USA > Maine > Oxford County > Biographical review; this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Oxford and Franklin counties, Maine > Part 69
USA > Maine > Franklin County > Biographical review; this volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Oxford and Franklin counties, Maine > Part 69
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Mr. Delano has been three times married. His present wife, in maidenhood Hattie Harmon, is a daughter of Isaac and Susan Harmon, of New Gloucester, Me. By his previous matrimonial unions he has four chil- dren, namely; Ellis, Adelbert, Jr., Melvina, and Grace. In politics Mr. Delano is a Re- publican. He has been a member of the Board of Selectmen for seven years, serving as Chairman of the body for five years. All measures relative to public improvements receive his earnest attention. He is a mem- ber of the Masonic Order and of the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows, and a comrade of John A. Hodge Post, Grand Army of the Republic, of this town.
AJOR SAMUEL CLIFFORD BELCHER, at present engaged in the practice of the legal profes- sion in Farmington, Me., was born here, March 20, 1839.
Major Belcher is the seventh in line of de- scent from Gregory Belcher, who was an early settler of Braintree, now Quincy, Mass., and who came to Boston in 1634, taking the free- man's oath in 1640.
Major Belcher entered Bowdoin College at the unusually early age of fourteen years, and graduated with the class of 1857. After leav- ing college he served for three years as the preceptor of Foxcroft Academy, but resigned from this position in 1860, and entered the office of the Hon. Nehemiah Abbott at Bel- fast, in order to study law. He was admitted to the Franklin County bar in the year 1861, and immediately entered upon the practice of his profession; but, being stirred by the pos- sible danger of a disrupted Union, he entered the Federal army, receiving a Captain's com-
mission in Company G, Sixteenth Regiment of Maine Volunteers, on the 4th of June, 1862.
This regiment, which was one of the most gallant sent out from Maine, was ordered to the front at once, and did valiant service at the battles of Fredericksburg, in which Cap- tain Belcher was slightly wounded, Chancel- lorsville, and Gettysburg. In the latter famous engagement Captain Belcher's regi- ment held the perilous position of cover to the retreating forces of the First Corps. Two regiments had already been driven from this position, but the brave Sixteenth held its place heroically until all but forty of its men had been either killed or taken prisoner. It was in this engagement that Captain Belcher, who commanded the left wing of the regiment, ordered the flag to be cut in pieces and dis- tributed among the men, in order to prevent its capture by the enemy. Unfortunately the valiant officer in command was taken prisoner, together with his regiment. While he was being marched to Libby Prison, however, he effected his escape, and by clever and daring strategy regained the Union lines. He was now assigned to the position of Aide-de-camp to General Heintzelman of the Department of Washington. He returned to field service in the following autumn, and was a participant in the battles of Mine Run, the Wilderness, and Spottsylvania, during which, on the 8th of May, 1864, he was severely wounded, a bullet piercing his skull and resting in the brain. For seventeen days he lay ill before it was extracted, and was not sufficiently recov- ered to enter the army again until the bloody struggle was ended. Governor Cony commis- sioned him Major in recognition of his ser- vices, June 1, 1864.
Major Belcher then returned and resumed the practice of his profession in Farmington, where he has been actively engaged in the same ever since.
Major Belcher is an Overseer of Bowdoin College, and is a member of the Maine Histor- ical Society and of the American Bar Asso- ciation. He belongs to several orders and fraternities, among them Maine Lodge, A. F. & A. M., of which he is Past Master; Frank- lin Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, of which he
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is Past High Priest; Jephthah Council, of which he is Past Master; and Pilgrim Com- mandery, Knights Templars. He is also a member of the Maine Commandery of the Loyal Legion. His handsome residence at 7 Court Street is one of the most hospitable homes in Farmington. Few men in the com- munity have acquired such a reputation in his profession as he has, and none a larger meas- ure of esteem, regard, and respect.
ON. JONATHAN BARTLETT, of Stoneham, Me., one of the most prominent men of this part of the State, was born in Newry, a neigh- boring town in the same county of Oxford, January 27, 1838, the son of Jonathan and Triphena (Horr) Bartlett.
His grandfather, Enoch Bartlett, who was one of the early settlers of this county, was born in Massachusetts. Purchasing a tract of wild land in what is now the township of Bethel, he devoted his time and strength to clearing it of timber growth and making it fit for agricultural purposes. The nearest mill and market was at Fryeburg, thirty-six miles away; and the path which he followed when he walked thither from his farm can still be seen. After living a number of years in Bethel he moved to Newry, where he was engaged in general farming the rest of his life- a long term, for he lived to be very old. By his first wife, whose maiden name was Betsey Siegle, he had nine children, who all grew to ma- turity, namely: Annie, who married Asa Foster; Reuben, who married Lydia Frost ; Betsey, who married Reuben Estes; Dorothy, who married Dustin Estes; Irene, who mar- ried Silas Powers; Lucy, who married John Powers; Thankful, who married Charles Stearns; Burry, who married James Colby ; and Olive, who married Nathan Frost. His
children by his second wife, Annie Hall, were: Patty, who married David Sessions; Naomi, who married William Tripp; Elisha,' who married Sarah Barker; Apphia, who mar- ried Joe Chase; Jonathan, who married Annie Barker; Polly, who became Mrs. Russell; Lydia, who married Joseph Knapp; and Enoch, who married Sarah Hinks. Mrs.
Annie Hall Bartlett was a very intelligent lady; and, although she attained the great age of one hundred and two, she retained her fac- ulties almost to the last. She spent the latter part of her life with her grandson, the special subject of this sketch.
Jonathan Bartlett, son of Enoch and Annie (Hall) Bartlett, was born in Newry, Me., and lived there until forty years of age, engaged the greater part of the time in general farm- ing. He then removed to Stoneham, at that time a small hamlet, and settled in the east- ern part of the town, near an old log house. He built a house on the spot where the present house now stands, cleared off the land, and soon became one of the leaders, not only in the farming community, but in local political circles. He and John J. Perry were delegates to the first Republican convention in Oxford County, which was held in Norway village; and he filled many local offices of trust. He died September 10, 1866. His first wife, who was Miss Annie Barker, of Newry, died July 2, 1833. She was the mother of the following children, all born at Newry, Me .: Eliza, wife of D. D. Merrill, a mechanic of East Stone- ham, born at Gorham, Me .; Polly (deceased), who was the wife of E. B. Russell, a carpenter of Stoneham; Nancy, widow of Sewell Butters, of East Stoneham, born at Lovell, Me .; Elisha (deceased), who was twice married, his first wife being Miss Susan Evans, of Stoneham, Me., and his second, who is now living in Byron, Me., Mrs. Fannie (McKeen) Durgan, also a native of Stoneham, Me .; Enoch, a farmer of Naples, Me., who has been thrice married, his first wife being Mary Ayers, of Stoneham, Me., his second Mrs. Sarah Gray, of Pennsylvania, and his third Mrs. Sophia Leavitt, of Naples, Me .; and Orrin W., who married Miss Phosia Evans, born at Stoneham, and lives in Portsmouth, N. H. The second wife of Jonathan Bartlett, Sr., Triphena Horr, was born in Waterford, this county. She had two children -- Jona- than, our subject ; and Irene (deceased), born at Newry, Me., who was the wife of Marshall Giles, of Waterford, born at Sweden, Me.
Jonathan Bartlett in his earlier years ac- quired a common-school education. When he attained his majority he purchased the old
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Bartlett homestead, his present place of resi- dence, and engaged actively in farming and lumbering, devoting the growing season to agricultural work, the winter to felling and shipping timber. As years went on he en- larged the scope of his business operations, purchasing farms and timber land in different parts of the county ; and in 1870 he formed a partnership with Hiram P. Elliott for the manufacture of spools, establishing a plant at Lynchville, this county. The firm of Elliott & Bartlett now manufactures a great part of the spools used by the noted Rhode Island thread firm of J. & P. Coats. Mr.
Bartlett also owns a saw-mill in East Stone- ham, where he manufactures all kinds of shingles and short lumber, and a mill near his home farm for sawing long timber, manufact- uring altogether spools, shingles, shook, and long timber. He is extensively engaged in agricultural operations, and his farm, which is about two miles north of East Stoneham vil- lage, is one of the finest in the section ; and he is also interested in mercantile pursuits. He cared for his parents until they closed their eyes on the scenes of earth, and with all his prosperity has been content to live in the home of his boyhood.
January 5, 1867, Mr. Bartlett was married to Fannie, daughter of Captain John Ball, a mariner of Portland, Me., where his daughter was born and he died. Four children have brightened the home of Mr. and Mrs. Bartlett; namely, Herman L., Charles L., Fred H., and J. Melvin. Herman L. Bartlett, born October 17, 1867, is a practising physician in Norway, this county. He married Miss Edith Stearns, of Lovell, Me. Charles L., born November 13, 1868, is engaged in the sale of general merchandise at East Stoneham vil- lage, in partnership with his father, under the firm name of Jonathan Bartlett & Son. He married Miss Lizzie Stearns, of Lovell, Me., and lives in East Stoneham. Fred H. Bart- lett, born September 25, 1870, is in the lum- ber business. He lives on the home farm with his parents, and is at present Supervisor of the town of Stoneham. J. Melvin, born January 29, 1872, lives with his parents. He is engaged in farming and lumbering.
Mr. Bartlett is a strong Republican, and
never misses a town or county meeting. He has been a member of the town Board of Se- lectmen since the year of his majority and Chairman of the Board for the past fifteen years ; and he was Constable for several years, and held other offices. In 1885 he was the Representative of this district in the State legislature. He is well advanced in Masonry, belonging to Mount Tire'm Lodge, No. 132, of Waterford, and the chapter and council at Norway; and he is a charter member of Oxford Lodge, No. 61, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of North Waterford; and Hiawatha Lodge, No. 49, Knights of Pythias, of East Stoneham village, of which he was the first Chancellor. Mr. and Mrs. Bartlett are mem- bers of the Congregational church at East Stoneham.
AMUEL H. BEEDY, a retired farmer residing in Phillips, Me., was born here, October 18, 1825, a son of Nathan and Eleanor (Bean) Beedy. Several generations of his paternal ancestry, who were of English origin, lived in New Hampshire. His grandfather, Nathan Beedy, Sr., was born in Sandwich, N.H. He was a farmer, lived to a good old age, and was the father of several children, all of whom have now passed away.
Nathan Beedy, son of Nathan, Sr., and father of Samuel H., was a native of Sand- wich, N.H. He settled in Phillips, Me., and engaged in farming during the active years of his life. He died April 11, 1851. There were fourteen children born to him and his wife, Eleanor, the four now living being : Isaac and Josiah, residing in Phillips; Jere- miah, of Weld, Me. ; and Samuel H., the special subject of this sketch. Allen Beedy died June 8, 1826, aged twenty-five; Nancy F., who married Liberty Newman, died June I, 1848, aged thirty-two; Peter Beedy died June 27, 1850, aged forty-six; Mary, wife of Jonathan Atwood, died May 11, 1882, aged seventy-seven; Joseph died February 29, 1892, aged eighty-six; Mary J., wife of Ben- jamin Lufkin, died January 6, 1894. aged eighty-six; and Nathan Beedy, Jr., died March 14, 1895, aged eighty-one years and
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two months. Betsey married James Gordon ; Sarah married James Bacome; Dolly E. mar- ried James Turner.
Samuel H. Beedy obtained his education in the common schools of Phillips, after which he engaged in farming, and followed this oc- cupation with profit up to 1876, since which time he has done but little business, except trading in live stock and wool. In politics he is a Democrat, and he has served his town as Tax Collector three years and as superin- tendent of schools nine years. He is a mem- ber of the Free Will Baptist church.
On February 25, 1858, Mr. Beedy was united in marriage with Hepzibah Haincs, a daughter of Frederick and Hepzibah (Hunt) Haines, of Avon, Me. They have four chil- dren living; namely, Isora I., Celina E., Harry F., and Arthur S. Isora I. Beedy, born April 25, 1859, was married on August 29, 1878, to George A. Trumbull, of Law- rence, Mass. Cclina E., born August 28, 1862, was married June 27, 1889, to the Rev. T. N. Kewley, of Strong, Me. Arthur S., born December 2, 1870, was married on New Year's Day, 1892, to Cora Pratt, of Phillips. Their only child died when nine months old. Harry F. Beedy, born March 28, 1862, is en- gaged in the practice of law in Phillips. He received his preliminary education at the Lawrence (Mass. ) High School and Wilton Academy, after which he studied law under Major Belcher in Farmington, and after being admitted to the bar went into business with the Major. Four years later he came to Phillips, where he has acquired a good prac- tice. He was married November 4, 1891, to Miss Maud Bangs. They have been bereft of their only child, Mildred, who died February 15, 1896, aged two years, two months, and nine days.
OHN T. FURBER, a well-known resi- dent of New Sharon, Me., was born in Athens, this State, on the 17th of Jan- uary, 1833, the son of John and Sarah (Tufts) Furber.
John Furber was born July 16, 1805, in Lee, N.H., and migrated to Athens at the age of twenty-four years. He bought a farm of
one hundred and twenty-five acres from John Tufts, his father-in-law, who had settled on this estate about the year 1800, had cleared it and erected comfortable buildings, the farm then containing two hundred acres.
Mr. Tufts died on the day that his grand- son, John T. Furber, was twenty-one years of age.
John Furber was a farmer during all his ac- tive life, never engaging in any other occupa- tion. In 1836 he sold his Athens estate, and moved to Corinth, Me., where he bought one hundred acres of land. He moved all of his portable effects himself, carting them with a team of horses to his destination. He re- mained with his family in the town of Corinth for two years; but finding that the severe frosts there were injuring all his crops, and that he was rapidly losing money, he sold his farm there, and moved back to Athens, borrow- ing a horse to help transport his household goods, as he then owned only one horse.
John T. Furber remembers distinctly with a great deal of pleasure the journey back, al- though he was only five years of age at the time. He was placed on a little chair on a wash-tub in one of the wagons, and was al- lowed to drive the horse himself the entire distance of thirty-one miles from Corinth to Athens, a feat which he accomplished without assistance. On their way to Athens they stopped in the town of Garland, where they saw the tails cut off of three horses, a sight that was harrowing to the little boy who, now at the age of sixty-three, remembers it with painful interest.
The father on his return to Athens pur- chased a new farm there, and settled down for thirteen years of quiet industry. He then ex- changed his farm in Athens for one in Nor- ridgewock, and removed to that place with an ox team. They started before sunrise one morning, and arrived at Norridgewock after dark on the same evening, making the trip of twenty-one miles in just one day. His Nor- ridgewock farm consisted of about one hundred acres. He moved into it in the year 1850, and died there in 1882, at the age of seventy- seven years. In politics he was at first a Whig and later a Republican, and he held lib- eral views in religion. His wife lived to be
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eighty years old, and died on her son's farm in New Sharon, coming to this place to live with him in the year 1884.
John and Sarah (Tufts) Furber had five children, of whom two are now living - Mary E. and John T. The other children were: Annie, who died in infancy; Sarah; and Sam- uel A. Mary E. Furber married B. F. Hil- ton in 1860, and from this union five children were born: Ernest, who is unmarried, and lives at his father's home in Starks; Eddie A., who married Sarah Daggett, of Industry, and who lives in Anson; Charles W., who is unmarried, and lives on a farm next to his parents' homestead; Herbert J., who married Florence Tarr, of New Sharon, and is living at home; and Allen F., who is single, and re- sides in Boston. Herbert J. Hilton and his brother Charles are extensive dealers in pure- blooded sheep, Oxford Downs and Shropshires being their particular hobbies; and fine speci- mens of these breeds belonging to them are invariably prize winners at all the fairs at which they are exhibited. They are also the owners of a large and handsome herd of cattle.
John T. Furber in his boyhood attended the public schools in Athens and in Norridgewock, and also the Athens Academy. In the year 1851 he left Norridgewock, and went to Can- ton, Mass., to engage in farming. While there he also found employment in a wood- turning factory, going back to his home at Norridgewock in 1856. He stayed there for only a brief period of time, going West to Columbia, Cal., in the same year, to engage in gold mining. From Columbia he went to Alleghany, and remained there for three years. Then he went into the Sierra valley, where he took up one hundred and sixty acres of government land, and became a ranchman, going into the cattle business. There he con- tinued for eight years and a half, being very successful. At the end of that time he re- turned to the East; and in the town of New Sharon, near his old home, he bought his pres- ent farm with part of the money that he had made in California. The farm then comprised about one hundred and fifty-six acres, but now Mr. Furber owns two hundred and forty-nine acres. Here he has remained ever since his return from the West.
Mr. Furber was married on the 3Ist of May, 1870, to Miss Keturah H. Moore, the daughter of Cephas Moore, of Starks. They have had four children; namely, Mary E., George H., Helen M., and John C. Mary E., born December 4, 1871, married on the 3d of March, 1891, Charles S. Parker, of West Farmington, Me., and had one child, Mae E., born on the 15th of February, 1892. She is now dead. George H., born May 14, 1873, is unmarried, and lives in Farmington, where he is engaged in agriculture with Henry Titcomb. Helen M. Furber was born on the 3d of January, 1875. Having pursued her studies in the common schools of New Sharon and also in the high school, at the age of sixteen years she entered the State Normal and Training School, from which she will graduate with the class of 1897. She has already had some experience in her chosen future profession, having taught for five ses- sions in the district schools of her native town. John C. Furber was born on the 16th of September, 1880. He remains at home on the farm during the summer months, and at- tends school in the winter time.
Mr. Furber has a fine orchard of beautiful grafted fruit-trees, is the owner of a herd of twenty fine cattle and four horses, and like his nephews is interested in sheep, of which he has a flock of fifty or more handsome ani- mals, with heavy, coarse wool. Some of his stock he gets from the Hilton farm in the town of Starks. Mr. Furber is, of course, well known and honored in his town, and has held public office several times, having been a Selectman for the years 1878-80 and 1881-82- 83. He has voted the Republican ticket ever since 1860. His religious views are liberal. as his father's were.
LVA SHURTLEFF, President of the South Paris Savings Bank, was born October 24, ISI7, on the Dunham place, four miles east of South Paris, Me., son of Alva and Anna (Shaw) Shurtleff. His father was a son of Simeon and Submit (Kingman) Shurtleff, and Simeon was a son of Jonathan and Elizabeth (Leach) Shurtleff. Jonathan was a son of Thomas,
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who was a son of William, second, whose father, William, first, is supposed to have been the earliest ancestor of the family to re- side in this country. The name in former days was Shettle, from which it was changed to Shirtly, and later to Shurtleff. It is known of the first William that he was apprenticed to Thomas Clark, for the purpose of learning the carpenter's trade, on September 2, 1634; that he married Elizabeth Lettice, of Plymouth, Mass. ; and that subsequently he settled in Marshfield, Mass.
Simeon Shurtleff, who was a native of Middleboro, Mass., born June 23, 1758, fol- lowed the occupation of farmer, and was one of the early settlers of Norway, Me. He mar- ried in 1781 Submit Kingman, of Bridge- water, Mass., by whom he became the father of eleven children, the third being Alva Shurtleff, Sr. The birth of Alva, Sr., oc- curred in Norway on May 30, 1786. He also cultivated the land in order to make a living. Being blessed with good health, he attained maturity in due time, and entered into matrimony with Anna Shaw. Of this marriage there were born twelve children; namely, Simeon, Caroline, Alva, Ambrose, Abigail, Alva, Elvira, Submit, Aretas, Nancy, Sylvan, and William. Both parents lived to a good old age.
Alva Shurtleff, the sixth child and the special subject of this sketch, having served an apprenticeship to the shoemaker's trade, started in business for himself in Paris, being then about twenty years old. Some time later he opened a grocery store, and successfully con- ducted both ventures for a time. In 1842 he received the appointment of Deputy Jailer, an office that he filled efficiently for eight years. After that he bought a house in South Paris, took up his residence in it, and then opened a general store in company with R. S. Stevens. The partnership with Mr. Stevens lasted until 1856, when he sold his interest in the store, and organized the firm, A. & S. Shurtleff & Co., for the purpose of manufacturing boots and shoes in Portland, Me. This company had built up a large business, and were putting out shoes at the rate of five thousand pairs a week, when it was burned out. With F. E. Faxton, one of his partners, Mr. Shurtleff
transferred the work to Boston; but in a short time afterward he sold out his interest, and returned to South Paris. He here engaged in the grocery business again, occupying his former store, but he finally sold the stock to the grangers; and in 1895 he disposed of the store, after which he retired. He was a stockholder in the chair factory and in the shoe factory of the town. He also invested in land, buying it by the acre and selling it by the lot, according to a plan for extending the village. In 1873 he obtained from the State legislature the charter of the South Paris Savings Bank, of which he has since been the President. He has been a Director in the Norway National Bank for a number of years, during the latter part of which he has been its Vice-President.
On October 24, 1841, he was married to Miss Ann Jackson, daughter of Jacob and Nancy (Bessey) Jackson. Mr. Jackson's grandfather, Lemuel, who was born in Massa- chusetts in 1762, built a house on Paris Hill, and there owned land until 1816. He mar- ried Susanna, daughter of Benjamin and Charity (Craigie) Hammond, of New Glouces- ter, Me. Their son, Jacob, born in 1792, was a blacksmith, and carried on an extensive business at ironing wooden ploughs. He was a member of the company that owned the township of Lincoln, Penobscot County, and was the wealthiest man in the town. His
children were: Arabella R., Ann, Andrew, Mary S., Martha, Charles W., and Jacob F.
Mr. Shurtleff and his wife have had three children, namely: Abbie Francis, born Octo- ber 26, 1842; Charles A., born October 15, 1845 ; and William Kingman, born September 20, 1848. Abbie married Charles D. Brown, of Boston, and had one child, Charles Alva, who married Eliza (Baldwin) Rogers, of Gloucester, Mass., and is now the father of two children - Howard C. and Charles D., second. Charles A. Shurtleff died August 26, 1888. William Kingman Shurtleff, who resides in Brookline, Mass., and owns a large paper factory in Milton, N. H., married Hattie Sawyer, and is the father of two children - Gertrude B. and Alva David. Mr. Alva Shurtleff has often shown a most commendable public spirit by aiding enterprises designed
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