USA > Maine > Maine; a history, Volume IV > Part 3
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His son, Dr. Charles E. G. Shannon, was a cap- tain in the Medical Reserve Corps; his grand- son, Frederick J. Ordway, Jr., was a first lieuten- ant in the Ninety-seventh Aero Squadron, first pursuit group, constantly engaged in patrol work on the front lines in France; another grandson, Richard S. Ordway, was an ensign in the Navy, serving with our Naval Air Forces in European waters; his granddaughter, Miss Priscilla Ord- way, was engaged in Red Cross work; while the husband of another grand-daughter, Mary Wols- ton Hallett, is a lieutenant of Engineers in the British army.
Professor Charles Way Shannon married, first, December 29, 1859, Mary Emery Lapham. She was born March 12, 1841, the daughter of David and Eunice (Emery) Lapham, of Auburn, Maine, "and died at Saco, September 3, 1883. He married, second, June 4, 1901, Nellie Fessenden Eastman, who was born in Stow, Maine, February 27, 1861, the daughter of Otis M. and Susan E. Eastman. Children of Charles Way and Mary Shannon: I. Mabelle Stanwood, born April 2, 1862. 2. Grace Lincoln, born January 27, 1865. 3. Charles Emery Gould, born September 16, 1875.
EDWARD EVERETT WILLSON-Among the most prominent and influential citizens of Saco, Maine, Edward Everett Willson stands high, the major part of his career having taken place in this city, with the affairs of which he has come to be intimately identified. He is a member of a family that for many generations has made its home in the "Pine Tree. State," many of its members being associated with what is perhaps the most characteristic industry of the region,
that of building and sailing the ships which in a past generation made this country famous in all the ports of the world, and for the making of which the great pine forests of the State furnish such an inexhaustable supply.
The Willson family was founded in this country by Michael of the name who came from Lon- don, England, and settled at Ipswich, Massachu- setts. Michael Willson was a weaver by trade, and soon came to hold a prominent place in the life of the new community, for several years serv- ing on the Colonial Legislature of Massachusetts. His son, Michael, Jr., settled in Wells, Maine, which became his permanent home. It was at that place that his son, David, was born, April, 1753, and there that he spent the early years of his life. Later he came to Castine, Maine, being the first of the line to locate at this place that has since been the family home for so many years. The date of his settling here was some time prior to the breaking out of the Revolution, for he was dwelling here at the time of that momentous struggle and assisted the Continental troops in building the batteries at Hainey's Westcotts. He remained here until the American army suffered a reverse in this region, and then enlisted and continued to serve until the close of the war. He was present at Yorktown when General Corn- wallis surrendered. After the signing of peace he returned with his family to his farm, which was situated about two miles from the village of Castine. For seventeen years in sucession he was chosen a selectman of Castine, and the greater part of that time was first selectman and assessor. He served as a deacon in the First Congregational Church for thirty-three years, and died at Castine, April 29, 1833, at the age of eighty years and two days. He married Marian Littlefield, born at York, March 22, 1756, and died at Castine, March 23, 1830, aged seventy-four years. They were the parents of three sons, as follows: Nathaniel, who is men- tioned below; Benjamin, who was lost at sea from the brig Castine, August 30, 1815, at the age of twenty-eight years; and Josiah, who was born in 1786, and died at Penobscot, Maine, in 1870.
Nathaniel Willson, son of David and Marian (Littlefield) Willson was the grandfather of Ed- ward Everett Willson of this sketch. He was born in 1781 at Castine, and there made his home. His death occurred at Castine, April, 1864, at the age of eighty-three years. He married Christiana Gardner, a native of Hingham, Massachusetts, and a lineal descendant of one of the Mayflower Pilgrims. She died at Castine, Maine, in Decem- ber, 1861, aged eighty-four years.
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BIOGRAPHICAL
Benjamin James Willson, son of Nathaniel Will- son, was born in Maine, and resided at Castine. He was very prominent there and was engaged in the business of boat building. He was post- master of the town and represented it in the Maine State Legislature for a number of years. He married Abbey Wasson Hatch, daughter of James and Lucy Hatch, of Castine, and they were the parents of a family of children of whom one was Edward Everett, mentioned at length below, and another, Rufus P., born February 21, 1866.
Born May 24, 1861, at Castine, Maine, Edward Everett Willson passed his childhood and early youth at his native place. He attended the local public schools and studied at the High School there. Mr. Willson came to Saco in May, 1895, and ever since that time he has been closely as- sociated with its life, taking a prominent part in many departments of its affairs. A public-spirited man, his activities have always been directed to the welfare and advantage of the community where he has elected to live, and of which he is now a valued member. Mr. Willson is a mem- ber of Saco Lodge, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons; - Chapter, Royal Arch Masons; Council, Royal and Select Masters; and Bradford Commandery, Knights Templar, of Biddeford. In his religious belief he is a Unitarian and at- tends the Saco Parish Church.
Edward Everett Willson was united in marri- age, September 16, 1891, at Amesbury, Massachu- setts, with Lunette Frances Libby, daughter of Francis Edward and Julia A. W. (Bryant) Libby, of that town. Mr. and Mrs. Willson are the par- ents of two children, as follows: I. Everett Bry- ant, born September 8, 1894; a graduate of the Thornton Academy. 2. Paul Libby, born June 14, 1896; a graduate of Thornton Academy and now a student of the Harvard Dental College, from which he was graduated with the class of June 20, 1918. He has enlisted in the medical service of the United States and is a member of the Har- vard Regiment, R. O. T. C .; he is also a member of the Psi Omega of Harvard. Mrs. Willson is a woman of remarkable ability and is very active in the work of women in this State. She is a member of the Maine State Federation of Wo- men's Clubs, the Wardwell Home of Saco, the Saco Branch of Alliance, chairman of the Red Cross Knitting Committee, York County Chapter, and a member of the Alumni Society of Thorn- ton Academy. Like her husband she is a mem- ber of the Unitarian church and is very active in Unitarian circles, being a life member of the American Unitarian Association.
CHARLES MARTIN SLEEPER, M.D .- There is no physician practicing in Southwestern Maine today who holds a more enviable position in the esteem of his fellow citizens than Dr. Charles Martin Sleeper, who has for many years conducted at South Berwick and vicinity a large and high-class practice and has grown to be most closely associated with the medical profession in that region. He is not himself a native of Maine, having been born in the neighboring State of New Hampshire, where his father was a school tcacher in the town of Lakeport for many years. Alvah Sleeper was a man well known in his com- munity and everywhere highly honored. He married Rebecca Davis and they resided at Lake- port for many years.
Born June 20, 1856, at Lakeport, New Hamp- shire, Charles Martin Sleeper spent the early years of his life at that town. He attended for a time the public schools of Lakeport and there gained the elementary portion of his education. Later, however, he was sent to the Franklin Academy at Franklin, New Hampshire, where he was prepared for college and then matriculated at the Bowdoin Medical School, having deter- mined in the meantime to take up medicine as his profession. He graduated from the latter institution with the class of 1883 and immediately located at South Berwick, Maine, where he en- gaged in the practice of his profession. From that day to the present Dr. Sleeper has continu- ously developed his large practice until he has come to reach his present position in the com- miunity. But it has not been only in connection with the profession of medicine that Dr. Sleeper has made a name for himself among his fellow citizens. There have been few men who have taken more active parts in public affairs than he, and he has occupied some extremely impor- tant posts both in city and State politics. He is a strong Democrat, and it was on that party's ticket that he was elected to the Maine Legisla- ture in 1907. He served on this body continu- ously until 1911, inclusive, and did much in that capacity to assist in reform legislation. His next office was as member of the Governor's Ex- ecutive Council, of which most important and re- sponsible body he was chairman from 1915 to 1916. In the latter year he was appointed by President Wilson, collector of customs, for the federal district of Maine and New Hampshire and is at the present time serving in that post. Dr. Sleeper is also a prominent figure in the so- cial and fraternal life in the community, par- ticularly in his association with the Masonic Or-
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HISTORY OF MAINE
der. He is a member of St. John's Lodge, No. 51, Free and Accepted Masons, and was for three years master of that lodge, of Unity Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, and high priest of the chapter for three years. He is past grand scribe of the Grand Royal Arch Chapter of Maine. Dr. Sleeper is a member of the New- chawanick Club, South Berwick, Maine. In his religious belief he is a Free Baptist and at- tends the First Church of that denomination at South Berwick, and it is at this attractive town that he has his dwelling, and has practiced his profession there since July, 1883.
On June 26, 1884, Dr. Sleeper was united in marriage at Brunswick, Maine, with Julia Flor- ence Uniacke, a daughter of Charles and Deborah Uniacke, old and highly respected residents of Channing, Nova Scotia. To Dr. and Mrs. Sleeper two children have been born as follows: Mildred Bertha, May 4, 1889, and Roger Davis, February 16, 1892.
SPAULDING SMITH, one of the most suc- cessful stock raisers and dealers in horses, cattle and sheep, of East Wilton, Maine, and a promi- nent figure in the life of that community during the generation just past, was a native of Hart- land, Vermont, where his birth occurred Feb- ruary 14, 1802. At an early age he came to this town and continued to reside here until the time of his death, September 27, 1868.
Mr. Smith was a son of Captain Simon and Olive (Freeman) Smith, Captain Smith holding that rank in the Vermont militia, and was a prominent man in his community. The early life of Spaulding Smith was spent at his native town of Hartland, Vermont, where he received his edu- cation at the local public school, but his advan- tages in this particular were extremely limited, and while still young he began work for his father on the latter's farm. Upon reaching manhood, Mr. Smith in association with his brother Simon, purchased a farm in northern Vermont and worked it for some four years, meeting with a high degree of success in their enterprise. At the time of his marriage, however, this associa- tion was severed and Mr. Smith closed out his business and came to Maine. Twenty-five years later, however, he went to La Salle county, Illi- nois, where he purchased land and invested his money. He did not give up his home in the East, however, but resided at East Wilton, mak- ing yearly trips to the West. He engaged in Illinois, in a sort of banking business, and loaned money to the farmers in that region, continuing
in this business until the close of his life. In East Wilton he owned a number of farms and there engaged in raising cattle, sheep and horses, and also raised mules, taking his animals to the canal towns, and to New York City, where he found a large market for them. He was very successful in these operations, and was recognized as one of the most substantial dealers in this part of the State. Mr. Smith was keenly interested in the general welfare of the community, and was a man of very high honor and integrity. In his business matters his motto was, "in helping others he helped himself"; he was exact without meanness-exacting what was his due, without harshness-rendering unto everyone the measure he claimed for himself. The poor debtor found in him a lenient creditor; the dishonest one, a stern opposer. He did not identify himself with any political party, but depended solely upon his own judgment in all questions of public inter- est, and voted independently for the measure or candidate which he thought best for the good of the community.
Mr. Smith was a man of retiring and modest disposition and had the affection as well as the esteem of his fellow citizens here and of his associates in the West. He took a very keen enjoyment in out-door life, and was devoted to his business. He loved horses and livestock, and was a most excellent judge of the same. His instincts were strongly domestic, and his chief happiness was to be found amidst his family by his own fireside. His public spirit was prover- bial, and the community in which he lived is the better for his having resided there. Such men as Mr. Smith are richly deserving of the grati- tude of their fellowmen, and are especially to be remembered in a work of this character as rep- resentative of the best type of citizenship and that class of men who have done most to further the welfare of their communities. Mr. Smith was a man of strong religious feelings, and at- tended the Universalist Church at East Wilton for many years.
Spaulding Smith was united in marriage in Jan- uary, 1833, with Sarah Rich, daughter of Moody Rich, a distinguished resident of Maidstone, Ver- mont, where he was judge of probate for many ycars. Their marriage occurred at Maidstone, and they later came to East Wilton to make their home. Mrs. Smith was one of a family of nine children, all of whom are passed away. Mr. and Mrs. Smith were the parents of five children as follows: Augustus S., who died at the age of nine ycars; a child who died in infancy; a second
Spaulding Smith
1. Cajone Becer.
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BIOGRAPHICAL
child who died in infancy; Charles M., who mar- ried Mary Hudson, of Earlville, La Salle county, Illinois; Ella O., who became the wife of Major Belcher, who is the subject of extended mention elsewhere in this work.
SAMUEL CLIFFORD BELCHER, major of the United States Army, and a distinguished sol- dier during the Civil War, is one of the best known citizens of Farmington, Maine, and a member of an old New England family, which was founded in this country by Gregory Belcher during the early Colonial period. The Belcher family is an exceedingly ancient one and was well known in early English history in connec- tion with Northamptonshire, where the family seat was situated as early as the reign of Henry VIII, when Edmund Belcher resided at Guilds- borough. The name is of Norman origin and we have among the list of grants at the time of Henry VIII, record of Alexander Belcher, the son of Edmund Belcher above mentioned, being placed in lawful possession of the hamlet of Northoft, which included, beside the land, a vil- lage of nineteen houses. In the seventeenth cen- tury we find a number of men bearing this name, who came to the new world from England and in especial, four immigrants, named respectively Jeremy or Jeremiah, Edward, Andrew and Greg- ory, who settled in the British province of Mas- sachusetts Bay. Jeremiah Belcher was born in 1612 and came to Ipswich, where he was made a freeman in 1638. Edward Belcher made his home in Boston and was made a freeman in 1631 of that city. Andrew Belcher was the ancestor of Governor Belcher and settled in Sudbury, Mas- sachusetts, in 1639.
(I) Gregory Belcher was an original member of the first church founded in Braintree, Massa- chusetts. He took the oath administered to those desiring to become freemen in 1640, and in 1645 it is recorded that he was a committee- man "to Lay out the High waye through Dor- chester Woods from Braintree Bounds to Rox- bury bounds." He resided in Boston Town after 1634 and evidently was a man of importance and influence in the early day of the metropolis of New England. He died in Boston, Novem- ber 25, 1674, (Farmer says, June 21, 1659), and his widow, Katherine Belcher, died either in 1679 or 1680. They had eight children, among whom were: Josiah, born in 1631; Samuel, born Au- gust 24, 1637; Joseph, born December 25, 1641.
(II) Josiah, son of Gregory and Elizabeth Belcher, was born in Boston in 1631. He was
one of the twenty-eight "Brethren who came off for the First Church in Boston, New England, and laid the foundation of the Third Church, partly on May 12, 1669, partly on May 16, 1669," according to the register of the Third Church, familiarly known as the Old South Church, Bos- ton. He was married, March 3, 1655, to Ranis, daughter of Elder Edward Raynsford, who came in the fleet with Winthrop; was a brother of Lord Chief Justice Raynsford, the immediate succes- sor of Sir Mathew Hale; one of the substantial men of the town of Boston and often mentioned in its history, being deacon in the First Church, and with his wife Elizabeth and daughter Ranis, wife of Josiah Belcher, became members of the Third Church in 1674. Raynsford Island, Bos- ton Harbor, which he owned, still preserves the name. Josiah and Ranis (Raynsford) Belcher had twelve children; Josiah died in Boston, April 3, 1683, and his widow, October 2, 1691.
(III) Edward, eighth child of Josiah and Ranis (Raynsford) Belcher, was born in Boston, Jan- uary 19, 1669, and late in life removed to the town of Stoughton, where he purchased an estate and spent the last years of his life. He died March 16, 1745, and his widow died March 5, 1752. He married Mary Clifford, and they had six children. The youngest of these was named Clifford, his mother's maiden surname.
(IV) Clifford, youngest son of Edward and Mary (Clifford) Belcher, was married June 24, 1740, to Mehitable, daughter of Samuel and Sarah (Clap) Bird, and granddaughter of John and Elizabeth (Williams) Bird, of Dorchester. He inherited his father's estate in Stoughton, and greatly added to it, residing there up to the time of his death, which occurred April 26, 1773. His widow, who was born in Dorchester, December 8, 1706, died in Stoughton, February 20, 1779.
(V) Supply, sixth child of Clifford and Mehit- able (Bird) Belcher, was born in that part of Stoughton, Massachusetts, now known as Sharon, March 29, 1751-52. He received a good English education, but did not take up the classics, as he intended to engage in merchandising. Hc became a merchant in Boston, and on the out- break of the American Revolution returned to Stoughton, where he purchased a large farm and also was the proprietor of Belcher's Tavern on the Taunton road, now the village of South Can- ton, Massachusetts. Suffering considerable losses, by reason of the long period of war, in which he served under a commission of captain received from General Washington, he migrated in 1785 to the District of Maine and located with his
HISTORY OF MAINE
ian ny on the Kennebec river at Hallowell, now Augusta. He lived in Hallowell, 1785-91, and while there was captain of the North Company of militia. In 1791 he removed his family to Sandy river township and became a leader among the new settlers, and as agent of the proposed town- ship he went before the General Court in Boston, and secured an act of incorporation, and was elected the first town clerk and justice of the peacc. He was the first representative of the town to the General Court of Massachusetts, serv- ing in 1798 and 18of and later in 1809, when he was a colleague of Nathan Cutter, the town hav- ing increased so in population as to be entitled to two representatives. He was also a select- man of the town in 1796 and 1797, and for many years was a prominent teacher of the local pub- lic school. He had a wide reputation for skill in the art of surgery and in the administration of simple medical remedies, and although not a professional or licensed physician, was frequently called in cases where no regular physician could be obtained. Mr. Belcher was also an accom- plished musician and a member of the Stoughton Musical Society, and was a performer on the vio- lin and the composer of a collection of sacred music published under the title of "Harmony of Mainc." Indeed he gained so wide a reputa- tion in this line that he became popularly known as the "Handel of Maine." He was the first choir leader in the church at Hallowell. Supply Belcher married May 2, 1775, Margaret More, a daughter of William and Margaret (Johnson) More, who was also a well known musician. Mr. Belcher died in Farmington, Maine, June 9, 1836, and his wife on May 14, 1839, in the eighty-third year of her age. They were the parents of the following children: Abigail Doty, and Margaret Doty (twins), born May 27, 1776, at Stoughton, Massachusetts; Clifford, who is mentioned at length below; Samnel, born July 18, 1780; Ben- jamin More, born August 4, 1782; Mehitable, born October 17, 1784, died September 20, 1785; Me- hitable, born June I, 1787, at Augusta, Maine, and became the wife of Joseph Titcomb; Hiram, born February 23, 1790; Martha Stoyell, born Feb- ruary 20, 1795, at Farmington, Maine, and married Thomas Hunter; Betsey, born April 6, 1797, and died September 27, 1804.
(VI) Clifford (2) Belcher, son of Supply and Margaret (More) Belcher, was born January 17, 1778, at Stoughton, Massachusetts. He was thirteen years of age when his father removed to Sandy River Valley and accompanied him there, the journey being made through the wilder-
ness in mid-winter, and the travel being so bad on account of bad roads and deep snows that five days were occupied in making the trip. At Sandy River Valley, he assisted his father in the culti- vation of his farm, a property which is now the center of the town site of Farmington, and con- tinued thus occupied until his twenty-first birth- day, when he secured a mercantile position, al- though he still continued to aid his father occa- sionally. He was a man of business acumen, and became the possessor of a large property, in- cluding a valuable business site in the town. He married, January 27, 1811, Deborah Allen, dangh- ter of the Rev. Timothy and Sarah (Williams) Fuller, and granddaughter of the Rev. Abraham Williams of Sandwich, Massachusetts. They
were the parents of six children as follows: Caro- line Williams, born October 18, 1812, and became the wife of Nehemiah Abbott, a representative in the Thirty-fifth United States Congress; Sam- uel Clifford, who is mentioned at length below; Deborah Ann, born December 10, 1816, and be- came the wife of Captain Charles Gill; Clifford, born March 23, 1819, a graduate of Harvard, where he won the degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1837; Abraham William Fuller, born August 26, 1821; Timothy Fuller, born August 3, 1823.
(VII) Samuel Belcher, eldest son of Clifford (2) and Deborah Allen (Fuller) Belcher, was born at Farmington, Maine, December 8, 1814. He received his education at Farmington Academy, and afterwards studied law in the office of his uncle, Hiram Belcher. Here he pursued his studies to such good purpose that he was ad- mitted to the Kennebec bar on December 8, 1835, the day on which he reached his majority. He then removed to Orono, Maine, where he prac- ticed law for two years, but afterwards returned to his native town and opened a law office there. He was active in local affairs and held a number of public offices, including that of town clerk, from 1838 to 1840, and postmaster from 1840 to 1849. He also represented Farmington in the Maine State Legislature in 1840, 1849 and 1850, and was clerk of that body, from 1845 to 1848 He was Speaker of the House in 1849 and 1850, and in 1852 was elected Judge of Probate of the County of Franklin, a position which he held for ten years at that time and again from 1879 to 1884. He was also county attorney from 1862 to 1879. Mr. Belcher was identified with a num- ber of important institutions in that region, and was a trustee of the Farmington Academy, from 1845 until it was made the Farmington Normal School. He had a large law practice and was
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BIOGRAPHICAL
very influential in the community, an influence which he consistently exerted for its good. Sam- uel Belcher married, May 9, 1837, Martha Caro- line Hepzibah Abbott, eldest daughter of Asa and Caroline (Williams) Abbott, who was born September 18, 1819. They were the parents of the following children: Samuel Clifford, with whom we are here especially concerned; Anna Gill, born June 21, 1841, and died August 23, 1842; Abbott, born March 17, 1843; William Fuller, born March 13, 1845; Fuller, born Sep- tember 13, 1852, and died June 24, 1861; Hamilton Abbott, born Angust 18, 1854; Mary Caroline, born July 25, 1856, and became the wife of James Hayes Wangh, and they have two children, a son and a daughter.
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