History of the town of Shirley, Massachusetts, from its early settlement to A.D. 1882, Part 31

Author: Chandler, Seth
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Shirley, Mass. : The Author
Number of Pages: 836


USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Shirley > History of the town of Shirley, Massachusetts, from its early settlement to A.D. 1882 > Part 31


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He gave up preaching from sympathy with the socialistic movement of George Ripley and others at "Brook-farm,"


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HISTORY OF SHIRLEY.


where he continued for five years, and entered with heartiness into all the purposes and plans of that singular experiment. He in no wise regarded this movement in the light of a pleasing dream, full of promise, yet hard of realization, but he set it down as very practical, and conducted by practical, common-sense men and women. He taught Latin, Greek, German and music to one class, while he learned from others the severe physical industries of farming, chopping wood, cultivating trees, and indeed, each employment of the hands that is involved in the duties of a socialistic experiment like that enacted at Brook- farm. He has himself declared that "the prime idea was an organization of industry in such a way that the most refined and educated should show themselves practically on a level with those whose whole education had been hard labor." "The great point aimed at was to realize practical equality and mutual culture, and a common education for the children in a larger sense than prevails in ordinary society." Motives of inestimable worth ; and, had the plan succeeded, results would have fol- lowed that would have removed many social evils and advanced the moral interests of an intelligent community.


In 1848 Mr. Dwight returned to Boston, where he devoted himself for some years to the preparation of articles for various papers, as "The Harbinger," (a socialistic paper, first published at Brook-farm and afterwards at New York,) and "The Dial," published at Boston ; and also to public lecturing, especially in courses of lectures on music, and wrote many articles as a musical critic for different papers.


In 1852 he established "Dwight's Journal of Music," in Boston, which was for several years the only musical journal in the country, and is quite generally regarded, it is believed, as unsurpassed by any other.


He m. Feb. 11, 1851, Mary Bullard of Boston. She d. of typhoid fever, Sept. 6, 1860, leaving no issue.


2. MARY ANN, b. at Boston, April 4, 1816, r. Boston (1878), unm. 3. FRANCES ELLEN, b. at Boston, Dec. 13, 1819, r. Boston (1878), unm.


4. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, b. at Boston, Sept. 5, 1824, r. Boston (1878), an architect.


III. SALLY, b. Feb. 18, 1776, m. Joseph Brown of Shirley, Nov. 3, 1802, d. 1853.


IV. BETTY, b. March 1, 1778, m. Edmund Page of Shirley, Feb. I, 1806, d. at Nashua, N. H., Nov. 16, 1867.


V. FRANCIS, b. June 17, 1780, m. Maria Blanchard, Nov., 1805. He d. at Shirley, Sept. 28, 1816. His widow, Maria, d. Oct. 9, 1816. They had five children :


1. THOMAS, b. July 10, 1806, left home in early life, and never re- appeared to his friends. He is supposed to have d. in South America in 1837, unm.


2. SULLIVAN, b. May 25, 1807, lost at sea.


393


GENEALOGY .- DWIGHT.


3. JOHN, b. Jan. 22, 1810, m. Sally Hastings of West Medway, April 14, 1837. She was b. at Boston, Oct. 29, 1815. He had six children, and d. at Cambridge, Mass., Feb. 5, 1868.


(1.) Sarah Harris, b. at North Bridgewater, Sept. 30, 1838, m. William B. Davis of Acton, Mass., Dec. 7, 1865, r. Acton.


(2.) Annie Eliza, b. at Medway, Mass., July 22, 1840, m. Lewis S. Dupee of North Wrentham, July 22, 1865. Her husband d. April 10, 1870.


(3.) Mary Elizabeth, b. at South Plymouth, Mass., June 16, 1842, m. Jason E. Wilson of Medway, Aug. 20, 1865.


(4.) John Francis, b. at South Plymouth, Aug. 20, 1844, grad- uated from Harvard University, 1869, m. Nancy L. Woodruff of Rahway, r. Rahway. He is principal of a literary institu- tion in that place (1876).


(5.) Celia Adelaide, b. at Medway, Sept. 9, 1846, m. Joseph Barker Thomas of Weymouth, Mass., Dec. 24, 1870.


(6.) Allen Seabury, b. at Medway, Oct. 7, 1848, resides with his mother, Newton, Mass., unm. (1876.)


4. ELIZABETH, b. May 23, 1813, has been twice m., (first) to Moses Jenkins, April 7, 1830. She had three children (see Jennerson record), m. (second) Jacob Puffer of Concord, N. H., 1852. She d. at Concord, Jan. 26, 1865, and was interred in the old cemetery at Shirley. She left two children, the fruit of her second marriage :


(I.) Albert A., b. at Concord, N. H., June 16, 1853.


(2.) Betsey A., b. at Concord, March 20, 1856.


5. FRANCIS, b. July 20, 1815, d. at Acton, May 27, 1850, unm.


VI. PRISCILLA, b. May 31, 1782, m. Sherebiah Cowdry of Ashby, Mass., Jan. 2, 1810. She had six children, and d. Jan., 1868.


1. JOHN, b. at Ashby, Sept. 29, 1810, m. Amanda Goddard of Royalton, Vt., May 25, 1835, r. Westmoreland, N. H. (1873.) He has had two children :


(1.) Henry Francis, b. Nov. 12, 1837, m. Lois Aldrich Knight, May 8, 1860, r. Westmoreland (1873), has one child : I. "Fred Henry," b. Oct. 24, 1869.


(2.) Mary Ann, b. Sept. 10, 1842, m. Joseph Henry Brown of Cambridge, Mass., June 6, 1865, r. Cambridgeport (1873). She has had one child : I. "Major John," b. June II and d. June 13, 1871.


2. PHILENIA, b. April 16, 1813, r. Westmoreland (1873), unm.


3. SHEREBIAH, b. Dec. 28, 1815, d. July 7, 1816.


4. ALBERT, b. Feb. 24, 1818, m. Caroline Holt of Weston, Vt., where he d. April 24, 1846. His widow removed to Boston, and d. April 13, 1857.


5. GEORGE WASHINGTON, b. July 3, 1821, .m. (first) Fanny Sabine of Westmoreland, Oct. 6, 1845. She d. March 1, 1862. He 50


**


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HISTORY OF SHIRLEY.


m. (second) Selina Putnam of Springfield, Vt., Sept. 4, 1862, r. Walpole, N. H. (1873.) He has had two children :


(I.) George, b. June 19, 1846, d. July 4, 1847.


2 Charles, b. March 22, 1849, d. June 29, 1849.


6. JAMES MONROE, b. Dec. 31, 1825, m. Almina Elizabeth Bemis of Chesterfield, N. H., Sept. 26, 1854, r. Westmoreland. He


has had five children :


(I.) Stella Almina, b. Jan. 15, 1856, m. Thomas B. Bemis, Nov. 9, 1872.


(2.) James Washington, b. July 3, 1857.


(3.) Dwight Bemis, b. Aug. 3, 1860, d. Feb. 11, 1861.


(4.) Fannie Priscilla, b. March 9, 1862.


(5.) George Daniel Sherebiah, b. July 29, 1864.


VII. PAMELIA, b. April 22, 1783, m. David Parker of Shirley, Jan. 1, 1805, d. Dec. 6, 1861.


VIII. SULLIVAN, b. March 25, 1785. In 1810 he left Shirley and became an inhabitant of Thomaston, Me., m. Betsey Marsh of Bath, pub. Aug. 18, 1820. He was a marble worker and manu- facturer of cemetery monuments, hearth trimmings, etc. He was also a militia officer of some note, made Thomaston his life home, and d. June 12, 1853. Had four children :


1. CAROLINE T. H., b. at Thomaston, Dec. 5, 1821, m. Edward C. Selden of Norridgewock, Me., Aug. 13, 1848, had one child. and d. June 12, 1854.


(1.) Edward D., b. Sept. 22, 1851.


2. HENRIETTA L. M., b. March, 1823, d. March 31, 1843.


3. FRANCIS S., b. March 21, 1825, d. June 2, 1842.


4. HELEN M., b. Aug. 6, 1830, d. Feb. 21, 1845.


EDGARTON.


It is a matter of sincere regret to the compiler of this history, that he has not been able to trace each family register from its original in this country down to its original in this town, and thence through its genealogy to the present time; but the sources of information required for this have not always been at hand ; when they have been accessible, however, he has availed himself of the opportunity to give his record its intended fulness. Especially, when families of prominence have appeared, a competence to give this completeness to the registry is particularly desirable, but not always attainable.


When the ancestral immigrant of the Edgarton family came to this country, or where he settled, has not been ascertained. The first notice of the name that has come to us is from the records of East Bridgewater. In the early part of the last century, Dennis Edgarton, -or Egerton, as the orthography of the name was then understood,- and his wife, Experience,-resided in the town above named, and


395


GENEALOGY .- EDGARTON.


had a family of eight children, viz .: Hannah, John, Rebecca, Expe- rience, James, Hezekiah, Miriam, Dennis. The father died before April 18, 1734, when all of his children were baptized.


John Edgarton, the son of Dennis, was born in 1721, m. Abigail, daughter of James and Ruth [Shaw] Snow of East Bridgewater, Nov. 27, 1746. They had nine children, viz .: Ruth, John, James, William, Joseph, William, Abigail, Benjamin, Hannah.


Three of the brothers from this family came to Shirley in early manhood, to find homes with our ancestors, to select farms from their virgin soil, and take wives from their well peopled households. For each of these wants they here found a supply. One of them made the town his home for life, while the other two, after a period of years, sought residences in other localities. The first in age was


Edgarton, John, b. at East Bridgewater, Dec. 26, 1750, became a resident of Shirley about the time he came to the years of his majority, and remained an active and useful citizen unto the close of his life. He was proprietor of the farm now owned by William P. Wilbur, and erected the house-the first building of brick ever set up within the limits of the town-that now belongeth to the farm. He was a volunteer to Cambridge on the alarm of the 19th of April, 1775. Mr. Edgarton was honored with the official position of justice of the peace ; and the title E-s-q. was not a mere compli- mentary adjunct to his name, as he discharged the various business requirements that devolved upon his grade of the civil magistracy. He was twice appointed to represent his town in the state legislature ; for twenty-one years he held the office of selectman of the town ; his services were also sought on committees and in other places of trust, and his public worth evinced by the confidence with which he was regarded by his fellow townsmen.


He married Abigail Parker of Groton, Jan. 21, 1773, and d. at Shirley, Nov. 11, 1828. His widow d. July 25, 1840. He had seven children :


I. LEONARD, b. Sept. 23, 1773, was twice m., (first) to Betsey Parker of Shirley, July 12, 1798 ; m. (second) Nancy Cleverly of Lancaster, 1808; d. June, 1855. Had seven children, viz. : Jarvis, Eliza, Parker, Abba, John, George, Caroline. Jarvis m. and had four children, viz. : Festus Allen, Jay, Sarah Maria, and Sue. Festus A., son of Jarvis, and grandson of Leonard, lives in Wis- consin ; has five children, viz. : Parker, Frank, Charlie, Adrietta, and Ada. Parker and Adrietta are m., and each has one child. Sarah Maria, daughter of Jarvis, and granddaughter of Leonard, m. - Wells, d. childless ; her sister, Sue, m. - Brown, has an adopted child. Parker, son of Leonard, settled on Staten Island, and d. there, childless.


II. JOHN, JR., b. April 1, 1775. In early manhood he settled at Madison, N. Y., which became his permanent home, m. Mercy Lewis of Madison, d. April 4, 1844. Had ten children, viz. : J. Jackson, Caroline, Betsey, Abba, Cordelia, Harrison, Marietta, Lucitta, Angenette, and Joseph. Of the above-named children


396


HISTORY OF SHIRLEY.


of John, Jackson m., d., and left two daughters, viz. : Sophia and Cornelia. Sophia lives in Wisconsin, and m. Dr. Russell, has one child. Cornelia lives at San Francisco, has three children. Abba, the third daughter of John, m. - Sanborn, lives in Madison, has six children, viz. : John, lives in Illinois ; George ; Josephine, m. Joslin ; Alia, lives in Michigan ; Libbie, m.


Forward, lives at Madison ; Abbie, m. Wright, lives at Madison. Caroline, the eldest daughter of John, m. - - Story, lives at Buffalo, has three children, viz. : George, Bushnell, and Majoria ; Majoria m. Crosby. Angenette, the youngest


daughter of John, m. Willis, and had two children, viz. :


Herbert and Eddie. Joseph, the youngest of the children of John, left one daughter in Wisconsin, viz. : Mary Lucitta.


III. JOSEPH, b. Nov. 8, 1777, was twice m., (first) to Miranda Parker of Harvard, pub. June 28, 1802; she d. Jan. 8, 1808 ; m. (second) Mehitable Whitcomb, Dec. 23, 1810 ; she d. Sept. 28, 1862 ; he d. Oct. 6, 1845.


It has been intimated in these pages that Mr. Joseph Edgarton was chief actor in the early manufactures of the town, and to his enterprise and skill much of the original effort in this department is owing. In other respects he was not noted for public demon- strations. Unlike his honored father, he withdrew from all public official appointments and devoted his energies and labors to private pursuits. These, however, in a large measure, interested the public good, by opening avenues of employment to single laborers of both sexes. But Mr. Edgarton, according to the testimony of his family, shone in the clearest light amid the scenes of his own household. He was pleasant and affectionate in his daily inter- course with his wife and children, made them happy in his society, and sought to guide them in ways of honor and integrity. In life he was the object of their warmest love and. reverence, and his death was to them a source of sincere bereavement. He had fifteen children, all b. at Shirley :


1. JOSEPH B., b. Dec. 28, 1803, m. Susan Hobby, Feb. 8, 1836, had one child, and d. at Waterloo, Canada, 1876.


(1.) Mary, who m. G. W. Allen of Waterloo, and had one child : I. "Henry." .


2. STILLMAN, b. May 25, 1805, d. May 25, 1805.


3. ROWLAND P., b. May 9, 1806, m. Louiza Hobby, Aug. 8, 1833, r. Oskosh, Wis., and has four children.


4. CHARLES A., b. Dec. 30, 1807, d. March 25, 1808.


5. MIRANDA, b. Oct. 25, 1811, m. Jonas H. Priest, Jan. 23, 1844, had one child, and d. at Waltham, Feb. 15, 1846.


(1.) Herman, b. at Waltham, Oct. 20, 1844, r. Waltham, m.


6. MARY, b. Feb. 21, 1813, r. Shirley, unm. (1882.)


7. SARAH, b. Dec. 1, 1814, d. July 14, 1818, at Shirley.


397


GENEALOGY .- EDGARTON.


8. WILLIAM WHITCOMB, b. Oct. 28, 1816, m. Elizabeth Fowle of Shirley, Nov. 25, 1841, had two children, and d. Feb. 9, 1880. Elizabeth [Fowle] Edgarton, d. at Shirley, May 8, 1857.


(1.) Elizabeth, b. at Shirley, Sept. 11, 1842, d. at Shirley, Feb. 27, 1845.


(2.) William B., b. at Shirley, Feb. 2, 1847, m. Lucy Foster of Waterloo, Canada, r. Canada.


9. SARAH CARLTON, b. March 17, 1819, m. Rev. A. Dwight Mayo, July 28, 1846, d. at Gloucester, July 9, 1848. She had one child :


(1.) Caroline, b. at Gloucester, Sept. 23, 1847, d. May 11, 1852. Both mother and daughter were interred in Shirley.


Mrs. Mayo was a lady of high mental, moral and religious attainments. She moved in a sphere of usefulness, and so culti- vated her intuitions that she had few retractions to make on account of mistakes, and was so guarded in her movements that few corrections of either head or heart were required. She was born in a beautiful country village, where nature and art com- bined to dispense the useful and the beautiful, and where agri- cultural and manufacturing interests were so blended as to give encouragement to each occupation and animation to every laudable enterprise. Amid scenes like these the most of her life was passed, and her poetic imagination early caught the inspiration of her position. With apparent ease and facility she conveyed her rich thoughts to the printed page, and her pro- ductions appeared well calculated to gratify the different tastes of readers, from the witty to the grave, giving a wholesome and instructive portion to all in due season. Long will the fruits of her musings remain to identify the place and surrounding scenes of her much-loved home, on the banks of the gentle Catacu- nemaug.


She was for several years the literary conductor of a monthly magazine, called "The Ladies' Repository," and assisted to raise it from an inferior position to a medium standard with the monthlies of that day. She also had the editorship of an annual religious souvenir which bore the title of "Rose of Sharon," through nine consecutive volumes. In addition to the large attention required to conduct these periodicals, she proved her excellence as a writer of juvenile literature in preparing several books for Sunday-school libraries. In these books she labored to mingle the useful with the entertaining in such manner as to engage the attention, instruct the mind, and enlarge the moral perceptions of the youthful reader.


There have been few persons more universally respected when living, and more sincerely mourned when dead, than this gifted woman. A volume, containing memoirs and correspondence, has been prepared and published by her bereaved husband, which has been extensively circulated. The few lines which


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HISTORY OF SHIRLEY.


follow were written by her in remembrance of a friend, but are equally applicable to herself :


" Why should I weep for thee ? I have not wept ! For though fond hearts and holy ties were riven, I could not mourn that thy tired body slept, And that thy spirit had gone home to heaven! * *


* *


When all was beautiful in earth and sky, And thou, grown weary with thy pain and dread, Felt how serene and blest it were to lie In 'the cool, flower-wreathed chambers of the dead,'- Then God, thy Father, heard thy murmured prayer; Home to his arms he took his weary child, No more to strive with sin, or pain, or care, A spirit glorified and undefiled !"


10. HENRY, b. Dec. 29, 1820, m. Cynthia Ann Longley of Shirley, July 23, 1844. He has had eight children ; r. Shirley (1882).


(1.) Henry L., b. March 8, 1847, m. Eva Burnham, r. Williman- tic, Conn., has one son : I. "Johnnie."


(2.) John B., b. April 18, 1849, d. Feb. 1, 1852.


(3.) Clarabel, b. Dec. 7, 1851, d. Feb. 4, 1852.


(4.) George Munson, b. Oct. 17, 1857, r. Shirley.


(5.) Carrie, b. Dec. 26, 1859, r. Shirley.


(6.) Mamie, b. Jan. 27, 1861, r. Shirley.


(7.) Annie, b. Sept. I. 1864, d. Aug. 1, 1865.


(8.) Joseph Rodman, b. March 16, 1868, d. Jan. 12, 1876.


11. JOHN MARSHALL, b. Jan. 24, 1823, d. at Shirley, Oct., 1847. [See College Graduates.]


12. HELEN MARIA, b. April 2, 1825, d. July 12, 1825.


13. CHARLES AUSTIN, b. Oct. 13, 1826, m. Jane A. Longley of Shirley, June 17, 1852. He has had three children : .


I.) Charles Frederick, b. at Shirley, Jan. 14, 1854, r. Shirley.


2.) Hittie Whitcomb, b. at Shirley, May 27, 1860, r. Shirley.


(3. Sadie Miranda, b. at Shirley, April 25, 1863, r. Shirley.


14. EDWARD EVERETT, b. Feb. 8, 1829, m. Emily Bennett, Dec. . 24, 1857. Has had two children :


(I.) Lizzie Estelle, b. Jan. 3, 1860.


(2.) Clara Gertrude, b. at Shirley, Jan. 24, 1865, d. July 22, 1871.


15. FREDERICK ADOLPHUS, b. May 5, 1831, m. Caroline Taylor of Shirley, April 4, 1860, r. Clinton.


IV. WILLIAM, b. Dec. 27, 1780, m. Allaseba Bennett of Lunen- burg, 1804, had eleven children, and d. at Madison, N. Y., 1864.


1. SALLY, b. Nov. 24, 1804, m. Ambrose Phelps, Jan. 6, 1831, r. Madison (1869).


2. BENJAMIN, b. Nov. 24, 1806, d. of cholera at New Orleans, June 7, 1833.


399


GENEALOGY .- EGERTON.


3. JAMES S., b. Feb. 1, 1808. Has been twice m., (first) to Clarissa Littlejohn, Jan. 28, 1835 ; she d. Aug. 8, 1837; m. (second) Sophia Berry, March 15, 1838 ; r. Wisconsin ; had four children.


4. ALLASEBA M., b. Feb. 17, 1810, m. John B. Mowry, Jan. 11, 1832, d. July 2, 1835.


5. WILLIAM E., b. Oct. 27, 1812, d. July 22, 1818.


6. ARABELLA, b. Oct. 18, 1814, m. George H. Simmons, Jan. 8, 1842, r. Oswego county, N. Y. (1858.)


7. DORINDA, b. Jan. 20, 1817, d. Feb. 10, 1817.


8. DORINDA M., b. May 7, 1818, m. R. J. Baker, Oct. 14, 1844, r. Wisconsin (1858).


9. MIRANDA P., b. May 22, 1820, has been twice m., (first) to L. Washburn, Aug. 10, 1843 ; he d. Oct. 20, 1844; m. (second) D. W. Martin, April 23, 1850, r. Wisconsin (1858).


10. SYLVIA M., b. May 10, 1822, m. Hiram Wright, May 29, 1850 ; he d. at Kansas, in the army ; she r. in Kansas (1858).


11. WILLIAM W., b. July 23, 1825, m. Mary W. Howard, r. Madi- son (1858).


V. ABIGAIL, b. July 15, 1784, m. Thaddeus Baily of Townsend, had four children : Joseph, Miranda, Abby, Mary.


VI. SALLY, b. Jan. 2, 1788, m. Levi Wilds of Shirley, July 6, 1806. VII. SYLVIA, b. Feb. 28, 1794, m. John Davis of Shirley, May 4, 1820, removed to Charlton, where Mr. Davis was a law practitioner for many years. She eventually removed to Chicago, r. there in 1876 ; became a widow in 1840, and has five children, viz. : Cath- arine, Edgarton, Martha, Charles, Julius.


Egerton,* Dames,3 (son of John2 and grandson of Dennis Egerton,1 of East Bridgewater,) was born March 1, 1753. He was the second in age of the three brothers, (John, James and Benjamin,) who came in a body to cast their lot among the early settlers of Shirley.


*The descendants of James Egerton have adhered to the original orthog- raphy of the name-Egerton-as it appears in the Bridgewater records; for which reason that method of spelling has been adopted for this branch of the family in this genealogy. The Egerton family is unquestionably of English origin, though no attempt has been made, so far as the author of this history is informed, to trace a connection with its English ancestry,-which probably might easily be done by further research. The name of Egerton is an honored one in English history. Thomas Egerton, Viscount Brackley, who died in 1617, was Lord High Chancellor under the reign of King James. His son, John Egerton, was created Earl of Bridgewater. Sir John Egerton was knighted in 1599- died 1614. His son, Rowland, was created Baronet in 1617-died 1646. In the same line was Sir Thomas Egerton, who succeeded as Baronet 1756, and was created Baron Grey de Wilton in 1784. Samuel Egerton, Esq., of Totten Park, in Cheshire, was for many years Member of Parliament, and from him Sir Samuel Egerton Brydges, an English author and bibliographer, received his baptismal name.


400


HISTORY OF SHIRLEY.


. He married, February 27, 1783, Bathsheba Walker, born Feb. 25, 1 757, daughter of Capt. Samuel and Mary (Stratton) Walker of Shirley, and removed to Langdon, N. H., (then Charlestown No. 4,) where he established a permanent home. Building in a wilderness, he was subjected to the hardships and privations incident to pioneer life. He early took the lead in a movement calling for a division of the town, or "otherwise to place the meeting-house in a more central location ;" which movement resulted in the incorporation of the town of Langdon. Mr. Egerton was an efficient worker in the interests of the new town, was one of the board of selectmen at the organiza- tion of the town government, and was repeatedly chosen to places of honor and trust by his fellow-townsmen. He also held a commis- sion as justice of the peace, and in early life took part in the contest which secured the independence of the American colonies. He was a man of noble physical presence, of strong sense, dignified in deportment but kind and genial in heart, and was greatly beloved and respected by all. He died October 15, 1813. His widow, Bathsheba, died March 9, 1849, at the age of 92 years. They had seven children, all born in Langdon, viz :


I. JAMES, b. June 27, 1784, died unm. Oct. 13, 1812, at Williams- port, Pa., where he was engaged in teaching.


II. BATHSHEBA, born April 19, 1786, married (first) Benjamin Stearns of Langdon. He was a son of Josiah and Anna (Putnam) Stearns, and was born in Lunenburg, Mass., Feb. 27, 1780. He was a farmer, and added to that the business of blacksmithing. He was an accomplished military officer, and held successively commissions as major, lieutenant-colonel and colonel, in the New Hampshire militia. He was chosen to the office of selectman in 1815, '16 and '17. He died June 11, 1817. Children :


1. JOHN WALKER, born Sept. 12, 1806, mar. July 12, 1837, Betsey Maria Eaton, born January 12, 1812, daughter of Obadiah and Abigail (Woodbury) Eaton of Montpelier, Vt. Mr. Stearns was a merchant at Keeseville and Peru, N. Y. ; but in 1857 removed to Chicago, Ill., where he became extensively engaged in mer- cantile business, and where he now resides, (1882.) They have had six children, five of whom were born in Keeseville and one in Peru :


(1.) James Egerton, born June 15, 1838, mar. May 21, 1868, Annette Freeman, of Chicago. He died April 5, 1873, leaving one daughter : I. " Maria Annette," born June 19, 1871.


(2.) Frances Maria, born June 24, 1840.


(3.) Harriet Eaton, born May 17, 1842, married Aug. 12, 1873, John Camp Whitmarsh, born Oct. 27, 1830, son of David and Phebe (Camp) Whitmarsh of Bristol, N. Y. Mr. Whitmarsh resides in Chicago, and follows the business of a grain broker.


(4.) Jane Abigail, born August 29, 1844.


(5.) John Walker, born June 19, 1846.


(6.) Woodbury Eaton, born March 2, 1851.


401


GENEALOGY .- EGERTON.


2. WILLARD EGERTON, born May 29, 1808. He removed in early life to Detroit, Mich., where he carried on a successful business in dairy farming and stock-raising ; and was for a time a member of the board of aldermen of that city. In 1880 he removed to Danvers, Mass., where he now resides, (1882) unm.


3. ABIGAIL SNOW, b. March 16, 1810, mar. April 5, 1832, Luke Putnam, b. May 2, 1802, son of Samuel and Ruth (Spencer) Putnam, of Charlestown, N. H. Mr. Putnam is a farmer, and resides in Danvers. Children :


(t.) John Wells, born June 2, 1833, died June 22, 1833.


(2.) Ann Maria, born July 5, 1834, at Acworth, N. H.


4. NANCY MARIA, born April 18, 1815, mar. Dec. 26, 1839, William Moore Morrison, born June 18, 1812, son of David and Hannah (Moore) Morrison of Langdon, N. H. He was for many years engaged in the restaurant business in Boston, but in 1873 re- moved to Danvers, where they now reside. (1882.)




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