History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I, Part 75

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton), ed
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co
Number of Pages: 1034

USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I > Part 75

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He is a man posessed of the strictest ideas of honor, and an unswerving fidelity to his own convictions. Of quiet, unassuming manner, he has been ever ready to assist the young engineer, listen with courtesy and deference to his opinions, and give him advice when desired.

CURTIS DAVIS.

The prosperity of New England is largely indebted to her self-made men, who have continually added to the wholesome wealth of the community by their per- sistent and unwearied efforts, have been workers, pro- ducers, and not mere consumers, obeying the ancient law of our race, "By the sweat of thy brow shalt thou gain thy bread."

Conspicuous among these and worthy of special mention was Curtis Davis, the son of Daniel and Mary (Brown) Davis. He was born in the town of Bradford, New Hampshire, February 11, 1814, and was the grandson of Isaac Davis, whose eight children were : Betsy, born December 29, 1760; Mollie, born May 31, 1762; James, born February 24, 1764; Daniel, born February 4, 1766; John, born December 24, 1768; Susan, born January 7, 1770 ; Sally, born April 17, 1772 ; and John, born August 14, 1774.

Daniel married Mary Brown and had eleven children : Samuel, born March 19, 1790; Enoch, born August 27, 1791 (died in infancy) ; Enoch, born January 6, 1793 ; Dorcas, born January 25, 1795 ; Eriphalet, born December 16, 1796; Lydia, born January 4, 1799; Diamond, born April 25, 1802; Hiram, born Febru- ary 24, 1807 ; Lyman, born October 11, 1809; Isaac, born January 18, 1811, and Curtis.

Curtis was the youngest of his family, and although his father was a well-to-do farmer, yet with such a large family to support, frugality, economy and in- dustry were essential characteristics for the develop- ment of the resources of the farm, and these children were well grounded in the principles which lead to success, and formed those habits of perseverance and

diligence that have ever been their prominent traits. In 1832 Curtis left his pleasant home, a poor boy unacquainted with the ways of the world, his educa- tion being only that afforded by the common schools of the period, but his courage and determination were strong and his ambition was to engage in some husi- ness and follow it. He came to Cambridgeport, Mas- sachusetts, then comparatively a small place, and en- gaged for a very moderate compensation with a firm in the soap business, of which his brother Eliphalet was a partner.

He continued in their employ for a short time and then returned to Bradford, where he remained for a year, and in the fall of 1833 he removed to Cam- bridgeport and resumed his former position, where he worked faithfully, and devoted himself to acquiring the details of the manufacture with a view to estab- lishing himself on his own account which he did in 1834, by purchasing the business of Hiram Davis.

This establishment he sold in 1835, when he bought another factory of greater capacity, and in 1837 took into partnership Alexander Dickinson, with whom he was connected until 1851.

Mr. Davis then bought and enlarged the buildings now known as the Curtis Davis Soap Works, and the plant, covering an acre of ground, is the most noted and the largest of its kind in New England.

In 1864 Mr. Davis took into partnership his son-in- law, James Mellen, who took the superintendence of the sales-rooms in Boston, and who, since the death of Mr. Davis, January 13, 1887, has succeeded to the business of the firm and is now busily engaged in car- rying on this large enterprise in an efficient manner.

Mr. Davis married, November 29, 1835, Martha Kemp, who was born in Pomfret, Vermont, April 1, 1818. From this union there were five children : Christina Van Ness, born April 15, 1840, and married James Mellen ; Ermina Francis, who died December 25, 1854, aged twelve years; Curtis Rockwell, died Feb. 24, 1876, aged thirty-one years; Mary Lizzie, born Dec. 7, 1846, married Samuch Noyes, Jr. ; Edwin Alberto, died July 8, 1851, aged twenty-two months.

For nearly fifty-two years Mr. Davis and his beloved wife lived together, experiencing many joys and many sorrows, each a help-meet to the other and each living lives eminently worthy of imitation.

Mr. Davis passed from the scenes of his activity and usefulness here to his reward beyond January 31, 1887, and his wife followed him April 20, 1889.

With all his devotion to business Mr. Davis did not neglect his civil relations towards the place which had been his home from boyhood.

He kept pace with the growth of Cambridgeport, having been identified with its manufacturing inter- ests for half a century and was one of the solid men of this city.

High-minded and honorable, he possessed the re- spect and esteem of her citizens. Of a retiring dispo- sition, he never sought for political preferment.

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His integrity and honesty of purpose were ever shown in his business methods and as a director in the Citizens' Insurance Company and also in one of the Cambridge banks for several years he proved himself qualified for important public trusts.

His political affiliations from boyhood were with the Democratic party, and the principles and methods of that party as indorsed and carried out by President Cleveland found in him hearty support.

He has been a member of the Common Council, has served as alderman two years and represented Cam- bridge in the General Court for three terms.

Mr. Davis exemplified those qualities which dis- tinguish those whom we call self-made men.

He commenced life with no vices ; he was prudent, economical and tempcrate; business success he pre- ferred to pleasure and to his work he carried enter- prise, energy and will. He was essentially a moving force in his work, and this review of his life is of value to our young men, who can see what may be accom- plished by industry, fidelity and honesty of purpose.

Up to the time of his death his heart held a firm grasp of his native town, and the home of his parents was ever tenderly cherished.

He had a pride in its scenery, its associations, and in the noticeable men it has produced, and Bradford has never had a native who more loyally prized her worth or who, in the far-reaching realm of business, has done her greater honor.

SAMUEL BAKER RINDGE.

Daniel Rindge, who is believed to be the ancestor of all of the name in America, came from England to Massachusetts Bay in 1638, settling first at Rox- bury, but soon removing to Ipswich, where descend- ants of his name remained for five generations. He appears to have owned land on Heart Break Hill (a name which is variously explained, but probably due to its difficult ascent), also one house on the Turkey Shore and another in High Street, and his farm was within the present limits of the town of Hamilton.

The Portsmouth family of Rindge was an offshoot from that at Ipswich. One Daniel Rindge, of that branch was a successful merchant there and another, John Rindge, became a prominent man in the New Hampshire Colony and a member of the Colonial Council, in which capacity he signed bills of credit, as appears by a specimen still preserved in the mu- seum at Plymouth, Mass. He was cho sen to repre- sent the Colony before the King in England in rela- tion to the disputed boundary line on the Massachu- setts side and the town Rindge in New Hampshire was named in honor of him.

Daniel Rindge, the first settler, had a son Roger ; Roger a son Daniel ; this Daniel a son also Daniel ; this last Daniel a son John ; and John a son Samuel -all of these except the first being natives of Ipswich.

Samuel Rindge, born January 29, 1791, went from

Ipswich to Salem and thence to East Cambridge, then known as Craigie's Point, where he was em- ployed for many years by the New England Glass Company as overseer and purchaser of supplies. Previous to this he had been engaged in the manu- facture of furniture, which was shipped to the South and sold there. He married, February 17, 1820, Maria Bradlee Wait, and he died February 1, 1850.

His oldest son, Samuel Baker Rindge, was born December 26, 1820 ; married, April 29, 1845, Clarissa Harrington, of Lexington, Mass., and died May 3, 1883. Of six children only one, Frederick Hastings Rindge, survived his parents.

Samuel B. Rindge, after the brief hut solid school- ing of his time, began his business life with no capi- tal except a sound body and a willing mind. . At the age of sixteen (1836) he entered the employment of Parker & Blanchard, which was the first firm in Boston that engaged in and relied solely upon the business of selling American-made textile fabrics on account of the manufacturers. The manufacturing business itself was then in its infancy and giving no sign of its later wonderful development. The boy's position was one that called for much hard work and yielded small remuneration. He was expected to be the first to come and the last to go, and in the time between was expected to make himself generally use- ful. In such a place a shirk would have found him- self unhappy, but the lad Rindge was no shirk : his own work was always done promptly, and it was always his inclination to reach out for a share in the duties of those above him. When he was "the boy" he was always ready to fill a gap in the book-keeping, and when he became himself a book-keeper he man- aged, by working out of hours, to get time to act as a salesman in the busier portion of the day. He was abstemious in his habits and recognized alcoholic beverages and tobacco as his enemies. His powers of observation and his memory were alike remarkable; he saw everything and forgot nothing. As an ac- countant he was thorough and exact; as a salesman he was active and popular ; he made himself an ex- cellent judge of the qualities of manufactured goods and an expert in wool and other raw materials.

Such a man could not but rise, and in the year 1847 he was admitted a partner in the firm, then styled Parker, Wilder & Parker, and when he died he was the senior member of the house, then Parker, Wilder & Co.

He grew with his business, opening his mind and enlarging his scale of action as manufacturing devel- oped and the times changed. Losses never discour- aged, but simply instructed him, and the end of a season of panic which swept away a large fraction of his capital found him full of confidence in himself, not bewailing the past, but looking forward cheerily to the future.

It was a fault in his mercantile character that he took upon himself too much, and that as his work

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grew he did not devolve more upon his employees. It has been said of him that he did the work of ten men; certainly he loved work, but it would have been wise and it would probably have prolonged his life if he had been willing to limit himself more closely to the navigation of the ship, leaving others to trim the sails and keep the watch.

He was a stalwart-looking man to the last and his cheeks kept a ruddy hue of health. His powerful physique was illustrated by his interference in one instance to put a stop to a brutal fight between two men in a country town, where, as they were struggling on the ground, he grasped one of them by the collar of his coat and raised him to his feet as if he had been a child. But even the stoutest of men may be over- loaded and Mr. Rindge, although warned of his dan- ger, preferred apparently to incur the risk rather than deny himself the exhilaration of earnest occupation.

Nor was he content to confine his work to his own especial avocations. To be a director in the manu- facturing concerns in which he was interested was to make but little addition to his cares, for he would have felt the same responsibility as their buying and selling agent; but as his reputation for business sagacity increased he was induced to assume addi- tional duties. For two years he was an alderman of Cambridge. He was the director in two banks-the president of one; trustee in the Cambridge Savings Bank, president of the Union Glass Company, direc- tor in the Cambridge Railroad Company and in other corporations. Besides all these, when consulted by friends he was not content to limit his advice to gen- eralities, but was apt to make a study of their inter- ests as if they were his own; and it was said by an eminent lawyer of Boston that he had never known Mr. Rindge's equal in ability to grasp the deepest questions of business and the complicated problems often connected therewith.

One can only wouder that such a man should have lived so long. His strong constitution may explain in part his ability to bear a heavy strain, and his readiness to enter into any passing recreation, to en- joy travel and to be easily diverted may explain the rest. He found but little diversion in books-men and things were more interesting to him.

Mr. Rindge was fortunate, too, in his wife, a woman of remarkable kindliness and charity-everywhere revered for her many amiable qualities, and nowhere better appreciated than in her own home. Socially she was connected with many charitable societies in Cambridge, and being a strict church-goer she ex- erted a wide-spread influence upon the morals of the city. She died in less than two years after her widowhood, leaving by her will charitable founda- tions to commemorate her husband.

At a union meeting of officers of the various corpo- rations with which he was connected, resolutions were passed in memory of MIr. Rindge, and it was said that every eye was dimmed by tears.

As showing the general esteem in which he was held, these few extracts from many public notices may suffice.

"As a merchant," says a Boston paper, "he leaves a character above reproach, as a citizen he was uni- versally respected and he will be greatly missed by the mercantile communities of Boston and New York, where he was widely known and wherein he was ac- corded a position second to none."

"As a business man," writes a Cambridge editor, " he was held in the highest esteem, as is evidenced by his associations in this city. For many years he was a director in the Charles River National Bank and later became its President. He was also a director in the Lechmere National Bank and a trustee of the Cambridge Savings Bank. Mr. Rindge was always identified with projects for the good of the city, and was a liberal giver to worthy causes."

" With an ambition to work and win," says another notice, "but always jealous of his character, nothing could wean him from the path he had chosen. As he grew in years so grew his reputation for probity and commercial ability. ... With advancement he as- sumed the burdeus following such promotion with a degree of modesty equaled only by the diligence and uprightness exercised in the execution of all trusts committed to his care. And thus half a century of years in business life was passed, the experience of each year adding to the fullness of a mind already admired for the display of such superior qualities."

In the last few years of his life Mr. Rindge passed the summer seasons by the sea at the old town of Marblehead, at first as the tenant of others, but finally in the beautiful home which he built at Little-Top Hill, near Peach's Point. From the first he "took to " the town and its people, and his life here was one of unrestrained enjoyment. Here he threw off all business cares and immersed himself in healthy coun- try living. His regard for the people was warmly returned, as is testified by the deep feeling which marked his obituary in the local press.

" It was with saddened faces and heavy hearts," says the Marblehead Messenger, "that our people heard of the death of Mr. Samuel B. Rindge last week. No person ever died in our midst who was more uni- versally respected than was he.

"From the first he seemed to love our people and they in turn had learned to love him. Unlike a great many others who have sojourned in our community as summer residents, he could see nothing strange in our dialect or hehavior that would excite ridicule or comment. Our crooked, narrow streets and quaint old houses called forth from him no disparaging remarks, but he could only see in those he met men, women and children created in the image of God like himself and that he was commanded to love them; and this he did most earnestly and his love was reciprocated by them.

"He did not seem to be over-anxious to form an

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acquaintance with the elite, so called (although he treated all courteously), but rather the men of the people, the day laborers. He never passed one on the street without a kindly salutation and friendly greeting, and if one was burdened with a bundle or had a long walk to and from his work, he was invited to a seat beside him in his carriage to enjoy a ride and also the pleasure of his entertaining and genial conversation. .

"But above all he was a friend to the needy and down-trodden. No one who ever asked alms for him- self or others, or a favor of any kind from him, was ever refused ; but he never published it to the world, for quietly and without display he gave generously of his ample wealth. His 'creed' seemed to be more than an empty form for, like the Master, he went about doing good. He was in every sense a true Christian gentleman. . . .

"The world is made better by such lives. It would be well for some of our wealthy men to stop and con- sider if it is not better to make friends instead of enemies of their fellow-men who have less means than themselves. Let them study the life of this good man whose deeds are so enshrined in all our hearts as never to be forgotten. . ."

Akin to the feature of character above commended, is the interest which Mr. Rindge took in the persons employed in mills under his direction. He remem- bered and recognized men and women, and enjoyed talking with them ; and this not as de haut en bas, but placing himself and them on precisely the same level.

It was the desire of the family that the funeral ser- vices should be private and their wish was respected ; but most unexpectedly a great throng attended at the burial. Neighbors and business fri ends, official asso- ciates and employees and many persons whom he had befriended were there, bearing witness by their attend- ance to their esteem and his worth.

JAMES MELLEN.

The general verdict of a man's contemporaries would be a truer estimate of his real worth than the glowing memorials which find their way into the obituary columns of the newspapers when a good citizen dies. Tried by this standard, the quiet, genial and unassuming traits of James Mellen would call forth a practically unanimous tribute of good will and esteem from his fellow-townsmen, and a hearty as- sent from a widely-scattered host of friends and busi- ness associates. His is an open record of an honor- able and successful business man whose original stock in trade consisted chiefly in that old-fashioned family legacy-personal industry, honesty and brains. With such an equipment it is not strange that he has earned a large measure of success, an dis easily classed among the substantial citizens of Middlesex County. In brief outline, the record of his early years is that of the typical New England-bred boy. Born in Charlestown April 9, 1838, his childhood, until the

age of seven years, was passed there, when the family then moved to Cambridge. His father, James, Sr., was born November 1, 1815, and married, September 10, 1837, Sarah Ann (Hilton) Mellen, the widow of his brother, David Mellen, Jr., who was born March 15, 1804, who died November 11, 1836. The children of this last marriage were James, the subject of this sketch, and David, Jr., who was born November 24, 1839. David died September 18, 1852. The chil- dren by the marriage with David were Louisa Maria, born March 21, 1829; William Otis, born February 17, 1831; and Ellen Celinda, born May 8, 1833. The grandfather of Mr. Mellen was David, and his grand- mother was Grace Beals.

The educational advantages of Mr. Mellen were those afforded by the public schools of Charlestown and Cambridge, which he attended until he was old enough to be of assistance to his father in his business as a contractor and mover of buildings. He entered heartily into this work with the vigor born of his sturdy Scotch ancestry, and became efficient in the details of this business. He was occasionally em- ployed by Mr. Curtis Davis, who was then coming into prominence as the manufacturer of soap in a large way, and such was the aptness of young Mellen that he soon became a valuable acquisition to this (to him) new business, and in 1864 was taken into partnership by Mr. Davis, and became thoroughly identified with this industry, which had become, prior to the death of Mr. Davis, in 1887, of very large proportions, and to the accomplishment of which fact Mr. Mellen had contributed his full meed of energetic work with hands and brains. Nor was Mr. Davis alone of his family the one to be attracted by his manly and vig- orous personality to this comely young man,-Cupid must have " had a hand in it," for November 1, 1860, Mr. Mellen, was married and the happy bride was Christana Van Ness, eldest daughter of Curtis Davis, and for over thirty years they have together enjoyed the fruitage of his intelligent business abilities in yearly increasing measure.

A beautiful home on Washington Avenue, in Cam- bridge, and a lovely summer cottage on the North Shore, are among the incidents of this companion- ship. Mr. Mellen, while not taking any active part in politics, is interested in public affairs, and while in the main acting with the Republican party, he considers himself an Independent. He represented his section of the city in the Council, has had to do with the management of financial affairs, and is a safe adviser and a whole-souled, benevolent friend. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Mellen are: Edwin Davis, born Nov. 23, 1861; Mary Lizzie, born Aug. 19, 1863 ; Louisa Maria, born Sept. 18, 1865 ; Martha Davis, born Nov. 13, 1868 ; Sarah Agnes, born Nov. 20, 1869; Nettie Christana, born July 15, 1870, died July 14, 1871.

Of these children, Edwin Davis, Sept. 5, 1883, married Adele Lods, and they have one child, Lucile Christana, born July 5, 1886.

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En Horsford

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Mary Lizzie, Nov. 1, 1886, was married to Frederick L. Cunningham, and they have one child, James Mellen, born Jau. 16, 1888.

Mr. Mellen has provided for his children more ex- tended educational advantages thau were common in his boyhood days. His son, Edwin D., having taken high rank as a scholar, has been taken into partner- ship with his father, and it is to be reasonably ex- pected that this business will in the future be carried to greater degrees of perfection by the light of science and chemical analysis.

EBEN NORTON HORSFORD.

Eben Norton Horsford was born at Moscow, Liv- ingston County, New York, July 27, 1818. His father was Jerediah Horsford, from Charlotte, Chittenden County, Vermont; and his mother, Charity Maria Norton, from Goshen, Litchfield County, Connecticut. She was in direct descent from Thomas Norton of the Colony of 1639, which came first to New Haven and afterwards went to Guilford.

The son enjoyed the rare advantages of a home iu which good books were common, and the parental training was refined and vigorous. He attended the district schools and select schools until he was thirteen, when for three years he was a student iu the Living- stou County High School. While yet a hoy he was employed in the extemporaneous surveys of the New York and Erie, and the Rochester and Auburn Rail- roads. Then followed a course of study at the Rens- selaer Institute, where he graduated as civil engineer in 1837. He was for two years engaged in the geologi- cal survey of the State of New York, as an assistant to Professor Hall. For four years he was connected with the Albany Female Academy as Professor of Mathematics and the Natural Sciences, and during this time he lectured on chemistry in Newark College, Delaware. For two years after this he was a student of chemistry under Liebig, at Giessen, Germany. On his return to this country he was appointed Rumford Professor of Applied Sciences in Harvard University, aud he filled this professorship for sixteen years. Since his resignation of that office he has heen en- gaged in chemical manufactures based on his own in- ventions. He has taken out some thirty patents, most of them connected with chemistry.

In 1847 Professor Horsford was married to Mary L'Hommedieu Gardiner, daughter of the Hon. Sam- uel Smith Gardiner, of Shelter Island, N. Y. She died in 1855, leaving four daughters, one of whom is the wife of Andrew Fiske, Esq., of Boston, and one the wife of Judge Benjamin R. Curtis, of Boston.

In 1857 he married a sister of his former wife, Phiche Dayton Gardiner, who has one daughter. His home is still in Cambridge.

Besides the professional career of Professor Hors- ford, he has engaged in many works of general utility and interest. His first work on his return from Germany was on the proper material for the

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History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. I, Part 75

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton), ed Publication date: 1890 Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co Number of Pages: 1034

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton), ed
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co
Number of Pages: 1034