USA > New Hampshire > Belknap County > Biographical review : containing life sketches of leading citizens of Stafford and Belknap countries, New Hampshire > Part 14
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subsequently employed in that capacity until March, 1877. Then, in company with his brother, F. H. Lougec, and S. B. Smith, he engaged in business, under the firm name of Smith, Lougee Brothers & Co. In 1881 the firm became known as Lougee Brothers, and in 1884 Orman T. Lougee was admitted to partnership. Business increased to such an extent as to oblige them to establish them- selves in their present location in December, 1885. Since then they have had to make addi- tions to their floor space, including an annex twenty by forty feet, erected in the spring of 1890, and a large storehouse, sixty by forty feet, erected in the fall of 1896. Dealing in dry and fancy goods, carpets, furniture, bed- ding, etc., they carry one of the largest stocks in Laconia. The firm has also a large store in St. Johnsbury, Vt.
Mr. Lougee attends the Free Baptist church. In politics he is a Republican and an earnest advocate of the gold standard. He represented Ward Four in the Common Council of Laconia in 1895 and 1896, serving upon the Committee on Finance for both years. He is connected with Mount Lebanon Lodge, No. 32, F. & A. M .; with Winnepesaukee Lodge, No. 7, I. O. O. F .; and with Laconia Encampment, of which he is Patriarch.
The business ability Mr. Lougee has shown himself to be possessed of gives promise of still greater success than he has yet won.
OSEPH H. FERNALD, who is engaged in agricultural pursuits in the town of Dover, N. II., was born in 1829 in Alexandria, Grafton County, this State, a son of Joseph and Lydia (Fernald) Fernald. When he was an infant his parents removed to Strafford County, locating in the town of Bar- rington; and a few years later they settled in
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Durham, going from there, when he was a lad of twelve years, to the town of Madbury. He was educated in the public schools of Durham and Madbury, and grew to manhood in the latter place. When about twenty years of age, being desirous of learning some useful trade, and being somewhat of a mechanic, he came to Dover, and here served an apprentice- ship of two years and a half with a carpenter. He subsequently worked at his trade in this vicinity for about four years, making his home successively in Madbury and Durham. In 1854 he went to Lawrence, Mass., and from there, in the following spring, to California, making the trip by way of the Isthmus of Panama. Going directly to San Francisco, he there readily found employment at carpenter- ing. After remaining six years in California, he returned to his native State, and settled in Madbury, where he followed his early vocation until 1888, doing a large amount of work in that locality. Coming thence to Dover, he has since given his attention to farming, hav- ing a farm of eighteen acres ; and, besides rais- ing fruit, vegetables, hay, and some grain, he has a small dairy. During the eight or more years that he has been engaged in his present occupation he has met with exceptionally good results, the skilful and systematic methods with which he carries on his work bringing him due reward. Politically, he is a stanch adherent of the principles promulgated by the Democratic party; and he is in all things a true and loyal citizen.
IDNEY B. HAYES, clerk and pay- master of the Cocheco Woollen Manufacturing Company at East Rochester, was born June 16, 1850, in the town of Strafford, son of Charles H. Hayes. Hle traces his descent to pioneer stock. His
great-grandfather on the paternal side removed to Strafford from Barrington in the early part of the eighteenth century, transporting his household goods in an ox cart, and making the journey of ten miles through the woods. After settling in Strafford, Great-grandfather Hayes engaged in clearing a tract of land; and in the humble log cabin built by his own hands his children, including Joseph, the grandfather of Sidney B., were born.
Charles H. Hayes was born and reared in Strafford, and in his younger days was there en- gaged in general farming and dairying. Later in life he became connected with the Cocheco Woollen Manufacturing Company of East Roch- ester, where he spent his declining years, dy- ing in 1891. He was a man of good business ability, and was highly respected for his man- liness and integrity. He took no active part in town or county affairs, but he was a loyal supporter of the principles of the Republican party. He married Miss Sarah J. Foss, of Rochester, who bore him three children, namely: George L., now of Malden, Mass .; Mary E., the wife of the Rev. H. H. French, also of Malden ; and Sidney B., the subject of this sketch.
Sidney B. Hayes obtained his elementary education in the public schools of Strafford. He subsequently attended the Maine State Seminary at Lewiston and the Edward Little Institute of Auburn, Me., graduating from the commercial department of the latter in 1869. Mr. Hayes then became a clerk in the dry - goods store of S. H. Feineman & Brother, of Rochester, remaining eighteen months in their employ. He resigned that situation to enter the office of the Cocheco Woollen Manufact- uring Company in his present responsible capacity, the duties of which he has since dis- charged in a manner that has given the utmost satisfaction. Mr. Hayes takes great interest
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in local affairs. Besides serving as a member of the School Board for three years, he repre- sented Rochester in the State legislature in 1876 and 1877. In 1896 Ward One unani- mously elected him to the City Council for a term of three years. This was an emphatic expression of the esteem in which his fellow- citizens hold him.
Mr. Hayes was first married November 19, 1872, to Miss Emma A. Stone, of South Ber- wick, Me. After a happy wedded life of twenty years she died, leaving no children. On October 31, 1895, Mr. Hayes contracted a second marriage with Mrs. Rosa A. Gowell, of Pittsfield, Me. He was made a Mason in Humane Lodge, No. 21, F. & A. M., of Rochester; and he is now a member of Temple Chapter, R. A. M., of that place. He is likewise an Odd Fellow of prominence, be- longing to Cocheco Lodge, No. 39, of East Rochester, of which he is now Treasurer; and to the Norway Plains Encampment of Roches- ter. He is one of the trustees of the Meth- odist Episcopal church and the superintendent of its Sunday-school.
RED E. BERRY, who is quite largely engaged in general farming in Barn- stead, was born here, October 30, 1857, son of Ira L. and Lavinia E. (Drew) Berry. On April 19, 1827, Eliphalet Berry, father of Ira L., came from Strafford, this State, to Barnstead, and settled on a forty-acre tract of land, which now forms a part of the farm owned by his grandson. This land was a por- tion of the large tract purchased by John Drew ; and the house thereon was built by Elijah Drew, one of John Drew's sons. Eliphalet died December 13, 1859, aged about sixty-two years. He was the father of four children, namely : Ira L., Eliza Ann, Lucy, and Will-
iam. The daughters died young. William, who enlisted in Company B of the Twelfth New Hampshire Regiment, in which he be- came a Corporal, was wounded at the battle of Chancellorsville, so that he died shortly after. He left a widow, Josephine (Evans) Berry, who afterward married George Carver, of Havre de Grace, Md. Eliphalet's wife, Eliz- abeth (Locke) Berry, died January 11, 1877, at the age of seventy-six years.
Ira L. Berry received his education in a district and private school, supplemented by a few terms at Gilmanton and Northfield Academies. Thereafter he followed the pro- fession of teacher in Barnstead and other towns of this State and in Rhode Island. From Rhode Island he returned to the home- stead, which finally became his by inheritance. For fifteen successive years he served the town as Selectman, and was Chairman of the Board for a large part of the time. He also held the office of County Commissioner and that of Justice of the Peace. His reputation was that of a model public official. He died February 28, 1892, aged sixty-three years. Lavinia, his wife, a daughter of Joseph Drew, is a de- scendant of John Drew, who is thought to have been the earliest settler of North Barnstead. J. Horace Drew, of Gilmanton, traces his de- scent to the same ancestor. Lavinia Drew attended both Gilmanton and Northfield Acad- emies, and subsequently taught school for some time before her marriage and in Rhode Island after it. She has become the mother of three children - Fred E., Lucy A., and Myra E. Lucy, after teaching school for a number of years, married J. W. Whitney, of Syracuse, N. Y., who is now engaged in the practice of medicine in Homer, N. Y. Myra is the wife of E. H. Shannon, a lawyer at Laconia.
On completing his education at the New Ilampton Academy, Fred E. Berry worked
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for two years in Beverly, Mass., for an express company. The next seven years were em- ployed in lumber and mercantile business in Florida. Upon his return North he went to Saco, Me., where he was associated with a box manufacturing company for a time. Returning from Saco to the homestead, he has since re- sided here. The farm contains about three hundred acres of land. He gives especial attention to the production of milk. Ou March 27, 1890, Mr. Berry married Edith M. Tarbox, daughter of Charles L. and Julia A. (Tuck) Tarbox, of Biddeford, Me. They have three children - Helen J., Grace E., and Edith T. Berry.
OBERT V. SWEET, M. D., a promi- nent homeopathic physician of Roch- ester, and formerly Mayor of this city, was born in Port Byron, N. Y., April 25, 1865. He was fitted for college at the high school in his native town, and, entering Cor- nell University, was graduated with the class of 1885. He was principal of the Rose Union School, at Rose, N. Y., one year, and then became a medical student at the New York Homoeopathic College and Hospital. He was graduated in 1888, and, immediately locating in Rochester, began the practice of his profes- sion. He has not only attained a high degree of success in his calling, but his popularity as a citizen was of so marked a nature as to result in his nomination and election as Mayor in 1894. In politics he is an independent Democrat. During his term of office he gave the city an able and efficient administra- tion of public affairs. In January, 1896, he pursued a post-graduate course in New York City, after the completion of which he spent eight months in travelling through Great Brit- ain, France, Germany, and Italy for the
benefit of his health, making personal observa- tions of various matters connected with ad- vanced medical science. He returned home a short time ago, and, with renewed vigor and increased knowledge, is now busy with his professional duties.
In June, 1892, Dr. Sweet was united in marriage with Josephine Wallace, daughter of E. G. Wallace, of Rochester. Mrs. Sweet is the mother of three children; namely, Pauline, Carlyle, and Robert Vaughan, Jr.
Dr. Sweet is well advanced in Masonry, and belongs to Humane Lodge, No. 21, A. F. & A. M., Temple Chapter, No. 20, R. A. M., and Palestine Commandery, K. T., of Roches- ter. He is a member of the Congregational church.
OHN HENRY ROBINSON, one of the best-known farmers of Laconia, and an ex-member of .the New Hampshire leg- islature, was born in the house where he now resides, June 22, 1844, son of John Langdon and Rachel C. (Smith) Robinson. The farm which Mr. Robinson occupies was cleared from the wilderness by his great-grandfather, Chase Robinson, who removed hither from Stratham, N.H., many years ago, when Laconia was part of the town of Meredith. He erected the present residence, which was the birthplace of his son, Thomas Robinson, grandfather of the subject of this sketch. Thomas Robinson succeeded to the possession of the homestead, and resided here until his death, which occurred when he was fifty-five years old.
John Langdon Robinson, father of John H., was born at the homestead, April 18, 1809. He inherited the property, and the active period of his life has been devoted to agricult- ural pursuits. In politics he is a Democrat. His wife, Rachel C. Smith, whom he married October 29, 1831, was a daughter of Washing-
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JOHN H. ROBINSON.
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ton Smith, of this town, and grand-daughter of Judge Ebenezer Smith, one of the earliest settlers. Two children were born of this union, namely: Charles F. ; and John Henry, the subject of this sketch. The mother died January 12, 1892, aged eighty-one years. She was a member of the Free Will Baptist church.
John Henry Robinson was educated in the district school and at the New Hampton Lit- erary Institution. Tilling the soil has been his occupation since completing his studies, and for many years past he has managed the Robinson farm with unusual energy and suc- cess. He has one hundred and ten acres of excellent land, forty of which are under cultivation.
On May 15, 1869, Mr. Robinson was joined in marriage with Hannah Blaisdell, daughter of David Blaisdell, of this town. Her father was born in Laconia, February 9, 1809; and his father, John Blaisdell, resided in Meredith previous to the incorporation of this town. David Blaisdell learned the carpenter's trade in his youth, and shortly after finishing his apprenticeship engaged in business for him- self as an architect and builder. Mr. and Mrs. Robinson have one daughter, Eleanor Blaisdell.
Mr. Robinson has served as Supervisor of Elections six years, was for three years a member of the Board of Selectmen, and, while a Representative to the legislature in 1891, was a member of the Committee on Towns. He is connected with Chocorua Lodge, I. O. O. F., of Lakeport; Granite Lodge, Ancient Order of United Workmen; and is a Past Master of Laconia Grange, Patrons of Husbandry. Mr. and Mrs. Robinson are ac- tive members of the Free Will Baptist church, which he has served as Deacon, Treasurer, and chorister.
EORGE F. MATHES, general agent at the Boston & Maine railway depot in Dover, was born March 25, 1856, in the town of Rochester, N. H., son of the late Stephen M. and Louisa F. (Davis) Mathes. He is descended from one of the earlier settlers of this part of the State. His father, Stephen M. Mathes, was born and bred in Milton, N.H. On attaining his majority Stephen, locating in Rochester, engaged in a general mercantile business, and became one of the most prominent men of the place before his death, which occurred at the age of three- score years. He was a leading member of the lodge of Odd Fellows organized in that town. His wife, who was also born in Milton, is now spending her declining years in Rochester. She is a sincere Christian woman and a de- voted member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
George F. Mathes was but a year old when his father died. He received a practical edu- cation in the common schools. When about seventeen years old he began his term of ser- vice in the work with which he has since been identified. The first two months were spent as baggage-master in the station at Rochester. Then he began braking on a freight train, sub- sequently becoming brakeman and baggage- master on a passenger train of the Great Falls & Conway road, which is now a part of the Boston & Maine system. He was afterward promoted to the position of conductor. In 1893 Mr. Mathes accepted his present position in Dover, where he has established for himself a firm place among the most respected busi- ness men and citizens. He is a self-made man in every sense implied by the term, hav- ing by his own efforts steadily climbed the ladder of prosperity. Politically, Mr. Mathes is a sturdy Republican, and for many years was quite an active member of his party. He
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was a delegate to the Constitutional Conven- tion in 1889, and in 1893 represented the town of Wolfboro in the State legislature. Socially, he is a member of Syracuse Lodge, No. 27, K. of P., of Salmonville; and of the Wolfboro Tribe of the Improved Order of Red Men.
Mr. Mathes was married to Miss Fannie A. Parker, daughter of C. H. Parker, of Wolfboro. They have one child, Charles A., who is now a brakeman on the Boston & Maine Railroad. Mr. and Mrs. Mathes are not publicly identi- fied with any religious organization ; but they are liberal in their beliefs, and attend the Unitarian church.
ZEKIEL HAYES, of Alton, and his brother William, are among the most widely known and respected citizens of Belknap County, their unusual loyalty to each other so associating them in the minds of others that, although their youthful years have long since passed, they still are known as the "Hayes Boys." They are sons of William and Polly (Wentworth) Hayes. Ezekiel was born in Alton, May 4, 1826.
William Hayes, the father, came to Alton from Farmington, this State, and in 1804 pur- chased the farm of one hundred acres or more now owned by his son Ezekiel. But little of the land had previously been cleared, so that for the first few years he was obliged to give the larger share of his time to getting off the timber; but he was industrious, and prospered in his undertakings. He purchased another farm of one hundred acres, which he gave to his two older sons. He continued to reside on the home farm until his death, living to be eighty-three years of age. He was a man of strictly temperate habits, believing a moderate drinker to be but a "Prop to the Drunkard's
Grave." For a number of years he served as Selectman of Alton. In church affairs also he was very active, and was a member of the committee that had charge of the erection of the first church built in Alton Centre. Polly, his wife, was a daughter of Stephen Went- worth, of Milton, N. H. She lived to be ninety-two years old. They had six children, namely : Daniel, Stephen W., Olive, Ira F., Ezekiel, and William. Daniel was a carriage- maker and carpenter. Stephen, a carriage- maker and cabinet-maker, was a prominent Republican, and served as Town Clerk a num- ber of years. Olive, the only daughter, mar- ried Joshua Wright, of Alton. Ira Hayes, living in Sangerville, Me., is a prominent Republican politician, and has been a Police Judge for a number of years.
Ezekiel was for five terms a student of Leb- anon Academy, Lebanon, Me., attending school in the winter and working at farming in the summer months. He taught school for a number of years, and all his life has found much pleasure in reading. As mentioned above, he now owns the old homestead, and his brother William owns a farm on the oppo- site side of the street. The two farms contain about three hundred and seventy acres. They carried them on together until a few years ago, when, owing to the expectation of Ezekiel that his son would take up the work with him, they divided their property. While living on sep- arate farms, one never transacted any business without consulting the other ; and the profits of all sales were divided. Even since the di- vision they are as inseparable as ever, each de- ferring important business matters to the judgment of the other, and in busy times assisting each other in their work. William is a widower.
Ezekiel Hayes married Lydia A. French, a daughter of Ira French, a farmer and carpenter
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of Alton. For four years Mrs. Hayes was successfully engaged in school teaching. They have a son and daughter - Mary Ellen and Herbert E. The daughter, who followed teaching for a number of years, is now the wife of James N. Ames, and has four children. Herbert E., the son, is engaged in the pro- vision business in Boston, his store being on Warren Street, in the Roxbury District. Mrs. Hayes is a member of the Congregational church.
ENRY RUST PARKER, M.D., an eminent physician and an esteemed citizen of Dover, while a native of the Granite State, comes of substantial Eng- lish ancestry. He was born at Wolfboro, Jan- uary 24, 1836. His first knowledge of books was obtained in the common schools, where he usually stood very near the head of his class. When but twelve years of age, he had the mis- fortune to lose both of his parents, and was thereby thrown wholly upon his own resources. Realizing the need of a good education in order to insure his future success, the young lad worked for it with a persistent energy that was bound to succeed. Before many years had passed, he was a student in the Wolfboro Academy, and later his name was enrolled among the noted instructors of that institution. While performing his duties as a teacher, Mr. Parker devoted his free time to the study of medicine, for which he had a strong predilec- tion. Afterward he entered the medical de- partment of Dartmouth College, from which he was graduated in 1866. Beginning the practice of his profession in his native town, he continued there until 1881, when he came to Dover. Here, preceded by his reputation for skill and knowledge, he made rapid strides in his profession; and to-day he occupies an assured position among the leading practi-
tioners of this section of New England. He was examining surgeon for pensions in Straf- ford County. Under both administrations of President Cleveland he was President of the Board of Examining Surgeons for this county, and he holds that office still. He is likewise one of the trustees of the million-dollar estate left by the late Hiram Barker, of Farmington, N. H. ; President of the Medical Society of Dover; member of the New Hampshire Medi- cal Society ; member of the Strafford County Medical Society, of which he was President in the years 1891 and 1892 ; and a member of the State Executive Committee, Y. M. C. A., of New Hampshire and Vermont.
Dr. Parker was married May 27, 1866, to Miss Ella M. Thompson, of Wolfboro; and they have become the parents of three chil- dren. These are: Nathalie S., the wife of George B. Harper, of Montreal, Can. ; Al- berta T., the wife of Harry P. Henderson, of Dover; and Henry R. Parker, Jr., who died December 27, 1894, aged nineteen years. The Doctor is a member of the St. Thomas Episcopal Church of Dover. In politics he is a stanch Democrat. He has had the honor of being the first Democrat to fill the Mayor's chair in Dover, having been elected to this office in 1890; and he was re-elected in I891. In Masonic circles he is quite prominent, being a thirty-second degree Mason and a Past Master of the Blue Lodge.
LONZO S. FRENCH, a lifelong resi- dent of Alton, was born here May 25, 1834, son of Ira and Lois (McDuf- fee) French. His paternal grandfather, Eben- ezer French, came from Farmington, N. H., to Alton over a century ago, when the town was only partially settled. Ebenezer purchased in the east part of the town a tract of wild land
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that, when cleared, proved to be the finest pasture in this section. Later in life he bought considerable adjoining land. He was a carpenter by trade. Before coming to Alton he had married Abigail Walker. He died at the age of fifty years. She lived to be about
seventy-five. They had eight children; namely, Ira, Willard, Lydia, Seth, Sarah, Abigail, Eben, and one that died in infancy. Willard and Seth farmed together in Alton. The latter married, while the former remained single. In his younger days Willard, who had received a good common-school education, taught school for several terms. Abigail was twice married, her first husband being Gilman Hunt, and the second Moses Gilman. She died in 1895, aged eighty-five years, leaving no children. Eben, a shoemaker, removed when young to Woburn, Mass., where he mar- ried and spent the remainder of his life. Sarah remained single.
Ira French, the eldest child of his parents, after learning the trade of a caprenter with his father, was overseer of a department in one of the cotton-mills of Dover, N. H., for a few years. When he was twenty-five years of age, his father died; and, returning to the home- stead farm, he afterward carried it on until his own death. After becoming the owner of the place, he purchased sufficient land to increase it in size to about two hundred acres. He made a specialty of stock-raising. In politics he was a Whig, and took an active part in matters of public interest. In religious belief he was a Free Baptist, belonging to the church at East Alton. He was born in the first year of the present century, and died in 1877, aged seventy-seven years. By his wife Lois, a daughter of James McDuffee, he was the father of six children - Oren L., Ann E., James M., Lydia A., Alonzo S., and Eleanor M. Of these Oren, a resident of Alton, Lydia, the
wife of Ezekiel Hayes, and Alonzo are the only survivors. Ann E. was the wife of Jo- seph B. Evans; James M., who was station agent at Alton Bay for twenty-seven years, left a widow and children; and Eleanor died when sixteen years old.
Having first attended the district schools, Alonzo S. French studied for a few terms at both Wolfboro and New Hampton Academies. Upon the completion of his course he taught school in the winter for a time, working with his father during the remainder of the year. At a later date he took full charge of the homestead, which he managed until he came to Alton village in 1886. On June 6, 1858, he married. Nancy J. Furber, daughter of George W. Furber, of Wolfboro. Mr. French has been a Republican since the organization of the party. In 1860 he was superintendent of the town schools. In 1866 and 1867, he represented the town in the Lower House of the State legislature, serving therein on the Committee on Public Lands. For four years, beginning in 1888, he was Town Treasurer ; and he was Selectman in 1864, 1865, 1887, 1888, 1895, and 1896, being on the board with Amos L. Rollins, when the war debt was raised, and Chairman of that body in 1896. He was for many years a Trustee of the Five Cent Savings Bank, and in 1896 he was elected for two years to serve as Moderator of town meetings.
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