History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 130

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1534

USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 130

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HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

liquor. As an evidence of the character Mr. Dizer has always sustained among his business acquaint- ances, a single incident will suffice to illustrate. During the great panic and upheaval in business circles caused by the outbreaking of the civil war in ' 1861, one of Boston's leading business men was ap- proached by another, who had a very slight acquaint- ance with Mr. Dizer, and asked what he thought of Mr. Dizer's responsibility. The gentleman referred to replied, " If I knew to-day that M. C. Dizer was not worth one dollar in the world, I should not hesi- tate to trust him for ten thousand dollars."

He married, first, Sarah A. Denton, of Boston. She lived but little more than a year, and Mr. Dizer married as his second wife a sister of the first, Miss | whom Lewis was one. He was born Oct. 13, 1793. Delia A. Denton. They have had five children, two | His education was such as could be obtained at com- are dead, two sons and one daughter are living,- Silas C., who married a daughter of Gen. Luke Lyman, of Northampton, and now resides in Long- wood, near Boston; Walter M. married a Miss Eggleston, of Westfield, and resides in Weymouth, and Alida R., now Mrs. George W. Baker, of Wey- mouth.

ELIAS SMITH BEALS.

Elias S. Beals was born in Weymouth, Mass., Oct. 20, 1814. He is the son of Lewis and Sarah S. (Harding) Beals, and is descended in a direct line from John Beal, who came from the parish of Hing- ham, in Forchoe Hundred, County of Norfolk, Eng- land. He came to America in the vessel " Diligent," arriving at Boston on the 10th of August, 1638, with his family, consisting of wife, five sons, three daugh- ters, and two servants. He settled in Hingham, probably on account of his wife being the sister of Rev. Peter Hobart, who had chosen that town as his residence, and was the first minister there. John and his progeny, which has been somewhat numerous, | has been distinguished for intelligence, integrity, and good citizenship. The line of descent from John Beal to Elias S. is : John (1), Jeremiah (2), Lazarus (3), Lazarus (4), Lazarus (5), Lazarus A. (6), Lewis (7), Elias S. (8).

in signing the church covenant, and was an early dea- con in the church. A copy of this document, now in the possession of Mr. Quincy Bicknell, of Hingham, shows it to be remarkable for its liberality, "being sufficiently broad to embrace all denominations of Christians." Dr. Beal's wife was named Lydia. They had a large family, of twelve children. He lived to be seventy-two years of age, dying Oct. 31, 1797.

Lazarus A., son of Dr. Lazarus, was born Sept. 30, 1753 ; died Nov. 23, 1822. Early in life he moved to Weymouth, where he married, Oct. 29, 1776, Bethiah Lewis. She was born April 8, 1756 ; died Aug. 5, 1805. They had a family of six children, of

mon schools of his town at that period, and when about seventeen years of age he chose brick-masonry as a trade, and this he followed assiduously as an oc- cupation till between fifty and sixty years of age. By habits of economy and thrift he had during these years accumulated some means and purchased a farm, and to the avocation of agriculture he devoted his de- | clining years. He, like his father, was an orthodox Congregationalist, and was a member of that church for more than fifty years of his life. He married Sarah S., daughter of Capt. James and Mary (Ford) Harding, of Weymouth. Their children were Elias S., Mary H. (afterwards the wife of Francis B. Bates, now deceased), Sarah L. and Lewis A. (who is a ma- son by trade, and resides with Sarah L. at the old homestead). Both are unmarried. Mr. Beals lived to the remarkable age of more than eighty-eight years, retaining his faculties to the last. He died May 10, 1882.

Elias S. had in his youth no educational ad- vantages other than the common schools afforded. He worked when a boy, about three years with his Beal became a man of influence in the new colony, | father at masonry. When about eighteen he learned shoemaking, and for a few years worked at cutting and making shoes for neighboring manufacturers. In 1838 he took a large lot of boots and shoes, the prop- erty of various manufacturers in Weymouth, on board a vessel and sailed for Savannah, Ga., where he dis- posed of part of the same to advantage, the remainder he shipped to Charleston, S. C., and then sold the larger part of what he had left from the Savannah market. This was Mr. Beals' first business venture out in the world, and the fact that his neighbors trusted him, a young inexperienced man, showed the esteem in which he was held by his fellow-townsmen. On his return from Savannah to Charleston he sailed

Lazarus, of the fifth generation, was a physician in what was then the Second Precinct of Hingham (now Cohasset), it being set apart as a new town in 1770. From the meagre data obtainable at this late day, it ! is evident that this .Dr. Lazarus Beal was a man of more than usual enterprise and ability. He was a leader in all measures of advancement in his town, and was one of those who joined with Rev. N. Hobart | on board the steamer " Savannah," celebrated as being

E. V. Reales.

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WEYMOUTH.

the first steamship that ever crossed the Atlantic 1855 and in 1856. When a young man he was the principal auctioneer in the northerly part of Wey- mouth, and has always been greatly interested in all kinds of public improvements. The Hook and Lad- der Company in his ward have assumed his name, had it painted on their truck, and hung his portrait in the front end of their hall. Ocean. On the voyage to Charleston she broke her starboard shaft in a gale of wind and came to anchor. The gale was so furious that she parted all her cables but one, and the vessel was in imminent danger of being lost with all on board. During the prevalence of the storm, however, the passengers were transferred at great risk of their lives to a passing steamer, and He has done a large business as insurance agent for many years, and has been so fortunate as to never have had a single loss for any one of the more than one hundred different stock insurance companies that he had placed risks in, and less than one thou- sand dollars for all the several mutual insurance companies that he is agent for. carried on to Charleston. After a week or so spent in Charleston Mr. Beals took passage on the ship " Leland," and after a very rough voyage arrived again in his native town, Weymouth. He then began in a small way manufacturing boots and shoes, and soon connected with this pursuit a small store of gen- eral merchandise. Later on he built a factory at He has been a director at differnt times in two na- tional banks ; and is, and has been for several years, president of the North Weymouth Cemetery Associa- tion, and also treasurer of his religious society. Torrey's Corners, and continued as manufacturer and merchant until 1849, when he connected himself with others in a jobbing boot and shoe trade in New Or- leans, from which he retired some two years later. In 1859 he was a member of the State Legislature, and assisted in the revision of the laws of the common- wealth, which were published as " The General Statutes of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts." He often served on school and special committees, such as for the erection of public buildings and other important purposes. It was almost wholly through the unwearied and unremitting endeavors of Mr. Beals, continued through a period of three years and against the most inveterate and unyielding opposition from various quarters, that toll privileges of the Quincy and Hing- ham bridges were abolished by act of the Legislature, and the bridge was made free to all. The account of Mr. Beals' efforts, the strenuous and bitter opposition he met with, and his final victory in the achievement of his object would be too long to be accorded space here, but the entire story is ably, concisely, and wit- tily told in a pamphlet published at the time, entitled " The Hingham and Quincy Bridges : their Freedom, and the Manner in which it was Obtained." Returning to Weymouth, he built a larger factory, and became regularly established as a boot and shoe manufacturer. Having by intercourse and contact familiarized himself with the peculiar requirements of the Southern market, he made a specialty of cater- ing to that trade. He studied the tastes and require- ments of his patrons, and took pains to keep abreast of the times, and, if anything, a little in the leader- ship in the matter of styles, etc., in his goods, and by these means established a paying trade in first-class goods in his line. As an instance of the enterprise which has always characterized Mr. Beals' business career, it may be mentioned that he purchased and ran the first sewing machine ever used in North Wey- mouth ; he soon after bought another, and they proved paying investments. He took pains to note their value as compared with hand labor, and it is a note- worthy fact that in the first year of their use these two machines saved him a matter of one thousand dollars, in increased production and diminished expense. The Through his earnest endeavors in this matter he was brought in contact with, and formed the personal acquaintance of, almost the entire senatorial body, and as an evidence of the impression he made, it may be mentioned that in the winter of 1862 a petition was Washington, requesting the appointment of Mr. Beals as Internal Revenue Assessor for the Second District of Massachusetts. This petition was signed by every member of the Senate (forty in all), by about one hundred members of the House, and by many other prominent men. It was forwarded to Washington, and in due time he received an appointment signed by Hugh McCulloch, then Secretary of the Treasury, outbreak of the civil war destroyed all of Mr. Beals' trade, as his customers were all in the South, conse- quently he gave up manufacturing. He deliberated long as to whether he should offer his services to his country, but physical infirmities deterred him ; he | circulated in the Senate, directed to the authorities at however, sent a substitute, and one of his sons (Frank) enlisted and served until the first battle of Fredericks- burg where he was severely wounded. After consid- erable delay and trouble Mr. Beals succeeded in getting his son home, where he was tenderly nursed by his parents through a long confinement from his wound, but he eventually recovered and was afterwards honor- ably discharged, being unfit for further duty.

Mr. Beals served as selectman in Weymouth in appointing him to the position sought. On Feb. 28,

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HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

1863, a second commission was issued, signed by | he also engaged in the manufacture of nets and ham- President Lincoln, continuing him in the office. He mocks. He married Abbie F. Lovell, of Weymouth, and has three daughters,-Clara E., Gertrude F., and Alice S. Elizabeth married Josiah H., son of Capt. Cornelius Pratt, of Weymouth. They have one son, -James H. Elias Frank married Emily C. Torrey, sister of Alexis Torry. James married a lady in Milwaukee, and has one son,-Frederick Elias. held this position until shortly after the accession of Andrew Johnson to the Presidential chair, when for political reasons a successor was appointed. Three months later Mr. Beals received a telegram from the Commissioner of Internal Revenue at Washington, asking him if he would " travel as special agent for the Treasury Department, to instruct Internal Revenue Mr. Beals was one of the town auditors for many years prior to 1883, at which time, on being again elected, he declined serving longer. He was ap- pointed a justice of the peace in 1851, and now holds his fifth commission as such officer, doing no small amount of gratuitous service in that line for pen- sioners and others. In politics he is a pronounced Republican. In religion he is a Universalist, and has contributed liberally in various ways, not only to the erection of a suitable house of worship, but also to the support of the society of which he is a member. Mr. Beals is frank and outspoken in his opinions and sentiments, and honorable and earnest in all matters. officers in the discharge of their duties." This he did, and for a year and three months he traveled all over the country this side the Mississippi River in the performance of this duty, which he discharged to the entire satisfaction of the department. He served until there was a general act passed, which went into effect July 4, 1868, discharging all special agents of the Treasury Department under the United States government. One act of Mr. Beals in this connec- tion is especially worthy of mention : he alone and unaided recovered for the government from the First National Bank of the District of Columbia, at Wash- ington, on incorrect returns, many thousands of dol- lars more money than all he ever received from the government as compensation for services and ex- penses ; this he did while temporarily located in Washington between his tours in the prosecution of his regular duties, and the work was not in the strict line of his legitimate duty.

Whatever he has taken in his hand to do he has always done with a will, and his efforts throughout life have been crowned with that success which must accrue to intelligently directed and persistent energy. In 1878 he made a tour through England, France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Austria, Prussia, Bel- gium, etc., and while on this trip contributed a series of letters to the Weymouth Gazette.

In 1868, Mr. Beals' son (Frank) commenced busi- ness as a boot and shoe dealer in Milwaukee, Wis. He says he neither hopes for nor desires any new Two years later Mr. Beals and also Alexis Torrey , official position whatever, as his business interests and took a partnership interest in the business, and about connections require all the labor, time, and attention he is able to bestow. the same time Mr. Beals' youngest son, James L., engaged as book-keeper for the firm. For a number He now, in his seventieth year, fully realizes that the evening shades of this earthly life are drawing closely about him ; and his full faith in God and His providence makes to him the future more and more bright and glorious as time rolls on, and his scenes of earthly things are vanishing into the past. of years Mr. Isaac G. Mann was also a partner, but in 1877 they purchased Mr. Mann's interest and he re- tired. James L. then became a member of the firm. The firm-name is Beals, Torrey & Company, and they do a business exceeding half a million dollars per year, which the young men of the firm have built up through their own efforts.

Mr. Beals married, July 27, 1837, Betsey, daugh- ter of Ancill and Eliza Burrell, of Weymouth. Their children are Augustus, Elizabeth, Elias, Frank, James, and Mary S .; Mary died at the age of nineteen, the rest are living.

Augustus was chief clerk in his father's office while he was in government employ. In 1866-67 he was United States Internal Revenue Agent in the Second District of Massachusetts, for collection of de- linquent taxes. In 1868 he began manufacturing boots and shoes at his father's old stand, and in 1878, under the name of Bay State Hammock Company,

JAMES TORREY.

Deacon James Torrey was born in North Wey- mouth (Old Spain), Sept. 2, 1811. He is a son of James and Hannah (Holbrook) Torrey, and grand- son of Lemuel and Sarah (Lovell) Torrey. The Torreys were among the pioneer families in this an- cient and historic town, and they have always been noted for their integrity of character and good citizen- ship. James Torrey was a farmer in North Wey- mouth, and had three children,-Sarah, married Jacob Dyer, of Weymouth, had seven children, and

James Janney

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WEYMOUTH.

died June 26, 1880; Lemuel, born Oct. 30, 1806 (married Nancy Bicknell, of East Weymouth, and had seven children. Mrs. Torrey, after suffering much from rheumatism, died Jan. 5, 1864, and Lemuel married, as his second wife, Mrs. Ann Maria Batchelder, née Stoddard, of Upton. She is still living). Mr. Tor- rey died June 5, 1880; the third and last child is James, whose portrait accompanies this sketch. James Torrey, Sr., died in 1815, in his thirty-eighth year, from lung fever brought on by cold contracted while mustering in militia. Mrs. Torrey married as her second husband Stephen French, of East Weymouth. By this marriage there was no issue.

James, Jr., was only about four years of age at his father's death. The family were left with small means, and of course the children were compelled to work at an early age to help support the family. At thirteen years of age James was hired out to work on the farm at three dollars per month, and worked at this price seven months of that year, and the fol- lowing year he worked a number of months at the same price. About this time his mother married the second time, and he returned home to live with her and his stepfather. Here he remained until the death of his mother, which occurred when he was in his twenty-first year. During his minority he had learned boot and shoemaking, and he now went to work for various manufacturers. Nov. 12, 1834, he married Catharine Whitmarsh, daughter of Peter and Ruth (Webb) Whitmarsh, and granddaughter of Thomas and Jane (Reed) Webb. About the time of his marriage he began in a small way manufac- turing boots and shoes. In company with his brother he bought out and conducted a small store at North Weymouth. This copartnership lasted eleven years, when he sold his interest to his brother, and established business for himself. He built up quite a large business for those days, and was uni- formly successful. About 1865 he took into part- nership his nephew, Lemuel Torrey, Jr., furnishing the funds and superintending the general affairs of the firm, while Lemuel assumed the actual charge of affairs, and gave his personal attention to the manu- facturing. This copartnership continued until 1872, when Mr. Torrey withdrew his capital from the con- cern, and permanently retired from active business, after having spent nearly forty years of his life as a manufacturer.

Since his retirement he has not been idle ; he has settled many estates, some of which were in a very complicated condition. This he has done to the gen- eral satisfaction of those concerned.

During the course of a long and very active life,

Deacon Torrey so deported himself as to win the confidence and esteem of those who know him, and he, though never an aspirant for office, has been honored with many trusts. He was elected director of Quincy Stone Bank, afterwards called National Granite Bank, in 1853, and has held that position to the present time. He has been for many years, and is at present, trustee of the Weymouth Savings- Bank. He has been, since its incorporation, a di- rector in Dorchester Mutual Fire Insurance Com- pany, covering a period of about thirty years. He was postmaster at North Weymouth under the ad- ministration of four Presidents, has been selectman three years, and overseer of the poor one year. He was on the board of selectmen at the time when there was a dispute as to the boundary line between Weymouth and Abington. They petitioned the Leg- islature, and Mr. Torrey was one of the commis- sioners appointed to survey and establish the line. This proved to be a very arduous and laborious work, as it was done during the most inclement weather of a severe winter, and through a badly-constructed route. The line was established, however, according to their survey, the Legislature accepting their re- port. Deacon Torrey is an earnest and faithful worker in Masonry. He joined first the Old Colony Lodge, F. A. M., at Hingham, Mass., was made a Master Mason at this lodge, and continued his mem- bership there until the renewal of charter and reor- ganization of Orphans' Hope Lodge at East Wey- mouth. He changed his membership to this lodge, and has been its treasurer since its organization, a period of more than a quarter of a century. He is a member of the North Weymouth Pilgrim Church (Congregationalist), and has been a deacon of this church from its organization, in 1852, to the present time, and for ten years or more superintendent of the Sunday-school.

Though never an active politician, he has always acted with the Republican party in most measures, and in this, as in all other matters, he is liberal in his views and opinions. Deacon Torrey is one of the most highly-respected citizens of his town, and together with his estimable wife is passing a serene and quiet life's autumn near the spot where he was born, surrounded by warm friends, and in the enjoy- ment of a competence secured by years of active in- dustrious toil and traffic.

No children have blessed their union, but many little sons and daughters of neighboring people will remember with pleasure in after-years their kindly- received visits to Deacon Torrey's.

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HISTORY OF NORFOLK COUNTY, MASSACHUSETTS.

CHAPTER LV.

WRENTHAM.

BY HON. SAMUEL WARNER.

AT a General Court holden at Newe Towne, Sept. 2, 1635, it was ordered " that there shall be a planta- tion settled about two miles above the Falls of Charles River, on the northeast side thereof, to have ground lying to it on both sides of the river, both upland and meadow, to be laid out hereafter as the Court shall appoint."

On the 8th of September, 1636, the General Court ordered that the plantation to be settled above the falls of Charles River shall have three years' immunity from public charges, as Concord had to be accounted from the 1st of May next, and the name of said plan- tation is to be Deddham; to enjoy all that land on the southerly and easterly side of Charles River not formerly granted to any town or particular persons, and also to have five miles square on the other side of the river.

This was the original grant as appears in the first volume of the records of Massachusetts of that tract of land which includes the present townships of Ded- ham, Medfield, Wrentham, Needham, Bellingham, a part of Sherborn, a part of Natick, Franklin, Med- way (which was attached to Medfield until 1781), Walpole, a part of Foxborough, Norfolk, and Nor- wood.

In about the year 1647 the records of Dedham say that John Dwight and Francis Chickering gave notice of hopes of a mine near certain ponds thirteen miles from town. It is supposed that the ponds here meant were at Wollomonpoag, the Indian name of the plantation afterwards made a town by the name of Wrentham. It is probable that at the date of this grant of the General Court the inhabitants of Ded- ham had little knowledge of this part of their town- ship. But it must have been somewhat explored be- fore the year 1649, as we learn that in that year, on account of the scarcity of grass in Dedham, the in- habitants went to Wollomonopoag to cut grass from the meadows there.

But the earliest movement regarding the occupa- tion of Wollomonopoag of which any record is found was made in the year 1660. It is as follows :

" Dedham, 22, 4, 1660. At a meeting of the selectmen there, Lieut. Fisher, Sergt. Fuller, Richard Wheeler, Ensign Fisher are deputed to view the lands both upland and meadow near about the ponds by George Indian's Wigwam, and make report of what they find to the selectmen in the first opportunity they

can take." This was in obedience to the desire of the inhabi- ! tants expressed " formerly in a lecture day."

The selectmen reported on the 31st of Tenth month | (December), 1660, that they had deputed men to search and view the place, whose returns encouraged them

" ' to depute two men to endeavor to compound with such In- dians as have a true right there.' And they approved of the establishing a plantation there in this careful language, viz., 'To us it seems that it might be helpful to conduce to public and particular good that the place might be planted with meet inhabitants in due time.' They also suggested that the present care thereof be left to a committee to explore the place further, and to consider what measures are proper in the premises, and 'propose them to the town in some public meeting to be con- sidered and resolved as the case may require.'"

At a town-meeting in the following month a com- mittee was chosen " in respect of Wollomonopoag."

On the 27th, 1st, 1661 (March), at a general town- meeting, the question being put whether there should be a plantation erected or set up at the place called Wollomonopoag, it was answered by a vote in the affirmative. The question being further put whether the town would lay down six hundred acres of land at the place before named for the encouragement of the plantation, it was answered by a vote in the affirma- tive. This vote, however, was not unanimous. Thir- teen voters dissented, and their names were entered upon the record.

A committee was appointed also at this meeting,

" to settle and determine such things as shall be mentioned needful for the plantation before named. First, they shall de- termine when men present themselves for entertainment there who are meet to be accepted. Second, they shall proportion to each man his part in the six hundred acres. Third, they shall order the settling of the plantation in reference to situation, highways, convenient place for a meeting-house, a lot or lots for church officers, with such other things necessary as may hereafter be proposed."

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History of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 130

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co. Number of Pages: 1534

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) ed
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & Co.
Number of Pages: 1534