USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Biographical review, containing life sketches of leading citizens of Essex County, Massachusetts > Part 35
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EORGE THOMPSON ESTES, for thirty-three years a letter-carrier in Lynn, was born in this city May 18, 1836, son of W. H. and Rebecca (Dodge)
Estes. The father, who was also a native of Lynn, learned shoemaking when a young man, following that occupation here during his ac- tive years. He was noted for his studious habits and the great fund of general informa- tion he acquired through long-continued read- ing. At his death in 1892 he was eighty-five years old. Rebecca, his wife, born in Wen- ham, Mass., was a daughter of Jacob Dodge, who, besides cultivating a farm in Wenham, followed the carpenter's trade, and did a large amount of work in the adjoining towns. Mr. Dodge was for many years an active member of the Congregational church, and served as a Deacon until his death, which occurred in 1877.
George Thompson Estes began his educa- tion in the Lynn public schools. After com- pleting his studies at the New Hampton (N.H.) Academy, he learned the shoemaker's trade, which he followed for some years. When the free delivery service was introduced in this city, he was one of the first letter-car- riers appointed; and he has been on duty con- tinuously in that capacity since August 8, 1864. He has witnessed the great increase in the facilities of the United Mail service in Lynn, and has served under six different post- masters. Some time since he was presented by the department with an old-fashioned street letter-box, from which he had not missed a daily collection during twenty-five years.
On May 18, 1859, Mr. Estes contracted his first marriage, with Eliza W. Dodge, of Ham- ilton, who died in 1878. To that union were born two children, one of whom is living, Emma F. Estes. In 1880 he married Mrs. Hattie Whitehouse, of Yarmouth, N.S., who died in 1887. His third marriage, contracted in 1888, was , with Effie Pierce, of the same place, who died in 1896. In politics Mr. Estes is a Republican. He has reached the
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Royal Arch degree in Masonry, is connected with Golden Fleece Lodge, and is a charter member of Sutton Chapter. In 1893 he was awarded a trip to the World's Columbian Ex- position at Chicago, as the result of a voting contest to determine the citizen who enjoyed the most popularity.
OHN B. CAVERLY, the proprietor of Sagamore Farm, Ipswich, was born June 15, 1836, in Strafford, Strafford County, N. H., son of the Rev. John Caverly. The Caverly family, of sturdy Scotch ances- try, was first represented on American soil more than a century ago, the early progenitor having settled in New Hampshire, where many of his descendants are still living. A brief history of this family has been written and published by Robert Caverly, late a lawyer of Lowell, Mass., and a brother of the Rev. John Caverly. The latter, also a native of Strafford, N. H., was educated for the minis- try, and during the greater part of his active professional life had charge of the Free Will Baptist Societies of Strafford and Barrington, N. H. His wife, Nancy, a daughter of Joseph and Sally French, was born and reared in New Durham, N. H. Their children were: Joseph F., Zachariah B., Darius, Robert B., J. Colby, Elizabeth O., John B., and Luther M.
John B. Caverly has been engaged in agri- cultural work nearly all his life, first in the Granite State, and later in Massachusetts. In 1871 he bought his present farm on the beach road, about a mile and a half from Ips- wich Beach. He has one hundred and sixty acres of land, on which he conducts general agriculture, making a specialty of dairying. On Sagamore Hill, a noted elevation of land on his farm, he built the Sagamore cottages,
which command a fine sea and land view for fifteen miles in either direction.
Mr. Caverly is a member of Ipswich Grange, No. 36, and an active worker in the organization. On May 26, 1861, in Straf- ford, N. H., he was united in marriage with Miss Abbie M. Swaine. There have been four sons born to Mr. and Mrs. Caverly, namely : Irving, a farmer, residing in Lincoln, Mass .; Roscoe, who is in business in Boston; Carl A., living on the home farm; and Chester B., who is employed in a factory in Ipswich.
EORGE N. AUSTIN, formerly the senior member of the well-known firm Austin, Chase & Co., wholesale produce dealers of Lawrence, Mass., was born in Londonderry, N.H., in 1830, son of John W. and Susan (Farley) Austin. The father followed the trade of wheelwright. Of the six children he reared, two are now living - John and Charles. The latter, who has re- tired from active pursuits, resides in Methuen.
George N. Austin learned the shoemaker's trade when young. Not content with that for a regular occupation, he went to Salem, Rock- ingham County, N.H., soon after reaching man's estate, and for four years was there en- gaged in the grocery business. Then, in company with his brother Charles, he pur- chased a woollen factory, which they success- fully conducted for a few years, being espe- cially prosperous during the Civil War, when their special manufactures were frocking, blankets, etc. After his brother retired from the firm, Mr. Austin was associated for eight years with Mr. Wheeler, who subsequently purchased the factory. In 1871 he came to Lawrence, and in partnership with E. H. Chase, Edward W. Austin, and A. W. Rich-
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ardson, forming the firm of Austin, Chase & Co., engaged in the wholesale produce busi- ncss, now carried on by Mr. Richardson. Po- litically, Mr. Austin was an uncompromising Republican. While in Salem he took an ac- tive part in municipal affairs, and was a Rep- resentative to the New Hampshire State legis- lature for two years. Fraternally, he was a Knight Templar. Beginning life with no other means than his own strong hands and willing hcart, he met with success at every step, and acquired a fortune estimated at sixty-five thousand dollars. Before becoming a resident of Lawrence, he bought the fine resi- dence now occupied by Mrs. Austin ; and soon after settling here he built a cottage at Hamp- ton Beach, where he and his family spent their summers. Although he was not con- nected by membership with any religious organization, he always contributed gener- ously toward enterprises tending to promote the moral welfare of the community. He died at his residence, 343 Broadway, on March 29, 1895, and was buried in Pine Grove Cemetery, Salem, N.H., where a granite sar- cophagus marks his grave.
On December 31, 1848, Mr. Austin married Sarah A. C. Smith, a daughter of James and Laura (Jones) Smith. Her mother, who had previously lost three infant children, died of consumption, December 21, 1829, aged thirty years; and her father died of the same disease in December, 1831, at the age of forty-one. Mrs. Austin was reared from the age of two years by her maternal grandmother, who was then the wife of Isaiah Wheeler, of Methuen, Mass. She has had four children, of whom George Allison died when two years old. Those living arc: Georgianna, who is the wife of A. W. Richardson, and has three chil- dren - Blanche A., Arthur T., and Helen B. ; Edward W., who married Miss Ardelle
Barnes; and Alice Lillian, who is the wife of Frank G. Churchill, of Lawrence, and has one daughter, Ethel A.
ATHANIEL WARREN MOODY, the present owner of the Moody home- stead in Newbury, represents one of the first settled families in this town. He was born where he now resides, October 10, 1836, son of Nathaniel and Rebecca (Bartlett) Moody. The genealogy of the family is trace- able as far back as the Norman Conquest. The subject of this sketch is a descendant in the seventh generation of William Moody, who in 1634 came from Ipswich, England, to the then newly organized Massachusetts town of the same name, and in 1635 settled upon the farm in Newbury, which has since re- mained in the family's possession. William Moody and his wife, Sarah, were the parents of several children, among whom were two sons, the Rev. Joshua and Samuel. Joshua Moody, born in England in 1632, graduated from Harvard University in 1653, was or- dained to the ministry at Portsmouth, N.H., in 1671, and was pastor of a church in Boston from 1684 until his death, which occurred July 3, 1697. The other son, Samuel Moody, of whom Nathaniel W. Moody is a direct de- scendant, was married on November 9, 1657, to Mary Cutting, who died in 1675. She was the mother of nine children, including Deacon Samuel Moody, the next in line, who was born in 1671. Deacon Moody was a famous horse- shoer in his time, journeying on horseback to ply his calling, and carrying with him a bag of hand-made nails. Tradition says that he was the first man in New England to shoe oxen.
In the year 1700 Deacon Samuel Moody married Sarah Knight, and his son William
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was Nathaniel W. Moody's great-great-grand- father. William Moody married for his first wife Anna Hale, and the maiden name of his second wife was Sarah Noyes. Colonel Sam- uel Moody, great-grandfather of Nathaniel W., was a son of William by his first union. He served as an officer in the Continental army during the Revolutionary War. The first of his two marriages was contracted with Jane Dole, and the second with Sarah Cush- ing. He reared a large family. His son, Nathaniel Moody, Sr., the grandfather of Na- thaniel W., married Mary Moody, of New- bury, in 1794, and became by her the father of four children. He died in 1815, aged forty-six.
Nathaniel Moody, Jr., youngest child of Nathaniel and Mary Moody, was born at the homestead, May 11, 1805. He inherited the property in turn, and the active period of his life was devoted to its cultivation and im- provement. Rebecca Bartlett Moody, his wife, whom he married April 21, 1831, was a native of Campton, N.H. She became the mother of four children, namely : Samuel, born June 10, 1833, who died April 1, 1834; Mary, born August 27, 1835, who died April 23, 1836; Nathaniel W., the subject of this sketch; and Mary Frances, born May 26, 1840, who died September 30 of the same year. The family has been identified with Old Newbury from the first year of its settle- ment, and representatives of each generation have been members of the Congregational church. Though not ambitious to figure prominently in public life, they have always manifested a deep interest in the welfare of the town, and by their labor as agriculturists have contributed much toward its prosperity.
Nathaniel Warren Moody, who now owns and cultivates the ancestral estate, succeeded to its possession by right of inheritance, and
has preserved the reputation of his ancestors for energy and prosperity. He is highly re- spected for his upright character and genial disposition, is fond of humor, and loves to re- late amusing incidents of "ye olden times."
On June 27, 1868, Mr. Moody was united in marriage with Helen Titcomb, of Newbury- port, a daughter of Paul Titcomb, who was formerly a well-known tanner and grain dealer in that .city. Mrs. Moody was liberally edu- cated, and prior to her marriage she taught school in Newburyport and in District No. 6 of Oldtown. Mr. and Mrs. Moody are the parents of two children, namely : Arthur W., born in 1871; and Grace Carleton Moody, born in 1878. Arthur W. Moody, one of the most active and progressive young men in town, is closely identified with public affairs. He was Census Enumerator in 1890, took the State census of Newbury in 1895, was se- lected to compile agricultural statistics relat- ing to the towns of Newbury, Rowley, Georgetown, West Newbury, and Haverhill; and, when twenty-one years old, he was elected Town Treasurer and Collector -- offices which he stills holds. Grace Carleton Moody was graduated from the Newburyport High and Putnam Schools in 1896, and was valedicto- rian of her class.
AMUEL GLIDDEN GUNN, a well-known merchant of Lynn, and a son of the late George Gunn, was born October 9, 1833, in Searsmont, Waldo County, Me. George Gunn was born and bred in Inverness, Scotland, where he was ed- ucated for the ministry. This profession, not being congenial to him, he gave up, and learned the cooper's trade. A short time after his marriage with Jean Kirk, of Wick, Scotland, he emigrated to this country, locat-
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ing in Searsmont in 1832. Purchasing land, he lived there the larger part of his remaining life, profitably engaged in farming and cooper- ing. He was a man of culture, intelligence, and enterprise; and, besides holding several town offices, he was appointed during Presi- dent Pierce's administration a Clerk in the Pension Office at Washington. He passed away in 1889, at the venerable age of eighty- five years.
Samuel G. Gunn completed his school life in Searsmont at the age of nineteen years, and subsequently worked with his father at the cooper's trade and on the home farm for a short time. In 1853 he began learning the carriage-maker's trade, at which he was em- ployed until 1861, spending one year of the time in Lawrence, Mass. In the summer of 1861 he went to Haverhill, Mass., where he learned shoemaking. He subsequently worked in shoe factories in Haverhill, Danvers, and Lynn, for more than a score of years. In 1884 he became a clerk in the clothing estab- lishment of Aaron Slater, with whom he re- mained three years. He assumed the man- agement of the Union Street store of the late Charles R. Black in 1887, and after the latter's death purchased the store and stock, and has since carried on an extensive and lu- crative business.
Mr. Gunn is prominently identified with many of the leading secret organizations of the city, and has faithfully performed his duties as a loyal and public-spirited citizen. In 1895, 1896, and 1897 he served as Alder- man of the city, and was on the committee ap- pointed to care for streets, city drainage, and public grounds, being also the chairman of the Committee Regulating Licenses. In 1896 he was chairman of the Drainage Com- mittee, of the Committee on Public Grounds, and on Drainage Assessments, and was a
member of the Committee on Claims, on State Aid, and on Elections. Mr. Gunn is a lead- ing member of Richard W. Drown Lodge, No. 106, I. O. O. F., being a charter mem- ber, and First Noble Grand of the lodge; a member of Palestine Encampment, No. 37, I. O. O. F., of which he is Past Chief Patri- arch; a member of Canton City of Lynn; of Everett Lodge, No. 20, K. of P., of which he is Past Chancellor; of Sagamore Tribe, No. 2, I. O. R. M. ; a Past Exalted Ruler of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, No. 117, of Lynn; and a member of the Jefferson Club of this city and of the Alter Ego Club. At national elections Mr. Gunn invariably sup- ports the regular Democratic ticket, while in local affairs he is a "Citizen-Democrat."
AXTER P. FIKE, an influential and prosperous agriculturist of Tops- field, was born in Hamilton, Mass., February 22, 1845, son of Benjamin Pike, Jr. His grandfather, Benjamin Pike, Sr., of Byfield, fought at Bunker Hill and in the en- gagement on Long Island, and was present at the hanging of Major André. This ancestor removed from Byfield to Topsfield in 1783, settling on the farm now owned by Baxter P., making this his home until his death, at the age of ninety-three years. He married Dolly Tenney, a cousin of the late Chief Justice Tenney, of Maine. She survived him four or five years, attaining the venerable age of ninety-six. They were the parents of nine children, among them being Benjamin Pike, Jr.
Benjamin Pike, Jr., born on the Topsfield homestead, was there reared to man's estate. He subsequently engaged in farming in Ham- ilton for a time, residing there sixteen years. In 1854 he returned to the home farm, and
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was here engaged in tilling the soil until too old for manual labor. Then he gave up the management of the property to his son Baxter, afterward living here in ease and plenty until his death, at the ripe old age of ninety years. He married Huldah Dorman, of Boxford, a daughter of Moses Dorman, who, with his two sons, Moses and Ansel, was for years among the leading men of that town, owning and oc- cupying a valuable farm that has always re- mained in the possession of the Dorman fam- ily. Twelve children were born into their household, ten of whom grew to maturity, among them being the Rev. Alpheus I. Pike, of Sauk Centre, Minn., and the Rev. Gusta- vus Dorman Pike, late of Hartford, Conn., a Congregational minister. The latter gradu- ated from Dartmouth College and the Andover Theological Seminary, and at the time of his death was the secretary of the American Mis- sionary Association. The mother preceded her husband to the better land, dying at the age of sixty-three years. Baxter P. Pike was but nine years of age when he came with his parents to the present farm, the homestead of his grandfather. He was the eleventh child, being next to the youngest; and it fell to his lot to remain at home. He assisted in the farm labors during his youthful days; and, when his father became enfeebled by age, he relieved him from all care, and did what he could to enhance his comfort and pleasure. On the death of his aged father, Mr. Pike was appointed administrator of the estate. Hav- ing bought out the interest of the remaining heirs, he has since carried on general agricult- ure and dairying, keeping fourteen or fifteen cows on the place. He has one hundred acres of land, much of it being in a good state of culture.
A public-spirited man, Mr. Pike is deeply interested in the welfare of his town and
county, and since the age of twenty-three years has held some local office. For nine years he was a Selectman, and the chairman of the board for two years. He was a member of the School Committee for twelve years; and in 1889 he was a member of the Massa- chusetts House of Representatives, serving on the Agricultural Committee. He is an active member of the Essex County Agricultural So- ciety, and has been a trustee of the Fair As- sociation. Both he and his wife are members of the Topsfield Grange. On July 2, 1884, he married Miss Sarah I. Gould, a daughter of Porter Gould, Sr., and a sister of Porter Gould, Jr., now of Middleton, Mass. They have no children.
ON. DANIEL SAUNDERS, senior member of the law firm of Daniel, Caleb & Charles G. Saunders, of Lawrence, Mass., was born in Andover, Essex County, October 6, 1822, the eldest son of the late Hon. Daniel Saunders, founder of the city of Lawrence. He is of early New Eng- land Colonial stock, being a lineal descendant of William Saunders, who, we are told, came from England in 1636, and in 1645 took up land at Mitchell's Eddy, on the Haverhill side, in the town of Newbury, Mass., where he was a permanent settler.
James Saunders, the grandfather of Daniel, the special subject of this sketch, was born in Salem, N. H., July 12, 1751, and died in Stanstead, P.Q., December 14, 1830. On November 15, 1774, he married Elizabeth Little, who was born March 1, 1755, in New- bury, Mass., a daughter of Henry Little, and died in Salem, N.H., April 13, 1838. Henry Little also was of English extraction, and the representative of one of the old and prominent families of Essex County, an ancestor, several
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generations removed, having been the original owner of a Newbury farm that is still in the possession of his Little descendants. James Saunders and his wife had a family of twelve sons and one daughter. One son died in in- fancy, and one at the age of sixteen years. The ten sons remaining and the one daughter all married and reared children. One son, Caleb Saunders, became an early settler of Illinois, while three of his brothers located in Eastern New York. One of them, Henry Saunders, M.D., was for many years a promi- nent physician of Saratoga; another, Major William Saunders, a resident of Ballston Spa, was an officer in the War of 1812; another son, Samuel, was a carpenter on board the famous old ship "Constitution " in the same war.
The Hon. Daniel Saunders was born in Salem, N. H., June 20, 1796, and when a young lad began working in a woollen-mill as an employee in the lowest department. He gradually became familiar with all branches of the industry; and, when ready to establish himself in business, he purchased a mill in North Andover, on the Cochicewick Brook, and later bought another in Concord, N.H. Becoming convinced in his mind that some time in the near future the falls in the Merri- mac River between the present cities of Law- rence and Lowell would be utilized by manu- facturers, he began in 1832 to verify by a personal inspection surveys which had previ- ously been made for another purpose, that of estimating the expense of building locks and canals so that the river would be navigable for large boats of merchandise. His examina- tions still further convincing him of the pos- sibility of the development of a large manu- facturing district in this section, he sold his large mills in Concord and North Andover, and invested every penny he could lay his hands on in lands bordering on the Merrimac,
in order that he might control the water power. Consulting then with his son Daniel, the subject of this sketch, as to the best means of calling the attention of the pub- lic to this most desirable location for mills, they decided to build a manufacturing plant themselves. In 1837, therefore, his legal ad- viser, the Hon. Josiah G. Abbott, then a member of the General Court, secured for him an act incorporating the "Shawmut Mills " to be erected in Andover, not saying in what part. In the charter granted, the name of Saunders was not used, those of Caleb Abbott, Arthur Livermore, and John Nesmith only being apparent.
Prominent manufacturers near by were then told of the grand water power. Samuel Law- rence and others of Lowell investigated the matter, and found two good places for dam- ming the river, one at Peters Falls, the other at Bodwell's, the location of the present dam. The Merrimack River Water Power Associa- tion was soon after formed, with Daniel Saun- ders as president and manager of the company, which consisted of Mr. (afterward Judge) Hopkinson, Samuel Lawrence, John Nesmith, Daniel Saunders, Jr., Nathaniel Stevens, and Jonathan Tyler. The president of the com- pany originated a plan for bonding the lands in the vicinity of both falls; and, when the present site was selected as the most favorable point for operations, the neighboring farms were purchased at a reasonable price. His own real estate, which he had previously bought, he sold at the original price plus sim- ple interest on his investments, although, had not his high sense of honor forbidden him, he might have asked and received almost any sum.
A large portrait of the Hon. Daniel Saun- ders, upon which is a tablet stating that he was the founder of the city of Lawrence, was
ALBERT P. BURNHAM.
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presented to the city by his sons in April, ISSS, and now graces the Aldermanic Cham- ber of the City Hall.
On June, 1821, he married Phebe Foxcroft Abbott, who was born February S, 1797, in Andover, Mass., and died March, 1890, in Lawrence. Her father, Caleb Abbott, was three times married; and of his three unions there were fifteen children. The maiden name of her mother was Lucy Lovejoy. Daniel and Phebe Foxcroft Saunders had five children, namely: Daniel, born October 6, 1822; Charles, who was born in June, 1824, and was extensively engaged in the manufact- ure of lumber in Lowell until his death in May, 1891; Martha, who died in childhood; Martha, the second, who also died at an early age; and Caleb, born September 4, 1838. On May 3, 1845, the parents removed from Andover to Lawrence, and, having settled on the farm previously purchased, there spent their remaining days, the father's death oc- curring October 8, 1872.
Daniel Saunders, the younger, studied law with the Hon. Josiah G. Abbott, and was for some years closely associated with his late father in his various enterprises. He contin- ued his law practice all the time, however, and is now at the head of one of the best known legal firms of this section of Essex County. He was Mayor of Lawrence in 1860, at the time of the fall of the Pember- ton Mills. In commemoration of his dis- tinguished services, in the care of those wounded at that time and the relief of the families of those killed, he was presented by the citizens of Lawrence, irrespective of parties, with a magnificent silver service, which he prizes as one of his most valuable treasures. He served a year as Senator, and also he has represented the city in the lower branch of the State legislature.
A LBERT P. BURNHAM, the superin- tendent of the town farm at North Andover, was born in Andover, May 5, 1839, son of John and Diantha (Ste- vens) Burnham. The family is of English ori- gin, and comes from the same stock as that of Admiral Burnham. Its founder in this country arrived in Essex County at an early date in Colonial history, and his descendants are to be found in all parts of New England.
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