USA > Maine > Piscataquis County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Somerset, Piscataquis, Hancock, Washington, and Aroostook counties, Maine > Part 63
USA > Maine > Aroostook County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Somerset, Piscataquis, Hancock, Washington, and Aroostook counties, Maine > Part 63
USA > Maine > Hancock County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Somerset, Piscataquis, Hancock, Washington, and Aroostook counties, Maine > Part 63
USA > Maine > Washington County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Somerset, Piscataquis, Hancock, Washington, and Aroostook counties, Maine > Part 63
USA > Maine > Somerset County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Somerset, Piscataquis, Hancock, Washington, and Aroostook counties, Maine > Part 63
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EORGE ALBERT MURCHIE, of Calais, Washington County, was born in St. Stephen, N.B., September 16, 1849, son of James and Mary A. (Grimmer) Murchie. After passing through the public schools he completed his education with a business course at Bryant & Stratton's Com- mercial College in Boston. Then he entered his father's employ as a surveyor of lumber. Later he took charge of some of his father's mills, superintending the cutting and driving of logs in the winter and spring. This was done in compliance with his father's wish that his sons should become familiar with every detail of the business. Since 1884 he has been a member of the firm James Murchie & Sons, Calais, Me. The other members, be- sides his father, are his brothers - John G., William A., James S., and Henry S. Murchie.
Mr. Murchie has long been a citizen of Calais. Occupying an honorable and influen- tial position, he has always taken an active part in all that concerns the welfare of the
CHARLES E. SWAN.
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city. He was elected a member of the Board of Aldermen in 1889, 1890, and 1891; and in 1892, 1893, 1894, 1895, and 1896 he was elected Mayor. During his Mayoralty, taking advantage of the city's position on the St. Croix River, the sewer system was much im- proved. Also many of the old clumsy wooden sidewalks were replaced with asphalt. For over half a century the only connection be- tween Calais and the town of St. Stephen was an unsightly wooden toll bridge. As the toll was practically a direct tax on the resi- dents of both places, many strenuous efforts were made to get rid of it without success. In 1893 an arrangement was made by the pro- vincial government of New Brunswick and the city of Calais to build a new bridge that should be free to all persons. The duty of carrying out the project was intrusted to the Hon. James Mitchell, then Provincial Secre- tary for New Brunswick, and Mayor Murchie, to both of whom the credit of the plan is due. After they bought out the owners of the toll bridge, they had a handsome steel bridge erected, greatly facilitating communication between the State and the Province.
In politics Mr. Murchie is a Republican, and he has served upon the Republican State and County Committees. In 1896 he was a Representative to the State legislature, in which he was assigned to the Committees on Railroads and the Eastern Maine Hospital. In 1880 he married Cora, daughter of Daniel Harmon, of Milltown, N.B. Of his three children, Helen W. and Harold Hale are liv- ing. A Past Master of Victoria Lodge, F. &
A. M., he is a member of the chapter; of St. Croix Council, Royal and Select Masters; of Hugh de Payens Commandery, Knights Tem- plar, of Calais; and of Delta Lodge of Perfec- tion, of Machias. He is also connected with the lodge of Knights of Pythias, and he at- tends religious services at the Universalist church.
ON. CHARLES EDWARD SWAN, A.M., M.D., Mayor of Calais, Washington County, and for the past fifty years a prominent physician, was born in Winslow, Me., September 5, 1822. A son of Francis and Hannah (Child) Swan, he is of the seventh generation descended from Henry Swan, who is known to have been in Salem in 1639 and to have received a grant of half an acre of land on the eleventh day of February in that year. It is further recorded that this ancestor was admitted to the church on May 19, 1639, and that three days later he was made a freeman of the colony. He married Joanna, daughter of Thomas Ruck, who removed from Boston about that time, and opened an inn called the "Swan." The next in direct line, Thomas Swan, son of Henry, baptized on February 26, 1643, fol- lowed the profession of chirurgeon, and died on February 8, 1687. He married Mary Lamb, daughter of Thomas and Dorothy Lamb, of Roxbury, who received the sacra- ment of baptism from Missionary Eliot on September 2, 1644. His son Thomas, born on February 16, 1669, married on December 2, 1692, Prudence, daughter of Major Jonathan
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Wade, of Medford. She was baptized on April 6, 1669. Her mother, Deborah, was a daughter of Governor Thomas Dudley. Eben- ezer Swan, son of the second Thomas, and great-great-grandfather of the Doctor, was born on May 12, 1686. On December 23, 1706, he married Prudence, daughter of Tim- othy Foster, of Dorchester. Born on Decem- ber 3, 1684, she died July 10, 1765. Will- iam Swan, son of Ebenezer and great-grand- father of Dr. Swan, was baptized on August 14, 1715. On December 27, 1742, the banns were published for his marriage with Lavinia, daughter of Gershom Keyes, a merchant of Boston.
The Doctor's grandfather, William Swan, Jr., born in Boston, March 18, 1746, was for several years a merchant in Groton. In 1794 he removed to Otisfield, Me. From Otisfield he removed to Gardiner and subsequently to Winslow, where he died on June 24, 1835. During the Revolution he was an officer in the Sixth Massachusetts Regiment. His commission, dated October 19, 1778, is signed by fifteen members, "a majority part of the Council of the State of Massachusetts Bay." On December 2, 1789, he was ap- pointed Justice of the Peace, with authority to act as a Trial Justice. His commission for this office, which was one of much more dis- tinction than it is to-day, bears the signatures of John Hancock, Governor, and Samuel Adams, Lieutenant Governor. A gentleman of the old school, genial and dignified, he had the respect and confidence of all who knew him. On April 18, 1776, he married Mercy
Porter, who, born on August 14, 1755, died in September, 1815.
Francis Swan, above named, born in Gro- ton, Mass., June 26, 1785, died in June, 1862. He was educated in the common schools. In 1807 his business life began in Gardiner, Me., associated with his brother, Edward. Two years later he removed to Winslow, where he engaged in business for himself. He contin- ued to reside in that town until 1834, when he removed to Calais, which was subsequently his home until his death. On November 12, 1814, he was united in marriage with Hannah Child, a daughter of James and Hannah (Cushing) Child. Born in Augusta, March 2, 1795, she died in Calais, May 20, 1869. Their children were born as follows: Sarah Porter, February 5, 1816; James, August 8, 1817; William Henry, January 13, 1819; Francis Keyes, October 20, 1820; Charles Edward, the subject of this sketch; and Eu- gene, July 23, 1824. The first named of these, Sarah P., married Richard Henry Manning, of Brooklyn, N. Y., and died in Santa Cruz, West Indies, whither she had gone for her health. James, who died on Oc- tober 15, 1853, married Helen Trask, of Port- land. William Henry, a successful and wealthy New York merchant, died at Poland Springs on July 5, 1890. Francis Keyes on September 16, 1843, married Emily Bradbury, a daughter of Jeremiah and Mary Langdon (Storer) Bradbury. In early life he was a student at Waterville College. From 1861 to 1866 he was Bank Commissioner for the State of Maine. He died in June, 1896.
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Both of the parents were members of the Con- gregational church.
Having attended the public schools of his native town for the usual period, Charles Ed- ward Swan was fitted for college at Washing- ton Academy in East Machias, under Dr. Samuel Harris, the late divinity professor at Yale University. Then he entered Bowdoin College, duly graduating from that institution with the degree of Bachelor of Arts, class of 1844. He subsequently received the Master's degree from the same college. Beginning the study of medicine with Dr. Job Holmes, of Calais, he completed his course in the medical school at Brunswick, from which he gradu- ated in 1847. He spent the following sum- mer in the hospitals of New York City, and in September of that year settled for the prac- tice of his profession in Calais, where he has since remained. Dr. Swan has now been ac- tively engaged here as a medical practitioner for more than half a century, and is probably the oldest physician in the State in point of service. He is a member of both the Ameri- can Academy of Medicine and the Council of Physicians and Surgeons of New Brunswick. Besides having the fullest confidence of his patients, he is much respected by his fellow- physicians throughout this section. Taking an active interest in all matters of public im- portance, he has been prominently identified with many movements designed to promote the welfare of the city. He has been the presi- dent of the Board of Pension Examiners at Calais since its creation. He is also the president of the Board of Trustees of Calais
Academy. From 1872 to 1874 he was an overseer of Bowdoin College and from 1874 to 1875 a trustee of that institution. The stress of other business obliged him to resign his official connection with the college.
An active Republican worker for a long period, Dr. Swan has served for a number of years as chairman of the local Republican committee. In his position as a party leader in this section of the State, he has met and become well acquainted with the noted men of Maine, including the late James G. Blaine, Speaker Reed, and Congressmen Frye and Boutelle. In March, 1897, having previously served on the School Committee and as presi- dent of the City Council, he received the nomination for Mayor from both the Repub- lican and Democratic parties, and as a matter of course was subsequently elected. This was a remarkable proof of the esteem in which he is held by all classes of his fellow-citizens. In 1849 he was first married to Mary D. Downes, a daughter of the Hon. George Downes, of this city, and who died on July 9, 1851. A second marriage on September 8, 1890, united the Doctor with Mrs. M. H. Horton, a daughter of Gilman D. King, of Calais.
OHN F. FURBISH,* of Princeton, Washington
County, who, besides dealing in groceries and general mer- chandise, carries on the manufacture of ash hoops and Indian baskets under the firm name of I. M. Furbish, was born January 9, 1837, son of I. M. and Eliza (Morrill) Furbish.
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The father, a native of Lebanon, Me., born in 1812, was one of the most wide-awake men in this locality. He established the business now carried on by his son John, beginning as carly as 1827, in Augusta, Me., the Princeton branch not being started until 1866. His specialty was the manufacture of cooperage stock. Since then the business has been extended so as to include a good trade in lum- ber, besides groceries, foreign and domestic fruits, dry and fancy goods, boots, shoes, and rubbers. The elder Furbish also dealt in real estate. His residence was in Augusta, where he died in 1884, widely known and respected. His wife, Eliza, a daughter of Squire Stephen A. Morrill, having survived her husband nine years, died in Augusta in 1893. They were the parents of seven children, of whom five are now living, namely : William H., who resides in Lewiston, Me. ; Zachariah T., a resident of Philadelphia, Pa. ; Augustus, who is now de- ceased; John F., the subject of this sketch ; Lizzie Boice, residing in Augusta; Emily, now deceased; and Emily, second, likewise residing in Augusta.
Having been educated in the common schools of Augusta, Me., John F. Furbish learned the cooper's trade. He came to Princeton in November, 1865, to take charge of the shop established here by his father in the previous year, and he has since remained a resident and prominent business man of this town. Besides his cooperage shop he carries on two stores, where he deals inagroceries and general merchandise. In good times he has given employment to as many as one hundred
and fifty men. A hard worker all his life, his industry has brought him abundant reward, and he is now one of the most prosperous and substantial men of the town.
In 1866 Mr. Furbish married Elizabeth, daughter of John Lamar, of Calais, Me. He has two children: Isaiah Franklin, who is as- sociated with his father in the business; and Minnehaha, who resides at home with her par- ents. Both he and Mrs. Furbish are liberal in their religious views. In politics Mr. Fur- bish is a Democrat.
OUIS PROSPER LA FLECHE, M.D.,* a skilful physician and sur- geon of Caribou, Aroostook County, was born in Three Rivers, P. Q., February 2, 1865, son of Desire and Hannah (Lamy) La Fleche. His parents, who are natives of Three Rivers and reside upon a farm in that town, have reared three children, namely : Oliver La Fleche, the Chief Engineer of the Montreal Fire Department; Francis X. La Fleche, M.D., a prominent physician in the Province of Quebec, where he has practised for the past seventeen years; and the subject of this sketch.
Louis Prosper La Fleche began his educa- tion in the primary and commercial schools of his native town. Subsequently he attended the seminary, completed the course at Bishop College, and matriculated at the Physicians' and Surgeons' University, from which he duly received his degree. After practising in Three Rivers for about six months, he located
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EBEN A. HOLMES.
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in Presque Isle, Me., where he was for four years associated in practice with his brother- in-law. While there he was elected president of the Northern Medical and Surgical Society. In August, 1897, he came to Caribou, where he immediately met with sufficient encour- agement to insure his permanent residence. However, still retaining his practice in Presque Isle, he divides his time between the two places.
In 1884 Dr. La Fleche married Mathilde Marchand, a native of Canada. Mrs. La Fleche is the mother of six children; namely, Ronald, Blanche, Cecile, Juliette, Joseph, and Bernandette. Politically, the Doctor is independent. He is a member of various so- cieties, medical, fraternal, etc. ; and he ren- ders able assistance to the choir of the Roman Catholic church.
IBEN A. HOLMES, an enterprising sar- dine packer, of Eastport, Washing- ton County, was born in Charlotte County, New Brunswick, August 11, 1843, son of Thomas and Mary E. (Randall) Holmes. The paternal grandfather, John Holmes, who was a native of Ireland and one of the early settlers in Machias, went from that town to New Brunswick, where his son Thomas was born. The latter was in early life a fisher- man. Later he engaged in a mercantile busi- ness, which he followed successfully in Char- lotte County for the rest of his active period. He was one of the stirring business men of that locality. At his death he was eighty-
three years old. Mary E. Holmes, his wife, who was a native of Nova Scotia, became the mother of eleven children; namely, Lewis N. and Deborah, who are no longer living; Will- iam ; John R .; Thomas L. ; Eben A. ; Lydia; Joanna ; Morris C. ; George W. ; and Frederick A. Holmes. The mother died at the age of seventy-nine years. Both parents attended the Baptist church.
Eben A. Holmes was reared and educated in Charlotte County, where he began indus- trial life as a fisherman. At the age of seven- teen he came to Eastport, where his brother was located, and engaged in coasting, making his home here when on shore. When twenty years old he paid his father a sum of money for the remainder of his minority. Before he relinquished the coasting trade he had acquired an interest in several vessels. In 1879 he settled permanently in Eastport, and in the following year engaged in the sardine packing industry, his first year's output amounting to five thousand cases. He is now packing an- nually about .forty-five thousand cases at his Eastport factory ; has a factory in Perry, Me., which turns out an average of fifteen thousand cases; and also owns a lobster packing estab- lishment at Campo Bello. At the present time he is one of the leading business men of East- port, employing a large number of men. He pays the second largest individual tax bill issued in the city.
On November 20, 1868, Mr. Holmes was joined in marriage with Emma O. Adams, who was born in St. Andrews, N. B., daughter of Captain Thomas Adams. Mrs. Holmes is
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the mother of six children; namely, Herbert C., Alice M., Arthur L., Eva H., Bessie L., and John R. Holmes. In politics Mr. Holmes is independent. He is a thirty-second de- gree Mason, and is connected with the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias, the Improved Order of Red Men, and the Independent Order of Foresters. His religious opinions are liberal. Mrs. Holmes attends the Baptist church.
ANIEL S. WITHAM,* a successful farmer of Smithfield township, Somerset County, Me., was born March 29, 1845, on a farm not far distant from his present home. His paternal grand- father, James Witham, emigrated from Eng- land when a young man, and settled in Smith- field, Me.
William F. Witham, father of Daniel S., was a lifelong resident of Smithfield and a worthy member of the farming community. His death occurred in 1877. His wife, whose maiden name was Elvira C. Stanley, was also born in Smithfield. She is now living on the old home farm, a capable and active woman of seventy-five years. Of the twelve children of the parental household, six have passed to the life beyond, their names being Charlie, Ellen, Lucinda, Rebecca, Abbie, and James. The survivors are: Daniel S., the first-born ; Frank, a farmer, residing in Smithfield; Fred- erick, a farmer in Norridgewock; Katie, who married R. G. Libby, a motorman on the elec- tric cars in Bangor, Me .; and Sanford and
Alfred, twins, the former a resident of Oak- land, Me., and the latter living with his mother on the old homestead. Alfred married Miss Susie Cole, of Smithfield.
Daniel S. Witham lived at home until after reaching man's estate, receiving his education in the common schools. In June, 1867, he married Miss Emma Cleaves, the only daugh- ter of Mrs. Marcia Leonard Cleaves, widow of Jeremiah Cleaves. He took charge of the Cleaves farm until the death of his wife, June 22, 1875. Mr. Witham then removed to Weld, Me., where he engaged in tilling the soil fif- teen years. The ensuing five years he was employed in the same occupation in Mercer township. In 1894 he came to Smithfield township, and, buying the one hundred acres of land included in the old Sawyer farm, has since conducted a substantial business as a general farmer, stock-raiser, and dairyman.
He has always been a Democrat in his po- litical tendencies, but has not been very active in public life, having held but few township offices. Fraternally he is a mem- ber of the Norridgewock Grange and of the Order of the Golden Cross at Smithfield village.
Mr. Witham has been married three times. The death of his first wife is mentioned above. His second wife was Mrs. Emma Perkins Newman, a daughter of James Per- kins, of Smithfield, and widow of the late Elliott Newman. She died April 5, 1882, leaving no children. Mr. Witham afterward married Miss Flavilla Payne, of Jay Bridge, Me., a daughter of George Payne. The only
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children of Mr. Witham, three in number, were born of this union. They are : Wallace, born October 16, 1885 ; Katie, born December 19, 1888; and Willie, born July 5, 1891.
HARLES HOXIE,* a prosperous farmer and prominent town official of Orneville, Piscataquis County, Me., his native place, was born on February 20, 1827, son of Abner and Lydia (Rogers) Hoxie. His father was born in Sidney, Me., May 5, 1801 ; and his mother was a native of Vassal- boro, Me., born August 22, 1798.
Isaac Hoxie, father of Abner, was an early settler in Sidney, where he resided the rest of his life. He was an industrious tiller of the soil, and was also a good mechanic. Thomas Rogers, Charles Hoxie's maternal grandfather, was among the early settlers of Vassalboro. He then followed the trade of a blacksmith during his active years, his last days being passed at the home of his son-in-law, Abner Hoxie, in Orneville. He died at the age of seventy-one; but his wife, whose maiden name was Mary Beetle, lived to be ninety years old.
a
Abner Hoxie, Charles Hoxie's father, pene- trated the pathless woods of Piscataquis County by means of marked trees in search of suitable place to establish a home, and settled in Orneville about the year 1825. He owned one hundred and fifty acres of land, and he engaged diligently in its clearing and cul- tivation. He also worked at the blacksmith's trade. In 1852 he went to California, where he was engaged in mining for two years. His
death occurred in Orneville, May 8, 1854, just four days after his return from the Pacific coast. He was the father of four children, two of whom are living, namely : Charles, the subject of this sketch; and George R., a resi- dent of Sebec, Me. The others were : Mary, wife of A. L. French; and Sarah J., wife of Alvin Sprague. The mother died in Orne- ville, March 12, 1877.
Charles Hoxie was educated in the district schools, and since the age of twenty-one has resided upon a part of the original homestead property given him by his father. Besides farming he works at house carpentering and blacksmithing, making a specialty of shoeing oxen. His farm, which consists of sixty-five acres, is well improved and capable of produc- ing excellent crops; and he also owns some outlying land.
On May 28, 1848, Mr. Hoxie was joined in marriage with Abigail Cilley, who was born in New Hampshire, September 10, 1828, daughter of Jonathan and Mehitable (Hilliard) Cilley. Mrs. Hoxie's parents after her birth moved from New Hampshire to Atkinson, Me., and later to Orneville, where they spent the rest of their days. Jonathan Cilley was born February 24, 1801, and lived to be eighty years old. His wife, who was born August 17, 1803, died at about the age of sixty-two. Mr. and Mrs. Hoxie have two children : Fred A., born May 13, 1850; and Daniel Frank, born December 10, 1852. Fred A. Hoxie is a farmer and blacksmith of this town. He married Myra Drinkwater, and has seven children. Daniel F. Hoxie, who carries
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on farming, works in the mills, and follows the carpenter's trade in Orneville, married Lucy Richardson, and has three children.
In politics Mr. Hoxie is a Democrat of the Jeffersonian type, and has never missed an election since his majority. He has been chairman of the Board of Selectmen a greater part of the time for the last twenty-three years, Town Clerk and Treasurer four years, and Postmaster for ten years. He and Mrs. Hoxie have been members of the Christian church for forty years. They have a wide circle of friends and acquaintances, and are highly esteemed.
A LFRED C. OSGOOD,* of Blue Hill, Hancock County, a Deputy Sheriff and a Civil War veteran, son of Leonard and Nancy (Dority) Osgood, was born in this town, January II, 1845. (A more detailed account of Mr. Osgood's ancestors will be found in the biography of Augustus Osgood. ) The father, a son of Phineas Osgood and a native of Blue Hill, learned the stone-mason's trade, and afterward followed it, building many cellar walls, until failing health com- pelled him to relinquish active labor. He was also engaged in farming. Taking an active part in town affairs, he served the community in various public capacities, and rendered much valuable aid in erecting the Congrega- tional church. He died at the age of sixty- nine years. Nancy Osgood, his wife, who was born in Brooklin, Me., became the mother of six children; namely, Catherine; Louisa;
Hattie; Rodolphus W. ; Eleanor, who died at the age of eighteen years; and Alfred C., the subject of this sketch. Catherine, who mar- ried William Tarr, and resides in Bucksport, Me., has one daughter, Ella W. Louisa, who is the wife of the Rev. T. J. B. House, and resides in Boston, Mass., has four chil- dren - Ida, Hattie E., Etta, and Maggie House. Hattie Osgood also resides in Bos- ton; and Rodolphus W., who married Clara Keith, has five children - Edna, Etta, Susan L., Florence, and Henry.
Alfred C. Osgood attended the district schools. On account of his father's feeble health his educational opportunities were lim- ited. He assisted in carrying on the farm until he was seventeen years old. Then he enlisted as a private in Company D, Thirty- first Regiment, Maine Volunteer Infantry, which served under General Grant until the close of the Civil War. At the battle of Cold Harbor he received a gunshot wound in the hip, sustaining a permanent injury. Rejoin- ing his regiment six months later, he was present at the siege of Petersburg and at Lee's surrender. He was mustered out of service August 1, 1865. After a short sojourn in Lowell, Mass., he returned to the homestead in Blue Hill, where he has since resided. After following various occupations up to the spring of 1897, he was appointed a Deputy by Sheriff Hooper.
Mr. Osgood married Augusta L. Dodge, a daughter of Deacon John Dodge. His only daughter, Addie M., now the wife of George Frederick, of Methuen, Mass., has one daugh-
2
C. ALMON PAUL.
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ter, Catherine Frederick. He is a charter member of James A. Garfield Post, No. 45, G. A. R., of which he is now the Commander. He is also a member of the North Sedgwick Grange, Patrons of Husbandry. In politics he is a Republican, having cast his first Presi- dential vote for U. S. Grant in 1868. He has served with ability as Road Commissioner and Surveyor.
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