USA > Maine > Genealogical and family history of the state of Maine, Volume IV > Part 71
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Some of the Welches in Amer- WELCH ica are of English origin, while others are of Scotch-Irish de- scent. Scotch Protestants named Welch crossed the sea to the north of Ireland during the period of religious upheaval in Scotland. The first of the name found in the colonial records of New England is Philip Welch, who
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was a passenger from the north of Ireland on the ship "Goodfellow," in 1654, when sixteen years old. He was married at Ipswich, Mas- sachusetts, in 1666, to Hannah Haggett, and had a family. A John Welch was a resident of Boston in 1682 and left descendants. The emigrant ancestor and line of descent of the Freeport Welches about to be referred to are wanting.
(I) Colby Welch, a resident of Freeport, was the son of a revolutionary soldier who participated in the battle of Bunker Hill. He was twice married, and the children of his second union were: Rufus, Hiram, Colby S., Dorcas, Amy, Delia, Ann and Olive.
(II) Colby S., third child of Colby Welch, was born in Freeport, August 15, 1815. In his youth he entered a textile mill in Bruns- wick as an operative, and being advanced to the position of overseer continued in that capacity for some time. Returning to Free- port, he learned the ship carpenter's trade, and for the remainder of his life followed that occupation in connection with farming. Mr. Welch was an upright, conscientious man, who, as a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, labored diligently and without osten- tation to improve the moral and religious wel- fare of the community. His first presidential vote was cast for Martin Van Buren in 1836, and he continued to support the Democratic party until 1860, when its attitude on the slavery question caused him to unite with the Republicans. His death occurred in Freeport, July, 1883. In 1840 he married Clarissa J. York, of Brunswick, born November 19, 1821, and she survived him many years, dying in 1906, at the age of eighty-five years. They were the parents of nine children : Clarissa A. Isaac C., Albert M., Ella, George H., Char- lotte, Woodbury B., Alvah and Elmer.
(III) Albert Marden, second son and third child of Colby S. and Clarissa J. (York) Welch, was born in Freeport, October 24, 1846. Having concluded his attendance at the public schools when sixteen years old he be- came a mariner, and in 1865 entered the United States navy. He soon returned to the merchant service, however, in which he worked his way aft to the quarter deck, and as a shipmaster was for several years engaged in the California and East India trades, making profitable voyages to San Francisco, China and Australia. In 1885 he abandoned the sea, and settling at Kennebunkport, spent some time in retirement. Inactivity, however, proved distasteful to him, and accepting the appointment of postmaster under the Harri-
son administration he served in that capacity for four years with general satisfaction. Af- ter retiring from the government service he established himself in the dry goods business, opening a small but well stocked store and building up an extensive trade. Having be- come thoroughly familiar with trade, he found it advisable to increase his facilities, and in 1904 removed to new and more spacious quar- ters and is carrying on an extensive business. Politically Captain Welch is a Republican. In addition to serving as town treasurer, collector and postmaster, he represented his district in the state legislature in 1894-95 and was as- signed to important committees. He is a Master Mason, belonging to Arundel Lodge, of Kennebunkport, and also affiliates with Myrtle Lodge, Knights of Pythias, of Kenne- bunk. He is an active member, a trustee and otherwise officially connected with the Metho- dist Episcopal church. In 1873 Captain Welch was united in marriage with Esther A., daugh- ter of Captain William and Martha (Perkins) Davis, of Kennebunkport. Of this union there is one son and one daughter: Martha P., born 1875, and Albert D., born 1882. The former is now the wife of George A. Bourne, proprietor of the Cliff House, at Kennebunk- port; they have two daughters, Esther and Elizabeth. Albert D. Welch was educated in the public schools and under the direction of a private tutor. He is an electrician of ability and a member of the firm of Ashworth and Welch, electrical contractors, Kennebunkport. He is a thirty-second degree Mason, belonging to the local Blue Lodge, chapter, council and commandery, and to Kora Temple, Order of the Mystic Shrine, Lewiston.
Moffat, or Moffit, is a Scotch MOFFITT surname. A representative, Robert Moffat, was born in Ormiston, Scotland, and passed fifty-four years in missionary labors in Africa, 1816-70, and his daughter was the wife of Dr. Living- stone, the African explorer. Another Scotch- man bearing the name was James Clement Moffat, born in Glencree, Gallowayshore, Scotland, in 18II, emigrated to the United States in 1833, after preparing himself for college while a shepherd boy and printer in his native land. He became a protégé of a wealthy philanthropist who sent him to the College of New Jersey, where he was gradu- ated, valedictorian, in 1835, A. M., 1838, and became a distinguished educator, and through his marriage with Ellen Stewart was the father of Edward Stewart Moffat (1844-1893), the
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mining engineer, and through his marriage with Mary B. Mathews was the father of James Douglas Moffat, the architect, of New York City; Henry 'Moffat, the physician, of Yonkers, New York; and Alexander Moffat, electrical engineer and football authority. It is reasonable to suppose that the Moffitts of Smithfield, Rhode Island, are also of Scotch origin and the spelling is merely a matter of personal preference or taken from the pro- nunciation without reference to the orthogra- phy as obtained with the college men of the name who made their name to be spelled Mof- fat
(I) Caleb Moffitt, of Smithfield, Rhode Island, was married, February 25, 1804, to Angelina Cook; children: I. Miranda, Decem- ber 4, 1809. 2. Eliza S., November 27, 1811. 3. Sarah Ann, January, 1814. 4. John M. 5. Rebecca. 6. Eliza. 7. Joseph, 1819. 8. Caleb G. (q. v.).
(II) Caleb G., youngest child.of Caleb and Angelina (Cook) Moffitt, was born in Smith- field, Rhode Island, April 17, 1824. Worked in a cotton mill when, only seven years of age, learned the trade of journeyman tailor, and removed when quite young to Kennebec, Maine, where he worked at his trade and later in Augusta. In 1847 he went to Rockland, Maine, where he established the business of merchant tailor on his own account. About 1878 he sold his business to F. C. Knight, who continues its successful prosecution. Mr. Moffitt, during his thirty years of business life as a merchant tailor, invested his accumu- lation of profits in real estate and became one of the largest holders of real property in the city of Rockland. It was the care of this estate that induced him to sell out his tailor- ing business. These interests kept him con- stantly occupied and he maintained this ac- tivity up to a few days before his death. His integrity and business ability impressed itself on all who came in contact with him in a busi- ness way. He was in no sense a politician, but he maintained an undiminishing interest in municipal affairs, and in 1857 represented his ward in the common council, and in 1859 was elected a member of the board of aldermen and was re-elected three times, serving four consecutive terms. He was chairman of the board and a member of the most important of its committees when not the presiding officer. He was a representative from the district in the state legislature in 1873, and mayor of the city in 1876, having been elected over the Hon. Samuel Bryant, the Democratic mayor of 1875, and the strongest candidate the
party could present. The growing popularity of Mr. Moffitt in the legislative branch of the city government and the strength he displayed when championing popular reforms in the city government gained him many votes and he was re-elected in 1877 by a greatly increased majority as his two years' service as chief executive officer of the municipality was con- servative, wise and effective. He acknowl- edged the rights of the minority and never doubted the patriotism and honesty of his political opponents. He did not solicit votes either on the platform or by personal solici- tation, and his conservatism was one of the causes of his success. His administration was marked by economy and simplicity, and he met the citizens as their servant, entrusted with the affairs of a city and not of the wel- fare of a political party. He was a member of Aurora Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons ; of King Solomon Temple, Chapter Royal Arch Masons, and of Claremont Commandery, Knights Templar. He was past master of his lodge and eminent commander of Knights Templar.
He married, May 1, 1845, Louisa M. Nor- cross, of Livermore. His wife died July 5, 1860, after she had given birth to six children, of whom only one, Angelina, born in 1857, is now living. He married (second) Febru- ary 17, 1863, Julia E., daughter of Joseph and Olive (Davenport) Whittier, of Reed- field, Kennebec county. His church affiliation was with the Congregational denomination, and he was a constant attendant on the ser- vices of the church and a ready supporter of its financial policy and a subscriber to its mis- sionary and charitable expenses. He was an uncompromising advocate of prohibition, and was always outspoken in the defence of women and children from the evils brought about by the drinking habit, that he claimed should be restricted by law. This extreme view made him feared by the liquor loving element of so- ciety, and so strong was this sentiment that his enemies tried at one time to destroy his house by dynamite. Mr. Moffitt died at his home in Rockland, Maine, October 24, 1903, and his widow survives him.
PIRINGTON This name is probably a modification of Purington, a patronymic found in vari- ous parts of New England, notably New Hampshire, during colonial times. There were divers and sundry spellings. In the New Hampshire Provincial Papers we find that "robbart pariaton," of Portsmouth, was one of
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the signers of a petition to the king for the continuation of Massachusetts government over New Hampshire, October 22, 1677. In 1710 Elias Purington, of southern New Hampshire, was one of Colonel Shadrach Walton's men in the expedition against Port Royal. The name does not appear on the New Hampshire Revo- lutionary Rolls except in this connection. In 1781 Jonathan Purington, of Kensington, was among those who furnished lodgings to New York Tories, possibly prisoners of war, or men who had been required to give up their own homes and were under surveillance in what was then a distant state. The New Hampshire census of 1790 gives the names of no less than eleven men by the name of Pur- ington who were heads of families in that state at that time. Six of them spelled their name with the double middle letter. These were Joseph, George and Joshua Purrington, of Epping ; Joseph, of Chichester ; Wintrop (sic), of Henniker; and Zaccheus, of Dover. Of the six who wrote their name with the single "r," we find Hezekiah, Elisha, Elisha (2) and Chase, of Weare; James, of Pittsfield; and Jonathan, of Kensington. Which of these, if any, was the ancestor of the following line is undetermined.
(I) Prescott Pirington was born about the beginning of the nineteenth century, and prob- ably lived at Exeter, New Hampshire, as that was the birthplace of his children. He died about 1832, but there is no mention in the New Hampshire records. Prescott Pirington married Eliza Payson Richardson, born at Nottingham, New Hampshire; children, all born in Exeter, New Hampshire: Josiah, Charles Andrew Jackson, Daniel Josiah, and Prescott Moulton. Mr. Pirington died early in life, and his widow married (second) Ephraim O. Whitcomb, of Lowell, Massachu- setts, born at Fryeburg, Maine, June 30, 1806. Children by the second marriage: Sarah Su- san, born in 1835; Daniel Osborne, September 30, 1837; Eliza Susan, August 24, 1839; Mae Emeline, January 7, 1842; William Weeks, April 4, 1844.
(II) Prescott Moulton, son of Prescott and Eliza Payson (Richardson) Pirington, was born at Exeter, New Hampshire, January 3, 1830. When a child he moved with his parents to Lowell, Massachusetts, and in 1833 to Kit- tery, Maine, where he attended the public schools. He afterwards moved to Portland, where he remained about fifteen years, and learned the trade of making doors, blinds and sashes. During three years of this time he was engaged in manufacturing on his own
account, and afterwards pursued the same oc- cupation at Bath, Maine. In 1851 he moved to Calais, where he established the same line of business and conducted it successfully for years. After a time he took a partner, and the firm name became Pirington & Strout. Subsequently this firm bought out and con- tinued the business of Chase, Parker & Com- pany, dealers in hardware, which they carried on together with their original work of manu- facturing doors, blinds and sashes. In 1902 they sold out to J. B. & H. D. Eaton, and Mr. Pirington has lived in retirement since then.
Mr. Pirington is a Republican in politics, and has held much public office. His connec- tion with his party has been lifelong, for he voted for John C. Fremont for president back in 1856, when the party first came into being. Mr. Pirington was overseer of the poor in Calais for fifteen years, and a member of the board of health for the same length of time, served on the city council and board of alder- men, and was mayor of Calais in 1877. He is independent in his religious views, though both his wife and mother have been members of the Methodist church. Mr. Pirington is a member of the Board of Trade, a director in the Calais Savings Bank, and has always. contributed to the Calais Public Library. He belongs to Saint Croix Lodge, No. 46, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons.
On November 29, 1853, Mr. Pirington mar- ried Mary Elizabeth Hanson, born at Mill- town, Saint Stephen's, New Brunswick, April 23, 1836. She was one of a family of twelve children, her brothers and sisters being : Heber Ran, Levi Taylor, Jane Banks, Caro- line Payson, Elvira, William Wallace, Henry Lufkin, Helen Maria, Susan Soule, Asenath Hill Hanson.
ALLEY This family began their American biography in Lynn, Massachu- setts, "the city of soles," whose "bells" our own Longfellow heard from Na- hant. The Honorable John B. Alley, member of congress from Massachusetts, was of this line.
(I) The person to whom is credited the honor of progenitorship is Hugh Alley, who was born in 1608 and came over in the ship "Abigail" in 1635 from London at the age of twenty-seven. He landed at Boston, re- sided in Lynn, and owned land in Nahant. He died November 25, 1673, his wife, Mary, survived him one year. They were the par- ents of Mary, John, Martha, Sarah, Hugh, Solomon, Hannah and Jacob.
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(II) Hugh (2), eldest son of Hugh (I) and Mary Alley, was born in Lynn, October 15, 1653, and was a weaver. He married Re- becca .Hood and had children: Solomon, Ja- cob, Eleazer, Hannah, Richard, Joseph, Ben- jamin and Samuel.
(III) Benjamin, sixth son of Hugh (2) and Rebecca (Hood) Alley, was born in Lynn, February 24, 1694. He was a farmer and fisherman. He made his will May 19, 1756, which was proved June 21, 1756. He mar- ried Elizabeth Newhall, of Lynn. Married (second) Hannah Hart, also of Lynn, who survived him. The Alleys from this union were: Jacob, Solomon, Eleazer, Richard, Han- nah, Benjamin, John, Abner and Elizabeth.
(IV) Solomon, second son of Benjamin and Elizabeth (Newhall) Alley, was born January 2, 1721, and was a fisherman. His wife's name was Rebecca. Issue of this marriage : Jedediah, James, Lydia, Content (died in in- fancy), Content and Micajah.
(V) James, second son of Solomon and Rebecca Alley, was born May 14, 1745, died October 17, 1823. He was a cordwainer and lived in Lynn. The Christian name of his wife was Lois, and to them were born Moses Breed, Rebecca, James, who was born Sep- tember II, 1773, and others.
(VI) James Alley married Polly Bartlett, of Mount Desert, Maine, in 1801, and had a son Fred J. Whether our James was the James who was born September 11, 1773, in Lynn, we know not, but it might have been the case and the way looks probable for such a conclusion.
(VII) Fred Jarvis, son of James and Polly (Bartlett) Alley, was born in Surrey, Maine, and lived at Bar Harbor. He was instru- mental in the development of that place into a summer resort, and was one of the pioneers in the hotel business there. He built the St. Sauveur Hotel and conducted it for some years as a successful hostelry. He married Irene Roberts, and their issue were: Frank O., Ophelia Whittington, Albion P. and Ac- quia J.
(VIII) Frank Orrin, eldest son of Fred J. and Irene (Roberts) Alley, was associated in the hotel business of Bar Harbor with Albion P. He is a member of the Bar Harbor Lodge, No. 185, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, is a Republican and belongs to the Congrega- tional church. He married Sarah Adelma, daughter of Richard Hamor, of Bar Harbor, who was the owner of the Grand Central Hotel, and built the first road across the island. He was a sea captain and a ship builder. Chil-
dren of Frank O. are: Everhard Dwight, born December 25, 1879; John Winfield, September 13, 1883; Frank Orrin Jr., July 14, 1895.
(VIII) Albion P., second son of Fred J. and Irene (Roberts) Alley, was born in Sur- rey, Hancock county, Maine, April 6, 1861, on the anniversary of the death of Alexander the Great. He attended the public schools of Bar Harbor and the East Maine Conference Seminary at Bucksport. After leaving school he entered the hotel business established by his father, and has since been connected with the same, and is known far and wide to the sum- mer travel as "Mine Host" who knows how to run a modern hotel to the satisfaction of his guests. His patrons come from all parts of the world. - Mr. Alley is a member of Island Lodge, No. 120, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of Bar Harbor, of Porcupine Lodge, No. 86, Knights of Pythias, and of the Board of Trade of Bar Harbor. He is a Congregation- alist and a Republican. He married Linnie, daughter of Dr. George Googins, of Mill- bridge, Maine. Her mother was before mar- riage Mary McClure, of Searsport, Maine. Children : Marjorie Josephine, born February 2, 1888, and Gerard Frances, July 12, 1894.
PHAIR This patronymic is unusual in America, though it is occasion- ally found in England and Ire-
land. The following family is directly de- scended from Colonel Robert Phaire, regicide, by his second wife, Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Thomas Herbert, baronet. Probably he is the Colonel Phaire mentioned in history as one of Cromwell's invading army in a battle that took place in Ireland, April 10, 1650. The arms of the family are: Gules, a cross moline argent, over all a bend azure; crest: Out of a ducal coronet, a falcon rising, proper ; Motto : Virtute tutius. Among contemporaries bearing the name in England may be noted: Rev. Samuel George Phear, master of Emmanuel College, Cambridge, from 1871-95; Dr. Ar- thur George Phear, of the Royal Hospital; and Colonel Arthur Phayre, who has served with distinction in South Africa and India.
(I) James Phair, son of Alexander, and: the first of the family to come to America, left Ireland in 1818, and settled in Charlottetown, Prince Edward's Island. He married Eliza- beth, daughter of James Armstrong, of Bel- fast, Ireland, and they had two sons : Andrew, father of James and George Phair, of Lime- stone ; and James (2).
(II) James (2), son of James (I) and Eliza- beth (Armstrong) Phair, was born about 1819.
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The family belong to the Protestant Episcopal church. He married Hannah Murphy, daugh- ter of Thomas and Hannah (Tappenden) Murphy, born in 1819. Her father was a ship owner. There were six children: Alexander ; James H., whose sketch follows; Joseph, Thomas H., Mary and Emma Elizabeth.
(III) James H., second son of James (2). and Hannah (Murphy) Phair, was born at Whitehall, New York, July 18, 1844. In 1856, after the murder of his father, he came with his mother and other members of the family to Presque Isle, Maine. August II, 1861, he enlisted in Company I, Seventh Maine Regiment, and at once went south, joining the Army of the Potomac. He served with that army in all of their bloody battles and up to June 28, 1865, when he was mustered out. Lieutenant Phair was twice wounded in the battle of Spottsylvania, once in the battle of Cedar Creek, and once during the capture of Petersburg. He was mustered out as first lieutenant, and at the time was in command of his company, as he had been for some months previous. After the war was over Lieutenant Phair returned to Presque Isle, where he was engaged in the hotel and livery business until. 1897. That year he was ap- pointed by President Mckinley to be post- master of Presque Isle, which position he still holds. During his term of office he has in- troduced many new conveniences and accom- modations, and has conducted his administra- tion in an alert, efficient and businesslike man- ner. He has the highest respect and esteem of his fellow townsmen, and is a member of several fraternal organizations. He is a Mason, belonging to the Council at Presque Isle, and to the Chapter at Caribou, Maine. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, and of Houlton Lodge, No. 835, Order of Elks. On December 1, 1867, he mar- ried Eliza, daughter of Michael and Sarah (Valley) Gallagher, of Woodstock, N. B. They have one child, Philip Dewitt, born Jan- uary 1, 1870, at Presque Isle. He was edu- cated in the local schools of his native town, at Trinity College, Hartford, Connecticut, and also at Harvard College, where he spent three years. He returned to Trinity College as in- structor in history, which position he held for two years. Since 1900 he has been connected with the Congressional Library at Washing- ton, D. C.
(III) Thomas H., fourth son of James (2) and. Hannah (Murphy) Phair, was born at Whitehall, New York, April 6, 1850. When a child he removed with his mother and other
members of the family to Presque Isle, Maine, where at the age of nine years he entered a general store as clerk. When sixteen years old he became a, partner in the firm of Johnson & Judd. A man of keen foresight, he soon saw something which offered greater oppor- tunities than the general merchandise and lum- ber business, which had at first occupied his attention. Aroostook county is peculiarly adapted to the manufacture of starch, because it is one of the greatest potato-growing re- gions in the country. The raisers of this in- dispensable vegetable were formerly at a loss to know what to do with their small tubers; but Mr. Phair saw how a waste product might be turned to good account. He has built up a business of such magnitude that he has be- come popularly known as the "Starch King." It was in 1883 that the firm of Johnson & Phair first began to manufacture starch, which has now become one of the most important products of the county. The T. H. Phair Company now operates thirteen different fac- tories, with a capacity of seventy-eight tons a day. This starch is of superior quality, and is used in vast quantities by cotton mills and other large enterprises. Beside the manufac- ture of starch, which they ship to all parts of the country, the company carries on a lum- ber business, and has mills at Washburn and Squawpan.
Mr. Phair is a Republican in politics, and represented his town in the state legislature of 1883 and 1885, and was elected to the state senate in 1887. In 1889 he was appointed col- lector of customs for his district, a position that he still holds. He takes a great interest in educational work, and was appointed trus- tee of the State Normal School at Presque Isle. He is conspicuous for his public spirit, and it was largely owing to his zealous interest that Presque Isle was chosen as the location for the Normal .School. One of Mr. Phair's recre- ations is the owning and driving of fine horses. He has been the owner of some valuable prize winners, among them being "Dolly Bidwell," who trotted in two minutes, eight and one- half seconds, and "Day Book," who paced in two minutes, nine and one-half seconds.
Mr. Phair was united in marriage to Ada Forbes, daughter of Charles F. A. Forbes, of Lincoln, Maine. They have two children.
This family of Blaisdell is BLAISDELL native to Maine, but it made a detour into Massachusetts as early as 1640, settling in Salisbury. In the fourth generation they emigrated back to the
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ancestral seat, and in the Old Pine Tree State the descendants have ever since resided and made for themselves a good name, aiding in the furtherance of every worthy cause. Many of them have been connected with the funda- mental industry of Maine-farming. Others have been identified with the business develop- ment of the state, but all "have made good," whatever their honorable calling. The name is derived from the combination of two old English words, blaise, meaning luxuriant, and dell, a luxuriant valley. The first Mr. Blais- dell was a man who lived in a luxuriant val- ley. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries the surname Blaisdell was frequently spelled Blasdell, Blasdale, Blasdel, Blasedill, Blassdell, Blazdell, Blaisdale.
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