History of Bristol County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 9

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1818

USA > Massachusetts > Bristol County > History of Bristol County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 9

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Mr. Williams was the oldest member of the Bristol County bar in the time of his practice. Towards the latter part of his life, when, on account of infirmities

HISTORY OF BRISTOL COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

of age, he was seldom seen in the courts, he still did a large office business. His opinions upon knotty legal points were always highly valued, and in the depart- ments of conveyancing and equity he had few equals. His relations with his brethren of the bar were always cordial, his well-known form and face always com- manding respect when seen in assemblages of mem- bers of his profession.

In conversation Mr. Williams had a peculiar power of presenting points. Usually retired and reserved in manner, he yet had a few intimate friends by whom his conversation was highly prized. His reminiscences of the ancient giants of the bar-Webster, Choate, Jeremiah Mason, Timothy G. Coffin, and others less known to public fame-were exceedingly interesting. He lived beyond the full allotted years of man's life, but he still preserved his noble characteristics. He was a man of marked integrity, always true to his trust, to his clients, to himself, and to the cause of truth.

The Bar Association, which convened upon the an- nouncement of his death, adopted the following reso- lutions :

" Resolved, That in the death of Mr. Williams, who for nearly half a century has been an honored and efficient member of the bar of this Commonwealth, the profession has lost a conscientious and wise coun- selor, a faithful, patient, and industrious attorney, an earnest and care- ful advocate, exemplary citizen, and an honest man.

" Resolved, That as an evidence of our regard and appreciation for the worth and character of the deceased we will attend his funeral in a body, and that an attested copy of these resolutions be sent to the family, and the Superior Court be requested to place the same on its records."

The trustees of the Fall River Savings-Bank, at a meeting held April 15, 1880, ordered the following memorial to be placed upon their records :

"Onr old tried friend and honored associate, Eliab Williams, having departed this life, it becomes us to pause a moment to contemplate the distinguished virtues of his character and life.

" His strict integrity and high sense of honor, his cool and deliberate judgment, his studious application to the business of his profession, his abiding faith in the divine side of his nature, made him an invaluable associate, citizen, and friend.

" During the more than forty-three years' service with this institu- tion as trustee, secretary, vice-president, and legal counsel he was always prompt in the discharge of every duty devolving upon him, having but one concern, that of caring for and protecting the interests of those who intrusted their deposits in our keeping.

" We mourn his departure, and in sadness reflect that we shall no more have his wise counsel.

" To his family and friends we tender our deepest sympathies in this their great bereavement, and in token of our esteem we will attend his funeral in a body."

He was identified with the Fall River Savings- Bank as trustee, vice-president, and counsel almost from the organization of the institution. He was also a member of the school committee, and an earnest friend of education.

Few men have transacted more business in the set- tlement of estates of deceased persons than did he during his life, and none with more uniform satisfac- tion to all concerned.

He was for many years a member of the First Con- gregational Church of Fall River, a man of pure and spotless private life, of wonderful firmness and self-

possession, and possessed of courage that never yielded to chicanery or wrong. His departure, like his life, was patient, gentle, serene, and ready.

" Sure the last end of the good man Is peace. How calm his exit ! Night-dews fall not so gently to the ground, Nor weary, worn-out winds expire so soft."

Mr. Williams was thrice married, and left a widow and one son, the latter residing in Boston. He died April 14, 1880.

FREDERICK A. BOOMER was born in Tiverton, R. I., April 8, 1821, and died in Fall River, Mass., July 22, 1871. His wife was Elizabeth M., daughter of John Earle, to whom he was married July 8, 1857.

Left to struggle for himself at an early age, a stu- dious disposition led him to adopt teaching as a pro- fession, for which he prepared himself by a systematic course of study, graduating at the Massachusetts State Normal School at Bridgewater. After pursuing his chosen vocation a number of years, the advice of friends and his own preference led him to study the law, which he commenced reading in the office of the late David Perkins, Esq., and subsequently pursued with Judge Lapham, on whose motion he was admitted to the bar of Bristol County. After his admission to the bar of this State, Mr. Boomer became a resident of Tiverton, R. I., from which town he was twice elected to the General Assembly.

Returning to Fall River, he soon became interested in educational matters, his experience as a teacher giving him a lively interest in the public schools. For many years he was an efficient and valued mem- ber of the school committee, serving with earnestness and zeal. He was three times elected to the office of city solicitor, the last time in 1870, when failing health induced him to resign before the expiration of his term of office.

In the fall of 1870 he was elected to the General Court, it being the second time he had been selected by his fellow-citizens for that important office. He was chairman of the Committee on Elections, and also a member of the Committee on Federal Relations.

As a legislator Mr. Boomer was liberal and pro- gressive in his views, with a hearty sympathy for all measures calculated to raise the moral standard and lessen the burdens of the laboring masses. Ready and earnest as a debater, he never failed to obtain the attention of the House, and retain the respect and confidence of his fellow-members.

Mr. Boomer was a director in the Pocasset National Bank from its organization till his death.

As a man and a friend he cannot be too warmly spoken of, for he possessed the noblest qualities of char- acter. So manly was he by instinct that no one could deem him capable of a mean action, so charitable in his opinions of others as to lead him to overlook their faults and forgive any injuries he may have suffered. The feeling of vindictiveness he would not or could not cherish, and as a lawyer he would never encour-

Y Bruma

BENCH AND BAR.

age litigation, preferring the loss of business to the loss of self-respect.

He has been spoken of as a true Christian gentle- man, religious, but not bigoted, exhibiting grace of heart no less than polish of manners. Habitually cheerful, he was an agreeable companion and friend, and impressed all with his geniality and kindness, no less than with his earnestness and decision of char- acter.

Mr. Boomer was fifty years old at the time of his death, and had grown up with the thrift and enter- prise of Fall River. In labor and sympathy he was fully identified with the best interests of the place, intellectual and spiritual, as well as material. In whatever offices he was called to fill, he gave to the discharge of their duties his best abilities and his most earnest, conscientious preparation. When quite a lad he made a profession of religion, was baptized by Rev. Asa Bronson, and received in the membership of the First Baptist Church of Fall River, March 6, 1836.

HEZEKIAH BATTELLE, for so long a time a promi- nent member of the Bristol bar, was graduated at Brown University, in the class of 1816. He read law in the office of Hercules Cushman, Esq., of Freetown, then a prominent lawyer of the Bristol bar. Upon his admission to practice he became a partner with Mr. Cushman, and remained there a few years, when he removed to Swansea village, and continued in practice there till 1827, when he located in Fall River, and here passed the larger part of his life.

Coming to Fall River in the vigor of manhood and with a reputation for ability and fidelity already es- tablished, his practice rapidly increased, and for more than a quarter of a century he was regarded as one of the ablest lawyers in the country. Perhaps no one in the county exceeded him in the preparation of cases for trial, either by the jury upon question of fact, or by the court upon matters of law. Mr. Bat- telle took a deep interest in the moral and religious welfare of Fall River, and in the prosperity and good government of our common country. He was one of the representatives from this town in the Legislature in 1838 and 1848, interesting himself at the latter pe- riod with the question of boundary between the States of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. For more than fifteen years, however, immediately previous to his death, he took but little interest in the practice of law, but devoted much of his attention to religions matters and questions of theology. Mr. Battelle was actively interested in the organization of the Unitarian Society in Fall River, and was one of its earnest supporters. j to his brethren in the department of his profession."

He died Jan. 22, 1872, at the age of eighty-two years.

CYRUS ALDEN was born in Bridgewater, Mass., May 20, 1785. He was fifth in descent and direct line from John Alden, the first of the Plymouth col- ony to step upon the famous rock at the landing of the " Mayflower" Pilgrims in 1620. His father was Capt. Joseph Alden. His mother and grandmother

were members of the Carver family and also of Pil- grim ancestry. He was one of a family of nine chil- dren, of which five were sons, two of whom, himself and a younger brother, were graduated from Brown University, the one to follow the profession of the law, the other that of divinity. His own graduation took place in 1807, his education having been delayed by a severe and protracted illness. He studied law at Litchfield, Conn., and also read with Judge Whit- man, of Marshfield, and Judge Baylies, of Taunton. He began the practice of law in Wrentham, marrying, soon after his entrance upon his profession, Mary Margaret, daughter of Mr. Alexander Jones, of Prov- idence, R. I. After a short residence in Wrentham he removed with his family to Boston, residing in Roxbury, but having an office in the city and in the same building with Daniel Webster, a most noted con- temporary, belonging to the same political party, the Whigs, to which he always held. He here published, in 1819, a book, of which he was the author and edi- tor, under the title of "Abridgment of Law, with Practical Forms," in two parts, which proved accept- able and useful, but has now been superseded by later works of the same purpose. In 1827 he once more removed his family and business, and this time to Fall River, which he afterward served in the Legisla- ture, the town then bearing the name of Troy. Here he spent the remainder of his life, dying in March, 1855.

In addition to the legal and judicial qualities of mind, which, with a marked and refined wit, he pos- sessed in a great degree, he had also poetic and inven- tive talents, amusing his leisure hours with the former and employing the latter to some practical result, being the inventor of hay-scales, for which he secured a patent, they being at one time in quite general use.

An obituary written by a fellow-lawyer says, "For several years he did a considerable portion of Fall River's judicial business, his promptness and tenacity of memory being remarkable. He rarely took notes of testimony, and it was very seldom that a law-book was requisite to him for reference in any decision. So thoroughly imbued was his mind with the essential principles of our laws that his errors in stating them from memory merely were most infrequent, and it has been remarked, not without point, that more reliance might be placed upon the opinion of Cyrus Alden, Esq., than could be upon the opinions of many men with both books and laws. He was an author as well as practitioner, and has left a volume as a memento

LOUIS LAPHAM, who was a leading spirit in Fall River for more than forty years, was born in Burrill- ville, R. I., in 1810. His parents were poor people, and young Lapham had to earn his own bread. He acquired a good common-school education for his times, and learned the printer's trade. He early ac- quired a taste for political life, and was a Democrat. He took sides with the Dorr Rebellion in Rhode

HISTORY OF BRISTOL COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

Island in 1840, and was so much of a friend of Gov- ernor Dorr that he became very obnoxious to the King Charles Charterists, and left his home and fled to Fall River, where he followed his trade for several years. He was a friend of the laborer, and always on the alert to defend the poor man's rights. He was of quick perceptions and had a ready tongue, and was a match for the lawyers and merchants of Fall River in debate in town-meeting. He acquired consider- able reputation with the laboring classes, and ambi- tious for a better situation in life than that that was open to him in mechanical avocation, studied law and was admitted to the bar.

In 1852 he was appointed judge of the Police Court of Fall River by Governor Boutwell, which position he held until the court was abolished and the present District Court created in 1873. He was an upright judge. He was not a profound lawyer, yet he had a true conception of what was right, and his decisions were just and proper, if not always exact law. Hav- ing earned his position by the sweat of his own brow, he had not such regard for professional etiquette as perhaps he should have entertained. The people had great confidence in his judgment and fairness, and disposition to do justice by them.

He was one of the original Free-Soilers, and for years was a prominent person in that party in the city of Fall River. He was several times a candi- date for mayor of Fall River, and in the latter part of his life was much disposed to be in sympathy with Democratic principles, and nothing but his hatred of slavery and his recollections of it kept him from full fellowship with them.

He was of very generous disposition and very ready and willing to help those in need, and to render such assistance by word and deed as it was in his cir- cumstances to do. Indeed, he was too generous for his own accumulation of property. He was a true friend. He had strong attachments and hopes, but yet his love of justice and fair dealing was a control- ling element of character. He hated show and shams, and spoke perhaps too strongly at times in condemna- tion of political intriguers and hypocrites. He was a laborious man. He frequently wrote for the news- papers, and was busy in his profession. He died in Fall River in March, 1881, aged seventy-one years, leaving a widow and several daughters to mourn his death and to cherish his memory.

CHARLES HOLMES, father of Hon. Charles Holmes, was also a leading lawyer of Fall River. He had an excellent legal mind, and was genial and courteous in his intercourse with his fellow-men.

HON. JOSIAH C. BLAISDELL was born in Camp- ton, N. H., on the 22d of October, 1820. In his boy- hood he attended the common district school, and later was a member of the Literary and Scientific Institution at Hancock, N. H. While yet a young man he removed with his parents to Methuen, Mass., from whence, in 1843, he came to Fall River for the

purpose of entering the law-office of James Ford, Esq. Upon the completion of his studies he engaged in the practice of his profession, aud has continued its active duties to the present day, rising step by step until he has gained a foremost position at the bar of his adopted town, and has become generally well known in this section of the State.

His first entrance into public life was in 1858, when he was elected a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. In 1864 he was appointed by Governor John A. Andrew a member of the Board of State Charities, completing an unexpired term of two years. In 1866 he was reappointed to the same office by Governor Alexander H. Bullock for a fur- ther term of seven years, but resigned after serving two years. He was chosen a member of the State Senate in 1865, and again of the House in 1866.

He was elected mayor of Fall River in 1858, and re-elected in 1859. Since Mr. Blaisdell's terms in the mayoralty and as representative and senator he has been brought by official life more or less continuously before the public, and in 1874, upon the organization of the "Second District Court of Bristol," in recog- nition of his qualifications as a lawyer and a man of sound and discreet judgment, he was appointed pre- siding judge. He has since that date filled the position ably and well, to the satisfaction of his brethren of the bar and the public at large.

NICHOLAS HATHEWAY, son of Elnathan P. and Salome (Cushman) Hatheway, was born in Freetown, Sept. 3, 1824, the eldest of seven children. He was educated at Phillips Andover Academy and Pierce's Academy at Middleborough. He entered Brown University in 1843, and graduated in 1847; studied law with his father, and was admitted to the bar in 1850. He commenced practice in Freetown, where he remained until 1857, and then accepted a position as head of the weighers' and gaugers' department in the Boston custom-house under Collector Arthur W. Austin. Mr. Hatheway remained in this position until 1861, when he became a member of the Boston Stock Exchange, and continued in the brokerage business until about fourteen years ago, when he re- moved to Fall River and resumed the practice of law. Mr. Hatheway has taken good rank at the bar, but perhaps is best known as a criminal lawyer. He held various offices while in Freetown, was twice justice, and held that office until it was abolished. He was also a school-teacher in his native town and a member of the school committee. He was elected a member of the Legislature from Fall River in 1875, and was alderman in 1874 and 1875.

Politically, Mr. Hatheway is a Democrat, and an earnest and outspoken advocate of the principles of that party. He was a delegate to the four last National Democratic Conventions, and has been a delegate to most of the State Conventions for twenty years, and has also been a member of the Democratic State Central Committee. He was nominated for

H.T. Braley

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BENCH AND BAR.

Congress in the fall of 1882, and received a very flattering vote.

Mr. Hatheway is prominent in Masonic circles, is a member of Union Lodge, Dorchester ; St. Paul's R. A. C., Boston ; Council R. and S. M., Boston ; Boston Commandery, and of the Supreme Grand Council of the Northern Jurisdiction of the United States and its Dependencies,-thirty-three degrees.

Mr. Hatheway was married Jan. 1, 1851, to Fanny P. Dean, of Freetown, and has two children living, -Nelson D .. Hatheway, M.D., of Middleborough, Mass., and Nicholas Hatheway, Jr., who graduates this year (1883) at Brown University.

HON. HENRY K. BRALEY, the present mayor of Fall River, was born in Rochester, Mass., March 17, 1850. He is a son of Samuel and Mary O. Braley, whose ancestor, Roger Braley, came to America and settled in Freetown in 1742. He was a Quaker.

Mr. Braley attended the common schools of his native town, and subsequently graduated from the Rochester and Middleborough academics. He also taught school in Bridgewater four years. Having decided upon the legal profession as a vocation, he commenced the study of the law in the office of Latham & Kingman at Bridgewater, and in 1873 was admitted to the bar at Plymouth, Mass. He soon after located in Fall River, where he has since re- sided engaged in the active practice of his profession. Mr. Braley is an active and aggressive member of the Democratic party, and was elected mayor of the city of Fall River in 1882, and his popularity and worth as an executive officer was clearly evidenced by his re-election in 1883 by a large majority. Although vet a young man Mr. Braley has taken a leading position at the Bristol bar, and is regarded by his brethren as a rising man.

JAMES M. MORTON, one of the older members of the bar, is a close student, has an excellent legal mind, and is one of the acknowledged leaders of the bar in Southeastern Massachusetts.

HON. ANDREW J. JENNINGS, Mr. Morton's partner, although a young man, has a good position at the bar, and is popular with his brethren and the citizens generally. He represented the district in the State Senate in 1882.

HON. JOHN W. CUMMINGS is also a young man, but has already won a prominent position at the bar and in the political field. He is the present State senator from this district, and one of Governor Butler's most trusted counselors.

The present members of the Fall River bar are as follows :

Nicholas Hatheway.

Josiah C. Blaisdell.

James M. Morton.

Jonathan M. Wood.

Arla N. Lincoln.

Benjamin K. Lovatt.

Willian H. Pierce.

· Milton Reed.

James F. Jackson.

Edward Higginson.

M. G. B. Swift.

Andrew J. Jennings.

Simeon Borden. John S. Brayton.

Frank G. Macomber. Ilenry K. Braley.1

Attleborough .-- JOHN DAGGETT. He is a native of Attleborough, descended from John Daggett, who came from Martha's Vineyard about 1707 and settled in Attleborough, with a family of nine children. He was the son of Thomas Daggett, of the Vineyard, who married Hannah, oldest daughter of Governor May- hew, and lived and died on the island. John Daggett, the author of the history of Attleborough in this work, was the son of Hon. Ebenezer Daggett and Sally Maxcy, one of the Maxcy family of Attleborough.

He fitted for college at Day's Academy in Wrentham, and under the tuition of Rev. Alvan Cobb, of Taun- ton. He entered Brown University in September, 1822, and graduated in the class of 1826. Soon after leaving college he commenced the study of the law in the office of Joseph L. Tillinghast, in Providence, a distinguished member of the Rhode Island bar and a member of Congress, and the next year studied in the office of Hon. J. J. Fiske, of Wrentham, and the third year attended the course of law lectures of Hon. Theron Metcalf, of Dedham, afterwards a judge of the Supreme Court of Massachusetts, and author of several learned works on jurisprudence. At that place he was admitted to the bar in January, 1830, and imme- diately opened an office and commenced practice in Attleborough, where he has continued most of his time since. Subsequently he edited a paper in Ded- ham for a year or two, and then returned to his native town.

During the early years of his professional duties he took a deep interest in common-school education, and devoted much of his time to that cause, having served as chairman of the town school committee about fif- teen years in succession.

He was elected representative to the Legislature for 1836, and continued for four years in succession. In 1850 he was elected to the Senate, and served on the Railroad and Judiciary Committees. During the latter year he was appointed member of the Valuation Board, the duties of which occupied four montlis at the State-House in Boston. He was also a member of the House in 1866. In 1852 he was appointed by the Governor register of probate and insolvency for Bristol County, and was afterwards elected to the same office for two terms, of four years cach, holding the office for the period of eleven years.

Of late years he has devoted his leisure hours to antiquarian and historical research, especially on the subject of the settlement and colonization of the Old Colony, and the origin and history of its people, is a member of the New England Genealogical and His- toric Society, and one of the original members of the Old Colony Historical Society, of which he is the president. He is the author of some local histories.

Freetown .- WILLIAM A. LEONARD, from Rayn-

1 For notices of J. J. Archer and Milton Reed, see history of Fall River.

Dennis V. Sullivan. 3

John W. Cummings.

Timothy McDonough.

Samuel Ashton.

Patrick H. Wallace.

Warren Alds.

Hugo A. Dubuque.

HISTORY OF BRISTOL COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

ham, located for the practice of his profession at Assonet village, in Freetown, in an early day.

Being a single man, he boarded in the family of Col. Benjamin Weaver, in the west front chamber of whose house Mr. Leonard opened a law-office, and there remained until his building, constructed for that purpose, could be finished, the materials of which were obtained at Raynham, and brought down Taun- ton River and up Assonet River to Assonet village in Freetown, and set up a little south of the Congre- gational meeting-house.

Mr. Leonard did not long remain in Freetown, but returned to Raynham. The building he put up for a law-office was afterwards used for a school-house.

WASHINGTON HATHAWAY was a native of Free- town. He was a son of Joseph Hathaway and wife Eunice Winslow, and born Sept. 4, 1777. He was a graduate of Brown University, Providence, R. I. His law-office stood on the northerly side of Water Street, in Assonet village. Commenced practice in or about 1802. Died Feb. 10, 1818.

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History of Bristol County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 9

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed Publication date: 1883 Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1818

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1818