USA > Maine > York County > History of York County, Maine, with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 52
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delivery wagon and one boy. In 1851, Mr. Carter came to Saco, where for one year he delivered and gathered parcels for the express-office. In 1852, Bigelow & Co. succeeded in the business, and he went to Portland, where he had charge of a part of the office, then doing business through the entire State. In 1853 he was put in charge of the express business at Saco and Biddeford, where he has since remained, con- trolling its whole management, to the satisfaction of the company and the citizens. This business has increased with the growing demands of trade and rapid transit, and from a small beginning of one thousand dollars to twenty- five thousand dollars annually, and with as great care and security delivers to distant parts the smallest and most worthless parcel as one of the greatest valne. The office at Saco and Biddeford requires, in 1879, five competent men and three teams to carry on its increasing business. Since his connection with the express business he has also had entire charge of the telegraph office of the Western Union Telegraph Company, connected with the express- office.
Mr. Carter is interested in local matters, and active in measures tending to the prosperity of the city or its citi- zens, and is officially connected with many of its institu- tions. He is treasurer of the Second Parish (Unitarian) Church, trustee of Saco Athenanm, assistant librarian of York Institute, and vice-president of the Saco and Biddeford Fish and Game Protective Association. He was a member of the Common Council in 1872 from the Seventh Ward, alderman in 1873 and 1876, and mayor of the city in 1874 and 1875.
He married, Oct. 15, 1853, Rosa H., daughter of Joseph and Lucy (Place) Otis, of Rochester, N. H. They have two daughters, Bella O. and Mary E.
JAMES MADISON DEERING.
His grandfather, William Deering, born Dec. 25, 1748, removed from Blue Point, Scarborough, and settled in Water- borough about 1770, and was the first settler on Deering Ridge in that town. He married, in 1773, Sarah Rumery, who was born Dec. 1, 1754. He died Dec. 13, 1829. His children were four sons and three danghters, of whom William Deering, Jr., was father of the subject of this sketch, born March 24, 1776, married, Nov. 1, 1806, Eu- nice Harper. He resided in Waterborongh during his life, and was a farmer. He died Feb. 7, 1860. His wife died June 10, 1865. Their children are Orinda, James M., William H., Jonathan R., Eunice, Joseph G.,-for many years a merchant in Saco,-David, and Ezekiel.
James Madison Deering, eldest son of William and En- nice (Harper) Deering, was born in Waterborough, July 23, 1809. At the age of nineteen he removed to Saco, where he engaged in business, and resided up to the time of his decease, April 4, 1871. Ile retired from trade in 1861, after having prosecuted a successful and more than average business for a period of thirty-one years. When he retired from trade he was appointed postmaster of Saco, which office he held until October, 1866. His sound judg- ment and excellent business habits early recommended him
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HISTORY OF YORK COUNTY, MAINE.
to his fellow-citizens as a suitable person to serve them in offices of trust. He held various offices under the old town government, and was chairman of the committee to build the city hall. He was city treasurer in 1867, and mayor in 1868.
Mr. Deering was a director of York Bank from 1838 to 1871, and was one of the originators of the Laurel Hill Cemetery.
He was originally a Democrat, but joined the Republican party on its organization, taking an active part in all its affairs, and it may be justly said that no man in the county or State contributed more to its success.
Upon the organization of the Republican State committee in 1854 he became its first chairman, and served most of the time for five years, showing in that responsible position unusual good judgment and ability as a party organizer and in conducting political campaigns. He was also a member of the county Republican committee seven years, serving as chairman five years, and performing the duties ably.
He was elected county commissioner, and served from 1857 to 1763. In 1867 he was appointed by Governor Chamberlain upon the committee authorized by the Legis- lature to investigate the affairs of the Insane Hospital at Augusta ; and from 1869 until his decease he was internal revenue inspector at Portland.
Mr. Deering failed in health for about two years, but such was the indomitable power of his will that he battled with disease, and attended to his accustomed duties until a short time before his death. His long residence in and familiarity with the varied interests of Saco made him a valuable citizen, and his death was regarded as a public loss.
He married, in 1832, Charlotte E., daughter of John and Elizabeth Noble, of Saco, Me. Their children living are Capt. John W. Deering, formerly a ship-master, now a lumber merchant, of Portland, Me. ; Lucy Augusta, wife of Eustis P. Morgan, civil engineer at the Saco Water- Power Machine-Shops; and George A. Deering, paymaster United States Navy.
MOSES LOWELL.
" Percival Lowle," as the name was originally spelled, was a merchant; came from Bristol, England, in 1639, bringing his wife Rebecca, sons John and Richard, and daughter Joanna, all married. Savage, in his history of New England, says, " Percival was the eldest son of a Richard Lowle, who married a Percival, and drew his de- scent through eight generations, by the eldest son of each, from Walter Lowle, of Yardley, in the county of Worcester." One branch, from the first son of Percival, has held a very prominent place in the annals of Massachusetts to the present time. Rev. John Lowell, of Newburyport, born in Boston, 1703, graduated at Harvard, 1721, ordained in Newbury- port, 1729. He was father of Judge John Lowell, of Boston, who was appointed by Washington the first judge of the United States District Court for Massachusetts, 1780. To Rev. John Lowell, it is said, the family is indebted for the change in their name.
Francis Cabot Lowell, for whom the city of Lowell was named, Rev. Charles, of Boston, and the poet James Rus- sell, and several others who have shed lustre upon the name, are of that family. Quite a colony of Lowells in Castine, Me., are descendants of the first John. Gideon Lowell, a descendant of the first Richard, settled in Amesbury, Mass., about 1720. His family was large. Five of his sons settled in Maine. The name scattered through the State, and offshoots have emigrated to the West and made homes for new families.
Moses Lowell (Samuel,7 Samuel,6 George,5 born in New- bury in 1712, Joseph,4 Benjamin,3 John,2 Percival1) is a descendant in the eighth generation from Percival the emi- grant, and was born in Saco, Me., Dec. 25, 1814. His grandfather, Samuel Lowell, came with his wife and daughter, Susan Ellen, from Newbury, Mass., and settled in Saco about the year 1763. He was a member of a com- pany raised in Saco to march to the defense of Boston after the battle of Bunker Hill.
Of his three sons and three daughters, Samuel was second son, and father of the subject of this sketch; born in Saco in 1780 ; married Sarah Ayer, who was born in 1786 and died in 1858. He was a ship-blacksmith by trade, but after the war of 1812 moved on to a farm, where he spent the remainder of his life. He died at the age of seventy- four, leaving five sons and five daughters, who grew to man. hood and womanhood.
Moses Lowell, fourth son, received a common-school edu- cation, and during his early life learned the tinsmith's trade. After reaching his majority he spent several years West and in Boston as a journeyman at his trade, and with a view to permanently locating in business. Returning to Saco in 1842, the following year he started business for himself. For a few years he was associated with Joseph Edwards (Edwards & Lowell) in the stove and tin-ware business, and afterwards with a son of that gentleman (Lowell & Edwards). This firm dissolved business relations in 1850, and Mr. Lowell continued the same business alone until 1870, when he retired and was succeeded in the business by his eldest son, Enoch (Lowell & Lord), who carries on trade at the old stand on Pepperell Square. In 1857, in company with James and Joseph Deering, he built the Pep- perell block, a part of which he occupied afterwards as a place of business until his retirement from the active duties of trade. Mr. Lowell was a man of consideration, judici- ous management, and possessed sterling integrity in all his relations in life. He was unassuming, possessed a well- balanced mind, and was a man of correct habits and high moral worth as a citizen. He had much sympathy for the needy, and in many ways contributed to their relief. He was a liberal supporter of church and kindred interests.
For many years he was a director of the Saco and Bidde- ford Insurance Company, and he was a director of the Saco National Bank at the time of his decease, March 5, 1878.
He always took an earnest interest in local and State legislation, and as a member of the Whig and Republican parties held various offices of trust and honor.
He was chairman of the Board of Selectmen for many years, was a member of the Legislature from Saco in 1863 and 1864, and was mayor of Saco in 1869-70. He was
Moses Lowill
+
Photo by E. H. McKenney, Biddeford.
you Hépati.
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CITY OF SACO.
appointed collector of customs for the district of Saco by President Grant, July 9, 1875, and remained in office during the remainder of his life.
He married, September, 1841, Abigail, daughter of Icha- bod Jordan, of Biddeford, Me. She was born in May, 1816, and survives in 1879. Their children are Enoch, Henry, a dry-goods merchant in Lewiston, Me., and Mary Elizabeth, deceased.
SAMUEL A. MILLIKEN
was born in Buxton, Aug. 26, 1808, being the eldest son of Nathaniel Milliken. He received only a common-school education, and followed farming and stock-raising during his life. Ile married Mary Ann, daughter of Samuel and
SAMUEL A. MILLIKEN.
Mary (Parcher) McKenney, of Saco. They had but one daughter, Mary Ann, who married Sewall Woodman, of Saco. His wife died in 1830, and for his second wife he married her only sister, Olive P. McKenney, by whom he had a family of three children,-Frank R., a farmer, who resides on the old homestead bought by his father in 1832; Olive Jane (deceased) ; Myra F., wife of Melville C. Ayer, an undertaker in Biddeford. In politics, Mr. Milliken was a Democrat.
JOHN GILPATRIC
(Joseph4, John3, John2, Thomas1) is a descendant in the fifth generation from Thomas Gilpatric, who, with his family of wife and four sons, came from Ireland, and settled first in the town of Wells, York Co., Me. He had three sons born in this country, and all his children reached manhood. He moved to Biddeford, where he died, Oct. 24, 1762, aged eighty-eight. John Gilpatric, grandfather of our subject, was a Revolutionary soldier, and captain of a company.
Joseph, father of John Gilpatric, born in Kennebunk in 1769, married Abigail Cousens of the same place. Settled on the farm in Biddeford in 1798, where his eldest son, Samuel, resides in 1879. It was a wilderness tract of land at the time of his settlement, his farm containing eighty acres. It now contains, by additions of his son, some two hundred acres. His children are Samuel, Joseph (deceased ), John (deceased ), Mary (deceased ), Lucy, and Abigail. He died in 1837. His wife died Jan. 2, 1815, aged forty- one. By his second marriage, with Mrs. Dolly Dyer, he had one daughter Priscilla, wife of Leonard Rumery.
John Gilpatric was born in Biddeford, April 30, 1812. and died in Saco, July 20, 1872. He left home in boy- hood, and came to Saco, where he was engaged for several years as an employee in the York Mills. By industry and economy, habits which he acquired in early life, he was enabled to start business for himself; and soon after reaching his majority he began trading in Saco, and until 1861 he was well known as a dealer in corn, flour, etc., in that town. In connection with this business, as his means increased, he became interested in navigation, and for many years was engaged somewhat in ship-building. He disposed of his interest in shipping at the breaking out of the late Rebellion. For a period of thirty-five years he was an active business man in Saco, and known as a prudent, upright tradesman. His sterling integrity and corrcet habits led others to respect him, and he had the confidence of his fellow-townsmen. During the latter part of his life he suffered from the effects of a stroke of paralysis, which terminated in his death. He was three times married. His last wife was Annie A., daughter of Capt. Stephen Shepley, and a niece of the late John Shepley, formerly a well-known and emi- nent lawyer of Saco. Her father died at the old homestead, in Groton, Mass. Ilis children are Estelle A., Grace L., Mary, Charles, and John Guy.
He was far-seeing in his business calculations, and seemed to determine future results from present business operations.
JAMES D. PATTEN,
son of Johnson and Lucy (Towne) Patten, grandson of James and Sally (Stone) Patten, and great-grandson of Robert and Florence (Johnston) Patten, was born in Ken- nebunkport, Aug. 26, 1817, and died in Saco, Oct. 7, 1865. His great-grandfather, Robert, emigrated from Coleraine, County Derry, Ireland, and settled in Arundel in 1737.
Mr. Patten prepared for college at Kent's Hill Academy, but at the age of twenty, concluding to lead a business instead of a professional life, he came to Saco, where he did a quite large business as contractor and builder until 1847. During his residence in Saco he married, April 15, 1840, Mary J., eldest daughter of Charles and Rebecca Stan- wood (Wells) Ware, of Gardiner, Me. For one year or more following 1847, with a view of entering the ministry, Mr. Patten was a student at the Concord Biblical Institute, but, on account of ill health, in 1849 returned to Saco, and again engaged in active business as a lumber merch- ant, shipping largely from the eastern part of the State of Maine. ITis place of business was on Pepperell Square,
24
186
HISTORY OF YORK COUNTY, MAINE.
and among other buildings, be erected the present post- office block.
Mr. Patten was known to the citizens of Saco as a man of great energy, indefatigable perseverance, and as one who engaged in business operations with that resolution which overcomes difficulties and achieves success. Possessed of a
LITTLE
Photo. by McKenney, Biddeford.
James D. Pattin
generous and kind-hearted disposition, yet frank in his manner, he won the esteem of all who knew him. He was never solicitous of public office, nor did he shrink in any way from performing the whole duty of the citizen. His reliability and integrity were special traits of his character. For many years he was a member of the Odd-Fellows and Freemason societies. In early manhood he interested him- self in the study of the Scriptures, and for many years prior to his decease he was a consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Saco. His children are Charles Fred- erick, drowned in Saco River, at the age of nineteen ; Mel- ville C., an accountant in Chicago, Ill., married, in 1873, Miss Lizzie, daughter of Baron Frederick Von Kaas; Flor- ence M., wife of Maj. Paul Chadbourne, Saco; Nellie A., and Fannie W.
PAUL CHADBOURNE
enlisted as a private, Sept. 19, 1861. Mustered as first lieutenant, Co. I, 1st Maine Cavalry, October 31st, at Augusta, Me. Promoted captain, 1863, and major, in February, 1865. March 4th, assigned to the command of the 2d New York Mounted Rifles. Wounded in the right hand, Oct. 27, 1864, at Gravelly Run. Shot through the right shoulder, March 31, 1865, near Five Forks. Participated in nearly all the battles of the Army of the Potomac, from Cedar Mountain and 2d Bull Run to the capture of Richmond and Petersburg. June 16, 1865, appointed provost-marshal of Chesterfield County.
Discharged from the service, August, 1865. Maj. Chad- bourne was elected mayor of the city of Saco, and served in 1876.
DANIEL M. OWEN,
son of William Owen, was born in the town of Buxton, York Co., Me., Aug. 19, 1814. His mother, Polly, born Feb. 25, 1792, was a daughter of John and Rebecca (Lane) Merrill, and was married to William Owen, May 1, 1813.
Photo. by McKenney, Biddeford.
Dan M. Owen
His grandmother died at his residence in Saco, Nov. 14, 1863, aged ninety-six years and eleven months. She was a daughter of Capt. Daniel Lane and his wife, Molly Wood- man, and was married, Jan. 28, 1790, to John, son of Lieut. Samuel Merrill. Daniel M. Owen was thrown upon his own resources very young in life, being left, with limited means, an orphan when but a boy. He spent his minority in his native town, where he learned merchant tailoring. In early manhood he came to Saco, where he soon estab- lished himself in business, and by his straightforward, staunch habits became a leading merchant and prom- inent citizen. His name was always the synonym of in- tegrity and fair dealing. In 1842 he was married to Mary J. Woodsum, of Saco. Mr. Owen was a man of great in- genuity, and of a naturally mechanical turn of mind, that enabled him (during his leisure hours) to design and con- struct many beautiful articles, showing a superior talent in that direction, which, developed, would have given him a place among the most skilled workmen. Although thor- oughly interested in the local enterprises of the town, he never sought publicity or the emoluments of office. Upon the formation of the first city government of Saco, in 1867, he was chosen alderman, which office he held until the
ELI EDGECOMB.
ELI EDGECOMB,
eighth child and sixth son of James and Anna (Burnham) Edgecomb, was born in the town of Saco, Jan. 22, 1799. He spent his early life at home on the farm and attending the district school. He has spent his life as a farmer, active, industrious, and frugal. He married, in 1826, Betsey, daughter of Philip Libby, of Saco. He has always been identified with the Democratic party, and, although not a member of any church, a supporter of church interests. His father served in the Revolutionary war; was a member of the Democratic party, and a member of the Orthodox Church of Scarborough, Cumberland Co. He lived upon the farm now owned by his son Eli, and was a farmer by occu- pation. He died in his seventy-eighth year, in 1835. His wife died in September, 1839, aged seventy-five.
HENRY SIMPSON,
fifth child and fifth son of Benjamin and Rebecca (Jacobs) Simpson, was born in Saco, April 18, 1827.
HENRY SIMPSON.
Owing to adverse circumstances of his parents, at the age of ten years he went to live with Eli Edgecomb, of Saco, where he remained during his minority. He received a liberal education in early life in the common school and at Limerick Academy. In 1855 he purchased a farm known as the Stimpson farm; subsequently sold it and purchased the one where he now resides. In early manhood he began teaching, and has taught in the district schools of his vicinity for thirty years, although his main business is farming. Identified with the Demo- cratic party, he has filled various offices of trust in his town. He was selectman from 1860 to 1864, during which time the nine-months' men were called out to serve in the army. Mr. Simpson took an active part in filling the quota, and to him largely is due the raising of money to pay bounties to those who went to the front.
He married, in 1855, Harriet R., daughter of Samnel Pennell. Of this union has been born one daughter, Lucy M., wife of Charles Waterman. The Simpsons were early settlers of York, as men- tioned in Hon. Nathaniel G. Marshall's history of that town.
CITY OF SACO.
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time of his death, Feb. 3, 1869. Mr. Owen was a man of dignified, gentlemanly bearing, unostentatious, of sound judgment, honest in his convictions of duty and right, and while he was ever mindful of the happiness of those around him, did not neglect his social and neighborly relations with others. He was one of the original members of the Universalist Society in Saco, and was one of its truest friends and supporters until the sale of the church, when he connected himself with the Unitarian congregation. His children living are George F., his successor in business, William H., and Isabel, wife of Weston Thompson, a law- yer of Brunswick, Me.
IRA C. DOE,
son of John and Abigail (Giddings) Doe, was born in Parsonsfield, June 6, 1814. His grandfather, Deacon John Doe, with a brother (Gideon), were the first two white settlers in that town in 1776, and had the choice of five hundred acres apiece on account of their early settlements. They came from Wolfboro', N. H., where they had resided only two years, having originally come from New Market, N. H. Their grandfather and his brother came from the south of England about 1650 to Dover Neck, N. H. His father, John Doe, was the first white male child born in Parsonsfield, in 1778, and died Jan. 25, 1821. His mother died, at the age of ninety-six, Feb. 9, 1879.
Mr. Doe received his preliminary education in the Lim- erick and Parsonsfield Academies, and during the winter seasons, while attending school, was a teacher. Having thus fitted himself for college, he passed his examination at Brown University, Providence, R. I .; but, for want of means, gave up a college course, and went to New Market, N. H., where he was a teacher for four years in succession. Impaired health compelled him to quit teaching, and he removed to St. Joseph, Mich., and for one year (1837) was engaged in surveying for the government. After two years as a teacher there he returned East, settled in Portland, and was a teacher in Cape Elizabeth and Scarborough until 1847. From 1847 to 1864 he was teacher in Saco, and during the last eight years of that time was principal of one of the Saco grammar schools. Since 1864 he has been engaged in farming in Saco, where he now resides.
He married, Aug. 24, 1844, Dorothy, daughter of Thomas (3d) and Lydia (Jenkins) Dyer. Her father was a native of Biddeford, and came to Saco when only five years of age. His occupation was farming. He was a Democrat in
LITTIF
Photo. by E. H. McKenney, Biddeford. IRA C. DOE.
politics, was a member of the State Senate in 1849-50, and died in May, 1864. Her mother died July 13, 1877.
Mr. Doe has always been known as a man of strict fidel- ity, having a conscientious regard for justice and right. As a teacher he sought to impress his pupils with the necessity of a sure educational foundation as a means of future suc- cess, and his ability as an instructor has often received public recognition. He is a member of the Democratic party, but the minority of his party has always barred his election, when a candidate, for official honors. He was a member of the Board of Agriculture of the State for three years, and was at one time inspector of customs for the port of Saco. Mr. Doe is familiarly known as Capt. Doe, he having been some twenty-five years ago captain of the Saco Guards.
CITY OF BIDDEFORD.
ORIGINAL PATENTEES AND COLONISTS.
RICHARD VINES, one of the original patentees of Bidde- ford, came to the coast of Maine from England in 1609, and remained here almost constantly afterwards for thirty years. He was an enterprising and trustworthy agent of Sir Ferdinando Gorges, who employed him in frequent voyages to this coast, after the failure of the Popham colony had discouraged all further attempts to settle the country. The severity of the winters was thought to be too great to be endured by English people, and for many years none could be induced to come here for the purpose of making permanent homes. In 1616, Gorges sent out Richard Vines, with orders to stay in this country all winter with his companions, and thus practically test the rigor of the climate. He spent the winter of 1616-17 in the sheltered basin now known as Biddeford Pool, from which circum- stance it received the name of Winter Harbor.
Mr. Vines made some sort of settlement here prior to 1623, as is proved by a statement of Gorges. In speaking of the settlement undertaken at Agamenticus that year, he says, " And we found more hope of a happy success of these affairs by reason that not far from that place there had been settled some years before Mr. Richard Vines, a servant, of whose care and diligence he (Gorges) had formerly made much trial in his affairs."
It is well known that Mr. Vines in repeated voyages sub- sequent to 1616 made Winter Harbor his chief place of resort. That he erected buildings here, and occupied the place by tenants, more or less permanently, till he obtained a grant of land in the vicinity, is highly probable.
The grant now commonly called the Biddeford patent, coinciding nearly with the present limits of the town, was made by the Council of Plymouth to John Oldham and Richard Vines, Feb. 1, 1630. It extended along the sea- coast four miles west from the mouth of Saco River, and up into the country eight miles. Mr. Vines took legal possession of this grant June 23, 1630, in the presence of Isaac Allerton, Capt. Thomas Wiggin, Thomas Purchase, Capt. Nathaniel Waters, Capt. John Wright, and Stephen Reekes. The attorneys of the Council for the delivery of possession were Rev. William Blackstone, of Shawmut, now Boston, William Jeffries and Edward Hilton, of Pis- cataqua.
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