USA > Massachusetts > One of a thousand, a series of biographical sketches of one thousand representative men resident in the commonwealth of Massachusetts, A.D. 1888-'89; > Part 79
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ROBINSON, JAMES T., son of Thomas and Nancy (Wells) Robinson, was born in Adams, Berkshire county, September 6, 1822.
lIe was educated in the public and select schools of Adams, North Adams, and the academies at Lenox, Shelburne Falls and Worthington. Having fitted for college, he entered Williams College in 1840, and was graduated in the class of 1844. Hle then studied law with his father, a leading lawyer at the Berkshire bar, and was ad- mitted to practice in 1844 ; at once enter- ing into practice with his father, with whoin he remained until the death of the senior partner.
Father and son were Whigs, but in the Free Soil movement of 1848, they endorsed the principles of that party, and, later on, were among the first in the Republican ranks ; and the father lived to cast his bal- lot the second time for Lincoln, and par- ticipate in the national victory of freedom over slavery.
In 1852 Mr. Robinson was a member of the state Senate, elected by union of Free Soilers and Democrats. In 1859 he was again elected to the Senate, and was made chairman of the judiciary committee. Soon after the organization of the Senate he was appointed judge of probate for Berkshire county, to fill the vacancy caused by death
of the incumbent. He left the Senate to accept the judgeship, and has continued in the same office up to the present time, having served over thirty years, and never having missed a session of the court from any cause.
He has been editor and part owner of the " North Adams Transcript " since 1865, and is now publisher and sole owner. His son, a graduate of Williams College, now has the editorial management.
JAMES T. ROBINSON.
In 1853 Judge Robinson was appointed one of the secretaries of the Constitutional Convention. He was a delegate to the national Republican convention that nomi- nated Lincoln for the second time.
Judge Robinson was married in Marble- head, May 6, 1846, to Clara, daughter of Dr. Calvin and Rebecca (Monroe) Briggs. Of this union were three children : Arthur, and two others who died in infancy.
ROBINSON, LEVI WALTER, son of Howland J. and Mary Jane (Shorts) Rob- inson, was born in Worthington, Hampshire county, May 29, 1854.
Until fourteen years of age he attended the district school. He then went to work in the country store of E. H. Brewster & Son, of Worthington, where he remained three years. He later on worked for H. Cole & Son, Worthington, nine months,
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ROBINSON.
going from there to Springfield, where he worked three years for A. A. Prince & Co., carpet dealers. He then formed a partner- ship with F. P. Clark, of Ware, in the dry- goods and grocery business, and, after two years, bought the interest of his partner and continued in the same business five years. He is now engaged in the real estate and insurance business at Ware, his place of residence. He has a place of business in Worcester, devoted to the sale of sewing machines and musical mer- chandise.
Mr. Robinson was married in Worthing- ton, May 15, 1877, to Julia A. (since de- ceased), daughter of Jonathan H. and Mary (Parsons) Eager. He has no chil- dren.
Mr. Robinson was a deputy sheriff from 1881 to '84, and road commissioner from 1886 to '89. He was a member of the House of Representatives in 1887, serving on the committee of public charitable in- stitutions.
ROBINSON, MARVIN PEASE, son of Jonathan S. and Amelia (Chapin) Robin- son, was born in Springfield, Hampden county, August 15, 1848.
MARVIN P. ROBINSON.
His early education was obtained at the public schools, but his further attendance thereon was interrupted by the civil war.
In June, 1864, he enlisted as a drummer boy in the 30th unattached heavy artillery com- pany, with which he remained until the close of the war, when he was mustered out at Gallup's Island, Boston Harbor, in 1865. He then took the position of clerk in the office of the Massasoit House, Springfield, where he remained until No- vember, 1866, when he became clerk of the Kennard House, in Cleveland, Ohio. March 1, 1872, he took the position of clerk at the Tremont House, Boston, and in 1879 at the Brunswick. In 1881 he moved to Providence, R. I., as proprietor of the Narragansett Hotel. He returned to the Brunswick in Boston, in 1884, and is now the proprietor of the already famous Boston Tavern, which he opened January 28, 1889, associated with Mr. James A. Fitzsimmons.
Mr. Robinson was married in Spring- field, October 24, 1872, to Laura A., daugh- ter of Ransley and Katherine (Church) Hall. They have two sons : Harris Col- burn and Grosvenor P. Robinson.
ROCKWELL, FRANCIS WILLIAMS, son of Julius and Lucy F. (Walker) Rock- well, was born in Pittsfield, Berkshire county, May 26, 1844.
His early educational training was re- ceived in the Edwards Place school, Stockbridge. Here he prepared for col- lege, and entering Amherst, he graduated therefrom in the class of 1868. Choos- ing the profession of law, he entered Har- vard law school and was graduated in 1871.
In October of the same year he began the practice of law, and has successfully practiced in his profession to the present time. He was appointed one of the special justices of the district court of central Berkshire in 1873 ; has held various local offices ; was elected to the House of Rep- resentatives in 1879 ; was a member of the state Senate in 1881 and '82 ; was elected on January 17, 1884, as a Republican, to the 48th Congress to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of Hon. George D. Robinson, who had been elected governor of Massachusetts-a special mid-winter election being held, the Legislature having passed an act legalizing the same. He was re-elected to the 49th, the 50th, and 5 Ist Congresses.
Mr. Rockwell was married in Pittsfield, his present home, June 11, 1873, to Mary Gilbert, daughter of Henry Gilbert and Mary Bullard (Dowse) Davis. Of this union are seven children : William Walker, Henry Davis, Samuel Forbes, Julius, Law-
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rence Dowse, Francis Williams, and Eliza- beth Rockwell.
While one of the youngest of the Mas- sachusetts delegation now in Congress, yet by his diligent work and native power, he has acquired an influence and made a rec- ord of which he may well be proud. He was appointed by the speaker as a member of the important committee on foreign affairs. A great favorite in his district, he is honored with the suffrages of his con- stituents, irrespective of their party affilia- tions. Possessed of ample means, he dis- penses to the ever welcome guest a hospi- tality alike generous and refined.
ROGERS, CHARLES SMITH, son of William and Charlotte (Van Velson) Rogers, was born in Huntington, Long Island, N.Y., May 13, 1831.
Passing through the public schools of his native place, he spent two years at Amenia Seminary, Dutchess county, N. Y., where he prepared for college. He en- tered Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn., and was graduated in the class of 1858.
In the winter of 1858-'59 he taught natural science in Amenia Seminary. In the spring of 1859 he joined the New England conference of the Methodist Episcopal church: He was stationed at Sudbury, serving in that place two years. His subsequent appointments have been : Quincy Point, 1861-'63; Dorchester, 1864 -'66 ; Newton, 1867-'69 ; Beverly, 1870 -'71; Dorchester Street, Boston, 1872-74; Boston Street, Lynn, 1875-'77 ; Trinity church, Worcester, 1882-'84 ; State Street, Springfield, 1885-'87 ; Harvard Street, Cambridgeport, 1888, where he now re- sides. In 1878, '79, 'So, and '81 he was presiding elder of the North Boston dis- trict, and in 1880 was elected a delegate to the general conference of the Methodist Episcopal church. He received the honor- ary degree of D. D. from Grant University in 1881.
Mr. Rogers was married in Middletown, Conn., June 13, 1860, to Catharine S., daughter of Jonathan and Maria W. (Tracy) Barnes. Her father was a gradu- ate of Yale, an eminent lawyer, and for many years a trustee of Wesleyan Uni- versity. Her mother was grand-daughter of General Artemas Ward, and a lineal descendant in the fifth generation from Increase Mather. Of this union were two children : Henry Tracy, born March 9, 1861, deceased January 11, 1883, and Maria Van Velson Rogers, born Septem- ber 26, 1864.
ROGERS, JACOB, son of John and Martha Poor (Cram) Rogers, was born June 29, 1829, in Exeter, Rockingham county, N. H.
The private schools of his native town furnished his early education. This was supplemented by five years in Phillips Academy, Exeter. Leaving the academy at the age of fifteen, Mr. Rogers made a voyage to China in the ship "Tonquin," and a subsequent voyage to Calcutta in the ship " Angelo."
He went to Lowell at twenty years of age, and served as clerk in the hardware store of John F. Rogers. He was soon admitted into partnership, and in 1853 became sole proprietor, continuing actively in the business until 1875, when he retired to accept the presidency of the Railroad National Bank, which position he still holds.
Mr. Rogers was married in Lowell, Octo- ber 28, 1868, to Mary Howard, daughter of James G. and Clarissa (Willett) Carney. Of this union are three children : Mary Carney, Alice Poor, and John Jacob Rogers.
Mr. Rogers represented the city of Lowell in the Legislature of 1864 and '65. He also served on the Lowell board of aldermen 1875 and '76.
He has been a trustee of the Old Ladies' Home for the past six years, vice-president and president of the Middlesex Mechanics' Association, vice-president of the Mechan- ics' Savings Bank for many years, a direc- tor and treasurer of the Lowell Gas Light Company since 1870, a director and treas- urer of the Stony Brook R. R. since 1875, president of the J. C. Ayer Company since its organization, president of the Kitson Machine Company for the past three years, a director in the Tremont and Suffolk Mills, in the Traders' & Mechanics' In- surance Company, and in the National Hide & Leather Bank of Boston, and one of the trustees of the estate of Dr. J. C. Ayer since his death in 1878. He was prominently identified with the building of the Lowell & Andover R. R., a branch of the Boston & Maine, and was one of its first directors, and its treasurer during its construction.
He has been a member of the Kirk Street Congregational church for many years.
ROLFE, JOSEPH NOYES, son of Moses and Sarah Putnam (Noyes) Rolfe, was born in Newbury, Essex county, August 24, 1822.
His educational advantages were limited to the common schools of his native town.
523
ROLFE.
ROLFE.
He has always resided on the farm where he was born, and farming has been his principal occupation, although from 1857 to '67 he was engaged in the flour and grain business in Newburyport. Leaving this, he gave his whole attention once more to farming, and has ever since spent his time in agricultural pursuits.
Mr. Rolfe was married, April 28, 1847, to Mary Little, daughter of Richard and Abigail (Little) Adams. Of this mar- riage are five children : Moses, John C., Helen N. (now Mrs. Edward A. Noyes of Newbury), Willard G., and Abbie L. Rolfe.
Mr. Rolfe has served the town of New- bury as selectman, assessor, and overseer of the poor fifteen years in succession (with the exception of one year). He has been town treasurer three years, and a jus- tice of the peace twelve years, and has always been especially active in all munici- pal matters. He represented his district in the House of Representatives in 1869, and in the Senate of 1881 and '82.
ROLFE, WILLIAM JAMES, son of John and Lydia Davis (Moulton) Rolfe, was born in Newburyport, Essex county, De- cember 10, 1827.
His boyhood was mainly passed in Low- ell where he was fitted for college in the high school. He entered Amherst College in 1845. After remaining three years he gave up his studies in order to become a teacher. After teaching in Kirkwood Acad- emy, Maryland,he became principal of Day's Academy, Wrentham, where he remained until December, 1852 ; then took the mas- tership of the Dorchester high school, and remained there until the summer of 1857, when he was invited to take charge of the high school in Lawrence. After four years in Lawrence he removed to Salem, but after one year, he was offered the mastership of the Cambridge high school. This he ac- cepted, and has since continued to reside in Cambridge, though he resigned his posi- tion in the school in 1868. Since that time he has devoted himself to editorial and literary work.
Since 1869 he has been one of the editors of "Popular Science News" ( formerly "Boston Journal of Chemistry "), and for several years has had charge of "Shake- speariana " in the "Literary World," besides contributing to other literary and scientific periodicals.
In 1865 he published a "Hand-book of Latin Poetry " in conjunction with J. H. Hanson, A. M., of Waterville, Me. In 1867 he published an edition of Craik's
" English of Shakespeare." Between 1867 and '69, in connection with J. A. Gillet, he brought out the "Cambridge Course of Physics," in six volumes. This series has since been entirely re-written by the au- thors. In 1870 he prepared a school edi- tion of Shakespeare's "Merchant of Venice," and followed it up with editions of the "Tempest," "Julius Caesar " and " Henry VIII." Others were eagerly called for both by students and the general reading public, and the edition is now complete in forty volumes. Its sale has far exceeded that of any other American edition, amount- ing to more than a third of a million vol- umes.
Mr. Rolfe has also published a volume of selections from Gray's poems, and others from Goldsmith's and Wordsworth's in style similar to that of Shakespeare ; also the " Minor Poems of Milton," Scott's "Lady of the Lake," " Marmion," and "Lay of the Last Minstrel ; " Tennyson's "Princess," three volumes of selections from Tennyson ; Byron's " Childe Harold," and two volumes of selections from Brown- ing. With his son, John C. Rolfe, Ph. D., he has edited Macaulay's " Lays of Ancient Rome." He has also begun a series of more elementary " English Classics," three volumes of which have already appeared. It is generally understood that he is the author of the Satchel " Guide to Europe," though his name does not appear on the title-page.
Mr. Rolfe received the honorary degree of A. M. at Harvard, in 1859, and the same degree subsequently at Amherst, where he was enrolled as a regular graduate of the class of 1849, at the suggestion of President Seelye his old classmate and "chum." In 1887 he received the further honor of the degree of doctor of letters from Amherst. Mr. Rolfe was elected to the presidency of the Martha's Vineyard Summer Institute, on the resignation of Colonel Sprague, in the spring of 1882, and held the office until 1838.
Mr. Rolfe was married in Dorchester, July 30, 1856, to Eliza Jane Carew (a gradu- ate of his school), daughter of Joseph and Eleanor (Griffiths) Carew. Of this union are three children : John Carew, George William, and Charles Joseph Rolfe.
Mr. Rolfe is foremost among the Shake- spearian scholars of America, and is ac- knowledged as one of the most delicately critical interpreters of the "Prince of Poets." As a specialist in some lines of scientific research, he has been widely quoted both in this country and Europe.
524
ROOT.
ROOT, JOSEPH HUBBARD, the son of Erastus and Caroline (Hubbard) Root, was born at Montague, Franklin county, February 19, 1823, being a descendant from the early settlers of the town, where he has always lived.
After attending the public schools, at the age of fourteen he was employed as clerk in the store of Edward L. Delano, in Montague, where he remained about six years, when he formed a partnership with Hollis Chenery, continuing in the mercan- tile business until 1861, when he sold his interest and retired from mercantile life.
Mr. Root has been twice married, his first wife being Sarah A., daughter of Isaac Chenery, of Gill, whom he married in 1853, and who died in 1878. In 1882 he married Mrs. Julia M. Giles, the daugh- ter of Dr. George Wright of Montague.
Mr. Root has held various town offices. He was elected clerk and treasurer of the town in 1867, holding the position for eighteen years. In 1860 he was commis- sioned a justice of the peace by Governor Banks, which office he still holds. He is a director of the First National Bank of Greenfield, and president of the Turner's Falls Savings Institution.
In 1872 and '76 he was a member of the House of Representatives, and in 1880-'81 a senator from the Franklin distriet.
ROTCH, WILLIAM J., son of Joseph and Anna Ridgway (Smith) Rotch, was born in Philadelphia, Pa., May 2, 1819.
His early training was in the private schools of New Bedford, Mass., where he fitted for Harvard College, entering in 1834. He was graduated from Harvard in the class of 1838.
His first connection in business was with his brother, Benjamin S. Rotch, in the New Bedford Cordage Company. This busi- ness has been continued to the present time. Mr. Rotch has, in the meantime, enlarged his area of business enterprise, including many ventures in manufacturing and railway investments. His career has been eminently successful as a manufac- turer and merchant.
Mr. Rotch was married in New Bedford, May 26, 1842, by Rev. Ephraim Peabody, to Emily, daughter of Charles W. and Sarah (Rodman) Morgan. He was married agam, January 11, 1866, to Clara Morgan, sister of his first wife, deceased. His chil- dren are : William (engineer of the Fall River Water Works), Morgan (mayor of New Bedford in 1885, '86, '87 and '88), llelen, Isabel, Sarah, Emily, Anna, and Mary Russell Rotch.
ROWE.
Mr. Rotch is a trustee of the Arnold fund for the poor of New Bedford, and of St. Luke's hospital ; president and treasurer of the Friends' Academy of New Bedford ; and was aide-de-camp to Governor Clifford. He was a representative in the Legislature in 1842, and mayor of New Bedford in 1852. He is president of the New Bed- ford Cordage Company ; president of the
WILLIAM J. ROTCH,
Howland Yarn Mills ; a director of the Wamsutta and Potomska Cotton Mills ; president and director of the Mt. Washing- ton Glass Company ; a director of the Pairpoint Silver Plating Manufacturing Company ; director of the New Bedford Gas Company ; president of the Rotch Wharf Company ; director of the Old Colony Railroad ; director of the Cleve- land & Canton Railroad ; director of the National Bank of Commerce, and vice- president and trustee of the New Bedford Institution for Savings.
ROWE, GEORGE HOWARD MALCOLM, son of Jonathan Philbrook and Maria Louisa (Morrison) Rowe, was born in Lowell, Middlesex county, February 1. 1841, and lived in Rollinsford, N. H., from 1850 to '60.
His early education was received at the Berwick Academy, Berwick, Maine. He fitted for college at Phillips Academy,
525
ROWELL.
ROWE.
Exeter, N. H., and entered Dartmouth College, pursuing the full course, from which he was graduated A. B. in 1864, receiving his A. M. in 1867.
He studied medicine with Dr. John S. Butler, Hartford, Conn., and in the Har- vard medical school. From the latter he received his degree of M. D. in 1868.
He served as superintendent of the Massachusetts Institution for Feeble- minded Children, in 1867, '68 and '69. In 1870 he was appointed assistant superin- tendent of the Boston Lunatic Hospital. He was elected superintendent and resi- dent physician of the Boston City Hospital in 1879, which position he still holds.
Dr. Rowe has closely followed the medi- cal profession and hospital work, refusing all outside allurements of business or politi- cal preferment. He is a member of the Massachusetts Medical Society, American Public Health Association, New England
GEORGE H. M. ROWE.
Psychological Society, Boston Medico- Psychological Society, Boston Society for Medical Improvement, etc.
Dr. Rowe has seen longer service as medical superintendent in a general hos- pital than any (with one exception) in the United States. He has always taken great interest in, and has occasionally written on, matters relating to hospital
construction and management, and upon sanitary and hygienic subjects. He has done much to develop and advance the cause of schools for the training of nurses. His management has had much to do with the present development of the Boston City Hospital, until it now stands fore- most among American general hospitals, and is held in high repute in Great Britain and on the Continent.
Dr. Rowe was never married.
ROWELL, FRANK, son of David and Belinda (Hadlock) Rowell, was born in Weare, Hillsborough county, N. H., Feb- ruary 2, 1832.
Both families were late settlers in Weare, coming from Kingston. The Rowells were original settlers at Salisbury and the Hadlocks at Gloucester.
His early life was that of any boy in the country, with its daily lessons of obedience and duty. His education was received in the district school.
He entered upon business through the branch of ornamental painting, from which, in 1855, he passed to that of photography. Herein Mr. Rowell has achieved marked distinction. The efforts of artists have been largely directed towards successfully fixing the delicate gradation of tones of light. Following the early discovery that the most luminous rays are least active chemically, artists have encountered num- erous difficulties so novel, that to overcome them required continual exercise of skill, care, and patient observation. In the honors gained in this development of the art, whereby the vanishing daguerreotype and the fading sun prints of a generation ago have been succeeded by the perma- nent and lasting carbon prints of to-day, Mr. Rowell has earned a full share, recog- nized and accorded by his fellow-artists.
The gold medal of the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association and that of the United States Centennial Exhibition of 1876, awarded the firm in which for the last twenty-seven years he has been a member, give the stamp of authority to this reputation. In all, the firm have been the recipients of seven medals.
In 1871 the practical mind of Mr. Row- ell conceived the idea of teaching boys from thirteen to sixteen years of age the art of wood-carving, through utilization of the passion for whittling, born in every Yankee boy. For such a school, in con- nection with Rev. George L. Chaney, he procured the use of the chapel of the Hollis Street church in the city of Boston, and organized the first "whittling school."
526
RUGG.
This labor of love and devotion was a suc- cess, and after a history of five seasons, it was united with the Boston Industrial School. It was not designed to make finished wood-carvers, but to save young men from drifting into idleness, or the crowded lines of employment, by develop- ing and guiding the whittling habit into a useful application.
Mr. Rowell was married in 1852, at Lebanon, N. H., to Almira Alden, daugh- ter of Abner and Lydia Pinney (Alden) Balch, of that town.
RUGG, ARTHUR P., son of Prentice M. and Cynthia (Ross) Rugg, was born in Sterling, Worcester county, August 20, 1862,
He attended the district schools of Ster- ling and fitted for college at the Lancaster high school. He was graduated from Am- herst College in the class of 1883, and from the Boston University law school, with highest honors, in the class of 1886, being one of the commencement speakers in the latter institution. He was admitted to the Suffolk county bar in July, 1886. He im- mediately began the practice of law in Worcester, and formed an association with John R. Thayer, which relation continues to date.
Mr. Rugg was married in Worcester, April 10, 1889, to Florence M., daughter of Charles and Esther J. (Jewett) Belcher.
Mr. Rugg has served four years as a member of the Sterling school board, and three years as a trustee of the public library. He is a Republican in politics, and has served for several years as a member of the Republican town committee. His in- creasing and successful practice has alone prevented his acceptance of a nomination to the House of Representatives, frequently urged upon him by his fellow-citizens.
RUMRILL, JAMES AUGUSTUS, son of James Bliss and Rebecca Rumrill, was born April 8, 1837, in New York City. He attended private schools in New York until ten years of age, when he was sent to a boarding-school in West Cromwell, Conn., kept by Dr. S. W. Gould, and later to a boarding-school in Jamaica Plain, Mass. When sixteen years old he went to Phillips Academy, Andover, where he fitted for Harvard College, entering in 1855 and graduating in 1859.
After graduating from Harvard, he studied law in the office of the late Chief Justice Chapman, for a year, and then at Harvard law school, where he graduated in 1861. He went abroad to the Univer-
RUSSELL.
sity at Berlin for a year, and returning in 1862, was admitted to the bar, and prac- ticed law in Springfield until chosen attorney of the Western R. R. Corporation, in the fall of 1865. This office he held till the road was consolidated with the Boston & Albany R. R., in 1868. He was then ap- pointed solicitor and secretary of the con- solidated company, which position he held until 1880, when he was elected to his present position of vice-president.
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