History of Penobscot County, Maine; with illustrations and biographical sketches, Part 57

Author: Williams, Chase & Co., Cleveland (Ohio)
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Cleveland, Williams, Chase & Co.
Number of Pages: 1100

USA > Maine > Penobscot County > History of Penobscot County, Maine; with illustrations and biographical sketches > Part 57

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HON. SAMUEL E. DUTTON,

Judge of Probate, was born in Hallowell, Maine, on the 16th of June, 1744. He was the son of Col- onel Samuel Dutton and Ruth (Edwards) Dutton. His father was the son of John Dutton and Johanna (Crosby) Dutton; and John was the son of Samuel Dut- ton, who came from England in 1712, and settled in Billerica, Massachusetts. Samuel, having had a good preparatory education, studied law in Hallowell, and closed his course of reading in 1800. He came to Ban- gor early in 1801, and established himself in the profes- sion. His father, Colonel Dutton, came to Bangor a year or two afterward, and purchased the farm a part of which is now the City Farm, where he built a one-story house, which is still standing and is one of the Poor- house buildings. In this house he died in 1807, at the

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HISTORY OF PENOBSCOT COUNTY, MAINE.

age of sixty-three. The son, in 1802-03, built a two- story house on the lot between Main and Summer streets, fronting on Emerson street, a hundred or more feet therefrom. This house he occupied from 1803, most of the time, until 1831, when he died.

Samuel E. Dutton was one of the most prominent citi- zens of Bangor in the early part of the century. He was intrusted by proprietors with the agency of their lands in the county for many years. The town of Dutton (now Glenburn), where some of these lands were, was named for him. He was a good civil engineer, and frequently found occasion to use the compass and chain.

In Williamson's History of Belfast, page 608, may be found the following:

1812, April 7. Voted to accept the road from Upper Bridge to meet a road laid out by Samuel E. Dutton, Esq., across the land of Mrs. Swan.

He was the first Judge of Probate in the county, from its organization in 1816 to the separation in 1820. He was the first President of the Bangor Bank. He was in- strumental in establishing the first newspaper in Bangor, -the Bangor Weekly Register. A letter from Mr. Peter Edes to him, dated "Augusta, 29th. March, 1814," sug- gests that "a printer is wanted at Bath, but his friends advised him, if he "should leave Augusta, to prefer Bangor."

"I shall rely solely upon your opinion," he writes, "with respect to the eligibility of the place for a printer, confident that you would not advise me to a measure that you thought would be injurious to me." He wishes a subscription for a newspaper started, gives hints in regard to a name, etc. As will be seen in the Annals of Bangor, the paper was established in 1815.

· Judge Dutton was largely instrumental also in having the permanent location of the Theological Institution in Bangor. He was a conservative man, and did not coun- tenance great changes. Like his friend Edes, he adhered to the last century fashions with amusing tenacity. In his "small clothes with stockings to the knees," and coat of the olden time, "with square tails reaching almost to the ground," he was a very conspicuous object in the street during the first quarter of the century. The broad ruffles, however, extending from the waistband to the nose, he did not flaunt so long as some of his contemporaries. He was never a great persecutor of poor debtors; but was a good lawyer, and it was said that, when in practice, he had more influence with the jury than any other member of the Bar. When he died, in 1831, he was a little less than fifty-seven years of age.

HON, WILLIAM D. WILLIAMSON,

Judge of Probate, was born in Canterbury, Connecticut, July 31, 1779. His ancestor, Timothy Williamson, was a freeman of the Plymouth Colony in 1647, and went as a soldier from Marshfield in King Philip's war. His father was George Williamson, (third in descent from Timothy, a soldier of the Revolution, and in the battle of White Plains. He was a farmer, and had positions of trust where he resided previous to coming to Bangor, where he died in 1822, at the age of sixty-eight. Wil-

liam was a good son, and rendered his father all the as- sistance in his power upon the farm until he was dis- abled by an injury to his arm. He then concluded to obtain a liberal education. He entered Williams Col- lege, but taking offense at some action of the President, he removed to Brown University. "He graduated on the 5th of Septembet, 1804, with the highest honors, having an oration in the afternoon and in the forenoon 'a syllo- gistic dispute' with three others, the best scholars in the class. The subject of the oration was 'The Soul;' that of the dispute was the question: 'Would not married people be as happy if their partners, instead of being chosen by themselves, were selected by civil authority?'"* After graduation he entered the law office of Samuel F. Dickinson, Esq., in Amherst, Massachusetts, where his father then resided. He afterward studied in the office of Hon. Samuel Thatcher, in Warren, Maine, and com- pleted his reading as a student in the office of Jacob McGaw, Esq., in Bangor. He was admitted to the Bar during the session of the Court of Common Pleas at Castine, in November, 1807, and commenced practice soon afterwards in Bangor. Being well grounded in the principles of his profession, of mature years, possessed of an active mind, ardent temperment, and persevering industry, he was calculated to succeed. In 1808 he was appointed by Governor Sullivan County Attorney, for the county of Hancock. He continued in office until the law was repealed under which he was appointed in June, 1809. This law was revived June 18, 1811, and Mr. Williamson was re-appointed County Attorney by Governor Gerry, and continued to hold the office until the county of Penobscot was organized in 1816.

Mr. Williamson was a Democrat, and was fond of politics. He became a candidate for Senator in 1816, and was defeated. He was, however, elected Senator in 1817, and was re-elected the three succeeding years. After Maine became an independent State he was elected a Senator to the Legislature from Penobscot county, and held the office until he resigned in December, 1821, to accept the office of Representative to Congress, to which he had been elected.

Maine was admitted into the Union March 3, 1820. Its first Legislature was in existence from May 21, 1820, to the first Wednesday of January, 1822. Mr. William- son was elected President of the Senate (to supply the vacancy occasionally by the resignation of General John Chandler, who was the first President, and resigned to accept the position of Senator in Congress), and by virtue of that position became acting Governor of the State, on the appointment of Governor King Commis- sioner under the Spanish treaty. In addition to the other offices held by Mr. Williamson prior to this was that of Postmaster of Bangor, to which he was appointed No- vember 27, 1809, and in which he was continued until 1821, when he resigned, and Royal Clark was appointed. In 1821 Mr. Williamson was elected Representative to the Seventeenth Congress, and held the office for one term. While in Congress he labored with his usual dili-

+Memoirs by Hon. Joseph Williamson.

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HISTORY OF PENOBSCOT COUNTY, MAINE.

gence, and attended faithfully to his duties. In a speech he pressed the importance of military works upon the Penobscot, which led to a survey and finally the con- struction of Fort Knox.

His first wife having died in June, 1822, on his return from Congress he brought with him his second wife, Susan E., daughter of Judge Phineas White, of Putney, Ver- mont, who died on March 9, 1824, at the age of twenty- one. In 1825 he married Mrs. Clarissa Wiggin, nee Emerson, who (in 1881) is living, at the age of ninety- two.

In the year 1824 Mr. Williamson was appointed to the office of Judge of Probate for Penobscot county, which he held until the year 1840. In 1834 and 1839 he was appointed Bank Commissioner, and in 1840 he was appointed chairman of a commission to visit the reform- atory institu ions of the Northern States, with a view to improvements in the State Prison. In 1817 he conceived the idea of writing the History of Maine, and while a member of the Massachusetts Senate commenced gather- ing materials for it. This work was given to the public in 1832, in two large volumes. It is a valuable work, and often referred to. The labor he bestowed upon it was immense. It is nearly out of print. At sowie future time a new edition, from under the hand of a competent editor, will be invaluable to a student of Maine history. It is the great work of Judge Williamson's life, and by it his name will be perpetuated.

By his first marriage Mr. Williamson had five children. His only son, William, a promising young man, died September 6, 1832, at the age of eighteen, a member of Bowdoin ollege. His daughters, all accomplished ladies, survived him. The youngest, Frances A., married Mayo Hazeltine, of Boston, and died in March, 1847. Of the other daughters (now widows), Caroline J. (now Mrs. Chapman) was first the wife of Nathaniel Haynes, a lawyer of Bangor, and is the mother of Professor Henry W. Haynes, recently of the University of Vermont; Har- riet H., the second daughter, married Paul R. Hazeltine, a merchant of Belfast; Mary C., the third, married Liv- ingston Livingston, a lawyer of New York, and has a son, Philip Livingston, a student in Columbia College.

Judge Williamson was a member of various historical societies, and was an original member of the Maine His- torical Society. He was an untiring collector of facts, and the Maine and Massachusetts Historical Societies have been enriched by his labors. He was ambitious for the prosperity of the place of his residence. He was connected with the banks of the city, and was Presi- dent of the People's Bank. He was instrumental in establishing the Academy, which bore the name of the Bangor Young Ladies' Academy, and in various ways he was connected with the school and other affairs of the town. He died at the age of sixty-six years, on May 27, 1846. Hon. Samuel W. Blake announced his death to the court, and, as chairman of the committee on resolu- tions, presented a series, from which the following is an extract :

A discerning Executive has honored him; an enlightened constituency has confided in him. In the Senate of Massachusetts and Maine; in

the Congress of the United States; as acting Governor; in all the relations of society; in all the places of honor and trust, in public or private life, which he ever held, he discharged the duties incumbent upou him with integrity and fidelity. His leisure he devoted to general literature and historical pursuits. He has left behind him valuable con- tributions to the annals of New England, and his History of our own State will ever remain a monument of the indefatigable research and patient investigation of its author.

HON. DANIEL SANBORN,

Judge of Probate. After admission to the Bar, Judge Sanborn first established himself in Kenduskeag. He afterwards removed to Bangor. His business life has been divided between the law and political journalism. About 1853 he was an editor of the Bangor Daily and Weekly Journal. He was appointed Judge of Probate by Governor Crosby, and continued in that office until his successor was elected by the people in 1856-57. Afterwards he confined himself to the profession of the law until 1879-80, when he became the principal editor of the Bangor Commercial. Although Mr. Sanborn has not pretended to a high position as an advocate, yet he has attended faithfully to his duties as a lawyer and as a journalist.

HON. ENOCH BROWN,

Chief Justice of Court of Sessions, was born in Abington, Massachusetts, in 1781; graduated at Brown University; read law with Judge Padelford, in Taunton; came to Hampden very early in this century, about 1805, and established himself in practice at the "Lower Corner." He and Mr. Godfrey were contemporaries in the profes- sion in that town until 1820. Until 1816 they attended the courts at Castine. Their town conceived so high an opinion of their capacity that the selectmen at one time vested them with the powers of jurymen, imagining that, while attending to the business of their clients, they could as well as not try whatever cases might come before them. The Court, however, could not overlook the incompatibility of the two functions of attorney and juror, and directed the counselors to take their places at the Bar.

Mr. Brown was a good lawyer and an excellent citi- zen. He continued in Hampden until the year 1835, when he removed to Bangor. He speculated somewhat in lands after he came to Bangor, and did something in the profession. He died about the last of the year 1838, very suddenly. The Bar in January, 1839, adopted resolutions of respect, drawn up by George B. Moody, Esq., which bear testimony to his "cultivated mind, blameless life, unimpeached morality, high princi- ples, and active industry."

Mr. Brown was intermarried with Melinda, daughter of Judge Padelford. They had ten children, five sons and five daughters. Among the sons were Enoch Emery Brown, Esq., a lawyer in Somerset county, re- cently deceased; Augustus I. Brown, Esq., a lawyer, who died a few years since in New York; and Hon. James S. Brown, a lawyer of Milwaukee, former Mayor of that city, and once a member of Congress from Wis- consin and Attorney-General of that State, now deceased.

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HISTORY OF PENOBSCOT COUNTY, MAINE.

HON. JOHN GODFREY,

Chief Justice of Court of Sessions. Mr. Godfrey was the son of John Godfrey, of Taunton, Massachusetts, and the sixth of his line in America. The first was Richard, of the "ancient family of Godfrey," which, according to Burke's Commoners, "is supposed to de- rive from Godfrey le Fauconer, lord of the manor of Hurst, in Kent, as early as the reign of Henry II." Richard came from England and settled in Taunton in 1652, having with him Richard, born in 1651. This Richard, Jr., was the father of John, who was the father of George, who was the father of John, who was the father of the subject of this sketch. These ancestors were all farmers, and died in Taunton at a good old age. They were very conservative and very decided. The first John and George were active magistrates ; had military commissions - John that of captain under George II., and George that of Brigadier-General under the Republic (hence was called "the Brigadier,")-and, as well as the second John, were prominently connected with the town business and were Representatives in the Legislature of the State. George was colleague with Robert Treat Paine in 1779.

John, the subject of this sketch, was born in Taunton May 27, 1781. He labored hard upon his father's farm in his early years, but had the advantages of the schools of the town. When about eighteen or nineteen years old, at the raising of his father's house, in wrestling his shoulder was injured. This accident led to its being de- termined that he should be educated. By close applica- tion he was enabled to enter Brown University, at Provi- dence, a year in advance. On graduating he entered the office of Mr. Sproat, one of the best lawyers in the Com- monwealth, and the only one in Taunton, besides Judge Padelford, who took students. After finishing his course, he came to Hampden and established himself in the pro- fession in 1805-06, at the "Upper Corner." He did more ; he started a small farm, with a determination to " get on." The love of farming had come down to him from his ancestor Richard, and his college training had not overcome his love of it.

He married Sophia, daughter of Colonel Samuel Dut- ton, who had a few years before removed from Hallowell to Bangor. He remained in Hampden about fifteen years. He was there at the time of the British victories, and was locked up in the cabin of a British war vessel, with others, as a prisoner of war, and detained one night, made memorable to him by his nearly dying of thirst. His house was used as an hospital, his library was taken by the British soldiers and put into a martin-house and with it converted into a bonfire, and his horse was ap- propriated by American thieves.

The effect of this British raid was to prostrate business, and he took his wife and four children to the place of his nativity, where he remained for a time in the practice of his profession. He returned to Hampden, however, in 1815, and there continued until 1820, when he formed a connection in business with Hon. Samuel E. Dutton, in Bangor, to which place he removed his family in 1821.

The connection was not of long continuance. Mr. Godfrey was appointed Chief Justice of the Court of Sessions in 1823, and had for associates Ephraim Good- ale, Esq., of Orrington, and Seba French, Esq., of Dex- ter. In 1825 he was County Attorney, and held the office for seven years. Municipal trusts were committed to him in both Hampden and Bangor, and he was more or less connected with the business of Bangor and of the county for many years. He discharged all his duties intelligently and faithfully. He was a believer in work. When he was not employed in professional labor, his hands found something to do at his home. His garden was his place of recreation. In manner he was unassum- ing, but decided. He was not fond of innovations. The religion of his fathers was his religion, and he was about as conservative as his ancestor, George, who would not hear a preacher who emitted the faintest odor of heresy more than once. He was a grave man, not given to much speech, but possessed of a dry humor that was appreciated. Once he presided at a meeting where the Bar were preparing to take some action complimentary to Judge Frederick H. Allen, who was about to remove from the State. Judge Hathaway, from a committee, reported that a dinner be tendered him on a certain day as six o'clock.

The Chairman .- "In the morning or evening ? "

Judge Hathaway .- " In the evening, of course. Who ever heard of a dinner being given in the morning ?"

The Chairman,-"I suppose it might be as well to give it at one end of the day as at the other. It is cus- tomary with us to have it about mid-day."

Apart from the conventionality, a dinner would have been as agreeable to him in the morning as in the even- ing, for he usually accomplished two or three hours' labor before breakfast. He had fixed political views, though not a demonstrative politican. What public trusts were conferred on him came without his prompting, because of the confidence reposed in him.

He died May 28, 1862, at the age of eighty-one. Mr. Jacob. McGaw made the announcement of his death to the court, following it with eulogistic remarks and com- plimentary resolutions of the Bar. Chief Justice Tenney responded, and said, among other things,-

He has always been distinguished for his respect for the courts and courtesy to his professional associates; for his unbending integrity and his fidelity to his clients, who, having once employed him, seldom sel- dom sought the aid of other counsel; and in some instances he has been a standing agent of municipal corporations for a series of years to- gether, to take charge of their business in Court. The first time I was ever in Court in this place, many years since, Mr. Godfrey was the at- torney for the county, and I was struck with the discretion and ability with which he conducted the criminal business. His conduct as a citi- zen was regulated by an elevated moral standard which all acknowl- edged and felt. In his domestic relations, of which I had some knowl- ledge he took the deepest interest, and in the discharge of the duties therein, he evidently found his great happiness.

JAMES GODFREY,

second son and ninth child of John Godfrey, was born in Bangor, October 8, 1822 ; fitted for college in Bangor, entered Waterville, and graduated from Bowdoin College in 1844. After graduating he spent two years in teach- ing in Alabama ; returned to Bangor, and entered his

John E. Godfrey.

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HISTORY OF PENOBSCOT COUNTY, MAINE.

father's office as student at law in 1846. After admission to the Bar in Bangor, he went to Wellsboro, where he commenced practice. Not being satisfied with the situation he went to Houlton, where he soon acquired an encouraging business.

In September, 1848, he intermarried with Mary Carter, daughter of George Wheelwright and sister of Hon. J. S. Wheelwright. His class secretary, F. S. Washburn, Esq., in his report at the class meeting in Brunswick, August 21, 1852, said :

In due time a daughter was born. All was bright and joyous to that gaze which could not penetrate the dim future, over which sorrow and death cast no warning shadow. Hope was buoyant; joy was full. Yet a sad hour soon came, when disease seized with iron grasp the stalwart frame, which bent in a few days, and finally yielded to the power of death. All of earth that remained of our classmate was buried in Mount Hope Cemetery, Bangor.

His daughter soon followed him. He died August 30, 1850, at the age of twenty-eight. The Bar of Aroos- took county adopted resolutions at his decease, and put on record "that, though he had been with us but little more than two years, yet he had become favorably known to the community as a gentleman of strict probity, to his brethren of the Bar an obliging and kind friend, a faith- ful counselor and an affable opponent, whose industry and application gave promise of a highly respectable position in the profession."

HON. THOMAS A. HILL,

Chief Justice of the Court of Sessions, was born in Surry, New Hampshire, in 1783. He established himself in the profession in Waterville for a time, came to Bangor in 1812, afterwards went into partnership with Hon. Samuel E. Dutton. The copartnership continued until about 1820. He afterwards formed a business connec- tion with George Starrett, Esq., which continued until 1834, when he gave up the practice. While in the pro- fession Mr. Hill did a large business; he had also busi- ness in connection with the town and county. He was a director and important agent in the management of the Bangor Bank. He was appointed by the Governor Chief Justice of the Court of Sessions in 1829, and con-' tinued in that office and as Chairman of the County Commissioners until 1835. He was also President of the Lafayette Bank.

When the Anti-Masonic party was in existence in the State he was its candidate for Governor. Mr. Hill died in December, 1864, at the age of eighty-one years. The Bar passed resolutions of respect, in which they said that as a lawyer "he was always faithful to his client, patient and untiring in his industry in his behalf, prudent, intelli- gent, and assiduously careful in guarding and promoting his interest; a sound and safe adviser, a sagacious and successful practitioner. As a citizen he was public- spirited, laboring to promote the interests of this growing community with a wise forecast and zealous activity, hav- ing in many of the improvements of the city, made in his days and which were due in a great measure to his suggestions or his efficient cooperation, enduring monu- ments of his good taste and wise provision for the future."

Mr. Hill was twice married. His first wife was Mrs. Elizabeth Long, widow of Robert Long, of Newburyport, and daughter of Hon. Francis Carr, of Bangor. They had two daughters-Elizabeth, who became the wife of John A. Poor, Esq., and died January 14, 1837, at the age of twenty-two, leaving a daughter, Laura E., who has made a reputation as a Sanscrit scholar, and Jane, a lady of culture and literary distinction, who became the wife of Moses L. Appleton, Esq., and is still living. Miss Stevens, of Gardiner, became Mr. Hill's second wife. They had one daughter, Emily, who is the wife of Mr. Hurlbut, of Boston.

HON. THORNTON M'GAW,

Chairman of the County Commissioners, was born in Derry, New Hampshire, and came to Bangor in the year 1824. After studying with his uncle, Jacob McGaw, in this city, he was admitted to the Bar; and in June, 1826, he was admitted as an attorney of the Supreme Judicial Court. Mr. McGaw possessed studious habits and a good legal mind. His abilities soon became known and appreciated. In 1835 he was appointed Chairman of the County Commissioners. He became the agent of proprietors of lands in Dutton and Kirkland (now Glenburn and Hudson), and managed their business with great prudence and ability. He was at one time Clerk of the House of Representatives of Maine. He intermarried, October 19, 1826, with Ann Frances, a beautiful and accomplished daughter of Joseph Carr, Esq., who died February 12, 1847, leaving one child, a daughter, Annie Thornton, who became the wife of Charles W. Adams, Esq., of Boston. After his bereave- ment Mr. McGaw was much of the time away from Bangor, having gradually relinquished the practice of his profession. In 1855 he formed a matrimonial connec- tion with Mrs. Esther T. Hathorn, and occupied the man- sion which he built at the corner of Kenduskeag Avenue and Division street (afterwards purchased and enlarged by Hon. Henry E. Prentiss, and now owned and occupied by his widow), until his death, which oc- curred October 6, 1859.

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History of Penobscot County, Maine; with illustrations and biographical sketches, Part 57

Author: Williams, Chase & Co., Cleveland (Ohio) Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Cleveland, Williams, Chase & Co. Number of Pages: 1100

Author: Williams, Chase & Co., Cleveland (Ohio)
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Cleveland, Williams, Chase & Co.
Number of Pages: 1100