Men of progress; biographical sketches and portraits of leaders in business and professional life in and of the state of Maine, Part 48

Author: Herndon, Richard; McIntyre, Philip Willis, 1847- ed; Blanding, William F., joint ed
Publication date: 1897
Publisher: Boston, New England magazine
Number of Pages: 1268

USA > Maine > Men of progress; biographical sketches and portraits of leaders in business and professional life in and of the state of Maine > Part 48

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Mexican War, was Clerk of Courts for York County from 1848 to 1858, and was subsequently President of the Alfred Bank. The subject of this sketch was educated almost entirely under private tutors. He entered upon the study of medicine, but abandoned that profession in 1872 for journalism, an occupa- tion he has steadily followed, with varying success, ever since. He began his newspaper career as Editor of the Biddeford Times. In October 1872 he joined the staff of the Portland Press as City Editor, becoming Associate Editor in 1876, and Editor-in-Chief in 1883. The next year he attached himself to the Eastern Argus as Associate Editor in the Blaine-Cleveland campaign, holding that post until 1888. In 1890 he became Editor of the Biddeford Standard, remaining connected with that paper until 1894. In 1895 he rejoined the Argus, retaining his position with that journal until the nomination of Bryan and Sewall, when he resigned and espoused the cause of Palmer and Buckner. Since then he has done more or less work for the Portland Advertiser. Outside of routine newspaper work he has written extensively under the pen- names " Yorick " and " Alfred York," by which he is perhaps more widely known to readers than by his own. In furnishing the genealogical data for this sketch Mr. M'Intire likens himself to " a potato, the best part of which is underground." This opinion, it should be said, is one of the very few that he shares with himself alone. It is only upon the subject of his own worth and the merit of his services to the public, that his insight is often at fault, his correctness of view questioned, and his statements of fact disputed. In all else, over the broad field of human life and effort covered by the modern newspaper and editorial writer, his keen perceptions, accurate estimates, just conclusions and charitable judgments are recognized and almost universally approved wherever he is known. In this single particular, as many of the readers of this sketch will bear witness, his judgment is marred by an excessive modesty, and his mental vision dis- torted by the closeness of the subject to his point of view. Mr. M'Intyre has been a conscientious, faithful, industrious and prolific worker in the field of journalism, and his clean, forceful and often brilliant writings have for many years been the subject of admiring comment among the newspaper fraternity, and of healthful interest and keen enjoy- ment to the general public. Especially upon political subjects, and more particularly in the periods of exciting political campaigns and during

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Legislative sessions, has his work as reporter, correspondent and editor commended itself to the rank and file as well as to the leaders among the citizens of Maine, irrespective of party affiliations and prejudices. Probably no other man has so extended an acquaintance with leading men of Maine, and he is honored by the warm personal friendship and cordial goodwill of hundreds of citizens throughout the state whom he has never seen. The exacting duties of Mr. M'Intyre's long journalistic service have been performed with a continuity and intensity of application that few constitutions could withstand. Never robust, his health has several times given way under the strain, necessitating a temporary abandonment of routine labors ; but even at such times his active mind and restless spirit will not let his hands be idle, and many of his best and most interesting writings have been given to the public while seeking recuperation for his physical powers among the hills of his native county. From the semi-seclusion of these periods of retirement he invariably emerges after a short time with renewed health and vigor, to take up again the more active labors of the profession which he has so long and faithfully served. The associate editor of this work, who pens this unworthy sketch, feels assured of voicing the sentiment of the " Men of Progress of Maine," in expressing the wish that Mr. M'Intyre's ready and trenchant but kindly pen may long be wielded in the cause of justice, the right, and good government in the state of Maine, and that he may long be spared to enjoy the fruits of his labors well won, and partake of the common weal which the influence of his heart and hand has materially helped to secure.

MELCHER, HOLMAN STAPLES, Mayor of Portland 1889-90, was born in Topsham, Sagadahoc county, Maine, June 30, 1841, son of James H. and Nancy (Curtis) Melcher. His father was a native of Brunswick, Maine ; his mother was a daughter of Captain Nehemiah Curtis of Harpswell, Maine. Reared on the home farm, about three miles from Topsham village, he attended the district schools, and at the age of fifteen entered the Maine State Seminary (now Bates College) at Lewiston. In the meantime teaching school at Harpswell winters, he had nearly completed his seminary course, when he enlisted, August 19, 1862, as private in Company B, Twentieth Regiment Maine Volunteer Infantry.

He was mustered into the United States service as Corporal ten days later, and from that time was in active service for nearly three years, participating in many of the severest battles of the war, including Antietam, Shepardstown Ford, Fredericksburg,

H. S. MELCHER.

Aldie, Gettysburg, Rappahannock Station, Mine Run, the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Hatcher's Run, Quaker Road, Gravelly Run, Five Forks and Appomattox. At Fredericksburg, " for meritorious conduct," he was promoted on the field to Sergeant- Major of his regiment, by Colonel Ames, who subsequently, April 2, 1863, appointed him First Lieutenant of Company F. At Gettysburg, where his company and regiment did brilliant service in saving Little Roundtop to the Federal army, his Captain being wounded early in the battle, Lieutenant Mel- cher took command of the company ; and when the orders came from Colonel Chamberlain for the Twentieth Maine to charge, Company F, carrying the regimental colors, led the way. Inspired by the bravery of their youthful commander, who went in advance of his company, his men with the regiment pushed forward with an impetuosity that nothing could withstand; the Confederates, although far outnumbering the U'nionists in the attack, were put to flight, driven back, and Little Roundtop was saved. The part taken by Lieutenant Melcher in

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saving this strong and critical point from the enemy was recognized and evidently appreciated by his commanding officer, Colonel Chamberlain, who promptly appointed him Adjutant of the regiment, in which capacity he served until the reorganization of the army under General Grant in March 1864, when he was assigned to the command of F, the left company of the regiment, and went into the Wil- derness campaign. In the first day's fighting at Spottsylvania, May 8, he was wounded in the right thigh, and was taken to the hospital in the Mary Washington house at Fredericksburg, where he re- mained until that hospital was broken up, when he was removed to the Armory Square Hospital in Washington. His wounds having been neglected, and gangrene setting in, making them very trouble- some, he was sent home to recuperate. Returning to the front in October, having in the meantime been promoted in July to the Captaincy of his company, he found himself unable to undergo duty on foot with his regiment, on account of his wounds. Accordingly he was assigned to duty on the staff of Major-General Warren, Commander of the Fifth Army Corps. General Warren being subse- quently relieved of his command, at the Battle of Five Forks, April 1, 1865, Captain Melcher re- mained on duty on the Corps Staff under Major- General Charles Griffin until the consolidation of the army in June following, when he was ap- pointed Inspector-General on the staff of Major- General Chamberlain, who was in command of a division of the provisional corps, in which capacity he served until the army was mustered out in July 1865. On April 9, 1865, he was brevetted Major, for " brave and meritorious services at Five Forks and Appomattox." At the close of the war Major Melcher returned to Portland, and engaged in business as a member of the firm of Churchill, Hunt & Melcher, wholesale grocers. This partner- ship was dissolved in 1869, and he has since con- ducted the business under the firm name of H. S. Melcher & Co., until January 1, 1896, when the H. S. Melcher Co. was organized, with Mr. Melcher as its President. As a business man Mr. Melcher has few superiors. Enterprising, liberal and progres- sive, yet careful and conservative in all his opera- tions, always avoiding speculative ventures, his mercantile career has been highly successful. Under his personal direction and close supervision his business has grown to immense proportions, cover- ing the state of Maine and portions of New Hamp- · shire and Vermont, and employing a force of seven

travelling salesmen throughout the year. Notwith- standing the demands of his extensive trade inter- ests, Major Melcher is officially connected with various other business enterprises and institutions, is deeply interested in public affairs, and is ever ready to take a hand in any worthy movement for the enhancement of Portland's prosperity. He is President of the Mechanics' Loan and Building Association, Director in the Cumberland National Bank and the Portland Board of Trade, President of the Portland Wholesale Grocers' and Flour Deal- ers' Association, and Vice-President of the Execu- tive Association of the Wholesale Grocers of New England. In ISSo-I he was a member of the Common Council of Portland, was returned to the city government as Alderman in 1882-3, and was elected Mayor in 1889 and re-elected in 1890, serving two terms. Mayor Melcher was an able, conscientious and painstaking executive, devoting a large part of his time to public business, and his administration was a clean and progressive one. Many of the suggestions set forth in his inaugural address were carried out, greatly to the benefit of the city. During his term the city debt was re- duced three hundred and forty thousand dollars and the rate of taxation cut down fifty cents per thou- sand, notwithstanding numerous expenditures for improvements, among which the City Treasurer's office was remodeled into the present spacious and elegant quarters; the non-interfering fire-alarm system was put into the central office of the City Electrician ; a new steamer and ten thousand feet of hose were added to the equipment of the Fire Department, and a new patrol wagon for the Police Department ; the City Almshouse field was laid out in streets and building lots, the Cape Elizabeth ferry slip and public landing were built, and the Forts Allen and Stevens parks were purchased and beautified. In the light of subsequent develop- ments, one of the most important of his official acts was the appointment of the Board of Water Com- missioners. As Chairman of the School Committee he was also instrumental in bringing about many needed reforms; a new and extensive system of heating and ventilation was introduced into the North School building, the Peaks Island school- house was enlarged and a system of heating and ventilation put in, two new schoolhouses were built on Long Island, and the Jackson School building in the city was contracted for and partially built. Mr. Melcher is a prominent member of the Grand Army of the Republic, being Past Commander of Bos-

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worth Post, and having served on the staff of Commander-in-Chief Rea. He is also President of the Twentieth Maine Regiment Association, Regis- trar of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion, a member of Ancient Landmark Lodge of Masons, and member of the Young Men's Christian Associa- tion and the Free Street Baptist Church of Port- land. In politics Mr. Melcher is a Republican, having cast his first vote for Abraham Lincoln's second election, under the guns of Petersburg in 1864. Mr. Melcher was married June 10, 1868, to Ellen M. Mclellan, daughter of George Mclellan, Esq., of Portland : she died May 4, 1872, leaving no children. In 1874, May 21, he was a second time married, to Alice E. Hart, daughter of Deacon Henry B. Hart of Portland. A daughter, Miss Georgina Hill Melcher, is the only child of this marriage.

MILLIKEN, CHARLES ARTHUR, Mayor of Augusta 1894-5, was born in Burnham, Waldo county, Maine,

.... .

CHAS. A. MILLIKEN

May 21, 1850, son of Elias and Hadassah I. (Whit- ney) Milliken, of Scotch and English ancestry. The Millikens were natives of Old Scarboro, the Whit- neys of Gorham, Maine. Mr. Milliken's father, Colonel Elias Milliken, has been well-known in Maine business circles for many years, being prom-

inently identified with the lumbering interests on the Kennebec. Charles A. Milliken's early educa- tion was acquired in the common schools, and his training for active life was received on the farm and in the lumber business. In 1884 he became a member of the lumber firm of Elias Milliken's Sons, whose mills are at Hallowell, Maine. After the death of his brother, H. P. Milliken, in 1895, the firm took the name of Elias Milliken & Son, under which style the business has since been conducted. In 1894 he was elected Mayor of Augusta, in which office he served for two terms, by re-election in 1895. In politics Mr. Milliken is a Republican, and a believer in the financial policy of "sound money and a chance to earn it." He belongs to the Masonic and Odd Fellow fraternities, and is an active and prominent member of the Augusta Board of Trade. He was married May 21, 1875, to Ellen Knowlton, daughter of Rev. Ebenezer Knowlton of South Montville, Maine. They have two children : Carl Elias and Hattie T. Milliken ; the former, Carl E. Milliken, is a member of the class of 1897 in Bates College, Lewiston, Maine.

MORTON, ORION ALBION, Superintendent of Schools in Brownfield, was born in Conway Centre, New Hampshire, March 31, 1867, son of David E. and Sarah S. (Long) Morton. The name of Mor- ton is of great antiquity, appearing frequently in Norman history. Genealogists of high repute claim that all the Mortons, Moretons, Fitzmortons, etc., descended from Robert, Comte de Mortain, who was half-brother of William the Conqueror, and fig- ured at the Battle of Hastings. The English branch of the Morton family took an active part in the Mayflower emigration and the Plymouth Colony. George Morton, the progenitor of the Mortons in New England, was a merchant of York, England. He joined the Pilgrims in Leyden, Holland, about 1612, and sailed from there with his family for America in 1623, in the ship Ann, to join his friends who had preceded him at Plymouth, New England. He was said to be a man of fine educa- tion and marked ability. The history of this branch shows that his descendants have ever been conver- sant with state and municipal affairs, and includes the Hon. Marcus Morton, I.L. D, who served as Governor of Massachusetts for three terms, and occupied a seat on the Bench of the Supreme Court for fifteen years. David Morton, great-grandfather

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of the subject of this sketch, served during the entire War of-the Revolution, being discharged at York- town, after which he married and settled at Gorham, Maine. His son William, born 1790, married for his first wife Mary Rich of Standish, Maine, by whom he had seven children : Leander S., Israe! R., Albion P., Sargent, Harriet A., William S. and David E. Morton. After the death of his first wife he married Dorcas F. Hopkinson of Buxton, Maine, and about 1846 moved from Gorham to Conway, New Hampshire, where in company with his sons he purchased a large intervale farm and timber lot. They built a store in which Leander and William

O. A. MORTON.

conducted a successful mercantile business for many years. Leander was a fine scholar and an elegant penman. He was elected and re-elected to the State Legislature before he was twenty-five, and was Town Clerk of Conway for eighteen years and Selectman for nearly that length of time. William S. is a shrewd business man and lives at Conway Corner, New Hampshire, where he is connected with the Conway Savings Bank as one of the Trustees and Investigating Committee. David E. Morton, father of Orion, was a stonemason by trade, and was a man of excellent judgment and keen, percep- tive faculties, kind. sympathetic and generous. Dur- ing the years in which he followed his trade, he had

charge of and worked with a great many different crews of men, and always got along smoothly and pleasantly with all. His children were : Cora B., Alice G., Orion A. and Hattie E. Morton. Orion A. Morton, the only son, received his early education in the town schools of Porter, Piper's Free High School at Kezar Fails, Maine, and New Hampton Institute at New Hampton, New Hampshire, where he pursued both the English and classical courses. Reared in farm life, he has always passed much of his time on a farm, when not attending or teaching school, finding it the most convenient place for study, and always spending his leisure hours when there in quest of useful knowledge. Having an ex- ceeding fondness for reading and literature, he never found time to read a cheap novel, and has in his small library, which he has collected from time to time and is still adding to, none but the works of standard authors. Although Mr. Morton has at times been engaged in various side lines and occu- pations, his real business or profession has always been in connection with school work. Commencing as a teacher in 1885, he has taught one or more terms of school each year since, with the exception of 1888, when in attendance at the Academy at New Hampton. In 1890-1 he had charge of the Gram- mar School at Kezar Falls, and in 1892 he assumed the Principalship of the Grammar School at Brown- field Centre, in which position he has continued to the present time. As a teacher he has met with ex- cellent success, winning the good-will and esteem of both pupils and parents. Altogether, he has taught in Brownfield, where he lives, seven years - 1885, 1889, and 1892-7. He was Supervisor of Schools in Porter, Maine, during 1891-2, and since 1895 has served as Superintendent of Schools in Brownfield. In 1896 he was also elected to the Board of Selectmen of Brownfield. He disclaims being a politician, and has never sought a political office, but has always been elected when nominated. While at New Hampton he was a member of the Social Fraternity, serving as Chairman of the Solic- iting Committee for several terms. He gained some notoriety while there as a public reader, but more as a ready and strong debater, making his greatest hit in a public meeting of the society in the fall of 1888, at which time he argued on the tariff question in favor of tariff for revenne only. In the spring of 1889 he was elected as first prize speaker from the society, to meet members from the two other societies at the Commencement in June. Mr. Mor- ton is a member of the Masonic fraternity, and is

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very much interested in the work of the order and deeply impressed with its principles. He was chosen Master of Shepherd's River Lodge of Brown- field in the fall of 1895, which position he at present holds. He was married June 20, 1891, to Avilda V. Bean, of Brownfield ; they have two children : Leander P., born April 23, 1892, and Guy F. Mor- ton, born May 1, 1895.

PULSIFER, HAROLD IRVING, of Chelsea, Massa- chusetts, was born in New Sharon, Franklin county, Maine, November 26, 1866, son of Joseph M. and

HAROLD I PULSIFER.

Harriet E. (Lovejoy) Pulsifer. He is oi old New England ancestry, of mixed English and Scotch descent on both sides. His paternal grandfather was William Pulsifer, of Wayne, Kennebec county, Maine. His early education was received in the public schools of Boston, supplemented by atten- (lance at the Dirigo Business College in Augusta, Maine, and the Maine Wesleyan Seminary at Kent's Hill, Readfield. He commenced active life in 1887, at the age of twenty one, in the large clothing house of Isaac Fenno & Company, Boston, where he remained until 1392, and then transferred his services as salesman to the similar establishment of Freeland, Loomis & Company. In 1893 he started .

in business for himself at 51-53 Summer street, under the firm name of H. I. Pulsifer. Establishing a successful trade, in 1896 the business was enlarged and the firm style changed to Whitmore & Pulsifer, under which name an extensive retail clothing busi- ness is conducted, with stores in Boston, Roxbury, Chelsea, Stoncham and Wakefield, Massachusetts, The senior member of the firm is J. P. Whitmore, formerly a partner in the house of the Freeland, Loomis Company. Mr. Pulsifer is a member of the Review, Surfolk and Alter Ego clubs of Chelsea, where he resides, and of the Metropolitan Club of Boston. He is also a member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts, and the First Corps Cadets, Boston. He is a Republican in politics, and is unmarried.

RICHARDSON, DANIEL THOMPSON, was born in Baldwin, August 8, 1815, and died May 12, 1890. His parents were Deacon Joseph and Charlotte (Thompson) Richardson. His American ancestor was Samuel Richardson, who came to this country from England in 1635 or 1636, being one of three brothers who settled in Woburn, Massachusetts. The line of descent is: (1) Samuel; (2) Samuel ; (3) David ; (4) David; (5) Joseph, who served in the Revolutionary War under General Peleg Wads- worth ; (6) Joseph, and (7) Daniel T. Richardson, the subject of this sketch. His mother was a. descendant of Daniel Thompson, for whom he was named -- whose father was a cousin of Benjamin Thompson, better known as Count Rumford - and who was killed at the Battle of Lexington, April 19, 1775. He prepared for college at the Maine Wesleyan Seminary in Readfield, which institution he attended for the four years 1834-7, and graduated from Bowdoin in the class of 1841. He began teaching school at the age of eighteen, and taught for niore than a year after graduation from college, but failing health made it expedient for hini to dis- continue for a time such pursuits and resort to manual labor out of doors. Therefore he spent most of his time for the next five years on a farm, and then removed to East Baldwin and engaged in trade, in which he continued for thirty-eight years, until his death in 1890. Mr. Richardson was Town Clerk of Baldwin for thirty years; served on the Schoo! Committee forty years; was one of the Selectmen, Assessors and Overseers of the Poor for many years, and Chairman of the several boards for

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ten years ; was Trustee of the Ministerial and School funds for forty years ; was Postmaster of East Bald- win for thirty-six years; in 1860 represented the towns of Baldwin and Harrison in the State Legis- lature, and in 1865-6 was a State Senator from

DANIEL T. RICHARDSON.

Cumberland county. He served as United States Claim Agent during the Civil War and afterwards for a period of more than fourteen years, and was twice appointed Assistant United States Marshal. Mr. Richardson was also a Trial Justice for a term covering thirty-five years. By reason of his intelli- gent administration of this office, and the public confidence in his business ability and judgment, he acted as legal adviser in many cases, attending personally to such matters in the settlement of estates and pensions as arise in a rural community. For a period of thirty-five years or more he did the land surveying of his native and adjoining towns. Mr. Richardson was a very thorough scholar, being especially proficient in languages and mathematics, which were to him always a delightful study. He taught forty-eight terms of school, and he will long be remembered as an efficient and popular teacher, as well as a wise and successful administrator of public affairs. In politics Mr. Richardson was a Whig until 1856, and from that time a Republican until his death, which occurred May 12, 1890; he

voted for John C. Fremont, and for every Repub- lican candidate for President thereafter. He was married August 8, 1843, to Eliza Ann Sawyer, daughter of Ebenezer Sawyer of Baldwin, Maine ; they were the parents of eleven children : Howard Thompson, Joseph Carpenter, Mary Elizabeth, Le- land Sawyer, Daniel Thompson, Mary Charlotte, John Samuel, Annie Eliza, Clara Augusta, Phoebe Maria and George Parker Richardson.

RICHARDSON, JOHN SAMUEL, Lawyer, Boston, was born in Baldwin, Cumberland county, Maine, August 25, 1855, son of Daniel Thompson and Eliza Ann (Sawyer) Richardson. He is of Revo- lutionary ancestry, and is a descendant of Samuel Richardson, who settled in Massachusetts in 1635 or 1636. Additional facts relating to his ancestry and family history are given in the preceding sketch

JOHN S. RICHARDSON.

of his father, Hon. Daniel T. Richardson. John S. Richardson received his general education in the common schools of his native town, the Norway (Maine) Institute, and Phillips Exeter ( New Hamp- shire) Academy, from which latter institution he graduated in 1880. He studied law in the office of General Charles P. Mattocks, Portland, attended

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Men of progress; biographical sketches and portraits of leaders in business and professional life in and of the state of Maine, Part 48

Author: Herndon, Richard; McIntyre, Philip Willis, 1847- ed; Blanding, William F., joint ed Publication date: 1897 Publisher: Boston, New England magazine Number of Pages: 1268

Author: Herndon, Richard; McIntyre, Philip Willis, 1847- ed; Blanding, William F., joint ed
Publication date: 1897
Publisher: Boston, New England magazine
Number of Pages: 1268