Historic homes and institutions and genealogical and personal memoirs of Worcester county, Massachusetts, with a history of Worcester society of antiquity, Vol. III, Part 48

Author: Crane, Ellery Bicknell, 1836-1925, ed
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: New York, Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 772

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. III > Part 48

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Mr. Dunn married Miss Luey A. Stone, daugh- ter of Charles Stone. The children of this union are: Etta Idell, born in Petersham, August 20, 1859; and John Stephen, born in Petersham, March 30, 1861. Etta Idell is now the wife of A. M. Worcester of Gardner. John Stephen Dunn married Jennie Alden, of Springfield, and is residing in Gard- ner.

JAMES MOULTON PRINCE, a retired wool sorter of Webster, belongs to an old Oxford family which was established there prior to the Revolution- ary period, and in all probability the original set- tler of that name in Oxford, came to Worcester county early in the eighteenth century. His grand- father, David Prince. who was born in Oxford, January 5, 1774, and died there September 22, 1847, married Rebecca Shumway, whose birth took place in November, 1780, and whose death occurred Octo- ber 26, 1876, at the advanced age of ninety-five years and eleven months. David and Rebecca (Shumway) Prince were the parents of eight chil- dren.

Alpheus Prince, James M. Prince's father, was born in Oxford, November 28, 1799. About the year 1843 he inoved to Worcester, and lived to be over eighty-eight years old, his death having oe- curred in Webster January 17. 1888. He married Mary Moulton, of Oxford, who became the mother

of three children: Henry, born 1825, and lived to be but six weeks old; James M., the principal sub- ject of this sketch; and Candid Malony, born Janu- ary 16, 1831, died October 18, 1861.

James Moulton Prince was born in Oxford, De- cember 8, 1828. He attended school in his native town until he was fifteen years old, at which time the family moved to Worcester, and he subsequently studied at the Worcester Seminary. When a young man he went to Fitchburg, where he learned to sort wool, and was later employed at that calling in Gil- sum, New Hampshire, and in Worcester. In Sep- tember 1861, he went to Webster as wool sorter at the Slater mills, and retained that position con- tinuously for thirty-seven years, or until 1898, when he retired. For many years he has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and formerly participated actively in church work, serving as steward, class leader and Sunday school teacher. Politically he supports the Republican party.

Mr. Prince has been three times married. His first wife, whom he married May 1, 1851, was Sarah Jane Titus, born in Sutton, this county, August 18. 1828, daughter of Henry and Mary ( Williams) Titus. She died September 26, 1871, leaving two children : I. Clara Jeannette, born February 11, 1854. 2. Benjamin Moulton, born January 9, 1856; married Lillian Flora Bixby, daughter of Alanson Bixby, of Thompson, Connecticut, November 12, 1878, and their children are: Walter Everett, born July 18, 1881; Ernest Paul, June 10, 1891; and Al- fred Leslie, July 4, 1894. Benjamin Moulton Prince and family reside in Worcester, Massachusetts.

In January, 1872, James M. Prince married for his second wife Luella Ware Stone, born in Oxford, November 19, 1839, daughter of David Stone. She died July 24, 1892, leaving no children. He was married for the third time, October 26, 1893, to Alura Gibson, born in Oxford, November 30, 1860. daughter of John and Mary (Bigelow) Gibson, and great-granddaughter on the maternal side of Captain Timothy Bigelow, a distinguished officer in the Continental army during the war for national in- dependence.

CHARLES ROBINSON, of Barre, one of the most successful breeders of fancy live stock in New England, is a son of William and Mary ( Warner) Robinson, of Hardwick. The Robinsons, who were among the early settlers of Hardwick, are deseended from the Rev. John Robinson, who led his little flock of worshippers from England to Holland, and sub- sequently arranged for their departure in the "May- flower" for New England, where they founded the Plymouth Colony. The immigrant ancestor of the family was the latter's son Thomas, who settled in Scituate in or prior to the year 1640, and a sum- mary of the records relative to him will be found in a sketch of Joseph R. Robinson, of Hardwick, which appears elsewhere in this work. Thomas Robinson represented Scituate in the general court at Plymouth in 1643. He was subsequently engaged in business in Boston, where he owned a dwelling house, but seems to have retained his residence in Scituate, as he was deacon of the Second Church there in 1657. and with the exception of his son James, his children by his second marriage were all baptized in that town. January II, 1652-53, he mar- ried for his first wife Mary Woody, widow of John Woody, and daughter of John Cogan, a Bos- ton merchant. She died in October, 1661, and he married for his second wife Elizabeth Sherman, also a widow. He was killed by a falling tree in 1676. His children were: John, Samuel, Josiah, Ephraim, Thomas, James, Joseph, Mary and Mary

JAMES M. PRINCE

BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY

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2d. From Deacon Thomas the line of descent is through Thomas (2), James (3), James (4), Joseph (5), and William (6) to Charles Robinson, who is therefore of the seventh generation.

Thomas Robinson, son of Thomas and Mary Robinson, was baptized in Scituate, March 5, 1653- 54, married Sarah, daughter of Edward Denison, of Roxbury, and had Thomas, Sarah, Joseph, Eliza- beth and James. He died in June, 1700, and his wife died ten years later. James Robinson, son of Thomas Robinson, born March 15, 1689-90, prob- ably in Boston, went from there to Rochester in 1714, and in 1757 moved to Hardwick, where he died in March, 1762. In July, 1711, he married Patience, daughter of Captain Samuel Ruggles, of Roxbury, and a descendant of the first Thomas Ruggles. She died in January, 1768, aged seventy- eight years. Their children were: James and Thomas, born in Boston; Thomas 2d., Sarah, Doro- thy, Denison and Hannah, who were born in Roch- ester.

James Robinson, son of James and Patience Robinson, was born in Boston, March 1, 1712. He was one of the pioneers in what is now Hardwick. clearing a farm on the Barre line, which, in his day, was included within the limits of New Brain- tree, but was annexed to Hardwick in 1814, some twenty-four years after his death. He died May 21, 1790. On July 3, 1739, he married Elizabeth, daugh- ter of Benjamin Smith, who became the mother of James, Elizabeth, Joseph, Benjamin, Patience, Hannah, Mary, Sarah and Susan.

Joseph Robinson, son of James and Elizabethi Robinson, was baptized April 7, 1745. He became a thrifty farmer in Hardwick, where his death oc- curred April 22, 1836. His wife, whom he had mar- ried February 16, 1780, was Lucy, daughter of Sam- uel Ruggles, of Barre, and also a descendant of Thomas Ruggles. She died August 4, 1826, aged sixty-eight years. Their children were: William, Sarah, James and Joseplı.

William Robinson, son of Joseph and Lucy, and the father of Charles Robinson, was born in Hard- wick, 1781. When a young man he settled in Barre, where he kept a tavern on the common for several years, and he died August 21, 1862. On November 28. 1809, he married Mary, daughter of Jonathan Warner. She was born in 1789, died October 13, 1866, aged seventy-seven years. William and Mary (Warner) Robinson were the parents of eight children, namely: William, born September 30, 1810, married Harriet N. Bemis; Mary, born Feb- ruary 20, 1813, married Harrison Harwood; Sally, born November 24, 1815, married Samuel Smith ; Maria, born December 5, 1818, married Moses Rug- gles; Lucy, born April 27, 1822, married Charles Bacon; Hannah, born January 10, 1827, married Alexander Ellsworth, and afterwards Samuel Smith; James, born December 2, 1830, died in child- hood; and Charles, see forward.

Charles Robinson, son of William Robinson, was born in Barre, July 29, 1834. He pursued the pri- mary branches of his education in the school of old district No. 8, and completed his studies at the Hardwick high school. He began the activities of life as a clerk .in a country store at Barre, carried on by his uncle, Samuel Smith, with whom he re- mained seven years, at the expiration of which time he established himself in mercantile business at Wilmington, where he made a very propitious start, but was unable to survive a period of business de- pression, caused by the financial stress of '57. Re- turning to Barre he engaged in the boot and shoe business at a time when the manufacturing indus- tries were in a most flourishing condition, and straw

bonnets were produced in large quantities. This was just prior to the civil war, when trade in all kinds of merchandise, including tobacco and spirits, was neither restricted by contributions of "trusts," nor incumbered with internal revenue taxes, and Barre was a thriving business center. In common with the majority of the young men of that period, his busi- ness prospects were superseded at the breaking out of the rebellion by a spirit of patriotism, which even his young and attractive wife was unable to sup- press, and he accordingly enlisted in Company K. Forty-second Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. Ordered to the Department of the Gulf he served with General Banks in the famous Red . River campaign, participated in the seige and cap- ture of Port Hudson, and was mustered out as a corporal at the conclusion of his term of service.

After the war Mr. Robinson was for a time as- sociated with George R. Robinson, at Hardwick, and later at North Brookfield. He has since en- gaged in agricultural pursuits in Barre, where in 1872 he purchased the homestead which he now oc- cupies. For many years he has been an extensive breeder of fancy blooded cattle, owning at one time the largest, as well as the finest herd in the county, and in addition to furnishing attractive exhibitions of his stock at state and county fairs, he has made special exhibits of unique specimens at Austin and Stone's museum, Boston, and in the western cities. He was the breeder of what is probably the most famous Holstein bull ever bred in America, which he sold for the sum of twenty-five thousand dollars, and he has frequently received from cattle fanciers proportionately high prices for unusually fine speci- mens of stock. His fair and cattle-show exhibits have brought him many substantial awards from first prizes to sweepstakes, and he ranks among the most noted cattle experts in the United States.

Mr. Robinson belongs to no less than nine agri- cultural bodies, being a trustee of the Worcester Agricultural Society and a director of the Brattle- boro (Vermont) Agricultural Society, an active member of the New England, Bay State, Athol, Fitchburg, Palmer and Sturbridge societies, and a similar organization in Providence, Rhode Island. He is a Master Mason and was junior warden of Mount Zion Lodge, Barre. Politically he is a Re- publican. His church affiliations are with the Uni- tarians.

In 1860 Mr. Robinson married for his first wife Miss Mary S. Henry, daughter of Miletus Henry. She became the mother of five children, namely : Kate Maria, who married Frederick W. Williams, of Hubbardston ; Hattie N., married Arthur Swindel and is no longer living; Mary and Martha (twins). the former of whom married C. W. Maynard, of Spencer, and Martha is the wife of C. H. Maynard, of West Moreland, New Hampshire; and William H., married Clara Glass, and is now residing in Boston. After the death of his first wife Mr. Rob- inson married Miss Alfreda Parkhurst, daughter of Elias Parkhurst. Of this union there are no children.

GEORGE F. BUTTERICK. The Butterick family of Sterling, which is a highly reputable one, was established there by sturdy and industrious an- cestors who came from Groton, Massachusetts, and their descendants have all been prominent as well as prosperous citizens. George F. Butterick, the principal subject of this sketch, was born in Sterl- ing, August 16, 1855, son of George and Sarah ( Keyes ) Butterick. He is a descendant on the maternal side of Lieutenant Joel Pratt, who served as such in the Continental army during the Ameri-

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can revolution, and an official document relative to his service, issued by the Federal Congress in Phil- adelphia in 1784, bearing the signature of George Washington, hangs in a conspicuous place upon the wall of the reception room in Mr. Butterick's house. His preliminary studies were pursued in the Sterling public schools, and he concluded his edu- cation with a commercial course at what was form- erly Howe's Business College, Worcester. When ready to begin the activities of life he turned his attention to agriculture, not, however, in the or- dinary, careless manner of one who tills the soil merely for the want of a better occupation, but en- tered so enthusiastically into the spirit of the work as to raise it from a laborious. uncongenial means of livelihood to the dignity of a profession. As superintendent of a large fruit farm in Lancaster for over twelve years, he acquired much valuable knowledge as well as practical experience relative to the cultivation of fruits indigenous to the climate of New England, which constitutes the fundamental basis of a life-study of horticulture and kindred subjects. With a view of carrying out his own ideas unhampered by the opinion or dictation of others, and at the same time to secure the advance- ment of his own interests, he relinquished his posi- tion in Lancaster, and renting a farm of one hun- dred and twenty acres in Sterling, which is unus- ually well located for his purpose, he applied him- self diligently to the cultivation of fruits and vege- tables upon scientific principles. The results of his efforts to aid nature upon carefully investigated, scientific lines have been entirely satisfactory from a professional standpoint, as well as exceedingly remunerative, and he is now supplying the Boston and other markets with fruits of a superior quality. He has long been regarded as an authority upon horticultural subjects and his judgment of fruits and vegetables at local exhibitions is considered un- questionable. Mr. Butterick has realized substan- tial prosperity in his chosen field of usefulness, to which he devotes his energies almost exclusively, and about the only outside speculation he is inter- ested in is the Conant Hotel Company, of which he is a director. He is quite active politically, and as a Republican has rendered his share of service to his party in the capacity of delegate to various county, district and state conventions. He is also a prominent figure in local civic affairs, having served with marked ability as chairman of the board of selectmen for the past two years, and he has faithfully performed other public duties, including those of assessor, overseer of the poor, road com- missioner, etc. For more than twenty years he has affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fel- lows, having held all of the offices in Clinton Lodge, and is Past Grand Patriarch of the encampment. As a leading member of the Unitarian Church lie has taken a lively interest in its work, and for many years has served upon the Parish Committee. Mr. Butterick married, November 24, 1881, Sarah R. Burpee, of Sterling, daughter of James and Eunice (Goss) Burpee, the latter a native of Lancaster. Jamies and Eunice G. Burpee had a family of nine children : William H., was a school teacher ; Mary L., married H. S. Sawyer ; Frederick WV., a farmer, married Mary Harper; J. Samuel, a teacher, married Alice White; Emma S. and Addie M., died in early womanhood ; Ethie J., wife of Cal- vin Brigham; Sarah R., who has been previously re- ferred to; and Hattie C., unmarried, resides in Sterling. Mr. and Mrs. Butterick have two daugh- ters : Ellen Christine, born November 3, 1884; and Florence Hattie, March 8, 1886. Both are now stu- dents at Mount Holyoke College. Ellen Christine

is studying medicine, preparatory to becoming a professional nurse. Florence Hattie is pursuing a course in library science with a view of becoming a librarian.

GEORGE DUDLEY ADAMS, a well-known resident of Webster, is a son of the late Oliver Riley Adams, of Douglas. Oliver Riley Adams was born September 16, 1810. He served an apprentice- ship at the carpenter's trade, which he followed for many years in Douglas, and his death occurred at the home of his son, Edward Adams, in Sutton, January 9, 1895. January 1, 1835, he married Azuba Dudley, a member of the well-known Dudley fam- ily of that locality, and they had four children : George D., the principal subject of this sketch; Ed- ward, born February 23, 1839; Chloe Ann, Febru- ary 15, 1841 ; and Louisa, February 27, 1848. The last named died May 16, 1874.

George Dudley Adams was born in Douglas, May 26, 1836. He was educated in the public schools, and when old enough to make himself use- ful upon a farm he devoted his summers to that oc- cupation, continuing to attend school during the winter season until nineteen years old. He has ever since been engaged exclusively in agricultural pursuits. From 1878 to 1885 he was superintendent of the poor farm in Douglas, and in 1886 he came to Webster as superintendent of the town farm, in which capacity he continued for fifteen years, or until 1901, when he resigned. He now owns an excellent piece of agricultural property in Webster, and is still actively engaged in its cultivation. He is a Master Mason, a member of Mumford River Lodge. In religious belief he is a Baptist, and a member of that church. January 20, 1864, Mr. Adams was united in marriage with Mrs. Ellen Augusta Humes, born in Bigelow, widow of George Warren Humes, to whom she was married Novem- ber 28, 1860. Mrs. Adams was born August 21, 1843, daughter of Elijah and Mary (White) Bige- low. She is of Revolutionary ancestry, being a great-granddaughter of Colonel Timothy Bigelow, a distinguished patriot whose brilliant services in behalf of national independence are appropriately commemorated by a handsome monument in the city of Worcester, where he was born.

Timothy Bigelow was born in Worcester, Au- gust 2 (another authority says 12), 1739. He was a blacksmith by trade, as was also his first American ancestor, John Bigelow, of whom Timothy was a descendant in the fourth generation. John Bigelow took the oath of fidelity at Watertown, Massachu- setts, 1652; was a selectman there 1665, 1667, 1671; and died in Watertown July 14, 1703, aged eighty- six years. Further research shows that he was re- siding in Watertown at least ten years prior to taking the oath, as on October 30, 1642, lie married Mary Warren, which is the earliest marriage record found in that town. She died October 19, 1691, and he was again married. October 2, 1694, to Sarah Bemis. His children, all of whom were of his first union, were: John, born October 27, 1643 (will (lated 1703) ; Jonathan, born December 11, 1646; Mary, March 18, 1648-49; Daniel, December 1, 1650; Samuel, October 3, 1653; Joshua November 5, 1655: Elizabeth, June 15, 1657; Sarah, September 29, 1659; Jane, the date of whose birth cannot be ascertained ; Martha, born April 1, 1662; Abigail, February 4. 1663-4; and Hannah, March 1665-6, and died shortly after birth.

Joshua (2) Bigelow, grandfather of Timothy, was enrolled in the Watertown company which served in King Philip's war, 1675-76, and was wounded. For these services he received a grant

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of land in Worcester, and in 1742 he removed to Westminster, this county, where he died a non- ogenarian, February 21, 1745. He was married October 20, 1676, to Elizabeth Flagg, who died August 9, 1729. Their children: Joshua, born No- vember 28, 1677; Jonathan, March 22, 1678-80; John, December 20, 1681; Benjamin, January 20, 1683-4; Mary, 1686; Elizabeth, August 3, 1687; David, April 30, 1694; Joseph, December 29, 1695; Daniel, August 29, 1697; Ebenezer, September 4. 1698; Gershom, September, 1701; and "Elizer," March 14, 1704-5. Benjamin, who was wounded while in military ser- vice prior to 1708, survived the dangers of Indian warfare to meet his death accidentally in civil life by a fall from his horse. David died in Spain, and Ebenezer died in Cuba.

Daniel (3) Bigelow, Timothy Bigelow's father, went from Watertown to Worcester, settling in Pakachoag Hill, in the vicinity of Auburn. He was among the early settlers of Worcester, and served as the first highway surveyor when the town govern- ment was organized. He lived to the advanced age of ninety-two years. He married Elizabeth Whit- ney, and had six children: Daniel, born January 4, 1728-9; David, September 9, 1730; Elijah, March 2, 1737; Timothy, the date of whose birth has al- ready been given; Silence, born January 29, 1742; and Nathan, the date of whose birth is not at hand. Daniel died August 29, 1776. David at the age of eighty years, May 10, 1810. Elijah was ac- cidentally scalded at the age of three years, and died of his injuries.

Timothy Bigelow possessed a vigorous constitu- tion and superior mental faculties. Having learned the blacksmith's trade he established himself in business at Worcester, and his forge and iron works, which were in the rear of his residence, stood upon the site afterward occupied by the Court Mills. His military genius was inherited, and next to his trade hie excelled in drilling companies and bring- ing them to a high standard of discipline. He was in truth a patriot of patriots, and although not destined to meet death upon the battlefield, he practically sacrificed his life for the cause of na- tional independence. He was one of the most en- thusiastic and efficient members of the local com- mittee of correspondence, which was as early as March, 1773, organized as the "American Political Society" in Worcester, a body of earnest patriots who succeeded in completely turning the tide of public sentiment in favor of revolution. The secret meetings of the "Sons of Liberty" were frequently held at his residence, and he was associated with Warren, Otis, Adams, and other eminent patriots in the work of arousing the people into definite action. He was a delegate to the first and second provincial congresses, and organized the first Worcester company of minutemen, which he led into the field with such thorough precision in drill as to win the admiration of Washington. Jointly with General Warren and others he was instru- mental in establishing in Worcester that resonant mouthpiece of the patriot cause. the Massachusetts Spy, and, by assisting Isaiah Thomas in removing his press, type and other materials from Boston, enabled that redoubtable journalist to issue at a most opportune moment the first newspaper in Worcester county, which made its initial appear- ance just prior to the battle of Lexington. As captain of the Worcester company which was at- tached to Colonel Artemas Ward's regiment, Timothy Bigelow deserted his forge at the Lexing- ton Alarm. April 19, 1775, and from that memorable event until the close of the war he served the cause of national independence in the field. He

was promoted to the rank of major; was subse- quently commissioned colonel; and as commander of the Fifteenth Massachusetts Regiment of the Continental line he rendered services of inestimable value. His steadfast devotion to the patriot cause not only necessitated the sacrifice of his business, but his constant exposure to hardships in the field were stich as to completely undermine his physical constitution, and he returned to his home with his health irretrievably lost. In common with the ma- jority of the fighting patriots he received practically no reward, and it was left for another generation to publicly recognize his services in a manner be- fitting their merits. Colonel Bigelow died in Worcester March 31, 1790, in the fifty-first year of his age. July 12, 1762, he married Anna Andrews, an orphan and an heiress, born April II, 1747, daughter of Samuel and Anna (Rankin) Andrews. Her death occurred at Groton, Massachusetts, in July, 1809. She was mother of six children : Nancy, born January 2. 1765; Timothy, April 30, 1767; Andrew. March 30, 1769; Rufus, July 7, 1772; Lucy, May 12, 1774; and Clara, December 29, 1781. Nancy married Hon. Abraham Lincoln, of Worcester. Timothy, a graduate of Harvard. 1786, died May, 1821. He married Lucy, daughter of Hon. Oliver Prescott, M. D., of Groton, Massa- .chusetts. His children were: Katherine, Andrew (A. B., Harvard, 1814, S. T. D., 1844), John Pres- cott (Harvard, 1815, afterward secretary of state of Massachusetts and mayor of Boston), Edward, Helen, Francis (who became a merchant in Bos- ton), and Elizabeth Prescott. Andrew, third son of Colonel Timothy Bigelow, died November, 1787. Lucy, fourth child of Colonel Timothy, married Hon. Luther Lawrence of Groton, who subse- quently removed to Lowell. Rufus, fifth child of Colonel Timothy, became a merchant in Baltimore, Maryland, where he died December 21, 1813. Clara, sixth child of Colonel Timothy, married her cousin, Tyler Bigelow, Esq., of Watertown.

Mrs. George D. Adams' grandfather was Cap- tain Elijah Bigelow, previously mentioned. Of her union with George W. Humes she had two daugh- ters-Phoebe Augusta, born October 18, 1861, died in infancy; and Georgia Ellen, born October 7, 1863, died February 1, 1895. The latter married Guilford Clancy Dudley, of Douglas, and left a son, Raymond Hill Dudley, born June 24, 1887, who is residing with Mr. and Mrs. Adams.

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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. III, Part 48

Author: Crane, Ellery Bicknell, 1836-1925, ed Publication date: 1907 Publisher: New York, Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company Number of Pages: 772

Author: Crane, Ellery Bicknell, 1836-1925, ed
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: New York, Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 772