Biographical review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Worcester County, Massachusetts, Part 83

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 83

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J OHN W. BOARDMAN, of Boardman Brothers, merchants of Rochdale and Worcester, was born in Ashton, Eng- land, March II, 1856, son of John and Alice Boardman. His parents and their chil- dren emigrated to the United States in 1860, and settled in the part of Leicester called Rochdale. The father died July 25, 1875, and the mother when she was eighty-three years old. The children were: Elizabeth, who became Mrs. Harrison, and is now a widow; James E., now a member of the firm Boardman Brothers; Mary A., now. the wife of B. F. Barnes; and John W., the subject of this sketch. All reside in Rochdale.

John W. Boardman began his education in the public schools of this town, and completed his studies at the Worcester Academy. At the age of seventeen he entered upon an ap- prenticeship at the blacksmith's trade in Prov- idence, R.I., where he remained four years. Returning to Rochdale in 1877, he engaged in a mercantile business with his brother James, under the firm name of Boardman Brothers. From a small beginning their business has steadily expanded into its present large propor- tions. Besides the Rochdale enterprise they carry on a store at 28 Pleasant Street, Worces- ter, which was opened in 1891.

Mr. Boardman married Emma Greene, of

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Providence, R.I. His children are: Herbert T., Addic, Emma G., Alice, John W., and Frederick C. He is the chairman of the Board of Overseers of the Poor, and is now serving his fourth year as the secretary of the Board of Selectmen. In politics he acts with the Republican party. He is a member of Worcester Lodge, No. 56, I. O. O. F .; is the treasurer of Rochdale Lodge, No. 125, Ancient Order of Foresters; and the local consul of the Massachusetts Division of American Wheel- men. His ability both as a business man and an official has gained for him a far-reaching influence in the community.

R ILLIAM F. BRIGHAM, a former member of the Worcester Fire De- partment, whose heroism in this perilous calling is still remembered with ad- miration, was born in this city November 26, 1861. His parents, Samuel C. and Sarah R. Brigham, who are well-known and highly re- spected residents of Worcester, and reside at 234 Grove Street, have also reared three other children; namely, George H., Mrs. Eliza L. Livingston, and Mrs. Emma J. Smith.

Young Brigham was educated in the public schools of this city. At an early age he be- came an employee in Vaill's chair factory on Union Street, where he remained for twelve years. His connection with that establish- ment ended, with the failure of his employer. Subsequently he entered the wood-working department of the Washburn & Moen wire- mill on Grove Street, where he was employed at the time of his death.

In 1893 Mr. Brigham joined the fire depart- ment as a call member of Hose Company No. 4. So faithful and punctual was he in the fulfilment of his fireman duties that during his two years of service he never missed an alarm. Responding to the call at 5.05 A. M., June 30, 1895, from box No. 45, at the corner of Shrewsbury and East Worcester Streets, summoned the department to a stubborn fire in Hubley's rag building in Brackett Court. Mr. Brigham, as usual, was promptly at his post. He was one of the first to enter the building, and he fought the fire successfully for several

hours. When the fire was subdued, as he was standing in close proximity to Captain Avery, who was inspecting the ruins, the floor sud- denly gave way from the weight of the water- soaked stock, causing him and Lieutenant J. J. Boyle to be buried beneath several tons of wet rags. Though willing hands began to remove the almost impenetrable mass of tim- bers and débris, three hours elapsed before the task was done and the bodies of Hoseman Brig- ham and Lieutenant Boyle were found. The tragic event was profoundly regretted by the citizens generally, and many were the expres- sions of sympathy extended to Mr. Brigham's bereaved widow and parents. The city govern- ment took immediate action, and passed reso- lutions appropriate to the occasion. The ob- sequies were conducted by the Rev. Almon Gunnison at the First Universalist Church on Wednesday afternoon, July 3.

Mr. Brigham married Lilla A. Mayers, a daughter of C. A. Mayers, of this city. He left three children, namely : Fred, aged seven years; Gladys, aged four; and Ruth, aged two years. Domestic in his habits, he preferred to spend his leisure time with his family; and he was extremely devoted to his invalid mother. He was a member of the Firemen's Relief Association.

THAN ALLEN HARWOOD, one of the foremost farmers of North Brook-

field and a member of the State Board of Agriculture, was born September 21, 1847, on the farm where he now resides, and which has been the dwelling-place of the Har- wood family for six generations. A son of the late George Harwood, he is a direct de- scendant of Nathaniel Harwood, an early set- tler of Boston, whither he emigrated from England. The next in line of descent was Peter Harwood, of Boston, whose son, Eben- ezer Harwood, bought the Harwood home- stead in North Brookfield in 1740, and became the founder of the family in this part of the county. Ebenezer subsequently fought in the French and Indian War, and was killed at the battle of Louisburg.

Major Peter Harwood, son of Ebenezer, suc-

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ETHAN A. HARWOOD.

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ceeded to the homestead on which he spent his life. Inheriting the patriotic spirit that animated his ancestors, he served throughout the Revolution with the rank of Major, and at the execution of Major André was "the officer of the day." George W. Harwood, son of Major Harwood and the grandfather of Ethan Allen Harwood, was a lifelong resi- dent of North Brookfield. George Harwood, the father, spent his entire life on the home farm, prosperously engaged in agriculture. A man of strong character, he was much re- spected, and served at different times as As- sessor and Overseer of the Poor. In politics he affiliated with the Republican party. He married Angeline Allen, of North Brookfield. They reared the following children : Anna M., deceased, who married Freeman R. Doane, of this town; George W., who was the Lieuten- ant of a company in the Thirty-sixth Massa- chusetts Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War, and is now a prominent resident of Champaign, Ill., where he has served as City Clerk and Alderman; Ethan Allen, the sub- ject of this sketch; and Frances A., the wife of Herbert E. Cummings, of North Brookfield, whose biography may be found elsewhere in this volume.

Ethan Allen Harwood completed his early education in the North Brookfield High School. At once choosing farming as his oc- cupation, he took especial pains to familiarize himself with the most approved methods in agriculture. Being quick of apprehension, progressive, and thoroughly in earnest, he has as a natural consequence succeeded in all his undertakings. His well-improved farm is finely stocked with graded Jersey cattle, and furnished with all the machinery and implements requisite for general farming. Also interested in the North Brookfield Sav- ings Bank, he has been a director of that in- stitution for the past ten years. He has ren- dered valuable service to the public as a Representative of the Worcester West Agri- cultural Society for the past six years on the State Board of Agriculture; as one of the vice-presidents of the Spencer Farmers' and Mechanics' Association, of which he is a charter member; as a vice-president of the

Worcester South Agricultural Society ; and as an active member of the North Brookfield Grange. True to the political faith in which he was reared, he is a strong Republican, and has served on the Republican Town Commit- tee. On April 27, 1869, he married Miss Ellen R. Doane, a daughter of Roland F. and Amanda (Shedd) Doane, of this town. Anna M. Harwood is his only child.

ANFORD M. KENDALL was a leading merchant of Worcester. Born in Boylston, Mass., on No- vember 6, 1816, he was a son of David and Polly Kendall. His family is one of the oldest in the State, representatives of it having been among the earliest settlers here. Having obtained his early education in the common schools of his native town, he pre- pared for college under the Rev. William San- ford, of Boylston, and subsequently spent some years at Yale. Here he was unable to gradu- ate, as his eyesight failed him; and he was obliged to discontinue his studies. Afterward he taught school for some time on Long Island, N. Y. In 1849 he came to Worcester and entered the employ of Mr. White, a dealer in paints and oils, varnishes and artists' ma- terials. He soon won the confidence of his employer, learned the details of the business, and in time became the head clerk. Shortly after the removal of the business to the cor- ner of Main and Front Streets, Mr. Kendall became its proprietor, and for many years sub- sequently carried on a lucrative trade, both wholesale and retail.

The qualities which won success for Mr. Kendall were his enterprise, his careful busi- ness methods, and the confidence he inspired in his patrons by his well-known probity. As a merchant he took high rank in the city, and his judgment was held in general respect. A man of strong convictions and fearless for the truth as he saw it, he was outspoken in behalf of what he believed to be right; and his advo- cacy of any cause was sure to win it supporters. Had not physical infirmity in early life inter- fered with his original plans and ambitions, there can be no doubt that he would have taken

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a high place among professional men. Some years before his death, which occurred on May 5, 1887, he was obliged to give up his busi- ness on account of his health and retire to a quiet and less active life.

Mr. Kendall was opposed to secret societies, and never became a member of any of these organizations. He also opposed gambling of any sort and form. He was married on No- vember 18, 1844, to Louisa Brigham, who was a native of Roxbury, Mass. A son born of this marriage died in 1849, when two years of age. Mrs. Kendall, who survives her hus- band, is descended from one of the old fami- lies of Massachusetts. Both were active members of the Salem Street Church after it was founded in 1848, and he was a Deacon of it and the superintendent of its Sunday-school for many years.

YRUS POTTER, a former resident of Northboro, was a man of recognized worth and ability. He was born in Northboro, February 19, 1832. A son of James Potter, he was a direct descend- ant of Nicholas Potter, who emigrated from England in the early part of the seventeenth century, and died in Lynn, Mass., October 18, 1677. Robert, son of Nicholas, was born in Lynn, March 18, 1661. Robert's son, Ephraim, born in Lynn, April 5, 1683, mar- ried Sarah Witt. Their son, Ephraim, Jr., born March 5, 1718, had a son, Stephen, born in 1762. Stephen married Marion Tayntor in 1782, and removed to Marlboro, Middlesex County, Mass., where his death occurred May 25, 1824. James Potter, who belonged to the sixth generation of the family, was born in Marlboro, Mass., January 9, 1799, and there grew to man's estate. On April 27, 1825, he married Elizabeth M. Felton, of Marlboro. Subsequently he removed to Northboro, which he afterward made his home until his death, May 15, 1864, at the age of sixty-five.

During his active life Cyrus Potter was en- gaged in the provision business. A man of integrity, enterprising and progressive, he was deeply interested in the welfare of the com- munity in which he lived, and was many times

proffered positions of public trust that he felt obliged to decline. However, he served his fellow-townsmen as Selectman for five terms, and he was a member of the first Water Board elected by the town, serving in that capacity for three years; and he had charge of the building of the water - works. He devoted much of his time to this matter, it being one in which he was actively interested, serving without pay. He was also for many years one of the directorate of the Northboro National Bank. On May 21, 1857, he married Miss Sarah Augusta Burdett. Death from the effects of a paralytic shock deprived the town of his valued services on June 24, 1895. Mrs. Potter and their only child, William J., sur- vive him.

William J. Potter, well-known as the cashier of the Northboro National Bank, was born in this town April 20, 1859, and here received his education. In February, 1877, at the age of eighteen, he entered the bank with which he is now connected as clerk. In 1881 he was made assistant cashier, and four years later was promoted to the post of cashier of the institution. He is a stanch Republican in politics, active in local affairs, and has served the town most efficiently in several im- portant offices. For eight consecutive years he was Town Treasurer, and for several terms has been and is at present one of the commis- sioners of the water-works sinking fund. He is now serving his third term as Select- man. He was a trustee of the Gale Fund. On February 21, 1884, he married Florence A., daughter of John and Mary Brigham, of Northboro. They have two sons, twins, now twelve years old, Raymond Bemis and Nor- man Burdett.

AMES MCFARLAND, who was for twenty years superintendent of the Washburn Iron Company, was born in Hopkinton, Middlesex County, Mass., June 18, 1818. His parents were Cromwell and Betsey (Walker) McFarland. The race is of Scottish origin. Andrew McFarland and others bearing this surname were among the Scotch-Irish immigrants that settled in

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Worcester early in the eighteenth century. Their descendants are a sturdy people, and have always stood well in the community. Ancestors of Mr. McFarland on the maternal side were Revolutionary patriots.

James McFarland acquired a limited educa- tion in his native town, his opportunities for study being few. He went to work when quite young and learned the shoemaker's trade. When he was seventeen years old he sought employment in Worcester, and after trying several positions, changing when he could better himself, he engaged with T. S. Stone, shoe manufacturer. After being with Mr. Stone several years he became a member of the Worcester police force. As a guardian of the peace he was efficient and popular, and rapidly rose to prominence. He served as Sergeant, Captain, Assistant City Marshal, and Chief of Police. During the period of his connec- tion with the police department he was also associated some time with the city government as Common Councilman and as Overseer of the Poor, being clerk of the same board, serving in the latter capacity about ten years.

In 1870 he resigned the position of Chief of Police to become superintendent for the Wash- burn Iron Company, a large manufactory of steel rails and car wheels. The position was a very important one. Mr. McFarland had oversight of the productive processes, and had a great many employees under his supervision. He was esteemed for his faithfulness and re- liability, and was respected alike by his em- ployers and those under his direction. In 1888, after eighteen years of faithful service, he resigned his position on account of ill health. He died on June 18, 1890. Mr. McFarland was a man of strong mental and physical force, energetic and persevering. Genial and com- panionable, he made many friends. He was a strong Democrat, and served his party in many ways, giving liberally and working for its interest. He loved his home, and took pride in it. His daily life gave evidence of his regard for the highest Christian principles.

Mr. McFarland was married in 1838 to Sarah, daughter of Isaac Davis, of Rutland, Mass. Mrs. McFarland is still living in Worcester. Her immigrant ancestor on the

paternal side came to this country from Eng- land some two hundred years ago, and several generations of the family had birth in Worces- ter County. Isaac Davis, Captain of the minute-men of Acton, Mass., one of the two men killed by the first volley from the British muskets at the Concord Bridge in 1775, was her great-grandfather.

The following is a brief record of the chil- dren of Mr. and Mrs. McFarland: Eliza D., born September 10, 1840, died September 30, 1896; James S., born November 22, 1843, died February 1, 1877; Charles C., born December 14, 1844, died April 17, 1893; George H., born February 17, 1847; Estella, born April 7, 1851, died January 18, 1852. Eliza D. married William Pathie, and left two children ; Charles C. married Josephine Lang- ley, and also left two children; and George H., who lives in Worcester, married Mary Wells, of Vermont, and has two children.

YMAN S. WALKER, of Boylston, a well-known farmer and dairyman, re- siding on the road between Berlin and Boylston, was born in Barre, Mass., May 9, 1840, son of Nathan S. and Lydia (Bumpus) Walker. His grandfather, Ebenezer Walker, was a resident of Petersham and later of Athol, where he died. Ebenezer's wife, who was a Hastings before her marriage, died at an advanced age. They had a family of five children.

Nathan S. Walker, born in Petersham, was reared in that town and in Athol. He re- ceived a common-school education, and then worked at farming, first by the month and then on his own farm in Oakham. Having spent many years in Oakham, he died at the age of seventy-four. He was highly esteemed among his fellow-citizens, served the town as Over- seer of the Poor, and represented it in the General Court. His religious beliefs were in harmony with the teachings of the Baptist church, of which he was a trustee and an active member, also serving for many years on the Parish Committee. His first wife, Lydia, who died at the age of thirty-nine, was one of the

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children of Cephas Bumpus. The latter was a prominent citizen of Plymouth, a Represent- ative to the General Court, a successful farmer, and a devoted churchman. After the death of his first wife Mr. Walker married Mary A. Delvey, who died aged fifty years. By his first marriage there were five children, of whom three are living, namely: Lyman S., the subject of this sketch; Cephas N., a pro- vision dealer of Worcester; and Ada, a school teacher in New Hartford, Conn.

Lyman S. Walker passed his early years in Barre, remaining with his parents until eigh- teen years of age. Then he began to work out by the month. At the breaking out of the Civil War he joined the Thirty-fourth Regi- ment, Massachusetts Volunteers, subsequently saw much fighting, and was present at the sur- render of Lee. After he was discharged with the rank of Corporal, he returned North, and was for some time employed at Westboro in packing milk on cars for shipment to Boston. Then he was a packer in the boot and shoe business up to 1869. In this year he bought a farm of one hundred and fifty acres, a large part of which was heavily timbered. Asso- ciated with him in partnership until 1871 was George Morse, whose interest Mr. Walker at that time bought out. Since then he has bought an adjoining farm comprising eighty- four acres, and now owns about two hundred and twenty-five acres in all. This estate is devoted to the raising of fruit and vegetables and to dairying. Mr. Walker attends a milk route to Clinton, delivering about two hundred quarts of milk daily. He keeps about twenty- five head of cattle. The vegetable and fruit grown on his place are of the best grade.

In 1866 Mr. Walker was married to Harriet A. Merriam, an Ohio lady. Her father, Noah K. Merriam, a farmer, having spent the most of his life in Grafton, died in Worcester in 1895. He was the father of two children. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Walker are: Edward J. and Lena A. Edward, a graduate of Amherst Agricultural College, who assists his father, having charge of the dairy business, married Lula Bray, and has one child, Beth Louise. Lena married George H. Longley, the well-known blacksmith of this town. În

politics Mr. Walker is a Republican. He has served the town for three years as Assessor, for one year each as Overseer of the Poor and member of the School Board, and for many years as Road Commissioner. In 1893 he rep- resented the Thirteenth Worcester District in the legislature." A trustee of the Worcester Eastern Agricultural Association since its for- . mation, he has made many exhibits at its fairs and taken a large number of premiums. He was formerly a comrade of the Grand Army post at Westboro, of which he was the first Commander. At present he belongs to E. D. Baker Post, No. 64, G. A. R., of Clinton. Although a member of the grange and ac- tively interested in its proceedings, he has been obliged to refuse all official positions connected therewith. Previously a member of the church in Westboro, he has been in com- munion with the Congregational church here since he became a resident, serving the society in the capacity of Deacon for twenty years and that of superintendent of the Sunday- school for eighteen years. He is one of the State Apprizers for the Metropolitan Commis- sion, and has apprized over one hundred thou- sand dollars' worth of property in this and adjoining towns.

EV. GEORGE WILLIAM KENT, of Worcester, Mass. - Mr. Kent cites his experience as illustrative of the enormous growth of the great Eng- lish capital. He was born in the little coun- try town of Wandsworth, six miles from Lon- don, forty-two years ago (1856). To-day Wandsworth is a part of London, well im- bedded in its great mass of streets and build- ings. Most of his boyhood was spent in the beautiful suburb of Highgate on the north of London. Here he was sent to private school as a child, and later was educated at Whitting- ton College, remaining there until he came to live with relatives in New York in 1872.

After seeing something of the United States and reaching the conclusion that no better country need be sought this side of heaven, he went to the Divinity School of St. Lawrence University, New York, graduating

GEORGE W. KENT.

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in 1878, and was ordained to the Universalist ministry in the same year. His first pastorate was as minister of a little mission church in Jamestown, N. Y., the services being held in an upper room of a business block. The pres- ent flourishing Unitarian church of Jamestown is largely an outgrowth of that mission.

The young preacher of twenty-two, who has often smiled since then at the title of "Elder," which the venerable men of that section of the country were wont to use in addressing a clergyman, and hence soberly applied to him, next became minister of the Universalist church at Peoria, Ill., remaining there between four and five years. They were years of vigor- ous growth, blessed by many happy friend- ships; but the ague shook him so that at last, to shake it off, he sought the sea-coast, accept- ing a call to the only liberal church in the Canadian Province of Nova Scotia, that at Halifax. He added to the hazards of this ex- periment by taking unto himself at the same time a wife, marrying Miss Frances Ellen Comstock, of Buffalo, N. Y. Both ventures proved most happy ones, especially the latter. Indeed, Mr. Kent often claims to be doing his best and happiest to make the English-speak- ing peoples one. Born himself in England, of an American father and an English mother, coming to the United States in his minority and thus acquiring American citizenship, he married the daughter of an American father and an Irish mother, and has had two children born in Canada and two in the United States, making a very reasonable contribution to the unity of the American, English, Irish, and Canadian peoples.

After five happy and active years in Nova Scotia, doing no little missionary work about the Province and in Prince Edward Island. Mr. Kent returned with his little family to the land of his adoption, taking the pastorate of the Universalist Church of Reading, Pa. An- other five years of steady and successful labor followed, the material evidence of which may be seen in the noble church building erected during the ministry of Mr. Kent and largely by his efforts. Since his removal from Reading a memorial window has been placed in the new church as an expression of the esteem and affec-

tion in which he is still held by his old parish- ioners.

During those years Mr. Kent - always sus- tained and cheered by the sympathy of his church members - had been steadily outgrow- ing the conservative type of theology then taught in the Universalist schools and upheld by the Board of Publication, and had been entering more and more completely into in- tellectual and spiritual fellowship with the Unitarians. At the close of his ministry in Reading he therefore exchanged his formal fellowship with the Universalists for that of the Unitarians, and shortly after was given charge of the South Unitarian mission at Worcester.

Seven years of energetic service in this field have resulted in the establishment of a strong and compact church and in the erection of the beautiful building on Main Street known as the South Unitarian Church. In addition to his ministerial labors Mr. Kent is in demand as a lecturer. He has addressed many appre- ciative audiences upon his travels, and also upon the relation of evolutionary science to rational and natural religion. He is yet in the prime of life, and looks forward to many years of earnest and enthusiastic work in Worcester.

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Biographical review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Worcester County, Massachusetts, Part 83

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