Genealogy and history of representative citizens of the commonwealth of Massachusetts, Part 44

Author: Hurd, Charles Edwin, 1833-1910
Publication date: 1902
Publisher: Boston, New England historical publishing company
Number of Pages: 850

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ing two children - Clarence Warren and Eliza Ann.

Joseph Warren Harding was educated in the public schools of East Bridgewater. On at- taining his majority he removed to Lynn, and entered the employ of D. B. Gurney, hardware merchant, as clerk. Here he remained till 1879, in which year he began business for him- self under the style of Harding & Co., he, however, being the sole member of the firm. He has continued the business successfully up to the present time, and is now one of the most prominent hardware merchants of Lynn. His religious affiliations are with the North Congregational Church. He belongs to Bay State Lodge, No. 40, I. O. O. F., of Lynn. Mr. Harding married July 8, 1874, Julia Barnes, daughter of Simeon and Lois P. B. (Blanchard) White, of Holbrook, Mass. Mr. and Mrs. Harding have no children.

ILLIAM HALL, a former resident of Brookline, was born in West Greenwich, R. I., April 2, 1811. His immigrant ancestor was William1 Hall, who in 1638 was admitted to be an inhabitant of the island of Aquidneck, now Rhode Island, and in 1644 received a grant of land at Ports- mouth, R. I., where he settled. William Hall was a Deputy to the General Assembly in 1665, 1666, 1667, 1668, 1672, and 1673. His will, made in 1673, was proved about two years later. He had three sons - Zuriel, William, and Benjamin; and three daughters - Elizabeth, Rebecca, and Deliverance. The line descended through William,2 John, 3 Pre- served, 4 David, 5 William6.

William2 Hall m. January 26, 1670, Alice Tripp, of Portsmouth, R.I. John3 Hall, b. July 2, 1681, was made a freeman in Kings- ton, R.I., in 1712; was Deputy to the Gen- eral Assembly in 1739; d. March 4, 1760, and was buried on Noose Neck Hill in West Greenwich, R.I. His first wife was Alice Vaughn, and his second was her twin sister Abigail. Preserved4 Hall, who d. July 10, 1782, m. January 6, 1731, in North Kingston, R. I., Elizabeth Vaughn. Davids Hall, b. August 29, 1744, m. November 14, 1765,

Paulina Comstock, of West Greenwich, R. I., which was also his birthplace. William6 Hall, who d. January 15, 1855, aged sixty- eight years, m. Welthan (or Wealthian) Gar- diner, and had two sons - William and Sam- uel G. ; and six daughters - Phebe, Mary, Julia A., Paulina, Emily G., and Mercy G.

William7 Hall left his Rhode Island home when a young man, and, coming to Boston, learned the trade of machinist. In 1843 he started in business on his own account, open- ing a locksmith shop at 27 Dock Square. This he conducted successfully until his death, which occurred in Brookline in October, 1875. The business is now prosperously con- tinued by his sons under his name. Mr. Hall married May 26, 1833, Elizabeth Lincoln Lothrop, who was born February 18, 1815, daughter of Captain Anselm and Priscilla (Lincoln) Lothrop.

Mrs. Hall came of distinguished Colonial stock, being a lineal descendant in the seventh generation from the Rev. John' Lothrop, who was baptized in Etton, Yorkshire, England, December 20, 1584; was graduated at Queen's College, Cambridge, in 1605, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts; received the degree of Master of Arts in 1609; emigrated with his family to New England in 1634; was settled over the church in Scituate, Mass., January 19, 1634-5; d. in Barnstable, November 8, 1653. Joseph2 Lothrop, b. in England in 1624, settled in Barnstable, Mass., becoming a man of great influence in public affairs. He served the town as Selectman twenty-one years ; was Deputy to the General Court fifteen years ; and was an officer in the militia, bearing the titles successively of Lieutenant and Captain. His will was proved April 9, 1702. The maiden name of his wife was Mary Ansell. Thomas3 Lothrop, b. January 6, 1673, m. April 23, 1697, Experience, daughter of James and Hannah (Huckings) Gorham. Thomas4 Lothrop, their fifth child, b. in Barnstable, July 8, 1705, m. June 3, 1736, Deborah Lor- ing, of Hingham, Mass. Colonel Thomass Lo- throp, who was b. in 1738, d. on September 4, 1813. Left fatherless when quite young, he was brought up in the family of Deacon John Jacob, of Cohasset, Mass., and became his

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principal heir. He m. Ruth Nichols. Cap- tain Anselm6 Lothrop, b. in Cohasset, Decem- ber 2, 1771, d. in Cambridge, Mass., May 27, 1853. He was a master mariner and a farmer. On October 22, 1794, he m. Eunice Burr; and after her death, a few years later, he m. Janu- ary 7, 1810, Priscilla Lincoln (above named), who d. February 18, 1846.

William and Elizabeth Lincoln7, (Lothrop) Hall had eleven children, namely: Priscilla L., who died in childhood; Mary E., born in 1836, who died in 1884; Henrietta Wallace, who is the wife of Isaiah Getchell, of Balti- more, Md. ; William H., who died in infancy ; William F .; Clara Priscilla, who resides in Dorchester ; John Henry, who died in infancy ; Henry J. ; Julia Ann; Frederick G., of Bos- ton; and Nellie Lincoln.

Julia Ann Hall married Abraham Tower, of Dorchester, and has two children - Nellie Hall and Edna Fitch Tower. Frederick G. Hall married Mary Broderick, by whom he has one child - Flora E. Nellie Lincoln Hall married C. A. Harrington, of Brookline, N. H., and has three children : William Hall, a farmer in Maine; Walter Andrew, employed by the William Hall Company, of Boston; and Russell, a pupil in the schools of Newton Junction, N. H. Henry J. Hall married Mary Ella Goodwin, by whom he has one child - Ethel Gertrude, now the wife of Mr. Perry. William Francis Hall, born January 13, 1843, enlisted August 25, 1862, in the Eleventh Massachusetts Battery, and served in the Civil War until receiving his honorable discharge in June, 1863. For a period of thirty-three years he was in the Massachusetts State Militia, resigning in 1895 with the rank of Lieutenant. In January, 1898, Mr. Hall married Winnifred F. Gately.

ILTON AARON POWERS, east- ern manager of the Security Life Insurance Company, with office in Boston, is a resident of New- ton. Born July 19, 1856, in Bolton, Mass., son of Aaron R. and Elizabeth (Proctor) Powers, he is a descendant in the eighth gen- eration of Walter Power, whose name appears

in Middlesex County records of 1654. The lineage is : Walter,1 William, 2 John, 3 Robert, 4 Henry, 5 John,6 Aaron R.,7 Milton A. 8

Walter' Power, the immigrant ancestor, b. in 1639, d. February 22, 1708. He m. Trial, daughter of Deacon Ralph and Thankes Shep- ard, and settled in that part of the old town of Concord, Mass., which is now Littleton. William2 Powers, b. in 1661, settled in life as a farmer, succeeding to the ownership of the homestead. He d. March 16, 1710. His wife was Mary, daughter of John Bank, of Chelmsford. John3 Powers, who d. in 1756, had the distinction of being the first school- master in the town of Littleton. He was also a surveyor, and with John Merriam located the line between Acton and Littleton. On July 2, 1710, he m. Elizabeth, daughter of Robert Robbins. Robert4 Powers, b. August 27, IZII, d. in 1767. He was the executor of his father's will, and the guardian of his younger brothers and sisters.

Captain Henry Powers, son of Robert4 by his second wife, Anna, daughter of John Wetherby, was b. in Harvard, Mass., April 13, 1753, d. in 1825. He was a soldier of the Revolution, being first enrolled as Corporal, December 14, 1776, in Captain Manasseh Sawyer's company, Colonel Dike's regiment, which was raised to serve until March 1, 1777. He again enlisted, September 5, 1777, in the company of Lieutenant Amos Fairbanks, Colonel Cushing's regiment, and served as Sergeant, having been promoted to that rank January 21, 1777. On January 2, 1774, he m. Hannah Moore, of Boylston. She d. in 1812, and he afterward m. Mrs. Eunice Spofford, the widow of Captain Samuel Spofford. A prosperous farmer, he was very prominent in public affairs, being the first Representative sent from the town of Berlin to the General Court, serving as such in 1812, 1813, 1814, and 1815. John6 Powers, b. in Berlin, Mass., October 31, 1800, d. June 20, 1875, in Bolton, Mass. Forsaking the religious faith of his ancestors, he became prominent in the Baptist Church, for many years officiating as a Deacon. On April 10, 1825, he m. Pamelia, daughter of James R. and Anna (Leland) Parks.

Aaron Roberts7 Powers, who was b. in Ber-

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lin, Mass., September 23, 1831, was reared in Bolton, whither his parents removed when he was still young. A capable, public-spirited man, he has long been active in town affairs; and he rendered excellent service as a Repre- sentative in the State Legislature in 1882. He m. March 16, 1853, Elizabeth Proctor, daughter of Jonas and Elizabeth (Dakin) Proc- tor. Her father was b. July 24, 1774, and her mother, June 16, 1787. Nine children were b. to Aaron and Elizabeth Powers, and five are now living. The record is: Hattie J. (de- ceased), b. December 16, 1853; Milton A., b. July 19, 1856; Ella P. A. (deceased), b. October 1, 1858; Henry R. (deceased), b. May 9, 1860; Hattie E., b. April 28, 1862; Carrie A., b. February 25, 1864; Flora E., b. July 26, 1866; Charles A. (deceased), b. February 22, 1868; Charles A., b. July 28, 1870.

Milton A.8 Powers, after receiving his educa- tion in the schools of Bolton, his native place, where he grew to manhood, was variously en- gaged until about 1886, when he took up life insurance. He is now, as mentioned above, eastern manager for the Security Life Insur- ance Company, of Binghamton, N. Y., and is conducting the business successfully. He is a member of Tuscan Lodge, F. & A. M., of Lawrence, Mass. ; of Union Royal Arch Chap- ter, No. 7, of Laconia, N.H .; Pythagorean Council, No. 6, R. & S. M .; and Pilgrim Commandery, K. T., of Laconia. He is also a member of the Life Underwriters' Associa- tion, of Boston.

Mr. Powers married August 2, 1876, Emma Hills, who was born in Middlesex, Vt., a daughter of Justin and Marietta (McElroy) Hills. Mr. and Mrs. Powers have three chil- dren, namely : Edith Hills, born in January, 1881; Ralph Milton, born in October, 1883; and May Emma, born April 3, 1887.

REDERICK OAKES HOUGHTON, agent for European and foreign steam- ers, doing business on State Street, Boston, also vice-consul of Mexico in this city, was born in 1861 at Cambridge, Mass., son of Francis and Martha Richardson (Oakes)

Houghton. He is of the seventh generation in descent from John' and Beatrix Houghton, of Lancaster, Mass., the line being as follows : John,1 b. in England in 1631; Benjamin,2 b. at Lancaster in 1668; Jonathan, 3 b. at Lancas- ter in 1703, who m. Mary Houghton; Jona- than,4 b. at Lancaster, November 7, 1737, who m. Susanna Moore, and d. at Bolton in December, 1829; Rufus, 5 b. at Bolton about 1770, who m. Abigail Barnard, daughter of Moses Barnard, and d. at Bolton, August 26, 1853; Francis,6 b. January 8, 1821, and d. August 2, 1879; Frederick Oakes,7 b. 1861. Jonathan3 Houghton enlisted July 14, 1740, and held the rank of Lieutenant in Captain John Prescott's company, which formed a part of Massachusetts's contingent of five hundred men in Admiral Vernon's expedition to the Spanish West Indies in the war of that year between England and Spain. It is said that not over fifty of these men returned, Lieuten- ant Houghton being among those who lost their lives. Francis Houghton, son of Rufus and Abigail (Barnard) Houghton, was educated in his native town of Bolton. When a young man he engaged in the manufacture of glass with his elder brother, Amory Houghton, they being the founders in 1854 of the Union Glass Works at Somerville, of which place Mr. Houghton became a resident. As is well- known, the glass industry is still continued by some of the Houghton family. Francis Houghton was a successful business man, and a useful and highly esteemed citizen. In pol- itics a Republican. He served fifteen years as chairman of the Board of Selectmen before Somerville became a city, and was always interested in the welfare and improvement of the place. He m. Martha Richardson Oakes, daughter of Josiah Oakes. Four children b. to Mr. and Mrs. Francis Houghton are now living, namely: Augusta M., Charlotte I., Joseph W., and Frederick Oakes. Charlotte I. is the wife of Dr. F. W. Taylor, of Cam- bridge, and mother of three children - John, Warren, and Martha. Joseph W. and Fred- erick Oakes are both unmarried.

Frederick Oakes Houghton commenced busi- ness life in the employ of C. L. Bartlett & Co., who were the pioneers in the steamship

SAMUEL L. POWERS.

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business in Boston. The firm was established in 1849, and many of the older generation will remember this firm in the California business. The old firm were the first representatives of the Panama Railroad Company, and also of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company, from the inception of each; and the representation has been handed down and is now held by the firm of F. O. Houghton & Co. At the death of Charles L. Bartlett the firm name was changed to E. A. Adams & Co., and in 1896 the name was again changed to the present style of F. O. Houghton & Co. The position of vice- consul for Mexico, also, is one to which Mr. Houghton has succeeded Mr. Bartlett and Mr. Adams. The firm also represents the White Star Line, which now has the steamers "Oceanic" and "Celtic," the largest steamers in the world. In addition they represent in New England the Holland-America Line of steamships to Boulogne and Rotterdam; and they are also the passenger representatives of the Leyland Line, with a splendid fleet of passenger steamers direct from Boston to Liverpool and London. Mr. Houghton is a member of the society known as Sons of the Revolution.

ON. SAMUEL LELAND POWERS, of Boston, a member of the Suffolk bar, was born in Cornish, N. H., October 26, 1848, son of Larned and Ruby (Barton) Powers. He is a descend- ant in the seventh generation of Walter Power, a native of England, b. in 1639, who, according to a family tradition, was located in Salem about 1654. At the time of his marriage to Trial Shepard, which occurred March 11, 1661, this ancestor settled in that part of Concord, Mass., now known as Little- ton. He d. February 22, 1708. The line from him to the subject of this sketch is Walter, I William,2 William,3 Lemuel,4 Colonel Sam- uel,5 Larned,6 Samuel Leland 7.

William 2 Powers m. Mary Bank, daughter of John Bank, of Chelmsford. He d. March 16, 1710. He was the first school-master of Littleton, and also a surveyor. William 3 Powers, b. in 1691, son of William and Mary

Powers, m. Lydia Perham, March 16, 1714. Lemuel 4 Powers, b. in 1714, d. 1792. In January, 1742, he m. Thankful Leland. After his death his widow removed to Croydon, N. H., and lived with her children.

Colonel Samuel 5 Powers, the ninth child of Lemuel and Thankful Powers, b. at North- bridge, then a part of Uxbridge, Mass., in 1762, d. at Croydon, N.H., on March 9, 1813. He was a man of superior abilities, and one of the most popular and influential citizens of the town of Croydon, which he served as Selectman in 1792, 1793, 1797, 1799, 1800, and 1803, and as Representative in the State legislature in 1801, 1802, 1804, 1805, 1806, 1807, and 1808. He served as a soldier in the Revolutionary War, and was afterward a Colonel in the New Hampshire militia. The family of which he was so worthy a representative was numerically the strongest in the town of Croydon, where they were among the earliest settlers. They were for the most part farmers by occupation, and in general men of large size, great physical strength, and of strong and vigorous intellect. Colonel Samuel Powers married Chloe Cooper, December 9, 1784.

Larned 6 Powers was b. at Croydon, April 20, 1808. He m. Ruby Barton, who was b. July 9, 1807, daughter of John and Ach- sah (Fry) Barton. Her father, John Barton, b. February 17, 1784, was a man of solid character, and noted for his plain common- sense. He was a large land-owner, and he kept an extensive stock farm in Croydon. His father, Benjamin Barton, b. in Sutton, Mass., at the age of eighteen enlisted as a minute- man, and was subsequently at the battles of Bunker Hill, Bennington, West Point, and New York. In 1779 Benjamin returned home from the war, and, settling in Royalston, there m. Mehitable Fry. In March, 1784, with his wife and three children, he removed to Croy- don. In 1786 he was elected Representative, in which capacity he served his fellow-towns- men for a number of years. For twenty years he was a Selectman, and for a number of years he was Moderator and Town Clerk. He d. July 9, 1834. His father, Benjamin Bar- ton, Sr., who was a resident of Sutton, Mass.,

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entered the Revolutionary army, and was killed at Bunker Hill. Larned and Ruby (Barton) Powers had four children, namely : Caroline Matilda, b. November 20, 1838; Erastus Bar- ton, b. January 31, 1840; Alice Victoria, b. January 18, 1846; and Samuel Leland. Larned Powers d. at Cornish, N. H., in September, 1894, and his wife d. at Cornish, in October, 1900.

Samuel Leland Powers, having fitted for college at Kimball Union Academy and Phil- lips (Exeter) Academy, entered Dartmouth in 1870, and graduated therefrom in the class of 1874. In college he won the Lockwood prizes, both in rhetoric and elocution. His law studies were begun in the office of W. W. Bailey, of Nashua, N. H. Subsequently he attended the law school of the University of the City of New York, and later read in the office of Verry & Gaskill, Worcester. He was admitted to the bar in Worcester, November 17, 1875, and began practice at Boston in the following January, forming a partnership with his college classmate, Samuel W. McCall, now a member of Congress. In 1887, after having devoted himself for some time to the study of electrical science, he decided to make a specialty of law in its application to electri- cal matters; and he was one of the first attor- neys in the country to take up this branch of the profession. From that time he has been largely employed in representing the interests of corporations and individuals engaged in elec- trical operations. He has been general coun- sel for the New England Telephone and Tele- graph Company since 1889. He has also been counsel for the Gamewell Fire Alarm Tele- graph Company and of other large corporations connected with electrical business, including several street railway companies. He has been a director of the Newton and Boston Street Railway Company, and since 1882 he has resided in Newton. He has served several terms in the Common Council, being presiding officer of that body during two years; and for one term he was on the Board of Aldermen. In November, 1900, he was elected to Con- gress from the Eleventh Congressional Dis- trict. He was one of the founders of the New- ton Club, and was for a number of years the president of that organization. He is also a

member of the University Club of Boston. In October, 1900, he became a member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company, Boston Athletic Association, and also of the Newton and the Hunnewell Clubs of Newton. In politics he is a Republican, and in religion a Unitarian.

Mr. Powers was married June 21, 1878, to Miss Eva Crowell, daughter of the Hon. Prince S. and Polly D. (Foster) Crowell, of Dennis. Her father, who was born in East Dennis, Mass., in 1812, was a sea captain in early life. Subsequently he gave up the active profession of mariner, and, settling on shore, was interested in the management of vessels and in banking and railroad enter- prises. He was president of the Cape Cod National Bank and of the Five Cents Savings Bank, a director of the Old Colony Railroad Company, and he was largely interested in the building and development of Western railroads. He was a son of David Crowell, who died in East Dennis in 1828, at the age of sixty-nine years. Mr. and Mrs. Powers have one child, Leland, born at Newton, July 1, 1890.

APTAIN JOHN CODMAN, aptly self-styled "a citizen of the world," ever at home in all ports, was an old-time Boston shipmaster, for up- ward of twenty-five years engaged in the mer- chant marine service, and long after an un- wearied casual voyager, till, in the closing year of the nineteenth century and the eighty- sixth of his age, departing this life he set sail on the unknown sea, leaving behind him the memory of a self-reliant, forceful character, a picturesque and pleasing personality, and an un- usually lengthened career. Born in Dorches- ter, October 16, 1814, he was the eldest child of the Rev. Dr. John and Mary (Wheelwright) Codman, and a brother of William C. Codman and the late Robert Codman, of Boston. (For family history see preceding sketches of the Rev. Dr. Codman and Robert Codman. )

Applying himself to his books in his early youth, under various instruction, he fitted for college and matriculated at Amherst, where, however, his career was limited to two years,

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he being then, to use his own words, "glad to accept the polite invitation of the faculty to leave, especially as it was extended for the commission of certain irregularities of which he was entirely innocent." His seafaring life began in 1834, when he shipped as clerk on an East Indiaman. This experience decided his vocation. From that time on he devoted him- self cheerily and strenuously to mastering and practising the art of navigation, beginning as an apprentice hand, and working his way up- ward step by step. He sailed far and wide, and visited many lands. In 1837 he was sec- ond mate of a vessel that was anchored at an English port in the month of June, and, ob- taining leave of absence on Coronation Day, he wended his way through the crowded streets, mounted the wall of the Duke of Devonshire's palace, and saw Victoria as she passed by on her way to Westminster Abbey to be crowned. His recollections of that occasion and of the scenes in Piccadilly, he wrote for publication at the time of the Queen's second jubilee, June, 1897. In the Crimean War Captain Codman commanded the steamship "William Penn" used as a transport vessel to convey troops from Constantinople to the Crimea; and in our own Civil War he commanded the steamer "Quaker City," carrying stores to Port Royal. Self-possessed, courageous, and tact- ful, he braved the dangers of the deep, and lived to tell many a tale of thrilling adventure and narrow escape. On one occasion, succeed- ing in getting his ship safely to New York after it had been run into on the high seas by another vessel, he received from the under- writers a silver service. Retiring from the sea in 1864, he engaged in foreign commerce, being both an importer and an exporter.

Not a young man, but well advanced in years, he went West, and spent some months in Utah, finding much to admire in the en- ergy, perseverance, and honesty of the Mor- mons, although not approving of polygamy. Later, from time to time he used to visit Idaho, where he owned a cottage. In New York, as in Boston, he was a familiar presence; and he was a popular member of the Twilight Club, the New York Reform Club, and the Authors' Guild. A frequent contributor to the daily

press, he was also the author of several sub- stantial volumes, among them being: "Sail- ors' Life and Sailors' Yarns," "The Mormon Country," "A Summer with the Latter Day Saints," "Restoration of the American Carry- ing Trade," "Winter Sketches from the Saddle of an Octogenarian," and a "Biographical Sketch of William Wheelwright of Newbury- port." He was widely known as a champion of free trade, and especially of free ships. Equally earnest and honest, he wrote : "I have labored for free ships in season and out of sea- son, and I have done it solely and absolutely from love of my old profession, and from a desire to give employment to my old comrades and to those who might be their successors." Simple in his tastes and his habits of living, he was fond of outdoor exercise, especially horseback riding. Length of years brought not to him in any marked degree the usual infirmities of age. To borrow the words of a personal friend, "Remarkable as was his phys- ical vigor, which at the age of nearly eighty- six years had suffered but little abatement, it was, perhaps, less noteworthy than his indom- itable youthfulness of spirit, his unimpaired keenness of intellect, his lively humor, and the zest with which he maintained his interest in all the happenings of the day."

Accustomed to think for himself on all sub- jects, Captain Codman was a Democrat in politics, and a liberal Christian in religious faith. He was married November 3, 1847, to Anna Gertrude Dey, daughter of Anthony and Harriet Caroline (Richards) Dey, of New York City. Captain Codman died in Boston, April 6, 1900. Mrs. Codman and one child, a daughter Mary, wife of F. V. Parker, of Boston, and a grand-daughter, Gertrude Cod- man Parker, survive him.

Anthony Dey, the father of Mrs. Codman, was b. at Preakness, N. J., January 17, 1777. He studied law in New York City, and prac- tised his profession there for many years; and he was the oldest member of the New York bar when he d. in 1859, at the age of eighty- two. He was a man of progressive ideas, and was one of the promoters of the first railroad from New York to Newark, N. J. - this the beginning of the Pennsylvania system. Mr.

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Genealogy and history of representative citizens of the commonwealth of Massachusetts, Part 44

Author: Hurd, Charles Edwin, 1833-1910 Publication date: 1902 Publisher: Boston, New England historical publishing company Number of Pages: 850

Author: Hurd, Charles Edwin, 1833-1910
Publication date: 1902
Publisher: Boston, New England historical publishing company
Number of Pages: 850