Historic homes and institutions and genealogical and personal memoirs of Worcester county, Massachusetts, with a history of Worcester society of antiquity, Vol. I, Part 99

Author: Crane, Ellery Bicknell, 1836-1925, ed
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: New York, Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 824

USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Historic homes and institutions and genealogical and personal memoirs of Worcester county, Massachusetts, with a history of Worcester society of antiquity, Vol. I > Part 99

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

In religious belief Judge Chapin was a conserva- tive Unitarian, and was an active, influential inember of the Church of the Unity in Worcester, in which for many years he served as superintendent of the Sabbath school. After resigning the office of super- intendent, he joined the Bible class and thus con- tinued his connection with the school until failing health prevented his attendance. He was an active, strong man in the Unitarian denomination and for many years took a prominent position in it. He was twice elected president of the American Uni- tarian Association, and for four years was a mcm-

PUBLIC

& Fred Humes

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ber of the council of the national conference of Unitarian churches. Judge Chapin was a man of varicd gifts that made him successful; he was a good business man, an able lawyer, an upright judge, an honored and respected citizen, a man of the people, for with all his accomplishments and the great esteem in which he was held by those who came in contact with him, he never displayed any taint of egotism. As a speaker on public occasions he was in great demand. His wholesome wit and characteristic presentation of anecdotes, interspersed with flashes of oratory, gave him a reputation as a good after dinner speaker, and the people of Wor- cester county were always pleased and instructed as they listened to the voice of Judge Chapin at their annual gatherings given under the auspices of the various agricultural societies. Although he claimed no right to be classed as a poet, yet many of his productions are highly prized by his friends. During the days of the anti-slavery agitation he spoke frequently and effectively in behalf of the Free Soil and Republican parties, but after his ac- ceptance of a judicial office he though it unbecom- ing to take a conspicuous part in political contro- versies. He was interested in historical research and a prominent member of the American Antiquar- ian Society, serving as its treasurer for many years. Mr. Chapin was twice married. First on October 8. 1839, to Sarah, daughter of Joseph Thayer, Esq., of Uxbridge. She died April 30, 1869, and their only child. a son, died at the age of seven years and ten months. He married (second), May 23, 1871, Louisa Thayer, a sister of his former wife, by whom he had one child, Margaret, born 1874, married William Bazeley, two children: Louisa Thayer, born 1900; Margaret Ley, born 1905; they reside in Uxbridge, Massachusetts.

The progenitor of this Chapin family was :

(I) Samuel Chapin, who came from England with his wife Cicely and several children in the year 1636, and first settled in Roxbury, Massachusetts, but later removed to Springfield.

(II) Josiah Chapin, a son of Samuel Chapin, settled in Braintree, was an active, enterprising man and a land surveyor. He removed to Mendon about the year 1682 and became quite a distinguished man He was representative to the general court, and gained the prominent title then of esquire. He had sixteen children.

(III) Captain Seth Chapin, son of Josiah Chapin, Esq., was born in Braintree, Massachusetts, August 4, 1668, and was the seventh child in his father's family. He married (first) Mary Read; married (second) Bethiah Thurston. He is said to have been a man of talent and of considerable wealth. He had fourteen children. He died in 1746, aged seventy-eight years.

(IV) Seth Chapin, son of Captain Seth Chapin, born in Medfield, July 2, 1692, was the eldest of fourteen children. He married, February 5, 1713, Abigail Adams. aunt of John Adams, second presi- dent of the United States. His home place was in that part of Mendon now Hopedale, where he was a large land holder. He died April 1, 1737, leaving ten children.

(1) Moses Chapin, the youngest child of Seth Chapin, was born in 1736. He married, December 9, 1756, Lydia Atwood, daughter of Eldad and Martha Atwood. They lived in what is now Hope- dale. He died June 9, 1802. She died February 8, 1813. Their children were : David, born 1757; Jerusha, born 1760; Elizabeth, born 1762; Nathan, born 1765; Henry, born 1767. died young ; Lydia, born 1770: Olive, born 1772; Anna.

(VI) David Chapin, son of Moses Chapin, mar- ried (first) July 4, 1777, Judith Thayer, daughter

of Seth and Judith Thayer. She died and he mar- ried (second), February 12, 1784, Martha Bates, of Mendon, and settled in the territory now known as Upton. He was a farmer. He died February 6, 1814, aged fifty-six. She died May 3, 1846, aged eightv-one. Their children were: Elisha, born April 10. 1778, by first wife; Judith, born March 21, 1785; Sarah, born October 14, 1788; Lydia, born February 17, 1791 : Joseph Bates, born April 25, 1793; David, born July 2, 1795.

(VII) Elisha Chapin, son of David Chapin, born April 10, 1778, married Sarah Wood, July 8, 1802, in Upton, where they lived and died. He died June 13, 1826. Their children were: Experience, born September 24, 1803; Sarah Ann, born May II, 1807. Henry, born May 13, ISII, subject of this sketch.

JOHN FRED HUMES. Nothwithstanding the handicap of poor health for several years John Fred Humes, or as he is better known J. Fred Humes, has made in recent years rapid progress in his pro- fession. He is in touch with important litigation, especially in the office of the city solicitor to whom he is assistant. Mr. Humes was born in Sutton, where his family has been prominent for several generations. He is the son of John R. and Sarah (Putnam) Humes, of Sutton. His youth was spent in his native town and he graduated from the high school in 1883. He attended Worcester Academy the following year and graduated with the class of 1884. He matriculated at Brown University and studied there for three years and a half, but owing to a long illness in his junior year 'and poor health following he abandoned college without his degree. He undertook first the study of law in the office of Frank B. Goulding. After six months his health again gave out, and it was six years before he was fully restored to health. Then he entered the offices of Henry F. Harris and Charles M. Thayer. After two years and a half he was admitted to the bar. In June. 1897, he began his career as an attorney. He remained with Mr. Harris and Mr. Thayer for three years. In 1900 he opened an office at 532 State Mutual building. In August, 1904, he moved , to his present offices in the building of the Five Cents Savings Bank. In November, 1903, he was appointed assistant city solicitor to succeed Ernest I. Morgan, and is the second incumbent of the office. Mr. Morgan was appointed in 1899, when the posi- tion was created. Mr. Humes is secretary and treasurer of the Bar Association of Worcester County.

Until his marriage Mr. Humes resided at Sutton with his parents. He has since made his home in Worcester. He married, June 22, 1898, Susan A. Main, daughter of John and Ella (Reed) Main, of Gloucester. She was born in Gloucester, August 4, 1869. The Main family is one of the old families of Gloucester. Their children are: Warren Main, born July 5, 1899; Raymond Putnam, born April 4, 1901.

(I) Amos Humes settled at Douglas, Massachu- setts, where his son Warren was born July, 1802.

(II) Warren Humes, son of Amos Humes (I), was born probably in Douglas, July, 1802. The history of Douglas says that he possessed in a great degree the ability that characterized his father, who was evidently a man of mark in Douglas. Warren had limited opportunity for an education, but was self-educated to an unusual degree and exerted all his life a powerful influence in local affairs. He was endowed with a remarkable memory, being able, the Douglas history says, to retain and cor- rectly impart a vast amount of general information. He began the practice of his profession of civil

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engineer and surveyor at the age of twenty-five, and was later acknowledged to be one of the best in the southern part of the county. He became an authority on real estate law. He had a large share of the business of conveyancing in his locality. He was a justice of the peace. He was intensely interested in politics. For thirty years he was at the head of the Democratic party in Douglas, and controlled the town on all important matters. His one great failure to control is the exception that proves the rule. He opposed the purchase of a town poor farm, and after a bitter contest was de- feated in town meeting, whereat the joy of the public was expressed by a sort of Fourth of July celebra- tion. The wife of Warren Humes was Phebe Rich, daughter of Samuel Rich, Jr., of Sutton. Samuel Rich, Sr., of Douglas, married Elizabeth

who died March 20, 1803. Their children were : Samuel, born July 30. 1735; Benjamin, born July 20, 1737, married Rebekah Daggett, July 15, 1762; Hannah, born April 16, 1738: Elizabeth, born July 29, 1741 ; Sarah, born April 3, 1743; David, born March 7, 1744; Jonathan, born July 20, 1747; Reu- ben, born May 10, 1752; Amos, born September 4, 1757.

Samuel Riclı, Jr., son of Samuel Rich, was born July 30, 1735. He married Ruth Putnam, Novem- ber 18, 1761. She died December 28, 1811. Their children were : Stephen, born January 3, 1762; Elijah, born April 4, 1764; Ruth, born July 31, 1766 ; Samuel, born February 26, 1769; Elizabeth, boril January 23, 1772; Phebe, married Warren Humes. The children of Warren and Phebe Humes were : John R., born February 22, 1834; Amos A., born April 14, 1835; Milton, born April 13, 1840; Maria, L., born June 13, 1846; George W., born February 17. 1837, died October 28, 1863; Juliet A., born Jan- uary 19, 1850.

(III) John R. Humes, son of Warren (2) and Phebe (Rich) Humes, was born in Douglas, Febru- ary 22, 1834. He resides in Sutton, where he runs a farm and deals in lumber. He has held the offices of selectman and assessor in Sutton. He married Sarah M. Putnam. Their children are: George M .. born May 30, 1860, married Lottie E. Wheeler, and resides in Auburn; John Fred, born October 10, 1866 (see sketch) ; Nancy Evelyn, born December 24, 1868, married James Cranska, of Sutton, book- keeper at Manchaug, and has two daughters and a son: Frank Edwin, born September 14, 1872, re- sides with parents at Sutton.

BARNARD FAMILY. The late Dr. Rebecca Barnard, of Worcester, Massachusetts, was a de- scendant in the eighth generation from Robert Barn- mard, of Andover, Massachusetts. The line is as follows :

(I) Robert Barnard, called of Andover, Massa- chusetts. He was in Salisbury in 1642, Andover 1644, and Nantucket 1663. He was one of the founders of the church in Andover, and several of Inis descendants were ministers and physicians. He died about 1682. Administration on his estate was granted his grandson, Robert Barnard, February I, 1714-15, more than thirty years after the senior Robert's death, who by wife Joanna -, who died March 31, 1705, had the following children : John. Stephen, born 1648-49.

(II) Stephen Barnard, second son of Robert and Joanna Barnard, married, in Andover, Rebecca How, May 1, 1671, and resided in that town. Had sons: Nathaniel. James, Robert and Stephen.

(III) Robert Barnard, third son of Stephen and Rebecca (How) Barnard, born in Andover, March 28, 1689, married (first) Rebecca Osgood, at An-

dover, September 14, 1710, and she died July 29, 1727. He married (second) Elizabeth Bailey, May 15, 1729. In 1723 he purchased of Jeremiah Barst- tow, of Marlboro, three hundred and fifty acres of land on which there was a mill and other buildings, and removed from Andover to Marlboro where he was known as a miller and also kept a public house. Their children were: Robert, born August 30, 1714; Benjamin, born February 14, 1715-16; Martha; Re- becca; Elizabeth; born June 3, 1730; Joel, born July 14, 1732; Abigail, born April 28, 1734: Solomon, born December 27, 1735; Martha, born April 26, 1740 ; John, born May 19, 1743. This John was a physi- cian and settled in Sterling, Massachusetts.

(IV) Benjamin Barnard, second son of Robert and Rebecca (Osgood) Barnard, born February 14, 1715-16, married (first) Lucy Bush, of Marlboro. She died and he married (second), in Harvard, Mary Hunt, February 22, 1759. Mr. Barnard lived in Marlboro until 1743. when he purchased the home place of Stephen Houghton in Harvard and removed there, where he died October 24, 1794. He was prominent in the church, and held the office of selectman. His children were: Benjamin, born August 13, 1738; Jonathan, born June 18, 1740, died 1742; Lucy, born November 13, 1742, died January 24, 1752; Jonathan, born February 24. 1745; Eph- raim, born May 3, 1747; Moses. born May 7, 1749; Jonathan, born September 22. 1751, died September 27, 1756; David, born January 18. 1754. At least three of the above sons of Benjamin and Lucy (Bush) Barnard served in the war of the revolu- tion. Benjamin, the eldest, served in Isaac Gates company, the Fourth, Colonel Asa Whitcomb's regi- ment, April 19, 1775. eight and a half days at Cam- bridge. He also was paid mileage from Harvard to Danbury. December 17, 1776. He also marched in Captain Samuel Hill's company. Colonel Josiah Whitney's regiment, on aların at Bennington, Au- gust 19, 1777, and again in October of the same year. Moses, the sixth child, was a graduate of Harvard College, 1773, a physician, served as surgeon's mate to Dr. Dinsmore, Colonel Asa Whitcomb's regiment, service two months and fourteen days. Also in Captain Fuller's company, Colonel Whitcomb's Worcester county regiment, in August and Septem- ber, 1775. Again as surgeon on sloop "Republic" commanded by Captain John F. Williams, engaged August 20, 1776, and discharged November 18, 1776. (See Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors in Revo- lutionary War, Vol. I.)

(V) Jonathan Barnard, third son of Benjamin and Lucy (Bush) Barnard, born February 24, 1745, married Lucy - He served in Captain James Burt's company, Colonel Asa Whitcomb's regiment, in response to the alarm, April 19, 1775. He settled in Harvard on the home place, whichi at present writing still remains in the Barnard family. A fact worth recording is that for sixty years there was not a death in this family. His children were: Jacob, born April 16, 1769; Jonathan, January 27, 1771; Lucy, September 26, 1774: Benjamin, June 12. 1777; Sabra, July 24, 1779; Calvin, July 25, 1781 ; Sarah, February 3. 1784; Esther, June 1, 1786; Levi, April 20, 1789; Joel and Joab (twins), May 12, 1703.

(VI) Benjamin Barnard, third son of Jonathan and Lucy Barnard, born June 12, 1777, married (first) Rebecca Keep. He married (second) Jemima Whitcomb, of Boxboro. His children were: Frank- lin, born May 17, 1809: Granville, born January I, 1812, died September 15. 1895; Rebecca, born May 8, 1814, died November 5, 1817; Josialı, born May I, 1816, died June 20, 1858; Benjamin K., born Decem- ber 17, 1818, died January 14, 1900; Levi, born

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John. R. Back.

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March 22, 1822, died December 25, 1886; Abner, born February 14, 1832.

(VII) Dr. Franklin Barnard, eldest son of Ben- jamin and Jemima ( Whitcomb) Barnard, born May 17, 1809, married. March 3, 1833, Maria Ann Plum- mer, of Andover, Massachusetts, daughter of Ileze- kiah Smith Plummer and his wife Betsey Stimpson Poor, who were married April 3, 1806. Her great- grandmother, Lovejoy Poor, purchased in Salem, Massachusetts, a negro child whom she called Salem Poor. It is related in the history of Essex county that Dr. Barnard displayed unusual courage as a soldier, and on one occasion shot an English gen- eral. He studied with Dr. Samuel Thompson in Boston. He died in Worcester, November 29, 1889. and his wife died March 1, 1885. Their children were: Anna M., born in Andover. May 13, 1835; Dr. Rebecca, born April 29, 1837: Esther, born in Harvard, August 24, 1839: Caroline, born in Wor- cester, November 19, 1842.

(VIII) Dr. Rebecca Barnard, second daughter of Dr. Franklin' and Maria Ann ( Plummer) Barn- ard, was born in Andover, April 29, 1837. She came to Worcester, Massachusetts, a child in her father's family in the year 1840. Her early educa- tion was attained in the public schools of Worcester and at the Baptist Academy, after which for more than fifteen years she was a teacher in the city schools, during which engagement she was not ab- sent from her duties in her school room a single day. As a teacher she gave most excellent satis- faction, the personal interest she took in her pupils and the kindly assistance rendered them was the means of creating many lasting attachments between teacher and scholar which was only terminated by her death. Her medical studies were pursued at the College of the New York Infirmary, New York city. After serving as an interne at the hospital connected with that institution, she began the prac- tice of her chosen profession in Worcester. In the city directory for 1879 her name appears as physician with office at 49 Pearl street. As she was very generally and favorably known throughout the city, she found a fertile field in which to locate, and a large and lucrative practice was soon obtained and attended with remarkable success professionally. As the years came and went her practice increased, severely taxing her physical strength, yet her in- terest in educational institutions led her to accept a position on the school board, to which she was elected, serving six years. Her practical knowledge on educational matters proved of considerable as- sistance to the board. She was a member of various medical societies, among them the Boston, New Eng- land Hospital, and the Worcester District Medical Society. For many years her residence and of late her office was at the northerly end of Main street, in what has been known as the Baldwin Eaton house. one of the old time landmarks, built in 1760, and purchased by Dr. Rebecca Barnard in 1879. Miss Sarah Eaton, from whom the purchase was made, remained in the house until her death in 1887, in the same room in which she was born, July 3. 1800. Dr. Rebecca Barnard died unmarried September 9, 1905.

HJALMAR S. ANDERSON. Erik Anderson, the father of Hialmar S. Anderson, of Worcester. of the firm of Robinson & Anderson, jewelers, was born October 10, 1841, in Smedjebaken Dalarne, Sweden. He was the son of Anders and' Greta (Carlson) Anderson. He married Charlotte E. Hall- vorson, who died in Worcester, November 6, 1901. He removed to Worcester, Massachusetts, November 20, 1881. Their children are : : Hjalmar M., sce

forward : Knut H., Arthur E., Gustav E., Ernst, Minnie E., Francis. Two children died in infancy.

Hjalmar Anderson, son of Erik Anderson, was born in Ramnas, Westmanland, Sweden, December 13, 1870, and came to this country when quite young with his parents. He was educated in the Worcester public schools. When he was twelve years old he went to work as office hoy in the Palmer wire mill. He returned to school for a time, then became a weigher in the wire mill at Palmer, where the family was then living. They moved to Worcester and he entered the employ of tlie Taber Organ Company. Ile worked for a time also for the Washburn & Moen Company in the wire mill. At the age of seventeen he began to learn the jewelry trade of A. L. Burbank & Company. He remained with the firm and its successors, and since the recent death of William H. Robinson, is the head and sole owner of the business. The present name of the firm under which he is doing business is Robinson & Anderson, and the store is at 375 Main street. He is a Republican in politics, and member of Thule Lodge, No. 239, I. O. O. F., Worcester, Massa- chusetts.

He married, December 3, 1892, Elizabeth Fisk, who was born in Rotneros, Wermland, Sweden, Jan- uary 30, 1869, and educated in Sweden. She came to America in 1887. Their children are: Hjalmar S., Jr., born August 18, 1893; Irving E. L., born March 30, 1900; \Vendall, born October 21, 1903.

JOHN RICHARD BACK. Jacob Back (I), the grandfather of John R. Back, of Worcester. set- tled in Twerton, a village in Somersetshire, Eng- land, half way between Bristol and Bath. He mar- ried Sophia Frances, by whom he had two sons, Arthur and William. He died when a comparatively young man. His widow married again and had a daughter, Mary Francis. The latter came to America some years ago, but returned to her native place and married John Hill.

While the English ancestry of Jacob Back is not traced it is known that the surname belongs to all old English family. One branch of the Back family came early to Connecticut but the connection, if any, with the Worcester family is not known. Judah Back, to whom the Connecticut family trace their ancestry, was born September 21, 1765, in that por- tion of Windham, Connecticut, now the town of Chaplin. He died Sentember 21, 1828, in Holland, Massachusetts. It is likely that the father of Judah Back was the emigrant from England. No other branch of this family is known in this country.

The children of Jacob and Sophia ( Francis) Back were: I. William, of whom later. 2. Arthur, who came' to Worcester, Massachusetts, about 1840, and was interested in business before 1850 with L. WV. Pond; later he moved to Susquehanna, Penn- sylvania, where he spent the remainder of his days and where his children settled; he was master me- chanic there in the railroad shops of the Erie Rail- road; the children of Arthur Back were: I. Ar- thur; 2. Mary, resided at Binghamton, New York, 3. Sarah. 4. Charlotte. 5. Josephine.

(II) William Back, son of Jacob Back ( 1), was born in Twerton, England, August 22, 1818. He was educated in his native town and learned his trade there. He became a very expert finisher of woolen goods. In fact, the goods that took the prize at the Crystal Palace Fair in England in 1850 were made in the mill where he was employed as the finisher. But when in 1851 he came to Worcester with his wife and child he made a change in his occupation because he wished to give his two sons

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a mechanical education. He came to Worcester be- cause his brother was located here, and he went to work in the Pond machine shop. A number of other English families came to Worcester at the same time that Mr. Back came. There was an urgent call at that time for skilled mechanics. The in- dustries of the state of Massachusetts were at an important stage of their development, especially the woolen mills. Some of the best mechanics in the English woolen mills were induced to come to New England. These English families came from the prosperous middle classes. They were ambitious, skillful in their trades, God-fearing and worthy people. A group of these English families settled in Worcester in what was then called "Oregon" on the west side. Neighbors in the old country they remained neighbors in Worcester.

He married in England Sarah Silcox, who died in Worcester at the age of eighty-two. He died there in 1893 at the age of seventy-five. Their children were: I. Arthur John, born in 1843 in Twerton, England, was brought up in Worcester; he was killed in 1864 on the Erie Railroad in a wreck at Callicoon. 2. William Thomas, born May 24, 1846, in Twerton, England, came to Worcester with his parents when five years old; was educated in Wor- cester public schools and learned the machinist's trade; for twenty-two years, since 1883, he has been a foreman for F. E. Reed, manufacturer of ma- chine tools in Worcester; he is a prominent Odd Fellow; he married Ella Russell, of Worcester, and they have two sons: Arthur John, clerk at the F. E. Reed Company shop, married, and resides on May- wood street; William Russell, inspector at the F. E. Reed Company shop, resides with his parents at 52 Florence street. 3. John Richard, of whom later. ( 11]) John Richard Back, son of William . Back (2), was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, April 24, 1851, about a month after his father and mother came to Worcester to live. He received in the public schools of that city his early education. At the age of thirteen, however, he went to work in George Crompton's loom works, Green street, and remained there for two years. He tried mer- cantile business for a time and worked as clerk in several stores. He returned to manufacturing and served a regular three year apprenticeship with Wood & Light, makers of machine tools. He was promoted to a foremanship, and remained thirteen years with the firm, working, in fact, until the firm went out of business. About 1886 he began to work as a contractor for F. E. Reed. Two years later the contract system was done away with and the Reed shop reorganized. Mr. Back became the super- intendent, a position that he has held ever since. Meanwhile, of course, the Reed business has greatly increased. At first he had but fifteen men under him, and now he has three hundred. The F. E. Reed Company is described at some length in the sketch of Mr. Reed. It is the largest concern in its line of work in Worcester and in its special field of engine lathes produces more than any other shop in the country. The Reed lathes are known all over the world. The company has a large export trade. The business has grown constantly. Mr. Reed and Mr. Back have worked together in the development of this industry, Mr. Reed in charge of the selling and Mr. Back in charge of the manufacturing end. Since the corporation was formed in 1894 Mr. Back has been a stockholder and director of the company, and has been granted several patents on engine lathes.

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Historic homes and institutions and genealogical and personal memoirs of Worcester county, Massachusetts, with a history of Worcester society of antiquity, Vol. I, Part 99

Author: Crane, Ellery Bicknell, 1836-1925, ed Publication date: 1907 Publisher: New York, Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company Number of Pages: 824

Author: Crane, Ellery Bicknell, 1836-1925, ed
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: New York, Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 824