History of Plymouth county, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 108

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, J.W. Lewis & co.
Number of Pages: 1706

USA > Massachusetts > Plymouth County > History of Plymouth county, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 108

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

In 1858 he purchased of Mr. Benjamin Hobart the pioneer tack-factory of the town and county, and formed a partnership with Benjamin Hobart's nephew, Henry Hobart, to conduct the tack business under the firm-name of B. Hobart & Son. At the time of its transfer the main factory was over one hundred feet long, averaging thirty feet wide, two stories high, with spacious basement and attic the whole length ; ;its motive-power was both steain and water, which could operate sixty tack-machines. Under the same roof, at one end, there was a board-, shingle-, and saw-mill, and also a grist-mill. Just as the new firm was getting under headway, Aug. 19, 1859, the fac- tory was destroyed by fire, a total loss of over fifty thousand dollars. Within ten days a lease. was secured of the brick-factory in East Bridgewater, new machinery introduced, and active operations resumed within a month. Mr. Dunbar built the present works at South Abington, which were com- pleted in 1864, and consisted of a two-story building,

512

HISTORY OF PLYMOUTH COUNTY.

facing the road, one hundred and eighty-three by forty-eight feet, and another one of one story, three hundred and thirty-four by sixty-seven feet. This building Mr. Dunbar Icased to the new firm of Dun- bar, Hobart & Whidden, which was formed in 1865, on the removal of the business from East Bridgewater. (Dunbar, Hobart & Whidden subsequently became the purchasers of the works.) The business of this house is now so extensive as to necessitate the ercc- tion of a new building (in 1884) one hundred and seventy-five by thirty-five feet, of which forty by thirty-five feet is two stories, and one hundred and thirty-four by thirty-five feet, one story in height. Mr. Dunbar married, June 24, 1840, Amelia, daugh- ter of Hon. Benjamin and Deborah (Lazell) Hobart, of Abington. (See biography of Benjamin Hobart.) They had three children,-Emily, Amelia H., and Lucy C.

Mr. Dunbar has ever given a generous encourage- ment to enterprises tending to build up the town, and is liberal in contributing to them. He is the senior member of the firm of Dunbar & Rhodes, formed, in 1870, for the manufacture of eyelets. He was one of the incorporators (in 1847) and is a director in the National Exchange Bank, Boston, and is now the only surviving member of its first board of directors.

Like all engaged in large operations, Mr. Dunbar has at times made money rapidly, and at others lost large amounts. But both successes and reverses have been received with the same unruffled philosophy, and he has maintained in all critical periods that un- varying coolness which carries to success, and he stands to-day high in financial circles. For quite a number of years his state of health has not per- mitted him to actively participate in labor, but his advice and counsel are still as wise and valuable as ever.

Unassuming by nature, earnest in character, faith- ful to all his personal, political, and religious attach- ments, of generous, kindly, and courteous disposi- tion, he has a large circle of true and devoted friends, and deserves the warm encomiums bestowed upon him by the best people of his native town. He is a Republican in politics, and Swedenborgian in religious faith.

HON. WILLIAM LINCOLN REED.

The first ancestor of the numerous family of Recd was Brianus, a noted man of Lincolnshire, England, who in 1139 was registered as " Brianus de Reed." He left two sons, who were respectively named Robert of Reed and Thomas of Reed-dale. This

new Reed family occupied nearly the same locality for several centuries. From it descended William Rede, an eminent mathematician, who in 1369 was made Bishop of Chichester. William Recd, born 1450, was a great-grandson of the bishop, and had this lineal descent: William, born 1490 ; William, born 1510; William, born 1545; William, born 1572. This last-named William had two sons,- William, born 1596, and John, born 1598. These brothers became participants in the great Massachu- setts land patent of which Governor Winthrop (con- nected with the Reads by intermarriage) was the leader, and in 1630 came with Winthrop's expedition from ncar Boston, England, to the place which they named Boston also. William removed to Weymouth in 1635, and was one of the most active men of the colony.

William Lincoln Reed, a descendant in the sixth generation from William, of Weymouth (the line being William1, Thomas2, Daniel3, Thomas4, Isaac5, William L6.), and son of Deacon Isaac and Nancy (Lincoln) Reed, was born in Abington, Mass., Oct. 5, 1825. His father, Isaac Reed, was a farmer, a useful member of society, and an excellent and worthy citizen. He died in 1847. His mother was the daughter of Caleb Lincoln, of Taunton (the Lincoln family were among the early and prominent settlers of Taunton and Hingham). She died in 1874. Thomas Reed, grandfather of William L., is remem- bered as a man of large frame, over six feet in height, of great physical endurance and energy of character. He possessed large landed estates.

William L. received his education in the public schools of Abington. He also assisted his father in the farm-work. Agriculture, however, was not to his taste, and he learned the shoemakers' trade, which he prosecuted for several ycars. In 1853 he commenced shoe manufacturing in a shop connected with his house, cutting out his own stock and putting it out to be made. In 1855, Mr. Reed's increasing business demanded more commodious quarters, which he found over the store of Randall Cook, where he remained for the next five years. Business continued to pros- per, and in 1860 he built what was then regarded as a large factory near the South Abington Station. Results showed the wisdom of his enterprise, and pre- dicted the coming necessity of still further enlarge- ment. In 1866 he entered into copartnership with Joseph Bunage, of Abington, and jointly conducted business for the ensuing six years under the firm- name of Bunage & Reed. In 1872 his business con- nection was dissolved by the death of Mr. Bunage. He then entered into partnership with David B.

William Lo Roced

513

HISTORY OF SOUTH ABINGTON.

Closson, of Boston, name of firm being Reed & Closson. Soon after his association with Mr. Clos- son the rapidly-increasing demands of trade impera- tively required enlargement of manufacturing facili- ties, which were at onee provided. In 1879 a further addition was necessitated. The factory was length- ened by the erection of eighty-two feet, so that its dimensions were fixed at two hundred and thirty-two feet in length by thirty-five in width, and four stories in height. The annual value of the goods manufae- tured by about two hundred employés exceeded four hundred and fifty thousand dollars. July 1, 1883, this extensive manufactory, filled with costly ma- ehinery and a large stock of material, was entirely destroyed by fire. Sinee that time Mr. Reed has not been in active business.

Mr. Reed married, June 6, 1847, Deborah, daugh- ter of Ziba Chessman. of Weymouth. Their children are William Bradford (deceased), Anna Gertrude, Sarah Chessman, and Walter Lincoln.

Mr. Reed has been called upon to fill many official positions. Republican in politics, he represented his town in the lower branch of the State Legislature in 1858 and 1859. In 1859 he served as a member of the Joint Committee on Towns. In 1865 he was elected to the State Senate, to represent the Second Plymouth Distriet, and served on the Standing Com- mittee on Leave of Absence, the Joint Committee on Prisons, and on the Joint Special Committee on the Annexation of Roxbury to Boston. Again returned to the Senate in 1866, he served as chairman of the Joint Committee on Prisons and as a member of the Joint Special Committee on the Cost of State Aid. In 1867 he was elected to the Senate for the third time, occupied his former chairmanship, and was a member of the Committee on the Hoosac Tunnel and Troy and Greenfield Railroad. He was a mem- ber of Governor Claflin's Council (from the Second Councilor's District) for 1870 and 1871, and served on the Committees on the Hoosac Tunnel and Troy and Greenfield Railroad, Military Affairs, and the Boston, Hartford and Erie Railroad.

He is a prominent member of the order of Free and Accepted Masons. Dec. 30, 1860, he received the degree of Entered Apprentice in the John Cutler Lodge at Abington, and on the same day the degree of Fellow-Craftsman ; that of Master Mason Jan. 28, 1861. March 25, 1861, was elected a member of the John Cutler Lodge, and Aug. 8, 1870, withdrew from it in order to connect himself with the Puritan Lodge of South Abington, which was then constituted and dedicated, and of which he was one of the charter mem- bers. Feb. 9, 1863, he received the degree of Mark 33

Master Mason; March 6, 1863, that of Past Master and also of Most Excellent Master in the Pilgrim Lodge ; April 3, 1863, he was raised to the dignity of Royal Areh Mason, and October 2d of the same year became a member of the Pilgrim Chapter of Royal Areh Masons. Dee. 11, 1863, he received the order of the Red Cross ; March 15, 1864, the order of the Temple and the order of Malta. He is also a eharter mem- ber of the Old Commandery of Knights Templar. In the Boston Council of Seleet and Royal Masters he received the degrees of Select Master, Royal Master, and Super Excellent Master in succession. Subse- quently withdrawing from the Boston Council, he and others (as charter members) were constituted and dedicated as the Abington Council of Seleet and Royal Masters.

Mr. Reed is genial, attractive in manners, and actively interested in all loeal improvements. He is a liberal contributor to the eause of Christianity. Endowed with a high and keen sense of honor, always aetuated by sound ethieal principles, he has acquired unusual personal popularity, even from polit- ieal opponents. His singularly accurate judgment has almost always preserved him from mistake, and in the guidanee of his remarkable energies has raised him to his present altitude of social sueeess.

As an evidence of the esteem in which he is held, we mention that after the burning of Mr. Reed's manufactory a citizens' meeting was called at South Abington, to give publie expression of sympathy for his loss and show the estimation with which he was regarded by the leading citizens of this seetion, in whose prosperity he had been a solid factor for so many years. The attendanee was large, and the spirit shown deep and heartfelt. Many prominent men of neighboring towns took part with cordiality and earnestness. This meeting was an unselfish tribute of respeet such as few men have while living.

From the resolutions adopted at this meeting we extraet the following :

" Resolved, That to our fellow-citizen, Hon. William L. Reed, the senior member of said firm, we tender our warmest sympa- thy, and sincerely trust that he realizes how fully we appreciate his life-long devotion to the best interests of his native town,- how heartfelt is our grief over his great loss,-and how great is our reliance that he will meet the disaster which has overtaken him with the same courage and ability which has marked an active and energetic life, and made his name and that of his firm honored and respected wherever known."

Numerous speakers gave expression to their sym- pathy and regard for the energy, industry, persever- ance, thrift, and benevolenee of Mr. Reed, and we fittingly elose this brief sketeh by this extraet from the speech of Hon. B. W. Harris:

511

HISTORY OF PLYMOUTH COUNTY.

" I came over from my home to express my deep sympathy for my friend, Hon. William L. Reed. I have known Mr. Reed for more than thirty years. He began life as a meehanie, at the bottom of the ladder, and by untiring industry, striet ceon- omy, and unvarying integrity, has won his way up to his pres- ent high position as a successful business man in the community. He is entitled to active and helpful sympathy. My acquaint- anco with him has been largely in the social and public relations. In public trusts as well as business relations he has made an honorable and enduring record. During his long public service I have yet to hear of his lacking anything of strict integrity and honorable purpose. In his business life he has attained an equally enviable reputation."

DAVID B. GURNEY.

The American Gurneys are descended from the aneient race of Gournay, which, in early European history, is recorded to have accompanied Rollo into Neustria, now Normandy, and became Lords of Gour- nay, whence their name. Gournay-en-Brai is a town in the arrondissement of Neufchâtel. At the battle of Hastings, in 1066 (when William the Conqueror defeated Harold, the last Saxon king of England, and thereby acquired the English erown and territory, whieli lie divided among his chieftains), there were two Hugh de Gournays; the father (an old man) leading on his vassals of Bray. Both Hughs had grants from William, the caput baronæe being in Nor- folk, still the stronghold of the name, and their blood, became mingled with that of the Conqueror himself by the marriage of Gerard de Gournay with Edith, daughter of William the Conqueror. He joined the first crusade (1096), and subsequently died on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. From Walter de Gour- nay, who flourished under Stephen, and whose son, William, still held a portion of the fief of Bray, " eame a long line of country gentlemen in Norfolk, who seem never to have risen above or fallen below that honorable status."

John Gurney, an early inhabitant of Braintree, born Sept. 29, 1615, died 1663, eame probably from Southwark, England, near London Bridge. His ehil- dren settled in Weymouth, and John and Riehard were early residents of that town. This John was no doubt the John Gurney who came from Wey- mouth about 1690, and settled in South Abington (then Bridgewater). He died in 1715. His son, Nathan, had numerous children, among them Noah, born May, 1735. He married a daughter of Samuel Pool, Esq., and had six sons and one daughter. Asa, the oldest, married Mary, daughter of Joseph Hersey. Their only son, David Gurney (born 1782, died 1862), possessed a strong vitality, was an industrious and useful eitizen, of fine mechanical skill, and when taeks

were made only by hand, worked years in making them in that way. He and Charles Dyer put in order and set in operation one of the first taek-machines in the United States, and for ten or twelve years Mr. Gurney employed horses to give the power. After- wards a shop was ereeted on a stream affording a water privilege in Abington, and the manufacturing steadily advaneed in proportion. Mr. Gurney eom- bined farming with his taek-making, and by thrift and enterprise aequired wealth, and laid the founda- tion of one of the leading manufactories in Abington, proving himself worthy in many ways to be remem- bered as one of the most honest and valuable residents of his town. He married Anna Ellis. Their ehil- dren were Ruth (Mrs. Orange Wilkes), Mehitable (Mrs. S. D. Wilkes), Davis, David B., Mary (Mrs. James Corthell), Rosanda (Mrs. Thomas Drake). He was a man of strong religious eonvietions, a mem- ber for many years of the Baptist Church, in whiel he was mueh interested, and to whose progress he contributed liberally both of time and money.

DAVID BRAINARD GURNEY, son of David and Anna (Ellis) Gurney, was born in South Abington, Mass., Sept. 10, 1815. His education was confined to the limited opportunities afforded by the town schools, but these laid the foundation for a clear and accurate knowledge of praetieal business. He added strength to a naturally robust constitution by farm- work, until he was about eighteen, when he entered the taek-works, and carefully learned the details of the business, under the oversight of his father, and he has ever sinee been connected with taek manufactur- ing, and, when his father retired (about 1854), sue- eeeded him as proprietor. About this time an added impetus was given to the business, large buildings were ereeted, steam-power added to that of water, and tacks, shoc-nails, heel-plates, as well as lumber and shingles, were manufactured, affording labor to numer- ous workmen.

About 1875, Mr. Gurney removed his business from Centre to South Abington, where he ereeted commodious buildings, in accordance with the most modern improvements, intended in every way to facilitate the inereased development of this industry. Everything is arranged with system; neatness, order, and taste are everywhere shown, and all this Mr. Gurney has aecomplished by his personal industry, financial ability, and enterprise. He lias loved his field of labor, and he is still found attending to the many requirements of his extensive business, which has far outgrown the expectations, if not the ambition, of its founder, and is now one of the leading faetors of the life of the town.

Daniel @ Gmmag

AMhitman

515

HISTORY OF SOUTH ABINGTON.

Mr. Gurney married, Sept. 6, 1837, Cementha, daughter of Eli and Deborah (Harden) Blanchard, of East Bridgewater. Their children are Ann (Mrs. Charles Phillips), Myra (Mrs. L. B. Hatch), David A .. all now residents of this town.

Mr. Gurney is unassuming and unostentatious. He has strong convictions, and can give logical and cogent reasons for his belief. He has stood in the van of the temperance cause, with which he has been identified for many years, and favors, as the best means of ad- vancing that cause, the entire prohibition of the traffic in intoxicating drinks. He has been several times the candidate of the Prohibition party of Massachu- setts for Secretary of State, having such associates on the ticket as Wendell Phillips, Rev. Dr. Miner, etc. He was heartily in accord with them, and from devo- tion to principle would prefer to cast his vote with a small minority he believed to be right rather than with a majority voting wrong. He has a quick sense of injustice, and was a persistent enemy of slavery, and on the organization of the Republican party strongly supported its war policy and struggles for the perpetuity of the Union. He is one of the deacons of the Baptist Church of South Abington, of which he has been a consistent, liberal, and leading member for twenty years. In all matters of public improve- ment or private benevolence, Mr. Gurney has ever been among the first to respond, and he has well earned by a straightforward life of industry and in- tegrity, and his calm, cool, and clear judgment, the high place he occupies in the community; which justly classes him among its most valuable and valued citizens.

AUGUSTUS WHITMAN.

Augustus Whitman, son of Jared and Susanna Whitman, was born in South Abington, Mass., March 16, 1821. (For ancestral history, see biography of Jared Whitman in chapter of Bench and Bar.) His childhood and early youth passed happily. Active, impulsive, generous,-a thorough boy,-he was also reliable and faithful to every required duty. After a fair improvement of such advantages as could be had in the public and private schools of his native town, in his fifteenth year he entered that celebrated train- ing-school, Phillips' Exeter Academy, Exeter, N. H., then under the care of the venerable Dr. Abbott, where he remained a year and a half. As was shown by his letters home and the official reports, he was diligent and made highly commendable progress in his studies, especially selecting what would be of practical use in after-life. The next year he passed at

home. In his eighteenth year (1838) he entered the hardware-store of Peter Grinnell & Sons, Providence, R. I., to whose interests he devoted himself most faithfully and intelligently. His social life widened. In the Franklin Society he met a class of young men eager for improvement, the fire company found him an active member, and the artillery company, which he joined, was called out in the Dorr rebellion. The dangers he then shared in the cause of law and order may have intensified his sympathy in the struggle for the right and for the maintenance of the Union in the great civil war, and possibly the exposures of this part of his life may have laid the foundation of the infirmities of his later years. In 1848, a few years after leaving Providence, he became associated in the same business with Mr. Calvin Foster, of Worcester, where he remained for some years, making many val- ued friends. In 1856 he removed to Fitchburg, and entered into the manufacturing business, making a specialty of mowing-machine knives. The business increased so rapidly as to necessitate the establish- ment of a branch, which was done at Akron, Ohio. These various branches were formed finally into the Whitman & Barnes Manufacturing Company, of which he was the first president. He was also inter- ested in and took an active part in the management of the manufacturing enterprises in Fitchburg and vicinity. He was president of the Worcester North Savings Institution, of Fitchburg, for ten years, and its financial adviser until his death. In 1874, after a severe illness, Mr. Whitman purchased a place at Leominster, in which he took much interest and pleasure. This country life had a beneficial effect upon his health, and he took pride in making a model stock farm. He imported many valuable animals from Europe, and his herds of "short-horns" and other blooded cattle gave his farm a wide reputation. About 1878, Mr. Whitman retired from active busi- ness, removed to Worcester, and purchased the farm formerly occupied by his brother, Jared Whitman. Here he was indulging his taste in many improve- ments, and had planned to complete a beautiful estate on which to pass his days, when, Oct. 2, 1880, he was thrown from his carriage in his orchard, and was instantly killed.

Concerning Mr. Whitman's character and ability, the following extracts from memorials given by those who were intimately connected with him will speak better than any words of ours. He did a man's work well in the face of difficulties which would have ap- palled many.

From trustees of the Worcester North Savings Institution :

516

HISTORY OF PLYMOUTH COUNTY.

" Ax members of this corporation, of which Mr. Whitman with president for ten years and its financial adviser from its inception, in 1868, until his death, we have been witnesses to his earnest and efficient performance of the trusts reposed in him, to his patient attendance upon the meetings of trustees under great physical infirmity, to his uniform courtesy and kindness, und to the eminent public spirit that animated him in the discharge of his oflieial duty, and we hereby record our belief that all interested in the great trust in tho execution of which his example is a rich legacy have occasion for generous gratitude to his memory, as tho friend of this iustitution and a leading contributor to its suecess."

From the directors of the Rollstone National Bank of Fitchburg :

" Mr. Whitman was possessed of marked traits of character, which rendered his life more than an ordinary one. His ca- reer gives an example of what may be achieved by thorough uprightness of character, honesty of purpose, a just regard for the rights and happiness of others, and an indomitable will, which in his case triumphed over physical infirmities, such as a weaker nature would have succumbed to. He was kindly in disposition, and always courteous in his intercourse with his fellow-men. Though tenacious of his own opinions, he thor- oughly respected those of others. He was just and exaet in all his dealings, and required equal justice and exaetness in re- turn. He was outspoken in his views, and had a repugnance amounting almost to contempt for hypocrisy, insincerity, or double-dealing in any one. He was generous, and his contribu- tions to both publie and private enterprises were bestowed with a liberal hand. He took mueb interest in worthy young men struggling amid the vicissitudes of life, and many a one has cause to bless his memory for the material assistance and val- uable counsel he so freely bestowed. We recognize his long service as a director of this institution, and aceord full eredit for his share in a management which has brought so much of sueeess. Let us emulate his virtue and cherish his memory."

The directors of the Whitman & Barnes Manufac- turing Company, Syracuse, N. Y. :

"Bear our witness to the thorough integrity of character, earnestness of purpose, and kindly fellowship of our departed associate and friend. He was our senior in years and in busi- ness, and we hear testimony to his wise and able counsels in the formation of our company, and to his steadfast helpfulness and ready assistance always at our command in the management of our business."

Rev. H. L. Edwards, a former pastor of South Ab- ington Congregational Church, pays this tribute to his worth :

" I never was with him but to admire. He seemed so guile- less, so pure in his nature and character, so considerate for others, so self-forgetful, notwithstanding his eares, his pains, and his infirmities. I am sure I should have been stupid not to have seen all this, or seeing not to have admired. How a man so quiet and so undemonstrative could achieve so mueh was always to me a mystery. That he had rare ability and could be conseious of it, without being the least ostentatious, I do not doubt. And who that believes in a 'better country' can doubt that he is an inhabitant. If not he, then who ?"

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of Plymouth county, Massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 108

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Philadelphia, J.W. Lewis & co. Number of Pages: 1706

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton)
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, J.W. Lewis & co.
Number of Pages: 1706