Genealogical and family history of the state of Maine, Volume IV, Part 24

Author: Little, George Thomas, 1857-1915, ed; Burrage, Henry Sweetser, 1837-1926; Stubbs, Albert Roscoe
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: New York, Lewis historical publishing company
Number of Pages: 896

USA > Maine > Genealogical and family history of the state of Maine, Volume IV > Part 24

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(VII) Howard Lyman, eldest child of Paul and Abigail Jeffords (Wells) Prince, was born at Cumberland, Maine, May 17, 1840. He received his education in the public schools, and the North Yarmouth Academy, was grad- uated from Bowdoin College with the degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1862, and received the degree of Master of Arts from the same in- stitution in 1865; he was the third son of Paul Prince to graduate from the institution. He enlisted from Cumberland, Maine, before leaving college, and was mustered into the Twentieth Maine Infantry Regiment, August 29, 1862, as quartermaster sergeant, and on February 13, 1864, he was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant. He was severely wounded at Laurel Hill, Virginia, May 8, 1864; rejoined his regiment in August and served until January, 1865, on the staff of Brigadier-General J. J. Bartlett, commanding the Third Brigade, First Division, Fifth Corps. At the battle of Peeble's Farm, September 30, 1864, he was the first to enter the enemy's works and secured the surrender of the officer in command. For his services in this action he was breveted captain, and on December I, 1864, was promoted to full captaincy. From February, 1865, to the close of the war he was judge advocate of the First Division, Fifth Corps, commanded by Major-General Griffin. From 1865 to 1868 Captain Prince was assist- ant principal of the high school at Portland, Maine, then became clerk of the registrar in bankruptcy, General James D. Fessenden. He removed to Washington in 1870, taking the post of secretary to Hon. John Lynch, mem-

ber of congress, and two years later was em- ployed in the Treasury Department of the United States, 1872-75. Mr. Prince was grad- uated from Columbian College (now George Washington University) in 1875, with the de- gree of Bachelor of Laws, and was clerk of the police court of Washington, 1875-88. In 1889, through civil service examination, he se- cured the position of librarian of the Patent Office Scientific Library, and holds this posi- tion at the present time (1909). He is a man of more than ordinary ability and enterprise and has served his country long and well. He

is a Republican, affiliates with the Episcopal church, and is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, and the University Club of Washington. Captain Prince was married, June II, 1874, to Susan Jane, born in Gawcutt, Bucks county, Eng- land, February 21, 1846, daughter of George and Susan (Soden) Tew, and they have chil- dren :

I. Paul Cushing, born June 9, 1875; grad- uate of Washington high school, 1894; ap- pointed cadet in U. S. revenue cutter service, May 20, 1896; graduated as third lieutenant, April 28, 1898, and assigned to revenue cut- ter "Manning," at opening of Spanish-Amer- ican war; on duty on northern coast of Cuba, where his vessel covered the first landing of American troops on Cuban soil. The "Man- ning" formed part of the convoy which es- corted the army of General Shafter to San- tiago, and was the despatch boat of Admiral Sampson during the investment. After the destruction of the Spanish fleet she took part in an action on the southwest coast of Cuba. Later she represented the navy when General Brooke received the formal surrender of the Spanish troops at San Juan, Porto Rico. As the result of Cuban fever, his health gave way, and he was retired in July, 1902. He is now an architect in San Francisco, California. He married, June 3, 1903, Gertrude Bradley Was- son, born in Genoa, Nevada, November 12, 1870, daughter of Warren and Grace (Tread- way) Wasson. Children, born in San Fran- cisco: David Treadway, January 4, 1905, and Clara Louise, March 28, 1906.

2. Ethel Thomas, born November 1, 1876; unmarried.

3. Susan Warr, born October 2, 1880; mar- ried Louis St. Elmo Burgess, of Charlottes- ville, Virginia; children: Elizabeth Oakes, born March 8, 1904, and Ethel Anderson, born December 31, 1907.

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ST. CLAIR We must go back to the misty Northland to find the well- head of this ancient and noble family and to the year of grace 888. It was long before surnames were known, and we begin the table with :

(I) Rogenwald, Earl of Maerle in Norway, who was called the "Rich," was a great favor- ite of King Harold, whose relative he mar- ried. He received a grant of the Orkney Islands, which his descendants ruled for five centuries.

(II) Prince Rollo, son of Rogenwald, was a half savage chief, but ambitious, energetic and resourceful. Visions of conquests to the south found lodgment in his busy brain. Fit- ting out a fleet of dragon ships and summon- ing his faithful followers, he set sail in search of booty and aggrandizement. Sighting the fair and alluvial plains of Normandy, he there made his landfall and committed grand lar- ceny of a portion of that well-favored prov- ince. In 912 he met near St. Clair Castle the imbecile, Charles, surnamed the Simple, then King of France, and easily obtained from that weakling a concession of the province. He embraced the Catholic faith and married King Charles' daughter, Grielle by name, and be- came the first Duke of Normandy. He abdi- cated in favor of his eldest son in 917 and died in 931. Children : William, the Longsword, Robert, Earl of Corbueil, and Gerlotte, who married the Earl of Poitiers.

(III) William, the Longsword, son of Prince Rollo and Grielle, was born in Nor- mandy and succeeded his father in the duke- dom. He married a daughter of Count Rob- ert, of Vermadon, and his other wife was Sporta. Longsword was assassinated in 948. (IV) Richard, third Duke of Normandy, the son of "Longsword," was born in Nor- mandy, dying in 960. He married a daughter of Hugh, Count of Paris, and (second) Gon- nora, a princess of Norway. Children: Rich- ard, Robert, Earl of Evreux, Malger, Hed- wiga, who married Geffrey, Earl of Brittany ; and Emma, who married Ethelred, second king of England and her second husband was Canute, the Great.

(V) Malger, third son of Richard, was created Earl of Corbueil and Archbishop of Rouen. He was great-uncle to William the Conqueror. It was he who adopted the sur- name of St. Clere after the town and castle in which he lived, and was among the first to use a surname. It was then spelled as pronounced "Sinclair."

Children : Hamo, Walderne and Hubert.

(VI) Walderne, second son of Malger Sin- clair, was born in Normandy in about 1006. His home was not the famous castle from which the name was taken, but at the castle of St. Lo, the abode of his descendants for many years. He and his three sons rallied around William the Conqueror at Hastings, England, on that eventful October day in 1066, in the irrepressible conflict between Norman and Saxon. As we know, the former won and Walderne's allotment of land was on the Med- way river. He was living as late as 1075. For a wife he took his cousin, Margaret, daughter of the fourth Duke of Normandy. Children : Richard, Britel and William.

(VII) William (2), youngest son of Wal- derne and Margaret Sinclair, was born in Normandy about 1028. Yellow of hair, regu- lar of feature, symmetrical of proportions, his beauty of person won for him the sobriquet of "The Seemly St. Clair." On the roll in the church at Dives, Normandy, he is alluded to as "William le blonde." He followed William to Hastings, but seems to have disagreed with his illustrious kinsman and in 1068 left Eng- land and formed an alliance with Malcolm III of Scotland, who made him steward to the queen and warden of the marches. He and William became bitter foes and they met in battle array near the Tweed repeatedly, in which contests the Conqueror more than once played a losing card. William lost his life in one of these sanguinary conflicts. He mar- ried Doratha Dunbar, daughter of the Earl of March, and obtained a grant of the barony of Roslin, in Midlothian. Children: Sir Will- iam and Henry.

(VIII) Sir William (3), son of William (2) and Doratha (Dunbar) Sinclair, suc- ceeded to the baronial title and estate of his father.

(IX) Sir Henry was a son of Sir William (3) Sinclair and took the succession.

(X) Sir William (4) was the son of Sir Henry Sinclair and died about 1270.

(XI) Sir William (5) was the son of Sir William (4) Sinclair. He was sheriff of county Edinburg for life, and sat in the par- liament of Scone, February 5, 1284, when the succession to the crown of Scotland was set- tled after the death of Alexander III. The same year he was of the commissioners sent to France to obtain a queen for the king who was a widower, which resulted in making Joletta, daughter of Count de Dreux, the queen. In 1292 he sided with Baliol, who aspired to the crown, and swore fealty to King Edward of England; he died in 1300,

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leaving three sons, Sir Henry, William and Gregory.

(XII) Sir Henry (2), eldest son of Sir William (5) Sinclair, swore fealty to King Edward of England in the dispute over the Scottish succession between Baliol and Robert Bruce, the English monarch espousing the cause 'of the former, but Henry subsequently went over to Bruce. Henry asserted the in- dependence of Scotland in a letter to Pope in 1320.

(XIII) Sir William (6) was the son of Sir Henry Sinclair, or St. Clair, as the name was interchangeably used, and accompanied Sir James Douglas on his expedition to the Holy Land and was killed with him in fighting the Moors in Spain, August 25, 1330. His tomb is still to be seen in Roslin Chapel and repre- sents the person of a knight in armor, at- tended by a greyhound.

(XIV) Sir William (7) was the son of Sir William (6) St. Clair, or Sinclair. He married Isabel, daughter of Malise, Earl of Strathern and Orkney.

(XV) Henry (3), son of Sir William (7) St. Clair, became Earl of Orkney and in 1379 obtained confirmation of his title from Haco IV of Norway. This was the island where the original Rogerwald, the great father of the race, held sway in 888.

(XVI) Henry (4) was the son of Henry (3) St. Clair, and was the second Earl of Orkney and Admiral of Scotland. He was the chief attendant of Prince James, after- ward James I, when he was captured at sea by the British in 1405. The earl was sent to the tower of London, but released and per- mitted to return to Scotland. He was not living in 1418.

(XVII) William (8) St. Clair, third Earl of Orkney and Earl of Caithness, the first of the family to hold that title, was the son of Henry (4) St. Clair. He held various im- portant offices in the kingdom, including high chancellor, and was a laird of vast influence and an extensive landed proprietor. He re- sided at Roslin Castle, the seat of the "lordly line of St. Clairs" for many generations. It was eight miles from Edinburg, was situated on a projecting rock overlooking the Eske valley, being reached by a bridge. It is ruins now, but all parts are visible and some of it in a fair state of preservation. In this earl's day it was noted for its baronial splendor and open hospitality. Father Hay, a member of the household, said: "As a prince at his palace of Roslin Castle he kept a great court and was royally served at his own table in

vessels of gold and silver and was waited upon by lords. He had his halls and other apartments richly adorned with embroidered hangings. His princess, Elizabeth, was served by seventy-five gentlewomen, whereof fifty- three were daughters of noblemen, all clothed in velvet and silks, with chains of gold and other ornaments, and was attended by two hun- dred riding gentlemen in all journies ; and if it happened to be dark when she went to Edin- burg, where her lodgings were at the foot of Fryars wynd, eighty lighted torches were car- ried before her." This earl founded Roslin Chapel in 1446 and endowed it with lands and revenues. It is still extant and is a noble creation of Gothic art. It stands above the castle a short distance. Beneath its pavement the old lords of the manor lie buried in ar- mor. There was a superstition that the night before the death of any of the family the chapel appeared in flames. Sir Walter Scott has apostrophized the legend :

"O'er Roslin all that dreary night A wondrous blaze was seen to gleam ; 'Twas broader than the watch-fire light, And redder than the bright moonbeam. It glared on Roslin's castled rock, It ruddied all the copse-wood glen; 'Twas seen from Dryden's groves of oak, And seen from caverned Hawthornden. Seemed all on fire that chapel proud, Where Roslin's chief uncoffined lie; Each Baron for a sable shroud Sheathed in his iron panoply."

The present earl was described as a very fair man, great stature, broad bodied, the tradi- tional yellow hair, and well proportioned. He married Margaret, daughter of Archibald, fourth Earl of Douglass. He married (sec- ond) Marjorie, daughter of Alexander Suth- erland, of Dunbeath. Children by Margaret : William, and Catherine, who married the Duke of Albany. By Majorie he had Sir Oliver, William, his successor in the earldom; Sir David, Robert, John, Bishop nominate of Caithness; Eleanor, Elizabeth, Marion and Marjorie.

(XVIII) William (9), second Earl of Caithness, was the second son of William (8) and Marjorie (Sutherland) St. Clair. He was killed at that desperate and death-dealing bout between the Highlanders and the English on Flodden field. His marriage was with Mary, daughter of Sir William Keith. Chil- dren : John and Alexander.

(XIX) John, third Earl of Caithness, was the eldest son of William (9) and Mary (Keith) Sinclair. He invaded Orkney and was met by a body of Orcadians, commanded by James Sinclair, governor of Kirkwall Cas- tle, and the earl and five hundred of his fol- lowers were slain. He married Elizabeth,

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daughter of Sir William Sutherland, of Duf- fus. Heirs: William, who died issueless ; George and David.

(XX) George, fourth Earl of Caithness, was the second son of John and Elizabeth (Sutherland) Sinclair. He was a cruel, malev- olent man and imprisoned his own brother. He was in favor with the crown, however, and held high offices of trust, with Justiciar of Caithness and sat as a peer at the trial of Bothwell. He died September 9, 1582. He had married Elizabeth, daughter of Earl of Montrose, and their issue was John, William, George, Barbara, Elizabeth, Janet and another daughter.

(XXI) John (2), Master of Caithness, was the oldest son of George and Elizabeth Sin- clair, and died in Girnigo Castle, 1576. In 1543 he obtained from Queen Mary a charter by which the earldom became a male fee to him and heirs male. He married Jean, daugh- ter of Patrick, Earl of Bothwell, and (second) Bessie Gunn. Children: George, James, who was the ancestor of General Arthur St. Clair of revolutionary fame, who settled in Penn- sylvania ; John, Agnes and Henry.

(XXII) Henry (5), youngest son of John (2) and Jean Sinclair, received a conveyance from his brother, Earl George, of part of the lands of Borrowstone and Lybster with the "miln and fishings," and he made a reversion of them to the earl September 23, 1606. He died of paralysis while besieging the castle of Kirkwall in 1614. He married Janet Suther- land and had a son John.

(XXIII) John (3) there is cumulative force in saying was the son of Henry (5) and Janet (Sutherland) Sinclair, was born about 1630, and was in Exeter, New Hampshire, in 1658, living on Wheelwright creek. After many centuries he landed on the shores of the broad Atlantic, where mayhap some of his Norse ancestors, some "viking bold," had moored his dragon ship. John and his descendants spelled his name phonetically as Sinkler. It was a common occurrence for a man in com- ing to a new country to change the way of spelling his name. Exeter was settled by in- voluntary emigrants, led by Rev. John Wheel- wright, who was ostracised from the old Bay Colony on account of his Antimonianism. The Puritans left the other side of the Atlantic because of religious intolerance and no sooner had they set foot here than they had troubles of their own making. They bounced out Roger Williams, John Wheelwright, perse- cuted the quiet Quakers and hung the witches in old Salem. This was doling out medicine

to their neighbors which they had refused in iconoclastic England and had traveled far to avoid, and certainly shows an inconsistency difficult to explain. It is not known whether our John was of the Wheelwright set; at any rate, the colony was feeble and glad of any accessions. In 1659 he purchased sixteen acres of land, and the town thought enough of him to grant him "fyften acres" October 10, 1664, "lying on the old Salesbury way, be- yond James Walls land," and in 1680 twenty acres more. They had the usual neighbor- hood troubles in those days and there was a dispute relative to the line betwixt him and Leftenant Hall. It was referred out for set- tlement, but John sued Ralph Hall for tres- pass (see Norfolk county records, for New Hampshire was under Massachusetts jurisdic- tion). He took the oath of allegiance and fidelity in November, 1677, and December 6, 1678, he took title to twenty acres of upland from Daniel Robinson. John Mason had been granted New Hampshire by a patent from the crown, and his representative was Edward Cranfield, an arrogant, arbitrary magistrate, who ruled his subjects with a rod of iron. Public feeling ran high against him, and open rebellion broke out. A petition was sent to his Majesty, which may be seen in the Mas- sachusetts archives, praying for relief, and this petition bears John Sinkler's signature, though he made a mark to his will. He was a sturdy man, full of the Scotch traditions of pluck, frugality and persistence, and accumulated his share of this world's goods to cheer his life in the "sere, the yellow leaf." His province rate was sixteen shillings and four pence. He was the basic ancestor of most of the Sinclairs and St. Clairs in America. Their diverging lines are many, and their abodes are everywhere the sun shineth. ' His will was made September 14, 1700, to which he made his mark, a round robin. The first name of his wife was Mary. She died, and he next married one Deborah. She was a shrewd woman, and drove a good bargain, having an eye to the main chance. She made a business contract with John be- fore marriage, anticipating the modern sociolo- gists. We imagine it was not wholly a real love affair. Issue: James, Mary, Sarah, Maria and John.

(XXIV) James, eldest son of John (3) and Mary Sinkler, was born in Exeter, July 27, 1760, and this town, beside the tidal Swam- scott, was always his home. He was a hus- bandman. At sixteen he entered the military service in King Philip's war, in Captain John Holbrook's company, and took the oath of al-

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legiance and fidelity November 30, 1677. He signed the petition condemning the despotic Crandall, and his bold signature may be seen in the Massachusetts archives. He was a con- stable in 1694, juryman in 1703, selectman in 1695, 1700 and 1706. The Indians hung like a pall over the little community and fell upon the unprotected settlers unawares. They knew not of their impending doom till too late. The home of John Sinkler had been marked for pillage, but an accidental discovery of the lurk- ing foe in ambush prevented the terrible catas- trophe. John was used to the discomforts of the camp and the sword-play of the field; for thirty years of his life was more or less on the march or the defensive. He bore the title of sergeant. He was one of the proprietors of Gilmanton, New Hampshire, and notwith- standing his blood-letting encounters and his long, wearying journeys from home and loved ones, John's life was on the whole a winner and things ran smoothly and prosperously enough considering the trying times in which fate had cast his lot, and as his sun dipped toward the western horizon he had the where- withal to make his last days "days of peace." His will was made July 23, 1732, and his province rate was two pounds, eighteen shill- ings and six pence. He married Mary, daugh- ter of Richard and Prudence (Waldron) Scammons, who was born May 31, 1673. Progeny : John, Joseph, Samuel, Jonathan, Richard, Ebenezer, Benjamin, Mercy, Martha, David, Zesiah and Mary.

(XXV) Joseph, second son of James and Mary (Scammons) Sinkler, was born in Exe- ter, 1692. He was one of the original pro- prietors of Gilmanton, New Hampshire, and by the will of his father received forty acres of land in Epping, New Hampshire. His name is upon a petition in the state house at Con- cord, New Hampshire, regarding an election in Newmarket. He lived in South Newmarket, now Newfields, New Hampshire, on Smart Creek. "Westward the star of the empire takes its course." Joseph disposed of his holdings in Newmarket, and being of an adventurous turn, acquired of the Masonian proprietors a tract of land on Buck street, in the town of Pem- broke, New Hampshire, and plunged into the wilderness. His was lot number one, of fifty- nine acres, and was near what is now Sun- cook, on the banks of the musical Merrimack. He married Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Lyford, of Exeter. Children: Thomas, Jo- seph, John and James.

(XXVI) Thomas, eldest son of Joseph and Elizabeth (Lyford) Sinkler, was born in

South Newmarket, now Newfields, in 1721, and is the first time the name Thomas ap- pears in the family, which comes from the Lyford line of his mother. He went with his father to Buck street, Pembroke, the people hereaway partially obtaining their living by fishing for lamphrey eels in the Merrimack. In order to protect the fish in the river, a petition was sent to the state government to restrain fishing on certain days. Thomas signed this, and we may infer he was a fisher- man as well as a farmer. This was probably the first attempt made in the United States to protect fish by law, and the Buck street peti- tioners builded better than they knew. The roaming spirit was still upon Thomas, and he purchased, September 21, 1764, a farm in "El- lonstown," now Allenstown, which adjoined Pembroke. To this place he transferred his household abode only to remain one year. Sanborntown, New Hampshire, was the next place to enroll him as a citizen, and his farm of ninety acres was on Steel Hill. He was surveyor of highways, tythingman, and signed the Association test in 1776. True to his kin- dred, he could not remain idle when the smell of powder was in the air, and we accordingly find him in Captain Chase Taylor's company, Colonel Stickney's regiment, and General Stark's brigade. They joined the northern continental army, but went only as far as Charlestown, New Hampshire. Thomas once was young, whereas now he was getting old and decrepit. The weight of seventy-two win- ters that had rolled past rested upon his stoop- ing shoulders somewhat heavily, and the clouds of eternity were sweeping down upon him. He had been a pioneer in four towns, South Newmarket, Pembroke, Allenstown and San- borntown. Right nobly he had done the work of a town builder. It would seem he had but one more move to make, and that to his last resting place, but his courage was yet good. The flow of emigration was still westward, and Vermont was the objective point of many. Two of his brothers had already gone there, also his son Benjamin. Together with his son James, he went to Hardwick, Vermont, and living a few years, his bones were laid at rest in December, 1796, in a coffin painted black. The records do not state the name of his wife. His descendants, named from both classical and biblical sources, were: Thomas, Sarah, Bathsheba, James, Zebulon and Constantine.

(XXVII) Thomas (2), second son of Thomas (I) Sinkler, was born in Newmarket, April 14, 1751. He settled in Meredith, New Hampshire, on Lake Winnepesaukee. His

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home was in the Pease school district near the Oak Hill church, and the farm he occupied is now owned by a son of Thomas Veasey. Thomas was a tall, slender man, and not blessed with the best of health, which was contrary to the Sinklers, a robust race. He died of consumption, a taint which probably came into the family from other lines. He attended the Free Baptist church, and though not a communicant, the reading of the good Book was a daily custom in his home not hon- ored in the breach. He was a home body, in- offensive of manner, attended to his private af- fairs, taking very little interest in public mat- ters. He married Mary Meed, of Stratham, New Hampshire, who was born October 25, 1755. She died. He married (second) Nancy Pike, of Meredith, who was thirty-four at the time. Six of his children were borne by Mary and two by Nancy. John Meed, James, Thomas, Mary, William, Joseph, Sarah and Susan.

(XXVIII) James (2), second son of Thom- as (2) and Mary (Meed) Sinkler, was born in Meredith, New Hampshire, May 9, 1777. He changed the orthography of the name to St. Clair, and defying the laws of emigration, turned his steps eastward, landing at Owls Head, Thomaston, Maine, December 5, 1803. This was an undeveloped region, but fast com- ing into notice as a migrating point for Mas- sachusetts people. He was a joiner and worked at his trade in Thomaston, Warren and Union, Maine. He invested in ninety-six acres of wild land in Union, and built a log hut thereon. The new land was rich and fer- tile, and produced abundant harvests under the magic touch of the husbandman. Wild beasts were troublesome, and his wife often fright- ened away the bears as they were breaking down the corn. Both husband and wife were devoted Christians, and the "St Clair path" over the hill, along which they went to church, still marks the way. He was dark complex- ioned, black hair and eyes, six feet and one inch tall, weighing one hundred and ninety pounds. He married Sally Wiggin, of Stra- tham, New Hampshire, who was born Sep- tember 18, 1778, and died June 5, 1868, a nonagenarian. Posterity: Lavina, Mary, George Washington, Mehala, Thurza, James Madison, Erastus, Sarah, Lucy L., Abigail B. and Guildford D.

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Genealogical and family history of the state of Maine, Volume IV, Part 24

Author: Little, George Thomas, 1857-1915, ed; Burrage, Henry Sweetser, 1837-1926; Stubbs, Albert Roscoe Publication date: 1909 Publisher: New York, Lewis historical publishing company Number of Pages: 896

Author: Little, George Thomas, 1857-1915, ed; Burrage, Henry Sweetser, 1837-1926; Stubbs, Albert Roscoe
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: New York, Lewis historical publishing company
Number of Pages: 896