History of Bristol County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 96

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 96

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him and transmitting to his children such a hatred of religious tyranny and priestly domination that it has not yet become extinct in his later descendants. James was the youngest of ten children, seven sons and three daughters, of whom he is the only one living.

As an interesting evidence of the multiform branch- ing of the family tree, there is to be found on the headstone of his grandmother's grave the statement that at the time of her death she had living nine children, ninety-seven grandchildren, and one hun- dred and seventy great-grandchildren.

He was of a somewhat delicate and sensitive or- ganization, and has never enjoyed the vigorous health which was shared by the other brothers of the family. His childhood and youth were spent on his father's farm, which was pleasantly situated about one mile south of Union village, near the main road to Provi- dence.

After obtaining a knowledge of the common branches of education at the public and private neighborhood schools he entered the academy at Union village, which was then under the charge of James Bushee. Here he studied the higher branches taught in a select school, and during the time read ancient and modern history and the writings of the standard poets, of which he was particularly fond. He was a studious scholar, loved learning for its own sake, and took a high rank among his fellow-pupils. Another means of his education which should not be overlooked was the Debating Club, of which he was an active member. Here were discussed, and fre- quently by the most intelligent persons in the com- munity, the various prominent and public questions of the day, and as Mr. Aldrich was particularly fond of debate, he used all available means to enable him to discuss these questions intelligently, and being a ready and not unpleasant speaker, he became quite prominent in these friendly educational contests. Through these various methods, aided on the religions side of his nature by the instruction received from his Quaker parents, he arrived at the stage of man- hood with convictions matured beyond many of his years, and being naturally conscientious and of an active temperament, he soon identified himself with the earnest opponents of slavery, intemperance, capi- tal punishment, and restricted charter suffrage, the four questions which were just then disturbing the usual quiet of his State. To his great disgust the latter reform soon fell into the hands of unwise leaders, and he withdrew from all further connection with the party, not being inclined to place himself in rebellion against the de facto authorities of the State, though not the less convinced of the justice of the demand. From early childhood Mr. Aldrich had been a victim of gastric disease, which in his later youth increased in severity, and was occasionally accompanied with severe intestinal complications, which, with the de- bilitating effects of the treatment considered necessary

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HISTORY OF BRISTOL COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

to give relief, greatly enfeebled his general health, and caused his friends much solicitude for the future. An entire change in the treatment was finally decided upon, and on the accession of one of these attacks a botanic physician was called, who gave him more speedy relief and with less exhaustion than he had previously experienced. The treatment finally re- sulted in the establishment of better health than he had ever before enjoyed. This gratifying result turned his attention to the study of medicine, and in the early part of the year 1839 he entered the office and infirmary of Dr. J. A. Brown, of Providence, R. I.

With his usual ardor he entered upon his new course of study, also gaining a practical knowledge of the use and effects of remedies at the bedside of the numerous patients treated in the infirmary. Here he remained until the last of November, 1840, when he accepted an invitation to go to Fall River, Mass., to take the place of Dr. J. B. Woodward, who went South for the benefit of his health. Dr. Woodward returned in about a year, and Mr. Aldrich left to further pursue his studies. He attended a course of lectures in the Medical Department of Harvard Col- lege, and subsequently a course at the Botanic Medi- cal College in Cincinnati, where he received his di- ploma and was chosen valedictorian of his class. After practicing several months in Woonsocket, he removed to Fall River in November, 1843, again tak- ing the place of Dr. Woodward, then made vacant by his death, and now antedates by some years any other practitioner in the city, and has been the long- est in practice of any one of his school in Bristol County. He continues to adhere to the same princi- ples of sanitive medication he at first adopted, yet, profiting from his experience and keeping himself somewhat familiar with current medical literature, he is ever ready to adopt such changes in remedies and methods of application as his judgment approves.

For the purpose of combating medical intolerance and prejudice, and giving to such as were disposed to inquire a knowledge of the reformed practice, Dr. Aldrich, in connection with Dr. T. W. Wood, A.M., of Middleborough, published for a year (in 1846-47) a monthly paper called the Medical Enquirer, of which several hundred copies were issued. In 1867, Dr. Aldrich was elected president of the Massachusetts Eclectic Medical Society, and subsequently delivered

ducted the correspondence, and was closely identified with the comparatively few of a similar faith and ac- cordant spirit. He has always been a strong advocate of total abstinence from all alcoholic beverages, was for years president of the Temperance Society, has frequently spoken at temperance meetings, and for many years has almost entirely discarded the use of alcohol as a curative agent.

His early views on the suffrage question made him a ready advocate of woman's right to the ballot as a matter of justice and sound expediency.

For some years he has held the office of president of the Children's Home, a public institution designed to have charge of orphans and destitute children, and in the success of which he has been much interested. He has also been the principal physician employed at the Home in cases of sickness. In 1852 the doctor was elected a member of the school committee, the only political office he ever held, being loosely bound by party ties, though strongly in sympathy with the Republican organization. From 1852 to 1879 he held the office fifteen years, the last five of which he was elected chairman of the committee. He declined a further renomination, and after a year's interval his wife was elected to the position, which she still holds. The annual reports of the committee during his chair- manship indicate the intelligent interest he manifested in the discharge of his official duties.

Dr. Aldrich continued his connection with the Society of Friends until the New England Yearly Meeting decided to forbid the opening of its houses of worship for anti-slavery meetings, and advised its members not to be identified with the Abolitionists, since which time he has ceased to regard himself as a member of the denomination, though never dis- owned by the society.

The knowledge and experience gained during these years liberated his own mind from some religious assumptions and peculiarities which he formerly re- garded as important and led him to separate religion, which he defines as the vitalizing and guiding principle which exalts and dignifies the soul and consecrates it to noble uses, from the great body of theology which the human intellect has imposed upon it. In 1871 he united with the Unitarian Society, and was shortly after chosen a member of the standing committee, which office he still holds, and is ranked among the most active, liberal, and progressive members of the society.

the annual address. The energy and perseverance required to overcome the peculiar obstacles incident to his independent position as a physician, added to Dr. Aldrich was married, May 24, 1844, to Mary A. Allen, of Dedham, Mass. She was a teacher in the higher branches of instruction, and thoroughly in accord with her husband in social and reformatory questions. She never enjoyed vigorous health, and died of inherited pulmonary disease Dec. 18, 1857. He was again married, Sept. 23, 1862, to Louisa G., youngest daughter of Hon. Nathaniel B. Borden, the |atmosphere of whose home was permeated with those the ordinary duties of a remunerative practice which he secured, did not prevent the doctor from taking an active part in some of the vital questions which have agitated the community. Indifferent to the odium which for a time was thrown upon the Abolitionists of the Garrison school, he early became one of the most active and earnest laborers in the anti-slavery cause to be found in the place. He circulated petitions, secured lecturers, presided at their meetings, con- i ideas of practical righteousness which underlie all

Jerome Dovely

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that is genuine in life and enduring in character. They have a daughter and son, the former of whom has nearly completed her second year in Smith Col- lege, Northampton.

For twenty-five years the doctor lived in the Blossom house, No. 77 North Main Street, on the corner of Franklin Street. In 1870 he purchased a pleasant home on the corner of Hanover and Prospect Streets, where he has since resided, but continues his office at the old place on Main Street.

We conclude this biography with the following ap- preciative tribute, written by a prominent and highly- respected citizen of Fall River :

" Dr. Aldrich has more than a reputation, he has a character so well woven into the woof and warp of his every-day life as to present a degree of faultless- ness that has secured for him general confidence and respect. He is a gentleman of strong convictions and marked individuality ; has opinions of his own, and is not slow in defending them when it becomes ne- cessary for him to do so. Indeed, his combativeness is fairly developed, and at times he loves controversy, and wields a ready and caustic pen, as those have found who have crossed lances with him. While honoring the profession of which he is a worthy mem- ber, he has found time for that general and select reading which, as much as anything, develops, strengthens, and makes the man. As a physician, Dr. Aldrich is safe, reliable, and always to be trusted ; as a citizen, gentlemanly in his bearing and deport- ment, and holds a high and well-merited place in the good will of the community.

" His services on the school committee of Fall River, for which he is admirably adapted both by culture and experience, have been valuable in many ways, and his interest in general education and all that is good and ennobling in life are well known and ap- preciated. We wish him the addition of many golden years to the silver summers of his life."

DR. JEROME DWELLY.

Dr. Jerome Dwelly was born in Tiverton, R. I., Jan. 21, 1823, about four and one-half miles south from the city of Fall River. His father, Daniel Dwelly2, was a well-known and respectable farmer, and was a direct descendant of Richard Dwelly, who was one of the early settlers of Plymouth Colony, and who, about 1665, settled in Scituate, Mass., having been in some of the neighboring towns as early as 1654. He had a grant of land in Scituate from the colony for ser- vices rendered in King Philip's war in 1676. His grandson, Joshua Dwelly, being a ship-carpenter, emigrated from Scituate to Swansea, Mass., and about 1700 to Tiverton, R. I., and his grandson, Richard Dwelly 3, emigrated from Tiverton, R. I., to Manlius, N. Y., when his son, Daniel Dwelly2, was about eleven years of age, where the family remained, except the son Daniel, who returned to Tiverton and married the

daughter of Jonathan Slade2, formerly of Slade's Ferry. Jerome Dwelly, his son, having become lame when quite young, was sent to school at Fall River, and subsequently to Pierce Academy, at Mid- dleborough, Mass., to fit for college, with a view of becoming a lawyer. He remained there three years, and then, his health failing, he was obliged to suspend his studies for two or three years, after which his mind became diverted to the study of medicine. He then became a student in the office of the late Thomas Wilbur, of Fall River, and subsequently entered the offices of Dr. William E. Townsend and his father, Solomon D. Townsend, one of the surgeons of the Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston. He was graduated in medicine at the Harvard Medical Col- lege in 1847, and has been in the active practice of his profession in Fall River since that time, with the exception of two years spent in California, from 1849 to 1851. He was for about twenty years a member of the school board of Fall River.

AUGUSTUS CHACE.

A man who entirely by his own efforts has risen to affluence and social position, and through all the changing events of an active business life has pre- served his integrity unimpeached, well deserves the pen of the historian. Such an one is Augustus Chace, the subject of this sketch. Without the advantages of inherited aid he has worked the problem of his own fortune, and lives to enjoy the fruition of a successful business career.

Augustus Chace was born in Freetown, Mass., Sept. 20, 1813. While he was quite a small lad his parents removed to Valley Falls, R. I., where they remained about five years, and then removed to Fall River. His first work in a mill was at Valley Falls, where he received one dollar per week. Upon com- ing to Fall River he commenced work in the Print- Works, carrying cloth, and soon after went into what was long known as the " yellow mill," stripping cards, receiving the meagre salary of fifty cents per day. Here he remained about eight years, and then re- moved to Eagleville, and later to Newville or " Sucker Brook," as the locality is called.

He had now became a thoroughly practical manu- facturer, and with that clear foresight which has ever been characteristic of the man, he saw the facilities afforded by Fall River for manufacturing purposes, and in 1845 he came here, and in company with the late William B. Trafford erected a small mill for the manufacture of yarns, etc., under the firm-name of Chace & Trafford. This partnership continued about fifteen years. The firm subsequently purchased the Westport Manufacturing Company, and after about six years the partnership was dissolved, Mr. Chace retaining the interest of the firm in the Fall River property, and Mr. Trafford taking the Westport pro- ject. The business was originally commenced in a

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HISTORY OF BRISTOL COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

small way, the product being about eighty pounds of coarse yarn per day, employing six persons. It has increased and developed until at the present time the production is three thousand six hundred pounds per day of cotton twines and carpet warps,-employing ninety persons. During the present year the capac- ity of the mill is to be largely increased.

Mr. Chace has ever manifested a lively interest in all matters tending to advance the welfare of his adopted town, and may be ranked as one of the lead- ing mill directors and manufacturers in this famous manufacturing city. In addition to the Wyoming Mills, which are owned exclusively by him, he is president of the Tecumseh Mills, president of the Chace Mills, a director in the Fall River Spool and Bobbin Company, also in the Merchants' Mill Cor- poration, and is an owner in the Barnaby Manufac- turing Company. He has been president of the Union Savings-Bank since its incorporation in 1869. He was a member of the Legislature of Rhode Island when the town of Tiverton embraced a portion of the present city of Fall River, and has also been identified with the city government, serving in the Common Council, and also in Board of Aldermen.

Sept. 20, 1832, Mr. Chace united in marriage with Rhoda M. Lake, a native of Tiverton, R. I., and their family consisted of four children,-Augustus W. D., deceased ; Mary Maria, deceased ; Adoniram J., who is in his father's office ; and Sarah L., wife of John J. Wood.

Augustus Chace's career has ever been guided by a truly religious principle, and from that Sabbath morning while playing marbles in the streets of Val- ley Falls he heard the voice of the Christian woman inviting him to the Sunday-school, to the present time his life has been characterized by a consistent Christian spirit. He was a member of the Second Baptist Church of this city for forty years.

Augustus Chace is essentially a self-made man. Early in life he learned that the way to success was by no royal road, but was open to stout hearts and willing hands. He has gained nothing by mere luck, but everything by perseverance and well-digested plans, and the intelligent application of his energies to the end in view. In social life he is gentlemanly and affable, and is one of Fall River's most enterpris- ing and honored citizens.

WEAVER OSBORN.

Weaver Osborn, son of Thomas and Anna (Durfee) Osborn, was born in Tiverton, R. I., May 23, 1815. He remained at home until he was eighteen, working on the farm and attending the common school, which furnished his early advantage for an education, except a few months' instruction at the seminary at Little West Hill, South Kingston, R. I. At eighteen he began to learn the blacksmith's trade in Fairhaven,

Bristol Co., Mass., and having served his apprentice- ship pursued that occupation till 1871.

In 1835, Mr. Osborn bought out Nathaniel Peirce, of Tiverton, and carried on his trade there about eight years, and in 1843 he removed to Providence, where he remained one year, when he returned to Tiverton. In 1844 he began to work for Andrew Robeson as a journeyman, and continued in that capacity four years, when in 1848 he resumed business in his native town, continuing till January, 1855, when his shop was destroyed by fire. In this juncture of affairs he removed to Fall River and entered into copartner- ship with James M. Osborn, his younger brother (firm of W. &. J. M. Osborn). Their shop was situ - ated where the new post-office now stands, and the partnership lasted till 1871.

Since then Mr. Osborn has been closely connected with manufactures and with the growth and develop- ment of Fall River. He was elected president of the Pocasset National Bank in 1873, an office which he still holds. He has been a director in the same bank since its organization in 1854, when it was known as the Pocasset Bank under the State laws. In 1873 he was elected chairman of the board of investment, and still holds the position. He has been a member of the board since its organization in 1851, and, with the exception of William C. Chapin, of Providence, he is the only living member of that original board.

Mr. Osborn is president and director of the Os- born Mills, which take his name. He was chiefly in- strumental in getting the stock taken and building the first mill in 1872. Since the last date he has also been a director in the Montaup Mills. He is a trus- tee of the Citizens' Savings-Bank of Fall River, one of the board of water commissioners, and one of the trustees of the State workhouse at Bridgewater, Mass.

As a Whig in politics, he cast his first vote for Henry Clay, but became a Republican upon the or- ganization of the latter party in 1856. As such he was elected to represent the town of Fall River, R. I., in the State Senate in 1857, 1858, and 1859, and served on the military and other committees. He has since served in the Legislature of Massachusetts for the fol- lowing-named years, 1868, 1869, 1871, 1873, 1876, 1877, and in 1879 he was a member of the State Senate, and served on several important committees.

As a military man, he has served through the va- rious grades from private to captain in the State militia, and was in the Dorr war.

Mr. Osborn has had much experience in the settle- ment of estates, and his labors in that direction have given general satisfaction. He is a man of strict in- tegrity and sound practical judgment.

He married, Jan. 7, 1837, Patience B. Dwelley, daughter of Daniel and Mary Slade. They have had four children, as follows : (1) Mary S .; (2) Daniel W., died in his twenty-third year; (3) Thomas F., died aged nine; (4) Anna Jane, died aged nine.

Weaver Chou

Fyll. Obliun.

L'anforthe Horton

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FALL RIVER.

Mrs. Osborn was born May 27, 1817, in Tiverton, R. I. Mr. and Mrs. Osborn have been members of the Baptist Church since 1843.

The nine children of Thomas and Anna (Durfee) Osborn were (1) William, (2) Thomas, (3) Joseph, (4) Anna (deceased), (5) Wilson (deceased), (6) Pa- tience (deceased), (7) Eliza, (8) Weaver, (9) James M.

Thomas Osborn died October, 1833, aged sixty-six. His wife died May 23, 1845, aged seventy-two.

J. M. OSBORN.

James Munroe Osborn, son of Thomas and Anna (Durfee) Osborn, was born at Tiverton, R. I., Aug. 27, 1822. His grandfather, William Osband, was a native of Newport, R. I., where he was born Aug. 16, 1729; he married Elizabeth Shriove in 1751; had children, Weaver, Elizabeth, Patience (died young), Thomas, William, and Wilson, and died Oct. 29, 1810, aged eighty-one. Thomas Osborn, father of J. M., was born at Tiverton, R. I., March 31, 1766; was a ship's cooper, and when not on a voyage engaged in farming. He married Anna Durfee in 1797, had nine children, of whom James M. was the youngest. He died, aged sixty-seven, Oct. 7, 1833. His mother be- ing left a widow when James was eleven years old, he remained with her on the farm, availing himself for six years of such common-school advantages of education as were given by the town schools, when he learned the blacksmith trade of his brother, Weaver, with whom he stayed three years; he was then twenty. Going back to the farm, he tried seine fishing with unsatisfactory results, and relinquishing this field of labor he resumed blacksmithing in Prov- idence and worked in other places until 1845, when he came to Fall River and entered the employ of John Kilburn, for whom he worked until the death of Mr. Kilburn, some eighteen months thereafter. Mr. Kilburn's shop was shortly after taken by Kil- burn & Lincoln, and Mr. Osborn began work for them and continued there until 1855. In February of that year he joined his brother, Weaver, in the purchase of the shop of Gideon Packard, No. 44 Bedford Street, where they commenced business for themselves under the firm-title of W. & J. M. Os- born.

In 1859 the incentive of making Fall River a lead- ing manufacturing centre of the State was given to the live business men of the city, and W. & J. M. Osborn became interested in and helped build the Union Mill, so soon to be followed by others. The firm afterwards took stock and were interested in the Granite Mill, and in 1867 invested largely in the Merchants' Manufacturing Company, in which corpo- ration Mr. Osborn was made a director. Companies desiring to establish themselves here soon saw that the assistance of this active and progressive firm was a step, and not an unimportant one, to success, and the members of it were soon associated with others in

the erection of the Stafford Mill. By this time other and weightier duties superseded the business which the firm was organized to transact, and, retaining the firm-name, the blacksmithing was dropped. Mr. Os- born, in 1871, was elected director and treasurer of the Slade Mill, then organized, and devoted himself to the duties of that office, and superintended the building of the mill. The next corporation in which the brother's were interested was the Osborn Mill. The copartnership of W. & J. M. Osborn continued until 1880. They were interested in the Union Belt Com- pany, Fall River Bobbin Mills, Montaup Mills, and other corporations.

Mr. Osborn married, Aug. 9, 1847, Mary B., daugh- ter of Nathan and Elizabeth (Buffinton) Chace, of Somerset. (See history of Chace family in history of Fall River in this volume.) They have had three children, only one of whom, James E., now survives. He was born Jan. 24, 1856, graduated at Fall River High School, married Delia S., daughter of William and Elizabeth (Durfee) Carr, and has one child, Ma- rion.

Mr. Osborn is a director of the Globe Yarn-Mill, Merchants' Manufacturing Company, and a trustee of the Fall River Five Cents Savings-Bank. In poli- tics Whig and Republican. He has been from early life a temperance worker in connection with the order of Sons of Temperance. He has never used to- bacco or liquor. He has been a member of the city government, serving in both branches. He and his wife have been long connected with the Second Bap- tist Church of this city as members, and Mr. Osborn has been for several years and is now chairman of the standing committee of the society. Mr. Osborn erected the pleasant residence which is now his home in 1859, occupying it the same year. He is a pleasant, affable man, and has been truly the architect of his own fortune, and enjoys a warm place in the regards of many friends.

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History of Bristol County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 96

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