USA > New Hampshire > Merrimack County > Biographical review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Merrimack and Sullivan counties, New Hampshire > Part 47
USA > New Hampshire > Sullivan County > Biographical review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Merrimack and Sullivan counties, New Hampshire > Part 47
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On November 9, 1848, Mr. Courser was united in marriage with Mary Jane Blanchard, who was born in Boscawen, daughter of Amos and Susan Blanchard. His family consists of six children - Fitz H., Evander A., Helen Frances, Almon E., Charles Edgar, and Grace. Fitz H., who is in the livery busi- ness in Henniker, is married and has two chil- dren - Harry and Arthur; Evander A. is in the express, business in Concord, is married, and has one daughter, Rachel; Helen Frances married Joseph M. Hollowood, who was for thirteen years Postmaster of Brockton, Mass .; Almon E., who is in the employ of the Boston & Maine Railroad and resides at home, wedded Minnie Brown; Charles Edgar, a fireman of the Boston & Maine Railroad, and a resident of Henniker, married Emily Pritchard, of
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Hillsborough, N. H., and has one daughter, Linda May. Politically, Mr. Courser is a Republican. He has been quite active in local affairs, and he served with ability as Road Agent.
EORGE WALLINGFORD, a pros- perous business man of Claremont in the last generation, was born in Dub- lin, N.H., July 17, 1808, son of Ebenezer and Mary (Hildreth) Wallingford. The first an- cestor, Nicholas Wallingford, settled in Brad- ford, Mass., in 1672. David Wallingford, of the third generation descended from Nicholas, was a Lieutenant in the Revolutionary War. Born September 25, 1744, he went to the war from Hollis, N.H., was a minute-man, served in four companies under Captains Dow, Towns, Emerson, and Goss, and took part in the battles of Bunker Hill and Bennington. His son Ebenezer, who was born October 5, 1780, came to Claremont about seventy years ago. By his wife, Mary, who was born in Dublin, Ebenezer became the father of eight children, as follows: Elvira, born August 24, 1804, who died October 5, 1884; Mary, born August 10, 1806, who died March 1, 1870; George, born July 17, 1808, who died July 18, 1863; Sarah, born May 27, 1810, who died March 10, 1894; Philander, born June 6, 1812, who became a Methodist minister, and died August 6, 1887 ; Elizabeth, born September 8, 1814, who died May 5, 1836; Frances, born September 23, 1816, who died August 14, 1848; and Catha- rine, born February 1, 1819.
At the age of nineteen years George Wall- ingford came to Claremont, and there resided throughout the rest of his life. While he was a machinist by trade, he found it to his inter- est to engage in carriage ironing. Later in life he went into the grocery business, which he afterward followed successfully for many
years. His death took place July 18, 1863. He married Helen P. Hitchcock, whose chil- dren by him were: Henry, born April 12, 1839; and Stella J., born September 22, 1843. Mrs. Wallingford, who survives her husband, is a member of an old and interesting family of Claremont. Her grandfather, Ichabod Hitchcock, the first of the name in this town, came here about the year 1770. Ichabod cleared some land situated a mile north of the village, built on it a house -for he was a carpenter by trade - and returned to New Haven, Conn., for his family. With them came a little party of adventurous spirits under his leadership, finding their way by marked trees to the little spot in the wilder- ness which he had chosen. On the journey, which lasted fourteen days, the furniture was carried in ox carts. The women rode on horse- back, Ichabod's wife carrying a baby in her arms; and the men travelled on foot. Ichabod helped in the erection of Union Church; and he was the master builder of the town hall, which he afterward took apart, and removed to the village. During the Revolution he was officially serving the town in the capacity of Sheriff and in other offices. At that time, having been misrepresented to the authorities as a Tory, he was arrested, tried, and honora- bly acquitted. He married Rebecca Pardee, who was born March 2, 1754, and whose grandparents came from France. Rebecca had three sisters, one of whom married Benjamin Tyler, another married Asa Jones, and the third became the wife of Ebenezer Sperry. Her children by Ichabod Hitchcock were: Samuel, born September 30, 1774, who died July 25, 1777; Hannah, born April 5, 1776, who died August 3, 1777; Hannah (second), born June 10, 1778, who died February 3, 1812; Samuel, born June 2, 1780, who died November 4, 1857; Lyman, born February 21,
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1782, who died February 17, 1787; Ransom A., born May 15, 1784, who died August 19, 1795; Amos, born November 2, 1786, who died August 9, 1873; Reubah, born Novem- ber 2, 1788, who died July 5, 1795; Esther, born October 11, 1791, who died September 22, 1793; Reubah (second), born May 2, 1795; who died September 25, 1799; and Esther, born June 25, 1798, who died July 18, 1798.
Amos Hitchcock married Philenia Felt, who, born May 3, 1790, died December 20, 1872. She was a daughter of Eliphalet Felt, who was a Revolutionary soldier, and Lona (Witherel) Felt. Her brothers and sisters were: Charles, John, James, Eunice, Warren, Obadiah, Eleutheria, and Wells. She was the mother of Henry A. Hitchcock, born in Claremont, September 11, 1815, who was a prominent citizen of Walpole, Selectman of Walpole, represented the town in the legislat- ure for some time, and was State Senator for . the Tenth District in 1872 and 1873; of Helen P., born January 16, 1817, who married George Wallingford; of Mortimer, who died at the age of five; of Alexander Vietts, born November 4, 1821, who for several years was the Registrar of Deeds for Sullivan County, and for one year the Representative of New- port in the legislature; and of Lona Rebecca, who was the youngest. The last four children were born in Rockingham, Vt.
BRAHAM GATES JONES, a well- known gentleman of Concord, N. H., formerly engaged in the printing business, but now retired from active business affairs, was born in the town of Bow, five miles south of this city, October 21, 1827, son of Philip and Sarah M. (Gates) Jones. His paternal ancestors for many years were resi-
dents of Merrimack County, while the mater- nal progenitors came from Massachusetts.
Philip Jones, father of the subject of this sketch, was the son of Joseph Jones, and was a merchant in Hookset. He died on January 26, 1836. His wife, Sarah M. Gates, was a daughter of the Rev. Abraham Gates, a clergyman, who came to New Hampshire from Massachusetts, and after staying a short time in Claremont settled at Bow, where he bought a farm, the same on which his grandson and namesake was born.
Abraham G. Jones was left fatherless at the early age of eight years. In 1839 he came to Concord, where he attended the public schools, and subsequently the academy, from which he was graduated in 1844. He soon entered the service of Isaac Hill & Sons, editors and pub- lishers of Hill's New Hampshire Patriot, re- maining in their employ about two years. Thence onward until 1854 he was a journey- man printer in various offices. In that year he formed a partnership with P. B. Cogswell in the printing business. Four years later he sold out to Mr. Cogswell, who, in 1893, became Mayor of the city. Mr. Jones, in 1859, went into partnership with Fogg & Had- ley, editors and publishers of the Independent Democrat, the association continuing for eight years. From 1867 to 1870 he was in business alone; since that time he has lived retired from the arena of typographic and journalistic activity.
In politics, Mr. Jones affiliates with the Re- publican party. Officially, he has served as Councilman, Alderman, and Road Commis- sioner; and in 1870 and 1871 was Mayor of Concord. During his administration there was a severe contest over the question of the introduction of water into the city, which was finally brought about by his persistent efforts. On June 10, 1856, Mr. Jones was married
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ABRAHAM G. JONES.
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to Helen A. Edmunds, of Manchester, N. H. They have two children: Anna E., wife of W. H. Durant, of Concord; and Isabel G., who is at home.
EREMIAH A. CLOUGH, Representa- tive of Loudon in the New Hampshire legislature, was born in this town, No- vember 22, 1846, son of Abner and Sarah (Hazelton) Clough. Abner Clough, the paternal grandfather, who was a native of Can- terbury, removed to Loudon, and settled on a farm near his grandson, residing here for the remainder of his life. Abner Clough, second, tather of Jeremiah, was brought up to farming, which occupation he followed through life. He settled on the farm now owned by the sub- ject of this sketch, and cultivated it until his death, which occurred in 1890. He and his wife, Sarah, had three children: Lucy, who died when about twenty-one years old; Abial 11., who married Abbie Ladd, and died in 1893, his widow being now a resident of Lou- don; and Jeremiah A. The mother now makes her home with her son Jeremiah. She is a member of the Free Will Baptist church.
Jeremiah A. Clough was educated in the common schools and at Pittsfield Academy. Remaining with his parents, he devoted him- self to agriculture, and has been very success- ful in his chosen occupation. His farm consists of about four hundred acres, most of which is under cultivation; and it has been much improved since coming into his posses- sion. Mr. Clough carries on general farming and stock-raising, keeping about forty to fifty head of cattle. Recognized by his fellow- townsmen as a well-informed, enterprising, and capable citizen, he was chosen by them as Selectman, in which office he served three years; County Commissioner, in which he
served four years; and Town Treasurer, in which he served two years. As above stated, he is now (1897) Representative from his town to the legislature. He is a Democrat politi- cally, and has faithfully served the public in- terests in whatever office he has held. He is a member of the grange, and has a large acquaintance throughout Merrimack County.
In 1876 Mr. Clough married Miss Nellie Peverly, of Canterbury, N. H., daughter of George Peverly, a present resident of Loudon. They have no children.
01 ORACE CHILDS, a pioneer railroad bridge builder in New England, is a prominent resident of Henniker, Merrimack County, N. H. He was born in this town, August 10, 1807, son of Solomon, Jr., and Mary (Long) Childs. He is a lineal descendant of William Childs or Child, a brother of Ephraim Child, who emigrated from England, and settled in Watertown, Mass., in 1630. The family, which was a notable one in England, sustained the dignity of a coat of arms. William Child was made a freeman at Watertown in 1634, and became a land- owner there. His son John was conspicuous in the public affairs of Watertown. He died at the age of forty years. The third in this line was John Childs, Jr., son of John and Mary (Warren) Child; and the fourth, his son Jonathan, born in Watertown in 1696, who settled in Grafton, Mass., where he died in 1787, in the ninety-second year of his age.
From the "Genealogy of the Child, Childs, and Childe Families," by Elias Child, pub- lished in 1881, chapter viii., relating to the Watertown branch, we learn that Jonathan Child married in 1729 Abigail Parker, and had eight children, the eldest, Josiah, born in 1730, the youngest, Joseph, born in 1753.
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The fifth was a daughter, Ruth, born in 1740, and the sixth, Solomon, born January 31, 1744. The same record of Jonathan Child's family is in the History of Grafton, Mass., except that the year of the birth of Solomon is there given as 1743. The History of Hen- niker names Solomon as the "son of Josiah and Ruth Childs." If the foregoing record be correct, he was younger brother of Josiah, and Ruth was a sister. Josiah, son of Jona- than, it may be mentioned, married Elizabeth Ball in 1755, and in 1760 settled in Upton, Mass.
Solomon Childs, grandfather of Horace, was born in Grafton, January 3, 1743. He wedded Martha, daughter of Elijah Rice, of Westboro, Mass., on April 16, 1767, and shortly afterward settled in Henniker, where he cleared and improved the farm that is now occupied by his grandson, Carlos Childs. He lived to see the town become a prosperous farming community; and his death occurred February 27, 1827.
His son Solomon, father of Horace Childs, was born in Henniker in 1781. He attained considerable prominence as a builder in his day, being employed for some five years in erecting the factories in Dover, N. H. ; and he was highly respected as a genial, courteous, and eminently worthy citizen. He was ex- ceedingly vigorous throughout his active period; and when over eighty years of age he walked from Manchester to Henniker, a dis- tance of twenty-seven miles. Solomon Childs, second, died October 19, 1865. His first wife, Mary Long, whom he married September 21, 1806, was a native of Hopkinton, N.H. She died in 1823. His second wife, Lucinda, daughter of William and Mary (Heaton) Childs, died January 20, 1852. His first wife was the mother of eleven children ; and Horace, the subject of this sketch, is the eldest.
Enoch, who was graduated at Yale University, went to Montgomery, Ala., where he estab- lished an academy, which he conducted for six years, and then returned North. He was for some time in the government service in Wash- ington, after which he was interested in rail- way construction in New Hampshire. He died in Henniker in 1880. Mary Long Childs, a sister of Horace, became a school teacher, and later married Asa Whitney, of Henniker. Her last years were spent with her daughter, Sarah M., wife of Eugene Brooks, of Cambridgeport, Mass., where she died June 1, 1896.
Horace Childs remained at home, and as- sisted in carrying on the farm until he was sixteen years old. He then accompanied his father to Great Falls, N. H., where he worked upon the factories; and later he was similarly employed in Dover. While working in the latter place his father decided to send him home to attend school, and fitting him out with clothing gave him a dollar to pay his stage fare. Young Horace, however, decided to walk, and seems to have kept on travelling afoot until he reached Hopkinton. He con- tinued to follow the carpenter's trade; and after reaching his majority he found employ- ment in various places. While working in Claremont, N.H., he was stricken with typhoid fever, making it necessary for his sister Mary to leave her school in Hopkin- ton, in order to care for him during his ill- ness. After his recovery he was persuaded by her and his brother Enoch to attend Hopkin- ton Academy, and he paid the expenses of his three years' course by devoting his leisure time to following his trade.
It was while thus engaged that he first be- came associated with his cousin, Colonel Stephen Long, of the United States Army. The Colonel had brought his family to Hop-
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kinton, and Horace Childs found an opportu- nity to board with his cousin, paying his way by making some repairs upon the house. Colo- nel Long had acquired a patent for a new plan of constructing bridges, and, having con- fidence in his young kinsman's ability, desired him to take charge of one of his contracts. Mr. Childs accepted the proposition, and con- structed his first bridge in Haverhill. He next took the contract to build some bridges for the New Haven & Hartford Railway Com- pany, paying Colonel Long a royalty upon his patents; and in these operations he made con - siderable profit. At this time a party in Springfield, Mass., patented improved plans ; and in order to compete Mr. Childs was obliged to design one still better, which he succeeded in doing. For several years he was busily engaged in building bridges for railway companies in New England, and also for the Erie Road in New York State. He realized substantial profits; and upon one oc- casion, by a sudden fall in the price of iron, he made ten thousand dollars outside of his contract. He constructed a railroad bridge at Manchester, N.H., taking stock in the road as part payment, but had the misfortune to fracture his leg while filling the contract. This accident so interfered with his work that he decided to refrain from taking large con- tracts in the future, and from that time until his retirement he devoted his attention to work nearer home. His last operation was the construction of the bridge over the Contoocook River at Henniker; and, having here closed his unusually active career as a bridge builder, he settled in Henniker, where he has since resided. He has taken an active inter- est in educational matters, having assisted many deserving young men in securing the ad- vantages of higher learning. In 1836 he was chosen by his fellow-townsmen to arrange for
the establishment of an academy; and, as the site chosen by him was accepted, he took the contract to erect the building, and was one of the incorporators.
In 1831 he united with the Congregational church, of which he has since remained a member, and for upward of forty years has served as Deacon. He has not only contrib- uted generously toward its support, but, in company with Fayette Conner, he stood the entire expense of repairing the building, and made up a deficiency in paying for an organ. Early in the fifties, while journeying from Boston to Concord upon a train which was also conveying President-elect Franklin Pierce and family, an accident occurred near An- dover, Mass., in which a little son of Mr. Pierce was killed, and Mr. Childs was picked up for dead. He was spared, however, and permitted to continue the good work in the way of charity and benevolence which has characterized his whole life. He has been ac- tively identified with religious matters in this section for considerably more than half a century, and is a life member of the American Board of Foreign Missions. In politics he is a Republican.
On January 11, 1837, Mr. Childs was joined in marriage with Matilda R. Taylor, daughter of John and Sally (Jones) Taylor, of Lempster. She is a descendant of William Taylor, who came to America in 1642; and her ancestral line continues, it is said, through William (second), Abraham, Deacon Samuel, to her father's father. The Taylor family have been somewhat noted for longevity. Mrs. Childs's father died at ninety-two, and an uncle at ninety-six. The Rev. Oliver Swain Taylor, who died in Auburn, N. Y., in Febru- ary, 1885, aged one hundred years and four months, was graduated at Dartmouth College in 1809, with the degree of Doctor of Medi-
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cine. In November, 1815, he was appointed to accompany missionaries to Ceylon, but did not go. He was ordained a minister at the age of sixty-three years. Mrs. Childs was carefully educated, being a pupil in her girl- hood at the academy in Ipswich, Mass., then a flourishing institution of learning under the charge of Miss Grant; and for ten years she was engaged in teaching.
OSEPH WILKINS, a resident of Pem- broke and a veteran of the Civil War, was born May 24, 1844, son of Jere- miah Hall and Mary (Thompson) Wilkins. He is not only a representative of an old New Hampshire family, but a lineal descendant of ancestors who were first settlers in this country. Bray Wilkins, who came from Wales, Brecknock County, was a descendant of Lord John Wilkins, who belonged to a family that traced their lineage back to 1090 and had borne many honorable titles. Lord John was a connection of the Bishop Wilkins who married the sister of the Protector, Oliver Cromwell. Bray, at the age of twenty, is supposed to have come to this country in the same ship with Endicott, about 1630, and to have first settled in Dorchester, Mass. Before 1659 he bought from Governor Richard Bell- ingham seven hundred acres of land called Wills Hill, which in 1661 was within Salem's six-mile limit. He died in 1702, a patri- archal land-owner, amidst the farms and homes of his sons and daughters.
The portion of Bray's son, John Wilkins, was situated in Danvers, Mass. John, son of John, who was born about 1689, went with his wife, Mary Goodale Wilkins, and two sons to Marlboro, Mass., in 1740. His eldest son, Josiah Wilkins, married Lois Bush, whose grandparents settled in Marlboro in 1690.
Of Josiah's five sons, the third, Jonathan, born in 1755, graduated at Harvard College, studied theology, and was called to preach at the old South Parish, Concord, N. H., in 1789. He married Sarah Hall, whose grand- father, Deacon Joseph Hall, was one of Con- cord's first settlers. Deacon Hall was granted eleven lots in the lower range in 1725, built his house, which was used as the garrison for many years. He is recorded as owning the second chaise and clock in Concord. The house was inherited by his grand-daughter, Sarah Hall, who occupied it during her life- time. She had thirteen children, who all grew up and married.
Jeremiah Hall Wilkins at the early age of eighteen left his home and settled in Pem- broke, where he was engaged in the grocery and dry-goods trade for forty years. Being an able and successful merchant, he acquired con- siderable property. As a leading resident he was long identified with local public affairs, and in 1820 he represented his town in the legislature. In politics he was a Republican, and for many years he acted as a Justice of the Peace. He was very proud of his grand- mother, Esther Whittemore Hall, whose an- cestor settled in Charlestown in 1642; also of Deborah Abbot Hall, whose grandfather, George Abbot, of Andover, was an ancestor of his. Mary Thompson Wilkins was a lineal descendant of the Poore and Noyes families of Old Newbury, Mass., who settled there before 1650. She became the mother of fourteen children, of whom five are now living. Of these Mary E. Wilkins married Dr. John Sullivan, a great-great-grandson of General Sullivan of Revolutionary fame; and Harriet married Dr. Frederick E. Potter, who for four- teen years was a surgeon in the United States Navy, and is now a successful physician in Portsmouth, N. H. The rest are : Francis, who
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resides in Boston; Henry, who served in the Civil War; and the subject of this sketch.
Joseph Wilkins was educated in the common schools and at the Pembroke Academy. He started in life as a clerk in a store in Concord, then went to Sycamore, Ill., where he resided for a year. At the expiration of that time he enlisted in Company F, One Hundred and Thirty-second Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, for service in the Civil War. He served for five months in Kentucky and Ten- nessee, where his regiment was engaged in a campaign against the Confederate guerillas. After his discharge from the army he went to New York City, where he learned photography. From there he went to Hyde Park, Mass., where he conducted a studio for a time. Then for a year he carried on the same busi- ness in Nashua, N. H. In 1873 he returned to Pembroke, and some time later he engaged in a mercantile business which he has since carried on in connection with photography. He takes a large number of views annually, which find a ready sale; and his efforts have been attended with excellent financial results. He is also interested in real estate to some extent. He owns some valuable property in the South, and is regarded as one of the most prosperous residents of Pembroke at the pres- ent time. The family in all its branches have been connected with the Congregational church. Mr. Wilkins is a comrade of Post Lewis Bell, No. 3, G. A. R., of Manchester, and in politics is a Republican.
On June 23, 1897, he married Lora J. Emery, of Suncook, N. H.
ALTER SCOTT DAVIS, a mill- owner, manufacturer, and inventor, a successful business man of Hop- kinton, Merrimack County, N.H., was born in
the adjacent town of Warner, July 29, 1834, a son of Nathaniel A. and Mary (Clough) Davis. His paternal ancestry he traces as follows: Captain Francis Davis, called "the pioneer," was born in Amesbury, Mass., October 26, 1723. He was the son of Francis, second, and Joanna Davis, the former the son of Francis, first, who, it is said, was the son of Philip, the immigrant progenitor. Philip Davis, when twelve years old, left Southamp- ton, England, April 24, 1638, in the ship "Confidence" of London, bound for New Eng- land. He was servant to John Binson, hus- bandman, of Caversham, Oxfordshire (or, as Savage thought, of William Illsley). Little else is known about Philip Davis, or Davies, as the name is spelled in the passenger list printed in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register, vol. ii. Francis Davis, said to have been his son, took the oath of allegiance and fidelity at Amesbury, De- cember 20, 1677.
Captain Francis Davis, the pioneer, mar- ried Elizabeth, daughter of Jonathan and Sarah Ferrin, and had ten children -- Gertrude, Zebulon, Jeremiah, Wells, Ichabod, Francis, Elizabeth, Aquila, Paine, and Nathan. He located in what is known as Davisville in the town of Warner among the earliest settlers, and may be said to have been the foremost man in the town till his death. From 1768 to 1785 his name was associated with every event of Warner's history, the church matters, and all business and landed interests. His com- mission as Captain of militia, dated 1773, was signed by John Wentworth, Governor. Cap- tain Davis had three sons in the Revolution, two of them in the battle of Bunker Hill. He was Chairman of the Committee of Safety in 1775, and was one of the committee which secured the incorporation of the town; and he assisted in the division of lots. Harriman's
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