USA > Maine > Genealogical and family history of the state of Maine, Volume IV > Part 39
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STATE OF MAINE.
tie B., Nettie Jewell, died in infancy, and Ralph A.
(X) Ralph A., son of Albert and Myra (Reynolds) Jewell, was born in Fairfield, June 26, 1883. He was educated in the com- mon schools of Fairfield, Waterville high school, Coburn Classical Institute, and Shaw's Business College of Augusta, Maine. He is engaged in business with his father as afore- mentioned. He is a Republican in politics, and a member of Asylum Lodge, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, Fairfield; Teconet Chapter, Waterville; St. Omar Commandery, Knights Templar, Waterville; Kora Temple, Mystic Shrine, Lewiston. He married, in 1907, Arlene Clark, of Skowhegan, Maine.
SAUNDERS Jonathan Saunders was a young unmarried man in Norway, Maine, at the time of the incorporation of the town in 1797. He was born in Tewksbury, Massachusetts, in 1776, died in Norway in 1838. He married, about the year 1800, Susannah Weeks, of Gray, who died January 23, 1827, aged forty- five years. They had four children: I. Ann, born November 30, 1802, died April 16, 1883. She married and had Elmira S., born No- vember II, 1833, married E. R. Merrill; and Wellington R., born 1840, who was a sergeant in Company H of the Eighth Illinois Regi- ment, and died from wounds received in the battle of Shiloh, August 19, 1863. 2. Joseph, October 8, 1804 (see post). 3. John, Novem- ber 7, 1806, died in Norway, Maine, June 20, 1874; married, September 24, 1830, Sally M. Lord, of Minot, who died February 16, 1879, and had ten children. 4. Isaac, July 24, 1814, married (first) November 1, 1834, Mary Shaw, by whom he had nine children ; married (second) at Buckfield, in November, 1861, Sarah J. Thomas, of Peru, and had four chil- dren.
(II) Joseph, son and second child of Jona- than and Susannah (Weeks) Saunders, was born October 8, 1804. He lived in Poland, Maine, where he owned and managed a farm
for the greater part of his life. He married Charlotte Merrow, of Minot, Maine, and had one child, Samuel W.
(III) Samuel W., only son and child of Joseph and Charlotte (Merrow) Saunders, was born in Poland, Maine, April 13, 1832 and spent his earlier years at home, attending the local schools and assisting his father in carrying on the farm. He later went to Au- burn, Maine, and from there to Lewiston. He married (first) Fannie M. Haskell, daughter of Cephas Haskell, of Sweden, Maine, and by whom he had two children: I. Anson, born in 1861, died in infancy. 2. Ernest, October 22, 187I. Married (second) Mary E. Me- serve, and by her he had Frances B., Stella M. and Charles M.
(IV) Ernest, second child of Samuel W. and Fannie M. (Haskell) Saunders, was born in Auburn, Maine, October 22, 1871. His. parents removed from Auburn to Lewiston,. Maine, when he was about nine years old, and he was educated in the public schools of the latter city. When he was about sixteen years old he started in business as a market gar- dener on a tract of land in Lewiston owned by his father, and continued in this line with success for about five years. He then turned his attention to the culture of flowers and in this branch of trade has been eminently suc- cessful, winning a state-wide reputation and doing business on a large scale, having at present thirty-five thousand square feet under cover of glass. Mr. Saunders is also well known in fraternal circles of Lewiston, has taken the thirty-second degree in Masonry and is in his second year as master of the Blue Lodge, and is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias, Improved Order of Red Men, Knights of the Golden Eagle, and of New England Order of Protection. A Republican in politics. He married, June 25, 1906, Mary, daughter of John M. and Nettie (Budlong) Crawshaw, of Auburn, Maine, and has one child, Fannie Estelle, born in Lewiston, May 15, 1907.
GemistSaundus
1849
STATE OF MAINE.
This name is found with numer- GROSS ous spellings such as Grose, Grosse and Groce, besides that used by them in the early records of England and New England. The family is an ancient one in England, and is frequently mentioned in the records of Cornwall and Norfolk be- tween 1611 and 1639. It came into England in the French form de Gross and was un- doubtedly of German origin. It has no con- nection with the Brunswick, Maine, family whose name is spelled Grows.
(I) Isaac Gross, a native of England and. brewer by occupation, was granted lands in the great allotment of land at Muddy River, and was among the original inhabitants of the colony of Massachusetts Bay. His will was dated May 29, 1649. He had sons: Ed- ward and Clement.
(II) Clement, son of Isaac Gross, was born at Boston, England, and was an infant when he came with his father to Massachusetts. He was a brewer, and in 1678 was an innholder. His first wife bore the christian name of Mary, and was the mother of Simon, mentioned be- low; Elizabeth (died young) ; Edmund (died young) ; Elizabeth, born March 5, 1658; Isaac and William, March 3, 1665. His second wife, Ann, was the mother of Edmund, born March 27, 1669, and Ann, March 18, 1671.
(III) Simon, son of Clement and Mary Gross, was born 1652 and resided in Hing- ham, where he died April 26, 1696. He was a boatman and was evidently successful, as the inventory of his estate amounted to one hundred and ninety-six pounds, five shillings and three pence. Administration was granted to his widow, Mary. He married, October 23, 1675, in Hingham, Mary Bond. Children : Simon, born August 4, 1676; Thomas, Feb- ruary 4, 1678; John, April 3, 1681; Josiah, August 2, 1683; Micah, mentioned below ; Alice, April 26, 1689, married John Crowell, of Truro; Abigail, June 28, 1692.
(IV) Micah, fifth son of Simon and Mary (Bond) Gross, was born February 20, 1686, in Hingham, and settled in Truro, Massachu- setts, after May, 1709. He died there in 1753, and was buried in the Old North cemetery. His first wife, Mary, died in 1724, aged thir- ty-five years, and he married Hannah, daugh- ter of Constant and Jane (Neat) Freeman, who died in 1758, aged fifty-four years. His children by first wife were: Simon, born May 30, 1709, in Hingham ; Ebenezer, 1713; Israel, 1718; Mary, 1720, married, in 1741, Roger (2) Stevens. His children by second wife
were: Micah, born 1726, lost at sea; Jonah, 1728; Joseph, 1731, lost at sea; Benjamin, 1733; Hannah, 1740; and John, 1744.
(V) Israel, third son of Micah and Mary Gross, was born in 1718 in Truro, Massachu- setts, where he was a prominent resident, liv- ing in the valley south of the graveyard, in the district known as "Old Orchard." He subsequently occupied a house in the village of Truro, where his last days were spent. He married (first) Elizabeth Rich and ( second) Lydia Paine. The children by first wife were : Isaiah (died young) ; Samuel, born 1743; Jaquaniah, 1745; Elizabeth, 1748, married Isaiah Atkins in 1764; Mary, 1749, married Barzillai Smith; Joseph, 1751; Delia, 1755, married John Collins in 1774, and died in 18II. The children by second wife were: Micah, born 1764; Lydia, 1769; Israel, 1772.
(VI) Samuel, second son of Israel and Eliz- abeth (Rich) Gross, was born in 1743 in Truro, Massachusetts, and removed to Bruns- wick in what is now Maine, in 1760. He pur- chased land from Pajepscot Company and lived in Brunswick until his death. He mar- ried Mary, daughter of Aaron Hinckley, of Brunswick (see Hinckley V) ; a list of their children is not on record.
(VII) Israel (2), son of Samuel and Mary (Hinckley) Gross, was born in Brunswick, and was a lumberman and saw-mill operator. He was thrown in the Androscoggin river while handling logs and his body was buried in the Old cemetery, at Harding's Crossing. The records of Brunswick do not give the date of either his birth or death or the names of any of his children. He married, Decem- ber 27, 1798, Anna Spear, presumably a daughter of Robert and Margaret (Smart) Spear, who were married January 16, 1773, in Brunswick. Israel Gross had two sons : Sam- uel, who died at sea, and John Spear, and a daughter, Thurza, who married a Parshley, of Brunswick.
(VIII) John Spear, son of Israel (2) and Anna (Spear) Gross, was born June 17, 1807, in Brunswick, where he passed his life and died December 3, 1882. He was a well-to-do farmer and resided in the district of Bruns- wick, known as New Meadows. He was a member of the Baptist church and universally esteemed throughout the town. He was se- lectman in 1851, again in 1858, and in May, 1861, was chosen a member of the board of relief, by which the town made substantial provision for the families of those who en- listed in the civil war. He was interested in
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education and sent two of his sons to Bow- doin College, and one to the University of Michigan. He married Nancy Coffin, daugh- ter of Samuel and Susan Lane, of Exeter, New Hampshire (see Lane VI). She was born June 6, 1814, died March 1, 1870. Chil- dren : I. Israel, born July 15, 1837, died Feb- ruary, 1857. 2. Sarah Randall, December 16, 1839, married Isaiah Trufant, who was grad- uated A.B. at Bowdoin, 1863, A. M., 1866, and died in Oxford, Ohio, 1883. 3. John Parshley, May 1, 1841, graduated A.B .; at Bowdoin, 1866, A.M., 1869; married Clara, daughter of James Baker, in 1879; died in 1880 in Plainfield, New Jersey, where he was several years principal of the public schools. 4. Mary F., died when six months old. 5. Susan Ellen, April 22, 1845, married, 1876, Byron F. Marsh, a teacher and writer. 6. Samuel Lane, mentioned below. 7. Robert Spear, October 17, 1849, graduated A. B. at the University of Michigan, 1873, and at the General Theological Seminary, New York City, in 1877 ; he was a clergyman of the Epis- copal church, and for some years one of the ministers of Trinity Church, New York; he died in Florida in 1888.
(IX) Samuel Lane, third son of John Spear and Nancy Coffin (Lane) Gross, was born November 18, 1846, in Brunswick, where he grew up and was prepared for college at the public schools and under special tutors. He was graduated from Bowdoin College with the degree of A. B. in 1872. Three years later he received the degree of A. M. from his Alma Mater. He studied law at Columbia University, New York City, and was admit- ted to the bar in 1876, in that city, where he has since engaged actively in the practice of his profession. While he has been interested in some important litigation, his practice has been chiefly in private cases and has gained him an excellent standing at the bar of the Metropolis. He occupies offices at 206 Broad- way. He is affiliated with the Masonic fra- ternity, being a member of Ancient Lodge, No. 724, A. F. and A. M. of New York City. He is a member of All Angels ( Protestant Episcopal) Church and acts politically with the Republican party. He is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Association of New York City; of the Alpha Delta Phi Fraternity and Club ; of the Bowdoin Alumni Society and of the Maine Society of New York.
He married, July 30, 1903, in New York, Adelaide Louisa, daughter of Gerard T. and Catherine L. (Tompkins) Beekman, of New York.
This is one of the earliest HINCKLEY Massachusetts families and has been conspicuous in the history of New England, from its arrival, hav- ing furnished a governor to the Plymouth Colony and numerous valuable citizens since that time. It was early identified with the set- tlement and development of Maine.
(I) Samuel Hinckley was born 1595, in Tenterdon, county of Kent, England, and came to Boston in the "Hercules," of Sand- wich (two hundred tons, Captain John With- erby), July II, 1637. He located first at Scit- uate and removed to Barnstable in 1640, and died there October 31, 1662. His wife, Sarah, to whom he was married in England, died August 16, 1656. Their children were: Thomas, Susannah, Sarah, Mary, Elizabeth, Samuel (died young), Samuel and John.
(II) Thomas, eldest son of Samuel and Sarah Hinckley, was born in 1618, died April 25, 1706. He participated in the great Nar- ragansett fight in 1675, and was representa- tive to the general court in 1647. He was as-
sistant to the governor, deputy governor in 1680, and governor from 1681 to 1692. He was king's councilor under Andros from 1692 to 1706. He married (first) December 4, 1641, Mary Richards, who died in June, 1659, having borne him eight children, namely: Mary, Sarah, Meletiah, Hannah, Samuel, Thomas, Bathshua and Mehitable. Governor Hinckley married (second) March 15, 1660, Mary, daughter of John Smith and widow of Nathaniel Glover. She died July 29, 1703, having borne him nine children, as follows: Admire, Ebenezer (died young), Mercy, Ex- perience, John, Abigail, Thankful, Ebenezer and Reliance.
(III) Samuel (2), second son of Thomas and Mary (Richards) Hinckley, resided in Barnstable, Massachusetts. He married, No- vember 13, 1676, Mary Pope, and they were the parents of Mary, born July 22, 1678; Me- hitable, December 28, 1679; Thomas, March 19, 1681 ; Seth, April 16, 1683; Samuel, men- tioned below; Elnathan (died young) ; Job, February 16, 1688; Shubael, May 1, 1690; Mercy, January II, 1693; Josiah, January 24, 1695, and Elnathan, December 29, 1697.
(IV) Samuel (3), third son of Samuel (2) and Mary (Pope) Hinckley, was born Sep- tember 24, 1684, in Barnstable, and removed to Brunswick, Maine, in 1739. He married Mary, daughter of Edmund Freeman, of East- ham, Massachusetts, and all his children were born before his removal to Maine. The first six in Harwich and the others in Truro. They
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were : Seth, December 25, 1707; Shubael, March 25, 1709; Samuel and Mary (twins), February 7, 17II; Edmund, November 20, 1712; Reliance, November 21, 1714; Aaron, mentioned below; Mehitable, December 25, 1718: Experience, January 16, 1720. All of the sons except Shubael settled in Brunswick. (V) Aaron, son of Samuel (3) and Mary (Freeman) Hinckley, was born September 13, 1716, in Truro, Massachusetts, and prob- ably settled in Brunswick, Maine, before his father removed there. He was a noted man, often in the town service, on various commit- tees, and was selectman in 1745-50-55-59-60. In 1775 he was judge of the court of ses- sions of Lincoln county, and issued the war- rant for the first town meeting of Topsham. He lost one of his eyes in early life by an accident.
(VI) Mary, daughter of Aaron Hinckley, became the wife of Samuel Gross, of Bruns- wick (see Gross VI).
This name is of the class called LANE locative surnames, that is, those showing where the person lived, "John atte Lane," "William at Lane," are often found in English records of four hun- dred years ago, and show that the person named lived in a narrow street. Lane is of English origin, but for hundreds of years has been found in all four quarters of Great Britain. Among the early settlers of Eng- land there were at least a dozen named Lane. There is a tradition that William Lane, of Boston, had two brothers, cordwainers, in Beverly, or Gloucester, Massachusetts, and in Maine, were nephews of William Lane, of Dorchester, Massachusetts, who in 1635 came from Norfolk county, England, whose two adult sons, Andrew and George, settled in Hingham, Massachusetts. The Lane family of this article is notable for the number and local prominence of its members in military affairs, three generations having been cap- tains in the revolutionary war. Since the rev- olutionary period the Lanes have been equally prominent in the pursuit of peaceful occupa- tions.
(I) William Lane, above referred to as of Boston, the earliest of this line of whom we have record, was a cordwainer of Boston in 1650. His first wife was Mary, who had four children: Samuel (died young), Samuel, John and Mary. His second wife, Mary (Brewer) Lane, had four children: Sarah, William, Elizabeth and Ebenezer.
(II) William (2), second child and eldest
son of William (I) and Mary (Brewer) Lane, born October I, 1659, was a tailor by trade. He joined the North Church, Boston, in 1681, and in 1686 removed to Hampton, New Hampshire, where he settled on a grant of ten acres. He built a one-story house near the meeting house and the spot where the old academy stood. He is said to have been "a devout and godly man," living a quiet and humble life, respected by those who knew him. He died at the home of his son Joshua, Feb- ruary 14, 1749, aged about ninety years. He married, June 21, 1680, Sarah, daughter of . Thomas and Sarah (Brewer) Webster, born January 22, 1661, died January 6, 1745, and they had seven children: John, Sarah, Eliza- beth, Abigail, Joshua, Samuel and Thomas.
(III) Deacon Joshua, fifth child and sec- ond son of William (2) and Sarah (Webster) Lane, was born June 6, 1696, and was killed while standing on his door step after a shower, June 14, 1766. He and his wife joined the church in Hampton, March 10, 1718. Here he resided on a farm on the road to North Hampton, one-half mile north of the present .railroad station, and carried on the trade of tanner and shoemaker. He married, Decem- ber 24, 1717, Bathsheba, daughter of Samuel and Mary Robie, born August 2, 1696, old style, died April 13, 1765. They had sixteen children, eight sons and five daughters of whom lived to become useful members of so- ciety. He had sixty grandchildren before his death. His children were: Deacon Samuel, Mary, Joshua (died young), William, Joshua, Josiah (died young), Major John, Sarah, Bathsheba, Isaiah, Deacon Jeremiah, Eben- ezer, Abigail, Elizabeth, Josiah and Anna.
(IV) Deacon William (3), third son and fourth child of Deacon Joshua and Bathsheba (Robie) Lane, was born January 1, 1723, and baptized on the tenth of the following Feb- ruary, in Hampton. He was a tanner and shoemaker by occupation, and his estate con- tinued in the family for many years, being occupied in very recent years by his great- grandson. He died December 20, 1802, but a few days short of eighty years of age. He married, February 13, 1746, Rachel, daughter of Thomas and Rachel (Sanborn) Ward, of Hampton. Their children were: Noah (died young), Abigail, Ward, William, Noah, Thomas and Jeremiah.
(V) Deacon William (4), third son of Wil- liam (3) and Rachel (Ward) Lane, was born November 23, 1753, died October 24, 1837. He was a member of the Congregational church, resided at Hampton, New Hampshire,
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and married Mary Dow, who was born No- vember 16, 1751. Their children were: I. William, born October 30, 1777. 2. Samuel, mentioned below. 3. Joshua, January 22, 1782. 4. John, May 18, 1784, married Abi Cram. 5. Mary, October 24, 1786. 6. Me- shech, April 15, 1789. 7. Joel, August 25, 1791, married Mahala Brown. 8. William, May 4, 1794, married (first) Abigail Daniels and ( second) Mary C. Smith.
(VI) Samuel, second son of Deacon Wil- liam (4) and Mary (Dow) Lane, was born October 9, 1779, died August 18, 1825, at Stratham, New Hampshire. He was a cooper and farmer, and resided in Exeter, where his five children were born. He married Susan James, of Hampton, New Hampshire, who died August 27, 1871, aged ninety-one years. Their children were: I. George, born in 1805, married (first) Sarah Lane; his second wife was also named Sarah. 2. Samuel, 1807, mar- ried Sabrina Brock. 3. Mary, 1810, married Benjamin Furbish, of Wells, Maine. 4. Nancy C. 5. William F., 1818, married Mary Barr. (VII) Nancy Coffin, younger of the two daughters of Samuel and Susan (James) Lane, married John S. Gross, of Brunswick, Maine. (See Gross VIII.)
The Merrill family is an an- MERRILL cient and knightly one, origi- nally domiciled in the Prov- ince of Aisne, France, where the name is per- petuated by the village of Merle, which keeps the original orthography. There was also a Huguenot family bearing this patronymic at Place de Dombes in the same country. The Merrills were knighted, both in France and England, and one coat-of-arms bears the motto, "Vincit qui Patitur" (He conquers who endures). Another coat-of-arms has especial interest for the American branch, because it was used in 1726 on a deed given by Thomas Merrill, of Salisbury, Massachusetts, grand- son of Nathaniel, the original immigrant. This emblem, to use heraldic nomenclature, has a barrulet between three peacocks' heads erased proper ; crest, a peacock's head erased proper. This, being interpreted, signifies that the pea- cocks' heads are in their natural colors and torn off at the neck. The motto given with this escutcheon is the familiar, "Per Aspera Ad Astra.'
The Merrills are one of the oldest families in New England, having been in this country since the first third of the seventeenth cen- tury. Nathaniel Merrill and his brother John were among the first settlers of Newbury,
Massachusetts. John was there in 1635, and was one of the earliest grantees, and his name appears among the list of landholders at Ips- wich in 1636. The origin of some of these local names is interesting. The town of Ips- wich, Massachusetts, was founded in 1633, and two years later some of the inhabitants of this place went a few miles northward to the Parker river, where they made a new settle- ment which they called Newbury, in honor of the former residence of their pastor, the Rev. Thomas Parker, who had been curate at New- bury in Berkshire, England. Nathaniel Mer- rill received a grant of land at Newbury on the "Neck" south of the Parker river, May 5, 1638, and may have been there earlier. He is the ancestor of all the Merrills in the United States, who can trace their origin to this period, as his brother John had no sons, and other Merrill immigrants are of more recent date. It is not known from what country in England the brothers, Nathaniel and John, migrated, but the name was of frequent oc- currence in Essex and Suffolk during the sev- enteenth century.
(I) Nathaniel Merrill, born in Wiltshire, England, 1610, probably lived in Newbury about twenty years, as he died there March 16, 1654-55. One account says that he came to Ipswich in 1633, and moved to Newbury a year or two later. Most genealogists give his wife's name as Susannah Jourdaine, or Jor- dan, but more recent investigation shows that this is probably incorrect. Her maiden name was Wolterton, or Willerton, and after Na- thaniel Merrill's death she married a second husband named Jordan, whence the confusion. The descendants of Nathaniel and Susannah (Willerton) Merrill are numerous, and they are true to the family motto. Many of them take high rank as clergymen ; others are prom- inent in railroad or financial circles. Eight children were born to the pioneer couple : John, 1635, married Sarah Watson, and moved to Connecticut, where the name has multiplied; Abraham, 1637, married Abigail Webster; Nathaniel, 1638, see forward; Su- sanna, 1640; Daniel, 1642, married Sarah Clough, May 14, 1668; Abel, 1644, married Priscilla Chase, February 21, 1670; Thomas, 1648.
(II) Nathaniel (2), son of Nathaniel (I) Merrill, was born in 1638. He married, Oc- tober 6, 1661, Joanna Kinney. They lived in Newbury, Massachusetts, where their children were born: John, February 16, 1663, mar- ried (first) Lucy Webster, (second) Mary ; Nathaniel, February 8, 1665, married
4
Samuel Fermeden Muriel
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STATE OF MAINE.
two wives whose christian names were Re- becca and Sarah; Peter, August, 1667, mar- ried Mary - -; Hannah, July 12, 1672; and Mary, September 18, 1675. The line di- vides with the sons of Nathaniel (2). Both John and Nathaniel (3) Merrill had a de- scendant, Ezekiel, and it is not known which was the great-grandfather of Samuel F. Mer- rill, whose sketch follows later. As the mat- ter is in doubt, both branches are given.
(III) Nathaniel (3), second son of Na- thaniel (2) and Joanna (Kinney) Merrill, was born in Newbury, February 8, 1665, and died in Haverhill, July 4, 1758. He married Rebecca -, who died in 1689, leaving a son Nathaniel (4), born November 23, 1688. Nathaniel (4) had a son, Roger, born in 1713. Roger Merrill married Mary -, and they had a son, Ezekiel, born December 9, 1748. All of this branch of the family were born at New- bury, Massachusetts. There are now no Mer- rills living in Newbury, although a portion of the land first occupied by the family, situated at the junction of Parker river and its chief tributary, is still owned by Merrills, and has ever borne the name of Cape Merrill.
(IV) It is not known which Ezekiel, whether the one born in 1748 or the one born in 1731 (see above), was the father of the Ezekiel in the next paragraph; hence the au- thenticated line begins with the following gen- eration.
ยท (V) Ezekiel (2), son of Ezekiel Merrill, the pioneer of Hebron, Maine, was born about 1767, probably in Newbury, Massachusetts. At the age of nineteen he went to Hebron, then Shepardsfield, and bought twenty-five acres of wild land, the germ of the magnificent farm of several hundred acres now occupied by his grandson, Ezekiel. By industry and thrift Ezekiel (2) developed this place, and closed a life of active usefulness in 1857, dying at the age of ninety years. In politics he was a Whig and in religion a Congregationalist. During his last years he became extremely deaf, and he carried an immense ear-trumpet to church in order to hear the sermon. His father, the first Ezekiel Merrill, came to Hebron after its incorporation and passed his last years there. Among the children of Ezekiel (2) Merrill were six sons : Ezekiel, Joseph, Samuel, whose sketch follows; Seth M., Isaac and Fes- senden.
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