USA > Maine > Waldo County > Brooks > Sketches of Brooks history > Part 7
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EUGENE EDMUNDS COLBURN, 1903- 1905, son of Charles Henry and Rev. Eugene Edmunds Colburn Martha Ann Burns Colburn, born in Boston, Mass., Nov. 13, 1851. He was educated in the public schools and under private tutors. At twelve years of age he was a drummer boy with the 11th Mass. Vol- unteers. He was ordained in the Christian Ministry, Sept. 18, 1875 and was graduated from the Christian Biblical Institution, 1880. He served in that denomination until 1896. Congregational pastorates: North Reading, Mass .. 1896-1900. Broad Brook. Kentucky, 1900- 1902. Brooks and Jackson. Maine, 1903-1905. Wells. Maine, 1905- 1909. Yarmouth, Mass .. 1909 until his death June 15, 1918. Other pastorates were Austerlitz. New York; Laconia, New Hampshire; Eastport. Maine: Kittery, Maine. Was married first to Sarah A. Trowbridge, June 10, 1875, at Stanfordville, New York, and second to Frances A. Willey. April 15. 1903. at Broad Brook, Kentucky. Four children, two living.
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J. W. VAUGHAN, 1907-1908.
SAMUEL J. WILSON, 1908-1910, b. Aghafad Co., Tyrone, Ireland, Sept. 12. 1874; ord. Pleasant River. N. S. July, 1905; p. Margaree, N. B., '04-07; Sheffield. '07-'08; Brooks, Me., '08-'10; Princeton, '11- '12; Perry, '12-'13; res. Princeton from '13.
HAROLD. G. BOOTH. 1911-1913. Mr. Booth's period of service was one of activity in behalf of the young people of the community, interesting them in the work of the Christian Endeavor and allied activities. After his services at Brooks he was for a time pastor of the West End Con- gregational Church, Congress Street. Portland, Maine. For several years now he has been pastor of the Stevens Avenue Congregational Church, Portland, Maine, at which church he has met with success. Mr. Booth is married and resides at 788 Stevens Avenue, Portland, Me.
W. STANLEY CARNE, 1913-1914. born Newquey, Cornwall, England, January 7, 1885. Naturalized 1925. Married, September 1, 1914, at Harrison, Maine, to Miss Florence E. Clark; children, Homer Clark, born June 19. 1916: Ethel Arlene, February 22, 1918; Lloyd Stanley, March 13, 1925; Margaret Winifred, December 21, 1926. Admitted to church membership in Newquay 1903. Wesleyan denomination. Education. Cliff College, England; Bangor Theological Seminary. Or- dained at Brooks Congregational Church. Aug. 3, 1914. Served as pastor Otisville, Maine. 1910-1913. Brooks, Maine, 1913-1914. Spo- kane, Washington, 1914-1916. Seattle, Washington, 1916-1918. Gor- ham, Maine, 1918.
THOMAS H. MARTIN. 1915-1916, 1920-1927, born October 25, 1867, in Illogan, Cornwall. England, naturalized January 3, 1900. Admitted to church membership 1885 at Forest Gate, Cornwall, England. Con- gregationalist. Education: Albion College. B. A. Ordained at Sing- apore, Straits Settlements. 1903. Pastorate at P. I. 1900-1904. Mar- ried Mabel Rose of Brooks, Sept. 5. 1928.
W. E. STREETER. 1917-1918. Revere Lay College (non grad.) ord. Spencer, Mass., 1897. Halifax. Vt. a year or two: St. Johnsbury Center, Vt., 1 year; Warren, Vt., 2 years: New Marlboro and South- field, Mass., Oct., 1922. Oct., 1924; Oakham, Mass., 1906-1911; West Barnstable, Mass., 1911-1913; Brooks, Me., 1917-1918; last address Exeter, N. H.
FRANK TIMPERLY, 1919, b. near Chester. Eng. Did Methodist sup- ply and mission work in England. Began in U. S. as Methodist at Colebrook. N. H. After that. Brooks and Jackson, Maine, 1919; Jackman. 1920-1922: West Lebanon, two years; Little Compton, R. I., 1925-1926. Ordained, 1920.
EDWARD C. W. HUTT. Student from Bangor Seminary, 1928-1929.
EVERETT T. BEMONT, unmarried; born at Glastonbury, Connecticut ; son- of Deloss C. and Alice Hollister; educated, Glastonbury Gram-
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mar School. attended Franklin day school at Baltimore, Maryland. The Hillyer Institute at Hartford, Connecticut. Hartford Seminary Foundation and Bangor Theological Seminary. Licensed to preach by Methodist Episcopal Church in Baltimore, June 10, 1926. Pastor of Union Church at Raymond, Maine, June 1-Sept 15, 1928. Con- gregational Church, Frankfort, Maine, November 1, 1928 to Septem- ber, 1929. Congregational Church at Brooks, from September, 1929.
The brief sketch of the pastors of the Brooks Congregational Church, or those in regard to whom information could be obtained, is, in many respects, incomplete for the want of records. In recent years, on Sunday before Memorial Day the pastor of the church has deliv- ered an address to the members of the Grand Army of the Republic; also an annual sermon to the members of the Knights of Pythias Lodge, and the baccalaureate sermon for the graduating class of the local high school.
The present membership of the church as of June, 1927,-is thirty- nine members. If we compare the church membership of 1927 with that of 1810 and compare the present population to that of 1810, Brooks is in need of a religious awakening. It would appear that the community needs a pastor who will abandon those lines of sermons which are framed to tickle the cars, for those which will prick the conscience. The community of one hundred years ago was formed around the home, the school, the church. Brooks has the homes; Brooks has the schools; Brooks should have a more active church life.
As in former years, the Brooks Congregational Society is associated with the Jackson Congregational Society in the employment of a pas- tor, the services being held at Brooks in the morning, at Jackson in the afternoon, with evening services at Brooks. This arrangement has been in effect since the employment of the first minister in 1810 and 1812, Rev. Silas Warren.
For many years, the Brooks meeting house was a Union church. I find recorded in the town records of Brooks: Sept. 17, 1839, Timothy Roberts to Gilman Roberts, sale of pew, Brooks Meeting House, Pew Number 31. sold January 18, 1838, price $58.00.
In 1845 there were four religious societies in Brooks: Congrega- tionalist, Free Will Baptist, Methodist Episcopal and Friends. Sam- uel Whitney, 1823-1834, acted as minister of the Free Will Baptist organization: was prominently identified with the civic interests of the town, having represented Brooks at the Constitutional Conven- tion, representative to the legislature, State Senator, Justice of the Peace and town official.
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Rev. Lemuel Norton and his second wife. Sophronia Averell Norton
Lemuel Norton, 1820-1823, field missionary covering the towns of Montville, Liberty, Monroe, Waldo, Searsmont, Swanville, and Brooks, often assisted Elder Whitney at baptisms held at the Mill Pond. Mr. Norton was the great grandfather of the compiler of these sketches. In the early history of the town of Brooks, the Baptists were very prominent. In later years, many of its members became identified with the Friends' meeting.
THE FRIENDS' MEETING
The Friends' Monthly meeting was originally a part of the China, Maine Monthly Meeting until June 1837, at which time Unity, Al- bion, and Brooks petitioned for the privilege of holding monthly meet- ings, and the request was granted. At this time the total member- ship was about 200: Albion 100, Unity 50, and Brooks 50. Thorn- dike later was admitted to the monthly meeting. The society was very active in the early years of the History of Brooks. The Friends' Church was built in about 1822. The arrival of new families and the intermarrying of the various Church denominations resulted in the decrease of the membership of the Friends' Society, because of the marrying out of order. Some of the Monthly Meeting leaders were: Jedediah Varney of Unity, John Warren of Albion, Frank Jones, Clement Jones, Linwood Jones, and Charles Jones of Unity, George Moulton, Winslow Austin, and John Lane of Brooks; Eri Sharpless, Eloise A. Hofford, Alice Winslow, Omar Hussey and Sarah J. Cole.
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The Friends' Church of Brooks was sold to the Harvest Home Grange P. of H., March 13, 1919.
OMAR HUSSEY, first station agent at Waldo, served in that capacity until his death; married Abbie Nickerson of Swanville; four children, Phiny, William P., Emery, and Leon; Mr. Hussey for several years was one of the most active workers of the Friends' Church at Brooks. With the lapse of years, the religious societies, with the exception of the Friends' Meeting and the Congregationalist Society, have ceased to exist, its remaining members becoming associated with the surviving churches. March 13, 1919. the Friends' Church was sold to Harvest Home Grange, No. 52 of Brooks, the Congregational Society now maintaining the only church home. In the early history of the
The Friends' Church
town, Brooks was recognized for its religious workers and at all times the denominations worked together in harmony ..
HUMPHREY, SMALL JR., preached at the Union Church of Brooks for the Baptist Society at various periods, 1864-1890. He was born in Bow- doinham, Maine, 1828; died 1887; admitted to church membership at Brooks; ordained at Brooks, 1860. Pastorates: Rockport, Brooks, Bowdoinham, Monroc, Swanville, Thorndike and Knox, Maine. First wife was Marian Mitchell, tenth child of Robert and Eliza Mitchell, who died May, 1890. No children. Second, Hannah E. Barlowe, widow of John Garland, formerly of Freeport, now living in Brooks.
DAVID BRACKETT served as a pastor for the Baptist Society and oftimes occupied the pulpit for the Congregational Society from 1891-
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1916. Mr. Brackett was born on a farm in Jackson and entered the ministry when of middle age. It has been said of Mr. Brackett, that he performed more marriage ceremonies and preached more funeral sermons than any other minister in the County of Waldo. His wife was Harriet Page. Mr. Brackett also was one of the pioneer cloth- ing manufacturers in this section of the state, operating a factory in Brooks in the making of vests for many years. He died in Belfast, Maine, several years ago at eighty-five years of age.
ALBION P. K. FOGG was born in Brooks, February 5, 1824. He died in Morrill, Maine, January 19, 1893. He married Sarah J. Elwell at Troy, Maine, August 19, 1848, who was born in Troy, Maine, Jan- uary 7, 1829, and died in Waldo, Maine, December 2, 1921. Their children were: Charles L. born in Brooks, October 8, 1850 and died at Winterport, 1920; Lizzie H. born in Brooks, February 21. 1855, died in Monroe, September 10, 1876; Helen A. born in Monroe, Maine, February 8, 1860; Albion A. born in Monroe, Maine, August 21, 1867, and died in Munroe, May 9, 1874; Burton E. born in Munroe, July 11, 1872. For several years prior to his marriage Mr. Fogg was ac- tive in the service of the Methodist Church, acting as supply Pastor many times. After his marriage he formed a very close friendship with his wife's uncle. Reverend Theodore Harding, a Universalist, and entered in the service of that organization as a minister. He held regular services at Hermon, Maine, two Sundays of the month, at Al- bion, Maine, two Sundays and if there was a fifth Sunday in the month, he held services at Swansville, Maine.
Mr. Fogg removed to Munroe from Brooks about 1857. His active service as a minister impaired his health and he removed from his farm in Monroe and lived for a time in Albion, Me. He lived for two or three years on what was then called the Moody Place. He then moved to Morrill where he was living at the time of his death. He was buried in the cemetery at Monroe, Maine ..
Charles L. Fogg, who died at Monroe several years ago, had a daughter, who married Dr. Prince E. Luce, later divorced him, and is now living in Waterville. He also had one son. Fred M., who lives in Monroe. Helen A. had two daughters, Mrs. Isabelle Philbrook, and Mrs. F. J. Lachance now living in Lynn. Mass. Burton E. had two children, and lives in Pittsfield, Me.
Mr. Fogg, Senior, was born in Brooks in a house located on the lot now occupied by a residence formerly the home of Dr. Norman R. Cook.
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JAMES IRVING VARNEY lived in Brooks for many years, and fol- lowed the occupation of a shoemaker. Later he became interested in religious work and was ordained as a Minister of the Gospel in Brooks, Maine. Otis W. Lane of Brooks can recall attending church as a boy with his mother and remembers that Mr. Varney was a very vigorous speaker. Mr. Lane was for many years Town Clerk . of Brooks.
Mr. Varney's limitations as to education were overcome by his · forcefulness and his knowledge of the Bible. Other information in regard to Elder Varney is unavailable.
ISAAC PENNINGTON ROBERTS, a son of Isaac Roberts who was born in Brooks, became associated with the Methodist Church at an early ags and was the pastor of several Methodist Churches with success.
MEETING HOUSE GRANTS (As appears from the records, Waldo County Registry of Deeds)
Book 29. Page 73. (Doctor) Noah Gilman, Grantor; Brooks Meeting House Corporation, Grantee. Dated March 7. 1837; acknowledged March 7, 1837; recorded February 6. 1838. Form Warranty, con. $100.
"For the purpose of erecting a meeting house thereon the following piece or parcel of land lying in said Brooks and bounded and described as follows. to wit :-
Beginning at a stake and stones on the east side of the County road from Jackson to Belfast and in the northwest angle of a County road from said road to one leading from Monroe to Belfast ; thence north eighty-two degrees east by said last mentioned County road eight rods to a stake and stones; thence north eight degrees west five rods to a stake and stones; thence south eighty- two degrees west eight rods to the road first mentioned. thence by said road to the place of beginning, containing a quarter of an acre, reserving to the grantor all the apple trees thereon to be by him taken off, and also the right of the reversion and ownership of said piece of land whenever the said Grantees shall cease to occupy the same for a meeting house."
Book 34, Page 369. Libbeus Jones, Grantor: Thomas Sawyer, a deacon of Orthodox Church in Brooks and Jackson, Grantce. Dated December 7. 1839. acknowledged December 7. 1839. recorded December 24. 1839. Form Warranty, con: $500. Dower released by Hannah Jones. wife of Grantor.
"In trust for the use of said Church a piere of land lying in said Brooks. being a part of lot numbered eighteen in the north division of lots in said town and bounded as follows, viz: Beginning at the northwest corner of the lot on which I now live north of the road at the corner of the wall thence nearly cast by the wall; twenty rods to the northeast corner: thence nearly south bounded by land of Jacob L. Havner and land of Hugh M. Boynton eighty rods to the centre of the Mill Stream; thence westwardly following the thread of the stream. until it shall make a parallel breadth of twenty rods: thence nearly north on the cast line of land I have this day sold to Luther Wiswell about eighty rods to the corner begun at; excluding from this conveyance the public road, containing ten acres more or less. with all the buildings thereon standing."
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Book 261, Page 480. Nancy Rose, A. H. Rose. J. C. Rose, Phebe E. Rose, Mary A. Pilley, A. E. Kilgore, Sarah A. Edwards. A. G. Rose, Harry Kilgore, Grantors; Brooks Meeting House Corporation, Grantee. Dated May 19, 1899; acknowledged May 19, 1899; recorded March 28, 1901. Form Warranty, con. $60.
"A certain parcel of land situated in Brooks Village and bounded and des- cribed as follows, viz: Beginning at an iron bolt standing on the easterly side of Main Street, thence south 7715° east (by the north side of a row of maple trees) one hundred and thirty feet to an iron stake; thence north 1216° west to the Swan & Sibley Co.'s Mill lot. (iron bolt set on said last mentioned course, in the ledge, 125 feet from last named bound) ; thence westwardly by. said mill lot to Jonathan Irving's blacksmith shop lot; thence following the eastwardly and southerly lines of said Irvings blacksmith shop lot to an iron bolt on the east side of Main Street; thence southerly by Main Street to the first mentioned bound."
Book 255, Page 48S. Brooks Meeting-house Corporation, Grantor: Brooks Union Parish. Grantee. Dated April 18, 1901; acknowledged April 18, 1901; recorded. August 30, 1901. Form Quitelaim. Con. $1.
"All our right, title and interest in and to a certain parcel of land with the Meeting House thereon standing, situated in Brooks aforesaid, being the same premises conveyed by Nancy Rose et als to the Brooks Meeting House Corpo- ration by warrantee deed dated May 19th A. D. 1899. and recorded in Waldo Registry of Deeds, Book 261, page 480, to which conveyance and record, refer- ence may be had for a more particular description.
This conveyance is subject. however, to the following conditions viz: Said Parish shall assume all indebtedness of said Meeting House Corporation, and make arrangements for the payment of such indebtedness. That the meeting house, standing upon the herein described premises, shall not be used for other than Evangelical religious services. That the said Parish shall choose two Trustees in addition to the three now acting in that capacity for the aforesaid Corporation and the Board thus constituted shall have full control of said Meet- ing House until the terms of the trustees of said corporation shall have ex- pired, & successors elected by said Parish to fill the vacancy."
Book 3, Page 158, Corporation Book. Dated June 26, 1928; recorded July 19, 1928.
"The name of said corporation is The First Congregational Church of Brooks.
The purposes of said corporation are the furtherance of religious work in the community, and use of such property as may be acquired.
Said corporation is located in the town of Brooks, County of Waldo. State of Maine.
The number of officers is seven and their names are as follows: President. L. T. Dunham: Vice-President. W. S. Jones; Secretary or Clerk, Christine Stoddard; Treasurer, Vesta Higgins; Trustees. F. H. Brown, Elmer Roberts. Gertrude Cilley."
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BENCH AND BAR
Throughout the text of this volume, it will be noticed that the name Phineas Ashman or Ashmun is used in two forms. It would appear that Ashman is correct, although a photostat taking the acknowledgement to a deed which was loaned the author by Otis W. Lane. it is spelled Ashmun. The petition pre- sented to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for the incorporation of the town of Brooks of which he headed the petition, the name is spelled Ashmun. The post office department at Washington. he being the first Post-master at Brooks, furnished the name as Ashman and the inscription on his tombstone in the cemetery at Brooks is Ashman. And as his uncle, a United States Senator from Massachusetts spelled his name Ashman, it would appear that Ashman is correct, although in many written statements Phineas himself wrote his signa- ture as Ashmun. So the use of the forms are given according to the subject matter in which he is referred to.
PHINEAS ASHMUN, 1813-1852.
PHINEAS ASHMUN was the first lawyer to locate at Brooks; also the first Postmaster, and Chairman of the Board of Selectmen. He was a native of Blanfield, Massachusetts, and a relative of the Honorable Eli P. Ashman, United States Senator from Massachusetts. He was located at Belfast from 1808. acting as Agent in supervison of the property owned by Messrs. Israel Thorndike, David Sears, and William Prescott, who had large holdings of land in the neigh- boring towns, which they had obtained through General Knox. While at Belfast Mr. Ashman was active in the social and business affairs of the city. He headed the list of subscribers for a Social Subscrip- tion Ball, to be held in Belfast during the winter of 1808 and 1809. He was also one of the Incorporators of Belfast Academy. He re- signed his position with the proprietors in 1813, and removed to Wash- ington Plantation. now Town of Brooks, where he opened a Law Office. Through his efforts and the association of Senator Ashman of Massachusetts, a Post Office was established at Brooks, and he be- came its first Postmaster. He also drafted the petition to be pre- sented to the Legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for the Incorporation of the Town of Brooks. His name heads the list of the petitioners, and he also became first Selectman of the Town of Brooks, besides filling many other positions of trust. He enjoyed a reputation as an excellent counsellor. The Post Office, which was in a part of his house, was a gathering place for the leading citizens of the town for the discussion of important matters. In the winter evenings Mr. Ashmun had classes in Rhetoric, Arithmetic, and Writ-
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ing. He presided at many of the local debates, and was active gen- erally in the social life of the town. In 1814 he entertained as his guest in Brooks, Daniel Webster, who was in that section in behalf of some of his clients was reside in Northhampton, Massachusetts, the town in which Ashman resided before moving to Belfast. Mr. Ash- man resided in Brooks until his death May 15, 1852, at the age of 86 years. He lived for a time in the residence now occupied by Al- bert E. Pilley, formerly the home of Hiram Pilley.
Mr. Ashman was twice mar- ried, first to Althea-, who died October 19, 1820, age 52 years. Second wife Hannah-, who died September 5, 1831. Age 31 years. Had one son Henry C. Ashman who died. Septem- ber 25, 1859, age 30 years.
WOODBURY DAVIS. was the son of Joseph Davis, who moved to Brooks from the Town of Standish in about the year 1810-when a mere lad. He attended the public schools in ' Brooks, and Belfast Academy. He was the second Postmaster at Brooks, a member of the Board of Selectmen, and when a young man taught several terms of school with a good measure of success.
He studied law with Nehemiah Abbott of Belfast, and was ad- mitted to the Waldo County Bar in 1847, practising law there from 1848 to 1855, when, having been chosen State Treasurer, he removed to Portland. The same year he was appointed Judge of the Supreme Court, from which he was removed in 1856 for his interpretation of a constitutional question, but was reappointed in 1857. and commis- sioned for a second term in 1864, with the approval of the members of the Bar of all political parties. Within a few months he resigned and resumed the practice of law.
Judge Davis was a man of strong character, tender and sympa- thetic, but strong and extreme in his political views. Of a literary taste, he wrote many articles and essays for the publications of his time.
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Phineas artman
Phineas Ashmun and his Signature
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Hon. Woodbury Davis
BENCH AND BAR 85
He died in Portland, August 13, 1871, age, 53 years. He was buried in the cemetery in Brooks where his young manhood was passed. At a term of the Supreme Court held at Belfast, October, 1871, Me- morial services were held.
Judge Davis was a brother of Allen and Marshall Davis, and an Uncle of George G. Davis who was prominent in the War of the Re- bellion.
FRED W. BROWN, JR., was born in Enfield, Maine, January 6, 1854. He married Annie L. Reynolds in 1882 at Burnham; children: Harry M., who married Mary E. Webb, and is now Superintendent of Port- land Packing Company at Unity; and Josephine M., who married George Sanborn or Belfast. Mr. Brown was educated in the public schools of the county, and studied law in Belfast, being admitted to the Bar in 1896. He opened a Law Office at Brooks, and enjoyed a large clientele. He was a good counsellor, and a thorough student of the law. He was Postmaster of the Town of Brooks from 1885 to 1889.
He served the Town of Brooks as Treasurer for two years, Collec- tor of Taxes, and Chairman of the Board of Selectmen for several Fred W. Brown. Jr. years. He was considered one of the best selectmen Brooks ever en- joyed. He was conservative, but sufficiently progressive for the best. interests of the town. He served several terms as Local Trial Jus- tice; Dedimus Justice; Notary Public; and Disclosure Commissioner.
JAMES E. CHANDLER came to Brooks from Portland in 1898. He practiced law in Brooks for about one year. While in Brooks he pur- chased the John Lang or Sam Ryan place, later moving to Illinois.
SETH W. NORWOOD. After completing a period of educational work in Brooks, for a time opened a law office prior to his entering the ser- vice of the United States Treasury Department in 1918. Now living in Portland, Me.
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FRANK EBEN LITTLEFIELD, lawyer; b. Brooks, April 2, 1880; s. Jo- seph R. and Ellen L. (Hamlin) ; ed. Brooks High School; M. C. I .; LLB., U. of M., 1906; m. Maud B. Holmes at Belfast, June 26, 1913; children, June E., Joseph R., Betty H., George H. City Clerk, City Attorney, Chairman of School Committee of Belfast, Me., County Attorney of Waldo County, Chairman of the Industrial Accident Committee, State of Maine. Mason, Knight of Pythias, State, County, and American Bar Associations, at present attorney for an insurance company, with offices at 324 Masonic Building, Portland, Maine. Re- sides at 45 Prospect Street, Portland Me.
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