USA > Massachusetts > Franklin County > Biographical review; this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Franklin County, Massachusetts .. > Part 54
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Mr. Farwell is a Republican in politics and devoted to the interests of the party. He is a member of the A. F. & A. M. of Tur- ner's Falls, also of the Chapter of that fraternity and of the Connecticut Valley Com- mandery at Greenfield, and has held several offices in the Blue Lodge. He and his family are connected with the Baptist society, in which he holds the office of Trustee. Mr. Far- well holds a prominent position in the commu- nity. The prosperity of the mill is chiefly owing to his enterprise and practical ability, the working facilities of the machinery being now so applied as to furnish forty tons of finished paper per day in place of four tons, their early record.
YMAN O. GUNN, of Erving, who re- sides upon the road leading from this town to Miller's Falls, was born at Montague, December 27, 1834, son of Asahel and Caroline (Stone) Gunn. The family are descendants of Moses Gunn, an early inhabi- tant of Montague, who was sent in 1775 as a
delegate from this district to the Provincial Con- gress. For a more extended account of their ancestors, the reader is referred to the History of Connecticut Valley which was published in 1879. Mr. Gunn's great-grandfather, Abel Gunn, a farmer, was a native and lifelong resident of Montague. Abel Gunn, Jr., re- sided in Montague until after marriage, and then moved to Wendell, where he was engaged in farming for twenty-five years. He finally returned to Montague, where he passed the remainder of his life. He was the father of nine children, two sons and seven daughters.
Asahel, the younger son, was born February 9, 1800, and succeeded to the possession of the old homestead, upon which he resided until 1835, when he moved to Cabot, Vt., where he died on May 4, 1883. His wife, Caroline Stone, whom he married January 7, 1829, was a daughter of Matthias Stone, who was born in Massachusetts, October 13, 1769, son of Mat- thias and Susan (Chadwick) Stone, grandson of Ebenezer, and great-grandson of the Rev. Nathaniel Stone (Harvard College, 1690). Nathaniel, who was a native of Watertown, and son of Simon Stone, married Reliana, daughter of Thomas Hinckley, the last gov- ernor of Plymouth Colony. He was ordained and settled as pastor at Harwich, Barnstable County, in 1700, and died February 5, 1755, aged about eighty-eight years.
Matthias Stone, who was a farmer by occu- pation, moved from Massachusetts to Clare- mont, N. H., and later to Cabot, Vt., where he was an early settler, and died at the age of seventy-eight years. Caroline Stone was born in Claremont, November 29, 1804. She received a good education, and taught school in Cabot until her marriage. She became the mother of six children, of whom but two are now living: Lyman O. and Rodney A. Walter T., born March 7, 1831, died January
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17, 1835 ; Clarissa L., born October 10, 1833, died January 6, 1855 ; Julia Ann, born April 19, 1837, married A. A. Perry, died Decem- ber 12, 1893 ; Judith Caroline, born February 21, 1847, died May 22, 1865. Rodney A., born February 15, 1840, married May 31, 1884, Nellie G. Briggs. The mother died at the home of her son Lyman, December IS, 1888, aged eighty-four years. Mr. Gunn's parents were attendants of the Methodist church.
Lyman O. Gunn was educated in the dis- trict schools, and remained at home assisting his father upon the farm until reaching the age of twenty-one, when he went to Auburn, Kan., and engaged in the occupation of making brooms, manufacturing the first broom ever made by machinery in that State. After re- maining there two years he returned East and spent some time in Vermont, partly in the employ of the Fairbanks Scale Company, also following the carpenter's trade. In 1862 Mr. Gunn enlisted in Company G, Sixteenth Ver- mont Regiment, for nine months' service in the Civil War. He took part in the battle of Gettysburg, and was subsequently confined in the hospital from the effects of exposure and forced marches. Returning to the Green Mountain State and receiving his discharge from the army at the end of his term of enlist- ment, he purchased a farm and for four years successfully engaged in agriculture. Selling that farm, he removed to Montague and pur- chased another, upon which he resided for the next ten years. Finally disposing of the latter property, he came in 1879 to his present farm, consisting of one hundred and seventy- seven acres of well-improved land, which is devoted to dairying and general farming.
On January 2, 1866, Mr. Gunn was married to Miss Mary A. Nims, daughter of William Nims. Mrs. Gunn's paternal grandfather,
Jonathan Nims, born on May 12, 1763, was a farmer in Heath. He reared a family of eight children, all of whom have passed away. William Nims learned the trade of a cloth- dresser, which he followed for some time, later returning to the farm, where he died in early manhood, at the age of thirty-eight years. His wife was Phila Gunn, daughter of an elder Asahel Gunn, a brother of Abel Gunn, Jr. Hence Mr. and Mrs. Lyman O. Gunn have the same ancestor, Abel Gunn, Sr. The other children of Mrs. Gunn's par- ents were: Hopkins W., who died young ; William Rodney, who was born in 1830, and died in 1854; Reuben; and Phila A., who was born in February, 1834, and died in 1853.
Mr. and Mrs. Lyman O. Gunn have had one child, named Carrie May, who died young. Their two adopted children are: Effie, who married H. C. Hood, inspector at Northamp- ton, having two children - Ailene and Dora, the latter now deceased; and George, a mechanic, residing at Northampton. Mr. Gunn is a Republican in politics, and has very ac- ceptably filled the offices of Assessor, Overseer of the Poor, and Selectman for two years, and is also a member of the School Board. He has been a Trustee of the Franklin Fair Asso- ciation for some years, and was made a Mason at St. Johnsbury, Vt., in 1863, being at the present time a member of the Blue Lodge there. He is also a member of General Sedg- wick Post, No. 17, Grand Army of the Repub- lic. He attends the Congregational church, of which Mrs. Gunn is a member.
OHN B. PACKARD, President of the Conway Savings Bank, also of the Con .- way Creamery Company, and a highly respected and prosperous agriculturist of Con- way, Franklin County, Mass., was born on the
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old Packard homestead in this town, son of Bradley and Mary (Webster) Packard.
His grandfather, Joseph Packard, who was a successful farmer, died in Conway when but forty-seven years of age, leaving seven chil- dren : John, Alvah, Timothy, Bradley, Joseph, Sally, and Polly. Bradley Packard, who was born in Conway, grew to manhood and became, like his father, a cultivator of the soil. He first engaged in farming in the east part of the town, but afterward sold that farm and re- moved to the place near the centre of the town now owned by his son, John B. Packard. He here spent the remainder of his life, dying at seventy-three years of age. In political affil- iation Bradley Packard was a Republican. His wife, Mary Webster Packard, who was born and reared in Goshen, Hampshire County, Mass., was a daughter of Robert and Rebecca Webster. She died at forty-eight years of age, having borne her husband four children : Francis S., John B., Elvira E., and Azel A. Both parents were consistent mem- bers of the Congregational church.
John B. Packard lived with his parents until their death, after which he purchased the in- terests of the other heirs and thus became the owner of the farm, which now contains four hundred acres. He is here profitably engaged in general farming, making a specialty of dairying and also devoting considerable atten- tion to sheep-raising, his present flock num- bering one hundred and seventeen.
At twenty-six years of age Mr. Packard was united in marriage with Miss Seviah E. Foote, who was a native of Williamsburg, Mass., and a daughter of Emerson Foote. Her father later on removed to Conway, where she received her education. She died at thirty-nine years of age; and Mr. Packard afterward married his present wife, who was Mrs. Augusta M. New- ton, a daughter of Josiah Taft. She was born
in Heath, Mass., but soon after went with her parents to Greenfield, Mass. By her first marriage Mrs. Packard has one daughter, Har- riet Newton, now the wife of J. F. Parker, who is engaged in farming with Mr. Packard. Mr. and Mrs. Parker have a son and daugh- ter, John H. and Myrtle May Parker.
Politically, Mr. Packard is a stanch Repub- lican. In 1889 he represented his district in the State legislature, and he has also served acceptably as Overseer of the Poor. He is President of the Conway Savings Bank and a Director of the Conway National Bank, in both of which he serves as a member of the Investment Committee. He is an influential member of the County Harvest Club, and President of the Conway Creamery Company, and a stockholder in the Conway Electrie Street Car Company. Mr. Packard and his wife are both active and influential members of the Congregational church.
ILLIAM WELLS was for many years associated with the highest and best interests of the town of Shelburne, and as a progressive eitizen, one of its prominent agriculturists and the worthy descendant of one of its earliest pioneers, is deserving of honorable mention in this volume. He was born April 22, 1838, on the home- stead where. his widow now resides; and this was likewise the birthplace of his father, David Wells, who was born December 18, 1 797.
The latter was a grandson of Colonel David Wells, who was born in Colchester, Conn., September 20, 1723, and came to this town in 1772 with his family, settling on the estate which has since been in the possession of the family. Colonel Wells, it is supposed, was a soldier in the French and Indian War, and was
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likewise a hero of the Revolution, command- ing a regiment at several of the famous battles, and being present in an official capacity at the surrender of General Burgoyne. He attained a venerable age, dying on the homestead which he had cleared from the wildernes, January 10, 1814. His wife, Mary Taintor, whom he married January 19, 1749, was also a native of Colchester, born November 6, 1727, a de- scendant of Charles Taintor. Colonel Wells was the son of Noah and Sarah (Wyatt) Wells, of Colchester, who were married on April 15, 1714.
Captain William Wells, son of Colonel David and grandfather of him of whom we write, was born July 27, 1767, in Colchester, being a little lad of five years when he came with his parents to Shelburne. The log cabin in which he was reared to manhood was super- seded by the present residence previous to 1794, this having been built by Colonel Wells. Captain Wells succeeded to the ownership of the four-hundred-acre farm of his parents, and here spent his whole life, dying July 11, 1848. He was for sixteen years chairman of the Board of Selectmen, and was a member of the State legislature for thirty sessions. On December 8, 1794, he was united in marriage with Prudence May, who was born in Haddam, Conn., September 14, 1768, daughter of the Rev. Eleazer May ; and she survived her hus- band, dying May 6, 1862. They reared nine children, David being the second son.
David Wells was a farmer by occupation, living on the homestead property which his ancestors had cleared and improved, and was a useful and influential citizen, being chair- man of the Board of Selectmen for many years, besides holding other important offices. In politics David Wells was formerly a Whig, but on the formation of the Republican party became one of its most zealous adherents. He
was a man of progressive ideas and high moral principles, and both he and his wife were identified with the Unitarian church. He attained a ripe old age, dying January 19, 1891. His wife was Helena F. Thwing, a daughter of Amariah Thwing, of Conway, where she was born July 28, 1805. She passed to the higher life August 12, 1879. They were the parents of five children, of whom the two living are : Emily, born April 18, 1836, the wife of S. B. Smith, of Green- field; and Frances Cornelia, born February 27, 1849, residing on the old home farm. The eldest, Mrs. Ellen W. Stebbins, born September 7, 1833, died December 9, 1874; Catherine, born November 4, 1843, died May 25, 1853; and William, to whom we now return, died March 4, 1883.
William Wells was reared on the homestead, and, after completing his elementary education in the public schools of this locality, further pursued his studies at Powers Institute in Bernardston and at the Deerfield Academy. Turning his attention to agriculture in all of its branches, he remained an inmate of the paternal household until September 9, 1862, when he enlisted in the service of his country as a member of Company A, Fifty-second Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. He was made Corporal of the company, which was under the command of Captain Long, and was at the front in many of the important engage- ments of the war, and while stationed in Louisiana was appointed head jailer, having control of the prisoners confined in the State House. At the expiration of his term of ser- vice he was honorably discharged, in 1863, and again resumed his chosen occupation, man- aging the large property until his decease, carrying on general farming after the most approved modern ways. In politics he was an adherent of the Republican party ; socially, he
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was a member of Greenfield Lodge, A. F. & A. M. ; and in religion he and his wife recog- nized and accepted the principles and doctrines set forth by the leading lights of the Unitarian denomination.
William Wells and Mary E. Ballou were married on December 20, 1865. Mrs. Wells was born April 1, 1843, at Halifax, Vt., daughter of Perley and Lovina (Hayden) Bal- lou, both natives of that place. Her father was born in 1805, and her mother in 1810. Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Wells, namely: Ellen Sophia, October 4, 1866, now the wife of Albion Hitchcock, of Holyoke, Mass .; Mary P., November 18, 1874, and Alice M., August 4, 1878, both living with their mother. Since the death of her husband Mrs. Wells, who is an intelligent, energetic, and practical woman, has success- fully superintended the management of the large estate, which contains four hundred and thirty-two and two-thirds acres of land, a por- tion of which is located in the town of Green- field, although the larger part is within the limits of Shelburne. Fifteen acres are devoted to the raising of choice fruits, the orchards containing large numbers of apple, peach, pear, and cherry trees, besides the smaller fruits. She has also a large dairy, consisting of twenty-five cows, mostly Durhams, besides other stock.
REDERICK G. WOODARD, a well- known and highly respected citizen of Erving, where he is engaged as a sash and door manufacturer, was born in this town, August 30, 1840, son of Seth H. and Cather- ine (Stone) Woodard. His paternal grand- father, John Woodard, was a native of that part of old Reading, Mass., which is now in- cluded in Wakefield ; and he there followed the vocation of a farmer, pursuing the same occu-
pation later in Westminster, Mass. He died in the latter place when but forty-six years of age.
Seth H. Woodard was one of six children and the third in order of birth. He was but seven years old at the time of the death of his father, John, and was obliged to work toward his own support at an early age. His youth was spent on a farm; but he afterward learned the stone cutter's trade, and quarried and hewed the stone for the bridges on the Ver- mont & Massachusetts Railroad. The de- clining years of his toilful life were passed on the farm of his son, Frederick G. Woodard. He died at the age of seventy-four. His wife, Catherine Stone, was one of six children of Eliab and Dolly (Armstrong) Stone, the for- mer a farmer of Wendell, where she was born and where her parents spent their lives. Mrs. Catherine S. Woodard bore her husband three children, although but one grew to manhood, Frederick G., at whose home the mother died at the age of sixty-six.
Frederick G. Woodard was educated in the district school, the high school of Orange, and the academy at Brattleboro, Vt. His life has been spent in Erving; and here as a young man he was engaged in mechanical work, hav- ing been first employed in his present shop about thirty-five years ago, after which he worked for a time in the match-shop. When he left the latter place, in company with Samn- uel Hanson, he purchased an interest in his present plant, formerly known as the Wash- burn & Eddy Sash and Door Company. In 1864 he married Mary R. Batchelder, of Northfield, Mass. Their union has been blessed by the birth of two sons and a daugh- ter : Fred B., who married Annie Oliver, and is an electrician in Plattsburg, N. Y. ; LeRoy O., who was educated in the district school and at Powers Institute, Bernardston; and
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Florence M., who is now in the high school at Orange. Mrs. Woodard was one of six chil- dren, of whom five are still living. She was born at McIndoos' Falls, N. H., her father then being there engaged in farming, although he died later in Plainfield, Vt.
Mr. Woodard is a supporter of Republican principles. He has served as Selectman one year, Overseer of the Poor and Assessor, also as a member of the School Committee, and for seven or eight years has held the office of Town Treasurer. Socially, he is a member of the A. F. & A. M. of Orange and the order of the Eastern Star, an auxiliary of the Masons. In religious views Mr. Woodard is liberal. He and his wife are attendants of the Congregational church.
ANIEL W. SPEAR, a retired farmer, one of the oldest native-born citizens of Greenfield, is a man of good busi- ness capacity, public-spirited and liberal, and in all respects a valued member of society. He was born in 1816, being a son of Benjamin Spear, who was born in Massachusetts, prob- ably in Roxbury.
The father married Bethiah Guillow, a daughter of David Guillow, of either Gill or Bernardston, and settled on a farm about a mile from the village of Greenfield, toward the north. Having a large family of children, they were obliged to toil early and late and practise the utmost frugality in rearing them. They were sincere Christians, belonging to the Baptist church. They had five sons and five daughters; and, with the exception of one daughter, all grew to adult life. The living are as follows: Daniel W., named at the beginning of this sketch; Benjamin, a retired railroad conductor of Springfield, Mass. ; Lewis, a painter, whose home is at Flint,
Mich. ; Julia, widow of Lester Smith, of Greenfield; and Jane, wife of Martin Jones. One daughter died in infancy, another daugh- ter and a son died in early childhood. Sam- uel, who was one of the early gold seekers, going with his brother Benjamin to California via the Isthmus, where they were delayed forty days, died in 1877; and Elizabeth, who mar- ried Ansel Bullard, of Rowe, Mass., departed this life in 1892, leaving four sons.
The life of Daniel W. Spear furnishes a forcible illustration of the success to be at- tained by persevering industry and a resolute determination to secure the best possible good of one's labor. He began his career at the foot of the ladder, being a barefoot boy of eight years when he went from home to look out for himself ; and in the next dozen years he was an inmate of three different families, for whom he labored with fidelity. At the age of twenty, being of a domestic nature, he estab- lished a home of his own, marrying on Novem- ber 26, 1836, Elizabeth N. Potter, a daugh- ter of Oliver Potter. Mrs. Spear departed this life June 19, 1881. She was a member of the Second Advent church. She bore eight children, of whom but one, Howard W. Spear, of this city, is now living. He is mar- ried and has three living children, two sons and a daughter; and these are the only lineal descendants of our subject. Daniel Spear, his first-born son, died April 24, 1872, aged thirty-five years, leaving a widow, but no chil- dren; Elizabeth died in infancy, June 8, 1841 ; Russell died when six years old; Elmer R., a promising young man of twenty years, died of consumption in 1875.
Mr. Spear has always been an indefatigable worker, and by his own unaided efforts has ac- cumulated a fine property, having never been given a dollar or even a dime. He made his first start as a real estate dealer by dividing
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his three acres of land into quarter-acre lots, which he disposed of at sums ranging from four hundred to one thousand five hundred dol- lars a lot ; and he now owns some fifty lots besides his valuable farm. He resides at 36 High Street, having built his house nearly forty years ago, when there was no other dwelling between his and Main Street. He gave a portion of the land for Union Street, and graded the street, which was accepted by the city. He is a man of earnest convictions and fearless in expressing them. For the past fifty years he has been an attendant of the church of the Second Advent.
ENNIS WILSON, whose portrait ac- companies this outline sketch of an industrious and useful career, is a prosperous farmer in Colerain, where he is the owner of a large landed estate. He was born in this town, March 16, 1818, son of David, Jr., and Betsey (Holland) Wilson, the former a native of Colerain, the latter of Shelburne. His paternal grandfather, David Wilson, Sr., who was born October 15, 1747, settled on what is now Wilson Hill, and, as the popula- tion increased and the town grew, took an ac- tive part in public affairs, serving as Select- man and filling minor offices. In religion a Congregationalist, in politics he was a zealous Whig; and he fought in defence of his coun- try's rights in the Revolutionary war. Grand- father Wilson lived to be nearly ninety years of age. He was twice married, his first wife, Margaret Thompson, who was born June 24, 1750, becoming Mrs. Wilson on December 22, 1772. They had eight children, as fol- lows: Joseph, born October 3, 1773, died young ; James, born January 14, 1776, died young ; David, born March 11, 1778, an account of whom is given below; Rachel,
born April 3, 1780, died young; Margaret, born July 26, 1782; Robert, born May 29, 1785 ; John, born August 15, 1787; and Jen- nie, born August 5, 1789. Mr. Wilson's sec- ond wife was Mary Richey, born November 25, 1752, and married June 21, 1795. She had one son, Joseph, born July 13, 1797.
David Wilson, Jr., spent his life wholly in Colerain. He was a mechanic, but, living in a farming district, devoted the greater part of his life to agriculture, working early and late, as a farmer must who wishes to succeed. At the time of his death the farm upon which he resided was quite extensive, and he owned land in other parts of the town. Politically, he was a Republican; and his religious belief was circumscribed by no fixed creed. He died at the home farm in 1851, at the age of seventy-three. His wife, Betsey (Holland) Wilson, passed to the better life on January 3, 1867, being then eighty-three. They had nine children, seven of whom lived to adult age; namely, Rachel, Margaret, Milo, So- phronia, Oliver H., David, and Dennis. Rachel was the only one who died unmarried.
Dennis Wilson is the sole survivor of his father's children. He has always lived within sight of the place of his birth, and in boyhood attended the district schools, as his father before him had done. On attaining manhood's estate he put his hand to the plough, furrow- ing the same fields that had yielded their har- vest to his father's labor. A man of consider- able natural mechanical skill, he has added to and improved upon the house built by his father until it is one of the best in Colerain. As a farmer he has been a very hard-working man, attending carefully to his dairying, fruit- growing, and general farming, and adding to the old farm until now it covers three hundred and thirty-five acres. In politics Mr. Wilson is a Republican. He has been Selectman sev-
DENNIS WILSON.
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eral terms and Assessor, and has held other offices in the town. In religion he holds to reason, not authority.
On October 19, 1841, he was married to Sarah, daughter of Captain Samuel and Nancy (Newell) Wilson, who was born July 10, 1820, in Colerain, near the Shelburne line. Her paternal grandfather, Jonathan Wilson, one of the first settlers in Colerain, was born in Ireland. Her father was a well-to-do farmer in Colerain, and was a Captain in the State militia. Both father and mother are deceased. They had eight children, two of whom are now living - Mrs. Wilson and her brother Charles, a farmer in Shelburne. Mr. and Mrs. Dennis Wilson have lost two chil- dren and have two living : Charles, born April 3, 1843, died August 25, 1848; and Julia, born May 12, 1845, died August 15, 1848. Harriet, born November 20, 1847, is the wife of J. W. Peck, of Scranton, Pa. ; and Ellen E., born July 26, 1851, is the wife of Chester W. Smith, who lives with Mr. Wilson and has charge of the farm.
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