USA > Massachusetts > Franklin County > Biographical review; this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Franklin County, Massachusetts .. > Part 58
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on a hill in the north eastern part of the town of Conway, a short drive from the Conway Electric Railway ; and near his residence are two beautiful groves, one of maple and the other of white birch, in the former of which picnics are frequently held.
ILLIAM LAFOREST POWERS has been intimately associated with the agricultural interests of New Salem during his years of activity, having been born December 25, 1826, on the home- stead he now owns and occupies, and on which he has persistently toiled. He is a son of Chester and Sarah (Lamb) Powers, lifelong residents of this town, his father having been a well-to-do farmer. Something of the ances- tral history of the Powers family of New Salem, as given in the Powers Genealogy, may be found in connection with the sketch of James L. Powers, on another page of this work.
At the district school in his boyhood Will- iam L. Powers received instruction in the common branches of learning, and on the home farm he was well drilled in practical agricult- ure. After his marriage he bought the pater- nal homestead of one hundred and twenty-five acres, and has since managed it successfully, having repaired and enlarged the original buildings, and also erected a cider-mill, in which he makes a superior quality of cider and vinegar, the amount turned out often being one thousand two hundred and thirty barrels a season. He has likewise bought and improved more land, one tract containing fifty acres and another thirty-five. Mr. Powers has always paid much attention to dairying, and has the reputation of making the finest quality of but- ter to be found in the county. Another profit- able industry in which he has engaged has
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been the making of maple sugar from the trees of his own grove: and in this, as well as in butter-making. he has won an enviable reputa- tion. He is now taking life comparatively easy, enjoying the rest earned by long-con- tinued labors, leaving much of the manage- ment of his affairs to his son.
Mr. Powers was united in marriage October 9, 1854, with Sarah E. Baker, who was born September 8, 1831, at Shutesbury, daughter of Jonathan S. and Louisa (Horr) Baker. Mr. Baker was born at Cumberland, R. I., June 23, 1 803, and lived to the age of sixty-eight years. He was a member of the old Whig party, and a well-known and popular office-holder, being quite prominent in local affairs. He was an esteemed member of the Baptist church, in which he served as Deacon for many years. His wife died when fifty-eight years old. They had seven children ; namely, John, Maria M., Sarah E., George H., Alexander H., Abby, and Carrie A. The union of Mr. and Mrs. Powers has been blessed by the birth of four sons, two of whom are now living : Will- iam H., born July 30, 1857, has special charge of the home farm, thereby relieving his father from all responsibility; Walter S., born October 23, 1860, married Cora Hobart, the daughter of a substantial farmer of Amherst, and they are the parents of two children - Grace I. and Edgar S. The third son, Wal- lace, born July 8, 1862, died at twenty-four years of age; and Edgar A., born April 23, 1869, died September 14, 1892.
In politics Mr. Powers is a steadfast Repub- lican, and has performed his full share in pro- moting the welfare of the community in which he has lived so long. In various local offices he has served acceptably, having been at different times Selectman, Assessor, and Poor Master. In religion he accepts the teachings of liberal Christianity. Mr. and Mrs. Powers
are held in high esteem by a wide circle of acquaintances.
AMUEL HASTINGS conducts the principal livery and express busi- ness in Warwick, and, as Town Clerk and Selectman, attends officially to a great deal of town business. He was born here on February 1, 1837, and is a son of Daniel Hastings, a native of Warwick, and grandson of Isaac Hastings, who passed most of his life in this town, following agriculture as a vocation, being well known in his day as an honest, industrious, and intelligent man.
Daniel Hastings was carefully trained to the various duties of a farmer, but, preferring a different occupation, acquired the trade of a cabinet-maker, which he continued to follow as a journeyman through the remainder of his life. He died at the age of eighty-three years. His wife, whose name before her mar- riage was Experience Leonard, was a daughter of Nathan Leonard, her father having been a prosperous farmer of the town of Warwick, where his parents were among the very earliest settlers. It is worthy of note that Nathan Leonard was the first child born in the town subsequent to its settlement. The union of Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Hastings was blessed with two children, Nathan L. and Samuel. The mother passed from earth at the age of seventy-five years. She was a Unitarian and her husband a Universalist in religious belief.
Samuel Hastings received a good common- school education ; and, after attaining his ma- jority, he acquired the trade of shoemaking, which he followed for some time, being em- ployed in different local establishments. He finally relinquished that occupation for the express business, and in 1874 established the stage line from Warwick to Orange, which he still continues to operate in connection with
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the former, although that has largely in- creased. Ile later added to his other euter- prises a finely equipped livery stable, which has also been exceedingly successful, being a highly appreciated accommodation to the trav- elling public. He was for a time interested in mercantile business, and held the appoint- ment of Postmaster from 1888 to 1890, when he sold his store.
In politics Mr. Hastings is a Republican, and has long been prominently identified with the local government, having served as Town Clerk for nineteen years, or continuously since his election to that office in 1876, as a Select- man for ten years, and likewise both as Over- seer of the Poor and Assessor. He has been twice called upon to represent this district in the State legislature, first in 1885, and sec- ondly during the past session of 1895. But this honorable record does not fill the measure of his activities, as, in addition to the above, he was superintendent of the cemetery for several years, and has been sexton considerably over half a century.
In 1857 he was united in marriage to Miss Helen R. Witherell, daughter of Albert With- erell, a sketch of whose career will be found elsewhere in this work. Mrs. Hastings was born and educated at Mansfield and subse- quently moved to this town. Mr. Hastings is a member of the Unitarian church, which Mrs. Hastings attends; and he is a trustee of the parish fund. He is also a member of the Masonic fraternity, in which he has advanced as far as the Royal Arch degree. Mr. Nathan L. Hastings makes his home with his brother.
ILLIAM H. HEMENWAY, Town Clerk of Shutesbury, and one of the leading citizens, was born in this town December 28, 1846. He is the son of
llardin and Mary (Henry) Hemenway, the for- mer a native of Shutesbury, born March II, 1811, the latter a native of Prescott, born August 5, 1814. His grandfather, Phineas Ilemenway, who was a tanner by trade, was one of the early settlers of the town, there conducting a hotel and cultivating a farm. He was an industrious and capable man, and amassed a fair competency, at the same time working actively for the public weal, repre- senting the district in the legislature, and serving as Town Treasurer and Selectman. His death occurred December 21, 1850, in his seventy-seventh year. His wife, whose maiden name was Abigail Beaman, died in her fifty- fifth year, March 24, 1836. They had three children - James P., Hardin, and Lydia - all of whom reared families. With work on earth completed, their mortal remains now rest in humanity's last abiding-place, God's- acre.
Hardin Hemenway spent the greater part of his life in Shutesbury. He was for some years engaged as a clerk in mercantile business in Pelham and Shutesbury, and in the latter town conducted a store of his own for twenty- five years, winning and keeping by honest dealing and courteous service a large and profitable trade. He was a good business man and commanded success in all his undertak- ings. In politics he was a Republican, and was elected by his party to the legislature, serving in 1847 and 1851. In town affairs he was also prominent, acting as Town Clerk eleven years and Justice of the Peace thirty- five years; and in educational matters he took an active interest, serving as Trustee of the New Salem Academy. Mr. Hemenway was liberal in religious views. He died April 26, 1886. His wife, whose maiden name was Mary Henry, was the daughter of Samuel Henry, a native ; of Amherst, who was well
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known in both New Salem and Prescott, being one of the early merchants in the latter town. A Democrat in politics, he was a leading man in his district, a member of the legislature during 1829-31. a delegate to the Constitu- tional Convention in 1853, and Town Clerk and Justice of the Peace for many years. On the subject of religion his views were liberal. Mr. Henry died April 24. 1862, at Shutes- bury, whither he had moved in 1857. His wife, whose name before marriage was Cynthia Ingram, died April 7, 1860. Mrs. Mary H. Hemenway died August 31, 1848. She had but one child, the subject of this sketch.
William H. Hemenway grew to manhood in Shutesbury, receiving a fair education and graduating from the New Salem Academy. He entered the business world as clerk in his father's store, where he gained a good insight into the methods employed in trade and the relative values of mercantile commodities. At the present time he is the owner of consid- erable real estate, his homestead comprising forty-six acres, and other lands under his con- trol covering quite an extent of territory. He has engaged in general farming to some extent, the manual labor being done by men under his charge. But the greater part of his time is occupied by town affairs, the duties of Town Clerk, in which capacity he has acted for twelve years, engrossing much of his attention ; and as Justice of the Peace, to which office he was appointed in 1889, he has other clerical work which makes inroads upon his time. Politically, he favors the Republican party, by whom he was elected to represent his district in the legislature of 1892. He still retains his interest in the New Salem Academy, which he attended as a student, serving, as did his father, on the Board of Trustees. In religion he is of the liberal faith. He has a pleasant home in Shutesbury, and is looked up
to by his townsmen as a man of good judgment and well-developed business ability.
REDERICK P. CARRUTH, a pros- perous hardware dealer of Orange and one of the most extensive merchants in Franklin County, was born at Orange, July 28, 1856. He is a son of Benjamin M. and Cor- delia (Parlin) Carruth, and grandson of John and Sally (Mason) Carruth. John Carruth was born September 28, 1773. He settled at Barre, becoming a well-to-do farmer, was a Whig in politics and a member of the Uni- versalist church. His labors were doubtless arduous, as, although possessed of a strong constitution, he died at the age of sixty-seven years. His wife, who survived him, was called to rest at eighty-five. They were the parents of the following children : William, Sally, Harriet, Charles, Maria, and Benja- min M.
Benjamin M. Carruth was born September 15, 1828, and, when of a suitable age to engage in mechanical labor, was apprenticed to a car- penter. In early manhood he settled in Gard- ner, Mass., where he followed his trade, later entering the employ of a large chair manufact- urer in that town ; and, being a skilful mechanic, he became a valuable assistant in the factory, where he remained for several years. He then purchased an estate known as the Parlin place, on which he resided the remainder of his life. He remodelled the buildings, made many other needed improvements, and before long found himself in possession of a large and valuable piece of farm property. At the age of twenty- five he married Cordelia Parlin, who was born January 17, 1832, daughter of Daniel and Melinda (Stacy) Parlin; and of their three children Francis died young, while two sur- vived, namely : Frederick P. ; and Edward L.,
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a mechanic, who was born December 22, 1863. Benjamin M. Carruth died September 18, 1893, ten years after the death of his wife Cordelia, on August 8, 1883.
Frederick P. Carruth received a good educa- tion in the public schools, where he exhibited an unusual aptitude for study, entering the high school before reaching the age of thir- teen, and graduating therefrom in his seven- teenth year. He then worked with his father at the carpenter's trade for a period of one and one-half years, after which he pursued a business course of study at Dean Academy, Franklin, and then entered the dry-goods store of A. A. Houghton at Athol as a clerk, re- maining there one year. During the next four and one-half years he was employed in the clothing store of C. A. Carruth at Athol, then accepted the position of clerk with Moulton & Bradley, wholesale and retail clothiers of Bos- ton, in which capacity he worked one year, and for the following three years was travelling salesman for that firm. He next became con- nected in a similar capacity with the clothing firm of Smith, Richardson & Bates, and suc- cessfully represented that well-known house for a period of five years. By that time, tired of road life, he resigned his position, and on July I, 1885, in company with E. O. Pratt, pur- chased the hardware store of Tenney & Searle at Orange. After a partnership of four years with Mr. Pratt he purchased that gentleman's interest and continued to conduct the business alone for one year, when Warren King became associated with him, and the firm, which be- came known as F. P. Carruth & Co., did a very large business.
On November 7, 1891, the great conflagra- tion which occurred at Orange swept away their entire establishment in its destructive course ; but, with a true spirit of enterprise, before the smoke had cleared away they were
doing business in a temporary building, one hundred by fifty feet, which had been erected and stocked in an almost incredibly short space of time. As soon as the new block was completed Mr. Carruth returned to his former location, where he has since remained, and at the present time conducts, it is claimed, the largest and most extensive hardware trade in the county. In 1890 he became a stockholder in the Leverett Machine Company, of which he is now one of the Directors, and is also manager of the Whitman Grocery Company, manufacturers of tapioca.
On January 14, 1886, Mr. Carruth married Miss Thenice J. Herrick, daughter of Charles Herrick; and their union has been blessed with five children, as follows: Carl B. ; Bes- sie; Pearl; Howard G. ; and Gladys, who died an infant. Mr. Carruth is one of the most active and progressive business men in Orange, and has done much toward developing the re- sources of the town. He is a Democrat in politics, having been Postmaster in 1888, and is now Water Commissioner. He is also a member of Star Lodge, A. F. & A. M., of Crescent Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, Orange Commandery, and of the Mystic Shrine. He is besides a charter member and Trustee of the lodge of Ancient Order of United Work- men at Orange, and a member of the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows. Both him- self and wife are members of the Order of the Eastern Star.
RS. MARTHA TODD LIVER- MORE, of Orange, Mass., widow of the late Hon. Rufus Livermore, whose portrait accompanies this brief record of a noble life, was born in Boston, September 5, 1841. Her parents, Jehiel and Melissa (Hildreth) Todd, were born November 4,
RUFUS LIVERMORE.
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ISIS, and February 4, 1818, respectively, and were united in wedlock on the 7th of Octo- ber, 1840. Mr. Todd was for some years a resident of Lowell, Mass., being superintend- ent of the Middlesex Corporation. He subse- quently engaged in the manufacture of spices, which he sold at wholesale in Worcester, liv- ing there until he retired from business. In politics he was a strong Republican, and in religion was a Congregationalist. His wife, Melissa, who bore him but one child, Martha E., now Mrs. Livermore, died May 28, 1843 ; and he was again married January 1, 1845, to Susan Elizabeth Whitman, by whom he had six children, two of whom are now living : Minnie J., wife of J. A. Long, of Worcester ; and Alice S., wife of C. G. Gilbert, also of Worcester. Mr. Jehiel Todd died December 16, 1891. He was a son of Caleb and Hepzi- bah (Miller) Todd, both of whom lived to a good old age.
Rufus Livermore, with whom on January 22, 1863, Martha E. Todd was united in mar- riage, was born in Groton, Mass., November I, 1839. As a lad he exhibited a passionate fondness for study ; and, after leaving the dis- trict schools, he was fitted for college at Law- rence Academy. Mr. Livermore finished his education at Williams College, and later, hav- ing received a diploma from the Albany Law School, was admitted to the bar. While studying the Massachusetts Code of Laws, preparatory to beginning practice, the call for volunteers to aid in suppressing the Rebel- lion resounded throughout the land; and he was among the first to respond. He enlisted in Company B, of the famous Massachusetts Sixth, and was one of the gallant band that marched through the streets of Baltimore on the 19th of April, 1861. Having completed his term of service, Mr. Livermore returned to his home, and for a while worked actively to
promote enlistments, but finally succumbed to a severe attack of typhoid fever, brought on by exposure while in the army Not content with the work which he had already done for the cause of liberty and union, he again en- listed as soon as his physical condition would allow, joining the Third Rhode Island Cav- alry, with which he bravely served until the close of the war.
Coming then to Orange, Mr. Livermore entered the office of Hunt, Waite & Flint; and when, in 1872, the company was incor- porated under the name of the Rodney Hunt Machine Company, he became one of its Direc- tors, and also the Secretary, a position which he ably and faithfully filled until his death, July 8, 1891. From the time he became a resident of Orange until the day the silver cord was loosed that bound him to his earthly home, Mr. Livermore was truly a public man : no representative gathering, be it social, relig- ious, or political, was complete without his presence to speak words of greeting and en- couragement. He had the natural gift of ora- tory, and voiced the popular sentiment in graceful and forcible language, whenever called upon.
With his personal popularity and his great ability, he was often pressed into public ser- vice by his fellow-citizens. He represented the First District of Franklin County in the State legislature in 1879, and served on the Committee on Finance. In 1882 Mr. Liver- more was elected to the position of State Sena- tor, and re-elected in 1883, and was on several important committees, among others chairman of the Labor Committee, a member of Com- mittee on Claims, and on Railroads. He was very enthusiastic in politics, and was often a delegate to political conventions. Socially, he was a prominent member of the Indepen- dent Order of Odd Fellows, having been Past
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Grand Commander and one of the Trustees of the social lodge. He was also a leading member of the General Sedgwick Post, Grand Army of the Republic. He was very active in church work, being an earnest and valued member of the Congregational church, to which Mrs. Livermore also belongs, and was for many years the efficient superintendent of its Sunday-school. Four children were born to bless the union of Mr. and Mrs. Livermore ; but only one is now living, a daughter Blanche, whose birth occurred September 13, 1883. Mrs. Livermore still makes her homc in Orange, occupying her pleasant residence, 4 Grove Street, highly respected by neigh- bors and acquaintances, and cheered by the love and sympathy of friends true and leal.
EONARD B. RICE, of East Charle- mont, a well-to-do retired farmer, was born in this town, March 30, 1829, son of Leonard and Charlotte (Billings) Rice, and grandson of Timothy and Mary (Thwing) Ricc. His first ancestor in this country . was Edward Rice, who came from England to America in 1694, and settled in Sudbury, Mass. Timothy Rice was one of the first set- tlers in Conway, Mass., where he owned two hundred acres of land, and was well known as an energetic and stirring farmer. He was one of the principal supporters of the Whig party in his town, and took an active interest in the welfare of the community. He was the father of nine children - five sons and four daughters.
Leonard Rice, one of the five, who was born in Conway in 1789, bought the old homestead, but sold it later, it being now owned by F. Dickinson. He then bought the farm known as the Squire Maxwell place, one of the most beautiful of the many beautiful estates along the Deerfield River in East Charlemont. The
house, which was built in 1825, and is now occupied by his son and namesake, is very large and handsome. In politics Mr. Leonard Rice was first a Whig and afterward a Repub- lican. A man of good abilities, like his father he was prominent in town affairs, and held many offices of trust. Ile died in 1869. He and his wife were members of the Congregational church. They had nine children : Daniel; Edward; Harriet; Char- lotte; Amy; Lucretia; Leonard Belding, the leading subject of this sketch; F. Matilda; and Electa S.
Leonard B. Rice attended the common schools of East Charlemont, studying also at Williston Seminary and Shelburne Falls Acad- emy. On leaving school he took charge of the homestead, which he managed for six years. He then went to Cedar Falls, Ja., where he was employed as a surveyor, and there purchased a large tract of land. His stay in the West was a short one, the place not proving congenial; and on his return he again took charge of the home farm, remaining here until August 27, 1862, when in answer to his country's call for troops to defend the Union he enlisted as a nine months' man in Company B, Fifty-second Massachusetts Regi- ment. On July 27, 1863, having received his discharge from the army, he returned to East Charlemont, and since then has resided at the homestead, having cared for his father and mother until they passed away. He has re- modelled and otherwisc improved upon the house, built a new barn, and made many improvements on the farm, besides buying land in other quarters. He raises fine grades of stock, has a choice dairy and a large flock of sheep.
In 1856 Mr. Rice was married, in Shel- burne Falls, to Abbie White, who died when only twenty-three years old; and it was after
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her death that he sold his Western property and returned East. His second wife is Ca- lista, daughter of Horatio Roberts, a prominent farmer in East Charlemont. Mr. Rice votes the Republican ticket. He is a public-spir- ited man, and takes a lively interest in educa- tional matters. In the town he has served as Selectman, and has been School Commissioner many years ; and he is a member of Grand Army of the Republic Post No. 93, at Shel- burne Falls. Mr. and Mrs. Rice attend the Congregational church.
LIAS FORD BRADFORD, a well- known dairy farmer and highly es- teemed citizen of Conway, Franklin County, Mass., was born on the homestead where he now resides, November 21, 1837, son of Shubael, Jr., and Mary (Ford) Bradford.
His grandfather, Shubael Bradford, Sr., who was born in Martha's Vineyard, Mass., was one of the early settlers of Conway, locating here in the year 1794 on a farm in the south- ern part of the town. He successfully en- gaged in clearing and cultivating his land, spending the remainder of his life in that employment. He died in 1837, at seventy-six years of age. His wife, Miss Anna Hadlock before marriage, who was born and reared in Williamsburg, Mass., was a daughter of Josiah Hadlock. She died at eighty-one years of age. They reared seven children: John, Pa- melia, Abigail, Parthena, Phebe, Minerva, and Shubael, Jr.
Shubael Bradford, Jr., was born at the home of his parents in Conway, and there grew to manhood. He subsequently purchased the farm, and carried it on with profit for several years, but later bought the place on which he is now living with his son, Elias Ford Brad- ford, having attained the age of eighty-six
years. His wife, Mary Ford Bradford, who died at seventy-six years of age, was born in the town of Hawley, Mass., and was a daugh- ter of Elias and Sophia Ford. She bore her husband three sons and three daughters, all of whom grew to maturity, namely : Melvin M. ; Josephine M. ; Elias F .; John and Susan, twins; and Caroline E. Both parents were members of the Methodist Episopal church.
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