USA > Maine > Men of progress; biographical sketches and portraits of leaders in business and professional life in and of the state of Maine > Part 62
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93
whatever for political office, holding that the " Law allows no divided love." His present partner in the law business is Charles L. Andrews, formerly City Solicitor of Gardiner. Mr. Heath's interest in and ready grasp of public affairs have, however, nat- urally led him into public life, and he entered upon *on official career at a very early age, serving as a page in the Maine Senate for the four years from 1866, and for the four years 1870-3 as Assistant Sec- retary of that body. In 1883-4 and 1885-6 he was a Representative in the Legislature from Augusta, serving on the Judiciary Committee both terms, and in 1883 as a member of the Legislative Commission to Revise the Statutes of the state ; and in 1887-8 and 1889-90 was State Senator from Kennebec county, serving during both terms as Chairman of the Judiciary Committee. Always an ardent Re- publican, he has stumped the state in every cam- paign since 1878, and has served as Chairman of the City Committee of Augusta (1880), the Third Dis- trict Congressional Convention (1890) and the Re- publican State Convention (1892). He enjoys nothing better than to be in the thickest of a politi- cal fight helping a friend, being always willing to go down with the ship rather than desert the crew. Mr. Heath is President of the Maine State Bar Asso- ciation, also a member of the Examining Com- mittee of the Kennebec Bar. He is a Trustee of the Kennebec Savings Bank and the Augusta Safe Deposit and Trust Company ; is a member of Au- gusta Masonic Lodge and Cushnoc Chapter Royal Arch Masons of Augusta, Alpha Council Royal and Select Masters of Hallowell, Trinity Commandery Knights . Templar and is a thirty-second degree Mason ; member of Highland Lodge Ancient Order United Workmen and Henry G. Staples Camp Sons of Veterans, is President of the Abnaki (social) Club of Augusta, and member of the Zeta Psi Fra- ternity of Bowdoin College. He has delivered a Memorial Day oration every year since 1875, is in great demand at conventions and banquets, and for several years has been much called on as an after- dinner speaker. Mr. Heath is a constant student of the best literature ; devotes much time to mineral- ogy, in which he is an expert, also to chemistry, in which he is fairly proficient; is a great lover of whist and billiards; and is an enthusiastic sports- man, spending several weeks of each year in the
-
1
MEN OF PROGRESS.
421
26, 1879 ; Gardner K., born May 29, 1886 ; Herbert M. and Gertrude L. Heath, twins, born April 16, 1892.
Hunkins' ability and fitness for the position, elected him Supervisor of Schools in 1876. Later, while residing in Biddeford, he filled a similar office from 1877 to 1879 inclusive. Careful consideration for the physical comfort as well as the mental advance-
HUNFINS, JAMES HENRY, Physician, Portland, was born ir. Lowell, Massachusetts, January 6, , ment of pupils, and prompt to conform to all 1851, son of James B. H. and Mary Hill ( Rand) modern, progressive methods for guiding the youth- ful mind, his services in the capacity of School Supervisor proved both satisfactory and successful. Dr. Hunkins is a member of the Odd Fellows' fraternity, and of the Sons of the American Revo- lution. He was married June 25, 1877, to Inazella Hunkins. Dr. Hunkins can trace a long line of notable ancestry. Many positions of honor and trust have been filled by members of his mother's family. On the paternal side he is a lineal descend- ant of the Wentworths, who came from England in 1639 and settled in New Hampshire. Three of the family were Colonial (New Hampshire) Gov- ernors : Lieutenant-Governor John Wentworth, died in 1718; his son Benning Wentworth, appointed Governor in 1741, and whose wife was the subject of the poem, "Lady Wentworth," from the pen of one of Portland's honored sons. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ; and John Wentworth, the last Royal Governor of New Hampshire, who received his appointment in 1766 and closed his administration at the commencement of the Revolutionary War. Another relative was Dr. Seth Chellis Hunkins, who died in Portland in 1868, and whose name is well remembered and his memory respected by many people, not only in Portland but throughout the entire state. The subject of this sketch received his early education in the public schools of Boston, in the period from 1856 to 1870. In early life he followed the occupation of bookkeeper, and was for three years an officer in the County Hospital and Almshouse at Wilton, New Hampshire. For a number of years he has been engaged in successful medical practice, making the treatment of stomach and lung diseases a specialty. He is at present J. H. HUNKINS. located on Free street in the City of Portland, where he has a large and increasing practice. : Being especially gifted in the diagnosis of disease, his skilful treatment of different cases has won for him a reputation which has extended beyond the boundaries of Maine, and brought him patients from distant parts of New England. Where per- sonal interviews have been impracticable, corres- pondence has been the agent employed in treating patients at a distance. A careful practitioner, a wise counsellor, a genial and sympathetic friend as well as physician, he wins the confidence and commands the respect of all who apply to him for examination and treatment. Always manifesting an active interest in all things educational, the people of Wilton, New Hampshire, recognizing Dr.
Price of Biddeford, Maine ; they have six children : Arthur A., Annie May, Charles H., Clarence P., Maurice W. and Ralph Harlan Hunkins.
MORSE, CHARLES WYMAN, President of the Con- solidated Ice Company, New York, was born in Bath, Maine, October 21, 1856, son of Benjamin Wyman and Anna E. J. ( Rodbird) Morse. He is descended, in common with the Morse families of Bath, from Samuel Morse, who with six brothers carne from England to this country in 1635 and settled in Dedham, Massachusetts. He received his early education in the public schools of his native city, graduating from the Bath High School
-
1 422
MEN OF PROGRESS.
in 1873, and entering Bowdoin College in the same year, graduated therefrom in 1877. Following graduation be spent a few months in Europe, and on his return entered into business with his father's firm, Morse & Company, shipbuilders and ice mer-
in Brooklyn, April 14, 1884, to Hattie B. Hussey ; they have three children : Benjamin W., Erwin A. and Harry F. Morse. Mr. Morse's residence is at 40 West Seventieth street, New York city.
MORSE, HARRY FRANKLIN, of the firm of Morse & Company, New York, was born in Bath, Maine, January 5, 1852, son of J. Parker and Mary F. (Henry) Morse. His father, who was a promi- nent shipbuilder and shipowner of Maine, was the son of Richard Morse, a native and lifelong resident of Maine and a shipbuilder of Phipsburg. His mother's father was John Henry, also a prominent shipbuilder, of Bath. He received his early educa- tion in the public schools and at Phillips Andover Academy, and early began active life in the ship- building business. Subsequently, in 1874, he engaged in the ice business and steamboating, in which he has since continued. In the fall of 1884 he went to New York, where he has since been
..
C. W. MORSE.
chants, at Bath. He has been a member of the firm of Morse & Company since 1877. Since 1887 Mr. Morse's business has been mostly in New York, spending his summers with his mother in Bath, where the firm have a shipyard and have built many large vessels, towboats and barges. He has been President of the Knickerbocker Steam Tow- age Company since 1887, and is Treasurer of the Morse Transportation Company; is President of the Consolidated Ice Company, Ridgewood Ice Company and Clark & Chaplin Ice Company, and a Director in several corporations in Maine, New York, Pennsylvania and Maryland. He is also a Director in the Lincoln National Bank of Bath, the Sprague National Bank of Brooklyn, Bank of the H. F. MORSE. State of New York and Garfieldl National Bank of New York City, and is interested in many other located, in partnership with Charles W. Morse, the subject of the preceding sketch. Mr. Morse is Treasurer of the Consolidated Ice Company of banks and trust companies. Mr. Morse is a Republican in politics, and a Protestant in religion. He has been a member of the Sagadahoc Club of . New York city, and is a member of the Union Bath, is one of the charter members of the Mon- tauk Club of Brooklyn, and is a member of the Union League Club of New York. He was married League Club. In politics he is a Republican. He was married February 16, 1892, to Jane Schuyler, daughter of Garrett L. Schuyler of New York city.
1
9
MEN OF PROGRESS.
423
PRESCOTT, CHARLES HENRY, Publisher of the Biddeford Journal, Biddeford, was born in Barn- stead, New Hampshire, August 3, 1857, son of James Lewis and Harriet Morrill (Tripp) Prescott. He was educated at Berwick Academy in South Ber- wick (Maine' and at Boston University, and was admitted to the Bar of Maine in York county in 1880. In the same year he bought the Biddeford Journal, at that time a weekly paper published under the name of the Union and Journal, and in 1884 established the Biddeford Daily Journal, of which he has always been the sole owner, publisher and man- aging editor. The paper is now one of the leading
C. H. PRESCOTT.
' dailies in the state, being a member of the Asso- ciated Press and taking that association's full service over a leased wire, and having an office well equipped with modern machinery throughout, all matter being set on typesetting machines. Mr. Prescott was one of the original promoters of the Biddeford & Saco Railroad Company, whose electric line runs from Biddeford through Saco to Old Orchard Beach, six miles. He drew the charter for the company, and has always been one of its officers, gradually acquir- ing a large interest in its stock, and being now Sec- retary, Treasurer and General Manager. He is also local manager of the Postal Telegraph- Cable Com- pany, and one of the Trustees of the York County
Savings Bank of Biddeford. Mr. Prescott has al- ways been a Republican in politics, and has been active and prominent in public life. He was elected to the State Legislature of 1883-4 from Biddeford, of which body he was the youngest member ; and was renominated in 1885, but declined to accept the nomination. He was a Delegate-at-Large to the Republican National Convention in 1888, and served on the Committee on Resolutions, of which Hon. William McKinley was Chairman. He has been a member of various political committees, serving as Chairman of the Republican City Committee of Biddeford for four years from 1888. In 1887-8-9- 90 he was Treasurer of York County. In 1894 he was elected to the Maine Senate for a term of two years, serving as Chairman of the York County Dele- gation ; in 1893 he was appointed by Governor Cleaves a member of his staff, in which capacity he served for four years ; and in 1895 he was appointed Judge of the Municipal Court of Biddeford, for a term of four years. He was never nominated for any political office except by acclamation. Colonel Prescott is a inember of Dunlap Lodge of Masons, and was one of the founders of the York Club of Biddeford, of which he was for six years Treasurer. He is also a member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts. He was mar- ried January 17, 1882, to Ellen S. Hobbs of North Berwick, Maine.
SANBORN, BIGELOW THATCHER, M. D., Superin- tendent of the Maine State Insane Hospital, Augusta, was born in Standish, York county, Maine, July 11, 1839, son of Warren and Jane (Warren) Sanborn. His parents were among the prominent citizens of his native town, and were representatives of the best families in the state. His illustrious grandfather, John Sanborn, was a soldier in the war of the Revo- lution. Doctor Sanborn was brought up on a farm, where he contracted those habits of industry and frugality which have contributed so much in making New England men distinguished and successful in whatever they undertake. His education was ac- quired in select schools, and he finally finished his academic course at Limington Academy, one of the oldest and best institutions in the state. After some deliberation, he wisely made choice of the profes- sion of medicine as his field of future labor and use- fulness, and after a three-years course of hard study graduated at the Medical School of Bowdoin College in June 1866, with distinguished honors. On this
.
-----
-
424
MEN OF PROGRESS.
.
account, by the recommendation of the medical fac- ulty, he was immediately selected as First Assistant Physician in the Maine State Insane Hospital. He served in this capacity for nearly seventeen years, and during this long period was eminently success- and won the esteem and entire confidence of the offici: . management of the institution, so that when the late distinguished and beloved Dr. H. M. Har- low retired, on account of physical disabilities, from the superintendency of the institution where he had spent nearly forty years of active and efficient ser- vice, Doctor Sanborn was found adequate to meet the demands of the occasion, and in 1882 was
1
BIGELOW T. SANBORN.
elected and assumed the responsibilities of Superin- tendent of the Hospital. He immediately spent several months in investigating the workings of simi lar institutions in other states, thus early bringing to the management of his own charge the most ad- vanced practice and modern modes of the older and larger hospitals, and a professional knowledge of the most approved features in the practical workings of the best asylums of the country. He has always been an assiduous student in medicine, and particularly in that department of mental disease to which he has given thus far his life-work. His many medical essays delivered at stated meetings of the medical profes- sion, in Maine and other states, have been distin- guished as the fruits of original thought and research,
and have always been received with favorable con- sideration. His large experience in mental diseases lias frequently brought him into the courts of the state, where the judgment and evidence of so dis- tinguished an expert have had great weight and in- fluence in determining personal cases of insanity, where responsibility and justice should be carefully considered. Consultations in regard to insanity, outside the routine work of the hospital, have been and are continually being sought and arranged with him by anxious families, and to these appeals he has always responded, when official duties would permit. The several yearly reports of the Trustees of the Insane Hospital furnish the best evidence of the high consideration and esteem which have followed Doctor Sanborn in the discharge of his multitudinous and responsible duties, during his thirty years of ac- tive service, which was manifested several years ago by giving one of the large buildings of the Hospital the name of " Sanborn Hall." While Doctor Sanborn is everywhere known as an educated, painstaking and careful physician, he also unites the qualifica- tions of a practical mechanic and business man, which are so essential in the management of the physical wants and economic demands of a great State Institution. The History of Kennebec County says : "The two large hospital buildings in the center of the background of the Institution were erected under the superintendence of Doctor Sanborn in :888-9 ; in fact, less than one-half the present equip- ment of the Institution was in existence when he was elected Assistant Physician in 1866, and nearly one-half of the buildings have been erected under his supervision. It is a great credit to the Com- monwealth of Maine that the existence and efficiency of so liberal a charity to unfortunate humanity stands as one of its proudest monuments, and it is only just to a broadminded and capable public servant, to note here that this noble Institution, under the liberal provisions of the state, has made such progress and reached its most important period of proficiency within the decade marked by the management of Bigelow T. Sanborn." The social, intellectual and moral entertainments at the Hospital have largely increased in variety and power, and with excellent results, during the past ten years. The increased works of art which please the eye, and the introduc- tion of modern articles of comfort have materially `changed the appearance of the interior of the Hos- pital and make it far more attractive to the unfortil- nate, but appreciative, inmates; and the artistic arrangement of beds of beautiful flowers and varie-
425
MEN OF PROGRESS.
gated shrubbery, and the shady walks through the extended grounds of the Institution, have each and all contributed to make hospital life far more endur- able, and recoveries more speedy and sure. Doctor Sanbornis a member of the Medical Club of Augusta, the Kenne ec Medical Society, Maine Medical As- sociation, New England Psychological Society and American Medico-Psychological Association, also of the various Masonic bodies. In politics he is a Re- publican. He was married in 1872 to Miss Emma F. Martin, an accomplished and highly esteemed lady of Angusta, and her department in the hospital has been wisely administered and well conducted. Their pleasant and bright family of children consists of Maud L, Warren B., Walter M. and Ray F. Sanborn. Notwithstanding his constant and labor- ious public duties, Doctor Sanborn finds great en- joyment in the pleasures of the family fireside, and he has given his time and influence in favor of the advancement of all great moral questions, always aiding in all public efforts which have contributed to the educational and business prosperity of the State of Maine.
SPOFFORD, PARKER, Civil Engineer, Bucksport, was born in Bucksport, July 12, 1842, son of Frederic and Augusta (Parker) Spofford. He is descended from John Spofford, who emigrated from England and settled in Rowley, Essex county, Massachusetts, in 1638. Ainsworth R. Spofford, Librarian of Congress, and Richard S. Spofford, whose wife is Harriet Prescott Spofford, are of the same family. He acquired his early education in the public schools and at the East Maine Confer- ence Seminary at Bucksport, and graduated at Dartmouth College, Scientific Department, in 1865. ¿ In the fall of that year he went West, and for the next seven years was engaged in railroad engineer- ing in Iowa and Missouri, during four years of that time being employed in the location and construc- tion of the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad, now a part of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy system. Returning to Maine in the latter part of 1872, he was Engineer of the Bucksport & Bangor Railroad in 1873-4, devoting two years to this work. Since then he has been engaged as engineer upon surveys and construction of various railroads in Maine, including the Bangor & Katahdin Iron Works Railway in 1881-2; the Somerset Railroad ir. 1887; Limerock Railroad, Rockland, 18SS-9 : Portland & Rumford Falls Railroad in the summer
of 1891 ; and as one of the contractors on the con- struction of the latter road in the fall of 1891 and season of 1892. In 1893 he was engaged in build- ing the Mexico bridge across the Androscoggin River, at Rumford Falls. Mr. Spofford has also been interested and engaged in various enterprises outside of his profession, and is connected in an official capacity with several business organizations. He has been for nine years an active member of the Superintending School Committee of Bucksport, and is now serving his fourth year as Superintendent of Public Schools. He represented Bucksport in the Maine Legislature in 1883 and again in 1889,
៛
7
--
A
..
PARKER SPOFFORD.
and in 1891-2 served as a member of the Executive C- . ncil of Governor Burleigh. In politics Mr. Spofford is a Republican. He is a member of several fraternal organizations, and in 1889-90 was Master Workman of the Grand Lodge of Massachu- setts, Ancient Order United Workmen. He was married in 1870 to Mary E. Spofford, of Dixon, Illinois.
STEWART, JOHN CONANT, M. D., of York, President of the People's Prohibitory Enforcement League, was born in South Ryegate, Caledonia county, Vermont, June 19, 1850, son of Duncan and Margaret (Ritchie) Stewart. As may be sur-
426
MEN OF PROGRESS.
mised from the name, and as is unmistakably indicated by the individual character of the man, the subject of this sketch traces his ancestry to the Highlands of Scotland. His great-grandfather Allan Stewart was born in 1756 at Cromdale, in Invernesshire, on the River Spey, in Scotland. At sixteen he was apprenticed to a tailor. He enlisted in Colonel Campbell's Highland Regiment, and when it was drafted for service in America during the Revolutionary War he was rejected on account of his small stature. But when he saw his comrades embarking for this country the temptation to accompany them was so strong, that with their
-
JOHN C. STEWART.
assistance he was concealed on board the vessel until the fourth day out, when he was allowed to take his place in the ranks. He performed no further military service, however, as the vessel was captured by the American navy and taken into Boston. Colonel Campbell was confined in the old Concord prison and afterwards excharged for Colo- nel Ethan Allen. The private soldiers were nearly all paroled. Stewart, however, being useful as a tailor, was kept a prisoner for four years, when he enlisted as a private, at Westford, Massachusetts, in Captain Proctor's Company of Colonel Cilley's Fourth New Hampshire Regiment, under a promise that he should not be sent to the front. He was
credited to the town of Amherst, New Hampshire, and served nineteen months. After his discharge he settled in Dunstable (now Nashua), New Hamp- shire, where he married Mary Berry and continued . to reside until the spring of 1790, when he removed with his family to Ryegate, Vermont, where he died at the age of ninety-six. Allan Stewart, Jr., grand- father of our subject, was born in Nashua, New Hampshire, April 22, 1788. In July 1810 he mar- ried Mary Miller, daughter of Alexander and Jean (Alien) Miller, who emigrated from Scotland ; she was born February 15, 1789, and died April 17, 1848. He was a farmer, and with the exception of four years spent in Quebec, 1815-1819, lived in Ryegate until his death, August 9, 1873. He had twelve children. Duncan Stewart, father of John C., was the eighth child of Allan, Jr., and was born February 4, 1826. On September 20, 18.49, he mar- ried Margaret Ritchie, daughter of Archibald and Elizabeth (Leitch) Ritchie. Mr. Ritchie was born in Roseneath, Dunbartonshire, Scotland, August 7, 1797. In 1811 the family removed to Kilmalcolm, Renfrewshire, where on March 31, 1824, he married Elizabeth Leitch, by whom he had six children, all born in Kilmalcolm. In 1844 the family came to America and settled in Ryegate, Vermont. Mrs. Ritchie died of ship fever and was buried at sea. He was a farmer, and died March 23, 1886. Mar- garet was the fourth child and was born October 29, 1830. Duncan Stewart was a farmer and store- keeper, and died in Topsham, Orange county, Vermont, September 10, 1882. His children were : John Conant Stewart, born June 19, 1850; Archi- bald Ritchie Stewart, born April 1, 1852, died December 15, 1864; and Mary Elizabeth Stewart, born May 19, 1858, married Dr. Charles B. Sturte- vant of Manchester, New Hampshire. John C. Stewart acquired his early education in the common schools, the high schools at Topsham and West Topsham, Vermont, and at Peacham (Vermont) Academy. Entering Dartmouth College, he gradu- ated therefrom in the class of 1873. He studied medicine with Dr. J. J. Hazen of York, Maine, and in November 1876 graduated from Dartmouth Medical School as Valedictorian of his class. While in college he taught school in York, Maine, 1870-1 ; Lexington, Mississippi, 1871-2; North Berwick, . Maine, 1872-3 ; Brewster, Massachusetts, 1873-4, and York, Maine, 1875-6. In 1875 he opened a lumber yard in York, which he successfully managed for two years, when he sokl the business. For the ten years 1876-86 he practiced medicine in York,
427
MEN OF PROGRESS.
and being a hard worker, met with almost excep- tional success in his profession, acquiring a very large practice and establishing an enviable reputa- tion. During this period he was a frequent con- tributor to the standard medical journals. In 1877 he entered into partnership with Charles L. Grant of York, : ought the stage line from Cape Neddick, Maine, to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and estab- lished a line of Concord coaches to York Beach. When the business outgrew the stage line Mr. Stewart became an incorporator and Director of the York Harbor & Beach Railroad, and continued as a Director and acted as its Clerk for four years. He surveyed the line for the first location of the road, and was a contractor in its construction. In 1883 he organized the S. S. S. Building Association, of which he has from the first been a Director and President. In 1884-5 he managed a large meat and provision market in York Village, and in 1889- 90 he was in partnership with J. P. Norton in the manufacture of bricks and lumber. In 1891 he organized the Orient Mutual Life Insurance Com- pany, of which he was President until its consolida- tion with the Kennebec Mutual and York Mutual companies in 1895. In the meantime he read law with Moses A. Safford of Kittery and Hon. Horace H. Burbank of Saco, and in June 1895 was admitted to the York County Bar. Mr. Stewart now devotes his time wholly to the practice of law, in which he is meeting with success and is building up a large and lucrative business. He has been from its organization in 1891 the President of the People's Prohibitory Enforcement League of Maine, a cor- poration created by special act of the Legislature for the better enforcement of the prohibitory laws of the state. He is a Notary Public and has held for seven years a commission as Justice of the Peace, has served as a member of the Board of Health of York seven years, Town Physician three years, member of the Superintending School Com- mittee seven years, Constable nine years, Collector of Taxes three years, and was Deputy Sheriff of York County six years. He is actively and promi- nently identified with various fraternal societies and organizations. In the United Order of the Golden Cross he is a charter member of Agamenticus Com- mandery, was its first Past Noble Commander and Medical Examiner, and was also a charter member of the Grand Commandery of Maine ; has filled all the chairs in the Subordinate Commandery ; was Grand Commander of the Grand Commandery of Maine for 1886; Representative in the Supreme
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.