USA > Maine > Biographical sketches of representative citizens of the state of Maine > Part 37
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With the exception of a year's service in the army during the Civil War, Joseph Trafton las been from his birth a resident of West Gardiner.
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MOSES Franck son & Samuel " and Mary (Collins) French was, t. Salisbury Mass 20 Dee 1736-(2ks) Salisbury Vital Statistics) This post I dalisbay because U. H . by the intlement of the boundary time 1741 and I welt Hamlin n.H. : was incorporated 1742. (see ME Reg Vil 52 Page 427) alles Zures" French toast. in Salisbury : the Kant I Salisbury he was to in became later (17x2) A with Hampton 7 Dated Chicago Jan 24 - 1931 Wacker J. Han -d-
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He was educated in the local public schools. Enlisting in 1862 as a private in Company I, Twenty-fourth Regiment, Maine Volunteers, he served under General Banks upon the lower Mississippi River, participating in the capture of Fort Hudson and in several minor engage- ments. In August, 1863, he received an honor- able discharge from the army, and returned to West Gardiner. Agricultural pursuits have since constituted his principal occupation. He owns a well-located farm of one hundred and one acres, which he devotes chiefly to dairy purposes.
Although Mr. Trafton does not affiliate with either of the great political parties, preferring to vote independently, he evinees a lively in- terest in all matters pertaining to the welfare of the town and has contributed his share of public service by filling with marked fidelity for a number of years the position of Collector of Taxes. He is a comrade of Heath Post, No. 6, Grand Army of the Republic, and a member of the Order of Pilgrim Fathers. His religious affiliations are with the Free Will Baptist Church, of which he is now Deacon, clerk, and treasurer.
Mr. Trafton married September 19, 1863, Marietta Haynes, daughter of the late Hiram Haynes, of Gardiner, Me. Mr. and Mrs. Trafton are the parents of four children, namely-Fred- erick P., Mary A., Charles E., and William L. Mary A. is the wife of Irvin Ware, of West Gar- diner.
ON. EDWIN R. FRENCH, of Kent's Hill, Kennebec County, was born in Chesterville, Franklin County, Me., December 13, 1828, son of Deacon Isaac and Eliza (Brown) French. On the pater- nal side his ancestry begins in New England with Edward1 French, who was in Ipswich, Mass., in 1637, and a few years later received land in the "first division" in Salisbury, Mass., where he died in 1674.
The following description of a coat-of-arms, granted to a member of the family in England, was copied from a work on heraldry by John French, of Salisbury, Mass., August, 1849 :-
" 'He beareth Arms'-A Lion Rampant or Crowned Gules. By the name of French,
Granted and confirmed to Sir Ralph French, Esquire, of the city of London, in the year 1662, by Win. C. Clarencieux. This coat was granted to the said French for some manifold and essential service Rendered to his King and Country, and from that grant it descends to the name and family."
As gathered from various records, the line of descent of Edwin R. French, of Kent's Hill, from Edward French, of Salisbury, is Edward,1 Samuel.2 Joseph,3 Samuel,+ Moses,5 Joseph," Isaac, Edwin Ruthvens.
Edward French was by occupation a tailor, was Selectman 1646-4S, and died in December, 1674, his wife Ann surviving him. Samuel,2 their third son, married first, in 1664, Abigail Brown. She was the mother of Deacon Joseph,3 born about 1676. Samuel,+ born in Salisbury, December 11, 1699, son of Deacon Joseph3 and his wife Hannah, resided in South Hampton, N.H., and was living in 1749. (The foregoing is from Hoyt's "Old Families of Salisbury and Amesbury.")
According to records of the South Hampton branch preserved in the family, the birth date of Samuel French, of that town, believed to be identical with Samuel,4 was September 14, 1700. He married Mary Collins, who was born in Salisbury, Mass., May 1, 169S. .
Moses,5 son of Samuelt and his wife Mary, was born in South Hampton, December 20, 1736. He married Mary Dearborn, of Kensington, N.H., who was born July 15, 1740.
Deacon Joseph6 French, who was born Octo- ber 4, 1770, in South Hampton, N.H., became an early settler and prominent citizen of Ches- terville, Me., being active both in town and church affairs. He was one of the founders of the old Congregational church in that place, and he served as a justice of the peace. His wife was Elizabeth Ford, of Fayette, Me., for- merly of Marshfield, Mass., who was born Jan- uary 30, 1771.
Deacon Isaac French, son of Deacon Joseph6 and father of Edwin R., was born October 20, 1801. He was a native and life-long resident of Chesterville, where he also became a pillar of the church. His wife Eliza, born July 15, 1808, was a daughter of Isaac and Sophia (Clifford) Brown, of Hampton Falls, N.H. They had six
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children, namely: Edwin Ruthven, born De- cember 13, 1828; Henry D., born February 7, 1831; Sophia E., born June 23, 1833; Mary E., born March 20, 1836; Joseph B., born September 4, 1839; and Eliza E., born December 21, 184S. Those no longer living are Henry D., Sophia E. and Eliza E.
Edwin Ruthven French was reared to man's estate in his native town of Chesterville. ac- quiring his education in the public schools and at' the Maine Wesleyan Seminary at Kent's Hill, subsequently teaching school for a time. He applied himself, however, more steadily and permanently to agriculture, which he fol- lowed for many years in Chesterville. In the fifties he served as president and trustee of the Franklin County Agricultural Society. For a number of years he was a member of the Board of Selectmen, one year serving as chairman; and for several years he was Supervisor of Schools. Elected to the State Senate as Senator from Franklin County, Mr. French served during the sessions of 1870 and 1871. In 1871 he served on the committee for the establishment of the Maine Industrial School for Girls, and was sub- sequently trustee and clerk of the board of man- agers. For six years-from 1SS2 to 18SS-he was steward of the boarding department of the Maine Wesleyan Seminary and Woman's College at Kent's Hill, and he has been a trustee of the institution for thirty consecutive years. Since 1867 he has been a member of the pru- dential committee of the board of trustees, with the exception of the period of eight years before mentioned, during which he was steward of the boarding department. For more than sixty years Mr. French has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal church at North Fayette- ville, and for four years was Deacon. He was ordained a local Elder in 1874, and has continued to hold that office to the present time. He is a member of Starling Grange, Patrons of Hus- bandry, at that place. Mr. French is a part owner of a well-improved farm in Chesterville, Me., which has been held in the family for two previous generations.
Mr. French was married July 5, 1853, to Char- lotte A. Stevens, daughter of Captain John Stevens, of Mount Vernon, Me., and sister of the late Hon. John L. Stevens, of Augusta,
former Minister to Uruguay and Paraguay, Sweden, and the Sandwich Islands, and edi- tor of the Kennebec Journal. Of this union were born five children, namely: Charlotte E., who is now the wife of Charles H. Stevens, of Readfield, Me .; Annie S., now Mrs. Fred A. Wing, of Waterville, Me .; John E., now de- ceased; Ellen F., now Mrs. Z. B. Rawson. of Seattle, Wash .; and Fannie L. (widow of the late Professor Walter E. Morse, of Monson, Mass.). who is now superintendent of the State Indus- trial School for Girls at Lancaster, Mass. Mrs. Charlotte Stevens French died June 19, 1902.
Mr. French removed in 1897 from Chester- ville to Kent's Hill, and has since resided here. He is now serving the town of Readfield as a member of the Board of Selectmen, and for some years he has been a justice of the peace. For three years he was a member of the Maine State Board of Agriculture at Augusta. He has also been a trustee of the Maine State Agri- cultural Society, in the founding of which he took part at Augusta, Me. In his mental and moral makeup Mr. French embodies in large measure the characteristic traits of his long line of New England ancestors: their fear of God, reverence for law, and diligence in _prac- tical affairs he has exemplified in his private life and public conduct. Though prizing the heritage derived from so goodly a source. he is in no sense ultra-conservative or non-progres- sive, but is ready to obey the apostolic injune- tion, "Prove all things, and hold fast that which is good."
ENRY M. BREEN, City Marshal of Augusta, was born in Somerville, Me .. July 13, 1850, a son of Dr. Michael M. and Mary (Grant) Breen. He is a grandson of John H. Breen, who came to New England from the British Provinces, settling in Whitefield, Me., and whose wife, Susan Curtis. was born in Scotland. Dr. Michael M. Breen. after having practised medicine for many years, died in 1883 at the advanced age of eighty-three. He had long survived his wife, who died in 1860 in her forty-fifth year. She was a native of Prospect, Waldo County, Me., and a daughter of John Grant. They were the parents of six
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children, only three of whom are living, namely -Peter R., Henry M., and Mary E.
Henry M. Breen accompanied his parents to Augusta when an infant two and one-half years old. After finishing his schooling, he obtained employment at the State House as mail carrier, which position he filled for eleven years. He · was then employed in the post-office for a time. For five years subsequently he served on the police force, afterward going back to the post- office for a year. The next eight years were spent by him on the police force, after which he was for seven years night watchman at the State House. At the end of this time he was appointed City Marshal, in which office he is now serving his fourth year. In these various official capacities Mr. Breen has performed faithful public service and .shown that degree of capacity that marks its possessor for future advancement; and it may be added that he is one of the best known and most popular of the city's employees.
Mr. Breen first married Margaret A. McDonald, of Augusta, who bore him three children-J. Harry, Eliza M., and Gertrude, of whom the first named is the only one now living. He married, second, Mrs. Maud A. Bond, of Man- chester, England, a daughter of Elias and Edna Dawson. Of this union also there have been three children-Edna (deceased), Helen Edrie, and Charles E. Mr. Breen is a member of the local lodge of Odd Fellows, in which he has held several offices; and he also belongs to Highland Lodge, A. O. U. W.
ESSE FREDERICK GOLDSMITH, for the past nine years a member of the West Gardiner Board of Selectmen, was born in Richmond, Me., March 22, 1856, son of Hubbard and Helen S. (Robinson) Gold- smith. Hubbard Goldsmith, who was a native of Monmouth, Me., was for a number of years engaged in farming in Richmond, whence he removed to Gardiner, where for some time he continued to follow the same occupation. Re- linquisling agriculture for mercantile pursuits, he carried on for a short period a grocery store in Gardiner. He died in 1894, aged seventy-nine years. His wife, Helen S. Robinson, was a na-
tive of Litchfield, Me. Their children were: Charles B., George (died in infancy), Arabine. George T., Emcline S., Harriett R., Horace. Hubbard, Jr., William C., Mary M., Jesse Fred- erick, and Wilbur.
When Jesse Frederick Goldsmith was nine years old, he removed with his parents from Richmond to Gardiner. His education was acquired in the public schools and academy of West Gardiner. He was for several years in the employ of the Wentworth Spring and Axle Com- pany of Gardiner; but, preferring the more in- dependent and invigorating occupation of a farmer, he adopted that calling, and for the past twenty years has cultivated successfully a farm of , ninety acres, situated in West Gardiner. Elected a Selectinan in 1894 as a Republican. he served in that capacity continuously up to March of the present year (1903), and in ad- dition to his services upon the board he has rendered valuable assistance to his party as a member of the Town Committee.
Mr. Goldsmith was married December 9. 1\79. to Miss Elvie J. Harriman, daughter of Levi Harriman, of Litchfield, Me. Their- children are Leslie H. and Ersley L. Leslie H. Gold- smith is a clerk in the Oakland National Bank in Gardiner.
IMON CLOUGH, a leading citizen of Monmouth, Kennebec County, was born in this town, February 26, 1$30. son of Asa and Mary F. (Griffin Clough. His father was a native of Monmouth. and his mother of Salisbury, Mass. He is a grandson of Benjamin Clough, a Revolutionary soldier, who was born in Poplin (now Fremont .. N.H., and who settled in Monmouth. Me., about 1783. The Clough family is said to be of Welsh extraction. Benjamin Clough, above men- tioned, married Mollie Marston, a daughter of another Revolutionary soldier, Major Simon Marston, of Deerfield, N.H. Asa Clough. son of Benjamin, was a lifelong resident of Mon- mouth, where he was successfully engaged in farming. He died in his seventy-sixth year. To him and his wife Mollie were born eleven children, as follows: William G., Benjamin. David M., Annarilla, Asa A., Jacob N. M.,
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Simon, Emery I., Elias P., George M., Henri- etta B.
Simon Clough was reared to man's estate in his native town of Monmouth, acquiring his education in the public schools of the town and at Monmouth Academy. In 1848, at the age of eighteen, he went to Dorchester. Mass., where he was employed for a while in the Dorchester and Milton Cotton and Iron Works. He afterward worked for a short time in a cabinet-maker's shop in Dorchester. July 9, 1851, he suffered a great shock and misfortune in the loss of three of liis brothers, who were drowned in Lake Cochnewagan, in the town of Monmouth, Me. They were out in a sail-boat with three other companions, when the boat foundered, and all of the party were lost but one. This sad acci- dent caused Mr. Clough's return to Monmouth, and here he kept his parents company, and as- · sisted his father on the farm for several years, or until 1857, when he became a partner in the firm of Labree, Clough, Hinckley & Co., the con- cern being engaged in the manufacture of sash, doors, blinds, and building material at Mon- mouth. A year later Mr. Clough purchased the interests of his partners, becoming the sole pro- prietor of the business, which he thereafter con- ducted alone till 1862.
On the 10th of September of that year he enlisted in Company B, Twenty-eighth Maine Volunteer Infantry, and soon after went to the front with his regiment. They were ordered to Louisiana, and at Plaquemine in that State, April 19, 1863, he was taken prisoner. After being confined for a while in the rebel prison at Port Hudson, La., he was transferred to the jail at Clinton, La. From this place he was sent to the Old Pearl River Bridge at Jackson, Miss., and from there, later on, to the rebel stockade back of the State House in Jackson, Miss. Paroled May 1, 1863, he returned home a few months later, being honorably discharged August 31, 1863. Here he again engaged in the manufacture of sash, doors, and blinds, and so continued until 1870. From 1871 to 1874 he was engaged in the hardware, stove, and tin- ware business in Monmouth. Then, selling the business, he entered the United States railway mail service, and was assigned to a run between Bath and Lewiston. After serving on this route
for a time, he was transferred to that between Brunswick and Rockland, Me., and subsequently to the Boston & Bangor route, on which he con- tinued for about four years. He then ran be- tweed North Anson and Lewiston, Me., for about three and a half years. At the end of this time. or in 1SS2, he returned to Monmouth, and en- gaged in his present business, that of builder and contractor, and dealer in lumber, in which he has since continued. In 1SSS -he was the heaviest sufferer in the great Monmouth fire. but continued in business, and soon made good his losses.
A Republican in politics, Mr. Clough was ap- pointed Postmaster at Monmouth in 1897, and served as such for four years. He is now serv- ing his third term as a justice of the peace and notary public and his first term as a trial justice. He is a member of G. K. Norris Post, No. 127. which he has served as Commander. A man of excellent judgment and good business ability. Mr. Clough is well known in Monmouth and the vicinity, and is a respected and valued citizen.
He married in 1852 Mary M. Wolcott of Dorchester, Mass. They have two daughters living, namely: Alice M., now the widow of Warren Stevens; and Cora B., a resident of Monmouth. Mrs. Stevens has a daughter. Cora Edna, now the wife of George M. Stetson. ticket agent of Monmouth. She is Assistant Postmaster.
OZENDALL HARFORD JACOBS, long an active and worthy representative of the agricultural interests of Mount Vernon, Kennebec County, has re- cently become a resident of Farmington, Frank- lin County. He was born in Mount Vernon, May 12, 1854, son of Lewis and Ann Emily (Cressey) Jacobs. His paternal grandfather, Jesse E. Jacobs, who was a native of New Hampshire, settled in Mount Vernon at an early date. Lewis Jacobs, who was born in that town, carried on agriculture there for a number of years, but died at the comparatively early age of thirty-two. His wife, Ann Cres- sey, also was a native of Mount Vernon. Her father, Caleb Cressey, who was born April 10. 1775, died in Mount Vernon in December, 1847.
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The subject of this sketch acquired his edu- cation in the public schools. A farmer both by inheritance and training; he has achieved a marked success in his vocation. In Mount Vernon he carried on a farm of about two hundred acres, and besides raising the usual crops he placed on the market registered Here- ford and Jersey cattle, and was extensively en- gaged in dairying, this last, indeed, being his chief occupation
Mr. Jacobs has borne his share of the respon- sibilities of town office. He was Selectman of Mount Vernon for three years, being one vear chairman of the board. He was a mem- ber of the School Committee: and he held for two years the office of Collector and con- stable. He affiliates with the Republican party.
Mr. Jacobs was married December 25, 1879, to Alice Cora Mansur, a native of Vienna, Me., and daughter of Rufus Morrill and Emily Ann (Bradley) Mansur. Mrs. Jacobs's paternal grand- father, Houlton Mansur, was an early settler of Monroe, Me., where his son Rufus, her father, was born. Her maternal grandfather, Alvan Bradley, was born in Vienna, Me., his father being an early settler of that place. She has one surviving brother, Charles W. Mansur, of Mount Vernon, Me.
Mrs. Jacobs was graduated from the State Normal School at Farmington in 1877, and sub- sequently she taught school for seven terms. Mr. and Mrs. Jacobs have three children: Merton Rufus; Caro Emily, who is a student at the Maine State Normal School at Farmington; and Clyde Mansur. The parents are both members of the Baptist church, and while re- siding in Mount Vernon Mrs. Jacobs served as superintendent of the Sunday-school. Mr. and Mrs. Jacobs are also members of Readfield Grange, P. of H. Mr. Jacobs belongs to Min- nehonk Lodge, No. 131, I. O. O. F., of which he was the first Vice-Grand; and Mrs. Jacobs is a member of Amity Rebecca Lodge, No. 101, of the same order (both of Mount Vernon), of which she was the first Noble Grand. They are highly esteemed as people of forceful character, who use their talents and influence in adding to the moral and material well-being of the community in which they reside.
YMAN PERRY, a citizen of Augusta. who, having gained a competency by means of industry and economy. now finds himself placed beyond the need of daily toil, was born in Vernon, Vt .. May 26, 1824, son of Moses and Hannah (Laugh- ton) Perry.
He traees his paternal ancestry six genera- tions baek to John Perry, who came to New ·England in the ship "Lion" in 1631, and settled at Roxbury. The line of descent is: John.1 Samuel,2 Thomas,3 Oliver,+ Noah," Moses. Lyman.™
Samuel2 Perry, born in Roxbury in 1640. was a soldier in King Philip's War. He mar- ried January 28, 1668, Sarah Stedman. Their son Thomas,3 born in Roxbury, September 1. 1680, was twice married. Oliver,+ born in Roxbury, December, 1717, son of Thomas3 by his second wife, Elizabeth Smith, was married in Boston in 1740, by Habijah Savage, Esq .. J. Pac., to Elizabeth Smith, a maiden bearing the same name as his mother. After her death in 1751, he married Elizabeth Streeter, of Cum- berland, R.I. He resided in Bellingham, Mass. He served for a brief time in the Revolutionary War, being one of the six weeks' men who marched to Roxbury, December 8, 1775. in Captain Jesse Holbrook's company; and in 1780 he was in Captain Amos Ellis's company for service in Rhode Island on the alarm of July 27.
Noah5 Perry, born in 1748, married first in 1773 Annah Holbrook, by whom he had eleven children, all born in Mendon, Mass. He re- moved near the close of the century to North- field, Mass., and thence, later on, to Vernon. Vt., where his wife Annah died January 14. 1826. He married in the following August a widow, Mrs. Isabel Cass. He died Febru- ary 20, 1836, his second wife surviving him five years.
Moses6 Perry, born August S, 1790, in Mendon. Mass., learned the blacksmith's trade early in life, and was subsequently engaged in the man- ufacture of carriages and ploughs at Vernon. Vt. From that place he removed to Fitch- burg, Mass., and afterward he resided succes- sively in different places, dying at the age of eighty-two in Clarksville, N.H., September
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15, 1872. He married in Vernon, Vt., May 20, 1818, Hannah, daughter of James and Hannah- (Melvin) Laughton. Born in Newfane, Vt., February 25, 1798, she died at Stewartstown, N.H., July 23, 1882, at the age of eighty-four years.
Moses" Perry saw service in the War of 1812, and in his later years was on the pension list, his widow drawing the pension after his death. They were the parents of ten children, five sons and five daughters. But four of these children are now living-Mary, Betsey, Alonzo, and Lyman. Mary, who is the widow of Ransom Frizzell, has seven children-Addison, Margaret, Albert, Amasa, Eugene, Ella, and Eveline. Betsey, who survives her husband, Charles French, has one child, Alice May. Alonzo mar- ried Florinda Keysar, and has seven children- Lyman, Charles, Frank, Wilton, Nellie, Ada, and Mabel.
Lyman Perry attended the town schools of Vernon, Vt., until reaching the age of ten years, at which time he accompanied his parents to Fitchburg, Mass. His education was now interrupted for a while, and not resumed for several years, or until the family had settled in New Hampshire. When a little older he worked for some time on a farm. but subse- quently went to Hopkinton, Mass., where he learned to tree boots. After two years in Hopkinton he went in 1847 to Skowhegan, where he resided for about twenty years, work- ing at his trade. Appointed Postmaster of Skowhegan by President Franklin Pierce in 1853, he held that office for four years. He was also a Selectman of Skowhegan for several years. At the end of his term as Postmaster he took up the business of painting and paper- hanging, which he followed until 1867. He then went to St. John, N.B., and embarked in 1 the hotel business, being proprietor for four years of the Lawrence Hotel. In the fall of 1870 he came to Augusta, and entered the paint shops of the Maine Central Railroad, where he remained for nearly sixteen years. In 1889 he purchased his present residence 101 Western Avenue, Augusta. The house is pleas- antly located in an orchard of plum, cherry, peach, and apple trees, all or most of which he set out himself.
Mr. Perry was married May 14, 1849, to Helen P. Hight. She was born in Athens, Me., April 28, 182S, being one of the three chil- Iren of Samuel and Phoebe (Sampson) Hight. She is now the only survivor of that family. Mr. and Mrs. Perry have four children-Mary F., Fred L., Charles F., and Harry M. Fred L. Perry, who married Celia Arnold, has no chil- dren. Charles F. Perry, who is steward at the Eastern Maine General Hospital at Bangor, married Antoinette Welch, and has one child, Gertrude. Harry M. Perry, who married Abbie Eaton, has no children.
ANIEL WEBSTER, superintendent .of the Maine, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia Division of the Amer- ican Express Company, with head- quarters at Bangor, was born on the ancestral homestead in that city, August 11, 1859. He comes of substantial colonial stock, being a lineal descendant in the ninth generation of John Webster, a . early settler of Ipswich, Mass. The line is John, 1 John,2 John,3 John,+ Andrew,5 Andrew," Daniel,7 Daniel,8 Daniel.9
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