Biographical review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Worcester County, Massachusetts, Part 69

Author: Biographical Review Publishing Company, Boston, pub
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Boston, Biographical review publishing company
Number of Pages: 1238

USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Biographical review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Worcester County, Massachusetts > Part 69

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).

YMAN N. FAIRBANKS, one of the most skilful and prosperous agri- culturists of Westboro, Mass., was born in Sterling, Worcester County, August 12, 1830. A son of Seth and Nancy (Nichols) Fairbanks, he is of old Colo- nial stock, being a direct descendant of Jona- than Fairbanks, who came from Yorkshire, England, in 1633, and settled at Dedham, Mass. This is the line: Jonathan,' Jonas, 2 Captain Jabez, 3 Jonathan, 4 Seth, Sr., 5 Seth, Jr.,6 Lyman N.7

The old Fairbanks house, built at Dedham by Jonathan, the immigrant, is still standing, and is occupied by a Fairbanks. Richard Fairbanks, the first Postmaster of Boston, ap- pointed in 1639 to receive at his house letters from abroad, was a brother of Jonathan of Dedham.

Jonas Fairbanks removed from Dedham to Lancaster in 1657, becoming one of the origi- nal settlers of that ancient town. He was killed by the Indians in 1676. Captain Jabez Fairbanks, born at Lancaster in 1670, was a famous scouting officer. During the Indian raid of 1697, when his brother Jonathan and one of the latter's children were killed, he saved the garrison at Lancaster from destruc- tion. He was very prominent in local affairs, and was Representative to the General Court in 1714, 1721, 1722, and 1723. He died at the age of about eighty-four years. Jonathan Fairbanks, 4 baptized at Lancaster, June 18, 1710, died in 1798. Seth Fairbanks, Sr., grandfather of Lyman N., was born Decem- ber 7, 1755, in that part of Lancaster now known as West Boylston, where his death oc- curred December 31, 1833. His occupation was farming. He was one of the patriots that responded to the Lexington alarm call, and he subsequently served in the Revolution as a cavalry officer, wearing a sword that is still in the possession of the family.

Seth Fairbanks, Jr., was born at West Boylston, October 6, 1799, and died in Lan- caster, November 9, 1843. He was a man of scholarly attainments, being a great reader and having a remarkable retentiveness. It was no unusual thing for him to commit to memory thirty pages of history in an evening. He was a farmer, and also worked at the car- penter's trade. He married Nancy Nichols, and had four children, born as follows: Lyman Nichols, August 12, 1830; Lucy Dodge, Oc- tober 6, 1833; Nancy Nichols, June 3, 1836; Ellen Ward, February 26, 1839.

Lyman N. Fairbanks had mastered the car- penter's trade by the time he was sixteen years old, and he continued to work at it two or three years after. Attacked by the gold fever in 1849, he joined the tide of emigra- tion westward, and, sailing from Boston on the good bark "Sea Breeze," rounded Cape Horn, and was among the first to arrive at the mines in California early in the summer of 1850. After an absence of about two years he returned to Fitchburg. He has since made two other trips across the continent. In 1854 he assumed the management of the famous

565

BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW

Nichols estate of six hundred acres in Fitch- burg, where he remained twelve years, and had twenty-five men working under him. Coming in 1870 to Westboro, Mr. Fairbanks bought his present farm, on which by re- building and remodelling he has constructed the best equipped set of farm buildings in this section of the county. In 1889 he again went to Fitchburg as superintendent of the Nichols farm, a position which he resigned in 1894 in order to resume the charge of his own extensive farming interests in Westboro. Here he makes a specialty of dairying, having a fine herd of sixty or more Holstein cows and all the modern appliances for successfully carrying on his business. Although he takes an interest in local and national affairs, he has never mingled in politics, believing that singleness of purpose and intelligent, perse- vering effort are the keynotes to success. And this he has most assuredly achieved. It has always been his custom to attend strictly to the work he has had in hand, never neglect- ing his own affairs to look after those of other people.

On May 5, 1853, Mr. Fairbanks married Eliza Ann, daughter of Silas and Eliza (Lowe) Hutchinson, of Lunenburg, Mass. They have had four children, namely: Lyman Nichols, a successful architect, who died in Westboro, June 18, 1881; Lila A., the wife of Charles Henry Hersom, of this town; Isaac Hutchinson, who is in business in Brookline; and Henry Allen, the youngest, who has charge of the milling operations of the Em- pire Mine at Grass Valley, Cal., the scene of his father's early mining ventures.

R EV. WILLIAM TRUE SLEEPER, a retired Congregational minister residing in Worcester, Mass., was born in Danbury, N. H., February 9, 1819, son of Jonathan and Mary (Parker)

Sleeper. He is a descendant in the seventh generation of Thomas Sleeper, who came from England in 1640.

His father was born in Andover, N.H., in 1791; and his grandfather, Thomas, who served in the Revolutionary War, was a native

of that State. Both were prosperous farmers. Thomas Sleeper married in 1771 Mary Davis, who bore him five sons and four daughters, all of whom except one son married and had large families. To each of his sons he gave a farm. He died in 1825.

Jonathan Sleeper, son of Thomas, carried on a farm in Danbury, N. H., for a number of years, and then moved to Smyrna, Aroostook County, Me. He resided in Aroostook County until his death, which occurred in 1865. He took an active interest in the relig- ion of Jesus Christ. He was twice married. Mary Parker, who became his first wife, and was the mother of his children, was the daugh- ter of Deacon Daniel Parker. She was born in Chester, N. H., about the year 1786; and at the time of their marriage, which took place in 1812, she was living in Salisbury, that State, a school teacher. She died in Smyrna, Me., in 1849. Three of their children died in infancy, and six grew to maturity, namely : Jonathan, who died in Sherman in 1888, leav- ing two sons and three daughters; Moses, who died in 1889, leaving two daughters; Daniel, who died in 1886, leaving two sons and three daughters; the Rev. William T., the subject of this sketch; Mary Ann, who is no longer living; and Martha Jane, who is the widow of Moses Perry, and resides in Island Falls, Me.

William True Sleeper pursued his early studies at the district schools in Houlton, Me., and acquired his higher education after he was twenty-one years old. Leaving the farm at that age, he fitted for college at Phillips Academy, Exeter, N. H. He was graduated from the University of Vermont in the class of 1850 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts, and later received the degree of Master of Arts. He paid his tuition with funds earned in teaching and canvassing. His theological studies were pursued at the Andover (Mass.) Theological Seminary ; and he was ordained an evangelist at the Central Church, Worcester, in 1854. The next three years were devoted to missionary work in this city, for the suc- ceeding four years he was chaplain at the Re- form School in Westboro, and for fifteen years he was a home missionary in Northern Maine. His residence in that distant locality may be

566

BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW

truthfully considered the busiest period of his useful life, as in it he organized a Congrega- tional church in Sherman; built houses of worship in Patten, Sherman, and Fort Fair- field; established at Caribou the North Star, a weekly newspaper, which he edited for three years ; projected and organized the Aroostook River Railroad Company, and secured its char- ter; and was County Supervisor of Schools four years, all of this being accomplished in connection with his regular missionary work. From 1875 to 1894 he was pastor of the Sum- mer Street Church in Worcester, and during that time he had the satisfaction of increasing its membership from fifteen to two hundred. On resigning his pastorate he was called to the Greendale Mission, Worcester. Here he or- ganized the society and erected the house of worship known as the People's Church, and after occupying its pulpit for two years he retired permanently from active labor.

On September 4, 1853, Mr. Sleeper married Miss Emily E. Taylor, daughter of James and Eliza (Morrison) Taylor, of Sanbornton, N. H., who were worthy Christian people and members of the Baptist church. James Taylor was a blacksmith. He reared one son and one daughter. The son, John P. Taylor, died sud- denly from the effects of an excitement caused by an alarm of fire. Mrs. Sleeper died sud- denly of heart-disease, August 23, 1898, aged sixty-nine years. She left three children : the Rev. William Washburn Sleeper, a grad- uate of Amherst College and of the Hartford Theological Seminary; May, a graduate of Wellesley College and now the wife of Frank W. Ruggles, of this city; and Henry Dike Sleeper, who studied music under Dr. Paine at Harvard University, was graduated from the Hartford Theological Seminary, and has acquired a high reputation as a composer. The Rev. William W. Sleeper was a mission- ary in Bulgaria for five years, and is now pas- tor of the Second Congregational Church, Beloit, Wis. He is married, and has three sons and one daughter. Mrs. Ruggles is a popular singer and teacher of vocal music. She has one daughter, Margaret. Henry D. Sleeper, who was instructor of music in the University of Wisconsin and director of

music and organist at the Congregational church in Madison for two years, has lately joined the force of instructors at Smith Col- lege as professor of the theory of music. He married a daughter of the Rev. Stephen D. Peet, of Illinois, and has one child, Mary Olive.

EACON ASA A. WESTCOTT, a well-known business man of Hope- dale, was born in Scituate, R.I., August 17, 1826, son of Thomas K. and Lydia (Steere) Westcott. The grand- father, Caleb Westcott, who was born in Scituate in 1753, followed agriculture in that town, and owned what was known as the Westcott homestead. He married Lydia Knowlton, who was born in the same town in 1757. His children were: Oliver, born in 1782; Thomas K., born in 1787; Lydia, born in 1793; Mary, born in 1795; Nathan, born in 1797; Caleb, born in 1800; and John. Nathan and Caleb were machinists. Caleb, when a young man, was engaged in building cotton machinery in Scituate.

Thomas K. Westcott, who succeeded to the ownership of the homestead and spent his ac- tive years in general farming and dairying, was one of the substantial men of Scituate in his day and a member of the Baptist church. He died about the year 1853. On September 17, 1817, he was married by Elder John Westcott to Lydia Steere, who was born in Gloucester, R.I., March 25, 1790, daughter of Asa and Mary (Iron) Steere. She became the mother of six children, namely: Abby S., born August 24, 1818, who is no longer liv- ing; Eliza, born July 5, 1820, who married John Wilder, of Gloucester, R.I., a builder located in Scituate, and died October 4, 1846; Charles M., born August 7, 1822, who mar- ried Betsey Ware, and was a carpenter and builder in Butler, Ill., where he died some years ago; Mary Ann, born June 22, 1824, afterward the wife of Dr. Jacob B. White, who died in Butler, Ill .; Asa A., the subject of this sketch; and Lydia Jane, born Novem- ber 22, 1828, who was for many years a school teacher in Cleveland, Ohio, and now

567

BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW

resides in Providence. Mrs. Eliza Wilder had two sons: William Wilder, now a pros- perous farmer in Johnson, R.I., who served four years in the Civil War; and Frank, who participated in the battle of Bull Run, and later died in the war. The mother lived to be over ninety years old.

Asa A. Westcott completed his education at the Scituate Academy. Having learned the trade of spindle-maker in Burrillville, R.I., he later went to the Franklin foundry and machine shops in Providence, where he obtained a good knowledge of the machinist's trade. For two years after his marriage he resided upon a farm in Scituate, and for the next ten years he was employed in the spindle shops, being the foreman for six years. Then he returned to Burrillville, and became a part- ner in a spindle and machine shop at that place, of which also he had charge, until he engaged in business for himself at North Scituate. In October, 1872, he fitted up a factory in Hopedale, still retaining his business in the former place. He has since conducted a flourishing enterprise, has rebuilt his mills, which at the present time are fur- nishing employment to about sixty men; and he has valuable real estate interests in this town, Boston, and Providence.

On November 5, 1850, Mr. Westcott was united in marriage with Elizabeth Aldrich, daughter of Wilmarth Aldrich, a prominent farmer and influential citizen of Scituate, who held various town offices and was a Represent- ative to the legislature. She has had six children - Augustus W., Wilmarth A., Mary A., David A., Maria Phillips, and Frank Thomas. Augustus W., born in Scituate, August 29, 1851, married Harriet A. Steere, and has two sons: Asa A., born August 9, 1877; and Roy, born May 29, 1884. Wil- marth A., born in Scituate, December 18, 1852, married Nancy A. Hopkins, and has two children: Henry Wilmarth, born April 22, 1880; and Hester, born June 22, 1883. Mary A., born in Scituate, December 17, 1856, is the wife of George N. Hopkins and the mother of one son, Harold Nelson, born May 10, 1882. David A., born in Scituate, October 6, 1862, who has been Town Clerk of

Hopedale since its incorporation, on Septem- ber 24, 1884, married Alice Whitney, and has one son, Charles Asa, born July 2, 1885. Maria Phillips was born in Burrillville, April 7, 1866. Frank Thomas, born in the same town, August 6, 1868, who is a civil en- gineer, married Elizabeth Tourtellot on May 31, 1894. Mr. Westcott has been a Republi- can since the formation of the party. He is a leading spirit in local affairs, and was Se- lectman and Assessor for a number of years. In religious belief he is a Congregationalist, and he acts as Deacon of that church in Milford.

OHN N. HILLMAN, an energetic farmer of Hardwick, was born in this town, May 12, 1864, son of Stephen P. and Alma (Newcomb) Hillman. His paternal grandfather, Stephen Hillman, born in the State of New York, was an early settler in the town of Dana, Mass., where he resided for many years. The latter portion of Stephen's life was spent in Hardwick, and he died on this farm at the age of eighty-seven. His wife, whose maiden name was Chloe Barnes, lived to be eighty-two. Stephen P. Hillman is a native of Dana, born August 7, 1828. He moved to Hardwick, in 1865, and is still actively engaged in farming, carrying on this place with his son. In politics he is a Republican, and he has been an Assessor of Hardwick. In religious belief he is a Uni- versalist. His wife, Alma Newcomb Hill- man, was born in Hardwick, March 29, 1830. They are the parents of four children, all living, namely: Joseph S., residing in Hard- wick; Ella M., the wife of W. H. Walker, of Greenwich Village; Charles D., in Fresno, Cal. ; and John N., the subject of this sketch.

John N. Hillman received his education in the schools of Brimfield, Mass. Since he left school he has given his attention to farming. He is now associated with his father in the care of the homestead, which contains about one hundred and fifty acres of land, and where they keep a dairy of twenty cows. He is also a stockholder of the Hardwick Creamery. Like his father, he is a Republican and a

568

BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW

Universalist in religion. For six years he has served acceptably as third Selectman, and he is the youngest member of the board. The office of Cattle Inspector is efficiently filled by him. He is a member of the Patrons of Hus- bandry, Grange No. 67, of Hardwick.

On June 17, 1896, Mr. Hillman married Susie B. Manly, a daughter of George and Mary Ann (Aiken) Manly and a grand-daugh- ter of Lilly S. and Susan (Horr) Manly. Mrs. Manly belongs to another old family of Hardwick. Lilly S. Manly, born September 16, 1796, in Hardwick, was a son of Josiah Manly, of Connecticut. By trade he was both a moulder and a painter. The last years of his life were spent here as a farmer and a dealer in hardware. He took much interest in town affairs, and served as Selectman and Overseer of the Poor. In politics he was an old-time Whig. In religious belief he was a Universalist. His wife, Susan, was born in Hardwick, January 20, 1806, daughter of John Horr, an early settler here. He died Septem- ber 18, 1863, aged sixty-seven, and his wife passed away March 2, 1885. They had ten children, of whom nine are still living; namely, Adeline, George, Carlena, Eleutheria, Fanny, Clarissa, Benjamin, Jane, and Ellen. Charles died in 1878. Mr. and Mrs. Hillman have been the parents of one daughter, Paul- ine Manly, since July 5, 1898.

AMUEL S. EDMANDS, a repre- sentative and influential resident of North Brookfield, was born here, February 1, 1812, son of Samuel and Lucy (Matthews) Edmands. His father, born in Framingham, and brought here when a boy by his parents, was for many years a prom- inent farmer in this town. His wife, a na- tive of New Braintree, bore him five children, of whom Samuel S. is living.

Mr. Edmands's life, from his childhood up, has been spent in North Brookfield. When a boy he was sent to the public schools of the town, where he acquired the foundations of a practical education. Subsequently he took short courses of study at Leicester and Dudley Academies. When twenty-four years of age he

engaged in the manufacture of boots and shoes in company with Gideon B. Dewing, firm of Dewing & Edmands. This partnership lasted for some years. Upon its dissolution Mr. Edmands became a silent partner in the firm of S. M. Edmands & Hulburt, which was in the same line of manufacture. His health having failed, he was obliged to retire from active business some years ago. One of the incorporators of the North Brookfield Savings Bank, he was its president twice for a number of years; and for upward of thirty years he has been a trustee and taken"an active part in its affairs. In politics he is a Democrat. He is public-spirited, and always has the best inter- ests of the town at heart. Every movement looking toward progress or reform finds in him a ready and influential advocate, as well as a financial supporter. He is a member of the parish society of the First Congregational Church.

Mr. Edmands first married Sarah Thompson, a daughter of Nathan Thompson, of this place. She bore him one son, John Edmands, who is now in Kalamazoo, Mich. His present wife, in maidenhood Susan L. Leland, is a daughter of the late Deacon Jonathan Leland, of Sut- ton, Mass. .She is the mother of one living daughter, Elizabeth L., who is now the wife of Edward K. Hill, of Worcester. The resi- dence of Mr. Edmands, in a fine situation, is one of the neatest and most commodious in this town.

ON. SYLVESTER DRESSER, for many years a prominent business man of Southbridge, Mass., was born April 25, 1820, in the town of Charlton, three miles from the village in which he long made his home, and where he died a few months since, August 2, 1898. His pa- ternal grandfather, Asa Dresser, Sr., a farmer and a lifelong resident of Charlton, was born in 1746, and married Abigail Wheelock, who was born in 1755. Asa Dresser, Jr., born in Charlton in 1785, was also a farmer by occu- pation, and lived to a good old age, his death occurring in 1863. His wife, Elizabeth Mc- Instry, who was born in 1787, a daughter of

- ---

SAMUEL S. EDMANDS.

571

BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW

William McInstry, died in 1860. Six chil- dren were born of their union, of whom Syl- vester was the latest survivor.

Sylvester Dresser obtained his elementary education in the district school, and on the home farm became familiar with farming pur- suits. In 1838 he spent one term at the high school, and afterward continued his studies at Nichols Academy in Dudley. The following eight years he was engaged as a teacher, and met with good success in the profession. He taught in Brookfield, Charlton, and South- bridge, Mass., and in Thompson, Conn .; and afterward he was assistant principal under Elisha Cook at Nichols Academy, which then ranked high among the educational institutions of New England.

In 1842 Mr. Dresser settled permanently in Southbridge. With a capital of eighty dollars he bought the small stock in trade of William S. Knowlton, consisting of toys, fancy goods, musical instruments, and so forth; and in the north-west corner of the Edwards Block, in a part of the store now occupied by the P. H. Carpenter Corporation, he began his mercantile career. Two years later he removed to a build- ing on the opposite side of Main Street, taking possession of a small room which is now used as a laundry. His business increased so that he was soon compelled to move to more com- modious quarters in the building now occupied by J. M. Marble and G. Nichols. In this store he added a new line of merchandise, in- cluding jewelry, silverware, watches, clocks, newspapers and periodicals, much of which he secured by purchasing the jewelry and book store of Robert H. Cole. This enlargement of his stock led to his securing the services of William C. Barnes, a practical jeweller, of whom a sketch appears elsewhere in this vol- ume. Mr. Dresser afterward admitted Mr. Barnes to partnership, and the business was conducted a few years under the firm name of Dresser & Barnes. Mr. Dresser then sold his interest to Mr. Barnes.

In 1852 Mr. Dresser bought from William Camp a stove and hardware business, and in 1856 established at Globe Village a branch store, which he subsequently sold to his man- ager, Mr. E. P. Lewis. In 1856 Mr. Dresser

built a brick block on Main Street, and on removing his store to the new building added a complete assortment of hardware. Four years later he built a second block. On the last day of December, 1874, both buildings were destroyed by fire. Mr. Dresser imme- diately erected the structure known as the Dresser Opera House Building, which is to-day one of the finest blocks in town. In 1864 he sold out his hardware store to Cum- mings & Williams; and in 1865, becoming interested in brick-making, he purchased on the Charlton City Road a large tract of land rich with clay deposits, and, forming a part- nership with the late William B. Potter, manu- factured bricks, which were shipped the next year from Southbridge by the first freight train to leave the town over the Southbridge and East Thompson branch of what was after- ward the New England Railway. In 1866 Mr. Dresser bought his partner's interest, and in 1 868 enlarged his operations by the purchase of land in Dudley. In 1881 he bought the Brown brickyard, in the southerly part of Southbridge. In his manufactures he consumed an immense amount of wood, a rough estimate being a pile four feet high, four feet wide, and seventy-six miles in length, or a pile that would extend from Southbridge through Boston into the Atlantic Ocean. He also had other interests, for some years being extensively engaged as a lumber manufacturer. In 1870 he bought a steam saw-mill; and he cut off large tracts of timber in Southbridge and Dudley, Mass., and in Woodstock, Eastford, and Ashford, Conn. He was also a heavy dealer in real estate. In 1853 he bought the Bela Tiffany land, on a portion of which he erected his family resi- dence, one of the finest in town; and he and others, to whom he sold, built twenty-five dwellings, a school-house, and other structures. On his Charlton City Road property he erected fourteen houses. Mr. Dresser represented his district in the State legislature in 1850 and in 1852. During the first term Ensign H. Kel- logg was Speaker of the House, and Charles W. Storey was clerk; and among his col- leagues were the Hon. George W. Boutwell, N. P. Banks, Henry Wilson, William Schou- ler, Moses Kimball, William Claflin, and

572

BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW

others who attained prominence in public life. During his second term George S. Boutwell was filling the Governor's chair, and N. P. Banks was Speaker. In 1861, the first year of the Civil War, when extra sessions were held, Mr. Dresser served as Senator from the Worcester South-east District. He served as Moderator of the regular and special meetings of the town for many years, and with the ex- ception of one year was Town Treasurer from 1846 till 1854. From 1848 until 1854 he was also Town Clerk; was Selectman in 1841, 1859, 1860, and 1876; was Assessor three years; one of the Overseers of the Poor four years; and was a member of the School Board in 1847, 1848, 1849, 1852, 1853, and 1854. He was one of the committee appointed to ar- range with Holmes Amidown concerning his gift of the library building to the town, and as one of the committee on building the new town hall he superintended its construction on be- half of the town. He was likewise one of the committee that labored successfully to procure surveys for a steam railroad from Southbridge to Brookfield. For forty years he was a direc- tor of the Southbridge Savings Bank, for more than thirty years he served as one of its vice- presidents, he was one of its auditors for a long time, and he served as one of the committee to erect the fine building it now occupies. He held the office of Trial Justice from the crea- tion of the law establishing this court until 1871, and was United States Assistant Asses- sor under Colonel Phillips when the internal revenue system was in force.

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.

Biographical review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Worcester County, Massachusetts, Part 69

Author: Biographical Review Publishing Company, Boston, pub Publication date: 1899 Publisher: Boston, Biographical review publishing company Number of Pages: 1238

Author: Biographical Review Publishing Company, Boston, pub
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Boston, Biographical review publishing company
Number of Pages: 1238