USA > Maine > Genealogical and family history of the state of Maine, Volume IV > Part 6
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As a man Colonel Boothby was loved and respected to an extraordinary degree, and his memory is. revered. He was one of those noble men who remained uncorrupted amid the temptations of a military life. Strictly temperate, using neither liquor nor tobacco, upright in morals, addicted to no vice or evil habit, inflexibly honest, inaccessible to a temptation to fraud or meanness, he was the very soul of soldierly honor, and commanded the highest respect of his fellows in arms. Such qualities as his ennoble human nature, and the brief record of his life must arouse a thrill of admiration even in the breast of the casual reader. Colonel C. H. Smith, at a reunion of the First Maine Cavalry at Lew- iston, on September 2, 1879, in the course of an eloquent address, made the following re- marks: "Lieutenant-Colonel Boothby died. And as his noble soul went out, there came to take its place the spirit of a deeper de- votion to duty, a higher love of country, a nobler disregard of danger in the cause of right and justice, that hovered over the regi- ment until its muster-out, and that still lingers around and guides the comrades who were so fortunate as to serve in the light of his ex-
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ample. Lieutenant-Colonel Boothby died. And shall we here to-day mourn his loss? Shall we drop a tear, or breathe a word of pity that he died so young, while so bright a future was before him? No! Lieutenant- Colonel Boothby died. Let us here, standing by his grave, remembering his noble life and glorious death, each one pledge ourselves to emulate his example Then shall Lieutenant-Colonel Boothby not have lived in vain. Then shall our sacrifices and hardships not have been in vain. Then shall the war of the Rebellion not have been fought in vain. Then shall we be found worthy, at the last grand roll-call to stand by the side of Lieu- tenant-Colonel Boothby, in the awful presence of the Great Commander of all, and joyously answer 'Here!' "
(VII) Roswell C., third son of Rev. Sam- uel (2) and Sarah (Leadbetter) Boothby, was born at Leeds, Maine, January 16, 1840, and remained on the farm till the age of seven- teen, when he moved with his people to Lewis- ton. There he attended the high school and the Maine State Seminary (now Bates Col- lege), from which he was graduated in the class of 1860. During the winters he taught school to assist in paying his way. After graduation he entered the Androscoggin Mill as overseer of the cloth room, where he re- mained for four years. In 1864 he bought a farm at East Livermore, which he sold two years later, and purchased a grist-mill at Liv- ermore Falls. He managed the latter for twenty years in connection with the "feed business," and finally added a coal and wood establishment. After a time he disposed of his mill, and now confines his attention en- tirely to the latter undertaking. Mr. Boothby is a Republican in politics, and has held many local offices. He was one of the board of se- lectmen from 1875 to 1887, and from 1891 to 1894, and chairman of the board during the last twelve years; county commissioner from 1883 to 1893; justice of the peace; trial jus- tice for many years, and finally made munici- pal judge; member of the governor's council for two years. He served as member of the school committee from 1866 to 1869; and as supervisor of schools from 1871 to 1874. For forty-three years he has been chorister of the Baptist church, and also holds the office of deacon. He has given much attention to vocal music, is blessed with one of the richest bass voices in the state, and has sung with that distinguished daughter of Maine, Annie Louise Cary, whose fame as an opera singer is still fresh in the minds of music lovers. For
many years Mr. Boothby has been prominent in fraternal organizations, being a Mason of the thirty-second degree, a member of the Shriners, past master, high priest and district deputy of the district. He also belongs to the Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. He is a man of sound judgment, excellent char- acter and respected as a wise counselor. On April 27, 1861, Roswell C. Boothby married Julia A. Coffin, daughter of Warren and Betsy (Crowell) Coffin, of Lewiston, Maine, who died. at East Livermore, March 31, 1868. Their children were: Eugene H. and Vesta, deceased. Eugene H. Boothby lives in Wash- ington, D. C. He married Ida Simons, and their son, Roswell E., is a famous boy soprano, singing in the Episcopal church of that city. The other children are: Marietta, Allene and Fred W. On December 6, 1870, Roswell C. Boothby married (second) Clara A. Atwood, daughter of Hezekiah and Nancy (Coffin) At- wood, of Portland. Their children were Sam- uel, died young, in Boston, and Heloise, mar- ried Ernest T. Cushman, of Paris, Maine, who is now a teacher in Portsmouth, New Hampshire ; they have one child, Ruth.
DE COSTER The DeCosters were orig- inally French, and went into Portugal, where the leader of the family distinguished himself at the siege of Ceuta ; returning to France, they be- came strong Huguenots, and after the revo- cation of the Edict of Nantes they went to England, thence to Boston. In the Colonial Records the name is spelled both DeCosta and DeCoster, but the original spelling was DeCosta, which spelling some of the family still retain. In the Revolutionary Records, where the name is found spelled both of these ways, is found Temple, Jonathan (also given John) and Joseph, from Boston, Jacob from Bridgewater, Massachusetts, also some others from the same Colony.
(I) Samuel DeCoster, the first member to be found of the family here described, lived at one time at Buckfield, Maine; children born there : Varanes, James, Samuel, Harry, Ozias, who has three sons living, Edwin, Cyrus C. and Granville, and several daughters.
(II) Varanes, son of Samuel DeCoster, was born at Buckfield, Maine, where he was en- gaged in farming ; he married Louisa, daugh- ter of Uzza and Abigail W. (Elliott) Thomp- son, born March 12, 1814 (see Thompson VII). Their children were as follows: Fran- cesco V .; William B., who was a volunteer in the civil war, and died in the service of his
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country ; Georgia, who married Stephen Mor- rill, of Strong, Maine; Louisa Victoria; Vir- gil P., a farmer ; Virginia, a twin to Virgil P., was a schoolteacher ; married Barnum Jones, of Auburn, Maine; and Cleora H., also was a schoolteacher, married D. M. Hildreth, and resides in Washington, D. C.
(III) Captain Francesco V., eldest son of Varanes and Louisa (Thompson) DeCoster, was born November 19, 1838, at Buckfield, Maine, where he attended the public schools, finishing his education at Phillips Academy. For some time he was a successful teacher in the schools of Buckfield, Hartford and Can- ton, Maine, and in 1858 removed to Minne- sota, where he first worked at carpentering and teaching school, and later was a justice of the peace. He traded with the Sioux In- dians, buying many thousands of dollars' worth of furs, skins and articles of their manufac- ture; learned to speak their language, at- tended their war dances and feasts, and was well acquainted with Little Crow, the chief and leader of the outbreak and massacre in 1862, when more than one thousand whites were murdered. Captain DeCoster had a bril- liant war record, and took part in the famous maneuvers of the Marine Brigade, made fa- mous in 1862. He enlisted in 1861 in the Fourth Minnesota Regiment Infantry, as a sergeant, and when the Ellets, under the aus- pices of the war department, made up the Ram Fleet and Marine Brigade, Francesco V. De- Coster became captain of Company D Cav- alry; though being part of the army, they were to co-operate with the navy in opening up or blockading the waters of the Mississippi river, fighting Guerillas, transporting supplies, and became an important factor in the opera- tions at Forts Henry and Donelson, Pittsburg Landing, Corinth, Vicksburg, and other places. At the siege of Vicksburg he had two horses shot from under him; lost thirty-two men from his company in night ambush; was mili- tary commander of one vessel of fleet and had thirty-nine shells thrown into it by a six gun rebel battery below Memphis. Captain DeCos- ter has written several able articles describing actions in which he took part, and discussing the dissatisfaction and jealousy of officers of the regular navy. After the close of the war he returned to Minnesota, where he became in- terested in mining, and also became a retail merchant, at first handling general merchan- dise and later jewelry and music. For twenty years Captain DeCoster was court commis- sioner and probate judge for Meeker county, Minnesota, and was postmaster in 1867; in
1897 he removed to Washington, D. C., where he first filled a position in the government printing office, later being employed in the document department of the National Capitol Building, which position he still fills. His home is still at Litchfield, Minnesota, where his family resides most of the time, and where he belongs to the order of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, Golden Fleece Lodge, No. 89, and is a member of Frank Daggett Post, No. 35, Grand Army of the Republic. He is a member of the Mississippi River Ram Fleet and Marine Brigade, and was the second com- mander of the association; first meeting was held in St. Louis, the second in Milwaukee; this meets annually with the National En- campment, G. A. R. For thirty years he was superintendent of the Sunday school of the Presbyterian church at Litchfield, Minnesota, has been ruling elder of the church since 1871, and is now a member of the Men's League of the Metropolitan Presbyterian Church of Washington, also of the Soldiers' Union of the First Congregational Church of Washington. For three years Captain DeCoster was presi- dent of The Short Story Club, for one year president of the Optimist Club, of Washington, where he is much in evidence in literary cir- cles, and he is a member of the Maine Associa- tion of that city. As a public speaker he is very popular, and for the past six years has given the oration for the public school children of Washington on the occasion of Flag Day. In March, 1867, he married Mary Ellen Tor- rey, of Turner, Maine, a niece of Senator T. O. Howe, of Wisconsin, and two years later she and Louisa, her infant daughter, died. He married (second) Mary Emerett Campbell, of Hartford, Connecticut, in 1871, and they have one child, Esther Louise, who lives at home, and is unmarried. She is a graduate of the University of Minnesota and a graduate of music in New York City.
The first of this family to THOMPSON emigrate to America spelled the name Tomson, and as he was born in the northern part of Wales, not far from Scotland, it is presumed he was of Scotch extraction. The name has long been known in England, Scotland and Ireland, spelled in several different ways. Soon after the family located in America it was spelled with "Th," but the p was not in- serted for more than a hundred years.
(I) John Tomson was born in 1616, in Wales, and it is a tradition that his father died soon after his birth and his mother married
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again. From his limited means of education and his youth at the time of his emigration, about 1622, it is probable he did not know his lineage. He died June 16, 1696, and his grave is marked "Lieutenant John Thompson." He married Mary Cook, who died March 21, 1714, in the eighty-eighth year of her age, and both of them are buried in the first burying-ground of Middleborough, Massachusetts. Their children were: Adam, John, Mary, Esther, Elizabeth, Sarah, Lydia, Jacob, Thomas, Peter and Mercy.
(II) John (2), second son of John (I) and Mary (Cook) Tomson, was a carpenter ; he was born in 1648 and died November 25, 1725. He married Mary, daughter of Ephraim Tink- ham, the emigrant, and she died in 1731 in the sixty-seventh year of her age. Their children were: John, Ephraim, Thomas, Shubael, Mary, Martha, Francis, Sarah, Peter, Jacob and Ebenezer.
(III) Shubael, fourth son of John (2) and Mary (Tinkham) Thomson, was born in 1685 and died July 7, 1734. He married Susanna Parker, who died June 9, 1734, and their chil- dren were: Shubael, Thomas, Isaac, John and Mary.
(IV) John (3), fourth son of Shubael and Susanna (Parker) Thomson, was born in 1727 and died June 22, 1776. He married (first) Lydia Wood, who died January 28, 1761, and they had ten children: Shubael, Susanna, Isaac, John, Ezra, Lydia, Sarah, Uzza, Fear and Priscilla. He married (sec- ond) Widow Sarah Soule, who died August 20, 1805, and they had one child, Mary.
(V) Isaac, second son of John (3) and Lydia (Wood) Thomson, was born February I, 1746, and died December 21, 1819. He represented the town of Middleborough in the state legislature, then represented the county of Plymouth in the senate until his age com- pelled his retirement from public life, and was justice of the peace until his death. He was in the service of the public sixteen years, and was an industrious and public-spirited citizen, acting as a peace-maker in his capacity of magistrate. He was well known for his piety, uprightness, for his cordial and hearty man- ner and happy disposition. He had a large family and was very fond and proud of them. He married Lucy Sturtevant, who died No- vember 4, 1834, and their children were: I. John, born March 22, 1775, married (first) Sarah Austin, (second) Belinda Dean and (third) Jane Richardson, and settled in Maine. 2. Cyrus, born December 23, 1776, married Rebecca Robinson and lived in Maine. 3.
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Lydia, born March I, 1779, married Rev. Eli- jah Dexter. 4. Isaac, born November 7, 1781, married Abia Haskell. 5. Uzza. 6. Lucy, born October 1, 1786, married Cephas Thomp- son. 7. George, born August 12, 1788, mar- ried Deborah P. Clark. 8. Mary, born April 14, 1790, married Robert Capen. 9. Ezra, born March 8, 1792, married Cynthia Gifford. IO. Harriet, born December 19, 1795, married Solomon Thompson.
(VI) Uzza, fourth son of Isaac and Lucy (Sturtevant) Thompson, was born August 23, 1784, and died January 5, 1849. He settled on a farm in Hartford, Maine, purchased from the Thompson grant. He married Abi- gail W. Elliott, of Rumford, Maine, and they had children : I. Lucy S., born September 22, 1808, married James B. DeCoster, of Buck- field, Maine. 2. Mary Ann, born May 8, 1810, married Hiram Hall. 3. Louisa. 4. Ezra, born May 4, 1816, died May 30, 1816. 5. Charlotte, born October 6, 1817. 6. Abigail E., born June 3, 1821, married (first) Alanson Bradford and (second) William R. French. 7. George C., born October 15, 1827, married Harriet B. Bisbee. 8. Isaac H., born January 3, 1831, married Hattie E. Bray.
(VII) Louisa, third daughter of Uzza and Abigail W. (Elliott) Thompson, was born March 12, 1814, and married Varanes DeCos- ter, a farmer of Buckfield, Maine. (See De- Coster II.)
The ancestors of the ALEXANDER Alexander family which was active in the settle- ment of Brunswick, Topsham, Harpswell and adjoining towns in Maine, lived for centuries on the peninsula of Kintyre, in Argyleshire, Scotland. The family was closely allied with the Argyles, a sort of cousin clan. In 1641 a member of this family settled in Coleraine, in the valley of the Bann, near Londonderry, in the province of Ulster, Ireland. His great- grandson was the immigrant founder of the family in this country. In 1719 Robert Tem- ple, an old officer of the English army, sought to settle with desirable emigrants large tracts of land which he had purchased of the Kenne- bec and Pejepscot companies. These people landed in Topsham, Maine, which probably received its name from the port of Temple's departure, and took up lands extending from Merrymeeting Bay along the Cathance and Androscoggin rivers. They constituted the majority of the early inhabitants of Bruns- wick, living between New Meadows and Maquoit. Because of Lovewell's Indian war,
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1722-25, further immigration was checked and most of those already settled abandoned their homes, some removing to Londonderry, New Hampshire, and others, perhaps the majority, to Pennsylvania. Professor Perry, of Wil- liams College, has well said: "These Scotch- Irish were all in general, one sort of people. If they had but one book to a family, that book was surely the Bible, and if there were two volumes to a family, the second place in most cases was disputed between Fox's "Book of Martyrs" and Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress." . Each company brought with them as a part of the indispensable outfit the much prized po- tato, to which the lands of New England, al- ways so sandy, are adapted. Each company also brought the agricultural implements need- ful for the culture of the flax-plant, and the looms for weaving the linen textures. Noth- ing connected with the new comers excited so much interest in English and Puritan Boston in 1719 and the three following years, as the small wheels worked by women and propelled by the feet, for turning the straight flax-fibres into thread."
(I) David Alexander came with Robert Temple from Ulster, Ireland, in 1719, and re- moved to Topsham, Maine, accompanied by his son William and by numerous other Scotch-Irish immigrants, who settled in the vicinity. No record appears in this country of his birth or marriage, and the names of his wife or children, other than the one above named, are unknown. He was killed by an Indian sometime during Lovewell's war, and the place of the sepulchre is unknown.
(II) William, son of David Alexander, set- tled upon his father's lands in Topsham after Lovewell's war, and there remained until shortly after 1730, when he removed to Harps- well Neck. There he built a house in 1737, which is still standing. He was noted for his strength, and served as a soldier in Lovewell's war. He married Jennet, daughter of James Wilson, who settled in Topsham at the same time as his father. William Alexander and wife lived until after 1773. Children: David (q. v.) ; James, 1739; William, 1741 ; Samuel, 1743; John, 1745; Hugh, 1751.
(III) David (2), son of William and Jen- net (Wilson) Alexander, was born at Harps- well, 1737, died October 29, 1792, in the same town. In 1761 he married Anna, daughter of Joseph Ewing, of Harpswell. She was born in 1736, died September 22, 1809, and both are buried in the Harpswell Neck churchyard. Her father, Joseph Ewing, was a mason by trade, and lived on Great Ireland. In 1757 he was
a member of Adam Hunter's company of In- dian fighters, and during the revolution served on several revolutionary committees, and also as a soldier in Captain Nehemiah Curtis' com- pany. He was a Congregationalist, and promi- nent in the first parish of Harpswell. Chil- dren: William (q. v.); Joseph, born March 16, 1765; David, March 13, 1767; Anna, Sep- tember 3, 1769; James, October 12, 1771; Isaac, October 10, 1774; Isabell, October 10, 1775; Jennett, July 9, 1777 ; Rebecca, Septem- ber 10, 1779.
(IV) William (2), son of David (2) and Anna (Ewing) Alexander, was born in Harps- well, Maine, November 13, 1762, died in Brunswick, Maine, October 10, 1847. He served in Captain John Rogers' company of the Second Cumberland County Regiment of Massachusetts militia under Colonel Nathaniel Jordan, and was also a seaman on the United States ship "Protector," carrying twenty-six guns and two hundred men, commanded by Captain John Foster Williams. After his dis- charge he became a farmer and ship carpenter and removed to Brunswick in 1791. He mar- ried, December 23, 1786, Betsey Campbell, of Portland, daughter of Captain William and Elizabeth (Price) Campbell, of Falmouth. Both are buried in the Growstown (Bruns- wick) churchyard. (See Campbell V.) Chil- dren of William and Betsey (Campbell) Alex- ander: I. Aletta, born March 12, 1788, died June 3, 1792. 2. James, born November 2, 1789, died October 3, 1876. 3. Campbell (q. v.). 4. Isaac, born October 19, 1793, died January II, 1794. 5. Isabella, born Decem- ber 4, 1794, died February 29, 1852. 6. Eliza, born June II, 1797, died June 4, 1875. 7. Ewing, born June 14, 1799, died May 6, 1883. 8. Aletta, born March 31, 1802, died Septem- ber 21, 1830. 9. Joseph, born November 28, 1804, died May 17, 1890. 10. Ann, born April 4, 1806, died July 8, 1881. 11. Hiram, born May 11, 1808, died December 20, 1896.
(V) Campbell, son of William (2) and Betsey (Campbell) Alexander, was born Oc- tober 18, 1791, in Harpswell, died October 15, 1864, in Richmond. He was a ship builder, and settled in Richmond in 1818. He mar- ried, March 20, 1812, Margaret Stanwood, of Brunswick. She was a daughter of James and Margaret (Chase) Stanwood, of Bruns- wick (see Stanwood V). She was born Au- gust 13, 1790, died December 1, 1845, buried in the cemetery at Richmond. He married (second) December-16, 1849, Hannah Weston, of Brunswick, born 1795, died October II, 1871, buried in the cemetery at Richmond.
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Children by first marriage: I. Stanwood (q. v.). 2. Williama, born March 21, 1815, died May 21, 1834. 3. Henry, born January 30, 1816, died July 12, 1840. 4. Charles, born September 17, 1818, died October 27, 1851. 5. Isaac, born February 18, 1820, died March 9, 1892. 6. Margaret, born May I, 1824, died May 30, 1903. 7. Betsey, born April 30, 1826, died August 8, 1826. 8. Rebecca, born March 30, 1827, died October 9, 1843.
(VI) Stanwood, son of Campbell and Mar- garet (Stanwood) Alexander, was born Au- gust 13, 1813, in Brunswick, Maine, died in Richmond, August 7, 1852. He early ex- hibited rare skill in the construction of ves- sels, and before he was thirty years of age had become one of the most extensive and popular shipbuilders on the Kennebec river. From 1845 to 1852, during his partnership with Thomas J. Southard, the firm built six- teen ships, barks and brigs, as follows : In 1846 the brig "Josephine"; 1847, the barks "Alice Frazier" and "John Murray," brig "Sea Bird" and ship "Masonic"; 1848, ship "Buena Vista," bark "T. J. Southard"; 1849, ships "Hamp- ton" and "Forest Queen"; 1850, ships "Delia Maria" and "Washington"; 1851, ships "B. Sewell," "Lucy W. Hale," "Arctic" and "Har- riet Frances"; 1852, ships "B. K. Page," which was upon the stocks when Mr. Alexander's death occurred.
He married (first) July 10, 1841, Eleanor Elizabeth, daughter of James and Eleanor Dunlap; she died September 25, 1842. Mar- ried (second) November 25, 1843, Priscilla Brown, of Litchfield, born May 18, 1823, died November 17, 1864, daughter of Solomon and Sarah Elizabeth (Rumery) Brown, of Gor- ham (see Brown VI). Both wives are buried in the cemetery of Richmond. Child by first wife : James Henry, born June 26, 1842, died July 4, 1904. Children by second wife: I. De Alva Stanwood (q. v.). 2. Ellen Lucette, born June 10, 1847, died August 10, 1849. 3. Edward Payson, born October 26, 1851, died December 13, 1852.
(VII) De Alva Stanwood, son of Stanwood and Priscilla (Brown) Alexander, was born July 17, 1845, in Richmond. After the death of his father he removed to Litchfield, being a student at Litchfield Academy. In 1862 he enlisted as a member of Company C, One Hundred and Twenty-eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and continued in the military service three years, until the close of the war. After leaving the army in 1865 he prepared for col- lege at Edward Little Institute (Lewiston Falls Academy), in Auburn, Maine, and sub-
sequently entered Bowdoin College, from which he was graduated in 1870 with the de- gree of A. B. Three years later his alma mater conferred upon him the degree of A. M. and in 1907 that of LL. D. In 1906 he was elected an overseer of the college. Immedi- ately after his graduation in 1870 he went to Fort Wayne, Indiana, to teach school, and soon afterward became one of the editors and proprietors of the Fort Wayne Daily Gazette, the leading Republican paper of northern In- .diana. In the meantime he had engaged in the study of law, and was admitted to the bar at Indianapolis in 1877 and at once engaged in practice. He was a delegate to the Repub- lican national convention in 1872, and was secretary of the Indiana Republican state cen- tral committee from 1874 to 1878. In 1881 he was appointed fifth auditor of the United States Treasury Department, and took up his residence in Washington, D. C., where he re- mained until 1885, when he formed a law partnership with his college classmate, Hon. James A. Roberts, and engaged in the prac- tice of law at Buffalo, New York. In 1889 he was appointed United States attorney for the northern district of New York, and held the office until December, 1893. In 1896 he was elected to the fifty-fifth congress and has been successively re-elected and is now serv- ing his seventh term, as a member of the sixty- first congress. He has been continually a member of the judiciary and rivers and har- bors committees. In 1906 his "Political His- tory of the State of New York," in three vol- umes, was published by Henry Holt & Com- pany, of New York. During his first resi- dence in Washington as an auditor of the Treasury, he was elected and served one term as commander of the Department of the Poto- mac, Grand Army of the Republic. Mr. Alex- ander is a thirty-second degree Mason, a mem- ber of the Buffalo Club, the Buffalo Univer- sity Club, the Buffalo Westminster Club, the Buffalo Historical Society, the Maine His- torical Society and the New York State His- torical Society, being a director of the last named. He attends the Westminster Presby- terian Church of Buffalo. He married (first) September 14, 1871, Alice, born January II, 1850, died at Buffalo, New York, February 23, 1890, daughter of Dr. Jonas and Almira (Hull) Colby, the former of Henniker, New Hampshire, and the latter of Defiance, Ohio. Married (second) December 28, 1893, Anne Gerlach, born July 19, 1846, daughter of David Gerlach and Mary (Feiro) Bliss, of Buffalo, New York. No issue.
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