  appears  that  on  October 
26,  A.  D.  1764,  a  fownship  six  miles  square,  containing  twenty-four 
thousand  acres,  and  named  Claremont,  was  granted  to  Josiah  Wil- 
lard,  Samuel  Ashley,  and  sixty-eight  others.  The  name  of  the 
town  was  derived  from  the  county  seat  of  Lord  Clive,  a  celebrated 
English  general,  who  was  styled  the  founder  of  the  British  Empire 
in  India.     The  following  is  a  verbatim  copy  of  the  charter : 

Pkovince  or  New  Hampshire. 

George  the  Third,  by  the  Grace  of  God   of  Great  Britain,  France  and  Ireland, 
King,  Defender  of  the  Faith,  &c. 

To  all  persons  to  whom  these  Presents  shall  come  greeting,  know  ye  that  we 
of  our  Especial  Grace  certain  knowledge  and  mere  Motion  for  the  Due  En- 
couragement of  Settling  a  New  Plantation  within  our  s'd  Province,  by  and  with 
the  Advice  of  our  Trusty  and  well  Beloved  Benning  Wentworth,  Esqr.,  our 
Governor  and  Commander-in-chief  of  s'd  Province  of  New  Hampshire,  in  New 
England,  and  of  our  Council  of  the  s'd  Province,  have,  upon  the  Conditions  and 
Reservations  hereinafter  made,  given  and  Granted,  and  by  these  presents,  for  us, 
our  heirs  and  Successors,  Do  give  and  grant  in  Equal  Shares  unto  our  lovino" 
subjects.  Inhabitants  of  s'd  Province  of  New  Hampshire  and  our  other  Govern- 
ment, and  to  their  Heirs  and  Assigns  forever  whose  names  are  entered  in  this 
Grant,  to  be  divided  to  and  amongst  them  into  75  Etjual  Shares,  all  the  Tract  or 
Parcel  of  Land  Situate,  Lying  and  Being  within  our^s'd  Province  of  New  Hamp- 
shire, containing  by  admeasurement,  24,000  acres,  which   Tract  is  to  Contain 


10  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

about  Six  Miles  square  and  no  More,  out  of  which  an  allowance  is  to  Be  made 
for  highways  and  unimproved  Lands,  by  Rocks,  Ponds,  Mountains  and  Rivers, 
1040  acres,  free,  according  to  a  Plan  and  Survey  thereof  made  by  our  said  Gov- 
ernor's order  and  returned  into  ye  Secretary's  oifice,  and  hereunto  Annexed, 
Butted  and  Bounded  as  Follows  (viz.)  :  Beginning  s.t  a  marked  Tree  Standing 
on  the  Easterly  Bank  of  Connecticut  River,  which  is  in  the  Northwesterly  corner 
bounds  of  Charlestown  ;  from  thence  running  South  78°  Easterly  about  6  miles, 
and  one-half  mile  to  the  Southwesterly  angle  of  Newport;  from  thence  Turning 
off  and  running  North  8°  Easterly  about  5  miles,  and  seven-eighths  of  a  mile  by 
Newport,  aforesaid,  to  the  Southwesterly  angle  of  Cornish ;  thence  turning  off 
again  and  running  North  77°  Westerly  about  6  miles,  by  Cornish,  aforesaid,  to 
Connecticut  River,  aforesaid;  thence  Down  the  said  River,  as  that  runs,  to  the 
Bound  Begun  at,  together  with  the  Islands  lying  in  the  Said  River  opposite  to 
the  Premises,  and  that  the  same  be  and  hereby  is  Incorporated  into  the  Town- 
ship by  ye  name  of  Claremoxt,  and  the  Inhabitants  that  Do  or  shall  henceforth 
Inhabit  the  said  Township  are  hereby  Declared  to  be  Enfranchised  with  and 
Entitled  To,  all  and  Every,  the  Privileges  and  Immunities  that  other  Towns 
within  our  Province  by  Law  Exercise  and  Enjoy,  and  Further,  that  the  s'd  Town, 
as  soon  as  there  shall  Be  fifty  Families  Resident  and  settled  thereon,  shall  have 

the  Liberty  of  holding  two  Fairs,  one  of  which  shall  be  on  the and  the 

other  in  the ,  annually,  which  Fairs  ai'e  not  to  be  continued  longer 

than  the .  Following  the  said,  and  that,  as  soon  as  the  said  Town  shall  con- 
sist of  Fifty  Families,  a  market  May  be  opened  and  kept  one  or  more  Days  in 
Each  Week,  as  may  be  thought  most  advantageous  to  the  Inhabitants ;  also,  that 
the  First  meeting  for  the  choice  of  Town  Oflicers,  agreeable  to  the  Law  of  our 
said  Province,  shall  be  held  on  ye  Second  Tuesday  of  March  Next,  which  s'd 
Meeting  shall  be  Notified  by  Samuel  Ashley,  who  is  hereby  appointed  the 
Moderator  of  s'd  first  Meeting,  which  he  is  to  Notify  and  Govern  agreeably  to 
Law  and  Customs  of  our  s'd  Province,  and  that  the  annual  Meeting  forever  here- 
after for  the  Choice  of  such  ofiioers  for  the  said  Town  shall  be  on  the  Second 
Tuesday  of  March,  annually.  To  Have  and  To  Hold  the  s'd  Tract  of  land  as 
above  Expressed,  together  with  all  the  Privileges  and  Appurtenances  to  them, 
and  their  Representative  Heirs  and  Assigns  forever,  upon  the  foUowino- 
conditions  (viz.)  : 

Istly.  That  every  grantee,  his  heirs  or  assigns,  shall  plant  and  cultivate 
Five  acres  of  Land  within  the  Term  of  Five  years  for  eveiy  fifty  acres  contained 
in  his  or  their  share  or  proportion  of  Land  in  said  Township,  and  Continue  to 
Improve  and  Settle  the  Same  By  additional  Cultivations,  Penalty  of  the  For- 
feiture of  his  grant  or  Share  of  Land  in  said  Township,  and  of  its  Revertino-  to 
us,  our  heirs  and  Successors,  to  be  by  us  or  them  Regranted  to  such  of  our 
Subjects  as  shall  Effectually  Settle  and  Cultivate  the  same. 

2dly.  That  all  white  and  other  pine  Trees  within  ye  s'd  Township  fit  for 
Masting  our  Royal  Navy  be  Carefully  Preserved  for  that  use,  and  none  to  be 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  11 

Cut  or  Felled  without  our  Special  License  for  so  doing  first  had  and  obtained, 
upon  the  Penalty  of  the  Forfeiture  of  the  Rights  of  such  grantee,  his  heirs  and 
assigns,  to  us,  our  heirs  and  successors,  as  well  as  being  subject  to  the  Penalty 
of  any  act  or  acts  of  Parliament  that  now  and  hereafter  shall  be  Enacted. 

3dly.  That  before  any  Division  of  s'd  Land  be  made  to  and  among  the 
Grantees,  a  Tract  of  Land,  as  near  the  Centre  of  ye  s'd  Township  as  the  Land 
will  admit  of,  shall  be  Reserved  and  marked  out  for  Town  Lots,  one  of  which 
shall  (be)  allotted  to  each  Grantee  of  the  Contents  of  one  acre. 

4thly.  Yielding  and  paying,  therefor,  to  us,  our  heirs  and  successors  for  the 
Space  of  Ten  Years,  to  be  Computed  from  the  Date  hereof,  the  rent  of  one  ear 
of  Indian  Corn  only,  on  the  Twenty-fifth  day  of  December,  annually,  if  Law- 
fully Demanded,  the  First  payment  to  be  made  on  ye  26th  Day  of  December, 
1764. 

othly.  Every  Proprietor,  Settler  or  Inhabitant  Shall  Yield  and  pay  unto  us, 
our  heirs  and  successors,  yearly  and  every  year  forever,  from  and  after  the  ex- 
piration of  Ten  Years  from  the  above  s'd  25th  Day  of  December,  namely,  on  the 
25th  Day  of  December,  which  will  be  in  the  Year  of  our  Lord  1774,  one  Shilling 
Proclamation  Money  for  every  hundred  acres  he  so  owns,  settles  or  Possesses, 
and  so  in  proportion  for  a  greater  or  lesser  Tract  of  ye  s'd  Land,  which  money 
shall  be  Paid  by  the  Representative  Persons  above  s'd,  their  heirs  or  assigns,  in 
our  Council  Chamber  at  Portsmouth,  or  to  such  officer  or  officers  as  shall  be 
appointed  to  Receive  the  same,  and  this  is  to  be  in  Lieu  of  all  other  rents  and 
services  whatsoever. 

In  Testimony  whereof,  we  have  caused  the  Seal  of  our  s'd  Province  to  be 
hereunto  affixed. 

Witness  Benning  Wentworth,  Esq.,  our  Governor  and  Commander-in-Chief  of 
our  said  Province,  the  Twenty-sixth  day  of  October,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord 
Christ  1764. 

(Signed),  B.  Wentworth. 

By  his  Excellency's  command, 

With  advice  of  Council, 

T.  Atkinson,  Jdn'r,  Sed'y. 

NAMES  OF  THE  GRANTEES. 

Josiah  Willard  Esq'r  Jno  Scott  Sam'l  Field 

Sam'el  Ashley  Wm.  Richardson  Hen'y  Bond 

Jere'h  Hall  Jno  Peirce  Sim'n  Chamberlain 

Josiah  Willard  Jun'r  Tho's  Lee  Elijah  Alexander 

Tho's  Frink  Esq'r  Stephen  Putnam  Eben'r  Dodge 

Jno.  Ellis  Timothy  Taylor  Jno.  Cass 

Samson  Willard  Benj'a  Freeman  Joshua  Hide 


12 


HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT. 


Abra'm  Scott 
Hen'y  Foster 
Solomon  Willard 
Jon'a  Hammond 
Wm  Heaton 
Prentice  Willard 
Jo's  Hammond 
Wm.  Grimes 
Jon'a  Willard 
Sam'el  Ashley  Jr 
James  Scott 
Sam'el  Scott 
Ol'r  Ashley 
Abijah  Willard 
Micah  Lawrence 
Abel  Lawrence 


Ol'r  Fairwell 
Jno  Searles 
Ol'r  Fairwell,  Jun'r 
Ephr'm  Adams 
Phineas  Wait 
Lem'l  Hedge 
Clem't  Sumner 
Abel  Willard 
Michael  Medcalf 
Eph'm  Dorman 
Jos.  Lord 
Wm  Willard 
Jeremiah  Powers 
Jno.  Armes 
David  Field 
Jno.  Hawks 


Nath'l  Heaton 

Gideon  Ellis 

Jos.  Ellis 

Jno.  Grimes 

Jos.  Cass 

Samuel  Wells 

Jno  Hunt 

Wm  Smeed 

Col.  Jno  Goffe  Esq'r 

Dan'l  Jones  Esq'r 

Hon'le  Jno  Temple  Esq'r 

Mark  H.  Wentworth  Esq'r 

Theodore  Atkinson  Jun"r 

Col.  William  Symes 

Simon  Davis 

The'r  Atkinson  Esq'r 


The  Governor's  reservation,  which  he  invariably  made  in  his 
grants,  and  also  reservations  of  lands  for  other  purposes,  as  appears 
by  the  records,  v^ere  as  follows : 

His  Excellency,  Benning  Wentworth,  Esq.,  a  Tract  of  Land  to  contain  600 
Acres,  as  marked  B.  W.  in  the  Plan,  and  also  a  small  Island  lying  in  the  River, 
opposite  s'd  500  acres,  which  are  to  be  accounted  two  of  the  within  Shares  ;  one 
which  shares  for  the  Incorporated  Society  for  the  propagation  of  the  Gospel  in 
foreign  parts ;  one  whole  share  for  a  Glebe  for  ye  Church  of  England,  as  by  law 
established;  one  whole  share  for  ye  first  settled  (minister)  of  the  Gospel,  and 
one  share  for  the  Benefit  of  a  school  forever,  in  said  Town  forever. 

Governor  "Wentworth's  share  was  located  in  the  southwesterly 
corner  of  the  town,  and  included  what  has  long  been  known  as  the 
Isaac  Hubbard  farm.  Lieutenant  George  Hubbard  acquired  this 
right  and  was  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  the  town.  At  his  death, 
which  occurred  April  16,  1818,  he  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Isaac 
Hubbard,  Esq.  The  farm  is  now  owned  and  occupied  by  Isaac  H. 
Long,  a  grandson  of  Isaac  Hubbard,  Esq.,  and  the  widow  and 
children  of  the  late  Rev.  Isaac  G.  Hubbard,  D.  D.,who  was  a  son  of 
Isaac  Hubbard.  The  island  in  Connecticut  river,  known  as 
Hubbard's  Island,  was  included  in  the  Governor's  share.  A  por- 
tion of  the  school  lands  are  situated  on  the  east  side  of  Broad  street, 
beginning   at   Sugar   river   and   extending   southerly   to    and    in- 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  13 

eluding  the  residence  of  the  Eev.  Charles  S.  Hale.  Of  the  land 
reserved  "  for  the  society  for  the  propagation  of  the  Gospel  in 
foreign  parts,"  one  hundred  acres  lie  in  the  north  part  of  the  town, 
and  are  owned  by  the  heirs  of  the  late  Solon  C.  Grannis,  and 
others.  About  one  hundred  acres  of  the  glebe  land  are  located  on 
the  northerly  side  of  what  is  called  the  new  road  from  Claremont 
to  Newport,  about  three  miles  from  Claremont  village,  now  owned 
by  the  Monadnock  Mills  corporation.  Another  portion  lies  near 
Union  church,  West  Claremont. 

The  first  meeting  of  the  proprietors  of  Claremont,  as  appears  by 
the  records,  was  held  at  "  ye  house  of  Lieutenant  Hilkiah  Grout, 
inn-holder,  in  "Winchester,  on  Monday,  ye  second  day  of  February, 
A.  D.  1767."  An  organization  was  formed  as  provided  by  the 
charter.     The  first  act  is  recorded  as  follows : 

Voted,  Istly,  and  chose  Lieut.  Samuel  Ashley  Moderator  for  this  meeting. 
2d,    Voted,  and  chose  Colonel  Josiah  Willard  Proprietors'  clerk. 

They  then  laid  out  the  Governor's  two  shares : 

Beginning  at  ye  southwest  corner  of  ye  Town,  on  the  bank  of  ye  river,  run- 
ning East  12  deg.  south  on  ye  line  between  Claremont  and  Charlestown,  360 
rods,  to  a  pillow  of  stones;  then  runs  West  12  degrees  North,  260  rods  to  ye 
river,  and  then  runs  down  ye  river  as  that  runs  to  where  it  begins,  including  the 
Island  in  said  river  oppposite  ye  two  shares  aforesaid. 

It  was  afterwards  ascertained  that  the  tract  thus  laid  out  did  not 
contain  the  required  quantity  of  five  hundred  acres,  and  an  addi- 
tion was  accordingly  made  of  a  triangular  piece  of  land  on  the 
easterly  side  of  the  lot  first  set  oS.  Next  were  the  shares  of  "  ye 
honorable  council,"  when  it  was 

Voted  and  agreed  to  set  off  ye  share  of  Col.  William  Symes  as  follows : 
Beginning  at  Governor  Wentworth's  southeast  corner,  and  running  east  12  deg. 
south  to  the  southeast  corner  of  the  towp,  then  running  north  on  ye  town  line 
thirty  rods  to  a  pillow  of  stones.  Then  running  west  12  deg.  north  to  the  east 
line  of  the  Governor's  share ;  then  running  uorth  12  deg.  west  30  rods  to  where 
it  began. 

Voted  and  agreed  that  ye  share  of  Jno.  Goff,  Esq.,  be  set  off  as  follows : 
beginning  at  ye  northwest  corner  of  ye  share  set  off  to  Colonel  William  Symes, 
and  running  east  12  deg.  south  on  Colonel  Symes  line  to  the  east  line  of  the 
town ;  then  runs  west  12  deg.  north  to  the  east  line  of  Gov.  Wentworth's  shares ; 
then  runs  south  12  deg.  west  to  where  it  began. 


14  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

Voted  and  agreed  that  ye  share  of  Theodore  Atkinson,  Jr.,  shall  be  set  off 
as  follows.  Beginning  at  ye  Northwest  corner  of  s'd  Goffe's  share  runs  East  12° 
South  on  s'd  GoflFe's  line  to  ye  East  Line  of  Town,  then  runs  Northerly  on  the 
East  Line  of  the  Town  30  rods  to  a  pillow  of  Stones  then  runs  West  12°  North 
to  the  Line  of  Governor  Wentworth's  Shares  then  runs  South  12°  "West  to  where 
it  began. 

Voted  and  agreed  that  ye  Share  of  Mark  Hunking  Wentworth  be  set  off  as 
follows  Viz.  Beginning  at  the  Northwest  corner  of  s'd  Atkinson's  Share  &  run- 
ning East  12°  South  on  s'd  Atkinson's  line  to  the  East  Line  of  ye  town  and  then 
running  Northerly  on  ye  East  Line  of  ye  Town  30  rods  to  a  Pillow  of  Stones, 
then  running  west  12°  North  to  ye  East  Line  of  Governor  Wentworth's  Share 
then  runs  South  12°  West  30  rods  to  where  it  began. 

Voted  and  agreed  that  ye  Share  of  Jno.  Temple  Esq.  be  set  off  in  the  fol- 
lowing manner  Viz.  Beginning  at  ye  Northwest  Corner  of  s'd  Mark  H.  Went- 
worth's Share  &  running  East  12°  South  on  s'd  Wentworth's  Line  to  the  Line  of 
ye  Town,  then  running  Northerly  on  East  Line  of  ye  Town  30  rods  to  a  Pillow 
of  Stones  then  running  West  12°  North  to  ye  East  Line  of  Governor  Wentworth's 
share  then  running  South  12°  West  30  rods  to  where  it  began. 

Voted  and  agreed  that  shares  of  Lemuel  Hedge,  Micah  Lawrence,  John  Hunt, 
Simon  Chamberlain,  Joshua  Hide,  Wm.  Willard,  Joseph  Lord  Jr.,  Thomas 
Erink,  Jno  Hawks,  David  Field,  Samuel  Field,  Samuel  Ashley,  Samuel  Ashley 
Jr.,  &  Ol'r.  Ashley  be  set  off  in  the  following  manner,  Viz.  Beginning  at  a 
Pillow  of  Stones  on  the  Bank  of  Connecticut  River  Being  ye  Northwest  corner 
of  Governor  Wentworth's  two  shares  East  12°  South  in  ye  Governor's  Line  260 
rods  to  a  pillow  of  Stones  then  running  South  12°  West  50  rods  to  a  pillow  of 
Stones  then  ruiming  East  12°  South  on  ye  share  sett  off  to  John  Temple  Esq.  to 
ye  East  line  of  the  Town  then  running  northerly  on  ye  town  Line  400  rods  to  a 
Pillow  of  stones  then  running  west  12°  North  to  Connecticut  River  then  Down 
ye  river  as  that  runs  to  where  it  began  including  an  (Island)  against  Hubbard's 
meadow  so  called. 

They  next  appointed  William  Parker  of  Portsmouth,  Samuel 
Livermore  of  Londonderry,  Josiah  Willard  of  Winchester,  "  all  of 
ye  Province  of  ISTew  Hampshire  Esq'rs.  and  Samuel  Ashley  of 
Winchester  in  s'd  Province  agents  and  Attorneys  for  ye  Proprietors 
in  all  suits  and  Controversies  moved  or  to  be  moved  for  or  against 
s'd  Proprietors  &  in  their  behalf  to  appear,  plead  and  pursue  to 
final  judgment  &  Execution  v?ith  full  power  of  Substitution  & 
power  to  Compound  and  settle  such  actions  and  controversies 
wherein  s'd  Proprietors  are  or  shall  be  concerned,  the  s'd  Pro- 
prietors hereby  ratifying  confirming  and  holding  valid  whatever  s'd 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  15 

Agents  &  Attorneys  or  any  two  of  them  shall  Legally  do  or  cause 
to  be  done  in  or  about  the  Premises." 

At  a  meeting  of  the  proprietors  at  the  house  of  Colonel  Josiah 
"Willard,  in  Winchester,  on  the  eighteenth  of  February,  1767,  Captain 
Enos  Atwater,  Captain  Benjamin  Brooks,  Colonel  Josiah  Willard, 
Jotham  Hitchcock,  and  Asa  Leet,  were  appointed  a  committee  to 
"lott  out  ye  remaining  part  of  said  Town  in  such  manner  as  they 
shall  judge  most  proper  and  Return  a  Plan  thereof  to  the  Pro- 
prietors." It  was  also  "  voted  and  agreed  that  Benj.  Tyler  have  2 
acres  of  Land  for  a  Mill  yard  and  Convenience  for  Building  Mills 
in  the  most  Convenient  Place  on  Sugar  River  in  Claremont  with 
ye  priviledge  of  said  Stream  on  Condition  the  said  Tyler  doth  Build 
a  Mill  or  Mills  and  keep  the  same  in  Repair  for  ye  space  of  Ten 
Years." 

The  Willard  and  Ashley  line,  beginning  on  the  easterly  line  ot 
the  town,  at  a  distance  of  five  hundred  and  fifty  rods  from  the 
southern  extremity,  extended  westerly,  parallel  with  the  south  line 
of  the  town,  to  Connecticut  river.  Ashley's  claim  was  limited  on 
the  south  by  the  share  of  John  Temple,  and  on  the  north  by  the 
line  just  described.  It  comprised  a  tract  of  about  four  hundred  rods 
in  width  through  the  town,  from  east  to  west.  Willard's  claim 
comprised  all  that  part  of  the  town  north  of  "  Willard  and  Ashley 
line."  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  with  the  exception  of  the  shares 
of  the  Grovernor  and  Council,  Willard  and  Ashley  were  the  actual 
owners  of  the  entire  township.  After  obtaining  such  liberal  grants 
their  next  object  was  to  find  purchasers.  This,  it  seems  was  not 
difficult,  as  settlements  were  made  quite  rapidly  after  the  year  1767. 
But  as  late  as  1787,  Willard  was  the  owner  of  fifteen  shares,  equal 
to  forty-eight  hundred  acres.  This  is  on  the  supposition  that  the 
town  was  divided  into  seventy-five  equal  shares,  according  to  the 
provisions  of  the  charter.  Whether  such  division  was  ever  made 
does  not  appear  from  any  known  records.  The  shares  set  off  to  the 
Council  included  each  three  hundred  and  twenty  acres. 

The  method  first  adopted  by  the  proprietors  in  laying  out  the 
township  into  lots  was  to  set  off  fifty  acres  of  meadow  for  tillage, 
the  same  quantity  of  upland  for  pasturage,  and  three  acres  for  house 
lots.     They  then  proceeded  to  draw  by  lot — taking  care  to  have 


16  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

Several  more  lots  of  each  kind  than  there  were  persons  to  draw  — 
so  that  if  any  were  dissatisfied  with  the  result  they  might  relinquish 
those  assigned  by  the  drawing,  and  select  from  those  remaining. 
The  first  meeting  for  the  selection  of  lots  was  at  "Winchester,  on 
April  14, 1767.  The  committee  appointed  at  the  former  meeting 
having  discharged  the  duties  imposed  upon  them  acceptably  were 
"  desired  by  a  vote  to  lay  out  ye  Gleab  for  ye  church  of  England 
and  ye  school  in  some  convenient  place  ye  whole  Right  together." 
This  was  accordingly  done,  and  the  whole  were  located  at  the  west 
part  of  the  town.  Exchanges  were  afterwards  made  so  that  the 
glebe  lands  and  school  lands  were  situated  in  various  parts  of  the 
town.  A  tract  was  also  set  off  for  a  fair  and  market  ground.  This 
is  believed  to  have  included  the  cemetery  and  grounds  about 
Union  church,  at  the  west  part  of  the  town. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  proprietors  at  Winchester,  on  the  four- 
teenth day  of  April,  1767,  it  was  "  Voted  to  Except  the  Plan  of  ye 
51  house  Lotts  Laid  out  in  s'd  Town  &  also  ye  Plan  of  ye  51 
meadow  Lotts,  and  also  proceeded  to  draw  the  Same."  "Voted  that 
ye  Committee  be  Desired  to  lay  out  ye  Glebe  the  Church  of 
England  &  ye  school  in  some  Convenient  place  ye  whole  right 
together."  "Voted  that  there  be  75  acres  Laid  on  ye  hill  South  of 
house  Lot  No.  44  for  Town  Lotts  or  that  place  be  Reserved  for  that 
Use." 

At  a  meeting  of  the  proprietors  at  the  house  of  Thomas  Jones, 
innholder,  in  Claremont,  on  the  twentieth  day  of  April,  1768, 
"Voted  to  Except  ye  plan  as  Returned  &  Signed  by  the  Committee 
&  to  proceed  to  draw  ye  second  division  Both  of  upland  and 
■meadow  lots  as  they  are  laid  out."  "  Voted  as  there  is  8  50  acre 
Lotts  of  upland  laid  out  more  than  one  Lot  to  Each  proprietor  that 
jf  any  Person  shall  be  Dissatisfied  with  his  Lott  he  may  have  Lib- 
erty to  thi'ow  up  his  Lott  &  Take  one  of  the  Eight  Lots  already 
Laid  out  by  applying  to  the  Committee  &  they  giving  him  a  cer- 
tificate to  ye  Clerk  any  Time  within  6  months  from  the  date 
hereof." 

The  drawings  according  to  the  proprietors'  records,  were  as 
follows : 


HISTORY   OF    CLAKEMONT. 


17 


PROPRIETORS'  NAMES. 


Josiah  Willard 

Jeremiah  Hall 

Josiah  Willard,  Jun'r 

Jno  Ellis 

Samson  Willard 

Abraham  Scott 

Henry  Foster 

Solomon  Willard 

Jon'a  Hammond  .... 

Wm  Heaton 

Jos.  Hammond 

Prentice  Willard. . . . 

Wm  Grimes 

Jon'a  Willard 

James  Scott 

Samuel  Scott 

Minister 

Abijah  Willard 

Abel  Lawrence 

Clement  Sumner  .... 

Abel  Willard 

Michael  Medcalf.... 
Ephraim  Dorman .... 
Jeremiah  Powers  . . . 

Simon  Davis 

Jno  Ames 

Henry  Bond 

Elijah  Alexander . 

Eben'r  Dodgu 

Jno  Cass 

Nath'l  Heaton 

Gid'n  Ellis 

Jno  Grimes 

Jos  Cass 

Jno  Scott 

Wm  Richardson 

Jno  Peirce 

Tho's  Lee. 

Stephen  Putnam 

Timo  Taylor 

Benjamin  Freeman  . . 

Ol'rFairwell 

Jno  Series 

Ol'r  Fairwell  Jun'r. . 

Ephraim  Adams 

Jos  Ellis 

Phin's  Waite 

Samuel  Wells 


46 
42 
14 
36 
31 
29 
44 
26 
10 
18 
17 
60 
23 
34 
51 

3 
43 
15 
39 

1 
19 
47 
16 
48 
13 
24 

4 
38 

7 

9 

6 
22 

5 
41 
40 
28 
33 
49 
32 
45 
21 
11 
37 
35 
30 
22 

8 
27 


02 
24 
26 
26 
10 
45 
16 

3 
34 

2 
22 
28 
39 
35 

8 
60 
49 
43 
15 
40 
41 
18 
21 
38 
30 
47 
14 
44 

5 
27 

9 
46 

7 
31 

6 
29 
37 
17 

1 
19 
12 
23 
51 
33 

4 
46 
13 
48 


lis 


46 
38 
64 
11 
19 
21 
13 
17 
18 
67 
14 
41 
37 
30 
31 
16 
48 
29 
28 
50 
34 

1 
16 
27 
66 

5 
49 

7 
12 
63 
32 

2 

4 
55 
36 
68 
20 

3 
22 
33 
'41 
61 
62 

4 
61 

2 

10 
39 


14 
16 
10 
11 
42 
24 
12 
8 
48 
46 
63 
37 
2 
64 
40 
29 
41 
51 
32 
50 
4 
5 
3 
6 
34 
25 
13 
22 
30 
17 
39 
47 
33 
23 
35 
7 
52 
S8 
16 
44 
9 
49 
36 
26 
28 
47 
19 
1 


18 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 


PROPEIETOES'  NAMES. 


Wm  Smeed 

Theodore  Atkinson 

Daniel  Jones 

Glebe  

School 

Propagation  of  ye  Gospel 


go 


25 
12 
2 
52 
53 
54 


<  > 


11 

36 
32 
52 
53 
54 


59 
26 
36 
8 
6 
60 


18 
27 
43 
20 
45 
21 


MEETING   OP   THE    PROPRIETORS. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  proprietors  at  the  house  of  Thomas  Jones  iu 
Claremont,  on  the  nineteenth  of  August,  1769,  it  was 

Voted  to  Lay  a  Third  Division  of  upland  Containing  one  Hundred  acres  in  Each 
Lott  in  the  best  Lands  and  in  the  best  manner  they  can.  Voted  to  Lay  out  said 
Hundred  acre  Lotts  by  Draught, 

and  Jeremiah  Spencer,  Benjamin  Sumner  and  Asa  Jones  were 
chosen  a  committee  to  lay  out  the  lots ;  and  they  were  empowered 
to  rectify  any  mistakes  in  the  former  layings,  both  in  lots  and  high- 
ways.    At  a  meeting  on  the  fifth  of  April,  1770, 

Voted  and  chose  Jacob  Rice  to  supplj-  the  place  of  the  Late  Jeremiah  Spencer, 
Deceased.  Voted  that  if  the  Committee  for  the  Laying  out  the  third  Division 
of  upland  in  said  Town  do  not  complete  the  survey  by  the  first  Day  of  No- 
vember next  that  then  there  office  shall  seece  and  others  chosen  in   their  Room. 

At  a  meeting  on  the  twelfth  of  December,  1770,  at  the  house  of 
Benj.  Sumner, 

Voted  to  Except  the  Plan  and  Survey  Returned  by  the  Committee  (viz)  Ben- 
jamin Sumner,  Asa  Jones  and  Jacob  Rice  in  Laying  out  the  Hundred  acre 
Division  containing  105  acres  Each  Lott  to  Each  Proprietor  that  hath  a  Wright 
North  of  Col.  Ashley's  Line  in  said  Town  in  the  year  1770  ;  and  further  Voted  to 
Dravr  ye  Lotts  to  Each  Proprietor.  Voted  that  the_50  acre  Lott  of  Second  Di- 
vision Number  36  be  Recorded  to  the  Schools.  Voted  that  50  acre  Lott  of 
the  Second  Division  Number  89  be  Record  to  the  Propigation  of  the  Gospel  in 
forron  Parts.    Voted  to  Proceed  and  Draw  the  Hundred  acre  Lotts, 

and  they  were  drawn  as  follows  : 


HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT. 


19 


FHOPKIETOES'  NAMES. 


Josiah  Willard  Esq'r 

Jeremiah  Hall 

Josiah  Willard  Jn'r. 

John  Ellis 

Sampson  Willard . . . 

Abraham  Scott 

Henry  Foster 

Solomon  Willard  . . . 
Jonathan  Hammon. . 
William  Heaton  .... 

Abill  Willard 

Mieah  Medcalf 

Ephereum  Dorman.. 
Jerathmiel  Powers. . 

Simon  Davis 

John  Armes 

Henry  Bond 

Elijah  Alexander  . . . 
Ebenezer  Dodge. . . . 

John  Cass 

Nathaniel  Heaton . . . 

Gideon  Ellis 

Joseph  Ellis 

John  Grimes 

Joseph  Cass 

John  Scott 

William  Ritchardson 


Div. 

105 


52 
10 
12 
31 
41 

4 
20 
33 
.51 
28 

8 

5 
34 
18 
50 
23 
42 
22 
29 

1 
47 
43 
27 
44 
46 
13 

7 


PROPEIETORS'  NAMES. 


Joseph  Hammon 

Prentis  Willard 

William  Grimes 

Jonathan  Willard 

James  Scott 

Samuel  Scott 

First  Settled  Minister 

Abijah  Willard 

Abil  Larrence 

Clement  Sumner 

John  Pirce 

Thomas  Lee 

Stephan  Putnam 

Timothy  Taylor 

Benjamin  Freeman , 

Oliver  Farrwell 

John  Series 

Oliver  Farwell  Jun'r 

Epherium  Addams , 

Phenihas  Wait 

Samuel  Wells 

William  Smeed 

Theo'd  Atkinson 

Daniel  Jones , 

Gleebforye  Ch'h 

Schools 

Propegation  of  the  Gospel 


Div. 
105 


30 
3 
19 
17 
39 
64 
37 
2 

24 
9 
6 
48 
32 
11 
35 
49 
21 
53 
36 
40 
15 
26 
45 
25 
14 
16 
38 


This  meeting  is  Dissolved 

Test  Josiah  Willard 

B  Sumner  Pr  Clerk. 


Moderator. 


The  first  meeting  of  the  proprietors  was  not  held  in  strict 
accordance  as  to  time  with  the  provisions  of  the  charter,  which 
provided  that 

The  First  meeting  for  the  choice  of  Town  officers  agreeably  to  the  laws  of  our 
s'd  Province  shall  be  held  on  ye  Second  Tuesday  of  March  next  (1765)  which 
s'd  meeting  shall  be  Notified  by  Samuel  Ashley  who  is  hereby  appointed 
Moderator  of  s'd  first  meeting. 

According  to  the  record  the  first  meeting  of  the  proprietors  was 
held   on  the  second  of  February,  1767 —  nearly  two    years  later 


20  HISTORY   OF   CLAKEMONT. 

than  the  time  fixed  by  the  royal  grant.  To  a  great  extent  the 
interests  of  the  proprietors  and  those  of  Governor  Benning  Went- 
worth  were  identical  and  sustained  bj'  the  same  authority.  Appar- 
ently Messrs.  "Willard  and  Ashley  were  in  favor  with  the  Governor 
and  had  only  to  ask  to  have  any  indulgence  in  his  power  granted 
to  them.  Hence  respecting  their  acquisition  of  Claremont,  they  felt 
at  liberty  to  act  when  and  in  such  manner  as  their  interests  might 
suggest.  They  were  in  no  haste  for  the  settlement  of  the  town, 
seeming  to  regard  it  as  a  valuable  acquisition,  on  account  of  its 
agricultural  and  manufacturing  advantages.  They  therefore  de- 
termined to  be  governed  in  their  proceedings  by  the  degree  of 
earnestness  manifested  by  those  who  sought  to  purchase.  Another 
object  was  to  induce  such  persons  to  settle  the  town  as  would  be 
sure  to  be  loyal  and  faithful  to  the  crown. 

While  the  proprietors  were  waiting  to  secure  these  advantages, 
there  was  danger  from  another  source,  which  it  was  necessary  to 
check  without  delay.  "  Squatter  Sovereignty"  had  planted  itself 
upon  their  territory  and  was  rapidly  gaining  strength  there ;  and 
having  once  secured  a  foothold,  it  would  not  be  easily  eradicated. 
Further  delay  they  saw  would  therefore  be  injurious  to  their  in- 
terests, and  accordingly,  as  before  stated,  in  1767  they  took  active 
measures  for  the  settlement  of  the  town  by  virtue  of  their  incor- 
porated rights. 

The  grantees  found  a  few  squatters  upon  their  grant,  among  them 
Moses  Spatford  and  David  Lynde.  The  proprietors  proposed  to 
such  as  had  built  cabins  and  made  improvements,  to  give  to  each  a 
deed  of  sixty  acres  of  land,  to  be  located  by  the  proprietors.  These 
propositions  were  gladly  accepted.  Moses  Spafford's  sixty  acres 
were  located  south  of  Ashley  Ferry,  said  to  have  been  a  part  of  the 
farm  owned  by  the  late  Charles  Leland.  David  Lynde's  sixty 
acres  were  located  at  the  foot  of  Green  Mountain,  near  the  farm  of 
the  late  Tracy  Cowles. 

On  the  twenty-second  of  April,  1784,  Josiah  Willard,  owner  of 
fifteen  shares  of  the  town  of  Claremont,  petitioned  Benjamin 
Sumner,  clerk  of  the  proprietors,  to  call  a  meeting  of  the  pro- 
prietors, to  act  on  the  subjects  set  forth  in  the  petition.     The  fol- 


HISTORY   OF    CLARBMONT.  21 

lowing  is  a  verbatim  copy  of  the  record  of  the  doings  of  the  meet- 
ing, as  found  in  the  proprietors'  book  of  records : 

Att  a  Legal  meeting  of  the  Proprietors  of  the  Town  of  Claremont  Holden  at 
the  House  of  Mr  John  Spencer  in  s'd  Claremont  on  the  26th  day  of  May  1784. 

First  Voted  and  choos  L'tt  Asa  Jones  Moderator  of  s'd  Meeting. 

2dly  Voted  and  choos  Cap't  Benjamin  Sumner,  Colo.  Samuel  Ashley  Mr 
Prentis  Willard  L'tt  Asa  Jones  and  Mr  Ambrous  Cossit  a  Committee  to  pre- 
ambelate  the  Lines  of  the  Town. 

3dly  Voted  to  Subdivide  the  undivided  Land  in  s'd  Town  Equally  in  acres 
amongst  s'd  Propt's  and  appointed  Capt  Benjamin  Sumner  Ltt  Asa  Jones  and 
Deack  Jacob  Boys  for  that  Purpos  a  Committe 

4thly  Voted  the  Two  Shares  belonging  to  the  Late  Gov'r  Benning  Wentworth 
Colo  William  Symes  John  Gofif  Esq'r  Theo  Atkins  Jun'r  Esqr  Mark  H.  Went- 
worth Esqr  and  John  Temple  Esqr  Lemrel  Hedge  Micha  Larrance  John  Hunt 
Simon  Chamberlin  Joshua  Hide  William  Willard  Joseph  Lord  Jnr  Thomas 
Frink  John  Hawks  David  Field  Sam'll  Field  Sam'll  Ashley  Sam'll  Ashley 
Junior  and  Ol'r  Ashley  is  Not  entitled  to,  Nor  Shall  have  any  one  acre  House  Lot 
Layd  out  to  them  North  of  Colo  Sam'll  Ashleys  Line,  so  called  in  s'd  Town, 
those  Shares  having  had  their  full  Cotas  of  Land  Laid  out  to  them  here  to  fore 
in  one  Tract 

othly  Voted  Two  acres  Three  Quarters  and  Ten  Rods  of  Land  be  Laid  out 
Eighteen  Rods  East  and  west  and  Twentyfive  Rods  7  L's  North  and  South  and 
Recorded  for  a  Burying  Yard  for  the  use  and  Benefit  of  the  Town  to  Bury  their 
Dead  in  and  to  be  Alienated  to  No  Other  use  whatever,  Lying  and  Butting 
North  on  Mr  Ebenezer  Rice  House  Lot  and  west  on  the  Chui-ch  Gleeb 

6thly  Voted  to  lay  out  house  acres  for  the  use  and  Benefit  of  the  Apescopol 
Church ;  Commonly  called  the  Church  of  England  for  a  church  yard  Including 
the  ground  on  which  the  Church  Now  Stands,  said  Land  Butting  North  on  Mr 
Ebn'r  Rice  and  West  on  the  Burying  ground  Beforementioned ;  Lying  in  a 
Squair  Forme 

7thly  Voted  to  Lay  out  and  Record  for  the  use  and  Benefit  of  Building  a 
meeting  House  and  Trayning  field  four  acres  in  a  squair  forme  Lying  East  and 
adjoining  the  Gleeb  and  South  and  adjoining  the  Burying  ground  and  Church 
vard,  provided  that  the  Town  shall  set  a  meting  House  on  the  same  Lands 
within  the  Terme  of  Twelve  years  from  this  Date  if  Not  Built  by  s  d  Town 
with  in  the  Terme  of  Twelve  years  from  this  Date  as  above  sd  then  to  Revert 
back  to  the  Promoters  Aforesd 

8thly  Voted  to  Adjourn  this  meting  to  Tuesday  the  17th  Day  of  August  Next 
at  one  of  the  clock  P.  M.  then  to  meet  at  this  place 

Test  Asa  Jones,  Moderator 


22  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  proprietors  on  the  nineteenth  of  May,  1789, 
at  the  house  of  Capt.  Benjamin  Sumner,  it  was  voted  to 

Discontinue  the  agency  of  Wm  Parker,  Sam'll  Livermore,  Josiah  Willard  and 
Sam'll  Ashley,  Esqr  and  in  their  Room  and  Sted  choose  Capt  Benj'n  Sumner  Mr 
Ambrous  Cossit  and  Mr  David  Dodge  with  as  full  power  of  attorney  as  the 
former  Committee  or  Agents  had,  being  full  athority  to  act  for  s'd  Proprietors  in 
all  Causes  Moved  or  to  be  moved  against  them  with  full  power  of  substitution 
they  or  any  two  of  them  and  prosecute  in  their  Name  and  act  to  final  judgement 
and  execution. 

Voted  to  Discontinue  the  Roads  Left  in  the  common  medows  for  the  proprietors 
to  Pass  and  Repass  on  from  the  Lottery  Bridge  over  Sugar  River  all  along  on  the 
North  Banks  of  said  River  to  the  Banks  of  Connecticut  River  and  Likewise  to 
Discontinue  the  gate  Standing  at  the  North  End  of  medow  Lot  Number 
31  and  No.  32  and  Likewise  to  Discontinue  the  passways  on  Roads  Between  No. 
31  and  No.  32  and  connect  the  same  to  the  Proprietors  Lands  adjoining  and 
voted  to  Discontinue  the  Roads  or  passway  from  said  Bridge  all  along  on  the 
South  Banks  of  Sugar  River  to  the  mouth  there  of  and  Likewise  the  Roads 
Between  the  full  tier  of  medow  Lots  to  the  South  side  of  Medow  Lot  No.  13 
Running  from.  Sugar  River  Southward  and  connect  the  same  to  the  Proprietors 
use  oning  the  Land  adjoining  and  to  open  in  sted  of  the  last  mentioned  Rode  to 
the  use  of  s'd  Proptrs  a  Road  from  the  East  End  of  Medow  Lot  No  51  to  the 
South  side  of  No  23  and  on  as  the  Rode  Now  Travelled  to  the  13th  Lot  Con- 
tinuing the  Roads  open  for  the  Proprietors  use  to  the  first  Lot  as  they  are  now 
Used  and  frequented. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  proprietors  December  7,  1789,  it  was 

voted  to  lay  out  a  road  of  four  rods  wide  to  their  use  Beginning  at  a  stake  and 
stones  on  the  division  line  east  of  Doc'r  Abner  Meiggs  house  between  the 
second  and  third  division  of  fifty  acre  lots  east  20°  South  to  the  dividing  line  of 
lots  No.  14  and  15,  then  to  run  northward  to  intersect  the  division  line  between 
the  two  tier  of  lots  then  to  continue  on  the  s'd  division  line  eastward  to  Newport 
about  seven  hundred  rods. 

Voted  to  accept  of  the  plan  and  survey  of  the  third  division  of  fifty  acre 
lots  according  as  they  are  bounded  and  numbered  agreable  to  the  plan  returned 
by  the  Committee. 

Voted  to  accept  of  the  one  acre  lotts  so  called  house  lots  according  to  plan 
thereof  returned  by  the  Committee. 

Voted  to  draw  the  2  divisions. 


HISTORY    OF   OLAREMONT. 
A   DRAUGHT   OF   THE   THIRD   FIFTY  ACRE   DIVISION. 


23 


Josiah  Willard  Esqr. . 

Jeremiah  Hall 

Josiah  Willard  Junior 

John  Ellis 

Sampson  Willard  .... 

Abraham  Scott 

Henry  Foster 

Solomon  Willard 

Jonathan  Hammond. . 

Prentis  Willard 

William  Heaton 

Joseph  Hammond 

William  Grimes 

Jonathan  Willard. . . . 

James  Scott 

Ministers  Lett.. . . . . . . 

Samuel  Scott 

Abijah  Willard 

Abel  Lawrence 

Clement  Sumner 

Abel  Willard 

Joseph  Ellis 

John  Series 

Oliver  Fairwell  Jun'r. 
Epherum  Addams... 

Phenihas  Adams 

Samuel  Wells 


No. 


47 
50 
29 
52 
10 
43 
35 
2 
7 
9 
34 
13 
16 
18 
28 
44 
49 
8 
22 
25 
46 
37 
12 
31 
19 
54 
3 


Michael  Medcalfe.  . . . 
Epherium  Dorman. . . . 
Jerathmiel  Powers . . . 

Simon  Davis 

John  Arm  es 

Henry  Bond 

Abijah  Alexander 

Ebenezer  Dodge 

John  Cass 

Nathaniel  Heaton 

Gideon  Ellis 

John  Grimes 

Joseph  Cass 

John  Scott 

William  Richardson. . 

John  Peirce 

Thomas  Lee 

Stephen  Putnam 

Timothy  Taylor 

Benjamin  Freeman  . . . 

Oliver  Fairwell 

William  Smeed 

Theo'd  Atkinson  Esqr 
Daniel  Jones  Esqr. . . . 

Gleeb 

School 

Gospel 


No. 


41 
38 
48 
33 
63 
40 

1 
21 
26 
23 
37 
24 
11 
42 
45 
36 
SO 
27 
20 
61 
39 

5 

15 
32 

4 
14 

6 


A   DRAUGHT   OF   THE    ONE   ACRE   LOTTS. 


Josiah  Willard  Esqr. . 

Jeremiah  Hall.j 

Josiah  Willard  Junior- 
John  Ellis 

Sampson  Willard 

Abraham  Scott 

Henry  Foster  

Solomon  Willard 

William  Heaton 

Jonathan  Hammond  . . 
Joseph  Hammond 


26 
51 
33 
28 
14 
39 
41 
10 
15 
40 
22 


Jonathan  Willard . . 

James  Scott 

Minister  Lott 

Samuel  Scott 

Abijah  Willard 

Abel  Lawrance .... 
Clement  Sumner  . . 

Abel]Willard 

Michael  Medcalfe  . 
Ephrium  Dorman.. 
Jerathmiel  Powers 


No. 


21 

9 

2 

25 

12 

34 

20 

32 

38 

1 

29 


24  HISTORY   OF   CLAKEMONT. 

A    DRAUGHT    OF    THE    ONE    ACRE    LOTTS. ContinUCcl. 


No. 


Prentis  Willard 

William  Grimes... 

Henry  Bond 

Elijah  Alexander. . 
Ebenezer  Dodge. . . 

John  Cass 

Nathaniel  Heaton . . 

Gideon  Ellis 

Joseph  Ellis 

John  Grimes , 

Joseph  Cass 

John  Scott 

William  Richardson 

John  Peirce 

Thomas  Lee , 

Stephan  Putnam. . . 


23 
27 
48 
24 
43 
53 
18 
52 
54 
11 
16 
19 
35 
•17 
4 
6 


Simeon  Davis 

John  Armes 

Timothy  Taylor 

Benj'a  Freeman 

Oliver  Fairwell 

John  Series 

Oliver  Fairwell  Jn'r. . 
Epherium  Aduams  . . 

Phenihas  Wait 

Samuel  Wells , 

William  Smeed 

Theo'd  Atkinson  Esqr 

Daniel  Jones  Esqr 

Gleeb 

School 

Gospel 


Xo. 


42 

30 

31 

45 

37 

47 

50 

7 

46 

49 

44 

13 

36 

5 

3 

8 


Several  of  the  lots  drawn  in  the  third  fifty  acre  division  were 
surrendered  to  the  proprietors,  and  other  lots  not  drawn  were 
taken  in  their  stead. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  proprietors  of  the  common  or  undivided 
lands,  at  the  Tremont  house  in  Claremont,  on  the  second  of  De- 
cember, 1845,  Nathaniel  Cowles  was  chosen  moderator,  and  Solon 
C.  Granuis,  proprietors'  clerk;  Solon  C.  Grannis  and  Xathaniel 
Cowles  a  committee  for  "making  sales  and  giving  deeds"  of  lands. 
It  was 

Voted  that  the  following  instruction  to  the  Committee  of  Sales  be  adopted. 
That  as  David  H.  Sumner  is  a  large  proprietor  of  the  lands,  no  sales  of  any  part 
of  them  (until  further  ordered  ^otherwise)  shall  be  made  without  his  consent  in 
writing  the  said  consent  to  be  put  on  file  and  recorded  in  the  record  of  the 
Proprietors. 

Voted  and  chose  Alpheus  F.  Snow,  Nathaniel  Cowles  and  Moody  Dnstin, 
Agents. 

By  consent  of  Mr.  Sumner,  the  committee  conveyed  tracts  of 
these  lands  to  James  Sperry,  Hira  Ayer,  Ichabod  Hitchcock, 
Leonard  Eichardson,  Leonard  P.  Fisher,  Curtis   Stoddard,  Charles 


HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT.  25 

Cotton,  Nathan  G.  AUds,  David  H.  Sumner,  and  Daniel  J.  Liv- 
ingston. At  a  meeting  March  28,  1857,  at  the  office  of  Snow  & 
Baker,  Solon  C.  Grannis  and  Leonard  P.  Fisher  were  chosen  the 
committee  for  making  sales. 

The  last  meeting  of  the  proprietors  that  appears  on  record,  was 
held  at  the  office  of  A.  F.  Snow,  on  the  twenty-eighth  of  October, 
1858.  David  H.  Sumner  was  moderator.  By  a  loose  paper,  in 
the  handwriting  of  A.  F.  Snow,  Esq.,  dated  July  16,  1864, 
found  in  the  proprietors'  record  book,  David  H.  Sumner 
consented  to  the  sale,  to  Daniel  J.  Livingston,  of  the  westerly 
half  of  Lot  Number  2,  and  to  himself  of  Lots  Numbers  9  and  10,  8, 
15,  and  16,  and  the  westerly  half  of  Lot  Number  5,  and  three  fourths 
of  an  acre  adjoining  Lot  Number  10,  called  the  "  Mill  Privilege." 
These  sales,  it  would  appear,  disposed  of  the  last  of  the  common  or 
undivided  lands  in  Claremont.  Solon  C.  Grannis  was  the  last  pro- 
prietors' clerk  chosen  and  in  his  possession  the  records  remained 
until  his  death,  March  7,  1892. 


CHAPTER  n. 

FIRST   SETTLEMENT   OF    THE    TOWN. 

In  1762  Moses  Spafford  and  David  Lynde  came  to  town,  selected 
land  and  built  cabins.  They  cleared  some  land  and  did  other 
things  to  make  for  themselves  homes.  Between  that  time  and  1767 
a  few  others  came,  built  cabins,  cleared  laud  and  returned  to  their 
homes  to  pass  the  winter.  Most  of  these  cabins  and  clearings  were 
in  the  west  part  of  the  town  and  along  Sugar  river.  In  1767  the 
proprietors  began  to  take  steps  to  dispose  of  their  shares  and  held 
out  inducements  for  people  to  settle  upon  their  grant.  That  year 
several  came  from  Farmington,  Hebron,  Colchester,  and  other 
towns  in  Connecticut.  None  of  the  grantees  came  that  year,  and 
only  Samuel  Ashley,  Samuel  Ashley,  Jr.,  and  Oliver  Ashley  of  the 
whole  number  ever  became  inhabitants  of  the  town.  Samuel  Ash- 
ley did  not  become  a  citizen  of  the  town  until  1782.  The  early 
inhabitants  of  the  town  were  nearly  equally  divided  in  their  attach- 
ment to  the  Episcopal  and  Congregational  denominations.  An 
Episcopal  church  was  organized  in  1771,  and  a  Congregational 
minister  was  settled  in  February,  1772. 

Some  years  ago  Bela  Chapin,  a  painstaking  and  careful  writer, 
prepared  an  interesting  sketch  of  the  "  Bygone  Times  in  Clare- 
mont,"  which  was  published  in  the  ''  National  Eagle."  His  data 
were  gathered  mostly  from  tradition  and  are  as  reliable,  probably, 
as  the  generality  of  information  obtained  from  that  source.  He 
says, 

Near  the  middle  of  the  last  century  a  man  named  Eastman  of  Killingworth, 
Conn.,  a  hunter  and  trapper,  came  up  the  Connecticut  river  as  far  as  this  town, 
and  here,  by  the  Sugar  river  and  the  various  brooks  which  empty  into  it,  he  pur- 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  27 

sued  his  vocation  with  great  success.  He  extended  his  excursions  into  Newport, 
and  having  taken  a  large  number  of  beavers  and  otters,  he  carried  their  dry 
skins  back  to  Connecticut.  He  gave  there  a  marvelous  account  of  the  region 
he  had  visited,  and  after  disposing  of  his  valuable  furs  he  set  out  again  for  the 
same  hunting  ground.  But  he  was  heard  from  no  more.  After  the  first  settlers 
arrived  in  Newport  from  Killingworth,  Mr.  Eastman's  bones  were  found  near 
Mink  brook,  just  east  of  Kelleyville.  It  is  thought  he  was  killed  by  Indians, 
who  considered  him  trespassing  upon  their  hunting  grounds. 

At  an  early  day  many  of  the  first  settlers  made  changes  in  the  ownership  of 
their  land.  Some  were  afraid  of  the  early  autumn  frosts  on  the  lowland  farms. 
Some  were  suspicious  that  the  fertility  of  the  light  terrace  land  farms  would  not 
endure,  and  would  some  day  become  like  the  soil  in  parts  of  Connecticut.  One 
Mathews,  who  had  settled  in  what  is  now  called  Puckershire,  sold  his  large  farm 
and  bought  another  uncleared  on  the  high  northern  slope  of  Green  mountain, 
"I  am  going,"  he  said  ''where  there  is  land,''''  meaning  by  his  emphasis  that  he 
was  going  where  he  would  have  much  better  laud  to  till  than  where  he  had  lived. 
He  lived  many  years  upon  the  mountain,  and  there  are  yet  to  be  seen  the  ruins 
of  his  cellar  and  barnyard  wall  and  a  few  old  apple  trees  where  he  lived  so  long 
perhaps  in  contentment  and  happiness.  The  farm  where  he  dwelt  upon  the 
mountain  is  now  occupied  by  Timothy  B.  Rossiter  as  a  sheep  pasture.  Two 
other  men  also  sold  their  farms  and  went  to  live  upon  the  mountain.  Another 
early  settler  in  the  west  part  of  the  town  became  discouraged  and  sold  his  farm, 
which  was  nearly  covered  with  great  pine  trees,  and  went  where  the  trees  were 
smaller,  because  there  was  so  much  labor  required  in  burning  and  clearing  away 
the  great  pine  trees. 

One  of  the  oldest  roads  in  Claremont  was  that  running  north  and  south  over 
the  hills  in  the  western  part  of  the  town.  This  was  the  highway  of  travel  up 
and  down  the  river  valley.  It  was  through  this  town  on  that  road  that,  in  1770, 
President  Wheelock  and  his  family  in  a  large  wagon,  accompanied  by  students 
and  attendants,  about  ninety  in  all,  passed  on  their  way  from  Connecticut  to 
Hanover,  driving  before  them  a  drove  of  hogs.  At  Hanover  they  established 
Moor's  Charity  School,  which  in  due  time  became  Dartmouth  College. 

Manufacturing  in  the  early  days  of  our  history  was  carried  on  in  all  parts  of  the 
town.  There  were  many  blacksmiths  who  rcade  nails  and  many  kinds  of  farm- 
ing tools.  There  were  also  shoemakers  in  abundance,  and  a  few  coopers.  But 
every  house,  especially  every  farmhouse,  was  a  manufactory.  Nearly  all 
wearing  apparel  was  home-made.  Woman's  lot  then  was  that  of  great  hardship. 
Carding  wool  and  flax,  and  spinning  and  weaving  it,  was  much  of  her  employ- 
ment. The  warping  bars,  the  loom,  and  the  spinning  wheels,  both  for  flax  and 
wool,  were  had  in  almost  every  residence.  Then  carding  machines  and  fulling 
mills  were  put  in  operation,  and,  as  time  progressed,  facilities  increased.  At 
the  close  of  the  war  of  1812  manufacturing  by  water  power  became  more  exten- 
sive, and  continued  to  increase  as  the  years  passed  by,  and  the  business  of  the 


28  HISTORY   01?   CLARBMONT. 

town  became  still  more  important.  About  1836  there  were  in  Claremont  eight 
stores,  one  furnace,  four  fulling  mills,  one  woolen  factory,  one  cotton  factory, 
two  paper-mills,  eight  saw-mills,  and  two  printing  offices. 

In  olden  times  corn,  rye,  oats,  potatoes,  pumpkins,  and  maple  sugar  were  the 
principal  productions  of  the  soil.  The  raising  of  corn,  oats,  wheat,  and  rye  were 
attended  with  some  uncertainty.  Raccoons,  bears,  and  hedgehogs  devoured  the 
corn,  much  of  it  before  it  became  ripe.  Men  killed  the  raccoons  and  hedgehogs 
at  night  by  going  with  sled-stakes  where  would  be  the  exit  of  the  game,  while 
the  boys  ran  through  the  cornfields,  and,  with  great  noise,  drove  out  the  animals 
for  the  men  to  kill  as  they  were  about  to  escape  to  the  woods.  Potatoes  were 
raised  in  abundance.  Pumpkins  were  a  sure  crop,  and  many  were  raised. 
These  last  afforded  food  for  both  man  and  beast,  and  often  were  eaten  in  various 
ways  when  better  food  was  scarce.  Maple  sugar  was  the  iirst  crop  of  the  year. 
There  were  an  abundance  of  maple  trees  in  the  different  parts  of  the  town,  and 
especially  along  the  hillsides  near  Sugar  river,  which  from  that  fact  received  its 
name.  And  it  was  believed  that  the  time  for  tapping  sugar  maples  was  only 
after  the  river  had  cleared  itself  of  ice  in  the  spi-ing.  Many  a  tired  and  hungry 
man,  returning  to  his  cabin,  would  refresh  himself  with  sugar  from  his  abundant 
store. 

Claremont  was  once  a  region  of  lofty  pines.  These  were  cut  down  and  dis- 
posed of  in  various  ways.  Many  were  split  into  rails  for  fences,  and  many  were 
sawn  into  boards  or  made  into  shingles  and  cla23boards,  and  many  were  burned 
and  wasted.  But  the  stumps  remained  in  the  ground  and  were  likely  to  almost 
never  rot.  Then  the  stump-puller  was  put  in  operation.  This  consisted  of  a 
long,  slim  tree,  cut  and  made  into  a  lever,  with  a  stout  truck-wheel  upon  the 
smaller  end.  The  longer  end  of  the  lever  was  chained  to  the  stump  with  a  mon- 
strous chain,  a  link  of  which  would  weigh  about  fifteen  pounds.  Then  a  half- 
dozen  yokes  of  oxen  were  hitched  to  the  wheel  and  driven  forward,  and  the 
great  stumps  were  thus  turned  out  of  the  ground.  These  were  drawn  away  and 
fences  made  of  them. 

New  England  rum  for  many  years  made  sad  havoc  among  the  town's  people. 
The  first  or  early  settlers  were  temperate  in  the  use  of  ardent  spirits,  but  the 
next  generation  of  inhabitants  were  carried  away  and  made  miserable,  many  of 
them,  by  intemperate  habits.  It  was  a  fault  of  the  times.  It  was  customary 
and  fashionable  to  drink  rum,  brandy,  and  other  kinds  of  tire-water  upon  all 
occasions  and  in  everyday  life.  The  preachers  of  the  gospel  drank  rum,  the 
deacons  drank  it,  and  almost  every  one,  male  and  female,  the  aged,  the  middle- 
aged,  and  those  in  tender  years,  drank  intoxicating  drink.  Not  all  were  excess- 
ive drinkers,  most  drank  moderately.  On  extra  occasions,  such  as  ordinations, 
weddings,  funerals,  family  and  friendly  reunions,  huskings,  the  raising  of  build- 
ings, bear  hunts,  musters,  and  on  all  occasions  of  merriment,  much  liquor  was 
used,  and  often  many  became  drunk  or  much  beside  themselves.  Rum-drinking 
was  a  cause  of  much  trouble,  poverty  and  unhappiness.     It  made  men  quarrel 


o 
o 

f- 


O 


HISTORY   OF  CLAKEMONT.  29 

with  each  other  and  spend  their  money  foolishly.  One  old  man,  in  his  latter 
days,  used  to  boast  that  he  had  had  a  dozen  lawsuits  and  had  beaten  every  time. 
This  manner  of  life  continued  until  about  1828,  when  Dr.  Reuben  Muzzey,  of 
Dartmouth  College,  came  about  delivering  his  noted  lecture,  entitled  "  Eum, — 
its  history,  its  uses  and  abuses."  This  lecture  had  immediate  eflfect.  All  the 
good  people,  almost  without  exception,  signed  a  pledge  of  total  abstinence  from 
all  intoxicating  drinks,  and  from  that  day  to  the  present  time  the  cause  of  tem- 
perance reform  has  continued  its  onward  progress  among  our  people.  Still  rum 
was  sold  and  used  in  town.  When  laws  were  enacted  to  prevent  its  sale,  sellers 
were  licensed  to  sell  it.  We  remember  one  noted  rumseller  in  town  [Luther 
Farwell].  He  had  a  general  assortment  store  in  Dog  Hollow.  He  was  licensed 
to  sell  from  year  to  year,  but  sometimes  there  were  gaps  when  he  had  no  license. 
Before  the  expiration  of  his  legal  time  of  selling  he  would  advertise  his  stock  so 
as  to  reduce  it  by  a  more  rapid  sale.  One  year  the  following  was  a  part  of  his 
advertisement : 

''  The  appointed  time  is  hastening  on 
To  prosecute  for  selling  rum. 
Bring  in  your  things,  glass,  wood,  and  stone, 
The  time  is  coming  when  you'll  get- none. 
For  selling  rum  is  jusfand  right 
Till  12  o'clock  next  Saturday  night." 

Small  were  the  excuses  for  drinking  rum.  A  friend  of  mine  tells  me  of 
his  first  visit  one  winter  morning,  long  ago,  at  the  house  of  two  maiden 
sisters,  neighbors  of  his,  who  lived  about  a  mile  from  the  village.  He  called 
at  the  house,  and  after  some  talk,  the  lady  there  asked:  ''  Are  you  going  to 
the  village?  "  He  told  her  he  was  going  there,  and  she  then  said :  "  You  see, 
my  sister  has  to  do  the  chores  at  the  barn,  and  she  very  much  needs  some- 
thing to  keep  the  cold  from  her  lungs.  Would  you  get  her  a  gallon  of  rum  ?" 
He  answered  yes.  Going  then  to  the  barn  he  found  the  other  lady  cleaning 
the  stable,  and  after  some  talk,  she  asked :  "  Are  you  going  to  the  village  ?  " 
He  replied  in  the  affirmative,  and  she  continued :  "  Tou  know  my  sister  in 
the  house  is  not  very  well,  and  she  needs  something  to  strengthen  her. 
Would  you  be  so  kind  as  to  get  her  a  gallon  of  rum?"  He  said  he  would, 
and  on  his  return  he  brought  them  their  rum.  After  the  era  of  licensing 
had  gone  by,  the  people  of  the  town  elected  a  rum-seller  to  furnish  fire-water 
to  all  who  wanted  it  for  medicinal  and  mechanical  uses.  Then  there  appeared 
to  be  much  sickness  in  town.  Men  bought  liquors  for  all  kinds  of  complaints, 
and  many  bought  it  as  a  preventive  of  sickness.  Much  was  sold  for  me- 
chanical purposes.  Farmers  bought  it  for  the  purpose  of  making  their  scythes 
swing  easily  in  hay  time.  We  once  heard  of  a  man  from  a  neighboring  town 
who  called  at  the  agency  to  buy  rum  for  the  purpose  of  pickling  cucumbers. 


30  HISTORY   OP   OLAREMONT. 

After  getting  his  large  jug  filled,  and  having  paid  for  it  all,  he  took  a  solid  drink. 
Said  the  agent:  "Hold  on,  sir;  you  bought  that  for  pickles."  "So  I  did,'' 
said  the  man,  "  and  want  first  to  pickle  the  cucumbers  I  had  for  breakfast." 

In  1764,  according  to  E.  D.  Sanborn's  History  of  New  Hamp- 
shire, from  Charlestown  to  Haverhill,  more  than  seventy  miles, 
there  was  no  road,  only  a  bridle  path  indicated  by  marked  trees. 
This  was  often  hedged  up  by  fallen  trees  or  made  impassable  by 
freshets.  Claremont  then  contained  two  families,  and  Cornish 
and  Plainfield  one  each.  A  rude  cabin  was  their  only  shelter, 
game  or  fish,  for  a  time,  their  principal  food,  and  water  from  the 
spring  their  only  beverage.  The  wife  lived  alone  while  the  hus- 
band was  abroad  felling  trees  or  securing  food.  Comfort  was 
unknown.  When  food  became  more  plenty  the  inhabitants  gen- 
erally ate  meat  once  in  a  day.  Porridge  of  beans,  pease,  or  milk 
furnished  their  other  meals.  Bowls,  dishes,  and  plates  were 
usually  of  wood.  The  more  wealthy  used  pewter  and  tin.  There 
was  then  a  mill  at  Charlestown  for  grinding  corn,  and  people 
came  long  distances  to  get  their  grain  made  into  meal. 

The  first  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Claremont 
in  the  Province  of  New  Hampshire  was  held  on  the  eighth  day  of 
March,  1768.  How  this  meeting  was  notified  or  warned  does 
not  appear.     The  record  of  that  meeting  is  as  follows : 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Inhabitants  of  the  Town  of  Claremont  holden  at  the 
House  of  Capt.  Benj'n  Brooks  of  said  Claremont  on  tuesday  the  eigth  day  of 
March,  1768. 

Capt.  Benj'n  Brooks  was  chose  Moderator  to  regulate  said  Meeting. 

Joseph  Ives  was  chose  Town  Clerk. 

Capt.  Benj'n  Brooks,  Ebenezer  Skinner,  Benj'n  Tyler,  Thomas  Jones  and 
Amos  York  were  chosen  Selectmen. 

Benj'n  Brooks,  Jr.  was  chosen  constable 

Then  this  meeting  was  adjourned  to  the  29th  day  of  instant  March  at  one 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 

Mar.  29th,  1768.     Then  met  according  to  adjournment. 

Amos  Yoi'k  and  Benedick  Roys  were  chose  Tithingmen. 

Benedick  Roys  and  Josiah  Rich  were  chose  Deer  Reves 

Asa  Leet  and  Ebenezer  Skinner  were  chose  Surveyors  of  Highways. 

Voted  to  build  a  Pound  for  the  use  of  the  Town,  near  Thomas  Jones' 
House,  in  the  most  convenient  place 

Thomas  Jones  chose  Pound  Keeper. 


HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT.  31 

Voted  to  raise  a  Kate  of  ten  Pounds,  Lawful  Money  to  defray  Town  charges. 

Capt.  Benjamin  Brooks  and  Benjamin  Sumner  were  chose  a  committee  to 
lay  out  a  Road  to  Newport. 

Voted  to  take  two  acres  of  land  oflf  from  the  North  west  corner  of  the  Fair 
for  a  Burying  place 

At  a  legal  Town  meeting  holden  at  the  House  of  Dr.  William  Sumner,  on 
Tuesday,  the  fourteenth  day  of  March,  1769, 

Dr.  William  Sumner  was  chose  Moderator 

Benjamin  Sumner  was  chose  Town  Clerk. 

Jeremiah  Spenser,  Lieut.  Benjamin  Tyler  and  Benjamin  Sumner  were  chose 
Selectmen. 

Ebenezer  Rice  was  chose  Constable. 

Ebenezer  Skinner  and  Lieut.  Tyler  were  chose  Tithingmen,  and  said  Tyler 
refused  to  serve,  Asa  Leet  chose  in  his  Room 

Benedick  Roys  and  Joseph  Ives  were  chosen  surveyors  of  Highways  and 
Thomas  Jones  Keeper  of  the  Town  Pound. 

Voted  to  adjourn  this  meeting  to  Tuesday  the  28th  day  of  instant  March, 
at  3  o'clock  p.  M.  at  the  above  mentioned  place. 

This  meeting  was  opened  according  to  adjournment. 

At  the  same  meeting  chose  Asa  Leet,  Thos.  Gustin  and  Joseph  Ives  to  be 
a  Committee  to  examine  the  Selectmen's  accounts  for  the  last  year. 

Asa  Jones,  Asaph  Atwater,  Beriah  Murray,  Hawards  or  field  drivers. 

The  duty  of  a  hayward  was  to  keep  a  common  herd  of  cattle 
of  a  town  and  see  that  they  did  no  harm  to  hedges  or  enclosed 
grounds;  to  decide  how  many  cattle  each  man  was  entitled  to 
pasture  on  common  grounds  set  off  for  grazing;  and  to  im- 
pound all  cattle  going  at  large,  doing  or  liable  to  do  mischief. 
This  officer  long  since  became  obsolete. 

Josiah  Rich  and  Jacob  Roys  chose  fence  viewers. 

Amos  York  chose  Leather  Sealer. 

Voted  that  Daniel  Warner  shall  have  for  his  services  in  making  a  road  to 
Merrimack  £1-8-0  Lawful  money 

Voted  that  Hogs  may  run  at  large  Yoked  and  ringed  according  to  law. 

This  meeting  is  dissolved. 

A  Town  meeting  legally  warned,  March  13,  1770. 

Capt.  Benjamin  Brooks  was  chose  Moderator 

Ebenezer  Rice  was  chose  Town  Clerk 

Capt.  Benjamin  Brooks,  Capt.  Benjamin  Sumner,  Jacob  Rice,  Joseph  Ives 
and  Asa  Jones  were  chosen  Selectmen. 

Barnabas  Ellis  was  chose  Constable 


32  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

Josiah  Rich  and  Benjamin  Brooks,  Jun'r,  were  chosen  Tithing  men. 

Messrs.  Joseph  Ives  and  Asa  Jones  were  chose  Leather  Sealers. 

John  Spencer  and  Joseph  Taylor  were  chose  Field  Drivers. 

Thomas  Gustin  was  chose  Town  Treasurer. 

Joseph  York,  Asa  Leet,  Moses  Spaford  were  chosen  Surveyors  of  Highways. 

Thomas  Gustin,  Ebenezer  Skinner  and  Samuel  Ashley  were  chosen  a  Com- 
mittee to  examine  the  Selectmen's  accounts. 

Voted  that  swine  shall  go  upon  the  Commons  yoked  and  ringed  according 
to  Law. 

Voted  that  this  be  dissolved. 

The  preceding  extracts  are  given  verbatim,  showing  how  the 
records  were  kept,  as  well  as  the  business  that  was  transacted. 
Following  are  such  abstracts  from  the  recorded  proceedings  of 
town  meetings  as  seem  of  interest. 

At  the  annual  meeting,  on  March  12th,  1771,  holden  at  the 
house  of  Benjamin  Brooks,  who  was  chosen  moderator,  Samuel 
Cole  was  chosen  town  clerk,  Thomas  Gustin,  Benjamin  Brooks, 
and  Asa  Jones  selectmen,  and  John  Kelborn  sealer  of  measures 
and  weights. 

Voted  that  the  Town  should  record  the  Marks  for  Cattle  and  swine  belonging 
to  the  Inhabitants  of  the  Town. 

September  26th,  1771.  A  meeting  of  the  Inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Clare- 
mont  qualified  to  vote  in  common  affairs  and  warned  according  to  Law,  at 
the  South  School  House.  At  the  same  meeting  Capt.  B.  Brooks  was  chosen 
Moderator.  At  the  same  meeting  Capt.  B.  Brooks  was  chosen  Grand  Juror 
for  the  year  ensuing. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1772,  it  was 

Voted  to  raise  three  Pounds  Lawful  Money  to  purchase  weights  and  measures 
for  the  use  of  the  Town. 

At  a  town  meeting  held  on  the  sixth  day  of  January,  1773, 
"  Mr.  Thomas  Gustin  was  chosen  moderator,"  and  "  Messrs.  John 
Sprague,  Benjamin  Brooks,  Jr.,  Ebenezer  Kice,  and  Jacob  Rice, 
drawn  and  appointed  to  serve  on  the  petit  jury." 

At  a  town  meeting  held  on  April  5,  1773,  it  was 

Voted  that  those  who  are  appointed  to  serve  as  Jurors  at  the  Court  of  Com- 
mon Pleas  should  serve  at  the  Court  of  General  Sessions  of  the  Peace  also. 


HISTORY   OP  OLAREMONT. 


33 


At  the  same  meeting  John  Thomas  and  Capt.  Wait  were  drawn  and  appointed 
to  serve  at  both  Courts  aforesaid. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  August  16,  1773, 

Mr.  Phineas  Fuller  was  chosen   Grand   Juror,  to   serve  at  his  Majesty's  Su- 
preme Court  to  be  holden  at  Keene,  on  the  third  day  of  Sept.  next. 

The  selectmen  of  Claremont  received  the  following  letter,  and 
promptly  made  return  as  given  below : 

Portsmouth,  October  15th,  1773. 

Sir.— 

I  am  to  request  an  exact  list  of  the  number  of  inhabitants  in  the  town  of 

Claremont,  distinguished  into   different  Hanljs  or  Classes,  according  to  the 

schedule  below,  which  I  shall  be  glad  to  have  returned  to  me,  authenticated, 

as  soon  as  possible. 

John  Wentwoeth. 


Unmarried  men  16  to  60  years  of  age 
Married  men  16  to  60  years  of  age 
Boys  16  years  and  under 
Men  60  years  and  upwards 
Females  unmarried 
Females  married    . 
Widows  .        .        .        , 
Male  slaves     . 
Female  slaves 


41 

66 

121 

2 

125 

66 

2 

0 

0 


Total 423 

Asa  Jones, 
Benjamin  Brooks, 
Joseph  Taylor, 

Selectmen. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1774,  Matthias  Stone 
was  chosen  moderator,  Benjamin  Sumner  town  clerk,  Thomas 
Gustin,  Matthias  Stone,  and  Stephen  Higbee  selectmen,  and  all 
of  them  were  sworn.  This  is  the  first  record  of  any  of  the  town 
officers  having  been  sworn  to  the  faithful  performance  of  their 
respective  duties. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  April  fifth  of  that  year,  it  was 


34 


HISTORY   OF   CLAKEMONT. 


Voted  that  those  Jurors  that  are  appointed  to  serve  at  next  Court  of  Commonr 
Pleas,  to  be  holden  at  Charlestown  in  and  for  The  County  of  Cheshire,  on  the  12th 
day  of  April  Instant,  shall  serve  at  the  General  Sessions  of  the  Peace  to  be 
holden  at  said  Charlestown  on  the  14th  day  of  Instant  April.  Joseph  Hubbard 
and  Asa  Jones  was  appointed  to  serve  the  Courts  aforesaid  as  jurors. 

At  a  legal  town  meeting  holden  in  the  town  of  Claremont,  at  the  meeting 
house  in  said  town  on  July  the  8th,  1774,  Voted  and  chose  Deak'n  Matthias  Stone, 
Moderator.  At  the  same  meeting  a  vote  was  called  to  see  whether  the  town 
would  stand  trial  with  Mr.  John  Kilborn,  who  had  commenced  an  action  against 
said  town  for  boarding  the  wife  of  Samuel  Lewis  and  her  children,  by  order  of 
the  Selectmen.     Voted  not  to  stand  trial  on  the  above  action. 

At  the  same  meeting  Voted  to  raise  on  the  inhabitants  of  said  town  money  for 
the  discharging  the  several  debts  hereunder  mentioned : 

To  Lieut.  John  Kilborn  for  keeping  the  wife  and  children 

of  Samuel  Lewis  and  his  children 
To  Joseph  Hubbard 
To  Daniel  Curtis 
To  Capt.  Sumner 
To  Capt.  Brooks 
To  Lieut.  Joseph  Taylor 


Thier  several  accompts  being  exhibited  in  the  open  town  meeting  and  allowed  by 
vote. 
The  above  meeting  was  dissolved  by 

Matthias  Stone,  Moderator. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  the  thirteenth  of  September,  1774, 

Voted  and  chose  Capt.  Benjamin  Sumner  to  be  Agent  for  the  town  to  stand  trial 
against  a  bill  found  by  the  Grand  Jury  for  said  County,  against  said  town  for 
not  building  a  bridge  over  Sugar  River  on  the  road  leading  from  Mr.  Thomas 
Jones  northward  over  said  River. 

Voted  to  raise  money  for  the  defraying  the  charges  of  said  suit  and  collect  it 
in  the  next  Provincial  rate  that  is  gathered  in  said  Town. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  June  15,  1775,  "For  the  purpose  of  hear- 
ing the  reports  of  Mr.  Oliver  Ashley  from  Provincial  Congress  and 
to  choose  a  Committee  of  Safety,  &c.," 

Voted  that  the  town  is  fully  satisfied  with  the  doings  of  our  Member,  Mr.  Oliver 
Ashley,  at  the  Provincial  Congress,  holden  at  Exeter  on  the  17th  of  May  last. 
Voted  and  chose  Capt.  Joseph  Wait,  Ens'n  Oliver  Ashley,  Mr.  Thomas  Gustin, 


92 

6 

£4  12 

6 

23 

8 

1 

3 

8 

16 

9  2-6 

16 

9  2-4 

13 

13 

22 

9 

1 

2 

9 

17 

6 

6 
6 

17 

6 

63 

38  2-4 

HISTORY   OF   CLAKEMONT.  35 

Mr.  Asa  Jones,  Jacob  Roys,  Eleazer  Clark  and  Lieut.  Joseph  Taylor  a  Commit- 
tee of  Safety  in  this  town. 

Voted  that  Mr.  Oliver  Ashley  shall  attend  Provincial  Congress  till  further 
orders. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  December  15,  1775,  "  Capt.  Joseph  "Wait 
was  chosen  Eepresentative  to  attend  the  Provincial  Congress  to  be 
held  at  Exeter  on  the  2l8t  day  of  December  next." 

Voted  that  said  member  shall  have  full  power  with  the  other  members  of  said 
Colony  to  resolve  themselves  into  such  a  House  as  the  Continental  Congress, 
shall  recommend  for  taking  up  Government  in  the  Colony. 

In  accordance  with  an  order  of  the  Provincial  Congress,  the  cen- 
sus of  New  Hampshire  was  taken  in  1775.  The  following  is  a 
verbatim  return  of  Claremont : 

Males  under  16  years  of  age 148 

Males  from  16  to  60  —  not  in  the  army         ....  125 

All  males  above  50  years  of  age 18 

Persons  gone  in  the  army 1 

All  females 231 

Negroes,  and  slaves  for  life 0 

Total 523 

The  number  of  fire-arms  in  the  Town  of  Claremont  fit  for  actual  service,  60 
stand ;  65  wanted. 
Colony  of  New  Hampshier,  Claremont,  Oct'r  13th,  1775. 
A  true  Number.        Attest, 

Matthias  Stone, 
Olfvek  Ashley, 

Selectmen. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  in  this  year  the  number  of  inhabitants 
in  Clarement  was  five  hundred  and  twenty-three.  In  the  year  1776 
the  number  of  new  settlers  fell  so  far  short  of  the  number  of  re- 
movals that  in  the  winter  of  1777-78,  according  to  tradition,  there 
were  only  forty  families  in  town,  which,  being  estimated  at  eight 
persons  in  each  family,—  considerably  more  than  the  subsequent 
and  present  average, —  we  find  a  reduction  of  two  hundred  in  the 
population  in  the  short  space  of  two  years.  Among  those  who  left 
about  this  time  was  Colonel  Benjamin  Sumner,  who  took  up  his 


36  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

residence  in  Long  Island.  He  was  suspected  of  being  on  friendly 
terms  with  the  British.  He  occasionally  made  short  visits  to  this 
town,  when  on  his  journeys  to  and  from  Canada,  carefully  avoid- 
ing any  contact  with  his  former  townsmen,  excepting  certain  known 
and  well-tried  friends.  Several  attempts  were  made  by  the  Com- 
mittee of  Safety  and  other  ardent  "Whigs  to  arrest  him  when  on  his 
flying  visits,  but  without  success. 

The  order  for  this  census  required  a  return  of  "  The  Number  of 
Fire  Arms  in  the  respective  Districts  fit  for  use,  and  the  number 
wanting  to  complete  one  for  every  person  capable  of  using  them," 
and  it  was  "further  strictly  enjoined  upon  all  Selectmen  and  Com- 
mittees to  endeavor  to  prevent  all  persons  from  burning  their  Pow- 
der in  shooting  at  Birds  and  other  Game." 

At  a  town  meeting  held  December  10,  1776, 

Voted  and  chose  Mr.  Elihu  Stevens  for  a  Representative  to  represent  s'd  town 
in  the  Assembly  to  be  held  at  Exeter  on  the  third  Wednesday  in  December  next, 
at  3  of  the  clock  in  the  afternoon,  and  also  empowerd  said  Eepresentative  for 
the  term  of  one  year  from  their  first  meeting. 

Then  proceeded  and  voted  for  two  Counsellors  for  the  Province  of  Cheshire 
and  State  of  New  Hampshire,  in  obedience  to  the  warrant. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1777, 

John  Sprague  was  chosen  Constable  on  the  south  side  of  Sugar  River,  Edwin 
Goodwin  was  chosen  Constable  on  the  north  side  of  Sugar  River. 

Voted  to  pay  the  Rev'd  Mr.  Angustine  Hibbard's  third  year's  salary  in  good 
wheat  at  five  shillings  per  Bushel;  in  good  well  fatted  pork  at  four  pence  per 
pound;  good  flax,  well  dressed  at  eight  pence  per  pound,  and  other  articles  of 
provision  or  labor  in  proportion  to  the  above  Articles. 

Benning  Wentworth  was  commissioned  governor  of  the  Prov- 
ince of  New  Hampshire  in  1741.  In  1767  he  resigned  his  ofiice  in 
favor  of  his  nephew,  John  "Wentworth,  a  son  of  Mark  Hunking 
Wentworth,  and  to  his  nephew  and  successor  in  office  it  was  sup- 
posed he  would  bequeath  the  bulk  of  his  large  estate.  But  in  1759, 
on  his  sixtieth  birthday  —  being  a  childless  widower  —  he  had  mar- 
ried Martha  Hilton,  his  twenty  years  old  servant  girl,  a  young 
woman  of  matchless  beauty,  ready  wit,  and  good  sense,  but  very 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  37 

poor,  and  died  childless  at  the  age  of  seventy-four  years,  in  1770. 
To  her  he  bequeathed  by  his  will,  executed  but  a  short  time  before 
his  death,  almost  his  entire  property.  Events  which  followed  the 
death  of  the  late  Governor  caused  great  uneasiness  and  perplexity 
to  the  owners  of  lands  reserved  by  himself  in  townships  granted  by 
him.  Those  reservations  were  carefully  located  with  reference  to 
timber,  soil  and  other  advantages,  and  were  bought  at  high  prices 
by  actual  settlers.  Doubtless  the  late  Governor  intended,  and  sup- 
posed he  had,  invested  the  several  grantees  with  titles  which  could 
never  be  disputed,  much  less  disturbed. 

The  hopes  of  his  successor  in  office  being  cut  off,  he  determined, 
if  possible,  to  oust  the  young  widow  from  her  inheritance.  Long 
forgotten  claims  against  the  late  Governor's  estate  were  unearthed 
and  brought  forward,  suits  at  law  were  commenced,  and  even  in 
some  instances  forcible  entries  were  made  upon  the  lands  devised. 
But  these  proceedings,  so  long  as  they  were  confined  within  the 
range  of  the  domestic  circle,  were  but  little  noticed  by  the  public. 
It  was  not  long,  however,  before  the  new  Governor  began  to  turn 
his  attention  to  the  reservations  made  by  his  deceased  uncle  in 
grants  of  townships.  He  submitted  the  question  to  the  Council 
"  whether  the  reservations  of  five  hundred  acres  in  the  several 
townships  made  by  the  late  Governor  Benning  "Wentworth,  in  the 
charter  grants,  conveyed  the  title  to  him  ? "  The  Council  deter- 
mined this  question  in  the  negative.  The  Governor  then  asked 
whether  they  would  advise  him  to  grant  the  said  tracts  to  such  of 
his  majesty's  subjects  as  should  settle  and  cultivate  the  same  ?  To 
this  they  gave  their  assent.  It  may  be  stated  that  of  the  council- 
lors seven  on  this  occasion  were  relatives  of  the  governor. 

The  next  step  was  to  dispossess  all  who  had  derived  their  title  to 
the  reserved  lots  through  the  late  Governor.  This  extraordinary 
movement  brought  forth,  in  rapid  succession,  its  legitimate  results. 
The  occupants  of  the  disputed  lands  at  once  determined  to  defend 
their  estates  at  whatever  cost.  The  officers  of  the  government  used 
every  artifice  in  their  power  to  accomplish  the  object  of  their  mis- 
sion, but  the  settlers  remained  firm  and  uncompromising.  Threats, 
insults,  and  violence  were  resorted  to,  but  without  success.     A  few, 


38  HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT. 

alarmed  at  the  prospect  of  a  lawsuit  and  intimidated  by  the  men- 
aces of  officers,  relinquished  their  titles,  and  at  no  inconsiderable 
expense  repurchased  their  possessions.  Complaints  were  at  last 
sent  to  the  Lords  of  Trade  of  England,  and  measures  were 
taken  to  examine  into  the  acts  and  conduct  of  the  Governor.  The 
Council  undertook  to  reply  to  the  charges  made  against  themselves 
and  the  Governor.  "With  their  defense  were  sent  depositions  from 
persons  in  all  ranks  and  professions  testifying  in  favor  of  the  Gov- 
ernor. "  In  reference  to  the  matter  before  us,"  it  was  declared  by 
the  King  in  Council,  that  "  the  lands  granted  to  the  late  Governor 
were  granted  in  the  name  of  the  King,  which  was  sufficient  to  em- 
power him  to  convey  a  title,  and  that  the  Council  was  mistaken  in 
directing  otherwise." 

In  accordance  with  this  decision  the  Governor  was  directed  not  to 
disturb  the  title  or  interest  of  those  who  had  purchased  of  the  late 
Governor  and  had  complied  with  the  terms  of  the  charter,  by  actu- 
ally occupying  and  improving  the  lands.  Lieut.  George  Hubbard, 
father  of  the  late  Isaac  Hubbard,  Esq.,  and  great-grandfather  oi 
Isaac  Hubbard  Long,  the  present  owner  and  occupant  of  the  farm, 
was  the  owner  of  the  governor's  reservation  in  this  town.  He  was 
an  early  settler,  having  come  here  in  1778,  and  had  made  consid- 
erable improvements  upon  his  lands.  The  possession  of  these  was 
considered  by  the  Governor  and  those  employed  by  him  to  dispos- 
sess Mr.  Hubbard,  as  very  desirable.  They  were  favorably  located, 
and  the  common  prediction  that  Claremontwas  destined  to  become 
a  wealthy  and  prominent  town  rendered  them  of  still  more  import- 
ance. Hence  no  effort  was  spared  which  might  insure  success  to 
the  undertaking.  But  Mr.  Hubbard  was  not  the  man  to  be  deluded, 
driven,  or  persuaded  to  acceptance  of  the  terms  or  inducements  held 
out  to  him  to  part  with  that  which  he  wished  to  retain.  His  reply 
to  those  who  from  time  to  time  attempted  to  dispossess  him  of  what 
he  regarded  as  his  rights,  almost  invariably  was,  "  The  law  sustains 
me,  if  law  is  common  sense,  and  neither  the  Governor  nor  His 
Majesty  King  George  shall  drive  me  from  this  soil."  Mr.  Hubbard 
had  early  been  informed,  through  Peter  Livius,  Esq.,  one  of  the 
Council,  that  preparations  were  making  to  lay  the  whole  matter 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  39 

before  the  King's  Council,  and  doubtless  felt  quite  sure  that  the 
acts  of  the  late  Governor,  unless  clearly  illegal,  would  never  be  dis- 
countenanced by  the  King.  The  title  of  the  late  Grovernor  to  the 
lands  in  question  being  confirmed  by  the  King  in  Council,  the  own- 
ers were  relieved  from  further  anxiety. 

The  committee,  Benj.  Brooks  and  Benj.  Sumner,  chosen  at  the 
first  town  meeting  to  lay  out  a  highway  to  Newport,  in  pursuance 
of  this  duty,  began  about  half  a  mile  south  of  the  middle  point  of 
the  west  line  of  the  town,  and  proceeded  easterly  in  a  straight  line 
to  Sugar  river.  The  course  was  not  varied  by  hills  or  valleys.  The 
width  of  the  highway  was  uniformly  ten  rods.  This  road  passed 
through  what  is  now  the  south  part  of  the  village,  near  the  Stevens 
High  School  building.  It  was  the  custom  to  reserve  strips  of  land 
ten  rods  in  width  between  adjacent  tiers  or  divisions  of  lots,  with 
the  intention  that  whenever  lands  might  be  taken  for  actual  high- 
ways, the  owners  of  lands  so  appropriated  could  be  compensated 
from  the  "  reservations."  Hence  it  is  found  that  the  one  hun- 
dred acre  lots  generally  contain  one  hundred  and  five  acres  each. 

In  1769  the  settlement  of  the  town  had  so  far  progressed  that 
husbands  who  had  provided  cabins  sent  for  their  wives  and  chil- 
dren, and  single  men  began  to  consider  the  subject  of  matrimony. 
Barnabas  Ellis  and  Elizabeth  Spencer  were  the  first  couple  married 
in  Claremont  according  to  the  usages  of  civilized  society.  There 
being  no  one  in  town  empowered  to  perform  the  ceremony,  the 
Rev.  Bulkley  Olcott  of  Charlestown  was  sent  for  to  officiate.  There 
were  no  roads  through  the  wilderness,  and  a  brother  of  the  bride 
was  sent  to  act  as  pioneer  for  the  clergyman  and  to  procure  new 
rum  for  the  wedding.  All  the  people  in  tdwn  were  invited.  The 
ceremony  was  performed  in  a  log  cabin, —  the  largest  and  best 
adapted  one  in  the  neighborhood  for  such  a  gathering.  It  con- 
tained three  rooms,  and  a  chamber  which  was  reached  by  a  ladder 
made  of  spruce  poles.  The  guests  were  seated  upon  benches, 
stools,  and  blocks  of  wood.  In  front  of  the  happy  pair  was  a  stand 
upon  which  was  a  Bible,  hymn  book,  and  a  full  tumbler  of  the  bev- 
erage provided.  The  parties  being  in  order  the  minister  approached 
the  stand,  and  with  becoming  dignity  took  up  the  tumbler,  and 


40  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

after  a  generous  sip  of  its  contents,  said :  "  I  wish  you  joy,  my 
friends,  on  this  occasion."  A  chapter  from  the  Bible  was  read,  a 
hymn  was  sung, —  the  minister  reading  a  line  and  those  present 
singing  each  line  as  read.  The  marriage  knot  was  then  solemnly 
and  duly  tied,  a  long  prayer  offered  and  the  ceremony  was  com- 
plete. Then  followed  toasts,  jokes,  and  merriment,  interspersed 
with  black-strap. 

Mr.  Ellis  was  one  of  the  early  settlers.  He  filled  several  town 
offices,  was  a  lieutenant  in  the  continental  army,  and  M^as  with 
Ethan  Allen's  expedition  against  Forts  Ticouderoga  and  Crown 
Point,  in  1775,  and  in  the  battle  of  Bennington,  August  16,  1777. 
He  purchased  a  tract  of  land  on  Town  hill,  where  he  lived,  hon- 
ored and  respected,  and  died  in  1837.  The  farm  continued  the 
home  of  his  youngest  son,  William  Ellis,  until  his  death,  in  1880, 
and  is  now  owned  by  his  grandson,  "William  Barnabas  Ellis. 

Since  the  termination  of  the  French  and  Indian  War,  in  1760, 
the  Indians  had  not  troubled  the  settlements  along  the  Connect- 
icut river.  Game  and  fish  were  very  abundant,  and  occasionally 
they  resorted  in  small  numbers  to  their  old  hunting  and  fishing 
grounds,  but  their  visits  were  few  and  short.  Probably  they 
never  occupied  the  territory  in  this  vicinity  as  a  permanent  or 
habitual  abode,  as  no  relics  of  the  race  have  ever  been  discovered 
in  the  neighborhood  which  would  indicate  it.  At  the  time 
referred  to  a  single  Indian  by  the  name  of  Tousa  still  lingered 
in  the  west  part  of  the  town,  and  claimed  certain  territory  as  his 
hunting  ground,  on  which  he  mostly  stayed.  Tradition  has  it 
that  he  had  been  chief  of  a  tribe  who  were  once  lords  of  the  soil, 
but  now  Avere  either  exterminated  or  had  removed  to  Canada. 
But  he  seemed  determined  not  to  relinquish  the  possessions  of 
his  ancestors  to  the  aggressive  palefaces.  Though  he  continued 
to  remain  here  for  several  years  after  the  settlement  of  the  town, 
and  at  last  died  on  what  he  termed  his  own  soil,  yet  he  sought 
no  intercourse  or  friendship  with  the  new  occupants,  but  followed 
his  favorite  pursuits  —  fishing  and  hunting.  It  was  known  that 
he  had  borne  a  conspicuous  part  in  the  bloody  and  devastating 
expeditions  against  Charlestown,  Keene,  and  other  English  colo- 


i>.  ik^^  -^    yL  .'r 


-«i«rr     t     ft 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  41 

tiies,  and  it  was  feared  that  he  might  be  still  lurking  about, 
watching  an  opportunity  to  enact  similar  scenes. 

He  had  frequently  warned  the  white  hunters  not  to  trespass 
upon  his  ground,  and  they  generally  heeded  his  warning.  He 
was  present  at  the  raising  of  the  frame  of  Union  church  in  1773, 
.and  expressed  great  indignation  at  the  erection  of  so  large  a 
building,  seeming  to  regard  it  as  an  encroachment  upon  his  rights. 
He  became  crazed  with  too  much  fire-water,  was  boisterous,  and 
loudly  threatened  to  shoot  any  white  hunter  who  should  intrude 
on  his  territory.  One  Timothy  Atkins,  a  full  match  for  Tousa 
in  size  and  strength,  between  whom  and  the  Indian  a  bitter 
enmity  had  long  existed,  hearing  these  threats,  determined  to 
hunt  on  the  forbidden  ground.  One  morning  he  went  off  in  that 
direction  alone,  with  his  gun  heavily  charged,  after  which  Tousa 
was  never  seen  or  heard  of,  and  his  sudden  disappearance  was 
&  mystery.  In  1854,  Josiah  Hart,  now  living,  in  digging  on  his 
premises  —  territory  which  was  claimed  by  Tousa  as  his  ground 
—  unearthed  a  skeleton,  which  from  its  great  size,  and  the  form 
of  the  skull  and  face  bones,  was  believed  to  be  that  of  the  last 
Indian  habitue  of  Claremont. 

The  territory  claimed  by  Tousa  as  his  hunting  ground  was  on 
the  north  side  of  Sugar  river,  and  embraced  parts  of  the  farms  of 
the  late  Messrs.  Danford  Rice,  Dr.  S.  G.  Jarvis,  and  John  Tyler. 

In  the  spring  of  1767  Benjamin  Tyler,  a  mill-wright  and  an 
ingenious  and  enterprising  mechanic,  came  from  Farmington, 
Conn.,  to  Claremont  on  foot.  In  March  of  that  year  the  grantees 
voted  him  two  acres  of  land  on  Sugar  river  for  a  mill  yard,  with 
the  privilege  of  the  stream,  on  condition  that  he  build  a  mill  or 
mills  and  keep  them  in  repair  for  ten  years.  That  summer  he 
built  the  first  dam  across  that  river  at  West  Claremont,  in  the 
same  place  where  the  Jarvis  and  Coy  dam  now  is,  and  then 
returned  to  Farmington.  The  next  March  he  brought  his  wife, 
six  children,  and  his  household  effects  here  on  an  ox  sled.  There 
being  no  roads  he  came  on  the  ice  of  Connecticut  river  from 
Bellows  Falls.     He  was  delayed  at  Montague,  Mass.,  several  days 


42  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

by  a  snow  storm,  and   in  the  time    made  a   pair  of  cart  wheels 
for  the  tavern  keeper  to  pay  for  his  entertainment. 

While  building  his  dam  Mr.  Tyler  lived  in  a  rude  hnt  under 
a  fallen  pine  tree,  near  where  the  dam  was  built.  "When  he  ar- 
rived in  Claremont  with  his  family,  in  March,  1768,  they  stopped 
at  the  log  house  of  Daniel  Warner,  located  on  the  meadow  near 
where  Lottery  bridge  now  stands.  This  was  the  second  house 
built  in  town,  the  first  one  being  built  by  Samuel  Ashley  on  Avhat 
has  since  been  known  as  Ashley  meadow,  a  short  distance  north 
of  Ashley  ferry.  Soon  after  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Tyler  the  ice 
in  Connecticut  river  broke  up,  formed  a  dam  near  the  mouth  of 
Sugar  river,  the  water  set  back  onto  the  meadow,  and  the  inmates 
of  the  Warner  house  were  forced,  to  save  their  lives,  to  make 
their  escape  on  rafts  and  a  canoe.  The  house  and  its  entire 
contents  were  carried  away  and  destroyed. 

Mr.  Tyler  was  born  at  Wallingford,  Conn.,  on  February  22, 
1732  —  George  Washington's  birthday  —  married  Mahitabel  An- 
drews, and  removed  to  Farmington,  Conn.,  where  they  had  seven 
children  born  to  them,  the  first  of  which  died  in  infancy.  At 
the  first  town  meeting,  in  March,  1768,  and  before  his  arrival 
with  his  family,  Mr.  Tyler  Avas  chosen  one  of  the  selectmen,  was 
subsequentlv  re-elected  several  times,  and  held  other  ofiices  of 
honor  and  trust  in  the  town.  That  summer  he  built,  in  con- 
nection with  his  dam,  grist  and  saw  mills  on  the  north  side  of 
the  river.  At  the  raising  of  the  frame  of  the  grist  mill,  which 
was  no  common  event,  the  settlers  in  the  vicinity  were  present 
to  help,  some  of  them  coming  twenty  miles.  Mr.  Tyler  had 
brought  with  him  from  Connecticut  half  a  barrel  of  "West  ludia 
rum  for  this  occasion.  It  was  not  tapped  until  the  work  of  raisino- 
the  frame  was  finished.  Any  kind  of  spirituous  liquor  w^as  a  rarity 
in  town  in  those  days,  and  some  of  the  men  indulged  so  freely 
as  to  be  overcome  by  it,  were  unable  to  reach  their  homes  that 
night,  and  slept  by  the  side  of  fallen  trees  in  the  forest. 

For  two  or  three  years  the  crops  were  almost  a  failure,  and 
the  settlei-s  suffered  greatly  in  consequence.  As  soon  as  he  got 
his  mills  in    order,  Mr.  Tyler   ground  corn  and    other   grain  for 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  43 

the  settlers  over  a  considerable  extent  of  territory,  many  bringing 
their  grists  through  the  forest  for  miles  on  their  backs.  He  also 
got  out  lumber,  and  being  a  carpenter  as  well  as  millwright,  su- 
perintended the  building  of  many  framed  houses  and  barns  in 
the  next  few  years,  the  most  of  them  in  the  west  part  of  the 
town.  He  built  for  himself  what  was  for  those  days  a  large  two 
story  house,  the  same  that  has  for  many  years  been  well  known 
as  the  Maynard  tavern  stand. 

The  first  framed  house  in  town  was  built  by  Benedick  Roys, 
about  a  hundred  rods  east  from  James  P.  Upham's  residence, 
on  Town  hill.  In  1807  Benjamin  Grundy  moved  it  to  its  present 
location,  finished  it  in  a  few  years,  and  then  sold  it  to  Benjamin 
Tyler,  father  of  West  Part  John  Tyler,  as  he  was  called,  to  dis- 
tinguish him  from  John  Tyler  of  Claremont  village.  The  house 
and  surrounding  lands,  after  the  death  of  his  father,  Benjamin 
Tyler,  the  younger,  passed  into  the  possession  of  West  Part  John 
Tyler,  who  spent  most  of  his  life  there,  and  from  it  was.  carried 
direct  to  his  last  resting  place  by  the  side  of  his  ancestors,  in  the- 
cemetery  near  Union  church,  in  which  he  had  worshiped  all  his 
life.     This  house  is  still  standing  and  is  occupied  by  his  widow. 

Town  meetings  for  several  years  prior  to  1792  wei-e  held  at  pri- 
vate houses  and  at  the  tavern  of  Ebenezer  Rice. 

In  the  warrant  for  a  town  meeting  to  be  held  on  the  eighth  day 
of  December,  1794,  was  this  article,  "  To  choose  one  of  the  following 
persons,  viz:  Abel  Foster,  Esq.,  or  Paine  Wingate,  Esquire,  they 
having  the  highest  number  of  votes  next  to  those  already  elected  tO' 
represent  this  State  in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  to  hold 
his  place  for  two  years  from  the  fourth  day  of  March  next." 

The  vote  of  Claremont  at  the  town  meeting  was,  for  Abel  Foster, 
Esq.,  43;  Paine  Wingate,  Esq.,  28.  Abel  Foster,  a  clergyman  of 
Canterbury,  was  elected. 

Prior  to  1794,  two  tax  collectors  —  one  on  the  north  and  the 
other  on  the  south  side  of  Sugar  river  —  had  been  chosen.  At  the 
annual  meeting  this  year  it  was  voted  that  one  man  should  be 
chosen  tax  collector  for  the  whole  town,  and  that  the  office  for  the 
ensuing  year  "should  be  set  up  at  thirty  pounds,  and  any  person 


44  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

should  have  the  right  to  say  how  much  less  he  would  doit  for,  with 
the  privilege  of  being  Constable,  and  furnish  a  good  and  sufficient 
bondsman."  After  several  bids  Joseph  Rice  declared  that  he  would 
comply  with  the  conditions  aud  perform  the  duty  for  the  sum  of 
nineteen  shillings  and  eight  pience,  and  he  was  chosen. 

It  was  voted  to  raise  one  hundred  and  twenty  pounds  for  the  sup- 
port of  schools  the  ensuing  year ;  one  hundred  and  twenty  pounds 
to  repair  highways,  aud  sixty  pounds  to  defray  incidental  expenses. 
The  whole  number  of  votes  cast  for  governor  was  120,  viz  :  John 
Taylor  Gilman,  Esq.,  112;  Simeon  01cott,Esq.,  6  ;  Bazellah  Wood- 
ward, Esq.,  1,  and  Benjamin  West,  Esq.,  1. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1776, 

Voted  to  choose  George  Hubbard  to  inspect  the  Bank  of  Connecticut  River  on 
tliose  days  which  the  law  prohibits  iishing. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  August  29,  1796, 

Voted  to  clioose  a  committee  to  view  the  Common  &  to  see  what  addition  was 
necessary  to  "be  made  to  said  Common. 

Voted  and  chose  Oliver  Ashley,  Esq.,  Moody  Dustin,  Esq.,  George  Hubbard, 
Gentleman,  Giddeon  Handerson,  Ezra  Jones,  Gentleman,  a  committee  for  the 
above  purpose. 

The  Committee  report  that  it  is  necessary  to  make  an  addition  to  the  Common 
of  three  quarters  of  one  acre  of  land  taken  on  the  west  side  of  said  Common  of 
Capt.  Stevens  land. 

Voted  to  accept  the  report  of  the  Committee. 

BURYING   YARD    AND    COMMON. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  August  27,  1792, 

Voted  to  give  of  the  school  lot  two  acres  of  Land  for  a  Burj'ing  Yard  near  the 
Meeting  House. 

At  the  same  meeting 

Voted  to  accept  the  Highway  beginning  at  Atkins  Bridge  by  the  meeting  house 
so  through  Mr.  James  Strobridge  land.  Voted  to  exchange  one  acre  and  two 
rods  of  land  on  the  school  lot  No.  29,  with  Samuel  Whitter  for  one  acre  &  two 
rods  of  Ground  which  the  meeting  house  stands  on. 


HISTORY   OF    CLARBJUONT.  45 

TAXES. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting,  on  March  10,  1778,  "Dea.  Matthias 
Stone  and  Dr.  Thos.  Sterne  were  chosen  a  committee  to  petition 
the  Assembly  in  the  State  of  New  Hampshire  that  no  land  Tax  may- 
be laid  on  the  lands  in  the  Town  of  except  nonresident  lands 
only,  and  that  s'd  Committee  shall  offer  the  Town's  reasons  and 
their  remonstrance  against  it." 

SMALL    POX. 

On  February  7,  1788,  in  legal  meeting,  the  town  voted  that 
"  they  would  admit  of  a  Peat  House  to  be  set  up  or  procured  for 
the  purpose  of  Innoculating  for  the  small  pox  if  leave  can  be  ob- 
tained of  the  Sessions  of  the  Peace,"  and  that  "  Capt  George  Hub- 
bard, Sanford  Kingsbury,  Esq.,  and  Ambrose  Cossit,  Esq.,  be  a 
committee  to  over  see  the  affairs  or  take  due  measures  to  prevent 
the  Small  Pox  from  spreading  from  those  that  are  Innoculated." 

At  a  town  meeting  on  January  19,  1792, 

Voted  to  discontinue  the  pest  houses  or  liberty  of  Innoculating  in  sM  Town. 

In  1783  there  is  no  record  of  an  annual  town  meeting  for  the 
choice  of  the  usual  town  officers.  During  that  year  there  were 
several  town  meetings,  but  mention  is  only  made  of  the  assemblings 
and  adjournments  without  the  transaction  of  any  business,  except- 
ing in  ITovember,  when  a  vole  was  passed  to  "  assess  the  town  or 
Claremont  in  the  sum  of  130  pounds  lawful  money  to  pay  the  re- 
maining part  of  Kev.  Mr.  Hibbard's  settlement,"  and  also  to  "raise 
money  to  pay  the  bondsmen  of  Capt.  Benj.  Sumner,  on  account 
of  the  charges  incidental  to  the  settlement  of  the  late  Mr.  Whea- 
ton's  estate." 

PAPER    CURRENCY. 

At  town  meeting  on  August  8,  1786, 

Voted  that  this  State  make  a  Banlc  of  paper  CuiTcncy.  Voted  to  choose  a  Com- 
mittee of  five  men  to  give  our  Representative  instruction  how  and  in  what  man- 
ner s'd  money  shall  be  made  to  answer  the  publick  interest,  and  also  in  what 
manner  said  money  shall  be  drawn  out  of  the  Treasury  to  answer  the  most  valu- 
able purpose. 


46  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

Samuel  Ashley,  Jun.,  Major  Ol'r  Ashley,  Elihu  Stevens,  Esq'r,  Lt.  Benjamin 
Tyler  &  Dea.  Matthias  Stone  were  chosen  a  Committee  for  ye  above  purpose. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  JSTovember  21,  1786,  this  committee  re- 
ported apian  which  they  had  agreed  upon  for  a  paper  currency, 
and  "  Eighteen  voted  for  the  plan  proposed  to  make  paper  money 
five  voted  against  s'd  plan." 

To  make  this  matter  as  clear  as  possible  at  this  remote  period,  it 
may  be  stated  that  at  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  "War  the  gen- 
eral government  as  well  as  the  states,  was  involved  in  debt.  "  Sil- 
ver and  gold,  which  had  been  extensively  circulated  during  the  last 
years  of  the  war,  were  now  returning  by  the  usual  course  of  trade 
to  those  countries  whence  large  quantities  of  necessary  and  un- 
necessary commodities  had  been  imported."  The  country  was 
drained  of  specie,  and  congress  then  possessed  no  power  to  lay  im- 
posts, and  there  was  no  check  to  this  universal  flow  from  the  pub- 
lic treasury.  To  remedy  existing  evils  taxations  upon  polls  and 
estates  were  resorted  to,  and  thus  frequent  and  almost  insupport- 
able burdens  were  thrown  upon  the  husbandman  and  the  laborer. 

Hence  arose  a  clamor  throughout  the  state  for  the  establishment 
of  a  paper  currency.  In  almost  every  town  was  a  party  in  favor  of 
this  measure.  It  was  insisted  that  through  this  method  life  would 
be  imparted  to  commerce  and  encouragement  to  agriculture ;  that 
the  poor  would  thereby  be  provided  with  means  for  the  payment 
of  their  debts  and  taxes,  and  finally  that  it  would  act  as  an  effect- 
ual check  to  the  operations  of  speculators  and  monopolists. 

To  still  the  clamor  and  ascertain  the  real  sentiments  of  the  people 
upon  the  subject,  the  General  Assembly  in  session  at  Exeter,  on  Sep- 
tember 13,  1786,  formed  a  plan  for  the  emission  of  fifty  thousand 
pounds  to  be  loaned  at  four  per  cent  on  land  securities,  and  this  to 
be  a  tender  in  payment  of  taxes,  and  for  the  fees  and  salaries  of 
public  officers.  This  plan  was  sent  to  the  several  towns,  and  the 
people  were  requested  to  give  their  opinions  in  town  meeting  for 
and  against  it,  and  to  make  return  of  the  votes  to  the  Assembly  at 
its  next  session.  This  plan,  however,  did  not  meet  with  public  ap- 
probation,—  a  majority  of  the  people  having  voted  against  it. 


CHAPTER    in. 

NEW    HAMPSHIRE  (JRANTS  —  VERMONT  CONTROVERSY. 

In  1749  a  controversj'-  arose  between  Governor  Benning  Went- 
worth  of  E"ew  Hampshire  and  Governor  George  Clinton  of  ITew 
York,  as  to  their  respective  jurisdictions  over  the  territory  now 
forming  the  state  of  Vermont,  concerning  the  western  line  of  the 
Province  of  New  Hampshire,  and  the  eastern  line  of  'New  York. 
Governor  Wentworth  claimed  that  by  the  King's  commission  to 
him  he  had  authority  to  grant  townships  on  the  west  side  of  Con- 
necticut river,  according  to  Williams's  History  of  Vermont,  extend- 
ing to  a  line  "twenty  miles  east  of  Hudson  river,  as  far  as  that  ex- 
tended to  the  northward  ;  and  after  that  as  far  west  as  the  eastern 
shore  of  Lake  Champlain;"  while  Governor  Clinton  claimed  that 
he  had  jurisdiction  over  all  the  lands  from  the  west  side  of  Con- 
necticut river  to  the  east  side  of  Delaware  bay.  Governor  Went- 
worth had  granted  the  township  of  Bennington,  gave  to  it  his  own 
name,  and  continued  to  give  grants  of  townships  on  the  west  side 
of  Connecticut  river  until  August,  1764.  On  December  28,  1763, 
Mr.  Colden,  Lieutenant-Governor  of  New  York,  issued  a  proclama- 
tion "  commanding  the  sheriiF  of  the  county  of  Albany  to  make 
return  of  the  names  of  all  persons  who  had  taken  possession  of 
lands  under  the  New  Hampshire  grants;  and  claiming  jurisdiction 
jis  far  east  as  Connecticut  river,"  by  virtue  of  a  royal  grant  to  the 
Duke  of  York. 

The  government  of  New  York  resorted  to  many  methods  to  dis- 
possess all  those  who  had  derived  their  titles  from  Governor  Went- 
worth. Officers  were  sent  among  them,  commanding  them  to 
deliver  up  their  premises ;  landlords  claimed  rent,  and  attempted  to 


48  HISTORY   OF    CLAEEMONT. 

collect  it ;  actions  were  commenced  against  the  occupants,  which, 
being  brought  in  the  courts  of  ISTew  York,  were  invariably  decided 
against  the  defendants.  Long  and  bitter  controversies  arose,  and 
the  sturdy  settlers,  determined  not  to  yield,  resorted  to  arms  in 
defense  of  their  estates.  Acts  of  violence  were  frequent,  and  the 
officers  of  JSTew  York  often  found  the  physical  power  was  on  the 
side  of  the  settlers.  There  were  among  the  inhabitants  many 
daring,  intrepid  men,  ready  to  encounter  danger,  if  necessary,  and 
by  no  means  scrupulous  of  the  observance  of  "  points  of  law,"  as 
settled  by  the  courts  of  New  York. 

The  early  settlers  of  New  Hampshire,  especially  the  western  por- 
tion of  the  province,  as  well  as  those  of  Vermont,  were  not,  like 
the  Plymouth  colonists,  actuated  solely  in  their  enterprises  by  re- 
ligious motives.  Their  association  consisted  primarily  more  in 
the  regulations  of  mercantile  companies  than  in  civil  legislation ; 
though,  from  the  necessity  of  the  case,  the  latter  became  their  con- 
dition in  the  process  of  time.  Speculation  and  the  acquisition  of 
wealth  formed  the  basis  of  their  movements ;  and  it  is  thought  that,, 
judged  in  accordance  with  the  principles  of  sound  morality  andlawr 
their  acts  would  in  some  instances  have  been  considered  oppressive 
and  unjust.  The  institutions  of  rehgion  were  not  disregarded.  In. 
many  cases,  among  the  first  of  their  legislative  corporate  acts  was 
the  providing  for  a  minister  "to  come  and  settle  among"  them. 
Particularly  was  this  the  case  with  the  first  settlers  of  Claremont, 

Soon  after  the  declaration  of  American  independence  the  in- 
habitants of  the  territory  in  question  assembled  to  take  into  con- 
sideration their  peculiar  condition,  and  to  provide  means  of  safety. 
The  situation  of  the  country  created,  as  they  believed,  a  radical 
change  in  their  political  connections.  By  the  dissolution  of  the 
bonds  which  had  subjected  America  to  the  rule  of  Great  Britain, 
they  imagined  that  all  acts  sanctioned  by  the  authority  of  the 
mother  country  were  abrogated,  and  no  longer  binding;  and  hence 
conceiving  themselves  free  from  the  government  of  New  York,  tc 
which  they  had  never  willingly  submitted,  and  being,  as  they 
declared,  "  reduced  to  a  state  of  nature,"  they  insisted  that  they  had 
a  right  to  form  such  association  as  was   agreeable  to   themselves^ 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  49 

Accordingly,  they  made  the  declaration  that  "  they  would  at  all 
times  consider  themselves  as  a  free  and  independent  state,  capable 
of  regulating  their  own  internal  police ;  that  they  had  the  sole,  ex- 
clusive right  of  governing  themselves  in  such  manner  as  they  should 
choose,  not  repugnant  to  the  resolves  of  Congress ;  and  that  they 
were  ready  to  contribute  their  proportion  to  the  common  defense." 
Guided  by  these  principles,  they  adopted  a  plan  of  government, 
established  a  code  of  laws,  and  petitioned  Congress  to  receive  them 
into  the  Union. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  eastern  valley  of  the  Connecticut  river, 
both  on  account  of  location  and  sympathy,  were  strongly  inclined 
to  unite  with  those  on  the  western  side  in  the  formation  of  a  new 
state.  They  claimed  that  the  original  grant  to  Captain  John  Mason 
was  limited  by  the  line  drawn  at  a  distance  of  sixty  miles  from  the 
sea ;  that  all  the  lines  westward  of  that  line  were  royal  grants, which 
being  under  the  jurisdiction  of  New  Hampshire  merely  by  the 
force  of  the  royal  commission,  were  vacated  by  the  assumed  in- 
dependence of  the  American  colonies,  and  therefore,  that  all  the 
inhabitants  of  this  territory  had  "  reverted  to  a  state  of  nature." 
By  this  it  was  understood  that  each  town  retained  its  corporate 
unity,  but  was  wholly  disconnected  from  any  superior  jurisdiction. 
They  made  a  distinction  between  commissions  derived  from  the 
King,  revocable  at  his  pleasure,  and  incorporations  granted  on 
certain  conditions,  which  conditions  having  been  performed,  the 
powers  and  privileges  incident  to  or  resulting  from  the  corporate 
bodies  were  perpetual. 

They  asserted  that  when  the  power  of  the  King  had  been  re- 
jected and  no  longer  recognized,  the  only  legal  authority  remaining 
was  vested  in  their  town  incorporations,  and  that  the  majority  of 
each  town  had  a  right  to  control  the  minority.  These  views,  how- 
ever, did  not  meet  with  universal  approval. 

Doctor  Jeremy  Belknap,  in  his  History  of  New  Hampshire,  pub- 
lished in  1813,  from  which  valuable  work  the  facts  connected  with 
this  matter  are  mainly  derived,  says. 

The  majority  of  some  towns  was  in  favor  of  their  former  connexion,  and  in 
those  towns  where  the  majority  inclined  the  other  way,  the  minority  claimed 


50  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

protection  of  the  government.  They  supposed  that  the  existence  of  their  town 
incorporations,  and  the  privileges  annexed  to  them,  depended  on  their  union  to 
New  Hampshire ;  and  that  their  acceptance  of  the  grants  was  in  effect  an  ac- 
knowledgment of  the  jurisdiction,  and  a  submission  to  the  laws  of  the  State 
from  which  they  could  not  fairly  be  disengaged  without  its  consent,  as  the 
State  had  never  injured  or  oppressed  them. 

Much  pains  were  taken  by  the  other  party  to  disseminate  the  new  ideas. 
Conventions  were  held,  pamphlets  were  printed,  and  at  length  a  petition  was 
drawn  in  the  name  of  sixteen  towns  on  the  eastern  side  of  Connecticut  river, 
requesting  the  new  state,  which  had  assumed  the  name  of  Vermont,  to  receive 
them  into  its  union,  alleging  that  they  were  not  connected  with  any  state,  with 
respect  to  their  internal  police.  These  towns  were  Cornish,  Lebanon,  Dresden 
— now  Hanover,  Bath,  Lyme,  Orford,  Piermont,  Haverhill,  Lyman,  Apthorp — 
since  divided  into  Littleton  and  Dalton — Canaan,  Cardigan — now  Orange,  Lan- 
<Jaff,  Gunthwaite — now  Lisbon,  Morristown — now  Franconia,  and  Enfield. 

The  Assembly  at  first  appeared  to  be  against  receiving  these 
towns  ;  but  the' members  from  tliose  towns  which  were  situated 
near  the  river  on  the  west  side,  declared  that  they  would  withdraw 
and  join  with  the  people  on  the  east  side,  in  forming  a  new  state. 
The  question  was  then  referred  to  the  people  at  large,  and  means 
were  used  to  influence  a  majority  of  the  towns  to  vote  in  favor  of 
the  union,  which  the  Assembly  could  not  but  confirm.  The  six- 
teen towns  were  received,  and  the  Assembly  of  Vermont  passed  a 
resolution  that  other  towns  on  the  eastern  side  of  Connecticut  river 
might  be  admitted  on  procuring  a  vote  of  a  majority  of  the  inhab- 
itants, as  in  the  election  of  a  representative. 

In  1778  great  eftbrt  was  made  to  secure  the  favor  of  Claremont 
and  other  towns  below  in  behalf  of  this  movement,  but  without 
success.  The  towns  thus  admitted  gave  notice  to  the  government 
-of  New  Hampshire,  and  expressed  their  desire  for  an  amicable 
adjustment  of  a  jurisdictional  line  and  a  friendly  interchange. 
Bitter  animosities  and  confusion  w^ere  the  offspring  of  this  act. 
'The  President  of  New  Hampshire,  as  the  executive  was  then  styled, 
resorted  to  persuasions  and  threats  in  order  to  reclaim  the  seceders. 
Vermont  was  slow  to  give  up  an  acquisition  so  valuable,  and  at 
last  both  parties  appealed  to  Congress  for  aid.  After  long  delay, 
Congress  declared  it  an  "  indispensable  preliminary  "  to  the  ad- 
mission of  Vermont  as  a  member  of  the  United  States,  that  she 


HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT.  51 

should  "explicitly  relinquish  all  demands  of  lands  and  jurisdic- 
tion on  the  east  side  of  the  Connecticut  river,  and  on  the  west 
side  of  a  line  drawn  twenty  miles  eastward  of  Hudson's  River  to 
Lake  Champlain." 

The  resolution  being  laid  before  the  Assembly  of  Vermont,  in 
session  at  Charlestown,  they  voted  to  "  remain  firm  in  the  prin- 
ciples on  which  they  had  first  assumed  government,  and  to  hold 
the  articles  of  union  inviolate ;  that  they  would  not  submit  the 
x]uestion  of  their  independence  to  the  arbitrament  of  any  power 
whatever ;  but  they  were  willing  at  present  to  refer  the  question 
of  their  jurisdictional  boundary  to  commissioners  mutually  chosen; 
and  when  they  should  be  admitted  into  the  American  Union,  they 
would  submit  any  such  disputes  to  Congress." 

This  state  of  things  produced,  as  it  naturally  would,  deep  re- 
sentment between  the   people  of  New  Hampshire  and  Vermont, 
which,  on  slight  occasion,  would  break  forth  in  acts  of  hostility. 
An  example  is   furnished   in  an  affray  which   had  its  beginning 
at  Chesterfield  in  1781.    A  constable,  under  authority  of  Vermont, 
had  a  writ  against  a  man  favorable  to  the  interests  of  New  Hamp- 
shire, and  went  in  pursuit  of  him.     He  found  him  in  a  dwelling 
house,  surrounded   by  his  friends,  and  attempted  to  arrest   him. 
The  owner  of  the  house  interfered  and  ordered  the  officer  to  depart. 
The  constable  produced  a  book,  which  he  said  contained  the  laws 
,of  Vermont,  and   began  to  read.      The  householder  commanded 
him  to  desist.    Threatening  words  followed,  and,  finally,  the  officer 
was   compelled  to   retire.      Under   a   writ  issued  by  a  Vermont 
justice,  the  householder  and  another  of  the  company  were  arrested 
and  committed  to  prison  at  Charlestown.      The  prisoners  sent  a 
petition   to   the   Assembly  of  New  Hampshire   for   relief      The 
Assembly  authorized  the  Committee  of  Safety  to  direct  the  sheriff 
of  Cheshire  county  to  relieve  the  prisoners;  and,  further,  empow- 
ered the  committee  to  cause   to  be  committed  to  prison,  in  any 
of  the  counties,  all  persons  acting  under  the  pretended  authority 
of  the  state  of  Vermont,  to  be  tried  hy  the  courts  of  those  counties 
where  they  might  be  confined;  and  for  this  purpose  sheriffs  were 
directed  to  raise  the  j^osse  eomitatus. 


52  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

The  sheriff  of  Cheshire  county,  in  the  attempt  to  release  the 
two  prisoners,  was  himself  arrested  and  imprisoned  by  the  Ver- 
mont sheritf,  under  the  authority  of  three  justices.  The  impris- 
oned sheriff  applied  to  a  brigadier  general  of  ISTew  Hampshire 
to  call  out  the  militia  for  his  liberation.  This  alarmed  the  Ver- 
monters,  and  orders  were  issued  by  the  governor  for  their  militia 
to  oppose  force  with  force.  A  committee  from  Vermont  was  sent 
to  Exeter  "  to  agree  on  measures  to  prevent  hostilities."  One  of 
the  committee  was  the  Vermont  sheriff,  who  was  immediately 
arrested,  thrown  into  prison  at  Exeter,  and  held  as  a  hostage  for 
the  release  of  the  sheriff  of  Cheshire. 

There  were  many  instances  of  collisions  and  open  violence,  in 
attempts  of  officers  from  each  of  the  two  states  to  collect  the  taxes- 
and  enforce  other  restrictions  upon  the  people.  Such  was  the 
menacing  aspect  of  affairs  at  this  juncture  that  Congress,  from 
motives  of  general  policy,  determined  to  settle  the  difficulties,  if 
possible.  General  Washington  wrote  the  governor  of  Vermont 
the  following  letter : 

Letter     from     Gekeral     George    Washington     to     Governor     Thomas- 
Chittendek  of  Vermont. 

Philadelphia,  1st  January,  1782. 

Sir,  —  I  received  your  favor  of  the  14th  of  November,  by  Mr.  Brownson, 
You  cannot  be  at  a  loss  to  know  why  I  have  not  heretofore,  and  why  I  cannot 
now  address  you  in  your  public  character  or  answer  you  in  mine.  But  the' 
confidence  which  you  have  been  pleased  to  repose  in  me,  gives  me  an  oppor- 
tunity of  offering  you  my  sentiments,  as  an  individual,  wishing  most  ardently 
to  see  the  peace  and  union  of  this  country  preserved,  and  the  just  rights  of 
the  people  of  every  part  of  it  fully  and  firmly  established. 

It  is  not  my  business,  neither  do  I  think  it  necessary  now,  to  discuss  the 
origin  of  the  right  of  a  number  of  inhabitants  to  that  tract  of  Country,  for- 
merly distinguished  by  the  name  of  the  New  Hampshire  Grants,  and  now  known 
by  that  of  Vermont.  I  will  take  it  for  granted  that  their  right  was  good,  be- 
cause Congress,  by  their  resolve  of  the  7th  of  August  imply  it ;  and  by  that  of 
the  21st,  are  willing  fully  to  confirm  it,  provided  the  new  State  is  confined  to- 
certain  described  bounds.  It  appears,  therefore,  to  me,  that  the  dispute  of 
boundary  is  the  only  one  that  exists,  and  that  being  removed,  all  further  diffi-- 
culties  would  be  removed  also,  and  the  matter  terminated  to  the  satisfaction  of 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  53 

:all  parties.  Now  I  would  ask  you  candidly,  whether  the  claim  of  the  people 
of  Vermont  was  not,  for  a  long  time,  confined  solely,  or  very  nearly,  to  that 
iract  of  country  which  is  described  in  the  resolve  of  Congress  of  the  21st  of 
August  last ;  and  whether,  agreeable  to  the  tenor  of  your  own  letter  to  me, 
the  late  extension  of  your  claim  upon  New  Hampshire  and  New  York,  was  not 
more  a  political  move,  than  one  in  which  you  conceived  yourselves  justifiable.  If 
my  first  question  be  answered  in  the  affirmative,  it  certainly  bars  your  new  claim. 
And  if  my  second  be  well  founded,  your  end  is  answered,  and  you  have  nothing 
to  do,  but  withdraw  your  jurisdiction  to  the  confines  of  your  old  limits,  and 
obtain  an  acknowledgment  of  independence  and  sovereignty,  under  the  resolve 
of  the  21st  of  August,  for  so  much  territory  as  does  not  interfere  with  the 
ancient  established  bounds  of  New  York,  New  Hampshire,  and  Massachusetts. 
T  persuade  myself  you  will  see  and  acquiesce  in  the  reason,  justice,  and  indeed, 
the  necessity  of  such  a  decision. 

You  must  consider.  Sir,  that  the  point  now  in  dispute  is  of  the  utmost  polit- 
ical importance  to  the  future  union  and  peace  of  this  great  country.  The  State 
of  Vermont,  if  acknowledged,  will  be  the  first  new  one  admitted  into  the  con- 
federacy ;  and  if  suffered  to  encroach  upon  the  ancient  established  boundaries 
of  the  adjacent  ones,  will  serve  as  a  precedent  for  others,  which  it  may  here- 
after be  expedient  to  set  off,  to  make  the  same  unjustifiable  demands.  Thus, 
in  my  private  opinion,  while  it  behoves  the  delegates  of  the  States  now  con- 
federated, to  do  ample  justice  to  a  body  of  people  sufficiently  respectable  by 
their  numbers,  and  entitled  by  other  claims,  to  be  admitted  into  that  confed- 
eration, it  becomes  them  also  to  attend  to  the  interests  of  their  constituents, 
and  see,  that  under  the  appearance  of  justice  to  oue,  they  do  not  materially 
injure  the  rights  of  others.  I  am  apt  to  think  this  is  the  prevailing  opinion 
-of  Congress,  and  that  your  late  extension  of  claim  has,  upon  the  principle  I 
have  above  mentioned,  rather  diminished  than  increased  your  friends;  and  that, 
if  such  extension  should  be  persisted  in,  it  will  be  made  a  common  cause,  and 
not  considered  as  only  affecting  the  rights  of  those  States  immediately  inter- 
ested in  the  loss  of  territory;  —  a  loss  of  too  serious  a  nature,  not  to  claim  tha 
attention  of  any  people.  There  is  no  calamity  within  the  compass  of  my  fore- 
sight, which  is  more  to  be  dreaded  than  the  necessity  of  coercion  on  the  part 
of  Congress;  and  consequently  every  endeavor  should  be  used  to  prevent  the 
.execution  of  so  disagreeable  a  measure.  It  may  involve  the  ruin  of  that  State 
against  which  the  resentment  of  the  others  is  pointed. 

I  will  only  add  a  few  words  upon  the  subject  of  the  negotiations,  which  have 
■been  carried  on  between  you  and  the  enemy  in  Canada  and  in  New  York.  I 
will  take  it  for  granted  as  you  assert  it,  that  they  were  so  far  innocent,  that 
there  never  was  any  serious  intention  of  joining  Great  Britain  in  their  attempts 
io  subjugate  your  country;  but  it  has  had  this  certain  bad  tendency  —  it  has 
served  to  give  some  ground  to  that  delusive  opinion  of  the  enemy,  and  upon 
which,  they  in  a  great  measure,  found  their  hopes  of  success;    that  they  have 


54  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

numerous  friends  among  us,  who  only  want  a  proper  opportunity  to  show  them" 
selves  openly;  and  that  internal  disputes  and  feuds  will  soon  break  us  to  pieces. 
At  the  same  time  the  seeds  of  distrust  and  jealousy  are  scattered  among  our^ 
selves  by  a  conduct  of  this  kind.  If  you  are  serious  in  your  professions,  these 
will  be  additional  motives  for  accepting  the  terms  which  have  been  offered, 
(and  which  appear  to  me  equitable)  and  thereby  convincing  the  common  enemy, 
that  all  their  expectations  of  disunion  are  vain,  and  that  they  have  been  worsted 
at  their  own  weapons  —  deception. 

As  you  unbosom  yourself  to  me,  I  thought  I  had  the  greater  right  of  speaking 
my  sentiments  openly  and  candidly  to  you.  I  have  done  so,  and  if  they  should 
produce  the  effect  which  I  most  sincerely  wish  —  that  of  an  honorable  and 
amicable  adjustment  of  a  matter,  which  if  carried  to  hostile  lengths,  may  de- 
stroy the  future  happiness  of  my  country  —  I  shall  have  attained  my  end,  while 
the  enemy  will  be  defeated  of  theirs. 

Believe  me  to  be,  with  great  respect. 

Sir,  your  most  obedient  Servant, 

Geokge  Washingtox. 
Thomas  Chittenden,  Esquire. 

Although  the  town  records  are  silent  upon  the  subject,  it  would 
seem  from  the  following,  copied  from  the  New  Hampshire  Pro- 
vincial and  State  Papers,  Vol.  X.,  p.  483,  that  Claremont,  if  not 
in  hearty  accord  with  either  side  of  this  controversj',  in  common 
with  other  towns  more  actively  engaged,  had  her  trials  in  con- 
sequence of  it. 

Petition   of   sundry  inhabitants   of   Claremont,   praying   for   speedy 
relief  from  difficulties  of  vermont  interference. 

To  the  Honorable  General  Assembly  or  CommiUee  of  Safety  for  the   State  of 
New  Hampshire: 

We,  the  Inhabitants,  as  individuals,  of  the  Town  of  Claremont  Laboring 
under  great  Difficulties  on  account  of  the  pretended  claim  of  Vermont,  &  not 
being  able  to  Hold  Town  meetings  under  New  Hampshire,  we  Humbly  Request 
Directions  how  to  proceed,  as  we  are  threatened  in  person  &  and  property,  by 
their  taxes  and  Laws,  which  we  utterly  refuse  to  submit  to,  they  carry  so 
High  a  hand  that  we  must  have  a  speedy  relief  or  must  submit  to  their  Juris- 
diction which  will  be  very  grievous  to  your  petitioners  and  therefore  we  Humbly 
pray  for  a  speedy  answer.     We  are  short  in  words  &  perticulars  as  being  sen- 


HISTOKT   OF    CLARBMONT.  SS' 

sible  you  are  in  some  measure  knowing  to  our  circumstances,  &  we  your  peti-- 
tioners  in  Duty  Bound  shall  ever  pray. 
Claremont,  Jan'y  14,  1782. 

Elihu  Everts  \Vm  Strobridge  Jesse  Matthews 

Henry  Stevens  Gideon  Davis  Thomas  Jones 

Roswell  Stevens  David  Rich  Joseph  Ives 

Rueben  Petty  Josiah  Stevens  Bartlett  Hinds 

Josiah  Rich  Elihu  Stevens  John  West 

John  Peckens  T.  Sterne 

The  effect  of  General  Washington's  letter  to  Governor  Chitten- 
den was  salutary.  At  a  session  of  the  Vermont  Assembly  at  Ben- 
nington, on  the  nineteenth  of  Februarj^  1782,  it  resolved  itself  into 
a  committee  of  the  whole  to  take  into  consideration  the  action  of 
Congress  on  the  seventh  and  twenty-first  of  August,  1781, —  His 
Excellency  Gov.  Chittenden  in  the  chair, —  and  also  the  letter  of 
Gen.  Washington  of  January  1,  1782.  The  next  day  the  committee 
adopted  the  following  resolution : 

Resolved,  That  in  the  opinion  of  this  Committee,  Congi-ess,  in  their  resolu- 
tions of  the  7th  and  21st  of  August  last,  in  guaranteeing  to  the  respective  states 
of  New  York  and  New  Hampshire  all  territory  without  certain  limits  therein- 
expressed,  have  eventually  determined  the  boundary  of  this  State. ^ 

This  resolution  being  accepted  and  adopted  by  the  Assembly^ 
then  on  the  twenty-second  of  February,  1782,  an  act  was  passed- 
"  to  relinquish  the  claims  to  territory  therein  mentioned,"  and  on 
the  twenty-third  it  was 

Resolved,  That  the  west  bank  of  Connecticut  River  &  a  line  beginning  at  the 
northwest  corner  of  the  Massachusetts  State,  from  thence  northward  twenty 
miles  east  of  Hudson's  river,  as  specified  in  the  Resolutions  of  August  last,  shall 
be  considered  as  the  east  and  west  boundaries  of  this  State,  and  that  this  assem- 
bly do  hereby  relinquish  all  claim  and  demand  to  the  right  of  Jurisdiction  in  and' 
over  any  and  every  district  of  territory  without  said  boundary  lines;  and  that 
authenticated  copies  of  this  Resolution  be  forthwith  officially  transmitted  to- 
Congress  and  the  States  of  New  Hampshire  and  New  York  respectively. 

This  relinquishment  of  jurisdiction  by  Vermont  substantially 
ended  the  controversj'  between  that  state  and  ISTew  Hampshire,  sa 


1  Dr.  N.  Benton's  notes,  Provincial  Papers,  Vol.  X.,  page  18B. 


56  HISTOET    OF   CLAREMONT. 

far  as  boundaries  were  concerned,  but  Dr.  Belknap,  in  his  history 
before  alluded  to,  said,  "  Though  cut  off  from  their  connexion 
with  Vermont,  the  revolted  towns  did  not  at  once  return  to  a  state 
of  peace,  but  the  divisions  and  animosities  which  had  long  sub- 
sisted continued  to  produce  disagreeable  effects." 

The  members  of  the  Assembly  from  the  east  side  of  the  river,  find- 
ing themselves  thus  virtually  cut  off  from  the  legislative  body,  took 
their  leave  with  chagrin  and  feelings  of  resentment.  Though  ex- 
cluded from  their  recent  connection,  the  excluded  towns  did  not  at 
once  peaceably  place  themselves  under  their  former  jurisdiction,  but 
for  some  time  continued  to  keep  alive  the  difBculties  and  animos- 
ities which  had  so  long  existed.  During  these  strifes  the  courts  of 
New  Hampshire  had  held  their  regular  sessions,  with  but  little  op- 
position, though  the  officers  of  Vermont  claimed  and  exercised 
jurisdiction  in  the  same  territory ;  but  Avhen  the  latter  were  de- 
prived of  authority  by  the  Assembly  of  Vermont,  a  spirit  of  resist- 
ance against  the  former  became  apparent. 

In  September,  1782,  during  the  sitting  of  the  Inferior  court  at 
Keene,  several  persons  attempted  to  stop  its  proceedings,  and  suc- 
ceeded in  effecting  an  adjournment.  Three  of  the  leaders  were  ar- 
rested and  bound  over  to  the  Superior  court.  Meanwhile  efforts 
were  being  made  to  resist  and  overpower  the  Superior  court.  Ee- 
ports  were  circulated  that  two  hundred  men  had  combined  and 
armed  themselves  for  that  purpose.  On  the  morning  of  the  open- 
ing of  the  court  several  of  the  leaders  went  to  the  chambers  of  the 
court  and  presented  a  petition,  praying  "  that  the  court  might  be 
adjourned,  and  that  no  judicial  proceedings  might  be  had  while  the 
troubles  in  which  the  country  had  been  involved  still  subsisted." 
They  were  told  that  the  judges  could  come  to  no  decision  upon  the 
subject  but  in  open  court.  The  court  was  opened  in  due  time,  the 
petition  was  publicly  read  and  its  consideration  postponed  to  the 
next  day.  The  court  then  proceeded  to  its  business.  The  grand 
jury  were  impaneled,  and,  with  open  doors,  the  attorney-general 
laid  before  them  the  case  of  the  rioters  at  the  Inferior  court.  A 
bill  was  found  against  them,  they  were  arraigned,  pleaded  guilty, 
and  threw  themselves    upon  the  mercy  of  the  court.     The  court 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  57 

remitted  their  punishment  on  condition  of  future  peaceable  be- 
havior. 

This  method  of  firmness  and  lenity  at  once  disarmed  the  disturb- 
ers, and  they  quietly  dispersed.  From  this  time  the  spirit  of  insub- 
ordination gradually  died  away,  and  the  people  quietly  returned  to 
their  allegiance  to  New  Hampshire. 

!New  Hampshire  was  first  settled  in  1628,  by  Edward  and  Wil- 
liam Hilton,  brothers,  from  London,  and  David  Thompson,  from 
Scotland.  For  eighteen  years  after  the  first  settlement  the  people 
in  the  several  plantations  were  governed  by  agents  appointed  by 
the  proprietors,  or  by  magistrates  chosen  by  themselves.  In  1641 
they  were  united  with  Massachusetts,  and  so  continued  until  1680, 
when  New  Hampshire  became  a  royal  province,  and  continued  a 
provincial  government  until  the  Revolution,  with  the  exception  of 
the  interim  from  1688  to  1692,  when  the  people,  in  consequence  of 
the  disorders  and  confusion  which  attended  the  short  but  oppressive 
administration  of  Sir  Edmund  Andros,  again  placed  themselves 
under  the  protection  of  Massachusetts.  Massachusetts  was  made  a 
province  in  1692,  and  the  same  person  was  governor  of  both  prov- 
inces from  1699  to  1741,  when  a  separate  governor  was  appointed 
for  JSTew  Hampshire,  and  this  was  the  beginning  of  Governor  Ben- 
ning  "Wentworth's  administration.  He  was  a  son  of  Lieutenant 
Governor  "Wentworth,  "was  a  merchant  of  good  reputation  in 
Portsmouth,  and  well  beloved  by  his  people."  He  had  represented 
his  town  in  the  Assembly  several  years,  and  had  been  a  member  of 
the  Council. 

During  the  commotions  excited  by  the  stamp  act  he  was  careful 
not  to  make  himself  conspicuous  in  the  ranks  of  either  party.  At 
that  time  he  had  been  in  the  executive  chair  twenty-five  years,  and 
expected  that  his  successor  would  soon  be  appointed.  The  long 
term  of  his  administration  gives  reason  to  believe  that  his  acts,  as  a 
whole,  were  not  oppressive  or  dissatisfactory  to  the  people.  He  had 
become  quite  wealthy,  though  it  is  not  charged  that  he  filled  his 
coffers  by  extortions  from  the  people.  His  grants  of  land,  profuse 
and  unauthorized,  perhaps,  in  some  instances,  proved  to  be  of  great 
advantage  to  New  Hampshire  in  filling  up  her  waste  places  with 


58  HISTOKT    OF    CLAREMONT. 

industrious  and  enterprising  men,  and  in  laying  the  foundation  for 
that  prosperity  which  ever  since  his  day  has  marked  the  progress 
of  the  state.  Under  his  administration  the  town  of  Claremont  was 
incorporated,  as  before  stated. 

Vermont  had  long  been  a  petitioner  for  admission  into  the  Union. 
The  boundaries  between  ISTew  Hampshire  and  Vermont  and  Wew 
York  and  Vermont  having  been  determined  by  Congress,  and  ac- 
cepted by  the  Vermont  Assembly,  and  the  troubles  between  the 
towns  bordering  on  Connecticut  river  in  New  Hampshire  and  Ver- 
mont having  been  virtually  settled,  Vermont  was  admitted  on  equal 
terms  with  the  thirteen  original  states  and  became  the  fourteenth 
state  in  the  confederacy,  by  virtue  of  an  act  of  Congress,  signed  as 
follows : 

Frederick  Augustus  Muhlenburg,  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives  ; 
John  Adams,  Vice  President  of  the  United  States,  and  President  of  the  Senate. 

Approved,  February  the  eighteenth,  1791.  GEORGE  WASHINGTON,  Pres- 
ident of  the  United  States. 

Deposited  among  the  Rolls  of  the  Office  of  the  Secretary  of  State. 
Th.  Jefferson,  Secretary  of  State. 

Here  ended  the  controversy,  and  times  were  much  better  be- 
tween New  Hampshire,  Vermont,  and  ISTew  York. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

FEDERAL   AND   STATE    CONSTITUTIONS. 
FEDERAL   CONSTITUTION. 

At  a  town  meeting  held  on  February  7, 1788,  Deacon  Matthias 
Stone  was  chosen  a  delegate  to  a  convention  at  Exeter  to  "  con- 
sider the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,"  and  Samuel  Ashley, 
Sanford  Kingsbury,  David  Dodge,  Benjamin  Tyler,  Ambrose  Cos- 
sit,  and  Elihu  Stevens,  "  were  chosen  a  committee  to  instruct  the 
delegate  how  to  act." 

According  to  Dr.  Belknap's  History  of  New  Hampshire, 
the  population  of  the  state  in  1788  was  about  one  hundred  and 
thirty-four  thousand.  The  New  Hampshire  convention  met  at 
Exeter,  on  the  thirteenth  of  February  of  that  year,  "  for  the  In- 
vestigation, Discussion,  and  Decision  of  the  Federal  Constitu- 
tion." Joseph  B.  Walker,  of  Concord,  prepared  with  much  pains 
and  skill  a  history  of  this  convention,  which  was  published  in  a 
handsome  little  volume  in  1888,  from  which  most  of  the  facts 
in  relation  to  its  proceedings  are  derived. 

On  the  first  day  of  the  convention  there  were  about  fifty  dele- 
gates present  and  a  temporary  organization  was  effected.  One 
hundred  and  thirteen  delegates  were  returned  to  the  convention 
from  one  hundred  and  seventy-five  towns  and  places.  There 
were  eight  towns  that  were  not  represented  at  the  first  session 
of  the  convention,  and  seven  at  the  second.  Each  town  was 
usually  represented  by  one  delegate  —  Portsmouth,  however,  sent 
three  and  Londonderry  two,  while  several  small  towns  joined  and 
sent  but  one  —  Holderness,  Campton,  and  Thornton  were  repre- 
sented by  Judge  Samuel  Livermore.    Colonel  Ebenezer  Webster, 


60  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

father  of  the  Hoe.  Ezekiel  and  Daniel  Webster,  was   a  delegate 
from  Salisbury. 

On  the  second  day  about  one  hundred  delegates  took  seats  in 
the  convention  and  a  permanent  organization  was  effected  by 
the  choice  of  His  Excellency  John  Sullivan,  president,  and  John 
Calef,  of  Hampstead,  secretary.     Mr.  "Walker,  in  his  history,  says, 

A  majority  of  the  members  were  undoubtedly  opposed  to  the  Constitution.  It 
has  been  alleged  that  before  the  delegates  had  been  chosen,  active  anti-Federal- 
ists ^  had  visited  more  or  less  of  the  towns  which  were  off  the  more  public  lines 
of  travel,  and  induced  their  citizens,  who  as  yet  knew  little  regarding  its  pro- 
visions, to  instruct  their  delegates  to  vote  against  it.^ 

The  talent  of  the  convention  was  decidedly  on  the  side  of  the  Federalists,  and 
a  majority  of  the  ablest  members  were  in  favor  of  ratification.^  His  Excellency 
John  Sullivan,  Hon.  Samuel  Livermore,  chief-justice  of  the  supreme  court,  Hon. 
John  Taylor  Oilman,  Hon.  John  Langdon,  as  well  as  other  members  of  eom-- 
manding  influence,  were  outspoken  and  earnest  for  its  adoption.  These  all 
worked  in  harmony  to  that  end. 

The  opposition  was  led  by  Hon.  Joshua  Atherton.who  was  earnestly  supported 
by  Captain  Charles  Barrett,  Hon.  Abel  Parker,  Rev.  William  M.  Hooper^ 
Deacon  Matthias  Stone,  and  others. 

It  is  presumed  that  Deacon  Matthias  Stone  acted  according  to 
the  directions  given  him  by  the  committee  chosen  by  the  town  of 
Claremont,  to  "  instruct  the  delegate  how  to  act,"  although  no 
record  has  been  found  to  show  what  those  directions  were. 

The  constitution  was  considered  by  paragraphs,  and  on  some  of 
them  considerable  discussion  was  had,  and  continued  from  day  to 
day,  for  the  ensuing  seven  days. 

For  a  time  the  friends  of  the  constitution  had  hopes  of  securing  its  ratification 
without  a  recess  of  the  convention.  Although  a  greater  number  of  the  members 
from  the  upper  part  of  the  state  came  down  rather  opposed  to  its  adoption,  yet 
on  the  final  question  it  was  hoped  that  a  majority  would  be  found  to  favor  it.* 
But  these  hopes  proved  delusive.  AVhile  some  of  the  members  who  came  to  the 
convention  instructed  to  vote  against  the  constitution,  had  been  led  by  the  dis- 
cussions to  a  change  of  opinion  and  now  favored  it,  they  still  felt  bound  by  their 


1  Tliose  favoring  and  those  opposing  tlie  ratification  of   the  Constitution  were  respect' 
Ively  designated  as  Federalists  and  antl-Federallsts. 

2  Massachusetts  Centinel,  February  27,  1788. 

3  Memoir  of  Joshua  Atherton,  hy  Hon.  C.  H.  Atherton. 

4  Massachusetts  Centinel,  February  28, 1788. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT.  61 

instructions,  and  frankly  said  that  if  a  final  vote  was  to  be  taken  before  they  had 
opportunity  to  consult  their  constituents  their  vote  would  be  adverse  to  ratifica- 
tion. This  would  secure  a  rejection  of  the  constitution,  and  prejudice  unfavora- 
bly its  success  in  those  states  where  conventions  were  yet  to  be  held.  At  the 
sarae  time  the  declaration  indicated  that  some  of  them  would  array  themselves 
with  the  friends  of  the  new  system  of  government,  could  they  free  themselves 
of  the  shackles  which  bound  them.  Under  these  circumstances  it  seemed  to  the 
friends  of  the  constitution  that  the  wisest  course  to  be  pursued  was 

First,  To  secure,  if  possible  a  recess  of  the  convention. 

Second,  During  the  time  to  effect,  as  far  as  practicable,  a  change  in  public 
opinion  favorable  to  the  great  cause  which  they  had  so  much  at  heart,  particularly 
in  the  towns  represented  by  the  delegates  above  mentioned.  Their  first  effort, 
therefore,  was  to  secure  an  adjournment  to  a  future  day,  sufficiently  distant  to 
give  time  for  the  contemplated  effort. 

Mr.  Langdon  accordingly  introduced  a  resolution  to  that  effect,  and  urged  its 
passage  with  his  wonted  force  and  eloquence. 

Mr.  Atherton,  Mr.  Hooper,  Mr.  Parker,  and  Deacon  Matthais  Stone 
made  speeches  iu  opposition  to  the  adoption  of  the  resolution. 
After  considerable  debate  the  resolution  was  adopted  by  only  five 
votes — fifty-six  having  voted  for  and  fifty-one  against  its  adoption, 
and  the  convention  adjourned  to  meet  at  Concord  on  the  eighteenth 
day  of  June,  1788. 

To  make  the  constitution  operative,  nine  of  the  thirteen  states 
of  the  confederation  must  ratify  it.  Before  the  assembling  of  the 
convention  six  states  had  ratified  it,  and  between  the  time  of  its 
adjournment,  February  21,  and  its  re-assembling,  on  June  18, 
Maryland  and  South  Carolina  had  ratified  the  constitution,  and 
only  one  more  state  was  required  to  make  it  operative  over  the 
whole  country ;  and  on  the  twenty-first  of  June,  1788,  the  E"ew 
Hampshire  convention,  by  a  vote  of  fifty-seven  yeas  to  forty-seven 
nays,  ratified  it  by  a  majority  of  ten  votes.  Below  are  given  the 
states,  the  order  in  which  and  the  date  when  each  ratified  the  con- 
stitution, and  their  population  at  the  time  of  taking  the  first  census 
by  the  United  States  government,  in  August,  1790. 

STATES.  DATE  OF  RATIFICATION.  POPULATION. 

Delaware,  December  6,  1787.  59,096 

Pennsylvania,  December  12,  1787.  434,373 

New  Jersey,  December  18,  1787.  184,189 


DATE  OP  EATrFICATION. 

POPULATION. 

January  2,  1788. 

82,548 

January  9,  1788. 

238,141 

February  6,  1788. 

378,717 

April  28,  1788. 

319,728 

May  23,  1788. 

249,073 

June  21,  1788. 

141,899 

62  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

STATES. 

Georgia, 

Connecticut, 

Massachusetts, 

Maryland, 

South  Carolina, 

New  Hampshire, 

During  the  recess  the  Federalists  of  New  Hampshire  were  active  in  their  ex- 
ertions in  behalf  of  the  ratification.  They  were  greatly  cheered  by  the  results 
of  the  conventions  held  in  Maryland  and  South  Carolina  —  in  the  first  of  which 
ratification  was  carried  on  the  twenty-sixth  day  of  April  by  a  vote  of  sixty  to 
eleven,  nearly  six  to  one ;  and  in  the  latter  by  one  hundred  and  forty-one  to 
sixty-three,  or  about  two  to  one. 

Dr.  Bfincroft's  history  says  that 

The  vote  on  ratification  was  taken  on  Saturday,  June  21,  at  one  o'clock,  P.  M. 
As  the  glad  tidings  flew  through  the  land,  the  hearts  of  the  people  thrilled  with 
joy  that  at  last  the  tree  of  union  was  firmly  planted. 

This  action  of  "New  Hampshire  was  regarded  all  over  the  coun- 
try as  of  very  great  importance,  as  it  really  was,  and  it  was  cele- 
brated with  demonstrations  of  joy  by  the  people  of  Eoclcingham 
county,  at  Portsmouth,  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  June,  in  which  many 
prominent  men  from  other  sections  of  the  state  took  part.  The 
"  New  Hampshire  Gazette  and  General  Advertiser,"  in  an  interest- 
ing account  of  the  celebration,  said :  "  Thursday  being  the  day  ap- 
pointed to  celebrate  the  Eatification  of  the  Federal  Constitution 
by  the  State  of  I^ew  Hampshire,  a  numerous  concourse  of  the  in- 
habitants of  Portsmouth  and  neighboring  towns  being  assembled 
on  the  Parade,  about  eleven  o'clock  an  armed  ship  was  espied 
from  the  State  House  bearing  down  under  full  sail ;  being  hailed 
on  her  approach,  she  proved  to  be  the  ship  Union,  Thomas  Man- 
ning, Esq.,  Commander,  from  Concord,  out  five  days,  bound  to  the 
Federal  City,  all  well  and  in  good  spirits.  About  a  quarter  past 
eleven  she  dropped  anchor,  and  having  received  pilot  on  board,  got 
under  way  and  joined  the  procession."  Celebrations  took  place 
at  Salem,  Mass.,  and  other  places  in  New  England. 

The  session  of  the  convention  which  ratified  the  constitution  and 
thus  made  it  operative  as  the  fundamental  law  of  the  land,  was  held 


HISTORY   OP    CLAREMONT.  63 

in  the  Old  North  Meeting  House'  at  Concord,  which  made  that 
building  ever  after  one  of  more  than  common  interest. 

Dea.  Matthias  Stone,  the  delegate  from  Claremont  in  that  con- 
vention, opposed  the  ratification  to  the  last,  and  there  is  no  known 
record  nor  tradition  that  the  people  of  this  town  celebrated  the 
event  by  any  public  demonstration. 

STATE   CONSTITDTION. 

On  the  twenty-eighth  day  of  December,  1775,  the  fifth  and  last  pro- 
vincial congress  of  IsTew  Hampshire  voted  to  "  take  up  civil  govern- 
ment, to  continue  during  the  present  contest  with  Great  Britain, 
and  resolved  themselves  into  a  house  of  representatives,  and  then 
chose  a  council  to  continue  one  year  from  the  2l8t  day  of  Decem- 
ber current,"  and  a  committee  consisting  of  Matthew  Thornton, 
Mesheck  Weare,  Ebenezer  Thompson,  Wyseman  Claggett,  Benja- 
min Giles,  Joseph  Giddings,  and  Joseph  Badger,  was  appointed 
"to  frame  and  bring  in  a  draft  of  a  new  constitution  for  the  rule 
and  government  of  the  colony."  This  committee  reported  on  the 
fifteenth  day  of  January,  1776,  and  the  convention  voted  "  That  this 
congress  take  up  civil  government  for  this  colony,"  and  be  gov- 
erned by  the  constitution  as  adopted  by  the  convention. 

On  the  seventh  of  September,  1791,  a  convention  to  revise  the 
constitution  of  the  state  was  held  at  Concord.  Claremont  elected 
Sanford  Kingsbury  a  delegate  to  this  convention.  Four  sessions, 
occupying  thirty-six  days,  were  held  before  the  work  of  revision 
was  completed.  The  constitution  as  amended  was  approved  by 
the  people  and  it  went  into  efifect  in  June,  1793.  By  it  the  title  of 
President  for  the  chief  executive  was  changed  to  that  of  Governor, 

At  a  town  meeting  on  May  7,  1792, 

Voted  to  choose  a  committee  to  take  into  consideration  the  Constitution  with 
the  amendments  and  report  thereon. 

The  following  persons  were  appointed  that  committee :  "  Jabez 
Upham,  Esq.,  Thomas  Sterne,  Ebenezer  Rice,  Elihu  Stevens,  Esq., 


1  This  tiiiiiaing  was  sold  to  private  parties,  turned  into  a  tenement  house,  occupied  as 
such  several  years,  and  was  destroyed  by  fire  on  the  night  of  Nov.  28, 1870. 


64  HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT. 

Ambrose  Cossit,  Esq.,  Ezra  Jones,  John  W.  Russel,  George  Hub- 
bard, Nathan  Smith,  Josiah  Stevens,  Giddeon  Handerson,  and  John 
Strobridge." 

At  a  meeting  held  on  the  twenty-first  of  the  same  month  this 
committee  submitted  the  following  report : 

Agreeable  to  the  vote  of  said  Town  the  Committee  have  met  and  taken  into 
consideration  the  constitution  with  the  amendments  agree  to  report  as  followeth, 
viz  —  That  the  several  amendments  be  accepted  except  the  addition  to  the  sixth 
article  under  the  head  of  Bill  of  rights  in  the  first  amendment  and  the  forty- 
ninth  Amendment  under  the  head  of  secretary  &c. 

Attest  Ambrose  Cossitt, 

Clerk  for  the  Committee. 

This  constitution  continued  the  fundamental  law  of  the  state 
for  nearly  sixty  years.  It  provides  that  "  the  general  court  shall, 
at  the  expiration  of  seven  years  from  the  time  this  constitution 
shall  take  effect,  issue  precepts,  or  direct  them  to  be  issued  from 
the  secretary's  office,  to  the  several  towns  and  incorporated  places, 
to  elect  delegates  to  meet  in  convention  for  the  purposes  aforesaid ; 
the  said  delegates  to  be  chosen  in  the  same  manner  and  propor- 
tioned as  the  representatives  to  the  genei-al  assembly ;  2^'ovided,  that 
no  alteration  shall  be  made  in  the  constitution  before  the  same  shall 
be  laid  before  the  towns  and  incorporated  places,  and  approved  by 
two-thirds  of  the  qualified  voters  present  and  voting  upon  the 
question." 

The  following  table,  found  in  "  The  New  Hampshire  Manual  for 
the  General  Court,"  compiled  by  Hosea  B.  Carter,  Actuary,  shows 
the  dates  of  the  action  on  the  approval  of  the  several  acts  of  the 
legislature  subsequent  to  1793,  providing  for  taking  the  sense  of 
the  qualified  voters  on  the  expediency  of  calling  a  convention  to 
revise  the  constitution,  and  the  aggregate  aflirmative  and  negative 
votes  on  the  question,  as  returned  to  the  secretary. 


HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT. 


65 


DATE  OF  ACT. 


1799 

1806, 
1820 
1833 
1833 
1837 
1844 
1846 
1849 
1857 
1860 
1862 
1864 
1868 
1869 
1875 
1883 
1885 


December  13, 
June  11, 
December  11, 
January  5, 
July  6, 
July  ] , 
June  19, 
July  10, 
July  7, 
June  27, 
July  4, 
July  9, 
August  19, 
July  2, 
July  8, 
July  2,  ' 
July  27, 
August  13, 


2,478 

1,722 

2,407 

4,623 

5,973 

2,821 
10,855 

4,583 
28,877 

2,822 
11,078 

1,044 
18,422 
No  vote  on  record. 
No  vote  on  record, 
28,771 
13,086 
11,466 


4,246 
10,908 
18,853 
11,818 
12,183 
16,830 
20,994 
12,416 
14,482 
18,449 

9,753 
12,428 
15,848 


10,912 
14,120 
10,213 


The  act  of  the  legislature  of  1849,  authorizing  the  calling  of  a 
convention  in  1850,  to  revise  the  constitution,  as  will  be  seen,  was 
approved  by  a  large  majority  of  the  voters  of  the  state.  Delegates 
were  chosen  on  the  eighth  of  October,  and  the  convention  met  at 
Concord  on  the  sixth  of  ISTovember,  1850.  The  delegates  from 
<:;iaremont  were  John  S.  Walker,  P.  C.  Freeman,  and  William 
Rossiter. 

Forty  thousand  dollars  had  been  appropriated  by  the  legislature 
to  pay  the  expenses  of  the  convention ;  the  people  called  for  but 
few  amendments  to  their  fundamental  law,  and  expected  a  short 
session.  But  the  convention  sat  forty-six  days,  the  cost  far  exceeded 
the  appropriation,  and  it  adopted  fifteen  amendments.  The  people 
were  indignant  and  the  voters  by  a  large  majority  rejected  all  of 
the  proposed  amendments.  The  convention  reassembled  on  the 
sixteenth  of  April,  1851,  and  having  ascertained  the  result  of  the 
vote,  adopted  the  following  to  be  voted  on  at  the  annual  town 
meeting  in  1852 :  1st.  To  abolish  the  property  qualification ;  2d. 
To  abolish  the  religious  test ;  3d.  To  empower  the  legislature  to 
.originate   future   amendments  to  the  constitntion  and  send  them 


66  HISTORY   OF   CLAKEMONT. 

out  to  the  people  for  acceptance  or  rejection.  The  first  of  these 
amendments  was  adopted  by  a  two-thirds  vote,  and  the  other  two 
were  rejected. 

This  was  a  notable  convention,  composed  of  able  men  from  all 
over  the  state.  Franklin  Pierce,  afterwards  president  of  the 
United  States,  was  president;  Thomas  J.  Whipple,  secretary;  and 
Charles  H.  Bell,  afterward  governor  of  the  state,  assistant  secretary. 

In  1860  the  votes  as  returned  were  11,078  in  favor  and  9,753 
against  calling  a  convention  to  revise  the  constitution.  In  view 
of  the  small  number  of  votes  cast,  probably,  the  legislature  did 
not  pass  an  act  authorizing  it.  In  1864  the  returns  showed 
18,422  as  voting  iu  favor  and  15,348  against  calling  a  convention, 
and  the  legislature  did  not  pass  the  necessary  act.  In  1875,  the 
legislature  passed  an  enabling  act,  which  was  approved  by  a  vote 
28,771  in  favor  and  10,912  against  it.  A  convention  was  called 
and  assembled  at  Concord  on  December  6,  1876,  was  in  session 
eleven  days,  proposed  several  amendments,  all  but  two  of  which 
were  ratified  by  fhe  voters.  This  amended  constitution  provides, 
amongst  other  things,  for  biennial  elections  for  state  and  county 
officers;  biennial  sessions  of  the  legislature,  and  for  twenty-four 
instead  of  twelve  state  senators.  The  delegates  from  Claremont 
to  this  convention  were :  John  S.  "Walker,  George  H.  Stowell, 
Nathaniel  Tolles,  Stephen  F.  Rossiter,  and  Albert  F.  Winn. 

In  1885  the  vote  in  favor  of  a  convention  was  11,466,  against  it 
10,213,  and  the  legislature  passed  an  act  providing  for  one,  which 
met  at  Concord  on  January  2, 1889,  did  its  business,  and  adjourned 
on  the  eleventh  of  the  same  month.  It  proposed  several  amend- 
ments —  one  of  which  was  changing  the  time  of  the  sessions  of  the 
legislature  from  June  to  December  —  all  but  two  of  which  were 
adopted  by  the  people  at  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March.  The 
Claremont  delegates  to  this  convention  were  Ira  Colby,  George  H. 
Stowell,  Eobert  E.  Mussey,  and  Israel  D.  Hall. 


CHAPTEE    V. 

COUNTY   OF   SULLIVAN. 

Prior  to  1771  the  sessions  of  the  legislature,  and  of  the  courts 
for  the  province  of  New  Hampshire,  were  held  at  Portsmouth.  In 
that  year  the  province  was  divided,  by  act  of  the  legislature,  with 
the  approval  of  the  King,  into  five  counties,  and  they  were  named 
by  the  Governor,  Rockingham,  Hillsborough,  Cheshire,  Straflbi'd, 
and  Grafton.  After  the  settlement  of  their  several  boundaries 
separate  courts  were  established  in  Rockingham,  Hillsborough,  and 
Cheshire.  The  counties  of  Strafford  and  Grafton,  being  sparsely 
settled,  were  attached  to  the  judicial  circuit  of  Rockingham,  till  the 
Governor  and  Council  should  deem  them  competent  to  exercise 
separate  jurisdictions;  and  this  was  so  ordered  in  1773.  Sub- 
sequently, from  time  to  time,  other  counties  were  created  and  their 
boundaries  defined  by  the  legislature. 

Cheshire  county  extended  north  from  the  line  of  the  state  of 
Massachusetts  to  the  line  of  Grafton  county,  about  sixty-five  miles, 
and  east  from  the  west  bank  of  Connecticut  river,  about  twenty 
miles  to  the  lines  of  Hillsborough  and  Merrimack  counties,  em- 
bracing thirty-eight  towns  in  its  territory.  Courts  were  held 
alternately  at  Keene  and  Charlestown,  at  each  of  which  places  was 
a  jail.  To  better  accommodate  the  business  of  the  northern  part  of 
the  county,  in  1824,  the  legislature  passed  an  act  that  the  May 
term  of  the  Supreme  court  should  be  removed  from  Charlestown 
to  Newport. 

In  June,  1826,  the  question  of  a  division  of  Cheshire  county  came 
before  the  legislature.  There  was  considerable  opposition  to  the 
division,  but  finally  an  act  passed  to  submit  the  question  of  division 


68  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

to  the  voters  of  the  several  towns  in  Cheshire  county,  and  also,  in 
case  of  a  division,  the  question  as  to  whether  the  courts  and  county 
buildings  should  be  located  at  Claremont  or  ITewport.  There  was 
much  discussion  among  the  people  upon  both  of  these  questions, 
but  the  result  was  decidedly  in  favor  of  a  division  and  of  JJTewport 
as  the  county  seat. 

The  proposed  new  county  was  to  comprise  the  towns  of  Acworth, 
Charlestown,  Claremont,  Cornish,  Croydon,  Goshen,  Grantham, 
Langdon,  Lempster,  Newport,  Plainfield,  Springfield,  Sunapee, 
Unity,  and  Washington. 

In  1827  the  subject  came  again  before  the  legislature;  and  while 
it  was  pending,  a  name  for  the  new  county  was  being  considered. 
In  a  letter  to  the  author  of  this  history  from  George  "W".  ISTesmith, 
dated  July  23,  1878,  among  other  things,  he  gives  an  interesting 
account  of  the  way  in  which  the  name  of  Sullivan  was  settled 
upon,  as  follows : 

The  friends  of  the  new  county  had  assembled  in  the  library  room  in  the  old 
state  house  in  Concord,  and  were  carrying  on  an  earnest  discussion  upon  the 
subject  of  the  most  appropriate  name  for  the  proposed  new  county.  We 
recollect  the  name  of  Sunapee  had  advocates.  Others  objected.  Amid  the  dis- 
cussion, Colonel  Cheney  of  Newport  arose  and  said  —  "1  will  now  propose  a  name 
against  which  no  one  can  find  objection.  It  is  Sullivan — a  name  distinguished 
in  our  history  and  held  in  reverence  by  all  our  jieople.  For  him,  who  as  a  gen- 
eral, often  for  many  years  led  our  armies  and  exposed  his  life  in  battle  with  the 
enemies  of  our  country ;  and  as  a  civilian,  frequently  represented  us  ably  in 
Congress ;  who  presided  over  the  convention  which  brought  our  state  constitu- 
tion into  existence;  who  served  us  in  the  capacity  of  attorney-general  and  chief 
magistrate  for  many  years,  and  who  has  left  us  a  rich  legacy  in  his  living  and 
accomplished  sons.  Tor  this  man  I  propose  the  name  of  our  uew  county."  All 
opposition  was  hushed  and  the  name  of  Sullivan  was  adopted.  At  this  time  we 
were  standing  near  Jona.  Smith,  representative  from  Peterborough,  and  James 
Thorn,  representative  of  Londonderry.  Smith  remarked  to  Thom,  "That  name 
settles  the  new  county ;"  "  Tes,"  says  Thom,"  the  charm  of  Sullivan's  name  will 
bring  Rockingham  and  Strafford  to  the  support  of  the  bill,  and  Hubbard,  with 
all  his  ability  and  adroitness,  may  as  well  hang  up  his  fiddle."  So  you  see  the 
virtue  of  a  good  name  in  all  times  of  need. 

On  July  5,  1827,  the  act  incorporating  the  county  of  Sullivan 
was  passed,  to  take  effect  the  following  September. 


HISTORY    OP    CLAKBMONT.  69 

Sullivan  county  is  about  thirty  miles  long  from  north  to  south, 
by  about  twenty  miles  wide  from  east  to  west.  It  is  bounded 
on  the  north  by  Lebanon,  Enfield,  and  Grafton  in  Grafton  county ; 
on  the  east  by  "Wilmot,  New  London,  Newbury,  and  Bradford, 
in  Merrimack  county,  and  Hillsborough  and  Windsor  in  Hills- 
borough county;  and  on  the  south  by  Stoddard,  Marlow,  Alstead, 
and  "Walpole  in  Cheshire  county;  on  the  west  by  Rockingham, 
Springfield,  "Weathersfield,  Windsor,  and  Hartland  in  the  state  of 
Vermont.  Its  population,  according  to  the  census  of  1890,  was 
17,304. 

Sunapee  lake  —  about  ten  miles  long  and  from  two  to  three 
miles  wide  —  with  an  elevation  above  the  level  of  the  sea  of 
1,103  feet,  and  820  feet  above  the  Connecticut  at  the  mouth  of 
Sugar  river,  is  partly  in  the  town  of  Sunapee,  in  Sullivan  county, 
and  partly  in  the  towns  of  New  London  and  Newbury,  in  Mer- 
rimack county.  In  the  last  few  years  this  beautiful  lake  has 
attracted  large  numbers  of  city  people  seeking  a  quiet,  inexpen- 
sive, and  healthful  spot  in  which  to  pass  a  summer  vacation. 
Its  waters  are  full  of  choice  fish,  and  on  its  surface  are  five  steam- 
boats and  other  craft,  for  business  and  the  accommodation  of 
pleasure  seekers.  The  highest  point  of  land  in  this  county  is 
Croydon  mountain,  with  an  elevation  of  2,789  feet  above  sea  level. 
From  its  summit  a  large  part  of  the  area  of  the  county  may  be 
seen,  while  on  Connecticut  river  are  some  of  the  best  farms  in 
the  state,  and  Sugar  river  furnishes  motive  power  for  many  im- 
portant industries  in  Claremont,  Newport,  and  Sunapee. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

BOUNDARIES NATURAL    CHARACTERISTICS LOCALITIES VILLAGE    IN 

1822. 

The  town  of  Claremont,  as  originally  granted,  was  six  miles 
square,  and  contained  twentj-'four  thousand  acres.  In  1828,  by 
act  of  the  legislature,  a  tract  of  land  nearly  a  mile  long,  and  a 
little  more  than  a  half  mile  wide,  embracing  what  have  been 
known  as  the  Francis  Whitcomb,  Jacob  Smith,  Winthrop  Sargent, 
Ira  Colby,  and  Joshua  Colby  farms,  was  set  off  from  the  town 
of  Unity  on  to  Claremont.  The  town  is  bounded  on  the  north 
by  Cornish,  east  by  Newport,  south  by  Unity  and  Charlestown, 
and  west  by  Charlestown  and  the  west  bank  of  the  Connecticut 
river  at  Weathersfield,  Vermont. 

The  altitudes  above  tide-water  or  sea-level  of  different  localities 
in  Claremont  and  of  Sunapee  lake,  in  feet  and  hundredths  of  a 
foot,  as  obtained  from  a  reliable  source,  are  as  follows : 

Soldiers'  monument,  Central  park    .         .  567.47 

Eailroad  station 543.10 

Junction  railroad  station   ....  473.25 

Sunapee  lake,  high  water          .         .         .  1,103.22 

It  is  in  latitude  43°  22"  north,  and  longitude  4°  46"  east  from 
Washington. 

This  is  the  largest  town  in  point  of  business,  valuation,  popu- 
lation, and  importance  in  the  western  part  of  ^e\v  Hampshire. 
There  are  but  few,  if  there  are  any,  towns  in  the  state  which 
possess  so  many  natural  advantages  and  striking  beauties  as  Clare- 
mont. Some  of  these  are  her  fertile  meadows  and  uplands  ;  high 
hills,  cultivated  or  grazed  to  their  very  tops;  large  and  produc- 


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HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT.  71 

tive  farms,  on  which  are  neat,  substantial,  and  capacious  buildings 
and  good  fences,  indicating  abodes  of  taste,  intelligence,  and 
thrift  J  and  rapid  and  useful  rivers  and  brooks.  There  is  an  air  of 
prosperity,  plenty,  comfort,  and  contentment  throughout  the  town 
found  in  but  few  places  of  similar  size  anywhere. 

The  village  is  situated  about  three  miles  due  east  from  Con- 
necticut river,  near  the  geographical  center  of  the  town,  occupies 
a  large  and  varied  area,  and  through  it,  from  east  to  west,  runs 
Sugar  river.  The  fall  of  this  river  is  about  three  hundred  feet 
in  the  town,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  of  which  is  in  the 
village,  in  a  distance  of  half  a  mile.  Each  foot  of  fall  is  capable 
of  turning  one  thousand  spindles.  This  water  power,  though  not 
fully,  is  pretty  well  occupied.  Here  is  an  abundant  market  for 
all  the  wood  and  farm  products  of  this  and  the  surrounding  towns, 
and  it  is  the  center  of  trade  for  the  western  part  of  the  county 
of  Sullivan  and  adjacent  towns  in  Vermont. 

In  the  village  are  extensive  and  prosperous  manufacturing 
establishments,  workshops,  excellent  hotels,  .national  and  savings 
banks,  stores  with  stocks  of  goods  the  equal  of  the  best  found 
in  cities;  church,  school,  and  other  substantial  and  handsome 
public  buildings;  private  residences  —  all  comfortable,  many  of 
them  large  and  elegant,  with  well  kept  lawns,  and  fruit,  flower, 
and  vegetable  gardens.  Two  aqueducts  supply  an  abundance  of 
pure  water  for  drinking  and  culinary  purposes,  and  hydrants  dis- 
tributed all  about  the  village,  with  pressure  sufficient  to  carry 
streams  over  the  highest  buildings,  with  electric  fire  alarm,  steam 
fire  engine  and  good  apparatus,  and  a  well  organized  department 
for  extinguishing  fires,  render  property  reasonably  secure  from 
destruction  by  this  element.  The  streets,  public  buildings,  stores, 
offices,  and  residences  are  lighted  by  gas  and  electricity;  and  on 
most  of  the  streets  are  concrete  and  other  good  side  and  cross 
walks.  These,  with  the  excellent  high  and  graded  schools  and 
large  free  library,  make  the  village  and  town  a  desirable  place 
of  residence. 

The  hills  and  mountains  in  and  about  Claremont  form  a  land- 
scape which  is   a  continual  source  of  pleasure  and  pride   to  her 


72'  HISTOKT   OF   CLARBMONT. 

citizens,  and  of  admiration  to  visitors.  There  are  gentle  and 
graceful  elevations  in  the  north,  Green  mountain  in  the  east^ 
Plat  Rock  and  Bible  hill  in  the  south,  and  Trisback  hill  and 
Barbouis  mountain  in  the  west  part  of  the  town;  while  Ascutney 
mountain,  just  across  Connecticut  river  in  Vermont — an  isolated^ 
conical  elevation  of  more  than  three  thousand  feet  above  ther 
valley,  with  its  ever  changing  lights  and  shades,  in  full  view  from 
many  points  in  Claremont  —  is  claimed  by  her  people  as  a  kind 
of  inheritance.  These  hills  and  mountains  are  covered  with  fresh^ 
living  green  in  summer,  all  the  varied,  rich,  warm  tints  in  autumn^ 
and  a  thick  mantle  of  snow  in  winter,  producing  scenes  of  unsur- 
passed beauty. 

The  roads  in  Claremont,  as  a  matter  of  pride  and  economy,, 
are  kept  in  good  condition,  and  the  drives  in  almost  every  direc- 
tion are  varied,  attractive,  and  pleasant.  ISTewport,  Cornish  Flat, 
and  Windsor,  Vt.,  are  each  ten  miles  distant,  and  Charlestowa- 
twelve.  In  going  to  either  of  these  places,  one  road  may  be  taken, 
and  another  in  returning,  making  an  agreeable  variety.  ,  Few 
towns  are  more  generally  healthy.  It  is  free  from  epidemics  or 
prevailing  sickness  of  any  kind,  which  is  accounted  for  by  the 
character  of  the  soil,  pure  water,  and  entire  exemption  from  fogs- 
and  the  causes  of  them,  or  malarial  influences  of  any  kind. 

LOCALITIES, 

Many  years  ago  certain  localities  in  town  became  distinguished 
by  such  names  as  Puckershire,  a  neighborhood  about  two  miles- 
east  from  the  village,  on  the  new  road  to  N'ewport;  Bible  Hill, 
an  eminence  south  of  the  village;  Green  Mountain,  a  picturesque- 
hill  northeast  of  the  village ;  Cat-Hole,  north  of  Green  Mountain  ;. 
Hop-Yard,  in  the  northeast  corner  of  the  town ;  Slab  City,  aboutp 
two  miles  north  of  the  village,  and  Dog  Hollow,  in  the  vicinity 
of  the  Sullivan  House.  There  is  no  record  as  to  the  origin  or 
the  names  as  applied  to  these  localities,  and  the  traditions  are 
various  and  conflicting  in  regard  to  them;  nor  is  it  essential  to- 
know  why  or  by  whom  they  were  thus  designated,  since  the? 
n3,meB  were  accepted  long  ago,  and  will  probably  continue  many 
years  to  come. 


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HISTORY   OF   OLAREMONT.  7S 

CLAKEMOKT  VILLAGE  IN  1822. 

Dr.  James  Hall,  in  a  letter  published  in  the  "  National  Eagle," 
describing  Claremont  in  1822,  when  he  lived  here,  is  of  interest, 
and  liberal  extracts  are  given  from  it.  Dr.  Hall  died  near  Bal- 
timore, Md.,  in  1888. 

The  township  then  contained  some  three  thousand  .inhabitants ;  was  entitled 
to  two  representatives  in  the  state  legislature,  and  was  considered  a  wealthy 
town  with  great  possibilities,  dependent  upon  its  valuable  and  easily  utilized 
water  power.  But  I  propose  merely  to  speak  of  the  village,  the  contrast  in  that 
between  the  then  and  now  being  greater. 

Five  main  roads  entered  the  village,  connecting  it  with  the  adjacent  towns 
and  villages.  The  Windsor,  or  Cornish  river  road,  entered  on  the  north  side 
of  Sugar  river,  joining  the  Newport  road  at  the  upper  bridge  and  dam.  At 
the  eastern  or  southern  extremity  of  the  Plain,  as  it  was  then  called,  the  Unity 
road  entered  —  the  one  now  leading  to  Newport.  The  Charlestown  road,  or  the 
one  leading  through  North  Charlestown,  left  the  village  by  the  back  street,  or 
"sandhill"  way,  and  a  half  mile  or  so  forked,  one  branch  passing  over  the 
hill  due  south,  the  other  deflecting  to  intersect  the  river  road  from  Charlestown 
to  Cornish.  Another  road  led  directly  west  from  the  village  center  to  the  west 
part,  or  "  Union  church." 

The  actual  number  of  buildings  and  population  can  be  better  calculated  by 
tracing  one  of  these  roads  to  the  village  center,  beginning  with  the  Windsor 
road.  The  first  house  on  coming  in  sight  of  the  churches,  after  rising  a  steep 
sand  hill  from  a  swampy  bottom,  was  one  of  two  stories,  and  occupied  by  Bill 
Barnes,  a  well-to-do  farmer,  near  which  was  that  of  his  son-in-law,  Mr.  Eastman^ 
a  tanner;  next  the  low  dwelling  and  shop  of  Jotham  Willard,  a  blacksmith", 
next  Linus  Stevens's  house  and  shop,  a  carpenter ;  next  and  near  it,  the  dwelling 
of  Oliver  Hubbard,  wagon  maker,  with  his  shop  underneath,  —  the  last  three 
all  on  the  southeast  side  of  the  road.  Nearly  opposite  the  last  named,  on  a 
slight  elevation,  was  the  two-story  house  of  Walter  Bingham;  further  on  on 
the  same  side  the  two  story  dwelling  and  small  shop  of  Eliel  Parmelee,  shoe- 
maker. Nearly  opposite  these  last  and  under  the  hill,  were  two  or  three  low 
dwellings,  occupied  by  the  overseer  and  operatives  of  a  paper  mill.  On  the- 
north  side,  next  comes  the  large  square  house  of  Mrs.  Clarke,  and  a  small 
unoccupied  store  with  stable  and  shed  —  the  house  afterwards  a  tavern.  At 
this  point  we  come  to  a  triangular  square  covered  mainly  by  logs  for  sawing, 
and  sawed  lumber,  often  blocking  the  roadway  leading  through  it.  On  the 
north  side,  or  base,  of  this  triangle  was  the  large  dwelling  and  out-houses  of 
Col.  David  Dexter,  and  a  small  house  further  on,  occupant  not  remembered; 


74  HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT. 

the  south  side  of  the  place  was  covered  by  the  miller's  house,  saw  and  grist 
mills  and  smith  shop  of  Col.  Dexter.  On  the  east  was  the  store  of  Samuel 
Fiske,  Esq.,  bordering  on  the  Newport  road,  which  joins  the  Windsor  road  at 
the  bridge.  On  the  road  north  of  Fiske's  store  were  two  or  three  small  dwellings 
occupied  by  one  Fargo,  the  bell  ringer,  and  a  man  named  Russell;  farther  out, 
and  still  to  be  reckoned  iu  the  village,  were  the  residences  of  Mr.  Abraham 
Fisher,  Mr.  Patch,  and  Mr.  Handerson,  a  tanner,  aU  men  of  means,  independent. 
This  list  comprises  every  .dwelling  and  shop  on  the  north  side  of  the  river, 
excepting  a  small  dwelling  between  Fiske's  store  and  the  bridge.  On  crossing 
the  bridge  we  come  to  three  one  story  dwellings  on  the  left,  one  owned  and 
occupied  by  Stephen  Starbird,  tailor;  next,  on  the  same  side,  the  three  story 
tavern  house  of  Daniel  Chase,  with  extensive  stables  and  yards.  On  the  oppo- 
site, or  west  side  from  the  bridge,  is  the  gristmill  of  Col.  Stevens,  and  the  low 
dwelling  and  saddler's  shop  of  Capt.  Matthew  Porter  —  the  latter  on  a  corner 
formed  by  a  cross  road  leading  to  the  dwelling  house  of  Col.  Stevens,  on  a 
level  with  the  Plain  or  common. 

To  return.  Ascending  a  sandy  hill  from  Chase's  tavern,  we  come  to  the 
Plain  with  the  meeting-house,  now  town  house,  on  the  right  and  back  and  east 
of  the  roadway,  the  burying  place,  then  the  only  cemetery  near  the  village. 
Back  of  this,  on  the  hill,  was  an  unfinished  brick  dwelling,  afterwards  owned 
and  occupied  by  Dr.  Josiah  Richards,  then  the  only  building  of  any  kind  east 
of  the  Plain.  The  octagon  brick  church,  Episcopal,  nearly  shut  in  the  path  to 
the  hill  back  —  hardly  a  road.  South  of  the  church,  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Plain,  follow  in  order,  first,  a  one  story  house  owned  by  Walter  Bingham;  a 
one  story  dwelling  occupied  by  Dr.  Richards ;  a  two  story  brick  dwelling  and 
small  store  or  shop  of  George  Fiske ;  a  low  dwelling  of  Reverend  Jonathan  Nye, 
and  small  shop  near  it;  then  a  low  brick  building  and  brick  law  office  of  Asa 
Ilolton,  Esq. ;  next  a  low  dwelling,  afterwards  a  two  story  brick,  and  shoe  shop 
of  John  Farwell ;  then  a  small  house,  or  hut,  of  Josiah  Holt,  hatter.  Then 
comes  the  swamp,  south  of  which,  on  the  corner  of  the  road  leading  to  Unity, 
is  a  one  story  dwelling.  On  this  road  east  were  two  low  dwellings  and  the 
two  story  house  of  Mr.  Brooks,  tanner,  with  yard  and  shop. 

Returning  to  the  Plain  we  find  nothing  more  on  the  east,  but  the  dwelling  of 
Ambrose  Cossit,  Esq.,  fronts  us  from  the  ultimate  south  limit  of  the  Plain 
across  the  gully,  as  it  then  was.  From  Mr.  Cossit 's  house  a  cross,  road  passes 
to  the  Charlestown  road,  on  which  there  was  one  dwelling,  shop,  and  outbuild- 
ings, occupied  by  a  Mr.  Barrett,  and  a  shoe  manufacturer  named  Alcock,  or 
Otis,  afterwards.  Recrossiug  the  gully,  passing  north  on  the  south  side  of  the 
Plain,  we  come  first  to  a  large  dwelling  and  outbuildings  owned  and  occupied 
by  Dr.  Timothy  Gleason ;  next  to  this  a  like  establishment  of  Samuel  Fiske, 
Esq.,  at  the  southwest  corner  of  a  cross  street  leading  to  what  was  then  called 
the  back  way,  or  Charlestown  road.  On  this  cross  street  were  two  dwellings, 
that  of  Rev.  J.  B.  Howe,  and  one  of  Peter  Parmelee,  with  the  cabinet  maker's 


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HISTORY   OP  CLAKEMONT.  75 

shop  of  Mr.  Parmelee.  On  the  northwest  corner  Cross  street  with  the  Plain, 
And  opposite  the  dwelling  of  Esquire  Fiske,  was  the  law  office  and  dwelling  of 
<3eorge  B.  Upham,  Esq.  Continuing  north,  next  come  the  store,  postoffloe,  and 
dwelling  of  John  Tappan,  Esq.,  formerly  a  congregational  clergyman.  Next, 
the  store  of  Glidden  &  Dean,  with  dwelling  of  Mr.  Dean  and  family  overhead. 
Next  the  shoe  factory  and  large  brick  dwelling  of  Nicholas  Farwell.  Further 
on,  at  an  angle  in  the  west  line  of  the  Plain,  is  a  shop  and  one  story  dwelling, 
afterwards  owned  and  occupied  by  Captain  Porter,  before  mentioned.  Next, 
the  hat  factory  and  dwelling  of  Nathan  Bingham.  Next  the  dwelling  of  Josiah 
Stevens,  Jr.  Next  that  of  Godfrey  Stevens,  his  yard  including  the  entire  ground 
between  the  back  street  and  the  Plain.  On  this  back  street  was  a  range  of 
large  barns  and  yards  fronting  on  it,  and  but  one  dwelling,  that  of  Alvah 
Stevens,  Immediately  west  of  the  Congregational  church,  now  town  house,  was 
a  long,  low  building,  apparently  extended  at  different  periods,  the  store  of 
Josiah  Stevens  &  Sons.  Directly  opposite,  at  the  angle  of  the  road  leading  west, 
was  the  dwelling  of  Col.  Josiah  Stevens,  afterwards  extended  and  called  the 
■Tremont  House.  On  the  road  west,  after  passing  barn  yards  on  one  side  and 
£i  range  of  outbuildings,  wood-yard,  and  sheds  on  the  other,  comes  a  low  tene- 
ment house  on  the  right;  then  the  dwelling  of  Thomas  Woolson,  at  the  angle 
«f  a  road  leading  down  to  the  river.  On  this  road  was  the  dwelling  of  Eos- 
well  Elmer,  and  a  small  one  and  shop  of  "Cooper  Smith." 

Returning  to  the  road  leading  west  we  find  the  shop  of  Woolson  &  Elmer, 
a  machine  card  factory;  then  a  dwelling  of  Colonel  Booth,  and  also  a  small 
f)ne  occupied  by  a  Miss  Petty,  an  elderly  maiden  lady.  From  this,  on  the  top 
of  the  hill,  none  other  till  we  come  to  the  dwelling  and  outbuildings  of  Eph- 
raim  Tyler  on  the  right,  nearly  opposite  a  by-road  leading  to  the  Charlestown 
road,  some  half  a  mile  away.  On  this  road  is  the  two-story  dwelling  of  Austin 
Tyler,  and  further  on,  a  smaller  one  occupied  by  a  Mr.  Draper,  house  painter. 
At  the  angle  formed  by  this  road  and  the  one  leading  west,  is  a  small  dwelling 
find  shop  occupied  by  a  Mr.  Turner,  a  wheelwright.  From  this  a  road  leads 
to  the  river,  which  is  here  crossed  by  a  bridge,  and  then  extends  to  intersect 
the  Windsor  road  at  our  place  of  starting.  On  the  east  or  south  side  of  the 
river,  just  above  the  bridge,  are  the  grist  and  sawing  mills  of  Ephraim  Tyler 
&  Sons;  on  the  north  side  a  carding  machine  and  possibly  clothing  works  of 
Benjamin  Meaoham. 

This  rough  sketch,  at  random,  from  memory,  extending  back  sixty  and  odd 
years,  embraces  nearly  every  dwelling  house,  name  of  occupant,  and  the  various 
shops  and  stores  in  the  village  of  Claremont  in  1822.  The  general  summary 
fihows  some  sixty  dwellings  in  all,  twenty  on  the  north  side  and  forty  on  the 
fiouth  side  of  the  river.  Allowing  six  people  to  a  house,  a  fair  estimate,  the 
village  then  contained  360  souls,  or  making  allowance  for  oversight,  say  400. 
JBy  no  fair  calculation  could  it  reach  500. 

Use  of  the  Water  Power.    The  upper  dam,  where  the  main  bridge  crosses 


76  HISTORY    OF    CLARBMONT, 

the  stream,  supplies  the  saw  and  grist  mill  of  Colonel  Dexter,  together  with 
his  smithing  works,  scythe  factory,  etc.,  on  the  north  side;  and  the  grist  mill 
of  Colonel  Stevens  on  the  south  side.  The  second  dam  supplies  the  paper  mill 
of  Josiah  Stevens  &  Sons,  and  the  fulling  mill  and  clothing  workt>  of  Walter 
Bingham  on  the  north  side,  and  the  casting,  stove,  sheetiron,  and  carding  ma- 
chine factory  of  Woolson  &  Elmer  on  the  south.  A  small,  low  dam  further 
west  is  used  by  Mr.  Eastman,  the  tanner.  The  fourth  dam  runs  the  mill  of 
Ephraim  Tyler  &  Son,  and  the  carding  machine  of  Benjamin  Meacham. 
There  were  four  stores  in  the  village,  nearly,  in  capital  employed  and  business, 
as  in  order  named :  Josiah  Stevens  &  Sons,  Samuel  Fiske,  Glidden  &  Dean, 
and  George  Fiske.  They  were  supplied  with  goods  mainly  from  Boston;  the 
merchants  generally  visiting  the  then  town,  after  a  city,  twice  a  year,  and 
the  hauling  to  and  from  was  mainly  done  by  a  six  horse  wagon  owned  and 
driven  by  one  Hazeltine. 

The  business  which  brought  money  to  the  village  was  the  extensive  morocco 
shoe  factories  of  Nicholas  and  John  Farwell  and  Cyrus  B.  Alcock,  or  Otis. 
They  were,  in  number  of  hands  engaged  and  work  marketed,  nearly  in  the  order 
above,  or  perhaps  the  factory  of  Nicholas  Farwell  equalled  those  of  the  other 
two.  The  product  of  all  was  marketed  in  Vermont  or  northern  New  Hamp- 
shire, supplanting  all  others,  from  the  excellence  of  the  work. 

The  next  production  for  export  was  that  of  Woolson  &  Elmer,  consisting  of 
machine  cards  and  iron  castings,  stoves  of  sheet  and  cast  iron,  etc.  The  ma- 
chine card  and  shoe  manufacture  afforded  remunerative  labor  for  many  women 
and  children,  in  shoe  binding  and  lining  and  setting  the  wire  teeth  in  the 
leathers  of  the  cards. 

The  paper  mill  furnished  an  article  of  export.  The  scythe  factory  also,  and 
possibly  the  three  tanneries,  especially  that  of  Mr.  Eastman,  did  more  than 
supply  the  home  demand. 

The  professions  of  law,  medicine,  and  theology  were  filled  by  couples,  two  of 
each,  in  order  as  below :  Messrs.  Upham  and  Holton  in  law.  Doctors  Richards- 
and  Gleason  in  medicine,  and  Reverends  Nye  and  Howe  as  pastors  or  preachers. 
Occasionally  a  Methodist  preacher  held  services  in  some  hall  or  schoolhouse, 
but  no  church  building  existed  at  that  time  of  that  denomination,  nor  of  the 
Baptist,  either. 

It  is  not  my  intent  to  characterize  the  town,  village,  or  individuals,  but  merely 
to  show  what  might  be  called  in  modern  parlance  the  plant  of  the  village, 
the  number  and  locality  of  the  dwellings,  the  names  of  their  occupants,  and  to 
sketch  briefly  the  various  industries  of  the  place.  Were  a  citizen  asked  as  to 
the  general  character  of  the  village  as  to  business,  the  answer  would  have  been, 
"a  very  dull  place,  a  dead-and-alive  place."  This  was  the  character  of  the 
village  at  that  time,  at  home  and  in  the  neighboring  towns  and  villages,  mainly 
owing,  I  think,  to  the  lack  of  business  capacity  or  enterprise  of  its  merchants 
or  traders.      The   stock  of   goods    in    any    and   all   the   stores   merely   covered 


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HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  77 

articles  of  every  day  use  and  necessity  of  what  we  might  call  common  people. 
The  best  shopping  was  done  in  Windsor,  some  in  Newport,  and  I  well  recol- 
lect one,  in  want  of  a  buffalo  robe,  sought  it  successfully  in  Unity. 

Although  a  dull  place  the  people  were  mostly,  even  for  that  day,  a  moral  and 
a,  religious  people  or  community.  They  were  about  evenly  divided  in  politics 
and  religion,  but  in  both  quite  tolerant. 

What  Claremont  lacked  at  that  time  was  a  printing  office,  a  bank,  a  library, 
or  a  bookstore  at  least,  an  apothecary,  a  jeweler,  a  milliner.  It  had  not  even 
a  fire  engine. 

My  self-imposed  task  is  done  in  placing  before  you  the  then.  You  have  the 
now.  The  change  is  no  way  remarkable  in  this  country,  even  in  New  England. 
It  is  rather  remarkable  that  it  has  been  so  long  in  coming.  I  am  sensible  this 
sketch  can  interest  no  one  except  a  resident  of  the  village  at  this  time,  and  of 
those  only  the  curious.  Were  the  ground  plotted  and  the  various  improvements 
jotted  down,  even  on  a  rough  lithograph,  it  would  be  of  more  interest  and 
worthy  of  preservation. 


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ECCLESIASTICAL. 


CHAPTER    VII. 


CONGREGATIONAL    CHURCH. 


In  1771  the  entire  number  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  was 
less  than  fifty,  and  of  these  only  a  portion  remained  here  during 
the  winter.  Up  to  this  time  no  steps  had  been  taken  to  secure  the 
permanent  settlement  of  a  minister.  The  greater  part  of  the  set- 
tlers belonged  to  the  Congregational  church  —  the  prevailing  theo- 
logical system  of  New  England — and  unless  a  person  was  connected 
with  some  ecclesiastical  body  of  a  different  denomination,  he  was 
compelled  to  pay  taxes  for  the  support  of  this  society,  was  con- 
sidered as  under  its  spiritual  guidance,  to  some  extent  subject  to  its 
jurisdiction,  and  the  authority  was  exercised  to  enforce  the  collec- 
tion of  taxes  without  regard  to  the  condition  of  membership. 

From  an  early  period  of  the  settlement  of  the  town,  a  portion  of 
the  inhabitants  had  formed  themselves  into  an  ecclesiastical  body 
and  observed  religious  services  regularly  on  the  Sabbath.  Samuel 
Cole,  who  came  here  in  1767,  was  appointed  their  reader,  and  to 
some  degree  supplied  the  lack  of  a  settled  minister.  He  was  a 
graduate  of  Yale  college,  and  for  many  years  was  very  useful  as  an 
instructor  of  youth.  At  a  meeting  of  a  few  of  the  inhabitants  in- 
terested in  the  Congregational  denomination  early  in  the  spring  of 
1771,  Thomas  Gustin  suggested  that  it  was  a  duty  binding  upon  all 
to  adopt  immediate  measures  for  the  settlement  of  a  minister  of 
the  gospel ;  that  the  settlement  was  sufiiciently  large  and  able  to 
support  a  religious  teacher ;  and  besides,  the  share  of  land  reserved 
by  the  charter  for  the  first  settled  minister  would  enable  him  to 
furnish  himself  with  a  portion  of  his  subsistence,  and  to  some  ex- 
tent lighten  the  burden  of  the  community.     He  urged   immediate 


82  HISTOKY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

action,  lest  this  share  of  land  should  fall  to  some  other  society  by  a 
prior  compliance  on  its  part  with  the  terms  of  the  charter. 

Accordingly,  at  a  town  meeting  on  May  9,  1771,  at  the  house  of 
Thomas  Jones,  "warned  according  to  law,"  Thomas  Gustin  was 
chosen  moderator.     It  was 

Voted  that  we  will  call  a  Minister  to  come  and  preach  the  Gospel  among  us  on 
Probation  in  order  to  settle  in  the  Gospel  ministry  among  us.  Voted  in  the 
Affirmative,  Thos.  Gustin,  Wm.  Sumner,  Ebenezer  Skinner,  Capt.  B.  Sumner, 
Jacob  Rice,  Joseph  Wright,  John  Kilborn,  Asaph  Atwater,  John  Spencer,  Asa 
Jones,  Jonas  Stewart,  Barnabas  Ellis,  Joseph  Ives,  Joseph  Hubbard,  Beriah  Mur- 
ly,  Amaziah  Wright,  Gid'n  Lewis,  Timothy  Dustin,  and  Thos.  Dustin.  In  the 
Negative,  Amos  York,  Oliver  Ashley,  and  Moses  Spaford.  Capt.  B.  Sumner,- 
and  Messrs  Thos.  Gustin,  and  Samuel  Ashley  chose  a  committee  to  call  a  Min- 
ister to  settle  among  us.  Voted  to  apply  to  Mr.  Elijah  Parsons  to  come  and 
preach  the  Gospel  among  us  on  probation  in  order  to  settle  with  us.  But  if  he 
fails  to  apply  to  Dr.  Wheelock  for  advice  who  to  apply  to  in  his  room. 

December  10th,  A.  D.  1771.  A  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  Town  of 
Claremont  qualified  to  vote  in  common  affairs  of  the  town,  warned  according  to 
Law,  at  the  South  School  House.  Samuel  Chase,  Esq.,  was  chosen  Moderator. 
Voted  to  give  Mr.  George  Wheaton  a  call,  and  do  call  Mr.  George  Wheaton  to 
settle  among  us  in  the  work  of  the  Gospel  Ministry  agreeable  to  the  Congrega- 
tional or  Cambridge  Platform.  For  encouragement  for  Mr.  Wheaton  to  settle 
with  us  we  do  agree  and  vote  to  give  Mr.  Wheaton  the  Ministerial  Right  of 
Land  given  to  the  Town  by  Charter  for  the  first  settled  Minister,  and  also  Fifty 
Pounds  Lawful  Money,  fifteen  to  be  paid  in  money  and  the  rest  to  be  paid  in 
specie  for  building  at  money  price.  At  the  same  meeting  voted  to  give  Mr. 
Wheaton  for  Salary  forty-five  Pounds  Lawful  money  for  the  first  year,  and  to  rise 
five  Pounds  pr.  year  until  it  amounts  to  Eighty  Pounds,  one  half  to  be  paid  in 
money  yearly  and  the  rest  to  be  paid  in  provision  at  money  price,  and  that  to 
be  his  stated  salary.  Moses  Spafford  and  AVilliam  Porter  protested  against  the 
whole  proceedings  of  the  meeting  and  ordered  their  protest  to  be  recorded.  At 
the  same  meeting  Voted  to  choose  a  Committee  to  present  the  doings  of  this 
meeting  to  Mr.  Wheaton,  and  to  agree  with  him  upon  the  conditions  above  men- 
tioned and  to  make  suitable  return  to  the  Town  of  Claremont.  At  the  same 
meeting  Messrs  Phineas  Fuller,  Capt.  B.  Sumner,  Ebenezer  Skinner,  and  Dr. 
Sumner  chosen  a  committee  for  the  purpose  aforesaid.  At  the  same  meeting 
Voted  to  adjourn  this  meeting  to  this  place  until  next  tuesday  come  sevenight 
at  10  o'clock  in  the  morning. 

Met  according  to  adjournment,  Samuel  Chase,  Moderator.  At  the  same  meet- 
ing Voted  to  adjourn  for  the  space  of  one  hour  to  the  house  of  Capt.  B.  Sum- 
ner.   Met  according  to  adjournment.    Mr.  Wheaton's  answer  as  followeth  : 


HISTORY    OP    CLAREMONT.  83 

To  the  Church  of  Christ  and  other  Inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Claremont: 

Gentlemen  —  Whereas  you  have  given  me  a  call  to  settle  among  you  in  the 
work  of  the  Gospel  Ministry,  so  I  return  you  my  sincere  and  very  hearty  thanks 
for  the  respect  you  have  shown  unto  me  herein.  I  have  taken  into  serious  and 
deliberate  consideration  and  have  been  instant  at  the  Thrown  of  Divine  Grace 
for  direction  of  Almighty  God  in  so  weighty  and  important  a  matter  as  that  of 
my  taking  the  charge  of  a  flock,  and  I  have  also  taken  advice  of  my  friends  and 
Fathers  in  the  Gospel  Ministry. 

And  this  is  to  signify  to  you,  my  Christian  friends,  that  upon  a  mature  consid- 
eration I  do  find  it  my  duty  to  accept  of  your  call  to  settle  among  you  in  the  work 
of  the  Gospel  Ministry,  and  accordingly  I  do  accept  of  the  Proposals  made  unto 
me  in  your  Call,  both  with  regard  to  settlement  and  Salary. 

And  may  God  in  his  infinite  mercy  grant  that  I  may  be  more  and  more  furnished 
and  qualified  for  so  great,  arduous  and  glorious  work,  and  make  me  a  faithful 
minister  of  the  new  testament,  not  of  the  Letter  but  of  the  spirit,  and  may  Grace, 
Mercy  and  Truth  be  multiplied  to  you  and  to  all  the  Churches  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.  And  may  we  grow  in  Grace  and  in  the  Knowledge  of  our  Lord  and 
Savior,  Jesus  Christ,  to  him  be  glory  in  the  Church  both  now  and  for  ever. 
Amen. 

I  subscribe  myself  your  sincere  friend  in  Heart,  and  affectionate  Brother  in 
our  Immanuel. 

George  Wheaton. 

December  23d,  1771. 

If  there  was  at  that  time  a  Congregational  church  organization 
in  town,  the  record  of  it  has  been  lost. 

Mr.  "Wheaton,  who  was  a  native  of  Mansfield,  Conn.,  was  settled 
on  the  nineteenth  of  February,  1772.  The  ordination  sermon 
was  preached  by  Rev.  Abiel  Leonard,  of  Woodstock,  Conn.,  the 
exercises  being  performed  in  the  South  schoolhouse,  a  frame 
building  forty  feet  long  by  thirty  wide,  covered  with  rough  boards, 
with  rude  benches  for  seats  and  a  floor  of  earth.  It  was  on 
Town  hill,  but  a  short  distance  from  the  residence  of  the  late  Rus- 
sell Jarvis. 

At  the  time  of  his  settlement  Mr.  Wheaton  was  not  in  robust 
health.  In  April,  1773,  such  was  his  feeble  condition  that  he  was 
obliged  to  abandon  his  charge  and  return  to  the  home  of  his 
father,  in  Norton,  Mass.,  where  he  died  on  the  twenty-fourth  of 
the  following  June,  at  the  age  of  twenty-two  years, 
to  have  been  a  young  man  of  considerable  ability,  and  that  by  his 


84  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

sincerity  and  earnestness  as  a  pastor  he  had  endeared  himself 
to  the  people  over  whom  he  had  been  but  for  a  few  months. 
By  a  law  then  in  force  it  was  imperative  upon  the  selectmen 
to  take  due  care  that  tithingmen  be  annually  chosen  at  the 
general  meeting  for  the  choice  of  town  officers,  "  whereof  at 
least  two  shall  be  in  each  town,  and  not  above  ten  in  any," 
whose  duty  it  was  to  inspect  all  licensed  houses,  and  to  inform 
of  all  disorder  therein  committed ;  and  also  to  inform  of  all  idle 
and  disorderly  persons,  profane  swearers,  and  Sabbath-breakers. 
Each  was  "to  carry  a  black  staiF  two  feet  long,  tip't  at  one  end 
Avith  brass  or  pewter  about  three  inches,  as  a  badge  of  their 
office,  the  same  to  be  provided  by  the  selectmen  at  the  expense 
of  the  town."  Either  by  virtue  of  their  office  or  by  common 
consent,  they  seem  to  have  been  invested  with  power  to  inflict 
punishment  at  once  upon  such  as  they  might  find  engaged  in 
any  misdemeanors  during  public  worship,  or  between  the  morn- 
ing and  afternoon  services  on  the  Sabbath.  They  were  vigilant 
and,  if  tradition  may  be  relied  upon,  rigid  in  their  notions  of 
order  and  sobriety,  especially  on  Sundays.  On  one  occasion  when 
meetings  were  held  in  the  South  schoolhouse,  John,  a  son  of  Mr. 
Thomas  Gustin,  was  obliged  to  "stand  strate  upon  the  bench  dur- 
ing the  singing  of  the  last  psalm,  and  there  to  remain  until  the 
meeting  is  dismissed  and  the  people  have  left  the  house,  for  turn- 
ing round  three  times,  and  for  not  paying  attention  to  Mr.Wheaton 
while  he  is  preaching."  It  was  not  usual  for  the  tithingmen  to 
call  out  the  offender,  pronounce  sentence  upon  him  and  put  it  in 
execution  during  the  performance  of  the  various  exercises  of  public 
worship,  but  it  seems  it  was  sometimes  done. 

The  Eev.  Augustine  Hibbard,  the  second  minister,  was  settled 
October  19,  1774,  and  dismissed  December  28,  1785.  By  reason 
of  his  eccentricities,  inconsistencies,  and  perhaps  for  other  reasons 
for  which  he  was  not  accountable,  his  pastorate  of  a  little  more  than 
eleven  years  did  not  result  in  much  good  to  [the  people  of  the 
town.  Mr.  Hibbard  was  born  in  "Windham  county,  Conn.,  March 
27,  1648;  graduated  at  Dartmouth  college  in  1772  —  being  one  of 
two  students  w^ho  graduated  there  that  year.  It  was  the  second  year 


HISTORY    OF    CLAEEMONT.  85 

when  degrees  were  conferred  at  that  college.  It  is  not  known  that 
he  had  another  settlement  as  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  after  his  dis- 
missal at  Claremont.  After  the  close  of  the  Kevolutionary  War  he 
removed  to  Canada,  where  he  officiated  as  magistrate  for  many 
years  and  was  frequently  employed  by  the  government  there  to 
discbarge  various  duties  and  important  trusts.  He  died  at  the 
home  of  his  son.  Major  Hibbard,  at  Stanstead,  Canada,  on  De- 
cember 4,  1831,  at  the  age  of  eighty -three  years. 

The  most  reliable  account  of  the  first  meeting-house  is,  that  a 
building  to  be  used  as  a  Congregational  meeting-house  was  erected 
near  what  is  known  as  the  Harvey  Draper  place,  on  the  road  to  the 
junction  of  the  Sullivan  and  Concord  &  Claremont  railroads  in 
1785  ;  that  in  1790  it  was  taken  down  and  removed  in  pieces  to  the 
location  of  the  present  town-house,  and  there  put  together  again, 
and  the  next  year  was  finished  inside.  In  1808  the  east  tower  and 
the  front,  or  circular  portion,  were  added.  From  that  time  until 
1835,  when  the  new  Congregational  meeting-house,  on  Pleasant 
street,  was  erected,  this  building  was  used  both  as  a  church  and 
town-house.  After  that  date  its  use  for  a  church  was  abandoned, 
and  it  has  since  been  used  exclusively  as  a  town-house.  This  Con- 
gregational meeting-house  on  Pleasant  street  was.  dedicated  on 
February  3,  1836.  In  1871  it  was  thoroughly  remodelled  inside 
and  all  the  pews  made  the  common  property  of  the  society,  to 
be  rented  to  pay  for  preaching  and  other  expenses.  A  fine  bell 
was  placed  in  the  tower  in  April,  1874. 

In  1785  it  was  decided  by  vote  in  town  meeting  "that  those 
people  who  call  themselves  Baptists  pay  know  more  rates  to  the 
Congregational  order  for  the  fewter." 

Originally  the  towns  in  New  Hampshire  were  parishes  for  the 
support  of  the  ministry  established  by  a  majority.  These  were 
generally  Congregationalists,  and  Presbyterians,  Methodists,  and 
Baptists  were  taxed  for  the  support  of  the  Congregationalists  who 
had  created  the  parish. 

Christopher  Erskine  was  a  resident  of  Claremont  and  was  liable 
to  pay  tax  to  support  the  Congregational  society  here.  He  was  a 
Universalist,  and  in  1796  united  with  the  Universalist  society  in 


86  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

Charlestown,  and  presented  the  follovviug  certificate,  which  it  was 
supposed  would  meet  all  the  legal  requirements,  and  relieve  him 
from  the  payment  of  any  future  minister  tax  assessed  against  him 
in  this  town : 

Chaelestown,  Feb.  19,  1796. 
This  may  certify  lliat  Christoplier  Erskine  belongs  to  tlie  Universalist  Society 

and  contributes  to  tliat  order. 

William  Faewell,  Elder. 

Recorded  Feb.  23,  1796.' 

Notwithstanding  this  certificate,  the  selectmen — Gideon  ilan- 
derson  and  Alexander  Pickens  —  assessed  Mr.  Erskine  $4.49,  being 
his  proportion  of  $300  voted  to  be  raised  by  the  Congregational 
society  to  support  the  minister  in  1799.  Mr.  Erskine  refused  or 
neglected  to  pay  this  assessment,  was  arrested  by  the  collector  and 
thus  compelled  to  pay.  He  brought  suit  against  Messrs.  Hander- 
son  and  Pickens  in  a  plea  of  trespass,  for  compelling  him,  by  ille- 
gal imprisonment,  to  pay  this  tax.  The  case  was  tried  before 
Erancis  Smith,  Justice  of  the  Peace,  in  March,  1801,  and  was  de- 
cided in  favor  of  the  defendants.  Mr.  Erskine  appealed  to  the 
Court  of  Common  Pleas,  the  case  was  tried  by  a  jury,  and  he  re- 
covered $6.50,  and  costs,  $57.34.  The  case  was  taken  to  the  Su- 
preme Court  on  exceptions  by  Ilanderson  and  Pickens;  the  judg- 
ment of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  was  reversed,  and  the  follow- 
ing certificate  was  made  by  Chief  Justice  Olcott,  which  evidently 
refers  to  a  case  of  earlier  date  than  that  of  Erskine  : 

I  certify  that  it  has  been  settled  by  the  Supreme  Court  that  persons  called 
Universalists  are  not  such  a  sect,  persuasion,  or  denomination,  as  by  the  Con- 
stitution of  New  Hampshire  are  exempt  from  the  payment  of  taxes  for  the  sup- 
port of  a  regularly  settled  minister  of  a  Congregational  Society  in  the  town 
where  such  person  lives.  And  I  think  that  in  establishing  this  practice  the  court 
were  unanimous. 

Simeon  Olcott. 

April  ye  Sd,  1801. 

The  New  Hampshire  legislature,  in  June,  1805,  took  this  action  : 

A  resolve  that  all  the  people  of  this  State  known  by  the  name  of  Universalists 
be  and  they  are  hereby  recognized  as  a  distinct  religious  sect  or  denomination 


•Records  ot  Claremont. 


HISTORY    OF   CLARBMONT.  87 

from  any  other,  and  are  entitled  to  all  the  privileges  and  immunities  which  any 
other  denomination  is  entitled  to  by  the  Constitution  and  laws  of  said  State,  was 
brought  up,  read  and  concurred,  presented  and  approved. 

There  was  no  settled  pastor  from  the  time  of  Mr.  Hibbard's 
dismission  until  March  9,  1796,  when  John  Tappan  was  ordained. 
He  was  dismissed  in  1802.  He  was  excommunicated  from  the 
•church  the  following  year,  entered  mercantile  life,  and  remained 
in  town  until  his  death,  which  occurred  October  1,  1837,  at  the 
age  of  68  years.  He  was  a  native  of  East  Kingston,  Mass.,  and 
graduated  at  Harvard  College  in  1790.  From  the  following 
record  on  the  town  books  it  would  seem  that  there  was  consid- 
erable opposition  to  Mr.  Tappan's  settlement  as  a  minister  over 
the  Congregational  society. 

Be  it  known  to  all  whom  it  may  concern,  that  we  the  subscribers,  Inhab- 
itants of  the  Town  of  Claremont  in  the  County  of  Cheshire  &  State  of  New 
Hampshire,  do  hereby  express  our  dissent  against  paying  or  contributing  towards 
the  support  of  Mr.  John  Tappan  as  Minister  of  the  Congregational  Society  in 
said  town  of  Claremont. 

December  18th,  1795.  Reuben  Pettkt, 

Keuben  Pettey,  Jun'r. 

Recorded  Dec'r  22d,  1795. 

A  similar  dissent,  dated  January  9,  1796,  signed  James  Stro- 
bridge,  was  recorded  the.  day  of  its  date. 

At  a  town  meeting  held  June  9,  1794,  Elihu  Stevens  was 
chosen  agent  to  present  a  petition  to  the  G-eneral  Court  for  an 
act  to  incorporate  the  Congregational  Society  of  Claremont,.  and 
to  attend  to  the  same  as  action  might  require.  An  act  was 
passed  by  both  branches  of  the  legislature  and  presented  to  the 
•Governor,  John  Taylor  Gilman,  for  his  approval.  June  18,  1794, 
he  vetoed  the  bill  for  the  reason,  as  set  forth  in  his  message  to  the 
legislature,  that 

The  bill  purports  that  the  society  may  hold  real  and  personal  estate  to  the 
amount  of  three  hundred  pounds  neat  yearly  income,  but  for  what  purpose  is 
not  expressed. 

Also, 

The  bill  purports  that  they  may  consider  persons  coming  of  age,  or  moving 
into  town  as  belonging  to  this  society  which  has  the  appearance  of  givmg  pre- 


88  HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT. 

ference  to  them  when  compared  to  the  other  society  of  said  Claremont  incor- 
porated by  an  act  passed  February  19,  1794.  That  it  expressly  authorizes  them 
to  tax  persons  moving  into  town  or  coming  of  age,  but  no  mention  is  made  of 
taxing  the  society.  That  the  bill  does  not  appear  to  the  Governor  to  be  per- 
fectly consistent  with  the  sixth  article  of  the  bill  of  Rights. 

This  society  was  not  incorporated  until  June  20,  1815,  when 
an  act  was  passed  and  approved  by  Governor  Gilman,  granting 
to  Josiah  Stevens,  Samuel  Fiske,  David  Dexter,  Thomas  Warner, 
Gideon  Handerson  and  their  associates,  and  those  who  may  here- 
after associate  with  them,  by  the  name  and  style  of  the  Congre- 
gational Society  in  Claremont,  all  the  powers,  jOTvileges,  and 
immunities  incident  to  corporations  of  a  similar  nature. 

Eor  about  two  years  from  August,  1803,  Eev.  Elijah  Brainerd 
was  acting  pastor.  Under  him  the  church  was  reorganized  by  the 
adoption  of  more  explicit  articles  of  faith  and  covenant,  and  rules 
of  discipline.  The  members  of  the  church  were  enrolled  for  the 
first  time,  so  far  as  appears,  in  1804.  The  names  of  sixteen  male 
members  and  twenty  female  members  are  recorded  at  that  time. 

Kev.  Stephen  Farley  was  installed  December  24,  1806.  His  pas- 
torate closed  April  4,  1819.  The  "  Church  Manual,"  published  in 
1879, says : 

The  first  marked  revival  occurred  in  1816 ;  as  a  result  fifty-four  were  added 
to  the  church  on  profession  of  faith  in  that  j'ear.  This  work  of  grace,  however, 
brought  no  peace.  The  pastor's  attitude  in  relation  to  it  was  not  satisfactory  to 
those  most  active  in  promoting  it,  and  he  seems  not  to  have  enjoyed  the  confi- 
dence of  the  new  converts.  The  result  was  divisions  in  the  church,  and  a  pain- 
ful want  of  harmony  between  the  church  and  society,  the  latter  sympathizing 
strongly  with  the  pastor.  During  the  years  1819  and  1820,  no  new  members 
were  received.  Not  long  after  his  dismission  Mr.  Farley  became  openly  a 
Unitarian. 

He  lived  at  Amesbury,  Mass.,  several  years,  and  died  there  Sept. 
26,  1851,  at  the  age  of  72  years. 

The  Claremont  Congregational  Society  was  formed  February  20, 
1806,  and  held  its  first  meeting  June  9  of  that  year.  Up  to  this 
time  parish  meetings  were  called  by  the  selectmen  of  the  town, 
and  the  records  kept  by  the  town  clerk.  "  The  Congregational 
Society  of  Claremont"  was  incorporated  June  20,  1815. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAUBMONT.  89 

"  The  society  took  the  lead  in  calling  the  next  pastor,  Eev.  Jona- 
than Nye.  He  received  and  accepted  the  society's  call  in  the  au- 
tumn of  1820.  But  it  was  not  until  the  May  following  that  the 
church  was  prevailed  upon  to  accept  him,  and  then  not  without 
many  misgivings.  He  was  installed  June  6,  1821,  not,  however,  to 
enjoy  a  quiet  ministry.  Those  were  days  of  discipline  in  more 
than  a  single  sense,  of  which  the  aged  speak  with  sorrow.  The 
misgivings  of  the  church  proved  to  he  too  well  founded.  Mr.  l^ye 
was  dismissed  in  1828." 

Tradition  has  it  that  after  Mr.  Nye  was  dismissed  from  his  pas- 
torate, charges  were  preferred  against  him  as  an  unworthy  member 
of  the  church,  and  he  was  subjected  to  a  trial  of  considerable  length. 
The  charges  seemed  to  have  been  substantiated  by  proof,  and  Mr. 
Nye  was  called  upon  for  any  answer  which  he  might  have  to  make. 
He  arose,  and  in  a  very  cool  and  respectful  manner  said,  in  sub- 
stance, that  he  had  listened  very  attentively  to  the  proceedings, 
and  while  doing  so  it  had  occurred  to  him  that  if  he  was  to  be 
turned  out  of  the  church,  it  might  be  necessary  for  him  to  join  it 
first.  The  fact  was  that  he  had  never  been  admitted  as  a  member 
of  the  Congregational  church. 

Mr.  Nye  is  represented  as  a  man  of  imposing  appearance,  an  attrac- 
tive and  impressive  speaker,  and  especially  gifted  in  prayer.  He 
had  political  aspirations,  was  representative  in  the  legislature  in 
1825,  state  senator  in  1827,  and  postmaster  for  several  years.  He 
held  high  offices  in  the  Masonic  fraternity,  and  was  in  many  ways 
a  prominent  character  in  this  section.  He  was  more  respected  for 
his  talents  than  for  his  private  virtues.  He  died  at  Fort  Madison, 
Iowa,  April  1,  1843. 

Difficulty  arose  again  in  the  choice  of  a  new  minister.  In  a 
meeting  of  the  society  forty-two  votes  were  cast  in  favor  of  calling 
Mr.  Moses  Thomas,  a  Unitarian,  and  but  forty-four  against.  Mr. 
Elijah  Paine  was  finally  called  by  the  church  with  the  concurrence 
of  the  society,  and  ordained  April  1,  1829.  His  ministry  was 
marked  by  earnest,  evangelical  preaching,  and  eighty  were  added 
to  the  church  on  profession  of  faith  in  1830  and  1831.     Strong 


90  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 


& 


ground  was  taken  in  the  cause  of  temperance.  It  was  voted  in 
1833,  "  That  this  Church  admit  no  more  members  to  her  Commun- 
ion as  regular  members,  unless  they  first  sign  a  pledge  to  abstain 
from  all  use  of  ardent  spirits  as  a  beverage."  Mr.  Paine  was  dis- 
missed IsTov.  14,  1833. 

Eev.  Tertius  D.  Southworth  was  installed  June  18, 1834.  A  Mr. 
Burchard  was  laboring  as  a  revivalist  at  this  period  with  neighbor- 
ino-  churches.  Mr.  Southworth  was  opposed  to  his  methods,  and 
this  was  thought  to  have  hastened  the  termination  of  his  pastorate, 
which  occurred  July  31,  1838. 

The  following  is  an  extract  from  the  will  of  Joel  Richards,  exe- 
cuted July  5,  1837,  soon  after  which  he  died  : 

I  o-ive  and  devise  one-third  part  of  my  real  and  personal  estate  to  the  Congre- 
o-ational  Church  and  Society  in  said  Claremont,  as  a  permanent  fund,  the  inter- 
est of  which  is  to  be  appropriated  and  used  in  the  delivering  occasionally  a 
course  of  Lectures  to  said  Church  and  Society  on  the  following  subjects,  to  wit : 
"  The  doctrine  oi  Divine  decrees  and  personal  election,"  "  The  doctrine  of  total 
depravity  of  the  human  heart,"  "The  necessity  of  a  change  of  heart  by  the 
gracious  operations  of  the  holy  spirit,"  and  "On  the  errors  of  Popery."  The 
said  lectures  to  be  under  the  regulation  of  the  deacons  of  said  church,  according 
to  their  best  discretion  to  effect  the  greatest  good  in  said  Cliurch  and  Society  in 
relation  to  the  subjects  and  doctrines  above  mentioned.  And  I  do  hereby 
authorize  and  empower  my  executor  hereafter  named,  if  he  think  proper,  to  give 
a  good  and  sufficient  deed  or  deeds,  lease  or  leases,  or  other  conveyance  of  any 
real  estate  I  may  be  possessed  of  at  my  decease,  and  convert  the  same  into  per- 
sonal estate  to  be  paid  over  to  legatees  according  to  the  terms  of  this  Will.  The 
donation  last  mentioned  to  remain  in  the  hands  of  my  executor  hereafter  named, 
he  paying  the  interest  annually  to  the  said  deacons  of  the  Church,  to  be  laid 
out  as  above  mentioned,  and  giving  satisfactory  bonds  to  said  Congregational 
Society  for  the  security  of  said  donation.  And  I  do  constitute  and  appoint 
James  H.  Bingham  of  said  Claremont  the  executor  of  tliis  Will,  whose  duty  it 
shall  be  to  pay  over  the  two  first  mentioned  bequests  in  one  year  from  my 
decease. 

(Signed.)  Joel  Richards. 

Witnesses  —  Thomas  B.  Kittredge. 
William  A.  Howard. 
Luther  Averill. 

There  is  no  available  record  as  to  the  compliance  with  the  terms 
of  this  bequest,  or  of  the  disposition  of  the  funds  derived  from  it. 


HISTORY    OF   CLARBMONT.  91 

Mr.  Southworth  is  represented  to  have  been  an  upright,  con- 
scientious man  and  able  preacher,  and  his  dismission  was  regretted 
by  many.  Subsequently  he  was  for  many  years  pastor  of  Dr.  Em- 
mons's church,  at  Franklin,  Mass. 

B,ev.  Robert  F.  Lawrence  was  installed  January  16,  1839.  His 
labors  seemed  to  be  crowned  with  success,  and  more  than  forty 
were  added  to  the  church  in  that  year.  In  1842,  in  union  meet- 
ings, the  whole  town  was  moved,  and  forty-one  were  added  to  this 
church.     Another  revival  occurred  in  1853. 

In  1840  twenty-eight  members  of  the  church,  many  of  whom 
were  thought  to  be  good  Christians,  were  suspended  from  church 
privileges,  on  account  of  their  having  subscribed  to  a  "  covenant 
of  Christians,  who,  irrespective  of  religious  denominations,  decide 
on  cultivating  unitedly  holiness  of  heart  and  a  millennial  spirit." 
Some  were  subsequently  restored,  but  thirteen  were  finally  excom- 
municated September  15,  1841.  Mr.  Lawrence's  ministry  contin- 
ued until  January  24,  1863,  twenty-four  years. 

This  was  Mr.  Lawrence's  last  settlement  in  the  gospel  ministry, 
though  he  preached  occasionally  as  a  supply.  He  was  born  at 
Moria,  K  Y.,  August  9,  1810;  graduated  at  Middlebury,  Vt,  col- 
lege, in  1832;  was  ordained  in  1834,  and'  preached  at  "Westport 
and  Gouverneur,  N.  Y.,  until  his  settlement  in  Claremont.  He  pre- 
pared with  much  care  a  book,  "  The  New  Hampshire  Churches," 
comprising  histories  of  the  Congregational  and  Presbyterian 
churches  in  this  state,  which  was  published  in  1856.  He  was  es- 
pecially interested  in  the  cause  of  temperance,  and  delivered  and 
published  a  course  of  lectures  upon  that  subject.  He  also  deliv 
-ered  and  published  a  course  of  lectures  to  youth.  He  died  at 
Albany,  IST.  Y.,  on  October  20,  1886,  and  his  wife,  with  whom  his 
whole  married  life  had  been  passed,  survived  him  but  three  days. 
The  funeral  of  both  took  place  at  the  same  time,  from  Union 
church,  Boston. 

Rev.  Edward  W.  Clark  was  installed  February  25,  1864,  and  on 
account  of  failing  health  was  dismissed  June  10, 1870.  Mr.  Clark's 
adopted  son.  Rev.  Francis  E.  Clark,  of  Boston,  was  the  founder 


92  HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT. 

of  the  Society    of  Christian   Endeavor,  and  is   president  of  the 
United  society. 

Eev.  Levi  Rodgers  was  ordained  and  installed  pastor  October 
19,  1871.  Mr.  Eodgers  resigned  April  10,  and  was  dismissed  May 
5,  1880.  He  was  settled  for  a  time  at  Georgetown,  Mass.,  and  is 
now  at  Greenwich,  Conn.  Rev.  A.  J.  McGown  was  called  April 
19,  1881 ;  installed  pastor  ISTovember  10, 1881 ;  resigned  on  account 
of  the  death  of  his  wife,  September  24,  1882 ;  dismissed  October 
24,  1882.     He  is  now  settled  at  Amherst,  IST.  H. 

In  February,  1874,  Mrs.  Oscar  J.  Brown,  a  member  of  the 
church,  raised  by  subscription  over  eleven  hundred  dollars  to  pay 
for  a  bell,  which  was  placed  in  the  tower  of  the  meeting-house^ 
and  rung  first  for  the  state  Fast  Day  services,  April  9  of  the  same 
year.  Her  husband  subscribed  one  hundred  dollars,  and  was  fol- 
lowed by  George  N.  Farwell  and  Edward  L.  Goddard,  with  the 
same  sum  each.     The  balance  was  contributed  in  smaller  amounts. 

Rev.  Frank  P.  Tompkins  was  called  to  the  pastorate  December 
26,  1882,  and  was  installed  June  19,1883;  dismissed  September^ 
1888 ;  settled  at  Hamilton,  E".  Y.,  for  a  time. 

The  Rev.  Edgar  L.  Warren  was  called  in  November,  1888,  com- 
menced his  labors  the  first  of  January,  and  was  ordained  on  Feb- 
ruary 4,  1889,  the  Rev.  William  J.  Tucker,  D.  D.,  of  Andover, 
Mass.,  preaching  the  sermon.  Mr.  Warren  resigned,  and  his 
resignation  took  effect  September  1,  1893. 

Rev.  John  B.  Lawrence,  who  came  from  ISTorwalk,  Conn.,  com- 
menced his  pastorate  December  22,  1898. 

The  whole  number  of  living  members  of  the  church,  enrolled 
September  1,  1893,  212;  whole  number  since  its  first  organi- 
zation, 1188. 

Twelve  members  of  this  church  entered  the  Congregational  min- 
istry, viz  :  George  Fargo,  David  Wright,  Manning  Ellis,  Henry 
Jones,  James  McEwen,  Seth  Farnsworth,  Simeon  Goss,  Henry 
Chapin,  Edward  Greeley,  Ira  Case,  Joseph  Rowell,  and  Lyman 
White. 


REV.  ROBERT  F.  LAWRENCE. 


CHAPTEE  VIII. 

EPISCOPAL    CHURCH. 

On  the  twenty-eighth  of  April,  1769,  a  memorial  of  the  inhab- 
itants of  Claremont,  addressed  to  the  "Eeverend  Clergy  of  the 
Church  of  England  and  Missionaries  of  the  venerable  S.  P.  G.  F. 
P.,  to  be  convened  at  New  Milford,  in  the  Colony  of  Connecticut 
in  Trinity  week,"  and  signed  by  Abel  Bachelor,  Her.  Rice,  Micah 
Potter,  Cornelius  Brooks,  Benjamin  Tyler,  Ebenezer  Price,  Daniel 
"Warner,  Levi  Warner,  Asa  Leet,  Benjamin  Brooks,  Benjamin 
Brooks,  Jr.,  and  Benjamin  Rice,  it  was  represented  that 

The  land  here  is  exceedingly  burdened  with  timber,  which  renders  the  cultiva- 
tion of  it  very  laborious.  However,  the  little  of  it  we  have  brought  under  cul- 
tivation is  abundantly  fruitful,  so  that  (God  willing)  most  of  the  necessaries  of 
life  will  be  plentiful.  That  some  of  us  have  numerous  families  of  small  children 
fit  for  schooling.  The  number  of  children  under  16  years  of  age  is  35.  There 
are  about  two  families  of  dissenters  to  one  of  ours.  We  are  grieved  at  the 
thought  of  having  them  brought  up  in  ignorance,  and  dread  their  becoming  a 
prey  to  enthusiasts  and  being  carried  away  by  every  wind  of  doctrine.  We 
believe  a  good  school  lays  the  foundation  for  a  sober,  godly  and  righteous  life ; 
and  since  Samuel  Cole,  Esq.,  has  been  much  employed  in  keeping  school  and  is 
an  inhabitant  and  proprietor  among  us  (whose  character  and  qualifications  some 
of  you  know  well),  we  humbly  desire  you  would  be  pleased  to  represent  our 
state  to  the  venerable  Society,  and  endeavor  that  he  may  be  appointed  Catechist 
and  Schoolmaster  among  us  a  few  years  till  we  have  got  over  the  first  difficul- 
ties and  hardships  of  a  wild,  uncultivated  country. 

During  the  two  years  preceding  the  date  of  this  memorial  the 
-population  had  largely  increased.  The  accessions  were  mainly 
Congregationalists,  and  that  continued  to  be  the  rule  in  after  years. 
The  first  minister  of  the  Episcopal  church,  who  is  known  to  have 


94  HISTORY    OP    CLAREMONT. 

officiated  here,  was  the  Rev.  Samuel  Peters,  of  Hebron,  Conn.  He 
was  a  missionary  of  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel, 
and  several  years  subsequently  M-as  chosen  Bishop  of  the  Diocese 
of  Vermont,  though  never  consecrated.  As  early  as  1768,  he  made 
an  extensive  missionary  tour  through  Vermont,  and,  in  the  fall  of 
1770,  he  visited  the  towns  along  the  Connecticut  river,  both  in 
New  Hampshire  and  Vermont.  Of  the  latter  journey  he  gave  the 
following  account : 

Upon  the  tenth  of  September  I  left  Hebron,  taking  my  clerk  with  me.  We 
arrived  among  the  poor  immigrants  upon  the  sixteenth  of  said  month.  The 
bank  of  the  west  side  of  the  river  is  in  the  government  of  New  York,  lately 
taken  from  New  Hampshire  government —  a  territory  now  sufficient  for  two 
large  counties,  viz:  Cumberland  and  Gloucester;  the  latter  having  only  one 
independent  teacher  (poor  enough),  the  former  without  any  kind  of  a  teacher. 
Yet  in  both  counties  are  several  thousand  souls,  who  live  without  the  means  of 
grace,  destitute  of  knowledge,  laden  down  with  ignorance  and  covered  with 
poverty.  On  the  east  side  of  the  river  are  many  settlements  begun,  whose 
inhabitants  much  resemble  their  neighbors  in  every  uncomfortable  prop- 
erty. Among  these  people  I  spent  four  weeks,  traveling  from  place  to 
place,  preaching  and  baptizing,  the  people  being  careful  to  attend  divine  ser- 
vice, many  waiting  for  a  clergyman  to  reside  among  them,  viz  :  in  the  towns  of 
Claremont,  Strafford,  Thetford,  Moretown,  Windsor,  Orford,  Haverhill,  and 
being  so  nigh  one  another  that  one  clergyman  might  accommodate  the  whole." 

There  is  no  mention  in  this  narrative  of  his  having  organized 
the  church  in  Claremont  at  that  time.  In  an  article  in  the 
"  Churchman's  Magazine,"  of  August,  1805,  it  is  stated  that  "  this 
church  was  organized  by  the  Rev.  Samuel  Peters,  in  or  about 
the  year  1771,"  and  in  the  documentary  history  of  the  church  of 
Vermont  it  is  positively  asserted  that  in  "  1771  he  was  on  mission- 
ary duty  in  the  western  part  of  New  Hampshire  and  organized  the 
church  in  Claremont." 

The  first  record  of  a  parish  or  vestry  meeting  in  this  town  is  as 
follows : 

November,  1773.  Being  the  first  Vestry-meeting  holden  after  the  Rev.  Ranna 
Cossitt  returned  from  England  with  Holy  orders,  at  which  Samuel  Cole,  Esq., 
was  appointed  clerk;  Captain  Benjamin  Brooks  and  Lieutenant  Benjamin  Tyler 
were  chosen  wardens;  Daniel  Warner,  Asa  Leet  and  Ebenezer  E'ee  were 
chosen  vestrymen. 


UNION  CHURCH,  WEST  CLAREMONT. 


HISTOKY    OP    CLAREMONT.  95 

The  late  Kev.  Isaac  G.  Hubbard,  D.  D.,  then  rector  of  Trinity 
Church,  Claremont,  in  an  historical  address,  delivered  at  Union 
Church,  West  Claremont,  on  the  occasion  of  the  centenary  of  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  in  Claremont,  September  27,  1871, 
and  from  which  address  much  of  our  data  is  derived,  said  : 

The  discouragements  and  privations  attending  tlie  position  of  a  missionary 
over  such  an  outpost  in  the  wilderness  may  readily  be  conceived.  They  must 
have  been  great  enough  in  periods  of  ordinary  quietness,  for  his  people  were 
struggling,  with  small  resources,  under  the  necessity  of  lifting  off,  before  they 
could  mark  the  ground  from  which  to  derive  their  support,  the  burden  of  a 
dense  forest,  the  growth  of  centuries.  They  had,  also,  tirst  to  pay  their  rate 
or  tax,  as  did  all  the  jieople  of  the  town,  for  the  support  of  the  Congregational 
order. 

Mr.  Cossitt,  said  Dr.  Hubbard, 

Was  surrounded  by  constantly  increasing  numbers  who  were  hostile  to  their 
faith  and  worship,  which  he  was  commissioned  to  uphold  and  defend.  And,  as 
for  support  for  himself  and  family  (to  say  nothing  of  the  luxuries  with  which 
ministers,  in  those  days,  were  in  no  danger  of  being  pampered),  he  might  pray 
for  his  daily  bread,  but,  so  far  as  human  eye  could  see  or  human  help  appeared, 
the  prospect  was  very  dismal.  We  find,  in  the  records,  no  mention,  at  the  time 
of  his  settlement,  of  any  salary  beyond  the  sum  of  thirty  pounds  sterling 
allowed  him  as  a  missionary  by  the  venerable  society.  But  in  1777,  at  the 
Easter  meeting';iit  "  w^as  agreed  by  the  Vestry  to  give  the  Rev.  Ranna  Cossitt 
thirty  pounds  lawful  money  for  preaching  the  last  year."  This  proved  too 
heavy  a  burden,  and  in  1778  they  "  agreed  to  give  Mr.  Cossitt  fifteen  povmds 
for  the  year  ensuing." 

In  January,  1771,  they  "  agreed  with  the  Rev.  Ranna  Cossitt  to 
,^ive  him  thirty  pounds  for  a  year  ending  at  Christmas,  allowing 
him  four  Sundays  to  visit  vacant  churches.  And  the  Rev.  Ranna 
Cossitt  agrees  to  throw  by  all  other  business  and  apply  himself  to 
the  work  of  the  ministry."  This  probably  continued  to  be  his 
salary  until  he  left. 

The  support,  however,  proved  inadequate,  with  the  utmost  econ- 
omy, to  protect  him  from  the  galling  bondage  of  debt.  An  anec- 
dote is  related  of  him,  which  appears  authentic,  and  which  I  give 
as  showing'the  power  of  patient  endurance  to  develop  a  noble 
magnanimity.     He  had   given  his  note  to  a  prominent  man  and 


96  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

landholder  in  town,  to  an  amount  about  equal  to  his  j^early  income. 
He  had  already  paid  some  small  installments  upon  the  note, . 
together  with  the  interest,  when,  one  day,  his  creditor  called  upon 
him  and  demanded  the  whole  amount.  Mr.  Cossitt  replied  that  it 
was  out  of  his  power  to  pay  any  portion  of  it  immediately,  but 
that  when  his  salary  became  due  he  would  pay  a  definite  sum, 
which  he  named.  This  answer  was  not  satisfactory;  the  whole 
sum  must  be  paid  at  the  time  mentioned.  The  minister  replied 
that  it  would  be  impossible.  He  must  reserve  enough  to  buy 
bread  for  his  family.  "  Unless  you  promise  to  pay  me  then"  said 
the  creditor,  "  I  shall  sue  you  at  once,  and  take  all  you  have." 
"  You  can  do  that,"  he  answered.  "  You  can  attach  my  furniture, 
my  library,  and  my  horse ;  you  can  confine  me  in  jail.  But  you 
will  not  obtain  nearly  enough  from  my  efiiects  to  satisfy  your  claims, 
and  you  will  put  it  out  of  my  power,  not  only  to  support  myself 
and  those  dependent  upon  me,  but  to  redeem  my  pledge  to  you, 
which,  God  being  my  helper,  shall  certainly  be  fulfilled  in  a  rea- 
sonable time."  But  the  creditor  clung  to  the  pound  of  fiesh,  and, 
as  he  departed,  he  loudly  proclaimed  his  intention  to  bring  an  exe- 
cution that  very  night.  Seeing  him  inexorable,  and  blank  ruin 
staring  him  in  the  face,  the  good  man  went  to  the  door  and  called 
back  the  hard  usurer,  and  said,  "  My  friend,  if  you  are  determined 
to  carry  out  this  purpose  you  will  need  your  note.  When  you  were 
here  to  get  the  last  payment  which  is  indorsed  on  it,  you  inad- 
vertently left  it  on  my  table.  I  have  kept  it  safely.  Here  it  is, 
sir."  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  the  note  was  not  sued,  and 
that  the  minister  took  his  own  time  in  which  to  pay  it.  But  greater 
trials  than  these  awaited  both  minister  and  people. 

"  We  can  hardly  estimate  aright  at  this  distant  day,  and  in  the 
midst  of  circumstances  so  greatly  changed,  the  position  in  which 
churchmen  found  themselves  at  the  breaking  out  of  the  Revolu- 
tionary War.  The  period  of  religious  toleration  had  not  arrived, 
and  the  spirit  of  the  ancient  contests,  which  had  raged  for  cen- 
turies" in  the  Old  World,  and  in  a  measure  spent  their  force,  was 
here  revived  in  all  its  intense  bigotry  and  malignity.     It  was  not 


REV.  ISAAC  HUBBARD,  D.  D. 


HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT.  97 

the  fear  of  such  men  as  Samuel  Cole  and  Eanna  Cossitt,  in  a 
civil  point  of  view,  that  led  to  their  cruel  persecution  and  abuse. 
Doubtless  they  were  loyal  to  the  government,  and  most  warmly 
attached  to  the  Church  of  England.  But  they  were  peaceable, 
law-abiding  men.  There  was  no  treachery  or  sedition  in  them. 
Their  own  principles  taught  them  to  obey  the  powers  that  be. 
While  the  great  struggle  was  going  on  they  could  not  be  hired 
or  driven  to  take  up  arms  against  the  King,  neither  would  they 
take  up  arms,  nor  plot  nor  conspire  against  the  lives  and  hap- 
piness of  their  fellow  citizens.  They  desired  to  remain  quiet  and 
await  the  decision  of  Providence.  And  when  that  decision  came, 
if  it  were  adverse  to  their  hopes,  they  would  be  as  faithful  and 
obedient  to  the  new  government  as  they  had  been  to  the  old. 

"  The  speaker  is  not  attempting  to  defend  their  political  position. 
His  own  ancestors,  though  churchmen,  were  on  the  other  side. 
The  blood  of  a  Revolutionary  soldier  flows  in  his  veins,  and  he 
has  been  nurtured  from  infancy  on  the  bread  of  liberty.  It  was 
not  incompatible  with  church  principles  to  espouse  the  cause  of 
the  Republic.  When  the  civil  power  was  shaken,  under  which 
they  had  reposed  in  safety,  when  the  Provincial  Governor  had 
fled  to  the  northern  dominions  of  the  Crown,  then  the  storm 
broke  on  their  defenseless  heads." 

Dr.  Hubbard  read  two  letters,  the  flrst  from  Col.  John  Peters 
to  his  brother,  the  Rev.  Samuel  Peters,  in  London,  and  the  other 
from  the  Rev.  Ranna  Cossitt.  Colonel  Peters's  letter  was  dated 
Quebec,  July  20,  1778,  and  was  as  follows : 

Rev.  Dr.  Wheelock,  President  of  Dartmouth  College,  in  New  Hampshire,  in 
conjunction  with  Deacon  Bayley,  Mr.  Morey,  and  Mr.  Hurd,  all  justices  of  the 
peace,  put  an  end  to  the  Church  of  England  in  this  State,  so  early  as  1775. 
They  seized  me,  Capt.  Peters,  and  all  the  judges  of  Cumberland  and  Gloucester, 
the  Kev.  Mr.  Cossitt  and  Mr.  Cole,  and  all  the  Church  people  for  200  miles 
up  the  river  (Connecticut),  and  confined  us  in  close  goals,  after  beating  and 
drawing  us  through  water  and  mud.  Here  we  lay  some  time  and  were  to 
.continue  in  prison  until  we  abjured  the  king  and  signed  the  league  and  cove- 
nant. Many  died;  one  of  which  was  Capt.  Peters'  son.  We  were  removed 
from  the  goal  and  confined  in  private  houses  at  our  own  expense.     Capt.  Peters 


98  HISTORY   OF    CLAEEMONT. 

and  myself  were  guarded  by  twelve  rebel  soldiers,  while  sick  in  bed,  and  we 
paid  dearly  for  this  honor ;  and  others  fared  in  like  manner.  I  soon  recovered 
from  my  indisposition,  and  took  the  first  opportunity  and  fled  to  Canada,  leaving 
Cossitt,  Cole,  Peters,  Willis,  Porter,  Sumner,  Paptin,  etc.,  in  close  confinement, 
where  they  had  misery,  insults,  and  sickness  enough.  My  flight  was  in  1776, 
since  which  my  family  arrived  at  Montreal,  and  inform  me  that  many  priso- 
ners died;  that  Capt.  Peters  had  been  tried  by  court-martial  and  ordered  to  be 
shot  for  refusing  to  lead  his  company  against  the  King's  troops.  He  was  after- 
wards reprieved,  but  still  in  goal,  and  that  he  was  ruined  both  in  health  and 
property ;  that  Cossitt  and  Cole  were  alive  when  they  came  away,  but  were 
under  confinement,  and  had  more  insults  than  any  of  the  loyalists,  because  they 
had  been  servants  of  the  Society,  which,  under  pretense  (as  the  rebels  say)  of 
propagating  religion,  had  propagated  loyalty,  in  opposition  to  the  liberties  of 
America. 

Mr.  Cossitt's  letter  to  the  secretary  of  the  Society  for  the  Propa- 
.gation  of  the  Gospel,  was  as  follows : 

New  York,  June  6,  1779. 
I  arrived  in  this  city  last  Sunday,  by  permission,  with  a  flag,  and  am  to 
return  in  a  few  days.  I  trust  the  Society  cannot  be  unacquainted  with  the 
persecutions  the  loyalists  have  endured  in  Kew  England.  I  have  been  by  the 
committee  confined  as  prisoner,  in  the  town  of  Claremont,  ever  since  the  12th 
of  April,  1775;  yet  God  has  preserved  my  life  from  the  people.  I  have  con- 
stantly kept  up  public  service,  without  any  omissions,  for  the  King  and  royal 
family,  and  likewise  made  use  of  the  prayer  for  the  high  court  of  parliament, 
and  the  prayer  to  be  used  in  time  of  war  and  tumults;  have  administered  the 
Lord's  Supper  on  evei-y  first  Sunday  in  the  month,  except  two  Sundays  that 
we  could  not  procure  any  wine.  The  numbers  of  my  parishioners  and  commu- 
nicants in  Claremont  are  increased,  but  I  have  been  cruelly  distressed  with  fines 
for  refusing  entirely  to  fight  against  the  King.  In  sundry  places  where  I  used 
to  oflBciate,  the  church  people  are  all  dwindled  away.  Some  have  fled  to  the 
King's  army  for  protection;  some  were  banished;  and  many  died." 

ITotwithstanding  these  persecutions,  many  of  the  most  promi- 
nent inhabitants  of  Claremont  sought  the  society  and  communion 
of  the  Episcopal  church.  Among  these  were  Benjamiu  Sumner, 
Daniel  Dodge,  John  Marsh,  John  Marsh,  Jr.,  John  and  Ichabod 
Hitchcock,  James  Steel,  Bill  Barnes,  Joseph  ISTorton,  Abner  Cole, 
Asa  Jones,  Timothy  Grannis,  William  McCoy,  Daniel  Curtis,  Ab- 
ner Meiu-srs,  and  Ambrose  Cossitt  —  sixteen  families. 


O 

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HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT.  9!? 

In  1785  the  Eev.  Eanna  Cossitt  left  this  church  and  was  ap- 
pointed missionarj'  at  Sidney,  in  the  island  of  Cape  Breton,  where 
he  remained  until  his  death,  in  1815. 

Union  church  was  erected  in  1773,  two  years  before  the  war. 
It  was  built  according  to  a  plan  furnished  by  Gov.  John  Went- 
worth.  The  master  carpenter  was  Ebenezer  Rice.  The  Governor 
promised  to  furnish  the  glass  and  nails  when  the  work  had  reached 
a  certain  point.  He  also  pledged  them  a  good  bell  and  organ. 
But  the  state  of  the  country  compelled  him  to  flee  before  his 
promise  was  fulfilled.  It  also  interrupted  the  work  of  building. 
Only  the  frame  was  erected  and  the  roof  and  outer  boarding" 
put  on,  the  floor  laid,  and  some  temporary  arrangements  made 
for  holding  service  in  it  in  summer.  And  so  it  remained  until 
August,  1789,  when,  according  to  a  previous  vote,  twenty-five 
pews  were  sold  in  order  to  purchase  the  nails  and  glass  where- 
with to  finish  it.  The  frame  of  the  church,  constructed  of  the 
mighty  forest  trees  then  abundant,  is  exceedingly  heavy  and  pow- 
erful, made  of  the  strongest  and  best  kinds  of  timber.  It  is  said 
that  on  one  occasion,  in  the  early  part  of  the  present  century,  a 
tornado  swept  over  the  country  while  the  people  were  assembled 
for  divine  worship.  Among  them  was  a  Mr.  Dodge,  who  had 
been  employed  as  a  carpenter  when  the  frame  was  raised.  He 
was  a  very  large  and  strong  man  and  had  a  seat  near  the  door. 
When  the  trees  began  to  fall  about  the  building,  many  were 
greatly  alarmed,  and  rushed  for  the  door,  where  they  found  Mr. 
Dodge  defending  the  passage,  denying  all  egress,  and  with  his- 
brawny  arm  pushing  back  the  crowd,  saying :  "  I  know  this  frame, 
No  wind  can  demolish  it.  Your  only  safety  lies  in  keeping- 
beneath  its  shelter."  I  may  as  well  mention  here  that  the  tower 
and  belfry  were  added  in  the  year  1800,  and  the  whole  church 
was  re-covered,  except  the  north  side  and  part  of  the  east  end,, 
and  the  entire  exterior  was  painted.  A  bell  weighing  six  hundred 
and  eighty-two  pounds  was  procured  and  hung  in  1806,  and  an 
organ,  whose  whistling  pipes  were  the  wonder  of  our  childhood, 
was  subsequently  placed  in  the  gallery.     In  1820  an  addition  of 


100  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

twenty  feet  was  made  at  the  east  end  of  the  church,  to  accom- 
modate the  increased  congregation.  The  original  size  of  the 
church  was  fifty  feet  in  width,  and  one  hundred  in  length,  with 
posts  twenty  feet  high. 

After  the  departure  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Cossitt  the  church  contin- 
ued vacant  several  years,  but  the  services  were  kept  up  by  lay 
reading.  Mr.  Ebenezer  Rice  was  chosen  to  keep  the  records,  and 
also  to  read  prayers  and  sermons,  with  liberty  to  call  in  what  as- 
sistance he  should  think  proper. 

In  1784  the  town  voted  to  lay  out  four  acres  for  the  use  and  ben- 
efit of  the  Episcopal  church,  commonly  called  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, for  a  churchyard,  including  the  ground  on  which  the  church 
now  stands.  In  1785,  a  service  for  the  Holy  Communion  was  pro- 
cured, of  pewter,  which  continued  to  be  used  until  another  of  more 
valuable  material  was  presented  by  Hon.  S.  Kingsbury  and  Mr. 
Pustin  in  1822.  In  1787,  an  agreement  was  made  with  Mr.  Abra- 
ham Towmlinson,  a  clergyman,  as  I  suppose,  to  read  prayers  and 
preach  for  a  term  of  seven  months,  from  the  eighth  of  September 
to  the  next  Easter. 

July  14,  1785.  It  was  voted  to  send  letters  to  the  clergy  of  Con- 
necticut for  better  satisfaction  about  their  connection  with  Bishop 
Seabury.  "  October,  1785.  Voted,  to  choose  Mr.  Bill  Barnes  to 
represent  the  Church  of  Claremont  at  the  adjourned  convention  to 
be  holden  at  Boston  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  October  inst.  Voted 
to  send  our  united  thanks  to  the  convention  for  taking  pains  to 
send  us  their  doings.  Voted  a  concurrence  with  their  progress." 
"April  28,  1791.  Voted  not  to  accede  to  the  constitution  formed  at 
Boston.  Voted  to  adopt  the  doings  or  alterations  of  the  Book  of 
Common  Prayer  as  proposed  at  Philadelphia."  In  1788  an  arrange- 
ment was  made  with  the  Rev.  Solomon  Blakeslee  to  ofliciate  as 
minister  of  the  church,  on  a  salary  of  fifty-two  pounds,  with  the 
use  of  the  glebe,  together  with  the  rents  then  due  thereon. 

Mr.  Blakeslee  is  represented  as  an  eloquent  preacher,  of  easy 
address  and  exemplary  conduct,  possessing  an  unusual  faculty  for 
attracting  people  to  him  and  the  church.     Such  was  his  influence 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  101 

that  thirty  families  from  the  Congregational  society  conformed  to 
the  Episcopal  church  in  one  day.  Mr,  Blakeslee,  at  his  own  re- 
quest, obtained  a  dismission  in  1791,  and  removed  to  East  Had- 
dam,  Conn. 

In  the  town  records  of  1796  are  certificates  of  the  following  gen- 
tlemen, most  of  whom  professed  to  have  united  with  the  Episcopal 
church,  protesting  against  paying  any  more  taxes  for  the  support 
of  the  Eev.  John  Tappan,  then  minister  of  the  Congregational 
society,  viz : 

Elisha  Sheldon,  Francis  Chase,  John  Cotton,  Peter  Russell,  Benj, 
Swett,  "Walter  Ainsworth,  Matthias  Stone,  Jonathan  Emerson, 
John  Stone,  Asa  Dunsmore,  Samuel  Atkins,  Joseph  Wilson,  Abel 
Dustin,  Jonathan  Shaw,  Jr.,  Nicholas  Carey,  Christopher  York, 
Josiah  Rich,  Stephen  Barber,  Roger  Philips,  and  Lemuel  Dean. 

Petition  for  Incorporation  of  Episcopal  society,  and  proceed- 
ings thereon,  being  verbatim  copy  from  Town  Papers  of  JSTew 
Hampshire,  Vol.  XI,  pages  382  and  383 : 

To  The  honorable  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  in  General  Court  con' 
vened  Humbly  shew 
Benjamin  Sumner  &  Ebenezer  Rice  —  Members  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  in  Claremont  in  the  County  of  Cheshire  that  said  Church  has  laboured 
under  many  and  great  inconveniences  for  want  of  an  incorporation,  they  there- 
fore pray  your  honors  to  incorporate   said  society  by  law  and  make  them  a 
body  politic  capable  of  receiving  and  holding  property  both  real  and  personal 
and  to  have  and  enjoy  all  the  privileges  and  immunities  belonging  to    a  cor- 
porate body,  and  as  in  duty  bound  will  ever  pray 
Claremont  December  26th  1793 

Benj'a  Sumner  ")  In  behalf  of  the 
Ebenezer  Rice  j  Church 

State  of  New  |     ^^  ^^^  ^^^^^  ^^  Representatives  Jan'y  21  1794 
Hampshire    )  ^ 

Upon  reading  and  considering  the  foregoing  petition  &  the  report  of  a  Com- 
mittee thereon.  Voted  that  the  prayer  thereof  be  granted  and  that  the  Petition- 
ers have  leave  to  bring  in  a  Bill  accordingly 
Sent  up  for  concurrence 

Nath'l  Peabody  Speaker 

In  Senate  the  same  Day  Read  &  ConcuiTed 

Nath'l  Parker  Dep''y  Sec^y 


102  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

In  the  year  1794  this  church  was  incorporated  by  act  of  the  New 
Hampshire  legislature,  with  the  name  of  Union  Church.  The 
records  show  that  a  parish  meeting  was  warned  for  May  13,  1794, 
'■'■  to  take  into  consideration  a  proposition  made  to  them  by  the  Con- 
gregational people  to  join  with  them  in  hiring  Mr.  Whiting  to  be 
the  minister  for  both  Cotigregationalists  and  Episcopalians."  Mr. 
Whiting  was  a  Congregational  minister.  At  the  meeting  referred 
to  it  was  voted  that  they  would  join  with  the  Congregational  peo- 
ple, provided  they  could  agree  upon  the  terms.  Then  it  was  voted 
to  choose  seven  men  as  a  committee  to  meet  the  other  committee. 
^'  Chose  Messrs.  Bill  Barnes,  Ebenezer  Rice,  Ambrose  Cossitt,  David 
Dodge,  Sanford  Kingsbury,  John  W.  Russell,  and  Captain  George 
Hubbard.  Voted  to  authorize  them  to  hire  Mr.  Whiting  to  offici- 
ate for  such  term  as  they  should  agree  upon,  as  a  candidate  for 
settlement  over  the  whole  town,  on  the  following  conditions,  viz: 
1st,  That  he  receive  Episcopal  ordination,  (as  he  had  done  Con- 
gregational), and  2d,  That  he  officiate  alternately  at  the  church 
and  at  the  meeting-house.  That  on  these  terms  this  society  will 
agree  that  Mr.  Whiting  be  settled  over  the  whole  town,  and  that 
the  town  reap  the  benefit  of  the  public  lands  belonging  to  the 
church  so  long  as  he  continues  to  be  our  minister."  The  meeting 
was  adjourned  to  the  twentieth  of  May.  It  then  met  and  heard 
the  report  of  the  committee,  which  was,  in  substance,  that  the 
Congregational  society  would  not  comply  with  the  terms. 

The  Rev.  Daniel  Barber  became  rector  of  this  church  in  1795, 
and  continued  as  such  until  1818.  He  was  a  native  of  Simsbury, 
Conn.,  the  birthplace  of  Bishop  Griswold.  Mr.  Barber  was  born 
and  educated  a  Congregationalist.  He  was  ordained  by  Bishop 
Seabury  at  Middletown,  Conn.,  October  29,  1786.  He  is  reported 
to  have  been  an  eccentric  character,  doing  and  saying  many  queer 
things,  and  quite  wanting  in  dignity.  It  is  due  to  him  to  say,  how- 
ever, that  he  kept  the  church  together  for  many  years,  and  that  it 
increased  very  considerably  under  his  ministry. 

The  rectorship  of  Mr.  Barber  ended  disastrously  to  himself.  In 
1817  his  son,  Virgil  H.  Barber,  who  had  already  been  ordained 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  103 

both  deacon  and  priest,  joined  the  Eoman  Catholic  church.  Soon 
the  father  confessed  that  he  had  embraced  the  Eoman  Catholic 
faith,  began  to  use  his  influence  in  favor  of  that  church,  and  to  try 
to  unsettle  the  minds  of  the  people.  While  Mr.  Barber  still  re- 
mained rector  —  but  rumors  having  arisen  respecting  his  defection, 
and  not  a  little  dissatisfaction  existing  in  consequence  —  at  a  meet- 
ing called  for  this  purpose  expressly,  on  September  29,  1818,  it  was 
"  Voted  that  the  Eev.  James  B.  Howe  be  hired  to  preach  among 
us  for  such  time  as  he  will  agree  to,  not  exceeding  one  year."  'So- 
vember  12,  1818,  "  Voted  to  dismiss  the  Eev.  Daniel  Barber  from 
the  rectorship."  April  19,  1819,  called  the  Eev.  James  B.  Howe 
to  the  rectorship,  on  a  salary  of  seven  hundred  dollars. 

Mr.  Barber  remained  with  his  son,  Virgil  H.,  a  few  years,  and 
then  went  to  Connecticut,  from  there  to  Georgetown,  D.  C,  where 
his  daughter-in-law  and  two  granddaughters  were  in  a  convent, 
and  died  at  Saint  Inigoes,  Md.,  in  1834,  at  the  age  of  seventy-eight 
years. 

The  building  nearly  opposite  Union  church,  intended  for  a 
church,  school,  and  dwelling,  erected  by  Virgil  H.  Barber,  with 
the  aid  of  means  famished  by  Catholic  friends  in  Canada,  was 
begun  in  1823,  and  completed  a  few  years  later.  There  services 
were  held  regularly  on  the  Sabbath,  and  during  the  week  a  school, 
which  was  quite  largely  attended  by  sons  of  his  father's  former 
parishioners,  and  students  from  distant  parts,  was  kept  up  for  sev- 
eral years,  and  was  occupied  by  the  Catholics  for  religious  services 
until  1866.  Dr.  Hubbard  says  that  Virgil  H.  Barber's  efforts  here 
were  "  without  fruits  so  far  as  conversions  to  Eomanism  were  con- 
cerned, the  only  family  from  this  church,  I  believe,  that  followed 
Mr.  Barber  in  his  apostacy  was  that  of  Mr.  Noah  Tyler,  whose 
wife  was  a  sister  of  Mr.  Barber.  The  son  of  Mr.  Tyler,  William, 
became  a  Eoman  Catholic  bishop,  and  the  daughter,  Eosetta,  the 
Lady  Superior  of  a  nunnery.  Sauford  Spaukling,  also,  who  had 
married  an  Irish  woman,  concluded  to  join  his  wife,  and  two  ladies 
by  the  name  of  Alden  went  to  the  Eoman  Catholic  church." 

"  The  Eev.  James  B.  Howe,  who  succeeded  Mr.  Barber,  was  born 


104  HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT, 

in  Dorchester,  Mass.  He  had  been  a  successful  classical  teacher  io 
Boston  for  some  years  previous  to  his  ordination,  which  took  place 
not  long  before  his  call  to  this  parish.  He  was  recommended  by 
the  Eev.  Dr.  Eaton,  the  venerable  and  excellent  rector  of  Christ's' 
Church,  Boston.  About  the  time  he  assumed  the  rectorship,  a 
large,  round,  brick  building,  erected  by  a  sort  of  ecclesiastical 
union,  in  which  I  believe  Universalism  was  the  predominant  ele- 
ment, standing  on  the  present  site  of  Trinity  church,  Olaremont 
village,  was  purchased  as  a  chapel  by  Union  church,  and  therein, 
during  the  greater  part  of  Mr.  Howe's  ministry,  services  were  held 
alternately,  one  Sunday  in  this  church,  and  the  next  in  Trinity 
chapel.  Mr.  Howe  was  a  man  of  very  difl'erent  quality  from  his 
predecessor.  He  was  truly  a  gentleman  of  the  old  school.  Like 
Bishop  Griswold,  he  continued  to  wear,  as  long  as  he  lived,  the 
long  stockings  and  short  clothes  of  the  olden  time.  He  was  open, 
frank,  hearty,  courteous,  sincere,  true  to  his  convictions  of  duty, 
earnest  in  his  religious  feelings.  In  short,  he  was  a  man  to  win 
the  confidence  and  affection  of  his  people.  Until  the  unfortunate 
strife  arose  as  to  the  rights  and  interests  between  the  two  parts  of 
the  parish,  in  which,  from  his  position  and  residence,  he  was  neces- 
sarily involved,  no  parish  was  more  united  or  more  cordially 
attached  to  their  rector.  There  may  have  been  individual  excep- 
tions, but  they  were  rare.  I  believe  that  those  who  in  the  heat  of 
controversy  were  bitterly  opposed  to  him,  will  now,  when  these 
feelings  have  subsided,  be  ready  to  acknowledge  his  good  qualities, 
his  high-minded  and  noble  Christian  character.  Verj'  soon  after 
he  commenced  his  ministry  a  large  number  of  persons,  headed  by 
Colonel  Josiah  Stevens,  a  deacon  in  the  Congregational  societj', 
joined  this  parish.  I  find  the  names  of  over  forty  men,  mostly 
heads  of  families,  residing  in  or  near  Claremont  village,  enrolled 
in  1819  among  the  voters  in  the  parish  meeting.  The  first  con- 
firmation during  the  rectorship,  September  14,  1819,  numbered 
forty-six.  In  1824  this  parish  came  into  possession  of  a  fund 
amounting  to  over  five  thousand  five  hundred  dollars,  devised  by 
will  of  Major  Oliver  Ashley,  one  of  the  original  proprietors  of  the 


TRINITY  CHURCH. 


REV.  HENRY  S.  SMITH. 


\ 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  105 

town.  The  income  of  this  fund  was  given  for  the  support  of  a 
clergyman  of  this  church.  Thus  this  church,  with  the  Ashley 
fund  and  the  income  of  church  lands,  was  provided  with  the  means 
of  abundant  self-support,  amounting  to  more  than  eight  hundred 
dollars." 

There  were  local  and  other  causes  which  finally  resulted  in  a 
division  of  the  parish.  Mr.  Howe's  connection  with  the  contro- 
versy which  preceded  the  division  was  such  that  the  last  years  of 
his  rectorship  were  made  very  unpleasant  for  him,  and  unprofitable 
for  the  church.  He  was  dismissed  peremptorily  by  the  majority, 
who  sympathized  with  the  western  portion  of  the  parish,  because 
they  supposed  him  to  sympathize  wholly  with  the  village  portion, 
and,  after  a  hearing  before  the  standing  committee  of  the  diocese, 
he  was  advised,  on  certain  conditions,  to  resign.  A  new  parish  was 
formed  in  the  village,  and  the  Rev.  Henry  S.  Smith  was  called  as 
assistant  to  the  rector  of  Union  church  parish,  and  began  his  ser- 
vices there  after  Easter  in  1838,  ofiiciating  alternately  there  and  in 
Trinity  church,  Cornish,  and  so  continued  four  years.  After  the 
resignation  of  Mr.  Howe,  Mr.  Smith  was  elected  rector  of  Union 
church,  which  he  held  twenty-nine  years,  ending  in  1871.  He  re- 
signed on  account  of  his  age. 

Rev.  W.  B.  T.  Smith,  son  of  the  Rev.  Henry  S.  Smith,  was  rec- 
tor from  June  23,  1872,  to  June  23,  1876.  Rev.  Isaac  Gr.  Hubbard, 
J).  D.,  was  rector  from  October,  1876,  until  his  death,  March  30, 
1878.  Rev.  W.  B.  T.  Smith  was  again  rector  from  1880  until  No- 
vember 16,  1884.  Rev.  W.  W.  Campbell  was  rector  from  June, 
1885,  to  July  1,  1888.  Rev.  Joseph  6.  Ticknor  became  rector 
June  1,  1889. 

TRINITY   CHURCH. 

The  subject  of  a  division  of  Union  parish,  and  the  establishment 
of  a  church  at  the  village  having  been  agitated  for  some  time,  at  a 
special  meeting  at  Union  church,  August  26,  1843,  it  was  "Voted 
that  the  wardens  are  hereby  authorized  and  directed  in  the  name 
of  Union  church,  to  convey  by  assignment  of  lease  or  otherwise, 
all  the  right,  title  and  interest  of  Union  church,  and  all  privileges 


106  HISTORy   OF    CLAREMONT. 

and  appurtenances  thereof,  to  Trinity  church  in  Claremont,  in  pur- 
suance of  an  article  in  the  warrant." 

On  September  20,  1843,  the  parish  of  Trinity  church,  Clare- 
mont, was  duly  organized.  Thirty-seven  gentlemen,  at  that  time, 
signed  the  articles  of  association ;  others  signed  at  later  dates. 
September  30,  of  the  same  year,  having  adopted  a  code  of  by-laws, 
the  parish  proceeded  to  elect  the  following  officers ;  James  P. 
Brewer,  clerk;  Charles  M.  Bingham  and  Lewis  Perry,  wardens; 
Philander  C.  Freeman,  James  M.  Gates,  Josiah  Richards,  David 
W.  Dexter,  and  Charles  Mitchell,  vestrymen ;  John  W.  Tappan, 
treasurer;  Thomas  Leland,  delegate  to  the  special  convention  of 
the  diocese,  at  Concord,  October  4,  1843.  It  was  then  "Voted, 
That  the  "Wardens  of  this  Church  procure,  if  they  think  practica- 
ble, from  Union  church,  a  conveyance  of  Trinity  Chapel  and  the 
land  and  all  the  appurtenances  belonging  to  the  same,  to  Trinity 
church."  April  8,  1844,  P.  C.  Freeman  was  appointed  by  the 
parish  meeting  "  an  agent  to  attend  to  the  transfer  of  Trinity 
Church,  from  the  members  of  Union  Church,  Claremont,  IST.  H." 
The  transfer  was  made  prior  to  June  26,  1844. 

According  to  the  "History  of  the  Eastern  Diocese,"  Trinity 
church  was  received  into  union  with  the  Diocese  of  IsTew  Hamp- 
shire, at  the  special  convention  at  Concord,  October  4,  1843,  and 
its  delegates  took  part  in  the  election  of  the  Rev.  Carlton  Chase, 
D.  D.,  bishop. 

The  Rev.  Eleazer  A.  Creenleaf  officiated  at  Trinity  church  from 
ISTovember,  1843,  to  Easter,  1844.  On  December  30,  1843,  at  a 
special  meeting  of  the  parish  of  Trinity  church,  the  following  res- 
olution was  offered  by  Thomas  Leland,  Esq.,  and  was  unanimously 
adopted  : 

Resolved,  As  the  sense  of  this  Society,  that  the  Wardens  and  Vestry  of  this 
parish  be  instructed  to  invite  the  Rev.  Carlton  Chase,  D.  D.,  to  become  Rector 
of  said  parish,  and  to  make  such  contract  for  his  salary  as  they  may  think  for 
the  best  interest  of  the  Society.  And,  in  case  he  accepts  of  such  a  call,  to 
make  all  other  arrangements  proper  for  raising  means  for  his  salai-y,  and  for 
his  institution  as  rector." 

Dr.  Chase  accepted  the  rectorship  of  Trinity  church,  and  entered 


HISTORY   OF   CLAKEMONT.  107 

upon  its  duties  at  Easter,  1844.  His  salary  from  the  parish  was 
five  hundred  dollars.  At  the  annual  convention  in  June,  1844, 
he  reported  sixty  families,  three  baptisms  and  eighty-four  com- 
municants. 

The  old  Trinity  chapel,  after  having  been  used  for  the  church 
service  thirty-four  years,  vs^as  taken  down  in  the  early  part  of  1852. 
The  corner-stone  of  the  present  edifice,  on  the  same  site,  was  laid 
on  June  16,  1852,  by  Bishop  Chase,  assisted  by  the  Rev.  Henry  S. 
Smith,  rector  of  Union  church,  Olaremont,  and  the  Rev.  Marcellus 
A.  Herrick,  rector  of  St.  James  church,  Woodstock,  Vt.  Under 
the  corner-stone  the  following-named  articles  were  deposited : 

1.  Printed  copies  of  the  journals  of  the  diocese  of  New  Hamp- 
shire from  1843  to  1851,  inclusive. 

2.  A  list  of  the  communicants  of  Trinity  church  from  its  organ- 
ization in  September,  1843,  to  June,  1852  —  the  whole  number 
being  one  hundred  and  seventy-two. 

3.  One  number  each  of  three  religious  newspapers  published 
severally  on  or  near  the  twelfth  of  June,  1852,  to  wit :  The  "  Church- 
man," "  The  Christian  Witness  and  Advocate,"  and  "  The  Cal- 
endar." 

4.  One  number  each  of  the  newspapers  published  in  Claremont 
village  —  the  "National  Eagle,"  and  the  "Northern  Advocate." 

5.  A  declaration,  of  which  the  following  is  a  copy  :  "I,  Carlton 
Chase,  D.  D.,  Bishop  of  the  Diocese  of  New  Hampshire,  in  the 
fifty-ninth  year  of  my  age,  and  in  the  eighth  year  of  my  episco- 
pate —  Millard  Eillmore  being  President  of  the  United  States,  and 
Noah  Martin  being  Governor  of  New  Hampshire  —  this  sixteenth 
day  of  June,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  fifty-two,  lay  this  corner-stone  of  Trinity  Church,  and  with  my 
own  hand  make  this  deposite." 

6.  A  schedule  of  donations  from  churches  and  individuals  from 
abroad,  to  aid  in  the  erecting  of  Trinity  church. 

7.  An  account  of  the  organization  of  the  parish,  with  a  list  of 
oflicers  for  the  year  1852.  Also,  the  names  of  the  architects, 
Messrs.  Wills  &  Dudley,  of  the  city  of  New  York ;  of  the  builders, 
Messrs.  Washburn  &  Nichols,  of  Albany,  N.  Y.;  of  the  building 


108  HISTORY   OF    CLAKBMONT. 

committee,  Messrs.  Charles  M.  Bingham,  Lewis  Perry,  Charles  F. 
Long,  and  Alvah  Stevens. 

■"  8.  A  paper  containing  the  names  of  subscribers  and  donors  to 
the  building  fund,  and  stating  generally  the  terms  of  the  contract 
for  erection. 

The  chancel  window  was  the  gift  of  All  Saints  Church,  New 
York.  The  cost  of  this  church  edifice  was  about  seven  thousand 
dollars.  Additons  and  alterations  since  made  have  augmented 
considerably  that  sum.  It  was  duly  consecrated  by  Bishop  Chase, 
in  the  presence  of  the  convention  of  the  diocese,  May  25, 1853. 

Bishop  Chase  resigned  the  rectorship  of  this  church  June  first,. 
1863,  as  follows  : 

Diocese  of  New  Hampshire. 
To  the  Wardens  and  Vestry  of  Trinity  Church  : 

Dear  Brethren, — Proceedings  in  the  late  Convention, by  whicli  the  Diocese  as- 
sures my  full  support,  and  solicits  for  itself  my  undivided  cares  and  labors,  make 
it  my  duty  to  resign  the  Rectorship  of  your  Church.  This  I  beg  leave  now  to  do. 
And  in  doing  it,  I  assure  you,  Brethren,  that  my  connection  of  nineteen  years- 
with  Trinity  Church  has  afforded  me  innumei-able  occasions  of  happy  and  grate- 
ful remembrance.  As  your  Bishop  I  shall  still  be  in  your  service,  and  shall  be 
most  happy  at  all  times  to  do  what  I  can  for  Trinity  church. 
With  much  afTection  and  respect, 

Yours  in  most  holy  bonds, 

Carlton  Chase. 

Bishop  Chase  died  on  the  eighteenth  of  January,  1870,  at  the 
age  of  seventy-six  years. 

At  an  adjourned  meeting  of  the  members  of  Trinity  Church  cor- 
poration, June  22,  1863,  it  was  "Voted  that  the  "Wardens  and 
Vestry  be  authorized  to  tender  the  Rev.  John  Milton  Peck,  of 
Warren,  P.  I.,  an  invitation  to  officiate  in  this  church  as  Pastor 
one  year  for  the  consideration  of  800  Dollars  as  Salary."  Mr.  Peck 
accepted  this  invitation,  and  entered  on  his  duties  August  2,  1868. 
Subsequently  his  salary  was  increased  to  one  thousand  dollars  and 
the  use  of  the  rectory.  He  resigned  in  June,  1867.  Mr.  Peck 
reported  to  the  committee  in  June,  1867,  twelve  baptisms,  twenty 
confirmations  and  one  hundred  and  sixty  communicants. 

Mr.  Peck  was  subsequently  rector  of  Trinity  church,  Rutland, 


RT.  REV.  CARLTON  CHASE,  D.  D. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  109 

Tt.,  and  of  other  parishes.  He  died  at  Longwood,  Mass.,  July 
25,  1890. 

On  the  first  of  August,  1867,  the  Eev.  Isaac  G.  Hubbard,  I).  D., 
took  charge  of  Trinity  church.  To  the  convention  of  1868,  Dr. 
Hubbard  reported  ten  baptisms,  eleven  confirmations,  two  hun- 
dred and  one  communicants,  and  one  hundred  Sunday-school 
scholars. 

In  1871  the  parish  sold  its  rectory  for  three  thousand  dollars, 
and  purchased  the  Dr.  Eobert  Gleason  house  and  grounds  adjoin- 
ing the  church  lot,  for  four  thousand  five  hundred  dollars.  In  1884 
the  old  buildings  on  this  lot  were  sold  for  about  one  hundred  and 
fifty  dollars,  to  be  removed,  preparatory  to  building  new. 

In  September,  1866,  George  G.  and  Lemuel  K  Ide,  brothers,  pre- 
sented to  Trinity  church  a  bell  weighing  one  thousand  and  fifty- 
seven  pounds,  and  costing,  with  mountings,  etc.,  five  hundred  and 
thirty-one  dollars  and  sixty-two  cents,  "  for  religious  and  church 
uses  only." 

The  following  explains  itself: 

Clakemont,  N.  H.,  Dec.  19,  1871. 
To  the  Rector,  Wardens,  and  Vestry  of  Trinity  Church : 

Gentlemen, —  I  have  had  prepared  a  Memorial  Tablet  in  memory  of  Rt.  Rev. 
Carlton  Chase,  D.  D.,  our  late  worthy  Bi^5hop  and  Kector,  which  I  herewith 
offer  for  your  acceptance,  to  be  placed  in  the  chancel  of  the  Church. 
Very  truly  your  associate  in  the  Vestry, 

Geo.  L.  Balcom. 

Dr.  Hubbard,  on  account  of  ill  health,  was  granted  a  vacation, 
his  place  being  supplied  by  the  society,  and  went  to  Europe,  his 
expenses  being  paid  by  contributions  of  members  of  his  parish  and 
others. 

By  reason  of  continued  ill  health.  Dr.  Hubbard  resigned  his 
rectorship  March  31,  1875,  to  take  effect  the  first  of  the  following 
May.  The  Rev.  C.  R  Batchelder,  Rev.  Mr.  Pearson,  and  others 
supplied  until  the  Rev.  Henry  Ferguson  was  called  and  com- 
menced his  labors  as  rector  the  3d  of  March,  1878.  On  account 
of  the  poor  health  of  Mrs.  Ferguson,  Mr.  Ferguson  resigned  in 
December,   1880.      The   Rev.    Charles   S.   Hale   was   called,  and 


110  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

commenced  his  rectorship  at  Easter,  1881.  He  resigned  March 
9,  1885,  his  resignation  to  take  effect  after  Trinity  Sundaj',  May 
31,  1885.  The  present  rector,  the  Eev.  James  B.  Goodrich, 
commenced  his  labors  the  following  October. 

In  February,  1882,  a  new  organ  was  placed  in  the  church,  at 
an  expense  of  $3,150.  In  1884  a  choir-room  was  added  to  the 
church,  which,  with  furnishings,  cost  |1,375.  A  chancel  choir  of 
men  and  boys  was  organized  in  February,  1882.  In  August,  1884, 
a  legacy  of  $8,000  was  received  from  the  estate  of  Mrs.  Carrie, 
widow  of  Frank  Evans,  of  Boston,  with  which  to  build  a  rectory 
for  Trinity  parish,  which  was  completed  in  1885.  The  number  of 
communicants  in  October,  1893,  was  185.  The  officers  for  that 
year  were,  Henry  Judkins  and  Charles  H.  Long,  wardens ; 
Charles  H.  Weed,  Herman  Holt,  Harry  C.  Fay,  Isaac  H.  Long^ 
and  George  A.  Briggs,  vestrymen;  Frank  P.  Vogl,  clerk. 


BAPTIST  CHURCH. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

BAPTIST      CHURCH. 

In  1785  a  Baptist  society  was  formed  in  Clai-emont.  There 
was  no  stated  preaching,  however,  until  the  following  year,  when 
Rev.  John  Pickens  was  ordained.  The  formation  of  this  new 
religious  society  increased  the  bitterness  of  feeling  against  the 
ministerial  tax  system.  The  members  of  the  new  society  refused 
to  conform  to  the  requisitions  of  the  law,  pleading  that  they  were 
of  a  different  denomination  from  the  original  church  organization. 

The  town  records  show  that  on  September  6,  1785,  "  The  In- 
habitants of  the  Town  of  Claremont  assembled  at  the  dwelling- 
house  of  Mr.  Ebenezer  Rice  in  s'd  Town,"  and  "  Voted  on  the 
fourth  article  in  the  warning  that  those  people  that  call  them- 
selves Baptists  pay  no  more  taxes  to  the  Congregational  order 
for  the  fewter." 

This  secured  from  taxation,  by  the  terms  of  the  law,  such  per- 
sons as  were  conscientiously  of  a  different  persuasion,  and  attended 
constantly  public  religious  worship  on  the  Lord's  day. 

In  July,  1776,  a  church  of  seventeen  members  was  constituted 
and  recognized.  Mr.  Pickens  remained  but  a  few  months,  under 
whose  ministry  the  society  flourished.  In  the  Manual  of  this 
church,  published  in  1884,  it  is  stated  that  after  the  removal  of 
Mr.  Pickens,  from  various  causes  the  church  "became  extinct  in 
a  few  years."  In  1815  the  Baptists,  Methodists,  and  Univer- 
salists  united  and  built  a  meeting-house  on  the  spot  where  Trin- 
ity church  now  stands ;  and  in  1821  the  Baptists  and  Uriiversalists 
sold  their  respective  shares  to  the  Episcopalians,  and  the  building 
was   made    over,  called   Trinity  chapel,  and   was   occupied   as   a 


112  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

place  of  worship  by  the  latter  denomination  until  1852,  when  it 
was  taken  clown  to  make  room  for  Trinity  church.  In  the  fall 
of  1820,  Rev.  Isaac  Kimball  labored  three  months  as  a  Baptist 
missionary  in  Claremont.  In  January,  1821,  the  scattered  mem- 
bers were  brought  together,  and  a  church  of  seventeen  members 
was  constituted.  The  names  of  these  members  were  as  follows : 
Joseph  Cummings,  Thomas  Warner,  Ezra  Smith,  Jesse  Bunnel, 
Mehitabel  Dodge,  Milly  Bunnel,  Eunice  Smith,  Prudence  Sweet, 
Betsey  Bunnel,  Ruth  Bond,  Prudence  Richards,  Hannah  Cum- 
mings, Betsey  Patrick,  Lydia  Wilkins,  Sally  Draper,  Mehitabel 
Bunnel,  Charlotte  Petty. 

Under  Mr.  Kimball's  labors  the  church  membership  increased 
to  fifty-four.  The  six  following  years  the  church  was  without  a 
pastor  and  worshiped  in  a  hall  connected  with  Clark's  tavern, 
on  the  north  side  of  Sugar  river.  Notwithstanding  the  disad- 
vantages endured  in  this  time,  there  was  an  accession  of  several 
men  of  standing  and  wealth.  In  1827  the  First  Baptist  Society 
was  formed,  and  a  chapel  was  built  on  the  east  side  of  High 
street,  which  was  occupied  six  years. 

In  January,  1829,  the  Rev.  Leonard  Tracy  was  settled  as  the 
first  pastor  of  the  church,  and  his  connection  with  it  continued 
eight  years,  during  which  the  Manual,  published  in  1884,  from 
which  much  information  is  derived,  says  "the  foundations  of 
much  of  its  future  prosperity  were  laid."  In  1833-34,  encour- 
aged by  the  growth  of  the  church  and  society,  a  lot  at  the  junc- 
tion of  Main  and  Central  streets,  where  their  handsome  house 
of  worship  now  stands,  was  purchased,  find  the  erection  of  the 
building  was  commenced,  which  was  completed  and  dedicated  in 
November,  1884. 

The  Rev.  Darwin  H.  Ranney  succeeded  Mr.  Tracy,  and  began 
his  labors  in  March,  1838,  and  continued  them  until  September, 
1839,  after  which  the  pastorate  was  vacant  until  September,  1840, 
when  Rev.  J.  M.  Graves  became  pastor.  He  held  the  office  about 
three  j'ears,  during  which  it  is  recorded  that  "  the  church  gained 
in  strength  and  efficiency,  although  it  did  not  increase  in  mem- 
bers." 


HISTORY   OP   CLAEEMONT.  113 

The  Rev.  William  B.  Jacobs  succeeded  to  the  pastorate  in 
November,  1843,  and  "filled  the  office  with  fidelity  for  about  three 
years."  His  successor  was  Rev.  Thomas  G.  Wright,  who  began 
his  labors  in  July,  1847.  "  Though  the  number  of  members 
decreased  during  this  period,  yet  the  character  of  the  church  was 
greatly  improved,  and  a  foundation  was  laid  for  future  success. 
Some  long  standing  difficulties  were  settled,  disorderly  members 
were  removed,  and  the  body  became  more  homogeneous  and 
harmonious."    He  closed  his  labors  with  this  church  in  June,  1851. 

The  Rev.  Oliver  Ayer  was  settled  in  July,  1851.  "  His  pas- 
torate was  the  longest  the  church  has  yet  enjoyed,  —  thirteen 
years,  —  and  was  blessed  with  seasons  of  refreshing  from  on  high. 
The  year  1858  was  especially  memorable  in  the  number  of  acces- 
sions by  baptism."  Mr.  Ayer,  though  not  a  noisy  or  very 
attractive  preacher  to  the  generality  of  hearers,  was  a  man  of 
culture  and  refinement;  his  sermons  were  finished,  sound,  and 
logical,  setting  forth  in  no  questionable  terms  his  belief  in  the 
doctrines  he  preached.  ITo  one  who  heard  him  could  doubt  his 
sincerity;  and  no  one  who  knew  him,  whether  they  subscribed 
to  his  peculiar  doctrines  or  not,  could  fail  to  respect  him  as  a 
citizen  and  clergyman.  Mr.  Ayer  was  settled  as  pastor  at  Groton, 
Mass.,  for  several  years,  but  by  reason  of  age  and  infirmities  is 
now  retired  and  lives  at  Providence,  R.  I. 

In  October,  1864,  Francis  W.  Towle  was  called  to  the  pastorate 
of  this  church,  and  ordained  the  following  month.  "  During  his 
pastorate  the  church  enjoyed  steady  growth  in  number  and  re- 
sources. Early  in  1872  the  society  began  the  work  of  enlarging 
and  repairing  its  house  of  worship.  A  new  vestibule,  tower,  and 
chapel  were  built,  the  interior  of  the  main  house  remodeled, 
refurnished,  and  frescoed.  The  whole  cost  of  the  repairs  exceeded 
nine  thousand  five  hundred  dollars.  The  service  of  dedication 
was  held  January  2,  1878."  Mr.  Towle  resigned  in  July,  1873, 
and  became  professor  in  Colgate  University,  Hamilton,  N.  Y. 
From  there  he  went  to  Concord,  Mass.,  where  he  died  in  1892. 

Charles  A.  Piddock  served  as  supply  from  October,  1873,  be- 
came pastor  in  March,  1874,  and  was  ordained  the  same  month. 


114  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

His  pastorate  extended  to  July,  1877,  and  "was  characterized  by 
revival  spirit  and  work,  and  by  numerous  accessions  to  the  church."" 
Mr.  Piddock  is  now  editor  and  proprietor  of  the  "  Christian  Sec- 
retary," Hartford,  Conn. 

Rev.  Joseph  S.  Swaim  was  called  to  the  pastorate  in  October, 
1877,  and  having  been  ordained  in  Cambridge,  Mass.,  "continued 
his  labors  until  February,  1883,  the  church  during  this  time  being 
united  and  prosperous  and  steadily  increasing  in  numbers."  Mr. 
Swaim  is  now  pastor  of  the  First  Baptist  church,  JlSTew  Bedford,. 
Mass. 

Kev.  T.  G.  Cass  was  next  called,  and  began  his  labors  as  pastor 
in  April,  1883,  and  resigned  and  was  dismissed  March  27,  1885, 
He  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  Joseph  H.  Robbins,  who  was  settled 
June  7,  1885.     Mr.  Cass  is  pastor  of  a  church  at  ISTorwich,  jST.  Y. 

The  Rev.  Joseph  H.  Robbins  succeeded  Mr.  Cass,  was  dis- 
missed in  August,  1889,  and  is  now  pastor  of  the  Baptist  church, 
at  Chester,  Vt. 

The  Rev.  O.  C.  Sargent  was  recognized  as  j)astor  on  October 
20,  1889. 

The  number  of  members  of  this  church  in  1893  was  323 ;  the 
whole  number  since  its  organization,  1,119. 

METHODIST   EPISCOPAL    CHURCH. 

Many  of  the  following  facts  are  gathered  from  a  "  Historica 
Sketch,"  by  the  Rev.  M.  V.  B.  Knox,  then  pastor,  published  in 
1892: 

The  date  of  the  first  preaching  of  Methodism  in  Claremont,. 
probably  cannot  at  this  distant  period  be  definitely  fixed,  but  it 
was  undoubtedly  between  the  years  of  1795  and  1798.  One 
authority  states  that  the  Rev.  Mr.  Daniels,  the  first  Methodist 
preacher  who  died  in  New  England  and  was  buried  in  the  adjoin- 
ing town  of  Unity,  preached  the  first  sermon  here.  Another 
statement  is,  that  the  eccentric  Lorenzo  Dow  was  the  first  to 
preach  here,  when  he  was  nineteen  years  old,  which  would  fix 
the  date  as  1796,  he  having  been  born  in  1777.  The  statement 
is  that    Mr.  Dow  first   preached   in  the  neighborhood    known  as- 


METHODIST  CHURCH,  CLAREMONT. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  115 

Puckershire.  It  is  known  that  in  the  winter  of  1798  Lorenzo 
Dow  preached  ouce  in  four  weeks  in  what  is  called  the  Green 
Mountain  district,  and  that  his  labors  resulted  in  some  conver- 
sions and  the  formation  of  a  class  at  the  house  of  Eliphalet  Eob- 
ertson,  who  sometimes  acted  as  leader.  Dow's  eccentricities  were 
finally  thought  unbearable,  and  "he  was  advised  to  leave  the 
town,  which  he  did  in  quite  a  characteristic  manner.  Riding  to 
its  line,  with  thoughts  and  maledictions  the  results  of  which 
it  may  be  impossible  to  tell,  and  the  nature  of  which  the  last 
day  alone  may  reveal,  he  dismounted,  and,  rapping  his  shoes 
together,  shook  the  dust  of  Claremont  off  them,  solemnly  declar- 
ing that  he  should  never  enter  the  town  more  until  solicited  by 
those  who  were  anxious  for  his  labors  as  a  minister  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ.  K'ever  being  invited  he  never  did  return,  and  his 
testimony  thus  feelingly  given  still  remains." 

The  first  organized  Methodism  in  Claremont  was  a  class  formed 
of  those  who  were  converted  under  the  labors  of  Mr.  Dow,  in 
the  Green  Mountain  district.  The  leader  was  Eliakim  Stevens. 
In  1801  Claremont  was  included  in  the  new  circuit  of  Hanover. 
A  quarterly  meeting  is  reported  in  Claremont  May  7,  1801, 
connected  with  which  were  nine  baptisms.  In  1802  the  mem- 
bership in  Claremont  consisted  of  Eliakim  Stevens,  Prudence 
Stevens,  Eliphalet  Robertson,  Mary  Robertson,  Susanna  Stevens, 
John  Amidon,  Dorcas  Tolman,  Susanna  Stoddard,  Cynthia  Fiske, 
Hezekiah  Mills,  Phebe  Farrington,  Amos  Stoddard  and  Betsey 
Howell. 

Under  Rev.  Elijah  Willard's  preaching  a  revival  of  religion 
occurred  at  Draper  Corner,  several  families  being  converted.  Mrs. 
Moore,  an  influential  lady,  encouraged  the  work  by  opening  her 
house  to  meetings.  She  became  a  Methodist,  as  also  her  daughter 
Ethana,  afterwards  the  wife  and  widow  of  Rev.  Caleb  Dustin. 
A  class  was  formed  under  the  leadership  of  Jacob  Smith,  of  Unity, 
a  local  preacher. 

In  1806  Rev.  Caleb  Dustin  labored  here  successfully.  From 
this  time  up  to  1815  the  Methodists  held  their  meetings  at  private 
houses,  and  wherever  else  they  could  find  accommodations.      In 


116  HISTORY    OF    OLAREMONT. 

that  year  the  Methodists,  Universalists,  and  Baptists  united  and 
erected  a  meeting-house  on  the  spot  where  Trinity  church  now 
stands.  During  the  year  1821  the  Baptists  and  Universalists, 
who  had  owned  and  occupied  this  meeting-house  jointly  with  the 
Methodists,  sold  their  shares  to  the  Episcopalians,  who  at  once 
put  the  house  under  alterations  and  repairs.  This  was  a  great 
disappointment  and  inconvenience  to  the  Methodists,  as  the  Epis- 
copalians, owning  two  thirds  —  a  controlling  interest  —  refused  its 
occupancy  to  the  Methodists  for  their  fourth  quarterly  meeting, 
which  was  appointed  for  the  eighteenth  of  August.  As  the  day 
approached,  Mr.  Daniel  Chase,  a  XJniversalist,  who  kept  what  has 
latterly  heen  known  as  the  Sullivan  House,  tendered  the  use  or 
a  large  new  horse-barn,  which  he  had  just  finished,  for  the  meeting, 
and  his  dance-hall  for  the  love-feast,  which  was  accepted. 

After  this  meetings  were  held  for  a  time  at  Draper  Corner; 
then  in  an  old,  red  cabinet  shop  at  the  north  side  of  the  Upper 
Bridge,  on  Washington  street,  and  finally  in  the  hall  of  the  "Old 
Clark  Tavern,"  on  North  street,  which  was  occupied  about  two 
years.  "In  this  hall  Wilbur  Fisk  and  other  able,  godly  men 
preached  the  word." 

In  1826  the  Methodists  of  Claremont  undertook  to  build  for 
themselves  a  meeting-house,  and  in  quarterly  conference,  held 
January  4,  it  was  "  voted  to  raise  a  committee  of  three  to  esti- 
mate the  sum  and  obtain  subscriptions  to  build  a  meeting-house 
in  Claremont."  ISTathan  Howard,  Thomas  Davis,  and  Eli  Draper 
were  appointed  said  committee.  Eliakim  Stevens,  Nathan  Howard, 
Thomas  Davis,  Asa  Dinsmore,  and  Eli  Draper  were  constituted 
trustees.     The  enterprise  was  at  once  begun. 

A  subscription  paper,  dated  January  26,  1826,  and  headed  as 
follows,  was  circulated : 

AVhereas,  it  is  the  duty  of  all  that  have  means  and  opportunities  to  promote 
the  public  worship  of  Almighty  God,  and,  whereas,  the  Society  of  the  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church  in  Claremont,  N.  H.,  labors  under  many  inconveniences 
and  embarrassments  for  want  of  a  house  of  public  worship,  therefore  we,  the 
subscribers,  promise  to  pay  the  sum  set  against  our  names,  respectively,  to  the  said 
Methodist  Society,  or  a  committee  which  they  shall  appoint,  to  be  by  them 
appropriated   for   the   erecting   a  free  house  of   public  worship  in   or   near   the 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  117 

Tillage,  in  said  Claremont,  of  such  dimensions  as  shall  by  them  be  judged  suit- 
able, and  upon  such  principles  as  shall  accord  with  the  discipline  and  usages 
of  their  church. 

At  an  adjourned  meeting  held  January  26,  1826,  the  following 
board  of  officers  was  chosen :  Eliakim  Stevens,  president ;  Nathan 
Howard,  secretary;  Thomas  Davis,  treasurer  and  agent;  Asa 
Dinsmore,  Nathan  Howard,  Eliakim  Stevens,  Thomas  Davis, 
Harvey  McLaughlin,  trustees.  At  this  meeting  the  society  "  voted 
to  proceed  to  huild  a  chapel  for  public  worship,"  and  that 
"  Thomas  Davis,  Eliakim  Stevens,  and  Nathan  Howard  be  a 
committee,  whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  purchase  a  site  for  and 
superintend  the  building  of  said  chapel." 

Mr.  Austin  Tyler,  a  man  of  no  particular  denominational  affin- 
ities, magnanimously  offiired  them  a  very  eligible  site  on  Sullivan 
street,  as  a  gift,  which  was  gratefully  accepted.  "  When  the  timber 
was  collected,  the  brethren,  desirous  of  securing  the  blessing  of 
God  upon  their  humble  effort,  solicited  the  services  of  the  Rev. 
Mr.  Nye,  the  Congregational  preacher,  as  their  own  was  too 
remote  on  other  parts  of  the  circuit  to  be  conveniently  called. 
Mr.  Nye  met  them  in  the  lot  containing  the  scattered  materials 
for  the  chapel,  and  solemnly  invoked  the  divine  aid  on  the  workers 
and  work."  The  meeting-house  was  raised,  partly  finished,  and 
occupied  for  service  through  the  summer  season  in  this  condition, 
the  congregation  sitting  on  rough  seats,  men  on  one  side  of  the 
house,  women  on  the  other,  while  the  carpenter's  bench  made 
the  minister's  pulpit.  The  house  was  finally  completed  and  ded- 
icated in  December,  1829,  the  sermon  being  preached  by  Rev. 
B.  R.  Hoyt. 

The  official  members  of  Claremont  voted,  in  1833,  a  request 
to  be  separated  from  the  other  places,  and  constituted  a  separate 
appointment.  At  a  quarterly  conference  held  at  Unity,  June 
29,  1833,  it  was  "voted  that  Charlestown  and  Claremont  become 
stations."  But  the  quarterly  conference  included  Unity,  Clare- 
mont, and  Charlestown  until  the  conference  year  of  1835-36. 

At  the  first  quarterly  conference  the  new  station  had  formed 
itself  into  a  missionary  society.     The  first  stationed  preacher  was 


118  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

0.  W.  Levings,  but  matters  were  not  prosperous,  and,  at  the 
quarterly  conference  of  June  25,  1836,  his  dismission  from  the 
charge,  at  his  own  request,  was  assented  to,  and  he  left. 

John  Jones,  who  followed  Mr.  Levings,  "  was  successful  in  his 
work,  but  was  greatly  impeded  by  a  long  course  of  sickness.  The 
people  helped  him  in  a  characteristic  manner.  To  meet  the  ex- 
penses of  his  illness,  the  sum  of  seventy-three  dollars  and  eighteen 
cents  was  raised,  over  and  above  his  regular  salary,  and  awarded 
him  as  a  gift  —  this  being  the  whole  amount  of  expenses  incurred 
by  his  sickness.    He  reported  one  hundred  and  nineteen  members." 

The  next  year  Moses  Chase  was  the  preacher,  "  and  the  place 
was  favored  with  a  revival  of  great  power.  So  many  were  the 
additions  that  he  reported  the  membership  at  two  hundred  and 
twenty-one." 

At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  society,  September  4,  1837, 
"  Charles  H.  Mann,  Erastus  Clark,  and  Frederick  A.  Henry  were 
made  a  committee  to  see  how  a  house-lot  could  be  bought  and 
a  parsonage-house  built."  An  adjourned  meeting,  held  Sep- 
tember 16,  of  the  same  year,  "  Voted  to  proceed  in  the  building 
of  a  house  as  soon  as  four  hundred  dollars  should  be  raised." 
This  sum  was  soon  pledged,  and  Samuel  Tutherly,  William  Proc- 
tor, and  Frederick  A.  Henry  were  appointed  a  building  com- 
mittee. It  was  found  necessary  to  enlarge  the  meeting-house, 
and  it  was  decided  to  abandon  the  parsonage  project  for  that  time. 

The  quarterly  conference,  in  January,  1838,  resolved  itself 
into  a  domestic  missionary  society,  auxiliary  to  the  Domestic 
Missionary  Society  of  ISTew  Hampshire.  In  that  year  Rev.  William 
Hatch  succeeded  Mr.  Chase  in  the  pastorate.  The  quarterly 
conference,  in  May,  "  Resolved,  in  the  opinion  of  the  quarterly 
conference,  that  our  discipline  prohibits  the  use  of  intoxicating 
liquors,  except  as  a  medicine,  and  that  no  person  ought  to  be 
received  into  the  church  unless  he  will  live  up  to  this  rule." 
The  same  Conference,  in  April,  1839,  resolved : 

1.  That  in  our  opinion  the  use  of  intoxicating  drinks  as  a  beverage  is  sin. 

2.  That  if  any  member  of  our  church  in  this  place  shall  be  guilty  of  so  doing, 
such  member  or  members  ought  to  be  dealt  with  according  to  the  rules  of  dia- 

nless  speedy  reformation  renders  it  unnecessary. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  119 

Rev.  James  M.  Fuller,  in  1839,  succeeded  Mr.  Hatch,  and,  at 
the  close  of  the  first  year,  reported  a  Sunday  school,  with  twenty- 
four  officers  and  teachers,  one  hundred  and  eleven  scholars,  and 
three  hundred  volumes  in  the  library. 

Mr.  Fuller  stayed  two  years,  and  reported  the  number  of  mem- 
bers of  the  church  at  two  hundred  and  one.  He  was  succeeded 
by  Rev.  Eleazer  Smith. 

About  this  time  the  Second  Advent,  or  Miller  excitement, 
manifested  itself,  threatening  the  interests  of  the  church.  In  a 
quarterlj"^  conference,  April  15,  1843,  it  was  "  Voted  that  those 
brethren  who  sustain  meetings  abroad  are  requested  to  refrain; 
if  not,  they  are  invited  respectfully  to  withdraw  from  the  church," 
and  Gr.  "W.  Wilson,  E.  Clark,  A.  M.  Billings,  and  others  imme- 
diately withdrew.  At  the  close  of  his  second  year  Mr.  Smith 
reported  two  hundred  and  ninety  members  of  the  church. 

The  New  Hampshire  Annual  Conference  —  then  including  Ver- 
mont as  well  as  this  state  —  met  at  Claremont  for  the  first  time, 
in  June,  1843.  The  public  services  were  held  in  the  town  hall. 
''  On  the  Sabbath  an  immense  audience  assembled,  filling  not  only 
the  town  hall,  but  the  grounds  about  it.  The  venerable  Bishop 
"Waugh,  standing  on  a  platform  erected  for  that  purpose  at  the 
south  door,  proclaimed  with  masterly  efiect,  in  behalf  of  the 
ministry,  '  We  preach  not  ourselves,  but  Christ  Jesus  the  Lord.' " 

Mr.  Smith  was  succeeded  in  1843  by  Rev.  Elihu  Scott.  "  His 
first  year's  pastorate  was  greatly  injured  by  the  desolating  influ- 
ence of  Millerism,  defections  in  the  membership  multiplying  so 
that  he  reported  but  one  hundred  and  eighty  members  at  the 
close  of  that  year."  At  the  end  of  his  second  year,  Millerism 
having  collapsed,  Mr.  Scott  reported  two  hundred  members  of 
the  church. 

At  the  close  of  Mr.  Scott's  term,  the  quarterly  conference, 
having  tested  the  station  system,  "  Voted  to  request  the  bishop 
to  form  Claremont  station  into  a  circuit,  by  adding  one  or  more 
towns,  and  to  send  two  or  more  preachers."  But  the  experience 
of  a  year  or  two  under  this  plan  reversed  the  request,  and  Clare- 
mont has  since  remained  a  station. 


120  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

In  1845  Rev.  Silas  Quimby  succeeded  Mr.  Scott,  and  at  the  end 
of  the  year  reported  the  membership  at  two  hundred  and  thirty- 
three.  Rev.  Justin  Spaulding  succeeded  Mr.  Quimby,  remaining 
one  year,  and  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  Jacob  Stevens,  in  1847, 
remaining  on  the  charge  about  three  quarters  of  the  year,  when 
he  retired  on  account  of  poor  health,  and  the  year  was  filled  out 
by  Rev.  Matthew  Newhall,  a  supernumerary  preacher.  This  year 
the  quarterly  conference  "Voted  to  adopt  a  number  of  resolu- 
tions against  the  circus  soon  to  be  exhibited  in  this  place."  It 
also  voted  to  admit  "  a  seraphim  in  the  gallery." 

Rev.  Joseph  C.  Cromack  was  the  next  preacher.  During  his 
pastorate  the  church  bought  the  house  on  Pleasant  street,  now 
owned  by  Dr.  F.  C.  "Wilkinson,  for  a  parsonage.  In  1850  Rev. 
Lewis  Howard  succeded  Mr.  Cromack,  and  in  1851  the  quarterly 
conference  ordered  twenty-five  dollars  to  be  "paid  to  Jonathan 
Miner  for  leadingthe  singing."  On  February  23, 1852, the  society 
"  Voted  to  build  a  new  meeting-house,  and  that  Samuel  Tutherly 
be  a  committee  to  obtain  subscriptions."  Plans  for  the  house  were 
presented  and  adopted,  and,  at  a  meeting  on  March  6,  it  was 
"  Voted  that  the  rent  of  pews  go  toward  the  preaching,"  and  at 
another  meeting,  a  week  later,  "  Thomas  Sanford,  Samuel 
Tutherly,  and  James  Sperry  were  made  a  committee  to  dispose 
of  the  old  meeting-house  and  lot,  purchase  a  new  lot,  raise 
subscriptions,  and  build  a  new  meeting-house."  This  com- 
mittee was  also  authorized  to  sell  the  parsonage,  and  the 
trustees  were  directed  to  hold  the  funds  arising  from  that 
sale  until  they  could  build  or  purchase  another,  which  was  to  be 
done  within  six  years.  "  The  trustees  Avere  also  authorized  to  use 
the  money  arising  from  the  sale  of  the  parsonage  in  the  new 
church,  with  the  interest  of  it  to  go  for  house-rent  for  the  preach- 
er." Frederick  A.  Henry  and  Ebenezer  E.  Bailey  were  added  to 
the  building  committee;  subscriptions  to  the  amount  of  $2,484.50 
were  soon  obtained  ;  the  old  meeting-house  was  sold  for  |650,  and 
the  parsonage  for  $1,191 ;  a  new  church  lot  was  purchased  on  Cen- 
tral street ;  a  new  meeting-house  was  erected,  which,  with  furnish- 
ings, cost  $5,601.76.     The  new  "  church  was  dedicated  to  the  ser- 


HISTORY   OF   OLAREMONT.  121 

vice  of  Almighty  God,  January,  25,  1853,  by  Bishop  Osmon  C.  Ba- 
ker." During  the  building  of  the  new  meeting-house,  and  up  to 
1854,  Rev.  John  McLaughlin  vpas  the  preacher.  The  membership 
at  the  close  of  his  pastorate  numbered  two  hundred  and  eighty- 
one. 

Mr.  McLaughlin  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  Frederick  A.  Hewes, 
whose  pastorate,  for  two  years,  was  quite  successful,  and  the  church 
and  society  were  strong  and  prosperous.  The  second  session  of 
the  'New  Hampshire  conference  was  held  in  Claremont,  in  May, 
1856,  presided  over  by  Bishop  E.  S.  Janes.  The  conference  ser- 
mon was  delivered  by  Rev.  Elihu  Scott,  a  former  pastor.  Rev.  "W. 
~F.  Evans  succeeded  to  the  pastorate  in  1856.  During  his  pastorate 
the  debt  that  had  remained  on  the  church  since  its  dedication  was 
fully  paid. 

Mr.  Evans  was  succeeded,  in  1858,  by  Rev.  0.  H.  Jasper,  D.  D. 
a  popular  and  powerful  preacher,  during  whose  pastorate  of  two 
years  much  good  was  accomplished.  In  1860,  Rev.  R.  S.  Stubbs 
took  the  place  of  Mr.  Jasper.  At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  soci- 
ety, 1860,  it  was  voted  that  the  church  be  lighted  with  gas,  and 
"Eli  Smith  was  requested  to  furnish  and  take  charge  of  singing,  at 
his  discretion,  either  in  the  gallery  or  in  the  congregation."  In 
1862,  Mr.  Stubbs  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  H.  H.  Hartwell.  During 
his  first  year  the  Sunday  school  increased  from  two  hundred  to 
two  hundred  and  ninety-two,  and  the  Sunday  school  library  num- 
bered over  a  thousand  volumes.  The  membership  at  the  close  of 
his  second  year  was  reported  at  three  hundred  and  twenty-four. 
Rev.  S.  G.  Kellogg  followed  Mr.  Hartwell  in  1864.  He  preached 
here  three  years,  in  which  time  he  preached  three  hundred  and 
eighty  sermons,  attended  sixty-nine  funerals,  and  baptized  eighty- 
one  persons. 

In  1867,  Mr.  Kellogg  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  D.  C.  Babcock. 
After  a  few  months'  service,  he  accepted  the  secretaryship  of  the 
New  Hampshire  State  Temperance  League,  and  Rev.  C.  W.  Mellen 
supplied  the  remainder  of  the  year.  In  1868  Rev.  S.  P.  Heath  came 
and  remained  here  two  years,  which  "  were  crowned  with  substan- 


122  HISTORY   OF    CLAUEMONT. 

tial  success."  Following  Mr.  Heath  came  Rev.  H.  L.  Kelsey,  in 
1870.  During  the  years  1870  and  1871,  a  new,  handsome  two-storj 
parsonage  house  was  built  on  a  lot  adjoining  the  meeting-house  lot, 
on  Central  street,  under  the  direction  of  Hon.  C.  H.  Eastman, 
chairman  of  the  board  of  trustees,  assisted  by  Mr.  Kelsey.  The 
job  was  contracted  to  George  H.  Stevens  for  two  thousand  seven 
hundred  dollars  for  house,  barn,  and  well.  On  the  completion  of 
the  job,  Mr.  Stevens  was  paid  something  in  addition  for  extra 
work.  The  ladies  of  the  church  furnished  the  new  house  with  car- 
pets, stoves,  tables,  etc. 

In  1873,  Eev.  N.  M.  Bailey  succeeded  Mr.  Kelsey,  and  continued 
here  for  two  years,  with  marked  success.  During  his  pastorate  "it 
appears  that  two  women  were  elected  on  the  board  of  stewards, — 
Mrs.  Ann  Perkins  and  Mrs.  Melissa  Fitch.  They  served  five  years, 
resigning  in  1879,  in  spite  of  all  etibrts  to  retain  them."  In  1875 
Eev.  E.  R  Wilkins  came  in  place  of  Mr.  Bailey.  "  During  his  pas- 
torate of  three  years,  the  people  were  pleased  with  him,  and  he 
with  the  people.  His  indefatigable  pastoral  labors  were  greatly 
appreciated."  In  1878,  Rev.  Daniel  Stevenson,  D.  D.,  succeeded 
Mr.  Wilkins.  "  His  sermons  were  of  a  high  order."  In  the  sum- 
mer of  1879  he  resigned  his  charge,  and  accepted  a  re-transfer  to 
the  Kentucky  conference,  from  which  he  had  come  to  the  New 
Hampshire  conference,  four  years  before.  He  entered  on  the  pres- 
idency of  Augusta  Seminary  and  Female  College.  Rev.  M.  Y.  B. 
Knox,  of  the  South  Kansas  Conference,  who  was  recuperating  in 
northern  Vermont,  was  secured  to  fill  out  the  remainder  of  the 
year.  During  the  year  1879,  Mrs.  Julia  A.  D.  Eastman,  widow  of 
Hon.  C.  H.  Eastman,  to  carry  out  an  expressed  wish  of  her  hus- 
band, donated  the  money  —  one  thousand  five  hundred  dollars  — 
to  erect  a  memorial  chapel,  sixty-one  by  thirty-nine  feet,  and  paid 
for  carpet  and  other  furnishings,  at  a  cost  of  about  two  hundred 
and  fifty  dollars  more.  It  joins  the  church  on  the  northeast  corner, 
and  contains  a  vestry  capable  of  seating  two  hundred  and  fifty 
people,  large  parlor,  librarj^,  and  vestibule.  It  was  dedicated  De- 
cember  22,  1880,  by  Presiding  Elder  George  J.  Judkins. 


HISTOKY   OF    CLARBMONT.  123 

In  1881  the  annual  conference  was  again  held  in  Claremont, 
meeting  April  20.  "  Bishop  Thomas  Bowman  presided  with 
marked  ability  and  success."  Mr.  Knox  continued  his  pastorate 
until  1882,  and  was  succeeded  by  Rev,  Henry  Dorr.  During  his 
first  year  here  Mr.  Dorr  met  with  a  serious  accident.  He  was 
thrown  from  his  carriage,  injuring  his  ankle  so  badly  as  to  render 
amputation  between  the  knee  and  foot  necessary.  He  died  in  1894. 
In  1885  Eev.  G-.  M.  Curl  succeed  Mr.  Dorr  three  years ;  Eev.  D. 
C  Babcock,  two  years ;  Eev.  A.  C.  Coult,  one  year.  Mr.  Coult's 
health  was  not  equal  to  the  requirements  of  so  large  a  parish,  and 
he  was  therefore,  at  his  own  request,  relieved,  after  one  year's  ser- 
vice. He  was  succeeded  in  1891  by  the  Eev.  Charles  U.  Dunning, 
the  present  pastor.  The  number  of  members  in  October,  1893, 
was  330. 

ALTERATIONS    AND    IMPROVEMENTS    OF   THE   CHURCH    BUILDING. 

Alterations,  improvements,  and  repairs  of  the  church  building 
tad  been  contemplated  for  some  years.  In  the  summer  of  1891, 
Hira  E.  Beckwith,  having  been  employed  for  the  purpose,  submit- 
ted plans  and  specifications  for  the  changes  desired,  and  they  were 
adopted  by  the  board  of  trustees,  consisting  of  Ira  Colby,  O.  B. 
Way,  D.  W.  Johnson,  G.  W.  Holden,  and  Milton  Silsby,  who 
Bstimated  that  at  least  four  thousand  dollars  would  be  required  to 
carry  out  the  plans.  The  trustees,  assisted  by  the  pastor,  the  Eev. 
Mr.  Dunning,  at  once  set  about  raising  that  sum  by  voluntary  con- 
tributions. In  8  very  few  days  more  than  that  amount  had  been 
pledged,  and  George  T.  Stockwell  was  employed  to  superintend 
the  mechanical  part  of  the  work,  which  was  begun  on  the  twenty- 
third  day  of  September,  and  completed,  including  repairs  of  the 
chapel,  slating  and  painting  the  parsonage  buildings,  and  placing  a 
fine  toned  bell,  weighing  near  nineteen  hundred  pounds,  in  the 
belfry,  on  the  twenty-sixth  day  of  January,  1892.  The  whole  cost 
of  these  alterations,  improvements,  repairs,  and  new  furnishings  was 
some  more  than  eight  thousand  dollars.  Of  this  sum  the  ladies 
of  the  society  contributed  nine  hundred  and  sixty-one  dollars, 
i\'hich  included  the  price  paid  for  a  piano  placed  in  the  chapel. 


124  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

On  the  27th  of  January,  1892,  the  church  building  was  re-dedi- 
cated with  appropriate  exercises.  A  sermon  was  preached  by  the 
Eev.  Dr.  J.  W.  Hamilton,  of  Boston,  and  the  declaration  of  dedica- 
tion was  made  by  the  presiding  elder,  the  Eev.  O.  S.  Baketel. 

The  sixty-fifth  annual  Methodist  conference  was  held  in  Clare- 
mont,  commencing  April  10,  1894,  presided  over  by  Bishop  Cyrus- 
D.  Fobs. 

JUNCTION   CAMP-MEETING   GROUNDS. 

In  1871  the  subject  of  securing  permanent  camp-meeting 
grounds  for  the  Claremont,  K  H.,  and  Springfield,  Vt.,  Methodist 
conference  districts,  began  to  be  agitated.  A  preliminary  meeting- 
of  committees  of  those  districts  was  held  at  Dr.  0.  B.  "Way's 
office  in  Claremont,  on  January  2,  1872.  Rev.  James  Pike  was 
chosen  chairman,  and  Dr.  "Way,  secretary.  A  camp-meeting  con- 
vention, consisting  of  all  the  preachers  of  the  two  districts,  and 
one  layman  from  each  charge,  was  held  at  Claremont  Junction, 
June  2,  1872.  Eev.  James  Pike  was  chosen  chairman ;  Rev.  P. 
"Wallingford,  secretary,  and  Rev.  J.  H.  Hillman  assistant  secre- 
tary. Grounds  of  "William  Ellis,  "William  Jones,  and  D.  Canty 
near  the  Sullivan  and  Concord  &  Claremont  railroad  junction^ 
were  purchased. 

The  first  permanent  officers  consisted  of  the  following  gentle- 
men: President,  Eev.  James  Pike,  D.  D. ;  vice  president,  Eev. 
J.  "W.  Guernsey ;  secretary,  Eev.  Philander  "Wallingford;  treasurer, 
Dr.  O.  B.  "Way ;  executive  committee,  H.  H.  Howe,  A.  L.  Jones, 
A.  C.  Davenport,  Eev.  H.  W.  Worthen,  Eev.  H.  L.  Kelsey.  The 
first  camp-meeting  was  held  there  the  last  week  in  September, 
1873.  The  ground  had  been  cleared  of  trees  and  other  obstruc- 
tions, seats  built,  a  preachers'  stand  erected,  and  several  sizable  cot- 
tages were  put  up  by  societies  and  individuals.  Good  water  has 
been  brought  to  the  grounds,  and  other  improvements  have  been 
made  from  year  to  year,  so  that  it  is  quite  an  attractive  place. 
Camp-meetings  have  been  held  there  each  year  since  1873. 

In  1893  camp-meeting  was  held  from  the  twenty-second  to  the 
twenty-ninth  of  August,  and  was, largely  attended.     The  presiding 


UNIVERSALIST  CHURCH. 


HISTOBT   OP   CLAREMONT.  125 

elders  were  O.  S.  Baketel  of  the  Claremont,  and  L.  L.  Beeman  of 
the  Springfield  district.  The  names  of  these  were  changed  in  1893, 
^-  the  Claremont  to  Manchester  district,  and  Springfield  to  Mont- 
pelier  district. 

During  this  camp-meeting  officers  for  the  ensuing  year  were 
chosen,  as  follows :  Eev.  O.  S.  Baketel,  of  Portsmouth,  president; 
Eev.  L.  L.  Beeman,  of  "Windsor,  Vt.,  vice  president;  F.  P.  Ball  of 
Bellows  Falls,  Vt,  secretary;  George  "W.  Stevens,  of  Claremont, 
treasurer  and  superintendent  of  the  grounds;  George  H.  Fairbanks, 
of  Newport,  H.  F.  Wyman,  of  Springfield,  Vt,  L.  F.  Quimby,  of 
Unity,  J.  C.  Chadwick,  of  Brattleboro,  Vt,  G.  H.  Perkins,  of 
Antrim,  and  Eev.  Elihu  Snow,  of  White  River  Junction,  Vt., 
executive  committee. 

UNIVEESALIST   CHURCH. 

From  a  manual  prepared  by  the  Eev.  Lee  S.  McCollester,  a 
former  pastor,  and  published  in  1885,  many  of  the  following  facts 
in  relation  to  the  church  have  been  derived : 

The  object  of  the  formation  of  this  church  is  the  cultivation  of  Faith,  Hope, 
and  Charity  in  our  own  hearts ;  the  diffusion  of  gospel  truth  and  light  among 
our  fellow-men ;  and  a  systematic  application  of  Christianity  in  our  daily  life. 

There  must  have  been  some  kind  of  an  organization  of  the  Uni- 
versalists  in  Claremont  as  early  as  1815,  because  in  that  year  the 
Universalists  united  with  the  Baptists  and  Methodists  and  built  a 
meeting-house,  which  was  known  for  many  years,  and  until  itjwas 
taken  down  in  1852,  to  make  a  place  for  the  erection  of  Trinity 
-church,  as  the  "  old  round  brick  church."     The  manual  says : 

There  was  occasional  Universalist  preaching  in  Claremont  as  early  as  1824, 
by  such  eminent  clergymen  as  Revs.  Russell  Streeter,  Otis  Skinner,  Samuel 
Willis,  Samuel  C.  Loveland,  John  Moore,  and  others.  The  services  were  then 
and  for  several  succeeding  years  held  in  the  hall  of  what  is  now  the  Sullivan 
;House,  and  even  after  Rev.  W.  S.  Balch  became  settled  pastor,  in  April,  1832, 
this  ball  was  the  regular  place  of  worship  until  the  completion  and  dedication 
•.of  the  church. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  1832, 

Voted,  on  motion  of  Mr.  Abel  Wheeler,  that  the  First  Universalist  Society  in 


126  HISTORY   OP   CLAEEMONT. 

Claremont  have  liberty  to  build  a  house  for  public  worship  on  the  Common  in 
the  center  of  the  town,  near  the  west  line  of  the  buiying  ground,  by  paying  at 
the  rate  of  five  hundred  dollars  per  acre  for  the  use  of  the  land  taken  up  by 
said  house  — place  to  be  designated  by  the  Selectmen. 

The  dedicatory  services  took  place  in  the  forenoon  of  the  twenty- 
fourth  of  October,  1832,  and  were  conducted  by  the  Rev.  W.  S. 
Balch,  pastor,  assisted  by  the  Eev.  Messrs.  F.  F.  King,  J.  Gilman, 
and  John  Moore.  In  the  afternoon  of  the  same  day  the  first  meet- 
ing of  the  New  Hampshire  State  Convention  of  Universalists 
occurred,  when  an  organization  was  effected,  and  the  convention 
held  sessions  the  next  day. 

The  first  organization  of  the  Universalist  church  in  Claremont 
took  place  during  the  settlement  of  Mr.  Balch,  the  precise  date  of 
which  is  not  known,  though  it  was  probably  in  1834.  In  March, 
1836,  Mr.  Balch  resigned  his  pastorate,  and  the  following  Novem- 
ber was  succeeded  by  the  Rev.  John  G.  Adams,  who  continued 
here  fifteen  months. 

The  Rev.  William  S.  Balch,  D.  D.,  was  born  at  Andover,  Vt.,  on 
April  13,  1806,  and  died  at  Elgin,  111.,  December  2.5,  1887.  He 
was  the  author  of  the  first  "  Manual  or  Sunday-school  Service 
Book"  used  by  the  Universalists,  "Lectures  on  Language,"  "Ire- 
land as  I  saw  It,"  "A  Peculiar  People,"  etc.  He  was  an  able  man 
and  very  popular  preacher. 

In  the  spring  of  1837,  during  the  pastorate  of  Mr.  Adams,  a 
Sunday  school  was  organized,  which  for  many  years  met  only  dur- 
ing the  warm  seasons.  In  1861  it  began  to  hold  sessions  through 
the  whole  year,  and  has  so  continued  without  intermission,  wheth- 
er the  church  had  a  settled  pastor  or  preaching,  or  not,  and  is  one 
of  the  useful  and  valued  institutions  of  the  town.  Hon.  H.  "W. 
Parker  has  been  superintendent  of  this  Sunday  school  without  in- 
terruption, since  1862. 

Mr.  Adams  was  a  man  of  marked  ability  as  a  preacher  and 
writer.  After  leaving  Claremont  he  preached  at  Providence,  R.  L, 
Worcester,  Mass.,  and  Cincinnati,  Ohio.  From  Ohio  he  returned 
to  New  England,  gave  up  pastoral  work,  but  continued  to  preach. 
He  was  the  author  of  numerous  books,  was  at  one  time  editor  of 


a 


o 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  127 

"  The  Myrtle,"  and  later  of  the  "  Sunday  School  Helper."  The 
last  years  of  his  life  his  home  was  at  Melrose,  Mass.,  where  he 
died  May  4, 1887.  His  son,  John  Coleman  Adams,  is  an  eminent 
Universalist  preacher  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

The  resignation  of  Mr.  Adams  was  immediately  followed  by  the 
settlement  of  the  Rev.  John  Nichols,  who  remained  here  until  1843. 
In  the  fall  of  1842,  under  his  direction,  the  Ladies'  Samaritan  So- 
ciety was  formed  and  became  a  permanent  organization  of  the 
church. 

The  Rev.  R.  S.  Sanborn  followed  Mr.  Nichols,  remained  a  few 
months,  and  was  immediately  succeeded,  in  July,  1844,  by  the  Rev. 
O.  H.  Tillotson,  who  remained  one  year.  Rev.  Samuel  Willis  was 
settled  in  May,  1845,  and  remained  about  five  years,  during  which 
special  attention  was  given  to  Sunday-school  work  and  to  the  per- 
fection of  the  organization  of  the  church.  According  to  the  rec- 
ords, "  The  form  of  church  government  contained  in  the  Univer- 
salists'  Guide  was  adopted  December  7,  1845,  as  the  constitution  of 
the  Universalist  church  of  Claremont."  Mr.  Willis  closed  his  pas- 
torate in  the  fall  of  1849.  For  the  next  few  months  the  pulpit  was 
supplied  by  Revs.  A.  A.  Miner,  0.  H.  Tillotson,  W.  S.  Balch,  and 
Mr.  Clark.  Rev.  J.  D.  Pierce  was  settled  in  February,  1850,  and 
continued  until  May,  1855,  and  for  about  a  year  and  a  half  the 
church  was  without  a  regular  pastor,  the  pulpit  being  supplied  by 
Revs.  H.  A.  Philbrook,  S.  A.  Spencer,  and  others,  and  by  lay 
reading. 

Rev.  Giles  Bailey  was  settled  in  1857  and  continued  until 
1860.  Rev.  Carlos  Marston  followed  in  the  spring  of  1861.  Rev. 
E.  S.  Foster  was  pastor  from  1863  to  1865,  and  Rev.  Asher  Moore 
from  July,  1867,  to  1870.  For  a  while  Rev.  T.  Barron  preached 
here  and  at  North  Charlestown,  half  the  time  at  each  place,  and  in 
the  early  part  of  1871  Rev.  Eli  Ballou  occupied  the  pulpit. 

On  May  7,  1871,  Rev.  C.  E.  Sawyer,  having  accepted  a  call  to 
settle,  preached  his  first  sermon  as  pastor,  and  on  the  morn- 
ing of  June  28  of  the  same  year,  he,  with  his  young  wife  and 
wife's  father,  Mr.  Sylvanus  Gushing,  of  Abington,  Mass.,  was 
drowned  at  Ashley's  Ferry,  in  Connecticut  river.     Mr.  Cushing 


128  HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT. 

came  here  to  visit  his  daughter,  who  had  been  but  a  few  weeks 
married,  and  on  that  morning,  the  skies  being  bright  and  the  air 
balmy,  Mr.  Sawyer  took  a  two-seated,  covered  carriage,  with  one 
horse  from  a  livery  stable,  and  set  out  with  his  wife  and  father-in- 
law  for  a  drive.  They  crossed  Claremont  bridge  into  Vermont, 
drove  down  the  river  to  Weathersfield  Bow,  and,  it  is  supposed, 
attempted  to  ford  Connecticut  River  at  Ashley's  Ferry,  with  the 
sad  result  above  stated.  No  one  saw  them  enter  the  river,  and  no 
one  of  the  party  survived  to  tell  how  the  distressing  calamity  hap- 
pened. It  was  only  left  for  conjecture.  The  horse  was  also 
drowned. 

The  following  November  Eev.  S.  P.  Smith  began  a  pastorate 
which  continued  until  September,  1873,  and  was  followed  in  June, 
1874,  by  Rev.  Edward  Smiley,  who  remained  until  March,  1881. 
During  his  pastorate  special  and  effective  work  was  done  in  the 
Sunday  school.  Rev.  J.  M.  Johns  was  pastor  from  August,  1881, 
to  October,  1883,  "  and  was  instrumental  in  causing  the  church  to 
be  remodeled  at  an  expense  of  over  seven  thousand  dollars,  so  that 
it  is  now  one  of  the  most  complete  church  edifices  in  the  state." 
The  dedicatory  services  took  place  August  1,  1883,  and  were  par- 
ticipated in  by  Drs.  A.  A.  Miner  and  G.  L.  Demarest,  and  Revs. 
J.  M.  Johns,  E.  Smiley,  J.  Eastwood,  and  R.  T.  Polk. 

On  January  6,  1884,  Lee  S.  McCollester  preached  here  for  the 
first  time,  and  soon  after  received  and  accepted  a  call  to  settle  as 
pastor.  He  was  then  pursuing  his  theological  course,  which  was 
not  completed  until  the  following  June,  when  he  came  here  and 
settled  permanently.  The  New  Hampshire  Universalist  Sunday 
school  and  state  conventions  met  here  on  September  29,  contin- 
ued in  session  until  October  2,  1884,  and  concluded  with  the  ordi- 
nation of  Mr.  McCollester,  who  resigned  his  pastorate  in  Decem- 
ber, 1888,  to  accept  the  pastoral  charge  of  the  Church  of  Our 
Father,  in  Detroit,  Mich.  He  was  succeeded  by  Rev.  L.  0.  "Wil- 
liams in  July,  1889,  who  resigned  in  November,  1892.  Rev.  Les- 
lie Moor  followed  Mr.  "Williams,  commencing  his  pastorate  in 
June,  1898. 


ST.  MARY'S  CHURCH. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  129 

ST.  mart's  church. 

The  first  mass  in  Claremont,  and  probably  the  first  in  New 
Hampshire,  was  celebrated  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  French  of  New  York, 
an  1818  —  there  is  no  known  record  of  the  precise  date  —  at  the 
Tiouse  of  the  Rev  Daniel  Barber,  while  he  was  still  rector  of  Union 
church. 

In  1823,  the  Rev.  Virgil  H.  Barber,  a  son  of  the  Rev.  Daniel, 
•erected  a  church  at  the  west  part  of  the  town,  named  St.  Mary's,  in 
which  services  were  held  by  the  Catholics,  conducted  by  non-resi- 
ident  priests,  after  the  removal  of  Virgil  H.  Barber,  until  1866. 

The  Catholic  denomination  purchased  a  lot  on  the  north  side  of 
Central  street,  and  in  1870,  when  under  the  pastorate  of  the  Rev. 
"G.  Derome,  commenced  the  erection  of  a  church  building.  It  is 
-of  the  Gothic  style  of  architecture,  brick,  with  granite  trimmings, 
forty-five  feet  wide  and  one  hundred  and  forty-five  feet  long,  with 
bell  tower  one  hundred  and  thirty-seven  feet  high,  in  which  is  a 
peal  of  three  bells,  weighing  respectively  twenty-three  hundred, 
sixteen  hundred,  and  twelve  hundred  pounds.  In  the  last  few 
years,  under  the  supervision  of  Father  J.  P.  Finnegan,  it  has  been 
thoroughly  renovated,  new  pews  replacing  the  old  ones,  new  altars 
built  and  set  in  place,  and  the  whole  interior  painted  in  fresco,  gas 
-fixtures  put  in,  and  the  interior  woodwork  remodeled.  This  build- 
ing is  complete,  and  has  thus  far  cost  fully  thirty  thousand  dollars. 

In  1871  Rev.  Mr.  Derome  was  succeeded  by  Father  L.  L'Hiver, 
who  in  1872  was  replaced  by  the  Rev.  M.  Goodwin,  who  remained 
but  four  months.  The  Rev.  M.  Laporte  took  charge  of  the  parish 
in  July,  1872,  and  continued  as  pastor  until  November,  1873,  when 
the  Rev.  Cornelius  O'Sullivan  was  appointed  to  the  place.  The 
Rev.  P.  J.  Finnegan  succeeded  Mr.  O'Sullivan  in  1875,  and  is  still 
in  charge  of  the  parish. 


LITERARY. 


CHAPTER  X. 

SCHOOLS     AND     ACADEMIES. 

Prior  to  1780  there  were  but  two  school  districts  in  town  — 
one  on  Town  hill  and  the  other  near  Union  church.  At  the 
annual  town  meeting  that  year  it  was  "  Voted  to  raise  thirty 
Pounds  L.  M.,  to  be  raised  as  wheat  at  five  shillings  pr.  Bushel 
for  ye  support  of  schools."  In  1781,  "Voted  and  chose  Elihu 
Stevens,  Esq.,  Mr.  Josiah  Rich,  and  Lieut.  Barna  Ellis,  a  com- 
mittee to  divide  the  town  of  Claremont  into  districts,  as  they 
think  proper,  for  the  benefit  of  schools."  In  1800  the  sum  of 
six  hundred  dollars  was  voted  for  this  purpose;  in  1810,  eight 
hundred;  in  1820,  one  thousand  dollars.  At  the  annual  town 
meeting  in  1824,  the  Rev.  Jonathan  Nye  introduced  the  follow- 
ing preamble  and  resolutions,  which  were  adopted : 

Whereas  a  prudent  and  judicious  regulation  and  management  of  our  schools 
is  highly  necessary  and  important  for  the  instruction  and  benefit  of  the  rising 
generation  as  well  as  for  the  peace  and  prosperity  of  the  town,  therefore 

Resolved,  That  a  committee  be  appointed  to  superintend  and  visit  the  schools 
in  town,  as  near  their  commencement  and  close  as  may  be  convenient,  in  order 
that  they  may  be  able  to  judge  of  the  improvement  which  the  scholars  shall 
have  made. 

Kesolved,  That  if  any  difficulty  shall  arise  in  any  school,  or  any  complaint 
be  made  respecting  the  master,  or  any  irregularity  be  discovered  or  complained 
of  in  either,  this  committee  shall  be  called  in  by  the  master,  or  agent  of  the  dis- 
trict, and  said  committee  shall  have  the  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty,  to 
dismiss  the  master,  or  any  irregular  or  unruly  scholar,  if  in  their  opinion  the 
good  of  the  school  or  interest  of  the  district  require  it. 

Kesolved,  That  said  committee  be  empowered  to  direct  what  books  shall  be 
used  in  the  schools.  It  is  not  the  understanding,  however,  that  the  scholars 
shall   be   obliged   to  purchase   an  entire  set  of   new  books   at  once ;    but   as 


134  HISTORY    OF   OLABEMONT.  t 

fast  as  new  ones  are  needed,  such  books  shall  be  procured  as  the  said  com- 
mittee may  select,  that  in  process  of  time  there  may  be  an  uniformity  in  all 
the  schools  in  town. 

Resolved,  That  no  agent  of  the  town  shall  hire  any  instructor,  or  continue 
him  or  her  in  the  employ  of  the  district,  who  does  not,  previous  to  the  com- 
mencement of  his  or  her  school,  or  within  twenty  days  from  such  time,  obtain 
a  certificate  from  said  committee  of  his  or  her  qualifications  to  instruct  —  and 
that  his  or  her  moral  character  is  unimpeached. 

Resolved,  That  this  committee  shall  receive  such  compensation  for  their  ser- 
vices as  the  prudence  and  judgment  of  the  selectmen  shall  consider  reasonable, 
provided  that  the  same  do  not  exceed  one  dollar  per  day. 

The  Eev.  Mr.  Nye,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Howe,  and  Samuel  Fiske 
were  chosen  to  serve  as  visiting  committee  of  the  schools.  At 
the  annual  town  meeting  in  1826  it  was  voted  not  to  choose  school 
visiting  committee.  In  1830  it  was  voted  to  raise  what  money 
the  law  required  for  the  support  of  schools. 

New  school  districts  were  formed  from  time  to  time  in  town, 
as  the  increasing  population  made  necessary.  For  many  years 
preceding  1884  there  were  nineteen  districts,  in  which  were 
twenty-five  schools.  By  an  act  of  the  legislature  authorizing  the 
same,  in  that  year  the  three  village  districts,  Nos.  1,  15,  and  17, 
were  consolidated  into  one,  called  Union  school  district.  A  board 
of  education,  consisting  of  0.  B.  Way,  L.  S.  Hastings,  H.  C.  Fay, 
I.  D.  Hall,  E.  Vaughan,  and  C.  H.  Weed,  was  chosen.  They 
graded  the  scholars,  and  established  in  the  district  nine  schools 
—  five  primary,  three  intermediate,  and  one  grammar.  The  money 
apportioned  to  this  district  in  1884  was  three  thousand  three 
hundred  and  seventy  dollars  and  eighty  cents.  In  1886  the  school 
district  sj'stem  was  abolished  by  act  of  the  legislature,  and  each 
town  was  made  one  district  for  schooling.  At  a  meeting  of  the 
town  school  district,  on  March  22,  1886,  Edwin  Vaughan,  Israel 
D.  Hall,  and  John  Bailey  were  chosen  a  school  board. 

Mrs.  Harriet  E.  Tappan,  widow  of  John  W.  Tappan  of  Clare- 
mout,  who  died  October  3,  1873,  left  a  will  in  which  was  this 
clause : 

To  the  Town   of  Claremont,  in  said  County  of   Sullivan,  to  be   Kept  Safely 
invested  by  said  town,  and  the  income  thereof   paid  over  annually  to  the  Pru- 


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HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  135 

•dential  Committees  of  the  several  school  districts  in  said  town  in  proportion  to 
the  number  of  scholars,  to  be  expended  by  said  Committee  in  their  discretion 
for  prizes  for  best  scholarship  and  to  enable  indigent  scholars  to  attend  the 
High  School  in  said  town. 

The  amount  thus  bequeathed  and  paid  over  to  the  town  by 
the  executor  was  thirty  thousand  and  five  hundred  dollars.  This 
amount  has  been  kept  at  interest,  and  the  income  expended 
According  to  the  terms  of  the  will.  Prudential  committees  have 
generally  given  prizes  in  money  to  scholars  in  their  several  dis- 
tricts for  excellence  of  scholarship,  deportment,  and  constancy 
and  punctuality  of  attendance  upon  school,  so  that  any  child, 
however  backward  or  dull  as  a  scholar,  may  get  a  share  of  this 
prize  money. 

In  the  early  days  of  the  settlement  of  the  town,  the  schools 
in  some  of  the  out  or  hill  districts  were  quite  large  —  ranging 
from  twenty  to  sixty  scholars  —  where  now  in  some  of  them  there 
.are  next  to  none,  and  in  others  not  enough  to  warrant  the  em- 
ployment of  a  teacher.  In  the  district  for  many  years  designated 
No.  16,  at  the  north  side  of  Green  mountain,  on  the  Cat  Hole 
road,  early  in  the  present  century  there  were  twenty  or  more 
scholars,  while  now  it  is  said  that  there  is  not  within  its  limits 
a  child  of  legal  school  age,  or  an  inhabited  dwelling-house. 

STEVENS    HIGH    SCHOOL. 

In  the  summer  of  1866,  Paran  Stevens  of  New  York  city,  a 
son  of  Josiah  Stevens,  one  of  the  early  inhabitants  of  Claremont, 
whose  ancestors  and  relatives  spent  their  lives  here,  and  whose 
graves  are  in  our  cemeteries,  proposed  to  donate  the  sum  of  ten 
thousand  dollars  to  aid  in  founding  a  high  school,  provided  that 
the  town  would  appropriate  a,  like  sum  for  that  purpose.  In  the 
autumn  of  that  year  a  town  meeting  was  called  to  consider  and 
act  upon  the  subject,  and  the  citizens,  with  great  unanimity,  voted 
to  accept  the  donation  oiFered  by  Mr.  Stevens,  with  the  condition 
named,  and  voted  to  raise  and  appropriate  fifteen  thousand  dol- 
lars, which,  with  the  ten  thousand  dollars  from  him,  was  to  be 
used  to  purchase  a  lot  and  erect  a  school  building.      Samuel  P. 


136  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

Fiske,  George  K  Farwell,  Nathaniel  ToUes,  Aurelius  Dickinson^ 
and  Benjamin  P.  Gilman  were  chosen  a  committee  to  carry  out 
this  object.      The  homestead  lot  of  the  late  George  B.  Upham^ 
corner  of  Broad  and  Summer  streets,  and  running  back  to  Mid- 
dle street,  containing   nearly  two   acres,   on  which  was   then  na 
building  except  a  small  law  office  which  had  been  for  years  occu- 
pied by  Mr.  TJpham  —  one  of  the  most  eligible  and  valuable  lots- 
in  town  —  was  selected  for  the  school  building,  and  purchased  of 
John  S.  Walker,  a  son-in-law  of  Mr.  Upham,  for  the  sum  of  two 
thousand  five  hundred  dollars.     Materials  were  bought  and  other 
preparations  made  for  the  speedy  erection  of  a  brick  high  school 
building  forty-four  by  sixty-four  feet  on  the  ground,  two  storieS' 
high,  with  a   French    or  Mansard  roof,  which,  as    completed,  is- 
one  of  the  most  elegant,  substantial,  and   convenient  edifices  for 
the  purpose  for  which  it  was  built  in  the  state.      In  it  are  four 
large  school-rooms,  large  vestibules,  basement   for  furnaces,  fuel,, 
etc.,  and  an  elegant  hall  in  the  upper  story,  the  size  of  the  whole 
building.     The  building  is  ample  for  the  accommodation  of  two 
hundred  students.     "When   completed,  the  cost  for  site,  grading, 
building,  furniture,  and  iron  fence  was  $27,225.27.    It  was  finished, 
furnished,  and  ready  for  occupancy  the  first  of  September,  1868. 

Mr.  Stevens,  not  to  be  outdone  by  the  town,  paid  for  the  bricks' 
for  the  building,  for  a  portion  of  the  iron  fence,  and  in  other 
ways  contributed  full  half  of  the  cost  of  the  high  school  building 
and  the  lot  on  which  it  stands.  Soon  after  the  completion  of  the 
building  he  gave  to  the  town  ten  thousand  dollars  towards  a  per- 
manent fund  for  the  support  of  the  school,  and  also  presented 
full  life-size  oil  portraits  of  George  Washington  and  Daniel  Web- 
ster, painted  by  the  best  artists  in  this  country  and  considered 
very  valuable,  which  now  hang  in  the  hall  of  the  school  buildings 
and  a  Chickering  full  concert  grand  piano.  At  his  death,  which 
occurred  on  the  twenty-fifth  of  April,  1872,  Mr.  Stevens  by  his  will 
bequeathed  forty  thousand  dollars,  to  be  paid  within  two  years 
of  the  time  of  his  death,  to  be  added  to  the  ten  thousand  dollars' 
before  given,  for  a  fund,  the  interest  of  which  is  to  be  used  for 
the  support  of  the  school.      This  forty  thousand   dollars  has  not 


HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT.  137 

yet  been  paid  over  to  the  town  by  the  executors  of  the  will,  but 
it  is  believed  that  it  will  be  at  no  very  distant  day,  with  interest. 
Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  Mr.  Stevens's  donations  for  the  school 
which  bears  his  name  will  amount  to  $65,000,  $50,000  of  which 
must  forever  remain  as  a  fund  for  its  support. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1868,  Edward  L.  God- 
dard,  John  S.  Walker,  Ira  Colby,  Jr.,  H.  W.  Parker,  and  Hiram 
"Webb  —  one  from  each  religious  society  in  town  —  were  chosen 
the  high  school  committee ;  and  it  was  voted  to  give  to  this  new 
institution  of  learning  the  name  of  the  Stevens  High  School.  It 
was  the  expressed  wish  of  Mr.  Stevens,  and  indeed  of  the  town 
generally  most  interested  in  its  welfare-  and  permanent  success, 
that  the  school  should  he  kept  entirely  free  from  anything  like 
sectarianism,  and  that  its  exercises,  instruction,  and  management 
should  be  acceptable  alike  to  all  religious  denominations.  The 
committee  accordingly  made  a  regulation  that  "  The  morning 
sessions  shall  begin  with  reading  the  Bible,  singing,  and  repeat- 
ing the  Lord's  Prayer  in  concert  by  the  whole  school." 

The  first  term  of  the  Stevens  High  School  commenced  on  the 
seventh  of  September,  1868,  with  ninety-eight  scholars  who  had 
reached  the  age  of  thirteen  years,  and  had  passed  the  requisite  ex- 
amination, all  but  sixteen  of  whom  belonged  in  town.  There  is  a 
regulation  that  scholars  from  other  towns  may  be  admitted  to  this 
school  by  paying  a  moderate  term  fee.  The  teachers  were  Dr.  ]!T. 
Barrows  of  Berwick,  Me.,  principal,  assisted  by  Miss  Mary  J. 
Wightman,  of  Claremont,  and  Miss  H.  W.  Freeley,  of  Springfield, 
Vt,  and  Mr.  A.  P.  Wyman,  as  teacher  of  vocal  music.  At  the 
close  of  the  first  term  Miss  Freeley  resigned,  and  Miss  Euth  P.  Per- 
kins, of  Pomfret,  Vt.,  filled  her  place,  and  she  was  succeeded  in 
the  third  term  by  Miss  A.  H.  Carleton,  of  Haverhill,  N.  H.  At 
the  close  of  the  school  year,  in  June,  1869,  there  was  an  examina- 
tion by  a  committee  consisting  of  the  Rev.  I.  G.  Hubbard,  D.  D., 
W.  H.  H.  Allen,  Eev.  Francis  W.  Towle,  Rev.  Francis  Chase,  and 
James  P.  Upham,  which  was  creditable  to  teachers  and  scholars. 

Dr.  Nathan  Barrows  continued  as  principal,  with  several  assist- 
ants, three  years,  and  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  Arthur  J.  Swain.     The 

10 


138  EISTOKY   OP   CLAREMONT. 

course  prescribed  in  this  school  is  four  years,  at  the  end  of  which 
scholars  who  graduate  and  receive  diplomas  are  fitted  to  enter 
almost  any  college.  At  the  close  of  the  fourth  school  year  the  ex- 
amining committee  reported  the  school  to  have  been  eminently 
successful.  The  faithfulness  of  the  teachers  and  the  deportment 
and  diligence  of  the  scholars  were  mentioned  in  highly  compli- 
mentary terms.  Seven  scholars  —  one  boy  and  six  girls  —  had  not 
been  absent  or  tardy  during  the  year. 

A.  J.  Swain  resigned  October  4,  1880,  to  take  effect  the  middle 
of  the  fall  term.  His  resignation  was  accepted,  and  R.  S.  Bingham 
was  elected  principal,  and  occupied  the  position  to  the  end  of  that 
school  year.  In  September,  1881,  L.  S.  Hastings  took  charge  of 
the  school  as  principal,  and  continued  until  the  close  of  the  school 
year,  in  June,  1890,  and  was  succeeded  by  Melville  C.  Smart,  the 
present  principal. 

Mrs.  Mary  J.  Alden,  of  Claremont,  who  died  ISTovember  11, 
1869,  by  her  will  bequeathed  to  the  town  her  entire  estate,  which, 
at  the  death  of  her  husband,  was  to  go  into  a  fund  for  the  benefit 
of  the  Stevens  high  school,  the  income  to  be  given  annually  in 
prizes  to  the  three  graduates  of  the  school  who  should  rank  highest 
for  proficiency  and  excellence-  in  English  studies.  Her  husband, 
Ezra  B.  Alden,  died  in  1874.  This  bequest,  when  it  came  into  the 
hands  of  the  trustees  of  the  fund,  consisted  of  real  estate  on  High 
street,  and  |428.11  deposited  in  the  Sullivan  Savings  Institution. 

Following  are  the  names  of  graduates,  at  the  end  of  a  four 
years'  course  of  study,  of  the  Stevens  High  School,  and  also  of 
those  to  whom  the  Alden  prizes  have  been  paid  : 

1874. 
Henry  E.  Bailey.  Alice  F.  Bailey.  Clara  L.  Hunton. 

Darwin  Comings.  Fancy  Chamberlia.  Nellie  L.  Knights. 

Chalmers  W.  Stevens.        Emma  L.  Cowles.  Fannie  A.  Spencer. 

Imogene  B.  Hudson. 

1875. 
Fred  H.  Rugg.  Lizzie  Bardwell.  Ella  M.  Phelps. 

Rosa  B.  Allen.  Anna  J.  Brooks.  Mary  Roberts. 

Ada  I.  Ayer.  Fannie  S.  Goss.  Mary  T.  Toung. 

Ida  M.  Lufkin. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 


13^ 


Henry  W.  Allen. 
William  E.  Barrett. 
William  I[.  Drury. 
George  E.  Little. 
Frank  H.  Perry. 


Edwin  S.  Bailey. 
Charles  M.  Fitch. 
Morris  G.  Fitch. 
Kate  Cowles. 


Burt  Chellis. 
Eush  Chellis. 
Mott  A.  Cummings. 


Elmer  S.  Hunter. 
William  H.  Hunton. 


James  C.  Flanders. 
Walter  A.  Pierce. 
George  E.  Quimby. 


Charles  F.  Chase. 
Maurice  L.  Clark. 
Eugene  H.  Hunter. 


Albro  Blodgett. 
William  E.  Chaifin. 
Thomas  J.  Harris. 
Josiah  Ide. 


1876. 

Edward  D.  Reardon. 
Hoell  Tyler. 
Josiah  D.  Wilson. 
Luella  F.  Smith. 
Hattie  A.  Bailey. 
Mary  B.  Deane. 

1877. 

Lilla  D.  Ide. 
Delia  J.  Lufkin. 
Francis  E.  Johnson. 
Stephen  J.  Roberts,  Jr. 

1878. 

Willard  C.  Hunton. 
George  H.  Ide. 
Bertha  S.  Allen. 
Estella  G.  Henry. 

1879. 

Marion  P.  Bartlett. 
Flora  E.  Nelson. 

1880. 

Lewis  J.  Quimby. 
Kate  E.  Brooks. 
Mary  E.  Emerson. 
Nettie  F.  Glidden. 

1881. 

Velma  G.  Allen. 
Orinda  A.  Boucher. 
Marcia  B.  Chellis. 
Mary  L.  Deane. 

1882. 

Kate  I.  Bliss. 
E.  Belle  Durant. 
M.  Lulu  Fitch. 
Esther  A.  Hubbard. 
Nellie  C.  Lewis. 


Marion  L.  Eggleston. 
Alice  B.  Ide. 
Anna  T.  Lovering. 
Lelia  Mullen. 
Ida  G.  Rugg. 


Minnie  Bell. 
Rosella  Perry. 
Elizabeth  G.  Phelps. 
Carrie  A.  W.  White. 


Gratia  M.  Jones. 
Jenny  M.  Mellen. 
M.  Evelyn  Tolles. 


Fannie  Roberts. 
CoraE.  Stowell. 


Sarah  Ide. 
Annie  F.  Morrill. 
Ida  Proctor. 


Florence  B.  Davis. 
Addle  M.  G.  Walker. 
Etta  M.  Wolcott. 


Hattie  E.  Perkins. 
Jenny  M.  Perley. 
Ellen  F.  Phelps. 
Julia  E.  Wells. 


140 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 


Ned  Blake. 
Alice  C.  Chase. 


Arthur  Chase,  Jr. 
Charles  A.  Perkins. 
William  Tutherly. 
Mary  B.  Allen. 
Annie  L.  Bailey, 


Ora  D.  Blanchard. 
Ora  E.  Cowles. 
William  B.  Deane. 
Eussell  Jarvis,  Jr. 
Herbert  F.  Quimby. 

Charles  F.  Abbott. 
Ned  W.  Blood. 
Eugene  D.  Burbank. 
Lewis  J.  Richardson. 


Emerson  A.  Quimby. 
Minnie  A.  Back. 


Clifton  E.  Densmore. 
George  L.  Hall. 
Edwin  J.  Heywood. 
Herbert  E.  Rice. 


Alger  V.  Allen. 
John  L.  Ayer. 
Orlan  P.  Pitch. 
William  R.  Jarvis. 
Charles  N.  Piper. 
Augusta  Briggs. 


1883. 

Nettie  Clark. 
Stella  Graves. 
Jennie  L.  Parker. 

1884. 

Kate  F.  Bailey. 
Delia  M.  Boucher. 
Elizabeth  A.  Cassidy. 
Carrie  I.  Foster. 
Vesta  A.  Piper. 

1885. 

Frank  J.  Reynolds. 
Martin  Sears. 
Walter  Thayer. 
John  M.  Whipple. 
George  E.  Wolcott. 

1886. 

Thomas  Sears. 
Herbert  T.  Spencer. 
Sheriden  A.  Stowell. 
Susie  D.  Bailey. 

1887. 

Myra  L.  Briggs. 
Emily  E.  Brooks. 
Frances  E.  Fisher. 

1888. 

Josephine  M.  Bailey. 
Clara  E.  Bartlett. 
Mary  A.  Bailey. 
Elizabeth  M.  Hoban. 
Rose  F.  Jenkins. 

1889. 

Carrie  H.  Gay. 
Mary  I.  Goodrich. 
Louie  G.  Hawkes. 
Mabel  R.  Hatch. 
Edith  M.  Howard. 
Ellen  P.  Jones. 


Mary  Pierce. 
Hattie  Kossiter. 


Florence  L.  Kempton. 
Nellie  V.  Kempton. 
Forris  J.  Moore. 
Lizzie  S.  Parker. 


Annie  S.  Elmer. 
Jennie  M.  Hall. 
Evelyn  Jenks. 
Mary  A.  Jones. 
Emma  H.  Parker. 


Anna  Eveleth. 
Sadie  C.  Farwell. 
Myrtie  B.  Symonds, 
Josie  L.  Willey. 

Bertha  A.  Pierce. 
Ida  L.  Stowell. 


Alice  A.  Stowell. 
Cora  D.  Whipple. 
Florence  C.  Whitney. 
Minnie  M.  Wolcott. 


Ella  G.  Leet. 
Ellen  B.  Nott. 
Delia  M.  Perry. 
Bert  P.  Porter. 
Henry  C.  Sanders,  Jr. 
Edgar  W.  Stockwell. 


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HISTORY  OP   CLAREMONT. 


141 


€harles  T.  Kossiter. 
Don  Colby. 
John  £.  Allen. 
Charles  F.  Weed. 
George  C.  Warner. 
Georgletta  A.  Baker. 
Clara  J.  Bell. 


1890. 

Florence  M.  Blanchard. 
Grace  L.  Bond. 
Hannah  M.  Carroll. 
Sarah  T.  Emerson. 
Grace  M.  Fifleld. 
Agnes  N.  Hodgson. 
OUie  A.  Lewis. 


Emily  H.  Lewis. 
Plora  A.  Magown, 
Abbie  M.  Perkins. 
Ella  P.  Bobbins. 
Marian  I.  Bice. 
Florence  A.  Sleeper. 
Fannie  F.  Wilson. 


Edward  E.  Houghton. 
Walter  B.  Woolley. 
Euth  E.  Hubbard. 
William  H.  H.  Fitch. 


1891. 

Franklin  E.  Perkins. 
James  E.  Eossiter. 
Mabelle  R.  Burbank. 
Nellie  C.  Chandler. 


Lillian  I.  Maoomber. 
Annie  F.  McGrath. 
Amy  L.  McQuaid. 
Minnie  H.  Tolles. 


Sarah  E.  Briggs. 
John  W.  Dow. 
Catherine  F.  Eaton. 
Grace  P.  Hooper. 
Ethel  F.  Taylor. 
Mary  C.  Nott. 


1892. 

Charles  S.  Farrington. 
Charles  H.  Webster. 
Grace  T.  Bouck. 
Mary  E.  Shepard. 
Harriet  M.  Sanders. 
Wilhelmina  E.  Stowell. 
Mabel  Tolles. 


Ida  B.  McCoy. 
William  F.  Whitcomb. 
Nettie  M.  Frye. 
Alice  Goodrich. 
Estelle  M.  Grandy. 
Mabel  S.  Thomas. 


Herman  Holt,  Jr. 
Frank  A.  Angler. 
Rolla  A.  Healey. 
Urbane  P.  Pierce. 
Harry  F.  Rowell. 


John  C.  Angier. 
Bessie  E.  Balcom. 
Lillian  M.  Bartlett. 
Emma  J.  Burke. 
Gora  M.  Dunsmoor. 
Edna  N.  Dyke. 
Ida  B.  Ewing. 


1893. 

Lillian  J.  Deane. 
Anna  L.  Hall. 
Alleen  E.  Messer. 
Isabella  G.  O'Neil. 
Stella  E.  Putnam. 

1894. 

Gertrude  L.  Grandy. 
Carrie  W.  Hooper, 
Minnie  M.  Parker. 
Marian  E.  Pierce. 
Verne  M.  Eowell. 
Lillian  A.  Sholes. 
Albert  E.  Smith. 


Lois  A.  Whipple. 
Mary  I.  Heywood. 
Mary  A.  Jenney. 
Verlina  R.  Pierce. 
Ola  M.  Pope. 


Ada  M.  Stockwell. 
Lulu  J.  Thrasher. 
Mary  D.  Walker. 
Isabella  I.  Whitcomb. 
Mary  A.  Wilson. 
Ervin  E.  Woodman. 
Bessie  M.  White. 


142 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 


MARY 

J.    ALDEN   PRIZES. 

1879. 

1880. 

1st  prize, 

Cora  E.  Stowell, 

$60 

1st  prize. 

James  C.  Flanders, 

$50 

2d 

Flora  E.  Nelson, 

50 

2d 

Nettie  F.  Glidden, 

40 

3d 

William  H.  Hunton, 

40 

3d 

Lewis  J.  Quimby, 

30 

3d 

Annie  F.  Morrill, 

30 

1881. 

1882. 

1st  prize, 

Maria  B.  Chellis, 

$50 

1st  prize. 

Nellie  C.  Lewis, 

$50 

2d 

Florence  B.  Davis, 

40 

2d 

Julia  E.  Wells, 

40 

3d 

Addie  M.  G.  Walker, 
1883. 

30 

3d 

E.  Belle  Durant, 

1884. 

30 

1st  prize, 

Mary  Pierce, 

$50 

1st  prize. 

Kate  F.  Bailey, 

$50 

2d 

Alice  Chase, 

40 

2d 

Lizzie  S.  Parker, 

40 

3d 

Jennie  L.  Parker, 
1885. 

30 

3d 

Mary  B.  Allen, 
1886. 

30 

1st  prize, 

Emma  H.  Parker, 

$50 

1st  prize. 

Eugene  D.  Burbank, 

$50 

2d 

Annie  S.  Elmer, 

40 

2d 

Myrtie  B.  Symonds, 

40 

3d 

Jennie  M.  Hall, 

1887. 

30 

3d 

Lewis  J.  Richardson, 
1888. 

30 

1st  prize. 

Emerson  A.  Quimby, 

$50 

1st  prize. 

Mary  Adelaide  Bailey, 

$50 

2d 

Bertha  A.  Pierce, 

40 

2d 

FlorenceCynthia  Whitney,  40 

3d 

Ida  L.  Stowell, 
1889. 

30 

3d 

Herbert  Eugene  Rice, 
1890. 

30 

1st  prize. 

Henry  C.  Sanders,  Jr., 

$50 

1st  prize. 

John  E.  Allen, 

$50 

2d 

William  R.  Jarvis, 

40 

2d 

Abbie  M.  Perkins, 

40 

3d 

Mabel  R.  Hatch, 
1891. 

30 

3d 

Charles  F.  Weed, 
1892. 

30 

1st  prize. 

Ruth  E.  Hubbard, 

$50 

1st  prize. 

Grace  P.  Hooper, 

$50 

2d 

William  H.  Fitch, 

40 

2d 

John  W.  Dow, 

40 

3d 

Frank  E.  Perkins, 
1893. 

30 

3d 

Charles  H.  Webster, 
1894. 

30 

1st  prize. 

Isabella  G.  O'Neil, 

$50 

1st  prize. 

Carrie  W.  Hooper, 

$50 

2d 

Lois  A.  Whipple, 

40 

2d 

Emma  J.  Burke, 

40 

3d 

Mary  A.  Jenney, 

30 

3d 

Ida  B.  Ewing, 

30 

REV.    VIRGIL 

H.   B 

arber's  . 

iCADEMY. 

Virgil  H.  Barber  was  a  son  of  Rev.  Daniel  Barber,  for  many 
years  rector  of  Union  church.  He  became  an  Episcopal  clergy- 
man, and  after  a  few  years  a  convert  to  the  Catholic  faith,  and 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  143 

•was  ordained  a  priest.  In  1823,  with  the  aid  of  Catholics  in 
Canada,  he  commenced  the  erection  of  a  building  for  a  school 
and  a  Catholic  church  adjoining,  nearly  opposite  Union  church. 
Here  he  established  a  classical  and  scientific  school,  which  he 
managed  for  several  years.  It  was  patronized  by  Protestants  as 
well  as  the  few  Catholics  in  the  vicinity.  After  Mr.  Barber  left, 
the  school  was  continued  for  a  time  by  others,  among  them  Jo- 
siah  Sweet,  who  afterwards  became  an  Episcopal  clergyman.  The 
church  building,  known  as  St.  Mary's,  was  occupied  by  the  Cath- 
olics until  1866,  and  is  now  standing. 

CLAREMONT   ACADEMY. 

Prior  to  1840  there  had  been  a  number  of  private  or  select 
schools  in  town  where  the  higher  branches  were  taught  for  dif- 
ferent periods,  but  no  suitable  building  for  them  was  to  be  had. 
For  a  year  or  more  L.  Hunt  had  kept  a  popular  select  school, 
and  more  students  than  could  be  accommodated  in  any  available 
quarters  had  applied  for  admission.  To  supply  what  seemed  a 
pressing  need,  Mr.  Kent,  Simeon  Ide,  Edward  L.  Goddard,  and 
three  others,  sharing  alike,  subscribed  a  sum  sufficient  for  the 
purpose,  and  erected  a  building  costing  about  one  thousand  dol- 
lars, at  the  corner  of  Sullivan  and  Walnut  streets,  and  named  it 
Claremont  Academy,  which  was  rented  to  different  teachers  from 
time  to  time,  untiljthe  establishment  of  the  Stevens  High  School. 
Among  the  principals  of  this  academy  were  L.  Kent,  Josiah 
Swett,  David  Cummings,  Milon  C.  McClure,  Edwin  A.  Charlton, 
Henry  Chase,  C.  C.  Church,  and  Miss  Mary  Chamberlain.  This 
building  was  sold  in  1869  to  George  W.  Howe,  and  converted 
into  a  dwelling-house. 


CHAPTER    XL 

LITEEARY      SOCIETIES.  —  LIBRARIES.  —  NEW      HAMPSHIRE      HISTORICAL 
SOCIETY.  —  NEWSPAPERS. 

The  first  organization  in  Claremont  for  debating,  declamations, 
and  other  literary  exercises,  was  formed  February  2,  1791,  and  con- 
sisted of  six  members,  who  adopted  the  following  constitution : 

We  whose  names  are  hereunto  subscribed,  being  ambitious  to  enlarge  and 
improve  our  own  minds,  meliorate  and  refine  our  hearts,  &c.,  render  ourselves 
useful!  among  our  fellow  men,  do  hereby  form  ourselves  into  a  literary  friendly 
society — a  Society  the  very  existence  of  which  rests  on  candor,  freedom,  and 
friendship.  We  most  solemnly  engage,  like  a  little  band  of  Brothers,  to  sup- 
port and  assist  each  other  in  ascending  the  regular  grades  of  literature  ;  to 
point  out,  smooth  and  in  concert  tread  the  path  of  friendship,  and  to  cultivate 
all  the  social  virtues.  We  firmly  oblige  ourselves  to  obey  such  laws  and  regu- 
lations as  are  or  may  be  formed  and  adopted  by  a  majority  of  this  Community. 
While  performing  the  duties  required  by  the  rules  of  this  Society  we  bind  ourselves 
to  correct  in  a  kind,  friendly,  gentle,  and  endearing  manner  each  other's  foibles 
and  errors.  Being  convinced  by  reasons,  which  strike  the  mind  at  first  blush, 
that  the  purposes  for  which  we  associate  require  profound  secrecy,  we  pledge 
our  honor  as  men,  we  engage  by  the  most  sacred  ties  of  this  our  Brotherhood 
and  by  everything  we  hold  dear,  to  exert  ourselves  to  conceal  the  transactions 
and  indeed  the  existence  of  this  institution  from  every  person  unconnected 
with  it. 

The  original  members  of  this  society  were  Jabez  TJpham,  Sol- 
omon Blakeslee,  John  W.  Russell,  Thomas  Sterne,  Jr.,  George 
B.  Upham,  and  Perley  Marsh.  Between  July,  1791,  and  Decem- 
ber, 1795,  nine  others  were  admitted  to  membership,  as  follows : 
E"athan  Smith,  John  H.  Sumner,  Joseph  Petty,  Benjamin  J.  Gil- 
bert, Prederick  A.  Sumner,  John  Lane,  Samuel  Fiske,  John 
Tappan,  and  Jonathan  Fisk,  Jr.     Four  honorary  members  were 


HISTORY   OF   OLAKEMONT.  145 

admitted,  viz.:  Sanford  Kingsbury,  John  Strobridge,  "William 
Breck,  and  Major  Dustin.  All  these  men  were  prominent  citi- 
zens of  the  town  in  their  time.  lifo  new  members  could  be 
admitted  without  the  unanimous  consent  of  the  society. 

Regular  meetings  were  held  every  Friday  evening  at  the  house 
of  William  Breck  —  the  same  that  is  now  the  home  of  Charles 
P.  Breck,  West  Claremont.  The  rules  of  this  society  were  quite 
rigid.  The  by-laws  provided  that  "It  shall  be  the  duty  of  each 
member  at  every  stated  meeting  of  the  society  to  exhibit  a  piece 
of  his  own  composition,  consisting  of  not  less  than  one  hundred 
and  fifty  words,  or  speak  a  piece."  Extemporaneous  disputations 
were  held  every  second  regular  meeting,  the  president  naming 
the  subject.  Each  member  neglecting  a  stated  performance,  and 
not  excused  by  the  society,  was  to  be  fined  sixpence ;  and  absence 
from  meetings,  without  suflScient  excuse,  one  shilling.  The  meet- 
ings were  continued  until  April,  1796. 

UNITED   FRATERNITY   OF  YOUNG  MEN. 

A  few  young  men  met  December  15,  1848,  and  organized  a 
society  under  this  name.  The  preamble  to  the  constitution  which 
they  adopted  explains  the  objects  of  this  association:  "We,  the 
young  men  of  Claremont,  believing  it  to  be  our  duty  to  improve 
and  cultivate  those  faculties  and  powers  of  the  mind  which  our 
Creator  has  bestowed  upon  us;  and  believing  also  that  a  more 
perfect  union  among  ourselves  is  necessary  to  accomplish  this 
great  object,  do  therefore  agree  to  adopt  and  sustain  the  following 
constitution  and  by-laws." 

New  members  could  be  admitted  by  a  vote  of  two  thirds  of 
those  present  at  a  regular  meeting,  and  a  member  could  be  ex- 
pelled by  the  same  vote.  The  first  officers  were  Daniel  M.  Keyes, 
president;  Edwin  E.  Way,  vice-president;  George  Hitchcock, 
secretary;  Alfred  Tracy,  treasurer;  J.  D.  Billings,  doorkeeper. 
The  first  question  discussed  was,  "Are  secret  societies  beneficial 
to  the  members?"  Disputants  appointed,  affirmative,  J.  D.  Bil- 
lings and  Alfred  Tracy;  negative,  George  0.  Way  and  Edwin 
A.  Charlton.      It  was  a   kind  of  secret  society,  using  signs  and 


146  HISTORY   OP    CLARBMONT. 

passwords,  and  none  but  members  were  admitted  to  its  meetings. 
The  meetings  were  held  at  different  places  until  June,  1855, 
when  a  large  and  commodious  hall  in  the  second  storj',  west  endy 
of  0.  J.  Brown's  wooden  block,  was  leased  and  formally  dedi-- 
cated  as  Fraternity  Hall,  by  which  name  it  was  ever  after  known 
as  long  as  the  building  stood.  In  August,  1855,  the  Fraternity 
adopted  the  voluntary  corporation  act  in  the  statutes,  applicable- 
to  religious  and  other  societies,  and  became  a  corporation, 

From  a  small  beginning  this  society  grew  to  be  an  institution 
of  considerable  influence  and  importance  iu  the  town,  numbering 
among  its  active  members  many  of  the  leading  citizens.  The' 
members  became  accustomed  to  speaking  iu  public,  and  preparing" 
and  reading  essays  upon  the  current  topics  of  the  day.  Correct 
habits  and  good  morals  were  inculcated,  and  the  beneficial  influ- 
ence of  this  society  was  long  felt  in  the  community.  The  last 
record  was  of  a  meeting  on  April  30,  1864,  after  which  by  reason^ 
probably,  of  the  enlistment  in  the  army  of  many  members,  and 
the  all  absorbing  subject  of  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  after  an 
existence  of  sixteen  years  this  organization  became  extinct. 

Other  debating  and  literary  societies  —  the  most  of  them  public 
—  were  organized  at  different  times,    at  West  Claremont  and  in 
the  village,  but  generally  had  but  a  brief  existence,  and  were  of 
no  considerable  importance. 

riSKE  FREE  LIBRARY. 

In  1873,  Samuel  P.  Fiske,  a  native  citizen  of  Claremont,  founded 
a  free  library  in  the  following  manner  : 

Deed  of  Samuel  P.  Fiske  to  the  Town  of  Claremont. 

Know  all  men  by  these  presents,  That  I,  Samuel  P.  Fiske,  of  Claremont  iff 
the  County  of  Sullivan  and  State  of  New  Hampshire,  do  hereby  give,  grant, 
and  convey  unto  the  town  of  Claremont,  in  said  county,  in  trust  forever,  Two- 
Thousand  volumes  of  Books,  named  and  described  in  a  Catalogue  or  Schedule, 
hereafter  to  be  made,  to  constitute,  with  such  other  books  as  may  hereafter  be- 
added  by  the  donor,  a  library  for  the  benefit  of  all  the  inhabitants  of  said 
town,  and  the  members  of  Stevens  High  School  in  said  Claremont,  and  to  be- 
known  as  Fiske  Free  Library. 


CO 
S3 
> 
■XI 


HISTORY   OF   CLAKBMONT.  147 

This  gift  is  made  on  condition  that  the  said  town  of  Claremont  shall  accept 
the  same;  shall  furnish  a  suitable  building,  room,  or  rooms  in  which  to  keep 
the  same,  and  the  same  shall  be  kept  in  the  upper  hall  or  room  of  Stevens 
High  School,  until  a  more  suitable  place  shall  be  provided  therefor  ;  shall  at 
all  times  keep  the  same  well  insured  against  loss  from  fire ;  shall  keep  said  books 
in  a  good  state  of  repair,  and  shall  replace  with  books  of  equivalent  value  any 
that  may  be  worn  out,  lost,  or  otherwise  destroyed.  And  the  Committee  of 
Stevens  High  School  shall  have  the  custody,  control,  and  management  of  said 
Library ;  purchase,  arrange,  and  catalogue  the  books,  appoint  a  Librarian,  and 
make  all  needful  rules  and  regulations  for  the  management  of  said  Library  and 
the  use  of  the  books,  all  at  the  expense  of  the  Town  of  Claremont;  and  the 
said  Town  shall  in  like  manner  keep  and  care  for  and  replace  losses  in  all  ad- 
ditions to  or  enlargements  of  said  Library  by  said  donor. 

In  witness  whereof  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and  seal  this  seventh  day  of 

August,  A.  D.  1873. 

SAMUEL  P.  FISKE.  [l.  s.] 
(Witness)    Iea  Colby,  Jk. 

W.  H.  H.  Allen. 

The  above  deed  was  read  at  a  town  meeting,  held  Agust  15, 
1873,  when  the  following  resolution  was  passed : 

Resolved  by  the  town  of  Claremont,  That  we  cordially  accept  the  munificent 
gift  of  Two  Thousand  volumes  of  valuable  books  from  Samuel  P.  Fiske,  Esq., 
upon  the  conditions  and  terms  of  his  deed  of  trust  to  said  town  of  Claremont, 
dated  August  7,  1873,  hereby  pledging  to  the  donor  that  such  conditions  shall 
be  faithfully  complied  with,  on  the  part  of  the  town,  for  the  use  and  perpetu- 
ation of  the  Fiske  Free  Library. 

The  following  resolution  was  offered  by  Prentis  Dow,  and 
passed : 

Resolved,  That  the  Selectmen  of  the  town  of  Claremont  are  directed  to  pay 
the  bills  of  Stevens  High  School  Committee  for  the  insurance  of  the  books  do- 
nated by  S.  P.  Fiske,  Esq.,  and  for  any  expense  incurred  in  providing  a  suitable 
location  for  the  same,  not  exceeding  in  all  the  sum  of  one  hundred  dollars  per 
annum. 

The  location  of  the  library  in  the  upper  story  of  the  Stevens 
High  School  building,  away  from  the  center  of  business,  was  found 
to  be  inconvenient  for  readers,  and,  as  a  consequence,  was  unsat- 
isfactory to  Mr.  Piske.  Early  in  January,  1877,  Mr.  Fiske  invited 
gentlemen  supposed  to  be  most  interested  in  the  library  to  meet 


148  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

him  for  consultation  as  to  the  best  means  for  making  it  more 
accessible  to  readers,  and  accomplish  more  fully  the  donor's  wishes. 

A  committee,  consisting  of  John  S.  Walker,  Otis  F.  R.  Waite, 
and  Charles  A.  Piddock,  was  appointed  to  recommend  a  plan  at 
a  subsequent  meeting,  who  made  a  report  recommending  the 
purchase  of  the  Bailey  building,  at  the  junction  of  Main  and 
Sullivan  streets,  for  four  thousand  five  hundred  dollars,  and  that 
the  second  story  be  fitted  up  for  the  library  at  an  expense  not 
exceeding  one  thousand  dollars;  the  money  for  the  purpose  to 
be  borrowed  from  the  Tappan  school  fund  at  six  per  cent  interest. 
The  committee  stated  that  the  building  was  then  rented  for  four 
hundred  and  ninety  dollars;  that,  after  taking  what  would  be 
required  for  the  library,  the  remaining  part  of  the  building  would 
rent  for  more  than  enough  to  pay  the  interest  on  the  debt  in- 
curred. After  some  discussion  the  meeting  voted  to  recommend 
to  the  town  at  its  next  annual  meeting  to  purchase  the  Bailey 
building  for  four  thousand  five  hundred  dollars,  and  fit  up,  alter, 
and  repair  it  at  an  expense  not  exceeding  two  thousand  five  hun- 
dred dollars. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1877,  it  was 

Voted,  that  a  board  of  five  Trustees  be  chosen  by  the  Town,  and  be  author- 
ized to  purchase  in  behalf  of  the  Town  the  Bailey  Building,  so  called;  to  fit 
up  such  portion  of  the  second  story  as  may  be  necessary  for  the  accommodation 
of  the  Fiske  Free  Library.  Such  purchase  not  to  exceed  Forty-five  Hundred 
Dollars,  and  such  alterations  not  to  exceed  the  sum  of  twenty-five  Hundred 
Dollars.  And  that  the  said  Trustees  be  authorized  to  draw  from  the  Tappan 
Fund  for  the  requisite  sum  to  carry  out  this  order,  and  pay  therefor  from  the 
rents  of  said  building  interest  at  the  rate  of  six  per  cent  per  annum.  And 
that  said  Board  of  Trustees,  and  their  successors  hereafter,  have  the  custody  of 
the  Fiske  Free  Library,  instead  of  the  High  School  Committee.  Or  that  said 
Board  be  further  authorized,  if  in  their  judgment  they  think  proper,  to  purchase 
and  fit  up  some  other  building,  not  to  exceed  the  sum  heretofore  named  for 
said  purpose. 

At  the  same  meeting  Daniel  "W.  Johnson,  Otis  F.  R.  Waite, 
Alfred  T.  Batchelder,  Osmon  B.  Way,  and  Algernon  Willis  were 
elected  and  qualified  as  trustees  of  the  Fiske  Free  Librar3\ 

The  trustees  at  once  took  a  deed  in  the  name  of  the  town  of  the 
Bailey  building,  paying  therefor  four  thousand  five  hundred  dollars. 


SAMUEL  P.  FISKE. 


HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT.  149 

t 

Before  anything  had  been  done  by  them  toward  altering  and  fit- 
ting up  the  building  for  the  library,  a  special  town  meeting  was 
held  on  the  28th  of  April,  1877,  at  which  the  following  resolution 
was  passed : 

Resolved,  That  the  Town  Treasurer  and  Selectmen  be  authorized  and  instructed 
to  give  the  note  or  notes  of  the  Town,  at  six  per  cent  interest,  to  the  Trus- 
tees of  the  Tappan  Fund,  for  the  sum  appropriated  at  the  last  annual  Town- 
Meeting  for  the  purposes  relating  to  the  Fiske  Free  Library,  not  exceeding  in 
all  the  sum  of  Five  Thousand  Dollars. 

The  trustees  did  not  call  for  the  five  hundred  dollars  author- 
ized to  be  expended  for  alterations,  etc.,  and  made  no  essential 
changes  in  the  building,  and  the  library  remained  in  the  high 
school  building.  At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1878, 
the  trustees  reported  : 

Received  and  will  be  due  for  rents  of  Library  building,  April  1,  1878     .     $420.00 

Interest  on  $4,500,  one  year S270.00 

Paid  water  rent  and  repairs 12.74 

282.74 


Leaving  a  balance  over  interest,  water  rent,  and  repairs  of      .        .        .    $137 .26 

At  this  meeting  the  town,  on  the  recommendation  of  the  trustees, 
re-enacted  its  vote  of  1887,  and  appropriated  two  thousand  five 
hundred  dollars  to  alter  and  repair  the  library  building.  The 
trustees  procured  plans  and  specifications,  and  let  the  contract  to 
do  the  work  to  Messrs.  Hira  R.  Beckwith  and  Levi  R  Chase,  of 
Claremont.  The  work  was  very  satisfactorily  done  by  them  for  a 
little  more  than  two  thousand  three  hundred  dollars.  The  balance 
of  the  two  thousand  five  hundred  dollars  was  expended  in  furnish- 
ing the  library  rooms. 

Early  in  September,  1878,  the  books  were  moved  from  the  high 
school  building  to  the  new  rooms,  about  six  hundred  new  books 
added,  and  all  were  arranged  and  catalogued.  At  a  meeting  of  the 
trustees  on  the  sixteenth,  Miss  Abbie  Field  was  chosen  librarian, 
and  has  served  faithfully  in  that  capacity  ever  since.  Messrs, 
Batchelder  and  Willis  removed  from  town,  and  their  places  were 
filled  by  the  election  of  Messrs.  H.  W.  Parker  and  Ira  Colby. 


150  HISTORY   OF    CLAEEMONT. 

Mr.  Fiske  made  a  will,  giving  to  the  town  of  Claremont  nine 
thousand  dollars,  five  thousand  dollars  to  be  expended  in  books 
as  they  should  be  needed,  and  as  he  pleased,  should  he  live  to  expend 
that  sum;  the  balance,  if  any,  at  his  death,  to  go  into  the  hands 
of  the  trustees,  to  be  expended  by  them  for  the  same  purpose,  and 
the  other  four  thousand  dollars  to  be  a  fund  to  be  invested  by  the 
trustees,  the  interest  of  which  was  to  be  used  for  the  purchase  of 
books.  His  wife,  Miranda  S.  Fiske,  in  her  will  added  one  thou- 
sand dollars  to  this  fund,  making  it  five  thousand  dollars.  Mr. 
Fiske  died  February  8,  1879,  and  Mrs.  Fiske  deceased  May  27, 
1882.  At  the  death  of  Mr.  Fiske  there  was  found  by  a  detailed 
account  left  by  him,  to  be  unexpended  for  books  $1,194.68. 

Books  have  been  added  to  the  library  from  time  to  time  by  Mr. 
Fiske  while  he  lived  and  since  his  death  by  the  trustees,  so  that 
the  whole  number  in  1893  was  more  than  seven  thousand  volumes 
—  many  of  which  are  works  of  reference,  some  of  them  quite  ex- 
pensive and  valuable  —  afibrding  advantages  for  obtaining  infor- 
mation realized  only  by  such  as  are  fortunate  enough  to  enjoy 
them,  while  there  is  a  fair  proportion  of  standard  histories,  biogra- 
phies, and  travels.  The  demand  has  been  largely  for  light  reading 
and  fiction.  To  meet  this  demand  great  care  has  been  exercised 
to  select  books  only  of  a  wholesome  and  improving  character,  by 
the  best  authors.  From  ten  to  twelve  hundred  books  are  con- 
stantly in  circulation,  the  whole  number  of  patrons  of  the  library 
being  about  three  thousand. 

It  will  be  seen  by  the  terms  of  the  bequest  of  Mr.  Fiske  that  the 
income  of  the  permanent  fund  left  by  him  and  his  wife  must  be 
used  to  increase  the  library,  as  the  town  has  to  pay  all  expenses, 
for  room,  librarian,  incidentals,  keep  the  books  in  repair,  and  re- 
place any  worn  out  or  destroyed  with  others  of  equal  value.  Thus 
in  a  few  years  Claremont  will  have  a  collection  of  considerable 
magnitude. 

CLAREMONT  BOOK  CLUB. 

About  1865  twenty  or  thirty  persons  formed  a  club  under  this 
name,  which  was  continued  until  after  the  Fiske  Free  Library  was 


HISTORY   OP  OLAREMONT.  151 

established  in  its  present  rooms.  Each  member  paid  five  dollars 
as  an  admission  fee,  and  such  annual  assessments  as  the  club  voted. 
Others,  not  members,  had  the  privilege  of  reading  the  books  by 
paying  three  dollars  per  year  in  quarterly  payments.  All  the 
money  thus  obtained,  after  paying  expenses,  which  were  very 
small,  was  expended  for  books  until  six  or  seven  hundred  volumes 
had  been  collected.  It  was  managed  by  a  committee  of  its  mem- 
bers and  supplied  a  present  want.  When  there  was  no  further 
need  for  this  club  the  books  were  distributed  among  its  members 
by  auction  and  its  affairs  wound  up. 

The  several  churches  in  town  have  each  a  Sunday  school  library, 
composed  of  books  suited  to  the  capacity  of  the  young,  but  supply 
a  need  in  their  way  and  help  to  form  a  habit  and  create  a  taste  for 
good  reading. 

In  town  are  many  private  libraries,  some  of  them  quite  large  and 
valuable. 

George  L.  Balcom  has  more  than  four  thousand  volumes  of  val- 
uable, and  many  of  them  rare,  old  and  new  books,  the  accumula- 
tion of  years  of  patient  research.  His  collection  of  American  his- 
tories, and  especially  those  of  New  Hampshire,  is  one  of  the  most 
complete  of  any  in  the  state. 

Bela  Chapin  has  between  one  and  two  thousand  volumes  of 
standard  works  of  history,  science,  poetry,  and  literature,  selected 
with  much  care. 

Robert  K.  Dow  has  a  collection  of  rare  books,  largely  devoted 
to  science  and  art. 

C.  B.  Spofford  has  about  two  thousand  bound  volumes  and  three 
thousand  pamphlets,  consisting  of  historical  and  genealogical 
works,  principally  relating  to  New  Hampshire,  a  large  collection  of 
Masonic  and  other  secret  society  publications,  and  said  to  be  one  of 
the  largest  pharmaceutical  collections  in  the  state. 

Dr.  C.  W.  Tolles  has  a  large  and  very  complete  collection  ot 
medical  and  surgical  works  and  a  good  miscellaneous  library. 

Dr.  0.  B.  Way  has  a  large  and  valuable  collection  of  medical 
works,  and  quite  an  extensive  miscellaneous  library. 


152  HISTORY   OP   CLAKEMONT. 

Dr.  F.  C.  Wilkinson  has  a  large  and  valuable  collection  of  works 
devoted  to  veterinary  science. 

Otis  F.  E.  Waite  has  between  two  and  three  thousand  volumes 
of  books  of  reference,  history,  biography,  agriculture,  poetry,  and 
fiction. 

J.  S.  Walker  has  a  miscellaneous  collection  of  about  one  thou- 
sand volumes.  He  has  also  some  copies  of  paintings  by  the  old 
masters,  ordered  when  he  was  in  Europe. 

F.  H.  Brown  has  a  considerable  collection  of  classical  books  and 
works  of  fiction. 

H.  W.  Parker,  Ira  Colby,  E.  D.  Baker,  and  Herman  Holt,  each 
have  extensive  law  and  miscellaneous  collections  of  books. 

John  L.  Farwell  has  about  one  thousand  volumes,  many  of  them 
rare  and  expensive.  Among  them  is  an  edition  of  Audubon's 
"Birds  of  America."  He  also  has  some  copies  of  paintings  by  the 
old  masters. 

NEW  HAMPSHIRE  HISTORICAL  SOCIETY. 

The  annual  field  day  of  this  society  was  observed  by  a  visit  to 
Claremont,  on  the  twenty-ninth  of  September,  1891,  and  to 
Charlestown  on  the  following  day.  On  arrival  at  Claremont  the 
members  were  met  at  the  railroad  station  by  George  L.  Balcom, 
a  member  of  the  society,  and  one  of  the  committee  of  arrange- 
ments, whose  guests  they  were  while  in  town.  Of  those  from  out 
of  town  were  John  J.  Bell,  of  Exeter,  president  of  the  society; 
Isaac  K.  Gage  and  daughter  and  Mrs.  C.  H.  Sanders,  of  Penacook; 
John  Kimball,  Hon.  Sylvester  Dana,  Rev.  C.  L.  Tappan  and  Mrs. 
Tappan,  Edson  C.  Eastman  and  Mrs.  Eastman,  Joseph  B.  Walker, 
J.  E.  Pecker,  P.  B.  Cogswell,  Woodbridge  Odlin,  and  John  C. 
Ordway  of  Concord,  and  George  Olcott  of  Charlestown.  They 
were  escorted  to  rooms  of  the  Tremont  club  in  Union  block,  where 
had  assembled  about  forty  of  the  prominent  ladies  and  gentlemen 
of  the  town,  who  extended  to  the  visitors  a  cordial  and  hearty  wel- 
come.   It  was  a  notable  company  and  a  notable  event  for  Claremont. 

A  sumptuous  banquet  had  been  prepared  by  caterer  C.  M.  Leete, 
in  Grand  Army  rooms,  in  the  same  building,  to  which  the  party 


HARRY  C.  FAY. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  153 

was  invited.     The  "  National  Eagle"  had  an  account  of  this  gather- 
ing, from  which  the  following  is  an  extract : 

After  the  banquet  the  meeting  was  rapped  to  order  by  President  Bell,  and 
Major  Otis  F.  R.  Waite,  who  had  been  requested  to  do  so,  read  a  paper  relating 
to  the  early  history  of  Claremont.  It  was  replete  with  incidents  of  historical 
events  connected  with  Claremont's  early  days.  We  publish  it  in  full  and  doubt 
not  it  will  be  read  with  pleasure. 

Joseph  B.  Walker  offered  resolutions,  which  were  unanimously  adopted,  of 
thanks  to  Tremont  club  and  Major  Jarvis  Post  of  the  Grand  Army  for  the  use  of 
their  rooms ;  to  George  L.  Balcom  for  his  generous  hospitality ;  and  to  Major 
Waite  for  his  interesting  address,  and  requesting  a  copy  for  publication  in  the 
Transactions  of  the  Historical  Society. 

The  visitors  were  driven  in  carriages  about  the  village,  to  West 
Claremont,  and  thence  to  Claremont  Junction,  whence  they  took 
cars  for  Charlestown. 

NEWSPAPERS. 
THE   CLAREMONT  SPECTATOE 

was  the  first  newspaper  published  in  town.  Cyrus  Barton  was  its 
publisher  and  editor.  The  first  number  was  issued  August  29, 
1823,  and  the  last  September  3,  1824.  It  was  in  a  building  "just 
south  of  the  Brick  Church,  formerly  occupied  by  Caleb  Ellis  as  a 
law  office,"  which  was  on  the  ground  where  the  Episcopal  rectory 
now  is.  Mr.  Barton  removed  his  paper  and  printing  office  to  JSTew- 
port,  where  he  established  the  "]S"ew  Hampshire  Spectator."  In 
1833  a  newspaper  called  the  "  Argus  "  was  started  here,  and  edited 
by  Edmund  Burke.  In  1834  it  was  removed  to  !N"ewport  and  united 
with  the  "  Spectator,"  the  new  paper  taking  the  name  of  the  "  Argus 
and  Spectator,"  which  it  has  ever  since  borne,  Mr.  Burke  becoming 
editor. 

INDEPENDENT  ADVOCATE. 

This  was  the   title  of  a  newspaper  published  here  in  1883,  by  J. 

I^ye,  for  a  short  time,  "  in  the  room  over  the  postoffice."     How 

long  its  publication  was  continued,  or  why  it  was  discontinued,  is 

not  known, 
n 


154  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

THE   IMPAETIALIST. 

A  paper  with  this  title,  devoted  to  the  interests  of  the  Universalist 
denomination,  published  by  W.  A.  E.  Nye  and  edited  by  W.  S. 
Balch  and  T.  F.  King,  and  at  different  times  by  others,  from  1832 
to  1835,  was  issued  every  Saturday.  It  was  finally  merged  in  the 
"  "Watchman  and  Christian  Repository,"  published  at  Woodstock, Vt. 

From  about  1847  to  1849  Solon  Silsby  published  a  paper  devoted 
to  musical  science,  entitled  "  The  Philharmonic  Journal."  It  was 
finally  sold  to  a  New  York  firm  and  merged  in  some  other  publi- 
cation. 

THE  NATIONAL  EAGLE. 

This  paper  was  established  in  October,  1834,  under  the  direc- 
tion of  a  committee  appointed  at  a  Whig  Sullivan  county  con- 
vention the  year  before.  The  first  number  was  issued  by  John 
H.  Warland,  editor,  and  Samuel  L.  Chase,  printer.  In  1836  the 
establishment  was  purchased  by  John  H.  Warland  and  Joseph 
"Weber.  In  1842  Mr.  Weber  bought  Mr.  Warland's  interest,  and 
became  sole  proprietor  and  editor,  and  continued  the  publication 
of  the  paper  until  October,  1846,  when  Charles  Young  and  John 
S.  Walker  bought  the  establishment,  Mr.  Walker  taking  charge 
■of  the  editorial  department.  In  1849  Mr.  Walker  sold  his  interest 
to  John  H.  Brewster,  and  the  paper  was  published  by  Young  & 
Brewster  until  April,  1864,  when  Otis  F.  E.  Waite  bought  the 
establishment,  and  continued  the  business  until  1860,  when  he 
sold  out  to  John  S.  Walker.  Mr.  Walker  sold  to  Simon  Ide, 
whose  successors  have  been  Arthur  Chase,  Thomas  J.  Lasier, 
Hiram  P.  Grandy,  and  H.  C.  Fay.  The  present  publishers  and 
editors  are  Messrs.  Fay,  Thompson  &  Fay. 

THE  NOETHEEN  ADVOCATE. 

This  paper  was  started  in  Claremont  in  June,  1849,  by  Joseph 
"Weber,  as  a  Free  Soil  paper,  who  continued  its  publication  until 
November,  1881,  when  by  reason  of  advancing  age,  he  sold  the 


JOSEPH  WEBER. 


HISTORY  OF    CLAEBMONT.  155 

establishment  to  the  present  editor  and  proprietor,  R.  E.  Mussey, 
who  changed  the  title  of  the  paper  and  called  it  "  The  Claremont 
Advocate." 

THE     COMPENDIUM. 

The  publication  of  a  literary  paper  with  this  title  was  com- 
menced in  May,  1870,  by  S.  H.  Story,  and  printed  one  year  as 
a  weekly.  The  publication  was  then  discontinued  until  January, 
1872,  when  it  was  resumed  and  published  fortnightly  until  Jan- 
uary, 1875.  It  was  then  changed  to  a  monthly  and  called  "  The 
Narrative,"  under  which  arrangement  it  has  since  been  continued 
by  Mr.  Story. 


CHAPTEE  Xn. 

FARMING    INTBEBSTS. 

As  an  agricultural  town  Claremont  has  but  few  equals  in  ITew 
HampsHre,  and  her  farmers  are  among  the  most  intelligent  and 
independent  of  her  citizens.  Those  settled  on  Connecticut  river 
were  the  earliest  to  engage  in  tilling  the  soil  —  this  section  being 
the  best  adapted  to  that  industry  —  while  the  inhabitants  of  other 
parts  of  the  state  were  employed  in  lumbering,  fishing,  and  other 
pursuits,  to  the  exclusion  of  agriculture.  Our  farmers  have  gen- 
erally been  readers  upon  the  subject,  and  as  a  consequence  have 
adopted  the  best  methods,  and  used  the  best  implements  known 
for  carrying  on  the  business  to  which  their  lives  have  been  de- 
voted. Industry,  intelligence,  temperance, [and  economy  have  had 
their  reward  in  healthy  bodies,  thrift,  comfort,  and  independence. 

"With  a  few  exceptions  the  farms  have  not  been  large  —  varying 
in  size  from  one  hundred  to  two  hundred  acres  —  but  they  are 
almost  all  of  them  well  tilled,  productive,  having  upon  them  well 
kept,  commodious,  and  substantial  buildings,  and  good  fences. 
Many  of  our  farmers  have  manifested  an  interest  in  town,  county, 
and  state  agricultural  societies  from  the  early  days,  been  active 
in  promoting  their  organization,  and  constant  in  encouraging  and 
supporting  them.  Cheshire  county  —  Sullivan  then  forming  a  part 
of  it  —  was  the  second  in  the  state  to  organize  an  agricultural 
society,  Rockingham  being  the  first;  but  Cheshire  put  forth  the 
first  premium  list,  and  held  the  first  fair,  or  show  of  stock  and 
other  productions  of  the  farm. 

In  1817  the  Cheshire  Agricultural  Society,  which  had  been  pre- 
viously formed,  appeared  before  the  legislature  as  petitioner  for 


HISTORY    OF    OLAREMONT.  157 

the  bounty  and  aid  of  the  state,  and  the  subject  was  referred  to 
a  committee  who  reported,  recommending  that  "  the  sum  of  one 
hundred  dollars  be  appropriated  to  the  use  of  the  Cheshire  Ag- 
ricultural Society  for  the  purpose  of  enabling  said  society  to  grant 
premiums  for  the  best  productions,  either  of  stock,  grain,  or  such 
articles  as  may  be  thought  advisable,  and  that  said  society  be  re- 
quested to  include  the  subject  of  domestic  manufactures  with  the 
objects  of  their  association."  In  accordance  with  this  recommen- 
dation a  resolution  was  passed  granting  one  hundred  dollars  each 
to  the  agricultural  societies  of  Eockingham  and  Cheshire  counties. 

The  first  meeting  of  the  Cheshire  Agricultural  Society  was  held 
at  Claremont  on  the  first  Wednesday  of  October,  1817,  at  which 
the  following  officers  were  chosen  :  Mr.  Roswell  Hunt,  of  Charles- 
town,  president;  Col.  Joseph  Alden,  of  Claremont,  vice-president; 
Major  Ezra  Jones,  of  Claremont,  treasurer;  Isaac  Hubbard,  Esq., 
of  Claremont,  secretary.  An  executive  committee  was  chosen, 
consisting  of  nine  persons,  of  whom  Josiah  Stevens,  of  Claremont, 
was  one. 

At  this  meeting  a  premium  list  was  agreed  u^Don.  This  docu- 
ment was  the  first  of  the  kind  ever  issued  in  ISTew  Hampshire. 
Two  hundred  and  twenty-eight  dollars  were  offered,  divided  as 
follows : 

For  the  best  pair  of  working  oxen,  not  over  eight  years  old        .  $25 

For  the  next  best  do 15 

For  the  best  bull,  not  less  than  two  years  old        ....  15 

For  the  next  best  do 10 

For  the  best  milcli  cow,  not  over  eight  years  old  ....  15 

For  the  next  best  do.     ...                  10 

For  the  best  pair  of  steers,  three  years  old 20 

For  the  best  do.,  two  years  old 15 

Best  yearlings,  not  less  than  four  in  number         ....  20 

For  ths  best  boar,  not  over  two  years  old      .....  10 

For  the  next  best  do 5 

Beat  pigs,  not  over  eight  months  old,  nor  less  than  four  in  number  12 
Best  merino  ewes,  not  over  four  years  old,  nor  less  than  five  in 

number 15 

Next  best  do 10 

Best  ewes  of  common  sheep 10 


158  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

FAMILY   MANtTFACTURES. 

Best  piece  dressed  woolen  cloth,  not  less  than  ten  yards        .         .  $15 

Best  piece  of  linen  cloth,  not  less  than  ten  yards          ...  10 

Best  piece  of  flannel  made  from  wool,  not  less  than  twenty  yards  10 

Best  cheese   . 5 

Best  flax,  from  one  acre         ........  20 

Best  wheat,  on  old  ground,  per  acre,  reference  to  be  had  to  the 

quality 15 

Among  the  rules  at  the  close  is  an  offer  of  "ten  per  cent,  in 
addition  to  the  above,  to  be  paid  to  any  member  of  the  society 
who  may  present  any  stock  raised  and  owned  by  himself,  enti- 
tled to  a  premium,  or  any  of  the  manufactures  or  produce."  The 
exhibition  was  notified  to  take  place  at  the  next  annual  meeting, 
to  be  holden  at  Charlestown,  on  the  first  "Wednesday  of  October, 
1818,  at  10  o'clock   a.  m. 

In  1819  this  society  held  a  cattle  show  and  fair  in  Claremont. 
The  day  was  fine,  the  exhibition  in  every  department  large  and 
excellent,  and  the  crowd  of  people  one  of  the  greatest  ever  seen  in 
town.  A  procession  was  formed  and  marched  from  the  north  to 
the  south  side  of  the  river,  headed  by  Joel  Goss  and  David  Buck- 
man,  dressed  in  farmer's  frocks  and  wide  brimmed  straw  hats, 
sowing  oats  on  the  way.  Vegetables,  fruits,  domestic  manufac- 
tures, and  fancy  articles  were  shown  in  the  building  on  Broad 
street,  afterward  occupied  by  Glidden  &  Dean  as  a  store,  and 
now  Dr.  Cyrus  E.  Baker's  dwelling-house. 

This  society  continued  in  existence  until  the  county  of  Cheshire 
was  divided,  and  the  fifteen  towns  in  the  northern  part  of  it  were 
set  ofi^  and  made  the  county  of  Sullivan  in  1827. 

SULLIVAN     COUNTY    AGKICULTURAL    SOCIETY. 

This  society  was  organized  in  February,  1848.  The  following 
autumn  an  exhibition  or  fair  was  held  in  Claremont,  and  proved 
a  great  success  in  every  respect.  Among  the  Claremont  men 
who  were  prominent  'and  active  members  of  this  society  were 
Isaac   Hubbard,  first  president;    John   S.  Walker,   president   in 


HISTORY   OF   CLAKBMONT.  159 

1857;  Horace  Dean  and  Charles  F.  Long,  vice-presidents;  Jona- 
than E.  Rowell,  director;  George  W.  Blodgett,  for  many  years 
secretary,  and  others.  At  a  meeting  held  at  Claremont  in  April,. 
1857,  the  society  voted  to  locate  the  fairs  at  Charlestown  for  the 
next  ten  years,  if  certain  conditions,  such  as  providing  and  fencing 
the  grounds,  erecting  suitable  buildings  thereon,  etc.,  were  com- 
plied with.  This  was  done,  and  the  fairs  held  there  were  suc- 
cessful for  a  few  years;  but  by  reason  of  the  war,  combined 
with  other  causes,  the  interest  in  the  exhibitions  flagged,  and  the 
organization  was  finally  abandoned,  since  which  no  Sullivan 
County  society  has  existed. 

MARKET    DAY    AND    CATTLE    KAIB. 

In  the  "  National  Eagle  "  of  October  10,  1861,  under  this  cap- 
tion, appeared  the  following  editorial  notice  : 

We  are  requested  to  give  public  notice  to  all  persons  having  fine  cattle,  horses, 
sheep,  pigs,  or  other  stock,  and  all  vrho  desire  to  purchase,  exchange,  match, 
or  sell,  and  to  the  public  generally,  that  a  Market  Day  and  Cattle  Show  will 
be  held  in  Claremont  village,  on  Tuesday,  the  fifteenth  inst.,  in  and  about  the 
Common  in  front  of  the  Town  House  —  informally  and  without  expense  to  the 
public  or  to  individuals.  Neat  stock,  sheep,  swine,  etc.,  will  rendezvous  at  the 
Common  at  ten  o'clock  a.  m.  Horses,  of  all  classes,  will  rendezvous  at  the  same 
place  at  two  o'clock  p.  m.  Committees  will  be  detailed  who  will  make  a  careful 
and  discriminating  examination  at  the  hours  mentioned  of  all  stock  exhibited, 
and  afterwards  publish  their  report.  No  premiums  are  offered  and  of  course  none 
will  be  awarded  —  but  the  report  will  aim  to  do  justice  to  noteworthy  and  de- 
sirable points  and  features  which  may  come  under  the  observation  of  the  com- 
mittees. The  Town  Hall  will  be  opened  during  the  day  for  the  convenience- 
of  exhibitors  who  may  desire  to  display  specimens  of  butter,  cheese,  honey, 
vegetables,  grains,  &c.,  &c. 

On  the  I7th  of  the  same  month  the  "  Eagle,"  in  noticing  the 
fair,  said : 

The  demonstration  of  Tuesday  was  really  splendid.  Such  a  show  of  oxea 
and  other  cattle  has  not  been  seen  in  Claremont  since  one  or  two  of  our  County- 
Fairs,  twelve  years  ago,  when  every  town  contributed,  as  the  record  of  weights 
(which   the  committee  will  publish   next  week),  will  testify.      We  have  only 


160  HISTORY   OF    CLAEEMONT. 

time  and  space  to-day  to  instance  tiiat  ten  yoke  ran  up  into  the  thirty-eight 
and  thirty-nine  hundreds,  while  several  went  into  the  forties.  D.  W.  Barney's 
six-year-olds  pulled  down  4,180  lbs. ;  William  Jones's,  4,200,  and  Benajah  Ro- 
gers's, 4,420.  The  noble  procession  of  bovine  aristocracy  came  into  town  headed 
by  a  fine  band  from  Acworth,  and  escorted  by  the  marshal.  Dr.  S.  G.  Jarvis, 
and  his  aids,  all  admirably  mounted.  In  the  afternoon  the  display  and  pro- 
cession of  horses  was  also  remarkable.  AViUiam  Breck,  Esq.,  of  West  Clare- 
mont,  with  his  beautiful  matched  blacks,  headed  a  procession  of  about  three 
quarters  of  a  mile  in  length,  followed  by  Lewis  Peri-y's  dashing  black  stallions, 
Rufus  Carlton's  dainty  stepping  sorrels,  and  an  endless  number  of  beauties,  to 
which  the  committee  will  do  full  justice  in  their  report. 

The  show  in  the  town  hall  was  not  large.  The  day  is  repre- 
sented to  have  been  all  that  could  be  desired,  and  thousands  of 
spectators  witnessed  the  show. 

The  committees  were :  On  horses,  Otis  F.  R.  "Waite,  Oscar  J. 
Brown,  and  John  S.  Fari'ington;  on  cattle,  William  Clark,  Henry 
C.  Cowles,  and  Stephen  F.  Eossiter;  on  swine,  Horace  Dean,  C. 
Henry  Abbott,  and  Thomas  B.  Fletcher;  on  dairy,  vegetables, 
etc,  G-eorge  W.  Blodgett  and  John  S.  Walker.  The  next  week, 
October  24,  these  committees  published  elaborate,  and  some  of 
them  learned,  reports.  The  committee  on  cattle  made  a  lengthy 
report,  which  in  part  was, 

Daniel  W.  Barney,  one  pair  oxen,  8  years  old,  weight  3,868  lbs. 


Daniel  W.  Barney,               ' 

'           t        *' 

3,810  lbs. 

Daniel  W.  Barney, 

5 

"       4,180  lbs. 

Daniel  W.  Barney,              ' 

4 

3,920  lbs. 

Daniel  W.  Barney,              " 

2 

2,310  lbs. 

Daniel  W.  Barney, 

'            2         " 

2.130  lbs. 

William  Jones, 

6 

4,200  lbs. 

William  Jones, 

4 

3,568  lbs. 

Fred.  A.  Henry, 

8 

3,930  lbs. 

Enoch  Johnson, 

6 

4,090  lbs. 

Enoch  Johnson,                    ' 

5 

3,360  lbs. 

Enoch  Johnson, 

1 

1,110  lbs. 

Horace  Dean, 

4 

3,890  lbs. 

John  G.  Putnam,                 " 

5 

3,800  lbs. 

Joseph  Cram,  Unity            " 

2         " 

2.390  lbs. 

Horace  Dean,  yearling  bull 

920  lbs. 

Many  other  specimens  were 

commended. 

HISTORY   OF   CLAKBMONT.  161 

By  notice  published  in  the  town  papers,  citizens  were  invited 
to  meet  at  the  town  hall  on  October  24,  1861,  to  consider  the 
subject  of  forming  a  Town  Agricultural  Club,  which  meeting 
was  adjourned  to  November  1,  at  Tremont  hall,  at  which  there 
was  a  good  attendance,  and  it  was  voted  to  organize  a  town  club, 
and  that  the  officers  consist  of  a  president,  a  vice-president  for 
each  school  district,  a  secretary,  treasurer,  and  board  of  five  man- 
agers. Daniel  "W".  Barney,  Thomas  Kirk,  and  Fred.  A.  Henry 
were  appointed  a  committee  to  report  the  names  for  a  board  of 
officers,  who  reported :  For  president,  John  S.  Walker ;  vice-pres- 
idents, district  1,  Thomas  Kirk ;  2,  Jacob  W.  Sanborn ;  3,  Hosea 
P.  Shedd;  4,  Danford  Rice;  6,  William  Ellis;  6,  Ira  Colby;  7, 
Austin  T.  Cowles;  8,  Frederick  Jones;  9,  Jonathan  Densmore; 
10,  Wilham  F.  Bartlett;  11,  William  E.  Tutherly;  12,  Ruel  R. 
Bowman ;  13,  George  Bond ;  14,  Andrew  J.  Pike ;  15,  David  F. 
Tutherly;  16,  Horace  Dean;  17,  George  G.  Ide;  18,  Fred.  A. 
Henry;  19,  Solon  C.  Grannis;  secretary,  Charles  IsT.  Goss;  treas- 
urer, Enoch  Johnson;  managers,  Daniel  W.  Barney,  Charles  F. 
Long,  Franklin  Norton,  George  W.  Blodgett,  and  Fred.  P.  Smith, 
which  report  was  adopted. 

Messrs.  Otis  F.  R.  Waite,  Oscar  J.  Brown,  and  Thomas  Kirk 
were  appointed  a  committee  to  select  a  suitable  lot  for  a  fair 
ground  and  report  at  an  adjourned  meeting.  It  Avas  voted  that 
the  name  of  the  club  should  be  the  Claremont  Agricultural  and 
Mechanical  Association.  Otis  F.  R.  Waite,  John  S.  Walker,  and 
George  W.  Blodgett  were  appointed  a  committee  to  draft  and 
report  a  constitution  and  by-laws  for  the  government  of  the  as- 
sociation. 

The  committee  appointed  to  select  a  suitable  lot  for  a  fair 
ground,  by  its  chairman,  reported  in  favor  of  taking  a  lease  of 
what  was  known  as  the  Tenney  lot,  for  five  years.  The  report 
was  adopted,  and  the  committee  instructed  to  complete  a  contract 
in  behalf  of  the  association.  This  is  the  same  lot  that  was  after- 
ward bought  by  the  Sullivan  County  Park  Association,  and  is 
now  laid  out  into  house  lots,  several  of  them  built  on,  and  known 
as  Fair  View. 


162  HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT. 

At  an  adjourned  meeting,  on  the  4tli  of  the  same  November, 
Mr.  Waite,  chairman  of  the  committee  on  constitution  and  by- 
laws, submitted  a  report  which  was  adopted.  The  following  is 
the  constitution,  and  the  by-laws  were  in  conformity  with  it: 

Section  1.  This  society  shall  be  styled  the  Claremont  Agricultural  and  Me- 
chanical Association.  Its  object  shall  be  the  encouragement  and  improvement 
of  agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts. 

Sect.  2.  The  officers  of  this  association  shall  be  a  president,  a  vice-president 
in  each  school  district,  a  secretary,  a  treasurer,  and  a  board  of  five  managers, 
all  of  whom  shall  be  chosen  annually  in  November,  and  shall  hold  their  offices 
until  others  are  chosen  in  their  stead.  The  president,  secretary,  and  treasurer 
shall  be  ex-officio  members  of  the  board  of  managers. 

Sect.  3.  The  annual  meeting  of  the  association  shall  be  holden  on  the 
first  Tuesday  of  November  of  each  year,  at  7  o'clock  p.  m.,  for  the  choice  of 
officers  and  the  transaction  of  other  business ;  the  place  of  meeting  to  be  desig- 
nated by  the  board  of  managers,  notice  of  which  shall  be  signed  by  the  secre- 
tary, and  published  at  least  two  weeks  previous  to  the  time  of  such  meeting, 
in  such  new.spapers  in  Claremont  as  will  insert  it  without  charge.  Other  meet- 
ings of  the  association  may  be  held  at  such  times  and  places  and  for  such  pur- 
poses connected  with  the  objects  of  the  association  as  the  board  of  managers 
may  determine. 

Sect.  4.  At  the  annual  meeting  the  president  shall  submit  in  writing  a  full 
report  of  the  transactions  of  the  association  during  the  preceding  year,  with 
such  remarks  and  suggestions  as  he  may  think  proper;  and  the  treasurer  shall 
submit,  also  in  writing,  a  full  account  of  his  receipts  and  disbursements  for  the 
year,  both  of  which  reports  shall  be  placed  upon  the  files  of  the  association. 

Sect.  5.  Any  person  may  become  a  member  of  this  association  by  paying  to 
the  treasurer  twenty-five  cents  and  signing  the  constitution  and  by-laws. 

The  Tenney  lot,  containing  about  ninety  acres,  was  leased  for 
five  years.  The  same  fall  a  half  mile  track  ^vas  laid  out,  plow^ed, 
scraped,  made  level,  and  as  perfect  as  possible,  the  most  of  the 
work  being  done  by  farmers  and  others  interested,  without  charge. 
The  lot  was  used  for  a  cow  pasture,  and  in  this  way  paid  the 
rent  agreed  upon. 

The  following  winter  fortnightly  meetings  were  held  for  the 
discussion  of  subjects  connected  with  the  objects  of  the  associa- 
tion. The  first  meeting  was  held  at  Tremont  hall,  December  4, 
1861,  the  subject  for  discussion  being  "The  management  of  farm 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  163 

stock  in  winter."  The  meeting  was  qnite  largely  attended.  The 
president,  John  S.  Walker,  opened  the  discussion,  and  was  fol- 
lowed by  Fred.  A.  Henry,  Daniel  S.  Bowker,  Charles  K  Goss, 
Samuel  G.  Jarvis,  Benj.  P.  Walker,  Henry  Fitch,  and  others. 
At  the  next  meeting  the  consideration  of  the  same  subject  was 
continued.  The  same  gentlemen,  and  Thomas  Kirk,  Leonard  P. 
Fisher,  Fred.  P.  Smith,  Daniel  W.  Barney,  Horace  Dean,  George 
G.  Ide,  Ovid  Chase,  and  others,  told  their  own  experience  and 
observation  in  the  matter  of  feeding  and  care  of  stock  while  at 
the  barn.  The  speeches  were  quite  fully  reported  for  the  "  Eagle," 
and  created  considerable  interest  in  the  meetings  and  the  subjects 
discussed.  Subsequent  meetings  were  held  at  Fraternity  hall. 
Several  members  prepared  essays  upon  the  subjects  to  be  con- 
sidered, and  read  them  in  the  course  of  the  debate. 

On  the  twenty-second  of  January,  1862,  by  invitation,  Otis  F.  R. 
Waite  occupied  about  forty  minutes,  with  an  address  carefully  pre- 
pared, upon  the  subject  of  "  The  breeds  and  breeding  of  neat  stock," 
at  the  conclusion  of  which  Dr.  Samuel  G.  Jarvis  moved  the 
thanks  of  the  association  to  Major  Waite  for  his  address,  with  a 
request  that  he  continue  his  remarks  on  a  future  occasion.  The 
motion  was  adopted,  and  it  was  also  voted  that  the  address  be 
published  in  the  "Eagle,"  and  that  two  hundred  copies  be  printed 
in  pamphlet  form  for  the  use  of  the  association.  The  meetings 
increased  in  interest  and  attendance  throughout  the  winter,  and 
were  continued  monthly  through  the  summer. 

In  May,  1862,  the  association  organized  under  the  provisions 
of  the  New  Hampshire  statutes,  became  a  corporation,  and  so 
continued  during  its  existence.  On  the  thirtieth  of  September  the 
association  held  a  fair  and  field  day  on  their  grounds.  Everybody 
was  invited  to  make  exhibits,  and  participate  in  the  festivities, 
free  of  charge.  Forage  for  stock  from  out  of  town  was  furnished 
by  the  association  free.  The  novelty  of  holding  fairs  upon  the 
principle  of  asking  no  fees  and  paying  no  premiums  seemed  to 
meet  with  universal  favor.  The  day  was  fine,  the  display  of  neat 
stock,    among  which  was  eighty  yokes  of  heavy  oxen,  farm  pro- 


164  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

duce,  domestic  and  other  manufactures,  fruits,  and  fancy  articles 
was  large  and  excellent,  and  the  gathering  of  people  from  this 
and  the  surrounding  towns  in  ISTew  Hampshire  and  Vermont  was 
such  as  had  seldom  been  seen  in  Claremont,  and  all  seemed  more 
than  satisfied. 

At  the  annual  meeting,  November  4,  the  president,  John  S. 
Walker,  as  required  by  the  constitution,  made  a  written  report, 
reviewing  the  doings  of  the  association  during  the  past  year,  to- 
gether with  some  valuable  suggestions  as  to  the  future  manage- 
ment of  its  affairs.  On  motion  of  Dr.  Jarvis  it  was  voted  to  re- 
sume the  series  of  fall  and  winter  meetings,  and  that  they  should 
be  opened  by  the  members  giving  a  personal  account  of  their 
farm  operations  and  results  during  the  past  season. 

The  meetings  for  discussion  were  kept  up  during  the  ensuing 
three  cold  seasons,  but  the  war,  then  in  progress,  absorbed  the 
attention  of  almost  everybody  and  detracted  from  the  interest  in 
the  objects  of  this  association.  At  the  annual  meeting  in  ISTovem- 
ber,  1864,  it  was  voted  that  meetings  be  held  through  the  ensuing 
fall  and  winter  so  often  as  they  could  be  made  profitable.  The 
fairs  were  held  annually  the  last  of  September  or  fore  part  of 
October,  and  were  entirely  successful  until  1869,  soon  after  which 
the  fair  ground  was  purchased  by  John  Tyler.  A  company  with 
a  capital  stock  of  ten  thousand  dollars,  under  the  name  of  the 
Sullivan  County  Park  Association,  was  organized  early  in  1872, 
bought  the  ground,  fenced  it,  erected  buildings,  etc.,  and  fitted 
it  up  for  a  trotting  park.  The  Connecticut  Eiver  Valley  Agri- 
cultural Society  held  its  fairs  there  for  a  few  years  with  a  mod- 
erate degree  of  success,  but  it  degenerated  into  a  horse-racing 
rather  than  an  agricultural  society,  and  finally  went  the  way  of 
many  other  similar  organizations. 

NEW  HAMPSHIRE   STATE  AGRICULTURAL  SOCIETY. 

In  conformity  with  a  request  contained  in  a  circular  signed  by 
thirty-two  influential  citizens  of  the  state,  among  whom  were 
Isaac  Hubbard,  Samuel  Tutherly,  Jonathan  E.  Eowell,  and  John 


HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT.  165 

S.  Walker,  of  Claremont,  a  meeting  was  held  at  Manchester, 
December  12,  1849.  John  S.  Walker  called  the  gentlemen  to 
order,  and  stated  that  the  object  which  had  called  so  many  to- 
gether was  the  formation  of  an  association  for  the  advancement 
of  agriculture  and  the  mechanic  arts.  A  temporary  chairman 
was  chosen,  who,  on  motion,  appointed  E.  D.  Sauborn,  of  Hanover, 
George  W.  Nesmith,  of  Franklin,  Josiah  Stevens,  of  Concord, 
Chandler  E.  Potter,  of  Manchester,  and  John  S.  Walker,  of  Clare- 
-mont  a  committee  to  prepare  and  report  a  constitution  and  by- 
laws for  the  government  of  this  society.  The  constitution  which 
was  adopted  provided  for  a  president,  a  vice-president,  an  exec- 
utive committee  of  five,  a  secretary,  and  treasurer.  George  W. 
Nesmith,  of  Franklin,  was  elected  president;  Ezra  J.  Glidden,  of 
Unity,  vice-president  for  Sullivan  county,  and  John  S.  Walker,  of 
Claremont,  secretary. 

At  the  session  of  the  legislature  in  June,  1850,  George  W. 
Nesmith  and  seventeen  others  —  among  them  John  S.  Walker, 
of  Claremont  —  and  their  associates  and  successors,  were  granted 
a  charter  under  the  name  of  the  New  Hampshire  State  Agricul- 
tural Society.  An  appropriation  asked  for  passed  the  house,  but 
was  defeated  in  the  senate  by  a  tie  vote. 

The  first  cattle  show  and  fair  by  this  society  was  held  at  Concord 
on  the  second  and  third  days  of  October,  1850.  The  show  of  horses, 
cattle,  articles  of  domestic  manufacture,  fruits,  vegetables,  and 
fancy  needle  work  was  very  large.  In  the  evening  of  the  first 
day  of  the  fair  a  meeting  of  members  and  others  was  held  at 
which  addresses  were  made  by  ex-governor  John  H.  Steele,  Levi 
Woodbury,  ex-governor  Anthony  Colby,  Thomas  M.  Edwards, 
Franklin  Pierce,  afterwards  president  of  the  United  States,  Noah 
Martin,  afterwards  governor  of  New  Hampshire,  Nathaniel  S. 
Berry,  afterwards  governor,  and  others. 

Among  the  Claremont  people  awarded  premiums  were  John 
S.  Walker,  best  Durham  bull,  $15 ;  Hubbard  &  Glidden,  best  Ayr- 
shire bull,  $8;  Isaac  Hubbard,  best  Durham  cow,  |12;  Sunapee 
Mills,  three  cases  of  cotton  goods,  diploma.     Since  1850  this  so- 


166  HISTORY   OF   OLAREMONT. 

ciety  has  been  kept  up  and  fairs  held  annually  —  except  a  few 
years  during  and  succeeding  the  war  —  at  Manchester,  Laconia, 
Keene,  Dover,  and  other  places;  but  Claremont  being  consider- 
able distance  from  the  places  where  the  fairs  have  been  held,  her 
people  in  later  years  have  not  participated  in  them  to  the  extent 
that  they  otherwise  might  have  done. 

In  1870  the  legislature  passed  an  act  creating  a  State  Board  of 
Agriculture,  to  consist  of  one  member  for  each  county.  This 
board  was  empowered  to  solicit  returns  and  reports  from  the  differ- 
ent agricultural  societies,  and  secure  complete  returns  from  all  sec- 
tions of  the  state  ;  hold  meetings  in  the  different  counties ;  collect 
and  distribute  grains  and  other  seeds,  and  make  full  report  of  their 
doings  annually,  before  the  first  day  of  May,  to  the  Governor,  with 
suf^h  recommendations  and  suggestions  as  in  their  judgment  the 
interests  of  agriculture  shall  require.  These  reports  were  to  be 
printed,  distributed,  and  disposed  of  the  same  as  other  public  docu- 
ments. This  board  has  a  secretary  with  an  office  in  the  state  house. 
Concord.  He  issued  a  circular  calling  upon  the  selectmen  of  the 
several  towns  for  answers  to  twelve  interrogatories.  In  case  of  the 
neglect  of  the  selectmen  to  reply,  individuals  were  requested  to  do 
so.  For  Claremont  for  1873,  Otis  F.  E.  Waite  was  called  upon  for 
a  report.  The  significance  of  the  interrogatories  will  be  inferred 
from  the  following  replies  : 

CLAKEMONT. 

Being  in  Connecticut  river  valley  this  is  one  of  the  best  farming 
towns  in  New  Hampshire,  and  her  farmers  are  generally  intelligent, 
industrious,  and  independent.  Her  large  village  and  extensive 
manufactories  furnish  a  home  market  for  more  of  every  kind  of 
farm  produce  than  is  raised.  The  following  answers  to  the  twelve 
questions  in  the  circular  of  the  secretary  of  the  board  of  agricul- 
ture of  the  20th  of  March,  1873,  convey  but  a  faint  idea  of  the 
beauty  and  fertility  of  many  of  her  farms,  or  the  general  comfort 
everywhere  to  be  seen  within  the  limits  of  the  town. 

1.  The  most,  say  from  one  half  to  three  fourths,  of  the  farmers 
in  town,  are  saving  something  annually  after  supporting  their  fami- 


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HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  167 

lies  comfortably  and  educating  their  children  in  good  schools. 
This  by  mixed  agriculture  —  the  production  of  the  various  kinds 
of  grain,  potatoes,  the  dairy,  and  cattle  and  wool.  There  are  but 
very  few  farmers  in  town  who  are  not  making  a  good  living,  with 
moderate  industry  and  economy. 

2.  This  is  a  complicated  question,  and  an  intelligent  answer  to  it 
is  difficult  to  give.  It  is  known  that  almost  all  farmers,  who  have 
their  farms  nearly  clear  from  debt,  are  improving  their  fields  and 
buildings,  supporting  their  families  better,  dress  them  better,  ride  in 
good  carriages,  and  are  saving  more  money  than  the  average  of 
mechanics  and  men  engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits  who  have  an 
equal  amount  invested  in  their  business  and  houses.  Yet  farmers 
generally  feel  that  they  have  a  license  to  complain  at  the  high  price 
of  labor  and  the  low  rates  of  some  kinds  of  produce  as  compared 
with  ten  years  ago.  Almost  without  exception  farmers  are  more 
intelligent,  take  more  papers,  read  more,  live  in  better  buildings, 
and  have  more  conveniences  and  luxuries  than  formerly.  Most  of 
them  have  more  money  at  interest,  work  less  hours,  and  are  gener- 
erally  not  more  economical,  if  so  much  so,  as  before  the  war. 
There  is  no  class  in  the  community  that  lives  so  well,  has  so  much 
leisure,  is  so  independent,  or  complains  so  much  of  hard  times,  as 
the  farmer.  He  does  not  stop  to  consider  that  if  a  mechanic  or 
professional  man  has  an  income  of  from  eight  to  twelve  hundred 
dollars  per  year,  he  has  to  pay  high  rents,  buy  his  fuel  and  every- 
thing he  eats,  and  if  he  has  much  family,  finds  himself  at  the  last 
about  where  he  was  the  first  end  of  the  year ;  whereas  the  average 
farmer,  with  a  less  capital  invested,  has  supported  his  family  more 
respectably  and  better,  his  children  have  had  more  means  of  im- 
provement, he  has  added  something  to  the  value  of  his  farm  by 
way  of  improvements,  and  his  deposit  in  the  savings  bank  has 
increased. 

3.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  from  two  thirds  to  three  quarters  of  farm- 
ers' sons  leave  the  farm  for  other  pursuits.  But  very  few  farms  — 
not  ten  per  cent  —  have  been  abandoned  to  wood  or  pasturing,  or 
been  united  with  other  farms  in  the  last  ten  years. 


168  HISTORY    OF   CLABEMONT. 

4.  There  is  no  more  disposition  this  spring  than  formerly  to 
abandon  farming  for  other  pursuits. 

5.  It  is  the  general  opinion  that  farms  and  farm  property  are  ap- 
praised nearer  to  their  real  value  than  village  residences,  manufac- 
turing property,  or  stocks  in  trade,  though  selectmen  have  generally 
tried  to  get  as  nearly  as  possible  at  the  true  cost  value  of  all  pro- 
ductive property  in  making  up  their  tax  lists.  There  has  prob- 
ably been  no  discrimination  in  favor  of  any  one  class  of  property 
to  the  prejudice  of  others. 

6.  There  are  some  pure-blooded  cattle  in  town  of  several  differ- 
ent breeds,  principally,  however,  Durhams,  Devons,  and  Jerseys ; 
and  farmei'S,  as  they  become  informed  upon  the  subject,  are  giving 
more  attention  to  breeds  of  cattle,  and  are  breeding  from  better 
animals  than  formerly ;  consequently  they  are  considerably  increased 
in  value,  probably  twenty-five  per  cent  in  ten  years.  There  has 
been  no  cattle  disease  in  town  the  past  year.  The  number  of  neat 
cattle  has  not  varied  much  in  the  last  few  years. 

7.  There  are  but  two  valuable  stock  horses  owned  in  town,  and 
none  that  are  thoroughbred.  Last  fall  almost  all  the  livery,  stage, 
team,  and  driving  horses  in  the  village  were  more  or  less  affected 
by  the  prevailing  horse  disease,  while  farm  horses,  and  those  that 
had  run  out  during  the  summer,  suffered  but  little  comparatively. 
But  very  few  —  not  a  quarter  of  one  per  cent  —  died,  while  all  are 
apparently  well  now,  and  their  value  has  not  been  perceptibly 
diminished  by  the  disease. 

8.  Col.  Eussell  Jarvis,  Dr.  S.  G.  Jarvis,  J.  P.  Upham,  Elijah 
Whitmore,  Mighill  Dustin,  and  Dr.  S.  A.  Sabine  are  among  the 
largest  sheep  breeders  in  town.  Mr.  Dustin  has  quite  a  flock  of 
Cotswolds,  while  the  others  are  Merinos.  Sheep,  at  the  present 
price  of  wool,  are  thought  to  pay  quite  as  large  a  profit  as  any  other 
kind  of  farm  stock.  There  has  been  no  prevailing  disease  amongst 
them  during  the  past  year.  Dogs  destroyed  two  hundred  and  for'y- 
two  dollars'  worth  of  sheep,  and  the  dog  tax  was  one  hundred  and 
ninety-seven  dollars,  and  this  is  about  an  average  for  the  last  five 
years. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  169 

9.  Probably  from  a  fifth  to  an  eighth  of  the  area  of  the  town  is 
covered  with  growing  timber,  more  than  half  of  which  is  what 
would  be  called  old  growth.  It  is  not  now  diminishing  in  amount. 
All  of  the  timber  cut  in  town  is  manufactured  here,  mostly  hem- 
lock and  spruce,  into  building  materials.  A  large  share  of  the 
wood  consumed  comes  from  adjoining  towns. 

10.  The  leading  crops  on  the  river  and  valley  farms  are  corn  and 
the  smaller  grains  and  hay,  while  the  hill  farms  produce  the  smaller 
grains,  hay,  and  potatoes.  A  few  farmers  have  raised  tobacco  suc- 
cessfully, and  on  what  is  known  as  the  "  Cupola  Farm,"  owned  by 
Hon.  Benj.  H.  Steele,  of  "Vermont,  special  attention  is  being  given 
to  the  dairy ;  from  thirty  to  forty  cows  are  kept,  and  their  milk  is 
made  into  butter  and  cheese,  which  finds  a  ready  market  in  the 
village.  Most  farmers  are  using  considerable  quantities  of  com- 
mercial fertilizers,  plaster,  and  ashes. 

11.  There  is  a  growing  interest  in  the  production  of  apples, 
pears,  and  grapes,  but  none  of  our  farmers  are  making  a  specialty 
of  this  branch  of  husbandry ;  and  any  estimate  of  the  value  of  the 
crop  for  any  given  year,  or  an  average  for  the  last  ten  years,  would 
be  wide  of  the  true  mark. 

12.  The  labor  question  has  become  a  very  important  one,  since 
labor  is  at  the  foundation  of  all  productive  industry,  and  will  always 
command  its  full  value.  The  supply  and  demand  for  farm  and 
farmhouse  labor  keep  pretty  even  pace  with  each  other.  Many, 
and  indeed  most,  farmers  in  the  vicinity  have  introduced  the  latest 
improved  machines  for  saving  manual  labor,  such  as  planters,  cul- 
tivators, mowers,  and  horse-rakes. 

If  there  is  any  one  mistake  more  fatal  to  the  success  of  the 
farmer  than  others,  it  is  for  him  to  attempt  to  produce  upon  his 
lands  what  they  are  not  calculated  to  grow  in  profusion  and  per- 
fection. Almost  all  New  Hampshire  farmers  think  they  must  grow 
a  little  of  nearly  every  kind  of  grain,  vegetable  and  fruit ;  keep  a 
few  sheep ;  make  a  little  butter  and  cheese ;  raise  a  few  cattle,  and 
a  colt  or  two,  and  indeed  do  a  little  of  everything.  This  is  about 
as  sensible  as  it  would  be  for  a  mechanic  —  because  he  is  a  me 
chanic — to  attempt  to  make  his  own  shoes,  clothes,  wagons,  and 

12 


170  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

do  his  blacksmithing  and  carpenter  work;  or  for  a  professional 
man  to  do  his  own  doctoring,  law  business,  and  preaching.  No  one 
man  can  do  a  great  variety  of  work  and  do  it  economically  and 
well,  nor  can  a  farmer  possibly  understand  thoroughly  every  con- 
ceivable branch  of  husbandry,  and  pursue  them  all,  and  expect  the 
best  results;  nor  is  every  farm  capable  of  producing  equally  well 
horses,  cattle,  sheep,  and  other  farm  stock,  and  every  kind  of  cereal 
and  vegetable  and  hay,  with  the  best  profit.  If  our  farmers  would 
study  the  character  and  capacity  of  their  farms  and  then  turn  them 
to  the  production  of  such  crops  or  stock  only  as  they  are  able  to 
produce  in  the  greatest  abundance  and  perfection,  and  then  learn 
to  do  these  few  things  to  the  best  advantage  and  in  the  most  per- 
fect manner,  the  results  would  be  much  more  satisfactory  than  to 
do  such  a  great  variety,  all  indificrently  well  and  to  but  small  profit. 
Artisans,  in  their  wisdom,  have  so  divided  up  their  work  that  each 
has  a  particular  part  assigned  to  him  —  one  man  makes  but  one  of 
the  many  parts  of  a  watch,  another  makes  another  part,  and  so  on 
until  all  parts  are  made,  when  another  man  puts  them  together  and 
makes  the  watch  tick  and  keep  the  time  by  which  the  day  is  divided ; 
one  man  makes  the  spokes,  another  the  felloes,  another  the  hub, 
while  another  puts  them  together  and  completes  the  whole  of  a  car- 
riage. The  same  general  system  is  pursued  in  every  considerable 
mechanical  establishment,  and  in  this  way  each  part  of  the  work 
in  hand  is  done  rapidly  and  well ;  and  establishments  pursuing  a 
dififerent  system  cannot  compete  with  them  either  in  price  or  quality 
of  work. 

It  would  require  a  much  longer  article  than  you  can  spare  room 
for  in  your  report  to  make  this  matter  clear  to  a  majority  of  men 
who  are  and  have  been  all  their  lives  practicing  differently,  but  the 
subject  is  most  certainly  worthy  of  serious  consideration  by  the 
farmers  of  New  Hampshire.  This  is  but  a  hint  for  such  as  choose 
to  take  it. 

FARMS. 

There  are  many  farms  in  Claremont  which  might  be  especially 
noticed,  while  there  are  a  few  that  imperatively  demand  it  in  this 
history. 


O 


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HISTOKY   OF   CLAREMONT.  171 

THE   CUPOLA  PAKM 

Is  situated  about  four  miles  northwest  of  Claremont  village,  on  the 
road  to  Windsor,  Vt ;  it  is  bounded  on  the  west  by  Connecticut 
river,  and  through  it  runs  Sugar  river.      If  not  the  best  it  is  one  of 
the  best  two  farms  in  New  Hampshire  —  the  Peirce  farm  in  Green- 
land being  the  other.     The  Cupola  farm  has  been  owned  by  Pom- 
roy  M.  Eossiter,  a  native  of  the  town,  since  1879.     It  contains  five 
hundred  acres,  two  hundred  of  which  are  under  cultivation,  the 
rest  pasture  and  woodland.     One  hundred  or  more  acres  of  the 
meadow  bottom  is  flowed  about  every  spring  by  the  high  water  of 
Connecticut  and  Sugar  rivers,  keeping  the  land  constantly  in  con- 
dition for  the  production  of  large  crops  of  hay  of  excellent  quality. 
This  farm  was  owned  for  near  a  hundred  years  by  Dr.  William 
Sumner  and  his  direct  descendants  by  that  name.     A  tavern,  known 
as  the  Cupola  Tavern,  was  kept  there  many  years  preceding  1851. 
The  farm  was  carried  on  and  the  tavern  kept  by  Horace  Dean  for 
about  twenty  years  immediately  prior  to  that  date.     After  Mr.  Eos- 
siter purchased  the  property  he  completely  remodeled,  enlarged, 
and  repaired  the  buildings.     The  main  house  is  now  forty-two  feet 
square,  two  stories,  with  French  roof,  and  a  back  or  kitchen  part 
sixteen  by  forty-six  feet,  two  stories,  finely  finished  in  every  part, 
and  covered  with  slate.     The  barns,  as  made  over  and  enlarged,  are 
now  in  L  shape  —  one  wing  is   forty  by  one  hundred,  the  other 
thirty-two  by  one  hundred  and  forty  feet,  with  cellar  under  the 
whole,    clapboarded   and   painted,  and   covered   with   slate   roof 
The  floors  in  which  hay  and  other  fodder,  corn  to  be  husked,  and' 
grain  to  be  threshed,  are  unloaded,  are  above  the  stables.     In  the 
stable  ninety-five  cattle  can  be  tied  up  and  there  are  stalls  for  eight 
horses.     In  the  cellar  or  basement  there  is  a  place  for  keeping 
sheep.     In  every  part  of  the  barn  and  yards  where  it  Jis  needed 
there  is  an  abundant  supply  of  running  water.     At  the  south  side 
of  Sugar  river,  reached  by  a  substantial  iron  bridge  more  than  a 
hundred  feet  long,  are  two  barns,  thirty  by  forty,  and  thirty-two 
by  forty  feet,  with  cellars,  capable  of  storing  one  hundred  tons  of 
hay,  and  tie-ups  for  thirty-two  cattle.     At  the  John  Sumner  place, 


172  HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT. 

SO  called,  opposite  the  Cupola  buildings,  and  a  part  of  the  Cupola 
farm,  is  a  two-story  house  and  an  L  barn,  one  wing  twenty  by 
sixty,  and  the  other  twenty  by  thirty  feet,  that  holds  forty  tons  of 
hay,  where  young  cattle  and  sheep  are  kept.  Mr.  Rossiter,  with  the 
assistance  of  his  only  son  and  only  child,  Charles  P.  Rossiter,  has 
greatly  increased  the  productiveness  of  this  farm.  He  has  in  good 
years  cut  400  tons  of  hay,  raised  3,000  baskets  of  corn,  1,000 
bushels  of  oats,  500  bushels  of  turnips,  besides  other  smaller  crops. 
The  farm  is  supplied  with  all  the  latest  improved  and  best  im- 
plements and  tools.  Before  Mr.  Rossiter  bought  this  farm  it  had 
been  rented,  on  shares  and  otherwise,  for  fifty  years,  and  as  a  con- 
sequence the  buildings  were  in  poor  repair,  and  the  land  was 
considerably  run  down.  The  last  tenant  claimed  that  in  some 
seasons  he  had  cut  two  hundred  tons  of  hay. 

THE   HORACE   DEAN   FARM. 

This  is  one  of  the  many  good  farms  in  town.  It  is  located  on 
the  Charlestown  road,  two  and  a  half  miles  south  of  the  villao-e. 
It  consists  of  three  hundred  acres  of  upland,  most  of  it  with  a 
southern  slope.  It  was  bought  by  Horace  Dean  in  1851,  and  car- 
ried on  by  him,  until  within  a  few  years  of  his  death,  in  December, 
1884.  Mr.  Dean  was  succeeded  in  the  ownership  of  the  farm  by 
his  son-in-law,  John  F.  Jones,  who  now  owns  it.  It  was  owned 
from  the  early  times  by  Maj.  Ezra  Jones,  who  died  in  August,  1841. 
He  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Roys  Jones,  of  whom  Mr.  Dean  pur- 
chased it.  It  is  noted  for  the  row  of  fine  maple  trees  on  either 
side  of  the  highway  running  through  it,  fully  three  quarters  of  a 
mile  long,  which  were  set  out  by  Major  Jones,  more  than  sixty 
years  ago.  The  soil  is  naturally  productive  and  has  been  made 
more  so  by  generous  feeding  and  careful  cultivation.  Any  kind  of 
grain  or  root  crop  can  be  grown  upon  it  in  abundance,  while  it  is 
an  excellent  grass  farm.  Being  induced  thereto  by  the  urging  of 
his  friends  and  neighbors,  in  1857  Mr.  Dean  entered  his  farm  for 
one  of  the  premiums  — first,  second,  or  third  — oflrered  by  the  ISTew 
Hampshire  State  Agricultural  Society.     Twelve  farms  —  presum- 


POMROY  M.  ROSSITER. 


DF.  J.  BAXTER  UPHAM. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  173 

ably  the  best  —  in  different  sections  of  the  state,  were  entered  as 
competitors.  After  a  thorough  and  careful  examination  of  the 
farms  entered,  their  condition  and  productiveness,  together  with 
the  income  and  expense  of  carrying  them  on  and  the  improve- 
ments made  upon  the  land  and  buildings  in  the  last  year,  by  the 
committee,  they  awarded  the  first  premium  of  fifty  dollars  to  Mr. 
Dean's  farm. 

In  their  report  to  the  society  the  committee  say:  "Mr.  Dean 
purchased  this  farm,  of  three  hundred  acres,  six  years  ago.  Price 
paid,  $7,000;  mows  seventy-five  acres;  nine  acres  of  corn,  one  of 
potatoes ;  keeps  thirty-five  head  of  cattle,  four  horses,  one  hundred 
and  twenty-five  sheep ;  fats  ten  hogs ;  spreads  twenty  loads  manure 
per  acre  on  his  corn  land ;  has  built  four  hundred  rods  of  wall ; 
set  out  two  hundred  and  fifty  fruit  trees,  grafted ;  thirty  acres  of 
woodland  kept  fenced.  "When  he  came  into  possession  of  the  farm 
there  were  twenty-five  acres  of  waste  land,  or  nearly  so,  yielding 
about  six  bushels  of  rye  per  acre.  It  is  now  in  a  high  state  of  culti- 
vation, capable  of  producing  twenty-six  bushels  of  wheat  per  acre." 
"  When  Mr.  D.  came  into  possession  of  the  place,  its  former  owner 
mowed  thirty-five  acres  more  than  is  now  mowed,  and  cut  forty 
tons  less  hay." 

Few  farms  anywhere  can  show  so  much  care  and  thorough  cultiva- 
tion; and  the  buildings  —  house  and  barns  slated  —  have  been 
much  improved  by  the  present  owner,  and  are  of  the  very  best. 

THE  HDBBAED   FARM. 

This  is  a  farm  of  considerable  historic  interest.  "When  Benning 
Wentworth,  provincial  governor  of  !C7ew  Hampshire,  in  1764, 
granted  this  township,  it  was  divided  into  seventy-five  equal  shares 
of  two  hundred  and  fifty  acres  each.  The  governor's  reservation 
of  two  shares  of  five  hundred  acres  was  located  in  the  southwest 
corner  of  the  town,  with  three  islands  in  Connecticut  river,  oppo- 
site, and  marked  "  B.  "W."  In  1766  Governor  "Wentworth  granted 
his  reservation  in  Olaremont  to  Joseph  Waite,  in  consideration  of 
his  services  in  the  French  and  Indian  war.     In  1776  Joseph  Waite 


174  HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT. 

was  appointed  Lieutenant  Colonel  of  Col.  Timothy  Bedell's  regi- 
ment, raised  in  New  Hampshire,  and  sent  in  command  of  it  to  the 
defense  of  Canada ;  was  wounded  in  the  head  by  a  splinter  from  a 
gun  carriage,  in  an  engagement  near  Lake  Champlain,  and  died  in 
Clarendon,  Vt.,  when  on  his  way  to  his  home  in  Claremont,  Sep- 
tember 28,  1776.  In  some  way  Lieut.  George  Hubbard  acquired  a 
title  to  the  Governor  Wentworth  shares  —  supposed  from  the  widow 
and  heirs  of  Lieutenant  Colonel  Waite.  Aftei-ward  a  controversy 
as  to  the  validity  of  Governor  Wentworth's  title  to  his  reservations 
in  this  and  other  townships  arose,  but  by  compromise  or  in  some 
other  way  Lieutenant  Hubbard  continued  in  possession  of  this  five 
hundred  acres  until  his  death,  April  16,  1818.  He  was  succeeded 
on  this  farm  by  his  son,  known  for  many  years  as  Isaac  Hubbard, 
Esq.,  who  died  January  29,  1861.  This  was  an  exceptionally  fine 
tract  of  land,  and  Isaac  Hubbard  an  excellent  farmer,  as  was  his 
father  before  him.  He  was  interested  in  choice  farm  stock,  espe- 
cially neat  cattle,  and  had  some  of  the  best  in  this  section.  He 
raised  an  ox  of  the  short-horn  Durham  breed,  which  was  remark- 
able for  its  great  size,  beauty  of  proportions,  and  color. 

This  ox  was  called  "  Olympus,"  and  the  following  were  his 
weights  at  diflrerent  periods :  January  4,  1833,  when  just  one  year 
old,  874  pounds;  December  23, 1833, 1,280  ;  January  5, 1835, 1,800,* 
December  26,  1835,  2,350 ;  February  15, 1837,  2,190  ;  April  4, 1838, 
3,370.  In  the  fall  of  1838  Olympus  was  taken  to  England  for 
exhibition,  by  a  Mr.  Wiles  of  Boston,  and  given  the  name  of 
"Brother  Jonathan."  The  following  is  the  way  in  which  he  was 
advertised  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic  : 

The  Araerican  Mammoth  Ox,  Brother  Jonathan,  weighing  4,000  pounds  or 
600  stone,  of  beautiful  proportions.  This  astonishing  animal  was  seven  years 
old  on  the  4th  of  Jan.  1839;  color  dapple  bay;  was  bred  by  the  Hon.  Isaac 
Hubbard,  in  the  Town  of  Claremont,  State  of  New  Hampshire,  New  England, 
and  imported  to  England  under  a  heavy  bond  to  her  Majesty's  customs  to  re-ship 
Brother  Jonathan  to  America  in  six  months.  This  beautiful  creature  was  exhib- 
ited at  the  Egyptian  Hall,  Piccadilly,  London,  seven  weeks,  during  which  time 
22,368  persons  visited  him,  including  most  every  branch  of  the  Royal  Family 
and  the  leading  Agricultural  noblemen  and  gentlemen.    He  has  been  purchased 


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HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  175 

by  some  gentlemen  for  the  purpose  of  exhibiting  him  through  the  agricultural  dis- 
tricts, to  show  the  laudable  rivalry  in  our  Transatlantic  Brethren.  Her  Maj- 
esty's Government  have  been  pleased  to  extend  the  bond. 

PROPOKTIONS. 

Measuring  in  length  from  nose  to  rump,  11  ft.  10  in.;  height  over  fore 
shoulder,  5  ft.  11  in. ;  girth,  10  ft.  6  in. ;  loins,  9  ft.  11  in. ;  breadth  of  hips,  3 
ft.  1  in. ;  breadth  shoulders,  2  ft.  11  in.;  girth  of  fore  arm,  2  ft.  6  in. ;  height 
of  breast  from  ground,  1  ft.  11  in. 

This  ox  was  afterward  taken  to  France  for  exhibition,  and  re- 
turned to  England,  where  he  was  slaughtered  for  beef  After  the 
death  of  Isaac  Hubbard,  Esq.,  the  farm  was  divided,  his  son,  the 
late  Rev.  Dr.  Isaac  G.  Hubbard,  taking  a  portion,  which  is  still 
owned  by  his  heirs,  and  his  grandson,  Isaac  Hubbard  Long,  the 
rest,  which  he  has  since  occupied. 

HIGHLAND   VIEW  FARM. 

Ill  1877,  William  H.  H.  Moody,  a  native  of  the  town,  by  reason 
of  impaired  health,  caused  by  too  close  application  to  business  as 
the  head  of  the  shoe  manufacturing  firm  of  Moody,  Estabrook  & 
Andersons  of  Nashua,  and  having  acquired  a  considerable  fortune, 
retired  temporarily  from  the  firm  and  turned  his  attention  to  the  res- 
toration of  his  health  by  out-door  exercise.  He  returned  to  Claremont, 
bought  what  had  long  been  known  as  the  Mann  farm  of  eighty-seven 
acres  on  the  Charlestown  road,  a  little  more  than  a  mile  south  of  the 
village,  and  immediately  began  the  erection  of  fine  buildings,  upon 
high  ground,  overlooking  the  village,  commanding  a  view  of  a 
large  extent  of  surrounding  country,  and  improving  his  land  by 
ditching  and  other  means  employed  by  good  farmers  with  ample 
means.  The  house  is  large,  substantial,  and  elegant  —  two  stories 
with  Mansard  roof,  wide  piazzas  and  verandas  on  three  sides,  and 
elaborately  finished  and  decorated  inside.  Near  to  it  is  a  neat  cot- 
tage for  the  superintendent  of  the  farm  and  stables.  The  build- 
ings, about  a  hundred  rods  west  of  the  Charlestown  road,  are 
reached  by  a  winding  avenue  on  either  side  of  which  is  a  row  of 


176  HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT. 

rock  maple  trees.  The  grounds  in  front  of  the  house  are  orna- 
mented by  evergreen  and  other  trees  and  shrubs,  giving  the  place 
a  picturesque  appearance. 

Having  a  liking  for  good  horses,  Mr.  Moodj  turned  his  attention 
to  breeding  blooded  stock  for  trotters  and  gentlemen's  driving 
horses,  and  erected  barns,  sheds,  and  otlier  buildings  for  that  pur- 
pose. There  are  three  barns,  one  hundred  by  fifty  feet,  and 
one  hundred  by  thirty,  and  forty  by  eighty,  and  twenty-five  box 
stalls,  under  the  same  roof,  each  twelve  by  fifteen  feet,  well 
lighted  and  aired,  for  brood  mares.  At  the  south  side  of  the 
road  to  Claremont  Junction,  two  miles  from  the  village,  he  has  a 
park  of  thirty  acres,  with  a  tight  board  fence,  eight  feet  high  on 
the  highway ;  stables  for  the  accommodation  of  thirty  horses,  with 
running  water  at  convenient  points,  and  a  track  on  which  the 
horses  are  exercised  by  careful  and  experienced  drivers.  It  is 
named  Highland  View  Park.  The  track  is  sixty-five  feet  wide,  the 
ends  thrown  up  one  inch  to  the  foot ;  twenty  thousand  cart  loads 
of  earth  were  moved  in  the  grading  of  it,  and  it  is  as  level,  hard,  and 
perfect  as  money  and  skillfal  engineering  could  make  it. 

Mr.  Moody's  stock  horses  are  among  the  best  blooded  animals  in 
the  country,  with  undoubted  pedigrees.  In  1893  he  had  in  all  — 
stock  horses,  brood  mares,  and  colts  of  all  ages — one  hundred  and 
fifty  head.  His  ambition  is  to  have  not  only  the  most  complete 
and  best  equipped  horse  breeding  establishment  in  New  England, 
but  the  best  blooded  stock  in  the  country.  He  is  at  work  with  this 
end  constantly  in  view,  and  is  not  far  from  its  accomplishment. 

From  time  to  time  Mr.  Moody  has  added  to  his  original  purchase 
several  different  tracts,  some  of  which  have  good  buildings  upon 
them,  and  has  now  six  hundred  acres,  all  connected.  This  land 
has  been  vastly  improved  by  blind  ditching  and  tile  draining,  re- 
moving all  loose  stones,  great  and  small,  and  generous  fertilizing. 
A  notable  thing  about  the  place  is  a  wall  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Charlestown  road,  extending  from  his  south  line  to  his  north  line, 
at  Draper  Corner,  made  with  stones  taken  from  the  land.  Many 
of  the  bowlders  were  too  large  to  be  removed  ]by  ordinary  means 
without  being  broken  up  or  split.  This  being  done  they  made  good 
face  wall,  which  was  skillfully  laid.     It  is  four  feet  wide  on  the  top, 


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WILLIAM  H.  H.  MOODY. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  177 

IB  sunk  into  the  ground  two  or  three  feet,  and  six  feet  high  above 
the  surface. 

To  supply  his  buildings  with  an  abundance  of  pure  water,  with 
head  sufficient  to  carry  it  forcibly  to  desired  points,  in  1892  Mr. 
Moody  sunk  into  a  ledge  back  of  and  higher  than  the  top  of  his 
house,  an  artesian  well  six  inches  in  diameter  and  one  hundred 
feet  deep.  The  water  is  forced  into  a  large  reservoir  by  means 
of  a  pump  attached  to  a  Gem  wheel,  operated  by  a  wind-mill, 
and  from  this  reservoir  it  is  taken  in  pipes  to  places  where  it  is 
desired. 

After  a  few  years  Mr.  Moody  almost  wholly  recovered  the 
health  and  vigor  of  his  early  days,  and  resumed  his  former  place 
in  the  shoe  firm,  from  the  profits  of  which  he  derives  an  income 
sufficient  to  enable  him  to  carry  forward  his  Claremont  projects. 
The  most  of  his  time  winters  he  spends  in  Boston,  where  the 
firm  has  an  office  and  warehouse,  and  the  summers  he  spends 
upon  his  farm,  going  occasionally  to  Boston.  He  has  an  effi- 
cient and  trusty  superintendent  here  who  attends  to  everything  in 
his  absence. 

THE    BRECK    FARM. 

This  farm  is  situated  on  the  road  to  "Windsor,  Vt,  four  miles 
from  Claremont  village,  north  of  and  adjoining  the  Cupola  farm. 
It  contains  one  hundred  and  thirty  acres,  about  seventy  of  which 
is  Connecticut  river  meadow,  in  a  high  state  of  cultivation.  In 
1792  William  Breck  bought  and  settled  on  this  farm,  and  he 
and  his  descendants  have  owned  and  occupied  it  continuously  to 
the  present  time.  He  died  November  22,  1819,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  son,  William,  who  had  been  a  sea  captain.  The 
latter  died  April  13,  1848,  when  his  brother,  Henry,  took  the 
farm,  and  continued  upon  it  until  his  death,  July  10,  1872,  at  the 
age  of  eighty-six  years,  then  his  youngest  son,  Charles  P.  Breck, 
came  into  possession  of  the  farm  and  owns  it  still.  In  many  ways 
this  is  a  very  desirable  farm,  where  location,  fertility  of  the  soil,  and 
the  ease  with  which  it  is  worked  are  considered.     Under  the  pres- 


178  HISTORY   OF    CLAKEMONT. 

ent  owner  the  farm  has  been  greatly  improved  in  productiveness, 
buildings,  and  surroundings,  adding  to  its  value  and  attractiveness. 
Upon  it  in  1892  one  hundred  tons  of  hay  were  cut;  twelve  hun- 
dred baskets  of  sound  corn  and  other  grains  and  root  crops  raised  ; 
two  hundred  sheep,  fifty  neat  cattle,  and  eight  horses  were  kept. 
Mr.  Breck,  being  a  cattle  fancier,  gives  attention  to  good  breeds, 
and  has  some  fine  animals.  The  buildings  on  the  place  are  ample, 
and  kept  in  a  good  state  of  repair. 

THE  MICHAEL  LOVELL  FARM. 

This  farm,  on  Town  hill,  contains  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres. 
It  was  owned  by  Asa  Jones  and  then  by  Benjamin  Jones,  from 
1784  to  1804,  when  it  was  bought  by  Alexander  Ealston,  who 
kept  a  tavern  there,  known  as  the  Ealston  Tavern,  until  about 
1815.  In  1821  Michael  Lovell  bought  the  place,  and  from  that 
time  it  has  been  owned  by  him  and  his  connections,  and  has  been 
known  as  the  Michael  Lovell  farm.  In  1850  Gordon  Way,  whose 
wife  was  Mr.  Lovell's  daughter,  took  the  farm  and  occupied  it  until 
his  death,  in  1880,  when  it  went  into  possession  of  his  son.  Dr. 
Osmon  B.  Way,  who  still  owns  it.  The  land  slopes  to  the  east, 
is  very  strong,  well  cultivated,  and  produces  abundantly  of  grass, 
grain,  and  other  crops.  Since  Dr.  Way  has  owned  this  farm,  the 
house  and  other  buildings  have  been  remodeled,  thoroughly  re- 
paired, and  are  in  excellent  condition.  The  location  commands 
an  extended  view  of  the  surrounding  country,  the  superior  of 
which  for  attractiveness  is  seldom  found. 

THE  JARVIS  FARM. 

This  is  a  large  farm  on  Town  hill.  It  was  bought  by  Dr.  Leon- 
ard Jarvis,  of  Judge  Sanford  Kingsbury,  in  1795,  and  was  owned 
and  occupied  by  him  until  his  death,  in  1848,  after  which  his 
son,  Russell  Jarvis,  succeeded  to  it.  He  died  in  February,  1888, 
and  the  farm  has  since  been  o^^ned  by  his  heirs.  It  is  beauti- 
fully located,  and  the  soil  is  naturally  excellent.  The  specialty 
of  the  place  has  been  the  breeding  of  merino  sheep  and  the  pro- 
duction of  fine  wool. 


ISAAC  HUBBARD. 


HISTORY   OF    OLAREMONT.  179 

THE   JAMES  P.   UPHAM   FARM. 

This  farm,  formerly  known  as  the  Dove  farm,  consists  of  two 
hundred  and  thirteen  acres,  mostly  upland,  on  Town  hill.  It 
was  several  years  a  part  of  the  Dr.  Leonard  Jarvis  farm.  Mr. 
Upham  bought  it  in  1850,  of  Russell  Jarvis,  and  built  upon  it  a 
handsome  two-story  house  and  ample  barns  and  farm  appurte- 
nances. He  has  given  considerable  attention  to  fruit  culture, 
particularly  apples.  From  1850  to  1860  he  set  out  four  hundred 
apple,  two  hundred  pear,  and  a  large  number  of  smaller  fruit 
trees,  all  grafted  with  choice  varieties  of  fruit,  making  a  fine 
young  orchard.  The  lawn  in  front  of  the  house,  sloping  to  the 
east,  is  ornamented  with  evergreen  and  other  trees  and  shrubs. 
Like  other  places  on  Town  hill,  this  one  commands  a  view  of  a 
large  extent  of  picturesque  country,  scarcely  equalled.  On  the 
farm  Mr.  Upham  keeps  blooded  Jersey  cattle,  and  flocks  of  me- 
rino and  southdown  sheep ;  cuts  annually  seventy-five  tons  of  hay ; 
raises  seven  hundred  baskets  of  corn,  and  six  hundred  bushels  of 
smaller  grains,  together  with  potatoes  and  root  crops. 

THE   DK.    SAMUEL   O.    JARVIS   FARM 

Is  at  West  Claremont,  two  and  a  half  miles  from  the  village, 
on  the  road  to  Windsor,  "Vt.  It  consists  of  upland,  sloping  to 
the  south,  strong,  rich  soil,  capable  of  producing  large  crops  of 
grass  and  grain.  It  was  occupied  by  Dr.  Samuel  G.  Jarvis  for 
more  than  fifty  years  preceding  his  death,  on  the  5th  of  March, 
1892.  He  made  the  raising  of  merino  sheep  and  the  growing  of 
fine  wool  a  specialty.  It  is  owned  by  his  two  sons,  Drs.  William 
and  Leonard  Jarvis. 

THE   LAB  AN   AINSWORTH    FAEM. 

This  was  formerly  the  Luther  Ashley  farm.  It  is  situated  a 
short  distance  south  of  Claremont  Junction,  and  contains  about 
three  hundred  and  fifty  acres,  seventy  of  it  being  Connecticut  river 
meadow,  a  portion  of  which  is  flowed  at  times  of  high  water  each 
spring.  It  is  an  excellent  farm  and  very  productive  with  a  moderate 


180  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

amount  of  labor.  It  was  bought  by  Laban  Ainswortb  in  1837,  and 
he  lived  there  until  his  death,  May  19, 1881,  since  which  it  has  been 
owned  by  his  sons,  George  J.  and  Ralph  Ainsworth.  They  cut  one 
hundred  and  fifty  tons  of  hay  annually,  raise  large  quantities  of 
corn  and  other  grains,  keep  from  sixty  to  seventy-five  neat  cattle, 
six  horses,  and  fatten  from  thirty  to  thirty-five  good-sized  hogs. 

THE  COOKE  FAEM 

Is  on  the  road  from  Claremont  to  Windsor,  Vt.,  about  midway  be- 
tween the  two  places.  This  was  a  widely  known  tavern  stand  for 
many  years  —  the  tavern  being  a  long  two-story  house,  on  the  oppo- 
site side  of  the  highway  from  the  present  handsome  mansion,  and 
was  not  removed  until  about  1858.  In  1779  Capt.  John  Cooke 
bought  this  farm  and  tavern  stand  and  continued  the  business  until 
his  death,  February  8,  1810,  when  his  sons,  George  and  Godfrey, 
succeeded  to  the  tavern  business  and  farm.  After  a  few  years  the 
tavern  business  was  abandoned.  Godfrey  died  April  4,  1849,  and. 
George  survived  him  until  October  29,  1850.  This  is  a  large  and 
valuable  farm,  considerable  of  it  being  Connecticut  river  meadow. 
It  has  been  known  for  more  than  a  hundred  years  as  the  Cooke 
farm,  and  has  been  owned  for  more  than  fifteen  years  by  Erastus 

Reed. 

JOHN  bailey's  farm. 

This  was  originally  the  Oliver  Ashley  farm,  just  south  of  Ashley 
Ferry.  For  many  years  it  was  owned  by  Benajah  Rogers,  then  by 
his  son,  Abram.  In  1882  John  Bailey  bought  and  has  since  owned 
it.  It  contains  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  acres,  seventy-five  of 
which  is  Connecticut  river  meadow,  and  he  has  other  out 
lands.  He  is  a  progressive  farmer,  liberal  in  the  use  of  manures, 
knows  how  to  make  two  blades  of  grass  grow  where  but  one  grew 
before,  and  has  improved  his  land  every  year  since  he  bought  it. 
He  has  remodeled  and  thoroughly  repaired  the  buildings  and 
erected  a  good  new  barn,  thoroughly  ventilated  and  well  lighted. 
He  cuts  about  one  hundred  tons  of  hay  each  year ;  raises  from  one 
thousand  to  twelve  hundred  baskets  of  corn,  five  or  six  hundred 


00 

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HISTORY    OF   CLAEBMONT.  181 

bushels  of  oats,  potatoes  and  other  crops ;  has  a  considerable  dairy 
and  fattens  twenty  hogs.  In  many  Avays  this  is  a  very  desirable 
farm. 

Besides  those  farms  particularly  noted,  may  be  mentioned  as 
among  the  best,  the  William  Jones  farm,  just  north  of  the  Junction 
railroad  station,  owned  by  the  heirs  of  Lucian  E.  Jones ;  on  the 
river  road,  the  Ralph  Ainsworth  farm,  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres, 
owned  by  Charles  H.  Ainsworth ;  the  "Woster  Jones  farm,  owned 
by  George  F.  Long.  These  farms  have  considerable  Connecticut 
river  meadow,  good  corn  and  grass  land,  free  from  stones  and  easily 
worked.  On  the  Charlestown  road,  the  Edward  Ainsworth  farm, 
owned  by  Walter  H.  and  William  E.  Ainsworth,  and  the  Joel  Goss 
farm,  owned  by  George  P.  Eossiter.  These  are  upland  farms, 
strong  rich  soil  and  productive.  On  Bible  hill,  the  Erastus  Glid- 
den  farm,  for  many  years  owned  by  Joshua  Colby  and  his  son 
Henry,  and  now  by  James  Sylvester  and  James  Brown,  and  the  Ira 
Colby  farm,  now  owned  by  Daniel  Adams.  These  are  among  the 
best  hill  farms  in  town,  and  with  good  management  have  been 
quite  profitable.  On  the  east  road  to  Cornish  Flat,  a  little  more 
than  a  mile  north  of  the  village,  the  Ichabod  Hitchcock  farm,  owned 
by  Frederick  P.  Smith,  very  productive  of  grass  and  grain  crops.  On 
the  southeast  side  of  Green  Mountain  were  formerly  several  good 
farms,  high  up,  but  sloping  to  the  south,  strong  soil,  excellent  for 
the  production  of  grass,  small  grains,  and  potatoes.  These  have 
been  mostly  acquired  by  Prescott  Putnam,  who  has  about  five  hun- 
dred acres,  made  up  of  the  Jonathan  E.  Row  ell  and  Samuel  C. 
Abbott  farms  and  a  part  of  that  formerly  owned  by  the  late  Abner 
Stowell.  Mr.  Putnam  has  a  large  dairy  and  makes  butter  for  the 
home  market.  The  Lemon  Cowles  farm,  on  the  southwestern  slope 
of  Green  mountain,  for  many  years  owned  by  him,  then  by  his  son, 
Tracy  Cowles,  and  now  by  the  latter's  heirs,  is  also  a  good  grass, 
small  grain,  and  root  crop  farm.  On  the  old  road  to  JNewport,  a 
mile  and  a  half  east  of  the  village,  is  the  Solomon  Hubbard  farm, 
Sugar  river  meadow  and  upland,  owned  by  Freeman  S.  Chellis. 
Next  east  is  the  Bartlett  Clement  farm,  for  many  years  owned  by 


182  HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT. 

Samuel  Tutherly  and  his  son,  William  E.  Tutherly,  later  hy  Syl- 
vester Bartlett,  and  now  by  James  N".  Perkins,  contains  nearly 
three  hundred  acres,  and  is  classed  with  the  best  upland  farms. 
In  Puckershire  are  the  Proctor  farm,  owned  by  George  Walker; 
the  Harriman  farm,  owned  by  Jacob  W.  Sanborn ;  the  Way  farm, 
owned  by  Enoch  Johnson;  the  John  Blodgett  farm,  owned  by 
Herbert  E.  Tutherly  —  which  has  been  named  the  Elm  Farm  —  on 
which  is  kept  a  dairy  and  supplies  milk  to  the  village ;  the  Barstow 
farm,  owned  by  William  F.  Jones,  where  a  specialty  is  made  of 
raising  poultry  and  producing  eggs  for  the  home  and  Boston  mar- 
kets. On  Maple  avenue  is  the  Joseph  Wilson  farm,  which  has 
been  in  the  possession  of  the  Wilson  family  since  1776,  and  is  now 
owned  by  Josiah  Wilson,  a  grandson  of  Joseph.  In  the  north  part 
of  the  town  is  the  large  farm,  owned  and  occupied  by  the  late  Solon 
C.  Qrannis  for  seventy  years  and  now  owned  by  his  heirs;  the 
Bailey  farm,  now  owned  by  Erastus  B.  Bailey ;  the  farm  on  Red 
Water  brook  road,  owned  by  Samuel  H.  Andrews,  the  neat  ap- 
pearance of  whose  buildings  and  surroundings  attract  attention. 
On  the  old  road  to  the  Junction,  bordering  on  Sugar  river,  is  the 
Harvey  Tolles  farm  of  about  two  hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  Sugar 
river  and  Beaver  brook  meadow  and  upland.  More  than  forty 
years  ago  Mr.  Tolles  raised  on  this  farm  an  ox,  which  at  maturity 
weighed  over  three  thousand  pounds.  The  farm  is  now  owned  by 
his  son,  Lawrence  A.  Tolles,  who  makes  a  specialty  of  producing 
and  supplying  milk  to  the  village.  At  the  south  end  of  Broad 
street  is  the  Cossit  farm.  It  has  been  owned  by  the  Cossit  family 
for  nearly  a  hundred  and  twenty-five  years  —  first  by  Ambrose 
Cossit,  then  by  his  son,  Ambrose,  then  by  his  son,  John  F.,  and  is 
now  owned  by  the  latter's  son,  Henry  A.  Cossit.  On  the  hill,  east 
of  the  old  road  to  Newport,  is  the  Nathaniel  Cowles  farm,  now  owned 
by  Stepen  J.  Roberts.     This  is  a  productive  and  valuable  hill  farm. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

TOWN   HILL. 
PART  OF  THE  TOWN  FIRST  SETTLED. 

In  the  earlj'  daj's  of  the  settlement  of  the  town  and  for  many 
years,  Town  hill  was  the  center  of  population,  business,  and  fash- 
ion. The  highway  from  the  Cupola  house  south,  if  not  the  first, 
was  one  of  the  first,  built  in  town,  and  until  long  after  the 
Revolutionary  War,  was  the  only  road  from  points  south  on 
the  Connecticut  river  to  Haverhill.  There  is  a  tradition  that  it 
was  called  the  King's  highway.  Through  the  town  it  was  laid 
out  ten  rods  wide,  and  for  a  considerable  distance  on  Town  hill, 
on  either  side  was  a  row  of  tall  Lombardy  poplars.  In  a  dis- 
tance of  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from  Lottery  bridge  south 
were  more  than  twenty  houses  —  by  far  the  best  in  town  and 
some  of  them  large  and  for  that  time  fine  and  expensive. 

The  first  house  south  of  Lottery  bridge  was  occupied  by 
James  Balloch,  a  Scotchman,  father  of  George  W.  and  William 
Balloch.  Subsequently  the  son,  George  W.  Balloch,  for  many 
years  a  famous  butcher,  lived  there,  and  in  this  house  Gen. 
George  W.  Balloch  of  Washington,  D.  C,  was  born.  The  next 
two  were  occupied  by  Suraners.  Then  there  are  evidences  of 
three  or  four  houses,  about  which  there  is  no  known  history. 
East  of  the  highway  John  Wise,  a  Scotchman,  who  married 
Hannah,  daughter  of  Benjamin  Sumner,  built  a  large  and  hand- 
some house,  and  nearly  opposite  was  the  Dove  house,  not  far 
from  where  James  P.  TJpham's  house  now  stands.  On  the  west 
side  of  the  highway  is  the  Judge  Sanford  Kingsbury  house,  the 
same  now  occupied  by  the  heirs  of  Russell  Jarvis.      E"ext  comes 


184  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

the  Stephen  Mann  place,  afterward  owned  by  George  "Wooddell 
now  by  Thomas  J.  Fitch.  Near  his  buildings  is  now  standing- 
a  portion  of  the  first  meeting-house  in  town.  It  was  also  used 
for  a  schoolhouse.  On  the  east  side  of  the  highway  is  the  Barna- 
bas Ellis  place,  bought  by  him  of  Josiah  Willard,  one  of  the 
grantees  of  the  town,  in  1767,  after  whose  death  it  was  owned 
by  his  youngest  son,  "William  Ellis,  who  was  born  there  in  1807 
and  lived  there  until  his  death,  in  August,  1880,  since  which  it 
has  been  owned  by  the  latter's  son,  William  B.  Ellis.  Next,  on 
the  west  side  of  the  highway,  is  the  Dr.  Thomas  Sterne  place. 
Dr.  Sterne  was  the  first  physician  settled  in  town.  He  came  here 
from  Boston  in  1768,  and  soon  built  the  house  on  this  place, 
which  was  then  the  largest  and  most  elegant  one  in  this  vi- 
cinity. He  died  there  November  24,  1816.  For  a  number  of 
years  this  place  was  owned  by  Stephen  Mann,  who  kept  a  tav- 
ern there,  then  by  Hugh  Moore,  who  sold  it  to  James  Leet  and 
it  was  known  as  the  Leet  place  for  many  years.  James  P. 
Upham  bought  the  farm  in  1893  and  took  the  house  down. 
Next,  on  the  same  side  of  the  way  was  the  Nicholas  Farwell 
house  and  shoe  shop.  The  house  was  the  John  Picket  house,, 
one  of  the  first  framed  houses  built  in  town,  the  same  in  which 
George  N.  Farwell  was  born  in  1804,  and  Dr.  Silas  H.  Sabine 
afterward  lived  and  practiced  his  profession.  Just  south  of  this 
Capt.  John  Farwell,  brother  of  Nicholas,  also  a  shoemaker,  lived. 
Both  of  these  Farwells  removed  to  the  village  about  1813  and 
continued  the  shoemaking  business.  Nicholas  built  the  brick 
house,  corner  of  Broad  and  Pine  streets,  where  Herman  Holt 
now  lives,  and  Capt.  John  built  the  one  on  the  east  side  of 
Broad  street,  where  Herbert  Bailey  lives.  Next,  on  the  same 
side  of  the  highway,  is  the  Ealston  place.  It  was  owned  prior 
to  1784  by  Asa  Jones,  who  sold  it  in  that  year  to  Alexander 
Kalston,  a  Scotchman,  who  came  from  Boston  to  Keene,  and 
from  thence  to  Claremont.  Mr.  Ealston  was  so  intensely  loyal 
that  he  was  included  in  the  act  of  banishment  from  Boston  in 
1778. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAKEMONT.  185 

Alexander  Ralston,  John  Wise,  and  James  Balloch  came  from 
Scotland   to   America  together,    all    lived   on    Town  hill   for   a 
time  and  were  fast   friends.     Mr.  Ralston   purchased  four  tracts 
of  land  in  that  locality,  which  included  most  of  what  is  now  the 
Way  farm  and   the   territory  west  of  it,  extending  to  Connecti- 
cut river  —  two  hundred  and  eighty  acres  in  all.     Three  of  these 
tracts  were  bought  of  Asa  Jones  and  the  other  of  John  Spencer. 
About  1784  Mr.  Ralston  built  the   large  two-story  house   and  L 
now  standing,  and  with  repairs  and  improvements  made  upon  it 
by  the   present   proprietor,  it  is  in  excellent  condition.     In  this 
house  was  kept  for  more  than  thirty  years  the  widely  known  Rals- 
ton tavern.     Being  on  the  main  road  from  Massachusetts  to  north- 
western   New  Hampshire    and  northeastern  Vermont,    it   was   a 
famous  stopping  place  for  the  daily  six-horse  stage,  the  large  can- 
vas-covered freight  wagons,  and  pleasure  travelers.     For  a  time 
the  Free  Masons  held  their  regular  meetings  in  the  large  hall  in 
the  house.     On   occasion  of  one  of  these  meetings  Mrs.  Ralston's 
curiosity  to  know  the  secrets  of  the  order  led  her  to  go  quietly 
to  the  unfinished  attic  over  the  hall  and  listen  to  the  proceedings. 
She  was   a  large,  heavy  woman,  and  by  mischance  stepped  upon 
the  lathing,  her  feet  went  through  the  ceiling,  and  she  was  only 
relieved  from  her  embarrassing  position  by  the  help  of  her  hus- 
band and  his  brother  Masons.     The  evidence  of  this  adventure 
remained  in  the  ceiling  until  the  house  was  renovated  in  1887.      In 
1804  Mr.  Ralston  sold  the  tavern  and  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
acres  of  land,  which  constitutes  the  Way  farm,  to  Benjamin  Jones, 
and  returned  to  Keene,  where  he  died  in  1810.    John  White  kept 
the  tavern  for  a  time  and  was  followed  by  John  Newell,  a  pioneer 
Methodist,  whose  son,  Matthew,  became  a  Methodist  preacher. 
He   removed  to  Weathersfield,  Vt.,  and  was  the  grandfather   of 
Wilbur,   Charles,  and  Asbury  Newell,  now  living  there.     From 
1795  to  1806  Jesse  Lee  and  other  itinerant  Methodist  preachers 
held  occasional  meetings  in  the  hall  of  the  Ralston  tavern. 

Before  the  controversy  in  relation  to  the  Congregational  meet, 
ing-house,  which  continued  for  some  years,  was  settled,  Matthias 

13 


186  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

Stone  erected  a  suitable  building  for  the  purpose  and  offered  to 
donate  it  to  the  town  for  a  meeting-house.  At  a  town  meeting, 
called  to  consider  the  matter,  it  was  voted  not  to  accept  the  gift  — 
probably  on  account  of  the  location  —  and  the  structure  was 
never  used  as  a  place  of  worship,  but  was  removed  to  this  farm, 
where  it  now  stands,  and  has  been  used  for  a  barn. 

Prior  to  the  purchase  of  this  property  by  Mr.  Ralston,  in  1784, 
on  what  is  now  the  Way  farm,  was  a  house  which  was  said  to  have 
been  recently  burned,  on  or  near  the  site  of  the  present  one ;  the 
John  Picket  house ;  the  store  building  and  a  blacksmith  and  wheel- 
wright shop  opposite.  In  1815  Benjamin  Jones  sold  the  Way 
place  to  Danforth  Parmalee,  at  which  time  the  tavern  business  was 
discontinued.  In  1820  it  was  sold  to  Michael  Lovell,  and  was 
known  as  the  Michael  Lovell  farm  from  then  until  his  death,  April 
29,  1860,  in  the  ninety-sixth  year  of  his  age.  In  1850  Gordon 
Way,  whose  wife  was  a  daughter  of  Mr.  Lovell,  took  the  place  and 
kept  it  until  his  death,  in  1880,  soon  after  which  it  passed  into  the 
possession  of  his  son.  Dr.  Osmon  B.  Way,  who  still  owns  it. 

South  of  this,  on  the  west  side  of  the  highway,  was  the  Christo- 
pher York  place,  afterward  owned  by  Michael  McConnon.  Arnold 
Merrill  lived  there  a  few  years  preceding  his  death  and  was  the 
last  occupant  of  the  house.  It  has  since  been  taken  down. 
Nearly  opposite  was  a  place  owned  by  Oliver  Corey,  father  of  Mrs. 
Nicholas  Harwell.  The  buildings  were  removed  years  ago.  At 
the  south  of  these  places,  in  a  lot  distant  from  the  highway,  was 
formerly  a  pest-house,  where  persons  afflicted  with  small-pox  were 
treated. 

Many  of  the  habitations  named  and  others  not  named  went  to 
decay  so  many  years  ago  that  there  is  no  known  record  or  reliable 
tradition  in  relation  to  them,  and  there  is  now  nothing  but  cellar 
holes,  and  in  a  few  instances  wells,  left  to  mark  the  places  where 
they  stood. 

Town  hill  is  an  elevation  from  its  surroundings,  gently  sloping 
to  the  east  to  meet  the  morning  sun,  and  west  to  Connecticut 
river.      The    soil    is  warm,  strong,  and    generous,   and   here    are 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  187 

some  of  the  best  farms  in  town.  From  this  elevation  are  exten- 
sive views  of  Connecticut  river  valley ;  Ascutney,  the  Green 
Mountain  range,  and  other  sections  of  Vermont ;  parts  of  Charles- 
town,  Walpole,  Acworth,  Lempster,  Unity,  Newport,  Croydon, 
Grantham,  Plainfield,  Cornish,  and  New  London  —  the  whole 
forming  a  panorama  of  quiet  beauty  rarely  equalled. 


INDUSTRIES. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

WATER    POWER. 
MANUFACTURING  AND  INDUSTRIAL  INTERESTS. 

One  of  the  great  advantages  and  sources  of  wealth  of  Clare- 
mont  is  its  superior  water  power,  derived  mainly  from  Sugar 
river.  This  river  is  the  outlet  of  Sunapee  lake,  which  is  nine 
and  a  half  miles  long,  and  from  half  a  mile  to  two  and  a  half 
miles  wide,  and  is  eight  hundred  and  twenty  feet  above  Connect- 
icut river,  into  which  it  empties  in  the  town  of  Claremont.  Sugar 
river  is  about  eighteen  miles  long  from  its  source  to  its  mouth. 
It  passes  through  the  towns  of  Sunapee,  Newport,  and  Clare- 
mont. It  is  fed  by  what  is  called  South  Branch,  which  has  its 
source  in  Lempster,  Unity,  and  Goshen ;  the  North  Branch  coming 
from  Springfield,  Grantham,  and  Croydon,  both  of  which  it  re- 
ceives in  the  town  of  Newport,  after  passing  the  village  of  that 
town,  and  other  smaller  streams  along  its  course.  But  the  river 
is  chiefly  supplied  with  water  from  Sunapee  lake,  especially  in  dry 
times. 

The  Sunapee  Dam  Company  was  incorporated  by  the  New 
Hampshire  legislature,  December  4,  1820.  This  company  is  com- 
posed of  mill  owners  in  Claremont,  Newport,  and  Sunapee,  who 
derive  their  motive  power  from  Sugar  river.  Among  the  rights 
granted  by  the  legislature  was  that  "  to  sink  the  outlet  of  Suna- 
pee lake  at  the  source  of  Sugar  river  to  the  depth  of  ten  feet 
below  the  low  water  mark  of  said  lake,  and  to  erect  and  main- 
tain a  dam  there,  with  suitable  gates  and  flumes,  to  the  height 
of  said  low  water  mark,  for  the  benefit  of  the  mills  and  mill 
privileges." 


192  HISTORY   OF    CLAEBMONT. 

For  many  years  Sugar  river  has  furnished  the  power  for  a  very 
large  number  of  mills,  representing  a  variety  of  industries  in  the 
towns  through  which  it  runs,  and,  at  the  present  time,  is  a  prin- 
cipal source  of  their  wealth.  Upon  this  water  power  they  depend 
for  their  future  growth  and  prosperity.  As  above  stated,  the  fall 
of  this  river  is  eight  hundred  and  twenty  feet.  In  the  town  of 
Claremont  it  falls  three  hundred  feet  or  more,  and  there  are 
thirteen  excellent  mill  privileges  on  these  falls.  Upon  many  of 
these  privileges  are  mills  upon  both  sides  of  the  river,  thus  af- 
fording opportunity  to  utilize  the  whole  power.  It  is  estimated 
that  each  foot  of  fall  is  capable  of  turning  one  thousand  spindles. 
There  is  a  fall  of  two  hundred  and  twenty-three  feet  in  these  thir- 
teen privileges. 

The  Sunapee  Dam  Company  was  duly  organized  immediately 
after  the  charter  was  granted,  and  suitable  dam  and  other  appli- 
ances were  erected  for  the  purpose  of  holding  the  water  of  Suna- 
pee lake  in  reserve  for  use  at  times  of  low  water  in  the  river, 
by  mills  along  its  course.  This  corporation  has  been  kept  up, 
and  the  dam  and  other  appliances  erected  have  been  maintained 
and  improved  from  time  to  time.  Whenever  the  lands  about  the 
lake  have  been  flowed,  or  other  damage  accrued  from  the  erec- 
tion of  this  clam,  those  injured  have  been  compensated  by  the 
company,  and  in  not  a  few  instances  the  right  to  flow  has  been 
purchased.  Without  this  great  natural  reservoir,  and  the  right 
to  use  it,  granted  by  the  legislature,  neither  Claremont,  E"ewport, 
nor  Sunapee  could  have  reached  their  present  condition  of  wealth 
and  consequent  importance. 

Although  this  conipan}-  has  the  right  to  draw  the  lake  down 
ten  feet  below  low  water  mark,  it  has  never  been  drawn  to  any- 
thing like  that  extent.  Since  1820,  when  the  Sunapee  Dam  Com- 
pany Avas  incorporated,  the  manufacturing  business  of  Claremont, 
dependent  upon  water  power,  with  a  few  pauses  and  lapses,  has 
gradually,  but  steadily,  growm  to  its  present  proportions.  The 
first  real,  earnest  start  in  manufacturing  business  did  not  occur 
until  about  1833.     In  1879  the  late  venerable   Simeon  Ide,  who 


HISTORY   OF   CLABBMONT.  193 

for  many  years  —  from  1834  —  was  prominently  identified  with 
the  manufacturing  interests  of  Claremont,  prepared  and  published 
a  little  book,  entitled  "  The  Industries  of  Claremont,  New  Hamp- 
shire, Past  and  Present,"  containing  many  valuable  statistics. 
This  is  the  most  reliable  known  source  of  information,  and  from 
it  are  gathered  many  facts  upon  this  subject.  Of  this  water  power 
Mr.  Ide  says : 

From  the  statistics  I  have  at  hand,  it  would  seem  there  was  comparatively 
but  very  little  use  made  of  it  previous  to  the  year  1833-34.  There  was  then 
at  the  upper  fall,  No.  1,  a  gristmill  on  the  south  side  of  the  river;  on  the 
third  fall,  No.  3,  .south  side,  a  wool-carding  and  fulling  mill,  carried  on  by 
Woodman  &  Elmer,  and  a  furnace  by  Roswell  Elmer;  and  on  the  north  side 
a  small  hand-making  paper  mill,  having  two  120  lb.  pulp  engines,  and  other 
Tiecessary  appliances  of  that  day  in  proportion,  for  making  paper,  owned  and 
operated  by  Fiske  &  Blake,  successors  of  the  first  paper  maker  in  Cheshire 
county.  Colonel  Josiah  Stevens.  On  fall  No.  4  was  a  seven  feet  dam,  and  till 
the  first  of  January,  1833,  only  water  enough  was  drawn  from  it  to  move  Tim- 
othy Eastman's  bark-grinding  machine.  The  Claremont  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany's stone  factory,  on  the  south  side,  had  recently  been  put  in  order  to  receive 
its  machinery.  On  the  fifth  fall,  east  side  of  the  river,  was  the  Tyler  saw  and 
grist  mill ;  on  the  west  side,  a  wool-carding,  spinning,  weaving,  and  cloth-dress- 
ing factory.  On  the  sixth  fall,  west  side,  Farwell's  cotton  factory,  with  Billings's 
machine  shop  in  the  basement  or  L,  first  put  in  operation  in  1831 ;  and  on  the 
west  side,  in  "the  Gully,''  a  small  slate-sawing  and  planing  mill,  operated  by 
€urtis  Stoddard.  On  falls  Nos.  7,  8,  and  9,  in  1832  not  even  a  dam  had  been 
built,  so  far  as  I  can  learn. 

Following  the  above  order  in  a  more  minute  historical  descriptive  view  of  the 
several  present  and  former  mill  sites  in  the  village  proper  of  Claremont,  the 
earliest  date  at  which  I  find  there  had  been  any  use  made  of  that  at  fall  No. 
1,  north  side  of  the  river,  was  about  the  year  1800,  when  Stephen  Dexter 
erected  a  small  building  there,  and  he  and  his  brother.  Colonel  David  Dexter, 
carried  on  in  it  a  scythe-making  concern  till  about  1824.  They  also  owned 
grist,  saw,  and  oil  mills,  located  on  and  near  where  the  Monadnock  Mills 
-Company's  sawmill  now  stands,  which  were  run  by  water  drawn  from  a  low 
jdam  then  standing  about  midway  between  dams  Nos.  1  and  2.  On  the  decease 
of  Colonel  Dexter,  in  1830,  his  son-in-law,  Moses  Wheeler,  in  1831,  succeeded 
the  Messrs.  Dexter  in  the  several  branches  of  business  above  stated,  except  the 
«oythe  factory,  as  sole  proprietor,  and  carried  them  on  for  several  years. 

In  1837-38  a  two-story  brick  building  took  the  site  of  the  old  Dexter  scythe 
shop,  and  was   owned  and  occupied  by  the  Claremont  Carriage  Company  two 


194  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

or  three  years.  Hard  times  finally  put  a  stop  to  this  company's  operations,  and 
soon  afterwards  their  buildings  were  destroyed  by  fire.  Paran  Stevens,  Timothy 
Eastman,  Moses  Wheeler,  A.  J.  Tenney,  T.  J.  Harris  (agent),  were  of  the 
company.  In  1843-44  the  present  three-story  brick  building  was  erected.  It 
stood  empty  a  few  years,  when  John  Fiske  put  into  it  cotton  machinery;  run 
it  two  or  three  years;  then  a  Mr.  Cozens  bought  the  property,  continued  busi- 
ness but  a  short  time,  when  the  Monadnock  Mills  Company  bought  and  con- 
tinued its  use  as  a  cotton  mill  until  1863,  and  then  substituted  the  woolen  for 
the  old  cotton  machinery.  This  is  the  only  factory  on  the  north  side  of  the 
river  operated  by  power  from  fall  No.  1. 

On  the  south  side,  in  olden  time,  Colonel  Josiah  Stevens,  it  is  said,  built  a 
one-story  wooden  building  at  the  south  end  of  the  upper  bridge,  and  put  into 
it  machinery  for  making  paper.  This  must  have  been,  according  to  Mr.  Ide, 
prior  to  1810.  The  building  was  burned  about  1812,  and  the  present  two-story 
wood  structure  erected  there,  which,  in  1831,  was  owned  and  occupied  by  David 
W.  Dexter  as  a  gristmill.  It  was  afterwards  used  for  various  purposes,  and 
is  now  the  repair  shop  of  the  Monadnock  Mills  Company. 

MANUFACTURING   AND    OTHER    INDUSTRIES. 
MONADNOCK     MILLS. 

In  1831  the  ISTew  Hampshire  legislature  granted  to  Leonard 
Jarvis,  Joseph  T.  Adams,  and  Russell  Jarvis  and  their  associates, 
a  charter  under  the  name  of  the  Sugar  River  Manufacturing 
Compan}',  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  on  the  business  of  manufac- 
turing cotton  and  woolen  goods  in  all  their  branches,  in  the  town 
of  Claremont.  The  charter  was  signed  by  Franklin  Pierce,  speaker 
of  the  house;  Samuel  Cartland,  president  of  the  senate,  and  Sam- 
uel Dinsmoor,  governor.  In  1844  the  company  was  organized,  the 
mill  now  known  as  Mill  No.  1  was  put  up  and  partly  finished,  and 
tenement  and  boarding  houses  built.  Machinery  was  not  put  into 
the  mill,  and  the  property  was  idle  until  1844,  when  the  whole  was 
sold  to  Parker,  "Wilder  &  Parker,  and  others,  of  Boston,  who  com- 
pleted the  mill  and  put  in  machinery  for  manufacturing  cotton 
sheeting.  Henry  Russell  was  appointed  agent,  and  took  charge  as 
superintendent  of  the  mill.  He  was  succeeded  by  Jonas  Livingston 
in  November,  1845.  In  1846,  by  act  of  the  legislature,  the  name 
of  the  company  was  changed  to  that  of  Monadnock  Mills. 


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DANIEL  W.  JOHNSON. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMOKT.  195 

In  1853  the  company  bought  the  grist  and  saw  mill  and  cabinet 
shop  on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  on  the  Island,  so  called,  in- 
creased its  capital  stock  to  two  hundred  thousand  dollars,  and 
erected  Mill  No.  2,  equal  in  capacity  to  Mill  'No.  1.  In  1856  the 
plant  was  further  increased  by  the  purchase  of  what  was  known  as 
SunapeeMill,  at  the  north  side  of  the  river,  which  was  operated  as  a 
cotton  mill  until  1864,  when  the  cotton  machinery  was  exchanged 
for  that  for  making  wool  flannel,  and  was  changed  back  again  in 
1881.  In  1859  the  gas  works,  which  have  since  supplied  the  mills 
and  village  with  gas  for  illumination,  were  built.  In  1866  the  mo- 
tive power  for  operating  these  mills,  derived  from  Sugar  river,  was 
supplemented  by  a  two  hundred  and  fifty  horse  power  steam 
engine,  the  boiler  for  which  heats  the  mills,  and  the  engine  fur- 
nishes power  in  times  of  low  water.  In  1871  the  company  put  in 
looms  and  other  machinery  for  the  purpose,  and  began  making 
Marseilles  quilts.  In  1874  a  brick  building  between  Mills  No.  1 
and  No.  2  was  erected,  to  be  used  for  bleaching  and  finishing  the 
goods  made.  In  1892  a  weaving  mill  one  hundred  and  ninety-six 
by  sixty-seven  feet  feet  on  the  ground,  three  stories  and  basement, 
was  built  west  of  and  in  a  line  with  the  other  two,  and  early  in  the 
following  year  was  put  in  operation. 

The  whole  number  of  hands  employed  in  these  mills  is  425,  and 
the  monthly  pay-roll  is  $12,000.  The  annual  product  is  one  million 
pounds  of  cotton  sheeting  and  Marseilles  quilts.  In  1863,  after 
having  had  charge  of  these  mills  seventeen  years,  Jonas  Livingston 
resigned,  and  was  succeeded  by  Daniel  "W.  Johnson,  who  occupied 
the  position  until  his  death,  on  April  29,  1894,  and  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Frank  P.  Vogl,  for  many  years  clerk  in  the  office,  and 
paymaster.  For  fifty  years  this  corporation  has  been  an  important 
factor  in  the  growth  and  prosperity  of  Claremont,  and  a  good  in- 
vestment for  its  stockholders. 

SDLLIVAN   MACHrNERY   COMPANY. 

This  company  occupies  the  water-power  from  fall  No.  3,  thirteen 
feet,  which  was  formerly  owned  by  Eoswell  Elmer,  who  carried  on 
a  small  iron  foundry,  making   castings  for  plows,  stoves,  potash 


196  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

kettles,  etc.  Mr.  Elmer  was  succeeded  by  George  "W.  Emerson,  in 
a  similar  kind  of  business,  who  in  1850  built  a  machine  shop.  In 
1851,  D.  A.  Clay  &  Co.,  consisting  of  D.  A.  Clay,  James  P.  Upham, 
and  John  S.  "Walker,  leased  the  machine  shop  and  started  a  general 
machine  business.  Subsequently  James  P.  Upham  purchased  the 
water-power  and  real  estate,  including  the  foundry,of  Mr.  Emerson, 
made  extensive  additions  to  the  buildings  and  facilities  for  doing 
business,  which  was  continued  for  a  few  years  by  D.  A.  Clay  &  Co. 
In  1868  the  Sullivan  Machine  Company  was  organized,  and  pur- 
chased this  property,  —  J.  P.  Upham,  president,  R.  "W".  Love,  treas- 
urer, and  Albert  Ball,  superintendent.  These  gentlemen  owned 
most  of  the  stock  of  the  company.  Mr.  Love  subsequently  sold 
his  interest  to  Charles  B.  Kice,  who  took  Mr.  Love's  place  as  treas- 
urer. Mr.  Rice  died  May  26,  1891,  and  was  succeeded  by  J.  Dun- 
can Upham.  Between  1888  and  1890,  all  the  old  buildings,  fur- 
nace, machine  shop,  and  office,  mostly  of  wood,  were  replaced  by 
handsome  and  substantial  brick  structures,  as  shown  in  the  illus- 
tration. In  April,  1892,  the  Sullivan  Machinery  Company,  to 
succeed  the  Sullivan  Machine  Company  and  the  Dimond  Pros- 
pecting Company,  of  Chicago,  111.,  was  organized,  and  the  fol- 
lowing officers  elected :  President,  Frederick  K.  Copeland,  of  Chi- 
cago; vice-president,  James  P.  Upham;  mechanical  engineer, 
Albert  Ball ;  treasurer,  J.  Duncan  Upham ;  secretary,  Thomas 
W.  Fry,  of  Claremont. 

The  business  of  the  present  company  is  the  manufacture  of 
diamond  drills  for  the  prospecting  of  mineral  lands;  quarrying 
machinery ;  coal  and  other  mining  machinery ;  paper  roving  cans 
for  cotton  mills;  corn  crackers;  water  wheels,  etc.  It  takes  con- 
tracts for  prospecting  mineral  and  coal  lands,  and  operating  its 
machinery  in  stone  quarries  and  coal  mines,  in  which  branches, 
in  ordinary  business  times,  from  fifty  to  a  hundred  men  are  em- 
ployed. The  principal  shops  of  the  company  are  in  Claremont, 
where,  in  the  different  departments,  one  hundred  and  twenty-five 
men  are  employed,  and  the  pay-roll  is  about  five  thousand  dol- 
lars per  month.     The  principal  selling  office  is  in  Chicago,  while 


JAMES  P.  UPHAM. 


JOHN  TYLER,  2D. 


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HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 


197 


they  have  a  salesroom  in  Denver,  Col.,  and  an  office  in  New 
York  city.  The  machinery  and  tools  made  by  this  company  are 
sold  to  go  to  almost  every  quarter  of  the  globe. 

Many  of  the  machines  and  tools  made,  sold,  and  used  by  this 
company  bave  been  originated  or  perfected  by  Albert  Ball,  its 
mechanical  engineer,  wbo  has  also  invented  and  patented  many 
other  machines — some  of  them  quite  complicated — for  different 
purposes. 

SUGAR  KIVER  PAPER  MILL   COMPANT.  V 

This  company  was  incorporated  in  1866  —  capital  stock  one 
hundred  thousand  dollars,  mostly  owned  by  citizens  of  Clare- 
mont  —  erected  mills  on  fall  No.  6,  east  side  of  the  river,  for 
the  manufacture  of  print  paper,  and  commenced  business  in  1868. 
The  dam  first  erected  was  twenty-two  feet  high,  and  was  after- 
ward raised  three  feet.  The  power  derived  from  Sugar  river  is 
supplemented  by  two  steam  engines  aggregating  two  hundred 
and  twenty-five  horse  power.  John  Tyler,  a  large  stockholder 
in  the  company,  superintended  the  erection  of  the  dam  and  mill. 
The  officers  since  the  organization  of  the  company  have  been : 
John  Tyler,  president ;  John  L.  Farwell,  treasurer ;  John  T.  Em- 
erson, agent.  In  1884  they  purchased  of  Reuben  Shepardson, 
what  has  been  known  as  the  Lafayette  privilege,  on  the  "  Gully," 
on  the  west  side  of  the  river,  and  tunneled  through  the  rock  of 
the  island,  formed  by  the  main  stream  and  this  "  Gully,"  two 
hundred  and  four  feet,  the  tunnel  being  six  feet  square,  taking 
the  water  that  runs  in  the  "  Gully"  into  their  pond,  thus  getting 
the  use  of  all  the  water  that  runs  in  the  river.  The  Lafayette 
privilege  had  the  right  to  take  from  the  river,  above  the  dam 
on  privilege  No.  6,  and  down  this  gully,  one  half  the  water  of  the 
river,  and  return  it  to  the  main  stream  below  the  paper  mill 
dam.  By  this  arrangement  this  company  obviate,  to  a  consider- 
able extent,  the  use  of  steam  to  supplement  their  water  power. 
In  1889  this  company  added  to  its  plant  the  grist  and  saw  mills, 
known   as   the   Sugar   River   Mill  property,   next   above  on  the 


198  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

stream.  The  paper  mill  was  built  for  a  two  ton  mill,  but  by 
improvements  in  machinery,  methods  of  manufacturing,  and  keep- 
ing pace  with  the  times,  its  average  production  now  is  nine  tons  of 
fine  book  and  news  paper  per  day.  It  may  be  said  that  this  is 
the  first  manufacturing  corporation  in  Claremont  that  has  con- 
tinued with  substantially  the  same  stockholders,  under  the  same 
management,  and  with  a  good  degree  of  success  from  its  start. 

THE  CLAREMONT   MANUFACTURING  COMPANY. 

This  company  was  chartered  by  the  New  Hampshire  legislature 
in  1832,  with  an  authorized  capital  of  one  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars. It  was  the  first  company  for  manufacturing  purposes  organ- 
ized in  Claremont.  The  largest  stockholders  were  Austin  Tyler, 
Timothy  S.  Gleason,  William  Rossiter,  and  Timothy  Eastman. 
The  plant  was  located  on  the  south  side  of  the  river,  at  fall  No. 
4.  The  walls  of  the  factory  building  and  a  large  two-story  ten- 
ement house  are  of  stone,  quarried  within  a  few  rods  of  their 
location.  The  business  contemplated  was  the  manufacture  of 
cotton  and  woolen  goods  and  printing  and  writing  papers.  In 
December,  1834,  Simeon  Ide,  then  a  bookseller,  printer,  and  pub- 
lisher of  a  weekly  paper  at  "Windsor,  Vt.,  sold  to  the  Claremont 
Manufacturing  Company  his  entire  stock  of  books  and  the  print- 
ing establishment,  taking  his  paj^  in  the  stock  of  the  company,  and 
came  to  Claremont  and  took  the  agency  and  general  management 
of  the  concern,  which  he  continued  until  1858,  and  was  succeeded 
by  his  brother-in-law,  Edward  L.  Goddard.  Mr.  Ide  sold  his  stock 
to  his  two  sons,  George  G.  and  Lemuel  N.  Ide.  Mr.  Goddard  con- 
tinued as  agent  until  1867,  when  George  G.  Ide  succeeded  to  the 
place,  and  continued  in  it  until  his  death,  in  1883,  and  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  brother,  Lemuel  K  Ide.  The  business  was  contin- 
ued until  1880,  when  the  paper-mill  building  and  machinery  were 
destroyed  by  fire,  and  the  building  has  not  been  replaced.  The 
printing  and  book  making  was  continued  until  1886,  when  the  busi- 
ness was  discontinued.  The  factory  building  and  water-power 
were  sold  to  Messrs  Maynard  &  Washburn,  and  the  houses  and 


SIMEON  IDE. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  199 

Other  buildings  to  other  parties.  The  factory  building  has  since 
been  occupied  by  John  H.  Parke  for  a  shoeshop,  and  by  an 
electric  plant.  For  many  years  the  Claremont  Manufacturing 
Company  employed  from  fifty  to  eighty  hands. 

SLIPPER    SHOP. 

In  February,  1887,  John  H.  Parke,  of  Lynn,  Mass.,  began 
manufacturing  a  high  grade  of  men's  slippers  in  the  building 
formerly  occupied  by  the  Claremont  Manufacturing  Company  for 
printing  and  binding  books.  Subsequently  shoes  and  women's 
boots  were  added  to  the  products  of  this  establishment.  From 
sixty  to  seventy-five  hands  are  employed,  and  the  pay-roll  is  about 
$2,500  per  month. 

SUGAR  RIVER  MILLS  COMPANV. 

The  mills  of  this  company  are  at  fall  No.  5,  on  the  east  side  of 
the  river.  From  the  Upper  Bridge,  or  fall  No.  1,  Sugar  river  runs 
nearly  due  west,  but  between  the  Claremont  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany's privilege  and  the  next  one  below  it,  the  river  turns  and 
runs  nearly  due  south ;  hence  the  reader  will  understand  why  a 
part  of  the  privileges  named  are  said  to  be  on  the  south  and  a  part 
on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  and  so  of  those  named  as  being  on 
its  north  and  west  side.  This  fall  No.  5  has  been  known  for  sev- 
eral generations  as  the  old  "  Tyler  Mills  "  privilege.  Benjamin 
Tyler,  before  referred  to,  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  the  town,  once 
owned  all  the  water-power  from  fall  No.  1  to  No.  9,  both  inclusive. 
He  erected  the  first  grist  and  saw  mills  in  town,  at  the  west  part,  in 
1768,  and  the  old  "  Tyler  Mills  "  on  this  privilege  in  178.5.  He 
gave  the  latter  to  his  son  Ephraim  on  his  coming  of  age,  who 
continued  to  own  them  until  1836,  when  a  company,  consisting  of 
three  gentlemen  of  Keene  and  three  of  Claremont,  bought  the 
mills  and  mill  yard  and  appurtenances  with  the  avowed  intention 
of  removing  the  buildings,  which  were  very  old  and  dilapidated, 
and  putting  in  their  place  suitable  buildings  for  a  first-class  calico- 
printing  establishment.     In  the  spring  of  1837  they  commenced 


200  HISTORY   OF   CLAKEMONT. 

their  preparations  for  building,  but  before  they  had  proceeded  far 
the  financial  panic  struck  the  country,  and  the  project  was  aban- 
doned. The  old  mills  remained  standing,  and  were  rented  to 
Mr.  Tyler,  their  former  owner,  and,  by  his  administrator,  to- 
Lewis  W.  Kandall  and  others  until  1854,  when  the  property  was 
purchased  by  E.  "W".  Sanborn  of  Boston,  and  Abner  Stowell, 
Aaron  Dutton,  Edward  Brown,  and  George  Hart  of  this  town. 
In  1855  they  erected  the  large  three-story  brick  building  for  a 
gristmill,  and  the  sawmill  adjoining,  now  standing  and  in  active 
operation.  They  put  into  the  grist  mill  eight  run  of  stone,  four 
flouring-bolts,  and,  to  propel  them,  eleven  Tyler  turbine  water 
wheels.  The  work  was  done  under  the  superintendence  of  John 
Tyler,  then  of  "West  Lebanon,  but  now  of  this  town,  patentee 
and  manufacturer  of  the  Tyler  turbine  water  wheel.  This  mill 
was  designed  for  custom  grinding  and  to  manufacture  flour  from 
western  wheat,  and  it  was  said  to  be  capable  of  making  ten 
thousand  barrels  of  flour  per  annum.  These  mills  have  been 
leased  to  various  parties  since  they  were  built.  In  1889,  the 
Sugar  River  Paper  Company  bought  the  property  and  it  has 
since  been  leased  by  H.  W.  Frost. 

THE  HOME  MILL. 

The  three-story  brick  building  now  standing  at  fall  No.  4, 
north  side  of  the  river,  was  erected  by  the  Claremont  Manufac- 
turing Company  in  1836,  with  the  intention  of  using  it  for  mak- 
ing fine  writing  papers.  The  times  did  not  favor  the  comple. 
tion  of  the  project,  and  the  building  was  only  so  far  finished  as 
to  protect  the  walls  with  roof  and  windows,  until  1849,  when  a 
few  of  the  stockholders  of  the  Claremont  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany bought  it,  together  with  one  half  of  the  water-power,  fitted 
it  up  with  machinery  for  manufacturing  cotton  cloth,  and  sold 
the  whole  to  George  D.  Dutton  of  Boston.  In  1852  Mr.  Dutton 
sold  a  part  interest  to  Arnold  Briggs,  a  practical  cotton  manu- 
facturer, of  "Woonsocket,  R.  I.,  and  under  the  firm  style  of  Ar- 
nold Briggs  &  Co.,  the   business   of  manufacturing  cotton  goods 


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HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  201 

was  carried  on  until  1875,  when,  by  reason  of  there  being  but  a 
limited  demand  for  the  goods  made  by  this  firm,  the  business  was 
stopped.  In  1876  Mr.  Briggs  died,  subsequent  to  which  the  inter- 
est of  Mr.  Briggs's  estate  in  the  mill  was  purchased  by  Pierce, 
Harding  &  Co.,  of  Boston,  who  ran  it  but  a  few  months.  In  1883, 
Messrs.  Maynard  and  "Washburn,  gentlemen  from  Massachusetts, 
purchased  the  property,  repaired  the  buildings,  put  in  machinery 
for  the  purpose,  and  have  since  been  manufacturing  shoes  there. 

THE  EMEESON-HETWAED  PEIVILEGE. 

On  fall  'So.  7,  south  side  —  the  river  has  taken  another  turn  and 
runs  westerly  —  about  1842,  George  "W".  Emerson  put  up  a  one- 
story  brick  building,  carried  on  the  furnace  business  for  a  few 
years,  when  it  passed  into  the  hands  of  Simeon  Heyward,  who  did 
some  furnace  work,  made  horse  and  hand  rakes,  and  various  other 
farm  implements.  The  building  was  destroyed  by  fire  in  1866, 
and  the  dam  connected  with  it,  by  flood  soon  afterward,  since 
which  no  use  has  been  made  of  this  privilege.  It  is  now  owned 
by  George  L.  Balcom. 

THE   SULLIVAN  MANUFACTURING  COMPAJiT. 

This  company's  mills  are  located  on  fall  So.  8,  south  side  of  the 
river.  It  was  chartered  about  1833  for  manufacturing  woolen 
goods,  and  its  buildings  erected  the  next  year.  The  machinery,  as 
before  stated,  was  taken  from  the  Claremont  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany's mill,  and  they  commenced  the  manufacture  of  satinets.  In 
1836,  Ormond  Dutton,  of  Keene,  was  appointed  agent  of  the  com- 
pany, and  continued  as  such  about  three  years.  During  the  hard 
times,  from  1836  to  1840,  goods  did  not  sell  readily ;  a  large  stock 
was  accumulated,  which  was  sold  for  less  than  it  cost  to  produce  it, 
and  the  mill  was  closed.  Its  capital,  fifty  thousand  dollars,  was 
exhausted,  and  the  company  settled  with  its  creditors  in  the  best 
way  it  could.  In  1844,  Thomas  Sanford  and  William  Rossiter  got 
possession  of  the  real  estate  and  some  of  the  machinery,  and  manu- 
factured satinets  and  cassimeres  until  1857,  when  the  entire  prop- 

14 


202  HISTOKT   OP   CliARBMONT. 

erty  was  purchased  by  George  L.  Balcom,  who  has  manufactured 
woolen  goods  there  ever  since,  running  three  sets  of  machinery. 
During  the  late  war  Mr.  Balcom  was  very  successful,  and  one  year, 
under  the  United  States  internal  revenue  law,  he  paid  the  largest 
income  tax  of  any  man  in  l^ew  Hampshire.  He  is  now  making 
fancy  union  cassimeres. 

THE   OLD  KNIFE-FACTOEY  PRIVILEGE. 

This  privilege  is  on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  on  fall  No.  8. 
The  large  three-story  wooden  building  on  this  privilege  was  erected 
in  1836-37,  by  Dr.  John  S.  Spaulding,  but  for  what  purpose  it  was 
to  be  used  is  not  known.  It  stood  empty,  its  inside  but  partially 
finished,  until  1853,  when  Thomas  Sanford,  William  Rossiter,  and 
some  other  gentlemen  formed  a  company  and  manufactured  table 
cutlery  there  for  about  five  years,  when  the  business  was  aban- 
doned. In  1866,  the  "  Claremont  Linen  Company"  put  in  ma- 
chinery for  making  linen  toweling  from  the  raw  material,  by  a  new 
process,  but  this  was  not  a  success,  and,  after  two  or  three  years  of 
experiment,  this  business  was  closed  up,  and  the  mill  was  unused 
until  1877,  when  Herbert  Bailey,  of  Enfield,  this  state,  bought  the 
property  and  enlarged,  repaired,  fitted  the  buildings,  and  put  in 
machinery  for  manufacturing  knit  goods,  employing  about  fortj' 
hands  and  turning  out  goods  to  the  amount  of  one  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars  annually.  This  mill  has  not  been  in  operation  since 
1892. 

THE  LOWER  FALLS   COMPANY. 

In  1836  this  company,  composed  of  gentlemen  from  out  of 
town,  bought  a  small  farm  of  Jonathan  Eead,  located  below  fall 
No.  8,  with  the  design  of  making  a  ninth  fall  of  about  twelve 
feet,  by  taking  the  water  from  the  river  by  a  canal.  The  canal 
was  dug,  a  good  foundation  for  a  large  factory  building  put  in 
and  building  materials  got  upon  the  ground,  when,  in  view  of 
the  threatened  hard  times  for  manufacturers,  the  enterprise 
stopped,  the  building  materials  were  disposed  of,  and  the  ninth 
privilege  has  never  been  utilized. 


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HISTORY   OF   OLARBMONT.  203 

In  1832,  Nicholas  Farwell  equipped  a  mill  located  on  tlie  west 
side  of  the  river,  just  above  the  Sugar  River  Paper  Mill  dam, 
with  machinery,  and  manufactured  cotton  cloth  in  it  until  it  was 
destroyed  by  fire,  March  13,  1841.  This  was  the  first  cotton  mill 
in  town. 

THE   LAFAYETTE   PKITILEGE. 

On  the  west  side  of  the  river,  at  fall  No.  7,  on  the  "  Gully," 
is  what  was  known  as  the  Lafayette  privilege.  In  1828  Arad 
Taylor  bought  this  privilege  of  Bill  Barnes.  In  1836  the  prop- 
erty was  put  on  the  market  in  thirty-two  shares,  of  one  hun- 
dred dollars  each,  which  were  soon  taken,  but  it  was  not  im- 
proved until  1844,  when  Chester  Dunklee  bought  most  of  the 
shares  and  erected  upon  the  privilege  a  two-story  wood  build- 
ing, which  was  occupied  by  Mr.  Dunklee  and  Simeon  Ide  for 
sawing  slate  stone,  and  J.  G.  Briggs  for  making  furniture,  until 
1866,  when  Reuben  Shepardson  bought  it,  made  extensive  im- 
provements, and  rented  and  used  it  for  various  manufacturing 
purposes  until  the  fall  of  1884,  when  he  sold  it  to  the  Sugar 
River  Paper  Mill  Company,  as  before  stated. 

THE   OLD   MEACHAM  FACTOET 

Was  on  fall  No.  5,  opposite  the  Tyler  mills,  and  this  factory  is 
said  to  have  been  the  first  one  built  in  Sullivan  county  for  the 
manufacture  of  woolen  goods.  It  was  built  in  1813,  by  Asa 
Meacham.  It  was  a  two-story  wood  building,  and  was  occupied 
successively  by  Asa  Meacham,  Asa  Meacham,  Jr.,  Woodman  & 
Rockwell,  Wilson  &  Earl,  and  William  Earl,  all  of  whom  manu- 
factured woolen  goods,  until  the  spring  of  1854,  when  the  main 
building  was  destroyed  by  fire.  The  following  year  Simeon  Ide 
bought  the  property.  A  small  shop  and  storehouse  escaped  the 
fire;  the  first  he  fitted  up  with  water  power  and  rented  it  for 
various  mechanical  purposes,  while  he  converted  the  other  into 
a  dwelling-house  to  rent.  In  1859  Mr.  Ide  erected,  on  the  site 
of  the  old  factory  building,  a  round  brick  structure,  two  stories 
high,  and  fitted  it  np  with  machinery,  printing  presses,  etc.,  for 


204  HISTORY   OF    CLAKBMONT. 

the  making  of  books  on  contract  for  city  publishers.  The  break- 
ing out  of  the  war  in  1861,  and  other  unforeseen  events,  ope- 
rated against  this  enterprise,  and  the  building  was  rented  for 
different  mechanical  purposes.  It  was  purchased  by  Reuben 
Shepardson  in  1883.  What  was  the  shop  was  purchased  by  Ira 
Proctor  and  occupied  by  him  as  a  sash,  blind,  and  door  factory 
until  about  1873,  when  it  was  destroyed  by  fire.  The  site  is 
now  occupied  by  the  Freeman  &  O'Neil  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany's buildings. 

TREEMAN  &  O'NEIL  MANUFACTURING  COMPANY. 

In  1874  Messrs.  Charles  IST.  Freeman  and  David  "W.  O'lSTeil 
purchased  the  site  of  the  Ira  Proctor  shop,  erected  large  wooden 
buildings,  and  fitted  them  up  with  the  most  approved  machinery 
for  manufacturing  stair  builders'  supplies  and  fine  house  and  of- 
fice finish,  using  expensive  foreign  and  domestic  woods.  They 
employed  about  forty  men,  until  December,  1882,  when  their  main 
building,  stock,  and  machinery,  valued  at  about  twenty-five  thou- 
sand dollars,  were  destroyed  by  fire.  They  immediately  com- 
menced the  erection  of  new  buildings,  which  were  completed  and 
ready  for  occupancy  in  August,  1883.  In  April,  1892,  this  concern 
was  made  a  stock  company,  with  a  capital  of  fifty  thousand  dol- 
lars, under  the  style  of  the  Freeman  &  O'Feil  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany. The  officers  were  George  C.  Currier,  of  New  York  City, 
president;  Paschal  P.  Coburn,  of  Claremont,  treasurer.  They  em- 
ploy from  one  hundred  to  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  hands  — 
most  of  them  skilled  workmen  —  and  their  pay-roll  is  about  one 
thousand  dollars  per  week. 

THE  MAYNAKD   &   WASHBDEN  SHOE  FACTORY. 

In  the  summer  of  1883,  Messrs.  Frank  P.  Maynard  and  Charles 
If.  Washburn  came  from  Massachusetts  and  bought  the  Home  Mill 
property,  on  fall  No.  4,  north  side  of  the  river,  fitted  up  the  build- 
ings, put  in  machinery,  and  in  November  of  that  year  commenced 
the  manufacture  of  shoes,  employing  about  fifty  hands.     The  busi- 


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HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  205 

ness  was  increased  gradually  until  1888,  when  the  firm  made  exten- 
sive additions  to  their  factory,  and  later  made  further  additions. 
In  1893  they  employed  two  hundred  and  twenty-five  hands,  turned 
out  eighteen  hundred  pairs  of  medium  grade  men's,  boys',  and 
youths'  shoes  per  day,  and  their  pay-roll  was  about  $7,000  per 
month.  In  January,  1887,  this  firm  bought  the  Claremont  Manu- 
facturing Company  buildings  and  water-power,  on  the  south  side 
of  the  river,  made  repairs  and  improvements  upon  the  property, 
and  leased  a  part  of  the  buildings  and  water-power  to  John  H. 
Parke,  for  a  slipper  factory.  An  electric  light  company  was  organ 
ized  in  lifovember  of  that  year,  and  an  electric  apparatus  was 
placed  in  the  building,  which  had  been  occupied  for  many  years  as 
a  paper  mill.  In  April,  1893,  Mr.  Washburn  sold  his  interest  in 
the  business  to  Mr.  Maynard,  but  the  style  of  the  establishment 
has  been  continued. 

THE  EASTMAN  TANNERY. 

In  1811,  Timothy  Eastman  established  a  tannery  on  fall  ISo.  4, 
north  side  of  the  river,  continued  the  business  there  until  his  death, 
in  1859,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Charles  H.  Eastman.  On 
January  22,  1871,  the  old  buildings  were  burned  and  new  and 
larger  ones  were  erected  on  their  site.  Charles  H.  Eastman  con- 
tinued the  business  until  his  death,  in  1879,  since  which  the  prop- 
erty has  been  unused.  The  real  estate  is  now  owned  by  the  widow 
of  Charles  H.  Eastman,  the  buildings  having  been  burned. 

CARPET  FACTORY. 

Between  fall  No.  9  and  the  confluence  of  Sugar  river  with  the  Con- 
necticut it  is  claimed  that  the  former  river  falls  about  two  hundred 
and  fifty  feet.  On  the  north  side  of  Sugar  river,  a  mile  or  so  below 
fall  No.  9,  in  1852,  Henry  Eussell  and  Dr.  F.  T.  Kidder  built  a 
dam  twenty  feet  high,  erected  a  large  one-story  brick  mill,  put  into 
it  machinery  for  the  purpose,  and  manufactured  tapestry  carpets 
there  for  a  few  mouths,  when  the  business  ceased  and  dam  and 
buildings  have  disappeared. 


206  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

At  "West  Claremont,  Sugar  river  furnishes  excellent  water  power. 
The  fall  there  is  about  nineteen  feet.  On  the  south  side  of  the 
river,  at  this  fall,  Dr.  Leonard  Jarvis  erected  a  two-story  wood 
building,  and  in  it  manufactured  broadcloth  for  about  fifteen  years. 
After  his  death,  which  occurred  in  1848,  this  property  passed  into 
the  hands  of  his  son,  Russell  Jarvis,  who  died  on  the  twenth-fourth 
of  February,  1888.  The  broadcloth  factory  was  converted  into  a  pa- 
per mill  about  1853,  and  was  operated  by  Fiske  &  Burpee,  the  Clare- 
mont Manufacturing  Company,  ~S.  Whitney,  J.  Pierce  &  Co.,  and 
its  owner  until  his  death,  making  hanging  and  some  other  kinds  of 
paper.  Russell  Jarvis  was  succeeded  in  the  paper  making  business 
by  his  oldest  son,  Russell.  The  mill  was  burned  May  12,  1890 ; 
was  replaced  by  a  substantial  brick  building  which  was  com- 
pleted and  ready  for  operation  in  April,  1892.  It  makes  about 
thirty  hundred  pounds  of  tissue  manilla  paper  per  day,  and  is  called 
the  Jarvis  Paper  Mill. 

Between  1830  and  1850  Ilock  Hills  had  a  mill  just  below  the 
Coy  paper  mill,  where  he  sawed  out  marble  and  slate  stone. 

Just  below  Ilock  Hills's  stone  mill  was  a  tannery  and  a  shop 
where  J.  H.  Cross  &  Co.  tanned  deer  skins  and  made  them  into 
gloves  and  mittens.  This  business  was  discontinued  soon  after 
1850. 

THE  S.   T.   COY  PAPER    COMPANY. 

On  the  same  privilege,  and  drawing  water  from  the  same  pond, 
but  on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  is  a  large,  well-appointed  paper 
mill,  owned  and  operated  by  the  S.  T.  Coy  Paper  Company.  This 
mill  has  been  built  within  the  last  ten  years,  on  the  site  occupied 
fifty  years  ago,  more  or  less,  by  Leonard  and  Hiram  Gilmore, 
brothers,  for  a  blacksmith  forge  and  trip-hammer  shop,  where  they 
made  axes  and  other  edge  tools,  carried  on  a  general  blaeksmithing 
business,  and  made  heavy  mill  irons  for  many  years.  Subse- 
quently on  this  same  spot  was  a  paper  mill  where  straw  wrapping 
paper  was  made,  owned  and  operated  successively  by  Daniel  F. 
Maynard  and  John  S.  Farrington. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAKEMONT.  207 

BENJAMIN  TYLER'S  SMELTING  AND  IRON  WORKS. 

Between  1770  and  1780,  Benjamin  Tyler,  having  bought  a  con- 
siderable tract  of  land  on  the  north  side  of  Sugar  river,  put  a 
dam  across  that  stream,  near  where  the  Sullivan  County  Eailroad'e 
high  bridge  novp  is,  built  a  shop  in  which  he  had  a  forge,  trip-ham- 
mer, and  smelting  works,  and  made  heavy  mill  irons,  and  other 
articles  from  the  ore.  Here  he  did  a  large  business  in  this  line 
for  those  days,  employing  twenty  to  thirty  men  for  more  than 
twenty  years.  The  iron  ore  used  was  brought  from  a  bed  three 
or  four  miles  north  of  Charlestown  village,  and  the  lime  from 
"Weathersfield,  Yt.  This  property  finally  passed  into  the  hands  of 
Mr.  Tyler's  son-in-law,  John  Strobridge. 

THE  GILMORE  EDGE  TOOL  WORKS. 

In  1826  Leonard  and  Hiram  Gilmore,  sons  of  Hon.  Gawin 
Gilmore,  came  from  Acworth  and  established  themselves  in  the 
business  of  making  axes,  scythes,  and  other  edge  tools,  in  a  shop 
on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  on  or  near  the  spot  where  the 
S.  T.  Coy  paper  mill  now  stands.  It  was  the  only  shop  of  its 
kind  in  the  vicinity,  and  they  did  a  large  business  until  1841,  soon 
after  which  it  was  abandoned. 

FLAX  MILL. 

In  1800  Benjamin  Tyler  put  in  operation,  at  or  near  the  site  of 
the  Jarvis  paper  mill,  what  was  known  as  the  Flax  Mill,  the  pur- 
pose of  which  was  to  prepare  flax  for  the  old  hand  spinning  wheels. 

A  short  distance  above  the  Eussell  and  Kidder  dam,  many 
years  ago,  was  another  dam  across  Sugar  river,  and  on  a  canal  cut 
across  a  point  of  land,  on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  stood  a  saw- 
mill, said  to  have  been  owned  by  a  Mr.  Billings. 

In  1840  Alexander  Graham  carried  on  brick  making  on  his  farm, 
south  side  of  Sugar  river,  just  above  the  site  of  the  Eussell  and 
Kidder  carpet-mill  dam.  This  yard  was  being  worked  about  1850, 
and  the  bricks  for  that  mill,  which  was  called  Ascutney  Mills,  were 


208  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

made  there.  They  were  loaded  on  to  a  scow  or  fiat  boat,  floated  to 
near  the  Red  "Water  brook  bridge,  aud  then  carried  by  team  to 
where  they  were  to  be  used.  In  1891  and  1892  Marshall  Harlow 
made  bricks  there. 

Sixty  to  seventy  years  ago  quite  a  business  was  done  in  char- 
coal burning  in  the  northwest  part  of  the  town.  Solon  C.  Gran- 
nis,  Samuel  Carlton,  and  the  Gilmore  brothers  had  kilns. 

About  1812  Timothy  Grannis  built  a  sawmill  on  Red  Water 
brook,  between  the  highway  to  "Windsor  and  the  place  where 
Daniel  N.  Bowker  now  lives,  which  was  afterward  owned  and 
operated  by  John  Pressey.     It  disappeared  many  years  ago. 

THE  GRANNIS  LUMBEK  MILL. 

In  1883  Homer  E.  Grannis  built  a  dam  and  mill  for  manufac- 
turing building  lumber,  on  Red  Water  brook,  about  two  miles 
above  where  the  brook  crosses  the  highway  to  Windsor.  Here,  by 
reason  of  the  large  fall,  he  has  ample  power  except  in  very  dry 
times. 

SHOE    MANUFACTUEING. 

Nicholas  Farwell  came  to  town  in  1803,  and  had  a  small  shoe- 
maker's shop  on  Town  hill,  just  north  of  the  Michael  Lovell  home- 
stead farm,  now  owned  by  Dr.  0.  B.  Way.  In  1813  he  moved  to 
the  village  and  began,  on  a  small  scale,  to  manufacture  women's 
sale  shoes  by  hand,  in  the  honest  old  fashioned  way,  doing  much  of 
the  work  himself  These  shoes  he  sold  to  country  merchants.  At 
first  it  was  hard  to  convince  them  that  any  shoe  not  made  to 
measure  by  the  home  shoemaker  was  worth  having,  or  that  they 
could  be  sold  to  any  considerable  extent.  But  Mr.  Farwell  war- 
ranted his  work  to  be  as  represented,  and  before  long  a  demand 
was  created  for  it.  His  way  was  to  carry  out,  sell,  and  deliver  his 
shoes  himself.  His  best  market  was  found  on  the  west  side  of 
Green  mountain  in  Vermont.  In  one  of  his  earl}'  trips  he  went  to 
Vergennes  and  oflJered  his  goods  to  the  merchants  there,  who  each 
and  all  turned  a  cold  shoulder  to  him  and  declined  to  buy  or  look 


HISTORY   OF    CLAKEMONT.  209 

at  his  goods,  saying  there  was  no  demand  for  thena  in  that  vicinity. 
Mr.  Farwell  was  not  the  man  to  be  discouraged  or  beaten  in  what 
he  undertook.  His  reply  was  "  I  will  create  a  demand  for  my 
shoes."  He  drew  his  wagon  up  in  front  of  the  principal  tavern,  got 
out  his  shoes  and  began  to  exhibit  them  to  the  crowd  of  people  who 
had  gathered  to  see  what  he  had  to  sell.  He  said  he  only  wished 
to  show  his  shoes  but  did  not  care  to  sell  them.  He  explained  their 
quality,  told  where  they  were  made,  and  said  he  warranted  every 
pair  of  shoes  that  bore  his  mark.  They  were  so  much  more  stylish 
and  handsome  than  home-made  work,  and  appeared  so  good  that 
people  began  to  call  for  them.  The  next  time  Mr.  Farwell  went  to 
Vergennes  those  same  merchants  who  had  treated  him  so  coldly 
were  only  too  ready  to  buy  his  shoes,  and  for  many  years  afterwards 
ladies  in  that  section  wanted  no  other  than  Farwell's  Claremont 
shoe.  The  business  increased  rapidly  until  more  than  a  hundred 
hands,  in  and  out  of  the  shop,  were  employed.  The  shop  was  on 
Broad  street,  corner  of  what  was  Scrap  alley,  now  Pine  street.  Just 
south  of  this  Mr.  Farwell  opened  a  general  store  to  supply  his  help 
with  necessaries. 

In  1827  Mr.  Farwell  took  his  two  oldest  sons,  George  K  and 
"William  H.,  into  partnership.  After  a  year  or  two  the  senior 
member  of  the  j&rm  retired,  William  H.  took  the  store,  and  George 
N.  continued  the  shoe  business.  He  erected  the  two-story  brick 
building,  corner  of  Broad  and  Pine  streets,  which  was  subse- 
quently converted  into  a  dwelling-house  and  is  now  owned  and 
occupied  by  Mrs.  "William  Clark,  and  took  Lewis  Perry  into 
partnership.  In  1851  Russell  W.  Farwell,  a  brother  of  George 
K,  also  became  a  partner,  and  the  firm  was  styled  G.  K  Farwell, 
Perry  &  Co.  In  1852  Mr.  Perry  sold  his  interest  to  his  partners, 
and  the  firm  name  was  changed  to  G.  N.  Farwell  &  Co.,  and 
so  continued  until  1858,  when  Russell  W.  bought  his  brother's 
interest  and  became  sole  proprietor,  soon  after  which  the  business 
was  removed  to  the  old  Claremont  bank  building,  on  the  east 
side  of  Broad  street.  In  1865  Edward  J.  Tenney  became  a  partner 
with  Russell   W.  Farwell,   and   the   business  was   carried   on  by 


210  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

Farwell  &  Tenney  there  and  in  the  building  south  side  of  the 
upper  bridge  until  1871,  when  they  divided  the  stock,  machinery, 
and  tools,  and  Mr.  Farwell  went  on  alone,  and  with  one  or  more 
partners  for  a  few  years,  and  then  removed  to  Rutland,  Vt. 

Mr.  Tenney  formed  a  copartnership  with  Augustus  Barrett 
and  they  carried  on  about  the  same  kind  of  business  in  a  build- 
ing corner  of  School  and  Oak  streets,  until  1877,  when  Mr.  Bar- 
rett sold  his  interest  to  his  son,  George  A.,  and  he  and  Mr. 
Tenney  continued  until  1881,  when  George  A.  Barrett  bought 
Mr.  Tenney's  interest,  carried  on  the  business  alone  for  four  or 
five  years,  and  then  it  was  abandoned. 

In  May,  1846,  William  T.  ISToyes  came  from  Newport  to  Clare- 
mont  and  opened  a  shoe  store  in  Gleason's  brick  building,  cor- 
ner of  Broad  and  Tremont  streets,  and  manufactured  by  hand 
women's  shoes  for  his  own  retail  trade.  In  the  following  Sep- 
tember, his  brother,  Silas  E.  Noyes,  came,  took  the  business  and 
continued  to  make  the  same  kind  of  shoes,  in  the  same  way, 
to  supply  his  retail  trade,  and  some  in  a  small  way,  to  sell  at 
wholesale.  He  gradually  increased  his  business  of  manufactur- 
ing until  1855,  when  he  made  from  forty  to  sixty  pairs  of 
women's  shoes  per  day,  employing  from  eight  to  ten  hands.  In 
1865  he  bought  the  first  Gordon  McKay  machine,  for  stitch- 
ing on  soles,  that  was  brought  into  town,  and  with  the  help  of 
this  and  other  machinery,  increased  his  production,  and  em- 
ployed twenty  men  and  ten  women  in  his  business.  Shoe  manu- 
facturing changed  by  the  introduction  of  machines  for  making 
every  part  of  a  shoe  aud  putting  it  together,  got  into  large  es- 
tablishments where  a  great  amount  of  capital  was  required  to 
carry  it  on  successfully^  so  that  small  shops  could  not  compete 
with  the  large  ones,  and  Mr.  Noyes,  as  did  all  the  other  shoe- 
makers then  in  town,  gradually  abandoned  the  business. 

INDUSTBIES. 

In  1836  Ebenezer  E.  Bailey  bought  a  small  piece  of  land,  at 
the  junction  of  Sullivan  and  Main  streets,  of  Paran  Stevens,  and 


HISTORY   OF   CLAEBMONT.  211 

erected  upon  it  a  two-story  brick  building.  For  several  years 
previous  Mr.  Bailey  bad  been  engaged  in  manufacturing  silver 
spoons  and  spectacles,  at  West  Unity,  wbich  were  mostly  sold 
by  peddlers  going  about  on  foot,  carrying  tin  trunks.  Wben 
this  building  was  completed  he  removed  his  business  to  Clare- 
mont.  Later  he  bought  at  sheriff's  sale  the  house  and  lot  ad- 
joining on  the  west  and  made  an  addition  of  fifteen  feet  to  his 
building,  which  is  now  the  Fiske  Free  Library  building.  He 
took  his  brother,  Samuel  C,  into  partnership,  and  they  carried 
on  the  silversmith  and  jewelry  business  quite  extensively,  under 
the  firm  name  of  E.  E.  &  S.  C.  Bailey,  for  twenty-five  years, 
when  the  business  of  manufacturing  was  practically  given  up. 
Ebenezer  E.  Bailey  fell  from  an  elm  tree,  on  Washington  street, 
in  the  summer  of  1862,  and  was  instantly  killed.  Samuel  0. 
Bailey  removed  to  Missouri  in  1873,  where  he  now  lives. 

About  1867  Josiah  "W.  Deane  commenced  the  manufacture  of 
cigars,  in  Perry's  block.  In  1860  Edward  J.  Tenney  became  a 
partner,  and  they  carried  on  quite  an  extensive  business  in  mak- 
ing cigars,  employing  fifteen  hands,  and  as  wholesale  dealers  in 
manufactured  tobacco,  under  the  firm  name  of  J.  W.  Deane  & 
Co.,  until  1865,  when  Mr.  Tenney  sold  his  interest,  and  was 
succeeded  by  Henry  C.  Deane,  a  brother  of  Josiah  W.,  who  sub- 
sequently became  sole  proprietor,  continued  the  business  a  few 
years,  and  then  removed  to  Ogdensburg,  N.  Y. 

CLAEEMONT  CREAMEEY. 

The  Claremont  Creamery  Association  was  organized  under  the 
voluntary  corporation  act,  March  6,  1889,  with  a  capital  of  $3,000. 
Erastus  B.  Bailey  was  chosen  president,  Dudley  T.  Chase,  clerk, 
and  Edwin  B.  Heywood,  business  manager.  Land  was  bought 
of  Reuben  B.  Ellis,  on  Washington  street,  buildings  erected  and 
the  first  butter  was  made  in  June  of  that  year.  In  April,  1891 
the  capital  stock  was  increased  to  $4,000,  which  is  in  shares  of 
$50  each,  and  is  largely  owned  by  laatrons  of  the  creamery 
The  total  receipts  for  1891  were  $25,495  ;  paid  for  cream,  $20,J 


212  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

butter  made  in  1892,  over  one  hundred  thousand  pounds,  of  su- 
perior quality.  Of&cers  for  1893,  Reuben  B.  Ellis,  president; 
William  B.  Ellis,  treasurer;  Charles  B.  Spofford,  clerk;  Reuben 
B.  Ellis,  Geo.  F.  Long,  George  F.  Scott,  and  Ora  D.  Blanchard, 
directors. 


MILITARY. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

REVOLUTIONARY   WAR. 
STAMP  ACT. 

In  1764  an  act  of  Parliament  was  passed  for  raising  a  revenue 
by  a  general  stamp  duty  through  all  the  American  colonies, 
which  the  colonists  regarded  as  an  assumption  of  power  by  Eng- 
land and  oppression  to  her  subjects  in  America.  The  stamped 
paper  was  prepared  in  England,  brought  over  in  bales,  and  Ameri- 
can citizens  appointed  to  distribute  it.  The  act  was  so  framed 
that  it  was  claimed  it  would  execute  itself,  as  no  writing  could 
be  deemed  legal  without  the  stamp,  and  every  newspaper  and 
other  publication  must  bear  them.  To  this  oppressive  act  there 
was  a  spirit  of  resistance  manifested  all  over  the  country. 

SONS  OF  LIBERTY. 

The  House  of  Burgesses  in  Virginia  passed  some  strong  and 
spirited  resolutions,  asserting  the  rights  of  the  country.  The 
Assembly  of  Massachusetts  proposed  a  Congress  of  Depiities  from 
each  Colony,  to  consult  upon  our  common  interests  in  the  mat- 
ter, as  had  been  practiced  in  times  of  common  danger.  Several 
speeches  were  made,  in  one  of  which  the  Americans  were  styled 
"  Sons  of  Liberty."  The  actions  of  Virginia  and  Massachusetts 
were  generally  approved  by  the  colonists,  and  according  to  Dr. 
Belknap's  History  of  New  Hampshire,  the  title  of  "  Sons  of  Lib- 
erty "  was  eagerly  adopted  by  associations  in  every  colony.  The 
spirit  of  opposition  to  the  stamp  act  was  first  manifested  in  Boston 
by  publicly  exhibiting  effigies  of  the  enemies  of  America,  and 


216  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

obliging  the  officer  appointed  to  distribute  the  stamped  paper  to 
resign  his  employment.  This  spirit  of  opposition  extended  and 
animated  the  mass  of  the  people  in  every  colony.  G-eorge  Meserve, 
of  Portsmouth,  being  in  England,  was  appointed  to  distribute  the 
stamps  in  New  Hampshire,  and  embarked  for  America.  Before  he 
landed  he  was  informed  of  the  opposition  to  the  act,  and  that  it 
would  be  agreeable  to  the  people  if  he  would  resign,  which  he  un- 
hesitatingly did,  and  was  heartily  welcomed  on  shore.  On  his  arrival 
at  Portsmouth  he  made  a  second  resignation  before  he  went  to  his 
own  house.  Soon  after  this  the  stamped  paper  designed  for  Massa- 
chusetts and  'Hew  Hampshire  arrived  in  Boston,  but  there  being  no 
one  in  either  province  who  was  authorized  to  receive  it  or  had  any 
concern  with  it,  the  governor  of  Massachusetts  ordered  it  lodged 
in  the  castle. 

The  stamp  act  was  to  go  into  efi'ect  on  the  first  day  of  November, 
previous  to  which  the  appointed  congress,  consisting  of  delegates 
from  Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,  Connecticut,  New  York,  New 
Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Delaware,  Maryland,  and  South  Carolina, 
was  formed  in  New  York.  This  congress  framed  a  bill  of  rights 
for  the  colonies,  in  which  the  sole  power  of  taxation  was  declared 
to  be  in  their  own  assemblies.  They  prepared  three  distinct  ad- 
dresses to  the  King,  Lords,  and  Commons,  stating  their  grievances 
and  asking  for  redress.  These  were  signed  by  the  delegates  of  six 
colonies ;  the  others  present  were  not  empowered  to  sign,  but  their 
constituents  subsequently  approved  the  proceedings  in  assembly 
and  forwarded  their  petitions.  No  delegate  went  from  New  Hamp- 
shire to  this  congress,  but  the  assembly  at  their  next  meeting 
adopted  the  same  measures  and  sent  similar  petitions  to  England. 

It  was  doubtful  whether  the  courts  of  law  could  do  business 
without  these  stamps ;  but  public  sentiment  was  more  powerful 
than  the  act  of  Parliament,  and  business  was  transacted  by  the 
courts,  and  newspapers  and  pamphlets  opposing  the  act  were  issued, 
without  bearing  the  ofiensive  stamp.  The  courts  of  law  and  cus. 
tom-houses  were  kept  open,  and  licenses  for  marriage,  without 
stamps,  were  publicly  advertised.      Dr.  Belknap,  in  his  history, 


HISTORY    OP   CLAKBMONT.  217 

said:  "As  it  was  uncertain  what  might  be  the  event  of  the  peti- 
tions to  the  King  and  Parliament,  it  was  thought  best  to  awakeii 
the  attention  of  the  merchants  and  manufacturers  of  England,  by  an 
agreement  to  import  no  goods  until  the  stamp  act  should  be  re- 
pealed. To  provide  for  the  worst,  an  association  was  formed  by 
the  '  Sons  of  Liberty '  in  all  the  northern  colonies,  to  stand  by  each 
other,  and  unite  their  whole  force  for  the  protection  and  relief  of 
any  who  might  be  in  danger,  from  the  operation  of  this  or  any 
other  oppressive  act."  "  The  petitions  of  the  American  assem- 
blies, enforced  by  the  agreement  for  non-importation,  and  aided  by 
the  exertions  of  the  British  merchants  and  manufacturers,  induced 
the  new  ministry  to  recommend  to  Parliament  a  repeal  of  the 
odious  stamp  act.  It  was  accordingly  repealed,  not  on  the  true 
principle  of  its  repugnancy  to  the  rights  of  America,  but  on  that 
of  political  expediency." 

DDTT  ACT. 

In  1767,  a  new  act  of  Parliament,  laying  duties  on  paper, 
glass,  painters'  colors,  and  tea,  and  estabhshing  a  board  of  com- 
missioners for  collecting  the  American  revenue,  was  passed. 
According  to  Dr.  Belknap,  "In  the  other  colonies,  particularly 
in  Massachusetts,  these  duties  had  become  a  subject  of  alterca- 
tion and  serious  alarm,  being  grounded  on  the  right  which  the 
Parliament  had  assumed  of  binding  America  in  all  cases  whatso- 
ever." The  merchants  in  most  of  the  colonies  united  in  adopt- 
ing a  non-importation  agreement,  which  so  affected  the  manu- 
facturers of  Great  Britain  that  they  exerted  their  influence  for 
the  repeal  of  this  revenue  law,  and  all  the  duties,  except  that  on 
tea,  were  taken  off.  This  did  not  satisfy  the  Americans.  The 
controversy  between  England  and  the  colonies  seemed  to  be  ap- 
proaching a  crisis.  By  the  reservation  of  the  duty  on  tea,  the 
Parliament  insisted  on  it  as  their  right  to  tax  their  American 
brethren  without  their  consent,  to  which  the  latter  could  not  be 
brought  to  agree,  and  they  opposed  the  claim  by  refusing  to 
purchase  or  use  the  tea  brought  here  on  such  conditions.  Dr. 
Belknap  says :  "  The   revenue   failed   and  the  warehouses  of  the 

15 


218  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

East  India  Company  were  filled  with  an  unsalable  commodity. 
The  ministry  and  the  company  thus  severely  disappointed,  formed 
a  plan  by  which  it  was  expected  that  the  one  would  enforce 
its  claim  and  the  other  secure  its  traffic.  It  was  therefore 
enacted  by  Parliament  that  the  duty  on  the  exportation  of  tea 
from  Britian  should  be  taken  otF,  and  the  East  India  Company 
be  enabled  to  send  tea,  on  their  own  account  to  America,  sub- 
ject to  a  duty  of  only  three  pence  on  the  pound,  by  which 
means  it  would  come  to  us  cheaper  than  before,  or  than  it  could 
be  procured  by  illicit  trade." 

This  attempt  to  accomplish  by  indirection  what  England  did 
not  think  it  wise  or  safe  to  insist  upon  directly,  so  incensed  the 
Americans  that  the  principal  trading  towns  passed  resolutions 
not  to  permit  tea  freighted  by  the  East  India  Company  to  be 
landed  or  sold;  and  in  many  instances  it  was  returned  unladen, 
while  in  others  it  was  stored  until  it  could  be  re-shipped.  In 
Boston  a  large  cargo  was  thrown  into  the  sea  and  destroyed,  by 
citizens  in  disguise.  In  N^ew  Hampshire,  by  the  wise  course  of 
Governor  Wentworth,  assisted  by  citizens,  the  hateful  commodity 
was  sent  away  without  damage  and  but  little  tumult. 

A  general  distrust  and  detestation  of  the  measures  of  the  Brit- 
ish ministry  prevailed  in  the  colonies  in  1774,  and  the  towns 
severally  passed  resolutions  in  which  they  asserted  their  right  to 
exemption  from  taxation  by  Parliament;  condemning  the  impor- 
tation and  use  of  tea  and  appointing  committees  to  carry  their 
resolutions  into  effect.  The  committees  were  vigilant  and  were 
efficiently  aided  by  the  almost  universal  sentiment  of  the  people. 

The  Parliament  assumed  judicial  as  well  as  legislative  powers 
over  America,  but  the  people  were  not  to  be  frightened  or  co- 
erced, and  were  united  in  their  determination  to  resist  the  op- 
pressive acts  of  the  British  Parliament,  and  further  encroach- 
ments upon  the  sacred  rights  of  liberty,  and  also  to  demand  and 
regain,  if  in  their  p)ower,  the  enjoyment  of  those  ptrivileges 
which  had  been  taken  away. 

In  1775  it  was  the  general  belief  that  by  reason  of  the  op- 
pressive   acts    of  the  British    Parliament,  war   with    the    mother 


HISTOKT    OF    CLAREMONT.  219 

country  was  inevitable.  Much  the  greater  part  of  the  people  of 
Claremont  were  in  favor  of  open  hostility  with  England,  while  some 
regretted  the  existence  of  the  difficulty,  and  a  few  avowed  them- 
selves firm  royalists,  labored  to  furnish  aid  and  comfort  in  vari- 
ous ways  to  the  King  and  his  army,  and  were  denominated  Tories. 

In  Claremont  the  two  latter  classes  were  more  numerous  than 
in  most  towns  in  'Kew  Hampshire,  of  the  same,  or  nearly  equal, 
population.  The  town  was  comparatively  new,  and  many  of  the 
settlers  were  either  recently  from  England  or  the  sons  of  English- 
men, and  their  attachment  to  the  old  country  would  naturally 
be  stronger  than  that  of  those  who  could  then  behold  in  their 
midst  the  graves  of  their  ancestors  covered  with  the  turf  of  a 
century.  Many  regarded  violent  resistance  as  dangerous  and  felt 
that  it  probably  would  be  unavailing.  Still,  the  spirit  of  resist- 
ance against  the  tyranny  of  England  was  popular,  and  the  neu- 
trals and  Tories  were  greatly  in  the  minority.  About  this  time 
many  families,  some  of  whose  descendants  are  now  inhabitants 
of  this  town,  disgusted  with  the  opposition  of  the  Whigs,  re- 
moved to  a  large  township  in  Canada, called  Shipton,in  which  is 
now  a  parish  or  borough  bearing  the  name  of  Claremont.  Thither 
also  many  who  remained  here  during  the  war  resorted  after  its 
close.  Many  also  removed  to  New  York  state,  keeping  them- 
selves under  the  protection  of  the  British  until  the  war  was 
ended,  soon  after  which  most  of  them  returned  to  Claremont. 

Among  those  who  left  about  this  time  was  Col.  Benjamin  Sumner, 
who  took  up  his  residence  on  Long  Island.  He  was  suspected  of 
being  on  friendly  terms  with  the  British,  but  so  far  as  is  known  no 
act  of  disloyalty  was  ever  proved  against  him.  He  occasionally 
made  short  visits  to  the  town,  when  on  his  journeys  to  and  from 
Canada,  carefully  avoiding  any  contact  with  his  former  townsmen, 
excepting  certain  known  and  well-tried  friends.  Several  attempts 
were  made  by  the  Committee  of  Safety  and  other  active  Whigs  to 
arrest  him  when  on  his  flying  visits,  but  without  success.  One 
William  McCoy,  a  noted  Tory,  was  believed  to  be  his  confidential 
friend   and   adviser.     So  artful  and   shrewd   was  McCoy  in   this 


220  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

sort  of  sly  diplomacy,  that  it  was  impossible  to  fasten  upon  him 
any  act  of  a  treasonable  nature,  although  the  effort  was  often  made 
to  do  so.  After  the  close  of  the  war  Colonel  Sumner  returned  to 
town,  was  several  times  elected  one  of  the  selectmen  and  to  other 
offices  of  honor  and  trust,  and  in  1793  and  1794  was  a  representa- 
tive in  the  Hew  Hampshire  legislature. 

Among  others  who  left  town  about  this  time  were  Capt.  Ben- 
jamin Brooks,  one  Spencer,  several  by  the  names  of  Leat  and  Nut- 
ting, and  John  Brooks,  son  of  Capt.  Benjamin  Brooks.  John 
Brooks  actually  joined  the  British  army,  and  served  during  the  war. 
His  farm  and  all  his  property  in  town  was  confiscated  and  sold ;  but, 
after  the  close  of  the  war  and  the  treaty  with  Great  Britain,  his 
property,  or  the  value  of  it,  was  restored  to  him.  No  favor  was 
shown  to  the  Tories,  or  those  suspected  as  such,  by  the  mass  of  the 
people.  Public  indignation  was  aroused  to  so  great  an  extent  that 
Tories  and  suspected  persons  were  continually  in  imminent  danger 
of  th«  loss  of  liberty,  and  even  life  itself,  without  the  formality  of 
legal  proceedings. 

A  small  company  of  resolute  and  determined  "Whigs,  among 
whom  were  Timothy  Atkins  and  two  or  three  of  his  brothers  —  all 
young  men  of  unusual  size  and  remarkable  strength  and  activity  — 
associated  themselves  together,  and  resolved  to  rid  the  town  of  all 
Tories.  These  men  solemnly  promised  to  give  each  other  immedi- 
ate information  if  a  Tory  was  discovered  to  be  lurking  about,  and 
to  pursue  him  instantly ;  and  if  capture  were  imjiossible,  to  shoot 
him,  if  that  could  be  done.  In  the  neighborhood  of  such  men 
there  could  be  but  little  repose  or  security  for  the  enemies  of  free- 
dom. Summer  was  the  season  when  the  secret  agents  of  the  Brit- 
ish were  scouring  the  remote  parts  of  the  country,  picking  up, 
here  and  there,  whatever  information  they  could  find  respecting 
the  condition  and  movements  of  the  people,  and  carefully  noting 
everything  which  they  judged  important  to  the  interests  of  their 
employers.  Scattered  along  the  route  from  New  York  to 
Canada  were  certain  places  of  rendezvous,  where  any  one  of  them 
on  his  mission  might  be  safely  concealed  and  find  ready  means  of 


HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT.  221 

communication  with  his  confederates  in  the  neighborhood.  About 
fifty  rods  below  what  is  known  as  the  Rich  place,  on  the  right  hand 
aide  of  the  road  as  you  go  toward  Red  Water  brook,  is  a  place 
famous  in  Revolutionary  times  as  a  favorite  resort  for  Tories.  It 
has  since  been  known  as  "  Tory  Hole."  So  perfectly  adapted  was 
this  spot  to  the  purposes  and  wants  of  its  occupants  that  for  a 
long  time  they  assembled  there  without  exciting  the  least  suspi- 
cion among  the  active  and  vigilant  Whigs. 

Inaccessible  on  three  sides  by  a  swamp  covered  with  a  thick 
growth  of  alders,  and  protected,  on  its  fourth  side,  by  a  steep  bank 
about  thirty  feet  high,  it  was,  notwithstanding,  easily  approached 
by  those  who  were  familiar  with  the  ground.  The  side  of  the 
precipice  toward  the  retreat  was  nearly  circular  in  form,  and  was 
intersected  by  a  deep  ravine,  which  afibrded  means  of  access  from 
one  direction.  Another  way  began  a  little  below  the  Rich  place, 
and  wound  along  the  foot  of  the  bank.  The  surface  of  the  ground, 
including  the  spot,  was  irregular  and  slightly  elevated.  A  few 
yards  distant  was  a  cool,  bubbling  spring  of  water.  The  Tories  in 
the  neighborhood  were  accustomed  to  convey  thither  provisions 
and  whatever  else  might  be  needed  by  the  transient  visitors  to  the 
place.  This  led  to  the  discovery  of  the  retreat.  One  night,  in  the 
autumn  of  1780,  a  man,  with  a  huge  pack  on  his  shoulders,  was 
seen  passing  along  the  road  by  the  Rich  place.  His  singular  move- 
ments attracted  attention,  and  he  was  closely  watched.  Turning 
into  the  woods  a  short  distance  from  the  house  of  Mr.  Rich,  he  was 
instantly  out  of  sight. 

Information  of  the  fact  was  quickly  communicated,  and  soon 
many  persons  were  collected  at  the  spot.  The  grounds  were  care- 
fully reconnoitered,  and  the  secret  was  discovered.  As  the  night 
was  very  dark,  further  search  was  postponed  until  the  next  morn- 
ing. A  watch  was  posted  by  the  path,  with  instructions  to  seize 
or  shoot  any  one  who  should  attempt  to  pass.  Before  sunrise  a 
party  assembled  and  renewed  the  search.  As  they  approached  the 
rendezvous, two  men  suddenly  started  up,  and  ran  toward  a  ravine; 
and  now  the  race  began.     The  jjursued  had  several  rods  the  start 


222  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

of  the  pursuers,  beside  the  advantage  of  the  dense  forest  and  the 
scanty  light.  The  course  of  the  former  was  toward  Connecticut 
river.  It  required  close  attention  and  scrutiny  to  keep  on  their 
track,  and  the  "Whig  party  were  often  on  the  point  of  giving  up 
the  search  as  fruitless.  Then  some  new  trace  would  be  discovered, 
and  they  would  go  forward  with  renewed  vigor.  At  length  they 
reached  Connecticut  river,  where  they  found  that  the  fugitives  had 
swam  across.  Fastening  their  arms  upon  their  backs,  they  plunged 
into  the  stream,  and  on  gaining  the  opposite  side,  the^'  found  the 
tracks  of  the  other  party.  At  night  they  encamped  in  the  woods 
at  the  base  of  Ascutney  mountain,  and  in  the  morning  began  its 
ascent  from  different  points.  On  arriving  at  the  summit  they  found 
the  fugitives  asleep.  They  were  easily  captured,  and  gave  their 
names  as  Johns  and  Buel.  Having  arms  with  them,  they  could  not, 
according  to  the  rules  of  war,  be  treated  as  spies,  and  were  therefore 
held  as  prisoners  of  war.  They  were  taken  to  Charlestown,  from 
thence  to  Boston,  and  afterward  exchanged.  One  Kentfield  was 
also  pursued  from  "  Tory  Hole,"  and  driven  across  Connecticut 
river.  He  managed  to  escape  from  his  pursuers  at  this  time ;  but 
in  a  few  days  after  was  discovered  by  Isaac  Hubbard,  then  but  a 
child,  while  re-crossing  the  river  into  New  Hampshire.  He  was 
again  pursued,  captured  after  a  fierce  resistance,  and  taken  to 
Charlestown,  where  he  was  confined  for  some  time ;  but  as  it  was 
impossible  to  prove  him  a  spy,  he  was  released.  Afterward  he 
joined  the  Continental  army,  deserted  in  a  few  days,  was  captured, 
and  hung. 

On  April  12,  1776,  the  Committee  of  Safety  for  the  Colony  of 
l^ew  Hampshire  issued  the  following  mandate,  as  appears  from 
documents  arranged  by  John  Farmer  agreeably  to  an  order  of 
the  legislature  of  New  Hampshire,  in  1837,  as  copied  verbatim 
from  "  State  Papers  of  New  Hampshire,"  Vol.  VIII. : 

CoLOKY  OF  New  Hampshire. 

In  Committee  of  Safety,  April  12,  1776. 
In  order  to  carry  the  underwritten  Resolve  of  the  Hon'ble  Continental  Con- 
gress into  Execution,  you   are  required  to   desire  all  Males   above  Twenty-one 


o 

O 

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O 
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o 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  223 

years  of  age  (Lunaticks,  Idiots  and  Negroes  excepted),  to  sign  the  Declaration 
on  this  Paper;  and  wheu  so  done,  to  make  Return  thereof,  together  with  the 
Name  or  Names  of  all  who  shall  refuse  to  sign  the  same,  to  the  General  As- 
sembly or  Committee  of  Safety  of  this  Colony. 

M.  Wearb,  Chairman. 

In  Congress,  March  14,  1776. 
Resolved,  That  it  be  recommended  to  the  Several  Assemblies,  Conventions 
and  Councils,  or  Committees  of  Safety  of  the  United  Colonies,  immediately  to 
cause  all  Persons  to  be  disarmed,  within  their  respective  colonies,  who  are  noto- 
riously disaffected  to  the  cause  of  America,  or  who  have  not  associated  and 
refuse  to  associate,  to  defend  by  arms,  the  United  Colonies  against  the  Hostile 
attempts  of  the  British  Fleets  and  Armies. 

(Copy)  Extract  from  the  Minutes. 

Charles  Thompson,  Secretary. 

In  consequence  of  the  above  Resolution  of  the  Hon.  Continental  Congress, 
and  to  show  our  Determination  in  joining  our  American  Brethren  in  defending 
the  Lives,  Liberties  and  Properties  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  United  Colonies, 

We  the  Subscribers,  do  hereby  Solemnly  engage  and  promise,  that  we  will 
to  the  utmost  of  our  Power,  at  the  Risque  of  our  Lives  and  Fortunes,  with 
Arms  oppose  the  Hostile  Proceedings  of  the  British  Fleets  and  Armies  against 
the  United  American  Colonies. 

REMARKS  ON  THE  FOREGOING  BY  THE  LATE  JOHN  FARMER. 

The  preceding  text  was  the  Declaration  of  Independence  by  the  People  of 
New  Hampshire.  It  was  a  Similar  act  to  that  of  the  Patriots  who  signed  the 
National  Declaration  on  the  Fourth  of  July,  1776.  It  preceded  that  event,  and 
seems  to  have  been  a  sanction  or  an  encouragement  to  those  who  contemplated  it. 
It  was  a  bold  and  hazardous  step  in  subjects  thus  to  resist  the  authority  of  one  of 
the  most  powerful  Sovereigns  in  the  world.  Had  the  cause  in  which  these  men 
pledged  their  Lives  and  Fortunes  failed,  it  would  have  subjected  every  individual 
who  signed  it  to  the  pains  and  penalties  of  treason  —  to  a  cruel  and  ignomin- 
ious death. 

It  is  not  to  be  understood  that  all  who  declined  signing  it  were  Tories  or 
were  disaffected  to  the  American  cause ;  Some  of  them  were  Friends,  whose 
principles  forbade  their  signing  a  pledge  to  oppose  their  enemies  with  Arms ; 
others  who  were  really  friends  to  the  cause  of  opposition  to  the  British,  had 
conscientious  scruples,  and  others  doubtless  were  influenced  by  their  timidity. 
Among  those  whose  conscientious  scruples  prevented  them  from  giving  such  a 
pledge,  was  Eleazer  Russell,  Esq.,  of  Portsmouth,  (?)  who,  in  a  letter  to  President 
Weare,  says  "  It  was,  and  is,  merely  to  secure  the  morality  of  my  mind  that  I 
was  reluctant  to  put  my  name  to  it.    Solemnly  to  bind  mysslf  to  the  perform- 


224 


HISTORi'    OF    CLAEEMONT. 


anoe  of  what  nature  and  necessity  rendered  impossible,  I  started  at  the  thought 
of,  and  though  my  health  is  mended,  so  wrecked  are  my  nerves,  that  I  could  not 
do  one  hour's  military  duty  to  save  my  life.  The  article  of  shedding  blood,  in 
me  is  not  a  humor,  but  a  principle — not  an  evasion,  but  a  fact.  It  was  re- 
ceived in  early  life,  and  has  '  grown  with  my  growth,  and  stregthened  with 
my  strength.'  Not  a  partiality  for  British  more  than  Savage  blood ;  for,  all 
circumstances  considered,  I  think  the  latter  more  innocent  than  the  former." 


SIGNERS    IN   CLAREMONT. 


Claremont,  May  30th,  1776. 
In  compliance  to  the   above  Declaration,  we   have  Shone  the   Declaration  to 
All  the  Inhabitants  of  this  Town,  and  the  Associates  are  those  who  have  signed 
to  this  paper. 


Matthias  Stone, 
Asa  Jones, 


Selectmen. 


The  following  ISTames  of  those  who 

Thomas   Goodwin, 
Joseph  York, 
Matthias  Stone, 
Jacob  Rice, 
William  Osgood, 
Asa  Jones, 
John  Spencer, 
Lemuel  Hubbard, 
Christopher  York, 
David  Bates, 
T.  Sterne, 
Barnabas  Ellis, 
Joel  Hoys,  ? 
Samuel  Tuttle, 
Stephen  Hige,  ? 
Charles  Higbe, 
Edward  Goodwin, 
Ephraim  French, 
Joseph  Ives, 
Elihu  Stevens,  Junior, 
Ichabod  Hitchcock, 
Ebenezer  Dudley, 
Daniel  Curte,  ? 
Josiah  Rich, 


are  twenty-one  years  of  age  and  upward : 

David  Lynd, 
Oliver  Ashley, 
Eleazer  Clark, 
Eleazer  Clark,  Junior, 
Joseph  Hubbard, 
Amasa  Fuller, 
Jerime  Spencer, 
Patrick  Fields, 
Gideon  Lewis, 
Josiah  Stevens, 
Seth  Lewis, 
John  Kilborn, 
John  Peake, 
John  West, 
David  Rich, 
Ebenezer  Washburn, 
Bill  Barnes, 
John  Adkius, 
Amaziah  Knights, 
John  Goss, 
Ezra  Jones, 
William  Sims, 
David  Adkins, 
Timothy  Adkins, 


HISTOKY   OP   CLAREMONT. 


225 


Oliver  Ellsworth, 
Jonathan  Parker, 
Edward  Ainsworth, 
Nathaniel  Goss, 
Joel  Matthews, 
Oliver  Tuttle, 
Amos  Conant, 
Samuel  Ashley, 
John  Sprague, 
Adam  Alden, 
James  Alden, 


Moses  Spaford, 
Benjamin  Towner, 
Samuel  Lewis, 
Abner  Matthews, 
Elihu  Stephens, 
Jonas  Stuard, 
Beniah  Murry, 
Thomas  Duston, 
Timothy  Duston. 


Total,  84. 


N.  B.  —  These  are  the  Names  of  those  who  have  actually  taken  up  arms  and 
are  now  in  the  Continental  Army  : 


Lieut.  Col.  Joseph  Waite, 
Lieut.  Joseph  Taylor, 
Ens.  Thomas  Jones. 
S.  Abner  Matthews,  Jr., 
James  Gooden, 
Jonathan  Fuller, 
Peter  Fuller, 
Reuben  Spencer, 
Gersham  York, 


Benjamin  Towner,  Jr., 
David  Laynes,  Jr., 
Charles   Laynes, 
Henry  Stephens, 
Jonathan  York, 
Joseph   York,  Jr., 
The  Rev.  Augustin  Hibbard, 
Chaplain,  &c. 

Total,  16. 


Eev.  Mr.  Hibbard  was  appointed  chaplain  on  Colonel  David 
Hobart's  staff,  by  a  vote  of  the  New  Hampshire  legislature,  April 
4,  1777,  and  subsequently  of  General  Stark's  brigade. 

The  Names  of  those  who  Refuse  to  sign  the  Declaration  : 


John  Thomas, 

Capt.  Benjamin  Brooks, 

Barnabas  Brooks, 

Capt.  Benjamin  Sumner, 

Eev.  Ranna  Cosset, 

Cornelius  Brook, 

Samuel  Cole,  Esq., 

Daniel  Warner, 

Levi  Warner, 

James  Steal, 

Amos  Snow, 

John  Hitchcock, 


Ebenezer  Edson, 
William  Coy, 
Enoch  Judd, 
Ebenezer  Judd,  Jr., 
Lieut.  Benjamin  Taylor, 
Timothy  Gran  is, 
Hezekiah  Roys, 
Asa  Leat, 
Benjamin  Leat, 
Ebenezer  Judd, 
Benjamin  Peterson, 
Benjamin  Brooks,  Jr., 


226  HISTORY   OF    CLAEEMONT. 

David  Dodge,  Doot.  William  Sumner, 

Samuel  Thomas,  Ebenezer  Roys, 

Amos  Cole,  Joseph  Norton. 

Total,  31. 

Claremont,  May  30,  1776. 
The  Declaration  having  ben  shone  to  the  within  named  persons,  they  Refuse 
to  Sign. 
Attest, 

Matthias  Stone, 


.  „  .    T„  ,  Selectmen. 

Asa  Jones,  ' 

When  the  returns  were  all  in,  it  was  found  that  there  were 
8,999  names  upon  the  declaration,  and  the  names  of  773  persons 
who  had  refused  to  sign  it  were  mentioned. 

The  following  papers  are  copied  from  the  original  minutes  of  the 
Episcopal  church,  and  are  given  as  puhlished  in  "  The  History  of 
the  Eastern  Diocese  "  : 

The  joint  Com'tee  of  Safety  from  the  Towns  of  Hanover  and  Lebanon,  having 
received  a  Letter  from  the  Com'tee  of  Safety  for  Claremont,  requesting  the 
assistance  of  said  Com'tees  in  examining  sundry  Persons  in  said  Claremont  who 
were  suspected  of  being  inimical  to  the  Liberties  of  America,  convened  with 
said  Com'tee  of  Claremont  and  the  Com'tee  of  Safety  for  the  Town  of  Cornish, 
at  the  House  of  Mr.  Joseph  York,  in  said  Claremont,  on  Tuesday  the  5th  day 
of  December,  A.  D.  1775.     At  which  time  and  place  were  present  — 

Captain  Oliver  Ashley,  Captain  Joseph  Waite,  Lieutenant  Asa  Jones,  Lieu- 
tenant Joseph  Taylor,  Ensign  Ebenezer  Clark,  Deacon  Jacob  Eoyce,  Com'tee 
of  Claremont  : 

Samuel  Chase,  Esq.,  Colonel  Jonathau  Chase,  Deacon  Hall,  Mr.  Commins, 
Captain  Spalding,  Com'tee  of  Cornish  : 

Deacon  Neheh  Estabrooks,  Major  John  Griswold,  Mr.  Silas  AVaterman,  Lieu- 
tenant Jedah  Hibbard,  Com'tee  of  Lebanon : 

Captain  Edmond  Freeman,  Lieutenant  David  Woodward,  Lieutenant  John 
Wright,  Com'tee  of  Hanover. 

On  which  the  Com'tee  of  said  Claremont  requested  that  all  these  Com'tees 
might  (for  sundry  reasons)  form  into  one  general  meeting  for  the  examination 
of  sundry  Persons  whom  they  had  previously  cited  to  appear  before  this  Board 
for  that  Purpose,  which  request  being  complied  with  : 

1st.    Chose  Deacon  Nehemiah  Estabrook,  Chairman. 

2d.   Chose  Lieutenant  Jede'ah  Hibbard,  Clerk. 

Sam'l   Cole,   Esq.,  Captain   Benjamin   Sumner,  Rev.  Ranna   Cossit,   Captain 


^  — wi;r!ft<GI*^^-  ■  _ 


GEORGE  N.  FARWELL'S  RESIDENCE. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAEBMONT.  227 

Benjamin  Brooks,  Lieutenant  Benjamin  Tyler,  Asa  Leet,  Eben'r  Judd,  Eben'r 
Judd,  Ju'r,  Enoch  Judd,  Eben'r  Royce,  Hez.  Royce,  John  Thomas,  Sam'l  Thomas, 
Benjamin  Brooks,  Jr.,  Barne  Brooks,  Ebenezer  Edson,  Joseph  Naughton,  Daniel 
Warner,  Jr.,  Benjamin  Leet,  James  Steel,  Ephraim  Peterson,  John  Brooks, 
Azel  Brooks,  Levi  Warner,  Zebal  Thomas,  all  of  said  Claremont.  After  which 
the  Persons  whose  names  are  annexed  appeared  before  said  Com'tee  in  conse- 
quence of  the  aforementioned  Citation,  who  on  examination  testify  and  declare, 
as  follows : 

1.  The  Rev'd  Ranna  Cossit  on  examination  says,  "I  believe  the  American 
Colonies  in  their  dispute  with  Great  Britain,  which  has  now  come  to  blood,  are 
unjust,  but  will  not  take  up  arms  either  against  the  King  or  Country,  as  my 
office  and  circumstances  are  such  that  I  am  not  obliged  thereto ;"  respecting  whom 
the  following  evidence  further  appears,  viz. :  Dr.  Thomas  Sterns  testifies  and 
says  that  the  Rev'd  Mr.  Cossit  says  :  "We  (meaning  the  Americans)  are  in  a 
state  of  Rebellion  and  are  altogether  in  the  wrong,  and  that  if  we  should  give 
up  our  Head  man  to  justice,  we  should  do  well,  and  that  the  King  and  Par- 
liament have  a  right  to  make  laws  and  lay  taxes  as  they  please  on  America, 
both  internal  and  external." 

Captain  Oliver  Ashley  testifies  the  same,  and  adds  that  such  language  is 
frequent.  Mr.  Cossit  in  presence  of  this  meeting  agrees  to  the  foregoing  depo- 
sition respecting  him,  and  adds  :  "  I  mean  to  be  on  the  side  of  the  administration 
and  I  had  as  lives  any  person  should  call  me  a  damned  Tory  or  not,  and  take  it  as 
an  affront  if  people  don't  call  me  a  Tory;  for  I  verily  believe  the  British  troops 
will  overcome  by  the  greatness  of  their  power  and  justice  of  their  cause." 

2d.  Sam'l  Cole,  Esq.,  on  examination,  says:  "It  is  a  rebellion  to  take  up 
arms  or  fight  against  the  King  or  his  Troops  in  the  present  dispute;  yea, 'tis 
more ;  it  is  treason  to  fight  against  the  King,  in  addition  to  which,  that  he  is  bound 
by  his  oath  not  to  tight  against  the  King."  Sam'l  Chase,  Esq'r,  testifies  and 
says,  "  That  about  a  fortnight  ago,  Esq'r  Cole  was  at  his  house  and  he  ofi"ered 
said  Cole  a  bill  of  paper  money  of  the  Congress  in  payment  of  a  debt ;  on 
which  said  Cole  says,  I  will  not  take  said  bill  for  it  is  of  no  more  value  than  if 
you  or  I  had  made  said  bill."  Esq'r  Cole  finally  consented  to  the  above,  and 
adds,  "I  don't  value  the  Congress  money  more  than  the  sole  of  an  old  shoe.'' 

3d.  Captain  Benjamin  Sumner,  on  examination,  says,  "As  to  the  proceed- 
ing and  conduct  of  the  American  Colonies  in  their  contest  with  Great  Britain, 
upon  the  whole  I  cannot  agree  with  them,  but  I  v^rill  not  take  up  arms  on  either 
side,  and  if  any  of  you  gentlemen  can  in  private  or  publick  debate  convince  me 
of  my  error  no  man  on  earth  shall  be  more  ready  to  hear  than  myself." 

4th.  Sam'l  Thomas,  James  Steel,  Daniel  Warner,  Jr.,  Asa  Leet,  John 
Thomas,  Benjamin  Leet,  Ebn'r  Royce,  Levi  Warner,  Ebne'r  Edson,  Azel 
Brooks  and  Zebal  Thomas,  on  examination  declare  their  sentiments  the  same  as 
those  exprest  by  Capt.  Benjamin  Sumner. 


228  HISTORY    OF    CLARBMONT. 

5th.  Hez  Royoe,  on  examination,  shews  great  contempt  in  equivocating  in  re- 
gard to  questions  asked  him  by  the  Com'tee,  but  in  reply  to  one  query  says  he 
likes  the  King's  Proclamation  last  issued. 

6th.  Captain  Benjamin  Brooks,  on  examination,  says-"  I  am  not  settled  with 
regard  to  the  dispute  between  Great  Britain  and  her  Colonies.  But  according 
to  what  I  understand  of  the  dispute,  I  rather  think  the  Americans  are  in  the 
wrong,  but  will  not  take  up  arms  on  either  side." 

7th.  Ephraim  Peterson,  Barne  Brooks  and  Joseph  Naughton  on  examina- 
tion concur  with  Captain  Benj,  Brooks. 

8th.  Lieut.  B.  Tyler  on  examination  says  "  1  am  of  the  prevailing  sentiment 
that  the  American  Colonies  in  their  contest  with  Great  Britain  are  not  just,  but 
will  not  take  up  arms  on  either  side.' 

9th.  Cornelius  Brooks  and  Ebenezer  Judd  on  examination  say  that  they  will 
not  take  up  arms  on  either  side. 

10th.  Benjamin  Brooks,  Jr.,  Enoch  Judd  and  Ebenezer,  Jr.,  on  examination 
say  that  America  is  unjust  in  her  contest  with  Great  Britain,  and  we  will  not 
take  up  arms  on  either  side. 

11th.  John  Brooks,  when  asked  how  he  feels  when  he  thinks  of  the  quarrel 
between  Great  Britain  and  her  Colonies  that  has  caused  the  blood  of  our  Ameri- 
can Brethren  to  be  shed  as  well  as  Briton's,  says  "  I  feel  for  the  King's  troops 
and  against  the  Colonies." 

Adjourned  till  to-morrow  morning  nine  o'clock. 

December  6th,  met  according  to  adjournment.  Present  as  yesterday.  Voted 
that  it  appears  to  us  on  examination  that  Captain  Benjamin  Sumner,  Samuel 
Cole,  Esq.,  and  the  Rev.  Ranna  Cossit  have  been  chief  advisors  and  dictators  to 
those  other  persons  who  have  been  under  examination,  and  it  is  our  opinion 
that  they  might  with  propriety  be  confined,  as  having  endeavoured  to  stir 
up  sedition  in  said  Claremont,  and  also  were  against  the  united  Colonies;  and 
their  names  ought  to  be  retui-ned  to  the  Honorable  Provincial  Congress  for  their 
determination,  which  the  Clerk  is  hereby  directed  to  do,  which  we  believe  may 
as  well  serve  the  general  cause  as  to  confine  all  these  persons  examined  by  us. 
Motioned  to  those  persons  who  have  been  examined  that  they  voluntarily  resign 
their  fire-arms  and  ammunition  into  the  hands  of  the  Com'tee  of  said  Clare- 
mont; which  they  unanimously  agreed  to  comply  with,  and  proposed  to  bring 
them  in  to-morrow  morning. 

3dly,  at  the  request  of  the  Com'tee  of  Claremont,  voted  that  the  above  men- 
tioned arms  and  ammunition  be  deposited  in  the  hands  of  Mr.  Barne  Ellis,  of 
said  Claremont,  and  said  Ellis  is  not  to  let  any  person  have  any  of  s'd  arms 
without  order  from  the  Com'tee  of  said  Claremont.  Voted  to  adjourn  till  to- 
morrow morning,  nine  o'clock.  Dec'r  7th,  met  according  to  adjournment.  Pres- 
ent as  yesterday. 

1st.  Received  the  firearms  and  ammunition  of  those  persons  who  have 
been  examined,  and  delivered  them  to  the  custody  of  Barne  Ellis  agreeable  to 


HISTORY    OP   CLAREMONT.  229 

the  vote  passed  yesterday,  for  each  of  which  the  Com'tee  of  said  Claremont 
gave  their  receipt  to  the  owners. 

2dly.  Voted  That  this  meeting  be  dissolved  and  it  was  dissolved  accord- 
ingly.   True  copy  from  the  minutes. 

■^**6st:  Nath'l  S.  Pkentice. 

In  Congress  at  Exeter,  Jan'y  3d,  1776 :  Voted,  That  Benjamin  Giles,  Esq'r, 
Major  John  Bellows,  Capt.  Nath'l  Sartel  Prentice,  Mr.  Thomas  Sparhawk  and 
Mr.  Elijah  Grout,  be  a  Committee  to  Examin  and  Try  Capt.  Benjamin  Sumner, 
Sam'l  Cole.  Esq'r,  the  Kev'd  Ranna  Cossit  and  Eleazer  Sanger  —  persons  re- 
puted to  be  enemies  to  the  Liberties  of  this  Countrey,  and,  on  conviction  thereof, 
to  inflict  such  Penalties  or  Punishments  as  they  shall  see  fit  —  not  to  exceed  Fine 
or  Imprisonment,  saving  an  appeal  to  this  House  or  General  Court." 

EXTRACT  FROM  THE  JOURNAL  OF  THE  CONGRESS. 

Colony  of  New  Hampshire,  Cheshire,  ss. 

Pursuant  to  the  fourgoing  resolve,  I  do  hereby  give  notice  to  the  above 
mentioned  Benjamin  Sumner,  Samuell  Cole  and  Ranna  Cossit  of  Claremont  in 
said  county  and  Eleazer  Sanger  of  Keene  in  s'd  county  to  appear  at  Charleston  at 
the  House  of  Abel  Warner,  Innholder  in  said  Charleston  on  the  second  "Wednes- 
day of  April  next  at  one  of  the  clock,  P.  M.,  to  answer  the  allegations  brought 
against  them  by  sundrie  Evidences  before  the  Commities  of  Saftie  for  the 
Towns  of  Claremont,  Cornish,  Lebanon  and  Hanover,  on  the  5th  day  of  De- 
cem'r  last  as  appears  by  an  exhibition  thereof,  to  the  late  Congress  at  Exeter. 

Benj'n  Giles,  Preside, 

In  behalf  of  the  Committ. 

Charleston,  March  28,  1776. 

Charlestown,  April  10th,  1776. 

Colony  of  New  Hampshire,  ss. 

Agreeable  to  a  resolve  of  the  Hon'ble  Congress  appointing  Benj'a  Giles, 
Esq'r,  Major  John  Bellows,  Capt.  Nath'l  Sartell  Prentice,  Mr.  Thomas  Spar- 
hawk  and  Mr.  Elijah  Grout  a  Com'tee  to  examine  and  try  Capt.  Benj'a  Sumner, 
Sam'l  Cole,  Esq'r,  Rev'd  Ranna  Cossett  and  Eleazer  Sanger,  persons  reputed  to 
be  Enemies  to  the  Liberties  of  this  Country,  etc. 

We,  the  subscribers,  having  notified  the  aforesaid  Sumner,  Cole,  Cossett  and 
Sanger  to  meet  at  time  and  place  above  mentioned,  for  the  purpose  afores'd, 
and  Mr,  Ranna  Cossett,  Sam'l  Cole,  Esq'r,  and  Capt.  Benja.  Sumner,  appearing 
upon  examination,  by  their  own  Confession  and  Evidences  in  the  Case,  having 
maturely  considered  the  same,  Judge  that  the  evidence  and  fact  exhibited  by 
the  Joint  Com'tees  of  Claremont,  Cornish,  Lebanon  and  Hanover  unto  the 
afores'd  Congress  against  the  afores'd  Cossett,  Cole  and  Sumner  are  well  sup- 
ported. 


230  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

We,  the  Subscribers,  are  of  Opinion  that  the  s'd  Mr.  Ranna  Cossett  and 
Sam'l  Cole,  Esq'r,  be,  from  and  after  the  12th  day  of  this,  instant,  April,  con- 
fined within  the  Limits  of  the  Township  of  Claremout,  in  s'd  Colony,  during  the 
present  Contest  between  Great  Britain  and  the  Colonies,  unless  they  or  either  of 
them  shall  be  released  by  certifying  their  good  Behaviour  in  future  to  the 
Com'ee  of  Claremont,  or  the  Subscribers,  or  upon  Application,  if  they  see 
Cause,  to  the  Hon'ble  Council  and  Assembly  of  this  Colony. 

Also,  that  Capt.  Benj'a.  Sumner  be  subjected  in  the  same  manner  and  within 
the  same  Limits  as  Cossett  and  Cole  above  mentioned,  or  give  sufficient  bondsi 
to  the  acceptance  of  the  Com'tee  of  Claremont,  for  the  time  being,  obligididing 
and  binding  him  to  his  good  behaviour,  and  that  neither  of  the  above  named 
persons  be  seen  conversent  together  upon  any  occasion  whatever,  except  meet- 
ing together  at  Publick  Worship. 

Furthermore,  if  any  oE  the  above  named  persons  shall  not  strictly  and  up- 
rightly keep  the  above  Determination,  and, being  fairly  convicted  thereof  before 
the  Com'tee  of  Safety  of  Claremont,  that  they  be  and  are  hereby  directed  to 
committ  the  offender  to  the  Common  Goal,  there  to  abide  untill  released  by  Order 
of  this  Com'ee  or  the  General  Assembly  of  this  Colony,  and  that  their  fire  arms 
be  still  retained  in  Custody  of  the  Com'ee  of  Claremont,  afores'd ; 

Provided,  Nevertheless,  that  if  the  afores'd  Mr.  Ranna  Cossett  shall  be 
call'd  by  any  of  the  people  of  his  perswasion  specially  to  ofiiciate  in  his  minis- 
terial office  in  preaching,  baptizing  and  visiting  the  sick,  this  order  is  not  m- 
tended  to  prohibit  him  therefrom. 

A  Coppy  Exami'nd. 
Attest.  Nath'l  S.  Prentice,  Clerk. 

ARRESTS  ON    CHARGE    OF   TORYISM. 

Elihu  Stevens  came  to  Claremont  in  1775.  He  was  an  active 
and  ardent  Whig,  and  beiu^  a  justice  of  the  peace,  an  office 
of  considerable  dignity  in  those  days,  was  frequently  called  to 
sit  at  the  trial  of  persons  arrested  on  suspicion  of  being  Tories. 
So  bitter  were  his  feelings  toward  that  class  of  persons,  that 
according  to  his  judgment  it  did  not  require  the  most  conclusive 
proof  to  convict  a  person  charged  with  being  a  traitor  to  his 
country.  It  often  happened,  therefore,  that  of  the  many  trials 
and  convictions  before  him,  nearly  all  were  discharged  at  the 
higher  courts. 

Complaints  were  often  made  against  the  purest  patriots  in 
town.  A  complaint  having  been  once  entered,  it  was  thouo-ht 
that  no  other    coarse    could   be    taken   than   to  arraign  and  trv 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  231 

the  party  accused.     Among  others   thus  complained  against  was 
Ichabod   Hitchcock,  an   early  settler  in   town.     He  was    a  thor- 
ough working  Whig,  and   although   engaged   in   no    actual   ser- 
vice himself,  yet   he   had    on    certain   occasions  paid  at  different 
times  no  less  than  three  persons  for  service  in  the  war.     At  that 
time  he  was  the  only  master  carpenter  and  builder  in  town,  and 
his  services  in   this   line   being  very  much   in  demand,  he  chose 
to  send  others  in  his   stead.     Some   evil-minded  person  or  prac- 
tical joker  circulated  the  report  that  Hitchcock  had  turned  Tory. 
The  report  having  reached  the  ears  of  Mr.  Stevens,  he  immedi- 
ately   determined   to   arrest   him.     Accordingly,   he    started   out 
very  early  one  morning  in  company  with  his  son,  both  being  well 
armed,  in  pursuit  of  Hitchcock.     A  few  rods  beyond  Hitchcock's 
house  lived  a  man  who  was  also  suspected  and  had  been  complained 
against.     It  was  the  intention  to  arrest  both  at  the  same  time  and 
march  them  to  the  village,  where  they  were  to  be  tried.  On  arriving 
at  the  house  of  Mr.  Hitchcock  they  found  him  at  breakfast,  and  ar- 
rested him  in  the  name   of  the  Continental   Congress.     The  son 
was  stationed  as  guard  before  the  only  outside  door,  and  the  pris- 
oner was  safely  confined.     The    father  went  to  secure  the  other 
person.     Mr.  Hitchcock,  having  finished  his  breakfast,  asked  the 
guard  if  he   had   eaten   anything   that   morning,  who   answered 
that  he   had   not,  and   he  was    politely  invited   to   come  in  and 
partake  of  the  good   cheer   of  his   prisoner,  which  invitation  he 
readily  accepted,  laid  aside   his   gun  and  sat  down  at  the  table ; 
whereupon  Mr.  Hitchcock   seized    the   gun   and   coolly  observed 
to  his  astonished    guest   that   he   might   eat   all   he  wanted,  and 
nobody  should  molest  him,  as  he  had  been  taken  prisoner  while 
in  the  discharge  of  his  duty  to  his  country  as  well  as  himself. 

Soon  the  father  returned  with  the  other  person,  and  seeing 
Mr.  Hitchcock  pacing  to  and  fro  before  the  door  in  true  mili- 
tary style,  immediately  ordered  him  to  lay  down  his  arms.  Mr. 
Hitchcock,  being  something  of  a  wag,  assuming  an  air  of  inno- 
cent ignorance,  suddenly  replied,  "  Oh,  yes,  I  made  him  surren- 
der his  arms  some  time  ago,  and  I've  got   him   safe.     I'm  satis- 


232  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

fied  he  is  a  Tory  and  Avish  that  he  may  be  taken  from  my 
house  as  soon  as  possible."  It  required  considerable  explanation 
before  he  could  be  convinced  that  he  was  the  person  actually 
under  arrest;  but  after  having  received  satisfactory  evidence,  as 
he  termed  it,  that  such  vs/as  the  fact,  he  at  once  yielded  and 
accompanied  his  captors  to  the  village.  The  ceremonies  of  a 
trial  resulted  in  the  discharge  of  the  prisoners,  who  had,  as  it 
appeared,  availed  themselves  of  every  opportunity  to  aid  in  the 
struggles  for  the  country. 

FALSE  ALARM. 

A  few  days  after  the  trial  of  Mr.  Hitchcock  the  people  were 
alarmed  by  loud  reports,  in  rapid  succession,  apparently  of  fire- 
arms. Messengers  were  at  once  dispatched  in  the  direction  of 
the  sounds,  with  orders  to  ascertain  the  cause  and  return  as 
quickly  as  possible.  Meeting  with  two  or  three  of  their  towns- 
men, the  messengers  inquired  of  them  if  they  had  heard  the 
noise,  and  if  they  knew  the  cause.  They  replied  they  had  heard  it, 
that  it  proceeded  from  British  scouts,  and  that  a  large  body  of 
the  enemy  were  encamped  at  Cavendish,  Vt,  and  before  noon 
would  be  in  Claremont.  The  messengers  turned  their  horses 
and  hastened  back  with  the  news.  Among  some  of  the  families 
great  consternation  and  confusion  prevailed.  Speedily  they  gath- 
ered up  their  movables  and  hastened  away  to  the  fort  at  Num- 
ber Four  —  now  Charlestown.  But  the  majority  of  the  people 
determined  to  await  the  result.  It  was  subsequently  ascertained 
that  the  noise  which,  had  occasioned  the  alarm  was  caused  by 
some  one  dashing  one  upright  board  against  another  lying  flat 
on  the  ground. 

ARREST  OF  WILLIAM  M'COy. 

In  towu,  at  this  time,  was  one  William  McCoy,  before  men- 
tioned, shrewd,  cunning,  and  active,  who  was  more  than  sus- 
pected of  rendering  service  to  the  spies  and  emissaries  of  the 
British,  and  was  a   source   of  annoyance    and  vexation  to  every 


HISTOBY   OF    CLAREMONT.  233 

good  "Whig.  Many  efforts  had  been  made  to  detect  him  in  the 
commission  of  some  treasonable  act,  but  he  succeeded  in  keep- 
ing beyond  the  reach  of  his  persecutors.  Finally,  one  evening, 
he  was  discovered  going  in  the  direction  of  "  Tory  Hole,"  in 
company  with  a  suspicious-looking  stranger.  This  was  enough. 
He  was  arrested  and  brought  before  Elihu  Stevens,  Esq.,  for 
trial.  ^Notwithstanding  that  he  succeeded  in  making  the  princi- 
pal witness  against  him  contradict  himself  in  several  important 
particulars,  yet  he  was  found  guilty  of  treason  and  ordered  to 
be  imprisoned  to  await  trial  at  the  next  term  of  the  superior 
court.  "When  the  sheriff,  Ichabod  Hitchcock,  who  had,  a  short 
time  before,  been  arrested  for  the  same  offense  and  discharged, 
was  about  to  start  off  with  the  prisoner  for  jail,  he  asked  the 
justice  if  he  had  prepared  the  mittimus.  The  justice,  with  some 
impatience,  replied,  "  Take  my  horse  and  carriage.  If  they  will 
hold  out  long  enough  to  get  him  to  jail,  it  will  be  all  the  viii- 
timus  he  deserves." 

ANOTHER  ALARM. 

In  the  month  of  May  of  1779  the  people  were  alarmed  by  the 
intelligence  of  a  messenger  from  Vermont,  that  a  party  of  In- 
dians, Tories,  and  English  had  made  an  attack  upon  Royalton, 
where  they  had  destroyed  several  houses  and  taken  a  number 
of  prisoners ;  that  their  course,  so  far  as  could  be  ascertained,  was 
toward  Connecticut  river.  The  prospect  of  the  approach  of  a 
large  body  of  men  friendly  to  the  Tories,  who  infested  this  town 
in  considerable  numbers,  could  not  but  excite  unpleasant  feelings 
in  the  breasts  of  those  who  would  be  treated  as  rebels  by  the  ad- 
vancing army.  The  Tories,  on  the  other  hand,  were  in  high  spir- 
its. For  a  long  time  they  had  anxiously  looked  for  the  complete 
triumph  of  the  British,  and  now  they  regarded  the  wished-for 
event  as  near  at  hand.  But  the  weak  and  defenseless  condition  of 
the  Whigs  by  no  means  diminished  their  courage.  Immediately  a 
party  of  men  was  selected  and  sent  off,  with  Lieut.  Barnabas  Ellis 
at  their  head,  in  the  direction  of  the  rendezvous  of  the  enemy. 
They  had  not  proceeded  far,  however,  when  news  came  that  the  foe 

16 


234  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

had  retreated  to  Canada.  Before  the  company  started  on  the  ex- 
pedition it  was  very  prudently  determined  to  examine  "  Tory  Hole," 
where  a  considerable  quantity  of  provisions  were  found  concealed. 
These  discoveries  led  to  the  belief  that  the  movements  at  this  spot 
had  some  connection  with  the  designs  of  the  party  which  made  the 
descent  upon  Royalton. 

OLAEEMONT  MEN   ENGAGED   AS  SOLDIERS  IN  THE   WAR. 

The  records  of  the  town  and  its  action  in  regard  to  matters  con- 
nected with  the  Revolutionary  War,  and  her  men  engaged  in  it  as 
soldiers  during  its  continuance,  are  very  meager,  and  therefore  re- 
sort to  other  sources  is  had  for  information.  The  rolls  in  the 
United  States  War  Department  and  in  the  Adjutant  General's  office 
in  New  Hampshire  are  confessedly  incomplete  and  imperfect,  after 
years  of  painstaking  labor  spent  upon  them ;  and  if  errors  and 
omissions  are  not  made  here  it  would  be  strange  indeed.  The  fol- 
lowing names  of  the  Claremont  men  who  took  up  arms  during 
that  long  struggle,  the  rank  held,  the  organizations  to  which  they 
were  attached,  and  the  casualties  which  happened  to  each,  are 
gathered  from  all  known  sources. 


o 


Col.  Samuel  Ashley,  Henry  Stevens, 

Chaplain  Augustine  Hibbard.  Jonathan  Fuller, 

Lieut.  Col.  Joseph  Waite,  Peter  Fuller 

Capt.  Oliver  Ashley,  Benj.  Towner,  Jr., 

Lieut.  Joseph  Taylor,  Reuben  Spencer, 

Lieut.  Barnabas  Ellis,  Gersham  York, 

Ensign  Thomas  Jones,  Jonathan  York 

Sergt.  Abner  Matthews,  Joseph  York,  Jr 

Privates  David  Lynch,  Charles  Lines. 
James  Gooden, 

Samuel  Ashley,  at  the  time  of  the  breaking  out  of  the  war,  was 
a  resident  of  Winchester,  but  before  its  close  removed  to  Clare- 
mont. He  was  a  volunteer  aid  on  the  staff  of  Gen.  John  Stark 
at  the  battle  of  Bennington,  on  Auo-ust  16   1777. 

Augustine  Hibbard  was  chaplain  of  Gen.  John  Stark's  brigade 
and  was  at  the  battle  of  Bennington.  In  this  battle  Barnabas 
Ellis  acted  as  lieutenant. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  235 

Lieut.  Col.  Joseph  "Waite  was  of  Col.  Thomas  Bedel's  regiment. 

At  a  meeting  at  Hanover  of  the  people  of  that  and  other 
towns  in  the  vicinity,  on  the  fifth  of  July,  1776,  to  provide  men 
to  protect  the  frontiers,  it  was  "  "Voted  to  raise  two  hundred 
and  fifty  men,  Exclusive  of  officers  to  go  to  Newbury  [Vermont] 
to  fortifie,  scout  and  guard  there  for  three  months  unless  sooner 
discharged."  These  two  hundred  and  fifty  men  were  divided 
into  four  companies,  and  Oliver  Ashley  was  appointed  captain  of 
one  of  them. 

Lieut.  Joseph  Taylor  was  of  Capt.  Jason  "Wait's  company. 
More  extended  notices  of  Col.  Ashley,  Chaplain  Hibbard,  Lieut. 
Colonel  "W"aite,  and  Lieut,  Joseph  Taylor  will  be  found  in  the 
biographical  chapter. 

Eeuben  Spencer,  while  on  guard  .duty  in  the  night,  at  "Winter 
Hill,  in  February,  1776,  fell  upon  a  sharp  stone  and  injured  his 
left  knee  so  badly  as  to  render  him  unfit  for  duty,  and  he  was 
discharged.  By  reason  of  this  injury  that  leg  was  amputated  at 
the  thigh  in  December,  1783,  for  which  he  was  granted  a  pension 
of  twenty  shillings  per  month. 

Privates  Jonathan  Fuller  and  Charles  Lines  were  killed  at  the 
battle  of  Saratoga,  on  the  19th  of  September,  1777. 

In  1777  the  following-named  men,  belonging  in  Claremont,  were 
enrolled  in  difierent  organizations,  the  most  of  them  for  two  and 
three  years,  several  of  whom  were  in  Col.  Joseph  Cilley's  regiment 
of  the  Continental  line  : 

Samuel  Bates,  Joel  Rice, 

Ebenezer  Matthews,  Asa  Stearnes, 

Joel  Royee,  Thomas  Wright, 

Daniel  Stearns,  William  Vinton, 

Joseph  Wright,  Sam  Stone, 

John  Clark,  Thomas  Osgood, 

Charles  Lines,  Jonathan  Walker. 
Amos  Rice, 

"William  Vinton  was  mortally  wounded  in  the  battle  of  Saratoga, 
on  the  nineteenth  of  September,  1777,  and  died  of  his  wounds. 
Jonathan  "Walker  died  in  the  service  on  June  6,  1778. 


236 


HISTOKY   OF    CLAREMONT. 


COL.   BENJAMIN  BELLOWS'S  BEGIMENT,   AT  TIOONDEROGA,   MAY,    1777. 

Augustine  Hibbard,  Chaplain. 
Thomas  Sterne,  Surgeon. 

CAPT.   OLIVER  ASHLEY'S   COMPANY. 


Oliver  Ashley,  Capt., 
Samuel  Ashley,  Lieut., 
Asa  Jones,  do., 
Barnabas  Ellis,  Sergt., 
Jeremiah  Spencer,  do., 
Moses  Spafford,  do., 
Gresham  York,  Corporal, 
Joseph  Clark,  do., 
Benj.  Brooks,  do., 
Amos  Conant,  do.. 

Privates. 
Beriah  Murry, 
Levi  Warner, 
Daniel  Warner, 
Edward  Goodwin, 
Nath'l  Goss, 
Thomas  Uustin, 
Josiah  Hatch, 
Luther  Cotton, 
Oliver  Elsworth, 
Asahel  Brooks, 
Joseph  York, 
Edward  Ainsworth, 


Jonas  Stewart, 
Josiah  Stevens, 
Elisha  Stevens, 
Roswell  Stevens, 
Barnabas  Brooks, 
Charles  Higsby, 
Levi  Higsby, 
Amariah  Knight, 
Samuel  Tuttle, 
Eleazer  Clark, 
Ebenezer  Matthews, 
Joel  Matthews, 
Wm.  York, 
Benj'n  Clark, 
Thomas  Osgood, 
David  Atkins, 
Gideon  Lewis, 
Hezekiah  Rice, 
Daniel  Ford, 
Thomas  Jones, 
Joseph  Ives, 
Joseph  Norton. 


This  regiment  and  most  of  these  men  were  at  Saratoga,  in  Sep- 
temher,  1777.  The  names  of  many  of  them  are  found  on  different 
rolls. 

In  consequence  of  the  evacuation  of  Ticonderoga  by  the  Ameri- 
can army  the  New  Hampshire  Committee  of  Safety  requested  the 
members  of  the  legislature  to  meet  them  on  the  seventeenth  of 
July  1777,  for  consultation.  The  council  and  house  of  repre- 
sentatives met  on  the  day  appointed,  and  resolved  themselves 
into  a  committee  of  the  whole  to  join  the  committee  of  safety 
for  a  conference.     The  state  at  that  time  was  destitute  of  money 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  237 

and  means,  and  "had  done  all  that  the  citizens  generally  sup- 
posed it  could  do  in  the  way  of  furnishing  troops;  but  the 
alternative  was  before  them  of  assisting  to  check  the  advance 
of  Burgoyne's  army  by  sending  a  force  to  Vermont,  or  of  hav- 
ing the  battlefield  of  the  future  transferred  to  their  own  ter- 
ritory." 

On  the  second  day  of  this  session'  "  the  committee  of  the 
whole  recommended  that  the  militia  of  the  state  be  divided  into 
brigades,  the  first  to  comprise  the  regiments  in  the  eastern  por- 
tion of  the  state,  and  be  under  the  command  of  Brigadier  Gen- 
eral "William  "Whipple,  and  the  second  to  comprise  those  in  the 
western  portion  of  the  state,  and  be  under  the  command  of 
Brigadier  General  John  Stark.  The  committee  also  recom- 
mended that  four  companies  of  rangers  be  raised  in  the  second 
brigade  to  scout  on  the  frontiers,  under  orders  of  General  Stark. 
These  recommendations  were  adopted  by  the  legislature  the  same 
day.  Letters  from  Ira  Allen,  secretary  of  the  council  of  safety 
of  Vermont,  earnestly  entreating  that  troops  be  sent  to  their 
assistance,  were  then  read  in  committee  of  the  whole,  of  which 
Hon.  Meshech  "Weare  was  chairman.  The  matter  of  furnishing 
men  was  fully  discussed,  and  it  was  generally  conceded  that  the 
exigency  of  the  occasion  required  the  raising  and  forwarding  of 
a  portion  of  the  militia  at  once.  The  main  question  was  as  to 
obtaining  money  to  pay  and  equip  them.  The  treasury  of  the 
state  was  empty,  and  no  way  of  replenishing  it  presented  itself, 
until  the  patriotic  John  Langdon  arose,  and  said :  '  I  have 
one  thousand  dollars  =  in  hard  money,  I  will  pledge  my  plate 
for  three  thousand  more.  I  have  seventy  hogsheads  of  Tobago 
rum,  which  I  will  sell  for  the  most  it  will  bring.  They  are  at 
the  service  of  the  state.  If  we  succeed  in  defending  our  fire- 
sides and  our  homes,  I  may  be  remunerated.  If  we  do  not, 
then  the  property  will  be  of  no  value  to  me.  Our  friend  Stark, 
who  so  nobly  maintained  the  honor  of  our  state  at  Bunker  Hill, 
may  safely  be    entrusted  with   the   honor  of  the  enterprise,  and 


1  state  Papers,  Vol.  XV,  page  139. 

2  Some  historians  say  three  thousand. 


238  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

we  will  check  the  progress  of  Burgoyne,'  This  patriotic  offer 
was  received  with  enthusiasm,  and  the  legislature  at  once  voted 
that  one  fourth  of  Stark's  brigade,  and  one  fourth  of  Thornton's 
and  Webster's  regiments,  of  General  "Whipple's  brigade,  be  drafted 
and  marched  immediately  for  the  defense  of  this  and  the  neigh- 
boring states.  This  force  was  to  be  under  the  command  of 
General  Stark,  who  accepted  the  commission  with  the  under- 
standing that  he  was  to  exercise  his  own  judgment  in  the  man- 
agement of  his  troops,  and  be  accountable  to  and  take  orders 
from  the  authorities  of  ISTew  Hampshire,  and  no  other. 

"A  draft  was  unnecessary;  men  enlisted  with  alacrity,  and 
were  forwarded  to  Charlestown  by  detachments,  that  place  hav- 
ing been  designated  for  rendezvous.  As  soon  as  five  hundred 
men  had  arrived  in  Charlestown,  the  impetuous  Stark  moved  on 
with  them  to  Manchester,  Yt,  leaving  orders  for  others  to  fol- 
low. They  reached  that  place  August  7,  were  re-enforced  by  some 
of  the  '  Green  Mountain  Boys,'  and  received  information  of  the 
enemy's  intention  to  capture  the  stores  at  Bennington.  He 
pressed  forward  and  reached  that  town  on  the  ninth,  accompa- 
nied by  Col.  Seth  "Warner. 

"  The  battle  occurred  on  the  sixteenth,  and  the  result,  as  is 
well  known,  cheered  and  encouraged  the  Americans,  disheart- 
ened the  enemy,  and  led  to  the  surrender  of  Burgoyne's  army 
at  Saratoga  on  the  seventeenth  of  October  following." 

On  the  twenty-first  of  July,  1777,  the  following-named  Clare- 
mont  men  enlisted  in  the  army  —  but  for  what  periods  is  not 
known  —  in  Capt.  Abel  "Walker's  company  of  Col.  David  Ho- 
bart's  regiment,  and  all  of  them  were  engaged  in  the  famous 
battle  of  Bennington,  on  the  sixteenth  of  August,  1777,  under 
General  John  Stark. 

And  here  it  may  be  recorded  that  according  to  the  "Roll  of 
the  New  Hampshire  Soldiers  at  the  Battle  of  Bennington,"  a 
most  valuable  addition  to  the  state's  military  history,  compiled 
by  the  Hon.  George  C.  Gilmore,  of  Manchester,  "  The  battle  of 
Bennington,  fought   August   16,    1777,    under   the   command    of 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  239 

Gen.  John  Stark,  with  2,000  men — 1,467  of  whom  were  ISTew 
Hampshire  men,  as  appeared  by  the  rolls,  or  73  men  of  every 
hundred." 

Moses  Allen,  Levi  Higbee, 

Barnabas  Ellis,  Stephen  Kidder, 

Judah  Benjamin,  William  Osgood, 

Joseph  Clark,  Asahel  Powers, 

Oliver  Cook,  Silas  Royce, 

Dan  Clark,  John  Spencer, 

James  Dunfee,  James  Spooner, 

Ebenezer  Fielding,  Henry  Stevens, 

Daniel  Ford,  Joseph  Woods, 

Amasa  Fuller,  Christopher  York, 

Edward  Grannis,  John  Verry, 

Josiah  Hatch,  Joseph  Ellis. 

Joseph  Ellis  was  lieutenant  of  Captain  "Walker's  company. 
Between  1777  and   1782,  the   following-named  Claremont  men 
entered  the  Continental  army : 

Thomas  Osgood,  Solomon  Harris, 

Ebenezer  Matthews,  Asaph  Butler, 

Thomas  Powers,  Gideon  Kirkland, 

Amos  Snow,  Ezra  Butler, 

Samuel  G.  Allen,  Gideon  Caterling. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  March  12,  1776,  Dea.  Matthias  Stone, 
Dea.  Joseph  Rice,  Mr.  Barnabas  Ellis,  Mr.  "William  Osgood,  Mr. 
Stephen  Higbee,  Mr.  Thomas  Goodwin,  and  Mr.  Lemuel  Hubbard 
were  chosen  a  Committee  of  Safety  for  the  town  of  Claremont. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  the  second  of  February,  "  Voted  and 
chose  Lieut.  Joseph  Ives,  Selectman  in  the  room  of  Captain  Joseph 
Taylor,  as  he  expects  soon  to  join  the  American  Army." 

At  a  town  meeting,  on  the  nineteenth  of  March,  1778,  ""Voted 
to  raise  the  remainder  of  their  quota  of  men  to  fill  up  the  Conti- 
nental Battalion  by  assessing  and  bringing  those  Inhabitants  of  the 
above  town  to  an  average  that  have  done  nothing  towards  raising 
the  above  mentioned  men,  and  also  voted  to  give  each  man  credit 
for  what  service  he  or  they  have  done  in  the  militia." 

By  an  act  of  the  United  States  Congress  establishing  a  Conti- 


240 


HISTOKT   OF    CLAREMONT. 


nent 


„„„tal  army  for  the  j'ear  1781,  the  number  of  men  apportioned  to 
jSTew  Hampshire  was  1,354,  including  those  in  the  service  whose 
term  did  not  expire  during  that  j^ear.  The  legislature  of  this  state, 
in  January,  1781,  passed  an  act  providing  for  apportioning  the  men 
to  be  raised  to  the  several  towns.  Towns  were  to  receive  a  bounty 
of  twenty  pounds  for  each  man  who  passed  muster,  the  money  to 
be  paid  in  four  years  from  the  date  of  muster,  with  six  per  cent 
interest.  The  number  apportioned  to  Cheshire  county  —  which  then 
included  Sullivan  county  —  was  2-30. 

The  following  is  copied  from  "  New  Hampshire  State  Papers," 
Vol.  XVI,  pages  607,  608,  and  609 : 

On  account  of  the  Bounties  and  Hires  given  to  Soldiers  in  the  Continental 
Army  and  Militia  during  the  late  AVar  by  the  Inhabitants  of  the  Town  of  Clare- 
mont  and  by  whom  respectively  paid  : 


Capt.  Oliver  Ashley,  £  306  18 

Amos  Cowls,  10 

David  Dodge,  14     0 

John  Alden,  70     2 

Jonas  Steward,  12 

Jesse  Matthews,  Jun'r,  85 

Asa  Jones,  114    g 

Barnabas  Ellis,  50 

Joseph  Spaulding,  57 

Thomas  Osgood,  12  10 

Timothy  Dustin,  15 

Timothy  Cowls,  60 

Ebn'r  Edson,  5 

David  Rich,  8  14 

Elisabeth  Ives,  25 

Josiah  Stevens,  24 

Gideon  Kirtland,  10 

Asa  Leet,  10 

L't  Sam'll  Ashley,  50 

Levi  Pnrdee,  10 

Ezra  Jones,  15 

Josiah  Rich,  18 

Oliver  Tuttle,  75 

Ebne'r  Conant,  19 

John  Sprague,  25 

Thomas  Dustin,  10 

Beriah  Murry,  15 


Amasa  Andrews, 
Amos  Conant 
Christopher  York, 
Abel  Rice, 
Ichabod  Hitchcock, 
Abner  Meggs, 
Asa  Meacham, 
Timothy  Grannis, 
Reuben  Rice, 
Oliver  Ellsworth, 
William  Sims, 
John  Alden, 
Elihu  Stevens, 
Samuel  Tuttle, 
David  Matthews, 
Matthias  Stone, 
Benj'm  Brooks,  Jun'r, 
Eben'r  Rice, 
Asahel  Brooks, 
Amos  Judd, 
Nehemiah  Rice, 
Araos  Conant, 
Bill  Barnes, 
James  Alden, 
Reuben  Petty, 
John  Cook, 


£15 
10 

9 

30 

112 

3 

4  16 

9 
50 
12  12 

9 
70    2 

6 
25 

5 
40 
10 
11 
12 
10 
10 
10 


£1563 


HISTORY   OF    CLARBMONT.  241 

The  foregoing  Accounts  is  a  True  Coppy  as  we  Collected  them  from  the  be- 
fore Named  Persons  also  we  have  in  Closed  the  Avoucher  to  the  Said  Accounts. 

Test  Ambrose  Cossit,") 

Bill  Barnes,        >  Selectmen. 
Nath'el  Goss,     ) 

Claremont  Dec'r  27th  Anno  Domini  1787. 

To  the  Secretary  of  the  State  of  New  Hampshire. 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

THB   WAR    OF   1812   AND    TEXAN   WARS. 

By  orders  in  council,  the  British  government  had  declared  that 
all  vessels  trading  with  France  were  liable  to  seizure,  and  that 
all  such  vessels,  clearing  from  a  hostile  port,  must  touch  at  a 
British  port  to  pay  customs  duties.  This  amounted  to  confiscation 
of  American  ships.  British  naval  officers  claimed  and  exercised, 
in  a  most  arrogant  and  offensive  manner,  the  right  to  search 
American  vessels  —  ostensibly  for  British  subjects  —  but  often 
impressed  from  them  American  seamen,  and  compelled  their 
service  in  the  British  navy,  against  absolute  proof  and  the 
strong  protestations  of  the  American  commanders  and  the  men 
themselves. 

President  Madison  urgently  requested  the  withdrawal  of  this 
Order  in  Council,  and  the  discontinuance  of  the  oppressive  and 
unjust  practice  of  the  impressment  of  American  seamen,  both 
which  requests  were  insultingly  refused.  In  November,  1811, 
the  president  called  an  extra  session  of  congress,  laid  before  that 
body  these  grievances,  and  recommended  preparation  for  war. 
In  the  early  part  of  1812  the  American  Congress  —  convinced 
that  there  was  no  hope  of  a  change  of  policy  or  practice  in 
these  respects  on  the  part  of  Great  Britain,  and  that  a  resort 
to  arms  was  the  only  alternative  to  protect  the  persons  and  pro- 
perty of  American  citizens  and  maintain  the  honor  of  the  nation 
—  on  the  eighteenth  of  June  passed  an  act  declaring  war  against 
Great  Britain. 

This  declaration  of  war  was  not  at  first  a  popular  measure  in 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 


243 


New  England,  but  a  large  majority  of  the  people  stood  by  the 
President.  In  May,  Governor  John  Langdon,  of  Ifew  Hampshire, 
issued  general  orders  for  the  detachment  from  the  militia  of  the 
state  of  three  thousand  five  hundred  men,  who  were  to  be  armed 
and  equipped  for  actual  service,  and  held  in  readiness  to  march 
on  short  notice.  This  detachment  was  mostly  from  regiments  in 
the  eastern  part  of  the  state.  During  the  continuance  of  this 
war  of  nearly  three  years,  Claremont,  it  is  believed,  did  her  full 
duty  and  furnished  her  share  of  men  for  the  army. 

The  company  and  regimental  rolls  which  have  been  preserved 
in  the  United  States  and  state  military  departments  are  acknowl- 
edged to  be  quite  imperfect,  while  many  of  them  have  been  lost 
or  destroyed;  and  the  town  records  aflrard  but  little  information 
upon  the  subject.  Hence  the  names  of  all  Claremont  men  who 
served  during  that  war  cannot  be  obtained. 


VOLUNTEERS  FROM  CLAREMONT. 


Below  are  given  the  names  of  all  the  Claremont  men  known  to 
have  served  during  this  war.  Undoubtedly  there  were  others  who 
either  volunteered  or  were  detached  from  the  militia. 

m   CAPTAIN  JOSEPH  KIMBALL'S  COMPANY. 


NAMES. 


David  Dean 

James  Osgood 

Isaac  F.  Hunton. ., 
Samuel  Stone*.... 
James  McDaniels  . . 
Charles  C.  Stewart 
Benedick  Taylor... 

Shaler   Buel 

Andrew  Bartlett. . . 

Henry  G.  Lane 

Benjamin  Perkins. , 


Rank. 


Ensign 
Sergeant 

do 
Private 


Date  of  Enlist- 
ment. 


Sept.  12,  1814, 


FOK  WHAT  Time. 


Three  months. 


*  Samuel  Stone  was  discharged  for  disability,  Nov.  7,  ISll. 


244 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 
IN  CAPTAIN  REUBEN  MARSH'S   COMPANY. 


NAMES. 


Charles  A.  Saxton 

Asa  Barker 

James  MoLofiing.. 

James  Fisher 

Samuel  Petty 

Robert  Angel 

Barnes  Gilbert 


Rank. 


Corporal 
Private 


Date  op  Enlist- 
ment. 


Sept.  26,  1814. 


For  what  Time. 


Sixty  days. 


In  anticipation  of  the  declaration  of  war,  active  preparations 
had  been  made  by  the  government  to  carry  it  on  before  the  decla- 
ration came. 

The  militia  of  New  Hampshire  was  well  organized  and  in  as 
good  condition  to  respond  to  a  call  as  it  ever  had  been.  Gov- 
ernor Langdon's  term  of  office  expired  on  the  6th  of  June,  1812, 
and  he  was  succeeded  by  William  Plumer.  His  heart  and  hand 
were  in  the  cause,  and  his  energy,  patriotism,  and  great  execu- 
tive ability  were  exerted  to  aid  the  government  of  the  United 
States.  G-overnor  Plumer  was  ably  seconded  by  the  adjutant 
general,  Michael  McClary,  of  Portsmouth,  who  was  a  soldier  in 
the  Revolution,  and  every  requisition  of  the  government  upon 
New  Hampshire  was  met  with  great  promptness. 

At  this  time  all  able-bodied  men  from  sixteen  to  forty  years 
of  age  were  enrolled  in  the  training  band,  with  certain  exceptions, 
such  as  clergymen,  doctors,  members  of  congress  and  of  the  legis- 
lature, etc.  Men  from  forty  to  sixty  years  of  age  were  exempted 
from  the  training  band  and  enrolled  in  what  was  called  the  alarm 
list.  ^  Every  non-commissioned  officer  and  private  of  both  the 
training  band  and  alarm  list  was  required  to  keep  in  readiness 
a  musket  and  bayonet,  with  all  necessary  appendages  and  accou- 
terments  and  ammunition,  suitable  for  a  marching  soldier.  The 
training  band  was  to  be  mustered  four  times,  and  the  alarm  list 
twice  a  j^ear. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  245 

In  time  of  invasion  or  of  war  drafts  from  the  militia  were 
made,  unless  a  sufficient  number  to  answer  any  requirement  vol- 
unteered. The  militia  was  organized  into  twenty-five  regiments 
of  infantry,  divided  into  five  brigades ;  three  regiments  of  cavalry, 
forming  another  brigade ;  one  independent  corps  of  light  horse, 
and  one  regiment  of  artillery.  The  military  force  of  the  state,  ac- 
cording to  Dr.  Belknap,  was  computed  as  follows : 

Twenty-five  regiments  of  training  band,  at  750  each     .        .  18,750 

Total  of  alarm  list 7,500 

Three  regiments,  and  one  independent  corps  of  cavalry  1,000 

One  regiment  of  artillery 300 

Total 27,550 

From  this  body  of  militia  the  New  Hampshire  men  engaged 
in  the  war  of  1812  were  drawn,  reinforced  from  time  to  time  by 
volunteers. 

Claremont  at  that  time,  as  later,  formed  a  part  of  the  Fifteenth 
IsTew  Hampshire  militia  regiment,  of  which  Timothy  W.  Hale  was 
lieutenant  colonel  commandant ;  Isaac  Chapman,  major  first 
battalion ;  Lebbeus  Chase,  major  second  battalion. 

On  the  twenty-fourth  of  December,  1814,  a  treaty  of  peace  was 
concluded  at  Ghent,  and  the  war  of  1812  was  at  an  end. 

TEXAN  WAES. 

In  the  struggle  in  Texas,  under  General  Sam.  Houston,  one 
life  from  Claremont,  at  least,  went  down  to  its  unknown  grave. 
Robert  Harris  Upham,  the  second  son  of  Hon.  George  B.  Upham, 
born  in  1810,  fitted  at  Kimball  Union  academy  and  entered  Dart- 
mouth college,  remained  there  two  or  three  years,  but  did  not 
o-raduate.  He  then  studied  law  in  his  father's  office  and  at  Steu- 
benville,  Ohio.  Upon  the  breaking  out  of  the  Texan  war  for 
independence  he  enlisted  in  a  company  raised  by  Captain  Allen, 
at  Cincinnati,  went  to  the  seat  of  war,  joined  the  forces  under 
General  Houston,   since  which  all  traces  of  him  have  been  lost. 


o 


246  HISTOKY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

It  was  reported  that  he  attained  the  rank  of  major,  and  it  was 
currently  believed  at  the  time  that  his  command  was  with  those 
captured  by  Santa  Ana,  imprisoned  at  the  fortress  of  Alamo, 
where,  with  their  leader,  David  Crockett,  all,  to  the  last  man, 
were,  as  helpless  prisoners,  massacred  in  cold  blood  in  1836. 
In  the  subsequent  struggles,  and  during  the  decisive  battles,  the 
watchword  of  Houston's  army  was  :  "  Remember  the  Alamo  !  " 

It  was  here  that  Santa  Ana  was  defeated,  lost  a  leg,  captured, 
but  suffered  to  live,  and  after  many  and  strange  reverses  was  again 
the  military  dictator  of  Mexico,  and  met  his  crushing  defeats  in 
successive  sanguinary  battles  with  the  armies  of  the  United  States 
under  the  command  of  Generals  Taylor  and  Scott  in  1846-47. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

WAR    OF   THE    HBBELLION. 
ASSAULT   ON    FORT  SUMTER. 

The  War  of  the  E,ebelliou  in  the  United  States  of  America 
opened  with  an  assault  upon  Fort  Sumter  on  the  twelfth  of  April, 
1861,  and  closed  with  the  assassination  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  then 
serving  his  second  term  as  president  of  the  United  States,  on  the 
fourteenth  of  April,  1866.  It  is  not  necessary  now  to  recount  the 
causes,  running  through  many  years,  which  led  to  the  insurrection 
of  the  people  of  a  portion  of  the  states  of  the  Union  against  the 
general  government,  and  arrayed  more  than  a  million  citizens  in 
arms,  involving  the  expenditure  of  immense  treasure  and  the  loss 
of  the  lives  of  hundreds  of  thousands  of  the  country's  bravest  and 
best  men  on  either  side,  carrying  sorrow  and  mourning  to  many 
hearthstones  and  multitudes  of  loving  hearts.  The  causes  have 
passed  away;  and  fortunate  indeed  is  he  who  shall  make  a  just 
and  impartial  history  of  the  events  and  of  the  men  and  women 
who  participated  in  them  during  the  four  years  of  that  bloody  war. 
This  book  has  to  do  more  immediately  with  what  the  town,  in  its 
corporate  capacity,  and  her  citizens  as  individuals,  did  during  its 
continuance. 

"While  momentous  events  were  transpiring  the  people  of  Clare- 
mont  had  their  share  in  them.  Their  coffers  were  opened ;  their 
young  men  were  sent  forth  with  a  blessing  —  some  of  them  never 
to  return,  others  to  come  home  maimed  or  broken  in  health  for 
life,  and  a  few  to  return  at  the  end  of  the  great  struggle,  weary 
and  worn,  crowned  with  victorious  wreaths.  With  great  unanimity 
the  men  raised  their  voices  in  behalf  of  the  cause  of  their  country, 


248  HISTORY    OF    CLAKBMOKT. 

and  the  women  gave  it  hearty  work  with  their  hands,  and  unbid- 
den tears. 

On  the  twelfth  of  April,  1861,  South  Carolina,  having  a  few 
months  previous^,  by  her  legislature,  passed  an  act  seceding  from 
the  Union  of  States,  commenced  open  hostilities  by  firing  from 
James's  Island  upon  Fort  Sumter,  garrisoned  by  Maj.  Robert  An- 
derson and  about  seventy  men  under  his  command.  Fort  Sumter 
was  besieged  for  two  days,  her  sources  of  supply  cut  off,  when,  on 
the  fourteenth  of  April,  Major  Anderson  surrendered  the  fort  to 
the  rebels,  himself  and  his  command  marching  out  and  embarking 
on  board  the  United  States  ship  "  Baltic  "  for  ISTew  York. 

In  his  dispatch  to  the  Secretary  of  "War,  relative  to  the  attack 
upon  and  surrender  of  the  fort,  Major  Anderson  says  :  —  "  Having 
defended  Fort  Sumter  until  our  quarters  were  entirely  burned,  the 
main  gates  destroyed  by  fire,  the  gorge  wall  seriously  injured,  the 
magazine  surrounded  by  flames,  and  its  door  closed  from  the  effects 
of  heat,  and  three  cartridges  of  powder  only  being  available,  and 
no  provisions  but  pork  remaining,  I  accepted  the  terms  of  evacua- 
tion offered  by  General  Beauregard  —  being  the  same  offered  by 
him  on  the  eleventh  inst,  prior  to  the  commencement  of  hostili- 
ties—  and  marched  out  of  the  fort  on  Sunday  afternoon,  fourteenth 
inst.,  with  colors  flying  and  drums  beating,  bringing  away  my  com- 
pany and  our  private  property,  and  saluting  the  flag  with  five 
guns." 

On  the  fifteenth  of  April  President  Lincoln  issued  a  proclama- 
tion, stating  that  an  insurrection  against  the  government  of  the 
United  States  had  broken  out  in  the  states  of  South  Carolina, 
Georgia,  Alabama,  Florida,  Mississippi,  Louisiana,  and  Texas,  and 
declared  the  ports  of  those  states  in  a  state  of  blockade.  On  the 
same  day  the  President  issued  a  call  for  seventy-five  thousand  three 
months  volunteers,  to  aid  in  suppressing  the  rebellion  against  the 
government,  and  called  upon  New  Hampshire  for  a  regiment  of 
militia. 

In  response  to  this  call  of  the  President,  on  April  17,  Ichabod 
Goodwin,  then  governor  of  New  Hampshire,  issued  an  order  to 
Joseph  C.  Abbott,  adjutant-general,  to  make  proclamation,  calling 


HISTORY    OP    CLARBMONT.  249 

for  volunteers  from  the  enrolled  militia  of  the  state  for  one  regi- 
ment of  ten  companies,  each  company  to  consist  of  three  commis- 
sioned officers,  four  sergeants,  four  corporals,  and  sixty-four  pri- 
vates, with  the  requisite  number  of  field  and  staff  officers,  to  be 
uniformed,  armed,  and  equipped  at  the  expense  of  the  state,  and 
to  be  held  in  readiness  until  called  for  by  the  United  States  gov- 
ernment. 

MEETINGS  OF  CITIZENS. 

Claremont  was  all  on  fire  to  do  her  share  toward  putting  down 
the  Rebellion.  Governor  Goodwin  appointed  Maj.  Otis  F.  R. 
Waite  general  recruiting  agent  for  the  western  part  of  the  state, 
who  was  furnished  with  all  requisite  papers  and  authority  to  estab- 
lish recruiting  stations  at  convenient  points  and  appoint  recruiting 
officers.  On  the  eighteenth  of  April,  William  P.  Austin,  who  had 
been  one  of  the  selectmen  of  the  town  for  several  years,  offered 
his  services  as  a  soldier,  took  the  oaths  prescribed,  and  was  duly 
enrolled  by  Major  Waite.  He  was  the  first  man  in  Sullivan  county 
to  enlist  under  the  call  of  President  Lincoln  for  seventy-five  thou- 
sand volunteers  for  three  months.  The  same  day  Mr.  Austin  was 
appointed  recruiting  officer  for  the  town  of  Claremont  and  vicinity. 
He  at  once  opened  an  office  in  the  hall  of  the  Tremont  House,  and 
entered  upon  his  duties.  Young  men  flocked  in  faster  than  they 
could  be  examined  and  sworn. 

Notice  was  issued  for  a  meeting  of  citizens  at  the  town  hall  on 
Friday  evening,  the  nineteenth.  At  the  hour  appointed  the  build- 
ing was  filled  to  overflowing,  ladies  occupying  the  galleries.  It 
was  such  a  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  Claremont,  without  distinc- 
tion of  party  or  sex,  as  had  seldom  been  held.  The  meeting  was 
called  to  order  by  the  venerable  'Gen.  Erastus  Glidden,  and 
Jonas  Livingston  was  chosen  president;  Ambrose  Cossit,  Erastus 
Glidden,  Walter  Tufts,  Thomas  J.  Harris,  A.  F.  Snow,  Josiah 
Richards,  and  Albro  Blodgett,  vice-presidents ;  Edward  L.  God- 
dard  and  John  M.  Whipple,  secretaries.  On  taking  the  chair  Mr. 
Livingston  made  an  enthusiastic  and  patriotic  speech.  Patriotic 
speeches  were  also  made  by  H.  W.  Parker,  Ira  Colby,  Jr.,  A.  F. 

17 


250  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

Snow,  Benjamin  P.  Walker,  and  Samuel  G.  Jarvis.  The  latter 
gentleman  deposited  one  hundred  dollars  as  the  nucleus  of  a  fund 
for  the  families  of  those  who  should  enlist.  Rev.  Messrs.  R  F. 
Lawrence  and  R.  S.  Stubbs,  WilUam  P.  Austin,  and  Henry  G. 
"Webber,  of  Charlestown,  made  stirring  speeches.  A.  F.  Snow, 
Otis  F.  R.  "Waite,  John  S.  Walker,  Joseph  Weber,  Simeon  Ide, 
and  George  W.  Blodgett  were  chosen  a  committee  to  prepare  and 
report  resolutions  expressive  of  the  sentiments  of  the  town  in  re- 
gard to  the  Rebellion.  The  meeting  was  adjourned  to  the  next 
evening. 

On  Saturday  evening  the  town  hall  was  again  crowded,  and  the 
excitement  was  on  the  increase.  The  meeting  was  opened  with 
prayer  by  the  Right  Rev.  Carlton  Chase,  D.  D.,  bishop  of  the  dio- 
cese of  New  Hampshire.  The  yoUng  men  just  enlisted  by  William 
P.  Austin  were  marched  into  the  hall,  where  front  seats  had  been 
reserved  for  them,  and  they  met  with  an  enthusiastic  reception. 
As  they  entered,  the  audience  rose  to  their  feet  and  gave  three 
hearty  cheers.  The  president,  Mr.  Livingston,  led  the  speaking, 
and  was  followed  by  Otis  F.  R.  Waite,  from  the  committee  on 
resolutions,  who  reported  the  following,  which  were  unanimousl}' 
adopted : 

Resolved,  That  all  other  considerations  and  issues  are  now  absorbed  in  the 
one  vital  question,  "Shall  our  government  be  sustained?"  —  a  question  of  na- 
tional life  and  independence,  or  of  ignominious  submission  to  the  reign  of  bar- 
barism and  anarchy,  or  of  unmitigated  despotism. 

Resolved,  That  the  issues  forced  upon  us  by  the  South,  and  the  only  one 
presented,  is  the  existence  of  any  government,  —  and  more  directly  of  that 
government  under  which  the  American  people  have  lived  and  prospered  for  a 
period  of  eighty  years. 

Resolved,  That  for  the  maintenance  and  perpetuity  of  the  priceless  boon  of 
civil  and  religious  liberty,  bequeathed  by  our  forefathers  in  the  constitution  of 
this  Union,  and  the  free  institutions  it  guarantees,  we  would  imitate  their  example 
in  unitedly  and  unreservedly  tendering  to  the  government,  if  need  be.  "our 
lives,  our  fortunes,  and  our  sacred  honors." 

Resolved,  That  in  this  first  call  to  defend  the  constitution  and  the  laws  at 
the  point  of  the  bayonet,  we  view  with  patriotic  pride  the  ready  response  of 
the  noble  sons  of  New  Hampshire  and  of  New  England,  and  the  Middle  and 
Western  states.  . 


HISTORY  OF   CLARBMONT.  261 

Resolved.  That  while  our  neighbors  are  called  to  defend  our  flag  abroad, 
we  will  fill  their  baskets  and  their  stores,  and  protect  their  hearthstones  at 
home. 

Spirited  and  patriotic  addresses  were  made  by  Charles  H.  East- 
man, Thomas  J.  Harris,  Arthur  Chase,  Simeon  Ide,  Thomas  Kirk, 
Otis  F.  R.  Waite,  Eev.  Carlos  Marston,  Hemau  H.  Cummings, 
Oscar  J.  Brown,  and  Edward  D.  Baker,  when,  after  three  rousing 
cheers  for  the  "  Stars  and  Stripes,"  and  three  more  for  the  brave 
young  recruits  who  were  present,  on  motion  of  Ambrose  Cossit,  a 
committee,  consisting  of  Ambrose  Cossit,  Simeon  Ide,  and  Thomas 
J.  Harris,  was  appointed  to  petition  the  selectmen  to  call  a  town 
meeting  for  the  purpose  of  making  an  appropriation  of  two  thou- 
sand dollars,  or  more,  "  for  the  support  of  the  families  of  those  of 
our  fellow-citizens  who  have  enlisted  or  who  may  enlist  in  defense 
of  the  country."  The  meeting  then  adjourned  to  the  following 
Tuesday  evening. 

On  Tuesday  evening,  the  twenty-third  of  April,  the  people  again 
assembled  at  the  town  hall,  which  was  densely  crowded,  and  many 
were  unable  to  gain  admittance.  This  seemed  to  be  the  culmi- 
nating point  of  the  excitement.  General  Erastus  Q-lidden,  in  the 
absence  of  the  president,  occupied  the  chair.  Patriotic  songs 
were  sung,  and  fervent  speeches  were  made  by  John  S.  Walker, 
Chase  ISToyes,  George  W.  Blodgett,  William  P.  Austin,  Henry 
Fitch,  and  Rev.  R.  F.  Lawrence.  Frank  S.  Fiske,  of  Keene, 
special  aid  to  the  adjutant  general  in  the  recruiting  service,  was 
present,  and  being  called  upon,  made  an  eloquent  and  stirring 
speech.     Mr.  Austin  was  present  with  fifty  recruits. 

Immediately  after  the  call  of  the  president  for  troops,  the  ladies 
of  the  town  bought  large  quantities  of  flannel  and  yarn,  and  went 
to  work  vigorously,  making  shirts  and  drawers  and  knitting  socks 
for  the  soldiers.  Forty  or  more  met  daily  for  this  purpose  at 
Fraternity  hall. 

George  N.  Farwell  and  Edward  L.  Goddard  authorized  William 
Clark,  chairman  of  the  board  of  selectmen,  to  furnish  the  families 
of  volunteers  with  such  provisions  as  they  might  need,  in  his  dis- 
cretion,  and  they  would  hold  themselves   personally  responsible 


252  HISTORY   OF    CLAEBMONT. 

for  the  same.  Under  these  instructions  families  were  helped  to 
the  amount  of  $222.27,  which  was  afterward  assumed  by  the 
town. 

On  the  twenty-ninth  Major  Waite  received  the  following  tele- 
gram from  the  adjutant  general :  "  Close  up  the  stations  and  come 
on  with  the  recruits  tomorrow,  as  proposed.  Telegraph  me  that 
you  will  do  so.  Cars  will  be  for  you  at  Nashua."  The  recruits 
from  other  stations  having  been  sent  forward,  Major  Waite  started 
from  Claremont  on  the  morning  of  the  thirtieth  with  eighty-five 
men  enlisted  by  William  P.  Austin.  They  left  the  village  at  six 
o'clock,  and  marched  to  the  Sullivan  railroad  station,  followed  by 
large  numbers  of  relatives  and  friends  of  the  recruits,  and  other 
citizens.  At  seven  o'clock,  after  a  most  touching  leave-taking, 
which  will  not  soon  be  forgotten  by  those  who  participated  in  or 
witnessed  it,  the  company  went  on  board  the  cars,  which  moved 
off  amid  the  cheers  of  the  three  or  four  hundred  people  who  had 
assembled  to  see  their  friends  and  fellow-citizens  depart  for  the 
war.  They  went  by  way  of  Bellows  Falls,  Keene,  Fitchburg, 
Groton  Junction  [now  Ayer],  Nashua,  and  Manchester,  arriving 
at  Concord  about  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  At  every  con- 
siderable railway  station  multitudes  of  people  were  assembled, 
who  gave  the  men  their  blessing  and  cheered  them  on  their  way. 
Before  leaving  Claremont  our  citizens  had  provided  the  recruits 
with  a  full  day's  rations  of  cold  meats,  bread,  pickles,  etc. 

VOLUNTEEKS. 

It  was  understood  that  the  men  enlisted  at  Claremont  would 
go  in  a  company  by  themselves,  and  would  have  the  privilege  of 
choosing  their  own  officers  from  their  own  number.  Accordingly, 
when  the  company  was  full,  they  elected  William  P.  Austin,  cap- 
tain; John  W.  Lawrence,  first  lieutenant;  John  Dean,  second 
lieutenant;  Ziba  L.  Davies,  third  lieutenant;  Homer  M.  Crafts, 
Baron  S.  Noyes,  George  H.  Weber,  Selden  S.  Chandler,  sergeants ; 
Edward  E.  Story,  Charles  H.  Parmalee,  Chester  F.  Tibbills,  and 
Joseph  Richardson,  corporals.  The  privates  of  this  company  from 
Claremont  were 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 


253 


Oscar  C.  Allen, 
Lyman  F.  Parrish, 
Alfred  Talham, 
Everett  W.  Nelson, 
Edwin  M.  Gowdey, 
Ralph  N.  Brown, 
Joseph  Levey. 
Charles  W.  Wetherbee, 
John  W.  Davis, 
John  F.  Wheeler, 
John  Straw, 
Wyman  R.  Clement, 
George  W.  Straw, 
Alba  D.  Abbott, 
Charles  M.  Judd, 
Heman  Allen, 
Henry  S.  Morse, 
Albert  F.  Russell, 
Charles  E.  Putnam, 
Charles  F.  Colston, 
Edward  Hall, 
Jerome  B.  Douglass, 
James  Delmage, 


Charles  H.  Sprague, 
George  P.  Tenney, 
Henry  W.  Patrick, 
Joseph  Peno, 
William  H.  Nichols, 
Ebenezer  E.  Cummings, 
Andrew  J.  Straw, 
William  E.  Parrish, 
Henry  F.  Roys, 
William  H.  Pendleton, 
Julius  E.  Heywood, 
Alanson  F.  Wolcott, 
William  H.  Blanchard, 
Anson  M.  Sperry, 
Warren  W.  Howard, 
Dennis  Taylor, 
Lewis  W.  Laducer, 
Albert  E.  Parmelee, 
Matthew  T.  Towne, 
J.  Parker  Read, 
Napoleon  B.  Osgood, 
Sylvester  E.  H.  Wakefield. 


The  other  memhers  of  this  company  were  from  Acworth, 
Charlestown,  Cornish,  and  Unity. 

A  finer  company  of  men  than  those  enlisted  by  Captain  Austin 
did  not  enter  the  army  as  volunteers.  They  enlisted  from  a  sense 
of  duty,  the  pay  of  privates  being  then  but  eleven  dollars  per 
month,  and  there  was  no  offer  of  bounty  from  the  town,  state, 
or  United  States. 

Before  leaving  town,  citizens  presented  the  different  recruits  with 
dirk  knives,  revolvers,  etc.  At  a  large  meeting  at  the  town  hall, 
on  the  evening  of  the  twenty-ninth,  Lietenant  John  W.  Lawrence 
was  presented  with  a  sword  by  Sherman  Livingston.  The  presen- 
tation speech  was  made  by  H.  W.  Parker,  and  responded  to  in 
behalf  of  Lieutenant  Lawrence  by  L-a  Colby,  Jr.  George  G.  Ide, 
in  behalf  of  the  Claremont  Manufacturing  Company,  presented 
each  member  of  the  company  with  a  handsomely  bound  pocket 
Testament.     The  ladies  gave  to  each  two  pairs  of  flannel  drawers. 


254  HISTORY   OF   CLAEBMONT. 

two  flannel  shirts,  woolen  socks,  towels,  pocket  handkerchiefs,  and 
needle-book  well  filled  with  useful  articles. 

On  arrival  at  Concord  the  company  was  sent  to  Camp  Union ; 
but,  being  more  than  men  enough  already  there  for  one  regiment, 
they  were  sent  to  Camp  Constitution,  Portsmouth,  where  the  Sec- 
ond regiment  was  being  organized.  Under  the  call  of  the  Presi- 
dent for  one  regiment  from  'Sew  Hampshire,  in  ten  days  men 
enough  had  been  enlisted  and  sent  to  rendezvous  at  Concord  and 
Portsmouth  for  more  than  two. 

On  the  third  of  May  the  President  issued  a  call  for  twenty 
thousand  volunteers  for  three  years,  and  ISTew  Hampshire  was 
immediately  ordered  to  take  no  more  volunteers  for  three  months, 
but  to  enlist,  uniform,  arm,  and  hold,  subject  to  orders  from  the 
war  department,  a  regiment  of  three  years  men.  In  consequence 
of  this  order  the  alternative  was  presented  to  the  recruits  then  at 
Camp  Constitution  to  re-enlist  for  three  years,  or  be  discharged. 
Before  this  alternative  was  offered,  however,  the  recruits  were 
all  re-examined  by  a  surgeon,  and  those  found  physically  disqual- 
ified for  service  were  discharged.  Among  these  were  Edwin  M. 
Gowdey,  Charles  F.  Colston,  and  Joseph  F.  Garfield  from  Clare- 
mont. 

During  the  organization  of  the  Second  regiment  a  misunder- 
standing arose  between  Captain  Austin  and  one  or  two  of  the  other 
officers  and  some  of  the  men,  and  the  company  was  broken  up. 
ISTone  of  the  officers  chosen  before  the  company  left  Claremont 
were  commissioned.  Captain  Austin  and  Lieutenant  Lawrence  re- 
turned home,  and  Lieutenants  Dean  and  Davis  re-enlisted  for  three 
years  as  iDrivates.  Before  the  company  to  which  Mr.  Dean  was  at- 
tached was  mustered  he  was  taken  down  with  rheumatic  fever,  re- 
ceived an  honorable  discharge,  and  came  home.  Having  recovered 
he  re-enlisted  on  the  seventeenth  of  September,  1861,  and  was 
mustered  into  Company  H  of  the  same  regiment.  Forty-three  of 
the  men  also  re-enlisted  for  three  years,  and  were  put  into  differ- 
ent companies,  while  the  remainder  were  either  discharged  or  sent 
to  Fort  Constitution,  Portsmouth  harbor,  to  serve  out  the  term  of 
their  enlistment. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  255 

On  the  eighth  of  May,  agreeably  to  warrant,  a  town  meeting 
was  held,  at  which  a  vote  was  unanimously  passed  to  appropriate  a 
sum  not  to  exceed  twenty-five  hundred  dollars,  to  be  paid  to  sol- 
diers' families  wherever  and  whenever  it  may  be  needed,  and 
Albro  Blodgett  was  chosen,  with  discretionary  power,  to  carry  out 
the  vote.  Up  to  March,  1862,  he  paid  out  for  this  purpose  two 
thousand  seven  hundred  and  ninety-seven  dollars  and  twenty-three 
cents. 

In  most  of  the  churches  in  town  sermons  were  preached  against 
the  Rebellion,  and  prayers  offered  for  the  success  of  our  arms  in 
putting  it  down.  There  was  an  almost  unanimous  expression  of 
condemnation  of  the  South,  and  political  party  lines  seemed  for  a 
time  to  be  almost  wholly  obliterated.  Every  man  of  influence  en- 
couraged enlistments,  and  favored  all  reasonable  measures  for  ren- 
dering aid  to  the  families  of  such  as  had  gone  or  might  go  to  the 
war.  Among  the  most  zealous  in  the  work  of  raising  recruits  and 
aiding  families  were  many  who,  as  Democrats,  opposed  the  elec- 
tion of  Abraham  Lincoln  for  president. 

The  ladies  kept  at  work  making  articles  needed  by  soldiers  in 
hospitals  and  in  the  field;  frequent  meetings  were  held  during 
the  summer,  and  a  most  patriotic  spirit. was  manifested  among  the 
people. 

HOME  GUAKD. 

In  July  a  company,  called  the  Home  Guard,  was  organized,  con- 
sisting of  over  a  hundred  men,  many  of  them  past  middle  age,  and 
among  the  most  prominent  citizens  of  the  town,  all  desirous  to  do 
something  for  the  cause  of  the  country.  The  company  chose  the 
following  officers :  Arthur  Chase,  captain ;  Edwin  Vaughan,  first 
lieutenant;  John  M.  Whipple,  second  lieutenant;  Ira  Colby,  Jr., 
Francis  F.  Haskell,  Henry  S.  Parmelee,  William  D.  Rice,  ser- 
geants ;  Joseph  Weber,  John  S.  M.  Ide,  D.  C.  Colby,  and  John 
Geer,  corporals.  The  company  had  frequent  meetings  for  drill, 
and  made  quite  an  imposing  appearance. 

In  June,  1861,  the  legislature  passed  an  act  authorizing  towns  to 
raise  money  by  vote  to  aid  families  of  volunteers. 


256  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

About  the  twentieth  of  July  Governor  Berry  issued  an  order  for 
enlisting,  arming,  and  equipping  the  Third  Infantry  regiment  for 
three  years,  or  during  the  war,  and  Dr.  E.  C.  Marsh  was  appointed 
recruiting  officer  for  Claremont  and  vicinity.  He  soon  enlisted 
thirty-two  men,  twenty-two  of  whom  belonged  in  Claremont. 
These  men  left  Claremont  for  the  rendezvous  at  Concord  on  the 
nineteenth  of  August.  They  attended  the  Methodist  church  on 
Sunday  afternoon,  the  eighteenth,  and  the  Rev.  R.  S.  Stubbs 
preached  a  sermon  from  the  text, —  "  Stand  fast  in  the  faith ;  quit 
you  like  men;  be  strong."  On  other  occasions  Mr.  Stubbs  had, 
through  his  sermons,  and  in  other  ways,  shown  his  unconditional 
loyalty  and  entire  devotion  to  the  country;  but,  on  this  occasion, 
when  addressing  men  who  were  about  to  take  their  lives  in  their 
hands  and  go  forth  to  do  battle  for  the  Union,  he  was  particularly 
eloquent  and  impressive. 

On  the  twentieth  of  August  the  governor  issued  an  order  to 
raise  the  Fourth  and  Fifth  regiments.  Dr.  Eli  C.  Marsh  was  or- 
dered to  recruit  for  the  Fourth,  and  Charles  H.  Long  was  ordered 
to  raise  a  company  for  the  Fifth  regiment,  the  men,  when  enlisted, 
to  choose  their  own  company  officers.  All  the  men  accepted  and 
mustered  into  the  service  under  this  call  were  to  receive  from  the 
state  a  bounty  of  ten  dollars.  The  men  enlisted  by  Mr.  Long, 
making  nearly  a  full  company  before  leaving  Claremont,  made 
choice  of  the  following  officers :  Charles  H.  Long,  captain  ;  Jacob 
W.  Keller,  first  lieutenant ;  Charles  0.  Ballon,  second  lieutenant, 
who  were  subsequently  commissioned  by  the  governor. 

The  last  of  September  Edwin  Vaughan  was  appointed  recruiting 
officer,  and  enlisted  several  men,  who  were  put  into  different  regi- 
ments then  being  organized. 

On  the  seventh  of  February,  1862,  news  was  received  by  tele- 
graph of  the  capture  of  Fort  Donelson.  The  bells  of  the  village 
were  rung  and  the  joy  of  the  people  was  manifested  in  other  ways. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1862,  it  was  voted  that 
the  selectmen  be  authprized  to  borrow  a  sum  of  money  on  the 
credit  of  the  town,  not  to  exceed  five  thousand  dollars,  as  it  may 
be  needed,  to  aid  the  families  of  resident  volunteers. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  •  257 

Edward  L.  Goddard,  Aurelius  Dickinson,  and  Alexander  Gardi- 
ner were  appointed  a  committee  to  designate  what  families  were 
entitled  to  aid,  and  Sumner  Putnam  was  chosen  agent  to  pay  out 
the  money,  without  compensation. 

MEETING  OF  CONDOLENCE. 

On  Sunday  afternoon,  June  22,  1862,  a  public  meeting  was  held 
in  the  town  hall  as  a  demonstration  of  respect  for  the  brave  Clare- 
mont  men  who  had  been  killed  at  Fair  Oaks  on  the  first  day  of 
that  month,  and  in  other  battles,  or  died  in  hospitals,  and  of  con- 
dolence with  their  surviving  relatives  and  friends.  A  committee 
of  arrangements  had  been  chosen,  and  other  preparations  made,  at 
a  previous  meeting  of  citizens  of  the  town.  Otis  F.  R.  "Waite, 
chairman  of  the  committee,  called  the  meeting  to  order,  briefly 
stated  its  objects,  and  presided  throughout.  Rt.  Eev.  Carleton 
Chase,  D.  D.,  bishop  of  the  diocese  of  'New  Hampshire,  read  selec- 
tions from  the  Scriptures ;  Rev.  Carlos  Marston  made  the  opening 
prayer ;  Rev.  H.  H.  Hartwell  delivered  an  address  which  had  been 
carefully  prepared,  giving  some  account  of  each  of  the  soldiers 
who  had  been  killed  in  battle  or  died  in  hospitals,  together  with 
circumstances  connected  with  the  death  of  each.  Short  addresses 
were  made  by  Rev.  Oliver  Ayer,  Rev.  R.  F.  Lawrence,  and  Rev. 
Mr.  Marston,  of  Claremout,  Rev.  Mr.  Piper,  of  Vermont,  Rev.  Mr. 
Greeley,  a  native  of  Claremont,  then  settled  at  Methuen,  Mass., 
Rev.  Paul  S.  Adams,  of  Newport,  and  others. 

On  motion  of  Bishop  Chase,  Otis  F.  R.  "Waite  was  chosen  histori- 
ographer to  keep  a  record  of  events  in  Claremont,  which  had  tran- 
spired or  should  transpire  during  the  war,  having  connection  with 
it,  with  a  view  to  its  being  published  in  book  form  after  the  war 
had  closed.  During  the  meeting  several  appropriate  pieces  were 
sung  by  members  of  the  difierent  church  choirs  in  town.  The 
relatives  and  friends  of  deceased  soldiers  were  assigned  front  seats, 
and  this  was  made  a  kind  of  funeral  occasion.  The  town  hall  was 
packed,  and,  being  on  Sunday,  and  clergymen  of  the  several 
churches  taking  leading  parts,  made  this  one  of  the  largest  and 
most  impressive  meetings  held  in  town  during  the  war. 


258  HISTORY    OP   CLAREMONT. 

Early  in  July  E.  W.  Wooddell  was  appointed  a  recruiting  officer 
to  enlist  volunteers  for  regiments  then  being  formed.  On  the  four- 
teenth, in  the  evening,  a  meeting  was  held  for  the  purpose  of  en- 
couraffina:  enlistments.  "Walter  Tufts  was  chosen  chairman  and 
Joseph  Weber,  secretary.  Spirited  speeches  were  made  by  D.  C. 
Colby,  Rev.  Messrs.  Lawrence  and  Marston,  E.  "W.  Wooddell, 
George  R.  Lathe,  and  others. 

Pursuant  to  a  call  by  the  selectmen,  a  meeting  was  held  on  the 
evening  of  the  nineteenth  of  July.  Jonas  Livingston  was  chosen 
chairman  and  C.  C.  Church,  secretary.  E.  W.  Wooddell  offered  a 
series  of  resolutions  reaffirming  confidence  in  the  people,  the  ex- 
ecutive of  the  nation,  and  in  the  army,  and  calling  upon  the  people 
to  aid  in  all  practicable  ways  in  raising  men  to  fill  the  regiments  in 
the  field,  and  form  new  ones  as  they  may  be  needed  to  meet  the 
exigencies  of  the  country.  Patriotic  speeches  were  made  by  Rev. 
Messrs.  Marston  and  Lawrence,  E.  D.  Baker,  C.  C.  Church,  E.  W. 
Wooddell,  and  others. 

On  the  twenty-fifth  of  the  same  month  another  meeting,  with 
the  same  object  in  view,  was  held.  C.  H.  Eastman  presided.  It 
was  voted  to  hold  a  general  county  war  meeting  at  the  town  hall 
in  Claremont,  on  the  afternoon  of  the  second  of  August  follow- 
ing, and  a  committee  was  appointed  to  make  the  necessary  ar- 
rangements. 

COUNTY  WAR  MEETmG. 

On  the  second  of  August  the  town  hall  was  crowded  to  its  ut- 
most capacity,  and  the  village  was  full  of  citizens  of  the  county. 
Henry  Hubbard,  ot  Charlestown,  son  of  the  late  Governor  Henry 
Hubbard,  presided,  who,  on  taking  the  chair,  made  some  patriotic 
and  well-timed  remarks  in  relation  to  the  state  of  the  country  and 
the  duty  of  loyal  men.  JSTathaniel  S.  Berry,  governor  of  the  state, 
James  W.  Patterson,  member  of  congress,  James  W.  Nesmith, 
United  States  senator  from  Oregon,  A.  H.  Cragin,  United  States 
senator  for  ISTew  Hampshire,  Peter  Sanborn,'  state  treasurer,  Capt.  T. 
A.  Barker,  of  the  Second  ISTew  Hampshire  regiment,  H.  B.  Titus,  ma- 
jor of  the  Ninth  New  Hampshire  regiment,  and  other  distinguished 


HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT.  259 

gentlemen  from  abroad,  were  present  and  made  speeches.  The 
hall  was  handsomely  decorated  with  flags  and  other  emblems  ap- 
propriate for  the  occasion.  This  was  one  of  the  largest  and  most 
enthusiastic  meetings  ever  held  in  town. 

At  a  legal  town  meeting  on  the  seventh  of  August,  the  following 
votes  were  unanimously  passed  : 

Voted,  That  the  selectmen  be  authorized  to  borrow  a  sum  of  money,  not 
exceeding  fiye  thousand  dollars,  to  pay  a  bounty  to  citizen  volunteers  —  the 
sum  of  fifty  dollars  to  each  — to  fill  the  quota  of  three  hundred  thousand, 
when  mustered  into  the  United  States  service. 

Voted,  That  the  selectmen  be  authorized  to  bon-ow  a  sum  of  money,  not 
to  exceed  three  thousand  dollars,  to  pay  a  bounty  of  fifty  dollars  to  each 
citizen  volunteer  who  has  or  may  enlist  and  be  mustered  into  the  United 
States  service,  to  fill  the  last  quota  of  three  hundred  thousand. 

During  the  month  preceding  August  12,  1862,  recruiting  offices 
had  been  opened  in  town  by  Orville  Smith,  of  Lempster,  Syl- 
vanus  Clogston,  of  Washington,  and  E.  W.  Wooddell,  of  Clare- 
mont.  Up  to  that  date  they  had  enlisted  —  Mr.  Smith,  thirty-five 
men;  Mr.  Clogston,  twenty-six  men;  and  Mr.  Wooddell,  ten,  a 
large  share  of  whom  were  residents  of  the  town.  They  were  taken 
to  Concord  to  fill  old  and  help  to  form  new  regiments,  as  the  men 
themselves  might  respectively  elect. 

About  the  middle  of  August  William  H.  Chaffin  was  author- 
ized to  recruit  men  in  this  town  for  regiments  then  being  raised  in 
the  state,  and  opened  an  office  for  that  purpose. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  the  seventeenth  of  September,  1862,  it 
was  "  Voted  to  pay  all  resident  citizens  who  have  enlisted  under 
the  two  last  calls  of  the  President,  and  previous  to  August  11, 
1862,  fifty  dollars  each  when  mustered  into  the  United  States 
service.  Also,  all  those  who  have  enlisted  since  August  11,  1862, 
one  hundred  dollars  each,  when  mustered  into  the  United  States 
service,"  and  the  selectmen  were  authorized  to  borrow  a  sum  not 
exceeding  eight  thousand  dollars  to  carry  this  vote  into  effect. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1863,  the  selectmen  were 
authorized  by  vote  to  borrow  not  exceeding  five  thousand  dollars, 
to  aid  families  of  soldiers,  the  selectmen  to  designate  who  were 


260  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

entitled  to  aid,  and  Sumner  Putnam  was  chosen  to  pay  out  the 
money,  without  remuneration. 

On  Sunday,  May  10,  a, telegram  was  received  in  town  announcing 
the  capture  of  Richmond.  It  was  read  in  the  churches,  bells  were 
rung,  cannon  fired,  and  other  demonstrations  of  joy  made.  But  it 
turned  out  that  the  telegram  was  not  quite  true. 

The  surrender  of  Vicksburg  was  celebrated  in  Claremont,  July 
7,  1863,  by  the  ringing  of  bells,  firing  of  cannon,  etc.  Edward  F. 
Johnson,  a  son  about  twenty  years  old  of  Edwin  Johnson,  while 
assisting  to  fire  the  cannon  on  Dexter  hill,  was  very  severely  injured 
by  the  premature  discharge  of  the  gun,  losing  the  right  hand,  and 
having  the  other  badly  mutilated,  besides  other  injuries.  Subse- 
quently a  considerable  sum  of  money  was  contributed  by  citizens 
of  the  town  for  his  benefit. 

On  the  fifth  of  August  what  was  left  of  company  G,  Fifth  regi- 
ment, came  home  on  furlough.  Out  of  eighty-one  men  who  left 
town  under  Captain  Long,  in  September,  1861,  less  than  two  years 
before,  only  twelve  came  home.  Twenty-four  had  been  killed  in 
battle  or  died  of  disease,  and  the  balance  had  either  been  dis- 
charged, or  were  left  behind  in  hospitals.  An  ovation  was  given 
these  twelve  men  at  the  town  hall ;  addresses  were  made  by  several 
gentlemen,  and  a  handsome  supper  was  provided  at  the  Tremont 
House,  to  which  about  fifty  citizens  sat  down.  After  the  eating 
had  been  finished,  spirited  speeches  were  made,  sentiments  offered 
and  the  whole  afPair  passed  oft"  very  pleasantly. 

On  Thursday,  the  sixth  of  August,  the  President's  thanksgiving 
for  the  success  of  our  arms  was  observed.  Business  was  generally 
suspended.  Eeligious  services  were  held  at  the  Bajptist  church,  the 
Congregationalists  and  Methodists  uniting.  All  three  of  the  cler- 
gymen took  part  and  made  addresses. 

THE  DRAFT. 

On  the  twenty-seventh  of  August,  1863,  the  first  draft  in  this 
congressional  district  took  place  at  West  Lebanon.  Ninety-seven 
men  were  drafted  for  Claremont,  only  four  of  whom  —  WilUam  S. 
Sturtevant,  Jotham  S.  Toothaker,  and    Charles   H.  Parmelee  


HISTORY    OF    CLAEBMONT.  261 

entered  the  army.  All  the  others  were  either  rejected  by  the  ex- 
amining surgeon  as  unfit  for  duty,  paid  commutation,  or  furnished 
substitutes. 

On  the  twenty-first  of  September,  in  town  meeting,  it  was  voted 
to  pay  drafted  men,  or  their  substitutes,  three  hundred  dollars  each 
and  the  selectmen  were  instructed  to  borrow  the  money  therefor. 

On  the  seventh  of  December  the  town  ofiered  a  bounty  to  her 
citizens  who  should  enlist  of  three  hundred  dollars  in  addition 
to  other  bounties.  At  a  previous  meeting  it  had  been  voted  to 
pay  to  each  volunteer  six  hundred  dollars,  the  town  taking  an 
assignment  of  the  state  and  government  bounties. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1864,  the  selectmen  were 
authorized  to  borrow  a  sum,  not  exceeding  six  thousand  dollars,  to 
aid  the  families  of  volunteers  and  drafted  men.  Sumner  Putnam, 
as  agent,  had  paid  to  families  of  soldiers  the  preceding  year  the 
sum  of  $5,558.39. 

In  May,  1865,  there  was  another  draft  at  the  provost-marshal's 
office,  "West  Lebanon,  to  make  up  all  arrearages,  and  thirteen  men 
were  drafted  for  Claremont,  all  of  whom  were  exempted  by  the 
examining  surgeon,  or  furnished  substitutes.  In  June,  eight  more 
men  were  drafted  for  this  town,  to  make  up  deficiencies  in  her 
quota  under  all  calls,  none  of  whom  entered  the  army. 

At  a  town  meeting  on  the  twenty-third  of  June,  it  was  voted  to 
instruct  the  selectmen  to  "  pay  a  sum  not  exceeding  six  hundred 
dollars  to  any  person  who  has,  or  may  hereafter,  enlist  and  be  mus- 
tered into  the  service  of  the  United  States,  and  counted  on  the 
quota  of  this  town  for  the  present  or  any  future  call."  The  select- 
men were  also  instructed  to  proceed  forthwith  to  enlist  men,  as 
opportunity  may  oiFer,  in  anticipation  of  future  calls. 

In  August,  1864,  the  selectmen  oflfered,  for  men  to  enlist  into 
the  army,  bounties  as  follows :  Two  hundred  for  one,  and  three 
hundred  dollars  for  three  years,  besides  the  bounties  offered  by 
the  state  and  United  States,  amounting  in  all,  for  three  years'  men, 
to  eleven  hundred  dollars. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1865,  by  vote,  the 
town  treasurer  was  authorized  to   borrow  a  sum,   not  exceeding 


262  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

seven  thousand  dollars,  to  aid  the  families  of  volunteers  and  drafted 
men. 

William  E.  Tutherly  was  appointed  military  agent  to  provide 
soldiers  to  fill  all  quotas  of  the  town  the  ensuing  year. 

On  the  morning  of  the  fourteenth  of  April,  1865,  news  of  the 
taking  of  Richmond  came  by  telegraph,  followed  on  Monday  morn- 
ing, the  nineteenth,  by  this  telegram : 

Official.    Lee  and  his  whole  army  surrendered  on  Sunday  afternoon.     Gloria! 

This  was  soon  followed  by  a  telegram  from  Governor  Gilmore 
to  the  selectmen,  ordering  them  to  fire  one  hundred  guns,  at  the 
expense  of  the  state,  in  honor  of  the  overthrow  of  the  Rebellion. 
Business  was  immediately  suspended;  the  stores  closed;  men, 
women,  and  children  were  upon  the  streets;  all  the  church,  mill, 
and  school  bells  were  rung;  and  the  order  of  the  governor  was 
executed  emphatically  upon  the  common.  Everybody  rejoiced  at 
the  final  overthrow  of  the  greatest  rebellion  on  record.  A  meeting 
was  notified  to  be  held  at  the  town  hall  in  the  evening. 

At  the  appointed  time  the  town  hall  was  filled  as  it  had  seldom 
been  filled  before.  The  multitude  was  called  to  order  by  Charles 
M.  Bingham,  and  Moses  R.  Emerson  was  chosen  chairman,  who 
stated  the  objects  of  the  meeting,  and  made  some  pertinent  remarks. 
Rev.  Edward  W.  Clark,  pastor  of  the  Congregational  church, 
opened  the  meeting  with  prayer.  The  congregation  then  united 
in  singing,  in  a  most  thrilling  manner,  "  Praise  God,  from  whom 
all  blessings  flow,"  to  the  tune  of  "  Old  Hundred."  The  glee 
club,  under  the  direction  of  Francis  F.  Haskell,  next  sang  a  pat- 
riotic piece.  Spirited  addresses  were  made  by  Rev.  Messrs.  J. 
M.  Peck,  Edward  W.  Clark,  and  E.  S.  Foster,  Hosea  W.  Parker, 
Edward  D.  Baker,  Ira  Colby,  Jr.,  and  others.  The  audience  arose 
and  joined  in  singing  "  America,"  as  it  is  sung  only  when  its 
eloquence  and  beauty  are  fully  felt  by  those  who  sing  it.  The 
meeting  dissolved  to  witness  a  display  of  fireworks  outside.  Many 
of  the  public  buildings  and  private  residences  were  handsomely 
illuminated,  and  Jefferson  Davis  and  John  C.  Breckinridge  were 
burned  in  Q^gj  on  the  common. 


HISTORY   OF   OLAREMONT.  263 


ASSASSINATION  OF  ABEAHAM  LINCOLN. 


On  the  morning  of  the  fifteenth  of  April  came  a  telegram  an- 
nouncing the  assassination  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  president  of  the 
United  States,  the  night  before.  This  news  turned  the  rejoicing 
of  the  loyal  people  of  the  North  to  sincere  and  deep  mourning. 
On  Wednesday,  the  nineteenth  of  April,  in  accordance  with  rec- 
ommendation from  "Washington,  and  special  proclamation  of  the 
governor  of  New  Hampshire,  the  obsequies  of  the  President  were 
observed.  Business  of  every  kind  was  entirely  suspended;  at 
twelve  o'clock  the  church  bells  were  tolled;  minute  guns  were 
fired,  and  the  people  assembled  at  the  town  hall  to  pay  their 
respects  to  the  memory  and  worth  of  the  murdered  President, 
Abraham  Lincoln.  Never  did  the  people  of  Claremont  more  sin- 
cerely mourn  than  on  this  occasion.  Eev.  Edward  W.  Clark 
read  the  governor's  proclamation,  and  made  the  opening  prayer. 
An  appropriate  piece  was  sung  by  the  choir,  under  the  direction 
of  Francis  F.  Haskell.  Rev.  E.  S.  Foster  read  selections  from 
Scripture ;  Rev.  F.  "W".  Towle  offered  prayer ;  addresses  were  made 
by  Rev.  Messrs.  S.  G.  Kellogg,  Moses  Kimball,  of  Ascutneyville, 
Vt.,  Foster  and  Towle,  of  Claremont,  Albert  Goss,  of  Auburn,  N. 
Y.,  and  Clark,  of  Claremont.  The  choir  sang  the  hymn  com- 
mencing, "  Why  do  we  mourn  departing  friends  ?"  to  the  tune 
of  "  China,"  and  Rev.  Mr.  Kimball  pronounced  the  benediction 
in  the  most  solemn  manner. 


SUMMAKT. 

Whole  number  of  volunteers  from  Claremont     . 
Whole  number  of  drafted  men  who  entered  the  army 
Whole  number  of  drafted  men  who  furnished  substitutes 

Whole  number  killed  in  battle 

Whole  number  who  died  of  wounds   .  ... 

Whole  number  who  died  o£  disease    .... 
Whole  number  who  served  to  the  end  of  the  war 
Number  of  families  who  received  aid  from  the  town  and  state 


370 

5 

74 

33 

14 

20 

85 

173 

Amount  of  town  and  state  aid  furnished  to  families  $26,219.61 

This   summary  includes  all   the  Claremont   soldiers  who   were 
connected  with  New  Hampshire  and  other  regiments  whose  his- 


264  HISTOKY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

tory  is  known.  Many  re-enlisted,  while  others  served  in  more 
than  one  organization,  —  some  in  three  or  four,  —  which,  with 
substitutes  furnished,  and  commutation  paid  by  men  who  were 
drafted,  make  the  whole  number  four  hundred  and  forty-nine,  of 
soldiers  put  down  to  the  credit  of  the  town  daring  the  war. 

claremont's  quota  of  soldiers. 

The  enrollment  in  Claremont  in  April,  1865,  embracing  all 
male  citizens  of  the  age  of  eighteen  years,  and  under  forty-five 
years,  liable  to  do  military  duty,  was  four  hundred  and  thirteen. 
The  whole  number  who  entered  the  army  and  navy,  from  April, 
1861,  to  April,  1865,  was  four  hundred  and  forty-nine.  This 
includes  all  enlistments,  some  of  the  men  having  enlisted  two  or 
more  times,  the  drafted  men  who  furnished  substitutes,  and  those 
who  entered  the  army.  The  quota  required  to  be  sent  from  each 
town  in  the  state  under  all  the  calls  for  troops,  from  July,  1863,, 
was  proportioned  to  the  number  of  enrolled  militia,  as  above. 
Claremont's  quota  was  set  at  one  hundred  and  seventy-seven^ 
and  she  furnished  two  hundred  and  six  recruits,  being  an  excess 
of  twenty-nine  over  what  she  was  required  to  furnish. 

LADIES'  SOLDIERS'  AID  SOCIETIES. 

Immediately  after  the  assault  upon  Fort  Sumter  and  the  call 
of  the  president  for  seventy-five  thousand  volunteers,  for  three 
months,  the  ladies  of  Claremont  manifested  their  zeal  in  the 
cause  of  their  country  by  meeting  at  the  house  of  Mrs.  Susan 
J.  Adams,  to  prepare  bandages  and  other  articles  needed  in 
army  hospitals. 

In  May,  1861,  an  urgent  call  came  to  the  ladies  for  hospital 
stores  and  garments  suitable  for  sick  and  wounded  soldiers.  A 
notice  was  published  in  the  village  papers  inviting  the  ladies  to 
meet  in  Fraternity  hall.  At  the  appointed  time  a  large  number 
assembled.  The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  Miss  Elizabeth 
Sprague.  Remarks  were  made  urging  the  importance  of  organ- 
ized and  earnest  effort  to  minister  to  the  comfort  of  the  sick 
and  wounded  soldiers,  and  to  give  to  our  men  articles  of  cloth- 
ing not  furnished  them  by  the  government. 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  265 

A  society  called  the  Ladies'  Union  Sewing  Circle  was  organ- 
ized by  the  choice  of  the  following  officers:  Mrs.  M.  A.  Met- 
calf,  president;  Mrs.  Edward  L.  Goddard,  vice-president;  Miss 
Elizabeth  Sprague,  secretary  and  treasurer ;  Mrs.  Obed  D.  Barnes, 
Mrs.  Otis  F.  E.  Waite,  Mrs.  Lewis  Perry,  Mrs.  Charles  H.  East- 
man, Mrs.  Edward  L.  Goddard,  and  Mrs.  Mary  Blanchard,  com- 
mittee to  have  special  care  and  direction  of  the  work. 

This  society  met  at  Fraternity  hall  daily.  The  work  at  first 
was  upon  flannel  garments  and  other  articles  for  the  men  en- 
listed by  Capt.  William  P.  Austin,  a  large  portion  of  whom  be- 
longed in  Claremont.  Each  man  was  furnished  by  this  society 
with  a  pair  of  woolen  drawers,  undershirt,  towels,  pocket  hand- 
kerchiefs, woolen  socks,  pin-flat,  and  needlebook,  well  filled 
with  useful  articles.  By  special  contribution  they  raised  seventy- 
five  dollars  for  rubber  blankets,  eight  dollars  and  thirty-eight 
cents  for  havelocks,  and  thirteen  dollars  and  twenty-nine  cents 
for  extra  pairs  of  woolen  hose. 

The  ladies  kept  at  work  as  well  at  home  as  at  their  stated 
meetings,  throughout  the  summer,  for  soldiers  and  hospitals. 
In  September  Charles  H.  Long  enlisted  a  company  of  one  hun- 
dred men  for  the  Fifth  regiment,  all  belonging  in  Claremont 
and  vicinity,  and  each  was  furnished  with  bed  sack,  towels,  hand- 
kerchiefs, and  woolen  hose. 

AUXILIAEY  SANITARY   COMMISSION. 

Early  in  October,  1861,  the  United  States  Sanitary  Commis- 
sion sent  an  appeal  to  the  ladies  of  Claremont  to  organize  an 
Auxiliary  Sanitary  Commission,  in  order  the  better  to  systema- 
tize their  labors  and  the  manner  of  sending  forward  and  appro- 
priating to  their  proper  uses  the  fruits  of  their  liberality  and 
labor.  In  response  to  a  call,  the  citizens  met  at  Fraternity  hall 
on  the  eleventh  of  October  for  this  purpose.  Simeon  Ide,  Thomas 
J.  Harris,  Joseph  Weber,  Mrs.  Edward  L.  Goddard,  Mrs.  M.  A. 
Metcalf,  and  Mrs.  Charles  H.  Eastman  were  appointed  a  com- 
mittee to  canvass  the  town  and  secure  the  co-operation  of  all 
loyal  women  in  this  movement. 

18 


266  HISTORY    OF    CLAEEMONT. 

An  adjourned  meeting  was  held  on  the  sixteenth  of  October, 
when  the  committee  submitted  a  plan  of  organization,  making 
every  lady  in  town,  who  would  pay  into  the  treasury  one  dol- 
lar, a  member,  and  proposed  the  following  list  of  officers,  which 
plan  and  report  were  adopted:  Simeon  Ide,  president;  Mrs. 
Samuel  P.  Fiske  and  Mrs.  Leonard  P.  Fisher,  vice-presidents; 
Thomas  J.  Harris,  treasurer;  Cyrenus  S.  Parkhurst,  secretary; 
Edward  L.  Goddard,  Frederick  T.  Kidder,  Arthur  Chase,  Mrs. 
M.  A.  Metcalf,  Mrs.  G.  W.  Lewis,  Mrs.  Obed  D.  Barnes,  Mrs. 
Edward  L.  Goddard,  Mrs.  Charles  H.  Eastman,  and  Mrs.  Jotham 
G.  Allds,  directors. 

The  directors  appointed  Mrs.  Lewis  Perry,  Miss  Marion  Rich- 
ards, Mrs.  Francis  Whitcomb,  Miss  Diantha  Sargent,  Miss  Alice 
Jones,  Mrs.  James  Goodwin,  Mrs.  James  Brickett,  Mrs.  Otis  F. 
R.  Waite,  Mrs.  Stephen  F.  Eossiter,  Mrs.  David  F.  Tutherly, 
Miss  Stella  Wallingford,  Miss  E.  M.  Bond,  Mrs.  Albert  0.  Ham- 
mond, Mrs.  Freeman  S.  Chellis,  Mrs.  Amos  D.  Johnson,  Mrs. 
Robert  R.  Bunnell,  Mrs.  Anson  S.  Barstow,  Mrs.  George  W. 
Lewis,  and  Miss  Isabella  D.  Rice  to  solicit  money,  hospital  stores 
—  such  as  preserves,  jellies,  pickles,  etc.,  or  clothing  —  to  fill  a 
box  which  the  society  wished  to  send  forward. 

For  a  time  this  organization  received  the  active  co-operation 
of  the  gentlemen  holding  the  principal  offices,  after  which  they 
seemed  occupied  with  other  matters,  and  early  in  the  winter  of 
1861  the  ladies  took  the  management  and  funds  of  the  society, 
Mrs.  Samuel  P.  Fiske  acting  as  president,  and  Mrs.  Edward  L. 
Goddard  as  secretary  and  treasurer. 

The  sewing  circle  was  a  Union  sewing  circle  in  the  fullest 
acceptation  of  the  term.  Love  of  country,  love  of  the  brave  and 
noble  soldiers  who  left  their  homes  to  fight  our  battles,  to  suffer 
and  die  in  prison  or  hospital,  helped  these  patriotic  women  to 
surmount  every  obstacle  and  forget  all  opposition  and  discour- 
agement. 

A  few  ladies  of  Unity  sent  valuable  contributions,  which  were 
forwarded  in  the  first  boxes  sent  to  Washington  from  Claremont. 

The  meetings  were  frequent,  well  attended,  seemed  to  be  per- 


HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT.  267 

vaded  by  a  solemn  sense  of  the  importance  of  the  utmost  dili- 
gence in  the  performance  of  the  work  in  hand,  and  pleasant  to 
all  interested  in  their  object.  Many  ladies,  whose  names  do  not 
appear  as  having  any  special  charge,  were  among  the  most  ac- 
tive and  efficient  workers. 

Among  the  gentlemen  in  town  most  active  and  enthusiastic  in 
aiding  the  ladies  in  their  work,  encouraging  enlistments,  and 
helping  soldiers  and  their  families,  was  Rt.  Eev.  Carlton  Chase, 
bishop  of  the  diocese  of  New  Hampshire.  He  opened  his  house 
to  the  ladies,  attended  and  addressed  public  meetings,  and  in 
other  ways  showed  how  much  he  had  the  cause  of  the  country 
at  heart. 

The  ladies  engaged  in  this  society  enlisted  for  the  war,  nor 
did  they  cease  their  efforts  until  Richmond  was  taken  and  the 
rebel  armies  had  surrendered.  During  the  existence  of  this  aux- 
iliary society  they  sent  thirty-three  large  boxes  to  the  United 
States  Sanitary  Commission  rooms  in  Washington  and  Boston, 
containing  the  following  articles  :  153  pairs  woolen  drawers,  195 
woolen  shirts,  373  cotton  shirts,  29  pairs  cotton  drawers,  1,029 
towels,  901  handkerchiefs,  84  needlebooks,  624  pairs  of  woolen 
hose,  221  woolen  blankets,  333  quilts,  169  sheets,  244  pairs  mit- 
tens, 39  comfort  bags,  45  vests,  59  pillow  sacks,  139  bed  sacks, 
261  pillows,  241  pillow  cases,  198  pairs  slippers,  189  dressing 
gowns,  51  havelocks,  2  collars,  1  military  overcoat;  1  military 
dress  coat,  1  pair  military  pants,  1  blouse,  1  linen  jacket,  to- 
gether with  large  quantities  of  dried  and  canned  fruits,  pickles, 
bandages,  lint,  linen  and  cotton  pieces,  75  quarts  of  wines,  and 
50  pounds  of  cornstarch,  books  and  other  reading  matter,  all  of 
which  was  most  generously  given  by  the  friends  of  the  soldiers  in 
every  part  of  the  town.  They  also  sent  to  the  Boston  and  Balti- 
more fairs,  for  the  benefit  of  the  soldiers,  about  one  hundred  and 
fifty  dollars'  worth  of  fancy  articles,  all  of  which  were  contrib- 
uted by  the  ladies  of  this  society. 

The  society  received  of  its  members  and  other  individuals  about 
twelve  hundred  dollars,  four  hundred  dollars  of  which  was  real- 
ized from  exhibitions,  festivals,  and  concerts.     When  they  closed 


a 


268  HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT. 

their  labors,  in  the  spring  of  1865,  there  remained  in  the  treasury 
one  hundred  and  sixty  dollars,  which  was  placed  at  interest,  to  be 
appropriated  for  the  erection  of  a  monument  in  commemoration  of 
Claremont's  brave  soldiers,  who  gave  their  lives  for  the  country 
when  she  needed  such  sacrifice. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  war  the  ladies  of  "West  Claremont 
formed  themselves  into  a  working  band  for  the  soldiers,  and  met 
together  occasionally  for  work,  though  much  was  done  at  their 
homes.  Large  numbers  of  articles  were  sent  to  their  destination 
during  the  first  few  months  through  the  society  at  the  village,  after 
which  they  sent  the  articles  of  their  industry  and  benevolence 
direct  to  Washington.  As  no  ofiicers  were  chosen,  no  record  of 
the  money  expended  was  kept  for  any  length  of  time.  The  money 
used  and  articles  given  were  from  residents  at  West  Claremont,  ex- 
ceijt  fifty  dollars  from  the  Sanitary  Commission  in  the  village  in 
the  winter  of  1864-65,  placed  in  the  hands  of  Mrs.  Wyllys  Red- 
field,  and  expended  for  materials  which  were  made  up  by  the 
ladies.  During  the  war  not  less  than  eight  or  ten  barrels  and 
boxes  filled  with  quilts,  shirts,  dressing  gowns,  socks,  dried  fruits, 
jellies,  wines,  and  other  articles,  were  sent  by  the  ladies  of  West 
Claremont. 

THANKSGIVING   TO    SOLDIERS'   FAMILIES. 

In  November,  1864,  Charles  M.  Bingham,  ISTathaniel  Tolles,  Otis 
F.  R.  Waite,  Samuel  G.  Jarvis,  and  Walter  H.  Smith  were  chosen 
a  committee  to  collect  contributions,  and  distribute  to  families  of 
soldiers,  and  others  in  town  who  were  considered  needy,  provisions 
for  Thanksgiving.  Citizens  freely  contributed  from  their  stores 
what  was  valued  in  money  at  thirty  dollars  and  thirty-one  cents, 
and,  in  money,  one  hundred  and  twenty  dollars  and  forty-five 
cents,  making  a  total  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  and  seventy- 
six  cents.  The  money  received  was  carefully  expended  for  provis- 
ions, which  were  distributed  to  one  hundred  and  three  families, 
according  as  the  committee  judged  of  their  several  needs.  The 
articles  carried  to  the  different  dwellings  consisted  of  one  hundred 
and  fifty  chickens,  seventy-five  roasts  of  beef,  weighing  from  seven 


HISTORY    OF   OLAREMONT.  269 

to  fourteen  pounds  each,  several  pieces  of  fresh  pork,  a  large  quan- 
tity of  butter,  cheese,  vegetables,  groceries,  etc. 

To  the  credit  of  the  citizens  of  Claremont  it  should  be  recorded 
here  that  during  the  four  years  of  that  cruel  war  no  soldier's  family 
had  just  cause  for  complaint  that  the  means  of  comfort  were  not 
abundantly  and  cheerfully  provided  them ;  and  sympathy  and  aid 
extended  to  such  as  were  called  to  mourn  the  loss  of  husband, 
father,  son,  brother,  or  friend,  by  the  casualties  of  the  Rebellion. 


CHAPTER  XVin, 

soldiers'  monument. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1867,  it  was  voted  to  ap- 
propriate one  thousand  dollars  for  the  erection  of  a  monument  to 
those  Claremont  men  who  had  been  killed  in  battle  or  died  in  the 
army  during  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  on  condition  that  five  hun- 
dred dollars  should  be  raised  by  subscription,  or  otherwise,  for  the 
same  purpose.  The  Ladies'  Sanitary  Commission  appropriated 
the  funds  —  about  one  hundred  and  sixty  dollars,  which  they  had 
on  hand  at  the  close  of  the  war  —  to  this  object;  and  the  committee 
of  arrangements  for  the  Fourth  of  July  celebration  in  1865  also 
appropriated  about  fifty  dollars,  which  they  had  after  paying  ex- 
penses. In  addition  to  this,  the  ladies  obtained  in  subscriptions 
not  exceeding  one  dollar  each  —  heads  of  families  generally  paid 
one  dollar,  and  children  of  all  ages  twenty-five  cents  each  —  a  sufii- 
cient  amount  to  secure  the  town  appropriation ;  and  these  several 
sums,  except  the  thousand  dollars  appropriated  by  the  town,  were 
placed  at  interest.  At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1868, 
the  further  sum  of  two  thousand  dollars  was  voted  for  this  object, 
provided  that  one  thousand  dollars  should  be  raised  by  contribu- 
tion or  otherwise. 

At  the  same  meeting  Samuel  P.  Fiske,  Benjamin  P.  Oilman, 
Edward  L.  Goddard,  Charles  H.  Long,  and  John  L.  Farwell  were 
chosen  a  committee  to  have  the  whole  matter  of  the  monument 
in  charge.  Early  in  August,  1868,  Frederick  A.  Briggs,  Oliver 
A.  Bond,  Hosea  W.  Parker,  A.  George  Boothe,  "Wm.  P.  Far- 
well,  James  A.  Cowles,  Austin  C.  Chase,  and  some  other  gen- 
tlemen, assisted  by  several  young  ladies,  gave  two  very  credit- 
able dramatic  entertainments  in   aid   of  the  Soldiers'  Monument 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREJIONT.  271 

Fund.  A  string  band  extemporized  for  the  occasion,  and  under 
the  joint  leadership  of  Messrs.  George  "W.  Wait,  of  this  town, 
and  Henry  A.  Christie,  of  Christie  &  Wedger's  band,  Boston, 
who  had  his  summer  home  in  Claremont,  furnished  some  excel- 
lent music  and  contributed  very  much  to  the  entertainment. 
The  receipts  from  this  source  were  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
dollars.  Subscription  papers  were  circulated,  without  limiting  the 
amount  that  each  might  pay,  and  other  means  used  to  obtain  a 
sufficient  sum  to  secure  the  last  two  thousand  dollars  voted  by 
the  town  —  making  up  the  whole  sum  of  forty-five  hundred  dol- 
lars. Many  gentlemen  subscribed  very  liberally,  while  others 
gave  according  to  their  means,  and  the  required  amount  was 
secured. 

The  committee  decided  to  place  the  monument  in  the  park, 
south  of  the  town  house,  and  made  a  very  favorable  contract 
with  Martin  Milmore,  of  Boston,  for  a  bronze  monumental  statue 
of  an  infantry  soldier,  at  rest.  "When  the  monument  and  grounds 
were  so  nearly  completed  that  a  day  could  be  fixed  for  the  dedi- 
cation, the  committee  called  a  meeting  of  the  citizens  of  the 
town,  at  the  town  hall,  on  the  evening  of  July  17,  1869,  to  take 
measures  for  the  arranging  and  carrying  out  of  proper  exercises. 
At  this  meeting  Edward  L.  Goddard  was  chosen  chairman,  and 
Hosea  W.  Parker  secretary.  The  following  gentlemen  were  chosen 
a  committee  to  have  the  whole  subject  of  dedicating  the  monu- 
ment in  charge :  Samuel  P.  Fiske,  Benjamin  P.  Gilman,  Edward 
L.  Goddard,  Charles  H.  Long,  John  L.  Farwell,  Oscar  J.  Brown, 
John  S.  Walker,  John  F.  Cossit,  Nathaniel  Tolles,  Hosea  W. 
Parker,  J.  W.  Pierce,  Sherman  Cooper,  Henry  Patten,  Charles 
H.  Eastman,  and  William  H.  Nichols. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  committee  of  arrangements,  it  was  voted 
to  dedicate  the  monument  on  the  anniversary  of  the  battle  of 
Cedar  Creek,  October  19,  1864,  when  Gen.  Phil.  H.  Sheridan,  by 
his  timely  arrival  on  the  field,  changed  a  defeat  of  our  arms 
into  a  glorious  victory,  taking  fifty  guns  from  the  enemy.  It 
was  also  voted  to  invite  Dr.  J.  Baxter  Upham,  of  Boston,  a  na- 
tive of  the  town,  and   a   son    of  the  late  George  B.  Upham,  to 


272  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

prouoance  an  oration.  The  committee  appointed  the  following 
officers  for  the  day  of  dedication:  President,  John  S.  "Walker; 
vice-presidents,  Edward  L.  Goddard,  George  N".  Farwell,  Samuel 
G.  Jarvis,  Albro  Blodgett,  Daniel  W.  Johnson,  James  P.  Upham, 
Arnold  Briggs,  Daniel  S.  Bowker,  Edward  Ainsworth,  Charles 
M.  Bingham,  William  E.  Tutherly,  Sylvanus  S.  Redfield,  William 
Ellis,  Fred  P.  Smith,  Hiram  Webb  ;  secretaries,  Joseph  Weber, 
Arthur  Chase ;  chaplain,  Edward  W.  Clark  ;  marshal,  JSTathaniel 
Tolles,  who  appointed  for  assistants,  Edwin  W.  Tolles,  Edward 
J.  Tenney,  Sherman  Cooper,  and  George  H.  Stowell.  He  also 
appointed  Otis  F.  R  Waite,  Hosea  W.  Parker,  William  H.  H. 
Allen,  and  Francis  F.  Haskell  to  receive  and  attend  to  the  com- 
fort of  the  invited  guests. 

Invitations  were  extended  by  circulars  to  many  prominent  gen- 
tlemen', and  by  posters  to  the  people  generally,  to  be  present  and 
join  in  the  ceremonies.  The  day  was  ushered  in  by  a  salute  of 
thirty-seven  guns  and  the  ringing  of  bells  at  sunrise.  A  large 
concourse  of  people,  variously  estimated  at  from  five  to  ten  thou- 
sand, among  them  many  distinguished  ladies  and  gentlemen 
from  towns  in  this  vicinity  and  the  eastern  and  middle  portions 
of  the  state,  assembled  to  do  honor  to  the  occasion. 

At  half-past  nine  o'clock  a.  m.,  the  invited  guests  were  met  at 
the  station  of  the  Sullivan  railroad  and  conveyed  in  carriages  to 
the  village.  At  ten  o'clock  a  procession,  consisting  of  invited 
guests  and  officers  of  the  day  in  carriages,  fire  companies,  posts 
of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  and  citizens,  was  formed  on 
the  common  under  direction  of  the  marshal,  and  escorted  by  the 
Stearns  Guards  of  Claremont,  headed  by  the  Claremont  Cornet 
band,  marched  through  Broad,  ISTorth,  Maple,  Elm,  Union,  Sulli- 
van, Pleasant,  Summer,  and  Broad  streets  to  the  speaker's  stand, 
at  the  east  side  of  the  common,  and  facing  the  monumental  statue 
to  be  dedicated.  There  was  also  a  stand  for  the  band  and  choir 
erected  against  the  south  wall  of  the  Universalist  church. 

Arrived  at  the  stand,  the  band  performed  a  national  air.  The 
marshal,  ISTathaniel  Tolles,  called  the  assembly  to  order,  and  intro- 
duced Samuel  P.  Fiske,   chairman   of  the  committee  of  arrano-e- 


mZ 


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HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  273 

ments,  and  also  chairman  of  the  monument  committee,  who  made 
a  short  address,  giving  an  account  of  the  inception  of  the  soldiers' 
monument  to  be  dedicated,  and  the  work  upon  it  to  completion, 
announced  the  officers  and  introduced  the  president,  John  S. 
Walker.  The  president  called  upon  the  chaplain,  Rev.  E.  W. 
Clark,  who  invoked  the  divine  blessing  in  fitting  and  eloquent 
terms. 

The  president  delivered  a  short  address,  welcoming,  in  well 
chosen  words,  all  who  were  present,  as  well  those  of  the  town 
and  county  as  those  from  more  distant  parts.  He  said  that  General 
Philip  H.  Sheridan  had  accepted  an  invitation  to  be  present,  and 
had  been  expected  until  that  morning,  when  a  telegram  was 
received  from  him,  explaining  his  inability  to  be  with  us.  It 
concluded : 

Please  say  to  my  old  comrades  and  the  good  people  in  attendance  how  deeply 
I  regret  not  being  present  with  them  to  do  honor  to  the  memory  of  the  gallant 
men  from  New  Hampshire  who  fell  in  defense  of  the  Union  and  their  rights. 

At  the  close  of  the  president's  address,  the  signal  being  given, 
the  American  flag,  which  had  enveloped  the  bronze  statue,  was 
skillfully  lifted  therefrom  by  Samuel  P.  Fiske,  chairman  of  the 
monument  committee,  assisted  by  Benjamin  P.  Grilman,  raised 
to  the  top  of  the  pole  to  which  it  was  attached,  and  floated  in  the 
breeze  over  the  monument. 

The  orator,  Dr.  J.  Baxter  Upham,  was  then  introduced,  and 
delivered  a  very  appropriate  oration,  in  a  voice  that  could  be 
heard  by  those  of  the  vast  crowd  most  remote  from  the  speaker. 
It  was  a  touching  and  eloquent  tribute  to  the  dead  heroes  com- 
memorated by  the  monument.  Every  word  of  it  is  worthy  a 
place  in  this  book,  but  the  imperative  law  of  necessity  compels 
its  abbreviation,  at  the  risk  of  marring  the  beauty  of  the  per- 
formance.    Among  other  things  the  speaker  said : 

Standing  here,  under  this  gray  October  sky,  near  the  spot  where  I  was  born, 
on  an  occasion  at  once  so  novel  and  impressive,  before  these  high  dignitaries 
of  the  state,  these  hero-representatives  of  our  armies,  in  the  presence  of  this 
vast  multitude  who   have   come   up  hither  from  all   parts  of   the  old  county  of 


274  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

Cheshire,  o,nd  from  more  distant  towns — many  of  whom  are  known  to  me 
from  my  childhood  —  a  crowd  of  tender  recollections  comes  rushing  back  upon 
my  brain. 

The  outward  world  around  us  remains  indeed  the  same.  The  same  nature 
—  undying,  undecayed  —  is  here.  But  all  else,  how  changed!  As  I  look  out 
upon  these  scenes,  so  familiar  and  dear  to  me  —  this  amphitheater  among  the 
hills,  the  solemn  Ascutney,  the  meadow  and  its  winding  river,  —  to  swim  in 
whose  waters  and  skate  upon  whose  glassy  surface  was  a  part  of  my  early  edu- 
cation,—  the  sight  of  the  old  schooihouse  and  the  church,  these  plains  and 
valleys  and  fertile  fields,  calm  and  peaceful  as  of  old,  I  can  with  difficulty  bring 
to  myself  the  reality  that  some  of  those  who  joined  with  me  here  in  the  sports 
of  boyhood  have  passed  through  the  maddening  carnage  of  civil  war,  and  I  now 
read  their  names  on  yonder  tablets  —  that  martyr  list  of  heroes. 

But  if,  amid  all  the  carnage,  political  and  social,  which  must  needs  happen 
in  a  quarter  of  a  century  and  more  of  one's  life,  it  had  been  possible  to  foresee 
that  "great  trial  and  great  task  of  our  liberty"  through  which  we  have  just 
gone,  I  could  have  also  foreseen,  to  a  certainty,  that  the  part  my  native  town 
should  bear  in  it  would  be  just  the  honorable  record  it  has  shown.  The  mili- 
tary history  of  the  state  justifies  this.  The  chronicles  of  the  town  from  the 
first  settlement  in  1762,  have  given  a  warrant  and  a  pledge  of  it.  From  among 
the  earliest  settlers  I  find  the  name  of  Joseph  Waite  —  whether  or  not  an  an- 
cestor of  our  respected  fellow-citizen  of  that  name  to  whom  we  are  all  so  much 
indebted  for  his  valuable  and  painstaking  history  of  our  Claremont  soldiers  in 
the  recent  struggle  I  cannot  say  —  Colonel  Joseph  Waite,  who,  on  the  authority 
of  Mansfield,  the  annalist,  had  already  won  distinction  in  the  French  and  Indian 
war,  was  a  captain  in  Rogers's  famous  corps  of  Rangers  in  1759,  and  com- 
manded a  regiment  in  the  war  of  the  Revolution,  —  Captain  Joseph  Taylor, 
who,  in  1755,  was  taken  by  the  Indians  and  sold  to  the  French,  but  escaped 
and  took  part  in  the  siege  of  Louisburg,  and  afterward  in  the  Revolutionary 
struggle,  and  died  at  the  good  old  age  of  eighty-four,  in  1813,  —  Hon.  Samuel 
Ashley,  a  man  of  note  in  our  aunals,  who  had  served  with  credit  in  the  old 
French  war,  and  filled  many  offices  of  civil  trust  in  the  town,  and  others  of 
like  distinction,  who  might  be  named  if  the  time  would  permit.  And  imme- 
diately upon  the  outbreak  of  hostilities  in  1775,  I  find  the  names  of  several  of 
our  citizens  upon  the  muster  rolls  of  the  First  New  Hampshire  regiment  —  that 
honorable  regiment  which,  under  the  gallant  Stark,  was  conspicuous  at  Bunker 
Hill,  and  which  followed  the  varying  fortunes  of  the  patriot  army  till  the  final 
capitulation  at  Yorktown.  The  men  of  Claremont  bore  their  part  also  in  the 
second  war  with  England,  on  the  field  where  Miller  and  McNeil  so  nobly  up- 
held the  honor  of  the  state.      In  later  struggles  —  in   Texas,  under  Houston 

one  life  from  here,  at  least,  went  down  to  its  unknown  grave.     Nor  were  the 

Florida  and  Mexican  wars  without  their  representatives  from  this  devoted  town. 

So,  when    the  news   came   that   treason  and   rebellion   had   burst   forth   into 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  275 

actual  hostilities  on  that  memorable  twelfth  of  April,  1861,  true  to  the  old 
honor  and  name,  the  citizens  of  Claremont,  with  one  accord,  sprang  to  meet 
the  issue.  I  need  not  recall  to  your  minds  with  what  alacrity  the  whole  com- 
munity came  together,  each  vying  with  the  other  in  encouraging  enlistments, 
and  furnishing  that  material  which  has  well  been  called  "the  sinews  of  war" 
—  pledging,  if  need  be,  in  the  spirit  and  language  of  the  Revolutionary  fathers, 
"their  lives,  their  fortunes,  and  their  sacred  honor,"  —  womanly  hands,  too, 
taking  up  the  good  work,  and  laboring  earnestly  and  unceasingly  for  the  same 
noble  end  —  all  this  is  still  fresh  in  your  memories. 

Within  three  days  of  the  President's  proclamation  and  call  for  seventy-five 
thousand  men  to  suppress  a  rebellion  against  the  government  of  the  United 
States,  and  immediately  upon  the  order  issued  by  the  governor  for  a  regiment 
to  be  raised  in  this  state  to  serve  for  three  months,  an  office  was  opened  here 
for  enlistments;  "the  young  men,"  says  our  historian,  "flocked  in  faster  than 
they  could  be  examined  and  sworn."  On  the  thirtieth  of  the  same  mouth. 
Major  Waite  set  forth,  with  the  eighty-five  patriot  soldiers  recruited  by  Captain 
Austin,  for  the  rendezvous  of  the  regiment  at  Concord  —  a  full  company,  nearly, 
from  this  town  of  about  four  thousand  inhabitants,  —  and  if  the  whole  popu- 
lation of  the  state  had  been  represented  in  the  same  ratio,  instead  of  a  single 
regiment  of  seven  hundred  and  eighty  rank  and  file,  enough  for  more  than  ten 
regiments  could  have  been  had  on  this  first  call  to  arms.  As  it  was,  more 
than  enough  for  two  regiments  volunteering,  the  Claremont  men  were  sent  to 
Portsmouth,  where,  at  the  second  call  of  the  President,  on  the  third  day  of 
May,  for  three  hundred  thousand  men  for  three  years,  one  half  of  this  company 
at  once  re-enlisted,  the  remainder  being  discharged  for  disability  or  sent  to  the 
defense  of  the  sea  coast  at  Fort  Constitution.  This  was  the  first  offering  of 
some  of  its  noblest  representatives  sent  forth  by  this  town  to  battle  with 
the  Rebellion.  They  could  have  been  urged  by  no  other  than  the  purest  mo- 
tives of  patriotism  —  with  no  prospect  of  reward  save  the  proud  consciousness 
of  doing  their  duty. 

This  regiment,  in  which  they  finally  enlisted,  was  virtually  the  first  of  the 
New  Hampshire  regiments  in  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  though  still  retained 
as  the  second  in  nomenclature  of  the  New  Hampshire  line  —  first,  as  it  was,  at 
least,  coeval  in  its  organization  with  the  three  months'  regiment  which  preceded 
it,  by  a  little,  to  the  field  of  strife,  —  first,  as  it  had  the  priority  in  its  actual 
baptism  of  fire  and  of  blood.  Not  to  lay  undue  stress  upon  this  point,  I  may  be 
pardoned  for  dwelling  somewhat  on  the  exploits  of  this  gallant  regiment,  from 
the  circumstances  I  have  already  named,  and  from  the  fact  that  it  was  my  proud 
good  fortune,  at  the  head  of  a  thousand  sons  of  New  Hampshire,  to  welcome 
its  full  ranks  as  it  passed  through  Boston  on  its  way  to  Washington,  on  the 
twentieth  of  June,  1861;  and  therefore  I  have  followed  its  onward  career  with 
more  than  ordinary  interest.  It  alone,  among  the  regiments  of  our  state,  par- 
ticipated in  the  first  great  battle  of  Bull  Run,  doing  all,  under  its  brave  leaders, 


276  HISTORY   OF    CLAEEMONT. 

that  valor  and  determination  could  do  to  breast  the  wofnl  disasters  of  that  day 
—  giving  in  the  death  of  Andrev?  J.  Straw  of  this  town,  the  first  New  Hamp- 
shire martyr  to  freedom,  slain  in  battle,  in  this  war.     The  loss  of  the  regiment 
in  killed  and  vrounded  was  severe.      Its  gallant   colonel  was   stricken    down  at 
the  head  of  his  command,  early  in    the  action,  but   returned  and  continued  in 
the  fight.     It  went  into  the  fray  with  full  ranks  and  buoyant  spirits.     It  came 
out  of  it  with  at  least  equal  honor  with  any  other  of  that  patriot  army,  which 
then  and  there  learned  the  stern  but  salutary  lesson  of  a  first  defeat.     Its  next 
experience  was  at  the   siege  of   Yorktown,   and  immediately  afterward,  at   the 
sanguinary  battle  of  Williamsburg,  where  it  fought  with  honor  and  with  varying 
success,  with  the  loss  of  about  one  hundred  men.     We  hear  of  it  next  at  Fair 
Oaks  and   Malvern  Hill,   and  in  most  of   the  bloody  battles  of   the  memorable 
seven  days   fight  and   retreat   to  the   James    river.      The   following  year,  after 
consecrating  itself  to  the  cause  at  the  second  Bull  Run,  where  it  behaved  with 
distinguished  gallantry,  losing  ten  of  its  twenty-one  commissioned  ofiicers,  and 
one  hundred  and   thirty-two  of   the   little  more  than   three   hundred  rank  and 
file  with  which  it  entered  the  fight,  it  encamped  at  night  on  the  identical  spot 
where  it  formed  its  first  line  of   battle  in   1861.      Thence   its  route  was  direct 
to  Chantilly  and  Fredericksburg,  in  which  last  it  found  in  the  general-in-chief 
of  the  army,  its  tried  and  faithful  leader,  under  whom,  as  colonel  commanding 
a  brigade,  it  had    fought  at   the  first   Bull  Run.      In  the  memorable  battle  of 
Gettysburg  its  gallantry  was  conspicuous,  suffering  a  loss,  in  killed  and  wounded, 
of  a  majority  of  its  field  and  line  officers,  and  more  than  one  half  of  its  rank 
and  file.      The  next  year  finds  the   regiment  engaged  in   the  action  at  Drury's 
Bluff  —  the   battle  of   Cold   Harbor   and    second   Fair  Oaks,    and  the   siege  of 
Petersburg.     This  was  after  it  had  returned  to  New  Hampshire,  been  reorgan- 
ized, had   incorporated   into  its   ranks   the   residue  of   the  Seventeenth,  a   nine 
months   regiment,  and  otherwise  recruited   its  shattered  forces,  and   came  back 
with  a  renewed  vigor  to  the  scene  of  conflict.     The  regiment  was  subsequently 
in  several  skirmishes  and   minor  engagements,  losing   heavily  in   the  aggregate 
—  took  part,  under  Butler,  in  the  defense  of   Bermuda   Hundred  —  and  on  the 
third  of  April,  1865,  entered   the  city  of   Richmond  and  encamped  on  its  out- 
skirts,   amid  the  smoke   and  cinders  of  the  burning  capital.     Here  it  remained 
until  after  the  surrender  at  Appomattox.     It  was  not  until  the  twenty-sixth  of 
December  following  that   the  corps  was  finally  paid  off  and   disbanded,  having 
enlisted  earlier  and  remained  later  in  the  field  than  any  other  permanent  organi- 
zation from  the  state. 

"The  roll  of  this  regiment,"  writes  one  of  its  field  officers,  "presents,  since 
its  organization,  a  list  of  more  than  three  thousand  names.  Every  regiment 
from  New  Hampshire,  with  two  exceptions,  has  been  supplied,  in  part,  with 
officers  from  its  ranks.  The  rosters  of  more  than  thirty  regiments  in  the  field 
contain  the  names  of  those  who  were  identified  with  it.  It  has  marched  six 
thousand  miles,  and  lost  in  action  upwards  of  one  thousand  men." 


HISTORY   OF    OLAREMONT.  277 

On  the  marble  tablets  in  yonder  town  hall,  which  from  henceforth  shall  be 
a  memorial  hall  as  well,  we  may  trace  the  names  of  seventy-three  young  men 
who  fought  in  these  armies  and  voluntarily  laid  down  their  lives  upon  the  altar 
of  their  country  —  more  than  a  seventh  part  of  the  four  hundred  and  nine, 
who,  from  first  to  last,  enlisted  here  —  so  many,  alas,  in  number,  that  there  is 
not  room  for  them  upon  the  entablature  of  this  or  any  common  monument.  I 
could  wish  it  were  possible  to  write  them,  one  and  all,  in  letters  of  living  light, 
on  the  sides  of  these  everlasting  hills,  that  they  might  be  read  and  known  of 
all  men. 

Sufier  me,  reverently,  to  speak  to  you  some  of  these  familiar  names  : 

Colonel  Alexander  Gardiner,  commanding  the  Fourteenth  regiment,  —  the 
model  of  a  faithful,  efficient  officer,  the  scholar,  and  the  accomplished  gentle- 
man,—  Captain  AVilliam  Henry  Chaffin,  acting  lieutenant-colonel  of  his  regi- 
ment, and  Lieutenant  Henry  S.  Paull  —  both  brave  and  true  men,  killed  at  the 
same  time  that  their  beloved  commander  was  mortally  wounded  at  the  battle 
of  Opequan  creek,  near  Winchester,  on  the  nineteenth  day  of  September,  1864 
—  over  whose  remains,  with  others  slain  in  that  memorable  engagement,  a 
grateful  state  has  placed  a  monument  on  the  field. 

Lieutenant  Ruel  G.  Austin,  mortally  wounded  at  the  battle  of  Gettysburg. 

Lieutenant  Charles  O.  Ballou,  "  whose  memory  shall  be  kept,"  wrote  the 
captain  of  his  company,  "so  long  as  the  banner  of  the  glorious  Fifth  continues 
to  wave." 

Lieutenant  Robert  Henry  Chase,  "than  whom  New  Hampshire  has  sent  no 
braver  man  to  the  field,"  said  the  commanding  officer  of  his  regiment. 

Lieutenant  Samuel  Brown  Little,  stricken  down  in  the  thickest  of  the  fight 
at  Antietam,  and  though  still  disabled,  hastened  to  Fredericksburg,  to  receive 
there  his  mortal  wound. 

Lieutenant  George  Nettleton,  whose  last  words  to  his  wife  were,  —  "If  I  fall, 
remember  it  was  at  the  post  of  duty  and  in  a  noble  cause." 

Lieutenant  William  Danford  Kice,  —  "too  well  known  and  loved  for  any  words 
of  mine  to  add  to  or  detract,"  wrote  Lieutenant-Colonel  Whitfield  of  him. 

Sergeant  Luther  A.  Chase,  Sergeant  Horatio  C.  Moore,  Sergeant  Edward  F. 
Moore,  Sergeant  Ard  Scott,  Sergeant  George  E.  Rowell,  Sergeant  Charles  W. 
Wetherbee,  —  "  Dead  on  the  field  of  battle." 

There  remains  unread  a  still  larger  list  of  the  honored  dead  —  equally  high 
on  the  martyr  roll  of  fame;  indeed,  it  is  the  peculiar  feature  of  this  war  that 
in  the  rank  and  file  of  the  patriot  army  are  to  be  found  instances  innumerable 
of  heroic  daring  —  of  devotion,  of  self-sacrifice,  and  Christian  patriotism  —  that 
can  hardly  be  paralleled  in  the  annals  of  war  in  the  world.  To  name  two  or 
three  only  of  such  instances :  Take  young  Putnam  of  the  Second,  who  in  the 
hurried  and  disastrous  retreat  of  the  first  Bull  Run,  found  time  to  go  out  of 
his  way  to  visit  his  wounded  associates  in  the  hospital,  and  to  get  water  for 
his  dying  comrades,  under  the  storm  of  the  enemy's  shot  and  shell  —  of  whom 


278  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

his  commanding  officer  wrote,  "  His  kindness  and  manly  bearing  had  taught 
me  to  love  him  like  a  brother ;  "  and  Neal,  of  the  Third,  whose  last  regret 
was  that  he  "had  but  one  life  to  give  to  his  country;"  and  Hart,  of  the  Fifth, 
—  Charles  A.  Hart,  —  who,  when  mortally  wounded  and  left  upon  the  field, 
did  just  what  immortalized  the  name  of  Sir  Philip  Sidney  at  the  battle  of  Zut- 
phen  —  declined  the  proffered  aid  to  himself  in  favor  of  another  at  his  side  who 
seemed  to  him  to  need  it  more.     But  I  forbear. 

Surviving  heroes !  —  who  so  freely  offered  yourselves  to  death  and  yet  live  — 
to  you  and  your  children  and  your  children's  children  belongs  the  legacy  of  this 
goodly  day. 

Spirits  of  the  heroic  dead!  —  slain  in  battle,  or  dead  of  wounds  or  disease,  of 
exposure  or  starvation,  —  martyrs  to  your  country  and  to  liberty,  —  if  from  your 
serene  abode  it  be  permitted  you  to  take  cognizance  of  things  here,  —  to  you 
and  to  your  beloved  memory  we  dedicate  this  offering  of  our  admiration  and 
our  love.  I^ay,  rather,  in  the  undying  words  of  our  martyr  president,  "It  is 
altogether  fitting  and  proper  that  we  should  do  this  thing.  But,  in  a  larger 
sense,  we  cannot  dedicate  —  we  cannot  consecrate  —  we  cannot  hallow  —  the 
ground  where  rests  our  heroic  dead.  It  is  for  us,  the  living,  rather  to  be  ded- 
icated to  the  work  they  have  so  nobly  achieved.  It  is  rather  for  us  to  take 
from  these  honored  dead,  increased  devotion  to  the  cause  for  which  they  gave 
the  last  full  measure  of  devotion ;  to  highly  resolve  that  the  dead  shall  not 
have  died  in  vain  —  that  this  great  nation  shall,  under  God,  have  a  new  birth 
of  freedom,  and  that  the  government  of  the  people,  by  the  people,  and  for 
the  people,  shall  not  perish  from  the  earth.'' 

After  the  oration,  ''  America  "  was  sung  by  the  choir,  under  the 
leadership  of  Moses  E.  Emerson.  The  president  then  introduced 
Gov.  Onslow  Stearns,  who  made  a  short  address,  followed  with  ad- 
dresses by  ex-Govs.  Walter  Harriman,  Frederick  Smyth,  United 
States  senator  James  W.  Patterson,  Col.  Mason  W.  Tappan,  and 
ex-congressman  Jacob  H.  Ela.  The  exercises  closed  by  the  sing- 
ing, by  the  choir  and  all  present,  of  that  grand  old  ascription, 
"  Be  Thou,  0  God,  exalted  high." 

The  procession  was  then  re-formed  and  marched  to  the  Tremont 
House,  where  the  invited  guests,  the  committee  of  arrangements, 
officers  of  the  day,  and  citizens,  in  all  about  eighty,  ladies  and  gen- 
tlemen, at  four  o'clock  partook  of  a  sumptuous  dinner.  Members 
of  fire  companies  and  posts  of  the  Grand  Army  were  liberally  pro- 
vided for  by  contributions  of  citizens,  at  the  town  hall,  where  tables 
were  laid  for  about  five  hundred.     After  these  had  eaten,  the  doors 


CHARLES  H.  LONG. 


HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT. 


279 


were  thrown  open  to  the  multitude,  and  not  less  than  one  thousand 
were  fed  in  this  way.  There  was  a  great  quantity  of  food  left, 
which  was  carefully  gathered  up  and  distributed  to  such  as  needed  it. 

THE   MONUMENT. 

The  monument  consists  of  a  handsome  granite  pedestal,  seven 
feet  high,  surmounted  by  a  bronze  statue  of  an  infantry  volunteer 
soldier,  of  heroic  size,  in  full  regulation  uniform,  leaning  in  an  easy 
and  graceful  way  upon  his  gun.  Beneath  the  statue,  on  the  gran- 
ite die,  is  the  following  inscription : 

"  ERECTED 

IN  HONOR  OF  THE  SOLDIERS 

OF 

CLAREMONT, 

WHO  DIED 

IN  THE  REBELLION  OF   1861-65, 

BY  THEIR  GRATEFUL 

FELLOW-CITIZENS, 

1869." 


FINANCIAL  STATEMENT. 

Beceipts. 
E.  L.  Goddard,  for  Fourth  of  July  committee  of  1865 ; 

principal,  $47.00;  interest,  $13.00 $60.00 

Mrs.  E.  L.  Goddard,  Treasurer  Auxiliary  Sanitary  Com- 
mission: principal,  $150.00;  interest,  $41.25         .        .  191-25 
From  subscriptions  of  1867  :  principal,  $642.72  ;  interest, 

$95.37 ''3S-09 

Dramatic  company 94.00 

Subscriptions,  1869 970.63 

Town  appropriations  for  monument  and  park  improve- 
ments, as  per  vote  of  1867-68  .        .        •        .        • 3,500^ 

Total $5,553.97 

Bisbursements. 

Martin  Milmore,  for  monument $4,000.00 

E.  Batchelder,  for  granite  curbing 250.00 

Concrete  walk  and  grading 807.23 

Fence,  $337.14;  labor,  $159.60  .  •        •        •        ■ ^96., 4 

Total     .        .        .        •        • $5,553.97 


CHAPTER     XIX. 

MEMORIAL   XABLBTS  —  EECORD    OF    SOLDIERS. 

The  large  number  of  those  Claremont  men  who  were  killed  in 
battle  and  died  of  wounds  or  disease  Avhile  in  the  service,  rendered 
the  inscription  of  all  their  names  upon  the  monnment  impracti- 
cable ;  therefore  marble  tablets  were  erected  in  the  town  hall  — 
bearing  the  following  Roll  of  Honor,  except  that  the  date  and  man- 
ner of  death  of  each  is  added  here,  to  perpetuate  more  fully  their 
record : 

CITIZEN    SOLDIERS     OF     CLAREMONT     WHO     DIED     FOR     THEIR     COUNTRY    IN   THE 
WAR   OF   THE   REBELLION,    1861-65. 

Colonel  Alexander  Gardiner.  14th  Kegt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Mortally  wounded  at 
the  battle  of  Cedar  Creek,  near  Winchester,  Va.,  Sept.  19,  1864.  Died  of 
wounds  Oct.  8,  1864. 

Captain  William  Henry  Chaffin.  Co.  I,  14th  Eegt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the 
battle  of  Cedar  Creek,  near  Winchester,  Va.,  Sept.  19,  1864. 

Lieutenant  Ruel  G.  Austin.  Co.  A,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Wounded  at  the 
battle  of  Gettysburg,  Pa.,  July  6,  1863.  Died  of  his  wounds  at  Baltimore,  Md., 
July  26,  1863. 

Lieutenant  Charles  O.  Ballou.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the 
battle  of  Fredericksburg,  Va.,  Dec.  18,  1862. 

Lieutenant  Robert  Henry  Chase.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at 
the  battle  of  Ream's  Station,  Va.,  Aug.  25,  1864. 

Lieutenant  Samuel  Brown  Little.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Wounded 
at  the  battle  of  Fredericksburg,  Va.,  Dec.  13,  1862.  Died  of  wounds  at  Fal- 
mouth, Va.,  Dec.  24,  1862. 

Lieutenant  George  Ifettleton.  Co.  G,  5th  Eegt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Wounded  at  the 
battle  of  Fredericksburg,  Va.,  Dec.  13,  1862.    Died  of  wounds  Dec.  23,  1862. 

Lieutenant  Henry  S.  Paull.  Co.  I,  14th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the 
battle  of  Cedar  Creek,  near  Winchester,  Va.,  Sept.  19,  1864. 


HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT.  281 

Lieutenant  William  D.  Eice.  Co.  G,  9th  Eegt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Supposed  killed 
at  Poplar  Grove  Church,  Va.,  Sept.  30,  1864. 

Daniel  S.  Alexander.  Co.  F,  3d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of 
Drury's  Bluff,  Va.,  May  13,  1864. 

Oscar  C.  Allen.  Co.  H,  2d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Philadel- 
phia, Pa.,  Oct.  2,  1862. 

James  P.  Bascom.  Co.  G,  9th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Fal- 
mouth, Va.,  Dec.  25, 1862. 

Samuel  O.  Benton.  Co.  E,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  in  battle  at  Ream's 
Station,  Va.,  Aug.  16,  1864. 

Horace  Bolio.  Co.  F,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of  Gettys- 
burg, July  2,  1863. 

Amos  F.  Bradford.  Co.  G,  9th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  diphtheria  at 
Paris,  Ky.,  Nov.  10,  1863. 

Josiah  S.  Brown.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of 
Fredericksburg,  Va.,  Dec.  13,  1862. 

James  Burns.  Co.  G,  5th  Eegt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of  Gettys- 
burg, Pa.,  July  3,  1863. 

Charles  F.  Burrill.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of 
Gettysburg,  Pa.,  July  2,  1863. 

Charles  E.  Ballou.     Died  at  Washington,  D.  C,  of  disease,  Feb.  18,  1864. 

Samuel  S.  Carleton.  Fourth  Battalion,  Mass.  Rifles.  Died  at  Claremont, 
N.  H.,  Jan.  23,  1867,  of  wounds  received  in  battle. 

Luther  A.  Chase.  Co,  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of 
Fredericksburg,  Va.,  Dec.  13,  1863. 

Wyman  R.  Clement.  Co.  H,  2d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Wash- 
ington, D.  C,  Aug.  1,  1861. 

Joseph  Craig.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of  Gettys- 
burg, Pa.,  July  2,  1863. 

Albert  G.  Dane.  Co.  A,  3d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  while  prisoner  at  Salis- 
bury, N.  C,  Feb.  3,  1865. 

Ziba  L.  Davis.  Co.  H,  2d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Falmouth, 
Va.,  Jan.  12,  1863. 

James  Delmage.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of  Fair 
Oaks,  Va.,  June  1,  1862. 

Edward  E.  French.  Co.  E,  Berdan's  Sharpshooters.  Wounded  at  the  battle 
of  Cold  Harbor,  Va.,  June  19, 1864.    Died  of  wounds  Sept.  7,  1864. 

Moses  Garfield.  Co.  H,  7th  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Goldsborough, 
N.  C,  June  29,  1865. 

19 


282  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

John  Gilbert.  Co.  F,  3d  Eegt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of  Deep 
Run,  Va  ,  Aug.  16,  1864. 

Frederick  W.  Goddard.  Co.  H,  44th  Regt.  Mass.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at 
Pemberton  Square  Hospital,  Boston,  July  3,  1863. 

Charles  B.  Grandy.  Co.  A,  62d  Regt.  N.  Y.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Wash- 
ington, D.  C,  Oct.  16,  1861. 

David  H.  Grannis.  Co.  A,  3d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Hilton 
Head,  N.  C,  March  4,  1863. 

Timothy  Grannis.  Co.  E,  U.  S.  Sharpshooters;  mustered  Sept.  9,  1861;  died 
suddenly  in  camp  at  Washington,  D.  C,  Jan.  31,  1862. 

Chester  F.  Grinnels.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of 
Fredericksburg,  Va.,  Dec.  13,  1862. 

Charles  A.  Hart.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of  Fred- 
ericksburg, Va.,  Dec.  13,  1862. 

Elisha  M.  Hill.  Co.  G,  6th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  wounds  received  in 
battle,  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Damon  E.  Hunter.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Mortally  wounded  at  the 
battle  of  Fair  Oaks,  Va.,  June  1,  1863.     Died  June  22,  1862. 

William  L.  Hurd.  Co.  F,  3d  Regt.  Vt.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of  Lee's 
Mills,  Va.   April  16,  1862. 

John  S.  M.  Ide.  Co.  E,  Berdan's  Sharpshooters.  Killed  in  an  engagement 
at  Yorktown,  Va.,  April  5, 1862. 

Joseph  W.  Kelly.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  I^.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  on  passage 
from  Fortress  Monroe  to  Washington,  in  May,  1862. 

Walter  B.  Kendall.  Co.  F,  3d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  in  front  of  Peters- 
burg, Va.,  June  16,  1864. 

J.  Fisher  Lawrence.  Co.  H,  7th  Regt.  oST.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Port 
Royal,  S.  C,  Aug.  8,  1862. 

Charles  B.  Marvin.  Co.  G,  9th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  in  the  battle  of 
Antietam,  Sept.  17,  1862. 

Noah  D.  Merrill.  Co.  D,  2d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  wounds  received  in 
battle,  Sept.  16,  1862. 

Edward  F.  Moore.  Troop  L,  First  New  England  Cavalry.  Killed  in  the 
battle  of  Gettysburg,  Pa.,  July  2,  1863. 

Horatio  C.  Moore.  Co.  F,  3d  Eegt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Mortally  wounded  in  the 
battle  of  James  Island,  S.  C,  June  16,  1862.    Died  June  19,  1862. 

Ransom  M.  Neal.  Co.  A,  3d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Hilton 
Head,  S.  C,  Oct.  30,  1862. 


HISTORY   OF    CLARBMONT.  283 

Everett  W.  Nelson.  Co.  H,  7th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Wounded  and  taken 
prisoner  at  Fort  Wagner,  July  18,  1863.    Died  July  24,  1863. 

Charles  H.  Nevers.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  in  battle  at  White 
Oak  Swamp,  Va.,  June  30,  1862. 

Frederick  A.  Nichols.  Co.  F,  3d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Mortally  wounded  near 
Bermuda  Hundred,  June  16,  1864.     Died  next  day. 

Lyman  F.  Parrish.  Co.  H,  2d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  small-pox  in  gen- 
eral hospital,  West  Philadelphia,  Feb.  20,  1863. 

William  E.  Parrish.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Wounded  and  taken  pris- 
oner in  the  battle  of  the  Wilderness,  and  is  supposed  to  have  died  at  Ander- 
sonville. 

Joel  W.  Patrick.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Clare- 
mont,  N.  H.,  Aug.  15,  1862. 

Henry  W.  Patrick.  Co.  H,  2d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Clare- 
mont,  N.  H.,  Aug.  20,  1868. 

Joseph  Peno.  Co.  C,  3d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of  James 
Island,  June  16,  1862. 

Charles  E.  Putnam.  Co.  H,  2d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  in  the  battle  of 
Williamsburg,  Va.,  May  5,  1862. 

George  H.  Putnam.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  in  the  battle  of 
Cold  Harbor,  Va.,  June  3,  1864. 

George  Read.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Newark,  N. 
J.,  Sept.  9,  1862. 

Edgar  T.  Reed.  Co.  G,  6th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Shot  while  attempting  to  ar- 
rest a  deserter  in  the  autumn  of  1864. 

Willis  Redfleld.  15th  Regt.  Conn.  Vols.  Died  of  yellow  fever  at  Newbern, 
N.  C,  Oct.  11,  1864. 

Charles  D.  Robinson.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  in  the  battle  of 
Fredericksburg,  Va.,  Dec.  13,  1862. 

George  E.  Rowell.  Co.  H,  11th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  oi  disease  at  Bal- 
timore, Md.,  April  10,  1864. 

George  W.  Russell.  Co.  G,  9th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Mortally  wounded  at  the 
battle  of  Antietam,  Md.,  Sept.  17,  1862,  and  died  next  day. 

Ard  Scott.  Co.  F,  3d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Taken  prisoner  at  Darbytown,  Va., 
Oct.  1,  1864.  Died  of  starvation  and  exposure  at  Salisbury,  N.  C,  Nov.  20, 
1864. 

Charles  N.  Scott.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle  of  Fair 
Oaks,  Va.,  June  1,  1862. 

Edward  E.  Story.  Co.  G,  6th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Hatteras 
Inlet,  March  4,  1862. 


284  HISTORY    OP   CLARBMONT. 

Andrew  J.  Straw.  Co.  H,  2cl  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Wounded  at  the  battle  of 
Bull  Run,  Va.,  July  21,  1861,  and  is  supposed  to  have  died  in  the  hands  of  the 
enemy. 

Roland  Taylor.  Co.  G,  6th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Mortally  wounded  at  the 
battle  of  Gettysburg,  Pa.,  July  2,  1863,  and  died  a  few  days  afterward. 

Horace  A.  Tyrrell.  2d  Regt.  Mass.  Cavalry.  Died  of  disease  on  his  way 
home,  after  discharge,  Dec.  30,  I860. 

Harvey  M.  Wakefield.  Co.  G,  oth  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  in 
hospital,  July  5,  1862. 

George  O.  Webb.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease  at  Camp 
Fair  Oaks,  Va.,  June  1.5, 1862. 

Charles  W.  Wetherbee.  Co.  G,  5th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Killed  at  the  battle 
of  Fair  Oaks,  Va.,  June  1,  1862. 

John  F.  Wheeler.  Co.  A,  2d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Taken  prisoner  at  the  bat- 
tle of  Bull  Run,  Va.,  July  21, 1861.  Exchanged  and  died  on  shipboard,  between 
Salisbury,  N.  C,  and  New  York. 

Norman  F.  Wliitmore.  Co.  A,  3d  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Died  of  disease,  occa- 
sioned by  wounds,  at  Jacksonville,  Fla.,  June  9, 1864. 

Augustus  E.  Woodbury.  Co.  H,  7th  Regt.  N.  H.  Vols.  Taken  prisoner  at 
Olustee,  Fla.,  Feb.  10,  1864.    Died  at  Andersonville,  Ga.,  June  23,  1864. 

RECORD    OF    SOLDIERS. 

In  the  following  pages  is  given,  alphabetically  arranged,  in  their 
order  by  regiments,  the  names  and  dates  of  death  of  each  Clare- 
mont  soldier  who  has  died  since  the  close  of  the  war,  in  April, 
1865 ;  and  also  the  record  of  those  who  are  now  living,  their  places 
of  residence,  and  if  in  receipt  of  pension  from  the  United  States 
government,  so  far  as  it  has  been  possible  to  obtain  these  facts  con- 
nected with  each  one. 

FIRST  KEGIMENT. 

For  reasons  heretofore  stated,  there  were  no  Claremont  men  in 
this,  the  only  three  months  regiment  from  New  Hampshire. 

SECOND  REGIMENT. 

This  was  a  three  years  regiment,  Gilman  Marston,  colonel.  It 
was  organized  at  Portsmouth,  the  muster  into  the  United  States 
service  completed,  and  it  left  the  state  for  the  seat  of  war  on  June 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  285 

20,  1861.     It  was  fiually  mustered  out  and  its  men  paid  off  and 
discharged  at  Concord  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  December,  1865. 

Corporal  Heman  Allen.  Co.  H,  mustered  June  5,  1861 ;  discharged  June  21, 
1864 ;  resides  at  the  West. 

Selden  S.  Chandler.  Co.  H,  mustered  June  5,  1861 ;  transferred  to  Fourth 
United  States  Artillery  Nov.  1,  1862  ;  died  in  the  service. 

Sergeant  Homer  M.  Crafts.  Co.  I,  mustered  June  7,  1861 ;  discharged  for 
disability  May  28,  1862  ;  died  at  Northampton,  Mass.,  July,  1872. 

John  Dean.  Co.  H,  enlisted  Sept.  17,  1861;  discharged  for  disability  March 
17,  1863 ;  lives  at  Parsons,  Kans. 

John  W.  Davis.  Co.  I,  mustered  June  7,  1861;  discharged  July  21,1864; 
subsequently  enlisted  in  the  regular  army. 

Edwin  M.  Gowdey.  Co.  F,  enlisted  Sept.  16, 1861 ;  discharged  June  23, 1863  ; 
was  in  other  service  later ;  lives  in  Claremont ;  pensioner. 

Edward  Hull.  Co.  I,  mustered  June  7,  1861;  transferred  to  Second  U.  S. 
Cavalry  Oct.  27,  1862. 

Joseph  Levoy.  Co.  I,  mustered  June  7,  1861;  transferred  to  Second  U.  S. 
Cavalry  Oct.  7,  1862 ;  lives  in  Claremont. 

Eugene  F.  Leet.  Co.  E,  enlisted  Sept.  17,  1861;  discharged  on  account  of 
wound  in  knee,  July  2,  1862;  lives  in  Boston;  pensioner. 

Med.  Cadet  Charles  A.  Milton.  Co.  B,  mustered  June  1,  1861;  transferred 
to  Medical  Department  U.  S.  Army;  died  of  fever  at  Mound  City,  111.,  May  15, 
1862. 

William  H.  Pendleton.  Co.  I,  mustered  June  7,  1861 ;  discharged  July  21 
1864;  died  at  Denver,  Col. 

Henry  F.  Eoys.  Co.  H,  mustered  June  5,  1861 ;  discharged  June  21,  1864 ; 
lives  at  Fitchburg,  Mass. ;  pensioner. 

Sergeant  Joseph  Richardson.    Co.  H,  mustered  June  5, 1861 ;  discharged  June 

21,  1864;  lives  in  New  York  state. 

J.  Parker  Read.  Co.  I,  mustered  June  7,  1861;  discharged  for  disability  Dec. 
23,  1862 ;  lives  in  Chicago,  III. 

John  Straw.  Co.  H,  mustered  June  5,  1861;  wounded  in  leg  at  Bull  Run, 
July  21,  1861,  and  in  foot  May  5,  1862;  discharged  for  disability  Feb.  1,  1863  ; 
enlisted  in  Co.  A,  N.  H.  Heavy  Artilleiy;  discharged  Sept.  11,  1865;  died  in 
1867. 

Sergeant  George  P.  Tenney.  Co.  H,  mustered  June  5, 1861 ;  discharged  June 
21,  1864;  died  at  Washington,  D.  C,  Sept.  10,  1892;  pensioner. 


286  HISTORY  OF  CLAEEMONT. 

THIRD  REGIMENT. 

This  was  a  three  years  regiment,  Enoch  Q.  Fellows,  colonel.  It 
was  organized  at  Concord  and  left  the  state  for  the  front  on  Sep- 
tember 3,  1861,  and  the  men  were  paid  oiF  and  discharged  on  the 
third  of  August,  1865. 

Sergeant  Albert  J.  Austin.  Co.  F,  mustered  Aug.  23,  1861 ;  wounded  at 
Deep  Run,  Aug.  16,  1864;  discharged  July  20,  1865  ;  lives  in  Boston. 

Alba  D.  Abbott.  Co.  A,  mustered  Aug.  22,  1861 ;  mustered  out  with  his  regi- 
ment; residence  unknown. 

John  P.  W.  Barnard.  Co.  F,  mustered  Aug.  23,  1861 ;  discharged  July  28, 
1862,  for  disability ;  residence  unknown. 

Sergeant  William  H.  Bigley.  Co.  A,  mustered  Aug.  22,  1861 ;  discharged 
with  his  regiment  Aug.  3,  1865 ;  lives  at  North  Lubec,  Me. ;  pensioner. 

Charles  Carroll.  Co.  D,  enlisted  Aug.  29,  1862 ;  discharged  June  26,  1865  ; 
lives  in  Claremont ;  pensioner. 

Sanford  Colburn.  Co.  H,  enlisted  Sept.  19,  1862;  wounded  in  the  arm  at 
Morris  Island,  July  10,  1863;  transferred  to  Veteran  Reserve  Corps;  lives  in 
Cornish ;  pensioner. 

Jerome  B.  Douglass.  Co.  F,  mustered  Aug.  23,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disa- 
bility June  28,  1864;  residence  unknown. 

George  W.  Emerson.  Co.  F,  mustered  Aug.  23,  1861 ;  discharged  at  end  of 
his  term  of  enlistment;  died  Feb.  3,  1876. 

Corporal  Frank  W.Evans.  Co.  A,  mustered  Aug.  23,  1861;  lost  an  arm  at 
Morris  Island,  S.  C,  July  10,  1863;  discharged  Nov.  10,  1863;  lives  in  Wash- 
ington, D.  C;  pensioner. 

Corporal  Tracy  L.  Hall.  Co.  H,  enlisted  Sept.  22,  1862;  wounded  June  16, 
1864;  mustered  out  with  his  regiment ;  lives  atKeene;  pensioner. 

William  C.  Parkhurst.  Co.  F,  mustered  Aug.  23,  1861 ;  discharged  Sept.  23 
1861 ;  died  at  Springfield,  Mass.,  Jan.  25,  1890. 

John  G.  P.  Putnam.  Co.  A,  enlisted  Sept.  19,  1862;  prisoner  from  August, 
1864,  to  March,  1865;  discharged  in  June,  1865;  lives  in  Claremont;  pensioner. 

George  W.  Spencer.  Co.  K,  mustered  Aug.  24,  1861;  mustered  out  Aug.  23, 
1864;  lives  in  Chicago. 

Jotham  S.  Toothaker.  Co.  F,  mustered  Aug.  23,  1861;  discharged  for  disa- 
bility Dec.  13,  1862 ;  drafted  Aug.  27,  1863,  and  mustered  into  Co.  E,  5th  Regt. ; 
wounded  June  17,  1864;  mustered  out  with  regiment ;  lives  in  Claremont;  is 
in  receipt  of  a  pension. 

Joel  Veasey.  Co.  F,  mustered  Aug.  23,  1861 ;  discharged  at  the  end  of  his 
term  of  enlistment ;  lives  at  West  Windsor,  Vt. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  287 

George  H,  Weber.  Co.  K,  mustered  Aug.  24,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
July  29,  1862;  re-enlisted  in  Co.  D,  8th  N.  H.,  Sept.  2,  1862;  wounded  at  the 
storming  of  Port  Hudson,  May  27,  1863;  discharged  on  account  of  wounds, 
Sept.  2,  1868 ;  died  at  Claremont,  Jan.  SO,  1872. 

FOURTH  REGIMENT. 

This  was  a  three  years  regiment,  Thomas  J.  Whipple,  colonel. 
It  was  organized  lit  Manchester,  and  left  the  state  for  Washington 
on  September  27,  1861,  and  was  mustered  out  of  the  service  August 
27,  1865. 

Corporal  George  H.  Emerson.  Co.  B,  enlisted  at  Nashua,  mustered  Sept.  18. 
1861 ;  discharged  at  the  end  of  his  term  of  enlistment;  he  was  the  only  Clare- 
mont man  in  this  regiment. 

FIFTH  REGIMENT. 

This  was  a  three  years  regiment,  Edward  E.  Cross,  colonel.  It 
was  organized  at  Concord.  It  left  the  state  on  October  28,  1861, 
and  joined  Gen.  0.  0.  Howard's  brigade  at  Bladenburg,  Md.  It 
was  mustered  out  at  Concord  on  the  eighth  of  July,  1865.  This 
regiment  was  known  as  "  The  Fighting  Fifth."  A  full  company 
was  enlisted  at  Claremont  by  Charles  H.  Long,  a  large  majority  of 
the  men  being  citizens  of  the  town. 

Charles  S.  Abbott.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
April  4,  1862 ;  lives  at  Melrose,  Mass. 

Charles  H.  Bacon.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
Oct.  27,  1862;  killed  by  falling  from  a  building  here,  July  25,  1877. 

Frank  Bolio.  Co.  H,  mustered  Dec.  29,  1863;  wounded  slightly  at  Cold  Har- 
bor, June  3,  1864;  deserted  from  hospital  Feb.  21,  1865;  lives  at  Charlestown . 

Thomas  Burns.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  wounded  severely  in  the 
hand  at  Fair  Oaks,  June  1,  1862,  and  again  in  the  same  hand  and  right  leg  at 
Fredericksburg,  Dec.  13,  1862;  discharged  on  account  of  wounds  June  6,  1863; 
lives  in  Claremont;  pensioner. 

Sergeant  George  E.  Brown.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for 
disability  Sept.  6,  1862  ;  lives  at  Charlestown,  Mass. 

Albert  W.  Brown.  Co.  F,  mustered  Dec.  18, 1863  ;  wounded  severely  at  Cold 
Harbor,  June  3,  1864;  lives  at  Sunapee. 

Corporal  Ralph  N.  Brown.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  11, 1862  ;  wounded  severely 
at  Cold  Harbor,  June  3,  1864;  lives  3,t  Concord;  pensioner. 


288  HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT. 

Corporal  Hollis  S.  Brown.  Co.  G,  mustered  Dec.  18,  1863;  discharged  with 
the  regiment ;  lives  at  Concoi'd ;  pensioner. 

John  Butcher.  Co.  F,  mustered  Feb.  28,  1862 ;  wounded  severely  in  battle ; 
discharged  Nov.  12,  1864;  lives  in  Claremont;  pensioner. 

Selwin  R.  Bowman.  Co.  I,  mustered  Oct.  15,  1861;  discharged  for  disability 
July  22,  1862;  lives  in  New  York  city. 

Charles  D.  Brough.  Co.  F,  mustered  Feb.  28,1862;  severely  wounded  at 
Fredericksburg,  Dec.  13,  1862;  discharged  on  account  of  woimds;  received  a 
pension;  died  at  Weathersfield,  Vt.,  July  31,  1879. 

Lieutenant  Wendell  E.  Cook.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  was  succes- 
sively promoted  to  corporal,  sergeant,  and  second  lieutenant ;  was  mustered  out 
at  the  end  of  his  term  of  enlistment;  residence  unknown. 

William  W.  Cook.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  deserted  Nov.  18,  1863, 
and  again  April  10,  1865 ;  died  in  Claremont,  Feb.  1,  1889. 

Samuel  Crowther.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  wounded  in  shoulder  at 
Gettysburg,  July  2,  1863,  and  again  in  both  legs  at  Cold  Harbor,  June  3,  1864; 
discharged  at  the  end  of  his  term  of  enlistment,  Oct.  29,  1864 ;  drew  pension ; 
died  in  Claremont,  May  24,  1885. 

Ira  D.  Cheney.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  discharged  July  11,  1862; 
lives  at  Lowell,  Mass;  pensioner. 

Elijah  S.  Carleton.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  wounded  at  Fredericks- 
burg, Dee.  13,  1862;  transferred  to  V.  E.  C.  July  1,  1863;  discharged  at  the 
end  of  his  term  of  enlistment ;  lives  in  Claremont. 

Daniel  Cummings.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  at  the  end  of 
his  term  of  enlistment;  died  at  Keene,  Aug.  4,  1877. 

Lyman  H.  Cone.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  discharged  at  the  end  of 
his  term  of  enlistment;  lives  at  Windsor,  Vt. 

Charles  F.Colston.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.,  1861;  discharged  for  disability 
Jan.  20,  1863;  enlisted  in  the  navy;  died  in  1866. 

George  W.  Fairbanks.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct  12,  1861;  discharged  for  disa- 
bility Sept.  6,  1862;  enlisted  in  V.  R.  C. ;  discharged  Nov.  7,  1865;  lives  in 
Marlborough;  pensioner. 

James  S.  A.  Gates.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  discharged  for  disability 
Sept.  3,  1862  ;  lives  in  Boston. 

Israel  Germarsh.  Co.  G,  mustered  April  20,  1862;  deserted  in  Aug.,  1863; 
lives  in  Claremont. 

Lemuel  A.  Giles.     Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861  ;  severely  woimded  in  thigh; 
discharged  at  the  end  of  his  term  of  enlistment. 
Charles  B.  Hart.     Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.    12,  1861;  discharged  for  disability 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  289 

Nov.  29,  1862;  enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Aug.  80, 1864,  for  three  j-ears;  lives  in  Cali- 
fornia. 

Leander  Harriman.  Co.  G,  mustered  Sept.  17,  1862;  transferred  to  V.  R.  C. 
Sept.  1,  1863  ;  lives  at  North  Walpole. 

Samuel  Henry.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12, 1861 ;  discharged  for  disability  Sept. 
3,  1862;  enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Aug.  21,  1863;  discharged  Nov.  7,  1865;  lives  at 
East  Berlin,  Conn. ;  pensioner. 

Sergeant  Levi  Johnson.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  20,  1862;  mustered  out  May 
30,  1865;  lives  in  Claremont;  pensioner. 

Captain  Jacob  W.  Keller.  Co.  G,  commissioned  first  lieutenant  Oct.  12, 1861 ; 
captain,  July  26,  1862 ;  wounded  severely  in  the  arm  at  Fredericksburg,  Dec. 
13,  1862;  honorably  discharged;  appointed  captain  V.  R.  C;  after  the  close  of 
the  vi'ar  he  was  commissioned  first  lieutenant  in  the  regular  army ;  he  is  now  re- 
tired and  lives  in  New  York  city. 

David  Latermoulle.  Co.  H,  mustered  Jan.  4,  1864;  wounded  June  3,  1864; 
transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  Jan.  24,  1866;  lives  in  Claremont;  pensioner. 

Lieutenant  John  W.  Lawrence.  Co.  E,  mustered  Oct.  19,  1861 ;  appointed 
sei'geant;  promoted  to  second  lieutenant;  wounded  in  the  battle  of  Malvern 
Hill,  July  3,  1862 ;  resigned  on  account  of  wound  Oct.  23,  1862 ;  died  at  Clin- 
ton, Mass.,  about  1868. 

Russell  Lovejoy.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
Feb.  28,  1863;  enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Aug.  30,  1864;  discharged  Kov.  7,  1865; 
died  at  West  Claremont  in  1877. 

Captain  Charles  H.  Long.  Co.  G,  commissioned  captain  Oct.  12,  1861; 
wounded  severely  in  the  arm  in  the  battle  of  Antietam,  Sept.  17,  1862  ;  resigned 
to  receive  promotion  Nov.  6,  1862 ;  captain  heavy  artillery  April  17,  1863 ;  pro- 
moted colonel  Sept.  29,  1864;  mustered  out  June  15,  1865;  lives  in  Claremont; 
pensioner. 

Addison  P.  Moore.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
Oct.  20,  1862;  lives  in  Claremont;  pensioner. 

James  P.  Milton.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
March  24,  1862;  died  in  Claremont,  July  27,  1866. 

James  Maley.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  wounded  severely  at  the  battle 
of  Fredericksburg,  Dec.  13,  1862;  discharged  Feb.  28,  1863;  re-enlisted  in  Co. 
A,  heavy  artillery,  May  26,  1863,  and  served  to  the  end  of  the  war. 

Frank  E.  Marsh.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  mustered  out  at  the  end  of 
his  term  of  enlistment ;  lives  in  Nashua. 

George  "VV.  Moody.  Co,  G,  mustered  Oct.  12, 1861 ;  discharged  Aug.  28,  1862; 
lives  at  Nashua ;  pensioner. 

Sergeant  Baron  S.  Noyes.    Co.  E,  mustered  Oct.  19,  1861 ;  discharged  for 


290  HISTORY    OF    CLAREiMONT. 

disability  March  4,  1863;  enlisted  in  the  U.  S.  Invalid  Corps  Sept.  9,  1864; 
mustered  out  Nov.  14,  1865  ;  pensioner. 

Enos  B.  Nevers.  Co.  I,  mustered  Oct.  15,  1861  ;  deserted  Oct.  30,  1862;  resi- 
dence unknown. 

Daniel  J.  Nevers.  Co.  I,  mustered  Feb.  28,  1862;  discharged  Dec.  12,  1862; 
enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Dec.  29,  1863;  discharged  at  the  end  of  the  "war;  residence 
unknown. 

David  H.  Nichols.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
Feb.  18,  1863  ;  enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Aug.  24,  1864;  discharged  for  disability  May 
6,  1866;  lives  at  Haverhill,  Mass. 

Corporal  Edward  P.  Pike.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  at  the 
end  of  his  term  of  enlistment;  died  in  California. 

Sergeant  William  E.  Parrish.  Co.  F,  2d  Eegt.,  from  June  4  to  July  31,  1861, 
when  he  was  discharged  for  disability;  mustered  into  Co.  G,  5th,  Oct.  12,  1861; 
appointed  sergeant;  discharged  for  disability  Sept.  2,  1862;  drafted  at  St. 
Johnsbury,  Vt. ;  assigned  to  4th  Vt.  Vols.  ;  wounded  three  times  at  the  battle 
of  the  Wilderness ;  taken  prisoner,  sent  to  Libby  prison,  Richmond,  from  there 
to  Andersonville,  since  which  time  nothing  is  known  of  his  fate. 

John  J.  Prentiss,  Jr.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  discharged  Nov.  23, 
1863;  lives  in  Chicago. 

Charles  H.  Parmelee.  Drafted  at  West  Lebanon,  Aug.  27,1868;  mustered 
into  Co.  F  Oct  10,  1863;  mustered  out  June  28,  1865;  lives  in  Claremont;  pen- 
sioner. 

Edward  A.  Parmelee.  Drafted  at  West  Lebanon,  Aug.  27,  1863  ;  mustered 
into  Co.  F  Oct.  10,  1863;  wounded  severely  in  foot  near  Hatcher's  Bun,  Va., 
March  25,  1865  ;  taken  prisoner  and  sent  to  Libby  prison  ;  his  foot  was  ampu- 
tated at  the  instep  by  a  Rebel  surgeon  on  the  field ;  discharged  June  26,  1865  ; 
lives  in  Claremont;  pensioner. 

Julius  B.  Paul.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  transferred  to  V  R.  C.  July 
1, 1863  ;  discharged  at  the  end  of  his  term  of  enlistment ;  died  at  Windsor,  Vt. 

John  D.  Roberts.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  discharged  Oct.  28,  1862; 
lives  at  Newj)ort ;  pensioner. 

Henry  L.  Rowell.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  discharged  for  disability 
March  25,  1862. 

Levi  F.  Reed.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability  Nov. 
26,  1862;  enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Aug.  30,  1864;  discharged  Nov.  7,  1865  ;  died  at 
Cambridge,  Mass.,  Jan.  22,  1894. 

David  R.  Roys.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  wounded  at  battle  of  Antie- 
tam;  mustered  out  July  8,  1865;   lives  in  Claremont;  pensioner. 


HISTOEY    OF    CLARBMONT.  291 

William  S.  Sturtevant.  Drafted  at  West  Lebanon,  Ang.  27,  1863;  mustered 
into  Co.  F  Oct.  10,  1863;  mustered  out  June  28.  1865 ;  lives  at  Windsor,  Vt. 

Elisha  S.  Slides.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  wounded  severely  in  right 
side,  and  again  in  the  leg,  at  the  battle  of  Fredericksburg,  Dec.  13,  1862;  dis- 
charged on  account  of  wounds;  enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Sept.  12,  1863;  discharged 
Nov.  13,  1865  ;  died  in  Olaremont,  May  26,  1889. 

Charles  E.  Severance.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  wounded  at  Fair 
Oaks,  June  1,  1862;  transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  July  1,  1863;  lives  in  Claremont; 
pensioner. 

Coi-poral  Charles  L.  Severance.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  wounded  in 
thigh  by  minie  ball  at  battle  of  Antietam,  Sept.  17,  1862;  transferred  to  V.  R. 
C.  July  1, 1863;  mustered  out  at  the  end  of  his  term  of  enlistment;  he  still  car- 
ries the  ball  in  his  thigh  ;  lives  in  Claremont ;  pensioner. 

Henry  S.  Silsby.  Co.  6,  mustered  Aug.  11,  1862;  disabled  at  the  battle  of 
Chancellorsville,  May  3, 1863 ;  transferred  to  V.  R.  C  and  was  discharged  at  the 
end  of  the  war ;  lives  in  Claremont ;  pensioner. 

Cornelius  H.  Stone.  Co.  F,  mustered  Feb.  28, 1862;  taken  prisoner  at  White 
Plains,  Va. ;  kept  at  Libby  prison  and  Belle  Isle  one  hundred  and  fourteen  days; 
exchanged ;  at  the  battle  of  Cold  Harbor,  June  3,  1864,  received  ten  wounds  — 
one  through  the  right  arm,  breaking  it  badly ;  three  in  the  left  leg,  two  with 
minie  balls  below  the  knee,  a  grape  shot  in  the  knee ;  a  minie  ball  in  the  side, 
and  a  piece  of  shell  in  the  back ;  fell  into  Rebel  hands  and  was  robbed  of  all  his 
money  and  valuable  papers ;  his  leg  was  amputated  above  the  knee ;  lives  in 
Wisconsin ;  pensioner. 

Samuel  J.  Thorning.  Co.  F,  mustered  April  20,  1862 ;  in  the  seven  days  bat- 
tle he  contracted  disease  which  terminated  in  epilepsy ;  discharged  Jan.  15, 1863  ; 
died  at  Unity. 

Corporal  Matthew  T.  Towne.  Co.  E,  mustered  Oct.  19,  1861 ;  discharged  for 
disability  Dec.  24,  1862  ;  died  from  being  hooked  in  the  abdomen  by  a  cow,  in 
Sept.,  1863. 

Sergeant  Sylvanus  M.  Tyrrell.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  mustered  out 
Oct.  29,  1864 ;  lives  in  Chicago. 

Chester  P.  Tibbills.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
April  22,  1864;  lives  in  Claremont;  pensioner. 

Corporal  Lucius  Veasey.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  wounded  in  the 
head  at  the  battle  of  Antietam,  Sept.  17,  1862;  discharged  for  disability  April 
13,  1863 ;  lives  at  Windsor,  Vt. ;  pensioner. 

Nelson  N.  Whitmore.  Co.  G,  mustered  Sept.  17,  1862 ;  wounded  severely  in 
the  leg,  in  consequence  of  which  he  was  discharged;  enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Aug. 
25,  1864 ;  mustered  out  Nov.  7,  1865  ;  died  in  Newport  in  1893. 


292  HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT. 

Lucius  C.  Webb.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861 ;  discbarged  for  disability 
April  18,  1863  ;  lives  at  Canaan,  Me. 

Frank  Young.  Co.  F,  mustered  Feb.  28,  1862;  mustered  out  with  his  regi- 
ment ;  lives  at  New  Bedford,  Mass ;  pensioner. 

Sergeant  John  E.  Young.  Co.  G,  mustered  Oct.  12,  1861;  wounded  in  the 
battle  of  Cold  Harbor;  mustered  out  at  the  end  of  his  term  of  enlistment; 
lives  in  Claremont. 

SIXTH   REGIMENT. 

This  was  a  three  years  regiment,  Nelson  Converse,  colonel. 
It  was  organized  at  Xeene;  the  muster  was  completed  on  the 
thirtieth  of  November,  and  it  left  the  state  for  Washington  on 
the  twenty-fifth  of  December,  1861,  and  joined  General  Burn- 
side's  expedition.  It  was  mustered  out  of  the  United  States 
service  July  17,  1865. 

Surgeon  Sherman  Cooper.  Commissioned  assistant  surgeon  Oct.  17,  1861;  pro- 
moted to  surgeon  March  20,  1863 ;  resigned  and  mustered  out  of  the  service 
Nov.  30,  1864;  lives  at  Westfield,  N.  J. ;  pensioner. 

William  H.  Hadley.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  26,  1862;  discharged  July  1, 
1803 ;  lives  at  Lebanon  ;  pensioner. 

Charles  L.  Hadley.  Co.  G,  mustered  Nov.  28,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
Feb.  3,  1864;  enlisted  in  Co.  A,  Heavy  Artillery,  Aug.  30,  1864;  mustered  out 
Aug.  31,  1865;  lives  in  Boston. 

Lieutenant  Russell  Tyler.  Co.  G,  mustered  Dec.  3,  1861 ;  wounded  May  12, 
1864,  and  again  June  22,  1864 ;  promoted  to  first  lieutenant  March  4,  1865 ; 
wounded  again  April  2,  1865;  mustered  out  July  17,  1865;  lives  at  Westfield, 
Mass. ;  pensioner. 

SEVENTH   REGIMENT. 

This  was  a  three  years  regiment,  Haldimand  S.  Putnam,  col- 
onel. It  was  organized  at  Manchester,  and  left  the  state  January 
14,  1862.     It  was  mustered  out  at  Concord  July  30,  1865. 

William  Dooley.  Co.  H,  mustered  Dec.  14,  1861  ;  discharged  for  disability 
July  20,  1862;  died  at  Unity  Feb.  3,  1891;  received  pension. 

John  W.  Hammond.  Co.  H,  mustered  Dec.  14,  1862;  discharged  for  disa- 
bility July  20,  1862;  enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Jan.  31,  1865;  mustered  out  Nov.  7, 
1805. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  293 

Edwin  iEartin.  Co.  H,  mustered  Dec.  14,  1861;  discharged  for  disability 
July  20,  1862 ;  died  in  Massachusetts. 

Azro  J.  Mann.  Co.  H,  mustered  Dec.  14,  1861;  wounded  badly  at  Chatta- 
nooga, Aug.  30,  1863;  discharged  on  account  of  wound,  July  81,  1864;  lives 
in  Claremont ;  pensioner. 

Lieutenant  Mansel  Otis.  Co.  A,  mustered  Oct.  29,  1861;  promoted  to  ser- 
geant and  to  second  lieutenant  Jan.  1,  1864;  residence  unknown. 

Corporal  Willard  C.  Severance.  Co.  H,  mustered  Dec.  18,  1863;  mustered 
out  July  20,  1865 ;  lives  at  Riverside,  R.  I. 

Jesse  Sparling.  Co.  H,  mustered  Dec.  14,  1861;  discharged  for  disability  in 
March,  1862;  died  in  Claremont  Nov.  8,  1893;  pensioner. 

Sergeant  Chester  M.  Sprague.  Co.  H,  mustered  Sept.  5,  1862;  wounded  Jan. 
19,  1865 ;  mustered  out  July  17,  1865  ;  lives  in  Claremont. 

Andrew  Walker.  Co.  H,  mustered  Dec.  14,  1861;  discharged  Sept.  25,  1862; 
died  in  Illinois. 

George  H.  Walker.  Co.  H,  mustered  Dec.  14,  1861;  wounded  Feb.  20,  1864; 
mustered  out  at  end  of  his  term  of  enlistment,  Dec.  22,  1864. 

Harvey  Ward.  Co.  A,  mustered  Oct.  21,  1861;  discharged  for  disability  July 
29,  1862 ;  died  at  Boscawen  about  1879. 

There  were  no  Claremont  men  in  the  Eighth  regiment. 

NINTH  KEGIMENT. 

This  was  a  three  years  regiment,  Enoch  Q.  Fellows,  colonel. 
It  was  organized  at  Concord ;  left  the  state  on  the  twenty-fifth 
of  August,  1862,  and  was  mustered  out  of  service  on  the  tenth  of 
June,  1865. 

George  W.  Currier.  Co.  K,  mustered  Aug.  15,  1862;  discharged  for  disability 
Feb.  29,  1863 ;    died  in  Claremont  Aug.  22,  1868. 

Sergeant  Newell  T.  Dutton.  Co.  E,  mustered  Aug.  6,  1862;  mustered  out 
with  his  regiment;  is  a  Baptist  minister  at  Houlton,  Maine. 

Nathan  Harris.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  13,  1862;  discharged  for  disability 
Aug.  19,  1863;    lives  at  Cornish;    pensioner. 

George  W.  Kenerson.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  13,  1862;  transferred  to  V.  R. 
C.  Jan.  15,  1864;  mustered  out  June  30,  1865;  lives  at  Wilmot. 

Charles  H.  Murphy.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  14,  1862;  wounded  May  8,  1864; 
mustered  out  June  10,  1865;  died  at  Bellows  Falls,  Vt. 


294  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

Charles  B.  Mann.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  13,  1862;  wounded  ICay  31,  1864; 
transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  May  1,  1865;  mustered  out  July  1,  1865;  lives  In  Clare- 
mont;  pensioner. 

Franklin  G.  Nevers.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  13,  1862;  captured  Aug.  30,  1864; 
paroled  March  2,  1865  ;  mustered  out  June  2,  1865  ;  lives  at  Gilsum. 

John  H.  Rugg.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  19,  1862;  discharged  June  26,  1863; 
enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Feb.  18,  1864;  died  in  Claremont  Feb.  20,  1893;  pensioner. 

Lyman  N.  Sargent.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  13,  1862;  wounded  in  right  ankle 
at  the  battle  of  Cold  Harbor,  May  31,  1864;  foot  amputated  above  ankle  joint 
same  day  upon  the  field;  discharged  July  1,  1865;  lives  at  Grantham;  pensioner. 

Harvey  H.  Sargent.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  13,  1862 ;  transferred  to  V.  R.  C. 
Jan.  16,  1864;  mustered  out  July  13,  1865;  lives  at  Aurora,  111. ;  pensioner. 

Samuel  C.  Towne.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  13,  1862;  mustered  out  June  10, 
1865;  lives  at  Richmond ;  pensioner. 

Corporal  Lorenzo  M.  Upham.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  13,  1862;  wounded  in 
hand  by  accidental  discharge  of  his  own  gun  Sept.  IV,  1862;  discharged  on 
account  of  wound  Oct.  30,  1862 ;  residence  unknown. 

Sergeant  George  L.  Wakefield.  Co.  G,  mustered  Aug.  13,  1862;  wounded 
in  right  arm  and  missing  Sept.  30,  1864;  gained  from  missing;  mustered  out 
June  10,  1865;  lives  in  Manchester;  pensioner. 

TENTH   REGIMENT. 

This  was  a  three  years  regiment,  Michael  T.  Donohoe,  colonel. 
It  was  organized  at  Manchester,  and  left  the  state  on  the  twenty- 
second  of  September,  1862,  and  was  mustered  out  of  the  service 
at  Concord  on  the  twenty-fifth  of  June,  1865. 

Alfred  W.  Burrill.  Co.  A,  mustered  Aug.  20,  1862;  wounded  at  the  battle 
of  Fort  Harrison,  Va.,  Sept.  29,  1864;  mustered  out  with  his  regiment;  lives 
at  Warner;  pensioner. 

-John  Herrin.  Co.  F,  mustered  Aug.  24,  1864;  captured  at  Fair  Oaks  Oct.  27, 
1864;  exchanged  March  23,  1865;  transferred  to  Second  regiment  June  21, 
1865;  mustered  out  July  7,  1865;  residence  unknown. 

Patrick  O'Connell.  Co.  F,  mustered  Sept.  1,  1862;  transferred  to  V.  R.  C. 
Aug.  20,  1863;  discharged  for  disability;  died  at  Philadelphia  Sept.  3,  1864. 

ELEVENTH  REGIMENT. 

This  was  a  three  years  regiment,  "Walter  Harriman,  colonel. 
It  was  organized   at  Concord,  left  the   state  on   the   eleventh  of 


HISTORY    OF   CLARBMONT.  295 

September,  1862,  and  was  mustered  out  of  the  service  at  Con- 
cord on  the  tenth  of  June,  1865.  Claremont  had  but  one  man 
in  this  regiment,  Sergeant  George  E.  Eowell,  who  died  of  disease 
at  Baltimore,  Md.,  April  10,  1864. 

The  Twelfth,  Thirteenth,  and  Fourteenth  regiments  were  raised 
bj'  congressional  districts  —  the  Twelfth  in  the  first  district;  the 
Thirteenth  in  the  second,  and  the  Fourteenth  in  the  third,  com- 
prising the  counties  of  Cheshire,  Sullivan,  Grafton,  and  Coos. 
There  were  no  Claremont  men  in  the  Twelfth  regiment,  and  but 
one  in  the  Thirteenth. 

Henry  V.  Freeman.  Co.  E,  mustered  Sept.  26,  1862;  mustered  out  June  9, 
1865;  lives  in  North  Ashburnham,  Mass.;  pensioner. 

FOURTEENTH  REGIMENT. 

This  was  the  last  of  the  full  three  years  regiments  sent  to  the 
war  from  New  Hampshire.  The  men  composing  seven  compa- 
nies were  enlisted  from  the  four  western  counties  —  Cheshire 
county  furnished  four  companies,  while  Sullivan,  Grafton,  Coos, 
Carroll,  Merrimack,  and  Hillsborough,  each  furnished  one  com- 
pany. Robert  "Wilson  was  colonel.  The  regiment  was  organized 
at  Concord,  left  the  state  the  first  part  of  October,  1862,  and  was 
mustered  out  at  Concord  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  July,  1865. 

John  Bowler.  Co.  I,  mustered  Sept.  24,  1862;  discharged  for  disability  July 
9,  1863;  residence  unknown. 

Charles  S.  Bowker.  Co.  I,  mustered  Sept.  24.  1862;  mustered  out  with  the 
regiment ;  dead  in  1892. 

Fred.  L.  Barker.  Co.  I,  mustered  Sept.  24;  mustered  out  with  the  regiment; 
lives  at  Bellows  Falls,  Vt. ;  pensioner. 

Joseph  A.  Dickey.  Co.  I,  mustered  Oct.  6,  1862;  mustered  out  with  the 
regiment;  residence  unknown. 

Sergeant  Charles  E.  Foster.  Co.  I,  mustered  Oct.  6,  1862;  transferred  to  V. 
R.  C.  Dec.  27,  1865 ;  mustered  out  June  26,  1865 ;  residence  unknown. 

Oliver  P.  Gillingham.  Co.  I,  mustered  Sept.  24,  1862;  discharged  for  disa- 
bility Feb.  5,  1863  ;  died  April  22,  1863. 


296  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

Levi  D.  Hall,  Jr.  Co.  I,  mustered  Jan.  14,  1864;  mustered  out  Aug.  14, 
1865  ;  lives  at  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Martin  V.  B.  Hurley.  Co.  I,  mustered  Sept.  24,  1862;  mustered  out  June 
12,  1865;  died  at  Cornish  in  1892;  pensioner. 

Patrick  Hobau.  Co.  I,  mustered  Sept.  24,  1862;  mustered  out  June  8,  1865; 
lives  in  Claremont ;  pensioner. 

Levi  Leet.  Co.  I,  mustered  Sept.  24,  1862;  discharged  for  disability  June 
26,  1863;  died  July  17,  1863. 

Mitchell  Oliver.  Co.  I,  mustered  Dec.  29,  1863 ;  wounded  in  both  egs  at  the 
battle  of  Winchester,  Va.,  Sept.  19,  1864;  died  Nov.  12,  1890;  pensioner. 

Sergeant  George  H.  Stowell,  2d.  Co.  I,  mustered  Sept.  24,  1862;  slightly 
wounded  in  the  battle  of  Winchester,  Sept.  19,  1864;  died  in  Claremont  Nov. 
21,  1888;  pensioner. 

Ill  response  to  the  call  of  the  president,  in  July,  1862,  for  three 
hundred  thousand  nine  months  troops,  the  Fifteenth  and  Six- 
teenth regiments  were  organized  at  Concord,  sent  to  the  field,, 
and  mustered  out  after  the  expiration  of  their  term  of  enlistment. 
John  "VV.  Kingman  was  colonel  of  the  Fifteenth,  and  James  Pike 
of  the  Sixteenth.  The  Seventeenth  regiment  was  not  fully  organ- 
ized, but  the  men  enlisted  for  it  were  transferred  to  fill  the  de- 
pleted ranks  of  the  Second  regiment.  'So  Claremont  men  were 
enlisted  for  the  first  two  named  regiments,  and  for  the  last 
only  one. 

Harrison  Fillmore  Hawkes.  Co.  I,  mustered  Dec.  5,  1862;  transferred  to  Sec- 
ond regiment;  mustered  out  Oct.  9,  1863;  lives  in  Boston  ;  pensioner. 

Under  a  call  issued  in  July,  1864,  for  five  hundred  thousand  vol- 
unteers, six  companies  were  enlisted  for  the  Eighteenth  regiment, 
and  sent  forward  as  a  battalion,  which  completed  the  quota  of 
the  state.  Under  a  call  for  troops  in  December,  1864,  four  other 
companies  were  enlisted,  and  Thomas  L.  Livermore  was  commis- 
sioned colonel.  The  last  company  of  this  regiment  was  mustered 
out  August  8,  1865. 

NEW  HAMPSHIRE    CAVALRY. 

In  the  autumn  of  1861  the  governors  of  the  six  New  England 
states  were  authorized  to  raise  a  cavalry  regiment  of  twelve  com- 


EDWIN  VAUGHAN. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  297 

parties  —  two  from  each  state  —  to  be  called  the  itfew  England  Cav- 
alry. All  these  states  except  Ehode  Island  and  New  Hampshire, 
raised  each  a  full  regiment;  and  Rhode  Island  raised  eight  and 
New  Hampshire  four  companies,  making  another  regiment.  In 
January,  1864,  the  four  New  Hampshire  companies  were  detached, 
and  subsequently  three  more  companies  were  enlisted,  and  these, 
John  L.  Thompson,  colonel,  were  called  the  New  Hampshire  Cav- 
alry.    This  organization  was  discharged  at  Concord,  July  21,  1865. 

Corporal  Henry  G.  Ayer.  Troop  K,  mustered  Oct.  24,  1861 ;  mustered  out 
Oct.  24,  1864;  lives  at  Washington,  D.  C. 

Charles  S.  Allen.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  27,  1861;  mustered  out  with  his 
regiment;  lives  in  Claremont ;  pensioner. 

Ethan  A.  Ballou.  Troop  I,  mustered  Dec.  27,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
April  19,  1862;  enlisted  in  V.  K.  U.  Jan.  21,  1865;  mustered  out  Nov.  7,  1865. 

William  H.  Briggs.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  27,  1861 ;  w^ounded  at  the  bat- 
tle of  Chantilly,  Sept.  1 ,  1862 ;  discharged  on  account  of  injuries  received  in 
battle,  Jan.  16,  1862 ;  lives  at  Cambridge,  Mass. ;  pensioner. 

Francis  Clark.  Troop  L,  mustered  Jan.  8, 1862  ;  transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  Nov. 
15,  1863;  died  in  Claremont. 

William  H.  Farvcell.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  27,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disa- 
bility Dec.  5, 1862 ;  died  in  Claremont,  Oct.  24,  1888. 

Lewis  W.  Laducer.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  27,  1861 ;  sent  to  Lincoln  hospi- 
tal, Washington,  D.  C,  since  which  time  nothing  has  been  known  of  him. 

William  H.  H.  Moody.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  27,  1861 ;  discharged  by  or- 
der Jan.  18, 1862 ;  lives  in  Claremont. 

Sergeant  Eli  C.  Marsh.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  27, 1861 ;  transferred  to  V. 
R.  C.  March  4,  1863;  died  at  Nashua,  Oct.  7,  1882. 

Henry  H.  Niles.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  27,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
June  16,  1862;  enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Aug.  25,  1864;  mustered  out  Nov.  7,  1865; 
lives  at  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Captain  John  J.  Prentiss.  Troop  L,  commissioned  captain  Dec.  3,  1861 ;  dis- 
missed Dec.  3,  1863  ;  died  at  Chicago  in  1890. 

Captain  William  P.  Prentiss.  Troop  L,  commissioned  second  lieutenant  Dec. 
3,  1861;  first  lieutenant,  Aug.  4,  1862;  captain,  April  21,  1864;  resigned  Jan. 
18,  1865  ;  lives  in  Chicago. 

Captain  Charles  E.  Patrick.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  27,  1861 ;  promoted  to 
Sergeant;  to  first  lieutenant,  April  15,  1864;  captain,  June  19,  1865;  mustered 
out°as  first  lieutenant  July  15,  1865  ;  died  Feb.  4,  1875. 

20 


298  HISTORY   OF   OLAREMONT. 

Sergeant  Otis  G.  Robinson.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  27,  1861 ;  discharged 
for  disability  Sept.  14,  1862 ;  died  in  Claremont,  July  8,  1880. 

Samuel  J.  Sawyer.  Troop  L,  mustered  Oct.  4,  1862  ;  mustered  out  with  his 
regiment;  residence  unknown. 

Corporal  George  W.  Sleeper.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  27,  1861 ;  wounded 
March  17,  1863 ;  mustered  out  Dec.  27,  1864 ;  lives  in  Vermont. 

Benjamin  W.  Still.  Troop  L,  mustered  Deo.  27,  1861;  severely  injured  by  his 
horse  falling  upon  him ;  discharged  in  consequence  June  4,  1862 ;  died  at  Alstead 
in  1890. 

Corporal  James  M.  Southwick.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  27,  1861 ;  mustered 
out  with  his  regiment;  lives  in  Claremont. 

Captain  Edwin  Yaughan.  Troop  L,  mustered  Dec.  13,  1861 ;  appointed  ser- 
geant; second  lieutenant,  Aug.  14,  1862;  first  lieutenant,  Jan  1,  1863;  captain, 
March  31,  1864,  and  assigned  to  Trooji  A  ;  discharged  June  7,  1865 ;  died  at 
Claremont,  Dec.  18,  1890 ;  pensioner. 

HEAVY   ARTILLERY. 

In  the  summer  of  1863,  under  special  order  of  the  War  Depart- 
ment, two  companies  of  heavy  artillery  were  raised  to  garrison  the 
defenses  of  Portsmouth  harbor.  In  August  a  full  regiment  was 
raised  and  Charles  H.  Long  was  commissioned  colonel  of  it.  It 
served  in  the  defense  of  Washington,  D.  C,  and  was  mustered 
out  on  the  nineteenth  of  June,  1865. 

Oscar  Booth.  Co.  A,  mustered  Nov.  26,  1864;  mustered  out  with  regiment; 
lives  in  Iowa ;  pensioner. 

Alvaro  L.  Chaffin.  Co.  A,  mustered  Aug.  5,  1864;  mustered  out  wiih  reo-i- 
ment ;  lives  at  county  farm  ;  insane  ;  pensioner. 

Gilbert  F.  Colby.  Co.  A,  mustered  Sept.  24,  1864;  mustered  out  Sept.  11, 
1865;  lives  at  Hanover ;  pensioner. 

George  E.  Ford.     Co.  A,  mustered  May  26,  1863  ;  deserted  March  27,  1864. 

Warren  H.  Gould.  Co.  B,  mustered  Sept.  7,  1863;  mustered  out  with  regi- 
ment ;  lives  at  Manchester. 

Thomas  Hart.  Co.  H,  mustered  Sept.  13, 1864 ;  discharged  for  disability  May 
4,  1865 ;  lives  in  Claremont ;  jjensioner. 

Albert  Newcomb.     Co.  A,  mustered  Aug.  3,  1864;  mustered  out  Sept   11 
1866. 

William  L.  Parkhurst.  Co.  A,  mustered  July  2,  1863 ;  mustered  out  Sept 
11,  1865. 


HISTORY    OP    CLAREMONT.  299 

Corporal  Francis  RaflFerty.  Co.  A,  mustered  Dec.  26,  1863 ;  mustered  out 
Sept.  11,  1865 ;  lives  at  Athol,  Mass. ;  pensioner. 

Daniel  B.  Smith.  Co.  A,  mustered  May  26,  1863;  mustered  out  Sept.  11, 
1865. 

Harvey  D.  Stone.  Co.  A,  mustered  Sept.  15,  1865 ;  mustered  out  Sept.  11, 
1885;  lives  at  Laconia. 

George  H.  Waldron.  Co.  B,  mustered  Sept.  15, 1863 ;  mustered  out  Sept.  11, 
1865;  lives  at  Chester,  Vt. ;  pensioner. 

SHARPSHOOTERS . 

In  the  summer  of  1861  three  full  companies  of  sharpshooters 
were  raised  in  New  Hampshire  and  attached  to  a  regiment  known 
as  Berdan's  Sharpshooters. 

Captain  William  P.  Austin.  Commissioned  first  lieutenant  of  Co.  E  Aug.  17, 
1861 ;  captain,  Dec.  20,  1861 ;  wounded  Aug.  30,  1862 ;  discharged  on  account 
of  wounds  May  16,  1863  ;  captain  of  Invalid  Corps  Aug.  13,  1863 ;  acting  assist- 
ant quartermaster  and  ordnance  ofHcer,  which  position  he  held  until  March, 
1866  ;  died  at  Lewiston,  Va.,  July  9,  1889  ;  pensioner. 

Charles  M.  Judd.  Co.  E,  mustered  Sept.  9,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
Nov.  1,  1862;  enlisted  in  V.  R.  C.  Sept.  9,  1864;  mustered  out  Nov.  7,  1865; 
lives  in  Claremont;  pensioner. 

William  H.  Nichols.  Co.  E,  mustered  Sept.  9, 1861 ;  mustered  out  at  the  end 
of  his  term  of  enlistment ;  died  in  Claremont,  March  15,  1884 ;  he  received  a 
pension. 

Ruel  G.  Osgood.  Co.  G,  mustered  Dec.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
April  27,  1862  ;  residence  unknown. 

Henry  S.  Parmalee.  Co.  E,  mustered  Sept.  9,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
Jan.  21,  1862;  died  in  Claremont,  June  6,  1882;  received  pension. 

Henry  A.  Redfield.  Co.  G,  mustered  Dec.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
Dec.  22,  1862;  lives  at  Dover;  pensioner. 

Chester  P.  Smith.  Co.  G,  mustered  Dec.  12,  1861 ;  discharged  for  disability 
May  12,  1862 ;  died  at  Togus,  Me.,  Soldiers'  Home,  April  8,  1884. 

George  W.  Straw.  Co.  E,  mustered  Sept.  9,  1861 ;  taken  prisoner  May  8, 
1864;  paroled  Dec,  1864;  discharged  Jan.  25,  1865;  lives  in  Claremont. 

Corporal  Horace  W.  Whitney.  Co.  E,  mustered  Sept.  9.  1861;  discharged 
March  14,  1862 ;  lives  at  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Charles  H.  Baker,  Ebenezer  E.  Cummings,  Anson  M.  Sperry,  and  Sylvester 
E.  H.  Wakefield  enlisted  for  three  months,  in  April,  1861,  declined  to  enlist  for 


300  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

three  years;  were  sent  to  garrison  Fort  Constitution,  Portsmouth  harbor; 
there  served  out  their  three  months  term  of  enlistment,  and  were  honorably 
discharged. 

CLAREMONT   MEN   SERVING    IN     OTHER     THAN     NEW    HAMPSHIRE    ORGAN- 
IZATIONS. 

COMPANY  D,   NINTH  VERMONT  VOLUNTEERS. 

This  regiment  was  a  part  of  the  eleven  thousand  five  hundred 
troops  disgracefully,  and  it  was  feared  treacherously,  surrendered 
by  Colonel  Miles,  an  experienced  regular  army  officer,  to  Stonewall 
Jackson,  at  Harper's  Ferry,  on  the  fifteenth  of  September,  1862. 

George  W.  Davis.  Mustered  July  9,  1862;  mustered  out  June  13,  1864;  lives 
at  Lebanon ;  pensioner. 

Albert  E.  Parmelee.  Mustered  July  9,  1862;  taken  prisoner  Sept.  2,  1862; 
discharged  Oct.  31,  1862  ;  lives  in  Claremont ;  pensioner. 

Sergeant  Albert  F.  Russell.  Mustered  July  9,  1862;  mustered  out  June  13, 
1865 ;  died  in  New  York  state  about  1888. 

George  W.  Spaulding.  Mustered  July  9,  1862;  mustered  out  June  13,  1865: 
lives  at  Keene ;  pensioner. 

Leonard  M.  Stevens.  Mustered  July  9,  1862 ;  mustered  out  June  13,  1865  ; 
lives  at  Little  Falls,  Minn. 

Algernon  M.  Squier.  Mustered  July  9,  1862;  appointed  hospital  steward; 
discharged  Jan.  25,  1865;  assistant  surgeon  U.  S.  Army;  died  of  cholera  at 
Fort  Lamed,  July  29,  1867  . 

OTHER  VERMONT  REGIMENTS. 

Asher  S.  Burbauk.  Co.  A,  4th  Infantry,  mustered  July  8,  1863;  taken  pris- 
oner June  12,  1864,  with  about  two  thousand  others;  paroled  in  Feb.,  1865; 
mustered  out  July  13,  1865 ;  lives  in  Boston. 

Charles  R.  Bardwell.  Co.  B,  16th,  mustered  Oct.  23,  1862,  for  nine  months ; 
mustered  out  Aug.  10,  1863;  lives  at  Pleasanton,  Kan. ;  pensioner. 

Henry  S.  Blanchard.  Co.  A,  12th,  mustered  Oct.  4,  1862,  for  nine  months ; 
mustered  out  July  14,  1863;  died  in  Claremont,  of  cancer,  Bee.  19,  1867. 

Wallace  Dane.  Co.  F,  4th,  mustered  Sept.  26, 1861;  discharged  for  disability 
Jan.,  1863;  residence  unknown. 

Lewis  Henry  Dutton.  Co.  C,  3d,  mustered  July  16,  1861 ;  wounded  in  foot  at 
the  battle  of  Fredericksburg,  Dec.  13,  1862 ;  discharged  on  account  of  wound 
March  24,  1863  ;  lives  in  Boston;  pensioner. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  301 

Ethan  A..  Gile.     Co.  A,  12th;  mustered  in  and  mustered  out  Oct.  4,  1862. 

Captain  Calvin  A.  Laws.  Co.  B,  12th,  mustered  Oct.  4, 1862,  for  nine  months; 
mustered  out  -with  the  regiment ;  in  May,  1864,  he  raised  a  company  of  one 
hundred  days  men  in  Illinois,  and  was  commissioned  captain  of  it,  which  was 
mustered  out  Oct.  17,  1864 ;  he  died  in  Florida  several  years  ago. 

Benjamin  L.  Header.  Co.  E,  2d,  mustered  June  20,  1861 ;  mustered  out 
July  l.T,  1865;  residence  unknown. 

MA.SSACHi;SETTS  UEGIMENTS. 

Oliver  A.  Bond.  Co.  A,  4th,  mustered  Sept.  28,  1862,  for  nine  months;  mus- 
tered out  at  the  end  of  his  term  of  enlistment;  lives  at  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Samuel  W.  Chapman.  Co.  E,  Heavy  Artillery,  mustered  Aug.  7, 1864;  taken 
prisoner  Oct.  3,  1864 ;  paroled  in  March,  186.5  ;  died  in  Claremont,  April  .5, 186.5, 
from  the  effects  of  exposure  and  starvation  while  a  prisoner. 

Horace  W.  Cook.  Co.  F,  24th,  mustered  Jan.,  1864;  mustered  out  at  the  end 
of  the  war;  supposed  to  be  dead. 

Captain  Homer  (i.  Gilmore.  Co.  F,  10th,  enlisted  June  21,  1861;  first  ser- 
geant; promoted  to  second  lieutenant  Nov.  6, 1861 ;  first  lieutenant,  Aug.  9, 1862;. 
captain,  Nov.  26,  1862;  brevet  major,  Feb.  1.3,  1865;  wounded  at  Spottsyl- 
vania  Court  House;  mustered  out  July  6,  1864;  resides  at  Springfield,  Mass.;. 
pensioner. 

Henry  W.  Mace,  ood,  nine  months  regiment ;  served  his  term  and  again  en- 
listed for  a  hundred  days  and  did  garrison  duty  ;  lives  at  Fitchburg,  Mass. 

Thomas  D.  Parrish.  Co.  F,  26th,  mustered  Sept.  18,  1861;  mustered  out  Sept.,, 
1865  ;  residence  unknown. 

Henry  Scott.  Co.  H,  4th,  mustered  Aug.,  1861,  for  nine  months;  mustered! 
out  Oct.,  1862;  died  at  Lawrence,  Mass.,  in  Nov.,  1875  ;  was  a  pensioner. 

Dennis  Taylor.  .5th,  but  for  what  time  is  not  known;  died  in  Claremont,  Aug-. 
18,  1892. 

UEGIMENTS   KIJOM   OTHEK  STATES. 

Captain  James  E.  Ainsworth.  Captain  in  the  13th  Iowa  regiment;  after 
about  a  year's  service  he  resigned  on  account  of  disability,  and  returne<l  to  his 
home  at  Dubuque,  la. 

Lieutenant  C.  Edward  Bingham.  First  lieutenant  of  Co.  H,  Second  Rhode 
Island  Cavalry,  Feb.,  1863;  adjutant,  Jlay,  1863;  mustered  out  .Inly,  1863;  died 
at  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  April  28,  1876. 

Oeoro-e  Colby.  24th  Illinois  regiment,  mustered  in  July,  1861 ;  captured  by 
Morc'an  in  1862,  soon  paroled  and  subsequently  exchanged ;  discharged  at  the 
end  of  his  term  of  enlistment;  re-enlisted  in  the  1.5th  Kentucky  regiment  Sept. 
4,  1864;  discharged  June  23,  1865;  his  legal  residence  during  the  war  was 
Claremont;  now  lives  at  Shelby,  la. 


302  HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT. 

James  B.  Ford.  Co.  K,  1st  Maine  regiment,  mustered  April  20,  1861,  for 
three  months;  subsequently  mustered  in  Co.  E,  7th  Maine  regiment;  discharged 
for  disability  Sept.  26,  1861. 

Lieutenant  Charles  P.  Ford.  Co.  1, 76th  New  York  Volunteers,  mustered  Sept., 
1861 ;  promoted  to  first  lieutenant ;  after  about  three  years  service  he  resigned. 

William  H.  Redfield.  14th  Connecticut,  drafted;  wounded  at  Bristo,  Va., 
Oct.,  1863,  also  in  the  battle  of  the  Wilderness,  and  also  at  Petersburg. 

Henry  Grannis.  Heavy  Artillery,  Minnesota  Vols. ;  enlisted  Feb.  7,  1865  ; 
died  at  Chattanooga,  Tenn.,  June  1,  1865. 

Samuel  H.  Grannis.  Heavy  Artillery,  Minnesota  Vols.  ;  enlisted  Feb.  7, 
1865;  discharged  Oct.  8,  1865;  resides  at  Mankato,  Minn. 

George  Hills.  Co.  A,  2d  Eegt.  Wisconsin  Vols.;  enlisted  June  1,  1861  ;  pro- 
moted to  sergeant;  wounded  in  right  arm  at  Gettysburg,  July  1,  1863  ;  mustered 
out  June  30,  1864;  inmate  of  Soldiers'  Home,  Togus,  Me. ;  pensioner. 

John  Mathews.  Co.  H,  31st  Regt.  Iowa  Vols.;  enlisted  Oct.,  1864;  mustered 
out  June,  1865;  resides  at  Monticello,  la. ;  pensioner. 

John  MoConnon.  Co.  H,  31st  Regt.  Iowa  Vols.;  enlisted  Oct.,  1864;  mus- 
tered out  June,  1865  ;  resides  at  Monticello,  la  ;  pensioner. 

NAVY. 

Dr.  Jeffrey  Thornton  Adams.  Appointed  acting  assistant  surgeon  in  the 
navy  in  Dec,  1861 ;  was  assigned  to  duty  on  board  the  U.  S.  armed  ship  Pursuit; 
for  a  time  was  in  charge  of  the  U.  S.  military  hospital  at  Key  West;  resigned 
in  March,  1863  ;  after  partial  recovery  he  took  the  position  of  assistant  surgeon 
in  the  U.  S.  military  hospital  at  Brattleboro,  Vt.,  which  he  relinquished  on  ac- 
count of  a  return  of  his  old  difficulty,  in  the  winter  of  1864-65;  he  died  in 
Claremont  on  the  17th  of  June,  1865. 

George  W.  Fitch.  Enlisted  as  carpenter,  Nov.  22,  1861;  assigned  to  ship 
Morning  Light;  discharged  March  7,  1862;  lives  in  Claremont;  pensioner. 

Dr.  Emery  G.  Judkins.  Appointed  acting  assistant  surgeon  Nov.  21,  1861,  and 
assigned  to  ship  Morning  Light;  resigned  April,  1862;  died  of  diphtheria  June 
29,  1863,  at  Waitsfield,  Vt. 

George  E.  Judkins.  Appointed  surgeon's  steward  on  board  the  ship  Morning 
Light,  Nov.,  1861 ;  resigned,  April,  1862;  lives  in  Claremont  ;  pensioner. 

Charles  C.  Philbrook.  Enlisted  as  marine  Aug.,  1861,  and  assigned  to  ship 
Pawnee;  in  July,  1864,  promoted  to  orderly  sergeant  on  board  supply  steamer 
Union;  honorably  discharged  at  the  end  of  the  war;  lives  in  Massachusetts. 

Sebastian  D.  Norrington.  Enlisted  March  29,  1864;  transferred  to  navy; 
steward  on  steamer  Agawam ;  discharged  Nov.  13,  1865 ;  lives  in  Claremont ; 
pensioner. 


MISCELLANEOUS. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

NATIONAL,    STATE,    COUNTY,    AND    TOWN    OFFICERS. 
EEPKESENTATIVES  IN   CONGRESS. 

George  B.  Upham,  1801,  one  term.  Caleb  Ellis,  1805,  one  term.  Hosea  W. 
Parker,  1871,  two  terms. 

PRESIDENTIAL  ELECTORS. 

Caleb  Ellis,  1812.  Thomas  "Woolson,  1828.  Nathaniel  Tolles,  1860.  Edward 
L.  Goddard,  1868. 

UNITED   STATES  MARSHAL. 

Russell  Jarvis,  from  1865  to  1869. 

MEMBERS  OF  THE    GOVERNOR'S   COUNCIL. 

Sanford  Kingsbury,  1789.  Caleb  Ellis,  1809.  Milon  C.  McClure,  1865  and 
1856.  Charles  H.  Eastman,  1863  and  186i.  William  E.  Tutherly,  1867  and 
1868.    George  H.  Stowell,  1881  and  1882.    John  M.  Whipple,  1891  and  1892. 

RAILROAD   COMMISSIONER. 

Edward  J.  Tenney,  from  1880  to  1887. 

INSURANCE  COMMISSIONER. 

Otis  F.  R.  Waite,  1858,  1859,  and  1860. 

STATE  SENATORS. 

Sanford  Kingsbury,  1790  and  1791.  Caleb  Ellis,  1811.  George  B.  Upham, 
18U.  Samuel  Fiske,  1815.  Jonathan  Nye,  1827.  Thomas  Woolson,  1828. 
John  Gove,  Jr.,  1837  and  1839.  Austin  Tyler,  1838.  Alonzo  B.  Williamson, 
1852  and  1853.  Ira  Colby,  Jr.,  1869  and  1870.  Samuel  P.  Thrasher  was  elected 
in  March,  1871,  died  April  12,  and  the  vacancy  was  filled  by  the  election  by  the 
legislature  of  Alvah  Smith,  of  Lempster.  George  H.  Stowell,  1874  and  1875. 
George  L.  Balcom,  1889  and  1890. 


304  HISTORY   OF   OLAREMONT. 

SPEAKERS    OF   THE    HOUSE. 

George  B.  TJpham,  1809  and  1815.    John  J.  Prentiss,  1855. 

CLERK   OF   THE    HOUSE. 

Thomas  J.  Harris,  1846. 

ENGROSSING  CLERK  OF  THE   LEGISLATURE. 

Otis  F.  R.  Waite,  1856  and  1857. 

JUDGES  OF  THE  SUPREME  COURT. 

Caleb  Ellis,  from  1813  until  his  death,  in  1816.  William  H.  H.  Allen,  from 
1876  to  1893. 

JUDGES    OF   PROBATE. 

Sanford  Kingsbnry,  from  1797  to  1798.  William  H.  H.  Allen,  from  1866  to 
1874.  William  Clark,  from  1876  to  1883.  Edwin  Vaughan,  from  1883  to  1891. 
Edward  J.  Tenney,  from  1891. 

REGISTER  OF  PROBATE. 

Uriel  Dean,  from  1840  to  1845. 

COUNTY   TREASURERS. 

Albro  Blodgett,  1861  and  1862.  Charles  H.  Long,  1879  and  1880.  Charles  H. 
Weed,  1888  and  1889. 

SHERIFFS. 

James  Holt,  from  1875  to  1880.    Edwin  W.  Tolles,  from  1889  to  1895. 

COUNTY  SOLICITORS. 

Alonzo  B.  Williamson,  from  1854  to  1859.  George  Ticknor,  from  1859  to 
1864.  Ira  Colby,  from  1864  to  1888,  with  the  exception  of  two  years.  Burt 
Chellis,  from  1891. 

EOAD  COMMISSIONERS. 

Fred.  A.  Henry,  1846.    John  F.  Cossit,  1850.    Sylvanus  F.  Redfield,  1855. 

COUNTY   COMMISSIONERS. 

Nathaniel  Tolles,  from  1857  to  1858.  William  Clark,  from  1864  to  1867. 
Aurelius  Dickinson,  from  1868  to  1871.  Albert  H.  Danforth,  from  1872  to  1875. 
William  E.  Tutherly,  from  1876  to  1885.  Stephen  F.  Eossiter,  from  1886  to 
1892.    Isaac  H.  Long,  from  1892. 


HISTORY    OF    CLARBMONT. 


305 


TOWN    OFFICERS    FROM    1768   TO    1894. 


MODERATORS  —  ANNUAL  MEETINGS. 


1768,  '70,  '71,  '73,  Benjamin  Brooks. 

1769,  William  Sumner. 
1772,  Thomas  Gustin. 

1774,  '77,  '79,  '81,  Matthias  Stone. 
1778,  Joseph  Ives. 
1780,  '88,  Elihn  Stevens. 

1782,  Oliver  Ashley. 

1783,  no  record  of  annual  meeting. 

1784,  '85,  Benjamin  Sumner. 

1786,  '87,   '89,   '92,   '95,   '96,   Sanford 

Kingsbury. 
1793,  '94,  from  '97   to  1803,  and  1809, 

Ezra  Jones. 
1804  to   '08,  '10,  and  '18,  George  B. 

Upham. 
1811  to  '17,  Josiah  Stevens. 


1819  to  '24,   and  '26,   '28,  '29,  Eufus 

Handerson. 
1825,  Jonathan  Nye. 
1827,  Josiah  Richards. 
1830  to  '35,  Austin  Tyler. 
1836  to  '42,  Godfrey  Stevens. 
1843,  '44,  '48,   '50,  '53,  '55  to  '68,  '70, 

'71,  Charles  M.  Bingham. 
1845,  '49,  '52,  '54,  Nathan  Waldo. 
1851,  George  W.  Blodgett. 
1869,  '83  to  '86,  Edwin  Vaughan. 
1872  to  '76,  William  H.  H.  Allen. 
1877,  '82,  '89,  Osmon  B.  Way. 
1887,  '91,  '93  to  '95,  Burt  Chellis. 
1880,  '90,  Frank  H.  Brown. 

1892,  Hosea  W.  Parker. 

1893,  '94,  Burt  Chellis. 


TOWN   CLERKS. 


1768,  Joseph  Ives. 

1769,  '74,  '75,  Benjamin  Sumner. 

1770,  '88  to  '91,  Ebenezer  Rice. 
1771  to  '73,  Samuel  Cole. 
1776  to  '86,  David  Bates. 

1783,  no  report  of  annual  meeting. 

1787,  Oliver  Ashley. 

1792  to  '97,  Ambrose  Cossit. 

1798  to  1816,  Samuel  Fiske. 

1817  to  '24,  George  Fiske. 

1825  to  '27,  Asa  Holton. 

1828  to  '38,  James  H.  Bingham. 


1839  to  '41,  Newton  Whittlesey. 
1842,  '43,  Charles  Williams. 
1844  to  '53,  Josiah  Stevens. 

1854,  Sylvanus  F.  Redfield. 

1855,  James  Goodwin. 

1856,  '57,  Alexander  V.  Hitchcock. 
1868  to  '70,  Thomas  R.  Gowdey. 

1871,  Charles  O.  Eastman. 

1872,  '73,  William  Clark. 
1874  to  '76,  Henry  C.  Sanders. 
1877  to  '94,  Francis  F.  Haskell. 


SELECTMEN. 


1768.   Benjamin  Brooks. 
Ebenezer  Skinner. 
Benjamin  Tyler. 
Thomas  Jones. 


1768.  Amos  York. 

1769.  Jeremiah  Spencer. 
Benjamin  Tyler. 
Benjamin  Sumner. 


306 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 


1770.  BeDJamin  Brooks.  1784. 
Benjamin  Sumner. 

Jacob  Eice. 
Joseph  Ives. 
Asa  Jones. 

1771.  Thomas  Gustin.  1785. 
Benjamin  BrooliS. 

Asa  Jones. 

1772.  Thomas  Gustin. 
Asa  Jones. 

Joseph  Taylor.  1786. 

1773.  Asa  Jones. 
Benjamin  Broolis. 

Joseph  Taylor.  1787. 

1774.  Thomas  Gustin. 
Matthias  Stone. 

Stephen  Higbee.  1788. 

1775.  Thomas  Gustin. 
Matthias  Stone. 

Oliver  Ashley.  1789. 

1776.  Matthias  Stone. 
Asa  Jones. 

Elihu  Stevens.  1790. 

1777.  Matthias  Stone. 
Joseph  Taylor. 

Eleazer  Clark.  1791. 

1778.  Joseph  Ives. 
Joseph  Hubbard. 

Josiah  Rich.  1792. 

1779.  Matthias  Stone. 
Oliver  Ashley. 

John  Adkins.  1793. 

1780.  Matthias  Stone. 
Oliver  Ashley. 

Asa  Jones.  1794. 

1781.  David  Bates. 
Samuel  Ashley. 

Asa  Jones.  1795. 

1782.  Matthias  Stone. 
Ambrose  Oossit. 

James  Alden.  1796. 

1783.  No  record  of  annual  town  meet- 


Asa  Jones. 
Sanford  Kingsbury. 
Ambrose  Uossit. 
Josiah  Rich. 
Elihu  Stevens. 
John  Cook. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Ebenezer  Rice. 
Jeremiah  Spencer. 
Joseph  Ives. 
Asa  Jones. 
Sanford  Kingsbury. 
Ebenezer  Rice. 
Bill  Bairnes. 
Nathaniel  Goss. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Ezra  Jones. 
Josiah  Stevens. 
Levi  Pardee. 
Sanford  Kingsbury. 
Ezra  Jones. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Ezra  Jones. 
Bill  Barnes. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Gideon  Handerson. 
Ezra  Jones. 
Ezra  Jones, 
(iideon  Handerson. 
Josiah  Stevens. 
Ezra  Jones. 
Gideon  Handerson. 
Alexander  Pickens. 
Ezra  Jones. 
Gideon  Handerson. 
Alexander  Pickens. 
John  Strobridge. 
Alexander  Pickens. 
Thomas  Warner. 
Ezra  Jones. 
Barnabas  Ellis. 
Thomas  Warner. 


HISTOEY   OF   CLAREMOKT. 


307 


1797.  Ezra  Jones. 
Barnabas  Ellis. 
John  Strobridge. 

1798.  Ezra  Jones. 
James  Strobridge. 
Caleb  Baldwin. 

1799.  Sanford  Kingsbury. 
Gideon  Handerson. 
Alexander  Pickens. 

1800.  Ezra  Jones. 
Samuel  Fiske. 
David  Dexter. 

1801.  Ezra  Jones. 
Samuel  Fiske. 
David  Dexter. 

1802.  Ezra  Jones. 
John  Strobridge. 
David  Dexter. 

1803.  Ezra  Jones. 
David  Dexter. 
William  Breck. 

1804.  Ezra  Jones. 
John  Smith. 
Gideon  Handerson. 

1805.  Ezra  Jones. 
Gideon  Handerson. 
John  Smith. 

1806.  John  Smith. 
Timothy  Grannis,  Jr. 
Linus  Stevens. 

1807.  John  H.  Sumner. 
Alexander  Pickens. 
Thomas  "Warner. 

1808.  John  H.  Sumner. 
Alexander  Pickens. 
Thomas  Warner. 

1809.  Thomas  Warner. 
Ezra  Jones. 
Alexander  Pickens. 

1810.  David  Dexter. 
Theophilus  Clarke. 
Isaac  Hubbard. 


1811.  David  Dexter. 
Theophilus  Clarke. 
Isaac  Hubbard. 

1812.  David  Dexter. 
Theophilus  Clarke. 
Isaac  Hubbard. 

1813.  David  Dexter. 
Theophilus  Clarke. 
Rufus  Handerson. 

1814.  David  Dexter. 
Theophilus  Clarke. 
Rufus  Handerson. 

1815.  David  Dexter. 
Theophilus  Clarke. 
Rufus  Handerson. 

1816.  David  Dexter. 
Rufus  Handerson. 
Isaac  Hubbard. 

1817.  David  Dexter. 
Isaac  Hubbard. 
John  Smith. 

1818.  David  Dexter. 
Isaac  Hubbard. 
John  Smith. 

1819.  John  Smith. 
Rufus  Handerson. 
Elisha  Hitchcock. 

1820.  Rufus  Handerson. 
Elisha  Hitchcock. 
Joel  Goss. 

1821.  Joel  Goss. 
Timothy  Grannis,  Jr. 
Nathaniel  Cowles. 

1822.  Joel  Goss. 
Timothy  Grannis,  Jr. 
Nathaniel  Cowles. 

1823.  Timothy  Grannis,  Jr. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Solomon  "Walker. 

1824.  Timothy  Grannis,  Jr. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Austin  Tyler. 


308 


HISTORY    OP   CLAKEMONT. 


1825.  Austin  Tyler. 
Isaac  Hubbai-d. 
Nathaniel  Cowles. 

1826.  Austin  Tyler. 
Timothy  Grannis,  Jr. 
Bartlett  Clement. 

1827.  Austin  Tyler. 
Timothy  Grannis,  Jr. 
Bartlett  Clement. 

1828.  Austin  Tyler. 
Timothy  Grannis. 
Rufus  Handerson. 

1829.  Timothy  Grannis. 
Rufus  Handerson. 
Isaac  Hubbard. 

1830.  Isaac  Hubbard. 
Austin  Tyler. 
Godfrey  Stevens. 

1831.  Joel  Goss. 
Austin  Tyler. 
Samuel  Seward,  Jr. 

1832.  Austin  Tyler. 
Samuel  Seward,  Jr. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 

1833.  Austin  Tyler. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Samuel  Seward,  Jr. 

1834.  Austin  Tyler. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Samuel  Seward. 

1835.  Samuel  Seward. 
Erastus  Glidden. 
Albro  Blodgett. 

1836.  Albro  Blodgett. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Samuel  Seward. 

1837.  Albro  Blodgett. 
Samuel  Tutherly. 
Erastus  Glidden. 

1838.  Albro  Blodgett. 
Samuel  Tutherly. 
Ralph  Ainsworth. 


1839.  Samuel  Tutherly. 
William  Rossiter. 
Alexander  Graham. 

1840.  Albro  Blodgett. 
Wooster  Jones. 
Samuel  Putnam. 

1841.  Albro  Blodgett. 
Ralph  Ainsworth. 
Samuel  Putnam. 

1842.  Albro  Blodgett. 
Ralph  Ainsworth. 
Philemon  Tolles. 

1843.  Austin  Tyler. 
Philemon  Tolles. 
Solon  C.  Grannis. 

1844.  Solon  C.  Grannis. 
Albro  Blodgett. 
Samuel  C.  Abbott. 

1845.  William  Rossiter. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Wooster  Jones. 

1846.  Solon  C.  Grannis. 
Samuel  Glidden. 
Jotham  G.  AUds. 

1847.  Solon  C.  Grannis. 
Jotham  G.  Allds. 
Samuel  Tutherly. 

1848.  Samuel  Tutherly. 
Samuel  Putnam. 
Laurens  A.  Grannis. 

1849.  Daniel  S.  Bowker. 
Samuel  Putnam. 
Lewis  W.  Randall. 

1850.  Albro  Blodgett. 
Daniel  S.  Bowker. 
William  Rossiter. 

1851.  Albro  Blodgett. 
Ambrose  Cossit. 
Daniel  S.  Bowker. 

1852.    William  Rossiter. 
Alvah  Stevens. 
Solon  C.  Grannis. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAKEMONT. 


309 


1863.   Daniel  S.  Bowker. 
Aurelius  Dickinson. 
William  Clark. 

1854.  Daniel  S.  Bowker. 
Aurelius  Dickinson. 
William  Clark. 

1855.  William  Clark. 
William  P.  Austin. 
Edward  Ainsworth. 

1856.  Aurelius  Dickinson. 
William  P.  Austin. 
Edward  Ainsworth. 

1857.  William  P.  Austin. 
James  Goodwin. 
Frederick  Smith. 

1858.  James  Goodwin. 
William  Clark. 
Ira  Colby. 

1859.  William  Clark. 
Ira  Colby. 
Fredei-ick  A.  Henry. 

1860.  William  Clark. 
William  E.  Tutherly. 
Horace  Dean. 

1861.  William  Clark. 
William  E.  Tutherly. 
Horace  Dean. 

1862.  William  Clark. 
William  E.  Tutherly. 
Edwin  W.  Tolles. 

1863.  William  E.  Tutherly. 
Edwin  W.  Tolles. 
Stephen  F.  Kossiter. 

1864.  Edwin  W.  Tolles. 
Stephen  F.  Rossiter. 
William  Clark. 

1865.  Edwin  W.  Tolles. 
Stephen  F.  Eossiter. 
Franklin  Norton. 

1866.  William  E.  Tutherly. 
Francis  Locke. 
Franklin  Norton. 


1867.  Francis  Locke. 
Arnold  Briggs. 
Henry  C.  Cowles. 

1868.  Albert  H.  Danforth. 
John  W.  Jewett. 
Laban  Ainsworth. 

1869.  Albert  H.  Danforth. 
John  W.  Jewett. 
Laban  Ainsworth. 

1870.  Stephen  F.  Rossiter. 
Francis  Locke. 
Henry  Colby. 

1871.  Stephen  F.  Rossiter. 
Francis  Locke. 
Henry  Colby. 

1872.  William  E.  Tutherly. 
Francis  Locke. 
Charles  H.  Ainsworth. 

1873.  Aurelius  Dickinson. 
Charles  H.  Ainsworth. 
Charles  G.  Buel. 

1874.  William  E.  Tutherly. 
Charles  G.  Buel. 
George  P.  Rossiter. 

1876.   Stephen  F.  Rossiter. 

William  Clark. 

Hosea  P.  Shedd. 
1876.  Stephen  F.  Rossiter. 

William  Clark. 

Hosea  P.  Shedd. 
187  7 .   Stephen  F .  Rossiter. 

John  W.  Jewett. 

Hosea  P.  Shedd. 

1878.  William  Clark. 
John  W.  Jewett. 
Isaac  H.  Long. 

1879.  William  Clark. 
John  W.  Jewett. 
Isaac  H.  Long. 

1880.  William  Clark. 
John  W.  Jewett. 
Isaac  H.  Long. 


310 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 


1881.  William  Clark. 
John  W.  Jewett. 
Marshall  S.  Kossiter. 

1882.  Isaac  H.  Long. 
Marshall  S.  Eossiter. 
Henry  C.  Sanders. 

This  board    of    selectmen    was  re- 
elected  each  year   until    1891. 
1891.   Marshall  S.  Kossiter. 
Charles  P.  Breck. 


1891. 
1892. 


1893. 


1894. 


Stephen  J.  Roberts,  Jr. 
Marshall  S.  Rossiter. 
Stephen  J.  Roberts,  Jr. 
Frank  P.  Huntley. 
Marshall  S.  Rossiter. 
Frank  P.  Huntley. 
Ora  D.  Blanchard. 
Marshall  S.  Rossiter. 
Charles  A.  Fisher. 
Charles  H.  Hubbard. 


KEPEESENTATIVES . 


The  following  are  the  names  of  the  representatives  of  the  town 
in  the  ISTew  Hampshire  legislature  from  1777  to  1893,  —  none 
were  chosen  prior  to  the  former  date. 


1777.  Elihu  Stevens. 

1778.  Thomas  Sterns. 

1779.  Thomas  Sterns. 

It  does  not  appear  by  the  records 
that  representatives  were  chosen  in  the 
years  1780,  '81,  '82,  and  '83. 

1784.  Benjamin  Sumner. 

1785.  Benjamin  Sumner. 

1786.  Sanford  Kingsbury. 

1787.  Voted  not  to  send. 

1788.  Did  not  choose. 
1789-91.     Sanford  Kingsbury. 
1792.     Jabez  Upham. 
1793-94.     Benjamin  Sumner. 
1795.     Oliver  Ashley. 
1796-97.     George  B.  Upham. 

1798.  Josiah  Stevens. 

1799.  George  B.  Upham. 
1800-02.     Ezra  Jones. 
1803.     Caleb  Ellis. 
1804-13.     George  B.  Upham. 

1814.  Samuel  Fiske. 
David  Dexter. 

1815.  George  B.  Upham. 
Ezra  Jones. 


1816. 

Samuel  Fiske. 

Ezra  Jones. 

1817. 

Ezra  Jones. 

David  Dexter. 

1818. 

George  B.  Upham 

David  Dexter. 

1819. 

David  Dexter. 

Isaac  Hubbard. 

1820. 

David  Dexter. 

John  Smith. 

1821. 

George  B.  Upham, 

Isaac  Hubbard. 

1822. 

Rufus  Handerson. 

John  Smith. 

1823. 

Rufus  Handerson. 

John  Smith. 

1824. 

Rufus  Handerson. 

Ambrose  Cossit. 

1825. 

Jonathan  Nye. 

Thomas  Woolson. 

1826. 

Rufus  Handersou. 

Thomas  Woolson. 

1827. 

Austin  Tyler. 

Josiah  Richards. 

HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 


311 


1828.  Austin  Tyler. 
Josiah  Richards. 

1829.  Godfrey  Stevens. 
Timothy  Grannis. 

1830.  Godfrey  Stevens. 
Timothy  Grannis. 

1831.  Timothy  Grannis. 
Austin  Tyler. 

1832.  Austin  Tyler. 
Timothy  Grannis. 

1833.  Godfrey  Stevens. 
Zenas  Clement. 

1834.  Godfrey  Stevens. 
Zenas  Clement. 
Arad  Taylor. 

1835.  Godfrey  Stevens. 
Austin  Tyler. 
Erastus  Glidden. 

1836.  Austin  Tyler. 
Zenas  Clement. 
Arad  Taylor. 

1837.  George  B.  Upham. 
Austin  Tyler. 
Joel  Wallingford. 

1838.  Joel  Wallingford. 
John  H.  Warland. 
John  Kimball,  Jr. 

1839.  Erastus  Glidden. 
John  H.  Warland. 
Charles  L.  Putnam. 

1840.  (iiodfrey  Stevens. 
John  H.  Warland. 
James  H.  Bingham. 

1841.  James  H.  Bingham. 
Nathaniel  Cotton. 
L.   A.  Grannis. 

1842.  Nathaniel  Cotton. 
L.   A.  Grannis. 
Austin  Tyler. 

1843.  P.  C.  Freeman. 
Alexander  Graham. 
H,  P.  Handerson. 


1844. 


1845. 


1846. 


1847. 


1848. 


1849. 


1850. 


1851. 


1852. 


1853. 
1854. 


1855. 


1856. 


1857. 


P.  C.  Freeman. 
Charles  Williams. 
H.  P.  Handerson. 
Charles  Williams. 
Philemon  ToUes. 
James  M.  Gates. 
Frederick  S.  Kidder. 
Philemon  ToUes. 
James  M.  Gates. 
Frederick  T.  Kidder. 
Albro  Blodgett. 
William  Kossiter. 
Albro  Blodgett. 
William  Eossiter. 
Jotham  G.  Allds. 
Jotham  G.  Allds. 
Thomas  Sanford. 
Charles  M.  Bingham. 
John  S.   Walker. 
Thomas  Sanford. 
John  Tyler. 
John  S.  Walker. 
Sumner  Putnam. 
John  Tyler. 
Charles  Young. 
Charles  F.  Long. 
Sumner  Putnam. 
Jonas  Livingston. 
Jonas  Livingston. 
John  J.   Prentiss. 
Moses  Wheeler. 
John  J.  Prentiss. 
Moses  Wheeler. 
John  Hendee. 
Moses  Wheeler. 
John  Hendee. 
John  J.  Prentiss. 
Milon  C.  McClure. 
Joseph  Weber. 
Oscar  J.  Brown. 
Joshua  Colby. 


312 


HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT. 


1858. 

Milon  C.  McClure. 

1869. 

Edward  L.  Goddard. 

Joseph  Weber. 

George  N.  Farwell. 

Oscar  J.  Brown. 

1870. 

Hiram  Webb. 

1859. 

Joshua  Colby. 

Charles  H.  Long. 

John  A.  Winn. 

George  N.  Farwell. 

Edward  D.  Baker. 

Enoch  Johnson. 

1860. 

John  A.  Winn. 

1871. 

Charles  H.  Long. 

Edward  D.  Baker. 

Enoch  Johnson. 

Solon  C.  Grannis. 

Osman  B.  Way. 

Timothy  D.  Kimball. 

Edward  J.  Tenney. 

1861. 

Solon  C.  Grannis. 

1872. 

Osmon  B.  Way. 

Timothy  D.  Kimbali. 

Edward  J.  Tenney. 

James  Goodwin. 

George  H.  Stowell. 

Charles  H.  Eastman. 

Ira  Colby. 

1862. 

Charles  H.  Eastman. 

1873. 

Ira  Colby. 

James  Goodwin. 

George   H.  Stowell. 

Robert  F.  Lawrence. 

Charles  M.  Bingham. 

Edward  W.  Wooddell. 

Francis  W.  Towle. 

1863. 

Robert  F.  Lawrence. 

1874. 

Charles  M.  Bingham. 

Edward  W.  Wooddell. 

Albert  H.  Danforth. 

Arnold  Briggs. 

John  L.  Farwell. 

William  P.  Austin. 

Oscar  J.  Brown. 

1864. 

Arnold  Briggs. 

1875. 

Albert  H.  Danforth. 

Ira  Colby,  Jr. 

John  L.  Farwell. 

James  P.  Brewer. 

Oscar  J.  Brown. 

Alfred  Tracy. 

Samuel  G.  Jarvis. 

1865. 

Ira  Colby,  Jr. 

1876. 

Samuel  G.  Jarvis. 

Alfred  Tracy. 

John  P.  Rounsevel. 

William  E.  Tutherly. 

Algernon  Willis. 

James  P.  Upham. 

Henry  Colby. 

1866. 

James  P.  Upham. 

Winthrop  Sargent. 

Edwin  Vaughau. 

1877. 

Algernon  Willis. 

Edward  Ains worth. 

Henry  Colby. 

Moses  R.  Emerson. 

Winthrop  Sargent. 

1867. 

Edwin  Vaughan. 

John  P.  Rounsevel. 

Edward  Ainsworth. 

George  G.  Ide. 

Moses  K.  Emerson. 

Ib78. 

George  G.  Ide. 

Francis  W.  Towle. 

William  E.  Tutherly. 

1868. 

Did  not  send. 

Stephen  F.  Rossiter. 

1869. 

Hiram  Webb. 

George  0.  Woodcock. 

William  Ellis. 

Joseph  S.  Bartlett. 

HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 


313 


A  law  providing  for  the  biennial  election,  in  November,  of 
state  and  county  officers,  and  for  biennial  sessions  of  the  New 
Hampshire  legislature,  went  into  effect  in  1878. 


1879.  Stephen  F.  Rossiter.  1887-89. 

George  O.  Woodeock. 

Joseph  S.  Bartlett. 
1879-81.    Ira  Colby. 

Frederick  Haubrich.  1889-91. 

John  F.  Jones. 
1881-83.    Ira  Colby. 

Frederick  Haubrich. 

John  F.  Jones.  1891-93. 

1883-85.     Ira  Colby. 

George  L.  Balcom. 

William  Breck. 

Charles  H.  Ainsworth. 
1885-87.     Edward  D.  Baker.  1893-95. 

Israel  D.  Hall. 

Henry  A.  Dickinson. 

Pomeroy  M.  Rossiter. 


Ira  Colby. 

Charles  N.  Freeman. 
Harry  C.  Fay. 
John  W.  Chaffin. 
Herman  Holt. 
John  M.  Whipple. 
John  Tyler. 
Charles  A.  Fisher. 
Frank  H.  Brown. 
Frederick  Jewett. 
Joseph  G.  Briggs. 
Charles  P.  Breck. 
George  P.  Rossiter. 
Frederick  Jewett. 
Frank  P.  Huntley. 
Daniel  W.  Johnson. 
Charles  L.  Severance. 
Frank  H.  Brown. 


21 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

MARRIAfiES  —  BIKTHS  —  DEATHS. 

The  following  marriages,  births,  and  deaths  are  given  as  they 
appear  in  the  town  records.  For  many  years  succeeding  1801  no 
records  were  made  of  these  events. 

MARRIAGES. 

John  Sprague  and  Rebekia  Alden,  Oct.  12,  1767,  at  Bridgewater,  Mass. 

Timothy  Grannis  and  Sarah  Sumner,  Jan.  1,  1772. 

Joseph  Hubbard  and  Thankful  Kawley,  Oct.  8,  1772. 

John  Goss  and  Hannah  Scott,  Oct.  15,  1772,  as  recorded  at  Winchester,  N.  H. 

Timothy  Dustin  and  Eunice  Nutting,  Aug.  7,  1773. 

Ezra  Jones  and  Susanah  Stone,  Oct.  15,  1773,  at  Barre,  Mass. 

John  Hitchcock  and  Phebe  Tyler,  May  2,  1774. 

James  Goodwin  and  Mary  Sumner,  Aug.  18,  1774. 

Ephraim  yrench  and  Comfort  York,  April  6,  1775. 

Nathaniel  Goss  and  Rachel  Gould,  June  11,  1776. 

Amos  Conant  and  Elizabeth  Erskine,  Aug.  21,  1776. 

Doctor  James  Steele  and  Lucretia  Dible,  Dec.  12,  1776. 

Rev.  Augustine  Hibbard  and  Mrs.  Eunice  Ashley,  Jan.  7,  1777. 

Henry  Stevens  and  Widow  Martha  Waite,  Feb.  26,  1777. 

James  Alden  and  Esther  York,  March  6,  1777. 

Ambrose  Cossit  and  Anne  C.  Cole,  Feb.  1,  1778. 

Thomas  Goodwin  and  Mary  Dustin,  Aug.  10,  1778. 

Capt.  Oliver  Ashley  and  Mrs.  Olive  Sumner,  Oct.  18,  1778. 

Isaac  Cleveland  and  Mamre  Matthews,  Aug.  5,  1779. 

Cotton  Dickinson  and  Olive  Field,  Nov.  3,  1779. 

Amasa  Andrews  and  Achsa  Butler,  Aug.  24,  1780. 

Solomon  Bates  and  Hannah  Lawrence,  July  17,  1781. 

Ezra  Jones  and  Esther  Rice,  July  26,  1781. 

Amariah  Ainsworth  and  Rebeckah  Skinner,  Aug.  30,  1781. 

William  Osgood,  Jr.  and  Priscilla  Stone,  Dee.  6,  1781. 

Henry  Stevens  and  Mary  Diman,  Feb.  26,  1782,  at  Ashburnham,  Mass. 

Thomas  Dustin  and  Sarah  Barron,  July  31,  1783. 

Timothy  Cole  and  Sarah  Stilson,  Nov.  11,  1783. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  315 

Ephraim  Page  and  Sary  Thompson,  Oct.  27,  1784. 

Luther  Ashley  and  Sarah  Jones,  July  26,  1785. 

Christopher  Erskine  and  Freelove  Greene,  May  14,  1786. 

Major  Moody  Dustin  and  Alice  Kingsbury,  Oct.  7,  1787. 

Asa  Leet,  Jr.  and  Mitte  Bates,  Feb.  25,  1788. 

Roswell  Clapp  and  Rachel  Stevens,  Feb.  19,  1789. 

Phineas  Cowles  and  Catherine  Stone,  April  2,  1789. 

John  Kibling  and  Elizabeth  Fisher,  July  6,  1789. 

Reuben  Atkins  and  Sarah  Lawrence,  Sept.  6,  1789. 

Moses  Phelps  Russell  and  Polly  Lois  Marks,  Oct.  22,  1789. 

Jonathan  Shaw,  Jun'r  and  Polly  Richardson,  Nov.  12,  1789. 

Phinehas  Parker  and  Deborah  Hutchinson,  Dec.  22,  1789. 

John  Clow,  of  Colchester,  Vt.  and  Dolly  Lawrence,  of  Claremont,  Feb.  23, 
1790. 

Benjamin  Swett  and  Polly  Healy,  March  17,  1790. 

Samuel  Taler  and  Dorkess  Richardson,  May  9,  1790. 

James  Erskine  and  Esther  Nightingale,  June  27,  1790. 

Jona.  Chase,  of  Cornish,  and  Mary  Osgood,  of  Claremont,  July  4,  1790. 

Duthan  Kingsbury,  of  Plainfield,  and  Miranda  Knight,  of  Claremont,  July 
10,  1790. 

Lieut.  Josiah  Stevens  and  Mrs.  Matilda  Brewer,  Sept.  9,  1790. 

Doct.  Abner  Megs  and  Sarah  Labere,  Sept.  12,  1790. 

Nathan  Benton  and  Tarza  Putnam,  Sept.  12,  1790. 

Walter  Bingham,  of  Charlestown,  and  Sally  Gilbert,  of  Claremont,  Sept.  27, 
1790. 

Harkins  Judd  and  Anis  Butler,  Oct.  3,  1790. 

Daniel  Bond  and  Ruth  Kirtland,  Oct.  4,  1790. 

Levi  Chaffin  and  Chloe  Tolman,  Nov.  13,  1790. 

Benjamin  Grandy  and  Clowe  Coy,  Nov.  21,  1790. 

Samuel  Man  and  Hannah  Petty,  Jan.  3,  1791. 

Timothy  Grannis  and  Sarah  Nigh,  Jan.  27,  1791. 

William  Larrabe  and  Amy  Rice,  Feb.  3,  1791. 

Matthias  Stone,  Jun'r,  and  Judith  Fox  Bangs,  May  8,  1791. 

Joseph  Commins  and  Widow  Hannah  Munrow,  June  26,  1791. 

John  Dodge  and  Eunice  Lawrence,  March  8,  1792. 

James  Meacham,  Jun'r,  and  Polly  Rhodes,  April  1,  1792. 

Charles  J.  Kinsley  and  Cynthia  Geer,  May  21,  1792. 

Jesse  Alden  and  Sarah  Rice,  May  31,  1792. 

Dimon  Rice  and  Lydia  Bradley,  June  17,  1792. 

Samuel  Mann  and  Sarah  Petty,  Aug.  19,  1792. 

Benjamin  Watson  and  Cebia  Spencer,  Sept.  3,  1792. 

John  Ives  and  Mary  Thomas,  Sept.  30,  1792. 


316  HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT. 

Ezra   Eastman,  of   Newport,  and   Hannah   Hutchinson,  of   Claremont,   Sept. 
25,  1792. 

Francis  Chase  and  Mary  Weade,  Nov.  15,  1792. 
Cephas  Clark  and  Phebe  Green,  Dec.  2,  1792. 
William  Miller  and  Sarah  Lane,  Dec.  2,  1792. 
David  Dexter  and  Parnel  Strobridge,  Dec.  30,  1792. 
Jonath  York  and  Widow  Temperance  Taylor,  Jan.  10,  1793. 
Joshua  Eandle  and  Coziah  Hawley,  Feb.  18,  1793. 
Waldo  Field  and  Mary  Atkins,  March  3,  1793. 
Aseph  Ellis  and  Damaras  Judd,  March  6,  1793. 

Elias   Cook,  of   Middletown,  Vt.,  and  Lucy  Hawley,  of  Claremont,  Oct.  31, 
1793. 
Daniel  Peck  and  Elizabeth  Hawley,  Jan.  20,  1794. 
Luke  Blodgett  and  Sarah  Bangs,  Jan.  30,  1794. 
Stephen  Mann  and  Lucy  Petty,  Feb.  2,   1794. 
Samuel  Blodgett  and  Sarah  Sprague,  Feb.  13,  1794. 

Bill  Barnes,  of  Claremont,  and  Esther  Spaulding,  of  Cornish,  May  4,  1794. 
Joseph  Fisher  and  Sarah  Osgood,  May  20,  1794. 

Thomas  Perkins,  of   Randolph,  Vt.,  and  Elizabeth  Olive   Fielding,  of   Clare- 
mont, Oct.  12,  1794. 
Jonathan  Emerson  and  Mahitabel  Morgan,  Nov.  11,  1794. 

William  Lewis  and  Betsey  Stewart,  Dec.  25,  1794. 

Eber  Gilbert,  of  Ludlow,  and  Mabel  Allen,  of  Claremont,  Dec.  25,  1794. 

Asa  Dunsmore  and  Abagail  Willson,  March  26,  1795. 

Richmond  Hillyerd  and  Lydia  Ford,  April  13,  1795. 

Walter  Aiusworth  and  Rozey  Blodgett,  April  20,  1795. 

Stephen  Conant,  of  Windsor,  Vt.,  and  Fanny  Sterne,  of  Claremont,  June  1, 
1795. 

Reuben  Petty,  Jun'r,  and  Charlotte  Parmtle,  June  18,  1795. 

Joel  Rich  and  Sarah  Norton,  Aug.  1,  1795. 

Real  Shaw  and  Sabray  Richardson,  Sept.  13,  1795. 

Benjamin  Goodwin  and  Abagail  Hutchinson,  Sept.  27,   1795. 

Samuel  Sherman,  of  Weathersfleld,  Vt.,  and  Keturah  Boys,  Oct.  24,  1795. 

John  Goss,  Jun'r,  and  Polly  More,  Nov.  19,  1795. 

Asa  Elmore,  of  Peru,  N.  Y.,  and  Maria  Hall,  of  Claremont,  Feb.  10,  1796. 

Asa  Upham,  of  Weathersfleld,  Yt.,  and  Patty  Greene,  of  Claremont,  March 
9,  1796. 

George  Cook,  of  Claremont,  and  Tama  Willson,  of  Cornish,  May  2,  1796. 

Samuel  Ashley,  Jun'r,  and  Anne  Sumner,  June  29,  1796. 

Seth  Deming,  of  Cornish,  and  Polley  Gustin  of  Claremont,  July  24,  1796. 

Samuel  Niles  and  Lovinia  Thomas,  July  31,  1796. 

Elisha  Abot  and  Mahitable  Parmele,  Aug.  20,  1796. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONX.  317 

Daniel  WhelocK  and  Lucinda  Stodard,  Aug.  28,  1796. 

Amos  Fisher  and  Cynthia  Sholes,  Sept.  3,  1796. 

Moses  Hutchins  and  Charlotte  Larnard,  Sept.  25,  1796. 

Luther  Very,  of  Winchester,  and  Polley  Larrence,  of  Claremont,  Nov.  6, 1796. 

Daniel  Brown,  of  Newport,  and  Betsey  Stone.  Jan.  31,  1797. 

Hezekiah  Eoys,  Jun'r,  and  Polley  Cadey,  Feb.  16,  1797. 

Joseph  S.  Stevens  and  Betsey  Kingsbury,  Feb.  26,  1797. 

Aaron  Butterfield  and  Susanah  Brewster,  March  1, 1797. 

Seth  Bennet  and  Rebekah  Rice,  April  2,  1797. 

William  Chase,  of  Cornish,  and  Olive  Mathews,  of  Claremont,  June  11,  1797. 

Parker  Hosmer  and  Phebe  Thomas,  Aug.  27,  1797. 

Phinehas  Knight  and  Esther  Mathews,  no  date. 

Noah  Tyler,  of  Claremont,  and  Nabbe  Barber,  of  Simsbury,  Oct.  1,  1797. 

John  Wise  and  Hannah  Sumner,  Oct.  27,  1797. 

Semore  Burnham  and  Mabel  Potter,  Oct.  30,  1797. 

Walter  Coley  and  Lucinda  White,  Nov.  16,  1797. 

John  Airs  Perkins,  of  Newport,  and  Anne  K.  Cossit,  of  Claremont,  Dec.  24, 
1797. 

James  Harrington  and  Lois  Jones,  Dec.  28,  1797. 

William  Smith,  of  Cornish,  and  Huklah  Batchelder,  of  Claremont,  April  14, 
1798. 

Samuel  Semmunds  and  Polly  Smith,  Sept.  29,  1798. 

Rufus  West«ott  and  Phebe  Shattuck,  Oct.  14,  1798. 

Joseph  Pulling  and  Farah  Chase,  Oct.  16,  1798. 

Jeremiah  Westcott,  Jr.,  of  Clarement,  and  Ruth  West,  of  Cranston,  R.  I., 
Nov.  16,  1798. 

Samuel  Spencer  and  Bulah  McCoy,  Dec.  26,  1798. 

William  Edmunds  and  Rebecca  Westcott,  Feb.  11,  1799. 

Benjamin  Grandy  and  Susannah  Leet,  May  4,  1800. 

John  Temple  and  Hannah  Redfield,  April  1,  1801. 

Zeriah  Redfield  and  Trephena  Sims,  April  1,  1801. 

BIRTHS. 

To  Capt.  Benjamin  and  Prudence  Sumner.  Daughter,  Mary,  Dec.  21,  1760. ^ 
Daughter,  Prudence,  June  14,  1760.  Son,  William  Benjamin,  Oct.  4,  1762. 
Son,  David  Hubbard,  Jime  18, 1764.  Son,  John  Henry,  April  28, 1766.  Daughter, 
Hannah,  Sept.  2,  1768.  Son,  Frederick  Augustus,  May  1,  1770.  Daughter, 
Honnor,  Feb.  18,  1772.    Daughters,  Hannah  and  Anne,  March  9,  1774. 

To  Asa  and  Sarah  Jones.  Son,  Asa,  July  18,  1762.  Son,  Josiah,  Aug.  28, 
1763.   Daughter,  Sally,  March  6,  1766.   Daughter,  Jerusha,  July  28, 1767.    Son, 


1   Children,  the  date  of  whose  hirth  is  given  as  prioi-  to  1763,  were  not,  prohably,  horn  in 
Claremont. 


318  HISTORY    OF    CLARBMONT. 

Jabez,  Nov.  10,  1768.  Daughter,  Eunice,  June  30,  1770.  Daughter,  Lovioe, 
Nov.  13,  1771.  Son  and  daughter,  Edward  and  Lucy,  Jan.  2i,  1775.  Son, 
Thomas,  Dec.  25,  1778.  Son,  Anson,  July  6,  1782.  Son,  Ransom,  Jan.  23,  1784. 
Daughter,  Anne,  May  3,  1786. 

To  Lieutenant  Joseph  and  Elizabeth  Ives.  Daughter,  Mary,  July  1,  1763. 
Son  and  daughter,  John  and  Mamre,  Nov.  14,  1767,  all  three  born  in  Connecti- 
cut. Son,  Stephen,  July  31,  1771.  Son,  David,  March  23,  1773.  Daughter, 
Elizabeth,  Jan.  29,  1775.     Son,  David,  July  18,  1778. 

To  Beriah  and  Mary  Murray.  Daughter,  Sabina,  Aug.  24,  1765.  Son,  Curtis, 
Nov.  7,  1767.  Son,  Calvin,  Nov.  24,  1769.  Son,  Surkenath  Mackensey.  Nov. 
22,  1771.  Sou,  Asahel,  Oct.  3,  1773.  Son,  Beriah,  Jr.,  Dec.  5,  1775.  Selah, 
Dec  5,  1777.  Daughter,  Mary  Anne,  March  20,  1780.  Daughter,  Rose  Lyndey, 
Feb.  12,  1782.     Son,  Warren,  July  24,  1784. 

To  Josiah  and  Elizabeth  Rich.  Son,  Samuel,  June  14,  1764.  Son,  Artemus, 
Nov.  23,  1767.  Son,  Josiah,  June  18,  1768.  Son,  Bazeleel,  July  27,  1770. 
Daughter,  Phebe,  June  28,  1778.  Son,  Bazeleel  Ives,  July  21,  1774.  Son,  Jo- 
seph, Nov.  8,  1776.  Daughter,  Elizabeth,  Feb.  15,  1778.  Son,  Benjamin  Hart, 
May  15,  1780. 

To  David  and  Mary  Bates.  Son,  Solomon,  June  27, 1759.  Son,  Samuel,  Aug. 
9,  1760.  Daughter,  Submit,  March  17,  1764.  Son,  John,  Oct.  14, 1770.  Daughter, 
Lydia,  Sept.  3,  1772,  all  born  at  Haddam,  Conn.  Son,  Ezra,  Oct.  8,  1774. 
Daughter,  Esther,  June  20,  1777.     Son,  Joseph,  Dec.  23,  1781. 

To  John  and  Hannah  Eilborn.     Son,  John,  Feb.  2,  1772. 

To  Oliver  and  Mahitable  Ellsworth.  Daughter,  Olive,  Aug.  24,  1767. 
Daughter,  Susannah,  Aug.  1,  1769.  Son,  Lemuel,  Aug.  1,  1770.  Son,  Chan- 
cey,  Oct.  27,  1772.  Son,  William,  July  14,  1774.  Son,  William,  ye  2d,  May  1, 
1778.  Sons,  Orrin  and  Warren,  Jan.  29,  1780.  Son,  Orrin,  ye  2d,  Nov.  11, 
1782.     Daughter,  Susannah,  ye  2d,  April  9, 1783. 

To  John  and  Phebe  Hitchcock.  Son,  Elisha,  Jan.  1,  1775.  Daughter,  Phebe, 
Feb.  5,  1783.  Son,  Lemuel,  May  19,  1776.  Son,  Samuel,  Dec.  26,  1784.  Son, 
Elisha,  Jan.  21,  1778.  Son,  Ellemuel,  Nov.  14, 1779.  Son,  John,  April  80, 1781. 
Son,  Zenus,  May  11,  1786.     David,  May  18,  1788. 

To  John  and  Rebekia  Sprague.  Son,  John  Chandler,  June  10,  1770.  Daughter, 
Susanna,  April  4,  1772.     Son,  Isaac,  April  9,  1776. 

To  Ichabod  and  Rebeckah  Hitchcock.  Son,  Samuel,  Sept.  30,  1774.  Daughter, 
Hannah,  April  6,  1776.  Daughter,  Hannah,  June  18,  1778.  Son,  Samuel,  June 
2,  1780.  Son,  Lyman,  Feb.  21,  1782.  Son,  Ransom,  May  16,  1784.  Son,  Amos, 
Nov.  2,  1786.  Daughter,  Rebeckah,  Nov.  27,  1788.  Daughter,  Esther,  Oct.  11, 
1791. 

To  Ezra  and  Susanah  Jones.  Daughter,  Elizabeth,  Feb.  2,  1773.  Son,  Ezra, 
March  23,  1775.  Son,  Jenison,  Jan.  1,  1777.  Son,  Matthias  Stone,  April  12, 
1778.     Son,  Joel,  Dec.  15,  1779. 


HISTORY   OF    CLARBMONT.  319 

To  Ezra  and  Esther  Jones.  Daughter,  Caroline,  April  27, 1782.  Son,  Nathan- 
iel, July  4,  1783.  Son,  Eice,  Oct.  28,  1784.  Son,  George  Augustus,  March  16, 
1786.  Son,  Henry,  Jan.  8,  1788.  Daughter,  Esther,  March  4, 1790.  Daughter, 
Fanny,  April  3,  1792. 

To  Josiah  and  Abigail  Stevens.  Daughter,  Abigail,  July  14, 1776.  Daughter, 
Abigail,  July  28,  1778.  Son,  William,  June  5,  1781.  Daughter.  Ruth,  Oct.  16, 
1782.     Son,  Josiah,  Sept.  9,  1784.    Daughter,  Ruth,  July  18,  1787. 

To  Josiah  aud  Mitilda  Stevens.  Daughter,  Mitilda,  June  28,  1791.  Son, 
Alfred,  June  9,  1793.  Son,  Godfrey,  Sept.  10,  1796.  Son,  Alvah,  Dec.  12, 1798. 
Son,  Edwin,  Nov.  24, 1800. 

To  Abner  and  Eunice  Matthews.  Daughter,  Eunice,  Jan.  25, 1776.  Daughter, 
Cloe,  Dec.  8,  1778.  Daughter,  Lois  Ellis,  April  23,  1781.  Son,  Dana,  Sept.  6, 
1783. 

To  Benjamin  and  Polly  Alden.  Daughter,  Polly,  Aug.  23,  1779.  Son,  Adam, 
Nov.,  1781.  Daughter,  Malinda,  April  8,  1787.  Son,  Henry,  Nov.  8,  1789. 
Daughter,  Scheherazade,  Feb.  22,  1792.  Daughter,  Atalanta,  April  6,  1794. 
Daughter,  Dinah,  Aug.  20,  1796. 

To  Deac.  David  and  Mary  Bates.  Son,  Ezra,  Oct.  18,  1774.  Daughter, 
Esther,  June  20,  1777.    Son,  Joseph,  Dec.  23,  1781. 

To  Ebenezer  and  Phebe  Rice.  Daughter,  Elizabeth,  Oct.  17,  1767.  Son,  Jo- 
seph, Oct.  25,  1769.  Son,  Samuel,  Feb.  25, 1771.  Son,  Ebenezer,  Oct.  22, 1772. 
Son,  Reuben,  Dec.  5,  1774.  Son,  Stephen,  May  24,  1777.  Daughter,  Phebe, 
March  13,  1779. 

To  Rev.  Augustine  and  Eunice  Hibbard.     Son,  Horace  Gates,  Oct.  14,  1777. 

To  John  Goss.     Son,  Alpheus,  April  25,  1771. 

To  John  and  Hannah  Goss.  Son,  John,  April  8,  1773.  Son,  Asa,  Aug.  14, 
1774.  Son,  Ziba,  May  5,  1776.  Daughter,  Sally,  July  13,  1778.  Son,  Oliver, 
April  25,  1780.  Daughter,  Betsey,  Aug.  12, 1782.  Son,  Charles,  Aug.  22,  1784. 
Son,  Ebenezer,  July  4,  1786.  Daughter,  Fanna,  April  16,  1788.  Son,  Martin, 
March  4,  1790.     Son,  Cyrus,  April  1,  1792. 

To  Amos  and  Lydia  Snow.    Daughter,  Molly,  Aug.  16,  1776. 

To  Henry  and  Martha  Stevens.     Son,  Augustine,  Dec.  1, 1777. 

To  James  and  Mary  Goodwin.    Daughter,  Sarah,  Jan  29,  1776. 

To  Timothy  and  Eunice  Dustin.    Son,  David,  May  29,  1776. 

To  Ebenezer  and  Mary  Judd.     Son,  Amos,  Sept.  16,  1755. 

To  Doct.  Thomas  and  Sarah  Sterne.  Daughter,  Nabby,  Dec.  23,  1771. 
Daughter,  Fanny,  April  13,  1772.  Son,  Thomas,  May  30, 1774.  Daughter,  Polly, 
May  5,  1779.  Daughter,  Eunice,  July  8,  1781.  Son,  William,  Feb.  1,  1784. 
Daughter,  Betsey,  Jan  2,  1786. 

To  Joseph  and  Else  York.    Daughter,  Esther,  Nov.  21,  1779. 

To  Eleazer  and  Esther  Clark.    Son,  Nov.  13,  1774. 

To  Joseph  and  Thankful  Hubbard.    Daughter,  Nancy  Malinda,  March  9,  1777. 


320  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

To  Timothy  and  Sarah  Grannis.  Son,  Timothy,  June  30,  1772.  Daughter, 
Abigail,  July  20,  1774.  Son,  Clement,  May  6,  1777.  Daughter,  Margaret, 
June  16,  1778.     Son,  Cyrus,  April  26,  1783.    Son,  John,  June  24,  1789. 

To  Timothy  and  Sarah  Nigh  Grannis.  Son,  David,  Nov.  17,  1792.  Son,  Sid- 
ney, June  2,  1795.     Son,  Evander,  Aug.  31,  1796. 

To  Doct.  James  and  Lucretia  Steel.  Daughter,  Libbie,  April  12,  1777.  Son, 
James,  June  23,  1781.  Son,  Josiah  Dibbell,  March  30,  1783.  Son,  Samuel  Hol- 
ister,  March  26,  1785. 

To  Patrick  and  Abigal  Field.  Daughter,  Freedom,  Deo.  19, 1778.  Son,  David, 
Jan.  28,  1781. 

To  Ebenezer  and  Mary  Conant.    Daughter,  Millessent,  Dec.  17,  1779. 

To  Keziah  Hawley.    Son,  Asa,  Sept.  11,  1788. 

To  Eichard  and  Coziah  Hawley.     Daughter,  Esther,  Dec.  14,  1779. 

To  Oliver  and  Elizabeth  Cook.  Son,  Oliver,  March  8,  1780.  Daughter,  Nancy 
Love,  Dec.  14,  1781. 

To  Gideon  and  Mary  Ellis.  Son,  Calvin,  April  10,  1782.  Son,  Luther,  Sept. 
13,  1784.     Daughter,  Sarah,  June  1,  1787. 

To  Cotton  and  Olive  Dickinson.    Daughter,  Fanny,  Sept.  27,  1780. 

To  Joseph,  Jr.,  and  Elsa  York.     Son,  Samuel  Jamison,  April  11,  1782. 

To  William  and  Hepzibath  Osgood.  Son,  Solomon  Washington,  Aug.  27, 
1776.  Daughter,  Hepzibath,  March  18,  1779.  Son,  John,  April  18,  1781.  Son, 
Samson,  July  29,  1783.     Daughter,  Anne,  March  11,  1786. 

To  Capt.  George  and  Thankful  Hubbard.  Son,  Ahira,  Oct.  13,  1779.  Daughter, 
Parmela,  April  13,  1781. 

To  Capt.  Reuben  and  Lydia  Petty.  Daughter,  Keziah,  April  30,  1780. 
Daughter,  Roxane,  July  21,  1782.     Daughter,  Fanny,  Oct.  7,  1784. 

To  Jonathan  and  Keziah  Holmes.  Daughter,  Philana,  March  30,  1782. 
Daughter,  Molla,  Aug.  28,  1784. 

To  Oliver  and  Hannah  Tuttle.     Daughter,  Prudence,  Sept.  8,  1785. 

To  James  and  Esther  Alden.  Daughter,  Esther,  Jan.  5,  1778.  Son,  Joseph, 
Nov.  21,  1779.  Daughter,  Esther,  March  19,  1781.  Son,  Chester,  Aug.  31,  1782. 
Daughter,  Cynthia,  Aug.  10,  1784.  Daughter,  Sophia,  Aug.  10,  1786.  Daughter, 
Clementina,  Nov.  28,  1788.    Daughter,  Elvira,  Oct.  31,  1790. 

To  Jonathan  and  Elizabeth  Parker.  Daughter,  Hannah,  Feb.  1,  1775. 
Daughter,  Elizabeth,  Dec.  28,  1777.  Son,  Jonathan,  Jan.  4,  1780.  Son.  Isaac, 
July  9, 1781. 

To  Ephraim  and  Comfort  French.  Daughter,  Rebecca,  June,  1776.  Daughter, 
Hannah,  June,  1778.  Daughter,  Experience,  May  20,  1780.  Son,  Isaac,  July 
25,  1782. 

To  Solomon  and  Hannah  Bates.  Daughter,  Bathsheba,  Oct.  2,  1781.  Son, 
Levy,  April  26,  1783.    Son,  Amos,  Sept.,  1784.     Son,  Levy,  Sept.  12,  1787. 

To  Asa,  Jr.,  and  Mitte  Leet.    Daughter,  Polly,  March  27,  1790. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  321 

To  Amasa  and  Achsa  Andrews.  Son,  Luman,  Jan.  22, 1781.  Son,  Amos,  Dec. 
29,  1782.    Daughter,  Irena,  Nov.  21,  1784.    Son,  Amos  Butler,  Sept.  13,  1788. 

To  Nehemiah  and  JIary  Rice.  Son,  Bela,  Jan.  10,  1778.  Son,  Benjamin, 
Nov.  28,  1780.  Son,  Nehemiah,  Oct.  28,  1781.  Daughter,  Maryalma,  Nov.  4, 
1783.    Daughter,  Mary,  Oct.  9,  1785.    Daughter,  Almay,  Dec.  8,  1787. 

To  Dea.  Matthias  and  Susana  Stone.  Son,  John,  Jan.  15, 1775.  Son,  Joseph, 
July  1,  1777. 

To  Christopher  and  Freelove  Erskine.  Daughter,  Rebeckah,  April  23,  1788. 
Daughter,  Content,  May  23,  1789.  Daughter,  Celia,  Sept.  1,  1791.  Daughter, 
Catharine,  Dec.  3,  1793.    Son,  Christopher,  Nov.  13,  1795. 

To  David  and  Hannah  Stedman.  Daughter,  Polly,  May  13,  1786.  Son, 
Fisher,  Sept.  13,  1788.     Son,  John,  Nov.  2,  1790. 

To  Moody  and  Alice  Dustin.     Daughter,  Malinda,  Dec.  15,  1788. 

To  Ebenezer  and  Matilda  Brewer.     Son,  Ebenezei-,  Sept.  13,  1785. 

To  Sarah  Thornton.  Daughter,  Sarah  Norton,  Nov.  11,  1779.  Daughter, 
Lovice  Taylor,  Nov.  2,  1781. 

To  Ambrose  and  Anne  C.  Cossit.  Daughter,  Anne  Catharine,  May  5,  1779. 
Daughter,  Mary  Alma,  Feb.  26,  1781.  Daughter,  Betsey  Ruth,  April  21,  1783. 
Son,  Ambrose,  Aug.  28,  1785.  Son,  Samuel  Cole,  Feb.  13,  1788.  Son, 
Frainsway  Ranna,  April  24,  1790.     Daughter,  Phebe  Levina,  May  2,  1793. 

To  Ephraim  and  Sarah  Page.  Daughter,  Rowena,  Nov.  7,  1783.  Daughter, 
Clarisa,  Dec.  6,  1787.  Son,  Joseph  Hawking,  Aug.  10,  1790.  Son,  Phelon, 
Nov.  1,  1792. 

To  Sanford  and  Elizabeth  Kingsbury.     Son,  July  31,  1782. 

To  Nathaniel  and  Rachel  Goss.  Daughter,  Susanah,  Nov.  19. 1777.  Son,  Na- 
thaniel, Feb.  27,  1780.  Son,  Joel,  Jan.  30,  1782.  Daughter,  Rowena,  Feb.  11, 
1784.  Daughter,  Polly,  Dec.  6, 1787.  Daughter,  Orenea,  Jan.  18,  1790.  Daughter, 
Lucinda,  July  17,  1794.     Daughter,  Matilda,  Aug.  23,  1795. 

To  Amos  and  Elizabeth  Conant.  Daughter,  Betsey,  May  14,  1778.  Son, 
Amos,  Jan.  9,  1780.  Son,  Samuel,  March  8,  1781.  Daughter,  Betsey,  Dec.  12, 
1782.  Son,  Ebenezer,  May  20,  1785.  Son,  Charles,  Sept.  30,  1787.  Daughter, 
Cynthia,  March  21,  1790.  Son,  Ezra,  Oct.  16,  1792.  Son,  Ralph,  Sept.  29, 1794. 
Daughter,  Rosan  Sharlotte,  Feb.  4, 1797. 

To  Peter  and  Deliverance  Davis.  Son,  Peter,  July  2,  1778.  Son,  Ebenezer, 
June  13,  1780.  Son,  Ebenezer,  June  7, 1782.  Son,  Jonathan  Goss,  Dec.  9, 1783. 
Daughter,  Deliverance,  Nov.  8,  1785.  Son,  Peter,  June  24,  1787.  Son,  Elijah, 
March  21, 1790.  Daughter,  Mary,  Feb.  23, 1792.  Son,  Solomon,  June  10, 1793. 
Son,  Abel,  Aug.  11,  1795. 

To  Isaac  and  Mamre  Cleveland.  Son,  Isaac,  Sept.  23,  1780.  Son,  Harvey, 
Aug.  20,  1782.  Daughter,  Sarah,  Sept.  9,  1784.  Daughter,  Mamre,  May  31, 
1786.  Daughter,  Irena,  Sept.  19,  1788.  Son,  Decastro,  July  3,  1790.  Daughter, 
Nancy,  Aug.  19,  1793. 


322  HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT. 

To  John  and  E  izabeth  Kibling.  Daughter,  Sarah,  March  1,  1785.  Daughter, 
Hannah,  April  11,  1788.  Son,  Fisher,  Feb.  20,  1790.  Daughter,  Betsey,  June 
15,  1792.     Daughter,  Polly,  Jan.  15,  1795. 

To  Joel  and  Hannah  Eoys.  Son,  Joel  Gardiner,  June  25,  1781.  Daughter, 
Fanny,  Dec.  4,  1782. 

To  Timothy  and  Sarah  Cole.  Son,  Nehemiah,  Oct.  12,  1784.  Daughter, 
Ammendlees,  Nov.  23,  1785. 

To  Adam  R.  and  Taphu  Leet.  Son,  Ezra,  March  13,  1783.  Son,  Reuben, 
April  22,  1785.  Daughter,  Elizabeth,  July  19,  1789.  Daughter,  Cloe,  May  5, 
1791.     Son,  Adam  Rayner,  Jr.,  May  16,  1794.      Son,  David  Migs,  May  6,  1800. 

To  Samuel  and  Anna  Atkins.  Son,  Thomas  Jones,  Dec.  25,  1784.  Son,  Guy 
Jarome,  May  2,  1786.  Son,  John  Albro,  Jan.  12, 1788.  Daughter,  Harriet  Pau- 
lina, July  6,  1789.  Son,  Israel  Gardnier,  June  22,  1791.  Son,  Ralph  Cada, 
Feb.  22,  1793.     Daughter,  Lucia  Olive,  Feb.  9,  1795. 

To  Thomas  and  Sarah  Dustin.  Daughter,  Sarah,  Jan.  6,  1786.  Daughter 
Phylindia,  April  20,  1785.  Daughter,  Sarah,  March  2,  1787.  Daughter,  Han- 
nah, May  5,  1789.     Son,  Abel,  March  10,  1792.     Son,  Thomas,  April  10,  1794. 

To  Jonathan  and  Hannah  Bradley.  Daughter,  Cinthia,  Oct.  7,  1790.  Son, 
Ranna,  June  2,  1793. 

To  Phinehas  and  Deborah  Parker.  Son,  Franklin,  May  14, 1790.  Son,  War- 
ren, Nov.  8,  1791.     Daughter,  Malinda,  Dec.  9,  1792. 

To  Timothy  and  Abigail  Fisher.     Daughter,  Abigail,  Jan.  17,  1790. 

To  Benj'n  and  Policy  Healy.  Daughter,  Polley,  Oct.  20,  1790.  Daughter, 
Hitty,  May  30,  1792.  Daughter,  Nancy,  Feb.  17,  1794.  Daughter,  Reukiah, 
Oct.  5,  1795. 

To  Luther  and  Sarah  Ashley.  Son,  Robert,  Oct.  21,  1785.  Daughter,  Clowry 
Dewlittle,  March  12,  1788.  Son,  Alphua,  Nov.  19,  1789.  Son,  George,  Oct.  6, 
1791. 

To  Jacob  and  Abigail  Eaimond.  Daughter,  Betsey  Lawrence,  Nov.  8,  1790. 
Daughter,  Abigail  King,  Sept.  11,  1792. 

To  Benjamin  and  Clowe  Granda.  Daughter,  Cinthia,  Oct.  11,  1791.  Son, 
Alpha,  Jan.  29,  1793.  Daughter,  Fanny,  Sept.  3,  1794.  Daughter,  Chloe  Coy, 
Sept.  7,  1796. 

To  Jonathan,  Jun'r,  and  Polly  Shaw.    3d  Son,  Jonathan,  May  1,  1791. 

To  Micah  and  Sally  Morse.    Daughter,  Clarissa,  l)ec.  22,  1792. 

To  Roswell  and  Rachel  Stevens.  Son,  Harris,  May  1,  1792.  Son,  Solon, 
Feb.  12,  1794. 

To  Demon  and  Lydia  Rice.     Daughter,  Betsey,  March  16,  1793. 

To  Francis  and  Mary  Chase.  Daughter,  Mariah,  May  16,  1793.  Son,  Elijah, 
Oct.  3,  1794.     Daughter,  Betsey,  Sept.  23,  1796. 

To  Waldo  and  Mary  Field.  Daughter,  Polly,  July  31,  1793.  Son,  Waldo 
Hannebel,  Aug.  10,  1797. 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  323 

To  Petei-  and  Keziah  Wakefield.    Son,  Peter,  Sept.  24,  179i. 

To  Bill  and  Esther  Barnes.  Daughter,  Eunice  Spanlding,  Sept.  11,  1796. 
Son,  Bill  Andrews,  March  12,  1798.     Son,  Ira  Norton,  April  28,  1800. 

To  Ezekiel  and  Elizabeth  Leet.    Son,  Levi,  Sept.  2,  1796. 

To  Ichabod  and  Mahitabel  Dodge.  Daughter,  Prudence,  Sept.  5,  1795.  Son, 
Isaac,  June  IS,  1797. 

To  Demon  and  Lydia  Roys.  Daughter,  Sally,  March  26,  1797.  Daughter, 
Esther  Bunnel,  Oct.  23,  1798. 

To  Wilia  and  Betsey  Lewis.    Son,  Frederick  Steward,  Dec.  11, 1797. 

To  Asa  and  Mary  Jones.    Daughter,  Sally,  July  13,  1797. 

To  Doct.  Thomas  and  his  wife.    Daughter,  Almanda,  Oct.  6,  1798. 

To  Royal  and  Sabina  Shaw.    Son, .Hartford  Dennis,  March  26,  1799. 

To  Benjamin  and  Susannah  Grandy.  Daughter,  Cynthia,  Oct.  3,  1800. 
Daughter,  Jan.  13,  1802. 

To  John  and  Hannah  Temple.    Son,  Charles  William  Henry,  Aug.  2,  1801. 

DEATHS,    PRIOR  TO   1797. 

Hannah,  daughter  of  Capt.  Benj.  and  Prudence  Sumner,  Sept.  22,  1772. 
Son,  David  Hubbard,  April  6,  1774. 

Mary,  daughter  of  Dea.  Matthias  and  Susana  Stone,  Dec.  7,  1773.  Susana, 
wife  of  Matthias  Stone,  March  6,  1789. 

Ezra,  son  of  David  and  Mary  Bates,  Jan.  7,  1775. 

Lemuel,  son  of  John  and  Phebe  Hitchcock,  Jan.  9,  1776. 

Anna,  daughter  of  Thomas  and  Sarah  Cotton,  July  25,  1777. 

Reuben,  son  of  Ebenezer  and  Phebe  Rice,  Aug.  3,  1777.  Son,  Samuel, 
burned  to  death  in  a  house,  Jan.  26,  1783. 

Abigail,  daughter  of  Josiah  and  Abigail  Stevens,  Sept.  28,  1777.  Son,  Wil- 
liam, June  5,  1781.  Daughter,  Ruth,  Nov.  21,  1782.  Son,  Alfred,  Aug.  10, 
1796.    Abigail,  wife  of  Josiah  Stevens,  April  29,  1790. 

David,  son  of  Lieut.  Joseph  and  Elizabeth  Ives,  July  31,  1777. 

Lemuel  Hitchcock,  Aug.  6,  1777. 

Samuel,  son  of  Ichabod  and  Rebekah  Hitchcock,  July  26,  1777.  Daughter, 
Hannah,  Aug.  3,  1777.    Son,  Lyman,  Feb.  17,  1787. 

Esther,  daughter  of  James  and  Esther  Alden,  Oct.  20,  1779. 

Susanah,  wife  of  Ezra  Jones,  March  5,  1780.  Joel,  son  of  Ezra  and  Susanah 
Jones,  1780.  George  Augustus,  son  of  Ezra  and  Esther  Jones,  Aug.  4,  1790. 
Daughter,  Esther,  Oct.  4,  1791. 

Betsey,  daughter  of  Amos  and  Elizabeth  Conant,  March  27,  1780, 

Ebenezer,  son  of  Ebenezer  and  Mary  Judd,  Oct.  5,  1780. 

Ebenezer,  son  of  Peter  and  Deliverance  Davis,  March  4,  1782.  Son,  Peter, 
July  11,  1784.     Son,  Peter,  Oct.  9,  1793. 


324  HISTOEY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

Jonathan  Pine  Holmes,  Sept.  1.  1784. 

Maryalma,  daughter  of  Nehemiah  and  Mary  Rice,  Sept.  2,  1784. 

Levy,  son  of  Solomon  and  Hannah  Bates,  April  25,  1785. 

Hannah,  wife  of  Oliver  Tuttle,  Sept.  12,  1785. 

Luther,  son  of  Grideon  and  Mary  Ellis,  April  27,  1786. 

Rebeckah,  daughter  of  Christopher  and  Freelove  Erskine,  April  24,  1788. 
Daughter,  Celia,  Feb.  11,  1794. 

Clement,  son  of  Timothy  and  Sarah  Grannis,  July  30,  1789.  Sarah,  wife  of 
Timothy  Grannis,  June  25,  1789. 

Decastro,  son  of  Isaac  and  Mamre  Cleveland,  Oct.  8,  1790. 

John  Albro,  Son  of  Samuel  and  Anna  Atkins,  Jan.  13,  1792. 

Warren,  son  of  Phinehas  and  Deborah  Parker,  Feb.  11,  1792. 

Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Jonathan  and  Hannah  Bradley,  May  25,  1793. 

Eunice,  wife  of  Bill  Barnes,  July  27,  1793. 

Hitty,  daughter  of  Benj.  and  Polly  Swett,  Dec.  24,  1793. 

Cynthia,  daughter  of  Benjamin  and  Chloe  Grandy,  Sept.  8,  1796.  Chloe, 
wife  of  Benjamin  Grandy. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

LICENSED    LIQUOR    SELLERS   AND   TAVERN    KEEPERS  —  TEMPERANCE. 

The  following  from  the  town  records  shows  not  only  the  num- 
ber of  liquor  sellers  necessary  to  supply  the  needs  of  the  people, 
and  the  number  of  taverns,  or  places  of  entertainment  for  man 
and  beast,  required,  but  the  manner  of  doing  such  things  an 
hundred  years  ago.  Liquor  sellers  were  permitted  to  sell  by  the 
pint,  quart,  or  larger  quantity,  but  not  to  mix  liquors  or  sell  by 
the  glass,  unless  especially  licensed  to  do  so. 

liquor  sellers . 

State  of  New  Hampshire.    Cheshire  SS. 

To  Josiah   Stevens,  Samuel  Mann,  &  John  W.  Russell  of   Claremont  in  the 

County  of  Cheshire  and  State  of  New  Hampshire,  Gentlemen : 

We  reposing  especial  trust  and  confidence  in  your  fidelity  and  abilities  have 
thought  fit  to  appoint  each  of  you  Retailers  of  Spirituous  Liquors  and  by  these 
presents  do  give  and  grant  to  each  of  you  our  full  Liberty  and  License  to  retail 
Spirituous  Liquors  at  each  of  your  Several  Stores  or  dwelling  houses  within  the 
limits  of  Claremont  aforesaid  for  the  term  of  one  year  from  the  date  here  of 
agreeable  to  the  act  of  the  General  Court  of  the  State  of  New  Hampshire  in 
that  case  made  and  provided. 

Given  under  our  hand  and  Seal  at  Claremont  aforesaid  the  eighth  day  of 
October  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  ninety-two. 

Recorded  Oct.  8th,  A.  D.  1792. 

Ezra  Jones, 

Gideon  Handerson,  Selectmen. 

On  December  8,  1794,  the  selectmen  gave  Jacob  Parker  liberty 
"  to  retail  those  Liquors  that  he  shall  distil  in  his  still  in  Clare- 
mont till  the  second  tuesday  of  September  next." 


326  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

Claremont,  Nov.  1st,  1802. 
We  the  subscribers,  Selectmen  of  Claremont  do  hereby  license  John  Tappan 
to  mix  spirituous  liquors  in  his  store  on   publick  days  during  the  space  of  one 
year  from  this  first  day  of  November,  1802. 

John  Strobridge, 


David  Dexter, 


Selectmen. 


Another  form  of  license. 


Claremont,   Sept.  5th,  1803. 
We  the  subscribers  hereby  license   S.  &  G.  Fiske  to  retail  Spirituous  liquors 
at  their  Store  in  Claremont,  also  to  mix  and  sell   liquors  at  said  store  for  one 
year  from  the  date  hereof. 

Ezra  Jones,  ) 

David  Dexter,       V  Selectmen. 
Wm.  Breck,  ) 

Entered,  Sept  6th,  1803. 

In  1796  sellers  of  spirituous  liquors  derived  their  licenses  from 
the  United  States  Collector  of  the  Eevenue,  on  the  recommend- 
ation of  the  selectmen  of  the  town.  The  following  is  one  of 
many  of  those  recommendations : 

This   may  certify  that    Gawen  Arma   &   Ambrose  Cossit   are   in  our  opinion 
proper  persons  for  retailers  of  Spirituous  liquors  and  that  there  is  need  of  one 
in  the  place  where  they  live. 
Claremont,  Sept.  2d,  1796. 

Ezra  Jones,  \ 

B.  Ellis,  i-  Selectmen. 

Thomas  Warner,  J 
To  Samuel  Crosby, 

Collector  of  the  Revenue, 
Charlestown. 

That  year,  in  addition  to  the  above-named  Gawen  Arma  and 
Ambrose  Cossit,  James  Ealston,  Elijah  Dunbar,  Josiah  Stevens, 
and  Samuel  Fiske  were  recommended  by  the  selectmen  as  suit- 
able persons  to  retail  spirituous  liquors,  and  gave  it  as  their 
opinion  that  there  was  need  of  one  in  the  place  where  each 
lived. 


HISTORY    OF   CLAKBMONT.  327 

TAVERN  KEEPERS. 

A  tavern  keeper's  license  implied  the  right,  though  not  always 
expressed,  to  mix  and  sell  spirituous  liquors,  though  not  to  sell 
by  the  pint  or  larger  quantity : 

State  of  New  Hampshire — Cheshire  S.S. 

To  George  Cook,  Ebenezer  Rice,  William  Park,  Daniel  Chase,  Bill  Barnes, 
Gawen  Arma,  George  Hubbard,  Christopher  Erskine,  Stephen  Mann,  Sear- 
borough  J.  Stearns,  William  Strobridge,  all  of  Claremont  in  said  County, 

Greeting : 
We  reposing  special  trust  &  confidence  in  your  fidelity  &  ability  have  thought 
fit,  and  by  these  presents,  do  appoint  each  of  you  Tavern  Keepers,  and  do 
give  each  of  you  free  liberty  &  our  license  to  keep  Tavern  at  each  of  your 
places  of  abode  for  the  terra  of  one  year  from  the  date  here  of,  your  keeping 
such  public  houses  of  entertainment  as  the  law  in  such  cases  requires. 

Given  under  our  hands  at  Claremont  the  second  day  of  Sept'r  in  the  year  of 
our  Lord  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  ninety-six. 

Thomas  Warner   ") 

Ezra  Jones  (•  Selectmen. 

B.  Ellis  ) 

Thomas  Dustin  also  was  licensed  to  keep  tavern  the  same 
year.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  in  the  year  1796  there  were 
twelve  taverns  in  the  town  of  Claremont,  with  a  population  of 
about  sixteen  hundred  souls. 

Claremont,  Sept  10,  1798. 
This  may  certify  that  we  the  Subscribers  have  licensed  the  following  persons 
to  keep   Tavern  at  their  dwelling  houses  in  Claremont  for  one  year  from  the 
date,  viz:  Stephen  Dexter  J.  Scarboro  Sterne,   George  Hubbard,   Eben'r  Rice, 
Bill  Barnes,  Daniel  Chase,  Col.  Benjamin  Sumner,  Capt  John  Cook. 

Ezra  Jones 

Caleb  Baldwin  )■  Selectmen. 

James  Strobridge 

TAVERNS  and  HOTELS. 

AmoDg  the  taverns  or  hotels  in  the  period  from  1795  to  1845 
were  the 


328  HISTORY    OF   CLARBMONT. 

D.   CHASE'S   TAVEEK,   OK  SULLIVAN  HOUSE. 

This  house  was  built  by  Daniel  Chase  in  1794,  and  opened  to 
the  public  the  next  year.  Mr.  Chase  kept  it  until  his  death,  in 
November,  1840.  For  many  years  the  Masonic  fraternity  held 
their  regular  meetings  there.  Mr.  Chase  was  succeeded  by  his  son- 
in-law,  Amos  A.  Watson,  and  he  by  his  brother,  Ebenezer  "Watson. 
The  name  was  changed  from  D.  Chase's  Tavern  to  that  of  the 
Sullivan  House  in  April,  1841.  It  has  been  kept  by  George  E. 
Bingham,  the  "White  brothers,  Horace  A.  Perry,  Eli  C.  Marsh 
&  Son,  James  Leet,  Francis  Eafferty,  H.  C.  Fitch  &  Son,  and 
by  others  for  short  periods.  It  has  been  a  public  house  up  to 
the  present  time.     Frank  F.  Pitcher  is  the  proprietor. 

THE    BILL   BARNES   TAVERN. 

About  1790,  Bill  Barnes  built  the  large  two-story  house  on 
North  street,  known  as  the  Barnes  place,  and  kept  a  tavern 
many  years.  Near  the  present  junction  of  North  and  Spring 
streets  was  a  sign,  hung  to  a  tall  post,  on  which  was  painted  the 
picture  of  an  animal  supposed  to  be  a  lion,  and  an  inscription 
directing  the  way  to  "Bill  Barnes's  Tavern."  In  the  house  was 
a  large  hall  where  the  Free  Masons  held  their  regular  meetings 
for  a  time,  and  which  was  a  favorite  place  for  balls  and  dancing 
parties. 

THE  CUPOLA  HOUSE. 

This  house,  about  four  miles  from  the  village,  on  the  road  to 
"Windsor,  Vt.,  now  owned  by  Pomeroy  M.  R'ossiter,  was  kept  from 
the  early  days  of  the  settlement  of  the  town,  as  a  tavern,  by  Col. 
Benjamin  Sumner  and  later  by  Horace  Dean,  from  1833  until  1851. 
Being  on  the  direct  road  from  northeastern  Vermont  and  north- 
western New  Hampshire  to  Boston  and  other  important  markets, 
this  house  was  largely  patronized  by  travelers  and  teamsters, 
until  the  Sullivan  railroad  was  built. 


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HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  329 


THE  RALSTON  TAVEEN. 


In  1784  Alexander  Ralston  came  to  town  and  bought  several 
tracts  of  land  on  Town  hill,  including  what  has  been  known  for 
sixty  years  or  more  as  the  Michael  Lovell  farm,  now  owned  by  Dr. 
0.  B.  Way.  Ou  this  place  he  built  a  large  two-story  house  and 
kept  it  as  a  tavern,  and  it  was  widely  known  while  he  kept  it  and 
for  many  years  afterward  when  kept  by  others,  as  the  Ealston  Tav- 
ern. The  stages  to  and  from  Boston  stopped  at  this  house  regu- 
larly, and  it  was  a  favorite  stopping  place  for  teamsters. 


TREMONX  HOUSE. 


In  1800  Josiah  Stevens  built  the  hostelry  well  known  as  the 
Tremont  House  from  1823  until  it  was  destroyed  by  fire,  March 
20,  1879.  He  kept  it  until  his  death,  April  10,  1827,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  sons,  Josiah,  Jr.,  Godfrej',  Alvah,  and  Paran.  After 
a  few  years  the  latter  became  sole  proprietor  and  continued  to 
keep  the  house  until  1839,  when  he  sold  the  entire  property  to 
Aurelius  Dickinson,  who  owned  it  until  he  died,  November  3, 
1880.  Mr.  Dickinson  kept  the  house  at  different  intervals  while 
he  owned  it,  and  it  was  kept  by  his  son,  Henry  A.  Dickinson,  and 
by  others  at  different  periods.  At  the  time  of  its  destruction  F. 
H.  Gibson  &  Co.  were  the  lessees.  It  was  in  this  house  that  Paran 
Stevens  became  so  favorably  known  as  a  landlord  that  he  was 
called  to  the  management  of  some  of  the  best  hotels  in  Boston. 
Subsequently  he  became  manager  of  large  and  elegant  houses  in 
New  York,  Philadelphia,  and  Mobile,  and  was  well  known  as  a 
hotel  manager  all  over  this  country. 

THE   COOKE   TAVERN. 

In  1779  Capt.  John  Cooke  came  to  Claremont  and  bought  the 
tavern  stand  and  large  meadow  farm,  on  the  Connecticut  river 
road,  about  midway  between  the  village  and  Windsor,  Vt.,  for 
more  than  a  hundred  years  known  as  the  Cooke  farm,  now  owned 
by  Erastus  Reed.     The  tavern  house  was  on  the  west  side  of  the 

23 


330  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

highway,  nearly  opposite  the  mansion  on  the  place,  and  there  it 
stood,  for  many  of  its  last  years  uninhabited,  until  1858,  when  it 
was  taken  down.  It  was  kept  and  known  as  the  Cooke  Tavern 
until  the  death  of  Captain  Cooke,  February  8,  1810.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  two  sons,  George  and  Godfrey.  Under  their  man- 
agement this  house  had  an  excellent  reputation.  It  was  here  that 
Paran  Stevens,  a  grandson  of  Captain  Cooke,  is  said  to  have  re- 
ceived his  first  lessons  in  hotel  keeping  from  his  uncle,  Godfrey 
Cooke. 

LOWER  VILLAGE   HOTEL. 

For  nearly  fifteen  years  subsequent  to  1832,  there  was  a  hotel  of 
good  repute,  well  patronized,  at  the  lower  village,  just  west  of  the 
Freeman  &  O'Neil  Company's  shops,  known  by  the  names  of  those 
who  kept  it  from  time  to  time.  It  was  kept  for  several  years  each 
by  Josiah  Eichardson  and  J.  L.  Prescott,  and  afterward  by  William 
Bartlett,  Henry  W.  Galpin,  and  Thomas  Kirk.  The  buildings  were 
burned  about  1848,  while  Thomas  Kirk  was  proprietor. 

THE   MAYNARD  TAVERN. 

In  the  early  part  of  the  present  century,  Col.  Benjamin  Tyler 
built  for  a  homestead  the  large  two-story  house  at  "West  Claremout, 
which  was  afterward  kept  for  a  tavern  by  Austin  Tyler  and  b}' 
Daniel  F.  Maynard  for  many  years  prior  to  the  death  of  the  latter, 
which  occurred  August  25,  1865.  Before  the  Sullivan  railroad  was 
built  this  house  was  largely  patronized  by  teamsters  from  northern 
Vermont  and  other  travelers.  It  was  a  stopping  place  for  stages 
up  and  down  Connecticut  river,  and  in  the  hall  were  held  frequent 
balls,  political  meetings,  and  other  gatherings. 

JUNCTION   HOUSE. 

Soon  after  the  Sullivan  railroad  was  built  a  small  public  house 
was  opened  near  Claremont  station,  and  it  has  been  kept  at  inter- 
vals by  many  different  parties  since  then.  After  the  Concord  and 
Claremont  railroad  was  built  it  was  named  the  Junction  House. 


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HISTORY   OP    OLAREMONT.  331 

BELMONT  HOUSE. 

In  1872  Joel  M.  Heywood  erected  on  the  east  side  of  Pleasant 
street  a  large  ttree-story  brick  block  of  stores,  and  the  two  upper 
stories  were  made  into  a  hotel,  which  he  named  the  Belmont 
House.  It  has  since  then  been  leased  by  several  different  parties, 
and  is  now  kept  by  Henry  C.  Fitch  &  Son.  Since  the  death  of 
Joel  M.  Heywood  the  property  has  been  owned  by  his  son,  Edwin 
B.  Heywood. 

ASCUTNET  VIEW  HOUSE. 

In  1891  Ira  F.  Chandler  built  at  the  corner  of  Main  and  Union 
streets,  lower  village,  a  three-story  block,  containing  on  the  ground 
floor  three  stores,  and  a  hotel  in  the  second  and  third  stories.  The 
hotel  part  was  leased  to  Albion  R  Campbell,  who  still  keeps  it. 

HOTEL  CLAEEMONT. 

A  syndicate  purchased  a  portion  of  the  land  on  which  the 
burned  Tremont  House  buildings  stood,  for  a  site  for  such  a  hotel 
as  the  size  of  the  town  and  the  requirements  of  the  traveling  pub- 
lic seemed  to  demand.  They  erected  a  building  with  brick  walls, 
three  stories  high,  containing  on  the  ground  floor  a  spacious  office, 
dining  room  and  kitchen,  six  stores,  and  postoffice ;  the  two  upper 
stories  were  made  into  large  parlors,  spacious  halls,  and  suites  of 
sleeping  apartments,  with  all  the  conveniences  of  a  modern  first- 
class  hotel.  .  The  hotel  and  all  the  stores  are  heated  by  one  steam 
apparatus.  The  building  was  completed  and  all  the  stores  and 
postoffice  were  [occupied  early  in  June,  1892,  and  on  the  twenty- 
seventh  of  that  month  Fred  C.  Camp,  from  Boston,  lessee,  opened 
Hotel  Claremont  for  the  reception  of  guests.  This  building,  with 
site  and  postoffice,  and  hotel  furnishings  complete,  cost  about  nine- 
ty-five thousand  dollars.  It  is  a  credit  to  the  town  and  a  comfort 
and  convenience  to  the  traveling  public. 


CHAPTER   XXm. 

LAWYERS   AND    PHYSICIANS. 

Of  the  followiug  named  lawyers,  alphabetically  arranged,  who 
have  practiced  in  Claremont,  notice  is  made  of  each  in  the  bio- 
graphical chapter : 

William  H.  H.  Allen.  Bnssell  Jarvis. 

Edward  D.  Baker.  John  Kimball. 

James  H.  Bingham.  Thomas  Leland. 

Dudley  T.  Chase.  Milon  C.  McClure. 

Burt  Chellis.  Ralph  Metcalf . 

Ira  Colby.  Hosea  W.  Parker. 

Caleb  Ellis.  Alpheus  F.  Snow. 

Philander  C.  Freeman.  John  W.  Tappan. 

Samuel  W.  Fuller.  George  Ticknor. 

Alexander  Gardiner.  George  B.  Upham. 

James  M.  Gates.  Jabez  Upham. 

Hermon  Holt.  Edwin, Vaughan, 

Asa  Helton.  Alonzo  B.  Williamson. 

Alphabetically  arranged  are  brief  records  of  other  lawyers,  with 
dates,  as  nearly  as  practicable,  when  they  were  in  town : 

Alfred  T.  Batchelder,  studied  law  with  Ira  Colby;  was  admitted  to  Sullivan 
county  bar;  partner  of  Mr.  Colby  from  1875  to  1879,  and  then  removed  to 
Keene,  where  he  has  since  resided. 

Frank  H.  Brown,  read  law  with  William  H.  H.  Allen;  graduated  at  Boston 
University  Law  School ;  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  Boston ;  practiced  for  a 
time  at  Concord ;  lives  in  Claremont,  but  does  not  practice. 

Edmund  Burke,  was  admitted  to  the  New  Hampshire  bar  in  1830 ;  in  practice 
at  Whitefield;  in  Claremont  in  1833 and  1834;  removed  to  Newport;  member  of 
congress  three  terms,  from  1839  to  1845;  commissioner  of  patents  from  1845  to 
1849,  and  distinguished  as  a  political  writer.  He  died  at  Newport,  Jan.  25, 
1882. 


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HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  333 

Arthur  Chase,  was  admitted  to  Sullivan  county  bar  in  1861 ;  practiced  a  few 
years  and  then  turned  his  attention  to  journalism  and  agriculture.  He  died 
Nov.  20,  1888. 

George  Davis,  was  in  practice  in  Claremont  a  few  months  in  1877. 

Charles  Leland,  son  of  Thomas  Leland,  studied  law  with  his  father,  and  they 
were  in  partnership  a  few  years.    He  died  March  28,  1884. 

Hubbard  Newton,  was  in  practice  in  town  in  1841. 

Charles  Parkhurst,  studied  law  with  Hosea  W.  Parker;  was  admitted  to  Sul- 
livan county  bar  in  1862;  practiced  here  a  few  years;  is  now  a  doctor  of  di- 
vinity and  editor  of  Zion's  Herald,  Boston. 

John  J.  Prentiss,  was  in  practice  in  Claremont  at  different  times  from  1845  to 
1868 ;  was  member  of  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  and  speaker  of  the  house 
in  1855;  died  at  Chicago,  111.,  in  1890. 

Charles  L.  Putnam,  a  native  of  Chesterfield;  was  in  practice  in  Claremont 
from  1830  to  1840;  postmaster  of  Keene  four  years  ;  died  in  Worcester,  Mass., 
about  1887. 

Frank  T.  Vaughan,  studied  law  with  Ira  Colby;  was  admitted  to  the  New 
Hampshire  bar  in  1892 ;  in  practice  a  few  months  and  removed  to  Kansas  in  1893. 
He  is  a  son  of  the  late  Edwin  Vaughan. 

Edward  W.  Wooddell  was  in  practice  in  Claremont  from  about  1850  to  I860 ; 
tiled  in  Unity,  Oct.  20,  1889. 

PHYSICIANS. 

In  the  biographical  chapter  are  sketches  of  the  following  named 
physicians : 

Truman  Abell.  Albert  L.  Marden. 

Arthur  N.  Allen.  Josiah  Richards. 

Cyrus  E.  Baker.  Silas  H.  Sabine. 

Alvah  R.  Cummings.  Nathan  Smith. 

Winefred  M.  Dowlin.  William  Sumner. 

Leland  J.  Graves.  Clarence  W.  Tolles. 

James  P.  Holt.  Nathaniel  Tolles. 

Leonard  Jarvis.  Samuel  R.  Upham. 

Leonard  Jarvis,  2d.  Carl  A.  Volk. 

Samuel  G.  Jarvis.  Osmon  B.  Way. 

William  M.  Ladd.  Fred  C.  Wilkinson. 

BRIEF  RECORDS. 

Edward  F.  Barnes,  son  of  Obed  D.  Barnes,  was  in  practice  in  Claremont 
from  1879  until  his  death,  Aug.  28,  1883. 

Albert  Bartlett,  in  town  from  1835  to  1845 ;  lived  on  Central  street. 


334  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

George  AV.  Brooks,  son  of  the  late  Levi  Brooks,  in  practice  here  from  188S 
until  his  death,  about  1886. 

Enoch  F.  Colby,  in  town  from  1838  until  his  death,  in  1849 ;  lived  on  Central 
street. 

Sherman  Cooper,  in  town  from  1859  to  1867 ;  now  lives  in  Westfield,  N.  J. ; 
native  of  Croydon. 

C.  C.  Ellis,  in  town  from  1877  to  1885;  now  at  Somerville,  Mass. 

Thomas  Field,  in  town  in  1790. 

Bela  Fitch,  in  town  from  1810  until  his  death.  March  2,  1813. 

Andrew  J.  Flagg,  in  town  a  few  years  succeeding  1868. 

Mrs.  Fletcher,  in  town  about  1876. 

A.  A.  Gilbert,  in  town  in  1865. 

Robert  S.  Gleason,  came  to  town  about  1820;  in  practice  here  until  his  death, 
Oct.  28,  1868. 

Timothy  S.  Gleason,  came  to  town  with  his  brother.  Dr.  Robert,  about  1820,. 
and  was  in  practice  here  vintil  his  death,  April  6,  1843. 

Harvey  M.  Guild,  came  to  town  in  1887 ;  died  May  8,  1892. 

Charles  Haddock,  in  town  in  1850;  died  at  Beverly,  Mass.,  Oct.  10,  1889. 

E.  J.  Hall,  here  a  few  months  in  1886. 

James  Hall,  in  town  in  1822;  died  near  Baltimore,  Md.,  in  1888. 

Edward  F.  Houghton,  graduated  at  Hanover  Medical  College;  not  in  active 
practice. 

M.  G.  Houghton,  in  town  a  few  months  in  1863. 

Emery  G-  Judkins,  in  town  from  1864  to  1862 ;  died  at  Waitslield,  Vt. 

Thomas  B.  Kittredge,  in  town  from  about  1830  to  1848 ;  died  at  Keene,  about 
1883. 

Luke  Lincoln,  in  town  from  1810  to  1820. 

F.  L.  Mcintosh,  in  town  from  1885  to  1889 ;  now  at  Newton,  Mass. 

Abner  Meigs,  in  practice  here  more  than  twenty  years  succeeding  1773  ;  lived 
in  the  east  part  of  the  town. 

G.  M.  Morse,  in  town  from  1843  to  1846;  removed  to  Clinton,  Mass. 
T.  E.  Parker,  in  town  from  1887  to  1890 ;  now  lives  in  New  Jersey. 
Joseph  Petty,  in  town  from  1791  to  1796. 

M.  B.  Richards,  in  town  about  1879. 

Leonard  E.  Richardson,  in  town  in  1849 ;  removed  to  Stoddard,  and  thence  to 
Hartford,  Conn. 

George  D.  Roberts,  here  in  1885. 

Thomas  F.  Saxton,  in  town  from  1812  to  1822  ;  removed  to  Windsor,  Vt., 
where  he  died ;  lived  near  Union  church. 

S.  T.  Shaw,  in  town  in  1876. 

J.  S.  Spaulding,  in  town  from  1810  to  1840;  removed  to  New  York  state, 
where  he  died. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  835 

C.  C.  Slocum,  in  town  from  1853  to  1864;  went  West. 

William  H.  Smart,  Jr.,  in  town  from  1860  to  1863;  lives  in  Boston. 

•James  Steel,  in  town  a  few  years  succeeding  1776. 

William  C.  Squier,  in  town  from  about  1858  to  1865 ;  went  West,  where  he 
died  about  1890. 

Thomas  Sterne,  the  first  physician  settled  in  town;  here  from  1768,  living  on 
Town  hill,  until  his  death,  Nov.  21,  1816. 

Linus  Stevens,  in  town  a  few  years  succeeding  1814;  died  in  Michigan,  in 
1851.    He  was  a  son  of  Elihu  Stevens. 

A.  F.  Sumner,  in  town  in  1889 ;  now  in  practice  at  Concord. 

J.  H.  Thuriault,  in  town  in  1890. 

E.  Torrey,  in  town  from  1810  to  1815. 

Henry  Tucker,  in  town  from  1868  to  1874;  removed  to  Brattleboro,  Vt. ;  now 
living  at  Lakeport. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

PIKES  —  CASUALTIES  —  FRESHETS  —  LIGHTNING  —  TORNADO  —  EARTH- 
QUAKE —  MURDERS. 

Claremont  has  not  suffered  from  fires  to  the  extent  of  many 
other  places  of  similar  size.  Some  of  the  more  notable  confla- 
grations have  been  the  following : 

What  was  known  as  Union  Factory,  situated  on  the  Island  south 
of  the  Freeman  &  O'lSTeil  works,  principally  or  wholly  owned  by 
the  late  Nicholas  Farwell,  was  burned  November  13,  1841,  and 
has  not  been  rebuilt. 

In  April,  1853,  the  house  of  Arnold  Farr,  in  the  north  part 
of  the  town,  on  the  Red  "Water  brook  road,  in  the  absence  of 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Farr,  in  the  evening,  took  fire  and  was  burned 
down.  Their  three  children,  aged  from  seven  to  fourteen  years, 
perished  in  the  fiames. 

The  Meacham  factory,  on  the  site  now  occupied  by  the  Free- 
man &  O'Neil  works,  at  the  time  operated  by  William  Earl,  was 
burned  in  March,  1854. 

A  part  of  the  Eastman  tannery  buildings,  on  the  north  side  of 
Sugar  river,  were  destroyed  by  fire  January  22,  1871,  and  the 
balance  of  them  in  the  same  way,  October  6,  1890.  This  property 
was  owned  by  the  widow  of  Charles  IT.  Eastman. 

The  Sugar  River  Paper  Mill  buildings  were  damaged  by  fire 
in  May,  1873,  to  the  amount  of  about  $12,000.  In  April,  1882, 
the  bleach  exploded,  forcing  out  a  portion  of  the  west  wall  of 
the  building,  killing  Warren  Whitney,  an  employee  of  the  com- 
pany, and  causing  a  damage  of  near  |20,000. 


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HISTOKY   OF   CLAREMONT.  337 

The  house,  barn,  and  other  buildings  of  Harvey  Barney,  near 
the  brickyard  on  the  road  to  Unity,  about  two  miles  from  the 
village,  were  burned  February  6,  1876.  The  fire  originated  from 
u  defective  stovepipe. 

The  most  distressing  fire  in  this  town,  because  destructive  to 
human  lives,  was  that  of  the  Tremont  House,  which  occurred 
March  29,  1879.  This  house  was  built  by  the  late  Josiah  Ste- 
vens, in  1800,  and  had  been  occupied  as  a  hotel  from  1823. 
When  the  fire  occurred  there  were  about  forty  persons  in  the 
house,  including  the  proprietors,  Messrs.  F.  H.  Gibson  and  Riley 
Deming,  and  their  families,  servants,  boarders,  and  transient 
guests.  Soon  after  the  last  guest,  who  came  by  the  midnight 
train,  and  the  clerk,  Fred.  Marvin,  had  gone  to  their  rooms, 
something  like  an  explosion  of  gas  occurred  in  or  near  the  office, 
and  the  halls  and  stairways  were  immediately  filled  with  smoke 
and  flames,  cutting  ofi^  escape  by  the  stairs.  Abel  McCoy,  a 
boarder,  who  had  just  gone  to  his  room  on  the  third  floor,  gave 
the  alarm  and  aroused  sleepers  and  others  and  apprised  them  of 
the  danger  of  their  situation.  The  only  means  of  escape  for 
those  on  the  second  and  third  floors  was  by  the  windows.  Citizens 
and  the  fire  department  soon  assembled,  but  the  building  was  so 
filled  with  fire  as  to  make  the  saving  of  any  part  of  it,  or  of 
any  considerable  portion  of  the  furniture,  almost  hopeless,  and 
attention  was  directed  to  rescuing  the  inmates,  by  ladders  and 
other  means  at  hand.  At  least  four  persons  perished,  viz :  Mrs. 
Gribson,  mother  of  one  of  the  proprietors,  Mrs.  S.  A.  Place,  a 
cook,  Annie  Johnson,  chambermaid,  and  Lydia  Merrill,  table 
girl,  were  known  to  have  been  burned.  Charles  Morgan,  a  lodger, 
was  missing,  but  in  searching  the  ruins  no  remains  of  him  were 
found,  and  it  is  said  that  he  has  been  seen  alive  since  the  fire. 
Mf-s.  Fred.  Marvin,  wife  of  the  clerk,  was  seriously  injured  in 
escaping  from  the  third  fioor,  and  William  Butler,  of  Brattlebo- 
rough,  Vt.,  sufi'ered  the  sprain  of  his  ankle  in  jumping  from  a 
window  on  the  second  floor.  The  fire  extended  to  two  large 
barns,  an  annex  occupied  by  A.  C.  Stone  &  Co.  as  a  stove  and 


338  HISTOEY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

tin  shop,  and  three  small  buildings  at  the  west  of  the  hotel,  one 
occupied  by  Lambert  D.  Patten  as  a  harness  shop,  one  by  Henry 
A.  Dickinson  as  a  boot  and  shoe  store,  and  the  other  by  Airs. 
Harlow,  dressmaker,  and  all  were  destroyed.  The  cause  of  the 
fire  and  the  disappearance  of  Charles  Morgan  are  mysterious. 
The  Tremont  House,  and  all  the  other  buildings,  were  of  wood, 
and  owned  by  Aurelius  Dickinson,  who  was  partially  insured. 

The  paper  mill  of  the  Claremont  Manufacturing  Company,  and 
the  paper  machinery,  were  destroyed  by  fire  in  1880,  and  the 
company  did  not  resume  the  paper-making  business. 

In  December,  1882,  the  main  building  of  the  Freeman  &  O'Neil 
wood-worldng  establishment,  containing  valuable  machinery,  choice 
woods,  and  finished  and  partiall}'  finished  work,  was  destroyed 
by  fire.  The  loss  was  estimated  at  nearly  twenty-five  thousand 
dollars. 

Oscar  J.  Brown's  three-story  wooden  block,  at  the  corner  of 
Sullivan  and  Pleasant  streets,  where  Union  block  now  stands, 
which  was  occupied  by  the  postoffice,  express  of&ce,  and  stores 
on  the  first  fioor,  a  meat  market  in  the  basement,  and  by  offices 
and  halls  in  the  second  and  third  stories,  together  with  a  building 
adjoining,  on  Pleasant  street,  containing  two  stores  and  a  tene- 
ment occupied  by  George  Judkins,  were  totally  destroyed  by  fire 
on  the  night  of  March  25,  1887.  Most  of  the  contents  of  the 
postoffice  and  express  office  were  saved,  while  the  goods  in  the 
stores,  and  the  furniture,  libraries,  and  other  property  in  the 
offices  and  halls  of  the  upper  stories  were  nearly  a  total  loss. 
Most  of  the  occupants  had  more  or  less  insurance.  The  whole 
loss  was  estimated  at  the  time  to  be  $50,000. 

On  the  30th  of  March,  1890,  a  tenement  house  on  North  street, 
occupied  by  seven  families,  owned  by  Gell  Lenven,  was  burned. 

The  Jarvis  Paper  Mill,  at  "West  Claremont,  with  a  considerable 
amount  of  stock  and  paper,  was  destroyed  by  fire  May  12,  1890. 

On  the  15th  of  April,  1892,  the  house,  barns,  and  other  build- 
ings on  what  was  for  many  jeavs  the  town  farm,  owned  by  the 
late  Thomas  B.  Fletcher,  were  completely  destroyed  by  fire. 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  339 

On  January  80,  1893,  the  storehouse  owned  by  the  Monadnock 
Mills,  near  the  railroad  crossing  on  Mulberry  street,  filled  with 
bales  of  cotton,  was  discovered  to  be  on  fire.  The  fire  was  not 
accessible,  and  in  spite  of  the  best  efforts  of  an  efficient  fire  de- 
partment, with  ample  apparatus  and  an  abundance  of  water,  the 
building  was  nearly  destroyed  and  the  contents  damaged  to  the 
extent  of  about  $30,000.  The  cause  of  the  fire  has  not  been  satis- 
factorily accounted  for. 

On  May  23,  1894,  the  sawmill  at  the  north  side  of  Sugar  river' 
owned  by  the  Monadnock  Mills,  leased  to  Burt  Chellis,  with  the 
machinery,  was  considerably  damaged  by  fire. 

CASUALTIES. 

Joel  Roys,  a  Eevolutionary  soldier,  was  burned  to  death.  He 
was  buried  at  "West  Claremont,  and  his  gravestone  bears  the 
following  inscription :  "  Here  lies  buried  Mr.  Joel  Eoys  "Who 
Fell  in  to  a  Fier  and  Burnt  to  Death  Sept.  4,  1782  in  the  27th 
year  of  his  age.     O  !    Mortahty." 

Amos,  aged  twenty-one  years,  son  of  Jonathan  York,  was 
drowned  in  Connecticut  river,  July  26, 1788. 

Artemas,  son  of  William  'Whiting,  eleven  years  old,  fell  from  a 
horse  and  was  killed,  November  23,  1799. 

Miles,  son  of  Ephraim  Tyler,  was  killed  by  being  run  over  by  a 
cart.  Near  the  spot,  on  the  east  road  to  Cornish  Flat,  about  two 
miles  north  of  Claremont  village,  a  stone  was  erected,  which  bears 
this  inscription :  "  6  or  7  Feet  East  of  this  stone.  Miles  Tyler, 
son  of  Ephraim  Tyler,  was  killed  by  a  cart  wheel,  August  5th, 
1811,  in  his  13th  year." 

Chester  and  Elisha,  sons  of  Solomon  Putnam,  were  suffocated 
by  the  fumes  of  charcoal,  and  found  dead  in  their  bed  on  the 
morning  of  January  29,  1814.  A  kettle  of  coals  was  placed  in 
their  room  to  warm  it,  and  caused  the  death  of  both.  Chester 
was  in  the  twenty-seventh  year  of  his  age,  and  Elisha  was  in  his 
nineteenth. 


340  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

At  a  time  of  high  Avater  in  Sugar  river,  in  1815,  Aaron 
Wheeler,  a  brother  of  the  late  Moses  Wheeler,  and  a  man  by 
the  name  of  Merrill,  were  carried  over  the  gristmill  dam  at  the 
lower  village,  in  a  small  boat,  and  both  were  drowned. 

Bill  Andrews  Barnes,  aged  twenty-five  years,  a  son  of  Bill 
Barnes,  was  killed  instantly,  June  29,  1822,  by  a  tree  falling 
upon  him. 

While  the  Fourth  of  July,  1846,  was  being  celebrated,  and  a 
salute  was  being  fired  on  the  common,  the  cannon  burst,  and  a 
piece  of  it  hit  and  instantly  killed  Willard  Fales,  a  young  me- 
chanic who  was  standing  in  a  crowd  of  spectators,  five  or  six 
rods  from  the  gun. 

The  Fourth  of  July,  1856,  was  celebrated  by  a  procession,  ora- 
tion, trial  of  fire  engines,  and  other  ceremonies.  In  attendance 
was  the  Mascoma  fire  engine  company,  of  Lebanon.  After  the 
exercises  in  the  town  hall,  the  Mascoma  company,  preceded  by 
music,  went  for  a  march.  They  crossed  the  upper  bridge  and 
went  by  way  of  North  street  onto  the  suspension  wire  bridge, 
between  the  Home  Mill  and  the  Claremont  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany mills,  keeping  step  to  the  music.  The  strain  was  too  great, 
a  cable  broke,  and  the  bridge  with  all  upon  it  fell  into  the  river. 
In  the  fall,  William  Grijlfin,  of  ITorth  Hartland,  Vt,  a  fifer,  had 
his  back  broken,  and  he  was  dead  when  taken  out  of  the  river. 

On  the  twenty-second  of  September,  1869,  Amos  Keyes,  owner 
and  occupying  the  Cottage  Hospital  farm,  fell  from  his  cart,  was 
run  over  and  so  much  injured  that  he  lived  but  a  few  minutes. 

On  the  seventh  of  May,  1871,  the  Eev.  C.  E.  Sawyer,  his  young 
wife,  and  father-in-law,  Sylvanus  Cushing — -the  latter  of  Abington, 
Mass.  —  were  drowned  in  Connecticut  river,  at  Ashley's  Fei-ry.  For 
fuller  account,  see  history  of  the  Universalist  church. 

William  D.  Pierce,  a  miller,  was  killed  by  being  caught  in  the 
machinery  in  Sugar  river  gristmill,  February  19,  1874. 

Alden  J.  Bliss,  a  shoemaker,  was  drowned  in  the  mill  pond 
of  the    Sugar   river  gristmill,  April  8,  1874,    and   his  body  was 


HISTORY    OF    CLARKMONT.  341 

found  on  the  twelfth.  The  verdict  of  a  coroner's  jury  was  to 
the  effect  that  he  probably  accidentally  fell  into  the  pond  the  night 
of  the  eighth,  which  was  very  dark,  when  on  his  way  home. 

Charles  H.  Bacon,  while  painting  the  Herbert  Bailey  knitting 
mill,  fell  from  a  staging,  near  sixty  feet,  and  was  instantly  killed. 

David  Ewing  was  instantly  killed  in  one  of  the  Monadnock 
mills,  January  23,  1877,  by  being  caught  by  a  belt  and  drawn  over 
a  shaft. 

Ebenezer  E.  Bailey,  while  trimming  an  elm  tree  in  his  yard, 
on  Washington  street,  in  the  spring  of  1860,  fell  and  was  instantly 
killed. 

William  C.  Wheeler  was  found  drowned  in  the  Claremont 
Manufacturing  Company  mill  pond,  October  1,  1873.  Supposed 
accidental. 

The  dead  body  of  Philip  S.  Hunter,  a  man  of  middle  age,  was 
found  in  the  wheel-pit  of  George  L.  Balcom's  woolen  mill,  Octo- 
ber 15,  1883.  It  was  supposed  that  he  accidentally  fell  into  the 
flume,  and  was  carried  by  the  strong  current  into  the  wheel-pit. 
The  wheel  was  clogged  and  stopped,  which  led  to  the  discovery 
of  the  accident. 

Daniel  Canty  was  fatally  scalded  by  accidentally  falling  into  a 
bleach  vat  in  the  Coy  paper  mill,  at  West  Claremont,  June  25, 
1881,  and  died  the  next  day. 

Matthew  Caffrey  fell  down  stairs,  broke  his  skull,  and  died  in  a 
short  time  after,  November  20,  1886. 

FRESHETS. 

In  consequence  of  very  heavy  rains  on  the  fifth  and  sixth  of 
August,  1866,  the  water  in  Sugar  river  reached  a  height  seldom 
known  before.  The  meadows  east  of  the  village  were  completely 
Hooded,  and  late  crops  nearly  ruined.  Bridges  were  swept  from 
their  foundations,  and  small  buildings,  piles  of  wood  and  lumber, 
as  well  as  other  property  within  reach  of  the  high  water,  were 
carried  down  stream.     The  Monadnock   Mills  Company  was  the 


342  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

greatest  sufferer.  Three  or  four  small  buildings  owned  by  this 
company,  on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  used  for  various  me- 
chanical purposes,  were  carried  away.  A  three-story  building  on 
the  same  side  of  the  river,  also  owned  by  this  company,  occupied 
by  Joseph  G.  Briggs  for  a  cabinet-furniture  manufactory,  and  by 
other  parties  for  different  mechanical  uses,  was  swept  from  its 
foundation  and  badly  broken  up.  Basements  of  the  mills  were 
filled  with  water,  and  their  contents  damaged.  The  loss  to  the 
company  was  estimated  at  the  time  to  be  eight  to  ten  thousand 
dollars.  The  Claremont  Manufacturing  Company's  paper  mill, 
printing  office,  and  bookbindery  were  flooded.  The  suspension 
wire  bridge,  owned  by  this  company  and  the  proprietors  of  the 
Home  Mill,  was  carried  away.  Two  or  three  bridges  on  Bed 
Water  brook  were  washed  away,  and  roads  all  over  town  were 
gullied  by  the  rains,  and  in  many  places  made  impassable  for 
teams. 

The  last  part  of  February,  1866,  a  thaw  melted  the  heavy  body 
of  snow,  and  raised  the  water  in  the  streams  to  an  unusual  height. 
Connecticut  river  was  very  high,  and  caused  considerable  damage 
along  its  course.  On  the  twenty-fifth  the  toll-bridge  at  Windsor, 
A^t.,  was  carried  away,  and  as  it  passed  down  stream  it  took  the 
Sullivan  railroad  bridge  along  with  it,  and  the  two  hit  the  Clare- 
mont toll-bridge  and  carried  away  a  portion  of  that  structure. 
The  railroad  bridge  was  soon  replaced,  but  it  took  some  months 
to  repair  the  toll-bridges,  and  public  travel  was  accommodated 
by  ferryboats.  The  ice  dammed  up  at  the  mouth  of  Sugar  river, 
and  set  the  water  back  onto  the  Cupola  and  John  S.  Lovell 
farms  to  considerable  depth.  Fred.  W.  Dunsmore,  on  the  Cu- 
pola farm,  lost  one  hundred  and  sixty-four  valuable  sheep,  and  Mr. 
Lovell  had  two  cows  and  two  steers  drowned  in  his  barn.  In 
many  places  highways  were  badly  washed,  as  was  the  bed  of 
Sullivan  railroad. 

On  the  twenty-eighth  of  August,  1891,  the  reservoir  of  the 
Bible  hill  aqueduct,  owned  by  John  Tyler,  in  consequence  of 
heavy  rains,  broke  away,  the  water  rushed  down  a  ravine,  doino- 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  343 

some  damage  to  fields,  and  carrying  off  a  small  bridge  at  Draper 
Corner. 

LIGHTNING. 

On  the  eighth  of  July,  1805,  Zara  and  Orlando,  sons  of  Zara 
Thomas,  were  killed  by  lightning.  Zara  was  about  eighteen  years 
old,  and  Orlando  about  seven. 

On  the  fourteenth  of  April,  1890,  Mrs.  Drury's  house,  on  East 
street,  was  struck  by  lightning  and  badly  damaged.  Mrs.  Baker, 
a  sister  of  Mrs.  Drury,  received  a  severe  shock.  On  the  same  day 
the  barns  of  Oliver  A.  Bond  and  Lemuel  Dole,  north  of  the 
village,  were  struck  and  slightly  damaged.  In  the  same  shower 
the  barn  of  George  Davis,  in  the  north  part  of  the  town,  on 
the  river  road  to  Windsor,  was  struck  and  considerably  dam- 
aged. Mr.  Davis  and  six  horses  were  in  the  barn,  and  all  were 
killed.  On  the  twenty-fifth  of  June,  of  the  same  year,  the  house 
of  Leonard  N.  Kempton,  on  Pleasant  street,  was  struck,  and  suf- 
fered some  damage. 

TOENADO. 

On  the  first  of  July,  1831,  two  large  barns  and  sheds  of  Joel 
Goss,  on  the  farm  about  two  miles  south  of  the  village,  now 
owned  by  George  P.  Rossiter,  were  demolished  by  a  tornado. 
The  timbers  and  boards  were  hurled  in  every  direction,  some  of 
them  to  a  considerable  distance. 

EAKTHQUAKE. 

About  twelve  o'clock  on  the  night  of  July  20,  1871,  an  earth- 
quake shook  houses  in  Claremont  village  and  vicinity,  and  fright- 
ened the  people. 

MURDERS. 

The  dead  body  of  George  Ducharm,  a  Canadian  blacksmith,  in 
the  employ  of  the  Sullivan  Machine  Company,  was  found  in  a 
well  near  the   company's  furnace,   September  10,  1865.      Marks 


344  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

upon  the  body  plainly  indicated  that  the  victim  was  killed  before 
the  body  was  put  into  the  well.  Ducharm  was  seen  alive  about 
nine  o'clock  on  the  night  before  his  body  was  found.  The  party 
guilty  of  the  murder  has  never  been  discovered. 

George  "Wooddell,  a  quiet  and  inoffensive  citizen,  was  murdered 
by  his  nephew,  James  Kenney,  January  18,  1869.  Mr.  Wood- 
dell lived  with  his  wife  and  infant  child  on  a  back  road  in  an  out 
of  the  way  place  in  the  west  part  of  the  town,  near  Connecticut 
river,  and  Kenney  made  his  home  with  them.  Early  in  the 
evening,  without  warning,  Kenney  rushed  into  the  house  with 
a  kind  of  Indian  war-whooi3,  and  attacked  his  uncle  with  a  sharp 
ax,  killing  him  in  a  barbarous  manner,  and  then  attacked  Mrs. 
Wooddell,  who  bad  the  infant  in  her  arms,  but  both  escaped 
alive,  although  she  was  considerably  gashed.  On  investigation 
it  was  found  that  Kenney  was  violently  insane  at  the  time,  though 
he  had  previously  manifested  no  marked  indications  of  insanity. 
He  has  since  been  confined  in  the  insane  Avard  of  the  ISTew 
Hampshire  state  prison,  growing  more  and  more  demented  year 
by  year. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

POSTAL   SERVICE  —  BANKS  —  EAILKOADS. 

According  to  its  records,  published  in  the  Collectioms  of  the 
New  Hampshire  Historical  Society,  the  Committee  of  Safety,  on 
the  third  of  December,  1779,  voted  as  follows : 

Agreeable  to  a  vote  of  the  G.  Assembly  of  the  18th  of  Novemb'r  last,  au- 
thorizing the  Committee  of  Safety  to  Establish  a  post  to  ride  weekly  from 
the  post  office  in  Portsmouth  to  the  western  part  of  this  State,  Resolved  that 
agreeable  to  the  proposal  of  Peter  Eobinson,  He  be  &  hereby  is  appointed 
Post  Eider  for  the  term  of  Six  months,  to  ride  weekly  from  the  post  office 
in  Portsmouth ;  to  Set  out  from  thence  on  Saturday  morning  &  ride  to  Peter- 
borough in  this  State,  and  Send  a  man  from  that  place  weekly  to  Charles- 
town,  No  four,  and  to  Carry  and  Return  all  public  letters  &  Despatches 
free  of  Charge,  for  which  Service  he  shall  receive  from  this  State  the  Sum 
of  Three  Hundred  pounds  Lawful  money. 

The  same  committee,  on  July  27,  1781,  "  Appointed  Mr.  John 
Baleh  a  Post-rider  for  the  term  of  three  months,  and  agreed  with 
said  Balch  to  set  out  from  Portsmouth  on  Saturday  morning  and 
to  ride  to  Haverhill,  by  way  of  Conway,  Plymouth,  thence  down 
the  Eiver  to  Charlestown,  Keene,  &  to  Portsmouth  again,  every  four- 
teen days  during  said  term.  For  which  Service  he  shall  receive  the 
sum  of  seventy  hard  Dollars,  or  paper  money  Equivalent." 

The  Federal  constitution,  adopted  in  1779,  gave  the  exclaeive 
power  to  establish  post-offices  and  post-roads  to  congress.  Im  1790 
there  was  a  post-rider  fromWalpole  through  Charlestown,  Claremontj 
JSl'ewport,  Unity,  and  some  of  the  other  towns  in  the  vicinity-  As 
there  were  no  post-offices  in  these  towns  at  that  time,  letters  and  other 
postal  matter  were  delivered  by  the  post-rider  or  left  by  him  at  con- 

23 


346 


HISTOEY   OF   CLAREMONT. 


venient  places  on  his  route.  The  first  post-office  established  in 
Claremont  was  January  1,  1802,  and  Josiah  Stevens  was  appointed 
postmaster. 

In  1790  there  were  seventy-five  post-offices  in  the  United  States. 
The  rates  of  postage  were,  on  a  single  letter,  composed  of  one 
piece  of  paper,  for  any 

cents. 


Distance  not  exceeding  30  miles        .... 

6 

"        above    30  and  not  exceeding    80  miles 

10 

80    "     "            "           150    " 

12^ 

"     160   "     "             "           400     " 

■         ISK 

"     400  miles 

25 

A  letter  composed  of  two  pieces  of  paper  was  charged  with 
double  these  rates ;  of  three  pieces,  with  triple ;  and  four  pieces, 
with  quadruple. 

POST-OFFICES   AND    POSTMASTERS   IN    CLAREMONT. 

A  post-office  was  established  in  the  village  in  January,  1802.  In 
June,  1828,  an  office  was  established  under  the  name  of  Sumner- 
ville.  The  name  was  changed  to  West  Claremont  in  August  of  the 
same  year.  In  April,  1891,  an  office  was  established  at  Claremont 
Junction.  Following  are  the  names  of  the  postmasters  and  the 
dates  of  their  appointment : 


Postmasters. 
Josiah  Stevens 
.rohn  Tappan 
Jonathan  Nye 
Holden  R.  Nye    . 
Albro  Blodgett     . 
Ambrose  Cossit  . 
John  J.  Prentiss 
Alonzo  B.  Williamson 
Edwin  Ainsworth 
William  M.  Ladd 
Charles  O.  Eastman 
Edgar  L.  Hapgood 
John  M.  Whipple 
George  W.  Paul  . 
Henry  C.  Sanders 


Date  of  Appointment. 
January  1,  1802. 
April  11,  1813. 
September  25,  1829. 
February  24,  1841. 
July  15,  1841. 
August  30,  1842. 
April  17,  1843. 
May  16,  1845. 
April  9,  1849. 
May  5,  1863. 
June  17,  1861. 
June  11,  1870. 
February  10,  1875. 
February  22,  1887. 
February  12,  1891. 


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JOHN  L.  FARWELL. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 


347 


SUMNERVILLE. 

Ezekiel  Carey June  17,  1828. 

WEST  CLAREMONT. 

Ezekiel  Carey August  7,  1828. 

John  H.  Sumner  ....  October  9,  1829. 

John  Tyler July  30.  1841. 

Leonard  Gilmore  .  ...  January  15,  1847. 

Wyllys  Eedfleld  .        .  ...  July  23,  1861. 

Henry  A.  Kedfield       .  .  July  23, 1868. 

Horace  G.  P.  Cross Januai-y  18,  1870. 

Nancy  J.  Pierce  ...  December  20,  1887. 

Clifton  E.  Densmore October  29,  1894. 

CLAREMONT  JUNCTION. 

Stephen  Noonan  .  .        .  April  28,  1891. 

Frank  Shelden     .        .  .        .  April  1,  1894. 

EAUKS. 


THE  CLAREMONT  BANK, 


Capital  sixty  thousand  dollars,  was  in  operation  in  1826.  George 
B.  Upham  was  president  during  its  existence  ;  James  H.  Bingham, 
cashier;  directors,  George  B.  Upham,  John  Tappan,  Samuel  Fiske, 
Leonard  Jarvis,  David  Dexter,  Phinehas  Handerson,  and  Godfrey 
Stevens.  In  1842  Erastus  Glidden  was  elected  cashier.  Its  busi- 
ness was  wound  up  between  1844  and  1846.  At  this  time  the  offi- 
cers were :  George  B.  Upham,  president ;  Erastus  Glidden,  cash- 
ier; directors,  George  B.  Upham,  George  N.  Farwell,  Ambrose 
Cossit,  William  H.  Farwell,  John  W.  Tappan,  Nicholas  Farwell, 
and  Samuel  Glidden. 

In  1848  a  new  bank,  under  the  same  name  as  the  old  one,  with  a 
capital  of  sixty  thousand  dollars,  was  chartered  and  organized, 
with  Ambrose  Cossit,  president;  Uriel  Dean,  cashier;  directors, 
Nicholas  Farwell,  Ambrose  Cossit,  Isaac  F.  Wetherbe,  of  Charles- 
town,  William  Bossiter,  George  N.  Farwell,  Woster  Jones,  Thomas 
Sanford.  In  April,  1851,  Mr.  Dean  resigned  and  George  N.  Far- 
well  was  elected  cashier  in  his  place,  and  in  March,  1853,  his  son, 
John  L.  Farwell,  was  elected  assistant  cashier.  In  March,  1856, 
Mr.  Farwell  resigned  and  John  L.  Farwell  was  elected  cashier. 


348  HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT. 

On  November  22,  1864,  the  organization  was  changed  to  the 
Claremont  National  Bank,  under  the  laws  of  the  United  States. 
George  N.  Farwell,  president ;  John  L.  Farwell,  cashier;  directors, 
George  N".  Farwell,  Thomas  Sanford,  Nathaniel  ToUes,  Aurelius 
Dickinson,  Lewis  Perry,  Jotham  G.  AUds,  Charles  H.  Eastman. 
Present  capital,  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars.  In  Octo- 
ber, 1881,  provision  was  made  for  a  vice-president,  and  John  L. 
Farwell  was  elected  to  that  position,  and  his  son,  George  N.  Far- 
well,  2d,  was  elected  cashier.  George  N.  Farwell,  senior,  died 
February  24,  1887,  and  on  March  15  his  son,  John  L.  Farwell,  was 
elected  president.  The  officers  for  1893  were  :  John  L.  Farwell, 
president;  George  N.  Farwell,  cashier;  Chester  Pike,  of  Cornish, 
John  L.  Farwell,  Francis  Locke,  George  N.  Farwell,  Stephen  F. 
Eossiter,  J.  Duncan  Upham,  directors. 

THE  people's  national  BANK. 

This  bank  was  organized  and  commenced  business  September 
1,  1892,  with  a  capital  of  one  hundred  thousand  dollars.  F.  P. 
Majmard,  president;  George  H.  Stowell,  vice-president;  George  A. 
Tenney,  cashier ;  directors,  F.  P.  Maynard,  George  H.  Stowell,  H. 
W.  Parker,  W.  H.  H.  Allen,  0.  B.  Way,  I.  D.  Hall,  E.  J.  Tenney, 
P.  A.  Johnson,  and  C.  A.  Forbush.  This  bank  is  located  in  Union 
block. 

SULLrVAN  SAVINGS  INSTITDTION 

"Was  chartered  by  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1838,  organ- 
ized in  1847,  and  commenced  business  in  1848.  President,  Am- 
brose Cossit ;  treasurer,  George  N.  Farwell.  After  the  institution 
was  organized  and  well  started  in  business,  Mr.  Farwell  resigned 
and  Samuel  C.  Bailey  was  elected  treasurer  in  his  place.  January 
7,  1852,  Mr.  Cossit  resigned  the  presidency,  and  Timothy  Eastman 
was  elected  president,  and  George  N.  Farwell  again  chosen  treas- 
urer. On  January  2,  1856,  John  L.  Farwell  was  elected  treasurer. 
In  January,  1859,  Albro  Blodgett  was  elected  president,  in  place 
of  Timothy  Eastman,  deceased.  In  January,  1861,  Mr.  Blodgett 
resigned  and  was  succeeded  by  Jonas  Livingston.     Mr.  Livingston 


HISTORY   OF   CLAKEMONT.  349 

having  removed  from  town,  Mr.  Blodgett  was  re-elected  president, 
which  position  he  held  until  his  death,  and  was  succeeded  by  Daniel 
"W.  Johnson,  in  January,  1870,  who  held  the  office  until  January, 
1893,  when  he  resigned,  and  John  L.  Farwell  was  elected  presi- 
dent. In  February,  1874,  John  L.  Farwell  resigned  the  treasurer- 
ship,  and  Albert  Eossiter  was  elected  in  his  place,  which  he 
held  until  December,  1882,  when  he  resigned,  and  John  L.  Far- 
well  was  again  elected.  At  the  annual  meeting  in  January,  1893, 
the  deposits  were  $1,732,812.75;  guaranty  fund,  $85,000;  surplus, 
$21,492.82. 

The  Claremont  Bank  and  Sullivan  Savings  Institution  were  located 
on  Broad  street,  in  the  building  now  the  residence  of  Geo.  L.  Balcom, 
until  1855,  except  that  while  Samuel  C.  Bailey  was  treasurer  the 
Sullivan  Savings  Institution  was  in  Bailey's  block,  now  the  Fiske 
Free  Library  building.  In  1855  these  two  banks  were  removed  to 
the  north  end  of  George  N.  Farwell's  block.  In  1876  the  two  cor- 
porations united  in  erecting  the  bank  building,  at  the  south  of  Mr. 
Farwell's  block,  and  when  it  was  completed  removed  to  it. 

RAILROADS. 
SOTXIVAN   COUNTY  EAILROAD. 

This  railroad  runs  from  Bellows  Falls,  Vt.,  through  Charlestown, 
Claremont,  and  Cornish,  IJJ'.  H.,  to  Windsor,  Vt.,  a  distance  of 
twenty-six  miles.  It  was  chartered  by  the  New  Hampshire  legisla- 
ture July  10,  1846,  and  opened  for  business  February  5,  1849.  It 
connects  at  Bellows  Falls  with  the  Cheshire  railroad  for  Boston, 
via  Keene  and  Fitchburg ;  the  Valley  railroad  for  New  York,  via 
Springfield  and  Hartford;  the  Rutland  for  Montreal  and  the 
West ;  at  Claremont  Junction  with  the  Concord  and  Claremont  rail- 
road for  Concord  and  Boston,  and  at  Windsor  with  the  Central 
Vermont  railroad  for  St.  Albans,  Montreal,  and  the  West.  The 
cost  of  this  road  was  represented  by  five  hundred  thousand  dollars 
in  stock  and  eight  hundred  and  fifty-four  thousand  seven  hundred 
and  ninety-six  dollars  and  ninety-three  cents  in  debts  secured  by 


350  HISTOKY   OF   CLARBMONT. 

mortgage  bonds.  After  having  been  in  oj)eration  two  years  it  was 
surrendered  to  trustees  for  the  benefit  of  creditors,  and  in  1863  was 
leased  to  the  Central  Yermont.  In  1866,  the  corporation  being 
hopelessly  bankrupt,  the  property  was  sold  for  five  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars  to  the  bondholders,  who  formed  a  new  corporation, 
changing  the  name  from  Sullivan  railroad  to  Sullivan  County  rail- 
road, and  the  road  was  re-leased  for  two  years  to  the  Central  Ver- 
mont for  twenty-five  thousand  dollars  per  year.  Of  the  stock  of 
this  corporation  the  JSTorthern  railroad  was  the  principal  owner. 
In  1880  the  Vermont  Valley  corporation  purchased  the  stock,  and 
it  became  a  part  of  the  Connecticut  river  system.  In  1893  this 
road  was  leased  to  the  Boston  and  Maine  railroad. 

CONCORD  AND  CLAREMONT  RAILROAD. 

This  road  extends  from  Claremont  Junction,  where  it  connects 
with  the  Sullivan  County  railroad,  through  Newport  and  Bradford 
to  Concord,  fifty-six  miles,  where  it  connects  wdth  the  Concord  rail- 
road for  Boston,  and  with  the  JSTorthern  and  Boston,  Concord  and 
Montreal  railroads.  At  Contoocook  it  connects  with  the  Monad- 
nock,  Peterborough  and  Hillsborough  railroad  for  Winchendon, 
Mass.,  via  Hillsborough  and  Peterborough.  This  road  was  built 
from  Concord  to  Bradford,  twenty-seven  miles,  in  1850.  In  1871 
and  1872  it  was  built  from  Bradford  to  Claremont  Junction,  twen- 
ty-nine miles,  and  opened  for  business  over  the  entire  line,  in  Octo- 
ber, 1872.  That  part  of  this  road  from  Bradford  to  Claremont 
was  built  vinder  the  name  of  the  Sugar  River  railroad,  aided  by 
gratuities  from  towns  on  its  lines.  Claremont  contributed  one 
hundred  thousand  dollars.  In  1873  the  Sugar  River  was  consoli- 
dated with  what  was  called  the  Merrimack  and  Connecticut  Rivers 
railroad,  under  the  name  of  the  Concord  and  Claremont  railroad. 

WINDSOR  AND  FOREST  LINE  RAILROAD. 

At  the  session  of  the  New  Hampshire  legislature,  in  1870,  a 
charter  was  granted  for  a  railroad  from  Windsor,  Vt,  to  Creen- 
field,  N.  H.,  there  to  connect  with  the  Nashua  and  Wilton  railroad. 


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HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  351 

Soon  a  company  was  organized  by  the  grantees,  and  a  route  has 
been  surveyed  through  Cornish,  Claremont,  Uuity,  Acworth, 
Lempster,  Washington,  Marlow,  Stoddard,  and  Hancock,  to 
Greenfield,  and  pronounced  feasible.  The  distance  from  Claremont 
to  Boston  over  this  route  is  from  twenty-six  to  thirty  miles  shorter 
than  by  way  of  Concord,  or  Keene  and  Fitchburg,  an  advantage 
which  may  secure  the  building  of  this  road  in  the  future. 

CLAEEMONT  AND   WHITE   EIVER    JDNCTION  RAILKOAD. 

In  1872  the  JSTew  Hampshire  legislature  granted  a  charter  for  a 
railroad  from  Claremont  to  White  River  Junction ;  the  grantees 
organized  a  company,  and  a  route  was  surveyed  from  Claremont 
village  through  Cornish,  Plainfield,  and  Lebanon  to  White  River 
Junction,  Yt.  It  was  found  that  a  road  could  be  built  over  the 
route  surveyed  at  very  moderate  cost,  and  it  has  been  thought  that 
the  many  advantages  to  be  gained  by  it  would  ensure  its  con- 
struction. 

BLACK  KIVEK  EAILEOAD. 

Charters  for  a  railroad  from  Cavendish,  Vt,  through  Springfield 
village  to  Claremont  Junction,  there  to  connect  with  the  Concord 
and  Claremont  and  Sullivan  County  railroads,  have  been  granted 
by  the  Vermont  and  JSTew  Hampshire  legislatures ;  a  company  has 
been  organized,  surveys  and  estimates  of  the  expense  of  building 
the  road  made. 


CHAPTEE  XXVI. 

TOWN    HALL  —  COTTAGE    HOSPITAL  —  HIGHWAYS    AND    BRIDGES. 

TOWN-HALL. 

This  is  truly  an  historic  building.  In  1783  Ichabod  Hitchcock, 
the  only  master  carpenter  in  town  for  several  years,  hewed  the 
timber,  which  was  packed  up  for  nearly  two  years ;  then  it  was 
framed,  raised,  boarded,  and  rough  floors  laid,  under  the  supervis- 
ion of  Mr.  Hitchcock,  in  which  condition  it  was  used  for  the  Con- 
gregational meeting-house,  for  a  time.  It  stood  on  the  highway 
leading  from  the  village  to  Claremont  Junction,  near  W.  H.  H. 
Moody's  horse  training  park.  The  building  was  taken  down,  its 
timbers  and  boards  removed  to  the  village,  and  in  1790  put  to- 
gether again  in  its  present  location,  by  Mr.  Hitchcock.  The  inside 
was  subsequently  finished  with  large  square  pews  and  hinged  seats 
and  a  high  pulpit,  which  was  reached  by  a  flight  of  narrow  stairs, 
with  a  sounding-board  over  it,  according  t  o  the  general  fash- 
ion of  that  period.  In  1808  the  steeple,  or  tower,  and  the  octa- 
gon portion  on  the  south  side,  were  added.  A  bell  was  placed  in 
the  tower  in  1810,  and  in  December,  1827,  a  clock,  made  by 
Thomas  Woolson,  an  ingenious  mechanic  of  the  town,  was  put  in 
the  tower,  and  has  remained  there,  marking  the  hours  and  minutes 
into  which  the  day  is  divided,  with  commendable  accuracy,  to  the 
present  time. 

Upon  the  top  of  the  steeple  was  a  gilded  wooden  ball,  ten  or 
twelve  inches  in  diameter.  On  this  ball  Linus  Stevens,  a  carpien- 
ter's  apprentice,  sixteen  years  old,  mounted  and  stood  upon  his 
head,  with  his  feet  in  the  air.     At  the  age  of  seventy-sis  years 


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HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  353 

he  was  present  at  the  rededication  of  the  town  hall,  in  January, 
1868. 

The  land  on  which  this  building  stands,  and  the  park  south  of  it, 
was  given  to  the  town  by  Josiah  Stevens,  father  of  Deacon  Josiah, 
Alvah,  Godfrey,  and  Col.  Paran  Stevens. 

This  building  was  occupied  by  the  Congregational  society  as  a 
place  of  religious  worship,  and  for  town-meetings,  until  1835,  when 
that  society  had  completed  its  new  meeting-house  on  Pleasant 
street.     Since  that  time  it  has  been  used  only  as  a  town-hall. 

From  1835  for  thirty-two  years,  but  little  was  done  to  improve 
the  inside  of  the  building,  except  to  replace  the  square  pews  with 
rude  board  settees  and  the  high  pulpit  with  a  small  platform  or 
stage ;  and  nothing  to  the  outside  more  than  to  keep  it  covered 
and  give  it  a  coat  of  paint  occasionally.  In  April,  1867,  pursuant 
to  a  vote  of  the  town,  passed  at  the  annual  meeting  in  the  preced- 
ing March,  under  the  direction  of  the  board  of  selectmen,  consist- 
ing of  Francis  Locke,  Arnold  Briggs,  and  Henry  C.  Cowles,  and 
with  Benj.  P.  Gilman  as  architect  and  superintendent  of  the  work, 
the  building  was  completely  remodeled  and  repaired,  inside  and 
out,  at  an  expense  of  something  more  than  ten  thousand  dollars, 
making  it  a  very  handsome  and  commodious  town  hall,  of  suffi- 
cient capacity  for  the  needs  of  the  town  at  that  time,  though  the 
population  had  quite  outgrown  it  in  1894. 

Early  in  January,  1868,  the  work  having  been  completed,  a 
meeting  of  citizens  was  held  and  a  committee  to  arrange  for  ap- 
propriate exercises  for  the  rededication  of  the  building  was  chosen. 
On  the  evening  of  January  15  the  hall  was  packed  with  citizens  of 
Claremont  and  vicinity  interested  in  the  event.  Otis  F.  R.  "Waite, 
chairman  of  the  committee  of  arrangements,  in  a  short  address, 
welcomed  the  people  to  their  reconstructed  and  elegantly  finished 
and  furnished  town  hall.  Amongst  other  things,  he  said,  "We 
have  suffered  so  long  and  so  much  from  the  inconveniences  and 
discomforts  of  the  old  building  as  to  make  the  changes  and  repairs 
made  upon  it  in  the  last  few  months  stand  out  like  '  a  good  deed 
in  a  naughty  world.'"     He  then  announced  the  following  as  the 


354  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

officers  for  the  occasion  :  President,  Charles  H.  Eastmun  ;  vice- 
presidents,  Samuel  P.  Piske,  Charles  M.  Bingham,  Geo.  IST.  Far- 
well,  Daniel  W.  Barney,  Hosea  P.  Shedd,  Samuel  G.  Jarvis,  Wil- 
liam Ellis,  Winthrop  Sargeant,  David  Dodge,  Charles  F.  Long, 
Francis  "Whitcomb,  Alonzo  Thomas,  Freeman  S.  Chellis,  Euel 
Bowman,  Benj.  P.  Walker,  Samuel  H.  Andrews,  Amos  Hitchcock, 
Lyman  Barnes,  Horace  Dean,  Nathaniel  Tolles,  Edward  L.  God- 
dard,  Arnold  Briggs,  Fred.  A.  Henry,  and  Solon  C.  Grannis ;  sec- 
retaries, Otis  F.  R.  Waite  and  Arthur  Chase. 

The  president  being  introduced  delivered  an  appropriate  address, 
commending  the  improvements  upon  the  building  and  the  skill 
and  faithfulness  of  those  engaged  in  making  them.  Prayer  was 
oftered  by  the  Rev.  E.  W.  Clark,  pastor  of  the  Congregational 
church,  followed  by  the  performance  by  a  select  choir  and  orches- 
tra under  the  leadership  of  A.  P.  Wyman,  of  the  anthem  "  Mighty 
Jehovah." 

John  S.  Walker  was  introduced  as  the  princij)al  speaker  of  the 
evening,  and  made  a  very  interesting  address,  giving  a  history  of 
the  town-hall  building,  its  various  locations  and  changes  since 
1783,  followed  with  short  speeches  by  Samuel  G.  Jarvis,  Ezra  J. 
Glidden,  of  Unity,  and  some  others,  and  the  adoption  of  resolu- 
tions of  thanks  to  the  superintendent  and  artisans,  who  had  acted 
well  their  respective  parts  in  the  execution  of  the  work  upon  the 
building  being  dedicated. 

These  exercises  were  followed  by  a  genaral  ball,  in  which  about 
eighty  couples  of  old,  middle  aged,  and  young  participated.  The 
ladies  appeared  in  elegant  and  tasteful  toilets,  and  the  gentlemen  in 
becoming  evening  dress.  The  music  was  furnished  by  a  fine  orches- 
tra, and  it  was  a  gay  and  brilliant  affair,  successful  in  all  its  parts, 
and  will  be  long  remembered  by  those  who  took  active  part  in,  or 
witnessed  it. 

Since  1868  no  material  changes  have  been  made  in  the  external 
or  internal  appearance  of  this  building.  It  is  a  landmark,  beloved 
for  its  age,  venerable  architecture,  and  many  pleasant  associations 
with  former  and  present  generations,  but  for  which  it  would  prob- 


HISTORY   OF    CLARBMONT.  365 

ably  long  since  have  been  replaced  by  a  more  commodious  and 
modern  structure. 

COTTAGE  HOSPITAL. 

In  1866,  the  Ladies'  Union  Aid  Society,  composed  of  women  be- 
longing to  the  several  religious  societies  in  town,  and  others,  was 
organized.  The  object  of  this  organization  was  to  extend  help  to 
the  feeble  and  poor,  according  to  their  needs.  In  1892  the  Clare- 
mont  Building  Association  donated,  to  this  society  a  small  building 
which  had  been  used  for  apost-oflSce;  it  was  moved  to  a  vacant 
spot  a  few  rods  east  of  the  town-hall  and  fitted  up  for  meetings 
and  storage  for  donations  of  clothing,  etc. 

In  December,  1891,  this  society  voted  to  take  up  hospital  work, 
and  in  February,  1892,  thirteen  members  signed  articles  of  agree- 
ment and  organized  as  a  voluntary  corporation,  the  object  being 
"  the  establishment  and  maintenance  of  a  hospital ;  the  care  of  the 
aged  and  children  ;  caring  for  the  poor ;  educating  the  young,  and 
lending  a  helping  hand  to  all."  In  March,  1892,  a  committee  to 
select  a  site  for  a  hospital  was  chosen,  consisting  of  Drs.  C.  "W. 
Tolles  and  0.  B.  Way,  H.  W.  Parker,  Mrs.  H.  C.  Fitch,  Mrs.  C.  U. 
Dunning,  Mrs.  S.  IST.  Bennett,  Mrs.  Samuel  Baum,  and  Misses  Fan- 
nie B.  Jones  and  C.  Isabelle  Dutton.  This  committee  settled  upon 
a  part  of  what  was  for  many  years  the  Keyes  farm,  about  a 
mile  north  of  the  town  hall,  between  Hanover  and  Elm  streets, 
owned  by  E.  B.  Lull,  with  a  cottage  house,  stables,  and  sheds 
thereon,  which  could  be  bought  for  thirty-five  hundred  dollars. 
Means  were  taken  to  raise  this  amount  by  subscriptions,  which 
was  accomplished  early  in  November,  in  sums  varying  in  amount 
from  twenty-five  cents  to  two  hundred  and  forty  dollars.  Ten 
gentlemen  subscribed  one  hundred  dollars  each.  Other  sums 
were  obtained  by  a  picnic  upon  the  hospital  grounds  and  in 
other  ways.  At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  March,  1893,  by 
virtue  of  an  enabling  act  of  the  New  Hampshire  legislature,  it 
was  voted  to  exempt  from  taxation  the  real  estate  owned  by 
this  society,  so  long  as  it  shall  be  used  for  hospital  purposes. 

This  society  has   a   relief  fund,  which    has   been  kept  distinct 


356  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

from  the  hospital  fund.  The  officers  for  1893  were  Mrs.  Edwin 
Vaughan,  president ;  Mrs.  H.  A.  Dickinson  and  Mrs.  H.  C. 
Fitch,  vice-presidents;  Mrs.  Samuel  Baum,  secretary;  Miss  C. 
Isabelle  Dutton,  treasurer;  Mrs.  Herbert  Bailey  and  nineteen 
other  ladies,  executive  committee;  advisory  board  of  gentlemen, 
John  L.  Farwell,  George  L.  Balcom,  O.  B.  Way,  John  T.  Em- 
erson, and  P.  P.  Coburn ;  auditor,  Burt  Chellis. 

Repairs  and  alterations  on  the  house,  adapting  it  for  a  hospi- 
tal for  the  sick,  capable  of  accommodating  ten  or  twelve  pa- 
tients, having  been  completed,  it  was  dedicated  with  appropriate 
exercises  and  named  the  Cottage  Hospital,  on  July  13,  1893, 
soon  after  which  it  was  opened  for  the  reception  of  patients. 
The  Episcopal,  Congregational,  Baptist,  Methodist,  Universalist, 
and  Catholic  churches,  each  donated  a  hospital  bed,  while  citi- 
zens and  others  interested  gave  liberally  of  money,  furniture, 
provisions,  etc. 

HIGHWAYS    AND    BRIDGES. 

The  first  road  through  Claremont  was  a  horse  road  or  bridle- 
path from  Lebanon  to  Charlestown,  laid  out  in  1762,  by  marked 
trees  and  other  signs  to  guide  the  traveler  through  the  wilder- 
ness. Lebanon  was  the  first  town  on  Connecticut  river  above 
Charlestown  to  be  settled.  The  settlers  had  to  go  to  Charles- 
town  to  get  their  grain  ground,  until  a  mill  was  built  nearer  to 
them.     Hence  the  necessity  for  this  horse  road. 

At  an  adjournment  of  the  first  town  meeting  held  in  Clare- 
mont, on  the  twenty-ninth  day  of  March,  1768,  Benjamin  Brooks 
and  Benjamin  Sumner  were  chosen  a  committee  to  lay  out  a 
road  to  ISTewport. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  1772,  it  was  ''  Voted  to  raise 
thirty-five  Pounds  Lawful  Money  toward  the  amendment  of  the 
Highways." 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  1780,  it  was  "Voted  that  each 
man  shall  work  two  days  on  highways  and  bridges." 


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HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  357 

ASHLEY    FERRY. 

In  1784,  Oliver  Ashley  was  granted  a  charter  for  a  ferry 
across  Connecticut  river,  from  the  south  part  of  Claremont  to 
"Weathersfield  Bow,  Vt.,  and  a  ferry  has  been  maintained  there 
since  then. 

LOTTERY   BRIDGE. 

In  1785  there  was  necessity  for  a  bridge  over  Sugar  river,  on 
the  road  up  and  down  Connecticut  river,  and  the  following  were 
the  means  taken  to  obtain  it: 

To  the  Hon'ble  the  Gen'l  Court  of  the  State  of  New  Hampshire 
Humbly  Sheweth  — 

That  Your  Petitioners  Who  Were  appointed  a  Committee  by  a  Number 
of  the  Inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Claremont,  assembled  on  the  first  day  of 
November  1783  for  the  Purpose  of  Laying  a  plan  for  building  a  bridge 
Over  Sugar  River,  to  Accomadate  the  Main  Country  Koad;  Subscriptions 
Were  Open'd  in  the  Town  aforesaid  And  the  Generous  Donations  Came  in 
to  the  Am't  of  Sixty  Pounds  Chiefly  by  Yr  Petitioners  (Except  a  few  Indi- 
viduals on  the  Great  road  who  Expected  to  be  Accomadated  by  Said  Bridge) 
Which  Money  Was  Carefully  Laid  Out  by  yr  Petitioners  in  procuring  timber 
Which  is  Now  on  the  Spot.  And  in  the  Meantime  When  Said  Work  Was 
Carried  on  Subscription  papers  Were  forwarded  to  the  Principal  Gent'm  in 
Each  Town  From  Walpole  to  Haverhill,  begging  their  assistance  in  So  Pub- 
lic &  Important  A  Matter.  We  had  Many  kind  Ans'rs  from  these  Gent'm 
We  Addressed,  And  Wrote  to,  but  When  a  return  of  the  Subscriptions  Were 
Come  in  found  the  Whole  Am't  to  be  but  about  one  pound  ten  Shill's  — 

That  your  Petitioners  have  Since  in  Public  Town  Meeting  in  said  Clare- 
mont Urged  the  Assistance  of  the  town  but  to  No  purpose;  therefore  y'r 
Petitioners  beg  leave  to  Represent  that  there  is  Sixty  pounds  Worth  of  tim- 
ber on  the  Spot,  and  the  Cost  of  Building  Said  bridge  Will  be  According  to 
the  Judgm't  of  the  best  Artificers  two  Hundred  pounds— therefore  y'r  Pe- 
titioners beg  y'r  Hon'rs  to  Grant  a  Lottery  that  Shall  Neat  free  of  the  Need- 
full  Expense  two  Hundred  pounds,  to  be  appropriated  to  the  use  afores'd 
And  Appoint  Such  Directors  as  y'r  Wisdom  Shall  think  fitt  And  y'r  Petition- 
ers as  in  duty  bound  Will  pray  — 

Fran's  Beatty  San'd  Kingsbury  John  Spencer 

John  Cook  Elihu  Stevens  T.  Sterne 

Josiah  Rich  Asa  Jones 


358  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

The  foregoing  is  a  verbatim  copy  of  a  petition  found  in  Vol. 
XI,  page  379,  Town  Papers  of  New  Hampshire,  and  the  editor 
adds  what  is  inclosed  in  brackets  : 

[An  act  was  passed  June  23,  1785,  authorizing  them  to  set 
up  a  lottery,  and  thereby  raise  three  hundred  pounds  for  the 
aforesaid  purpose.  Samuel  Ashley,  Jr.,  Sanford  Kingsbury,  and 
Francis  Beatty  were  appointed  managers. —  Ed.] 

At  the  annual  meeting  in  1786,  the  town  "  Voted  to  raise 
100£  to  be  laid  out  on  Highways,"  and  "  to  give  three  shillings 
per  day  for  a  man  &  eighteen  pence  per  day  for  a  yoke  of 
oxen  and  six  pence  per  day  for  cart  and  six  pence  per  day  for  a 
plow." 

TURNPIKE. 

At  a  special  town  meeting,  November  18,  1799,  voted  "  To 
encourage  a  Turnpike  through  Claremont,  Unity,  and  Amherst." 

According  to  Farmer  &  Moore's  New  Hampshire  Gazetteer 
published  in  1823,  the  Second  New  Hampshire  Turnpike  was 
incorporated  by  the  legislature  December  26,  1799,  "from  Clare- 
mont, Unity,  Lempster,  Washingtoii,  corner  of  Windsor,  Hills- 
borough and  Antrim,  Deering,  Francistown,  corner  of  Lynde- 
borough  and  New  Boston,  Mont  Vernon,  Amherst  —  distance  50 
miles — cost  $80,000."  Fifty-three  turnpikes  were  chartered  by 
the  legislature  prior  to  1828.  The  Second  New  Hampshire 
Turnpike,  with  toll-gates,  was  continued  until  near  1840.  In 
1838  the  legislature  passed  an  act  authorizing  the  selectmen 
and  the  courts  to  take  the  franchise  and  other  rights  of  corpo- 
rations for  public  highways,  in  the  same  manner  as  they  took 
the  land  of  individuals,  soon  after  which  this  turnpike  was  dis- 
continued, a  free  highway  having  been  laid  over  it. 

On  October  5,  1804,  the  town  "Voted  to  build  a  Bridge  over 
Sugar  river  by  Col.  Tyler's  Mills  the  next  summer."  The 
building  of  this  bridge  was  bid  off  at  vendue,  Josiah  Rich  be- 
ing the  lowest  bidder,  for  six  hundred  dollars. 

At  the  annual  town  meeting  in  1824,  it  was  "  Voted  that  the 
selectmen  be  authorized   to   lay  out   a  Road  from  the  Turnpike 


UPPER  DAM,  AND  GREEN  MOUNTAIN. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  359 

west  of  Bill  Barnes's  &  build  a  Bridge  across  Sugar  River,  near 
E.  &  A.  Tyler's  Mills;  provided  the  expense  to  the  town  shall 
not  exceed  Three  Hundred  Dollars."  The  Messrs.  Tyler  were 
interested  in  this  project  and  agreed  to  bear  a  portion  of  the 
expense  of  building  the  bridge. 

In  1825  the  town  "  Voted  that  the  selectmen  be  authorized 
to  lay  out  a  road  from  Jesse  Campbell's  up  redwater  brook 
by  Albin  Andrews's  saw  mill  to  Cornish  line,  if  they  shall 
think  it  expedient." 

In  May,  1829,  it  was  "Voted  that  the  town  will  build  a 
bridge  across  Sugar  River,  near  Doct.  Leonard  Jarvis's  Factory," 
and  raised  eight  hundred  dollars  for  that  purpose. 

At  a  town  meeting,  April  16,  1831,  it  was  "Voted  that  Isaac 
Hubbard,  Ambrose  Cossit  and  Bartlett  Clement  be  a  commit- 
tee to  make  contracts  in  behalf  of  the  town  of  Claremont  for 
making  those  portions  of  the  road  laid  out  by  the  Court's  Com- 
mittee in  August  last,  commencing  on  the  Turnpike  near  Mr. 
Josiah  Rich's  and  ending  at  the  Common ;  and  commencing  at 
the  road  near  Mr.  Albro  Blodgett's  and  ending  at  Newport 
line ;  and  that  said  Committee  be  authorized  and  requested,  in 
behalf  of  the  town  of  Claremont,  to  proceed  immediately  to 
make  contracts  by  auction  or  otherwise,  for  the  making  of  such 
part  of  said  road  as  they  may  deem  expedient,  in  such  divisions 
or  sections  as  they  shall  think  proper;  and  that  the  selectmen 
be  instructed  to  pay  or  make  legal  tender  to  the  owners  of  land 
through  which  said  road  passes,  the  several  sums  assessed  them 
as  damages."  The  town  also  voted  to  raise  the  sum  of  one 
thousand  dollars  to  be  applied  toward  the  expense  of  making 
this  road. 

In  1837  a  corporation  built  a  bridge  over  Connecticut  river, 
between  Claremont  and  Weathersfield,  Vt.,  and  it  was  opened 
to  public  travel  as  a  toll-bridge  in  December  of  that  year.  It 
took  the  place  of  a  ferry. 


360  HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT. 

In  the  last  few  years  three  iron  bridges  over  Sugar  river  — 
two  in  the  village  and  Lottery  bridge  —  have  taken  the  place 
of  wooden  structures. 

In  the  summer  of  1890,  Pleasant  street,  from  Tremont  square 
to  the  Concord  and  Claremont  railroad  station,  was  macadamized  — 
thus  converting  a  very  muddy  street  in  wet,  and  dusty  one  in 
dry  seasons,  into  an  excellent  drive-way  at  all  times, —  at  an 
expense  of  about  ten  thousand  dollars. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

DEATH    OF    PRESIDENTS    HARKISON,   LINCOLN,    AND    GRANT. 

William  Henry  Harrison  was  inaugurated  president  of  the 
United  States,  March  i,  1841,  and  died  of  pleurisy  fever  on  the 
fourth  of  April  following — just  one  month  after  his  induction 
into  the  highest  office  in  the  gift  of  the  American  people.  On 
the  thirteenth  of  that  month,  John  Tyler,  who  had  succeeded 
to  the  presidency,  issued  a  proclamation  recommending  that 
Friday,  the  fourteenth  of  May,  be  observed  by  the  people  through- 
out the  country  as  a  day  of  fasting  and  prayer  on  account  of 
the  death  of  President  Harrison.  In  response  to  this  proclama- 
tion, the  people  of  Claremont  met  and  took  steps  for  suitable 
exercises  on  the  day  named.  The  following  officers  were  chosen  : 
Committee  of  arrangements,  John  H.  Warland,  Thomas  J.  Harris, 
Uriel  Dean,  A.  Watkins,  Joseph  Weber,  J.  S.  Spauldiug,  Wil- 
liam Rossiter,  Edward  L.  Goddard,  B.  D.  Howe,  Charles  Jones, 
Theron  Metcalf,  James  P.  Brewer,  and  H.  E.  !N"ye ;  marshal, 
Silas  L.  Bingham;  aids,  Joseph  Weber,  Philemon  Tolles,  Ed- 
ward L.  Goddard,  and  James  P.  Brewer. 

In  the  "Eagle"  of  May  21  appeared  a  full  account  of  the  ex- 
ercises, from  which  the  following  is  extracted :  "  At  ten  o'clock 
in  the  forenoon  the  citizens  of  all  classes  and  denominations,  ladies, 
teachers  and  pupils  of  the  different  schools,  assembled  near  the 
Baptist  meeting-house,  and  formed  in  procession  under  the  direc- 
tion of  the  marshal,  escorted  by  the  Fusilier  and  Rifle  companies, 
in  uniform,  under  the  command  of  Captains  Watkins  and  Goss, 
proceeded  through  the  different  streets,  and  marched  to  the  sol- 
emn music  of  the  Claremont  band  to  the  town  house.     The  pro- 


362  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

cession  was  very  large,  and  completely  filled  the  spacious  house. 
The  exercises  were  very  interesting  and  impressive.  President 
Tyler's  proclamation  was  read  by  the  Hev.  Mr.  Nichols.  Then 
followed  an  anthem  by  the  Sacred  Music  Society;  reading  of 
Scriptures  by  Rev.  Mr.  Graves ;  prayer  by  Rev.  R.  E.  Lawrence ; 
funeral  address  by  Prof  E.  D.  Sanborn,  of  Dartmouth  College ; 
singing  by  the  Sacred  Music  Society;  and  benediction  by  Pro- 
fessor Sanborn.  At  about  one  o'clock  the  procession  was  re- 
formed and  marched  to  the  Baptist  meeting-house  where  a  dox- 
ology  was  sung  to  the  tune  of  Old  Hundred  by  the  congregation. 
The  town  house  was  hung  with  crape,  and  the  national  flags 
were  decorated  with  the  habiliments  of  grief.  Every  part  of  the 
performance  was  done  with  great  propriety  and  in  order." 

DEATH   OF    PRESIDENT    LINCOLN. 

On  Eriday  evening,  the  fourteenth  of  April,  while  President 
Abraham  Lincoln  was  witnessing  the  play  of  "  Our  American 
Cousin,"  at  Ford's  Theater,  Washington,  D.  C,  with  his  wife  and 
two  friends,  John  "Wilkes  Booth,  a  play-actor,  worked  his  way  to 
the  box  where  they  were  seated,  and  coming  up  behind  the  presi- 
dent, shot  him  in  the  head  with  a  revolver,  the  ball  entering 
the  brain,  and  he  died  on  Saturday  morning,  the  fifteenth,  at 
about  half-past  seven  o'clock.  'Sever  before  was  the  nation 
plunged  in  such  deep  and  universal  grief.  Strong  men  met  on 
the  streets  and  wept  in  speechless  anguish.  The  announcement 
of  this  great  calamity  in  Claremont  was  followed  by  the  tollino- 
of  bells  on  the  several  churches,  and  other  demonstrations  of  real 
heartfelt  sorrow  by  the  people.  On  Sunday  the  churches  were 
decorated  with  emblems  of  mourning,  and  the  clergymen  in  their 
prayers  and  sermons  made  touching  allusion  to  the  bereavement 
that  had  so  suddenly  befallen  the  country,  at  a  time  when  the 
people  were  rejoicing  at  the  termination  of  the  four  years'  war  of 
the  Rebellion,  and  the  hoped  for  peace  throughout  the  land. 

On  "Wednesday,  the  nineteenth  of  April,  in  accordance  with 
recommendation  from  "Washington,  and  special  proclamation  of 
Joseph   A.  Gilmore,    governor    of   ISTew   Hampshire,    the    obse- 


HISTORY    OF   CLARBMONT.  363 

quies  of  President  Lincoln  were  observed.  Business  was  entirely 
suspended ;  at  twelve  o'clock  the  church  bells  were  tolled,  minute 
guns  were  fired,  and  the  people  assembled  at  the  town  hall. 
Eev.  Edward  W.  Clark  read  the  governor's  proclamation,  and 
made  the  opening  prayer;  appropriate  pieces  were  sung  by  the 
choir,  under  the  leadership  of  Francis  F.  Haskell ;  Eev.  E.  S. 
Foster  read  selections  from  Scripture ;  Eev.  F.  W.  Towle  offered 
prayer;  addresses  were  made  by  Eev.  Messrs.  S.  Gr.  Kellogg, 
Moses  Kimball,  of  Ascutneyville,  Vt.,  Foster,  Clark,  and  Towle, 
of  Claremont,  and  Albert  Qoss,  of  Auburn,  K  Y.,  a  native  of 
the  town.  The  choir  sang  the  hymn,  "  "Why  do  we  mourn  depart- 
ing friends,"  to  the  tune  of  China,  and  Mr.  Kimball  pronounced 
the  benediction.  Appropriate  services,  conducted  by  Eev.  J.  M. 
Peck,  were  held  at  Trinity  church,  between  eleven  and  twelve 
o'clock.  Never  did  the  people  of  Claremont  mourn  more  sincerely 
than  on  this  occasion. 

DEATH  OF  PKESIDENT  GKANT. 

The  eminent  general  and  ex-president,  Ulysses  S.  Grant,  after 
a  long  and  painful  sickness,  died  at  Mount  McGregor,  near  Sar- 
atoga, New  York,  on  the  twenty-third  of  July,  1885.  The  select- 
men published  the  following  notice  in  the  town  papers  : 

TAKE   NOTICE. 

The  citizens  of  Claremont  are  requested  to  meet  at  the  town  hall,  Saturday 
evening,  August  1,  at  8  o'clock,  to  make  arrangements  for  the  proper  observ- 
ance of  the  day  of  the  funeral  of  the  nation's  beloved  hero  and  patriot.  General 
Grant,  which  will  take  place  August  8. 

I.  H.  Long,        "\ 
M.  S.  RossiTBK,  V  Selectmen. 
H.  C.  Sanders,   j 
Claremont,  N.  H.,  July  30,  1885. 

Pursuant  to  this  notice,  a  large  number  of  citizens  assembled. 
John  S.  Walker  was  chosen  chairman,  and  stated  the  object  for 
which  the  people  were  called  together.     Otis  F.  E.  Waite,  Hosea 


364  HISTORY    OF   CLARBMONT. 

W.  Parker,  and  David  W.  O'Neil  were  appointed  a  committee  to 
report  a  committee  of  arrangements  for  the  funeral  exercises,  and 
named  George  H.  Stowell,  John  M.  "Whipple,  James  B.  Thrasher, 
Marshall  S.  Kossiter,  Hosea  W.  Parker,  George  T.  Stockwell, 
Frank  G.  Winn,  Hartley  L.  Brooks,  and  George  "W".  Paul,  to 
act  in  conjunction  with  Hiram  G.  Sherman,  Charles  H.  Long, 
and  Harry  C.  Fay,  appointed  by  Major  Jarvis  Post  of  the  Grand 
Army. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  committee  of  arrangements,  Hosea  W. 
Parker  was  chosen  president  of  the  day  of  the  funeral.  Ira  Colby,. 
John  S.  "Walker,  Harry  C.  Fay,  Edwin  Vaughan,  Charles  H.  Long, 
Solon  C.  Grannis,  Simeon  Ide,  John  "W.  Hammond,  Samuel  G. 
Jarvis,  Henry  N".  Hunton,  George  L.  Balcom,  Edward  Ains- 
worth,  Russell  Jarvis,  Osmon  B.  "Way,  Daniel  W.  Johnson,. 
George  N.  Farwell,  Charles  M.  Bingham,  and  Frederick  P. 
Smith,  vice-presidents ;  "W.  H.  H.  Allen,  orator ;  Rev.  Lee  S. 
M'Collester,  chaplain. 

On  the  day  of  the  funeral,  by  order  of  the  postmaster-general, 
all  the  post-olfices  in  the  states  and  territories  were  closed  from 
one  to  five  o'clock,  p.  m.  In  Claremont,  business  was  suspended 
from  twelve  to  six  o'clock,  and  bells  were  tolled  from  half  past 
one  to  two  o'clock.  The  town  hall  was  tastefully  decorated  with 
emblems  of  mourning.  At  two  o'clock  the  exercises  were  opened 
by  the  singing  by  a  select  choir,  under  the  leadership  of  F.  F.  Has- 
kell, of  the  hymn  beginning, 

"  My  faith  looks  up  to  Thee," 

followed  by  prayer  by  the  chaplain.  The  president  made  a 
short  opening  address,  and  presented  the  orator,  "William 
H.  H.  Allen,  who  spoke  about  forty  minutes.  He  was  followed 
in  short  addresses  by  Ira  Colby,  John  S.  "Walker,  Edwin 
"Vaughan,  Revs.  Lee  S.  M'Collester,  J.  H.  Robbins,  and  G.  M. 
Curl,  and  Dr.  Osmon  B.  "Way.  The  oration  and  addresses  were 
all  eloquent,  touching,  and  appropriate  to  the  occasion. 

The  president,  Mr.  Parker,  said,  —  "  Before  dismissing  this  as- 
sembly I  desire  to   say  that  I   have    seen  General   Grant    under 


HISTORY    OF    CLARBMONT.  365 

different  circumstances  for  four  years,  and  one  of  his  most  prom- 
inent characteristics  was  his  great  modesty.  Under  all  circum- 
stances he  was  as  modest  as  a  schoolboy,  and  as  simple  as  a 
child." 

The  exercises  were  concluded  with  singing  by  the  choir  of  the 
hymn,  the  first  two  lines  of  which  are, 

".Beyond  the  smiling  and  the  weeping, 
I  shall  be  soon." 


CHAPTEE  XXVm. 

SECRET   SOCIETIES  —  MASONIC     ORGANIZATIONS. 
HIBAM   LODGE,    NO.    9. 

This  lodge  has  heen  in  existence  nearly  a  hundred  years, 
having  been  instituted  June  25,  1798.  Among  its  members 
from  the  first  have  been  numbered  many  of  the  most  able,  in- 
fluential, and  substantial  men  of  the  town,  and  the  institution 
has  commanded  the  respect  of  all  classes.  The  first  principal 
officers  were  Ithamer  Chase,  W.  M. ;  Daniel  Barber,  S.  W. ;  Eben- 
ezer  Rice,  J.  "W". ;  Stephen  Dexter,  treasurer ;  Ambrose  Cossit, 
secretary. 

UNION   MARK   LODGE,    NO.    1. 

By  dispensation  from  DeWitt  Clinton,  Grand  High  Priest  of 
the  General  Grand  Eoyal  Arch  Chapter  of  the  United  States  of 
America,  this  lodge  was  instituted  July  13,  1818.  The  first 
principal  officers  were  Stephen  Pice,  Pt.  W.  master ;  Nathan 
Bingham,  senior  warden ;  Zenas  Hitchcock,  junior  warden ;  Jo- 
seph Pice,  treasurer;  Joseph  Alden,  secretary.  This  lodge  con- 
tinued in  existence  until  August  20,  1820,  when,  by  vote,  it  was 
disbanded,  and  the  funds  on  hand  were  given  to  Webb  Chap- 
ter, thereafter  to  be  instituted,  and  the  records  and  papers  were 
to  be  deposited  with  its  secretary,  when  chosen. 

WEBB  ROYAL  AKCH  CHAPTEE 

Was  instituted  July  11,  1821.  The  first  principal  officers  were 
Jonathan  Nye,  high  priest;  Nathan  Bingham,  king;  Godfrey 
Stevens,  scribe. 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT,  367 

COLUMBIA  COUNCIL,   NO.    2,   R.  AND  S.   M. 

This  council  was  instituted  April  12,  1822.  The  first  princi- 
pal officers  were  Jonathan  Nye,  T.  I.  G.  M.  ;  Nathan  Bingham, 
D.  I.  G.  M. ;  Godfrey  Stevens,  P.  C. ;  Eoswell  Elmer,  C.  of  G. ; 
Stephen  Starbird,  G.  S. ;  Stephen  Eice,  recorder ;  Daniel  Chase, 
treasurer. 

SULLIVAN   COMMANDERT,   NO.    6. 

This  commandery  was  instituted  January  23,  1866,  by  Charles 
A.  Tufts,  G.  C.  of  the  Grand  Commandery  of  New  Hamp- 
shire. The  principal  officers  were  Lelaud  J.  Graves,  E.  C. ; 
Henry  A.  Eedfiekl,  generalissimo;  A.  K.  Howard,  C.  G.  Its 
eminent  commanders  have  been  Leland  J.  Graves,  Hosea  W. 
Parker,  Joseph  W.  Eobinson,  Albert  S.  "Wait,  Edward  F.  Hough- 
ton, and  Charles  H.  Long. 

ODD   FELLOWS. 
SULLIVAN  LODGE,   NO.    12. 

On  the  thirteenth  of  October,  1845,  Charles  "Williams  and  five 
other  citizens  of  Claremont,  who  were  members  of  White  Moun- 
tain Lodge,  of  Concord,  petitioned  the  Grand  Lodge  of  New 
Hampshire  for  a  dispensation  to  form  a  subordinate  lodge  in 
Claremont,  which  was  granted,  and  on  the  twenty-third  of  the 
same  month  Sullivan  Lodge,  No.  12,  was  duly  instituted,  with 
Philemon  Tolles,  noble  grand;  William  0.  C.  Woodbury,  secre- 
tary, and  Sylvanus  F.  Eedfield,  treasurer.  The  lodge  continued 
in  active  work  until  1857,  when  the  organization  was  abandoned 
and  the  charter  surrendered. 

On  March  21,  1872,  on  petition  to  the  Grand  Lodge  of  the 
state,  a  new  charter,  with  the  same  name  and  number,  was 
granted  to  William  0.  C.  Woodbury,  John  Hendee,  Joseph 
Weber,  Stephen  Carleton,  Fred.  A.  Henry,  William  Clark,  Dan- 
iel J.  Livingston,  and  Lewis  W.  Eandall,  and  the  lodge  has 
been  in  active  operation  to  the  present  time.  It  has  eligible 
rooms  in  S.  S.  Eand's  block. 


S68  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 


KNIGHTS    OF    PYTHIAS. 

Sullivan  Lodge  was  instituted  August  2,  1872,  with  ten  char- 
ter members.  The  largest  number  of  members  at  anj'  time  was 
twenty-six,  in  1873.  It  was  not  very  prosperous  during  its  ex- 
istence, and  on  August  21,  1875,  the  organization  was  aban- 
doned and  the  charter  subsequently  surrendered.  On  December 
30,  1887,  Claremont  Lodge,  ISTo.  15,  was  instituted,  with  twenty- 
six  charter  members.  Its  membership  July  1,  1894,  was  fifty- 
four,  mostly  young  men.  This  organization  occupies  eligible 
and  handsomely  furnished  rooms  in  the  third  story  of  Union 
block,  and  has  a  fund  on  deposit  in  the  savings  bank.  It  is  a 
benefit  institution,  and  paid  in  benefits  from  its  organization  to 
December  31,  1893,  two  hundred  and  sixty-two  dollars. 

GRAND    ARMY    OF    THE    REPUBLIC. 
MAJOR  JAKVIS   POST,   NO.    12, 

Was  organized  on  July  7,  1868,  with  twenty-one  charter  mem- 
bers. Edwin  Vaughan  was  the  first  commander.  The  succeed- 
ing commanders  were  Charles  H.  Long,  Henry  E.  Barrett,  and 
Oliver  A.  Bond.  The  post  was  disbanded  in  May,  1872.  Dur- 
ing its  existence  one  hundred  and  ten  comrades  enlisted.  A  new 
post,  with  the  same  name  and  number,  was  organized  on  June 
29,  1880,  with  Hiram  G.  Sherman  as  commander.  His  succes- 
sors have  been  William  H.  Redfield,  James  H.  Perkins,  Irvine 
A.  Hurd,  Charles  L.  Severance,  William  Dodge,  Harry  C.  Fav, 
Levi  D.  Hall,  Shubael  Gould,  Levi  Johnson,  Edward  A.  Parme- 
lee,  Cyrus  W.  Dana,  Allen  P.  Messer,  and  George  A.  Walker. 
Meetings  were  held  in  a  hall  in  what  was  known  as  Oscar  J. 
Brown's  wood  block,  which  was  completely  destroyed  by  fire  on 
the  morning  of  March  27,  1887,  with  all  the  records,  library, 
furniture,  and  other  property  of  the  Grand  Army  Post,  which 
was  insured  for  nearly  its  full  value.  When  Union  block  was 
built,  on  the    site    of  the    one    burned,  a   large    hall  and  rooms 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  369 

adjoining  were  fitted  up  in  its  third   story  for  tliis  organization, 
which  it  has  since  occupied. 

In  ISTovember,  1882,  the  Major  Jarvis  Woman's  Eelief  Corps, 
auxiliary  to  the  Grand  Army,  was  organized,  with  Mrs.  JS'ellie 
M.  Gerry,  president. 

PATRONS    OF    HUSBANDRY. 

Claremont  Grange,  jSTo.  9,  was  organized  November  18,  1873. 
It  is  composed  mainly  of  farmers  and  their  wives.  Meetings 
are  held  regularly  each  month  in  Grand  Army  hall,  and  special 
meetings  are  held  occasionally  at  the  homes  of  its  members. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

MARKS    OF    CATTLE,    SHEEP,  AND    SWINE. 

The  following  names  of  persons  who  had  cattle,  sheep,  and 
swine  marks  recorded  by  the  town  clerk,  from  1771  to  1793,  are 
given  as  showing  the  probable  owners  of  land  in  Claremont  during 
that  period : 


Year. 
1771. 


Names. 

Year, 

Names. 

Asa  Leet. 

1771. 

John  Spencer. 

Ebenezer  Rice. 

Amos  York. 

John  Thomas. 

John  Peak. 

Cornelius  Brooks. 

1772. 

Benj.  Towner. 

Samuel  Cole. 

Beniah  Murray. 

Meea  Potter. 

Joseph  York. 

John  Hitchcock. 

1773. 

Samuel  Thomas. 

Joseph  Ives. 

1774. 

Thomas  Goodwin. 

Benjamin  Brooks. 

Doct.  William  Sumner 

Stephen  Higby. 

Edward  Goodwin. 

Hezekiah  Roys. 

Elihu  Stevens. 

Capt.  Benj.  Brooks. 

Josiah  Stevens. 

Daniel  Warner. 

Elihu  Stevens,  Jr. 

Thomas  Gustin. 

Roswell  Stevens. 

Thomas  Jones. 

1776. 

Timothy  Grannis. 

Ebenezer  Skinner. 

David  Bates. 

John  Kilborn. 

Berna  Brooks. 

Barnabas  Ellis. 

Asahel  Brooks. 

Capt.  Benj.  Sumner. 

John  Brooks. 

Asa  Jones. 

Stephen  Higbe. 

Amazia  Knight. 

Levy  Higbe. 

Jonas  Steward. 

1777. 

Doct.  Thomas  Sterne. 

Gideon  Lewis. 

Capt.  Gideon  Kirtland 

HISTORY   OF   CLARBMONT. 


371 


1777. 

Oliver  Ellsworth. 

1790.   JohnDutton. 

Sergt.  Joseph  Hubbard. 

Joseph  Eice. 

Capt.  Ebenezer  Clark. 

Eliphalet  Robinson. 

Dea.  Jacob  Rice. 

1791.   Moses  Allen. 

Amos  Conant. 

Capt.  John  Cook. 

Jonathan  Parker. 

Gideon  Handerson. 

1778. 

Joseph  Clark. 

Joseph  Spalding. 

John  Adkins. 

Timothy  Atkins. 

Daniel  Ford. 

Ashbei  Richardson, 

Key.  Augustine  Hibbard. 

1792.   David  Rich. 

1779. 

Megs  Stevens. 

Enoch  Judd. 

Zeba  Stevens. 

Bruster  Judd. 

Linus  Stevens. 

Linus  Stevens,  Phisition 

Sergt.  Jeremiah  Spencer. 

Jonathan  Bradley. 

James  Alden. 

Ambrose  Cossit. 

John  West. 

John  C.  Sprague. 

Richard  Hawley. 

John  Sprague. 

Ephraim  French. 

Thomas  Warner. 

William  York. 

Martin  Andrews. 

Dr.  James  Steele. 

James  Alden. 

1780. 

Ebenezer  Judd. 

Capt.  John  Blodgett. 

Samuel  Bates. 

Amos  Conant. 

Levy  Pardee. 

Benj.  Peterson. 

Joseph  Clark. 

Ephraim  Peterson . 

Bill  Barnes. 

Doct.  Abner  Megs. 

1781. 

Reuben  Petty. 

Eliakim  Stevens. 

Josiah  Rich. 

Widow  Mary  Bellield. 

Amos  Cole. 

Joseph  Cummins. 

1782. 

Ezra  Butler. 

1793.   Phinehas  Cowles. 

Ichabod  Hitchcock. 

William  Break. 

1783. 

Henry  Stevens. 

Roswell  Clapp. 

Maj.  Sanford  Kingsbury. 

Benedick  Rice. 

1785. 

Timothy  Cole. 

Aaron  Sholes. 

1786. 

Asa  Jones. 

Christopher  Erskine. 

1788. 

Daniel  Greene. 

David  Stedman. 

1789. 

Nehemiah  Rice. 

Reuben  Petty. 

Adam  Raner  Leet. 

Abraham  Fisher. 

Zara  Thomas. 

William  Rhodes. 

1790. 

Isaac  Morgan. 
James  White. 

Ezekiel  Leet. 

372  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

MUSICAL     REMINISCENCES. 

Early  in  the  present  century  Claremont  was  quite  celebrated 
for  the  talents  and  accomplishments  of  her  singers  and  performers 
upon  various  musical  instruments.  Dr.  J.  Baxter  Upham,  of  ISTew 
York  city — a  native  of  the  town  —  furnishes  interesting  remin- 
iscences touching  tliis  subject,  which  are  given  in  the  main  in  his 
own  language. 

The  period  embraced  in  this  sketch  extends  from  about  1830 
to  1842  inclusive,  and  it  may  be  called  perhaps  the  musical  epoch 
of  Olaremont.  At  no  time  before  or  since  has  the  town  —  always 
foremost  in  this  particular  —  contained  so  many  really  excellent 
voices  and  instruments.  It  was  then  that  the  old  Claremont 
Sacred  Music  Society  was  in  its  prime  —  a  body  of  sixty  mem- 
bers selected  for  their  proficiency  —  having  as  their  leader  Mr. 
Silas  L.  Bingham,  who  had  been  trained  as  a  choir  boy  at  Trinity 
church  in  Boston ;  for  organist  Mr.  John  Long,  formerly  of  the 
Temple  church,  London.  Among  the  prominent  vocalists  of  the 
society  were  Mrs.  Luther  S.  Porter,  formerly  Eliza  Bingham, 
soprano ;  Mrs.  Silas  L.  Bingham,  nee  Mary  Mansfield,  a  lovely 
contralto ;  Messrs.  Hosea  Booth,  Jonathan  Miner,  and  John  M. 
Gowdey,  tenors;  Messrs.  Luther  S.  Porter,  George  K".  Farwell, 
and  Charles  M.  Bingham,  bassos,  and  a  host  of  others,  who  made 
up  the  rank  and  file  of  the  chorus. 

The  orchestra  —  if  it  ma}-  be  so  called  —  was,  of  course,  limited 
in  numbers  and  scope,  but  contained  such  excellent  players  as 
Caleb  Densmore,  violin ;  James  H.  Brigham  and  Levi  Bingham, 
violoncellos;  Arnold  Merrill,*  contra  basso;  J.  Fisher  Lawrence, 
piccolo ;  John  Dane,  clarionet ;  Charles  R.  Bingham,  Eobert 
H.  Upham,  Morris  Evarts,  and  "Walter  Bingham,  flutes  —  the 
latter  a  very  accomplished  musician,  a  resident  of  Acworth,  but 
who  was  wont  to  come  up  and  join  his  musical  brethren  on  im- 
portant occasions,  together  with  the  aforesaid  John  Long,  who 
presided  at  the  organ.      Not  unfrequently  Mr.  Pushee,  of  Leba- 

*  Silas  L.  Bingham  nicknamed  him  Traitor  Arnold,  ■which  cognomen  he  good  na- 
turedly  accepted,  and  by  it  was  called  by  liis  musical  associates,  with  all  of  whom  he 
was  very  popular. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  373 

noD,  who  will  be  remembered  as  a  noted  performer  on  the  violin 
and  teacher  of  dancing,  appeared  and  took  part  with  the  society. 
In  several  of  the  more  important  of  the  public  performances,. 
Sig.  Ostinelli,  the  most  famous  violinist  of  the  day  in  this  coun- 
try, did  not  disdain  to  come  up  from  Boston  and  lend  life  and 
spirit  to  the  orchestral  parts. 

Silas  L.  Bingham,  the  originator  and  ruling  spirit  of  this  fa- 
mous organization,  deserves  more  than  a  passing  notice.  He  was 
a  born  musician.  He  had  a  rich,  ringing  tenor  voice,  was  of 
imposing  presence  and  singularly  magnetic  power;  had  an  orig- 
inal and  forceful  manner  of  his  own,  and  his  control  of  the  ma- 
terial at  his  command  was  absolute  and  supreme.  Full  to  over- 
flowing with  nervous  action,  he  accentuated  the  movement  and 
rhythm  of  the  music  with  hands,  head,  and  feet.  He  perfectly 
embodied  the  graphic  picture  by  "Wordsworth  of  the  earnest  and 
enthusiastic  lover  of  music, 

"Can  he  keep  himself  still,  if  he  would?    oh,  not  he! 
The  music  stirs  in  him  like  wind  through  a  tree." 

When  nearly  seventy  years  old,  Mr.  Bingham  journeyed  a 
thousand  miles  to  be  present  at  the  fiftieth  anniversary  of  the 
founding  of  the  Handel  and  Haydn  Society  of  Boston.  At  his 
own  request  he  was  assigned  a  place  in  the  chorus,  and  of  the 
vast  multitude  of  earnest  participants  in  the  closing  exercises  of 
that  memorable  week,  —  it  being  his  favorite  "Messiah,"  —  his 
voice  and  action  were  conspicuous  and  effective. 

The  Claremont  society  possessed  a  valuable  repertoire  of  musid 
selected  from  the  standard  oratorios  mostly,  isolated  extracts,  of 
course,  but  of  the  best.  It  was  their  custom  to  hold  frequent 
meetings  for  practice  during  the  autumn  and  winter  months,  and 
to  come  out  strong  at  the  Christmas  season,  when  the  walls  of 
the  old  octagonal  Episcopal  church  were  made  to  tremble  with 
the  sublime  strains  of  Handel,  Haydn,  and  Mozart. 

Such,  and  of  such  nature,  was  this  old  society,  whose  reputa- 
tion reached  beyond  the  limits  of  the  town  and  state,  and  which 


374  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

was  no  mean  compeer,  in  its  smaller  dimensions,  to  the  older  and 
stately  Handel  and  Haydn  society  of  Boston,  which  was,  under  its 
energetic  leader,  taken  for  its  model. 

It  was  the  custom,  in  those  old  days,  to  enlist  music  as  an 
ally  in  the  entertainment  of  guests  at  parties  and  social  gather- 
ings. The  playing  of  James  H.  Bingham  on  his  violoncello,  and 
the  simple  and  touching  ballads  sung  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Silas  L. 
Bingham  deeply  moved  many,  and  greatly  pleased  all  who  listened 
to  these  performances. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  the  Binghams  —  though  not  all  of  them  of 
one  family  —  figure  largely  in  the  foregoing  musical  reminiscences. 
To  the  artistic  talent  and  genius  of  the  Binghams  the  town  owes 
much  of  its  wide-spread  musical  reputation.  To  the  older  citizens 
it  is  a  sad  reminder  of  the  swiftness  of  time  and  the  rapidity 
with  which  whole  generations  melt  away,  that  scarcely  any  of 
that  honored  name  are  now  to  be  found  in  the  town  records. 

WESTERN  NEW   HAMPSHIEE  MUSICAL  ASSOCIATION. 

In  August,  1885,  an  association  under  this  name  was  formed, 
intending  to  embrace  such  individuals  in  Claremont  and  sur- 
rounding towns  in  New  Hampshire  and  Vermont,  interested  in 
musical  progress,  as  chose  to  join  it.  A  constitution  was  adopted, 
and  the  organization  perfected  by  the  choice  of  the  following 
officers :  Hosea  W.  Parker,  president ;  Joseph  H.  Haskell,  secre- 
tary ;  Israel  D.  Hall,  treasurer ;  Otis  F.  R  Waite,  corresponding 
secretary;  Osmon  B.  Way,  Albert  Ball,  Francis  F.  Haskell,  Is- 
rael D.  Hall,  and  Clarence  M.  Leete,  executive  committee.  It 
was  voted  that  a  music  festival  be  held  for  the  week  beginning 
August  31,  provided  that  fifty  names  should  be  obtained  to  guar- 
antee to  make  up  the  deficiency,  if  any,  of  expenses  above  receipts. 
The  names  of  sixty-eight  guarantors  were  readily  obtained,  and 
the  festival  was  held,  with  H.  R.  Palmer,  of  JSTew  York,  as  con- 
ductor ;  Mrs.  Martha  Dana  Shepard,  of  Boston,  pianist,  and  other 
well  known  artists.  The  receipts  were  $875.31,  and  the  expenses 
$607.13. 


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OSCAR  J.  BROWN. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  375 

Festivals  have  been  held  annually,  the  last  week  in  August, 
since  then  —  all  successful  musically,  and  with  varying  degrees 
of  success  financially,  —  but  on  the  whole  the  association  has  ac- 
cumulated a  small  fund.  Dr.  Palmer  was  conductor  of  five  fes- 
tivals, C.  Mortimer  "Wiske,  of  New  York,  two,  and  Carl  Zerrahn, 
of  Boston,  two.  Mrs.  Shepard  has  been  in  attendance  as  pianist 
at  all  of  the  ten  festivals.  The  choruses,  made  up  of  singers, 
old  and  young,  of  both  sexes,  living  in  towns  in  the  vicinity  of 
Claremont,  have  varied  in  number  of  voices,  from  one  hundred 
and  seventy  to  two  hundred  and  twenty-five. 

In  October,  1886,  this  association  adopted  the  voluntary  corpo- 
ration act,  with  forty-two  members,  enacted  by-laws,  and  elected 
a  board  of  officers.  Associates  have  been  admitted  from  time 
to  time,  and  there  were  in  1893,  seventy-six  members.  The 
officers  for  that  year  were :  Hosea  "W.  Parker,  president ;  James 
B.  Goodrich,  vice-president;  Otis  F.  R.  Waite,  clerk;  Israel  D. 
Hall,  treasurer ;  Frank  P.  Vogl,  corresponding  secretary;  Clarence 
M.  Leete,  George  W.  Stevens,  Horace  W.  Frost,  George  A.  Briggs, 
and  Noah  P.  Woolley,  directors.  A  music  festival  under  the 
conductorship  of  Jules  Jordan,  of  Providence,  R.  I.,  was  held  in 
1894,  which  was  quite  as  successful  as  any  preceding  one. 

COACHING  PARTY. 

On  the  eightieth  birthday  of  Oscar  J.  Brown,  the  veteran 
stage  proprietor  and  driver,  which  occurred  October  22,  1888,  sev- 
enteen of  his  elderly  fellow  townsmen  invited  him  to  drive  them, 
with  a  team  of  eight  spirited  gray  horses,  which  had  never  before 
been  harnessed  together,  attached  to  a  Concord  stage-coach,  to 
Windsor,  Yt.,  ten  miles,  where  they  had  a  handsome  special  din- 
ner provided,  at  the  Windsor  House.  The  party  consisted  of  Os- 
car J.  Brown,  William  E.  Tutherly,  John  L.  Farwell,  John  Tyler, 
Francis  Locke,  Otis  F.  R.  Waite,  George  L.  Balcom,  Henry  Pat- 
ten, Leonard  P.  Fisher,  John  S.  Walker,  Daniel  W.  Johnson,  John 
T.  Emerson,  James  P.  Upham,  John  McCullough,  Samuel  G.  Jar- 
vis,  Ira  Colby,  Fred.  A.  Tyler,  and  Pomeroy  M.  Rossiter,  most  of 


376  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

them  natives  or  long-time  residents  and  well-known  Claremont 
citizens.  The  party,  when  mounted  upon  the  coach,  at  the  resi- 
dence of  Mr.  Brown,  was  photographed  by  the  artist,  E.  0.  Eisher, 
and  at  about  ten  o'clock,  A.  m.,  started  off",  amid  the  cheers  of  a 
large  gathering  of  men,  women,  and  children,  and  the  tooting  of 
stage-horns,  as  of  the  olden  time.  This  expedition  had  been  heard 
of,  and  all  along  the  route  the  people  were  out  to  cheer  its  prog- 
ress and  the  veteran  driver.  Windsor  was  on  the  alert  to  give  it  a 
welcome,  as  the  coach  passed  up  the  main  street,  just  before  twelve 
o'clock,  in  stately  style,  and  drew  up  at  the  Windsor  House,  where 
several  of  Mr.  Brown's  old  friends  and  staging  days  associates  had 
assembled  to  meet  him. 

The  dinner  was  elegantly  gotten  up,  and  the  service  everything 
that  could  be  desired.  After  the  eating  had  been  concluded,  John 
S.  Walker,  who  sat  at  the  head  of  the  table,  with  Mr.  Brown,  the 
guest  of  the  occasion,  on  his  right,  and  Leonard  P.  Fisher,  the 
oldest  man  of  the  party,  on  his  left,  called  to  order,  and  in  a  few 
well  chosen  words  introduced  Mr.  Brown,  who  thanked  his  neigh- 
bors and  friends  for  their  kind  remembrance  of  his  eightieth  birth- 
day, and  gave  an  interesting  account  of  some  of  his  experiences  as 
a  stage-driver  before  the  days  of  railroads.  He  was  followed  by 
happy  short  speeches  by  Ira  Colby  and  others.  At  half-past  three 
o'clock,  p.  M.,  the  party  started  on  its  return  trip,  followed  by  the 
cheers  of  the  Windsor  people,  and  arrived  home  safely,  without 
accident  or  mishap,  at  five  o'clock.  A  handsome  collation  was 
provided  at  Mr.  Brown's  house,  to  which  all  were  cordially  invited. 

On  the  eleventh  day  of  February,  1892,  every  member  of  this 
notable  party  of  eighteen  was  living.  Since  that  date  live  of  them 
have  died,  viz. :  February  11,  1892,  Fred.  A.  Tyler,  aged  sixty- 
eight  years;  March  5,  1892,  Samuel  G.  Jarvis,  aged  seventy-six 
years ;  March  27,  1892,  Oscar  J.  Brown,  aged  eighty-four  years ,: 
December  6,  1892,  Leonard  P.  Fisher,  aged  eighty-five  years  ;  Jan- 
uary 8,  1893,  William  E.  Tutherly,  aged  sixty-nine  years. 


HISTORY   OF  CLAEEMONT.  377 

SPECULATION  TIMES. 

The  period  from  1833  to  1837  was  known  as  "  Speculation 
Times "  in  Claremont.  From  the  earliest  settlement  of  the  town 
her  people,  in  matters  of  business,  have  generally  been  conserva- 
tive, and  at  times  they  might,  perhaps,  have  been  considered  over 
cautious  or  slow.  But  this  period  in  her  history  was  an  excep- 
tion, the  conditions  having  been  brought  about  by  causes  easily 
explainable. 

In  September,  1833,  during  Andrew  Jackson's  second  term  as 
president  of  the  United  States,  the  government  deposits,  amount- 
ing to  more  than  ten  millions  of  dollars,  were  removed  from  the 
National  Bank  in  Philadelphia  and  distributed  amongst  certain 
state  banks,  called  "  pet  banks."  This  had  the  effect  to  make  the 
issues  of  paper  money  by  these  banks  very  plentiful,  and  loans  ob- 
tainable on  easy  terms,  which  seemed  to  stimulate  speculation  in 
every  kind  of  commodity  and  real  estate  all  over  the  country. 
The  people  of  Claremont  caught  the  prevailing  fever.  Some  of 
them  saw  in  the  splendid  water-power  of  Sugar  river  the  source 
of  great  wealth,  and  visions  of  a  big  town  or  city  in  the  immediate 
future  distracted  them  —  in  short,  they  lost  their  heads.  In  view 
of  the  brilliant  prospects  water-privileges  were  bought;  farms 
within  a  mile  of  the  center  were  purchased  at  what  a  few  months 
before  would  have  been  thought  fabulous  prices,  laid  out  into 
building  lots,  and  put  into  the  market,  passed  from  one  to  another 
in  rapid  succession,  each  making  a  handsome  profit,  and  specula- 
tion was  indeed  lively. 

A  company  was  formed,  built  a  large  carriage  factory  at  the 
north  end  of  the  upper  bridge,  and  carried  on  an  extensive  busi- 
ness for  a  few  years,  with  apparent  success,  but  finally,  for  some 
cause,  failed,  and  those  who  had  invested  one  hundred  dollars  in 
the  stock  had  to  pay  six  hundred  dollars  to  clear  themselves  from 
their  liabilities.  Another  company  built  the  upper  Monadnock 
mill,  not  knowing  what  it  was  to  be  used  for.  It  stood  unoccupied 
for  many  years,  and  was  then  sold  to  its  present  owners  at  a  large 
discount  from  its  original  cost.     Simeon  Ide,  in  a  small  pamphlet, 


378  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

entitled  "  The  Industries  of  Claremont,"  says  that  about  1836  the 
company  expended  twenty-five  thousand  dollars  in  the  purchase  of 
land,  water-power,  and  the  erection  of  the  mill  building  and  two 
boardiog  and  tenement  houses,  and  in  1844  sold  the  entire  prop- 
erty for  three  thousand  dollars. 

In  1835  and  1836,  the  four  large  brick  houses,  with  tall  pillars 
in  front,  on  the  south  side  of  Central  street,  were  built  by  Charles 
L.  Putnam,  Simeon  Ide,  Ormon  Button,  and  Henry  Russell. 
They  were  then  the  finest  and  most  expensive  houses  within  fift^' 
miles.  During  those  two  years  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty 
buildings,  mostly  dwelling-houses,  were  erected  in  the  village. 
Everybody  had  plenty  of  money  aiid  seemed  to  be  prospering. 

In  1837  the  United  States  Bank  suspended  specie  payments,  as 
did  most  of  the  state  banks,  and  the  great  financial  crash  of  that 
year  immediately  followed.  Many  Claremont  men  had  put  into 
these  speculations  all  the  money  and  credit  they  could  command, 
and  when  the  bubble  burst  they  could  not  meet  their  obligations 
and  thereby  ruined  themselves  and  many  of  their  friends  and 
neighbors.  Specie  was  verj-  scarce  —  not  enough  in  circulation  to 
do  business  with  —  and  after  a  while  the  banks  issued  fractional 
bills.  Hon.  Jacob  Collamer,  of  Vermont,  went  about  in  1840,  lec- 
turing in  the  Harrison  campaign,  and  speaking  of  the  hard  times, 
said :  "  Everybody  ow^es  everybody  and  nobody  has  anything  to 
pay  anybody." 

WEST   CLAREMONT   CADETS. 

In  the  fall  of  1850  an  independent  military  company  was  organ- 
ized at  West  Claremont,  called  the  West  Claremont  Cadets.  At 
a  meeting  of  the  company,  in  D.  P.  Maynard's  hall,  the  following 
ofiicers  were  elected:  Captain,  J.  H.  Cross;  lieutenants,  John 
McConnon,  W.  G.  Kidder,  and  H.  G.  P.  Cross ;  sergeants,  Gawen 
Gilmore,  S.  A.  Higbee,  D.  M.  Keyes,  and  J.  Wilder.  There  were 
about  seventy  members.  It  had  attached  to  it  the  Burpee  Band, 
led  by  Aaron  Burpee,  w^hich  furnished  excellent  martial  music. 
Mr.  Burpee  was  a  famous  drummer.  This  company  attended  an 
independent  muster  at  Newport,  in  a  new  and  showy  uniform,  and 


CENTRAL  STREET. 


HISTORY    OS    CLAEEMONI.  379 

attracted  much  notice.  On  the  twentieth  of  E'ovember  the  ladies 
of  West  Claremont  presented  the  company  a  handsome  silk  ban- 
ner, the  presentation  address  being  made  by  Miss  Ellen  Wetherbee, 
now  the  wife  of  DeWitt  Thrasher,  of  "Weathersfield,  Vt.,  whose 
father,  Jonathan  Wetherbee,  was  toll-gatherer  at  Claremont  bridge 
for  many  years.  In  the  evening  the  cadets  gave  a  grand  military 
ball  in  Maynard's  hall.  The  cadets  paraded  at  the  county  fair,  in 
Claremont  village,  in  1851.  On  the  Fourth  of  July,  1853,  this 
company  made  its  last  public  appearance,  at  the  celebration.  They 
met  the  Norwich  University  Cadets  at  the  High  Bridge,  escorted 
them,  headed  by  the  Windsor  Cornet  Band,  to  a  breakfast  pro- 
vided by  the  West  Claremont  ladies,  in  Wyllys  Redfield's  grounds. 
The  two  companies  then  marched  to  the  village,  where  a  juvenile 
company,  commanded  by  Oapt.  Fred.  A.  Briggs,  met  them  at  the 
lower  bridge,  and  all  marched  up  town  and  took  part  in  the  day's 
celebration.' 

VISIT  OF    GENERAL    LAFAYETTE. 

In  1824  the  congress  of  the  United  States  passed  unanimously  a 
resolution  requesting  President  Monroe  to  invite  Lafayette  to  visit 
the  United  States.  He  accepted  the  invitation,  but  declined  the 
offer  of  a  ship  of  the  line  for  his  conveyance,  and  with  his  son, 
George  Washington  Lafayette,  and  secretary,  took  passage  on  a 
packet  ship  from  Havre  to  New  York,  where  he  landed  on  August 
15,  1824.  His  progress  through  the  country  resembled  a  continu- 
ous triumphal  procession.  He  visited  in  succession  each  of  the 
twenty-four  states  and  all  of  the  principal  cities.  In  December 
consress  voted  him  a  grant  of  two  hundred  thousand  dollars  and  a 
township  of  land,  "  in  consideration  of  his  important  services  and 
expenditures  during  the  American  Revolution." 

Among  the  earliest  of  the  arrangements  for  the  laying  of  the 
corner  stone  of  Bunker  Hill  monument,  on  the  seventeenth  of 
June,  1825,  was  an  invitation  to  General  Lafayette  to  be  present. 
He  so  timed  his  progress  through  the  other  states  as  to  return  to 
Massachusetts  in  season  for  that  great  occasion,  and  was  addressed 


1   This  account  Is  given  on  the  authority  of  C.  H.  Gilmore,  a  son  o£  the  late  Hiram  Gil- 
more,  now  living  at  Cote  St.  Paul,  near  Montreal. 


380  HISTORY    OP   CLAREMONT. 

by  Daniel  "Webster,  in  the  course  of  Ms  oration,  in  feeling  and  fit- 
ting terms. 

General  Lafayette  then  started  on  a  tour  through  New  Hamp- 
shire and  Vermont.  He  visited  the  New  Hampshire  legislature, 
then  in  session  at  Concord,  on  the  twenty-second  of  June,  soon 
after  which  he  started  for  Vermont,  by  way  of  Bradford,  Newport, 
and  Claremont.  He  was  met  at  the  Newport  town  line  by  a  com- 
mittee, cavalcade,  and  many  citizens,  Dr.  Josiah  Richards  being 
chief  marshal.  Tradition  says  that  when  he  reached  the  line  of  this 
town,  it  being  quite  dark,  all  formalities  were  waived,  and  General 
Lafayette  and  his  immediate  party  were  conveyed  quietly  to  the 
Tremont  House,  where  they  passed  the  night  of  the  twenty- 
seventh  of  .June.  The  next  morning  he  was  met  by  the  Claremont 
committee  and  welcomed  to  the  town,  Dr.  Leonard  Jarvis  deliver- 
ing a  short  address.  Dr.  Jarvis  then  conveyed  the  general  to 
Windsor,  Vt.,  in  an  unique  foreign-made  willow  carriage,  now  in 
possession  of  Dr.  Jarvis's  grandson,  in  a  good  state  of  preservation. 

On  September  7,  1825,  G-eneral  Lafayette  sailed  from  Washing- 
ton in  a  frigate  named  in  compliment  to  him,  the  Brandywine. 
On  his  arrival  in  Havre  the  people  assembled  to  make  a  demon- 
stration in  his  honor,  but  were  dispersed  by  the  police. 

UNUSUAL  SEASONS. 

The  winter  of  1779-80  was  an  unusually  severe  one  all  over 
New  England.  On  the  nineteenth  of  October  snow  fell  to  the 
depth  of  t^wo  feet  and  did  not  disappear  until  late  in  the  following 
spring.  Many  cattle  died  of  starvation.  A  day  of  fasting  and 
prayer  was  held  on  account  of  the  sad  prospects. 

May  19,  1780,  the  "  dark  day "  occurred,  which  added  to  the 
gloom  of  the  desolate  winter  just  passed. 

THE  COLD   SEASON. 

The  season  of  1816  is  recorded  and  spoken  of  as  the  cold  sum- 
mer. In  this  section  it  is  said  that  there  was  frost  every  month  in 
the  year.     Eev.  Ebenezer  Price,  in  his  Chronological  History  of 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  381 

Boscawen,  says  that  "  on  the  sixth  of  June,  the  day  of  the  general 
election,  snow  fell  several  inches  deep,  followed  by  a  cold  and 
frosty  night,  and  the  following  day  snow  fell  and  frost  continued. 
July  9th,  a  deep  and  deadly  frost  killed  or  palsied  most  vegetables. 
The  little  corn  which  had  the  appearance  of  maturity  was  desti- 
tute of  its  natural  taste  and  sustenance.  But  the  providence  of 
God  was  bountiful  in  supplying  the  article  of  bread  from  the 
crops  of  rye,  which  were  uncommonly  good."  The  crops  raised 
the  year  before  had  been  almost  entirely  consumed  and  the  means 
of  transportation  were  very  limited,  so  that  provisions  could  not 
be  brought  from  distant  parts,  while  money  was  so  scarce  that  but 
few  could  pay  for  them,  and  a  famine  seemed  imminent.  The 
people  depended  upon  what  could  be  got  from  the  soil  for  their 
support.  It  was  only  by  those  who  had  the  necessaries  of  life  di- 
viding with  those  who  had  not,  that  extreme  suffering  by  man  and 
beast  was  prevented  during  that  period  of  short  crops.  The 
season  of  1817  was  a  favorable  one,  and  crops  of  all  kinds  were 
abundant. 

AEMY  WOEM. 

In  1770,  according  to  E.  D.  Sanborn's  History  of  New  Hamp- 
shire, the  Connecticut  river  valley,  from  Northfield,  Mass.,  to  Lan- 
caster, N.  H.,  was  visited  by  a  species  of  army  worm,  which 
destroyed  most  of  the  crops  and  reduced  the  people  nearly  to  starva- 
tion. In  their  maturity  the  worms  were  as  long  as  a  man's  finger 
and  as  large  in  circumference.  The  body  was  brown,  with  a  velvet 
stripe  upon  the  back,  and  a  yellow  stripe  on  each  side.  They  were 
the  most  loathsome  and  greedy  invaders  that  ever  polluted  the 
earth.  They  marched  from  north  or  northeast  and  passed  to  the 
east  and  south.  They  covered  the  entire  ground,  so  that  not  a 
finger's  breadth  was  left  between  them.  In  their  march  they 
crawled  over  houses  and  barns,  covering  every  inch  of  the  boards 
and  shingles.  Every  stalk  of  corn  and  wheat  was  doomed  by 
them.  The  inhabitants  dug  trenches,  but  they  soon  filled  them  to 
the  surface  and  the  remaining  army  marched  over  their  prostrate 
companions.      They   continued    their   devastations   more  than   a 


382  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

month ;  then  suddenly  disappeared,  no  one  knew  how  or  where. 
Eleven  years  later  a  second  visitation  of  the  same  worm  was  made, 
but  they  were  then  few  in  number.  Potatoes  and  vines  were  not 
eaten  by  them.  Pumpkins  were  abundant  and  very  useful  in  sus- 
taining the  lives  of  men  and  animals  during  the  autumn.  The 
atmosphere  was  also  black  with  flocks  of  pigeons,  which  were 
caught  in  immense  numbers,  and  their  meat  dried  for  winter  use. 

FLOOD. 

In  1771  a  great  freshet  occurred  in  Coos  and  Grafton  counties, 
and  the  rich  Connecticut  river  meadows  were  not  only  submerged 
by  water,  but  in  some  places  buried  two  or  three  feet  with  sand. 
Thus  the  inhabitants  lost  their  crops  for  that  year,  and  the  use  of 
their  fertile  lands  for  several  years  after.  Cattle,  sheep,  swine,  and 
horses  were  swept  away,  and  in  some  instances  families  were 
caught  in  their  dwellings  by  the  tide,  and  were  saved  with  great 
difficulty  by  boats.  Severe  suffering  followed  this  sudden  flood, 
the  greatest,  perhaps,  known  on  the  Connecticut  river. 

CARNIVAL   OF    COASTING. 

One  of  the  notable  seasons  was  the  spring  of  1862.  Early  in 
April  the  snow  in  the  vicinity  of  Claremont  was  fully  three  feet 
deep  on  a  level.  Upon  the  top  of  it  a  crust  was  formed  by  fine 
sleet  and  rain,  followed  by  a  freeze,  perfectly  smooth,  and  so  hard 
and  firm  that  heavy  teams  could  go  all  over  the  lots  without  com- 
ing in  contact  with  fences  or  tree  stumps.  The  people  of  the  town 
—  young,  middle  aged,  and  old  —  left  their  usual  occupations  and 
enjoyed  a  rare  carnival  of  sleighing  and  coasting  on  this  crust. 
The  grounds  known  as  Sullivan  Park  —  now  Pair  View  —  and 
north  of  it  the  powder-house  lot,  west  of  Mulberry  street,  for  days 
and  evenings  were  thronged  with  boys,  girls,  and  frisky  older 
people,  with  hand-sleds,  enthusiastically  coasting  down  the  knolls 
into  the  valleys,  and  spectators  in  sleighs  and  on  foot,  witnessing 
the  sport.  On  the  thirteenth  a  warm  spell  came  on,  the  snow 
melted  under  the  influence  of  an  April  sun,  soon  disappeared,  and 
the  season  was  not  more  backward  than  usual. 


HISTORY    OF   CLARBLMONT.  383 

By  the  town  records  it  appears  that  at  the  annual  meeting  in 
1811,  it  was  "Voted  that  the  inhabitants  be  allowed  to  wear  their 
hats  in  the  meeting." 

In  1823,  "  Voted  that  the  Rev.  Mr.  Nye  be  requested  to  make  a 
prayer."  The  record  is,  "  That  rev.  Gentleman  not  being  present, 
proceeded  to  vote  for  Town  Clerk,  and  George  Fiske  was  chosen, 
the  oath  of  oflBce  was  administered  to  s'd  Clerk  by  J.  H.  Sumner. 
The  rev.  Mr.  Nye  having  come  in  —  offered  up  Prayer — &  then 
the  meeting  proceeded  to  ballot  for  Selectmen." 

In  1833  it  was  "Voted  that  horses,  cattle,  sheep  and  swine  shall 
not  run  at  large  in  the  town  of  Claremont  the  ensuing  year;  and 
that  the  penalty  for  each  and  every  oifense  be  one  dollar." 

LARGE  ELM  TREE. 

A  short  distance  from  the  house,  on  the  old  Hitchcock  farm, 
now  owned  by  Daniel  N.  Bowker,  on  Eed  Water  brook,  stands 
the  largest  elm  tree  in  town.  It  was  j)lanted  by  John  flitehcock, 
more  than  a  hundred  years  ago,  is  still  growing,  sound,  and  healthy. 
A  few  feet  from  the  ground  it  is  nineteen  feet  in  circumference, 
very  tall,  of  graceful  shape,  and  its  branches  cover  an  ai'ea  of  fully 
one  hundred  feet  in  diameter.  Mr.  Hitchcock's  children  watched 
its  growth  with  much  interest  as  long  as  they  lived,  and  his  grand- 
children pay  frequent  visits  to  it. 

FIRST    MUSTER. 

The  first  muster  of  the  militia  in  Claremont  of  which  there  is 
any  known  account,  occurred  October  9,  1806.  According  to  the 
late  Amos  Hitchcock  and  Nahum  "Wilson,  there  was  no  place  where 
a  regiment  could  be  paraded,  and  after  the  day  for  the  muster  was 
appointed  the  men  cleared  one  from  the  town  house  to  near  the 
Prentis  Dow  residence,  on  Broad  street.  A  snow  storm  interfered 
with  the  parade. 

In   the  Claremont  Spectator  of  March  5,  1824,   is  the  follow- 


384  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

ing :  "  Married,  in  tliis  town,  on  "Wednesday  morning  last,  by  J. 
H.  Sumner,  Esq.,  Mr.  Josiali  Jones  to  Mrs.  Rebekah  Picket,  aged 
about  60  years  each. 

"  Who'd  think  Cupid  strong  enough 
To  pierce  two  hearts  so  old  and  tough  ? —  Communicated." 


BIOGRAPHICAL. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

BIOGRAPHICAL   SKETCHEK. 
DK.   TEUMAN  ABELL, 

Son  of  Pliinehas  Abell,  was  born  at  Lempster,  February  16,  1779, 
and  died  there,  May  19,  1853.  He  studied  medicine  with  Dr.  Na- 
than Merrill,  of  Lempster,  passed  an  examination  and  was  licensed 
to  practice  by  a  board  of  the  New  Hampshire  State  Medical  So- 
ciety, soon  after  which,  probably  about  1806,  he  came  to  Clare- 
mont,  where  he  remained  but  a  short  time,  and  then  returned  to 
Lempster,  to  fill  the  place  of  Dr.  Merrill,  who  had  died.  Dr. 
Abell  continued  in  practice — most  of  the  time  being  the  only 
physician  in  that  town  —  until  his  death.  He  devoted  much  time 
to  the  study  of  astronomy,  mathematics,  and  botany,  and  was  au- 
thority upon  these  subjects.  He  was  the  author  of  "  Abell's  New 
England  Farmers'  Almanac,"  which  was  the  popular  almanac  in 
New  England.  He  published  it  annually  for  more  than  fifty  years  ; 
the  last  part  of  the  time,  having  lost  his  eyesight,  he  was  assisted 
by  his  son,  Truman  W. 

THE  AINSWORTHS. 

The  Ainsworths  of  Claremont  are  direct  descendants  of  Edward 
Ainsworth,  born  in  England  in  1652.  He  was  a  seafaring  man 
and  came  to  America  prior  to  1687.  His  grandson,  Edward,  born 
at  Woodstock,  Conn.,  November  21,  1729,  settled  in  Richmond, 
Cheshire  county,  where  for  a  time  he  combined  the  practice  of 
medicine  and  farming,  and  in  1765  removed  to  Claremont  and  de- 
voted himself  to  agriculture.  He  was  the  father  of  ten  children  — 
seven  sons  and  three  daughters.     His  son,  Walter,  had  six  sons, 


388  HISTORY    OE    CLAREMONT. 

viz.:  Harry,  who  died  at  N'orthfield,  A^t,  about  1858;  Ralph, 
father  of  Charles  H.,  of  this  town,  and  James  E.,  living  in  the 
West;  he  died  some  years  ago;  Laban,  father  of  George  J.  and 
Ralph,  of  this  town,  died  May  19,  1881;  Elijah,  who  died  in  Hart- 
land,  Vt.,  about  1780;  Edwin,  who  died  here  November  11,  1868  ; 
and  Edward,  twin  of  Edwin,  father  of  Oliver,  living  in  Michi- 
gan, William  E,  and  Walter  H.,  of  this  town,  died  July  1,  1892. 
Ralph  Ainsworth,  senior,  was  selectman  in  1838,  1841,  and  1842  ; 
Laban  was  selectman  in  1868  and  1869  ;  Edwin  was  postmaster  from 
April  9,  1849,  to  May  5,  1853;  Edward  was  selectman  in  1855  and 
1856,  and  representative  in  1866  and  1867;  Charles  H.,  son  of  Ralph, 
senior,  was  selectman  in  1872  and  1873,  and  representative  from 
1883  to  1885. 

THE   ALDEN   FAmLY. 

John,  James,  and  Benjamin  Alden,  sons  of  John  and  Hannah 
(Kingman)  Alden,  were  born  in  Bridgewater,  Mass.  They  were 
lineal  descendants  of  John  Alden  and  Priscilla  Moline,  his  wife,  who 
came  from  England  in  the  Mayflower  and  landed  at  Plymouth  in 
1620.  They  came  to  Claremont  in  1772,  and  became  joint  owners 
of  a  tract  of  twelve  hundred  acres  of  land  in  the  southeast  part  of 
the  town,  which  was  subsequently  divided  up  among  their  descend- 
ants. James  was  one  of  the  selectmen  in  1782.  From  these  three 
brothers  sprang  numerous  families,  scattered  all  over  the  country 
bearing  their  name. 

LEVI  ALDEN, 

The  oldest  son  of  John,  came  to  Claremont  with  his  father.  He 
was  a  man  of  considerable  activity  and  extensive  business.  Be- 
sides the  care  of  his  farm  he  operated  a  brickyard,  which  turned 
out  many  of  the  bricks  used  in  buildings  erected  in  his  time  in 
town,  manufactured  earthen  ware,  and  carried  on  blacksmithing 
He  married  Bedina,  second  daughter  of  Thomas  Warner,  a  Revo- 
lutionary soldier.  Among  their  children  were  Louisa  M.,  Thomas 
W.,  Levi,  and  Lucinda  C. 

LOUISA   M.    ALDEN 

Married  Jacob  R.  Peterson,  and  was  left  a  widow  with  two  young 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  389 

children.  Before  her  marriage  she  had  taught  school  in  her  own 
and  other  districts  in  town.  She  was  largely  dependent  upon  her 
own  exertions  for  support,  and  having  received  a  good  education, 
opened  a  private  school  in  Claremont,  which  was  very  popular, 
and  well  patronized  for  many  years.  In  1855  she  removed  to 
Janesville,  Wis.,  and  there  established  a  select  school,  which  was 
quite  successful,  and  continued  it  until  near  the  time  of  her  death, 
iN'ovember  6,  1881,  at  the  age  of  eighty-one  years.  Of  her  chil- 
dren, James  died  in  Janesville,  and  Mary  Louisa  is  assistant  post- 
master in  that  city. 

THOMAS  W.   ALDEN, 

Son  of  Levi,  was  born  January  2,  1807,  and  died  January  14,  1892. 
He  married  Huldah  Blodgett,  who  died  April  29,  1892,  at  the  age 
of  eighty-five  years.  He  was  a  thrifty  farmer  in  the  southeast 
part  of  the  town,  and  a  respected  citizen  for  many  years.  They 
left  children  —  Carrie  and  John,  of  this  town,  and  Sarah,  wife  of 
Charles  Hurd,  of  Wapella,  LI. 

LEVI  ALDEN, 

Son  of  Levi,  was  born  in  Claremont,  July  24,  1815,  and  died  at 
Madison,  Wis.,  November  23,  1893.  He  was  educated  at  Unity 
Academy  and  Union  College,  Schenectady,  N.  Y.  He  taught  at 
academies  in  New  York  state  and  Wisconsin.  In  1845  he  settled  in 
Janesville,  Wis.,  v^here  he  soon  began  the  publication  of  the 
Janesville  Gazette,  of  which  he  was  proprietor  for  a  number  of 
years.  He  was  several  times  elected  representative  in  the  Wiscon- 
sin legislature ;  was  clerk  of  the  circuit  court  of  Eock  county  from 
1858  to  1867;  removed  to  Madison,  the  state  capital,  and  was 
elected  superintendent  and  auditor  of  public  printing,  which  posi- 
tion he  held  for  many  years,  and  was  associate  editor  of  the 
Wisconsin  State  Journal.  He  married  Sarah  Ann  Leach,  of 
Fleming,  N.  Y.,  who  died  at  Madison,  January  23,  1873,  leaving 
children  —  Mary  K,  wife  of  George  Judkins,  of  Claremont,  whose 
son,  Levi  Aldeu,  is  observer  in  the  United  States  weather  bureau, 
Boston;  Frances  B.,  wife  of  Frank  C.  Cook,  of  Janesville ;  Louisa 


390  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

J.,  wife  of  Dr.  T.  W.  Evans,  who  died  April  23,  1887;  Sarah  Lo- 
vinia,  wife  of  Dr.  Henry  S.  Hall,  of  Hyattsville,  near  Washington, 
D.  C;  and  Hattie  L.,  who  resides  at  "Washington,  D.  C.  June  19, 
1879,  Mr.  Alden  married  for  his  second  wife  Mary  A.  P.  Dean,  who 
survives  him,  and  resides  at  Madison. 

LUCINDA    C.    ALDEN 

Married  Horace  Baker,  of  Claremont,  who  died  May  13,  1893,  at 
the  age  of  eighty-five  years.  They  have  surviving  children  — 
George  H.,  who  resides  at  West  ISTewton,  Mass. ;  Horace  Albert,  of 
l^ew  York  city  ;  and  Alfred,  of  Janesville,  Wis.  Mr.  Baker  was 
for  many  years  janitor  of  the  Congregational  church  and  a  blame- 
less man. 

EZRA    B.    ALDEN, 

Son  of  Adam,  and  grandson  of  Benjamin  Alden,  died  in  1874. 
His  wife,  Mary  B.  Alden,  who  died  in  1869,  in  her  lifetime  founded 
the  Alden  Literary  Prize  Fund,  of  the  Stevens  High  School,  giving 
to  it  her  entire  estate,  after  the  death  of  her  husband,  which 
amounted  to  about  three  thousand  dollars. 

DK.    ARTHUR   N.    ALLEN, 

Son  of  John  D.  Allen,  was  born  in  Eutland,  Vt.,  August  6,  1868. 
He  graduated  at  Hahnemann  Medical  College,  Philadelphia,  Pa., 
in  April,  1892,  and  commenced  the  practice  of  his  profession  in 
the  following  October. 

W.   H.    H.    ALLEN, 

Son  of  Joseph  Allen,  was  born  in  Wiuhall,  Bennington  county, 
Vt.,  December  10,  1829,  and  died  in  hospital  in  New  York  city, 
April  26,  1893,  when  on  the  return  to  his  home  in  Claremont  from 
Florida,  where  he  went  in  the  hope  of  improving  his  health.  He 
was  of  Puritan  stock  —  a  direct  descendant  from  Samuel  Allen, 
who  came  from  Braintree,  Essex  county,  England,  and  settled  in 
Cambridge,  Mass.,  in  1632.  Ethan  Allen,  of  Eevolutionary  fame, 
was  the  fifth  in  the  line  of  descent  from  Samuel,  through  his  sec- 


W.  H.  H.  ALLEN. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  391 

ond  son,  and  Judge  Allen  was  the  eighth,  through  his  third  son. 
In  1844,  after  living  in  different  places  in  Vermont,  the  last  being 
Hartland,  his  father  returned  with  his  family  to  Surry,  the  place  of 
his  birth.  Judge  Allen  lived  at  home,  working  on  farms  and  at- 
tending public  schools  a  few  months  each  year,  until  he  was  fifteen 
years  old.  After  that  he  attended  the  academies  at  West  Brat- 
tleboro'  and  Saxton's  River,  Vt,  and  Keene,  and  taught  school 
occasionally.  For  eighteen  months  he  was  under  the  tutelage  of 
Joseph  Perry,  of  Keene,  an  accomplished  scholar  and  veteran 
teacher,  by  whose  instruction  he  completed  his  preparation  for  ad- 
mission to  college.  He  entered  Dartmouth  College  in  1851,  and 
graduated  second  in  his  class  in  1855  — Walbridge  A.  Field,  chief 
justice  of  the  supreme  court  of  Massachusetts,  being  the  first. 
The  late  William  S.  Ladd,  of  Lancaster,  ex-judge  of  the  supreme 
court  of  New  Hampshire,  ex-Gov.  I^elson  Dingley,  of  Lewistou  ^ 
Me.,  Charles  A.  Teuney,  who  died  in  1856,  and  Sidney  S.  Harris, 
who  died  in  New  York  city  in  1892,  both  of  Claremont,  were  of 
the  same  class.  Following  his  graduation,  Judge  Allen  was  princi- 
pal of  a  high  school  at  Hopkinton,  Mass.,  and  superintendent  of 
schools  at  Perrysburg,  0.  He  read  law  in  the  offices  of  Wheeler 
&  Faulkner  and  F.  F.  Lane,  Keene,  and  Burke  &  Wait,  Newport, 
and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  at  the  September  term  of  the  court 
for  Sullivan  county  in  1858.  In  November,  of  the  same  year, 
Thomas  W.  Gilmore  resigned  the  clerkship  of  the  courts  for  Sulli- 
van county  and  Mr.  Allen  was  appointed  to  the  position  and  took 
up  his  residence  at  Newport.  He  continued  in  this  office,  trying 
referee  cases  and  doing  much  other  business  now  done  by  the 
judges,  until  1863,  when  he  was  appointed  paymaster  in  the  army, 
which  place  he  held  until  December,  1865.  He  then  returned  to 
Newport,  opened  an  office,  and  commenced  the  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession, and  continued  it  there  and  in  Claremont,  to  which  place  he 
removed  in  1868,  until  1876,  when  he  was  appointed  associate  judge 
of  the  supreme  court  of  New  Hampshire,  which  place  he  resigned 
in  March,  1893,  on  account  of  failing  health.  He  was  judge  of 
probate  for  Sullivan  county  from  January,  1867,  to  July,   1874, 


392  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

and  register  in  bankruptcy  when  the  bankrupt  law  of  1867  went 
into  effect,  and  held  that  office  until  he  was  called  to  the  supreme 
court  bench.  Judge  Allen  was  a  man  of  varied  attainments,  a  pro- 
found scholar,  and  had  the  reputation  of  being  an  upright  judge. 

SAMTJEL  ASHLEY, 

One  of  the  grantees  of  Claremont,  son  of  Daniel  Ashley,  was 
born  in  Deerfield,  Mass.,  March  20,  1720,  and  came  with  his 
father  to  Winchester,  when  quite  a  young  man.  He  was  chosen 
selectman  of  Winchester  in  1755,  and  several  subsequent  years, 
and  was  representative  in  the  provincial  congress  in  1775  and 
1776.  He  had  grants  of  land  by  Governor  Benning  Wentworth 
in  several  towns  on  each  side  of  Connecticut  river  in  New  Hamp- 
shire and  Vermont.  He  was  a  justice  of  the  peace,  and  one  of 
three  persons  in  Cheshire  county  authorized  to  record  deeds.  In 
1775  he  was  appointed  one  of  the  Committee  of  Safety  for  the 
state;  was  a  member  of  the  executive  council  from  1776  to  1780; 
mustering  officer,  superintended  the  enlistment  and  organization 
of  many  of  the  troops  raised  in  the  westerly  part  of  'New  Hamp- 
shire during  the  Revolutionary  war,  and  was  commissioned  colonel 
of  a  regiment.  He  was  a  volunteer  on  the  staff  of  General  John 
Stark,  and  with  him  in  the  battle  of  Bennington,  on  the  sixteenth 
of  August,  1777.  Mr.  Ashley  removed  from  Winchester  to  Clare- 
mont, about  1782,  his  sons,  Oliver  and  Samuel,  Jr.,  having  pre- 
ceded him.  He  died  in  Claremont,  was  buried  in  the  cemetery 
in  the  west  part  of  the  town,  and  his  tombstone  bears  the  following 
inscription : 

In  memory  of  the  Hon.  Samuel  Ashley,  Esq.  Blessed  with  good  natural 
talents,  and  a  heart  rightly  to  improve  them,  he  in  various  departments  of 
civil  and  military  life,  exhibited  a  character  honorable  to  himself  and  useful 
to  others.  Having  presided  for  several  years  in  the  lower  court  of  this  county, 
he  with  probity  and  fidelity  displayed  the  virtues  of  the  patriot  and  Christian 
as  well  in  public  as  domestic  life.  The  small-pox  put  an  end  to  his  earthly 
course  February  18,  1792,  aged  71. 

CAPTAIN   OLIVER  ASHLEY, 

One  of  the  grantees  of  the  town,  was  the  oldest  son  of  the  Hon. 
Samuel   Ashley,   came   to    Claremont   soon   after   the   town  was 


HISTOKY   OF   CLAEEMONT.  393 

granted,  and  was  a  prominent  citizen  for  many  years.  He  was 
a  member  of  |the  first  provincial  congress,  which  assembled  at 
Exeter  on  May  17,  1775,  an  ardent  Whig,  and  very  active  in 
devising  means  for  the  defense  of  the  colony.  He  was  captain, 
and  his  brother,  Samuel,  .Jr.,  lieutenant,  of  a  company  that 
marched  to  Ticonderoga  in  May,  1777;  was  one  of  the  town 
Committee  of  Safety,  and  was  conspicuous  as  a  patriot  in  military 
and  civic  positions  all  through  the  Eevolutionary  War.  In  1775, 
1779,  and  1780,  he  was  selectman ;  moderator  in  1782,  and  rep- 
resentative in  the  legislature  in  1795.  In  1784  he  obtained  a 
charter  and  established  the  ferry  across  Connecticut  river,  since 
known  as  Ashley's  ferry.  He  lived  on  the  farm  known  for 
many  years  as  the  Benajah  Rogers  farm,  now  owned  by  John 
Bailey.  He  died  April  9,  1818,  at  the  age  of  seventy-four  years, 
leaving  by  his  will  five  thousand  dollars,  the  income  of  which 
was  perpetually  to  go  toward  the  support  of  the  Episcopal  church 
at  West  Claremont,  known  as  Union  church. 

WILLIAM   p.    AUSTIN 

Was  the  first  man  in  Claremont  to  offer  his  services  in  the  War 
of  the  Rebellion.  On  April  18,  1861,  he  enlisted  as  a  private 
under  the  call  of  President  Lincoln  for  seventy-five  thousand 
volunteers  for  three  months.  On  the  same  day  he  was  appointed 
recruiting  ofiicer  for  Claremont  and  vicinity,  and  opened  a  re- 
cruiting station.  In  a  few  days  he  had  enlisted  eighty-five  men, 
the  most  of  whom  belonged  in  Claremont.  In  August  of  the 
same  year  he  was  commissioned  first  lieutenant  of  the  first  com- 
pany of  sharpshooters  raised  in  Few  Hampshire,  and  promoted 
to  captain  on  the  twentieth  of  the  next  December.  In  the  second 
battle  of  Bull  Run,  August  30,  1862,  he  was  severely  wounded  in 
the  right  arm  by  a  rifle  ball,  in  consequence  of  which  he  resigned 
May  16,  1863.  On  the  thirteenth  of  the  following  August  he 
was  appointed  captain  in  the  Veteran  Reserve  corps.  He  served 
in  various  official  positions  and  at  different  places  until  May,  1866, 
when  he  was  ordered  to  report  to  the  Commissioner  of  the  bu- 


394  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

reau  of  Eefugees,  Freedmen,  and  Abandoned  Lands,  assigned  to 
duty  in  Virginia,  and  stationed  at  Wytheville.  He  rendered  varied 
and  important  services  to  the  country,  from  April,  1861,  until  his 
death.  He  was  selectman  of  Claremont  in  1855,  1856,  and  1857, 
and  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1863.  He 
died  in  Virginia  in  1891,  and  was  buried  here. 

DR.    CYRCS    E.    UAKER, 

Son  of  the  late  Dimick  Baker,  was  born  in  Plainfield,  April  9, 
1835.  He  was  educated  at  Kimball  Union  Academj';  studied 
medicine  with  the  late  Dr.  Nathaniel  Tolles,  of  Claremont,  and 
Dr.  Edward  E.  Peaslee,  in  New  York  city,  and  took  the  degree 
of  M.  D.  at  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons  in  New  York 
city  in  June,  1862,  standing  one  of  the  first  six  in  a  class  of 
over  two  hundred.  Immediately  after  his  graduation  he  was 
appointed  acting  house  physician  in  the  New  York  state  hospital, 
located  in  New  York  city,  which  position  he  resigned  in  July, 
1862,  to  accept  an  appointment  of  acting  assistant  surgeon  in  the 
United  States  Army,  in  the  War  of  the  Rebellion.  He  served  in 
the  field  with  diiferent  organizations,  and  in  hospitals,  as  his  ser- 
vices were  most  needed,  in  the  department  of  Virginia  and  North 
Carolina,  at  a  time  when  there  was  an  insufficiency  of  medical 
officers,  and  his  duties  often  subjected  him  to  severe  exposures, 
and  were  many  times  extremely  arduous.  He  had  a  sun-stroke, 
and  was  severely  attacked  with  malaria,  disabling  him  to  such  a 
degree  that  in  October,  1863,  he  resigned.  He  then  came  to 
Claremont  and  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession,  which 
was  quite  extensive  for  two  or  three  years,  or  until  he  had  a 
recurrence  of  his  army  troubles,  since  which  his  practice  has  been 
limited  by  impaired  health,  by  reason  of  which  he  receives  a  pen- 
sion from  government. 

EDWARD   DIMICK  BAKER, 

Son  of  the  late  Dimick  Baker,  of  Plainfield,  was  born  April  21 
1827.      Joseph  Baker  came  from    England  and  became  an  early 


€^  ^JL 


HISTORY    OF    CLAKEMONT.  395 

resident  of  the  New  Haven  colony,  probably  prior  tq  1670;  and 
from  him  descended  this  branch  of  the  Baker  family.  Among 
the  first  settlers  of  Plainfield  was  Dr.  Oliver  Baker,  who  came 
from  Tolland,  Conn.,  about  1768,  and  bought  a  farm.  He  had 
received  a  medical  education,  and  practised  his  profession  and 
managed  his  farm  until  his  death,  which  occurred  October  13, 
1811.  He  was  the  paternal  grandfather  of  Edward  D.  Baker. 
His  father's  farm  was  within  a  half  mile  of  Kimball  Union  Acad- 
emy, and  he  attended  that  school  five  years,  working  upon  the 
farm  during  vacations,  and  teaching  school  winters.  When 
twenty-one  years  of  age  he  began  the  study  of  law  in  the  office 
of  Nathaniel  W.  Westgate,  in  Enfield,  and  subsequently  studied 
with  the  late  chief  justice  Henry  A.  Bellows.  He  was  admitted 
to  the  bar  in  Sullivan  county  in  July,  1851,  and  opened  an  office 
at  Cornish  Flat.  In  1855  he  removed  to  Claremont,  and  formed 
a  law  partnership  with  the  late  A.  F.  Snow,  which  continued 
until  September,  1857.  Since  then  he  has  been  alone  in  the  ac- 
tive practice  of  his  profession.  He  is  a  well-read,  painstaking, 
careful  lawyer,  industrious  in  the  preparation  and  trial  of  the 
cases  intrusted  to  him,  and  a  discreet  counselor.  He  was  repre- 
sentative in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1859,  1860,  and 
1885;  been  a  member  of  the  Stevens  High  School  committee, 
and  held  some  other  minor  offices.  He  is  an  extensive  owner  of 
real  estate,  and  an  excellent  financier.  November  12,  1851,  he 
married  Elizabeth  Ticknor,  of  Plainfield,  but  has  no  children. 

GEORGE  LEWIS  BALCOM, 

Sou  of  Jonas  and  Mary  (Kichardson)  Balcom,  was  born  in  Sud- 
bury, Mass.,  October  9,  1819. 

He  is  a  descendant  of  Henry  Balcom,  who  came  to  this  country 
in,  or  previous  to,  1665,  and  settled  in  Charleatown,  Mass.,  where 
he  was  admitted  inhabitant  September  1, 1665,  was  made  tithing- 
man  in  1679,  and  died  February  29,  1683. 

He  married,  first,  Sarah  Smith,  who  died  December  8,  1665. 
Second,  Elizabeth  Haines,  "Deacon  Haines  of  Sudberrie's  daugh- 


396  HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT. 

ter,"  August  12,  1666,  — who  was  born  June  19,  1644,  and  died 
November  20,  1715.  After  his  death,  the  family  settled  in  Sud- 
bury, Mass.,  where  yet  reside  very  many  of  their  descendants, 
although  the  name  of  Balcom  is  there  extinct. 

"When  four  years  old,  George  Lewis,  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
removed  with  his  parents  to  Lowell,  Mass.  He  fitted  for  college  at 
the  Lowell  High  School  and  Westminster,  Mass.,  academy,  and 
entered  Harvard  College  in  1835. 

From  an  aifection  of  the  throat  he  decided  to  abandon  his  inten- 
tion of  a  professional  for  a  business  life,  and  near  the  end  of  the 
Sophomore  year,  he  left  college  and  entered  a  hardware  store  in 
Boston.  He  was  the  lowest  boy  in  the  store,  and  took  that  position 
from  choice,  that  he  might  grow  up  with  the  business.  In  this  way 
he  may  be  said  to  have  served  a  regular  business  apprenticeship, 
same  as  to  a  trade. 

In  January,  1841,  at  the  age  of  twenty-one,  he  went  to  Phil- 
adelphia, where  he  again  found  employment  in  the  hardware 
business,  and  remained  until  1846,  and  then  returned  to  his  native 
state. 

In  1847  he  went  to  Proctorsville,  Vt,  and  for  one  year  was 
book-keeper  in  the  woolen  mill  of  Gilson,  Smith  &  Co.  In  1848 
he  was  made  superintendent,  and  in  1850  he  became  one  of  the 
owners,  and  for  seven  years  was  the  junior  partner  under  the 
firm  of  Smith  &  Balcom.  In  1857  he  sold  his  interest  to  his 
partner,  "William  Smith,  and  removed  to  Claremont,  N".  H.,  having 
purchased  of  Sanford  &  Eossiter  what  was  called  the  Sullivan 
Mills,  which  he  has  operated  to  the  present  time,  1894.  At  the 
same  time,  he  has  at  different  intervals,  about  seventeen  years 
in  all,  had  an  interest  in  the  mill  at  Proctorsville,  Vt. 

He  married,  October  20,  1845,  Anna,  daughter  of  Samuel  West, 
of  Philadelphia.  She  died  July  8,  1881.  They  had  three  chil- 
dren, two  of  whom  died  in  infancy. 

William  Smith  Balcom,  the  only  survivor,  was  born  August 
3,  1850,  and  is  connected  with  his  father  in  the  woolen  business  iu 
Claremont. 


HISTOKT   OF   CLARBMONT.  397 

He  married,  first,  Mary  Euffiier  Bellas,  of  Philadelphia,  Octo- 
ber 8,  1874.  She  died  July  21,  1879,  leaving  one  child,  Bessie 
Richardson  Balcom,  born  August  31,  1876.  Second,  Cecilia 
Challett  Sower,  of  Philadelphia,  January  17,  1883,  and  have  had 
children  —  1,  George  Lewis,  Jr.,  born  August  20,  1884,  died 
October  6,  1884.     2,  Louis  West,  born  June  7,  1888. 

Mr.  Balcom  was  a  representative  from  Cavendish  in  the  legis- 
lature of  Vermont,  in  1855  and  1856,  and  the  extra  session  of  1857, 
and  was  a  member  from  Claremont  in  the  legislature  of  ITew  Hamp- 
shire of  1883-84,  and  a  member  of  the  state  senate  of  1889-90. 
He  is  one  of  the  trustees  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  church  in 
New  Hampshire,  and  has  been  a  delegate  to  the  general  conven- 
tion of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  church  in  the  United  States 
since  1871.  He  has  been  a  trustee  of  the  Holderness  School  for 
Boys  since  its  incorporation  in  1878,  and  is  a  member  of  the 
New  Hampshire  Historical  Society.  He  was  a  delegate  to  the  Re- 
publican national  convention  holden  in  Chicago  in  1884. 

In  1868  he  visited  Europe,  and  traveled  extensively  through 
France,  Italy,  Switzerland,  and  Great  Britain. 

He  has  given  much  attention  to  books,  of  which  he  has  a  col- 
lection of  over  four  thousand  volumes,  consisting  largely  of  Amer- 
ican history,  especially  of  New  Hampshire,  and  with  perhaps  one 
or  two  exceptions,  it  is  the  most  complete  in  the  state. 

Micah  Balcom,  grandfather  of  George  Lewis,  was  a  private  in 
the  Revolutionary  "War,  and  stationed  at  Fort  "Warren.  He  was 
also  a  member  and  officer  in  the  old  time  town  militia,  as  the  fol- 
lowing receipt  will  show : 

Sudbury  Sept  9.  1814. 
Kec'd  of  Corporal  Micah  Balcom  by  the  hand  of  his  son  Joseph,  one  mug  of 
the  best  flip  that  we  have  drank  for  this  several  months  past,  it  being  in  full 
of  our  demands  of  him  for  his  late  promotion  as  an  officer  onto  the  Volunteer 
Company  in  this  town,  which  Capt  Isaac  Gibbs  has  the  honor  to  command. 
I  say  Kec'd  by  us  the  undersigned  being  Cartridge  Makers  for  said  Town. 

Reuben  Maynard    \ 
Peter  Smith  Cartriag^ 

Walter  Haynes       \      '^^'^^^^ 
Abel  Wheeler         \  ■''' 

Samuel  Knights  JrJ      ^^^bury 


398  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

BILL  BARNES 

"Was  a  son  of  Daniel  Barnes  and  of  the  fourth  generation  in 
direct  descent  from  Thomas  Barnes,  who  came  from  England  to 
this  countrj'  in  the  last  quarter  of  the  seventeenth  century.  He 
was  born  at  Farmiugton,  Comi.,  in  1753,  and  came  to  Claremont 
in  1772,  when  nineteen  years  old,  and  bought  a  tract  of  land  on 
the  north  side  of  Sugar  river,  opposite  the  jjresent  village.  A  few 
years  later,  having  made  a  home,  he  returned  to  Farmington,  mar- 
ried a  wife  and  brought  her  home  bj"  an  ox  team.  Soon  after  his 
marriage  Mr.  Barnes  built  the  large  two-story  house  now  standing 
on  North  street,  on  a  site  about  midwaj'  between  Hanover  and 
iN'orth  streets,  and  opened  it  as  a  tavern.  In  accordance  with  the 
general  custom  of  that  time  he  combined  farming  with  keeping  a 
house  of  public  entertainment.  When  the  second  Wew  Hamp- 
shire turnpike  was  opened,  about  1800,  Mr.  Barnes's  tavern  was 
left  some  distance  from  the  line  of  travel,  and  he  had  his  house 
moved  to  its  present  location.  Near  the  present  junction  of 
Spring  and  North  streets  was  a  swinging  sign,  on  which  was  a  lion, 
painted  in  colors  unknown  to  natural  history,  pointing  the  way  to 
"  Bill  Barnes's  Tavern."  In  this  house  was  a  large  hall  in  which 
the  Masons  held  their  regular  meetings  for  a  time,  Mr.  Barnes 
being  an  active  member  of  the  order,  and  it  was  used  for  balls  and 
other  festivities.  By  industry  and  thrift  he  accumulated  a  consider- 
able fortune,  and  when  a  special  tax  was  laid  for  the  support  of 
the  government  during  the  war  of  1812,  he  was  the  third  largest 
taxpayer  in  town.  He  was  a  prominent  member  of  Union  Episco- 
pal church  and  one  of  its  first  wardens.  He  was  selectman  in 
1787  and  1790,  and  held  other  offices  of  trust. 

After  seventeen  years  of  married  life,  July  22,  1793,  his  wife 
died,  leaving  no  issue.  Subsequently  Mr.  Barnes  married  Esther, 
daughter  of  Capt.  Dyer  Spaulding,  of  Cornish,  by  whom  he  had 
six  children,  viz. :  Eunice,  who  married  Timothy  Eastman  ;  Wil- 
liam A.,  killed  by  a  tree  falling  upon  him ;  Ira  K.,  scalded  to  death 
while  boiling  sap;  Orilla,  married  a  Mr.  Brooks;  Lyman  S.,  who 
spent  his  life  on  the  homestead  and  died  there,  November  9,  1888, 


GEN.  G.  W.  BALLOCH. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  399 

and  Ovid  D.,  who  died  September  23,  1856,  on  the  farm  lately 
owned  by  Melvin  Proctor.  Bill  Barnes  died  February  24,  1842, 
at  the  age  of  ninety-four  years,  at  the  old  homestead,  in  which 
four  generations  lived  and  three  of  them  were  born.  It  is  now 
owned  and  occupied  by  his  grandchildren. 

GEOKGE  "WILUAMSON  BALLOCH, 

A  son  of  George  Williamson  and  Amanda  (West)  Balloch,  was 
born  on  December  3,  182o,  in  a  small  house  which  stood  a  short 
distance  south  of  Lottery  bridge,  West  Claremont.  His  grand- 
father, James  Balloch,  came  from  Sterlingshire,  Scotland,  and  set- 
tled in  Cornish,  in  1790.  He  was  a  lineal  descendant  of  Daniel 
Balloch,  King  of  the  Western  Islands,  known  in  Scottish  history 
as  Donald  Dhu  —  Donald  the  Black.  The  name,  Balloch,  is  a 
compound  Gaelic  word,  Bal-loch,  and  means  running  lively,  or 
rippling  water.  The  subject  of  this  sketch  in  his  boyhood  worked , 
at  farming,  attended  the  public  schools,  and  two  terms  of  the  New 
England  Academy,  at  Windsor,  Vt.  In  September,  1844,  he  en- 
tered Norwich,  Vt.,  University,  then  under  the  presidency  of  Gen. 
T.  B.  Eansom,  who  was  killed  at  the  storming  of  Chapultepec, 
Mexico,  September  13,  1847.  He  continued  in  the  university  three 
years.  In  1865  this  university  conferred  upon  him  the  honorary 
degree  of  A.  M.  In  1847  he  joined  the  engineer  corps  of  the 
Sullivan  railroad,  then  being  built,  and  remained  on  that  road 
until  1850,  being  stationed  at  Charlestowii.  That  year  he  entered 
the  service  of  the  Boston  and  Maine  railroad,  and  was  station  agent 
at  South  Reading — now  Wakefield,  Mass., —  and  tilled  different 
positions  on  that  road  until  1856,  when  he  became  general  ticket 
and  freight  agent  of  the  Great  Falls  and  Conway  railroad.  He 
was  town  clerk  of  Somersworth,  in  1856,  1857,  1858,  and  the 
latter  year  was  ap^Dointed  the  first  police  justice  of  that  town.  In 
September,  1861,  he  enlisted  nearly  half  a  company  for  the  Fifth 
Regiment,  New  Hampshire  Volunteei's,  and  on  October  11  of  that 
year  was  commissioned  first  lieutenant  of  Company  D  of  that  regi- 
ment, and  soon  after  arrival  at  the-  front  was  detailed  by  Gen.  0. 
0.  Howard  as  acting  commissary  of  subsistence  of  his  brigade. 


400  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

In  July,  1862,  he  was  appointed  captain  and  commissary  of  sub- 
sistence of  U.  S.  Volunteers,  assigned  to  his  old  brigade,  and  was 
with  it  in  all  its  campaigns  until  General  Howard  was  assigned  to 
the  command  of  the  Eleventh  army  corps,  when  Captain  Balloch 
was  promoted  to  lieutenant-colonel  and  chief  commissary  of  sub- 
sistence of  General  Howard's  corps.  He  served  in  this  capacity  in 
the  Chancellorsville  and  Gettysburg  campaigns,  and  on  the  famous 
bloody  march  of  General  Sherman  through  Georgia  to  Atlanta, 
and  from  Atlanta  to  Savannah,  in  the  summer  and  fall  of  1864 ; 
and  in  the  march  from  Savannah  to  Goldsboro,  in  the  winter  of 
1865,  was  chief  commissary  of  subsistence  of  the  Twentieth  army 
corps,  Army  of  the  Cumberland. 

In  June,  1865,  General  Howard  was  assigned  to  the  position  of 
Commissioner  of  the  Bureau  of  Eefugees,  Freedmen,  and  Aban. 
doned  Lands,  and  Colonel  Balloch  was  made  chief  disbursins: 
officer  of  that  bureau,  which  position  he  held  until  October,  1871, 
when  he  was  appointed  by  the  board  of  public  works  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia,  superintendent  of  streets,  which  position  he 
held  until  the  board  was  abolished  by  congress,  in  July,  1874. 
Since  then  he  has  been  engaged  as  patent  attorney,  insurance 
agent,  and  notary  public.  In  August,  1866,  he  was  promoted  to 
brigadier-general  of  volunteers,  to  date  from  March  13,  1865,  for 
meritorious  service  in  the  subsistence  department  during  the  war. 
He  is  a  prominent  Freemason,  having  received  all  the  degrees  up 
to,  and  including,  the  thirty-third,  and  the  Royal  Order  of  Scot- 
land, and  has  held  many  important  offices  in  this  ancient  order. 

CHAKLES   M.    BrNGHAM, 

Son  of  Nathan  Bingham,  was  born  in  New  London,  Conn.,  in 
1804,  and  died  February  5,  1888.  He  came  to  Claremont  with  his 
parents  in  1808.  He  learned  the  mercantile  business  and  was  in 
trade  in  Chester  and  Reading,  Vt.,  and  Claremont,  from  about 
1828  until  within  a  few  years  of  his  death,  and  was  for  many 
years  a  prominent  and  valued  citizen.  He  was  moderator  of  town 
meetings  many  times  and  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire 


CHARLES  M.  BINGHAM. 


HISTOEY   OF    CLAREMONT.  401 

legislature  in  1873  and  1874.  He  was  an  active  and  influential 
member  and  warden  of  Trinity  church  for  a  long  period. 

JAMES   H.    BINGHAM 

Was  born  at  Lempster,  April  11,  1781,  and  died  at  Washington, 
D.  C,  March  31,  1859.  He  graduated  at  Dartmouth  College  in 
1801.  He  was  a  classmate  and  room  mate  of  Daniel  Webster,  who 
kept  up  a  correspondence  and  friendship  as  long  as  they  lived. 
Mr.  Bingham  studied  law,  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  com- 
menced practice  in  Alstead.  In  1826  he  came  to  Claremont  and 
was  cashier  of  the  first  Claremont  bank  from  its  organization  until 
1842.  He  was  town  clerk  from  1828  to  1838,  and  representative  in 
the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1840  and  1841.  Subsequently 
he  was  for  many  years  clerk  in  the  treasury  department  at  Wash- 
ington, D.  C. 

THE    BONDS. DANIEL  BOND, 

Born  in  Natick,  Mass.,  December  31,  1761,  came  to  Claremont 
about  1775,  and  settled  on  the  farm  in  the  north  part  of  the  town, 
which,  after  his  death,  April  15, 1845,  was  divided  between  his  two 
sons,  George  and  Job.  He  married  Kuth,  daughter  of  Gideon 
Kirtland,  and  they  had  five  children,  three  sons  and  two  daughters. 
The  sons  were  Daniel,  George,  and  Job. 

DANIEL  BOND,   JR., 

Was  born  June  1, 1792,  and  died  March  17, 1882.  His  grandfather, 
Gideon  Kirtland,  was  one  of  the  seven  first  settlers  of  the  town. 
He  bought  four  hundred  acres  of  land,  about  half  a  mile  northeast 
of  the  town  house,  and  settled  upon  it.  It  embraced  land  now 
owned  by  the  heirs  of  Leonard  P.  Fisher,  the  heirs  of  William  E. 
Tutherly,  the  heirs  of  Melvin  Proctor,  and  the  widow  of  Dr.  Har- 
vey M.  Guild.  Mr.  Kirtland  died  April  15,  1805,  and  his  wife 
about  two  years  afterward.  Daniel  Bond,  being  one  of  the  heirs, 
bought  out  the  others,  and  his  son,  Daniel,  in  1817,  took  posses- 


402  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

sion  and  lived  on  the  place  until  his  death.  The  house,  built  by  Mr. 
Kirtland,  is  one  of  the  oldest  in  town.  When  built  the  shingles 
upon  the  house  and  barn  were  fastened  Avith  wooden  pins,  nails 
being  very  expensive.  The  fifty  acres  remaining  of  the  home 
place  and  the  buildings  are  now  owned  by  the  heirs  of  Daniel 
Bond,  Jr., —  Oliver  A.  Bond  and  his  sisters,  Mrs.  Levi  D.  Hall, 
and  Miss  Ellen  M.  Bond  —  and  the  house  is  occupied  by  the  latter. 
Daniel  Bond,  Jr.,  was  a  prominent  Freemason  for  many  years. 

GEORGE   BOND, 

Son  of  Daniel  Bond,  senior,  was  born  May  5,  1794,  and  died  June 
27,  1864      He  was  a  good  farmer  and  respected  citizen. 

JOB    BOND, 

Youngest  son  of  Daniel  Bond,  senior,  died  September  11,  1876,  on 
the  farm  in  the  north  part  of  the  town,  where  he  Avas  born  May  5, 
1794.  He  was  a  cultivated  musician,  and  organist  of  the  Congre- 
gational church  for  many  years. 

DANIEL   S.    BOWKEK, 

Son  of  Elijah  BoAvker,  Avas  born  in  Springfield,  Vt.,  and  died  in 
Claremont,  March  11,  1872,  at  an  advanced  age.  He  was  an  expert 
miller.  He  came  to  town  in  18S7,  carried  on  the  Gilmore  grist- 
mill, at  West  Claremont,  scA^eral  years,  and  afterward  the  Dexter 
mill,  in  the  village.  In  1860  he  bought  of  the  Adam  Dickey  estate 
the  farm  on  Red  Water  brook,  Avhich  Avas  first  settled  on  by  John 
Hitchcock,  there  lived  the  remainder  of  his  life,  and  Avas  succeeded 
by  his  son,  Daniel  N.  Bowker,  Avho  has  since  lived  there.  This 
farm  is  the  birthplace  of  a  large  family  of  Hitchcocks,  Avho  Avere 
prominent  business  men  in  this  and  other  places  for  many  years. 
Mr.  BoAA'ker  Avas  actiA^e  in  tOAvn  affairs  for  many  j'ears ;  selectman 
five  years  — 1849,1860,  1851,  1853,  and  1854  —  and  chairman  of 
the  board  three  years. 

AVILLIAM   BRECK, 

Son  of  Henry  Breck,  Avas  born  in  Croydon,  December  17,  1826, 
and  died  in  Claremont,  December  10,  1889.     He  Avas  assistant  post- 


WILLIAM  BRECK. 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  403 

master  in  this  town,  under  Alonzo  B.  Williamson,  from  1844  to 
1846  ;  partner  of  his  brother,  John  T.  Breck,  in  trade  at  Cornish 
Flat,  from  1848  to  1852,  at  the  end  of  which  time,  by  reason  of 
asthmatic  affection,  he  went  to  California,  where  he  was  in  active 
mercantile  business  eight  years,  when,  having  recovered  his  health 
and  acquired  a  considerable  fortune,  he  returned  to  Claremont, 
which  was  ever  afterward  his  home.  For  several  years  he  was  a 
director  in  the  Claremont  JSTational  Bank,  the  Sullivan  Savings  In- 
stitution, and  the  Sugar  River  Paper  Mill  Company.  He  was  a 
representative  in  the  l^ew  Hampshire  legislature  from  1883  to 
1885.  On  October  7,  1868,  he  married  Susan  L.,  daughter  of 
the  late  George  N.  Farwell,  by  whom  he  had  one  daughter, 
Sarah  McDonald  Breck. 

OSCAE  J.   BKOWN 

Was  born  at  Hartford,  Vt.,  October  22,  1808,  and  died  in  Clare- 
mont, March  27,  1892.  His  ancestors  came  from  the  state  of 
Connecticut  to  Westmoreland,  and  from  there  removed  to  Hart- 
ford, Vt.  His  father,  Amos  BroAvn,  died,  leaving  a  widow  and 
five  young  children  —  three  sons  and  two  daughters  —  of  whom 
Oscar  J.  was  the  oldest,  and  became  and  continued  during  the 
life  of  each  the  adviser  and  helper  of  such  of  them  as  needed 
help,  as  long  as  he  lived.  In  1832  he  commenced  driving  stage 
from  Hanover  to  Royalton,  Vt.,  twenty-five  miles,  and  soon  be- 
came proprietor  of  the  line.  In  1835  he  came  to  Claremont 
and  was  part  owner  of  the  line  of  stages  from  Walpole  to 
Chelsea,  Vt.,  a  distance  of  eighty-three  miles,  being  himself  one 
of  the  drivers.  From  time  to  time  he  was  connected  as  owner 
and  driver  with  different  stage  lines,  having  for  partners  Benj. 
P.  Cheney,  now  of  Boston,  Nathaniel  White,  late  of  Concord, 
and  Paran  Stevens.  From  1832  to  1885,  with  many  changes  of 
lines  and  routes,  he  was  almost  constantly  connected  with  the 
staging  and  livery  business  —  his  last  being  as  owner  of  the 
staging  from  Claremont  village  to  the  Junction  and  village  rail- 
road stations.  In  all  this  period  of  fifty-three  years  he  never 
met  with  a  serious  accident,  injured  a  passenger,  or  killed  a 
horse.     He  was  known  as  a  careful  and  expert  driver. 


404  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

In  1850  Mr.  Brown  erected  a  one-story  wooden  block  of  stores, 
on  the  corner  of  Pleasant  and  Sullivan  streets,  where  Union 
block  now  is,  and  added  two  stories  to  it  in  1854.  This  build- 
ing was  destroyed  by  fire  March  26,  1887.  In  1860  he  built  the 
brick  block  on  the  opposite  corner  of  Pleasant  street,  and  other 
buildings  and  dwellings  during  his  residence  in  the  town.  He 
was  a  strong,  energetic  man,  and  his  life  an  active  and  always 
busy  one. 

In  1849,  when  the  Sullivan  railroad  was  opened  for  business, 
Mr.  Brown  was  the  first  passenger  conductor  on  it,  which  po- 
sition he  resigned  after  a  few  months'  service.  In  1857  and 
1858,  and  in  1874  and  1875  he  was  a  representative  in  the 
ISTew  Hampshire  legislature.  To  celebrate  his  eightieth  birth- 
day, October  22,  1888,  seventeen  gentlemen  among  his  older 
neighbors,  in  compliment  to  him,  his  age  and  reputation  as  a 
stage  man,  having  provided  a  Concord  stage-coach,  with  eight 
spirited  gray  horses  attached  to  it,  invited  Mr.  Brown  to  drive 
them  to  Windsor,  Vt.,  for  a  dinner. 

In  February,  1836,  Mr.  Brown  married  Miss  Lavinia  Porter, 
of  Thetford,  Vt.,  who  died  March  20,  1883,  leaving  to  mourn 
her  decease  a  husband  and  two  children — Frank  H.  Brown,  a 
member  of  the  Sullivan  county  bar,  and  Susan  Amanda,  the 
wife  of  Henry  Judkins. 

ABEL    BUNNELL 

Came  from  Guilford,  Conn.,  in  1775,  and  located  on  the  west 
side  of  Green  mountain,  on  what  was  afterward  for  many  years 
the  David  Dodge  farm,  where  he  found  a  spring  of  good  water. 
He  brought  his  wife,  one  child,  and  everything  else  he  pos- 
sessed on  horseback.  He  brought  some  apple  seeds  in  his 
pocket,  planted  them,  and  some  of  the  trees  are  now  living 
and  bear  fruit.  He  was  twice  married,  and  had  eighteen  chil- 
dren. His  second  wife  was  Mrs.  Dodge,  mother  of  the  late 
David  Dodge.  He  died  September  27,  1847,  at  the  age  of  eighty- 
nine  years. 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  405 

EDWIN  A.    CHARLTON, 

Son  of  Walter  Charlton,  was  born  in  Littleton,  September  29, 
1828,  and  at  an  early  age  came  with  his  father's  family  to  Clare- 
mont.  He  graduated  at  Dartmouth  College  in  1854.  He  was 
for  a  time  principal  of  Claremont  academy,  and  taught  in  other 
schools.  He  was  the  author  of  the  historical  part  of  the  book 
entitled  "New  Hampshire  As  It  Is,"  published  in  1855.  He 
lives  at  Brodhead,  Wis.,  and  is  editor  of  the  Brodhead  Inde- 
pendent. 

ST.   REV.    CARLTON  CHASE,  D.   D., 

Son  of  Charles  Chase,  a  well-to-do  farmer,  was  born  at  Hopkin- 
ton,  February  20,  1794.  He  graduated  at  Dartmouth  College 
second  in  his  class,  in  1817.  During  the  last  year  of  his  college 
course  he  was  baptized  at  Hopkinton,  and  united  with  the  Episco- 
pal church.  He  read  theology  at  Bristol,  R.  I.,  under  the  direc- 
tion of  Bishop  Griswold;  was  made  a  deacon  in  December, 
1818;  from  May  to  July,  1819,  he  officiated  at  Springfield,  Mass., 
and  in  September  of  the  same  year  cdmmenced  his  work  at 
Bellows  Falls,  Vt,  officiating  one  third  of  the  time  in  St.  Peter's 
church,  Drewsville,  N.  H.,  for  a  year  or  more,  after  which  his 
whole  time  was  given  to  Immanuel  church,  Bellows  Falls.  He 
was  ordained  priest  by  Bishop  Griswold,  in  Newport,  E.  I.,  on 
September  28,  1820.  In  1839  he  received  the  degree  of  Doctor 
of  Divinity  from  the  University  of  Vermont.  He  continued  rec- 
tor of  Immanuel  church  until  April  7,  1844.  On  October  4, 
1843,  Dr.  Chase  was  elected  bishop  of  the  diocese  of  New  Hamp- 
shire. He  removed  to  Claremont  early  in  1844,  and  in  addition 
to  his  duties  of  bishop  took  charge  as  rector  of  Trinity  church 
the  first  Sunday  after  Easter  of  that  year,  which  he  continued 
until  1863,  when  he  relinquished  it  by  reason  of  infirmities 
consequent  upon  advancing  age,  and  the  requirements  of  the 
diocese.  He  was  consecrated  bishop  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
church  in  the  state  of  New  Hampshire,  in  Christ  church,  Phila- 
delphia, by  the  Rt.  Rev.  Philander  Chase,  D.  D.,  on  Octo- 
ber 20,  1844.     He   died   at   his  residence  in  Claremont  on  Janu- 


406  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

ary  18,  1870.  His  funeral  took  place  on  the  twenty-fifth,  in 
Trinity  church,  and  was  attended  by  Bishops  Williams,  of  Con- 
necticut, and  Bissell,  of  Vermont;  many  Episcopal  clergymen 
of  this  and  other  states;  the  clergymen  of  the  town;  the  Ma- 
sonic fraternity,  of  which  he  had  been  for  many  years  a  revered 
member,  and  a  large  concourse  of  citizens  of  the  different  de- 
nominations, who  loved  him  for  his  tolerance,  uniform  kindness, 
and  many  virtues. 

ARTHUR  CHASE 

Was  born  at  Bellows  Falls,  Vt.,  October  31,  1835.  He  was  a 
son  of  Bishop  Carlton  Chase;  graduated  at  Norwich  University 
in  1856;  read  law  with  George  Ticknor,  in  Claremont;  gradu- 
ated at  Cambridge  Law  School  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in 
1859.  He  was  never  much  in  the  practice  of  his  profession. 
He  died  suddenly  IvTovember  20,  1888. 

DANIEL    CHASE 

Came  from  Sutton,  Mass.,  to  Cornish,  and  removed  from  the 
latter  place  to  Claremont  in  1792.  He  kept  a  tavern  on  the 
north  side  of  Sngar  river,  in  a  house  next  west  of  the  Colonel 
Dexter  place,  and  owned  and  drove  a  stage  to  Windsor,  Vt. 
In  1794  he  built  the  house  on  the  south  side  of  the  river  and 
opened  it  as  a  tavern  the  next  year,  which  was  known  until 
after  his  death,  which  occurred  December  2,  1840,  as  Daniel 
Chase's  Tavern,  and  since  April,  1841,  as  the  Sullivan  House. 
Mr.  Chase  was  a  Freemason,  and  in  his  hall  this  fraternity 
held  their  regular  meetings  for  many  years.  He  had  thirteen 
children  born  to  him  while  he  kept  this  tavern.  His  oldest 
daughter  was  the  wife  of  Austin  Corbin,  of  ITewport,  and  the 
mother  of  Austin  Corbin,  the  jSTew  York  banker  and  railroad 
official. 

DUDLEY  T.   CHASE, 

Son  of  Col.  Leebbeus  Chase,  was  born  in  Cornish,  April  2, 
1823.     He  fitted  for  college  at  Kimball  Union  Academy;  gradu- 


f. 


BELA  CHAPIN. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  407 

ated  at  Dartmouth  College,  i-ind  received  the  degrees  of  A.  M. 
and  A.  B.  in  1848  ;  attended  Yale  Law  School  in  the  summer 
of  1847;  read  law  with  ex-Gov.  Carlos  Coolidge  and  Warren 
Currier,  at  Windsor,  Vt. ;  admitted  to  Windsor  county,  Vt., 
and  Sullivan  county  bars  in  1849,  and  as  counselor,  attorney, 
proctor,  and  solicitor  at  the  United  States  circuit  court,  at  Wind- 
sor, in  1859.  He  was  located  at  Windsor  and  was  in  the  active 
practice  of  his  profession  in  Windsor  and  Sullivan  counties  from 
1849  to  1863.  In  the  latter  year,  on  account  of  his  impaired 
health,  he  gave  up  practice  and  removed  to  Claremont,  where 
he  has  since  been  engaged  in  farming. 

liELA  CHAriN, 

Born  in  Newport,  February  19,  1829,  is  descended  in  the 
seventh  generation  from  Deacon  Samuel  Chapin,  who  emigrated 
to  this  country  and  settled  in  Springfield,  Mass.,  in  1642. 
His  education  was  acquired  in  the  public  schools  and  Kimball 
Union  Academy.  In  1847  he  came  to  Claremont  and  entered 
the  office  of  the  National  Eagle,  where  he  learned  the  print- 
ing business.  Afterwards  he  worked  as  a  compositor  in  Keene, 
Concord,  and  elsewhere.  Then  he  returned  to  his  native  town, 
where  he  carried  on  farming  a  few  years,  then  sold  his  farm 
and  bought  the  Dartmouth  Press  printing  establishment  and 
bookbindery,  at  Hanover,  where  he  remained  as  college  printer 
until  about  1870,  when  he  sold  his  office  and  bookbindery 
and  returned  to  Claremont  and  bought  the  farm  where  he  has 
since  lived,  devoting  his  time  to  the  cultivation  of  flowers,  the 
raising  of  thoroughbred  cattle,  and  to  general  farming.  Mr. 
Chapin  has  employed  his  leisure  hours  among  his  books. 
He  has  a  good  library  of  more  than  a  thousand  volumes,  which 
he  has  selected  w^ith  great  care,  embracing  standard  works  of 
history,  science,  and  literature.  He  has  been  a  discriminating 
reader  and  industrious  student,  and,  like  some  other  printers, 
has  been  a  writer  of  verses.  While  an  apprentice  he  wrote  sev- 
eral short  poems,  which  were  published  and  commended  without 


408  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

the  author  being  known.  He  has  been  a  contributor  to  various 
periodicals.  Lyrics  of  his,  with  portrait  and  biographical  sketchy 
are  included  in  a  large  volume  of  American  Poets,  published 
a  few  years  ago  in  Chicago,  and  he  is  also  represented  in  vari- 
ous other  collections  —  mostly  published  at  the  West.  In  1883 
he  collected  the  material  and  compiled  "  The  Poets  of  ISTew 
Hampshire,"  a  volume  of  eight  hundred  pages,  which  was  pub- 
lished by  C.  H.  Adams,  Claremont,  IT.  H.,  and  met  with  a 
ready  sale.  He  has  made  translations  in  Spenserian  stanza  from 
Virgil's  ^neid,  which  have  been  well  received,  and  more  re- 
cently has  completed  a  rhymed  verse  translation  of  the  entire 
Eclogues  of  the  same  Roman  poet.  Appended  is  a  single  one 
of  Mr.  Chapin's  many  poetic  effusions : 

A   HYMN. 

O  Lamb  of  God,  who  died  for  all, 

Thou  who  didst  die  for  me. 
In  penitence  on  thee  I  call, — 

Give  me  a  hope  in  thee. 

Amid  the  vanities  of  life. 

Oh,  keep  my  spirit  free, 
From  sin's  allurements  and  from  strife, 

And  give  me  peace  in  thee. 

And  may  I  oft  in  worship  sweet 

Before  thee  bend  the  knee ; 
And  do  thou  guide  my  wayward  feet 

And  grant  me  faith  in  thee. 

Forgive  the  wrong  that  I  have  done. 

Of  whatso'er  degree; 
And  give  me  grace,  thou  Holy  One, 

To  spend  my  days  for  thee. 

Whatever  ills  my  life  betide 

Whate'er  is  mine  to  see. 
Oh,  may  I  still  in  hope  abide. 

And  rest  secure  in  thee. 


WILLIAM  CLARK. 


HISTORY    OP   CLAKEMONT.  409 

When  my  departing  hour  is  near, 

Oh,  joyful  may  it  be 
To  cross  death's  stream  devoid  of  fear, 

Upheld,  dear  Lord,  by  thee. 

BURT   CHELLIS, 

Son  of  Freeman  S.  Chellis,  was  born  in  Claremont,  September 
19,  1860.  He  graduated  at  Stevens  High  School  in  June, 
1878,  and  at  Dartmouth  College  in  1883.  He  read  law  in  the 
office  of  BLernion  Holt,  and  was  admitted  to  the  New  Hamp- 
shire bar  in  June,  1883,  soon  after  opened  an  office  in  Clare- 
mont, and  has  since  been  in  practice  here.  He  was  elected 
moderator  of  the  annual  town  meetings  in  1887  and  1891,  and 
in  November,  1892,  for  two  years.  In  1890  he  was  elected 
county  solicitor,  and  re-elected  in  1892. 

WILLIAM   CLARK, 

Son  of  Moses  Clark,  was  born  March  9,  1819,  on  the  old  road 
to  Newport,  about  three  miles  from  Claremont  village,  and 
lived  in  town  until  his  death,  which  occurred  May  30,  1883. 
He  worked  on  his  father's  farm,  attending  schools  in  the  dis- 
trict a  few  months  each  year,  xmtil  he  reached  his  majority, 
when  he  engaared  with  Eufus  Carlton  in  the  butchering  and, 
meat  business,  and  subsequently  with  Philemon  Tolles,  on  sal- 
ary^, and  then  on  his  own  account,  and  with  Henry  C.  Covvles 
as  partner.  In  1857  he  disposed  of  his  interest  in  the  meat 
business  and  formed  a  copartnership  with  Albert  H.  Danforth, 
under  the  firm  name  of  Clark  &  Danforth,  in  the  wholesale 
Hour  and  grain  trade,  which  he  continued  until  1871.  In  1853 
Mr.  Clark  was  chosen  one  of  the  selectmen  and  held  that  office 
fifteen  years,  ten  of  which  he  was  chairman  of  the  board ;  was 
county  commissioner  from  1864  to  1867,  and  town  clerk  from  1871 
to  1873.  As  executor  and  administrator  he  settled  several  estates, 
—  some  of  them  large  and  complicated.  In  1876  he  was  appointed 
judge  of  probate,  which  office  he  held  until  his  death. 


410  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT, 

IRA  COLBY, 

Oldest  son  of  the  late  Ira  Colby,  was  born  in  Claremout,  January 
11,  1831.  His  parents  came  from  Henniker,  of  which  town  his 
father  was  a  native,  and  settled  here  in  1827.  Both  parents  were 
of  pure  English  descent.  His  father  was  a  thrifty  and  highly 
respected  farmer  on  Bible  hill.  He  served  the  town  as  select- 
man in  1858  and  1859,  and  was  representative  in  the  Isew  Hamp- 
shire legislature  in  1872  and  1873,  and  died  in  1873.  His  mother's 
family  name  was  Foster,  being  a  direct  descendant  from  Reginald 
Foster,  who  came  from  Exeter,  Devonshire,  England,  and  settled 
in  Ipswich,  Essex  county,  Mass.,  in  1638.  She  was  living  in  the  fam- 
ily of  her  son  Ira  in  1894,  at  the  age  of  ninety-one  years.  The  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch  was  brought  up  on  the  Bible  hill  farm,  with  no 
advantages  for  acquiring  an  education  other  than  those  afforded  by 
a  public  school  in  a  back  district,  until  he  was  seventeen  years  old. 
After  this  he  attended  Marlow  academy'  for  a  time,  completed  his 
academical  course  at  Thetford,  Vt,  and  entered  Dartmouth  College 
in  1853,  graduating  in  1857.  During  the  winters,  from  the  time  he 
began  his  academical  course  to  that  of  his  graduation  from  college 
and  for  one  year  thereafter,  he  engaged  in  teaching,  —  first  in  his 
own  state,  and  afterward  in  Massachusetts  and  "Waukesha,  Wis. 
In  1858  he  entered  the  office  of  Freeman  &  McClure,  then  the  lead- 
ing lawyers  of  Claremont,  as  a  student.  After  two  years  of  study 
he  was  admitted,  on  examination,  to  the  bar  of  Sullivan  county. 
Mr.  McClure  died  September  1,  1860,  soon  after  which  Mr.  Free- 
man retired  and  Mr.  Colby  succeeded  to  the  office  and  a  large 
share  of  the  business  of  the  firm  of  Freeman  &  McClure.  He  had 
as  partners  Lyman  J.  Brooks  and  Alfred  T.  Batchelder  —  both  now 
of  Keene  —  three  or  four  years  each.  With  these  exceptions  he  has 
been  alone  in  business  and  occupied  the  same  office,  in  the  north 
end  of  the  Farwell  block,  for  more  than  thirty-five  years.  Several 
young  men  now  in  successful  practice  have  read  law  with  him.  He 
has  been  a  leading  member  of  the  Sullivan  county  bar  almost  ever 
since  his  admission  to  it ;  has  had  a  large  and  constantly  increasing 
practice  ;  been  engaged  — generally  as  senior  counsel  —  in  the  trial 


HISTORY   OP   CLAREMONT.  411 

of  nearly  every  cause  of  any  considerable  importance  before  the 
courts  in  the  county,  and  ranks  with  the  first  lawyers  in  the  state 
as  an  advocate  before  the  jury. 

In  politics  Mr.  Colby  is  an  active  and  influential  Republican,  and 
being  of  the  dominant  party  in  town,  has  been  honored  with  many 
offices,  all  of  which  he  has  filled  with  ability  and  credit.  He  was 
representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1864,  1865, 
1881,  1883,  and  1887,  and  state  senator  in  1869  and  1870.  He  took 
a  leading  part  in  each  branch  in  committees,  and  on  the  floor  as  a 
debater. 

From  1864  to  1888,  with  the  excexition  of  two  years,  by  appoint- 
ment and  election,  he  held  the  office  of  solicitor  for  Sullivan  county. 
He  was  delegate  at  large  from  New  Hampshire  to  the  Republican 
national  convention  in  1876.  In  1889  he  was  appointed  by  the 
governor  and  council  one  of  a  commission  of  three  to  revise,  codify, 
and  amend  the  Public  Statutes  of  New  Hampshire,  which  were 
published  in  1891.  On  the  resignation  of  Judge  Allen,  in  March, 
1893,  Mr.  Colby  was  appointed  associate  justice  of  the  supreme 
court,  which  position  he  declined. 

In  1867  he  married  Miss  Louisa  M.  Way,  by  whom  he  had  two 
children, —  a  son  and  a  daughter.  The  latter  died  in  early  child- 
hood. The  son,  Ira  Gordon  Colby,  graduated  at  Dartmouth  Col- 
lege in  1894,  and  is  now  a  student  in  the  law  department  of  Boston 
University. 

SAMUEL  COLE 

"Was  a  graduate  of  Yale  College  in  1768,  was  among  the  earliest 
settlers  of  the  town,  often  read  the  Episcopal  service  for  several 
years,  and  was  very  capable  and  useful  as  an  instructor  of  youth 
for  a  considerable  period.  He  was  a  justice  of  the  peace,  and 
town  clerk  in  1771, 1772,  and  1773.     He  died  here  October  19,  1777. 

JOHN  COOKE. 

About  1779  Captain  John  Cooke  came  from  Norton,  Conn.,  with 
his  wife,  who  was  a  Miss  Godfrey,  of  Taunton,  Mass.,  and  five 
children,   and  bought  the   tavern   stand   and   large  and  valuable 


412  HISTORY    OF   CLAEEMONT. 

meadow  farm  on  the  river  road,  about  midway  between  the  present 
village  of  Claremont  and  Windsor,  Vt.,  which  was  long  known  as 
the  Godfrey  Cooke  place,  now  owned  by  Erastus  Reed.  Their 
youngest  son,  Godfrey,  was  born  here  on  July  22,  1780.  The 
old  tavern  house  was  on  the  west  side  of  the  highway,  and  there 
it  stood  until  1858.  After  the  death  of  Mr.  Cooke,  which  oc- 
curred February  8,  1810,  he  was  succeeded  by  his  two  sons, 
George  and  Godfrey.  Under  their  management  this  tavern  was 
famous,  and  said  to  have  been  the  best  kept  one  on  the  road 
between  Keene  and  Haverhill.  This  was  the  regular  stage  road 
from  Boston  to  northeastern  Vermont. 

In  June,  1825,  when  General  Lafayette  was  on  his  tour  through 
New  England,  and  on  the  way  from  Concord  into  Vermont,  it 
was  arranged  that  he  should  pass  a  night  at  this  hostelry,  and  a 
large  number  of  Dartmouth  College  students  were  there  to  meet 
him.  But  by  reason  of  the  lateness  of  his  arrival  in  town,  he 
passed  the  night  in  the  village,  at  the  Tremont  House.  The 
next  day,  on  their  way  to  Windsor,  the  party  called  at  the  Cooke 
tavern,  and  Lafayette  partook  of  some  choice  old  wine.  It  was 
here  that  Paran  Stevens,  the  famous  American  hotel  proprietor 
and  manager,  is  said  to  have  received  his  first  lessons  in  hotel 
keeping,  under  the  direction  of  his  uncle,  Godfrey  Cooke. 

There  is  a  family  tradition  that  a  bushel  of  continental  money 
changed  hands  when  the  old  tavern  house  was  bought,  which,  in 
view  of  the  rapid  depreciation  of  that  currency  about  that  time, 
proved  a  fortunate  venture  for  Captain  Cooke. 

The  oldest  daughter  of  Captain  Cooke,  Matilda,  married  Colo- 
nel Josiah  Stevens,  the  father  of  Deacon  Josiah,  Godfrey,  Alvah, 
and  Paran  Stevens,  and  his  daughter  Miranda  married  Samuel 
Fiske.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  from  two  of  Matilda  Cooke's 
children  the  town  has  received  liberal  endowments  to  the  Stevens 
High  School  and  the  Fiske  Free  Library. 

In  1825  Godfrey  Cooke  built  the  house  shown  in  the  illustration, 
now  occup)ied  by  Erastus  Reed.  It  is  on  the  east  side  of  the  high- 
way, nearly  opposite  the  site  of  the  old  tavern  house.  Of  Captain 
Cooke's  direct  descendants,  there  is  but  one  in  the  third  gener- 


AMBROSE  COSSIT. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  413 

ation,  Mrs.  M.  E.  Partridge ;  in  the  fourth  generation,  Mrs.  Charles 
H.  Long,  Mrs.  George  F.  Long,  Miss  Emma  F.  Cooke,  and  Miss 
M.  E.  Partridge ;  in  the  fifth  generation,  Frederick  S.  and  Mary 
E.  Shepard,  and  John  F.  Long,  all  living  in  Claremont.  Miss 
Emma  F.  Cooke  is  the  only  descendant  bearing  the  name  of  Cooke. 
Edward  A.  Partridge,  the  husband  of  Mrs.  M.  E.  Partridge,  was  a 
graduate  of  Dartmouth  College  in  1846,  and  as  engineer,  of  Nor- 
wich University.  He  was  an  engineer  on  the  Sullivan  railroad 
while  it  was  being  built,  and  died  in  1855. 

AMBKOSE   COSSIT 

€ame  from  Granby,  Conn.,  where  he  was  born  in  1749,  to  Clare- 
mont in  1767,  when  eighteen  years  old.  He  married  Anna  C, 
■daughter  of  Samuel  Cole,  February  1,  1778.  Before  he  was 
twenty-one  years  old  he  established  a  country  store  at  what  is 
now  the  corner  of  Broad  and  Chestnut  streets,  on  the  spot  where 
Almon  F.  Wolcott's  house  now  stands,  and  it  is  said  brought 
the  first  barrel  of  flour  into  town.  He  bought  the  farm  at  the 
south  end  of  Broad  street,  and  lived  there  until  his  death,  July 
13,  1809.  He  was  succeeded  in  the  store,  and  as  owner  of  the 
farm  by  his  son,  Ambrose  —  the  late  Judge  Cossit  —  he  by  his 
son,  John  F.,  who  spent  his  life  there,  and  at  his  death  by  his 
onh'  child,  Henry  A.  Cossit,  who  now  lives  there.  Ambrose 
Cossit,  senior,  was  a  justice  of  the  peace,  and  as  such,  did  a  great 
deal  of  business,  such  as  solemnizing  marriages,  making  deeds, 
etc.  He  was  seven  times,  from  1782  to  1791,  elected  selectman, 
and  six  times,  from  1792  to  1797,  town  clerk. 

AMlUtOSE     COSSIT 

Was  born  in  Claremont  on  August  28,  1785 ;  was  a  son  of  Am- 
brose Cossit,  and  at  the  centennial  celebration,  July  4,  1865,  was 
the  oldest  native  citizen  in  town.  He  was  president  of  the  Clare- 
mont bank  from  its  organization,  in  1848,  until  the  organization 
was  changed  to  the  Claremont  K"ational  Bank,  in  1864.  He  was 
selectman   in   1823,  1824,  and   1833,  representative   in  the   New 


414  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

Hampshire  legislature  in  1824,  and  postmaster  from  August  30, 
1842,  to  April  17,  1843.  He  was  appointed  side  or  county  justice 
of  the  courts  for  Sullivan  county,  January  8,  1833,  and  held  that 
position  until  the  office  was  abolished  by  the  remodeling  of  the 
courts  in  1855.     He  died  April  7,  1866. 

DK.   ALYAH  R.    CUMMINGS 

Was  born  in  Acworth,  August  27,  1826.  He  iitted  for  college 
at  Marlow  and  Hancock  academies.  He  studied  medicine  with  Dr. 
William  Grout  at  Camden,  Ohio,  and  Dr.  J.  'S.  Butler  at  Lempster. 
He  attended  lectures  and  took  the  degree  of  M.  D.  at  Dartmouth 
College  in  1852.  He  practiced  at  Topsham,  Vt,  and  Washington, 
]Sr.  H.,  three  years ;  in  the  winter  of  1855-56  he  attended  a  course 
of  lectures  at  the  New  York  Aledical  College,  and  came  to  Clare- 
mont  in  March,  1856,  and  has  been  in  practice  here  since  that 
time. 

DAVID    DEXTEK 

Was  born  in  Smithfield,  R.  I.,  was  a  lineal  descendant  of  Gregory 
Dexter  and  Eev.  Charles  Brown,  of  Providence,  li.  I.  He  was  a 
captain  in  1776  in  Colonel  Lippitt's  regiment.  Soon  after  the  close 
of  the  war,  probably  between  1780  and  1790,  he  came  to  Clare- 
mont,  married,  and  had  several  children.  In  1800  he  and  his 
brother  Stephen  erected  a  dam  across  Sugar  river,  at  the  upper 
fall,  put  up  suitable  buildings  for  grist,  saw,  and  oil  mills,  and  a 
scythe  shop,  all  of  Avhicli  were  run  by  water.  This  scythe  shop 
was  the  first  established  in  these  parts,  and  was  a  great  wonder 
in  those  days.  The  scythe  business  was  continued  until  1824, 
and  the  other  branches  of  business  above  named  by  the  brothers 
until  the  death  of  David  in  1831,  when  they  were  succeeded  by 
the  late  Moses  Wheeler,  a  son-in-law  of  David.  The  Dexters  sub- 
sequently became  interested  in  other  maimfacturing  enterprises 
in  Claremont.  Colonel  David  Dexter  was  an  enterprising  and 
influential  citizen  of  the  town  for  about  fifty  years.  He  was  one 
of  the  selectmen  of  the   town  for    thirteen  years,   between  1800 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  415 

and  1818,  and  chairman  of  the  board  every  year  from  1810  to 
1818,  both  years  included ;  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire 
legislature  in  1814,  and  each  succeeding  year  up  to  and  includ- 
ing 1820;  moderator  of  town  meeting  many  times,  and  a  director 
in  the  Claremont  bank  several  years. 

AURELIDS  DICKINSON. 

Mr.  Dickinson  was  born  at  Grranville,  Mass.,  February  10,  1804, 
and  died  in  Claremont,  ISTovember  3,  1880.  lie  lived  and  labored 
on  his  father's  farm  until  twenty-one  years  old,  when  he  engaged 
as  clerk  in  a  leather  store  in  Hartford,  Conn.,  where  he  served  a 
few  years  and  then  established  himself  in  the  business  of  a  country 
store-keeper  and  was  quite  successful.  In  1835  lie  purchased  the 
principal  hotel  at  Amherst,  Mass.,  which  he  kept  until  December, 
1837,  when  the  buildings  were  destroyed  by  fire  with  the  most  of 
their  contents.  With  the  insurance  and  the  sale  of  the  site  he  was 
not  a  heavy  loser.  In  the  spring  of  1838  he  came  to  Claremont  and 
bought  of  the  late  Paran  Stevens  the  Tremont  House  property, 
which  he  kept  as  a  hotel  continuously  until  1850,  and  at  intervals 
after  that,  until  the  buildings  were  burned,  March  29,  1879.  Pie 
was  also  interested  in  different  stage  lines  until  they  were  super- 
seded by  railroads.  He  was  one  of  the  selectmen  of  the  town  a 
large  share  of  the  time  succeeding  1852,  and  county  commissioner 
from  1868  to  1871.  Mr.  Dickinson  was  a  very  careful  and  success- 
ful business  man. 

LEMUEL  DOLE, 

Son  of  David  Dole,  was  born  at  Washington,  October  20,  1814. 
He  is  a  direct  descendant  from  Eichard  Dole,  who  came  from  Eng- 
land and  settled  in  Newbury,  Mass.,  in  1639.  All  of  the  Doles  in 
this  country,  so  far  as  known,  are  descendants  of  this  Richard. 
Lemuel  came  to  Claremont  in  1842  and  bought  a  farm  in  Pucker- 
shire  and  has  resided  in  town  since  then.  He  lives  now  about  a 
mile  north  of  the  village,  on  the  east  road  to  Cornish  Flat.  He  has 
three  sons,  all  living  in  town,— George  W.,  engaged  in  the  grocery 


416  HISTORY   OF    CLARBMONT. 

busiuess  ;  Levi  R.,  in  the  meat  business;  and  Frank  H.,  a  farmer 
on  the  old  Parmer  Johnson  farm  on  the  west  side  of  Green 
mountain. 

EDMUND  DOLE, 

Son  of  David  and  brother  of  Lemuel  Dole,  was  born  at  Washing- 
ton, January  11,  1817.  He  came  to  Claremont  about  1850  and 
bought  a  farm  in  Puckershire,  on  the  road  to  Newport,  and  has 
since  resided  there.  He  had  two  sons, —  Charles  H.,  who  lives  with 
his  father,  and  John  A.,  who  died  at  Jamestown,  Dakota,  a  few 
years  ago. 

THE   DUSTINS. 

According  to  Dr.  IST.  Bouton's  History  of  Concord,  Thomas  Dus- 
tiu  married  Hannah,  the  oldest  of  fifteen  children  of  Michael  and 
Hannah  Emerson,  December  3,  1677.  They  had  thirteen  children, 
and  their  descendants  in  New  Hampshire  are  quite  numerous.  It 
was  this  Hannah  Dustin  who  became  famous  nearly  two  hundred 
years  ago.  During  an  incursion  made  by  Indians  upon  Haverhill, 
Mass.,  on  the  15th  of  March,  1697,  a  party  attacked  the  house  of 
Thomas  Dustin,  captured  Mrs.  Dustin  in  bed  with  an  infant  seven 
days  old,  and  her  nurse,  Mary  Nitf,  dashed  out  the  brains  of  the 
infant  against  a  tree  and  set  fire  to  the  house.  The  captives  were 
marched  through  the  wilderness  to  the  home  of  the  Indians  on  a 
small  island  at  the  junction  of  the  Contoocook  river  with  the  Merri- 
mack, near  where  the  village  of  Penacook  now  is.  In  the  night, 
^\'hen  the  Indians  were  asleep,  the  two  captive  women,  with  the 
assistance  of  a  boy  who  had  been  captured  at  Worcester,  Mass., 
some  time  before,  killed  ten  of  the  Indians  by  striking  them  upon 
the  head,  and  the  three  captives  escaped  and  returned  to  Haverhill. 
On  the  21st  of  the  following  April  the  three  went  to  Boston,  car- 
rying with  them  the  scalps  of  the  Indians  and  other  evidences  of 
the  exploit,  and  received  as  a  reward  from  the  General  Court  fifty 
pounds,  and  many  valuable  presents  from  others.  A  few  years  ago 
a  monument  was  erected  upon  this  island  to  the  memory  of  Han- 
nah Dustin,  and  to  mark  the  spot  where,  according  to  common 
tradition,  this  tragedy  was  enacted. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  417 

TIMOTHY   DUSTIN, 

A  son  of  Thomas  and  lianuah  Dustin,  was  born  in  Haverhill, 
Mass.,  September  14,  1694,  and  died  in  1775.  He  had  three  sons, 
—  Eliphalet,  and  Thomas  and  Timothy  —  twins. 

THOMAS  AND  TIMOTHY  DUSTIN, 

Twins,  sons  of  Thomas  2d  and  grandsons  of  Thomas  and  Hannah 
Dustiu,  were  born  in  1745.  They  came  to  Claremont  about  1770 
and  bought  a  tract  of  land  on  the  south  side  of  Sugar  river,  nearly 
opposite  the  site  of  the  carpet  factory,  where  they  carried  on  brick- 
making  for  many  years.  They  also  owned,  on  the  north  side  of  the 
river,  the  farm  afterward  owned  by  Moody  Dustin  and  that  knowrt 
as  the  Norton  place.  Timothy  occupied  the  former  and  Thomas 
the  latter.  Thomas  was  married  to  Sarah  Barron,  July  31,  1783, 
and  they  had  ten  children.  Timothy  was  married  to  Eunice  Nut- 
ting, August  17,  1773,  and  the}'  had  nine  children.  Timothy  Dus- 
tin, his  wife,  and  one  daughter,  died  within  twenty  days,  in  Febru- 
ary and  March,  1813,  of  spotted  fever. 

MOODY    DUSTIN, 

A  son  of  Timothy  and  great-grandson  of  Thomas  and  Hannah 
Dustin,  was  born  in  Claremont,  November  19,  1780,  and  died  here 
August  29,  1860.  He  married  Lucy  Cowles,  April  8,  1807,  and 
they  had  nine  children  —  three  sons  and  six  daughters.  He  settled 
on  the  farm  on  Green  mountain  now  owned  by  Peter  Haubrich, 
where  he  lived  until  1834,  when  he  removed  to  the  farm  at  West 
Claremont,  afterward  owned  by  his  son,  the  late  Mighill  Dustin, 
and  now  by  the  latter's  daughter,  Mrs.  Charles  Keith.  Of  the  sons, 
"William,  born  December  2,  1811,  died  at  Summer  Hill,  111., 
October  12,  1873.  Timothy,  born  July  18,  1823,  died  in  Illinois, 
August  7,  1846.  Of  the  daughters,  Sarah  M.,  born  June  3,  1808, 
married  William  Haven,  of  Newport,  and  died  there  Feb- 
ruary 17,  1865.  Alvira,  born  December  14,  1809,  is  the  wife  of 
Timothy  B.  Eossiter,  of  Claremont.  They  were  married  May  31, 
1835,  and  both  were   living  in  1894.     Mary,  born   November  9, 


418  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

1813,  is  the  wife  of  Jonathan  Wood  of  IUi}iois.  Lucinda  married 
Charles  IST.  Goss,  of  Claremont,  and  died  September  23,  1888. 
Eveline,  born  April  11,  1828,  is  the  wife  of  George  W.  Worthen,  of 
Lebanon.  Emeline,  twin  of  Eveline,  married  Richard  S.  Howe, 
and  died  at  Newport,  May  27,  1880. 

MIGHILL  DCSTIN, 

Son  of  Moody  Dustin,  was  born  in  Claremont,  December  18,  1820, 
and  died  here  January  27,  1885.  He  married  Mary  E.,  daughter 
of  the  late  Deacon  Jonathan  Whitcomb,  who  died  May  25,  1890. 
They  had  one  daughter,  who  is  the  wife  of  Charles  Keith.  Mr. 
Dustin  was  one  of  Claremont's  most  careful  and  successful  farmers, 
and  was  the  last  of  the  name  in  town. 

DR.    WINIFRED   JI.    DOWI.IN, 

Son  of  Marshall  Dowlin,  was  born  at  JSTorth  Adams,  Mass.,  April 
3,  1865.  He  graduated  at  the  University  of  Vermont  in  July, 
1891,  taking  the  degree  of  M.  D.,  and  came  to  Claremont  in  Octo- 
ber, 1892,  where  he  has  since  been  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his 
profession. 

TIMOTHY     EASTMAN 

Came  from  Barnard,  Vt.,  to  Claremont  in  1811,  and  engaged  in 
the  taiming  business,  on  the  north  side  of  Sugar  river,  which  he 
continued  until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  1859.  He  was  also 
interested  iu  other  important  industries  for  nearly  half  a  centurj'. 
He  was  a  director  in  the  Claremont  bank,  and  president  of  the 
Sullivan  Savings  Institution.  He  had  the  reputation  of  being  a 
man  of  cousiderable  business  ability  and  the  strictest  integrity. 
He  married  Eunice,  daughter  of  Bill  Barnes,  and  they  had  one 
son,  Charles  H.  Eastman. 

CHARLES   H.    EASTMAN, 

Only  child  of  Timothy  Eastman,  was  born  June  29,  1819,  and 
died  August  4,  1879.     He  was  educated  in  the  schools  of  Clare- 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  419 

mont  and  vicinity.  When  but  little  more  than  twenty-one  years 
old  he  commenced  preparing  himself  for  the  ministry,  and  at  the 
age  of  about  twenty-four  became  a  member  of  the  ISTew  Hamp- 
shire conference  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church,  and  some 
more  than  five  years  preached  at  Manchester  and  other  places, 
when  by  reason  of  an  afl'ection  of  the  throat  he  abandoned  that 
calling  and  became  a  partner  with  his  father  in  the  tanning  busi- 
ness. On  the  death  of  the  latter  he  inherited  his  entire  property, 
which  was  considerable,  and  continued  the  tanning  business 
until  his  death.  He  was  representative  in  the  ISTew  Hamp- 
shire legislature  in  1861  and  1862,  and  member  of  the  governor's 
council  in  1863  and  1864.  He  was  three  times  married  —  first, 
to  Harriet  King,  by  whom  he  had  one  son,  Charles  E.,  for  six 
years  teller  in  the  Claremont  National  bank,  Avho  died  at  an  early 
age;  his  second  wife,  Abby  King,  was  sister  of  the  first,  and  his 
third  was  Julia  A.  Diggens,  to  whom  he  was  married  January 
1,  1873.  She  survived  her  husband  and  is  still  living.  After  his 
death  she  presented  to  the  Methodist  society  in  this  town  a 
handsome  and  commodious  chapel,  which  is  called  the  Eastman 
Memorial  Chapel. 

BARNABAS     ELLIS 

"Was  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  the  town.  He  came  from  He- 
bron, Conn.,  in  the  early  spring  of  1767.  Josiah  Willard,  one 
of  the  grantees  of  the  town,  conveyed  to  Mr.  Ellis  one  of  the 
seventy-five  proprietors'  shares  of  land,  located  on  Town  hill,  the 
deed  being  dated  May  29,  1767.  lie  lived  there  until  his  death, 
June  26,  1838,  at  the  age  of  ninety-three  years.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  youngest  son,  William,  who  was  born,  always  lived, 
and  died  on  that  farm,  August  29,  1880,  since  which  it  has  been 
owned  by  his  son,  William  Barnabas.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that 
this  farm  has  been  owned  by  three  generations  of  Ellises,  father, 
son,  and  grandson,  one  hundred  and  twenty-seven  years  —  all  hon 
ored  and  respected  citizens.  In  1769  Barnabas  Ellis  and  Elizabeth 
Spencer  were  married,  this  being  the  first  wedding  in  town.     Mr_ 


420  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

Ellis  was  a  lieutenant  in  the  Continental  army,  was  with  Ethan 
Allen's  expedition  against  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point  in  1775, 
and  served  as  a  lieutenant  under  Gen.  Stark,  in  the  battle  of 
Bennington,  August  16,  1777.  He  was  one  of  the  selectmen  in 
1796  and  1797,  and  held  other  minor  offices  in  town. 

WILLIAM  ELLIS, 

Youngest  son  of  Barnabas  Ellis,  born  on  Town  hill  in  1807.  At 
the  death  of  his  father  lie  succeeded  to  the  farm  where  he  was 
born,  always  lived,  and  died  August  29,  1880.  He  was  a  good 
farmer  and  reputable  citizen.  Eor  many  years  he  was  warden 
■of  Union  church,  and  was  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire 
legislature  in  1869. 

CALEB    ELLIS 

Was  born  at  "Walpole,  Mass.,  in  1767;  graduated  at  Harvard 
College  in  1793 ;  read  law  in  the  office  of  Hon.  Joshua  Thomas, 
of  Plymouth,  Mass. ;  settled  in  Claremont  about  1800.  In  1804 
he  was  chosen  a  member  of  congress  from  New  Hampshire.  In 
1809  and  1810  he  was  a  member  of  the  executive  council.  In 
1811  he  was  elected  state  senator;  in  1812  elector  of  president 
and  vice-president;  and  in  1813  he  was  appointed  one  of  the 
judges  of  the  supreme  judicial  court  of  New  Hampshire,  which 
office  he  held  until  his  death.  May  9,  1816.  In  February,  1816, 
he  married  Nancj^,  daughter  of  Hon.  Robert  Means,  of  Amherst, 
N.  H.  He  built  the  house  near  the  south  end  of  Bi-oad  street, 
which  was  purchased  hj  J.  S.  "Walker  in  1860. 

At  his  death  Judge  Ellis  left  a  will,  in  which  he  bequeathed 
*'  five  thousand  dollars  to  the  Congregational  society  of  Clare- 
mont, for  constituting  a  fund,  the  interest  of  which  shall  be  an- 
nually appropriated  to  the  support  of  the  Christian  ministry." 
Eev.  Stephen  Farley,  minister  of  the  Congregational  church, 
delivered  a  sermon  on  the  occasion  of  the  funeral  of  Judge  Ellis, 
taking  for  a  text  Proverbs  x.  7 :  "  The  memory  of  the  just  is 
blessed."  In  the  course  of  this  eloquent  and  somewhat  remark- 
able sermon  the  preacher  said  : 


HISTORY    OF   CLAEBMONT.  421 

Although  he  has  left  the  world,  his  memory  continues  in  it,  and  will  long 
survive  his  decease.  His  memory  is  blessed.  If  there  be  any  justice  in  the 
present  and  succeeding  generations,  the  name  of  the  man  whose  remains  are 
now  before  us  will  be  held  in  most  cordial,  grateful,  and  honorary  remem- 
brance. 

The  Hon.  Caleb  Ellis  was  a  man  distinguished  for  native  vigor  and  capa- 
ciousness of  miud.  The  God  of  nature  formed  him  capable  of  high  mental 
attainments  and  great  intellectual  effort.  For  strength  of  intellect,  accuracy  of 
discrimination,  soundness  of  judgment,  and  propriety  of  taste  he  attained  an 
extraordinary  eminence.  His  native  superiority  of  mind  was  improved  by  very 
extensive  cultivation.     His  learning  was  various,  profound,  and  general.  .  .  . 

Concerning  his  professional  character,  I  shall  not  attempt  a  particular  delin- 
eation. It  is  sufficient  that  I  say,  as  an  attorney,  as  a  legal  counselor,  as  an 
advocate,  as  a  statesman,  and  as  a  justice  of  the  supreme  judicial  court,  his 
worth  is  generally  known,  acknowledged,  and  admired. 

In  private  life  Mr.  Ellis  was  eminently  inoffensive,  amiable,  and  exemplary. 
He  wronged  no  one;  he  corrupted  no  one;  he  defrauded  no  one;  he  slighted  no 
one ;  he  injured  no  one.  His  treatment  and  attention  towards  persons  of  dif- 
ferent classes  were  marked  with  the  strictest  propriety,  justice,  and  liberal  gener- 
osity. He  gave  them  all  satisfaction  and  enjoyed  their  cordial  esteem.  In 
freedom,  not  only  from  all  vice,  but  also  from  common  faults,  he  attained  an 
eminent  distinction.  There  were  no  censurable  excesses,  no  despicable  defi- 
ciencies, no  unamiable  habits  about  him.  His  moral  integrity  was  like  tried 
gold.  Many  of  the  most  frequent  imperfections  of  human  nature  were  but 
faintly  discovered  in  his  heart  and  life. 

At  the  opening  of  the  trial  term  of  the  supreme  judical  court 
for  Grafton  county  at  Haverhill,  in  May,  1816,  Chief  Justice 
Jeremiah  Smith  read  a  sketch  of  the  character  of  Judge  Ellis, 
in  which  he  said  : 

Since  the  commencement  of  the  present  circuit  it  has  pleased  the  Almighty 
Disposer  of  all  events  to  remove  one  of  the  judges  of  this  court  by  death.  If 
living,  he  would  have  filled  the  place  I  now  occupy.  It  is  believed  that  this 
is  the  first  instance  of  the  death  of  a  judge  of  the  supreme  court,  while  in  office, 
since  the  adoption  of  the  present  constitution,  and,  indeed,  since  the  Revolution. 
Though  the  whole  number  who  have  served  during  this  period  has  been  nearly 
thirty,  and  more  than  half  that  number  have  paid  the  debt  of  nature,  yet  they 
have  generally  quitted  the  office  before  age  had  made  retirement  from  the  active 
scenes  of  life  necessary. 

Nature  endowed  Judge  Ellis  with  a  mind  at  once  ingenious,  discriminating, 
and  strong.      Without  education  he  would  doubtless  have  attracted  no   small 


422  HISTORY   OF    CLAKEMONT. 

share  of  the  esteem  and  confidence  of  those  within  the  circle  of  his  acquaint- 
ance. But  his  great  modesty  would  probably  have  concealed  him  from  public 
notice.  Fortunately,  it  was  otherwise  ordained ;  and  he  received  the  best  edu- 
cation our  country  could  give.  He  was  graduated  at  Cambridge  in  1793,  and 
left  that  distinguished  university  with  a  high  character  for  learning,  morals, 
and  general  literature. 

Perhaps  no  student  ever  left  a  lawyer's  office  with  a  larger  and  better  stock  of 
law  knowledge.  He  commenced  practice  in  this  state.  Soon  after  his  admission 
to  the  bar  of  the  supreme  court,  in  the  county  of  Cheshire,  I  well  recollect  his 
argument  in  a  case  of  some  difficulty  and  importance,  and  the  remark  of  a 
gentleman,  then  at  the  head  of  the  bar,  and  who  seldom  errs  in  his  judgment 
of  men,  "that  Mr.  Ellis  would  soon  be  numbered  among  the  most  valuable 
and  respectable  members  of  the  profession." 

When  the  new  judiciary  system  was  formed,  in  1813,  the  best  informed  of 
all  parties  named  Mr.  Ellis  for  the  office  of  judge  of  this  court.  The  merit  of 
the  executive  of  that  day,  in  relation  to  this  appointment,  was  in  concurring 
in  that  nomination.     Mr.  Ellis  was  an  independent  and  impartial  judge.   .  .  . 

His  mind  was  too  lofty  to  enter  into  any  calculations  foreign  to  the  merits 
of  the  cause  in  the  discharge  of  his  official  duties ;  neither  the  merits  nor  de- 
merits of  the  parties  nor  their  connections,  however  numerous  or  powerful, 
could  have  any  influence  with  him.  I  am  sensible  that  this  is  very  high  praise, 
• — a  praise  which  could  not,  in  truth,  be  bestowed  on  all  good  men,  nor  even 
on  all  good  judges.     But  it  is  praise  which  Mr.  Ellis  richly  merited. 

JOHN   T.    EMERSON, 

Son  of  the  late  Jonathan  Emerson,  was  born  in  Claremont,  March 
9,  1834.  When  eighteen  years  old  he  entered  the  store,  at  the 
south  end  of  the  upper  bridge,  of  the  late  Charles  Farwell,  as 
clerk,  where  he  remained  a  few  months,  when  he  went  into  a 
mill  at  "Westminster,  Mass.,  to  learn  the  business  of  paper  making. 
Soon  after  the  completion  of  his  apprenticeship  he  took  charge 
of  a  paper  mill  at  Leominster,  Mass.,  in  which  position  he  con- 
tinued eight  years,  during  which  time  he  built  a  mill  at  Fitch- 
burg,  Mass.,  where  he  furnished  the  plans,  superintended  the 
building  of  the  mill,  and  had  charge  of  both  three  years,  until 
1867,  at  which  time  the  Sugar  River  paper  mill  in  Claremont 
was  being  built.  Mr.  Emerson  became  a  stockholder  in  the  com- 
pany, and  was  given  charge  as  superintendent  and  agent  of  the 
mill,  which  position  he  still  holds. 


JOHN  T.  EMERSON, 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  423 

HARRIET  N.    FARLEY 

"Was  the  sixth  of  ten  children  of  the  Rev.  Stephen  Farley,  pastor 
of  the  Congregational  church  in  Claremont  from  1806  to  1819. 
"When  still  a  young  girl  she  became  an  operative  in  a  factory  at 
Lowell.  In  1841,  while  thus  employed,  she  started  and  edited 
the  Lowell  Offering,  or  Factory  Operatives'  Magazine,  subse- 
quently became  its  owner  and  publisher,  and  so  continued  several 
years.  It  had,  under  her  management,  a  circulation  of  more  than 
four  thousand  copies.  She  gave  an  autobiographic  account  of  her 
early  life,  which  was  published  thirty  years  ago  in  Mrs.  Hale's 
"  "Woman's  Record."     Among  other  things  she  said  : 

My  father  is  a  Congregational  clergyman,  and  at  the  time  of  my  birth  was 
settled  in  the  beautiful  town  of  Claremont,  in  the  state  of  New  Hampshire. 
Though  I  left  this  place  when  six  years  of  age,  I  still  remember  its  natural 
beauties,  which  even  then  impressed  me  deeply.  The  Ascutuey  mountain, 
Sugar  river  with  its  foaming  falls,  the  distant  hills  of  Vermont,  all  are  in  my 
memory.  My  mother  was  descended  from  the  Moodys,  somewhat  famous  in 
New  England  history.  One  of  them  was  the  eccentric  and  influential  Father 
Moody.  Another  was  Handkerchief  Moody,  the  one  who  wore,  so  many  years, 
"  the  minister's  veil."  One  was  the  well  known  Trustee  Moody,  of  Dumwell 
academy,  who  educated  my  grandmother.  She  was  a  very  talented  and  esti- 
mable lady. 

In  1848  Miss  Farley  published  a  volume  chiefly  made  up  of 
her  contributions  to  the  Lowell  Offering,  entitled  "  Shells  from 
the  Strand  of  the  Sea  of  Genius."  She  married  John  Donelery, 
of  Philadelphia,  after  which  but  little  was  known  of  her  by  her 
New  England  friends. 

NICHOLAS   FAKWELL, 

The  first  of  the  family  in  Claremont,  was  born  May  5,  1781, 
and  came  from  Packersficld  —  now  Nelson  —  in  1802,  settled  on 
Town  hill,  where  he  had  a  shoemaker's  shop  and  carried  on  the 
business  in  a  small  way  until  1813,  when  he  removed  to  the 
village,  commenced  manufacturing  women's  shoes,  and  sold  them 
to   country  merchants.     The  business  grew  gradually  under   his 


424  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

management  until  he  employed  more  than  a  hundred  hands. 
He  left  it  to  his  sons,  George  N".  and  William  H.  Farwell, 
about  1828,  and  engaged  in  manufacturing  cotton  and  in  other 
kinds  of  business.  He  was  the  first  cotton  manufacturer  in 
town,  and  director  in  the  first  Claremont  bank,  and  also  in  the 
one  organized  in  1848  by  the  same  name.  He  married  Susan 
Corey  in  1803,  by  whom  he  had  thirteen  children,  but  two  of 
whom,  Russell  W.  Farwell,  now  living  at  Rutland,  Vt.,  and  the 
widow  of  Geoi-ge  W.  Blodgett,  of  this  town,  are  now  living. 
He  built  the  house  on  Broad  street,  now  owned  and  occupied 
by  Hermon  Holt,  where  he  died,  October  1-3,  1852.  His  widow- 
continued  to  occupy  the  house  until  her  death,  which  occurred 
September  25,  1860. 

GEOKGB   N.    FARWELL, 

The  oldest  of  thirteen  children  of  Nicholas  and  Susan  (Corej-) 
Farwell,  was  born  on  Town  hill,  February  18,  1804.  He  had 
learned  the  trade  of  a  shoemaker  in  his  father's  shop,  and  soon 
after  reaching  his  majority  went  to  St.  Albans,  Vt.,  where  he 
commenced  the  business  of  shoe  manufacturing,  but  after  about 
fifteen  months,  in  1827,  he  returned  to  Claremont  and  Avent 
into  partnership  with  his  father  and  brother,  William  H.  Far- 
well,  in  the  shoe  and  mercantile  business.  After  two  or  three 
years  the  firm  was  dissolved,  the  father  retiring,  William  H. 
taking  the  mercantile  business  and  Geoi'ge  N.  the  shoemaking, 
in  which,  by  himself  and  with  Lewis  Perry  and  his  brother, 
Russell  W.  Farwell,  as  partners,  he  continued  until  1858,  a 
period  of  more  than  thirty  years,  when  he  sold  out  to  Russell 
W.  George  N.  Farwell  was  a  director  in  the  first  Claremont 
bank,  which  wound  up  its  business  between  1844  and  1846.  In 
1848  a  new  bank,  under  the  same  name,  was  chartered,  and 
Mr.  Farwell  was  chosen  a  director  and  Uriel  Dean,  cashier.  In 
April,  1851,  Mr.  Dean  resigned  and  Mr.  Farwell  was  elected  in 
his  place,  which  position  he  held  until  March,  1856,  when  he 
resigned,  and  his  son,  John  L.  Farwell,  who  had  been  assistant 


GEORGE  N.  FARWELL. 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  425 

cashier  since  March,  1853,  was  elected  cashier.  November  22, 
1864,  the  organization  was  changed  from  a  state  to  a  national 
bank,  and  George  IST.  Farwell  was  elected  president,  which  po- 
sition he  held  until  his  death.  He  was  representative  in  the 
Few  Plampshire  legislature  in  1868  and  1869.  In  1854  he  built 
the  brick  block  on  the  east  side  of  Tremout  square,  which  bears 
his  name,  and  subsequently  extended  it  on  the  south  side  of 
Tremont  street;  in  1851  he  built  the  brick  house  at  the  corner 
of  Broad  and  Putnam  streets,  where  he  passed  his  last  years, 
and  several  others  in  town. 

Mr.  Farwell  married  Sarah  A.  McDonald,  of  Middlebury,  Vt., 
December  27,  1827,  by  whom  he  had  three  children — .James 
H.,  who  died  February  26,  1889;  John  L.,  and  Susan  L.,  the 
widow  of  William  Breck.  Mrs.  Farwell  died  February  11,  187C, 
and  her  husband  survived  lier  until  February  24,  1887,  when  he 
died,  at  the  age  of  eighty-three  years. 

JOHN    L.    FAKWELL, 

Second  son  of  George  N.  and  Sarah  A.  Farwell,  was  born  in 
Claremont,  March  1,  1834.  When  nineteen  years  old  he  was 
made  assistant  cashier  of  the  Claremont  bank,  and  succeeded 
his  father  as  cashier  in  1856,  which  position  he  held  until  Octo- 
ber, 1881,  when  he  was  elected  vice-president,  and  his  son, 
George  N.  Farwell,  then  second,  succeeded  to  the  cashiership. 
On  March  15,  1887,  on  the  death  of  his  father,  John  L.  Far- 
well  was  elected  president  of  the  Claremont  jSTational  bank, 
which  position  he  now  holds.  On  January  2,  1856,  his  father 
having  resigned  that  office,  he  was  elected  treasurer  of  the  Sul- 
livan Savings  Institution;  resigned  February  7,  1874;  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Albert  Rossiter,  who  resigned  December  27,  1882,  and 
Mr.  Farwell  was  again  elected  treasurer  and  has  since  held  that 
position.  He  is  also  a  director  and  treasurer  of  the  Sugar  Eiver 
Paper  Mill  Company.  In  1874  and  1875  he  was  a  representa- 
tive in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature. 


426  HISTORY    OF    CLAUBMONT.     , 

GEORGE  N.   FAKWEIX, 

Named  for  his  grandfather,  is  the  oldest  son  of  John  L.  Far- 
well.  He  was  born  January  3,  1858.  When  in  his  minority  he 
entered  the  Glaremont  National  bank  as  teller.  On  the  election 
of  his  father  vice-president,  in  October,  1881,  he  was  chosen 
cashier,  which  position  he  has  since  held.  lie  is  also  a  director 
in  this  bank  and  in  the  Sullivan  Savings  Institutioc.  In  1887 
he  built  a  large  and  handsome  house  on  the  west  side  of  Broad 
street,  where  he  now  lives. 

HARKY   C.    FAY, 

Son  of  IsTathau,  and  great-grandson  of  John  Fay,  who  was  killed 
in  the  battle  of  Bennington,  Augu-st  16,  1777,  was  born  in 
llichmond,  Vt.,  November  30,  1830.  He  learned  the  printer's 
trade  in  Montpelier,  Yt. ;  was  editor  and  publisher  of  the  Cou- 
rier and  Freeman,  Potsdam,  N.  Y.,  from  1849  to  1861;  post- 
master from  1856  to  1861 ;  commissioned  captain  in  the  Ninety- 
second  Regiment  New  York  State  Yolunteers  in  September,  1861, 
and  served  throu2;h  the  War  of  the  Eebellion.  He  was  in 
command  of  the  regiment  as  senior  captain  when  it  was  mus- 
tered out  of  the  service,  in  1865.  He  came  to  Claremont  in 
1872,  has  been  editor  and  publisher  of  the  National  Eagle 
since  1880,  and  was  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  leg- 
islature in  1887. 

LEONARD   P.    FISHEK, 

Son  of  Josiah,  and  grandson  of  Abram  Fisher,  who  came  from 
Natick,  Mass.,  to  Claremont  in  1785,  was  born  October  6,  1807, 
in  the  house  on  Washington  street,  where  he  died  December 
6,  1892.  His  grandfather,  Abram,  was  a  cabinet  maker  by 
trade  and  pursued  that  avocation  for  years.  He  had  a  small 
farm  and  a  cidermill,  which  was  run  by  water  power.  He  died 
February  3,  1851.  Josiah,  son  of  Abram,  and  father  of  Leonard 
P.,  died  in  York,  Livingston  county,  N.  Y.,  in  1854.  Leonard 
P.,  when    about  ten    years    old,  joined    his    father   in    what  was 


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HISTORY   OF    CLARBMONT.  427 

then  the  wilderness  of  New  York  state,  and  was  brought  up 
in  the  lumber  business.  In  1829  he  came  back  to  Claremont, 
to  make  his  home  with  his  grandfather,  remained  with  him 
until  his  death,  and  inherited  his  property,  which  was  a  moder- 
ate fortune  for  that  time.  Mr.  Fisher  was  a  busy  man;  built 
many  houses  for  himself  and  others ;  was  liberal  in  many  things 
and  encouraged  by  his  means  and  in  other  ways  everything 
tending  to  the  growth  and  prosperity  of  the  town.  At  his 
death  he  left  a  widow  and  five  surviving  children  —  four  sons 
and  one  daughter. 

SAMUEL  FISKE, 

Graduated  at  Harvard  University  in  the  class  of  1793,  came  from 
Brookfield,  Mass.,  to  Claremont  in  1794,  and  died  December  30, 
1834,  at  the  age  of  sixty-five  years.  He  was  an  active  and  enter- 
prising citizen  for  forty  years ;  was  engaged  in  mercantile  business 
and  manufacturing  of  various  kinds,  among  which  was  print  paper, 
under  the  firm  of  Fiske  &  Blake,  successors  in  that  business  of 
Josiah  Stevens,  the  first  paper-maker  in  the  then  Cheshire  county. 
Mr.  Fiske  was  selectman  in  1800  and  1801 ;  town  clerk  seventeen 
years,  from  1800  to  1816  inclusive ;  representative  in  the  New 
Hampshire  legislature  in  1814  and  1816,  and  state  senator  in  1815. 
He  built  the  large  house  corner  of  Broad  and  Summer  streets,  and 
there  died. 

SAMUEL  FHILLIl^S  Jb'ISKE, 

Son  of  Samuel  Fiske,  was  born  ISTovember  17, 1800,  and  died  in  the 
house  where  he  was  born,  February  8,  1879.  His  active  life  was 
spent  in  mercantile  business  in  Claremont,  in  partnership  with  his 
father  and  others, —  among  them  the  late  Amos  J.  Tenney, —  under 
the  firm  of  Fiske,  Tenney  &  Co.,  and  James  P.  Brewer,  under  the 
firm  of  Fiske  &  Brewer.  He  acquired  by  inheritance  and  in  busi- 
ness a  comfortable  fortune,  and  having  no  children  to  inherit  it,  in 
his  lifetime  he  founded  a  library  which,  by  vote  of  the  town,  was 
named  the  Fiske  Free  Library,  and  by  the  conditions  imposed  by 


428  HISTOEY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

Mr.  Fiske  was  to  be  for  the  free  use  of  all  the  inhabitants  of  the 
town.  By  his  will  he  bequeathed  to  the  library  five  thousand  dol- 
lars, to  be  expended  for  books, —  any  amounts  that  he  might  have 
so  expended  in  his  lifetime  to  be  deducted  from  this  sum, —  the 
balance  remainiug  at  his  death  to  be  expended  by  the  five  trustees 
which  had  been  named  by  him.  In  addition  to  this  sum  he  left 
four  thousand  dollars,  and  his  wife,  Miranda  Stevens  Fiske,  who 
died  May  26, 1882,  one  thousand  dollars  as  a  pei-manent  fund,  to  be 
invested  and  cared  for  by  the  trustees,  the  interest  of  which  was  to 
be  used  by  them  for  the  purchase  of  books.  Thus  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Fiske  have  erected  a  monument  bearing  their  name,  which  it  is 
hoped  will  stand  forever. 

PHILANDEK   CHASE    FREEMAN 

Was  born  in  Plainfield,  August  27,  1807,  and  died  in  Claremont, 
April  20,  1871.  He  was  a  son  of  Benjamin  Freeman,  also  a  native 
of  Plainfield.  He  graduated  at  Kenyon  College,  Gambler,  Ohio, 
in  1825;  read  law  with  J.  H.  Hubbard  at  Windsor,  Vt.,  and  for  a 
short  time  was  associated  with  him  in  business.  He  removed  to 
Claremont  in  1835,  where  he  was  in  active  practice  until  within  a 
few  years  of  his  death.  He  had  for  partners  at  different  times  A. 
B.  Williamson,  Samuel  W.  Fuller,  and  lastly  Milon  C.  McClure. 
He  was  a  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature,  and 
several  years  justice  of  the  police  court. 

SAMUEL  \V.    KULLER, 

Son  of  Francis  E.  Fuller,  was  born  at  Hardwick,  Vt.,  April  25, 
1822,  and  died  in  Chicago,  111.,  October  25,  1873.  He  read  law  in 
the  oflice  of  Philander  C.  Freeman,  in  Claremont;  was  admitted  to 
Sullivan  county  bar  in  1849;  was  in  practice  here  until  1852,  when 
he  removed  to  Illinois  and  settled  in  Chicago  in  1856,  where  he 
became  quite  eminent  in  his  profession  and  attained  a  high  position 
in  the  state  and  United  States  courts  by  his  legal  learning  and 
ability. 


PHILANDER  C.  FREEMAN. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  429 

ALEXANDER   GARDINER 

Was  bom  at  Catskill,  N.  Y.,  July  27,  1833;  fitted  for  college  at 
Kimball  Union  Academy,  Meriden  ;  studied  law  with  Shea  &  Rich- 
ardson, New  York  city ;  admitted  to  the  bar  in  that  city  in  1856 ; 
was  in  Kansas  about  two  years  during  the  political  troubles  there ; 
came  to  Claremont  in  the  spring  of  1859,  and  opened  a  law  office 
with  Edwin  Vaughan ;  continued  in  practice  until  September,  1862, 
when  he  was  commissioned  lieutenant  in  the  Fourteenth  Regiment 
of  ISTew  Hampshire  Volunteers;  promoted  to  major  September  12, 

1863,  and  to  colonel  of  that  regiment  September  12,  1864.  In  the 
battle  of  Winchester,  Va.,  September  19,  1864,  Colonel  Gardiner 
was  mortally  wounded ;  he  remained  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy 
five  hours,  when  the  Union  troops  regained  the  ground  and  recov- 
ered the  dead  and  wounded.     He  died  of  his  wounds  October  8, 

1864,  and  his  remains  were  buried  in  Claremont. 

.TAMES  M.    GATES, 

'Son  of  Abel  Gates,  born  in  Cornish,  October  30,  1808,  commenced 
the  practice  of  law  in  Claremont  in  1835,  which  he  continued  until 
his  death,  April  8,  1854.  He  had  a  considerable  reputation  as 
advocate,  and  good  standing  as  a  counselor.  He  represented  the 
town  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1845  and  1846,  and  was 
conspicuous  on  the  floor  of  the  house  and  in  committees. 

LEONARD   AND   HUIAM    GILMORE, 

Sons  of  Hon.  Gawen  Gilmore,  of  Acworth,  came  to  Claremont  in 
1826,  bought  the  Tyler  mills  at  West  Claremont,  and  from  that 
time  until  1841  carried  on  an  extensive  business  in  making  axes 
and  other  edge  tools,  employing  quite  a  number  of  men.  Their 
tools  had  a  good  reputation  and  had  a  large  sale.  They  also  had 
orist  and  saw  mills  on  the  north  side  of  the  river.  In  1858  Hiram 
removed  to  Montreal,  and  was  engaged  with  his  sons  in  the  manu- 
facture of  augers  and  bits  at  Cote  St.  Paul,  near  Montreal,  Canada. 
He  died  November  12,  1862,  and  his  wife,  Mindwell  McClure,  died 


430  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

at  Cote  St.  Paul,  July  14,  1877.  Both  were  buried  at  West  Clare- 
mont.  Leonard  Gilmore  was  for  several  years  engaged  in  mercan- 
tile business  with  Ilock  Hills,  and  postmaster  at  West  Claremont 
from  1847  to  1861.  He  died  December  10,  1876,  his  wife, 
Sarah  M.,  sister  of  the  late  Solon  C.  Grannis,  having  died  January 
10,  1875.  The  Gilmores  were  prominent  and  influential  men  in 
town  in  their  time. 

Hiram  Gilmore's  two  sons,  Hiram  Gawen  and  Charles  Homer, 
learned  the  edge  tool  business  of  their  father  and  are  engaged  in 
manufacturing  augers  and  bits  at  Cote  St.  Paul. 

ERASTOS  GLIDDEN, 

A  son  of  Jonathan  Glidden,  was  born  March  26,  1792,  on  that  part 
of  Bible  hill  which  was  then  in  the  town  of  Unit}^,  but  was  set  off 
on  to  Claremont  by  act  of  the  legislature  in  1828.  He  lived  upon 
the  farm  where  he  was  born  until  1838,  which  was  afterward  for 
many  years  owned  by  Joshua  Colby  and  his  son  Henry  ;  came  to 
the  village  and  built  the  brick  house  on  the  west  side  of  Pleasant 
street,  where  George  H.  Stowell's  house  now  is,  which  was  burned 
in  1864.  He  owned  the  tract  of  land  west  of  Pleasant  street,  between 
Myrtle  street  and  the  Concord  and  Claremont  railroad,  and 
extending  west  to  Mulberry  street.  This  tract  which  he  carried  on 
as  a  farm  is  now  covered  by  West  Summer,  Prospect,  and  Tyler 
streets,  and  fully  occupied  with  dwelling-houses,  all  handsome,  and 
some  of  them  expensive  and  elegant.  In  1830  'Sir.  Glidden  was 
brigadier-general  and  commanded  the  Fifth  Brigade  of  ISfew  Hamp- 
shire militia.  He  was  elected  cashier  of  the  first  Claremont  bank 
on  the  retirement  of  James  H.  Bingham  in  1842,  and  continued 
until  its  business  was  fully  closed  up  in  1846.  He  was  a  represent- 
ative in  the  Xew  Hampshire  legislature  in  1835,  1838,  and  1839, 
and  was  often  called  upon  to  preside  over  public  gatherings.  Pie 
is  said  to  have  had  a  remarkable  memory,  and  could  repeat  verba- 
tim long  speeches  after  having  read  them  once  or  twice.  He  w^as 
a  prominent  and  honored  citizen.  He  died  in  November,  1866, 
and  was  buried  beside  the  remains  of  his  first  wife,  at  North 
Charlestown. 


'^    •  '        ,'j;?  *4*  VV    ,- 


ERASTUS  GLIDDEN. 


f %!?*•  ' 


HISTORY    OF   CLAKEMONT.  431 

CHATtLES  E.    GLIDPEN, 

The  only  son  of  the  late  Gen.  Erastus  Glidden,  was  boi-n  on 
the  farm  on  Bible  hill,  December  4,  1835.  He  studied  law,  was 
admitted  to  the  bar,  and  settled  in  Warren,  Trumbull  county^ 
Ohio.  In  1861  he  was  elected  judge  of  the  court  for  his  county 
for  five  years ;  was  re-elected  without  opposition  for  another  term 
of  five  years,  at  the  end  of  which  he  was  tendered  a  third  nomina- 
tion, hut  on  account  of  ill  health  declined  it.  He  died  at  Rox- 
bury,  Mass.,  June  14,  1882,  at  the  age  of  forty-six  years. 

EDWARD  L.    GODDARD, 

Son  of  Capt.  JSTichols  -Goddard,  was  born  at  Rutland,  Vt.,  June, 
1808,  and  died  at  Thomasville,  Ga.,  March  30,  1880,  where  he 
went  on  account  of  impaired  liealth.  He  was  buried  in  Clare- 
mont.  He  worked  as  clerk  in  stores  in  Rutland,  and  Boston  and 
Few  Bedford,  Mass.,  from  the  time  that  he  was  fifteen  until  twen- 
ty-four years  old,  when  he  formed  a  copartnership  with  his  brother- 
in-law,  Simeon  Ide,  at  Windsor,  Vt,  which  continued  a  few  years. 
In  1837  he  came  to  Claremont  and  engaged  as  book-keeper  for  the 
Claremont  Manufacturing  Company,  of  which  Mr.  Ide  was  agent 
and  treasurer.  In  1858  Mr.  Ide  disposed  of  his  interest,  declined 
those  ofiices,  and  Mr.  Goddard,  having  bought  of  the  stock  of  the 
company,  was  elected  agent  and  treasurer,  in  place  of  Mr.  Ide,  and 
continued  in  those  positions  until  1867,  when,  after  thirty  years' 
connection  with  the  company,  he  retired  from  the  active  manage- 
ment of  its  afl:airs.  He  was  prominent  as  a  business  man  in  the 
town,  in  the  Congregational  church,  of  which  he  was  for  many 
years  a  member,  and  in  many  other  ways,  from  1837  until  his 
death.  In  1868  he  was  chosen  one  of  the  five  electors  for  JSTew 
Hampshire  of  president  and  vice-president  of  the  United  States, 
and  Avas  representative  in  the  legislature  in  1869.  In  July,  1833, 
he  married  Elizabeth  Worth,  of  !N"antucket,  Mass.,  by  whom  he 
had  seven  children,  four  of  whom  survive,  viz.  :  the  Rev.  Edward 
N.   Goddard,  rector  of  the   Episcopal   church   at  Windsor,  Vt. ; 


432  HISTORY    OF    OLAEBMONT. 

Alice  B.,  wife  of  Moses  R.  Emersou,  of  Boston;  George  W. 
Goddard,  of  New  York  city,  and  Elizabeth  Worth.  His  wife 
died  May  7,  1852.  On  June  13,  1855,  he  married  Elizabeth  P., 
daughter  of  the  late  Rev.  ChristoiDher  Marsh,  of  Jamaica  Plain, 
Mass.,  by  whom  he  had  one  son  —  Christopher  M.  Goddard,  of 
Boston. 

NATHANIEL   GOSS 

Came  from  Winchester  to  Claremont  about  1775  and  settled  on 
the  farm  west  of  the  Charlestown  road,  two  miles  south  of  the 
village,  afterward  owned  by  his  son  Joel,  then  by  his  grandson, 
Charles  N".,  and  now  by  George  P.  Rossiter.  He  had  eight  chil- 
dren—  two  sons,  Nathaniel  and  Joel,  and  six  daughters.  He  died 
June  25,  1824,  at  the  age  of  seventy -three  years,  and  his  widow  on 
March  29,  1840,  at  the  age  of  eightj'-seven  years.  He  was  select- 
man in  1787. 

JOEL  GOSS, 

Son  of  Nathaniel,  was  born  Januar}^  30,  1782,  and  died  January 
4,  1833,  on  the  farm  where  he  was  born  and  always  lived.  He 
was  the  father  of  the  late  William  and  Charles  N.  Goss,  an  excel- 
lent farmer,  prominent  citizen,  and  selectman  in  1820,  1821,  1822, 
and  1831. 

TIMOTHY   GliANNIS 

Came  from  North  Haven,  Conn.,  and  settled  in  Claremont  in  1769. 
He  married  a  daughter  of  Dr.  William  Sumner,  by  whom  he  had 
seven  children.  She  died  June  25,  1789,  and  he  married  for  his 
second  wife  Sarah  Nye,  of  Tolland,  Conn.,  and  they  had  four 
children  born  to  them.  On  July  4,  1888,  appeared  in  the  Clare- 
mont Advocate  half  a  column  of  blank  verse,  headed  "  Ascut- 
ney.  Written  on  the  top  of  Ascutney  mountain,  in  October,  1804, 
by  Timothy  Grannis."     He  died  May  7,  1827. 

TIMOTHY  GRANNIS,    JR., 

Oldest  son  of  Timothy  Grannis,  was  born  June  30,  1772,  married 
Phebe,  daughter  of  Ebenezer  Rice,  and  lived  on  what  has   since 


HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT.  433 

been  known  as  the  Samnel  Carleton  farm,  at  the  west  part  of  the 
town.  They  had  five  children,  Solon  C,  Laurens  A.,  Homer  P., 
Sarah  M.,  and  Samuel  R.,  all  of  whom  are  dead,  except  Laurens 
A.,  born  in  1802,  and  is  now  living  in  Guildhall,  Vt.  Timothy 
Grannis,  Jr.,  was  quite  prominent  in  town  in  his  time.  He  was 
selectman  eight  years,  from  1821  to  1829,  and  representative  in  the 
legislature  for  the  years  1829,  1830,  1831,  and  1832. 

SOLON  C.   GRANNIS, 

Oldest  son  of  Timothy  Grannis,  Jr.,  was  born  on  the  Samuel 
Carleton  farm,  at  the  west  part  of  the  town,  in  August,  1801. 
"When  but  little  more  than  twenty  years  old  he  married  N"ancy 
Spaulding  and  went  to  live  on  the  large  farm  where  she  had  been 
brought  up  b}-  her  uncle,  about  a  mile  north  from  his  birthplace, 
there  lived  more  than  seventy  years,  and  there  died  on  the  sev- 
enth of  March,  1892.  They  had  six  children,  five  of  whom  are 
living.  Of  the  sons,  Joseph  S.  is  a  lawyer,  at  Cleveland,  Ohio; 
Homer  E.  owns  considerable  real  estate  in  the  northwest  part  of 
the  town  and  has  a  lumber  mill  on  Red  Water  brook ;  and  George 
C.  lives  on  a  good  farm  adjoining  that  of  his  father.  Of  the 
daughters,  the  oldest  was  the  wife  of  the  late  Chester  P.  Smith, 
and  died  young ;  the  second  is  the  wife  of  Daniel  E".  Bowker,  a 
farmer  living  on  Red  Water  brook ;  and  the  youngest  lived  with 
and  cared  for  her  father  through  his  declining  years.  The  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch  was  five  times,  from  1843  to  1852,  both  inclu- 
sive, elected  one  of  the  selectmen  of  the  town,  and  was  chairman 
of  the  board  several  years.  He  was  representative  in  the  New 
Hampshire  legislature  in  1861.  From  early  age  Mr.  Grannis  was 
a  member  of  Union  Episcopal  church,  and  warden  more  than  fort}' 
years  preceding  his  death.  He  was  an  excellent  farmer,  an  extensive 
and  intelligent  reader ;  authority  in  matters  relating  to  the  early 
history  of  the  town,  and  much  respected. 

BR.   LELA.ND   ,T.   GRAVES, 

Son  of  David  J.  Graves,  was  born  at  Berkshire,  Vt.,  May  24,  1812. 
He  was  educated  in  the  public  schools  and  Chester,  Cavendish,  and 


434  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

Ludlow,  Vt.,  academies;  attended  lectures  at  Woodstock,  Vt.,  and 
graduated  from  the  medical  department  of  Dartmouth  College, 
May  10,  1842.  Soon  after  his  graduation  he  located  at  Langdon, 
and  had  an  extensive  practice  in  that  town  and  vicinity.  In  1868 
he  removed  to  Claremont  with  his  family,  intending  to  retire  from 
general  practice,  but  responded  to  calls  from  his  old  patrons  in  the 
south  part  of  the  county.  He  died  February  22,  1891.  He  was  a 
prominent  Freemason,  and  his  burial  was  attended  with  high  Ma- 
sonic honors. 

THE  HANDERSONS. —  GIDEON   HANDEKSON 

Was  a  son  of  Gideon  Handerson.  He  was  born  at  Amherst,  Mass., 
October  9,  1753,  and  died  here  July  10,  182.5.  He  married  Abigail 
Church,  of  Amherst,  January  1,  1778,  and  the  following  year,  with 
his  wife  and  infant  son  Phiuehas,  removed  to  Claremont.  They 
came  through  the  woods  on  horseback,  Mrs.  Handerson  carrying 
her  infant  in  her  arms.  Mr.  Plandersou  engaged  in  the  tanning 
and  currying  business,  at  the  north  side  of  Sugar  river,  a  few  rods 
east  of  the  present  residence  of  Edwin  W.  Tolles ;  continued  it 
until  his  death,  and  was  .succeeded  in  that  business  by  his  son 
Rufus.  He  was  one  of  the  selectmen  seven  years,  from  1791  to 
1805,  both  years  inclusive.  Mrs.  Handerson  died  June  2-3,  1846. 
They  had  two  children,  Phinehas  and  Kufus.  This  G-ideon  Han- 
derson was  a  soldier  in  the  War  of  the  Revolution,  in  the  compan}- 
of  Capt.  Noadiah  I^eonard,  which  was  attached  to  Col.  R.  Wood- 
bury's regiment.  The  most  of  this  regiment  was  engaged  in  the 
battle  of  Bunker  Hill,  June  17,  1775. 

PHINEHAS    IIAXDEKSUN, 

Son  of  Gideon,  was  born  at  Amherst,  Mass.,  December  13,  1778. 
He  came  to  Claremont  with  his  parents  in  1779.  He  studied  law 
with  George  B.  ITpham, was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1804,  and  opened 
an  office  at  Chesterfield  in  1805  or  1806,  where  he  continued  in  the 
practice  of  his  profession  until  1833,  when  he  removed  to  Keene, 
and  there  was  in  practice  until  his  death,  Mnrch  16, 1853.     He  was 


HISTORY    OF    CLARBMONT.  435 

one  of  the  selectmen  of  Chesterfield  in  1811,  representative  from 
that  town  in  the  ISTew  Hampshire  legislature  in  1812,  1813,  and 
1815;  state  senator  in  1816,  1817,  1823,  1831,  and  1832;  and  mem- 
ber of  the  executive  council  in  1841  and  1842.  He  also  was  a  rep- 
resentative from  Keene  in  1843  and  1849.  At  the  time  of  his  death 
he  was  president  of  the  Cheshire  county  bar,  and  was  one  of  the 
oldest  practicing  lawyers  in  New  Hampshire. 

RUFUS  IIANDERSON, 

Son  of  Gideon,  was  born  in  Claremont,  December  13,  1781,  and 
died  October  16,  1829.  He  married  Betsey  Munger,  November  20, 
1803,  who  died  March  20,  1853.  They  had  live  children,  two  of 
whom  died  in  infancy.  The  three  that  lived  to  maturity  were 
Frederick  W.,  born  April  5,  1806,  and  died  May  4,  1862;  Horace 
P.,  born  June  6,  1811,  and  died  August  26,  1867;  and  Lucius  R, 
born  February  18,  1819.  He  removed  to  Vergennes,  Vt,  in  1869. 
Rufus  Handerson  carried  on  the  tanning  and  currying  business 
from  the  death  of  his  father  until  he  died,  and  was  succeeded  in  the 
business  by  his  son,  Horace  P.,  who  continued  it  for  a  few  years. 
Mr.  Handerson  was  moderator  of  the  annual  town  meetings  nine 
years,  from  1819  to  1829 ;  selectman  eight  years,  from  1813  to 
1829 ;  and  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in 
1822,  1823,  1824,  and  1826. 

ICHABOD    HART 

Was  born  in  Connecticut  in  1780,  and  died  in  Brattleboro',  Vt., 
December  1,  1874.  He  came  from  Charlestown  to  Claremont  in 
1813,  and  settled  on  the  farm  in  the  west  part  of  the  town,  now 
occupied  by  his  grandson,  Oliver  C.  Hart,  where  he  lived  until 
within  a  few  years  of  his  death.  He  was  by  trade  a  carpenter  and 
brick  mason,  a  useful  and  respected  citizen.  He  had  eleven  chil- 
dren, two  of  whom,  Josiah  Hart,  of  West  Claremont,  and  Thomas 
Hart,  of  the  village,  are  now  living.  Ichabod  Hart  was  in  New 
York  in  1807,  when  Robei-t  Fulton's  steamboat  Clermont  was 
launched  and  made  her  trial  trip  on  Hudson  river.     Mr.  Hart  asked 


436  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

Mr.  Fulton  if  he  could  go  with  him,  and  the  latter  replied  that  he 
could  if  he  went.  This  was  the  first  successful  steamboat  trip  ever 
made  in  this  country  if  not  in  the  world. 

ICHAEOD    HITCHCOCK 

Came  from  what  was  then  a  part  of  New  Haven,  Conn.,  to  Clare- 
mont,  with  Bill  Barnes  in  1772.  He  bought  and  settled  on  the 
farm  a  little  more  than  a  mile  north  of  the  village,  the  same  now 
owned  by  Frederick  P.  Smith.  This  farm  continued  to  be  owned 
and  occupied  by  Mr.  Hitchcock  and  his  son  Samuel  and  his  grand- 
sou  "William  for  more  than  a  hundred  years.  He  was  a  master 
builder,  and  as  such  and  in  other  ways  a  useful  and  valued  citizen. 
He  died  Xovember  24,  1838,  at  the  age  of  eighty-nine  years.  He 
had  eleven  children,  ten  of  whom  were  born  in  this  town,  and  all 
but  three  of  them  died  in  infancy  or  when  quite  young.  Those 
that  reached  maturity  were  :  Samuel,  the  father  of  Ichabod  and 
William,  both  of  whom  died  several  years  ago;  and  Amos,  the 
father  of  Henry  A.  Hitchcock,  for  many  years  a  prominent  citizen 
of  Walpole,and  state  senator  in  1S72  and  1874,  who  has  since  died; 
Alexander  V.  Hitchcock,  now  living  at  Xewport,  register  of  deeds 
for  Sullivan  county  several  jears,  and  representative  from  that  town 
in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature ;  and  the  widow  of  George  AYal- 
lingford,  now  living  in  Claremont. 

HERMON    HOLT 

Was  born  at  Woodstock,  Vt,  September  7,  1845 ;  fitted  for  college 
at  Kimball  Union  Academy ;  graduated  at  Dartmouth  College  in 
1870 ;  read  law  with  Judge  B.  H.  Steele,  of  Vermont,  and  Ira 
Colby,  of  this  town ;  admitted  to  the  Sullivan  county  bar  in  1873, 
and  has  since  been  in  practice  in  Claremont.  He  was  a  representa- 
tive in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1890  and  1891,  and  state 
senator  in  1895  and  1896. 

DR.    JAMES   r.    HOLT 

Was  born  in  Claremont,  June  19,  1853,  and  is  a  son  of  James  Holt, 
late  sheriff  of  Sullivan  county.      He  graduated  at  Stevens  High 


REV.  JAMES  B.  HOWE. 


HISTORY    OF   CLARBMONT.  437 

School  in  June,  1873 ;  entered  the  drug  store  of  Dr.  W.  M.  Ladd 
and  remained  there  about  four  years,  the  last  two  years  of  -which 
time  and  the  following  year  he  studied  medicine  with  Dr.  0.  B. 
Way.  He  took  a  medical  course  at  Dartmouth  College  and  gradu- 
ated there  October  30,  1877.  He  then  commenced  practice  in 
Claremont  and  continued  until  September,  1880,  when  he  entered 
the  Hartford  Hospital,  Plartford,  Conn.,  and  was  there  one  year, — 
six  months  as  assistant  and  six  months  as  house  physician  and  sur- 
geon. At  the  end  of  this  time  he  returned  to  Claremont  and 
resumed  practice.  In  May,  1884,  he  bought  a  half  interest  in  the 
drug  store  of  Dr.  W.  j\I.  Ladd.  Dr.  Ladd  having  died,  he  became 
sole  proprietor  in  July,  1885,  and  continues  the  business  and  the 
practice  of  his  profession. 

ASA   HOLTON, 

Son  of  Jonathan  Holton,  born  at  Charlestown  in  ISTovember,  1786, 
and  died  in  Claremont,  March  4,  1840.  He  read  law  in  his  native 
town  in  the  office  of  ex-Governor  Henry  Hubbard ;  was  admitted 
to  the  bar  in  1815  ;  practiced  at  Lempster  about  two  years  and  then 
removed  to  Claremont,  wdiere  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his  life  in 
the  active  practice  of  his  profession.  He  was  town  clerk  in  182o> 
1826,  and  1827. 

THE  KEV.   JAMES   B.   HOWE 

Was  born  at  Dorchester,  Mass.,  March  31,  1773,  and  graduated 
at  Harvard  College  in  1794.  He  was  ordained  deacon  ISTovember 
25,  1817,  and  priest  May  14,  1819,  by  the  Rt.  Rev.  Alexander  V. 
Griswold,  and  installed  rector  of  Union  church,  to  succeed  Rev. 
Daniel  Barber,  September  15,  1819.  He  resigned  his  parish 
August  4,  1843,  after  which  he  made  his  home  with  his  children 
in  Boston.  For  some  years  preceding  his  ordination  he  was  a 
successful  classical  teacher  in  Boston.  Mr.  Howe  was  an  old 
school  gentleman ;  always  wore  the  long  stockings,  short  clothes,  and 
silver  knee  and  shoe  buckles  of  the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth 
and    the   fore   part   of   the    nineteenth    century.      He  was    tall. 


438  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

erect,  of  commanding  appearance,  a  conspicuous  figure  in  town 
for  many  years;  highl}"  respected  for  his  ability  and  faithfulness 
as  a  rector,  and  beloved  for  his  goodness  by  all  who  knew  him. 
He  died  of  apoplexy,  in  a  railroad  car,  at  Albany,  N.  Y.,  on  the 
seventeenth  of  September,  1844,  Avhen  on  his  way  to  Indiana  to 
visit  one  of  his  sons.  He  was  the  father  of  the  late  lit.  Rev. 
W.  B.  W.  Howe,  Bishop  of  South  Carolina,  who  resigned  his 
bishopric  on  account  of  ill  health,  in  May,  and  died  in  JS'oA'em- 
ber,  1892. 

ISAAC     HUI31SAR1), 

Son  of  George  Hubbard,  a  Revolutionary  soldier,  was  born  in 
Tolland,  Conn.,  July  28,  1770.  In  1778  he  came  with  his  parents 
to  Claremont  and  settled  on  the  farm  in  the  southwest  corner  of 
the  town  now  occupied  by  Isaac  H.  Long,  a  grandson  of  Isaac 
Hubbard,  and  the  widow  of  Dr.  I.  G.  Hubbard,  a  son  of  the 
subject  of  this  notice.  Isaac  Hubbard  spent  his  whole  life,  after 
eight  3'ears  old,  on  that  farm.  He  was  an  extensive  and  suc- 
cessful farmer  and  stock  raiser.  He  was  selectman  in  1811,  1812, 
1816,  1817,  and  1818 ;  representative  in  the  ifew  Hampshire  legis- 
lature in  1819  and  1821 ;  prominent  in  the  Episcopal  church,  and 
regarded  as  one  of  the  solid  and  strong  men  of  the  town.  He 
was  a  brother  of  Judge  J.  H.  Hubbard,  of  Windsor,  Vt.  He  died 
January  28, 1861. 

THE    liEV.    ISAAC    G.    HDBJIAKD,    I>.    I)., 

Was  born  in  Claremont,  April  13,  1818,  and  was  a  son  of  Isaac 
Hubbard,  Esq.  He  graduated  at  Trinity  College  in  1839.  He 
passed  from  college  into  the  General  Theological  Seminary,  New 
York,  where  he  spent  two  years,  and  finished  the  prescribed  course 
of  study  with  Bishop  Carlton  Chase.  While  studying  with  Bishop 
Chase  he  officiated  as  lay  reader  at  Drewsville  and  Bellows  Falls, 
Vt.  He  was  ordained  deacon  in  Trinity  church,  Claremont,  June 
25,  1845.  He  served  his  deaconate  at  Vergennes,  Vt.,  and  received 
priest's  orders  from  Bishop  Chase  in  March,  1847.     The  first  four 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  439 

years  of  his  priesthood  he  was  rector  of  a  church  at  Potsdam, 
N.  Y.  Then  for  several  months  he  was  assistant  of  the  venerable  Dr. 
Muhlenburg,  in  the  Church  of  the  Holy  Communion,  New  York. 
In  March,  1852,  he  became  rector  of  St.  Michael's  church,  Man- 
chester, N.  H.,  where  he  remained  until  February,  1866.  The 
field  was  a  missionary  one,  demanding  great  self-denial,  patience, 
energy,  and  Avisdom,  and  involving  a  large  amount  of  work.  The 
growth  of  the  parish  was  real  and  lasting.  The  great  visible 
work  of  Dr.  Hubbard  was  the  erection  of  a  beautiful  stone  church 
and  comfortable  rectory,  to  accomplish  which  he  wrought  with 
his  own  hands  and  superintended  every  detail.  The  strain 
upon  him  was  very  great  and  produced  the  usual  result,  and  in 
the  spring  of  1866,  by  reason  of  mental  and  bodily  exhaustion, 
he  was  compelled  to  resign  his  parish,  and  retired  to  his  portion 
of  his  late  father's  farm  in  Claremont  for  rest.  In  August,  1867, 
he  was  sufficiently  restored  to  accept  the  rectorship  of  Trinity 
church,  Claremont,  where  he  remained  until  Easter,  1875.  During 
this  period  he  was  forced  by  a  recurrence  of  his  former  trouble 
to  take  a  rest  of  six  months,  and  through  the  kind  instrumen- 
tality of  a  few  friends  he  visited  Europe.  Again  his  health  failed, 
and  when  he  resigned  and  returned  to  his  farm  he  did  not  ex- 
pect to  resume  priestly  labors.  However,  in  October,  1876,  he 
began  services  at  Union  church,  without  making  any  permanent 
engagement.  The  Easter  following  he  felt  able  to  accept  the 
post  of  minister  in  charge  for  a  year,  and  renewed  the  engage- 
ment at  Easter,  1878.  On  Passion  Sunday,  March  30,  1879,  he 
drove  to  church  with  his  family  as  usual,  but  on  his  arrival  did 
not  feel  able  to  perform  service,  and  started  to  return  home  in 
a  sleigh,  and  expired  very  suddenly  on  the  way.  Dr.  Hubbard 
was  one  of  the  trustees  of  St.  Paul's  school.  Concord,  for  twenty 
years  immediately  preceding  his  death. 

SIMEON    IDE, 

The  oldest  of  eight  children  of  Daniel  Ide,  was  born  in  Shrews- 
bury, Mass.,  September  28,  1794,  died  at  the  house  of  his  daugh- 
ter,  Mrs.  Dibblee,  Boston    Highlands,   June   22,    1889,    and  was 


440  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

buried  in  Clareraont.  When  fifteen  years  old  he  was  apprenticed 
to  the  printing  business  in  the  office  of  Farnsworth  &  Churchill, 
publishers  of  the  Vermont  Republican,  at  Windsor,  'Vt.  Before 
completing  his  apprenticeship  there  was  a  change  in  the  estab- 
lishment, and  Mr.  Ide  returned  to  his  father's  house,  then  in 
New  Ipswich,  N.  H.,  in  1814,  set  up  ii  small  printing  office,  and 
with  the  help  of  a  sister,  eleven  years  old,  printed  and  published 
an  edition  of  the  JSTew  Testament,  said  to  have  been  the  first 
published  in  New  Hampshire.  It  bore  the  imprint  of  1815.  In 
February,  1817,  Mr.  Ide  started  the  publication  of  a  newspaper 
at  Brattleborough,  Vt.,  under  the  title  of  the  American  Yeo- 
man, and  in  1818,  in  company  with  a  Mr.  Aldrich,  bought  the 
Vermont  Republican  establishment,  at  Windsor,  and  united 
the  two  papers  under  the  title  of  the  Vermont  Republican  and 
American  Yeoman.  Subsequently  Mr.  Ide  bought  the  interest 
of  Mr.  Aldrich,  and  continued  the  business  alone,  adding  book- 
binding, publishing,  and  book-selling.  Under  the  administration 
of  President  John  Quincy  Adams,  Mr.  Ide  had  the  contract  for 
supplying  the  post-office  department  with  all  the  blanks,  paper, 
and  twine  used  by  the  post-offices  in  the  New  England  states  and 
New  York.  He  carried  on  quite  an  extensive  business  at  Windsor 
for  about  sixteen  years.  In  1834  he  united  his  Windsor  estab- 
lishment with  the  Claremont  Manufacturing  Company,  which  had 
just  commenced  manufacturing  paper,  and  he  became  manager 
of  the  business  of  the  concern,  which  was  well  equipped  for 
making  books,  in  which  he  continued  until  1858,  when  he  sold 
his  interest  to  his  sons,  George  G.  and  Lemuel  N.  Ide,  and  retired 
from  business.  In  1863  he  bought  the  National  Eagle  news- 
paper and  printing  establishment,  and  was  publisher  and  editor 
of  that  paper  until  1867,  when  he  sold  out  to  Arthur  Chase,  after 
which  he  did  not  engage  in  active  business.  In  March,  1818, 
Mr.  Ide  married  Evelina  Pamela,  daughter  of  Captain  Nichols 
Goddard,  of  Rutland,  Vt.,  by  whom  he  had  ten  children — -two 
sous  and  eight  daughters  —  five  of  whom  are  still  living.  His 
wife  died  in  1857,  and  in  1859  he  married  Mrs.  B.  Maria  Mott, 
of  Auburn,  N.  Y.,  who  died  March  23,  1889. 


DR.  LEONARD  JARVIS.  — (the  elder. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  441 

DR.   LEONARD  JARVIS 

Was  born  in  Boston,  June  22,  1774;  graduated  at  the  Boston 
Latin  School,  and  studied  medicine  with  his  uncle.  Dr.  Charles 
Jarvis,  of  Boston.  He  came  to  Claremout  and  commenced  the 
practice  of  his  profession  in  the  fall  of  1795.  He  was  quite  famous 
as  a  physician  and  surgeon,  and,  for  about  twenty  years,  had  a 
large  practice  in  Claremont  and  surrounding  towns.  After  that 
he  engaged  extensively  in  sheep  breeding,  wool-growing,  and 
manufacturing,  but  was  often  called  in  consultation  with  other 
physicians  as  long  as  he  Uved.     He  died  February  9,  1848. 

HUSSELL    JARVIS, 

Son  of  Samuel  G.  Jarvis,  senior,  and  brother  of  Dr.  Leonard 
Jarvis,  senior,  studied  law  with  his  cousin,  William  C.  Jarvis,  of 
Pittsfield,  Mass.,  was  admitted  to  the  bar  and  opened  an  office  in 
Claremont  in  1818.  lu  1820  he  married  Miss  Caroline  Dana,  of 
Chelsea,  Vt.,  who  died  in  two  or  three  years,  leaving  an  infant 
daughter,  Caroline,  the  wife  of  John  H.  Uhl,  of  New  York  city. 
Soon  after  the  death  of  his  wife  Mr.  Jarvis  removed  to  Boston, 
and  in  time  married  Miss  Eliza  Cordis,  who,  with  their  two  young 
daughters,  was  lost  in  Long  Island  sound  in  the  burning  of  the 
steamer  Lexington,  January  13, 1840.  The  Lexington  had  on  board 
one  hundred  and  ten  or  iifteen  passengers,  and  thirty-five  officers 
and  crew,  all  but  four  of  whom  were  lost.  Mr.  Jarvis  left  the 
practice  of  law,  became  noted  as  a  journalist,  and  died  in  New 
York  city  in  1853. 

COL.   RUSSELL  JARVIS, 

Third  son  of  Dr.  Leonard  Jarvis,  senior,  was  born  January  8, 1824, 
and  died  February  24,  1888,  in  the  room  where  he  was  born.  He 
owned  considerable  mill  and  other  property  in  the  west  part  of  the 
town,  including  the  home  farm  on  Town  hill,  to  the  most  of  which 
he  succeeded  on  the  death  of  his  father,  in  1848.  He  was  extensively 
engaged  in  the  breeding  of  Spanish  merino  sheep,  and  the  raising 

29 


442  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

of  fine  wool,  in  which  business  his  father  was  a  pioneer  in  this 
country.  For  fifteen  years  preceding  his  death  he  carried  on 
paper  manufacturing  in  the  mill  at  the  south  side  of  Sugar  river, 
which  was  burned  the  twelfth  of  May,  1890,  and  rebuilt  by  his  son 
Russell,  in  1892.  He  was  a  man  of  remarkable  energy  and  activity. 
He  was  aid-de-camp,  with  the  rank  of  colonel,  on  the  staff'  of  Gov- 
ernor "William  Haile,  in  1857  and  1858,  and  United  States  marshal 
for  New  Hampshire  during  the  administration  of  Andrew  Johnson. 
He  left  surviving  him  a  widow  and  three  sons. 

DK.    SAMUEL  GARDINER  JAEVIS, 

Oldest  son  of  the  late  Dr.  Leonard  Jarvis,  was  born  in  Claremont, 
September  30,  1816.  He  was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of  the 
town,  at  the  academy  of  the  Eev.  Virgil  H.  Barber,  West  Clare- 
mont, and  the  Boston  Latin  School.  He  studied  medicine  with  Dr. 
Thomas  B.  Kittredge,  then  in  practice  here ;  graduated  at  Jefferson 
Medical  College,  Philadelphia,  in  1830,  and  commenced  the  prac- 
tice of  his  profession,  having  located  on  the  farm  at  West  Clare- 
mont, where  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his  life.  His  practice 
extended  over  the  towns  in  this  vicinity  in  New  Hampshire  and 
Vermont  for  a  period  of  fifty-two  years,  and  until  within  a  few 
weeks  of  his  death.  He  was  for  two  or  three  years  United  States 
examining  pension  surgeon,  and  was  a  representative  in  the  New 
Hampshire  legislature  in  1875  and  1876.  He  died  March  5,  1892. 
In  the  annual  town  meeting,  on  the  14th  of  that  month,  John  L. 
Farwell  offered  a  series  of  resolutions,  which  were  unanimously 
adopted  by  rising  vote,  expressive  of  the  sense  of  the  people  at  the 
death  of  Dr.  Jarvis,  and  it  was  ordered  that  they  be  spread  upon 
the  records  of  the  town. 

DR.    LEONARD   JARVIS, 

Second  son  of  Dr.  Samuel  G.,  and  grandson  of  the  late  Dr.  Leonard 
Jarvis,  was  born  in  Claremont  on  July  29,  1852.  He  graduated  at 
Dartmouth  College  in  1873,  and  at  Harvard  Medical  School  in 
1882.      He  was  house  physician  at  the  lying-in  hospital,  Boston, 


DR.  SAMUEL  G.  JARVIS. 


HISTOEY    OF    CLAREMONT.  443 

four  months,  and  house  surgeon  at  Rhode  Island  Hospital,  Provi- 
dence, fifteen  months.  He  commenced  practice  in  Claremont  in 
May.  1884,  and  continued  until  the  fall  of  1892,  when,  by  reason  of 
impaired  health,  he  went  to  Colorado  and  remained  until  the  fol- 
lowing spring,  when  he  returned  and  resumed  the  practice  of  his 
profession. 

THE  JEWETTS. — JOHN  JEWETT, 

Of  West  Windsor,  Vt,  had  nine  children  —  seven  sous  and  two 
daughters.  Four  of  the  sons  and  the  two  daughters  are  still  living. 
Three  of  the  sons  —  Marcus  L.,  Frederick,  and  John  W. —  came  to 
Claremont  more  than  forty  years  ago,  where  they  have  been  con- 
spicuous in  trade  and  in  other  ways  ever  since. 

MARCUS  L.   JEWETT 

Was  born  April  16,  1825,  and  died  January  25,  1891.  He  came  to 
Claremont  in  1853,  and  was  engaged  in  the  grocery  and  provision 
business  the  most  of  the  remainder  of  his  life,  alone,  in  company 
with  his  brothers,  later  with  his  sons,  and  at  his  death  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  sons. 

FREDERICK  JEWETT 

Was  born  May  25,  1827.  He  came  to  Claremont  in  October,  1848, 
and  was  of  the  firm  of  Kidder,  Danforth  &  Jewett  three  years,  after 
which  he  was  clerk  in  the  store  of  C.  M.  Bingham  a  few  years.  In 
1857  he  entered  into  copartnership  with  his  brothers,  Marcus  L. 
and  John  W.,  under  the  firm  name  of  M.  L.  Jewett  &  Co.,  which 
was  continued  seventeen  years,  when  he  bought  out  his  brothers, 
and  afterward  took  his  son  George  W.  into  partnership.  After  a 
few  years  the  son  retired,  and  he  continued  alone  until  January, 
1890,  when  he  formed  a  copartnership  with  his  brother  John  W., 
under  the  firm  name  of  F.  &  J.  W.  Jewett  &  Co.,  and  has  so  con- 
tinued to  the  present  time.  Frederick  Jewett  has  been  longer  in 
trade  in  Claremont  than  any  other  man  now  living.  He  was  elected 
a  representative  in  the  ISTew  Hampshire  legislature  in  1890,  and 
re-elected  in  1892. 


444  HISTOKT   OF   CLAREMONT. 


JOHN   W.   JEWETT 


Was  born  August  4,  1829.  He  came  to  Claremont  in  July,  1851, 
and  bought  the  grocery  and  provision  business  of  Kidder,  Danforth 
&  Jewett,  and  carried  it  on  until  1853,  when  his  brother  Marcus  L. 
came  to  town,  and  they  formed  a  copartnership  in  the  same  busi- 
ness, which  they  can-ied  on  until  1857,  when  the  brother  Frederick 
was  admitted  to  the  firm,  which  was  continued  under  the  firm  name 
of  M.  L.  Jewett  &  Co.,  until  1874.  After  this  John  W.  Jewett  car- 
ried on  the  same  business,  having  for  a  partner  Clarence  E.  Pea- 
body,  under  the  firm  name  of  Jewett  &  Peabody.  At  the  end  of 
eight  years  Mr.  Peabody  retired  and  Mr.  Jewett  continued  the  busi- 
ness alone  until  January,  1890,  when  the  copartnership  of  F.  &  J. 
W.  Jewett  &  Co.  was  formed  and  still  continues.  John  W.  Jewett 
was  one  of  the  selectmen  in  the  years  1868,  1869,  1877,  1878,  1879, 
1880,  and  1881,  and  several  of  these  years  overseer  of  the  poor. 

DANIEL   W.    JOHNSON, 

Son  of  the  late  Moses  Johnson,  was  born  in  Sutton,  October  16, 
1827,  and  died  April  29, 1894.  In  December,  1845,  when  but  little 
more  than  eighteen  yeai-s  old,  he  came  to  Claremont,  entered  the 
Monadnock  mills  and  was  employed  there  in  responsible  positions 
until  February,  1858,  when  he  accepted  the  appointment  of  agent 
and  superintendent  of  the  Phtenix  cotton  mill  at  Peterborough. 
When  Jonas  Livingston  resigned  the  agency  of  the  Monadnock 
mills  in  1863,  Mr.  Johnson  was  appointed  to  the  place,  and  held  it 
until  his  death.  He  was  president  of  Sullivan  Savings  Institution 
from  January,  1870,  to  January,  1898 ;  was  chairman  of  the  board  of 
trustees  of  Fiske  Free  Library,  and  was  elected  representative  in 
the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  November,  1892.  In  1874  he 
made  a  trip  to  Europe  on  business  connected  with  the  Monadnock 
mills.  He  was  attacked  with  apoplexy  April  29,  1894,  and  died  in 
a  few  hours  afterward,  leaving  a  widow. 

MILES   JOHNSON 

Was  born  in  1748  and  died  in  Claremont  December  1,  1834.  He 
came  here  from  Guilford,  Conn.,  in  1796,  bringing  his  family  and 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 


445 


■etiects  by  a  team  of  four  oxen,  driven  by  his  son  Parmer,  then  eight 
years  old.  He  was  a  soldier  in  the  war  of  the  Revolution ;  was 
with  Washington's  army  when  it  crossed  the  Delaware  river,  in 
the  battle  of  White  Plains,  and  with  Israel  Putnam  at  Ticonderoga. 
In  his  old  age  he  often  related  incidents  of  the  marches  and  battles 
in  which  he  participated.  He  settled  on  the  farm  on  the  west  side 
of  Green  mountain,  now  owned  by  his  grandson,  Amos  D.  Johnson- 

PARMEE  JOHNSON, 

Son  of  Miles  Johnson,  was  born  in  1788  and  died  in  Claremont 
March  25,  1866.  When  eight  years  old  he  came  with  his  father 
from  Guilford,  Conn.,  and  ever  after  lived  on  the  west  side  of  Green 
mountain.  He  was  drafted  into  the  army  in  the  war  of  1812,  but 
by  reason  of  the  declaration  of  peace  was  not  mustered  into  the  ser- 
vice. He  had  two  sons,  both  living, —  Eev.  J.  G.  Johnson,  of  Red 
Wing,  Minn.,  and  Amos  D.  Johnson,  of  this  town,  and  several 
daughters. 

JOHN    KIMliAI.L 

Was  born  at  Haverhill,  September  -30,  1796.  He  graduated 
a,t  Dartmouth  College,  and  studied  law  at  Bath,  in  the  office 
of  Hon.  Moses  Payson,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  at  Haverhill. 
He  was  in  practice  at  Claremont  from  1830  to  1839,  and  at  Putney, 
Vt.,  from  1889  to  1870.  He  was  twice  elected  to  the  New  Hamp- 
shire senate  while  he  lived  in  Claremont.  He  represented  Putney 
in  the  Vermont  legislature  several  years ;  was  twice  state  senator 
for  his  district,  and  once  president  of  the  senate.  Pie  died  at  Put- 
ney, February  23,  1884. 

PHILANDER  C.   FREEMAN 

Was  born  at  Plainfield,  August  27,  1807.  He  graduated  at 
Kenyon  College,  Gambler,  Ohio;  studied  law  in  the  office  of  Judge 
J.  H.  Hubbard,  at  Windsor,Vt.  He  came  to  Claremont  about  1838, 
opened  an  office  and  commenced  the  practice  of  his  profession. 
He  was  a  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1843 


446  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

and  1844,  and  for  several  years  was  justice  of  the  police  court.  He 
died  April  20, 1871. 

SANFOKD    KINGSBURY 

"Was  born  at  "Windham,  Conn.,  April  7,  1743,  was  one  of  the  early 
settlers  of  the  town,  and  a  prominent  citizen  until  his  death  at  the 
age  of  ninety-one  years,  which  occurred  IsTovember  12,  1833.  He 
settled  on  the  farm  on  Town  hill  now  owned  by  the  heirs  of  Russell 
Jarvis,  and  lived  there  until  1795,  when  he  sold  it  to  the  senior  Dr. 
Leonard  Jarvis.  He  was  selectman  in  1784,  1786,  and  1789 ;  mod- 
erator in  1786  and  six  years  succeeding ;  representative  in  the  New 
Hampshire  legislature  in  1786  and  three  years  succeeding;  state 
senator  in  1791  and  1792 ;  member  of  the  executive  council  in  1789  ; 
and  judge  of  probate  from  December  20,  1797,  to  June  20,  1798. 

DK.    AyiLLIAM    M.    LADD 

Was  born  in  Unity  in  1813.  He  graduated  at  Kimball  Union 
Academy ;  studied  medicine  with  his  uncle.  Dr.  Charles  Perry,  in 
Rutland,  Vt. ;  attended  lectures  at  the  "\7'ermont  School  of  jNIedicine, 
where  he  took  his  degree  of  M.  D.  For  the  next  ten  years  he  was 
in  the  active  practice  of  his  profession  at  Townshend,  Vt.  He  then 
cam^e  to  Claremout,  continued  practice  for  a  time,  and  then  opened 
a  drug  store  and  continued  in  that  business  until  his  death,  June 
29,  1885.  He  was  postmaster  of  Claremont  from  May  5,  1855,  to 
June  17,  1861,  being  appointed  by  President  Pierce.  He  was  also 
commissioner  of  schools  for  Sullivan  county  for  several  years. 

CHAKLES   I.EI.AND 

"Was  a  son  of  Thomas  Leland ;  born  at  Windsor,  "V^t.,  July  28, 
1817 ;  was  educated  in  the  schools  of  his  native  town ;  studied  law 
with  his  father;  was  admitted  to  the  New  Hampshire  bar,  and 
was  in  the  practice  of  his  profession  at  Claremont  a  few  years. 
For  the  twenty-two  last  years  of  his  life  he  was  salesman  for  a 
New  York  drug  house.     He  died  at  Claremont  March  28,  1884. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  447 

THOMAS  LELAND, 

Son  of  Thomas  Leland,  was  born  at  Grafton,  Mass.,  August  5, 
1784;  graduated  at  Middlebury,  Vt,  College  in  1809;  studied 
law  in  the  office  of  Judge  J.  H.  liubbard,  at  Windsor,  Vt. ;  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  in  1812;  was  in  practice  at  Windsor  until 
1834,  when  he  came  to  Claremont  and  continued  in  practice  until 
his  death,  March  3,  1849.  He  represented  Windsor  in  the  Ver- 
mont legislature  one  or  more  terms. 

GEORGE  G.   LEWIS, 

Son  of  Wilca  and  Elizabeth  (Stewart)  Lewis,  was  born  in  Clare- 
mont, July  7,  1800,  and  died  at  Worcester,  Mass.,  February  12, 
1889.  He  descended  in  about  the  eighth  generation  from  George 
and  Mary  (Fuller)  Lewis.  This  George  Lewis  came  from  England 
in  1630,  and  settled  near  Plymouth,  Mass.  His  sou,  through 
whom  George  G.  Lewis's  descent  is  traced,  married  a  daughter  ot 
Dr.  Fuller,  one  of  the  Mayflower  Pilgrims.  Wilca  Lewis,  father 
of  George  G.,  settled  in  Claremont  about  1790,  on  the  farm  at  the 
east  side  of  Red  Water  brook,  known  later  as  the  Mrs.  Whitcomb 
place.  George  G.  Lewis's  grandfathers,  Jabez  Lewis  and  Jacob 
Stewart,  were  both  soldiers  in  the  Revolutionary  War,  on  the  side 
of  the  colonies,  and  -Jabez  Lewis  served  throughout  the  entire  war. 
George  G.  Lewis  married  Adeline  Labaree,  a  great-granddaughter 
of  Peter  Labaree,  who  was  captured  by  a  party  of  Lidians  at 
Charlestown  in  1754  and  carried  to  Canada,  with  the  Johnson 
family.  Labaree  afterward  escaped  and  returned  to  Charlestown, 
where  he  raised  up  a  considerable  family.  George  G.  Lewis  and 
his  wife  had  ten  children  born  to  them  —  seven  sons  and  three 
daughters.  The  oldest  son,  George  William,  and  the  youugest, 
Herbert,  died  in  infancy ;  the  eight  others  are  still  living.  Mrs. 
Lewis  was  highly  educated  for  her  time,  had  fine  litei-ary  taste, 
great  energy,  and  ambition  for  her  children,  whom  she  encouraged 
and  materially  aided  in  obtaining  good  educations.  The  five  sur- 
viving boys  graduated  at  Dartmouth   College,  and  the  girls  were 


448  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

fitted  to  teach  the  higher  branches  of  learning.     She  died  ISTovem- 
ber  26,  1876. 

Of  the  five  boys,  Eugene,  born  in  1839,  graduated  at  Dartmouth 
in  1864 ;  read  law  with  H.  W.  Parker,  of  Claremont ;  was  later  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar ;  practiced  for  a  time  at  Peterborough,  and 
Moline,  111.,  and  is  now  living  at  Salt  Lake  city,  Utah.  Frank  W., 
born  in  1840,  graduated  at  Dartmouth  in  1866 ;  read  law  with 
Henry  W.  Paine,  of  Boston,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  there ; 
removed  to  Lincoln,  ISTeb.,  and  engaged  in  the  business  of  western 
investments.  In  1893  he  returned  to  Boston,  where  he  is  acting 
president  and  eastern  manager  of  the  Merchants'  Trust  Company. 
Arthur  G.,  born  in  1845,  graduated  at  Dartmouth  in  1869;  en- 
gaged as  teacher  and  superintendent  of  schools,  and  is  now  prin- 
cipal of  a  grammar  school  in  "Worcester,  Mass.  Henrj'  E.,  born  in 
1848,  graduated  at  Dartmouth  in  1872 ;  studied  law  and  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar  in  Illinois;  moved  to  Lincoln,  ISTeb.,  in  1881,  and 
was  engaged  in  making  western  investments  for  eastern  parties. 
From  1889  till  1893  he  was  president  of  the  Lincoln  Safe  Deposit 
Company,  and  is  now  secretary  and  treasurer  of  the  Merchants' 
Trust  Company.  Homer  P.,  born  in  1849,  graduated  at  Dart- 
mouth in  1872.  Since  leaving  college  he  has  been  eno-ag-ed  in 
teaching.  At  Davenport,  la.,  he  was  principal  of  the  high  school, 
from  whence  he  went  to  Omaha,  ISfeb.,  in  1883,  since  which  he  has 
been  principal  of  the  high  school  there.  Of  the  daughters,  Ellen 
A.,  born  in  1838,  married  John  Bugbee,  of  Hartford,  Yt,  and  now 
resides  there.  Belle  H.,  born  in  1842,  has  for  several  years  been 
assistant  teacher  in  the  high  school  at  Omaha,  jSTeb.  Marion,  born 
in  1843,  lives  at  Salt  Lake  city,  where  she  has  been  chiefly  engaged 
in  teaching. 

This  is  a  remarkable  record  of  a  family  of  eight  children  of  a 
ISTew  Hampshire  farmer  of  but  moderate  means,  due  largely  to  the 
intelligence,  ambition,  frugality,  and  industry  of  the  mother,  in  co- 
operation with  the  father  and  the  children  themselves. 


FRANCIS  LOCKE. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  449 


JONAS    LIVINGSTON, 


Son  of  "William  Livingston,  a  Scotchman,  was  born  at  Sharon,  Hills- 
borough county,  December  13,  1806,  and  died  at  Peterborough, 
November  22,  1877.  He  was  agent  of  the  Phoenix  cotton  mill,  at 
Peterborough,  and  came  from  there  to  Claremont  in  1845,  as  agent 
and  manager  of  the  Monadnock  mills,  which  position  he  held  until 
1863,  when  he  resigned  and  returned  to  Petei'borough.  He  subse- 
quently bought  a  controlling  interest  in  the  Phoenix  mill,  which  he 
operated  successfully  until  his  death.  He  was  sole  representative 
from  Claremont  in  the  ISTew  Hampshire  legislature  in  1853,  and  was 
elected  a  member  of  that  bodj%  Avith  others,  in  1854.  He  was 
president  of  the  Sullivan  Savings  Institution  several  years,  and  a 
prominent  citizen  of  the  town. 

FRANCIS    LOCKE 

Was  born  in  Stoddard,  March  19,  1810.  He  is  the  youngest  of 
eleven  children  of  Enos  Locke.  When  twenty-one  years  old  he 
went  to  Walpole,  where  he  worked  as  a  fiirm  laborer,  carrying  on 
a  farm  on  shares,  and  then  as  owner,  until  1862,  during  which  time 
he  was  selectman  and  overseer  of  the  poor  four  years.  Having 
accumulated  a  comfortable  fortune,  that  year  he  sold  his  farm, 
came  to  Claremont,  and  bought  the  large  brick  house  on  the  west 
side  of  Pleasant  street,  built  by  the  late  S.  F.  Redfield,  Avhich  has 
since  been  his  home.  He  was  selectman  of  Claremont  in  1866, 
1867,  1870,  1871,  and  1872.  He  has  been  twice  married  and  is 
now  a  widower.  By  his  first  wife  he  had  one  daughter,  the  wife 
of  George  W.  Holden,  who  lives  with  him.  By  reason  of  the 
trials  and  hardships  of  his  early  years,  caused  by  the  excessive  use 
of  ardent  spirits  by  others  than  himself,  in  whom  he  was  inter- 
ested, he  has  been  an  ardent  temperance  man  for  many  years. 

CHAKLES    H.   LONG, 

The  oldest  son  of  Charles  F.  Long,  was  born  in  Claremont 
March  14,  18-34.  He  graduated  at  Norwich,  Vt.,  Military 
University  in  1855.     Soon  after  the  breaking  out  of  the  War  of 


450  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

the  Rebellion,  in  April,  1861,  he  was  employed  to  drill  recruits 
at  Newport,  Concord,  Dover,  Portsmouth,  and  other  places  iu 
the  state.  In  July,  1861,  he  opened  an  office  and  recruited  men 
for  the  Fifth  Regiment,  and  was  commissioned  captain  of  Com- 
pany G.  At  the  battle  of  Antietam,  September  17,  1862,  he 
was  severely  wounded  in  the  left  arm  by  a  minie  ball,  and  re- 
signed ISTovember  6.  April  17,  1863,  he  was  commissioned  cap- 
tain and  authorized  to  raise  a  company  of  heavy  artillery  to 
garrison  the  defenses  of  Portsmouth.  In  the  summer  of  186-1 
a  full  regiment  was  raised  and  he  was  commissioned  colonel  of 
it  September  29.  This  regiment  was  ordered  to  the  front, 
served  in  the  defenses  of  Washington,  and  was  mustered  out 
June  15,  1865.  In  ISTovember,  1864,  Colonel  Long  was  ordered 
to  the  command  of  the  First  Brigade,  Hardin's  Division,  Twenty- 
second  Arm}'  Corps,  and  retained  that  position  until  mustered 
out  with  his  regiment.  Generals  Howard,  Hardin,  and  other 
officers  under  whom  he  served,  spoke  of  Colonel  Long  and  his 
conduct  as  an  officer  in  commendatory  terms.  When  the  Con- 
cord and  Claremont  railroad  was  opened  he  was  appointed  station 
agent  at  Claremont  village,  which  position  he  has  since  held. 

MICHAEL    LOVELL 

Was  born  in  Rockingham,  Vt.,  in  1764,  and  died  here  April 
29,  1860.  He  was  a  son  of  Michael  Lovell,  who  was  a  captain 
in  the  War  of  the  Revolution,  and  both  he  and  his  wife  were 
zealous  and  active  in  the  cause  of  liberty.  Michael  Lovell,  the 
youuijer,  came  to  Claremont  in  1821,  bought  the  Alexander 
Ralston  farm  on  Town  hill  and  lived  there  until  his  death.  His 
son,  Porter  Kimball  Lovell,  graduated  at  Bowdoin  College  and 
became  a  physician.  He  went  to  Hayti  with  Dr.  James  Hall, 
formerly  of  this  town,  who  was  made  president  or  governor  of 
Liberia.  On  their  arrival  there  the  yellow  fever  was  raging, 
and  Dr.  Lovell  soon  became  famous  by  reason  of  his  success  in 
the  treatment  of  that  fearful  disease.  He  was  surgeon-general 
in    the    army  in    the    revolution    of   Hayti  in  1842-44,  and  died 


HISTORY    OP   CLAREMONT.  451 

there  at  the  age  of  thirty-seven  years.  Another  son,  Seymour, 
died  while  attending  medical  lectures  in  New  York  city. 

LEONARD   A.    LOVEKING, 

Son  of  the  late  John  L.  Lovering,  was  born  at  Hartford,  Vt., 
November  13,  1854.  He  was  appointed  cadet  at  West  Point  in 
1872;  graduated  and  was  commissioned  second  lieutenant  Fourth 
TJ.  S.  Infantry  June  15,  1876;  promoted  first  lieutenant  of  same 
January  3,  1885,  and  captain  of  same  October  15,  1893.  He 
was  detailed  by  the  war  department  acting  assistant  professor 
of  chemistry  and  mineralogy  and  geology  at  the  United  States 
Military  Academy,  West  Point,  1881-85;  engineer  ofiicer,  De- 
partment of  the  Columbia,  1888-89;  aid-de-camp  to  Brig. 
Gen.  John  Gibbon,  U.  S.  Army,  1889-91;  aid-de-camp  to 
Brig.  Gen.  Thomas  H.  Ruger,  U.  S.  Army,  1891;  in  command 
of  his  company  at  Boise  City,  Idaho,  in  1894. 

DK.   ALBERT   L.   MAEDEN, 

Son  of  Nathan  J.  Marden,  was  born  at  Epsom,  December  31, 
1849,  and  graduated  at  Dai'tmouth  Medical  College  in  1874.  He 
was  resident  physician  at  Eumford  Island,  Boston  Harbor,  for  a 
time,  and  in  1875  settled  at  Perkinsville,  Weathersfield,  Vt., 
and  removed  to  Claremont  in  1891,  where  he  is  in  the  prac- 
tice of  his  profession. 

Mn.ON  C.    M'CLCRE 

Was  born  in  Acworth,  January  7,  1819 ;  graduated  at  Dart- 
mouth College  in  1846 ;  taught  in  the  Claremont  Academy  two 
years ;  w^as  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1849 ;  formed  a  law  partner- 
ship with  P.  C.  Freeman  in  Claremont,  which  was  continued 
until  his  death,  September  1,  1860.  In  1855  and  1856  he  was 
a  member  of  the  governor's  council ;  in  1857  and  1858  repre- 
sentative in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature. 


452  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

KUANK   P.    MAYNAKD, 

Son  of  Levi  P.  Maynard,  was  born  in  Fairfield,  Me.,  August 
25,  1850.  In  1869  he  went  to  California  and  was  engaged  in 
hydraulic  mining  three  years.  He  then  returned  east  and 
went  to  Nashua,  where  he  was  in  the  shoe  manufacturing  busi- 
ness until  1879,  when  he  went  to  Boston  and  was  in  the  retail 
shoe  trade.  In  1883  he  formed  a  copartnership  with  his  brother- 
in-law,  Charles  IST.  Washburn,  under  the  firm  name  of  Maynard 
&  Washburn,  and  they  came  to  Claremont,  bought  what  was 
known  as  the  Home  Mill  propertj^  and  commenced  the  manu- 
facturing of  shoes  on  an  extensive  scale.  They  made  additions 
to  the  buildings  from  time  to  time  and  this  industry  became  an 
important  addition  to  the  business  of  Claremont.  They  employ 
from  two  hundred  to  two  hundred  and  twenty-five  persons,  and 
the  goods  made  by  them  are  distributed  all  over  the  country. 
In  April,  189-3,  Mr.  Maynard  bought  the  interest  of  Mr.  Wash- 
burn and  became  sole  proprietor  of  the  concern.  lie  was  the 
founder  of  the  Claremont  Electric  Light  Works ;  is  president  of 
the  Claremont  Building  Association,  and  was  one  of  the  com- 
mittee that  built  Hotel  Claremont.  When  the  People's  ISTational 
Bank  was  organized,  in  1892,  ]\Ir.  Maj-nard  was  chosen  presi- 
dent of  it,  and  has  been  interested  in  other  entei'prises  for 
Imilding  up  and  improving  the  town. 

In  1876  Mr.  Maynard  married  Helen  E.,  daughter  of  N.  P. 
Washburn,  now  of  Claremont.  She  died  in  December,  1890, 
and  in  April,  1892,  he  married  Miss  Jennie  Sampson,  of  Port- 
land, Me.  Thej-  have  a  handsome  residence,  corner  of  School 
and  Oak  streets,  shown  in  the  illustration. 

RAI-rH    METCALF, 

Oldest  son  of  John  Metcalf,  a  thrifty  farmer,  of  North  Charles- 
town,  was  born  November  21,  1796,  and  died  in  Claremont, 
August  26,  1858.  He  graduated  at  Dartmouth  College  in  1823 ; 
studied  law  with  Henrj-  Hubbard,  of  Charlestown,  Eichard  Bart- 
lett,  of  Concord,  and  George  B.  Upham,  of  Claremont ;  admitted 


HISTORY    OF   CLAEBMONT.  453 

to  the  Sullivan  county  bar  in  1826,  and  opened  an  office  at 
Newport.  In  1831  he  was  elected  secretaiy  of  state  of  New 
Hampshire  and  held  the  office  eight  years.  He  represented  the 
town  of  Newport  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1852  and 
1853 ;  register  of  probate  for  Sullivan  county  from  1845  to  1851 ; 
chairman  of  a  committee  to  revise  the  laws  of  the  state  in 
1852;  governor  in  1855  and  1856.  With  a  few  temporary  in- 
tervals he  had  his  home  at  Newport  until  1856,  when  he  removed 
to  Claremont  and  built  the  house  on  Broad  street,  where  he 
died,  now  the  home  of  the  widow  of  "William  Breck.  He  was 
a  man  of  varied  attainments  and  an  able  chief  executive  of  the 
state. 

WILLIAM  H.   H.   MOODY, 

The  seventh  of  eleven  children  of  the  late  Jonathan  Moody, 
was  born  in  Claremont  May  10,  1842,  and  was  named  for  President 
William  Henry  Harrison.  When  fourteen  years  old  he  entered  the 
shoe  factory  of  Russell  W.  Farwell  here,  with  the  design  of  learn- 
ing the  business,  where  he  continued  four  years.  In  December, 
1861,  he  enlisted  in  Troop  L,  New  England  Cavalry,  served  a  few 
mouths  and  was  honorably  discharged.  In  the  fall  of  1862  he 
engaged  as  traveling  salesman  for  a  large  shoe  jobbing  house  in 
Boston,  and  sold  goods  all  over  the  country.  In  1867  he  was  ad- 
mitted as  partner  in  the  concern,  under  the  firm  name  of  McGib- 
bons,  Moody  &  Raddin,  having  but  little  capital  other  than  ability 
and  knowledge  of  the  business.  In  1873  he  became  a  partner  in 
the  firm  of  Grain,  Moody  &'Eising,  and  they  established  a  shoe 
manufactory  at  Amoskeag,  employing  one  hundred  hands, 
making  shoes  for  the  western  and  southern  markets.  In  a  few 
years,  the  business  having  outgrown  its  quarters,  the  firm  removed 
to  Nashua  and  continued  there  about  seven  years.  Then  the  shoe 
manufacturing  firm  of  Moody,  Estabrook  &  Andersons  was  organ- 
ized and  has  continued  to  the  present  time.  They  built  at  Nashua 
a  three-story  brick  factory  large  enough  to  accommodate  from  nine 
hundred  to  ten  hundred  hands,  and  to  turn  out  eight  thousand  and 


454  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

Hve  hundred  pairs  of  men's,  boys',  and  women's  shoes  of  various 
styles  per  day.  This  is  the  largest  manufactory  of  its  class  of  goods 
in  this  country.  Its  business  amounts  to  about  two  million  dollars 
unnually.  The  goods  are  sold  wholly  to  jobbing  houses  at  the  west 
and  south.  The  firm  has  an  office  and  warehouse  in  Boston,  and 
Mr.  Moody  is  a  director  in  the  ISTational  Shoe  and  Leather  Bank, 
Boston. 

In  the  early  half  of  the  present  century  Jonathan  Moody,  the 
father  of  William  H.  H.,  employed  several  men  and  made  shoes  by 
hand,  using  pegs  of  his  own  make,  for  one  half  the  people  of  the 
town.  He  was  also  a  famous  tenor  drummer,  and  was  in  request 
at  all  military  trainings  and  musters. 

Since  going  to  Boston  Mr.  Moody  has  accumulated  a  handsome 
fortune.  In  1877  he  bought  what  was  known  for  many  j-ears  as 
the  Mann  farm,  of  eighty-seven  acres,  about  a  mile  south  of  Clare- 
mont  village  on  the  west  side  of  the  road  to  Charlestown.  He  has 
added  to  it  from  time  to  time  adjoining  farms  and  lots  of  land,  and 
has  now  six  hundred  acres  all  connected  with  his  original  purchase, 
mostly  strong,  productive  upland.  On  this  farm  he  has  erected  a 
large  and  elegant  house,  barns,  and  other  buildings  and  appurte- 
nances adapted  to  an  extensive  first-class  horse-breeding  establish- 
ment; and  in  1893  had  one  hundred  and  fifty  blooded  horses  of  all 
kinds.  He  has  expended  large  sums  of  money  annually  in  enrich- 
ing and  improving  his  farm,  adding  to  the  wealth,  importance,  and 
beauty  of  his  native  town,  for  which  he  has  always  had  a  strong 
aifection.  Mr.  Moody  spends  a  portion  of  each  summer  on  his 
place  here,  and  his  winters  in  Boston. 

CHASE  NOYES, 

Son  of  Tristham  Noyes,  was  born  at  Boscaweu  in  1790.  He  came 
to  Newport  in  1828,  and  from  there  to  Claremont  in  1854.  He  died 
here  May  22,  1862.  He  was  an  uncompromising  abolitionist,  was 
prominently  connected  with  the  underground  railroad,  and  is  said 
to  have  aided  many  slaves  in  escaping  from  bondage  to  freedom. 
He  had  eight  children  — four  sons  and  four  daughters.     The  sons, 


HOSEA  W.  PARKER. 


HISTORY    OF    OLAREMONT.  456 

William  T.,  Silas  E.,  Henry  C,  and  Baron  S.  Noyes,  are  all 
living  except  AVilliarn  T.,  who  died  in  November,  1884.  The 
father  and  all  the  sons  were  at  different  times  engaged  in  the  man- 
ufacture and  sale  of  shoes. 

HOSEA    W.    PARKER, 

Second  son  of  the  late  Benjamin  Parker,  was  born  in  Lempster, 
May  30,  1833.  Plis  father  died  in  1845,  leaving  a  widow,  two  sons, 
a,  daughter,  and  a  good  hill  farm.  Hosea  W.,  twelve  years  old, 
assisted  his  brother  Hiram,  three  years  older,  in  the  work  of  the 
farm,  attending  the  district  and  an  occasional  term  of  a  select  school 
in  the  town  until  he  reached  his  eighteenth  year.  He  attended 
Tubbs  Union  Academy,  "Washington,  a  few  terms,  and  then  entered 
the  Green  Mountain  Liberal  Institute,  South  Woodstock,  Vt., 
where  he  fitted  for  college.  In  1855  he  entered  Tufts  College, 
where  he  remained  two  years,  then  commenced  the  study  of  law  in 
the  office  of  Burke  &  Wait,  JS'ewport,  and  was  admitted  to  the  Sul- 
livan county  bar  in  1859.  While  pursuing  his  studies  he  taught 
school  winters  in  Newport  and  other  places.  He  commenced  prac- 
tice in  his  native  town  and  removed  to  Claremont  in  the  fall  of 
1860,  where  he  has  since  resided.  He  soon  acquired  a  remunera- 
tive practice,  w-hich  increased  continually  until  he  became  one  of 
the  leading  lawyers  in  western  New  Hampshire,  being  engaged  on 
one  side  or  the  other  of  almost  every  important  cause  tried  in  the 
Sullivan  county  court.  As  a  jury  lawyer  he  ranks  with  the  fore- 
most in  the  state,  both  in  the  examination  of  witnesses  and  as  an 
advocate.  He  has  been  admitted  to  practice  in  the  United  States 
circuit  and  district  courts  in  New  Hampshire,  and  in  1873  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  supreme  court  of  the  United  States  at  Washington, 
D.  C. 

In  politics  Mr.  Parker  is  a  Democrat,  and  has  been  a  leader  in 
and  worker  for  that  party  ever  since  he  became  a  voter,  attending 
county,  state,  and  national  conventions,  and  taking  the  stump  in 
all  exciting  canvasses.     In  1859  and  1860  he  represented  the  town 


456  HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT. 

of  Lempster  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature,  and  took  a  leading 
part  on  committees  and  as  a  debater  in  the  house.  In  1869  he  was 
the  candidate  of  his  party  for  member  of  congress  from  the  third 
New  Hampshire  district  —  which  had  been  Republican  by  a  decided 
majority  for  many  years  —  and  was  defeated  by  Jacob  Benton.  In 
1871  he  was  again  a  candidate  and  was  elected  over  (Si-eu.  S.  G. 
Griffin,  the  Republican  candidate,—  receiving  many  more  than  his 
party  vote, —  fully  one  hundred  in  Claremont.  He  was  again 
elected  over  General  Griffin  in  1873,  b}'  an  increased  majority. 
Nobody  voted  for  him  supposing  that  he  was  anything  but  a  true 
and  loyal  Democrat.  In  congress  he  was  constantly  in  his  place  in 
the  house,  generally  acting  and  voting  with  his  party.  He  was 
always  opposed  to  jobs  and  jobbery.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
committees  on  education  and  labor,  and  on  patents.  The  patents 
held  by  the  sewing-machine  monopolies  were  about  to  expire,  and 
extraordinary  etibrts  and  large  sums  of  money  were  used  to  secure 
an  extension  of  these  patents  ;  but  Mr.  Parker  was  opposed  to  it  in 
the  interest  of  the  people.  The  committee,  by  a  majority  of  one, 
voted  to  report  against  the  extension,  and  the  report  was  sustained 
by  the  house. 

Since  the  close  of  his  second  term  in  congress  Mr.  Parker  has 
devoted  himself  closely  to  the  practice  of  his  profession,  seeking  no 
political  honors.  In  1892  he  was  nominated  unanimously  in  con- 
vention of  the  second  district  for  member  of  congress,  but  was 
defeated  by  Henry  M.  Baker  by  a  small  plurality.  In  1883  Tufts 
College  conferred  upon  him  the  degree  of  A.  M.,  and  at  the  same 
time  elected  him  one  of  the  trustees  of  the  college,  which  position 
he  still  holds.  He  is  a  prominent  Freemason,  and  has  been  for 
the  past  twenty  years  eminent  commander  of  Sullivan  Commander}-, 
Knights  Templar,  of  Claremont. 

In  1861  Mr.  Parker  was  married  to  Miss  Caroline  Lovisa  South- 
gate,  of  Bridgewater,  Vt.,  and  has  one  daughter,  the  wife  of  Rev. 
Lee  S.  ISPCoUester,  of  Detroit,  Mich. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  457 


HENRY  PATTEN, 


Son  of  William  Patten,  was  born  June  11, 1817,  in  Roxbury,  Mass., 
now  a  part  of  Boston.  He  came  to  Claremont  in  October,  1839, 
and  entered  the  store  of  Nicholas  &  "William  H.  Farwell,  father 
and  son,  at  the  west  end  of  the  lower  bridge,  known  as  the  Far- 
mers' Exchange  for  many  years.  In  the  following  February  Mr. 
Patten  became  a  partner  in  the  firm,  and  so  continued  three 
j'ears,  when  Nicholas  Farwell  retired,  and  the  copartnership  of 
Farwell  &  Patten  was  formed,  and  existed  about  three  years. 
Mr.  Patten  then  moved  across  the  bridge  and  established  him- 
self in  trade  in  the  west  end  of  the  brick  block  erected  by 
Horace  Parmelee,  and  known  for  a  long  time  as  the  Parmelee 
building,  where  he  continued  until  1882,  when  he  retired  from 
active  business.  In  1840  he  married  Nancy,  daughter  of  Nicholas 
Farwell,  and  they  had  five  children  —  three  sons  and  two  daugh- 
ters—  four  of  whom  are  living.  The  oldest  son  died  in  early 
manhood,  and  Mrs.  Patten  died  in  May,  1881. 

ALEXANDER  RALSTON 

Came  from  Scotland  to  Boston,  where  he  carried  on  the  business 
of  manufacturing  gloves  before  and  during  the  Revolutionary  War, 
and  accumulated  a  handsome  fortune  for  those  times.  Being  a 
pronounced  Tory  he  was  obliged  to  leave  Boston  soon  after  the 
close  of  the  war,  came  to  Keene  and  from  there  to  Claremont 
in  1784,  and  purchased  four  tracts  of  land  on  Town  hill,  which 
included  most  of  what  was  for  many  years  known  as  the  Michael 
Lovell  farm,  now  owned  by  Dr.  Osmon  B.  Way,  and  the  territory 
west  of  it  extending  to  Connecticut  river.  He  kept  an  inn  at 
the  Lovell  place,  widely  known  while  he  kept  it  and  afterward, 
for  more  than  thirty  years,  as  the  Ralston  Tavern.  He  returned 
to  Keene  about  1804,  where  he  died  March  29,  1810,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-four  years.  He  had  five  children  —  three  sons  and  two 
daughters.  His  daughter,  Jennette,  married  Ithamer  Chase,  of 
Cornish,  father  of  the  late  chief  justice  of  the  United  States  su- 

30 


458  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

preme  court.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  Alexander  Kalston  was 
the  maternal  grandfather  of  Salmon  P.  Chase.  Ithamer  Chase 
removed  from  Cornish  to  Keene,  where  he  died  August  8,  1817. 

SAMUEL   S.    RAND, 

Son  of  Samuel  Eand,  was  born  in  Portsmoutli,  June  1,  1819.  He 
learned  the  trade  of  a  tinsmith  at  Portsmouth,  -n'orked  as  a  jour- 
neyman a  few  years,  then  commenced  business  on  his  own  account 
at  Lowell,  Mass.;  from  there  he  removed  to  Holderness,  N.  H., 
and  came  to  Claremont  in  1851,  opened  a  shop  in  the  Fiske 
building,  north  side  of  the  upper  bridge,  and  in  1854  moved  into 
O.  J.  Brown's  building  on  Pleasant  street,  and  connected  the  stove 
with  his  tin  business.  In  1871  he  erected  on  the  east  side  of 
Pleasant  street  the  three-story  building  known  as  Rand's  block. 
The  lower  storj^  is  occupied  with  five  stores;  the  second  with 
rooms  connected  with  the  Belmont  House,  and  the  third  with  the 
Odd  Fellows'  hall.  The  building  of  this  and  the  Heywood  block, 
connected  with  it,  at  the  same  time,  started  business  on  Pleasant 
street.  ^Ir.  Rand  sold  his  tin  and  stove  business  to  his  son,  Fred 
■deF.  Rand,  in  1885.  He  has  been  twice  married  —  first,  to  Miss 
Lucinda  W.  Brown,  by  whom  he  had  four  children  —  three  sons 
and  one  daughter,  all  grown  to  maturity,  and  living.  This  wife 
died  April  1-3,  1865,  and  May  25,  1866,  he  married  her  sister,  Miss 
Mary  W.  Brown,  who  died  April  14,  1892. 

DK.    .TOSIAH   RICHARDS, 

Son  of  Josiah  Richards,  was  born  at  Washington,  N.  H.,  May  30, 
1784,  and  died  in  Claremont,  January  29,  1871.  He  attended 
Atkinson  academy,  and  studied  medicine  with  Dr.  Cogswell,  of 
that  town.  During  the  war  of  1812  he  obtained  a  situation  under 
the  United  States  government  in  the  laud  and  naval  hospital  at 
Portsmouth,  and  after  a  few  months  was  appointed  assistant  sur- 
geon in  the  naval  service,  and  assigned  to  duty  at  Newburyport, 
Mass.      After  a  time  he  secured    his    discharge  and    entered  the 


DR.  JOSIAH  RICHARDS, 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  459 

privateer  service,  in  which  he  continued  about  two  years,  and  then 
returned  to  New  Hampshire,  and  entered  the  medical  department  of 
Dartmouth  College,  where  he  graduated  in  1815.  The  next  year 
he  came  to  Claremont,  where  the  remainder  of  his  life  was  spent 
—  the  most  of  it  in  an  extensive  practice  of  his  profession,  his 
specialty  being  obstetrics,  in  which  he  is  said  to  have  been  very 
^^uccessful.  He  represented  the  town  in  the  New  Hampshire 
legislature  in  1827  and  1828,  and  was  several  years  superintending 
school  committee.  He  was  a  man  of  great  physical  and  mental 
strength  and  activity,  and  responded  to  calls  until  quite  advanced 
in  years.  In  1816  Doctor  Richards  married  Emily  Haskell,  of 
Weathersfield,  Vt.,  who  died  November  17,  1882,  leaving  two 
daughters  —  Miss  Marion,  who  has  since  died,  and  Helen,  the 
widow  of  Sullivan  W.  Healey. 

SHERMAN  ROSSITEE 

Was  a  son  of  Captain  William  Rossiter,  and  a  direct  descendant 
of  Edward  Rossiter,  who  was  one  of  the  assistants  to  Governor 
•John  Winthrop,  chosen  in  London  in  1629,  and  came  to  the 
colonies  in  the  spring  of  1630.  Sherman  Rossiter  was  born  in 
Guilford,  Conn.,  April  20,  1775.  About  1802  he  came  to  Clare- 
mont and  soon  after  purchased  and  settled  on  a  farm  on  the  old 
road  to  Newport,  the  eastern  boundary  of.  which  is  the  line  be- 
tween these  towns,  where  he  passed  the  remainder  of  his  life. 
By  industry  and  frugality  he  accumulated  a  handsome  property, 
and  died  October  2,  1838.  He  married  Olive  Baldwin,  of  his 
native  town,  November  5,  1804,  and  they  had  nine  children  — 
seven  sons  and  two  daughters.  The  sons  were  William,  Timothy 
Baldwin,  Pomeroy  Morse,  Luzern  Sherman,  Chittenden,  Stephen 
Farley,  and  Rounseville  Van  Ness;  the  daughters.  Submit  Chit- 
tenden and  Loret  Collins.  William  died  in  Claremont,  February 
29,  1860;  Chittenden,  a  successful  farmer  in  Windsor,  Vt,  died 
May  8,  1892,  and  Rounseville  Van  Ness  in  infancy.  Timothy 
Baldwin,  Pomeroy  Morse,  and  Stephen  Farley  are  living  in  Clare- 
mont, and  Luzern  Sherman  is  living  in  Kasson,  Minn.,  engaged 


460  HISTORY   OF   CLAKEMONT. 

in  staging  and  keeping  a  hotel.  Submit  Chittenden  married' 
Edmund  "Wheeler,  of  Newport,  and  died  March  2,  1856;  Loret 
Collins  married  the  late  "William  E.  Tutherly,  of  this  town,  and 
died  January  8,  1888. 

WILLIAM  KOSSITEK, 

The  oldest  child  of  Sherman  and  Olive  (Baldwin)  Eossiter,  was 
born  September  24,  1805,  and  died  Eebruary  29,  1860.  He  lived 
in  Claremout  during  his  whole  life,  was  an  active  l)usiness  man, 
and  prominent  citizen.  For  several  years  he,  in  company  with  the 
late  Thomas  Sanford,  operated  the  Sullivan  woolen  mill,  since 
1857  owned  by  George  L.  Balcom,  and  vras  engaged  in  general 
mercantile  business  for  quite  a  number  of  years,  in  the  store  now 
occupied  bj'  Israel  T>.  Hall,  having  for  partners  for  different  pe- 
riods, Cyrus  Clement,  Tyler  Tujjper,  Sumner  Putnam,  and  perhaps 
others.  He  was  selectman  in  1839,  1845,  1850,  and  1852,  and 
representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1847  and  1848. 
He  married  Lucy  Barrett,  of  Claremout,  who  survives  him. 

POMEROY   MORSE   ROSSITEU, 

Third  son  of  Sherman  and  Olive  (Baldwin)  Rossiter,  was  born 
December  4,  1810,  and  has  always  been  engaged  in  farming.  He 
worked  for  Joel  Goss,  on  his  farm,  from  1829  to  1832.  On  July 
1,  1831,  Mr.  Goss's  two  large  barns  and  sheds  adjoining  were 
destroyed  by  a  tornado,  Mr.  Eossiter  being  in  one  of  the  sheds 
at  the  time,  and  escaped  injury.  Mr.  Goss  was  an  extensive  farmer, 
keeping  from  twenty-live  to  thirty  cows,  and  his  rule  was  to  fatten 
as  many  hogs  as  he  kept  cows.  Each  winter,  like  other  farmers 
in  those  days,  he  carried  his  pork,  butter,  cheese,  poultry,  and 
other  produce  to  Boston  market.  In  the  winter  of  1831—32,  he 
sent  Mr.  Eossiter,  with  a  team  of  six  oxen  and  sled,  to  Boston 
with  produce  weighing  six  thousand  pounds,  which  he  disposed 
of,  and  brought  back  about  an  equal  amount  of  merchandise. 
He  was  twelve  days  on  the  trip,  and  the  entire  expense  in  monej- 


* 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  461 

paid  out,  for  himself  and  team,  as  he  reports  it,  was  $24.94.  In 
1832  Mr.  Rossiter  went  to  Milford,  and  in  1836  bought  a  large  farm 
there  and  carried  it  on  successfully,  making  hop  raising  a  specialty, 
until  1865.  In  1879  he  bought  the  well  known  Cupola  farm  in 
Claremont,  which,  if  not  the  best,  is  one  of  the  two  best,  farms  in 
New  Hampshire.  He  was  selectman  of  Milford  in  1856,  1858,  and 
1859,  and  representative  from  Claremont  in  the  New  Hampshire 
legislature  in  1885  and  1887.  He  married  Eliza  Tucker,  of  Milford, 
November  15,  1836,  who  died  several  years  ago. 

STEPHEN    FABLEY   HOSSITEK, 

Sixth  son  of  Sherman  and  Olive  (Baldwin)  Rossiter,  was  born 
October  7,  1820,  and  he  has  always  lived  in  Claremont  and 
been  engaged  in  farming  and  dealing  in  farm  stock.  He  was 
selectman  eight  years,  from  1863  to  1877,  both  years  inclusive ; 
representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1878  and 
1879;  county  commissioner  from  1886  to  1892;  and  collector  of 
taxes  in  1891  and  1894.  He  married  Maria  A.  Marshall,  of 
New  Ipswich,  March  20,  1850. 

TIMOTHY    IJAI.DWIN    UOSSITER, 

Second  son  of  Sherman  and  Olive  (Baldwin)  Rossiter,  was  born 
September  18,  1807.  He  has  been  engaged  in  farming  all  his 
life.  He  owned  and  carried  on  a  farm  in  Newport  several  years. 
In  1859  he  l)ought  what  was  known  as  the  Joel  Goss  farm,  about 
two  miles  south  of  Claremont  village,  where  he  has  since  lived. 
Pie  married  Elvira,  daughter  of  the  late  Moody  Dustin,  of  Clare- 
mont, May  30,  1836. 

DR.    SILAS   PI.    SABINE 

Was  born  at  Pomfret,  Conn.,  July  3,  1777.  At  an  early  age 
he  went  with  his  parents  to  Windsor,  Vt.,  and  worked  on  his 
father's  farm  until  twenty  years  of  age,  after  which  he 
fitted    for   college   at   Haverhill,    and   graduated   at   Dartmouth 


462  HISTORY    OE    CLARBMONT. 

College  in  1803.  He  studied  medicine  with  Dr.  Trask,  at 
Windsor,  and  commenced  practice  at  Strafford,  Vt.,  in  1807, 
wliich  he  continued  at  Windsor  until  1819,  and  in  Claremont 
until  1834,  when  he  retired  from  active  business  in  his  profes- 
sion. When  in  Vermont  he  was  examining  surgeon  in  the  war 
of  1812.  In  Claremont  he  was  superintendent  of  schools  several 
years.  He  was  a  man  of  fine  literary  attainments  and  wrote 
and  published  many  essays  on  various  medical  topics.  He  died 
in  Claremont,  July  29,  1850. 

SIMEON   SANKEE, 

A  colored  citizen,  was  a  conspicuous  character  in  town  for  many 

years  succeeding  1832.     He  was  a  barber   and  kept  a  small  shop 

where  he  dispensed  cakes,  custards,  candy,  nuts,  and  ice    cream 

in  the  warm  seasons.     Pie   had   a  poetic  turn,  and  displayed  his 

talent    in    this    direction    in    advertising    his    business.      In    the 

National  Eagle  of  January,  1835,  he  introduced  himself  in   this 

wise  : 

Look,  gentiles !  I'm  Simeon  Saiikee  ! 

I  shave  in  shine  or  rain  ; 
Scissors  !  if  I  suit  not  each  Yankee, 

I'll  shave  him  o'er  again. 

After  a  long  catalogue  of  his  accomplishments  as  a  "  tonsorial 
artist,"  he  closes  —  "Mr.  Sankee  may  be  found  during  shaving 
hours,  at  his  office,  opposite  Stevens's  Hotel,  where  he  will  attend 
to  the  calls  of  his  customers."  He  died  at  Morristown,  Vt.,  in 
1861. 

THE    REV.    HENEY   SDIINER   SMITH 

Was  born  in  Nashua,  March  15,  1801.  He  entered  Kenyon 
College,  at  Gambler,  0.,  but  on  account  of  the  disorganized 
state  of  that  institution,  he  did  not  graduate.  He  studied  the- 
ology at  Gambler;  was  made  deacon  by  Bishop  Mcllvaine  at 
Gambler,  September  7,  1833;  ordained  priest  at  Cleveland,  0., 
September  11,  1836,  by  Bishop  Mcllvaine.  Following  his  ordi- 
nation, Mr.  Smith    officiated    in    several   parishes   in  the  diocese 


HISTORY   OP   CLARBMONT.  463 

of  Ohio.  At  Easter,  1838,  he  became  the.  assistant  of  the  Rev. 
James  B.  Howe,  in  Union  church,  Claremont,  one  half  of  the 
time;  the  other  half  he  officiated  in  Trinity  church,  Cornish. 
In  1842  Mr.  Smith  officiated  in  Cornish  and  Plainiield.  He  be- 
came rector  of  Union  church  —  Trinity  church  having  been  or- 
ganized at  the  village  —  in  1843,  and  continued  in  this  office 
until  Easter,  1871.     He  died  February  16,  1872. 

DK.   NATHAK    SMITH 

Was  born  at  Eehoboth,  Mass.,  September  30,  1762,  and  died  at 
New  Haven,  Conn.,  July  26,  1828.  His  father  removed  with 
his  family  to  Chester,  Vt.,  in  1770.  When  about  twenty-one 
years  old,  the  subject  of  this  sketch  was  incited  to  become  a 
physician  and  surgeon,  through  having  witnessed  an  amputation 
of  the  thigh  by  Dr.  Josiah  Goodhue,  of  Putney,  Vt.,  when  he 
held  the  limb  and  tied  the  arteries  as  the  doctor  took  them  up. 
He  then  requested  Dr.  Goodhue  to  take  him  as  a  pupil,  but 
was  advised  to  first  further  perfect  his  education,  and  he  ac- 
cordingly put  himself  under  the  tuition  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Whit- 
ing, of  Rockingham,  Vt.,  which  he  continued  several  months, 
and  then  commenced  the  study  of  medicine  with  Dr.  Goodhue, 
and  remained  with  him  three  years,  paying  his  way  by  doing 
work  about  the  doctor's  place.  He  began  practice  at  Cornish 
in  1787,  without  any  degree,  and  subsequently  married  a  daughter 
of  Gen.  Jonathan  Chase,  of  that  town.  He  was  in  practice  in 
Claremont  for  a  time  succeeding  1788.  To  further  perfect  him- 
self in  his  profession  he  entered  the  medical  department  of 
Harvard  College,  and  received  the  degree  of  M.  B.  in  1790,  be- 
ing the  only  graduate  of  that  year  in  a  class  of  four. 

In  1708  Dr.  Smith  was  appointed  professor  of  the  theory  and 
practice  of  medicine,  and  also  of  anatomy  and  surgery,  at  Dart- 
mouth College.  He  held  both  chairs  until  1810,  and  the  former 
until  1813,  when  he  was  called  to  take  the  foremost  place  in 
the  medical  dep)artment  of  Yale  College,  and  resigned,  but  lec- 
tured at  Dartmouth  seve;-al  years  afterward.      In  1821  he  organ- 


464  HISTORY   OF    CLAKBMONT. 

ized  the  medical  schoel  of  Bowdoin  College  and  lectured  there 
and  at  the  University  of  A'ermont  several  years. 

Dr.  Smith  was  famous  for  his  success  in  sui'gery,  and  origi- 
nated new  methods  and  operations.  In  a  biographical  sketch, 
read  before  the  New  Hampshire  Medical  Society  at  its  centennial 
anniversary  in  June,  1891,  by  Dr.  John  W.  Parsons,  of  Ports- 
mouth, he  said  of  Dr.  Smith  —  "To  him  more  than  to  any  other 
man,  it  is  believed,  may  be  ascribed  the  rapid  increase  in  the 
advantages  for  medical  education  in  America  at  this  date." 

ALPHEUS    F.    SNOW, 

Son  of  Alpheus  Snow,  was  born  in  Clhesterfield,  May  29,  1818. 
He  studied  law  in  the  othce  of  Hubbard  &  Gilchrist,  Charles- 
town,  and  graduated  at  the  Harvard  Law  School.  He  Avas  ad- 
mitted to  the  Sullivan  county  bar  in  1841,  and  soon  opened  an 
ofiice  in  Claremont  and  practiced  his  profession  here  until  1864, 
which,  by  reason  of  impaired  health,  he  discontinued  at  that  time. 
In  1866  he  removed  to  Hartford,  Conn.,  where  he  died  ISTovember 
25,  1886.  Hie  remains  were  buried  in  the  Pleasant  Street  Ceme- 
tery, in  this  town.  He  was  justice  of  the  police  court  between 
1850  and  1854. 

THE    STEVENS    FAMILY. 

The  first  of  this  family  in  Claremont,  ^vhich  became  conspicuous 
and  made  a  considerable  figure  in  the  early  and  later  history  of 
the  town,  was  Elihu  Stevens.  He  was  born  in  Guilford,  Conn, 
in  1731,  came  here  about  1768,  and  died  in  1814.  He  was  an  ar- 
dent Whig,  and  verj'  active  on  the  side  of  liberty  during  the  Revo- 
lutionary War.  He  was  a  justice  of  the  peace,  selectman  in  1776 
and  1784,  moderator  in  1780  and  1788,  and  representative  in  1777. 

JOSIAH  STEVENS, 

The  oldest  son  of  Elihu,  was  born  in  Guilford,  Conn.,  August  12, 
1752,  came  to  Claremont  with  his  father,  and  died  April  10,  1827. 
If  not  the  first,  he  was  one  of  the  first,  merchants  in  town,  and 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  465 

for  several  years  was  the  leading  one  in  this  section  of  the  state. 
He  engaged  in  manufacturing  of  diiferent  kinds  and  built  the 
Trernont  House  in  1800,  which  he  kept  as  a  hotel,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded in  it  by  his  iornc  sons,  Josiah,  Jr.,  Godfrey,  Alvah,  and 
Parau.  He  was  prominent  in  business  in  many  other  ways  from 
the  time  when  he  first  came  to  town  until  his  death.  He  was  the 
first  postmaster,  from  1802  to  1813,  selectman  in  1788  and  1792, 
moderator  in  1811  and  for  the  six  succeeding  years,  and  representa- 
tive in  1798.  His  first  wife  was  Abigail  Dudley,  of  Guilford,  by 
whom  he  had  several  children,  all  of  whom,  except  Josiah,  Jr., 
died  young.  This  wife  died  in  April,  1790,  and  the  following 
September  he  married  Mrs.  Matilda  Brewer,  oldest  daughter  of 
Godfrey  Cooke,  by  whom  he  had  five  sons  and  two  daughters. 
The  sons  ^x'ere  Alfred,  Godfrey,  Alvah,  Edwin,  and  Paran.  Alfred 
and  Edwin  died  young.  Of  the  daughters,  Matilda  became  the  wife 
of  Samuel  Fiske,  Miranda  the  wife  of  Samuel  P.  Fiske.  She  died 
May  26,  1882. 

DEACON   JOSIAH   STEVENS, 

Son  of  Colonel  Josiah  and  Abigail  Dudley  Stevens,  born  Septem- 
ber 9,  1784,  was  for  many  years  succeeding  1832  deacon  of  the 
Congregational  church,  and  town  clerk  from  1844  to  1854.  In 
consequence  of  senile  dementia,  in  the  night  of  February  3,  1857, 
he  climlied  out  of  his  bedroom  window  in  the  house  of  the  late 
Hiram  Putnam  on  Washington  street,  noAV  owned  by  the  heirs  of 
the  late  William  E.  Tutherly,  where  he  was  living,  his  feet  bare, 
with  nothing  on  but  his  night  clothes,  and  wandered  off.  He  was 
miissed,  the  people  rallied,  followed  his  tracks  in  the  snow,  and 
found  him  in  a  neighboring  field  frozen  to  death. 

GODl'-UEY  STEVENS, 

Son  of  Colonel  Josiah  and  Matilda  Brewer  Stevens,  was  born  Sep- 
tember 10,  1796.  He  was  in  trade  with  his  father,  and  also  with 
Charles  M.  Bingham,  under  the  firm  name  of  Stevens  &  Bingham, 
in  the  brick  store  where  the  Claremont  l^Tational  Bank  building 


466  HISTORY    OP    CLAREMONT. 

now  stands,  for  several  years ;  was  many  times  chosen  moderator 
of  town  meetings;  representative  in  1829,  1830,  and  1833,  and  hekl 
other  town  offices.  He  is  said  to  have  been  a  man  of  great  energy- 
and  business  abihty.     He  died  September  14,  1842. 

ALVAII    STEVENS, 

Son  of  Colonel  Josiah  and  Matilda  Erewer  Stevens,  was  born  De- 
cember 12,  1798.  He  was  a  farmer  and  widely-known  cattle  dealer. 
He  Avas  several  years  collector  of  taxes,  and  held  other  town  offices. 
He  built  the  large  brick  house  on  Pleasant  street  now  owned  and 
occupied  by  E.  D.  Baker,  where  he  died. 

PAK/VI^   STEVENS, 

Son  of  Colonel  Josiah  and  Matilda  Brewer  Stevens,  was  born  Sep- 
tember 11,  1802.  He  and  his  three  brothers  succeeded  the  father 
in  the  management  of  the  Tremont  House,  of  which  he  subsequently 
became  sole  proprietor,  which  he  continued  until  1838,  when  he 
sold  out  to  Aurelius  Dickinson.  While  keeping  the  hotel  he  had 
an  interest  in  ditferent  stage  lines,  which  were  quite  profitable  in 
those  days.  During  what  was  known  as  speculation  times  in  Clare- 
mont,  from  about  1830  to  1838,  Mr.  Stevens  engaged  in  several  dif- 
ferent enterprises,  some  of  which  were  not  fortunate,  owing  more 
to  the  financial  condition  of  the  country  than  to  any  want  of  care 
or  good  judgment  on  his  part.  ITnder  his  management  the  excel- 
lence of  the  Tremont  House  became  very  widely  known  and  he 
famous  as  an  accomplished  landlord.  About  1843  he  had  a  call  to 
go  to  Boston  and  keep  the  l>lew'  England  Coffee  House,  which  he 
accepted.  For  capital  he  took  with  him  little  more  than  energy, 
industry,  ability,  and  integrity.  His  success  in  that  house  was  such 
that  in  1846,  when  the  ]\Iassachusetts  Mechanics'  Charitable  Asso- 
ciation built  the  Revere  House,  the  most  extensive  and  elegantly 
finished,  furnished,  and  equipped  hotel  in  the  countrj',  they  invited 
Mr.  Stevens  to  take  the  management  of  it.  This  establishment  was 
thought  by  many  to  be  in  advance  of  the  requirements  (")f  the  time. 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  467 

and  that  it  could  not  be  made  to  pay;  but  Mr.  Stevens  conducted 
it  so  well  that  it  became  known  far  and  near  in  a  very  short  time, 
was  a  success  in  every  way  from  the  start,  and  made  a  reputation 
for  him  as  the  most  accomplished  hotel  manager  in  the  country. 
He  soon  became  general  manager  of  the  Fifth  Avenue,  New  York; 
the  Continental,  Philadelphia;  the  Battle  House,  Mobile;  and  the 
Tremont  House,  Boston.  All  these  houses  were  extremely  popular 
and  prosperous,  and  from  his  share  of  the  proiits  of  them  he  accu- 
mulated a  large  fortune  in  a  few  years. 

In  1866  Mr.  Stevens  proposed  to  donate  to  the  town  of  Claremont 
ten  thousand  dollars  towards  establishing  a  high  school,  on  condi- 
tion that  the  town  vs'ould  raise  and  appropriate  a  like  sum  for  that 
purpose.  The  town  called  a  meeting  of  its  citizens,  who  without 
hesitation  voted  fifteen  thousand  dollars.  ISTot  to  be  outdone  by  the 
town,  Mr.  Stevens  made  his  donation  about  equal  by  iron  fence  for 
the  school  ground  and  in  furnishings  for  the  school  building ;  and 
the  town  voted  to  name  the  school  the  Stevens  High  School.  About 
the  time  of  the  completion  of  the  school  building  Mr.  Stevens  gave 
another  ten  thousand  dollars,  to  be  kept  as  a  fund  the  interest  of 
which  should  be  used  toward  defraying  the  expense  of  the  school, 
and  bequeathed  in  his  will  forty  thousand  dollars  more  to  be  added 
to  that  fund,  made  paj^able  within  two  years  after  his  death.  He 
died  in  New  York  city,  April  2-5,  1872. 

On  receiving  intelligence  of  the  death  of  Mr.  Stevens  the  citizens 
of  the  town  took  steps  for  a  suitable  memorial  service.  Ira  Colby, 
Dudley  T.  Chase,  William  E.  Tutherly,  S.  a.  Jarvis,  George  N. 
Farwell,  Edward  L.  Goddard,  and  Charles  M.  Bingham  were  chosen 
a  committee  of  arrangements,  and  the  day  iixed  was  the  21st  of 
June,  at  the  close  of  the  school  year.  At  2.30  o'clock,  p.  m.,  on  that 
day  a  procession  consisting  of  the  pupils  of  the  town  schools  Avas 
formed  at  the  high  school  building,  under  the  marshalship  of  Henry 
E.  Barrett,  and  escorted  l)y  the  Claremont  Cornet  Band,  marched 
to  the  town  hall,  which  was  literally  packed  by  the  people.  Dr. 
Nathaniel  Tolles  was  president.  Rev.  Dr.  Isaac  G.  Hubbard,  the 
chaplain,  offered  prayer.     The  pupils  of  the  high  school,  under  the 


4()8  HISTOKY   OF   CLAEEMONT. 

leadership  of  F.  F.  Haskell,  sang  the  hymn  "  My  Heavenly  Home. " 
John  S.  Walker  delivered  a  carefully  prepared  and  appropriate  ora- 
tion. Another  hymn  was  sung,  and  the  Rev.  H.  L.  Kelsey  pro- 
nounced the  benediction. 

LINUS    STE-\'ENS 

"Was  a  son  of  Meigs  Stevens  and  grandson  of  Elihu.  He  was  born 
August  9,  1792,  and  died  March  14,  187S.  He  was  a  carpenter  by 
trade;  a  prominent  member  of  the  Masonic  fraternity,  having  held 
the  highest  offices  in  the  different  lodges  in  town,  and  a  respected 
citizen.  Hj  his  first  wife  he  had  three  children,  none  of  whom  sur- 
vive. His  second  wife  was  Jerusha  Hurlburt,  of  Lebanon.  By  this 
marriage  he  had  two  daughters — Emma  Jane,  the  wife  of  Law- 
rence A.  Tolles,  of  this  town,  who  is  still  living :  and  Sarah  Eva, 
who  married  Frank  P.  Thrasher,  and  died  April  13,  1882,  at  the 
age  of  twenty -nine  years.  Mr.  Stevens  was  painstaking  and  curious 
in  many  waj's.  He  kept  a  diary,  the  last  entry  in  which  was  :  "  I 
have  kept  a  daily  record  of  the  weather  and  where  I  was  every  day 
for  thirty-nine  years,  to  the  last  day  of  1871.     I  now  leave  it." 

MATTHIAS    STONE 

Came  to  Claremont  to  live  in  1770,  and  was  for  more  than  twenty 
years  one  of  its  most  prominent  and  valued  citizens.  His  farm  was 
on  what  is  now  the  road  to  Claremont  Junction.  He  was  born  at 
"Watertown,  Mass.,  on  October  23, 1723.  His  father,  Samuel  Stone, 
died  there  in  1726.  At  the  age  of  about  five  years  Matthias  went 
to  live  with  his  great-uncle,  Dea.  Pavid  Stone,  a  blind  man,  and 
remained  with  him  until  about  twenty-three  years  old,  when  he 
went  to  "Worcester,  Mass.,  where  he  was  married  to  Susan  Chad- 
wick.  From  Worcester  he  removed  to  Barre,  Mass.,  and  was  dea- 
con of  the  Congregational  church  there.  They  had  fifteen  children 
—  ten  sons  and  five  daughters.  The  two  youngest  sons,  John  and 
Joseph,  were  born  here.  His  wife  died  and  he  afterward  married 
Huldah  Fletcher.     Four  of  his  sons  removed  to  Cabot,  Yt.,  when 


GEORGE  H.  STOWELL, 


HISTORY    OF   OLARBMONT.  469 

that  town  began  to  be  settled,  and  about  1790  he  joined  them, 
where  he  died  in  1814  at  the  age  of  ninety-one  years.  While  he 
lived  in  Claremont  Mr.  Stone  was  many  times  moderator  of  town 
meetings  and  selectman  and  representative  in  the  legislature.  He 
was  a  delegate  to  the  convention  that  adopted  the  federal  constitu- 
tion, in  1788;  was  also  a  justice  of  the  peace,  and  as  such  officiated 
at  many  marriage  ceremonies. 

GEORGE  H.    STOWELL, 

Bon  of  Amasa  Stowell,  was  born  in  Cornish,  October  28,  1835. 
His  boyhood  was  spent  on  a  farm  and  attending  the  public- 
schools  in  that  town.  He  came  to  Claremont  in  March,  1860, 
and  engaged  in  the  gravestone  and  marble  manufacturing  busi- 
ness, carrying  it  on  until  1864,  when  he  bought  the  hardware 
stock  of  Levi  B.  Brown,  in  the  northwest  corner  store  in  0.  J. 
Brown's  brick  block,  where  he  has  been  engaged  in  a  M'hole- 
sale  and  retail  trade  in  hardware,  iron,  and  coal  ever  since. 
He  has  also  been  quite  extensively  engaged  in  real  estate,  hav- 
ing built  several  first-class  tenement  houses,  all  of  which  he  still 
owns,  and  is  a  third  part  owner  of  Union  block. 

Mr.  Stowell  has  been  prominent  in  town  affairs  for  thirty 
years.  He  was  a  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legisla- 
ture in  1871  and  1874;  state  senator  in  1875  and  1876;  member 
of  the  executive  council  from  1881  to  1883;  aid  to  Governor 
Prescott,  with  the  rank  of  colonel,  from  1887  to  1889;  member 
of  the  conventions  to  revise  and  amend  the  state  constitution  in 
1876  and  1889 ;  delegate  to  the  Eepublican  national  convention 
to  nominate  candidates  for  president  and  vice-president  in  1884; 
and  has  been  chief  engineer  of  the  fire  department,  with  the 
exception  of  the  year  1878,  from  1873  to  1894.  He  has  been  a 
director  and  vice-president  of  the  People's  National  Bank  from  its 
organization.  In  1888  he  made  a  trip  to  Europe  for  health  and 
pleasure. 


470  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 


JOSIAH  SWETT 


Was  born  in  Essex  county,  Mass.,  December  20,  1741,  and  died 
December  25,  1808.  He  descended  from  immigrants  from  the 
south,  of  England  early  in  the  colonial  period,  and  settled  in 
Essex  county.  He  came  to  Claremont  in  1783,  and  bought  a 
farm  on  Maple  avenue,  afterward  for  many  years  owned  and 
known  as  the  Eli  Draper  farm,  latterly  divided  up  among  dif- 
ferent owners,  where  he  lived  until  his  decease.  He  had  six 
children  —  four  sons  and  two  daughters. 

JOSIAH  SWETT,  JR., 

Son  of  Josiah  Swett,  was  born  in  Wenham,  Mass.,  October  2, 
1768,  and  died  December  19,  1843.  He  came  to  Claremont  in 
1793,  and  bought  a  farm  on  Maple  avenue,  adjoining  that  of  his 
father,  directly  west  of  the  Wilson  place,  afterward  owned  and 
occupied  by  the  late  Ira  Colby.  He  raised  up  a  family  of  ten 
children —  three  sons  and  seven  daughters  —  among  whom  were 
Dr.  John  L.  Swett,  an  eminent  physician,  of  Newport,  and  the 
late  Rev.  Josiah  Swett,  an   Episcopal  clergj'man,  of  Highgate,  Vt. 

DR.   JOHN  L.    SWETT, 

Second  son  of  Josiah  Swett,  Jr.,  vpas  born  on  Maple  avenue, 
Claremont,  February  7,  1810.  He  studied  medicine  with  Dr. 
Nathaniel  Tolles,  then  in  practice  in  Reading,  Vt.,  and  with  Dr. 
Thomas  B.  Kittredge,  in  Claremont;  received  the  degree  of  M. 
D.  at  Jefferson  College,  Philadelphia,  in  1836,  and  soon  after 
commenced  practice  at  Newport,  which  was  quite  extensive  for 
more  than  fiftj'  years,  and  held  a  prominent  place  in  his 
profession,  being  a  member  of  the  National  Medical  Association, 
an  honorary  member  of  the  California  State  Medical  Society, 
and  a  member  since  1841  of  the  New  Hampshire  Medical  So- 
ciety, of  which  latter  he  was  president  in  1874.  Dr.  Swett  was 
twice  married,  but  is  now  a  widower.  By  the  first  marriage  he 
had  four  children  —  two    sons    and   two  daughters  —  only  one  of 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  471 

whom,  Mrs.  C.  C.  Shattuck,  of  Sau  Francisco,  Cal.,  survives. 
In  the  eighty-fifth  year  of  his  age  he  is  in  full  possession  of 
his  mental  faculties  and  straight  and  active,  like  a  much  younger 
man.     When  eighty  years  old  he  retired  from  active  practice. 

KEY.    JOSIAH  SWETT, 

Third  son  of  Josiah  Swett,  Jr.,  was  born  on  Maple  avenue, 
Olaremont,  August  4,  1814,  and  died  at  Highgate,  Vt.,  January 
4,  1890.  He  was  for  many  years  a  well-known  successful  teacher 
in  Claremont  and  elsewhere;  became  an  Episcopal  clergyman 
and  was  settled  as  rector  at  Bethel  and  Highgate,  Vt.,  being 
succeeded  at  the  latter  place  in  the  rectorship  by  his  son,  the 
Rev.  Paul  F.  Swett.  He  had  ten  children  —  five  sons  and  five 
daughters  —  all  of  whom,  except  one  daughter,  are  living. 

ISEN.TAMIN  SUMNER 

"Was  one  of  the  earliest  settlers  of  the  town.  He  was  selectman 
in  1769  and  1770 ;  town  clerk  in  1774  and  1775  ;  moderator  in 
1784  and  1785  ;  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature 
in  1784,  1785,  1793,  and  1794 ;  and  was  a  civil  magistrate  for  many 
years.     He  died  here  in  May,  1815. 

DK.    M'lLLIAM  SUMNEU 

Came  from  Hebron,  Conn.,  to  Claremont,  in  1768,  and  was  the 
first  practitioner  of  medicine  in  town.  He  was  moderator  of  town 
meeting  in  1769,  and  a  useful  and  influential  citizen.  He  owned 
the  Cupola  farm,  and  died  there  March  4,  1778. 

.TOHN  W.   TAPPAN, 

Son  of  Rev.  John  Tappan,  was  born  in  Claremont  in  1807,  and 
died  December  29,  1869.  He  attended  Kimball  Union  Academy, 
Meriden  ;  studied  law  with  his  uncle,  Weare  Tappan,  of  Brad- 
ford ;  was  admitted  to  the  bar  of  Sullivan  county,  but  did  not 
practice   his  profession.     He    married  Harriet  Erskine,  who  died 


472  HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT. 

October  3,  1873,  at  the  age  of  sixt^'-live  years.  She  left  to  the 
town,  by  will,  the  most  of  her  estate,  which  amounted  to  thirty 
thousand  dollars,  the  interest  of  which  was  to  be  expended  in  pay- 
ing prizes  to  meritorious  scholars  in  the  public  schools  of  the 
town.  Mr.  Tappan  was  for  several  years  president  of  the  Con- 
necticut Eiver  Bank  at  Charlestowii.  He  built  the  large  brick 
house  on  Broad  street,  now  owned  by  the  widow  of  Prentis  Dow, 
where  he  died.  They  had  two  sons,  both  of  whom  died  before 
their  parents. 

.lOSEFH    TAYLOK 

Was  engaged  in  the  Cape  Breton  War  in  1745 ;  in  the  French  and 
Indian  War  in  1755,  and  in  the  Eevolutionary  War.  While  he 
and  a  companion  bj'  the  name  of  Farwell  were  hunting  in  the 
woods  of  Maine,  near  Snow's  Falls,  on  the  Little  Androscoggin 
river,  in  1755,  they  were  both  captured  by  a  party  of  Indians, 
taken  to  Canada,  and  sold  to  the  French.  For  a  long  time  he  was 
kept  so  closely  confined  that  his  friends  could  learn  nothing  of 
him.  He  finally  succeeded,  after  several  attempts,  in  making  his 
escape,  wandered  through  the  woods,  subsisting  upon  what  he 
could  find,  and  after  an  absence  of  several  months  —  the  late  Solon 
G.  Grannis  said  seven  years  —  he  reached  his  home.  He  was  cap- 
tain in  Col.  Timothy  Bedel's  regiment,  raised  by  order  of  con- 
gress, in  New  Hampshire  for  the  expedition  against  Canada,  in 
1777,  and  served  in  other  organizations  during  the  Revolutionary 
War.  He  was  one  of  the  selectmen  of  Claremont  in  1772  and 
several  succeeding  years.  In  1777,  by  a  vote  of  the  town,  he  was 
excused  from  serving  on  the  board  because  he  was  about  to  join 
the  army.  He  married  a  daughter  of  Dr.  William  Sumner,  and 
died  ill  Avliat  is  known  as  the  John  Sumner  house,  on  the  Cupola 
farm.  He  was  buried  in  the  cemetery  at  Cornish  Center.  The 
inscription  on  his  tombstone  is :  "  Capt.  Joseph  Taylor,  died  March 
17th,  1813,  aged  83  years. 

"  A  neighbor  once,  kind,  generous,  brave. 
Yes  reader  know  this  is  a  heroe's  grave." 


EDWARD  J.  TENNEY. 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  473 


AMOS  J.   TENNEY 


Went  from  Rindge  to  Greenwich,  Mass.,  and  from  the  latter  place 
came  to  Claremont  in  1837,  his  father,  Amos  Tenney,  coming  with 
him,  who  died  May  17,  1839,  at  the  age  of  fifty-live  years.  Amos 
J.  formed  a  connection  with  the  Claremont  Carriage  Company  and 
was  involved  with  its  complicated  affairs  until  they  were  closed  up 
in  1843.  He  was  engaged  in  trade  with  Samuel  P.  Fiske  under 
the  firm  name  of  Fiske,  Tenney  &  Co.,  from  1838  to  1845,  after 
which  he  followed  farming  and  trading  in  various  commodities. 
He  was  an  active,  careful,  and  thrifty  man.  He  died  August  8, 
1855,  at  the  age  of  forty-seven  years,  leaving  a  widow,  a  second 
wife,  and  three  sons,  viz.:  Charles  A.,  born  at  Greenwich,  January 
23,  1834,  graduated  at  Dartmouth  College  in  the  class  of  1855,  and 
died  August  10,  1856 ;  Edward  J.,  born  at  Greenwich,  December 
11,  1836;  George  P.,  born  in  Claremont,  February  9,  1838,  who 
for  several  years  held  a  position  in  the  war  department  at 
Washington,  D.  C,  and  died  there  suddenly  of  heart  failure,  Sep- 
tember 12,  1892.  He  enlisted  in  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  under 
Capt.  W.  P.  Austin,  in  April,  1861 ;  was  sergeant  of  Co.  H,  Sec- 
ond Regiment,  New  Hampshire  Volunteers;  wounded  in  the  hand 
and  mustered  out  at  the  end  of  his  three  years  term  of  enlistment, 
June  21,  1864,  leaving  an  honorable  record  as  a  soldier. 

EDWAKD  J.    TENNEY 

Was  born  December  11,  1836.  At  the  time  of  the  death  of  his 
father  Mr.  Tenney  was  less  than  nineteen  years  old.  With  a  step- 
mother and  older  brother,  both  in  feeble  health,  and  a  younger 
brother,  the  business  affairs  of  his  father,  with  which  he  was  well 
acquainted,  and  the  settlement  of  the  estate,  seemed  to  rest  largely 
upon  him.  He  assumed  the  responsibility  and  managed  things 
with  the  judgment  of  one  of  more  mature  years.  He  was  a  clerk 
in  the  general  stores  of  James  P.  Brewer  and  Charles  M.  Bingham 
until  he  reached  his  majority,  soon  after  which  he  formed  a  copart- 
nership with  Edwin  W.   Tolles  in  the  grocery  business,  under  the 


474  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

firm  name  of  Tolles  &  TenneJ^  Subsequently  he  was  engaged 
with  J.  W.  Deane,  under  the  firm  name  of  J.  W.  Deaue  &  Co.,  in 
the  cigar  and  tobacco  business;  with  K.  W.  Farvvell,  as  Far- 
well  &  Tenney,  and  also  with  Augustus  Barrett,  as  Barrett  & 
Tenney,  in  shoe  manufacturing.  Mr.  Tenney  was  director  of 
the  Claremont  ISTational  Bank  from  1881  to  1893 ;  is  now  director 
of  the  People's  National  Bank;  director  and  treasurer  of  the  Sulli- 
van Park  Association;  director  and  manager  of  the  Claremont 
Bridge  Company ;  director  and  treasurer  of  the  Claremont  Electric 
Light  Company;  director  and  treasurer  of  the  Claremont  Building 
Association ;  and  on  the  committee  for  the  building  of  Hotel  Clare- 
mont. In  1871  and  1872  he  was  a  representative  in  the  New 
Hampshire  legislature,  and  from  1881  to  1887,  by  election  and  ap- 
pointment he  was  one  of  the  state  railroad  commissioners.  In  the 
fifteen  years  preceding  1892,  as  executor,  administrator,  trustee, 
and  guardian,  he  had  the  care,  management,  and  settlement  of 
many  estates  —  some  of  them  quite  large  and  more  or  less  compli- 
cated —  in  all  which  fiduciary  positions  he  discharged  his  duties 
ably  and  faithfully.  In  December,  1891,  he  was  appointed  judge 
of  probate  for  Sullivan  county,  which  office  he  still  holds. 

GEORGE  A.   TENNEY, 

Born  in  Claremont  February  9,  1864,  is  the  only  surviving  child  of 
Edward  J.  Tennej'.  He  was  employed  in  the  office  of  the  Boston 
and  Lowell  railroad,  Boston,  two  years,  when,  in  1887,  by  reason  of 
the  ill  health  of  his  older  brother,  who  was  cashier  of  a  bank  in 
Kansas,  he  went  to  fill  his  place,  and  remained  there  engaged  in 
banking  in  that  state  and  ISTebraska  until  the  spring  of  1892,  when 
he  returned  to  Claremont  and  took  the  position  of  cashier  of  the 
People's  National  Bank,  which  he  has  since  held. 

GEORGE   TICKNOR, 

Son  of  Benjamin  and  grandson  of  Elisha  Tieknor,  of  Lebanon,  who 
was  a  lieutenant  in  the  Revolutionary  army,  was  born  in  Boston, 
April  14,  1822.     He  took  a  preparatory  course  at  Kimball  Union 


DR.  NATHANIEL  TOLLES. 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  475 

Academy ;  entered  Dartmouth  College,  where  he  graduated  in 
1847;  studied  law  with  the  late  Judge  George  W.  ISTesmith,  of 
Franklin ;  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  opened  an  oiBce  in  Claremont 
in  1852,  and  continued  in  practice  here  about  ten  years.  From 
1854  to  1859  he  was  solicitor  for  Sullivan  county.  He  was  author 
of  the  Gazetteer  of  the  State  of  New  Hampshire,  which  forms  a 
large  part  of  the  book  entitled  "New  Hampshire  As  It  Is."  In 
1862  he  removed  from  Claremont  to  Marlow,  from  there  to  Keene, 
and  was  editor  of  the  Ncav  Hampshire  Sentinel.  He  died  De- 
cember 25,  1866. 

JOHN  THOMAS. 

John  Thomas  was  among  the  first  settlers  of  Claremont.  He  came 
from  Connecticut  in  1768  and  bought  the  farm  on  Red  Water  brook 
in  the  north  part  of  the  town,  where  he  died  May  24,  1798,  at  the 
age  of  sixty-eight  years.  His  son  Zina  succeeded  to  the  farm,  and 
after  his  death  Alonzo,  son  of  Zara  and  grandson  of  John,  went 
into  possession  of  it.  Alonzo  Thomas  was  born  August  28,  1807, 
and  died  on  that  farm  December  20,  1890.  His  son,  Charles  L. 
W.  Thomas,  has  owned  it  since  the  death  of  his  father.  It  has 
been  in  possession  of  the  Thomas  family  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
six  years.  The  house,  now  standing,  is  one  of  the  oldest  frame 
houses  in  town. 

DK.   NATHANIEL  TOLLES 

Was  the  fifth  and  youngest  son  of  John  Tolles.  He  was  born  at 
"Weathersfield,  Vt.,  September  17,  1805,  and  died  in  Claremont, 
June  24,  1879.  When  thirteen  years  old  he  came  to  Claremont 
with  his  parents.  He  fitted  for  college  at  the  school  of  Rev.  Virgil 
H.  Barber,  West  Claremont,  but  did  not  take  a  college  course. 
He  studied  medicine  with  Dr.  James  Hall,  of  Windsor,  Vt.,  and 
Dr.  Charles  G.  Adams,  of  Keeue ;  attended  lectures  at  Bowdoin 
and  Dartmouth  colleges,  and  received  his  degree  at  the  latter  in 
jSTovember,  1830.      He  was   appointed   resident  physician   at  the 


476  HISTORY   OP   CLAKBMONT. 

South  Boston  almshouse,  where  he  remained  six  months,  and  then 
located  in  Reading,  Vt,  remained  there  ten  years,  and  in  March, 
1842,  came  to  Claremont,  where  he  passed  the  remainder  of  his  life 
in  an  extensive  practice  of  his  profession.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
first  board  of  county  commissioners,  elected  in  1858 ;  presidential 
elector  of  ISTew  Hampshire  in  1860,  and  member  of  the  New  Hamp- 
shire constitutional  convention  in  1876. 

DK.    CLAKENCE  W.    TOI.LES, 

Son  of  the  late  Dr.  JSTathaniel  Tolles,  was  born  in  Claremont,  April 
30,  1845.  He  studied  medicine  with  his  father;  graduated  at 
Bellevue  Medical  College  in  1868 ;  studied  one  year  at  University 
Medical  College,  London ;  was  associated  with  his  father  in  prac- 
tice until  the  latter's  death,  in  June,  1879,  when  he  succeeded  to 
the  practice  of  the  firm,  making  a  specialty  of  surger}'. 

WILLIAM  E.   TDTHERLY, 

Second  son  of  the  late  Samuel  Tutherly,  was  born  in  Unity,  Janu- 
ary 27,  182-3,  and  died  January  8,  1898.  He  came  to  Claremont 
with  his  parents  in  1833,  which  was  ever  afterwards  his  home.  He 
attended  ISTorwich,  Vt,  Military  University  two  years,  but  did  not 
graduate.  He  was  selectman  seven  years,  his  first  term  being  1860 
and  his  last  1874 ;  county  commissioner  from  1876  to  1885  ;  repre- 
sentative in  the  'Sew  Hampshire  legislature  in  1865, 1866,  and  1878 ; 
member  of  the  governor's  council  in  1867  and  1868,  and  for  several 
years  a  director  in  the  Claremont  ISTational  Bank.  "When  not  occu- 
pied with  his  public  duties  Mr.  Tutherly  gave  his  attention  to 
farming.  He  was  a  careful,  painstaking,  and  prudent  business 
man.  June  1,  1847,  he  married  Lorette  C,  daughter  of  Sherman 
Eossiter,  who  died  January  8, 1888,  just  five  years  before  the  death 
of  her  husband,  at  nearly  the  same  hour  of  the  day  and  in  the  same 
house,  leaving  three  children  —  Capt.  H.  E.  Tutherly,  of  the  United 
States  army;  Mrs.  F.  W.  Haubrich,  of  Montreal;  and  William 
Tutherly,  assistant  clerk  of  the  New  Hampshire  house  of  repre- 
sentatives. 


DR.  CLARENCE   W.  TOLLES. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  477 

HERBERT  E.   TDTHERLY, 

Son  of  the  late  "William  E.  Tutherly,  was  born  in  Claremont 
April  5,  1848.  He  was  appointed  cadet  at  West  Point  July  1, 
1868 ;  graduated  and  commissioned  second  lieutenant,  First  U.  S. 
Cavalry,  June  14,  1872 ;  promoted  first  lieutenant  of  same,  April 
14,  1879,  and  captain  of  same,  January  15,  1891 ;  received  the 
honorary  degree  of  M.  A.  from  the  University  of  Vermont  in 
1885.  He  has  served  on  regimental  duty  about  fourteen  years, 
and  college  duty  about  eight  years.  He  was  detailed  by  the  war 
department  as  professor  of  military  science  and  tactics  at  the  Uni- 
versity of  Vermont,  1881-85  ;  at  Cornell  University,  1889-92  ;  and 
at  the  University  of  Vermont,  September  1,  1893. 

BENJAMIN  TYLER 

"Was  born  at  "Walliiigford,  Conn.,  February  22,  1732,  and  died  at 
Claremont  March  9,  1814.  He  removed  to  Farmington,  Conn., 
and  from  there  came  to  Claremont,  traveling  on  foot,  in  the  spring 
of  1767,  and  that  summer  built  the  first  dam  across  Sugar  river,  at 
West  Claremont,  in  the  same  place  where  the  Jarvis  and  Coy  dam 
now  is,  having  been  given  a  grant  of  the  privilege  and  a  small 
tract  of  land  for  that  purpose  by  the  proprietors  of  the  town. 
After  the  completion  of  the  dam  he  returned  to  Farmington,  and 
the  following  March  started  with  his  Avife,  six  children,  and  house- 
hold eifects  on  an  ox  sled,  for  Claremont.  At  Montague,  Mass., 
he  was  detained  by  a  snow  storm,  and  in  the  time,  being  an  ingen- 
ious mechanic,  made  a  pair  of  cart  wheels  for  the  landlord,  in  pay- 
ment for  his  entertainment.  From  Bellows  Falls  there  was  no 
road,  and  he  came  from  there  on  the  ice  of  Connecticut  river. 
On  arrival  here  he  stopped  with  Daniel  Warner,  who  came  the 
year  before  and  built  a  log-house  near  where  Lottery  bridge  now  is. 
Soon  after  Mr.  Tyler's  arrival  the  ice  in  Sugar  river  broke  up, 
formed  a  dam  where  it  empties  into  the  Connecticut,  the  water 
set  back,  and  the  family  were  forced  to  leave  the  house  on  a  raft. 
The  Tylers  lived  with  the  Warners  until  the  former  built  a  log- 
house  near  where  he  had  erected  a  dam  the  year  before. 


478  HISTORY    OP    CLAREMONT. 

That  year,  1768,  Mr.  Tyler  built  a  grist-mill  and  saw- mill  on  the 
north  side  of  the  river,  in  connection  with  his  dam.  For  two  or 
three  years  after  this  the  crops  were  almost  a  failure,  and  there 
was  considerable  suffering  in  consequence.  The  millstones  were 
obtained  on  Ascutney  mountain,  and  were  brought  over  Connecti- 
cut river  on  the  ice.  The  quarry  from  which  these  stones  were 
taken  was  worked  by  Mr.  Tyler  and  his  sons  for  several  years. 
The  blocks  were  brought  in  a  rough  state  to  "West  Claremoiit, 
where  they  were  finished  into  millstones,  and  supplied  mills  in 
pretty  nearly  all  parts  of  IsTew  England,  ISTew  York,  and  Canada, 

In  consideration  of  Mr.  Tyler's  having  built  the  mills  the  pro- 
prietors of  the  town  gave  him  ten  acres  of  land  on  the  south  side 
of  Sugar  river,  opposite  the  mills.  He  purchased  the  land  on 
the  north  side  of  the  river,  from  where  the  High  bridge  now  stands 
to  the  line  of  the  Dustin  farm  ;  eight  acres  south  of  the  river,  op- 
posite the  site  of  the  High  bridge,  and  a  tract  extending  from  the 
Lawrence  A.  Tolles  place  to  where  the  town  house  now  is,  and  was 
granted  fifty  acres  on  what  was  called  Big  Meadow,  east  of  the 
village.  He  built  and  occupied  for  a  homestead  the  large  two- 
story  house  at  West  Claremont,  which  has  been  known  as  the 
Maynard  tavern  stand  for  the  last  fifty  years. 

About  1790  Mr.  Tyler  built  a  dam  near  the  site  of  the  High 
bridge,  and  a  forge  and  smelting  works  in  connection  with  it. 
The  ore  used  was  brought  from  Charlestown,  and  the  lime  from 
Weathersfield,  Vt.  John  Strowbridge  came  from  Bridgewater, 
Mass.,  superintended  this  establishment,  married  Mr.  Tyler's  daugh- 
ter Patience,  and  subsequently  received  this  property  as  a  legacy. 

Mr.  Tyler  invented  and  had  patented  a  process  for  dressing  flax, 
and  an  improved  bucket  for  a  wooden  water-wheel  with  an  upright 
shaft,  called  the  rye  fly  or  tub-wheel,  for  which  he  was  granted 
two  patents  —  one  in  1800  and  the  other  in  1804.  When  near  sev- 
enty-five years  old  he  retired  from  active  business,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  three  sons,  John,  Benjamin,  Jr.,  and  Noah.  He  had 
eleven  children,  five  of  whom  were  born  in  Claremont.  Mr.  Tyler 
was  selectman  in  1768  and  1769.  In  his  life-time  he  gave  to  each 
of  his  ten  children  a  good  farm. 


JOHN  TYLER,  1ST. 


HISTORY    OF   CLAREMONT.  479 


AUSTIN  TYLER, 


Son  of  Benjamin  Tyler,  Jr.,  and  grandson  of  Col.  Benjamin  Tyler, 
was  born  in  Claremont  January  6,  1790.  He  was  one  of  the  most 
active,  enterprising,  and  public-spirited  men  in  town  in  his  time. 
He  was  selectman  nine  years,  between  1824  and  1834 ;  moderator 
many  times ;  representative  in  the  ITew  Hampshire  legislature 
in  1827,  1828,  1831,  1835,  1836,  1837,  and  1842,  and  state  sen- 
ator in  1838.     He  died  August  12,  1844. 

JOHN  TYLER, 

A  son  of  Benjamin  Tyler,  Jr.,  and  grandson  of  Col.  Benjamin 
Tyler,  was  born  in  Claremont  in  1803,  and  died  in  the  first  framed 
house  built  in  town,  where  he  had  lived  for  many  years,  at  West 
Claremont,  Januaiy  13,  1886.  He  learned  the  mill-wright  trade  of 
his  father  and  followed  it  until  sixty  years  old.  He  had  six  chil- 
dren —  five  sons  and  one  daughter  —  John  Henry,  Charles  Webster, 
James  Andrews,  Austin,  and  Hoell,  and  Mary  Anna.  John  Henry 
died  at  the  home  of  his  late  father,  January  29,  1890,  the  result  of 
an  injury  sustained  by  being  thrown  from  a  carriage  a  few  days 
befoi-e.  Charles  Webster,  James  Andrews,  and  Austin  are  in  busi- 
ness in  New  York  city,  and  Hoell  is  assistant  medical  superintend- 
ent of  the  New  York  City  Hospital  for  the  Insane,  at  Blackwell's 
Island.  The  daughter,  Mary  Anna,  is  the  widow  of  Daniel  W. 
Johnson,  of  Claremont.  Mr.  Tyler  was  a  representative  in  the 
New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1850  and  1851,  and  warden  of  Union 
church  many  years.  His  father  and  grandfather  had  also  been 
wardens  of  the  same  church. 

JOHN   TYLER,    2d, 

Is  a  son  of  John  Tyler,  and  grandson  of  Col.  Benjamin  Tyler. 
He  was  born  in  Claremont  March  26,  1818.  He  learned  the  trade 
of  mill-wright,  serving  an  apprenticeship  of  seven  years,  and  was 
then  for  eight  years  foreman  of  the  shop  where  he  learned  his 
trade,  in  Barre,  Vt.  He  then  came  to  West  Lebanon  in  1850,  for 
several  years  did  a  large  business  in  building  mills,  sometimes  em- 


480  HISTORY    OF    CLAKEMONT. 

ploying  fifty  men.  He  returned  to  Claremont  in  1872,  where  he 
has  since  resided.  He  was  engineer  and  superintendent  in  building 
the  Sugar  River  Paper  Mill,  is  a  principal  stockholder  and  presi- 
dent of  the  company.  In  1856  he  invented  and  got  patented  the 
iron  Tyler  turbine  water-wheel,  the  first  iron  water-wheel  ever 
made,  since  Avhich  he  has  been  granted  nine  patents  for  improve- 
ments on  it.  These  are  now  running  iu  most  of  the  states  and 
territories  in  the  Union  and  in  the  Canadas.  He  is  also  the  in- 
ventor and  patentee  of  Tyler's  copper  cylinder  washer,  for  wash- 
ing paper  stock.  In  1872  Mr.  Tyler  built  what  is  known  as  the 
Bible  hill  aqueduct,  to  supply  Claremont  village  with  pure  spring 
water.  It  runs  to  over  two  hundred  families,  tie  was  a  repre- 
sentative in  the  Ifew  Hampshire  legislature  for  the  years  1891  and 
1892. 

GEORGE   \i.    UPHAM. 

The  Uphams  have  been  conspicuous  in  politics,  in  business, 
and  socially  in  this  town,  county,  and  state  for  more  than  a 
hundred  years,  and  are  entitled  to  other  than  a  brief  notice  in 
this  history.  The  descent  of  the  Uphams  with  whom  this  sketch 
has  more  immediately  to  do  has  been  traced  back  in  an  unbro- 
ken line  to  Hugo  de  Upham,  the  first  known  Upham  in  England, 
iu  1208,  in  a  genealogical  record  of  "The  Descendants  of  John 
Upham,"  prepared  by  Frank  K.  Upham,  a  captain  in  the  United 
States  arm}-,  published  in  1892.  This  record  is  the  result  of  many 
years  of  painstaking  and  persistent  research.  The  Uphams  have 
l)ecome  quite  numerous  in  this  country,  more  espiecially  in  Mas- 
sachusetts and  ]N"ew  England.  According  to  this  record,  after 
Hugo  de  Upham  - —  without  here  tracing  back  through  manj-  gen- 
erations and  naming  each  minutely  —  in  a  direct  line  came  Kich- 
ard  Upham,  who  held  the  copyhold  estate  in  Bykton  in  1546 ; 
then  John  Upham,  who  emigrated  to  jSTew  England  with  the  Hull 
colony,  settled  in  what  is  now  Weymouth,  Mass.,  and  soon  re- 
moved to  Maiden,  where  his  son  Phineas  was  born,  being  the 
first  Upham  born  in  America,  and  from  whom  all  of  the  name 


GEORGE  B.  UPHAM. 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  481 

in  this  country  have  descended.  He  was  a  lieutenant  in  the  King 
Philip  War  in  1675.  At  the  storming  of  Fort  Canonicus,  De- 
cember 19,  1675,  his  captain,  Johnson,  was  killed  early  in  the 
engagement,  and  Lieutenant  Upham  was  in  command  of  the 
company  until  he  was  mortally  wounded.  He  died  of  his  wounds 
October  8,  1676.  The  heads  of  the  next  two  generations  also 
bore  the  name  of  Phineas.  The  third  was  the  father  of  Br.  Jabez 
Upham,  of  Brookfield,  Mass.,  who  had  a  son  Phineas,  the  father 
of  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 

George  B.  Upham  died  in  Claremont  on  February  10,  1848, 
soon  after  which  an  interesting  article,  connecting  the  family 
with  the  trying  events  immediately  preceding  the  Revolutionary 
War,  appeared  in^the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser,  from  which  many 
of  the  following  facts  are  gathered  : 

George   B.  Upham's    father,  Captain   Phineas  Upham,  of   Brookfield,  Mass., 
was  a  representative  from   that  town  in   the  last   House  of  Assembly  convened 
in  Massachusetts,  by  writs  of  election  issued  by  royal  authority.     General  Gage, 
at  a  moment  when  he  flattered  himself  that  there  was  a  reaction  in  the  popular 
sentiment,  dissolved  a  refractory  House,  and  ordered  the  election  of  a  new  As- 
sembly.     The  precepts  were  issued   on  the  first  day  of    September,  1774 ;    and 
they  directed  that  representatives  who   might  be  elected,  convene  at  Salem  on 
the  fifth  day  of  October  following.     The  result  of  the  election  was  found  to  be 
most  unfavorable  to   the   royal   cause,  an   increased   number  of   patriots   being 
returned  to  the  Hou.se.     On  the  twenty-eighth  day  of  September  His  Excellency 
issued  a  proclamation  discharging  the  members   elect  from  attendance,  and  de- 
claring his   intention   not   to   be    present  at   the  time   specified  in   the  writs  of 
election.     It  was  at  once  resolved  not  to  pay  any  regard  to  the  proclamation  of 
the  twenty-eighth  of  September.     The  right  of  the  governor  to  prorogue  a  House 
of  Assembly  before  it  had  convened  was  denied,  and  ninety  members,  belonging 
to  the  popular  party,  and  constituting  a  majority  of  the  whole  number  elected, 
made  their  appearance  in    the  Court  House  at   Salem,  on  the  fifth  of  October, 
1774.     They  awaited  in  silence  the  appearance  of  His  Excellency  to  administer 
to  them  the  usual  oaths.     Thus  passed  the  day.      The  next  morning  they  met 
again,  and  again  awaited   the  appearance  of   the  governor.      But  he  came  not. 
On  the  third  day,  having  chosen  John  Hancock  their  chairman,  and  Benjamin 
Lincoln  their   clerk,  and,  considering  the   executive  department  of   the  govern- 
ment as  derelict,  they  assumed  the  entire  legislative  and  political  control  of  the 
colony,  and  declared  themselves  a  Provincial  Congress.     This  procedure  severed 
the  tie  that  bound   Massachusetts  to  the  throne  of   Great  Britain,  and  may  be 


482  HISTORY    OF    CLAEEMOMT. 

considered  the  very  first  act  of  the  American  Revolution,  regarded  as  a  civil 
or  political  transference  of  allegiance.  The  body  of  men  who  took  this  step 
crossed  the  Rubicon ;  they  pointed  and  led  the  way  by  which  the  colonies, 
without  convulsion  or  misrule,  without  any  suspension  of  law  or  order,  without 
being  for  a  moment  cut  adrift  upon  a  sea  of  anarchy,  passed  from  the  sov- 
ereignty of  the  mother  country  into  the  quiet  and  regular  enjoyment  of  inde- 
pendence and  self  government.  Captain  Phineas  Upham  of  Brookfield  was  an 
active  and  faithful  member  of  the  Congress  that  accomplished  this  great  and 
momentous  work. 

George  B.  Upham  was  born  at  Brookfield,  December  9,  1769. 
He  received  his  preliminary  education  at  Philhps  Exeter  Acad- 
emy, and  graduated  at  Harvard  College  in  1789.  He  studied 
law  with  bis  older  brother,  Jabez,  who  had  established  himself 
in  practice  in  Claremont.  Soon  after  his  admission  to  the  bar, 
Jabez  left  his  business  to  his  brother,  and  returned  to  bis  native 
town.  George  B.  found  himself  in  an  extensive  practice,  and 
continued  in  active  and  lucrative  professional  employment  until, 
at  the  age  of  sixty  years,  he  voluntarily  relinquished  it.  He  was 
a  sound  lawyer  —  a  persuasive  rather  than  a  brilliant  advocate  — 
and  a  safe  and  able  counselor,  whose  legal  opinions  might  always 
be  relied  upon. 

Mr.  Upham  was  representative  of  his  town  in  the  S'ew  Hamp- 
shire legislature  fifteen  years,  his  first  election  being  in  1796,  and 
his  last  in  1821,  and  was  speaker  of  the  house  in  1809,  and 
again  in  1815,  and  state  senator  in  1814.  He  was  elected  mem- 
ber of  congress  in  1801,  and  declined  a  re-election.  This  was 
during  the  administration  of  Thomas  Jefterson,  when  the  northern 
and  southern  sections  of  the  confederacy  often  clashed.  Mr. 
Upham  uniformly  and  boldly  advocated  the  rights  of  New  Eng- 
land. Early  in  his  term  in  congress,  an  incident  occurred  illus- 
trating the  difference  in  temper  and  spirit  of  the  northern  and 
southern  character.  The  eccentric  and  irascible  John  Randolph 
of  Roanoke  had  an  overbearing  and  oftensive  way  of  making 
New  England  members  whom  he  could  intimidate  by  his  inso- 
lence turn  out  for  him  on  sidewalks  or  wherever  he  chanced  to 
meet  them.      Mr.  Upham  had  heard  of  this,  and  soon  after  his 


HISTORY    OF    CLAKEMONT.  483 

arrival  in  Washington,  met  Mr.  Randolpli  on  a  narrow  sidewalk, 
and  determined  to  come  to  an  understanding  with  the  arrogant 
Virginian  then  and  there.  Mr.  Uphara  placed  himself  on  the 
inside  of  the  walk  and  the  two  met  face  to  face.  Mr.  Randolph 
instantly  took  the  measure  of  the  large  and  powerfully  built  New 
Englander,  and  seeing  something  in  his  eye  that  boded  trouble 
if  he  persisted,  stepped  aside  and  let  Mr.  Upham  pass,  not  a  word 
being  uttered  by  either  of  the  gentlemen.  Ever  after  that  Mr. 
Randolph  treated  Mr.  Upham  with  marked  politeness. 

Mr.  Upham  was  president  during  its  existence  of  the  first  Clare- 
mont  bank.  By  his  legal  professional  business,  good  judgment,  and 
economy  he  accumulated  a  large  fortune  for  his  time.  He  died 
at  his  residence  on  Broad  street,  on  the  spot  where  the  Stevens 
High  School  building  now  stands,  of  a  paralytic  affection.  His 
usual  good  health  continued  unimpaired  until  within  a  few  hours 
of  his  decease,  in  the  seventy-ninth  year  of  his  age.  His  death 
was  announced  at  the  next  session  of  the  court  at  Newport,  and 
it  immediatel}'  adjourned.  He  was  buried  with  the  impressive 
ceremonies  of  the  Episcopal  church,  of  which  he  had  long  been 
a  member.  A  funeral  discourse  was  preached  in  the  old  octagon 
brick  church,  on  the  occasion,  by  the  late  Rev.  Dr.  Clapp,  of 
Bellows  Falls,  Vt.  A  large  concourse  of  people  of  his  own  and 
surrounding  towns,  testified  by  their  presence  their  respect  for 
his  character  and  appreciation  of  the  public  services  of  his  early 
and  active  life,  of  the  integrity  of  his  principles,  and  of  the  kind- 
ness of  his  heart. 

JABEZ   UPHAM 

Was  a  son  of  Captain  Phineas  Upham,  of  Brookfield,  Mass., 
and  an  older  brother  of  George  B.  Upham.  He  graduated  at 
Harvard  College  in  1785,  came  to  Claremont  in  1789,  opened  a 
law  office  in  a  small  building  which  stood  just  south  of  the  Breck 
house.  West  Claremont,  and  was  representative  in  the  New  Hamp- 
shire legislature  in  1792.  He  remained  in  town  about  three  years, 
and  then  returned  to  Brookfield.     He  acquired  a  large  practice  and 


484  '  HISTORY    OF    CLAEEMONT. 

a  leading  position  at  the  "Worcester  county  bar;  was  elected  to  con- 
gress in  1807,  from  Massachusetts,  served  two  terms,  and  died  in 
1811. 

DR,   J.    BAXTER   UPHA.M, 

Tliird  son  of  George  B.  Upham,  was  born  May  13,  1820.  He 
graduated  at  Dartmouth  College  in  1842,  and  Harvard  Med- 
ical School  in  1847,  having  in  the  mean  time  studied  his  pro- 
fession at  Dartmouth,  Bowdoin,  the  University  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  the  medical  department  of  Harvard  College.  He  afterwards 
further  pursued  his  studies  in  the  hospitals  of  London  and  Paris. 
Soon  after  his  graduation  he  settled  in  Boston,  in  a  general  pirac- 
tice,  being  often  called  in  consultation  with  his  medical  brethren. 
He  was  president  of  the  Handel  and  Haydn  Societj-,  of  Boston, 
from  1860  to  1870 ;  the  Boston  Music  Hall  Association  from  1864 
to  1880 ;  and  chairman  of  the  music  committee  of  the  Boston  public 
schools  from  1857  to  1872. 

While  president  of  the  Music  Hall  Association,  Dr.  Upham 
went  to  Europe,  where,  after  spending  much  time  in  visiting  the 
most  celebrated  organs  and  organ  builders  in  the  Old  World,  he 
contracted  for  "  The  Great  Organ "  which  was  pilaced  in  the 
Boston  Music  Hall  in  jSTovember,  1863,  and  has  since  attracted 
the  attention  and  admiration  of  music  lovers  throughout  the  land. 
Dr.  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes,  in  a  description  of  it  in  the  Atlantic 
Monthly,  at  the  time,  said,  "  It  is  the  most  precious  work  of  art 
that  ever  floated  from  one  continent  to  the  other." 

In  1862  Dr.  Upham  offered  his  services  as  a  phj-sician  to  the 
government,  in  whatever  capacity  he  might  be  most  iiseful  in,  the 
War  of  the  Rebellion,  which  were  gladly  accepted.  He  was  after- 
wards given  the  constructive  rank  of  major  and  assigned  im- 
portant duties  with  the  Eighteenth  Army  Corps.  He  organized 
the  General  Army  Hospital  at  ]N"ewbern,  K".  C,  and  had  charge 
of  it  during  the  winter  of  1862  and  the  spring  of  1863. 

Dr.  Upham's  life  has  been  largely  devoted  to  science  and  art. 
His  profound  study  of  the  diseases  to  which  humanity  is  subject. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAEEMONT.  485 

his  scientific  treatment  of  them,  and  the  results  of  his  experience 
and  observation,  as  contributed  to  medical  and  scientific  journals, 
have  made  him  distinguished  in  scientific  and  art  circles,  as  well 
as  in  his  chosen  profession.  Since  1887  his  home  has  been  in 
New  York  city. 

JAMES  p.   trPHAM, 

Fourth  son  of  George  B.  Upham,  was  born  October  17,  1827, 
and  graduated  at  Dartmouth  College  in  1850.  Soon  after  his 
graduation  he  acquired  an  interest  in  the  iron  foundry  and 
machine  shop,  which  has  since  grown  into  the  Sullivan  Machinery 
Company,  of  which  he  was  president  twenty-five  years,  up  to  1892. 
He  is  an  owner  in  and  president  of  the  Brandon,  Vt.,  Italian 
Marble  Company,  and  has  also  been  extensively  engaged  in  farm- 
ing. He  was  a  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature 
in  1865  and  1866,  and  is  warden  of  Union  church.  He  has  five 
children  —  three  sons  and  two  daughters.  Of  his  sons,  J.  Duncan 
is  treasurer  of  the  Sullivan  Machinery  Company;  George  B.  is 
a  lawyer  in  Boston  ;  and  Samuel  R.  is  a  practicing  physician  here. 

DR.    SAMUEL  R.    UPHAM, 

Third  son  of  James  P.  Upham,  was  born  October  9,  1861.  He 
attended  Stevens  High  School  three  years,  and  graduated  at  Gran- 
ville, N.  Y.,  Military  Academy  in  1879;  studied  at  the  College 
of  Physicians  and  Surgeons,  New  York  city,  three  years,  and 
graduated  at  the  University  of  Vermont  in  1887.  He  was  interne 
two  years,  externe  in  the  outpatient  surgical  department  two  years, 
and  surgeon  three  years  at  the  Rhode  Island  Hospital,  Providence ; 
in  general  practice  in  that  city  from  1887  to  1892,  during  which  period 
he  was  attending  physician  to  Providence  day  nursery,  and  also  four 
years  to  Providence  dispensary.  He  has  been  in  general  practice 
of  his  profession  in  Claremont  since  September,  1892. 

EDWIN  VAUGHAN 

"Was  born  at  Chelsea,  Vt,  September  14,  1832,  and  died  at  Clare- 
mont December  18,  1890.     His  father's  family  came  from  Bridge- 


486  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

water,  Mass.,  to  Chelsea,  and  in  1834  removed  to  Taftsville,  in 
the  town  of  Woodstock,  Vt.  He  graduated  at  Kimball  Union 
Academj',  Meriden,  in  1855 ;  studied  law  in  the  Law  University, 
Albany,  IST.  Y. ;  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1857,  and  commenced 
the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Claremont,  in  partnership  with 
the  late  Alexander  Gardiner,  in  an  office  at  the  lower  village,  in 
1858.  In  December,  1861,  he  enlisted  in  the  New  Hampshire 
Cavalry  as  a  private,  passed  through  the  several  grades,  and  was 
commissioned  captain  of  Troop  A  in  March,  1864.  He  was  assist- 
tant  provost  marshal  of  the  Eighth  Army  Corps,  and  stationed 
at  Baltimore,  Md.,  the  last  six  months  of  his  service,  and  was 
discharged  June  7,  1865.  He  was  a  member  of  the  New  Hamp- 
shire legislature  in  1866  and  1867;  United  States  revenue  in- 
spector in  1867  and  1868 ;  member  of  the  Chicago  Kepublican 
convention  which  nominated  General  Grant  for  president  in  1868  ; 
was  appointed  United  States  consul  at  Coaticook,  Canada,  from 
April,  1869,  to  1881,  when  he  returned  to  Claremont,  and  was 
appointed  judge  of  probate  for  Sullivan  county,  June  7,  1883, 
which  office  he  held  until  his  death.  June  20,  1860,  he  married 
Elizabeth  L.,  daughter  of  the  late  Eev.  S.  G.  Tenney,  of  Spring- 
field, Vt,  by  whom  he  had  two  sons  —  the  oldest  died  in  Canada, 
and  the  other,  Frank  T.,  is  a  lawyer  in  Claremont. 

CARL  A.    VOLK,   M.   D., 

Was  born  in  Hamburg,  near  Frankfort,  Germany,  June  18,  1812. 
He  came  to  America  in  1834,  and  settled  in  Ohio.  He  came  to 
Claremont  in  1844,  and  had  a  large  practice  as  long  as  he  lived. 
Dr.  Volk  studied  in  Heidelberg,  and  took  the  degree  of  M.  D. 
irom  Dartmouth  College  in  1859.  He  died  in  Claremont  March 
3,  1883. 

JOSEI'H    WAITE. 

Among  the  planters  of  Watertown,  Mass.,  was  Richard  Waite 
who  came  from  England,  and  in  1637  became  a  proprietor  by  pur- 
chasing all  the  lands  and  rights  of  one  of  the  original  grantees  of 


HISTORY   OF    CLAREMONT.  487 

tlie  town.     Of  his  three  sons,  John,  Thomas,  and  Joseph,  the  de- 
scendants of  the  former  removed  to  Framhigham,  Mass.,  Joseph 
removed  to   Marlboro',  Mass.,  and  Thomas  remained  in  Water- 
town,  where  he  acquired  considerable  property.     His  sons  were 
John,  Richard,  Thomas,  and  Joseph.     The  two  first  died  in  the 
early  Indian  wars;  Thomas  removed  to  Lyme,  Conn.,  and  M^as  the 
ancestor  of  Henry  M.   Waite,  late  chief  justice  of  Connecticut, 
whose  son,  Morrison  E.  "Waite,  was  chief  justice  of   the  United 
States,  and  Marvin  Wait,  a  distinguished  lawyer  of  the  Revolu- 
tionary period,  whose  son,  John  Turner  Wait,  was  late  representa- 
tive in  congress  from  Connecticut.       Joseph  removed  from  Water- 
tOAvn  to  the  adjoining  town  of  Sudbury,  and  had  one  son,  John, 
who,  with  his  father,  removed  to  Brookfield,  Mass.,  in  1746,  and 
opened  an  inn  on  the  post-road  from  Boston  to  Albany,  which  was 
widely  known  for  many  years  as  the  "  Old  Waite  Tavern."     He 
had  seven  sons,  John,  Joseph,  Thomas,  Benjamin,  Richard,  Jedu- 
than,  and  William. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch,  Lieut.   Col.  Joseph  Waite,  second 
son   of  John,  the  tavern-keeper,  was  born  at  Sudbury,    Mass.,  in 
1732.     In   May,  1754,  he  entered  the  provincial  army,  for  the  de- 
fense of  the  eastern  frontiers;  the   following   December  he  was 
corporal  of  a  company  of  rangers  in  the  Crown  Point  expedition, 
stationed  at  Falltown,  in  the  line  of  forts  commanded  by  Col. 
Israel  Williams ;  in  February,  1756,  he  was  appointed  ensign  of 
his  company,  which  was  attached  to  Col.  Dwight's  regiment,  with 
headquarters  at  Forts  Edward  and  William  Henrj'.     Among  his 
associates  were  Robert  Rogers,  the  famous  ranger,  Israel  Putnam, 
and  John  Stark.     In  1757  he  was  transferred  to   the   corps   of 
rangers  commanded  by  Rogers.     The  rangers  were  raised  in  New 
England,  paid  by  the   Crown,  and  officered  by  the  most  hardy,  in- 
telligent, and  enterprising  partisans  of  that  day,  many  of  whom 
were  afterwards  distinguished  in  the  Revolutionary  War.     They 
were  picked  men,  of  extraordinary  bodily  powers,  combined  with 
the  most  acute  mental  energies,  and  were  trained  in  a  discipline  of 
their  own.     Their  services  were  attended  by  difficulties  and  hard- 


488  HISTORY    OP    CLAREMONT. 

ships,  and  beset  with  dangers  in  which  men  of  ordinary  stamina 
would  never  think  of  engaging.  In  1759  Mr.  Waite  was  commis- 
sioned captain  of  a  company  of  rangers,  and  served  continuously 
in  that  capacity  until  the  end  of  the  French  and  Indian  War,  in 
1761,  when  that  organization  was  disbanded.  Captain  "Waite  re- 
turned to  Brookfield,  where  he  was  elected  to  several  important 
town  offices.  The  history  of  Brookfield,  Mass.,  says  that  "in  1762 
he  married  a  sister  of  Colonel  jSTathan  Stone,  of  Shrewsbury,  Mass. , 
who,  with  his  father  Zedekiah  and  brothers  'avid  and  Samuel^ 
were  prominent  in  the  Erench  War.  In  1767  they  were  all  living 
in  Windsor,  Vt.,  which  had  been  chartered  to,  them  the  previous 
year,  and  where  by  their  exertions  and  enterprise,  they  increased 
the  wealth  and  prosperity  of  the  place,  and  rendered  it,  at  an  early 
period,  one  of  the  most  flourishing  and  popular  villages  in  the 
ISTew  Hampshire  Grants,  as  Vei'mont  was  then  called."  From 
what  follows  in  the  same  history  it  is  inferred  that  Joseph  Waite 
and  his  brother  Benjamin  became  inhabitants  of  Windsor  at  nearly 
the  same  time  as  did  the  Stones. 

The  first  settlers  of  the  towns  in  New  Hampshire  and  Vermont,, 
bordering  on  Connecticut  river,  knowm  as  the  New  Hampshire 
Grants,  had  derived  their  titles  to  the  lands  from  the  royal  gov- 
ernor of  New  Hampshire.  In  1768  a  claim  to  this  territory  on 
the  west  side  of  Connecticut  river  was  set  up  by  the  governor  of 
New  York,  and  many  attempts  were  made  to  dispossess  the  occu- 
pants, who  resolutely  denied  the  authority  of  New  York  over 
them  or  their  possessions.  For  their  own  protection  the  organiza- 
tion known  by  the  name  of  the  Green  Mountain  Boys  was  called 
into  existence,  of  which  -Joseph  and  Benjamin  Waite  and  Nathan 
and  Samuel  Stone  were  active  members,  and  large  rewards  were 
oftered  by  the  governor  of  New  York  for  their  delivery,  with 
others,  marked  for  the  punishment  of  death.  In  1770  the  Waites 
and  Stones  had  been  arrested  by  High  Sherift'  Daniel  Whipple, 
acting  under  a  New  York  commission,  for  resistance  to  the  assumed 
authority  of  that  state,  and  had  been  rescued  by  a  number  of 
armed  men.     To  retake  them  Whipple  collected  a  posse  of  a  dozen 


HISTOKY    OF   CLAREMONT.  489 

or  fifteen  persons,  and  went  with  them  to  the  house  of  Joseph 
Waite,  in  order  to  arrest  him,  but  were  met  by  a  party  led  by  the 
latter,  overpowered,  and  kept  prisoners  for  several  hours.  In  June 
of  that  year,  Colonel  Stone,  Captain  Waite,  and  others  appeared 
at  a  court  held  in  Chester  and  emphatically  denied  any  authority 
of  New  York  over  them  or  their  grants. 

In  1771  the  Green  Mountain  Boys  were  formed  into  a  regiment, 
of  which  Ethan  Allen  was  colonel,  and  Joseph  "Waite  captain  of 
one  of  the  companies.  He  was  with  Ethan  Allen  in  the  memor- 
able capture  of  Ticonderoga,  in  1775,  and  served  in  Canada  during 
the  following  campaign. 

In  1766  Captain  Waite  was  granted  five  hundred  acres  of  land 
in  the  southwest  corner  of  the  town  of  Claremont,  together  with 
three  small  islands  in  the  Connecticut  river  opposite  thereof, 
which  has  for  many  years  been  known  as  the  Hubbard  farm. 
Captain  Waite  came  to  live  in  Claremont  in  1773,  and  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  provincial  congress  of  New  Hampshire  in  1775-76. 
In  January,  1776,  he  was  appointed  lieutenant-colonel  of  Col.  Timo- 
thy Bedel's  regiment,  raised  in  New  Hampshire  for  the  defense  of 
Canada.  In  a  severe  skirmish,  a  few  days  before  the  battle  of  Val- 
cour,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Waite  was  wounded  in  the  head  by  a 
splinter  from  a  gun-carriage  and  on  his  way  home  died  at  Clar- 
endon, Vt.  He  was  buried  with  military  honors,  at  the  roadside, 
about  two  miles  from  Clarendon  Springs.  On  the  spot  a  monu- 
ment was  erected  which  bears  upon  it  the  following  inscription  : 
"  To  perpetuate  the  memory  of  Lieut.  Col.  Joseph  Waite,  an 
officer  in  the  American  Kevolutionary  War,  who  died  on  his  re- 
turn from  an  expedition  into  Canada,  September  28,  1776 ;  this 
stone  is  erected  in  testimony  of  respect  by  his  brethren  in  arms." 
On  the  monument  is  the  figure  of  an  officer  in  full  uniform  with  a 
raised  sword,  and  beneath  it  is  the  inscription:  "Our  common 
country  claims  our  aid.  Living  or  dying  I  will  defend  her."  This 
monument  is  surrounded  by  a  strong  iron  fence. 


490  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

OTIS    F.    E.    WAITE. 

The  family  of  Waites  trace  their  descent  from  Richard  Waite, 
Avho  immigrated  from  England  and  became  a  proprietor  of  Water- 
town,  Mass.,  in  1637,  by  purchasing  all  the  lands  and  rights  of  one 
of  the  original  grantees  of  the  town.  Among  his  descendants  may 
be  named  Lieut.  Col.  Joseph  Waite,  of  Eevolutionary  fame;  Morri- 
son E.  Waite,  late  chief  justice  of  the  United  States;  John  T. 
Wait,  of  Norwich,  Conn.,  an  ex-member  of  congress;  and  Albert 
S.  Wait,  an  able  lawyer  of  Newport,  the  only  brother  of  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch.  His  father  was  Daniel  Wait,  an  ensign  in  the 
war  of  1812,  and  major-general  of  the  Vermont  state  militia. 

Otis  F.  R.  Waite,  the  writer  of  this  History  of  Claremont,  was 
born  in  Chester,  Vt,  March  3,  1818.  He  learned  the  trade  of 
printer  in  New  York  city,  was  foreman  of  the  Cheshire  Republi- 
can at  Keene  from  1838  to  1847;  editor  and  publisher  of  the 
Spirit  of  the  Times,  which  was  merged  in  the  American  News ; 
was  associate  editor  of  the  Springfield,  Mass.,  Republican;  editor 
and  publisher  of  the  Berkshire  County  Eagle,  Pittsfield,  Mass., 
during  various  terms  prior  to  his  purchase  of  the  National  Eagle, 
Claremont,  which  he  edited  and  published  from  April,  1854,  to 
April,  1859.  He  was  engrossing  clerk  of  the  New  Hampshire 
legislature  in  1856  and  1857;  state  insurance  commissioner  three 
years  following  1859;  and  associate  editor  of  the  American 
Stock  Journal,  published  in  New  York  city,  four  j'ears.  He  also 
compiled  the  New  Hampshire  Register,  published  by  the  Clare- 
mont Manufacturing  Company,  three  years. 

Upon  the  breaking  out  of  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  in  April, 
1861,  Governor  Goodwin  appointed  Mr.  Waite  general  recruiting 
officer  for  Sullivan  county,  and  soon  after  military  secretary  of  the 
war  committee  of  the  governor's  council,  and  he  was  re-appointed 
by  Governor  Berry  upon  his  succession  to  office  in  June,  1861,  in 
which  position  he  rendered  efficient  service  in  the  organization, 
equipment,  and  transportation  of  the  early  regiments  sent  to  the 
front  by  New  Hampshire.  After  the  close  of  the  war  he  prepared 
''■  Claremont  War  History,"  "New  Hampshire  in  the  Great  Rebel. 


JOHN  S.  WALKER. 


HISTORY   OF   CLARE  MONT.  491 

lion,"  and  "Vermont  in  the  Great  Eebellion,"  books  of  permanent 
value  locally  and.  in  the  general  history  of  the  civil  war.  He  was  also 
author  of  "  Eastman's  Eastern  Coast  Guide  Book."  On  the  occa- 
sion of  the  meeting  of  the  New  Hampshire  Historical  Society  in 
Claremont  for  its  annual  field-day,  September  29,  1891,  Mr.  Waite, 
by  special  request,  prepared  a  paper  giving  sketches  of  the  "  Early 
History  of  Claremont,"  which  he  read  to  the  large  company  of 
members  and  guests,  and  which  has  since  been  published  by  the 
society  in  its  "  Transactions  "  and  in  pamphlet  form. 

It  may  be  mentioned  that  while  living  in  Keene  Mr.  Waite  was 
promoted  from  the  ranks  of  the  famous  Keene  Light  Infantry  com- 
pany to  quartermaster,  adjutant,  and  major  of  the  20th  Regiment 
of  New  Hampshire  militia,  and  was  appointed  brigade  inspector  in 
1845. 

Major  Waite  bears  his  seventy-six  years  of  active  life  with  uncom- 
mon bodily  and  mental  vigor,  giving  promise  of  yet  many  years  of 
usefulness  in  his  chosen  pursuits.  He  and  his  estimable  wife  cele- 
brated their  golden  wedding  on  September  10,  1893.         J.  s.  w. 

JOHN  S.   WALKER 

Is  the  oldest  son  of  the  late  Rev.  John  Walker,  a  native  of  Bedford, 
whose  father,  Robert  Walker,  and  uncle,  James  Walker,  were  the 
earliest  settlers  of  that  town,  going  from  Londonderry,  the  famous 
New  Hampshire  Scotch-Irish  settlement,  and  of  Arethusa  (Hum- 
phrey) Walker,  daughter  of  Dr.  Royal  Humphrey,  of  Athol,  Mass. 
The  Rev.  John  Walker  was  a  graduate  of  Dartmouth  College  in 
the  class  of  1808,  and  the  second  settled  minister  of  Greenfield, 
where  John  S.  Walker  was  born  June  19,  1820.  He  acquired  his 
education  mainly  under  the  instruction  of  his  father.  When  nine- 
teen years  old  he  became  sole  proprietor  and  editor  of  a  daily  paper 
in  Buffalo,  N.  Y.,  which  he  continued  two  years.  In  1841  and  1842 
he  reported  the  proceedings  of  the  New  York  legislature  for  the 
Albany  Free  Press.  He  then  became  proprietor  of  a  bookstore 
and  was  editor  of  the  Cortland  County  Whig,  which  he  contin- 
ued for  about  three  years. 


492  HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT. 

In  the  spring  of  1846  Mr.  Walker  returned  to  Few  Hampshire 
and  was  editor  of  the  Daily  Statesman  —  the  first  daily  paper 
published  in  the  state  —  during  the  memorable  session  of  the  New 
Hampshire  legislature  which  elected  Anthony  Colby  governor  and 
John  P.  Hale  speaker  of  the  house,  and  also  United  States  senator 
for  six  years.  In  October  of  the  same  year,  in  company  with 
Charles  Young,  he  came  to  Claremont,  and  they  bought  the  Na- 
tional Eagle  newspaper  establishment,  Mr.  Walker  taking  the  edi- 
torial charge  of  the  paper.  On  May  18,  1848,  he  was  married  to 
Harriet  Harris,  youngest  daughter  of  the  late  George  B.  Upham, 
in  the  old  round  brick  church,  by  the  late  Bishop  Carlton  Chase, 
and  the  same  day  they  started  on  a  bridal  tour  on  horseback  through 
Vermont,  New  York  state,  and  Canada,  including  Montreal  and 
Quebec,  returning  to  Claremont  the  first  of  July,  having  made  a 
journey  of  one  thousand  miles. 

In  1850  Mr.  Walker  was  instrumental  in  organizing  the  New 
Hampshire  State  Agricultural  Society,  and  the  three  first  j-ears  was 
its  secretary.  In  1852  he  was  a  delegate  to  the  Whig  national  con- 
vention at  Baltimore,  and  with  the  New  Hampshire  delegation,  on 
tifty-tAvo  successive  ballots,  voted  for  Daniel  Webster  for  candidate 
f(jr  president.  On  the  fifty-third  ballot  they  voted  for  Winfield 
Scott,  and  he  was  nominated.  In  1863  Mr.  Walker  was  appointed 
assistant  deputy  surveyor  of  customs  for  the  port  of  Boston,  which 
position  he  held  until  after  the  death  of  President  Lincoln,  when, 
under  Andrew  Johnson,  a  change  was  made  in  all  departments. 
On  retiring  from  that  position  he  was  for  a  time  on  the  editorial 
stafi"  of  the  Boston  Journal. 

Mr.  Walker  was  aid  to  Governor  Berry  and  also  to  Governor 
Gilmore,  with  the  rank  of  colonel,  during  the  War  of  the  Rebellion, 
and  with  the  late  Mason  W.  Tappan  represented  the  latter  gov- 
ernor at  a  meeting  of  governors  of  the  loyal  states  at  the  consecra- 
tion, in  November,  1863,  of  the  National  Cemetery  at  Gettysburg. 
He  was  active  in  procuring  the  extension  of  the  line  of  railroad 
from  Bradford  to  Claremont,  and  was  the  first  president  of  the 
Susrar  River  railroad,  as  the  extension  was  then  called. 


HISTORY   OF   CLAREMONT.  493 

Mr.  Walker  has  made  several  trips  abroad,  spending  considerable 
time  in  England,  Prance,  Italy,  and  Switzerland,  visiting  South 
America  and  making  a  stay  of  several  weeks  in  Rio  Janeiro.  Dur- 
ing these  journeys  he  was  a  constant  correspondent  of  the  Boston 
Journal.  He  was  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature 
in  1850  and  1851,  and  delegate  in  the  conventions  to  revise  the 
state  constitution  in  1850  and  1870.  He  was  three  years  a  member 
of  the  State  Board  of  Agriculture,  and  with  the  board  visited 
numerous  towns  in  the  state,  holding  farmers'  conventions  and 
making  occasional  addresses.  In  local  affairs  Mr.  Walker  delivered 
a  memorial  address  in  the  town  hall  on  the  occasion  of  the  death 
of  Paran  Stevens;  also  one  upon  the  rededication  of  the  town  hall, 
in  January,  1868. 

HORACE  p;aton  walker 

Was  born  at  North  Charlestown,  August  9,  1852.  His  father  was 
the  late  Simeon  W.  Walker,  whose  father  came  from  Lunenburg, 
N.  Y.,  to  North  Charlestown.  The  subject  of  this  sketch  was  edu- 
cated in  the  public  schools  and  by  private  tutors.  He  spent  his 
childhood  at  the  place  of  his  birth,  and  his  later  years  have  been 
passed  in  Claremont,  where  he  has  been  an  operative  in  the  Monad- 
nock  mills,  occupying  his  leisure  hours  with  literary  work,  writing 
prose  and  verse,  of  which  he  has  produced  a  large  amount.  In  1885 
he  gathered  and  published  a  volume  of  over  six  hundred  pages  of 
his  own  writings.  In  it  is  a  poem  of  nearl}'  three  hundred  lines, 
"  The  Lady  of  Dardale,"  which  is  the  title  of  the  book.  His  pro- 
ductions have  been  published  in  the  collection  of  New  Hampshire 
Poets,  Ballou's  and  Waverly  magazines,  the  Boston  Journal,  and 
many  other  papers.  The  Woman's  Illustrated  World  has  pub- 
lished his  two  serials  entitled  "  All  About  a  Woman,"  and  "  Lady 
Oeraldine,"  and  stories  and  verses. 

JOHN  H.   WAELAND 

Was  a  native  of  Cambridge,  Mass.,  and  a  graduate  of  Harvard 
College.     In  1834  he  came  to  Claremont,  was  the  first  editor  of  the 


494  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

ISTational  Eagle,  and  continued  in  that  capacity  until  1842.  He 
was  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1839  and 
1840.  After  leaving  Claremont  he  was  editor  of  the  Lowell  Jour- 
nal and  different  newspapers  in  Boston.  He  was  a  ready  and 
brilliant  writer,  and  published  a  book  entitled  "  The  Plume,"  con- 
taining selections  of  prose  and  poetry  from  his  writings.  He  was 
insane  for  several  of  the  last  years  of  his  life,  and  died  in  an  asy- 
lum at  Taunton,  Mass.,  about  1875. 

THOMAS   WARNER 

Was  born  in  Connecticut  in  1748,  and  died  in  Claremont  in  1818. 
He  came  from  that  state  to  Newport  about  1789,  and  soon  after 
removed  to  this  town.  During  the  Revolutionary  War  he  served 
with  different  Connecticut  regiments  in  New  York  and  Long 
Island,  from  1775  to  1781,  as  private  and  sergeant.  He  was  en- 
gaged in  a  severe  skirmish  at  Harlem  Plains,  September  16,  and  in 
the  battle  of  White  Plains,  October  28,  1776.  He  was  selectman 
five  years,  first  in  1795,  and  last  in  1809,  and  was  prominent  in 
church  matters.  He  was  twice  married.  His  oldest  daughter, 
Lucy,  married  Col.  Joseph  Alden,  of  Claremont.  His  second  wife 
was  Huldah,  daughter  of  John  Blodgett,  of  Strafford,  Conn.  The 
oldest  daughter  by  this  marriage  became  the  wife  of  Levi  Alden, 
and  the  second  of  Lieut.  Chester  Alden,  both  of  this  town,  and 
from  their  unions  have  descended  a  majority  of  the  Claremont 
Alden  families. 

DK.    OSMON   B.    WAY, 

Son  of  Gordon  Way,  was  born  in  Lempster,  March  22,  1840  ; 
came  to  Claremont  with  his  parents  when  four  years  old,  and 
has  since  been  a  resident  here,  except  two  or  three  short  inter- 
vals. He  was  educated  at  Kimball  Union  Academy,  Meriden, 
studied  medicine  with  the  late  Prof  A.  B.  Crosby,  M.  D.,  of 
Hanover,  and  the  late  Dr.  Nathaniel  ToUes,  of  Claremont; 
and  graduated  at  Dartmouth  Medical  College,  in  1865,  receiving 
the  first  prize  for  scholarship.     He  was  in  practice  about  eighteen 


DR.  OSMON  B.  WAY. 


HISTOEY    OF    CLAREMONT.  495 

months  at  South  Acworth,  and  returned  to  Claremont  in  1867, 
where  he  has  since  continued  in  the  practice  of  his  profession. 
In  December,  1873,  he  was  appointed  U.  S.  examining  pension 
surgeon,  and  resigned  in  May,  1882.  He  was  a  representative 
in  the  xTew  Hampshire  legislature  in  1871  and  1872,  and  has  served 
more  than  twenty-five  years  as  superintendent  of  schools  and  high 
school  committee. 

JOSEPH  WEBER 

Was  born  in  the  state  of  Pennsylvania  in  1804.  He  served  an  ap- 
prenticeship to  the  printing  business  in  Norristown,  that  state; 
worked  as  a  journeyman  in  Boston  a  few  years ;  came  to  Clare- 
mont in  1836,  and  became  joint  publisher  with  John  H.  Warland 
of  the  National  Eagle  newspaper.  In  1842  he  bought  Mr.  War- 
land's  interest  and  became  sole  proprietor  of  the  establishment  and 
editor  of  the  paper.  In  1846  he  sold  the  paper  and  its  belongings 
to  Messrs.  Charles  Young  and  John  S.  Walker.  In  1849  he  com- 
menced the  publication  of  the  ISTorthern  Advocate,  and  espoused 
the  cause  of  the  Free  Soil  party,  which  he  advocated  with  earnest- 
ness and  vigor  until  1856,  when  the  Whig  and  Free  Soil  parties 
united  and  became  the  Republican  party,  and  Mr.  Weber  took  up 
the  cause  of  the  new  organization.  He  was  a  man  of  positive 
character  and  decided  opinions,  which  he  expressed  with  force  and 
clearness  in  his  paper.  He  advocated  temperance  and  good  mor- 
als whenever  he  had  occasion  to  speak  or  write  upon  these  subjects. 
By  reason  of  senile  infirmities  he  sold  the  Advocate  establishment 
in  1882.  He  was  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature 
in  1857  and  1858.  He  was  an  active  member  of  the  Methodist 
church  from  1842  until  his  death.  On  Sunday  evening,  December 
3,  1883,  as  was  his  custom,  he  went  to  prayer-meeting  in  the 
church  vestry,  and  almost  immediate!}'  after  taking  his  seat  fell  to 
the  floor  and  instantly  expired. 

JOHN    M.    WHIPPLE, 

Son  of  Joel  G.  Whipple,  was  born  in  Lyme,  September  16,  1834. 
His  father  and  grandfather,  Jonathan  Whipple,  went  from  Marl- 


496  HISTORY   OF    CLARBMONT. 

boro',  Mass.,  to  Lyme,  where  the  former  died  June  6,  1859,  and 
the  latter  March  29,  1839.  John  M.  came  to  Claremont  in  April, 
1856.  In  1857  he  was  made  paymaster  of  the  Monaduock  mills 
corporation,  which  position  he  held  until  he  was  appointed  post- 
master, February  10,  1875,  and  he  held  that  office  until  February 
22, 1887.  He  was  representative  in  the  New  Hampshire  legislature 
for  the  two  years  from  1889,  and  member  of  the  executive  council 
of  the  state  from  January,  1891,  to  January,  1893.  On  Septem- 
ber 26,  1860,  he  married  Carrie  L.,  daughter  of  the  late  Jonathan 
Miner,  of  Claremont,  by  whom  he  had  a  son,  John  M.,  Jr.,  clerk 
in  the  Sullivan  Savings  Institution,  and  town  treasurer  in  1894, 
and  a  daughter,  Lois  A. 

DEACON  JONATHAN  WHITCOMB, 

Son  of  Jacob  Whitcomb,  was  born  at  Warner,  June  8,  1787,  and 
died  here  January  24,  la56,  on  the  farm  at  the  foot  of  Bible  hill, 
where  he  settled  when  he  came  to  town,  about  1824.  He  was 
chosen  deacon  of  the  Congregational  church  in  1828,  and  held 
that  office  until  his  death — twenty-eight  years.  His  children 
were  Francis  Whitcomb,  who  succeeded  to  the  farm  on  the  death 
of  his  father,  and  the  wife  of  the  late  Mighill  Dustin.  Francis 
Whitcomb  died  August  29,  1885,  since  which  the  farm  has  been 
owned  and  occupied  by  his  widow,  son,  George  F.  Whitcomb,  and 
daughter.  Jacob  Whitcomb  came  from  Stowe,  Mass.,  and  was 
one  of  the  eight  first  settlers  of  Henniker,  in  1764.  From  there 
he  removed  to  Warner,  and  from  the  latter  town  Jonathan  came 
to  Claremont.  The  farm  on  which  he  settled  has  been  owned  and 
occupied  by  the  family  nearly  seventy  j'ears. 

DR.    FREDEKICK   0.    WILKINSON 

Was  born  in  the  city  of  Lincoln,  Lincolnshire  county,  England, 
June  12,  1843.  He  was  apprenticed  for  five  years  to  a  veterinary 
surgeon,  two  years  of  which  he  was  a  student  in  the  Royal  "\'eteri- 
nary  College,  London.  He  came  to  America  in  1869,  and  was 
engaged  in  caring  for  the  horses  of  James  H  Carter,  of  Lebanon, 


HISTORY    OF  .CLAREMONT.  497 

two  years,  dnriiig  which  time  he  continued  the  study  of  the  profes- 
sion he  had  chosen,  and  practiced  some.  He  came  to  Claremont  in 
1871,  which  has  since  been  his  home,  and  practiced  his  professit>n 
with  a  good  degree  of  success  until  1884.  He  then  entered  Onta- 
rio Veterinary  College,  Toronto,  and  graduated  in  1887,  taking 
the  gold  medal  of  his  class.  He  was  the  first  educated  veterinary 
physician  and  surgeon  in  this  section,  and  has  acquired  a  large 
practice,  being  called  long  distances  to  treat  valuable  animals. 

HON.    ALONZO   U.   WILLIAMSON 

Was  born  at  Woodstock,  Vt,  December  20,  1815.  He  was  edu- 
cated at  Woodstock,  Vt.,  Academy ;  studied  law  in  Claremont  with 
P.  0.  Freeman ;  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1837 ;  practiced  in  Clare- 
mont from  1842  to  1844;  then  in  Cornish  about  a  year.  He  was 
appointed  postmaster  at  Claremont  May  16,  1845,  which  office  he 
held  four  years.  At  the  end  of  this  time  he  resumed  the  practice 
of  his  profession  and  continued  it  in  Claremont  until  his  death. 
In  1850  he  was  appointed  solicitor  for  Sullivan  county,  which 
position  he  held  five  years.  He  was  elected  state  senator  in  1852, 
and  re-blected  in  1858.     He  died  March  19,  1860. 

•TCISIAH    WILSON 

Came  from  Newton,  Mass.,  to  Claremont  in  1776,  bringing  his 
wife  and  two  children  on  horseback.  He  bought  and  settled 
on  the  farm  on  Maple  avenue,  now  owned  by  his  grandson,  Jo- 
siah  Wilson,  which  has  been  in  the  family  ever  since.  The 
farm  contained  eighty  acres,  and  Mr.  Wilson  bought  it  of  a  Mr. 
Knights  for  eight  hundred  dollars,  paying  the  price  with  conti- 
nental money,  which  soon  depreciated  and  finally  became  almost 
worthless.  On  the  premises  was  a  small  log  cabin,  which  was 
replaced  in  1780  by  a  small  framed  house,  now  used  for  a 
granary.  Later  a  commodious  two-story  house,  barns,  and  other 
buildings  were  erected.  Joseph  Wilson  had  born  to  him  ten 
children — five  boys  and  five  girls, —  eight  of  whom  lived  to 
maturity,  viz.  :  Joseph,  Jr.,  Jonathan,   Nahum,  Josiah  F.,  Lydia, 


498  HISTORY    OF   CLABBMONT. 

Hannah,  Abigail,  and  Mary.  Joseph,  Jr.,  Jonathan,  and  Joseph 
F.  settkd  and  died  in  Haverhill.  Josiah,  Jr.,  who  married  a 
daughter  of  Deacon  Matthias  Stone,  died  at  the  age  of  thirty- 
two  years,  and  his  body  was  brought  down  Connecticut  river 
on  a  raft  and  buried  in  West  Claremont  cemetery.  Jonathan 
and  Josiah  F.  lived  to  old  ago.  Nahum  lived  on  the  home  farm 
until  his  death,  December  5,  1873.  Abigail  married  Asa  Dens- 
more,  of  Claremont,  and  had  a  large  family;  Lydia  married  a 
Mr.  Dustin,  and  died  young,  leaving  one  son,  Selah;  Mary  mar- 
ried Mr.  Stuart,  and  died  in  1841. 

NAHDM  WILSON, 

Son  of  Joseph,  had  seven  children  —  five  sons  and  two  daugh- 
ters—  of  whom  only  two  are  '  living  —  Josiah,  who  succeeded  to 
the  care  of  the  farm  and  of  liis  father  in  his  old  age,  and  the 
widow  of  Gustavus  N.  Heath,  a  near  neighbor.  These  Wilsons 
have  been  an  industrious  and  thrifty  family,  and  it  has  been 
said  of  them  that  they  never  oppressed  the  poor  nor  turned  the 
needy  from  their  door  empty  handed. 

THOMAS  WOOLSON, 

Son  of  Thomas  Woolson,  was  born  at  Danvers,  Mass.,  in  1777, 
and  came  to  Claremont  about  1813,  from  which  time  until  his 
death,  July  3,  1837,  he  was  prominent  in  business  and  politics. 
He  was  well  educated,  an  intelligent  mechanic,  and  an  ingenious 
inventor.  His  leading  business  was  iron  founder  and  stove 
maker.  He  invented  and  had  patented  the  first  cooking  stove 
that  met  with  any  success  in  the  United  States,  about  1818. 
He  also  made  parlor  stoves,  some  of  which  are  in  use  at  the 
present  time,  all  known  as  the  Woolson  stoves.  About  the  same 
time  he  made  the  first  cast-iron  plow  ever  used.  It  was  with 
considerable  difliculty  that  farmers  could  be  induced  to  adopt 
them.  He  had  as  partner  in  the  furnace  business,  Roswell  Elmer. 
The  furnace  was  located  just  east  of  the  Sullivan  Machinery- 
Company's  works.     Mr.  Woolson  carried  on  some  other  kinds  of 


HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT.  499 

business  alone  and  with  other  partners.  He  made  cards  for 
carding  wool,  the  teeth  being  bent  and  set  in  the  leather  by 
hand,  an  operation  in  which  half  the  families  in  town  —  men, 
women,  and  children  —  employed  time  not  otherwise  occupied. 
This  business  was  continued  until  a  machine  was  invented  which 
did  the  whole.  He  had  a  machine  for  spinning  cotton  yarn, 
which  was  sold  to  work  into  tow  cloth  made  by  housewives  at 
that  period.  Mr.  "Woolson  also  made  several  town  clocks,  that 
now  in  the  tower  of  our  town  hall  being  one  of  them.  The 
cards  and  town  clocks  were  made  in  a  two-story  wood  building 
on  the  south  side  of  Sullivan  street,  a  little  east  of  where  the 
Dr.  L.  J.  Graves  dwelling  now  stands.  He  lived  and  died  in  a 
one-story  house,  nearly  opposite,  on  the  spot  where  Dr.  Jasper 
Back's  house  now  is.  Mr.  Woolson  was  representative  in  the 
New  Hampshire  legislature  in  1825  and  1826;  state  senator  in 
1828;  and  the  same  year  elector  of  president  and  vice-presi- 
dent for  New  Hampshire,  he  and  his  seven  colleagues  casting 
their  votes  for  John  Quincy  Adams  for  president  of  the  United 
States. 

CHARLES  JARVIS  WOOLSON, 

Son  of  Thomas  Woolson,  was  born  at  Chester,  Vt.,  June  26,  1806, 
and  came  with  his  parents  to  Claremont  about  1813.  His  mother 
was  a  member  of  the  Peabody  family,  a  direct  descendant  from 
Lieut.  Francis  Peabody,  who  came  from  St.  Albans,  England,  in 
the  ship  Planter,  to  Massachusetts  in  1635.  Charles  Jarvis  Wool- 
son  attended  the  public  schools  and  the  academy  kept  by  the  Rev. 
Yirgil  H.  Barber,  at  West  Claremont.  When  old  enough  to  do  so 
he  was  engaged  with  his  father  in  the  stove  and  card  making  busi- 
ness. In  1830  he  married  Miss  Hannah  Pomroy,  of  Cooperstown, 
N".  Y.,  a  niece  of  the  late  James  Fenimore  Cooper,  the  novelist. 
One  of  their  daughters  was  Miss  Constance  Fenimore  Woolson,  the 
famous  novel  writer  and  poetess.  After  the  death  of  his  father 
Charles  Jarvis  Woolson  removed  to  Cleveland,  Ohio,  established 
an  iron  foundry  and  manufactured  stoves,  which  he  continued  until 
his  death,  August  6, 1869.  Mr.  Woolson  was  a  man  of  fine  literary 
taste  and  attainments,  an  extensive  reader,  and  at  one  time  was 


500  HISTORY    OF    CLAREMONT. 

engaged  in  journalism,  being  part  owner  of  the  New  England  Pal- 
ladium, published  in  Boston.  For  several  years  immediately  pre- 
ceding his  death  he  was  senior  warden  of  Grace  church,  Cleveland. 

CONSTANCE    FENIMOKE    WOOLSON. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch,  now  well  and  widely  known  as  an 
American  authoress,  daughter  of  Charles  Jarvis  "Woolson  and 
granddaughter  of  Thomas  Woolson,  was  born  in  Claremont,  in  the 
house  on  Sullivan  street  next  west  of  the  Fiske  Free  Library  building, 
built  and  then  owned  by  her  father,  now  owned  and  occupied  by  the 
widow  and  daughter  of  Joseph  Weber.  Her  mother  was  Hannah 
Pomroy  Woolson,  granddaughter  of  Judge  William  Cooper,  the 
founder  of  Cooperstown,  IST.  Y.,  and  niece  of  James  Fenimore 
Cooper.  During  her  early  childhood  the  family  removed  to  Cleve- 
land, Ohio,  and  Constance,  who,  when  quite  young,  manifested  a 
■decided  taste  for  literature,  inherited  and  encouraged  and  aided  by 
both  parents,  had  the  best  advantages  for  obtaining  a  thorough 
education,  and  being  an  industrious  student,  became  well  grounded 
in  English  and  ancient  classics ;  and  in  her  long  residence  in 
Europe  acquired  a  knowledge  of  the  French,  German,  and  Italian 
languages,  so  that  when  she  entered  the  literary  field  she  was  well 
equipped  for  the  work  before  her. 

Miss  Woolson's  first  venture  was  an  unpretending  descriptive 
tale,  published  in  Harper's  Magazine,  the  proprietors  of  which  were 
not  slow  in  discovering  the  scholarly  talent  and  originality  of  the 
author  and  in  securing  her  exclusive  services.  Her  first  books 
were :  Castle  Nowhere,  Lake  Country  Sketches,  Rodman  the 
Keeper,  Southern  Sketches,  and  Anne.  Her  later  ones :  For  the 
Major,  East  Angels,  and  Jupiter  Lights.  Horace  Chase  is  but  just 
completed.  Besides  these  prose  works  she  has  produced  the  poems 
Kentucky  Bells  and  Two  Women,  and  many  very  pretty  shorter 
poems. 

For  the  last  twelve  years  Miss  Woolson  has  resided  mostly 
abroad,  in  England,  France,  Switzerland,  Germany,  and  Italy,  and 
has  visited  Greece,  Egypt,  and  the  Holy  Land.  She  died  in  Ven- 
ice, Italy,  January  24,  1894, 


INDEX. 


INDEX  OF  NAMES. 


A 

Ainsworth,  Oliver 
Ralph 

388 
181,  388 

Abot,  Elisha 

316 

Ralph,  2d 

180, 

308,  387 

Abbott,  Alba  D. 

253,  286 

Walter     . 

101, 

316,  387 

Charles  F. 

140 

Walter  H. 

181,  388 

C.  Henry 

160 

William  E.      . 

181,  388 

Joseph  C. 

248 

Aleock,  Cyrus  B. 

76 

Samuel  C. 

308 

Alden,  Adam 

225, 

319,  390 

Adams,  Charles  G. 

475 

Atalanta 

319 

Daniel    . 

181 

Bedina  W. 

388 

Ephraim 

12,  17,  19,  23 

Benjamin 

319 

888,  390 

Jeffrey  Thornton 

302 

Chester  . 

320,  494 

John 

68 

Clementina 

320 

Rev.  John  Colman 

127 

Cynthia  . 

320 

Rev.  John  G. 

126 

Dinah 

319 

Joseph  T.      . 

7,  194 

Elvira 

320 

Rev.  Paul  S. 

257 

Esther     . 

320,  323 

Phinehas 

23 

Ezra  B.  . 

138,  890 

Mrs.  Susan  J. 

264 

Hannah  Kingman 

388 

Adkins,  David    . 

224 

Hattie  L. 

390 

John 

224,  306,  371 

Henry 

319 

Timothy 

224 

Huldah  B.       . 

389 

Ager,  Hira 

24 

James 

226, 

240,  806 

Ainsworth,  Amariah  . 

314 

314,  320, 

323 

371,  388 

Charles  H.  181 

,309,313,  387 

Jesse 

316 

Edward    . 

225,  236,  272 

John 

240,  388 

309, 

312,  364,  387 

John,  2d 

389 

Edwin 

346,  388 

Joseph    . 

167 

320,  366 

Elijah       . 

387 

Levi 

388,  494 

George  J. 

180,  388 

Levi,  2d  . 

. 

389 

Harry 

388 

Louisa  M. 

388 

James  E. 

301,  387 

Luoinda  C. 

388,  390 

Laban 

189,  309,  387 

Malinda 

819 

504 


INDEX. 


Aldeii,  Mai-y  A.  P.  .         .         390 

Mary  J.  138,  390 

Polly                .  .        319 

Priscilla  Moliiie  388 

Rebekia  314 

Scheherazade  319 

Sophia     .  .         320 

Thomas  W.  .                 388 

Alexander,  Abijah  .         .          23 

Daniel  S.  .                 281 

Elijah  11,  17,  19 

Allds,  Jotham  G.  .  25,  308,  311 

Mrs.  Jotham  G.  266,  348 

Allen,  Alger  V.  ...         140 

Dr.  Arthur  N.  333,  390 

Bertha  S.  .         139 

Charles  S.  .         .         297 

Ethan        ,         .    40,  390,  420,  489 

Hemaii     .  253,  285 

Henry  W.  139 

Ii-a  .         237 

John  E.  141,  142 

John  D.  .         390 

Joseph  .                 390 

Mabel  .                 316 

MaryB.  .          140,142 

Moses  239,  371 

Oscar  C.  253,  281 

Rosa  B.  138 

Samuel  G.  239 

VelmaG.  139 

William  H.  H.  .          137,  147 

272,  304,  305,  332 

348,  364,  390,  391 

Ames,  Jno.          .  .          17 

Aniidon,  John  .                 115 

Anderson,  Major  Robert  248 

Andrews,  Achsa  321 

Amasa          .  240,  314,  321 

Amos  321 

Amos  B.  .                  320 

Irena  .  321 


Andrews,  Luman 

321 

Martin 

371 

Samuel  H. 

182,  354 

Angel,  Robert     . 

244 

Angier,  Frank  B. 

141 

John  C. 

141 

Arma,  Garvin 

326,  327 

Armes,  John 

12,  19,  23 

Ashley,  Alpha 

322 

Clowry 

322 

Daniel 

392 

Dewlittle 

322 

Mrs.  Eunice 

314 

George 

322 

Luther 

179,  315,  322 

Oliver  12,  14,  21,  26,  .34,  35,  44 
46,  82,  104,  180,  224 

226,  227,  234,  236,  240 

305,  306,  310,  314,  392 

Robert  322 

Samuel  .     9,  11,  13,  14,  19 

21,  26,  32,  46,  59,  82 

225,  234,  235,  306,  392 
Samuel,  Jr.      12,14,21,22,26 

236,  240,  316,  358,  392 


Sarah 
Atherton,  Joshua 
Atkins,  Anna 
David 
Harriet  P. 
Israel  G. 
Jerome 
John  Albro 
Lucia  O. 
Mary 
Ralph  C. 
Reuben 
Samuel 
Timothy,  Jr. 
Thomas  J. 
Atkinson,  Theodore 


60,  61 

322,  324 

236 

322 

322 

.322 

322,  324 

322 

316 

322 

315 

101,  322,  324 

21,  41,  220,  371 

322 

.    12,  23 


Theodore,  Jr.  11, 12, 14, 18, 19 


INDEX. 


605 


Atwater,  Asaph 

.    31,  82 

Baker,  Edward  D.       152, 

258 

262,  312 

Capt.  Enos  . 

16 

313, 

332 

394,  395 

Austin,  Albert  J. 

, 

286 

Georgietta  A.  . 

141 

Ptuel  G. 

, 

277,  280 

Henry  M. 

456 

William  P. 

249,  250 

Horace    . 

390 

251, 

254, 

265,  299 

Horace  A. 

390 

309, 

312, 

393,  478 

Bishop  Osmon  C. 

121 

Averill,  Luther 

90 

Dr.  Oliver 

395 

Ayer,  Ada  J. 

138 

Mrs. 

343 

Henry  G. 

297 

Baketel,  Rev.  0.  S.    . 

124,  125 

John  L.    . 

140 

Balch,  John 

345 

Rev.  Oliver 

113,  257 

Rev.  W.  S.        125, 
Balcom,  Bessie  R. 

126, 

127,  154 
141,  397 

B 

George  L.    . 

109 

151,  152 

201,  202, 

303 

313,  341 

Babcock,  Rev.  D.  C. 

121,  123 

349,  356 

364 

375,  395 

Bacheler,  Abel 

93 

George  L.,  Jr. 

397 

Back,  Minnie  A. 

140 

Henry 

395 

Jasper 

499 

Louis  West 

397 

Bacon,  Charles  H. 

287,  341 

Mary     . 

395 

Badger,  Joseph 

63 

Micah 

397 

Bailey,  Alice  F. 

138 

William  S.    . 

396 

Annie  L. 

140 

Baldwin,  Caleb 

307,  327 

Ebenezer  E.     120 

210 

211,  341 

Ball,  Albert 

196 

197,  374 

Edwin  S. 

139 

F.  P.           .         . 

125 

Erastus  B. 

182,  211 

Balloch,  Daniel 

399 

Rev.  Giles      . 

127 

George  W.    . 

183,  399 

Hattie  A. 

139 

Gen.  George  W. 

399,  400 

Henry  E. 

138 

James 

183, 

185,  399 

Herbert 

184,  202 

William 

183 

Mrs.  Herbert 

356 

Ballou,  Charles  E. 

281 

John 

134 

180,  393 

Charles  0.     . 

256, 

277,  280 

Josephine  M. 

140 

Rev.  Eli 

127 

Kate  F. 

140,  142 

Ethan  A. 

297 

Mary  A. 

140,  142 

Bardwell,  Charles  R. 

300 

Rev.  N.  M.     . 

122 

Lizzie 

138 

Samuel  C. 

211 

348,  349 

Barnard,  John  P.  W. 

286 

Susie  D. 

140 

Barney,  Daniel  W.       160, 

161, 

163,  354 

Baker,  Alfred      . 

390 

Harvey 

337 

Charles  H.       . 

299 

Barnes,  Bill            98,  100, 

102, 

203,  224 

Dr.  Cyrus  E.    . 

158 

333,  394 

240,  241,  306, 

316, 

323,  324 

Dimick    . 

394 

337,  340,  371, 

398, 

397,  318 

33 


606 


INDEX. 


Barnes,  Bill  Andrews 
Daniel 

Dr.  Edward  F 
Esther    . 
Eunice  S. 
Gilbert 
Ira  N. 
Lyman 
Lyman  S. 
Obed  D. 
Mrs.  Obed  D 
Orilla     . 
Thomas 
William  A. 
Barber,  Kev.  Daniel      102, 
Xabbe     . 
Stephen 
Rev.  Virgil  H. 

129, 
Bangs,  Judith  Fox 

Sarah 
Barker,  Asa 

Fred  L. 
Tileston  A. 
Barrett,  Augustus 
Charles 
George  A. 
Henry  E. 
"William  £. 
BaiTon,  Sarah     . 
Rev.  T. 
Bartlett,  Dr.  Albert    . 
Andrew 
Clara  E. 
Joseph  S. 
Lillian  M.     . 
Marion  P.     . 
Sylvester 
William 
William  F. 
Barrows,  Dr.  N. 
Barstow,  Mrs.  Ansou  S. 
Barton,  Cyrus     . 


323 


103, 


142, 


323 

340 

898 

333 

323, 

398 

324, 

398 

244 

323, 

398 

, 

364 

398 

333, 

399 

265, 

266 

398 

398 

398 

129 

366 

317 

101 

102 

103 

475 

499 

315 

310 

244 

, 

295 

258 

210 

474 

60 

210 

368 

1.39 
314,  417 
127 
383 
243 
140 
312,  316 
141 
139 
182 
330 
161 
137 
,  266 
163 


Batchelder,  Alfred  T.  148, 

Rev.  Charles  R. 
Huldah 
E.     . 

Bascom,  James  P. 

Bates,  Amos 


332, 


David 


Esther     . 

Ezra 

Hannah  . 

John 

Joseph 

Levy 

Lydia 

Mary 

Mittie      . 

Samuel    . 

Solomon 

SulDmit 
Baum,  Mrs.  Samuel 
Beatty,  Francis 
Beauregard,  General 
Bedel,  Col.  Timothy 
Beckwith,  Hira  R. 
Beeman,  Rev.  L. 
Belfield,  Widow  Mary 
Belknap,  Dr.  Jei'emy 
Bell,  Charles  H. 
Clara  J. 
John  J. 
Minnie 
Bellas,  Mary  R. 
Bellows,  Henry  A. 

John  . 
Benjamin,  Judah 
Bennett,  Seth 

Mrs.  S.  N. 
Benton,  Nathan 

Samuel  0. 
Berry,  Gov.  Nathaniel  S 

Bigley,  William  H.     . 


224, 
318,  319, 


305, 
323, 

319, 
320, 


318, 


235, 
314,  318, 


56 


320, 
319, 

318, 

320, 

355, 
357, 

174, 


59,  216, 


256,  258 


410 
109 
317 

279 
281 
320 
306 
370 
313 
323 
324 
318 
318 
324 
318 
823 
315 
371 
324 
318 
356 
358 
248 
285 
149 
125 
871 
217 

66 
141 
152 
139 
397 
395 
229 
289 
317 
355 
315 

281 

165 
,  492 

286 


INDEX. 


507 


Billings,  Albert  M.     . 

119 

Bond,  George 

161,  401 

J.  D.     . 

145 

Grace  L.   . 

141 

Bingham,  C.  Edward 

301 

Henry 

11, 

17,  19,  23 

Charles  M.  104 

,  108 

262,  268 

Job  . 

401 

272, 

305, 

311,  354 

Oliver  A.    270, 

301 

,343 

,  368,  402 

364, 

372, 

400,  473 

Ruth 

112 

Charles  R. 

372 

William  H. 

000 

Eliza 

372 

Booth,  A.  George 

270 

George  E.  . 

328 

Hosea 

372 

James  H.    . 

305 

311,  332 

John  Wilkes 

362 

347, 

372, 

374,  400 

Oscar 

298 

Levi 

372 

Boucher,  Delia  M. 

140 

Iv'athan          75 

366, 

367,  400 

Orlando  A. 

139 

R.  S. 

. 

1.38 

Bouck,  Grace  T. 

141 

Silas  L.        361, 

372, 

373,  374 

Bouton,  Dr.  Nathanie 

416 

Walter       .     7 

3,76 

316,  372 

Bowker,  Charles  S. 

295 

Blake,  Frederick  H.    . 

, 

140 

Daniel  N. 

208 

383,  402 

Blakeslee,  Rev.  Solomon 

100, 

101,  144 

Daniel  S. 

163 

Blanchard,  Florence  M. 

141 

272 

,  308 

309,  402 

Henry  S. 

300 

Elijah   . 

402 

Mrs.  Mary 

265 

Bowler,  John 

295 

Ora  D.      . 

140, 

212,  310 

Bowman,  Ruel     . 

161,  354 

"William  H. 

263 

Selwin  R. 

288 

Bliss,  Alden  J.    . 

340 

Bishop  Thomas 

123 

Katie  I. 

139 

Bradford,  Amos  F. 

281 

Blodgett,  Albro    139,  249, 

255, 

272,  304 

Bradley,  Cinthia 

322 

311,  346, 

348, 

349,  359 

Elizabeth 

324 

George  W.     159, 

160, 

161,  250 

Hannah 

, 

322,  324 

251, 

305, 

308,  424 

Jonathan 

322 

324,  371 

Huldah 

494 

Lydia    . 

315 

John 

182, 

371,  494 

Ranna  . 

322 

Luke    . 

316 

Breok,  Charles  P.        145, 

177, 

310,  313 

Rozey  . 

316 

Henry 

177,  403 

Samuel 

316 

John  T.    . 

402 

Blood,  Ned  W.    . 

140 

Sarah  UcD.      . 

403 

Bolio,  Frank 

287 

Susan  L. 

, 

403 

Horace 

281 

William            1 

"T, 

307, 

326,  371 

Bond,  Daniel 

315, 

401,  402 

William,  2d     145, 

160, 

313,  402 

Daniel,  Jr. 

401,  402 

Breckenridge,  John  C 

262 

David 

, 

000 

Brewer,  Ebenezer 

321 

Ellen  M.  . 

266,  402 

James  P. 

106, 

312, 

361,  473 

Mrs.  E.  M. 

000 

Mrs.  Matilda 

. 

315,  321 

508 


INDEX. 


Brickett,  Mrs.  James 

266 

Brown,  Oscar  J. 

146, 

160,    161 

,271 

Brewster,  John  H. 

154 

312,  338, 

375,  376 

,  404 

Susannah 

317 

Mrs.  Oscar  J. 

92 

Briggs,  Arnold    . 

200,  201 

Ralph  N. 

253 

287 

272, 

309, 

312,  353,  354 

Susan  A. 

404 

Augusta  . 

140 

Buckman,  David 

158 

Fred.  A. 

270,  379 

Buel,  Charles  G. 

309 

George  A. 

110,  375 

Bugbee,  John 

243 

Joseph  G. 

203,  313 

Bunnell,  Abel 

404 

Myra  L. 

140 

Betsey  . 

112 

Sarah  E. 

141 

Jesse     . 

112 

William  H. 

297 

Mehitabel      , 

112 

Brooks,  Annie  J. 

138 

Milly     . 

112 

Asahel     . 

236,  240,  370 

Mrs.  Robert  R. 

266 

Azel 

227 

Burbank,  Asher  S. 

300 

Barnabas 

225,  227,  228 

Eugene  D.     . 

140, 

142 

Capt.  Benjamin 

30 

Mabelle  R.    . 

141 

32, 

33,    34,    39 

Burchard,  Rev.  Mr.    . 

90 

93, 

220,  225,  228 

Burgoyne,  General 

238 

236 

305,  306,  370 

Burke,  Edmund  . 

153, 

332 

Benjamin,  Jr. 

15,  30,  31,  32 

Emma  J. 

141, 

142 

93 

94,  225,  227 

Burnham,  Semore 

317 

228, 

236,  240,  370 

Burns,  James 

381 

Cornelius 

93 

225,  228,  370 

Thomas 

287 

Emily  E. 

140 

Burpee,  Aaron 

378 

Dr.  George  W 

334 

Butcher,  John 

288 

Hartley  L. 

364 

Butler,  Achsa 

314 

John 

220, 

227,  228,  370 

Anis 

315 

Kate  E. 

139 

Asaph 

239 

Lyman  J. 

410 

Ezra 

239, 

371 

Brough,  Charles  D. 

288 

Dr.  J.  N 

414 

Brown,  Albert  W. 

287 

William 

337 

Amos 

403 

Rev.  Charles 

414 

c 

Daniel 

317 

Edward  . 

200 

Cady,  Polly 

217 

Frank  H.  152, 

305, 

313,  332,  404 

CaSrey,  Matthew 

341 

George  E. 

287 

Camp,  Fred  C.     . 

331 

Hollis  S. 

288 

Campbell,  Albion  R.    . 

. 

331 

James 

181 

Eev.  W.  W. 

105 

Josiah  S. 

281 

Canty,  Daniel     . 

124, 

341 

LeviB.    . 

469 

Carey,  Ezekiel     . 

347 

INDEX. 


509 


Carey,  Nicholas  . 

101 

Chase 

,  Betsey 

322 

Carleton,  A.  H.   . 

137 

Eev.  Dr.  Carlton 

106, 

107 

Elijah  S.       . 

288 

108, 

250, 

257 

Rufus  . 

160,  409 

405, 

406, 

458 

Samuel 

208 

Charles  F. 

139 

Samuel  S.     . 

281,  288 

Daniel 

116, 

327 

Stephen 

367 

328, 

332 

,367 

406 

Carroll,  Charles  . 

286 

Dudley  T. 

211, 

406 

Hannah  M. 

141 

Elijah      . 

322 

Carter,  Hosea  B. 

64 

Farah     .  . 

317 

James  H. 

496 

Francis    . 

316, 

322 

Carlland,  Samuel 

194 

Rev.  Francis 

101, 

137 

Case,  Ira     . 

02 

Henry 

, 

143 

Cass,  John 

11,  17,  19,  23 

Ithamer   . 

366, 

458 

Joseph 

.       12,  19,  23 

Jonathan 

226, 

315 

Rev.  T.  G. 

114 

Levi  R.    . 

149 

Cassidy,  Elizabeth  A. 

140 

LebbeuB  . 

245, 

406 

Caterling,  Gideon 

239 

Mariah     . 

322 

Chadwick,  J.  C. 

125 

Mary 

322 

Chaffin,  Alvaro  L. 

298 

Rev.  Moses 

118 

John  W. 

313 

Ovid 

163 

Levi 

315 

Rt.  Rev.  Philander 

405 

WiUiam  E.     . 

139 

Robert  H. 

277, 

280 

William  H.     . 

259,  277,  280 

Salmon  P. 

458 

Chamberlin,  Fanny 

138 

Samuel    . 

82, 

226 

Mary 

143 

Samuel  L. 

. 

154 

Simeon   . 

.      11,  14,  21 

William   . 

317 

Chandler,  Ira  F. 

331 

ChellL 

J,  Burt 

139, 

304, 

305 

Nellie  C.      . 

141 

332,  338, 

356, 

409 

Selden  S. 

252,  285 

Freeman  S. 

, 

354, 

409 

Chapin,  Bela 

26,  151,  407 

Mrs.  Freeman  S. 

181, 

266 

Henry     . 

92 

Maria  B. 

1.39, 

142 

Samuel  . 

407 

Rush       . 

139 

Chapman,  Isaac 

245 

Cheney,  Colonel 

68 

Samuel  W. 

301 

IraD.    . 

288 

Charlton,  Edwin  A.     . 

143,  145,  405 

Chittenden,  Thomas 

55 

!,  54 

Walter 

405 

Christie,  Henry  A. 

271 

Chase,  Alice  C.    . 

140,  142 

Church,  C.  C.     . 

143, 

258 

Arthur     .           It 

)4,  251,  255,  266 

Cilley 

Col.  Joseph 

. 

, 

235 

2' 

'2,  333,  354,  406 

Claggett,  Wyseman 

, 

63 

Arthur,  Jr. 

140 

Clapp 

Roswell    . 

, 

315, 

371 

Austin  C. 

. 

270 

Clark, 

Benjamin 

236 

510 


INDEX. 


Clark,  Cephas 
Dan 
Kev.  Edward  W. 

272, 
Eleazer  35, 

236, 
Eleazer,  Jr. 
Erastus     . 
Esther 
Erancis    . 
Francis  B. 
John 

Maurice  L. 
Moses 
Kettie 
Theophilas 
Williatn    . 


209. 
309, 


Clay,  D.  A. 
Clement,  Bartlett 
Decastro 
Irene     . 
Sumner 
Wyman  R. 
Zenas    . 
Cleveland,  Decastro 
Isaac 
Mamre 
Nancy 
Sarah 
Clinton,  DeWitt 
George 
Clogston,  Sylvester 
Clow,  John 
Coburn,  Paschal  P. 
Cogswell,  P.  B.    . 
Colby,  Anthony  . 
D.  C. 

Dr.  Enoch  P. 
George 
Gilbert  P. 


316 

239 

91 

262,  263 

273, 

354,  362 

119, 

224,  226 

306, 

319,  371 

224 

118 

319 

297 

91 

235 

139 

409 

, 

140 

307 

160 

251, 

304,  305 

310, 

367,  409 

196 

181 

308,  359 

321 

321 

.  12,  17 

253,  281 

311 

324 

314 

821,  324 

321,  324 

321 

321 

366 

47 

259 

315 

204,  350 

152 

165,  492 

255,  258 

334 

301 

298 

Colby,  Henry 

Ira  .         161, 

Ira,  Jr.     . 

137,  147,  149, 
255,  262,  303, 
332,  364,  375, 
Ira  Gordon 
Joshua 
Colburn,  Sanford 
Cole,  Abner 

Ammendlees 

Amos 

Anne  C.     . 

Nehemiah 

Samuel    32,  97,  98, 

239,  305, 
Sarah 

Timothy 
Coley,  Walter 
Collamer,  Jacob 
Colston,  Charles  P. 
Comings,  Dai-win 
Commins,  Mr.     . 
Joseph 
Conant,  Amos 

240,  314, 
Betsey 
Charles 
Cynthia 
Ebenezer  240, 
Elizabeth 
Ezra 
Mary 
Mellesent 
Ralph  . 
Rosan  S. 
Samuel 
Stephen 

Cone,  Lyman  H. 
Cook,  Elias 

Elizabeth 

Emma  F. 


70,  309 

309,  312,  410 

.    66,  70,  123 

152,  249,  253 

304,  312,  313 

376,  410,  411 

.     411 

70,  311,  312 

286 

98 

322 

226,  371 

314,  413 

322 

225,  226,  229 

370,  411,  413 

322 

314,  322,  371 

317 

378 

253,  254,  288 

138 

226 

315 

225,  236 

321,  323,  371 

321,  323 

321 

321 

320,  321,  323 
321 
321 
320 
320 
321 
321 
321 
316 
288 
316 
320 
413 


INDEX. 


511 


Cook,  Frances  B.        .        .        .        389 

Cotton,  John 

101 

Frank  C.            ...        389 

Luther     . 

236 

George       .        189,  316,  327,  330 

Nathaniel 

311 

Godfrey     .        .        189,  330,  412 

Sarah 

323 

Horace  W.         .         .         .        301 

Thomas  . 

323 

John          .         179,  210,  306,  327 

Coult,  Rev.  A.  C. 

123 

Capt.  John        .        .        329,  330 

Cowles,  Amos 

240 

357,  371,  411,  412 

Austin  T. 

161 

Matilda     ....        412 

Emma  L. 

138 

Miranda    ....        412 

Henry  C. 

160,  309, 

353 

Nancy  L.            .                  .         320 

James  A. 

270 

Oliver        .         .         .         239,  320 

Kate 

139 

Wallace  W.       .        .        .        288 

Lemon     . 

181 

Wendell  E.        ...         288 

Lucy 

417 

Coolidge,  Gov.  Carlos          .        .        407 

Nathaniel          24, 

182,  307, 

308 

Cooper,  J.  Fenimore   .                          499 

Ora  E.     . 

140 

Dr.  Sherman   271,  272.  292,  334 

Phinehas 

♦     315, 

371 

Copeland,  Frederick  K.       .        .        196 

Timothy 

240 

Cor  bin,  Austin     .         .         .                 406 

Tracy 

20, 

181 

Corey,  Oliver       .         .         .         .         186 

Coy,  Clowe 

315 

Susan                         .   '     .        424 

S.  T.  . 

206, 

207 

Cossit,  Ambrose           .       21,  22,  45,  59 

William       . 

225 

64,  74,  98,  102,  182 

Crafts,  Homer  M. 

252, 

285 

241,  249,  251,  305,  306 

Cragin,  Aaron  H. 

258 

307,  308,  314,  327,  346 

Craig,  Joseph 

281 

347,  348,  359,  371,  413 

Cram,  Joseph 

160 

Ambrose,  Jr.     310,  326,  366,  413 

Crockett,  David 

246 

AnneC 321 

Cromack,  Rev.  Joseph  C. 

120 

AnneK.   .         .                  .317 

Crosby,  Samuel   . 

326 

Betsey  R.         ...        321 

Crowther,  Samuel 

, 

326 

FrainswayE.   .         .         .        321 

Cross,  J.  H. 

206, 

378 

Henry  A.          .         .         182,  413 

H.  G. P.   . 

347 

378 

John  F.             182,  271,  304,  413 

Cummings,  Dr.  Alvah  R. 

333, 

414 

Mary  Alma       ...         321 

Daniel 

288 

PhebeL.           .                  .        321 

David 

143 

Rev.  Ranna      ...          94 

Ebenezer  E. 

253, 

299 

95,  96,  97,  98,  99,  100 

Hannah    . 

112 

225,  226,  227,  229,  230 

Heman  H. 

251 

Ranna,  3d         .         .         .        321 

Joseph 

112 

371 

Samuel  C.         ...         321 

MottA.    . 

139 

Cotton,  Anne                •         ■         •         323 

Curl,  Rev.  G.  M. 

123 

364 

Charles    .                         •          25 

Currier,  George  C. 

■ 

204 

512 


INDEX. 


Currier,  George  W. 

293 

Delmage,  James 

253,  271 

Warren 

, 

407 

Demarest,  Rev.  G.  L. 

128 

Curtis,  Daniel 

34,  98 

Deming,  lliley 

337 

Cushing,  Sylvanus 

127,  340 

Seth    . 
Densmore,  Asa 

316 
116,  117 

D 

Caleb 
Clifton  E. 

372 
140,  347 

Dana,  Cyrus  W. 

368 

Jonathan 

161 

Sylvester 

152 

Derome,  Rev.  G. 

129 

Dane,  Albert  G. 

281 

Dexter,  David 

73,  7 

4,  76,  88 

Jobn 

372 

307,  310, 

326, 

347,  414 

Wallace 

300 

David  W.     . 

106 

Daniels,  Rev.  Mr. 

114 

Gregory 

414 

Danforth,  Albert  H. 

304,  309 

312,  409 

Stephen 

327, 

366,  414 

Davenport,  A.  C. 

124 

Dible,  Lucretia 

314 

Davis,  Abel 

321 

Dickey,  Adam  . 

402 

Ebenezer 

321,  323 

Joseph  A . 

295 

Florence  B. 

139,  142 

Dickinson,  Aurelius   . 

136, 

257,  304 

George     . 

333,  343 

309,  329, 

338, 

348,  415 

George  W. 

300 

Cotton 

314,  320 

Gideon    . 

55 

Fanny 

320 

Jefierson 

262 

Henry  A . 

313, 

329,  338 

John  W. 

253 

254,  285 

Mrs .  Henry  A 

356 

Jonathan  G. 

321 

Olive 

320 

Mary 

321 

Diggins,  Julia  A. 

419 

Simon     . 

12,  17,  19,  23 

Diman,  Mary     . 

314 

Solomon 

321 

Dinsmoor,  Samuel 

194 

Peter 

321,  323 

Dodge,  Daniel  . 

98,  240 

Thomas  . 

116,  117 

David  22,  29,   102, 

226, 

354,  404 

Ziba  L.  . 

252,  281 

Ebenezer 

11,  17,  12,  23 

Dean,  Horace    . 

159,  160 

Ichabod 

323 

161, 

163,  172, 

309,  354 

Isaac 

323 

John 

252, 

254,  285 

John      . 

315 

Uriel       . 

304,  347, 

361,  424 

Mehitabel 

112,  323 

Deane,  David    . 

243 

Prudence 

323 

Henry  C. 

211 

William 

368 

Josiah  W. 

211,  474 

Dole,  Charles  H. 

416 

Lemuel 

101 

David 

415 

Lillian  J. 

141 

Edmund 

416 

Mary  B. 

139 

Frank  H. 

416 

Mary  L. 

139 

George  W. 

415 

William  B. 

140 

John  A. 

416 

INDEX 


513 


Dole,  Lemuel    . 

343, 

415 

Dustin 

Phylindea     . 

322 

Levi  R.    . 

416 

Sarah  M.     . 

322 

417 

Donelery,  John 

423 

Timothy 

82 

Dooley,  William 

292 

225,  240, 

314, 

319, 

417 

Dorman,  Ephraim      .         12,  17,  19 

,  23 

Timothy,  2d 

417 

Dorr,  Rev.  Henry 

. 

123 

Thomas 

92 

Douglass,  James  B.   . 

253 

286 

225,  240, 

314, 

319, 

417 

Dow,  Rev.  Lorenzo   . 

114 

115 

Thomas,  2d 

322, 

417 

Prentis 

147 

383 

William 

417 

John  W. 

141 

142 

William  H. 

417 

Robert  K. 

. 

151 

Dutton 

,  Aaron 

200 

Dowlin,  Dr.  Winifred  M. 

383 

418 

George  D. 

200 

Draper,   Eli       . 

112 

C.  Isabella 

355 

356 

Harvey 

112 

John    . 

, 

171 

Sally 

112 

■   Lewis  H. 

300 

Drury,  William  H.    . 

, 

139 

Newell  T.    . 

, 

293 

Mrs.       . 

. 

343 

Orman 

201 

378 

Ducharme,  George     . 

. 

343 

Dyke, 

Edna  N. 

141 

Dudley,  Ebenezer 

224 

Dunfee,  James 

239 

E 

Dunning,  Rev.  Charles  U. 

123 

Mrs.  Charles  U. 

355 

Earl,  William    . 

203 

336 

Dunsmore,  Asa 

101 

316 

Eastm 

m,    Charles  E. 

419 

Cora  M . 

141 

Charles  H. 

122 

205 

FredW. 

, 

342 

258, 

271, 

303, 

312 

Durant,  E.  Bell 

139 

142 

336, 

348, 

354, 

418 

Dustin,   Abel 

101 

322 

Mrs.  Charles  H 

265, 

266 

Alice 

. 

321 

Charles  0. 

305 

346 

Rev.  Caleb 

, 

115 

Edson  C. 

, 

152 

David 

319 

Mrs.  Edson 

152 

Eliphalet 

417 

Ezra 

316 

Elvira 

418 

Mrs .  Julia  A . 

D. 

122 

Eunice 

319 

Timothy   . 

194 

Eveline 

418 

198,  205, 

348, 

399, 

418 

Emeline 

418 

Eastwood,  Rev.  J. 

128 

Hannah        .          322, 

416, 

417 

Eaton, 

Catherine  F. 

141 

Lucinda 

418 

Rev.  Dr. 

104 

Malinda 

. 

321 

Edmunds,  William     . 

317 

Mary            .          214, 

417, 

418 

Edwards,  Thomas  M . 

165 

Major 

. 

145 

Edson 

Ebenezer 

225, 

227, 

240 

Mighill        .          168, 

417, 

418 

Eggleston,  Marion  L. 

139 

Moody          .     24,  44, 

417, 

418 

Ela,  Jacob  H.   . 

. 

278 

514 


INDEX. 


Ellis,    Asaph     ....         316 

Erskine,  James 

315 

Barnabas          31,  39,  40,  82,  133 

Eebekah 

321,  324 

184,  224,  228,  233,  234 

Estabrook,  Nehih 

226 

236,  239,  240,  303,  306 

Evans,  Frank    . 

110 

307,  326,  327,  370,  419 

Mrs.  Frank   . 

110 

Caleb        303,  304,  310,  332,  420 

Frank  W. 

286 

Calvin     ....         320 

Rev.  W.  F. 

121 

Dr.  C.   C.                 .         .         334 

Evelith,  Anna   . 

140 

Gideon     12,  17,  19,  23,  320,  324 

Everts,  Elihu     . 

55 

John        .         .         .17,  19,  23 

Morris   . 

372 

Jonathan          .         .         .           11 

Evring,  David  . 

341 

Joseph              12,  17,  19,  23,  239 

IdaB. 

141,  142 

Luther    .         .         .          320,  324 

Manning          ...           92 

F 

Mary       .         .         .          320,  324 

Nanoy     ....         420 

Reuben  B.       .         .          211,212 

Fairbanks,  George  H 

115 

Sarah      ....         320 

George  W. 

288 

William           .            40,  124,  101 

FairweU,  Oliver 

L2,  17,  19,  23 

184,  272,  354,  419,  420 

Oliver,  Jr. 

12,  17,  19,  23 

William  B.  40,  184,  212,  312,  419 

Farley,  Harriet  N. 

423 

Ellsworth,  Mahitabel           .         .         318 

Rev.  Stephen 

88, 

420,  423 

Oliver  225,  236,  240,  318,  371 

Fales,  Willard 

340 

Elmer,  Annas.          .         .          140,142 

Farmer,  John 

. 

222 

Roswell              75,  195,  307,  498 

Farnsworth,  Seth  _ 

92 

Elmore,  Asa      ....         316 

Farr,  Arnold 

336 

Emerson,  Mrs.  Alice  B.      .         .         432 

Farrington,  Charles  S. 

. 

141 

George  H .            .         .         287 

John  S. 

160,  205 

George  W.           196,  201,  286 

Phebe 

115 

John  T.       197,  356,  375,  422 

Farwell,  Charles 

422 

Jonathan    .          101,  316,  422 

George  N. 

92 

MaryE.      ...         139 

136, 

184, 

209, 

251,  272 

Moses  K.     262,  278,  312,  432 

312, 

364, 

347, 

348,  354 

Sarah  T.     .         .         .         141 

364, 

372, 

424, 

425,  467 

Erskine,  Catherine     ...         321 

George  N., 

2d 

348,  426 

Celia    .         .         .          321,  324 

James  H. 

. 

425 

Christopher           .    So,  86,  315 

John  L. 

152,  197 

321,  324,  327,  371 

270, 

271, 

312, 

347,  348 

Content         ...         320 

349, 

350, 

375, 

425,  426 

Elizabeth               .         .         314 

Capt.  John 

76,  184 

Freelove        .         .          321,  324 

Luther 

29 

Harriet         .         .          .         471 

Nanoy 

457 

INDEX. 

t>li> 

Farwell,  Nicholas 

76,  184 

Fisher,  Timothy 

322 

186, 

203, 

208,  209 

Fisk, 

Jonathan,  Jr. 

144 

336, 

347, 

423,  457 

Rev.  Wilbur 

116 

Russell  W.    209, 

424, 

453,  474 

Fiske 

,  Catharine 

115 

Sadie  C. 

140 

Frank  S. 

251 

Sarah 

425 

George    . 

74 

76, 

305,  326 

William  H. 

209, 

424,  457 

John 

194 

William  H.,  Jr. 

297 

Miranda 

465 

William  P. 

270 

Matilda  . 

465 

Elder  William 

86 

Samuel    . 

.      74,  75,  76 

Fay,  Harry  C. 

110,  134 

88, 

134, 

144, 

303,  305 

154,  313, 

364, 

368,  426 

307, 

310, 

326, 

347,  427 

John 

426 

Samuel  P. 

135 

Nathan 

426 

146, 

147, 

266, 

270,  271 

Ferguson,  Rev.  Henry 

109 

272, 

273, 

354^ 

427,  465 

Field,  Abbie      . 

149,  320 

Mrs.  Samuel  P 

266 

David      .         .       1 

2,  U 

,  21,  320 

Fitch 

,  Bela 

334 

Mary 

322 

Charles  M. 

139 

Olive 

314 

George  W. 

302 

Patrick    . 

224,  319 

Henry 

163,  251 

Polly       . 

322 

Henry  C. 

328,  331 

Samuel    . 

.      11,  14,  21 

Mrs.  Henry  C. 

355,  356 

Dr.  Thomas     . 

334 

Lulu  M. 

139 

Walbridge  A. 

391 

Mrs.  Melissa 

122 

Waldo     . 

316,  322 

Morris  G. 

139 

Waldo  H. 

322 

Orlan  P. 

140 

Fielding,  Ebenezer     . 

239 

Thomas  J. 

184 

Elizabeth  Olive 

316 

AVilliam  H:  H. 

141,  142 

Fifield,  Grace  M. 

141 

Flagg 

,  Dr.  Andrew  J 

334 

Finnegan,  Rev.  P.  J. 

129 

Flanders,  James  C. 

139,  142 

Fisher,  Abigail 

322 

Fletcher,  Huldah 

468 

Abraham 

74, 

371,  426 

Thomas  B. 

160,  338 

Amos     . 

317 

Mrs.  Dr. 

343 

Charles  A.     . 

310,  313 

Forbnsh,  C.  A. 

348 

Elizabeth 

315 

Ford 

Charles  P. 

302 

E.  C.     . 

376 

Daniel      . 

236, 

239,  371 

Francis  E.     . 

140 

George  E. 

298 

James    . 

244 

James  B. 

302 

Joseph 

316,  426 

Lydia 

316 

Leonard  P.     . 

24,  25 

Foster,  Abel 

43 

163,  375, 

376, 

40],  426 

Carrie  I. 

140 

Mrs.  Leonard  P. 

266 

Charles  E. 

295 

516 


INDEX. 


Foster,  Rev.  E.  S. 

127, 

262,  263,  362 

Germarsh,  Israel 

288 

Henry    . 

12,  17,  19,  23 

Geriy,  Mrs.  Nellie  M. 

369 

Freeman,  Benjamin 

11,  17,  19,  23 

Gibson,  F.  H.   . 

329,  337 

Charles  N. 

204,  313 

Mrs. 

337 

Capt.  Edmund 

226 

Gidding,  Joseph 

63 

Henry  V.    . 

295 

Gilbert,  Dr.  A.  A.     . 

334 

Philander  C 

65,  106 

Benjamin  J. 

144 

311, 

332, 

428,  445,  451 

Eben'r 

316 

Freeley,  Miss  H.  W. 

137 

John    . 

282 

French,  Comfort 

320 

Sally    . 

315 

Edward  E. 

224, 

314,  320,  371 

Giles,  Benjamin 

63,  229 

Hannah 

320 

Ethan  A. 

301 

Isaac  . 

320 

Lemuel  A. 

288 

Rev.  Dr.       . 

129 

Gillingham,  Oliver  P. 

296 

Rebecca 

320 

Gilman,  Benjamin  P.    136, 

253, 

270,  273 

Frink,  Thomas 

.      11,  14,  21 

John  Tyler 

44,  87,  88 

Frost,  Horace  W. 

200,  375 

Rev.  J. 

126 

Fry,  Thomas  W. 

196 

Gilmore,  C.  H. 

379 

Frye,  Nettie  M. 

141 

Gavcen 

207, 

378,  429 

Fuller,  Amasa  . 

224,  239 

George  C.   . 

238 

Francis  E. 

428 

Hiram 

206, 

207,  429 

Rev.  James  M 

119 

Gov.  J.  A.  . 

262,  362 

Jonathan 

225,  234,  235 

Leonard      .   206, 

207, 

347,  429 

Peter      . 

225,  234 

Homer  G.  . 

301 

Phineas 

33 

Thomas  W. 

391 

Samuel  W.     . 

532,  428 

Glidden,  Charles  E.  . 

431 

Pulton,  Robert 

435 

Gen.  Erastus 

249, 

251,  308 

311, 

■347, 

430,  431 

G 

Ezra  J. 
Nettie  F.     . 

165 
139,  142 

Gage,  Isaac  K. 

152 

Samuel 

308 

Galpin,  Henry  W.   . 

330 

Gleason,  Dr.  Robert  S. 

74 

198,  334 

Gardiner,  Alexander 

257 

Dr.  Timothy  S.   . 

109,  134 

Gardiner,  Alexander 

277,  280,  332,  429 

Goddard,  Alice  B.     . 

431 

Garfield,  Joseph  F.    . 

254 

Christopher  M. 

432 

Moses 

281 

Edward  L.      92 

137 

143,  198 

Gates,  Abel 

429 

249, 

251 

257,  266 

James  M. 

106,  311,  332,  429 

270 

271 

272,  279 

James  S.  A. 

288 

303 

312 

354,  439 

Gay,  Carrie  H. 

140 

Mrs.  Edward  L. 

265 

Geer,  Cynthia  . 

315 

266 

279 

361,  431 

John 

255 

Rev.  Edward  N. 

431 

INDEX. 


517 


Goddard,  Elizabeth  Worth 

432 

Gould,  Warren  H.     . 

298 

Elizabeth  P. 

431 

Gove,  John,  Jr. 

303 

Evelina  P. 

440 

Gowdey,  Edwin  M.   . 

258,  254,  285 

Frederick  W.     . 

282,  431 

John  M.     . 

372 

George  H. 

431 

Thomas  R. 

305 

Nichols 

431,  440 

Graham 

,  Alexander   . 

207,  308,  311 

Goff,  Col.  John 

12, 13,  21 

Grandy,  Alpha 

322 

Gooden,  James 

314 

Benjamin  43, 

315, 

317,  323,  324 

James,  2d     . 

225,  234,  309 

Charles  B.   . 

282 

Goodhue,  Dr.  Josiah 

110,  463 

Chloe  . 

324 

Goodrich,  Alice 

141 

Cynthia 

323,  324 

Rev.  James  B. 

375 

Estell  M.      . 

141 

Mary  I.     . 

140 

Fanny 

322 

Goodwin,  Benjamin  . 

316 

Gertrude  L. 

141 

Edward      . 

224,  236,  370 

Hiram  P.      . 

154 

Gov.  Ichabod 

248,  249 

Susannah 

323 

James 

305,  312,  319 

Grannis 

,  Abigail . 

320 

Mrs.  James 

266,  319 

Clement 

320,  364 

Rev.  M.    . 

129 

Cyrus 

320 

Sarah 

319 

David  H.     . 

282 

Thomas     .   224, 

239,  314,  370 

Edward 

239 

Goss,  Albert     . 

263,  362 

Evander 

320 

Asa 

319 

George  C.  . 

433 

Alpheus 

319 

Henry 

302 

Betsey    . 

319 

Homer  E.    . 

208,  433 

Charles  . 

319 

Homer  P.  . 

432 

Cyrus 

319 

John  . 

320 

Charles  N.       .   161 

,  163,  418,  432 

Joseph  S.    . 

433 

Ebenezer 

319 

Laurens  A. 

308,  311,  433 

Fannie  S. 

138 

Margaret    . 

320 

Fanna 

319 

Samuel  H. 

302 

Hannah  . 

319 

Sarah 

320,  324 

Joel 

158,  307 

Sidney 

320 

308,  321 

,  343,  432,  460 

Solon  C.     . 

13,  24,  25,  161 

John 

224,  314,  319 

182 

,  208,  308,  312 

John,  Jr. 

316 

354 

,  364,  433,  472 

Mrs.  Lucinda  . 

321 

Timothy  98 

208 

,  225,  210,  282 

Nathaniel 

225,  236,  241 

303 

,  311,  314,  315 

306 

,314,  321,  432 

320 

,  324,  370,  432 

Simon     . 

92 

Timothy,  Jr 

.307 

,  308,  432,  433 

Gould,  Rachel  . 

314 

Samuel  R.  . 

433 

Shubael 

368 

Grant, 

Gen.  U.S.      . 

362 

518 


INDEX. 


Graves,  Dr.  Leland  J. 

333, 

367, 

433,  499 

Hall 

Dr.  Henry  S.    . 

390 

Rev.  J.  M.   . 

112,  362 

Israel  D.           .         .         .  66,  134 

Stella  . 

140 

313,  348,  374,  375 

Greeley,  Edward 

92 

Dr.  James         .     73,  334,  450,  475 

Rev.  Mr.    . 

257 

Jennie  M.         .         .          140,  142 

Greene,  Daniel 

371 

Jeremiah           .          11,  17,  19,  23 

Freelove 

315 

Levi  D.   .           .           296,  378,  402 

Patty 

316 

Mrs.  Levi  D.     .         .         .         402 

Phebe 

316 

Louisa  J. 

390 

Greenleaf,  Rev.  Eleazer 

106 

Maria 

316 

Griffin,  Gen.  S.  G.     . 

456 

Tracy  L. 

286 

William 

340 

Hamilton,  Rev.  J,  W. 

124 

Grimes,  John 

12,  17,  19,  23 

Hammond,  Mrs.  Albert  0. 

266 

William 

1 

2,  17,  23 

John  W.           .          292.  364 

Grinnels,  Chester  F. 

282 

Jonathan           12,  17,  19,  23 

Griswold,  Bishop  Alexand 

er  V. 

102 

Joseph     .          12,  17,  19,  23 

104, 

405,  437 

Han 

-lerson,  Frederick  W.            .         435 

John 

226 

Gideon      44,  64,  74,  88,  306 

Grout,  Elijah    . 

229 

307,  325,  371,  434 

Hezekiah 

13 

Horace  P.        .        311,  435 

Dr.  William   . 

414 

Lucius  R.         .         .         435 

Guild,  Dr.  Harvey  M 

334,  401 

Rufus      .         .          305,  307 

Guernsey,  Rev.  J.  W. 

124 

308,  310,  434,  435 

Gustin,  John     . 

84 

Phinehas          .           347, 4.34 

Polly    . 

316 

Ham 

ock,  John           .         .         .         481 

Thomas 

31, 

32,  3 

3,  34,  81 

Hapgood,  Edgar  L.  . 

346 

82 

305, 

306,  370 

Harlow,  Blarshall      . 

208 

Mrs. 

338 

H 

Harriman,  Leauder  . 

289 

Gov.  ■Walter    . 

278 

Haddock,  Dr.  Charles 

334 

Harrington,  James    . 

317 

Hadley,  Charles  L.    . 

292 

Harris,  Nathan 

293 

William  H. 

292 

Solomon 

239 

Haines,  Elizabeth 

395 

Thomas  J.    .   139,  194,  249,  251 

Hale,  Rev.  Charles  S. 

13,  109 

266,  266,  304,  361 

John  P.  . 

492 

Harrison,  President  William  H.        361 

Timotliy  W. 

245 

Hart 

,  Charles  A. 

282 

Hall,  Anna  L. 

141 

Charles  B. 

288 

Edward    . 

253,  285 

George 

200 

Deacon     . 

226 

Ichabod    . 

435 

Dr.  E.  J. 

334 

Josiah 

41,  435 

George  L. 

140 

Oliver 

435 

INDEX. 


519 


Hart,  Thomas   . 

298 

Heywood,  Edwin  J. 

140 

Hartwell,  Rev.  Henrj 

^H. 

121,  257 

JoelM.    . 

331 

Haskell,  Emily 

458 

Julius  E. 

263 

Francis  F .  . 

256 

Mary  I.    . 

141 

262, 

263 

272,  305 

Simeon     . 

201 

362, 

364 

374,  468 

Hibbard,  Rev.  Augustine 

.    36,44 

Joseph  II .   , 

874 

84 

.87, 

225,  234 

Hastings,  Lemuel  S. 

134,  138 

235, 

314, 

319,  371 

Hatch,  Josiah    . 

236,  239 

Hide, 

Joshua    . 

11,  14,  21 

Mabel  R. 

140,  142 

Higbee,  Charles 

224,  236 

Rev.  William 

118 

Charles,  Jr. 

236 

Haubrich,  Frederick 

313 

Levi     . 

236, 

239,  370 

Peter 

417 

Samuel 

239 

Hawkes,  Harrison  Filmor« 

296 

S.  A. 

378 

John  . 

12,  14,  21 

Stephen    33 

,  224, 

239, 

306,  370 

Louis  G.     . 

140 

Hill,ElislmM. 

282 

Hawley,  Asa     . 

320 

Hillman,  Rev.  J.  H. 

124 

Coziah 

316,  820 

George 

302 

Elizabeth     . 

316 

Hills, 

Hock 

206 

Keziah 

320 

Hillyard,  Richmond 

316 

Lucy    . 

316 

Hiltor 

1.  Martha 

36 

Richard 

320,  371 

Hinds 

,  Bartlett 

65 

Healy,  Benjamin 

322 

Hitchcock,  Alexande 

■  V.  . 

306,  436 

Hitty     . 

322 

Amos 

818, 

364, 

383,  436 

Nancy    . 

822 

David 

318 

Polly      . 

316,  822 

Elisha      . 

307,  318 

Remkia 

822 

Esther 

318 

Heath,  Mrs.  Gustavus  N. 

498 

George 

145 

Rev.  S.  P.   . 

121 

Hannah 

323 

Heaton,  Kathaniel     . 

12, 

17,  19,  23 

Henry  A. 

436 

William       . 

12, 

17,  19,  23 

Ichabod 

24 

,  98 

224,  281 

Hedge,  Lemuel 

.     14,  21 

232, 

238 

240,  818 

Hendee,  John    . 

311,  367 

323, 

352 

871,  436 

Henry,  EstellaG,      . 

139 

John 

98 

225,  314 

Frederick  A. 

118 

318, 

223 

370,  383 

120 

160 

,  161,  168 

John,  Jr. 

383 

304 

309 

,  354,  867 

Jonathan 

15 

Samuel 

. 

289 

Lemuel 

318,  823 

Herrick,  Rev.  Marcelhis  . 

4l. 

107 

Leonard 

318 

Herrin,  John     . 

294 

Lyman 

318 

Hewes,  Rev.  Frederick  A 

121 

Rebekah 

318,  323 

Hey  wood,  Edwin  B. 

211,  331 

Phebe 

318,  323 

520 


INDEX. 


Hiichcock,  Samuel     . 

318 

323,  436 

Howe,  Rev.  W.  B.  W. 

43S 

William   . 

436 

Howell,  Betsey 

115 

Zen  as 

318,  366 

Hoyt,  Ahira 

320- 

Zenas,  Jr. 

318 

Rev.  B.  R.      . 

117 

Hoban,  Elizabeth  M. 

140 

Charles  H.       . 

310 

Patrick 

296 

Hubbard,  Esther  A. 

139 

Hobart,  Col.  David  . 

238 

Lieut.  George 

12,  38,  44,  45 

Hodgson,  Agnes  N. 

141 

64,  102 

174,  320,  327 

Holden,  George  W. 

123,  449 

Henry 

258,  452- 

Holmes,  Jonathan     . 

320,  324 

Gov.  Henry 

258,  437 

Keziah 

820 

Isaac,  Esq. 

12,  38,  157 

Molla 

320 

164,  165 

174,  175,  222- 

Dr.  Oliver  Wenc 

lell 

484 

307,  308 

310,  359,  438 

Philana 

320 

Rev.  Isaac  G.  12,  95,  105,  109 

Holt,  Harmon  .         .110 

152 

184,  313 

137, 

175,  438,  467 

3;i2 

409 

424,  436 

Joseph 

.    34,  82 

Hermon,  Jr.    . 

141 

224,  306 

314,  319,  371 

James 

304 

J.  H.         .  428 

438,  445,  447 

Dr.  James  P.  . 

333,  436 

Nancy  M. 

319 

Josiah 

74 

Parmelia  . 

320 

Holton,  Asa       .         .     76 

305, 

332,  437 

RuthE.     . 

141,  142 

Jonathan 

437 

Solomon    . 

181 

Hooper,  Carrie  W.   . 

141,  142 

Thankful  . 

319,  320 

Grace  P.      . 

141,  142 

Hudson,  Imogens  B. 

138 

William  M . 

60 

Humphrey,  Avathusa 

490 

Hosmer,  Parker 

317 

Dr.  Royal 

490 

Houghton,  Edward  E. 

141 

Hunt,  John 

12,  14,  21 

Edward  F. 

334,  367 

L. 

14a 

Dr.  M.  G. 

334 

Roswell 

157 

Houston,  Gen.  Samuel 

245 

Hunter,  Damon  E.    . 

282 

Howard,  Kev.  A.  K. 

367 

Elmer  S.      . 

139 

Edith  M.     . 

140 

Eugene  H . 

139 

Rev.  Nathan 

116,  117 

Philips.      . 

341 

Gen.  0.  0. 

399,  400 

Huntley,  Frank  P.     . 

310,  313 

Warren  W . 

253 

Hunton,  Clara  L. 

138 

William  A. 

90 

Henry  N.    . 

364 

Howe,  B.  D.     . 

361 

Isaac  F. 

243 

George  W. 

143 

I 

H.  H.    . 

124 

1 

Rev.  James  B.     7' 

t,  76, 

103,  104 

Ide,  Alice  B.     . 

139 

105, 

13i, 

437,  463 

George  G. . 

109,  161 

Richard  S.     . 

418 

163,  198, 

253,  312,  440 

INDEX. 


521 


Ide,  G.  Herbert         .         .         .        139 
John  S.  M.        .         .  253,  282 

Josiah        ....        139 
Lemuel  N.         .  109,  198,  440 

LillaD 139 

Sarah         ....        139 

Simeon  143,  192,  198,  250,  251,  265 

266,  864,  377,  378,  431,  439 

Ives,  David      .         .         .  318,  323 

Elizabeth  .  240,  318,  323 

John         .         .         .  316,  318 

Joseph  30,  31,  32,  .55,  82,  224,  236 

239,  305,  306,  318,  823,  870 

Mamre     ....        318 

Stephen   .         .         .         .        318 


Jackson,  President  Andrew       .        377 

Jacobs,  Rev.  William  B.  .        113 

James,  Bishop  E.  S.         .         .        121 

Jarvis,  Charles  .         .         .        441 

Dr.  Leonard    178,  179,  194,  206 

338,  347,  859,  380,  441,  442 

Dr.  Leonard,  Jr.     179,  333,  442 

Russell      168,  178,  179,  183,  194 

206,  303,  332,  364,  441 

Russell,  Jr.   ...        140 

Samuel  G.  41,  160,  163,  168,  179 

250,  268,  272,  312,  854 

364,  375,  376,  442,  467 

Jarvis,  Dr.  William  .         .        179 

William  C.  .         .        441 

William  R.    .         .  140,  142 

Jasper,  Rev.  O.  H.  .         .        121 

Jefferson,  President  Thomas      .  58 

Jenks,  Lucy  Evelyn  ...        140 

Jenkins,  RoseF.       ...        140 

Jenney,  Mary  A.      .         .  141,  142 

Jewett,  Frederick     .         .  318,  443 

George  W.    ...        443 

John     ....        443 

34 


Jewett,  John  W.       .  309, 

Marcus  L.     . 
Jones,  Alice 

Anson    . 

Asa    18,  21,  31,  32, 

98,  178,  184,  185 

240,  306,  317,  823, 

A.  L.     . 

Benjamin 

Caroline 

Chancey 

Charles  . 

Daniel    . 

Edward 

Ellen  P. 

Esther    . 

Esther,  2d 

Eunice  . 

Ezra 

172,  224,  305, 
314,  318,  823, 

Fanny  B. 

Frederick 

George  A . 

Gratia  M. 

Henry    . 

Jabez 

Jennison 

Jerusha 

Joel 

John  F. 

Josiah    . 

Lois 

Lovisa    . 

Lucian  E. 

Lucy      . 

Mary  A. 

Matthias  S. 

Nathaniel 

Ransom 

Roys 

Sally      . 


810,  443,  444 

443,  444 

266 

318 

83,  34,  36,  82 

224,  226,  236 

367,  370,  371 

124 

178,  185,  186 

319 

318 

361 

12,  18,  19,  23 

318 

140 

319 

819 

818 

44,  64,  157 

806,  307,  310 

325,  826,  872 

865 

161 

823 

1.39 

92 

317 

318 

317 

318 

172,  213 

317,  384 

317 

318 

181 

318 

140,  323 

318 

319 

318 

172 

317,  327 


522 


INDEX. 


Jones,  Sarah     . 

315,  317 

Susanah 

318,  323 

Thomas  16,  30 

,31, 

34,  53,  82,  225 

234 

,236 

305,  318,  370 

William 

124,  160,  181 

William  F. 

182 

Woster  - 

308,  347 

Johns,  Kev.  J.  M. 

128 

Johnson,  Amos  D. 

445 

Mrs .  Amos  D . 

266 

Annie 

337 

Daniel  W. 

123 

148,  193,  272 

313 

,  348 

364,  375,  444 

Edward  F. 

260 

Edwin 

260 

Enoch 

160, 

161,  182,  312 

Frances  E . 

139 

Rev.  J.  G. 

445 

Levi  . 

289,  368 

Miles 

444 

Moses 

444 

P.  A. 

848 

Parmer 

416,  445 

Jordan,  Jules   . 

375 

Judd,  Amos 

240,  319 

Betsey    . 

323 

Brewster 

371 

Charles  M. 

253,  299 

Damarus 

816 

Ebenezer 

225 

227 

228, 

319,  323,  371 

Ebenezer,  Jr. 

225, 

227,  228,  323 

Enoch     . 

225, 

227,  228,  371 

Harkins  . 

316 

Mary 

319 

Judkins,  Dr.  Emery 

G. 

302,  334 

George 

302,  338,  389 

Kev.  Georg 

eJ. 

122 

Henry 

110,  404 

Mrs.  Henrj 

J 

404 

Levi  Alden 

889 

Mary  E. 

389 

K 


Keith,  Charles 

417 

,418 

Keller,  Jacob  W. 

. 

289 

Kelley,  Joseph  W.    . 

256 

282 

Kellogg,  Rev.  S.  6. 

121, 

263 

362 

Kelsey,  Rev.  H.  L.  . 

122, 

124 

468 

Kempton,  Florence  L. 

140 

Leonard  N. 

343 

Nellie  V. 

140 

Kendall,  Walter  B. 

282 

Kenerson,  George  W. 

293 

Kenney,  James 

344 

Kent,  L.  . 

143 

Keyes,  Amos     . 

355 

Daniel  M. 

378 

Betsey  J. 

322 

Fisher   . 

322 

Hannah 

322 

Kibling,  John  . 

315, 

322 

Elizabeth 

322 

Sarah 

322 

Polly  . 

322 

Kidder,  Dr.  F.  T. 

205, 

266, 

311 

Stephen 

239 

W.  G. 

378 

Kilburn,  Hannah 

818 

John            32,  34 

1.83, 

224, 

870 

Kimball,  Rev.  Isaac 

112 

John,  Jr.    .   162, 

311, 

382, 

445 

Capt.  Joseph 

243 

Rev.  Moses 

263, 

362 

Timothy  D. 

312 

King,  Abby 

419 

Rev.  F.  F. 

126 

154 

Harriet  . 

419 

Kingsbury,  Betsey 

315 

Duthan 

317 

Elizabeth 

321 

Olive      . 

315 

Sanford         6 

5,  69 

63, 

100 

102, 146, 

178, 

183, 

303 

304,  305, 

306, 

307 

310 

321 

,367, 

358, 

371 

446 

INDEX. 


623 


Kinsley,  Charles  J.  . 

. 

315 

Laws,  Calvin  A. 

301 

Kirk,  Thomas    . 

161,  251,  320 

Laynes,  Charles 

225 

Kirtland,  Gideon  239, 

240, 

870,  401,  402 

David,  Jr.    . 

225 

Ruth 

. 

315 

Leach,  Sarah  Ann 

389 

Kittredge,  Dr.  Thomas  B. 

90,  334,  442 

Leat,  Benjamin 

225,  227 

Knight,  Amaziah 

224,  236,  370 

Lee,  Rev.  Jesse 

185 

Miranda 

. 

316 

Thomas    . 

11,  17,  19,  23 

Nellie  L.      . 

. 

138 

Leet,  Adam  R. 

322 

Phinehas 

. 

317 

AdamR.,  Jr. 

822,  371 

Knox,  Rev.  M.  V.  B 

114,  122 

Asa 

32,  93,  94,  225, 

15,  30,  31 
227,  240,  270 

L 

Asa,  Jr.  . 
Cloe 

315,  320 
322 

Labaree,  Adaline 

. 

447 

David  Megs 

322 

Peter  . 

447 

Elizabeth 

323,  323 

Sarah  . 

315 

EllaG.    . 

140 

Ladd,  Dr.  William  M. 

333, 

346,  437,  446 

Eugene  F. 

285 

William  S.      . 

391 

Ezekiel    . 

323,  371 

Laducer,  Lewis  W. 

253,  279 

Ezra 

822 

Lafayette,  General    . 

337,  380,  412 

James 

184,  328 

George  Washin 

gton           379 

Levi 

296,  323 

Lane,  F.  F.       . 

391 

Mitte 

320 

John 

144 

Polly 

320 

Sarah 

316 

Reuben    . 

322 

Langdon,  Gov.  John 

60,  237,  443 

Susannah 

317 

Laporte,  Kev.  M.     . 

129 

Taphu      . 

322 

Larabee,  William 

316 

Leete,  Clarence  M.    . 

152,  374,  375 

Larrence,  Polly 

317 

Leland,  Charles 

80,  888,  446 

Lasier,  Thomas  J. 

154 

Thomas  106,  332, 

888,  446,  447 

Latermoulle,  David  . 

289 

Leonard,  Charlotte    . 

317 

Lathe,  George  K.     . 

258 

Lenven,  Gell     . 

338 

Lawrence,  Abel 

12,  17,  19,  23 

Levings,  Rev.  C.  W. 

118 

Dolly 

315 

Levoy,  Joseph 

253,  285 

Eunice 

816 

Lewis,  Arthur  G. 

448 

Hannah    . 

314 

Bell  H. 

448 

J.  Fisher 

282,  872 

Betsey  . 

323 

Rev.  JohnB. 

92 

Mrs.  Elizabeth 

447 

John  W. 

252 

253,  254,  289 

Ellen  A. 

448 

Mioah 

12,  14,  21 

Emily  H. 

141 

Rev.  Robert  F 

.    91,  250,  251 

Eugene 

448 

257 

258,  312,  862 

Frank  W.      . 

448 

Sarah 

315 

Frederick  S. 

823 

524 


INDEX. 


Lewis,  George           .         .         .        447 

McClary,  Michael 

. 

244 

George  G.      .         .         .        447 

McClure,  Milon  C.    . 

143,  803 

George  W.     .         .         .        447 

311, 

312, 

332,  457 

Mrs.  George  W.    .         .        266 

Mindwell  . 

429 

Gideon            .     82,  224,  236,  370 

M'Collester,  Rev.  Lee  S. 

125, 

128,  364 

Henry  E.        ...        448 

McConnon,  John 

302,  378 

Herbert          ...         448 

Michael 

186 

HoraerP.       .         .         •        448 

McCoy,  Abel    . 

837 

Jabez     ....         447 

Bulah  . 

317 

Jacob  S.         .         .         .         447 

Ida  B. 

141 

Marion  ....         448 

William 

98, 

219,  232 

Mary     ....         447 

McCullough,  John     . 

375 

Nellie  C.        .         .          139,  142 

McDaniel,  James 

243 

Olive  A.         ...         141 

McEwen,  James 

92 

Samuel           .                  .        225 

MoGown,  Rev.  A.  J. 

92 

Seth       ....        224 

McGrath,  Annie 

141 

Willa     .         .         .          823,  447 

Mcllvaine,  Bishop    . 

462 

William          ...        316 

Mcintosh,  Dr.  F.  L. 

334 

Lincoln,  President  Abraham       247,  248 

McLaughlin,  Harvey 

117 

255,  263,  362,  492 

John    . 

121 

Dr.  Luke     ...        334 

McLoffing,  James 

244 

Lines,  Charles  .         .         .          234,  235 

McQuaid,  Amy  L.    . 

141 

Lippett,  Col.             .         .         .        414 

Macomber,  Lillian  I. 

141 

Little,  George  E.       .         .         .        139 

Mansfield,  Mary 

872 

Samuel  Brown        .          277,  280 

Maley,  James  . 

289 

Livingston,  Daniel  J.         .            25,  867 

Mann,  Azro  J. 

294 

Jonas      .         .          195,  249 

Charles  H.     . 

118 

258,  311,  848,  449 

Samuel 

315,  325 

Sherman           14,  22,  59,  60 

Stephen 

184, 

316,  327 

Locke,  Enos      ....        449 

Marden,  Dr.  Albert  L. 

383,  451 

Francis      809,  348,  353,  375,  449 

Nathan  J.    . 

451 

Long,  Charles  F.      .           108,  159,  161 

Marks,  Polly  Lois 

315 

311,  312,  354,  449 

Marsh,  Rev.  Christopher 

482 

Charles  H.  110,  256,  260,  265,  270 

Eli  C.    . 

256, 

297,  328 

271,  289,  304,  364 

Frank  E. 

289 

367,  368,  413,  449 

John 

98 

George  F.       .         .          181,  212 

John,  Jr. 

98 

Isaac  H.         12,  88,  110,  175,  304 

Capt.  Reuben 

244 

309,  810,  362,  438 

Perley 

144 

Marston,  Rev.  Carlos  127 

,  251, 

257,  258 

M 

Marshall,  Maria  A.    . 

481 

Mace,  Henry  W.       .         .         .        801 

Martin,  Edwin 

298 

INDEX. 


525 


Martin,  Noah   . 
Marvin,  Charles  B. 
Fred    . 
Mrs.  Fred 
Matthews,  Abner 

Abner,  Jr 
Cloe 
Dana 
David 
Ebenezer 
Esther 
Eunice 
Jesse 
Jesse,  Jr. 
Joel 
John 
Lois 
Mamre 
Olive 
Maynard,  Daniel  F. 
Frank  P. 
Levi  P. 
Meader,  Benjamin  L 
Meacham,  Asa 

Asa,  Jr. 
Benjamin 
James,  Jr 
Means,  Eobert 
Medcalf,  Michael 
Meigs,  Dr.  Abner 
Meigs,  Dr.  Abner 
Mellen,  Rev.  C.  W. 

Mary  J. 
Merrill.  Arnold 
Lydia  . 
Noah    . 
Messer,  Allen  P. 
Meserve,  George 
Metcalf,  Mrs.  M.  A 
Gov.  Ralph 
John    . 
Theron 


225, 


235, 


165 
282 
.337 
337 
234,  317 
225 
319 
319 
240 
236,  239 
317 
319 
55 
240 
225,  236 
302 
319 
314 
317 
206,  330,  378 
204,  205,  348,  452 
452 
301 
203,  240 
203 
75 
315 
420 
12,  17,  19,  23 
.  22,  98 
315,  334,  371 
121 
139 
186,  372 
337 
282 
141,  868 
216 
265,  266 
332,  452 
452 
861 


240 


Milmore,  Martin 
Milton,  Charles  A. 

James  P. 
Miner,  Rev.  A.  A 

Jonathan 
Mitchell,  Charles 
Mills,  Hezekiah 
Moody,  Father 

George  W. 
Handkerchief 
Jonathan 
Trustee 

William  H.  H. 
297 
Moor,  Hugh 
Moore,  Addison  P.    . 
Rev.  Asher   . 
Edward  F.    . 
Ferris  J. 
Rev.  John    . 
Mrs. 
More,  Polly 
Morgan,  Charles 

Florence  A. 
Isaac   . 
Mahitabel    . 
Morse,  Clarissa 
Henry  S. 
Dr.  G.  M.    . 
Micah  . 
Sally     . 
Morrill,  Anne  F. 
Mott,  B .  Maria 
Mullen,  Lilia    . 
Munger,  Betsey 
Munrow,  Widow  Hannah 
Murphy,  Charles  H. 
Murry,  Asahel 
Beriah 


Calvin 
Curtis 


225,  236 


352, 


240 


279 
285 
289 

127,  128 

372,  476 
106 
115 
423 
289 
423 
453 
423 

175,  176 

463,  454 
184 
289 
127 

277,  282 
140 

125,  126 
115 
316 

337,  338 
141 
371 
316 
322 
253 
834 
322 
322 

139,  142 
440 
139 
435 
816 
293 
318 
31,  82 

318,  370 
318 
318 


526 


INDEX. 


Murray,  Mary  . 

318 

Nott,  Mary  C.  . 

141 

Mary  Ann     . 

318 

Noyes,  Baron  S. 

262, 

289,  454 

Rose    . 

318 

Chase    . 

251,  454 

Selah  . 

318 

Henry  C. 

454 

Surkenath  M. 

. 

318 

Silas  E. 

210,  454 

Warren 

318 

Tristham 
William  T.    . 

454 
455 

N 

Nutting,  Eunice 
Nye,  Holden  R. 

314,  417 
346,  361 

Nesmith,  George  W. 

68,  166 

475 

Rev.  Jonathan 

76,  89, 

117,  133 

James  W . 

258 

134, 

303, 

305,  310 

Neal,  Ransom  M. 

282 

346, 

366, 

367,  383 

Nelson,  Everett  W.   . 

253 

283 

W.  A.  R. 

154 

Flora  E. 

139 

142 

Nettleton,  George     . 

277 

280 

Nevers,  Charles  H. 

283 

O 

Daniel  J. 

290 

Enos  B. 

- 

290 

Odlin,  Woodbridge   . 

132 

Franklin  G. 

294 

Olcott,  Rev.  Bulkley 

39 

Ne-wcomb,  Albert 

298 

George 

152 

Newell,  Asbury 

185 

Simeon 

.    44,  86 

Charles 

185 

Oliver,  Mitchell 

296 

John    . 

185 

O'Connell,  Patrick    . 

294 

Matthew 

120 

185 

Ordway,  John  C . 

152 

Stephen 

185 

O'Neil,  David  W.     . 

204,  364 

Wilbur 

185 

Isabella  G.    . 

141,  142 

Newton,  Hubbard 

333 

O'Sullivan,  Rev.  Corneliu 

s 

129 

Nichols,  David  H.     . 

290 

Osgood,  Anne  . 

320 

Frederick  A . 

283 

James 

243 

Rev.  John  . 

127 

362 

Fisher 

821 

William  H. 

253,  271 

299 

Hannah 

321 

Nigh,  Sara 

315 

Hepsebeth  . 

320 

Nightingale,  Esther 

315 

John  . 

321 

Niff,  Mary 

416 

Mary 

315 

Niles,  Henry  H. 

297 

Napoleon  B . 

253 

Samuel   . 

316 

Polly  . 

821 

Noonan,  Stephen 

347 

Ruel  G. 

297 

Norrington,  Sebastian  D. 

302 

Sarah 

316 
239,  240 

Norton,  Franklin 

161 

309 

Thomas 

235, 

236, 

Joseph       98,  226 

227,  228 

236 

AVilliam       . 

224, 

239,  320 

Sarah  . 

316 

William,  Jr. 

314 

Nott,  Ellen  B. 

. 

140 

INDEX. 


527 


Ostinelli,  Sig.  . 

373 

Parmalee,  Henry  S. 

255,  299 

Otis,  Mansel     . 

293 

Parmelee,  Albert  E. 
Charles  H. 

153,  300 
252,  260,  290 

P 

Charlotte 
Danforth 

316 

186 

Page,  Ephraim 

315,  321 

Edward  A. 

290,  368 

Clarisa    . 

321 

Eliel 

73 

Joseph  H. 

321 

Mahitabel 

316 

Phelon    . 

321 

Peter 

.    74,  75 

Eowena 

321 

Parrish,  Lyman  P.    . 

253,  283 

Sarah 

321 

Thomas  D. 

301 

Paine,  Elijah     . 

.    89,  90 

William  E. 

253,  283,  290 

Palmer,  Dr.  H.  R. 

374,  376 

Parson,  Elijah  . 

82 

Park,  "William 

327 

Parsons,  Dr.  John  W. 

464 

Parke,  John  H. 

197 

Partridge,  Edward  A. 

413 

Parker,  Abel     . 

.     60,  61 

Mrs.  M.  E. 

413 

Benjamin 

455 

MissM.  E. 

413 

Deborah 

322,  324 

Patrick,  Betsey 

112 

Elizabeth 

320 

Charles  E.   . 

297 

Emma  H. 

140,  142 

Henry  W.    . 

253,  283 

Franklin 

322 

JoelAV.       . 

283 

Hannah 

320 

Patten,  Henry  . 

171,  376,  457 

HoseaW.     .   137, 

149, 

152,  249 

Lambert  D.  . 

338 

253,  262, 

270, 

271,  272 

Patterson,  James  W. 

258,  278 

303,332, 

333, 

348,  363 

Paul,  George  W. 

346 

367,  374 

375 

448,  455 

Henry  S . 

277,  280 

Isaac    . 

320 

Julius  B . 

290 

Jacob  . 

325 

Payson,  Moses 

445 

Jennie  L. 

140,  142 

Payne,  Henry  W. 

448 

Jonathan 

225 

320,  371 

Peabody,  Clarence  E. 

444 

Lizzie  S. 

140,  142 

Nathaniel  . 

101 

Matilda 

322 

Peake,  John 

224,  370 

Minnie  M.    . 

141 

Peaslee,  Dr.  Edward  R.    . 

394 

Nathaniel      . 

101 

Pearson,  Rev.  Mr.    . 

109 

Dr.  T.  E.    . 

334 

Peck,  Rev.  John  Milton 

108,  262,  362 

Phineas 

315, 

322,  324 

Peokens,  John 

55 

Warren 

322,  324 

Pecker,  J.  E.   . 

152 

"William 

.     14,  22 

Pendleton,  William  H. 

253,  285 

Parkhm-st,  Charles    . 

333 

Peno,  Joseph    . 

263,  283 

Cyrenus  S. 

266 

Perkins,  Abbie  M.     . 

141,  142 

"William  C.      . 

286 

Mrs.  Ann    . 

122 

William  L. 

298 

Benjamin    . 

248 

528 


INDEX. 


Perkins,  Charles  A. 

140 

Pope,  OlaM.   . 

141 

Franklin  E. 

Ul,  142 

Porter,  Bert  P. 

140 

G.  H. 

125 

Luther  S.      . 

372 

HattieE.    . 

139 

Mrs.  Luther  S. 

372 

James  H.    . 

368 

Matthew 

74 

James  N .    . 

182 

William 

82 

John  Airs    . 

317 

Potter,  Chandler  E. 

165 

Ruth    . 

137 

Mabel  . 

93,  317 

Thomas 

316 

Micah  . 

370 

Philbrook,  Charles  C. 

302 

Powers,  Ashbel 

239 

Rev.  H.  A. 

127 

Jerathmiel  . 

19,23 

Philips,  Roger  . 

101 

Jeremiah 

12,  17 

Pickens,  Alexander  . 

86,  306,  307 

Thomas 

239 

Rev.  John  . 

111 

Prentice,  Nathaniel  S. 

229 

Picket,  John     . 

104,  186 

Prentiss,  John  J.  297,  304 

311, 

333,  346 

Mrs.  Rebekah 

384 

John  J.,  Jr. 

290 

Piddock,  Rev.  Charles  A. 

113,  114,  148 

William  P. 

297 

Pierce,  Bertha  A. 

140,  142 

Prescott,  J.  L. 

330 

Franklin 

66,  165 

Pressey,  John  . 

208 

Rev.  J.  D.    . 

127 

Price,  Ebenezer 

93,  380 

J.  Warren 

271 

Proctor,  Ida 

139 

John 

11,  17,  19,  23 

Ira 

204 

Jane 

206 

Melvin 

399,  401 

Marion  E.      . 

140,  142 

Pulling,  Joseph 

317 

Mary  E . 

140,  142 

Purdee,  Levi     . 

240 

Mrs.  Nancy  . 

347 

Pushee,  Mr.      . 

372 

Urbane  P.     . 

141 

Putnam,  Charles  E. 

253, 

277,  283 

Walter  A.     . 

139 

Charles  L. 

311, 

333,  378 

William  D.    . 

340 

Chester 

339 

Pike,  Andrew  J. 

161 

Elisha 

339 

Chester   . 

348 

George  H.  . 

. 

283 

Edward  P. 

290 

Hiram 

. 

465 

Rev.  James     . 

124 

Israel 

445,  487 

Piper,  Charles  N. 

140 

John  G.  P. 

286 

Rev.  Mr. 

257 

Prescott 

181 

Vesta  A. 

140 

Samuel 

. 

308 

Pitcher,  Frank  F.      . 

328 

Solomon 

339 

Place,  Mrs.  S.  A.    . 

337 

Stephen 

11,  17,  19,  23 

Plumer,  Gov.  William 

244 

Stella  E.      . 

. 

141 

Polk,  Rev.  R.  T.      . 

128 

Sumner 

167, 

260,  311 

Pomroy,  Hannah 

299 

Tarza 

315 

INDEX. 


529 


Q 

Reed,  Levi  F. 

290 

Reynolds,  Frank  J. 

140 

Quimby,  Emerson  A. 

140,  142 

Rhodes,  Polly 

315 

George  E.  . 

139 

William 

371 

Herbert  F. 

140 

Rice,  Abel 

240 

Lewis  J.     . 

139,  142 

Alma 

320 

L.  F.          .        . 

125 

Amy  -     . 

315 

Rev.  Silas 

120 

Amos 
Bela 

235 
321 

R 

Betsey     . 
Benjamin 

322 
93,  321 

Raflferty,  Francis 

299,  328 

Benedick 

371 

Raimond,  Abigail  K. 

822 

Charles  B. 

196 

Abigail  R. 

322 

Danford 

41,  161 

Betsey       . 

322 

Demon    . 

315,  322 

Jacob 

322 

Ebenezer  21,  81,32, 

63, 94,  99,  100 

Ralston,  Alexander  . 

178 

101,  102 

,  111, 

240,  805,  806 

184,  1 

85,  329,  457 

819,  323 

,327, 

366,  370,  432 

James 

326 

Elizabeth 

319 

Rand,  Samuel  . 

468 

Esther     . 

314 

Samuel  S. 

367,  458 

Herbert  E. 

140,  142 

Fred  de  F.       . 

468 

Hez. 

93,  236 

Randall,  Lewis  W.              2 

00,  308,  367 

Isabella  D. 

266 

Randle,  Joshua 

316 

Jacob  18,  31,  3 

2,  82 

224,  806,  371 

Randolph,  John 

482 

Joel 

235 

Ranney,  Rev.  Darwin  H. 

112 

Joseph    . 

239 

319,  366,  371 

Rawley,  Thankful     . 

314 

Lydia      . 

822 

Read,  J.  Parker 

253,  285 

Maria  L. 

141 

George    . 

283 

Miriam  I. . 

141 

Jonathan 

202 

Mary 

321,  324 

Reardon,  Edward  D. 

139 

Maryalma 

821,  324 

Redfield,  Hannah 

317 

Nehemiah 

240 

321,  324,  371 

Henry  A.   . 

299,  367 

Phebe      . 

319,  323 

Sylvanus  F. 

272 

Rebekah 

817 

304,  3 

05,  367,  449 

Reuben    . 

240,  819,  323 

William  H. 

302,  868 

Samuel   . 

319 

Willis 

283 

Sarah 

315 

Wyllys 

347 

Stephen  . 

819,  866,  367 

Mrs.  Wyllys 

268,  373 

William  D. 

265,  277,  281 

Zeria 

317 

Richards,  Joel  . 

90 

Reed,  Edgar  T. 

283 

Dr.  Josiah 

74,  106,  249,  305 

Erastus  . 

829,  412 

310 

,811, 

333, 

380,  458 

530 


INDEX. 


Richards,  Marion 

266 

Rossiter,  Charles  P. 

172 

Dr.  Leonard  E. 

334 

Charles  T. 

141 

Dr.  M.  B. 

334 

Chittenden 

459 

Prudence 

112 

George  P. 

181 

Rich,  Artemus 

318 

309,  313,  343,  432 

Bazaleel 

318 

Hattie 

140 

Bazaleel  Ives 

318 

IdaB. 

141 

Benjamin  H.    . 

318 

James  E.   . 

141 

David      .         .55, 

224 

240,  371 

Loret  Collins       .          .         459 

Elizabeth 

318 

Luzern  Sherman           .         459 

Josiah       30,  32,  65, 

101 

133,  224 

Marshall  S. 

310,  362,  364 

240,  306,  357, 

358 

359,  371 

Pomeroy  M 

171,  313,  375,  459 

Josiah,  Jr. 

318 

Rounseville  Van  Ness           459 

Joseph    . 

318 

Sherman     . 

469 

Phebe      . 

318 

Stephen  F. 

66 

Richardson,  Ashbel  . 

371 

160,  304,  309,  312 

Dorkiss 

315 

313,  348,  469,  461 

Joseph  . 

31 

252,  285 

Mrs.  Steplie 

n  F.          .         266 

Josiah    . 

330 

Submit  Chittenden                459 

Dr.  Leonard  E. 

24 

Capt.  William              .         459 

Lewis  J. 

140,  142 

William      . 

.    65,  198,  201 

Polly      . 

315 

202,  308,  311,  347 

Sabray  . 

316 

361,  459,  460,  476 

William 

11, 

17,  19,  23 

Rounsevel,  John  P.   . 

312 

Robbins,  Ella  P. 

141 

Rowell,  George  E.    . 

277,  283 

Eev.  Joseph  H. 

114,  164 

Henry  L . 

141,  290 

Roberts,  Fannie 

139 

Jonathan  E . 

159,  164,  181 

Dr.  George  D. 

334 

Joseph 

92 

John  D . 

290 

Verne  M.    . 

141 

Mary 

138 

Royc 

e,  Joel 

235 

Stephen  J. 

182 

Silas      . 

239 

Stephen  J.,  Jr. 

139,  310 

Roys 

Benedick 

30,  31,  43 

Robertson,  Eliphalet 

115 

David  R. 

290 

Mary. 

.         115 

Ebenezer 

226,  227 

Robinson,  Charles  D. 

283 

Henry  F. 

253,  285 

Eliphalet 

371 

Fanny 

322 

Joseph  W. 

307 

Hannah 

322 

Otis  G. 

298 

Hezekiah 

225,  227,  228,  370 

Rogers,  Abraham 

ISO 

Hezekiah,  Jr. 

317 

Benajah 

180,  393 

Jacob 

21,  31,  85,  226 

Rodgers,  Rev.  Levi 

92 

Joel 

224,  322,  339 

Eossiter,  Albert 

349 

Keturah  . 

316 

INDEX. 


531 


Roys,  Lydia 

Rugg,  Fred  H . 
IdaG.    . 
John  H. 

Russell,  Albert?. 
Ebenezer 
George  "W. 
Henry 
JohnW. 
Moses  Phelps 
Peter    . 


Sabine,  Dr.  Silas  A. 
Dr.  Silas  H. 
Sampson,  Jennie 
Sanborn,  E.  D.  .  30, 

E.  W. 

Jacob  W. 

Rev.  R.  S. 
Sanders,  Harriet  M. 

Henry  C.       305, 

Henry  C,  Jr. 

Mrs.  C.  H. 
Sanford,  Thomas 


202, 


Sanger,  Eleazer 
Sankee,  Simeon 
Santa  Ana 
Sargent,  Diantha 

Harvey  H. 
Lyman  N. 
pJev.  O.  C. 
Winthrop 
Sawyer,  Rev.  C.  E. 
Samuel  J. 
Saxton,  Charles  A. 

Dr.  Thomas 
Scott,  Abraham 
Ard 
Charles  N. 


323 

138 

139 

294 

253,  300 

223 

283 

194 

205,  378 

102 

144,  325 

315 

101 

168 

184, 

333,  461 

452 

165, 

362,  381 

200 

101 

127 

141 

310, 

346,  362 

140,  142 

152 

201 

311, 

347,  348 

229 

462 

246 

266 

294 

294 

114 

70, 

312,  354 

127,  340 

298 

244 

334 

12,  17,  19,  23  1 

277,  283 

283 

Scott,  Rev.  Elihu 

119,  120 

George  F. 

212 

Hannah  . 

314 

Henry     . 

301 

James     . 

12, 

17,  19,  23 

John 

11, 

17,  19,  23 

Samuel   . 

12, 

17,  19,  23 

Gen.  Winfield 

246 

Scales,  John 

12, 

17,  19,  23 

Seabury,  Bishop 

100 

102,  104 

Sears,  Martin    . 

140 

Thomas  . 

140 

Semmunds,  Samuel    . 

317 

Severance,  Charles  E. 

291 

Charles  L. 

291 

313,  368 

Willard  C. 

293 

Seward,  Samuel,  Jr. 

308 

Shattuok,  Mrs.  C.  0. 

470 

Phebe 

317 

Shaw,  Benjamin 

323 

Jonathan,  Jr. 

101 

315,  322 

Hartford  D.    . 

323 

Polly       . 

323 

Real 

316 

Sabina    . 

323 

Dr.  S.  T. 

334 

Shedd,  Hosea  P. 

161 

309,  354 

Shelden,  Frank 

347 

Elisha 

101 

Shepard,  Frederick  S. 

413 

Mrs.  Martha  Dana 

374,  375 

Mary  E.      . 

141,  413 

Shepardson,  Reuben  . 

197 

203,  204 

Sheridan,  Gen.  P.  H. 

271,  273 

Sherman,  Hiram  G.  . 

364,  368 

Samuel 

316 

General 

400 

Sholes,  Aaron    . 

371 

Cynthia 

317 

Elisha  S. 

291 

Lillian  A. 

141 

Silsby,  Henry  S. 

291 

532 


INDEX. 


Silsbj',  Solon     . 

154 

Snow,  Lydia 

310 

Sims,  Thephena 

317 

Molly     . 

319 

William  . 

224,  240 

Southgate,  Caroline  Lovisa 

456 

Skinner,  Ebenezer      . 

30 

Southwick,  James  M. 

298 

31,  32 

82, 

305,  370 

South  worth.  Rev.  Tertius  B. 

90,  91 

Eev.  Otis     . 

125 

Sower,  Charlotte  Cecelia    . 

397 

Kebekah 

314 

Spafford,  Moses  20,  26,  32, 

82, 

225,  236 

Sleeper,  Florence  A. 

141 

Spalding,  Captain 

226 

George  W.  . 

298 

Sparhawk,  Thomas    . 

229 

Slooum,  Dr.  C.  C. 

335 

Sparling,  Jesse 

293 

Smart,  Melville  C.     . 

138 

Spaulding,  Capt.  Dyer 

398 

Dr.  William  H.,  J 

335 

Esther      . 

316 

Smeed,  William 

12,  18,  19,  23 

George  W. 

300 

Smiley,  Rev.  Edward 

128 

Joseph     . 

240,  371 

Smith,  Albert  E. 

141 

Dr.  John  S. 

202, 

334,  361 

Alvah    . 

303 

Sanford    . 

103 

Chester  P.      . 

299,  433 

Spencer,  Cebia            .  ' 

315 

Daniel  B. 

298 

Elizabeth 

39,  419 

Rev.  Eleazer 

119 

Fannie  A.     . 

138 

Eunice 

112 

George  W.   . 

286 

Ezra 

112 

Herbert  T.    . 

140 

Ered  P. 

161,  163 

Jeremiah 

18 

181,  272, 

309, 

364,  436 

31,  236, 

305, 

306,  371 

Rev.  Henry  S. 

105, 

107,  462 

John    . 

.     21,  32 

Jacob     . 

70,  115 

82,  224, 

239, 

357,  370 

John 

307,  310 

Reuben 

225, 

234,  235 

Dea.  Jonathan 

68 

Samuel 

317 

Luella  F. 

139 

Rev.  S.  A.    . 

127 

Dr.  Nathan       64, 

144, 

333,  463 

Sperry,  Anson  M. 

253,  299 

Orville 

259 

James   . 

24 

Polly     . 

317 

Spofiord,  Charles  B.  . 

151,  212 

Rev.  S.  P. 

128 

Spooner,  James 

239 

Sarah    . 

395 

Sprague,  Charles  H. 

253 

Walter  H.      . 

268 

Chester  M. 

293 

William 

317 

Miss  Elizabeth 

264,  265 

Rev.  W.  B.  T. 

105 

Isaac 

318 

Smyth,  Gov.  Frederick 

298 

John 

.     32,  36 

Snow,  Alpheus 

464 

225,  240, 

314 

318,  371 

Alpheus  P. 

24,  25 

John  C.      . 

318,  371 

249,  250, 

332, 

395,  464 

Rebekiah    . 

318 

Rev.  Elisha      125, 

225 

239,  319 

Sarah 

316 

Amos 

125 

Susannah    . 

318 

INDEX. 

533 

Sqnier,  Algernon  M. 

300 

Stevens,  George  H.    . 

122 

Dr.  William  C.      . 

335 

George  W.   . 

. 

125,  375 

Starbird,  Stephen 

74,  367 

Godfrey 

, 

75,  305 

Stark,  Gen.  John        234, 

237, 

238,  420 

308,  311, 

319, 

329,  353 

Stearns,  Asa 

235 

Harris  322,  347, 

366, 

367,  465 

Daniel 

235 

Henry 

55,  225 

Gov.  Onslow 

278 

234,  239, 

314, 

319,  371 

Scarborough  J. 

327 

Josiah 

55 

Steel,  B.  H.       . 

436 

64,  76 

,  88, 

104,  135 

Dr.  James 

98 

224,  236, 

240, 

305,  306 

225,  227, 

314, 

320,  335 

315,  346, 

353, 

370,  464 

Gov.  John  H. 

165 

Dea.  Josiah 

. 

75 

Stedman,  David 

321,  371 

319, 

329, 

353,  465 

Hannah 

321 

Joseph  S.     . 

, 

317 

Fisher 

321 

Josiah,  of  Concord 

165 

Polly 

321 

Leonard  M. 

300 

John 

321 

Lucius 

307, 

352,  468 

Sterne,  Betsey    . 

319 

Linus 

307, 

352,  468 

Eunice 

319 

Dr.  Linus     . 

335,  .371 

Fanny    . 

319 

Martha 

319 

Nabby   . 

39 

Mitilda 

319,  465 

Polly     . 

319 

Megs  . 

371 

Dr.  Thomas 

44 

Paran  . 

. 

135 

55,  63, 

184, 

224,  227 

194,  210, 

329, 

330,  353 

310,  319, 

335, 

357,  370 

412,  415, 

465, 

466,  467 

Thomas,  Jr.   . 

144,  319 

Prudence 

115 

William 

319 

Rachael 

315,  322 

Stevenson,  Rev.  Daniel 

122 

Roswell 

55, 

236, 

322,  370 

Stevens,  Abigail 

319,  323 

Ruth    . 

319,  323 

Alfred 

319,  323 

Solon   . 

322 

Alvah 

75, 

108,  308 

Susannah 

115 

319,  329, 

353, 

465,  466 

William 

319 

Augustine     . 

. 

319 

Zeba    . 

371 

Chalmers  W. 

138 

Steward,  Jonas 

225,  236 

Edwin 

319,  465 

Lucinda 

316 

Eliakim 

. 

115 

Stewart,  Betsey 

316 

116, 

117 

305,  371 

Charles  C. 

243 

Elihu    .          36, 

46, 

55,  59,  63 

Jonas  . 

82 

,  240,  370 

87,  225, 

230 

231,  240 

Still,  Benjamin  W. 

298 

306,  310, 

357 

370,  464 

Stetson,  Sarah  . 

314 

Elihu,  Jr.     . 

. 

224,  370 

Stockwell,  Ada  M. 

141 

Elisha 

. 

. 

236 

Edgar  W. 

140 

534 

INDEX. 

Stookwell,  George  T. 

123,  364 

Strowbridge,  James   . 

.  44,  307,  327 

Stodard,  Lucinda 

317 

John 

.  64,  145 

Stoddard,  Amos 

115 

207, 

306,  307,  326 

Curtis 

24 

Parnel   . 

316 

Susannah 

115 

William 

55,  327 

Stone,  Almerin  0. 

337 

Sturtevant,  William  S. 

260,  291 

Anne  E. 

141 

Stubbs 

,  Rev.  R.  S.     . 

121,  250,  256 

Betsey     . 

317 

Sullivan,  John  . 

.     60,  68 

Catharine 

315 

Sumner,  Anne  . 

316,  317 

Cornelius  H. 

291 

Dr.  A.  F.     . 

335 

Dea.  David 

468 

Benjamin       18, 

20,  21,  22,  31 

Fanny     . 

316 

33,  34, 

35,  39,  45,  82 

Harvey  D. 

299 

98,  191, 

219,  225,  226 

John 

101,  321 

227,  229, 

230,  305,  306 

Joseph     . 

321 

310,  317, 

323,  370,  371 

Mary 

323 

Clement 

.     19,  23 

Matthias 

33,  34,  35,  44 

David  H.      . 

.    24,  25,  317 

46,  59,  60,  61 

,  63,  101 

Fred  A. 

144,  317 

185,  224, 

226, 

239,  240 

Hannah 

317,  323 

305,  306 

321, 

323,  468 

Hounor 

317 

Matthias,  Jr.   . 

315 

John    . 

171,  472 

Priscilla 

. 

314 

John  H.   144,  30" 

',  317,  347,  384 

Prudence 

314 

Mary 

314,  317 

Samuel    . 

235, 

243,  488 

Mrs.  Olive    . 

314 

Susannah 

314, 

321,  323 

Prudence 

317,  323 

Zedekiah 

488 

Sarah 

314 

Story,  Edward  E. 

252,  283 

William  B. 

317 

Samuel  H. 

155 

Dr.  William 

.    31,  82,  171 

Stowell,  Abner 

200 

226, 

305,  333,  335 

Celia  A. 

140 

370 

432,  471,  472 

CoraE. 

139,  142 

Swaim 

,  Rev.  Joseph  S. 

114 

George  H. 

66, 

272,  303 

Swain 

Arthur  J. 

137,  138 

312,  348 

364, 

430,  469 

Sweet, 

Benjamin 

324 

George  H.,  2d 

296 

Prudence 

112 

Ida  L. 

140,  142 

Swett, 

Benjamin 

101,  315,  324 

Sheridan  A. 

140 

Hitty      . 

324 

Wilhelmena  E. 

141 

Dr.  John  L.    . 

470 

Straw,  Andrew  J. 

253,  284 

Josiah    . 

143,  470 

George  W.      . 

253,  299 

Josiah,  Jr. 

470 

John 

253,  285 

Rev.  Josiah     . 

470 

Streeter,  Rev.  Russel 

I 

125 

Polly      . 

324 

INDEX. 


535 


Sylvester,  James 

181 

Thomas 

,  Charles  L.  W.     .         .        475 

Symes,  Col.  William 

12 

,  13,  21 

John      33,  225,  227,  370,  475 

Symonds,  Myrtie  B   . 

140,  142 

Joshua  .  .  .  420 
Lovina        .         .         .        3 16 

T 

Mabel  S.  .  .  .  141 
Mary           .         .         .        315 

Taler,  Samuel 

315 

Moses        ...           89 

Talham,  Alfred 

253 

Orlando       ...         343 

Kev.  C.  L.    . 

152 

Pliebe          .         .                 317 

Tappan,  Mrs.  Harriet 

134 

Samuel        .         226,  W,  370 

John    . 

75,  87 

Zara   .                   343,  371,  475 

101,  144, 

326, 

346,  347 

Zebal          .         .         .        227 

John  W.        106, 

134, 

332,  471 

Zena  ....         475 

Mason  W.    . 

278,  492 

Thompson,  Savory     .          .         .         314 

Weare 

471 

Thorning,  Samuel  J.           .         .         291 

Taylor,  Arad     . 

203 

Thrashf 

sr,  Charles       .         .         .         223 

Benedick 

243 

Frank  P.    ...         467 

Lieut.  Benjamin 

225 

James  B.    .         .         .         364 

Dennis  . 

253,  301 

Lulu  J.       .         .         .         141 

Ethel  F. 

141 

Samuel      ...        303 

Joseph  23,  33,  34 

35, 

225,  226 

Thornton,  Matthew   ...           63 

234.  235, 

239, 

306,  472 

Thureault,  Dr.  J.  H.  .         .         .        335 

Roland 

284 

Tibbills,  Chester  F.   .         .          252,  291 

Widow  Temperano 

e 

316 

Ticknor,  Elisha          .         .         .        474 

Timothy 

11,  17,  19,  23 

Elizabeth     .         .         .        395 

Gen.  Zachary 

246 

George         304,  332,  406,  474 

Temple,  Charles  W.  H. 

323 

Rev.  Joseph  G.     .         .        105 

Hannah 

323 

Tillotson,  Rev.  0.  H.          .         .        127 

Hon.  John    . 

. 

L2,  14,  21 

Titus, 

H.B 258 

John    . 

317,  g23 

ToUes, 

Dr.  Clarence  W.  151,  333, 355, 476 

Tenney,  Amos  . 

473 

Edwin  W.      .         .         .        272 

Amos  J. 

194 

427,  473 

303,  309,  434,  473 

Charles  A.    . 

, 

391,  473 

Harvey           ...        182 

Edward  J.    209, 

210 

211,  272 

John     ....        475 

303,  304, 

312 

348,  474 

Lawrence  A.           .          182,  468 

Elizabeth  L. 

486 

Mabel    ....         141 

George  A.     . 

, 

348,  474 

Mary  Evelin  .         .         .         139 

George  P.     . 

253 

,  285,  473 

Minnie  H.      .         .         .         141 

Kev.  S.  G.    . 

, 

486 

Dr.  Nathaniel  66,  136,  268,  271 

Thayer,  Walter 

, 

140 

272,  303,  304,  333,  348,  354 

Thomas,  Alonzo 

, 

354 

374,  467,  467,  475,  476,  494 

Amanda 

323 

Philemon        308,  311,  361,  367 

536 


INDEX. 


Tolman,  Chloe 

315 

Tyler,  President  John 

361 

,362 

Dorcas 

115 

John        .         .     4] 

,  43, 

311, 

347 

TompkiDS,  Rev.  Frank  P 

92,  362 

John,  2d 

147 

Towle,  Bev.  Francis  W. 

113 

164,  200, 

313, 

342, 

375 

137, 

263,  312 

Miles      . 

339 

Toothaker,  Jotham  S. 

260,  286 

Noah       . 

103 

317 

Towmlinson,  Abraham 

100 

Phebe      . 

. 

314 

Towne,  Matthew  T.  . 

253.  291 

Rosetta   . 

. 

103 

Samuel  C. 

294 

Russell    . 

292 

Towner,  Benjamin     . 

225,  370 

William 

103 

Benjamin,  Jr. 

225,  234 

Tyrr 

all,  Horace  A.     . 

284 

Torrey,  Dr.  E. 

335 

Sylvester  M. 

291 

Tracy,  Alfred    . 

145,  312 

Rev.  Leonard 

112 

U 

Trask,  Doctor   . 

462 

Tucker,  Eliza    . 

461 

Upham,  Asa 

. 

316 

Dr.  Henry     . 

335 

Frank  K.      . 

, 

480 

Rev.  William  J. 

92 

George  B.     . 

.    75 

,  76, 

144 

Tufts,  Charles  A. 

367 

245, 

271, 

303, 

304 

Walter    . 

249,  258 

305, 

347, 

434, 

452 

Tutherly,  David  F.     . 

161 

480, 

481, 

482, 

485 

Mrs.  David  F. 

266 

Hugo  D. 

310, 

311, 

332 

Herbert  E. 

182, 

476,  477 

Jabez  . 

. 

63 

Lilla  A.       . 

140 

144,  310, 

332, 

482, 

483 

Samuel         164, 

182, 

308,  476 

Dr.  J.  Baxter 

, 

271 

William      . 

140 

273, 

372, 

484 

William  E. 

161, 

182,  262 

Harriet  H.    . 

492 

272, 

303, 

304,  309 

James  P. 

, 

.  43, 

137 

312, 

375, 

376,  401 

James  P.      168, 

179, 

183, 

196 

465, 

467, 

476,  477 

272, 

312, 

375, 

485 

Tuttle,  Hannah 

, 

320,  324 

J.  Duncan    . 

196 

348 

Oliver     .          225, 

240, 

320,  324 

Lorenzo  M. 

294 

Prudence 

320 

Phineas 

480 

Samuel 

224, 

236,  240 

Robert  H.     . 

245, 

372 

Tyler,  Austin       117,  198, 

303, 

305,  307 

Dr.  Samuel  R. 

333, 

485 

308,  310, 

311, 

330,  359 

Uhl, 

John  H.     . 

441 

Benjamin    30,  31, 

41,  42,  43,  46 

59,  93 

,  94, 

199,  207 

V 

227,  228, 

305, 

330,  477 

Ephraim       75,  76, 

199, 

339,  359 

Vaughan,  Edwin         134, 

255, 

256, 

298 

Frederick  A.    . 

375,  376 

304, 

305, 

312, 

332 

Hoell       . 

139 

333, 

364, 

368, 

485 

INDEX. 


537 


Vaughan,  Frank  T.  . 

333,  486 

Walker,  Andrew 

293 

Veasey,  Joel 

286 

Benjamin  P.           163, 

250,  354 

Lucius 

291 

George 

182 

Verry,  John 

239 

George  A.     . 

368 

Verey,  Luther   . 

317 

George  H.    . 

293 

Vinton,  "William 

235 

Horace  Eaton 

493 

Volk,  Dr.  Carl  A.       . 

333,  486 

John   S.            63,  66, 

136,  137 

Vogl,  Frank  P. 

110, 

195,  375 

154,  158, 
163,  165, 

160,  161 
250,  251 

W 

271,  272, 
354,  362, 

273,  311 
364,  375 

Wait,  Albert  S. 

367,  490 

420,  468, 

490,  495 

Benjamin 

488 

Bev.  John    . 

490 

Daniel     . 

490 

Jonathan 

152,  235 

George  W. 

271 

Joseph  B.  59,  60,  148 

152,  196 

John  T. 

487,  490 

Mary  D.       . 

141 

Capt.  Jason     . 

33,  235 

Simeon  W. 

493 

Phineas   . 

.      12,  17,  19 

Solomon 

307 

Waite,  John 

487 

Wallingford,  George 

436 

Capt.  Joseph       34 

,  35, 

173,  174 

Joel       . 

311 

225, 

226, 

234,  235 

Rev.  Philander 

124 

386, 

487, 

488,  489 

Stella    . 

266 

Widow  Martha 

314 

Ward,  Harvey  . 

293 

Morrison  R.    . 

487,  490 

Warland,  John  H.     . 

154 

Otis  F.  R.      . 

148, 

152,  153 

311,  361, 

493,  495 

154, 

160, 

161,  163 

Warner,  Abel    . 

229 

166, 

249, 

250,  257 

Daniel 

31 

265, 

266, 

268,  272 

93,  94,  225, 

236,  370 

303, 

304, 

353,  354 

Daniel,  Jr.  . 

227 

362, 

374, 

375,  490 

George  C. 

141 

Richard 

486,  487 

Levi     .         .  93,  225, 

227,  236 

Thomas 

486,  487 

Col.  Seth      . 

238 

Wakefield,  George  L. 

294 

Thomas           88,  112, 

306,  307 

Harvey  M . 

284 

326,  327, 

371,  493 

Hezekiah  . 

323 

Warren,  Rev.  Edgar  L. 

92 

Peter 

323 

Washburn,  Charles  N.        204, 

205,  452 

Peter,  Jr. 

323 

Helen  E. 

452 

Sylvester  E.  H. 

253,  299 

Ebenezer 

224 

Waldo,  Nathan 

305 

jsr.  P.      . 

452 

Waldron,  George  H. 

. 

299 

Washington,  President  George 

52,  54 

Walker,  Capt.  Abel    . 

. 

238 

55 

,  58,  136 

Adjlie  M.  G. 

139,  142 

Waterman,  Silas 

22& 

538 

INDKX. 

Watson,  Amos  A. 

328 

Wescott,  Samuel 

396 

Benjamin     . 

315 

Westgate,  Nathaniel  W. 

895 

Ebenezer 

328 

Wetherbee,  Charles  W. 

253 

,  277,  284 

Waugh,  Bishop 

119 

Isaac  F . 

847 

Way,  Edwin  F. 

145 

Jonathan 

379 

George  O. 

145 

Ellen 

379 

Gordon    . 

178 

Wheaton,  Rev.  George 

44,  82,  83 

Louisa  M. 

411 

Wheeler,  Aaron 

840 

Dr.  Osmon  B.   123, 

124, 

134,  148 

Abel 

125 

151, 

178, 

186,  208 

Edmund     . 

460 

305, 

312, 

329,  333 

John  F.      . 

253,  284 

348, 

355, 

356,  364 

Moses    193,  194 

311 

340,  414 

374, 

437, 

457,  494 

Submit  Chittenden 

460 

Weade,  Mary    . 

316 

William  C. 

341 

Weare,  Mesiieck 

63,  223 

Wheelock,  Rev.  Dr. 

97 

Webb,  George  0.       . 

2S4 

Daniel 

317 

Hiram    . 

137, 

272,  312 

Whipple,  Carrie  L. 

496 

Lucius  C. 

292 

Cora  D. 

140 

Webber,  Henry  G. 

250 

John  M. 

249, 

255,  303 

Weber,  George  H. 

252 

313, 

846, 

364,  495 

Joseph  . 

154,  250 

John  M. ,  Jr. 

140,  496 

255,  258, 

265, 

272,  311 

Jonathan 

494 

312,  361, 

367, 

495,  500 

Lois   . 

141, 

142,  496 

Webster,  Charles  H. 

, 

141,  142 

Thomas  J. 

66 

Daniel   60,  136, 

380, 

401,  492 

Gen.  William 

237 

Ebenezer     . 

59 

Whitcomb,  Francis   . 

70,  8.54 

Ezekiel 

60 

Mrs.  Francis 

266 

Weed,  Charles  F.       . 

141,  142 

George  F. 

496 

Charles  H.      . 

110, 

134,  304 

Isabella  I . 

141 

Wentworth,  Gov.  Benning  9, 

LI,  12,  20 

Jacob 

496 

21, 

36,  37,  47,  173  1 

Jonathan 

418,  496 

Gov.  John    . 

, 

33,  36,  99 

William  F. 

141 

Mark  Hunking  12, 

14,  21,  86 

White,  Bessie  M. 

141 

Wells,  Julia  E. 

139,  142 

Carrie  A.  W. 

139 

Rev.  Samuel    12, 

17,  19,  23,  115  1 

Lucinda 

317 

West,  Benjamin 

44 

James    . 

371 

John        .         .     56 

,  183 

224,  371 

John 

185 

Ruth 

317 

Whiting,  Artemus 

339 

Wescott,  Anna 

396 

N.      . 

206 

Jeremiah,  Jr. 

317 

Warren 

836 

Rebecca 

817 

Whitmore,  Elijah 

168 

Rufus 

817 

Nelson  N. 

291 

INDEX. 


539 


WMtmore,  Norman  F. 

284 

Winthrop,  John 

459 

Whitney,  Florence  C . 

140,  142 

Winn,  Albert  F. 

. 

66 

Whittier,  Samuel 

44 

Frank  G. 

364 

Whittlesey,  Newton 

805 

John  A. 

. 

812 

Wightman,  Mary  J. 

137 

Wise,  John 

185 

317 

Wilder,  J. 

378 

Wiske,  C.  Mortimer 

375 

Wilkins,  Lydia 

112 

Wolcott,  Alanson  F. 

253 

413 

Rev.  R.  W. 

122 

Etta  M.      . 

. 

139 

Wilkinson,  Dr.  Fred  C. 

120 

George  E. 

140 

152,  333,  496 

Minnie  M. 

140 

Willard,  Abel.           .     12, 

17,'19,  20,  23 

Wood,  Jonathan 

. 

418 

Abijah 

12,  17,  19,  23 

Mary     . 

, 

417 

Rev.  Elijah 

115 

Woodbury,  Augustus  E.    . 

284 

Jonathan     . 

12,  17,  19,  23 

Levi 

165 

Josiah    9,  11,  13, 

14,  15,  17,  19 

W.  0.  c. 

367 

22,  23,  184,  419 

Woodcock,  George  0. 

312 

313 

Josiah,  Jr. 

11,  17,  19,  23 

Wooddell,  Edward  W.  258,  259 

312 

333 

Prentice           12, 

17,  19,  21,  23 

George      . 

184 

344 

Sampson 

11,  17,  19,  23 

Mrs.  George     . 

344 

William 

12,  14,  21 

Woodman,  Elvira  E. 

. 

141 

Williams,  Charles 

305,  311,  367 

Woods,  Joseph 

239 

Rev.  L.  0. 

128 

Woodward,  Bazellah 

44 

Williamson,  Alonzo  B. 

303,  304 

David     . 

. 

226 

332 

346,  428,  497 

Woolley,  N.  P. 

375 

Willey,  Jesse  L. 

140 

Walter  B. 

141 

Willis,  Algernon 

148,  312 

Woolson,  Charles  J. 

499 

500 

Rev.  Samuel 

125,  127 

Constance  Fenimore 

499 

500 

Willson,  Abigail 

316 

Thomas  75,  303,  310 

498 

500 

Toma 

316 

Worth,  Elizabeth 

431 

Wilson,  Fannie  F. 

141 

Worthen,  Mrs.  Eveline     . 

418 

George  W.  . 

119 

George  W. 

418 

Hannah 

119 

Rev.  H.  W.      . 

124 

Jonathan 

498 

Wright,  Amaziah 

82 

Joseph 

101,  182,  497 

David 

92 

Joseph,  Jr. 

497,  498 

John    . 

226 

Josiah 

182,  497 

Joseph 

82 

235 

Josiah  F.      . 

497 

Thomas 

235 

Josiah  D . 

139 

Rev.  Thomas  G. 

113 

Lydia  . 

497 

Wyman,  A.  P. 

137 

354 

Mary  A. 

141 

H.  F. 

125 

Nahum 

383,  497,  498 

540 


INDEX. 


York,  Amos  30,  31,  82,  305,  339,  370 
Christopher  101, 186,224,  239,  240 
Comfort  ...         314 

Elsie       .  .  319,  320 

Esther    .         .  314, 819 

Gersham  225,  234,  236 

Jonathan  .  225,  234,  316,  339 

Joseph  82,  224,  234,  236,  319,  370 


York,  Joseph,  Jr. 
Samuel  J. 
William 
Young,  Charles 
Frank 
John  E. 
Mary  T. 


Zerrahn,  Carl 


225,  320- 

320 

236,  371 

311,  495 

.  ■       292 

292 

138 


375.