USA > Massachusetts > Bristol County > Our County and Its People: A Descriptive and Biographical Record of Bristol County, Massachusetts (Volume 2) > Part 4
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Chester Isham Reed was born in Taunton November 25, 1823, and was a son of William and Elizabeth Deane (Dennis) Reed. He was educated in Bristol Academy and Brown University, his college course being cut short by adverse circumstances of his father. His law study was pursued in Gardiner, Me., completing which he returned to Taunton and began practice. For a year or more he acted as editor of the Old Colony Republican. In 1848 he became partner with Anselm Bassett, the register of probate, and the firm of Bassett & Reed for fifteen years bore an excellent reputation. At the age of twenty-six years Mr. Reed represented Taunton in the Legislature and in 1858 and again in 1862 he served in the State Senate. In 1864 he was elected attorney general by the Republicans, which position he held until his appointment to the Superior Court in 1857. At this time he removed to Dedham, where he passed most of the remainder of his life. He resigned the judge- ship in 1870 and thereafter devoted himself to his profession. He died September 3, 1873.
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Henry Williams was a distinguished member of the local bar and a descendant of Richard Williams, one of the first settlers of Taunton. He graduated from Brown University in 1826, and became an enthu- siastic and persistent student of law. He became eminent as a chamber counsel, gaining the whole confidence of his clients, and always dis- couraging litigation where compromise was possible. In 1833 he was a member of the House of Representatives and in 1835-6 he was in the Senate. He represented his district in the Twenty-sixth and Twenty- eighth Congresses, and in 1851 was appointed register of probate. As a public citizen he was prominent and highly respected.
David Leonard Barnes practiced law in Taunton from 1783 to 1793, when he removed to Rhode Island and was there appointed district judge of the United States Court. Mr. Barnes was a son of Rev. Da- vid Barnes, a minister of Scituate, and graduated from Harvard Col- lege in 1780. It was in his office that Judge S. S. Wilde, the distin- guished jurist, studied law in 1789. . Mr. Barnes died in 1812.
Nicholas Tillinghast was prominent in the bar of Taunton in the early years of the present century. He was son of Judge Nicholas Tillinghast, of Providence, and received the honorary degree of M. A. from Brown University in 1793 and from Harvard in 1807.
James Ellis was born in Franklin, Conn., May 23, 1769, graduated from Brown University in 1791, and studied law in Providence and in Taunton with Judge Padelford. He opened an office in what is now Seekonk and obtained a lucrative practice. Three times before 1820 he was chosen senator from this county; in that year he was appointed county attorney and settled in Taunton, where he passed nearly all of the remainder of his life.
Horatio L. Danforth, son of William, was born in 1801, graduated from Brown University in 1825, and studied law with Francis Baylies. He served twelve years, 1829-41, as county treasurer, and was ap- pointed high sheriff in 1844.
A few others of the prominent members of the bar of Tauton have already been noticed, and many who have been prominent in more recent years are sketched in Part II of this volume.
Asking the reader's attention to the old town of Dartmouth and the city of New Bedford, it is found that soon after the formation of Bristol county, and in 1690, Seth Pope was appointed the first justice of the peace of Dartmouth. It is probable that some of the duties of this office had previously been performed by some specially chosen person.
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On May 27, 1692, Governor Phipps appointed justices of the peace for Bristol county as follows: John Saffin, of Bristol; John Brown, of Swan- sea; Thomas Leonard, of Taunton; Joseph Church, of Little Compton ; Seth Pope, of Dartmouth. The latter held the office by renewed ap- pointments until 1717, and was also selectman about seven years. Thomas Taber was a justice of the peace of the old town, appointed June 29, 1702, and held the office of selectman. The third justice was Samuel Willis, appointed June 7, 1826, and held the office many years. On April 18, 1749, he was appointed justice of the County Court of Common Pleas, his associates at that time being Seth Williams, of Taunton; George Leonard, of Norton, and Ephraim Leonard, of what is now the town of Mansfield. He died October 3, 1763, and is buried in the old cemetery of Acushnet.
One of New Bedfard's earliest county judges was Edward Pope, who was born February 25, 1740, and died June 10, 1818. He was a prom- inent citizen in the early history of the village and much respected for his learning and ability. He also held the position of collector of cus- toms for that district. Aside from being active in politics, he was esteemed for his social qualities.
Timothy Gardner Coffin was born in Nantucket in 1790, was educated in Brown University, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1811. He began practice in New Bedford and soon gained a wide and enviable professional reputation. He never held public office, preferring to de- vote his entire energies to the profession he had chosen. He died Sep- tember 19, 1854.
Lemuel Williams was a New Bedford lawyer of marked ability and was in practice during the first quarter of the present century. In 1828 he was associated with Charles H. Warren. Subsequently this partnership was dissolved and Mr. Williams removed to Worcester. Mr. Warren, just mentioned, was an early and brilliant lawyer and held the office of district attorney several years prior to 1836. He was sub- sequently appointed judge of the Court of Common Pleas (see list of officials). Upon his retirement from the bench he was elected presi- dent of the Boston and Providence Railroad and filled the position until his death.
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John S. Russell was born in 1797 and studied law with Lemuel Will- iams in New Bedford. After his admission to the bar he began prac- tice in Taunton, but later returned to the former place and there con- tinned in practice until his death in 1834. He was noted for his knowl- edge of law and his unquestioned integrity.
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Harrison Gray Otis Colby was born in Hallowell, Me., in 1807. He became a student in Brown University in the class with John H. Clif- ford, afterwards governor of Massachusetts, and graduated in 1827. At the time of his admission to the bar he took up his residence in Taunton, but subsequently (1838) removed to New Bedford and at- tained a high professional standing. He was appointed judge of the Court of Common Pleas in 1845 and made a very successful jurist; but the office was not satisfactory to his tastes and he resigned it in 1847. Ile was appointed district attorney in 1849 and held the office till 1851. In 1838 he represented Taunton in the Legislature and New Bedford in 1841 and 1843. He was a ready writer and gained considerable lit- erary reputation. His death took place in New Bedford February 21, 1853.
Thomas Dawes Eliot was born in Boston March 20, 1808, and grad- uated from Columbia College in 1825. His legal study was finished in New Bedford with Judge Charles A. Warren, with whom he formed a partnership at his admission to the bar. After Mr. Warren was elevated to the bench, Mr. Eliot's business became very large and his professional standing high. He was celebrated in the litigation between the de- nomination of Friends, where the title to Quaker meeting-houses in Massachusetts and Rhode Island was in question, and other causes of great importance. He served in the House of Representatives and the Senate. In 1854 he was elected to an unfinished term in Congress and aided in the organization of the Republican party in 1855. He de. clined a unanimous nomination for the office of attorney-general of the State, after which he was again elected to Congress serving till 1869. He died June 14, 1870.
John Ham Williams Page was a New Bedford attorney who gained a more than respectable position at the bar. He was born in Gilman- ton, N. H., and graduated from Harvard College in 1826. After hav- ing charge of the Friends Academy until 1829 he resumed law study in the Dane Law School, Cambridge. He was admitted to the bar in June, 1832, and began practice in New Bedford, where he soon acquired a high reputation especially for his wise and successful application of the law to business affairs. He subsequently removed to Boston.
Joshua Clapp Stone was born in Boston August 28, 1825, graduated from the Dane Law School and studied law in New Bedford with J. H. W. Page, beginning in 1846. In 1853 he became associated with Lin- coln Flagg Brigham and the connection continued until the elevation
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of the latter to the bench. After a period spent in Boston Mr. Stone became a partner with William W. Crapo, which continued until his death January 2, 1869. He was at one time justice of the Court of In- solvency for Bristol county, and was in the Legislature in 1866-7.
John Mason Williams was born in Taunton June 24, 1780, and grad- uated from Brown University in the class of 1801. He studied law with Seth Padelford and began practice in New Bedford in 1804. In 1816 he returned to Taunton. He was appointed associate justice of the Court of Common Pleas and upon the death of Chief Justice Ward, in 1839, was named his successor. This position he held until 1844, when he resigned, and went to Boston to reside. In 1856 he retired from active life and returned to New Bedford where he died December 28, 1869. " He was known as an honest man, true and steadfast to his convictions, devoted to his profession and as a judge was held in the highest esteem by the ablest men of the bar."
John Henry Clifford was born in Providence, January 16, 1809, and graduated from Brown University in 1827. He was admitted to the bar in 1830 after completing his legal study under direction of Timothy G. Coffin in New Bedford, and Theron Metcalf at Dedham. Mr. Clif. ford practiced his profession in New Bedford from the time of his ad- mission until his death. During that period he had as successive part- ners, Timothy G. Coffin, H.G.O. Colby and Lincoln F. Brigham. His first appearance in public life was as representative of New Bedford in the Legislature. In 1836 he became one of the aides de-camp of Gov- ernor Everett, and before the latter went out of office in 1840 he ap- pointed Mr. Clifford district attorney for the Southern district, an office which he filled with marked ability, for nearly ten years. In the mean time, in 1845, he was elected to the State Senate. In 1849 he was ap- pointed attorney general of the State, and in the following year was engaged in that most memorable trial of Prof. John W. Webster for the murder of Dr. George Parkman. In 1852 the Whig party nomi- nated him for governor of the State, and although he received nearly 25,000 more votes than either of the opposing candidates he was not elected by the people. When the Legislature met he was chosen to the office by both branches and was inaugurated January 14, 1853. He declined a renomination and his successor called him to his former office as attorney general, which he held until 1858. In 1862 he ac- cepted an election to the State Senate and was chosen president of that body. In 1867 he accepted the position of president of the Boston and
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Providence Railroad Company. Besides these public stations Gov- ernor Clifford was honored with numerous positions of honor and trust. After a brief visit to Europe in quest of renewed health, Governor Clifford died in New Bedford just after his return on January 2, 1876.
The following tribute to Governor Clifford was offered by a dis- tinguished statesman of Virginia (the Hon. Alexander H. H. Stuart) when his death was announced at the annual meeting of the Peabody trustees at the White Sulphur Springs, in Virginia, in August, 1876:
There was a quiet dignity and grace in every movement, and his countenance beamed with intelligence and benignity. To a mind of great power he united a heart which throbbed with generous impulses, and a happy facility of expression which gave a peculiar charm to his conversation. There was a frankness in his bearing and a genial urbanity about him which at once commanded confidence and inspired good will. Every one who approached him felt attracted by a species of personal magnetism which was irresistible.
George Marston was born in Barnstable, October 15, 1828. He studied law in the Harvard Law School and was admitted to the bar in 1845. When he settled in New Bedford in 1869 he had already ac- quired distinction as a lawyer through his incumbency of the office of district attorney for the Southern district, and upon the death of Joshua C. Stone, of the firm of Stone & Crapo, Mr. Marston formed the firm of Marston & Crapo. Mr. Marston was register of probate in Barnstable county in 1853-54 and judge of probate from 1854 to July, 1858. From 1860 to 1869 he was district attorney for the Southern district; this position he resigned upon his election as attorney general in 1879. He declined a renomination for the latter office in 1882, and from that time devoted himself to his profession. He died at his res- idence in New Bedford Angust 14, 1883.
Lincoln Flagg Brigham was born October 4, 1819. When partially fitted for college he entered the counting room of a Boston merchant where he remained two or three years, and then finished his collegiate course, graduating from Dartmouth in 1842. He studied law in the Dane Law School to January, 1844, and afterwards with Clifford & Colby in New Bedford; he was admitted to the bar in 1845 and in the same year became a partner with John H. Clifford. When the latter was elected governor he appointed Mr. Brigham district attorney, which office he held until his appointment as associate justice upon the establishment of the Superior Court. In January, 1869, he was ap- pointed to the chief judgeship of the Superior Court. He removed
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from New Bedford to Boston in 1860, and retired from public life in 1890.
Robert C. Pitman was a native of New Bedford and there received his education. He was admitted to the bar in 1847 and for some years was a partner with Thomas D. Eliot. In 1858 he was appointed judge of the Police Court and held the office until 1864. In 1869 he was ap- pointed a judge of the Superior Court and held office until his death in March, 1891. Upon his retirement as judge of the Police Court he was elected to the State Senate, where he showed himself possessed of the qualifications of the successful statesman.
Edwin L. Barney was a native of Bristol county, and was born in Swansea, April 1, 1877. He received his early education in High School and Brown University, and studied his profession in Yale Law School and afterwards in the office of Timothy G. Coffin in New Bed- ford. He was admitted to the bar in October, 1850, and continued in active practice in that city until his recent death. In 1851 he was ap- pointed master in chancery, an office which he held more than forty years. He was elected to the State Senate in 1865 and 1866. He served as judge advocate on General Butler's staff from 1869 to 1875, and was chosen city solicitor several times. Mr. Barney was a man of strong character and largely endowed with natural qualifications for the legal profession. He commanded a large practice many years and achieved a good measure of success. His death took place in 1898.
Though not in any sense a great lawyer, it is not out of place to mention here the career of William H. Johnson, of New Bedford. He was a negro and born in Richmond, Va., July 16, 1811. He was born a slave and became very useful to his master as a jockey, in which he was very successful, winning large stakes in riding his master's horses. In the last race he rode the winning was about $50,000, for which he received $250. He made his escape on a sloop with his mother and reached Jamaica, L. I., where he worked at farming. Later he worked in the Astor House, New York, first as dishwasher and afterwards as waiter. His master came North after him, but he escaped on a sailing craft to New Bedford. After a period in various kinds of menial em- ployment, he worked as janitor in a number of law offices. This led him to read and study, and he was ultimately admitted to the bar, some thirty years before his death. IIe was shrewd in an argument, and devoted much attention to the temperance cause. He was a mem- ber of the City Council in 1880, when he contested for his seat, and was
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re-elected. He was the second colored attorney in the county and was much respected.
While the bar of Fall River has in the past included many lawyers and judges of high character and sterling ability, the location of the early courts in Taunton and New Bedford drew by far the larger num- ber to those cities, until comparatively recent years. Of those who practiced in Fall River in the far past existing records are meager.
John Jason Archer was born in Fall River, July 26, 1845, and was a son of Dr. Jason H. Archer, a successful physician of that city in the first half of the present century. The son graduated from Brown Uni- versity in the class of 1866, soon after which he was appointed instruc- tor in English literature in the Annapolis Naval Academy, but failing sight from an attack of measles compelled him to abandon that occupa- tion. Returning home he began the study of law, and after admission to the bar, began practice in Fall River; for a number of years he was a member of the firm of Archer & Jackson. He received the appoint- ment of associate justice of the District Court and was prominent in educational affairs. He died October 31, 1882, in the midst of a useful life.
James Ford, whose name the reader has frequently found in the preceding history of Fall River, was born in Milton, Mass., August 3, 1774. He graduated from Brown University, studied law in 1817, re- moved to Taunton and continued study with Judge Morton. Admitted to the bar in 1818, he became a partner with Judge Morton and in 1819 settled in Fall River. He was a member of the Legislature in 1825. He was a public spirited citizen and took a deep interest in public affairs in the village and city. He served seven years on the school commit- tees; and, with perhaps three exceptions, administered the oath of office · to the members of the city government up to the time of his death, and was several times elected an alderman. He was one of the charter members of the Mount Hope Lodge of F. and A. M., and always man- ifested a lively interest in this ancient and honored order. He was postmaster four years, and one of the founders of the Franklin Savings Bank, was special police justice for twenty years, for twelve years was one of the inspectors of the State Almshouse, and for twenty-five years he edited the weekly Monitor. He was an excellent lawyer and good citizen. Ile died July 27, 1873, lacking only one week of seventy-nine years of age.
Eliab Williams was for nearly half a century a leading practitioner
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of the Bristol county bar and a prominent citizen of Fall River. He was born in Raynham in 1803, and at the age of fourteen entered Brown University and graduated in the class of 1821. He was forced by his limited resources to abandon his plan of immediately studying law, and took up teaching as private tutor in a wealthy Virginia family. There he learned that the long period of exclusive law study before admission to practice that was obligatory at the north was not necessary in that State; he could secure admission by a successful examination before the Court of Appeals. This would enable him to study law and at the same time pursue his vocation of teacher. Purchasing the necessary books, Mr. Williams began a regular course of study, and at the age of twenty-one he went to Richmond, where he passed a successful ex- amination and was admitted to practice in the courts of that State. Returning home and not yet being qualified to practice in Massachu- setts, he began study in the office of Marcus Morton, teaching a part of the time to meet the necessary expense. He was admitted to the bar of Bristol county in 1825 and settled first in Dighton. In 1827 he removed to Swansea. Six years later, in 1833, largely through the influence of Hezekiah Battelle, Mr. Williams settled in Fall River and became his partner, a connection that continued twenty years. During all that period the firm of Battelle & Williams was one of the best known in the southern part of the State and its clientage was large. Outside of the profession which he honored, Mr. Williams was identi- fied with the. Fall River Savings Bank as trustee, vice-president and counsel from the time of its organization. He was a man of high character and pure life. His death took place April 14, 1880.
Hezekiah Battelle, long the law partner of Eliab Williams in Fall River, was a graduate of Brown University in the class of 1816, and studied law in the office of Hercules Cushman, then the leading attor- ney of the town of Freetown. Upon his admission to the bar he be- came partner with Mr. Cushman, but for only a few years, when he removed to Swansea and there practiced until 1827, when he settled permanently in Fall River and for many years was one of the foremost men of the bar. He was especially noted for his careful preparation of cases and his general knowledge of the law. Mr. Battelle was rep- resentative in the Legislature of 1838 and 1848 and was actively inter- ested in the settlement of the boundary between Rhode Island and Massachusetts. He was actively interested in the organization of the Unitarian Church of Fall River, and in all matters relating to the moral
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and religious welfare of the community he unselfishly participated. He died January 22, 1872, at the age of eighty-two years.
Frederick A. Boomer was born in Tiverton, R. I., April 8, 1821, and died in Fall River, July 22, 1871. He was in early life engaged in teaching and the acquirement of his excellent education. After grad- uating at the State Normal School in Bridgewater and teaching sev- eral years, he was advised by friends to study law, which he did in the offices of David Perkins and of Judge Lapham. Upon his admission to the bar he practiced for a time in Tiverton, and from that town was twice elected to the Legislature. Settling in Fall River, his former experience as a teacher led him to take an active interest in the develop- ment of the school system, and he served several years on the School Committee. He was three times elected city solicitor, the last time in 1870, when failing health forced him to resign before the expiration of his term. In the fall of 1870 he was elected to the General Court. He was a director of the Pocasset National Bank from its organization until his death. Mr. Boomer is remembered as an example of the true Christian gentleman, and although only fifty years old at the time of his death, he had firmly established himself in the esteem of the com- munity.
Cyrus Alden was born in Bridgewater, Mass., May 20, 1785, and was fifth in descent from John Alden, the Pilgrim. He graduated from Brown University in 1807, and finished his law studies in the office of Judge Baylies, in Taunton. He began practice in Wrentham, but soon afterward removed to Boston where he remained until 1827, when he settled with his family in Fall River. During the next twenty years he had a fair share of the legal business of the village, and was noted for his tenacious memory and skillful handling of the interests of his clients. He died in March, 1855.
Louis Lapham, whose name appears frequently in the history of Fall River, was born in Burrillville, R. I., in 1810. His parents were poor, but he acquired a good English education and learned the printer's trade. He had a natural taste for politics and in early life became an active Democrat. He came to Fall River about 1840, where his readi- ness in public debate, and his activity in public affairs gave him con- siderable prominence. In his desire to better his prospects he studied law and was admitted to practice. In 1852 he was appointed judge of the Police Court and held the office until 1873, when the court was abolished. He was one of the original Free Soilers and prominent in
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that party in Fall River. He wrote much for the early newspapers and much to the satisfaction of his political friends. He died in March, 1881.
Charles Holmes, father of Hon. Charles Holmes, was for many years one of the leading lawyers of Fall River. He was thoroughly educated in his profession, and was in every way a public spirited and honored citizen.
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