USA > Massachusetts > Franklin County > Biographical review; this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Franklin County, Massachusetts .. > Part 22
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 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76
Dr. and Mrs. Bowker are both members of the Methodist Episcopal church of Bernards- ton, he being on the official board of that church. They have six children living. One son, Charles Willett, died at the age of two and one-half years. The others are: Delcy Harriett, who was born in Savoy, February 21, 1854, married George W. Swasey, and resides in Centralia, Wash., where she is a teacher of music ; Alphonso V., born in Savoy, January 17, 1857, now a physician at Athol ; Samuel Dawes, a medical practitioner, born in Wilbraham, June 22, 1863, living at Rowe, Franklin County; Arthur Hume, born in Ber- nardston, April 18, 1867, employed in the shoe factory at Athol; Effie L., born in Ber- nardston, September 13, 1868, a book-keeper in Greenfield; Rosa Evelyn, born in Bernards- ton, March 16, 1870, a music teacher living with her parents; Charles M. Bowker, born in Wilbraham, July 10, 1860, and died March 2, 1863.
Dr. Bowker is a prominent and esteemed citizen of his town. He is now Chairman of the Selectmen and Overseer of the Poor, and is serving his fourth term as Selectman. He is also a trustee of the Cushman Library, and has been a trustee of the high school since first coming to Bernardston.
YDIA E. STOCKWELL, whose fam- ily name has been known in the annals of New England for several genera- tions, is an esteemed resident of the town of Gill. She was born in Hadley, Hampshire County, daughter of Flavel Stockwell, whose early ancestors emigrated from England to the United States in old Colonial times. In the history of Sutton, Mass., it is said that the emnigrant ancestor settled in Ipswich, married, and had five sons - William, John, Jonathan, Ebenezer, and David - all of whom settled in Sutton. The first John Stockwell married and had several children, including a son John, who, according to the same record, married first, in 1730, Margaret Smith, of Andover ; second, Lydia Elliott, in 1737; and, third, Lydia King, in 1749. John Stockwell, a descendant of the Sutton family of Stockwells, became one of the prominent farmers of Lever- ett in this county, where he spent his last years.
His son, Charles Stockwell, the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, was a native of Athol, Mass., and for a number of years a resi- dent of that town. He was a sturdy tiller of the soil, and made his first purchase of land in the town of Colerain, where he lived a short time, but later became one of the pioneers of Leverett, in that capacity assisting in its development and growth. He finally went to New York, and was never heard from in these parts afterward. He married Martha Moore,
186
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
who bore him six children : Dexter, Daniel, Flavel, Mary, Stillman, and Eliza.
Flavel Stockwell was born during the resi- dence of his parents in Colerain, and was there educated in its district schools, on the home farm in Leverett being drilled in the element- ary branches of agriculture. At the age of eighteen years he removed to Hadley, where he learned the trade of a broom-maker, which seemed to him preferable to farming. He worked at that until 1830, when he came to Gill. Here he purchased the property now owned by his daughter Lydia, and engaged in the occupation to which he was reared, becom- ing a successful agriculturist. The estate consists of eighty acres of land, all of which he placed under cultivation, making many and substantial improvements, continuing here until his death, in 1876, at the age of seventy- four years.
His wife, whose maiden name was Rebecca Merriman, was a daughter of Elijah Merriman and grand-daughter of Samuel Merriman, both of whom were life-long residents and well- known farmers of Northfield, Mass. Elijah Merriman married Rebecca Clendenning, and they settled on a farm in Northfield, and there they reared their three children: Rebecca, the eldest, who married Flavel Stockwell; Elijah, named for his father; and Lydia, the wife of Nathan Smith, now living in Clinton. Mr. and Mrs. Flavel Stockwell became the parents of five children, namely: Elijah S. and Lucy Ann, twins, both deceased, the former at the age of nineteen years, and the latter twenty- one; Luther A., also deceased; Ellen Re- becca, who married William H. Deane, and died leaving two daughters - Carrie Leona and Lucy Irene; and Lydia, of whom we write. Mrs. Stockwell, who survived her husband many years, resided on the Stockwell home- stead, tenderly cared for by her daughter
Lydia until her death, June 8, 1892, at the venerable age of eighty-eight years. She was a woman of rare personal worth and greatly beloved, a firm and trustful believer in the truths of Christianity, and with her family was a regular attendant of the Congregational church.
Lydia was a little girl of six years when her parents removed to the home which she now owns and where she has since lived. In her younger days she was thoroughly drilled in the domestic arts, and, after arriving at years of maturity, devoted herself to the care of her parents, lovingly administering to their wants, making the last years of their earthly life com- fortable and happy. On the death of her sister Ellen she adopted the two orphan girls, Car- rie L. and Lucy I., and gave them a mother's care. They received excellent educational advantages, attending the Powers Institute, and afterward completing their studies at Northfield Seminary, where they took a special course. Carrie Leona still lives with her aunt ; and Lucy Irene is the wife of Franklin P. Grout, a native of Warwick, but now a prosperous farmer of Gill. Inheriting the re- ligious belief of her worthy parents, Miss Stockwell is a regular attendant of the Con- gregational church, and is active in charitable works.
ISENLIO D. THOMPSON is a well- known farmer in the town of Heath and a veteran of the Civil War. He was born at Colerain, Mass., July 29, 1839, and is a son of Gurdin and Sophronia (Wilson) Thompson. His grandfather, Hugh Thompson, also a native of Colerain, owned and conducted a farm of two hundred and forty acres, and was very prosperous in worldly affairs. He supported the old Whig party in politics, and was a Congregationalist in his
187
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
religious belief. He died at the age of seventy-five years, having reared the following children : Levi, John, Adolphus, Gurdin, and Hugh.
Gurdin Thompson was born September 8, 1801, and during his younger manhood fol- lowed farming, together with the trade of a stone-mason, which constituted his occupation until he succeeded to the possession of the parental homestead by purchasing the interests of the other heirs; and then he engaged exten- sively in stock-raising. He attained to a posi- tion of prominence in public affairs, was a Whig in politics, and, like the majority of that political element, joined the ranks of the Republican party at its formation. He very acceptably served as a Selectman, and also held other important town offices. He died aged sixty-nine, and his wife at the age of sixty-two. Their children were : Franklin B., Laura A., Hugh W., Visenlio D., Gurdin A., Almira, Julia, and an infant who died.
Visenlio D. Thompson commenced farming upon his own account at the age of twenty-one years, but in 1862 enlisted as a private in Company B, Fifty-second Massachusetts In- fantry, and served one year in the Civil War, during which time his regiment was attached to the Department of the Gulf. He was pres- ent at the siege of Port Hudson, but, after participating in several minor engagements, became ill from exposure and forced marches of long duration under Major- general Banks, and was confined in the hospital at Baton Rouge for a period of three months. Having completed his term of service, he returned North, and bought a farm situated in the town of Charlemont, known as the Thatcher place, which consisted of one hundred and fifty acres. After residing there for a time, he sold the property and removed to Heath, purchased his present farm of one hundred acres, which had
been known as the Clemens property. He has erected a new and spacious barn, besides mak- ing other improvements, and is extensively engaged in dairying and sheep-raising.
Mr. Thompson has been twice married. On February 25, 1864, he wedded for his first wife Miss Flora J. Purrington, daughter of Thomas Purrington ; and she was called to rest at the age of twenty-five years, leaving three children, namely: Francis H., who married Lillian McLean, and resides at Colerain ; Mor- ris L. ; and Flora J., who is now the wife of Adelbert Stetson, of Heath, and has two chil- dren - Alice M. and Leoa Il. On November 24, 1870, Mr. Thompson was united in mar- riage to his present wife, Harriet A. Daven- port, daughter of Gano S. and Caroline (Gould) Davenport, her father being a progres- sive farmer of Heath. Mrs. Thompson's mother died about twelve years ago, she and her husband, who is now living, having been the parents of twelve children, named as fol- lows : George J., Sarah J., David S., Harriet A., Carrie L., Celestia L., Frank H., Charles G., Ella D., Lucas E., Addie M., and one child who died in infancy. Mr. Thompson's children by his second marriage are: Laura S., who married Charles R. Clark, of Granby, and has one child, named Walter S; Hugh L. ; Jessie G. ; Edward D. ; and Oscar R. Mr. V. D. Thompson is a Republican in politics, and both himself and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.
R EV. STILLMAN BARBER, an influ- ential and much respected citizen of Bernardston, and of late years en- gaged in farming, was born in Warwick, an- other Franklin County town, July 21, 1818, son of Azariah and Broda (Temple) Barber. His grandparents, Zachariah and Patience
188
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
(Whitney) Barber, were natives of Sherborn, Middlesex County, Mass. Zachariah Barber was a hard-working and successful farmer, and died in Warwick at the age of sixty-nine, his wife long surviving him, and dying at the same place, at eighty-nine years of age. They had four sons and three daughters who reached maturity, namely : Patty, Patience, Abigail, Azariah, Elisha, Cyrus, and Ebenezer. Aza- riah Barber, whose name appears fourth in the list, was born in Warwick, February 18, 1782, and resided there all the days of his life on a part of the old Barber homestead. He was an excellent farmer and a good man, hon- est and upright in his dealings, liberal in his religious views, and in politics a Whig. He died at the age of sixty-five; and his wife, who was born in the adjoining town of Orange, Mass., July 25, 1789, died at eighty-three. They had six children, only two of whom are now living: Stillman, the subject of this sketch; and Azariah R., a farmer of North- field, Mass. The deceased were: Harlow, Hervey, Albert G., and Elizabeth T.
Stillman Barber acquired his elementary education in the common schools of Warwick, and later enjoyed the advantages of two or three terms at a select school and two terms at the New Salem Academy. Being of a studious nature, he lost no opportunity to improve his mind. He would take his books into the field with him; and, poring over them without any instructor, he added not a little to the store of learning he had gathered in the schools. He committed to memory the first epistle of Pope's "Essay on Man " by keeping the book open before him while making shingles in his father's shop. When seven- teen years of age, he took charge of his father's farm, and, when eighteen, began to teach school, which he continued for seven terms ; and at twenty-two he engaged in business for
himself. Remaining in Warwick until 1844, he then moved to Lowell, Mass., where he lived for two years, at the end of which time he went to Meadville, Pa., and entered the Theological School. Shortly after graduating, in 1848, he took a pastoral charge at Como, 111., which he held but briefly, going thence to Rockford, Ill., but not to remain long. Re- turning to Massachusetts, he made his home once more in Warwick, preaching at various surrounding places till January, 1850, when he went to Rowe, in the extreme north-western part of the county. He was ordained in the following June, the Rev. Frederick D. Hunt- ington, now Bishop Huntington, preaching the sermon; and he held the pastorate of the First Congregational or Unitarian Church of that place three years. From Rowe he re- moved successively to Hubbardston, Worcester County, where he was pastor for a year and a half, to Townsend, Middlesex County, for two years, to Mendon for four years, and to Tyngs- boro, where he remained eight years. From Tyngsboro he came to Bernardston in 1868, and for three years he was pastor of the Ber- nardston Congregational or Unitarian church.
In 1872 he bought his farm, but did not move on to it till the next year, since which time he has given his entire attention to farm- ing. Ile owns a farm of sixty acres, with good buildings ; and the fact that he has in- creased its productiveness nearly three hundred per cent. is striking evidence of intelligent husbandry and assiduous toil. Having joined the Agricultural Society of Franklin County when he first came to Bernardston, he has held in it the offices of Vice-President and Trustee ; and he has also been President of the Farmers' Institute. Mr. Barber was married April 22, 1841, to Mary Cobb Fisher, who was born in Warwick, December 28, 1819, daughter of Moses and Lydia (Fisk) Fisher. She was but
189
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
two years of age when her mother died, her father having died before she was born. Till the time of her marriage, her early life was passed in Warwick, where she had a good home, and where, after receiving her education in the public schools, she taught school for two terms.
Mr. and Mrs. Barber are looked up to as among the leading citizens of Bernardston in intelligence and worth. They hold Unitarian views in religious matters, and he is independent in politics. They have two children : a son, Charles S. ; and a daughter, Caroline Augusta. Charles S. Barber, born in Rowe, August 21, 1852, is a commercial traveller for the firm of McIntosh & Co., of Springfield, Mass., having been connected with this company for twenty- two years. He married Grace E. Allen. They have two children - Edith L. and Mary E. ; and they make their home with his par- ents. Caroline Augusta Barber was born Jan- uary 18, 1859, in Mendon, Mass. She is a graduate of Framingham Normal School, has taught school continuously since 1878, and is now engaged in teaching in Plainfield, N. J. Franklin Stillman Barber died in Mendon when about two years of age. The Rev. Still- man Barber, having a strong love for the work of the ministry, has continued to engage in it when called on for occasional services up to the present time; and, though well advanced in life, he is still able to attend to the duties of his farm, and is as enthusiastic in the pur- suit of knowledge as in his youth.
ENRY O. ROOT, of Bernardston, a representative farmer of Franklin County, was born in this town June 30, 1830, son of Oliver and Elizabeth (Nich- ols) Root. His grandfather, Moses Root, was born in Montague, Mass., October 7, 1742;
and his grandmother, Anna Bardwell Root, was born at the same place, March 29, 1743. Their distant ancestors were English. Moses Root was a blacksmith, and diligently followed that trade through life, keeping the sparks flying from his anvil early and late. In poli- tics he was a Whig. He and his wife had eight children : Eunice, Anna, Rufus, Moses, Elihu, Oliver, Salmon, and Samuel, all of whom are now deceased. Moses Root died in Montague, December 17, 1817, his wife Anna having died November 24, 1809.
Their son Oliver lived in Montague till of age. While yet a boy, he was apprenticed to learn the trades of tanner and shoemaker, and, when he removed to Gill, he started in business in these lines for himself ; but, after living in that town for eight or ten years, being thus employed, he removed to Bernards- ton about the year 1810, and here, purchasing a large estate, he turned farmer, at which occu- pation he was very successful.
At the time of his death, which occurred at the age of seventy-eight, he owned two hun- dred acres of land. His last days were spent on the farm, which to-day is owned by his son. His wife, Elizabeth Nichols Root, was born at Guilford, Vt., August 29, 1793, and died in 1867, at the age of seventy-four years. They were both members of the Unitarian church, and for many years Oliver Root offi- ciated as Deacon. He was a Republican, and was a citizen of more than usual note, both in Gill and Bernardston, being a Selectman in Bernardston, and also filling sundry other offices.
Henry O. was the elder of the two chil- dren of Mr. and Mrs. Oliver Root. His sis- ter, Sarah E., now Mrs. Holton, resides in Winchester, Mass. Henry O. Root grew to manhood in Bernardston, receiving his educa- tion in the public schools of that town and in
190
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
Goodell Academy. He took up farming as a means of gaining a livelihood, and, being in- telligent, diligent, and painstaking, has fol- lowed it with marked success. He now owns the old farm, and has added more land, making all together about two hundred acres of land. A man of great energy, combined with good business tact, and one who has always shown a lively interest in the general welfare, his ad- vice carries weight in matters pertaining to the ? good of the town. Mr. Root has been Se- lectman for nineteen years, and has held other local offices.
On November 25, 1858, he was married to Alma O. Hale, who was born in Bernardston, September 16, 1834, daughter of John F. and Alcy (Weeks) Hale. Mr. Hale was a native of Bernardston, and his wife of Halifax, Vt. He was a farmer, and died at the age of eighty-seven. His wife is still living on the old homestead, now aged eighty-seven years. They had three children: Fanny C., who became Mrs. Whitehead, died at the age of fifty-four; Ellen A., now Mrs. Shattuck, re- sides in Bernardston. Mrs. Root is the younger of the two living.
Mr. and Mrs. Root have two sons: Frank O. Root, born August 23, 1859, and now residing in Rochester, N. Y., is a commercial traveller for a boot and shoe house; Warren II. Root, who was born August 9, 1870, is a clerk in the wholesale boot and shoe house of McIntosh & Co., of Springfield, Mass. Lizzie M., the only daughter born to Mr. and Mrs. Henry O. Root, died at the tender age of four months. Mr. Root and his wife are mem- bers of the First Unitarian Church of Ber- nardston ; and in politics he is a Republican. He is an active and valued member of the Franklin County Agricultural Society, with which he has been identified since he became of age.
EORGE PIERCE, Assessor of the town of Greenfield and a veteran of the Civil War, was born at North- ampton, March 2, 1830. His father, George Pierce, Sr., was born in Greenfield in 1804, and died at Deerfield in 1878. He was a son of Samuel Pierce, a native of Middletown, Conn., who settled at Greenfield in 1790, and there followed his trade, that of pewter-smith, manufacturing spoons, platters, and other arti- cles of table and kitchen ware. He erected a factory and salesroom on Main Street, south side, near the railroad arch, and later pur- chased the land opposite the Mansion House, where in 1811 he built a brick block, in which he conducted his business upon a larger scale. He manufactured also tinware and lead pipe, his sons being connected with him in the enterprise, which was carried on successfully between 1812 and 1845, they being the pioneer stove dealers of the town. He owned a large tract of land on High Street, extending from the top of Rocky Mountain through Highland Avenue, west to Congress Street, Highland Avenue then being the old turnpike road to Albany.
Samuel Pierce was one of the founders of the Episcopal church in this place. He mar- ried Anna Joyce, of Middletown, and raised a family of ten children, three of whom became victinis of an epidemic which occurred in 1804. Of those who lived to reach maturity, all married and became heads of families with the exception of Phebe, who accompanied her brother Samuel to Iowa. Their names were as follows : John J., Phebe, George, Henry, Hubbard, and Samuel. Samuel, Sr., died about 1841, aged seventy-two years, his widow passing to her rest in 1844, aged about seventy -four.
The maiden name of Mr. Pierce's mother was Olive D. Wilson. She was born at Cole-
19I
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
rain in 1808, daughter of William and Polly (Sisson) Wilson. Her marriage to George Pierce, Sr., occurred about the year 1825 ; and their four children were as follows: James D., who was born in 1827, and is now a merchant of Milwaukee, where he has been in business for over thirty years; William, who was a tinman by trade and an early pioneer in Cali- fornia, and who died in Greenfield, January 15, 1868, aged thirty-nine years, leaving a widow and three children ; George; and Henry H., who died while engaged upon a military expedition to Puget Sound in 1889, aged fifty- eight, leaving a widow and two children. Henry H. Pierce was a veteran of the Civil War, having enlisted in the First Connecticut Heavy Artillery, in which he rose from a private to the rank of Major, serving in the Army of the Potomac. As a reward for his bravery and valuable service, he was tendered a commission as Lieutenant in the regular army, being at the time of his death brevet Captain and Adjutant of the Twenty - first United States Infantry, stationed at Fort Van- couver, near Portland, Ore.
He was a graduate of Trinity College, Hart- ford, and, after his appointment to the regular army, was for six years professor of mathe- matics and military tactics at Morgantown, W. Va., subsequently filling a like position at the University of Michigan. He was a re- markable classical scholar, and during his leisure moments completed a translation of Virgil, which has been published by Lippin- cott, and is considered by scholars a most cred- itable production. His widow, who was the daughter of a prominent Washington clergy- man, now resides at Baltimore, where she is educating her son. Her daughter Katherine is the wife of a clergyman named Waters, liv- ing in Dubuque, Ia. Mrs. Olive D. Pierce died in 1838; and the father married for his
second wife Sarah Ann Kemp, his children by this union being : Phebe, widow of William McClellan, of Springfield, an accomplished soprano singer; and Samuel R., a musician and piano-tuner in New York State.
George Pierce received a good education in the Greenfield public schools, and resided with his uncle Samuel for three years subsequent to the death of his mother. At the age of fifteen he began to learn the trade of a tinsmith in Northampton, and, after serving an apprentice- ship of four years, returned to Greenfield, where he worked with his brother for two years, at the end of which time he purchased the business, and continued it until 1858. In 1859 he was appointed a custom - house in- spector in Boston, and served in that position until 1861, when he resigned, and, enlisting at Greenfield, was commissioned First Lieu- tenant of Company G, Tenth Massachusetts Infantry. He succeeded to the command of his company, following the death of Captain Edwin E. Day, who was killed at the battle of Fair Oaks, and re-enlisted in 1864, being detailed to command a detachment of recruits and re-enlisted men of the Tenth, which were transferred to the Thirty-seventh Regiment the day preceding the battle of Winchester, where they were ordered into action, Captain Pierce commanding the advanced company. He was there wounded in the right shoulder, the wound being of such a serious nature as to incapacitate him for further service, he having previously been slightly wounded at the battles of Malvern Hill and Spottsylvania. He was engaged in the expedition which opposed Early's raid on Washington. Captain Pierce was mustered out November 13, 1864, having been in active service three years and five months.
After returning from the army, he engaged in the crockery and glassware business, pur-
192
BIOGRAPHICAL REVIEW
chasing the store of Frank Long, which he conducted until 1875. Having spent the next two years as a commercial traveller, in 1877 he was appointed Assessor, a position which he still holds, his present term not expiring until 1897. He is also Clerk for the Board of Selectmen and Town Clerk, and is a Democrat in politics. Ile is a prominent member of the Grand Army of the Republic, having been commander of the first post organized here; was made a Mason in 1854, in which he has advanced to the Knight Templar degree or Commandery, having filled important chairs in the various lodges. He is also a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and of the Encampment, being one of the petitioners for the new lodge.
In 1857 he wedded Miss Catherine L. Scott, the marriage ceremony taking place at the St. James Church, January 13, at seven A. M., the officiating clergyman being its rector, the Rev. Titus Strong. Their three children are : Edwin F., a resident of Milwaukee, and secre- tary of the Electric Supply Company of Wis- consin ; Harry C., of Greenfield, an employee of the American Express Company, who is married and has two children; and Dorus M. ยท Pierce, a practical printer, who is engaged with the Youth's Companion Company of Bos- ton, and resides in that city.
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.