USA > Maine > York County > Alfred > A centennial history of Alfred, York County, Maine > Part 3
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Court House .- At the court of general session, held at York, April 17th, 1806, Wm. Parsons, John Holmes and others were appointed a committee to form a plan of the court-house, and select a proper site. At the next Sep- tember term they reported "that the spot on the south- west side of the road leading from Alfred meeting-house to Kennebunk, nearly opposite to Capt. Webber's, on a knoll partly on the land of Abiel Hall and partly on the land of William Parsons, is the most suitable, that the building should be 50×40 feet, two stories high, and that the cost would be $3000." It was ordered that the build- ing of the house should not be commenced until sufficient security is given by the district of Alfred, or subscribers, to defray the expenses of the frame and of erecting the same on the spot. In the summer of 1807 the court-house was built, cost $3499.69.
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Fire-Proof .-- The fire-proof was built in the fall of 1819, on the northeast corner of the court-house yard; cost, $3056. The present fire-proof wings on each side of the court-house were finished in the fall of 1854; cost $29,- 171.50. In the summer of 1854 the "dome light" was placed on the court-house, over the court-room; cost, $998.50.
The Jail .- In 1803 John Holmes was appointed an agent to procure a good title of a lot for a jail. October 3, 1803, Thomas Hutchinson and others of parish of Hevitoe, in county of Devon, England, deeded, through their agent, to the county of York, a tract of land containing two acres, in Alfred village, for a jail. In 1806 the log jail was com- pleted ; cost, about $3000.
In October, 1833, a committee of eight from different parts of the county reported that a new stone jail was needed. Estimated cost, $6000. It was built in 1834, costing $7737.12. Lately $6000 have been expended for a lot and foundation for a jail and house of correction, also power has been granted by the Legislature, authoriz- ing the expenditure of $30,000 for the completion of the same.
The Town House was erected in 1854, and accidentally took fire in 1861, and, with some adjoining buildings, was consumed. It was rebuilt in 1862.
Occurrences Worthy of Notice .- Persons drowned in Al- fred : Andrew Noble, half a mile below Shaker Bridge, at the foot of the pond ; Eliphalet Griffin, a blacksmith, in Shaker Pond ; Bradford, son of Daniel Holmes, in Shaker Pond ; John Leighton, grandson of Gen. Samuel Leighton, in the pond near Lyman Littlefield's mill.
A woman captive from Wells, on hier way to Canada, became exhausted and was tomahawked by the savages, near where the Saco road crosses the river below the bridge, near Mr. Came's.
The smallpox prevailed about 1780. It was caught by a man named Gerrish, who took it from a pair of shoes he had bought of a peddler. Dr. Hall, then recently set- tled, and others, went into a hospital at Harmon's, north of the Shakers, and were inoculated. Dr. Frost, of Kenne- bunk, took charge of the patients.
In 1817 an elephant was shot by a mischievous wretch,
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from another town, as it was leaving the village, near the Round Pond. The culprit was tried for the deed, but es- caped due punishment.
A weekly paper called the "Eastern Star," was started in Alfred, to support Mr. Crawford for the presidency of the United States, chiefly under the auspices of Mr. Holmes. Adams was elected, and the paper died out.
Brief Notices of Prominent Individuals .- Hon. John Holmes-he was the son of Melatiah Holmes, of Kingston, Massachusetts. John Holmes passed his early years in agricultural pursuits. At the age of seventeen he felt an earnest desire to obtain an education. To aid him in the pursuit of his object he taught school, and derived limited assistance from his parents, who were in moderate cir- cumstances. He entered Brown University in 1792, with but a moderate degree of preparation, the more to be re- gretted, because much of his time was necessarily required in teaching, in order to pay his college expenses. He how - ever graduated in 1796, in fair standing in his class, which numbered among its members such men as Chief Justice Aldis, David King, and Tristram Burges. He now entered the office of B. Whitman, and was admitted to the bar in 1798. The first citizen he called on in Alfred was Wm. Parsons, the only justice of the peace then residing in the town, and the writer of this notice, then a boy of nine or ten years, was present at this first interview of Mr. Holmes with a citizen of Alfred, on whose mind he made a favorable impression, and who immediately took an interest in his success. He engaged a room in the northwest chamber of Paul Webber's house, then a tavern lately opened, for an office, and boarded at Rev. John Turner's.
Mr. Holines bought a small ten feet square shop of Na- thaniel Conant, and moved it to near the site of the jail, and used it many years as an office.
Mr. Holmes was still indebted for his education, and unable to meet his current expenses but for the aid he de- rived from taking a few pupils in his office, among whom was Dr. Abiel Hall, then a lad. These minute things are related to show that patient persevering industry may be crowned with success.
In 1802 he built the house in which he resided whilst he remained in Alfred.
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Among his first clients was Margaret Philpot, in a suit brought against the Shakers for services, and for a bed she had left among them. In this case he gained great re- putation. The bar in the county of York was probably more talented at this time than before or since. Cyrus King, Prentiss Mellen, Nicholas Emery, Dudley Hubbard, and Joseph Bartlett were able and adroit debaters. These powerful antagonists served to evoke and train the ener- gies of Mr. Holmes to their utmost limits, and finally ren- dered him a leading advocate in the county.
In 1800, when the subject of removing the courts from Kennebunk to Alfred was first agitated, Mr. Holmes was chosen a representative to the General Court, wherein he was extremely active and successful. He also made an able speech there on the State Constitution, which, besides gaining him a good deal of credit, awakened a strong de- sire for political life, which never forsook him. In cau- cuses and conventions he was the most frequent speaker in the county, and he was the largest contributor of elec- tioneering pieces for the press in the State. They were always severe upon his opponents. One of them, in poetry, alluded to a democratic caucus, which, by its broad humor, happy versification, and lucky hits at the prominent leaders of the party, was often reprinted, and will outlive all his other productions.
But notwithstanding the decided tone of his politics as a federalist, he, most unexpectedly to his party, made a sudden somersault and joined the democratic ranks, a change as sudden if not as spiritual as that of Saul of Tarsus, and whether scales fell on or off his eyes in the process, persons may differ in opinion. His talents made him an acceptable acquisition to the party, who were weak in political contests. They immediately promoted him to office as senator of Massachusetts, and there, and everywhere he scourged the federalists as severely as he had formerly the democrats, though he now and then had to bear a scourging in return.
His long training at the bar and in political harangue had given him strength of nerve and dexterity in conflict, that made even the strongest antagonists quail under his vigorous onsets and scorching retorts. His speeches soon attracted public attention and admiration of the war party
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throughout the country, and Mr. Holmes suddenly stood before the nation as a prominent political leader.
In 1812 his friends brought him forward as a candidate for federal representative, but the war being unpopular in the district, his antagonist, Cyrus King, was elected. The following year he was offered by Mr. Madison a major's commission in the army, which he however declined. Mr. King died before the close of his term, and Mr. Holmes was his successor. Great expectations were entertained by his friends, founded on his success in the State Legis- lature ; but he found sharper swords drawn against him in Congress than he had before encountered. During the first two years of Congressional life he was less appreciated than his friends had expected, and his case was not helped any by the frequency of his speeches. But in his next term he appeared to better advantage, and acquired an elevated rank as a skilful and ready debater.
In 1818 a movement was made to separate Maine from Massachusetts and constitute it an independent State. Mr. Holmes was active in promoting the measure, and at the first session of the Legislature he was chosen senator in Congress, which office he held eleven years.
Perhaps the most objectionable vote given by him in his whole political career was for the admission of Mis- souri as a slave State. It would seem that many at the South were opposed to the admission of Maine as a State. This measure Mr. Holmes had much at heart, and he felt that he must, in order to effect his object, proceed on the log-rolling system, and help in Missouri. Fortunately, however, Missouri has become free, as a fruit of the re- bellion.
At the close of the war he was appointed by President Monroe commissioner to settle the boundary line between the United States and Canada, an important office, which he performed in a manner acceptable to the government and country. After his Congressional services were ended he served one or two years as representative in the Maine Legislature. General Harrison, on coming into the presi- dential chair, appointed Mr. Holmes district attorney. But his health soon after declined, and he died from the same disease that closed the life of Napoleon, viz., cancer of the stomach.
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Soon after his settlement in Alfred Mr. Holmes married Miss Sarah Brooks, of Scituate in Plymouth county, who bore him four children-two sons and two daughters. The sons graduated and studied law, but never entered much into practice. His oldest daughter, a beautiful and ac- complished lady, married Judge Goodenow, LL.D. His second daughter resides in Topsfield in feeble health.
Mrs. Holmes died Dec. 6, 1835. In the following year Mr. Holmes married Mrs. Swan, daughter of Gen. Knox, of the Revolutionary army, who resided in Thomaston, Me. They moved there soon after marriage, and remained un- til he was appointed district attorney, when his duties required him to reside in Portland, until his decease. His widow died at Thomaston in 185 .-
The town of Alfred owes much of its growth and pros- perity to Mr. Holmes. No citizen contributed so much in time and expense to transfer the courts there, or to establish the academy. He was always ready to aid in educational, religious, and other enterprises that could benefit the public, and he presented a bell to the Congre- gational church. Besides his political papers he left but few memorials of his literary labor. A legal work called " The Statesman" is about the only important relic of his pen.
He was of a genial and jovial disposition, fond of indulg- ing in anecdote and repartee, and could parry and thrust with all who might choose to measure swords with him in sarcastic raillery. His mirthfulness was great, but apt to run in turbid streams, when his aim was to create laugh- ter. As a lawyer he probably had few equals in the coun- try, and no superior. He early made a profession of re- ligion, and in his last hours derived from it consolation and support.
His career'is a suggestive lesson to the minds of the rising generation. It shows what young men may accom- plish in attaining to high and honorable distinction by persevering industry, guided by sound Christian princi- ples. It also shows the impolicy of indulging a thirst for political life, which rarely remunerates. Had he be- stowed more time on the study and practice of his profes- sion he might have attained to the first rank in New Eng- land as an eminent lawyer.
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SUPPLEMENT.
The publishers, having requested Samuel M. Came, Esq., to prepare brief notices of some of the past and present residents of Alfred, have received the following supplement :-
Hon. Daniel Goodenow was born in Henniker, N. H., October 30th, 1793. At the age of twenty he came to Alfred, and entered the law office of Hon. John Holmes, and during the next four years read law, occasionally taught school, and prosecuted his collegiate studies so rapidly that he graduated at Dartmouth College, having been a student there but a few months. Soon after he was admitted to the York county bar. In 1825, 1827, and 1830, lie was a member of the House of Representatives of the State, and the latter year speaker. In 1831 and the two following years, he was candidate of the whig party for governor. In 1838 and 1841, he was attorney-general ; the next seven years judge of the district court; and from 1855 to 1862, a judge of the supreme court. In 1860, Bowdoin College, of which he had been many years a trus- tee, conferred upon him the honorary degree of LL.D. He died of apoplexy, October 7th, 1863. Judge Goodenow was dignified and courteous to all, and always maintained a high sense of honor, that led him to denounce trickery and dishonesty in every form. He was an upright judge, and his will ever be remembered as one of the most honor- ed among the many cherished names of which the citi- zens of Alfred are deservedly proud. He left two sons, John H., a graduate of Bowdoin in 1852; was for seve- ral years the law partner of Hon. N. D. Appleton ; a representative to the State Legislature in 1859 ; and the two following years president of the Senate. Since 1865, he has been U. S. Consul General, at Constantinople. The younger son, Henry C., graduated at Bowdoin in 1853 ;
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practiced law a short time in Biddeford ; afterwards was the partner of Hon. Chas. W. Goddard, in Lewiston, and is now practicing in Bangor.
Hon. Nathan D. Appleton was born in Ipswich, Massa- chusetts, in May, 1794, where his ancestors had resided since the first of the name. Samuel Appleton moved there from England in 1635. He graduated at Bowdoin in 1813, and seven years later settled in Alfred, having been admitted to the bar in 1816. His ripe scholarship and gentlemanly deportment soon gave him an extensive practice. In 1829, 1847, and 1848, he was a member of the State Legislature ; and in 1852 the nominee of the Whig party for representative to Congress. From 1857 to 1860, he held the office of attorney-general. During the long period of over forty years in which Mr. Appleton practiced at the York county bar, he always maintained an unblemished character, and a high position as a law - yer and a man.
Hon. William C. Allen commenced practice in Alfred, in May, 1822. Five years later he was appointed regis- ter of probate, and held that office with the exception of one year, till January, 1841. In 1839, 1844, and 1845, he was a representative ; and in 1846 a senator in the State Legislature; and a judge of probate from 1847 to 1854, when he received an appointment in the post-office at Washington, which he held till his death, August 12th, 1859. Judge Allen was a man of marked traits of cha- racter. Singularly neat in dress and personal appearance, he was polite, precise, and systematic, a faithful public officer, and a respected citizen. He left two sons, Henry W., a graduate of Darmouth College, is a resident of New York city. The younger son, Weld N., is a commander in the U. S. navy.
Jeremiah Bradbury, Esq., a native of Saco, came to Alfred in 1820, having been appointed clerk of courts, for which he had resigned his position of U. S. collector, at York. He was clerk till 1841 with the exception of one year, in which the position was given to another, on ac- count of a political change in the State administration. From Alfred he moved to Calais, where he resided till his death, in 1848. In 1810 he married Mary Langdon Storer. They had seven children, the oldest of whom, Hon. Bion
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Bradbury, of Portland, formerly U. S. collector, at East- port, and in 1863, the nominee of the Democratic party for governor, is well known throughout the State as a good lawyer, and a gentleman of acknowledged ability. The kindly disposition of Mr. Bradbury, as well as the refinement and culture of his wife and children, made them a noted family in this place.
Jeremiah Goodwin, Esq., a native of Kittery, was a resi- dent of Alfred from 1811 to 1840. He was two years a paymaster in the 33d regiment of the U. S. army ; regis- ter of deeds from 1816 to 1836 ; State treasurer in 1839 ; and for more than twenty years postmaster of this town. In all these positions Mr. Goodwin displayed skill, accu- racy, and integrity. He died in Great Falls, N. H., July 31st, 1857, aged 73 years.
Dr. Abiel Hall was born in Alfred, Sept. 6th, 1787, and at the age of twenty-two succeeded his father in the practice of medicine. During the sixty years of his professional duties Dr. Hall was always regarded as a discreet and reliable physician. He was always an earnest advocate of the temperance cause, and rarely prescribed alcoholic liquors in his practice. In 1823 he was chosen a deacon of the Orthodox church, and for the last twenty years of his life was one of its leading members. His labors and his usefulness ended only with his life, Dec. 18th, 1869. His son, Dr. Edwin Hall, a graduate of Bowdoin and the Medical School of Dartmouth, was a very promising phy- sician in Saco, but died young.
Geo. W. Came, Esq., was born in York, April 24th, 1791. By perseverance he acquired a thorough common-school education, and commenced life as a school-teacher, at the age of nineteen. With the exception of a few years spent in mercantile business this was his principal occupation, till he settled in Alfred in 1830. He was twice a member of the Legislature, and many years chairman of the board of selectmen. Mr. Came was a successful business man, and an influential citizen. lle died Aug. 11th, 1865. He left two sons-George L. succeeds him on the home estate ; the younger, Samuel M., a graduate of Bowdoin in 1860, having read law in the office of Hon. Fra T. Drew, and completed his preparatory studies at the Harvard Law
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School, opened an office at Alfred, where he is now in practice.
Maj. Benj. J. Herrick, son of Joshua Herrick, of Beverly, was born April 8th, 1791. In 1816 he came to Alfred to en- gage in mercantile business. Was a deputy sheriff soon after, jailer from 1824 to 1830, representative in 1830, sheriff from 1831 to '36, and register of deeds from 1836 to '47. He was also town clerk, and selectman, and a brig- ade major in the State militia. He always took an active part in religious and educational matters, having been for many years the leading member of the Methodist Epis- copal church in this place, and one of the trustees of the Maine Wesleyan Seminary. During his long official ca- reer Mr. Herrick made many friends throughout the county. He died May 24th, 1870. His son, Horatio G., a graduate of Bowdoin, 1844, practiced law several years at North Berwick. He now resides in Lawrence, Mass. In 1863 he was a United States provost marshal, and is now sheriff of Essex county, and a commissioner of jails.
Hon. Joshua Herrick, brother of the above, was born at Beverly, Mass., March 18, 1793. He came to Maine 1811, was agent several years at Brunswick in the first cotton mill in the State. In 1814 was a few months in the mili- tary service under Gen. D. MeCabe, and stationed on the me lower Kennebeck; afterwards a number of years deputy sheriff of Cumberland county. In 1829 he removed to Kennebunkport, and was appointed by Gen. Jackson col- lector of customs, which position he retained until 1841. In 1842 he was chairman of board of county commis- sioners, but resigned in 1843 and was elected representa- tive to the 28th Congress from York district, serving on committee on naval affairs and accounts; was collector of customs again from 1847 to '49, and from '49 to '55 register of probate for the county. During his residence in Kennebunkport he was for many years chairman of board of selectmen. He is now a resident of this town.
Israel Chadbourne was born in North Berwick, Nov. 1st, 1788, and moved to Alfred in 1831. He was jailer from 1831 to '37, and sheriff from 1837 to '54, with the excep- tion of two years. It was while in this office that he be- came so well and favorably known throughout the coun- ty. In Oct., 1864, he was elected president of the Alfred
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bank, and continued to discharge the perplexing duties of that position with ability till his death, June 5th, 1865. Mr. Chadbourne was for many years one of the trusted leaders of the democratic party in this county. His sons -Benjamin F. and William G .- are prosperous business men in Portland.
Nathan Kendall, for many years was one of the deacons of the Congregational church. He was for a long time in trade, and is remembered as a good citizen. His sons --- Otis, at Biddeford, and Augustus, at Portland-are both active business men. Amivel
The sons of Col. David Lewis-William, a physician in Shapleigh, Daniel a merchant, in Boston, and John, a farmer and dealer in timber lands-were each judicious, upright, and prosperous men.
Hon. N. S. Littlefield was a prominent lawyer of Bridg- ton. In 18- he was a member of the State senate, and 18-, and in 1841 elected a representative to Congress. His brother, Ekinh Littlefield, of Alfred, was a promising and successful busines man, but died early.
Among the many other successful men who have been residents of Alfred may be mentioned David Hall and Alvah Conant, who left Alfred together, and were mer- chants of long standing in Portland. Both retired from business several years ago. Mr. Hall died April 14th, 1863.
Henry Farnum, an enterprising business man, in Bos- ton.
Dr. Usher P. Leighton, now a resident of Ohio.
William, son of the late John Parsons, a furniture deal- er in New York.
Benjamin Emerson, Esq., son of Joseph Emerson, grad- uated at Harvard, practiced law for several years at Gil- manton, and is now residing at Pittsfield, N. H. His brother, Capt. Joseph Emerson, was a quiet but energetic and esteemed citizen. He served as captain in the militia, and many years as one of the selectmen. He died Sept. 9th, 1871, aged 86.
Wm. Parsons served about the same time as Capt. Em- erson in the militia as adjutant, and was one of the select- men several years. He was a retiring, obliging, and reliable man. He lived in Kennebunk the latter part of his life,
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where he died in 1864, aged S4 years. He left several children-John, a graduate of Brown University and An- dover Seminary, is now settled in the ministry in Leban- on, in this county ; Edwin having engaged in mercantile business in Savannah, and then in New York, has been steadily advancing by wisely laid plans and energy till he has become a millionaire. Having been married Feb. 1872, in Washington, D. C., to the only daughter of Mr. Justice Swayne, of the supreme court, he has gone to Eu- rope. He formerly resided here. George and Charles have been successful merchants in Savannah and New York.
Among those now living in Alfred may be mentioned Hon. Nathan Dane, for more than forty years a resident of this town, has been a senator from this county. In 1860 he was elected State treasurer, when the embar- rassed condition of the State finances absolutely demand- ed an officer of undoubted integrity and ability. He was annually re-elected so long as the constitution permits- five years.
Hon. Ira T. Drew has practiced law in this town since . 1854. He was senator in 1847, and the next seven years county attorney. In 1858 he was the nominee of the dem- ocratic party for representative to Congress. Mr. Drew has a large and lucrative practice, and for many years has ranked among the most able and successful lawyers of this county.
William G. Conant, for more than forty years engaged in mercantile business at Alfred, retired from trade several years since, but still continues one of the most active and influential citizens of the town.
Caleb B. Lord, Esq., a member of the York county bar, and a resident of the town for the last thirteen years, was clerk of courts for nine years, a representative to the Legislature in 1871, and is now United States assessor for the first district of Maine.
Dr. Frank B. Merrill, a native of Buxton, graduated at Bowdoin in 1847, and the Medical School of Harvard in 1849. Soon after he moved to Alfred, and rapidly rose in his profession. He now has an extended and lucrative practice.
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