USA > Massachusetts > Plymouth County > Biographical review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Plymouth County, Massachusetts > Part 64
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67
In political affiliation Mr. Howard is a Re- publican, and in 1892 represented the three Bridgewaters in the Massachusetts legislature, and during his term was clerk of the Commit- tee on Education. Fraternally, he is a mem- ber of Howard Lodge, Knights of Pythias, at West Bridgewater. He is a member of the Baptist church. Both as a citizen and as an educator he enjoys the confidence and good will of the public.
BNER WOOD, a successful, practical agriculturist of Middleboro, Mass., was born in this town, January 9, 1840, son of William T. and Amanda (Sawyer) Wood. His grandfather, Abner Wood, was a son of Abner, Sr., who was the first of this branch of the family to settle in Middleboro. He was of English descent.
William T. and Amanda Wood were the parents of three children, as follows: Catherine C., living in Middleboro; William H., who lost his life in the battle of Petersburg; and Abner, of this sketch. William H. Wood left four children, two boys and two girls. One of the boys at eight years of age was taken under the care of his uncle Abner, for whom he was named. He grew to manhood, and died at the age of twenty-nine.
Having acquired his education in the dis- trict schools of Middleboro, Abner Wood when sixteen years of age went to Taunton, Mass., to learn the trade of Reed & Benton, and remained four years.
Returning to the old homestead, he lived there until 1858, then removed to a farm near Middleboro village; and two years later, in 1860, he purchased the farm of one hundred acres, on which he has since lived. He owns other tracts of land, aggregating about one hundred and forty-five acres, including the home place. For fourteen years Mr. Wood has served as Highway Surveyor, and for five years as Fire Warden, being an eminently useful and much esteemed citizen.
ALVIN PRATT, M.D., is one of the prominent physicians of Eastern Mas- sachusetts, fitted by natural ability and the best of training for the serious work which he is called upon to do. He was born in the town of Bridgewater, his present home, March 24, 1842, a son of Dr. Calvin B. and Mary T. (Perkins) Pratt.
Phineas and Joshua Pratt, Englishmen, one or both of whom sailed in the ship "Ann," which arrived at Plymouth in August, 1623, were the first representatives of the Pratt fam- ily in America. Savage, however, says that Phineas Pratt was in Massachusetts in June,
610
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
1622. lle settled in Weymouth, and after- ward removed to Charlestown.
The line of descent is thus continued: Matthew Pratt, of Weymouth, Mass., who died in 1672; his son Joseph, born in 1637, died in 1720; Joseph, Jr., born 1665, died 1765; Benjamin, his son, born 1693, died 1762; Benjamin, Jr., born 1719, died 1776; William, son of Benjamin, Jr, born 1746, died 1808; Calvin, son of William, born 1774, died 1824. Dr. Pratt's great-great- grandfather, Benjamin Pratt, held a commis- sion in the British regular army, under George III .; and Benjamin's son Calvin was a Cap- tain in the Massachusetts State militia after the Revolutionary War.
Dr. Calvin B. Pratt, son of Calvin, first, was born in Middleboro, Mass. An able and popular physician, he practised in Bridge- water over twenty years, dying in 1862. His wife was a daughter of Jacob Perkins, the founder of the Lazel & Perkins Iron Works at Bridgewater, now known as the Bridgewater Iron Works. She died June 5, 1875. Of their children, four are living: Henry T. and Sarah K., in Bridgewater; John W., resident physician and superintendent of the Massa- chusetts General Hospital in Boston; and Calvin, the special subject of this biographi- cal sketch.
Calvin Pratt attended the public and pri- vate schools in Bridgewater, the academy in this town, and the Bridgewater State Normal School, where he was graduated. He took a six months' course in chemistry in Harvard University, a special course in comparative anatomy and physiology with Professor Jeffries Wyman at Cambridge, and during the Civil War was acting medical cadet at the Judiciary Square Hospital at Washington for six months. He then took the regular course at the Ilarvard Medical School, receiving his
degree in 1866, and was one year house sur- geon at the Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston. He practised first at St. Peter, Minn., remaining there some thirteen months; and the five years following he was engaged in professional work in Duxbury, Mass. In 1874 he returned to the home of his child- hood, and for nearly a quarter of a century he has worked faithfully among his townspeople, fighting disease and death, and winning grat- itude, love, and respect. Dr. Pratt is a mem- ber of the Massachusetts Medical Society. He has been for twenty years a consulting physician for the State farm.
He was married in 1866 to Adelaide Ed- strom, of Boston, and has four children - Calvin B., Emily L., Elise A., and Mary B. Dr. Pratt votes the Republican ticket. Inter- ested in the cause of education, he is Vice- President of the Board of Trustees of Bridge- water Academy. He is a 'prominent Mason, Past Master of Corner Stone Lodge of Dux- bury, Mass.
-
TTIWELL W. BANKS, machinist, is one of the busy men of Brockton, that great hive of manufacturing in- dustry. He was born at Bear River, Digby County, Nova Scotia, February 7, 1866, and is a son of Abram and Sarah (Rice) Banks, both natives of Nova Scotia. Abram Banks, who is a farmer, and is now seventy years of age, is still living in his native province. He and his wife were blessed with a family of ten children, six of whom are living, the subject of this biography being next to the youngest.
Ottiwell W. Banks in his youth acquired a good education, finishing his studies at the Digby High School. For six or seven years after leaving school he followed the pursuit of
611
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
agriculture in the Provinces, at first on his father's farm, afterward for wages on other farms. In 1885 he came to the States, and stopped for a while in Boston, hiring from there as a farm hand; and one of his engage- ments took him to Brockton. He subse- quently obtained employment in the machine shop of E. A. Stiggins in this city, remain- ing six months, and then went to work in Mr. Gray's pattern shop. In 1892 he became a partner of W. L. & H. A. Dunbar, and was a member of the firm of W. L. Dunbar & Co., until the fall of 1895, when he sold his inter- est to F. D. Kelly. He now has charge of their shop, and owns a half interest in the patent known as the "second row marker," a machine for marking shoes. Mr. Banks is an industrious and enterprising man, and relies on his own exertions for success.
He was married in March, 1889, to Miss Elsie Libby, and has two children - Daisy May and Beulah Mildred. In politics Mr. Banks favors the Republican side. He is a member of the Second Advent Christian church, and has been an Elder for six or seven years.
EWIS SHERRETT, for a number of years a well-known resident of Carver, Plymouth County, Mass., was born in England on the 15th of July, 1835. At the age of fourteen he began to learn the trade of a stone mason, at which he worked in his native country until he came to America. The voyage, which lasted forty-two days, was made on a sailing vessel. He landed at New York City, but immediately went to Lonsdale, R.I .; and there he worked at his trade for eleven months. After that he went to New Bedford, Mass., where he remained for two years, then to Chicago, St. Louis, and other Western cities. These wanderings consumed
a period of four years. He then came to Carver, his present home, but left almost im- mediately and went to Boston, in which and other Eastern cities he spent twelve years from 1859 to 1871. During this whole period he plied his old trade, that of a stone mason, some times getting jobs on government works. In 1871 he returned to Carver, where he passed the remainder of his days, dying October 1, 1896.
He was married in June, 1856, to Mary T. Savery; and they became the parents of three children. One of these, a daughter, Susan B., born August 7, 1864, died on the 4th of October, 1869. The mother, Mrs. Mary T. S. Sherrett, died July 31, 1892.
William L. Sherrett, son of Mr. and Mrs. Lewis Sherrett, was born in Carver, Septem- ber 9, 1859.
He attended the public schools of New Bed- ford and of other Eastern cities during his youth; and at the end of his school career, anxious to earn his living and educate him- self still further at the same time, he took a four years' course at a Massachusetts State Normal School. After his graduation on the 2Ist of July, 1882, he taught for three years in the public schools of Hull and other towns in Massachusetts, and then went to Washing- ton, D.C., where he entered the Pension Bureau of the Department of the Interior as a clerk. He was there employed for five years, and during this time prepared himself to enter the profession of the law, taking a course of study at Georgetown University. He was admitted to the Washington bar in 1889. While he was in Washington, besides attend- ing to his business and the study of law, he also studied the science of medicine and sur- gery at Howard University, and was graduated from there as an M. D. in the year 1890.
Mr. William L. Sherrett was a Deputy
612
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
Grand Master of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and also high up in Masonry, as was also his father. He died of consump- tion in Florida in 1890; and his remains were sent back to Carver, and interred here by the Masons.
ALTER C. HAMMOND, Secretary of the School Board of Kingston, Mass., has been for a number of years in business in this town as a contractor and builder, and is a widely known and highly respected citizen. A son of Asa C. and Amanda (Clark) Hammond, he was born in Kingston, May 17, 1853.
Asa C. Hammond, who was born in Pem- broke, Mass., and is now in his seventy-sec- ond year, has resided in Kingston the greater part of his life. He learned the carpenter's trade when a young man, and worked at it for a number of years, but has now for some time been retired. An intelligent and influential citizen, he served for an extended period on the School Board of Kingston. His wife, Mrs. Amanda C. Hammond, was born in Plymouth, Mass. They are the parents of the following children: Eugene H., who studied architecture at Cornell University, and is now in business as an architect in New York City ; Walter C., the subject of this sketch; Isabella A. and Chester E., in Kingston.
Walter C. Hammond was educated in the public schools of Kingston. He was em- ployed for two years as clerk in the cordage works at Plymouth, and then engaged in the building trade, starting in business as a con- tractor when he was about twenty-two years old. He was very successful, and has fol- lowed the same line of business for twenty years, erecting a great number of private resi- dences. Mr. Hammond is essentially a self- made man, having carved his own fortune.
On June 15, 1878, he was united in mar- riage with Eliza Chandler, daughter of James and Mary (Peterson) Chandler, all natives of Duxbury, Mass. The Petersons, Mrs. Ham- mond's ancestors on the maternal side, were old settlers in Duxbury. Her parents reared five children : Abbot C., now in Janestown, R.I. ; Arthur J., in Plymouth, Mass. ; Louisa C., wife of John Stegmaier, of Kingston; Eliza (Mrs. Hammond) ; and Elmer C., resid- ing in Plymouth. Mrs. Hammond, though born in Duxbury, has lived in Kingston since she was five years old, and has many friends in this town. She is the mother of the fol- lowing children : Lester C., James C., Helen A., Elizabeth P., Walter C., Jr., Asa C., Jo- sephine P., and Lawrence C.
Mr. Hammond is a member of the Republi- can party. He has been for several years on the School Board of Kingston, and has been Secretary two years. An active Mason, he has presided for the past two years as Master of Corner Stone Lodge, A. F. & A. M., of Duxbury.
G EORGE H. SHAW, 2d, of Middle- boro, Mass., is well known in Plym- outh County as a retailer of shoes. He is in the habit of writing "2d" after his name, to distinguish him from another George H. Shaw in the same place, who is two or three years his senior. Mr. Shaw is a Grand Army man, and is proud to claim among his kindred other gallant soldiers, patriots of the Revolution and of the second war with Eng- land. He was born in Carver, Mass., August 24, 1834, a son of Linus and Dicey (Allen) Shaw.
Many succeeding generations of the Shaw family have lived and died in Plymouth County, and the name frequently appears in the industrial and military records. Mr.
613
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
George H. Shaw's great-grandfather was a Captain in the Revolutionary army; and his grandfather, Captain Joseph Shaw, was an officer in the War of 1812. His father, Linus Shaw, who was born in Carver, Mass., and was a moulder by trade, died in his fifty- first year, four years before the opening of the Rebellion. His wife was the grand-daughter of Captain Jacob Allen, a Revolutionary pa- triot, who was killed in the battle of Still- water (1777). Captain Allen was at that time in the flush of vigorous manhood, being thirty-eight years of age. Mrs. Dicey Allen Shaw lived to the age of fourscore and three. She was the mother of six children, five of whom are living: George H., the subject of this sketch; Linus Allen Shaw, chief of police of Watertown, Mass., who, as a soldier in the Eighteenth Massachusetts Regiment, served in the Civil War from 1861 to 1865; Jeannette H., residing in Whitman; Arlotha M., in East Bridgewater; and Calvin, now in Oakland, Cal.
George H. Shaw was reared in the town of Carver, and his early education was limited to the common schools of his native place. He went to work when fifteen years of age, being hired by the month; and, after his father's death, as he was the eldest of the family, the care of the household devolved upon him. The mutterings of the storm of war stirred the patriotic blood in his veins; and he joined Company K, Third Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, enlisting for three months. He re- mained most of the time at Fortress Monroe; and, after receiving his discharge, he enlisted again, being enrolled in Company B of the same regiment. During his second term of service he participated in several important engagements, and became familiar with the terrible realities of war. In June, 1863, he was honorably discharged; and, returning
home, he obtained employment in a box-mill, with which he was connected some thirteen years. He then engaged in the shoe business, and, purchasing a wagon, travelled from place to place, working up a large trade. In this way he made many acquaintances, and, while accumulating money, acquired a wide knowl- edge of human nature. Mr. Shaw is now grad- ually retiring from business.
In 1865 he was married to Miss Carrie B. Griffith, of Carver. This union has been blessed with two children, one of whom, Nellie M., is living. Mr. Shaw votes the Republican ticket. He joined the E. W. Pierce Encampment, of the Grand Army of the Republic, in 1867, and has presided as Officer of the Day, Senior Commander, in fact, has held most of the offices within the gift of Post No. 8 of Middleboro.
NDREW D. DIMMICK, senior mem- ber of the firm of Dimmick & Perkins, dealers in gentlemen's furnishing goods, Brockton, Mass., is a native of Barn- stable County. He was born February 24, 1857, in the town of Falmouth, son of Charles William and Esther (Robinson) Dimmick.
In the old country, long, long ago, this sur- name was spelled Dymoke; and a certain knight who bore it was famous as the champion of England. The first of the family in Mas- sachusetts, so far as known, was Colonel Dim- mick, an American officer in the Revolution, who by stratagem captured an English frigate off the coast of Weymouth. Among the inter- esting papers treasured by his descendants are several containing the signature of Washing- ton.
Charles Dimmick, father of Charles William, was born in Falmouth; and for many years he followed the sea, being for some time the
614
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
captain of a vessel. He passed his declining years on a farm in Falmouth, where he died at scventy-nine years of age. He was not active in public affairs, never caring for office. He belonged to the First Congregational Church of Falmouth. His children, all now deceased, were: a daughter, Mercy, wife of Captain H. Lawrence; Charles William ; and another son, who died in California.
Charles William Dimmick was educated in the district schools of his native town, Fal- mouth. Preferring to be a landsman rather than a sailor, and having a natural bent for mechanics, he learned the carpenter's trade, becoming a skilful workman and a master builder, and thereafter successfully engaged in business as a contractor. He died in 1890, aged sixty-eight years. He was a member of the First Congregational Church of Braintree. His wife, Esther, was a daughter of Fessen- den Robinson, of East Falmouth. They had four children, namely: a daughter, Mercy ; and three sons - Thomas, William, and An- drew D. Thomas and William died in in- fancy. Mercy Dimmick married Frank G. Hunt, of Weymouth, and died in 1892, at the age of twenty-seven years.
Andrew D. Dimmick was the youngest- born, and is now the only surviving child of his parents. He was cducated at Lawrence Academy, Falmouth, and at G. A. Sawyer's Commercial College, where he took a business course. He then became an entry clerk in a wholesale pottery house in Boston; and later on he entered the employ of Edward Young, wholesale dealer in shoe findings in that city, first making himself generally useful about the establishment, and then spending two years on the road as a travelling salesman, going through New England. After that, for about a year, hc travelled for S. A. White, of Boston, manufacturer of shoe dressing, the |
next twelvemonth finding him engaged in the office of Russell's Mercantilc Agency in Bos- ton as correspondent for the Southern and Western States. After working at book-keep- ing in the clothing house of Howard Cald- well, of Brockton, during the ensuing five years, he formed a copartnership with Fred Tucker, and under the name of Tucker & Dimmick opened a gentlemen's furnishing store at Holyoke, Mass. Returning to Brock- ton one year later, Mr. Dimmick again went into the store of Howard & Caldwell, this time as clerk in their furnishing department. In October, 1894, after eleven years of valu- able experience, Mr. Dimmick resigned his position in the employ of Messrs. Howard & Caldwell, and, in company with Jesse F. Per- kins, opened a furnishing goods store at his present place. It is now two years since; and their business in this period has so increased that they carry four times as much stock as when they started, their establishment being the largest in its line of trade in the county. They employ eight clerks in the evening.
Mr. Dimmick is a member of the Benevo- lent and Protective Order of Elks, Brockton Lodge, No. 16, of which he has been Secre- tary; and is also connected with the Royal Arcanum. He married in 1880 Carrie L., daughter of Freeman Shiverick. They have three children, namely: Esther Nye, fifteen years of age; Clifford Shiverick, ten; and Herbert Russell, two ycars.
P LIHU THAYER, a retired gentleman of Hingham, Plymouth County, Mass., was born in Quincy, Mass., October 25, 18II, son of Elihu and Elizabeth (Savil) Thayer. His father was a resident of Quincy, and a carpenter by trade. He married Eliza- beth Savil, and they had four children:
615
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
Elihu, the subject of this biography; Albert, of Quincy; Hiram, of Worcester, Mass .; and Lucy, who resides at Quincy. The father died at the age of seventy-two years.
Elihu Thayer had limited educational ad- vantages, attending school but three months in the winter and four in the summer, accord- ing to the custom of that time. Going to Dorchester at the age of fourteen, he found employment in a general store and public house at Neponset. Early in life he came to Hingham to work in a mercantile establish- ment; and here he led a life of constant activ- ity until about three years ago, when he re- tired. He has accumulated a goodly share of this world's goods, being the owner of several business houses in this town. Like other men who have been financially successful, he has worked his way from small beginnings. In politics at first a Whig, in these later years he has affiliated with the Republican party.
On January 17, 1836, Mr. Thayer was united in marriage with Susan Hersey, a daughter of Isaac and Lydia (Stowell) Her- sey. She was born in Hingham on August 27, 1811. Mr. and Mrs. Thayer have three chil- dren, namely: Albert Elihu; Susan Anne Frances, wife of Charles Burr; and Charles Marion. Albert E. Thayer, born here Janu- ary 28, 1839, became a grocer, and resided on Lincoln Street. On December 7, 1865, he married Harriet Davis Weston, who was born November 27, 1837, daughter of Coomer and Sally S. (Eddy) Weston, of Plymouth. Three children were the result of their union: Ed- ward Weston, Harriet Blanche, and Anna Everett. Albert E. Thayer died on March 7, 1885. Charles Marion Thayer was born in Hingham, September 2, 1852; and on Janu- ary 28, 1880, he married Ida D., daughter of John D. Remington. By this marriage there
is one daughter, Susie Burton Thayer. In re- ligious faith Mr. and Mrs. Elihu Thayer are Universalists. They reside on South Street, their life's evening cheered and blessed by the frequent presence of children and grandchildren.
HARLES S. SMITH, agent of the Goodyear Shoe Machinery Company at Brockton, and a machinist by trade, was born at North Andover, Mass., De- cember 20, 1860, and is a son of Francis Smith. His father, who was a sea captain for a number of years, still lives, having now nearly reached the age of threescore and ten. He has four children, three sons and a daughter.
Charles S., the special subject of this sketch, in his boyhood attended the public schools of Andover. At the age of sixteen he entered the employ of the Mckay Sewing Machine Company at Providence, R.I .; and after some time there he left to take a course in mechanical engineering at the Massachu- setts Institute of Technology in Boston. En- tering the service of George Corliss, of the. Corliss Engine Works, as machinist, he was subsequently made their representative on the road. Three years later he accepted a posi- tion as engineer with the Edison Electric Light Company at Lawrence, Mass., and worked in that capacity for about a year. Fol- lowing that, he again entered the employ of the Mckay Sewing Machine Company, but after a time resigned his position to associate himself in 1889 with the Goodyear Shoe Ma- chinery Company as their agent; and he has been in that position ever since. Mr. Smith and his wife, who is a native of Eastport, Me., have one child. Mr. Smith is a member of Massasoit Lodge, No. 69, Independent
616
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
Order of Odd Fellows, of Brockton; and of the Brockton Commercial Club.
LBERT M. THAYER, senior member the mercantile firm of A. M. Thayer & Son, of West Duxbury, is a veteran of the Civil War, and an ex-Repre- sentative to the Massachusetts legislature. He was born in Mansfield, Bristol County, Mass., September 13, 1836, son of Simeon and Martha (Fuller) Thayer. Members of the Thayer family were early settlers in Bris- tol County; and Simeon Thayer resided in Mansfield until his death, which took place when his son Albert M. was thirteen years old. His wife was a daughter of Isaac Fuller, of Mansfield, who was a descendant of Captain Isaac Fuller.
Albert M. Thayer, being thrown upon his own resources at an early age, was brought up by his brother-in-law, John Mason, of Pem- broke. He acquired a common-school educa- tion; and at the age of eighteen he went to Hanson, where he served an apprenticeship of two years at the tack-maker's trade with Na- thaniel Pratt, another brother-in-law, who carried on a tack manufactory. After work- ing as a journeyman in Hanson for a number of years, he went to Whitman, Mass., where he followed his trade until October, 1862, when he enlisted in the Fourth Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, and was assigned to duty in the Regimental Band. He was present at the siege and capture of Port Hudson, and accompanied General Banks upon the Red River expedition; and at the first-mentioned engagement he sustained a severe sunstroke, which threatened serious consequences. With good medical treatment he ultimately recovered, and was discharged from the service in September, 1863.
Returning to Whitman, he resumed his trade, and later became travelling representa- tive of the firm of Brightman, Litchfield & Vinand, for whom he had previously worked as a journeyman. Four years later he en- gaged in the dry-goods business in Whitman, which he conducted for four years; and from the end of that time until 1881 he sold dry- goods and notions upon the road. In that year he located in West Duxbury, and estab- lished the present firm of A. M. Thayer & Son. This concern does a large and profit- able business, dealing in dry goods, clothing, small wares, boots, shoes, furniture, carpets, paper hangings, etc. ; and, as their patronage extends over a wide circuit, they have devel- oped an extensive trade, which their honor- able business methods enable them to steadily maintain.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.