History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. III, Part 100

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co
Number of Pages: 1278

USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. III > Part 100

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"The first religious impressions of any man of dis-

tinction are an important item in an account of his life and character. Through life he was a man of very strong religious feelings and principles. They were derived partly from his mother and partly from the Unitarian influences which surrounded his youth."

" From his mother he was taught his sense of re- sponsibility to God, and ' the fear of God was the only fear under which he ever acted.' "

" His mind was enriched by learning, but not over- laid by it ; and to aim to appear learned was as foreign to his nature as any other form of pretence."

He began his professional career in Boston in 1834. " His moral sentiments and convictions were very strong ; but they lay deep beneath the surface, formu- ing, like conscience, the unseen and silent guide of life."

" In his boyhood he spent much of his time with his ureles, James, George and Isaac. They were all engaged in a manufacturing business. But the eldest, Mr. James Robbins, was very fond of farming, and was a good amateur farmer. Through him, his agri- cultural tastes were imbibed in his boyhood, in the rural scenes of his native place and on his uncle's lands."

In the impeachment trial of President Johnson, Judge Curtis was regarded as " the one man in the country, by the President, Cabinet and his friends, who might possibly stay what they regarded as an attempt to crush the constitutional independence of a co-ordinate department of the government." To him they appealed. 'Twas decided according to the Constitution there should be a "trial," that the Senate should be a Court, the members of which should be under the sanction ofan oath or affirmation, and there should bea "judgment." By constitutional provision, and by established precedents, the accused was entitled to "the assistance of counsel for his defence. " In the selection of counsel to defend the President, the first name suggested was that of Judge Curtis, and accepted in full Cabinet, and emphatically by the President himself." "Judge Curtis had no personal acquaintance with Mr. Johnson, no interest in his political or personal fortunes, nothing but a sense of duty to lead him to accept the responsible position of leading counsel for the defence on this great trial." " It involved serious pecuniary sacrifices, for the President was unable to offer the smallest compensation, and Judge Curtis had a very lucrative practice." "The President had nothing to which to appeal in the mind of his advocate, but a conscious- ness that he might be able to do a service to his country, and this was sufficient." " The impeachment trial began before the Senate, on the 30th of March, 1868, the Chief Justice of the United States presid- ing." " It was believed that a large majority of the Senators were bitterly hostile to the President." Judge Curtis was to open the defence. He shared the anxiety that was felt by others on account of the hostility of so many of the Senators to the President ;

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but when he rose to speak he manifested no solicitude whatever. He knew that he could place the defence of the President upon unanswerable grounds of law, and that, when this had been done, his acquittal would depend entirely upon there being a sufficient number of the hostile Senators who were capable of rising above party and acting for their country. "That Judge Curtis rendered a great public service, that when he had concluded his address to the Senators, the acquittal of the President was substantially secured, and that nothing needed to be added to an argument which had exhausted the case, is the con- current testimony of most of those who were present, or who have read the trial."

" He died in Newport, September 15, 1874. In Dr. Robbins' Memoir, read before the Massachusetts llistorical Society, is the following tribute to his character. "It does not admit of denial that Mr. Curtis' character bore that genuine stamp of great- ness which cannot be counterfeited or disputed, the test of which is the spontaneous recognition and homage of men. Everywhere, and at all times, on the hench, at the bar, in every assembly, whether large or small, in the most select company, and in general society, his presence was impressive and commanding. No man, however great, conld look down upon him. Very few could feel themselves to be his peers. Most men, even those of a high order of mind and charac- ter, instinctively acknowledged his supremacy."

" In one thing surely it will be allowed that he was great ; for throughout life he had been mindful of the prayer, and had received its answer, 'So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.'"

White Family. - One of the prominent men in Watertown in the early part of the century was Mr. Jonas White, who owned a large farm on which was a lovely wooded hill, which is now standing and is still called White's Hill.

Mr. White, on May 2, 1749, married Lucy Stearns, and had four sons and one daughter. The daughter married Hon. Levi Thaxter, a lawyer in the town, and their son, Levi L. Thaxter, who died in the year 1884, was well-known in the literary circles of Boston and Cambridge, as a man of culture and refinement, and also a very fine reader of the poetry of Robert Browning. His wife, Mrs. d'elia Thaxter, is now one of the most prominent literary women in the country, being a beautiful writer of both prose and poetry.

Three of Mr. White's sons died at an early age. William, a young man of great promise, entered Har- vard College in the year 1807, but never gradnated, as there was a rebellion in his class, and all left or were expelled. Ile is said to have been a brilliant talker and a delightful companion. Jonas studied medicine hut in consequence of an accident, gave up practicing. He died unmarried, as did both William A. and Josiah. Abijah, the eldest son, married Miss Ann Maria Howard (a daughter of Samuel Howard, who

was one of the members of the celebrated "Boston Tea Party," 1776), and remained on the farm with his father. In those days the ranches of Nebraska and Colorado were unknown, but Mr. White did a large business in cattle-raising on the farms of Petersham, Ilubbardston, Princeton and other towns within fifty miles of Boston. In company with Boston merchants he exported large quantities of beef to the West In- dies, and in this way acquired a handsome fortune.

He had six daughters and one son, William Abijah, who graduated at Cambridge in 1838, in the class with James R. Lowell, William W. Story (the sculptor), Nathan Hale, and other men of note.

William was of a most benevolent and pbilan- thropic disposition, and did a great work in Water- town in promoting the temperance cause. So much respected was he that, on his return to Watertown after a long absence, a public reception was given him, and a silver cup presented, as an expression of respect and affection from the citizens. He was also very prominent in the abolition movement. He died in 1856.

Lucy, the eldest daughter, married George Richard- son, whose father lived in the fine house which was afterwards converted into the Nonantnm House at Newton. One of the danghters, Ann Maria, married James Russell Lowelt, the poet, but she did not live long after her marriage. William Abijah married Harriet Sturgis. Lois Lilly married Dr. Estes Howe, of Cambridge. Mary Greene married Charles Wyllis Elliott, from Connectieut. Agnes Howard married Arthur Lithgo Devens. Caroline Gilman married Montgomery Davis Parker.

The old house, from which the most generons hos- pitality was dispensed by Mrs. White, who was beloved and respected by every one who knew her, is still standing in the village street, just beyond the park.

The Coolidge Family.1-This family is of great antiquity, traceable as far back as Edward the First (1300). The name was spelled in various ways, there being no fixed orthographic rules, and the mode was governed mostly by the sound. The practice derived from the Normans, in the tenth or eleventh century, of giving surnames from manors or localities, pre- vailed. William de Coulinge appeared in the roll of the hundreds as holder of lands in Cambridgeshire. The de was generally dropped from surnames about the time of Henry Sixth (before 1450).

The branch of the family from which those in this country descended was settled in Cambridgeshire, was of the landed gentry, and of great respectability. They adopted the name as now usually spelled.

JOHN, the youngest son of William Coolidge, of Cottenham, Cambridge County, England (baptized September 16, 1604), was perbaps one of the first settlers of Watertown, in 1630, although the date of his arrival has not been ascertained. He was admitted

1 By Austin J. Coolidge, H. C., 1847, and member N. E. H. & G. Society.

Gooding:

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freeman May 25, 1636, but that fact does not disprove a much earlier arrival, as none were admitted free- men until they became members of the church, yet were eligible to office upon taking the oath of fidelity, without admission either as church-members or free- men.

The homestead of John Coolidge was upon the highlands at the northwesterly side of Fresh Pond, and he acquired other lands in different localities. He was representative to the General Court in 1658, selectman thirteen times between 1638 and 1682, and was often engaged in the settlement of estates. Ilis will, dated Nov. 19, 1681, was proved June 16, 1691. He died May 7, 1691, aged eighty-eight years, and his wife, Mary (whose origin is unknown), died Aug. 22, 1691, aged eighty. eight years. In the ancient graveyard, under a stately elm, near the corner of Arlington and Mount Auburn Streets, two modest head-stones of slate, ahout two feet in height, mark the burial spot of the united head of the family in America.

Their children were sons, John, probably born in England about 1630; Simon, born 1632 ; Stephen, born October 28, 1639; Obadiah, born April 15, 1642; Nathaniel, probably born 1644-45; Jonathan, born March 10, 1646-47 ; daughters, (probably) Elizabeth, born about 1634-35; and Mary, born October 14, 1637. Their father's will omits from mention son Obadiah, who died 1663, unmarried, and Elizabeth, who married Gilbert Crackbone, of Cambridge, June 17, 1656, and, after Crackbone's death, in January, 1671-72, married Richard Robbins, March 26, 1673, and died without issue, probably before date of her father's will. Mary married Isaac Mixer, Jr., and left daughters Sarah and Mary, remembered by the ancestor. Stephen married, but died in 1711 without issue, and his estate descended to his brothers and sister Mary's children. Thus, of the eight children, the perpetuation of the Coolidge name depended upon the four sons, John, Simon, Nathaniel and Jonathan. These men were among the most respectable citizens and left a numerous progeny. John had fourteen children (among them two pairs of twins); Simon had eight, Nathaniel had thirteen, and Jonathan had seven children, averaging more than ten each.

JOHN, the oldest son,1 was connected with operations in fortifying Brookfield, in King Philip's War in 1676, and was selectman six times between 1684 and 1690. There came very early among the settlers of Watertown, a feeling that there was nct room for the population ; hence, migrations began. Many of the descendants of this man are found among the settlers of Sherburne, Natick and adjoining parts of Middelesex County. His son, Lieut. Richard, was representative of Water- town in 1722, and selectman eleven times from 1711 to 1728. Samuel, Richard's son was a graduate of

Harvard College in 1724, librariau in 1732, and chaplain at Castle Island. Other descendants-Jolin, born 1753, was soldier in the Revolution ; Nathaniel kept a public-house at south side of Watertown bridge, from 1764 to 1770, and was selectman in 1777-78; Grace, daughter of Joseph, of Sherburne, married Joseph Ware, father of Ashur Ware, Harvard College, 1804, LL.D., Bowdoin, 1837, and judge of District Court United States for Maine; Carlos Coolidge was a graduate of Middlebury College, 1811, and was Governor of Vermont.

SIMON, the second son of the settler, appears to have been the progenitor, so far as is known, of all of the name now residing in Watertown, and of the larger proportion of the family here in preceding years. Some of his descendants in the period from 1780 to 1795 migrated to the region of Maine now called Jay and Livermore, and became numerous from that point eastward to Hallowell and Augusta, and southward to Portland. His son Joseph became one of the leading men in Cambridge, and was deacon of the church. The daughter of Joseph (Rebecca) married Rev. Edw. Wigglesworth, first Hollis Pro- fessor of Divinity in Harvard College ; son Stephen, graduate Harvard College, 1724; daughter Mary, married Rev. Samuel Porter, graduate Harvard Col- lege, 1730, and minister of the church in Sherburne.

SIMON, grandson of Simon, born 1704, purchased, in 1728, lands aloug what is now Grove Street. The house where he lived, demolished before the present century, was a short distance beyond the house known to the present generation as the old Coolidge house, which stood, until within three or four years, opposite to the residence of the late Deacon John Coolidge. The house second named may have been in existence prior to the purchase referred to.

Here lived Simon's eldest son, JOSEPH, born 1730, who was killed by the British troops April 19, 1775. The tradition is, that he was ploughing at the "Vine- yard " in the early morning-heard of the march of the King's troops, put up his cattle, took his gun, went to the village, fell in with a small company has- tening forward from Needham, and, being more fa- miliar with the way, acted as guide. This small body of men met and was fired upon by the British flank guard at the high rocks in the edge of Lexington. Joseph Coolidge fell ! One hundred years after, the family erected a monument in memory of the event iu the ancient grave-yard near the place of his burial, and near the spot also where he heard his country's call. Commemorative exercises were held on Dec- oration Day, May 30, 1875, a more genial day than the 19th of April had proved to be, whose wintry blasts contrasted strangely with the heat of that day a century before. JOSHUA, the eldest son of this man of Lexington fame, helped on the earth-works at Dorchester Heights, where Washington's position suddenly induced the British to leave Boston. The grandsons, Joshua, Josiah, David and John, were

1 Bond connects Jobn, the grandson of the settler, with King Philip's War, but he was then only fourteen years old; Stephen, a son of the settler, was also a soldier in that war.

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large land-holders, and among the best citizens of the generation just departed. A representative man, prominent among those still worthily sustaining the reputation of the family, is JOSHUA COOLIDGE, oldest of the great-grandsons, who has served the town well in the arts of peace, on its School Board, and for many years a trustee of the Public Library.

NATHANIEL, the third son of the settler, was select- man in 1677 and 1692. lle became owner of the wear and the fishery at the bridge, and of the tract between the river and Mill Creek. the mill and the dam, where now are the Hollingsworth & Whitney Paper-Mills, the Lewando Dye-House, and the Walk- er & Pratt foundry ; also purchased extensive tracts elsewhere, among them a fifty-acre lot, ninety-three acres and one hundred and seventeen acres, lying possibly on both sides of Mt. Auburn Street, some- where between Garfield Street and East Watertown. Among his descendants were great-grandsons Sam- uel, graduated Harvard College 1769, a distinguished classical teacher, and his brother, COL. MOSES COOL- IDGE, selectman in 1777, 1792. Persons still living remember his homestead, on what is known as the Frazer place, at East Watertown. Cornelius, a son of Col. Moses, was graduated Harvard College 1798, and a merchant in Boston. Gen. Jonathan Coolidge, of Waltham, selectman from 1791 to 1807, was a great-grandson. David Hill Coolidge, lawyer in Boston, is also a descendant.

JONATHAN, the youngest son of the settler, was born March 10, 1646-47. His son John settled in Boston. His grandson Joseph, born February 10, 1718-19, mar- ried Marguarito Olivier, daughter of Antoine Olivier, a French Huguenot. From him were sons Joseph in three generations : Joseph, born 1747; Joseph, born 1773, married Elizabeth Bulfinch; and JOSEPH, born about 1799, graduated Harvard College 1817, and married Ellen Wales Randolph, daughter of Thomas Mann Randolph, Governor of Virginia, and wife Martha, who was daughter of Thomas Jefferson, Pres- ident of the United States. The wealth and enter- prise of this last Joseph were visible in the last gen- eration, and are perpetuated in his family. Among his sons was Sidney, who fell at the battle of Chicka- manga, September 19, 1863; living representatives are Thomas Jefferson, a distinguished manufacturer and capitalist; Joseph Randolph, a member of the legal, and Algernon of the medical profession. Thomas Bulfinch (Harvard College 1819) and Rev. James I. T (Harvard College 1838) were also descendants of the first Joseph. The members of this family have swelled the roll of Harvard graduates by the name of Coolidge descendants of the first settler, to thirty- four, not to mention those of other names, descend- ants by intermarriage.

Interwoven with the Coolidge family are the names of Bond, Stone, Bright, Brown, Clarke, Mason, Liver- more, Hastings, dennison, Frost, Whitney, Russell, Stratton, Wigglesworth, Stearns, Richards, Harring-

ton, and many others, through whom it may fairly be computed the descendants of the first settler were as numerous as those bearing his name, and scattered through New England and the Western States. Four towns bear the name of Coolidge, in Kansas, Ken- tucky, Wisconsin and New Mexico. These children of two hundred and sixty years, dispersed so widely, all regard with patriotic pride and devotion Water- town as their maternal home.

BIOGRAPHICAL.

SETH BEMIS.

Seth Bemis, who was born the 23d January, 1775, was the youngest son of David and Mary Bemis, the latter the daughter of Nathaniel and Ann (Bowman) Bright. He was a lineal descendant in the fourth generation of Joseph and Sarah Bemis, who were in Watertowu as early as 1640, and were supposed to have come from London, England, in the "Sarah and John." His ancestors had been substantial citizens and land- owners in Watertown, their names appearing on the early town records among those of the selectmen. IIis father owned the water-power where now the Etna Mills are established, carrying on a grist-mill and paper-mill, and at his death, in 1790, the mill property came to his sons Luke and Seth. The subject of this sketch fitted at New Ipswich Academy for llarvard College, where he graduated in 1795, taking good rank as a scholar. After graduation he spent about a year in the law-office of Franklin Dexter. At this time the attention of fore-seeing and progressive New England men was turned to the establishment in this country of manufacturing in- dustries, and Seth Bemis was among the earliest to join the movement, buying out his brothers' interest in 1796, devoting much time to experiments with machinery, for the different branches of spinning and weaving yarns and cloth, both of cotton and wool. About 1809, at the suggestion of Winslow Lewis, a large Boston ship-owner, he began to ex- periment with the manufacture of heavy cotton goods suitable for sail-cloth, and the War of 1812 found him extensively engaged in the manufacture of cotton duck, a large part of which was marketed in Balti- more and the South. After the close of the war he took up other branches of manufactures, and was associated in his enterprises with some of the well- known Boston merchants of the day, among them John Bellows, Thomas Cardis and William H. Board- man. At a late period, in partnership with his son, Seth Bemis, Jr., he carried on a large business in the grinding of logwood, and the preparation of dye- stuffs. Besides his industrial enterprises, he was much interested in agriculture, and believing that merino sheép could be profitably raised in this coun-

سويت

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try, he became largely engaged at one time in breed- ing them on a farm owned by him in Maine, for this purpose importing some of the finest blooded stock.

He was always an active member of the Unitarian parish, taking great interest in its work. He repre | Homestall, 10-A.

sented his town in the Legislature, and, although averse to holding office, was an earnest advocate of public improvements. He died on the 4th April, 1851, in the seventy-sixth year of his age.

He married, on the 24th April, 1808, Sarah Wheel- er, of Concord, Masssachusetts, who belonged to a family, descended from the earliest settlers of that town. His wife died on the 22d of June, 1849.

They had four children, who all survived them :--

Jonathan Wheeler Bemis, born Sept. 17, 1810, who graduated from Harvard in 1830, and from the Har- vard Medical School in 1834. He settled in Charles- town, where he followed his profession over thirty- five years. In November, 1859, he married Lucy Wyeth, of Cambridge, and has four children. In 187I he retired from practice and moved to Cam- bridge, where he now lives.

Sarah Wheeler Bemis, born 25th of July, 1812, who now lives in Newton, just across the Charles River from the old homestead.

Seth Bemis, Jr., born 18th of September, 1814, who fitted for Harvard College at Exeter Academy, but went into business. He was a well-known manufac- turer, and was associated with his father for many years, the success of their dye-stutl' business being due, to a large extent, to his energy and capacity. After retiring from active business, about 1860, he moved across the river to Newton, where his sister now lives. Up to the time of his death he continued to hold several positions in manufacturing and other companies. He died 21st of October, 1887, in the seventy-fourth year of his age.

George Bemis born 13th October, 1816, who gradu- ated from Harvard College with high rank in 1835 and from Harvard Law School in 1839. He became a noted lawyer of Boston, where he practiced many years. During the War of the Rebellion he was greatly interested in the success of the National Government, and rendered valuable assistance in the conduct of its diplomatic correspondence both during the war and in the years immediately following its elose. His patriotic interest in international law led him to make a study of this subject, in which he be- came deeply interested, and by his will he left a legacy founding a Professorship of International Law in the Harvard Law School. During the latter years of his life he lived much in Europe, where he died the 6th January, 1878, at Nice, France, in the sixty-second year of his age.

Another branch of the Bemis family who have long been residents of Watertown was Charles Bemis, a son of Nathaniel and Abigail (Bridge), a grandson of David and Mary (Bright), a great-grandson of Jona-

than and Anna (Livermore), a great-great-grandson of John and Mary (Harrington), who were next in descent trom Joseph and Sarah, who came to Water- town about 1640. They were believed to have come from London in the "Sarah and John." (See Drake.)

Said Charles Bemis graduated from Harvard Col- lege in 1808, and studied law with Judge Artemas Ward, and practiced his profession during his life in Watertown. He married Annie Vose, of Boston. They had three children-Dr. Charles Vose, of Med- ford, who married Elizabeth F. Henry, of Keene, N. 11. daughter of Hon. Wm. Henry, of Chester, Vt. Dr. Bemis has been for many years one of the trustees of the Massachusetts General Hospital. They have two daughters, Fanny Elizabeth and Alice Goodhue.

Abby Vose married Charles J. Barry, son of Wil- liam Barry, of Boston, and Esther (Stetson) Barry, formerly of Randolph. Mr. Charles J. Barry, born in 1811, graduated at Boston High School. After spending some time in the office of A. C. Lombard, he engaged in the wholesale coal business, first in Boston and afterwards in Charlestown, where he was known for his punctilious attention to his business. He took up his residence in Watertown in 1852, was elected on the School Committee in 1854, again in 1858, and continuously uutil 1865, was made one of the Board of Trustees of the Free Public Library in 1868, and again in 1873, serving until his death in 1883, the last six years being chairman of the board. He was one of the three charter members of the Watertown Savings Bank, was its president from the date of its organization in 1870 until his death. Mr. Barry was re- markable for his exact and regular habits as a business man, enjoying the perfect confidence of all, while he gavemuch of his time the latter years of his life to en- courage the young and the poor to save their money while they could for sickness and old age, to save their leisure time by using it in reading good books. He was constant in his attendance at church and liberal in his support of the Firet Parish, of which he had long been a member.

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History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Vol. III, Part 100

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed Publication date: 1890 Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co Number of Pages: 1278

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co
Number of Pages: 1278