USA > Massachusetts > Hampshire County > Biographical review; this volume contains biographical sketches of the leading citizens of Hampshire County, Massachusetts > Part 54
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In politics Mr. Gere is an unswerving Re- publican and an ardent advocate of the princi- ples of his party. In November, 1858, he was chosen Treasurer of the County of Hampshire, in which capacity he served from January I, 1859, to January 1, 1877, a period of eighteen years. He served as chairman of the Repub- lican County Committee twenty-five years, for six years was on the general School Commit- tee, is one of the Trustees of the Northampton Institution for Savings, and has held various other positions of trust and responsibility. In 1890 the honorary degree of Master of Arts was conferred upon him by Amherst College. He and his family reside at 75 High Street, where in 1888 he erected his fine residence. The location is picturesque and commands a splendid view of the fair landscape stretching over the beautiful meadows to Mounts Holyoke and Tom in the distance.
RTHUR J. N. WARD, an enterpris- ing lumberman and manufacturer of Enfield, Mass., was born in this town, June II, 1849, son of Benjamin and
Elizabeth W. (Hanks) Ward. The Ward fam- ily has been a prominent one in England for several centuries. Some of its early progeni- tors accompanied William the Conqueror from Normandy, and William de la Ward resided in Chester in 1175. The original ancestor in America was William Ward, who emigrated from Derbyshire in 1639, and from whom Arthur J. N. Ward is directly descended. Ebenezer Ward, Mr. Ward's grandfather, was born July 19, 1773 ; and he became an early settler in Belchertown, Mass. He followed agricultural pursuits with prosperous results during the active period of his life, and died in Belchertown at an advanced age. He and his wife, Rebecca Randall Ward, raised a fam- ily of eleven children, of whom Benjamin, Mr. Ward's father, was the eighth. All have now passed away.
Benjamin Ward was born in Belchertown in 1809. He learned the trade of a millwright, and in 1830 settled in Enfield, where he fol- lowed that occupation for some years. He later built a saw-mill, which he operated suc- cessfully for many years, becoming well and favorably known throughout this region. He was a sturdy, industrious citizen and an able business man, liberal in his religious views; and, like the majority of the old Whig ele- ment, he joined the Republican party at its formation. He died in Enfield, July 14, 1888. His wife, Elizabeth W. Hanks, who was born in Enfield in 1812, became the mother of two children, namely: Benjamin H., who was born July 25, 1844, and was accidentally killed in the saw-mill, May 10, 1861 ; and Arthur J. N., the subject of this sketch. The mother died October 8, 1884.
Arthur J. N. Ward was educated in the schools of his native town, and from an early age he has been engaged in the manufacturing of lumber. He entered into partnership with
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Cyrus F. Woods, and this firm has since been identified with the lumbering interests of En- field. They cut, haul, and manufacture all kinds of native lumber, and operate two mills, which are equipped with improved machinery. They have handled as high as two million feet per annum, and they own about four hundred and eighty-four acres of timber land, from which they obtain their logs. Mr. Ward owns the old homestead of sixty-seven acres, where he resides; and this he conducts with good results. In politics he is a Republican, and is quite prominent in local public affairs. He has been a member of the Board of Selectmen' for several years past, is also an Assessor, and is at the present time chairman of the Repub- lican Town Committee.
Mr. Ward has been twice married. His first wife, Emma L. Witherell, whom he wedded September 20, 1871, died January 6, 1894, leaving no children. On January 16, 1895, he married for his second wife Lucy E. Fairbanks, a native of Ware, Mass. Mr. Ward is an enterprising and progressive busi- ness man and a highly esteemed citizen, who has contributed much toward the development of the natural resources of his native town.
A portrait of this representative citizen appears on a neighboring page.
EV. HENRY LUTHER EDWARDS, of Northampton, Mass., is a native of Hampshire County. He was born January 24, 1822, in Southampton, where his progenitors had dwelt for several generations. The name of Edwards has long been one of the most widely known and honored in West- ern Massachusetts. The family, including the Jonathan Edwards branch, originated in Wales, Alexander Edwards, the emigrant an- cestor of the branch under consideration, com-
ing thence in 1640 to Springfield, Mass., where he remained till 1655, a cultivator of the soil, like most others.
He then removed to Northampton, being attracted by the fertility of the bottom lands of the Connecticut River known as "The Meadows," and here, too, engaged in farming until his decease, September 4, 1690. He married the widow of John Searle, Mrs. Mary Baldwin Searle. She had a son, John Searle, Jr., who came with his step-father, Alexander Edwards, to Northampton, and became a well- to-do farmer. A half-century later John Searle, third, was killed by Indians with nine- teen others at the foot of Mount Tom ; and twenty years after that, in 1724, Nathaniel Edwards met his death in like manner. Na- thaniel Searle, grandson of John, second, was one of the more prosperous and influential of the pioneer settlers of Southampton. He seems to have been the principal man in eccle- siastical affairs, securing and entertaining the ministers on every occasion, Jonathan Edwards among others.
Samuel Edwards, a son of Alexander and Mary B. S. Edwards, was born March 7, 1643, in Springfield, and died April 13, 1712, in Northampton. His son Samuel, the next in line of descent, was born March 26, 1676, and died March 8, 1749. He was twice married, his wives, whose names were Pomeroy, having been sisters; and among his descendants that became noted were the Rev. Dr. Justin Ed- wards and Professor Bela B. Edwards, men of exalted character and ability, and among the more renowned divines in New England. Samuel Edwards, the third of that name, was born in Northampton, September 12, 1716, removed to Southampton in 1753, and died there in 1790. His wife, Catherine Clark, was a woman of superior character and intelli- gence. She was a daughter of Deacon John
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Clark, of Northampton, and lineally descended from Lieutenant William Clark, who emi- grated from England soon after the departure of the Pilgrims, and was known in Northamp- ton as "the Most Worshipful. William Clark."
In Southampton, Samuel Edwards, third, became very prominent in local affairs, having been long Town Clerk and Town Treasurer and a Deacon in the church. For upward of forty years he was engaged in teaching in Northampton and Southampton during the winter seasons ; and the old arm-chair used by him in the school-room is now finely cushioned and highly prized, being owned by Caroline Edwards, of Southampton, a descendant, and a cousin of the gentleman to whom this sketch is due. This Samuel Edwards had four daugh- ters and three sons - Samuel, Luther, and Elisha. The first settled in Westhampton, the others in Southampton, all being leading citizens.
Luther was born in 1756 and died in 1834. He was known as Ensign, and served briefly in the war of the Revolution, as did also his brother Elisha. He inherited some three hun- dred acres of his father's one thousand. He was a thoughtful man, thrifty in his business and highly esteemed, representing his town in a Constitutional Convention, and being a mem- ber repeatedly of the General Court. He was twice married. His first wife, Sarah Sheldon, died in middle life, leaving five children : Asenath, Ralph, Sarah, Luther, and Atossa. His second wife was Clarissa Judd, the mother of Clarissa and Electa Edwards, and the daugh- ter of the Rev. Jonathan Judd, who was the first minister settled in Southampton, a pastor of the Congregational church there for forty years.
Luther Edwards, second, was born in South- ampton, December 16, 1792, and died there September 12, 1863. He was loyal to his town, giving hundreds of dollars to the acad-
emy and the canal, and bequeathing a town clock in his will. He was one of the substan- tial agriculturists of his native place, inherit- ing a farm of some two hundred acres, one hundred or more of woodland, also a distillery which was very profitable, but was early aban- doned for example's sake. He was active and of quick discernment, well-read and intelli- gent, and served acceptably in town and county offices, in the legislature, as Selectman, County Commissioner, etc. He was a student of the Bible, especially fond of history, had a fine memory, and began a classical course, which was interrupted by ill health. He was united in marriage with Rachel Searle, of Chester, Mass., daughter of Zenas and Rachel (Bates) Searle. Luther and Rachel (Searle) Edwards lost two daughters in infancy, and two in young and very promising maidenhood -- Catherine Louisa dying in 1845, aged twenty- three years; and Sarah Marietta in 1843, aged seventeen years. Another daughter, Susan Sophia, has just deceased, April 10, 1895, aged sixty-two. She was active, but modest and unassuming, known for her kind and sym- pathetic nature and her deeds of love and beneficence. More than a tenth of her means she left to various charities, four hundred dol- lars to the Congregational church in South- ampton. She occupied the old home during her life, and made a happy meeting-place for the relatives. Rachel Corinthia, one of the six daughters, survives. She is the widow of Isaac Parsons, who was the son of Theodore and the grandson of the first Isaac, who mar- ried her grandmother. Mrs. Rachel S. Ed- wards survived her husband twenty - seven years, dying January 28, 1890, at the vener- able age of ninety-six years, having retained to a remarkable degree her mental and physi- cal vigor, and receiving to the last the tireless care of her daughter Susan.
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Henry Luther Edwards was reared on the old farm until eighteen. He fitted for college at Sheldon Academy and Williston Seminary, and was graduated at Amherst College in 1847, standing second in his class. Previous to entering college Mr. Edwards had taught town schools in Southampton two winters, and while a student he taught for two winters in the Sheldon Academy. After his graduation he was an instructor for a term in the new Williston Seminary. He was urged to con- tinue there, but he had the study of theology in view and repaired to Andover Theological Seminary. He left Andover, however, in 1849, to accept a tutorship in Amherst Col- lege, where he taught the classics three years. While a student at Amherst he was leader of the college choir. Afterward at Easthampton and Andover he had classes in vocal music. In 1853 and 1854 he was an instructor in Northampton Classical Institute. While here he was offered the principalship of the New Conway Academy, then contemplated, a posi- tion having before been tendered him in Pitts- field Ladies' Institute.
But having been licensed in 1850, and hav- ing while teaching supplied pulpits in many churches, he accepted instead a call from Abington, Mass., now Whitman, where he ministered to a large and growing church for twelve years. His health becoming much impaired, he spent nearly a year in rest and travel, including a winter in Washington He had had cordial overtures from Leicester, Middleboro, Fair Haven, Conn., and Manches- ter, N.H., but in 1868 accepted a much smaller parish in North Middleboro, where he had an interesting pastorate for some six years. Still suffering from too much sedentary work, and having a call to the superintendence of schools in Northampton, his old home and that of his kindred, he closed his engagement with
that people, June 30, 1873, and began here the next day. His services continued until 1876, three years having been the ordinary term in those days of unsettled opinions as to this office. His faithful administration and helpful labors are remembered and often mentioned by the many teachers who taught in that period.
Not caring to resume a pastorate, and his family preferring to remain in town, he was led to establish in 1877 the first Western Loan and Trust Company agency in this locality, it being incorporated as The New England Loan and Trust Company of Des Moines, Ia. He has since carried on a fairly profitable business, his systematic, honest, and upright methods of transaction winning the confidence and meeting the approval of all concerned. Some eight or ten rival agencies have sprung up and passed away, the New England Agency, as at first, so now, the only one here extant. Mr. Edwards has written much for the local press, and among his published works are a "History of the Searle Family" and an ad- dress on "The Death of Abraham Lincoln."
On October 16, 1867, Mr. Edwards was united in marriage with Mrs. Mary Blankin- ship Dyer, widow of Elisha Dyer, of Abing- ton, and a daughter of William N. Thomas, of Rochester, Mass. This estimable lady died January 6, 1884, aged fifty-one. Two chil- dren were the fruit of this union : Harry Dear- born, born July 25, 1868, died October 16, 1868; the other, Halley Winslow, born in Middleboro, August 13, 1870, was graduated from Amherst College in 1891, and though hindered by imperfect vision has done much advanced work in the Latin and Greek courses. Mrs. Edwards had two daughters by her first marriage; namely, Adelaide Frances and Eliz- abeth Cummings. The former, a lady of much taste and culture in art study, having been at Smith College in its first year, married
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F. N. Kneeland, Cashier of the First National Bank of Northampton. They have two chil- dren living. Elizabeth C., unmarried, who makes herself welcome and widely useful, is a graduate of the Northampton High School.
It may be added of Mr. Edwards that, though having never been abroad, he has trav- elled very extensively in this country and Canada, from Maine to Florida, to California, and Victoria in British America, having trav- ersed all the routes to the Pacific and seen all our grand divisions but Arkansas, Indian Ter- ritory, and Oklahoma.
ALKER BROTHERS. This is the leading mercantile firm of Green- wich, and the name is also promi- nent in the farming and lumbering interests of Hampshire County and vicinity. William H. and George B. Walker are both natives of Hardwick, Worcester County, Mass., the for- mer having been born November 30, 1857, the latter September 9, 1862. They are the sons of James A. and Sarah (McClintock) Walker. Their great-grandfather, Abel Walker, re- moved from Rehoboth to Hardwick in 1779, and was one of the first settlers in the town. Three generations succeeding him were born on the farm which he cleared. Notwithstand- ing the severity of his toil in felling the forests and breaking up new land, and the hardships and discomforts of country life in New England one hundred years ago, he lived to an advanced age.
William Walker, son of Abel, was born in Rehoboth, and came with his father to Hard- wick when a lad. He, too, reared his family and died. His son James, the father of the Walker brothers, succeeded him, and in time became one of Hardwick's most prominent men. A good practical farmer, he was very
successful in business matters; and in public affairs also he took a leading part. He was elected Representative to the State legislature on the Republican ticket, and in his native town served as Selectman and in a number of minor offices, his good judgment and executive ability being universally recognized. In re- ligious views he was liberal. James A. Walker died at the age of seventy. His wife, Mrs. Sarah M. Walker, who is a native of Ware, Mass., is still living, making her home with her son George B., in Greenwichville. Five children were born to Mr. and Mrs. James Walker; namely, Susan, Fanny P., William H., George B., and Mary - the latter being the wife of Dr. Davis, of Hardwick.
William H. and George B. Walker grew to manhood on the farm in Hardwick, in their early years attending the district school in that town, and later finishing their studies in Brimfield. Both brothers have been for years engaged in farming and lumbering. They carry on general farming on an extensive scale, owning twelve hundred acres of land in Green- wich, Hardwick, and other towns in the vicin- ity. The estate on which Abel Walker settled in 1779 is kept in fine condition, its general appearance betokening good management and thrift. It is a beautiful homestead, the fine old hard maples which have lived through the storms of many years still guarding in stately rows the approach to the old residence. The lumbering business of the Walker Brothers is also quite extensive. They own and operate a large saw-mill in Greenwich, which they purchased in 1883, and with the latest im- proved machinery are prepared to turn out all kinds of lumber for building purposes, also manufacturing a large amount of box lumber, their yearly output in all amounting to over half a million feet. In 1890 they established a general store in Greenwich. This enterprise
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is under the especial charge of the younger brother, George B. Walker.
William H. Walker was married November 25, 1883, to Ella M. Hillman, a native of Hardwick, born in 1858. Four children have blessed their union : James H., Stephen H., Charles D., and Laura E. Mr. Walker is a Republican in politics, and his only social affiliation is with the Masonic fraternity. On the subject of religion both brothers hold lib- eral views.
George B. Walker was married June 22, 1892, to Hattie, daughter of Alden and Sophia Snow, of Galeville, N. Y. They have a fam- ily of two children, Raymond and Sophia. George Walker also is a Republican. He served as Selectman during 1892-93, and is now on the board; and he also holds the office of Overseer of the Poor, and has filled minor offices. He is a member of the Masonic Order, belonging to Bethel Lodge, A. F. & A. M., of Greenfield. His wife is a member of the Congregational church at Greenwich.
DWARD BAKER, whose portrait ac- companies the present sketch, is a prac- tical farmer in prosperous circum- stances, living in the eastern part of Chester- field. He was born in this town, November 12, 1839. His parents were Andrew K. and Evelina (Edwards) Baker, both of Chesterfield, the former born February 6, 1806, the latter November 10, 1810. Andrew K. Baker was a prominent citizen, and was engaged in farm- ing up to the time of his death. He was a man of amiable disposition, open-hearted and kindly in his ways, and was universally re- gretted when he died, on February 20, 1866. His wife, to whom he was united in Chester- field, December 29, 1831, is yet living. They were the parents of four children, namely :
Esther, born August 28, 1833, who lives with her mother in Chesterfield; Clemina, born October 28, 1835, who married Amos Hawkes, of Goshen, on December 27, 1855, and died December 13, 1889, her husband following her to the last home in February, 1893; Edward, the subject of this sketch; and John Howard, born November 19, 1846, who died in St. Paul, Minn., November 30, 1872.
Edward Baker received a good education in the schools of Hampshire County. At the age of nineteen he left home, going to work in a grocery store owned by Almon S. Ludden at Easthampton, which had a market attached, where he learned the trade of meat cutting. Two years later he went to Goshen to work as a butcher, remaining for some time. In 1865 he purchased the farm that he now occupies, which then comprised one hundred acres; and he has since doubled his possessions, being now the owner of two hundred acres. Mr. Baker worked at his trade during the first four years that he lived on the farm, but now his whole time is devoted to farming, and his crops are the source of a handsome income.
On July 4, 1861, he was united in marriage with Elizabeth A. Damon, daughter of Marlon and Adeline (Campbell) Damon, who was born June 5, 1845. Mr. Damon was a native of North Adams, and his wife of Northampton. He has been for many years engaged in farm- ing in Goshen; and there his daughter was born, and there she met her fate in the shape of the young butcher, for it was during his stay in Goshen that Mr. Baker became a ben- edict. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Baker has been brightened by three children, namely : Addie Florence, born November 7, 1862, who died March 21, 1864; Lettie Isabelle, born February 5, 1865, who married Arthur A. Brooks, and lives in Housatonic, Mass. ; and Ida Agnes, born October 1, 1867, who mar-
EDWARD BAKER.
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ried John E. Burr, of Worthington, and has one child, Harold.
Politically, Mr. Baker is an advocate of Pro- hibition. He is not an office-seeker, but was for several years Road Surveyor in Chester- field. Mrs. Baker is a member of the Advent church in Goshen, and has always taken an active interest in church work. They have a comfortable dwelling, which, surrounded by its ample grounds, makes a pleasant country home.
ARMIDASSE LUSSIER, baker and dealer in bread, cake, and pies in Northampton, has built up an exten- sive and lucrative trade in this city, and has the reputation of making the finest and most wholesome of bakery products. He is a native of Canada, in which country he was born, Octo- ber 24, 1858, a son of Peter Lussier, who was born in the same province on Christmas Day, 1831. His father, Joseph Lussier, also a native of Canada, was there engaged in farm- ing for the greater part of his active life, although the year preceding his death was spent in Holyoke, where he died at the age of sixty years. He was twice married, his first wife, grandmother of our chief subject, bear- ing him five children, and his second wife eight. Peter Lussier lived in Canada until after his union with Derimenne Charbonneau in 1853. In 1867 he removed with his family to Holyoke, where he learned the baker's trade, which he followed there for nine years. In 1886 he opened a bakery in Springfield in partnership with his eldest son, Peter Lussier, Jr. ; and they are still carrying on a thriving business in that city. Of the thirteen chil- dren born to the parents five sons and three daughters are now living, and, with the excep- tion of a daughter in Canada, are residents of the old Bay State.
Harmidasse Lussier learned the trade of baker from his father in Holyoke. In 1885 he went to Northampton, where he worked two years as baker for Mr. Couture. He then went to Leeds and engaged in business for himself, remaining there three years and meet- ing with a fair degree of success; but desiring a larger field of operation he came to North- ampton and purchased his present home and bakery. He is now well established, and en- joys a large and increasing trade. Mr. Lussier was united in marriage November 24, 1879, to Margaret Dauyard, a daughter of Michelle Dauyard, of Canada, she being one of a family of four daughters and five sons born to her par- ents. The two children born to Mr. and Mrs. Lussier passed but a short time on earth, their little son dying in infancy, and a winsome little girl when two and a half years old. Their household, however, is brightened by the presence of two adopted children, Wilfred Lamontagne, a boy of sixteen years, and Al- bina (Labrèche) Lussier, a beautiful child of five years. Mr. Lussier is a man of unques- tioned integrity, and by his steady industry and honest business methods has won the respect of the community. Socially, he is a member of the Foresters and of the St. Jean Baptiste Society ; and, religiously, both he and his wife are devout and faithful members of the French Catholic Church.
LLEN GOODELL SMITH, eldest daughter of Asahel Goodell, and sister of L. W. Goodell, was born at Bel- chertown, Mass., August 25, 1835. She acquired her elementary education in the common schools, and, after pursuing higher branches of study two terms at the Amherst Academy, taught school one term. Compelled by ill health to relinquish her labors, in 1857
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she entered Dr. William T. Vail's Granite State Health Institute, at Hill, N. H., where she became interested in the successful method practised there of treating the sick, and de- cided to become a teacher and a practitioner in the new school.
After a connection of two years with that institution as a patient, student, and assistant, she became a member of a numerous class in the autumn of 1859 at the Hygeio-Therapeutic College, New York City, of which R. T. Trall was the founder. The following winter she was again at the college, and was graduated in the spring of 1861 with the highest honors. Immediately after she became matron and phy- sician at Dr. Vail's Sanitarium, where she re- mained until the autumn of 1862, when she entered the public lecture field as a demonstra- tor and instructor of medical, temperance, and health reform. In 1864 she accepted the post of resident physician at Dr. R. T. Trall's Sani- tarium in New York City, which she held for a period of two years, during a portion of that time being in charge of the Swedish movement cure and Turkish bath departments. In 1866 she was medical director and physician of the movement cure and Turkish bath departments connected with the sanitarium of Dr. J. H. Hero at Westboro, Mass.
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