Biographical sketches of representative citizens of the state of Maine, Part 9

Author: New England Historical Publishing Company, Boston, pub
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Boston, New England historical publishing company
Number of Pages: 998

USA > Maine > Biographical sketches of representative citizens of the state of Maine > Part 9

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In 1844 Mr. Dennett married Harriet Augusta Hyde, of Bath, Me., a daughter of Jonathan Hyde. She died April 1, 1900. Their children were Sarah Hyde, who died aged eight years; Fannie Sawyer, aged fourteen months; Annie

T., still living; and William S. Dennett, Jr., M.D., born in Bangor, 1849, now an oculist in New York City. He was educated in the public schools of Bangor, at Bowdoin Col- lege, and the Harvard Medical School, receiv- ing his Bachelor's degree from Bowdoin in 1871 and his medical diploma from Harvard University in 1874. He married Maria Beck of New York City.

ON GEORGE A. RUSSELL, of Read- field, Kennebec County, was born in the town of Avon, Franklin County Me., June S, 1842. His parents were Reuben and Anna (Masterman) Russell, both descendants of early English settlers. His maternal great-grandfather, James Master- man, was a Revolutionary soldier. His paternal grandfather was Ephraim Russell, born in Wilton, N.H., who removed to Maine, settling in the town of Weld, Franklin County, which was the birthplace of his son Reuben.

In 1846 Reuben Russell removed to Read- field, where he is now residing at the age of eighty-five, a universally known and highly respected citizen Ilis industrial years have been occupied entirely in farming and lumber- ing, in which occupations he has met with suc- cess. His wife, Anna Masterman, was born in Weld, Me., daughter of Marmaduke and Han- nah (Howe) Masterman and grand-daughter of James Masterman, the Revolutionary soldier above mentioned.

George A. Russell was reared to man's estate in the town of Readfield, whither he accom- panied his parents in 1846, when a child of four years. He attended the public schools, and subsequently became a pupil at the Eaton Boys' Boarding School, then located at Kent's Hill, Kennebec County. In this place also (Kent's Hill) he completed his formal education at the Maine Wesleyan Seminary, a well-known and far-famed institution of learning. The Civil War had now begun, and accounts of the carly battles were being eagerly read by every patriotic Northern youth who had not already gone to the front Carried along by the great wave of patriotism that swept over the country, young Russell enlisted Septem-

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ber 10, 1862, in Company F Twenty-first Regiment of Maine Volunteer Infantry and was commissioned as Second Lieutenant of his Com- pany by Governor Israel Washburn His regiment, attached to the Army of the Gulf, fought at Baton Rouge and Port Hudson. As a part of General Banks's command, it took part in his expedition in Louisiana, operating mainly between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. Being a nine months' regiment, Mr Russell was discharged in August, 1863, at the end of his period of service. Returning to Read- field, he here engaged in agriculture, and was so occupied for a number of years. In 1877 he received an appointment as railway postal clerk on the Maine Central Railroad, the run assigned him being that between Bangor and Boston. This position he held until 1881, in which year he was made superintendent of mails at the Augusta (Me.) post-office, he being the first incumbent of that office, in which he served for five years. He now began to take some part in public life, and was elected to the Maine Legislature of 1877 as Representative from the towns of Readfield, Mount Vernon, and Vienna, during the session serving as a member of the Committee on Education. In 1887 he occupied a seat in the Maine Senate, being one of the Senators from Kennebec County and chairman of the Committee on Agriculture. In this latter capacity he engineered and ener- getically pushed through the bill for a large appropriation for the erection of new build- ings at the State Agricultural College at Orono, Me. While he was in the Senate, he was also a member of the Committees on State Reform Schools and State Prisons. Mr. Russell served for six years as a Selectman of Readfield, dur- ing two years of that time being chairman of the board In politics he is a steadfast Republican. In June, 1887, Mr. Russell went to Wilbraham, Mass., and took the position of steward for the Wesleyan Academy at that place, which he held for fifteen years, returning to Readfield in July, 1902. He is now and has been for some years a trustee of that institution. His home property in Readfield consists of a one- hundred-and-forty-acre farm, which is under a high state of cultivation. He belongs to Lafayette Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons,

at Readfield; Seth Williams Post, Grand Army of the Republic, at Augusta, Me .; and to the Maine Commandery, Loyal Legion, of Portland. He was for ten years or more secretary of the Kennebec County Agricultural Society.

Mr. Russell married September 12, 1862, Lydia A. Millett, a daughter of the late Obadiah Millett, of Leds, Me. He has one child, Lillian F., who for some years has been head of the musi- cal department of the Wesleyan Academy at Wilbraham, Mass., of which institution she is a graduate. Miss Russell is also a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music at Boston, Mass., where she finished her musi- cal education. A young lady of abundant talent, she has been very successful as a teacher in her chosen profession.

Mr. Russell is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church in Readfield. As one of the most prominent citizens of the town, he has its best interests at heart, and his aid and influ- ence can always be depended on when it is a question of promoting the general welfare of the community.

RANKLIN AUGUSTUS WILSON, LL.D., a prominent lawyer of . Bangor, Me., was born in Bradford, in the county of Penobscot, November 6, 1832. IIe is of English descent, tracing his ancestry in the direct male line back to Roger Wilson, who was born in the village of Scrooby, county of Nottingham, England, about the year 15SS. From Roger Wilson the line was continued through his son, Lieutenant John,1 the immi- grant progenitor, Benjamin,2 John,3 Joseph,4 John H.,5 to Franklin Augustus.6

Roger Wilson was a member of Pastor Jolin Robinson's church and of the secular organi- zation of that pilgrim body of Separatists that fled to Holland in 160S and settled first in Amsterdam, subsequently removing to Leyden. IIe was one of the joint stock company that fitted out the "Mayflower" in 1620, and, though' he did not come over with the Plymouth Pil- grims, it seems probable, from allusions to him in the Leyden records, that he intended to join thein at some future time. He was a Deacon in Pastor Robinson's church in Ley-

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den and quite prominent in the company. After the death of Pastor Robinson, which occurred March 1, 1625, it is supposed that Roger Wilson returned to England, as there is no record of his death in Leyden, and it is known that his son John emigrated to America from England. That Roger Wilson was a man of influence in Leyden is verified by the fact that he was bondsman for the only three men that were ever given the freedom of that city. Roger Wilson's wife, the mother of John,1 was a sister of Dr. Samuel Fuller, who came over on the "Mayflower," and died at Plymouth in 1633 (Bangor Historical Magazine, vol. vii.).

Lieutenant John1 Wilson, said to have been the son of Roger Wilson, of Serooby, England, was born in 1631. He died in Woburn in 1687 (Woburn Records). His name appears on the tax list of Woburn, August 26, 1666. He was a soldier in King Philip's War. Ilis first wife, it is thought, was Susannah, daughter of the Rev. John Mills, or Miller. His widow Rebecca died in Rehoboth, Mass., April 14, 1749, aged eighty-five years.

Benjamin2 Wilson, the fourth child and sec- ond son of Lieutenant John Wilson, was born in Woburn, Mass., October 15, 1670. About the year 1691 he removed to Rehoboth, Mass., where he acquired a good property. He is often alluded to in the Rehoboth Records. On November 29, 1721, his name appears as a member of the first church of that town. He was twice married.

John3 Wilson, his eldest child by his second wife, Elizabeth, was born October 29, 1733, and died in 1826-7 in Rehoboth. He served under General Israel Putnam in the old French war, and was also a soldier in the Revolutionary army, enlisting in a company of infantry raised in Rehoboth.

Joseph+ Wilson, the eldest son and the fourth child of his parents, was born in Rehoboth, Mass., January 25, 1768. About 1795 he settled in Thomaston, Me., but removed in 1806 to Bradford, Me., where he passed the - remainder of his life, dying at the age of ninety- five years. He married Lydia Major, of Thom- aston, Me. She was born in Union, Me. They had twelve children, the third child being the next in line of descent.

John H.5 Wilson was born at Thomaston, Me., June 9, 1804. He died January 30, 1893, in Bangor, Me. He was a well-known man, and for several years served as Sheriff of Penob- scot County. On December 1, 1831, he mar- ried Rachel R. Kingsbury. She was born in Brewer, Me., April 26, 1807, and died at Ban- gor, August 5, 1895. She was a daughter of Emmons Kingsbury, of Bradford, Me.

Franklin Augustus6 Wilson was graduated at Bowdoin College in 1854. He subsequently studied law with Chief Justice John A. Peters, and settled as a lawyer in Bangor, where he has since resided. In 1893 he was elected president of the Maine Central Railway Com- pany, and served in that capacity until 1899, when he resigned. He received the degree of Doctor of Laws from Bowdoin College in 1902.

Mr. Wilson married, first, September 1, 1859, Mary Elliot, daughter of Joshua Wingate Carr. She died February 9, 1867, leaving two chil- dren: Mary F., born January 12, 1861; and Elliot C.,7 born January 12, 1861, who died November 9, 1864. Mary F. Wilson married George C. Cutler, of Boston, Mass. They have five children, namely: John Cutler, born May 12, 1887; Elliott Cutler, born July 30, 1SSS; Roger Cutler, born November 3, 1889; George Cutler, born May 8, 1891; and Robert Cutler, born June 12, 1895. Mr. Wilson married, secondly, October 12, 1871, Caroline Pierce, daughter of Charles Stetson, Esq. Their chil- dren are: Charles Stetson Wilson, born June 10, 1873; John Wilson, borr September 26, 1878; and Hayward Wilson, born April 9, 1884.

REDERICK CHARLES THAYER, M.D., of Waterville, is a native of that city, his birthplace being the house where he now lives, No. 214 Main Street. Born September 30, 1844, the only child of Charles HF and Susan E. (Tobey) Thayer, he is a grandson of Dr. Stephen Thayer, who settled in Waterville in 1836. From Dr. Stephen" he traces his ances- try back through Samuel,5 Samuel,4 Captain Thomas,? and Ferdinando2 to Thomas1 Thayer, an early settler in Braintree, Mass. Thomas1 Thayer and his wife Margery brought with them

F. C. They

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from England their three sons-Thomas,2 Ferdi- nando,2 and Shadrach.2 Ferdinando" married January 14, 1652, Huldah, daughter of Thomas Hayward, and was one of the original settlers of Mendon, Mass. Captain Thomas,3 who was born in Mendon, married Mary Adams in 16SS; and Samuel,4 born there March 28, 1696, mar- ried Mary Thayer, perhaps a kinswoman. Samuel,5 whose birth took place in Mendon, Mass., June 10, 1721, married May 3, 1754, Sarah Farmer. She died in 1778 or 1779, and he settled in Uxbridge, Mass. He married in 1782, when sixty-one years old, Sarah Walker.

In Uxbridge, Mass., was born, February 10, 1783, Dr. Stephen" Thayer, who settled in Maine, and, as mentioned above, was the grand- father of Dr. Thayer, whose name heads the present sketch. Prior to coming to Waterville, Dr. Stephen6 Thayer practised medicine in China, Vassalboro, and Fairfield, Me. He died in Waterville, May 24, 1852. He was married first, May 13, 1SOS, to Sophia Carleton, a native of Vassalboro, who was born December 1, 1790. She died February S (or 9), 1831 ; and on Febru- ary 10 of the following year he married her sister, Mary Carleton. His children were all of his first union.

Charles H." Thayer, Dr. Frederick C.S Thayer's father, was born in Fairfield, Me., October 14, 1810, and, when a young man, he engaged in general trade in his native town. Removing to Waterville in 183S, he continued in mercan- tile pursuits there for the rest of his life. He attained to a prominent position both in public affairs and financial circles, being a director of one of the banks and for a number of years Chairman of the Board of Selectmen. On Octo- ber 3, 1837, he married Susan E. Tobey, who was born in Fairfield, June 17, 1810, and whose death occurred in Waterville, October 15, 1893.

Frederick Charles Thayer acquired his ele- mentary education in the Waterville public schools, and prepared for college at Johnson's School for Boys in Topsham, Me. He entered Waterville (now Colby) College as a member of the class of 1865, but later withdrew from that institution and continued his classical course at Union College, Schenectady, N.Y., where he was a student for eighteen months. After leaving Union College he studied medicine |

with Dr. James E. Pomfret, of Albany, N.Y., as preceptor. In 1865-66 he attended lectures at the Albany Medical School, and then, returning to Maine, completed his professional course in the medical department of Bowdoin College, from which he was graduated a Doctor of Medi- eine in 1867. Locating himself for practice in his native town, he began the arduous duties of his noble profession with the energy and en- thusiasm of one thoroughly in earnest, and, by continued study and careful, conscientious work in connection with all cases that came under his care, rapidly acquired a high reputation both as physician and surgeon, which now ex- tends far beyond the limits of his actual field of operation. His ability as a surgeon is espe- cially recognized as more than ordinary, and in difficult cases he operates with a boldness that comes only from the most thorough knowledge of anatomy and the self-confidence born of long practice and a knowledge of his own skill and dexterity. Dr. Thayer has twice visited Europe in the interests of his profession, and has profited much from his observations in the famous hospitals of London, Paris, and Berlin. It is needless to say that he keeps in close touch with all the latest discoveries rela- tive to his profession. His Master's degree he received from Colby College in 1884.

Dr. Thayer is identified with the leading pro- fessional bodies of Maine, being a member of the Kennebec County Medical Society, the Maine Medical Association, the Academy of Medicine, Portland, and the Alumni Association of the Medical Department of Bowdoin College, of which latter he was president in 1884-85. He is also an ex-president of the Kennebec County Medical Society, was the orator at the annual convention of the Maine Medical Asso- ciation in 1886, and president of that body for the years 18S7-SS. In 1889-90 he served upon the Waterville Board of Aldermen, and was for one term a member of the lower branch of the Legislature. He was formerly an officer in the Maine National Guard, serving as assistant surgeon and surgeon of the Second Regiment, as medical director of the First Brigade; and he was for four years Surgeon-general upon the staff of Governor Henry B. Cleaves. In 1890 he was a member of the International

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Medical Congress, which assembled in Berlin, Germany. He is a frequent contributor to medical literature.

He was the first president of the Waterville Trust Company, and is now one of its directors. He is president of the Sawyer Publishing Com- pany and the Riverview Worsted Mills and a director of the W. W. & F. R.R. Co. He founded and has been president of the Water- ville Clinical Society. He is now president of the Board of United States Pension Examining Surgeons at Augusta, consulting surgeon to the Maine Central General Hospital at Lewiston and to the City Hospital at Augusta. In addi- tion to the care of his large business interests he has been prominently identified with all movements for the development and progress of the city for many years. He was president of the centennial committee of one hundred and of the executive committee; and the success of the celebration is due in no small degree to his faithful attention and to his efficient general- ship. He has been master of Waterville Lodge, F. & A. M., Commander of St. Omer Command- cry, K. T., and is now Grand Commander of the Grand Commandery of Maine, and is a thirty-second degree Mason.

On December 2, 1871, Dr. Thayer married Miss Leonora L. Snell, daughter of Judge William B. and Martha A. Snell, of Washing- ton, D.C. She was born in Monmouth. They have no children.

ON. PELEG FORD PIKE, one of the best known and most prominent among the more elderly citizens of Wayne, 'Kennebec County, is a native of the old Pine Tree State, his birth having occurred in the town of Fayette, December 11, 1813. His parents were Benjamin and Lusannah (Ford) Pike, and his paternal grandfather, Zachariah Pike, a native, or at least sometime resident, of New Hampshire. Benjamin Pike, the father, came to Maine with his parents from New Hampshire when a child of but six years, the family settling in Fayette, Kennebec County. Here he resided for the rest of his long life, which ended in 1870, when he was in his eighty- second year.

Mr. Pike's ancestors on both sides seem in general to have been blessed with remarkable vitality and sturdy constitutions, examples of great longevity being common among them. His grandmother Pike was in her ninety- seventh year when she died, and his great- grandmother Ford lived to be over a hundred years old. Probably this characteristic was largely due to generations of elean and health- ful living, the effect of which has been unim- paired by dissipation on the part of any of the members of the family .in direct line down to the subject of this sketch, who is himself an example of the value of good heredity.

Benjamin and Lusannah (Ford) Pike had six children born to them, namely-Peleg F .. Nathaniel R., James S., Eunice (who died in infancy), Eunice, second, Benjamin F. Of these only Peleg and Nathaniel are now living.

Peleg F. Pike was brought up on his father's farm in Fayette, attending the common schools of the town in his boyhood days, and when a little older becoming a pupil at the Maine Wesleyan Seminary at Kent's Hill, an insti- tution that has turned out many useful and valued citizens. The knowledge gained by study in his youth has been supplemented in later years by extensive reading, as well as by experience in the practical affairs of life. Employed chiefly in the time-honored and independent occupation of agriculture, that foundation stone upon which rests the entire industrial system, Mr. Pike has also given his attention to other callings. Coming to Wayne in 1SSO, he here engaged at first in the retail boot and shoe business, and so continued for about a year; but owing to poor health he was obliged to give it up. For many years he dealt in cattle and horses. In his different undertakings he has met with success, the natural result of sound judgment backed by industry and a reasonable economy.

Mr. Pike's good business qualifications and general knowledge of affairs could scarcely fail to attract the notice of his fellow-citizens. and so we find that at different times he has been called upon to utilize these qualities for a while in the public interest. In Fayette he served for some fifteen years as Seleetman and for a year as Town Treasurer, and for many

PELEG F. PIKE.

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years he was a justice of the peace. During the sessions of 1862 and 1863 he served as'a State Senator. Since coming to Wayne he has been Selectman for five years, for a part of the time being chairman of the board. He has also been Town Treasurer for two years. In politics he is a Republican.

Mr. Pike was married in June, 1839, to Mary P. Cochran, who was born in Vienna, Me., a daughter of James Cochran. He has had seven children, of whom four are now living: James C., who resides in Onawa, Ia .; M. Frances, wife of S. H. J. Berry, of Fayette, Me .; Nancy P., wife of Fletcher Howard, of Des Moines, Ia .; and Charles S., who, like his brother James, is a resident of Onawa, Ia. The three deceased are Benjamin F., Lewis, and Joseph L. Mrs. Mary P. Pike, the mother of these children, died August 6, 186S. On October 17, 1869, Mr. Pike married his present wife, who was then Mrs. Marcia A. Lake, daughter of Oliver and Lydia (Boston) Fuller and widow of Dr. E. H. Lake, of Wilton, Me. Of this union there was one child, a daughter, Mary L., who is now deceased.

OHN YEATON SCRUTON, who, pre- vious to his death in 1896, had been for many years one of the most influ- ential citizens of Lewiston, was born in Farmington, N.H., on December 23, 1821, son of William and Mary (Yeaton) Seruton. He was a grandson of Jonathan Scruton, a sturdy pioneer resident of Maine before the State was separated from Massachusetts.

Caverly, of Dover, N.H., and had three chil- dren-Olive, Mary, and Fenno Caverly. Tobias. born July 5, 1813, married Asenath Wetherell. and has two children-Albert and Mary, the latter being the wife of Dr. Wade, of Lawrence. Mass. Sarah, born May 2, 1815, married Joshua Roberts, of Strafford, N.H., and has five children-Tobias, Mercy, Jane, Ada and Lillie (twins). Alfred, born April 18, 1817, married Lydia A. Young, and has five children- Asenath, Ariana, William H., Mary and Olive. Lydia, born August 19, 1819, married Paul Brock, and has one child, Betsy Jane. Stephen. born March 2, 1824, married first Caroline A. Ray, who was born in Watertown, Mass., on March 5, 1824, and died on December 3, 1870. She was the mother of three children. Herbert A., the only survivor of these, was born in Laconia, N.H., on February 12. 1558. He married Mary Lynch, and has four chikIren -Mary, Carrie, Stephen, and Herbert. Stephen Scruton by his second wife, Mary Lewis, had no children. Mary Jane Scruton, born Febru- ary 7, 1826, died unmarried. William, born July 6, 1828, married Olivia Ann Jordan, and has one child living. Betsy Scruton, youngest child of William, born November 9, 1830, died in infancy.

John Yeaton Scruton, the sixth child of this large family, was a man of unusual force of character, and the memory of his inspiring ex- ample is still cherished by those who knew him best. He came to Maine from Farmington, N.H., when a lad, and obtained employment in the cotton mills. Deprived by the circum- stances of his early life from securing even the elementary education offered by the common schools, he set himself to make up for this lack by careful self-training. He realized that suc- cess in life could be reached only through his own efforts, and he determined to manfully se- cure the fullest possible advantage from every opportunity that should present itself. He was not, however, wrapped up in purely selfish efforts. One of his distinguishing qualities; both as a boy and as a man, was the tender consideration he showed for his parents. As long as they lived, he cherished and cared for them, providing for all their needs in their de-

Jonathan Scruton lived in Farmington, Me., in his younger days, but later in life removed to Strafford, N.H., where he had a large farm. He had a family of seven sons and two daugh- ters. William Scruton, the fifth son, was born in Farmington, Me., on November 30, 17SS. He died in Strafford, N.H. His marriage took place on May 29, 1811. His wife, Mary, daugh- ter of John Yeaton, of Farmington, was born in Strafford on April 29, 1791. They had ten children-Mercy, Tobias, Sarah, Alfred, Lydia, John Yeaton, Stephen, Mary Jane, William, and Cora. Their birthplace was Farmington. Mercy, born November 27, 1812, married Alfred | clining years. Mr. Scruton went to Lewiston

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when the Bates Mill was opened there, and was the first foreman of its weaving-room. Pre- viously he had worked in mills in Saco and in New Jersey. He had not been long in Lewiston when his business instinct led him to foresee the coming development of the city's business interests. He soon felt that his place in Lewis- ton was not inside the mill, but outside, in the rushing, growing business life of the city. So- curing a location under the Baptist Church, at the corner of Main and Lisbon Streets, he, with a partner named Burleigh, opened a cloth- ing store. During the early sixties, when "war prices" were in vogue, the firm of Burleigh & Scruton did an exceedingly prosperous business. Later Hon. J. L. H. Cobb bought a share in the business, becoming one of the firm; and, after Mr. Burleigh withdrew, the firm name became Cobb & Scruton. Mr. Scruton's son, Edwin F. Scruton, joined his father in partner- ship in 1884. From that time until the death of the elder Mr. Scruton the business was con- ducted under the firm name of J. Y. Scruton & Son.

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Biographical sketches of representative citizens of the state of Maine, Part 9

Author: New England Historical Publishing Company, Boston, pub Publication date: 1903 Publisher: Boston, New England historical publishing company Number of Pages: 998

Author: New England Historical Publishing Company, Boston, pub
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Boston, New England historical publishing company
Number of Pages: 998