Book of biographies. This volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Grafton County, New Hampshire, Part 1

Author:
Publication date: 1897
Publisher: Buffalo, Biographical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 612

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GC 974.201 G75b 1242310

GENEALOGY COLLECTION

ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01085 8998

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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES.

THE VOLUME CONTAINS

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF LEADING CITIZENS

GRAFTON COUNTY, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

. BIOGRAPHY IS THE ONLY TRUE HISTORY." EMERSON.

BIOGRAPHICAL PUBLISHING COMPANY. BUFFALO. N.Y. 18,7.

PREFACE. 1212310

AVING brought to a successful termination our labors in Grafton County in compiling and editing the sketches herein contained, we desire, in presenting this Book of Biographies to our patrons, to make a few remarks, necessarily brief, in regard to the value and importance of local works of this nature. We agree with Ralph Waldo Emerson that " Biography is the only true History," and also are of the opinion that a collection of the biographies of the leading men of a nation would give a more interesting, as well as authentic, history of their country than any other that could be written. The value of such a production as this cannot be too highly estimated. With each succeeding year the haze of Obscurity removes more and more from our view the fast disappearing landmarks of the past, Oblivion sprinkles her dust of forgetfulness on men and their deeds, effectually concealing them from the public eye, and because of the many living objects which claim our attention, few of those who have been removed from the busy world linger long in our memory. Even the glorious achievements of the present age may not insure it from being lost in the glare of greater things to come, and so it is manifestly a duty to posterity for the men of the present time to preserve a record of their lives and a story of their progress from low and humble beginnings to great and noble deeds, in order that future generations may read the account of their successful struggles, and profit by their example. 1 local history affords the best means of preserving ancestral history, and it also becomes, imme- diately upon its publication, a ready book of reference for those who have occasion to seek biographical data of the leading and early-settled families. Names, dates and events are not easily remembered by the average man, so it behooves the generations now living, who wish to live in the memory of their descendants, to write their own records, making them full and broad in scope, and minute in detail, and insure their preservation by having them put in printed form. We firmly believe that in these collated personal memoirs will be found as true and as faithful a record of Grafton County as may be obtained anywhere, for the very sufficient reason that its growth and development are identified with that of the men who have made her what she is to-day-the repre- sentative, leading men, whose personal sketches it has been a pleasure to us to write and give a place in this volume. From the time when the hand of civilized man had not yet violated the virgin soil with desecrating plough, nor with the ever-ready frontiersman's ax felled the noble, almost limitless, torests, to the present period of activity in all branches of industry, we may read in the histories of the county's leading men and of their ancestors the steady growth and development which has been going on here for a century and a half, and bids fair to continue for centuries to come. A hundred years from now, whatever records of the present time are then extant, having withstood the ravages of time and the ceaseless war of the elements, will be viewed with an absorbing interest, equalling, if not surpassing, that which is taken to-day in the history of the early settlements of America.

It has been our purpose in the preparation of this work to pass over no phase of portion of it slightingly, but to give attention to the smallest points, and thus invest it with an air of accuracy, to be obtained in no other way. The result has amply justified the care that has been taken, for it Is our honest belief that no more reliable production, under the circumstances, could have been compiled.

One feature of this work, to which we have given special prominence, and which we are sure will prove of extraordinary interest, is the collection of portraits of the representative and leading citizens, which appear throughout the volume. We have tried to represent the different spheres of melustrial and professional activity as well as we might. To those who have been so uniformly obliging and have kindly interested themselves in the success of this work, volunteering information and data, which have been very helpful to us in preparing this Book of Biographies of Grafton County, we desire to express our grateful and profound acknowledgment of their valued services.

THE PUBLISHERS.

S.P.Carleu

BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES

GRAFTON COUNTY.

AMUEL P. CARBEE, M. D., the subject of this brief notice, first saw the light of day on the old Car- 5 bee homestead in the town of Bath, June 14, 1836; he is a son of John H. and Anme (Powers) Carbee, and a grandson on the paternal side of Joel and Lois (Downer) C'arbec.

Joel Carbee was born before the Revolution- ary War, in which he took part as a soldier. In reward for his services in behalf of his country he never received a pension, for he died before the day of granting pensions, but his widow, who survived him a long time, was granted one, and she enjoyed the benefits accruing from it until her death. Joel Carbee was a very powerful man, large, muscular, and fine-looking; his striking physical characteristics were inherited by all of his sons, and may be seen in his grand- sons. Old Dr. MeNabb relates that Mr. Carbee and a man named Wallace while at work together at the same job had a little falling out, arising from a difference of opinion. Accord- ingly they resorted to the old and ever popular method to those of British extraction of settling disputes, by fisticuffs. Leaving the rest of the worknien, they retired to a secluded spot, and there satisfaction was given and taken. Upon their return the only circumstance either in their actions or in their appearances that pointed to the probable outcome of the affray was Wal- lace's standing treat. Such little disputes settled in so amicable and quiet way made them better friends than ever. The Downer family, into whom Mr. Carbee married, were Newbury folks. of whom few are left to-day, for there were few. if any, sons, and several of the daughters died

unmarried. To Joel Carbee and his wife were born seven children, all boys but one: John II., Joel, Moses, William, Andrew, Henry, and Sallic.

John H. Carbee was born in the village of Newbury, Vt., June 1, 1791, and died in the town of Bath, June 25, 1877, where he had re- sided ever since his marriage. He was reared in his native place, and there attended the primitive schools; his education was for the most part self-acquired in the school of experience. On his removal to Bath he took a very prominent part in the public affairs of that place. He was chosen the representative for some eight or ten times; was also selectman for some dozen years. Ma- sonic rites claimed him as a faithful devotee in his younger years; he became a Master Mason, and wielded quite a wide influence. Then came the Morgan incident, and with it the disruption of Masonic Orders for a long time; when the Order finally recovered, Mr. Carbee was an old man with no further desire for Masonic advancement. fle was a Whig in politics, and one of the first Republicans in his town. Brief in his utter ances, his few remarks showed him to be a man of pronounced views, with a good foundation for his beliefs. During his life, in his carly man Irood, he was engaged in piloting boats down the river, returning with flatboats laden with pro visions, which he poled up against the current.

John 11. Carbee's wife, Annie Powers, was born near Wallacehill, Feb. 14, 1797, and died in Bath, Dec. 20, 1887. She was a daughter of Samuel Powers of Hollis, N. H., who was a farmer in his later years. He was educated for the ministry, but thinking himself unfitted for it, he induced his father to educate a younger

BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.

brother instead, and allow him to go into busi- ness. He accordingly adopted the profession of a surveyor, and worked at it in connection with farming. It was the custom in those days to keep cider on draught throughout the year, and this old gentleman, Samuel Powers, always had a pitcher of the drink on the table at every meal. Twenty-five or thirty barrels were made every year, during the apple season, and everybody was expected to drink, and very few ever be- came intoxicated. He lived to be ninety-five years old, the last ten years of which were spent in blindness. He was a son of Peter Powers, who was a preacher of the Congregationalist faith, and the first preacher of the upper Con- necticut Valley, coming into this section of the country in 1765. He was given by popular sub- scription as a living 200 acres of the finest river bottom land, and a yearly stipend of £35, six shillings, and thirty cords of wood, cut and corded each year. His preaching was not limited to the New Hampshire side of the river, but ex- tended also over into Vermont, a boat providing means of communication. The Powers family was most probably of Scotch-Irish descent, com- ing from the north of Ireland. To the parents of Annie Powers were born two children: John and Annie. By a subsequent marriage the family was increased by the addition of one more child: Moody.

The union of John H. Carbee and Annie Powers was blessed with the following offspring: Lois married Moses M. Kelsey of Derby, Vt .; Sallie was taken to a brighter world in infancy; John, died Oct. 25, 1893; William was killed at Champion Hills during the Civil War; his wife was Harriet Smith; Sarah died in 1880; Henry lives on the Carbee homestead in Bath; Milo makes his home in East Boston; Mary is the widow of John Morrill of Derby, Vt .; Samuel Powers is the subject of this sketch; and Ann, the widow of Edward Johnson, lives in Ware- ham, Mass. With the exception of the one, who died when a babe, all grew up; the first death was that of Williamn, killed in the Battle of Cham- pion Hills, near Vicksburg, May 19, 1863, when fighting under Gen. Grant.

Samuel Powers Carbee was reared on the home farm, where all his brothers and sisters were born; he attended the common schools and the seminary at Newbury, Vi. He remained at

home until 1857, teaching school in the winter and working on the farm in the summer. In the summer of 1857 he was employed in a daguerreotype studio in Boston, and in the fol- lowing winter taught another term of school. In the spring of 1858 he went west to Illinois, to Lacon, where he kept books for Fisher, Dean & Co., pork packers, working there from March to July. He then went to Linn Co., Iowa, to Springville, where he worked on his brothers' farms for two years. Returning home at the expriation of that period, he studied medicine until the outbreak of the war, studying under Dr. Dixie Crosby and his son, Dr. Alpheus B. Crosby, and attending one course of lectures at Dartmouth College; the studying was continued summer and winter, teaching winter schools also.

Aug. 21, 1862, Dr. Carbee broke off his medi- cal studies and enlisted in Co. D., 12th N. H., Vol. Inf., and was mustered into the United States service Oct. 26, 1863, as a private, and later appointed assistant surgeon of the regi- ment, a position he held until the close of the war, June 21, 1865. The regiment disbanded at Concord, July 3, 1865. Mr. Carbee saw service in the Army of the Potomac and in the Army of the James, in the State of Pennsylvania, Mary- land, and Virginia. The following battles marked his connection with the army: Fred- ericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Ber- muda Hundred, Drury's Bluff, Ft. Harrison, Ft. . Royal, Swift Creek, Cold Harbor, capture of Richmond, and siege of Petersburg. In the cap- ture of Richmond, the Southern capital, Dr. Carbee, following close after the picket line, has the distinction of being the first surgeon of the Union Army to enter the city. At the battle of Gettysburg he was under fire, but was untouched with the exception of his hat, which was shot through. At the close of the war he went to Hanover, resumed his studies, and received his diploma, Nov. 3, 1865. Upon the Doctor's ad- mission to practice, he settled in Haverhill, and has been kept busy in attending to his large prac- tice ever since.

Dr. Carbee married, Sept. 30, 1885, N. Della Buck of Haverhill, N. H., the third of six chil- dren, born to Lyman and Lucia W. (Kasson) Buck. Lyman Buck was a son of Lyman, Sr., and Mindwell (Dewey) Buck, originally from

BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.

Waterford, Vt. Lucia W. Kasson was a daugh- ter of Marvin and Elizabeth (Dick) Kasson. Mrs. Dr. Carbee is a member of the Congrega- tional Church. In politics, Dr. Carbee is a strong Republican ; he was a member of the Leg- islature for two years, trustee of the academy, surgeon-general of the State on the staff of Gov. Charles A. Busiel. He was county commissioner for four years, having won in an election, that of 1884, when the county had been Democratic for twenty-five years. Onr subject is a member of G. A. R., Nat. Westgate Post, No. 50. He is a Mason, belonging to Kane Lodge, of Lisbon, No. 64: Franklin Chapter of Lisbon, No. 9: Omega Council; and Mt. Horeb Commandery of Concord, N. I.

No more representative or worthier gentle- man could be found to head this collection of biographies and portraits of the leading citi- zens of Grafton Co. than Dr. Carbee, and it is with genuine pleasure we present his portrait on a preceding page.

HON. EDGAR ALDRICH, M. A., United States District Judge of New Hampshire, resid- mg in Littleton, N. 11., was born in Pittsburg, N. H., Feb. 5, 1848. He is the son of Ephraim C. and Adaline Bedel (Ilaynes) Aldrich, and grandson of Ephraim C. Aldrich, Sr.

The grandfather of our subject removed with his family about the year 1830 from his native State of Connecticut to Pittsburg of this State, which locality was then known as the Indian Stream Territory. The jurisdiction of that por- tion of the State had long been a matter of dis- pute between our own and the British Govern- ments; at the time of Mr. Aldrich's settlement the people had taken matters into their own hands and had set up an independent government, pending the outcome of the controversy. Of the family of children born to Mr. Aldrich, Ephraim C., Jr., first saw the light on the 4th of February, 1818. He became a solid, substantial citizen of Pittsburg; he was conspicuous in town affairs for a long term of years; he was deputy provost- marshal, and was of much service to the State in raising money and men for the carrying on of the war for the Union. He was also prominent in the commercial and business interests of the

county, being an active manager of the U'pper Coos River and Lake Improvement Company. In . 1840 he married Adahne Bedel Haynes, a granddaughter of the noted Gen. Moody Bedel, a soldier of the Revolution, and of the War of 1812, who was also a pioneer of the Indian Stream Territory. Six children were born to them, of whom but three survive: Frank, of the well-known firm of Enstis & Aldrich, wholesale starch merchants of Boston, Mass .; Edgar; and Isabel, the wife of Justus W. Baldwin of Pitts- burg. The father died Jan. 25, 1880, but the mother is still living.

Ilon. Edgar Aldrich remained at home during his youthful years, receiving such educational advantages as the district school afforded, until the age of fourteen, when he entered the acad- emy at Colebrook, where he continued about three years, and soon after commenced the study of law in the office of Ira A. Ramsey of Cole- brook. Subsequently he entered the Law De- partment of the University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor, graduating from that institution in March, 1868, with the degree of LL. B., when but twenty years of age.

Upon his return to Colebrook he was ad- mitted to the bar of Coos Co. at the following August term of court, upon motion of the late Hon. Hiram A. Fletcher, who stated, upon mov- ing such action, that he would attain the age of twenty-one before the next session of the court. lle at once opened an office and entered upon an earnest practice of his profession in Colebrook, continuing alone until Jan, 1, 1872, when he formed a partnership with William 11. Shurtleff, which continued four years. For three succeed- ing years he was similarly associated with James 1. Parsons, and was again alone in his practice until his removal to Littleton, Jan. 1, 1881, where he became the partner of Hon. George A. Bing- ham. In May, 1882, Daniel Remick was ad mitted to the firm, which continued under the style of Bingham, Aldrich & Remick, until Judge Bingham's second appointment to the Supreme bench in December, 1884. Subsequently the firm of Aldrich & Remick pursued practice until January, 1889, after which Mr. Aldrich was alone until his appointment as United States District Judge.

While engaged in his practice at Colebrook lie was twice appointed Soletor for Cons Co, first

BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.

by Governor Shaw, in 1872, serving until the political overturn, in 1874; and again by Gov- ernor Cheney, in 1876, serving in his second term until June, 1879, and establishing an enviable reputation as an able and efficient pros- ccuting officer. In November, 1884, he was elected a member of the Legislature from the town of Littleton. Although with no previous legislative experience, he was nominated by the Republican caucus for Speaker of the House, and elected to that position, for whose difficult and delicate duties he developed a surprising aptness, acquitting himself throughout the ses- sion in a manner that would have done credit to a veteran parliamentarian.

At the outset of his professional career Judge Aldrich entered at once into the preparation and trial of cases, paying comparatively little atten- tion to the ordinary routine of office work. He took delight in the exciting legal and forensic contests, which have characterized the practice of both the Coos and Grafton bars, and an ex- amination of the reports will fully demonstrate his active and conspicuous participation in many of the important causes on the northern dockets during the last two decades. One of the most important and interesting causes in which he was engaged, and one in which he added greatly to his reputation for ability and learned research, was that of the Connecticut River Lumber Co. vs. Olcott Falls Co., in which he was associated with Hon. Irving W. Drew of Lancaster, as counsel for the plaintiff, defendant's counsel be- ing the late Hon. William S. Ladd of Lancaster and Hon. Jeremiah Smith of Dover. This was a bill in equity to regulate the respective water rights of the plaintiff corporation using the Con- necticut River for navigation purposes in floating its logs, and of the defendant mill-owners there. on. The right of trial by jury was claimed by defendant's counsel on the alleged constitutional ground embodied in Article 20 of the Bill of Rights, which guarantees the right of trial by jury in all controversies concerning property, "except in cases in which it has been heretofore otherwise used and practiced." The question in- volved in this contention was one of constantly recurring interest, and one which had long been the subject of much attention and research with no definite result. Mr. Aldrich devoted his en- tire energies to the work in hand, taking the

position for the first time, that the phrase "here- tofore otherwise used and practiced" had refer- ence to the common law and equity procedure of England rather than the practice of the courts in this country before the Revolution. His oral argument in reply to Judge Smith, at the De- cember law term, 1889, was regarded by the Court as worthy of publication in full in Vol. 65, N. H. Reports.

The first judicial circuit in the Federal system embraces Maine, New Hampshire, Massachu- setts, and Rhode Island. Almost contempora- neously with the appointment of Judge Aldrich to the District Judgeship came the Act of Con- gress, approved March 3, 1891, creating the Cir- cuit Court of Appeals, for the relief of the Su- preme Court, to which questions of law are taken from the various district and circuit courts, which provides that such court shall consist of the Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, assigned for the circuit, the circuit judges in attendance (an additional judge having been provided in each circuit), and the district judges within the circuit presiding in the order of rank and seniority of their commissions. This act largely increased the duties of all the Federal Judges (the salary of the district judge being at the same time properly increased from $3,500.00 to $5,000.00 per annum), so that ever since his ap- pointment Judge Aldrich has found his time very fully occupied, having been called largely into service in the Massachusetts courts, where, as in his immediate district, he has already won an enviable reputation as a courteous, discrimi- nating, and conscientious administrator of jus- tice.

Dartmouth College conferred upon Judge Aldrich the honorary degree of Master of Arts in 1891. As a public speaker he takes high rank and has delivered several notable addresses upon special and anniversary occasions, among which may be named his address in 1886 before the Grafton and Coos Bar Association, of which he has been a prominent member, upon the ques- tion, "Shall the law and trial courts be sepa- rated?"; that before the court upon the death of Judge Frederick Chase of Hanover, at the Sep- tember term, 1890; his eulogy of Gen. Gilman Marston, before the Grafton and Coos Bar Asso- ciation, January, 1891; his address before the Southern New Hampshire Bar Association,

BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, GRAFTON COUNTY.

upon "Delays incident to the removal of causes from the State to the Federal courts," etc .; his address before the Grafton and Coos Bar Asso- ciation upon "Our Jury System:" and an address before the New Hampshire Historical Society upon the Indian Stream controversy.

Judge Akfrich was united in marriage Oct. 7. 1872, with Louise M. Remick, daughter of Samuel K. Remick of Colebrook. They have two children: a daughter, Florence M., born July 1, 1874. an accomplished young lady, who had been educated in the public schools, at Til- den Seminary, West Lebanon, St. Mary's School. Concord, and Abbott Academy. An- dover, Mass .; and a son, Ephraim Fred, born June 9. 1878, and now a student at Dartmouth College, in the Class of 1900.

Although on account of his official duties, he is forced to spend much of his time in Boston, lie retains his home in Littleton, where he has a finely appointed and beautifully-located resi- dence on Church Street, commanding a delight- ful view of the village and the charming valley of the Ammonoosuc.

Thoroughly democratic and unostentatious in manner, readily approachable, and courteous to all, Judge Aldrich is popular alike in the general community, and in the profession, of which he is a conspicuous representative. Of fine presence and strong physique, he is also endowed with vigorous intellectual powers; and with a full ap- preciation of the labors and responsibilities of his position, and the zeal and carnestness of com- parative youth in meeting all their requirements, there is good reason for belief that he has before him a career of usefulness and honor, creditable alike to himself and to the New Hampshire Dis- triet.

ANDREW J. RANDALL, who died Jan. 25, 1897, at Haverhill. N. H , was born at Fayette. Me .. Aug 5, 1830; he was a son of Asa and Mary A (Chase) Randall, and a grandson of Samuel Randall, whose wife was before mar- riage a Miss Young.

The Randall family is descended from one of three brothers of that name, who came in Colonial tunes to New Hampshire from Wales.

Sanmel Randall was a resident of Deerfield, N. H., and followed coopering as his trade; he was for a time inspector of staves of his part of the State. It was ever his lot to be blessed with the best of health, to keep vigorous and active a body, which could perform extraordinary la- bors; the age of 93 years was reached hy him. Hle was one of those who cherish a good opin- ion of themselves, but, contrary to the general run of conceited persons, he exhibited abundant proof that such personal regard had a firm and substantial foundation. As an instance of his enterprise and uncommon hustling abilities, it is related that he hired out to a farmer during the having season, and was told to come at about 7 o'clock. He woke up extremely early in the morning, took his seythe, and went to the meadows. After four hours of mowing, he was called to breakfast by the horn that was custo- inarily used to announce meals to those mem- bers of the household who were not at hand. After he had satisfied his hunger at breakfast. in which time he was invited to a drink of rum, he asked his employer where he should start in to work, and was told to go to a certain field, and begin mowing. At this juncture, he dryly remarked that the field in question was already cut, since he had been in the field at work from 3 o'clock in the morning.

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Book of biographies. This volume contains biographical sketches of leading citizens of Grafton County, New Hampshire, Part 1

Author: Publication date: 1897 Publisher: Buffalo, Biographical Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 612

Author:
Publication date: 1897
Publisher: Buffalo, Biographical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 612