USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Sutton > History of the town of Sutton, Massachusetts, from 1876 to 1950, Volume II > Part 40
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Mr. Stockwell sold to Henry M. Lyon of North Grafton in April 1892, who bought it for a home, having retired as superintendent of Grafton Almshouse, where he had served for a great number of years. Mr. and Mrs. Lyon had a married son, Edgar, who lived in Providence. They brought up a boy, Frank Odlum, from early boyhood, who married and now lives in Connecticut. They also took summer and regular boarders; among these was Mrs. Clara Dodge Lawton of this town, who lived here a number of years. She died here in 1899 at an advanced age and was buried in the Dodge Cemetery. She will be remem- bered as a kind and thoughtful old lady, always ready to help in any undertak- ing. Mr. Lyon cleared and drained much of the land, thereby increasing the value of the farm. His wife, Mary (Hall), died here in 1907 and was buried in Central Cemetery, Millbury. After a year or two with hired housekeepers, he leased the place to J. H. Hartness for his hired help, and went to Providence to live with his son. He died there and was buried in Millbury. His son inherited the property and sold to Alvan H. Corey of Meriden, Conn., in 1909. Mr. and Mrs. Corey had no children but had adopted a daughter Bessie, who married and lived in Meriden, Conn. They lived here but a few years when they moved to Worcester, selling the property to George A. Drew.
Mr. Drew sold to Drew Orchards Inc. in 1914. The house was occupied by their manager, William A. Greene, and his wife. Two of their children, Barbara and William Allan Jr., were born here. While Mr. Greene was manager, several adjoining farms and portions of others were bought by Drew Orchards Inc. and set to apple and peach trees to the number of thousands. A large acreage of raspberries and strawberries were also set. On the death of a member of the corporation, the property, exclusive of the Greene house, was sold to D. S. and William H. Fiske of Grafton and Providence.
Mr. Greene's house and one lot was sold, in 1922, to Harry Cowburn of Whitinsville, a World War I veteran. Mr. Cowburn's mother, Mrs. Margaret Jane Cowburn lived here for a number of years, leaving to make her home in Whitinsville. Mr. and Mrs. Cowburn's daughter Margaret was born here and attended the Sutton Schools.
After the Cowburns moved away in 1943, Mr. and Mrs. John Steele were the owners for a year or two, selling to Mr. and Mrs. Herbert H. Webber.
In May 1946 Mr. George F. Lamson and his wife Margaret purchased the property and came here to live with their four children. Mr. Lamson died, in 1949. A daughter, Sarah, who is an artist, and a son, Edwin T., a bio-chemist at Worcester State Hospital, live here with their mother. Edwin T. Lamson is a veteran of World War II. A married daughter resides in Washington, D. C., the other daughter in Pittsfield, Mass. The Lamsons appreciate the charm of the old dwelling and have preserved and brought out the attractive features of the house which probably dates back to the early 1780's.
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Leaving Hartness corner on the Hartness road, the first house, owned and occupied by Rollin Mansfield, was sold by Charles H. Searles to Josiah Norcross Sr., in 1878. He with a grown daughter lived here but a short time, when he died, and the daughter left town. The property was then sold to Horace Allen Sr. whose family consisted of his wife, two sons, Horace Jr. and Henry, and a daughter. The son Henry and the daughter married and left Sutton. After the father's death, Horace Jr. and his mother lived here a long time, the son working in the Whitinsville Machine Shop. After the mother's death, Horace Jr. lived alone a number of years. He married late in life. After his death, his widow married Mr. Burlingame of Worcester, and in a few months sold to Mrs. Corey and moved to Grafton.
Mr. and Mrs. Corey lived here about four years, when they sold to Charles A. Putnam and moved to Worcester. Mr. and Mrs. Putnam had three small chil- dren, David, Mary and Dorothy. Mr. Putnam was a night watchman in Lund's mill at Fisherville. They sold to Joseph Shambo and moved to the John Cronin place in Marble Village.
Joseph Shambo did not live here, but sold to Milo Kincaid in 1926. Mr. Kincaid was a carpenter and lived here but a short time. He sold to Justin Pelli- can and his wife, in 1930. Mr. Pellican was an excellent auto mechanic and worked in Flint, Michigan. He sold to Mr. and Mrs. Rollin Mansfield in 1936, and moved to Flint, Michigan.
Mr. Mansfield is a registered druggist and came from Whitinsville. Mrs. Mansfield is a trained nurse. They bought the property for a home. Mrs. Mans- field's mother, Mrs. Trask, made her home here until her death, in 1941. Mr. Mansfield has served as Selectman and was Sutton's Chairman of Civil Defense in World War II. He has been Chief of Police for many years. Mr. and Mrs. Mansfield are much interested in horticulture.
The place now occupied and owned by Miss Mary I. Bishop and her two sisters was bought by their father, Charles E. Bishop of Newton, in the spring of 1901 from James Thurber, who moved to Providence. After living here a few years, Mr. Bishop was married for the second time and went to live in Grafton; the daughters remained on the farm. They all were successful school teachers. Miss Myrtie and Miss Elizabeth taught for many years at the Leland Hill and Wilkinsonville schools, Miss Mary assuming the cares of the home. Miss Myrtie died in 1942. The house has recently been wired for electricity, thus completing its equipment with all modern improvements.
One has only to pass the house to know that the sisters are much interested in horticulture. They engage in this both for commercial and also for exhibition purposes. For a great number of years they have been one of the largest and most successful exhibitors at the Worcester County Horticultural Society exhibits. A large portion of this farm is cultivated as a vineyard.
On Hartness Road, the second place from the Northbridge line, is the prop- erty belonging to Kenneth Merrill. In 1948, Mr. Merrill bought twenty-three acres from James O. Dudley, and by his own efforts, cleared a part of the area and started his house where he has lived since 1950. The land was formerly owned by Francis Dudley.
Mr. Merrill is a graduate of Sutton High School, has taken a course, specializ- ing in Diesel Engines, and he is a Veteran of World War II, having served in
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England in the Air Force. He was employed by the Mass. Division of Fisheries and Game for a time and is now with Wyman Gordon Co. of Worcester. Opposite the Merrill house is the Camp of Stuart LeRoy of Worcester.
The small farm beyond, and separated from the Bishop property by only a narrow lane, was owned and occupied by Simeon Gates, in 1866. He sold to Darling Brown, who lived there a long time. Mr. Brown had two sons and three daughters, who were born here and attended the local schools. He sold to Eugene Washburn, in 1902, and went to Rhode Island to live. Mr. Washburn stayed but a very short time and sold to Daniel S. Coombs, who lived here until his death, in 1946. Mr. and Mrs. Coombs had a family of eight children, five of whom were born here. Mr. Coombs conducted a small variety farm. Two daughters, Mildred and Ruth, work in Worcester. Other children living here are Emerson, Maria, Minnie and Orrie. Situated a short distance from the barn is the town boundary-line stone of three towns, Sutton, Northbridge and Grafton. Standing then by the boundry stone one may be in three town at the same time.
Returning to Hartness Corner and then to the Leland Hill Road, the first house, now owned by Daniel S. Fiske Sr., was the property of Robert McFarland. He came in the fall of 1876 and bought from Capt. Fosdick. Mr. McFarland had a family of six children, none of whom was born here. He improved the farm and conducted a retail milk business for many years. After the death of his wife, Anabel (Curry), who died Nov. 1, 1906, he lived here with his oldest daughter, Bella J., and his son, Robert S., until his death, April 6, 1907. After their father's death, they bought a place in Fisherville, where Robert still lives; he never married. Bella J. died there on Feb. 13, 1933 at the age of 71.
James, the oldest son, married Jennie Sherbert in Grafton, Nov. 26, 1885, and had one son, Chester, now living in California. James died in California. Dec. 9, 1934. Mary A., born Oct. 6, 1864, was married to Tyler Stockwell, Jan. 16, 1895, and lived at the Tyler Stockwell farm where their two children were born, William T. and Elizabeth. Elizabeth, daughter of Robert, born June 3, 1866, was graduated from the Worcester State Normal School and became a successful teacher. She died suddenly from typhoid in Sutton, Jan. 7, 1891. William C., son of Robert, born Aug. 23, 1870, married Louise White of Millbury. He died there in April 1925, leaving one daughter Hope, who lives in Millbury with her mother.
The farm was sold by the McFarland heirs to Bartholomew McSheehy. He moved from Mckeesport, Penna., because of ill health, and conducted a small poultry business here for a few years. Mr. and Mrs. McSheehy had two sons, Morgan and Melvin, and a daughter, Bernice, none of whom was born in Sutton. After selling to Drew Orchards Inc. they moved to Nutley, N. J. The present owner, Daniel S. Fiske, bought from Drew Orchards Inc. The house then had no permanent occupant except a Mr. Thorne, keeper of the bees for the orchard, who lived there several summers. The house was destroyed by fire in the early 1940's.
Going west on Leland Hill Road, on the left after passing Hartness Road, is a temporary home put up by Ernest Fontaine in 1947. He lives there with his wife and children, Paul, born in 1943, Gloria, 1946 and Sandra, 1947. The twins, Teresa and Mary, born in 1939 and Albertha, 1940, are children of Mrs. Fontaine by a former marriage.
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The next place on the left on Leland Hill Road, originally a part of the McFarland farm, was owned and occupied by a Mrs. Kennedy, who had been married twice, the husband's name in each case being Kennedy. By the first husband there was a daughter, Lizzie; by the second, two sons, Michael and Cornelius. The daughter was married to Ernest Carney of Grafton and went to that town to live. The son Michael was killed on a freight train in Worcester; Cornelius lived here with his mother until her death about 1913. Cornelius then rented the property and worked and lived with various farmers in the vicinity. Later, he married and went to live in Worcester where he was employed. He had charge of the nickle-plating in the Winslow Skate factory. He died in the city a few years ago. Samuel Demars was the next owner, who sold to Edward Mar- ando and he to Peter Larocque, who lived here about fifteen years. Larocque's family consisted of five children, two daughters and three sons, three of whom were born here. He was foreman of the outdoor help for Fiske Orchards until 1937, but moved to Wilkinsonville, his present home.
The Philip Wares then became owners and lived here for a few years until the house burned. They sold to Stanley Pierson who began the construction of a new house. Mr. and Mrs. Oscar Godding purchased the property in 1948 and completed and occupied the house. Their children are Arthur, born in 1928, Vicky, 1945, and Barbara, 1949. Mr. Godding is employed at the Whitin Machine works.
Adjoining the Godding home is the former site of the Leland Hill School. Warren H. Warburton bought the property in June 1948 and remodeled the old schoolbuilding, which was built in 1874, into a house. Mr. and Mrs. War- burton live here with their children, Warren, born 1945, and Wayne, born 1947. Mr. Warburton is employed in Worcester as a patternmaker.
The small farm, next on Leland Hill Road, formerly owned and occupied by Theodore Larocque and his wife, was bought by him from John Deorsy about 1903, who had purchased it from the Joel Knapp heirs. Mr. and Mrs. Deorsy had four children: two sons, Leon and Alexander, and two daughters. They also brought up a niece and a nephew. The nephew, Joseph Demers, married and lived in Saundersville; the niece was married and left Sutton. After selling to Theodore Larocque, they moved to Wilkinsonville. Joel Knapp had built two single-tenement houses, in one of which Mr. Larocque lived, having taken down the original Knapp house. Some years later, his house burned to the ground from the explosion of an oil heater and he moved to the other building, which he had previously rented. His wife died in 1939. They had no children.
Larocque sold to Aime Arrell, in 1947. Mr. and Mrs. Arrell are building a new house, near the old one, in which they are living with their son, John Arthur, born in 1948. Mr. Arrell is a veteran of World War II.
The farm beyond Arrell's, at the bend of the road, belonged in 1876 to Erastus Slocomb. He had lived here many years, inheriting the property from his ancestors who settled here in 1778.
The Slocomb heirs sold to Clayton Keith, who lived here a long time, con- ducting a dairy farm and retailing his products in Worcester. Four children, Fred, Ernest, Gertrude and Ralph were born here. Dora Jordan, an aunt of Mrs. Keith, lived with the family. The Keith family moved to Westboro.
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John Bennett then came into possession. Mr. and Mrs. Bennett lived here a number of years with John Adams, a boy whom they brought up. Mr. Bennett carried on a small variety farm and did some carpentering. After selling to Henry Normandin, they moved to Marble Village and later bought a place in Upton, which John still owns, where Mr. and Mrs. Bennett died. Mr. and Mrs. Normandin had one daughter, who was married to Sigfrid Eckstrom of Sutton. They made their home in Shrewsbury. Mr. Normandin in his younger days was a weaver. The original barn and shed on the property were taken down.
Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Swart bought the farm from the Normandins and lived here for about two years, then selling to Mr. and Mrs. George Armenia in 1947. Mr. Armenia is employed at the Whitin Machine Works. Their chil- dren are George, born in 1948, Charlene, 1949, and Paul, 1951.
It was reported that Erastus Slocomb bought his farm with the proceeds from the hunting and trapping of wild game, turkeys, partridges and wild pigeons. He sent them to the Boston market.
To trap the wild pigeons, food was scattered over a small area to attract the birds, while nearby, a net, forty feet to fifty feet long, was spread on the ground to which were attached walnut saplings, that were bent over to make springs, and placed in such a way that when released, the net was thrown over the feeding- ground.
Meanwhile, someone concealed in a "bough house" pulled a string at the proper time, releasing the saplings and springing the net over the feeding area. The net then was quickly pegged down and the trapped birds, as they flew up to escape, were killed one by one.
The pigeons were found in such numbers that at one spring of the net twenty- two dozen and nine were captured and at a second spring twenty-two dozen and four.
The wild pigeons now are extinct. The only person at present, known to have seen them in numbers, is Mr. Fred Humes, who remembers, as a small boy, seeing in Douglas, a large flock light on a tree, breaking down the branches with their weight.
On the hill, below the old Slocomb farm, is a small house which was owned and occupied for many years by Louis St. John, his wife and family of six chil- dren, Hervey, Louis Jr., Clara, Azelea, Agnes and Joseph. The children all are married; Louis Jr. and Joseph live in Sutton and the others in adjoining towns. Mr. St. John enlarged his property by buying a number of acres from the John Brown estate on Central Road near Wilkinsonville.
After the death of his parents, Louis Jr., in 1943, came into the possession of the property. He is a weaver, employed in East Douglas. Mr. and Mrs. St. John have a son Paul, who was married to Miss Claire Pechie. They live in Millbury.
The next house, on the same side of the street, was known as the Anderson home. It was owned by Carl Anderson, who bought from Walter Lovely. The latter, with his sister, lived here but a year or two when they moved to Rockdale. They acquired the place from the Henry Linton heirs, Henry Linton having bought it from N. Remick. Mr. Linton had one son, Boutwell, a queer character, but well educated, who lived alone a number of years until his death, in 1905.
Carl Anderson took down the original house and built an entirely new one of stucco. He had a family of four daughters, Greta, Linnea, Corrine and Margaret
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and one son, Emil. None of the children was born here; Emil was born on the boat coming from Sweden. After the children married, he rented this house and moved to the George Smart house. Emil continued to live here.
In 1950, Mr. and Mrs. William Taft bought the property from Mr. Anderson. They lived a year here with their family when they sold, in 1951, and bought a new house on Boston Road. They had two daughters, Nancy, who was married to Henry Hickory of Fisherville, and Margaret Wilson, born in 1945.
Returning to Hartness Corner and continuing down Hartness Road towards Wilkinsonville, the house of stucco construction, where Mr. and Mrs. Edward K. Wilson now live, was built by a Mr. Hope for his family in 1923, who previ- ously lived in Rhode Island. After a few months Mr. Hope moved to California. His wife, Gladys, three daughters and two sons remained here until 1936, when they sold to the present owners, Mr. Wilson and his wife Mary. They have no children. They have named the place "Gowan Knoll."
HARBACK DISTRICT No. 11
T HE property at the corner of Boston and Burbank Roads, now owned by C. Clarence Hutchinson, was known in the first volume of the History of Sutton, as the H. Sibley Stockwell place. Mr. Stockwell ran an extensive farm and was a busy man. He had a flock of two hundred light Brahma hens, a flock of guinea hens, a few cows and did some butchering, on the side. His farm and fruit orchards were kept in good production. He died in 1891 at the age of fifty-three, after a fall from a ladder while picking apples. He left a widow, a son Emory, a daughter Nellie, the wife of Eddie Barton, and a daughter Alice. The family moved to Millbury.
Frank Slayton purchased the property about 1893. He kept poultry and did market gardening, selling in Worcester. When his health failed he sold to Charles Hutchinson and went to Arizona with his wife Jennie and their two sons, Roy and Raymond. Two years later, he and his wife were killed by an automobile while walking to a church meeting. In Sutton, Mr. and Mrs. Slayton were active in the Grange organization.
Charles Hutchinson was a graduate of the Worcester Polytechnic Institute and had been an engineer in New Jersey, but while he lived in Sutton, he operated the farm. The Hutchinsons had two sons; Sydney, who was born in Elizabeth, N. J. and Clarence, who was born in Hinsdale, N. H. Clarence was graduated from Becker Business School and did office work until 1928 when he began work as mail carrier for the Millbury Post Office. In 1927, he married Ethel Hartness and they have two children; Richard Charles, born Jan. 8, 1931 and Laura Ann, born May 17, 1937. Richard is a Senior at Clark University and Laura is in high school. Charles Hutchinson died in 1934 and his wife, Mary I. died in 1937. Clarence Hutchinson inherited the place at the death of his mother.
The Adams house on Boston Road, below Burbank Road, is now occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Cramer. The Adams sisters, Sarah and Mary, continued to live here until their deaths. They went out rarely and were very little known except by their immediate neighbors. A third sister, Mrs. Susan Fisher, lived with them a few years in later life. Miss Sarah died in 1898 at the age of eighty- six and Miss Mary in 1902, aged ninety-two.
The property was sold to Will Slayton from Maine, a cousin of Frank Slayton, who sold to Mr. and Mrs. William Gilbert. Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Valva of Wor- cester purchased the place for a summer dwelling and a country home for an
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HISTORY of SUTTON
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HOME OF C. CLARENCE HUTCHINSON AND MILESTONE
invalid daughter. A son, Ernest Valva, was a musician, an artist and a collector of antique furniture. The Oscar Tourtelottes lived here for a time as did Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Howe from Princeton.
Mr. and Mrs. Cramer came from Worcester, purchasing the property from the Valvas in 1941. "We looked everywhere in the country before we came upon this old building, which was charming and inviting, too; just as though it had moved in quietly out of the past and just as quietly settled down on this hill overlooking the beautiful countryside." The barn, now the living room, has been fitted with large windows through which one gets a wide view of the country. An addition to the barn makes an ideal studio.
Mr. Cramer is Medical Service Representative for S. S. Massengill Co. Mrs. Cramer is a woman of unusual background and ability as an author-artist. She was born of Revolutionary ancestry in Virginia. She took special studies in art in several schools and colleges, including Dayton Art Institute and Worcester Art Museum. She taught history and art in the schools of Bristol, Tennessee. Since coming to New England in 1931, her special interest has been in restoring painted and decorated antiques, such as Old Boston rockers, Hitchcock chairs, and painting on glass for mirrors and clocks. In the fall of 1950, her book, "Handbook of Early American Decoration," came out; it gives a history of early decorative materials and methods as well as authentic old designs and their applications. Her decorated pieces have gone all over the United States. She is contributor to several magazines on subjects in the field of art.
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The Cramers have one daughter, Joyce, who also is talented. She received her B.A. degree from Madison College in Virginia and, later, an associate degree in French Studies from Leval University in Quebec. In 1951, she married George Fenwick Jones. They live in Princeton, N. J. where Dr. Jones is Professor of German at Princeton University.
The next house on the left of Boston Road is the former Parson's place, now owned and occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Burton Sanger. In 1876, it was the home of William Cole and wife (Mrs. Jane Johnson ) and her daughter Leonora. They moved to Sutton Center about 1878 where Mr. Cole owned property. Horace Howe from Princeton came here to live, in 1878, being given this place on his twenty-first birthday by his father. His cousin, Mrs. Towle, made her home here and had a number of summer boarders. She was a very enthusiastic member of the Grange, serving as lecturer for several years, and contributed much to the social life of the town. She died in 1896. In 1898, Mrs. Margaret Miner and her four year old daughter Isabelle came here to live and, later, she and Mr. Howe were married. Mr. Howe operated the farm until his death in 1928. Meantime, Isabelle went to school, was graduated from high school and attended a school of comptometry. She was comptometer operator for Graton and Knight for sev- eral years. In 1926, she married Burton Sanger, a native of Hopkinton, and a veteran of World War I. A son Robert W. was born in 1928. Mr. and Mrs. Sanger purchased the property from Mrs. Howe after her husband's death. Mrs. Howe died in 1936. Mr. Sanger's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Alton Sanger came here to live in 1929; the father died in 1941. Burton Sanger is employed at Wyman Gordon Co.
HOME OF ERNEST CRAMER
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HISTORY of SUTTON
In 1950, Robert Sanger bought land from his father on the opposite side of the street and built a small house there. He had married, in 1948, June Miller, a Sutton girl, who was working in Washington D. C. Their daughter Karen was born in Sutton in 1950. Robert Sanger was in Civil Air Patrol and enlisted in 1946. He served three years in the Air Force in Texas and also at Washington D. C. At present he is employed at Leland Gifford Co.
The John Pearson house is on the northwest corner of the intersection of the Boston and Sibley Roads. This place was formerly the site of the Harback School. Due to a shortage of water, which, owing to quicksand, was not relieved by a well that members of the district had dug in the 70's, the schoolhouse was moved 1200 feet east to the old C. Ruggles place. Mr. Pearson of Worcester bought the property from the Grafton Bank in 1937-8. Before this it had been owned by James O'Connell and others. Mr. Pearson built the house and now shares the home with his sister, Hannah Pearson.
Mr. Pearson is a veteran of World War I. He is interested in gardening and raises a fine variety of strawberries; flowers bloom profusely about the grounds. He is employed by the Sutton Highway Department.
The James Putnam place is south of the intersection of Boston Road and Sib- ley Road. In 1872, James and his son-in-law, Alfred Putnam, bought the house which was built by John Harback. After James Putnam's death in 1881, it was occupied by Alfred A. Putnam and his wife, Abbie. Her nephew, Charles Lowe, and her niece, Flora Putnam, lived with them for many years. Mrs. James Put- nam died here in 1897. Alfred carried on the farm until about 1910 when fail- ing health and the total blindness of Mrs. Putnam compelled him to sell. He bought the J. Patch Stockwell place in Sutton Center where he lived till his death in 1919. Mrs. Putnam died in 1921.
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