USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Historic homes and places and genealogical and personal memoirs relating to the families of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Volume II > Part 36
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90
Spaniards, but before his first great battle was fought, the armies being drawn up at Amiens, peace was declared and the Englishmen came home. Dudley was then clerk for his kinsman, Judge Augustine Nicholls. He would doubt- less have continued a lawyer or clerk, but for the death of the judge, August, 1616, when Dudley was thirty years old. Dudley became steward to the Earl of Lincoln. In a few years by shrewd management Dudley cleared off a debt of a hundred thousand dollars (twen- ty thousand pounds) on the earl's estates. He continued in this responsible, position to the great satisfaction of his employer until he re- signed in 1627. He then hired a house in Bos- ton, Lincolnshire, where Rev. John Cotton preached. The Earl of Lincoln soon required Mr. Dudley's services again and until he came to America Dudley was employed by the Earl. But the unjust and cruel hand of Charles I fell upon the Earl of Lincoln and his household. For distributing information about the laws of the kingdom the Earl was thrown in prison. Dudley and other Puritan neighbors became in- terested in New England in 1627. In 1628 they procured a patent from the King for a plantation bounded by Massachusetts bay and Charles river on the south and Merrimac river on the north, and to include a strip of land three miles wide upon the shore of the bay and each shore of the two rivers, also for gov- ernment of all who should come within that section of country. The company sent over John Endicott, one of the undertakers, to take charge of the settlement then under Roger .Conant. In 1629 the company sent over three hundred settlers. In April, 1630, with Win- throp and a large party in four ships, Dudley embarked for the colony to make his home there. He was an undertaker from December I, 1629; assistant March 18, and deputy gover- nor March 23, 1629-30 at the last court held in England. He came to Salem in the ship "Ar- bella," sailing April 8, arriving June 12, 1630. Mr. Dudley settled first at Newtown, now Cambridge. His house was at the corner of Dunster street, but he soon sold his place to Roger Harlakenden and removed to Ipswich with his son, Rev. Samuel Dudley, Simon Bradstreet, Major Denison and others. He had large grants of land in various towns of the colony. He was one of the four first sign- ers of the covenant of the first church organ- ized at Charlestown, where he was then living, in July, 1630, but which removed to Boston a few months later.
In May, 1634, he was elected governor to succeed Winthrop and was re-elected three
57I
MIDDLESEX COUNTY.
times afterward in 1640, in 1645 and 1650, and was deputy governor thirteen years. When not governor he was generally deputy gover- nor, but sometimes assistant, an office he held five years. Before 1634 the court of assistants chose the governor and deputy and Mr. Dudley was the first governor chosen by the people at a general election. Governor Dudley vigor- ously opposed the doctrine preached by Rev. John Cotton that the secular government should be subservient to the priesthood. Mr. Dudley was one of the twelve men appointed by the general court to establish Harvard Col- lege in 1636, and when the charter of Harvard College was granted in 1650 Dudley as gover- nor signed it. The parchment is still pre- served. At the general court, March, 1644, Dudley was appointed sergeant-major-general of the Colony. He was in office four years, the first to hold this position.
Governor Dudley's residence in Roxbury was nearly opposite the house of Rev. John Eliot, the Indian Apostle. The Dudley man- sion was taken down in 1775 and a fort erected on the site, which is now occupied by the Uni- versalist church. His tomb is in the graveyard nearest the church. Historians all agree that Governor Dudley was a man of large ability and noble character ; perfectly honest, though blunt and severe.
He died at Roxbury, July 31, 1653, sincerely mourned by the little American Commonwealth he helped so much to build up. Cotton Mather said of him: "He was a man of sincere piety, exact justice, hospitality to strangers and liber- ality to the poor." His will was dated April 26, 1652, with additions April 13, May 28, and July 8, 1653 ; proved August 15, 1653. It ex- presses his desire to be buried near the grave of his first wife ; bequeathed to all his children by both wives and to grandchildren Thomas and John Dudley whom he had brought up.
He married (first) in England Dorothy - - ", who died at Roxbury, December 27, 1643, aged sixty-one years. He married (second), April 14, 1644, Catharine Hackburn, widow of Sam- uel Hackburn, and daughter of - Dighton. She had two sons and two daughters by her first marriage, and two sons and a daughter by Mr. Dudley. She married (third) Rev. John Allen, of Dedham. She died August 26, 1671. Children of Thomas and Dorothy Dud- ley: 1. Samuel, mentioned below. 2. Anne, born about 1612, in England, died September 16, 1672, at Andover, Massachusetts; married Governor Simon Bradstreet, about 1628 in England. 3. Pa- tience, born in England, died February 8, 1689-
90, at Ipswich ; married Major-General Daniel Denison at Cambridge. 4. Sarah, baptized July 23, 1620, at Sempringham, England ; died in 1659 at Roxbury ; married Major Benjamin Keane; (second) Thomas Pacy, of Boston. 5. Mercy, born September 27, 1621, in England, died July 1, 1691, at Newbury, Massachusetts ; married Rev. John Woodbridge. Children of Thomas and Catherine Dudley : 6. Deborah, born February 27, 1645, died November I, 1683; married Jonathan Wade, of Medford, Massachusetts. 7. Joseph, born September 23, 1647, at Roxbury, died April 2, 1720 ; mar- ried Rebecca Tyng. 8. Paul, born Septem- ber 8, 1650, died December 1, 1681; married Mary Leverett, daughter of Governor John Leverett.
(II) Rev. Samuel Dudley, only son of Gov- ernor Thomas Dudley by his first wife, was born about 1610, in Northamptonshire, Eng- land, and was probably educated for the min- istry of the Puritan denomination. He was twenty years old when he came with his father and family to New England. In 1632 or 1633 he married Mary Winthrop, daughter of Gov- ernor Winthrop, and their first three children were baptized in Boston. The two sons lived many years with their grandfather, Governor Dudley, but both died early and unmarried. Rev. Samuel Dudley removed from Cambridge to Ipswich about 1635. His wife died in 1643. He married (second) Mary Byley or Bayley, of Salisbury, Massachusetts, sister of Henry Bayley from Salisbury, England. Dudley was deputy to the general court from Salisbury in 1641-42-43-44-45. He was often chairman of the selectmen and held other town offices. In March, 1648, Samuel Dudley was appointed associate judge with Richard Bellingham and Samuel Simonds to hold a court from year to year at Salisbury. He entered an agreement May 13, 1650, with the town of Exeter, New Hampshire, to be their minister. In 1649 he preached for some time at Portsmouth, New Hampshire. He did not appear to be ambi- tious and aspire to high office, but took pleasure in a more simple and quiet rural life. He carried on farms, mills and stock-breeding be- sides preaching and acting as magistrate. His second wife Mary died at Exeter about 1651. Later he married Elizabeth Of all his ten sons Stephen Dudley alone has posterity of the name of Dudley. He had many grants of land, but his family was very large and he never became rich like the governor. He died at Exeter, February 10, 1683, aged seventy- three years. The New Hampshire Historical Society has Rev. Samuel Dudley's cane and
572
MIDDLESEX COUNTY.
Bible brought over from England. He died intestate, his son Theophilus being appointed administrator.
Mr. Dudley's record and life were honorable. He certainly might have had a high official career in the colonies if he had desired and had not been a minister. He had a good educa- tion ; his handwriting is fine and clear with nice punctuation ; his spelling excellent. There is no affectation of any sort in his style or text. His descendants have a tradition that he was a descendant of the Earl of Leicester's branch of the Dudley family. Children of Samuel and Mary (Winthrop) Dudley: I. Thomas, bap- tized at Boston, March 9, 1634, died November 7, 1655, unmarried. 2. John, baptized at Bos- ton, June 28, 1635, died young. 3. Margaret, baptized at Boston, died young. 4. Samuel, baptized at Boston, August 2, 1639, died April 17, 1643, at Salisbury. 5. Ann, born October 16, 1641, married Edward Hilton, of Exeter. Children of Samuel and Mary (Byley or Bay- ley) Dudley: 6. Theophilus, born October 31, 1644, at Salisbury, died 1713 at Exeter. 7. Mary, born April 21, 1646, at Salisbury, died December 28, 1646. 8. Byley, born Sep- tember 27, 1647, married Elizabeth Gilman, born April 19, 1663, daughter of Moses. 9. Mary, born January 6, 1649-50, married Dr. Samuel Hardy. 10. Thomas, was one of the selectmen of Exeter in 1694. Children of Rev. Samuel and Elizabeth Dudley: II. Elizabeth, born 1652, married, September 25, 1674, Kins- ley Hall. 12. Stephen, mentioned below. 13. James, born 1663, ship-master and merchant ; married Elizabeth Leavitt. 14. Timothy, died before 1702. 15. Abigail, married Jonathan Watson, of Dover, New Hampshire. 16. Dor- othy, married, October 26, 1681, Moses Lea- vitt. 17. Rebecca, married, November 21, 1681, Francis Lyford. 18. Samuel, married Hannah Tyng, died 1732.
(III) Stephen Dudley, son of Rev. Samuel Dudley (2), was born at Exeter, New Hamp- shire, and married, December 24, 1684, Sarah Gilman, daughter of Hon. John Gilman, of Ex- eter. She was born February 25, 1667, and died January 24, 1713. He married (second) Mary Tyng and (third) Mercy Gilman, who survived him. Stephen was a farmer of Exe- ter. He wrote a fair hand, though he made his mark in executing his will. The younger children of Rev. Samuel Dudley were not well educated. Dean Dudley says : "He ought to have hired a teacher and kept a school in his house, but he left the care of the young chil- dren too much to their mother. However, Stephen's disposition was very much like his
father's. Like his father he avoided public preferments and chose a quiet, private life. Like his father he married early and often and enjoyed having a swarm of children around him; and like his father he looked coldly upon sectarian affairs, being indifferent about riches or honors to his name." His will was dated February 17, 1734-35, and proved May 13, 1735. In January, 1711, Stephen gave to his son James, mentioned below, a twelfth part of the six hundred acres granted by the town to his father, Mr. Samuel Dudley. It was the sixth lot from the Great Hill on the south side of the Exeter river. Children of Stephen and Sarah Dudley : 1. Samuel, born December 19, 1685, at Exeter, died February 16, 1718; mar- ried Hannah Colcord. 2. Stephen, born March 10, 1688, married Sarah Davidson. 3. James, born June II, 1690, died September 4, 1746; married Mercy Folsom. 4. John, born October 4, 1692, killed by the Indians, June 23, 1710, at Poplin, New Hampshire, after a brave resistance alone against many. 5. Nicholas, born August 27, 1694, died 1766. 6. Joanna, born May 3, 1697, married Nicholas Perryman, a lawyer. 7. Trueworthy, born 1700, married Hannah Gilman, daughter of John. 8. Jos- eph, born 1702. 9. Abigail, married a Mr. Lyford, of Exeter. 10. Sarah, born Jan- uary 15, 1706, married Major Ezekiel Gilman. II. Elizabeth, married Simon Gilman.
(IV) James Dudley, son of Stephen Dud- ley (3), was born June II, 1690, at Exeter, New Hampshire. Married Mercy Folsom who was born about 1691 at Exeter. Children: I. James, born 1715, married Deborah Bean and died May, 1761. 2. Abigail, born October 31, 1716, married Deacon Aaron Young, of Kings- ton, New Hampshire. 3. Samuel, born 1720, at Exeter, married - Laad; (second) Wid- ow Sleeper and (third) Widow Clark; died August 30, 1797. 4. John, born April 9, 1725, married Elizabeth Gilman. 5. Joseph, men- tioned below. 6. Joanna, married Captain Daniel Ladd, of Deerfield, New Hampshire. 7. Mercy, married - Emerson. 8. Sarah, died unmarried.
(V) Joseph Dudley, son of James Dudley (4), was born in 1728 at Exeter. He married Susanna Lord. He was brave and capable. At the age of sixteen he accompanied his father and two brothers in the expedition to the siege of Louisburg. He had a common school edu- cation. He became a singular enthusiast in matters pertaining to religion, and at thirty embraced the doctrine of passive obedience and non-resistance, similar to the principles of the Friends. This sect originated in Exeter under
573
MIDDLESEX COUNTY.
the preaching of Rev. James Bean who had been expelled from the Society of Friends for not conforming to the rules of dress, etc. They were known by the public as the "Light In- fantry Quakers." They wore very plain clothes without color. Joseph Dudley even un- dertook to raise to life the dead body of a woman named Clifford. He remained twenty- four hours shut up in a room with the corpse trying to perform the miracle. The sect believ- ed themselves gifted with miraculous powers as the Apostles of Christ. He would occasion- ally search his house to see that none of his family had transgressed his orders against wearing clothes of artificial colors: If any such things were found, he would burn them. Shoe and kneebuckles, beads and such baubles he would throw into the mill pond. Some were afterward fished out. But he got over his delusion and for several years late in life was not fanatical. Hewas naturally of a high spirit, even wilful at times, and intolerant in theologi- cal matters, always disputing with all denom- inations, including his own sect, if they did not live up to their professions. But, adds Na- thaniel Dudley to an account similar to that just given: "I once thought differently re- specting his character from what I do now, and therefore must do justice to his memory, as I have seen and known him during the last twen- ty years of his life. He was a man of the pur- est morals, honest and punctual in all his deal- ings, hospitable and benevolent to strangers, his heart and hand being always open for the relief of the poor and unfortunate. He was always alive to the distress of any and ever ready to assist with his advice and property, often without waiting to be asked, considering it his duty to do so, without fee or any reward. Thus he did much good in his day and gener- ation and was honored and beloved. But he would never accept of public office or honor, although he did not refuse to act as arbitrator, umpire, surveyor of land or lumber, etc. He was active in business and built a mill at Ray- mond, carried on farming and other useful trades. His justice and veracity were never impeached. He was an advocate for common schools and all such matters of common utility, but an enemy to priests of every sort and name, never failing to rebuke iniquity in high or low ; a kind husband, a tender father and an oblig- ing neighbor. He brought up a large family on his small farm, being also an excellent cooper by trade, and was so faithful and industrious that he left an estate valued at
about a thousand pounds to be divided among his children." He.
died in 1792. His wife died January 13, 1802. Children : I. Joseph, mentioned below. 2. Benjamin, born 1753, died at Mount Vernon, New Hampshire, 1795. 3. Thomas, born No- vember 18, 1766, died March 28, 1839, at Ches- ter. 4. Daniel, born 1768, died 1813, at Ches- ter ; married Susan Glidden. 5. Elizabeth, married Samuel S. Gilman, of Candia. 6. Joanna, born at Exeter, married Reuben Bean, of Candia. 7. Mary, married Nathaniel Wells, of Gilmanton. 8. Hannah, married Nathan Robie, of Raymond. 9. Susannah, died at Vershire, Vermont ; married Jonathan Gilman.
(VI) Joseph Dudley, son of Joseph Dudley (5), was born at Exeter, February 15, 1750. He married (first) Deborah Bean, daughter of Lieutenant Benjamin Bean, of Raymond ; (second) Sarah Smith, a sister of Anna (Smith) who married Nathaniel Dudley, daughters of Obadiah and Mary (Leavitt) Smith. He re- inoved from Brentwood, New Hampshire, to Readfield, Maine, but after the death of his first wife returned to Raymond. Joseph was a ruling elder of the Free Baptist church for many years, leading in church meetings in the absence of the minister. He died October 28, 1825. His house was on the Deerfield road, lately occupied by Thomas Healey. Dudley was selectman and held other town offices.
Children, excepting Deborah and Susanna, born in Raymond: I. Benjamin, mentioned below. 2. Hannah, born September 17, 1778, died May 26, 1835, at Raymond ; married Jere- miah Fullonton. 3. Deborah, born July 17, 1780, at Readfield, died October 20, 1815, at Raymond. 4. Susanna, (twin) born July 17, 1780, died March 25, 1806; married Samuel Tilton. 5. Mary, born July 27, 1783, died unmarried at Candia, January 10, 1869. 6. Eunice, born September 20, 1787, died July I, 1842. 7. Joseph, born February 7, 1790, mar- ried Sally Dudley, daughter of Thomas. 8. Samuel, born May 5, 1796, tanner and shoe- maker by trade; succeeded his father in busi- ness. 9. Stephen, born July 27, 1798, mar- ried Hannah Turner.
(VII) Benjamin Dudley, son of Joseph Dudley (6), was born October 25, 1776, at Raymond, and married (first) Elizabeth Smith. He lived at Raymond, New Hampshire, and at Mt. Vernon, Maine, where he died May 29, 1864. He was a blacksmith by trade; a good citizen of high character. Children, born in Mt. Vernon : I. James, married Lucinda Whittier. 2. Sally, married Elias Sherburne. 3. Rev. Thomas J., mentioned below. 4. Polly, married James Neale, 5. Joseph. 6. Samuel, married - Currier. 7. Benjamin.
574
MIDDLESEX COUNTY.
8. Jesse. 9. John, married Staine.
(VIII) Rev. Thomas J. Dudley, son of Benjamin Dudley (7), was born in Mount Vernon, Maine, about 1805. He was a min- ister at various places. He died at Terre Haute, Indiana. He married Lorinda Fifield, and Elise Charters, who was born in Nova Scotia, and who died in 1872 at Lowell, Mass- achusetts. Children: I. Mary E., born May 31, 1827. 2. Albion J., mentioned below. 3. Ellen F., born November 8, 1830. 4. Benja- min F., born June 24, 1832. 5. Surana, born May 7, 1834. 6. Octavia T., born March 22, 1835.
(IX) Albion J. Dudley, son of Rev. Thomas J. Dudley (8), was born in Cooper, Maine, February 25, 1829, and died at Lowell, Octo- ber 7, 1888. His mother moved to Lowell and brought up her children there. He was edu- cated in the Lowell schools, but at an early age began to work as chore-boy in Stott's Mills. He learned the business and showed much natural ability. He finally became buyer of wool for Stott's Mills and later became super- intendent of the Belvidere Woolen Mills, a po- sition he held until his death. Mr. Dudley was a Republican in politics. In 1862-63-64 he was a member of the common council, and in 1866- 67-68 member of the board of aldermen. He served on important committees and was a very faithful and efficient city officer. He was a loyal and active supporter of the political party of which he was a member. In his younger days he served on the volunteer fire depart- ment and was a member of the Lowell Veter- an Firemen's Association. He had been for six years on the board of overseers of the poor of the city of Lowell, a position he held at the time of his death. In religion he was a Uni- versalist. He was past master of the Ancient York Lodge of Free Masons; member of Mount Horeb Royal Arch Chapter and of Pil- grim Commandery, Knights Templar. He be- longed also to the Knights of Honor.
Mr. Dudley was a man of much strength of purpose and force of character. Largely self- educated, he made the most of his opportuni- ties to study, to acquire knowledge of books, of men and of business. He had high standards of personal conduct and his associates in busi- ness all grew to honor and respect him for his earnestness and integrity. He labored hard and constantly; he was faithful to his company and ranks high among the men of Lowell whose lives have been conspicuously successful through their own merits and en- deavors.
Mr. Dudley married, November 20, 1856, at
Lowell, Alice M. Ashworth, daghter of George Ashworth, of Cranston, Rhode Island. Her father was a block printer by trade and en- gaged many years in the file cutting business in Lowell. They have no children surviving. His widow resides at the home in Lowell ..
August Fels was born February 7,
FELS 1844, in Dornbirn, a town in Vor- arlberg, Austria-Hungary, situated near Lake Constance, seven miles south of Bregenz. The famous Lake Constance lies be- tween Switzerland on the south, Baden, Wurt- emberg and Bavaria on the north, and Vorarl- berg on the east. The northern portion is known as the Uberlingersee; the western arm is called the Untersee or Zellersee. He is de- scended from an ancient and honorable Tyro- lese family whose devotion to the cause of lib- erty and loyalty to their native land was shown on many fields of battle.
Mr. Fels attended the schools of his native town until he was twelve years old, entering Feldkirch College, at Feldkirch, Vorarlberg, Austria-Hungary, where he was graduated in 1860. He then went into his father's woolen mills in his native town and learned the busi- ness thoroughly. After two years he decided to strike out for himself in a more promising field, and he came to America. During his first year in this country he was connected with the office of the Wurtemburg consul in Philadelphia, and became familiar with Amer- ican methods and the English language. He then became assistant book-keeper for a large New York importing house. In 1864 this firm rented woolen mills at Stevenstown, New York, and placed them in charge of Mr. Fels as superintendent. A year later the same firm built another woolen mill at Paterson, New Jersey, and he became the superintendent. The mill was destroyed by fire in 1877. He was offered the position of agent of the Merrimack Company of Lowell, Massachu- setts, and accepted, holding this important position and managing the large industry of the concern with the greatest suc-
cess until his death. He was killed in a runaway accident, July 3, 1905, in the prime of life, cutting short a career of great usefulness and promise. His activity was not limited to the manufacturing industry in his charge. He was elected president of the Lowell & Dracut Horse Railroad Company in 1886. Upon the consolidation of this road with the Lowell Horse Railroad Company he was elected vice- president. In 1896 he became president of the
575
MIDDLESEX COUNTY.
Merrimack Mills Company. He was also vice- president of the Nashua Electric Railroad, and a director of the Middlesex Trust Company. He was a man of public spirit, and wherever he was living did his utmost to assist the de- velopment and prosperity of the community. He was an excellent public officer. He served the city of Paterson from 1874 to 1877 in the board of aldermen. When he left the city to settle in Lowell, the city government of Pater- son paid him the compliment of declining to accept his resignation, and, though living in another state, he served out his term in the New Jersey city. He was an independent Democrat in politics, equally popular with Re- publicans and Democrats. He was alderman from Ward Two, Lowell, in 1887, and was . elected a member of the water board of Lowell in 1894 for four years. He was well known in Masonic circles, and also belonged to the Country and Highland Clubs. Of unusually happy temperament and attractive personality, much of his success in life was due to his good fellowship and sympathy for his fellow men. He attracted friends in business as well as in social life. His home life was especially ideal. But he neglected his business for nothing else. He laid the foundation of his success in a broad and thorough knowledge of the details of wool- en manufacture, and he kept up to the advance in the arts having to do with his branch of the industrial manufacturing. Perhaps he inherit- ed some of his skill and ability in the business, for his ancestors were merchants and manufac- turers, and from his earliest years he saw the spinning and weaving of fabrics. He mastered the details of the commercial department of the business and learned the secret of manufactur- ing at a profit and of reaching the public taste and demand.
He married, September 7, 1873, Anna Kas- sell, of Passaic, New Jersey. She survives him, living in the home at Lowell. Children : Cecelia, August, Max W .; Robert P., died November 29, 1886; Anna G., and Grover Cleveland.
The Petts family settled in PETTS Townsend, Massachusetts, about 1750. Three of the family, prob- ably brothers, married and settled there, and from them spring all of the name in New Hampshire. Lemuel Petts was a sergeant in Captain James Hosley's company, Colonel Jonathan Reed's regiment, in 1777, in the revolution, and he was lieutenant in Captain Daniel Baker's company, Colonel Webb's
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.